《Nightfall》


 Chapter 1: The Beginning

    Chapter 1: The Beginning


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    A long long time ago, there were many unknown ces, in which there lived many unknown people.


    ...


    ...


    The sun was a massive fireball setting in the distance of the wilderness, radiating blistering red mes, retracting at a slow continuous decline. The newly sprouted moss that had appeared after the snowmelt had spread everywhere, and resembled burn scars. Silence prevailed, only to be interrupted by the asional screech of an eagle or the trotting sound of gazelles in the distance.


    There were three individuals that stood in the open and barren wilderness, and under a small tree, is where they had gathered. They didn¡¯t greet one another, instead, all three of them were looking down in tacit unison as if something under the tree had sparked their interest and was worthy of careful inspection.


    There were two ant colonies fighting around the tree¡¯s roots that had broken through the icy soil. Perhaps a home as perfect as this was truly hard to find in this deste ce, and the battle was getting brutal, instantly leaving thousands of dead ant bodies behind. This might have sounded very tragic and bloody, though, in reality, all that was left was a peppering of little ck dots on the ground.


    The weather was frigid, but the three individuals weren¡¯t wearing much as if cold didn¡¯t bother them at all. They kept watching attentively, until one of them broke the silence and whispered, "In this worldly kingdom of ants, wherefore is the Grand Tao?"


    He was a slim, short and boyish-lookingd, wearing a pale blue corless shirt, and he was carrying a sheathless, thin wooden sword. His jet ck hair was carefullybed into a bun and held in ce with a wooden fork that looked like it could slip out at any time, but at the same time, it remained unshakably rooted, firmly, like a pine tree.


    "While the chief monk was preaching, I saw countless ants flying up as they bathed in the sunlight."


    It was a young monk who spoke this time. He was dressed in tattered cotton kasaya, and there was ck, sharp, stubble sprouting from his scalp. This somehow resembled the strength and determination written on his face and conveyed by his words.


    "Ants may be able to fly, but they will fall eventually. They shall never touch the sky," thed carrying the wooden sword eximed as he shook his head.


    "If you hold this belief, then you will never be able to understand the true meaning of the Taoist Heart," said the young monk as he slowly blinked his eyes, still looking down at the warring ant colonies, "I heard your temple dean recruited a new child disciple with the surname of Chen. Then you should understand that you would never be the only prodigy at a ce like the Zhishou Temple."


    Thed with the wooden sword raised an eyebrow and replied with a sneer, "I will never understand how someone constrained like you is qualified to represent Xuankong Temple as its wayfarer in the world."


    "The ants will fly, just like they will fall. However, they are better at climbing, and they are good at letting their fellow ants climb upon them. They are not afraid of sacrifice and as they pile upon one another, as long as there are enough of them, they shall eventually pile up high enough to touch the sky," said the young monk as he ignored the defiantment and continued gazing at the anxiously scurrying ants below.


    Amidst the increasing twilight, an eagle screeched sharply, sounding terrified. Perhaps it was the three strange individuals standing under the tree, or maybe it was the imagery of an enormous pile of ants that had reached the sky, or could it be something else entirely?


    "I am really frightened."


    The wooden swordd admitted abruptly while straightening his thin shoulders.


    The young monk agreed by nodding, even though his facial expression remained just as calm and determined.


    The third youth standing under the tree was of strong build and wrapped in clothing that resembled animal skin. His naked legs were as solid as rock and under the rough skin, the muscles seemed to contain explosive strength. He had remained quiet, without uttering a word, and yet the goosebumps on his skin exposed how he really felt at that very moment.


    These three young men came from the three most mystical ces of the universe, wayfaring this world under the order of their respective sects. They resembled the brightest of the stars across the world, but even they could not help but sense an overwhelming fear as they stood here in the wilderness on this day.


    Eagles should not fear ants since they are simply ck dots to the former. Ants should not fear eagles either because they are not even worth a bite to the eagle. The world of the ants had never seen or heard of a creature as powerful as the eagle, hence thetter remained unfathomable to the former.


    Nevertheless, over the span of many centuries and millennia, a few very distinguished ants among the crowd would, out of enigmatic reasons, decide to strip their gaze from the rotten leaves and just for once, gaze up at the crystal blue sky...and then, the world was never the same to them.


    The feares from seeing.


    ...


    ...


    The three youths were now looking at a shallow ditch only a few dozen feet away. There was nothing but darkness in the ditch, and it contrasted sharply with the mottled surface of the wilderness.


    The ditch had appeared out of nowhere about two hours ago and immediately stretched all the way off into the horizon as if it was hacked by an invisible ghost with a massive hatchet the size of a mountain, or drawn out by a pir-sized brush used by the divine craftsman. This was utterly shocking, puzzling and terrifying.


    "I always thought Invariant Yama was just a legend," said the wooden swordd as he stared at the ck gash.


    "ording to the legend, Invariant Yama bore seventy thousand offspring, perhaps one of them happened to be wandering in this world."


    "Legend is just legend," said the wooden swordd, with a poker face, "Legend says a sage shall be born every millennium, and who has seen one in the past few millennia?"


    "If you really didn¡¯t believe in it, why don¡¯t you dare cross that ck sh?"


    No one dared to cross the shallow ditch, regardless of how proud or powerful they may be.


    Ants could crawl over it, insects could hop over it, gazelles could leap over it, eagles could fly over it, but not the humans.


    They dared not cross it, precisely because they are human.


    "If that child really exists, then...where is he?" asked the wooden swordd as he gazed off at the horizon.


    By that time, the sun was almost set and darkness poured in from all directions while the temperature in the wilderness plummeted. A harrowing sensation began to unravel throughout the world.


    "The dark night has befallen, and it is spreading everywhere. Where could you search in this?"


    The youth in animal skin finally broke his silence. In contrast to his age, his voice sounded deep and coarse, its vibrations resembling that of a tumultuous river, or the sound of rusty des being sharpened on rocks.


    Upon saying this, he left, in a rather peculiar way.


    Several mes suddenly red up from his strong naked legs, wrapping his lower body in a burst of crimson red, while the howling wind rolled the fine rocks off the ground incessantly. Then, as if grabbed by a source of an invisible force, his body flew up more than 40 meters into the sky, then he was howling and pounding down on the ground, and with this impact he bounced up immediately. Like this, the youngster bounded away like a rock in a seemingly arbitrary manner, looking extremely clumsy yet with extraordinary strength and speed.


    "His name is Tang, just Tang. I don¡¯t know his full name."


    Thoughtfully, the wooden swordd stated, "In another time and in another ce, between him and I, only one will live. How powerful would his master be if the disciple is already so adept? ... I heard his master has been pursuing the practice of ¡¯23 Year Cicada¡¯, I wonder whether he will end up carrying a thick shell once he emerges."


    There was nothing but silence. No one said anything. Puzzled, he turned his head.


    The young monk had his eyes tightly closed, his eyelids trembled, as if thinking hard about something that was truly perplexing, actually the young monk had withdrawn himself to this bizarre state ever since the other youth in animal skins spoke the words about the dark night.


    Sensing his gaze, the monk slowly opened his eyes and grinned, showing a sense of mercy instead of what used to be a determined and calm expression. Crushed flesh, blood, and what remained of his chewed up tongue showed through his slightly parted lips.


    The wooden swordd frowned upon seeing this.


    Slowly he removed his prayer beads from his wrist and solemnly put them back around his neck, the young monk walked away. His footsteps were heavy and steady, very slow, yet his shadow almost disappeared afar in an instant.


    Left alone under the tree, the wooden swordd erased all emotion from his face, showing absolute calm, or more like an absolute indifference. Gazing at the rock-like bouncing shadow in the distant northern dust, he scoffed, "Evil devil."


    Then gazing off at the shadow of the young monk walking quietly towards the west, he stated, "Heretic outcast".


    "Unworthy."


    The Tao of the evil devil and the heretic outcast is one that is unworthy.


    After making his statement, the thin wooden sword he carried on his back whistled and vibrated unprompted, suddenly turning into a ray of light as it shot up in a squeal, shredding the small tree into 53333 parts, turning its leaves, branches, and trunk into a fine dust that was raining down onto the euphoric ants.


    "The mute shall utter words, salt to be sprinkled to the bread."


    The youngd strolled towards the east while humming a song, and the little wooden sword followed quietly, drifting in the air just a few meters behind him.


    ...


    ...


    In the first year of the Great Tang¡¯s Tianqi era, the most extraordinary phenomenon had befallen the Wilderness, gathering World Wayfarers from all of the sects, to no avail.


    Starting from that day, Qinian the sessor of the Xuankong Temple never uttered another word as he began to practice a Silent Meditation. Tang, the sessor of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had be a recluse off in the desert, his whereabouts still remained unknown. Ye Su, the sessor of Zhishou Abbey, conquered his ultimate bottleneck and went about touring the nations. All three of them seemed to have gained something.


    Unbeknownst to the three of them, on that very same day, as the dark night was about to fall, on the other side of the ck ditch that no one had dared to cross, by the side of a small pond not far from the capital, sat a schr. A schr wearing straw shoes and a ragged coat.


    The schr seemed oblivious to the powerful and forbidding nature that the ck ditch stood for. He simply sat there, with a book in one hand, and a wooden cup in the other. He read a book when he could, took a rest when he was tired, drank water when he was thirsty, looking perfectly happy and peaceful despite his thorough dusting.


    As the three people from afar left and as the sand managed to gradually fill up the shallow ck ditch splitting The Wilderness, the schr finally stood up. He lightly dusted off his clothes, tied the wooden cup to his waist and carefully put his book back inside his coat. He then nced briefly towards the direction of the capital before walking away.


    ...


    ...


    There was a longne in the Chang¡¯an capital, to its east sat the residence of the Counsel Official, and to its west sat the residence of the Xuanwei General. Albeit they were not considered top-notch officials, even though they boasted a deep sense of power and authority. While this area normally enjoyed a lovely peace and quiet, that was not going to be the case today.


    The residence of the Counsel Official was to receive good news, as the midwives were busy at work. Strangely, everyone from lords to young maids looked as if their joy was mixed with some other emotion, and no one dared tough. The maids holding water basins, rushing, around the corner of the wall even looked terrified as they overheard the noiseing in from outside.


    The famously fearless and valiant Xuanwei General Lin Guangyuan was no longer to be fearless or valiant, as he had displeased the empire¡¯s number one fearless and valiant general Xiahou. He had been used of treason for colluding with the enemy, and after several months of interrogation by His Highness the prince, the oue was finally settled.


    The oue was clear and the punishment simple: confiscation of all property and decapitation of each and every person in his family.


    The gates in front of the Counsel Official¡¯s residence remained firmly closed. The chambein nervously peeked through his gate at the simrly firmly closed gate of the general¡¯s residence. He could overhear the sounds of heavy des hacking into flesh, and a sound that resembled watermelons rolling around the floor, he couldn¡¯t help but shiver in fear.


    The two families had been neighbors for many years, and he knew them well over at the General¡¯s Residence, from the chambein to the gatekeeper. Listening to the terrifying soundsing from across thene, he could almost visualize the countless sharp des cutting open their necks, their heads with their familiar faces rolling relentlessly on the quartzite floor, then shing with the door, and eventually piling together in a heaping bloody mess.


    Blood seeped under the gate of the General¡¯s Residence, looking rather dark and sticky, like sticky rice puree mixed with cinnabar, containing some bits and pieces of flesh that looked like purple yam mash. The chambein stared at the sight his face as white as a sheet. No longer able to contain his emotions, he doubled over while bracing on the door, and promptly began to vomit.


    Suddenly there was the hurried sound of horses approached from outside the gate, and people being chided, followed by abrupt knocking sounds. There was a faint cursing and then yelling that seemed to say that someone had escaped from the General¡¯s Residence. From his horse, a private general of the Prince¡¯s Residence yelled his order at his men, "No one can go missing!"


    Meanwhile, there were scratches and blood stains on a wall in the inner gardens of the residence of the Official of Counsel.


    "Young master, please listen and obey, you must not go out, let Xiaochu go, let him go please..."


    Inside a firewood shed not far from there, a blood-soaked chambein of the General¡¯s Residence stared at a pair of 4-5 year-old boys, his lips trembled as he uttered deeply unpleasant and husky sounds, while his wrinkled and dirty face expressed nothing but despair and struggle, so much so that murky tears squeezed out of the corner of his eyes.


    It didn¡¯t take the Yulin Royal Guards long to find this firewood shed once they had broken into the Official of Counsel Residence. Upon carefully inspecting the two dead bodies of an old man and a little boy, the lieutenant looked relieved and reported energetically: "All dead, none are missing."


    ...


    ...


    The easiest way to depict the term of "unworldly sublime being" is that sublime beings are normally unworldly, thus those who are unworldly tended to be sublime beings. This is quite obvious, though there is some sense in it. To the mere mortals, what the sublime beings fear is often out of their reach, and their joys are simrly unfathomable.


    As a result, the mortal world remained ignorant of what happened outside of their realm, while the unworldly would pay no attention to the deaths or births taking ce in the mortal world. Just like they wouldn¡¯t care about a butcher¡¯s scale being tricked, a drunkard¡¯s cer being chewed through by rats, the death of a Xuanwei General, or some government official weing a newborn daughter.


    There was never any connection between the joys and sorrows of the two worlds.


    It would take the power of a saint if a connection was ever to take ce.


    In the suburbs of Chang¡¯an capital stood a high-rising mountain that was mostly hidden up in the clouds. Along the steepness of its west side, a man was climbing up slowly. He looked very tall and strong from the back, wearing a ck jacket over a thin shirt and holding a meal box.


    He finally managed to work his way against the wind and arrived at a cave, he sat down, opened the meal box, took out his chopsticks and picked a slice of ginger which he put into his mouth and chewed carefully, followed by another two slices ofmb, and let out sigh showing pleasure and approval.


    Chang¡¯an at sunset was soon to be obscured by the dark night, while a heavy rain and dark clouds were gradually approaching from afar.


    "It almost feels like I am seeing you like in the old times," said the tall man rather emotionally, as he gazed at some ce within the capital.


    Then he raised his head to look at the sky, and pointing at it with his right hand, he said: "And you, what is the point of flying so high after all?"


    Obviously, he was talking to two different people.


    After a brief silence, the tall man downed his bowl of rice wine in one gulp, and held up the empty bowl and cheered in all directions around him saying, "wind blowing, rain falling, and the night shall befall."


    As if in unison with his words, the wind came from beyond the mountain, blowing through his cor making a howling sound, and the old trees rooted on the rocks shook fervently while the mountain rocks kept falling. The cloud that hovered on top of the capital suddenly darkened, and countless threads of rainwater joined each other to ssh down amidst thest shred of twilight. By the time he uttered thest word, a dark night had prevailed covering most of the sky, making it as ck as the pupils of the king of hell.


    The man mmed down the wine bowl, and muttered angrily: "So damn ck..."

 Chapter 2: Rain in City of Wei and a Lad with a Servant

    Chapter 2: Rain in City of Wei and a Lad with a Servant


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In the spring of the 13th year of Tianqi era of Tang, there was rain in City of Wei.


    This military border town, which was located in the northwest of the extensive empire, was built to hold off the invasion of grasnd barbarians. The cob walls were ramparted firmly around the city and they looked like a stocky earth block.


    When the northwestern wind started to blow in the dry seasons, the floating dust on the cob walls would flutter around andnd on the crude barracks or the soldiers. The whole world would be ocher and there would be a sandstorm when people were turning their quilts during sleep.


    This rain was right in time and the soldiers were very pleased in this dry spring. The light rain was washing off the roofs, as if it could also wash people¡¯s eyes to be brighter.


    At least Ma Shixiang¡¯s eyes were pretty bright now.


    As the top military officer in the City of Wei, he was pretty humble now. He sessfully covered his dissatisfaction with the footprints on the expensive carpet and pretended to act a little surprised.


    Saluting to the elder with a dirty robe sitting at a low tea-table, he said in a low voice, "Dear Sir, does the noble need anything? If she insists on leaving tomorrow, I could send a hundred soldiers to protect her and make a record at the Military Ministry right away."


    The elder pointed at the figures inside the tent, shaking his head to agree with a smile. At that moment, a cold and arrogant woman¡¯s voice sounded in the tent. "That¡¯s OK. Just tend to your own business."


    It took very little time for Ma Shixiang to figure out who was in the carriage when they had crashed into City of Wei this morning. So he had no feelings about her cold attitude and didn¡¯t dare toin.


    The person inside the tent suddenly spoke after a while. "The trip from City of Wei to the capital has to go through Min Mountain, right where the roads might have been washed out by the rain. Assign a guide from the army for me."


    Ma Shixiang was stunned and thought about that irritating guy. He lowered his head and said, "There is a candidate."


    ...


    ...


    Several lieutenants were staring at each other outside the barracks with different looks on their faces, some with regretful or shocked expressions. Apparently, none of them expected that Ma Shixiang would choose that person to be the guide for the noble.


    "General, are you really ready to let him go like this?" A lieutenant asked with surprise.


    City of Wei was very small, with less than 300 soldiers including the officers. It was more like a group of ouws. The so-called general was really just a lowest ranking officer. However, Ma Shixiang was strict with his soldiers, and as the head of the bandits, he liked to be called general. His subordinates didn¡¯t dare to talk to him without using the title general, even in the daily conversation.


    Ma Shixiang cleaned his face and looked at the tawny pools of water around the barracks. He sighed. "We can¡¯t always keep him in this damn ce. The rmendation letter was received six months ago. That guy has a great future and he¡¯ll go to the capital to take his first test at the Academy after all. Luckily, he could go together with that noble. Let me do her a favor."


    "I don¡¯t think that noble will feel grateful... " His lieutenant angrily replied.


    The door of the barracks was pushed open and a pretty maidservant walked in. She looked at Ma Shixiang and the lieutenants and coldly said, "Show me the guide."


    As the noble¡¯s maidservant, she didn¡¯t hide her slight arrogance when facing the military officers of the imperial court.


    The prime minister¡¯s gatekeepers, nobles¡¯ closest maidservants, and princes¡¯ retainers were the three most troublesome kinds of people in all of the bureaucracy. Ma Shixiang really didn¡¯t want to deal with them. So after chitchatting for a few seconds, he called a lieutenant to go with the maidservant to find the guide.


    The rain temporarily stopped, washing the City of Wei clean. A few willows on both sides of the street sprouted, it was beautiful. But the city was so small that they didn¡¯t walk long to reach their destination, where there was a noisy barrack.


    There was a lot of noise in that house. The maidservant slightly frowned and thought, "How could some people drink in the barracks in the daylight?" As the door curtain was blown open, the sounds inside became clear. They were ying a finger-guessing game, but not the good sort¡ªlistening to the noise, the maidservant¡¯s face turn red and she clenched her fists in her sleeves.


    "Let¡¯s y the lewd finger-guessing game! Who¡¯s dirty, you¡¯re dirty! Who¡¯s dirty, I¡¯m dirty! Who¡¯s dirty, he¡¯s dirty!"


    The noise kept up for a very long time and there was no winner. The maidservant grew angry, picked up a corner of the door curtain, and looked at those people irritably. She immediately saw a youngster at the other side of the square table.


    That youngster was fifteen or sixteen with a standard military, cotton-padded jacket, the front of which was full of oil and dirt. Maybe he had naturally curly ck hair, or he hadn¡¯t washed his hair for a long time so it was oily and curly. However, he had an extremely clean face, therefore his eyebrows, as well as several freckles on his face were outstandingly clear.


    "Who¡¯s dirty, you¡¯re dirty!"


    The game was very lewd, as opposed to the youngster¡¯s expression which was significantly focused and serious. He looked holy and noble without any lewd qualities. He was gesticting "scissor", "stone", and "cloth" with his right hand and it seemed that the game was more important than his life.


    Several green-headed flies with strong vitality were trying tond on the oil-tainted front of his cotton-padded jacket and were driven off by the youngster¡¯s fists.


    "I won!"


    The finger-guessing game was so long that it would cost all the air in the two battlers¡¯ lungs, and it finally came to the end. The ck-haired youngster wielded his right arm to dere his victory andughed happily with a cute dimple on his left cheek.


    But the youngster¡¯s opponent wouldn¡¯t surrender. He insisted that the youngster had changed his gesture during the final game. Therefore, they were arguing and every soldier in the room took sides. At this moment, a voice sounded from nowhere. "Follow the old rules. Sangsang has the final say."


    Everyone looked at the corner in the room where there was an eleven-year-old girl moving a bucket. She was short and thin, with dark skin andmon eyes. She was wearing loose handmaiden clothes, which seemed to be stolen from somewhere by her master, and carrying a bucket which was heavier than herself.


    That little handmaiden named Sangsang put down the bucket and turned around. The soldiers looked at her nervously, just like gamblers that were waiting for the dealer to reveal the oue of a dice game. And obviously, it wasn¡¯t the first time for this scene.


    The little handmaiden frowned and gave the youngster a look. Then she looked at that angry soldier at the other side of the table and said seriously, "At round twenty-three, you were showing a ¡¯scissor¡¯ and he a ¡¯stone¡¯. But you said, ¡¯He¡¯s dirty.¡¯ So you lost."


    The room was filled withughter and the people cleared out of the room. The soldier paid unwillingly with dirty words. The youngster happily epted the money, wiped it with the oil and dirt on his chest, and then touched the soldier¡¯s shoulder tofort him.


    "Take it easy. In City of Wei... no, in the whole world, no one can beat Ning Que."


    The maidservant¡¯s face turned ugly, so the lieutenant¡¯s face was ugly too because he was observing her. He clutched the curtain in his hand and took a deep breath. He was trying to cough but was stopped by the maidservant.


    The maidservant stopped the lieutenant and followed that youngster and the little handmaiden as they left the barracks. She observed and watched quietly. No one knew what she intended to do, and the lieutenant had to believe that the noble¡¯s close supporters were all filled with entricities.


    That youngster named Ning Que didn¡¯t do anything special along the way. He leisurely bought some food and said hello to the fat aunt in the tavern. The only thing weird which made the maidservant feel strange and angry was that the thin little handmaiden was trying to drag the bucket, but the youngster wasn¡¯t willing to help.


    The empire was a strictly hierarchical state. But people here were simple and honest. Even in the capital Chang¡¯an, where it was shy and gloomy, the most indifferent noble couldn¡¯t see such a thin and weak girl of eleven or twelve carry the bucket so strenuously without being moved.


    "Are soldiers allowed to have a maidservant?" the pretty maidservant asked depressingly.


    The lieutenant scratched his head and answered, "Numerous immigrants rushed to the south and the borders during the years of the drought in Hebei Province. There were dead people everywhere. It¡¯s said that Sangsang was saved by Ning Que from among the dead bodies, and because Ning Que was also an orphan, the two of them have lived together since then."


    "And then he registered to be a soldier and his only condition was to take this little girl with him." He looked at the maidservant and carefully exined. "It¡¯s known that this isn¡¯t allowed in the army, but their situation is special. After all, we couldn¡¯t sentence a little girl to death. So everybody just ignored it."


    Listening to this exnation, the maidservant¡¯s face looked a little better. But when she saw Ning Que strolling with a grilled half-chicken and the little handmaiden dragging the bucket behind him with difficulty, her mood turned bad again. She coldly said, "This isn¡¯t living together, this is killing her."


    City of Wei was indeed small. Not long after, those four people arrived at a cabin in the south, with small stones on the ground outside. The cabin was surrounded by crude fences. The maidservant and lieutenant stood outside and looked at the cabin.


    The little handmaiden moved the bucket, which was half her height, to the water vat and stepped on the stool, tried her best to pour the water into the vat. Then she began to wash rice and vegetables. She took up a dust cloth to wipe the tables, chairs, doors, and windows before the rice was steamed, and sometimes her body was enveloped by the steam.


    There was a rainst night and left an ugly trace on the windows. The little handmaiden cleaned the traces of the raindrops and the cabin was soon clean and bright.


    Apparently, she did all this every day and she did it expertly. But still, there waspassion for her, seeing her working like an ant with sweat and a red face.


    There were no such feelings held by Ning Que. Hey on a bamboo chair peacefully with an old book in his left hand. He wrote on the wet ground while reading. When he ruminated with his hands stretching, a cup of hot tea was put into his hand.


    The soldier in City of Wei was familiar with this scene, so he wouldn¡¯t be surprised, but the maidservant wasn¡¯t. Especially when she saw the little handmaiden busy with cooking while looking after thed, she became pensive.

 Chapter 3: The Poverty-Stricken yet Wise Lad

    Chapter 3: The Poverty-Stricken yet Wise Lad


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    It would be okay if she is your handmaiden, but didn¡¯t you find her among the dead bodies? Didn¡¯t you say you were kin to each other? And even if she was your handmaiden, don¡¯t you think she is way too young to bear such heavy chores? How can such a young man be sozy? Why can¡¯t you just do things by yourself?


    Perhaps this triggered bad childhood memories, or maybe her imagination of certain beautiful emotions was somehow sabotaged by this guy. The maidservant pushed open the gate and walked in and nced at the bamboo recliner, more specifically at the old book that thed was so absorbed in. She said acerbically, "Silly of me to think that you could be reading a masterpiece so majestic that it made you so immersed in it, but what do I see? ¡¯Article on the Response of the Tao¡¯, a book that can be bought anywhere by anyone! Do you really think someone like you would have the privilege of entering the world of cultivation?"


    Sitting upright, Ning Que looked curiously at this well-dressed young girl, who should never have shown up here in the City of Wei, and then turned his nce to the lieutenant, who was suffering in awkward silence. "It¡¯s the only book I could find, so I have to live with it. I am just curious, not that I am expecting any privilege of course," he exined.


    The maidservant certainly wasn¡¯t expecting such a casual answer, and she suddenly didn¡¯t know what to say. As she turned to look at the little handmaiden pouring the coal ashes by the door, she said with an annoyed tone, "How do you even consider yourself a man of our Great Tang Empire?"


    Looking perplexed, Ning Que frowned a little and followed her nce to see Sangsang standing by the window in a stupor, still holding the dishcloth. He suddenly understood the reason of her sharp reproach. Smiling with a cute dimple, he said, "You are probably older than me, so... why don¡¯t you just see me as a boy instead of a man?"


    The maidservant had never in her lifee across such a thick-skinned and shameless person. With an ice-cold expression on her face and slowly clenching her fists, she was hardly able to contain her anger. But then she saw the handwriting drawn by tree branches on the ground, which seemed to leave her speechless.


    ...


    ...


    At the best barrack in the City of Wei, the elder, dressed in a ragged robe, sat there resting with his eyes closed, while Ma Shixiang, the border general, reported to the noble guest across the curtain with great respect and humility, even though he couldn¡¯t conceal his surprise.


    Perplexed, he asked, "You are not happy with the guide? May I ask why?"


    Sounding extremely disappointed, the noble behind the curtain chided. "I need a guide who is highly capable and intelligent, not azy, weak, and uselessd who is immersed in his cultivation dreams! Is he even capable of tying up a chicken?"


    Awkwardly, Ma Shixiang tried to exin. "As far as I am concerned, while still young, Ning Que has actually chopped off the heads of many barbarians of the grasnd in the past few years... I mean, tying up a few chickens... should certainly not be a problem."


    The Great Tang was an Empire that holds military honor in high esteem. And when this honor was at risk, Ma Shixiang chose to retaliate without hesitation, despite the high rank and prestige of the person behind the curtain. The sarcasm in his response was proof of his attitude.


    "Is a killer equivalent to a good guide then?" replied the cold voice from behind the curtain.


    Even more subserviently, Ma Shixiang went on to exin. "Among the 300 soldiers in the City of Wei, Nin Que certainly isn¡¯t the one who killed the most enemies, but I can bet my life that thisd can ultimately survive any battle, regardless of how bad the circumstance might be."


    Then he raised his chin and said with a smile, "Thanks to the umtion of his medals, he has already been rmended by the Military Ministry. The boy did a good job and sessfully passed the first examinations six months ago, and he will be checking into The Academy as soon as he gets back to the capital this time."


    Upon hearing about The Academy, there was a sudden silence behind the curtain, and the noble said no more.


    Once Ma Shixiang left, the elder opened his eyes slowly. Something seemed to have sparked interest in those aged and calm eyes. Looking at the curtain, he gently said, "Isn¡¯t it rather surprising that a soldier from such a remote border town would make it to The Academy? In any case, thisd must be topnotch in both character andpetency, hence he should do well as our guide."


    "I have only been abroad for one year. Never would I have thought The Academy, sacred as it is, was going to ept vulgar soldiers of this kind."


    Even though sounding careless and unappreciative, her real attitude seemed to have changed somehow. This noble was no longer firmly against having Ning Que as their guide. The Academy, a name that made this bigwig change her mind so easily, must undoubtedly be somewhere quite extraordinary.


    Then the elder changed the topic, looking slightly perplexed. "As I went to see the calligraphy he had written on the floor, which was the third chapter of the ¡¯Article on the Response of the Tao¡¯, the linear structure was concise and extremely vivid at the same time. All that he had used was a tree branch on wet soil, and yet the strength of the calligraphy conveyed a sense of metallic sharpness on ceramic. This little soldier is definitely on the right path in the art of calligraphy, and I really wonder how he was trained, and who he learned it from."


    "That soldier might have some minor and insignificant talent with the brush and seeing it the first time was rather shocking, but thinking about it now, they were probably just clever but worthless tricks. He could probably end up selling his calligraphy outside the Scent Workshop in the capital, if he was lucky,"


    replied the noble with indifference.


    The elder shook his head and said, "Novelty is probably the key to it. I¡¯m not a master of calligraphy, but those strikes did convey a subtle sense of alchemy, which is a highly rare feature in calligraphy. It slightly resembles the unique methods of those Talisman Taoism Masters."


    "You don¡¯t mean the Divine Talisman, do you?"


    Startled, the noble replied mockingly. "Out of the billions of people in the world, merely a dozen Talisman Taoism Masters exist, some of which reside in the imperial court, others in their abbeys, meditating and cultivating for a lifetime to achieve the ability to condense the breath of nature in alchemy strikes. Thatd emitted no such air, being a mere mortal. Even if he studied the ¡¯Article on the Response of the Tao¡¯ for 50 more years, he would probably remain ordinary without a chance to have a glimpse into the initial stage, so there is no way he can everpare to those Masters."


    The elder smiled and said nothing. Despite being a cultivator and highly respected by the noble for his skills and seniority, there remained a pretty huge gap between their statuses. Therefore, he should say no more unless he wanted to risk offending her.


    Nevertheless, he disagreed with her about the young soldier. From the perspective of the elder, the chance of a mere mortal in this world of sensing the breath of nature and subsequently entering the initial stage was one in a million. The first step of being able to sense was extremely difficult if not impossible. Saying that, if Ning Que managed to study in The Academy, and by a stroke of luck gained ess to the legendary second floor to enter the world of cultivation eventually, his enigmatic and powerful style of calligraphy would surely be a precious gift.


    In the worst case scenario, his calligraphy skills alone would inevitably earn him the appreciation of the sublime beings from the Academy and the Taoist altar, or at least leave the schrs and calligraphers pretty shocked.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que put down the book, shook his head, and made his way outside, while still looking slightly disappointed and reluctant.


    This tome of ¡¯Article on the Response of the Tao¡¯ was indeed as ordinary as the maidservant had pointed out, and he bought it at a bazaar in Kaiping as a child. He knew this very well, but never gave up reading and memorizing it incessantly, treasuring it as if it was the ¡¯Seven Tomes of Arcane¡¯, enshrined at the Unknowable ce of Haotian Taoism.


    The corners of the book looked dpidated and worn out from extensive reading, so much that it would¡¯ve fallen apartpletely had Sangsang not carefully sewn it back together. Unfortunately, despite having read through every page, and memorized every phrase over and over again, it all felt in vain to him. He couldn¡¯t even perform the simplest act of sensing as the book depicted, let alone achieve what they called the Initial Stage of cultivation.


    There had been disappointment and even desperation, but he felt much more relieved upon finding out that the vast majority of ordinary people in this world are incapable of sensing the Qi of Nature. Indeed, the legendary Unworldly Supreme Beings were anything but normal and only the very rare and abnormal ones were gifted enough to sense the Qi of Nature. No wonder the night sky in Chang¡¯an wasn¡¯t brimming with flying swords and supreme beings floating all over the ce, despite the ubiquity of the ¡¯Article on the Response of Tao¡¯.


    Ning Que considered himself to be pretty normal, or simply quite ordinary. Yet imagine havinge across a massive mountain of treasure right in front of you, but having to leave empty-handed; or suddenly discovering that nature was replete with a wonderful invisible cloud-like substance called the Primordial Qi, and not being able even to touch any of it... That would certainly leave a bitter taste in the mouth.


    ...


    ...


    "The City of Wei is so impoverished and the Grasnd barbarians have already been defeated by His Majesty the Emperor. They shall not dare cross the line for several years, meaning that I won¡¯t be able to get many medals anyway. So of course, it¡¯s great for me to go back to the capital. I¡¯m certainly not bitter about it."


    In the dimly-lit military camp, Ning Que bowed down to the general respectfully and sincerely as he went on to exin. "I¡¯m just thinking that there is still time till the date of registration at The Academy, and I don¡¯t see the need to leave in such a rush. Over the past few years, as I have served under yourmand¡ªI dare not say I made a drastic improvement¡ªbut your teaching has made me into someone worthy of respect, and I have even been lucky enough to be epted by The Academy. Truth be told, I would much rather spend more time in the City of Wei and stay by your side longer so that I can learn more from you, or simply sit and chat with you like this."


    Staring at thed in front of him, the beard of the general started to drift slightly as a result of the night wind, or perhaps from pure frustration. Obviously annoyed, he sneered. "Ning Que you little brat, since when have you be so shameless?"


    Pulling a serious face, Ning Que replied, "I can rid myself of this face anytime, as long as it can be of use to you, my general."


    "Now tell me the truth," with a cold and serious expression, Ma Shixiang asked, "why are you unwilling to work for them as a guide?"


    After a long silence, Nin Que finally muttered, "General, the noble doesn¡¯t seem to like me at all."


    "The noble doesn¡¯t like you?" Ma Shixiang chided gravely. "Have you forgotten who you are? Do you understand that you are not a student of The Academy yet, and as a soldier, you simply have to obey the order of your superior, which means to obey me! You are not entitled to worry about whether the noble likes you or not! And whether you like her or not, no one, absolutely no one, would care! You just need to obey and carry out your duty!"


    Stubborn as he was, Ning Que stared down at the tiny grass, sprouting out from the soil in between his boots with simr determination, expressing his unwillingness through this silence.


    Ma Shixiang didn¡¯t know what to do with thisd anymore. He sighed. "Come on, tell me what is wrong with you? Why won¡¯t you just go back to the capital with them?"


    With a very serious face, Ning Que said, "I checked their people and carriages outside to find that they have obviously been under attack at the grasnd; the grasnd is undergoing spring drought right now and the Golden Horde Chanyu just diedst year; and the maidservant of the noble had pretty tanned skin. Considering all the above, I dare not go with them."


    The attack, the drought, the death of the Chanyu, the tanned skin of the maidservant¡ªsomething about the sum of these apparently irrelevant facts was the precise reason why Ning Que adamantly refused to leave the City of Wei.


    "You figured it out then?" asked Ma Shixiang.


    "Everyone in the City of Wei should have figured out who they are by now."


    Looking at the other side of the military camp with a shrug, Ning Que said, "Perhaps our silly little princess who grew up in the courts of Chang¡¯an, married off on the grasnd, and didn¡¯t even realize when her husband died is the only one stupid enough to think that her big secret remains safe."

 Chapter 4: The Simple View of Right & Wrong of the Tang

    Chapter 4: The Simple View of Right & Wrong of the Tang


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Though they discussed it privately in the military camp at midnight and in such an open empire, Ma Shixiang couldn¡¯t help bing anxious when hearing ¡¯stupid princess.¡¯


    He was so nervous and cautious with every action when the noble princess arrived in the City of Wei, and he never thought that Ning Que would have such a harsh and unreasonablement about her, which made Ma Shixiang so displeased.


    Nobody would deem the princess as an idiot. Instead, they respected her as their highness with virtue.


    As a great country with a strong military force, the Tang would never adopt humiliating political measures like political marriages, no matter if the enemy was from the Tribe of Savages or other countries in the Central ins. Nothing like that had ever urred after the several marriages of the most loyal generals of the Tribe of Savages who served Taizu, the founder of theTang Dynasty, with royal women.


    However, when the sovereignty of the grasnd started to be unstable three years ago, along with an invasion of thergest golden tribe to the Tang¡¯s secret incite to enemies, the youngest princess of Tang, at the budding age of thirteen, kneeled in front of the Ming Pce and kowtowed for days and requested to marry the Chanyu of Golden Tribe in exchange for peace in the whole country.


    The entire Tang was shocked when the announcement of this marriage of peace was issued. With bitter hatred, old officials kept requesting for the emperor to cancel the marriage. The emperor smashed countless jade cups angrily, and the queen left nothing but loads ofplicated emotions. However, none of that could stop the princess¡¯s determination. Chanyu felt so astonished after knowing all of those things and quite liked her true identity, and then ordered five thousandmbs and cows as a tribute to the empire to marry the princess. In the end, the Tang emperor agreed with the peace marriage reluctantly.


    The couple cared for and respected each other in their marriage. The ambitious leader of the Tribe of Savages had be a calm lion in the grasnd, defending his territory and keeping distance with the closest inch of the Tang.


    However, beyond everyone¡¯s expectation, the young Chanyu died without any warning, and his younger brother seeded the position against objection. All of this just made the political situations tense again.


    Regardless, for quite a long time, four to five years, since the young princess decided to marry Chanyu, the northwestern border of the Tang was in a precious peaceful situation.


    There was a rumor saying that the most likely reason why the princess insisted on marrying far away was to get out of the Queen¡¯s control. However even if that was true, what the princess did, in the perception of major military and court officials, was the wise and right thing to do¡ªshe could have chosen an easier way, but in the end, she walked on the roughest path.


    But to the generals who had experienced countless wars, like Ma Shixiang, they would never have felt afraid of any war and those barbarians. That¡¯s why the princess¡¯s marriage of peace made them extremely shamed¡ªHowever, no one would reject the gift of peace.


    In this case, they developedplicated feelings about the princess, not only an unreasonable anger but also gratitude. As time went on, such mixed feelings had turned to respect from deep inside.


    Being an ordinary soldier, Ning Que could hardly understand suchplicated feelings. Even if he could, he would not care to, because there was nothing that could be more important than his own safety, and what he was striving for currently was exactly rted to that. Therefore, he continued with pretending that he didn¡¯t notice the general¡¯s concern. "I have roughly estimated the number of arrow holes on the horse carriages. The new Chanyu was pretty tough to deal with; half of the guard might already have been killed so far.


    "It¡¯s said there was a Horse Gang." Ma Shixiang seemed a bit unconfident in what he was saying. The truth was that he did not believe what he said.


    "Even the Golden Chanyu wouldn¡¯t attack our Tang princess brazenly, so it must be a horse gang, but everyone knows what the face is like under the mask." Ning Que continued. "But the thing is, if the Horse Gang indeed was Chanyu¡¯s people, why was that barbarian so bold to defend? They seemed fearless of being eliminated by the Tang, which sounds so unreasonable."


    The Tang was established with the foundation of military force. The culture here is simple while aggressive, being known as the most powerful country in the world. Nevertheless, even with such strength, it would still exhaust half of its strength to destroy the Golden Tribe of Savages on the grasnd.


    It sounded unreasonable to get involved in such turmoil just for rescuing a married princess. However, in fact, such things happened many times before in the Tang¡¯s history.


    One of the most famous examples happened during the old age of Taizu, the founder of the Tang Dynasty.


    At that time, a tribe massacred a vige positioned along Bai Yang Road. One hundred and forty residents there were all killed without mercy. The emperor sent a messenger to ask what happened, however, one of his ears was cut off and he was expelled by the Chanyu. Taizu felt so angry and immediately decided to invade the grasnd, leading a military group of 80,000 cavalries. After hearing this, the tribe escaped to the northern wilderness against strong wind and snow, while the Tang¡¯s group kept chasing them, until several monthster when the tribe was finally ughtered.


    Fighting for several months, destroying all the enemies... The Tang earned that at a terrible cost.


    To make sure there were sufficient supplies for such an exhausting war, the imperial court sent millions of farmers to the battlefield and collected all of the livestock. Fields around Min Mountain was all left uncultivated, the tax in the South quadrupled, and officials had no spare time to take care of those things. The whole country was on the edge of turmoil, even copse.


    The Tang¡¯s most fabulous quality was observed during such a dangerous period, as well as in subsequent years while appraising this matter.


    When the imperial marching onto the wilderness, the rebels in the south didn¡¯t attack the military. Instead, they returned to bases and seemed like they were standing at the side of the imperial. Perhaps not every rebel did that for the so-called national righteousness. Some of them might have also wanted to utilize this opportunity to win the fight, but they had to face the reality that the poor peasants who supported them, and heads and soldiers in the troop, were all strongly against them to do so.


    Taizu didn¡¯t earn a high historical status due to this battle, even inside the empire. No matter if in history books, or in stories from storytellers, you could see or hear no goodments about him, but instead, totalitarian and harsh.


    However, even though the most pedantic schrs, the professors who didn¡¯t care about the sovereignty, or the farmers and businessmen who badly hate tax might all criticize Taizu for various reasons, none of them would deny the necessity of the war.


    All the Tang¡¯s people always firmly believed in a simple principle from the establishment of their country: I won¡¯t invade anyone, and nobody can invade me either. Even if I invade you, you¡¯re still not allowed to invade me back!


    An eye for an eye.


    That¡¯s what we established as the baseline.


    That¡¯s what made Tang stronger and more powerful.


    And that¡¯s why Tang was recognized as the strongest country in the world.

 Chapter 5: The Future Discussion of an Unrepresented Tang

    Chapter 5: The Future Discussion of an Unrepresented Tang


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The Tang empire was regarded as the most powerful country in the world for a simple but strong reason.


    Ning Que was not an indigenous person to Tang. He was not brave enough to fight to the death on the battlefield or humorous enough to set fire to his own house just for fun. Even if he were given another twenty years to live in the City of Wei, he would not have a dramatic life and rise to a general from a beggar.


    However, he had been in the army long enough that he understood the strengths and weaknesses of the Tangs in this period. As soon as he found the arrow holes in the princess¡¯s carriages, he inferred some troubling issues ¡ª If the sessive Chanyu was so bold as to try and assassinate the princess of Tang regardless ofws, he was either insane or he had gotten some promises from some actual powerful guys in the court of the empire that he would not face retaliation.


    "The princess Li Yu has already entered the City of Wei in Tang, but she still hasn¡¯t told anyone who she is. Why? Possibly, she doesn¡¯t trust anyone or she would like to confide in His Majesty. But, she never trusts anyone in the court, including you, soldiers like us or the entire imperial court."


    "Because she knows that the grasnd barbarians must get some sort of permission from someone in Chang¡¯an to assassinate her. Moreover, the people who could be trusted in Chanyu and could give that type of permission to barbarians numbered less than four, all of whom she doesn¡¯t want to mess with."


    "For this kind of war among the courts, even you, a general, would have to stay away, let alone an ordinary person like me... " Ning Que crushed the wet mud with his heels and whispered. "There must have been a lot of trouble during the trip and even if I take down three or five enemies, I still won¡¯t be able to change the situation."


    "So, if I join them, there will be one more dead body on the mountain; if I don¡¯t, there will be one more honest soldier in the City of Wei."


    "General, please treat me as if I were the waste air in nature and don¡¯t count on me."


    Ma Shixiang looked at the seemingly humble young people and said, "You should call yourself a fart if you really want me to withdraw the order."


    Ning Que smiled and answered. "I¡¯m going to be a student at the Academy and certainly, it¡¯s better to talk elegantly."


    Ma Shixiang did not continue to tease the young man. He frowned and then exined to him. "Rmending you to be the guide for the princess has something to do with the Academy actually. You have gotten enough military deeds and passed your first exam. I also asked my superior to write a rmendation for you and a confirmation was received from the Military Ministry. But, do you really think those are enough to get you into the Academy?"


    "You¡¯ve been staying in the City of Wei frontier fortress all of these years and I¡¯m sure you have heard some legends about the Academy, but still you have no understanding of that ce."


    The general was very dignified and serious. "In our opinion, the Academy is the most sacred and invible ce. The confirmation from the Military Ministry only means you can take the entrance exam for the Academy. But, you have to collect stamps from at least three departments before you can join the Academy."


    "The department won¡¯t likely take the rmendation written by low-ranked general¡¯s like us seriously. Even the confirmation from the Military Ministry isn¡¯t enough. They could easily dy you taking your exam for several years." "Your situation has be prettymon in these past few years. Except for the students that are admitted by the teachers of the Academy, any student rmended by the imperial departments has to buy their way into the Academy and this would cost all of their families resources."


    "I know you have some money saved here, but, do you really think that just a few hundred silver will satisfy these guys?"


    Ning Que scratched his head and sighed. "No one told me about that."


    "There¡¯s no need to tell you because there is a solution."


    Ma Shixiang looked at him and said forcefully, "If you can make a contribution during this trip and impress the Princess, even if she can only remember your name or she can request that some steward intercedes for you in Chang¡¯an, no one would dare to ckmail you after that."


    "That means, I have to gamble with my life to receive a qualification for an Academy entry exam. That seems unfair." Ning Que said.


    Ma Shixiang stared at him fiercely and said, "Imbicile! Many people are willing to sell their mother or kill their father just to get into the Academy and yet, you are going to just quit because of a little risk?"


    After a while, the general had calmed down and he said, "ording to my analysis, the Princess also knows that she can¡¯t cover her tracks. So, if you can figure out who she is, all of the people in the City of Wei can as well. Howe her enemies haven¡¯t figured her out? Since she insisted on continuing the trip, there must be some reinforcements not far away. Your mission is to guide her through the mountains and help her get touch with those reinforcements as soon as possible. How can you call that gambling?"


    Ning Que lowered his head and tried to figure out the pros and cons of this.


    Ma Shixiang looked at him and thought about his odd temper which annoyed most people. He knew it would be hard to convince Ning Que without there being any profit. He sighed and whispered. "An old man is going with the princess, whose first name is Lv. And, it is said that he practiced in the South School of Haotian Taoism."


    Hearing this, Ning Que suddenly looked up and immediately his eyes lit up.


    Ma Shixiang said, "You arrived here when you were a little kid and yed with everyone in the city, charming them with your sweet mouth and your abilities. You were always the most popr kid in the city even with the soldiers who came and went or the bosses of that meat pie restaurant that had changed twice."


    He touched Ning Que¡¯s head as if he were a spoiled boy and said, "The former general got you a military status before he died. You saved us when we went to the grasnd to kill the Horse Gang and almost got killed by the barbarians that autumn. Thanks to you, we came back alive. Everyone here has decided to reward to you and we already collected money to buy you a night with the most popr prostitute in the capital, if you want."


    The gray-haired general changed the subject and said, "But, no one had expected that you wanted to learn magic stuff. Unfortunately, we couldn¡¯t find you a teacher to help you and we just let you read the Article on the Response of the Tao over and over."


    "Now is your chance."


    Ma Shixiang suddenly became serious. "The Academy, as well as the old man named Lv, you have to catch them both."


    Ning Que kept silence for a long time and then sighed. "I just don¡¯t want to leave here."


    The moonlight was very soft and peaceful outside the window. Ma Shixiang looked at the young man and said, "The City of Wei is still too small and you should go to the capital Chang¡¯an and see the real world. Maybe there will be some monsters but, none of them should scare you away."


    "At least, out there, there won¡¯t be only one Article on the Response of the Tao ."

 Chapter 6: The Night Without a Moon, A Time of Yearning

    Chapter 6: The Night Without a Moon, A Time of Yearning


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    A ditch, no wider than a stream,y to the south of the City of Wei, and beside the ditch rose a small slope that couldn¡¯t even be regarded as more than a tiny hill. A hut, without a functioning fence or a te roof, was found at the foot of the slope, which was not even qualified to be called a house. The rain clouds had dispersed earlier, allowing bright stars to shed light over the ditch, the slope, and the hut, forming a beautiful silver glow.


    Under the starlight, Ning Que jogged ahead, but he was dragging his feet. He slowed his pace to take a longer look at the hut where he and Sangsang had spent most of their time together. But, no matter how slow he walked, his destination would always be reached because he kept moving forward. The pathetic fence, which was only capable of warding off dogs, was pushed open. He walked towards the dazzling light of the oilmp streaming through the crack in the door. Covering his mouth, he coughed several times to announce his presence and said, "How about we move to the capital."


    The door was pushed open, with a squeak, breaking the silence of the night.


    The little handmaiden Sangsang kneeled beside the door, the shadow of her thin body elongated by themplight. She pressed her figure against the wooden frame and responded, "Haven¡¯t you always had a longing for Chang¡¯an? Well, I need something. When will you be able to steal some oil from the firearm camp? This door has been creaking for several months and it is bothersome."


    "Who still uses those hard-to-use firearms? If you just want oil, I will ask for some from the Baggage Camp tomorrow... "Ning Que answered her randomly by instinct, and suddenly something came to his mind. "Wait! This isn¡¯t the conversation I intended to have with you! If we are really leaving, why are we still bothering with this useless door?"


    Sangsang bent onto her knees. Her small figure looked extremely thin with the cool night breeze of spring blowing against her. She stared at Ning Que and uttered the following words softly, careful not to show any emotion. "If we leave, there are going to be others residing here. They would still need to use the door."


    ¡¯Are there really others who would want to spend their lives in this remote and broken hut, other than us?¡¯ Ning Que thought silently, with a sudden feeling of unwillingness somehow striking him. He sighed softly and squeezed past Sangsang murmuring, "Take the night to pack up our luggage."


    Sangsang randomlybed her fingers through her hair at her temples. Looking at his back she asked, "Ning Que, I can¡¯t understand why you are so crazy about it?"


    "Nobody could reject the temptation of growing stronger, and moreover, it is really attractive."


    Ning Que realized that his little handmaiden had figured out what he was thinking. He raised his head to see her little swan-like face. Tilting his eyebrows, he continued. "Anyway, we can¡¯t spend our entire life in the City of Wei. The world is big and just waiting for us to explore. Besides the Tang Empire, there are many other countries. In addition, in regard to making more money or getting a quicker promotion, Chang¡¯an is more of an ideal ce to livepared to the City of Wei. That¡¯s why I must gain admittance and join the Academy."


    Sangsang appeared to be immersed in her thoughts. She was not fully-grown and her age was considered young. However, the sandstorms in the fortress had blown against her face, darkening and roughing her skin. Her yellowish hair was a result of childhood malnutrition. All of these things contributed to her less than beautiful, toughened face.


    But, she had a pair of eyes as thin as willow leaves, as blue as crystal ice, and they seldom showed a special expression, all of which endowed her with the appearance of a mature and sophisticateddy rather than a young maid, no older than twelve, who had been born from bitterness. The extreme contrast of her true age and her eye expressions made others feel she had a cool style.


    While in Ning Que¡¯s eyes, these were all fake illusions. He was well aware that Sangsang typically belonged to that kind of thoughtless girl. During this long time of sticking it out together, she had be ustomed to following his words and herziness in thinking hence grew, which ordingly led to her slow-mindedness. Therefore, to cover her slow-mindedness she had begun to speak fewer words, making her appear even weirder.


    "No, she is not slow-minded, she is just clumsy." He corrected himself in his mind as he thought of something.


    After a long silence, Sangsang suddenly raised her head and bit her lip, wearing a look of timidity that was rarely seen. She uttered, "I¡¯ve heard... Chang¡¯an is rather big and has many people."


    "The capital is prosperous. It is said the poption there has already exceeded one million since the third year of Tianqi, and of course, the cost of living there is rather high. Anyway, it won¡¯t be an easy task... "


    Ning Que sighed as he got a glimpse of the girl¡¯s nervousness. He thenforted her. "Nothing to be scared of, just take it as a bigger version of the City of Wei. I will be responsible for external affairs and you stay inside to deal with the chores, just as we have always done. If you still feel uneasy, then we can just reduce the amount of time you spend going out."


    "How much will it cost for daily necessities for one month?"


    Her willow-leaf-like eyes gazed in surprise, clenching the lower hem of her skirt as she queried nervously, "Will it exceed four taels of silver? That will be two times higher than the cost is here."


    "If I¡¯m really to enroll in the Academy, you¡¯d better make me some good clothes, because there will be visitors like my ssmatesing to visit us. Moreover, some masters may alsoe to visit my family, in the case that they appreciate me, your young master. I¡¯ve figured it out roughly, it will cost us no less than ten silver taels."


    Ning Que answered with his eyebrows furrowed, but actually, he was just spouting out nonsense in a careful way, for he was unaware that, in the eyes of the Academy disciples, that amount of money could only buy a not-so-good dinner in Tianxiang Restaurant. As the famous joke went, in the countrywomen¡¯s imagination, the empress is always baking meat pies as big as an ocean and the imperial concubines peeling onions as high as a mountain.


    However, even though it was actually less cruel than the reality, that answer had far exceeded the bottom line for the little maid. She stared at him, frowning, and suggested. "That¡¯s too expensive... Ning Que, how about we don¡¯t leave and give up on the Academy?"


    "You¡¯re so ignorant!" Ning Que scolded, "I will most certainly be an official after graduating from the Academy. You and I will need ten taels of silver each month, but I can earn at least 70 or 80 from the local government! Moreover, what¡¯s the matter with Chang¡¯an? They have a variety of cosmetics which can be found in the Chenjinji Cosmetics Store."


    Clearly, the little handmaiden sank in a fiercely mental struggle as if she were stricken by the word "cosmetics". After a while, she lightly bit her lip and gave an answer in a pig¡¯s whisper. "What about the years you will spend studying in the Academy? My needlework can¡¯tpete with the ones in Chang¡¯an. How will we support ourselves?"


    "That is indeed a concern, and what¡¯s more, hunting is prohibited around Chang¡¯an, because the forests there can only be utilized by the emperor... How much money do we have now?"


    The two of them exchanged meaningful looks with their eyes and went over to the tworge elm-wood boxes in agreement. They opened up one of them, fumbled around and pulled out a tightly-packaged wooden case from deep within.


    There were small pieces of silver in the wooden box, with only one big piece in the middle. Clearly, these were their day-to-day savings, and only a small amount.


    Neither of them moved to count the pieces, and then in a soft voice, Sangsang said, "As usual, I counted them every five days, and thetest one was done the night beforest. The total is seventy-six taels and thirty-four cents."


    "It seems that we should be able to manage to make more money in Chang¡¯an." Ning Que replied earnestly.


    "And, I will strive to improve my needlework a bit." Sangsang also replied thoughtfully.


    ...


    ...


    When night fell, Sangsang was kneeling to make Ning¡¯s bed. Her skinny knees moved quickly and nimbly. She then pushed her little palm against his pillow to make an arc in the middle, so Ning Que could enjoy afortable sleep. She held up her quilts and leaped off the bed, and then she walked towards the two elm-wood boxes in the corner to make her own.


    Putting out the light, Ning Que put a bowl of water on the windowsill and got into bed by starlight. He put his hands on the edge of the quilt and made a bigfortable yawn. A familiar rustling from the corner of the room came to his ears several minutes after he closed his eyes.


    This night appeared to be no different from any other night where they would fall soundly sleep under the starlight in this fortress city. However, they both suffered from sleeplessness this night. The excitement of arriving in a new world, seeing the prosperity of Chang¡¯an, all of the honor and wealth at hand, or even the fascinating style of makeup, had greatly stirred the two of them. Their breathing was far from cid this time.


    Afterying there for a while, Ning Que opened his eyes and stared nkly at the faint silver glow before saying, "I¡¯ve heard... girls in Chang¡¯an are not scared of the cold. They wear thin clothes with wide-open cors and have fairplexions. I¡¯m not sure if it is true or not... I was too young to remember."


    He then turned over onto his other side, looking toward the dark corner and asked, "Sangsang, how is your illness these days? Do you still feel cold?"


    It seemed that the little handmaiden shook her head no in the darkness. Through the faint light, he caught sight of her and saw that she was grabbing her quilt while keeping her eyes tightly closed, though her mouth wore a hint of a rare smile. She muttered, "Of course they are fair, nobody would be tan after putting on such good makeup!"


    Ning Que grinned and then answered, "Take it easy and you can buy anything you like from the Chenjinji Cosmetics Store after I, your young master, make a fortune."


    Suddenly Sangsang opened her long and thin eyes; he could see the bright starlight reflected in them. Seriously she asked, "Ning Que, you promise?"


    "I told you; call me young master in Chang¡¯an. That¡¯s the way to show respect."


    Seven or eight years had passed since Ning Que had dug the icy-cold Sangsang out from under a pile of corpses beside the road and struggled to get to the City of Wei. Although Sangsang was registered as a maidservant in the census and did work as a maidservant, she never called Ning Que young master. This was just a habit. There was no other special reason.


    And today, she waspelled to give up this habit.


    "Ning Que... young master... remember that you¡¯ve promised to buy me cosmetics from the Chenjinji Cosmetics Store."


    Ning Que nodded as his sight fell on the frost-white starlight that illuminated the ground beside his bed. Somehow this made his heart tighten a bit, and the feeling of emptiness from many years ago came back to attack him again. He looked back at the dark sky outside the window, ncing at the stars and was then immersed in nostalgia. He muttered, "Still a night without a moon... "


    Lying on the elm-wood boxes in the corner, Sangsang was curled up in her cool quilt like a small mouse. She stretched out her hand to pull the quilt behind her waist to keep out the chilly air, which somewhat alleviated the ufortableness brought on by the gap between the two elm-wood boxes. Hearing his dream-like words, she figured. ¡¯Ning Que... young master is beginning to utter this nonsense again.¡¯

 Chapter 7: Off to be Outstanding in Changan

    Chapter 7: Off to be Outstanding in Chang¡¯an


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Early the next morning, Ning Que and Sangsang woke up and then began to pack in morning twilight. They had a few disputes, but they mostly kept silent.


    Ning Que pulled out a long bag that had been hidden under the mud wall outside, and took a bow and some arrows out of it. He checked them carefully and then handed them over once he had ensured that they were fine. Sangsang took them and put them into a big bag made of cotton. She then took out three sheathed straight knives, covered with rust, out from under the fence. Ning Que took them from her and carefully scrubbed at the rust and looked at the edge of the knives while facing the sun, he then nodded and tied them with a straw rope to his back.


    He took out a ck umbre from behind the door and tied it on Sangsang¡¯s back with the rest of the straw rope. This ck umbre was made from an unknown material and looked as if there was some sort ck oil on it that absorbed light and it appeared a little heavy. It lookedrge before it was fastened to Sangsang¡¯s thin and small body but, once it was attached it almost touched the ground.


    After preparing for the journey, Ning Que and Sangsang climbed over the shabby fence in tandem. They looked back at the small bluestone road and the tiny run-down hut at the same time. Looking up at Ningque¡¯s jaw, Sangsang asked, "Young master, do we need to lock the door?"


    "No." Ning Que went silent for a while and said, "Evermore... maybe we hardlye back."


    ...


    ...


    The wooden wheel, covered by iron, rolled over the wet and soft ground. The noble¡¯s convoy set out slowly, they were going to the outside of the City of Wei. Five carriages, from the front to the rear, attracted a lot of attention on the frontier. Today, there were many people lined along the road to say farewell. However, their focus was not on the noble¡¯s carriage, but on the young man and handmaiden sitting in the first horse carriage. Boiled eggs were given to them from time to time, and some aunt, with ck and red cheeks, said something and cried while clutching a dirty handkerchief.


    "Wicked Ning Que, you are so bad. My distant nephew is a fine man, yet you won¡¯t allow Sangsang to marry him. Now you are taking her to those horrifying ces with you! You listen carefully. You must take good care of my Sangsang!"


    Sitting on the shaft, Ning Que looked awkward as he answered, "Aunt, you have been asking Sangsang to get married since she was just 8, how could I let this happen?"


    It began to rain and some of the peopleined and made jokes. The slight drizzle lightly sprinkled on the line of people and it was a little cold. But, no one left, including the rtives of the soldiers of the City of Wei who were busy seeing Ning Que off or settling debts with him. The crowd was very boisterous.


    In the rear of the group, the most exquisite carriage¡¯s curtain opened a little, and that proud and indifferent maidservant popped her head out to look around. She couldn¡¯t help but knit her brows.


    When the carriages were ready to leave this border town, Ning Que stood up on the carriage and then saluted to the crowd.


    Carrying the three old swords on his back, thed saluted with bare hands in the rain. This scene made him feel a little brave and grand.


    "Everyone, menfolk, children, sisters, and aunts, I don¡¯t have many words to express my gratitude."


    After saying this, he opened his arms wide and clenched his fists in the rain, showing his chest muscles and his arms which were not very strong. He posed stupidly like this and shouted, "This time I will go to Chang¡¯an City and if I don¡¯t be someone, I will nevere back!"


    His words were just like the tform from which a storytelling man used to start his talk or like in Egypt when a bloody head fell to the ground. The crowd cheered for him along the way.


    In the only decent tavern in the City of Wei, Ma Shixiang and some of his trusted military officers were drinking. The noble had told them not to see them off and they didn¡¯t want to send the young man off either. However, they saw the scene clearly. One of the officers thought about what Ning Que had said when he stood on the carriage and he could not help but sigh. "If he doesn¡¯t be something, he won¡¯te back, will he? It seems that the unsessfuld really won¡¯te back."


    Ma Shixiang sat at the wine table and thought about the three sentences Ning Que had said to himst night. He could not help but touch his beard and said happily withfort at seeing that carriage leaving out the gate of the city slowly. "It¡¯s better not toe back, you jerk. Make trouble for the outside world."


    ...


    ...


    They were far from the City of Wei and well into the grasnds. The spring drought that had troubled the Tribe of Savages and the new Chanyu did not make an impact here. The spring wind had made the leaves and grass green. They were crushed by wheels and trampled by the horses¡¯ hooves while some butterflies chased each other endlessly.


    The steeds ran through the grasnds towards hills and the soft ropes between the horses and the carriages tensed tight as iron or dropped loose as a leave. The luxury carriage was covered with some cotton quilts and nkets which billowed gently as the horses ran. Theely maidservant stared at the scene outside, flying past the window. Her face was a little stiff while she thought about the deste northern part; her eyes were full of expectations of the unknown future.


    There was a boy, wearing luxurious fur clothing, hugging his legs, inside the carriage. He lifted his head from his knees and mumbled some Central ins words, asking if he could go outside to y for a while.


    The maidservant turned around and rebuked the boy strictly, but she quickly softened again. She took him in her arm and hugged him while she rubbed his head favorably.


    The wind lifted one corner of the curtain and the spring wind touched her face, however, it was not as delicate as before. The maidservant squinted to the front of the convoy with a scowl.


    At the front of the line, there was the young soldier named Ning Que who was sitting on the shaft of the simple carriage. His head hung as if he were falling asleep. As a guide, he should have been actively guiding the group, but instead, he slept most of the time. He was far from being a qualified guide.


    Even so, that was not the reason the maidservant scowled, it was something else.


    Ning Que fell asleep on the shaft and looked as if he could fall down from the speeding carriage at any time. So, the small handmaiden Sangsang kept guard and watched him alertly. She supported him with her thin and small body and while her expression could not be seen clearly on her dark face, her pain could be felt.


    Suddenly, the carriage bounced over a very shallow stream and woke Ning Que. He rubbed his eyes and essed the time of day. It was dusk now, so, he raised his arm and beckoned the group to stop and camp.


    No one protested his decision even though he had just woken up.


    Every decision the young man made had proven to be right ever since they had left the City of Wei. Over thest few days, this included path selection, campsites, safety defense, water and food and possible ways for evacuation. He had yet to make a wrong decision and the group was moving quite fast under his leadership.


    Several barbarians, which reined in grasnds, initially looked down on the border soldiers of Wei, but now they just admired the young soldier as a guide.


    Along the stream, people dug and leveled the ground, collected firewood and boiled water in silence. The maidservant got out of the protected carriage and found Ning Que lying on the grassfortably while enjoying some boiled meat. Her frown deepened when she found the thin, ck handmaiden getting water, she lifted the pot and collected firewood.


    Upon seeing her step out, a strong guard stood up. She shook her head to prevent him from following her and she walked along the stream through the fire smoke.


    She had to admit that Ning Que¡¯s guidance was not bad, but much better than the young men in capital city Chang¡¯an. If he were a nobleman in Chang¡¯an, maybe she would admire his attitude. However, he was just a poor underssman and he bullied the small girl who should share woe and happiness with him. This made the maidservant unhappy and it invaded her thoughts.


    Walking over to Sangsang, the maidservant smiled at her gently and gave her a sign to put down the heavy firewood so she could talk to her.


    Sangsang walked toward her until Ning Que nodded to her when she saw him. The maidservant took out a handkerchief from her waist to pass it to Sangsang but Sangsang shook her head. Even though she had done a lot of work, there was no sweat to be wiped away.


    At this point, Ning Que finally stood up from the meadow. He dusted the grass off his body, wiping green grass juice on his coat, and made a salute to the maidservant.


    The maidservant didn¡¯t even turn her head and said coldly, "I don¡¯t like you, so you can save your ingratiation. People like you look young and gentle, but in fact, you are rotten to your core and I find it disgusting."


    Saying this without emotion, she lifted her jaw and expressed her noble character even though she did not intend to keep distant. As a maidservant of the princess of Tang, she could give orders to most of the officials in the country including Ning Que.


    Ning Que shook his head while smiling and then turned to the mud stove near the stream.


    He only had the one small handmaiden while the noble had numerous maidservants. His only handmaiden was taken to chat, for fun, by one of the maidservants, and the noble still had other servants to serve her while he was left to feed himself.


    Maybe the sand and wind had thickened his face, but there was no awkwardness on his face at all.


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang came back with a pile of cheese at sunset, while Ning Que was staring painfully at his burnt meat porridge. Seeing the snacks, he took them from her and gobbled them up.


    "Why does she like to talk with you so much? She doesn¡¯t even consider me and the fact I have not had a good meal for several days... The cheap sympathy of a noble was given in the wrong ce. Her smile is like a grandmother wolf who wants to eat small girls. She thinks she is decent and warm, but she is faker than the people who sell artificial wine at the tavern in the City of Wei."


    "She is a good person." Sangsang picked up the bowl of burn porridge besides him, intending to make a new one, but she was stopped by him.


    "What do you talk about these days?" asked Ning Que.


    Sangsang furrowed her brows and tried to recall what had been said. Then she answered, "You know I don¡¯t enjoy talking... and she was talking about what had happened in the grasnds, most of the time. I don¡¯t remember much of what she said actually."


    Upon hearing this, Ning Que immediately felt happier. He hummed a tune while he chewed on the delicious cheese and said, "If she wants to talk to you again, remember to tell her to pay you or let you bring back more cheese."


    Soon night fell.


    After the water was heated, Sangsang extinguished the fire with water from the brook and then walked to the small tent with the bucket of hot water. People near the stream were familiar with this as the small handmaiden was often seen preparing water for Ning Que to wash his feet with and they exuded disdain on their faces.


    Of course, their disdain was for Ning Que.


    After washing his feet, Ning Que slid into the woolforter, and then hugged the small cold feet of Sangsang¡¯s in his arms. He groaned but one couldn¡¯t tell if it was from pain or enjoyment. After yawning twice, he said, "Good night."


    Sangsang was more exhausted than Ning Que, so she had sunk into a deep sleep before long.


    Startled, Ning Que opened his eyes and looked up at the sky through the tent. It had patches and it took him a moment to focus on a particr handkerchief.


    He knew he was right when he saw the golden-edged handkerchief clutched in the maidservant¡¯ hands. But, he just didn¡¯t know what he was right about.

 Chapter 8: Drinking at Night, Dreaming of the Ocean

    Chapter 8: Drinking at Night, Dreaming of the Ocean


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Staring at the ceiling of the tent, in his mind, Ning Que went through all the details and traces since they left City of Wei.


    The curtain of the extravagant horse carriage stayed firmly closed throughout the time, while the little boy with obvious barbarian features would asionally leave the carriage to y, the princess had seldom appeared. The pretty but arrogant maidservant was the one giving orders.


    Strangely, that maidservant seemed to enjoy chatting with Sangsang.


    And even more strangely, she never bothered to conceal her contempt towards him.


    Ning Que considered her to be an excellent actress. Back in City of Wei and throughout the journey, nothing out of the attitude of the grasnd men or her own manners and behaviors suggested that she wasn¡¯t a real maidservant.


    That was precisely what baffled him, since he never imagined anyone from the real nobility of Tang Empire should care about sympathizing with Sangsang.


    Nevertheless, this wasn¡¯t something that really mattered to him. Over the past few days, he had been keeping a close eye on the elderly man. If he guessed right, this kind-looking elder should be a sublime being from the South School of Haotian Taoism, the one mentioned earlier by general Ma.


    Since a very young age, Ning Que had been determined to gain ess to that enigmatic world at no avail. The presence of a true cultivator was the real reason why he agreed to travel with this group to the capital.


    Unfortunately, he was given no chance to speak to the well-protected elder. Only asionally when they stopped to eat, his gaze met that of the elder, and he could swear he felt a sense of kindness or even encouragement from the look in the eyes of the elder. This again left him rather perplexed.


    Failing to reach a conclusion, Ning Que stopped thinking and realized the pair of little feet he held on his chest simply refused to warm up and stayed cold like ice, making his chest and abdomen feel just as cold. He frowned with concern.


    Sangsang, the little handmaiden, went through a lot of hardship as a baby, surviving in cold wind and rain among a pile of rotting corpses. She fell critically ill after Ning Que found her, and didn¡¯t recover for months.


    She had been looked at by military doctors at Wei, and he even took her to the faraway Kaiping, and all the doctors shared the same opinion: prenatal insufficiency of weak and cold nature.


    Due to her fragile and cold-prone body, Sangsang hardly ever sweated, and consequently, she was unable to expel all the harmful toxins her body produced daily. Over time and umtion of the toxins, she became even weaker. That was why Ning Que followed the doctors¡¯ advice and made sure that she endured a huge amount of physical exercise on a day-to-day basis to improve her cirction, and that was the real reason why in the eyes of others, he constantly made his skinny, dark-skinned little handmaid work like a ve.


    Nevertheless, despite copious physical exercise, Sangsang could not necessarily warm up her body, and it felt freezing cold right now on the wool nket.


    Rubbing his freezing tummy, Ning Que decided to get up and take out the liquor sac made of cowhide as he woke up Sangsang and handed over the sac to her lips.


    Half-asleep, Sangsang opened her eyes and grabbed the sac without hesitation. She unscrewed the lid and poured the liquid down without leaking a drop of it. The tent was immediately filled with a strong and spicy scent of the typical hardcore grasnd liquor.


    The tiny handmaiden held therge sac and gulped down the liquid as if it was water. In no time she managed to finish almost half a sac of liquor, of which two bowlfuls could easily leave a strong adult man unconscious. She didn¡¯t stop until her stomach started to bulge out. It looked rather valiant, if not utterly bizarre.


    She then wiped her lips, and her long, willow-leaf shaped eyes became even brighter in the darkness of the night, and one would not have guessed that she had been drinking. After smiling at Ning Que, she fell back and slept off again.


    The fragrance of liquor reminisced in the room, and the cold little feet he held on his chest gradually warmed up. Ning Que was finally relieved to see a few droplets of sweat emerging from the tip of her nose, and atst, he remembered to wipe off his own sweat from his forehead.


    Cuddling the wool nket tightly, he slowly closed his eyes. Not far from his face rested the worn-out booklet of ¡¯Article on the Response of the Tao¡¯. He would normally read or recite from memory a few pages every night before going to sleep, it was a habit he stuck with over the years.


    "Shall all living creatures cultivate in aging and death, so that thy lives shall not be harmed by any evil."


    "Shall all living creatures, suffer from no aging nor ailment, prosper in longevity, and gain wisdom with fierce courage."


    As he gradually fell asleep, his mind and spirit began working alongside the seemingly simple yet deeply abstract and enigmatic words on the pages.


    As time went by, the wool nket that covered Ning Que and Sangsang seemed to have disappeared, as did the little tent, the grass outside, and the little stream evaporated into a cluster of fog and vanished, too. The whole world became an abstract realm where he became the world, and the world became him. In this realm, one could almost feel a subtle sound of breathing in an enigmatic rhythm, and the breath of nature slowly abounded into a vast ocean of warm.


    Ning Que was not unfamiliar with the sensation. In fact, he was often able to sense it ever since he read ¡¯the article¡¯ many years ago. But at the same time, he was clearly aware of the sad fact that it was not a genuine form of "sensing" upon meditation, but merely a dream.


    The vast warm ocean was probably an illusion of the dream, since the tightly wrapped little feet he was holding finally started to warm up. At least it was a wonderful illusion after all.


    While consoling himself, Ning Que fell soundly asleep throughout the night.


    ...


    ...


    Waking up the next morning, Ning Que slept really well, even though he looked utterly surprised and upset, as if he craved to sleep for another three days.


    "Why change the route at such short notice?"


    Looking at the poker-faced maidservant, he contained his temper and as gentle as possible he exined. "We will go through Min Mountain to go straight to Huaxi Path. There will be no problem with this route I have chosen."


    No one in the tent showed any response to his concern, not even the maidservant.


    "I¡¯m the guide, and none of you are familiar enough with the Min Mountain," Ning Que looked at the maidservant again and after a brief silence went on to say, "I understand you are worried about being ambushed. I can assure you that, no one can stop you if you listen to me."


    The maidservant nced at him as if he was insignificant, almost like saying, who gave you the right to request any sort of exnation from me?


    As he returned to his tent, Sangsang was packing their belongings. He told her, "We shall part from them soon as we send them off the main path."


    Looking at the simple map he drew years ago, he pointed at a ce and said, "This is the furthest we will go, because if we went further in, we could all be annihted if the enemy sent a few cavalries our way."


    "You should go and convince them." said Sangsang looking at him.


    "I guess the princess is expecting reinforcements once they get there. Therefore they won¡¯t listen to me." Replied Ning Que. "It¡¯s not my strong suit to convince a bunch of idiots."


    Sangsang said nothing but looked at him inquisitively. If there will be reinforcements, what is worrying you so much that you have even decided to run off halfway?


    "My gut feeling tells me that something is not right."


    "Because I¡¯m confident that, a tough character who dares to plot the assassination of Fourth Princess of Great Tang shouldn¡¯t be as stupid as that woman, and I bet there will be a few backup ns." replied Ning Que.


    Sangsang hesitated but went on to remind him. "You should respect her a little... "


    "I already know her real identity," said Ning Que with a raised eyebrow and mocking tone. "she is the princess and so what? I said it back in the City of Wei, and I insist, she really is a stupid princess."

 Chapter 9: An Arrow Shot from the South of the Northern Mountain Road

    Chapter 9: An Arrow Shot from the South of the Northern Mountain Road


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "It¡¯s also essential to choose a suitable connecting spot for the people migrating. If I could choose, I would like a wider road than Pinecone Ridge."


    As he looked at the bold ink spots marked on the hand-drawing map, Ning Que said, "They choose the Northern Mountain Road without considering it was a one-way road with thick forests on both sides. It is the perfect ce for an ambush."


    After saying this, he grew silent. He then put the map into his pocket, shook his head, and said in self-mockery, "Apparently, besides leading them into Northern Mountain Road, the guide has to confuse the enemy. The foolish princess has never believed in General Ma, and she would not trust me, either."


    "An idiot is leading a bunch of idiots." Considering the possibility of troops arriving and being ambushed on Northern Mountain Road, Ning Que felt more and more depressed. He murmured angrily, "She has been in the grasnd for nearly a year and hasn¡¯t learned. How did she earn her reputation?"


    Ning Que unsheathed the three swords caked with rust and watered the whetstone from his sk. He began the age-old ritual of sharpening the swords in preparation for the bloody battles awaiting them on Northern Mountain Road. It was, perhaps, a futile gesture, but at the very least, it calmed him down.


    "If we have to flee upon entering Northern Mountain Road, how would you ask the elderly man your questions?" Sangsang asked dejectedly.


    "Life is the most important thing." Ning Que dropped his head while sharpening the swords and said, "If we can make it to Chang¡¯an, then there¡¯s always a chance to learn. On the contrary, if we die because of these idiots, there will be no possibilities at all."


    ...


    ...


    It was warmer when traveling to the south. Normally, the picturesquendscapes out of the carriage window wereing to life and green. But as the troops marched higher up Min Mountain, the wavy green grasnd around them disappeared giving way to the tall trees that began to loom over them from the sides of the road. Their leaves were not quite green, yet looked like winter¡¯s end.


    As the temperature fell, an anxious and depressive air enveloped the troops. Everybody understood that taking her down at Min Mountain between the frontier fortress and counties, would be thest chance for the bigwigs in Chang¡¯an city to intercept the Princess and get back to the capital safely.


    The troops marched with determination and caution for several days and finally arrived at the periphery of Northern Mountain Road. The sight of the deep forest was a relief to many of the weary travelers, but Ning Que was worried.


    Staying in the second carriage most of the time, theely maidservant did not find the opportunity to visit Sangsang as she did so often before. But on this day, she wore a smile when getting off the carriage at dusk.


    She had dispatched an emissary to the imperial precincts before leaving the grasnd. Even though the troops would not shortly be arriving at Chang¡¯an, and the emperor would not order the army to take her back so soon, the emissary had sufficient time to contact a subordinate loyal to her.


    She didn¡¯t hesitate to march into Northern Mountain Road once she received the urgent receipt from the Gushan Commandery ten days ago. She believed in Hua Shanye, the young Senior Captain who would be approaching Northern Mountain Road¡¯s southern entryway.


    Though she had left Tang a year ago, she still firmly believed those loyal before, would be loyal to her again. Granted that some people had be the flunkies of that woman in the pce, she still trusted Hua Shanyue, because... the way he looked at her was so tender.


    At sunset, the troops stopped and set up camp 15 kilometers away from the appointed location. No matter what, Passing through the thick forest in the night was so risky even her closest bodyguards advised her to wait for the Hua Shanyue¡¯s army at Northern Mountain Road.


    She was considering this idea. She smiled again since both she and little Wild were so safe now. Song andughter quietly rose from the camp now after such a long trip.


    In the gloaming, a humble tent was set up outside the carriage circle, which wasposed of five carriages and boxcars. Even the lead bodyguard earlier questioned the situation, the tent owner insisted on staying outside.


    "We stayed away from their carriages to get away easier in case something bad happens?"


    Ning Que exined sarcastically. He asked Sangsang to carry it bundled well with straw ropes, and then tied the ropes in a beautiful small flower.


    Sangsang raised her head, looked at his new bearded chin, and asked, "What about them, if we run away?"


    While checking the bow to see if it was affected by the moisture, Ning Que turned his head. Looking at the handmaiden¡¯s small ck face, he answered after being silent for a while, "You probably have forgotten what happened when we were children, but I didn¡¯t forget."


    "I saved you from digging through the pile of the corpses. Me, I have experienced some miserable things, which normal people could never imagine."


    "Sangsang, you have to remember this forever. Life is difficult for us... We try our best to be alive in this world. Since we are alive now, we can¡¯t be killed easily."


    After saying this, Ning Que did not exin anymore. He put the sharp swords back into their sheaths and tied them with rope. He then carried them secure on his back.


    Sangsang did not ask more questions, she started to pack silently using her small hand to check if each arrow was straight enough. She acknowledged when dusk came, that was the moment to escape with Ning Que. She was not afraid because when she was a kid, she had experienced passing through the forest at night on Ning Que¡¯s back so many times.


    At this moment, Ning Que¡¯s hand was frozen on the sheath.


    A hand lifted the curtain of the demure tent, and the maidservant walked in. Her smile faded right away when she saw what was happening in the tent.


    She intended to chat with Sangsang, but what she saw were the owner and his handmaiden packing. She fingered out they were nning to leave right now.


    "What are you doing? " She stared at Ning Que coldly. "It¡¯s very suspicious for you to do that at this moment."


    After a moment of silence, Ning Queughed and was going to exin. But, his auricle quivered lightly, then his dimples disappeared¡ªHe looked unprecedentedly serious. He heaved the three swords on his back at once, pushed the maidservant away rudely, and walked out of the tent.


    The encampment was located outside of Northern Mountain Road, and warmlyfortable with no forest cover and bathing in thest bit of twilight. But, for the moment, it was covered in bloody red.


    The wind passed through the vibrant forest in the spring making a roaring or crying sound. Ning Que frowned and looked at the deep forest, listening to the warnings in the wind and he screamed suddenly. "Enemy¡¯s attacking!"


    The deep sound revealed itself and a thunderous arrow was flying straight to the heart of the luxury horse carriage out of the forest!

 Chapter 10: Bodyguards, as Hard as Rocks

    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Bam!


    As he stood near the luxury carriage, an arrow tore through a bodyguard¡¯s chest, the young man with whiskers, then, fell to the ground clutching his bleeding chest.


    The moment Ning Que shouted out "enemies attack", the well-trained Princess¡¯s bodyguard reacted immediately. The bodyguard bravely jumped onto the shaft and blocked the window of Her Highness¡¯s carriage. He didn¡¯t know where the arrow was aimed, but he knew Her Highness in the carriage must be the first target choice for enemies, and he would never let her be in danger.


    What the brave bodyguard thought was right, which, however, was at the sacrifice of his young life.


    "Enemies attack!"


    "Protect Her Highness!"


    "Shields!"


    Suddenly, bodyguards roared furiously and shockingly.


    Countless arrows were swishing from the deep of the wood like a storm, loud enough to muffle the sound of the wind, and making the ce a danger zone.


    Though Ning Que kept a distance from the surrounding fleet, heid down the moment the bows snapped. He even remembered to push down Sangsang and the maidservant, both of whom followed him to see what happened from the tent.


    He fell down to the ground with a plump, but it was lucky thatyers ofyers of rotted leaves and pine needles for leaves umted through hundreds of years in Northern Mountain Road served as arge cushion and relieved his pain when hitting on the ground. Face against cold leaves, Ning Que listened carefully to the dense sound of arrows whooping ahead and several ones passing above his head, doing a quick calction of the number of arrows and archers.


    At the entrance of Northern Mountain Road were waves of annoyed and nervous voices. Some bodyguards were shouting to organize a defense, some calling out to make orders, and some screaming for backup. Among them, the sound of putting up shields was clear. Those giant shields made by nks from the carriage were inserted deep to the edge of the shaft, which obviously they helped a lot.


    Rub-a-dub!


    Arrows were deeply inserted in those crude shields with thuds like the pounding of war drums, but much denser and more terrible. Once in awhile, a bodyguard might give a grunt when he was shot by an arrow through the tiny space between shields. Since the horses didn¡¯tpare to those of the warriors of Tang Empire, they painfully fell down and rolled on the ground with a neigh of despair.


    A din of arrows whooshing, shields cracking, men grunting and horses neighing was enveloping the camp, which just seconds ago, was filled withughter and sunshine. Butter, it became a total hell.


    Whoosh!


    An arrow hit into the mud inches ahead of Ning Que. Dirt and small pieces of rock sshed his face, making it red here and there. But, his expression did not change. Heid t on rotten leaves and pine needles in stillness. He eyed the spaces between the leaves over that arrow in front of him and then south down the Northern Mountain Road.


    Instead of ambushing the fleet in dense wood or taking them by surprise at night, the foes chose to start an attack as they just settled down at the entrance of Northern Mountain Road, which was beyond Ning Que¡¯s expectation although he has got natal instinct to danger since young.


    At dusk, they were going to meet Gushan Commandery¡¯s troops. They woulde to help when people in the fleet would easily getx and turn ck. That hit the spot for the enemy.


    Vaguely noticing numerous figures at both sides of Northern Mountain Road and based on his previous calction of thick arrows, Ning Que inferred there were approximately sixty enemies.


    Sixty was not a surprising number. After all, they were in the territory of Tang and their target was a princess who was beloved by the emperor. If they intended to keep it a secret before or after this action, they were not allowed tomand real troops but had to chose those faithful suicide soldiers.


    Though the number of those suicide soldiers couldn¡¯t berge, Ning Que clearly knew it that it was not the number of persons but the quality of fighters that could determine who would survive in a battle. A team consisting of fierce and fearless fighters was most terrifying.


    When bigwigs of Empire nned such a shocking assassination, it was likely for him to involve cultivators in his team apart from their suicide men. Thinking of possiblebat he might watch today in this ce, Ning Que raised a kind of excitement he couldn¡¯t describe and sensed a sort of terror he has never had.


    "What bad luck," he murmured and turned his sight to the maidservant beside him. Except for a trace of panic and puzzle in her eyes in the very beginning, she did nothing wrong and calmed down quickly, which won a silent praise from Ning Que in his heart.


    Enemies from both sides of woods crowded in. Those men dressed in grey military uniform of the Tang Empire didn¡¯t wear any mask or veil. Brandishing identical broadswords in hand, they dashed like a pack of wolves. Since they didn¡¯t cover their identity, obviously, this battle would not end until people on one side were totally swept off the world.


    Since they were in grasnd, valiant barbarians around the fleet were Horse Gang under themand of the princess. The storm of arrows aroused pugnacity in the fighters. Some set their crossbows to shoot swiftly, while others drew curved swords their waists with a battle cry.


    des nged at the entrance of Northern Mountain Road. In the chaos of grunts and cries, men were killed, bellies stabbed and throats cut open. Blood spouted from their bodies like fountains and painted the leaves red.


    This battle became violent the moment it began. No one retreated, however, no one turned back to escape. After all, great courage to bleed and a strong will to fight mattered more than techniques of killing them.


    Barbarians from grasnd were proficient in archery. Calm and brave, they gained the upper hand over rushing enemies. People in wood fell down now and then, so Barbarians charged in return with bellows and gradually control ces around the fleet. Tough and valiant as they were, Barbarians chose to guard their ces rather than march blindly.


    Absolutely, Barbarians adopted correct tactics, at least from Ning Que¡¯s perspective. Therefore, it puzzled him that the maidservant¡¯s facial expression grew grave and blue as if she were concerned about something.


    In fact, those courageous grasnd Barbarians had never experienced that particr kind of sh` in Central ins. Considering this, she intended to make a sudden rise and givemands to them.


    Ning Que would not allow her to expose herself and lead both Sangsang and him into an awful situation. He clenched his right hand to hit her leg, which hence knocked her down.


    "Hey! You! What!"


    ring at his eyes, the maidservant slowly reached her right hand to her waist.


    Ning Que focused his attention on the battle and ignored her question. When he noticed the scene in the fleet, something urred to him that made him quiver.


    Fierce killing at the entrance of Northern Mountain Road was still on, but a weird tranquility covered the fleet. Less than a score of guards from an elite troop of Tang, who must have apanied the princess when she married into the grasnd, were all down on one knee like statues.


    In front of a carriage sat an elder dressed in a worn robe, eyes closed. Protected by circles of bodyguards, he faced deep in the wood which was increasingly gloomy and dark.


    Nervously, Ning Que licked his numb lips and reached his hand to Sangsang. He didn¡¯t know when his palms had sweated heavily, making his hands moist.


    Sangsang took a nce at him and handed him the bow. Then, she mutely undid the big ck umbre on her back and quietly ced it on fallen leaves beside her.


    ...


    ...


    Killings were still on. The fleet was in the middle of the three prostate on leaves and the battlefield. Battles between Barbarians and suicide soldiers seemed not to affect them right away. Nheless, Ning Que was in anxiety he has never met before and his palms and brow continuously sweat.


    Those stone-like bodyguards beheld the wood icily, with calmness and fortitude on their sunburnt faces. They are alerted but not dreaded.


    They came from Yulin Royal Guards in Chang¡¯an and were picked up to apany Princess Li Yu into grasnd when she married. No doubt that they were among the most elite members of the troop. In this battle, however, at the entrance of Northern Mountain Road, their performance was a little bit unusual.


    When storms of arrows attacked them from the obscure and dark ces deep in the woods, they responded quickly by falling in around the defensive formation and hid silently behind shields. When opponents flocked to kill them, they maintained their postures in stillness, regardless of violent fights and killings around them.


    asionally, one of the grasnd Barbarians of their side might be killed all of a sudden right under their nose. Once in a while, dead bodies might bump into shields with thuds. They maintained their postures without even a wink and kept gazing cially at the woods with both heart and body as sturdy as iron or rock.


    Down on one knee, the bodyguards dressed in cotton clothes from edges of which parts of armor could vaguely be seen. They bent their hands toward their backs and clenched the hilts of their broadsword which stuck out. They had two carriages closely surrounded and kept staring forward with poker faces.


    One of the two carriages was luxurious and creepy silent. And in front of the other carriage, the only elder in the fleet sat with legs crossed and eyes closed. He ced a sword upon his knees to feel at ease. The sheath was shabby and frayed, just like the robe he wore.


    It seemed that poker-faced bodyguards around the elder couldn¡¯t see fierce fighting and hear any cries. Only when one or two enemies were about to intrude their territory did one of them pulled out a broadsword and joined others in the killing.


    Being outnumbered helplessly, the guard who dashed out alone was quickly injured and kept on fighting bravely with blood covering him. Nevertheless, other bodyguards were not disturbed at all. They refused to be a little further from the elder and remained to stay with him in tranquility. It appeared that even their eysh didn¡¯t move.


    Ning Que had no idea why bodyguards behaved like this or what was hidden in the dark woods. They stared alertly, but he was sure there would be something extremely horrible.


    He thought that he could guess what would happen. A splendid new cold world would be unveiled ande to reality, which made him exceedingly nervous. It was a horrid feeling for him so he rubbed the bowstring with the index finger and middle finger, silently and constantly. A momentter, his breath marvelously slowed down and expressions on his face appeared more steady andposed.


    An air of repression emerged due to unspecified terror when they waited. Abruptly, fierce fighting around the fleet as well as nging des seemed to disappear.


    Right at this tense moment, the window of the luxurious carriage was pushed open and a young beautiful girl reached out with her bun loosening a bit, her face appeared worried.


    Before she could say something, the poker-faced leader of bodyguards whispered, "Take care, Your Highness!" and swiftly closed the window to block her eyesight. His facial expression showed he was respectful and cautious, but his action appeared rude, which probably resulted from the tense situation.

 Chapter 11: Sword Held across Knees, Sword Drifting among Blood

    Chapter 11: Sword Held across Knees, Sword Drifting among Blood


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "Merely a scapegoat for the bigwigs... "


    As Ning Que thought about this in his mind, he sensed a cool gaze from beside him. He turned around to find Sangsang staring at him quietly.


    Ning Que felt they had been looking at each other for a very long time, but it was really just a few seconds.


    Ning Que felt frustrated in the face of his handmaiden again. He sighed in his mind and tightened his leg muscles. Then he pressed his feet against the pile of fallen leaves, sinking into the wet mud underneath, so that he was ready to sprint at any time.


    In the depths of Northern Mountain Road, darkness expanded as the sun began to set. Suddenly, a ruthless wind hurled through the grayish tree branches. Some fresh sprouts hiding under the old bark were spared from it, though the pile of fallen leaves on the ground rustled and whirled around in the air before falling back on the ground helplessly.


    Despite it being springtime, boundless forest leaves showered down.


    A hulking man in dark armor appeared in the depths of Northern Mountain Road, and after a deafening roar, a subtle earth-colored light radiated briefly through his armor, like a glimpse of the gods above.


    He raised his solid and broad arms as he lifted a massive boulder and hurled it briskly toward the luxurious carriage!


    The force was so terrifying and inhuman, practically resembling that of a long-range boulder-sieging machine!


    The massive boulder approached at such a high speed that it managed to crush all the tree branches in its way¡ªhundreds of meters was no obstacle as it almost instantly hit the first carriage with acute precision and cruelty.


    After an explosive sound, the seemingly well-structured luxurious carriage shattered into pieces, with blood and broken limbs scattered in a mess.


    Those Tang bodyguards looked calm with swords in their hands, as if oblivious to the fact that the carriage behind them that just be a pile of trash and the princess whom they defended had died already. They did not even seem to be surprised and, even stranger, their faces even showed a hint of relief and calmness.


    "First team, shoot!"


    ordered the leader.


    Three of the subordinates remained down on one knee and released their knives to pick up powerful military crossbows. Aiming toward the depths of the forest, they swiftly pulled the triggers.


    Nine arrows hit the body of the god-like, hulking giant through flying leaves. But he just waved his hands to flick away the two arrows aimed at his face andpletely ignored the ones that shot his chest.


    His rock-hard hands were slightly numbed by the high-speed arrows, and the ones that stuck to the armor on his chest soon fell to the ground. Given the slight trace of blood on the arrowheads, he most likely just suffered minor injuries.


    The arrows did not do much harm because of the long distance. The bodyguard leader had foreseen that already and kept his calm. Looking at the giant shadow far away up Northern Mountain Road, he raised his right hand and shouted, "Standby!"


    The three bodyguards put down their crossbows and held their knives upright again.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que was trying to find an opportunity to save the poor scapegoat in the carriage since Sangsang wanted him to do that. However, things had changed too fast. The giant had appeared too soon for him to react, and the huge rock fell out of nowhere and crushed the carriage with no warning. The woman was killed instantly before Ning Que even got there.


    He looked quite upset while looking toward the depths of Northern Mountain Road, perhaps out of sympathy for the nameless woman, or perhaps it was more for letting down his little handmaiden.


    Some secret art of cultivation enabled the giant to obtain such incredibly aggressive power. But he still had to pay a big price to toss that massive boulder over such a long distance. Now flushed and panting, with sweat spewing out of his armor, his legs could not stop shaking and he looked visibly exhausted.


    For some reason, the dozen poker-faced bodyguards chose to stay alert around the second horse carriage despite such a great opportunity for them to attack.


    The elder in the robe sat still in the carriage with his eyes closed, seemingly undisturbed.


    Suddenly, the old man¡¯s long white hair moved like a silver river flowing on his dirty robe. The old sword in front of his knees started to make a humming noise and hit the sheath incessantly as if eager to drink blood and harvest lives.


    "Hum... hum... hum!"


    "Zeng!"


    There was a sharp sound of singing metal!


    The shiny short sword bolted itself out out the sheath and became a beam of blue light shooting toward the depths of Northern Mountain Road at a high speed, rushing through the leaves and air, ready to pierce through the giant body that it was aiming at!


    ...


    ...


    There seemed to be an invisible mirror between the Northern Mountain Road¡¯s twilight and the thick dark forest. As the shiny short sword shot like a beam of light, there was a hazy, sword-like gray shadowing hastily!


    That gray shadow looked like a streak of lightning. It was seen among the flying leaves first but instantly arrived at the Northern Mountain Road battlefield. The deep humming sound had now be a roaring storm in the blink of an eye.


    The gray shadow was surprisingly fast, and its power had shattered all the leaves within its range. Those leaves formed a line behind the shadow, which aimed directly at the elder, who was now swordless.


    "The Great Sword Master!"


    Looking at the beam of gray shadow that had the power of a storm, the bodyguards who had been calm as stone finally got anxious and some of them yelled to watch out. When the most powerful elder used his sword to aim at that giant in the deep forest, the strongest enemy who had remained hidden all this time decided to show up atst.


    And what a show it was!


    The enemy sent two cultivators with extraordinary power, including a Great Sword Master, to assassinate the princess in the imperial territories. That was a terrifying fact, but the bodyguards showed no fear, only determination. Without hesitation, their leader shouted, "Chop!"


    "Zeng! Zeng! Zeng!" With the continuous ringing sound of the swords, about 10 sharp swords came from out of their sheaths. The bodyguards held swords to chop in the clear space in front of them, they had no fear to fight!


    Each beam of sword light was quite sharp to cut the air and the intention from the hill. They were weaved into a closely meshed sword to protect the old man who no longer had his sword.


    Just when the high-speed gray shadow was about to be chopped down by those swords, it abruptly paused in mid-air. Strangely, it turned to another side to avoid the dense attacks and then flew away.


    The shadow had already flown with thundering powder when it appeared in the Northern Mountain Road¡¯s forest, seemingly unstoppable. But no one imagined how incredibly smart and swift it could be in a real battle!


    The gray shadow suddenly slowed down when it was turning around, and what it was could finally be figured out. It was like a dim shadow of a sword, so light that it could probably be blown away by the wind.


    This sword shadow was as thin as a cicada¡¯s wings and not as firm as a piece of paper. However, it was highly difficult to catch since its trace was like a ghost. When it turned its direction, it avoided one bodyguard¡¯s sword de and cut his neck, leaving behind a beam of light blood there.


    That line of blood spread rapidly and then spurted out. The bodyguard held his sword with his right hand and put his left hand on his neck, but the blood still came out between his fingers. He stared at the depth of the forest and fell. He did not see that powerful Sword Master until his death.


    The gray sword shadow drew a curve and came back to the battle at blinding speed. It flew with a trajectory that was unpredictable and quickly killed two bodyguards.


    The bodyguard leader was still calm when he saw the blood drops flying slowly in the air. He held the hilt tightly and watched that beam of the gray sword shadow. Suddenly, his stepped forward with his left foot, chopped with his de, and yelled, "Gather!"


    Upon this order, four bodyguards beside him waved their swords like flying snowkes simultaneously, and they forced the gray beam of sword shadow into a small corner that was then condensed by the leader¡¯s sword power!


    The gray shadow was moving very fast and suddenly paused in the small corner before being hacked by the leader¡¯s de. The leader had prepared for that so he pushed the hilt with his left hand to tilt the de upward and hit the gray shadow!


    With a clunking sound, that smart gray shadow fell on the ground covered by mud and leaves, just like a snake caught by its neck.


    This was the first time for Tang bodyguards to hit the Great Sword Master¡¯s sword shadow. But there was no time to celebrate because the shadow started to shake again. The leaves quivered strongly and arched like a giant snake moving quickly below the bodyguards¡¯ feet.


    Suddenly, among the flying dead leaves and wet mud, the gray shadow came out like thunder and cut the aorta of a bodyguard in his thigh through his armor!


    The bodyguards fell one by one as they let out painful moans. They could strike that gray shadow asionally but they could not kill it. In spite of his sense of defeat and desperation, the leader still stepped forward with the sword in his hand and chopped again!


    "Gather!" he roared angrily.


    The remaining bodyguards all roared in unison while pouncing ruthlessly toward the gray shadow, hoping to build a final shield with their swords and their flesh.


    After two piercing sounds, two lifeless bodies fell to the ground, hardly making a sound. The bodyguard leader had half of his earlobe sliced off in a clean cut, and a few more bloody wounds were added to his body, looking like the work of a drunken calligrapher.


    After being hit by the bodyguards for the seventh time, the gray sword shadow finally slowed down, but it resisted falling and kept flying slowly across the des, until it eventually got closer to the old man.


    Then the gray sword shadow was finally able to be seen. It was actually a hiltless mini-sword with a dim and particrly thin de that did not have a trace of blood on it.


    The bloody bodyguard leader was on his knees, thinking disconstely. One shot, only one shot, and he and his brothers would have aplished the impossible mission. But after all, it was the Great Sword Master they were fighting against!


    ...


    ...


    A long time seemed to have gone by, but in reality, it was merely the time it took a few des to thrust, sword shadows to drift, and blood to ssh. Throughout all this time, the old man in an old gown sat in the horse carriage with his eyes closed as if he had no idea of how much danger he was in.


    Meanwhile, no one seemed to notice how the elder held his hands lightly above his knees as they were shaking slightly, his thumbs pressing against the pulp of index and middle fingers of both hands in very brief and subtle movements, as if performing some kind of intricate calctions.


    When the hiltless mini-sword flew toward him and stopped just a few inches from his forehead, the old man finally opened his eyes.


    Once he looked at the sword, it froze right there in the air!


    The almost-forgotten giant in the deep forest was shocked by the shiny sword he had just crushed with his hands, and he finally figured out what was going on. He looked up and roared in panic, "He¡¯s not a Sword Master!


    "... He¡¯s a Psyche Master!"

 Chapter 12: Buzzing, Sighing, the Sword

    Chapter 12: Buzzing, Sighing, the Sword


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The dim, matte small sword seemed to be aware of why the giant roared and that it fell into a trap. It started to vibrate fiercely in the air, making an echo of buzzing sounds as if it was a chaotic bird panicking that desperately desired to escape.


    With his hands on his knees, the elder gazed intently at the hiltless mini-sword seemingly both tenderly and peacefully. This lingering gaze had a kind of horrible power that bound the small sword, making it impossible to move, let alone to flee.


    Suddenly, there was a sharp drop in temperature at the area where the elder set his eyes on. Covered with ayer of frost soon, the small sword vibrated more severely with a noisy andsting buzz, but all its efforts were in vain.


    It seemed like a century before the small sword gave up this wasted struggle and voiced itsst cry. The small sword fell upon fallen leaves, helplessly and lifelesslyying there.


    The moment the small sword fell onto the ground, an agonized grunt sounded behind a tree not far away from the fleet, somewhere within the woods of Northern Mountain Road.


    A trace of relief shed in the elder¡¯s quiet eyes as he once again ced his hands on his knees. All of sudden, as though blown away by a gale, the skinny and bony elder leaped from the carriage and stopped right in front of the giant man, deep within the woods of Northern Mountain Road.


    The giant man¡¯s huge palm burst forth with a howl and thumped upon the skinny old man like a mountain, so ferociously that the elder seemed to be crushed into a pile of flesh.


    However, the elder looked at the huge palm with a poker face and his dry lips moved, soundlessly uttering a ¡¯Fu¡¯. Then, with his smudgy hands crossed in front of his chest, the elder made an Emblematic Gesture.


    The ¡¯Fu¡¯ word was mouthed from his lips and the Emblematic Gesture formed by his hands instantly turned the elder¡¯s dirty and shabby robe extremely hard. Every ruffle in the cloth was smoothed. It looked as if the robe was supporting his skinny body rather than he was wearing the robe himself.


    The gust of wind produced by impact from the palm ceased abruptly. The palm had no way to move forward in front of the trembling elder¡¯s head. The giant palm came to a halt; the rest of his body grew stiff. Blood ran down from his canthi and his jaw quivered uncontrobly. Obviously, he was in mighty agony.


    The elder¡¯s face was extremely pale and he seemed to feel the strain. Nevertheless, he raised his right arm with difficulty as he stretched out very slowly towards the giant man¡¯s chest.


    Inhibited by sort of bizarre power and unable to move, the giant man could not help but witness the elder¡¯s palm getting closer inch by inch.


    Softly, the elder ced his palm on the giant man¡¯s chest.


    A hissing turbulence could be heard between the palm and the chest. With a dull thud, the giant man¡¯s stone-like sternum was fractured and his chest began to copse inward.


    Meanwhile, riding on the powerful gust of winds created from the exchange, the elder shrunk his body and swiftly withdrew toward the carriage. The winds in the woods stirred his robe, causing it to roll around. He retreated back momentarily and sat down with legs crossed.


    It happened in a brief instant. The elder was once again seated with his hands on the knees again and his robe turned back to being ruffled and shabby. Everything appeared to remain the same.


    Finally, the giant man deep in the woods of Northern Mountain Road regained ability to control his body and that huge palm came crashing to the ground. Though the power of palm made a pit on the ground, it was toote. He stared at the bloody hole in his chest, cried desperately as well as regretfully, and fell down on the ground as if a mountain copsed.


    Keeping his legs crossed, the elder sitting beside the carriage took a glimpse at that direction as he bent forward to cough intensely, to the extent that spots of red blood were spat onto the robe.


    Meanwhile, bodyguards had formed a team that fought against the small sword. With their broadswords in hand and without concern for their own safety, they bought precious time for the old man. During this time, the elder calcted and found out where the Great Sword Master hid. Then, bridged by hiltless mini-sword, he used his Psyche Power to hurt the Great Sword Master. He seeded, but this attack greatly hurt him as well.


    When he leaped to kill the giant man, although it looked easy, it was in fact a risky move because if his Psyche Power in Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow had been used up and he would¡¯ve be rather feeble.


    Fortunately, he had already won the battle.


    The battle in the entrance of Northern Mountain Road had ended. Horse Gang in the grasnd, guarding Princess Li Yu had proved their loyalty, bravery and mighty fighting capacity in this battle. Their curved de slew all the opponent soldiers at a great cost. Those lucky enough to survive were totally covered with blood and too weak to stand.


    The number of bodyguards that were left alive or standing was much lesser.


    Wearing aplicated expression, the elder looked at the tree not far away.


    As the night was falling, the entrance of Northern Mountain Road appeared more silent. Bark was peeled from the tree like a man that had aged rapidly in a short period of time. It showed ominous spots indicating a rotten and broken body.


    A middle-aged schr dressed in cyan Cheongsam paced from behind the tree, a rounded scabbard sticking out from his back. Though he looked a bit old, he was handsome and would be considered elegant in brothels or entertainment boats in Chang¡¯an Local Government.


    However, he had no business with grace or elegance at this time. Numerous tiny blood beads permeated pores on his face and hands, making him up to be a horrible, bleeding man. Moreover, parts of his cyan Cheongsam were permeated likewise. His body concealed by the clothes wasrgely covered by those small bloody beads as well as his exposed face and hands.


    The middle-aged schr, raised his hand to sweep the blood on his eyebrow with his sleeve, gazed at the elder beside carriage and an empty scabbard beside the old man, and said with aplex feeling, "One careless move may lose the whole game. That Lyu Qingchen of South School of Haotian Taoism should abandon sword and cultivate Psyche Power. You can guess how many people would feel astounded if I spread this news."


    Keeping silent for a while, he continued. "What is much beyond my knowledge is that you seeded in stepping into the Dongxuan State at such an old age. Is it due to some secret art in Haotian Taoism?"


    The elder named Lyu Qingchen answered softly, "I followed the princess to live in the north for a year, enjoying quite different views, as well as different customs and was inspired. Therefore, I stepped forward in cultivation state. I didn¡¯t think it was rted to Taoism."


    Hearing this unexpected exnation, the middle-aged schr froze for a moment as if he was thinking about something. After a long silence, he cast his eyesight to the chief bodyguard down on one knee in the fallen leaves, saying in a much serious tone,


    "After I was upgraded to be a Great Sword Master, I felt that average martial arts could never be my counterpart. But today, your subordinate and you taught me a lesson."


    The middle-aged schr made a fist-and-palm salute to the badly injured bodyguards, praised and said, "It is great pride of our Tang dynasty to have fearless soldiers like you."


    The chief bodyguard nodded slightly without saying a word.


    "There are not many Great Sword Masters in Chang¡¯an Local Government, but you are not one of them," Lyu Qingchen said, looking at the bleeding middle-aged schr and he continued. "Academy really is a ce full of unknown masters."


    Hearing the word ¡¯Academy¡¯, those surviving soldiers couldn¡¯t help but feel shocked and confused. Was it possible for lofty Academy to be involved in this assassination attempt on the princess?


    Ning Que subconsciously looked at the maidservant at his side. Though she seemed lost in thought, her expression said that she didn¡¯t think Academy was linked to the attack.


    The middle-aged schr was surprised, shaking his head and bitterly answered, "I didn¡¯t expect that you found out where I came. But I should not bring any shame to Academy. I... was just a stupid apprentice expelled by Academy."


    Covered with blood and reeling, he would fall down at any time, but facing such a mighty enemy like him, the survivors, both the grasnd barbarians and the bodyguards, nervously held their breath for any possible fight. Even though he was the only opponent left.


    Ning Que felt the same, filled withbined emotions such as excitement and bewilderment.


    Having heard the legends of those great cultivators when he lived in City of Wei and having studied Article on the Response of the Tao for many years, Ning Que has imagined what they could be. However, this was the first time for him to witness an authenticbat between great cultivators.


    It was said that intrepid generals in the military of Tang Empire had various crack techniques, but since the frontiers were at peace for years, an insignificant soldier in border town like Ning Que had no chance to watch abat of this level.


    He couldn¡¯t help recalling what he had seen. The hiltless mini-sword flying freely among falling leaves; the giant man casting a gigantic rock to destroy a carriage; the old man, with eyes closed that used Psyche Power to kill remotely. All of these incredible feats of magic emerged from his memory one after another and in such quick time, stirring his mind and unsettling his heart.


    As the three words, ¡¯Academy¡¯, ¡¯expelled¡¯, ¡¯stupid apprentice¡¯, reached him, Ning Que became awake somehow, but fell into another kind of thrill.


    Imagine that a stupid expelled apprentice could kill ten bodyguards from elite troop of Tang with just a small matte sword. How enormous and unbelievable the power of those real students in Academy could be!


    "He might be under themand of Xia Hou," the maidservant whispered frigidly.


    As the name of Xia Hou hit him, Ning Que¡¯s face turned serious and even his body became stiff. It took him more than several seconds to recover from this abnormal state, but his eyes were now icily judging the middle-aged man instead of praising him for his ability.


    "You cultivate Haoran Sword Skill. It is not difficult for me to guess where you are from."


    Lyu Qingchen continued. "It is a pity that you haven¡¯t learned much from the second floor of Academy before you were expelled. At the beginning, the sword rose with momentum like wind and thunder, but was changed into something flexible and surreptitious."


    Lyu Qingchen added. "Being honest and untrammeled is top priority in Haoran Kendo, but you didn¡¯t follow it. You fancy yourself smart, but this decision is boring indeed. If you had met the middle-aged me twenty years ago, you would not have defeated me either, even if I didn¡¯t step into the Dongxuan State."


    The middle-aged schr lowered his head with a shallow smile, which appeared especially miserable at his gorgeous face covered with tiny blood beads.


    When he was invited to kill the princess and knew the level of the elder following her, as a Great Sword Master in the Dongxuan State, this middle-aged schr dressed in cyan Cheongsam thought it more than easy to finish his task.


    Nevertheless, the information he got had not included that the elder had stepped into Dongxuan State. To everyone¡¯s astonishment, the missionary of South School of Haotian Taoism had abandoned the sword and chose Psyche.


    Even so, Great Sword Master still had a chance to win. Nheless, he didn¡¯t expect those that bodyguards of Tang that were positioned around the carriage could actually make so much trouble for him either, and his location was found by Lyu Qingchen.


    It was perilous for a great cultivator¡¯s location to be found by his rival on the same level, Psyche Master in particr. Lyu Qingchen controlled his small sword first and took it as a bridge to hurt him with Psyche Power. Facing a Psyche Master famous for killing speed, he had no way to react but was attacked by the Psyche Power which directly rushed into his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow, ruined his viscera and broke his blood vessels.


    He was doomed to die at the entrance of Northern Mountain Road this day, so he would not mind thosements from Lyu Qingchen. Though something else was more imperative for him to do before he would die.

 Chapter 13: The Devils Severed Finger and the Militarys Wing-Footed Arrow

    Chapter 13: The Devil¡¯s Severed Finger and the Military¡¯s Wing-Footed Arrow


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    After speaking thest word, Lyu Qingchen started to cough heavily again.


    Psyche Masters were the most mysterious group of cultivators in themoners¡¯ imaginations. But there is one thing that others would never know about other than the group itself; that is, the mysterious Psyche power would actually hurt the masters mentally, and even physically, while they fought against their enemies.


    Looking at the piled corpses lying far away, Lyu realized that the empire had lost two precious elites and felt deeply pity, saying,


    "Though we have a number of powerful elites in the Tang, few of them can reach the state of a Great Sword Master. You, who have been educated authentically, were supposed to serve your country. How could you betray your country and be a traitor?"


    "Traitor? What do you mean by a traitor? Sir, you are from Haotian Taoism, you must know how they criticised the Imperial Astronomer when it was erased: ¡¯Night covers the stars, country is in turmoil!¡¯"


    By judging bodyguards¡¯ facial expressions, the middle-aged schr had already confirmed that the target is not in the carriage. The dead woman was just a bait. He nced at the broken, garbage-like, gorgeous carriage, and said disparagingly,


    "I don¡¯t care what General Xia Hou is thinking, but I know we have the same goal¡ªkill that evil woman in your troop!"


    The Imperial Astronomer event several years ago came into Lyu Qingchen¡¯s mind. He said, after seconds of silence, shaking his head, "The basic principle of the Academy was remaining realistic and practical. I would never believe these ridiculous ideas even being from Haotian Taoism, not to mention that you would."


    "I have followed the princess for over four years and never thought she would suffer all of this."


    Hearing such secrets that normal people would never know, Ning Que seemed to realize the reason for the princess to insist on marrying Chanyu years before, and why the emperor would agree in the end.


    Just thinking about this, he couldn¡¯t help but turn his head to face the pretty maidservant beside him, who was looking extremely unpleasant.


    Complicated moods that showed on the middle-aged schr¡¯s face were gradually fading away, and he stopped answering Lyu. He closed his eyes and inhaled deeply. The leaves around him started swirling along with his breath, and his robe also started making noises.


    "What else do you want to do?"


    Lyu frowned looking at him and said, "You aren¡¯t getting better even after seventy-seven breaths. Your viscera probably have been broken and the Ocean of Qi has been ruined, the same as your Natal Sword. Now you even can¡¯t beat a normal soldier. Are you not even willing to find your inner peace before leaving this world?"


    In normal people¡¯s minds, cultivators like Sword Masters and Psyche Masters all could use the Qi of Heaven and Earth. Some foolish vigers even believed that those cultivators with the strongest powers were able to control their lives. As a result, those badly injured barbarians and bodyguards dare not let their guards down, even though the middle-aged schr was dying.


    Upon hearing Lyu Qingchen¡¯s words, they finally believed that the Great Sword Master was dying, as their pain and tiredness started to overwhelm them.


    Ning Que still remained alert, throughout the war hiding in fallen leaves just like a quail. He stared at the middle-aged schr in a pool of blood, moving slowly with his bow and arrow in his hand, and looking for the best position to shoot.


    To the Tang, no matter if officials or normal citizens, honor was way more important than their lives. To them, even their enemy deserved respect ording to his status when he was fighting to the death.


    Now as the respected Great Sword Master was dying, the heads of bodyguards bowed their heads to demonstrate their respects towards him, even if the Master had killed lots of their loyal underlings. That was the reason why Lyu chose to talk with the Master to clear his doubts, so that he could give hisst words before the Master¡¯s death.


    Ning Que could never be regarded as a typical Tang.


    He did value honor, but he had never thought of it as important as life. He didn¡¯t believe that there¡¯s something more valuable than life, and even if there was, it would never be an honor.


    He was just a low-level soldier in a border town, knowing nothing about these powerful cultivators. This was the first time for him to see such an unbelievable battle.


    However, considering that the Great Sword Master was the enemy now, he would keep alert and be ready to put him down with any methods.


    Being homeless since youth, and fighting against barbarians in the frontier fortress for several years, the youngster had developed a deep-rooted awareness: The safest enemy was always the one who had already died, and only when the enemy was dead, might he take off his cap and salute with his eyes to show his respect to the enemy.


    And exactly at that moment, things happened just as he expected.


    With leaves swirling rapidly around the big tree, the middle-aged schr¡¯s bloody, wet, indigo robe was blown outward suddenly. Several streams of blood were spurting out from all his facial orifices. All of this seemed like there was a horrible invisible power rushing into his body from those swirling leaves and from all directions, driving his power out through the blooding out of his body.


    "Absorbing the universe within!"


    Looking at this, Lyu made an angry face all of a sudden, shouting at the middle-aged schr angrily, "Who uses Dark Methods in the Academy? How.... how dare you betray your mentors and faith!"


    The battle went even more ferocious at the Northern Mountain Road, while you could see nothing special on this old man¡¯s face. For the Tang, now that the battle had started off, death or failure were the mostmon things that could happen, with nothing to do with morality or justice. However, when he found that the middle-aged schr ruined himself with Dark Methods, he finally couldn¡¯t help but get angry!


    "If you are on a righteous path, why be afraid of using the Dark Method?" The middle-aged schr lifted his right arm slowly and pointed to the elder man beside the carriage and said, "Let me be lost in the Underworld for good if this is damnation."


    The moment that he spoke thest word, one more stream of blood appeared suddenly at the bottom of the index finger of his right hand. The bones inside appeared, slightly, as well. With a painful moan, the finger was ripped off of his hand, and the blood flow spurted out onto Lyu¡¯s face!


    Containing the Qi of Heaven and Earth inside his body, molding his flesh and blood into flying swords,pressing energies throughout his life into one shot¡ªthose were the most typical Dark Methods!


    For the group escorting the princess, Lyu was their most reliable person, especially when all of the barbarians and guards were badly wounded and dead. If he was murdered by this finger, then no one in this world could withstand the attack of the Great Sword Master.


    Two grasnd barbarians rushed to the middle-aged schr, shouting. Yet, they fell down on the leaves after two steps. Their curved knives slipped out of their hands as well.


    The leader of guards fell to the ground, crawling down and forward, bleeding. There was a crossbow arrow left by a sacrificed guard nearby. Although he had struggled with his full strength, he still fell far behind. Even if he got the arrow, Lyu would be too weak to be struck by the broken finger.


    In the dark forest of the Northern Mountain Road, no one would expect that a Great Sword Master, who was from the Academy, would use the Dark Method. No one was prepared for this and could do nothing but watch him win the fight and see people die.


    However, Ning Que was well prepared.


    He had prepared for this for a quite long time.


    When that middle-aged schr in the indigo robe sighed with emotion, he was not touched at all. In fact, he was carefully watching out for the party¡¯s movements as he gradually moved his body to look for a perfect spot tounch his attack.


    When the middle-aged schr started absorbing the Qi of Heaven and Earth into his body and the falling leaves were swirling in the air, he had already stood up and aimed his boxwood bow at his opponent.


    Exerting force on his right arm and hand, the bowstring was pulled out like a full moon, and the enduring string stored tremendous force and continued buzzing. The arrow on the string was shaking slightly and quickly turned calm, like a snake ready to jump out.


    When the broken finger flew towards the elder, Ning Que slightly released his index and middle finger. Then the bowstring bounced back quickly and the arrow shot out like lighting through falling leaves and went straight forward into his chest.


    "Weng, weng, weng!"


    The bowstring vibrated violently. The ck arrow flew like lighting and pierced through the falling leaves, tearing the night. Just before the Great Sword Master¡¯s broken finger hit Lyu with the Dark Method, it had shot into the schr¡¯s chest!


    The bodies of cultivators weren¡¯t stronger than those of normal people. Especially Masters of Sword, Psyche, and Fu, due to meditation for years, they had be weaker and needed to pay closer attention to the environment around them, vignt of attacks. In addition to the loyal guards defending nearby, they would wear light armor inside their robes in case of assassins¡¯ attacking.


    With clear determination, at thest moment of his life, this great master did not hesitate to kill the strongest Psyche Master with the Dark Method. So he did nothing when he found that someone was attacking covertly.


    There was only a clearke, which was formed by the Qi of Heaven and Earth, left in his psyche. The broken finger was just like a curved ck string. He struggled to crawl forward and had to concentrate all of his spiritual force to strike the elder. He would never allow himself to be interrupted by anyone or anything, not even the cold arrows.


    Besides, there was a nice light protective armor beneath his indigo robe. He believed that the arrow which flew from nowhere wouldn¡¯t kill him at such a long distance.


    "Pu!" With a muffled sound, an arrow, which was much quicker than normal arrows, hit his chest with its head swirling rapidly. The sharp arrow tore the robe apart into pieces and squeezed between the tiny openings of the light armor.


    The arrow was in his flesh and blood started to appear.


    The middle-aged schr still seemed like he didn¡¯t care. He didn¡¯t even lower his head to look at it, and the bloody drops on his face came together to form a stream.


    It was painful with an arrowhead in his flesh, but it didn¡¯t matter as he wouldn¡¯t die from this.


    But Ning Que shot more than one arrow.

 Chapter 14: A Blood Flower Bloomed on the Indigo Robe

    Chapter 14: A Blood Flower Bloomed on the Indigo Robe


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Sho!


    With the terrifying sound of tearing flesh, the second arrow followed the first one. It pierced into the chest of the middle-aged schr, like chained lighting. The arrow hit the exact same ce where the first arrow prated the robe and the armor.


    The third arrow was right behind the second, sailing straight through the others. Since his wound was no longer protected by armor, the third arrow prated directly into his body!


    Nobody knew how Ning Que did this. He used a regr boxwood bow to shoot three consecutive arrows in seconds. Furthermore, nobody could even imagine how this seemingly ordinary and young soldier obtained such terrifying mastery in archery, that he was able to shoot into the same tiny spot three times in a row!


    The middle-aged schr felt like a hard and heavy wooden pole crashed with such tremendous momentum into his chest that it pushed him back about two steps. He realized that there was something warm running down his chest, and secondster that warmth became boiling hot.


    He looked down instinctively and saw an arrow prating almost all the way through his body. Only a small portion of the fletching was seen outside of his robe. Blood gushed out of his body and a blood flower blossomed on his indigo robe.


    Shocked, the middle-aged schr looked down at the wet blood flower on his chest. An expression filled with absurdity and astonishment appeared on his blood-covered face.


    He lost all his strength and gradually fell to the ground covered with fallen leaves and mud.


    Even cultivators, who took advantage of Dark Methods to absorb the Qi of Heaven and Earth, could not control their minds after their hearts were pierced.


    The invisible string connecting heaven and earth was torn apart the moment the middle-aged schr fell down.


    The bloody and broken finger, which hadpletely lost control, could not threaten a Psyche Master anymore, even if the Psyche Master was extremely weak.


    Lyu Qingchen raised his eyebrows and shoved the broken finger out of his way.


    The broken finger flew past his face and towards the carriage behind the elderly. Then half of the carriage was destroyed and broken into pieces with a little copsing noise.


    A tiny portion of the Qi of Heaven and Earth absorbed by the middle-aged schr was charged into the broken finger. Although the broken finger had lost its control, it could still cause a lot of damage. It definitely could have hurt the elderly seriously without the help of the three arrows. And the ambush would have embraced in an entirely different end.


    All the surviving guards and soldiers understood this, but the schr was the one who knew this best. He stared at the arrows in his chest and painfully struggled to raise his head, looking towards the back of the carriage formation to see what the shooter looked like.


    Using his superior mastery of archery, Ning Que had shot three arrows at the most important moment. These arrows pierced the armor and surprisingly was able to kill a Great Sword Master. He turned the tide of the situation and saved the Tang princess from absolute danger... Is it the time for him to ept the surprise, gratitude and even worship of all the people who were present?


    Ning Que, however, did not think so. There was no relieved smile on his face. He still held his boxwood bow tightly and kept his arrows drawn. He aimed at the Great Sword Master sitting under the tree, with his ears focusing on the light rustling sounds of the forest.


    He stayed cautious.


    "Xia Hou."


    "Xia Hou!"


    "Xia Hou... "


    Ning Que had been repeating this name to himself in his mind after a maidservant told him that the Great Sword Master might be Xia Hou¡¯s subordinate. Besides, the Great Sword Master had admitted that before.


    Xia Hou was not called Xia Hou XX.


    Hisst name is Xia, and his first name is Hou.


    As one of the four most influential Great Generals in Tang, his Kungfu was among the highest level and he had achieved many military aplishments. The man was extremely brave yet cold and ruthless, famous for being brutal and warlike. He was stationed at the Fierce Willow Battalion.


    However, while hisst name was Xia, he did not allow his children to use Xia as theirst names. Instead, he changed his children¡¯sst names to his full name. His oldest son was called Xiahou Jing and his second son was called Xiahou Wei, and so on. When the court¡¯s intellectuals asked about it, Xia Hou answered arrogantly. "I want to create ast name for myself and I am the ancestor, which will be passed down for thousands of centuries."


    "Therefore, the family name from now is Xiahou."


    ...


    ...


    General Xia Hou was a celebrity. It was not, however, for this reason, Ning Que kept remembering his name in his mind, from shocking narrations to disappointment, and then to irony.


    This name, seemingly engraved into blood and arrogance, had always been deeply buried in Ning Que¡¯s mind since he was four.


    He had never met Xia Hou before.


    But he knew Xia Hou¡¯s hobby, his favorite concubine, and why Xia Hou had boiled and killed that concubine. He also knew that Xia Hou would eat three kilograms of mutton at every meal, and even his daily toilet routine.


    He believed that he was the person who understood the Tang¡¯s famous general most, none in the world wanted to kill this man more than he did.


    Under the rough and arrogant appearance of that general, there was a cold and cunning heart. He was harsh and ruthless, but he only trusted his own hands. Therefore, he would never rely solely on the middle-aged schr, who obviously was not his descendant, to assassinate the princess.


    The general would definitely send his most loyal assassins and subordinates to observe this ambush. He himself might jump out at a key moment to finish the task.


    It was the best moment, in Ning Que¡¯s perspective.


    A crying little boy poked his head out of the half-copsed carriage. A pretty maidservant raised her dress and ran towards him nervously.


    Ning Que extended his right arm as quickly as a thunderstrike and knocked her down.


    The tree branches over their heads snapped and broke into pieces, obscuring the sight of any onlookers. Two masked men dressed in ck appeared in the debris. They quickly threw two metal balls at Ning Que and unsheathed their long swords from their backs. The scene was very cold and scary!


    The two elerating metal balls were painted with red dots. They were kerosene grenades equipped by the elite forces of Tang¡¯s frontier armies and their burning effect was extremely horrifying.


    Ning Que was familiar with these grenades as he had spent a lot of time in the frontier fortress. He threw the bow away as quickly as he could and reached out for the hilt on his back, and then he screamed, "Umbre!?"

 Chapter 15: I Have Three Podaos

    Chapter 15: I Have Three Podaos


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Just one word: umbre.


    There wasn¡¯t a verb before it.


    Also, Ning Que didn¡¯t call out the name of Sangsang.


    Ning Que and his handmaid had been living together since childhood. After spending several difficult years in the mountains and forest and on the grasnd, the two of them could easily understand each other and exhibited great teamwork. Just eye contact, a gesture, or a word was enough to clearly convey what one wanted to do.


    The moment the word "umbre" was uttered, Sangsang, like a squirrel, quickly ran beside the maidservant and shook the umbre hard, with two hands holding the handle. Then the ck umbre, dramatically hugepared to her thin body, was opened with a "Hu" sound, as if a dark sky-curtain had suddenly appeared over the thick forest of the Northern Mountain Road at night, blocking the light of the stars.


    Two kerosene grenades fell on the ground and ignited rapidly. The zing fire rolled the fallen leaves up which further aided thebustion. All at once, the area was surrounded by the unstoppable raging mes.


    The live bodyguards and grasnd barbarians around the carriage team looked at the fierce fire and thought of the noble that was hiding there. They were seized by trembling from head to foot. Unable to help the noble due to their serious injuries, they, desperately screaming, had no choice but to helplessly watch as the incandescent fire was engulfing everything inside it.


    However, they didn¡¯t notice that the big ck umbre still remained intact. The incandescent and ferocious fire grotesquely became weak when it touched the oily and sticky curtain of the ck umbre. What on earth was the umbre¡¯s cover made of? Miraculously, not only could it block stars like a ck sky-curtain, but also ward off the fierce fire!


    Below the big ck umbre, Sangsang, who was thin and nervous, lowered her head as she closed her eyes and lips. Her two hands tightly held the handle of the umbre, which withstood the horrible fire close at hand. Her left hand held the handle head tightly, but then became temporarily rxed again. It seemed that she was very tense or was struggling with something in her heart.


    The maidservant, with her slightly curly hair swinging between her delicate eyes, was also sheltered by the ck umbre. She became extremely nervous with the intensely high temperature and the sight of the ze sprawling across the ck umbre. Then, a sense of confusion and shock appeared in her eyes the moment she noticed, through the side of the ck umbre, that the fighting was about to unfold.


    The assassins in ck had hidden and prepared in the forest for a long time. They finally figured out where their target was after silently watching and analyzing the countermeasures of the princess¡¯ guards. Then, with the Great Sword Master and the giant cultivator managing to distract Lyu Qingchen, they gradually moved towards the target area and suddenlyunched an attack.


    Countless sawdust from the trees fell to the ground. The two assassinators in ck made a relentless and urate raid with perfect timing. After throwing two kerosene grenades, they quickly attacked Ning Que from a short distance. In this way, it was impossible for Ning Que to make use of his excellent archery.


    They were not mighty cultivators, but they were much more professional being assassins than the cultivators.


    On this night with the stars filling the sky, there were few changes or signs of panic appearing on Ning Que¡¯s face as the two assassins suddenly appeared. He just threw away his bow and arrows like shabby shoes, and then jumped with force just when the two kerosene grenades touched the fallen leaves.


    The muscle in his waist, abdomen, and legs tightened and rxed suddenly. Without any run-up or preparation, his legs, as if equipped with a spring, leaped from a still condition.


    At the very same time, the kerosene grenades began burning and his shadow was just over the fire. It looked like that he, stepping on the incandescent fire, was drifting through the mes.


    Ning Que forcibly flew through the violent ze, with his hollow fists swinging naturally from the side of his face to behind his body. His legs inclined backward and his body nted forward in a very natural and coordinated movement, like a bird attractively gliding. Meanwhile, his hollow fists were close to reaching the two hilts that were resting askew on his back.


    As he leaped through the fire and into the air, Ning Que kept his attention on the two assassins in ck. Only calmness, concentration, and peace could be seen from his expression, without any distracting thoughts.


    The ck maidservant, looking through the tiny gap of the ck umbre at Ning Que¡¯s figure jumping out of the me and the calmness on his face, somehow, felt extremely cold from head to foot.


    At this moment, it reminded her of what she witnessed as she followed Chanyu to hunt on the grasnd half a year ago.


    In that situation, a young and fierce tiger leaped through the shrubs and pounced on her, with its forepaw slightly holding her and its hind legs gently and deftly contracting. However, only extreme calmness and concentration appeared in its eyes, without any cruel and bloody expression. For one fleeting moment, a quality of calmness, even grace, was attached to the beast. For her, unfortunately, the expression in its eyes was the most formidable one she had ever seen, and sometimes she was even woken up by the calm and peaceful staring of that tiger in her midnight dreams.


    Calmness without any emotion represented mightiness and confidence, and concentration signified volition and determination. As tigers went for prey, they attacked in a focused and sober, but not grim, way. It was just their talent and instinct for survival to tear all enemies into pieces, not that they want to release its anger, they just had to be clear about their gift or aptitude.


    That memory and thought appeared in her mind when the maidservant saw Ning Que¡¯s face reflected from the ze.


    ...


    ...


    The assassin who had been killing other people at night their whole life was the most sensitive creature to danger. Even the maidservant could feel the resolution and cruelty hidden behind Ning Que¡¯s calm and concentrated expression. The two assassins in ck, as they watched thed leap over the fire, were also subconsciously shocked and nervous, even more nervous than the time they had assassinated Yan cavalrymen in the past. Their hands had strangely be a little stiff as they held onto their long swords.


    Apanied by a whistling wind, Ning Que jumped between the two assassins, with his burning cotton-robe tails depicting several feeble mes among the thick forest at night.


    Two rusty podaos were quickly pulled out from behind his shoulders and went straight at the enemies. Then, a string of impact sounds made by metal des suddenly urred in the forest. When the wind became more violent, the feeble mes were divided to subtler sparks, which brightened the battlefield more than before.


    The podaos and swords furiously collided. Ning Que bounced forward,nded on the fallen leaves, and then forcibly stepped into the middle of the two assassins after several paces. His wrists controlling the podaos changed their direction, ntingly dragging his weapons up, like lightning, to the enemies through back edge of their swords. Completely outperforming his opponents, Ning Que directly gashed into their ribs apanied by two sounds, leaving no chance or room for them to respond!


    The heavy des diagonally and violently chopped apart the assassins¡¯ sternums and into their chests, with their blood and flesh squeezed out from the des. The two assassins in ck tragically uttered a howl. However, before their lives ended, they threw away their swords and caught Ning Que¡¯s two podaos with their hands and bodies, showing the strong willpower of Tang soldiers!


    Just at that moment, another assassin in ck appeared, like a ghost, with a sharp, short sword held firmly by both his hands and chopped straight towards Ning Que¡¯s nape!


    There was a third assassin in the forest!


    From any perspective, the two assassins should have been thest attempt. But surprisingly, they still kept another as a backup, which, while seeming needless, was full of ruthlessness and determination at the cost of the whole group¡¯s lives!


    Nobody had ever predicted such a circumstance, except Ning Que or his handmaiden under the ck umbre.


    "Six! Two!"


    The handmaiden, nervously huddling and closing her eyes as the third assassin chopped towards Ning Que, eximed the two words with all her strength.


    What could the two simple numbers warn of Ning Que? Were they a type of code or direction hint? In fact, she shouldn¡¯t have caught sight of that assassin. Even if she was able to urately figure out the location of the assassin, what could Ning Que do as his two podaos were still stuck in the first two assassins¡¯ chests and hands full of blood?


    "Six? Two? It¡¯s surprisingly high."


    Upon hearing Sangsang¡¯s anxious shout, Ning Que made aint in his heart and then loosened his hands without hesitation¡ªleaving his two podaos with the outraged assassins in ck, who, before dying, tightly held the two podaos with their hands and lives. The fire was getting weaker and the sky was bing darker. He raised his two emancipated hands over his head, gripped the hard hilt covered by a cloth bandage, and suddenly pulled out hisst podao that was on his back!


    Firmly holding the long hilt, Ning Que quickly unsheathed his podao with a "Shua" sound. Without looking back, he turned around with all the strength from his waist and abdomen, and then powerfully struck the long podao in full strength, into the night sky!


    As if there was an eye on the back of Ning Que¡¯s head, the violent attack urately chopped at the rapidly falling assassin in ck, with the sharp de fiercely throwing away the short sword held by the assassin!


    Then, Ning Que¡¯s podao straightly and smoothly hacked into the killer¡¯s neck bone!


    The podao kept its momentum without stopping, until it wedged halfway into his neck!


    The assassin, having no time to utter a hum, plummeted on the fallen leaves from the treetop, and then weakly kneeled down on the ground.


    Ning Que stepped back to reach the hilt stuck in the previous assassin¡¯s chest and then forcibly pulled the podao out. Then he returned to the third assassin and chopped backhanded, with the de prating from the other side of the neck and encountering the previous de¡¯s path at the neck bone.


    With the blood spraying, the assassin¡¯s head dropped down with a click. The head rolled past his knees and the fallen leaves, and then went very far into the forest.


    In the past war between the Tang and the Yan Kingdom, the vanguard group led by General Xia Hou once assassinated a great number of Yan cavalrymen. The secret group, having no cultivators, was made up of elite soldiers. But the group performed very intrepidly in the battlefield and had even managed to assassinate cultivators.


    Themon people had no idea about the system of the mysterious group headed by General Xia Hou, but Ning Que knew clearly about it.


    He knew that each assassin team of Xia Hou usually undertook any action with three assassins.


    Therefore, since he was very young, Ning Que had been carrying three podaos on his back.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 16: Ning Que, the Wood-chopper of Shubi Lake

    Chapter 16: Ning Que, the Wood-chopper of Shubi Lake


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    For Ning Que, who had been used to surviving in forests, on grasnds, and among herds of beasts since childhood, it was those mysterious cultivators that disturbed him, but not the secret killers. Thus, after cutting off the assassins¡¯ heads with his podao, he immediately retreated to the mild slope, where there still existed sh fire. Then he picked up his boxwood bow at once, and aimed at the Great Sword Master again.


    This time, his vignce seemed a little needless. The middle-aged schr (the Great Sword Master) in an indigo robe, without any movement, just silently leaned against a big tree. He looked at thed in the firelight, with his ck eyes on his bloody face, and muttered a few words. Then he died, with a helplessugh and hands spread apart.


    Ning Que had been aiming intently at the Great Sword Master¡¯s corpse for a long while, and he didn¡¯ty down his bow until his arms began trembling. Immediately, tiredness and ache started invading his blood and every vessel.


    He asked without turning around, "Are you all right?"


    The mes, caused by kerosene grenades, lit fallen leaves, but the moist sapropel at the entrance to the Northern Mountain Road gradually extinguished the fire. Sangsang, half squatting and looking up at Ning Que¡¯s back, re-closed the big, ck umbre, which made a sound, and shook her head. It seemed that her young master could know what she had done without her words.


    The maidservant knew Ning Que was not concerned about her. She quickly stood up, raising her skirt¡¯s hemline, and sprinted to the carriage team, which was almost ruined. She wildly moved the heavy wooden box debris away. Then she eagerly embraced the dignified and strong boy, lovingly and gently flicking off the dust that was left on his face.


    About six grasnd barbarians and Tang bodyguards were still alive. After struggling to stand on their feet, they trudged to the ruined carriage. The seriously injured bodyguard captain, leading others to kneel on one knee, mournfully said with his head touching the ground, "We subordinates deserve countless deaths as Her Princess is disturbed by the assassins due to our ineffective battle."


    It was not a sad picture that several men, covered in blood, kowtowed to the maidservant, who was hugging the boy while arrays of stars and remnant firelight were zing. Instead, it was a picture full of bravery, or in other words, solemnity and valiance.


    Sangsang walked close to Ning Que, and both of them just quietly looked at this scene. There was no need for them to pretend to show astonished or shocked expressions, as they had already figured out the real identity of the maidservant before.


    After a short rest, the guards and barbarians began, with difficulty, binding up wounds and applying medicines to each other. When their breath steadied, theymenced on cleaning up the battlefield, carrying back several severely woundedpanions, and ying all dying enemies. After that, these agile and brave men unconsciously looked behind them.


    Looking at thed in a slight-scorched, cotton-padded jacket, the bodyguards showed some veryplicated expressions¡ªshock, confusion, and even fear. The sight of Ning Que¡¯s capability convinced them that thed had a good mastery of fighting and archery, but not a mysterious strongman beyond the imagination.


    In this battle, it was the bodyguards and Lyu Qingchen who directly fought with the two mighty cultivators and depleted the majority of the Great Sword Master¡¯s life, making it possible for Ning Que to end the enemy¡¯s life with three arrows atst.


    However, it furthered their feeling that thed was a very formidable figure.


    When he began attacking, he could choose the perfect timing, with a precise angle and an effective approach. Additionally, a calm and tough heart was hidden beneath his gentle and young appearance. Undoubtedly, it was such an amazing performance to y those three assassins in ck with his three podaos. How did he manage to do it at such a young age? How many people did he kill in the border town of the grasnd? And how many heads did he cut off?


    The bodyguard captain, leaning on a stick, trudged towards Ning Que and Sangsang and then deeply bowed with his hands pressed together. Though without any thankful words, his innermost appreciation could easily and fully be told by that gesture.


    Leading Sangsang by her hand to the side, Ning Que refused to ept the bodyguard captain¡¯s bow. These Tang bodyguards, who followed Her Princess to the grasnd, as the dead Great Sword Master previously said, deserved the respect of every enemy or friend due to their intrepid performance and strict military discipline. That was why Ning Que refused to ept his bow.


    The leader said, "I can tell that there aren¡¯t any patterns in your martial arts. Perhaps I can beat you if we battle bare-handed. But I have to admit that if I were you, I would have been killed when the three assassins raided, let alone been able to y them efficiently."


    Looking at Ning Que¡¯s immature face, the bodyguard captain, suppressing his shock, asked in a husky voice, "Lad, I¡¯m very curious, where did you learn the ability to kill others?"


    Scratching his head and keeping silent for a while, Ning Que replied with a smile, "The ability to kill others, certainly, is learned from killing."


    Of course, he couldn¡¯t tell the leader that he had already known the name of Xia Hou since he was four. And that, all the time, he had been making some preparations to kill, or be killed by, Xia Hou.


    Xia Hou, a powerful Tang general, had no idea that there was ad, in a distant town of the frontier fortress, assiduously practicing fighting skills, analyzing the battling styles of all the mighty subordinates of Xia Hou, and summarizing countless countermeasures every day.


    Therefore, for Ning Que, the death of the three assassins in ck was just an inevitable result of his painstaking practice that he did for over a decade. If the enemies were not Xia Hou¡¯s subordinates, for example, the bodyguard captain in front of him, he couldn¡¯t have achieved such a satisfactory victory.


    In today¡¯s battle at the entry to the Northern Mountain Road, Ning Que, after all these years, finally met with the subordinates of General Xia Hou for the first time. Maybe it was just an ident or an arrangement of fate. Anyway, Ning Que¡¯s podao and archery, full of vengeance, had begun to show cold-bloodedness.


    The bodyguard captain, pressing his wounded chest, looked with confusion at the fearlessd and mumbled, "You¡¯re only about sixteen years old, is it possible that you have killed more people than I have?"


    "If you count animals, then I really have killed a lot," Ning Que replied, smiling.


    "I¡¯m referring to human beings," the bodyguard captain asked with emphasis, and then he exined at once, "I¡¯m not interrogating you, and it¡¯s just out of curiosity."


    Ning Que, rubbing his face and looking at the leader, after a short silence said, "The major ie source in the border towns is from killing the Horse Gang¡ªusually we called this activity ¡¯chopping wood¡¯. During the past few years, it was I who led others to kill the Horse Gang in the City of Wei. Thus, regarding killing people, I did y a lot."


    A grasnd barbarian, who was standing behind the bodyguard captain and also wanted to know about Ning Que and to express his thanks, turned around and left without a word after hearing Ning Que¡¯s answer. His steps were a little hurried with his shoulders trembling.


    A grasndpanion asked with confusion, "Dumu, what¡¯s the matter with you?"


    Dumu slumped down beside the bonfire, lifted up his wounded arm with difficulty and, pping his numb cheek out of fear, said, "Thatd... should be the well-known wood-chopper from Shubi Lake."


    This statement caused four grasnd barbarians around the bonfire to acutely change their expressions. Nobody talked anymore. Someone sneaked a look at Ning Que and then quickly lowered his head, as he was afraid to be discovered by thed.


    Before being subdued by Her Princess, the barbarians were Horse Gang members in the grasnd, famous for their violence and toughness. However, for them, the Tang¡¯s mighty military border forces were the real Horse Gang. In every change of season, when the logistics supply was short, the Tang cavalries in towns of the frontier fortress would conduct an extra wealth-gaining looting operation on the grasnd Horse Gang.


    The border forces of Tang Empire called it wood-collecting. The Horse Gang described the bloody battle as wood-chopping, and they referred to the most ferocious cavalry leaders as wood-choppers. In particr, the wood-chopper of Shubi Lake... was the number one of all the wood-choppers. That was the reason why the color of Shubi Lake turned red. He was the nightmare of the grasnd Horse Gang and he was the horror story told beside the bonfire.


    But before tonight, however, they had never thought that the wood-chopper of the Shubi Lake was so young.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 17: Out of the Mountains with a Little Girl

    Chapter 17: Out of the Mountains with a Little Girl


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    This brutal and bloody battle came to an end. Something in the survivors¡¯ eyes had changed when they looked at Ning Que. Since they left the City of Wei, they might have perhaps treated him as apetent guide, but surely not a decision maker. When it came to something important, he was no more than arge rock in their eyes. But now, with the end of this battle, everything seemed to have changed, as they would voluntarily consult Ning for anything.


    Having received approval from Her Princess, the bodyguard leader followed Ning Que¡¯s advice for their next move. They would not immediately retreat from the mouth of Northern Mountain Road, and rather, they would stay where they were for some rest and recuperation while hoping their aid would reach here before dawn.


    Lyu Qingchen, pale and weary, silently watched thed by the bonfire, with an imperceptible smile crossing his face. The elder rubbed his thumb against his index finger slowly, and then gently shook his head.


    Two bonfires were made nearby the carriage. Although the forest and shrubbery were dense, there was no worry of a fire disaster, as the leaves wereden with night dew. The bodyguard leader and the others who were wounded gathered at one bonfire, saving another for Her Princess, thed, and the elder. As bad as a situation like this was, the guards never forgot subordination.


    After binding the wounded and having some food, the grasnd barbarians couldn¡¯t help drinking spirits and passing around bags of wine. When a bag passed to Sangsang, she softly shook her head. The barbarian named Dumu walked up to Ning Que with a solemn and respectful look, passing his wine bag to him with both hands.


    Noticing this unusual scene, the princess raised her eyebrows and was certainly aware that, before they kneeled to her, these loyal barbarians were the unruly Horse Gang on the grasnd. Seldom did they show their respect to someone who was not one of their kind. A distinct fear emerged on their face. "Given what just happened, Ning Que did save their lives and they probably felt indebted, but where on earth did the feare from?" She wondered.


    Taking over the wine bag, Ning Que swallowed a gulp, instantly furrowing his brow¡ªit was quite strong! With his heart pounding fast, Ning Que, seeing the elder sitting by the bonfire, propped up his weary body, stood up, and walked towards him. Before he could manage a bow or put his palms together devoutly, or even kneel down when he did as a child for respect and inquiry, a faint sound caught him unexpectedly.


    "Sit."


    Ning Que turned his head, looking at the maidservant, whose face was glowing, lit by the firelight, and his heart gave out a soft sigh. Ning Que gave a salute to her in a reverent fashion, and sat down somewhere neither close nor far from her.


    He insisted, much different from what others appraised the princess to be, that she was a dimwit. Well, no matter what he thought of her, she was far superior to him, as a shining star in the sky was to a base worm in a paddy field. Therefore, he was still required to pay attention to his manners and be respectful.


    The reason for this was quite simple, which was that she was the Fourth Princess of Tang Dynasty, Lee Yu, and by no means some ordinary maidservant.


    Examining Ning Que¡¯s young and in face, Lee Yu could not recognize anything special, except some speckles on his cheeks and dimples whenever he smiled, a couple of times perhaps.


    It was this ordinary soldier¡¯s valor in the battle that made her feel like she was watching a fierce tiger springing from the bushes for prey. For some unfathomable reason, a sense of calmness came over her as long as she knew Ning Que was around, though she still dreaded to think of the not-long-ago assassination.


    She thought, "Maybe it¡¯s this fearless ¡¯tiger¡¯ that¡¯s guarding me."


    The problem was that she did not like thisd whatsoever, based on what she observed since she pretended to be a maidservant. She quitted the disguise, finding herself still not able to take a liking to this little solder¡¯s manner.


    To her dismay, she felt that what Ning Que did for her was mere pretense, not out of his heart, and even sensed that he often derided her behind her back. You must admit that a woman¡¯s instinct was sometimes her most powerful weapon¡ªbe it for rural housewives, or for sullen royalties in courtyards.


    The most honorable princess of the Tang Dynasty had every reason to be angry as long she thought someone was mocking her. Now, nevertheless, the princess felt a sense offort, security, and protection sitting together with him by the bonfire.


    She quite enjoyed this feeling, and yet was a bit dissatisfied with the fact that it was Ning Que who caused such emotions. Feeling somewhat embarrassed, she intentionally adjusted her tone to somewhat cold and insensitive.


    "During the assassination earlier on, it seemed you that were trying to save me?"


    Lee Yu thought to herself, "Anyway, that was not me in the carriage at the time, your intention to save the princess was no grander than your ambition to win honor for yourself."


    "I knew you were the real princess since you were in City of Wei."


    Ning Que exined to her in earnest, "As the maidservant was the real princess, so the one in the carriage should be someone else. This little act may be helpful when luring the enemy, but only a shoddy trick to the one who is observant."


    Frowning, Lee Yu didn¡¯t ask him how he could recognize her real identity. She slowly formed a good impression of him after the battle mostly because of the sense of security he gave her.


    She suddenly asked coldly, "You said you learned your killing skills in the military, but till now you¡¯re only fifteen or so. You were no more than a kid when you were enlisted. Howe the military would enlist you?"


    nning to make up something to fool her, Ning Que thought,"You married off to the far-away grasnd at sixteen, why couldn¡¯t I be enlisted at that age?" At that time Sangsang quietly walked over and sat beside him.


    Watching Sangsang sitting beside him and the dancing fire nearby her, Ning Que suddenly softened and said, "You must already know that I met Sangsang on the road. We were very little then, and were somehow lost in Min Mountain. We met an old hunter as we were almost dying of thirst."


    He raised his head, saw the princess¡¯ profile, and continued, "The old hunter was not a sage or master. He saved us, but this proved nothing. Anyway, he taught me how to hunt. Later, he died. I and Sangsang, we lived off what I hunted in the mountain."


    Though a very simple and short ount about his childhood, vivid pictures shed before the princess¡¯ eyes. A ten-year-old boy carried a five-year-old girl on his back, searching in a mountain full of beasts and perils. He carried a small boxwood bow and the girl had a barrel of arrows.


    They might get nothing for days, or might be chased by a leopard and fall off of hills. They might get excited just about a dead rabbit, or might watch the lights from a small vige for a time from a distance, and then silently walk away.


    Now Lee Yu reckoned that Ning Que seemed not to be as awful as he was before, and asked, "Living in the mountains is quite dangerous, why didn¡¯t you just go to the local council? The allowances for orphans in our country are generous and fair."


    Ning Que lowered his head, picked up a charred piece of wood and said in a soft tone, "It¡¯s easier to live in a ce with fewer people."


    Such a simple reason, but yet it revealed the kinds of hardship they had met. Lee Yu stared at the two with no words, asking suddenly, "How, how did the old hunter die?"


    Ning Que lifted his head, and answered peacefully, "I killed him, with a knife."


    As for why he did so, he didn¡¯t say further, and would not exin it to this princess, who would never understand how base and dark life was for people like them, and probably never to anyone. He caressed Sangsang¡¯s little head gently, holding her in his arms closely.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 18: Storytelling beside the Bonfire

    Chapter 18: Storytelling beside the Bonfire


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    A chubby and lovely boy raised his head out of the arms of Lee Yu, the princess. He took a curious look to the side, and then buried his head again into Lee Yu¡¯s arms like the way Sangsang was sitting beside Lin Que. His face rubbed randomly against the princess, leaving snot all over her clothes.


    Lee Yu, however, fumbled out her handkerchief to wipe his snot away somewhat clumsily, without any disagreeable look. She then turned back to Ning Que and indifferently, she said, "How about serving me after arriving in Chang¡¯an? I can promise you a good prospect."


    In his heart, Ning Que had already figured out the status of that little boy as a member of the Tribe of Savages, but yet he never expected that the princess favored her step-son so deeply. Moreover, he experienced a subtle change in his attitude towards Her Highness when he saw her wiping snot for the little boy. As expected, he was slow to reply with his mind upied on these thoughts. He paused for a while before answering, "Your Highness, I have to take the academy entrance exam after arriving in Chang¡¯an."


    Different people perceived in different ways which, hence, produced different understandings. Those words could be regarded as Ning Que¡¯s regret over his inability to serve the princess, or his tactful turndown with a bit of self-confidence: ¡¯Your Highness doesn¡¯t need to bother with my future. I could earn my own prospect so long as I am admitted to the Academy¡¯.


    "Are you sure you can sessfully take the academy entrance exam, or even pass it without any hitch?" Lee Yu said dryly with a cold look, "Although our Tang Empire want officials with talents, the word ¡¯want¡¯ is not the one you normally understand. If men with talents could all find chances to make full use of their abilities, like what you have thought, then schr Liu from the previous dynasty would not have wasted his life so resentfully in brothels."


    Ning Que looked at herely face and earnestly responded, "I know what you mean, so I beg Your Highness to wipe away those unnecessary obstacles for me. I don¡¯t want to lose the opportunity to enter the Academy just because of my poverty."


    Lee Yu also looked at him, yet with undisguised suspiciousness. She kept in silence for a long while, wondering what had made this youthful soldier refuse her invitation in such a calm and direct manner.


    After all, she was the emperor¡¯s favorite princess, and highly respected by the whole nation. Therefore, it was already a huge luck for Ning Que, a humble soldier, to keep such a close distance with her. If it were other soldiers in the border town, despite their qualification of taking the academy entry exam, nobody would escape from being moved to tears of gratitude and kneeling down to worship her in response to her invitation.


    Then she broke this long silence and said nonchntly, "I promise I will, because that¡¯s what I owe you."


    After uttering those words, she henceforth lost her interest to chat with Ning Que. She merely held the little boy tightly, staring nkly at the bonfire, with tears gradually moistening her eyes. At the moment, Lyu Qingchen was still in meditation with legs crossed beside the bonfire to recover his energy, while those bodyguards at the other side had already sunk into a sound asleep. Night came deep over the forest, with several chirps by birds that were asionally stirred by the twinkling stars.


    Surprisingly, Ning Que caught the sight of her watery eyes and following her vision, he saw that she was looking across the bonfire at the scene of the piles of corpses of bodyguards and grasnd barbarians.


    Thinking of her wiping snot for the little boy and witnessing hermenting over the death of her bodyguards, Ning Que¡¯s impression of this princess has somewhat changed. Silently he figured, "Even if she was an idiot, she was a humane kind of idiot."


    Sangsang had fallen sound asleep on his knee, leaving only Lee Yu and Ning Que still awake alongside the bonfire. The two continued sitting there without any words, and suddenly the little boy struggled out from the arms of the princess, rubbing his eyes and asking her to tell him a story because he couldn¡¯t fall asleep, which made Lee Yu embarrassed. The stories she had heard in the pce during her childhood had already escaped from her mind, while the romantic stories she favored as a young girl were not suitable for such a kid.


    The boy, airing his grievance by being unwilling to look at his step-mother, and yet refraining from causing disturbances, looked quite pitiful. Ning Que just grinned aside at the embarrassed princess and gently made several coughs.


    "The golden wheat, and the glossy green oats... The duck eggs cracked one by one, but nothing had happened to the biggest one... Mother duck looked at her big and ugly baby paddling cheerfully in the water, and proudly said, ¡¯Look, she is not an annoying turkey, she is my baby.¡¯"


    "¡¯But she is too ugly, and others will make judgments of her wherever she goes¡¯... the wild duck said, ¡¯Anyway, it has nothing to do with us so long as she doesn¡¯t marry any of the ducks from our family.¡¯"


    "One night, when the glorious sunset towards the western wilderness, the ugly duckling saw a flock of big birds flying out of the woods, whose beauty had never appeared in her life. They were bright white with slender and soft necks, unfolding their beautiful wings and flying to warm states.


    "When winter had passed, the ugly duckling found she was surrounded by some big swans, which made her extremely ashamed because in her mind she was so ugly. However, those big swans were tenderly pecking at her feathers... And suddenly she glimpsed at her reflection in the water and unexpectedly found it was so beautiful... When spring came, the sun shone warmly again. The lcs dangled their branches into the water and people began to sing and dance cheerfully when they saw the ugly duck. They excitedly yelled at her, ¡¯Look! How pretty that swan is!¡¯"


    Ning Que randomly drew something on the ground beside his feet with a piece of scorched wood, with a smile he told that very old story with his head lowered. The story sounded simple yet indicated mixed feelings of sorrow and happiness. The little boy listened with his eyes opened widely, his body lying on the princess, and even the princess herself had been engrossed in the story. It hadn¡¯t been noticed that Sangsang woke up and joined them. She had heard the story when she was very young but still listened carefully, with childlike smiles asionally emerging on her face.


    The night went deeper, and finally the children fell into a sweet dream when the story had finished. All of a sudden Lee Yu opened her mouth after a long period of silence and said, "Your story is too profound for Little Wild to understand. But I still have to thank you for reminding me of these things... I¡¯ll learn from that mother duck to treat him as my child and be proud of him. He¡¯ll never be mocked at and even discriminated against after we return to Chang¡¯an. But whether he can soar up like that swan... It all depends on himself."


    Ning Que rubbed his head with a smile and then responded, "Actually I haven¡¯t thought about it so much. It¡¯s just a story that I trumped up tofort Sangsang when she was a child, because she always felt self-abased for her darkish and not-so-pretty appearance."


    "Anyway, it¡¯s a good story," Lee Yu smiled and said, "and it sounds encouraging for a disdained ugly duckling to finally grow into a respected white swan through her effort."


    The hand of Ning Que holding the scorched wood slightly stiffened. He then raised his head and said earnestly, "You have misunderstood me. This story is desperate to arger degree, because it¡¯s impossible for an ugly duckling to grow into a swan. And she can... because originally she is a swan, just like Your Highness and the little prince in your arms. But a real ugly duckling will in no way grow into a swan."


    Lee Yu silently stared at thisd. Reflecting on his words, she faintly understood something.


    ...

 Chapter 19: Your Beauty is to Blame

    Chapter 19: Your Beauty is to me


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Being derived from a fairy tale, their dialogue seemed to be quite profound¡ªit seemed to plunge headlong into theke of life and be g showing no sign of appearance. But, after given careful thought, one realized the two speakers were no more than two youths of fifteen to seventeen years old. Once they had taken off their clothes of a distinguished princess and a Shubi Lake wood-chopper.


    There were some situations, like being stuck in the bottom of an icehouse well, where a person would forget things like status and wealth, and their interactions became pure. In the forest, next to the Northern Mountain Road that had just experienced a bloody battle, beside a burning bonfire the Tang princess Lee Yu and Ning Que simply became a story listener and a storyteller.


    Because the wounded were sleeping all around, the storyteller lowered his voice, which caused the story listener to lean forward to get closer. As a result, they were naturally sitting together, shoulder to shoulder, huddled around the bonfire to talk about some meaningless gossip before they went to sleep.


    After an unknown amount of time, the darkness gradually dissipated and the sky above the forest changed from a nket of stars into the faint light of dawn. From the southern part of the Northern Mountain Road came the rapid sound of horses¡¯ hooves.


    Lyu Qingchen and Ning Que opened their eyes at the same time, exchanged nces and then woke up the rest of theirpanions. One grasnd barbarianid his ear to the ground to listen, and after a moment he rose his right hand up to make a gesture. He made a sign by making a fist, waving it heavily and quickly, which indicated to thepanions that many people, including armored cavalries, were approaching from the south.


    As the bonfire had burned out, under the charred wood was a gray dust covering the still glowing embers. The bodyguards and grasnd barbarians struggled to get up, taking out their long and well-prepared single crossbow, and then aimed them down the still dark Northern Mountain Road. Since everyone was still hobbled by their severe injuries and they knew the strength of theing party, they decided that there was no point in hiding and only to wait calmly to be saved or to be killed.


    The leaves on Northern Mountain Road rolled along the path as a dozen cavalries rushed out from the dim early morning twilight, the people mounted on the horses were wrapped in very thick ck armors. Their horses ran as fast as the wind, and their hooves¡¯ sounded like heavy thunder, causing the ground to tremble. And as the burning embers vibrated, they emitted little puffs of soot and smoke.


    These were the most elite ck armored cavalries of the Tang Empire!


    Wrapped in those heavy armors, once they assaulted first on the battlefield, these cavalries had never met a rival in the world. Even the powerful Great Sword Masters could not effectively inflict damage to these armored warriors.


    Even if in the dawn light, everyone could clearly see the arrow and sword wounds on the armored cavalries who were rushing down the road, indicating that they had been attacked. Maybe they had encountered an ambush at the southern foot of the hill. In any case, everyone could imagine the anxious mood of the cavalries, who were definitely not equipped for junglebat but still forced to go overnight through the Northern Mountain Road.


    A dozen armored ck cavalries roared through the entrance of Northern Mountain Road. At the front was a young armored knight, wearing a red cloak. From a distance of around 328 feet, he looked at the people beside the bonfires and shouted, "I¡¯m the Gushan Commander, Hua Shanyue, and I¡¯m here to ask for Her Highness!"


    Hearing the name of Hua Shanyue, the bodyguard carrying the crossbow arrows suddenly rxed, loudly responding with a reply. Ning Que lowered his eyes and looked down at Princess Lee Yu leaning on his shoulder. Her eyshes were moving slightly. He could not help smilingly raising his eyebrows and silentlyy down the boxwood bow in his left hand.


    As fast as lightning, the horse ran full speed, hooves hammering, down the Northern Mountain Road, rolling up or trampling the fallen leaves that covered the road. The young general iming to be Hua Shanyue gripped his saddle head and flew down the road on his horse. He quickly ran to the bonfire so he could kneel down on one knee with hands folded, then in a hoarse voice he said, "I¡¯m responsible for the overdue rescue, which even death can¡¯t atone, so I¡¯m begging your Highness for forgiveness."


    By this time, the dozen armored ck cavalries had rushed into the forest. With their faces etched with exhaustion, those Tang elite warriors all dismounted and knelt in a queue behind Hua Shanyue, and said in unison, "Your Highness, please forgive us."


    They had no idea of when Lee Yu had opened her eyes. She seemed to have just woken up, or perhaps... she had been awoken for a long time.


    Lee Yu looked at the Gushan Commander Senior Captain Hua Shanyue kneeling in front of her, this loyal young general, and all the cavalry who had obviously experienced a bloody battle while rushing here. While smiling she gave an encouraging look and said, "Please, quickly get up unless you really want to ept the punishment."


    She was so happy to see the Tang cavalries that rushed overnight to help even after suffering an ambush at the southern hill of the Northern Mountain Road. They kept worrying about her life and possible death the whole night. As for the cavalries, how could they not be excited to finally see the virtuous princess after the passing of a year?


    Hua Shanyue raised his head in excitement, prepared to say something. But then he saw the princess sat beside the other soldier¡¯s shoulder wearing a particrly natural expression. Seeing this scene, he somehow had a slight ufortableness in his heart, showing a trace of sadness and unhappiness in his eyes, and slightly furrowed his eyebrows.


    The moment this young general looked up, Ning Que who had been watching the cavalries clearly saw his face. He had a handsome and cheerful face with sword-like eyebrows, which expressed a bit of intelligence.


    Hua Shanyue was very young for a Gushan Commander Senior Captain and to lead a whole team of armored ck cavalries. He was no doubt the most elite and outstanding one among the young people of the Tang Empire, the best one in terms of shrewdness, tolerance, and ability.


    But, unfortunately, there was always a threshold he could not cross, in which he even fell over himself a few years ago. And, this threshold was the love that he had buried in the heart. A love that had long been known by all the Tangs.


    This was the deepest and the strongest love, for the Tang¡¯s Fourth Princess Lee Yu.


    Hua Shanyue suddenly showed a sad mood, naturally, not for Lee Yu. Because he wouldn¡¯t dare to disrespect the princess, even in this current situation of danger. He was just very jealous of the soldier beside her, thinking to himself, "What a bold man, how dare he actually get so close to the Princess, who is a high noble! Not just close to her, but almost next to her!"


    He had never been so lucky as to be so close to the princess in his life. And if possible, he could not wait for a time to draw his sword to chop down thatd¡¯s shoulder!


    Hua Shanyue had hidden this jealousy well and his grim emotion. And he would continue to do so, at least in front of the princess. Thus Lee Yu only saw a glimmer of shock and unhappiness sh through his eyes.


    She hesitated slightly and then felt the warmthing from her arm, thus understanding the reason for the difference in the young general¡¯s eyes. She subconsciously raised her hand tob her hair from her temple to conceal her embarrassment. She herself had not meant to actually spend a night lounging next to the bonfire while sitting next to Ning Que. Although it was situational, it was indeed inappropriate for the Tang princess to be so intimate with a young man.


    Princess Lee Yu slowly stood up.


    So, the maidservant who had listened to the story no longer existed.


    The warmth of their arms was quickly blown away by the morning breeze.


    After a moment of silence, Ning Que shook his head with a smile and looked at the side of her face, suddenly feeling that her eyebrows looked particrly elegant in the morning light, as it reflected off her cheek. To him, she looked much more lovely today than she had the previous days on this journey.


    Indifference and pride, of course, would not be as beautiful as calmness and grace.


    But, he still felt that the girl in the firelight had had the best look.

 Chapter 20: Nothing in the Snow Mountain

    Chapter 20: Nothing in the Snow Mountain


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Hua Shanyue stared at the forest around him and noticed that there were many corpses from both sides. Seeing the blood and other evidence of the fierce fight, he picked up a thin hiltless mini-sword, and he finally realized how brutal the assassin wasst night. The color drained from his face with this realization.


    He gave his subordinate the hint to get the horses ready and said, "Your Highness, the following support troop is already on its way. We should leave as soon as possible."


    Princess Lee Yu nodded in agreement and got ready under the protection of the armored cavalries.


    Then Hua Shanyue nced at Ning Que and gave him a cold and emotionless look, the look that was so emotionless it made the others feel cold. He was trying to guess the real rtionship between this young soldier and the princess. However, no matter how hard he tried to find a clue, he could not see any potential threats from the young soldier. Therefore, his vision became more and more indifferent.


    The indifference in his vision actually consisted of multiple probabilities, of which Ning Que was fully aware. While looking at his back, Ning Que remembered the previous warmth and gentleness in his eyes. Ning Que knew that he would not do any harm to the princess and that he was just overprotective.


    Honestly, the Young general¡¯s drastic love for the princess had nothing to do with low-ranking soldiers like Ning Que. However, Ning Que really disliked Hua Shanyue¡¯s indifferent attitude expressed by his cold nces. He knew that most of this indifference represented a strong power to support the conduction of a culling operation at any time, but it also represented scorn.


    Ning Que did not like him, so he stood up and smiled at the princess, who was about to mount a horse. With his jaw raised, Ning Que said, "Your Highness, in fact, I have been trying to say something to you since we were in City of Wei..."


    Hua Shanyue suddenly looked back at the pretty princess sitting on the white horse. Frowning she turned around and stared silently at the young soldier standing by the bonfire. She seemed to be ming him, but atst, she said softly, "Tell me when we return to Chang¡¯an."


    Hua Shanyue asked the head of the bodyguards about the situation, in a whisper, before setting out. Hua Shanyue got a general understanding of what the princess had gone through since her entry and Ning Que¡¯s performance in dealing with the assassination attempt. He remained silent for a while and then walked over to Ning Que. He then said without emotion, "You made a great contribution this time. We¡¯ll award you after we¡¯re back to Chang¡¯an... Good job, boy."


    Ning Que took Sangsang to their shabby tent and began to pack it up.


    Sangsang fastened the big ck umbre to her own back with difficulty. Then she suddenly turned her head up towards Ning Que and asked, with her eyebrows furrowed, "Young master, did you say ¡¯you have something to say¡¯ on purpose just now?"


    "Yes," Ning Que replied casually as he cleaned the coagted blood from his de. "The guy named Hua Shanyue is so hypocritical and boring that I don¡¯t like him. So, I look only to irritate him."


    "Young master, what¡¯re you going to tell the princess?" Sangsang stopped what she was doing and asked curiously.


    "I don¡¯t know." Ning Que pushed his sword into its sheath and shrugged his shoulders. He said, "After all, I can¡¯t say some stupid words, like ¡¯I have fallen in love with you since the first time we met in City of Wei¡¯ or ¡¯I have been crazy about you¡¯..."


    "But, Senior Captain Hua may think that way, and so may the princess..."


    "Idiots think in an idiots¡¯ way. I¡¯m not surprised about that," Ning Que answered.


    The little handmaiden looked into his eyes and said sincerely, "Don¡¯t you think that you¡¯re a bit of a rascal sometimes?"


    Ning Que bowed his head slightly, agreeing with her silently.


    Sangsang shook her head. After a few seconds, she looked to him again and asked, "Young master, are all the people in the world, besides you, idiots in your opinion?"


    Ning Que thought carefully while he was fastening his sheath. After a long time, he answered seriously, "That isn¡¯t my problem. The fact is that there will always be many idiots doing stupid things in the world. Specially-privileged people like Hua Shanyue aren¡¯t supposed to be regarded as an idiot. However, as he actually believes he¡¯s in love, he¡¯s, in fact, an idiot."


    Sangsang pointed at herself with her finger and asked seriously, "So, am I also an idiot in your eyes?"


    Ning Que looked at her little ck face and replied seriously. "You aren¡¯t an idiot, you¡¯re just stupid."


    Before the group left through the entryway of the Northern Mountain, an incident happened.


    Some of the Gushan Commander¡¯s cavalries stayed behind to observe the site. The assassins who dared to try and murder the Tang princess definitely would not have left any clues. Therefore, they did not stay to find evidence, but to protect the corpses. When the support troop arrived, all the corpses would be moved back to Chang¡¯an and buried. This was a rule of the Tang army¡ªdid not leave apanion behind under any circumstances.


    They carefully lined up their soldiers¡¯ corpses in the forest. On the contrary, the enemies¡¯ corpses were left where they had fallen, waiting to be burned into ash. However, they hesitated when they were going to burn the corpse of a middle-aged schr in turquoise robe. They knew that he was a Great Sword Master, so they were not sure if they should show him respect corresponding to his status.


    Hua Shanyue slightly frowned and decided to bury this Great Sword Master. However, at this time, Lv Qingchen whispered to him. "The man has already fallen into diabolism."


    Upon hearing that, the young general¡¯s face suddenly turned cold. He looked down at the corpse again, this time without any respect in his eyes. He waved his hand with unabashed disdain like he was driving away a fly. He then said, "Throw it in the fire and burn it with the rest."


    ...


    ...


    They went through the Northern Mountain Road from its southern foot that morning and converged with the support troop by noon. Under the strong protection of hundreds of the elite cavalry soldiers, the Tang¡¯s Fourth Princess, Lee Yu, and her followers continued to move towards Chang¡¯an. By this point, nobody would threaten her, whether they hade from the Tang or one of the other empires.


    The days following the assassination attempt, Lee Yu and the little prince of the Tribe of Savages stayed in the carriage, refraining from appearing publically.


    Even though there were hundreds of calvaries, the surviving bodyguards and grasnd barbarians continued to protect the princess around the carriage, regardless of their wounds. The elder Lv Qingchen was in the second carriage. The heavily wounded bodyguards and barbarians were in the following carriages. Ning Que and his little handmaiden Sangsang were sitting on their own shabby carriage, far behind the others.


    At the border of the Gushan Commandery, all of the heavily armored cavalries changed into their light armor, increasing their travel speed significantly. While the solid carriages at the front could follow and keep up, Ning Que¡¯s carriage could only barely keep up.


    A cavalry dropped back to their carriage and scolded them angrily. "You¡¯re moving too slow, speed up!"


    Just like before, after they had left City of Wei during the spring, Ning Que appeared to be sleeping on the shaft of the carriage again. It appeared that he would likely fall off at any moment and that he was entirely dependent on Sangsang toboriously hold him up. While being scolded by the cavalry, he just nced at them without saying a word.


    As they watched the back of the cavalry as they left, Sangsang wiped the sweat from her forehead. She squinted her willow-like eyes and then said, "Young master, they appear to dislike us."


    "Good use of the word ¡¯dislike¡¯. If you had said, ¡¯we seem to be forgotten,¡¯ it would have sounded pretentious and showy."


    Ning Que towards the first horse carriage and thought about the princess, whom he had not seen since leaving. He smiled and said, "For poor people like us, who to struggle to survive, any pretentious or showy expressions are considered nasty."


    It had been like a fairy tale, sitting with the princess by the bonfire. Such an idea, regardless of being in Chang¡¯an or on the grasnd, would have been just a fantasy and never real.


    In fact, if a little soldier from a border town happened to rescue a noble they would receive an award ordingly. Then they would never interact again and that was the story of reality.


    There were epic heroics in the world. However, there were not fairy tales. If Romeo had not been a noble¡¯s son, but simply a garbage man, Juliet would have been more hesitant to die for him.


    Ning Que had always had a clear understanding of such things. He knew that the girl he saw by the bonfire was just an illusion. Most importantly, he had never really been emotionally touched. He only appreciated the fact that a princess could rx like that. Therefore, he did not feel any regret.


    ...


    ...


    The team did not rest for even a moment after resupplying at the Gushan Commandery. Instead, they chose to keep moving southwards. The princess was clearly rushing to go back to Chang¡¯an and find her lovely father.


    Hua Shanyue did not misinterpret Ning Que¡¯s rtionship with the princess, as he had investigated Ning Que¡¯s background and found out that he was just an ordinary soldier from the border town. Clearly, nothing could ever happen between them. Therefore, Ning Que was not concerned during his stay in the Gushan Commandery.


    After making an encampment so they could rest, Sangsang went to a nearby river to collect water, wash the rice, and kill some fish, so she could make arge meal for dinner. The young master and the little handmaiden scooped food from the main dish into their bowls and started eating happily adding several sauerkrauts and peppers. They did not stop eating until they were full and content.


    A cold and harsh man walked into their tent, but when he saw this he shook his head and smiled. "We asked you guys to eat with us but you declined. We thought you resented us. But, as it turns out, your dinner is far better than ours... You¡¯re lucky to have such an intelligent handmaiden."


    It was obviously an exaggeratedpliment. But, Sangsang didn¡¯t say anything. She just smiled and continued to eat, while Ning Que felt that it was an obvious fact.


    The man was named Peng Guotao and he was the head of the Tang¡¯s bodyguards. He performed well during the bloody battle on the Northern Mountain Road and had won the trust of the princess. He brought his subordinates and followed the princess to the grasnd for the year. On their way back they had encountered several ambushes. Only seven of his loyal subordinates remained and this deeply saddened him.


    They had berades while fighting together on the Northern Mountain Road and this had made their rtionship more solid than usual. Besides, the outstanding performance of Ning Que certainly had left the people who had been present with a deepsting impression.


    As a result, the carriage that was disliked by the cavalries of the Gushan Commandery was frequently visited by Peng Guotao and a few other bodyguards these days. The barbarian soldiers also sent some spirits to Ning Que and Sangsang as gifts. However, they rarely came closer than a distance of one hundred feet and barely spoke to Ning Que and Sangsang. Perhaps they were scared after hearing the story of Shubi Lake.


    "I know you can make it back to the city by yourselves, and I know you guys are unwilling to travel with the team. But, there has still been no reply about the submission of your request." Peng Guotao looked at Ning Que apologetically. "You¡¯re a soldier sent from City of Wei and we can¡¯t let you go without Her Princess¡¯ permission."


    Ning Que scratched his head and said, "Then I¡¯ll continue to go with you for a while longer."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que had expected the rest of the trip to Chang¡¯an to be boring and uneventful. However, he suddenly received an invitation from the second carriage on the following night. Lv Qingchen wanted to meet with him.


    Ning Que was both surprised and happy. He scowled as he thought about it for quite a while. Then he decided to be nonchnt and he put out the bonfire next to his carriage before walking towards the second carriage with Sangsang.


    The curtain had been lifted and the carriage was dimly lit by a candle. The Psyche Master, Lv Qingchen, watched Ning Que and his young handmaiden bow towards him respectfully. He was surprised. He had reckoned that thed understood why he had been invited. He would not enlighten him about the subject if there was a third person present. Hadn¡¯t the young man considered that?


    Then the elder remembered the story he had overheard by the bonfire when they were at the entrance of the Northern Mountain Road. Although he was meditating, he couldn¡¯t help but eavesdrop... The story had been about a boy and a girl, who had struggled to survive in the vast and dangerous Min Mountain. Lv Qingchen realized why Ning Que had brought Sangsang along with him. At this realization he was pleased and he liked Ning Que even more.


    Although, Ning Que hadn¡¯t considered that. It was just a deep-rooted habit to bring Sangsang with him.


    "Do you know the reason why I want you here?" The elder asked warmly with his hands folded and resting picturesquely on his knees.


    Ning Que was speechless. Immediately, he pressed his left fist into his right hand and knelt to the ground. While kneeling hey his wrapped fist to the ground and bowed until his forehead was touching his balled hands. This was the most sincere show of respect in Tang Empire.


    This type of gesture would often only came after a great favor. Even though Lv Qingchen had not done anything yet, and even if he wasn¡¯t able to help him, it was really a generous and noble act of a cultivator to help an ordinary person that had no obvious potential. Only people like Ning Que, who had memorized the entire Article on the Response of the Tao but still couldn¡¯t find his way to it, would realize that. It was a ce where only those with abnormal talents got ess to.


    Although Sangsang did not understand this action from her young master, she also bowed in front of the elder.


    Seeing this, Lv Qingchen smiled and rubbed his beard. He then lifted Ning Que up and closed his eyes, concentrating. He ced his hands on Ning Que, one on his chest and one on his back by his waist. A momentter, the warm candlelight within the carriage became blurry for no apparent reason. It was almost like there was a quickly moving dust swirling through the air.


    There was a dead silence and the time flew by without notice.


    The light in the carriage started to regain rity and strength. The elder gradually took back his hands and stared at Ning Que, who was wearing a tranquil expression. There was no anticipation in his eyes, but his hands were shaking slightly as the elderly man sighed softly.


    "There is a breath of heaven and earth. It¡¯s the so-called primordial Qi. A cultivator is able to detect it if he has a strong psyche. Therefore, it depends on your strength of psyche to decide whether or not you¡¯re able to cultivate."


    When I first met you in City of Wei I discovered no breath of Qi in your body. Today, I thoroughly checked inside your body, and I was right. There¡¯s nothing in your Ocean of Qi and Snow Mountain."


    "... Absolutely nothing."

 Chapter 21: Two-thirds of the Painted Peach Blossoms

    Chapter 21: Two-thirds of the Painted Peach Blossoms


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The concluding statement made Ning Que keep silent for a long time before he raised his head and stared at the elder. He lifted his right arm as he pointed his index finger towards his temple, looking as if he was preparing tomit suicide with a crossbow. He then asked the elder in a serious tone, "Doesn¡¯t Psyche Power, or should I say, things like consciousness,e from the mind?"


    The elder, Lyu Qingchen, looked at him gently and slowly replied, "What you¡¯ve said is not exactly wrong. However, if Psyche Poweres from the mind, how is it able to interconnect with the external breath of nature?"


    "Cultivation is about gathering your psyche at your chest like the snow in the mountain, and at your back like the Ocean of Qi. Surrounding the Snow Mountain and the Ocean of Qi are 17 Qi orifices, which act like the thousands of holes found beneath the mountain. As the wind and water pass through the holes, the sound that each hole creates gathers to form a unique melody yed by a duet. As such, this allows both of them to interweave and interconnect with each another."


    "As for the opening and blockage of the Qi orifices within one¡¯s body, they¡¯re inborn and determined the moment one is born. No matter how one tries to pursue and change the situation, they can¡¯t be modified. That¡¯s why there¡¯s a saying, ¡¯cultivation... is just about retrieving what Haotian has given us as a gift¡¯."


    "I have observed the 17 Qi orifices surrounding the Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi within your body. 11 of them are blocked. Thus, no matter how hard you practice your Psyche Power to whichever state, you¡¯ll never be able to connect with nature."


    "Nevertheless, you need not be disappointed about it. Though there are many people in this world, it¡¯s rare to have someone who has 13 opened Qi orifices out of the 17 ones. In fact, it¡¯s perfectly normal for you to have such body quality..."


    The elder slowly consoled him as Ning Que lowered his head with a slightly embarrassed smile.


    He had indeed consoled himself numerous times in City of Wei, telling himself that only a truly abnormal genius would be able to pursue cultivation. Now it seemed that he was right. ording to the standard way of saying, where the elder had mentioned about geniuses who had 15 to 16 opened Qi orifices were actually having gifts from Heaven, it would be like biscuits suddenly falling from the sky while you were casually taking a walk outside.


    "Then why am I not the lucky chosen one?"


    He felt regretful as he sighed in his heart before he sincerely expressed his gratitude and alighted from the horse carriage with Sangsang.


    The light from the oilmp in the carriage was dim and after god-knows-how-long, the curtain in the carriage was pulled open once again. The Fourth Princess from Tang Dynasty, Lee Yu, sat in front of the elder and leaned her body slightly forward as she consulted the elder. "No possibility at all?"


    Lyu Qingchen admired Ning Que a lot. However, for a Psyche Master who had entered Dongxuan State to lower his own status by using Psyche Power to investigate Ning Que¡¯s body quality, there would definitely be other reason, such as an order from Her Highness.


    "A person with strong determination and a great temperament is often able to meditate and achieve a powerful Psyche Power. It¡¯s no doubt that Ning Que is such a person. Hence, I was actually hopeful about him. I thought that if only 10 of his 17 Qi orifices were opened, then perhaps he was about to be awakened, but was unable to arouse his mind to enter the initial stage of cultivation due to ack of proper skills. Unfortunately, 11 Qi orifices within his body are blocked. This means that he hasn¡¯t obtained the gift from Haotian. No matter how great his potential is, it¡¯ll be useless."


    The elder¡¯s face was filled with regrets. To him, if Ning Que could really step onto the path of cultivation, even if only 10 Qi orifices were opened, his future would be bright with his great temperament and beautiful handwriting. It was such a pity that thed was fated not to have a good life.


    "If that¡¯s the case, then you need not bother anymore." Lee Yu¡¯s eyes showed a slight sense of weariness after being on the go for days. She lowered her head and kept herself in deep thoughts for a while before she said calmly. "I should not have troubled you for such matter."


    Lyu Qingchen gradually raised his snowy white eyebrows and quietly looked at Her Highness¡¯ face. He knew what he¡¯d said previously would decide Ning Que¡¯s future. After knowing that Ning Que could never step onto the path of cultivation, she had instantly given up on that thought.


    The elder kept quiet for a moment before he advised. "Chang¡¯an is a city full of experts. Perhaps ad like Ning Que is not extraordinary among them, but I believe that after a few years, he¡¯ll grow into an outstanding soldier in Tang Empire."


    Lee Yu did not expect the elder to have such a high remark on Ning Que. She frowned slightly as she gradually exined. "Thatd¡¯s martial arts skills and temperament are considered the best among all candidates. If he remains in City of Wei or within the army, I¡¯d have to do whatever it takes to make him stay by my side to serve me. However, he chose to go onto the path of Academy today. If we were to take our time to recruit and train him till he was strong enough to influence the situation at the empire, he and I would be too old. What¡¯s the purpose then?"


    The elder kept quiet for a long time, and then suddenly he spoke, "Though only six of his 17 Qi orifices are opened and normally it¡¯d be difficult for such a person to step onto the path of cultivation, but... Haotian always changes, nothing is fixed."


    "My state is still too low, and yet he¡¯s someone able to step into the Academy, a high holy ce and being in a different ce from me. In the future, he might... I¡¯m saying he might be able to enter the second floor of the Academy. By then, who knows if miracles would happen on him and perhaps he might be able to step onto the path of cultivation by then?"


    "The second floor?" Lee Yu shook her head and said, "How many people can enter the second floor of the Academy in this world? Though Ning Que, thisd, is a pretty good, don¡¯t you feel that you¡¯re being too confident in him?"


    Lyu Qingchen nced at her and smiled gently as he replied. "Your Highness, when you previously mentioned that he chose to step onto the path of Academy, you didn¡¯t seem to expect that it¡¯s impossible for thisd to enter the Academy though you knew the toughness in passing the academy entry exam(s). This means that you¡¯re confident in him as well. If that¡¯s the case, who is certain that in the future, this small soldier from this border town... is unable to enter the second floor?"


    Lee Yu was taken aback and was unsure about how to reply the elder¡¯s question. She tried to recall, and it seemed to be true that she had never thought Ning Que was unable to enter the Academy, which was the hardest academy to enter in this world. Where did her confidence in hime from? Was it from the story-telling session by the fire, or was it from the calmness thed had disyed when he leaped across the firewall ferociously like a tiger?


    She subconsciously faced her body sideways and looked outside the window. She kept quiet while watching the silhouettes of the owner and the servant from their backs as they walked by the fire.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que knew that his temperament and determination were suitable for cultivation, but yet he was still unable to step onto the path of cultivation. In fact, he was already used to having such empty surprises. He had it once seven years ago at Min Mountain in the Yan territory when he met ckie, and another time in City of Wei two years ago when the Military Ministry wanted to check on his potential after he sessfully aplished a military mission.


    If he was able to step onto the path of cultivation, he would have already be the cultivation target for the military of Tang Empire based on his military aplishments in City of Wei. Else why would he need to work so hard to kill the Horse Gangs and earn credits in the military before deciding to enter the Academy?


    Since he was prepared, he was not so disappointed upon hearing the bad news. However, the elder, Lyu Qingchen was a master whom he had recently met and had close contacts with. Therefore, he still held onto some hopes when meeting him. Unfortunately, his hopes were like two-thirds of the peach blossoms drawn in the paintings, which were always hiding at a corner of the garden and always looking fabricated.


    Just as he was about to brace himself to give up on his dream and concentrated on practicing his artistry of wielding his knife till he reached Chang¡¯an, where he would start nning on how to enjoy his life, Lyu Qingchen had unexpectedly invited him onto his horse carriage in the second night after they camped in.


    This time, Sangsang did not join him. Perhaps it was because that Her Highness missed the past feeling of speaking with the maidservant using an identity of the handmaiden, or perhaps that Little Prince from the Tribe of Savages missed Sangsang. Whatever it was, Sangsang was ordered to report to the princess¡¯ horse carriage.


    "I believed you¡¯d already memorized the Article on the Response of the Tao by heart, but for so many years, you had yet to perceive the existence of the Breath of nature. This means that my judgment is right." Lyu Qingchen grinned as he said.


    Ning Que shook his head as he smiled bitterly and said, "Sir, you¡¯ve asked me toe over today. I doubt your purpose is to just hit me with a second blow."


    "You¡¯re preparing to enter the Academy the moment you reach Chang¡¯an. As for me, I¡¯m old. I¡¯ll most likely be staying by the princess¡¯s side for the rest of my life to recuperate quietly. It¡¯d be tough for us to meet again, so I thought of spending more time to talk with you now." Lyu Qingchen looked at him kindly as he added, "I understand how most people are curious about the path towards cultivation and often imagine about it. Though you¡¯re unable to step onto such path, perhaps there are things that you deeply wish to know more about."


    "Many." Ning Que replied him honestly.

 Chapter 22: Cultivation in Limitlessness State

    Chapter 22: Cultivation in Limitlessness State


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Lyu Qingchen, the elder smiled gently and questioned, "Then what would you like to know about?"


    Ning Que thought about it for a long while before he replied. "I¡¯d like to know... what cultivation is."


    Lyu Qingchen grinned and said, "You¡¯re very greedy indeed."


    No sign of embarrassment was shown on Ning Que¡¯s face and he continued, "So... could you tell me how many states there are in cultivation, and what the different abilities are in each state?"


    "That¡¯s certainly out of my expectation." Lyu Qingchen, the elder grinned and added, "Though the normal people in this world aren¡¯t clear about such things, they¡¯re not considered as secrets."


    "They¡¯re still secrets even if they¡¯re not considered as secrets," Ning Que replied with a smile. "I¡¯ll help you to keep them as secrets."


    "All right." Lyu Qingchen, the elder cackled withughter before he silent himself for a moment and asked, "Do you know Haotian Taoism?"


    Ning Que nodded his head as he stared at this Southern Haotian Taoism cultivator.


    "I¡¯m from the South School of Haotian Taoism and was ordered to travel around this world. Commoners usually know us as the traveling disciples. Since you¡¯d like to know more about the things rted to cultivation, then I¡¯ll begin with Haotian Taoism."


    "Haotian Taoism believes in Haotian as the only cultivation pathway. This is because Haotian enlightens the world and all living things breathe through it. By that, I¡¯m referring to the Breath of nature or the primordial Qi that I had mentionedst night. Thus, Haotian is the beginning of everything."


    "Human beings are one of the many living things in the world, but yet many are ignorant about such things when living in this world. It¡¯s only when Haotian descends an enlightenment onto the chosen ones, will the chosen ones start to understand the logic behind the creation of the world. These chosen ones would then be able to use their psyche to control the Qi of Heaven and Earth, creating a variety of enigmatic things in this world. For this, we call them as cultivation."


    "The journey in cultivation is long, slow, tedious and very taxing on willpower. We split this whole journey into five stages, which are the five states you¡¯ve mentioned."


    "The Initial State is known as Initial Awareness State, where the psyche of a cultivator from the Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow is exposed to understand the existence of the Breath of nature."


    "The second state is known as the Perception State. In this state, the cultivator would be able to sense the primordial Qi floating within the Heaven and Earth, as well as live harmoniously with it. He can also carry out interactions with his perception."


    "The third state is known as No Doubts State, where the cultivator is already able to fundamentally understand the pattern of flow of the primordial Qi within the Heaven and Earth, as well as make use of it. The Sword Master and Talisman Master usually known by themoners will fall into this state."


    "The fourth state is known as Seethrough State. Cultivators that enter this state are already able to fuse their consciousness with the primordial Qi with the Heaven and Earth as one. For a metamind, this means that he can attack the enemies using his own consciousness. Staying in this state for long might give them the capability toe out with profound fighting methods."


    "Lad, you don¡¯t have to look at me this way. I¡¯ve certainly entered the Seethrough State. Unfortunately, it¡¯s only until old age that I¡¯ve only barely attained it. Now that I¡¯m frail and aged, I doubt it¡¯s possible for me topletely master the Seethrough State, else... it¡¯d not be so troublesome for me to kill that Great Sword Master that night."


    The light from the oilmp became dim in the carriage. It seemed like it was running out of oil. Lyu Qingchen, the elder smiled as he exined, then lowered his head and took a nce at his left foot. He sighed as he thought about how fast time had passed and time indeed waited for no man.


    "The fifth state is known as Knowing Destiny State."


    "As the name suggests, this state is about knowing your destiny."


    "Cultivator that enters this state no longer just understands the flow pattern of Qi of Heaven and Earth from the surface, but grabs hold of the essence of the movement pattern of Qi of Heaven and Earth. He should understand the connection between Haotian and all living things in the world, and be clear of the principle of this world. People who enter such a state might be able to see the true Taoism, I suppose."


    Ning Que was listening to his words with great interest. When he realized that the elder was done with his exnation, he hurriedly raised his hand and asked, "Sir, is there a state that¡¯s higher than the five states?"


    "Why would you think so?" Lyu Qingchen nced at him curiously.


    He then replied, "If cultivation is a long and slow journey, then there should not be a limit to this journey. In fact, there¡¯s no journey that no man can pass through, so I believe there must be a higher state."


    "Ad like you could not even step onto the initial state, but yet instead of feeling depressed about it, you be more interested in it."


    Upon hearing the elder¡¯s scolding in a joking manner, Ning Que smiled innocently and said, "Just take me as a keen learner."


    "I¡¯ve never met a boy in this world who is so keen on learning like a lecherous man keen on knowing more about women," Lyu Qingchen smiled and said.


    Ning Que silently liked this sentence in his heart, before he spread open his arms and corrected. "That¡¯s not keen on learning. That¡¯s curiosity."


    Lyu Qingchen hummed for a long time before he raised his head and looked at Ning Que. He spoke slowly, "It was mentioned in legend that there are many enigmatic states beyond the Knowing Destiny State, though only two states had appeared before in the ssics. One is Tianqi, and another is No Rules."


    "In Tianqi, the cultivator can directly receive Haotian¡¯s enlightenment, where he can faithfully worship the Divine Skill in Taoism and temporarily borrow the power and greatness of Haotian from the state of emptiness. Haotian can protect the world, so when it ces one of its many powers onto a cultivator, you can imagine how great and powerful this state is."


    Ning Que imagined a mighty man in this world standing in the wind and wearing a white coat that swayed with the wind as he kneeled down to Heaven. The dark clouds in the sky scattered and a beam of light shone down. When the man waved his hand, the clouds rolled and the mountains shook. This made him felt nervous and his mind went into a turmoil. His voice had also slightly be hoarse.


    "What about No Rules... What kind of state it is?"


    "The ssics only recorded that such a state had appeared in this world but there was no boration on it. Only a brief description was stateding from the heart without any rules."


    Lyu Qingchen, the elder frowned his eyes slightly even though his expression remained peaceful and calm. He then casually added, "From my spection, the state of No Rules enables those sages to use their thoughts even if they¡¯re ten thousand miles apart... Imagine how impressive it would be."


    "Coming from the heart without any rules..." Ning Que was deeply impressed by these seven words. "Does it mean No Rules or Limitlessness State?"


    He indistinctly felt that he had captured the hidden outrageous sense that these two words were trying to bring out. He did not think that it was impressive like what the elder naturally felt, in fact, he felt that it was just natural and unrestrained to the core.


    "About No Rules... I believe there¡¯ll be more details about it in the Academy."


    Lyu Qingchen, the elder noticed the distracted expression from thed¡¯s young face. He said with regrets, "I believe that cultivators who can enter these two states are all sages. Though the old saying states that it takes a thousand years for a sage to be born, it has been a very long while that no sage is born into this world. Thus, these... are just legends. I advise you just to listen. It¡¯ll not benefit you to think too much."


    Ning Que stood up and expressed his gratitude to his teachings again.


    The elder smiled and said, "I initially thought that you¡¯d ask questions like who the Great Cultivators in this world today were and who the famous Skilled Masters were. Young chaps like you should be more interested in such things. I never expected you to ask such questions."


    Ning Que ced his hands on his knees and kept silent for a long time before he lifted his head. He looked at the elder and replied him seriously, "Knowing who is the strongest on this earth is no longer meaningful to me now. They¡¯re like eagles spreading their wings and flying in the sky, while I¡¯m like an ant crawling on the ground with much difficulties and dangers. They¡¯d never be mindful of me, so I¡¯ll not need to be mindful of them."


    "Then... what¡¯re your reasons for asking the fundamentals of cultivation?" the elder asked and stared at him in bewilderment.


    Ning Que replied him seriously, "Those Great cultivators are unlikely to appear in my life now, but if I entered Chang¡¯an, there¡¯d be a possibility for me to meet those normal cultivators, such as the schr in green garment who is a Great Sword Master. Since I can never pursue cultivation, then the more I need to understand what cultivation is and be clear about their battling methods..."


    "And your purpose?" The elder gradually raised his eyebrow and he seemed very excited to hear his answer.


    Ning Que lowered his head and grinned. He then lifted his head and replied calmly, "If someday in the future, I¡¯m forced to battle with a cultivator, what you have taught me today will help me greatly in defeating them."


    "Amoner wishes to battle with a cultivator who can shift the Qi of Heaven and Earth? Yet you want to defeat them?"


    The elder stared into Ning Que¡¯s eyes and murmured his question again. He suddenly raised his eyebrows with a jerk as he burst into a joyfulughter. "Bwahahahahaha!"


    The loudughter gradually ceased. The elder looked at the slightly embarrassed Ning Que as he smiled and said, "Very bold and heroic. I like it."


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 23: A Lesson on the Journey

    Chapter 23: A Lesson on the Journey


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Late at night, Ning Que got off of the horse carriage. Lyu Qingchen pulled open the cloth curtain and looked at thed¡¯s back as he walked away. At that moment, a frontier fortress song faintly came through the field and a wisp of a smile appeared on the cultivator¡¯s face.


    For cultivators reaching the Dongxuan State, even if just half-finished, they would be deserving of great respect in any country or city. There was no need for them to make contact with themon people. Psyche Masters required more time for meditation and cultivation, so Lyu Qingchen¡¯s every second could beparable to gold.


    However, Lyu Qingchen, being fond of Ning Que, was dly willing to sacrifice one or two nights, or even more, to chat with Ning Que about seemingly trivial things. The old cultivator liked the calm, self-improvement hidden behind thed¡¯s gentle and youthful demeanor. And, he enjoyed Ning Que¡¯s heroic spirit, which asionally leaked through. Actually, a heroic spirit, self-improvement, and calmness were the traits the Tangs appreciated most. That would also exin why Lyu Qingchen, having been born and bred in Tang, showed a preference for Ning Que.


    What he taught Ning Que at night was a prepulsory lesson from the South School of Haotian Taoism. Though it was not a top-secret lesson, it still couldn¡¯t be shared with just anyone because of the school¡¯s rules. Regardless, he decided to teach Ning Que due to his believing in one thing:


    "I get the feeling that you¡¯ll be an extraordinary cultivator someday."


    He did this even though he knew that Ning Que couldn¡¯t be a cultivator since his Qi was blocked. Despite this fact, and without reason, he believed that thisd would still be able to take this hard and arduous journey. Additionally, he truly hoped that Ning Que would go on at a steady pace, and further than he had himself.


    The old cultivator watched out his window as thed¡¯s back got smaller with the growing distance, mumbled to himself, "In thisst phase of my life I am just blindly following my instincts, and beginning to do some presumptuous things. Possibly... it¡¯s the Haotian that inspires me to do so."


    ...


    ...


    When Ning Que returned to the rough tent, Sangsang was already there. He asked her what the princess had called her for, and, as expected, he got an obscure and iplete answer. He had long ago gotten used to his handmaiden¡¯sck of rity. So, they told some jokes and drank several cups of wine, and then went to bed after a cursory gargling and washing.


    The next day, the carriages, escorted by hundreds of cavalries, kept heading southwards to the capital, Chang¡¯an. For Ning Que and Sangsang, their journey was not as boring and dull as before.


    Before evening fell, Lyu Qingchen would call Ning Que to chat with him in his carriage, and the princess would often summon Sangsang. Their humble carriage, thanks to Peng Guotao, was driven by a bodyguard. Otherwise, Ning Que would have had to put on an unmanned-driving performance.


    Ning Que had learned more about the cultivating knowledge through the chats in the carriage. For instance, he got to know a variety of approaches which cultivators applied to control their Qi of Heaven and Earth with psyche; some special objects which cultivators used to strengthen their connection with the heaven and earth; and the manner which a Sword Master condensed primordial Qi into an invisible rope and then bound up a lithe and sharp hiltless flying sword.


    There wasn¡¯t a strict standard for special objects that could enhance the connection between cultivators and the heaven and earth Qi. For example, a wooden whisk sword was usually employed by Haotian Taoism, and a wooden fish by Buddhism, while Fu paper and a flying sword were considered standard equipment, and rarely, other strange objects like pens, ink, and staves, were used by some of the superior cultivators.


    "One that condenses Qi of Heaven and Earth into Fu paper with Psyche Power is called a Fu Master; one whopresses Qi of Heaven and Earth into tactical formation is named a Formation Master; one concentrating Qi of Heaven and Earth in swords is called a Sword Master; one directly mobilizing Qi of Heaven and Earth by Psyche Power is named a Psyche Master; one..."


    Lyu Qingchen said joyfully and slowly, leaning against the carriage window while holding a cup of light tea.


    "Hey, hey, hey, are you joking? For someone who condenses Qi of Heaven and Earth into a chamberpot, what would he be called? Chamber Master or Pot Master?"


    The old man and thed naturally became familiar with each other after chatting over the passing days, and Ning Que gradually showed his other qualities, like indolence and discourtesy. He was currently biting a Chinese brush that was covered with ink while waving his right arm, expressing his strong doubt.


    Putting down the cup, the old cultivator stared at thed and scolded him. "It was a custom, do you know what a custom is? It has been that way for thousands of years. Are you really doubtful about it? It just needs to be easy to remember, so save your breath!"


    "OK." Ning Que was under fiasco before the custom covering a time span of over thousands of years. Inside the shaky carriage, he hung his wrists and kept focused. Then he made some notes, with his thick ck nip freely moving on the snow-like rice paper.


    "About the battle approaches of cultivators, what a Sword Master uses is called Swordsmanship and what a Fu Master applies is named Martial Arts of Fu. I, a Psyche Master, of course use Psyche Skill. For those Grand Cultivators who have entered Knowing Destiny State, it is hard to specifically distinguish their skills. I heard that some elderships in the precedent master¡¯s sects cultivated Divine Skill, but I don¡¯t know about the details."


    "These names... are insufficient." Ning Que face was slightly stiff as he chewed the tip of his pen and looked at the old man before saying, vaguely, "It seems to me that they all could be generally named a Magic Master because all they use is magic."


    The old man, tightly furrowed his eyebrows, and severely said, "How do you define the word ¡¯magic¡¯?"


    Defeated again, Ning Que expressed his innocence by spreading his hands.


    "In addition to the cultivators mentioned above, the martial arts warriors are the mostmon of all cultivators. Their perception of the Qi of Heaven and Earth may be weaker than the other sects of cultivators, but their capacity for fighting is incredibly powerful. When in battle, a martial warrior could fill their whole body with the Qi of Heaven and Earth, and it was just like they had put on a suit of armor from head to feet. Additionally, when in regr training, they would utilize their Qi of Heaven and Earth to stimte their own flesh and blood, creating a steel-like body."


    "Is that giant man, with a yellowish gloss, at the entrance of the Northern Mountain Road a martial warrior?"


    "Yes, but his level isparatively low. The four great generals in our Tang Empire are the best martial warriors in the world. If an arrow volley could pierce their armor, it would then be blocked by their defending primordial Qi. Even if the defending primordial Qi were pierced, their steel-like body could also prevent them from being severely hurt. In front of these powerful cultivators, your mastery in archery would be useless."


    These remarks naturally reminded Ning Que of two words¡ªXia Hou. Then he just calmly took down some notes and kept pondering the approaches he could take against these strong cultivators.


    "If you choose to get closer to the strong martial warriors during a battle, you¡¯ll get killed quickly. Your rtionship can bepared to that of a field mouse and a male lion. Even though you are strong you would not be able to shake them off. With a flick of their wrist, they would break your neck."


    "If an arrow is covered by primordial Qi... could it damage a martial warrior?" Ning Que asked seriously, suddenly raising his head.


    After a short thought, the old cultivator slowly shook his head and said, "Few cultivators have tried encasing arrows with the Qi of Heaven and Earth, considering the difference between arrows and swords. In order to make sure of the speed, it had to be very light. Unfortunately, the attached primordial Qi on the arrow would quickly dissipate due to the interference of natural induction and theck of an engraved Fu. Of course, if someone could figure out the dissipation problem of primordial Qi, the arrow, beyond a doubt, could be a type of formidable long-distance attack weapon."


    After listening, Ning Que looked as if he were thinking of something.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 24: You Were Supposed to Know My Talent...

    Chapter 24: You Were Supposed to Know My Talent...


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "Everyone says that there are countless martial warriors and Sword Masters in Chang¡¯an, such a statement is way too exaggerated though. But this is the capital, after all, the most prosperous ce with numerous elites from around the world. In Chang¡¯an, you don¡¯t need to worry about anything while in the academy, but you do need to be careful about your words and actions outside to avoid conflicts."


    "I see," Ning Que answered, and then asked, "Sir, are there any people or groups that I need to pay extra attention to? Or are there any powerhouses?"


    Lyu Qingchen nced at thed and sneered. "I remember it was you who didn¡¯t want to talk about this the other night."


    Ning Queughed embarrassingly and rubbed the back of his head.


    "That doesn¡¯t matter though." Lyu Qingchenughed and shook his head, saying, "There¡¯s one thing you should bear in mind, which is, although there are a lot of factions of cultivation, the major ones are always Buddhism, Taoism, Devil¡¯s Doctrine, and the academy. Buddhism is usually located in deste ces, Taoism builds many abbeys in various ces, not to mention Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Haotian Taoism, which I was from, has formidable cultivators for each generation and they¡¯re all respected by royal families of every country. If you have ever heard of the West-Hill Divine Kingdom, you would know that it¡¯s precisely the main abbey of Haotian Taoism."


    "Respected by each royal family? Even the Tang?" Ning Que asked with his eyebrows wrinkled.


    Lyu Qingchen smiled bitterly. As the strongest force around the world, the Tang was the only one who dared not to bow down to Haotian Taoism, and Haotian Taoism could do nothing about it. So, Lyu still faced an embarrassing situation in Haotian Taoism as a citizen of Tang.


    "What about Devil¡¯s Doctrine? Do they have any special elites?" Ning Que changed the topic as soon as he noticed that the elder started feeling embarrassed. "Speaking of which, I remember that you said the techniques the Great Sword Master used in the Northern Mountain Road are the Dark Methods. But I¡¯m curious about what kind of skills can be considered as real Dark Methods? "


    Hearing the words ¡¯Dark Methods¡¯, Lyu Qingchen turned serious and said, "Forget everything about it and don¡¯t tell this to anybody."


    "Yes, sir."


    "No matter if in Buddhism, Taoism or the academy, positive cultivation requires sensing the breath of nature to reach harmony. Controlling primordial Qi is basically like using the forces of nature."


    Lyu Qingchen closed his eyes and it seemed like he recalled something. Then he said pensively, "Devil¡¯s Doctrine is different from any other factions. People in it absorb the Qi of Heaven and Earth into their body forcefully."


    "Any problem with it?" Ning Que thought for a while and didn¡¯t find anything wrong with it. Literally, it seemed much easier than those of other factions.


    "No more speaking like this. You¡¯ll definitely be expelled from the faction, or even face harsh punishment, if you speak like this in the academy or Haotian Taoism."


    Lyu Qingchen warned him seriously. "Compared with nature, the human body is just nothing but ants. It reaches the limitation by storing itself Psyche Power into the body already. How could we survive from forcefully absorbing the Qi of Heaven and Earth into our bodies? Otherwise, we would die just like that Great Sword Master."


    "But now that Devil¡¯s Doctrine is a faction..." Ning Que asked cautiously, "There must be many cultivators in the world, how do they inherit if they easily die from absorbing the Qi of Heaven and Earth?"


    "They have their way to change their body mechanism so that they can absorb these micro Qi of Heaven and Earth. However, the whole process is extremely bloody and cruel. The elder mentors say that only two or three cultivators can suffer through the extreme pain out of a hundred of cultivators."


    "What a cruel process!"


    Ning Que wrinkled his eyebrows and said. He was thinking silently that there were only a few potential cultivators in the world. The way that Devil¡¯s Doctrine cultivated could only waste a lot of cultivators, maybe that was why it was not allowed to exist by other righteous factions.


    Lyu Qingchen probably guessed what thed was thinking, and said more seriously with a cold voice, "How can they be deemed as normal people after being forced to change their body mechanism?


    "Humans are those who live in nature, and nature is what¡¯s beyond humans!


    "To absorb primordial Qi into their bodies, they have to integrate their bodies into nature.


    "While only Haotian can be taken as real nature!


    "As a result, what Devil¡¯s Doctrine do is extremely evil and never would be allowed!"


    ...


    ...


    When they were approaching Chang¡¯an, Ning Que came to the elder¡¯s carriage again without an invitation one night. The starry night made the campsite appear silver, and made him seem even sneakier.


    The light in the carriage was still on, Lyu Qingchen was reading the notes that Ning Que took during these days. Looking at the tiny regr script on the papers, he couldn¡¯t figure out how he could write such exquisite calligraphy in such a shaky carriage. His face was filled with admiration.


    All of a sudden, he wrinkled his eyebrows and put down the papers in hand, and said towards the curtain, "Come in."


    Ning Que stepped up into the carriage and sat in the previous position with his hands on knees, asking after a while of silence, "Sir, I still can¡¯t figure out why you spend so much time in teaching me since I don¡¯t have any potential to be a cultivator?"


    Thed looked up with his extraordinary bright eyes and asked with a shaking voice, "Is it because of your discovery of my talent?"


    Lyu Qingchen looked at him surprisingly with his mouth opened up slightly, asking after a while of hesitation, "What¡¯s... your talent?"


    Now it was Ning Que¡¯s turn to be surprised, he asked embarrassedly, "If I knew what my talent was, I¡¯d note to ask you."


    The elder shakingly pointed to thed¡¯s nose with his thin finger. He didn¡¯t know what else to say to him.


    "Sir, I have a lot of secrets." Ning Que seemed not to be giving up on convincing this sublime being at Seethrough State that he had extraordinary talents. He rubbed his face nervously and said, "After I came to the City of Wei, people there all think that I¡¯m sozy that I even would fall asleep in the carriage anytime. But that¡¯s not true. Actually, I meditate when I¡¯m sleeping.


    "You don¡¯t have to be surprised, it¡¯s true... You know there¡¯s no entertainment in a border town, the only thing I love to do every day is writing, and I¡¯m also reading the Article on the Response of the Tao during my spare time. You also know that book is really boring, and I can¡¯t help feeling sleepy while I¡¯m reading it. But as I recall now, that¡¯s meditation instead of sleeping."


    Ning Que said seriously, "At the beginning of sleep, I could feel that the buildings, people, and everything around me were flying away from me. The entire world became a ce where everything was infusing together. I could even vaguely feel some mysterious breath..."


    Lyu Qingchen¡¯s expression was bing more serious. Although doing meditation while sleeping was extremely rare, it was still recorded before and could be found in the ssics of Haotian Taoism.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 25: A Stubborn Man

    Chapter 25: A Stubborn Man


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que tried to recollect how he felt in the dream and said, "In my dream, the breath, which was constant and audible, turned into some substance. It was like warm drops gradually gathered together, and enveloped my body inside. It was light and slippery, and no matter how hard I tried to touch or hold it, it trickled through my fingers."


    Lyu Qingchen stifled his excitement and asked, "How far away can you feel? Or, what does the thing feel like? A basin of water? A stream? Or a pond?"


    Ning Que lifted his head, and answered confusingly, "It was like... a sea."


    Lyu Qingchen stiffened and fell back on a cushion. After a long time of silence, he shed a weary smile and muttered, "Yes, how could that be possible?"


    From Lyu¡¯s facial expression, Ning Que guessed what happened was not the same as he expected. He still kept asking. "Mr. Lyu, have I entered the Initial State? Was what I felt the Breath of Nature?"


    Lyu Qingchen patted his shoulder, trying tofort Ning Que. "The Initial State is the Initial Awareness State I have told you earlier, which means the cultivator¡¯s psyche opens to the Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow, and they start to feel the existence of the Breath of Nature. Therefore, this is the first time for the ordinary people to see the brand new world.


    "Cultivators¡¯ futures depend on what they can see at their first sight, because what they see and feel is the reflection of primordial Qi in nature. The purer and stronger the cultivator¡¯s psyche is, the broader and deeper he can feel."


    Looking at Ning Que, the old man said, "At the Initial Awareness State, mediocre cultivators are only able to feel the Qi of Heaven and Earth near their body, which reflects on his heart as a basin of water. Talented cultivators can feel the Qi of Heaven and Earth from a wider distance, but the reflection is only a little pond. If a cultivator can feel a stream or even ake, he¡¯ll be a Grand Cultivator one day."


    There was a frown on Ning Que¡¯s face. He wanted to say something, but the old man stopped him.


    The old man continued, "In this world, very few people can reach the Knowing Destiny State, and of the people who reached it, Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword from the South Jin Kingdom, is the most talented. He entered the Initial State before he was six years old, and he saw a raging torrent at his first sight! He¡¯s a genius! That¡¯s why he¡¯s the best cultivator in the south and is regarded as the person most likely to reach thest state of the Five States."


    If the person who saw a river was regarded as the most powerful cultivator, then how powerful was one when he could see a sea? Ning Que was silent for a long time. Although he had lots of secrets, he never regarded himself as a genius, let alone a genius who was even more talented than a world-famous cultivator. But, what if it was true?


    "It may sound overconfident, disrespectful or... narcissistic."


    He tried to find the suitable words and lowered his head. "Is it possible that I¡¯m more powerful than the Sage of Sword from the South Jin Kingdom? No... I just mean because I have meditated for many years, so when I entered the Initial Awareness State, I felt an area wider than what he felt."


    "What¡¯s wider than a raging torrent? I don¡¯t know. But I know it¡¯s not an endless sea, because that isn¡¯t what we¡¯re talking about."


    Looking at Ning Que, whose head was lowered, the old man sighed. "Child, do you know what sea means at the Initial Awareness State? It¡¯s the reflection of the Qi of Heaven and Earth from the whole world.


    "No one can see everything in that brand new world at their first sight. It¡¯s just impossible, even Sages in legends can¡¯t do that."


    He patted thed¡¯s stiff shoulder, smiling andforting him. "It¡¯s just a dream, but still, a sweet one."


    Ning Que left silently.


    He didn¡¯t think much of cultivation in the beginning. If Lyu Qingchen were not mentioning it and encouraging him all these days, he would feel much better right now. If there were no hope from the start, now there would not be any disappointment.


    The handmaiden Sangsang put a basin with hot water beside him. She sank a facecloth in the hot water and twisted it, and then she put the facecloth on his face. She asked curiously, "Young master, what have you asked tonight?"


    "I went to the old man and said to him, ¡¯I have a secret but I won¡¯t tell you, but since I have told you I know a secret, should you tell me whether you can guess it or not and then show your admiration to me, a talented cultivator? ¡¯"


    Sangsang repeated his words silently and was still confused by them. She took off the facecloth from Ning Que¡¯s face, washed it in the water, and then turned around to pour the water outside of the carriage. "Young master, you¡¯re the silly one this time."


    He did feel like he was an idiot. Ning Que turned around, looking at the stars above the field outside of the window. His hands touching his face, he tried to find those tiny freckles. He mumbled, "You think flying on a sword is amazing? I can handle Xuanyuan sword, can you?"


    Sangsang heard his strange words and shook her head.


    Ning Que sat up and found his old book, the Article on the Response of the Tao. He did not turn the pages, and instead, he stared at the cover for a long time, as if he was trying to figure out what on earth was hidden in it.


    He said with a calm voice, "Bring the basin over."


    He lit the lighter and set it to the book. Soon, the book started burning. He loosened his fingers, letting the book fall into the basin and burn.


    Sangsang saw all this with astonishment.


    Seeing the book curled up, be ck from fire, and turned into ash, Ning Que clenched his hand on the windowsill. It felt as if an old friend had gone forever, and his dream burst like a bubble.


    "I¡¯m quite useless, right?"


    Sangsang shook her head.


    Ning Que said with a smile on his face, "No one is better at archery than me and no one can kill as ruthlessly as I can. My peers never killed as many people as I did. I¡¯m not useless. I¡¯m a wood-chopper at Shubi Lake. I can¡¯t juggle like flying on a sword. But in the future, if I get a chance, I¡¯ll kill Grand Cultivators like I killed the Horse Gang."


    Sangsang tightened her mouth into a thin line and broke into a smile. She then nodded.


    This was not self-constion after encountering a failure but Ning Que¡¯s belief. At the entrance of Northern Mountain Road, even those bodyguards almost defeated a Great Sword Master, then why couldn¡¯t he? In this world, no one was invincible. No matter how powerful those unworldly sublime beings were, they were still humans that could be defeated.


    In this world, and in that cultivator¡¯s world, many people found themselves untalented and unintelligent. Unable to fulfill their dreams, they were disappointed and sad, even refusing to admit it. Many of them immersed themselves in the illusion of sess and confined themselves to their inner cage where they kept struggling and hoping to return to the past.


    Some people found themselvescking the talents necessary to write a new masterpiece, the Dream in the Green Mansion. They hid in a small vige for thirty years, trying very hard to write something and bore a miserable life. However, this did not mean that they were as talented as the author of Dream in the Red Mansion, Cao Xueqin.


    Ning Que was never such a person. If he could not be as talented as Cao Xueqin, he would try to be as good as Jin Yong, a famous author of swordsman stories. If he could not be an emperor, he would try to be a great calligrapher. If not a general, then a schr. Therefore, even if he could not be a cultivator, it was not the end of the world.


    Continuing to walk on one road was not wrong. Although the people apanying them might be hard and bitter, it might also lead to sess. But, maybe, those who had the determination to give up and turn to a new road were more honorable.


    Life is a stubborn man¡ªit would take more courage to persuade him to give up than to convince him to hold on.


    ...

 Chapter 26: The First Dream

    Chapter 26: The First Dream


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    For the past few days, Ning Que had been torn apart between hope and disappointment, causing him to feel slightly unhappy. He then decided not to think about them anymore. Regardless of whether they were happy or unfortunate incidents, they were good reasons for him to drink till he drops. Just right, Sangsang¡¯s old sickness was back that night and her small legs were as cold as frozen branches. Thus, both of them opened a jug of strong alcohol and drank to their hearts¡¯ content.


    The little handmaiden drank more than half of wine in therge jar, but yet Ning Que was the first to drop. Sangsang, with much difficulty, moved him to the cushioned area, spread the nket and covered him. She then crawled under the nket and as usual, squeezed her little legs in his arms.


    As the air covered with the fragrance of the wine, Ning Que had a dream.


    In his dream, he felt that he was beside a warm sea. However, this time, he did not attempt to stretch out his arms and tried to fish for the water like what he did in the past. Perhaps it was due to the advice from Lyu Qingchen that reminded him that he was just dreaming. Thus, he stood in the warm sea and calmly stared out into the sea, like a total stranger or a bypasser who would not care much for what was happening out there.


    He smiled in his dream as he recalled: "Everything is just an illusion. Nothing¡¯s going to scare me."


    It might be due to the extreme calmness within Ning Que which he never had before, this time, he could vividly remember the look of the sea. That limitless sea was not blue, but green, and the color was extremely dark yet translucent. It looked like a beautifully carved piece of gleaming jade.


    Standing in the green sea, he did not bend forward to fish for the slow flowing green water, but instead, he quietly looked at them and wondered where they would flow towards in the next moment, and the shapes they would form.


    Suddenly, two white flowers appeared from the green sea. Their petals were as white and pure as snow. No othermon colors were seen from the flowers, they were just dull and monotony white.


    The seawater mmed against the root of the white flowers. If they did have roots, with the moisture from the green sea, the two white flowers would indeed grow at a rapid rate, where one could see the difference with his naked eyes. The petals fell off one by one, and each of them bloomed into a new white flower the moment theynded on the surface of the sea. With such a fast pace, the white flowers swiftly spread across the sea and soon, the whole sea surface in front of him was covered with white flowers as they extended all the way to the horizon.


    Ning Que looked at the magnificent view in front of him. He could not help but feel excited as he raised his leg to step upon the flowers and headed towards the horizon. He could sense the tenderness of the white petals touching his bare feet as they bounced up and down when he walked on them. That soft, gentle and tender feeling was amazing.


    ...


    ...


    Inside the carriage beside the field, Ning Quey on his side on top of a cushion. Half of the nket on his body was already thrown back. His forehead was covered with perspiration as he hugged the pair of small legs in his arms. The skin on the little handmaiden¡¯s legs was much prettier and fairer aspared to the rest of her body, and they looked like two delicate white flowers.


    He frowned his eyebrows and curled his lips at times. It was unsure what he was dreaming of, but his legs under the nket had subconsciously kicked. When his legs touched a certain spot, he felt a sense offort and stopped fidgeting as he revealed a look of satisfaction on his face.


    ...


    ...


    Feeling dazed and distracted, Ning Que had long forgotten that he was in a dream. Though his heart and mind were feeling confused, he had managed to walk calmly on the surface of the sea. Walking on the white flowers floating on the sea, a thought suddenly struck his mind as his body started to float away from the flowers and flew swiftly towards the sky.


    When he flew to a certain height, he lowered his head and looked down. The white flowers floating on the green sea had disappeared as he faintly saw a red tform beneath the deep green sea and it was extending in all directions across the seabed.


    He then broke through the seawater, dived and swam towards the deep green sea.


    After a long time of diving into the sea, he finally saw the redyer¡ªit was ayer of water formed by the viscous dark red serous fluid. There was no boundary to the redyer and it looked somewhat like a widespread of tomato sauce, or maybe, more like ayer of blood that was about to solidify.


    Then theyer of blood started to boil and suddenly, numerous standing figures of humans were formed. There were no features on their faces. They fell, stood up and fell again. He watched them struggling and silently wailing in pain. No matter how painful they struggled, their features on their faces would forever be imprisoned in the silent world beneath the thinyer of blood.


    This scene had gradually caused Ning Que to overwhelm with fear and turned him into a statue. He stood beside the sea of blood nkly and watched the silent cruelty scene in front of him.


    The sea of blood then turned into a ground, and a sky was formed.


    Ning Que stood in between the sky and the ground, as he realized that he was right in the middle of the wilderness. Numerous corpses were lying by his feet and far away, including the corpses of the cavalries from Tang Empire, warriors from the Yuelun Kingdom, archeries from the South Jin Kingdom and many skillful grasnd barbarians¡¯ horse-riders. Arge amount of blood flowed out from these corpses and dyed the whole wilderness into blood red.


    Then three columns of dark smoke appeared far away, as though they were alive and were coldly staring at the bloody scene that was happening on this side.


    "The sky is darkening."


    "I¡¯ve said this before. The sky is darkening, and yet no one believes me."


    Someone spoke beside Ning Que¡¯s ears scornfully. Ning Que turned around instantly, but he did not manage to catch a glimpse on the speaker. Instead, he saw many people were raising their heads and staring at the sky. There were people like pers who appeared confused, officers who looked bitter, mistresses who were filled with fear and monks thatughed crazily. Regardless of how different their clothing and expressions were, all of them shared a uniquemon point. They were all facing at and looking into the sky, like hungry fat gooses who were waiting to be fed.


    In the wilderness, many were looking in the sky in astonishment, and Ning Que had subconsciously followed them. He realized that it was still daytime and the sun was shining mercilessly in the sky. However, all of a sudden, the temperature of the wilderness fell abruptly and the light from the sun became dim. It was as if the night was about to fall.


    A piece of darkness was suddenly seen extending from the horizon towards them. There was nothing special about the darkness, just that it was absolutely ck, like the white flowers that he saw at the beginning of his dream. There was no other mixture of colors, and it depicted the deepest darkness in a human¡¯s dream.


    The people who were looking into the sky were very frightened and Ning Que was filled with fear, but yet no one knew the true reason for them to be afraid.


    Ning Que nced around him to look for the person who spoke to him, hoping to seek answers from that person as to what was happening and why the sky became so ck. However, no matter how hard he tried to search around, he could not find that person. All he could vaguely see was the back view of an extremely tall and big-sized person walking through the crowd, away from the wilderness.


    He rushed over to that tall person and shouted, "Hey! Was that you? Tell me what exactly is happening now!"


    The tall man did not turn around. His back view looked deste among the crowd and it disappeared. However, Ning Que¡¯s exmation had shocked the crowd who were looking at the sky in the wilderness. Then someone grumbled. "The night is falling, yet you¡¯re here disturbing our final moment of silence instead of watching, you disgusting little pest."


    Only a few of them had grumbled, and most of them in the wilderness withdrew their attention from the sky and stared shockingly at Ning Que. The look in their eyes had changed. Some of them appeared shocked, some looked touched, while others even had tears flowing from their eyes. A drunkard and a butcher stood beside Ning Que and watched him quietly as if they were waiting for him to speak up. Everyone was looking at Ning Que, as though he was a glimmer of hope for them in the absolute darkness.


    The feeling of being the spotlight of the world made Ning Que feel weird, so did the feeling of being the only hope. Ning Que could suddenly sense the respect and honor the world had for him and he even felt sacred. Yet, he was just an extremely ordinary man, and he had no idea how and why this Night Fallen world will be. Hence, the insecure and fear in him made his heart beat so rapidly to the extent that he could felt an extreme pain in his chest, as though it was being torn apart.


    ...

 Chapter 27: Long Time No See, the Great City

    Chapter 27: Long Time No See, the Great City


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que was awakened by a sudden pain, with his pupils filled with horrification. He unbuttoned his shirt and started groping his chest, but all he could feel was sweat instead of a broken heart hanging on the cracking breastbones. Relieved, he patted himself on the chest and slowed down his breathing.


    He turned to stare at Sangsang, who was still sound asleep. He looked at the little bead of sweat on Sangsang¡¯s small nose, suddenly feeling that it was a blessing to be alive.


    He didn¡¯t n to tell Sangsang, or anyone else, about the horrifying nightmare he had just dreamed. As it made him awful to merely recall a small portion of the dream, he decided to forget about it.


    The rough carriage started to travel again with the squeaky noise made by its wheels the next day. It followed the cavalries team, which kept growingrger, to move southwards. Around ten in the morning, the team stopped at a small vige near Chang¡¯an. A messenger from the capital, who represented the entire official court andplex rituals, had already been waiting for the princess for the past few days.


    Ning Que jumped off the shaft of his carriage and stood by the side of the cheering crowd. He red into the sky at the border of town. There was a hint of a dark gray structure of a city. Nevertheless, it was so far away that he could not see it clearly even if he had squinted his eyes. Ning Que guessed in his mind¡ªit must be Chang¡¯an.


    The intricate and fancy guards of honor started to move forwards slowly. However, the young master and the little handmaiden were not asked to follow this time.


    Ning Que and Sangsang stood on the sidewalk and watched the fancy carriage slowly pass them. The window was closed tightly. Ning Que thought of the bonfire as he was thinking about the princess and the little prince of the Tribe of Savages sitting inside the carriage. He could not help touching his face and smiled.


    The corner of the curtain of the fourth horse carriage was lifted as it passed them. Lyu Qingchenbed his white beard and smiled at Ning Que. Ning Que bowed deeply in return.


    The bodyguards and grasnd barbarians made obeisances to Ning Que for farewell without dismounting from their horses when they passed by Ning Que. Guilty smiles appeared on their faces. The guard of honor of the empire was strictly managed. Although the bodyguards¡¯ leader, Peng Guotao, was expected to have a great future back to Chang¡¯an, he didn¡¯t dare to show any emotions in front of the court officials. As for the several grasnd barbarians, they were relieved after bidding farewell to Ning Que as they began to imagine the happy life in prosperous Chang¡¯an, without the wood-chopper around Shubi Lake.


    The cavalries from the Gushan Commandery, who were assigned to gost, observed the surroundings with caution. Their leader, Senior Captain Hua Shanyue, rode the horse with one hand and gave a nce at Ning Que. Then he sped up as if he had not even noticed Ning Que. Of course, he might have forgotten about this nobody totally.


    Ning Que did not care much about the Hua Shanyue¡¯s attitude. Afterall, he was the son of a high-ss noble family and the most outstanding leader among the younger generation of the Tang¡¯s military in Chang¡¯an. In contrary, Ning Que was only amoner in the lowest ss since he had left the army. Even if he were lucky enough to get into the academy, he would still merely be at the bottom of the Empire¡¯s court officials. He would have nothing to do with this Senior Captain Hua Shanyue, who had been hostile towards Ning Que and even wanted to kill him.


    However, was Ning Que willing to live in that way? Of course not. As a result, he knew he would meet the proud young general again one day shortly.


    After the princess and her cavalries had left, the poption of the small town decreased a lot. However, it became livelier. The vendors and dealers, who had been frightened toe out before, suddenly showed up. The merchants, who had tried to avoid conflicts by shutting their doors, now reopened their stores and began to do businesses.


    Ning Que sold the shabby horse carriage for a low price at a store in the town that collected all kinds of rags. He patted on Sangsang¡¯s shoulder to show constion as the shabby carriage and old horse had followed them for many years in the City of Wei. Anyone would be reluctant to sell such a thing, but memorizing and feeling sad was not suitable at that moment when Chang¡¯an was just right in front of them.


    They chose to stroll along the field ridge beside the official route instead of walking on the road, on which eight horses could run side by side. In the furrow, flowers were flourishing with butterflies and bees flying around. The tear stains in the canthus of the little handmaiden¡¯s eyes gradually dried up. She grasped theces of the bag, which appeared to be bigger than her, tightly and walked on the field ridge with asional smiles on her face.


    In the sunlight, Ning Que took over the heavy package and chatted with the little handmaiden. Even though he usually could not get a reply from her, he was still happy to continue the conversation while admiring the scenery of the countryside. He waved his hands as he saw a farmer resting in the near field. He pretended to catch butterflies as they flew in front of him.


    He had left Chang¡¯an when he was very young. Then he had been living in Min Mountain, the grasnd, the Wilderness and the little border town. In his surroundings, there were merely vicious jungles, boring grasnds, and ubiquitous danger. Now, he returned to the center of the empire. He was excited and happy to observe such a peaceful and harmonious image of life.


    They kept walking for about two or three hours. Then a shadow suddenly spread over their heads from a brook and a peach forest in the front. Ning Que thought that it was still not night yet and there were no signs of rain before in his mind.


    He looked up confusedly, and then he saw a ck wall in front of him. This wall was so high that it seemed to have no edge. It covered half of the sky and also covered the sun, which was still in the sky. Faintly, they could see three ck dots continuously flying in a circle in a high position near the wall.


    They could not find the end of the wall in both the right and left directions. They were surprised by how big this city was. It stood silently between the heaven and thend. Sangsang¡¯s eyes widened as she looked at the great city and the crowd on the official route, which was not far away from them. In awe, she asked, "Is this Chang¡¯an?"


    The three ck dots in the sky flew to a lower position. It turned out that two eagles were helping their child practice flying. They were going back to their nest on the dark wall. As this wall had experienced rain wash and weathering for thousands of years, it seemed ragged on the surface, but it was still solid and indestructible inside.


    The younger eagle learned how to fly and returned to its nest. Ning Que looked up at the greatest city in the world and smiled sincerely. He finally returned after he had traveled for many years.


    Long time no see, the city of Chang¡¯an.

 Chapter 28: Nice to meet you, Changan!

    Chapter 28: Nice to meet you, Chang¡¯an!


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Chang¡¯an did deserve to be honored as the grandest city worldwide. It was so huge that there were eighteen city wall archways in four directions of north, south, west, and east. However, every day, when the noble and the folk went in and out of the city, arge stream of people would jam these city wall archways and endless lines of people were normal in the avenue.


    Ning Que and Sangsang were waiting in a long line. It was not until sun setting that they were pushed by the crowd to approach a city gate. Looking at those guards who carefully went through their luggage with a grave face, Ning Que, though sweating a lot, shook his head leisurely and teased them, since it reminded him of a capital city somewhere which was famed for a traffic jam.


    His voice was low and nearly undistinguished, whereas citizens in Chang¡¯an cursed as loud as possible. It might be due to their nature as a man of Tang Empire, unsophisticated but undefeated. Thus, few feared those serious soldiers, but none chose to ignore sternws and break in.


    Finally, it was their turn. When a soldier received documents from Military Ministry which Ning Que handed, he surprisingly noticed thisd was a fellow and used to set noble exploits in the frontier, so the soldier¡¯s face softened much, but just for a while. He frowned at the sight of three hilts on Ning Que¡¯s back, all of which points proudly to the sky.


    "Inherited. Ancestors once said..." Ning Que exined with caution.


    "Your life will be with the sword," the soldier said. Taking an indifferent glimpse at Ning Que, he waved his hand and continued in disdain, "I hear people swearing this thousands of times every day. Save your time, kid. Take off your luggage. Why do you two little guys carry suchrge bag? You don¡¯t look like you¡¯re here for studies. It¡¯s more like you¡¯re moving."


    He turned to stare at the big ck umbre on Sangsang¡¯s back and asked with eyebrows wrinkled, "An umbre? Why so huge?"


    Sangsang reached a hand to her back and grasped middle part of the big ck umbre. She raised her cute little face, coldly saying to that soldier, "My life will be with the umbre."


    Gazing at this little ck girl, the soldier gave her a thumb up and said with praise, "That¡¯s... creative."


    Ning Que was undoing their bag with a bitter smile on his young face. He thought that only he knew this statement was not a joke and Sangsang did mean it.


    Inside thatrge bag were sundries, such as carpet and quilt. However, the hard wooden bow, as well as several tubes of arrows, caught the soldiers¡¯ eyes when he was inspecting Ning Que¡¯s belongings and, undoubtedly, his face was stiffened again.


    ...


    ...


    Pathway of city gate in Chang¡¯an was long and dim. Exit on the other side was far and looked like a shining hole, from where the sun could be vaguely seen setting down in the distance and few red sunlight spread into the path. Nheless, that sunlight was not bright enough to survive shadows and noises in the path.


    Ning Que and Sangsang followed the stream to the exit. Therge bag seemed rather heavy so that Sangsang had to adjust belts to save some strength. Curiously, she asked, "Young master...will anyone else be as chatty as that soldier?"


    "Almost." Ning Que answered, "Thinking that this city had all the wealth and power. People in Chang¡¯an will surely feel superior. The more proud they appear, the more tolerant they should be toward the ounder, because they need to show they¡¯re gentlemen. And they do."


    "And you know, sometimes it¡¯s hard to hide your pride because it hurts inside. What can they do?... They talk! From horse carriage stores to local government, every citizen in Chang¡¯an is addicted to chatting. And their topics range from secrets of royals and anecdotes in brothel. They seem to know everything under the doom. The point is they¡¯re knee on spreading tales of wars or rtionships in Tang Empire and other countries with a calm tone.


    Sangsang giggled. Obviously, what Ning Que said did amuse her.


    Previously in city gate when they were inspected, it was a luck that both sword and human life survived. The big ck umbre was on Ning Que¡¯s back and his three broadsword were put into therge bag. As for boxwood bow, strings were unloaded. With all these done, that talkative soldier said nothing else and let them go.


    The Tangs advocated martial arts. They would rather die than leave their beloved weapons aside. Therefore, Empire sometimes took a blind eye on the restriction of weapons. In Chang¡¯an, men were allowed to take official swords with them but broadswords were banned. Simrly, bows and arrows were permitted only if strings were unloaded. However, the military crossbow was forbidden entirely. There was no other limit.


    Whether you would retie strings or take out broadswords was not a concern of anyone. Not of Chang¡¯an Local Government. Not of Military Ministry. Even not of the emperor who lived in the pce.


    Ning Que and Sangsang were ustomed to live in the frontier fortress, which meant people couldn¡¯t find any trace of light or brightness except in pubs or hear any sound other than soldiers gambling. Ning Que thought they would enter a quiet and sleepy city and never expected that approaching night, Chang¡¯an remained...


    Bustling everywhere!


    Lights brilliantly illuminated gstone boulevard throughout streets and it looked like in the day. On the streets were flows of passers, some of whom stopped at a booth or enjoyed stars in the sky. Apparently, those stopping at booths had been couples, while those admiring stars had just begun dating.


    The Tangs, those living in Chang¡¯an in particr, were dressed simply. They wore shirts with tight sleeves, so they looked neat and tidy. Few men would be dressed in shirts with broad sleeves but those sleeves were not long and cuffs were above waists, which was designed for them to pull out swords if necessary.


    Men in turquoise robe walked with official sword. With beard swinging in the night breeze, they looked like an aloof outstanding swordsman, but when noticing vaudeville, they chose to halt amid a crowd ofdies and nervously stared at somewhere with eyes wildly open. They might apud excitedly and cheer loudly but the moment the yers began to collect money, they returned to be cool and superior, showing obvious disdain toward such earthly action like tipping them.


    Women in Chang¡¯an dressed themselves simple and clean too, in other words, cool, or to be exact, bare. Though it had just be warm in spring, these women should have exposed arms out of yarn sleeves and some charming young women wore tube dresses boldly, drawing too much attention to those white skins.


    Besides, barbarians exposing chest and carrying bota looked around curiously; Touching their beard, officials from Yuelun Kingdom, who wore typical hat with little wings, came in and out of various restaurants and brothels like frequent visitors; Merchants from South Jin Kingdom, who leaned against a banister upstairs to drink and enjoy watching stars, burst intoughter on purpose once in a while. A sound of folk instrument was heard from nowhere, melodious and beautiful.


    It seemed that all the fortune, entertainment, and personality were concentrated in this city. The people were passionate and the wines were fragrant. They excited men and intoxicate them. Heroic feelings coexisted with tenderness as well as broadswords matched beauties.


    Out of his mind, Ning Que lifted Sangsang¡¯s little hand and walked in streams of people and lights with gasp in admiration, extremely appearing as kids from the countryside.


    Legendary Bird was a ck pigment to brush brows; fragrant butterfly powder, jade hairpin powder and pearl powder could be used to enlighten faces. "Oh, is that Rose Cream the rouge? Emm, in the tiny bottle, is it the legendary dew on flowers?" Sangsang said to herself silently.


    With her hand in Ning Que¡¯s, Sangsang stared at bottles and tins on booths with her slender eyes widely open and felt reluctant to move on.


    Some youngdy walked in front of Ning Que seductively. "Oh, her hip looks so sexy." Ning Que thought. Some young girl with braid passed by, giggling. "She smells fragrant, like... orchid?" Ning Que continued to think. The young woman who was picking up flowers before booths with a man seemed to ogle him. "Why does she do this? Does it mean she likes me?" Thed asked to himself, confusedly and excitedly.


    With Sangsang¡¯s hand in his, Ning Que delightedly gazed around. He tried to search such special views in his memory of Chang¡¯an during childhood, but he failed. He felt reluctant to move on as well.


    Therefore, they slowed down their paces and gradually it appeared less noisy in the street. However, before these two visitors from border town managed to calm down, someone in the distance shouted something and all of sudden, swarms of Chang¡¯an citizens flocked from all directions to a corner of street, plugging up that ce.


    "Duel!"


    Looking over crowds of people, they faintly found two men, with official sword in the waist, ring at each other. Each had a part of right sleeve cut down and threw it between the two men.


    The world fell into silence. All the bystanders kept their mouths close tightly. In the Tangs¡¯ blood, they thought it a must to guarantee fairness of duel, even if it was none of their business.


    "For a duel, cutting down a sleeve means I challenge you. If you take it, you¡¯ll do the same. This is the rule."


    Seizing Sangsang¡¯s hand, Ning Que was moving out of crowds and he exined, "This duel is just a simple battle and they just need to know who¡¯ll win, while the other one, called Life and Death, needs the approval of local government. In Life and Death, the challenger should cut his palm, so does his opponent, if the man epts the challenge."


    "Can they refuse it?" Sangsang asked curiously.


    "Of course!" Ning Que answered and wiped out sweat on forehead. He then patted huge bag on Sangsang¡¯s back, making sure nothing was stolen by thieves and continued, "But sometimes, humans, men in particr will be idiots and they¡¯ll grow crazy because of things like women, love, dignity or some other trifles."


    When they two finally squeezed their way out of crowds, Sangsang lifted her ck face, asking, "Why didn¡¯t we stay to watch it? I remember in the City of Wei, you love to be an on-looker. One year when they were killing a pig for meat, you squatted beside to watch it for a whole night."


    "You don¡¯t know it. We used to see killing cows or sheep but it was the first time in the City of Wei, they killed a pig. It was unusual and I should inspect it carefully, but the duel is verymon in this city. I believe we¡¯ll have many chances to watch one."


    Calmly and peacefully, Ning Que said, "This is Chang¡¯an. I just want to be a well-behaved student in the academy. I don¡¯t want any trouble. So, from now on, we should act like two doggies and never show our teeth."


    Sangsang shook her hand and thought, "I don¡¯t want to be a female dog. As for you, young master, I hope you can control yourself and kill fewer people. Pretending to be humble is not your style."


    "To find an inn." Ning Que seemed to read her mind and being frustrated, he said, "I¡¯m sleepy."


    Sangsang pointed to a building just in front of them down the street, saying, "Look, that¡¯s an inn."

 Chapter 29: Outside the Generals Mansion

    Chapter 29: Outside the General¡¯s Mansion


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The inn, naturally, wasn¡¯t really called "There is an Inn". After putting up for the night, Ning Que and Sangsang left the inn while rubbing their eyes and yawning. They had yet to recall its real name.


    They asked for directions from a motherly-looking old woman in the street and then headed to the south of Chang¡¯an. Along the way, they had to keep asking for directions when crossing the alleys and streets. Eventually, two big pagoda trees came into sight.


    Seeing those trees, Ning Que¡¯s head was flooded with his childhood memories. They ought to be vague, but was surprisingly vivid. He thought for a while with his eyes closed, and then led Sangsang to the two big trees.


    A secludedne, which could narrowly amodate a horse carriage, separated the two big nts. The unfamiliar mansions on both sides were very quiet. Towering trees stretched out from their courtyards, blocking the spring light and leaving a cool shade for the few pedestrians underneath.


    They reached the middle of thene, where two mansion gates sat opposite each other. In the mansion on the right, the two solemn stone lions by its entrance were very clean, without any visible dust or fallen leaves on it. The vermilion gate was tightly shut and the copper rings just hung there.


    On the contrary, the mansion on their left was in a derelict state, with the paint on its gate chipping and the fragments of its two strip sealsnguidly blowing in the wind. Only one stone lion remained, with the other one missing. But even the remaining one was left dpidated and iplete, with darkened mud collecting behind it and some patches of what seemed like coagted blood.


    The shabby stone lion in front of Ning Que reminded him of a childhood memory. Back then, he and his childhood ymate Xiaoshun were punished with domestic discipline by the superintendents in the mansion. That was because of their horsey beside the stone lions. Later, when Ning Que walked past the alley at the corner, another picture dashed into his brain. At the age of 4, he had bravely carried Xiaoshun and ran away from home to escape their teacher¡¯s physical punishment.


    Sangsang¡¯s eyes moved back and forth between the two big gates and Ning Que¡¯s face. She could feel theplexity and depression in his young master and couldn¡¯t help being sentimental with him. The wind in the alley, somehow, was a little cold for her.


    The dpidated mansion belonged to former Xuanwei General Lin Guangyuan. In the first year of Tianqi era when the Emperor was doing his inspections in Nanze City, a huge collusion and treason case broke out in the capital Chang¡¯an. The prince personally oversaw the investigations, with the prime minister and other high-ranking officials assisting. Lin Guangyuan was eventually charged for treason and his whole family was executed.


    This case had long been judged as an irond, and no one, both in the court and among the people, wanted to overthrow the conviction. Even if there were people who still remembered the case, they onlymented the death of innocent servants. Further, they condemned Lin Guangyuan¡¯s heinous crimes. To them, the former Xuanwei General not only ruined himself, but also implicated many innocent people.


    In the ten years, the imperial court seized the General¡¯s Mansion, and there had several times where it was offered as a reward to other officials. However, these officials politely rejected the offer without hesitation upon hearing that this mansion was ominous. After all, they were unconcerned about losing out when there were so many opportunities avable in Chang¡¯an with its vastnd and numerous mansions. Thus, the General¡¯s Mansion was abandoned and left to deteriorate.


    When Ning Que passed through the gates of the General¡¯s Mansion, the sorrow inside his eyes dissipated and no more signs of unusual emotion remained on his face. He walked ahead as usual, without slowing his footsteps. Sangsang, carrying therge, ck umbre on her back,boriously trotted behind her young master. The big ck umbre repeatedly bounced against the girl¡¯s back, the pping sound seemingly representing the beat of passing time.


    The two serenely passed through the longne and entered through the vermilion gate and broken door ordinarily. They looked so ordinary that they seemed like the mostmon of travelers identally breaking into an alley in Chang¡¯an on a spring day.


    ...


    ...


    "This mansion is considered haunted and ominous, and yet the one opposite is highly coveted. Do you know why? That year, Xuanwei General lived opposite to Official of Counsel. When Xuanwei General¡¯s entire family was executed, the Official of Counsel was instead promoted quickly in his career. He is now a schr of the Imperial Library. It¡¯s easy to guess that many fourth or fifth-grade officials are eager to feed off some of that luck by living in his former mansion, isn¡¯t it?"


    At a restaurant at the corner of the alley, Ning Que and Sangsang upied a small table at the corner and enjoyed a quiet meal of ordinary dishes and gruel. They were, in fact, carefully listening to the conversations between the people who lived in the area. These neighbors had been living here for over ten years, some even spanning several generations. Yet their favorite topics were the treason casemitted by the Xuanwei General and the rapid promotion of the Official of Counsel. These topics were evergreen to them despite their daily discussions. For Ning Que and Sangsang, such chats suited them well.


    "When ites to Schr Zeng Jing, the old man was just an Official of Counsel, but he got a quick promotion in his career out of the blue. There was, in fact, an interesting story behind it. I wonder if any of you have heard of it."


    "That issue was so sensational that the imperial court issued a decree. Do you think there¡¯s any chance the folks here have not heard about it?"


    A middle-aged man shook his head and said with a hint of irony, "As a dignified Official of Counsel, he unexpectedly married a ferocious wife. It wasn¡¯t unusual that she did harm to the concubine¡¯s pregnancy because of her jealousy. Worse, she even tried to punish the poor infant after a difficult birth. If the court hadn¡¯t given a decree, who knows what would have happened in their mansion."


    "All you people know was the imperial court¡¯s decree, but do you know who was the one who issued it?" The one who spoke earlier wore a sneer on his face. He bowed in the direction of northern Chang¡¯an with his two hands holding up and said, "Let me tell you. It was the Empress. She became wrathful after hearing about the situation and personally wrote a letter to Zeng Jing, ordering him to give his wife a severe lesson."


    "The Empress..."


    The people drinking around the table looked at each other and then gave understanding smiles. The nation knew there was a fantastic empress in Tang Empire, who had the emperor¡¯s favor and absolute trust. She even had the authority to review state documents and appoint officials. The empress was once just an ordinary imperial concubine in the pce, or in folk¡¯s words, she was just a concubine. She only became the firstdy after the former died.


    Everyone could understand why the empress, with her background, paid so much attention to the domestic affairs of the Official of Counsel and was furious about his wife¡¯s abuse of his concubine and newborn.


    "Zeng Jing¡¯s wife came from a major family in Qinghe Prefecture, so he chose to be tolerant in most cases. But despite his reputation as a coward, Zeng Jing can be ruthless if needed to be. After receiving the empress¡¯ letter, he summoned the entire family at night and flogged three stewards to death. These stewards were the ones who tried to murder the concubine¡¯s newborn. Later, he pped his wife twice and sent her back to Qinghe Prefecture in a small pnquin, before decisively divorcing her!"


    "The old official¡¯s decisiveness then was perhaps emboldened by the empress¡¯ authority. But his resolution and ruthlessness impressed the Empress. Later, coupled with other factors, the old official was rapidly promoted and is now working in the Imperial Library! There is a saying that blessings often underbelly misfortunes. Who could imagine that the ferocious wife¡¯s cruelty against the concubine and her baby would end up leading to the man¡¯s lifelong status and fame?"


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 30: Reunion after Seven Years

    Chapter 30: Reunion after Seven Years


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The crowd around the table sighed,menting those words. Ning Que and Sangsang listened silently to theirments as they fiddled with the pickles in the dish in their corner. Even their way of drinking the gruel sound like sighs. Master Zeng Jing left little impression on him. Instead, it was his tough wife who left asting impression. As for their family brawl that stirred the royal family, Ning Que had no intention to judge. It had nothing to do with him anyhow. What he was concerned about was in the ce opposite to the official¡¯s mansion...


    "Compared to Master Zeng Jing, General Lin Guangyuan had no luck... Eh, that¡¯s not right. What I meant is that since he dared to betray our country, he deserved more than a thousand deaths. But... it was those in his household who were pitiful."


    The old man picked up his chopsticks and poked the salted egg with the tip. He licked it before sipping the cheap White Lotus wine, as a way of voring it. Sighing, he said, "You didn¡¯t see the scene with your own eyes. I was there when the massacre happened. Dying screams echoed in the air. The sound of heads falling as if they were watermelons sttering onto the ground, and the blood... seeped from beneath the gate. It was a miserable sight!"


    "I¡¯m not trying to excuse that traitor. However, when pondering over some of the things in this world, I felt somewhat grieved and sad. At that time, the whole neighborhood knew there were officials who had a good rtionship with Xuanwei General, but yet after the ident, nobody stood out to support him. What was worse was that no one was willing to give him a burial."


    Putting down the wine cup, the old man subconsciously scanned the tavern and the street outside. Then he lowered his voice and asked, "Have you ever heard of Lang Huangxing, a chief guard of the capital gate? Xuanwei General was the one who brought him to the capital from the frontier fortress. But it was him who was the first to use the general of treason. If you wonder where the man is these days... He has thrown himself into the prince¡¯sp, living a conceited life!"


    "The Zhaowu Lieutenant who was involved in that affair is also said to be enjoying life now. I wonder if they¡¯ll asionally think about the corpses when they indulge in alcohol and women? If they think about it, what do they feel about it?"


    ...


    ...


    The old man continued to sip the wine, voring it with salted yolk. However, no matter how slow he ate, there would certainly be an end. Those idlers of Chang¡¯an finished their daily quota of wine as mandated by their ferocious wives and ended their chat. With smiles and bows, they bade farewell to one another.


    Ning Que and Sangsang remained seated at the small table in the corner. Their porridge had already turned cold, and the leaves of the pickled cabbage were dry from the wind, but yet they show no intention of leaving.


    "Young master, what is your connection with General¡¯s Mansion?" Sangsang stared at him, asking earnestly.


    Ning Que answered with a smile, "Of course there is a connection."


    "I mean... what kind of connection, instead of whether there is one." Sangsang carefully corrected him.


    After a moment of silence, the smile on Ning Que¡¯s face gradually faded. He exined solemnly, "But this connection can¡¯t be revealed. You¡¯re my handmaiden now. If the public finds out, the imperial court will behead us both."


    Looking into his eyes, Sangsang thought he was joking. She shook her head and answered, "Young master, you¡¯re talking nonsense."


    "In our Tang Empire, the number of people who died because of nonsense is no less than those killed by barbarians." Ning Que broke intoughter. "Sometimes we all know the truth, but we¡¯re refrained from speaking it out for the truth may cause death. If we¡¯re forced to speak the truth, then we can only speak nonsense."


    Finishing those words, he picked up his chopsticks again and rolled up his right sleeve. He then nced over the five dishes of pickles and the two bowls of cold porridges, debating how to kill time next.


    At this moment, a young man stepped into the tavern. He was a in-looking, thin man. His most impressive feature was his darkplexion, which rivaled that of a worn pot¡¯s charred bottom. It was even darker than Sangsang¡¯s skin.


    Perhaps it was because Sangsang rarely saw anyone with skin darker than hers. She couldn¡¯t help her curiosity but keep looking at the man. When realizing that it was impolite of her, she was just about to look away, but she noticed that the man was walking towards them. That made her stiffened. She stretched her hand across her back to hold her ck umbre.


    However, instead of going to them, the man found a seat at a neighboring table and ordered some dishes. Sangsang somewhat rxed. But what she failed to notice was this dark and thin man was sitting with his back against Ning Que in close distance.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t recognize the man when he stepped in. After all, they were too young when they first met in the woods in the Yan territory. Back then, this man called him Little Ning and he called the man ckie. Years had psed. Ning Que was now a teenager while his peer had be an unppable young man.


    Ning Que pinched a piece of pickle with his chopsticks and ced into his mouth, chewing like ady who was striving to hold inughter. It was only after several chews that he realized he was chewing on pickled lettuce. He hated it, but it was Sangsang¡¯s favorite.


    "Looks like you lived well these years," he said, his glee suppressed.


    Just as Sangsang¡¯s chopsticks were about to reach the edge of the pickled lettuce, a slight tinge of grumble appeared on her face. She was wondering what made the young master scramble for the pickles he liked the least. Hearing those words from Ning Que, she realized he was speaking to the dark, thin man. Her hand holding the chopsticks froze.


    The shoulders of the man quivered as if he was also trying to stop himself fromughing out loud. He replied, "Not as good as yours. Such a wicked guy like you passed the initial evaluation of the academy and even made that little girl from back then your handmaiden. You¡¯re really wicked... By the way, she seems to have forgotten about me."


    "Seven years ago, she was just a little kid. It¡¯s not as if she¡¯s a natural talent like me." Ning Que took his bowl, responding sourly, "Get to the point. How much information have you found out about those assholes who killed my family? Also, how much information have you found out about the scoundrels who ughtered your vige andter helped Xia Hou cover it up?"


    The dark, thin young man answered, "Everyone knows who first brought the charge of treason against Lin Guangyuan, but it was still unclear who helped to ensure the verdict. I learned that two of them were out of prison eight years ago. They still live in Chang¡¯an and lead ordinary lives. I wonder if they regret what they did back then."


    Ning Que did not turn around. He was still contemting. It was the young man who turned and frowned. "Why are we sitting with our backs against each other? Why do we need to send our letters through so many middlemen? Where did you learn these tricks? Why does everything make me feel like we¡¯re spies from opposing sides exchanging information?"


    Ning Que put his hand over his forehead, signing in resignation. Looking at the man¡¯s dark and earthy face, he said, "Damn it. Didn¡¯t you say you¡¯re now designated by the Ministry of Military to go undercover in some gangs? I didn¡¯t expect your spy work to be so unprofessional."


    The dark, thin young man grinned and opened his arms wide. "To hell with being spies! I must see with my own eyes how Sangsang and you have grown these years."


    Ning Que unwillingly opened his arms to hug the man in the gloomy corner of the shabby tavern.


    The dark, thin young man was named Zhuo Er, the first friend Ning Que made in this world.


    Their first encounter was a coincidence. Even the reason for their reunion was a coincidence. Thus in the span of telling two stories, they decided to be a loyalpanion to each other for life.


    Because they shared a simr goal: to kill Xia Hou.


    Or perhaps the prince as well.

 Chapter 31: The Fearful Vermilion Bird

    Chapter 31: The Fearful Vermilion Bird


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    On the 6th year of Tianqi era, during wartime between the Tang Empire and the Yan Kingdom, the right-wing troops led by General Xia Hou missed their appointment. In the face of admonishment from the imperial court, Xia Hou defended himself by iming that they were ambushed by Yan cavalry at Huangfeng Ridge, and his right-wing troops had to exterminate the enemy before setting out again, and that was how they were dyed.


    What the people in Chang¡¯an were unaware about was that, the Yan troops that Xia Hou¡¯s right-wing troops supposedly exterminated were border civilians of the empire who lived around the Huangfeng Ridge area. Several viges were wiped out by the right-wing troops, and the heads of the adult men were used by Xia Hou to pose as those of Yan cavalry leaders, so they could me Yan Kingdom for the massacre.


    The extermination of an entire vige would top the headlines anywhere, especially at Tang Empire. The imperial court didn¡¯t necessarily buy Xia Hou¡¯s justification, and they did sendpetent investigators to verify the incident. However, by then the viges had beenpletely wiped out leaving no witnesses behind. Moreover, the investigators were not entirely clean either, so the imperial court ended up with the conclusion that Xia Hou was telling the truth after all.


    As punishment for wiping out these viges, Yan Kingdom had topensate Tang Empire with arge fertile territory of the Hexi Area, and even sent their crown prince as a hostage to ease the anger of Tang Empire. Nevertheless, not many had any idea of the cries of pain and injustice suffered by those vigers who were wrongfully ughtered and burnt, nor did anybody know that a scrawny and dark-skinned young boy managed to escape from the vige.


    That boy was Zhuo Er.


    He and Ning Que met at Min Mountain back in the days, where he left with a cultivator, until today.


    "Hey! Which state have you achieved by now? Is it No Doubts State or Seethrough State?"


    "Well, I didn¡¯t expect you¡¯d have any idea about states of cultivation!"


    "Sure, since cultivation is such a simple and silly thing anyway."


    Actually, Ning Que just enjoyed showing off his newly acquired knowledge in front of a friend whom he hadn¡¯t seen for such a long time.


    "Seethrough State my ass! My poor but dear master only barely managed to achieve No Doubts State on the day of his demise, and as of poor little me, I¡¯m still struggling in the Initial State! I wouldn¡¯t need to go undercover if only I were more powerful!"


    Ning Que looked at him with mocking face and said, "I don¡¯t understand what the poor old man saw in you back in the days, and I¡¯m still intrigued that he insisted on taking a thick-skulledd like you instead of me!"


    To his surprise, Zhuo Er remained quiet for a long time and finally admitted. "In the end I¡¯ve always wondered whether it would have been a better idea if my master took you with him rather than me, since you¡¯re so smart, and you wouldn¡¯t have ended up like me, still unable to get anywhere close to General Xia Hou after spending so many years in the army, and not even capable enough to get any valuable intelligence."


    Looking at him quietly, Ning Que burst outughing. "Who says you haven¡¯t got any valuable intelligence? At least we now know how many times Xia Hou goes to the toilet each day, don¡¯t we?"


    "Well, such intelligence won¡¯t help towards killing him."


    "It does help," said Ning Que with a serious face and looking right into his eyes. "On my way here, I killed one of Xia Hou¡¯s assassin crews, and it was all thanks to the intelligence you have gathered for me throughout these years."


    Zhuo Er knew very well how strong these assassin crews were, and he looked at his young friend in shock, unable to fathom what kind of adventures he must have gone through over these seven years to be able to do that! However, he didn¡¯t voice his doubts and simply smiled as he asked, "So how does it feel to kill Xia Hou¡¯s people for the first time?"


    "It feels good," remembering the way his podao was shed, Ning Que answered slowly. Then he suddenly stared at Zhuo Er¡¯s dark face and frowned, saying, "It wouldn¡¯t be good if anyone found out about our rtionship."


    "Chang¡¯an is huge, I don¡¯t suppose we would bump into the enemy anytime. But you must be clear about one thing. For those important people up there, no one of General¡¯s Mansion survived, nor did anyone escape from my vige. Therefore, we¡¯re not supposed to exist, so who would ever pay attention to us anyway?"


    "Now that I think about it, how did an assistant to the great General Xia Hou¡¯s chaperon end up bing the number one bouncer of... what did you call it again?... the Gold Fish Gang?"


    "I came back to the capital with my superior as he came to report his duties, but I didn¡¯t know that the military ministry asked to transfer me as a spy. Also, our gang is not the Goldfish gang, but the Fish-dragon Gang. My superior asked me to watch over our gang leader, because they suspected that he had some connection with the Yuelun Kingdom. As you know, many of the nobles of the imperial court have business affairs and even military shipments require the assistance of these gangs to manage and keep a good order of things. In that case, it would be a major crisis if they colluded with the enemy.


    "Our gang leader?" Ning Que frowned at him and said, "This isn¡¯t a good sign, the way you refer to him shows that you respect this gang leader, and you¡¯re already seeing yourself as his top entourage. ckie, you need to stay alert... even though I¡¯ve never worked undercover, I¡¯ve seen a lot of the sort, and I know very well that one should never be emotional when working undercover, because when you do, what awaits you is a horrible death."


    "Our gang leader is a nice man." Zhuo Er lowered his head and stayed quiet for a long time, and then he looked at Ning Que and said with a sincere tone, "The truth is that, he probably already found out about my identity, and yet he hasn¡¯t done anything to me."


    Before Ning Que could say any more, Zhuo Er raised his right hand firmly and refused, saying, "He¡¯s my big brother, and I respect him. You should say no more. Nevertheless, I¡¯d like a favor from you. If anything ever happened to me in the future, I hope you could help me return my gratitude to my big brother, at your convenience."


    Ning Que said nothing and looked at him quietly. He didn¡¯t know what his friend had gone through in thergest gang of Chang¡¯an, but he could feel how serious and sincere Zhuo Er was at this moment, and he couldn¡¯t help but wonder what his big brother must be like, and what kind of gang leader would be so charismatic that Zhuo Er would worry about showing gratitude even after he died?


    Towards the end of their first conversation after seven years, the two of them briefly told each other how they were doing.


    Hearing about the assassination at the Northern Mountain Road, Zhuo Er was shocked and asked, "You had such a great chance to work with the princess, and you didn¡¯t do anything?! Even though her ss may be way out of our league, if only you tried hard enough, I believe no one could turn you down!"


    Shaking his head, Ning Que said firmly, "No way, Her Highness might look wise and resourceful, but she¡¯s really nothing but a naive and silly idiot. Following her lead could easily kill me."


    They parted at the restaurant, and Ning Que and Sangsang left first. They asked for their way back again and again, and as they were just about to arrive at the market where their hostel was located, it started to rain.


    Zoom! The big ck umbre spread open above them just like a ck lotus, shielding them from the falling rain. Sangsang held the handle of the umbre firmly and asked, "Why do you always call the princess an idiot? Isn¡¯t she a pretty nice person?"


    "Really nice?" Ning Que looked at the path in the rain and shook his head slowly.


    The Vermilion Bird Avenue leading straight towards the Imperial Pce in the north was originally grayish, but it turned ck after being soaked in rain. It looked like a long, straight and ck ribbon from Ning Que and Sangsang¡¯s point of view as they stood by the path, worn on the chest of the vast Chang¡¯an, looking so pure and solemn that it was heart-throbbing. What stood out, in particr, was the Vermilion Bird portrait engraved in the center of the avenue, with its eyes ring at them with such austerity, it almost felt like it could fly out from the rocks to exterminate them right away.


    Both of them felt that ancient and fierce sense of vehemence, horror were seeping out from the greatest depths of their bodies, and as they held each other¡¯s hands, it felt so cold that they could hardly move an inch of their muscles.


    So they stood by the path in great difficulty, under the shade of the big ck umbre, for God knows how long, and they didn¡¯t get their very consciousness back until the storm ceased, the sun shone upon the street, and the pedestrians reappeared.


    Finally able to stare back, they found nothing out of the ordinary from the Vermilion Bird portrait deeply engraved on the royal path.

 Chapter 32: A Penny Is Enough (I)

    Chapter 32: A Penny Is Enough (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    On the next morning, after washing up, the young master and the handmaiden quickly prepared themselves. This was because, on this day, they were required to go to every hall for registration to retrieve his certificates for the uing Academy entrance exam, and they felt a need to dress themselves for such an event. Ning Que sat by the window and faced the direction of the early morning sun. He held a book in his hand and looked abstractly at it. He then shut his eyes, preparing to enjoy the moment when Sangsang helped himb his hair. Unexpectedly, his hair was pulled with a jerk, which caused him a sudden pain. He then turned around, looked at his handmaiden helplessly and said, "Isbing hair that difficult?"


    "Why don¡¯t you, Young Master, try tob your hair yourself? In the past, in the City of Wei, you just required me tob it and tie a bun for you casually, but yet today, you wish to have the same hairstyle as those schrs. I¡¯m not that skillful." Sangsang withdrew theb in her hand and held it behind her back, as she replied with a sulky face.


    "Look at your attitude, yet you still remember to call me Young Master!" Ning Que was annoyed as he added, "Now who¡¯s the Young Master and who¡¯s the handmaiden? I¡¯ve only nagged at you for a little while and you ordered me tob my hair myself! You¡¯ve got to understand that your Young Master is someone who¡¯s going to enter the Academy and is considered a serious schr. If you don¡¯t know how tob, then pick up the skill. I expect you tob that style for me every day in the future!"


    After seeing the drawing at Vermilion Bird Avenue yesterday, both master and handmaiden were having emotional issues. However, they were unclear about their own feelings at that point in time and were certainly unsure whether their feelings were real. Moreover, due to some obscure reasons, they had yet to discuss this incident with each other.


    Ning Que took a nce at Sangsang¡¯s grumpy face, smiled and said, "All right, all right. After we¡¯re done with these matters, I¡¯ll bring you to Chenjinji Cosmetics Store."


    Upon hearing this, Sangsang lifted her face and grinned. She then turned around, took out a knife from the bag and handed it over to him. Ning Que took the knife, headed for the courtyard behind the inn, and started his morning martial arts practice. His movements were swift and strong. However, his messy hairdo also shook with his every movement, causing him to look funny.


    The Tang Empire was the core of the world, and Chang¡¯an was an excellent ce. Hence, the Academy was somewhat said to be the core of the Tang Empire and a ce that was respected and worshipped by manymoners. Sometimes, it was even slightly stronger than the influence of the royals.


    Since youth when Ning Que knew about this Academy, he had already been brainwashed by many about the power of its presence. He had never understood why the Tang Empire allowed its presence, or should he say, why the Royals would allow such a ce to exist. As the old saying goes, "Above all humans is a sky, and in the sky there¡¯s only one sun". If that was the case, how could an empire allow the existence of two voices?


    Whether he could understand the logic behind it shortly, at least, after spending a day doing bureaucracy, he had finally managed to sense the high position that the Academy was at in the Tang Empire. He had also experienced the respect, or even the fear, that the Imperial Court had towards the Academy. The simple task of retrieving his certificates for the uing Academy entrance exam would already require him to obtain three confirmation stamps from the various departments out of the total six, and the stamping could only be executed by officials who were Lang Zhong (an ancient official title) and above.


    This day, Ning Que saw many Fifth Rank, and higher, officials of the Military Ministry, the Ministry of Official Personnel Affairs, and the Ministry of Rites, many more than the ones he saw for the past sixteen years. If it were not the fact that his military status had yet to convert into citizen status, he might even need to go down to the Yamen (a government office in feudal China) of Ministry of Revenue. Though the weather in the spring was warm and cozy, traveling around the northern city of Chang¡¯an had somewhat exhausted him as his forehead was covered with perspiration. He could not help but think silently in his heart, "Even if the Imperial Court was to send out troops against the South Jin Kingdom, I doubt it would be that troublesome."


    The empire offices were so strict that Ning Que initially believed that a small border town soldier with no background like him would be coldly ignored or looked down upon. Never did he expect when the officials saw his name, though there was no special treatment towards him, that they would not make things difficult for him either. Instead, all they did was to wave their hands and let him pass through gently. This was entirely different from what General Ma Shixiang had told him!


    Ning Que thought it over carefully and realized that it might be the Princess¡¯s work. Ever since the Princess had returned from the grasnd and had an assassination attempt on her during her return to Chang¡¯an, she would be weed by all the officials in the city with great feasts and celebrations in the pce. Also, she would also need to investigate on this assassination attempt in the dark hurriedly. Yet she still remembered to help him. If the person she helped was another person, that person would certainly be grateful. However, that was not what Ning Que felt. To him, he had already raised this matter to Her Highness previously. Even though he had mentioned it beside the bonfire, Her Highness was still Her Highness, so the location did not matter.


    After thest stamp at the Ministry of Rites, the sun was setting. Thankfully, Tang Empire official organizations were not too bureaucratic, so the Yamen that distributed the certificates for uing Academy entrance exams was not too far apart from the Ministry of Rites. Furthermore, it was still open at that time, and two to three youngsters, who had just obtained their certificates, were seen gathering at the entrance discussing some topics softly.


    "I can¡¯t possibly stay at the inn long term. It¡¯s tough to get closer with ssmates like this."


    "Moving into the Academy earlier is quite a good idea. Probably I can get to know more seniors."


    "It¡¯s not cheap to stay in the Academy. It¡¯s much more expensivepared to a single room at the best Yui inn in Chang¡¯an. Speaking of which, the Taizu (the founder of the Tang Dynasty) Period was the best. At that time, the lodging and food at the Academy were free."


    "What¡¯s the point of saving such little money? I still feel that going to the Academy one day earlier is better. At least we can be more familiar with the area, which gives us a higher chance of passing the Academy entrance exam. I heard that the Military Ministry is crazy this year. They had rmended more than 70 students for the exams... "


    Just as Ning Que was about to walk through the entrance, he stopped upon hearing their words. He then looked at the young schr and greeted him with a bow, hands folded in front as he asked, "Brother, may I rify what you mean... Do you mean that the current Academy no longer provides free lodging and food?"


    The three of them stared at Ning Que as if he was an idiot. They were probably thinking in their minds about why he was even taking the exam if he didn¡¯t even know about such things.


    The thing that Ning Que loved to do the most was to mock others for being an idiot behind their backs and in front of Sangsang. However, when he was being seen as an idiot in front of others, he naturally could not ept it, so he turned around and entered the office.


    By the time he stepped out of the office, the group of young schrs was long gone. Should they see thed¡¯s pale face again, they would take the opportunity to mock him.


    Sangsang had been waiting for him outside all the while. She held onto a big ck umbre to block herself from the sunlight and prevent her face from getting any darker. Just as she was grinning and happy with herself for thinking of such a great idea, she noticed the look on Ning Que¡¯s face. She instantly became nervous as she quickly ran towards him in small steps and asked him with a trembling tone, "What happened? The Academy does not allow you to bring a handmaiden? Did you tell the adults inside that I can help the Academy to work, as long as we have a ce to lodge in?"


    "That¡¯s not the problem." Ning Que¡¯s lips became dry as he looked at her and continued with a rough voice, "I¡¯ve just asked them. The Academy does not provide free lodging and food at all. This means if I were to be their student, I¡¯d need to pay 30 silver every month."


    "30 silver?" Sangsang unknowingly raised her volume, as she screamed. "Then what¡¯s the point for you to study!?"


    The moment she spurted out these words, she knew that they were meaningless. She then frowned and said to Ning Que bitterly, "Young Master, we only have savings of 76 silver and 34 copper coins after all these years. When we were apanying the Princess on the way here, we had not spent a single penny. If we included the money that we earned from selling the horse carriage, that general that sponsored you, and the winning money from betting, there are still less than 200 silver in total. And don¡¯t forget that we¡¯ve stayed at the inn for two nights in Chang¡¯an and had five meals... "


    Ning Que stopped the little handmaiden from nagging, before he replied anxiously, "There¡¯s still one month until the Academy entrance exam. It seems like we still need to stay at the inn for another month, so deduct this expense from our savings as well."


    If only Sangsang could see how she looked right now, she would be slightly happier. That was because her dark-toned face had be much fairer than before from all the shock and anxiety she had.


    ...

 Chapter 33: A Penny Is Enough (II)

    Chapter 33: A Penny Is Enough (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    At the same time as the day before, a simr heavy spring rain hit Chang¡¯an. As the raindrops hit the thick surface of the big ck umbre, dull pitter-patter sounds were produced, as though the raindrops had fallen into a bed of dust. Not a single raindrop could prate the surface of the umbre and the area of the big ck umbre wasrge enough to shield an entire polo team from the wind and the heavy rain. Despite that, Ning Que and Sangsang, who were sheltered by the umbre, still felt as though they were drenched from the cold rain. Their hearts felt cold and their bodies were freezing to the extent that they could turn into ice statues in a few minutes.


    "Let¡¯s look for a ce for shelter," he said with a hoarse voice. Then he recalled about the weird incident that happened yesterday and added, "Don¡¯t go to Vermilion Bird Avenue anymore."


    As a result, both the young master and the handmaiden strolled aimlessly by the stretch of trees along the street for a distance, before they stood under a shelter on a quiet deserted street in the northern city of Chang¡¯an. They kept the ck umbre, and both of them remained silent for a long period, as they watched the drizzle in front of them.


    "This honorable Tang Empire..." The moment when Ning Que said the phrase "honorable Tang Empire", he no longer sounded as proud and confident as before. He continued, "... It would need to depend on education for profits. This is such a shame. Even if you¡¯re not providing lodging and food for free, can¡¯t you provide them at a more affordable rate? You must know that I¡¯m someone who rescued your princess, and in the end, all she did was just pass a message? Can¡¯t she just reward me with some 1,000 taels of silver to use? What a selfish princess!"


    Aspared to someone who only indulged in empty talk and med it all on the government as well as going against Her Highness¡¯ generosity, Sangsang was obviously more concerned about practical issues. She frowned, lowered her head and stared at the puddle of water on the granite pavement. She then used her fingers to calcte and said, "We don¡¯t have enough money to stay at the inn for more than a month. Young master, if you insist on studying in the academy, it¡¯d be meaningless for us to even stay in an old and torn down temple. This is because we have less than 200 taels of silver now, and we¡¯ll just need to spend it every day. So our problem now is not on how to save money, but on how to earn more money."


    "How to earn?" Thed used the umbre as a crutch, heaved a sigh like an old man and added, "That¡¯s the problem."


    The spring rain continued to fall as both of them stood along the street under the shelter to hide from the rain, while they were worried about their livelihood issue.


    Hunting was certainly out. Putting aside the consideration on whether selling those hunted animals would earn them 30 taels of silver every month, but the main problem was that there were no hunting areas near Chang¡¯an. Ning Que had already noticed this when he was in the City of Wei. The mountains and forests surrounding Chang¡¯an belonged to the emperor, so needless to say, that prey belonged to the emperor as well. If he were to clear out that prey within the next two months, he would probably end up with a terrifying charge like the Royal Garden Thief.


    Sangsang lifted her tiny face and timidly said, "Needlework is not possible. I went to take a look at the peddlers¡¯ stores along the street that night. The workmanship in Chang¡¯an is much better than mine. There are all kinds of designs that I¡¯ve never seen before, and I can¡¯t understand their needlework no matter what."


    Ning Que stared at the drizzle in front of him and sighed as hemented. "Too bad there were no Horse Gangs or Mountain Thieves around Chang¡¯an, or I¡¯d have taken the opportunity to get rid of some hives and earn some taels of silver. Come to think of it, I was young when I first arrived in the City of Wei, and I did many dumb things. The money I obtained from killing the Horse Gangs was submitted honestly to the government without keeping some for myself. Later, I finally understood the main reason behind killing those Horse Gangs, but the Horse Gangs by Shubi Lake had be poor."


    Sangsang spoke softly while ming him. "At that time I had told you that you were too violent. In the end, the Horse Gangs by Shubi Lake sent someone to watch over City of Wei every day. As soon as they knew that you were leading the troops into the grasnd, they¡¯d immediately pack their gold and escape. How are you able to snatch their money this way? It ended up that no money was ounted for the whole ofst year."


    "I was young and inexperienced at that time,"


    Ning Que exined embarrassedly. He suddenly raised his eyebrows and said, "How about being a gangster? I can¡¯t possibly borrow money directly from ckie, but I can request to join the gangs through his help and I¡¯ll try to climb up the positions within ten days. By then, I¡¯ll do moneyundering. How about it?"


    "You mentioned that the Academy considered the students¡¯ virtues. If the academy found out that you were in the gangs and bullied the kind people, you probably would be removed from the list. By then, you won¡¯t even need to earn that sum of money anymore." Sangsang reminded him.


    Ning Que hated it that his handmaiden always appeared to bezy and clumsy when he needed her memory, but yet became intelligent and reliable when he did not require her to remember. He was cross and he said, "Then how about you tell me what we should do? To earn money without letting the academy know, I guess the only way is to be a killer!


    "The problem is, where to find organizations for killers? I can¡¯t possibly search along the Chang¡¯an streets for men in ck, go forward and ask them, "¡¯Excuse me, I¡¯d like to know the best organization for killers in Tang Empire. Could you guide me in the right direction?¡¯"


    Sangsang was not afraid of his anger, and replied seriously, "Young master, I know that you feel ashamed of our current situation, but no matter what, we need to think of a way to earn money. If not, I guess it¡¯s better for us to return to City of Wei."


    "I¡¯ve said this before. Unless I¡¯m sessful, I¡¯ll never return," Ning Que said firmly.


    On the grasnd in City of Wei at Min Mountain, no matter how difficult and poor the situations were, he and Sangsang could ovee them. Yet now in this prosperous and richnd of Chang¡¯an, their livelihood became a serious, major issue. A penny which could cause troubles to the heroes could also cause problems to both the young master and the handmaiden.


    Suddenly, Ning Que¡¯s eyes brightened as he eximed, "I know! We can sell century eggs! No, or should I say, Song Hua eggs (Another name for century eggs)!"


    Sangsang frowned and repeated. "Century eggs?"


    He grinned and said, "No doubt, the century eggs I make will be the most delicious in the whole of the Tang!"


    Sangsang stared at him and said sternly, "However, no one likes them in the whole City of Wei, neither do I. They¡¯re too bitter."


    Ning Que withdrew his smile and looked at the flustered pedestrians in the rain. He did his best to remain calm andmented. "I was just kidding actually."


    Sangsang raised her head and looked at his chin. She hesitated for a long time before she gathered her courage and said, "Young master, actually there¡¯s an easy way to earn money, but I¡¯m not sure if you¡¯re willing to do it."


    Ning Que turned his head and faced her. For that moment, he instantly felt that his little handmaiden¡¯s dark-toned face had be much prettier and better looking than before, and he gently said, "Now that we¡¯re in this situation, as long as we can earn money, I¡¯m more than willing to do anything."


    Sangsang then replied, "Young master, your writings are beautiful. We can sell your writings."


    Ning Que¡¯s expression suddenly froze. He stared at her and said in a serious tone, "Sangsang, you be uglier."


    "Eh?" Sangsang was lost.


    Ning Que was pissed as he lectured her. "What do you mean by selling writings? That¡¯s calligraphy! Do you know what calligraphy is? Only schrs write and appreciate them, so how can we sell such precious things! I¡¯d rather sell my body than sell my calligraphy!"


    Sangsang was mad and shouted, "Young master, you¡¯re not a schr! You¡¯re just a woodman. Didn¡¯t you always say that you¡¯re better at writing words than killing people? If you¡¯re willing to kill people for money, I don¡¯t see why you can¡¯t write for money!"


    Ning Que was speechless with her argument, so he only weakly rebutted. "That isn¡¯t writing words. It¡¯s calligraphy."


    He then lowered his head and stared at his boots, which were already drenched by the rainwater. He then nced at the words beside his feet which he had just written using the rain water with the tip of the ck umbre. He knew his handmaiden had once again defeated him.


    The sentences of words that were written on the ground with the rainwater were: "Don¡¯t worry about poverty, but worry about having a fierce handmaiden at home."


    ...

 Chapter 34: The First Calligraphy at Lin 47th Street

    Chapter 34: The First Calligraphy at Lin 47th Street


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "I can sell them, but I have a requirement."


    "Young master, what¡¯s it?"


    "We can¡¯t sell them on the street. We should have a storefront first."


    "A storefront is very expensive."


    "That¡¯s the point. Because my calligraphies need to be expensive, too. Otherwise, I¡¯ll feel ashamed."


    "Well, well. You¡¯re the boss."


    Afterpletely losing to the little handmaiden, Ning Que decided to fight on after surrendering to retain some benefits and his reputation. Eventually, he agreed to open a shop to sell his calligraphy. Now the real problem they were facing was finding a suitable storefront.


    The day before yesterday, they found an inn when they wanted one. Today they needed to find a storefront for rent, but such luck did not show up every day. Even the generous Haotian wouldn¡¯t provide so many opportunities for people. So to find a storefront, they had to find a real-estate agency.


    The steward of the real-estate agency took out a map, pointing out some empty storefronts as ifmanding an army, and casually mentioned their prices. Under Sangsang¡¯s strong requirements, they first looked at storefronts that surrounded the local governments instead of the pce, then skipped the storefronts in the Northern Area, wealthy Western District, and deste Southern Area, and eventually ended up choosing the Eastern Area, which was known for chaos and disorder.


    Chang¡¯an was really big but still densely popted. So a storefront¡¯s rent here was really an inch of gold per inch ofnd. Even in the cheapest Eastern Area, it was still hard to find a proper storefront. With less than 200 taels of silver in total, they did not have many options and had no results after following the steward of the real-estate agency to look around for two days.


    On the third day, they finally heard some good news. Having suffered from tiredness and torture, the steward excitedly waved his arms and told Ning Que that someone was transferring a small painting and calligraphy shop at Lin 47th Street in the Eastern Area. The shop had all the supplies needed for calligraphy. It was 15 taels of silver for the monthly rent and 50 taels of silver as a transferring fee with a remaining lease of one and a half years. All of this perfectly met the requirements of Ning Que... but mainly, Sangsang.


    Ning Que and Sangsang looked at each other and found the surprise and happiness in their eyes. The price was indeed cheap and the location on the map was not bad, either. However, seeing was believing, let alone that opening a shop to sell calligraphies was directly rted to their living in Chang¡¯an for the next several years. Therefore, they did not ept it immediately but asked to take a look at the small painting and calligraphy shop first.


    When the three arrived there, both the shop renter and former boss were not present. The steward used the key to open the dirty wooden door and then they walked in. With some scrolls of writings hanging on the white walls, this small storefront also had calligraphy stationery on the wooden frame of the east wall. The most satisfying thing was that it had a shop in front, a house behind, and a well in the backyard. Ning Que and Sangsang casually looked around, and thinking of the cheap rent, a sense of willingness arose in their minds.


    "I don¡¯t need these paintings and calligraphies. So the transferring fee should be cheaper." Ning Que looked at the scrolls that filled up the entire wall with their fake and pretentious handwriting. He frowned and said, "Though the calligraphy stationery is of inferior quality, it can still be used. I can reluctantly take it, but it should be free."


    Sangsang looked up at Ning Que with a prideful smile, thinking of the young master¡¯s clever words. The steward of the real-estate agency was about to cry, thinking, "I had already known, young master and handmaiden, how mean you were these past few days, but I did not expect you to be this mean! I¡¯m simply a steward rather than your foe. Why do you two have to keep making me suffer?"


    After the steward had suffered for a long time, they finally agreed. Sangsang took out a silver box from her bag and carefully counted the silver many times before she handed them out. The two sides signed a draft contract and from this moment on, the small paintings and calligraphy shop at Lin 47th Street in the Eastern Area officially belonged to Ning Que.


    After they happily sent away the steward of a real-estate agency, Sangsang put down her bag and took out a handkerchief to cover her head and face. Then she pulled out a big towel out of nowhere and fetched a bucket of water from the backyard to begin doing chores.


    Thinking that they might sign the contract today, the two checked out from the inn and took their luggage with them. If they could save a day¡¯s inn fee, they would do it. Apparently, that steward didn¡¯t notice this detail, otherwise, he might have set a higher price. However, it was more likely that he would be scared off or lose his mind by this mean couple of young master and handmaiden.


    The little calligraphy and painting shop was filled with the smell of wet dirt. Skinny Sangsangboriously moved around with a water bucket and cleaned up the ce by standing on a stool and hunkering down. asionally she would lift her arm and wipe her forehead that was not covered by the handkerchief, though there was no sweat on it at all.


    As usual, Ning Que wasn¡¯t concerned about these things. He took a chair and sat by the door, looking at the faint corner of the Imperial Pce, the lonely Lin 47th Street and the shadows of pagoda trees on the street¡¯s sides. He felt that this quiet and elegant ce would definitely bring good businesses in the future. Besides, with so little money spent, he could not help but feel delighted and said with a smile, "It¡¯s time for writing!"


    Busy Sangsang also had a good mood today, so she firmly replied, "Night is better."


    "Okay."


    After a rough dinner, Sangsang unfolded a scroll on a gleaming table and took out an ink stick as well as an inkstone. Then she poured water into the inkstone and rolled her sleeves, so she could lift her wrist as well as expose her fingers. By slowly grinding the ink stick in the inkstone by moving in a circle, the ink shortly came out and became much denser.


    Everything was left from the previous owner. Even though they were not of great quality, they were counted as aplete set. Ning Que was already holding a writing brush and silently waiting aside. On the penholder in front of his right hand, there were five or six writing brushes, but the quality of the brush tips was hard to tell.


    As the poor-quality ink liquefied, there was no fragrance but a bad ink smell. The brushes on the penholder weren¡¯t the best for writing, but he didn¡¯t mind those details. With a face filled with a hopeful smile, he kept his left hand¡¯s thumb and index finger behind his back, continually rubbing them as if he felt itchy in the heart.


    The so-called "itchy" was not because he wanted to steal silver or spank the little handmaiden Sangsang¡¯s skinny butt, but that he wanted to write calligraphy.


    Ning Que loved calligraphy. Even if there were no calligraphy stationery but only a tree branch or a big ck umbre wet with rain, he would frequently write on the muddy ground or bluestones. For the sixteen years of his life, writing calligraphy and meditation were undoubtedly the most important things to him.


    The thick brush was dipped into the inkstone and dragged around to absorb the ink entirely. Standing upright, Ning Que quietly looked at the paper in front of him and raised his brush from the inkstone like a sharp de drawn from a sheath. As the brushnded on the paper, it felt like a de was cutting into a bone. Every time he slightly moved his wrist, a vertical line appeared on the paper.


    This vertical line was dense and heavy just like the thick eyebrows of a strong man.


    As Ning Que started the first stroke, he stopped slightly and then continued smoothly. After all these years, the way of calligraphy was carved deeply into his mind and soul. So he didn¡¯t need to pay any attention to the design and was able to write the words on the paper skillfully. As the brush tip moved from right to left, a simple yet carefree style leaped out of the paper.


    The first work of calligraphy Ning Que written in Chang¡¯an only contained two sentences.


    "When mountains stand tall and rivers run wild, there can be countless beautiful scenes in this world. But if there isn¡¯t the Old Brush to draw them, then they¡¯ll all be forgotten sooner orter."

 Chapter 35: The First Guest of Old Brush Pen Shop

    Chapter 35: The First Guest of Old Brush Pen Shop


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    This was Ning Que¡¯s ideal lifestyle: a fantastic night apanied by a good set of writing brush, inkstick, paper, inkstone and a beautiful handmaiden, enjoying a cup of light tea, three burning incenses besides the table, and a bright moon outside the window. He could roll sleeves to write as much as he wished and could stop to raise his head, lightly flicking a finger to swiftly shoot a hiltless flying sword suddenly from the beam traveling thousands of miles to kill a general.


    The first night spent in Lin 47th Street made him feel infinitely closer to his dream state, despite the cheap calligraphy stationery, despite the night being still but not yet deep, despite there was only water instead of light tea, and only porridge and sesame seed pancakes to satisfy his hunger, despite there being no burning incenses on the table and no moonlight outside the window, despite his handmaiden being too tiny, dark-skinned and ugly, and despite the fact that he now thought of cultivation as a very stinky fart...


    Despite all of these things, he still felt very happy to be able to let his brush dance presumptuously on the snow-white paper, so much so that he even considered Sangsang¡¯s proposal of selling calligraphy as a rather genius idea.


    In City of Wei, their life was neither poor nor rich, but only bitter. The military shipments would not include goods such as calligraphy stationery. So it was costly for him to write a few volumes of calligraphy. But right here and right now, he had at his disposition infinite amount of writing materials with which he could produce as much calligraphy as he wished. And Sangsang would have nothing toin about since he could sell the calligraphy for money. In his mind, there could be nothing that made him happier in this world.


    Painful and torturous times always dragged on like years, but happy and enjoyable moments flew by quickly. When he finally looked up, downed the bowl of water, and rubbed his aching wrist and shoulders getting ready to rest, it was already early dawn out there and he could hear faint sounds of water-pouring as well as vendors yelling from a distance.


    After a whole night of calligraphy, he had already been surrounded by paper volumes. Even though he began with two Kuangcao calligraphy works to vent his feelings, eventually he strove to carefully write what would sell better ording to Sangsang. They were seemly unnned works but in fact included vertical, horizontal and long scrolls as well as a massive full sized Dazhongtang scroll. Random piles of paper volumes of different sizes and shapes piled up all around him waiting to be framed.


    Having been copying thousands of calligraphy volumes for many years, Ning Que was rather confident of his own skills. However, it was a pity that here in Chang¡¯an he could not make use of certain masterpieces [TN: referring to the famous calligraphy work of Collected Poems from the Orchid Pavilion] that he was most proud of given that his true home was another time and another ce with a different history. And there was no answer if any spectator asked about the ninth year of Yong He and the Kuaiji Mount which obviously did not exist in this world. As a result, he had to copy some existing collections of poems and some widely-circted scriptures. Even so, he still believed that after the paper volumes were hung on the wall, there must be countless high-ranking government officials, celebrities and men of letters who woulde to appreciate his calligraphy as soon as they heard about it.


    "s, the threshold will be trampled off in two days, so we¡¯d better get ready to get it repaired in advance."


    Immersed in this sense of vanity, Ning Que stretched his right hand and casually ripped off the paper volumes left by the original house owner as if they were a pile of rubbish. Just as he was about to call Sangsang to find a frame shop to frame and hang his own masterpiece, he found the little handmaiden sound asleep in the corner with her arms wrapped around her knees.


    "Well, I was just about to ask you to go and get two bowls of those famous Chang¡¯an style hot and spicy shredded noodles..."


    Looking at the soundly asleep little girl, he just shook his head and covered her with a blouse. Then he pushed the door and went out, following the highly appetizing aroma of chopped green onions and the sound of vendors selling breakfast in the beautiful morning light.


    "Uncle, how much for the shredded noodles?"


    "So expensive?"


    "You see, my shop is just over there... so can I get a better price for being a good neighbor?"


    "That¡¯s right! That¡¯s the shop, still waiting for me to name it."


    "Actually I do have a name in mind, but I just need to make a shop sign... Did you say what name?"


    "Old Brush Pen Shop."


    ...


    ...


    The fact that Ning Que casually made up a shop name for the sake of getting cheaper noodles did upset Sangsang slightly, even though she had no better idea as of the shop name either. For this, she nagged at Ning Que for several years thereafter.


    All in all, with one owner/calligrapher and one handmaiden/assistant, this oddly named calligraphy store finally debuted in Lin 47th Street.


    The only thing Ning Que disliked about this shop was its distance from the framing shop. Since framing took a long time and he himselfcked the skills to do so himself, he had to remain patient and wait for another two days.


    On another rainy in Chang¡¯an, Ning Que¡¯s shop was quietly in operation in Lin 47th Street. Wearing a brand new indigo schr robe, Ning Que held a cheap red-mud teapot in his hand and stood in front of the wall of works and behind the threshold, as if seeing his new life waving at him. This new life looked truly adorable.


    "Spring rain is as precious as oil. It¡¯s a good sign!"


    Standing behind the threshold and contemting the rain outside, he took a sip of tea and eximed. "Such delicious and hypnotic aroma of the tea and the ink! All the power and ambitions in life cannotpare to this!"


    The juvenile face and a schr robe made him look rather funny instead of handsome. And it was adorable when he tried to look mature by holding the teapot and speaking in an old-fashioned tone.


    Outside the threshold and under the eaves was someone taking a shelter from the rain. He just heard what Ning Que said and turned around to nce at him. He was slightly startled at first, but then burst outughing. It was a middle-aged man with a clean turquoise robe and a sword tied loosely around his waist. His handsomeplexion conveyed a sense of freedom and ease, and his charming smile seemed to light up the falling rain.


    It was only then that Ning Que realized there was someone outside. Knowing that his sentimental words had been overheard, he felt slightly embarrassed and cleared his throat awkwardly before turning around to pretend that he was looking at the distant pce under the rain, as if nothing had happened.


    Probably feeling a little bored, this middle-aged man walked into the shop and casually nced over the wall with his hands behind his back. His eyes sparkled with appreciation and surprise, despite not showing any interest to make a purchase.


    Since all schrs take pride in their pride, Ning Que was not eager to greet the guest, despite the fact that this man was the first to step inside Old Brush Pen Shop ever since its opening, which took on a deep historical significance.


    After touring the shop, this middle-aged man walked back to Ning Que and said with a smile, "Young boss..."


    Before he could finish his sentence, the man was interrupted by Ning Que who corrected him with a smile. "Please simply call me boss. Don¡¯t call me young boss for my young age, just as I did not call you swords... man for carrying a sword."


    "Fine then, young boss," the man still did not change the address and said with a smile, "I¡¯m curious about why you¡¯d like to rent this shopfront that no one was willing to rent for the past three months."


    Ning Que answered, "It¡¯s quiet with a pleasant environment, with a shop in front and a house behind. I just couldn¡¯t figure out a reason for not renting it."


    The man smiled again and said, "I just want to remind you that, the reason why this shop was so cheap but still had no tenant was not because of everyone else being less smart than you, but because of the warehouse expansion of the Logistics Department that is under the Ministry of Revenue. Chang¡¯an Local Government has waited a long time trying to buy back the shop fronts on this street. As you may know, officialpensation always tends to be very low, which means that renting a shop front here incurs high risk for which the tenant may lose everything anytime. You say it¡¯s quiet here but did you not realize that all the other shop fronts around you are closed?"


    Ning Que frowned suspiciously and asked, "How do you know about these things?"


    This middle-aged man calmly replied, "Because the shop fronts on both sides of this street all belong to me."

 Chapter 36: The Cool Spring Rain

    Chapter 36: The Cool Spring Rain


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The shop just opened, and it might not be a good sign to start a day with your first guest being your Big Owner. But Ning Que was fine with it, and even a piece of troublesome insider information did not disturb him.


    He was convinced that the man who owned all of the street shops in Chang¡¯an was someone who was either a billionaire or an aristocrat. Since thendlord had made his promise, there was no point in worrying about the rest. As the Old Brush Pen Shop was the only tenant shop on the street, the middle-aged man had granted him three months rent-free, which was good enough to make both young master and handmaiden in a cheerful mood.


    What truly bothered him was their business, which was as bleak as the weather.


    The spring rain had been going on for four or five days in Chang¡¯an incessantly, and it seemed that it wouldn¡¯t stop. The weather was gloomy and chilly, and the roads were slippery and muddy. No one would like to go out under such weather conditions. Their shop was the only one open on the entire street, and others¡¯ doors were firmly closed on either side. The street appeared more deserted than ever as there was no business. In fact, there were only a few people and a couple of sparrows hopping hither and thither on the street.


    On the first day of the opening of the shop, Ning Que looked at the spring rain andmented something like, "Spring rain is as precious as oil." Now he thought of the rain as cheap as piss. He sat in a wicker armchair, sighing while watching the rain pattering outside. If one¡¯s sight did have power, and if he was a Psyche Master of the Knowing Destiny State, then probably his resentful sight could knock down the gray wall in front him.


    The middle-aged man said that both side shops of Lin 47th Street belonged to him, except this grey wall opposite to the Old Brush Pen Shop. Behind the wall was the warehouse of Logistics Department, which needed extending. That was the real reason why Ning Que was sulky.


    At noon, someone finally walked in the shop. It was a potbellied, stout man with a look of a wealthy businessman, followed by two attendants. At first, Ning Que was vignt as he thought they were one of those who was trying to persuade him to tear this shop down. Upon overhearing their casual talk, he understood that they were no more than some average shoppers who happened to seek shelter from the rain.


    Since they were casual, Ning Que feltzy to stand up and serve them. With both hands holding a shoddy, red-y teapot and looking outside at the rain, Ning Que half-opened his eyes as if he could doze off at any moment. But his heart was on fire and eager to make some money.


    The stout and wealthy looking man peered at something on the wall at a close distance, with his hands behind his back. It was interesting that those who visited the Old Brush Pen Shop tended to put their hands behind backs, seemingly disying their sharp appreciation. This wealthy man, who had been living in Chang¡¯an for a good while, was no exception and had cultivated a sharp taste. After examining the calligraphy hung on the wall, he said to his attendants, "I¡¯m surprised to see such good calligraphy in this shabby little ce."


    It could be taken as apliment, though in a bit of a frivolous and condescending tone, which was unable to strike a chord with Ning Que. Ning Que still sat in his chair, appearing nonchnt. In fact, he was listening carefully to the wealthy man with his ears strained, longing to sell one of those calligraphies.


    The stout wealthy man turned around and asked, "Lad, who wrote these calligraphies?"


    "I did," Ning Que answered politely, slightly making a bow.


    The wealthy man didn¡¯t say anything more, and after a while, he shook his head andmented. "What a pity! There were several calligraphies written quite handsomely. However, the youngd wants to pass himself off as some great calligrapher master. Anyway, you¡¯re lucky that I happened to seek shelter here. San Er, take this one, I¡¯ll buy it."


    Ning Que turned around, looked at them, and asked, "May I ask how much you¡¯d like to pay for it?"


    The wealthy man said with a smile, "If this were sold outside the Scent Workshop, it would cost 500 cents at most. Considering that you need to pay rent for your shop, and you¡¯re still young, I¡¯ll give you two taels of silver."


    Ning Que picked up his teapot, taking a drink, and then put it down and cursed. "Piss off."


    The wealthy man turned angry and shouted, "You don¡¯t know how to appreciate favors, do you?"


    Ning Que shook his head and answered, "I¡¯m young, though I¡¯m no fool. I was going to ask you to get out when you insulted me just now. I was just wondering how much you¡¯d like to offer. If your offer was good, I think I¡¯d be fine with your insult. But your offer is far from enough."


    The wealthy man walked off with a leaden face. Sangsang rushed out from the backyard only to see the silhouette of the three disappearing in the rain. She felt disappointed and turned around to look at Ning Que in the chair, angrily saying, "Young master, that¡¯s TWO taels of silver!"


    Two inksticks and three sheets of rice paper were all the Old Brush Pen Shop had sold during these days. Though they were exempted three months rent by the middle-aged man, Sangsang couldn¡¯t sleep well these days, concerned about the huge expense of the academy in the future. You couldn¡¯t me her for blowing off steam.


    As there was no business, Ning Que closed the shop after lunch, on the pretext offorting Sangsang. But he wanted to have a stroll himself. He took Sangsang to Chenjinji Cosmetics Store for some powder a couple of streets away and stopped by Danbo Bookstore for several leisure books.


    It proved a good idea to take a stroll outside. Sangsang could not suppress her joyous face with her one hand holding a cosmetics box from Chenjinji Cosmetics Store and the other with several books fastened together. Ning Que felt a lot better too, with his right hand holding the big ck umbre, and left hand stretching out to feel the rain. The rain pattered on his umbre and hand. The young master and handmaiden, with rainboots on, strode overrge and small rain puddles along the way back to Lin 47th Street.


    Suddenly, the umbre jerked, Ning Que stopped and looked at their shop dozens of meters away. Rain ckened the grey wall, and a man was sitting under the roof. The swarthy man appeared pale from his excessive blood loss. Ning Que held the umbre more tightly.


    A loud sound resonated in the air. Ning Que¡¯s left foot trod into one of the puddles on the te, sshing the water all over. He nned to rush towards the gray wall with all his strength summoned around his abdomen.


    But at that very moment, the swarthy man soaked in blood managed to smile at him and shook his head firmly. He had a horrible wound in his abdomen, and his ck clothes were tattered, bones crushed, and entrails revealed. Even those Grand Cultivators of the Limitlessness State could do nothing for him.


    Upon seeing this and understanding his resolve, and hearing pounding footsteps and shouting near the entrance of thene, Ning Que retreated his left foot slowly and awkwardly. He couldn¡¯t help but shiver fiercely with his hand holding the umbre.


    "The Military Ministry is searching for a spy, move!"


    A dozen of Yulin Royal Guards charged into the street andpletely surrounded Zhuo Er, who was sitting in the corner of the wall, with solemn yet vignt looks. The general who led the army seemed to let out a sigh of relief upon finding that this man had been severely injured.


    The spring rain came down in torrents, making the gray wall darker, and streamed along the wall like a brook, quickly washing the wall smeared by Zhuo Er¡¯s blood.

 Chapter 37: Staying Calm on the Surface with a Heart Penetrated by Pain

    Chapter 37: Staying Calm on the Surface with a Heart Prated by Pain


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Although the Yulin Royal Guards had blockaded the Lin 47th Street, more and more Chang¡¯an citizens were gathering together. They didn¡¯t care at all about the cold rain which left them wet. Looking at the dark-faced man leaning against the wall, they, nervously, ufortably, excitedly, or pitifully, were all interested in what happened.


    Ning Que stood in the rain with a ck umbre, staring at Zhuo Er, who was sitting in the rain with his legs apart. Ning Que was so concentrated as if he wanted to memorize that face forever, despite that you couldn¡¯t tell anything from his face.


    "When we met in Min Mountain seven years ago, you had a dark face. Why are you so dark? You¡¯re darker than the bottom of a pot, darker than Sangsang, and even darker than the night." While seven years had passed, the dark boy had grown into a dark man. Ning Que was not familiar with this face anymore. Therefore, he wanted to look at the face carefully in thisst moment, remembering it till death.


    The crowd dispersed after the Yulin Royal Guards carried Zhuo Er, who had closed his eyes forever, out of the Lin 47th Street. Ning Que and Sangsang returned to their shop under the ck umbre, side by side. Although he seemed calm, Sangsang clearly observed that there was no emotion in Ning Que¡¯s eyes. He was just like a shell without a soul.


    The door of the shop was closed. After a long period of silence, Nin Que finally whispered, "I¡¯d like to eat noodles tonight."


    "Sure," Sangsang answered quickly, and entered the backyard after dropping off her books and cosmetics box.


    Ning Que seemed to return to normal after he ate a bowl of noodles with three fried eggs, which were specially cooked by Sangsang for him. He even made fun of Sangsang after he put down his bowl, though hisughter was nevertheless dry and bitter.


    When the rain stopped at midnight, Ning Que walked out of the shop after making sure that anyone wouldn¡¯t see him. He slowly walked to the gray wall on the opposite side of the shop and crouched down. He raised his hand and slowly rubbed the wall. However, he could not feel the body heat of Zhuo Er on the wet and cold wall. Ning Que didn¡¯t know why that guy came here just before he died, what he wanted to tell him, and for how long he waited in the freezing rain and what he was thinking at that time...


    His thin and long finger stopped when he touched a piece of brick, where there was a faint blood stain on the corner, and a tiny mark. The mark wouldn¡¯t be discovered with one¡¯s naked eyes, but Ning Que found it with his finger.


    ...


    ...


    Back at the shop, Ning Que gave Sangsang several pieces of paper soaked in oil and told her to save them carefully. Although rare for him, he boiled water himself to take a foot bath. Then he went to the cold bed. As usual, Sangsang slept on the other side of the bed with her body curled together like a mouse.


    "I stayed with him for only a couple of days seven years ago, and then he was taken away by his damn master. You probably have forgotten all these things. He had not learned anything from his master these years, and he was still a spy in the Military Ministry, not in a good situation."


    "We did contact with each other via letters. However, I don¡¯t know much about him now as we have not seen each other for seven years. It¡¯s too hypocritical to say that we¡¯re very close... Honestly speaking, the rtionship between him and me was built on mutual benefits. Or more precisely, I took advantage of him to collect information about Xia Hou."


    "But he just died like that, and this is very tough. Now I¡¯m the only person who knows about the massacre of those viges, of course, not counting you. Then should I take all the responsibilities? However, I¡¯m already in hot water with a lot of troubles, how will I have time to deal with these matters?"


    As Sangsang knew, Ning Que only needed catharsis and self-conviction, instead of replies from others. She didn¡¯t speak, seeming to fell asleep.


    However, Ning Que couldn¡¯t fall asleep. He looked at the corner of the roof, where there were water stains left by the rain, with his eyes wide open. Suddenly, he sat up and exited into the yard with a coat. He took out three old knives from the wood and began sharpening them.


    Ning Que was still not sleepy after doing that. He went into the shop and lit a candle. He poured water into the ink stone and started grinding ink. Then he sank the brush into the dark ink and took out a piece of scrap paper casually. The brush, controlled by Ning Que, poured down ink onto the paper, just like the rain in the afternoon. Ning Que wrote down a few lines of words quickly.


    "To think about the past makes me feel miserable and like crying. The pain prates my heart and mind. However, I could not do anything. I have yet to seed but have already be more intive. However, I could not do anything. I do not know what can I write down, but feel sad... Ning can only bow."


    There was no expression on Ning Que¡¯s face and no emotion in his eyes, which made an obvious contrast with the painful and aggressive words on the paper. Without him knowing, Sangsang got up and stood beside him with a thin coat. She looked at the words on the paper, speechless, and raised her little head and looked at him with confusion.


    "These words were written down by a predecessor, and I¡¯m just copying." Ning Que exined. "The predecessor¡¯s family tomb was dug up, and yet he wasn¡¯t able to return and give it a look. He felt greatly distressed although he knew it was repaired immediately afterward, and wrote down these few sentences in despair and anger."


    Sangsang nodded her head. But judging from her eyes, she might have still been confused. Ning Que smiled and didn¡¯t give further exnations. Although he had copied this famous piece of calligraphy more than ten times, it was only this time that he understood what kind of pain could prate one¡¯s heart and mind, and could make people speechless and choke up.


    ...


    ...


    At daybreak, the rain stopped.


    Washed by the spring rain, the sun appeared to be especially clear and beautiful, shining on the peaceful Lin 47th Street, and painting all the building¡¯s corners and the gray wall. The door of Old Brush Pen Shop was opened wide. Ning Que sat on a chair, reading one of the leisure books he bought. asionally, he would frown or smile due to the content of the book, and pick up the cup of tea to take a drink.


    There was an oily sheet inside the, seemingly, very leisure book. The signature, which would never get wet by the rain, appeared to be very clear on the oilpaper. He wasn¡¯t reading the book, and instead, he was reading the piece of paper.


    The oilpaper was stuffed into the wall by Zhuo Er before he died. It recorded a few names, some information about their hobbies and daily whereabouts. Ning Que didn¡¯t know whether they were relevant to the death of Zhuo Er, but he knew that at least he should do something if he wanted Zhuo Er¡¯s death to be a bit more meaningful. Or in other words, Zhuo Er would have died more willingly and happily.


    The first name on the oilpaper was Zhang Yiqi.


    Zhang Yiqi was an assistant to the Imperial Oversight Advisor in the empire¡¯s Department of Provincial Censor. He was responsible for investigating and examining all the government officials and impeaching the corrupt ones. When he was a minor censor, he was assigned to assist investigating the treason case of the Xuanwei general, Lin Guang Yan. Later on, after he was promoted to be the secretary of Department of Provincial Censor, he was again a member of the officials who was examining the case of the ughter in the vige within the Yan territory.


    In 13 years, he was promoted from upper-ranked eighth to lower vice-ranked sixth. Judging by this, he was far from a sessful official. However, Ning Que didn¡¯t care about this. He only was concerned about the role this guy yed in these two cases. General Xia Hou could take advantage of idents to murder his enemies and avoid being punished in the ughter case, which must have something to do with Zhang.


    Then, he deserved his death.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 38: In Search of the Brothel

    Chapter 38: In Search of the Brothel


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The ranking of the Department of Provincial Censor was not high, but its power was not small either. In the bureaucracy, the censor of a sixth rank was already considered a vital person. Wherever he went, regardless of whether it was the yamen (government office in feudal China) or his mansion, countless bodyguards would be by his side protecting him. Should a poord that sold writing words decided to kill an officer in Tang Empire, not only did it sound fantasy, it was even in line with the heroism fantasy in the East.


    However, Ning Que had never considered how he could kill the other party. To him, killing was the simplest thing in this world. His life journey had started with a murder, followed by the killing on Northern Mountain Road in the grasnd at the frontier fortress among the Min Mountain. His sharp de killed countless beasts and humans.


    He was only concerned with one thing¡ªhow could he kill the censor, Zhang Yiqi, without anyone discovering it. This would depend on how much confidence he had with his own killing technique so that it could face with the yamen that ensured peace and security in the Tang Empire. The thought of the presence of those fathomless experts in the Chang¡¯an made him sure that he would not be able to escape swiftly after the killing, hence simply to go without a n would mean death to him.


    There was little information on Zhang Yiqi on the oilpaper, and they were not helpful for Ning Que¡¯s n, except for one particr sentence: "The censor Zhang Yiqi appears to be a strict and serious person, but it¡¯s heard that he¡¯s actually very fond of women and extremely lustful in reality. He¡¯ll even often visit the brothels in private. However, he has a ferocious wife at home and he carries the responsibility and reputation of a censor, so he¡¯s usually very careful when he visits such areas." After all, Zhuo Er was just a low-grade spy in the military and thus, did not manage to check which brothel this man often visited.


    "There¡¯re so many brothels in the Chang¡¯an, so which one are you visiting first?"


    Ning Que frowned his brows and thought hard about it. Neglecting his initial thought of stalking the man to find out which brothel he visited, if the professional spy in the military could not even discover the ce Zhang Yiqi went to for his needs using the usual method, then this censor must have his way of hiding it. Furthermore, he doubted themoners in the teahouse at Chang¡¯an would not mind serving a high-grade officer like Zhang Yiqi, and thus it would certainly be tough for him to obtain the information he wanted from the market. Things were getting inconvenient for him.


    With his hand supporting his chin as he stared at the sun after the rain for a long time, he suddenly stood up.


    His mood instantly became better. He finally understood that such a matter was no different from the hunting at Mountain Min and chopping on the grasnd. Since he wished to know where that old bear and horse gangs were without any directions provided by the old hunter or the kind general, then the only thing he could do was to use his legs to explore the Mountain Min and grasnd. He needed to explore to search for the abrasion markings on the tree branches, dried faeces in the wild and bonfire remained that were buried under the soil.


    He was a good hunter and an excellent wood-chopper. He could determine which mountain the old bear was hiding from these details, whether the bear was injured, how many members there were in the horse gang and whether they had left the Shubi Lake. Hence, he trusted that through observing these details with his effort, he would be able to determine the living preferences of the Tang censor, and a method to assassinate him. What he would need to do now was to enter the Chang¡¯an.


    "I¡¯m going out for a walk." Ning Que informed Sangsang as he stretched his body and walked out.


    Sangsang hurriedly ran and leaned by the door as she asked, "Where are you going? Do you need me to follow?"


    Ning Que understood what she was worried about. He smiled and answered, "There¡¯re some ces that you can¡¯t tag along."


    ...


    ...


    Strolling along the street of Chang¡¯an under the warm sunlight, Ning Que¡¯s mood was bing better. The pool of blood in that spring rain was purposely forgotten by him as he turned himself into a young foreign schr. He would first go to the bookstore to return the few books which he hadpleted, after which, he¡¯ll begin his non-stop loitering between the Department of Provincial Censor and Zhang¡¯s mansion.


    For the rest of the day, he lingered under the shade of the willow and stood by the side of sweet per from a far distance across arge crowd of people, to watch the upright and threatening censor stepping out of the Department of Provincial Censor. The censor returned to his own mansion and several strong bodyguards beside him followed. He noticed that there were several security police statued along the highly secured street, and sometimes, a Yulin Royal Guard would swiftly ride past him on a horse for his rounds. All these made him certain that he must not kill anyone along the street without a proper n.


    Nothing was gathered or gained during the daytime. By evening, the main door of Zhang¡¯s mansion opened. As though going for an official invitation from someone, the censor¡¯s wife and a few well-dresseddies, most probably the concubines, sent him off at the door. Several wanderers on the street wereughing and pointing in that direction while expressing their admiration towards the censor. However, Ning Que, who was sitting in the teahouse drinking herbal tea, noticed one detail¡ªother than the censor¡¯s wife whose expression was cold was skinny, the other concubines had great figures.


    A man¡¯s perception of beauty towards women was usually not shown in his wife, but through his concubines and lovers. Sometimes, the reasons for having a wife were mainly for family status, money, future... and perhaps for fabricated stuff like love. However, the reason for concubine or lover was very simple. It was basically to fulfill the sexual needs of the man.


    "So he prefers full-figured women." Ning Que thought silently and smiled from within as he looked at the concubines who quietly stood behind their mistress like quails while their eyes revealed a sense of satisfaction and evilness.


    As Ning Que followed the censor¡¯s carriage across four streets and saw it entering into the towering and grandiose prince¡¯s residence, he quietly took a nce at the main door of the prince¡¯s residence before turning around to head towards the crowded street. He then asked a wanderer on the street, "Hello friend, I¡¯d like to know which brothels in our Chang¡¯an are famous fordies with a full figure?"


    It was a dumb question, but the moment when silver was presented with the question, no matter how dumb the question was, one would still obtain a not-so-dumb answer. At that instant, Ning Que had turned into a rich bumpkin schr that hade to Chang¡¯an from a foreignnd in that wanderer¡¯s eyes. After giggling for a while, the wanderer professionally introduced to him about the romance affairs in Chang¡¯an, with a teapot in his arms.


    Listening to the names that were even moreplicated than the academy entry exam(s) mock questions, Ning Que massaged his frowned brows as he smiled bitterly andmented. "That¡¯s a lot of information. What about you just tell me which brothels are the most expensive? The environment should be quieter as well."


    ...


    ...


    With a few rmended brothels name and addresses in his hand, Ning Que searched along the Chang¡¯an street under the bright-lighted streetlights. While walking and hesitating along the loin street, there were a few brothels that he chose not to enter. Judging from the appearance and the surrounding environment of these brothels, he was certain that censor was not a regr of these ces. This was purely an instinct from a hunter.


    The issue was that he was not an expert to hunt in such ces. When he was approached by those pimps that were very enthusiastic in inviting him in, he rejected them and did not enter, which made him felt embarrassed. By the time he reached the fourth brothel on his list, he had already realized that his method was not only dumb but extremely stupid.


    There were so many brothels in the Chang¡¯an, and most of them appeared to be quiet and high-ss. Which brothels would not have those signaturedies with a full figure? The chance for him to meet the old bear by searching along the street like a blind bear to try his luck would be way too low.


    Just as he was hesitating outside that brothel on whether to enter and finally decided to leave, he suddenly heard some crisp, clear voicesing from his back. These clearughs echoed from a distance on the Chang¡¯an street, which attracted many attentions.


    Ning Que turned his head instantly. He noticed a serene and deserted brothel from the direction of theughter. The beautifuldies, who had yet started working, were giggling andughing as they waved their long red sleeves. It was as if they were teasing at thed who dared not enter the brothels.


    "That¡¯s too much!"


    He shook the bag of silvers in his sleeve and looked at the beautifulughing prostitutes who revealed a seductive look in their eyes. With a look of determination, he raised his head, swung his sleeves to the front as he walked into the new age in high and vigorous spirit.

 Chapter 39: Drinking with Prosititutes, Thats within Expectation

    Chapter 39: Drinking with Prosititutes, That¡¯s within Expectation


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The reason for him to enter the brothel was to check on Zhang Yiqi¡¯s itinerary, revenge for Zhuo Er, seek justice for the vigers who were murdered by Yan territory, and seek justice for everyone who died terribly in the General¡¯s Mansion!


    Ning Que had wanted to enter this brothel and sincerely realized that all those excuses were f*cking nonsense. If he insisted on taking such views, ckie would be drenched with rainwater and rose from hell to give him a good kick.


    As all these thoughts were running through his mind, and partially because he was stepping into another new chapter of his life, he was feeling very nervous. Upon entering the brothel, he then realized that he had forgotten to notice the signboard of this brothel, but in fact, this brothel did not have any signboard.


    With two enthusiastic manservants leading the way, he walked past a small garden, and into the brightly-lit building.


    Ning Que casually nced around the interior of the lobby. Though his facial expression looked peaceful, he was feeling shocked within. He discovered that this brothel was noisy and joyous outside, yet serene and peaceful inside, which was very different from the usual brothels. Of course, he had never entered a brothel before. It was just that in the past when he brought Sangsang to visit the doctors, or when he went to purchase Article on the Response of the Tao, he had taken a look at the brothels from a distance at Changping. Hence, to be urate, he should say that this particr brothel was different from what he imagined to be like.


    The lobby was brightly-lit and serene, with a red-carpeted stage sitting in the middle. Several slim and elegant-lookingdies were on the stage focusing as they yed their instruments. Their expressions were gentle, and yet they did not attempt to flirt with any of the customers below the stage.


    Upon entering the lobby, he felt as if the whole world had quietened down. Theughs from thosedies who had previously waved their red sleeves and teased him in front of the lobby were already far from being heard. The next moment, there were sounds of the footstepsing from above. Ning Que guessed that thedies must be rushing to take a peek at him, as he hurriedly lowered his head to hide his embarrassment.


    The manservant whispered to him gently to ask if he required any services. He was not poorly served just because he was young and was teased by thedies outside. Ning Que pinched the bag of money in his sleeve and secretly guessed that the ten silvers which he had stolen from Sangsang would probably be insufficient for him to enjoy here. Thus, he casually pointed a table at the corner.


    A pot of rice wine, two tes of melon seeds with nuts, four dishes of sweet pastries with hot towels on each dish. Even the bucket for collecting the melon seeds shells was beautifully painted with red plum on the ck surface. These great services and elegant details cost Ning Que a total of four silvers, but he felt that it was all worth it. To a poor kid who had stayed at the frontier fortress for years, he had never enjoyed such experience before.


    After drinking two cups of rice wine apanied with a few nuts, the bamboo instruments performance on the stage turned into a dance performance as thedies started to swirl and jumped with the music yed. Fair skin and slim-line figures were revealed as they raised their arms and legs. As such, the initial serene and quiet lobby had be warm and cozy.


    In the lobby, there were several customers who each had a gentle-looking female apaniment smiling in a flirty manner by their sides. As the sky was getting darker and the atmosphere in the lobby was getting better, the distances between them were also naturally drawn closer as they snuggled and kissed one another. No one had any idea where their hands were touching and smoothing under their broad sleeves, but perhaps due to the rules in this brothel, no exaggerating intimate acts were disyed in the lobby.


    As a result, Ning Que, who was sitting in a corner alone, instantly felt that he was a round peg in a square hole. There he was, sitting all by himself with no women by his side. It was indeed awkward to be in such a state at a ce like this, especially when he noticed that a fewdies were standing by the railing upstairs,ughing and teasing him again. To make the situation worst, those women who were in the arms of the customers took a few side nces at him from time to time with interest, which made him felt even more awkward.


    A young man took a look at Ning Que and noticed his problems, even though it did not strike his mind that thisd might beck of money due to the new set of clothes thisd was wearing. He thought that it might be Ning Que¡¯s first time here and he might just be too embarrassed to voice out. The young manughed and signaled the woman in his arms to invite Ning Que to join his fun.


    The Tangs were generally generous and enjoyedpanionship. They were also very friendly and it wasmon for them to join their tables in brothels¡¯ tavern. Ning Que was slightly stunned upon receiving the invitation, but neither did he want to appear narrow-minded. Hence, he made a sincere gesture with his hands and allowed the manservant to move his remaining miserable-looking dishes to the young man¡¯s table.


    At ces of entertainment, there was no reason for one to introduce his own name and family to the other party. As old saying states, "We¡¯re people who¡¯re only seeking for enjoyment, so it doesn¡¯t matter if we were strangers before this encounter." The young man did not ask for Ning Que¡¯s name either, butughed and joked with him. After a few cups of wine, Ning Que felt more at ease. That was when he realized that he was also someone who could chat and joke a lot. After conversing for a while, the people sitting at that table had instantly be rowdy.


    The young man seemed to be in a good mood. He took a side nce at Ning Que from head to toe, as he generouslymanded to the steward. "Arrange twodies for thisd here. Age and nationality do not matter. I just need someone who can entertain and serve the customer well."


    Ning Que silently thought in his heart, "Does that mean age gap is not a problem, and nationality is not an issue?" He never thought that the people at the Chang¡¯an were so open-minded about such things. As he was enjoying his time, he suddenly understood the true meaning behind the invitation. He could not help but feel shocked at his realization, as he quickly gestured his hands and rejected the offer.


    "It¡¯s really fine... and no need to be modest," the young man said as heughed softly. Hisughter was unusually cunning. He continued, "Young brother, if I¡¯m not wrong, I guessed you¡¯re still a virgin?"


    Ning Que was so embarrassed that he frowned his brows and the freckles on his cheeks suddenly became more vivid. He thought quietly to himself, "surely now is not the time for me to gesture my hands and eximed to him, ¡¯What a good judgment you have!¡¯."


    The steward squinted his eyes, which caused the wrinkles on his face to gather together, andughed before telling the young man not to worry and he would arrange as per requested. The young man noticed the shocking look on Ning Que¡¯s face, as he slightly frowned and guessed. "Or is it that my young brother here does not like old mama-like women, but prefers young and sexydies?"


    Ning Que sat there like a block of wood, and his mind seemed to be drifted elsewhere. All of a sudden, he smiled politely and said with determination, "To be honest, I still preferdies who¡¯re of the simr age as me."


    "Good, good, that¡¯s how a man should be like. Honest and straightforward."


    The young man tapped his fan as he praised. He then raised his brow, giggled and said, "Lad, if you want someone your age, her experience would be lesser. I never expect my young brother have such a light taste."


    Ning Que raised his brows. As he was about to brag about arge amount of experience he had in his years of imagination, a young maidservant suddenly came hopping and running down the stairs. She walked to their table without any expression on her face and said with a crisp voice, "Sir, Mistress Jian would like to see you."


    Ning Que was finally able to enter this new age under the sponsorship of this kind young man, but yet suddenly, this young maidservant came to interfere their conversation. As he was getting slightly nervous, he instantly recalled the storylines from various legendary stories. Whenever the main male lead was having a good time at the brothel, idents would always happen and in the end, it was often being interrupted. These idents or nned incidents included the burning of brothel, the fight between the experts, that young lover became jealous, or that the fierce wife at home suddenly appeared...


    With these thoughts in mind, he started to feel extremely anxious, even to the extent of feeling hopeless. He did not even wonder who was this Mistress Jian that wished to meet him, but yet at the mention of this name, many customers at the lobby revealed a surprised and confused look, as they looked jealously at Ning Que.


    The young man was stunned as he jealously patted on Ning Que¡¯s shoulder andughed loudly. "What a good life you have."


    Ning Que was somewhat awakened by the young man¡¯s pat on the shoulder, which was filled with heavy resentment. He then noticed the looks on everyone¡¯s faces in the lobby. He was taken aback and started to feel curious about this Mistress Jian, of course, with several fanciful reveries on his mind.


    ...

 Chapter 40: Angry Mistress Jian in House of Red Sleeves

    Chapter 40: Angry Mistress Jian in House of Red Sleeves


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Many yearster, standing along that lonely mountain cliff, Ning Que recalled the scene of meeting Mistress Jian for the first time. He still could not help but look back, and sighed for a long time, with a self-deprecating smile and emotion on his face.


    At that time, he went upstairs with the hope that he himself was the so-called luckiest man of the night, walking all the way as if to see that top courtesan waiting for him. However, when a little maidservant pushed the red door and uncovered the bead curtain, he hadn¡¯t thought of meeting such a woman, but rather a girl.


    The old woman had very clear crow¡¯s feet around her eyes but a perfect body maintenance, with plump breasts, a slender waist, and fat buttocks in a cloth gown. But she had an extremely wide forehead that was like an uplifted smooth dune on grasnd¡ªsimple and kind eyebrows and eyes, as well as very thin hair under her straight nose and above the thick lips. She wasn¡¯t ugly but could never deserve the title of a beauty in a million, let alone the top courtesan.


    He was fond of the beautiful little girls of his simr age, slightly olderdies, and even charming mature woman over 30 years old. Nevertheless, Mistress Jian belonged to none of them, who was merely an ordinary woman over 40 years old with the man-like tolerance and calmness.


    After a short time of hesitation, Ning Que immediately felt that he looked a little impolite, so he forced himself to calm down and put on a sincere smile, greeting a bow with hands folded in front to the woman, and then asked her, "What can I do for you, Mistress Jian?"


    "Whosed are you?" Mistress Jian asked, smiling at him.


    Ning Que did not conceal but recounted his background.


    "Although the applicants rmended by the Military Ministry aren¡¯t few this year, you must be a talented one to have passed the preliminary test of the academy."


    The Mistress nced at him with approval and continued, "Since you havee from the border town, you should have no idea of who I am. But myd, it instead proves your stable character when you were able to calm down in our first meeting quickly."


    Ning Que tried his best to lower his head, deliberately not looking at her grasnd-wide forehead or thin hair above her lips, and subconsciously tried to keep a low profile after listening to her.


    Through the woman¡¯s simple introduction and that little maidservant¡¯s proud decorative narration, he finally knew why those people downstairs were particrly concerned about the name of Mistress Jian.


    Thirty years ago, during the new reign of South Jin Kingdom, a song-and-dance troupe called House of Red Sleeves won the most apuse in the ceremony, gradually broadcasting its reputation to the world. Just three yearster, because of many Tang girls inside House of Red Sleeves, Tang Emperor specifically wrote a letter to ask it to move into Tang Empire, which the Emperor of South Jin Kingdom was not able to resist but only epted.


    Since then, House of Red Sleeves had been in Chang¡¯an. For nearly two decades, they only danced in the Tang¡¯s pce and court instead of other countries¡¯ events, which caused their fame to vanish among themon people.


    But for those high officials and noble lords, this song-and-dance troupe, which was specifically asked by the most powerful empire to perennially station in the greatest of cities, Chang¡¯an, was no doubt still the best one in the world. Although there was no name for this brothel where they lived, it was and would always be the number one brothel.


    As long as someone arrived in Chang¡¯an¡ªmaybe the South Jin Kingdom envoy, or the Yuelun Kingdom officials came to pay tribute, or even the Tribe of Savages King on the grasnd, one always came here to invite the House of Red Sleeves girls to sing and dance. It was said that Yan Kingdom Prince had spent the most difficult first two years in House of Red Sleeves, when he was sent to Chang¡¯an as a hostage seven years ago.


    Mistress Jian was not the world¡¯s top courtesan.


    But she was the leader of House of Red Sleeve song-and-dance troupe, having trained the world¡¯s countless top courtesans.


    ...


    ...


    "You¡¯re just one littled. Since you¡¯re going to the academy, your future can naturally be promised. It¡¯s unnecessary for you to learn from those stale schrs, who seem to try to be a celebrity by going to a brothel a few times?"


    Mistress Jian¡¯s smile seemed to be carved out by a knife. Regardless of her cold words or questions or persuasion, she always kept a calm and tranquil smile with many crow¡¯s feet around the eyes.


    But Ning Que felt the slight emotional change of the woman leader. Not being aware of her intention to call him to go upstairs, Ning Que sensed a suddenly stern tone from this woman after she heard that he was going to attend the academy entrance exam. And this stern tone was not hostile, but like some elders who expected something from the young.


    This emotional change made him somewhat at a loss, so he exined it a little in a low voice after greeting a bow with his hands folded in front.


    "I came from the Yuelun Kingdom but have been in Chang¡¯an for more than twenty years. Of course, I know about the Tang men¡¯s disposition, which is called generous for the excellent version or too passionate and face-saving for the bad version."


    Mistress Jian no longer smiled but frowned, looking at Ning Que who had ad¡¯s juvenile and energetic face. As if seeing one little schr in an indigo robe who rode a small ck donkey, cursed everything with his head up and proudly went into the Great Wall many years ago, she felt so disappointed and said angrily.


    "Do you know the young man? That¡¯s the most favored only child of Master Chu, one of seven elites in the Eastern Area. He has endless money to be generous. But what about you? ording to the disposition of your Tang, you must offer a feast back in return if invited to a meal. Even if you¡¯re short of money, you¡¯d sell all book volumes at home to invite him back next time you encounter him. Am I right or wrong?"


    Embarrassed, Ning Que scratched his head, secretly admiring this woman¡¯s outlook. Although he was not a typical Tang, he still had some Tang tolerance in his character about this kind of thing.


    Seeing him, Mistress Jian felt much more annoyed for no reason, suddenly throwing the ebony beads on her wrist to the couch, which caused a series of questions toe at him like a storm.


    "You¡¯re not old and strong enough for this seductive brothel. How dare youe in?


    "You¡¯re too poor to spend here. Are you ready for the academy fees?


    "How about your academy entrance exam preparation? Any true test papers bought? Which of them were bought?"


    ...


    ...


    With the thought of exclusively owning the top courtesan, Ning Que unexpectedly met the courtesans¡¯ manager with a strong moral sense. He was criticized a lot by her, which only increased his miserable feeling. If under another circumstance, he might whisper in his heart, "Even if, Mistress Jian, your friends are all distinguished and highly respected, you have no right to teach me at our first meeting. After all, you aren¡¯t my manager."


    But Mistress Jian did not put pressure on him but only nagged like an earnest and anxious elder, with disappointment shown on her forehead, eyebrows, and eyes. Therefore, he was embarrassed to refute a word, but stammered to answer.


    "For the first time to Chang¡¯an... I was just curious, so I had thought of secretly ncing at the house from the outside, never considering that the house¡¯s sisters would make fun of me. I was hot-headed... to inexplicablye in."


    After a short hesitation, Mistress Jian turned to that little maidservant and loudly scolded her. "It¡¯s a majestic event that the emperor will set a feast and open a ceremony for the returned princess. So I let those little, wicked girls take a rest for a few days to practice a good dance. It turned out that they all could not help, but even seduced a schrd!"


    The little submissive maidservant did not dare to refute anything.


    Mistress Jian rubbed her eyebrows in tiredness and looked up to nce at Ning Que, who stood honestly at the door, and suddenly recalled that she had asionally seen around the hall and found a simrity between thed and that man. Then she could not help but ask him to go upstairs for some questions, which turned out to be her mad interrogations for no reason.


    However, what surprised her was that thed did not argue or get angry, so well-behaved to ept her me. She could not help butugh and wave her hands, and said, "Since you¡¯re curious, I¡¯ll let someone show you around here. Don¡¯t forget to go back home to rest after finishing."


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 41: A Beautiful Young Man by the Stream

    Chapter 41: A Beautiful Young Man by the Stream


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Even though Mistress Jian had now be Madam Jian, Ning Que would not reject her suggestion, since he had not forgotten the real reason why he had been searching relentlessly in the brothels of the Chang¡¯an city. Moreover, the opportunity to visit the best brothel in Chang¡¯an as a VIP was nheless pretty valuable for the humble young man that he was.


    Walking down the stairs of the west court, there was a finely mowedwn behind the building lined with a pebbled path that extended across a white wall, through which a small stream flowed under the starry night. A few small houses were built along the two sides of the stream, emanating sound of music and string instruments. That would be the dancers preparing for the imperial celebrations.


    The maidservant wasn¡¯t in a good mood after being scolded, and her face looked even sterner as she saw Ning Que strolling and looking aroundfortably, as if he really was a casual tourist sightseeing. Mockingly, she said, "I don¡¯t know what got into Mistress Jian today, and why would she treat a pauper like you so kindly. And you, being a poor schr you really shouldn¡¯t have agreed to this. But oh well, someone who¡¯d want to visit a brothel despite being so poor is obviously thick-skinned."


    Having been called thick-skinned, Ning Que decided to honor the name and do as ifpletely oblivious to her sarcasm. Then he replied gently, "I couldn¡¯t possibly turn down the good intentions of Mr. Chu as he really offered to pay for me, and these matters between us men are quiteplex, but quite simple too after all."


    "You¡¯re just a boy, how dare you boast about your manhood." The maidservant sneered. "it would be fine if it were a few drinks only, but how are you so shameless to let him pay for your other expenses too? You don¡¯t even know him!"


    Hearing her words about being boy or man reminded Ning Que of the first time when he saw Lee Yu in Wei City. At that time, Lee Yu posed as a mere maidservant and not a princess, and today, another maidservant said the same thing. It hadn¡¯t been long since her first encounter with Lee Yu, but somehow it felt like years ago.


    That maidservant had already returned to the depths of the imperial court, and countless officials andmoners celebrated her return. And now, he had also arrived in Chang¡¯an, visiting a brothel for some strange reason, and was now listening to the melodies that were specificallyposed for her before she was going to. Thinking about the strange circumstances in life, he couldn¡¯t helpughing.


    "What¡¯s so funny?" The young maidservant chid.


    Ning Que extended his palms to show that he had nothing to say. Right now he only wanted to collect some intelligence, and he wasn¡¯t really into arguing with the young maidservant since he didn¡¯t want to waste this rare opportunity of strolling around this brothel.


    Upon finding out about the status of House of Red-Sleeves among the rich and famous, he had a feeling that, this must indeed be the ce where Censor Zhang Yiqi frequented, because this was the only ce that provided enough privacy and prestige at the same time.


    How should I probe into that? ying dumb or naive won¡¯t work, so I should start talking casually about fun facts and anecdotes of the border town, which would certainly appeal to this young handmaiden who lives among pretty girls but enjoys hearing about the legends of the border town warriors.


    Ning Que had always been quite good at dealing with people like this maidservant, and that¡¯s not because of the princess who was now in the pce but because of the little handmaiden of his who was so cold and seldom smiled. If he was able to tame someone like Sangsang, or at least he thought he did, it should be a piece of cake to handle Mistress Jian¡¯s young maidservant.


    And indeed, a few moments after, the young maidservant was already all smiles and began exchanging all kinds of gossip of the trade with Ning Que with great excitement. By then Ning Que had great knowledge about matters such as why the music and dance band had to take on prostitution, and which of the pretty girls here was the most popr, who had got a sugar daddy, and which of their sugar daddies had the highest title in the government.


    At ces where beautiful girls abounded, it was easier to make money with their beauty, and it was effortless, involving little devotion and great gains. Considering that top courtesans from House of Red-Sleeves enjoyed great chances of bing the concubines of high-rank officials throughout the world, who wouldn¡¯t like to make lots of money and lead a great life at the end of their career?


    When Mistress Jian first established House of Red-Sleeves back in the days, she probably strove for a clean song-and-dance troupe. Nevertheless, surviving in a world of male dominance wasn¡¯t exactly easy. The seemingly highly popr and respected song-and-dance troupe had no chance in countering the pressure of the noble and aristocracy around the world, and in the end she could only sumb to the cruel reality.


    Flowers blossomed by the stream, starlight was reflected and shattered by flowing water, and the world behind the white wall seemed so pure and wonderful. Like a poet, Ning Que strolled under the starlight holding his hands behind his back, though the purity of the scenery failed to rx his mind.


    A youngd shouldn¡¯t be easily irritated.


    Thinking about the gossip he just heard from the young maidservant, he shook his head briefly to get rid of such useless emotions, and continued strolling by the stream, asionally greeting the pretty girls that crossed his path, showing impable manners.


    Just as was mentioned before, it always looked much ridiculous to see a teenage boy pretending to look mature and seasoned. However, while it might be upset to see a ridiculous and ugly person, it was quite cute when ridicule was partnered with youth and tenderness.


    As they came to Chang¡¯an, it was much easier to take a bath than back in City of Wei, and his slightly curled ck hair that used to look dirty and greasy now looked clean and fresh thanks to Sangsang, and alongside hisplexion which was not necessarily handsome but clear enough, he now enjoyed a pretty clear and pure look.


    Moreover, the hot and spicy shredded noodles sold at the other end of Lin Fortieth Lane were really delicious with its sulent beef slices. Having been eating that for days, both he and Sangsang managed to gain some weight, making his face look even cuter and more inoffensive, therefore quite likable.


    The girls along the way nced at him with curiosity, and they all seemed to like him for his clean and youthful look. Once they realized he was the young man they kindly made fun of and invited in, they couldn¡¯t help giggling. The girls had seen all kinds of weird things taking ce here at the house, but it was certainly the first time Mistress Jian ordered someone to give a young man a tour around here, and out of curiosity and excitement, Ning Que was surrounded, and they just wouldn¡¯t let him leave.


    The young maidservant was nudged out by all the other courtesan girls and felt utterly frustrated, as if her exclusive toy was taken away by the big sisters. She stood there angrily with her hands on her waist and yelled like a tigress. "Don¡¯t you dare spoil the youngd! He¡¯s a schr aiming to enter the academy, and he¡¯s still a... you know what I mean, so if you¡¯re not nning to give him one of those big red packets, just leave him alone already!"


    "Oh dear, look at our poor Xiaocao, what got into you? Your big sisters are just curious about thisd and want to y a little, don¡¯t you get upset! So he¡¯s a schr aiming to enter the academy? More the reason to check him out properly, should we?"


    Someone spoke at a fast pace and with a slightly husky voice, and the girls quickly separated to let a woman with striking beauty walk in with great elegance. The woman was around twenty, looking plump and ripe, showing wonderfully curvy arms and a beautiful waistline. She walked in a way that was so feminine and sexy that, it looked smooth like water flowing.


    On the other hand, her face was so small that it made her chubbiness gopletely unnoticed, and you could only contemte her jade-like clear beauty.


    Upon seeing this woman, Ning Que¡¯s eyes brightened up and eximed in his mind, " She¡¯s the one !"

 Chapter 42: The Boiling Hot Dewdrop on the Lotus Petal

    Chapter 42: The Boiling Hot Dewdrop on the Lotus Petal


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In the eyes of thedy and the personal maidservant, Xiaocao, Ning Que currently looked as though he was mesmerized by that full-figureddy and had turned into a foolish penguin who could not move an inch. The little maidservant became unhappy as she stared at the full-figured yet delicate-lookingdy and said, "Dewdrop, this is an order from Grandma, you dare to defy?"


    Dewdrop was the current most poprdy in the House of Red-Sleeves. Though she did not manage to participate in the top courtesan contest for consecutive two years, she was very popr with men with her pretty little face and dew-like delicate fair skin. Even so, she dare not defy Mistress Jian¡¯s order. She rolled her eyes, giggled as she stepped forward and held Ning Que¡¯s hand. She said, "Since it¡¯s an order from Grandma, I would definitely obey. It¡¯s just that I really adore this kid a lot, and especially love it when he blushes. Come, follow me to y in the courtyard."


    Naturally, Ning Que would not reject the offer as he allowed thedy to pull him by his hand along the small stream, through the flowers and trees, into the courtyard. Thedy, who was following behind, chuckled yet did not stop them. However, that maidservant, Xiaocao, shouted, "Grandma said no one is supposed to serve him!"


    "Ah? Are you serious?"


    Ning Que was taken aback as he turned his head around. In his heart, he was thinking if Mistress Jian had such a high authority and if words were to spread, would the brothels in the whole Chang¡¯an city refuse to serve him anymore? If so, what should he do?


    The maidservant, Xiaocao, looked at himcently and said, "Else what do you think Grandma means?"


    Ning Que was speechless. Now he understood why the history books always said that the scary people were not the Emperor, but the eunuchs who gave the fake orders. At such thoughts, he could not help but feel depressed in his heart as he could understand the endless miseries they caused. Despite all these, he still felt a need to follow the poprdy, Dewdrop.


    After they entered the courtyard, there were no fanciful happenings. Dewdrop folded her legs and sat on the couch as she ordered her maidservant to serve some fruits to Ning Que. Yet she herself was rxingly enjoying the melon seeds as she kept questioning him about his meet-up with Mistress Jian, and the situation at the frontier fortress.


    Ning Que was usually good with such talks. He had gained various experiences from talking in the inn at City of Wei and the casino in the military, which were great ces for him to master his abilities to gauge people¡¯s mind. Tonight, he started off with a chat with Mistress Jian, then he was faced with the maidservant and now, a popr prostitute in the Chang¡¯an city was right in front of him, but yet he was not afraid at all. He was casually enjoying the fruits while chatting with the prostitute, as though he were at his own home.


    The purpose of him to chat with her was to obtain some information from her, and yet Dewdrop had not noticed it. With her finishing half a te of her melon seeds, their conversation topics had switched from City of Wei to the Chang¡¯an city, and the contents had changed from whether barbarians women were pretty to what kind of customers did they usually serve at House of Red-Sleeves, who got jealous easily and which customer¡¯s wife got jealous easily.


    Though speaking of customers were against their ethnic policies, but honestly, this was what thesedies in the brothels enjoyed doing during their free time other than their usual dancing, singing, poetry and painting. Hence, Dewdrop did not suspect anything, instead, she was enjoying every moment of it.


    Ning Que lowered his head to pick a fruit and appeared to pay no attention to the topics. He looked as if he was just casually asking and listening, but in fact, he was attentive to the details as he tried to filter the list of names he heard. Suddenly, his finger froze.


    "I¡¯ve never met someone who fears of his wife so much. He¡¯s an officer of Fourth or Fifth Rank, but yet he always had to dress up to pretend whenever he¡¯s here for fun. Despite being timid and useless, he¡¯s really a glib talker. No wonder he¡¯s known as the Silver Tongue Censor..."


    It was unexpected that the censor¡¯s great capability of socializing became sourly criticized by thedies in the brothel in this manner. Ning Que recalled seeing Zhang Yiqi and his few satisfied-looking concubines outside the Zhang¡¯s mansion, and instantly, an image of a silver-haired censor bending over to "work hard" in between the concubines¡¯ legs appeared in his mind. This almost caused him to spit out the fruit in his mouth as he choked and coughed.


    After Dewdrop said thatment, she felt that it was indeed inappropriate and was hoping that thisd would not read between the lines. Yet she did not expect him to have such a big reaction and understood what she meant, which made her felt embarrassed. She pretended to be angry and gently punched him in the shoulder. She blushed and said, "What do you guys do at the border town, howe a kid like you will know such things."


    After teasing and joking for a while, the maidservant came over and whispered into Dewdrop¡¯s ear. Ning Que saw the view outside the courtyard. He knew that it was getting dark and it was time for him to leave, so he stood up and politely bade goodbye.


    Dewdrop pouted and thought for a while before she took out a silver from the drawer beside her pillow. She handed it over to him, smiled and said, "This isn¡¯t a big angbow (red packet), but since you¡¯ve chatted with me for so long, I can¡¯t be giving you nothing at all, so don¡¯t look down at me. I¡¯m not sure of the reason, but I¡¯m really happy chatting with you."


    Ning Que was not surprised as he was certain of it. Usually, those customers would only love to talk about love and passion with them, and not everyone could be like him acting like an old aunt in the vige lying casually on the couch, chatting with a few vulgaritiesing out of his mouth at times. However, he indeed loved chatting with thisdy, Dewdrop, for she was honest and nice to chat with... Moreover, she had a pretty face and a great figure, yet not to the extent of seductive. He took over the silver and said, "Then I¡¯ll take it as a wee gift from Sister."


    Upon hearing what he said, Dewdrop¡¯s eyes brightened. She went forward, hugged him in her arms and snuggled his head. She was looking cheerful as she said, "Though I¡¯m not sure why Grandma wants to be careful of you, but do feel free to visit me when you have time."


    She was a prostitute, and Ning Que was a young schr. Though they were able to sit side by side in the courtyard within the brothel and chat with one another, when they leave this ce, they would be two separate people who belonged to the two different worlds. Hence, when Ning Que called her Sister, she was naturally happy about it, but she did not take him as her brother immediately¡ªafter all, every Chang¡¯andy had her own arrogance and attitude, even if she was just a prostitute.


    ...


    ...


    Back to the shop at Lin 47th Street, Sangsang casually mentioned to Ning Que that there were two people who came over in the evening to ask for the boss. Ning Que didn¡¯t mind, so Sangsang boiled a kettle of water to warm her legs and went to bed.


    The lights were out and the room was dark. As usual, Ning Que hugged the pair of tiny legs as he recalled the images he had seen and news he had heard at House of Red-Sleeves tonight. Initially, he was thinking over Censor Zhang Yiqi¡¯s matters, but after a while, his mind was filled with Dewdrop¡¯s beautiful face, her cute smile, her sexy body and soft fair skin. It was especially vivid the moment when she snuggled his head in her arms. It was as though he could still feel the softness on his face and the flower scent from her body still lingered.


    With the thought of the scene, he felt a warm gush in his body. Hugging Sangsang¡¯s tiny legs made him feel even warmer. It was only when he felt his knee was blocking an uprise where would definitely grow full in near future, did he feel himself extremely warm under the nket.


    One would eventually grow up someday, and it could not carry on. Ning Que took off the nket and sat up as he stared at his maidservant, who was woken up by the sudden movement. He then smiled and said, "Chang¡¯an ising hotter much earlier than the border town, seems like we¡¯ll need to sleep separately."


    Little Sangsang rubbed her eyes as she said in a daze, "But there¡¯s no firece here. I¡¯m feeling even colder."

 Chapter 43: The Regrets of Censor Zhang Yiqi

    Chapter 43: The Regrets of Censor Zhang Yiqi


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    To rify when Censor Zhang Yiqi would visit the brothel, what was the route he would take after entering the brothel and the details of him leaving the brothel, Ning Que unavoidably had to visit the House of Red-Sleeves brothel for the next few days. However, he could not let anyone discover that he was concerned with such matter, in case others started to get suspicious of him following the trace. Hence, when he was in the brothel, he would spend most of his time fooling and joking around.


    The rtionship between Dewdrop and him had drawn closer, where otherdies and manservants were starting to get used to this pennilessding in and out of the brothel. Moreover, he was Mistress Jian¡¯s most adored schr, thus no one dared toment about it.


    Though it was because Xiaocao had fabricated the rule passed down by Mistress Jian, Ning Que could only hug and jokingly flirt with thedies but nothing more. Thus, it was natural that he need not pay a cent for spending a night there. However, no matter how thick-skinned a person was, he would at least give some tips to the menservants and maidservants. As a result, after a few trips to the brothel, the sharp reduction in funds in the store had caught Sangsang¡¯s attention.


    When Ning Que returned that night and was faced with the questionings by his handmaiden, he did not hide the truth and briefly told her about what he did for the past few days. He said, "I¡¯ll need to be their regr customer and should anything happen to the brothel in future, the officers would not suspect me. If I were to just visit the brothel once on the night that the censor was found dead, such coincidence was good enough for the Chang¡¯an Local Government to suspect me."


    He then smiled and added, "After this matter, I would not need to spend time at the brothel anymore. By then, I¡¯ll not expend much."


    "Why, I could feel a sense of unwillingness from young master¡¯s words."


    Sangsang lifted her small face and stared at him, as she sternly advised. "But if you stop visiting the brothel after censor¡¯s death, won¡¯t people suspect as well?"


    Ning Que was taken aback by it and realized that it was indeed an issue he had overlooked. This somewhat made him pleased instead of pissed as he snuggled Sangsang¡¯s head and replied, "Well, if that¡¯s the case, I would need to visit a few times more after the matter. Help me check how many silvers are remaining."


    Sangsang responded and was prepared to start on her favorite task of counting the silvers. Just then, Ning Que suddenly remembered something as he hurriedly stopped her and took out a foundation case from his chest. He hesitated for a moment before he handed it over to her and said, "This is given by ady named Dewdrop in the brothel. She¡¯s... a nice person."


    In fact, he had used his handsome face to beg Dewdrop for this foundation case. His main purpose was to cheer Sangsang up. As for why he had added the three words "a nice person" was because he was worried that Sangsang would dislike the status of thosedies in the brothel and thought of it as dirty.


    Sangsang took over the foundation case. Her dark-toned little face revealed a sense of joyfulness as her eyes were smiling with happiness. There was no look of dislike, and she said, "I¡¯ve long heard that thosedies in the brothel had their own secret recipe for foundation case, and some are even better than the ones sold in Chenjinji Cosmetics Store."


    "Do you like it?" Ning Que grinned and looked at her.


    Sangsang hugged the case tightly and lifted her small face to look at him. She tightened her lips and refused to speak a word, but it was obvious that she was already smiling.


    She ced the case together with the foundation case she had bought from Chenjinji Cosmetics Store a few days before. She then carried a pot of warm water to serve Ning Que in washing his feet, before she washed her own feet using the remaining water. Next, she spread out two sleeping mats, unbuttoned her outer coat and quickly snuggled into the nkets. She then murmured that it was much colder without a firece.


    In thete night, sound of the night watchers was faintly heard outside the store. Sangsang, who did not fell asleep and was staring at the roof with her bright eyes that looked like a ck diamond dazzling in the dark, suddenly opened her mouth and asked, "Young master, that censor... when will he visit that brothel?"


    Ning Que kept silence for a long time before he replied softly, "Tomorrow".


    Sangsang didn¡¯t know that the Chang¡¯an city was a more dangerous hunting ground than Min Mountain and grasnd. Hence she was not worried about the safety of the young master. Instead, she was worried about other matters. She grabbed the corner of the nket with both hands and lowered her head to look at the bed. She said in a serious tone, "Young master, since that censor is going to die tomorrow, then shouldn¡¯t you exin to him the reason for his death before that?"


    "You¡¯re right." Ning Que stared at the roof, frowned and added, "Well, revenge is a thing whereby... if the other party doesn¡¯t know the reason for my revenge, it would be useless as well."


    "Then tell him."


    "I¡¯m representing Haotian to destroy you because of those happenings?... If I said it briefly and straightforward, would I appear to be too casual and not serious? Are there any other ways that make me sound more stern and serious so that I look more professional?"


    Sangsang frowned her brows as she thought hard of a solution to his question. After a while, she nodded her head forcibly on her pillow and said, "Young master,pose a poem."


    "Poem? I¡¯m not good at that."


    "Then I¡¯llpose for you?"


    "Sure."


    Sangsang seriously read aloud a few sentences which she hadposed on the spot, while Ning Que genuinely listened to her carefully as he edited and modified them to make the poem better. Finally, he seriously concluded. "This poem is much better than what I¡¯ve written."


    ...


    ...


    The Assistant to the Imperial Oversight Advisor in the Department of Provincial Censor from Tang Empire, who was of the Sixth Rank, was responsible for checking the officers and impeaching the illegal. Though his rank was not considered high, his power was big. Anyone would be pleased to be taking over such a position. However, Zhang Yiqi was never pleased. After all, he was already an inspection censor 13 years ago with a bright future, and after so many years of hardwork, he still remained as a high-ss yet useless censor.


    However, he did not dare to grumble much, for he knew the real reason behind his stagnation¡ªafter he got involved with the case of Xuanwei General Lin Guangyuan that year, his promotion was slowed down. Moreover, after the massacre in a vige at the Yan territory seven years ago which promoted him from the Department of Provincial Censor secretary to the Assistant to the Imperial Oversight Advisor, there was no more promotion from then on.


    Since he had helped the prince and General Xia Hou to settle matters, he should not have gotten himself into such a state as reward. If say, these two bigwigs did not want anyone to know their past secrets, then they should have thought of several ways to silent him off, instead of leaving him at the Department of Provincial Censor. Weren¡¯t they afraid that Zhang Yiqi would let the cat out of the bag due to the hatred within him?


    For his own bright future, Zhang Yiqi had thought hard about it for two years and four years ago, he finally realized the truth. This made him shivered with fear.


    To be able to let a sessful censor falling into the pit of his life overnight, to be able to easily destroy the bright future which the prince and Xia Hou had prepared for him, as well as without letting anyone else be aware of these, there was only one person who could achieve it. That was His Majesty.


    In themoners¡¯ eyes, though His Majesty was not considered as a bad leader in Tang Empire, butpared to the previous emperors, he was indeed more conservative and weaker.


    Though it was kind of ridiculous, the thing that drew the whole world into such a conclusion was that ever since His Majesty took his ce, the rtionship that Tang Empire had with other countries became less violent and things became more negotiable.


    Even though Tang Empire still held the biggest authority, but having a reasonable robber was still much better in the eyes of themoners.


    However, Zhang Yiqi and the other officers were very clear that His Majesty was undoubtedly neither a weakling nor a conservative person.


    His Majesty loved literature and calligraphy since young, so he was considered a schr under the dragon¡¯s robe. Sometimes, he would also bezy and casual.


    However, His Majesty was, after all, from the Lee¡¯s family. The blood that flowed in his body belonged to the arrogant and violent Tang royals. Should anyone pissed him off, that person would be scared off by His Majesty¡¯s temper.


    As for two cases of the betrayer Xuanwei General and the massacre at the Yan territory, all doubtful points were cleared and no evidence or witnesses were left. Even so, His Majesty did not fully trust the investigation result by his officers, but since no evidence was found at all, His Majesty did not bother to do much to raise the cases again. However, those officers that raised his suspicious would never expect any bright future in their lives again.


    The prince was His Majesty¡¯s most adored younger brother, and Xia Hou was His Majesty¡¯s most favorite general, so His Majesty was able to forgive both of them temporarily. As for a small censor like Zhang Yiqi, why should he even bother?

 Chapter 44: The Fall of Censor Zhang Yiqi

    Chapter 44: The Fall of Censor Zhang Yiqi


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    After realizing the truth, Zhang Yiqi felt hopeless and gave up his thoughts on promotion in his career. As a result, he ced all his focus on earthly luxuries and forcefully went against his ferocious wife to marry several concubines. Now and then, he would visit the popr brothel in the Chang¡¯an city to indulge in the pleasures.


    Unfortunately, to indulge in such great pleasures without any limit, one would need both silvers and status, and Zhang Yiqi did not wish to be caught in a trap. Since it was a big matter for a censor to fool around with prostitutes, should this matter spread to the royals, His Majesty would definitely punish him heavily and strip him of his official rank. Due to these reasons, the censor would be extremely cautious every time he was out to seek for pleasure, as though he was a thief.


    Without exaggerating, Zhang Yiqi was indeed the most prudent person among the officers that visited the brothel, and he was also tough to be tracked. As such, Zhuo Er could never discover his whereabouts and daily itinerary. Ning Que had also spent several days and more than ten silvers before he finally obtained some information.


    A horse carriage stopped outside the side door of House of Red-Sleeves. Censor Zhang Yiqi, who was dressed up like a normal-looking wealthy man walked out of the horse carriage and waved his hand behind him. His personal bodyguard, who was already familiar with his itinerary, went off into the alley in search of an eating house, where he would wait patiently for his master.


    After Zhang Yiqi had entered the brothel, he tried to signal the manservant to leave as he walked along the stone pathway that was hidden by the row of green bamboos and headed towards the courtyard near the small stream. At the instance, the responsible censor had turned into a regr customer of the brothel. His face of seriousness and concerns for the citizens were gone an and was reced by a uniquely rxed and pleased expression.


    Since he was the regr customer, he would not need any manservant to guide him the way. Moreover, he was afraid that others would notice his presence. The building within House of Red-Sleeves was made up of individual small courtyard, making them highly private and confidential. Also, he would always make an appointment before visiting, to avoid any embarrassing situation such as full house.


    As for safety, he was rest assured. Law and order in the Chang¡¯an city was always good. Other than those brainless men who loved to get themselves into meaningless fights, and the extremely low chances of murder cases that urred in the north, south and west sides of the city, no one dared to create trouble in the building of House of Red-Sleeves.


    That¡¯s because everyone knew that this building was rted to Chang¡¯an Local Government, and that Mistress Jian was supported by a woman with the strongest authority in the world, which was the empress. Though the fourth princess had already returned from the grasnd, other than her, who would dare to cause trouble for Mistress Jian?


    Mistress Jian was indeed an amazing person. Initially, she was being forcefully brought to Chang¡¯an from South Jin Kingdom by the previous emperor and was asked to build up the reputation of House of Red-Sleeves as the world¡¯s no. 1 song-and-dance troupe. For these years, she had managed to train numerous top courtesans and obtained a glorious result in the industry. What made Zhang Yiqi impressed was that as the boss of a brothel, she could actually enter in and out of the pce without any restrictions. There were even rumors spreading that the rtionship between the empress and her was as close as sisters!


    As Zhang Yiqi walked on the stone pathway and stared at the small courtyard that was getting closer to him, his mind was filled with the amazing legends of Mistress Jian. He silently confessed that should anyone be able to obtain her favor, that person¡¯s life must be in sailing. In fact, if not for his own pride, he would have pounced himself onto her.


    Never did the censor know that just a few days ago, ad that had reached Chang¡¯an recently had attracted Mistress Jian¡¯s attention. Though he was not yet her favorite, he had, afterall, met her in person. What he could never expect was that thisd was half-leaning on the railings on the third floor, and was staring at his own back with a faint smile on the face.


    A rough n was designed for the mission tonight, so it was unlikely that this mission would involve Dewdrop. However, to y safe, Ning Que had reached House of Red-Sleeves in the afternoon today. Unlike the past few days where he would visit Dewdrop and linger around at her small courtyard, he had headed directly to the main room to chat with the maidservant Xiaocao. This had shocked Xiaocao as she shyly teased him for walking into the wrong room.


    The moment when Zhang Yiqi had entered the brothel through the side door, Ning Que had already noticed him. Afterall, he had been following this censor for the past few days, how could he ever forget the look of the censor¡¯s back? He leaned on the railing and smiled faintly as he saw the back view disappearing into the bamboo forest. He did not move, for he did not wish to drag Dewdrop into such matters. Since he had chosen not to visit that courtyard today, he naturally could not execute his n at that courtyard.


    "I¡¯ll let you, this old thing, to enjoy for thest time."


    Ning Que looked at his target¡¯s backview, and he suddenly recalled Dewdrop¡¯s words that night. He imagined the dirty look of the old censor and could not help but shiver at the thought of it. He then murmured, "Guess this is considered yourst chance to be served by ady as well?"


    As the maidservant, Xiaocao, was too busy serving Mistress Jian, she happily took the box of honey dates handed over by Ning Que and left. Ning Que grinned at her as he continued to lean on the railing and looked around the brothel.


    Thinking that it was almost the time, he familiarly walked to the staircase at the back and made his way to the side door by walking in the shadow. He then discovered the horse carriage with the marking he had made previously. As he casually walked over to the horse carriage, he exerted a force using his palm at the shaft.


    The horse that stood in front of the shaft turned and looked at him in doubt as it snorted loudly. Ning Que had lived in the City of Wei for many years and had been an experienced robber in the grasnd. Hence, he was an expert in handling horses. He casually pped the horse¡¯s butt once and that horse immediately became tamed as itfortably tapped its hind legs on the ground.


    The bodyguard, who was waiting at the eating house in the alley, subconsciously looked at the direction of the horse carriage. When he saw no one, he continued to lower his head and enjoyed his meal with the remaining dishes on the tes.


    ...


    ...


    Every courtyard came with a wooden bathtub, but whenever Zhang Yiqi was done with business, he would head over to the sauna house beside the side door for a bath due to a sense of inferiority from within. Scrubbing of his back would make him feel energized again, and the individual room in the sauna house made him feel safe. Moreover, it was convenient since he could board his horse carriage at the doorstep the moment he was done with the bath.


    His n for today was the same. After a bath, the censor wore a pair of silk trousers andy on the bed wrapped with cotton cloth as he habitually waited for the olddy to scrub his back.


    Since the scrubbing of back required refined salt, milk and wood oil, the olddy would need some time to prepare for them. Hence, Ning Que was fully prepared and was only waiting for the right time tounch his attack. While waiting, he could not help but recall the beautiful scenarios he saw at the small courtyard. He then thought of Dewdrop¡¯s delicate skin and he started to feel warm again, just at that time, there was a hatred and evil expression on his face.


    Today, Dewdrop had once again rejected Zhang Yiqi¡¯s request of serving him alone, which made him feel terrible as he scolded softly. "She¡¯s just a rotten bitch yed by many men, how dare she arrogantly reject me? I¡¯ve spent lots of silvers on you and yet you don¡¯t even appreciate at all. What a heartless woman."


    "Is she despising me for my rank? Women are indeed dumb. As a censor of Sixth Rank, should I be relocated to any of the department, I would definitely be promoted to the Fourth Rank. No! I would be of the Third Rank!"


    Just then, the door was pushed open.


    A person entered the room with soft footsteps, heading towards the side of the bed.


    Zhang Yiqi stopped his cursing as he shut his eyes and prepared to enjoy the scrubbing. As a warm towel was spread out and ced on his back, he could not help but moan in rxation.


    Then he instantly stopped moaning.


    This was because another hot towel was squeezed directly into his mouth as both his hands and legs were tied tightly to the small bed.


    ...

 Chapter 45: The Despair of Censor Zhang Yiqi

    Chapter 45: The Despair of Censor Zhang Yiqi


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Zhang Yiqi was struggling to get up. Wearing only a pair of silk trousers, his fair and fat body wriggled like a disgusting worm on the bed, as faint crying for help was heard from his gagged mouth.


    His hands were tied onto the bed with the towels in weird knots. These knots weremonly used on those strong wild boars in Min Mountain, whereby they would not even be able to escape after struggling for one whole night. Moreover, he was old and his health was not as good as before, not to mention therge amount of alcohol and pleasure he had indulged for the past few years. His struggles were futile andical. As for his cries for help, they were, in fact, no louder than the noise of a mosquito.


    Zhang Yiqi immediately realized it and felt hopeless. After all, he was an officer from Tang Empire who dared to ignore hundreds of lives that were lost. At this crucial moment, he forced himself to calm down and stopped his struggles. Instead, he started to pay attention to the surrounding sound.


    Someone was in the room, and obviously, that person did not n to hide. Zhang Yiqi could hear the heavy footsteps sound vividly from his back as he felt a person was approaching him nearer. Very soon, the person stopped in front of him. Just as he was curious to see who was bold enough to attack him, he suddenly remembered something that made him frozen with fear. Under such tremendous pressure, he used all the energy he had left... to shut his eyes tightly.


    As for a criminal who was daring enough to kidnap a customer from House of Red-Sleeves, one could imagine how brave and violent this criminal was. Should the criminal discover that he had seen the criminal¡¯s face, how could he walk out of here alive? Yes, he was indeed a censor, but in the historical records of Tang Empire, many officers were killed in the hands of these brainless men andmoners!


    "This is not as fun as I thought. I initially thought that after I gagged your mouth, you would try to ¡¯express your displeasure,¡¯ so that I can use this tool in my hand to make you ¡¯enjoy the pain¡¯. Never thought that you¡¯ll be tamed so quickly. Alright, open your eyes then."


    His voice was clear, with a slight taste of mocking. This did not sound like what a criminal would say, more like ad chatting and joking with another person at a shop in Chang¡¯an.


    Zhang Yiqi felt that this was a trap, so he kept his eyes tightly shut to the extent that his brows started to ache. No matter what, he would not open his eyes, and yet in his heart, he guessed who thisd was and the reason for thisd to attack him.


    "Open your eyes, or I would really burst your ass using this tool," the youngster spoke calmly, and yet he did sound serious about it.


    Zhang Yiqi dared not test the water, and he cautiously opened his eyes and looked at the youngster¡¯s direction in fear.


    There he saw a youngster half-squatting in front of the small bed not far apart and smiling faintly at him, as though he was his old friend. Yet in the youngster¡¯s hand, was a two-feet long table leg. At this moment in such a scenario, his eyes, his focus and his way of sizing one¡¯s up, would appear to be a little crazy.


    Ning Que stared sternly at the censor¡¯s red face, before he smiled warmly and said, "I¡¯ll remove the towel from your mouth, but please lower your volume. If you were too loud, I would have to kill you instantly. I know a lot of our officers in Tang Empire aren¡¯t afraid of death, but I¡¯m sure you¡¯re not one of them."


    However, in Zhang Yiqi¡¯s eyes, that child-like face, that warm and friendly smile, could send a chill down his spine. Not only did the other party not cover his face, neither was he afraid of being seen. In fact, the other party wanted him to look at his face. If that was the case, then there were only two possibilities: Thisd¡¯s background was not a simple one. Thus he was not afraid that a censor would go mad and counterattacked; or... the youngster would kill himself instead.


    "Do you hold any grudges against me?"


    Zhang Yiqi forcefully suppressed his fear in his heart and asked. He then rapidly tried to recall if he had any enemies in the government offices or had punished any guilty officer¡¯s sons in the pce. Suddenly, he sadly realized that for the past few years, he had been given cold shoulders by His Majesty and was always being neglected in the court. Hence, he had no rights to punish anyone, and also, how could any guilty officer¡¯s sons be working in the pce?


    "Normally in stories, people whoe to revenge will say that they have no grudges against the officer and are doing this just for the sake of Haotian. They¡¯re just doing these to get rid of evil officers, but unfortunately..."


    Ning Que shook his head regretfully and said, "I do have grudges against you. I¡¯m no hero, neither am I a handsome warrior. I¡¯m just a person filled with grudges."


    "You¡¯re still young, how is it possible that you have grudges against me?" Zhang Yiqi asked with his trembling voice.


    Ning Que coughed two times, before he started using his most emotional and energetic voice to recite slowly. "I¡¯m from mountain ranges, and I¡¯m here to take your life; I¡¯m from the riverside, and I¡¯m here to take your life; I¡¯m from the grasnd, and I¡¯m here to take your life; I¡¯m from the empty small vige at the Yan territory, and I¡¯m here to take your life; I¡¯m from the empty General¡¯s Mansion in the Chang¡¯an city, and I¡¯m here to take your life."


    Upon hearing the empty vige at the Yan territory and the empty General¡¯s Mansion in the Chang¡¯an city, Zhang Yiqi had almost fainted. He finally knew what kind of grudges thisd had against him, but it was all toote.


    If continuous praising the other party could stop the whole revenge n, he would certainly not mind putting all the most beautiful praising sentences in the Tianqi Year of Tang together to form a poem for him, but he knew this was impossible. Regardless of whether it was the massacre in the vige, or the killing of Xuanwei General¡¯s family, both were grudges that could never be forgiven.


    Zhang Yiqi was staring at thed hopelessly. He knew that he could no longer live after today, but yet he still wished to dy some time as he cried and said, "I was just following the orders. I was just..."


    He was preparing to shout out loud for help. He believed that if he pretended to ask for forgiveness and ended up shouting for help, thisd would not be able to react fast in time. As long as he could shout for help, he trusted that his bodyguard or the hatchet man in the brothel would definitely react to him. By then, thisd would be dead with him as well, or perhaps... thisd might be too panicked to remember to kill him.


    This seemed to be a perfect n. However, the censor had been living in Chang¡¯an for too long to know that at Min Mountain, before the hunter would cut to separate the prey¡¯s meat and skin, he would certainly observe his prey to make sure it was really dead. Just when the censor started to take a deep breath, Ning Que¡¯s palm was already ced through the hole of the small bed.


    Like an iron palm, he mmed into Zhang Yiqi¡¯s throat. Though no external injuries were seen, his interior soft bones were all broken.


    Ning Que stood up, casually took out a metal nail and aimed it at the censor¡¯s back of the head. After using the rusty yet sharp nail to aim for a spot, he used the table leg in his right hand to hammer it down.


    A dull and soft "pop" sound was heard, it was the same sound that was heard when the grasnd barbarians used their sharp curved knives to poke open the leather bag that was filled with wine. The rusty nail had pierced through Zhang Yiqi¡¯s skull and was hammered deeply into his head.


    Ning Que quickly ced a piece of the snow-white towel over the back of his head. He then aimed directly at the spot where the nail was hammered into and exerted pressure using both his hands. He tipped his toes and used all his strength to press it down, causing the small bed to produce a creaking sound, as though the bed would fall apart anytime soon.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 46: The Death of Censor Zhang Yiqi

    Chapter 46: The Death of Censor Zhang Yiqi


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    After a while, Ning Que stopped pressing. He removed the towel and cautiously examined the back of Zhang Yiqi¡¯s head. Pushing the hair of that spot aside with his fingers, he noticed that the wound created by the rusty nail had already shrunken and the remaining blood had also solidified. It should be difficult for the coroner to discover it without the help of lighting.


    He lowered his head and looked at the towel in his hands. There was a patch of the bloodstain, which was about the size of a copper coin, in the middle of the snow-white towel. Part of it had already turned dark, like a wilted wintersweet flower.


    Amazingly, Zhang Yiqi did not die immediately. Instead, he was in pain as he continuously trembled on the small bed. He wanted to shout out in pain, but his voice was hoarse and powerless. He rolled his eyes upward, revealing arge part of his sclera, which looked extremely horrifying.


    He could feel an intense pain at the back of his head, thinking that Ning Que had used a baton to strike him on his head. He was unaware of the truth. Should he know that a nail was pierced into his head, he would definitely be frightened to death.


    "You should know that if you work for a person, you should be prepared to die for that person. However... If you can now run to your horse carriage by yourself, I might be able to spare your life."


    With these words, Ning Que loosened the towels tied to his limbs and threw them into the bucket at his side. He then disappeared into the night, where he had just arrived.


    When a person was near death, any words he heard at that time would be hisst hope. Hence, the person would subconsciously follow what he was told to do. Furthermore, the censor was already in great pain and fear. He was unable to make any judgment or thinking. Should he have any rational thinking remaining, it would just be his natural reaction to the situation: Regardless of whether the mercilessd would spare his life, he must run to his horse carriage to be safe.


    Ning Que stood in the shadow of the bamboos, not far away from the side door, and observed. It took longer than he thought as he slightly frowned.


    Just as he was worrying, he noticed the censor Zhang Yiqi clumsy and hurriedly ran out of the side door. Instead of being half naked, he had already worn his clothes as he stumbled out. His eyes were already emptied. He opened his mouth and tried hard to shout but no sound was heard. He looked like a drunkard, or worse, like a dying fish yearning for water.


    The attendant standing by the side of the horse carriage did not notice the unusual behaviors of the censor. He looked anxious as he eximed. "Master, I heard that madam overheard some reliable news and know that you¡¯re here. She has brought a group of women and is on her way here now. Let¡¯s hurry up and leave!"


    Zhang Yiqi dashed forward with a "keke" sound from his mouth. His legs were wobbly. Before he could reach his horse carriage, he lost control of his body and fell t onto the ground. He appeared despair as he stretched out his trembling hand, hoping to grab his attendant¡¯s clothes. His face then turned pale as his body cramped and twitched in an ugly state.


    Perhaps it was due to his scary facial expression, the horse became frightened and after a loud howling noise, the carriage unexpectedly broke apart!


    Like a lego, the carriage was broken apart into pieces as they fell and stacked into a mountain on top of Zhang Yiqi.


    With dust in the air, the few attendants and bodyguards stood like fools beside the broken carriage. They stared nkly at their master, whose face was covered with blood and was no longer breathing. They had no idea what had happened.


    True enough, we knew that the madam was fierce, and that you had drunk a lot tonight, which might have amplified your fear. Furthermore, our exmation might have made you panicked, but you... how could you just dash over and knock into the carriage! Moreover, why was the carriage so weak that it just fell apart after you knocking into it!


    ...


    ...


    Themotion had already alerted the hatchetmen and stewards at House of Red-Sleeves. Their faces turned pale as they crowded around the scene. They ignored the unclear exnation by the attendants and bodyguards, who were still stunned by the incident, and instantly controlled the crowd before sending people to notify the Chang¡¯an Local Government on the incident.


    The crowd did not know the identity of the fat old man who waspressed to death by the carriage. The crowd only treated the victim as a poor unlucky whoremaster as they started gossiping and criticizing. However, this was not the case with the staff at the House of Red-Sleeves. They knew the victim, and yet how could they justify themselves that a censor had just died in front of their own brothel?


    This was how Censor Zhang Yiqi had be the first man in the history of Tang who was unfortunately killed by the carriage while boarding due to his great fear for his wife and the shocked horse.


    While the censor ran for thest time in his life, the real murderer Ning Que stood in the shadows with a pair of tightly clenched fists, as he silently cheered for the censor in his heart.


    It would provide a victim with a very short buffer moment before death by using a small sharp weapon to pierce into the head of the victim. This was the skill which he had learned from the barbarians in the grasnd when they used it to kill buffalo. He tried it several times, but this was the first time he had used it on a human. He was not sure how long this frail and weak censor wouldst, but he would take it as a bet. As for frightening the horse and breaking the carriage apart, it was an easy task for him.


    "Indeed, one can never underestimate the great psyche power of greedy officers when they were afraid of death."


    Watching how the censor had finally managed to run to the horse carriage, and yet, in the end, was killed by a pile of broken woods, Ning Que sighed silently as he turned around and left the ce, using the piece of white towel in his hand to wipe off the wheat on his forehead.


    This was the first time for him to kill someone in Chang¡¯an, and thus he was somewhat nervous about it. However, at this point of time, what he was concerned about was that Zhang Yiqi dashed out dressed instead of nakedly. At that critical point of life and death, the censor was still concerned about his face and did not want others to see his naked body. This totally depicted how fake and insincere the leaders were.


    By then, all stewards in the House of Red-Sleeves had already heard of the incident, and many were trying to seek for suspicious elements in this incident. It was not the right time for Ning Que to take his leave. He followed the stream and walked into the courtyard to seek for a woman he was familiar with. He decided to apany and chat with the woman, who was resting for a few days due to her menstruation. Perhaps it was because that she was bored being alone, the moment she saw Ning Que, she seemed overjoyed. Ning Que was very delighted as well. He was smiling happily as he chatted with her, and at times, he would use the white towel with the hidden bloodstain to gently wipe his lips.


    ...


    ...


    The night enveloped the Lin 47th Street. Within the Old Brush Pen Shop, the young master and the handmaiden were sitting on the bed, discussing what had happened earlier. By the bed was a basin that contained the residue of the burnt towel.


    Sangsang sat at one end of the bed, hugging her nket tightly as she curiously questioned, "If this is known as forging the crime scene, then why not directly make it as death during sex?"


    Ning Que was taken aback by the question and asked, "Do you know what it means by that?"


    "I don¡¯t know, but I recalled you¡¯ve told the story when I was young."


    "I¡¯ve told you such story before? Alright, I might have forgotten about it."


    "Think about it. If the censor died during sex in the brothel, then how would his wife keep silent? How could the imperial court give up the investigation? If the expertse to investigate on this incident, I¡¯m not too confident about hiding it."


    "Hence, our most important goal is to let Chang¡¯an Local Government believe that the death is just a traffic ident¡ªbecause only traffic idents won¡¯t involve the imperial court in¡ªbut what¡¯s more important is that this conclusion can easily make Chang¡¯an Local Government force the censor¡¯s family members to keep quiet."


    Sangsang remained quiet for a long while, before she blushed and spoke softly, "Tooplicated, I don¡¯t really get it. Young Master, you really think far."


    "That¡¯s why you always don¡¯t think?" Ning Que used the same tone that Mistress Jian used on him. He then added it with a dissatisfied tone, "You¡¯ll be stupider if you barely think."


    Sangsang honestly replied, "I¡¯m just a handmaiden, so it¡¯s natural that I¡¯m dumber than you. Don¡¯t people always say stupid maid or foolish maid?"


    Ning Que was speechless. He kept quiet for a moment before he asked with concern, "Are you tired after sending the letters to two ces today? Did anyone see you at Zhang¡¯s Mansion?"


    "I¡¯m fine," Sangsang responded.

 Chapter 47: The Relocation of the Changan City

    Chapter 47: The Relocation of the Chang¡¯an City


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In a quiet night, Ning Quey on his bed with his eyes wide open staring at the ceiling. He naturally thought that if ckie were still alive, Sangsang would not have to risk her life to pass the letter to Zhang¡¯s mansion.


    With regards to the assassination today, there was not much to conclude. Afterall, he had prepared for it for days and to kill an old officer without any guards by his side was a simple task for him. The moment that rusty nail was pierced into Zhang Yiqi¡¯s head, he was considered dead. It was impossible for him to leave any evidence at the site. What he did after that were extras, just like what he had exined to Sangsang, that pure traffic ident killed the censor was a much better conclusion for the imperial court than him dying in a prostitute¡¯s bed.


    As for the feeling of killing? He did not have much feeling. His life in Tang started off with murder, and he had experienced numerous killings during his growth. He had killed many people. He had also used various methods, which were even crueler and bloodier than tonight, to kill people. Would he be feeling scared or disgusted or even afraid of the dark after killing people? Such things would only happen to those schrs who always immersed themselves into lewd poetries and literature. As for him, though he had also signed up for the academy entrance exam, he could never be a real schr.


    He was a hunter who had killed the old hunter. He was a horse gang who had killed other little horse gangs. He was a born killer.


    However, the person he had murdered today was ultimately a high-ranked officer from Tang Empire and a target he had wanted to get rid of for years. The bloody red scene at General¡¯s Mansion which he witnessed when he was four shed in front of his eyes on the ceiling, then followed by the shocked yet unagitated expressions of the old chambein and the young boy. Ning Que felt delighted and startedughing. He felt a gush of relief from within.


    Sangsang was full of smiles as well. She knew that he would be in a perfect mood today, so she decided to wait till her young master got rid of all the enemies including all generals under Xia Hou, she would then take out and show him the box which she had hidden under the bed. She believed that he would feel different from now when he saw the piece of paper by then.


    That box contained writings which Ning Que had casually thrown away for the past years, but Sangsang thought they were good writings and kept them secretly aside. Thetest one of them was written by Ning Que on the night when Zhuo Er died. Ning Que thought that the piece of writing was already thrown among the rubbish, never did he thought that his handmaiden would secretly keep it aside.


    After keeping silent for a long time, Ning Que suddenly sighed aloud and said with regrets, "Last night when I listened to your poem, it seems fine. However, when I tried to recite it out in front of that man, I felt that something was off. Or should I say, it sounded pretty dumb if you analyzed it in details."


    It was obvious that he was referring to the "I¡¯m from where, and I¡¯m here to take your life" poem. Repeated words in every phrase were used to emphasize on the meaning, and yet those clumsy choices of words made the poem sounded dumb and unprofessional. Unfortunately, it was vivid that the young master and his handmaiden wereck of literary talent, and both of them actually felt that the poem was good on the night they hadposed it.


    "Then I¡¯ll edit it again," Sangsang replied with a serious expression and she added, "Young master, when are you having your second killing? Let me know the time, and I¡¯ll make sure I¡¯ll get it done before then."


    "Aiming to finish edits before the submission date? Why does it sound like this is a piece of famous and grand work?" Ning Que thought of it silently, followed by a cackle and said, "Since that¡¯s the case, there¡¯s no hurry. The second name on the list seems troublesome, so I¡¯m not nning to act on ittely. Let¡¯s wait till Zhang Yiqi¡¯s case is settled. Moreover, I would need to prepare for academy entry exam(s)."


    "Young Master, but when you¡¯re at City of Wei, you¡¯re always worried that if you don¡¯t start on your revenge early, and those old fellows will die from illness or old age first."


    "Since I¡¯ve already waited for more than ten years, I believe Master Haotian would spare me for another over ten days."


    ...


    ...


    Revenge is an integrated project, especially when you were only ying a small role in the whole project. Also, when your targets for revenge were all those bigwigs in the empire, this project would be even moreplicated than one could imagine. Ning Que was neither lucky, nor as secretive as a eunuch in the pce. Hence, he needed to be more cautious.


    After staying in Lin 47th Street for two days, Ning Que went around the city square in search of any interesting news in Chang¡¯an. He then discovered that the death of Censor Zhang Yiqi, indeed, did not create too much disturbance. Instead, it had only drawn gossips and rumors among themoners in Chang¡¯an. Different versions of the story of what had actually happened that night at the side door of the brothel were created, but unfortunately, most of them had rted the censor¡¯s death with his fierce wife.


    Just as what Ning Que had expected, the fierce and determined wife from the censor¡¯s mansion was currently at Chang¡¯an Local Government making a big fuss. However, the House of Red-Sleeves was only asked to stop business for a day after the incident. Though it did seem like the imperial court had yet to have a conclusion drawn for this case, but basically, they had all believe that there was nothing suspicious about the censor¡¯s death.


    On the third day, Ning Que knew that he should pay a visit to the House of Red-Sleeves, or sudden disappearance would make thedies at the brothel, including the maidservant Xiaocao, felt suspicious.


    This time, he decided to bring Sangsang along. Sangsang tied her hair and hid them under a cap. She then changed into the Ning Que¡¯s old cotton clothes. Without further makeover, she looked perfectlymon-looking with her dark-tone face, just like an inconspicuous manservant.


    "It isn¡¯t raining today, why bother to bring that to attract attention?" he said, pointing at the big ck umbre carried behind Sangsang.


    Sangsang shook her head and insisted on her decision. Ning Que ignored her, for he knew that she was just worried that bad things would happen after Censor Zhang Yiqi¡¯s death. She believed that bringing the ck umbre along would protect the both of them.


    Yet never did he expect that the moment both of them stepped out the main door of Old Brush Pen Shop, a group of people blocked their paths.


    This group of people was mainly made up brawny men. Their muscr broad chests and a few strands of their ck chest hairs were revealed and shone against the sunlight to depict how fierce and strong they were. Not far from them were two local government runners from Chang¡¯an Local Government, who stood under the tree looking in their direction without any expression on their faces. This obviously proved that these brawny men were sent by the Chang¡¯an Local Government.


    Sangsang seemed vignt as she subconsciously stretched her right hand behind her and held the middle of the big ck umbre tightly. Ning Que was not nervous though as he stared at the two local government runners who stood under the tree. He noticed that no handcuffs or metal chains were held by the other party, and had somewhat guessed the background of these brawny men.


    The leader of the group of brawny men looked around thirty years old and instead of dashing into the Old Brush Pen Shop to attack and rob as what Ning Que had expected, he politely greeted him with a palm and fist salute. He then said in a low muffled voice, "I supposed you¡¯re the young boss here? I¡¯vee by once a few days ago, but you weren¡¯t around so I was unable to discuss some matters with you."


    Ning Que leaned his body to one side and took a nce at Sangsang. Just when he was about to consult her, he suddenly recalled that she did inform him about the matter. He then turned towards the man and replied, "May I know what¡¯s the matter?"


    "I believe, sir, you should now know the reason why you¡¯re the only shop along Lin 47th Street." The man then continued to list out the conditions directly, "I¡¯ll instantly buy your shop contract over at 200 taels of silver and you¡¯ll look elsewhere for your shop. Should there be any loss during the transaction, you can also tell me, provided it¡¯s a reasonable price that we¡¯re willing to pay. However, we only have one request, which is... we need you to move right now."


    These conditions were really attractive. Ning Que sighed with emotions as he stared at the group of men in front of him. Indeed, Chang¡¯an was the most generous region in the world, to the extent that they even provided such attractive conditions to chase people away.


    ...

 Chapter 48: Hollow Bamboo Echoing at Two Ends

    Chapter 48: Hollow Bamboo Echoing at Two Ends


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que earnestly looked at the man and said, "I have to admit that your conditions are pretty good."


    The man answered withughter, "I serve the government and naturally shall tackle affairs beautifully. Young boss, to be honest, money isn¡¯t a problem for the Imperial Court, which means it isn¡¯t necessary for me to retain much kickback. If you agree to move out, the price is still negotiable. Anyway, we want to satisfy everyone."


    The price was fair, or to some degree even surpassed the category of reasonableness. If Ning Que closed the Old Brush Pen Shop and moved away, he would make a killing without any loss. Meanwhile, he understood that his shop was regarded as a small item by that owner. Insignificant as it was, it could bring force to the owner when he negotiated with the government. If not, this small shop wouldn¡¯t be worth so much.


    He nced at Sangsang subconsciously, aiming to perceive her opinion. However, her small face was still as nk as usual, and it was hard to see whether she agreed or not. Then he thought of that middle-aged Big Owner, who stepped into his shop the day they started business wearing a sword at his waist, feeling something was unusual with this affair.


    The man took several looks at Ning Que and asked with a frown, "Young boss, whether you agree or not, at least you should say something."


    Ning Que moved close to the man, and smiling, he lowered his voice. "Elder brother, Ie from a small ce. So I¡¯m just wondering, if I say no, what do you n to do next?"


    If those words came from the potbellied shop owners, probably the man would regard it as a challenge to him and p them. However, because of the young age as well as the humble attitude of Ning Que, he just stayed stupefied for a short while before his careful exnation. "Such things as pouring masses of rubbish at the door of your shop or throwing bricks at midnight would be naturally unavoidable. If you continue to enrage us, it¡¯s hard to say whether we¡¯ll secretly pollute the well in the backyard of your shop or not. You know, we earn a living from this."


    Ning Que faintly stiffened at this answer,menting silently in his mind. "If there¡¯s a bright moon in the sky of Tang Empire, then the way that moonlight shines at present is the same as it had in the past."


    Obviously, these guys besieging the Old Brush Pen Shop were badasses idling in the Jianghu world, who were working for the Chang¡¯an Local Government and the Logistics Department of the Ministry of Revenue, and hard to deal with. Ning Que was well aware that despite their good attitude at the moment, no one knew how wicked they would be if he persisted in not moving out. It was not those badasses that made him scared. The problem was, he had just killed the censor, and moreover, he would take the academy entrance exam in about twenty days. Thus, he felt it hard to reject those conditions, for he was reluctant to bring trouble on himself during that period.


    Just at this point, a dense pace of footsteps came from Lin 47th Street followed by the sharp voice of a man whose words were extremely tart and sarcastic, indicating something ruthless and uncaring.


    "Littering rubbish? Throwing bricks? Polluting the well? Who gave you bastards the courage to do this? Or have you ever done that at Lin 47th Street? If so, I don¡¯t know how your hands remain on your wrists."


    A group of men wearing indigo all over approached from the other side of the street. The man who spoke just now was slim with thin brows and eyes and a sharp voice, his indigo clothes waving with the wind as if they were hung on bamboo.


    He walked to the door of the Old Brush Pen Shop and greeted Ning Que with a bow, and then he turned to those badasses, saying mockingly, "A gang of bastards like you, unable to even lift your heads in the Southern Area, should dare to force others to move! As for those things I have mentioned, which one would you dare to do? Are you not scared of me breaking your legs?"


    A hint of timidness could be caught in the face of the man who had just bargained with Ning Que. However, taking a glimpse of those local government runners under the tree behind him, he gathered his heart again and said with a sneer, "Mr. Qi, we have to make it clear that we don¡¯t do those things not because we¡¯re scared, but because they¡¯re dirty. Now that this young boss is understanding and considerate, it isn¡¯t necessary for us to do that."


    Mr. Qi raised his head and spat at the foot of the man. "Bah! Gu Xiaoqiong, you shut up! But for the fact that Lin 47th Street belongs to our elder brother, how can you bastards pretend to be so decent here?"


    Gu Xiaoqiong stretched out his neck, shouting, "What do you want? I was negotiating with the young boss legally, not threatening him with any knives and sticks. I¡¯ll pay for his lease contract. What¡¯s the matter with it? If you can prove that I¡¯ve broken thew of the Tang, then let¡¯s go for a judgment in the Chang¡¯an Local Government!"


    Mr. Qi gave him another "Bah!", and then turned back to Ning Que with a second bow, saying, "Young boss, your agreement on opening the shop here is, in itself, a respect to our 3,000 brothers. Please feel at ease to continue your business here. Whoever dares to harm you, I¡¯ll chop his head off to make amends to you."


    Anxiety appeared somewhat on Ning Que¡¯s face when he sensed a fight was on the verge of breaking out, but in his heart he remained calm and actually even interested in witnessing how those gangs in Chang¡¯an tackled troublesome affairs. It didn¡¯t take much time for him to find that the man who had rented the shop out to him was obviously of a high status in the underworld of Chang¡¯an, which meant the government would feel frustrated to solve the problem through the employment of those thugs. Ning Que was standing there, waiting for the fight to be triggered with great pleasure, however, the problem unexpectedly turned to him. He promptly held his fist in his other palm in front of his chest to make a salute and said with a smile, "Mr. Qi, I feel very grateful to that Big Owner who has exempted me of my rent for three months. However, the price offered by this Gu Xiao... Mr. Gu¡¯s price is really attractive."


    Ning Que prevented himself from uttering more and took a wait-and-see approach. His words had made Gu Xiaoqiong happy and excited, who then said to Mr. Qi withughter, "Mr. Qi, have you heard? Those¡¯re the own opinions of the young boss."


    Mr. Qi suppressed a "Humph!" from his nose and turned to Ning Que again, asking, "How much did he promise to give you?"


    "200 taels of silver." Ning Que stuck out two figures and then added after a second thought. "Mr. Gu promised to give me more if my business suffers a loss."


    Mr. Qi took a sneering nce at Ning Que, and pointing to the bluestone bricks under his feet, he shouted harshly, "200 taels of silver? Can other ces in Chang¡¯an offer such a fair price? To tell the truth, such a ce does exist, which is exactly located in this Lin 47th Street! Why? Because our benevolent elder brother strives to shelter all of the shop owners in the street! Those thugs in the Southern Area have no choice but to offer such a high price. As a result, those d*mn ungrateful bosses have all moved away with the money!"


    Embarrassment appeared on the face of Gu Xiaoqiong. In fact, this affair on this street had remained unsolved for almost half a year, which even stirred the patrons of both sides, who were determined to upy this street regardless of the profit. It was not proper for the government to be directly involved in the affair, and meanwhile, those flunkies in the Southern Area had no courage to offend that Big Owner, thus, money became their best way to solve the problem. Some shop owners moved away with the money given to them, and some transferred their shop at a low price to avoid offending the two sides despite the loss of money. Anyway, those in the Southern Area had made a profit without too much sacrifice.


    On hearing those words, Ning Que calcted silently in his mind, and then he found that it was more profitable for that Big Owner to transfer the interest to the government. If he was really on the side of those shop owners, he then truly matched with the word "benevolent".


    Mr. Qi looked at Ning Que with his icy eyes. The moment his rage was about to burst out, the enjoining of his elder brother bumped into his mind. He then held back his anger and shouted, "Did they promise you 200 taels of silver? Well, I¡¯ll exempt you one year¡¯s rent! In addition, we¡¯ll help you to keep order free of charge!"

 Chapter 49: Local Government Runner Injured and Elder Taoist beside Altar

    Chapter 49: Local Government Runner Injured and Elder Taoist beside Altar


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Gu Xiaoqiong became dumbfounded and replied, "Mr.Qi, how hical you are! How can you raise prices in such a way?"


    Mr. Qi then yelled. "D*mn hical! You¡¯re poaching business from our elder brother. How can I be virtuous with you?"


    That scolding made Gu Xiaoqiong blush. Then he bit his teeth and said to Ning Que, "500 taels of silver! No bargaining! All that I¡¯ve earned in the trade of the previous two shops are offered, so I can¡¯t afford a higher price anymore."


    Mr. Qi made a sarcastic face and mocked. "Look how stingy you are! Did Ironhead Song teach you flunkies in such a miserly way? Let me, your master, show you the way to offer a price."


    He turned to Ning Que and said with pride, "Young boss, if you agree to continue your business on this street, no one would dare to collect rent from you so long as I¡¯m still ali... "


    Ning Que waved his hand to stop him before thest two letters, "ve", were uttered. He asked with a gentle smile, "Mr.Qi, previously you promised to exempt me of rent for one year?"


    Mr. Qi stood stiffly, answering, "Yes."


    "OK." Ning Que turned back and made a bow to Gu Xiaoqiong and the gang of brutes, apologizing with his consistent gentle smile. "Sorry, I have made up my mind to continue my business here. You may go back now."


    Hearing his words, those bystanders surrounding the Old Brush Pen Shop were stunned, not because of the decision he had made, but because he should rush to adopt the previous condition before a new one was about to be uttered, under the condition that he was well aware of the sky-high price that Mr. Qi nned to offer, which meant he could use the shop for free.


    Mr. Qi sank in shock for quite a while, seriousness gradually crawling over his face. He made a bow with great respect and said in a powerful way, "Young boss, you have a good sense of justice despite your young age. Just because of what you have said, you can mention my name whenever you¡¯re in trouble. And moreover, you can do anything you want at least in the scope of Eastern Area."


    Gu Xiaoqiong also remained stunned for a long while, with his nk eyes alternating between Ning Que and Mr. Qi. Before leaving, thinking of the curses he would receive from the elder brother Ironhead Song, the traces of the ps that would be on his face, and the deadline of the patron of the elder brother, he instinctively turned to those two local government runners under the tree.


    Today, gangs gathered at Lin 47th Street. Although their verbal conflict didn¡¯t turn into a violent fight, it was obviously a breach of duty for the two government runners of Chang¡¯an to take an indifferent attitude. Only after receiving the pitiful eyes of Gu Xiaoqiong did they slightly make some coughs and walk toward the Old Brush Pen Shop, tightly holding the official swords at their waists.


    Catching sight of the two local government runners, Mr. Qi, not knowing that he appeared to think of something sad, suddenly showed cruelty and indignation. He then said to Ning Que with a cold voice, "Young boss, did I mention that you could do anything you want within the scope of Eastern Area?"


    Nobody knew what had made Ning Que answer him at such a subtle moment. He just said, "Yes," with a smile. And then Mr. Qi responded with a grim smile, "Well, let me show you why I dare to make such a boast now."


    "Why do you gather around here? You want to make trouble?" The two local government runners walked toward the crowd and harshly scolded them.


    "Yes." Mr. Qi answered indifferently, and then waved his hand, saying, "I do want to make trouble, and even make big trouble. Hey brothers, go and greet these two officers."


    On hearing his instructions, those man wearing indigo darted to besiege the local government runners, who then suffered from a storm of fists and kicks without even knowing who was the first to punch them. The two local government runners were at first scolding harshly and then intended to draw out their swords after showing their status, but were immediately kicked to the ground before they could take any action. After only a short moment, their heads were broken and bleeding. They could no longer spout out any scolding, but held their heads, rolling on the ground with painful groans. Even the swords representing their status were somehow thrown out from the crowd.


    Previously, Ning Que just felt that the gangs in Chang¡¯an tackled affairs with great discipline and impressive tolerance. However, looking at the two official swords that were thrown out, he realized that those gangsters of Chang¡¯an were so ruthless that they were even so bold as to beat up government runners!


    Dumbfounded at this confused fighting outside his shop and the two local government runners being whaled on, Ning Que felt unable to utter a word. And the facial expressions of Gu Xiaoqiong and those thugs a few paces off appeared to be more ridiculous.


    Because since being involved in this affair at Lin 47th Street, they had never really confronted that Big Owner and his forces, and they did not know that their opponents should behave in such an arrogant way until now!


    "OK, stop!" Mr. Qi, who had been standing by indifferently with his two arms crossed in front, ordered. Following his words, those men in indigo scattered, and he walked to the two local government runners, coldly saying, "Now that you dare to y dirty tricks with my brother, you shouldn¡¯t me me for my cruelty."


    The younger government runner maliciously stared at him and said, "You dare to beat government servants! What can only be waiting for you now is to be beheaded. Maybe you can think of chopping my head off directly, which is beneficial to you at present."


    Ning Que sighed withment in his mind that people in Chang¡¯an were really strong-minded. Even a minor government runner like him behaved so determinedly in such a situation.


    Mr. Qi squatted and scornfully patted his face. "I¡¯m not scared. We¡¯re all flunkies of our masters and the only difference is you guys wear official uniforms but we don¡¯t. I admit that the uniforms give you noble identity for which I have no courage to kill you. However, do you think those big shots will care about a fight between flunkies in the street?"


    Finishing those words, Mr. Qi turned to Ning Que to make a bow and left with unrestrained arrogance, followed by his heelers. After a short while of negotiation, Gu Xiaoqiong and the thugs came to lift up the two government runners, and also walked away without even taking a glimpse at Ning Que and Sangsang. Now that Mr. Qi had shown his attitude in such a strong way, they were quite clear that it was meaningless to threaten Ning Que before they could beat Mr. Qi with overwhelming power or even kill him, and it had no other functions but to indicate their meanness by doing so at the moment.


    The chaos at Lin 47th Street ended in such a way without any follow-up. Just as what Mr. Qi had said, the patrons behind the two sides had no interest in interfering in such a conflict between flunkies. But still, there was something that Ning Que could not understand.


    Although those two government runners were minor in status, their official uniforms, as well as the official swords they held, stood for the dignity of the government and the empire. No matter how powerful the man behind Mr. Qi¡ªthat middle-aged man taking shelter from the rain in his shop that day¡ªwas, whaling on government runners publicly in the street was too arrogant to incur death. Not to mention the fact that Mr. Qi had chosen to beat government runners of Chang¡¯an rather than those thugs from the Southern Area, which was unreasonable.


    Unless deep enmity had just been incurred between them.


    Then his eyebrows frowned at that conjecture as well as at the things which happened just now. But soon after, he felt relieved, for the purpose today was to visit the House of Red Sleeves, and meanwhile do some shopping to disperse the excitement he got from revenge. As for that newly incurred, troublesome hatred, which was not badly in need of elimination at present, let it remain unsolved until it was essential.


    There was a far distance between Lin 47th Street and the House of Red Sleeves. Usually, Ning Que would take the horse carriage for two coins. Today, however, he chose to reach there on foot because Sangsang would be hispanion along the way who could dispel the boredom for him. Neither of them kept that conflict in their hearts because Ning Que had already been ustomed to such bloody and fatal situations, while for Sangsang, her mind was upied by important things, thus having no room for others. Therefore, they both enjoyed a good mood when passing through those streets and alleys.


    They visited the Prosperity Clothing Shop, Smooth Commercial Street, and the bookstore. Later they bought the cheap Lotus Leaf Rice and ran across Vermilion Bird Avenue at their fastest speed, after which a boisterous ce was found. Dozens of Chang¡¯an residents were worshipping, facing towards an altar under the lead of an elder wearing a Taoist robe. Inquiring from an on-looker nearby, Ning Que realized that this was a prayer rite held by a Taoist temple under the South School of Haotian Taoism, wishing to transfer part of the spring rain in Chang¡¯an to the drought at the northern border.


    The elder Taoist beside the sacrificial altar had fair hair and a long beard with his robe drifting in the wind, which endowed him with a sense of an immortal. The wooden sword in his hand was vibrating furiously, and in the direction where the sword pointed, several talismans were waggling to show faint scarlet handwritings. After a while, with a sharp sound, the wooden sword flew high into the sky and inserted itself into the yellow sand in the sacrificial altar. And it was not noticed that those talismans were already burnt into ashes in the wind and scattered on the surface of the sand.

 Chapter 50: The Clash between the Empire And Tao Sect

    Chapter 50: The sh between the Empire And Tao Sect


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The citizens, who were kneeling in front of the sacrificial altar and who were piously worshiping, were still devout. The surrounding onlookers were making catcalls in unison. This scene was just like the situation that jugglers were performing in Scent Workshop, during which they showed something dangerous to appeal spectators¡¯ attention.


    The ceremony praying for the rain to move had officially ended. The little Taoist boys were preparing to move the sacrificial altar and practice things into the Taoist temple, but the sky suddenly turned dark and at this moment the spring rain began to fall. Sangsang held her hands to open the big ck umbre, then lifting her small ck face to take acent nce at Ning Que. Those in the crowd without umbres scattered quickly and hid under the eaves of houses on the street, watching and pointing at those several embarrassed Taoist boys. Their mocking and scoffing could be faintly heard...


    Ning Que who witnessed this scene could not help butugh. Suddenly he thought of one thing, and then again looked at the old rickety Taoist who was still in the rain. Ning Que¡¯s eyes were full of more shock than sympathy.


    He believed his own eyes. The previous wooden swords and talisman papers were not tricks, and then they might only be... means of cultivation! To think with the knowledge taught by Lv Qingchen, even if the old Taoist had not entered the third state named No Doubts State of cultivation, he at least had been at the second state named Perception State for a long time!


    Besides West-Hill, the Chang¡¯an city probably had the most cultivators in the whole world. However he had never thought that he could meet a cultivator, while he was just hanging around with Sangsang, and the Taoist who was about to enter the real state was so pathetic to rely on these means to perform.


    It was a pity that Taoist temple wanted to use this way to recruit believers. Master Haotian whom they worshiped could not help them out. That was true. Even those sages who were ever mentioned by Lv Qingchen and who had entered No Rules and Tianqi states could not summon wind and rain. Let alone the old Taoist without enough cultivation state.


    Ning Que slightly frowned, watching the door of the Taoist temple gradually gathering. He was lost in thought.


    Haotian Taoism, known as the only orthodox in the world, was respected in every country. The Taoist temple possessed countless fields and never paid taxes. Officers of different departments were honorable. When monarchs of such countries as the Great River Kingdom and the South Jin Kingdom ascended the thrones, they even needed blessings bestowed by the Great Divine Priest from Tao Sect of West-Hill to be recognized.


    However, the onlookers¡¯ earlier ridicule and mockery could tell that the status of Haotian Taoism in Tang Empire could not bepared to those counterparts. Although the Priest of South Gate of Haotian Taoism had been appointed as the Master of Nation in Tang, the entire world knew that the rtionship between South School of Haotian and West-Hill in which the main temple for offering sacrifice to Heaven of Haotian Taoism was located was always ambiguous. The rights to confer temple deans of each Taoist temple in Tang were all in the hands of His Majesty. West-Hill waspletely unable to intervene.


    And even rumors went that when Tang Empire was first established, Haotian Taoism was forbidden from preaching in the empire.


    Speaking logically, the incredibly strong Haotian Taoism known as the world¡¯s first Orthodox and with hundreds of millions of believers, would not stand this pressure and humiliation. And actually they did not endure. Everyone believed that West-Hill Divine Kingdom was behind the attack of the Tang by 17 countries all those years ago.


    Back then, the allied forces of 17 countries, which were reputed to have millions of soldiers, invaded the territory of Tang Empire, and they were directly and totally destroyed by cavalries of the empire that was as vigorous as the rising sun. And then, by taking advantage of this, armies of Tang Empire rode out of Yanggu Pass in waves and fought through numerous cities to conquer the whole world. After this grand battle, the so-called allied forces were disbanded like the melting snow. Tang Empire directly conquered three of the countries, and they now became the county named Hebei Province, which was squeezed the most heavily by Taizu (Founder of the Tang Dynasty) on his expedition to the north.


    What was puzzling was that the West-Hill Divine Kingdom had stayed out of this magnificent battle, and the numerous hidden master-hands of Haotian Taoism never took the shot. Perhaps due to this reason, Tang Empire did not deliberately re-conquer Haotian Taoism in post-war forces re-division. It finally got the qualifications for preaching in Tang Empire.


    After this battle, Tang Empireid its own dominance in the world. Haotian Taoism still had most believers among the world. One was in the secrity while the other in religion. There was conflict within the sect. Since both sides did not have the confidence to defeat the opposite side, so they pretended the other did not exist, and gradually lost interest in attacking.


    This situation remained the same for thousands of years up till today. Haotian Taoism still stood high above masses in other ces, in which all the people were its believers. Yet in the territory of Tang Empire, even the smallest Taoist temple must pay taxes and even South School of Haotian Taoism, though controlled by the court had to send cultivators to perform tricks on the streets to attract followers.


    Walking under the big ck umbre in the rain, Ning Que thought of the previous scene. He could not help butugh and shake his head, and he said, "The old Taoist is really pitiful. Maybe the Master of Nation in the pce was the same."


    Sangsang held the big ck umbre with her right hand and shoulder, while in her left hand was a piece of cookie bought from a small stall. She was eating the cookie, and said with a lisp, "Young master, it seems that you like Chang¡¯an, hah."


    "Each ce and city have their way of supporting their inhabitants. Yet the taste of people can change the taste of the city in turn," Ning Que smiled and replied. "Rather than saying that I like Chang¡¯an, you might say that I like the people of Chang¡¯an."


    He suddenly slightly frowned as he saying these. And he said, "Three four, seven... eight."


    Sangsang paused and froze for a moment and crammed the cookie into her small mouth. Her left hand quickly scratching the certain ce on his back. Ning Que frowned and took the big ck umbre from her hand, and added, "No, it¡¯s seven seven."


    "Got it."


    The Chang¡¯an city rested in the continuous spring rain. In its straight streets and crookednes, among its cornice of high-rises, along the passerbys with umbres and raincoats, there was a walking big ck umbre that was like a dusty ck lotus. Under the big ck umbre, Sangsang took the cookie with one hand and scratched Ning Que¡¯s back on and on with the other. The young master¡¯s and the handmaiden¡¯s faces were full of joy.


    ...


    ...


    There were probably no businessmen who would like the spring that was with such abundant rainfall in the Chang¡¯an city, except those who sold umbres and carried carriage business, and brothels were no exceptions. Due to the ident that urred at the side door a few days ago, House of Red-Sleeves was not only forced to suspend business for one night, but also became the target of rumors. Though the drizzling days were suitable for ying instruments and drawing, the brothel looked really cheerless in broad daylight.


    Girls who were eligible to own small courtyards couldn¡¯t withstand the loneliness but to gather in the front building today. After greeting Mistress Jian, everyone stayed together in the bamboo house to while away time, eating sunflower seeds and chatting. This situation suddenly changed at the moment Ning Que and Sangsang stepped into the building. All of a sudden, the building was filled withughter.


    A man around forty saw this scene from a quiet room of the topmost. He looked at these girls who worked under him. He could not help but frown and scold in a low voice, "All of you really think you¡¯re nobledies with nothing to do. Meng San, ask Mistress Jian... remember to be polite... who thatd is. If he has no background, you get him out of here. Thedies that I support aren¡¯t for him to chat with."


    "I advise you not to mess with thed, because... he is myst tenant."


    At the small wine table, a middle-aged man looked at him and said with a smile. An official sword that was usually strapped at the waist was put aside quietly. This person was the owner of all the shops on Lin 47th Street.

 Chapter 51: A Conversation Changed Changan Jianghu World

    Chapter 51: A Conversation Changed Chang¡¯an Jianghu World


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que had not the slightest clue that the owner of the House of Red Sleeves was staring at him coldly from the top floor, let alone that the owner was already furious at him for teasing the girls yfully. Sitting casually as usual beside Dewdrop, Ning Que continued to chat her up to know more about the death of Zhang Yiqi.


    "I like the way you smile, and your cute dimples." Dewdrop cast sheep¡¯s eyes at Ning Que and said, "Back to the point, now that you¡¯re going to take the exam of the academy, you ought to study properly. If you don¡¯t enroll, people may say it¡¯s us, the prostitutes, who distracted you. How would you pay us for such a bad name?"


    Another girl teased. "It¡¯s not about us. Ning Quees here every day only to see you. How could that have anything to do with us?"


    What Dewdrop said might sound like banter, but yet she is quite concerned. Ning Que¡¯s heart suddenly felt warm, and with a smile answered somethingforting like, "No need to worry, I¡¯m already prepared". Sangsang was off to the side eating sunflower seeds while chatting with a maidservant called Xiaocao, and fell into secret thinking. "The young master¡¯s words were total crap, the academy entrance exam had six disciplines altogether. How much did you review even though I urged you every day?"


    Although Sangsang did not need to dress up to appear like a manservant, the girls in the brothel had acquired a sharp eye over all these years to know that she was a in-looking nobody. Xiaocao, chatting with Sangsang, felt a lot of sympathy for her, thinking to herself, "Ning Que must dislike Sangsang for her in appearance and shamelesslyes to brothels for pretty girls."


    In one of the top floor rooms, a middle-aged man d in an indigo robe strolled toward the backstage and stood abreast with the owner of the House of Red Sleeves, looking downstairs at thed who sat in a chair chatting up the girls that surrounded him. The corners of the middle-aged man¡¯s mouth curled up, and his face seemed to light up suddenly.


    The man said with a smile, "If thisd is thest tenant at Lin 47th Street, I certainly have no reason to allow him." He continued, "Throw him out. All the rental deeds are in my hands now. By the time I transfer them to the yamen, I bet you couldn¡¯t think of any excuses to refuse if the Chang¡¯an Local Government was going to sequester the street."


    "All the shopkeepers at Lin 47th Street were once driven off by you, except me. Have you ever seen me lowering my head?" The indigo-robed man smiled and continued, "Let alone, you aren¡¯t capable of turning him out of doors."


    "Really?" The man stared at his eyes silently and suddenlyughed, saying, "You might be right. I bet no one dares to make a move merely upon hearing your name¡ªOld Chao from Spring Breeze Pavilion."


    The indigo-robed man smiled, but said nothing, turning to sit back in his chair.


    Earlier on he was informed by Lao Si, and was already aware of what happened at Lin 47th Street today. A young schr who came from nowhere showed little fear at the imminent gang battle, even asked for a fleecing, and scrambled one year¡¯s rent from his hand. Unfathomably, thed did not ask for an arbitrary price but dealt with it very carefully. In other words, his bearing was impressive.


    On the first day of the opening of the Old Brush Pen Shop, he went to Lin 47th Street, not for seeking shelter from the rain, but to find out which dimwit was foolhardy enough to rent one of his shops. After examining thed¡¯s presence, he knew that the boy was no dimwit whatsoever, even if he didn¡¯t have a clue what happened in the Jianghu world of Chang¡¯an.


    No fool in this world could write down those admirable calligraphy works, and no fool would have such heavy calluses between his thumb and forefingers, revealing his frequent use of swords. Thinking about those calligraphy works hanging on the wall that were oozing great strength and a somewhat hidden intent of killing, and what Qi Si described today, the middle-aged man suspected that thed had killed a man. More specifically, he suspected that he had killed countless men.


    For a man like himself who often trod in darkness and blood-shed, it was still incredibly hard to swallow the fact that, at just fifteen or sixteen, thed had killed so many people. Ad like him, if he had no intention to leave, then he could not think of anyone who could make him leave.


    "Old Chao, I¡¯m here on behalf of the prince¡¯s pce to question you, could you at least show some respect?"


    The middle-aged man lifted his head, only to realize that he had drifted away thinking about thed, and smiled apologetically. But the mention of prince¡¯s pce obviously had little effect on him for anyone concerned.


    The man who was talking with him was called Cui Delu. As vulgar as it sounded, he was not somemon man, as he was able to manage the first brothel in Chang¡¯an. Most Chang¡¯an people thought it might have been some high-ranking official behind this brothel, but only the middle-aged man and a few big shots knew that Cui Delu was dependent on the butler of the prince¡¯s pce. Some may have even thought that the brothel was one of the prince¡¯s properties.


    "The House of Red Sleeves was in trouble recently, and I didn¡¯t expect you still had time to talk about this petty stuff."


    Cui Delu said coldly, "You know very well that Lin 47th Street wasn¡¯t for the prince. As the Ministries of Military and Revenue wouldn¡¯t like to be involved, we¡¯re left to run errands. Who knew you would be so stubborn about this and would bring about such trouble, getting these big shots¡¯ hackles up? A few days ago, you held back the prince¡¯s pce¡¯s men. As a result, they sent the Yulin Royal Guards..."


    On hearing, "the Yulin Royal Guards", the middle-aged man frowned slightly and seemed hurt.


    Watching his face change, Cui Delu dropped the subject and continued with a smile. "Of course, you know, those who represented the prince¡¯s pce were to take some benefits. The butler told me that the prince thought highly of you and mentioned you once when he was drunk, saying that you were level-headed and behaved with discretion."


    The middle-aged man remained silent, and yet his countenance appeared prominently more grave.


    Cui Delu continued seriously, "You know that a censor died in my ce, which was a real hassle. The idiot dropped dead, but his family rushed to the prince¡¯s pce for an inquiry. The prince was acquainted with the censor and asked me to deal with it. If you should handle this matter for me, then I¡¯ll never interfere in the matter at Lin 47th Street. How about that?"


    Although Cui Delu was merely an owner of a brothel, and showed little respect while talking with him, the middle-aged man was fully aware that he represented the prince¡¯s attitude and spoke for him. Pondering a short while, the middle-aged man asked with a smile, "Even if the prince was acquainted with the censor, handling his death wasn¡¯t difficult at all. Why bother to find a man like me who¡¯s from the Jianghu world to do this?"


    Cui Delu said darkly, "Do you really not know or are you just ying dumb right now? If you really don¡¯t know, then I¡¯ll never recognize you as Old Chao from Spring Breeze Pavilion, because you¡¯re an idiot. If you¡¯re just ying dumb, I¡¯ll do the same, as you¡¯re smart yet unappreciative of favors."


    The middle-aged answered calmly, "The matter of Lin 47th Street was no big deal to both the prince and me. If one day one of the Imperial Courts really wants it, I¡¯ll be perfectly happy to offer it with both hands. However, you shouldn¡¯t press me with this matter."


    "The conventions of the Spring Breeze Pavilion aren¡¯t the involvement of the court, be it the prince, or the Military Ministry and Ministry of Revenue. As long as it has anything to do with these matters, I¡¯ll hide as far as I can. The harder you press me, the further I¡¯ll hide."


    "You, Old Chao of Spring Breeze Pavilion, are the biggest gang leader, who is in charge of thousands of men. The court even sent you to escort, now you want to leave this behind? Do you think you can quit? And where can you hide? What about those 3,000 men who followed you? Where do you want to put them, in military prison or the frontier fortress prison?"


    Cui Delu stared at him ghastly and said, "It was possible to leave several years earlier when the court was peaceful. But now, the fourth princess hase back and is intent on getting her brother crowned, yet forgetting that the queen has her child as well! Of course, these royal conflicts have nothing to do with you. But if you don¡¯t pick your side decisively and be as docile as a dog on that side, neither side will tolerate you."


    "A servant? Do I have to choose my master?" The middle-aged man sighed, and then asked, "So you¡¯re going to control me on behalf of the prince?"


    Cui Delu replied, "You¡¯re right, and now anyone who has a say would like to press you. Why? Because you¡¯re a dog without an owner. If you¡¯re willing to make your choice and pick a side, whoever it may be, anyone who wants to beat you must realize who your owner is, and know the consequences."


    The middle-aged man suddenly beamed and asked, "Can I ask a question?"


    "Go ahead."


    "Which side will the prince pick, the queen or the fourth princess?"


    Cui Delu gave a categorical answer. "Neither of them, of course. The prince has been loyal to His Majesty, and will support whoever His Majesty chooses."


    The middle-aged man remained silent for a while, slowly lifted his head, and answered with a smile, "Sorry, as a man living in the Tang, I don¡¯t think I can get ustomed to being a dog."


    Cui Dele was not expecting this, and stuffing down his annoyance, he continued to persuade him. "People have to be dogs in their lives. Some men want to be a dog, but yet they don¡¯t have a chance."


    The middle-aged man stood up, fasten his sword around his waist, and cupped his fist in his palm, said, "I have to say, you aren¡¯t a persuasive lobbyist because you aren¡¯t familiar with my character.¡¯


    Cui Delu, his face now gloomy, rose up and said in a low voice, "Are you afraid that you can¡¯t persuade your men? Be assured, the prince said that as long as you kneel down, even if you just put on an act, he¡¯ll let the Military Ministry give you two heads. Surely this doesn¡¯t mean that a gang leader as high as you can¡¯t rule your men?"


    There was no need to use the pretext of the prince¡¯s butler at this moment. The mention of the prince would have a more direct bearing. Nevertheless, the middle-aged man seemed as if he had not heard the mention of the prince, and walked out of the door. No one noticed that he showed an inscrutable smile when heard the gang leader.


    "Stop, Old Chao." Cui Delu stared at the back of his head gloomily. "It looks like you and your men have lived too well to know how to respect people. I must warn you, that you, a cockroach in the gutter, will never know the world that men of rank live in."


    The middle-aged man slowed his steps but did not turn his head and walked off.

 Chapter 52: I Can Still Live as Long as Heaven Tolerates Me

    Chapter 52: I Can Still Live as Long as Heaven Tolerates Me


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Cui Delu looked at the middle-aged man¡¯s back and coldly said, "I know who backs you. Didn¡¯t you just constantly rely on Chang III or Qi IV, Liu V, Fei VI, Chen VII? I know you can fight, and so do your these brothers. But don¡¯t forget that Chang III and Fei VI are captains of Yulin Royal Guards, Liu V is the leader of Valiant Cavalry Battalion, Chen VII retires from the bodyguard office. You can be easily pushed to the deepest ce in Underworld and can never get out if bigwigs ask."


    The middle-aged man suddenly turned around, frowning and gazing at him eye to eye.


    "Many of your most reliable and best fighting brothers died these years. Apart from useless Qi IV, you can only rely on these guys. However, you don¡¯t understand the power of nobles. They could easily trap these people, on whom you rely, in barracks with several words, orally or literally. In Chang¡¯an, those who have been suppressed by you for ten or more years would dlye out and ruthlessly take a bite once they get the news. Wouldn¡¯t they?"


    The middle-aged man kept silent for a while and then walked out of the room with his facial expression gradually calming down.


    Cui DeLuughed coldly behind him and said, "Old Chao from Spring Breeze Pavilion... Your hands have stretched too far away, already reaching the Imperial Court... Now your enemies are everywhere. I¡¯d like to see who can still tolerate you!"


    The middle-aged man kept silent for a while with his right hand on the door and said, "I can still live as long as Heaven tolerates me."


    ...


    ...


    In a sense, the conversation happened on the top floor of the House of Red-Sleeves determined the historical and natural evolution of the underworld of Chang¡¯an. When those bigwigs in the Imperial Court suddenly got interested in the weeds from the Jianghu world, it would inevitably be grasnd after a wildfire. No matter how vigorous those weeds were, or how strong their desire to live was, only scorched ck stems and roots buried in the soil were left behind. They could never again regain the past flourish.


    That was the smell of power.


    Censor Zhang Yiqi¡¯s wife was used to this smell in her whole life. Therefore, she could not ept the fact that Zhang Yiqi had suddenly passed away. She took Zhang¡¯s body back with a whole gang of women soldiers, who had created a disturbance in the brothel, and cried for two days. Then she began rushing between the Dali Temple and the Chang¡¯an Local Government, which took charge of regting the capital city. However, the smell this time was awful. What a pity!


    "How could my lord be so short-lived? 27 years ago, he told me that he once had Master of Nation to do fortune-telling for him, who told him that he certainly would live beyond 100 years. In my opinion, my lord definitely was schemed to death by fox spirits in the brothel! Mayor of Capital, you must support me. If you dare to cover for them, I¡¯ll go to the Prince¡¯s Mansion to beg His Highness to uphold justice for my lord!


    The official sitting at the table appeared to be about 40, with triangr eyes and a red bumpy nose. A sparse and-like beard hung on his jaw. His appearance was simply inelegant. It was amazing that the man was not dispatched to other counties or prefectures of lower levels, but left in Chang¡¯an Local Government as Tang¡¯s officials needed to pay attention to their appearances.


    He looked at the skinny woman standing in the hall below, worrying about how to deal with the case. Luckily, all Tang¡¯s officials knew the legendary life of Master of Nation. He realized that the former Master of Nation was just a firing boy in the South School of Haotian Taoism 27 years ago and hadn¡¯t met His Majesty yet after careful calction. He told Zhang Yiqi his fortune for money and it might just be a trick. Realizing this, he said seriously after a slight fit of coughing.


    "Ahem... Madam, please restrain your grief. First of all, you must understand that I¡¯m Shangguan Yangyu, the Judicial Military Supervisor of the Chang¡¯an Local Government, not the Mayor of Capital. Secondly, we have carefully checked the censor¡¯s remain. He did die of the unexpected copse of the carriage and his brain was severely hit. It simply isn¡¯t a murder case.


    The death of Censor Zhang Yiqi at the side door of the brothel was widely discussed in Chang¡¯an, but most of these discussions were irony. Furthermore, none connected this case with an assassination in officialdom. Chang¡¯an Local Government had already determined the case to be an ident two days ago in order to prevent those poor censors making troubles with this case.


    But none had expected that the censor¡¯s wife would directlyin to the Dali Temple. The censor¡¯s job was to offend officials. Therefore, Zhang Yiqi was not popr. Even though he was already dead, nobody could touch him as the prince was still present. However, none wanted to interfere too much. Consequently, Dali Temple, without the slightest politeness, once again pushed her back to Chang¡¯an Local Government.


    The Mayor of Capital slipped back to his backyard after hearing the knocks and being told it was the naughty Censor¡¯s wife. He asked his subordinates to tell her that he was not feeling well today and needed a rest.


    As the Judicial Military Supervisor of the Chang¡¯an Local Government, Shangguan Yangyu was in charge of investigations. But he couldn¡¯t find an excuse to run away and he didn¡¯t want to. In his eyes, all the naughty censor¡¯s wives were paper tigers. As long as he frightened them with something they feared, he could handle the situation and perhaps even get some benefits from them.


    It could be judged that he was a greedy man as he was still trying to get some benefits under such circumstances. His greed could be owing to his family background. His ancestors came from South Jin Kingdom and then moved to Chang¡¯an. Then the following five generations of this family settled in the poor Eastern Area. However, and no men in this family were sessful. They either love gambling or lust for women. All the five generations of the family had umted were two broken rooms and a dozen ounces of silver. Shangguan Yangyu was the first in this family to pass the exam and be an official formally. He started from the lowest prison officials and gradually got promotions.


    Shangguan Yangyu was no longer as cautious as he used to be after he was promoted to be the Judicial Military Supervisor. His fear of poverty and the crazy pursuit of money pushed him to take bribes. Chang¡¯an Local Government, a poor local government counting on incurring taxes, was closely observed by the whole imperial court. Although he couldn¡¯t practice grafts, he definitely could corrupt thew.


    As to the case of Censor Zhang Yiqi, he didn¡¯t dare to wrongly use the brothel, but he wanted to get some money from the dead¡¯s wife. He squinted and sized the skinny woman up. He waved his hands to beckon her toe up before she got angry, and whispered, "Madam, your own apanying escort witnessed the whole process, and we still have material evidence in our backyard. Besides, we can tell the smell of cosmetics from the body of Cencor Zhang Yiqi. And many people in the city saw you go to the brothel with a stick in your hands with your sisters the other day. Think about it... He was definitely trying to escape from being caught by you and knocked into his own carriage in a hurry."


    The censor¡¯s wife suddenly turned hostile. Just when she was about to harshly scold him, Shangguan Yangyu smiled with his triangr eyes squinting into squares inside copper coins. He continued to whisper, "I did understand that Censor Zhang Yiqi died too bizarrely and too stupidly, and... it was humiliating. You should makeints to make yourself clear and avoid being talked about by others as the chief culprit of his death. In addition, the brothel will pay for your loss. A dead man can no longer take care of you and theforts andpensates given by the imperial court can do little help. It¡¯s a better choice to get a sum of money of course."


    A very unnatural expression appeared on her face as Shangguan Yangyu said what she was thinking about. She kept silent for a while and then suddenly whispered with expectations, "If it works out, I¡¯ll share with you... 20%."


    Trading with thew of Tang in the court hall could definitely lead them to die, if it was known by the Department of Provincial Censor or the Imperial Court. However, she needn¡¯t worry about it as none was there. All people in Chang¡¯an Local Government left to escape from her, except Shangguan Yangyu.


    Nevertheless, to her surprise, Shangguan Yangyu suddenly got angry. He pped the desk with the gavel in his hands and shouted sternly, "How dare you! I gave you some respects as you¡¯re the wife of Censor Zhang Yiqi. But you want to die!"


    The censor¡¯s wife was scared still. Shangguan Yangyu¡¯s face, which seemed to be painted on, suddenly turned amiable again. He said earnestly, "I¡¯m trying to save you. Do you know who the supporter of that brothel is? You truly have great guts if you want to ckmail them."


    The censor¡¯s wife leaned against the counter top, shaking, and said, "Please tell me about, about it."


    Of course, Shangguan Yangyu couldn¡¯t tell her that Chang¡¯an Local Government possessed a portion of shares of the brothel. Purposely, he pointed his finger to the sky mysteriously and whispered, "It belongs to Her Majesty."


    "What?" The censor¡¯s wife became panic as she heard "Her Majesty". She was too frightened to stand on her feet. She repeated in a shaking voice. "What should I do? What should I do?"


    "If you keep on finding fault with the brothel, I can¡¯t guarantee for the deceased censor¡¯s reputation. After all, someone saw him run out of the brothel and he was drunk at the time."


    Shangguan Yangyu looked at her sternly and said, "The censor was visiting a prostitute. If it¡¯s known by the Imperial Court, he might be removed from his official position, even though he¡¯s dead. Then you couldn¡¯t get any subsidies orpensates. All of your efforts would be in vain."


    The censor¡¯s wife asked, full of fear, "Then, then... What should I do? What if I gave up using?"


    "The problem is that your action has already been spread out. However, if you can settle with the owner of the brothel and stop the information from being further broadcast to the pce, especially Her Majesty, perhaps everything will work out."


    "Then let¡¯s do it!" The censor¡¯s wife had already run out of ideas. She asked with her shriveled face full of confusion and nervousness, "How do you think I should settle with the owner?"


    Shangguan Yangyu smiled. Knowing that he would get a sum of money right away, he couldn¡¯t help but feel every pore on his body rx and open. The shriveled face of the censor¡¯s wife in front of him seemed to be more adorable. He thought to himself in alt, " It¡¯s better to take money from women than men, from dead people than men alive ."


    He was born to a poor family, in fact, a humble family. His ancestors didn¡¯t leave any assets to him and he had nobody to rely on. He looked ugly, greedily raking in interests from intiffs and defendants like a locust and brazenly bootlicking his superiors as a wild boar. He had nothing respectable with regard to morality and personality. However, as long as Haotian didn¡¯t punish him, he would continue to live like this, faithfully and uglily. As an old saying went, "I can still live as long as Heaven tolerates me."


    ...


    ...


    The spring rain fell consecutively for another two days. The businesses in Lin 47th Street did not improve.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t know that Shangguan Yangyu, a Judicial Military supervisor in Chang¡¯an Local Government, had dealt with the remaining little trouble caused by his assassination of Censor Zhang Yiqi out of his greed. At the moment, Ning Que was holding a small hot bowl of noodles and staring at the limestone in the rain, thinking about theing academy entry exam(s) and the expensive tuition and amodation fees. He was a little depressed and felt cold. He subconsciously used his left hand to tighten his cor.


    Although the mysterious big owner had reduced his rent for a whole year, which was equivalent to 300 taels of silver, it couldn¡¯t be used as real money. It was just something on paper. If the government forced the big owner to collect rent or the Old Brush Pen Shop had no business, it was just as useless.


    He couldn¡¯t help sighing when he thought of that. He lowered his head and yed with noodles and green onions in the bowl with his chopsticks. He didn¡¯t want to eat at all. He even didn¡¯t want to write in these two days, let alone eat this bowl of noodles, which he had been eating for several years. He knew that there were four peppercorns and 30 little bits of green onions in the bowl of noodles, without having to look.


    The rain outside the shop was getting heavier and heavier, patting the ground with strong sounds. The water sshed in all directions and turned into the frog, affecting people¡¯s sights. Ning Que could barely see the wall of the warehouse belonging to the Logistics Department of the Ministry of Revenue. He carried the bowl to the doorstep, squatting down, and continued to watch the rain. Then he began to eat.


    Suddenly he lifted his head, looking towards the right side.


    A middle-aged man, carrying an oilpaper umbre, presented outside the Old Brush Pen Shop door. The wild rain had soaked more than half of his turquoise robe and the sword sheath around his waist. It was the big owner.


    The frontyer of the chest part and coattail turning darker and a little miserable, amazingly, the middle-aged man didn¡¯t appear to be miserable at all. He stood at the door calmly, holding his oilpaper umbre, and observed the rain, like he was admiring a street packed with peach blossoms in the sunshine.


    Ning Que looked up towards the man for a while. He didn¡¯t speak, continuing to eat noodles.


    After a long period of silence, the middle-aged man suddenly lowered his head to look at Ning Que and said with a smile, "It must taste good."


    Ning Que squatted down on the ground and answered, "I have eaten this too many times. It just tastes the same."


    "I haven¡¯t eaten that before."


    "I¡¯m not going to treat you even though you waived my rent for a year."


    "I like your calligraphy."


    The middle-aged man quickly changed the topic of their conservation, just like the raindrops in front of them, which rolled off the surface of the umbre before it could seep through it. It could be judged that the man was used to issuing orders, and didn¡¯t allow his subordinates to question hismands.


    "Me, too."


    "Good job."


    "I know."


    The middle-aged man smiled and said, "It¡¯s really rare to see calligraphy with such... murderous-intent."


    Ning Que bowed his head in silence. He looked at the bowl in his hands and asked, "Are you going to kill someone tonight?"


    The middle-aged manmentingly answered, "Yes. As Heaven can tolerate me while the man can¡¯t, I have to kill him."


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 53: At the Spring Breeze Pavilion, Stood Good Old Chao Xiaoshu

    Chapter 53: At the Spring Breeze Pavilion, Stood Good Old Chao Xiaoshu


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que looked up at him and asked, "Go kill someone then, and what¡¯s the point of standing here at my store anyway?


    "I¡¯m waiting for the rain to stop, while also waiting for a few people to arrive," replied the man.


    "The rain won¡¯t stop especially when one expects it to, and people won¡¯t normally arrive when you¡¯re waiting for them." Ning Que acknowledged in goodwill.


    "If people fail to arrive they¡¯ll certainly have a good reason for it," said the middle-aged man with a smile, "but can I please talk to you about something rather serious, rather than probing each other as if we were sadhus?"


    "Now that¡¯s what I call a good attitude. I don¡¯t like going round and round either," Ning Que smiled back and said, "nor do I like speaking to someone who¡¯s standing up while I¡¯m squatting, since there¡¯s a difference in height."


    "You can always stand up."


    "Why don¡¯t you crouch down?"


    The man smiled again and crouched down without any hesitation, damping the threshold of Old Brush Pen Shop with his wet robe. He looked at Ning Que¡¯s young face and told him, "I¡¯m struggling."


    Ning Que continued eating his noodles, waiting to hear more.


    "A lot of the bigwigs up there want me to take a side, but right now I can¡¯t take a side. That¡¯s why I¡¯m being besieged. My brothers and I do an immacte job, and it would be too much hassle for the government to inculpate me ording to thew of Tang. That¡¯s why they have decided to kill me off tonight simply, and under the camouge of the raining night, all my enemies from the south and north of the city are now speeding towards here."


    "What about the ones you¡¯re waiting for?"


    "One of my brothers died a few days ago. The rest of them are mostly officially employed by the government. Those people up there can easily use any official excuse to keep them at the military base or at the yamen. As a result, I¡¯ve got very few people with me tonight."


    The rain kept pouring down in the night, and it was getting worse. It looked like the people he was waiting for were not going to show, but the man didn¡¯t seem to care much about it, and talked about his situation calmly, without concealing anything. He smiled at Ning Que gently and went on to say, "But all this isn¡¯t the a problem, my real problem tonight is that, I must have someone next to me, but I can¡¯t find that person."


    Looking at the sword he carried on his waist, Ning Que guessed that it might be a tiny sword. Then he asked, "What kind of person do you need by your side?"


    "Be quick, strong and brave enough to kill people without batting an eyelid, while never letting anything fall on me."


    "I suppose that ¡¯anything¡¯ doesn¡¯t include the rain?"


    "Certainly not."


    "That¡¯s not too tough then."


    "Why me?" asked Ning Que as he scratched his slightly wet hair.


    The man nced at his right hand and said, "I heard about certain things, and even though the Shubi Lake wood chopper ain¡¯t so famous in Chang¡¯an, I know very well what a young horse-gang killer is capable of doing."


    After a brief silence, Ning Que smiled and said, "Why should I go with you? What do I get out of this?"


    The man seemed to appreciate how straightforward the youngd was, and as he flicked off the rain from the umbre, he said, "No one in the Chang¡¯an city knows about myst card. If I win tonight, I can show my hand, and then you¡¯ll know that I¡¯m a great coattail that¡¯s truly worth riding on."


    "Tonight is already getting extremely dangerous, so why don¡¯t you show yourst card first?"


    "Because thest card ain¡¯t a card, but a person. I can¡¯tmand him, but he canmand me. He needs me to win the battle tonight, because he wants to make sure that the enemy hasn¡¯t got any hiddenst cards."


    "Right, well I¡¯m getting bored of this style of conversation. All I want to say is that you might be a nice coattail to ride, but this doesn¡¯t appeal to me much. If you know about the faraway Shubi Lake, then you must also know that I had my chance to ride on a seemingly delicate but one of the best coattails in Tang Empire, but I refused to take a ride."


    Ning Que was obviously referring to Lee Yu, the fourth Princess of Tang Dynasty. After saying this he was quiet again, and he ced his noodle bowl on the wet floor, and stayed shoulder to shoulder with the man to watch the rain falling. At that moment, he recalled a scene of a story that he liked, and he remembered what Zhuo Er asked him to do back in the little restaurant. He then made up his mind.


    The man stayed quiet for a brief moment and said, "Maybe... you prefer to set a price directly?"


    Ning Que pped the annoying rain and said without hesitation, "500 taels of silver."


    The man frowned a little and suggested. "That¡¯s too little, maybe a little more?"


    In a rainy night, at the doorstep of the bookshop, the scenario of these two negotiating a deal looked particrly bizarre, especially when the employer obviously thought the fee was too low.


    Ning Que looked at him and asked, "How many people do you reckon I¡¯d kill tonight?"


    After giving it a little thought, the man said, "At least five."


    Ning Que said, "At the grasnd, I might not even gather five taels of silver after killing five men from the horse gang. Therefore you may rest assured that, for 500 taels of silver I can fight with my dear life."


    "I don¡¯t need your life," said the man kindly, "and if it ever got so bad as to harm your life, you could always leave first."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "That¡¯s not how I do things. It might be stupid to say something like loyalty is gold, but since we¡¯re doing business, we must at least stick to the most fundamental professional ethics."


    The man smiled and extended his hand. "Deal."


    Ning Que shook his hand briefly and said, "My surname is Ning, as in peacefulness. Ning Que."


    "My surname is Chao, as in Tang Chao (Dynasty), and my name is Xiaoshu (Small tree)."


    "Such an arrogant surname, and such a gentle name."


    "People in Chang¡¯an often call me Good Old Chao from the Spring Breeze Pavilion, but you may call me brother Chao."


    "Chao Xiaoshu sounds nicer... so, Xiaoshu, do you happen to be the leader of the Fish-dragon Gang?"


    "You may call me Good Old Chao then... and be fair, I have never acknowledged the title of the gang leader. All that I did was to gather a group of brothers to do the stuff that the Imperial Court isn¡¯t at liberty to do."


    As Ning Que finally ascertained his identity, he smiled and patted his shoulder, saying, "How can the leader of thergest gang in Chang¡¯an be so humble? Xiaoshu, now you¡¯re just being fake."


    ...


    ...


    He drew out the ordinary looking knife from the pile of firewood, took out the boxwood bow and quiver from the case, and picked up the big ck umbre that was wrapped in old clothes from the cheap ceramic vat, and he went on to tie them all onto his back. Then he searched through the bottom of the case for a while, finally finding a ck mask that probably hadn¡¯t been washed for a long time.


    He carefully put on the soft armor and wore a pretty old short-sleeved archery robe on the outside. Then he let his hair down tob it back together in a style that was typical of someone from the Yuelun Kingdom. He proceeded to cover much of face with the ck mask and checked his look carefully in the bronze mirror, making sure that nothing was wrong. Finally, he walked to the kitchen and looked inside, saying, "I¡¯m leaving."


    Sangsang is cleaning the kitchen stove, washing dishes as well as the writing set. Her little face was expressionless, and her willow-leaf shaped eyes looked slightly upset in a childish way. For some reason, the little handmaiden was particrly clumsy today, making all kinds of smashing noises, and she rubbed the pot with so much force that her wipe almost went through the bottom of the pot.


    Ning Que was perplexed at first, but he soon understood her and exined nicely, "It¡¯s always good to earn some money, and I think that guy has quite a strong background, and if I help him, he maybe help back in the future."


    "Bang!" Sangsang dumped the wipe brusquely on the edge of the stove, and went on to pour the dirty water from the heavy iron pot. The young girl turned around abruptly as if he was invisible, simply refusing to listen to him.


    Ning Que rubbed his forehead, after a brief silence, he went on to exin, "The poor little ckie died after asking me this favor, and I didn¡¯t even get a chance to refuse before he ran away to the bloody Underworld... so tonight I¡¯m just paying his debt for him."


    Upon saying that, he neglected Sangsang¡¯s bad mood, and went straight back to the shopfront.


    As the leader of the Fish-dragon Gang in Chang¡¯an, Old Chao wandered the Jianghu world for many years, meeting all kinds of extraordinary and strange characters. He knew the young owner of Old Brush Pen Shop must be one of those extraordinary people, and he was mentally prepared for it. Nevertheless, he couldn¡¯t help but feel slightly baffled seeing Ning Que in his gear. Looking at the mysterious item Ning Que carried on his back, in the shape of a stick wrapped in ragged cloth, he said, "You don¡¯t look like you¡¯re about to go kill someone, but more like a vagabond running away from huge debt. Are you carrying all of your belongings on your back now?"


    "Stop whining, I¡¯m only carrying a knife!"


    Ning Que walked to his side and nced at the raining street, noticing that there was no one at both ends of the street. He frowned and said, "I really hope there isn¡¯t any inside man among your brothers, and I really hope your brothers can watch over this street carefully. I certainly wouldn¡¯t like our killing spree to be the big news tomorrow at the Chang¡¯an Local Government."


    The Good Old Chao looked down at the ck mask covering much of the face of the youngd, and he couldn¡¯t help but smile. "You really don¡¯t need to be that careful. If we can stay alive after tonight, as long as you don¡¯t break thew andmit crimes, no one in the Chang¡¯an city and even in the entire Tang Empire will dare bother you in any sense."


    Hearing this, Ning Que thought to himself, who said the greatest gang in Chang¡¯an didn¡¯t have a strong background? Nevertheless, he refused to go on with the killer mission unmasked. His clear and tender voice seeped from the mask. "I¡¯m used to staying low."


    Old Chao smiled and said no more.


    The sound of raindrops already disrupted the quietness of the spring night, and now the footsteps added to it. Ning Que walked out the door, and Chao Xiaoshu opened the seemingly fragile oilpaper umbre as they both walked into the rainy night.


    Sangsang rushed out holding the heavy and massive iron pot as she saw the unfinished noodles on the table, and she called out anxiously from the doorstep, "Young master! You haven¡¯t finished your noodles yet!"


    Looking back at her, Ning Que smiled and said, "You may leave it there for when I get back."


    Holding the massive iron pot, Sangsang stood by the entrance under the rain and yelled, "But it won¡¯t taste nice when it gets cold!"


    Waving his hand, Ning Queughed and replied, "Then you can make a new pot and I¡¯ll have it when I get back."


    Pressing her lips tightly, Sangsang stared at him as he left, and finally called out again, "I¡¯ll season it with more shredded spring onion, don¡¯t you forget toe back to eat it, young master!"


    Ning Que didn¡¯t answer, but the smile in his eyes intensified. ring at the darkening street and the pouring rain, he suddenly asked, "So where are we heading now, Xiaoshu?"


    "Spring Breeze Pavilion."


    Good Old Chao calmly replied, "My home is there, so is my enemy. By the way, I suggest that you call me Good Old Chao, because you are the small tree here."


    As it kept raining in thisne, one would wonder how things were going at the Spring Breeze Pavilion.


    ...

 Chapter 54: Whose Turquoise Robe Got Wet in the Pavilion

    Chapter 54: Whose Turquoise Robe Got Wet in the Pavilion


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Most of Chang¡¯an people knew that, due to an unknown reason, Old Chao of the Spring Breeze Pavilion was loath to mention his gang¡¯s name¡ªFish Dragon Gang. Instead, he was more willing to call the biggest gang in Chang¡¯an¡ªSpring Breeze Pavilion. Many people conjectured that this was because he had been living in Bystreet 2 of the Spring Breeze Pavilion since he was born. Besides, his enemies ironically thought that Old Chao forcibly established some rtionships¡ªamong him, his gang, and the seemingly elegantly named Spring Breeze Pavilion¡ªas a way to avoid some vulgarments while he had killed many people, made much illicit money, and done other illegal deeds.


    Spring Breeze Pavilion, situated in the slum of Eastern City, was dotted with dpidated buildings. From day to night, the ce was always replete with all kinds of vendors and idle pedestrians. It naturally couldn¡¯t be described as a quiet location, nor an elegant one. Today, however, Spring Breeze Pavilion showed extreme silence, in which the raindrops sounded like thunder and the breeze going past the shabby boards of the pancake pawnshop sounded like the whistling among the pines. Across the streets from Bystreet 1 to Bystreet 4, no sign of walkers in the rain or even cries of babies could be noticed. It seemed that nothing was left in the street but the atmosphere covered by heavy wind and rain, and a kind of homicidal silence.


    The distance from Lin 47th Street to the Spring Breeze Pavilion was not too long. Ning Que and Old Chao walked slowly like two strolling tourists, then they soon entered into the dark and quiet alley.


    The front of Spring Breeze Pavilion was hidden in the darkness of the night and in the sound of the wind and rain, with only a shabby pavilion being vaguely seen. Actually, an unknown number of enemies were ready to ambush inside or near the Spring Breeze Pavilion on this night of wind and rain.


    Ning Que, wearing a ck mask, carrying lots of stuff on his back, and holding an oilpaper umbre, followed Chao Xiaoshu in a well-behaved manner, performing a good role as an assistant. Sometimes, he took over the umbre held by Chao Xiaoshu.


    Chao Xiaoshu kept walking forward, with his eyes looking at the front and his hands crossing behind. Even if his turquoise robe had beenrgely wet by the rain flowing from the oilpaper umbre, his light smile still remained on his face, somehow illuminating the darkness outside of the umbre in the wind and rain.


    At that time, only deadly silence could be sensed around the dpidated pavilion.


    For these ambushers, none of them had ever imagined this picture. They had supposed that there would be 3,000 men with turquoise robes. On this rainy and windy night, however, what appeared in front of them were just two men¡ªOld Chao of the Spring Breeze Pavilion and a silentd.


    After a long silence, the hidden enemies on this windy and rainy night were certain that there were just two opponents. Therefore, they stopped concealing their tracks. Hundreds of smileless men from the Jianghu world walked from the side of the alley behind the pavilion with sessive footsteps, and a "Pada!" sound uttered from their boots treading on the shallow water, as well as the grating sound made by the unsheathing sharp swords.


    Not far from the shabby pavilion, both Old Chao and Ning Que just stood and quietly looked at the crowds of enemies pouring out from all directions. Without asking thed behind him such a boring question as whether he was scared or not, Chao Xiaoshu gave a wee smile. Lifting up his arm to efface the rain on his face, he directly pointed at a stout middle-aged man in the middle of the crowd and said,


    "He is Lord Meng, the head of Southern City. The bald man beside him is Song Tietou, who usually follows Lord Meng. Song Tietou is the leader of the guy that was causing trouble in your pawnshop that day."


    As the man in the turquoise robe lifted up his arm, a stir was suddenly made by the besieging crowd on this rainy night. Some strong men with sharp swords, who stood in the first line to show their bravery to their superiors, had slightly stiff expressions on and then they all subconsciously took a step back. Ning Que, standing behind Chao Xiaoshu, quietly watched the scene. It helped him not only roughly know about the Fish Dragon Gang¡¯s status and influence in the dark world of Chang¡¯an, but also to know about the deterrence that the five words¡ªSpring Breeze Pavilion Old Chao¡ªhad in the heart of these men from the Jianghu world.


    Without ridiculing his opponents, Chao Xiaoshu justughed. Then, pointing at anky man inside the crowd at the eastern side, he said, "This is Junjie, the leader of Western City. He also has a few fellows and actually, my guys often make contact with them."


    Later, looking at a small crowd of people behind the pavilion, he frowned and said, "They were the subordinates of The Old Cat who has always been working for the Chang¡¯an Office. The Old Cat was abhorrent due to his brutality. Given that his sister-inw was the concubine of the army counselor of the Chang¡¯an Office, I just pay some respect for him.


    "Those men, who retired from the defense of the city gate and have mastered some Kungfu, would be trouble for us. What¡¯s worse, the gate guards invariably dislike me because I don¡¯t have to pay tribute to them for my several freight routes. If I killed these men here tonight, I am not sure whether the city gate army would be stupid enough to keep disturbing me."


    On this windy and rainy spring night, hundreds of famous people in Chang¡¯an gathered around the Spring Breeze Pavilion to kill Old Chao, the gang leader of thergest gang in Chang¡¯an. However, Old Chao, in the face of this situation, introduced the figures seen tonight to Ning Que in a gentle, detailed, patient, and even confident tone.


    Ning Que lowered his voice and said, "You can make some introductions, but don¡¯t introduce me. These people are all powerful in the underworld of Chang¡¯an. How can I survive in this city if they know my identity?"


    "After tonight, even if they aren¡¯t killed, I guess they all will be very frightened." Old Chao of the Spring Breeze Pavilion, with his hands crossed, looked at the crowds on this windy and rainy night and serenely said, "Such being the case, do you have a single reason to fear them?"


    Ning Que, holding his umbre and looking at Old Chao¡¯s back, carefully exined, "I am not afraid of killing people, but I want to avoid trouble."


    As the two people under the umbre naturally talked with each other, eventually the crowds in the rain couldn¡¯t bear the disgrace that their opponents had regarded them¡ªinfluential figures in Chang¡¯an¡ªas nobodies. After several discussions, they forcibly elected Lord Meng from Southern City as their representative.


    In such a circumstance, it seemed that Old Chao would be dead tonight. Actually, no one, including Lord Meng, dared to show discourtesy in front of Old Chao if they hadn¡¯t watched him die personally. However, Lord Meng had no choice but toe forward this time, because the number and force of his fellows tonight was the greatest and his gang was suppressed by the Fish Dragon Gang the most.


    "These years, all the lucrative and covert businesses are upied by your Fish Dragon Gang, including the grain transporting, the warehouse shifts, army logistics, and the peripheral defense of warehouses of the Ministry of Revenue. You don¡¯t even share some minor businesses with other gangs. For the sake of the emperor, how could it make sense in this world?"


    Lord Meng, coldly staring at Chao Xiaoshu, continued, "You should clearly know what the wrath of the public means. In the past, other gangs showed some respect to you due to your seniority, but now, you are still stubborn even when the court intends to crack down on you. So don¡¯t me us for our brutality and ruthlessness."


    "The people in the Jianghu world were always poor in literacy, so they only can repeat these sentences over and over. It really made my ears suffer a lot when I negotiated with others in person years ago," standing under the umbre and looking at the ¡¯voluble¡¯ Lord Meng, Chao Xiaoshu said in a low voice with a smile. Naturally, his words were said to Ning Que behind him, but not to their opponents.


    Lord Meng¡¯s facial expression suddenly distorted as he saw Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s disdain of him. With his stick heavily touching on the ground, he shouted, "It is said that there are 3,000 men in turquoise robes, but both you and I clearly know that the number of loyal warriors is just over 200. Besides, your several mighty fellows are now all detained by the nobles in the Valiant Cavalry Battalion of the Yulin Royal Guards. Tonight, I really wonder how you can manage to escape!"


    Looking at Meng¡¯s slightly twitching, fat face, Chao Xiaoshu suddenly smiled and responded, "About your first question, I dare say that I am naturally capable of monopolizing these businesses for all these years, including the grain transporting, the warehouse shifts, and the canal transport. No matter if you, or Junjie, or The Old Cat, none of you guys can control these businesses. Even if they were sent to you, you¡¯d not dare touch them.


    "You don¡¯t have to probe and guess whether I have backup. I can directly tell you that there is no fellow of the Spring Breeze Pavilion around here tonight. Don¡¯t you feel strange that Mr. Qi is absent tonight? No need to feel strange. Actually, he and other guys have left for your home. I believe at this time, the Southern City, the Eastern City, and the outer mansion of The Old Cat have already been turbulent."


    With that sentence resounding around the dpidated pavilion, the crowds in the rain suddenly became more tumultuous. They had kept sending people to track Chao Xiaoshu and had sessfully besieged him here. How could they specte that Chao Xiaoshu would lure them as bait while the rest of the forces of the Fish Dragon Gang went to their houses?


    "Misfortunes should stay away from family and home!" The men who retired from the city gate defense military reproached, "Chao Xiaoshu, you have gone too far!"


    Chao Xiaoshu, with his expression turning a little cold, slightly shook his head and said, "You besiege me in front of my house. Will it be a kind of family-rted misfortune if I haven¡¯t transferred my family in advance? Anyway, you don¡¯t have to worry too much because I will always obey my rules. I am not going to kill you in front of your houses, so as not to break your families¡¯ hearts."


    After a short pause, while looking at the crowds, he peacefully said, "However, it will be impossible for all of you to have a family in Chang¡¯an after tonight."


    It will be impossible for all of you to have a family in Chang¡¯an after tonight.


    Such a simple sentence immediately evoked many different pictures inside the brains among the crowd. The five words¡ªSpring Breeze Pavilion Old Chao¡ªrepresented the guarantee of faith in the Jianghu World. He definitely wouldn¡¯t implicate the crowds¡¯ families if he had said that. However, on this spring night with a little coldness and rain, their old parents, wives, and children would be rudely thrown out from their houses, and then their hard-earned mansions and pawnshops would be ruined by the men in turquoise robes from the Fish Dragon Gang. Who could ept such facts when it happened to oneself?


    Lord Meng¡¯s fat face twitched again. His umbre didn¡¯t refuse all the rain, so the twitch shook off several raindrops onto his flesh. Later he said in a cold voice, "Mansions can be built again, but a dead man can¡¯t revive. The Jianghu world will be totally changed as long as we kill you, and then Chang¡¯an... will be ours!"


    "Chang¡¯an belongs to the emperor forever." Chao Xiaoshu slightlyughed. ncing down the official sword on his waist and then raising his head with a heart-breakingugh, he said, "When ites to killing me, have you ever seen my attack?"


    Ning Que, behind Old Chao, closed his own oilpaper umbre and casually threw it beside his feet. Then he raised his right hand to reach the hilt on his back, diagonally pointing at the rain and clouds.


    Chao Xiaoshu slowly stretched his hand to hold the hilt on his waist. The moment his slender fingers gripped the rain-soaked hilt, his turquoise robe slightly vibrated and countless raindrops were shaken into a tiny water vapor, like a misty fog.


    The mildly smiling, middle-aged man was suddenly filled with a murderous look, as if turned into another man. The gloomy and cold rain around Old Chao, seeming to have felt something unusual, obliquely and silently avoided him. Afterwards, not a single raindrop dared to touch the turquoise robe anymore.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 55: A Legend Reappears on a Rainy Night

    Chapter 55: A Legend Reappears on a Rainy Night


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In recent years, the Fish Dragon Gang dominated the gangdom in Chang¡¯an. All the people knew that there were several valiant and distinctive figures, who were much more mighty than normal gang members, in the leadership of Fish Dragon Gang: Chang III (known as indifference), Qi IV (cruelty), Liu V (peremptoriness), Fei VI (ferociousness), and Chen VII (insidiousness). Except for Mr. Qi, who was famous for his cruelty and fought from the bottom level of Jianghu world, the other figures could easily, without doubt, establish their new world in different ces, no matter if in Western City or Southern City.


    Many people thought that these men, probably unsatisfied with their current position, would leave the Fish Dragon Gang to seek new prospects or even rece their leader through betrayal. However, these five men still closely followed their boss after so many years and never left¡ªbecause their leader was Spring Breeze Pavilion Old Chao.


    Although few people in Chang¡¯an had ever seen Old Chao show his attacking talent, or in more precise words, those aged people who had seen it years ago had already died, no one dared to despise him or simply regard him as a paper tiger that could only rely on brotherhood and friendship rather than his own power. That was because everyone understood that, for the figure who could control such a man as Chang III, it was impossible that the sword on his waist was merely the essory of a schr.


    His name¡ªSpring Breeze Pavilion Old Chao¡ªwas a shadow floating over all his enemies. They wondered what would happen if he unsheathed the sword on his waist, but no one dared to have a try. They knew clearly that a bloody carnage would take ce at night in Chang¡¯an once his sword was unsheathed.


    Lord Meng of Southern City, sensing that his team had been subdued by Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s movement of gripping his sword, popped open his eyes and then fiercely shouted, "He is fighting alone and he isn¡¯t a celestial being! Come on! Go kill him!"


    In this world, there was nock of madcap and reckless people, no shortage of hermits seeking a chance to shoot for fame by killing a legendary figure, and no short of followers who suddenly became brave due to arge crowd of people. With Lord Meng¡¯s shout, hundreds of men from various gangs in Chang¡¯an raised their steel swords and, with yelling and bawling, rushed at Old Chao from all directions!


    "I just want to go home."


    Looking at theing enemies, Chao Xiaoshu just said such a sentence. Then with a "Qianng!" sound resounding through the shabby alley, the official sword on his waist was unsheathed like a flood dragon, stabbing towards the headmost man in a seemingly slow, but fast way.


    Looking at the back of Chao Xiaoshu, Ning Que was holding the hilt with his right hand, but he didn¡¯t pull out the extremely sharp podao that was recently whetted. He wanted to see the actual strength of the legend from the gangdom of Chang¡¯an. What¡¯s more, he was worried that the moment he unsheathed his podao, a bolt of lightning would mistakenly kill him, given that Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s previous words were too pretentious, which might have caused the retribution of nature.


    Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s sword was normal in style, length, and width. There was nothing special about the de either. However, the moment the rapidly moving sword scattered the raindrops, many wispy stripes could be vaguely seen on the sword. These stripes were not some kinds of Fu, more like several gaps filled with mercury.


    When a very awesome figure said a fact, many people would have thought of him as pretentious. Staring at that sword, Ning Que watched the scene as the ¡¯normal¡¯ sword, in thest moment, precisely and easily pped onto that man¡¯s chest, instead of stabbing. He eventually realized that Old Chao¡¯s previous sentence was not just for unting. Instead, this figure was mighty and impressive.


    The t and straight sword was, while in the air, forcibly bent to a curved shape by a kind of force. Compared with its speed, the raindrops falling from the sky were extremely slow. The moment the sword pped against that man¡¯s chest, the kind of force suddenly went out from the sword, directly making the chest deeply concave with a "Pa!" sound!


    A loud and depressive noise as if hitting on heavy leather!


    A disastrous and suddenly disappearing howl!


    The headmost reckless man from Southern City, having no chance to see Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s face clearly, was directly pped away like a kite. Tragically, the ¡¯kite¡¯ flew over the dpidated Spring Breeze Pavilion, and atst fell to the ground about 50 meters away!


    ...


    ...


    The hundreds of shouting and rushing gang members suddenly became quiet. Their eyes, subconsciously following theirpanion¡¯s movement through the air, rolled a long arc in the dark and rainy sky. Then, horror immediately filled up their bodies, causing their hands on their swords to be chill.


    They had imagined that there might be a gust of blustering wind or bloody rain when Spring Breeze Pavilion Old Chao unsheathed the official sword on his waist. However, they had never envisioned that a thin cyan-steel sword could shoot a heavy man to such a far distance. How awesome the force inside that thin sword was, just like the big hammer held by a deity! The strength was formidable enough to make an upheaval!


    No, the sword wasn¡¯t like the hammer in a deity¡¯s hand! Instead, it seemed more like the steel mace held by a celestial!


    Those gang members rushing near Chao Xiaoshu were all shocked to a standstill by this thunderous strike! However, Chao Xioashu didn¡¯t stop his forward steps in the rain. He, chicly moving forward with his sword, attacked with each step, with his wrist slightly raised and the indigo robe gently vibrating. On every offense, the thin sword uttered a hum, totally showing its flexible shape. Covered by raindrops and cold wind, like a steel mace it roaringly attacked the enemies. One strike, one flying man!


    If the sword touched someone¡¯s chest, he would be thwartwise pped away against the alley wall and then fell with blood spitting. If the weapon contacted someone¡¯s leg, he would be thrown away with a somersault in the dark air, and thennded hard on the ground, vomiting blood. The sword was swaying in the rain, uttering a depressing hum and ceaselessly pping the reckless men away. The tragic and horrible howling resounded through the Spring Breeze Pavilion which was so still and sullen before.


    Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s movement of swaying the sword looked very easy and casual, even could be described as careless, just like driving off mosquitoes on a summer night. Not any change could be noticed in his expression; peaceful as usual. Comparatively, Ning Que, who was behind Old Chao, couldn¡¯t remain calm anymore, with an amazement shing through his bright eyes in the rainy night.


    Chao Xiaoshu, instead of choosing a morefortable and more efficient way like stabbing the enemies to death, preferred to p away the enemies with the thin sword. At the beginning, it confused Ning Que. Later he came to know that only in this way could Chao Xiaoshu keep a clearing around him, avoiding the enemies¡¯ sudden and massive siege.


    However, such a potent and even arrogantbat mode would consume much more strength and mind. If Old Chao didn¡¯t intend to shock the hundreds of reckless men in this way, it must mean that he has the confidence to p all his enemies to death directly!


    Ning Que, looking at the back of middle-aged Chao Xiaoshu, who overbearingly moved forward on this rainy night, and then looking at the howling men under Old Chao¡¯s sword and the moaning men lying on the muddy water in the distance, thought while licking his lips,


    I knew you were mighty, but I never imagined that you were so formidable.


    The several gang leaders of Chang¡¯an, who hid among the crowds, had already been frightened and heartbroken. Today, they finally saw Spring Breeze Pavilion Old Chao unsheathe his sword, but they would rather have not seen it throughout their entire lives. In the past, they also made a good living under the shadow of the Fish Dragon Gang, so they thought the strength gap was not so big. Furthermore, they believed there was a possibility of victory for them if they fought to their utmost. Until now, on this chill and rainy spring night, these men just miserably realized these cruel facts, which were different from their assumptions.


    They could be alive, just because the Fish Dragon Gang and the middle-aged man disdained to notice them.


    A legend was a legend. Those who could be remembered as a legend, no matter if in the Jianghu world, the brothel, or officialdom, inevitably had their reasons to be a legend. Further, this fact wouldn¡¯t be changed at all even if the legend had been absent for several years.


    ...

 Chapter 56: Chao Xiaoshu! Chao Xiaoshu!

    Chapter 56: Chao Xiaoshu! Chao Xiaoshu!


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    They had seen their brave subordinates knocked away by the middle-aged man, who, gently waving his sleeves, wasing closer and closer. And despite the romantic night, Lord Meng, Jun Jie, and The Old Cat, who were bosses controlling Southern City and Western City, began to tremble slightly and could not suppress their strong desires to retreat.


    However, thinking of the true noble standing behind them and those two aces back in the government, they clenched their teeth, emitting the most severely fierce roar. "Everyone charge together and surround and kill him! Throw the axes!"


    The severe roar resounded throughout the streets and alleys of Spring Breeze Pavilion. Quite strangely, after hearing the words "surround and kill him", those in the crowd, who had used their remaining courage to carry knives and roar to charge forward, dispersed from Ning Que and Chao Xiaoshu at their fastest speed. With the crowd in front spreading out, there were two rows of strong men appearing. They had coarse cloth belts tied to their waists and four small axes inside each cloth belt, and carried two small axes in their hands and were ready to throw them!


    Because warrior spirit was promoted among the Tang and a brave atmosphere flowed in the courts and rural areas, carrying official swords was not prohibited in the capital, Chang¡¯an. Even for weapons like the podao, long hilt broadswords, the government wouldn¡¯t bother one as long as he didn¡¯t show them off in the middle of busy areas and streets. However, as for bows and arrows that were kind of long-ranged weapons, its supervision wasparatively stricter. Especially for the enormously powerful crossbow arrow; it was even strictly prohibited amongmon people. As a result of that situation, dozens of flying axes splitting the air had be the terrifying weapons!


    On this ughter-filled, rainy night, Chao Xiaoshu changed his calm expression for the first time. Seeing two rows of flying axes from a distant wall and showing a fearless expression whichcked even vignce, he just frowned slightly, seemingly feeling a bit troublesome. He shook his head and said, "You know what to do."


    These words were natural for Ning Que, but Ning Que... didn¡¯t know what to do at that moment. If the enemies¡¯ axes came flying out like the rain, he was sure that he himself could flee but he knew that Chao Xiaoshu wouldn¡¯t choose to leave before killing or defeating everyone. Just at that instant, seeing Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s back, he suddenly thought of the battlefield at Northern Mountain Road and Old Lv Qingchen¡¯s words, with a bit of shock shing in his eyes.


    As if hearing the sound of shock in his mind, that lonely cyan-steel sword in Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s hand hummed and vibrated at an extremely high speed, making the rainwater and blood on its body change into bits of powder. It then suddenly disappeared into a gray, blurry, flowing shadow rushing into the rain to fly towards those two rows of flying axes!


    Though like a gray, blurry and flowing shadow, it was truly a fast and swift sword with a subtle and smart moving orbit. Where there was the sword passing, there were those chaotically scrambling spring dreams like the pierced rain beads suspending in the night sky. It pierced the outermostyer of the rain beads, thoroughly piercing the inner heart, and then pierced out to go through the outmostyer of one¡¯s skin and his flesh and bone. Finally, it pierced out with falling fingers, which had firmly held onto the axe handles like lotus roots, one by one, with blood spraying from the severed parts!


    In front of the wall and among the alleys, there was only a cracking sound of the straight sword¡¯s tip piercing through raindrops and the continuous sound of severing fingers. There were uncountable fingers that had firmly held onto axe handles sprinkling down together with the raindrops. Then the heavy axes followed, falling and smashing onto the ground full of rainwater with a muffled sound, followed by the sound of countless wretched howls!


    With the fastest action and reaction, two of them had already thrown the axes from their hands when Spring Breeze Pavilion Old Chao first raised his sword. However, the next moment, that gray, blurry, flowing shadow of the sword had easily swept past their wrists and caused a whirlwind of blood. They unexpectedly threw the axes with their hands at the same time, drawing out a wretched line of blood, and ghastly falling on the nearby floor, which looked exceptionally bloody!


    Spring Breeze Pavilion was silent on this rainy night. Standing amidst the rain, Chao Xiaoshu looked around at the hundreds in the Chang¡¯an crowd and heard the miserable howls caused by his own flying sword alternately appearing and disappearing, showing calmness on his face.


    With a pale face, Lord Meng of Southern City pointed a trembling finger at Chao Xiaoshu who was standing outside the pavilion and shouted like an insane woman. "Chao Xiaoshu!... Chao Xiaoshu! How can you, Chao Xiaoshu, be... a cultivator? You... you can not be a Great Sword Master!"


    ...


    ...


    "What kind of person do you need around you?"


    "Be quick, strong, and brave enough to kill people with your eyes open, and you can never let anything fall on me."


    Staring at Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s back, Ning Que saw those two slightly trembling hands dangling outside of the indigo robe¡¯s sleeves and couldn¡¯t help but feel a bit stiff. The fact that the thin sword changed into a soundless and gray shadow finally proved what he had guessed and made him finally understand the dialogue inside the shop from before.


    At the battle at Northern Mountain Road, that Great Sword Master, who had been expelled from the Academy, had a martial warrior as an escort-servant close to his side. After Lv Qingchen used a scheme to entice and kill that Great Sword Master, he immediately killed that escort-servant. It was precisely because cultivators like Sword Masters and Psyche Masters most feared being approached by killers in battle, just like Spring Breeze Pavilion Old Chao, who had just finally shown his true strength.


    Just then, Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s psychic powers and primordial Qi were wholly tied to that blurry, unpredictable flying sword. Though looking powerful, he had already lost all his defensive abilities with no sword in his hand. If someone of the opposing side could break through that flying sword or secretly approached to raid him, he would fall into utmost danger.


    In the fierce fights of past years, Chao Xiaoshu had those rumored fierce brothers as escort-servants at his side. But tonight, his brothers had all been locked down in their camps by the government officials. So he needed to find someone, someone he could trust and powerful enough to protect him at close range.


    Therefore, he went to Lin 47th Street in the pitter-patter spring rain and entered into that calligraphy shop called the Old Brush Pen Shop, standing on the wet ground outside the threshold and looking at thatd who groaned a sigh and ate noodles. Then he said with a slight smile,


    "I¡¯m going to kill.


    "I need a man at my side."


    Chao Xiaoshu only knew what Ning Que had done in the past but didn¡¯t know what kind of person he was. It was a gamble, no doubt, to randomly entrust his safety and even his life to Ning Que.


    That gamble, or perhaps trust, made Ning Que feel a bit of pressure on his shoulders. He took a deep breath, tightly grasping his right hand around that hilt on his back aiming towards the sky, and slowly pulled out that gleaming podao that was shiny and had no scratches.


    ...


    ...


    The falling rainwater was quickly stained by the gathered dust on the ground, gradually changing into a stream towards the street sidewalk¡¯s gutter, and then quickly stank of the filthy dirt around. It was precisely the environment that Chang¡¯an¡¯s rats loved the most. A rat with ulcers in its fur used its two filthy ck ws to seize a chopped human finger and excitingly continued gnawing, asionally resting to lick the blood off its fur. The rat had nothing to do with the people being ughtered, each one above its horizon. It only hoped that the blurry shadow could cut off more fingers and that the rainwater could rush those fingers right in front of it. "I Wish for Haotian Lord¡¯s blessings, for my whole family depends on your bestowments these days."


    With a pping sound, a lump whizzed over, smashing tond just in front of that rat, sshing the filthy water and blood on the ground. "Did Haotian Lord feel that I was too greedy so as to smash me to death?" The shocked rat quickly ran away, and when it was going back to the rat hole underneath the courtyard wall, it turned, a bit unwillingly, to nce at a finger nearly gnawed to bones, but firmly decided to flip its tail, and ran inside. But if it looked back again and discovered that the lump sshing filthy water and blood was a human¡¯s head, it would definitely regret its decision.


    The rat drilled out of its rat hole and it didn¡¯t get a chance to regret it. The moment that the solid Tang military boot had stomped it into pieces, maybe it was regretting that it hadn¡¯t told itspany how wonderful human flesh tasted.


    A soldier in the elite troop of the Tang slowly pulled back his foot wearing military boots, ncing at the rat¡¯s bloody flesh by his foot. And hearing the voice outside the courtyard walls, he then slowly returned to formation to describe the battle situation outside to a colleague with hand gestures. Heter bowed to nce at the crossbow arrow in his hands to verify that the rainwater did not bring problems to the machine¡¯s spring.


    Wearing dark rain cloaks, several dozens of elite troops of the Tang silently stood at the rear of the courtyard wall and held crossbow arrows in their hands. Outside the shabby Spring Breeze Pavilion¡¯s wall was the sound of killing all around, shaking the heavens. But no one had discovered them, for these officers kept silent like a group of stone carvings, no slight facial expression change, regardless of wind and rain or a fierce fight.


    Behind these elite troops of the Tang, two people were sitting inside a house on wooden floorboards covered byyers of rainwater. One was a middle-aged person with smart brows and eyes, with his whole body covered in a white robe, and beside his body was a calmly ced, somewhat small sword on the wooden floor. Another person wore a bamboo rain hat to cover his face, but he must have been a sadhu judging from the monk robe he was wearing, his wide,rge, and filthy pair of bare feet, and the copper bowl that was in front of him, under the eaves.


    The swordsman in the long robe slightly frowned, looking at the rain like a silk curtain in front of his eyes, and softly said, "It must be a Sword Master, no wonder the two of us were needed."


    The sadhu lowered his head without uttering a word, faintly hearing the sound from outside the wall of a flying sword splitting the air and hacking the rain. He stared at the copper bowl below the wooden stairs, watching the rainwater in it as it was disturbed by newly iing raindrops, and gradually felt that his own Ocean of Qi became a little disturbed. Thus, he then lowered his head more, but more slowly and firmly kneaded the ironwood prayer beads on his wrist with his fingers.


    This estate was Chao Mansion, belonging to Spring Breeze Pavilion Old Chao. This open, wooden building was the Rain-enjoying Building for listening to the rain, where Old Chao asionally came to act like a schr and listen to the rain when he was idle. These elite troops of the Tang and two strong men were waiting for him to return here.


    Outside the courtyard wall on another side of Chao Mansion, two horse carriages stopped at the opening of thene where the spring rain kept pattering. In front of the horse carriages, one energetic horse was somewhat disturbed by the spring rain, who sometimes wanted to blow its nose but was unable to utter a sound or wanted to kick its two hooves forward but dared not move. One horse carriage turned into a deep silence, while inside another carriage came the sound of low, deep coughs from time to time.


    No one knew who was inside these two horse carriages. But if Chao Xiaoshu now could see the middle-aged, fat person standing beside the horse carriage, he could certainly guess that the person inside the carriage was not an average one. Looking like amoner, that middle-aged fat person wasn¡¯t famous in Chang¡¯an. He didn¡¯t have any official rank identifications. However, many government officials would curry favor with him when seeing him, because they all knew that he always dealt with something that was inconvenient for the prince to do.


    But even if this person, an even more awesome figure than Prime Minister Chambein, was drenched all over by ice-cold spring rain, he still dared not to enter and sit in the carriage to avoid the rain but only stood near the carriage with his back slightly bent, showing an exceptionally humble attitude.


    ...

 Chapter 57: Horse Carriages in the Rain, a Sword Splitting Two into Three

    Chapter 57: Horse Carriages in the Rain, a Sword Splitting Two into Three


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    It was a cold rainy night at Spring Breeze Pavilion and the alley outside Chao Mansion.


    That middle-aged fat man stood beside the carriage, bending over in the rain, and said in a low voice, "Chao Xiaoshu is indeed a cultivator, whose state seems to be good. Now the situation bes a little tricky..."


    The person inside the carriage coughed twice and indifferently said, "Don¡¯t worry. Are the two persons that the Ministry of Revenue had hired in the mansion? Even if those two can¡¯t stop that guy from the Jianghu world, it¡¯s never toote for us to do it... As for those people in Jianghu world, we don¡¯t need to care about their deaths. Even in the dark gutters of Chang¡¯an, there are also some rats dying every day."


    Several hundred brave men from the Jianghu world in Chang¡¯an flooded over from every side. Though seen as rats in a dark gutter by Supermundane Experts, they exploded an extremely amazing fighting strength and bloodiness at that moment of life and death.


    But Spring Breeze Pavilion Old Chao was a cultivator, and they were just ordinary people of the Jianghu world. The gap between the two side¡¯s fighting strength was like that between an eagle and an ant. That shadow of sword pierced in and through a leg with a spray of blood, then revolving around a neck to chop off a very big head, and cutting the fingers of a man with an axe in his hands, which caused the man waving the axe to fall in the rain. Before that shadow of sword alternately appearing and disappearing, the strongest fighting strength was not even worth a single stroke and those brave men¡¯s bloodiness would always hopelessly break down when theirpanions kept falling.


    Chao Xiaoshu calmly went forward, whose indigo robe had long been soaked by the rain. But like each time Ning Que had seen him, no one would think that this number one man in Chang¡¯an at night was having a hard time. As he walked in the rain, he was as natural as the spring rain, whose aura emitting from his body was like the spring rain moistening the earth, making people feel no way or no desire to resist.


    The mobs from the western city and southern city of Chang¡¯an saw the middle-aged maning towards them in the rain, as if seeing a refined and cultured demon nod to them and raise its demonic ws to squeeze them into pieces calmly. With full horror in the hearts, they could no longer suppress their inner fear and finally scattered after hearing somebody yell out.


    Those people, Lord Meng of Southern City, Junjie of Western City, and the Old Cat, had already quietly slipped away. Around the broken Spring Breeze Pavilion corpses were being constantly washed by the rain and the heavily injured men groaning, except one single standing person. Between heaven and earth, there was only peacefulness¡ªif people ignored those corpses and wounded men in the rain, the smell of blood that the falling rainwater could not rinse, and one smashed corner of Spring Breeze Pavilion.


    Ning Que silently followed behind Chao Xiaoshu and walked forward. He tightly held onto his hilt with both hands, putting the sharp de drenched in the rain before his chest, and he had not used it once from beginning to end. The one-sided massacre ended just like that, but he did not rx himself or feel embarrassed, for he knew that the real battle had yet toe. If you had the chance to follow a cultivator to fight, then you would own an extremely high opportunity to meet one, or even several, cultivators from the opposite side.


    With one step and two, Chao Xiaoshu walked to the front door of his own mansion¡¯s courtyard. He did not have his sword in his sheath, for that sword was passing the nightly rain where no one knew. He stretched out his empty hands to lightly push, making the hinge of the door that had been soaked by the rain give out a bit of strange groaning sound.


    The courtyard¡¯s door was pushed open and dozens of elite troops of the Tang in dark raincoats carried crossbows to greet him with unswervingly cold expressions. On the Rain-enjoying Building¡¯s wooden floor behind the rain curtain, the middle-aged man in starry white robes slightly frowned, with the short sword at his side lowly beeping. The sadhu wearing a bamboo hat slowly raised his head, with the prayer beads in his hands slightly stiffening. The two horse carriages far away in the alley remained calm as before, but the coughing sound from one of them disappeared.


    It was still tranquil, with a light wind sound rustling among the tree leaves and roof pirs. And the sound of pattering rain lightly echoed between the courtyard and the small pond. Looking at each other, no one chose to be the first to attack.


    Silence may be very long or very short. Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s gaze crossed the troops carrying crossbows, falling onto the sadhu and the swordsman in the pavilion, and calmly said, "This is my house. Please get out."


    "No one will leave," the swordsman in starry white robes calmly responded.


    Chao Xiaoshu saw the short sword lightly shaking with a craving whistling at that person¡¯s side. As ifing up with a thought, he suddenly spoke up to ask, "Is it you that killed my little brother in the rain a few days ago?"


    The robed swordsman leaned slightly forward, indicating that he was exactly that person.


    With his lips slightly turned up, Chao Xiaoshu looked at him and said, "Then today you¡¯ll be the first to die."


    It kept raining, following the tiles and eaves of the Rain-enjoying Building to flow down like a water curtain. The copper bowl in front of that sadhu kept receiving the rainwater, gradually umting to overflow out just at that moment finally.


    Chao Xiaoshu attacked.


    He raised his right arm, facing the heavy rain curtain and those elite troops of the Tang tightly grasping crossbows to wait, and pointed towards that robed swordsman in the Rain-enjoying Building from a distance.


    With one movement of pointing out, in the rainy night suddenly echoed a shrill cry. That thin sword, hidden from beginning to end in the nightly spring rain scene, finally revealed itself like a sh of lightning, piercing forward from the Rain-enjoying Building!


    With his pupils shrunk, the robed swordsman tightened and shot the middle finger of his right hand hanging at his side. Then the short sword at his side, already readilying out, jolted out with a clear whisper and transformed into a clear light, guarding in front of him.


    Chao Xiaoshu had said that today he was the first person to die, indeed having pointed at him through the rain curtain. But Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s sword¡¯s first attack objective wasn¡¯t him but that sadhu beside!


    Although that sadhu was silent throughout the process, he was constantly alert of watching around for nearby movements and sounds. If the Qi of Heaven and Earth had some slight fluctuations, he knew that Chao Xiaoshu was already about to act. Though not knowing that he was the target of the sword attack, out of a Buddha disciple¡¯s instinct, he used his palm to beat a board beside him severely. With the shaking of smoke and dust in the wooden board, the copper bowl in the front of the wooden stairs seemed to be kicked by someone and suddenly flew up, causing a countless spattering of water to ssh in the sky.


    The gray shadow of sword cleaved through the air to move forward, prating through the water sshes, as sparkling and translucent as zed tiles, but was blocked by the copper bowl. The high-speed, sharp, and thin sword viciously collided with the thick and clumsy copper bowl, giving out a clear and loud sound that nearly made people¡¯s eardrums split!


    The sadhu¡¯s face outside his bamboo rain hat was kind of dark, and at that moment became extremely pale, for he obviously suffered some losses. And at that time, the robed swordsman moved his eyebrows and flicked his wrist at a fast speed, making his index finger and middle fingerbine together as a sword to point towards Chao Xiaoshu standing in the front of the mansion. The short sword that had flown in a half circle around his body abruptly changed its orbit to be a single cyan light, stabbing straight for Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s face. Just then, Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s flying sword was directly colliding with the sadhu¡¯s copper bowl, so how could Old Chao defend himself?


    Ning Que, tightly gripping his long hilt and silently standing behind Chao Xiaoshu, moved his body rapidly to dodge to the left. Just when he was about to dodge away from Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s body, he forced his steps to a halt, not out of fear of the robed swordsman¡¯s weapon or that cyan-light short sword, but out of finding no need for himself to act now.


    After crashing into the sadhu¡¯s copper bowl, Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s flying sword did not break through that copper bowl but still did not fall to the ground. Through borrowing the fierce strike¡¯s strength, the unknown cracks as well as streaks on the thin, cyan-steel sword abruptly erged and separated from the sword, fantastically transforming into five thin sword des in the sky, and quickly flew to shoot out!


    Something could be born from nothing; one into two, two into three, and three into five.


    Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s sword transformed into five sword des.


    ...

 Chapter 58: A Battle of Two Persons

    Chapter 58: A Battle of Two Persons


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s sword transformed into five sword des.


    Three sword des buzzed as they evaded the copper bowl and shot towards the sadhu. The remaining two sword des did not return back to protect Old Chao, and instead,pletely ignoring the robed swordsman¡¯s cyan-light short sword, and sharply tilted to stab right towards him!


    Even though it was a battle between cultivators, this middle-aged man in indigo robe was still concentrating on what was the motto of Chang¡¯an Jianghu world, " If you kill me, you¡¯ll also die. I¡¯ve been cultivating in Chang¡¯an Jianghu world for many years, so I don¡¯t fear death or anything else. While you¡¯ve cultivated under the wing of famous masters for many years, don¡¯t you fear death? "


    The robed swordsman feared death. With a slightly pale face, hebined two fingers as one sword to strike, forcefully recalling the cyan-light short sword that had firmly flown out half way. At this most dangerous moment, it struck two sword des attacking towards his eyes. But this movement made his right hand slightly tremble and blue veins on the back of his white hand visible.


    That sadhu nearby, heavily concentrating on those three sword des attacking him, had found it toote to recall that heavy copper bowl to protect him. When he clumsily shouted a vague word, the prayer beads hanging between his thumb and forefinger started to hover in the air and whizzed as it rotated around his body. Only a series of mes were visible around and no one knew how many times they have collided with the unexpected three sword des!


    The shadow of the sword arrived, piercing through the air, and the copper bowl rose with water. The cyan-light short sword pierced straight towards the mansion entrance. Finally the dull gray shadow of sword became five sword des, the cyan-light short sword fled backwards like lightning, and the prayer beads floated to guard the body. Each section contained a terrifying danger. The three strongmen would die with spilling blood as long as there was a single mistake among them.


    In the world of the strong, the scale of time was fundamentally different. What seemed like aplicated, dangerous and long course was only a very short instant in real life. In fact, at that moment, the water spilling over from that copper bowl was still transforming into sshes of zed tiles in the air that had not ever fallen on the floor. Rain continued to fall slowly. The elite troop of Tang with crossbows did not have any reaction at all.


    Rat-tat! Rat-a-tat!


    The elite troop of Tang reacted as soon as possible, quickly pushing the trigger to make tens of arrows carrying the powerful wind-ripping force shoot towards the mansion entrance. At this moment, those five sword des were fighting with two cultivators inside Rain-enjoying Building. Chao Xiaoshu had no ability to protect himself and could only watch the crossbow arrows rush towards him, on the verge of turning him into a sick facsimile of a hedgehog.


    And just in this instant, when the crossbow arrows were about to hit Chao Xiaoshu, one shiny, snow-bright de light shone in the courtyard, makingyers of the rain visible and sucked in all the densely-packed crossbow arrows!


    With the boots struck in watery puddles before Chao Mansion¡¯s main entrance, like nails chiseling into the ground, and two hands firmly gripping onto the hilt like steel, Ning Que circled to the front of Chao Xiaoshu, tightening and rxing the muscles of his wrist and forearm at a speed difficult to imagine. He drove that snow-bright podao swiftly swiveling around the wrist, which changed into a silvery circr shield to illuminate the old ck mask on his face and batted those densely-packed crossbow arrows away.


    "Bang, bang", a tinkling shattering sound was heard before the two as numerous crossbow arrows were batted away by the powerful de. They flew in all directions at a high speed, sticking into the signboard of Chao Mansion, whichter gave out a flurry of thudding sounds.


    Tens of crossbow arrows fell unexpectedly like rapid rain. Even though he had good podao techniques, Ning Que could notpletely block them. But at this moment, with shrank pupils and a sharp sight like an eagle flying in the open sky of a grasnd, he saw all the details before him and kept the state of mind as calm as an eagle, relying on his senses to intercept the shooting angles of crossbow arrows. He waved his podao only at the arrows that might injure himself and Chao Xiaoshu, ignoring the rest.


    In this instant, thisd, who had gone through countless struggles of life and death, perfectly presented a polished sensitivity to danger and good judgement polished by the terrors he had gone through. Those crossbow arrows that seemed to be especially dangerous brushed past his earlobe, prating through his robe fiercely and piercing into rain-soaked blue gstone cracks without causing any harm to him.


    "Attack!" The leader of the elite troop of Tang yelled sternly.


    Following the order, the elite troop of Tang that had fired one round of crossbow arrows split into two groups. One group quickly pulled the springs and set arrows, while the other group of more than ten soldiers silently drew the steel des at their waists and came charging at Chao Mansion¡¯s main entrance.


    Clump! Clump! Clump! Clump! A Tang elite soldier trod repeatedly on the wet ground with two feet, as if they were following thest round of crossbow arrows. Before getting to the main entrance, he howled once and wielded a de with his two hands before leaping up high, hacking down towards Ning Que¡¯s head with an irresistible force.


    The two eyes showing from the ck mask lowered slightly. Ning Que looked at the wet ground in front, as though not seeing the ferocious strike about tond, but only flicked his wrist to turn his podao¡¯s edge into a white brightness, hacking at thest two crossbow arrows precisely. Then... the podao¡¯s gleam suddenly disappeared.


    In the pitch-dark rainy night, there was light hidden inside the building. When the podao was raised, the edge that shone with big movements became a bright surface. There was only one possibility if the podao¡¯s shine disappeared without a trace. The podao had to be in a state of stillness at the moment.


    At this moment, themon-styled podao in his hand was in that Tang elite soldier¡¯s neck, which was wedged deeply into the neck roughly half its width.


    The podao¡¯s edge tore open the skin, and tightly mped in bones and flesh. Blood gushed out from the very tiny tip of the podao¡¯s edge, and then was quickly washed clean by the rain which was getting heavier. Ning Que held onto the hilt¡¯s bottom with his left hand and the opposite top of the hilt with his right hand, slightly lowering his head to watch the muddy rain blossoms sshing on the blue gstones, and then maintained his posture of lowered knee and turned waist.


    Time seemed to have stopped, but it would not truly stop. Ning Que pulled his left arm at a lightning fast speed and the podao¡¯s edge in the Tang elite soldier¡¯s neck emitted a sound that would make one¡¯s teeth chatter. That was the sound of that metal grinding against strong neck bones. Just as the Tang elite soldier died and fell over with both eyes open, Ning Que tightly gripped and pushed forward the hilt with his left hand. The podao¡¯s edge abruptly jumped up with rainwater and pierced into the second enemy¡¯s throat.


    With his two hands crossed to grasp the podao¡¯s long handle, he leaped to and fro within a small range like a quick leopard in the grasnd. Ning Que shed with his opposite hand to chop at an enemy attacking from the left side, and then immediately spun his body to attack abruptly. With the podao¡¯s edge, he cut through the rain curtain, a de through the night scene and the fourth enemy¡¯s shoulder.


    After the face-to-face encounter, four elite troops of Tang died underneath his de, with sprayed blood all over from their ravaged bodies that seemed to be even more intense than the rain. Ning Que had kept his promise, not letting a single person or crossbow arrow injure Chao Xiaoshu. As for the more and more boundless rain, it was not the thing he should care about.


    The elite troop of Tang originally thought that they hade across the best opportunity to attack when the three cultivators were amidst a battle of life and death using Qi of Heaven and Earth as the stage. But they had not thought that thed silently standing behind Chao Xiaoshu was such a violent character. Probably intimidated by Ning Que¡¯s sharp and strange de techniques, the elite troop of Tang felt that ck mask was a bit terrifying, subconsciously slowing down their advancing steps.


    Ning Que gripped the podao with both hands. The rain-soaked ck mask raised and fell slightly, and then he frowned.


    The Tang¡¯s army was the most disciplined army in the world with the greatest fighting strength. These soldiers showing up in Chao Mansion tonight were Tang elite soldiers, who would absolutely not retreat whening across fearsome enemies as long as their superiors did not give the retreating order. In other words, even if there was a ten-thousand-zhang abyss in front of them, they would still bravely charge over and not slow down without an order.


    When the triggers gave out the sound of "whoosh, whoosh, whoosh", the torrential rain plopped as it fell down, beating atop Rain-enjoying Building¡¯s roof and making the solid blue gstones emit a thunderous noise that sessfully concealed the former three tiny sounds of triggers.


    But Ning Que did not rx for the whole process, gazing at the seemingly fearful elite troop of Tang, and tightly gripped the hilt with both hands, carefully listened to any other sounds in the rainy night. So at the first instance of hearing the three extremely soft sounds of triggers, he had made the judgement: Shenhou crossbow!


    Shenhou crossbow was the most terrifying weapon carried by the Tang soldier. With a storing box inside, it could fire ten crossbow arrows at one time. Even more fearsome was that with a special design of trigger, Shenhou crossbow could shoot out crossbow arrows at an especially fast speed, which had in history brought about countless glories when Tang Empire conquered thend. Unfortunately, the special steel required to make Shenhou crossbow was bing rarer and rarer, and it gradually phased out of the Tang troops¡¯ standard equipment. No one would have thought that it would actually appear tonight.


    In the beginning, the elite troop of Tang ambushing in Chao Mansion had not used Shenhou crossbow, for they did not have the confidence of using Shenhou crossbow to sessfully shoot good-condition Chao Xiaoshu dead. Besides, thatd wearing a ck mask was unworthy of Shenhou crossbow to deal with. They originally thought of using normal crossbow arrows as well as the sadhu and the robed swordsman to gradually wear down Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s strength beforeunching a final fatal attack with Shenhou crossbow. But the situation now did not allow them to do so. Without Shenhou crossbow, they could not even kill thatd wearing a ck mask, not to mention Chao Xiaoshu.


    A raindrop of a soybean size rolled along from the top of the ck mask to the bottom. Within such a short time, Ning Que had figured out those things, and at the same time had silently put his left hand out of the long hilt, extending to his own back with his fingertip nearly touching that big ck umbre wrapped by coarse cloth.


    He was not a powerful cultivator but just an ordinaryd. Even though countless bloody battles made him slightly unordinary, he still did not have the confidence to just rely on the podao in his hand to ovee the Shenhou crossbow.


    Just in that instant, a series of tiny but clear sounds resonated within the rain in Chao Mansion again. These sounds were even clearer than the sounds of raindrops falling on instrument strings and much faster than the most enigmatic musician¡¯s plucking movements.


    Ding ding ding ding... Ding ding ding... Ding ding... Ding!


    Five extremely dim shadows of sword silently returned from Rain-enjoying Building, flying back and forth to dance like bees in the fields at high speed in the courtyard and weaving a thick that did not even let the wind pass. They captured the trajectories of each Shenhou crossbow¡¯s crossbow arrows precisely and intercepted all ten of those arrows to strike them away as if they were alive!


    Standing in the rain, Chao Xiaoshu showed nothing but calmness on his slightly pale face. When he slowly opened his right hand hanging outside of his sleeve, those five sword des whistled to fly to his front, circling around them in a fast-flying speed. The curtain of rain surrounding the two was pierced with multiple holes by the des, emitting several white lines.

 Chapter 59: The wind, the Rain and the Moonlight Could All Enter the Net

    Chapter 59: The wind, the Rain and the Moonlight Could All Enter the Net


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Five sword des flew at high speed in the rainy night, uttering either graven or sharp whistles like some kind of weird musical instrument, each falling next to Chao Xiaoshu and Ning Que, before unceasingly alternating in positions. Five flowing rays of light sprinkled over the courtyard with green branches and blue gstones.


    Amidst the rain, the flickering sword des flew easily and smoothly, sometimes sweeping past the floor sttering rainwater, sometimes gouging a deep mark on the wall and sometimes flying past the bodies of the four soldiers fell by Ning Que leaving additional blood stains on them, and the dying soldiers would twitch when cut by the sword de.


    Both Chao Xiaoshu and Ning Que stood within the invisible swordprised of the five sword des. Each streak that made up the was sharp and unstoppable, a harbinger of death. Neither the stiff blue gstone, wet walls nor the corpses lying on the ground, could blunt or soften the streak at all.


    The wind, the rain and the moonlight could all enter the. Only humans were unable.


    No one dared to set foot into this great invisible covering the surrounding area of 30 feet. Even the bravest elite troop of Tang would not forcefully enter, aware of the threat of death. The sadhu and the robed swordsman were trying to control their breathing hastily in the Rain-savoring Building. The copper bowl, prayer beads and cyan-light short sword suspended around them quietly.


    Astonished, the robed swordsman from South Jin Kingdom looked at Chao Xiaoshu in the rain, and said bitterly, "I hadn¡¯t thought that a gang leader from Chang¡¯an would be a Great Sword Master at superior grade Seethrough State, even just an inch away from the Knowing Destiny State. Can this be the strength and secret of the Tang Empire? In that case, you must know that this is the reason why the nobility of the Tang wanted to kill you. The noble has said that your life will be spared if you¡¯re willing to surrender.


    Chao Xiaoshu raised his left hand, pulling off a green leaf that hadnded on his frontpel, and then raised his head to look at the robed swordsman. Calmly, he said, "You killed my brother, so whether you surrender or not, you must die."


    The robed swordsman remained silent.


    The sadhu wearing a rice farmer¡¯s hat watched Ning Que, who was beside Chao Xiaoshu. He looked at the ck mask on his face and his familiar yet slightly weird hairstyle. With a frown, he asked, "Youngster, are you from Yuelun Kingdom?"


    Ning Que looked back at the sadhu with no words or any response, merely knitting his brows above the ck mask.


    Chao Xiaoshu looked towards the elite troop of Tang on the opposite side of the courtyard, murmuring with his gaze gradually turning ice-cold, "One is a Great Sword Master from South Jin Kingdom, one is a sadhu from Yuelun Kingdom, and you guys.... are soldiers from our great Tang Empire. You colluded with foreign people for random orders from those so-called big shots. It is quite disgraceful."


    The leader of the Tang troop was unable to face up to Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s cold and threatening gaze. He lowered his head, seemingly not wanting rainwater to get into his eyes and seemingly a bit ashamed.


    But if the strong cultivators partook the battles, the battles would always be controlled by the cultivators. Ning Que and the average persons like the elite troop of Tang had no option but to assist rather than control the process of the battle. The cultivator consumed the energy, physical strength, and especially the Psyche Power extremely rapidly in battle. When they were incapable of oveing the enemy at a stroke they would typically choose to withdraw from the attack and regte their breathing. With respect to the previous situation, the brief dialogue during the rainy night had urred because the Tang troops made use of the Shenhou crossbow. Chao Xiaoshu was worried that Ning Que had no way of reacting, thus taking a risk to recall his swords.


    "Let¡¯s end this."


    Chao Xiaoshu said these words tranquilly, and then raised his right arm pointing towards the Rain-savoring Building. The state of his strength was above both the Yuelun Kingdom sadhu and the South Jin Kingdom swordsman. He had the strength and the ability to choose when to fight.


    Exactly at this moment.


    The five sword des shuttling back and forth at high speed within the courtyard turned suddenly, moving their trajectory as though hearing a clearmand, uttering a sharper whistle, ripping, tittering, frying, burning, prating the Rain-savoring Building.


    The sadhu turned nervous and vignt, open-eyed with his two hands shifting the mudras rapidly between his knees. The copper bowl suspending in front of his body also flew to meet the enemy, along with the string of ironwood prayer beads, circling around his body.


    The swordsman from South Jin Kingdom harrumphed. Hisplexion was as pale as snow, while his lips were as bright as blood. His Psyche Power prated through the Breath of nature inside and outside the Rain-savoring Building through the various orifices of Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow, controlling the cyan-light short sword that flew like lightning.


    No!"


    The sadhu¡¯s pupils suddenly shrank. The light gray sword shadows concealed in the boundless spring rain were barely visible. It was only when the whistling flew towards the Rain-savoring Building, that he saw clearly that there were only four, and not five!


    Where had thatst sword de flown off to?


    The sadhu was about to warn the swordsman from South Jin Kingdom beside him, but it was already toote.


    A beam of extremely faint sword shadow quietly bypassed the girth of the Rain-savoring Building, unnoticeable to the two inside the building. It slipped down the wooden pirs, and then sped up abruptly in the waist-high position, prating the extremely thick wooden pir like a hot de piercing snow. In an instant it appeared behind the swordsman¡¯s head!


    The swordsman from South Jin Kingdom sensed the chill in the air behind his head. Feeling extremely frightened, his two hands hung out of his sleeves waving madly. The cyan-light short sword suddenly paused, but had no way out to save its master.


    With a light hum, the sword de pierced into the back of his head, puncturing through his hyoid bone. It flew out carrying blood and shredded flesh askew, just like a strange bloodthirsty worm!


    The swordsman from South Jin Kingdom stared at Chao Xiaoshu with wide eyes in the rain. He leaned backwards, holding onto his throat which was spraying blood. It was only at hisst moments when he finally confirmed that the reaction speed of his opponent was indeed far beyond his own.


    Its master dead, the short sword no longer controlled by Psyche Power fell to the rainwater, sprang twice and then went still. The two sword des formerly struggling with the cyan-light short sword converged with the other three sword des and assailed at the body of the sadhu at high speed after giving a harsh whistle. It resembled the boisterous wind and rain rather than five simple dull dots.


    The five sharp-edged sword des collided with the stiff and massive copper bowl ceaselessly. Ironwood prayer beads danced at a high speed, resulting in a clear and melodious sound interspersed with the asional ng. The patch of dandelion-like golden flowers around the sadhu would bloom sometimes and be blown away by the wind at other times.


    Suddenly, innumerable holes appeared on the old frock worn by the sadhu, from which blood seeped ceaselessly. Buddhist cultivators rarely wore soft armors like ordinary cultivators. He soon became drenched in blood.


    Chao Xiaoshu looked into the Rain-savoring Building calmly. His hands hung motionlessly outside of his sleeves. The five sword des moved around as if they were plucking a melody, like five invisible fingers.


    Chao Xiaoshu raised his eyebrows slightly. His face was pale, as if the color had been washed off by the rainwater. He had discovered that the sadhu¡¯s firm willpower far exceeded his estimation. The sadhu lifted the front piece of his ck gown graciously,pletely disregarding the rain of bows and arrows surrounding him, and the elite troop of Tang rushing at him as he sat down in the torrential rain.


    Chao Xiaoshu stared at the enemy within his mansion beside the threshold of his house. His sword-like eyebrows gradually ttened. The five mysterious sword des gathered together, whistling, and coagted into a sword again. Then they thrust directly at the copper bowl without any trick or dodge!


    Just at that moment, one of the two horse carriages at the secluded intersection, washed by the heavy rain outside another enclosing wall, started moving slowly towards the gate of the Chao Mansion. The sound of hoofbeats and moving wheels were muted by the wind and rain.

 Chapter 60: Chaos in Changan

    Chapter 60: Chaos in Chang¡¯an


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The five sword des returned to the Abundant Sword. The fine drizzle within the courtyard of the Chao Mansion seemed more anxious, as if an additional invisible sun hung in the night sky. The rainwater near the Rain-savoring Building unexpectedly began to turn into white smog.


    The sword seemed not so much like the Abundant Sword for its innumerable swords contained extremely sharp des. Chao Xiaoshu gazed at the Rain-savoring Building. With his powerful consciousness, he made the thin cyan-steel sword attack the copper bowl. Then he retracted it at lightning speed, and once again stabbed at a higher speed, thus several hundreds of swords were stabbing in an instant!


    Swords stabbed continuously, much faster than a woodpecker pecking a tree, at the central position of the copper bowl, making terrifying "Tuk Tuk" sounds. No intermittence could be heard between the sounds due to the high frequency in which the sword was stabbing. As a result, the people in the courtyard could only hear the prolonged sound of a muffled strike!


    He is losing it! Get close and kill him!"


    Shouting in a stern voice, the leader of the Tang troop, was watching Chao Xiaoshu sitting cross-legged in the rain, noticing that his face was bing paler and paler. At this point, these soldiers needed no discipline or glory to support their actions. They were very clear that they had to kill Chao Xiaoshu immediately. Otherwise, if the thin sword broke open the copper bowl, killing the sadhu from Yuelun Kingdom, they would have no chance of killing their opponent. Or more urately, they would also die.


    A thick rain of crossbows shot out again, and several agile and fierce forms made an attack. This time the elite troop of Tang seemed even more resolute and intrepid, a feelingpelled by their despair.


    They had not been able to get close to Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s body to kill this fearful Great Sword Master yet. Someone was always standing in front of him.


    Ning Que moved incessantly on the blue gstone umting the rain, not nimbly but heavily. The spray sshed every time his boots hit the ground, or when his de killed a soldier of the elite troop of Tang.


    Chao Xiaoshu sat cross-legged in the heavy rain, seemingly entrusting his lifepletely to him. So, Ning Que all alone defended Chao Xiaoshu by sticking to him, turning himself and the podao in his hand into a.


    Ning Que cut the knee of a Tang soldier by bending back his right elbow, dropping his de, and then popping his left foot like a flying rock. He kicked at the pudendum of another soldier firmly before drawing out his podao. His two hands grasping the slender hilt, and revolving it once, the de rose upwards from the bottom, and cut open the belly of a third Tang soldier. Another shadow pounced over violently. He twisted his waist from half-squatting on the floor and scratched firmly with the podao in a single hand, breaking apart several calves as the light of the podao burst out.


    His ck face mask had long been dampened by the rain, with his gasping being apanied by a bit of moisture. But the facial features exposed outside of the mask were as calm as before, seemingly even a bit impassible. He acted extremely simply, but had an abnormally astonishing lethal effect, such that the violent elite troop of Tang was cut down and trodden on, utterly routed like blocks of wood under his podao.


    No matter how dense the rain of bolts fired or how cold the light of des shone, he stood in front of Chao Xiaoshu, without retreating a step! Even if his shoulders were abraded by the bolts and his legscerated by the des, he did not retreat even half a step!


    An extremely rugged bang came from the Rain-savoring Building, as if an iron pan had smashed into bricks. The copper bowl in front of the sadhu had finally shattered into pieces by thousands of swords!


    The rice farmer¡¯s hat on top of the sadhu¡¯s head cracked along with the breakage of the copper bowl. A resoluteplexion shed on his swarthy face. His mudras changed irregrly once again. The prayer beads that had been defending him stopped rotating, and abruptly became a ck serpent, entangling the thin cyan-steel sword toward his face, making the power of the sword pause temporarily.


    Chao Xiaoshu looked at the building silently, and with his right hand scratching the umted water beside him, he held a handful of rainwater and sprinkled it in front of him. The thin cyan-steel sword within the Rain-savoring Building began to vibrate and buzz suddenly, like a dragon about to break through the clouds, thrusting forward, tough and ceaseless!


    The soybean-sized raindrops fell onto the blue gstone, uttering a light "Pa Pa" sound. New branches torn off by the wind also made the same sound on the Rain-savoring Building. Suddenly, the beads surrounding the sword burst forth in every direction!


    The sadhu bitterly forced a smile and closed his eyes. The cyan-steel sword whistled, prating over a hundred shots of prayer beads. It stabbed deeply into the center of his dark brow, resulting in the slow seepage of his blood. His anguished smile thus froze.


    At the main entrance of the Chao Mansion, Ning Que saw the enemies not far off, and slowly pulled his podao out from the chest of a Tang soldier.


    "Ta-dah, Ta-dah!" The broken prayer beads bumped against the walls and the beam columns, and then fell onto the timber floors.


    The living elite troop of Tang felt deeply hopeless at the sight of the smiling middle-aged man sitting cross-legged and the masked man who stood silently in the heavy rain.


    The sound of a carriage came from an alley.


    Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s brow rose slowly.


    ...


    ...


    In the Southern City of Chang¡¯an, Lord Meng¡¯s most lucrative Star-Picking Casino was in ruins. The smashed gambling devices were thrown all over the street. The chips, ordinarily representing silver coins, were soaked in filthy rainwater which no one dared to pick out. Along the road, his female family members and children were found weeping and wailing. They surrounded the chief steward and more than ten guards of the gambling house, but no one dared to curse at those damnable assants with a word or even appear to be hateful.


    More than 40 gangsters of Spring Breeze Pavilion, with ck clothing and ck boots, stood indifferently all around to keep order, and simultaneously, dered their garrison to all the people in Southern City. At the very front of the crowd, Qi IV received a blue handkerchief from his subordinate. He wiped blood from the corner of his mouth with no expression of exultance or arrogance on his face, only anxiety and diposure. He knew that even though the Fish-dragon Gang had taken the advantage tonight by invading many territories, Big Brother was alone facing the ambush of those powerful enemies at Spring Breeze Pavilion with no one else on his side.


    Tonight, there were many simr cases to the above story, and the various downtown streets of Chang¡¯an were in no way different. The pawnshops and brothels under the Old Cat¡¯s control had been smashed by a group of fierce and agile men in ck, and yet another group of ck-clothed men controlled Junjie¡¯s three mistress houses, smashing the three luxurious little courtyards.


    The cold and mournful spring rain pattered all the while, seemingly heavier and heavier. The various underground powers of Chang¡¯an all flushed to Eastern City, taking advantage of the fierce appearance of local authorities to make an onset on Old Chao of Spring Breeze Pavilion, who had governed Chang¡¯an for many years. Unexpectedly, in the dark night, the legendary figure used himself as bait, and seized the opportunity to dispatch all the brothers in the gang to control the overall situation leaving no opposition force in Southern City and Western City.


    From this night on, if Old Chao was still living, then he and his brothers could bring the whole Chang¡¯an under their control. But... now Chao Xiaoshu was all on his own. Could he survive this disaster without his brothers?


    ...


    ...


    In the heavily-guarded garrison of the Yulin Royal Guards in the Northern City of Chang¡¯an, Cao Ning, sub-general of the Yulin Royal Guards watched two captains whose hands were being tied. He said with a sardonic grin, "Chang Siwei? Should I call you Chang III? Fei Jingwei, should I call you Fei VI? I was not expecting that the two heads of the Fish-dragon Gang were members of our Yulin Royal Guards."


    Chang Siwei, a middle-aged man with a moderate temper, looked at his superior, saying with a slight smile, "Did you really not know? Many people in the military camp earn extra ie. As far as I know, General, you seem to earn interest from Lord Meng and the Old Cat."


    Fei Jingwei kept silent, staring coldly at Cao Ning¡¯s face.


    Cao Ning drank from his teacup, saying, "What¡¯s the purpose of mentioning these things now? It is just for the sake of arguing. You¡¯re both just tiny captains. If not for keeping Spring Breeze Pavilion¡¯s face, why would I have to say these useless words to you? But don¡¯t think that you could put on airs before me relying on the support of Spring Breeze Pavilion. I can keep you two within the camp only by right of an order, whereas if you leave the camp, I can behead you without asking for an Imperial Order. And if you two can¡¯t leave the camp, Spring Breeze Pavilion will be certain to go on an end tonight.


    "Spring Breeze Pavilion will be over for sure." He slowly raised his teacup, saying indifferently, "That¡¯s why you guys are useless."


    Chang Siwei said smiling, "In this world, many people have died, but my big brother won¡¯t die."


    "In this world, there is no one who can¡¯t be killed." Cao Ning stared at his face, saying in a cold voice, "So many nobles in our great Tang wanted to show appreciation to Spring Breeze Pavilion, but he didn¡¯t ept, contrary to what¡¯s expected. Many nobles wanted him dead, how can a humble vagrant like him turn the tide!"


    The door curtain was lifted and a slight chill floated in along with a few raindrops. Slightly terrified, Cao Ning tried to reprimand, but suddenly his expression was benumbed. He stood up submissively to salute. "Eunuch Lin... It¡¯s sote. Why are you here? What¡¯s wrong?"


    Eunuch Lin, with a short and stout stature, looked at him, and said smiling, "There¡¯s nothing else. It was said that the Yulin Royal Guards raised the security levels tonight by the Pce Inhibit Gate, so I came over to ask what exactly happened."


    Afterwards Eunuch Lin turned around looking at the two military officers with their hands tied at their backs. Frowning, he asked, "What¡¯s going on here?"


    ...


    ...


    The horse-training area was lit by torch in the Valiant Cavalry Battalion campsite. Even with continuous rainwater it could not be extinguished. The Deputy Commander Chu Ren stared at a man with a square face on the horse opposite, roaring, "Liu Si, you damn bastard! The order for closing the camp was sent by the Military Ministry! If you dare rush into the camp, I¡¯ll behead you!"


    The square-faced man¡¯s stature was exceedingly stalwart. Even though he was sitting on a steed, his legs seemed to droop to the ground. Despite the deputymander¡¯s rebuke, there was still vagueness on his face. His right hand slowly stroked the iron spear at the side of the saddle. He gazed in the direction of the Spring Breeze Pavilion in Eastern City of Chang¡¯an, prating the night rain.


    He was Liu Si, ranked fifth in the Fish-dragon Gang. It was due to this man following Chao Xiaoshu closely that Old Chao of Spring Breeze Pavilion had fought to win a certain power by virtue of the sword in those years. However, he could not stand by the side of his eldest brother and block arrows for him. He could only silently hope that the young fellow Big Brother had taken a fancy to could manage the matter well.


    Liu Si looked back towards the Deputy Commander at the camp¡¯s entrance, as well as the dense and numerous soldiers, and said without an expression, "Commander, your humble subordinates don¡¯t dare to defy the military order and break out of camp. But since you tore the promotion order ten years ago, I have always wanted to fight with you. I don¡¯t know whether you dare to or not."


    ...


    ...


    A voice with a strong Hebei ent emitted in a remote and quiet room somewhere inside the Imperial Pce. "Old Chen, you¡¯ve been an Imperial Bodyguard for many years. Although in your early years you quit, since you served as an Inner-Chamber Guard for a day, you will be an Inner-Chamber Guard all your life. As a representative of the emperor, how could you be involved in such a dispute in Jianghu? I know that you and Old Chao have friendly rtions, but you should be very clear who made the proposal for tonight¡¯s matter, so no one dares to hinder it."


    ...


    ...


    The carriage stopped slowly in the rain, about 100 feet away from Chao Mansion in the Spring Breeze Pavilion.

 Chapter 61: The Lad Running While Shooting Arrows

    Chapter 61: The Lad Running While Shooting Arrows


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Exactly 100 feet away meant nothing to ordinary people, but it represented danger and even death to the cultivator at the Seethrough State. Because any of the Sword Masters, Talisman Masters, and Psyche Masters could assault any target within 100 feet as long as they stepped into the Seethrough State.


    The pouring spring rain fell sshing on the carriage, on the body of the stalwart coachmen, and on the shafts of the cart. Nothing but a corner of a in gown could be seen when the wind lifted the carriage curtain. The man inside wearing the in gown was an aged man with a in and simpleplexion, with grizzled anxious eyebrows, and a face studded with wrinkles, just as anguished and miserable and sad as the old root of coptis.


    He was called Xiao Kuyu, the powerful man supported by the military sources of the great Tang Empire, who had stepped into the Seethrough State 20 years ago. A few days ago, he was summoned secretly back to the capital from Yang Pass in the south by the Military Ministry due to tonight¡¯s killing n.


    Chilly wind and wretched rain shrouded the carriage, in which Xiao Kuyu seemed to be unaware of at all, with his gaunt hands slightly trembling on his knees, and his thumb pinching on the four jarring marks of the forefinger and middle finger, like a withered tree branch unceasingly tapping onto the dry, yellow earth. Both of his eyes were closed, with the thick carriage¡¯s curtain in front of his face. But with just a light pinch of the fingers, he could precisely see the main entrance of Chao Mansion, gazing at Chao Xiaoshu sitting cross-legged in the heavy rain.


    The fine drizzle above the cross street of the Spring Breeze Pavilion began to unt and tilt, seemingly disturbed by an invisible force. Several fluctuations, which no one could see or even perceive, began to agglomerate in the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    Chao Xiaoshu sitting in the heavy rain slightly pursed up his lips. Up to this point tonight, the facial expression appearing on this middle-aged man, for the first time, seemed to be dignified and solemn on his slightly pale, handsome features. He had to gather himself together to cope with the Psyche Master in the mysterious carriage, so he looked down slightly so as not to look at the more than ten hopeless elite soldiers in front of him. His right hand exposed out of the sleeves thumped the umted water beside him, sshing up the muddy rainwater.


    In the Rain-enjoying Building, the thin cyan-steel sword, that had deeply stabbed into the core of the eyebrows of the sadhu, retracted at high speed with a ripping sound. The sword turned around like lightning in the rainy sky, whistling sadly and shrilly, merging into a streamer, which instantly flew above the courtyard walls, stabbing towards the carriage in the rain.


    An extremely indifferent word, "Tut-tut," came from within the carriage in the quiet rain.


    The cyan-steel sword, like a flowing iris, seemed to be hit by force held by the word, and seemed to be constrained by the invisible fluctuation of Primordial Qi in the rainy sky. It came to a pause abruptly after soaring over the courtyard walls, then nced off, bumping against the wall opposite the streets and alleys, and fell to the ground along with the rainwater like a kite tied by a broken line!


    The "tut-tut" in the carriage in the rain could have already detached from the domain of space and time, arisen from more than 100 feet away, but sounded in Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s eardrums and mind like a thunderbolt at the same time.


    Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!


    Chao Xiaoshu felt his own heart seemingly being held by a formless hand, which began to beat violently like war drums incessantly thumping, instantly losing control of the flying sword. He knew that if he made no response to that, this war drum would then be cracked by the heavy drumstick, and his own heart would then be torn to pieces by the person in the carriage.


    Where did they find the great Psyche Master, the person in that carriage in the rain?


    Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s thin lips tightly pursed up, and lifting his right hand like a sh of lightning, he smacked his own chest three times, "Pa-pa!" shaking the rainwater off of his ck gown. He sealed up his Ocean of Qi by force. His body had floated away from the ground by taking advantage of the previous smack, and drifted out of the gate of his courtyard, floating to the alley shrouded by rainwater.


    Chao Xiaoshu perceived the omnipresent fluctuation of the Primordial Qi in the air, and experienced the, woven by the cold and damp air line, around his body. He took a deep breath, starting to walk forward.


    He walked towards the carriage in the rain, hisplexion bing paler and paler, but his two pupils became brighter and brighter. His cidity and leisureliness of his daily life had been reced with apathy and fortitude. Whenever he made a step forward, both his body and mind were seriously injured by the fluctuation of the Primordial Qi in the alley. Even if he walked forward even for a step again, the stroke by the great Psyche Master on his Ocean of Qi would be a bit sharper. But he kept on walking forward, for he had to get close to that carriage.


    Just when Chao Xiaoshu experienced a heavy heartbeat in his chest, Ning Que also perceived a different feeling. In the crash-bang rain, he heard a sound like war drums. He knew that the hideous sound, thumping like a war drum, came from the body of Chao Xiaoshu, with which Chao Xiaoshu intended to attack the viscus within the enemy by relying on the Psyche Power controlling the Primordial Qi between Heaven and Earth.


    This kind of measure seemed too mysterious to be resisted, irresistible, and impossible to defend against. Chao Xiaoshu, standing in the rain, knew that the truly fearful enemy had finally emerged, with his body beginning to stiffen, and his hands grasping the hilts that had be suddenly extremely cold.


    Chao Xiaoshu walked towards that carriage in the rain without giving Ning Que any kind of exnation, because his mind waspletely focused on confronting the enemy within the carriage. He did not have any spare time or energy to tell Ning Que what he should do.


    Ning Que had seen Lv Qingchen¡¯s attack, aware of how terrifying the Psyche Master was, so he knew that at the moment he must suppress all his fear. He was very clear that, for powerful Psyche Masters, their frail bodies would be their fatal weakness. To make Chao Xiaoshu and himself survive this disaster, he had to employ all avable means to injure that man¡¯s body in the carriage and break his meditation.


    The thick rain separating the main entrance of the Chao Mansion and the carriage was up to 100 feet. The great Psyche Master could directly attack the enemy by controlling the Qi of Heaven and Earth to disregard both the distance and the limit imposed by time and space. Whereas, as an ordinary person, which measures should he choose to break the opponent¡¯s meditation?


    His right foot heavily stomped onto the blue gstone, resulting in ap of the umted, slightly muddy water around his sole. Relying on the massive countershock force, Ning Que¡¯s body skimmed over the main entrance of Chao Mansion transversely with a swooshing sound, leaping into midair.


    Still in midair, he whizzed up, the podao held by his right hand was inserted precisely back into the sheath behind him. Then he took hold of the arrow in the quiver, turning over his left elbow, and the boxwood bow appeared in front of him after moving in a circle through the rain.


    He skimmed over in the rain, pulling apart the boxwood bow with a rush and tightening up the cord before releasing, and then the four arrows were all fired together!


    Four arrows were fired at the carriage in the rain, like lightning!


    Those four arrows had already passed by Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s side when Ning Que¡¯s two feet stamped the water, the center of his body falling onto the ground. One could imagine how astonishing his reaction speed and firing speed were!


    Since speed was required, pausing would make no sense. So, Ning Que once again ran wildly after the carriage with his two feet stepping into the rainwater umted in the street and his body tilted forward just like a leopard. The boxwood bow spread before his body once again, with the bowstring making a buzzing sound, and then the arrows were fired again just like lightning!


    He ran while firing arrows on a rainy night.

 Chapter 62: Billions of Raindrops Fall from Heaven

    Chapter 62: Billions of Raindrops Fall from Heaven


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Suddenly, the air between the Chao Mansion¡¯s front gate and the rain-soaked carriage was rent with the lightning shes of 14 feathered arrows. They cut through the thick sheets of raindrops, shot past Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s body, and avoided the burly driver seated atop the carriage with an eerie grace. Instead, they whistled through the curtains of the carriage window, leaving behind 14 neat holes.


    Inside, Xiao Kuyu furled his brow, leaving his sorrowful face looking even more haggard than usual. He stared at the empty space before him, and his psychic power began to fill the car. As he did so, the faint smell of lcs began to spread through the cabin, adding to the uncanny scene.


    The arrows shot into the cabin like a sh of lightning, but in the face of his venerable power, they froze in midair like something dead, as if time itself had been stopped.


    The 14 arrows hung there in the deadened air, with not a single tip scratching his rustic garb. One of the static missiles floated not three inches from Xiao Kuyu¡¯s wrinkled forehead. Two more shafts stared directly down into his eyes, and more yet were suspended silently before his hands!


    The frozen arrows pattered softly to the ground, just as the rain outside. The sound was closer still to that of tender green leaves knocked to the earth by heavy rains. The sharpest points and the hardest shafts, deprived of the power of the boxwood bow and the hardy sinew string thatunched them, were totally deprived of all lethality, and ttered to the ground like garbage before Xiao Kuyu¡¯s feet.


    However, tasked with the feat of stopping these 14 arrows of wooden lightning, even the revered powers of the veteran Xiao Kuyu could not help but be strained, and his psychic power over the Qi of Heaven and Earth surrounding the carriage began to show a few cracks.


    For a man like Chao Xiaoshu, any w of the enemy in defense would be an advantage to him. He felt as if his heart had been crushed inyers of silk as the arrows flew, and now a single thread had been loosened; his abdomen and his Ocean of Qi seemingly pierced by 10,000 needles now felt a little better. His steady footsteps suddenly stopped. Giving a salient shout, and with the raindrops spattering off of his indigo robe, Chao Xiaoshu strode right past the carriage as if he were a falling leaf.


    The stolid driver on the carriage seat gave a gruff murmur. The horsewhip in his hand, made of something strange and unrecognizable, suddenly snapped past. From within his rough outer clothing shone a faint, dull, yellow light, revealing what was hidden before¡ªthe man was obviously a warrior.


    Beside the ancient and frail body of such a powerful world-striding Psyche Master, there must be a guardian nearby of great physical power. Even Ning Que could realize this, so Chao Xiaoshu caught on at once.


    The whip cracked, and the wind and rain beat against Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s indigo robe, which had now been soaked through and fluttered loudly in the gale. His body had be a falling leaf, gently drifting through the storm. He held out the first two fingers of his left hand, thrusting like a knife in the empty air toward the body of this driver. Suddenly, through the streams of wildly windblown raindrops, shot an array of white lines.


    The driver gave another grunt, and wheeled the whip back through the air to strike at Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s outstretched fingers. The driver was preparing the whip around when he doubled over in extreme pain, clutching his stomach.


    He stared down to find amon podao, buried deep in his stomach!


    Ning Que had been running madly through the rain, shooting arrows as he moved. He was clearly aware that the elderly master in the carriage and the coachman above it were both cultivators, but this did not slow his pace in the slightest. Instead, he rushed to reach the carriage just a stepter than Chao Xiaoshu, rolled underneath the two horses, and avoiding the burly coachman¡¯s gaze, dropped his arrows to pull out the podao.


    He squatted beneath the horse¡¯s belly, and gripping the hilt of his podao in his right hand, reached up behind the horses¡¯ tails and gave a jagged thrust upwards from beneath the carriage seat. His sinister blow skillfully avoided any armor his target might have been wearing, and pierced deep into his gut!


    However, a simple thrust to the stomach would not be fatal in itself. Ning Que gave a dispassionate twist of the wrist, twisting the podao back and forth, and turning the coachman¡¯s intestines and organs to a soupy mush.


    The coachman watched the endlessly turning podao in his stomach, and his face drained of color in fear and despair. A deep "ho-ho" caught in his throat, and he felt that this sharp piece of metal that must have been soaking in the freezing rain for some time now was suddenly burning hot.


    Ning Que was not in the mood to enjoy the grisly face of his dying opponent. With his palm on the seat of the carriage, he gracefully somersaulted through the air, past the body of the coachman, closely following the figure of Chao Xiaoshu into the mysterious cabin.


    The curtains lifted destely; cold spring rain passed through.


    Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s face was pale, his eyes as bright as the moon. His frantically waving hand struck Xiao Kuyu¡¯s cane.


    Xiao Kuyu¡¯s expression suddenly changed, as he concentrated all of the psyche power in his body, and was ovee with the desire to kill, exterminate, this stubborn little Jianghu thug.


    Ning Que dove between Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s knees, and with a deep grunt suddenly kneeled forward, the sharp tip of his podao in his hand forcefully piercing through Xiao Kuyu¡¯s foot.


    Xiao Kuyu howled like a dying wild animal. Because of the shooting pain in his foot, his meditations had been interrupted once more, but his ancient hands, like the branches of a dead tree, had opened like a fan and prepared to crash down on the attacker!


    The expressionless Chao Xiaoshu crashed hard into the old man¡¯s arms, dissipating all of the psyche power that his opponent had concentrated and breaking off his attack, and with a backhanded sh pulled out a snow-bright dagger, savagely stabbing into his adversary¡¯s neck!


    Pow!


    One cut.


    Two cuts.


    Three cuts.


    14 cuts.


    Chao Xiaoshu kneeled before Xiao Kuyu¡¯s frail, thin body. His left hand had a death grip on Xiao Kuyu¡¯s right shoulder, his right hand tight around his razor-sharp dagger, stabbing again and again. His face was without a trace of expression as blood spattered his robe, leaving behind inexplicable flowery stains of red.


    Only when there was nothing left of the old man¡¯s neck but a thinyer of flesh, when even Haotian master could not resurrect himself, did Chao Xiaoshu still his dagger¡¯s thrusts and slowly stand in the cramped cabin.


    ...


    ...


    The carriage in the alley had not moved and had stayed silent in the majestic spring rains. From the initial massacre to the tragic battle in the Chao Mansion, or in this thrilling hail of arrows and dagger to cut down a Psyche Master in the alley, the plump young man in the other carriage had stayed motionless through it all, just quietly watching his own lotus-like outstretched fingers.


    In the world of cultivators, there were several given rules held to be invible. For example, a Psyche Master of one realm could wipe out any Sword Master or Talisman Master of the same realm, as at the entrance of the Northern Mountain Road the elderly master Lv Qingchen steadily eliminated the disciples of the academy. However, the results of this evening¡¯s battle had been rather unexpected.


    "Both are superior grade warriors at the Seethrough State, yet a Great Sword Master somehow managed to kill a great Psyche Master. It¡¯s all very puzzling, but yet this Chao Xiaoshu is really quite impressive. In a battle between cultivators, it was he that managed to spill all that magnificent blood."


    He may have been young, but he was already a Minister of Offerings in the prince¡¯s court. In his heart he silently admired and envied the strength and vigor of Chao Xiaoshu, but yet his eyes were impassive. He had at first been unwilling to get involved, but he believed that the moment he did, it would not matter how strong Chao Xiaoshu or his unseenpanion were¡ªthey would both be dead at his hand.


    Because he was... the Heavenly Chosen, the Invincible Wang Jinglue.


    "Let¡¯s go. Let me write the final chapter in this legend of a dark night in Chang¡¯an."


    Wang Jinglue spoke with the slightest smile as he gently rubbed his smooth and tender fingers together. His words were full of the firmest confidence, with a hint of excitement. He always got quite excited just before killing a true warrior.


    The carriage did not move, and no one answered his orders. Wang Jinglue gave a slight frown, leaving fine and rarely-seen wrinkles on his wide forehead. He narrowed his eyes. He felt out the fluctuations in the Primordial Qi surrounding the car, but felt nothing out of the ordinary, and yet he did not notice that someone in the alley was watching.


    Inside and outside the carriage was dead silence. Only the rushing rain stirred the darkness. This young man, who called himself an Invincible Young Warriorpared with those below Heavenly Chosen of the Realm, was suddenly shot through with a strong sense of approbation, and yet felt that this fear was without cause. He sat quietly in the carriage, remaining silently for a long time and listening to the rain outside the car. Then he suddenly stuck his hand out to open the heavy curtain at the front of the cabin.


    The corner of the curtain raised just a hair, and this corner suddenly pped open and drifted five feet outside before fluttering to the ground.


    Wang Jinglue squinted through the rain at this drenched, distant scrap of cloth. Making a delicate movement with his right hand, the curtain once again swung out, and another piece was cleanly severed into the street, reducing the curtain to another wet rag in the street.


    There seemed to be an invisible de just outside the carriage.


    He had felt none of the fluctuations in psyche power that would have apanied a cultivator. Only in the brief instants that the cloth had been cut had there been the slightest changes in the Primordial Qi between the heaven and earth. If he had not been one of the greatest young warriors in the great Tang Empire, even that slight vibration of Qi of Heaven and Earth would have been impossible to detect.


    Thinking of one possibility, Wang Jinglue¡¯s face began to pale slightly.


    After a moment, his pride was finally defeated by his fear of the unknown. Giving an unhappy grunt, he stretched out his 10 fat fingers like 10 overnourished white lilies. Powerful vibration instantly shot through the carriage and into the surroundings, sting open the doors and remaining curtains. This was followed by a clear silence that seemed to sweep from the carriage outward.


    But in the next moment, he was extremely embarrassed to find that his body had been frozen, as if he had be a stone in the rain.


    The entire alley had be another world. He tried a gesture that would free himself, but this caused great turmoil in the Qi of Heaven and Earth. The rain puddles on the blue gstones began to tremble violently, jumping into the air and falling back down erratically, like the mad dance the people of Great River Kingdom performed at their annual Spring Festival sacrifice.


    The air above the alley had be the magical workshop of Master Haotian. All of the raindrops that had fallen that evening had be an unstoppable hail of razor-sharp knives!


    Countless raindrops had be countless tiny knives. As they fell from the night sky into the carriage into the alley, they cut the wooden board of the cabin, breaking it to pieces. They fell on the driver¡¯s seat and turned it to sawdust. They fell on the two yoked horses, and before they could even make a whinny of protest, the two beasts were turned to ground meat!


    Ten thousand spring raindrops fell into the alley, and everything surrounding the carriage began to be crushed and disintegrated. The strangest thing of all was that the rain that was falling into the carriage seemed to be a gentle spring rain truly. As it struck Wang Jinglue¡¯s pale cheek, it left a warm dampness rather than traces of blood.


    Wang Jinglue sat in the rain looking extremely pathetic, surrounded by the pitiful and shredded remains of his carriage, while his clothes had long since soaked through. A few damp hairs stuck to his forehead, too weak to stand. He stared rather distraughtly at the raindrops falling from the night sky. His body began to tremble uncontrobly, and he did not know if it was from cold or from panic.


    He stared with some difficulty into the four alleys surrounding him in the deste night. He stared at the dancing raindrops in the alleys, and saw that the four alleysbined with the rainwater to faintly form a "¾®", the character for a water well. His pale lips trembling slightly, he began to mutter quietly to himself.


    "A Well Talisman?"


    Rainwater was dripping down from his sopping hair, Wang Jinglue desperately shook his head, furiously searching for any trace of an enemy in the evening storm. All of his usual pride and confidence had long turned to desperation and fear. He suddenly began to cough violently, bent over at the waist, and began tosh out with his bare hands at the raindrops around him, crying like a bullied child.


    "Impossible! How could a Divine Talisman Master such as this exist!"


    "Who drew this Talisman?"


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 63: Killing People Is as Tiring as Hoeing

    Chapter 63: Killing People Is as Tiring as Hoeing


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    He entered the Initial Awareness State at four, reached the Perception State at six, knew the No Doubts State at eleven, entered the Seethrough State at sixteen, and after ten more years leaped from the bottom set of the Seethrough State to the top set. With consecutive victory, he conquered all the cultivators below the Knowing Destiny State. There was no doubt that Wang Jinglue from Xuan state in Tang Empire was a genius at cultivation.


    But Wang Jinglue knew clearly that more young people wereing out from the Unknown ce, who were talented and powerful. He was not as brilliant as what people thought before a contest with them.


    So, he hoped that people would call him a calm and experienced cultivator, rather than a young genius. He wanted to have the calm personality which was in line with powerful ability, therefore, despite that he was young and healthy, he always coughed. This was his way of pretending that he was calm and experienced.


    But at this moment, he was sitting in the rain coughing, scared and disconcerted. He looked at the figure at the corner of the alley, a tall and thin Taoist, and shivered even more than before.


    The old man was wearing a piece of dirty Taoist robe, on which there were lots of stains. His eyes were in the shape of triangles, his beard long and sparse. He looked very evil, like a pervert, nothing like a supermundane expert.


    "It took me half of a day to draw this talisman. What do you think of it?"


    The old Taoist was staring at Wang Jinglue in the rain. At his feet, the middle-aged man from the pce of the prince was already a dead body. With clothes and skin like paint peels, the dead looked horrible.


    Wang Jinglue smiled bitterly, and he said to the Taoist, "In this country, there are only 10 talisman taoism masters, and among them those who want to wear a Taoist¡¯s robe are the four divine talisman masters from South School of Haotian Taoism.


    "This talisman is certainly scary because it needs a Divine Talisman Master to spend half a day drawing it. This street was used as paper and the rain was used as ink. I just don¡¯t understand, why don¡¯t you just kill me?"


    The Divine Talisman Master frowned and waved his arm to draw a character in the air, which protected him from the rain, and he shook his head. "There are some people who I don¡¯t care about their lives at all, for example, the sadhu from the Yuelun Kingdom, the swordsman from the South Jin Kingdom, and the old man from the Military Ministry, but you¡¯re not the same. I¡¯ve ordered to keep you away from this, and that¡¯s to protect you.


    "Wang Jinglue, you¡¯re still so young, but you already broke all the barriers before the Knowing Destiny State. This is impressive and rare. I¡¯ve heard of news from the academy andments from the Master of Nation and the younger brother of the emperor, and they all think you¡¯re possible to break thest barrier and reach a state that¡¯s even higher than the Five States. Our country hasn¡¯t had a young genius for a long time, so I hope you can live for another 40 years."


    Wang Jinglue¡¯s facial expression kept fluctuating.


    "Don¡¯t go back to work for the prince anymore. Serve in the army and fight at the front for 3 years to atone for your crime."


    After saying that, the Divine Talisman Master turned around, walked towards the dark alley, and mumbled, "Old Chao from Spring Breeze Pavilion isn¡¯t a cat or a dog. If he was that easy to kill, why didn¡¯t I kill him 10 years ago?"


    ...


    ...


    Chao Xiaoshu waved his arm and the cyan-steel sword flew back to his hand.


    He turned around and looked at Ning Que to make sure that thisd was not seriously injured. He nodded at Ning Que, sheathed his sword, and walked ahead along the alley.


    He stopped at the top of Spring Breeze Pavilion street, looking forward. Ning Que raised his arm to wipe the rain on his forehead and looked at the same direction. He was silent for a long time and then asked, "Are you still waiting for someone?"


    "Yes," said Chao Xiaoshu, with his right hand on the sword hilt, "I¡¯m waiting for someone who¡¯s called Wang Jinglue, but it seems that he isn¡¯t going toe anymore."


    Ning Que frowned, moving his podao from right hand to left hand. "Why?"


    Chao Xiaoshu turned around, looking at Ning Que¡¯s ck mask and smiled. "It isn¡¯t easy for this country to have a genius in practicing, maybe someone doesn¡¯t want him to die."


    "I¡¯m not as confident as you." Ning Que recollected the previous fight, thinking about those powerful cultivators. He knew that if Chao Xiaoshu were not in front of him, he would have been dead now. He said, "If it was the person behind you who saved us, why didn¡¯t he save us earlier? Why did he want you to fight so hard?"


    "I¡¯ve exined to you at Lin 47th Street. Once that person is known, no one in Chang¡¯an will dare to continue this. Then it would be impossible to know how much power the noble truly have and what they want."


    Chao Xiaoshu asked suddenly, "Would you like to have a walk with me?"


    Ning Que lifted his right arm, using his sleeve to wipe the blood and rain on the de. He sheathed his knife and nodded.


    The rain was lighter now, and it drizzled over the streets and alleys around Spring Breeze Pavilion.


    Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s hands moved from the sword hilt to his back. He was walking on the quiet street. His indigo robe was still tidy and neat, and his face expression still calm. Everything seemed the same, except that his face looked paler than before.


    Ning Que followed him, and while walking, he tore his clothes off to bandage his wounds. Although those wounds were not serious, he, who lived in Min Mountain for a long time, still used to save every drop of blood and every ounce of energy.


    They walked on the wet street in the rain around Spring Breeze Pavilion, as if they were tigers or lions that just had a bloody fight and started to patrol their own territory.


    When they returned to the gate of Chao mansion, Chao Xiaoshu seemed tired. He kneaded the skin between his eyebrows, raised his robe and sat on the wet stair.


    Several remnants of the Tang force shouted and darted at him.


    Ning Que drew his podao out and hacked forwards. Whenever the podao dropped, an enemy would fall. Soldiers were like trees being chopped down. Ning Que was mumbling to himself at the same time, "No swordsman could avoid injury. I¡¯ll kill you with a chop or two..."


    Exhausted, Chao Xiaoshu was still sitting on the stair, supporting himself with his sheath. He was watching what was happening and knew that Ning Que not only learned how to kill people in the army, but also in lots of bloody battles.


    Sometimes, Ning Que moved his podao slowly and steadily, but sometimes his attack was quick and random like raindrops. His only tactic was to save his energy and attack the weakest part of the enemy¡¯s body.


    "This is the fastest way to kill."


    Chao Xiaoshu was watching the fight. He thought about the great determination and discretion of Ning Que, as well as his young age and sighed. "It¡¯s such a pity that thisd can¡¯t pursue cultivation, if he could, he would be an important asset for Tang Empire."


    Looking at the ugly dead bodies in the rain and thatd panting with his podao in his hand, Chao Xiaoshu smiled. "Can¡¯t you kill people less brutally? It¡¯s as if you¡¯re hoeing."


    Ning Que turned around, his podao stirring up some blood. He looked at the man sitting on the stair, and then pointing to the sky, he panted. "It¡¯s so wet, and hoeing is far less tiring than killing!"

 Chapter 64: Being Brothers for Life and the Two Bowls of Noodles with Fried Eggs

    Chapter 64: Being Brothers for Life and the Two Bowls of Noodles with Fried Eggs


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    It was dark on Lin 47th Street. The door of the Old Brush Pen Shop was pushed open, and then closed quickly. The dim light within the shop shed like stars for a moment and disappeared.


    Ning Que removed his heavy weapon, tore the cloth cover off of the big ck umbre, and took off his wet coat. He passed it to Sangsang, asking casually, "I¡¯m quite hungry. Are the noodles ready?"


    Sangsang gave him a dry cloth, nodding happily and said, "I¡¯ll serve it to you soon."


    A bowl of hot noodles was served on the table. The same as usual, four peppercorns were scattered on the top, but there were a lot more chopped green onions in the noodles today. The noodles were topped with a scrambled egg, which was very unusual. Hunting was even more tiring than hoeing, making Ning Que drenched and extremely hungry. There was nothing like a bowl of noodle with the fried egg to arouse his appetite. He put down the cloth, picked up chopsticks, and started to devour the food.


    Sangsang shed a smile on her darkish face. She was delighted to see that he enjoyed the food. As she picked up the cloth to dry his hair with it, she kept reminding him not eating too fast.


    At that time, a man started coughing. However, no one paid attention to him. Being ignored by Ning Que and his handmaiden for a long time, the man decided to break the silence. He said, "The bowl of noodles smells very delicious."


    A couple of hours ago, Chao Xiaoshu said the same words when he entered the shop.


    Sangsang continued to dry Ning Que¡¯s hair, as if she did not see this person and did not hear his words. However, Ning Que¡¯s reaction was different from before. While he was eating, he mumbled, "Make some noodles for him."


    Soon, another bowl of noodles was served. Chao Xiaoshu looked around and could not find a ce to sit. Without minding, he squatted down beside Ning Que and started eating, but he found his noodles were not the same as Ning Que¡¯s.


    Four peppercorns, thirty pieces of chopped green onions, but no fried egg.


    He could not help but tap at Ning Que¡¯s bowl with his chopsticks. Ning Que nced over and almost burst outughing loudly. He then turned to Sangsang. "It¡¯s fine, we shouldn¡¯t be mean. Give him an egg as well."


    Finally, a fried egg was served to Chao Xiaoshu. The both of them were eating happily, whereas Sangsang, who was not far away from them, started burning the clothes and the cloth cover in a bronze basin. No one spoke a word in the shop.


    After a long time, Ning Que finally put down the bowl in his hands as he leaned backward with satisfaction and rubbed his belly. He turned to Chao Xiaoshu, saying, "I killed more than five people. You should reconsider the money... Don¡¯t be mean. Remember, I asked Sangsang to add an egg for you."


    Chao Xiaoshu, who was holding his bowl, looked at Ning Que and produced a forced smile. "That¡¯s why you were unusually kind to me. But sure, I¡¯ll give you 2,000 taels of silver."


    "Deal," Ning Que said casually. In fact, he was a little excited within, and so was Sangsang, as she clenched her fist and was silently calcting how much 2,000 taels of silver would be.


    As Sangsang was preparing to wash the bowls, Chao Xiaoshu reluctantly handed her his unfinished bowl of noodles. He then frowned and covered his mouth with the corner of his sleeve. When he put down his sleeve, it was already stained with patches of blood.


    Ning Que looked at his sleeve and knew that this strong middle-aged man was hurt in the severe fight previously. He was silent for a moment before asking, "Are you okay?"


    Chao Xiaoshu took a cup of tea from Sangsang, smiling to show his gratitude. He took a sip and said, "Don¡¯t worry about me. I grew up in a slum in Eastern City. I fought countless times and was badly injured many times. Every time, my enemy saw me covered with blood and thought I would never stand up anymore, but I¡¯m always able to give them a knockout blow."


    Ning Que said, "A thug who¡¯s immersed in his warrior days could even pursue cultivation and became so powerful. I was so devoted to cultivating, but yet I can¡¯t even enter the Initial State. How mocking it is. Master Haotian is surely blind."


    Chao Xiaoshu smiled without saying anything. There was a story behind how he turned from a gangster into a Great Sword Master with a superior Seethrough grade. But to him, the story was not worth mentioning.


    "You told me, after tonight, I¡¯ll see who you truly are."


    Ning Que was looking at a corner of the Courtyard. "Now, I kind of guess that your backup is someone from the pce. With such a strong background, no wonder you don¡¯t need to bother about Chang¡¯an Local Government."


    "After tonight, maybe everyone from this empire will admire me because of my backup," he said peacefully, "but no one will know how much I have pay for such oue."


    "What do you need to pay?" asked Ning Que.


    Chao Xiaoshu smiled bitterly. "I¡¯ve been trapped by orders all these years. Whenever that person wanted me, I had to do whatever they wanted. If it wasn¡¯t for that, maybe I would have already broken through the Seethrough State and entered the Knowing Destiny State."


    "That¡¯s all?" Ning Que continued to ask.


    Chao Xiaoshu was silent for a long time as something seemed to be on his mind. He smiled sadly and said slowly, "It also required me to not act on impulse. I always have to consider the whole situation when dealing with matters. Neither can I be hasty, because I have to force the enemies to sh all their cards. To seed, I need to endure the torture silently for a long time, to the extent that I didn¡¯t even manage to protect my own brother."


    Upon hearing that, Ning Que clenched his right hand. He knew Chao Xiaoshu was talking about Darkie, someone whom he knew very well, but he did not say a thing. He lowered his head and asked, "How did your brother die?"


    "My brother was named Zhuo Er. He was a spy. The Military Ministry sent him to check on me and to investigate whether I conspired with the Yuelun Kingdom. In fact, it was only an excuse for them to kill the people from Spring Breeze Pavilion. To achieve the goal, they even might frame me."


    "But my brother didn¡¯t want to do this. He told me all the things behind it. He didn¡¯t investigate me for the Military Ministry and he wouldn¡¯t frame me ording to his boss¡¯s order. But he was a soldier after all. He can¡¯t betray his country and his army. So, he suffered a lot in those days."


    Chao Xiaoshu closed his eyes. He said, "Looking back now, I should have told him the whole truth. Maybe he would have still died, but at least he wouldn¡¯t have felt so desperate."


    Ning Que said, "You haven¡¯t mentioned how he died yet."


    "Being a spy is a very dangerous job. If he didn¡¯t work for either of the two parties, he might die at any time. If he decided to work for one party, then it¡¯s highly possible that he¡¯s going to die. That day, when he finally decided to tell me everything, the Military Ministry found out what he did and killed him. He died right here, across the street."


    Chao Xiaoshu looked at the direction of the wooden door of the shop. He was looking at the gray wall, far away.


    Ning Que was silent for a long time. He asked, "It was the Sword Master of the South Jin Kingdom that killed him?"


    "Yes." Chao Xiaoshu turned around, looking at Ning Que, smiling. "From now on, I¡¯ll regard you as my brother."


    Ning Que arched an eyebrow. "Aren¡¯t you being too childish?"


    Chao Xiaoshuughed and said, "In this life, we¡¯re brothers. Such a matter is always this simple.


    "We had noodles with fried egg today, and for that, we¡¯re brothers for this life."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "Brother¡ªthis word is meaningless. I know those famous brothers. If some of them died before the others, they were lucky, because if they didn¡¯t, they would have fought against each other in the end. I just wanted to help you tonight, and of course, make some money by the way. Can you not be too corny and find other meanings in life?"


    Chao Xiaoshu frowned as he looked at Ning Que and was surprised at such an answer. He said, "You¡¯re so young, and yet in your eyes, the world is so dark... I wonder what had happened to you. If you want to tell me in the future, remember to contact me anytime. I¡¯ll treat you to tea."


    Ning Que said, "I don¡¯t even want to recollect those things, let alone tell other people."


    Chao Xiaoshu smiled at him. "OK. So, besides noodles with fried egg, what do you think is the meaning of your life?"


    "The meaning of life... definitely is career and love, or we can say, money and women. I know you think that this answer is amazing and I¡¯m also an amazing person, but can you please not reveal such a profound smile?"


    Ning Que shook his head, and to let this powerful person understand what¡¯s the meaning of life, he pointed to Sangsang. "Who do you think is suitable to be your master¡¯s wife in House of Red Sleeves?"


    Sangsang wiped her hands on her apron and thought attentively for a while. "I think that day the second girl sitting at your left hand was nice."


    "That was Lu Xue." Ning Que thought about her soft waist, and continued asking, "Why do you think she¡¯s suitable to be my wife?"


    Sangsang looked at Ning Que with big, serious eyes. "She looks very beautiful with makeup. Her smile is nice looking, clean, and innocent. Her teeth are white and neat, which means she is healthy. Also, I¡¯ve seen her waist and bottom, and found she¡¯s able to give birth."


    Ning Que turned around and smirked to Chao Xiaoshu.


    Chao Xiaoshu looked at the dimple on Ning Que¡¯s left cheek, thinking about what he just saw. Someone who was stuck in a shop every day and discussed with his underaged handmaiden about which prostitute was better as a wife and for giving birth¡ªwas this what he meant by the meaning of life?


    Suddenly, he recalled the scene of him seeing the handmaiden leaning by the door as he was about to leave the Old Brush Pen Shop, and the scene of the two bowls of noodle with fried egg when he returned to the shop, where he was being forgotten by the master and his handmaiden. He remembered how close the both of them were, to the extent that he could not interrupt them. He then slowly understood as he smiled and said, "The true meaning of life is life itself."


    Ning Que shook his head andughed. "You¡¯re too sentimental."


    Chao Xiaoshu looked at thisd, knowing that Ning Que did not understand what he meant, but he did not want to say too much. He stood up and walked towards the door. He turned around and smiled. "It¡¯s time to go. There are still lots of things to do tonight. I¡¯ll send someone to hand you the silver tomorrow and he¡¯ll bring you to a ce."


    Hearing thest word, Ning Que became rmed. Rather than asking where that person would take him, he asked the most important part of the thing, "Can I say no?"


    Chao Xiaoshu pushed the door open and said clearly, "No."


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 65: The Imperial Study

    Chapter 65: The Imperial Study


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Chang¡¯an must be truly bustling tonight. After an entire night of fighting, Ning Que was exhausted, but the shing des and watery bloodshed in the spring rains had left him excited, and he was left imagining what must be happening in the various parts of the city, wondering what Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s trump card would be, specting where he would need to go tomorrow. Tossing and turning, it was impossible for him to fall asleep.


    He reached across the thin nket to wake Sangsang. He had tried to exin these things to her before but had not been able to make himself understood. Sangsang could tell that Ning Que was not about to fall asleep. She cocked her head and thought for a moment before pulling a bottle of liquor from under the pocket of one of her tunics. The two of them sat at opposite ends of the bed and drank, as they had many times before. Most of the spirits made their way into Sangsang¡¯s slim stomach, and after Ning Que had a few swigs of strong drink, he began to feel drowsy and sumb to sleep.


    The next morning, the spring rains that had been lingering for days suddenly stopped. Daily greetings that had been drowned out and rendered absent by the long rains unexpectedly returned as if they hade out just behind the clouds. However,ter, when the trees and the open sky were filled with joyfully jumping birds, a carriage quietly stopped in front of the Old Brush Pen Shop. A young man appearing to be a servant stepped out of the coach, and without speaking a word of greetings, walked straight through the half-open wooden doors. He faced the freshly woken young master and handmaiden with the slightest shake of his chin, and coldly said, "Let¡¯s go."


    This was probably the person that Chao Xiaoshu said wasing to pick him up, Ning Que thought. He looked at the young manservant, noticing that the furl of his brow seemed to reveal the slightest trace of arrogance. From the absence of his Adam¡¯s apple and the slight bit of difference in his posture, the fellow seemed to be some petty eunuch official from the pce.


    He had just learned of Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s secret patrons in the pcest night, and now a young eunuch hade to visit him. Ning Que was not unusually shocked at this, but was simply thinking whether he should slip the man a bribe, and if so, what the going rate was.


    In his mind, based on the novels and stories he had read, the phrase "The Emperor is calm but the eunuchs are vexed" hade up a lot, which he understood to mean that the emperor was not a big deal, but the eunuchs were not to be trifled with. Anytime the main character encountered a eunuch in those stories, whether they were a top official or a low minister, they would always find some opportunity to innocently slip some "smokeless fire," as they called it, perhaps a few thin bills or even a delicate piece of jade. The biggest thing he wondered when he read those stories was where the hell did the main characterse up with all that jade? (Note)


    Ning Que raised a brow towards Sangsang, silently asking if he needed to do anything. Sangsang had always been extremely stingy, and gave the slightest of nods, pretending not to understand what he meant. "Young master has never been a very generous person either, ande to think of it, I should just y the fool instead. A silver saved is a silver earned, after all."


    The young eunuch casually rested his hands on the counter, leaning against it. With a nod like that of an old man but a bright and clear voice, he said, "I¡¯ve heard one can find some excellent calligraphy in this alley. I can see for myself that it lives up to its reputation. Some of the pce nobles would like to have a look at your work; you should quickly wash up a bit and follow me there."


    Ning Que had decided that this fellow was not so bad after all. He gave the eunuch a look up and down, held his hands folded in front of his chest, and bowed. Smiling, he said, "These¡¯re just my daily street clothes; I¡¯m only a poor, humble schr. Even cleaned up, I wouldn¡¯t be much of a prize."


    He had worried that the little fellow would have been upset at not getting his bribe and would take it out on himself, but he did not seem to care at all. Instead, they had made some pleasant conversation, and with a nod, the two headed out the door.


    On the rather cramped carriage ride over, the eunuch closed his eyes in repose. Judging by his former behavior on Lin 47th Street, it seemed that he did not have much or a problem with Ning Que, and did not disdain to speak with him, but was simply showing a habitual caution in stepping out beyond the pce walls.


    Ning Que thought no talking with the young eunuch on the carriage seemed quite good. He lifted a corner of the window curtains to peek out into the street, and saw nothing but the shining sun and the smiling citizens of Chang¡¯an going about their business in it. Breakfast and snack shops were making a brisk trade, and every once in a while he heard a few friends shout their greetings to each other. Where was the slightest trace of the blood ofst night¡¯s Jianghu battle?


    As time seemed to drift by, two rows of willows began to darken his view. Afortable shadow settled on the entire carriage and the entirene. The shadow was not from the willows themselves, but from behind the willows, and behind the moat after that, from the massive pce beyond.


    The great Tang Empire was the greatest country under heaven, Chang¡¯an was its greatest city, and the Great Pce of the Tang was the most magnificent building in that city. Perhaps "magnificent" was the word for it, but the pce certainly expressed the great tolerance and diversity of the Tang¡¯s thousand-year rule. The golden canopies atop its vermilion walls shone as steadfast as swords; this was not simply a row of halls and mansions for the emperor¡¯s dozens of concubines to paint their faces and wash in rivers of opulent perfume, but rather the central axis around which the great Tang Empire turned.


    Ning Que raised his head towards the stately and imposing pce. His gaze drifted over the tall sheets of crimson stone towards the soldiers of Yulin Royal Guards, which looked like ck specks staring out towards the city. His expression was as calm as ever, but in his heart, he felt a swelling of awe.


    Unfortunately, the carriage did not have the authority to pass through the main Vermilion Bird Gate, and instead had to circle halfway around the entire moat to squeeze through an inconspicuous servant¡¯s entrance instead. As the carriage entered the pce and twisted and turned through its untold number of narrownes, his entire view was reduced to the high wall and its elegant cornices, and fragments of the sky not blocked by the ramparts and eaves. He had absolutely no opportunity to take in the pce as a whole, only seeing the rising pce walls, one after another.


    In the distance, he could see a small storehouse next to a clear blueke. The young eunuch led Ning Que out of the carriage, and they followed the thick bamboo grove around theke for several minutes, passing through rows of vermilion columns to enter a wide corridor. Only after walking to a row of small, ordinary pce quarters did they cease their amblings. Ning Que felt rather suspicious and somewhat rmed at the length of their journey. He saw no guards, and not even a single eunuch or pce maid.


    The eunuch turned to face him, and noting his grim expression, said, "This is the Imperial Study. I may only take you this far and no further; wait here, and after your meeting someone will take you out of the pce."


    Rather than expressing interest, Ning Que folded his hands behind his back and strolled over to look at the curious flowers and exotic trees nted just before the building. Seeing a distant flower boat behind a row of willows, he strained to catch a glimpse of any pce maidens. When he suddenly heard the call of three words "The Imperial Study!" he could not help but freeze slightly, and turn in shock towards the unassuming building behind him.


    The most private ce a man had was not his bedroom, but his study.


    On a winter morning, there he may read banned books. At dusk in summer, there he may peruse erotica in the nude. On a warm spring afternoon, there he may write sultry love letters. On ate autumn night, there he may take a maiden in his arms and caress her.


    Here there was no nagging, sallow wife, and no noisy children at y. Here all manner of private pleasures may be procured from scrolls of paper and ink and be brought to life by the light of the written word, and no one would bother you.


    The emperor may be an emperor, but he was also a man, and the Imperial Study would naturally be his most private ce. Who knew how many great deeds of history, and how many secret plots and schemes had beenmitted in the studies of kings and emperors. If a person was not among the emperor¡¯s most trusted men, or was a man being prepared to be given that trust, that man had no reason to be in the Imperial Study.


    Wu Zetian had entered the Imperial Study, so did Zhang Juzheng, Wei Zhongxian, Wei Xiaobao, etc. Ning Que stared in stunned silence at the tightly locked door. How many great women, how many great (and castrated) worthies of the past had simply found themselves walking into that tiny room and suddenly shot like a meteor to the top of the world? Not in his wildest fantasies could he have imagined that this sort of opportunity would fall into hisp.


    He had guessedst night that Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s backer had to be someone in the pce, and it seemed that person was likely His Majesty himself. However, idle spection was one thing, whereasing face to face with it was something else entirely. The struggling, drifting, destitute young man he had been for thest 16 years suddenly had found a chance to move up in the world. He could not help but be a little shocked.


    "For the next one hour, no onees here. If anyone asks, just answer ording to what I told you, and say that it was Lu Ji who took you into the pce."


    With a heart full of heated emotion, Ning Que never noticed that the young eunuch had already quietly slipped away. When he came to his senses, he realized that not a soul was in sight in any direction around the Imperial Study.


    Standing in the heart of such a strange and severe pce, without a single familiar face, the cool andfortable library before him seemed to darken suddenly. Even a man as bold as he could not help but feel some slight difort. Standing there in front of the hall, he waited a moment and thought, "Am I supposed to go in first?"


    He and Sangsang had entered Chang¡¯an like a couple of hicks, and had spent a long time staring up in wonder at the city. How much more so in this pce, where he had no idea of what rules to follow, and could only rely onmon sense. Therefore, he coughed gently twice, gave a ceremonial bow with an enclosed fist to the door of the Imperial Study, then pushed the door and went in.


    The idea that all water that flowed into the channel became reason was nonsense, of course; Ning Que simply wanted to go inside. For years now, the most important parts of his life had been dedicated to meditation and martial arts, particrly on the cultivation of calligraphy. An opportunity to enter something as precious as the Imperial Study did note easily, and of course, he was eager to see this fabled room where countless priceless works by innumerable great masters were held. This desire was so strong that hepletely forgot those so-called rules.


    He pushed the door open and stepped inside. The first thing that caught his eye was the very tall row of bookshelves along the wall. The shelves were t and perpendicr, and of a simple style, but the wood was clearly of the famously expensive Dongyu scented rosewood, reserved for the emperor¡¯s use. The books were packed tightly, almost overstuffed, and ced very unevenly, but each volume was a very expensive literary treasure.


    On the reading table, there were a few sheets of nk paper, an ink brush that floated on top of the inkstone. Several other brush pens were making a mess on the pen holder; the paper was the finest budpaper made in Xuanzhou, while the pens were pure brushes from Hengdian, and the ink was Chenzhou pine ink. The inkstone was of Huangzhou mud; not a single one was less than the most precious of tributes.


    If he were to take this fine calligraphy stationery to Lin 47th street, what riches could he sell them for? Ning Que stared at the four corners of the room. In the time when his brain hade up with this twisted scheme, his eye suddenly caught the calligraphy hanging from the three white walls of the room.


    Seeing the vast range of works that had made it here to the heart of the pce, he was shocked, and began to slow down. His eyes would fall on this choice phrase or that one, or the smoothness and beauty of an authentic masterpiece, as well as the inscriptions and etchings. His right hand traced wildly in the air as he copied it, and his face was full of joy.


    Circling before the desk, he looked down at the thick, inky letters on the paper, and could not help but frown. He murmured to himself, "His Majesty is truly a man of taste, but the writing is really pitiful."

 Chapter 66: The Fish That Jumped Across The Sea (I)

    Chapter 66: The Fish That Jumped Across The Sea (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    There were seven words written on the budpaper made in Xuanzhou in an unrestrained manner: "The Fish that Jumped Across the Sea."


    Looking at the scroll on the stand, there should be a second sentence to this writing. However, for unknown reasons, the author had stopped after writing the first line, leaving the word "Sea" iplete, the underlying reluctance evident.


    These seven words were written in a way that showed the strictness and magnanimity of the author. It would be considered a good piece of writing if it was written by any ordinary folk. However, Ning Que felt that it wasn¡¯t anything worth a second look, especially since he had just had feasted on the works of great schrs before him. He felt that the seven words were really bad and even though he guessed that it was written by the emperor, he would not change his mind about it being ackluster piece.


    An idea struck Ning Que as he thought that he hade to the pce as a calligrapher. If his calligraphy skill impresses the emperor, he would have no worries for the rest of his life. He could be a servant of the court with a fancy title and would not even be called up to serve.


    An angry voice floated towards the Imperial Study as he was thinking. The voice was strong and seemed to be exceptionally violent. He could only catch certain words spoken when the voice sounded at its most irate.


    "Imbeciles!... Imbeciles!.... A bunch of imbeciles!"


    The derogatory remark rang sharp and clear in the air like a war cry.


    Ning Que stood in the Imperial Study, unsure of what to do. He gradually fell into a trance after hearing the voice that sounded as if it had descended from the heavens. He felt that it sounded familiar and wondered which manager it was, for he sounded slightly coquettish while cursing.


    The Pce of Tang Empire was a great solemn ce. Not even the highest-ranking eunuch manager would dare scold in such a loud volume. Besides, the angry voice hade from within the Pce of Counsel.


    Ning Que was unaware of the architecture within the pce. He did not know that the security in the area was very tight. The Pce of Counsel was near to the Imperial Study, which was why he could hear the numerous counts of imbeciles while others could not.


    ...


    ...


    There were motifs of the Panlong, an aquatic dragon carved into the pirs of the Pce of Counsel. There were images of heavenly maidens scattering flowers embroidered on the curtains. On the left of the royal couch sat a beautiful woman dressed in the clothes of royalty. She appeared to be in her thirties. Her features were sharp but gentle and she looked charming. Her slightly plump lips were tightly pursed, giving her an air of determination. Based on the phoenix on her headdress, she must be the Empress of Tang.


    On the right of the royal couch sat a girl of 16 or 17. Her eyelids were hooded as her slender fingers performed the art of tea brewing. Her clear features along with her quiet performance afforded her an air of grace. Her face had lost its tan from her time in the frontiers. This was the fourth Princess of the Tang, Lee Yu.


    Between the empress and the princess sat a middle-aged man. His hair was braided behind his head and he had on a loose robe. His voice was gentle but imperious. On the asion where he mentioned the word, his tone would raise like a cloud meeting the mountains. It rang across the entire pce.


    On the ground before the imperial couch kneeled over 10 court officials. They were all looking down and shivering slightly, looking extremely ashamed and afraid. The only man who could sit, the prince and two other officials did not look great either.


    The Tang had never ced much importance on rules. There was no need for court officials to kneel of kowtow to the emperor during regr business affairs. All they have to do was to bow. This emperor was kind and open-minded. On regr meetings with his subjects in the Pce of Counsel, the emperor might even wave his hand to indicate that they need not bow.


    Today, however, the kind and open-minded emperor was very angry. The emperor did not have them kneel before him on regr days because he did not want them to. But when he was unhappy, the entire Pce of Counsel seemed like a scary ce.


    The man on the imperial couch was of course, the Emperor of Tang. The most powerful man in the secr world of Haotian. He looked at the subjects kneeling before him coldly. His calm but mocking gazended on everyone¡¯s face. The high officials of the Military Ministry, the assistant minister, the old and young officials of the Ministry of Revenue, the Mayor of Capital, his valets as well as the two carvings of Chang¡¯an, his young brother who was seated and some very old officials. How much did they know about this?


    "How is it that a sect can gain the river shipping business and move and touch the country¡¯s grain reserves? You¡¯re all major officials of the court. Anyone would be frightened just by a single word uttered by your stewards. How is it that Chao Xiaoshu can disobey you? Are you really a bunch of imbeciles? Have you never thought why?"


    The Emperor of Tang looked at his subjects who seemed like a bunch of idiots to him. He clutched at his pounding head with his right hand. The anger and disappointment made him feel likeughing hysterically. He red at them and pped at the armrests, saying, "You want to know who backs the number one sect in Chang¡¯an? Now you know. It¡¯s me! Don¡¯t you think you¡¯re all the greatest fools in the world?"


    "Fish-Dragon Gang! Fish-Dragon Gang! You¡¯re all educated people who¡¯re worldly. How can no one amongst you think of the underlying meaning of the name? Who would dare use this name without my permission in Chang¡¯an? I¡¯m so disappointed in you. It isn¡¯t because you¡¯ve chosen to ignore thew and oppressed the people. I¡¯ am disappointed because you¡¯re all stupid! Imbeciles! It¡¯s been so many years and you still don¡¯t understand. Imbeciles!"


    The fight in the spring rain had indeed forced out Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s trump card. The moment this card appeared, the wind and rain disappeared. The trump card was simply too strong. With just a singlemand, everyone became imbeciles, and he was now squaring up to make sure someone took responsibility for this situation.


    The officials kneeling were upset but did not know what to say. They thought to themselves, "Nobody had discovered any rtionship between the sect and anyone in the pce. Furthermore, the emperor was like a dragon, high up and precious while the Fish-dragon Gang was a goldfish in one of Chang¡¯an¡¯s canal. Their positions were like heaven and earth, and they didn¡¯t belong to the same world. Who would have thought there was such a rtionship between the both?"


    This situation was like the officer of the Yamen making life difficult for a kitchen helper only to find out that he had the backing of the Minister of Revenue! The problem was, why someone with the backing of a high official would work as a kitchen helper in the Yamen!


    If Chao Xiaoshu was someone His Majesty met amongst the people and became close, why would he still be hanging out in the Jianghu world like a fish in filthy canals? With just a word from His Majesty, he could be a fourth-grade or fifth-grade official. The court officials were not imbeciles, but the emperor was simply ying them.


    It did not matter whether they were kneeling on the cold gold tiles or seated ufortably on the seats, the officials of the Tang were full of grouses. But nobody dared to raise it with the man sitting on the throne.


    To these bigwigs of the empire, getting rid of Old Chao of the Spring Breeze Pavilion was a small deal, but they had met with the world¡¯srgest obstruction unexpectedly. They would, of course, feel that they were unlucky, but the key thing was, their men had used not only the power of the court but also the army when dealing with Old Chao. This was the emperor¡¯s trigger point.


    How were they going to settle this?

 Chapter 67: The Fish That Jumped Across the Sea (II)

    Chapter 67: The Fish That Jumped Across the Sea (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The Minister of Revenue, Xing Chengyu had never felt that the gold tiles in the Pce of Counsel were that hard until today. He had never kneeled much other than the Great Meet. In fact, he had never kneeled for so long either.


    He wiped away the cold sweat on his forehead surreptitiously. His back felt like it was about to break. He stole a furtive look at his sides, trying to find a silver of solidarity andfort in his current position, and indeed felt better seeing the looks of dejection on the other officials from the Military Ministry around him. It still made his legs feel like jelly upon thinking back, and he was very thankful that nothing had happened to him so far.


    The main reason of the conflict seemed to be that the shipping government wanted thend on Lin 47th Street. But that was just as excuse. I knew what was happening, but I chose not to interfere. Yet, the Military Ministry has probed too deeply in this. I heard that over 20 elite members of the Yulin Royal Guards and a Psyche Master who had entered Seethrough State were killed that rainy night. How can His Majesty let you off lightly in this situation?


    The middle-aged man on the throne was both sarcastic and angry, and it showed in his ringing voice. His rant ended in a sigh. "I formed a sect like this all those years ago to be the ears and eyes in the masses. It was such hard work keeping it a secret for more than ten years and look at what happened? You imbeciles looking for small gains have forced them into the light. How am I going to use them now? Am I wrong to call you imbeciles?"


    The emperor sighed in despair while his subjects sighed regretfully. They now knew whom the Fish-dragon sect belonged to. It was indeed a product of His Majesty when he was strolling around the streets of Chang¡¯an during his days as the crown prince. They thought to themselves, " This is just your ything, why do you have so much to say about it? "


    At this time, the emperor¡¯s voice turned incredibly frigid, devoid of any trace of sarcasm as he stared at his subjects intently. "The question is, were you all doing this for small gains? I know what you¡¯re all thinking, but how can my family and I tolerate the challenge that you imbeciles are issuing? " "You tout the empress¡¯ and princess¡¯ name, creating trouble throughout Chang¡¯an. But you don¡¯t know that my empress has always been aware of the sect¡¯s rtionship to the pce. I¡¯ve brought Yu¡¯er to the Spring Breeze Pavilion myself!"


    The officials in the pce could not withstand the waves of ludicrous ims. Huai Hua General from the Military Ministry and the Emperor¡¯s valet felt their legs give beneath them as they copsed fearfully on the ground.


    The emperor looked at the both of them coldly and said, "The responsibility of the army of Tang is to protect thend and expand our frontiers. They should not be helping gangs to stealnd! And what¡¯s even more disgraceful is that they didn¡¯t even win! Since this is so,manding officer, you shall train the armies for me in Changning for three to five years. You can onlye back when the armies under your supervision can defeat the gangs of Chang¡¯an."


    Changning was to the south-west of the empire. It was hot and humid in summer and damp and cold in winter. There were much illness and many poisonous objects in the forested mountains in the area. It was usually viewed as a dangerous journey to the officials of Tang. As to defeat the gangs of Chang¡¯an in three or five years... Everything the emperor said was the truth. How could one return if he decided that you had been defeated?


    With just a word from the emperor, a high ranking official of the army was sent to great sufferings. It was likely he would never return to a central position. It was a harsh punishment indeed. The other officials in the pce grew more fearful. Themanding officer was just grateful to have kept his head on his neck and kowtowed loudly proiming his thanks.


    The emperor had grown tired after scolding the imbeciles throughout the day. He looked at the officials who dared not retort and grew even wearier. He drank deeply from the tea that Lee Yu offered before waving for a eunuch.


    Eunuch Lin appeared beside the emperor¡¯s bed in a sh, his bony hands opening up the royal edict. "On the thirteenth year of Tianqi, the Minister of Revenue, Xing Chengyu is to stay home and reflect for three months. His Majesty will await your defense."


    The defense was just a facade. His Majesty was giving his subjects the change to resign and return to his hometown. Xing Chengyu raised his head in response, thinking that his officialdom had ended just because of a small issue like this. His hands which were supporting his body shook with the thought of the Chang¡¯an gangs that had ended his career.


    Eunuch Lin continued reading the edict. An assistant minister had been sent to jail, and the Logistics of the Ministry of Revenue had been cleaned out entirely. A number of officials had been removed from Chang¡¯an Local Government. Mayor of Capital was sent to Tin Shui Wei, and the emperor¡¯s valet was found guilty after a trial. The Military Department suffered the heaviest bow. General Xiahou sent an angry demand for an exnation for the death of his best subordinate, Zhuo Er, so the emperor sent seven men from the military to the gallows to appease the general. Or perhaps, one could say that this was done for Chao Xiaoshu.


    During the reading of the edict and trials, the emperor remained silent no matter how much his subjects bled, cried loudly proiming their innocence or sniveled in gratitude. It was only when a recement was sought for Mayor of Capital that he furrowed his brows and thought of a name.


    "The Chang¡¯an Judicial Military Supervisor. What¡¯s that person called? Something Shangguan."


    "Shangguan Yuyang," the minister of archives answered. He looked at the emperor and was able to guess what he was thinking. Coughing slightly, he continued, "He has always scored well in the official exams, and he was a schr from the imperial exams. It¡¯s just that he doesn¡¯t look really good. So..."


    "What I need is someone who can care for my subjects. I¡¯m not choosing a concubine." The Emperor waved his hand impatiently and said, "He shall serve as the recement."


    The Pce of Counsel gradually emptied out as the officials were either sent away or left. The prince who had sat silently throughout the whole procedure could not stay still any longer. He stood up from where he was sitting, walked towards the emperor¡¯s bed, lifted his robes and kneeled down with a resounding p.


    The Royal Family of Tang, especially this emperor had always ced much importance on kinship. There rarely were incidences of fighting for power within the pce unlike that in history. The emperor trusted his only brother very much and would never put him down before the officials. The prince knew that the respect given to him was earned by himself. If he wanted it today, his brother, the emperor would lose it.


    Indeed, the emperor did not ask for him to rise up as usual, but watched him coldly from above. He evaluated how much of the pain and regret was an act on his brother¡¯s face before the anger bled out of his face. He said, "Raise your head and look at me."


    The prince lifted his head slowly before staring into the piercing gaze of his brother.


    "Are you sponsoring Wang Jinglue?"


    "Yes."


    "Do you think it¡¯s a pity that I sent him to serve in the military?"


    "I don¡¯t dare."


    "It was for his own good that I sent him to train with Xu Shi."


    Xu Shi was the greatest general in Tang. Wang Jinglue was a genius in cultivation. Under the guidance of Xu Shi, he would have improved greatly. The prince was startled for a moment before thanking the emperor profusely.


    "Don¡¯t thank me. At least, don¡¯t thank me on his behalf."


    The emperor looked at his brother and said frigidly, " It was no easy feat for Tang to have talent like him. That¡¯s why I wanted to protect him. However, the talent of Tang can only serve Tang and not any wealthy individuals. Understand?"


    These were words that hit home. The prince felt his heart contract and sweat ran down his back, wetting his royal robes. He did not know how to answer that question, and could only lower his head, praying for forgiveness in a position of humility.


    "I¡¯ve given you some good things over the years. The royal coffers are a little empty these days. You should offer some tribute. I¡¯ll remember your gesture of goodwill."


    "I don¡¯t dare."


    "Is there anything in the world that you dare not do?"


    The emperor said smilingly, "You¡¯re a prince, and yet you allowed your steward to run a brothel. If Mistress Jian were not the childhood friend of the empress, how long would you hide this from me?"


    Even though the emperor did not sneer, and nor was there any trace of sarcasm in his speech, the prince felt that the immeasurable pressure on him raised yet another notch. The sweat on his back trickled down quickly as he waited for the emperor¡¯s edict. However, he did not hear any after waiting for a long time and started getting suspicious.


    The smile on the emperor¡¯s face faded slowly as he looked upon the prince. "I shan¡¯t punish you heavily, only because the man who watched the people at the House of Red Sleeves on behalf of your steward said that you were loyal only to me," said the emperor.


    It suddenly dawned upon the prince, that his valet had reported Cui Delu¡¯s report after Chao Xiaoshu visited the House of Red Sleeves. While he had admitted that he was loyal only to the man on the throne, he did not wish for his subordinates to say too much about it. He felt the blood drain from his face, and thanked his lucky stars that he had mentioned his allegiance to that person.


    ...


    ...


    All had been smooth sailing for Tang since the first year of Tianqi. There were fewrge criminal issues, of which, one was the issue with the imperial astronomer, and the other was the most recent incident, which they now call the Spring Breeze Pavilion Incident.


    There were over 10 officials who were stripped of their positions and seven from the Military Department were sent to the gallows openly in this incident. However, in the bowels of the pce where secretsy, it was known that several key figures in key positions werepletely overhauled. It was only because these positions were important to the pce¡¯s security that the news was kept secret.


    In that rainy spring night, the Deputy General of the Yulin Royal Guards, Cao Ning, weed Eunuch Lin as well as his own death. Chang Siwei and Fei Jingwei who were previously imprisoned had killed him after they received the imperial edict written personally by the emperor. Cao Ning was reported to have died from an illness after that.


    In that same night, Liu Si from the Fish-dragon Sect fulfilled their orders from the emperor and got their long-awaited revenge as they rode their horses wielding spears, killing the Deputy Commander of the Valiant Cavalry Battalion, Chu Ren who had framed them 10 years ago.


    It was after this spring rain when the senior officials of the Tang found out about Old Chao from the Spring Wind Pavilion. Or perhaps, one could say, they finally began to take this name seriously. They wanted to know who the masked young man from the Yuelun Kingdom who had killed beside him was.


    Chao Xiaoshu stood at the edge of theke in the imperial gardens. He stared at theke, which was called the leaving sea silently. His indigo robes moving gently in the slight breeze.


    The eunuchs and pce maids who walked by him would turn away humbly. Now that everyone knew who he was, and knew what he would be, they could not hold back the envy, curiosity, and respect in their eyes.


    Chao Xiaoshu seemed not to notice, and the cold-blooded look in his face that he had the previous night had dissipated. Neither could one see the look of nervousness those from the Jianghu world usually disy when they entered the pce. His face waspletely calm and he seemed to be at ease.


    A goldfish jumped up from the leaving sea, jumping over the dragon gate that the pce maids had weaved using flowers before entering the waters again happily.


    To many people, Chao Xiaoshu was like the fish at this moment. He was about to rise through several ranks and be a key figure in the pce.


    But yet, Chao Xiaoshu did not wish for that to happen.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 68: The Flower Blooms on the Shore Astride (I)

    Chapter 68: The Flower Blooms on the Shore Astride (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    One of thergest upheaval in the Great Tang of the year Tianqi was happening right in the Pce of Counsel. Within each administrative office, minor officials were making frightened guesses about what will happen to their superiors. Meanwhile, thed in the Imperial study looked around him excitedly. Chao Xiaoshu who was standing at the edge of the Leaving Sea in the Imperial gardens looked like the matter did not concern him at all. He smiled at the colorful fish jumping around, breaking the surface of the water and over the dragon gates beforending into theke happily. They waved their tails around, sighing asionally.


    Ten years ago, he had been a young schr who had entered the city to gain entrance into the Academy only to be brought into the Chang¡¯an Jianghu world by the Emperor. Ten yearster, he could kill without so much as waving his sword, bing a force to be reckoned with on the streets of Chang¡¯an. He reminisced and nned for the future as he stood by the edge of theke. He did not feel that the path to officialdom was in anyway alluring to him. He only wanted to return to those days when all he was focused on was cultivation.


    The jangling of bracelets prated through the silence at theke. The young princess with clean features walked towards him slowly with her two personal maids. Lee Yu¡¯s eyesnded on his pale green robes that looked almost white from one too many washes. She blinked in surprise before bending in a half bow smilingly. In a gentle voice, she said, "How do you do, Uncle."


    Lee Yu was the much adored fourth princess of Tang. She was greatly respected and doted on. She would only greet the prince ndly and would only call him by his title prefixed with Uncle. Why would she greet this man so intimately?


    "Thismoner dares not."


    Chao Xiaoshu angled his body away, allowing her to walk past him. While he imed that he did not dare, his bodynguage did not seem so. He was only being on guard and held her at a distance politely.


    Lee Yu¡¯s hands which have been at her hips froze slightly upon witnessing Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s reaction. The pce maid and nanny behind her watched with trepidation. Without waiting for them to react, Lee Yu said smilingly. "Father used to take me out to y. We¡¯ve met several times at the gambling den. It is just that they¡¯ve slipped my memory since I was so young then. You¡¯ve carried me around before, why are you being so formal now?"


    "Your Highness, your words make me fearful. What great deeds have I done to im a position senior to yours?"


    Chao Xiaoshu replied with a slight upward tilt to his mouth. The light reflected off theke and onto his handsome face, illuminating it. There was no hint that he was being deliberately humble, but only the expression of a subject who kept to the rules. There was a line between the royalty andmoners that he would not cross.


    Chao Xiaoshu rebuffed Lee Yu¡¯s attempts at being friendly in the most neutral manner. The atmosphere at theke became unbearably tense. Lee Yu looked at the middle-aged man quietly and thought of the anger disyed by her father since yesterday and his attempts to protect and court this man. She was very certain that this man held a very important position in her father¡¯s heart. She waved a hand to stop the maids at her side, and continued, "I brought some barbarian bodyguards with me from the grasnd. I heard that there was someone named Chen looking for information about them. Is he your man?"


    Chao Xiaoshu was quiet for a moment before replying, "His name is Chen VII, he is my man."


    Lee Yu smiled upon hearing that. She turned her gaze towards theke that looked like a sea, watching the lotus leaves that were being nudged around by the moving fish. She asked, "Is thed useful?"


    "Your Highness, I did not use him, but asked him for help instead."Chao Xiaoshu replied."We were working together, he wasn¡¯t being used."


    "If you were working together, is he one of your men then?" Lee Yu turned around, asking him with furrowed brows.


    Chao Xiaoshu thought about the noodles with fried eggs from the Old Brush Pen Shop and Ning Que¡¯s answer. He said self-deprecatingly, "Some people are more jaded by the world than I am."


    Chao Xiaoshu He looked at Lee Yu¡¯s furrowed brows and said seriously, "Your Highness, he does not wish for anyone to find out. Please keep this secret for him."


    Lee Yu was startled. She replied sarcastically, "Did that idiot think that we can hide this forever? That he can keep his identity a secret just by wearing a ck mask and putting his hair up in the style of the Yuelun Kingdom?"


    Chao Xiaoshu replied, "He will enter the Academy soon and will enter the second floor. He will not fear that someone will plot against him then."


    Lee Yu thought about what the old man Lyu Qingchen had said about Ning Que and asked with knitted brows. "Why do you all think so highly of him?"


    Chao Xiaoshu replied with a smile, "Because he is worth it".


    Her expression softened when she thought of the glint his knife made at the entrance of the North mountain, the shadow behind the mes and the story told by the fire. However, her voice remained frigid and full of sarcasm. "I gave him a chance then, but he chose not to grasp it. I thought that he was a weirdo who cared naught for power and wealth, but it seems that he only thought that the method of gaining it was not fanciful enough. He wants to enter the Chang¡¯an scene in a manner like this."


    "No matter what, he is mine since I brought him into Chang¡¯an City..."Lee Yu looked at Chao Xiaoshu with an indiscernible expression with a half-smile on her face. "Uncle Chao, shouldn¡¯t you let me know beforehand that you were going to use one of mine so savagely?"


    The battle of words really hinges on one¡¯s psychological bnce. Fourth Princess Lee Yu is one of the best in her generation. However, before Old Chao who was much more experienced, she was really just a child. Chao Xiaoshu smiled gaily, "Would a little shop like that make things difficult for him if he really belonged to your Highness? I believe your Highness can see that he will never be anyone¡¯s man. He is his own man."


    Lee Yu fell silent as her attempts at trying to find out more information was rebuffed. She had not even managed to find an opportunity to mention about proper business. She waved the maids behind her away and looked at him seriously. "Uncle Chao..."


    Chao Xiaoshu bowed slightly and repeated, "Thismoner dares not."


    Lee Yu shook her head and said gravely, "Everyone knows that Old Chao of the Spring Breeze Pavilion will never be themoner hidden out there by the Emperor after today. He is no longer Chang¡¯an city¡¯s number one gang leader. There will be a ce for you in this world no matter if you be the head of the royal guards, be an official or are allowed to leave the city."


    "Those officials used to tout the Empress and my name to bait and threaten you when you were Old Chao of the Spring Breeze Pavilion. Are you going to just let things be now that you¡¯ve jumped out of the sea?"


    Lee Yu looked at him silently, her tone cordial and her intentions clear. "The Empress is an intelligent woman. I am not stupid either. We will not do anything that displeases my father. But there are some things that we have to do."


    "I hope you can support me."


    "You¡¯ve carried my brother and I when we were little. You¡¯ve met my mother. Could you bear to see my brother¡¯s throne be taken away from him? To watch my mother cry in theherworld?"


    The fight for the throne in Tang hinges on the Emperor¡¯s thoughts and words. While the Emperor looked weak-willed, he was extremely clear headed. He would never allow his wife and children to do anything that would harm the country or the fight to escte beyond his control. However, he did want to see who performed better in this fight.


    There was rarely any royal family like the Tang who are so transparent across time in this world. But the words that Lee Yu had said to Chao Xiaoshu by theke today had made it seem that she had openly dered her intentions. This differed greatly from the impression people usually had of pce schemes.


    Chao Xiaoshu was silent for a long time. He looked at her and said gently, "Your Highness, you bear much resemnce to your mother. You are intelligent and beautiful. You understand that veiled attempts to find out more and to seduce me with power and money means nothing to people like me from the Jianghu world, and so you used a Jianghu speech. However, this is something that can only be decided by the Emperor. I am only a small fish in thisrge sea called Tang. I am not of much use even if I have jumped across this sea."


    "Uncle Chao, you¡¯re being modest. All these years, I¡¯ve never seen Father trust in a man so much... Furthermore, he must feel guilty towards you for hiding such a talented schr about to enter the Academy in the depths of the East city for so many years."


    Lee Yu looked at him determinedly. "The most important thing is, you¡¯re in this sea called the great Tang. Even though you might have jumped out of the sea, you¡¯ll stillnd back into it eventually. One day, you will have to choose which direction to swim in..."


    Chao Xiaoshu smiled handsomely and waved at thergeke, interrupting her before she couldplete her sentence. "I might be a small fish, but I don¡¯t like staying in a pond even if it might be as big as the sea. It is after all still a pond. If I had to choose which direction to swim in, I might end up choosing the shore."


    Lee Yu furrowed her brows. "A fish will die of thirst on shore."


    Chao Xiaoshu smiled. "At least the fish can breathe in sufficient air before it dies."


    "Uncle Chao, why are you so certain that the court is a pond? Can you find a bigger pond than the great Tang in the world?"


    "The Jianghu world might be small, but I feel more at ease in it. Conversely, I¡¯m certain that I rather be a small fry in the Jianghu than a big fish in court."


    Lee Yu looked at the schr in green robes standing by theke. She realized, in that moment, that she could not understand some people. She sighed, "The Jianghu world is dangerous."


    Chao Xiaoshu smiled lightly and replied, "But it is far enough. It is freedom."


    Lee Yu shook her head, "What kind of freedom can you have?"


    Chao Xiaoshu looked at the young princess somewhat pityingly and said, "The freedom to not choose."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que¡¯s hands itched. It was an itch that had been cultivated for many years. It was so deep in his veins and into his bones that he cannot get rid of it but can only bear with it ufortably.


    The imperial study was quiet. He walked from the door to the table, from the table to the shelves and from the shelves to the door. His sleeves hid his right hand and his twitching fingers. He could not stop the itch that had burst forth from deep within.


    The writings by masters on the wall made him itch. The paintingsying around haphazardly made him itch. The unique scent of Chenzhou ink made him itch. The sensation of the slight wrinkles of Xuanzhou bud paper made him itch. When his gazended on the words the Emperor had written, the itch made his eyes water and his face scrunched. He could no longer control himself.


    The only way to remedy this itch, was to write.


    Messing with the writings of the Emperor in the imperial study is a dumb choice. He might be punished heavily, or might be sentenced, but the itch was terrible... As Chao Xiaoshu talked about choosing freedom by the edge of theke, Ning Que was trying to make a painful decision.


    "I¡¯ll tear it up after writing."


    Finding a good excuse, Ning Que gave a jovial shout and rushed at the writing desk like a starving man. He grinded a little ink and held up a brush, appeasing the itch and turning it into joy. With a quick wave over the paper, he wrote six words.


    "The flower blooms on the shore astride."


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 69: The Flower Blooms on the Shore Astride (II)

    Chapter 69: The Flower Blooms on the Shore Astride (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Forging an axe at the door of a cksmith, selling liquor in front of Du Kang¡¯s store, disying one¡¯s book collection at the Headmaster of the Academy¡¯s doorstep were not acts of overconfidence. To think about it another way, when the cksmith looked at the axe, Du Kang at the liquor, and Headmaster at the books, would they not also be ovee by the same itch that had overwhelmed Ning Que when they realized the person performing these acts might be one of the best in a field different from themselves in the secr world?


    I want to craft a wooden bird to show that person how a n should look like. I want to brew a delicious bottle of wine to show that person how the best blend of a dying kingdom should taste like. I want to write paragraphs of advice to show that person that this is how one should touch a person¡¯s soul through writing. I want to write even more to show that person what words should look like. You have to listen to me, even if you are the emperor.


    Ning Que was immersed in this bubble of happiness at that moment. He looked at the drying characters on the calligraphy paper and imagined himself as the emperor¡¯s calligraphy teacher. He imagined himself hitting the emperor¡¯s palm with his brush and lecturing him strictly.


    "You wrote it wrong again! Hold out your hands to receive your punishment!"


    He was very much satisfied with the six words that he had written. In fact, he felt that these were the best words he had written in the recent years. Other than using the best ink and paper and being in such a wonderful ce like the imperial study, the most important reason was that he had umted a lot of itch within this room as the first seven words were written by the emperor.


    He admired his handwriting with great interest. It was straight and wide, and looked rather impressive. He could not bear to destroy the paper and was prepared to keep it and steal it out of the pce once it had dried. However, a low angry voice sounded suddenly outside the quiet imperial study at this moment.


    "Where did that rascal go?"


    Ning Que looked up in shock to see a hand opening the doors to the imperial study.


    His pupils shrank and in a feat of dexterity. He flicked his fingers lightly, allowing the drying paper to slide into the bottom corner of a shelf. He turned around quickly, sping his hands together and pretended to be looking at the books on the shelf. The books on the shelf tilted into a different direction as he gathered his hands before him, sessfully covering the paper. No one would notice that it had been touched.


    A short but muscr middle-aged general entered the imperial study. He was wearing the uniform of imperial guards and had a ck gold belt around his waist, indicating his high position. When his eyesnded on Ning Que who looked like a bookworm who was focused intently on the books, his yelled angrily, "Who in the world let you in?"


    While Ning Que looked like he was lost in his own world, his ears were actually pricked up listening to every move behind him. His heart skipped a beat as he heard the voice behind him. There must be a mistake somewhere. Perhaps he had misheard the eunuch. He doubted that this was a plot to put him down, he was too small of a fry for them to try so hard to do so. Nheless, entering the imperial study without the emperor¡¯s permission is a huge sin. He must not allow himself to get into such trouble.


    He turned around like an adorable schr who had been dazzled by the emperor¡¯s private collection of books. Rubbing his eyes, he looked at the tubby guard standing at the door confusedly, "There was an edict telling me toe to the pce. Is there a problem?"


    The tubby guard froze slightly. He must have never thought that a person caught red handed in the imperial study could ever be so calm. An expression of incredulity spread over his face as he palmed his forehead and muttered angrily to himself. "Old Chao, you bastard. You didn¡¯t even teach him any rules beforehand!"


    Ning Que walked around the desk and stood before it, bowing politely. He asked, "General, do you know Big Brother Chao?"


    No matter how friendly Chao Xiaoshu had been at the Lin 47th street and at the Spring Breeze Pavilion, Ning Que had refused to call him brother. However, he had no qualms about saying it now to protect himself. Answering a question with another was his chosen form of attack. He¡¯d be safe as long as the guard¡¯s attention was deflected away from the imperial study.


    After looking around to make sure that there was nobody, the tubby guard looked around the imperial study carefully. Upon confirming that nothing seemed amiss, he palmed his forehead once more, saying to Ning Que in anguish, "Get out of there you brat. I¡¯ve been looking for you for an hour outside. How dare youe in here? Remember this. You haven¡¯t been here today. Don¡¯t you dare brag about this to anyone, or I¡¯ll end you!"


    Ning Que followed the ranting man out of the imperial study. They turned west and reached the guard¡¯s duty room in the Spring Pce.


    In the dark room, he finally realized that the tubby man with a Hebei ent was the deputymander of the Tang imperial guards, Xu Chong Shan. He was also the man that Chao Xiaoshu wanted him to meet.


    "His Majesty likes calligraphy and you happen to sell them. That¡¯s how we managed to get you in without alerting anyone. But you brat, how dare you enter the imperial study! Do you really think you¡¯re a calligraphy god? Did you think the emperor invited you to discuss calligraphy?!"


    Xu Chongshan pointed at Ning Que¡¯s nose while roaring angrily, spittle flying all over the ce.


    Ning Que rubbed his nose disgruntledly. The emperor did not invite him to discuss calligraphy, but he had already written some in the imperial study. What could they do to him? As he thought about the sheet of paper at the corner of the shelf, he ruminated over how he could bring it out of the pce.


    Xu Chongshan was tired after yelling at him and ced his hands on his thick waist. Panting slightly, he said, "Let¡¯s get down to business."


    Ning Que smiled in agreement. "Please, go ahead."


    Xu Chongshan looked at him weirdly. "Look at you, grinning away so happily. You don¡¯t seem at all like what Old Chao had described."


    "That¡¯s because you¡¯re too impressive." Ning Que replied seriously.


    Nothing works better than ttery. Even the flimsiest ass-kissing would be useful, much lessing from ad who seemed slightly childish and silly. Xu Chongshan¡¯s expression calmed and after coughing lightly, he said, " You must know who Old Chao is by now, don¡¯t you?"


    Ning Que furrowed his brows slightly, pretending to be dim. "Is Brother Chao one of your men, general?"


    "I don¡¯t have the guts to order Old Chao of the Spring Breeze Pavilion around. Also... don¡¯t call him Brother Chao in the future. The old people who used to call him that are mostly gone. We call him Second Brother Chao."


    Xu Chongshan said sternly. Following that, he thought about the battle in the spring rain and of Old Chao¡¯s evaluation of thed. He started to find thed less jarring and smiled lightly, changing the subject suddenly. "Why did you help Old Chaost night?"


    "He paid me five hundred silver taels." Ning Que answered honestly.


    Nobody would die for a person they had just met for five hundred silver taels. Much less a youngd of sixteen about to enter the Academy. Xu Chongshan did not believe his exnation and thus did not believe he did it out of greed. He felt that Ning Que was a sentimental person and began to see him in even better light.


    "His Majesty likes the sentimental sort. So do I." Xu Chongshan smiled. "I am going to ask you a question next. That is... are you willing to sacrifice your name and even reputation for your country?"


    Ning Que stiffened slightly. He furrowed his brows and thought for a long time. On one hand, he tried to guess the true reason behind the question. On the other, he did not understand why he had said "even reputation". Was it that one¡¯s reputation was more important than one¡¯s life?


    It was a huge question that was broad, serious and one might even say sacred. However, it was also a question that one cannot wrap his mind around. He thought about it for a long time, and thought of the generals from Wei city, his brethren who had gone through life and death with him, and the passionate people of Chang¡¯an. He ruminated over it seriously before answering, "If I am forced to do so, my life, I can sacrifice..."


    At this point, he thought of a certain scene from the night before, where Chao Xiaoshu left behind half his bowl of noodles reluctantly and wondered over to the grey walls of the shop with great loneliness. He hesitated before adding on another sentence. "However, there are some things that cannot be sacrificed."


    Xu Chongshan looked at him sternly and realized that thed did not make a decision immediately, but had thought over it carefully and seriously. The deputymander was not angry about that, but was in fact d that Ning Que had done so. That was because he knew that an answer that had much thought behind it was much more trustworthy than one given in the heat of the moment.


    "You will be a member of the Tang Imperial Guards from today on."


    There were no other questions nor any tests. With just a short conversation between the two, Xu Chongshan had granted the youngd a ce in the Tang pce guards. Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s guarantee yed a part, but therger part of the reason was because he really liked Ning Que¡¯s character, which could be seen from his answers.


    Ning Que was speechless. He looked at the shiny wooden pass in his hands and at the identifier at the back and was silent for a long time before saying vacantly, "Can one be an imperial guard just by participating in a fight?"


    "The Fish-dragon Sect has been forced to the light by imbecilic officials. Don¡¯t look at me like that. The Emperor said so himself yesterday. That is why we need to arrange for more people to be in the dark."


    Xu Chongshan exined coldly, "This is the highest glory for the people of Tang. Do not think of rejecting."


    "It is not a matter of rejection." Ning Que said helplessly. "The question is, what does the court need me to do? What can I do? The key thing is, I have to join the Academy¡¯s entrance exam soon."


    Xu Chongshan¡¯s expression altered slightly upon hearing the word "Academy". As someone of seniority in the guards, he knew what Chao Xiaoshu had encountered in his youth. It was because of the incident that these guards in the dark could enjoy the treatment that had now. He smiled warmly at Ning Que and said, "Rest assured. You may enter the Academy if you can. You can work for the court once you leave the Academy. There is no conflict between the two."


    "You haven¡¯t said what I needed to do." Ning Que asked persistently.


    "Now that the Fish-dragon Sect is known to all, there will no longer be any problems in Chang¡¯an¡¯s Jianghu."Xu Chongshan said with knitted brows. "Your task is simple. You just need to gather intelligence. Let¡¯s talk about your task in the future."


    If there are no longer any problems in the Jianghu, the biggest problem in the kingdom would be the world of cultivators. Ning Que yed through the different scenarios as he thought about his impending entrance into the Academy and the deputymander¡¯s unclear instructions. Is the court going after the Academy?


    The wooden pass in his hands had be slightly damp from his sweat. But he knew that he could not reject this. He could only hope that the direction where things seemed to be going would differ from what he had imagined.

 Chapter 70: The Flower Blooms on the Shore Astride (III)

    Chapter 70: The Flower Blooms on the Shore Astride (III)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    If life gives you lemons, and you cannot ovee it, you can only make lemonade. If you¡¯re not really against lemonade, you can drink it. It would make life easier. Armed with this knowledge, Ning Que extricated himself from his shock and despair quickly. He scratched his head and looked over Xu Chongshan¡¯s sturdy shoulder. His gazended out of the windows as he said, "Can I ask another question?"


    Xu Chongshan replied without hesitation, "I will answer you if I can."


    "Why me?" Ning Que asked.


    Xu Chongshan replied, "Old Chao thinks highly of you. He thinks if you are lucky, you may end up scaling to heights beyond him. Chang III and Chen VII think highly of you after the incidentst night... ording to the rules of the guards, the opinions of seniors are held with high regards no matter whether you¡¯re in the open or in the dark."


    "General..."Ning Que held his face in his palms and said, "If so many people know that I¡¯m a guard in the shadows, how do you exin the shadow in the term shadow guard? Should I light some firecrackers in Lin 47th street and hang a notice informing everyone of this?"


    Xu Chongshan could hear the anger and dissatisfaction in Ning Que¡¯s words. He furrowed his brows gently and exined, "The Tang empire is a country with rules. Nobody would dare to anger the emperor by exposing you even if all the pcedies knew of your identity. As for Chang III and the rest... they have proven their loyalty long ago."


    Ning Que released his forehead from his palms and shook his head. "Time will tell. It is the only test for truth."


    "They have used the past ten years of their life to prove this." Xu Chongsan said this without any expression on his face. "But I like these words of yours. It is a pity that you¡¯re about to enter the Academy and can only work in the shadows. I would like to cultivate you as my sessor just because Old Chao thinks highly of you and my great admiration for your words."


    "While I am in the army, I am still human. I can¡¯t be as wild as Old Chao and leave my life in your hands without knowing who you are. After all, we guards are in charge of His Majesty¡¯s safety. That is why we have traced your history and your family¡¯s."


    It is a pity your records started at age seven and only stated that you are an orphan. We couldn¡¯t trace your family members or ancestors. What we are certain of, is your performance in the army in the city of Wei. We are very impressed with you.


    Xu Chongshan extended a meaty palm and patted Ning Que¡¯s shoulder heavily. He said, "Your deeds and efforts in the army are more than enough proof of your loyalty to His Majesty and the Tang empire."


    Ning Que did not panic upon hearing that the guard had done a background check on him. He knew that Sangsang and the deceased darkie were the only ones who knew of his identity


    He fiddled with the damp pass in his palms and continued after a moment of silence. "ording to what you¡¯ve said, it seems that no one will approach me. How am I supposed to report any situation? I don¡¯t think we will meet in the pce again? I have never thought that such things can ur right out in the open."


    "Why not?" Xu Chongshan said with pride, "There¡¯s nowhere in the world that¡¯s safer than the Pce of Tang."


    Ning Que sighed and epted the fact helplessly. He raised his head with a face filled with anticipation and asked, "I can¡¯t let anyone know of my new position. When can I... meet His Majesty?"


    Xu Chongshan looked at him, wide eyed before issuing a shout ofughter. He rubbed at his round tummy and saidughingly, "You rascal... Did you think you entered the pce to meet His Majesty today?"


    "Am I not?"


    "How old are you?"


    "16"


    "And your surname?"


    "Ning"


    Xu Chongshan looked at him seriously and asked, "You¡¯re not a centenarian or a distant rtive of the royal family. Why would His Majesty meet you then?"


    Ning Que rubbed his somewhat delicate face and shook his head.


    Xu Chongshan sighed as he watched thed shake his head. "Chang III and the others have not met His Majesty in years. What makes you think you are qualified to meet His Majesty alone?"


    Ning Que thought about it seriously before replying, "I write pretty well. If His Majesty likes it, he might think it¡¯s a pity for me to be a bodyguard and call for me to enter the pce as a writer or something."


    Xu Chongshan wiped the smile off his face and said sarcastically, "Other than bodyguards, the only people who can stay in the pce year round are eunuchs."


    Ning Que¡¯s expression stiffened before smiling awkwardly, unwilling to continue with the topic of conversation.


    Xu Chongshan was the deputymander of the Tang imperial guards and was very busy. He had taken the time and spent even more time to meet thisd alone, showing how highly he regarded Chao Xiaoshu. After their conversation, he chased Ning Que away before serving at the Pce of Counsel once more.


    Ning Que walked out of the empty guard duty room. As he was worrying about how he was to leave the pce, he imagined several scenarios. Would he be in the same situation as when he had entered the imperial study mistakenly? Would he enter a random pce by mistake and meet an angry pcedy who had little opportunity to serve the emperor and create a ruckus? Or would he meet the fourth princess whom he thought was an idiot but still thought of regrly? Before he knew it, the little eunuch who had brought him into the pce appeared beside him like an apparition.


    While he would have liked to demand an exnation on why he had been left to be tempted by the ink and paper in the imperial study and endure a scare, he decided not to after much consideration for his own safety. He shut his mouth tightly and followed the eunuch through a path scattered with flowers and through the stone gates. He boarded the cramped horse carriage, drove through theundry station and towards the city.


    As they were about to reach theundry station, Ning Que had a sudden epiphany. His chest felt tight. Ignoring the eunuch¡¯s re, he lifted a corner of the curtain and looked out of the window.


    He looked out afar across the cramped alley. Over the sounds of maids doingundry and the scent of soap permeating the air, his gazended on nine beasts carved on the eaves in a crouching position. The cerulean skies became a backdrop against the majestic pce.


    He did not know what these beasts were called nor did he know where they were from. He could feel his chest getting tighter as he thought about it. His heart was beating faster and faster as if it was about to rip out of his chest. As his heart pumped faster, the nine beasts grew clearer and clearer. The lines carved into stone had endured hundreds of years of the elements, but seemed especially deep and life-like. It felt as if they might be real life beasts any moment.


    He harrumphed softly, clutching his chest. He could not help but think of that rainy day when he had first seen the vermilion bird of Chang¡¯an with Sangsang. He stared at the carved beasts, refusing to tear his sight away from it even as his face continued to pale considerably.


    ...


    ...


    An intense fight had broken out earlier in the imperial study. Deputymander of the guards, Xu Chongshan, and the Deputy Head of internal affairs, Eunuch Lin stood like statues outside of the imperial study. Their faces were looked as if they had been carved out of granite, not showing any hint that they¡¯ve heard of the fight within the room. These two men of power were very frightened, but could not help but respect the man in the study for his guts.


    No one had seen the Emperor be so angry in all thirteen years of Tianqi. the emperor had only hit on the table really hard, uttered "imbeciles" for about thirty times after the Spring Breeze Pavilion Incident. However, His Majesty had broken several teacups and uttered several unmentionable cuss words in the imperial study today.


    "Chao Xiaoshu! How dare you! I¡¯m going to teach you a lesson!"


    "What lesson? I... I... I don¡¯t freaking know!"


    "You stupid fellow, how can you not understand how the world works?!"


    "Alright, I¡¯ll call you second brother Chao from now on. Will you stay or not?!"


    The imperial study fell silent. Outside the door, Xu Chongshan and Eunuch Lin turned and looked at each other. They could see their fear and jealousy reflected in the other face. They both turned around to look at the flowers and trees around them silently by tacit agreement.


    The room remained silent for a long time before Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s gentle yet firm voice rang within it.


    "No"


    There was a loud crash. the emperor had broken his favorite ink stone. Xu Chongshan and Eunuch Lin could no longer remain silent, especially as Xu Chongshan was worried that the emperor might do something in his anger that he would grow to regret. They both stepped forward and prepared to step in.


    At this moment, the door to the imperial study opened with a creak. Chao Xiaoshu stepped over the threshold and closed the door behind him. He turned around, raised his long turquoise robes and kneeled on the ground before kowtowing three times gravely. It was a rite signifying his goodbyes.


    He stood up and bowed slightly to Xu Chongshan and Eunuch Li before walking towards the pce exit. There was no eunuch or pce maid leading him and he walked alone as if he was touring the gardens. He used to visit this pce many times in the past and felt much affection for it. He hadn¡¯t had much opportunity to visit in the recent years and had missed it so.


    When he reached theke called the Leaving Sea, Chao Xiaoshu looked at it pensively with his hands sped behind his back. As he looked at the fish swimming happily in theke, his lips curled upwards slightly, a smile illuminating his face like the sun.


    The fish in theke stopped movingpletely as his smiling gazended on them. They looked like ornamental jade fish floating lifelessly within the crystalline waters.


    Chao Xiaoshu mumbled to himself, "When I escape the cage, I return to the free."


    The heaven and earth were arge cage trapping men. The heart is a cage for the body. Upon breaking the cage of heart, the cage of the world will be broken.


    ...


    ...


    Inside the imperial study, a crown had been thrown hastily in the corner. the emperor stared at the writing he had started earlier this morning with a face full of petnce and regret.


    He did not know that at the corner of the shelf,id the next sentence that wouldplete his writing.


    He lifted his head suddenly and looked out of the window at the imperial gardens. His tightly knitted brows rxed and he eventually calmed down. "Perhaps, you might be right." He said self-deprecatingly sotto voce.


    ....


    ....


    Somewhere else in the vast pce, a priest of about forty was feeling the pulse of the Empress. His brows raised violently and he made a long scratch on the Empress¡¯s fleshy wrist rather rudely before turning to look behind him.


    The Empress looked at him worriedly. The Master of Nation who had always been calm and friendly was acting unlike himself.


    The priest looked out seemingly in shock. Suddenly, he thumped on his chest as he wailed, "I was wrong. I was really wrong. I should have advised His Majesty to release Xiaoshu earlier. Or to let him enter the Academy..."


    "With the Academy¡®s Headmaster¡¯s ability and Xiaoshu¡¯s state of attainment, The Tang empire would have be the strongest in the world. We might even be able to go against the South Jin Kingdom. What a pity. What a pity it¡¯s ten years toote!"


    ...


    ...


    In the alley near theundry station, Ning Que sat in the horse carriage staring at the life-like statues. They looked as if they were about toe to life any moment. Ning Que¡¯s face paled further and his heartrate rose. All his senses seemed to have faded away at that moment.


    ...


    ...


    In front of the Vermilion Bird Gates...


    A middle aged man stared at the stone beasts decorating the eave. Heughed gaily, hisughter sounding strangely carefree and bring. It was aughter that was true and without any other thoughts nor intentions. The beasts on the eaves seemed to have understood hisughter and returned to their peaceful silent existence.


    He left through the main pce gates with his turquoise robes flowing behind him, the air still ringing with his carefreeughter.


    After today, there will no longer be a Old Chao from the Spring Breeze Pavilion leading Chang¡¯an.


    Instead, there will be one more person who had entered knowing state watching fishes in theke.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 71: Goodbye Street

    Chapter 71: Goodbye Street


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Upon returning to his back courtyard on Lin 47th Street, Ning Que took out the piece of matte-looking wooden waist tag from his chest area and casually threw it on the bed, as though he was throwing a piece of junk away.


    Sangsang sat by the bed with her freezing tiny legs buried under the cozy and warm nket. She was focusing on mending his old and torn jacket. When she saw the waist tag was thrown onto the nket, she curiously picked it up and ced it against the sun ray that had seep through the ceiling. She strained her eyes and observed it in details for a long time, before she asked, "Young Master, what¡¯s this?"


    "Imperial pce bodyguard¡¯s tag...for secret guard, referring to those that do things in the dark." Ning Que sat by the table and started drinking a few mouthfuls of water from the small teapot. Recalling that he did not even get a single drink during his visit to the pce today made him felt a little dissatisfied.


    Knowing that Ning Que had a position in the officials, just like how she had predictedst night about getting a fat reward from what he did, Sangsang could not help but started grinning from eye to eye. However, that was how straightforward she was when it came to reward.


    "How much can you earn per month?"


    Ning Que was taken aback. He put down the teapot in his hand and recalled the previous conversation he had in the pce. He then hesitated and said, "I suppose it will be about 40 to 50 silvers?"


    Sangsang started frowning as her tiny dark-toned face revealed a sense of displeasure. Shemented, "That¡¯s not a lot."


    Ning Que shook his head as heughed and reprimanded her, "Now that we are richer by 2000 taels of silver, we got to be more generous in the way we express ourselves."


    Upon listening to his words, the displeasure on Sangsang¡¯s face disappeared as she smiled and gestured her little hands. She said, "Young Master, when you left, that person secretly sent the silvers over."


    Ning Que felt a little confused. He walked towards the bed and leaned beside his handmaiden before he asked curiously, "Where did you put them?"


    Sangsang secretly took a few nces outside the shop before she put down her needlework. She then used her pair of small hands to grab onto the two corners of the nket as she nervously pulled open a small gap, gesturing him to look into the gap.


    Ning Que raised his brows as he suspiciously looked beneath the nket. First, he saw a pair of thin legs. Then beside the legs were several stacks of silvers. Even though they were covered by the thick nket that blocked off most of the lights, even though there were only dull lights reflecting on the silvers, they were still as attractive and as mesmerizing as ever.


    He opened his mouth slightly and forcefully suppressed the agitated emotion within him. He then pretended to be calm and reprimanded, "I said before...*cough*...we need to act generous. It¡¯s only 2000 taels of silver and you¡¯re already so excited...No wonder I find it weird when you were covering yourself with nket in the bright daylight. In the end, you¡¯re just worried about these taels of silver. Don¡¯t you find them blocking your way?"


    Sangsang lifted her face as she shook her head with determination. This meant that silvers will never block her way.


    Ning Que coughed twice again as he snuggled his handmaiden¡¯s head and said, "It¡¯s still possible for you to hide 2000 taels of silver under the nket. What if your young master earn much more taels of silver in the future? How are you going to hide them?"


    ...


    ...


    The spring in Chang¡¯an was very beautiful as the rain poured down at times, watering the grasses and flowers along the street. Whether you were standing within the barricade or under the shelter, you could see colorful and lively scenaries everywhere. The Lin 47th Street of The Eastern City seemed alive as it was filled with bright, lively colors and crowds of people.


    After the incident at Spring Breeze Pavilion, the Minister of Revenue was demoted and the whole of Logistics Department was swept out. There was no conclusion on the matter on reiming ofnds, which went on for months. The walls surrounding the Logistics Department warehouse were also as quiet and deserted as a graveyard. Though Fish-dragon Gang was forced to surface to the public, it did not forget its role of "cleaning" the underworld of the city. At this moment, no one dared to do anything on Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s street, not even to speak of it.


    It was actually a very ideal ce for business andmerce. Now that there were no more pressures from the officials and gangsters, the shops opened their doors again for business. Whether they were new shops opened by neers, or old bosses who saw the opportunities to purchase back the shops, all of them were motivated to do big and earn big for this year¡¯s spring.


    Business would require public rtions, hence the main focus would be on gathering people to do business with you. In the past, there was only one store on Lin 47th Street, and somehow, it gave off a deadly aura which made people unwilling to get near. Hence, business was bad. Yet now that all the shops are opened for business, and with such a nice spring weather, more people started to gather and shop around the street.


    Aspared to the neighboring shops, the business at Old Brush Pen Shop was not considered good. However, aspared to their first few days of business, it was much better. Though Sangsang was busy everyday, her smile on her face did not seem to fade. She even told her young master that there was no need to hire more helpers.


    Afterall, Ning Que still had the mindset of a young schr. As he stared at the crowds, he started to recall how poor business was in the past. The more he thought of it, the more he despised the customers who came to buy his calligraphy. Now that he was 2000 taels of silver richer, he somewhat could not be bothered with the small ie Old Brush Pen Shop provided him. That was also why he had increased the price of his calligraphy sharply. To him, he was not in need of money now. Since all of them were so cheap toe forward and purchase his calligraphy, then the more they should pay. That was how he could earn back his reputation, at the same time, revenge for himself.


    Nevertheless, things always happened beyond his expectation. The higher the price of the calligraphy in Old Brush Pen Shop, which eventually was five times the original price, the more the number of customers who came to purchase them. Though Old Brush Pen Shop was still not considered famous in Chang¡¯an city, but within the small area of the Eastern City, it was pretty popr among themoners.


    "So that¡¯s how the game should be yed?"


    Ning Que, with a small teapot in his hand, leaned by the door as he observed the customers in the shop. He then happily sipped two mouths of tea from the teapot as he listened to the argument in the fake antique shop beside them. Life was f*cking awesome.


    However, the shop owners along the street would never know that the reason for Lin 47th Street and their businesses to be revived again was closely rted to the young owner of Old Brush Pen Shop. They would never know if Ning Que chose not to help Chao Xiaoshu that night to kill the men, this street would still remain dead quiet. Yet now in their eyes, the young owner of Old Brush Pen Shop was just a useless bum who could not earn money and only knew how to torture his own handmaiden.


    With good business and great profit, everyone was happy, but this would result in new problems arising. When basic needs such as food and shelter were fulfilled, humans would start to think of women and entertainment. Now that business had recovered for days, the owner of the fake antique shop was hoping to get concubines. This issue had sparked off an argument between the hubby and the wife today in the shop.


    "Look at yourself in the mirror. Do you think you have the rights to get concubines?"


    "Why can¡¯t I?"


    "I said no means no. If you¡¯re going to force your way, I¡¯m going to the Chang¡¯an Local Government to sue you!"


    "The Empress does not even have the rights to bother about such trivial matter, moreover the Chang¡¯an Local Government! That Ning Que can have handmaiden! Since you always kick me off the bed, I don¡¯t see the reason why I can¡¯t get someone to give me some warmth!"


    "You wish that I could give you some warmth? Fat hope! Unless that Ning Que be the Emperor!"


    "He¡¯s not from the Lee family! It¡¯s impossible for him to be the Emperor!"


    "Yuelun Kingdom, South Jin Kingdom, Big River, it doesn¡¯t matter for which country, as long as he be the Emperor!"


    Ning Que enjoyed his time sipping the tea from the small teapot as he listened to the argument with great interest. He secretly praised that the citizens of Tang Empire were indeed aggressive and open-minded. Even a small quarrel among the couple could rte it to the Emperor. Suddenly, his facial expression froze as he realized that the couple was talking about himself, which made him slightly frustrated.


    Just when the customers in the shop started to disperse and Sangsang was busily packing the disy sets on the table, he angrily stomped into his shop as he eximed, "What¡¯s wrong with the both of them? It¡¯s just a quarrel between husband and wife yet both of them can rte it not only to me, but to the politics. Do they think I am a bodyguard for fake? Tomorrow I shall pull them into the pce and exterminate their entire family!"


    Well, at least he was not lying for there was a secret guard tag tied on his waist, so it was indeed his responsibility to assist the imperial court to listen to the news spread among themoners. Since someone was talking about the Emperor, he could certainly report to the upper management. However, even though thews in the Great Tang were strict, the empire was pretty lenient to themoners about free speech. Trivial matters like illogical words that were spurted out during the argument between husband and wife would only make the people in the bodyguard office and pceughed off as a joke.


    Yet Sangsang became worried upon hearing his words as she thought of the issues that troubled her for days. She frowned her brows and asked, "Young Master, when I was young, I recalled that you told me a story saying that spies usually have terrible deaths. Now that you are a secret guard, will there be trouble?"


    Ning Que ced down his teapot, shook his head and said, "Though the waist tag is a secret, but to be honest, this is just a low-rank officer. Who will care about me? Furthermore, should there really be trouble in the future, do you think your young master doesn¡¯t know how to avoid?"


    He paused for a while before he looked at Sangsang and gently exined, "I ept this identity for another reason as well. In future should anyone wants to investigate on those cases, on those murders, my identity as an imperial pce bodyguard can help me."


    Sangsang was a handmaiden who was alwayszy to think about things. When she felt that what he said sounded logical, she stopped thinking about such matters. She then added, "The jacket for umbre, knives and you are all ready. Young Master, when are you going to kill the second person?"


    "What about the knives? Do we need to sharpen them?" Ning Que asked.


    Sangsang replied seriously, "Even if you use them to ughter pigs, the knives will definitely be blunt after ughtering ten pigs. Of course they need to be sharpened."


    The conversations between the master and the handmaiden were usually random and any outsiders would certainly find it difficult to understand them. This was especially when the facial expressions on the two people were absolutely normal. Should any outsiders overheard their conversations, they would never think that what they were saying was about the massacre on that rainy spring night and whether they should sharpen their knives for the next murder.


    Right at this moment, a sudden clear loud talking noise was heard from the end of Lin 47th Street. A crowd of people dashed towards the direction of the noise. Ning Que curiously walked to the entrance of his shop and took a peep at that direction. The expression on his face changed slightly.


    In that direction, he saw a group of bodyguards dressed in green from top to bottom surrounding and protecting a middle-aged man in turquoise robe who appeared to be unrestrained and elegant. A warm and joyful smile was on his face as he shook his hands,ughed and chatted with the shop owners along the street. He seemed to be assuring the owners that they could do their businesses at ease on this street and should they face any issues, they were free to voice out to his subordinates.


    As the middle-aged man spoke, the five to six men who quietly stood behind him all these while cupped their hands before their chests towards the shop owners as a form of politeness.


    That middle-aged man in turquoise robe would patiently stop in front of every shop to assure the owners as his surrounding subordinates slowly followed behind him. The group was gradually approaching to the other end of the street.


    And at the end of the street, there stood a calligraphy shop whose name was Old Brush Pen Shop.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 72: The Academy

    Chapter 72: The Academy


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    It was unknown how many streets of property, such as Lin 47th Street, that Spring Breeze Pavilion Old Chao owned or how esteemed the officers that he liaised with were. And as such, for a man of such stature to leave Chang¡¯an City, the people that he would bid farewell to certainly would not be the normal shop owners on Lin 47th Street. Yet before he departed today, he specifically made a trip down to Lin 47th Street to say goodbye to those owners. Perhaps in the eyes of the nobles from the Empire, they would probably have thought that this middle-aged man was attempting to give a clear warning by using the street that sparked off the Spring Breeze Pavilion incident, which was: "Don¡¯t any one of you dare to stir trouble after I leave".


    But Ning Que knew that that was not his true purpose foring to Lin 47th Street¡ªHe hade here to bid goodbye to Ning Que, someone who had fought hand in hand with him against their enemies in the spring rain and had sat side by side with him to enjoy noodles with fried eggs. Since Ning Que wanted to hide his identity and now that he was also a secret guard in the pce, that middle-aged man then thought of patiently saying goodbye to all of the shop owners to prevent anyone in Chang¡¯an City from taking note of his existence.


    Thinking about that, even someone as cold as Ning Que could not help but feel a warm and cozy sensation in his heart. Staring at the middle-aged man in the turquoise robe smiling in the middle of the crowd and approaching in his direction, Ning Que felt a little bit uneasy.


    When Chao Xiaoshu reached the entrance of the Old Brush Pen Shop, he looked and gently smiled at thed and little handmaiden who were in the shop. He then greeted them with a bow with his hands folded in front and said, "Boss Ning, nice to meet you."


    Ning Que saw the great number of people that stood at his door and the curiousmoners who had crowded around to view the scene. He smiled embarrassingly as he followed Chao Xiaoshu in greeting with a bow with his hands folded in front and replied, "Nice to meet you, Second Brother Chao."


    Those three words "Second Brother Chao" were first heard from the Deputy Commander, Xu Chongshan. He thought that this way of addressing him was appropriate since it not only showed his respect, but also drew their rtionship closer. Instead, this caused Chao Xiaoshu to be taken aback. Slowly, a suppressed smile was revealed on Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s face as the group of threatening-looking men that stood behind him nodded their heads and stared at Ning Que with a friendly, teasing look. Everyone in Chang¡¯an City addressed Chao Xiaoshu as Spring Breeze Pavilion Old Chao, and the brothers in the Fish-dragon Gang would address him as Gang Leader or Big Brother. But, only a few would address him as Second Brother Chao, hence, Ning Que had unknowingly let the cat out of the bag.


    "I¡¯ll be leaving Chang¡¯an very soon, so I brought along a few of my gang brothers to visit the shop owners along the street. Should Boss Ning have any issues in the future, do feel free to look for them. Of course, I believe as long as Boss Ning puts in the effort to run his business, the business will definitely prosper and it¡¯ll be sessful. Do not forget to help my gang brothers out when that timees."


    Chao Xiaoshu gently smiled and looked at him as he pointed his right finger at the handful of fierce-looking men behind him. He added, "I believe you¡¯ve seen Qi IV before. The others are Chang III, Liu V, Fei VI, and Chen VII. They are the brothers that I trust the most."


    "As long you put in the effort, your business will definitely prosper." Chao Xiaoshu had mentioned those simr words at other shops as well. However, to Ning Que, there were other hidden meanings within them. Ning Que understood, and so did the group of men that stood at the entrance of the Old Brush Pen Shop. Chang III and Liu V nced at each other and saw the others¡¯ look of surprise. They then took a step forward and silently bowed toward Ning Que.


    All of them knew what had happened that night in the spring rain and, even though they had never met him, they already liked Ning Que. At the same time, they knew that Chao Xiaoshu had high regards for thisd. What they did not know was that Chao Xiaoshu regarded him so highly, to the extent that they could feel their big brother secretly trusting his important tasks to him.


    Chang Siwei looked at Ning Que and said in a friendly manner, "Boss Ning, should we face any issues in the future, it is unavoidable that we may need disturb you."


    After the conversation in the pcest night, Ning Que finally understood that these men were secret guards who had been arranged by His Majesty and ced among themoners before. Since their identities were already out, they would most probably be called and reinstated with official positions in the pce soon. Of course, he naturally could not reject their requests, but he somewhat felt that something was off from their words.


    Indifferent Chang III, Cruel Qi IV, Domineering Liu V, Ferocious Fei VI, Cunning Chen VII¡ªthese were the remarks given by the Chang¡¯anmoners to the five Fish-dragon Gang generals. Due to the warm and friendly look from Chang Siwei, Ning Que somewhat could not think of him as indifferent and had not known that Chang Siwei actually had a n deep in his heart to hang onto him for some time.


    Since they wished to keep this rtionship a secret, Chao Xiaoshu and the others could not stay too long in the Old Brush Pen Shop or they would attract too much attention. After they exchanged a few casual words, Chao Xiaoshu grinned at Ning Que and said three words:


    "Time to go."


    It was another drizzling day. The drizzle was so light and gentle that the passengers did not even bother putting their bamboo rain hats on. Ning Que silently stood in the alley alongside Lin 47th Street as he saw the group gradually disappear from his sight. Looking at the back of the ever-elegant middle-aged man in the turquoise robe, he felt a sense of regret in his heart.


    "One needs time to prove themselves worthy of being another¡¯s brother. To be your brother just because you want it, isn¡¯t that foolish for me? I was thinking that perhaps after a few years, and if our friendship is still strong, that I wouldn¡¯t mind being your brother. Yet, now that you decided to just leave abruptly, you¡¯re still making me look like a fool."


    Ning Que shook his head and let out a sigh. He turned around as he held onto Sangsang¡¯s hand and walked into the alley. A few peach blossom stalks had grown out from the cracks on the wall. No one knew when the spring rain had cut away their roots as they fell and scattered onto the cement ground.


    Simr flowers were found scattered all around the cement ground near the city gate. Inside one of the wine shops, Chao Xiaoshu and his brothers, whom he shared life and death with, were all celebrating with the peach blossom wine that was sold in Chang¡¯an City. They drank their fill before saying their goodbyes.


    ...


    ...


    The spring rain came and went just like the passersby that entered and left our lives. Thed and his handmaiden that hade from the City of Wei had unwittingly stayed in the capital for a month. Today was a very important day for Ning Que, and of course, that was excluding those days where he had to get rid of those enemies.


    Today was the reopening of the Academy. Yup, that was right, it indeed was the reopening of the Academy, because the first day of school in the Academy was the day of the Academy entrance exams. Whoever passed the Academy entrance exams would honorably be a student of Chang¡¯an Academy. And those who failed would at least have the chance to participate in the solemn Academy reopening ceremony and take a look at the interior of the Academy. There was no doubt that the experiences that they had on the first day of the Academy would give them unforgettable memories, which might provide them with somefort despite failing to be students.


    Early in the morning at five o¡¯clock, Ning Que and Sangsang woke up and started preparing for the Academy. The first day of the year in the Academy was important not only to the Tang Empire, but it was also an important matter to the whole world. And for themoners living in Chang¡¯an, it was a day which they looked forward to. Most of the food stalls were open earlier than usual, so the young master and his handmaiden were fortunate to have their bowls of hot and sour noodle slice soup in the morning.


    Ning Que could not stop himself from yawning as he rubbed his slightly teary eyes. It was obvious that he had not slept well the night before. Sangsang also had two dark circles around her eyes, which were darker than her facial skin tone. She appeared to be much more anxious than her young master.


    The Ministry of Rites had arranged horse carriages to fetch the examination candidates from their locations to the Academy. However, since Ning Que wanted to bring Sangsang along, he chose to rent his own horse carriage instead. Knowing the identity of the customer, the private horse carriage driver did not dare to dy a single minute and was fully prepared in the middle of the night before the big day. Thus, the moment that the young master and his handmaiden were out of the Old Brush Pen Shop, they immediately headed south to their destination.


    The traffic was fine in Eastern City, but the moment their horse carriage entered Southern City, the traffic was packed. It was before dawn, so the wide and broad Vermilion Bird Avenue was dim and fully packed with hundreds of horse carriages. There was a light drizzle falling from the sky as the wheels from hundreds of carriages were rolling and numerous horses were fiercely sshing the puddles of rainwater on the wet cement ground.


    The horse carriages sent by the Ministry of Rites were given the priority to go first, followed by those carrying candidates who showed their Academy entrance exam certificates. After much effort, a path was finally cleared to make a long queue towards Vermilion Bird Gate. Today, the candidates at the Academy in Chang¡¯an were the most important people. Other carriages with officers or noble families that were heading to the Academy to attend the ceremony were all asked to wait off to the side. And the rich schrs who purchased tickets just to attend the ceremony out of curiousity were impolitely being pushed to the end of the queue.


    The candidates were more important than the officers, and were even more important than those rich businessmen who contributed the most taxes in the Empire. Though this seemed unthinkable, but in fact, when one looked at the quiet and elegant horse carriages as well as the bodyguards whose expressions were normal despite such treatment, one could imagine that for the past several years, the Academy had been like this.


    Ning Que and Sangsang sat in the carriage as they drew open the corner of the curtain from time to time to nce around at their surroundings, which somewhat calmed down their anxiety gradually. As the horse carriage finally drove out of the Chang¡¯an Southern Gate and the broad pathway stretched far toward the south where there were mountains, white clouds, and blue sky, Ning Que was even in the mood to admire the beautiful scenery in front of him.


    The spring rain was still falling, yet the view from the river to the grasnd and to the mountains had not been influenced at all. That was because there was a clear view to the front of the mountain peak, and the peak was way above the rainy clouds. So, when the morning sun rose and cast its first light, the cliff reflected its light and dispersed it out to the world, making the scenery look quite cozy and warm.


    Looking at the marvelous scenery in front of him as the carriage slowly drove in the light drizzle, Ning Que felt exceptionally calm. Though he was not sure of the reason, he felt that there were something in this scenery that greatly attracted him, and it gave off a feeling that he liked it.


    At the southern part of Chang¡¯an, at the bottom of the mountain, there was the Academy.


    It was a ce that was built a thousand years ago without any modification to its name. Its history was longer than the history of the Tang Empire, and it was a ce that cultivated numerous world-famous officers. Not to the extent of being mysterious, but it was considered a holy Academy.


    It was also a ce that Ning Que was dying to enter, even if he had to put out tremendous effort.


    ...


    ...


    A mountain could be unknown, yet could stand up between the grasnds and the rivers as it grew higher into the sky.


    And an academy could be unknown, yet could be built in the corrupt mortal world as it stood there for generations.


    Numerous horse carriages drove their way to the bottom of the mountain. The softughter from inside the carriages stopped upon reaching their destination. The candidates who came for the exams did not feel pressure at all, but in fact, they kept quiet because they felt the need to show their respect to this holy ce.


    Under the exquiste light cast by the morning sun, the bottom of the mountain was covered with arge area of green hignd meadows. The fluctuations of the slopes seemed like a solidified wave and the greenness of the meadows seemed like a drawing. In that drawing, there were over 10 roads crisscrossing one another in aplicated manner. Beside these roads, there were a few flowers and trees. In the middle of the meadow, there were several flowers and trees gathered together. They were either apricot flowers or peach blossoms in powdery-white colors as they spread across the hignd in a disorganized, yet amazing way, which made them look extraordinarily beautiful.


    Looking out of the carriage window, Ning Que and Sangsang were mesmerized by this beautiful scenery. As they saw a stretch of ck and white architecture on the lond meadows, they were somewhat lost in their thoughts. After keeping quiet for a long while, he turned around to look at Sangsang and said very sternly, "I must get into the Academy!"


    Sangsang lifted her small face and looked at him worriedly. She then spoke, saying, "Young Master, have youpleted... those few Academy entrance exam mock questions?"


    Ning Que was silent for a long time before he spurted out angrily, "I need lucky words! Kiddo, do you even understand what I mean by lucky words!?"

 Chapter 73: I Chopped a Mass of Peach Blossom that Spring (I)

    Chapter 73: I Chopped a Mass of Peach Blossom that Spring (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    As they approached the Academy and entered the meadow, they found that those pink clusters were not just peach blossoms. There also was a mass of apricot blossoms in full bloom, though the peach blossoms still outnumbered them. The pale-pink peach buds were hiding behind the apricot blooms as they looked up, bashfully and secretly, at the passersby who intruded on their peaceful ce.


    Sangsang curiously climbed onto Ning Que¡¯s shoulder and looked out of the window, watching as they got closer and closer to the Academy. Farther beyond was a striking, huge mountain mostly clouded by mist. She found herself feeling at ease, as she smiled with her eyes squinted in a cheerful mood.


    The candidates who were waiting for the Academy examination all stepped out from their carriages. They quickly formed lines on the spacious te ground under the instructions of the officials of the Ministry of Rites and instructors of the Academy before they rested in Yanyu verandas that were on either side.


    The candidates were from all walks of life. Most were picked out by instructors of the Academy from vige institutions, and the rest were rmended by different official departments. Over 70 candidates were from the Military Ministry¡¯s rmendations alone. Although there were many people resting in the Yanyu verandas, the space wasrge enough to amodate all of them without it feeling cramped.


    Above the te ground was the main structure of the Academy, clouded in thin mist and blossoms. As the structure was quite magnificent, nked by two sidewalks that looked just like two wings of a phoenix from a distance, it looked extremely grand and majestic with a clean and clear atmosphere.


    What Ning Que was concerned about now had nothing to do with the appearance of the Academy. Should he be enrolled, he could spend a few years appreciating its beauty with his own eyes and measuring its width with his own feet. But presently, he was worried that the number of candidates in the Yanyu verandas would be probably over 500, yet the Academy only epted 200 students. Ning Que was aware that out of five they only took two, so the chance of him being one of them was not high, therefore, he became inevitably paranoid.


    The candidates in the Yanyu verandas appeared to be quiteposed and at ease, they were neither talking to each other nor hitting the books at thest minute. The finest young men in the Tang were all gathered here. Among them, there was a 30-something, weather-beaten lieutenant, and an under-14-year-old prodigy who was brought to Chang¡¯an by one of the instructors form a rural vige that was checking around uneasily. Certainly, no one wanted to reveal themselves as having ack of confidence.


    Yet Ning Que was bing less confident as time went by, with his right hand quivering slightly. Several times, he had been quite eager to ask Sangsang to fetch the mock exams in the bag, but ultimately disciplined himself not to do so. When he had finally set his mind to quit pretense and had decided to cram at thest moment, a sudden solemn court tune floated over the te ground.


    The Yulin Royal Guards arrived in formation, the Guards of Honor walked in lines, and officials from all departments showed up followed by the visitors who had bought their tickets for the ceremony. Next came the bodyguards, the prince, the royal family, Her Majesty, and His Majesty. Having sat for a long time, the students all stood up from their seats and made a deep bow with their hands folded in front as they all chanted together, "Long Live His Majesty!" s, Ning Que¡¯s final cramming time was now gone for good. Just as Ning Que was whinging in his mind, he suddenly saw ady with an attractive profile who was dressed splendidly that walked in quietly and slowly. She was none other than the princess.


    The Fourth Princess of the Tang Lee Yu was nked by eunuchs, maids, and nannies. As they gradually walked by, they received fervent admiring looks from the unmarried young schrs, as well as surprised and uneasy looks from the ministers and officials. She then walked along the sidewalk to the center and made a bow to His and Her Majesty before she quietly stood at the left side of the emperor.


    Though it might be different than the story that some enemies in other countries imagined, or what some conspirators or paranoids like Ning Que might have thought, the royal power did not stand in opposition to the Academy. Only a few knew that His Majesty had studied in the Academy for two years in his youth anonymously. On every festival or asion, he woulde over for vacation and even stay as long as a month in the winter time.


    If the royals of the Tang inwardly did indeed dread the power of the Academy, there would not be a ceremony as grand as this onmencement day, and the emperor would not consider it his second home either.


    All the officials perfectly understood His Majesty¡¯s deep feeling for the Academy and the importance ofmencement day. Hence, they were astonished when they saw the appearance of the fourth princess, Lee Yu. Looking from a distance at the twodies who were standing beside the emperor, they were filled with mixed feelings. Returning from the grasnd less than a month ago, the fourth princess had exhibited to everyone that the emperor¡¯s affection for her was unrivaled in the world. They wondered what the empress standing on the other side would think about this.


    The bell behind the mountain tolled, indicating that this was the first assembly for the examination. All of the students in the verandas rushed out on themand of the Instructor of the Academy and walked across the main structure into the inner yard.


    The Tang Emperor smiled satisfyingly as he watched all these high-spirited and handsome schrs walk into their exam rooms.


    Taking notice of his father¡¯s pleasant countenance, the fourth princess Lee Yu smiled and said, "Congrattions, father. All of these talents will be at your liberty."


    Upon hearing those words, the emperorughed out loud, expressing neither a look of approval nor disapproval.


    The empress said nothing but looked up tenderly at her husband. Her eyes were filled with admiration as she touched his hand with her plump right hand approvingly.


    Looking at his wife and daughter on each side of him, officials standing on both sides, and promising students who would be useful pirs for the Tang someday, the emperor was filled with satisfaction. All of a sudden, he noticed a person was missing. He frowned and asked one of the officials, "The Headmaster of the Academy still... doesn¡¯t want toe?"


    The official bowed and answered with fear in his voice, "The headmaster believes that the Academy examination was meant for you to choose talents, and it was unnecessary for him to be here. Besides, he is preparing his luggage for his uing departure that will be in a few days."


    Something just urred to the emperor¡¯s mind as a penitent expression crossed his face, like a child who did something praiseworthy yet failed to hear praise from his father. He slowly patted the stone banister and said with a sigh, "I barely remembered that the headmaster will go away earlier than in past years."


    He turned around for ast look at the mountain behind the Academy, which was partly visible in the clouds and mist, and remained silent for a while and then bowed with folded hands in respect.


    Some 10 miles from this mountain was a pavilion, in which a monk and a Taoist priest were drinking tea and chatting. It was still early in the morning and no one couldprehend how they could be in such a good mood this early.


    The monk was in his 30s, with a calm andposed countenance, and looked like someone who was out of this world. He stared at the crossing lines on the ground for a short while, then looked up in the direction of the mountain and the Academy, and suddenly said, "I heard that the Headmaster of the Academy is very tall."


    The Taoist priest was usually a dignified and serious person, but today seemed a bit light-hearted and casual. Stretching his hand and snapping his fingers, he answered, "Yes, very tall indeed."


    "How tall is he?"


    "How could a nobody like me know that?"


    "You, the Nation Master, don¡¯t have a clue?"


    "And you¡¯re the younger brother of the emperor! Yet you know nothing, just like me?"

 Chapter 74: I Chopped a Mass of Peach Blossom that Spring (II)

    Chapter 74: I Chopped a Mass of Peach Blossom that Spring (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    At this moment, Ning Que was fiercely and shamelessly staring at a man who was among hundreds of students and conversing in high spirits with others around him. Ning Que had no qualms to be noticed by him with such a tant stare, as he had already received looks from others. He stubbornly continued considering the man attentively, as if he would swallow the man into his dark orbs and into his memory as pitch dark as a dead night.


    The man was attired in a long ck robe emzoned with a gold-colored pattern, and a pair of wide bright-red cuffs. He had an appealing look with attractive brows, a straight-edged nose, an infectious smile, and several lines around the corners of his eyes. He could have been in his 40s, or perhaps 30s. All in all, he was considerably charismatic.


    The man¡¯s name was Li Peiyan, the second most powerful man in the Tang, and the only younger brother of His Majesty, also known as Prince of Xian (good nature). It was he who took advantage of the asion when His Majesty had been on a tour around the country 13 years ago and imprisoned the Xuanwei General Lin Guangyuan under the usation of treason, conspiring with several important ministers and the major general, Xia Hou. They exterminated the entire family of the Xuanwei General at that time.


    Ever since he fled from Chang¡¯an to the City of Wei in the first year of Tianqi, Ning Que, for the past 13 years, had struggled to live in this world. His ever-growing hatred was bing more conspicuous apanied by all those years of torture of body and soul, with guilt and regret deep down in his heart.


    They were many men in Chang¡¯an on his cklist whom he determined to kill, and Li Peiyan was no doubt the first name on it. Today in the Academy was the first time that Ning Que saw his first object on his list. He took the time to observe the prince carefully, and tried to etch this charming prince¡¯s look in his mind¡ªhis brows, eyes, lips, even the lines around the corner of his eyes¡ªso that he could tear it all up all someday.


    The prince, Li Peiyan, smiled and dered inspiringly, "All of you present here are the finest men from around the world. Don¡¯t be afraid of today¡¯s examination and show what you are capable of. Once being enrolled, you ought to study hard as much as you can, and equip yourself for what the Tang has in store for you. Eventually, you should make yourself, the Tang Empire, and His Majesty proud!"


    Ning Que peered at him thoughtfully and softly blinked as though his eyshes could cut through the wind.


    Li Peiyan looked at his left-hand side where some students were dressed in exotic clothes distinct from those of Tang students. He opened his arms and said beamingly as warm as sunshine, "Although you aren¡¯t from the Tang, the Academy boasts a history of weing all different peoples. Therefore, be assured, your scores will be assessed fair and square. Should you achieve good results in the Academy one day, the Tang Empire and His Majesty will await your endeavor in the future."


    Ning Que kept staring at him, coldly and nonchntly, as his eyes started to darken.


    Attentiveness could be regarded as fervent, and when added with a morsel of other emotions, hatred could equally be seen as reverence. A student was waiting for the examination, listening to the prince¡¯s talk in awe, which was perfectly normal in everyone¡¯s eyes. Nobody but Sangsang discerned his abnormal looks. Sangsang looked up at him deeply concerned, then extended her hand secretly into his sleeve and held his quivering hand gently.


    A candidate from the Yan Kingdom was bracing himself to talk with the prince at the moment, and some cheerful words from the prince brought peals ofughter from the nervous candidates. With this atmosphere, Li Peiyan told some leisure anecdotes to rx them. Those candidates quickly picked up on his intentions and eased their previous serious looks as they started to chat around, stretched their arms, and of course, tried to brown-nose the prince.


    "What a good-natured Prince of Tang!"


    "Like the words carrying around, the virtue of the prince is indeed as warm as sunshine, and as pleasant as the breeze."


    "Xian (good nature)."


    Certainly, not all of the students were ying up to the prince. Yet hearing all thepliments around him, Ning Que could not help but frown a little, thinking of the known title of the fourth Princess, Lee Yu, which was Xian (good nature) as well, murmuring to himself, "Is there anyone who isn¡¯t Xian?"


    "Yes, porridge isn¡¯t Xian (homophone of salty)."


    A student nearby answered earnestly, and no one noticed since the young man stood right next to Ning Que. He was dressed in a long silk robe with a precious jade pendant hung from a gold belt band, revealing he was either from a wealthy or high-official family. Most of all, he was an acquaintance.


    "Chu Youxian? I¡¯m surprised that you¡¯re here to take the exam." Ning Que turned around to find out who answered, and asked amazedly, "Howe I never heard you mention this earlier on when we were at the brothel?"


    The young man was the only child of the Chu Family, one of the seven richest families in Eastern City, who happened to be the man who was being scolded by Mistress Jian on Ning Que¡¯s first visit to the House of Red Sleeves. Chu Youxian was his name, and he was known to have a generous and friendly character. On their first meeting, Chu Youxian was nning to host Ning Que well in the brothel and let him enjoy it, yet something went amiss. Later, Ning Que frequented the House of Red Sleeves to chat around with Dewdrop and other girls. After that, he met him several times and they drank wine together, thus they became acquaintances.


    Chu Youxian faced the front while ncing sideways at Ning Que, and said with agony all over his face, "My old man forced me to take the exam and told me that anyone who doesn¡¯t take the exam would be belittled by the intended¡¯s family when ites to marriage. They would even have to present several more betrothal gifts than those who did take it. I was left with no choice, so here I am."


    Ning Que turned and looked at the prince talking to each student around him, and said in low voice, "The preliminary evaluation deadline was long passed, how did you get through?"


    Chu Youxian lifted two of his fingers gesturing toward Ning Que and answered while looking ahead, "I was rmended by the Military Ministry."


    Ning Que was conscious that there were many more candidates than usual rmended by the Military Ministry this year. At first, he thought that it might be because the court worried about deficiencies in the military generals, and never thought there would be strings pulled behind the scenes. Thinking of how he fought bravely on the battlefields, chopped woods in the forest, toiled away, and rued military merits all of those years to be able to pass the preliminary examination evaluation, Ning Que felt indignant. He cursed in a low voice, "2,000 taels of silvers... which is no bigger than half of a spread-open nket¡ªI can¡¯t believe such money could buy your way into the Academy!"


    Upon hearing this, Sangsang, who stood quietly next to him on the other side, lifted her head and looked up at Ning Que. She thought to herself, "I know you are upset about this Young Master, but why on earth have you brought up that matter? "


    "2,000 taels of silvers? Are you kidding me? It¡¯s not enough to even bribe the lodge porter of the Academy! My old man supplicated all the people he could reach and spent 20,000 taels of silvers... That¡¯s just for the evaluation qualification, and no guarantee for enrollment!"


    Chu Youxian nced at him with contempt and said, "There is no ministry of the Tang that can guarantee enrollment, as that is beyond the realm of those officials, not even His Majesty can. So save your disdain for me. My old man told me that I just need to take the examination and gain experience so that I can have a good marriage in the future."


    The two continued talking thus. Then the prince, Li Peiyan, apanied by some officials and instructors, walked down their way, taking notice of a thin and weak little girl, Sangsang, whilepletely ignoring Ning Que and Chu Youxian nearby. He turned around to the instructors and said smiling, "It¡¯s amazing to watch such a little girle and take the exam. I guess she¡¯s even two years younger than Wang Ying, who we saw in Lin City."


    Wang Ying was a prodigy that was brought by an instructor of the Academy from a distant rural institution to Chang¡¯an. He was almost 14 and the new sensation introduced by officials to the prince. No one expected to see such a swarthy little girl here¡ªjudging by her dress, she was simply too in...


    "She¡¯s my handmaiden," Ning Que exined, making a bow with his hands in front.


    Li Peiyan felt a bit embarrassed to be mistaken about a person. The officials that followed had a quick response, glowered at one instructor, and asked, "How could a handmaiden get in onmencement day?"


    The middle-aged instructor appeared not to notice the anger of the officials and answeredposedly, "There¡¯s no restriction on the entrance of handmaidens and servants into the Academy. This is themencement ceremony, not the examination¡ªshe¡¯s only banned from entering the exam roomster."


    Having been answered defiantly thus by the instructor, the official, no matter how high-ranking he was and how much power he could wield, could not even lose his temper. In the Academy, it was pointless and useless. The prince smiled embarrassedly, stretched his hand and patted Ning Que¡¯s shoulder, saying no words. He then carried on with all the officials.


    Looking at the instructor beside Li Peiyan and nudging Chu Youxian gently by his shoulder, Ning Que praised in a low voice, "Hey, this is called not salty (not "Xian"). I think I¡¯m growing more and more fond of this ce."


    The bell was tolled for a second time, indicating that it was thest call.


    One instructor loudly dered the rules of the exam without emotion, and yet the students were too nervous to remember because the rules were too loose to follow¡ªno limit on talking and on asking questions, except that answers were not allowed to be passed around.


    At the sound of the bell, the students, with their long robes billowing in the breeze, tread on the petals of peach blossoms on the te ground. They all entered their rooms ready to take the exam, leaving Sangsang standing alone outside on the stone ground. As spring rain started to fall, Sangsang lifted her head and squinted at the rain, before she opened the big ck umbre that was tied on her back.


    The Academy Entrance Exam was simr to the Imperial Exam of the Tang and was divided into 6 disciplines: Etiquette, Music, Toxophily, Driving, Calligraphy, and Mathematics. The exams in the morning were Etiquette, Calligraphy, and Mathematics, and first among them was the math exam, which did not often fall into the specialty of the Tang people. Or in other words, they could not care more about it.


    It was quiet in the exam rooms, where pink blooms outside the window were matched with white walls like a beautiful scenery painting, creating a meditating atmosphere. Upon receiving the exam papers, the candidates behind their desks were all in turmoil, bemoaning and sighing.


    "Whyprehensive questions again?" Some cried out with their hands tightly clutching their hair.


    "Aren¡¯t we so unfortunate?" Someined with pale faces.


    Because a rule of no noise simply did not exist, all the candidates could not help expressing theirints and grief in all sorts of ways. It was known to all that theprehensive questions were the most difficult ones in recent years, usually devised by literature and mathematics professors. Sometimes, the candidates would even have problemsprehending the questions.


    Ning Que put his writing brush on an ink b, deeply inhaling the chilly air. He then opened the exam papers, on which only one question was presented that was merely a few dozen words. Written as follows:


    "In the spring, the Headmaster of the Academy was touring around different countries and encountered a mountain of peach blossoms. He then climbed up to enjoy the scenery and have a drink. At first, the headmaster cut off one mass of peach blossoms and drank one bottle of wine. Later, he cut off one mass of peach blossoms, but saving his wine, he only drank half of the bottle. And then one mass, half of half of the bottle... In this way up to the summit of the mountain, all the bottles of wine were finished. The headmaster looked around nkly, and asked all of you, ¡¯How many masses of peach blossoms have I cut off today? And how many bottles of wine have I drunk?¡¯"


    ...

 Chapter 75: I Chopped A Mass Of Peach Blossoms that Spring (III)

    Chapter 75: I Chopped A Mass Of Peach Blossoms that Spring (III)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Having lived a hard life since childhood, Ning Que was considerably good at controlling his emotions, or one could say that he suppressed his real feelings, changing a look of sadness to joy. He seldom reflected those bygone days. Presently, he was in an Academy examination room, looking out of the window at the apricot and peach blooms, hearing surrounding whines about theprehensive question. He could not help but recall those difficult days when he had studied hard on all subjects day in and out.


    Thanks to those tough days, the right answer quickly shed into his mind as the question was really simple to him, and he eximed, "This is quite Er (a homonym for two and silly)!"


    That was true indeed¡ªthe answer was just the ordinary figure "two".


    Ning Que dipped the writing brush in an ink pad and meticulously wrote down on the paper: "The Headmaster of the Academy drank two bottles of wine, and cut a mountain of peach blossoms."


    ...


    ...


    In a pavilion far away from the Academy, a Taoist priest perused over the ck and white pieces on a chessboard and moved his right-hand fingers in the air, seeming as if he was ying piano or catching a breeze. Suddenly, his fingers paused, and a ck chess piece jumped out of its bowl and sat on an intersection of vertical and horizontal lines.


    As the leader of the Southern School of Haotian Taoism, and the Nation Master, it was no surprise to see Li Qingshan effortlessly and nonchntly y like this. It was peculiar, however, that a deep frown grew on his brow, and it seemed that he was reluctant about ying with the monk.


    The monk, known as Huang Yang, now lived in Wanyan Tower in Southern City, Chang¡¯an. Rumor had it that he once went to the Unknown ce in the Wilderness and studied at the Upper Buddhism School. Then by chance several years ago, he met the emperor and they had been sworn brothers ever since. Consequently, he earned his shining title¡ªYounger Brother of the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty. Yet, the monk lived a consistently ascetic life, reading and chanting tranted Buddhist Scriptures in the pagoda, and seldom went outside.


    Huang Yang peered at the chessboard quietly. Then following his gentle blink, a white chess piece rose and dropped onto the board, without a sound being heard. The white piece blocked the freedom of the ck ones, and the captured ck chess piece was removed from the board to where seven or eight of the pieces were piled up. None of his movements could be seen at all.


    Of course, no one dared interrupt when the Nation Master and the younger brother of the emperor were ying chess. The ordinary monks and Taoist priests never had a chance to have a closer look at this scene, otherwise, they would have marveled at their extraordinary skills.


    Li Qingshan looked at the ck and white chess pieces, shook his head, and said, "Since when is there such a rule saying that one guard should serve when His Majesty is in the pce, and when outside of the pce, two should serve? As if there were someone who dares to do anything to His Majesty, let alone at the Academy, which His Majesty visits. How could anything possibly happen there?"


    Huang Yang smiled, looked into his eyes, and said, "I don¡¯t know."


    Li Qingshan sighed and said, "I believe you¡¯ve heard about what happened to Chao Xiaoshu? It¡¯s a shame. Should he have entered the Knowing Destiny State 10 years ago, there would be no ce for you and me to serve as guards for His Majesty."


    Huang Yang shook his head and answered, "Whether no experiences are gained in the Jianghu world or the opportunity to realize theke in the pce is had, even if you are a promising prodigy, no one can be sure that you¡¯ll enter the Knowing Destiny State."


    Li Qingshan disagreed. "You were doing menial work in the pagoda, not knowing what really happened. Chao Xiaoshu would have been enrolled in the Academy and entered the Second Floor on his own. It would have been easy for him to enter the Knowing Destiny State if he was on the Second Floor and taught by the Headmaster of the Academy."


    Huang Yang remained silent for a while, then said gently, "It was a blessing to be taught by the headmaster."


    Li Qingshang considered his clean-cut looks, then ridiculed himself, saying, "Others thought that we never met each other in person, yet hadn¡¯t the slightest clue that we never met in the Academy."


    The monk was the rightful Buddhist protector while the priest was the leader of the Southern School of Haotian Taoism. No matter what they desired to do, their statuses would not allow them to enter the Academy. Even onmencement day when the emperor and all the officials were celebrating in the Academy, these two most respectable men could only sit far away from them and y chess.


    "When will the headmaster be leaving?"


    "Aftermencement day."


    "He did his best."


    Huang Yang looked at Li Qingshan quietly, and said, "I still wonder how tall the Headmaster of the Academy is."


    After a long silence, Li Qingshan answered, "My instructor once mentioned that he was as tall as several floors."


    Pausing for a moment, Huang Yang showed a genuine smile followed by a slow sigh. "The Second Floor is high enough to enter, and taller than that... that¡¯s incredibly tall!"


    ...


    ...


    The calligraphy and etiquette tests came just after the art tests. Ning Que¡¯s confidence was now reced with a deep worry. Sangsang¡¯s considerations made perfect sense¡ªHer young master was busy gobbling up egg noodle soup, chatting with girls in the House of Red-Sleeves, killing people in Spring Breeze Pavilion, and calcting how much he earned each day. It came as no surprise that he had insufficient time to review and memorize the mock tests. It was pointless, even though he recited all of them, as he lived in the mountains and grasnds where he could not possibly have had ess to all that knowledge. If you asked him to write down the Article on the Response of the Tao, he could probably do it, but more than that would be too much to ask.


    Ning Que did not n to submit a nk paper, as it would make him too conservative, like the younger brother of the emperor. Therefore, he carefully wrote all over the paper, from front to back, as if what he wrote was the right answer. That was another question lifted off of his mind, for he was merely hoping that the instructors would at least give him a "hardworking" score.


    During the writing, he cleverly pulled some tricks, as he knew the only advantage he could tap into was his neat handwriting. Therefore, he put all his attention on his handwriting and deliberately chose the Hairpin-style Small Regr Script, which he seldom wrote in.


    There was definitely nothing to hide from choosing that type of script except gender, which Ning Que intended to hide. As the Hairpin-style Small Regr Script could easily be mistaken as having been done by some beautifuldy with an official background, some pity scores might be earned.


    The bell tolled again, as it hade to the end. Ning Que was a bit lethargic when he left the exam room. He lifted his shoulders and spread out his arms when he saw Sangsang¡¯s anticipating face. Apanied by Zhu Youxian, he had a hasty lunch and prepared for his afternoon tests.


    He was confident about the afternoon¡¯s tests. So when confronting all the fervent looks from the instructors and examiners, Ning Que looked around at all the musical instruments and made a resolute decision, which was... to quit.


    He was no musician like the ones in the House of Red-Sleeves, let alone knew how to blow a flute, and he felt frustrated thinking about that. After this, all students were led to a stretch of openwn outside the Academy, where dozens of handsome horses were brought in front of them. A military general stood off to the side, emotionlessly looking over those eager or not-so-eager faces.


    The course of toxophily was Archery, and you were allowed to choose to do it either on a horse or a carriage. Ning Que, of course, chose to shoot on a horse. All those years that he spent in the City of Wei on horses with swords and arrows convinced him that he would pass muster.


    Sangsang clutched her hands tightly, cheering for him from a distant patch of ground near thewn.


    He smiled and walked to the center of thewn.


    ...


    ...


    In a spacious and bright room in the Academy, a group of instructors were gathered to review the papers that had been answered in the morning. Most of the instructors were old and experienced and had seen many tests like this. They leisurely carried teapots and long cigarette holders, chatting and reviewing. Some instructor thenmented,


    "This year¡¯s Academy entrance exam was devised by Eldest Brother, who is moderate by nature, unlike Second Brother, who made most of the students cryst year."


    "Simply looking at theprehensive question, everyone knows the Headmaster of the Academy likes to drink. One bottle, to half, to half of the half, to thest drop... How could the headmaster chop half of the drop with a sword? As simple as this is, how could so many get it wrong? What on earth is in their heads?"


    Some said curiously, "Maybe it¡¯s not easy for them. Yet, I¡¯m more interested in how many bottles the headmaster did drink and how many masses of peach blossoms he did cut during the trip to West-Hill."


    Someughed, answering, "The headmaster drank seven big bottles of wine, and cut all the peach blossoms of West-Hill."


    "The legend goes that the headmaster did drink the bottles of wine, yet it was someone else who had cut all the peach blossoms of West-Hill. The Youngest Uncle, who was also on the trip with the headmaster, was more likely to do such things with that hot temper."


    Hearing the Youngest Uncle, all of the instructors paused a second, then returned to their conversations, someone saying, "The peach trees in the Academy were nted by the Headmaster of the Academy himself. The old priests of Haotian Temple of West-Hill came here every time and were extremely pissed, their expressions were worse than if they had lost their mothers. I do think our headmaster is wicked."


    The instructors were allughing out loud, as teasing the most respected West-Hill temple seemed to be their favorite everyday sport.


    You had to admit that the Academy in Southern City was indeed a wicked ce.


    The instructors went back to reviewing the papers, and an instructor picked up one of the papers, and read it loudly, "¡¯The Headmaster of the Academy drank two bottles of wine, and cut a mountain of peach blossoms.¡¯ Right answer indeed. I noticed this student is one of the quickest who wrote down the answer. I think he deserves an A."


    "Grade A, no doubt. I only have one question. Why is the student¡¯s answer not the written form of two, but the oral form of two?"


    "Maybe just his habit? Or does the oral form mean something to him? I¡¯m quite puzzled."

 Chapter 76: I Chopped a Mass of Peach Blossom that Spring (IV)

    Chapter 76: I Chopped a Mass of Peach Blossom that Spring (IV)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The instructors all shook their heads and expressed that they had no idea why he chose Er to be his answer. Some took interest in Ning Que and picked out his Etiquette and Calligraphy papers in advance to see if he would merit grade A. Much to their dismay, though being finished neatly, the two papers were riddled with loads of hot air. One instructor irritatedly pounded his fist on the desk, then passed the papers to others to examine, and had considerable regret.


    "What a waste of such good handwriting! I dare say that few of us have seen such perfectly written Hairpin-style Small Regr Script before in the past Academy Entrance Exams! Who would have thought that his answer would simply be trash? I¡¯d say he well deserves an F! How furious I am now!"


    Some picked up his papers andmented amusingly, "Empty talk no doubt, but you must admit that it is quite pleasant to look at. How about a D- due to such neat handwriting?"


    "No way!" The angry instructor responded irritably, "What on earth was in his mind to write papers with such delicate handwriting like that which courtdies often write? What was he up to? I must say that he was intent on insulting our intelligence! He was simply challenging the prestige of the Academy!"


    Eventually, Ning Que¡¯s clever trick was considered as a disrespectful insult to the Academy. Consequently, the two papers were marked two F¡¯s, the lowest one which students could get.


    Ning Que hitherto had little idea that both his Etiquette and Calligraphy were sentenced to death, but it was clear to him that he could procure no good results from the two tests. Whether he could be enrolled as an official student of the Academy was nowpletely dependent on achieving high grades on the Driving and Archery tests, given that he had already quit Music. More precisely, the best marks possible needed to be made.


    A loud neigh could be heard on the meadow of the Academy as the students handed out their candidate numbers, entered the examination ce, and were randomly paired with military horses. Considering that people of the Tang were esteemed warriors, it was therefore foreseeable that most students chose to ride on horses instead of driving carriages.


    Students awaiting their turn stood outside of the fences, watching attentively. Some students performed handsomely, some did poorly by contrast and fell off from the horses¡¯ backs onto the meadow, spattered with mud. Luckily enough, a student would have been seriously crippled by a jumping horse but for the captain, who reined it timely. It was universally understood by the students that the Driving test depended on some luck. If you picked a docile and healthy horse, it was highly probable you passed; on the contrary, if a fierce and bucking one was chosen, you would be fortunate enough not to be trampled.


    As being ridden particrly in the Academy Entrance Exam, the horses were carefully chosen beforehand by the Military Ministry. Most were robust and handsome, standing quietly aside, making no sounds or movements and looking at either the meadow or peach blooms.


    A ck stallion on the meadow caught the attention of all the students. Some were concerned, and some even looked terrified. Three students had fallen off of it already, and one female student dressed in a bright red outfit was tossed away, fell hard, and was almost crippled by its hooves. That indeed was a dangerous scene to behold.


    The wailing female student was then helped to walk outside of the fences to collect herself. Those awaiting students looked very solemn and serious, and prayed earnestly to Haotian in their hearts that they would not be paired with the ck horse.


    The pairing results came out, and some students finally caught their breath, at the same time showing their sympathetic looks to the unfortunate guy. Someone had to ept the bad luck, which usually fell upon on our hero. As the saying goes: no pain, no gain¡ªor put in this situation: an unruly horse makes a hero.


    Being stared at with looks of pity, Ning Que slowly walked into the fenced meadow, appearing to be serene, yet cursing inside. Of course, it was not difficult for him to tame a fierce horse as he had grown up in the grasnd. But it was the highest mark of Driving that he was aiming for, and he worried that he might have insufficient time to tame the horse.


    All of the horses on the meadow were equipped with bridles, the ck one included. Strangely, no matter how hard the captain pulled on its bridle, the ck horse stood still next to the fence, and even stuck its head over the fence to consume some peach buds, looking very content with itself and not troubled by the bit in its muzzle whatsoever.


    The way that the horse showed off, whether chewing on peach buds or wagging his tail, made many students want to curse.


    The captain who oversaw the test horses wiped the sweat off of his brow, and as he saw Ning Que walking his way, he said with deep sorrow in his voice, "I don¡¯t know what happened to him today. He seems to be very astir, and a bit flower-addicted. Be careful!"


    The captain then withdrew outside of the fences. Ning Que strode toward the ck horse, stretched out a hand, and patted his strong crest. The horse nced sideways at Ning Que impatiently, full of discontent and disdain.


    Regarding how to tame a horse, Ning Que knew hundreds of skills, yet it was the limited time that he was concerned with andpeted against. He pretended not to notice the challenging look in the horse¡¯s eye as he smiled and said, "Serve me well, Big ckie!"


    "Or you¡¯ll be a dead horse," continued Ning Que, beaming innocently with dimples on his cheek.


    Suddenly, the horse seemed disturbed with fear. The menacing words which came from the youngd somehow did work on the horse, turning him to almost a cockhorse. Shaking his mane uneasily, the horse became stiff, and those peach buds in his muzzle fell onto the meadow. Obviously, he felt unmistakably threatened by Ning Que¡¯s killing intention.


    Though not being able to understand humannguage, military horses often could perceive men¡¯s feelings very well¡ªexperienced ones in particr. They knew it when an imminent peril or a real intent of killing came.


    Starting when he was a 4-year-old boy up until he was a 16-year-old young man, Ning Que had been used to killing¡ªfrom Chang¡¯an, Min Mountain, to the City of Wei, the grasnd, Shubi Lake, and back to Chang¡¯an again. Heads had been chopped off and blood had been shed. The grasnd had been conquered by the notorious wood-chopper of Shubi Lake, and the toughest horse-gang leader had to sumb to him.


    Ning Que¡¯s danger might have been imperceptible to men, but not for a horse, especially when he emphasized that he might kill it.


    A burst of surprised cries was eximed from outside of the fences. Both the cautious students and the captain looked at the corner of the meadow, astoundingly and admiringly.


    At the corner, Ning Que was walking the ck horse to the starting line, who at first appeared to be fierce and unruly, not as docile and quiet as a trained maidservant.


    Farther away on a slope, Sangsang was sitting, who put away the ck umbre under her bottom, and yawnedzily with her small hand over her mouth. It was probably only she, now looking bored, that did not worry about her young master¡¯s life.


    ...

 Chapter 77: Black Lightning and Bowstrings Buzz

    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Lightning was white in real life, and sometimes it was purple, but it had never been ck. Today, all the people on thewn outside the Academy saw ck lightning.


    The students saw the ck horse jump as fast as an arrow from the herd and run about wildly with a terrifying speed. It made people feel it would be impossible to catch up with him. They were shocked when they thought about how other awkward students had been thrown by the horse. They remembered the girl in red who was still standing outside the fence with a tear-stained face.


    Their eyesight unconsciously followed the ck lightning, and they saw Ning Que bow like a fallen leaf on the horse¡¯s back. They wondered what he had done to the stubborn, ck horse that made it so obedient and made it disy its shocking strength.


    The size of the meadow outside the Academy was unknown, but the fenced in exam area was not that big. People were still in shock. It seemed that just as the girl in red lifted her right hand to cover her gaping mouth, the exam¡¯s riding course had stopped abruptly. More urately speaking, the ck horse had led for almost half the way and came back to the end ahead.


    Ning Que jumped off the horse and wiped his beads of sweat. Satisfied, he turned his head to p the horse¡¯s neck. He heavily pped its chunky crupper and waved his hand to let it leave.


    The moment the ck horse was released, it got rid of the terrifying bloody moor and came back to the happy earth. It neighed brightly and ndly rubbed against Ning Que¡¯s shoulder. Then it left, flinging up its heels, even faster than before and dared not look back.


    Students standing in front of the entrance saw Ning Queing towards them. It was like they were seeing a monster. Many people wanted to know how he could have done this but dared not to ask because he appeared so strange.


    Ning Que felt many different eyes staring at him. He frowned and walked towards the exam area of the toxophily course directly. His purpose was not to draw attention from students or instructors. Showing off didn¡¯t conform to his thoughts, but he knew his other three courses were a mess. If he couldn¡¯t get a perfect score in thest two courses, he wouldn¡¯t pass the Academy entry exams.


    He had prepared for many years, spent so much energy and money, and given up military status to run from the grasnd to Chang¡¯an. If he didn¡¯t enter into the Academy, his tolerance and low profile would be a sad D-minor serenade. In any case, he couldn¡¯t ept this, what did it matter if he was noticed?


    Just as he was about to leave the riding course exam area, a girl blocked his way. She had big eyes and bushy eyebrows. She was close to beautiful and wore a red arrow robe with a tight belt. Her young body was so tight, she looked mighty in spirit. The tear stains on her face, however, seemed delicate and touching.


    "How did you do it?" The girl asked angrily. "Why did it not follow my orders?"


    Ning Que thought it over and answered seriously, "Maybe I have a better moral quality?"


    "Moral quality?" The girl was a confused, and then angry. "What do you mean?"


    "I mean luck."


    Ning Que shrugged, smiled innocently, and politely asked her to move. He trotted towards the toxophily course exam area.


    The girl froze. She was the daughter of the Yunhui general, the assistant marshal. She was beautiful and had a forthright character. Everyone knew who she was, and no one dared to answer her like that. This made her aware of Ning Que¡¯s attitude. When he was further away, she turned around to see his back, stamped her feet and asked, "Who was that?"


    A group of students were talking about Ning Que. Among them was a young man who came toward the girl in the arrow robe and said, "Just now, someone saw the student roll, his name is Ning Que. He was rmended by the Military Ministry. He didn¡¯t have an extraordinary background, thus Miss Situ you don¡¯t need to pay attention to him."


    Unhappily, the girl said, "How could he tame that ck horse so well if he didn¡¯t have an extraordinary background?"


    "Maybe...he had really good luck?" The young man answered awkwardly.


    Another girl wearing luxury clothes walked towards them. She frowned and watched thed far away on the grass slope. She shook her head and said, "Rmendations from the Military Ministry sometimes include people from the frontier fortress, so it is not strange if he is good at equestrian events. You said he doesn¡¯t have an extraordinary background, but I don¡¯t think so. Today, there are hundreds of students, but he is the only one to bring a handmaiden with him and make Her Highness feel awkward. It seems thed has been pampered in daily life. Maybe he is from a big family in Qinghe prefecture."


    "Is Qinghe prefecture good? It¡¯s not the time of Taizu (founder of the Tang Dynasty)." Miss Situ frowned and said, "Miss Wucai, find out his background. I must figure out what¡¯s going on."


    There were a dozen or so rmended students from the Military Ministry, standing not far from these noble Chang¡¯andies and men. One was a thirty-year-old retired lieutenant from the southwestern border shaking his head and saying to hispanions, "It has nothing to do with luck. If he¡¯s rmended by the ministry like us, he must have taken service in a frontier fortress and know horses well. He has a good skill, of course, but he is so young..."


    It was as if his assumption needed evidence. An irritable neigh suddenly rang out in the riding course exam area, and a group of students called out. The ck horse who near Ning Que had been like a gentle handmaiden was flinging out violently. A strong student fell down in the meadow with an extremely embarrassed look.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que didn¡¯t know what students in the riding course were saying about him. If he knew the militarypanion acimed that he had several knife skills, he would have praised himself silently: I have three knives.


    In addition to the sword and arrow, maybe his best skills were the ones that he had learned in the mountains, forests, and grasnds for survival. He had confidence in fighting with a cultivator in low-grade Dongxuan. With one sword and a barrel of arrows, he would survive until the end. So it was easy to deal with the toxophily course exam.


    The toxophily course was different from the riding course. He didn¡¯t need topare with other people¡¯s scores. In the riding course exam, he had done his best to make sure theygged behind him. Now, he aimed at a target a hundred meters away with a bow and arrow. He didn¡¯t think too much, he only needed to hit the bulls-eye each time.


    If wepared goods, the worst ones would be tossed; if wepared people, the worst ones would die. If the nervous and sweating students who trembled when shooting the arrows knew his lowest requirement was to hit the bulls-eye every time, it was possible that they would be extremely angry.


    Ning Que, however, not only thought but acted in this way. He drew the bow, ced an arrow, loosed his fingers, then the standard Tang military arrow would be shot and urately hit the bulls-eye.


    The former one had just hit the bulls-eye, and he¡¯d already taken the second one from the quiver on his back. He shot again. The arrow feather skimmed the hard bone ring on his finger and expectedly hit the bulls-eye again.


    His movement was not very fast. There was no magic scene in which the target one hundred meters away was shot through by lightning. Nor did thetter arrow split the former one in two. He just shot one by one steadily, a fantastic rhythm. The buzz of arrows seemed to be as soothing as music or the Spring wind.


    His calm look and manner, perfectly standard posture, extremely rhythmical movement of controlling the bowstring, and highly urate archery gradually attracted more and more people with less than thirty arrows. More and more people were surrounding him, including students, Instructors of the Academy and even two generals from the Military Ministry who hade to inspect.


    In people¡¯s eyes, thed on the meadow who drew the bow and shot arrows seemed to be a calm soldier who had experienced many battles and wouldn¡¯t be afraid even if thousands of soldiers came.


    The general saw Ning Que shoot thest arrow, and said to his attendant, "Find out which general taught thed. If he doesn¡¯t enter into the Academy, let him re-enter the army."


    He paused, rubbed his greying hair, and said in a low voice, "Keep this a secret. His original army could recall him. But we, the Yulin Royal Guards want him.


    ...


    ...


    At dusk, the emperor and empress had already returned to Chang¡¯an city. Only the prince and main examiner of all courses stayed to take care of the remaining items. The six courses had finally ended, and it was time to publish the list of sessful students.


    Hundreds of students quietly stood on tiptoe on therge stone grounds and raised their heads to see the nk shadow wall. They looked like hundreds of geese that had been starved for several days and were waiting for food.


    Several Academy instructors slowly walked out of the building and made a bow to the prince. After they confirmed together with officials from the Ministry of Rites, they stepped onto the wooden desk, dragged a barrel of rice milk, then casually pasted a red paper on the wall.


    Sounds like waves crashing rang out. The hundreds of students were like geese that finally saw their food. They couldn¡¯t control their excitement, and all rushed to the wall.


    Ning Que held Sangsang¡¯s cold hands. They were squeezed unsteadily by the group, but they also fought their way out to the foot of the wall. They first nced at the list of the rites and calligraphy course.


    He found his name at the bottom of the paper.


    "Ning Que...D minus."


    The calligraphy course result was the same.


    He rubbed his head a little annoyed, and mumbled to himself, "It shouldn¡¯t be that bad. Even if I gave a random answer, I wrote so much and they were so beautiful. Did a woman examiner mark my paper?"


    Somebody behind him snickered and said, "I had thought you were talented like the Third Child from the South Jin Kingdom, however, you are just a boor who can only use force but knows nothing."


    The person whoughed at him was the girl in the arrow robe. Perhaps she was not reconciled. She gave up herpanions when the list was published. She squeezed herself to get near Ning Que and wanted to know how good he was.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t know the girl was the daughter of the Yunhui general, Si Tu Yn, and he red at her uninterested. He then held Sangsang¡¯s hand to fight their way out of the group.


    Surprised, the girl in the arrow robe turned around and shouted, "You didn¡¯t see your other scores?


    Ning Que didn¡¯t even turn around. Calmly, he said, "A-plus."


    When the girl in the arrow robe and other people heard this, they were so shocked that they almost tumbled over. Who was he? And why was he so confident, even arrogant, that he didn¡¯t even need to see but knew he had an A-plus?


    Sangsang raised her face and gave him a confused look.


    Ning Que looked at her, smiling and said, "They were worse than me in pretending to be cool."

 Chapter 78: Grade A Academy

    Chapter 78: Grade A Academy


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que took Sangsang out of the crowd, but not to leave. They stood in the corner of the stone ground of the Academy, watching the bustling scene at the screen wall, and a sense of remorse stuck to his heart. He felt that the previous conduct showed deliberately was meaningless. He didn¡¯t know whether it was the big dark horse or those arrows that seemed to make him return to the grasnd and to thekeside of Shubi Lake. At this moment, he subconsciously felt much rougher. In fact, he was unsure if his total scores were enough to pass the exams, which made him anxious and restless.


    Academy entry exams today assembled lots of young talents all over the world. Ning Que, in-looking, had caused no attention without ck lightning appearing during course of Driving in the exam. Now he stayed far away from the crowd, and naturally no one would care about him. The candidates¡¯ attention was still on their results, as well as on those names which had been quite famous before the academy entry exams.


    Like Wang Ying from Linxchuan, he who was sent back by the instructor of the academy from the remote and vulgar area was only fourteen, but his courtesy and literal production had caused a sensation in Chang¡¯an city in the past few days. After all, he was too youngpared with schr Zhong Dajun from the famous school of Yang Guan, was well-known in the south of Tang by poems and essays. Thus for the majority of candidates, the most promising one was the third son of Xie family of Ruyang in the South Jin Kingdom.


    The Xie family in the South Jin Kingdom were big surnames along thousands of years, being renowned for their poems and literature. Their third son Xie Chengyun was intelligent since childhood. He could write articles at the age of three and poems at five. There were nomoners that Xie family contacted with, so Xie Chengyun grew upmunicating with celebrities. Elders in the family cherish his talent, and spared no expense to hire great talents of other countries for him. Therefore, his tutors came and changed in session. All above contributed to today¡¯s reputation.


    Xie Chengyun was just eighteen this year, but his reputation had been justified. He had already be Tanhua, third rank of Royal Examination, of South Jin Kingdom. After the Royal Examination, he resigned from the imperial court to make the trip north to Tang Empire for the purpose of being admitted to the Academy.


    The criteria of the Academy for enrollment were critical, but it might be too improbable if Tanhua of South Jin Kingdom was not qualified. Thus no one would doubt that Xie Chengyun could pass the exams, and they only concerned about if he could be the top slot.


    Xie Chengyun, Zhong Dajun and Wang Ying were standing under the screen wall, watching the list with hands crossed on the back. Zhong Dajun dressed in ck seemed indifferent, and he knew that he could not be the NO.1, because he might only get the average results on the courses of driving and toxophily. While fourteen-year-old Wang Ying inevitably seemed nervous on his tender face. In contrast, Xie Chengyun in a white robe looked calm and smiled with a cool confidence on his handsome face that suited his fame.


    The girl in the arrow robe, the one named Wu Cai, and several boys and girls from noble families of Chang¡¯an city were standing behind them,ughing in a low voice. Even some straightforward girls were pointing at Xie Chengyun and kept talking without shyness.


    The crowd consciously leftrge space around these young boys and girls, as if they were afraid to disturb them or bumped into them. Law of Tang Empire was strict, but differences among sses were not too harsh. However, these young boys and girls standing under the screen wall were not merely from extraordinary families but also with a good reputation, with whom the rest of the people would keep a distance in subconsciousness.


    Oohs and ahhs could be heard from time to time. And a burst of whispering would be caused when names of those three persons were seen at the top of the list. They looked at the three wits in front with envy.


    Wang Ying turned around to greet the candidates undemonstratively by bows with hands folded. In addition that he got a C in the course of toxophily due to his young age and poor health, the rest subjects were all A+. It was said that he had received high praise from Qingyu, instructor of the academy, when ying guqin during the music exam.


    Zhong Dajun saluted other candidates with hands joined casually, lifting his chin, which made him look a bit proud. Yet people of Tang Empire were so free and easy that they would not grudge their praise on those who were entitled to be proud. For Zhong Dajun, the rest four courses took the A except that chariot-riding got a B, and especially the course of calligraphy also took an A+. Such good results were really worth of apuse.


    The most enthusiastic apuses and hot eyes of girl candidates were given naturally to Xie Chengyun. His six courses were all at A, including which courtesy and calligraphy were at A+. Such perfect results could help him rank the top few at the academy entry exams even during these ten years.


    Xie Chengyun greeted bows with hands folded to the surroundings with a smile. The twilight seemed extremely dazzling shining on the young boy¡¯s white robe and his handsome and humble smile. The girl in the arrow robe and others kept pping and jumping for joy, as if this glory belonged to them, too.


    Ning Que and Sangsang were standing on the stone ground at the distant side by side watching the lively scene. He could not help but ridicule. "I really can¡¯t exin why. Is the so-called Mr. San much more beautiful than others?"


    This was just amon saying in the City of Wei. For example, if a soldier had drunk two more bowls of wine than theirpanions did, he might be ridiculed. "Do you look better than others?" Ning Que scoffed offhandedly, but he did not expect Sangsang looked up at him with her willow eyes full of dazzling stars as the twilight fading away. "He is beautiful indeed, ah."


    Ning Que did not dare a response. He looked down at the surface of his boots out of the front of the robe as if ants were climbing over them.


    There was an excited candidate below the list on the screen wall, saying, "Six courses are all at A, two of which are at A+. This shall have been the best results for academy entry exams in the past ten years. Mr. San of South Jin Kingdom deserves the reputations sure enough."


    One of the upset candidates replied, "Whoever said these are the best results in the past decade? A candidate from West-Hill got the A+ in six courses five years ago. All the instructors of the academy ran out to the crowd, because that¡¯s the best in the past century."


    After this remarks, it suddenly turned quiet below the screen wall. Xie Chengyun and other two persons frowned looking at the ce where the sound came from. It¡¯s unexpected to get A+ in all six courses in academy entry exams. This statement was too astonishing. The unknown candidate who could get the best results in academy entry exams in the past hundred years was enough to kill the so-called genius of the whole world!


    "Why didn¡¯t we hear of that candidate from West-Hill before?" The previous man asked reluctantly.


    That candidate nced at him ironically and said, "That West-Hill candidate didn¡¯t attend any other assessments afterpleting the academy entry exams. He was directly and specially recruited to the Second floor by the dean. He might have been studying at the Second floor for the past five years. How can the secr mortals like you and me hear of him?"


    Candidates made oohs and ahhs neatly, guessing who the unknown West-Hill candidate was. He first got the best results in the past century, and then directly recruited to the Second floor without studying in the Academy for a day!


    Hearing that the West-Hill candidate had been in the Second floor, Xie Chengyun raised higher his eyebrow, with stateliness in his eyes. One always had aloofness and arrogance as long as he became famous in young age. Last year he became Tanhua that he could not ept, thus he chose toe to Academy for proving himself. His final goal was absolutely the Second floor of the Academy that was extremely mysterious in rumors, but he never thought that he was much slower than that guy.


    The young girl beside the arrow robe girl, named Jin Wucai, was the youngest daughter of Chancellor of Commission for Education. She had a sweet temper and loved poetry and calligraphy, and had long heard about Xie Chengyun. She had met and talked to him during the poetry gatherings in Chang¡¯an city these days, and found that he was talented. Now she saw him having a gloomy expression, and then she said with a smile, "Your six courses are at A. Two of them are at A+. It is quite rare, and at least there is no one higher at this time."


    "It is true. For the academy entry exams, Zhong Dajun gets an A in the course of calligraphy, Wang Ying an A+ in the course of music, while Xie Chengyun the A+ in two courses, who can be better than the three candidates?"


    Candidates under the screen wall agreed one after for another. Xie Chengyun looked slightly depressed. He self-deprecatingly smiled and once again greeted bows with hands folded in front to the crowd.


    That girl in arrow robe was preparing to apany her fellows to have a good talk with Xie Chengyun. Suddenly she thought of one thing, thinking the guy¡¯s cool deration as he left. Then she raised her head and looked up again at the screen wall subconsciously. She thought to herself that the guy must be afraid of losing his face, so he gave a lie. However, when she came up with the ck lightning in the exam of the course of Driving, somehow she actually believed that the name of that guy would be at the top of the list.


    That guy¡¯s name was not at the top list for the course of music. No, his name didn¡¯t appear on the whole list for the course of music. This guy seemed in ignorant. "Lan you idiot, how could you believe him!"


    Situ Yn, daughter of yunhui general, the assistant marshal, pulled the bottom of the robe angrily. She didn¡¯t mean to find his name, but her sight justnded on sides of the lists without control ¡ª hey!


    She looked with her round eyes at the top of the lists for courses of mathematics, driving and toxophily. She saw that exactly same name, thinking that her eyes might be dazzled, and her lips slightly whispered, but she read out subconsciously, "Ning Que, Upper A+! Upper A+! Upper A+!


    With her voice, the words of congrattions by other candidates became smaller and smaller. Previously the candidates would only find their own names, and then those of the renowned talents, but few people will pay attention to nobodies on the lists. In that case, they did not notice those same names.


    "Three courses grade at upper A+?" Some were shocked looking up at the screen wall, and said out loud in surprise.


    Jin Wucai covered her lips, face wless and thinking of the previous words she had heard, and said incredibly, "What the guy said is true. He knew he must be able to get the A+!"


    Earlier everybody was still admiring Xie Chengyun who had received the A+ in two courses, regarding that he must be the best in the academy entry exams this year. No one could have ever imagined before the stop of words of praise, a guy gotten A+ in three courses... bounced like this.


    "Who is Ning Que?"


    "Who is Ning Que?"


    The candidate who didn¡¯t see the scene of the ck lightning previously asked hispanions anxiously, while Candidates who had seen that scene began to talk about with great relish the legendary picture of how the big dark horse was turned from a ferocious wife to a docile attendant.


    Situ Yn was looking around for Ning Que, and found that he was standing at a far spot. She hurriedly pulled Jin Wucai¡¯s hand, pushing the crowd away to run over towards him.


    Xie Chengyun and other two youths were as if forgotten at this time. Heughed at himself, with his eyes shing an indistinguishable expression. He bowed to ask Zhong Dajun and Wang Ying to leave with those noble girls.


    Candidates under the screen wall automatically separated apart as the tide to form a path, and then gathered together, walking to the corner of the stone ground, to the candidate named Ning Que whom they had never heard of.


    Ning wasn¡¯t aware of what had happened at the screen wall. He was discussing with Sangsang what they would eat when back to the shop tonight. He suddenly found a stir among the crowd, and then the arrow robe girl rushed to the front of him.


    Situ Yn stared at him, and asked: "A+ in three courses... you... you, how did you make it out?"


    Ning Que was stunned, looking at the more and more people gathering in front. He replied, "Uh... I have been reviewing diligently.


    Sangsang lifted his little face and looked at him, with her willow eyes full of confusion, thinking that "you really know what the review means, young master?"

 Chapter 79: The Academic Discussion in the Twilight

    Chapter 79: The "Academic Discussion" in the Twilight


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    As dusk approached, the golden rays of light illuminated the mountain behind the Academy, so much that it resembled a high altar. The bluestone tiles on the pavement seemed to exude warmth, hurrying those outside home. However, the candidates who had already found out their results have yet to leave. They gathered in a corner and eyed the young candidate who seemed extremely normal. They would on asion, also look at the handmaiden before murmuring in low voices.


    Their gazes held many conflicting emotions. Some were puzzled while others were much surprised. There was a candidate who managed to score three A-pluses in the entrance exam, beating third young master Xie from the South Jin Kingdom. Furthermore, no one had heard of this unknown young man. It was perfectly logical for thed to be the top scorer in archery and equitation. After all, he had been rmended by the Military Ministry and might have polished his skills on the grasnds of the frontier. But he had managed to score an A-plus in Math, beating the predicted top scorers, Xie Chengyun, Zhong Dajun and Wang Ying, who had all only managed an A grade.


    A candidate who could no longer suppress his curiosity wondered aloud. Situ Yn adjusted her wrinkled robe and asked Ning Que, "How did you manage to score so well in math?"


    The question was pregnant with doubt, and her tone disaffected which displeased Ning Que. He looked at the girl and decided that she had no ill intentions, but was merely surprised by the news and was slightly confused. He spread his hands and smiled innocently without saying anything.


    There were many from Chang¡¯an who were displeased by the number of candidates rmended by the Military Ministry. Now that Ning Que had emerged as one of the top scorers and overshadowed the other candidates, and yet did not reply to the question, the young people of Chang¡¯an started to discuss the issue frenziedly


    The candidates from the frontier and military camps were certainly proud that a candidate rmended by the Military Ministry was the top scorer for three subjects. However, they were also older than the average candidate and were more discreet. They were in no hurry to speak up even though they supported Ning Que in their hearts.


    There was, however, a young master from Chang¡¯an who could not bear to watch any longer.


    Chu YouXian walked to Ning Que¡¯s side, waving his fan. Slinging a hand around Ning Que¡¯s shoulders, he red at the other students. "What are you all upset about? Ning Que is my friend. Do you know who he is? He doesn¡¯t need to pay when he drinks and visits thedies at the House of Red-Sleeves! Is there anything in the world that he can¡¯t do?"


    It didn¡¯t matter if you came from a family of officials or from a wealthy family. In an open-minded society like the Great Tang, your social status and wealth might change anytime, and it is just crass topare like that. What is more important is a person¡¯s talent, reputation, and contacts.


    There was no doubt that one¡¯s family background ys a part in their contacts. But there were ces like the House of Red-Sleeves that cared naught about that. A person who coulde and go freely in a ce like that is a person to be in awe of.


    Chu Youxian did not intend to shame Ning Que by saying that he did not need to pay when drinking and visiting thedies at the House of Red-Sleeves. He was in fact, boosting his reputation. Not surprisingly, the expressions on the youths of Chang¡¯an changed and they looked at Ning Que with respect.


    Not everyone was calmed by Chu Youxian¡¯s promation. Sangsang¡¯s watched Chu Youxian¡¯s shaking hand that was on her young master¡¯s shoulders with furrowed brows. She was displeased hearing about her young master¡¯s exploits at the brothel. Situ Yn was looking at Ning Que oddly as well.


    "I¡¯m still dissatisfied. There was only one question in the math exam. If you¡¯re right, you¡¯re right. If you¡¯re wrong, you¡¯re wrong. How many answers can there be to the question of how many jugs of wine did the headmaster drink and how many pounds of plums did he gather? How is it that you got an A-plus while the third young master Xie only got an A?"


    Situ Yn held onto Jin Wucai¡¯s hand and said that loudly in dissatisfaction.


    She wasn¡¯t an unreasonable person, but she was aware that her friend Jin Wucai had a crush on the third young master of the South Jin Kingdom. Jin Wucai was upset about the third young master being overshadowed by Ning Que and Situ Yn could not bear to see her friend¡¯s crestfallen expression. That, and there was a more important reason for her kicking up a fuss, but she probably had not realized it.


    She had been tossed off the horse in the driving exam and had almost been trampled by it. As the daughter of General Yunhui, it was an embarrassment that she couldn¡¯t even control a horse. Ning Que how had gone on the course after her had managed to control the dark horse easily and even managed to score an A-plus for that exam. This was unfathomable to her. The A-plus on the math exam baffled her even more. It was difficult for her to ept.


    At this moment, a hoarse voice rang out behind the crowd.


    "He was the first to submit the paper in the math exam. It was such a dumb question, we were practically giving away the marks for free. Those who cannot answer the questions are worse than idiots. It really depends on your reading speed. He answered the question before I could even get my ink ready to mark the papers. That is why he got an A plus. Excuse me, please let me pass."


    An old woman wearing a blue cloth gown appeared from a corner, holding a bamboo broom. She swept at the dust under the crowd¡¯s feet and walked out slowly, back hunched.


    ...


    ...


    The candidates were speechless as they watched the figure of the old woman disappear into the depths of the Academy. In actuality, there were four-fifths of the candidates who could not answer the question in the math exam. And yet, the old woman said that it was a question that even idiots could answer. Someone said angrily, " Who does she think she is?"


    An instructor within the crowd replied, "She¡¯s the only female honorary professor in the academy. Those amongst you who have tested into the academy will be taught by her in math for the next few years."


    "Is she... the second professor?" Ning Que watched the hunchbacked old woman who was now a distance away and tried to suppress theughter bubbling within him.


    The third young master Xie, Xie Chengyun, of the South Jin Kingdom waspletely calm. While he was full of youthful vigor, he still came in first ce in the overall rankings of the entrance exam today. Furthermore, his goal was different from the average candidate, his views werepletely different too. He ced more importance on how to enter the second floor of the Academy. Thed before him should be a regr person, and as such, there was no reason to enter into a conflict on a matter like this.


    Conversely, he couldn¡¯t help but be impressed by Ning Que¡¯s ability to answer the question in such a short time after hearing what the old woman had to say. He asked seriously, " I first used the method of exhaustion to find out the infinite number before finally understanding the reasoning behind the question. How did..."


    Situ Yn came to his side and told him Ning Que¡¯s name. Xie Chengyun nodded in thanks and continued his question. "How did Brother Ning calcte it? Did you use another method to find out the answer so swiftly?"


    "If you knew it was infinite, why bother with the method of exhaustion? I¡¯m toozy to reason backward if I only had to find out the answer. I just wrote a close enough number."


    Ning Que¡¯s answer was sloppy and seemed irresponsible. However, he was not speaking nonsense. The change between infinity and urate figures were fuzzy and irresponsible by itself.


    Many did not understand and thought that Ning Que got lucky. Some thought that he was hiding something. Only Xie Chengyun understood, and just as he was about to ask further, the voice of an Academy instructor sounded from afar.


    "Xie Chengyun, Wang Ying, Ning Que, Chen Simiao, He Yingqin... report to the Department of Magic."


    Ning Que was astonished upon hearing his name. Report to the Department of Magic... What did that mean? Why did he feel like he was about to enter the House of Respectful affairs? Was that a slight breeze between his legs? There was no one he could ask about the matter. As such, he followed Xie Chengyun and the others into the depths of the Academy after leaving instructions with Sangsang. It was only when he realized that there was a female candidate in the group when he felt slightly calmer.


    The other candidates on the pavement did not express any surprise. It waste in the day, and yet, none had left. They all wanted to hear if they would be called into the Department of Magic. Jealousy colored their expressions as they watched the few called walk into the depths of the Academy. Situ Yn kicked at the cracks of the bluestone pavement in disappointment. Sheined in a low voice as she watched Ning Que¡¯s back walking further away, "Why is it that he got everything good?".


    It didn¡¯t take long before the candidates returned. It felt as if they merely went for a walk. Xie Chengyun had the calmest expression while Wang Ying could not hide the joy in her face. Only Ning Que waspletely expressionless.


    Other than the six subjects in the Academy, there was also an additional department in Magic meant to cultivate those with potential. These students would be able to learn sword and talisman magic in Department of Magic. The few who were called up previously were thought to have potential by the instructors and were sent for an examination in psyche.


    Ning Que was chosen because of the Hairpin-style Small Regr Script he wrote as well as his lightning fast response in the math exam. The Academy thought him to have potential, but the instructor examining him had made an unusual slip and was disappointed to find that his chi waspletely blocked.


    It was yet another cycle of hope and disappointment. If there was no hope, there would not be disappointment. Ning Que was well aware of his body condition and as such was able to face this calmly.


    Xie Chengyun had already started on cultivation when he was in the South Jin Kingdom, as such he had nothing to be excited about. Wang Ying and the others had only just found out that they might be able to enter the legendary enigmatic doors today and could not suppress their excitement.


    "I can¡¯t." Ning Queid out both hands and exined to the masses. "Erm, you can¡¯t say that Ipletely can¡¯t... The instructor said that there was no problem with my will. It¡¯s just that my chi is bad and my body is ill suited for cultivation."


    There were seven called in by the Academy and he was the only one who had not passed the examination. The gazes of the other candidates changed. Some who had looked at him with animosity previously now looked upon him withpassion. Of course, there are others who looked at him ridicule.


    The Tangs respect the strong, but do not look down upon the weak. A thousand years of merriness has cultivated a tolerant and graceful society. Situ Yn who had previously found Ning Que unpleasant sighed andforted him, " Do not be too disappointed. There are not many who can enter cultivation. Look at us, we all can¡¯t do it either."


    "There is much sense in your words. Not being able to enter cultivation doesn¡¯t make me a useless stack of firewood." Ning Que epted and drank from a bottle given to him by Sangsang. He looked at her and smiled, "I¡¯m a professional firewood cutter."


    With that, the young master and his maidservant left the Academy in the twilight.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 80: The First Class

    Chapter 80: The First ss


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Gazing out at the wild grasnd, which was bathed in a rosy sunset glow and appeared as if it were on fire, as the servant and master faded away into the distance. Situ Yn ced her hand on her hip and mumbled, "He is a really interesting man!"


    However, Ning Que had found nothing interesting. It was totally meaningless and a waste of time to argue and quarrel with this flock of wimpy kids. The curriculum of the Academy provided the students with a lot of free time and what he cared more about currently was finding a way to spend that time in a meaningful fashion, like making money, or killing a man, and the like.


    Laying on his bed at Old Brush Pen Shop, he looked at the name written on the oilpaper and asked, "Do you get all prepared?"


    Sangsang was greasing the podao de after its recent grinding, and thus answered without raising her head, "The new sets of clothing and the old clothes are ready, but young master, what hairstyle do you n to wear this time? Still the style from the Yuelun Kingdom?"


    Ning Que shook his head and replied, "Such trivial details will depend on you."


    Hearing the answer, Sangsang lifted up her head, asking, "When will we begin the assassination?"


    "That guy is now living in the Eastern City, not far away from here. We can go anytime we want."


    Looking at the characters "Chen Dongcheng" on the oilpaper, Ning Que read below them some brief information about him and then exined, "I am not even sure about when to kill him. Thus even if the government wants to find the murderer, they won¡¯t get any clue from the time of killing since it bears no regrity."


    "Originally, there is no regrity in this world, but as more are killed, the regrity will naturally form."


    Sangsang inserted the gleaming podao back into its sheath and walked to the head of the bed. Staring at Ning Que¡¯s face she earnestly said, "This is what you have taught me since I was a kid. No matter how well you hide yourself, the government is sure to find the reason for your killing through the identities of those deaths."


    "The General¡¯s Residence was wiped out. The vige of Yan territory was ughtered. No one survived either situation." Ning Que answered with a grin, "even if the imperial court was to find that the two cases triggered the killing, how could they prove I¡¯m involved?"


    "Perhaps they can¡¯t. But the imperial court may predict the type of person who will be killed next, allowing them to take precautions to protect the intended targets, or even use them as bait. If this happens, will you give up killing them since they are under the protection of the imperial court?"


    Ning Que silently looked into her eyes. Suddenly he burst out intoughter, saying, "You rarely think about so many things."


    "I am usually just too tired to think about so much, I am not stupid." Sangsang mumbled. Perhaps even she herself couldn¡¯t figure out why she would like to think about these things she usually considered troublesome.


    But Ning Que understood, so his eyes became tender and he looked at her with a smile, then said, "I promise, after killing another two or three, I will take a break temporarily and begin to study hard at the Academy."


    Sangsang smiled, a look of rxation eventually appeared on her darkish face. She then replied, "You¡¯re right. The Academy is a fine ce, and you could make acquaintance with many other talented youth of the same age. So, young master, you should cherish this opportunity."


    Ning Que thought it was strange for Sangsang to suddenly change into a sentimentalist and he couldn¡¯t help to roll his eyes towards the ceiling. Stretching, he yed with the quilt and thought that the so-called same age was actually not correct. He was, in fact, seven or eight years older than his ssmates."


    ...


    ...


    School began on the next day, so Ning Que and Sangsang got up early again, and after washing and eating breakfast, Sangsang stood at the door of the shop to see Ning Que off as he entered the horse carriage alone. This two were now rich, with a wealth of more than two thousand silvers. Although, they remained thrifty, they still chartered a yearlong horse and carriage despite its luxury.


    At daybreak, the south gate of Chang¡¯an opened. A dozen horse carriages, emzoned with the conspicuous Academy logo, filed out of the city. The low number of carriages indicated that most of the students in the Academy chose to board at the school rather than travel back and forth.


    Along the official road, Ning Que headed southwards under the shade of willow trees, while appreciating the beautiful scenery. There were flowers, vast farnds, and tranquil streams along the way. When he lifted the curtain, the steep mountain, along with the meadow, and the flowering trees that covered the foot of the mountain came into view again. Although this was not his first time seeing this, he still felt appreciation: It really was a God-given gift to have such a fairly enchanting scene in man¡¯s world, especially in the suburb of the prosperous and bustling Chang¡¯an City.


    More than a dozen ck horse carriages crossed the green meadow, and soon they reached the main gate of the Academy. The students got out of their carriages in session, greeting each other with a bow by folding hands in front. Many boarders of the Academy had taken the entrance exam with them yesterday and they crowded around the unimpressive and simple stone gate to wee them. The peaceful and quiet gate was suddenly abuzz with the sound of talking and chatting.


    All of these young students were wearing indigo robes from the Academy, which acted as their uniform. Boy students wore ck scarfs, while girls tied their hair into buns with ebony scarves. Those outfits contrasted with the green meadow and the simple stone gate, looking especially refreshing. This contributed to the appearance of vitality to the youngsters under the newly-risen sun from the east, forming an atmosphere of youth.


    Ning Que tied his indigo Academy uniform and fetched out a small bronze mirror that Sangsang had put in his baggagest night to see if he had worn the ck scarf properly. After all, these things had to be done before he stepped out of the horse carriage.


    During the academy entrance exams yesterday, besides Xie Chengyun from the South Jin Kingdom and the other two students, it was he, the unexpected winner, who had tamed that big ck horse, which was most impressive. When the students who were exchanging greetings at the Academy gate saw him, they came over to greet him enthusiastically without any intention to avoid him out of jealousy. Then another round of self-introduction and description about recent development began.


    When the bell deep within the Academy melodiously rang, the students stopped talking and walked up the stairs in the morning light. Along the way, their indigo robes, scarfs, and buns drifted with the morning breeze, somewhat revealing a sense of immortal.


    Ning Que slowed his steps, purposefullygging behind the others. Under the morning sunlight, he raised his head and looked at the scene before his eyes, his heart stirring slightly. But, instead of quickening his steps, he took a more careful look at the simple main gate of the Academy which was decorated with three columns, and he observed the ordinary decore around thewn up those stairs.


    Yesterday, the Emperor had visited the Academy. Therefore, there had been tightened security, and what¡¯s more, along with his examination engagement, he needed to check the results, so he hadn¡¯t spared any time to carefully examine the Academy - The atmosphere here gave off a strong sense of a fairnd, and the big mountain, partly hidden in the clouds, gave others an intense feeling of suppression. However, as of yesterday, until now, he had found nothing special.


    In the past, Ning Que had no idea about what he wanted to study at the Academy. What he was skilled in was how to recognize animals from the vor of their piss and how to figure out the flying track of an arrow. He began to learn things about the Academy such as its brilliant history and numerous sages only after general Ma of the City of Wei had helped him to apply for the entrance exam.


    For some reason, he believed that the Academy wasn¡¯t as ordinary as it appeared and that it should shoulder more significant responsibilities beyond a mere institute that cultivated workers for the Tang Empire. Perhaps what he saw and heard along his trip from the grasnd had made him think so.


    "An abandoned student of the Academy that unexpectedly bes a Great Sword Master and the elder man Lyu Qingchen, as well as the princess, also showed great respect to the Academy. However, why those in here had the same feeling with me and found it no particr?"


    He slightly helped the ck scarf back up, while mumbling to himself.


    He, alone, had passed through the main gate of the Academy, crossed thewn and walked away from the main building, and he was now walking in ane way that had not seen the morning sunlight. A few paces ahead was the boisterous study room, where he could hear the exciting buzzings of discussions and greetings. In contrast, inside thisne way, it was extremely quiet.


    Unexpectedly, a voice was heard in the silentne way.


    "There are actually no special ces in this world. The royal pce, the Divine Hall of Haotian, as well as the Unknown ces are no exceptions. So, why would you still expect the Academy to be special?"


    When he heard the voice, Ning Que was quickly on alert and his right hand inside his sleeve tightened. He was ready to fetch the big ck umbre if anything dangerous urred. The abominable living environment he experienced while growing up had conditioned him to believe any incident was a dangerous one.


    This was when he noticed a schr stood in front of him.


    With straight brows and wide eyes, this schr looked simple and amicable. He wore an old cotton robe which appeared to be too thick in Spring and he was wearing a pair of well worn straw shoes, both covered in dirt and they looked as if they had not been cleaned in years. Oddly, even so, the schr didn¡¯t give off the appearance of untidiness.


    He was extremely clean from his appearance to his heart.


    The schr held a roll of books in his right hand and he had fastened a woodendle to his waist. Ning Que nced alternately at the roll of books and the woodendle, and finally, his eyes set on the schr¡¯s face, during which his left hand inside the sleeve gradually rxed.


    This was the Academy, where nobody in this world dared to do illegal things, in addition, despite the dirt all over his wearings, the schr looked as clean as a new-born baby. Whoever saw him would like to be on intimate terms with him, feeling what he said or did deserve to be trusted.


    Ning Que was still quite nervous even though he appeared to be rxed, because he felt he could totally trust this suddenly-emerged schr. As a person who had a life and death struggle as a child, he eventually trusted nobody. This sense of immediate trust was a frightening thing.


    He was unable to muster any hostility in his heart, and even more horrifying was, he felt that if he took out his big ck umbre from his back, he would still be unable to brandish it at the schr.


    That schr, in his cotton robe, slightly smiled and finally, his sight came to rest on the cloth covering on Ning Que¡¯s back, as if his eyes could prate the cloth. He then tenderly patted his woodendle and asked, "Your umbre is good, wanna trade?"


    How did he identify that it was an umbre under the cloth? Ning Que¡¯s mouth felt extremely dry and he was suddenly thirsty. Losing his ability to speak, he shook his head after a long moment of silence.


    The schr sighed with pity and then passed by him with that roll of books, without another look at Ning Que. Finally, he stopped at a deste side-door of the Academy.


    Outside the side-door parked a lonely ox cart.


    The schr approached the cart and solemnly made a deep bow toward the carriage, and then he sat on the shaft, taking up the bullwhip.


    The voice of an ordinary elderly man, apanied by a strong aroma of wine came from the carriage, "He refused to do the exchange?"


    The schr shook his head with a smile and waved the bullwhip to drive the ox, slowly moving the carriage forward.


    In the Spring of the thirteenth year of the Tianqi era, the Headmaster of the Academy started another tour away from the Empire with his eldest disciple.


    Nobody knew how many jugs of wine he would consume during the tour.


    And how many plums he would pick from unknown mountains.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 81: Ah,Youth

    Chapter 81: Ah,Youth


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que should not have felt cold, because the schr wearing the cotton padded robe did not release any hostility and danger from head to toe and from inside to outside. Instead, he was as clean as a pure lotus and trustable as a rtive.


    However, he still felt cold, because the schr saw his umbre on his back with just a nce, which was so big and ck and it was the most important thing for Sangsang and him. Besides, he wanted to exchange something for it.


    Sunlight couldn¡¯t shine into the alley, so it was a little cold. Maybe that was one of the reasons he felt cold? Or it was his unexined trust in the schr made him fearful?


    Ning Que was like an ice sculpture standing in the alley for a long time until he woke up. He looked back in disappointment, of course, he saw nothing. Then he thought it over, lowering his head, and he found that he had no idea what had happened. Therefore, he gave up thinking and shook his head, walking towards the crowd.


    He didn¡¯t know that the legendary Headmaster of the Academy had already left in a carriage; he didn¡¯t know he had missed a historic moment; he didn¡¯t know his refusing to exchange with the schr was also a miss; he didn¡¯t know that was his first real lesson. But, even if he knew, he still wouldn¡¯t made the exchange. Using what he had to trade for what he didn¡¯t have was not his style.


    ...


    ...


    The first lesson at the Academy was a big lecture for a number of students. The students gathered on a bit cool stone ground, hopefully listening to some professor¡¯s speech from the Academy and imaging their life in two or three years.


    The lessons of the Academy also consisted of six subjects, just like in the academy entrance exams. Two hundred students were divided into six study rooms. Their ss time was from morning to noon, which didn¡¯t seem long, but they didn¡¯t have time to take a break.


    The seven people that were lucky enough to enroll in the magic skills course would learn rted knowledge from the Academy in the afternoon. And, the other ordinary students could enjoy some free time, staying at the Academy to learn themselves or they could go back to Chang¡¯an City to have fun. However, the professor advised students mildly and sincerely to review lessons in the old library at the Academy.


    The Academy¡¯s discipline was very loose. Students took the ringing from deep inside the Academy as the sign: the first ring was a warning; the second ring, they entered the ssroom; the third ring, the ss began; the fourth ring signaled the end of ss. When the third bell rang, the students could learn in the study room. The Academy asked that the students listen to their teacher¡¯s attentively during ss. They could ask questions, but they couldn¡¯t make noise. As for cleaning up, students didn¡¯t need to pay attention to that, because the imperial court spent a lot of money on the Academy, so they employed many cleaners and chefs.


    The next was to divide students into different sses. The Academy did it in the simplest and fairest way, by randomly drawing names. The students¡¯ family background and their entrance scores were not considered. The children Xie Chengyun and Zhong Dajun were divided into ssroom One; Wang Ying from Linchuan, ssroom Four; Ning Que, ssroom Three.


    After taking his own books and ssics from the instructor¡¯s room near the stone ground, Ning Que followed the people to find the wooden sign hung in Yanyu hall, and found ssroom Three. Looking at the clean windows, like pictures, and the white walls, like paper, thinking he would spend the next few years here. He also thought he had finally taken his first steps onto the Tang¡¯s practicing road, his emotion was slightly in a trance. He took a deep breath to calm down and lifted his feet to stride over the high threshold.


    "Ning Que! Here!"


    Two surprising sounds rang out in the study room.


    Ning Que looked up in astonishment. He saw Chu Youxian whose face looked a little pale excitedly waving to him from the spacious back seat of the study room, and in the front seat, Situ Yn was seeing him excitedly as well. Today, the girl wore a suit of tight blue clothes with several embroidered plum blossoms on her chest, and peeking out from inside its slightly open cor was her white neck.


    It was like a dream, and like a past life at the same time. In fact, it really was a past life. This was his most familiar memory. It seemed he could see this scene every year and every time there were more and more people shouting to him toe sit beside them.


    Ning Que silently stood inside the door of the study room and closed his eyes forcibly to drive out the irritating memory from his head. Then he apologetically smiled at Situ Yn, who was waiting with an expression of expectation and he walked towards her.


    He hadn¡¯t known that Miss Situ was the daughter of a Yunhui general, but he had known that she must be from a noble family from Chang¡¯an City. Although, students were equal in the Academy, and he heard that his Majesty came to study at the Academy wearing normal clothes and sat beside the ordinary students from poor families. Who knew what kind of trouble would be produced if he had too much contact with the noble girl.


    After putting down the heavy books and ssics, he watched Chu Youxian¡¯s pale and haggard face, and his blue lips, asking,"You came from the House of Red-Sleeves again, same as yesterday?"


    "Stayed there for the whole night." Chu Youxian sighed and said sadly without hiding, "Ning Que, this world has a problem. I couldn¡¯t understand, so I stayed in House of Red-Sleeves for a whole night."


    Ning Que thought about the schr that he had met before, then his body went a little stiff. He asked," What¡¯s the problem?"


    "My unexpectedly entering the Academy was the biggest problem in the world."


    Chu Youxian said sadly and with extream annoyance, "You know that my father bought me a qualification to participate in the academy¡¯s entrance exams with 2000 silvers. I only came here to find a good wife. I randomly answered yesterday, I didn¡¯t even go to see the scores next to my name. However, my results are a B plus, in all four subjects.


    At first, Ning Que was astonished and speechless, then he heartfeltly praised him," You are hiding the real you well."


    "Bullshit."


    Chu Youxian¡¯s deadpan expression was like that of a soulless corpse, and he said despondently, "My answer for a math question was that the Headmaster of the Academy was a drunk, and he had chewed half of a mountain¡¯s peach blossoms. Even with answers like that, I got a B plus, which shows that the instructors of the Academy have gone mad."


    Ning Que thought it over for a moment before guessing, "Maybe your family spent some silver?"


    Chu Youxian angrily said, "Who has ever heard of a student entering the Academy with just silver? And, my father only spent 2000 silvers, which will only be enough for me to stay in the House of Red-Sleeves for four months. It was nothing!"


    ...


    ...


    In Chang¡¯an, sitting on a chair in a silver workshop in the Eastern City, was an extremely fat old fogey, who was looking over their ounting book, and he sighed, in tears, "Two hundred thousand silvers... Son, I sold over half of our assets, and I expect that only you can do something. You can¡¯t let me down. Who said the Academy didn¡¯t ept money! That group of thieves just doesn¡¯t ept small money!"


    ...


    ...


    Chu Youxian didn¡¯t know that his father had made a luxury bet that he normally never would in his business. He was still angry about thinking that the Instructors of the Academy had gone mad.


    "I have never liked to learn, ride, or shoot since I was a child, so I couldn¡¯t y with the noble young men and women in Chang¡¯an. It is lucky that you are divided into ssroom Three, or I don¡¯t know what I would have done for my next few years."


    Chu Youxian said sadly. Ning Que only noticed this when he had said that he didn¡¯t like poems and books, and riding and shooting. He didn¡¯t show any expression of shame, but rather his expression was so natural, it was even a little proud.


    He smiled to console this only acquaintance and said, "As you are already here, you shouldn¡¯t think about it too much."


    "You make sense." Chu Youxian looked around at his ssmates in the wide study room. His eyesight swept over the slim girls, and he gradually became happy,"I will have a good rtionship with my ssmates, so I can have a good marriage."


    Ning Que had no words or expression to respond with.


    Chu Youxian was a typical Tang person who was open and clear, otherwise, he wouldn¡¯t have invited Ning Que over to drink wine and y with the girls when they met in a brothel for the first time. After he adjusted his mood, he returned to normal immediately. His two fingers picked up a jade that was pointing at the girls sitting at the front, and said at a low voice, "That gentle girl is called Jin Wucai, little daughter of the Libationer of Tang. She is meek but she won¡¯t be bullied at all because the Libationer is very serious and has a bad temper; You can¡¯t annoy that high girl, because her surname is Gao, and she has an uncle working in the pce..."


    "That fresh meat is called Chen Zixian, whose family opened a bookstore in the Western City and has some money. If one day we don¡¯t have enough money go and drink wine, we can ask him to go with us. As for the short one near him, we ignore him. It is rumored that he came from Chen State, he only knows about eating, sleeping, reading, and shooting. Boring."


    Ning Que admired him greatly. He thought a person who didn¡¯t want to enter the Academy, only used half of day to understand every person¡¯s background and temper. What should this spirit be¡ª¡ªmaybe it was his spirit that caused him to all the time, eat, drink, and y, and considered finding friends as a hobby?


    "Ah, you may know who this is. Yes, she is the famous daughter of the Yunhui general, Situ Yn!"


    Chu Youxian slightly pped the table and quickly said, like a storyteller,"Brother Ning, just now you came over to me but not to her, I am so grateful. But, I must warn you that it¡¯s probably going to annoy her. She rode a horse on Vermilion Bird Avenue when she was eight. She and some girls of the same age were called female soldiers. They frightened so many Chinese hamburger booths, Luzhu store (selling boiled pork giblets) and many men. If you annoy her, it will be difficult for you to walk in Chang¡¯an City. It is just like when you entered into a Guozi store (Chinese hamburger), you have no good Guozi (ends)!"


    Ning Que was astounded by his spray, like a fountain, and he snapped out of it after a while. He wasn¡¯t afraid of a female soldier because he didn¡¯t trouble them. Situ Yn was just a little girl without bad intentions, in his eyes, so he wouldn¡¯t be concerned by her. But, he acimed Chu Youxian¡¯s ability, and said,"Next time, if you don¡¯t have enough money to join the House of Red-Sleeves, you don¡¯t need to force Chen Zixian, and you can just tell some stories to earn money."


    He thought he was being ridiculed when unexpectedly, Chu Youxian nced at him and slightlyughed,"In that kind of brothel, earning some money just by saying some words was what you do."


    Ning Que was stiff and really wanted to kick his ass. But, he controlled his anger because the instructor who taught them the course of rites just walked in seriously.


    The study room became quiet suddenly, and the young and jumping ravens and sparrows had flown away to some unknown ces.

 Chapter 82: Lecturer in the Academy

    Chapter 82: Lecturer in the Academy


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "What is Etiquette? This is a very broad question. However, we shouldn¡¯t stop studying it because it¡¯s very important. Etiquette is as mysterious and far away as the Firmament. But should we stop exploring and studying the Firmament? Should we stop being curious about it? The answer is no. On the contrary, we observe clouds and wind in the day and study stars and the darkness at night. We want to know what the firmament really is and what is above it."


    "To answer a broad question in a way that we can understand, a concrete answer is needed, and that requires us to pay attention to the details. Just as when we study the stars, we focus on the movement of them and draw the beautiful and fixed lines down, which in the end bes the subject of astrology."


    "That is why to answer the question of what the Firmament is, we begin from studying every specific line and every Qi, then seek the end of the world and feel the limits of primordial Qi. The same goes for the studying of Etiquette. We should start from details. If you want to ask me, what answer we will get if we study details and specific aspects of Courtesy..."


    "I can tell nothing but my own understanding, that is: Etiquette is about rules."


    This lecturer who was in charge of teaching students Etiquette was the vice professor of the Academy. At 60 years of age, he spoke slowly, but clearly. His ss was quite organized and logical. And students were all very attentive. However, Ning Que was very sleepy. The clearer the teacher was speaking, the sleepier he became.


    At the Academy Entry Exam, his grade of Etiquette was the lowest of the fourth ss; the Ding ss. He was never interested in this course, especially when he was busy at writing, meditating, killing, gambling, and sleeping in the recent years.


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t help but think, as he stumbled into sleep, of how miserable his life would be in the next few years if he had to waste every morning listening to these boring words.


    But what happened next saved him from desperation and made him realize again how important the Academy was in The Tang Dynasty, where even lecturers here were no average people.


    When the old lecturer mentioned that Etiquette was about rules, a disapproving voice said, "Sir, our The Tang Dynasty is the most powerful country in the world and our emperor the most respected. It was by admiring Etiquette rather than by following rules that we made such achievement."


    Asking questions during the ss was approved by the Academy. But it was after all the first day of school when this question was raised, thus, the atmosphere suddenly became very awkward, which even awoke Ning Que. Confused at the situation, he asked his desk mate Chu Youxian, "Who is this student?"


    Believed that all students were equal and aiming to providing all students suitable education based on their different talents, the Academy enrolled a great amount of studentsing from ordinary families. But a student who dared to question his teacher at the first ss either came from a very powerful family, or regarded himself as a genius. Standing next to his desk and waiting for an snawer, the student who challenged the lecturer was a son of a general.


    The lecturer looked at him coldly and asked, "So in your opinion, people don¡¯t need to obey rules?"


    "Yes," said the son of the general in a husky voice, "Our country was founded on the basis of strong force. We keep winning wars by using our sharp weapons and neglecting those rigid rules. But, it doesn¡¯t mean that we don¡¯t admire Etiquette."


    The lecturer stared at that student expressionlessly, his face wrinkles gradually smoothed out, "You mean that as long as you are strong, you are justified in doing anything?"


    That student scratched his head embarrassingly, he then argued saying, "It¡¯s not wrong to understand it that way. It¡¯s like when our country defeat Yan Kingdom heavily. So frightened at us, they even want to send their prince to our country as a hostage. Although Suffering from such a humiliation, their emperor never dares to be even a little impolite to our emperor, he still calls our emperor Sage King. "


    Ning Que heard the words at the back of the study, he knew this student¡¯s Etiquette score definitely would be lower than that of his.


    The lecturer walkedtowards the student slowly and expressionlessly. When he reached him, he raised his skinny hand and forcefully hit the student. He was roaring with rage, "As long as one is strong he is justified to do anything? In that case I¡¯m now justified in beating you!"


    A scream was heard in the study. The general¡¯s son, for some reason, either scared of the Academy rules or he respected his teacher, didn¡¯t dare to fight back. After bearing all the attacks, he looked really miserable; his nose was bloody ,his face was swollen and his mouth full of blood.


    Sometimeter, the lecturer stopped beating the student. He stared at the student, panting, "If what you said was right, then I am right to beat you right now because I am more powerful than you."


    Finished his words, the lecturer resumed beating the student even more heavily. By this time, the study was a mess, with all the students standing all around and shocked. But, no one dared to stop their angry teacher. Until, Situ Yn said, "Master, you just prove he was right if you think you are more powerful and thus you can beat him!"


    Ning Que was still sitting next to his desk, but even he was also very shocked. He never expected towitness such a scene on his first day of school. Then he heard Situ Yn¡¯s contradiction and thought her words were quite reasonable.


    But the lecturer turned around and red coldly at Situ Yn, "I just wanted to prove he was right, what is wrong with that?" he asked.


    Situ Yn pressed her lips together, she remembered her brothers¡¯ and father¡¯s warning. But unable to stand by in such a situation, she ignored what might happen, and said with a shivering voice, "If you think he was wrong, then you shouldn¡¯t punish him in his way. If Etiquette is about rules, as you said, then you should bond and punish him with rules."


    With a sneer, the lecturer said, "Yunkui general, the assistant marshal wasn¡¯t good at reading and learning, but he taught his daughter well. I know you two General¡¯s Mansions get along well. But I assume you don¡¯t know him that well."


    "This has nothing to do with our rtionship. " Situ Yn strove to suppress the embarrassing feeling and argued saying, "I only want justice."


    "Good, let me tell you what is justice then," looking at all the students, he continued, "no matter Yunkui General or whatever general, even if they are more powerful than me, they still don¡¯t dare to fight me. Why? Because I¡¯m a lecturer in the Academy, and this is a rule in the Tang Kingdom."


    "At the back of the study, Chu Youxian shyly said, "Why is the Academy so messy? Also, don¡¯t be so bold and silly to piss this lecturer off."


    Of course, Ning Que didn¡¯t have the audacity, he looked at the lecturer who was wiping the blood stains on his hands, and thought, "Rules made by the Academy were the most powerful rules...This doesn¡¯t have anything to do with Etiquette. On the contrary, it only proves that in this ce there is a guy who is most powerful. But, who is that powerful guy? This lecturer?"


    The lecturer collected his book and looked at Situ Yn, who still seemed very reluctant, "No matter if you agree with me or not unless you can break the rules here, you should obey my rules. And my rule is simple: Etiquette is about rules."


    Etiquette was about rules and that was my rule! What a powerful, strong, and unreasonable announcement! Ning Que looked at the old, thin lecturer in a daze. He found himself lost and didn¡¯t understand at all what kind of a ce this Academy was, but he knew that he liked this ce more than before.


    ...


    ...


    The ss was finished right at noon when the lecturer tucked his book under his arm and walked out of the ssroom proudly, with his beard flying in front of him. He was so proud. The students were stunned for a second, then the ssroom burst into chaos, all of them converged together gossiping about what happened this morning. Situ Yn rushed towards the beaten student and took out a handkerchief to clean his injuries. The student still had tears on his cheek and felt he¡¯d been done very wrong.


    "Chu Zhongtian! You are so useless!" Situ Yn hit him with anger, "Your grandfather would die of anger if he saw you being like that. How dare you to argue with the lecturer without knowing anything!And when he was hitting you, you didn¡¯t even know to fight back! At least you could¡¯ve run away from him! Why didn¡¯t you do that?"


    The sixteenth guard general Chu Xiongtu had seven sons and thirty-seven grandsons in his life. Among them, Chu Zhongtian was the best at studying. If it wasn¡¯t for that, he couldn¡¯t have been enrolled in the Academy. But with all his mighty force, Chu Zhongtian was beaten heavily by the lecturer.


    Chu Zhongtian wiped tears from his face, he looked at Situ Yn andined, "Yn, this is not my fault. I do everything ording to my grandfather¡¯s word: whoever hits me, I will hit back, even if he was a prince or a king. I really wanted to hit him...I don¡¯t know why, but I couldn¡¯t move at all."


    At this time, Chu Youxian slovenly said, "The vice professor in the Academy, Cao Zhifeng, graduated from the course of magic skills in the seventh year of Shenfeng. He stayed in the Academy and has been teaching here for more than thirty years. He is a great psyche master at Seethrough State."


    Hearing these words, all the students were silent. Situ Yn widened her eyes and stomped after a while and said, "Even if he is a great psyche master...he shouldn¡¯t bully a child."


    Chu Youxian walked towards them, looking at Chu Zhongtian¡¯s swollen face, he sighed and said, "You can¡¯t get justice in regard to this thing because professor Cao is from...Yan."


    Out of the crowd, Ning Que heard what Chu Youxian said and shook his head. He thought, "You mentioned your country¡¯s winning and how the Yan prince was a hostage in front of someone from the Yan Dynasty. No wonder you were beaten so hard. You can¡¯tin."


    The Tang Dynasty was so powerful that its people were very proud. Ning Que admitted that when he was fighting against those barbarians from the grasnd in the frontier fortress, he also felt quite proud of his own country. But judging by what happened today, this Academy was a melting pot, where not only students but also teachers were from different countries. Therefore, Ning Que felt that he really should mind his words and behavior from now on.

 Chapter 83: The Old Library

    Chapter 83: The Old Library


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The students left their study rooms as the dismissal bell rang for the third time. Some of the boarding students hurried towards the dining hall so as not to miss the special back-to-school feast. Some who had to return to Chang¡¯an City hurriedly left for the meadows to not miss the celebratory feast that their friends in the city had prepared for them. Most of the students, however, followed the quiet pathway at the side of the study rooms and towards the depths of the Academy after packing up their books and stationaries.


    Ning Que raised his head to look at the signage, and found out that the Old Library was in that direction. He thought about what the chief professor mentioned this morning in the first lesson and couldn¡¯t help feeling curious. He waved to bid Chu Youxian goodbye and followed the crowd towards that alley.


    There was no discernable pattern in building cements within the Academy. There were buildings in the east and corridors in the west, scattered in the meadows at the foot of the mountain, and yet, the disorder seemed perfectly natural. There were numerous pathways sequestered in the corridors of the study room with a t roof. There were no signs in the silent pathways that led to everywhere and no one knew where they led to.


    While Ning Que seemed like his usual yful self on the surface, he did not want to follow the crowd. It didn¡¯t take long before he left the masses and walked along the quiet path alone. The afternoon sun shone right above his head, casting a shadow on the path covered by the t roof as well as his right shoulder. The shadow felt like an actual weight on his shoulder.


    He didn¡¯t know how long it took to walk to the end of the path. The path opened to a bright, wide scene before him. Ning Que tucked his headscarf that had been blown about by the wind around his neck and looked at the woods before him. Who knew there was such a beautiful sight hidden in the depths of the Academy, he thought as he looked at the verdant greenery before him.


    The thickets of rushes growing in the pond stood proudly in the spring winds, verdant and stong. They looked like rows and rows of corn on the field, a vivid ssh of color against the strongshing winds. They bloated reeds waved as the wind danced through them, refreshing them again.


    Ning Que walked on the wet gravel while looking at the darting figures of the fish within the pond. He could hear the bugs calling from within the forests. As he walked on, the stress within him that had been wound up tightly like strings on an instrument finally loosened and he rxed slightly. There would be ssmates who would walk by asionally, and he would nod his head in greeting while maintaining the same pace.


    The gravel path beneath his feet had yet to be polished. The bumps were great traction to prevent slipping. He walked around the pond before entering the woods. Thousands of stonesid beneath his feet, forming a long t path that led to an old, three-story wooden building at the foot of the mountain.


    The facade of the building looked extremely normal. There were no grand trimmings nor decorations. The roof had no fancy hooked ir either. It was a simple building that was built at the foot of the mountain. However, the materials used to built the building were not ordinary. The building must have weathered through several years of storms and winds and watched many studentse and go from the Academy and yet, there were no signs of it falling apart.


    Ning Que raised his head and looked at the horizontal board above the building with "The Old Library" inscribed on it. He couldn¡¯t help but think that the instructors in the Academy were reallyzy. A building used to house books was called The Old Library simply because it was old?


    "I know you are all curious about why this building is called The Old Library. The reason is simple. This building is used to house books for the Academy. Books are used to record our thoughts. Once our thoughts leave our minds and are inscribed on paper, it is no longer new, but an old object. As such, every book is an old book."


    There were many people in the building before the tightly shut doors. A middle-aged instructor exined the naming of The Old Library to the students with a smile on his face.


    "Now that you are part of the Academy, remember that the Academy does not respect words nor paper. We do not ce books on an altar and worship them. Books are books. They are merely tools and not gods. Only our thoughts are new. This ce is called The Old Library to remind you of this."


    The students nodded in understanding, but not everyone understood the hidden depths in the message. Ning Que understood some, but he wasn¡¯t sure if what he understood was what was meant to be conveyed.


    "Let me tell you about the rules of The Old Library". The middle-aged instructor who was in charge of managing The Old Library said. "There are two instructors and four staffs. We must serve the professors and students here, which is why we are open any time of the day. You maye here to read anytime. But please, remember these three points."


    "Firstly, The Old Library is the mostplete library in the world. Other than having groups of a hundred people searching worldwide for books, the alumni before you have spent a lot of money in purchasing books. They have worked very hard and spent a lot of money. This means you have to ensure your hands are clean before taking the books and please, do not allow your spit tond on the books. You do not have to go all the way to care for them, but do not treat them as toilet paper."


    "Secondly, we cannot find any other books out there that is not here. So when there is something that you can¡¯t find here, think. Is the book that you want to read worth reading? If it¡¯s pornography, is it the most exciting one? If it is a trashy book, is it one that is a major work? If not, do not ask us for it, for we have decided that those books are useless."


    "Last, which it¡¯s also the most important point, you are not allowed to take any book out of The Old Library. You¡¯re not allowed to copy the books either. Do not look at me that way and don¡¯t tell me about the spirit of sharing and freedom. These are the rules of the Academy. Professor Cao Zhifeng from the third ss this afternoon must have already taught you with his fist. You are not to second guess the rules. You may be curious about them, but don¡¯t hope for any exnations."


    The instructor stood beneath the signage of The Old Library and smiled sinisterly at the students who had a myriad of different expressions. He looked like a shrewd businessman giving out loans, or a rich man hoarding his gold while unting it at the poor. He said warmly," Do not attempt to test these rules. Even if you were the world¡¯s greatest book thief, there is only one end for you if you tried anything in The Old Libary, and that is death. And it¡¯d be a horrible death."


    There was a sudden uproar within the crowd of students. Ning Que stood amongst them, shaking his head. It didn¡¯t matter if the building housed every book in the world. How would one remember anything if they weren¡¯t allowed to copy nor borrow the books? He had other questions regarding the books kept in the building, and he was sure that there are others with simr questions. As such, he decided to quell his anxiety and waited.


    There was no surprise when a student raised his hand and asked. "Sir, you said that The Old Library had all kinds of books?"


    The instructor¡¯s gaze shifted to find the bold student who dared raise a question. He furrowed his brows and said distastefully, "Are you doubting my words?"


    "I do not dare." The student shrunk in the gaze of the instructor and said, "I¡¯m ... I¡¯m just curious. Are there any... books about cultivation in the building?"


    The instructor¡¯s expression softened and he smiled. With confidence, he said, " To the public, books about the enigma would be rare, but to the Academy? If you want to read about the legendary Seven Tome of Arcane ornke scriptures, it is true that we do not have them. Other than these, we have everything that you can read about cultivation."


    Upon hearing these, Ning Que clenched his fist. while there was no change in his expression, his heart started beating faster. He raised his head subconsciously and stared at the ordinary looking building with three stories. His burning gaze seemed to set the wooden building on fire.


    Cultivation has been his dream since he was a child. While he had been disappointed time and time again, the best part about a dream was that it was difficult to attain but would keep reeling you in so that you¡¯d keep trying. And on asion, it would reveal just a little something to tempt you, seducing you, saying, "Come and catch me if you can!"


    While he had long given up hopes on cultivation, the discovery of a building filled with books on it was like finding gold to a youngd who had given his all on the frontiers and had bought the Article on the Response of the Tao after visiting a number of markets.


    "Just a reminder to all the students here, please, reign in your gazes, or The Old Library might really go up in mes. The principal might just cut up all of us and eat us up."


    The instructor smiled faintly at Ning Que before straightening his face. He looked at the students severely and said, "I have to warn you, the books on enigma that you¡¯re all interested about, you cannot memorize them, you can only experience it. As for the theories behind it, I shall of course, not exin. As humans, we all have limitations. If you do not have the potential for cultivation, but attempt to force your way through the books, it will only lead to negative results. When that timees, do notin that I did not warn you so."


    ...


    ...


    The wooden doors of The Old Library opened slowly. All was silent within. Walking into the library felt like walking into an unknown world. There were no dust nor cobwebs but it gave one the sense that it had gone through the vicissitudes of life. The students outside the building fell silent. They adjusted their robes and calmed themselves before crossing over the doorstill.


    The building was bigger on the inside than it looked. The open spaces were filled with countless shelves arranged ording to the six subjects, years and genres. They had every book you could think of. High and low, old and new, all gathered in one ce, like years of schrs standing shoulder to shoulder watching you.


    The students dispersed as they entered the building in search of books they are interested in. Ning Que walked through rows of bookshelves alone, pulling out the odd book to flip through asionally. He suddenly noted a writing desk under the window. On the desk was paper, brush and ink. It piqued his curiosity, for why were there such things in the library if you were not allowed to copy the books?


    He found a book about calligraphy in the South Jin Kingdom. Ning Que walked around while reading. His surroundings got gradually quieter. He raised his head to find a flight of clean stairs before his eyes.


    The stairs were meant to ess the upper level. He was on the first floor. That meant that at the top of the stairs, was the second floor.


    ...

 Chapter 84: The First Split on the Mountain of Books

    Chapter 84: The First Split on the Mountain of Books


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que rubbed his head under the stairs, recalling the regtion that old library¡¯s instructor previously told him, and it seemed that students were not forbidden from going up to the Second floor. While in hesitation, someone passed by him and went directly upstairs, the clop-clop of footsteps making him rxed. He, therefore, dropped the Wang Xinglong¡¯s Copybook of Regr Script into the book basket beside the column and went upstairs, holding up the front part of his robe.


    The Second floor of the old library was quieter than the first floor, yet with fewer bookracks and books, which rtively looked more spacious. He hadn¡¯t expected that there were already a great many students upstairs. Among them, some were respectively selecting books to read beside the bookracks, some wearing smirks and still others mumbling to themselves, all of whom apparently felt excited.


    Books about Confucian ssics and History were mostly stored on the first floor, and those describing martial art and cultivation were mainly found on the second floor. Before entering the library, that instructor had warned that books on the second floor were not rmended for reading. However, Ning Que still felt that it was all rather surreal when a big treasure of books suddenly appeared before him without any sign or indication. He stood nkly between the bookracks and only after a long time of silence did he manage to dispell the shock.


    Li Zhitang¡¯s Comment on Buddhism, Mutual Verifications of Psyche Power and Emblematic Gesture, A Brief Introduction on Five Cultivation States, Memories of West-Hill, Dongxuan Scriptures, Collections of Nanhua, A Review of Swordsmanship schools in the South Jin Kingdom, Diverse Laws Appreciation Dictionary...


    He walked along the bookracks, his eyes resting on the dense book spines, and then his previous shock and zest changed into nkness. His hands which were hidden in sleeves could not help quivering. He could guess the contents of those books from their titles alone.


    That year, he followed the City of Wei¡¯s grain transportation team to the Kaiping County bazaar with the silver he had saved for a while. While looking for doctors to treat Sangsang, he also searched in all the bazaar¡¯s book booths, and eventually found a book named Article on the Response of the Tao, whichter he had read for many years until it was burnt into ashes in a copper basin.


    That year, he killed seventeen Horse Gangs beside the Shubi Lake and saved an armying to exterminate those thieves. The general had asked him, "What do you want? We all in the City of Wei can pool money to send you a popr geisha girl as a gift." Holding the Article on the Response of the Tao that had been read from front to back and back to front again multiple times, Ning Que answered, "I want to learn cultivation." The general was left speechless by his reply.


    The cultivator he met beside Min Mountain denied him, themander in charge of the Military Ministry assessment shook his head towards him, the elder Lyu Qingchen made a long sigh, and yesterday the instructor teaching the Academy¡¯s magic skills course patted his shoulder, all of whom showed that he couldn¡¯t enter the world just revealed before his eyes. He told Sangsang it didn¡¯t matter because he could also earn a world with knives and arrows. It did, however, matter. He would not allow that world to merely appear shadowily before him without even knowing what was hidden inside.


    When he entered the old library of the Academy, went upstairs, and saw those thickly-dotted books, he came to realize that it was hard to change his physical condition through these books, but he could at least take a nce at that world. During the past sixteen years, he struggled with the Article on the Response of the Tao, as if he were a poor kid holding hisst potato, while today, he finally perceived an ocean of rice fields. Although those rice fields still could not be controlled, he still felt moved, his eyes warmed and moistened.


    "Sangsang... "


    He stretched out his trembling fingers to stroke the book spines and read silently. At this moment, all he wanted was to share his feelings with her. She was perhaps the only one in the world who could understand what he was feeling now.


    He had his sights fixed on the bookracks filled with cultivation books. He pressingly wanted to read books such as Memories of West-Hill. He was also not qualified to study materials like A Review of Swordsmanship schools in the South Jin Kingdom. Anyway, he should not bite off more than he could chew. He would start from the basics, from The First Exploration of Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi.


    The moment he drew out the thin book, a muffled sound was suddenly heard from somewhere in the library. Tracing the sound, a student was found to have flopped to the ground with his face as pale as snow. His body seized and white foam spewed forth from his mouth without stopping, making it terrifying.


    Four people wearing light-colored robes of the Academy emerged from some unknown ce and went to the unconscious student. Some caught his hands and some his feet, and with a tacit understanding they lifted the poor student up as if they had picked up a chicken. After that, they rushed towards the staircase smoothly, as if they had done this many times.


    Those beside the bookracks were now looking at each other speechlessly. Thinking of the warnings that Lecturer smilingly gave them before entering the old library, a sense of nervousness somehow struck them. However, nobody was scared off. Instead, more and more students came from downstairs.


    They were all young talents from all over the Empire, who bore the same curiosity towards the enigmatic world as Ning Que and strongly believed they could enter that world. Therefore, they kept on taking out books from the bookracks and reading books silently, pretending that nothing had happened.


    Then with another loud thud, a second young student with a pale face fainted. Ning Que looked silently at the student who was being swiftly lifted away and started hesitating. However, he still couldn¡¯t resist the attractiveness of that new world and thus chose to continue like his other ssmates. He then grew firmly determined and opened the thin book in his hand.


    The first sentence of The First Exploration of Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi read, "Heaven and earth also have respiration, which is called breath... "


    Following the handwritten words, Ning Que continued his reading nervously and attentively, but suddenly those words turned blur in his eyes as if a piece of unpolished ss were put between his eyes and the booklet. Realizing maybe that was what the lecturer outside the library had warned, he lightly bit the tip of his tongue to force himself sober and read on.


    "Human beings are most smart among all creatures, therefore they can understand thew of nature. Their will is powerful, which is called Psyche Power."


    Along with the reading, the words in the booklet turned fuzzier which then gradually diffused into spots of ink. He strived to narrow his eyes to see the words more clearly, which yet just resulted in aches between his eyebrows. And as for the blurred words, they would drift away from the paper bit by bit in his eyes.


    "The Psyche Power of human beings originates from the brain and joined between the Snow Mountain and the Ocean of Qi. They can be condensed into frost, dew or water, and are capable of passing through all the acupoints freely. They are scattered throughout our bodies to interact with Breath of nature around us... "


    In his eyes, the vague spots of ink floated off the yellowish paper one by one and entered his brain, where they were changed into shockwaves as if a long oar was probed into the deep ocean of his brain and constantly blended his brain. Instead of feeling pain, Ning Que found his body moving with the blender, the sights before his eyes turned blur. He then felt choked in the chest and was about to throw up, which were exactly the symptoms of extreme seasickness!


    With a stuffy sound, he forced himself to close the booklet and took several raspy breaths, which finally helped him to break away from that dazzling enigmatic world. He then took more breaths and gradually recovered his calmness.


    A middle-aged woman wearing a professor¡¯s robe was sitting at the clean table beside the window, concentrating on copying regr script without any notice of the students which previously flopped over; as if nothing had happened in her eyes. When she heard the p of closing books, however, she raised her head with eyebrows slightly frowning, and a hint of something different shed through her eyes when she caught sight of Ning Que¡¯s pale face.


    This woman professor had been practicing in the old library for more than two decades, and it was unknown how many freshmen she had witnessed to have gotten lost in such books until they were defeated by the overwhelming mental impact and fainted. It was quite rare, however, to see such a student as Ning Que, who has just begun reading yet managed to close the book with strong willpower.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t notice that he had drawn attention from the woman professor because what he focused on was the thin booklet in his hand. After adjusting his breath, he felt that everything had returned to a normal state, therefore, he opened that booklet again to read the following content without any hesitation.


    His eyended on the word "interaction", from which he chose to start. The moment his eye set on the word, however, they directly drifted into his mind, stirring turbulent waves which rolled over him like thousands of mountains howling near!


    Both his hands and the book disappeared from his sight. The bookracks fell away from his sight melting away with the books. He saw the white rooftop and everything became dark.


    ...


    ...


    A horse carriage parked at the gate of Old Brush Pen Shop at Lin 47th Street. When the curtain rose up, Ning Que stepped feebly off and greeted the carriage driver and the deacon of the Academy with a bow, his hands folding in front. He sincerely said, "Many thanks."


    After the horse carriage clopped away, Ning Que took a deep breath, rubbed his pallid face, and entered the shop. Sangsang dropped the duster cloth and stared at him with great curiosity, he then forced a smile and said, "The Academy... is really the best ce in this world, but also the worst one."


    He had just previously fainted in the old library and didn¡¯te to until the horse carriage was about to enter the Vermilion Bird Gate. He¡¯d, however, forgotten the reason why he¡¯d fainted. What¡¯s worse was that he couldn¡¯t even recall the content of the book he had read before fainting, which made him scared and depressed. No matter how hard he thought, not even a trace of the content woulde back to his mind.


    "I have to warn you, the books on the enigma that you¡¯re all interested in cannot be memorized but only experienced. As for the theories behind it, of course I shall not exin. As humans, we all have limitations. If you don¡¯t have the potential for cultivation, but still attempt to force your way through the books, it will only lead to negative results. "


    It wasn¡¯t until now that he understood the true meaning of the warnings that academy instructor gave them before entering the old library. He would guess that those books on cultivation were probably written with some art of talisman.


    "There are many cultivation books in the old library. I thought you must be there."


    Those words reminded Ning Que of the things that had happened years back when he held the frail little girl in his arms and rushed through bookstalls in the bazaar of Linping County. He replied lightly, "But it seems troublesome to understand those books. I felt as if a mountain stood in between me and the books."


    "Young master, how about taking a detour?" Sangsang asked and raised her small face frowning concernedly.


    Ning Que shook his head and quietly looked at her, asking, "What if we can¡¯t bypass a mountain? We have talked about it in the past."


    Sangsang put forth her strength to make a nod and answered, "Split the mountain."

 Chapter 85: Blooming Spring, the Exhausted Man and the Old Book

    Chapter 85: Blooming Spring, the Exhausted Man and the Old Book


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The Academy arranged mathematics courses for the second day. But the atmosphere in the study room today differed from that of yesterday. While the students next to the desks were listening to the professor in silence, their minds had already floated to a ce called the old library. Obviously, many students experienced the same situation as Ning Que did yesterday, which, on the contrary, triggered the unwilling mood and challenging will of these young students.


    The bells rang beautifully and the professor dismissed the ss. With a huge sound in the study room, all the students quickly rushed out of the ssroom and ran towards the wooden building deep in the Academy. The professor was used to such performances of new students in the Academy. He smiled and shook his head without a word.


    Chu Youxian, who didn¡¯t go the old library yesterday, wanted to go and explore after he was told about the magic of that building. He greeted Ning Que and rushed out. Ning Que appeared to be quite calm today and unrushed. He didn¡¯t go to the old library after he went out of the study room. Instead, he walked towards the focal hall along the vines.


    Ning Que had a big lunch for two with a chicken leg and three raw eggs. After he finished, he touched the bulge on his abdomen satisfied, looking around the empty focal hall.


    Outside the focal hall, he set foot on the quiet vine around the wend reeds and walked slowly along it for three rounds. He was still not in a hurry to the old library. Instead, he walked and made sure that he had digested all the foods he just ate and turned them into energy needed by his body. Then after he squatted by theke and carefully washed his hands, he finally calmly walked towards the old library.


    Although he did not have the potential for cultivation, he had enough experience inbat. He decided to ovee all difficulties ahead of him with a positive attitude of confrontation and a strong spirit in the face of the mysterious books in the old library. Therefore, he must adjust his body and the spirit to the best state.


    "Back off! Step aside! It¡¯s not boiled water! It¡¯s a living person!"


    There were shouting noises in front of the old library. Four executive staff, wearing academy robes, quickly carried a fainted student out of the building without expressions on their faces but shouted interesting words. Perhaps they had carried out too many fainting students for thesest two days and they had to find a way to spice up the boring repetition of the work.


    There had already been at least a dozen of fainted students lying outside the old library. The Academy had prepared to handle such a situation and there were instructors rescuing with drugs like Xingshen soup and Jiyuan pills.


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t help but shake his head with a bitter smile after he saw the scene.


    He found fewer students studying among the bookshelves in the empty building than yesterday. The students were not afraid of climbing the floors as they were elites who could pass the entrance examination of the Academy and none of them wanted to give up on the second day. In fact, most of them were carried out. They looked pale with their bodies shaking as if they had been drunk. None of them seemed able to sustain for a long period.


    The dull bell sounded from time to time. The students beside the bookshelves fainted one by one like ripe fruits falling on the mud in autumn, making a pping noise. Some of them convulsed unconsciously and others dully looked at the sky foaming at their mouths. It looked very miserable.


    Ning Que was holding the First Exploration of the Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi in his hands. He stopped looking at the poor fainting ssmates and after a deep breath opened the book.


    "Heaven and earth have breathing, which is called the breath... "


    He had to start over as he didn¡¯t remember what he had read before he fainted yesterday. All he could remember was that he was holding this book. He had helplessly expected the repetition of reading in the future as he had to start from the first sentence every time.


    Scripts in the book became blurry again as he had expected. Those groups of ink stains, like drops of ink into the water urn from pen tips, quickly blew out. Ning Que was not affected and read continuously at a quick speed.


    "Man is the spirit of all things, so he can understand the way of nature. Will equals power, so it is called Psyche Power."


    Fuzzy scripts again drifted away from the papers, buzzing in his mind. He felt the vibrations more like cold winds on the grasnds rather than paddling as if he was fighting with countless aggressive Horse Gangs.


    He took a deep breath and forced himself to lift his head to rest for a moment. He felt a dull pain in his neck as his action was too strong and tough. In order to digest the disgusting feelings in his chest and stomach, he rejected the infinite attraction of the book and looked at spring branches outside the windows and other ssmates beside the bookshelves.


    A small figure weakly fell to the ground. It turned out to be Linchuan Wangying. And then Ning Que noticed Xie Chengyun, who was sitting cross-legged on the ground in the deepest part of the bookshelves. While his eyes were still shining, he looked terribly pale.


    "All students are trying hard to climb." Ning Que said to himself, infected by his stubborn and unyielding ssmates. He then began to read the book again.


    "The Psyche Power of human origins from the brain integrates into the Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi and turns into frosts, dew, and water. It passes through acupoints and spreads out of the body, interacting with the Breath of nature... "


    Ink groups began to float again, osciting and shaking. He suddenly could not hear the buzz in his head and felt as if standing in the streets of the Spring Breeze Pavilion with endless rain falling from the sky, making him all wet. In his imagination, Chao Xiaoshu was not together with him. All of a sudden, he felt extremely cold and wet.


    He then lost his mind again.


    ...


    ...


    It was the afternoon of the third day, outside the old library.


    "Back off! Step aside! It¡¯s not boiled water! It¡¯s a living person!"


    Four executive staff in academy robes carried the unconscious Ning Que out of the old library and threw him to the doctors waiting outside the building, then someone carried him into a horse carriage.


    27 people in the building fainted today.


    ...


    ...


    It was the afternoon of the fourth day, outside the old library.


    "Back off! Step aside! It¡¯s not boiled water! It¡¯s a living person!"


    The same four executive staff in academy robes carried the unconscious Ning Que out of the old library again and threw him to the doctors waiting outside the building,ining while wiping away the sweat on their foreheads.


    Nine people in the building fainted today.


    ...


    ...


    It was the afternoon of the fifth day, outside the old library.


    "Back off! It¡¯s still the living person who has been boiled!"


    The same four executive staff in academy robes carried the unconscious Ning Que out of the old library in no hurry, weaklyining about it with few words. Doctors waiting outside the building saw the familiar face again and couldn¡¯t help sighing.


    Four people in the building fainted today.


    ...


    ...


    It was the afternoon of the sixth day, outside the old library.


    "Back off!"


    Four executive staff in academy robes simply said two words, and then threw someone into the shadow outside the building.


    ...


    ...


    The temperature got higher as spring came. Students from the Academy, however, did not make any progress in challenging the old library. Instead, they were gradually defeated in the following days as their unforgettable experience made most students believe that books in the old library were too difficult for them to deal with. Therefore, fewer and fewer students would go to the second floor.


    Ning Que still kept on trying, getting a big meal and having a walk around the wend for threeps, and then climbing the building. He fainted and was carried away every time. He didn¡¯t lose confidence, however, nor did he give up. He just got an increasingly paler and smaller face. He became weaker as he climbed the library.


    He climbed the library, then he was carried out. Without exception.


    One afternoon, Ning Que ate two dishes of mushroom chicken rice and two pieces of steamed bread with a te of red wine belly silks. He then washed his hands in the wends, and once again went to the old library.


    Students in the Academy had now forgotten that Ning Que got three A+s in the academy entry exams. All they knew was that thed was the most famous and craziest man in ss C. When he appeared at the entrance of the old library, all students, reading or taking notes by the side of the windows, which couldn¡¯t be taken away, raised their heads up, murmured, and looked at him.


    "Is this guy crazy?"


    "How long will he stay upstairs today?"


    "Half an hour?"


    "I don¡¯t think so. He will be carried out after a tea time, at most."


    "I am more curious about who will go downstairs sooner, he or Childe Xie."


    "Childe Xie has the potential for cultivation. How about him?"


    "Why does he try so hard?"


    "I think it is because he wants topete with Xie Chengyun, why else?"


    Ning Que did not pay attention to these whispered discussions. He looked at the stairs in front of him, wringing his slightly trembling right wrist with his left hand. He forced himself to give up the idea of withdrawal and go on with a deep breath. Only he himself knew the stairs would be more steep and difficult and longer than yesterday.


    Watching him difficultly go upstairs, and seeing his pale face, the students¡¯ views downstairs became more and moreplex. Many students suspected his purpose or disdained his obsession. All, however, had to admire his will and perseverance.


    Ning Que went on another floor and gently wiped the sweat from his forehead. He silently walked to the bookshelf by which he stood every day. He drew out the book, which he had been reading for many days. But he still could remember nothing from this thin book.


    The empty floor was enveloped in calm. In addition to Ning Que, only one student could continue. Xie Chengyun sat at the end of the bookshelves with his legs crossed. He put a book on his knees as Ning Que did, his face as pale as a nk piece of paper.


    Ning Que knew Childe Xie was here as he had the potential for cultivation to pass the course of magic skills course. So he was not surprised that he could stick for such a long time. But he had not expected how students in the Academy would talk about them when they were the only two left on the second floor.


    In the eyes of many students and even instructors, Ning Que and Xie Chengyun had been up against each other since the academy entry exams. None of them wanted to give up first. Therefore, they continued toe to the old library and put in great effort.


    Ning Que did not hear of these discussions, nor did he know whether Xie Chengyun came here for this reason. Even if he knew these ideas, he could care less as he only knew why he came here every day. Although he had obtained nothing, he would keep on trying.


    He came here because he liked and needed to do this. That was the reason.


    ...

 Chapter 86: Disturbances out of the Building

    Chapter 86: Disturbances out of the Building


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The thin Primary exploration on the Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow was now like a mountain pressing in his hand. He took a deep breath and turned to watch the green trees outside the window for a while. The green stained his tired and dry eyes, and he once again bowed his head to continue the silent reading. Soon, he then looked up again to the white roof to have a rest.


    When he started to read these cultivation books, he could only do so for a short while, several sentences at a time; while now his reading time got longer and longer. He still didn¡¯t know what he had read when back at Lin 47th Street, but he could vaguely but clearly felt that he was able to read more day by day.


    It was not his resistance to the Martial Arts of Talisman or the ink words in the books bing stronger and stronger that helped him read longer, but that, his willpower was sharpened tougher and tougher in this war. Moreover, he kept looking for an appropriate time to stop reading and rest, and for probable means that might allow him to maintain longer reading time.


    "If you keep reading like this, you will die."


    Said the female professor who had been tracing the regr scripts in small characters at the clean table by the side of the window. She slowly raised her head and put her elegant pen on the inkstone to look at Ning Que¡¯s shakey body.


    Ning Que slowly closed the book and struggled to turn to the female professor by the window, he then gave a deep bow. Xie Chengyun at the end of the bookshelf also gently closed the book to give a polite nod to the professor with a perfect courtesy.


    As the only two students left on this floor, they knew there was always a female professor sitting by the window who seemed to be depicting her own regr scripts in small characters. Whether someone passed out or anything else, she would not raise her head. This gradually became thendscape in the corner and eventually became a non-existent existence.


    Yet, today the female professor finally put aside her pen and began to speak.


    "The Cultivating books on this floor are all written with ink by the Grand Cultivators umting Psyche Power. That is to say, each letter in these books is the best of the Divine Talisman Masters."


    The female professor looked at Xie Chengyun sitting cross-legged on the ground, and said, "Both of you are of great perseverance, and you are even the most perseverant students in the past decade, but you must know that it¡¯s useless to see through the Divine Talisman Masters¡¯ fine works only by perseverance. What you need to do is to immerse yourselves in the books, to see through the books, and to understand the books. You must have the ability to learn the Seethrough upper state."


    And then she turned to Ning Que, and slightly pityingly said, "Xie Chengyun has passed the Perception State and will step into the No Doubts State so that he can maintain for a longer time. Besides, what heprehends in the library is more or less beneficial for his cultivation, while your physique is not suitable for the cultivation. It isn¡¯t good for you to struggle to hold on, only relying on perseverance. Why not... leave earlier?"


    Ning Que stood motionlessly, keeping silent for a long time. He suddenly deeply bowed down to the female professor, and sincerely asked, "I want to ask you, professor, are you at the Seethrough upper state?"


    The female professor shook her head.


    Ning Que understood and continued to ask, smiling gently, " Could you ever reach the Seethrough upper state when you entered the Academy at the very beginning?


    The female professor smiled, understanding what he meant.


    Ning Que again deeply bowed down and sincerely said, "I would like to continue reading for a couple more days."


    The Professor nced at him in admiration, and said, "You still have to study within your ability after all. If you blindly persist, don¡¯t mind my stopping you in due course."


    "Yes, professor."


    Shortly after this dialogue, Ning Que and Xie Chengyun again fainted one after the other. The four diaconates wearing Academy robes had long before be ustomed to them. They even clearly knew their weight. They picked them up respectively with stony faces to go downstairs, toozy to call out anything.


    Visible from the second-floor window of the old library, the forest was dense and green in deep spring. The female professor viewed the scenery through the window and shook her head with a smile, and continued to trace her regr scripts. At that time, the old library¡¯s instructor came up, gave a respectful salute, and said, "Professor, I have something unclear."


    "Recently I¡¯ve also found something wonderful that I could not understand," said the professor, looking at him mildly.


    The instructor sighed and said, "I have observed both of the two students for some days. Xie Chengyun has a basis for the cultivation, and with his heightened willpower he is able to stay for many days upstairs. Though it¡¯s not simple, it¡¯s, after all, not rare. While Ning Que, he was indeed vulgar, why is he allowed to stay for such a long time? This is unreasonable ah."


    The female professor stared at the ink on the pen on the inkstone, and after a moment of silence, she said in a soft voice, "I remember that the professor once said many years ago if a person¡¯s willpower was strong enough, then even God would be frightened... The child named Ning Que is probably one of those people with strong willpower."


    ...


    ...


    Things seemed to be as usual after a few days, sses in the morning, lunch at noon and boarding in the afternoon. Under the gaze of all the students and instructors of the Academy, Ning Que and Xie Chengyun entered the library and were carried out one after the other. Things finally settled when this situation seemed to be a daily scene.


    Ning Que had inquired the Lecturer if he was allowed to bring shell-less, oil-free and chipless food into the old library, thus today he took several pieces of white breadcakes with him to the library. However, he was stopped by someone when he was ready to walk into the old library.


    "When on earth will you stop being in a rage?" Situ Yn looked at him bulgingly, holding Jin Wucai¡¯s little hand. Her heart softened when she saw his pale cheeks, she then said in a low voice, "Now the whole Academy has known you¡¯re the most perseverant students. Why do you continue?"


    Ning Que rubbed his dry eyes, and inexplicably looked at her as if he did not understand what she had said. In fact, he did not understand, but his expression seemed more like provocation in the crowd¡¯s eyes.


    Situ Yn said hotly, "Look at you now. You are going to be blown down by the wind, with your dark circles and pale face, like Chu Youxian, the Lovce. We all know you¡¯re the same as us who wouldn¡¯t seed in cultivation. In this case, what¡¯s the meaning of going upstairs? Why must you grudge Xie Chengyun and continue to go upstairs?"


    Chu Youxian pushed his way out from the crowd, leaning on Ning Que¡¯s left hand and looking at Situ Yn. He lifted his eyebrows and said, "Miss Situ, although you¡¯re the daughter of General Yunhui, please don¡¯t make the irresponsible remarks. I¡¯m a lustful but not a ghost. "


    He then turned to look at Ning Que¡¯s pale cheeks, and sincerely and regretfully said, "But, to tell the truth, I also advise you to not go upstairs anymore. Why are you so obstinate? Even if you give up now, you¡¯ll still be appreciated since as an ordinary person you can stay here for such a long time with the cultivation genius, Xie Chengyun."


    Ning Que, watching the crowd in front of him, smiled and said, "I think you¡¯re really mistaken. I just want to read books in the upstairs, and it has nothing to do with grudges and cruelness. I think it¡¯s the same with Mr. Xie."


    "You don¡¯t know what he thinks."


    "The only purpose for Mr. Xie to enter the Academy is to get on the Second floor. If he isn¡¯t even better than you, how can he have enough confidence to get on to the real Second floor?" Situ Yn spoke solemnly while looking at him.


    "The Second floor?" Ning Que slightly frowned, as if he hadn¡¯t heard these remarks. He said scratching his head, "Do Mr. Xie and I read on the second floor every day?"


    "You don¡¯t even know the Second floor, why are you so desperate to go upstairs every day?"


    Situ Yn watched him with round eyes just as if looking at a fairy, and exined in surprise, "The Second floor of the Academy is not the second floor of the old library, but what¡¯s fantastic is that the so-called true sages have ever learned on the Second floor. I¡¯ve heard that there¡¯re still a lot of Supermundane Experts there."


    "What does it matter with the upstairs?" Ning Que pointed to the roof nkly.


    "Because the gate to the Second floor is on the second floor of the old library," Situ Yn said sourly. "I know it¡¯s a bit hard to exin, but what you only need to know is that the Second floor of the Academy is very difficult to enter. It¡¯s said only seven or eight people have been admitted in thest ten years. If you don¡¯t have the intention, why do you mingle with Mr. Xie?"


    Ning Que looked at her smilingly and said, "Do you mean that, in order for me to not affect Mr. Xie¡¯s cultivation and to not discourage him from getting on to the Second floor, I should... give up voluntarily?"


    After these words, all the surrounding onlookers became silent, because this request was, in any case, unreasonable and particrly rude. Jin Wucai, who had been quietly standing behind Situ Yn, bit her lower lip and broke away from herpanion¡¯s hand to walk in front of Ning Que and give a serious salute. She then said in a trembling voice, "Please help Mr. Xie... Mr. Xie vomited bloodst night after he was back to the mansion. He can¡¯t really hold on anymore."


    For the first time, Ning Que knew the heavy price paid by the young man who went upstairs with him every day. He thought of his vomiting every nighttely and Sangsang¡¯s concerns on her little face. He fell into silence.


    At this moment, Zhong Dajun looked at him coldly, and said, "Do you need to implore such a person so humbly? I don¡¯t believe a normal guy can stay upstairs for so many days. While Chengyun was reading books weeping blood upstairs every day, no one knows what he was doing. Perhaps he was just closing his eyes for rest."


    Xie Chengyun was the talent of the South Jin Kingdom. This time when he went north passing by Yangguan to attend school, he stayed in Zhongda Jun¡¯s mansion. Both of the two were well-known, and they appreciated and got along well with each other.


    Seeing that his friend was forced to go upstairs and vomited bloodst night, Zhong Dajun had long been extremely angry. Of course, what indeed made him speak out in such vicious spection was his unwillingness to allow the border town soldier to draw the attention of the whole Academy.


    But, the vicious spection seemed very consistent with the real situation. The way the students looked at Ning Que became a littleplicated. At this moment, outside the stone trail came two horse carriages. Xie Chengyun who looked as pale as snow-white was helped down to the horse carriage, he stared at this site without saying a word the whole while.

 Chapter 87: The Carriage with the Indigo Curtain

    Chapter 87: The Carriage with the Indigo Curtain


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Seeing Xie Chengyun getting off the carriage, Ning Que couldn¡¯t help being a little disappointed. He noticed that Xie Chengyun had no intention of defending him though Xie Chengyun, obviously, had heard the rumors. In this situation, Ning Que, unwilling to exin more, just shook his head and said to them, "If you think I¡¯m mean, you could just persuade Xie Chengyun not to go upstairs, instead of quarreling with a mean person."


    Zhong Dajun, noticing that Ning Que wasn¡¯t irritated by his words at all, stopped thed on the way and sullenly said, "You can¡¯t go upstairs today anyway."


    After a stunned moment, Ning Queughed. He lowered his head, slowly rolled up his sleeves, and gently asked, "Is the Academy your personal property? No. The old library? Neither. And could you beat me up?"


    He then looked at Zhong Dajun and said, "Don¡¯t forget that I got A+ in both the archery and riding courses. If you insist on being a rabid mongrel in my way today, I will beat you into a gimp."


    Listening to this strange exchange, Situ Yn, who was very anxious before, suddenly couldn¡¯t help bursting intoughter with a ¡¯Puchi¡¯ sound. Butter she realized that she hadughed at the wrong time and immediately lowered her head, after seeing the sad and worried expression on herpanion¡¯s expression.


    Jin Wucai, with slightly-moist eyes, looked at Ning Que and said, "Zhong Dajun just made those impolite and tactlessments due to his anxious protection for his friend. I apologize for him, but...you really had better give up going upstairs. I have a suggestion: you give it up, and we also persuade Xie Chengyun not to go upstairs again. This way, it¡¯s a tie for you both."


    Situ Yn, stood beside Jin Wucai apusively pped her hands and praised him, "It¡¯s a good way! Very good! A friendly solution."


    Smilingly looking at the two girls in front of him, Ning Que couldn¡¯t help recalling those innocent and child-like junior middle school girls from some old time and ce, those witless young girls who kept offering suggestions to theirpanions. He, actually, clearly knew that they were just some innocent and ignorant girls from noble families in Chang¡¯an, and then said, "I have my own reasons to go upstairs, nothing to do with so-called bravery-and-resolution of battle. If you guys are really worried about Xie Chengyun¡¯s health, I advise you to persuade him more."


    Jin Wucai, gently sobbing, said, "But Xie Chengyun is too proud to be persuaded..."


    Peacefully looking at her, Ning Que said, "I am just a young soldier from a frontier fortress who shouldn¡¯t have an equivalent pride, so you came to persuade me instead of him?"


    Raising her face and wiping her tears with her sleeves, Jin Wucai hurriedly apologized, "Sorry, I don¡¯t mean that. Hope you can forgive my inappropriate words."


    "It doesn¡¯t matter," Ning Que, passed by the sobbing girl and walked towards the upstairs, and said, "I insist on going upstairs not because of pride, but some more important reasons than pride."


    Looking at his back in astonishment, Situ Yn confusedly asked, "What other things could be more important than pride?"


    Without replying to her question, Ning Que just silently thought in his heart that there certainly was something much more important than pride, life and death.


    "Ning Que, you had better think about the potential oue before you go upstairs this morning."


    Zhong Dajun, also noticing the arrival of Xie Chengyun, said coldly. As Xie Chengyun kept silent, Zhong Dajun thought he clearly knew what he should do and his voice became sterner.


    "Haotian offers his people many things, and all you need to do, naturally, is ept! Most of the people here arecking in talent and ability for cultivation, but we are not as persistent as you. You¡¯re jealous! I clearly know what you want to do! Knowing that you can¡¯t enter the Second floor, so you just, by some crooked and dishonest methods, try to prevent Xie Chengyun from going into the Second floor! But have you ever thought about how evil and shameless this kind of harming-others-but-without-benefiting yourself behavior is!"


    Hearing the noun ¡¯¡¯Second floor¡¯ again, Ning Que recalled the hard fighting at the entrance to the Northern Mountain Road. At that battle, both Lyu Qingchen and that Great Sword Master assassin had mentioned it during their conversations. Such recalling spontaneously made his body stiff. He thought that an abandoned Academy student who just learned on the Second floor for a few days could be a Seethrough State Great Sword Master. The Second floor of the Academy...what on earth was it?


    His silence and stiff body delivered a mistaken signal to the students right then. They thought Ning Que felt embarrassed and indefensible because Zhong Dajun had correctly guessed his mind and pointed it out.


    As the discussion began, Ning Que at the entrance to the stairs, slowly turned around with a sort of extremely strong sarcastic expression appearing on his pale and thin face. He looked around at the people and said, "In the past, I didn¡¯t know what the Second floor was, so I never thought about entering the ce. But now, since I have already known it, I definitely must make it. I hope none of you will be surprised if that momentes."


    Being irritated, Zhong Dajun sneered, "You still don¡¯t admit that you are jealous of Xie Chengyun?"


    There were two horse carriages outside the old library. One had just been sent for Xie Chengyun, who vomited blood in front of the old library this morning and asked to leave. Another normal carriage with an indigo curtain, however, just stood there, with no one getting off and the curtain being absolutely still.


    Just then, a cold voice suddenly came from the carriage with indigo curtain, "I just know the hothouse flowers will be jealous of the height and purity of the lotus in high mounts, but I don¡¯t realize that the goshawk in the sky will envy the hen on the ground."


    The sound was neither bitterly nor very strongly sarcastic. It directly, however, caused the students inside and outside the old library to fall into total silence. The facial expression of Zhong Dajun was extremely embarrassed, and an impulsive, even angry and blood-redplexion vaguely appeared on Xie Chengyun¡¯s snow-white face.


    The sentence uttered from the person in the carriage put Ning Que in a high position, which was regarded as the lotus in high mounts and goshawk in the sky. In addition, it directly viewed Xie Chengyun, who was well-known in the South Jin Kingdom, as the protected hothouse flower and the idle hen on the ground.


    Such a simple sentence returned back all the sarcasm that Ning Que had got before, with much stronger force. Looking at the horse carriage in shock, all the people wondered who it was that dared satirize Zhong Dajun and the talent of the South Jin Kingdom, Xie Chengyun?


    As Zhong Dajun got ready to satirize in response, and as some people were prepared to make indignantments, the person in the carriage with the indigo curtain continued rebuking the two girls from noble families in Chang¡¯an, who were somehow very nervous, "If youg behind others in skill and willpower, just keep improving yourself so as to seek the final victory. How could you let a girl plead for you? Wucai, you were a clever and sensitive girl in childhood, how could you be so stupid these years!?"


    "And Yn, I can¡¯t believe you¡¯d help a person from the South Jin Kingdomugh at a Tang person. Where is that Yn who rode a horse along a Chang¡¯an street and cried out to your father to take you to the war with the South Jin Kingdom? Power wasn¡¯t proved by taunt. The Tang, anyway, earns its position by swords, archery, and riding. Go home to introspect yourself!"


    The secret person in the carriage firstly taunted Xie Chengyun and then severely reprimanded the two noble girls, with sort of peaceful but unmistakable words. In particr, Situ Yn and Jin Wucai hadn¡¯t any emotion of anger and fury after being rebuked. Instead, Both of them blushingly lowered their heads. The students inside and outside the old library who had felt awkward were all very curious about who the figure was in the carriage.


    A voice resounded from the carriage with the indigo curtain again, "Ning Que,e meet Your Majesty."


    Upon hearing the two words ¡¯Your Majesty¡¯, a total silence fell on the old library. Especially, from the cautious expression of Situ Yn, the students, could eventually divine the identity of the female in the carriage, and then subconsciously bent down.


    The facial expression of Zhong Dajun turned from angry into fearful embarrassment. He was born in an influential family, yet the figure in the carriage could easily terminate his official career with a simple word. Meanwhile, Xie Chengyun¡¯s face became more snow-white than before. He hadn¡¯t the same worry as Zhong Dajun¡¯s because he was not a Tang man. However, as a South Jin man, how could he dare offend the figure in the carriage?


    ording to Tang¡¯s ritual system, only the empress dowager, and royal empress princess could call themselves ¡¯Your Majesty¡¯. At the present time of Tianqi era, there weren¡¯t any empress dowager or royal empress princess in the court, so of course, only the empress could call herself ¡¯Your Majesty¡¯. It was impossible, however, for the empress toe to the Academy alone...Thus, there was only one possibility.


    In Tianqi era, there was a princess who, with the court¡¯s special permission, was allowed to call herself ¡¯Your Majesty¡¯ due to her virtue.


    So, sitting in the carriage with the indigo curtain was the fourth princess, whom the Tang¡¯s emperor favored most, Tang¡¯s people respected most and all young men and women adored most. Who dares rebel?


    Being a little surprised, Ning Que walked out of the old library under the awkward attention of other students. Not until he walked slowly in front of the carriage did he find that the groom in a farmer¡¯s hat was unexpectedly Peng Yutao.


    Peng Yutao smilingly nodded as a greeting and then said, "Her Highness wants to talk with you."


    Ning Que, also smilingly nodding, went beside the carriage, gently bent down as a courtesy, and then peacefully said, "Your Highness, Ning Que is here."


    Lifting a corner of the curtain, Lee Yu silently looked at thed whom she hadn¡¯t seen for some days. She then suddenly said, "Since you have been admitted as a student of the Academy, you can call yourself ¡¯student¡¯ when you meet me in the future."


    Ning Que, looking at the beautiful and amiable face through the corner of the curtain, somehow suddenly recalled the bonfire at the entrance to the Northern Mountain Road. He then slightlyughed and said in a low voice, "Since you aren¡¯t a teacher in the Academy, why would I be your student?"


    Lee Yu was a little astonished and didn¡¯t expect that thezyd still kept his previous indolence from their second encounter when she had already recovered her dignity as a princess. Naturally, she heavily mmed the curtain and coldly said, "Your Majesty hase here for some affairs today. I remembered that you¡¯re here, so just came to see you. Actually, I mainly want to tell you that I kind of miss...Sangsang. You bring her to the princess¡¯ mansion tomorrow."


    He was calmer now with the indigo curtain blocking the beautiful and amiable face, which could easily remind Ning Que of the maidservant¡¯s face beside the bonfire. He, in a well-mannered way, deeply bowed as a courtesy and peacefully said, "Her Highness is thoughtful."


    The indigo curtain was lifted again. Quietly looking at his pale face through the seam, Lee Yu slightly frowned and, after a short silence, said, "I heard that you go upstairs every day. I suggest you take care of your health, instead of risking your life in this kind of unnecessary battle with these thoughtless people. Comparatively, it would be a right choice to serve your country with your life."


    As Ning Que straightened up his body intending to exin, the carriage with the indigo curtain just unexpectedly left.


    ...

 Chapter 88: Nothing to Note from Books

    Chapter 88: Nothing to Note from Books


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The carriage with the indigo curtains left along the stone path in the wends. The seemingly t stone path was actually irregr, which could prevent someone¡¯s shoe sole from slipping, but caused the carriage wheels to bump and shake. Lee Yu, the fourth princess of the Tang, was in a daze inside the carriage with her two hands supporting her jaw. Due to the violent shaking, she became a little annoyed, and her aversion of Ning Que grew.


    In fact, her real purpose ofing to the Academy today was to visit Ning Que, not for other affairs.


    She wondered what thed, who once apanied her back to Chang¡¯an from the grasnd, had be. She was curious about thed¡¯s special skill. In the past, Ning Que rejected her recruitment, and then he was appreciated by Xu Chongshan after his cooperation with Spring Breeze Pavilion Old Chao in that bloody, rainy, and windy spring night.


    The most direct reason was that she had heard an odd rumor about two students who had gone to the second floor of the old library out of pique. When the princess found out that one of them was Ning Que, it reminded her of Lyu Qingchen¡¯sment on thed. She had been unable to repress her curiosity and decided to pay a visit.


    It was still thatmon but young and clean face, with the same freckles and shallow dimples. However, his face was much paler than before and he looked very unhealthy.


    Somehow, she felt a little bit annoyed when she looked at Ning Que¡¯s pale face and his obstinate and cynical expression. If Zhong Dajun had not said those sarcastic words and if they had not enraged her, she would not have summoned him.


    ...


    ...


    When Ning Que walked inside the old library, the expressions on the other students were entirely different from before. They now looked full of shock and confusion. They silently wondered if there was anything wrong in the Academy roster, and that if thed was actually, as the original hearsay had suggested, from a noble family in Qinghe Prefecture, instead of a soldier from a border town, the City of Wei. They could not figure out why Princess Lee Yu would know him and even especially summon him beside the carriage and say a few words if his real identity was not what they had thought.


    Situ Yn, who was looking at him curiously with her head slightly inclined, was trying to guess his rtionship with the princess. Meanwhile, Jin Wucai, looking a little ashamed, hid behind Situ Yn and did not dare to look at him. Princess Lee Yu had argued for Ning Que in person, who would dare to question him further? Zhong Dajun had disappeared out of sight due to embarrassment. Xie Chengyun just stood outside the crowd, with a pale face and lonely expression.


    Chu Youxian walked toward Ning Que and looking at him in surprise. He praised in a low voice, "No wonder Mistress Jian did not ept your taels of silver. I never imagined that you had such backing. Considering the girls¡¯ temperaments, it probably wouldn¡¯t work even if the prince spoke up for you today. Only the Fourth Princess Lee Yu would be able to keep them in line."


    Upon hearing the words, Ning Que became interested and asked, "Why?"


    "The reason is very simple. The so-called girl army in Chang¡¯an... was actually founded by the fourth princess in her childhood out of boredom. These noble girls like Situ Yn, all yed with and were trained by the princess when they were very young," Chu Youxian said with augh.


    Ning Que justughed and made no move to exin his rtionship with Lee Yu. Though he did not intend to show off whatever rtionship he had with the princess, he was pleased to enjoy some advantage by noting forward to clear up the rtionship that he had with Lee Yu.


    When Xie Chengyun saw Ning Que walking toward the second floor, he eventually moved. He slowly entered the old library, ignoring other people¡¯s dissuasion. With his hands holding the handrail and his body continually trembling, Xie Chengyun trudged up step by step.


    Ning Que, held the thin book Primary Exploration on Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow in his hands but made no move to unfold it. As Xie Chengyun went past him to the end of the bookshelf and sat down with knees crossed as usual, Ning Que suddenly said, "You might have your own pride, but I have my own need. We are in totally different positions. You are a favored talent while I am just amon person fighting for survival. I¡¯d advise you to avoid losing your own life due to the unnecessary and meaningless fight with me."


    When Xie Chengyun went past Ning Que and saw that Ning Que had not opened his book, he thought that thed was angry with his silence downstairs and wanted to continue their fight. He had not expected Ning Que¡¯s words. The intelligent South Jin talent, looking at the book¡¯s page on his knee after a long silence without any thought, eventually stood up, holding the wall with difficulty. Then, after a long bow, he slowly walked downstairs.


    Ning Que held the thin book and walked to the end of bookshelves, which was closer to the west windows, so he could keep enjoying the afternoon sun. He sat down on the warm floor where Xie Chengyun had sat cross-legged. After some time with his eyes closed, Ning Que gently rubbed his pale and thin cheeks and then opened his book to read with a smile.


    "It may be helpful if you take some notes even though you can¡¯t take them away."


    Beside several new branches of old trees at the east window, a female professor in a light-colored robe was thoroughly engrossed in her regr script in small characters. If Ning Que was not sure that he had heard a voice, he would have doubted whether she had opened her mouth or not.


    Slightly shocked, he stood up and walked to the table beside the west window. Staring at the writing brushes, ink sticks, paper, and ink stones, he sat down after a long thought. Later, he picked up an ink stone and began to grind the ink in fresh water.


    They were not allowed to copy any books in the library. Besides, transcribing the characters of the divine talisman into normal characters on paper would not work. Ning Que had tried meditating. As he tried to turn the shing memories intomon characters on paper, the characters in his brain quickly scattered like smoke, unable to materialize.


    Furthermore, ording to the rules of the old library, the books could not be left with any traces. Ning Que had no idea whether the instructors would discover something unusual if he yed some tricks, though he never tried ying such tricks these days. Countless cut-throat battles over the years had long taught him a lesson: When you were confronted with mountains that must be conquered, any petty tricks would look very stupid; in such a situation, all you needed was the great wisdom that was close to stupidity and simpleness.


    What should be noted? In such circumstances, what kinds of characters and words could be counted as notes? Holding the brush with his wrist raised, Ning Que, however, hesitated to write on the paper. That was because he forgot what he had read in that thin book previously. Thus, he had no idea what notes were meaningful.


    "Maybe the things that I¡¯m risking my life for are actually meaningless on their own."


    Thinking about all the hard work recently, all the sleepless and painful feelings, and Sangsang taking care of him with hot towel these nights, Ning Queughed at himself and inevitably felt a little disappointed. Indeed, it was very difficult for an ordinary person to enter into the cultivation world. The more effort you made, seemingly, the more bleakness it added.


    The brush loaded with ink hung in the air for a long time. With a gentle "Pa!" sound, a drop of ink dropped down on the snow-white paper. The ink quickly scattered along the fiber of the paper and then presented a kind of irregr beauty.


    Something suddenly touched his heart when Ning Que was staring at the group of ink traces. The sadness and disappointment in his heart was totally rinsed and turned into absolute peace. At this moment, he figured out everything in his mind. Not every love experience could be a happy memory. Not every fairy tale could have a happy ending, likewise, not all efforts could be rewarded. Even if you tried very hard, the ending, mostly, did not depend on you, so you should just enjoy the process.


    If there was nothing sublime to note, you should just ignore it. If you had no idea what should be noted, you could write something else, such as your mood, your own experiences, your feelings in the old library, the sight of the quiet female professor beside the east window apanied by a pink wall and old trees and new branches, and the sunset in the direction of the west window...


    "Keep going up, up, up! Previously, I was always fettered and vexed by such thoughts, but now, all would be stopped. I was just a wood-chopper of Shubi Lake before, so why should I forcibly imitate other people when it was obviously not the right time for me?"


    Scrawling on the paper without any special thoughts, he just casually wrote some characters ording to his current mood. With the clear and gorgeous characters appearing on the paper one after another, the utmost annoying emotion in his chest was gradually disappearing, as if the ink was scattered by the brush.


    "I had been engaged in penance for 17 consecutive days since I tried to study cultivation in the old library. Unluckily, however, I failed to learn any words by heart, and had no choice but to see them flee. Once, I was aware and also entered into some dark and sweet dreams, but they would always disappear in the end.


    "If these characters on the paper are illusory, why can I see them? If they are real, why can¡¯t I memorize them? If they exist between reality and illusion, is the ink which presents them real or illusory, and is the paper which shows them real or illusory?"


    Then, Ning Que stopped writing and did not want to continue since it was just a kind of casual and informal note. Putting down the brush, he quietly looked at the characters on the paper. After the paper became dry, he gently put it into that thin book andid the book back on the bookshelves. Later, he turned around and politely made a bow to the female professor beside the east window before going downstairs.


    For the first time in days, Ning Que walked down the stairs by himself without having to be carried.


    Looking at the disappointing back of thed, the female professor gently sighed and silently thought of the old library¡¯s rules set by her teacher before: A student was allowed to choose only one branch although there were countless ones. Ning Que had a strong will, so his Psyche Power collected from meditation must be strong, too. However, the Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi inside his body were poor, which was a prerequisite for cultivation. If he kept cultivating, in the end he would have to lie in bed, spitting blood and pale. Even if Haotian pitied him for his tenacity and perseverance and bestowed him health, what was the benefit for him if he kept reading like this for the next 80 years?


    At that time, the color of the sky became darker as night wasing. No one would go upstairs today. After tidying the calligraphy stationery in front of her, the female professor walked along a side path toward the direction of Back Mountain.


    After some time, the dark night covered the Academy and that big mountain behind the Academy. The lights inside the Academy, which was surrounded by a wide meadow, scattered like the stars in the sky.


    On the second floor of the silent old library, a light suddenly appeared on the bookshelves leaning against the north wall, and then quietly and slowly spread toward both sides.


    A fat young student in a dark cyan academic robe breathlessly squeezed from the seam. Then, angrily turning his head back and staring at the bookshelves, heined, "Who is responsible for this design? Couldn¡¯t the exit be a littlerger? Didn¡¯t he suppose the Academy would recruit several fat students someday?"


    The fatd walked beside the bookshelves with a mumble andined, "Second Brother isn¡¯t a good guy! Why does he insist on making a bet on the contents of an introductory book? Though I, Chen Pipi, am a genius, it is also impossible for me to still remember what I read at a very young age."


    While talking to himself, he drew out a thin book from the bookshelves. Looking at the several characters on the cover of Primary Exploration on Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow, he gently patted it with satisfaction. With his patting, a very thin sheet of white paper flew out.

 Chapter 89: The Debut of the Great and Cheeky Penpal

    Chapter 89: The Debut of the Great and Cheeky Penpal


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Looking at the paper that fell by his feet, the chubby youngd called Chen Pipi quickly rolled his tiny eyes, and his bulging cheeks wrinkled up slightly in an attempt to express his skepticism. After giving it quite a lot of thought, he finally made the tough decision of painfully lowering his corpulent body, reached out his short, chubby and rather cute hands to pick up the paper with so much difficulty that he was panting for a while after doing so.


    "Being fat really is the most miserable thing in the world."


    Fluttering his thick, plump and tender lips, Chen Pipi muttered to himself with a sense of pretentious self-pity. Then he looked down to see what was written on the paper, and read it out without realizing, "Going up one more floor, and yet another, all the sorrow I had ceased to exist now. Once I was the young wood chopper at the Shubi Lake, and why should Iply and moan about cold weather, when autumn hasn¡¯t arrived just yet..."


    "Being fat is in fact not the most miserable thing in the world, if one can be fat and genius at the same time." He looked at the handwriting with pity, guessing that this would be the painful inner manifesto of some freshman of the Academy. He shook his head and said sympathetically, "Compared to a genius like me, beingmon and ordinary like you is what makes you truly miserable."


    The worlds of mortals and geniuses are so utterly different. Chen Pipi thought that he could understand the frustration and desperation of the poor guy, but wasn¡¯t nning to take such pain as his own. So after making a casualment, he tucked the paper back into the shelf and was ready to leave with the volume of Primary exploration on Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow that he came for.


    But all of a sudden he turned back and drew out the piece of paper again, and looking at the handwriting on it. He raised his thick eyebrows and muttered with surprise, "This guy is pretty talented in calligraphy!"


    Again he tucked the piece of paper back into the shelf and as he was about to leave, he turned back once more, and drew out the piece of paper for the third time and looked at it attentively for a while and eximed, "Actually he¡¯s not only pretty talented, but very talented indeed!"


    Seeing himself going back and forth, Chen Pipi admitted that he was acting ridiculous. He looked at the note left by the poor guy and muttered to himself, "Perhaps Haotian God pities you so much that he¡¯s using your great calligraphy as a means to induce me to help you out?"


    An insignificant excuse was often the only thing needed for someone to make a decision, even if such excuse was fabricated. For Chen Pipi tonight, he had no idea that what he was about to do would change someone¡¯s life in a certain sense, but he was ready to go on and do it just because he wanted to. In this respect he was much more straightforward than certain poord.


    Sitting down at the desk beside the east window, dimly lit by starlight, Chen Pipi read the words written by the poor stranger with a certain degree of intrigue. The knocking sound of his plump fingers on the window echoed with the song of the birds at night.


    "I had been engaged in penance for consecutive seventeen days since I cultivated in the old library. Unluckily, however, I failed to learn any words by heart, and had no choice but to see them flee. Once, I was aware and also entered into some dark and sweet dreams, but they would always disappear atst."


    "If these characters on the paper were illusory, why could I see them? If they were real, why couldn¡¯t I memorise them? If they existed between reality and illusion, was the ink which created them real or illusory, and was the paper which showed them real or illusory?"


    After reading what was on paper, Chen Pipi pouted his lips and looked rather indifferent, like a boy who had eaten countless bowls of authentic hot-dry noodles at the west towning across some poord who doesn¡¯t know how to stir his copycat version of spicy sauce noodles. It made him feel utterly proud and infinitely superior from the bottom of his heart.


    He started to grind the inkstick under the starlight. Chen Pipi picked up the tiny brush of his senior sister with his chubby fingers, and swiftly wrote down a long paragraph ofmentary on the back of that piece of paper. The tiny handwriting on paper looked exceptionally fine and intricate in contrast to the bulkiness of his body shape.


    "Poor boy, don¡¯t believe the kind of bullshit about whether a mountain is a mountain or not. Haotian God wouldn¡¯t be as bored as to be testing us with such silly questions."


    "Objective reality is nevertheless real, such as the writings on this book which are as real as my pride and arrogance right now. Even though the writing has been tampered with by the Divine Talisman Master, you must believe that it is real. If you cannot believe it yourself, then your eyes would certainly find it even harder to believe."


    "The writings constitute an objective reality, so does the paper. However, when this paper and writing reflects the spring daylight into your eyes which might be big or small, and once it is interpreted by your brain which might be smart or dumb...I¡¯m guessing dumb... that¡¯s when it all bes a fabricated reality."


    "Spring light being reflected on paper already constitutes an interpretation, seeing it in your eyes is a reinterpretation, and your attempt to understand it is yet another reinterpretation. Interpretation often leads to misunderstanding. The more you interpret something, the more it is likely to deviate from its original form."


    "If you are still unable to understand it by now, as a genius I am obliged to help you out with the most vulgar example I cane up with: the objective reality of something resembles a beautiful naked woman. We can only ept her existence, and she doesn¡¯t need our interpretation. Therefore, as apletely unclothed woman, her entire being constitutes an objective reality, regardless of the size of her bosom, the shape of her ass or the appearance of her pubic hair. You cannot change her."


    "When you look at her with desire, thinking about her beauty and wanting to have sex with her, these thoughts beyers of clothing. Each time you attempt to interpret her, you are covering her seductive body with ayer of clothing, until you are ultimately unable to fathom what she actually looked like at the very beginning, and how big her boobs were."


    "How to resolve this problem? It¡¯s very simple. Remember the image of her at the very instant in which she waspletely naked, and forget about whether she is the saintess of the Great River Kingdom or Ye Hongyu from the West-Hill Divine Pce. Don¡¯t think, don¡¯t ask, don¡¯t offer her flowers or y a melody for her, instead, simply go up there and f*ck her right there and then! Women are to be f*cked and not interpreted!"


    The ink flowed swiftly on paper with such power and spontaneity, fully expressing his greatest ideas. By the time Chen Pipi finished his face brightened up showing utter satisfaction. Since a very young age he had been considered by everyone as an unprecedented genius, but throughout the years he had been studying under the very best, and he could only listen and learn without getting any chance to unleash his inner desire to give someone else a lesson. He couldn¡¯t help but praise himself.


    "The words might sound vulgar, but the gist is there. I just hope you won¡¯t get too obsessed and taken over by my words."


    By the time the ink was dried by the night wind, he proudly stood up and made is way back to the bookshelf, tucking the piece of paper back into the pages of the Primary exploration on Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow , no longer caring about his bet with his Second Brother on the memorization of basic teaching material.


    Just as he was putting the booklet back into the shelf, his plump face showed a little hesitation. Strictly speaking, by helping this poord he has seriously breached the rules of the old library. But then again he thought of something else his master once said, and he rolled his tiny eyes, tucked the book into the shelf and left the building without worrying about a thing.


    "Rules are bullshit."


    ...


    ...


    Every morning, Ning Que left Lin 47th Street at dawn and only returned to Chang¡¯an city veryte in the night. Even though it was the first day ever for him to walk down the old library, by the time his horse carriage entered through the south gate of Chang¡¯an, it was already well into the night.


    Chu Youxian was concerned about his physical condition and waited for him to return together to the city. As the two horse carriages parked in front of the Old Brush Pen Shop one after another, this Eastern City snob looked out from the carriage window at Ning Que, and full of appreciation he said, "I can¡¯t believe you left aside all grudges and persuaded Xie Chengyun to walk down the old library, I never thought you were such an open-minded, humble, graceful, tolerant, noble..."


    Ning Que turned back with a smile on his face and said, "even though I don¡¯t mind staying here and listening to the string of praises you coulde up topliment me, I must also admit that, persuading Xie III to leave the library wasn¡¯t entirely out of concern for his health...I was simply interested in the spot he sat on every day, it was a nicely sunlit spot."


    "You¡¯re so peculiar for concealing a good deed with an evil motive just to avoid praise..."


    Comined Chu Youxian as he ordered his servant to drive the horse carriage away.


    Ning Que smiled as he waved his friend goodbye, and as he walked into the shop and covered his face with the towel passed to him by Sansang, he sank his entire body into the armchair, as if all his strength and energy was suddenly taken away from him.


    Ever since he started going up the old library, each night as he returned to Lin 47th Street he would enjoy the invigorating effects of a hot towel. Sangsang calcted the timing meticulously and soaked the towel just in time to make sure the temperature was exactly right.


    Underneath the steaming white towel, Ning Que said with an exhausted voice, "I still don¡¯t have much of an appetite tonight, please just make a bowl of noodles with fried eggs."


    Sangsang agreed but didn¡¯t leave. She stood quietly by the armchair and red at the steaming towel on Ning Que¡¯s face. After a long silence, she finally said, "young master, you...shouldn¡¯t go tomorrow."


    The truth is, even though Ning Que looked fine and seemingly able to chat and joke with his academy mates, only he and Sangsang were aware of the real damage suffered by his body and mind after forcing himself to read at the old library all these days. Everyday as he returned to the city he was in so much pain that he could barely bring himself to utter words, and he vomited so much that he required great will power to even swallow his dinner.


    Hearing Sangsang¡¯s voice, Ning Que felt as if the white towel on his face turned into a fluffy white forest, alongside the warm and moist sensation covering his mouth and nose. He was quiet for a while and finally forced himself to smile as he said,"I didn¡¯t get a chance to take you out before when I had my days off, so...I won¡¯t go to the Academy tomorrow. By the way, I bumped into the silly Princess today at the Academy, and she invited you to go y with her. Shall we go tomorrow?"


    Sansang removed the lukewarm towel from face, and started massaging his forehead. Then she timidly replied, "Her Highness wants to see me? I would like that too."


    With his eyes closed, Ning Que felt how her cold fingers massaged away his stress and nausea, and he sighed in relief as he said, "And I shall use this opportunity tomorrow to cross off the second name from the list."


    Sangsang¡¯s fingers froze briefly, and looked down at her slightly worn-off shoes. She was obviously not too impressed about this.

 Chapter 90: First Visit to the Princess Residence

    Chapter 90: First Visit to the Princess Residence


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que decided to skip studying at the building for a day, and went to visit Her Highness the Princess with Sangsang, and take a life while he was here. Sangsang on the other hand wasn¡¯t too impressed with this decision, not because she didn¡¯t like killing people, since having grown up beside Ning Que she had witnessed Ning Que kill so many people that she was pretty much numb about it. It was really because she didn¡¯t like the fact that Ning Que couldn¡¯t take a good rest despite his poor physical conditions at the moment.


    Despite not being in a good mood, the little handmaiden still gave her best when cooking the noddles with fried eggs in the evening. She skipped adding pepper and spring onions not as a form of punishment, but because Ning Que had been experiencing frequent nausea and vomiting in the nighttely, and his fragile stomach could no longer bear such spicy condiments.


    After they finished eating the noodles and soaked their feet in hot water, Ning Queyfortably in bed. Sangsang also washed her little feet with the leftover water and climbed up on the bed. She split her legs to ride on his waist to give him a soothing massage.


    Once she made sure he was sound asleep, Sangsang sighed and wiped off the sweat that wasn¡¯t really there. She moved to the other end of the bed and enjoyed her sleep, holding her beloved cosmetics box from Chenjinji Cosmetics Store.


    Around midnight, she was woken up by Ning Que¡¯s painful moaning and constant turning around. She quickly got herself out of her nket and off the bed, swiftly drew out the bronze basin from underneath the bed and sat next to Ning Que, patting and rubbing his back up and down with her tiny hands.


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t stop vomiting into the bronze basin as hey on his side, his face so pale, and hisplexion twisted, showing great agony. The food he ate before had already been digested, and he could only throw up the hot tea he drank before going to bed, as well as stomach acid and bile.


    Ever since he started reading at the Academy building, he suffered such agony several times each night. This not only weakened his body, but also made Sangsang exhausted in the daytime.


    Each night as he fell sound asleep, the ink characters he had seen in the old library during daytime would transform into jet ck monsters arising from the depths of his mind to engage in fierce battles and quickly berger andrger, until they merged into a massive ship sailing across the imaginary ocean in his mind and causing havoc. The entire experience would make him extremely seasick and nauseous, and he could hardly contain the desire to vomit.


    It felt like a nightmare but Ning Que knew very well that it wasn¡¯t. Instead, he knew it was the enigmatic expression of the shock waves caused by the battle between the Fu created by the Divine Talisman Master of the Second Floor and his own spiritual world.


    If only he could remember these ink characters at the cost of suffering such agony every night, it would at least be a constion. Nevertheless, what¡¯s truly frustrating and disappointing is that, while these ink characters yed and teased freely in his mind, it was like he was suddenly dyslexic and was utterly unable of making out the meaning or even vaguely recognize any of them despite their rity...they looked so familiar and yet there was no way he could bring himself to pronounce them.


    Every day, he put himself through great pain and suffering in the old library. Every night, he underwent dizziness and nausea at the Old Brush Pen Shop, attempting to recognize characters that were simply unrecognizable. This went on not for one day, but many days. Anyone with slightly weaker will power would have given up already, but not Ning Que. For him, this unbearable and inhuman torture represented the best chance he could ever get in the sixteen years of his life. He would definitely not give up hope until the veryst moment.


    It was said that your enemy would often be the one who knows you the best. This was not a bad notion. Ning Que was indeed one of those people who knew the most about General Xiahou. But this notion is also iplete, because after all, you would always know yourself the best. Ning Que knew himself very well, and therefore he was sure that he would never, ever give up until he came to face the ultimate dead end.


    He wasn¡¯t worried about his safety, as the female professor sat quietly by the east window. He knew that he would continue to climb up to the library and try to read so hard that he would throw up every day until he became weaker over the uing period. That was exactly why he urgently needed to cross out as many names from the list as possible.


    The second name on the oilpaper was: Chen Zixian, former deputy general of the Xuanwei General.


    ...


    ...


    As the favorite princess of the emperor, Lee Yu lived in the imperial court most of the time, though she also had a residence of her own in Chang¡¯an. Her residence that was located in a quiet area of the Southern City was where Ning Que and Sangsang were taken to the next day.


    Today she wore a red and ck short robe over a skirt decorated withrge exotic flower embroidery and a blouse with folded cor. The thicklyyered skirt panels reached over her feet, looking luxurious and elegant.


    "Where is Ning Que?"


    Sangsang walked into the back court of the residence on her own.


    Li Yu frowned slightly but as soon as she nced at the little handmaiden brought in by the eunuch, she smiled and went up to Sangsang and held her cold little hands, speaking to her gently, "It¡¯s been a while since Ist saw you, howe you wouldn¡¯t evene to visit me?"


    Even though the Princess changed the subject, the eunuch dared not avoid her question and showing a grimace on his face he replied, "The little brat said it would dishonor Your Highness to be seen together in private and insisted in waiting outside. Mr. Peng is now talking with him in the duty room.


    Sangsang let her hold her hand and exined softly, "My young master hasn¡¯t been feeling too welltely."


    Lee Yu looked down slightly to hide the faint sense of disappointment and anger in her eyes, and she no longer spared any attention to thezyd. Instead, she held Sangsang¡¯s hands and walked towards the couch and said mockingly, "I just don¡¯t understand how yourzy young master can be so stubborn to go up the second floor of the Old Library every day! No wonder he¡¯s not feeling well!"


    "Your Highness, I think my young master is quite extraordinary!" Sangsang defended Ning Que wholeheartedly.


    Li Yu shook her head andughed lightly as she tapped Sangsang¡¯s dark forehead jokingly, then she said, "All you ever talk about is your young master, but he doesn¡¯t even act like a proper young master. It makes me so jealous that Ning Que could own such a hardworking handmaiden like you, I¡¯m sure he must have been a saint in his past lives to be lucky enough to have found you!"


    The two of them sat down on the couch as they talked.


    It is quite interesting how people from different walks end up crossing their paths in life. Ever since the first time Li Yu met Sangsang in Wei City, she already took a liking to her, and she also felt pity for the way Ning Que bossed her around. On their way back from the grasnd, she often sought her out to speak to her taking advantage of her maidservant cover at the time, and they built a pretty good rapport. On the other hand, having grown up next to Ning Que, Sangsang had a very faint sense of fear or respect for the sses or the nobility, and she was willing to befriend the Princess simply because she thought she was a nice person.


    Lee Yu asked Sansang about their experience upon arriving to Chang¡¯an, and Sangsang was pretty honest and talked about everything that happened including opening the book shop and the examinations. Quietly, Lee Yu was wondering about the rtionship between Ning Que and Chao Xiaoshu, and she suddenly felt the coldness and roughness of Sangsang¡¯s little hands. She looked up at her dark little face and couldn¡¯t help but feel sympathy for the little girl. So she went on to say, "I could release you from your servitude, so that you no longer need to stay with Ning Que. You¡¯re wee toe to my residence and work as a steward, and I don¡¯t need you to serve anyone, all that you¡¯d need to do is to manage the affairs of my residence. What do you say?"


    ...


    ...


    Outside the bodyguard duty room at the front court of the Princess residence, Peng Yutao frowned upon seeing the paled resting on the armchair. He said, "I still remember your bravery back at the Northern Mountain Road, and now, how did you manage to make yourself look so pale and weak? What happened to you? Did studying at The Academy turn you into a wimp?"


    Ning Que smiled as he enjoyed the warmth of the sun and said, "Mr. Peng, you must have seen what happened the other day at the Old Library. It was all very mysterious and there is no need to say further at this point. Now, what happened to the grasnd barbarians? And what are you doing serving the Princess Residence after all the merit you and your fellow bodyguards have achieved?"


    The Grasnd barbarians brought back by the Princess were recruited by His Majesty and joined the Yulin Royal Guards. As you know, it is customary of the Yulin guards to recruit other ethnic minorities, and as of us..." Peng Yutao smiled back and said, "We have fought for Her Highness all the way back from the grasnds, and we don¡¯t really want to leave her side. This is also what the court wants, so even though I am still serving as Deputy Commander at the Valiant Cavalry Battalion, my main task is to serve Her Highness."


    Deputy Commander of the Valiant Cavalry Battalion is a genuinely essential position, so Ning Que didn¡¯t hesitate to congratte him. Then he suddenly remembered the battle the other night at Spring Breeze Pavilion and realized that the position probably became vacant with the demise of someone that very night.


    Even though there was an implicit consensus about Peng Yutao serving Lee Yu the Princess, he still held the official title of deputymander of the Valiant Cavalry Battalion, and he had been particrly busytely due to the regr internal power-shift within his battalion recently. He spared himself a brief moment to speak to Ning Que before having to excuse himself to leave and handle other matters of great importance.


    A number of bodyguards and barbarians who served the princess were recruited by the Yulin Royal Guards, while others returned to the imperial court. Most of the bodyguards who are currently in service at the Princess Residence didn¡¯t know Ning Que, but as they saw how this youngd was treated with courtesy by their deputymander, and knowing that he was especially summoned by Her Highness, they all showed him the due respect.


    Ning Que knew exactly the source of such courtesy from the respectable deputymander: he had saved everyone at the Northern Mountain Road. The Tangs show great respect and appreciation for a hero, and they had also established a good rapport during the journey as they fought shoulder by shoulder. Most importantly too, perhaps Peng Yutao already sensed the Princess¡¯ intention to recruit Ning Que once again.


    That was also precisely why Ning Que refused to go to the back court of the Princess Residence. All that he cared about was vengeance and the Academy, and he dared not get himself involved in the battles and conflicts of the upper sses. Moreover, based on the most frightening possibility that he kept deep down as a secret, he subconsciously tried to stay away from Her Highness as much as possible.


    After fighting alongside Chao Xiaoshu on that rainy night, he was now part of the game regardless of his own will. Nevertheless, he knew very clearly that he was still insignificant as he had always been. He might be entitled to fight alongside Chao Xiaoshu for the imperial court in the dark night, but if he dared emerge from the darkness to bright daylight and confront the truly powerful ones, chances were he¡¯d disappear from the face of earth without making a noise.


    Just like the general¡¯s residence that was ughtered years go, or like Zhuo Er who breathed hisst breath by the wall not long ago.

 Chapter 91: A Fairy Tale Named The Little Prince

    Chapter 91: A Fairy Tale Named The Little Prince


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Thinking about the things that he could not fully understand through his intelligence or experiences, Ning Que slowly closed his eyes in the sun. He began to reconstruct Zhuo Er¡¯s intensely ck face in his chaotic mind to strengthen his confidence in sorting out his own random and frustrated mind. The bright spring sunlight that was shining on the rock formations in the vestibule of the princess¡¯s pce, on the bamboo chair, and on his body, was neither too bright nor too warm. It gradually removed the spring chill that had umted in the old library.


    "Are you basking in the sun? But... my mom won¡¯t let me do that."


    A crisp voice was gently heard from behind his chair. Ning Que opened his eyes to look back and saw a little boy¡¯s face popping out from the rock formations. There were two blushes that were red as an apple on his slightly ck and healthy face, on which his long eyshes were really beautiful and his expression seemed a bit timid.


    Ning Que looked at this little ck face, somehow remembering Zhuo Er, and a kind of bitterness surged in his heart. He stood up from the chair to bow slightly toward the little boy, whom he had not seen for a while, and said, "Hello, Little Prince."


    The timid little boy was Xiaoman, the stepchild that Princess Lee Yu had brought back with her from the grasnd. Ning Que had a lot of contact with the little boy along the way from the City of Wei to Chang¡¯an, especially after the bloody battle on Northern Mountain Road.


    "Why doesn¡¯t Her Highness let you, my Little Prince, stay in the sun?" he asked with a smile.


    "Mother said it would be easy to get tan." Xiaoman looked at Ning Que seriously and exined, "I¡¯m the son of my mother, the grandson recognized by His Majesty, and the proudest noble of the Tang Empire. Therefore, I can be ck, but not too ck."


    Ning Que could not help scratching his head upon hearing the little boy¡¯s answer. He could imagine the difficulty that the boy from the grasnds had in adapting aftering to the rich and prosperous city of Chang¡¯an, but he never thought that Her Highness¡¯ education and care for the little boy was so rigorous. He smiled and exined, "It isn¡¯t too bad to bask in the sun asionally."


    The little boy looked around the quiet vestibule and found that the instructor pce nannies and imperial maids did not know that he had snuck in here. Then, his face lit up with pleasure, and he jumped over to the bamboo chair to tug on the sleeves of Ning Que. He gave Ning Que a certain wistful nce, raising his little face, and asked, "Can you tell me a story?"


    Ning Que was shocked and did not expect that the little boy still recognized him and even remembered those fairy tales by the bonfire. Looking at his anxious eyes and the quiet vestibule, thinking that he had nothing else to do except for basking in the sun, he sat back against the bamboo chair and beckoned the little boy to sit beside him, and said, "I can¡¯t tell stories. Those that I toldst time should be called fairy tales."


    Xiaoman curiously asked, "What¡¯s the difference between a fairy tale and a story?"


    "A story is veryplicated, while a fairy tale is very simple and happy," replied Ning Que.


    "I want to listen to fairy tales," Xiaoman said while heughed happily.


    Ning Que thought of the past images and could not help smiling. He said, "That¡¯s precisely what I am good at."


    Xiaoman moved closer, and concentrated on listening.


    Ning Que thought for a second, and said to him, "You are the Little Prince from the grasnd. So, I will tell you a fairy tale about a Little Prince, okay?"


    Xiaoman said cheerfully, "Well, okay."


    Ning Quey on the bamboo chair, watching the sky. "There are pythons in the forest, whose heads are really big. They swallow their prey directly into their stomachs without chewing after they hunt, and will sleep for six full months to digest the food in their stomachs."


    Xiaoman opened his big eyes, and said in fright, "It¡¯s so terrible. Didn¡¯t you say that all fairy tales are happy?"


    Ning Que gave him a stare, thinking the little boy did not behave as well as Sangsang had back then, and said, "Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯s just the beginning... When I heard this tale, I was more interested in the things in the forest, so I drew a picture ording to my own imagination. In the picture was a big python swallowing a big beast. I took this picture to other adults and asked if they were afraid. They all said, ¡¯Why should a hat scare you?¡¯"


    "I understand. You drew the python as the edge of the hat and the big beast as the center. Wasn¡¯t your picture good?" Xiaoman was excited, pping his hands.


    "I didn¡¯t draw a hat, but a python swallowing a beast. Those adults didn¡¯t understand just like you don¡¯t. I had just simply drawn the stomach of the python." Ning Que was speechless for a moment but continued.


    Xiaoman looked at him puzzled, and asked, "Isn¡¯t the fairy tale about the Little Prince? Where is the Little Prince?"


    "Coming out soon," Ning Que exined, "He wille out in a minute."


    ...


    ...


    Not too long after, those pce instructor nannies and imperial maids finally arrived at the vestibule here while the princess had just ended reminiscing with Sangsang. Ning Que took the handmaiden¡¯s hand, fleeing away at the fastest speed under suspicious and disgruntled eyes, to finish their visit in the princess¡¯s pce.


    Walking in the quiet street of Southern City, Sangsang was pped constantly on the thigh by the big ck umbre that was tightly wrapped with a coarse cloth. The master and the maid walked silently along the way, and Sangsang suddenly said mindlessly, "The princess is a good person."


    Ning Que looked up at the sky, which was separated by the in trees above the street, and seeing the gloomy clouds, he said, "It¡¯s going to rain."


    This was what people would call a conversation with no heads or tails. Sangsang wanted to say something, while Ning Que did not. Therefore, as the former blurted out a sentence with no head or tail, thetter looked up the sky to say that rain would be falling.


    "Young master, why don¡¯t you like her?" Sangsang stopped and looked up at him.


    Ning Que thought that it was necessary to let the little handmaiden know his honest thoughts. He hesitated for a moment and said, "I don¡¯t think she¡¯s a good person in the traditional sense, though she is really good to you."


    Sangsang did not know why he was being so stubborn on this issue, and she asked seriously, "If Her Highness isn¡¯t a nice person, then why did she go to the grasnd and why is she so good to Xiaoman?"


    Ning Que looked at her quietly and suddenly said, "If she is a good person, then why did she go to the grasnd and why is she so good to Xiaoman? I don¡¯t think all the stepmothers in the world are bad people, but I have also never seen a stepmother who regards Xiaoman¡¯s life to be more important than her own."


    Asking the same question, Sangsang seemed to prove that Her Highness was a good person, while Ning Que used it to prove the opposite. She was wondering what he wanted to say, looking at him in confusion.


    At the moment, a light rain began to drift from the sky over the city of Chang¡¯an in thete spring. Ning Que took the big ck umbre from her back and opened it. Continuing moving forward, he then said, "When things are abnormal, they¡¯re often evil. His Highness¡¯ stepmother is so young, is her maternal nature suddenly flourishing? It seems that it¡¯s too soon for that. I think this is empathy. She was transferring her love for Chanyu to the boy... In this case, how sorry she feels for Chanyu, who rests in the grasnd.


    "Only military forces in borders like ours know what a great master Chanyu was. So, how was such a superior man murdered and usurped unexpectedly by his idiot younger brother?"


    "Young master, what on earth do you want to say?"


    "What I want to say is that Her Highness will feel regret all of her life because Chanyu was the one who really loved her, the only one who dared to love her sincerely."


    "I don¡¯t understand."


    "Nevermind."


    Sangsang kept silent for a long time, and suddenly spoke, "Do you think the princess is the one who killed Chanyu?"


    "It seems that your general foolishness in life is an excuse forziness," Ning Que answered indirectly.


    Sangsang lowered her head, walking under the ck umbre with her little fist slightly clenching, and asked, "What¡¯s the evidence?"


    "There are lots of things in this world that don¡¯t need evidence."


    Ning Que watched the light drizzle outside the umbre, and said, "She could not only resolve the attacks from some viins in the Empire but also gain the mercy from His Majesty by showing weakness in the battle with Her Majesty. What¡¯s more, she could win the respect of the citizens of the Tang Empire and even develop her own strengths in the grasnd. Yet, it was impossible for her to stay in the grasnd forever, since His Majesty is getting older and the person seeding the throne needs to be confirmed as soon as possible. There¡¯s only one way toe back as a woman deeply loved by Chanyu."


    Sangsang whispered, lowering her head, "But Her Highness was only 12 or 13 years old when she decided to leave for the grasnd."


    "I¡¯d already begun to kill people in the Horse Gang at the age of 12 or 13. A person¡¯s ability is not necessarily proportional to his age." Ning Que held the big ck umbre and gradually sped up, and then said, shaking his head, "What I said is only a reason why Her Highness might do that and get benefits. But in my opinion, the best proof of the matter is the words that I said earlier.


    "We all know how great Chanyu was, though he died young. Such a great man is hard to kill... unless the murderer is the one whom he trusted the most."


    Sangsang bowed her head with her lips curled, and then softly muttered, "Anyway, this is just your guess, young master."


    "I, too, wish that the spection is wrong and that this world is full of fairy tales in which the prince and the princess finally live happily ever after. But you see... the prince in the grasnd died, and the princess came back home," replied Ning Que.


    Sangsang looked up and a drop of rain fell off from her dark ck cheeks. She looked at him angrily and asked, "Young master, why is the world so dark in your eyes?"


    Ning Que stopped and watched her wordlessly. A good whileter he said in a cold voice, "Because the world that I¡¯ve seen is so dark since the time that I survived and picked you up from the dead bodies by the roadside."


    With these words, he also felt that he was not on his best behavior. He walked angrily toward the street. He was wondering if the shadow cast on his spirit by the old library of the Academy or the impending murder had made the rain outside the big ck umbre seem not that fresh, but a bit dull.


    Sangsang stood in the rain watching his back, and suddenly hurried to catch up to him with the big ck umbre. She then reached her hand to grab his sleeve hanging down from his right hand, and never let it go.


    Under the big ck umbre, a conversation was heard between the master and the maid from time to time.


    "I thought you might call Her Highness an idiot."


    "You should feel all kinds of things except for emotion, since in the end, it will hurt others and yourself. In this case, she really is an idiot."


    "Then why didn¡¯t you curse her like that before?"


    "In the future, I will use these curse words even less, because one who lets idiots work them up emotionally... is really a poor man."

 Chapter 92: Killing in the Woodshed of the Smithy

    Chapter 92: Killing in the Woodshed of the Smithy


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The big ck umbre was like a ck lotus, slowly flowing in the rain in the city of Chang¡¯an.


    Sangsang did not know when she had let go of his sleeve. Raising her face and furrowing her brows, she asked, "Young master, what did you say to Xiaoman before in the Princess¡¯s Mansion? Those pce nannies and imperial maids looked blue in the face."


    Ning Que looked at the little girl, who pretended to be calm, and could not help thinking of the recurring moments during those years on Min Mountain. He had carried her from one peak to another, and from one cottage to another, while he was very busy exploring the way and telling fairy tales to lull the little girl in the basket on his back. Now, he could not help rubbing her head with a smile, and said, "Telling fairy tales... You know that¡¯s what I¡¯m good at."


    "Which one, Cindere or The Three Little Pigs ?" asked Sangsang with curiosity.


    "The Little Prince."


    Sangsang asked seriously with a frown, " The Little Prince? Could he understand it?"


    Ning Que felt stunned, considering that it actually was a question.


    The master and servant were chatting all the way as they headed north in the drizzle ofte spring. They crossed the Tongxiao Fang, then back to Eastern City. They bypassed the entrance of the street and walked deeper into Eastern City rather than go to Lin 47th Street. The Old Brush Pen Shop was closed today. No one knew when Sangsang had quietly brought out a podao wrapped tightly in cloth. Traces of rain could be slightly seen on her shoulders.


    The rain gradually became heavy. Pedestrians in the street of Eastern City were forced to return to their homes or workshops. Ning Que and Sangsang stopped in front of a remote slum. They stood under the eaves of the deste and worn-out Haotian God Temple with the big ck umbre, looking into thene and listening silently to the soundsing out from the smithy in the rain.


    Sangsang said in a low voice, "In a little while, the smithy will be closed and the young masters will be busy arranging today¡¯s orders, and Chen Zixian will go rest in the backyard. I heard that he rarely strokes the hammer in recent years. And then, he¡¯ll be the only person left in the courtyard. So, it¡¯s rtively convenient for us due to the rain today."


    Ning Que looked up at the leaden clouds and the dim light in the sky, silently calcting the time. After guessing that it was just about time, he passed the big ck umbre to Sangsang and asked her to wait there. He then took out a bamboo hat from his back to wear and then walked toward the west side of thene. He passed through two streets in the increasingly heavy rain, getting close to the backyard of the smithy.


    No one would notice the scraping sounds made by tough boots stepping on the wet, uneven stone road. Ning Que watched the rough wooden door that was not far away and slowly stepped forward. He held the podao tighter and tighter in his left hand, recalling in his heart all the information of the second name.


    The names on the oilpaper were of the important figures in the ying massacres of Xuanwei General¡¯s Mansion and the vige of the Yan territory. This information was found by Zhuo Er and was exchanged for his sweat and his life during the time that he was a spy in the Military Ministry under themand of Xia Hou.


    Chen Zixian, 47 years old and the vice-general under themander of the former Xuanwei General, had been praised by the imperial court when he first used Lin Guangyuan, the Xuanwei General, of treason. Yet, he was stripped of his aplishments and was forced out of the military due to his disputes in the 4th year of the Tianqi era. After that, his family fell on hard times. His wife left him and brought his two little sons back to her hometown. Yet, he stayed in the city of Chang¡¯an to be a destitute master in a smithy in a slum of Eastern City.


    Most of the names on that oilpaper list were not doing well after those two incidents except for two or three senior officials, who still enjoyed prominent positions and high sries. The censor who had died by his hand had been down in the dumps everyday, while some of them lived in mortal fear. Chen Zixian, who was behind the door of the courtyard, lived a dog¡¯s life.


    Ning Que did not know why. In ordance with logical reasoning and themon plots of stories, the guys that had persecuted the faithful and honest or betrayed their masters in a conspiracy had to be extremely aggressive and jolly before revenge was taken so the people that were seeking revenge could feel a sense of pleasure and justice. However, things did not always go like that. The people that were determined to get revenge did not seem to live any better than those guys did.


    He had vaguely guessed that it was the work of His Majesty, but he could not confirm that and was unwilling to think deeper about it. The heavy rain today and the call to go to the Princess¡¯s Mansion provided a good opportunity for revenge. No matter how the official would investigate this, no one would, or would even dare to, suspect him. And that was more important than anything else.


    He looked down at the rain dripping from the edge of his hat, slowly moving his feet, stepping closer to that door.


    The surface of the wrecked wooden door was slightly wet and cold when he pressed his fingers against it. He listened carefully to the soundsing from the smithy in front of the courtyard. When he heard the sounds of those heavy hammers tapping iron getting louder and more intense, his left hand, in which the podao was held, rose slowly as his right hand gently pushed the wooden door open.


    The spindle of the old door was moistened by the rain and made a light cry that sounded like a sob. Ning Que, wearing a bamboo hat, walked down the broken stone steps with a knife. He looked at the old man squatting in the courtyard, and asked, "Chen Zixian?"


    The old man wearing a thin old jacket outside the woodshed looked miserable. Some traces could be seen on his shoulder cuffs of years of burning the furnace fire, and several pieces of ck cotton stretched out of the opening of crispy cloth. His gray and white hair was tied together at random, and he was chopping firewood with an axe and a wooden piece in his thick, long, iron-like hands.


    The old man looked up with a sh in his turbid eyes. As Ning Que had pushed open the door, he watched him and his shadow below the bamboo hat. The old man wanted to see his face clearly, and then said after a moment of silence, "Yes, I am."


    Ning Que stopped and looked around the simple courtyard to confirm that all the apprentices were really in the front part of thene and that no one remained in the courtyard. He turned around to close the door and to unfasten thecing of the hat around his neck with his right hand. And then, he held the front handle of the podao firmly and slowly walked toward the old retired officer.


    The bamboo hat fell onto the ground in the rain.


    Chen Zixian slowly blinked his eyes, and let go of the firewood in his left hand. His nails were full of ck mud. After rubbing his left hand on the front of his clothes, he reached for the knife behind his back and raised the axe in his right hand simultaneously. He then said, looking at the paled who hade in from the wind and rain, "You¡¯re finally here."


    Ning Que¡¯s podao wasing.


    The sharp de, sharpened by the rice water in the Old Brush Pen Shop of Lin 47th Street for a few days, was pulled lightning-fast out of the sheath. It easily cut through the old cloth that was tightly wrapped over the sheath, the wind, the rain, and the past, and eventually, Chen Zixian¡¯s neck.


    Chen Zixian lifted his knife and a crisp buzzing was heard from the collision of the two knives while the rain was deflected from the des.


    At this point, a rush of forging sounds could be heard in the front part of thene, covering up all of the sounds of the knives in the courtyard.


    "Zeng, Zeng, Zeng!" Ning Que held his knife with two hands in the heavy rain and walked forward again with an expressionless face to split the neck, cut off the head, and open the stomach of the other man. The podao moved through the wind and the rain to ruthlessly grind and sh with the knife and axe in the old man¡¯s hands.


    "Dang, Dang, Dang!" The apprentices numbly sandwiched the red iron and swung their heavy hammers to strike the iron again and again next to the red stove. They did not hear anything but the raging storm outside of thene.


    The muffled sounds included the noises of hissing, the cutting of robes, the falling of the axe, and the chopping of a wrist. The firewood outside the room scattered everywhere. Just now, Ning Que struck the 17th de as Chen Zixian had blocked the first 16 of them.


    And then the sounds of the knives disappeared¡ªonly the noises of the wind, the rain, and chopping board were heard.


    ...


    ...


    Chen Zixian fell off to the side of the firewood, with his body full of sludge stains. A few drops of blood appeared on his darkish old face and the countless cuts in the thin jacket over his stomach while the gray cotton scattered around. The middle cut, the deepest one that reached his bones and organs, kept bleeding and body fluids of different colors flowed out.


    The rain was dripping down from the roof to the firewood, to his gray hair, and to the distressed wrinkles on his forehead and then flowed onto his dark cheeks, quickly washing away the drops of blood.


    Ning Que lowered his head and slowly put the knife away. He could not help but frown looking at the sharp rising and falling of his chest, and the dangerous axe mark on it. He never thought that an ordinary deputy general of the Tang Empire from long ago still had such toughbat ability after so many years of torment and hardship in the bottom of the market.


    Chen Zixian powerlessly looked at thed in front of him with cloudy eyes. He seemed to have a lot of sputum in his throat. He gurgled painfully, and two mouthfuls of bloody sputum were coughed out. He said weakly, "I thought that I had long been forgotten by this world."


    "You are indeed one of the strongest amongst those who have been forgotten. No one in the imperial court dared to hire you probably because you betrayed your master for the sake of glory. I don¡¯t know if you have ever regretted that in all these years."


    Ning Que wiped the cold rain away from his face, looking at the dying old man. "It won¡¯t cause too much trouble if I want to kill you since you¡¯ve been forgotten by the world. Besides, I¡¯ve been admitted into the Academy, so killing you is regarded as an indispensable part of the celebration, just like flowers and pigeons."


    Chen Zixian¡¯s old weak eyes were filled with bewilderment, and he whispered, "Please give me a quick finish."


    "It¡¯s still early, and your poor apprentices need more time to finish the orders today."


    Ning Que took a nce at the sky where the clouds hung over the curtains of rain and where the sun was missing. However, he knew he still had a lot of time. He said in a low voice, "It¡¯s for my enjoyment. You¡¯ve made me miserable during these years, so you shouldn¡¯t expect to die soon."


    "I have a poem to read to you," he said calmly, looking expressionless at the old man among the firewood. "Ie from the mountains and rivers. Ie from the Yan territory of the grasnd. Ie from the General¡¯s Mansion. Ie to take your life."


    Upon hearing the words General¡¯s Mansion, Chen Zixian¡¯s turbid eyes suddenly became bright and his face gradually became relieved as his trembling hands subconsciously gesticted in the wet firewood. He said with a trembling voice, staring at Ning Que¡¯s childish face, "So, that¡¯s how matters stand. So... the general¡¯s son is still alive. You... you said... you¡¯ve been admitted to the Academy. That¡¯s really good... really good. I¡¯ve lived such a tired life these years... To know before my death that the son of the general is still alive... and lives a good life... I can really rest in peace."


    "Who is not tired of living?" Ning Que looked down on the hollows, which were made by the impact of the rain upon the ground, and whispered, "I had to learn calligraphy, Mathematical Olympiad, piano, and drawing. And I had to run around on the backseat of mother¡¯s bike every weekend and finally get more familiar with the children¡¯s pce than my own home. Am I not tired?"


    Chen Zixian did not understand this dialogue. He clutched his bleeding cut, shaking his head painfully.

 Chapter 93: Blood for Blood

    Chapter 93: Blood for Blood


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que lifted his head, staring at his expressionless face and said, "There¡¯s still some pros despite of all the hard work. Those who¡¯ve learned Olympic Mathematics would have no problem with such examination questions, to the extent that they would feel that these are foolish questions. No matter what, they would be smarter than me, even if I¡¯ve worked hard for my whole life."


    "For no reason, I¡¯vee to such an awful ce and lived in the General¡¯s Mansion for several years. Just because of people like you, not only that my good days were gone, everyone that I knew was dead. My father and my mother were dead. I was only four that year, yet I¡¯ve to start thinking on annoying questions about my life and death. How can I not be tired?"


    It was the first time he held onto a chopper when he was four, and that year, he killed the first person in his life. When he saw the dark bloodwater flowing from the des of the chopper to between his fingers as they gradually thickened and solidified, he realized that chocte hotpot was actually a disgusting food. After the killing, he tried washing his hands several times, but the smell of the blood and the rusty smell of the chopper seemed to linger on his hands. These smells had been following him for the past twelve years.


    He held his right hand under the rain and allowed the rainwater to wash his hand, yet he felt that he could never wash away the thickened blood between his fingers. With his pale-looking face, he said, "Before that, I¡¯ve never killed anyone, but now I find it easier to kill people than doing examination questions. I am not married, yet I need to drag along a kid to travel with me thousand miles across Min Mountain. Everytime I met up with someone, I kept worrying that he had the intention to kill me and snatch away the kid to marry as wife. Do you think I am not tired?"


    "You are the one that caused me to feel so tired. Hence, I need to kill all of you in order to feel more rxed. It¡¯s only when the blood in all of your bodies flow out can I feel my hands clean. You may take this as a cold-blooded revenge, but sometimes, I felt that it is necessary for me to clean my hands."


    Ning Que stared at the dying old man and said, "I am going to use your blood, for the washing of the blood on my hands."


    After which, he squatted down and picked up the chopper that was beside the old man. He looked at the old man and added, "As to whether you can die in peace, you can ask the people you¡¯ve killed at the General¡¯s Mansion when you reached the Underworld. However, I believed a useless man like you, who wasted your whole life singing one¡¯s own praises about loyalty and thought that going through hardships is a way to pay for your evil deeds, will never be able to die in peace."


    He then whispered into the old man¡¯s ear, before he raised his chopper and shed it across the old man¡¯s neck like an experienced wood cutter. The old man¡¯s neck was chopped off. He then stood up and picked up the bamboo rain hat from the courtyard, which was already filled with rainwater. He put on the hat, pushed open the door of the courtyard and walked out.


    The rain in the courtyard was still falling, and the pounding sound from the steelwork was still heard. However, there was no one outside the woodshed chopping the pile of wood, and the chopper was stuck on the old man¡¯s neck.


    The former Xuanwei Vice-General, Chen Zixian, was now the miserable cksmith at the Eastern City of Chang¡¯an. He stared into the sky and looked at the falling of rain from the sky. The cold expression in his eyes was suddenly darkened. Regardless, he could not shut his eyes as he allowed the rain droplets to fall into his eyes, and to wash away all the blood that remained.


    ...


    ...


    Under the big ck umbre outside the Poor peoplene, Sangsang silently stared into thene. From the beginning till now, she did not change her posture. With a pair of tiny and torn shoes, she stood at the same spot waiting. The rain got heavier as it drenched her hair and her left shoulders, but she did not move an inch. Neither did she retreated herself to hide under shelter.


    There was no one in thene, but footsteps could be heard. She turned around and saw Ning Que walking out from the west side of ane, wearing a bamboo rain hat on his head. Under the shade of the hat, his face was very pale. She hurriedly rushed over with the umbre to shelter him and before anyone noticed, they rapidly left the area.


    The second name on the oilpaper, Chen Zixian, was finally struck off today. He was one of the direct murderers for the massacre in the General¡¯s Mansion. However, Ning Que did not appear too good as they returned to their Old Brush Pen Shop on Lin 47th Street. After wiping off the rainwater on his face, he went to bed directly without washing his feet.


    For the past few days, he had been going through a lot of hardships in the old library. Regardless of his mental or physical energy, both had already reached their limits. Moreover, he needed to kill the person under the rain today, which drained his mental energy even further. Thus, when he was finally able to rx and after catching a slight cold from the spring rain, he could not help but copsed onto the bed like a sack.


    He could feel no warmth from his slightly cold body even though Sangsang had already covered him with twoyers of nkets. He stared nkly at the ceiling, which was glued with many papers, as he murmured, "Do you know why I must enter the Academy? Do you know why I have risked my life just to stay in the old library? Do you know why I have tried so hard just to step into that world?"


    Sangsang squatted at the door and was busily boiling ginger soup for him, hence she did not bother much about his murmurs, which urred every one and a half year. Neither did she have the time to answer all his pointless questions.


    Ning Que turned over with difficulty and watched the tiny figure that squatted at the door. He kept quiet for a long while before he smiled gently and said, "These questions are indeed foolish. Of course, you know the reasons...but others do not know. To say that my reason for all these actions is because I like it would be the weakest reason ever. Killing a censor and an old cksmith are already very exhausting for me. If I am who I am right now, the strong me equipped with three des... how am I capable of killing Xia Hou and the Prince?"


    "Xia Hou is too strong." He turned his head back and stared at the yellow papers that were glued to the ceiling again. He murmured, "How can I kill someone who is at the peak state of Martial Arts? If I never pursue cultivation, I can never kill him."


    "The princess had said before. If Young Master still insisted on going to the old library to torture yourself, your body will be unable to take it." Sangsang took the bowl of boiled ginger soup and sat by the bed as she used all her might to lift Ning Que up, before she added in a soft voice, "Before you can even pursue cultivation, I believe you will be dead before Xia Hou by then."


    Ning Que took over the bowl of ginger soup and ced it by his lips weakly, before he drank it mouth by mouth. Meanwhile, he paused in the midst of drinking and replied softly, "The hope is not high, but at least it¡¯s better than no hope. I gonna try no matter what."


    Sangsang looked at him quietly and suddenly, she asked, "Young Master, have you ever think that what if Haotian really make it impossible for you to pursue cultivation? What would you do?"


    Ning Que returned the empty bowl to her as he weakly wiped the perspiration on his forehead and smiled gently. He then replied her in a very slow and calm manner, "If Haotian is really that heartless...keke. F*ck it, I must go against Heaven¡¯s will!"


    Does f*ck mean spurting nonsense? Sangsang silently wondered as she started thinking that her master¡¯s bad habit of spurting nonsense must be back again during his rest. She showed him attitude as sheid him down before she went on with her dish washing, and she totally ignored him after that.


    In the middle of the night, Ning Que started to murmur more nonsensical words. He was having fever, and his pale-looking face had unhealthy patches of red. At times, he would peer open his eyes and stared at either the yellow papers on the ceiling or Sangsang¡¯s tiny face when he was responding to her. However, his eyes did not seem focus as he would move his dry and chipped lips to murmur some words which no one could understand.


    Back seat of bicycle, registration fee, youth¡¯s and children¡¯s pce, chopper, chocte, blood. Kid, blood. Min Mountain, blood. City of Wei, blood. Grasnd, blood. General¡¯s Mansion, f*cking filled with blood.


    "Why should it happen? Why should it even happen?... why?"


    He grabbed Sangsang¡¯s small freezing hands and his visionnded on god-knows-where. He frowned and closed his lips gently, where his dimples revealed a sorrow-looking question mark and his face was filled with grievance. He kept repeating his words and appeared pitiful.


    Sangsang changed the towel on his forehead and hugged him in her arms. She then gently patted his back and softly coaxed him, "Yes, it¡¯s all their fault. Young Master has nothing got to do with these, nothing at all. They are the bad people."


    In the morning, the rain in Chang¡¯an city had finally stopped. Ning Que had also recovered from his fever. He opened his eyes in a daze and he felt a painful burning sensation at his throat. Just as he was about to habitually called for Sangsang to pour him a drink, he noticed there was someone beside him. With much difficulty, he turned his head to take a nce, only to see Sangsang in her pajamas, who was half sitting by the bed. It was unsure when she had fallen deep asleep in that position.


    He looked apologetic at her as he tried to push himself up and off the bed to pour himself a drink. Unfortunately, his movements had caused Sangsang to wake up from her sleep. Sangsang instantly sat up and hurriedly push him back to bed before she jumped off the bed herself.


    Ning Que stared at her backview as she started to busy herself with the housework. He then opened his mouth andmented, "I am useless, aren¡¯t I?"


    Sangsang ced the cup of water by her lips to test the temperature of the water, before she responded, "Young Master, you are spurting nonsense again."


    Ning Que murmured, "I¡¯ve read Article on the Response of the Tao for many years, yet I couldn¡¯t understand it. I couldn¡¯t even remember the words in a thin book like the fundamental of Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow. I¡¯ve tried so hard, yet I still couldn¡¯t pursue cultivation. Now, I am even in a state whereby I grumble and fall sick over killing a person... I am useless indeed."


    ...


    ...


    In the morning, behind the thick tall walls and within the imperial study room surrounded by unique ntations, the Emperor Li Zhongyi stood by the door and stared nkly at the raindrops that dripped from the leaves of the nearby tree. After the Empress had served him in washing up and had breakfast, for no reason, he suddenly felt an urge to visit the imperial study room.


    Using the eyes¡¯ of amoner, someone who is the Tang Emperor and the only male leader that was trusted by the whole empire, should not have many troubles in his life. Yet at this moment when he silently stared into the garden, his face had obviously revealed a sense of frustration.


    "The Headmaster of Academy went traveling around the world again, and it is unsure when he will return. As for Chao Xiaoshu, he left as well. It is unsure...whether he will return."


    Li Zhongyi felt depressed as he thought of the departure of his great master and friend from Chang¡¯an. He looked at the ntations that were drenched from the rain, and gradually, he felt a sense of loneliness from within. It was a feeling of emptiness and depression. Perhaps this was also the reason for him to visit the imperial study, for that was the only room where no one could disturb him and a room where he could obtain real peace.


    The Emperor loved calligraphy. Though at times he would invite the officers toe forward to appreciate his calligraphy and art works, but other than his favorite Empress and the Fourth princess, no one dared toe and disturb his peace. He did not even allow the eunuchs and imperial maids to tidy the room. Every writing and book was ced and arranged by himself.


    With a long breath and a short sigh, he turned around. Just as he was preparing to scribble a few words on the papers to vent out his emotions, he paused and noticed a slight difference at the bookshelves diagonally from him.


    ...

 Chapter 94: Who Else has Entered the Emperors Imperial Study Room?

    Chapter 94: Who Else has Entered the Emperor¡¯s Imperial Study Room?


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The Emperor slowly walked towards the bookshelves and bent over as he slid his sleek finger over the neatly arranged books. He then paused at the deepest part of the books¡ªthe ce where stone tabs and precious old books founded at the beginning of the Empire were ced. He remembered it very clearly that thest time he arranged the books, they were ced slightly ted from left to right. Yet now, the books were ced in the opposite direction. Perhaps, someone has touched the bookshelves?


    He raised his eyebrows slightly and knocked the edge of the books with his finger gently. Suddenly, he hardened his finger joint and pushed the books in another direction, revealing a piece of paper that was hidden deep between the books.


    The Emperor took out the piece of paper and took a look at the inked writings on it. He frowned furiously, as his eyes fixed on the words for a long time. Suddenly, he eximed angrily and asked, "Who else have entered the imperial study room?"


    A momentter, three eunuchs were down on their knees within the imperial study room. They could not help but lifted their heads and looked at the bodyguardmander, who was slightly plump and was standing beside the study desk, with pitiful eyes. The bodyguards around the imperial study room area were all under themand of Xu Chongshan. Since the three eunuchs were not sure why his Majesty was angry, they could only put their hopes all on him.


    Xu Chongshan carefully stepped forward and closer to the Emperor, as he gently asked, "Your Majesty, I am here to guarantee that no one has ever entered this imperial study room without any permission."


    The Emperor Li Zhongyi was usually big-hearted and fair in administrating the country. The guards that followed him in and out every day knew his temper well, and had never felt fearful or threatened when they were serving him by his side. However, when the matter was about the imperial study room, even Xu Chongshan dared not be careless about it.


    The Emperor mmed his hand on the study desk and stared at the writings on the paper coldly. He then asked sternly, "If no one had entered my imperial study room, where did this writingse from? Are you telling me that they are written by spirits from the underworld?"


    He slightly frowned. The words on the paper seemed to be piercing into his heart and the more he stared at them, the more frustrated he was. He then paused and said, "Someone must have entered here this month, you better do your job and investigate it!"


    Xu Chongshan bowed with great respect as he took a peep at the inked writings on the paper. Just as he was about to turn around and leave, he suddenly thought of the braved that came in the beginning of the month. He felt a piercing st in his mind as his body froze on the spot ¡ª¡ª everyone in this pce abided to the rules and no one would dare to enter the imperial study room without permission. He thought of all possibilities and the only person who had the chance to get close to the imperial study room, or even to enter the room, was only that young fellow!


    "What happened? Did you recall something?" The Emperor questioned him as he stared coldly at the side of his face.


    Xu Chongshan smiled gently and replied, "I was wondering, could it be one of schrs from the pce who had wrote the words in the Academy and it was identally brought into the imperial study room? Then again...the words are quite well-written."


    The Emperor furiously red at him and reprimanded, "Am I asking you to appreciate the words now? Do you not think I know that the words are well-written? What I want is you to investigate who is the person that bold enough to enter my imperial study room and used my brush and ink to write these words!"


    Xu Chongshan gave an embarrassed smile and immediately left the imperial study room. After he had closed the doors of the room, he gradually straightened his body. As he walked out of the garden, he realized that his back was soaked with his cold sweat.


    After a while, the imperial pce bodyguard Deputy Commander appeared at a deserted dark and freezing corner under the shelter. He red coldly at the young eunuch, whose face was already as white as paper, and said angrily, "You are under my secret guard squad. I¡¯ve told you to fetch the person to the duty room behind the imperial study room. Why did you leave him outside the imperial study room and left?"


    The young eunuch lifted his head and answered with his shivering voice, "Sir, you have ordered me to keep clear of the areas surrounding the imperial study room. If I were to remain there, it would be obvious. Moreover, I¡¯ve never thought that Ning youngd would be that bold to enter the imperial study room despite knowing the ce."


    "What¡¯s the use of saying all these now? That idiot had already got us into trouble!"


    Xu Chongshan red at him furiously and added, "His Majesty wants us to investigate this matter now. Looking at the Emperor¡¯s expression, I am sure that he would punish thatd with more than 10 beatings should he be captured. Hence, you got to remember this: That idiot did not enter the pce, neither did he enter the imperial study room. Got it?"


    The young eunuch cried, "Sir, why don¡¯t we just say it¡¯s him? Even if the Emperor punishes him, we don¡¯t have to worry about him."


    Upon hearing what he said, Xu Chongshan became agitated and said, "D*mbass! That idiot is now my subordinate! What will the Emperor think if he found out that the secret guard squad hired an idiot? Not only will I be aughing stock, what if the Emperor is still angry and decided to punish me? Do you think it¡¯s fair for me?"


    "Thatd is rted to Master Chao. Your Majesty would somewhat be more forgiving..." The young eunuch softly reminded him with fear.


    Xu Chongshan swept his sleeves as he shouted, "Damn, just because of that Chao Xiaoshu, I need to be punished for that idiot?"


    ...


    ...


    While Xu Chongshan and that young eunuch were preparing to suppress this matter, the Emperor Li Zhongyi was in his imperial study room with his eyes fixed on the words on that paper. Suddenly, he walked and unlocked the cupboard beside the bookshelves, where he pulled out a piece of writing from a stack of his own writings that he seldom exhibited to anyone. He then ced the piece of writing beside that paper.


    The first part of the sentence was written by the Emperor on the night of the Spring Breeze Pavilion incident and he was prepared to give it to Chao Xiaoshu as a reward for the hardships he had suffered these years. It was also to encourage him to stay and continue to serve the imperial court. Never did he expect that there was no chance for him to give that piece of writing to Chao Xiaoshu, for Chao Xiaoshu left Chang¡¯an city elegantly after a chat with him.


    "The fish leaping across the current ocean...what¡¯s wrong with this phrase?"


    The Emperor frowned and stared at the two lines of words. He then shifted his attention to the next line as he murmured, "Bloom in the Opposite World? Does this mean that one can never bloom in the current world, but have to leave Chang¡¯an city and my Tang Empire in order to bloom?"


    The Emperor was indeed angry that someone hade into the imperial study room without his permission, and he kept trying not to think about the meaning from these words. Yet when he started to calm down, he could not help but frown at the line "Bloom in the Opposite World". He recalled the day when he argued with Chao Xiaoshu and gradually, he started to understand the hidden meaning of the line.


    "The fish may have leaped the ocean, but ultimately, it is still my ocean. Bloom in the Opposite World is where the real freedom is. I have restrained him for more than ten years, and letting him go now is just a way of showing my gratitude. Isn¡¯t giving others freedom equivalent to giving freedom to myself?"


    The Emperor finally calmed himself and the frown on his forehead disappeared. He recalled the morning when he was feeling upset as he stared at the nts watered by the rain. He missed his close friend who shared the simr personality and characteristic as him, though their ranking difference was wide apart. His friend, perhaps, was currently strolling along the mountain paths while enjoying the scenaries in his turquoise robe. Somewhat, this made him felt as though he had left the Chang¡¯an city with his friend, where he could feel the freedom and happiness in his heart.


    But afterall, he¡¯s the Emperor of Tang Empire. Even though he understood what the sentences meant, he still felt a little mad over the incident as he stared at the words and reprimanded, "Even if you are right, I will still not forgive you! I must know who is the f*ucker who had written these words. How dare he insult me, the Emperor! Who is the idiot who had written these words, and written them...erm...written them so beautifully!"


    Since his temper had somewhat subsided, his views on things were apparently different from before. At this moment, the Emperor started to look at the lines of words seriously. When he first looked at them, he just felt that every stroke of the words was well-written and depicted the calmness in the words. However, when he started to look at them in details, he realized the strokes for the phrase ¡¯Bloom in the Opposite World¡¯ were sleek and bnced. From the writings, one could feel the skill and strength hidden within the writer. It was not vivid, yet it brought out the power and gentleness in the words. What a wonderful piece of art!


    "This...is awesome! The strokes are well-written. The characters are bold with style. They exhibit both beauty and arrogance, where the words seem to be drifting in a witty and masculine manner...who have written these words? These are way better than mine!"


    The Emperor shut his eyes and raised his brows as he ced his slightly shivering fingers floating above the phrase ¡¯Bloom in the Opposite World¡¯. He could not help but felt surprised. He knew his remarks were inadequate to describe how wonderful these words were, for they are so much better than the ones he wrote. These writings were evenparable to the famous calligraphers¡¯ writings that were hanged on the wall, or perhaps, the energy it produced had overtaken them.


    Though the Emperor¡¯s calligraphy skill was not great, his taste was extremely high. Just as how Ning Que was filled with emotions on that day in the imperial study room, as the Emperor looked at the writings, he could somewhat understand the contradicting emotions Ning Que had when he was writing these words. He felt that these words seemed to depict a scene where an obscure and unreachable flower, which was blooming at the opposite shore of the wide blue sea, gently brushed his back from top to bottom, sweeping away all the unpleasant experience he had for the past few days.


    "Marvelous! Great calligraphy indeed!"


    The Emperor instantly felt a sense of relief and happiness from within as he found his inner peace. He smiled gently while looking at those words on the paper, and was generously giving his most honest remarks about it.


    Suddenly, he straightened his face and mmed his hands on the study desk. He then raised his voice and called for his men.


    Few momentster, the same three eunuchs kneeled down in the imperial study room again as they looked pitifully at the bodyguard Deputy Commander Xu Chongshan. Xu Chongshan, who was trying to suppress his anxiety, leaned closer to the Emperor and consulted, "Your Majesty, I am currently arranging bodyguards to investigate on this matter secretly. Just that currently...we have yet to obtain any result."


    As one of the officers who understood the Emperor the most, he knew that the Emperor was not a man who hold grudges. Not to mention a small incident like this, even if an extraordinary ridiculous incident was to happen within the pce, as long as it would not affect the whole empire, the Emperor would soon forget about it. Hence, Xu Chongshan was initially nning to drag this incident on for days and let it be gradually forgotten, but never did he expect the Emperor to act out of normal and was interested in pursuing on this incident.


    The Emperor ignored him as he was totally enchanted by the calligraphy on the study desk. He gently stroked his long beard and ordered, "Help me find out who is the author of this calligraphy, but remember to treat him politely. Hmm, once found, do invite him into the pce. I would like to consult him on some matters."


    "Huh?" Xu Chongshan was taken aback and lifted his head.


    A few momentster, the imperial pce bodyguard Deputy Commander, whose uniform was previously soaked in cold sweat, once again appeared under a deserted dark and cold corner of the pce under a shelter. He embarrassingly looked at the young eunuch and helplessly said, "Yes, this was the situation in the imperial study room. Now, it seems like it¡¯s a blessing in disguise for that idiot."


    The young eunuch heaved a sigh of relief as he patted his chest. He then smiled sweetly and said, "Sir, this is a great opportunity. If our secret guard squad has a great calligrapher who is adored by His Majesty, I believe you will benefit from it as well."


    "No opportunity, no benefits, at least that¡¯s the case now." Xu Chongshan said to his loyal subordinate with a sarcastic smile on his face. He then added, "Just remember this. That idiot, no, that Ning Que never entered the pce at all."


    The young eunuch was shocked upon hearing the words and stared at him. He questioned, "Sir, why?"


    The smile on Xu Chongshan¡¯s face appeared as though he was going to cry, as he exined with his clenching teeth, "Because...we didn¡¯t admit previously, and if we were to admit now, that¡¯s...lying to the Emperor."


    All of a sudden, the young eunuch seemed to understand the logic behind. With a half-sobbing and halfughing face, he clenched his small fist and said helplessly, "See what have we done? Such a great opportunity yet we¡¯ve destroyed it."


    What¡¯s the point of you crying now, Xu Chongshan silently thought to himself. Afterall, he was the one who had caused this great opportunity of winning the Emperor¡¯s heart into an usation for lying to the Emperor, and for that, he should be the one crying!


    With such a thought shing through his mind, he could not help but regret for his actions. If only he had stood out and epted the punishment for Ning Que, he would not be stuck in this dilemma right now. It was like he was in a f*cking situation where he knew the location of the treasure yet he dared not dug them out with a shovel!


    The young eunuch rolled his eyes as he looked at Xu Chongshan and cautiously brought up an idea, "Sir, what if you return and exin to his Majesty that you did not recall about Ning Que until you decided to start investigating?"


    "D*mbass!"


    Xu Chongshan was already in a very bad mood. He painfully scolded, "How can you forget when the Emperor wants to punish, and remember only when the Emperor decided to appraise? Indeed, the Emperor is very generous and kind to us, but that doesn¡¯t mean he¡¯s that stupid! Sure, we can hide some unimportant truths from him at times, but if he knows that his men are treating him as a stupid man, you will finally understand that infront of him, we are the real stupid ones!"


    He forcefully suppressed the anger within him, as he continued with a deep voice, "We can never admit that we lied to the Emperor. If we choose not to admit in the first ce, then we must not admit it for life."


    The young eunuch raised his head, innocently looked at him and said, "But if Ning Que is found, we cannot deny."


    Xu Chongshan kept silent for a moment before he replied, "Time. Only time can help us now. That is also the only logical word said by that idiot. Only time can lighten our offense."


    ...


    ...


    The spring breeze blew across the field, through the flowers and trees, and into the alley. Through the windows of the study room and the cracks on the walls, the breeze entered the rooms and gently brushed across the faces of the students. That warm cozy breeze depicted the great season of spring. Other than faces of weariness, the students from ssroom Three appeared puzzled as well, for one of the desks were still empty.


    By the time the school bell rang for the third time, the students were already leaving the study room to either return to Chang¡¯an city, or to rush to the canteen for the freshly steamed corn, or to drag their feet on the rocky pathway towards the old library.


    Upon reaching the old library, there was still no sight of that fellow. Some had even asked the instructor whether that fellow had secretly gone to the second floor. Everyone was suspicious of his whereabouts. Situ Yn and Jin Wucai could not bear the suspense and started to discuss about it with other students around them. Zhong Dajun frowned his brows as he stood beside the bookshelves and thought deeply. They were all used to seeing that pale-looking fellow going to the old library building every day, but when they did not see him today, they could not help but felt shocked.


    By the window, on the second floor of the old library, a female professor, dressed in a light-colored instructor uniform, gradually ced down her pen on her hand as she raised her head and took a nce at the staircase. She waited for a moment. Realizing that no one was going to climb up to the second floor, she could not help but slightly frowned her brows. Though she had never agreed that he should force himself and risk his life to read the books on the second floor, but after observing him for several days, she had somewhat admired him. Yet when that student failed toe by today, she guessed that he might have given up. Somehow, she felt that it was a pity for him to give up. She was hoping he could persevere on.


    ...

 Chapter 95: The First Doorway Towards That World

    Chapter 95: The First Doorway Towards That World


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The professor¡¯s eyes brightened slightly, and the tenseness in her brows lightened. She looked at the stairwell calmly, only to find that the one arriving was not that student, but another who looked flighty.


    Chu Youxian walked upstairs nervously. He had once fainted upstairs and have heard of the numerous painful experience of his peers. Even someone like Xie Chengyun would vomit blood in the middle of the night after reading it. The various rumors surrounding the book upstairs were as scary as the underworld and it frightened him badly.


    He bowed deeply, looking extremely cowardly as he walked towards the eastern windows and spoke respectfully to the female professor.


    She furrowed her brows slightly and smiled at him in a peaceful manner, "So he¡¯s sick... And he even thought of informing me. That child is really so lovely and polite. Please pass on my word and tell him to rest well and recuperate."


    Xie Chengyun, the third young master of the South Jin Kingdom has given up on studying cultivation upstairs. Now that a certain someone had taken medical leave, the second floor of the old library was even quieter than usual. No one came upstairs for days. The female professor who was used to this peace and quiet in the ce lowered her head and practiced her calligraphy in lower script. Outside, the spring breeze followed the eastern windows to the west while the blossoming trees waved outside the windows.


    But there was someone who was not aware that thed had taken medical leave.


    In the dead of the night, the stars shone into the old library, casting a silver glow on the wooden floors. The carvings on the shelves at the end row glimmered before opening silently. Chen Pipi squeezed through it with great difficulty. He wiped the sweat off his forehead with a damp handkerchief as he walked slowly towards the shelf.


    His chubby hand picked out the thin book. Chen Pipi flipped through the book randomly. The sheet of paper that he had left in it was still there. No one had touched it nor left behind any words. His eyelids twitched as he mumbled angrily in a low voice. "How many days has it been, why has it not been read? I, the mighty genius have gone against the rules of the Academy to teach you and you did not treasure it!"


    This situation was rather odd in any case.


    Chen Pipi has always held himself by the standards of a genius. He had always thought that geniuses had to do things differently. For example, Eldest Brother always had that annoying smile on his face and he liked to drink straight from thekes and rivers. Second Brother liked wearing that weird tall hat and lecture sternly to the female students of the Academy on psychology. Teacher had even more weird quirks. So he always wanted to do things that geniuses should do. Things that could be written in the history books of the Academy. Great things. For example, teaching a poor soul against the Academy rules. He would leave behind thoughtless words that would change somebody¡¯s life.


    He would not care too much of course, since it was a sudden decision. Whether the poor soul would understand and digest thements he wrote on the paper regarding ¡¯Primary exploration on Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow¡¯ was not something he considered important. However, when he returned to look at the reply on the second night to find that hisments had been unanswered, he turned serious.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que¡¯s fever subsided the same day the spring rain stopped. It was under Sangsang¡¯s re and coercion, that he had a messenger inform Chu Youxian to request for five days of sick leave on his behalf.


    He had hot and spicy noodles with fried egg and chicken and potato stew every day and wasn¡¯t allowed to touch his ink and paper. He wasn¡¯t allowed to sharpen his swords nor practice his sword fighting skills. He wasn¡¯t allowed to visit the House of Red-Sleeves to drink and rx. He was only allowed to sit in his chair andy in bed to recuperate. Ning Que¡¯s previously pale face had attained a healthy glow over the past five days. His face was no longer haggard and his cheeks have rounded off, the slight bounce of it making him look adorable.


    "I¡¯m going to puke if I eat anymore hot and spicy noodles."


    He pushed away therge bowl before him determinedly, disregarding Sangsang¡¯s re. Stealing two buns from her bowl, and retrieving two vinegar soaked turnips, he slurped them up with the remaining half of her porridge before walking out of the shop. He said, "I¡¯m going to run away from home if you cook chicken and potato stew for dinner."


    Sangsang held up his bowl of untouched sour and spicy noodles and looked at the thin slices of beef floating in it. She thought to herself, "why are you turning up your nose at good food? Would you get to eat something like this in Wei?"


    All the horse drawn carriages rented by the students of the Academy would have an obvious sign on them indicating so. It goes without saying that you¡¯d need documentation for it. Ning Que went through the Southern gates of Chang¡¯an towards the Academy beneath the mountain.


    Dawn was just breaking.


    There was an unavoidablemotion as he stepped foot into the ss. It didn¡¯t matter whether they were close friends or not, the students came up to him to ask about his health after his return from sick leave. Ning Que smiled at the crowd, all the while seizing them up. He realized that other than Chu Youxian who was genuinely concerned, Situ Yn and Jin Wucai were genuinely worried too.


    The subject of the day was literature and the topic they were discussing was the literature of South Jin Kingdom and the appreciation and analysis of various works. Ning Que who was good at calligraphy, should by right be interested in this. However, no matter in his previous life or now, he was only excited looking at the characters. The characters that formed the sentences and lines that made up poetry and works bored him to tears. He listened to the ss half-heartedly and when the dismissal bell rang, he answered the instructor politely before rushing out of ss and towards the mess hall.


    He had two portions of lunch and walked three rounds around the wend as usual. The other students who had been watching him could not suppress their curiosity and thought to themselves, third young master Xie had given up on getting into the second floor after vomiting blood for an entire night while Ning Que had returned to the Academy looking like nothing happened after he was gravely ill for days.


    At the doors to the old library, Chu Youxian peered at his face worriedly and asked, "Are you still going upstairs?"


    "Yes, I¡¯ve to make up for lost time." He answered.


    Chu Youxian shook his head helplessly. He looked at Ning Que like he was a mad man and said, "have you not vomited enough?"


    "I¡¯ve gotten used to it."


    Ning Que answered smilingly before he was startled by his own words. He wondered why this conversation seemed so familiar, especially his reply. He seemed to have heard or read it somewhere.


    He walked up to the second floor, but was not in a hurry to find the thin book on the shelf. Instead, he adjusted his student robes and walked serenely towards the eastern windows and bowed respectfully at the female professor. He said softly, "Student is back. "


    The female professor looked up at him and asked, "Are you feeling okay?"


    "I¡¯m fine." Ning Que touched his slightly chubby face and said, "I¡¯ve worried teacher. I apologize."


    "I wasn¡¯t very worried." She smiled, "I¡¯ve been copying books on the second floor for seven years and I¡¯m used to the peace and quiet. But it¡¯s nice to have someone nearby keeping mepany in the silence silently."


    Ning Que grinned, "I¡¯ll try to stay on the second floor for a bit longer."


    The female instructor smiled and waved, dismissing him.


    Ning Que sped his hands together in respect before turning to leave. He walked to the shelf and retrieved the thin book without looking. He was now familiar with the position of the book and could find it even blindfolded. It was a pity he could never remember the contents of the book.


    He sighed silently and opened the book, retrieving the sheet of paper he stuck inside. He knew he must have left off at that point in the book. He knew that these little tricks of his were futile. He would always be reading the book for the first time.


    His brows knitted suddenly. He held up the sheet of paper against the window and found it riddled with ck markings. "Did I write so much thest time?" he thought to himself.


    He flipped the sheet of paper to the back to see that someone had written all over the sheet in tiny regr script. The person who written the message scrupulously in tiny script. The characters were each the size of a rice grain, but held plenty of swagger, looking full of itself.


    Ning Que looked at the paper in shock before reading the message silently.


    "Poor sod, don¡¯t believe in the sayings that the mountain you see isn¡¯t a mountain. Objects that exist are real. For example, the words in this book is more real than my pride and conceitedness at this moment."


    "It is just that when the words reflect the lights from the outside into your eyes, and... the light on the paper is already an exnation. Your eyes seeing it is another... Objectivity is like a beautiful, naked woman. When you look at her lecherously, thinking about how beautiful she is and how much you want her... it doesn¡¯t matter whether she is a nun from the Great River Country of Ye Hongyu from West-Hill Divine Pce."


    The warm spring breeze swirled both inside and outside the building. The sun made its way towards the west, turning gold and red. The male insects bathed in the glow of the setting sun started singing and pping their wings to disy their prowess to the opposite sex. On the asion when the breeze was strong, the singing would stop. To the ears of these strong male insects, the sound of the strong winds was like that of thunder.


    In the building beside the bookshelf, Ning Que looked at the words on the paper, shell-shocked. He sat there like a statue for a long long time. The tiny script on the paper was like thunder in his head, and it crashed unendingly.


    After a moment, he flipped open the book with shaky fingers. His gazended lightly on the text before moving away. There excitement bubbling within him could barely be suppressed. With the help of the words on the sheet of paper, he could find out where the doorway was even if he didn¡¯t know whatid behind it.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 96: The Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong

    Chapter 96: The Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    After he had calmed down gradually, Ning Que began to zone out looking at the words on the paper. He wondered who had left behind suchments. Who was resolving his doubts? Who was helping him behind the scenes? Why was the person doing so?


    He turned to look at the eastern windows. The female instructor was still writing her lowercase script and had not noticed him at all. Ning Que looked at her figure and thought about the words on the paper that disrespected women. He shook his head subconsciously. The female professor could not have written foulnguage like that.


    Could it be the instructor downstairs? Ning Que furrowed his brows in thought, but shook his head eventually. While that instructor was humorous, he was still a rule abiding man. If he had wanted to give him some pointers, he would do so directly and not through such methods such as leaving a message.


    Ning Que could not think of who would leave a message even as he mused over it. He looked out of the window vexedly and listened to the male insects singing in the grass. He grinned in self-deprecation. He thought, the person who had left the message must be an old instructor who had yet to attain cultivation. Oh, how angry would Situ Yn and the others be should they see the message!


    The person who had left the message hadpared the art of reading to one¡¯s attitude towards women. While it was downright obscene, it was also easy to understand. If not, Ning Que would not be able to feel that he might have understood something. To him, the message leaver had intentionally used this method to counsel him. After all, it is said that the road to cultivation is filled with self-contamination. He had the utmost respect for this person and he thought that this person must be a genius in the art of cultivation.


    Since he had confirmed this person was a genius in cultivation, Ning Que¡¯s attitude turned towards being serious. He held up the Primary exploration on Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow and the sheet of paper and walked towards the end of the bookshelf. He sat at the spot where the sunlight hit, calmed himself and started re-reading the message.


    Chen Pipi had obviously underestimated Ning Que¡¯sprehension abilities. Ning Que could understand what he was trying to say with just the first few lines about the objective truths and understanding confusion even though he didn¡¯t write thest two paragraphs. He didn¡¯t talk about the extreme attitudes of women.


    "Don¡¯t try to understand. Don¡¯t think about it. Just look at the words... Is this what the divine talisman masters intended when they copied the books? So what I have to do is to look at the words and not think about what they mean."


    Ning Que looked at the book on his knees and thought about it for a long time. He had wasted a lot of energy trying to read the books here these days. He knew the impact these words had on his psyche. Afterparing the methods, he realised that it was worth it to give the message leaver¡¯s method a try.


    To just look at a word or character that you¡¯re already familiar with and have memorized but to intentionally not think about it or to pretend to know what it means, or to even really forget what it means were all difficult tasks.


    It was like a situation where you had to say that you¡¯d never seen therge Chinese Schr Tree that you¡¯d spent your childhood hanging around with in the gardens. Or that you didn¡¯t even know that it was a Chinese Schr Tree. You had to forget all those years of ying under it, or the first kiss that you gave beneath it. Who could do something like that?


    Ning Que did not open the book but stared at the paper, perturbed. Meanwhile, his thoughts had flown out of the window and to another ce, thinking about how he could look at the words while ignoring the meaning.


    To forget the words that we know... who could do that?


    The rays of the sunnded on his tightly furrowed brows from the west windows, making it glimmer. Suddenly, the ends of his brows rose and a flicker of light passed in his eyes. He remembered the first word he learnt when he first started learning calligraphy years ago. He remembered writing the words many times with calligraphy brushes and with twigs.


    It was the character for "Yong".


    Those who had undergone normal calligraphy training would always remember this character. Teacher Wang Xizhi, the most vigorous calligrapher in the Eastern Jin year of the other world had thought that the character for "yong" epassed the eightws of calligraphy. Each dot and stroke had it¡¯s own meaning and the eight strokes in "yong" made up the eightws.


    Ning Que¡¯s eyes got progressively brighter. The character can be taken apart and put back again together, but it could be reassembled into any other character in the world. He could just use the eightws of "Yong" to read. Didn¡¯t that mean that he could read every word as "Yong"?


    He was aware that this was not an intelligent method, but a stupid one. Nobody knew if it would work, but he could not suppress the desire and impulse in his heart. He took a deep breath and opened the book to the first page without hesitation.


    "The heavens and earth breathe to rest..."


    Ning Que stared at the first character in the first sentence for "The". To be more exact, he was not seeing the entire character, but the first stroke of it. The t long stroke was like a sharp knife slicing through his dark mental scape, tearing through it, allowing a thin slice of white light to shine through the miniscule crack.


    He then looked at the second stroke, and the third. The character on the page appeared behind his eyes and into his brain, yet it did not form aplete meaning.


    He could see the word, but was only allowed to see the strokes and not the entire character in his brain. It sounded simple, but was difficult and not something normal people could achieve.


    It was lucky that Ning Que had practiced calligraphy tirelessly for almost twenty years. Deconstructing characters was an innate skill to him. Every calligrapher had to be able to reconstruct characters in order to write every character well. He was now forcefully cutting off thest and most important part of calligraphy in his brain. Should his mind attempt to reconstruct those characters, the character for "Yong" will make itself useful. He will think of the word as "Yong" automatically and not part of the character for "The"!


    It was difficult, even for him, to think of fiction as reality. At this point of time, he has gathered all his energy. The hands holding the book was shaking slightly. The back of his school robes was damp with sweat. His eyshes were fluttering wildly while his lips were pursed tightly, just like the first time he attempted calligraphy as a child.


    The words no longer blurred and shook his mind up violently as they entered his eyes today. Instead, they presented themselves clearly in his sight and were quietly tamed like a leaf floating upon a stillke.


    Ning Que had forgotten how these words had tortured him, but was looking at the strokes in silence. He looked at the various strokes that made up the character and felt as if he could see through the surface of theke apanied by a gentle breeze. The leaves were floating towards the east, towards the west, to somewhere far away or close to him.


    There were no strong winds and waves nor thunderstorms. Neither were there a pack of wolves gathering on the grasnds. He basked in the warm afternoon sun, eyes lightly hooded as he sat on the floors at the shelves. His hands were no longer shaking and his taut body and pursed lips loosened. He did not faint nor vomit. All was calm.


    The beginning of a breeze and the end of one was always gentle. Outside, the insects sang their happy song once more, celebrating the blissful spring day, celebrating the curious world before their eyes. The gentle spring breeze enveloped their songs and brought them with it into the windows, into the building and onto thed within. It fluttered his robes, like an unseen power rushing over him.


    The wind flushed around the front of his school robes, turning back as it flitted onto a certain part of his chest like the spring breeze dancing upon the slight waves of theke. Pushing the leaves on the surface towards all different directions, they eventually touched the stone ends of theke before turning back. It could neither reach the shore nor tear away from it.


    The female instructor at the eastern window seemed to have felt something. Her brows gathered and she tilted her face upwards, listening to the songs of the insects outside and the movements of the spring breeze. She turned to thed at the western windows and smiled gently.


    To rest...


    Ning Que looked at the character for rest and was distracted for a moment. His gaze left the book subconsciously and the entire character floated in his face, into his eyes. There was a ssh, like a naughty child shepherd throwing a rock into theke, causing the water to well up, shaking the leaves. There was a buzz in his mind before he was startled back into consciousness.


    While he had experienced this many times, the character for "rest" had made arge impact on his mindscape. He harrumphed discontentedly and lifted himself off the floor with his right hand. He turned his pale face away forcefully, not daring to look at any character on the book.


    Even so, there was a smile that cannot be suppressed on his pale white face. He knew that he¡¯d seen the doorway. While the message leaver had not intended to open the door, at least he had not fainted after opening it. He also had a niggling feeling that should he continue reading using this method, it¡¯d be beneficial to his art of calligraphy, no matter whether he could catch a glimpse of the wonders of cultivation.


    He was in no hurry to stand up, but sat cross legged under the rays of the sun. He closed his eyes and reflected on the feeling he had previously, searching for the strokes in the depths of his mind, the scattered leaves on theke.


    He did not know how much time had passed. He opened his eyes and grinned before walking to the writing desk at the western windows. He held up a brush and a new sheet of paper. Giving it some thought, he began to pen a reply to the person who had left him a message.


    He thanked the person sincerely before writing his solution and questions, hoping that the person would give him some pointers. Lastly, he asked rather earnestly, "Reading while thinking profoundly is like watching leaves on ake floating. Is this the intention of the divine talisman master who wrote this? The leaves floated erratically, but seemed to follow a set of rules. I feel it in the Ocean of Qi..."


    "Could... could this be psyche power?"


    ...

 Chapter 97: The Sleepless Night

    Chapter 97: The Sleepless Night


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que extended the paper out towards the window with two fingers, drying the wet ink in the warm sun and spring breeze. Once he ascertained that there were no problems, he folded the paper carefully and stuck it back into where he first found it in the book.


    He rose and stuck the book into its ce before walking to the east windows. He bowed deeply and politely to the female lecturer who nodded in return.


    He should have gone down the stairs after that, but a sudden thought struck him. The female professor had been writing in the old library for many years. She must be Somebody in the Academy. She was so quiet and friendly, if the person who had left him a message was willing to give him some pointers, who is it to say that she wouldn¡¯t?


    As a poord who has over 2000 taels but still has to count his pennies over a simple breakfast, he figured he must grab hold of this opportunity. After a momentary pause, he said respectfully, "Teacher, I forced myself to forget the shape of the words and have gained a little knowledge. I was wondering if this method is a good one?"


    The female professor looked. There was a long stretch of silence before her mouth cracked into a soft smile. "ording to the rules of the Academy, even students from the Magic course who have yet to enter the Second floor can only depend on themselves to read ande to understand the books here. You have no potential for cultivation, and yet, you understood all these through sheer determination. While what you¡¯ve understood might not bepletely right, it is stilludable. I cannot break the rules of the Academy, so I can only say this."


    Ning Que bowed deeply and said politely, "Thank you for the pointers, teacher."


    The female professor looked at the lower case script that she had been writing for countless years and said calmly, "Forgetting the shape of the character while reading intentionally. Being intentionally unintentional is a form of psyche."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que knew that he had yet to attain the stage of reading the character but forgetting its shape. What he was doing now was simply dismantling the character. It was far from that stage. He did not know what intentional meant in this case and could not help but shake his head. He muttered what the professor had said under his breath repeatedly and walked down the stairs.


    It waste at night and there were not many people on the first floor of the old library as usual, however, it was unexpectedly rowdy. Situ Yn brought Jin Wucai to the very front while Chu Youxian stood at the side of the stairs. Near the shelves further away, stood Xie Chengyun and Zhong Dajun.


    Was this entourage waiting for him? Ning Que looked at his peers downstairs, stupefied. He asked Chu Youxian who was beside him, "what¡¯s going on?"


    "You... you made it down yourself?" Situ Yn looked at him in surprise.


    Ning Queid out his hands helplessly, "I think I managed to walk down thest time too."


    Situ Yn smiled. "The rules of the Academy stated that freshmen will be separated into different groups when they enter the Academy. There are always those from other states or countries who have never been to Chang¡¯an. The meeting today is to bring everyone out to shop, drink and talk. Our group wanted to get together. Wucai and I grew up in Chang¡¯an, so we are responsible for leading you guys around today. This gathering was supposed to happen days ago, but we pushed it back since you were on medical leave. We didn¡¯t want to bother you upstairs, so we waited here."


    Ning Que looked at the teen beside her to find that she had already shed her student robes and changed into a light purple dress. She did not look as strong or fierce as she did in her archery robes but rather feminine instead.


    While he was impatient to hurry back to Lin 47th Street to tell Sangsang all about his wondrous experience today, he knew that he could not avoid this gathering. What more, his ssmates from ssroom three had waited and pushed back the gathering date for him. He had to participate no matter what. He said, "No problem."


    Situ Ynughed refreshingly, "Your candidness is great. You¡¯re not like Chen Zixian who ran off with the excuse that he has got something on at home. We all know that he¡¯s hanging out at a gambling den."


    Ning Que stiffened slightly upon hearing Chen Zixian¡¯s name. He knew she was talking about their ssmate who was the son of a rich businessman and not the old man who could not shut his eyes beside a stack of firewood.


    Situ Yn looked at the students around her and called out clearly, "Does anyone have anywhere they want to go specifically? Or any Chang¡¯an delicacy that you want to try? If not, I¡¯m going to make the decisions."


    The foreign studentsughed and pronounced that they had no objections to that. Her shiny dark eyes turned and looked at Ning Que. "Shall we go for a drink?"


    "I have no objections.", he said.


    Situ Yn looked at his face and teased, "Chu Youxian said you didn¡¯t have to pay to visit the House of Red-Sleeves. Why don¡¯t we go there? I believe you don¡¯t have any objections to that."


    Ning Que was startled. He had wanted to say that he did object to that, but she had already turned to announce their destination. The excitement of the crowd rose visibly upon hearing that.


    A student from Gushanmandery shook his head and dered, "It isn¡¯t easy to witness the best song-and-dance troupe in the world. This journey to study in Chang¡¯an is indeed worth it!"


    A student from the Capital of Great River Kingdom said seriously, "Not bad at all, I must see the favorite dance group of the Tang Emperor."


    A former captain from the Hangu said, "of course, everyone must write some good phrases tomemorate this event."


    All the students nodded in agreement. They all looked like artistic young men and women, but everyone knows that these students were not really interested in the songs and dance, but the famed scarlet women. They were not thinking about writing poetry, but wanted to tangle in the sheets of the brothel. While they cannot let themselves go, what with Situ Yn and otherdies from prominent households tagging along, hanging around the seducing scent of perfume and powder was nothing to scoff at.


    Ning Que clutched at Chu Youxian and eximed, "Can women... enter brothels?"


    "There is nowhere that these women cannot visit in Chang¡¯an. The House of Red-Sleeves is a dance troupe redited by the pce. Nobody can say anything if they want to watch the songs and dance. " Che Youxian exined.


    A hand darted out through the hollows of the shelf. A slender student mbered out slowly. It was the acimed genius, Wang Ying. He looked at the crowd and asked timidly, "Can I go with you?"


    Everyone looked at the young boy of 14 before looking at each other. Situ Yn chewed on her lips and her eyes darted around before saying, "Wang Ying, you can¡¯t go. You¡¯re from ssroom four."


    ...


    ...


    The great Tang has always wavered between simplicity and strength and liberality and romance. To be more urate, the people lived on the lines between the two. Those who have grown up in Chang¡¯an talked about their country affairs with simple strength and were liberal and romantic in talking about literature. There were never any conflicts between the two. The most serious official of the imperial court can visit a bar to y a song for a blind girl after court. The women talking in the alleys can wipe their tears away after talking about the war on the frontiers.


    That was why the brothels in Chang¡¯an was differentpared to any other brothel out there. It was not promiscuous, for there are times where people could indulge in politics, war, dance, and music all at the same time. Other than officials who thumb their noses and live their life criticising others, it was a perfectly appropriate ce to hang out for any government official or rich businessman.


    Speaking of brothels, one must, of course, talk about the House of Red-Sleeves. The bamboo courtyard had never had a signboard, but everyone from Chang¡¯an and the Tang empire knew that the ce was a signboard by itself. It would always be known for the secret love affair between the previous emperor and his wife. Its glorious past shining through the silent facade of the building. The House of Red-Sleeves was as resplendent as always. Tonight, it was romantic, the songs and dance were fanciful. Tonight, no one will sleep, seduced by the atmosphere of the ce. Tonight... the ce became a slightly messy.


    When the twenty over students of both genders from the academy filtered into the brothel, some shyly, some with pride, the expressions of the patrons made up of rich businessmen and court officials froze slightly. They left hurriedly after recognizing some of the female students who had cross-dressed.


    It was not umon for girls to cross-dress in the liberal city of Chang¡¯an. Neither was it umon for father and son to patronize the same women. But to have the two generations gathered in the same ce was awkward. However, what was interesting was, even in the awkwardness, the elder generation will always make way for the younger generation. Like right now.


    Situ Yn gathered everyone around a seat. She watched the figure hurrying out of the door who closely resembled her fourth uncle and had to bite her lips to stop theughter from welling out. She gathered her skirts and sat down, calling for the manager. "I know we cannot reserve the ce, but it should be alright if we all sat in the front hall to watch the songs and dance, right?"


    The manager had long recognized her for who she was and dared not offend her. He smiled bitterly, "Miss Situ... or would you like me to call you young master? It will be done as you say."


    "You¡¯re an interesting fellow." Situ Yn¡¯s eyes rolled over him and tossed him a gold leaf, all the while saying, "Bring the wine, fruits and food. A wealthy man will foot the bill today. Also, get Miss Lu Xue toe apany me. You said she¡¯d entered the pce when I visitedst year. She can¡¯t be here today as well, no?"


    The manager could not hide the look of inconvenience on his face and smiled with great difficulty, "She is not in the pce today, but His Majesty had nned a great feast to celebrate the princess¡¯s return. Thedies are tired from the practice. Miss Lu Xue is the lead dancer and have been given a one month break. It¡¯s really up to her if she wants toe down or not."


    Dewdrop was one of the bestdies of The House of Red-Sleeves. But Lu Xue¡¯s status was very much different. She was the lead dancer in the song-and-dance troupe and it was rumoured that the Empress had once praised her. Nobody can make her drink with the patrons downstairs if she didn¡¯t want to.


    Situ Yn was but just a young girl. She was simply curious about drinking and making merry in brothels and did not want thepany of girls who were indiscriminate about thepany some of the girls kept. Lu Xue was different, so she was slightly upset upon hearing that she was on a break.


    Ning Que lowered his head and entered The House of Red-Sleeves with everyone else. He and Che Youxian maneuvered themselves into the most obscure spot and eavesdropped on Situ Yn and the manager while ruminating over who was going to settle the bill that night. He looked at Che Youxianpassionately after a while and said, "She said a wealthy man will foot the bill today. It seems like you¡¯re going to have to pay today. It¡¯s your job as the wealthiest man andndlord of Chang¡¯an."


    Che Youxian flicked his fan open and said sarcastically, " It¡¯s obvious, the wealthy man paying tonight bears the surname Ning."


    He stood up after saying that and yelled at the manager jokingly, "Huashao, don¡¯t look down on us, look at who¡¯s sitting beside me. Why don¡¯t you hurry up and get Lu Xue and Dewdrop here."


    ...

 Chapter 98: Who Visited the Brothel?

    Chapter 98: Who Visited the Brothel?


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    When the steward called Huashao heard a cry, he suddenly thought of a certaind who often appeared in the House of Red Sleeves in the 13th year of the Tianqi era. His heart tightened as he followed the source of the voice and saw that the person beside Young Master Chuzhu was none other than the wicked person who didn¡¯t pay up after meeting one of their girls. His body stiffened and his expression turned ugly. Hemented that they hadn¡¯t seen each other for a long time, so they might as well not meet again.


    The mind and behavior of those in the service industry could never be in harmony. Though he was cursing Ning Que in his head, the smile on his face had blossomed like a flower and weed him without hesitation. He ced his hand to his lips and shouted at the girls in the quiet and lonely upper floor. "Girls! Young Master Ning Que is here!"


    His voice stunned countless people in the building. Students who were feigning shyness or faking experience as a matter of pride were all drawn to Ning Que¡¯s table. Situ Yn¡¯s mouth was open as she held her teacup. Jin Wucai could no longer maintain his calm exterior. They both marveled at the reception Ning Que received and how it seemed everyone in the House of Red Sleeves knew exactly who he was. The students looked upstairs in a mixture of surprise, curiosity, and doubt. They wondered how many girls would show up after hearing Steward Hua.


    The bamboo beat and light song from the stage had unknowingly ceased, causing the building to fall into silence. There weren¡¯t any beautiful women rushing out to meet Ning Que nor any women waving at him with a smile. There weren¡¯t even any of thedies sending their handmaids to check out the situation. The students who were anticipating a show were disappointed, though some finally regained a sense of bnce. Just as Situ Yn was beginning to feel bored, they heard a flurry of footsteps.


    The sound was a dissonance, of beadsrge and small falling on a jade te, and of rain heavy and light ttering on the Spring Breeze Pavilion. Six or sevendies apanied by their handmaids stepped out of the backyard amid the sounds of shaking pearls and feminine murmurs and filled the hall like a river. They approached Ning Que, all questioning his absencetely through quiet usation, doting care, or frowning worry. All in all, it turned out to be a lively scene.


    Just then, a little girl with two lovely tufts of hair stuck her head out from the lonely top floor. She was Xiaocao, Mistress Jian¡¯s handmaid. Her dark eyes swept the crowd but she didn¡¯t see the person she was looking for. She shouted unhappily, "Ning Que, where¡¯s Sangsang? You¡¯re keeping her hidden in the shop again!"


    On the night thedies of the House of Red Sleeves were preparing for the pce dance, they became so bored that they teased the fragile and sensitive Ning Que so much that he ran inside the building. Since then, a subtle change took ce. Whether it was the most popr courtesan like Dewdrop and Lu ue or ordinary ones, they all treated him warmly. There were mainly three reasons for this.


    Firstly, it was thanks to Ning Que¡¯s clean and refreshing looks. He was one of the rarely seen teens in the brothel. He was articte, adorable, and respected thedies. Since they didn¡¯t share that kind of rtionship, they were able to have a pure and rxed friendship. After exchanging gossip many times in the brothel, they gradually became familiar with one another. Secondly, Dewdrop pampered this teen very much due to some personal reason. This caused the otherdies to pay him more respect too.


    The most important reason was naturally Mistress Jian herself. She had once expressed a certain degree of concern for this teen. It wasn¡¯t obvious, but it was a rare disy of emotion for Mistress Jian who was cold to and sometimes disgusted by men. It might not matter for Dewdrop or Lu Xue, but the otherdies were willing to treat Ning Que warmly and even sleep with him if it meant winning Mistress Jian¡¯s favor.


    But his ssmates from the Academy didn¡¯t know this or how many times he had visited the House of Red Sleeves this spring. Looking at the prosperous scene beside the wine tables and listening to the tender and beautiful sounds, they had long be dumbfounded.


    Situ Yn gradually closed her mouth and put down her cup. She couldn¡¯t help turning to Jin Wucai, who was dressed like a man and gasped. Lu Xue, thedy who had refused her invitation twice, was seated next to Ning Que and gently feeding him melon seeds as they engaged in idle chatter. "Chu Youxian wasn¡¯t lying. Ning Que really is a VIP in this ce. This guy is given more respect than any of my pretentious cousins."


    While they were still conversing, Ning Que ended his chat with thedies and bade them farewell with his hands folded in front of him. He lifted the beautiful Lu Xue¡¯s hand and together they walked toward Situ Yn¡¯s table. He said with a smile, "Miss Situ, I present to you the beautiful Lu Xue. Please consider how hard she worked at dance practice recently and allow her to leave early for a rest."


    Situ Yn stood up, feigning anger. "That¡¯s between us girls. Mind your own business." She then turned and bowed to Lu Xue. "Sister Lu Xue, I¡¯ve been wanting to meet you. I¡¯ve always wanted to ask you about the Middle Three Kicking method of the Hu Xuan dance. Since I¡¯m fortunate enough to meet you here, I hope you can enlighten me."


    Lu Xue frowned. She was, in fact, somewhat tired but she knew she didn¡¯t have the privilege of putting on airs as a popr courtesan.


    Jin Wucai also stood up and used her hand to gently knock her open fan into ce. She smiled. "Lu Xue, my sister Situ wants to learn the method and perform the dance as a gift for the 60th birthday of the general of Yunhui. She doesn¡¯t have to learn it today. She just hopes you can spare some time teaching her."


    "So that¡¯s what it is." Lu Xue smiled. "I¡¯ll just perform a brief dance tonight. The next time Miss Situ needs me, just inform me in advance. It doesn¡¯t matter whether youe here or I visit your mansion. Both are convenient."


    ...


    ...


    The Hu dance had nothing to do with the Tribe of Savages in the grasnd. Instead, it originated from the Yuelun Kingdom and was said to be the ritual dance of a rainforest tribal there. It was known for its quick and pleasing rhythm. There was a clear sense of contrasting beauty with the upper half of the dancers posed in the manner of a static celestial beauty scattering flowers while their lower half was rapidly trembling with moving waists, abdomens, and thighs along with the rhythm of the song.


    This dance was exceedingly difficult. Down Three Kicking was rtively easy to achieve, but it was a challenge toplete Middle Three Kicking or even Up Three Kicking while keeping the upper body still. The best Hu dancer in the world was in the Chang¡¯an city of Tang Empire, namely Lu Xue of the House of Red Sleeves.


    The gentle, quiet sound of the pipe floated amid the tinkling sound of the small lutes. Under the dim light of the quiet building, the curtains opened to reveal Lu Xue dressed in a tight dance costume that revealed her abdomen. Her eyes were gentle and she kept them lowered as she crossed both her hands in front of her chest. Whether it was her eyshes or fingertips, none trembled even the slightest. Her bare snow-like feet danced slowly along with the beat. As the sounds of the lutes became quicker, her steps became more urgent. Her tightly wrapped thighs and hips shook non-stop as if struck by lighting. Her exposed abdomen revealed a subtle beauty mark...


    The dance was weed by thunderous apuse. The hall then returned to its former lively and warm atmosphere. Situ Yn solemnly toasted Li Xue with a cup of wine and the others chimed in with a few words. The exhausted Lu Xue gently excused herself and returned to her yard to rest.


    Beautifuldies and Hu music were the bestpanions for wine drinkers. There were more than 20 lively young students in the hall of the House of Red Sleeves. The wine was quickly finished. The sounds of students ying elegant book-guessing games mixed with the rattling of students throwing the dice in another game. The noisy hall was full of cheerfulness.


    Tonight, Chu Youxian and Steward Hua helped Ning Que enjoyed a great triumph. He naturally became the center of the merrymaking. Whether or not they were close to him, his ssmates all approached him with their wine cups and tried to get him drunk using a variety of reasons. In the beginning, they would still make him drink under the pretense of a drinking game. Soon they realized Ning Que was somewhat of a genius of such games. After he won more than ten rounds of the game, they just made him drink directly instead.


    Ning Que loved drinking and savored the aftertaste of wine. He had basically never stopped drinking in all his years with Sangsang. Unfortunately, or perhaps pathetically, his tolerance for alcohol had never increased. He would basically get so drunk that he wouldn¡¯t even have the chance to go on drunken escapades.


    Ning Que was very soonpletely drunk thanks to his ssmates¡¯ encouragement. He forced his half-lidded eyes wide open, wanting to fake sobriety to scare off his enemies. But his slurred words had betrayed his low alcohol tolerance. He tried to hold up his cup and look at the moon to avoid his ssmates, only to find no moon hung in the sky that night. He then tried to lean against the handrail, feigning despair as he recited a poem. But he found that he couldn¡¯t reach the handrail nor recall any poems.


    He couldn¡¯t remember poems from his past life or current life.


    He didn¡¯t know since when but the table he sat at was moved to the side of the handrail behind the hall, just close to the small pool of wet bamboos. But he was half-paralyzed, limping over the edge of the table, and had long forgotten what he was nning to do.


    It was much quieter here than inside the hall. Situ Yn sat next to him with her foot on the handrail, vacantly watching the stars and gently shaking a small pot of cold Yu Louxue wine. It was clear the nobledy¡¯s alcohol tolerance much higher than his. With a bright luster in her eyes, she asked him,


    "Ning Que, how did you meet the Princess?"


    He raised his head and rubbed the space between his eyebrows. He then raised his chopsticks and continued to look for vinegar-pickled vegetables, answering casually, "We met on the road."


    "How did you meet on the road?" Situ Yn turned, staring at him with interest.


    He stuck his chopsticks into a small pastry. As he clutched his forehead, he answered in annoyance, "I picked her up on the road, so we met each other."


    Situ Yn helplessly said, "I think your memory must be faulty. You couldn¡¯t have picked up the Princess on the road."


    The drunk Ning Queughed. "My memory is indeed faulty. What I picked up on the road were all precious things. I wouldn¡¯t have picked up an idiotic block of wood. Where did I and the Princess meet? Oh, you know, I was a soldier of the City of Wei..."


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 99: People Left Behind by the World

    Chapter 99: People Left Behind by the World


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "Is the City of Wei very far away?"


    "It¡¯s close to Kaiping."


    "Where¡¯s Kaiping?"


    "It¡¯s very close to the City of Wei."


    "I know it¡¯s around the frontier fortress. But where were you before you went to the frontier fortress?"


    "On the mountain."


    "Which mountain?"


    "Min Mountain."


    "Is it a tall mountain?"


    "Of course."


    "Where were you before you went to Min Mountain?"


    "..."


    "Where were you?"


    "Well, I was too young to remember. I only know that I¡¯m an orphan."


    ...


    ...


    Their conversation had to end here for Ning Que¡¯s speech was increasingly inarticte and his mindset was stubbornly persisting in the chaotic ages. Situ Yn picked up a wet towel to wipe her forehead with force. She red at the drunk young man sprawled across the table, wondering what this all meant.


    Dewdrop returned just then, having left in the middle of their conversation to attend to something else. Her presence ended the awkward air. She frowned at Ning Que and couldn¡¯t help shaking her head. She helped him up and ced a wet towel on his forehead. She smiled at Situ Yn and said in a somewhat hoarse voice, "Miss Situ, he can¡¯t hold his liquor well."


    Ning Que woke up muddle-headed before Situ Yn couldugh at him. He could vaguely feel his face pressed against something cool, soft, and round. Following his instinct, he tightened his arms around the person¡¯s waist and pressed his face even closer, even nudging his head into it.


    His evil nudging squeezed Dewdrop¡¯s plump breasts somewhat out of shape. Shyness suddenly came over her, and a rare hint of redness colored translucent jade-like face.


    Situ Yn watched as the closed-eyed Ning Que stretched his indecent hand into Dewdrop¡¯s sleeves and inching toward a certain ce. She couldn¡¯t help her annoyance and looked away, covering her forehead and eyes with her hand. She was nevertheless an unmarried nobledy of the Yunhui General¡¯s Residence in Chang¡¯an. She treated fun-seeking in brothels as an elegant activity. Who dared to do something indecent in front of her?


    Of course, she knew she was the one who got Ning Que this drunk, so drunk that he was close to losing his consciousness. Perhaps he didn¡¯t even know if what he was hugging was a waist or a willow. Or that he was rubbing was a chest or a big piece of bread. But for an unmarried girl, even if she was known for her boldness in Chang¡¯an, the scene unfolding before her was somewhat unbearable. In a fit of shame and anger, she stood up, dragged Ning Que to his feet, and continued to get him to drink.


    Ning Que could vaguely feel someone trying to get him even drunker and resisted. He hung onto Dewdrop¡¯s waist and refused to let go. His hands continued to slither into her sleeves, rubbing her soft and plump belly, and he kept muttering illegible nonsense like how this was better than wine or how he wanted to stop drinking.


    Dewdrop giggled, tickled by his touch. She hastily lifted her sleeves to cover her lips and chuckled. "If you continue to touch, I¡¯ll have to charge you."


    Enveloped in her embrace, Ning Que replied in confusion, "I¡¯m now a person with the fortune of 2,000 silver taels. Do you think I¡¯ll worry about that bit of money? If a monk can touch you, why can¡¯t I? So what if we even sleep together?"


    This annoyed Dewdrop but she became confused when she heard him mention a monk. She looked up at Situ Yn who spread her hands and said irritably, "How would I know what is he talking about?"


    Situ Yn grabbed thepels of Ning Que¡¯s robes and dragged him to her face. She yelled, "Go home quickly, you drunkard! Isn¡¯t someone waiting for you at home?"


    Who knew if it was the night wind by the handrail, Situ Yn¡¯s ruthless shaking, or something in her words that seemed to alert Ning Que. His body stiffened and he gradually opened his listless eyes. He stared at the scenery outside the handrail at night and murmured, "Yeah. There¡¯s someone waiting at home."


    The women exchanged a nce and heaved a sigh of relief at the same time. They didn¡¯t care where Ning Que¡¯s so-called fortune came from at all. They were feeling relief at finally being spared from thepany of a poor young master who had suddenly be rich.


    Contrary to their expectations, Ning Que swayed as he got to his feet and tore away from Situ Yn¡¯s hands and gently avoided Dewdrop who wanted to support him by the arm.


    He staggered back inside the building. He entered the ounting office, grabbed a writing brush, and tore off a sheet of paper off the ount book. He was partially leaning on the side of the table and wrote some illegible cursive figures on the paper. Drunk-eyed, he said, "Send this back to the Lin 47th Street for me."


    Dewdrop approached him to take a closer look, only to see some scrawled words on the paper. The words were written at a skewed angle and scattered everywhere. If she didn¡¯t carefully distinguish each character, she wouldn¡¯t know what he had written...


    The note read: "Sangsang, your master is drunk today and won¡¯t be home to sleep. Remember to drink the chicken soup left in the pot."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que was a young man who appeared to be gentle but was a calm and collected person inside. Conscious of his low tolerance for alcohol, he typically only drank with Sangsang. He would rarely allow situations where he would drink excessively and result in situations out of his control. However, today was different. He was so happy that he would¡¯ve felt lost if he didn¡¯t have wine to celebrate.


    The joy that came from the deepest corner of his heart had nothing to do with the merrymaking in the brothel or the party with his ssmates from the Academy. It was purely because of the messages he had seen on that sheet of thin paper in the old library. In the warm afternoon sunshine, he vaguely found the direction of the door that opened to that wonderful world. He finally saw a glimmer of hope after desperately seeking for it for more than 10 years. Was there any other moment in this world that deserved a drunken celebration more than this one?


    Dewdrop couldn¡¯t help chuckling at the Ning Que¡¯s adorable drunken antics. She helped him up by his arm and shook her head. "Don¡¯t drink anymore. I¡¯ll have our driver send you home by carriageter."


    Ning Que gently held her hand, only to find his palm was damp with sweat. It wasn¡¯t until this moment that he realized the logic behind the saying that drunk people have the clearest minds. He squinted to cover up his nervousness and feigned calmness. "I won¡¯t be going home tonight."


    "You¡¯re having a drinking party with your ssmates. This isn¡¯t proper." Dewdropughed. "Where¡¯s your dignity?"


    The drunk Ning Que replied, "I¡¯m but a little soldier from the frontier fortress. What do I know about dignity? My dear sister, why don¡¯t you let me have a go at it once tonight?"


    "Don¡¯t take advantage of your drunkenness to act up, only to regret when you sober up." Dewdrop chuckled. "When you¡¯re sober, never mind once, I¡¯ll even let you go at it thrice."


    Ning Que squinted and waved repeatedly,ughing. "That won¡¯t do. Then I¡¯ll lose my dignity thrice."


    "I can¡¯t continue listening to this nonsense." Situ Yn scowled. She held her forehead, trying to suppress the waves in her stomach that the wine she had consumed was causing. "Ning Que, can¡¯t you pick another day to act up?"


    Ning Que barely seeded finding his footing. He bowed deeply and said, "Miss Situ, it¡¯s you who chose this ce. I really don¡¯t have the courage to apany a girl to a brothel."


    Situ Yn was speechless for the moment. She red at him, thinking that if he knew that he was apanying her to the brothel, he should¡¯ve just listened to songs, watched the Hu dance, and talked about life and art instead of behaving this way.


    Fortunately, she didn¡¯t say these words. Otherwise, she might provoke Ning Que¡¯sint that the difference between a schrly girl and an ordinary girl was only in the order of the things that they wanted.


    Dewdrop smiled and looked at Ning Que sympathetically. "Ning Que, you seemed to have forgotten something. Mistress Jian had ordered everyone not to entertain you that day. Where can you go and have fun?"


    Just then, a proud-looking little maidservant appeared with a bowl of zinnia sobering soup. She was Xiaocao, Mistress Jian¡¯s maidservant. She stared at Ning Que coldly and said, "Mistress Jian said no one is allowed to let him drink anymore. As for you, Ning Que, drink this bowl of sobering soup and take a bath before going upstairs with me. Mistress Jian has something to ask you."


    In novels, a kind of sentence was often used to describe the working style of a master: ¡¯Quick as a wink, they saw...¡¯ Xiaocao the maidservant was one such example. She spoke like a master and her word was enough to make the other courtesans encourage the Academy students to drink more instead. Ning Que put down his liquor jar dejectedly and fell into silence.


    In the time that Ning Que drank the bowl of sobering soup and took a bath, the other students started talking about what had happened. Those who knew Mistress Jian¡¯s identity, in particr, couldn¡¯t help discussing a certain secret of the imperial court as well as a certain legend of the Tang Empire. This made everyone even more curious about what they had witnessed today.


    It was still quiet beside the handrail. Situ Yn and Jin Wucai shared a short conversation before returning to the ce again. They stood next to Dewdrop and stared at the popr courtesan of the capital. "Even if Ning Que is lucky enough to impress Mistress Jian, you and Lu Xue don¡¯t have to deliberately gain his favor with your current status. We¡¯re curious why you would so anyway."


    "Ning Que being tricked into entering our brothel is an interesting incident in its own right. That night, Mistress Jian had made it clear that no one was supposed to entertain him. Never mind thedies from other brothels, none of us would dare to vite her orders here. But he stilles here often. What does this prove?"


    Something gleamed in Dewdrop¡¯s eyes as she smiled softly. "This proves that thisd is only here to have an idle chat with us. People like us actually really like having a simple and innocent chat with others."


    Situ Yn propped her chin up with her palm and leaned against the handrail as if she was deep in thought.


    Dewdrop smiled and continued, "We like chatting with him because we can¡¯t be ourselves in our usual conversations. We constantly have to think about trying to make our esteemed customers happy. Ning Que likes chatting with us because he has stress buried in him that can only be eased through these chats. It seems he can only rx in this kind of person and while chatting with our kind of people."


    Situ Yn frowned, eyes full of curiosity. "What kind of stress can he have?"


    "I don¡¯t know what problems Ning Que is facing in his life, but I know there¡¯s something wrong." Dewdrop¡¯s smile gradually faded and she said sadly, "In your eyes, he¡¯s no more than a quiet and calmd. It¡¯s only worldly and miserable people like us who can see the mncholy that he hides inside."


    The popr courtesan in Chang¡¯an gently said, "In addition, I¡¯m also an orphan like him."


    Chapter 98 People Left Behind by the World


    "Is the City of Wei very far away?"


    "It¡¯s close to Kaiping."


    "Where¡¯s Kaiping?"


    "It¡¯s very close to the City of Wei."


    "I know it¡¯s around the frontier fortress. But where were you before you went to the frontier fortress?"


    "On the mountain."


    "Which mountain?"


    "Min Mountain."


    "Is it a tall mountain?"


    "Of course."


    "Where were you before you went to Min Mountain?"


    "..."


    "Where were you?"


    "Well, I was too young to remember. I only know that I¡¯m an orphan."


    ...


    ...


    Their conversation had to end here for Ning Que¡¯s speech was increasingly inarticte and his mindset was stubbornly persisting in the chaotic ages. Situ Yn picked up a wet towel to wipe her forehead with force. She red at the drunk young man sprawled across the table, wondering what this all meant.


    Dewdrop returned just then, having left in the middle of their conversation to attend to something else. Her presence ended the awkward air. She frowned at Ning Que and couldn¡¯t help shaking her head. She helped him up and ced a wet towel on his forehead. She smiled at Situ Yn and said in a somewhat hoarse voice, "Miss Situ, he can¡¯t hold his liquor well."


    Ning Que woke up muddle-headed before Situ Yn couldugh at him. He could vaguely feel his face pressed against something cool, soft, and round. Following his instinct, he tightened his arms around the person¡¯s waist and pressed his face even closer, even nudging his head into it.


    His evil nudging squeezed Dewdrop¡¯s plump breasts somewhat out of shape. Shyness suddenly came over her, and a rare hint of redness colored translucent jade-like face.


    Situ Yn watched as the closed-eyed Ning Que stretched his indecent hand into Dewdrop¡¯s sleeves and inching toward a certain ce. She couldn¡¯t help her annoyance and looked away, covering her forehead and eyes with her hand. She was nevertheless an unmarried nobledy of the Yunhui General¡¯s Residence in Chang¡¯an. She treated fun-seeking in brothels as an elegant activity. Who dared to do something indecent in front of her?


    Of course, she knew she was the one who got Ning Que this drunk, so drunk that he was close to losing his consciousness. Perhaps he didn¡¯t even know if what he was hugging was a waist or a willow. Or that he was rubbing was a chest or a big piece of bread. But for an unmarried girl, even if she was known for her boldness in Chang¡¯an, the scene unfolding before her was somewhat unbearable. In a fit of shame and anger, she stood up, dragged Ning Que to his feet, and continued to get him to drink.


    Ning Que could vaguely feel someone trying to get him even drunker and resisted. He hung onto Dewdrop¡¯s waist and refused to let go. His hands continued to slither into her sleeves, rubbing her soft and plump belly, and he kept muttering illegible nonsense like how this was better than wine or how he wanted to stop drinking.


    Dewdrop giggled, tickled by his touch. She hastily lifted her sleeves to cover her lips and chuckled. "If you continue to touch, I¡¯ll have to charge you."


    Enveloped in her embrace, Ning Que replied in confusion, "I¡¯m now a person with the fortune of 2,000 silver taels. Do you think I¡¯ll worry about that bit of money? If a monk can touch you, why can¡¯t I? So what if we even sleep together?"


    This annoyed Dewdrop but she became confused when she heard him mention a monk. She looked up at Situ Yn who spread her hands and said irritably, "How would I know what is he talking about?"


    Situ Yn grabbed thepels of Ning Que¡¯s robes and dragged him to her face. She yelled, "Go home quickly, you drunkard! Isn¡¯t someone waiting for you at home?"


    Who knew if it was the night wind by the handrail, Situ Yn¡¯s ruthless shaking, or something in her words that seemed to alert Ning Que. His body stiffened and he gradually opened his listless eyes. He stared at the scenery outside the handrail at night and murmured, "Yeah. There¡¯s someone waiting at home."


    The women exchanged a nce and heaved a sigh of relief at the same time. They didn¡¯t care where Ning Que¡¯s so-called fortune came from at all. They were feeling relief at finally being spared from thepany of a poor young master who had suddenly be rich.


    Contrary to their expectations, Ning Que swayed as he got to his feet and tore away from Situ Yn¡¯s hands and gently avoided Dewdrop who wanted to support him by the arm.


    He staggered back inside the building. He entered the ounting office, grabbed a writing brush, and tore off a sheet of paper off the ount book. He was partially leaning on the side of the table and wrote some illegible cursive figures on the paper. Drunk-eyed, he said, "Send this back to the Lin 47th Street for me."


    Dewdrop approached him to take a closer look, only to see some scrawled words on the paper. The words were written at a skewed angle and scattered everywhere. If she didn¡¯t carefully distinguish each character, she wouldn¡¯t know what he had written...


    The note read: "Sangsang, your master is drunk today and won¡¯t be home to sleep. Remember to drink the chicken soup left in the pot."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que was a young man who appeared to be gentle but was a calm and collected person inside. Conscious of his low tolerance for alcohol, he typically only drank with Sangsang. He would rarely allow situations where he would drink excessively and result in situations out of his control. However, today was different. He was so happy that he would¡¯ve felt lost if he didn¡¯t have wine to celebrate.


    The joy that came from the deepest corner of his heart had nothing to do with the merrymaking in the brothel or the party with his ssmates from the Academy. It was purely because of the messages he had seen on that sheet of thin paper in the old library. In the warm afternoon sunshine, he vaguely found the direction of the door that opened to that wonderful world. He finally saw a glimmer of hope after desperately seeking for it for more than 10 years. Was there any other moment in this world that deserved a drunken celebration more than this one?


    Dewdrop couldn¡¯t help chuckling at the Ning Que¡¯s adorable drunken antics. She helped him up by his arm and shook her head. "Don¡¯t drink anymore. I¡¯ll have our driver send you home by carriageter."


    Ning Que gently held her hand, only to find his palm was damp with sweat. It wasn¡¯t until this moment that he realized the logic behind the saying that drunk people have the clearest minds. He squinted to cover up his nervousness and feigned calmness. "I won¡¯t be going home tonight."


    "You¡¯re having a drinking party with your ssmates. This isn¡¯t proper." Dewdropughed. "Where¡¯s your dignity?"


    The drunk Ning Que replied, "I¡¯m but a little soldier from the frontier fortress. What do I know about dignity? My dear sister, why don¡¯t you let me have a go at it once tonight?"


    "Don¡¯t take advantage of your drunkenness to act up, only to regret when you sober up." Dewdrop chuckled. "When you¡¯re sober, never mind once, I¡¯ll even let you go at it thrice."


    Ning Que squinted and waved repeatedly,ughing. "That won¡¯t do. Then I¡¯ll lose my dignity thrice."


    "I can¡¯t continue listening to this nonsense." Situ Yn scowled. She held her forehead, trying to suppress the waves in her stomach that the wine she had consumed was causing. "Ning Que, can¡¯t you pick another day to act up?"


    Ning Que barely seeded finding his footing. He bowed deeply and said, "Miss Situ, it¡¯s you who chose this ce. I really don¡¯t have the courage to apany a girl to a brothel."


    Situ Yn was speechless for the moment. She red at him, thinking that if he knew that he was apanying her to the brothel, he should¡¯ve just listened to songs, watched the Hu dance, and talked about life and art instead of behaving this way.


    Fortunately, she didn¡¯t say these words. Otherwise, she might provoke Ning Que¡¯sint that the difference between a schrly girl and an ordinary girl was only in the order of the things that they wanted.


    Dewdrop smiled and looked at Ning Que sympathetically. "Ning Que, you seemed to have forgotten something. Mistress Jian had ordered everyone not to entertain you that day. Where can you go and have fun?"


    Just then, a proud-looking little maidservant appeared with a bowl of zinnia sobering soup. She was Xiaocao, Mistress Jian¡¯s maidservant. She stared at Ning Que coldly and said, "Mistress Jian said no one is allowed to let him drink anymore. As for you, Ning Que, drink this bowl of sobering soup and take a bath before going upstairs with me. Mistress Jian has something to ask you."


    In novels, a kind of sentence was often used to describe the working style of a master: ¡¯Quick as a wink, they saw...¡¯ Xiaocao the maidservant was one such example. She spoke like a master and her word was enough to make the other courtesans encourage the Academy students to drink more instead. Ning Que put down his liquor jar dejectedly and fell into silence.


    In the time that Ning Que drank the bowl of sobering soup and took a bath, the other students started talking about what had happened. Those who knew Mistress Jian¡¯s identity, in particr, couldn¡¯t help discussing a certain secret of the imperial court as well as a certain legend of the Tang Empire. This made everyone even more curious about what they had witnessed today.


    It was still quiet beside the handrail. Situ Yn and Jin Wucai shared a short conversation before returning to the ce again. They stood next to Dewdrop and stared at the popr courtesan of the capital. "Even if Ning Que is lucky enough to impress Mistress Jian, you and Lu Xue don¡¯t have to deliberately gain his favor with your current status. We¡¯re curious why you would so anyway."


    "Ning Que being tricked into entering our brothel is an interesting incident in its own right. That night, Mistress Jian had made it clear that no one was supposed to entertain him. Never mind thedies from other brothels, none of us would dare to vite her orders here. But he stilles here often. What does this prove?"


    Something gleamed in Dewdrop¡¯s eyes as she smiled softly. "This proves that thisd is only here to have an idle chat with us. People like us actually really like having a simple and innocent chat with others."


    Situ Yn propped her chin up with her palm and leaned against the handrail as if she was deep in thought.


    Dewdrop smiled and continued, "We like chatting with him because we can¡¯t be ourselves in our usual conversations. We constantly have to think about trying to make our esteemed customers happy. Ning Que likes chatting with us because he has stress buried in him that can only be eased through these chats. It seems he can only rx in this kind of person and while chatting with our kind of people."


    Situ Yn frowned, eyes full of curiosity. "What kind of stress can he have?"


    "I don¡¯t know what problems Ning Que is facing in his life, but I know there¡¯s something wrong." Dewdrop¡¯s smile gradually faded and she said sadly, "In your eyes, he¡¯s no more than a quiet and calmd. It¡¯s only worldly and miserable people like us who can see the mncholy that he hides inside."


    The popr courtesan in Chang¡¯an gently said, "In addition, I¡¯m also an orphan like him."

 Chapter 100: The Birth of the Two Famous Pieces of Calligraphy

    Chapter 100: The Birth of the Two Famous Pieces of Calligraphy


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que pushed open the red-painted door and lifted the bead curtains to enter the dimly lit and quiet room. He had consumed tworge bowls of sobering soup and took a refreshing warm bath. He had also lied on the bamboo bed that someone had once died on, receiving a strong treatment from a master masseur. Most of his drunkenness had already been teased out and he felt much more clear-headed now.


    Looking at the woman who hid her perfect figure wrapped in unremarkable clothing, her wide and smooth forehead as well as the lines on the corner of her eyes, he felt he would rather be drunk at this moment. He could guess what he would be experiencing next. Though he thought this woman was being unreasonably strict with him, he must admit there was concern in her stern ways. Thus, he couldn¡¯t refuse and only painfully suffer it.


    "Since I haven¡¯t seen you around in awhile, I thought you¡¯ve finally entered the Academy and learned to behave yourself. I thought you¡¯d finally understand the importance of seeking knowledge. Who knew your learning didn¡¯t increase by much yet you¡¯ve maderge strides in the art of drinking."


    Mistress Jian looked at him calmly, wearing no hint of bitter hatred. Yet it was her neutral tone that stressed him greatly. He hemmed and hawed, but no words came to him. He forced himself to beposed to ease his awkwardness yet he suddenly huped. The smell was unpleasant.


    She scowled at the sour smell that filled the room and red at him. In a sh, she wore a self-mocking smile as she found herself her anger waspletely unreasonable. How could she keep allowing thisd in front of her suffer for the sins of that man? She kept her voice as calm as possible and said, "Tell me what you¡¯ve learned in the Academytely."


    Ning Que epted a cup of strong tea from Xiaocao and took severalrge sips to calm himself. He earnestly expressed his thanks and cleared his throat before conscientiously exining his life in the Academy.


    "It sounds like you¡¯ve been diligent. Since you don¡¯t have a foundation in calligraphy and rites, you need to put more effort into them instead of giving them up. You need to know that you¡¯ll need to live on these skills after you leave the Academy, whether you¡¯ll be an official or just a shepherd."


    Mistress Jian smiled in relief and her crow¡¯s feet deepened when she heard how Ning Que visited the old library every day. "Since you enter the library each day, you must be aware of the mystery of the Second Floor."


    "Yes," he answered politely.


    She pondered over this for a moment before asking seriously, "When do you think you can enter the Second Floor?"


    He raised his sleeve and covered his mouth, forcibly suppressing the urge to hup or even vomit. "Only those who are cultivation geniuses can enter that ce, while my physical condition isn¡¯t fit for cultivation at all. I dare not to even covet entering the Second Floor."


    "Can you be more ambitious, kid? It wasn¡¯t easy to be epted into such a good institution so you must seize your opportunity. What¡¯s there to covet or not to covet..."


    She frowned at him, wearing an expression as if she wanted to sigh about hisck of ambition. Back then, she saw with her own eyes how that man had ostentatiously made his way to the Second Floor on his donkey. Her mind had vaguely associated Ning Que with that man and she couldn¡¯t help wanting to remedy her past regret. She continued to persuade him, saying, "The Academy is a ce to create miracles. But if you yourself think that it¡¯s impossible, who else can help you?"


    Ning Que didn¡¯t know about the man who traveled Chang¡¯an on his little ck donkey, eventually carving out a name for himself. Yet that man had disappeared just as suddenly like a duckweed in a rainstorm. Ning Que naturally didn¡¯t understand why Mistress Jian would show so much concern for a poor brat like him. He knew there was a reason for it but decided not to care about it. In the end, he was still grateful for the ardent teachings of this kind woman.


    That was precisely what hecked in his life. What he had experienced at the backseat of a bicycle in his previous life was perhaps another form of concern, but he didn¡¯t like it. In this life, he had also once enjoyed such devotion but all was devoured by bloody affairs when he was four. He was truly thankful to her, or perhaps even moved, and that made him answer her questions prudently. This inevitably slowed down his speed, which was something that irritated Mistress Jian.


    "We¡¯re neither family nor friends. If not for my impulse, I wouldn¡¯t have bothered to tell you these. So don¡¯t you have any conflicting emotions. I¡¯m not trying to harm you by telling you to cherish your chance to study in the Academy."


    She looked at him and continued rather seriously, "I¡¯ve told you that rich scions like Zhu Youxian can have fun here but a poor kid like you don¡¯t have the right to. It¡¯s the same for today too. The noble girls like Ms. Situ and the Jin sisters can y here, but not you. The only reason why they¡¯re trying to get close to you is that they think you¡¯re fun. They¡¯re curious about you. Their interest isn¡¯t malicious but it¡¯s, after all, not true respect."


    "If you want to be true friends with them, you need to foster an ability and charisma that can win their respect. If you can step into the Second Floor of the Academy, I believe everyone in the world would be willing to befriend you."


    She picked up her cup of Gold Orchid dew and took a sip to moisten her throat. She raised her head and continued calmly, "You cane here in future to rx, but not too frequently. You can¡¯t drink too much wine either. I¡¯m a madam so naturally, I won¡¯t call it degrading to indulge in brothels, but I also don¡¯t think it¡¯s something elegant or beneficial. 30 years ago, the great poet Mr. Caocun spent the first half of his life in brothels, but who dared to disrespect him? He even ended up marrying the prime minister¡¯s daughter, but this wasn¡¯t because his time in brothels had won him a great reputation. In the end, it was because of his iparable talent!"


    "The Tang Empire values talent. They wouldn¡¯t bury you as long as you have the talent and ability, whether you¡¯re downstairs or upstairs, inside or outside, ad from a border town or a nobleman from Chang¡¯an."


    After the lesson from Mistress Jian ended, Ning Que went downstairs with a hand over his forehead. He found the gathering to be over and learned from the steward that it was Ms. Situ who ultimately paid the bill. He felt fortunate that he could keep his 2,000 silvers for a little longer.


    Just as he was about to bid Dewdrop and the other courtesans farewell, the maidservant Xiaocao impolitely herded him into the horse carriage under the order of Mistress Jian. She then told the driver to send the drunkd back to Lin 47th Street as soon as possible.


    Inside the carriage, Ning Que was jolted up and down to the point that he wanted to vomit but for some reason, he remained rather sober. He continued to ponder over a serious question. He was willing to sacrifice his health and spirit to enter the old library and the Second Floor because of his interest and also his desire to strengthen himself and seek revenge. Did he now have to add another reason to it? So he could be received well in brothels?


    While his mind was in disarray inside the carriage, another guest had visited Dewdrop. Being one of the most popr courtesans in the House of Red Sleeves, she had the right to select and even turn away guests except for some regrs like the censor Zhang Yiqi. However, she had to hide her weariness and pour tea for thiste-night guest.


    "Go and wash your face. Pretty women like you shouldn¡¯t look as dirty as an old fellow like me."


    This guest was a thin and tall old man. He wore an incredibly worn Taoist robe, with grease stains all over and grains of rice stuck in the seams. He looked dirty to the extreme, but his face was rtively clean, with several strands of long beard just under his chin. His nted eyes were tilted upward and the obscenity within was also extremely dirty.


    Dewdrop smiled and followed her maidservant to once again wash up.


    She only knew the guest was important, for Mistress Jian had told her ahead of time. She didn¡¯t know his identity nor his job. When it came to appearances, it wasn¡¯t ever something she or her fellow courtesans cared about. What was important was the generosity of this man called Vitality-protecting God. In his three times here, he had only ever touched her and never bed her. There was no reason for any brothel women to dislike him.


    The filthy, tall and thin Taoist poured himself a cup of wine and sipped without any worry. In boredom, he caught the sight of a balled-up piece of paper by the wine pot. It was an ordinary paper from an ount book where he could vaguely read the words. Out of the inclination fostered in his decades of cultivation, he instinctively picked up that ball of paper and carefully spread it open on the table.


    There was a line of words without any clear distinctions. Coupled with the messy and tilted handwriting, the note was something unpleasant to read.


    It read: "Sangsang, your master is drunk today and won¡¯t be home to sleep. Remember to drink the chicken soup left in the pot."


    His messy brows tightly knitted at these words. Yet surprisingly, he didn¡¯t frown out of disgust. Rather, he waspletely shocked and delighted.


    The tall and thin Taoist carefully appreciated the scribbled words, his eyes finallynding on the words ¡¯chicken soup¡¯. He dipped his skinny finger into his wine and began imitating the writer¡¯s style with strokes on the table.


    The wine on the tip of his finger was transformed into characters on the rosewood table. They had little difference with the two characters that Ning Que had written on the memo. A flow of Tao seemed to have prated the wine following the Taoist¡¯s figure, entering the depth of the rosewood table. It then transformed into numerous tiny whirls and disappeared.


    Outside the room, Dewdrop was putting on her makeup. She seemed to sense something and stiffened when she saw the reflections of twinkling stars in the water inside the basin. For some inexplicable reason, she suddenly felt homesick for the warm home that only existed in her dream. Her eyes were filled with tears as she thought of how she had never enjoyed the chicken soup made by her mother.

 Chapter 101: Successor of the Divine Talisman Master

    Chapter 101: Sessor of the Divine Talisman Master


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The tall and thin Taoist dipped his finger in wine and continued to write on the rosewood table. Very soon, he had copied all the twenty-nine characters on the note. He sucked his finger and put his hands down. He lowered himself to take a closer look at the table, carefully scanning over the pieces of paper in the ount book.


    His eyebrows became more tightly knitted as he continued. He shook his head more and more frequently with even more confusion. "What kind of writing style is this? I¡¯ve never seen it before. There¡¯s no fluctuation in the primordial Qi, so why would it be found in abundance here? The characters are obviously messy, but why do I feel a tightness in my mind when I trace them with my concentration?"


    Shaking his head, he stood up and straightened his body. He paced inside the room before quickly returning to the rosewood table, examining the characters on the paper. His eyebrows remained tightly knotted. He shook his head and mumbled repeatedly, "Blocked! It¡¯s all blocked! Not blocked? No!"


    Regardless of how much conflict there was between the three main cultivating factions or countries, no one had ever dared to show disrespect to the Divine Talisman Masters. In this world, cultivators were rare, and such masters rarer still. They sat at the crossroad of worldly literature and art and cultivation. With a rise and drop of their brush, they couldmand gusts and startle the supernatural. They were too important to cultivation and warfare and considered to nearly non-renewable resources. Thus, they were always treated with the utmost respect.


    Though the Tang Empire was the most powerful nation in its time, yet possessed not more than 10 Divine Talisman Masters. Most of those masters had long removed themselves from the secr world, choosing to seclude themselves in the Academy or the wooden mountains to pursue Taoism, devoting themselves to exploring the secret of thew of nature. This left few masters in the earthly world. Out of the four masters from the South School of Haotian Talisman, two were envoys that the West-Hill Divine Pce sent to Chang¡¯an to demonstrate its power and influence. Thus, they weren¡¯t permanent residents of Chang¡¯an. In that sense, that meant there were only two Divine Talisman Masters from the South School of Haotian Taoism left.


    The man visiting the House of Red Sleeves tonight was one of the two.


    He was called Yan Se, the second brother of the Master of the Tang Empire, Li Qingfeng. He was the Minister of Offerings in the South School of Haotian Taoism. He favored strong wine, beautiful women, and clever calligraphy. His talisman art made him one of the most extraordinary masters in the world. In the torrential downpour that night, it was his marvelous trick to draw a talisman out of the rainwater in the alley and frightened the self-proimed cultivation genius of the Tang Empire, Wang Jinglue, into a crying little fat child.


    Besides various Martial Arts of Talisman, Divine Talisman Masters weremended for their ingenious state and writing skill. It was said that a great calligrapher or painter couldn¡¯t be a Divine Talisman Master without a cultivation potential, but all Divine Talisman Masters were famous calligraphers or painters crowned with eternal glory in their own right.


    Yan Se was a Divine Talisman Master who indulged in brothels but he was someone who could be the top calligraphy master in the world if he wanted to. Yet his attention was captivated by the messy script on the paper torn from an ount book. He still couldn¡¯t find a solution after racking his brains, only repeating the word, "Blocked." If the other calligraphers and powerful cultivators found out, they would be shocked speechless. They would also gain an interest in Ning Que, whose script had puzzled a Divine Talisman Master. Just who on earth was he?


    The messy script with 29 characters had put Yan Se, the great Divine Talisman Master, into a state of confusion. Yet it wasn¡¯t because Ning Que was capable. For various reasons, his mental state had somehow perfectly corresponded with his style of writing at that point in time.


    The books in the old library had inspired him today, so what he had done was remember the form yet neglect the meaning. Driven by such exultance, he visited the brothel with his ssmates to drink like a fish. In a drunken stupor, he randomly picked up the brush andposed those words hastily. The inspiration he had received allowed him to dispel all the strict restrictions of penmanship. His drunkenness helped him subconsciously flout the rules of the strokes. Twisting plum blossoms and pushing down the grape trellis, he was driven by his tipsiness to frantically and excessively drag his brush, in hopes of precisely creating an illegible script.


    His writing style had opened up a new path, using a clumsy and awkward path to wedge a different and concealed cultivating path. A talented calligrapher in Chang¡¯an might not have found it unique, but in the eyes of this Divine Talisman Master, it seemed as if the calligraphy had caused an itch in him. Perhaps it was an itch that hadn¡¯t been scratched for the past 60 years, something that itched to the core of his bones.


    Yan Se¡¯sments about Ning Que¡¯s calligraphy being ¡¯blocked¡¯ was correct. Ning Que was born ¡¯blocked¡¯ - obstructed by the rules of cultivation. All of his acupoints in Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi remained closed off. He was now seeking a longer, winding path to reach the top, yet there existed boulders at the end of the path as well. How could he pass?


    The meaning between lines referred to the fact that each stroke in the middle and the one thereafter illustrated the mental state and the thought of the writer on the spot. Every single word in this messy script was illogical. That was because the real meaning was buried in fuzzy ink and became unclear. Yan Se¡¯s copy managed to uncover the feeling imprisoned in the strokes, no matter how powerful the shackle was. That feeling permeated into the rosewood table through the wine and suffused the House of Red Sleeves with the vor of wine...


    When Ning Que wrote the note for Sangsang, he was still at his height of drunkenness. He apparently wanted to convey that he wanted to stay in the House of Red Sleeves, yet his true feeling was revealed when the hidden meaning was diffused. He himself didn¡¯t know of this feeling. Perhaps he was unwilling to admit it.


    In the courtyard with a couple of plum trees located in the west, Lu Xue was sunk into silence as she held her bamboo flute. Her delicate face was haggard, her expression deeply sorrowful. She stared at the long withered old plums at the far end of the courtyard, longing for the spring in her hometown in the south.


    In the courtyard with a cluster of bamboo located in the east, Dewdrop was staring in a daze at the twinkling stars reflected on the water inside the basin. Her crystal-like tears flowed down her smooth cheeks, plopping into the basin with a soft sound.


    Behind the bead curtain in the room on the top floor of the House of Red Sleeves, Mistress Jian stared at the portrait beside her bed. Her smooth forehead was knitted into a frown as she looked at the young schr riding a donkey in the portrait, his raised eyebrows, his cheerful and even arrogantughter. She slowly shed tears, mumbling herint. "Ke Haoran, you jerk. Back then, I made chicken soup and waited for you toe back each day, yet you wouldn¡¯t. Are you happy now? You can¡¯t drink any even if you want to. I don¡¯t even know if... you¡¯re doing well in the other world."


    She suddenly frowned and tightened her grip on the handkerchief in her hand. She took quick steps to reach the handrail and looked at the courtyard downstairs. She knew about Dewdrop¡¯s guest, yet seemed to feel no fear at all. Instead, she was annoyed and angrily scolded, "What an insolent old man! Why did youe to my brothel to evoke my memories of that scoundrel?"


    Walking under the shadow of the bamboo in her courtyard, Dewdrop made her way back into the room after washing up and putting on a lightyer of makeup. When she saw how her guest was shaking his head at the table, her body stiffened. She stepped ahead to take a look and asked with a frown, "Mister, I kept thinking that I caught the smell of chicken soup. Why is that?"


    "It¡¯s not the smell of chicken soup. It¡¯s the taste of home."


    Yan Se shook his head and pointed at the 29 scribbled characters on the ounting paper. "When the person wrote this note, he desperately wanted to return home and drink the bowl of chicken soup. That doesn¡¯t mean the soup is tasty. I¡¯m curious about Sangsang. For him to act this way, I wonder if she¡¯s his ferocious wife or strict mother?


    "That¡¯s... Isn¡¯t that written by Ning Que?" Dewdrop¡¯s delicate face was filled with confusion. "He didn¡¯t seem like he wanted to go home then. Sangsang isn¡¯t his wife either. It¡¯s his little handmaiden."


    "Little handmaid? Then that makes this even more illogical."


    Yan Se shook his head again, ignoring this. He had remained a bachelor all his life because he had seen too many ferocious wives in the Tang Empire, especially in Chang¡¯an. He preferred the brothels and thepany of different women. Thus he couldn¡¯t understand the writer¡¯s longing for a little handmaiden and a bowl of chicken soup.


    The next morning, that tall and thin Taoist left in a horse carriage without inquiring what Ning Que, the one who scribbled the 29 messy characters, was like. After a short while, Dewdrop appeared mid-yawn and rubbed her sleepy eyes. The feelingsst night had all escaped her mind. She epted the warm cup of tea from her maidservant and sipped on it. She subconsciously nced at the table, only to find Ning Que¡¯s ragged memo had somehow disappeared. The messy script that her guest had copiedst night on the rosewood table with wine had dried and vanished.


    She shook her head with a smile. When she put down her cup, she identally knocked her green jade bracelet on the rosewood table. She heard a light noise and saw the flutter of ayer of red and fine powder on the table.


    Dewdrop was stunned and widened her eyes curiously. She hesitated for a moment before pulling out her handkerchief to softly wipe away the powder. Unexpectedly, she found a line of scribbled words under the red powder. They seemed shallow but was actually deeply carved into the wood, unable to be wiped away at all.


    "Sangsang, your master is drunk today and won¡¯t be home to sleep. Remember to drink the chicken soup left in the pot."


    Dewdrop¡¯s eyes were wide as she stared at the words. She vaguely came to a realization. She didn¡¯t know her guest was a legendary Divine Talisman Talisman nor could she predict what achievements Ning Que might make in the future. But she was clear this Taoist wasn¡¯t an ordinary person and wished sincerely that Ning Que had a good prospect. Most importantly, she was instinctively sensitive to opportunities after meeting all kinds of people in her life in brothels after a long time. Thus, she immediately ordered her maidservant to carefully put the table away and take good care of it for future use.


    On the other side, Yan Se boarded a worn horse carriage after leaving the brothel. Not long after, he came across a young Taoist with a yellow paper umbre under his arm. The young Taoist greeted him with great respect, saying, "Uncle, I¡¯ve found the information you wanted. The person is named Ning Que and he has escorted the princess all the way... Lyu Qingchen has confirmed that he has no potential at all. The Academy had also tested him a while back, but he failed even in the course of magic skills."


    Yan Se sighed. Never mind this person¡¯s rtionship with the princess, it was a problem that his acupoints were all blocked. Could he ask the West-Hill Divine Pce to gather the powers of the Great Divine Priests and forcibly break his acupoints by imposing Grand Spiritism on him? It wasn¡¯t easy to find a sessor of the fine Martial Arts of Talisman. He had finally found onest night yet it was someone born deficient. What a pity.


    ...

 Chapter 102: The Message About the Vertical Bamboo Flute of the World

    Chapter 102: The Message About the Vertical Bamboo Flute of the World


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que did not know that he had missed another huge opportunity, and, of course, he did not know some Divine Talisman Master saw his grass script on a piece of ount book ripped by him in the brothel, which produced two famous calligraphy notes, Wooden Rubblings of Yan and Chicken Soup Calligraphy. Today, he still was an unknown young boss in Lin 47th Street, and an ordinary but diligent student in Academy.


    He woke from a drunken sleep the next morning and drank the bowl of chicken soup which perhaps was warmed up again and again, frowning. Then, he stopped Sangsang who was preparing to wash the pot and bowl. He looked at her ck face and said seriously, "Last night, I drank too much because I was so happy. I didn¡¯t have time to tell you because I passed out."


    Sangsang looked up, raised her thin eyebrows, opened her bright eyes, and asked with curiosity, "Young Master, what makes you so happy? I¡¯ve never seen you drink that much."


    "I think I¡¯ve discovered a method to understand those books in the old library of Academy."


    Ning Que extended a finger and shook it before her nose on and on, smiling and then said, "Although it¡¯s just a glimmer of hope, it¡¯s hope after all. I think if possible, I must seize the chance."


    The so-called hope was a casual denial of despair. Because denial was casual, it would notst for a long time. As a person who was yed by destiny, Ning Que knew this better than anyone. s, hope tended to be disappointment, then despair. The more hope you had, the deeper regret and pity you had as well.


    Whether the cultivator in the mountain of the Yan territory, or the examiner from Military Ministry, or the mild old man Lyu Qingchen in the journey, or the selection round for the course of magic skills during the academy entrance exam, he experienced the hope that had been ruthlessly stamped out over and over again. Therefore, he became calmer and calmer and even numb. As for entering the magic cultivation world, he never gave up hope in his heart, although he seemed to not care too much for outward appearances.


    Because he knew if he wanted to survive in the world and live well, serve his revenge, and leave his name in history on this ck and fertilend called the Tang, he must enter that world. Once he gave up all hope, his end was not disappointment, but despair.


    To seize the faint hope, Ning Que adjusted his mental state into the most generous and positive one. He would leave Chang¡¯an by carriage early in the morning and ride the carriage back to Lin 47th Streette at night. In the morning, he always felt sleepy when he learned six courses. After the third bell rang, would he jump from his seat with high spirit, rush out of the study room and into the canteen, chew and swallow two meals slowly, take a walk surrounding theke, then climb up the library over and over and read books without a stop.


    He sat near the west window and read calligraphy while enjoying the sunshine. He disassembled every character on the book into strokes with Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong, and then he learned the trend and meaning of those strokes carefully, and forgot their meaning deliberately.


    The female professor still wrote the Hairpin-style Small Regr Script quietly near the east window. Her bun was undone, the splendor of Spring reflected on her smooth bob that was just over ears, which made her look gentle and silent. She did not give any directions no matter how sincere Ning Que was.


    Some afternoon several dayster, he read half of the Primary Exploration on Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow. The characters were disassembled into thousands of strokes, and then reorganized into thousands of character Yongs with different shape and meaning, which cost almost all his energy.


    Ning Que rubbed his fatigued eyes, and then silently turned his head to look at the thickening green leaves out of the window. He knew it was no meaning if he forced himself to read. Even if he consumed all of his energy, he just could understand more meaning from Talisman Master who transcribed books, which provided no help for him to enter into the Initial State.


    To his disappointment, the notes, left by the mysterious instructor, on the paper in the middle of thin book never showed again, not even some words. It seemed like he just disappeared.


    The chirping of cicada that annoyed students in Academy for a thousand years rang again in this afternoon without any warning. Ning Que quietly listened to the chirping of cicadas out of the window for a long time, and then he turned around suddenly, closed the thin book on his knees, and began to meditate with eyes closed.


    The characters on the book were disassembled into strokes with Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong. Then he forced himself to forget the meaning of the character. Therefore, even if the number of characters wasrge, he could manage to stay in the corner of his mental world quietly. However, once he began to meditate on these strokes, theplex strokes would be dangerous.


    On the first day, when he watched the character and forgot the meaning, he felt that his Psyche Power had nowhere to go. He knew if he forced himself to meditate, it would be very dangerous. Therefore, he did not try it again these days. But he could not ept the fact that the hope he had barely just seen was slipping away. As such, he must try it again at the moment.


    He closed his eyes and sat near the window with crossed legs. He seemed to be like a statue without moving a little bit. A little hot Spring breeze blew from the west window to his thin blue clothes, wrinkling it. The waves on the chest of his turquoise robe slowly rose, and then fell t, over and over. It seemed to havee alive. It was a pity that the waves could not continue, so the life slipped away in defeat.


    In a pond somewhere in Academy, wind skimmed water, and little waves pushed away several duckweeds in all direction. However, no matter where they went, they woulde back after touching the wall.


    In some mountain, a famous person walked through the dense forest and visited the famous temple. He knocked on the door, only to find out that the eminent monk had been traveling the world already. He only could leave with disappointment, shaking his head and looking back to the broken road in the forest.


    In Ning Que¡¯s current mental world, thoseplex strokes, those deconstructed characterponents without specific meaning, and those lines of characters suddenly became vivid as his meditated. Each stroke seemed to have a metal edge, bing knives formation of barbarians from grasnd. The tip of the writing seemed to be more humid, bing cold rain outside Spring Breeze Pavilion. The rain began to fall, and each fall meant knives that cut numerous people. The rain was unending, bringing unending conflicts.


    Suddenly, the cutting and rain stopped. He opened his eyes from meditation at once and felt a sharp pain in his chest. He could not help but cough, lowering his head. His hoarse cough suddenly broke the tranquility of the second floor in the old library. He lifted arm to cover his mouth right away, but he found some blood on his blue sleeve.


    "Headmaster of Academy said that to force oneself to do things was boring. You aren¡¯t fit to pursue cultivation. Although you have a stone-forged will, even if you find some interesting method, you... shouldn¡¯t insist on doing things you can¡¯t.


    The female professor was in front of Ning Que without him noticing, speaking to him with gentle eyes.


    Ning Que looked up, and then he just found the female professor was so tiny. He could not tell her real age because she had clear eyes and thin eyebrows. He knew it was she who had pulled him out of meditation when he reached a dangerous state. He could not help butugh at himself. Then he stood up, wiped the blood off his lip, and gave a salute.


    The female professor smiled, shaking her head to tell him there was no need to take this to heart. After nodding her head, she walked deep into the aisle between bookshelves with Hairpin-style Small Regr Script in her arm. Then, she left the old library without others noticing.


    Ning Que had spent a lot of time in meditating unknowingly. It was already twilight outside the windows. He did not rush to leave when night wasing but stood in the west window quietly, listening to cicada¡¯s interrupted chirping because of theirck of practice. Then he walked to the desk, grinded ink and put brush into ink to write down some words.


    ...


    ...


    When the night grewte, the talisman inscription shone again in the deep of second floor in the old library, and then slid to both sides silently. Chen Pipi squeezed out with difficulty, puffing and blowing and his fat face trembling, which looked rather funny.


    He had continued paying attention to the progress of the other party after he left the message that night. However, he did not hear from him after several days because Ning Que took sick leave. He was more curious than angry about what happened. Unfortunately, what annoyed him most these days was his Second Brother who let him fear was crazy. The brother suddenly asked ssmates to learn Rituals of the Yin, so he had no time to visit the old library because of that.


    Today, he finally had time. Chen Pipi rushed to the old library without bathing and rxing, because he just wanted to see if Ning Que, the poor and hateful guy, had given him a reply.


    Chen Pipi walked to the bookshelf and drew out the thin book, Primary Exploration on Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow. He lifted his thick eyebrows with a slight "eh." After he saw it some time, he could not help but shake his head and acimed. "This guy really has some guts, he figuring out such a stupid method, and he could understand?"


    What he saw was the earliest reply from Ning Que. Next, he saw today¡¯s reply. His thick lip could not help but make a louder noise, and he frowned, saying annoyedly, "How can you pursue cultivation if you don¡¯t even understand this? I don¡¯t know you¡¯re a genius or an idiot!"


    After he was silent for a while, Chen Pipi sat beside the desk in the west window and he began to grind ink and gave him a reply. When hemunicated with Ning Que for the second time, he, the genius from West-Hill wrote this. "Are you a kid? You don¡¯t even know the basic reason? Now that you have one acupoint that can¡¯t connect the world, you can¡¯t resonate with the Breath of nature. There¡¯s no other path you can take. If you want to know the specific reason, I could tell you a metaphor. Our body is like a musical instrument, like the vertical bamboo flute, and Psyche Power is the breath in the vertical bamboo flute. It doesn¡¯t mean you can y good music just because sound was produced from vertical bamboo flute¡¯s hole."


    "If there are no holes on your flute, then how can you blow? If the heaven and the earth can¡¯t hear your music, then how can you interact with it? Most of the acupoints in your Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi were blocked, so how else do you wish to torture yourself?"


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 103: Guys with Blocked or Broken Meridians

    Chapter 103: Guys with Blocked or Broken Meridians


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "Morning."


    "Morning."


    "Have you finished copying out the three alternative lesson ns for today¡¯s calligraphy course?"


    "Not yet. We are just getting to it."


    "Well, you¡¯ve to hurry then. I heard that generally, the Lecturer gives scores throughout the ss, which¡¯ll count for a high proportion of this semester¡¯s exam. If we can¡¯t pass this semester¡¯s exam, there¡¯ll be no hope for us."


    "Is daily performance actually counted?"


    "Yes, it is, ording to my uncle. If Dr. Wu does a spot check on the recitation of the official denunciation of 3,748 words, I will certainly fail. Please remind me of each sentence¡¯s initial."


    "Sure. My problem is that I still can¡¯t recite it even if you remind me of the letters."


    In the morning, students got off the horse carriages in front of the Academy and saluted each other.


    The sun was shining and birds were singing in the forest behind the yard. As spring gradually passed and summer approached, the temperature rose higher and higher. The younger students already wore the Academy¡¯smon summer uniform which was light and breathable, and whose sleeves flew in the morning breeze. It helped add a little sense of freedom and freshness. They usually begun their day this way. They were anxious andined, but they all had a unique inner confidence.


    Ning Que was standing among his ssmates and talking with a gentle smile. He looked at all their innocent faces from which the excitement had been erased. He helplesslyughed in his heart and thought about how things never changed with the passage of the time.


    The semester exam was taken three times each year and was one of the Academy¡¯s most important teaching ceremonies, which came next in importance to the Academy¡¯s final test and the Tang Empire student¡¯s internship exam. It would be impossible for young and emtive students to be apathetic. It was likely the students thatined about enough time for the review and little sleep, were now able to recite the words backwards fluently. They, however, deliberately appeared eased and evenzy on the surface.


    On an ordinary morning, learning began with the Doctor of literature, Wu Chentian, reading in a strong Jiaozhou ent. The old Doctor was too impassioned to fluently read the great talent Wang Chongren¡¯s official denunciation in the year of Chenghua, so students could not really understand his ent. The atmosphere in the ss was unavoidably boring. Even when the old Doctor got his three handkerchiefs and half of his green sleeves wet, the students still yawned silently.


    Fortunately, the old gentleman didn¡¯t promptly call the students to stand up and recite this official denunciation. He likely knew that though he was capable of reciting the oracle fluently after 40 years, he could not hold them to the same standards.


    When the bell finally rang for the third time, Ning Que felt relieved. He hastily put away his stationery, rushed passed the other students, and out of ssroom Three. He walked along the stone path and the edge of the wend to cross Qing Lane and headed towards the old library. He now read books and forgot the meaning by Eight Strokes Calligraphy, and no longer fainted while reading, as he used to. Therefore, he need not be so harsh on diet and rest as before. Most importantly, he was anxiously curious to know how the mysteriousmenter would answer the question he asked yesterday.


    Thump thump thump thump, Ning Que went upstairs trailing his garment and wiping his face with his sleeves. He respectfully saluted to the gentle female professor by the east window and then quickly walked to the front of the bookshelf to pick out the thin Primary exploration of the Ocean of Qi and Snow Mountain. He speedily opened it and drew out the densely written on paper. He contained his excitement, read it, and fell into a long silence.


    "Our body is like a musical instrument, just as breathes and goes through a vertical bamboo flute, so does psyche power through the body. A piece of wonderful music may not be yed out only with a flute and aura, because the sound alwayses out from the holes of the vertical bamboo flute."


    "If there¡¯re no holes on your flute, then how can you blow? If the heaven and earth can¡¯t hear your music, then how can you interact? If most of the acupoints in your Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi were blocked, what would you do?"


    Ning Que looked at the person¡¯s messages, and then he raised his head after a while. He shook his head and smilingly gazed at the thick forest and listened to the sound of cicadas outside the window. With a very slight sign, he said, "So, that¡¯s what the truth is. So... I am a vertical bamboo flute that can¡¯t be yed."


    He then bowed his head to look at his chest and abdomen, and then his eyes fell on his green Academy uniform. He imagined the unknown specific appearance of the Ocean of Qi and Snow Mountain within the flesh and blood under the cover of his clothing. It was as if he saw a lot of holeless, t trails and the clumsy stone mountain which could not make any sound, no matter how the water patted and how theke breeze blew.


    "Ah, a person who can write words like these really is a genius!" He could not help but look at the writing on the paper again, his heart fluttered, "To represent the theory of reading and forgetting the meaning with the example of pushing down a woman, and even after that, toe up with the wonderful metaphor as a vertical bamboo flute, the guy must be, if he is a Lecturer, the top Lecturer in the Academy."


    Out of admiration, Ning Que unavoidably fell into sadness, while he was thinking of thekeside stone and soundless mountain that had no acupoints, and thinking of the dumb wood that couldn¡¯t be yed out without any holes within his body. He then sighed and put the Primary exploration on the Ocean of Qi and Snow Mountain back on the bookshelf, and kept walking around among the bookshelves.


    Having known the rtionship among the orifice grottos, the Psyche Power and the Breath of nature, and having realized the limitation of the congenital constitution, Ning Que understood that, though he could take a nce at that world and fulfill his wish in some stupid way, he could not actually step into that world. Thus he felt it meaningless to continue reading by means of watching the character and forgetting the meaning, because for him, entering that world was far more important than taking a fascinating glimpse into that world.


    In order not to disturb the female professor who was tracing words quietly at the east window, he deliberately slowed and rxed his steps while walking up and down among the bookshelves. His face looked really calm, or in other words, seemed calm. His tranquil countenance looked over the numerous cultivation books whose titles, though merely given a nce, were still really enigmatic and became a great temptation for him. However, it was also an annoying torture for him at this moment.


    Suddenly a book in the corner of the second row from the bottom of the bookshelf was found. He seemed a little surprised with his eyebrow subconsciously rising. The book was definitely not the greatest one among those precious and enigmatic cultivation books kept on this floor, but its title reminded him of something from the past.


    The title of this book was Wu Shanyang¡¯s Theory on Haoran Sword . It was Haoran Sword that reminded Ning Que of his first cultivator ever encountered on the battlefield the Great Sword Master who was dressed in a turquoise robe and who intended to kill Princess Li Yu in Northern Mountain Road. The Great Sword Master had been abandoned by the Academy, and what he cultivated was the Haoran Sword.


    He squatted to take the Haoran Sword book out, after a moment of hesitation, he walked back to sit on the piece of the wood that he sat on almost every day. He sat in the warm spring sun and opened the book shortly after having had a moment of tranquility.


    Outside the window, the cicadas chirped louder while the forest seemed quieter. The rest of the students downstairs were quiet. Perhaps the chirping of the birds was soothing them to sleep or they were working hard to prepare for the next month¡¯s semester exam, licking their pen tips. Ning Que sat on the floor alone between the cicadas and the quietness.


    All of a sudden, his face turned pale. He clenched his right hand into a fist and pounded on his chest, trying to force himself out of meditation. He dared not catch a glimpse of a page in that book again.


    He still read with the Deconstruction method of Yong¡¯s Eight Strokes Calligraphy. As he did, he could faintly feel a familiar breath from a few days ago within his body. The breath flew slowly along the strokes in a calligraphic style over his chest and abdomen, and then disappointingly met the wall of theke. He never thought, however, that the words and calligraphic style in this Wu Shanyang¡¯s Theory on Haoran Sword were extremely sharp. It, together with the breath in the body, would stab cruelly and ruthlessly through the wall of theke instead of turning back.


    It was the stab that made Ning Que feel as if the cold edge of a sword had abruptly pierced his heart. He had revolved through life and death and suffered from serious injuries many times, that painful feeling was still too horrible for him to bear, even with some preparation.


    If he were an ordinary person, at this moment he might cry out miserably and fall on the ground with a pale face. Next, the Unreal State would mix with the real state, and then he would convulse into unconsciousness.


    But Ning Que was not ordinary, he had many simr experiences like this moment, or even more miserable than this moment.


    He didn¡¯t know how many times he took Sangsang to climb over the rough Min Mountain. Once, at the age of eleven, he fell off a cliff but did not get killed; he was fortunately stopped by a hard tree that was popping out of the cliff. Yet the stiff branch of the tree stretching toward the sky like a sword directly pierced his chest through the back, but he still survived such a severe injury. From that day on, there was nothing painful that could make him feel terrified or desperate.


    If the Ning Que who hung on the branches of cliffs did not die, then the Ning Que who now was sitting on the floor in the sun would not have any problems. He did not even utter a single murmur, but gasped for breaths, and then recovered hisposure, and looked at the closed book again, and murmured in a low voice,


    "If one¡¯s meridians are blocked, he will feel pain; otherwise he won¡¯t feel pain. This really is an evesting truth."


    He shook his head and leaned back against the shelf. He tried twice to repress coughs with his sleeves covering his lips, and guessed that his lung lobe had likely been hurt by the Haoran Sword that had been hidden in the page. But what was very strange was that a sense of excitement rather than frustration appeared on his face.


    If one felt pain, his meridians might be blocked. What if one bore the pain to get the meridians open, would he feel the pain any more?


    At this moment, Ning Que recalled the waterfalls that were like the milky way falling from the sky, recalled the ck oil spewing out of the wild in, recalled the broken fire hydrant beside which an excited pretty, barefoot girl had her skirt rolled up and kept ying in excitement rather than in panic, and even recalled the countless saints and sages of martial arts.


    There were guys whose meridians could be easily pushed open by sleep. There were guys who could recover marvelously by lying in unfinished silk in a grave for a few years even when their power was disabled. There were guys who could still be invincible even when their conception and Governor vessels had been cut off by a knife. There were guys who were able to turn themselves into "one meridian" inexplicable masters even when all their meridians were cut off.


    Ning Que was lost in thought- since all these old fellows and little boys couldprehend, why not him? If those guys could finally seed because of some stupid but resolute strength in their temperament, was he weaker than them?


    Ning Que¡¯s clear eyes had a sh of toughness and pride. He supported himself on the bookshelf, straining to stand up. He then walked to the table at the west window to grind the ink and to wet the brush before leaving a passage for the guy. "I have understood the importance of opening acupoints. If I was destined to be blocked in all acupoints all of my life by Haotian, I¡¯ve no choice... but to push them open by myself."


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 104: To Remove the Mountain

    Chapter 104: To Remove the Mountain


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    After the second day of sses, when the bell rang, the students did not leave the study room as cheerfully as they usually did. Instead, they turned a session of shocked and puzzled faces toward the door. Xie Chengyun and Zhong Dajun were standing by the door, with severalpanions. They were Grade A Dormitory students and had no reason to be here today.


    sses had been ongoing for more than a month, and ssmates gradually became familiar with each other and each dormitory came together collectively. Although there were no disputes among them, it was only natural that they had opposing attitudes. When they saw Xie Chengyun, Zhong Dajun, and the others at the door, the students of ssroom Three were not only curious but also vignt.


    Mr. Xie from the South Jin Kingdom had not gone upstairs for days, so he had had a good rest and his face was no longer as pale as it was before. He walked slowly with hispanions to the back of the study room, calmly suffering the suspicious and prudent gazes from the ssroom Three student¡¯s, he then took out a letter from his sleeve and handed it over, seriously and solemnly.


    Ning Que kept watching the door quietly, thinking that the person Mr. Xie was looking for might be Jin Wucai or someone in the front row who might be the daughter of one of the Chang¡¯an nobles. He spected a romantic scene would y out, but he never expected that Mr. Xie was actually walking straight to the rear of the study room, towards him.


    After taking a short moment to contemte, he stood up and smiled at him. He looked at the brown envelope, and then asked, "This¡¯s an invitation or... You¡¯d like to invite me to dinner?"


    Xie Chengyun took one nce at Zhong Dajun who was standing beside Ning Que, whom he turned to with a severe countenance and calmly said, "It¡¯s not an invitation, but a challenge. I¡¯d like to set a gentleman¡¯s agreement with you to see who will pull the top spot in the semester exam of the Academy, which is about to start in a month. Since it¡¯s an agreement between two gentlemen, I won¡¯t profit at your expense. It¡¯s limited to the three courses that you got A+ in the academy entry exams."


    Ning Que¡¯s total results on the academy entry exams were not that eye-catching, but being that he got A+ in three courses, driving, toxophily and mathematics, made him abruptly overshadow the prominent young talents, Xie Chengyun, Zhong Dajun and Wangying. Their so-called disgust and unwillingness started from that moment on. In addition to theter resoundingpetition of going upstairs together, Xie Chengyun, the talent of the South Jin Kingdom, who had been prominent since childhood had to admit that he kept losing to the ordinary Bordertown soldier. Xie Chengyun, who came to Tang Empire bearing the glory of his families and even the South Jin Kingdom wouldn¡¯t allow himself to keep losing. Besides, due to the instigations of Zhong Dajun¡¯s and otherpanions¡¯, he decided to take the chance to win back the elegant demeanor that had always belonged to him.


    Naturally, the semester exam was the best chance.


    Ning Que never thought that it was possible. He had not been involved in such games for many years, and hadn¡¯t held grudges over exam results. To be more urate, he had never met a ssmate who could challenge him in his studies since his first grade of primary school, when he was beaten severely with a mop by his mother, after which he always got full marks.


    More crucially, he got used to fatal challenges involving swords, life, and death in this lifetime; but these young ssmates still remained at this level, which inevitably made him feel funny and naive, so he could not helpughing. Looking at Xie Chengyun, he wanted to say something, but he found it hard to make it clear to a guy who was from a noble family.


    A brief moment of silence and a gentle smile meant different things to different people. Zhong Dajun fretfully asked with a sneer, though he clearly knew Ning Que was not a coward, "Are you afraid?"


    The ssroom Three students fell into a moment of silence, and then broke into a whispering discussion after realizing that the Grade A Dormitory students were here to hand in a letter of challenge. Though ssroom Three students feared the well-known guys such as Xie Chengyun and Zhong Dajun, they still could not help getting annoyed on hearing Zhong Dajun¡¯s mockery and provocation. They then all shouted one after another, "Ning Que, ept his letter!"


    Situ Yn stood up, gave a nce at Ning Que, and was ready to say something. Ning Que, however, shook his head to stop her. He epted the letter naturally and stared at Xie Chengyun, and asked. "Although it is neither a duel in cutting sleeves nor a deathmatch in cutting palms, it¡¯s certainly about winning or losing. If you insist on using this naive way to win back your lost dignity, I think you should make a relevant bet."


    He added with a smile, "The bet can¡¯t be too much. If the loser can hold up the old library¡¯srge pir and shout out loud ¡¯I love the Empress¡¯, then I will withdraw in advance."


    After these remarks, the study room burst out into an exaggeratedughter. Xie Chengyun alsoughed and said, "It is a match between gentlemen and what we want is to improve our studies. All the loser has to do is to invite the opposing side to dinner."


    The bet was nothing but a meal. It was the so-called grand n with little skill. Hearing Xie Chengyun suddenly changed the original bet, Zhong Dajun who was standing behind him seemed angry. ssroom Three students, however, considered Xie Chengyun¡¯s proposal absolutely graceful and were more affectionate towards him.


    But Ning Que dismissively shook his head, and smilingly said to Xie Chengyun in a slight voice, "Gentlemen¡¯s agreement... Am I not a gentleman if I don¡¯t ept your challenge? Though I¡¯m not actually a gentleman and never expect to act as a gentleman, I think you are far from being a gentleman to force me to yield to your words in this way."


    Xie Chengyun felt slightly awkward and did not say anything.


    ...


    ...


    The challenge from Xie Chengyun, who was one of the South Jin Kingdom talents, caused a sensation among the Academy students. Rather than hurrying to go home or to dinner, the ssroom Three students all excitedly stayed behind. They, all imbued with collectivism, discussed the possible results and offered advice to Ning Que. Situ Yn even came up with the idea that she would ask the Military Ministry¡¯s Marksman to give Ning Que some special training, who seemed unexpectedly calm and at ease, who apologized and left the study room with a smile on his face.


    Things such as life and death were greatly feared, while the rest were not that terrible. Acting in earnest might be in vain and even be ridiculed. For Ning Que, who had experienced too much fear of life and death, Xie Chengyun¡¯s serious letter of challenge was just a naive trick that would make peopleugh.


    The reason he epted this letter was not because he wanted to review the past nor to regain the glory of ranking at the top of the school list, but because he did not have the energy to chat with theseds. His entire focus was now on the upstairs of the old library and on the humble mountain where there were no orifice grottos.


    He went upstairs once again and respectfully saluted the eastern window. He then walked towards the western window and stopped at the bookshelf to pick out the thin book, within which he found no messages left by the mysterious guy, so he put the book back with a regretful sigh. He then took out the Wu Shanyang¡¯s Theory on Haoran Sword from the third shelf and sitting cross-legged on the floor began to read.


    ...


    ...


    If a rugged and inessible mountain was lying in front of Ning Que, what he was doing now would be the things that the foolish old man did. Even if he couldn¡¯t climb over the mountain, he would still dig a few tunnels in the middle.


    No one knew how many pairs of sandals were buried and how many hoes were broken while the foolish old man tried to remove the mountain. He was a guy of great perseverance. Even though he dug out numerous tunnels on both sides of the mountain, had an indestructible body and kept at it for millions of years, without the knowledge of modern engineering, it was all futile.


    Most of the time, the idea that man could conquer nature was an ideal wish that could inspire mankind to move forward at the spiritual level. Yet in specific cases, not all the things could bepleted perfectly relying merely on perseverance.


    Let¡¯s get back to the foolish old man who was worshipped by Ning Que and many heroes. When people questioned him, he would say that he had endless children and grandchildren and that they would finally finish removing the mountains since mountains were always standing there. This remark was really refreshing, vigorous, and vaguelyplied with the true meaning of the question whether to chop the peach blossom for drinking wine. The question was put forward by the Academy¡¯s Headmaster. This was the so-called infinite. Nevertheless, the foolish old man did not know a brutal truth that "mountains sometimes could grow taller."


    After a few days, the ink like a sword pierced his heart.


    The Haoran Sword calligraphic style dismantled in Yong¡¯s Eight Strokes Calligraphy was like numerous sharp swords that transversely and vertically plugged into Ning Que¡¯s body. And numerous invisible holes were poked out. Yet those holes quickly copsed without leaving any channels.


    In order to pierce through those blocked channels, Ning Que made painstaking efforts with severe moral and mental depreciation. He didn¡¯t faint again, but with the increasing frequency of meditation and forcibly mobilizing the Psyche Power to tear down the mountains, his face became paler and paler, and his throat became drier and drier, while his ears began to hum. The pain in his chest was strong enough to kill countless talents like Xie Chengyun.


    The injured lungs started to affect his breathing, so his cough at night got louder and huskier, which sounded unpleasant and affected Sangsang¡¯s sleep. Finally, he was sent to the medical hall after spitting out blood one morning. He was checked in as a TB patient and the doctor then arbitrarily prescribed some tonic drugs and told Ning Que to have a good rest, instead of going to the brothel, but the doctor didn¡¯t say more after charging twenty tales of silver.


    Having paid such a hefty price, that mountain, that humble mountain, or that Snow Mountain was still silently standing there in Ning Que¡¯s body. It was really true, the mountain always copsed when he was trying to dig at it, and it stood firmly still when he was trying to remove it.


    One night, Chen Pipi finallypleted the tasks of learning the Rituals of the Yin sacrifice process. The task was arranged by his Second Senior Brother. Chen Pipi came to the old library once again in the starlight and opened the thin book. He nearly cried out in shock when he saw the sonorous and forceful deration left by Ning Que.


    He pointed at the sentence with his lips quivering, and angrily whispered, "You¡¯re really an idiot ah? Except for the West-Hill Divine Pce which applies the brilliance of Haotian to help people push through their acupoints by spellcasting the Grand Spiritism, who can change his fate in defiance of nature in this world,? You want to get your acupoints on your own! You are extremely arrogant and foolish!"


    Chen Pipi got more furious, thinking of the long-lost Peach Hill in West-Hill, and then shouted, "It will cost the three Great Divine Priests¡¯ half a lifetime of cultivation to spell cast the Grand Spiritism. Who in this world is worth such a big price? You know, I, as a genius, was only fed a few Heavenly Power Pills in those years."


    He felt pity for Ning Que¡¯s misfortune and felt angry for his absurd struggle. He took up the pen and finished a stroke with resentment and annoyance. "If one could get the acupoints open as he wished, then everyone in the world would be a cultivator. You idiot!"

 Chapter 105: Debates with Private Messages

    Chapter 105: Debates with Private Messages


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Gently patting his cheeks and rubbing his hands, Ning Que gathered himself to go upstairs and meet the female teacher. After waving away the cicada, he took out the book from the bookcase and looked at it with hope. Seeing the new writing on the paper, he could not help but feel pleased as he raised his eyebrows. However, soon after, he became somewhat angry and his eyebrows then lowered.


    The mysterious guy was not polite at all in the message, and even could be said to be extremely cold-blooded, shattering Ning Que¡¯s hopes during these days. That guy shattered his hope that "where there¡¯s a will, there¡¯s a way" and directly told him that no one in the world was able to open up the acupoint by his own strength, and that all those who had tried to do so were dead now.


    "Dead? How about the people from Devil¡¯s Doctrine?"


    Ning Que muttered to himself with disappointed eyes and secretly thought in his heart, " Since the gray-haired man said that everyone could be the God of Cookery (someone who was good at cooking), then why couldn¡¯t everyone be a cultivator ?"


    After a long time of silence, he finally decided to stop reading Wu Shanyang¡¯s Theory on Haoran Sword .


    For many reasons, Ning Que could have used his strong perseverance to painstakingly move the mountains, not caring about the difficulties or obstacles he might have faced. However, courage and perseverance were not equivalent to stubbornness and stone-like obstinance.


    Although even now he still did not know the mysterious messager¡¯s identity and status in the Academy, he firmly believed that the man was certainly a cultivation genius, whose understanding of cultivation was far deeper than his own. Since the man said that forcedly opening up the acupoint could lead to death, then it would be very dangerous for him to blindly move the mountains.


    " Anyone who is smart enough may serve as my teacher, and it¡¯s wise to follow their good suggestions ." Ning Que¡¯s rational thinking made him decide to temporarily stop using the Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong. Yet he still felt inevitably disappointed and could not help but write a passage with an ink-dipped brush before leaving the old library.


    "Today I won¡¯t read anymore, but tomorrow I¡¯ll continue it. Now I¡¯m reading Wu Shanyang¡¯s Theory on Haoran Sword instead of Primary Exploration on Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow . You can leave me a message over there. I have a final question: if most people can¡¯t sense the Breath of Nature for their different physiques and this is the fate Haotian gave us, do you think that the Haotian master is too unfair?"


    ...


    ...


    Late at night, Chen Pipi appeared again in the building. He looked out the window to see the dark night sky where stars were covered by clouds. Taking out the book from the bookshelf, he got that piece of paper and could not help butugh after reading it. With pettish, obese, round cheeks, he thought thisd had be blunter and blunter in the message, who seemed to order him to do certain things even if he was actually asking for help. He really did not know where the boldd came from.


    Although he thought that, he still panted while squatting his body to take out Wu Shanyang¡¯s Theory on Haoran Sword from the bookshelf and then went to the western window so as to begin to reply Ning Que.


    As the most shining genius student of the Academy in recent years, after entering into the Second Floor, Chen Pipi had to learn from the sses under the pressure of those terrifying Senior Brothers for the past few years, with no chance to exert his own hobby of teaching others. That night, he saw Ning Que¡¯s self-expression message and asionally felt interested to reply to it. Since then, he had kept his mind on it, wanting to see whether the poor guy could have a breakthrough, as well as wanting to meet his needs of teaching others.


    It was so called the helping addiction. Chen Pipi did not know that poor guy¡¯s name, gender, or age. But since he began to help, it was like the mud in the wend before the building, sticking to the hands and hard to get rid of. Therefore, this was purely a psychological problem.


    ...


    ...


    The second day, Ning Que went to the old library, directly taking out the book about Haoran Sword, and then saw the mysterious man¡¯s message as he wished. Seeing two lines of arrogant words on the paper, he could not help but rub his eyebrows with a grin.


    "There is no equality at all in the world. The Haotian master is like the sunshine on Snow Mountain, who will always be taking pity on the clouds while on the lotus above andzily looking at the small grass at the foot of the mountain. For example, I¡¯m the lotus as the unique genius in the world and you¡¯re a poor fellow who can¡¯t cultivate for having no acupoint in the body. So as grass, what you need to do now is to ept it rather than doubt it."


    Ning Que held that thin paper and murmured, "The unique genius in the world? What an arrogant guy!"


    Reading this message, he was increasingly skeptical of the identity of the mysterious man. From the sentence construction, this man was not like the venerable professors in the Academy those years, but more like the Xie San master, Zhong Dajun, who had grown up in the greenhouse as a kind of precious orchid.


    But this person was obviously better than Xie Chengyun and others by a few levels because of the natural tone in which he said he was a genius¡ªas if it was an irrefutable and absolute truth proven countless times by the world and by time; such as water naturally flowed downhill, hot and sour noodle slice soup was delicious, and Sangsang was hard-working.


    However, in terms of self-confidence, Ning Que has always been wildlypetitive.


    He never kept a high profile in front of a crowd or ssmates, for he thought he had already passed that stage of life and it was not suitable, as well as naive, to do so. But it did not mean that he had the slightest doubt about his own ability.


    Since childhood, he had been on the school¡¯s genius list. From kindergarten to a variety of interest sses and math exams, he had always been invincible under the Chinese education system. Therefore, thisd absolutely believed that he was the real genius.


    So today he answered it in this way:


    "There¡¯s no need to argue about the lotus and the grass. But what I want to say is that if there is a unique genius in the world, then this genius can only be me rather than you. Because only I¡¯m qualified to be the only one. Thus there is a question. Since you said that Haotian master would only pity the true genius, why can¡¯t I cultivate as the real one?"


    ...


    ...


    West Hill Divine Kingdom, which had the most believers, Supermundane Experts, wealth, and power in the world, naturally had a lot of geniuses and talents who silently cultivated before the Seven Tomes of Arcane.


    The Academy in the Tang Empire, which had the most respected status, the greatest number of hermits, and a character like the Headmaster of the Academy, naturally had a lot of geniuses and wise people, who calmly spent the days behind a few statues on the Second Floor.


    With a just short sixteen-year life, Chen Pipi had been studying in the two ces for years and had long been recognized as the world¡¯s most outstanding genius from the teachers¡¯ attitudes and in the students¡¯ eyes. Even if he met the other two people from the Unknown ce, he was also proud enough to take his usual attitude and his confident messages for granted. Because he thought that it only borated a simple fact.


    Now he finally met a guy prouder and more confident than him.


    The problem was that in Chen Pipi¡¯s view, that guy who called himself the only genius was just a poor person who was ignorant about cultivation and had no acupoint but only some perseverance and clever ideas... Well, Chen Pipi recognized that the guy could be regarded as both intelligent and resolute, but how could the guypete with him for the genius title?


    Furious, Chen Pipi left a question in the message for Ning Que under the dim starlight through the clouds, apanied by the angry cicadas beside the window:


    "You used Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong to deconstruct the words. In this stupid way of reading the book and forgetting the words¡¯ meanings, you might have already hurt the heart and lungs when reading the book about Haoran Sword. Then I¡¯ll ask you how to treat the heart and lungs injury. Don¡¯t mention the heavy medicine like grass seed. I only ask you how to cook and eat mugworts and felon herbs, and how to deal with angelica roots and ginkgos. Slice or grind them? How many doses of red ginseng and brown sugar? How to mix them? When to add Chinese olives and sweet wormwoods? Answer me now!"


    ...


    ...


    "Mugworts and felon herbs? Angelica roots and ginkgos? Red ginseng and brown sugar? Chinese olives and sweet wormwoods?"


    Looking at those scrawled messages on the paper, Ning Que imagined the mad appearance of that man, who must be very young, and could not help but raise his eyebrows, thinking it was really interesting.


    It was not surprising that the guy left questions to test him. But to his surprise, the questions left by that guy had nothing to do with the six subjects of cultivation¡ªsuch as how many sword meanings could be read by the method of Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong¡ªbut were actually questions about the approaches of medicine.


    Instantly, he understood his opponent¡¯s intention. That guy regarded himself as a unique genius on cultivation. So it was naturally kind of unfair if he used the questions on cultivation to test others. Thus, he simply chose the questions that had nothing to do with the six subjects of cultivation, but on how to choose, cook, and take the traditional Chinese medicine.


    His opponent¡¯s choice for this topic was very clear, for he was very proud¡ªthe so-called genius was a versatile person. If it was unfair to use the cultivation questions for a test, then he just had to use the problems that the opponent had already met.


    "What an extremely proud guy."


    Ning Que shook his head with a smile and then suddenly stopped smiling, for he really did not know how to solve this problem or how to deal with those familiar drugs to cure his own lung injury. The doctor in Chang¡¯an had received Sangsang¡¯s 20 taels of silver, but only told him to have a good rest. Although he had the habit of herbal healing treatment in Min Mountain, he really did not know how to cure this lung injury or use these drugs.


    If someone was notpetitive in his daily life, then he might not think that was worth doing. Have you seen thed Wang Bo argue with his contemporaries about the writing methods? Have you seen Lin Zhiying at the age of 17pete with students in Hua Gang art school? But if thed Wang Bo met Gan Luo, or Lin Zhiying at the age of 17 met Sun Yaowei...


    Ning Que now encountered a proud guy who proimed himself to be a genius and was also likely to be a true genius. Of course, he wanted to argue with his opponent. But unfortunately, he really did not know how to answer this question.


    "I really can¡¯t answer your questions." He wrote on the paper with shame.


    Then he lifted up his eyebrows a bit, with a few shining freckles on his face, and tightened his right hand holding the brush, freely writing on the paper: "But for fairness, I have a question to test you. Can you answer it?"


    ...


    ...


    2011102323 revision. (To be continued... If you like this novel, we wee you to go to qidian to give rmended votes and a monthly pass. Your support is my greatest motivation.)

 Chapter 106: Cattles, the Back Mountain and a Prescription

    Chapter 106: Cattles, the Back Mountain and a Prescription


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    On the table near the western window under the starlight was a sheet of paper, two sheets of paper, three sheets of paper...


    Chen Pipi looked at the dense small characters in ink on the paper, with wider and wider eyes staring. He could feel his scalp prickling. He wondered about what kind of problem this was, with actually three full sheets of paper, and read them from the beginning subconsciously:


    "Haotian shines all over the world, just like the cattleman who loves and is concerned about all the creatures. If you think you¡¯re a bit smart, then try to calcte the number of cattle raised by Haotian."


    "The cattle gather in the Kaiping Market of northern Tang Empire. They¡¯re divided into four groups to pass through the gates heading towards the barbarians¡¯ grasnd to graze leisurely. The first group is white as milk. The second group has shiny ck skin. The third group is yellow-brown, and the fourth group is colorful. Each group of cattle has bulls as well as cows in unequal amounts."


    "Firstly, I¡¯ll tell you the proportion of the bulls: the number of white cattle is equal to the number of brown cattle plus one third and a half of the number of ck cattle. In addition, the number of ck cattle is equal to a quarter and one fifth plus all the brown cattle... When the brown bulls and colorful bulls gather together, they form a triangle where no cattle dare break into..."


    "Please find out the exact number of different cattle. And please note that I could solve this when I was seven years old." (Note)


    ...


    ...


    In the following time, Chen Pipi stared at the dense characters in ink on the paper and began to bite the brush holder. He scratched his head, tugged on his hair, swung his legs around and bit his lips. He took a deep breath of the cold air, licked the tip of the bush and started calcting before giving up. He repeated the actions above and cursed loudly deep into the dark night.


    The mountain behind Academy was surrounded by thin fog in the morning. The pavement was surrounded by a few fences, with a faint sound of pecking chicken nearby. Random sounds of reading and questioning could be heard from within Academy where the pavement led to.


    The fog gradually disappeared and Chen Pipi went out with an obese body. His eyes were bloodshot after staring at the question all night and the usual tightly tied hair was a mess, like hay tugged on by chicken, which made him look very pathetic. He did not look like he had been reading all night, but more like a poor kid who had been caned by his mother with sticks all night.


    He went to the door of the school, listening to the sounds of reading and questioning inside and thinking about his own arrogance in the usual days, and could not help but let loose a look of shame on his fat face. However, the impulse of solving this problem was eventually defeated by the humiliation he might face. Therefore, he made up his mind, pushed the door open and went in to bow to everyone without looking around respectfully.


    After a moment, theughing sounds of shock and ridicule showed up in the study room.


    "Is there actually a math question in the world that even our Junior Brother can¡¯t solve?"


    "If you, the only genius in this world can¡¯t solve the problem, how can we solve it?"


    "Pipi... don¡¯t fool us."


    At this moment, a person appeared in front of the study room¡¯s door. Theughter inside suddenly came to an end and everyone including Chen Pipi quickly stood up to respectfully bow and say, "Hello! Second Brother."


    This man called as Second Brother was very tall, wearing a very ancient crown cap and a suit of ordinary college summer clothes, and was tied with golden silk braided ribbon on the waist. With sword-shape eyebrows and bright eyes, he looked awe-inspiring and was covered with a trace of preciseness and politeness. The whole person standing here was like an unshaken pce.


    "Spring is the start of a year. Now it¡¯s still the end of the spring, not the summer yet. You guys have beenzy! Dawn is the start of a day. Now it¡¯s still the beginning of the dawn. You guys have been mischievous! Have you forgotten the rules?!"


    Everyone knew that Second Brother always abided by preciseness and rules and was even more nervous when facing himpared to facing the headmaster of Academy and Eldest Brother. Because they had long been ustomed to this cliche, they tended to ignore it and did not mind at all, just smiling and acting dumb as a response.


    Chen Pipi could not act numb, so he forced an ugly smile and tidied up his disheveled hair with the fastest speed under Second Brother¡¯s strict eyes. Then he pulled the wrinkled clothes on the body and went forward after a cough, very respectfully handing the sheets of paper in his hands over to Second Brother.


    "At the academy entry exam, you scored A+ in six subjects. Is there actually a math question you can¡¯t solve?"


    Second Brother frowned slightly and nced at the three sheets of paper. The words were simr, but were not meant to mock at Chen Pipi, but expressing his doubts. Who gave the question that had stumbled a genius like his Junior Brother?


    "Yes?"


    After reading the question on the paper quickly, Second Brother frowned and his thin lips tilted upwards. After a long time, he finally uttered a few words. "This... Who raised the bloody question? It¡¯ll take too much trouble and time to solve it. I have to study the ancient rituals. There¡¯s no time for me to do this with you, so do it by yourself."


    After saying that, Second Brother whipped his sleeves around, ced his hands on the golden silk woven ribbon on his waist, and then proudly turned away from the study room and went straight toward the fence surrounded by fog outside the door.


    Everyone was silent in the study room and nced at the back of Second Brother surprisedly, thinking that even the serious and proud Second Brother used this method to avoid solving the question. Thinking of the serious Second Brother in his daily life, some people wanted tough but immediately raised their hands to cover their mouths for fear of letting him hear them.


    Seeing Second Brother gradually go away, Chen Pipi looked much unhappier with convulsions and even waves on his fat face, and then went to the door with a cry. "Second Brother! You can¡¯t just leave without any suggestions!"


    At this point, Second Brother slowly walked towards the stonend outside with rigorous and regr paces, just like an emperor on the stage of a y. Listening to Chen Pipi¡¯s plea, he did not return but raised his hand impatiently to rebuke annoyedly. "As I said, do it yourself. This crazy question¡¯s answer turns out to be a huge number... Don¡¯t talk about Kaiping Market, even the whole Tang Empire can¡¯t contain so many cattle. I¡¯d rather be curious where Haotian ranch is!"


    ...


    ...


    "Well, I admit that I can¡¯t figure out this crazy problem. But I don¡¯t believe you can solve it, especially when you were seven years old. Unless you immediately tell me the answer, I¡¯ll think you¡¯re cheating. To tell you the truth, if you cheat, there¡¯ll be a very serious consequence in Academy, especially for me and someone who was pissed off today. That¡¯s not a warning to you but a friendly reminder."


    Beside the table near the western window, Ning Que stepped on the chair with his right foot and put his right arm on the window to support his jaw, happily reading that guy¡¯s message with eyebrows that twitched with pleasure from time to time. When he saw the words "pissed off", he could not help butugh loudly, which caused the female professor at the eastern window to frown and nce at him.


    Ning Que quickly straightened his body and then continued to read that guy¡¯s message.


    He did not know who was pissed off at the message, and thought that it was an excuse for that guy to keep the face. If he knew it was the legendary Second Brother from Second Floor that was pissed off and angrily whipped his sleeves around to leave, one would wonder if he would be much happier or be scared out of his wits.


    As for that guy¡¯s usation of cheating, Ning Que simply did not care about it. As a Stockholm patient solution for solving math problems, he was very aware of the pain and anger when one could not find the answer to a question¡ªthat guy¡¯s usation in the message was nothing more than being extremely curious about the answer.


    "Do you want to know the answer to this question? That¡¯s simple, tell me the answer to your medicine question and then we tie in this test. If you¡¯re not convinced, we can continue the gameter."


    Out of the window were the brilliant final spring and young cicadas crying desperately. Ning Que shook his head and chuckled, rolling his sleeves up to pour in water and grinding ink, and then, he dipped the brush in the ink stone to write the words above on the paper.


    ...


    ...


    On the second night, the horse carriage left Academy, going through the Vermilion Bird Gate in the south part of Chang¡¯an, and then arrived in Lin 47th Street of Eastern City, stopping in front of Old Brush Pen Shop. Ning Que turned back to thank the carriage driver and walked into the shop.


    Sangsang closed the shop and walked out carrying a bowl of leftover hot and sour noodle slice soup from the morning. She put the soup together with chopsticks and towels in the front of Ning Que, and then took out a bowl of vinegar-soaked vegetable heads and a te of sd from under the table.


    After a whole day of studying hard in the Academy, Ning Que had to eat leftovers and small salted vegetables after arriving home. He thought that they should treat themselves better, for they had two thousand taels of silver in hand after all. If it happened in the daily life, perhaps he would directly teach the little handmaiden a lesson. But he was in a good mood today, so he just shook his head and picked up the chopsticks to eat happily, while asking about the shop¡¯s business today.


    Sangsang has already eaten them in the afternoon. She sat beside him, with thin folded arms on the table and little ck face on her arms. Staring with the willow-shaped eyes, she leaned the head to look at Ning Que¡¯s face. After a long time, she curiously asked, "Young master, are you in a good mood today?"


    "Yeah." Ning Que put a piece of a little ck salted vegetable heads into his mouth and crunched on it. He frowned painfully at its sour taste and replied vaguely, "I met a fascinating guy in Academy recently."


    Sangsangughed happily and lifted up her little face to ask with concern upon hearing that he had met a new friend in Academy. "Is the person your ssmate? Male or female?"


    Ning Que looked at the little handmaiden¡¯s face and went slightly nk, dipping the chopsticks in the warm hot and sour noodle slice soup. After a moment of hesitation, he said, "I¡¯ve never seen the person, but... probably a man?"


    "No, no."


    Thinking of that guy¡¯s obscene metaphor for reading without getting the meanings in the first message, he shook his head and categorically said, "Not probably, that guy is certainly a man, a very poor and wretched man who has suffered losses in the hands of women many times."


    "Poor and wretched..." Sangsang began to think and wrinkled her nose. "They seem to be two different words."


    "Poor experience, wretched temperament." Ning Que seriously exined.


    Sangsang sat up and curiously asked, "Does it mean he¡¯s very ugly?"


    "Just as I said, I¡¯ve never seen him."


    Ning Que took out a piece of paper from the body and handed it over to her. "There are several medical herbs and their uses written in the paper. Tomorrow you go to the pharmacy to take medicine, and thene back to deal with them by yourself. Remember not to let the others see it."


    Sangsang received it and frowned. "Why can¡¯t the others see it?"


    Ning Que thought of the guy who left the messages for him in the old library and could not help butugh to say, "If I guess it right, that guy should be the student on Second Floor of the Academy. So this prescription is certainly an exquisite secret recipe from Second Floor. We¡¯ve got this huge benefit from that guy secretly, so we¡¯d better keep it a secret."


    (Note from the author: This problem belongs to the Archimedes question on cattle. Because of its long length, it¡¯s impossible to write it out all, or I¡¯ll write this chapter too easily. Ha, ha. Everyone can search it on Google. What math means for me is like cultivation for Ning Que. There are a lot of acupoints blocked. I just casually used the math question. If there¡¯s any problem, those math learners can treat me like a kind of gas and just let it go. Therefore, it can be considered as a disimer for Nightfall.)

 Chapter 107: Summer Silently Arrived While Exchanging Letters

    Chapter 107: Summer Silently Arrived While Exchanging Letters


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    There were lots of people around the old library, while the upstairs was quiet as usual.


    On the bookshelfy some precious spiral-bound cultivation books, and inside the books were the ordinary thin paper the Academy students usually used. On the desk beside the west window, a brush, ink, and inkstone quietlyy there. Near the east window, the female professor carefully practiced her small and regr characters. Ning Que, sitting on the floor with his legs crossed, was absorbed in contemting, except for making some notes on the paper and then tucking them into his book asionally. When the night came, another fatd would appear on the second floor and then, after viewing the notes, he would reply with a few sentences or a longment beside the west window.


    Their handwritings, elegantly beautiful or unlimitedly free, were left on the paper. Ning Que and Chen Pipi, twods who did not know each other, keptmunicating by writing letters. Thete-spring and early-summer days quickly, but peacefully and happily, passed, apanied by their every stroke andugh.


    ...


    ...


    "Mr. Nobody, do you have some ways to make the sword strength in the book softer?"


    "Idiot! How could it be called the sword strength if it was soft? By the way, that math problem about cows on the grasnd you offered yesterday was... very weird. What do you mean by the quantitative rtion?"


    "You idiot, please don¡¯t call everything you can¡¯t understand weird. Besides, isn¡¯t there really another way to make acupoint work? I still can¡¯t believe Haotian would be so unfair to a genius like me!"


    "Indeed, there is another way, but I advise you not to count on that. Usually, there is just a short distance between a genius and an idiot. However, if someone counts on such hope, he will be a poor fool atst, no matter what he was before. What¡¯s more, I have to repeat that the math problem you raised yesterday was truly strange andcks beauty."


    "I heard that the approach Devil¡¯s Doctrine applies is different from others. Instead of resorting to the connection with Breath of Nature, they attempt to absorb Breath of Nature into their body forcibly. Is it a possible way to cultivate for those failing to activate their acupoint? Besides, I will offer you the third math problem in the following. Please think deeply about it and don¡¯t always ask me for the answer."


    ...


    ...


    "This problem is very elementary! Are you insulting me? About the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, I have to warn you not to mention the two words, no matter if you are in or outside the Academy. Otherwise, you will tragically be chased and killed by the just and mighty men all over the world. What¡¯s more, I have to smilingly tell you that even if for the way of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, it also requires the activation of acupoint, because only in this condition can the Breath of Nature connect and flow inside your body."


    "What a pity! I thought that maybe there was another avable way."


    "Given that you could deconstruct the character by way of Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong, you are an unusual guy. I really worry about you trying the way of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine if you can¡¯t find other ways. Actually, you should feel lucky, but not pitiful. Otherwise, perhaps I will have to cleave you into three parts someday if you resort to diabolism."


    "To be honest, your words make sense, but I feel very disappointed."


    ...


    ...


    "I think we are kind of pen pals, right? But why didn¡¯t you ever ask me who I am? Aren¡¯t you curious about it at all? Don¡¯t you feel that it is a great lucky chance for you tomunicate with me?"


    "I am not curious about others all the time. Besides, you haven¡¯t asked me about my identity, either."


    "Well, who are you? Where are you from? Which ssroom in the Academy? Are there some beautiful sisters in your family?"


    "I am Ning Que from the City of Wei, a student from ssroom Three in the Academy. There is just a ck handmaiden in my family... Who are you and where are you from? You hate women so much because you already have a ferocious wife or concubines?"


    "I am Chen Pipi, from West Hill. That¡¯s all."


    ...


    ...


    "I heard that a candidate from West Hill got an A+ in six courses five years ago, and that all the instructors of the Academy ran out to crowd around him because that¡¯s the best in the past century. You are that guy?"


    "Exactly! So are you revering and adoring me right now?"


    "I got three A+, two D-, and I abandoned one test. It is said that this is also a unique result in the Academy in the past century. In which case, why should I revere and adore you?"


    "... Three A+, two D-, and one abandoned. It is, indeed, rare and excellent. OK, you are kind of a terrific figure and I temporarily admit that you have the qualifications to talk equally with me."


    ...


    ...


    "You are a West Hill guy. Why would youe to the Tang for learning?"


    "I was born in a big and powerful family in West Hill. My family¡¯s property is beyond your imagination. You know, a genius like me, I was bound to inherit the family property when I was born. However, the trouble is that I have a talented elder brother who justgged behind me a little. More importantly, my elder brother has been very kind to me and taken care of me in everything since I was very young. Besides, he doesn¡¯t have anyints at all when the n elders in my family decided to let me inherit the property. In fact, I have no thoughts on inheriting the property. I think my elder brother is the best candidate, but the seniorities don¡¯t allow me to refuse it. The more time I stay at home in West Hill and the better my elder brother treats me, the more ufortable I feel. Therefore, I just sneakily ran away from home at the age of 10."


    "Ran away from home at the age of 10? Didn¡¯t your n elders look for you everywhere?"


    "They definitely looked for me everywhere. But since they failed, they, for certain, could figure out that I hid inside the Academy. What about you? Why do you study in the Academy, and why did you risk your life in the upstairs for studying during the previous few days?"


    "Studying in the Academy is for the official position of the Tang Empire. What¡¯s more, the cultivation is, of course, a more fundamental reason. As for why I study so hard, that¡¯s because I have lots of things toplete. If I don¡¯t fight with all my life at present, maybe I will be killed in the future."


    "What things are so difficult?"


    "That¡¯s the story I can¡¯t tell you."


    ...


    ...


    The writtenmunication beside the west window of the old library began from the mutual question about cultivation and math, then extended to their mutual lives. As time gently passed, Ning Que quickly recuperated and did not cough after taking Chen Pipi¡¯s prescription. The two youngds gradually became more and more familiar and closer, though they still had not met each other.


    Summer came the previous day, and the temperature became higher and higher. At some time, the west window had been closed and the interior building was filled with darkness. The smile on Ning Que¡¯s face gradually disappeared as he looked at the notes Chen Pipi wrote these days. He found a shocking detail: the guy named Chen Pipi said his family could figure out that he hid inside the Academy if they had failed to find him elsewhere. This indirectly meant that there was no ce that his family could not reach in this world, and only the sacred and mighty Academy could make his family a little scared.


    "In West Hill Divine Kingdom... is there such a powerful and mighty family?"


    Slightly frowning, Ning Que thought for a while, but he could not figure it out, and then he kept reading the notes. Yesterday, he asked in the letter for the first time about whether they could meet. Now he was naturally curious about Chen Pipi¡¯s reply since he was sure that the guy was on the Second Floor.


    Someone¡¯s handwriting was left on the paper yesterday: "When you enter the Second Floor, you will see me at that time."


    Ning Que, shaking his head, replied with his pen: "The issue is... how can I enter the Second Floor?"


    Haotian was so unfair, making thed¡¯s acupoint blocked. No matter how he read books by the way of deconstruction and in an indomitable spirit, he could not really make a step forward in the cultivation journey. At present, looking at the three words "the Second Floor", he unavoidably felt a little disappointed.


    Putting down his pen, standing up, and looking at the quiet bookshelf around him, heughed at himself and sighed. He found it both interesting and boring that he was thinking where the Second Floor was while he was standing on the second floor of the building.


    Suddenly, with a slight frown, he noticed that there was a shallow scratch on the floor down near the bookshelf leaning against the mountain wall near him. On the dark-colored wooden floor, the scratch was very thin and light, which was difficult to be seen if someone did not look carefully.


    After a short silence, he walked toward the area, squatted, and gently touched it. Later, Ning Que was sure that it was caused by the cumtive friction day by day. He looked up at the heavy bookshelf and then his finger pressing the scratch began slightly trembling.


    There were some decorative patterns,plicated in style and sophisticated in meaning, on both sides of the bookshelf. The cumtive dust inside the pattern, suddenly round or square, was of irregrity, presenting a very ugly and malformed shape. Every detail of the ornamentation in the old library was very delicate, except the ugly decoration of the bookshelf leaning against the wall. With more and more confusion, he gently touched with his fingers and then closed his eyes, feeling every touch from his fingers.


    Was the well-known Second Floor behind the bookshelf? The real Academy was situated behind the wall?


    "You can try unclenching the bookshelf and look what is behind it."


    Ning Que quickly opened his eyes and turned around. He noticed that the gentle and beautiful female professor, silently standing behind him, was looking at him with warm, and even a little encouraging, eyes.


    He could notprehend the real meaning of the female professor¡¯s warm and peaceful look, and just looked at the decorative pattern on the bookshelf with a forced smile. asionally, some shing thoughts reminded him of the feeling he had at the sight of the Vermilion Bird at Vermilion Bird Avenue and at the sight of those animal carvings on the eaves in the Imperial Pce. He could faintly guess something and, of course, did not dare to make any disrespectful moves.


    ...


    ...


    It was midsummer in the 13th year of the Tianqi era, and Ning Que and Sangsang had been in Chang¡¯an for several months. They operated the Old Brush Pen Shop and had some simple food every day. Besides, Ning Que was sessfully admitted as a student to the Academy. It seemed that there was no big change in their lives, but, in fact, the real situation was not like that.


    The young soldier from a border town had following Chao Xiaoshu and gone through a bloody and murderous fight in the Spring Breeze Pavilion on a rainy spring night. Besides, he had entered the Imperial Pce one time. In addition, thed had studied hard with those cultivation books in the old library for a few days. These experiences, without a doubt, had helped him view arger and wider world and make friends with some interesting and talented people, which greatly improved his quality, both in vision and spirit.


    During these months, the most important thing was that his first friend was killed, and he ended the lives of censor Zhang Yiqi and Chen Zixian¡ªthe first step on his road of vengeance. Luckily, it seemed that the two enemies¡¯ deaths did not attract much attention from the government of the Tang and that mighty General Xia Hou.


    "It¡¯s too hot, the only shoring of Chang¡¯an."


    Lying on the bamboo chair and looking at the starry sky, Ning Que shook his head and, as he wiped the sweat from his face, said, "It won¡¯t be cooler until the early morning arrives. There is ake beside that Tea Specialist¡¯s residence. Maybe that will be morefortable to stay in than ours?"


    Taking over the towel and soaking it in the cool water bucket, Sangsang replied in a low voice, "Young master, do you n to kill him just because his residence is cooler? Is this revenge... so interesting?"

 Chapter 108: A Bowl of Noodles at Summer Night, a Tea Specialist beside the Lake

    Chapter 108: A Bowl of Noodles at Summer Night, a Tea Specialist beside the Lake


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Chang¡¯an was a perfect city, except for its summer.


    Entering June, the sun became brighter and brighter, and the temperature became higher and higher. Every street and alley was full of summer heat, and the asional breeze also brought the tiresome hot heat, causing the green and full leaves to wither and the grapes on trellis to turn purple. What was more, the noble families had to take out their ice cube and themons opened their doors and windows.


    The doors and windows of all shops at Lin 47th Street were open.


    Compared to the risk of being stolen, dying of stroke was obviously more terrible. The toilsome manservants andbors just sat down on the stone steps and looked aroundnguidly to guard against thieves, who actually also stayed at home for coolness. What was more, the shopkeepers and masters were sitting in the alleyway on bamboo chairs with their water buckets.


    With trees blocking the sun at daytime, the narrow and quiet alleyway was a suitable ce for them. In addition, the night wind became cooler while passing through the narrow way, and thus people would feel morefortable.


    All kinds of bamboo beds and small square tables had totally blocked the narrow alleyway. The residents chatted while lying on the bamboo beds, snacking on cold fruit and nuts on the small square tables beside them.


    For someone who was used to seeking happiness in difficulty, he even gobbled down a bowl of spicy Youpo noodle. The sweat triggered by the pepper and the sweat stimted by the heat mingled together, as if telling himself that the night was not so hot.


    A clear "Pa" sound would asionally appear in the alley. It sounded like an adult beating a naughty child, but in fact, it came from people pping their sweaty backs with soaked towels.


    "I say no! You still want to find a concubine to warm your bed in such hot weather?"


    The couple at the fake antique shop quarreled about the concubine issue every day. The people at Lin 47th Street were already used to it, and even wondered if it was a special flirting way for the couple.


    There was also a back door to the alleyway at the Old Brush Pen Shop. It was useless in the past several months until now. Ning Quey on the bamboo chair and epted the wet towel Sangsang handed him He rubbed his naked upper body with a sigh. Listening to the quarrel from the bamboo beds near them, he thought that there indeed was not any fun in the town life written by schrs.


    Since it was boring, Ning Que stood up sulkily and left with his wet towel on his shoulder after greeting the neighbors beside him. Sangsang followed him with difficulty, holding a bucket in one hand and dragging the bamboo chair with another.


    The handmaiden was in a thin blue shirt today, with her little arms and legs naked and her ck face flushed red. Though she usually would not sweat due to a deficiency-cold syndrome, it did not mean that she could not feel the extreme heat in the air. Contrary to that, it would make her feel even more stifled. Looking at Ning Que beside the well, she asked, "Young master, can I take off my outer shirt?"


    Ning Que had just gotten a bucket of fresh cool water from the well and intended to pour it over his head. He became more annoyed and reprimanded her without turning around when he heard that. "You might be young, but you¡¯re still a girl. You shouldn¡¯t take off your clothes in front of a man. You aren¡¯t three or four years old when I could rub or take a shower for you. You¡¯re already a young woman, please be aware of that."


    Sangsang stared at Ning Que irritably and replied, "Young master, you haven¡¯t answered my previous question! Is it so interesting to take revenge? You aren¡¯t bored of it even though you¡¯ve killed a person every few days."


    "This killing business has nothing to with interest."


    Ning Que replied, "Now we eat leftover food and go to toilet to shit every day. Isn¡¯t it repetitive and boring? No matter what, you have to do these things, because you¡¯ll starve to death if don¡¯t eat food and you also will die if you don¡¯t shit. As for the killing, we have no choice but toplete it for a more peaceful life, even if it¡¯s boring."


    After finishing the sentence, he raised his hands with the bucket and then turned it over. The whole bucket of cool well water sshed on his body with a "Hua" sound, and then flowed around the stone floor of the courtyard. Ning Que quickly felt refreshed, but his lower body also felt cooler. He looked down confusedly and realized that his cotton shorts had been pushed down away some distance by the well water.


    Sangsang, looking at his half-naked butt and the waistband tightly around his butt, let loose a rare giggle, failing to conceal her happiness through her hand covered her lips.


    Ning Que quickly pulled up his shorts and then angrily rebuked as he turned his head back. "What¡¯re you looking at? Killing people is more interesting than this kind of thing after all."


    Sangsang put down her hand and looked at Ning Que. She answered carefully, "I¡¯ll make a bowl of fatty intestine noodlester."


    ...


    ...


    In summer of Chang¡¯an, the time before dawn was both the darkest and the coolest. The residents, who had to sleep on the street and count on the alleyway wind due to the long hot night, went back to their houses. They wanted to have the most wonderful andfortable sleep during this short cool time, hoping to make up for the time they lost in the day.


    No one slept at the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    Sangsang cooked a bowl of sweet-smelling noodles, with soup and lots of chive and six or seven sections of fatty intestine and two big intestine heads.


    After gobbling it down enjoyably, Ning Que rubbed his mouth, put on amon but shabby shirt, wore a new but ordinary hat and covered most of his face with a mask, and then wrapped his podao and big ck umbre. Later, he pushed open the back door of the courtyard and went into the dark night after bidding Sangsang goodbye.


    Ning Que walked through the streets and alleys in the peaceful Eastern City, apanied by the cool night breeze. Both the tired people and vignt dogs were sleeping soundly. It seemed as if the whole city was in a deep sleep. Only the sound uttered by the water-delivering carts pressing the te would appear asionally and suddenly, but they soon faded away gradually.


    The weakntern light shakingly illuminated the road before the cart.


    When the water-delivering cart passed a corner of the downtown street in Southern City, Ning Que, who had been squatting silently at the gap of the big water buckets jumped down quietly andnded on feet. He quickly ran into the dark side alley. Then, he took out of the hand-painted map Sangsang made, and had ast nce at it under the very weak light.


    It was no wonder why Sangsang felt confused. Ning Que¡¯s n to kill one person periodically was totally discordant with the peaceful, hard but happy life in Academy and also was disharmonious with the carefree but boring downtown life in Lin 47th Street. What¡¯s more, the repetitive killings were indeed quite boring. However, for Ning Que, who returned to Chang¡¯an from City of Wei, it had been a very important part in his life, even a living habit, to enjoy fatty intestine or fired-egg noodles and then killing someone for revenge, just like his meditating for several hours after practicing handwriting.


    Every time he killed an enemy and erased a name from his revenge list, he could feel less weight on his shoulder and feel a little relieved. Also, the thick blood on his hand would be a little thinner. Everyone instinctively looked forward to the easy and happy life, and thus his instinct prompted him to continue with the revenge n.


    The preparation of his podao, wrapper, mask, coat, hat, map and even the target¡¯s daily schedule and habit were conducted by Sangsang. A little ck-face handmaiden who walked around the alley of Chang¡¯an, hardly attracted other people¡¯s attention. Ning Que was not worried about her safety. But most importantly, he believed in her ability.


    Therefore, he never second-guessed whether his de would fail to cut down his target¡¯s head when he was ready to pull out his podao. He had already used that person as a sacrifice to the deceased of General Xuanwei¡¯s Residence and that vige while going into the downtown street silently by the cover of darkness and walking straight to theke behind the teashop.


    Today, he would erase the third name of the list on the oilpaper.


    The owner of the head was Yan Suqing, 41, a former Military Clergy Appraiser.


    The man excelled in tea culture and seal verification. After being expelled from the Military Ministry by the imperial court with an excuse, he was specially employed by a well-known tea merchant as a tea specialist. ording to Zhuo Er¡¯s research, the irond proof concluding Xuanwei General¡¯s treason at that year¡ªthe three writings¡ªwas verified by the man in person, and was perhaps even counterfeited by himself.


    What was more, the man had much unclear and misty rtion with the vige-ughter case in the border of the Yan territory. Back then, General Xia Hou¡¯s army had attacked the Yan Kingdom. Yan Suqing was in General Xia Hou¡¯s army when the army failed to arrive at the border of Min Mountain on time. It was curious why a military clergy appraiser would appear in the bloody battlefield.


    At present, Yan Suqing lived in akeside small house which the tea merchant bought for him. As Ning Que walked along theke silently, the sight of the closer peaceful house beside theke and the view of the seemingly-irregr but picturesque bamboo wall and grass house suddenly made him feel that something wrong. His eyebrows which were outside the mask rose slowly.


    In a word, thekeside small house was too peaceful and beautiful.


    To settle in Chang¡¯an was very difficult. Every inch ofnd in Chang¡¯an was worth its weight in gold. Among the hustle and bustle in the whole city, the words "peaceful" and "beautiful" meant noble and even powerful. Though Ning Que knew that Yan Suqing was highly trusted and appreciated by the tea merchant, he also believed that it was impossible for a tea merchant to give such akeside small house to a tea specialist, even if the businessman was very wealthy and generous.


    The morning light had yet to arrive, so the vision of theke remained dark. Only the reflection ofmplights from someone¡¯ s house could be seen on the ripple, as if presenting a little-sequestered light. Ning Que walked to the front of thekeside small house. Separated by the alienated bamboo wall, he looked at therge stone chair below the stone steps in courtyard and the emaciated middle-aged man in the chair. After a short pause, he pushed the door open and walked in.


    A small oilmp was lighted up. The thin middle-aged man sat on the stone chair, with his left hand holding a big but crude teacup made of mud and his right hand gently knocking a corner of the ebony tea table. He looked at thed calmly with a cold smile suddenly showing up on his skinny face, and then said in a low voice.


    "The so-called tea ceremony in tea culture is just using aplicated and repetitive procedure to intensify the sense of ceremony so as to bring about a sense of dignity."


    "Many people think when I enjoy the tea at home, I would burn incense, take a shower, worship Haotian for a long time and wash the cups for a while before sending the tea into my mouth. In fact, I¡¯ve always enjoyed drinking the tea with arge cup best. Maybe the habit was formed in the army. I prefer a more direct way in handling affairs."


    "This is such a hot summer night. Instead of sleeping at home, you choose to stroll around ake. You... must be here to kill me."


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 109: The First Fight

    Chapter 109: The First Fight


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The smallkeside house against the wall of bamboo was tranquil, yet dim. What the middle-aged Tea Specialist sat on was a chair engraved from Kunhu Lake Stone, and in front of him stood a tea table, also carved from Kunhu Lake Stone. On the tea table there was a long teapoy made of ebony, wherey a mild and smooth teapot and teacups. Beside the tea table, a small portable charcoal furnace was found with a kettle on it, from whose mouth mist was spreading out, which had not yet been boiling.


    On such an intolerably hot summer night, the middle-aged Tea Specialist, in a singleyer garment, seemed not to be affected by the heat from that small charcoal furnace. Instead, he was just as calm as a hospitable host who was waiting for visitors on a snowy winter night... He was the man called Yan Suqing.


    Ning Que was sure about it. His previous vignce outside the smallkeside house was finally confirmed at that moment because his adversary has predicted his visit, and even the purpose of his visit.


    His split vision had perceived some tea leaves at the foot of the bamboo wall. After a moment of silence, he looked at the Tea Specialist in the stone chair and asked, "Then let¡¯se to the point... I wonder, in the case of Xuanwei General¡¯s family being totally exterminated, and the massacre in the vige at the border of the Yan territory, were you involved?"


    Yan Suqing¡¯s brows somewhat furrowed, never expecting that thed who came to kill him tonight should do it for an affair from years ago. He had thought that those aged things had already vanished with the dead. Then after a slight bit of silence, he smiled, "Of course I¡¯m involved, or else how can a promising officer in the Military Ministry, like me, be reduced to a Tea Specialist looking after houses for tea merchants?"


    "I should not be the first person that you want to find." Looking at Ning Que, he inquired, "Where are the others? Many years we haven¡¯t seen each other, I wonder what they are doing now."


    In silence, Ning Que observed his smallkeside house and the surroundings, and looking at the range of this peaceful and luxurious residence, he replied, "They are just so-so, at least not as good as you. You can even enjoy such a nice ce."


    Yan Suqing chuckled and shook his head, sighing. "Do you know why they merely muddle their poor lives, while I lead a satisfactory one? Because I am still of some benefit to the Empire."


    The randomly worn clothes, the water on the small furnace waiting to be boiled, and the empty teacup in his left hand all indicated that this Tea Specialist was freshly awakened. But that was just because he had sensed the approaching of Ning Que to the smallkeside house, instead of pre-envisioning the intended murder.


    A seemingly emaciated Tea Specialist who was upied with tea sets and spring water each day, having predicted the visit of a killer, should wait so calmly in his chair without any calls for help or intention to escape? What had encouraged him to do so? What¡¯s more, what was the benefit of a Tea Specialist to the Empire? How could a Tea Specialist look after houses for a tea merchant? How could a Tea Specialist live a better life than that of Chen Zixian after that affair?


    All those possibilities were pondered over in Ning Que¡¯s mind in a sh, including the most impossible one. An unprecedented, suffocating look gradually emerged from his delicate eyes uncovered by the gauze mask, and he looked at his adversary, asking, "Why don¡¯t you try to escape?"


    "Why escape?"


    Yan Suqing grinned at thed. "Now that I am awake, how can you kill me?"


    Then after a slight whisk of his sleeve, a small dim sword without a hilt came out from the teapoy on the stone table.


    Ning Que felt somewhat frozen, his eyebrows furrowed. He realized that the most impossible one came into being: This thin and weak Tea Specialist... was actually a cultivator!


    At that moment, the dialogue during the trip between him and the elder Lyu Qingchen came back to him¡ªthe one that Sword Masters in Chang¡¯an were as plentiful as dogs, and Psyche Masters could be found anywhere.


    Back then, Lyu Qingchen smilinglymented this view as an exaggeration. When arriving in Chang¡¯an City, Ning Que had witnessed a cultivator from the South School of Haotian Taoism conjuring at a roadside altar, and fought with Chao Xiaoshu against cultivators at Spring Breeze Pavilion. Yet, he never expected behind such an unimpressive name on the list of revenge was, in fact, a strong cultivator.


    The information from Zhuo Er did not give a hint, and Sangsang also failed to perceive it. No one had imagined that a former document appraiser in the Military Ministry, who was at present a Tea Specialist supported by tea merchants, should be a cultivator skilled at controlling a sword!


    The furrowing eyebrows of Ning Que stretched bit by bit. Then he stared at Yan Suqing sitting in the chair, as well as the hiltless mini-sword in front of him, uttering with a gentle smile, "Since you don¡¯t try to escape, then I will escape."


    Hardly had his voice faded away that he turned back without any hesitation and darted to the outside of the smallkeside house like a horse running madly.


    ...


    ...


    Staring at the vanishing back of thisd beside the bamboo wall, Yan Suqing chuckled out of great interest, shaking his head and sighing, "Now that you havee to kill a cultivator, how can you safely escape?"


    Those mild words, mixed with intense self-confidence and homicidal intent, were slowly uttered from between the lips of the middle-aged man, during which he put down the big, coarse teacup in his left hand to roll over his left sleeve with the other hand. The index finger and the middle finger of his left hand closed to make a Sword Form which was diagonally pointing to the outside of the smallkeside house across the air. The whole process was both natural and unrestrained.


    Along with the pointing, the dim hiltless mini-sword on the teapoy suddenly made a deep buzz, as if it was infused with some magical power. Then abruptly, it bounced up from the teapoy, and faded into a trace of light, splitting the darkest sky before dawn above the smallkeside house and thrusting directly to the outside.


    Ning Que felt a burst of aching on his back as if it were pricked by needles. However, what others could perceive from his eyes out of the gauze mask was only calmness rather than panic. On the verge of breaking through those woods of bamboo, he unexpectedly fell down with a heavy stamp on the ground with his left foot, making his entire body turn over, and straight after, his right foot trampled on a bulky moso bamboo.


    "Deng! Deng! Deng! Deng!"


    His solid shoe soles stomped on the bamboo alternately, leading to fierce shakes of the tree, which caused countless bamboo leaves to rustle down like broken arrows. Supported by the bamboo tree, he quickly climbed onto the wall of the house, which was a near escape from that sh of sword from inside the house. Then his knees slightly bent to borrow the stic force of the bamboo tree, and he darted into the courtyard.


    With a whoosh, his body skimmed over the wall like a sharp arrow, and the sharp-cut podao had already been drawn out of its sheath. Then, with a hummed snort, Ning Que exerted power from his waist and belly and his wrist turned over, then the podao hacked down head-on toward Yan Suqing like a blizzard!


    The moment he realized that this Tea Specialist was a powerful cultivator, he was well aware that another fatal test was bound to be confronted tonight. Although he was quite clear that his current ability could not rival that of a powerful cultivator, he still bore no intention to withdraw. Because he understood that escape meant death when facing a cultivator.


    At the mouth of Northern Mountain Road, he witnessed how the most crack bodyguards of the Tang, like Peng Yutao, fought with a Great Sword Master by virtue of their strong will and strict discipline. Outside Spring Breeze Pavilion, he also saw how Chao Xiaoshu beheaded two powerful, foreign cultivators relying on his own unparalleled strength and intrepid power of control. From those experiences, he learned that one should not go backward, but forward when confronting a cultivator, which could probably help him to avoid being killed.


    So his previous retreat was actually not a withdrawal.


    It was a disguise of going forward.


    Forward to kill him.


    ...


    ...


    A ringing sound was heard!


    Ning Que twisted his body and wielded the podao to hack away the dim sword light that was stabbing him from behind, after which he fell down from the air.


    The first time of their encounter, a grain-sized gap appeared at the edge of the podao, and a tiny break was found at the upper part of his old clothing. However, his expression outside the gauze mask was still of no fear. His legs stuck to the ground like two nails and his hands sped the long handle of the podao. Meanwhile, he slightly lowered his head, observing the surroundings with vignce.


    Suddenly, the Podao in his hand turned upward, leaving a stain of blood on his left shoulder, which meanwhile helped him escape that light of sword attacking from the right. The subtle vibration he felt from his hand confirmed that his de had at least touched the flying sword.


    Ning Que still moderately lowered his head, staring silently at Yan Suqing, who was sitting in the chair a few paces off and listening attentively to asionally murmuring buzzes around the smallkeside house in darkness. What he wanted was to determine the direction of the flying sword.


    He made a stride forward.


    A falling leaf outside the courtyard was split into two pieces by an intangible power.


    He flopped down backward like a mountain, and the dim shadow of sword darted to the sky, scraping his shoulder.


    He beat the ground by his right hand and tightened his waist and belly to stand up again. Then he interchanged his feet like a sh of lightning and the dim shadow of sword sharply stabbed into the cracks between tes ahead of his feet, which buzzed and flew away soon after and then disappeared.


    His position at present was three steps behind the previous one.


    A small oilmp on the right of the tea table sent forth a light glow. In a stone chair beside sat Yan Suqing, who showed a half-smile.


    The distance between the two was just a few paces, yet the darkness of this few paces was so insurmountable.


    Because nobody knew the position of that dim shadow of sword in the darkness.


    ...


    ...


    Clenching the long knife handle, he stably stomped on the te, evading the gaps and protrusions, to ensure that he could borrow the entire power of the earth anytime he needed. Ning Que stared at the Tea Specialist like a statue, with no fear in his eyes but only calmness and focus.


    It was the first time in his life to fight against a cultivator all by himself, and he knew he had little chance to win. Normally, he would feel afraid because he was clear that he was likely to usher in death tonight.


    However, having been tortured by death many times, Ning Que was quite clear that fear was the most useless state of mind to have in such a situation. His only choice was to transfer his fear and nervousness into excitement in order to survive a fatal condition.


    The flying sword shed with a buzz toward him, so he waved his knife and hacked down. Even if nothing was hit, he could still avoid being hurt in crucial points of his body based on his fighting instinct fostered in battlefields and his strong ability of body control during key moments.


    The tinkling sword, as quickly as a flying knife and as white as snow, left numerous dense wounds in his body with its shadow. Then, blood infiltrated his underwear, exuded through his old robe, and started to drip on the surface of his body, which made him a bloody man.


    But Ning Que, whose feet remained nailed to the te, still sped his podao with his hands, staring at the strong cultivator in the chair with no expression in his eyes. He showed no panic, nor fear, and was even without any frenzy from a desperate situation.


    "A soldier from the Frontier Fortress?"


    Yan Suqing gradually withdrew his smile, and looking at the bloodyd close in front of him, he calmly said, "The continuous 14 swords does not directly kill you, but only leave you some small wounds. Only the frontier soldiers have this physical instinct. But mind you, even if the wounds are very small and the blood flows slowly, you are still gonna to die if it doesn¡¯t stop."


    "I know, so I have to find a chance to chop off your head before I lose all my blood," Ning Que answered.


    "You won¡¯t have such a chance." Yan Suqing shook his head toward Ning Que with sympathy.


    At that point, the water on the small charcoal furnace finally began to bubble up, with hot mist spurting out from the mouth of the kettle.


    The Tea Specialist lifted up the kettle with his left hand to pour water into the coarse teacup. Looking at those tea leaves floating up and down in the boiling water, he lowered his head and said, "I will enjoy my morning tea now. Then, the game is over."


    ...


    ...


    (Another chapter is underposition.) (To be continued... If you like this novel, we wee you to go to qidian to give rmended votes and a monthly pass. Your support is my greatest motivation.)

 Chapter 110: A Black Blossom on the Back of the Lad

    Chapter 110: A ck Blossom on the Back of the Lad


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In the border town, along the journey, at the Old Brush Pen Shop and many other ces, Ning Que told Sangsang for many times that even if he could not practice cultivation, he, her young master, could still break the enemies with his skillful way of using knives. However, at least in the present, this seemingly sonorous and powerful deration could only be a spiritualfort or mental masturbation to arger extent.


    He understood what incredible abilities those mighty ones in the world of cultivation had, and he never expected to be able to beat a cultivator in a face-to-face battle, not to mention that this one in front of him was obviously a swordsman who had at least stepped into the No Doubts State.


    In this first fight with a cultivator, what he could rely on was only some indirect experience, so he did not hold much hope, and yet also did not sink into despair. He has always believed that only dead people need to despair.


    On the charcoal furnace, the gradually boiling water was emitting steam and hot water was poured into the teacup. Carefully looking at this picture, Ning Que watched each movement of Yan Suqing, including his shoulder and his hand, thus neglecting the utterances from his adversary which might weaken his will to fight. His eyes suddenly brightened when he saw this person pouring tea.


    He used all his fingers to hold the teacup, thus leaving no others to form the Sword Form. The legs of Ning Que that were nailed firmly into the ground now tightened to push his body forward. With the long podao in his hand, he collected all his power to form an attack like a tiger pouncing ahead!


    Feeling the gust of air rushing towards his face and watching the juvenile soldier dragging the podao behind with no means of retreat, Yan Suqinga showed a mixed look of pity and ridicule in his eyes. He stretched his right hand out of the cuff, spreading fingers to gently make a brush in the night wind.


    Wuthering wind was heard in the smallkeside house, which was not the torrent rolled up by Ning Que¡¯s attack, but the sound of tearing by some power in the deep night. That dim shadow of sword which somehow disappeared in the darkness behind him suddenly made fierce buzzing, unpredictably darting from the front to the back, and in a sh, it directly stabbed through the darkness towards the back of Ning Que!


    After a sudden stillness, the bamboo leaves rolled by the torrent at the bamboo wall scattered around with great panic and after a sudden condensation, the hot mist around the charcoal furnace gradually settled down the ground. Time on thewn inside the courtyard seemed to be slowed down to arger degree.


    Was that the strength of a Sword Master with a full attack?


    Feeling the absolute cold from behind his back and the sharpness that had made him heartbroken even without touching him, Ning Quemented that the hands of death would soon reach his back.


    But he did not look back or dodge. He continued to violently attack like a tiger and run forward, because he knew that there was no retreat back, and dodges would also be meaningless within such a close distance. At this moment all he could do was to run on and on, which was hisst hope for survival.


    Rushing to two steps before Yan Suqing, Ning Que gazed at his eyes and stared at his neck, and concentrated all his strength on his podao with hands crossed he chopped down hard, regardless of the sense of death breathing down the back of his neck!


    Facing the swift and fierce chop head-on, Yan Suqing was just about to sip the tea in the teacup he just lifted with his left hand, without the slightest expression on his face. In the sea of Breath of Nature, he had clearly perceived that the hiltless mini-sword under the control of his own Psyche Power had shed to the back of Ning Que, and thisd would die when the de fell.


    There were three feet between Ning Que¡¯s podao and Yan Suqing¡¯s neck.


    And there was one feet between Yan Suqing¡¯s flying sword and Ning Que¡¯s back.


    The flying sword controlled by cultivators moved faster than any knives under the control of even the most skillful knifeman in this world.


    No matter under what manner of calction, Ning Que had to lose his life pitifully even if he had struggled bravely for a chance of survival, which, however, would do no harm to Yan Suqing.


    Then, Ning Que should have died, but actually he did not.


    Using the momentum of that attack, he secretly loosened his left hand, which naturally stretched to his back to hold a length of a hard object popping out from its cloth cover.


    That was the handle of that big ck umbre.


    ...


    ...


    His slender fingers held the handle crossed with a force, and the coarse cloth wrapping the umbre suddenly twisted. Its solid hard-woven cloth arched and was then torn apart in the twinkling of an eye, revealing a few strokes of ck inside. Those strokes of ck rotated to tear the cloth apart, like a ck dragon violently raised his head from under the ground after a long time of dormant. More and more coarse cloth was split, thus increasingly exposing ck, which gradually aggregated to roll into a ck umbre.


    Along with the rotation, the ck umbre unfolded with an increase of its size, which just assembled a big ck flower blossoming in an instant with condensed spring breeze. "Bang!", it opened to cover the back of Ning Que, which also helped to ward off that dim shadow of sword buzzing towards him.


    Yan Suqing had collected all his Psyche Power to make a fatal shadow of sword, which carried with it incredible power. However, when the hiltless mini-sword stabbed the surface of the big ck umbre that seemed to be greasy with nothing special, unimaginable things happened.


    Neither sound of tearing nor bangs of fierce crashes was heard from the surface of the umbre.


    The iparably sharp flying sword that had stabbed the ck surface dropped like a fallen leaf sunken into a boundless dark swamp, or an exhausted mosquito resting quietly on an old ck que.


    The buzzing flying sword with high vibrations looked as if it were stuck to the surface of the big ck umbre, which suddenly ended in an absolute quiet.


    After a moment, the fallen leaf slowly sank into the boundless ck swamp leaving not a trace, and the exhausted mosquito resting on the old ck que slumped to the ground, or to the end of its life.


    The formerly agile and sharp hiltless mini-sword seemed to be deprived of all its vigor and slowly fell down from the big ck umbre toward the ground.


    ...


    ...


    In the Qi of Heaven and Earth, it seemed a string was broken.


    Failing to interact with his own Natal Sword, Yan Suqing¡¯s expression suddenly changed, a sharp whistle bursting out from between his lips. He released the coarse teacup in the left hand, thus folding his palms to catch the de hacked towards him by a single hand of Ning Que!


    The distance between his palms and the de of Ning Que was as short as the width of a hair, which still allowed a gap to exist between them. But within that very subtle space, some power seemed to fill the gap, which was as tight as cotton.


    The whistle echoed in the quietkeside small house. At the sound of the whistling, the flying sword that had just fallen onto the ground made several attempts to bounce up, which proved to be a failure. The attempts looked so miserable and futile, like an old mosquito fallen to the frosted ground, whose thin wings were frozen into ssy ice. The so-called struggle was more like a twitch before death.


    Yan Suqing¡¯s eyes were suddenly filled with intentions of killing. With another sharp whistle, he crossed his palms to pat off the icy cold de and stretched out his right hand from his sleeve, tilting his body to bounce up from the chair and holding his fingers to form a sword that directly targeted at Ning Que¡¯s throat.


    It was not until this moment did the coarse and clumsy teacup heavily flop to the ground, scattering dark-red gravel pieces all over the ground. The hot water mixed with tea leaves sshed in all directions, with white heat mist struggling for their way out in great horror.


    ...


    ...


    Attempting to stab straight into Ning Que¡¯s throat, Yan Suqing, however, pointed his figures slightly to the left to draw an arch, making it a bit further than a direct line, thus giving Ning Que more time to react at such a fatal moment.


    He had to do so, because he wanted to avoid the big ck umbre. Subconsciously he was unwilling to have any contact, even not an inch, with it. The greasy and dirty surface of the umbre at this time looked even darker than the darkness in the smallkeside house before dawn.


    Yan Suqing did not know what the big ck umbre was. However, as an experienced cultivator who had retreated from the Military Ministry for nearly a decade and had while in seclusion with y pottery and tea made progress in cultivation all the time. He could vaguely feel the terror brought by this big ck umbre. It was the instinct of a cultivator.


    It was precisely because of this deepest fear in his heart that Yan Suqing¡¯s sword moved a little slower than its normal level. Taking advantage of this very short time, Ning Que moved the ck umbre to the left of his body.


    At this time the big ck umbre that hadpletely unfolded into onerge surface was like a big ck blossom floating on theke. It slid tactfully from Ning Que¡¯s right shoulder to the left one as he switched them with his fingers, and then covered his entire body.


    Yan Suqing¡¯s fingers fiercely poked on the surface of the big ck umbre.


    ...


    ...


    The feeling of poking on the umbre... was a little slippery, sticky, and disgusting.


    Yan Suqing stared at the ce where the fingertips touched the surface of the ck umbre as fear surged out from deep of his heart. His body trembled violently and his face became extremely pale in an instant¡ªhe was shocked to find, what had surged out with the fear, was his inner Psyche Power, as well as the Qi of Heaven and Earth he had moved with his Psyche Power.


    The Big ck umbre, like the deepest and most indefinite night, would devour all the light!


    Yan Suqing had not expected he should be driven to such a state by an ordinary person and a seemingly ordinary big ck umbre, but he knew he had been forced to the edge of the cliff of death!


    He did not withdraw his Sword Intent, because when the night was invaded by daylight, there must be a winner, either day won or night won. At around sunrise and sunset, no one could leave ahead of time!


    Then a shrill and bitter whistle spurted out from between his lips. A most powerful strength finally broke out from this cultivator who had hidden amongst themon folk for more than a decade. He used the most frightening speed to stimte his Psyche Power, which was then scattered all over his body through the Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi. All the Breath of Nature that could be interacted with in the smallkeside house was mobilized and condensed in front of his finger, which was transformed to Sword Intent poking towards the ck umbre!


    ...


    ...


    The cultivator¡¯s high-handed strength of sword was passed from the surface of the umbre to its handle, which was then passed to Ning Que¡¯s hand holding the handle of the umbre. He lowered his head to keep the umbre stable with his left hand and his shoulder. Listening to the broken sound from his carpus and feeling the terrible force his body had to bear, he tightly bit his teeth to stand fast.


    At this time, he was like a soldier of Tang Empire, dragging the podao behind with the big ck umbre as a shield, who was fighting in a decisive battle on the forefront of the grasnd, desperately resisting the brutal attack from barbarians on the other side of the shield. He was not allowed to retreat, which would cause a copse of 500 kilometers. Anyone from the frontier army of Tang Empire would have such a sense of discipline and courage!


    At present, all his spirits and strength were concentrated on the handle of the umbre to resist the Sword Intent that Yan Suqing condensed with all his cultivation. In addition, he faintly felt that something precious in his body was constantly flowing away along the umbre into the inner part of its surface, so his right hand simply could not lift the podao behind him.


    ...


    ...


    The fingers were on the surface and Ning Que was on the opposite side. It was unknown how long that fatal deadlock hadsted. Qi of Heaven and Earth surged from inside thekeside small house and condensed in front of Yan Suqing¡¯s fingers to form a very short and sharp sword stabbing at Ning Que.


    All seemed to have felt the intense atmosphere on the spot, be it the flying bamboo leaves or the freezing mist.


    Yan Suqing uttered a light hum, veins emerging from his pale face which then vanished in a sh.


    The big ck umbre retreated for an inch.


    The handle of the umbre slipped away from the part between the thumb and the index finger of Ning Que¡¯s left hand and hit his forehead with force. The extremely sharp sword had finally seeded in prating the big ck umbre to a slight extent and poked into the part the umbre handle had just collided with.


    "Puff!" Blood sprayed out from Ning Que¡¯s mouth and nose, whichter spread along the edge of the gauze mask and drenched his tender face.


    On the other side, blood also started to drip down from the corner of Yan Suqing¡¯s eyes, where the essence of his spirit gradually dispersed, for he had overused his Psyche Power and thus was on his way of burnout.


    At present, the decisive element was who could stick it out for a longer time.


    The handle of the big ck umbre pressed down on Ning Que¡¯s chest like a mountain. Blood gushed out of his mouth and nose non-stop. His gauze mask was totally drenched with blood which continued to drip along the edge of his gauze mask down his shoes.


    He raised his head with much difficulty to look over the edge of the umbre vacantly at the tea specialist on the opposite side of the umbre. He realized that the skinny chin of Yan Suqing had grown gaunter with deep-set eyes on it. It seemed like he could barely hang on.


    All of a sudden, Ning Que found the power from the handle was somewhat weakened!


    Then he quickly raised his head and tightly held the handle with his left hand, pressing against the handle with his chest. And he forced himself to make a big stride ahead!


    The big ck umbre, as solid as an indestructible shield, pushed Yan Suqing a step back!


    A yell as shrill as that burst out from the mouth of cruel beasts when fighting on the grasnd was roared by thed, with which he collected all the remaining power in his body to lift up the podao dragging to the ground and fiercely hacked at his enemy!


    With a cracking sound, the de deeply chopped into the neck of Yan Suqing, which then continued to forge ahead with an unpleasantly horrible sound of cracking the bones and splitting the flesh, until it extruded from the other side of the enemy¡¯s body.


    The head of Yan Suqing, the two eyes on which gazed incredulously at thed behind the ck umbre, tilted and fell down from his neck. It bounced for several times on the ground and then rolled into the tea water which was still giving off heat.


    The big ck umbre slowly fell down, while its handle was still tightly held in Ning Que¡¯s hand.


    Ning Que gazed at the head on the ground with a hasty gasp and said, "You¡¯re already ustomed to being a tea specialist instead of a sword master. You¡¯ve forgotten to hire an escort servant."


    ...


    ...


    Darkness before dawn was so heavy and Chang¡¯an City was still quiet at the moment, without any pedestrians on the street or a single cat going on a night walk. Ad covered with blood ran out from a street stall in Southern City. He staggered ahead, and sometimes his feeble legs would fail to support him, and he would lose his bnce and flop to the ground.


    Blood continued to drip down along the edge of his gauze mask. He felt his eyesight blurred and his mind tangled. He even did not notice where he had reached. He was unsure whether it was because he had lost too much blood or something else.


    "If I decide to kill you, then you¡¯ll be killed."


    Subconsciously he murmured, finding his way home.


    The voiceing through the bloody and sticky mask sounded a bit twisted.


    The rm whistle he heard previously reminded him to leave this ce as quickly as possible. His little remaining sense told him that the government had been alerted, and the Yulin Royal Guards would be deployed by the local government. If so, he would have no choice but to die.


    Therefore, he continued to run on wildly on the Vermilion Bird Avenue that he had failed to recognize.


    The ck umbre tied to his back was bounced upwards, and unfurled slowly.


    The young avenger covered with blood.


    An evil spirit crawled out of hell.


    A ck lotus blooming on his back.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 111: The Vermilion Bird, the Big Black Umbrella and the Bright Night

    Chapter 111: The Vermilion Bird, the Big ck Umbre and the Bright Night


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que was running in the street in the darkness, raising his right arm to remove the blood on his chin from time to time. The big ck umbre hit against his back now and then, making scraping sounds. As time passed, he seemed to be in a lot of pain as the light in his eyes grew dimmer and his eyebrows outside of the mask furrowed deeper.


    His eyesight became blurry, and the hitching posts and doors of the shops at the side of the street gradually distorted, bing like wing monsters. His breathing got faster, and the breath that was squeezed out of his lungs was as hot as magma; while the breath that he had desperately sucked in was as cold as a cier. His footsteps became slower and more unsteady, and were often caught by the jagged bluestones on the ground. His mind became messier, and he gradually forgot the current situation that he was in.


    He only remembered that he should run¡ªthe farther, the better.


    Some kind of deep instinct urged him to run toward the Old Brush Pen Shop at Lin 47th Street. Perhaps if he could only see the little ck girl then he would feel reliably safe. The obsession to run home was so strong... that it could support his seriously injured and weak body to run here from Southern City without noticing that he was now running on Vermilion Bird Avenue, where he always felt anxious and vignt during the weekdays.


    The blood at the edge of his mask could be wiped away with his sleeve, while the blood seeping from the countless cuts on his body was slowly flowing to the big ck umbre. It was then slowly absorbed and released by the sticky, greasy ck umbre, before finally dripping to the ground. Then, tiny blood flowers blossomed on the ground and then disappeared between the gaps in the stones.


    The morning wind was already blowing, though the morning had note yet. It blew someone¡¯s clothes that hung under the eaves, and made the towering, dragon-cloud g that was in the distance on Vermilion Bird Avenue whistle. The footsteps and the faint smell of blood mixed together in the morning wind and gradually awakened some lives hidden in the millennium stones.


    The spacious and straight Vermilion Bird Avenue in Chang¡¯an City of the Tang Empire suddenly turned into a long endless road of hellfire. Ning Que felt as if his feet were stepping on extremely red-hot pebbles and his soles would be burned through when each step was taken. Those flourishing mes instantly spread to his flesh and blood, and then burned away his bones, which was very painful.


    He was still running. Every step that he took seemed so painful as if his feet were bing muddy flesh that was simultaneously cut by numerous knives.


    His body suddenly became stiff, and he painfully grasped his chest!


    He felt as if an invisiblence had fallen down from the high night sky and broken his flesh and organs, which directly pierced through his body to nail him severely to the ground!


    The suffering from the burning fire being sent from the ground of Vermilion Bird Avenue instantly disappeared. Because all the pain in the world, whenpared to the paining from his chest¡ªthe kind of pain that nearly tore and destroyed everything¡ªwas not even worth mentioning.


    Ning Que frowned bitterly. Looking at his empty chest, the street that had been transformed into a curved corridor, Chang¡¯an City that had nothing to do with reality, he found that all the things in his eyes had numerous phantoms¡ªtrue, false, fake, and deconstructed phantoms¡ªamong which his body was standing.


    Suddenly, his ears heard someone gently gasping.


    He turned his head around with the utmost strength and tightly clenched the hilt at his waist with his bloody hand, but he did not see anyone. What he could see was still the weird and distorted world surrounding him.


    His face was as pale as a snowy mountain. He looked around nkly, to subconsciously find the ce where that breath hade.


    The hitching posts that seemed to fall into the ground were wheezing, narrating the pain and irritability caused by knots in the neck every day; the yellow signboards of the street taverns were wheezing in the morning wind, narrating the unconsciousness and uneasiness caused by the drunkard¡¯s molestation every night. The locust popping out of the mansion was wheezing, narrating that it was going to wither by witnessing too many shameful family secrets; the green leavesnding on the stone lions were wheezing, narrating the reason why they did not fall in season.


    The lions carved by stones, the buildings made of wood, the roads under feet, the morning wind, the distant pce, the near gray wall, and the entire Chang¡¯an City were all wheezing, and the entire world was wheezing.


    The pretty charming woman was moaningly wheezing; and the long-stretching imperial court was solemnly wheezing; and the nervous and ufortable escapees were desperately wheezing; and the history full of indifference and vicissitudes was relentlessly wheezing.


    Ning Que, lonely and helpless, stood in the middle of the street and listened to the breathing from all sides of the streets,nes, courtyards, and distant temples.


    He loosened the hilt to cover his ears with his hands, but still could not stop all kinds of breath from prating through his palms, then clearly and powerfully into his mind.


    He slowly knelt down in the middle of the darkened Vermilion Bird Avenue and then fell down.


    The big ck umbre was carried on his back.


    The blood dripped onto the bluestones from the ck umbre, and finally flew in the gaps between stones.


    On Vermilion Bird Avenue, paved by t bluestones, countless small blood flowers blossomed, which got in line from Southern City to the north and which connected with the blood in front of the ck umbre into one line.


    At the end of the blood line was the Vermilion Bird portrait, which was in the distance of the avenue.


    ...


    ...


    Deeply engraved in stones, the Vermilion Bird portrait was at the center of Royal Road. It had carried the history of the Tang Empire for over a thousand years. No one knew how many vigorous new kings it had weed, or how many old bold kings that could not conquer time it had seen off. Its two eyes, with dignity and power, were always so calm that they had never moved for a moment.


    At that moment, the Vermilion Bird portrait was still as stately as usual, but its gorgeous right wing, which was among the three that were rooted on its head, slowly turned upward as if it would break the stone to get into the real world!


    Ning Que fell down under the big ck umbre, unconscious. He did not know that the distant Vermilion Bird portrait had experienced such strange changes, and did not even know that a kind of respectful ancient meaning of destruction was hanging over him.


    His blood flowing among the gaps between the stones was very shallow and t, even shallower and tter than what human beings could imagine. It flew from the center of the avenue to the distance, and then ran into theplex but majestic feather stone gaps of the Vermilion Bird portrait in the distance.


    The blood in the beautiful feather stone gaps was quietly and quickly evaporated into a pale red mist, and then was rapidly purified into the invisible empty by a certain kind of intangible high-temperature power.


    The flowers of blood drops scattered on the bluestones of the Avenue also started to be evaporated and purified. Each blossom disappeared one after another. The extremely shallow and t bloody water continued to evaporate with a speed that was visible to the naked eye. It finally came to that big ck umbre, directly into Ning Que¡¯s body!


    The intangible raging fire, the insensible high temperature, and the invisible ming breath seemed to be able to burn all the things in the world. The blood on Ning Que¡¯s body quickly evaporated and disappeared, while his clothes did not have the slightest change.


    His arms that were exposed outside of his clothes and his cheeks outside of the mask began to turn red quickly. And the hair on his forehead was rapidly withering. Also, the nails of both of his hands that were resting on the bluestones became dry and crispy due to the rapid loss of water.


    A green leaf was blown up by the morning wind andnded on the back of his hand. Yet it was still greasy when brushed away again. An ant climbed onto the back of his hand due to the disturbance from the leaves, and then climbed down from the other side. It was still alive. But the next moment, Ning Que might surprisingly be burned to death by the mysterious invisible mes releasing from the Vermilion Bird portrait.


    At that moment, a shadownded and crushed the poor ant with a gentle snap.


    Blown by the morning wind, the big ck umbre softly covered Ning Que¡¯s body, as if it were a ck swaggering lotus. With the swagger of the ck umbre, that green leaf was instantly frozen into ice, and then scattered into countless grains of small boulders.


    A vor of absolute chill gradually releasing from the ck umbre was slowly and irresistibly infiltrating into Ning Que¡¯s hot body. A momentter, the redness on his cheeks and arms from his heavy injuries faded and returned to white. The hair on his forehead quickly turned ck and shiny, and the nails on both of his hands resting on the bluestones regained their luster.


    The Vermilion Bird portrait that was far away on the stone street seemed to have induced something. Its dignified eyes should have been calm as usual, but it seemed to have given a nce in the direction where Ning Que was lying.


    An instantter, its three gorgeous wings lifted together at the top of its head!


    Almost at the same time, the big ck umbre swaggered more rapidly!


    ...


    ...


    The ck wind was blowing in the darkened wilderness. The strong wind rolled the ck gravel up in the sky and tossed it everywhere, as if the sun¡¯s rays in the firmament all turned ck as seen with the naked eye.


    The ck snow mountain far away in the wilderness was constantly melting and copsing under the ck scorching sun. The melted snow, mixing with the ck mud and gravel, reflected the ck sunshine and rushed to scour everywhere.


    The ck snow mountain was going to copse, and the floods that it formed would destroy the whole world. Yet at that moment, the bright night suddenly arrived in the world, releasing a warm coldness.


    Ning Que, standing at a certain point in this space, watched this magnificent scene of destruction in front of him, perplexed but extremely calm. He wondered what this ce was, but he knew that it was not a dream. This was a clear and firm state of perception, as he was sure that it was the night though the brightness that dominated most of the sky could be clearly seen.


    The bright night, covering more than half of the sky and the zing ck sunshine, gradually slowed down the speed of the melting of the snow mountain. However, the coldness emitting from the bright night sky began to congeal those floods that had been wrecked in the ck wilderness, turning them into dancing ck ice and unwilling ck snow.


    The entire world was being remodeled. The ck snow mountain was able to stand upright again.


    The heaven and earth had settled into peace. The night returned to the color that it ought to have been. The ciers and snow rivers in the wilderness disappeared at some point as if nothing had changed, and yet everything had changed.


    The sun in the firmament was shining. The snow cap on the other side of the snow mountain was melted. The gurgling water permeated into the depths of snow and ice, into the underground dark blue ice holes, and then was finally gone.


    It was unknown how many years had passed. Somewhere far away from the Snow Mountain in the wilderness, a piece of gravel started shaking softly and was pushed aside, and then a trickle of stream gushed out, gradually spread away and flowed to the horizon.


    Along the riverside grew a weak but strong grass.

 Chapter 112: The Spear in Chest Scared Cicadas

    Chapter 112: The Spear in Chest Scared Cicadas


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    As Ning Que awakened, the world had disappeared.


    Looking at the ants¡¯ dead bodies in front and the green leaves and ice gravel that were scattering and heaping together, he pulled himself up with difficulty after a short moment of absent-mindedness. He wondered how long he had been ina. It might have been very long or very short, but he knew it was extremely dangerous to lie in the middle of the street. Hearing the distant sounds of bamboo flutes and hoofs, he bit his lower lip to gather his nerves, and then dragged his tired and injured body to run into a side alley.


    The remaining blood had disappeared without a trace, as if the bluestones had been washed in the rain several times and dried up in the warm spring. He did not notice that the blood stains on his body were gone. He was so clean that it seemed he had taken a bucket bath for half a night in the House of Red Sleeves.


    What had happened when he was unconscious? He had no memory of the magic fight between the Vermilion Bird portrait and the big ck umbre. Instead, only a vague impression stayed in his mind at that moment.


    After walking into the side alley, he quickly took off his robe, which was full of sword cuts, and then noticed that no traces of blood were seen. He became slightly stunned and struggled to look down at his body to confirm that there was indeed not any blood left. And then strong doubts hit his heart. But now he had no time to think it over as he was in an urgent situation where feudal officials had been disturbed. He directly tore a piece of cloth off and hung it on the branches, and threw his robe into a house behind the wall.


    He still felt extreme pain in his chest, since the invisible spearing from the sky still seemed to be inserted in his chest. Every step he took made him look paler. Even the weakest trembling would make him feel that the cut that was torn in his heart becamerger.


    He stretched out his trembling palm to hold a low fence, and leapt over it with the strength of his waist and abdomen. He quietly passed by a sleeping resident to take a blue robe from some bamboo, and quickly put it on.


    He carried some excellent medicine for incised wounds. Nevertheless, while putting on the clothes, he took a hasty nce at his body and found that those bloody wounds cut by the flying swords had been healed. This healing was not a real cure but more like something that had been forcibly scorched with fire. Although the cuts had stopped bleeding, Ning Que remained wounded.


    Ning Que silently walked through the high streets and backnes in Eastern City of Chang¡¯an in thest of the darkness. He hid in trees and climbed onto the top of eaves from time to time to avoid those increasingly closer sounds of horseshoes and those sharper sounds of bamboo flutes.


    When he finally seeded in getting close to Lin 47th Street, he found himself unable to return to the Old Brush Pen Shop to heal the wounds. The local government runners of Chang¡¯an had already begun to knock on the shop doors for inquiries with iron rulers and ropes in their hands.


    Looking with a frown at those doors that had been knocked open, Ning Que raised his hands and covered his mouth to suppress the strong impulse of coughing. He returned to the shadows of the alley to lean on a wall and take two rapid gasps.


    An ordinary horse carriage, whose shaft was printed with the logo of the Academy, appeared at the entrance to the alley.


    Hiding in the darkness, Ning Que stared at the horse carriage that fetched him and sent him to the Academy every day, listening carefully to the sounds of opening doors from time to time and silently calcting the time in his mind.


    He unleashed the final strength of his weak body with his tired right foot pedaling fiercely on the wall. He darted to sweep into the alley, opened the gate of the carriage with his right hand at lightning speed, and then got inside.


    The local government runner, who was inquiring of the owner of the old antique shop, vaguely saw something. He was shocked and turned around but saw nobody in the alley, just a horse carriage that was quietly parked there.


    "It is so early now, why is a carriage parked here?" The runner talked to himself and was ready to take a look there.


    The antique shop owner in an unroped dress yawned and, taking a glimpse of the horse carriage, casually exined, "The horse carriage is here to take Boss Xiaoning to the Academy. It¡¯s always waiting here at this time every day."


    Upon hearing the word "Academy", the runner stopped with an ironic smile and turned around, saying toward the owner with emotion, "It¡¯s really rare that someone on this street could be admitted to the Academy."


    Sitting inside the carriage, Ning Que observed the conversation between the runner and the shop owner on the stone steps to confirm that nothing went wrong. Then he drew down the curtain, gently knocked on the windowttice, and said in a tired voice, "Lao Duan, you can go now."


    The old carter was shocked, and looked back at Ning Que behind the curtain. "Boss Ning? When did you get in the carriage? Why didn¡¯t I know? You are really early today," he said in surprise.


    Ning Que softly exined, "I didn¡¯t review the lesson n of Etiquette yesterday, so I hurry to the Academy to go over it." With his facial expression changing slightly, he bent and coughed heavily with his sleeves covering his mouth.


    Hearing the suppressed but piercing coughing in the carriage, the driver inquired with concern. "Are you all right?"


    Ning Que replied, "Last night I engorged two bowls of ice and took a big shower with a few barrels of well water as it was too hot. I probably caught a cold."


    The driver turned back with one hand holding the reins and the other waving the whip. He said with a smile, "Wind-heat is the most troublesome. But as you are young and full of energy, you¡¯ll be fine after drinking some herbal tea when you get back to the shop."


    When hearing those words full of energy, Ning Que wondered why a sense of palpitation arose in his heart. After a moment of startling, he bowed his head to look at his sleeves, on which two gobs of coughed-up blood were seen. He then clutched the sleeves tightly in his hands.


    ...


    ...


    The Southern City of Chang¡¯an was a noble ce, in which a really noblekeside vi was built. People who were entitled to live there were either rich or honorable. Yan Suqing, the tea master, though he could not bepatible with the court, still enjoyed some reputation among the upper-ss celebrities. The previous desperate fight in thekeside vi had already alerted other residents by theke. And the Chang¡¯an Local Government, even the Yulin Royal Guards, had immediately begun the investigation and seizing after learning that Yan Suqing¡¯s head was severed.


    The city gate had just been opened, so it was the best time to block the murderer in the city. The Chang¡¯an Local government runners were making inquiries all around, while the Yulin Royal Guards were organizing their defenses in the street. And the inspection at the gate was especially strict.


    However, no matter how strict the inspection was, some differences still existed after all¡ªat least for the horse carriages with the Academy logo that were in charge of sending students to the Academy. Those serious soldiers at the gate just optionally asked a few questions, opened the carriage curtain to take a nce, and then waved to let it go.


    Ning Que lifted up the curtain and looked at the city gate, thinking that he would not get through it easily today if all the blood on his body had not somehow disappeared. At the moment, he did not know that the blood on Vermilion Bird Avenue had alsopletely evaporated without leaving a trace. Otherwise, by following the blood, the cavalry of Yulin Royal Guards would have caught up with him, who was tired and badly hurt.


    With the clip-clop of horseshoes and the rumble of wheels, the first touch of dawn¡¯s lightnded on Chang¡¯an City and on thed¡¯s innocent cheeks, making his pale face paler. He could not help but squint his eyes, recalling the ck sunshine in that world and lots of confusing things that happened to himst night. Then he subconsciously shook his head to hide the knife under the board of the carriage.


    Ning Que slowly and calmly walked to the Academy after the horse carriage had arrived. The tranquil stone path that was usually bestrewn with blooming flowers and green grass seemed so long today. In order not to let others discover his injuries and abnormalities, he needed to endure the pain that was caused by taking steps. Even raising his eyebrows was not allowed, no matter how severe the pain in his chest was.


    It was clear to Ning Que that he was absolutely unable to attend ss at present. If he insisted, he would probably spit out one mouthful of blood and die in front of the instructor and his ssmates. Thus in the morning sunshine, he directly passed through the quiet sidene of the Academy, slowly walking through the wends to the old library.


    The old library was open to students day and night. The instructor and the four deacons were all absent now since it was still early. Ning Que pushed open the door and then limped upstairs with his right hand leaning on the wall.


    After getting to the familiar second floor, Ning Que stared at the thickly dotted cultivation books on the bookshelves. After a while of silence, he gave birth to a strong impulse of reading as somewhere he had a very ominous omen¡ªit would be thest time in his life that he could get upstairs and thest opportunity for him to read those precious books.


    But in the end, he did not take a book off of the bookshelves and did not have the energy to see whether the guy named Chen Pipi had left any messages. He just wearily walked to the end of the bookshelf and sat down on the floor under the west window.


    Would the female professor be hereter to depict her Hairpin-style Small Regr Script? How could Ning Que exin it to her if she saw him like this? Perhaps he would close his eyes and would not wake up again, then why should he bother to give an exnation?


    Due to the excessive loss of blood and also the mysterious injuries and collisions inside his body, Ning Que¡¯s mind was extremely chaotic, like floating catkins in a spring wind, wandering without any direction.


    He looked down at his chest, feeling the emptiness and the unbearable tearing pain. He subconsciously raised his trembling right hand to slowly touch it.


    He did not feel the spearing from the sky, nor the blood. However, Ning Que felt his own hands full of thick blood, and he was sure that his chest actually had a big hole poked by the spear.


    An invisible big hole.


    "Will I inexplicably die like this?" Ning Que thought in pain. At the same time, the endless feeling of being sleepy came to his mind. He felt his eyelids had be as heavy as lead, and they kept trying to close.


    He released the big ck umbre and gently put it aside, and then tiredly leaned against the wall at his back. He slowly closed his eyes, uttering a rxed sigh, and naturally opened his legs.


    Just like Zhuo Er sitting under the gray wall on that rainy day.


    With gentle footsteps from the stairs, the slender female professor slowly walked over and saw Ning Que sitting under the wall. She gently knitted her eyebrows and her eyesightnded on the big ck umbre beside thed.


    The female professor stared at the big ck umbre with a slight frown. When she turned to Ning Que again, a bit of interest showed up on her peaceful face. And she asked, "Was it you or this big ck umbre... that made the Vermilion Bird re up?"


    She calmly looked at the dyingd with no intention of helping. She just gently sighed and said with pity, "It¡¯s really fascinating that so many secrets that I can¡¯t see through had hidden in such a poord who did not have any cultivating potentials.


    "Constrained by my promise, I can¡¯t help you. Also, I really want to see what you will look like after recovering." The female professor with elegant eyebrows enjoyed a sense of goodliness that waspletely inconsistent with her age. She said, looking at Ning Que on the ground, "I will ask for a leave for you, and I hope that the luck of Haotian can bless you and make you survive. If not, you shall me yourself rather than me, as you appear in the Academy during these one or two years."


    A momentter, she brought a bowl of water and two steamed buns to his side. Then she returned to the east window and continued to depict the Hairpin-style Small Regr Script as if she had not noticed a dyingd was there behide her.


    Out of the window, the dawn gradually flourished and the cicadas and the summer gradually came.

 Chapter 113: The State Discussed on the Tower

    Chapter 113: The State Discussed on the Tower


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    While the folk customs of the Great Tang Empire were wild and fierce, the city of Chang¡¯an was a friendly ce. As the capital, with innumerable imperial courts, ministries, government offices, and military camps scattered within it, where high officials and noble lords resided, daily public security was naturally very good.


    In addition to several corpses that resulted from dueling events, very few cases of abnormal deaths urred in the city of Chang¡¯an. Of course, that was not counting the ughter that was acquiesced by His Majesty in the night at Spring Breeze Pavilion.


    So, after the homicide case had urred on thekeside of Southern City, the Chang¡¯an Local Government suddenly became nervous in the early morning. The newly-appointed Judicial Military Supervisor dared not to go out and stayed in the autopsy room with his coroners. The leaders on duty traveled around the marketce, drenched in sweat and apanied by hundreds of local government runners. The prefectural magistrate, Shangguan Yangyu, who had just gotten up, looked extremely bad.


    "Your Eminence, the viin must be adept at murder. No clue has been found during the investigation around the ce where the homicide case urred. Only a piece of clothing was found in a side alley on Vermilion Bird Avenue, which was estimated to be left behind by the viin."


    The criminal official responsible for the investigating and arresting work respectfully handed the dpidated-looking coat and a piece of cloth strip over and said, "It was not our fault to fail to catch the viin, even the Yulin Royal Guards could not find him."


    Shangguan Yangyu took the ragged coat, looking at it against the sunlight that was prating from the outside. His triangr eyes shrunk almost like two soybeans, but he could not decipher anything. He said in a hoarse voice, "Let the old bird in our department investigate the clothes. If no clues can be found, the needlework should be paid attention to."


    "This piece of clothing is made by Lanxiu workshop. We have already asked someone to inquire previously. The ready-made clothes of this size were made a few years ago and the number of pieces sold are unknown. This piece is clearly old, so... " The subordinate looked up at the His Eminence¡¯s facial expression, then said cautiously, "We are unable to investigate further, neither the needlework nor the cloth."


    Shangguan Yangyu gently stroked the sparse beard on his jaw without any expression on his face, and said indifferently, "The imperial court pays us officials to handle affairs, should we stop investigating due to difficulties?"


    The subordinate walked up to him after a moment of hesitation, and said in a low voice, "Your Eminence, the coat that was left by the viin had innumerable openings hacked into it by sword des, but no bloodstains were found. There are only two possibilities, ording to my judgment."


    "Speak," said Shangguan Yangyu angrily as he could not endure his sluggish temperament.


    "The first one is that the viin might wear very expensive soft armor next to his skin. However, judging by where the clothes were split, especially where a few of the splits are, even the best soft armor in the empire couldn¡¯t protect him."


    The subordinate looked at him again and said in a lower voice, "Then there is only the second possibility... The viin is a powerful man at the peak state of Martial Arts. Ordinary weapons can only cut into his coat instead of prating his primordialyer, which is for protecting himself. As a result, he didn¡¯t bleed."


    Hearing the words "a powerful man at the peak state of Martial Arts", Shangguan Yangyu¡¯s finger fondling his beard abruptly stiffened. His sight became cold as he was looking at his subordinate... A powerful man in Martial Arts, who could resist the flying sword from a Sword Master only by relying on Primordial Qi for protecting himself, must be vigorous. Few such powerful men could be found in the entire empire.


    "Nonsense!" Shangguan Yangyu said in a fearful voice, staring at the eyes of his subordinate coldly. "The only powerful men at the peak state of Martial Arts in the Great Tang are the four senior generals, who are safeguarding the borders on orders of the former emperor. They are not in Chang¡¯an. Even if they are situated in the city of Chang¡¯an presently, do you suppose that the dignified senior generals wouldmit a homicide?"


    The subordinate bowed repeatedly, expressing that was not what he had meant.


    "Can it be a powerful man at the peak state of Martial Arts from a foreign country... That¡¯s less likely."


    Shangguan Yangyu said with a somber countenance, "The imperial court will closely monitor men like this once they enter the city of Chang¡¯an. If they dare to show any sign of disturbance, don¡¯t they fear that the Nation Master can directly suppress them?"


    " If all of these things are not possible, then what is possible? " The subordinateined bitterly to himself, looking at His Eminence with a gaze full of expectancy, hoping that His Eminence could show him the way to follow.


    "The homicide case by thekeside should firstly be filed ording to the regr procedures, then you should investigate the case diligently and strive for solving the case quickly,"


    Shangguan Yangyu slowly said. Obviously, he meant that the stress should be put on trying. Even if you could not solve the case quickly, nobody would mind provided that no one in the imperial court cared.


    Looking at the subordinates backing down following the order, Shangguan Yangyu shook his head and took out his handkerchief from his sleeve, wiping off the sweat on his face. His rosacea and reddish nose suddenly turned a bit more red.


    Hearing that the true murderer was probably a powerful man at the peak state of Martial Arts, the desire to retreat came upon the newly appointed prefectural magistrate of Chang¡¯an City as he knew the case was very troublesome.


    As a senior official of the Great Tang Empire, although Shangguan Yangyu had a despicable temperament, he was not such a coward to escape from shouldering this task. But it was clear to him that if the homicide case involved many countries and people, then it would not be solved merely by the Chang¡¯an Local Government alone. If other government offices did not take on the job, it meant that somebody in the imperial court did not want to kick up a fuss.


    "His Majesty¡¯s graciousness is infinite."


    He saluted northward, bowing with his hands folded in front, full of a grateful look on his ugly face. "His Majesty promoted me to the prefectural magistrate of Chang¡¯an City from a Judicial Military Supervisor and granted me so much and supported me, how dare I cause trouble?"


    ...


    ...


    There was an old tower built with yellow bricks in Southern City, and the tower body was utterly damaged with green vines intertwined. The tower seemed as if were about to copse at any moment. However, the old tower was still standing between the small temples¡ªa witness to the vicissitude of the local scenery¡ªpeacefully, silently, and wordlessly.


    Every spring, innumerable wild geese returned from the south that would fly over the city of Chang¡¯an before summer in Xunyang Lake of the Gushan Commandery. They then circled for many days around the old tower with intermittent warbles, when the shadows of wild geese seemingly blocked out the sun, forming a splendid sight.


    No one knew why these wild geese, which flew high and lodged by the waterside, would appear in the busy city of Chang¡¯an and be so interested in the old tower, but they had gotten ustomed to it over time. In recent years, the scene of numerous wild geese fluttering in the air became another wonderful piece of scenery that citizens in Chang¡¯an appreciated, hence it became known as "Wanyan Tower" (10,000 Geese Tower).


    Now, a monk lived in the top of Wanyan Tower, apanied by a greenmp and a Buddhist statue in a niche, and Scriptures, pens, and ink on the desk. He seldom went down from the tower, nor met with the women in the back garden that respected and believed in Buddhism.


    The monk called himself Huang Yang, and he was the younger brother of the emperor of the Tang dynasty.


    Today he encountered a guest as honorable as himself.


    Li Qingshan, the Nation Master of the Great Tang, said as he was looking at the Buddhist monk transcribing Sutras at the desk, "Last night, the Vermilion Bird woke up."


    Monk Huang Yang, answered cidly without raising his head, "The sacred item left by the Sage from previous generations has its true meaning in its every movement. How can we ordinary people besieged in the mortal world understand it? Why on earth do you bother yourself?"


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 114: The Horse Carriage in Crisscrossed Streets

    Chapter 114: The Horse Carriage in Crisscrossed Streets


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Li Qingshan indifferently asked, "How can we not be disturbed by the breath of the mortal world as long as we¡¯re staying in this mortal world?"


    Monk Huang Yang slowly looked up at him and suddenly said something irrelevant, "Since His Majesty is still in the pce, why are you here?"


    "Rules are not living things, but people are. His Majesty stays in the pce most of the time, so do I have to be detained in the pce every day? You can cultivate every day hiding in Wanyan Tower, but as the lord of the South School of Haotian Taoism, I really have many things to do. Moreover, who can do harm to His Majesty in Chang¡¯an City?"


    "The South School of Haotian Taoism..." Monk Huang Yang repeated again in a slight voice, on his face appearing a hint of a confusing smile. He softly added, "The South School was abruptly separated from Haotian Taoism in our Tang Empire. I really don¡¯t know how you can resist the fury of the Great Divine Priests¡¯ when you return to West-Hill every year."


    Li Qingshan proudly said, "I close my eyes sitting above the temple without seeing the old faces of those uncles. I pretend to be deaf standing in the peachless peach mountain without listening to the remote solemn bells.


    "The South School has paid the amount of the silver taels that they ought to pay each year. What else do they want? To convict me as a betrayer and get me killed? In that case, those old priests in West-Hill have to destroy our Great Tang Empire first."


    Monk Huang Yang smiled without saying anything.


    The South School of Haotian Taoism was the product of the bnce between the Tang Empire and West-Hill Divine Pce. It actually represented the greatest victory of the Tang Empire in the secr religious wars. One more day that it existed, one more day of embarrassment that the Taoist sublime beings in West-Hill would have. It was not suitable for him toment too much on such things as he had been cultivating Buddhism skills.


    "The Vermilion Bird awakenedst night."


    Li Qingshan brought the conversation back to the most previous topic, and said, looking coldly at Monk Huang Yang, "Whether willing or not, I¡¯ve disturbed many people. As the Master of the Tang Empire, it¡¯s impossible for me to be unable to give answers to those questions that the imperial court poses."


    Monk Huang Yang stared at the Buddhist scriptures on the front table and the bright red handicrafts written in cinnabar on the paper. Then he asked after a moment of silence, "So you¡¯re here to find the answer?"


    "A famous Sword Master in Southern City was beheaded before the Vermilion Bird awakened."


    In the cramped tower, Li Qingshan bypassed the wooden table and then quickly walked to the edge of the tower. He looked out through the tiny ss window and his eyesight crossed the forest and summer heat, and finallynded on the steamed Southern City.


    "The dead Sword Master was once the document appraiser of the Military Ministry. Few people know that he was a disciple of West-Hill, while his Sword Forms were from Haotian Taoism. That isn¡¯t the crux of the problem, and I¡¯m not here to me the Tang Empire on behalf of the uncles in West-Hill. What I¡¯m interested in is why the murderer didn¡¯t bleed even though his coat was torn by the Sword Master before his death."


    Monk Huang Yang seemed to be deep in thought listening to those words, then he slowly asked, "Expert at the peak state of Martial Arts?"


    Li Qingshan turned around, and settled the sleeves on his back. He then said, quietly watching the monk, "There¡¯s very little possibility that the experts of Martial Arts might get involved, since the experts of Martial Arts in South Jin Kingdom, Yan Kingdom, and other ces are under the surveince of the imperial court. Thus, I suspect that the mortifying monks of Yuelun Kingdom have sneaked in and yed tricks."


    "So you¡¯re here to find the answer." The monk smiled and repeated what he said previously.


    "There¡¯s a legend in the world that you have been to the Unknown ce, and I know it isn¡¯t just a legend, but the truth. Then I will certainly ask you things about those mortifying monks in Yuelun Kingdom."


    "I¡¯m from Pingzhou City of the Tang Empire." Monk Huang Yang became serious, and quietly continued. "I don¡¯t believe that monks of Yuelun Kingdom would sneak into Chang¡¯an City to kill people for no apparent reason."


    "Then how do you exin the bloodless coat of the murderer?" Li Qingshan asked, gazing at his eyes.


    Monk Huang Yang replied softly with gentle eyes, "The Vermilion Bird awakened because of fury. It collects the Breath of Nature as a nameless fire, which is powerful enough to incinerate all the things in the world. Let alone some thick bloodstains, but perhaps the assassin has already be ashes."


    The monk, the younger brother of the emperor, was skilled in Buddhist Dharma, and could easily guess the truth of this matter, which was extraordinary as expected.


    However, this could not fully exin every question.


    Li Qingshan asked with furrowed eyebrows, "How many people in the world can make the Vermilion Bird awaken and re up? Even if you and I tried our hardest, it might justzily open its eyes to give a simple nce. If it¡¯s one of those predecessors, why did hee to Chang¡¯an City to be a killer? Why did he take the risk to get the Vermilion Bird angry, and why were there no omens?"


    Monk Huang Yang replied with a smile, "Still, the sacred items left by previous Sages always have special meanings thaty between activity and potential. How can ordinary people like us understand? If the predecessor who may have been to Chang¡¯an City has really detached the Knowing Destiny State, acquired the ability of Tianqi, and the concept of No Rules, then his purpose ofing to Chang¡¯an can¡¯t be guessed at."


    Sages, sacred items, Tianqi, and No Rules¡ªthese words echoed within the narrow space at the top of Wanyan Tower. Even the Masters of the Tang Empire and the skilled Buddhas could not help falling into a long period of silence when they were confronted with these extraordinary existences.


    "The 13th year of the Tianqi era... wasn¡¯t really peaceful."


    Following a gentle sigh, Li Qingshan turned around to look outside at the sky that was separated into several palm-sized parts by the ss window. He watched the floating clouds and those noisy birds, and then leisurely said, "Nothing serious, but some disturbing trifles. I¡¯m thinking whether I should practice some divination."


    "Buddhists cultivate mediation rather than life." Monk Huang Yang watched his back and calmly added, "I never believe in such things like divination. Don¡¯t forget how great a disturbance was created after the Imperial Astronomer finished observing stars that year. It seems the review that ¡¯Night covers the stars; the country will be in turmoil¡¯ is really absurd today."


    Li Qingshan observed the clouds and then indifferently said, "The movement of the clouds and stars seems to be random, but is actually not. In your life, sometimes you find it ridiculous to predict destiny. But as time goes by, it will eventually be found that what is ridiculous is not the prediction, but the destiny itself."


    "Master, although what you said is right, please remember thements that the divine priest from West-Hill gave you while he was imparting Taoism to you. He said that you have to sacrifice your life to obtain the ability of observing the sky. Comments on observing the stars from the Imperial Astronomer provoked innumerable disturbances at that time, and Her Majesty begged you to practice divination in order to keep herself innocent, but you refused. Do you really want to shorten your life expectancy today just because of the turmoil and premonition in your heart?"


    "Nature¡¯s mystery is unpredictable. I¡¯d like to witness the prosperity of the Tang Empire for a few extra years, so I won¡¯t painstakingly shorten my predestined lifespan." Li Qingshan slowly furrowed his eyebrows, and watched those lively stall keepers "yo-heave-ho" outside the temple and under the tower. He said, "Even at the cost of a serious illness, I still want to see what kind of variables have fallen on this chessboard."


    Monk Huang Yang sighed in his heart, without trying to stop his fellow any longer. He moved the Buddhist scriptures, pens, and ink away in order to take out ck and white chess pieces and a chessboard from the box and ced them on the writing desk.


    Li Qingshan turned around to walk to the side of the desk, and just flicked his sleeves to grab two handfuls of ck and white chess pieces. He threw them freely on the chessboard, rather than makingplicated and enigmatic spellcasting actions.


    Dozens of matte chess pieces hit and rolled on the wooden chessboard, making a crispy sound. They did not quiet down for a very long time, and in ordance with the decree of destiny, they silently fell onto their own positions without moving anymore.


    Li Qingshan and Monk Huang Yang gazed simultaneously at a ck chess piece on the board. This chess piece was not confined to the straight line, Tengen, and square grids and just fell askew somewhere random but strange.


    The horizontal and vertical lines on the chessboard were like crisscrossed streets in the world. The chess pieces were like travelers and horse carriages, which stayed in the intersection talking and discussing together like old friends or enemies, and which would not meet each other again after drinking two cups of tea, peaceful or contentious as usual.


    There was only one horse carriage lying in the middle of the broad avenue without moving forward or backward, without greeting its peers, or colliding to break through everything. It was just silently blocking.


    It was this block that immediately made the crisscrossed streets a different situation¡ªwhere people marching south or west could not continue their travels; where enemies who wanted to draw knives against each other could not meet in person; where lovers who were deeply attached to each other could not embrace; where friends became strangers; and where disputes became confusing.


    "Are these the variations on the chessboard?"


    Looking at the ck chess piece and the silent horse carriage in the vertical and horizontal streets, Li Qingshan¡¯s expression was as calm as ever. But his face quickly turned pale at a visible speed, as if he was suffering a serious illness right at that moment.


    A dead silence descended on the top of Wanyan Tower, and no one knew how long it hadsted. Yet it was eventually broken by Li Junshan¡¯s hoarse and tired voice, from which no sorrow or joy could be discerned.


    "This variable... is about to die."


    Upon hearing this, Monk Huang Yang was a little astonished as he watched the ck chess piece slowly getting crossed with a merciful expression on his face.


    Just then, Li Qingshan raised his eyebrows, and a hint of something different shed through his eyes. "No, more variables have appeared," he added.


    ...


    ...


    The darkness was approaching, the summer had not retreated, and the cicadas outside of the window were still chirping. Silence prevailed on the second floor of the old library in the Academy. The delicate and tenuous female professor by the eastern window had left, while the seriously injured and dyingd under the western window was still sitting there, leaning against the wall. He looked pale with closed eyes as if he would fall into some permanent dark and sweet dreams in the next moment.


    A few spaces ahead were rows of bookshelves against the wall. Theplex ornamentation at the side of the bookshelves slightly brightened, and then silently slipped away. A momentter, a fatd wearing the summer robe of the Academy squeezed over.


    When the fatd was just about to crouch his body with difficulty to pull out Wu Shanyang¡¯s Theory on Hoaran Sword from the bottom of the bookshelf, he suddenly furrowed his eyebrows and his white and tenderplexion conveyed a trace of suspicion, and then he turned around.


    Seeing the motionlessd who seemed to be asleep by the wall, he eximed, with furrowed eyebrows gradually stretching out and his thick lips smacking, "When has the guy who was more desperate than Ning Quee to the Academy?"

 Chapter 115: The Unbearable Weight of Life

    Chapter 115: The Unbearable Weight of Life


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Being a firm believer in karma, Ning Que strongly believed that he would not die at this age. However, he was too badly injured today, and the invisiblence piercing through his chest was beyond his scope of understanding. As a result, on this sixteenth year of his arrival to this world, Ning Que had no choice but to consider death as a possibility.


    When he woke up, he struggled to open his eyes in the first ce, and used hisst strength to look around him, wondering whether he hade to hell and whether hell really existed in this world.


    Then he saw a big fat face really close to his own, with tiny eyes looking like dots, showing sparks of curiosity and skepticism in them as they stared at him firmly.


    As this face looked nicely plump and fair, it reminded Ning Que of the full moon in his hometown, which he had not seen for a long time. So instead of scaring him, it felt strangely familiar, despite not being clear-minded due to his bad injury.


    Leaning against the wall, he looked at the big fat face with his head slightly tilted to one side, let out a weakugh, and said, "The yaksha from hell should look pretty dark, so I guess I¡¯m not dead yet. Well then, who are you?"


    Instead of being scared by the fat face, Ning Que startled Chen Pipi by suddenly opening his eyes. Chen Pipi widened his eyes in shock, then he stared back at his pale face and said, "I am more interested in who you are."


    Ning Que, trembling, raised his right hand to cover his chest, which seemed normal but was suffering great pain. He looked toward the side with his brows furrowed and made sure that he was still on the second floor of the old library. It was alreadyte at night. Ning Que noticed that the professor had left and he felt puzzled and disappointed as she turned a blind eye to him.


    Considering that, besides himself, basically no Academy students would stay on the second floor, not to mention it waste at night, and thinking of those handwritings which were obviously written at night, Ning Que looked with amazement at the youth who wore the summer Academy robe and asked in a hoarse voice, "Chen Pipi?"


    Chen Pipi¡¯s eyes opened even wider. Well, of course, with such "big" eyes, his eyes changed from the size of mung beans to the size of peas and then to soybeans. He stared at Ning Que and asked in disbelief, "You are Ning Que?"


    "Yes, it¡¯s me, the smartest young man in the world," Ning Que tightly red at Chen Pipi¡¯s round face and answered. Suddenly in his eyes appeared a strong me of determination, and Ning Que said in a hoarse voice, "If you don¡¯t want to see me die, then try everything to save me!"


    Chen Pipi did not ask meaningless questions such as ¡¯why should I save you¡¯. Because aftermunicating through letters with each other for some time, they already knew each other¡¯s character and be good friends, even though they had not spoken face to face yet. Furthermore, they were close enough to scold each other as an idiot, make fun of each other, and of course, help each other, so how could Chen Pipi let Ning Que die without reaching out to help him?


    Chen Pipi put two fingers on Ning¡¯s wrist to feel his pulse. He remained silent for a while and then he suddenly furrowed his brows, stared at Ning¡¯s eyes, and asked, "How have you not died after such a severe injury?"


    "Not dead yet doesn¡¯t mean I will not die. I am almost dying, how much nonsense are you going to say, idiot?"


    "You are an idiot. You have been seriously injured, why don¡¯t you go to the capital, Chang¡¯an, for treatment? It is meaningless toe to the Academy, please don¡¯t tell me that you made a special trip to let me cure you."


    "Why not? Don¡¯t you say that you are a genius?"


    "So what? Is there a connection between genius and medicine skill?"


    "The first question you gave me was a prescription."


    "A prescription cannot save you, even the most ingenious one. Your injury is so severe that you should have died already."


    Ning Que¡¯s consciousness became extremely weak and his eyes could not focus. Looking at the guy in front of him, Ning Que said, "I have been lying here for a whole day and nobody in the Academy helped me, even the female professor, who seems very gentle and pleasant, turned a blind eye to me, but you cannot ignore me."


    Chen Pipi looked down at the bowl of water as well as the two steamed buns and said, "Senior Sister¡¯s temperament is quiet and peaceful. She lives in a thatched cottage on a hill by herself and always keeps reticent. I don¡¯t think she ignored you..."


    "You don¡¯t need to defend her. I know the Academy is a ce that must refuse indifference, where we help each other."


    Tiredly raising up his head and looking at Chen Pipi through the dim starlight, Ning Que was silent for a while, and then said with an ironic smile, "Anyway, my life... is in your hands."


    Finishing this sentence, he closed his eyes, loosened his shoulders and immediately fell into aa again.


    ...


    ...


    Opening his mouth wide, Chen Pipi looked in the corner at the guy in thea and his fat face was full of an expression of disbelief.


    "What the hell is this? How can you fall into aa without saying anyst words? You are forcing me to save you! So shameless! Nobody would do this except you!"


    He angrily muttered while struggling to squat his body, and atst, simply sat on the floor. Slowly stretching out his right hand, he quickly pointed onto Ning Que¡¯s chest several times with his five fleshy fingers.


    Having already checked Ning Que¡¯s pulse condition earlier, he knew that Ning Que had a serious injury. It was the Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow in his chest that had gotten destroyed, which for ordinary beings or even average cultivators, this level of injury could kill them. However, as Ning Que hoped, Chen Pipi was indeed a rare genius who was cultivated by both the West Hill and the Academy, and a genius who could save his life, even though he did not look like a genius.


    As a genius, the most important quality is self-confidence. Well, as for the pride born by the self-confidence, that would be another different matter.


    Chen Pipi was confident in everything. He strongly believed that since Ning Que had not died yet, then as long as he helped Ning Que, he certainly would not die. "Was the fatal injury in the Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow horrible? Of course not. As long as I use Natural Stream Magical Finger with the pure Primordial Qi, which can be easily obtained by a no-boundary spirit, you will be cured in a few seconds.


    "What?" Chen Pipi suddenly made a strange voice and quickly withdrew his fingers as if he had touched hot coals. Looking at Ning Que¡¯s chest where no wound could be found, Chen Pipi tightly contracted his brows and his face grew grave.


    "This is so, so, so weird. How is this possible...?"


    Chen Pipi stared at Ning Que¡¯s chest with his thick lips quivering and could not stop muttering. No one knew what he had found. Chen Pipi¡¯s voice trembled more and more and he became less and less confident.


    "A sharp sword power intruded into your body via a wooden weapon, destroying your internal organs. It is supposed to be a cultivator who hurt you. Yet this cultivator was in a Seethrough State at most. How could the sword power resist my magical finger? Why is the gentleman¡¯s no-boundary spirit that the professor taught me so useless?


    "The cultivator risked his life tounch a swift and fierce attack before he died, no wonder that the power of the sword is extremely strong. As a poor guy who cannot be involved in cultivation, you should have driven a sword master into a blind alley. No wonder you are so arrogant. Now the problem is... if I can¡¯t cure you, then what can I show off in front of you in the future?


    "Wait a minute! Where is the chilly cold breath filling in your chest and abdomening from? How could the chilly breath touch my Taoist heart? Wait! There is still a burning breath! Where do these destructive breathse from?!"


    Chen Pipi was so shocked that he sat heavily down on the floor. Looking down at Ning Que who was still in aa, Chen Pipi wondered, "What on earth has happened to you and why are there so many horrible breaths in your body?"


    Chen Pipi gradually calmed down. He put his hands on hisp, slowly closed his eyes and started to ponder over the problems he had explored. He asionally lifted his fleshy hands and drew a few emblematic gestures in the air, and then continued prudently probing the situation in Ning Que¡¯s body.


    When he reopened his eyes after a while, there was endless puzzlement and frustration. The calmness in his eyes was all gone.


    ording to his judgment, there should be a vigorous and invincible burning power that directly intruded Ning Que¡¯s body through his wound caused by the cultivator, and the burning power destroyed the unsensible stupid Snow Mountain instantly. Generally speaking, Ning Que should have died immediately when the Snow Mountain under the Ocean of Qi was destroyed. But somehow, the absolutely chilly breath intruded his body, so while the original Snow Mountain was being destroyed, a new one was being formed at the same time!


    It should be admitted that Chen Pipi was definitely an unparalleled genius in the cultivation world. He did not see the battle at the pavilion personally, the stick-up wing at Vermilion Bird Avenue, the invisiblence from the sky, or the big ck umbre gently swung like a lotus. He did not even divine like Li Qingshan, the Master of Nation, but he could almost infer that battle situation ording to Ning Que¡¯s injury.


    But the reality was... his injury could not be cured by only knowing how it was caused.


    "Ning Que didn¡¯t die when the Snow Mountain was destroyed, instead another new one was formed instantly. What an enigmatic situation it is... Compared with this, the Grand Spiritism is just a piece of cake. Maybe Haotian brilliance also takes this path of rebirth after destruction to help mortals to be sensible."


    Staring at Ning Que absent-mindedly, Chen Pipi muttered in a trembling voice, "Yet I didn¡¯t feel any Haotian brilliance in this guy. What¡¯s more, how could these Great Divine Priests from West Hille to Chang¡¯an? Even if they be idiots ande here, it will never happen that they will help him to be sensible by depleting their cultivation.


    "If it is not Grand Spiritism, then who did this to you? People from Xuankong Temple? No way. Those monks only care about chanting scriptures and are incapable of this ability. Those stupid fellows from Devil¡¯s Doctrine? No, they are even more impossible. As for the master in the Taoist Temple... No, he cannot do this either. I am wondering if the Headmaster of the Academy is capable of such... an enigmatic method. But the Headmaster is traveling to other kingdoms with Eldest Brother, there is no reason for him toe back at this time.


    "What¡¯s the hell going on here?" Chen Pipi thought for a long time but still could not get the answer. He painfully scratched his head. His fingers shuttled back and forth among his hair just like an old cow wearily plowing the cknd of Yan Kingdom.


    It seemed that Ning Que had good luck when the Snow Mountain in his body was reshaped after being destroyed. But Chen Pipi was quite clear that, without the protection of Haotian brilliance, this extremely brutal destruction and rebirth was equivalent to death. The Snow Mountain in Ning Que¡¯s chest and abdomen was extremely unstable and could copse at any time, and the breath there was too weak to feel and already had no vitality. This guy would not survive unless someone could reenergize him in an enigmatic way.


    Since the Primordial Qi between heaven and earth was certain, no one could seek vitality from the nihility of darkness. Unless the precious flowers and exotic fruit nourished by the Primordial Qi for thousands of years could be found in overseas and fantastic inds¡ªonly then could this dying young man have a glimmer of hope to survive.


    The matter was where to find those precious flowers and exotic fruit. The Academy did not have them. Chang¡¯an did not have them. Even the entire Tang Empire did not have them. And of course, he, the rare genius, did not have them, either.


    Chen Pipi red at Ning Que for quite a long time. Then he unwillingly and hesitantly took out a small china bottle from his arms. This small bottle was crystal clear and was made of unknown materials. Holding the small bottle in his hand, his arms started to tremble like it was too heavy to bear it.


    ...


    ...


    Chapter 3 will be finished before half-past four. (To be continued... If you like this novel, we wee you to go to qidian to give rmended votes and a monthly pass. Your support is my greatest motivation.)

 Chapter 116: The Thing That You and I Cant Figure Out

    Chapter 116: The Thing That You and I Can¡¯t Figure Out


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    People looked up into the high sky and praised the kindness of Haotian. However, no matter how diligent and clever they were in cultivation, they never dared to think of flying into the sky. Because they knew, no matter how steep the way was, it could not be harder than going to heaven. No one had ever made it because the way from the earthly world to heaven was filled with difficulties.


    The Divine Hall of Haotian was in West Hill, which was self-crowned as the only bright school that could understand the doctrine of Haotian in the world. However, no one ever heard that some Great Divine Priest could ascend to heaven and be immortal to be one of the members of Haotian.


    There was a magic pill called the Heavenly Power Pill in West Hill. From only its name, the value of the magic pill could be known. It was deeply hidden in some unknown ce, therefore it could hardly be seen in the world.


    At this time, there were two Heavenly Power Pills in the china bottle in Chen Pipi¡¯s trembling hand.


    "They all call me the genius of practice that they¡¯ve never met in hundreds of years, and gave me three Heavenly Power Pills when I entered into the sect. In the end, the old monks held a meeting for three days. Anyway, Brother Ye only had one pill that year. One I ate, one is for saving my life, and thest one is left for helping my Senior Brother enter into the next state. How could I simply give it to you like this?


    "The Heavenly Power Pill can¡¯t help people to ascend to heaven, but it can increase people¡¯s life by 10 years and maybe make a cultivator enter into the next state directly. If I gave these two pills to the King of Great River Kingdom, he would give me at least 30,000 virgins in return, or even give his throne to me. If I gave the pill to the leader of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, perhaps he would dly betray his school and join in West Hill.


    "How valuable the Heavenly Power Pill is! I should give it to you just for healing?"


    If dying Ning Que needed ordinary gold or treasures, or even his Psyche Power, Chen Pipi would never hesitate. But these pills were very important, and they were the most valuable pills in Haotian Taoism. If they were found outside Haotian, no one knew how many conflicts would be provoked, so he hesitated and struggled.


    Drastic mental strugglessted for a long time in his head. Then without notice, the fatd, looking at Ning Que in aa, sighed bitterly and said, "Those monks always said it was more important to save a life than building seven-story stone towers. Although I don¡¯t know what importance there is in building those ugly stone towers, I believe that sentence makes some sense. However, I still think your life is not more important than this pill. Anyway, the pill can¡¯t speak, and moreover, you just rascally entrusted your life to me before you passed out."


    That so-called reason was just an excuse to persuade himself. Chen Pipi opened the sparkling china bottle cap, and carefully dropped one pill into his palm with a sad face, then put it into Ning Que¡¯s mouth.


    The pill looked a little brown, with no gloss nor strange smell, which did not even induce hundreds of birds to celebrate. It just spread a slight herb smell, and looked somon.


    "If you died earlier, the Heavenly Power Pill would be saved. If you didn¡¯te to the Academy, this pill would also be saved. If... you were not that boring to leave a message on the paper, I wouldn¡¯t know you and this pill could be saved as well."


    Chen Pipi put the pill into Ning Que¡¯s mouth, gave him some water, and helped him to disolve the pill while he pressed on his chest,ining the entire time with a sad, pitiful look on his face.


    "You are so smart and have good perseverance, moreover, you also have goodprehension. However, all the acupoints in your Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow are unactivated. You are so poor, or you are ad that is cursed by Haotian."


    Ning Que still had his eyes closed, but his pale face quickly turned red. Chen Pipi just looked at him nkly and sighed. "Today, your Snow Mountain was damaged and then rebuilt. Perhaps, you really could have some acupoints activated. You were injured so badly that only the Heavenly Power Pill could cure you, and then you met me, who was the only one that had the pill, and I couldn¡¯t help but save your life. Therefore, you are actually ad that Haotian cares about."


    ...


    ...


    The melted and copsed Snow Mountain was rebuilt by the cold power. It seemed like magic, but the structure of the Snow Mountain was unstable and could copse anytime. The internal cier and dangerous holes were scarred and battered, and most of the holes could not connect with each other, so it made the Snow Mountain fragile like a wooden pir that was hollowed out by termites.


    The valuable Heavenly Power Pill was melted by water, and slowly permeated his body via his throat, then its efficacy worked before it reached Ning Que¡¯s stomach. The radiance that was shining like stars dissipated in his viscera.


    Under the radiance, the distant mountain rose high suddenly instead of copsing again. It just stood under the firmament silently, as sacred as a saintess and as firm as a warrior. It slowly melted, wetting the wild drynd.


    A smell of life permeated that strange world, which was not from the sun in the sky, but from the essence of the world. Day alternated with night, and a cold trickle was slowly flowing, then there was other grass growing on the side of the trickle, spreading to the grasnd.


    Flocks of sheep were jumping happily on the grasnd, and some field mice were cheerfully nibbling at the grass roots under the ground. In the depth of the grasnd, pleasant green trees were growing up.


    ...


    ...


    The pill¡¯s potency was very slow, but it was very fast for people to absorb it. When Ning Que absorbed all of the pill power into his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow, he woke up. At that time, it was dawn outside of the old library.


    He leaned against the wall sluggishly, squinting at the twilight outside of the east window. He slightly opened his mouth and murmured in a barely audible voice, "Everything has cause and effect, and has a reason to exist. Haotian, you have your reason to bring me to this world, and I know you won¡¯t just indifferently watch me die."


    "Not Haotian, it is me who can¡¯t indifferently watch you die."


    Chen Pipi leaned against the wall near Ning Que, and rubbed his tired eyes, mumbling, "You¡¯re a guy that stepped one foot into the dead world, but you can¡¯t figure out who saved you once you have be sober."


    Ning Que smiled tiredly, and quietly saw his big round face. He never thought Chen Pipi, who had left his messages for a long time, would have had such an appearance. Then he asked, "How did you cure me?"


    Chen Pipi moved his fat body, rubbed his back against the wall, stood up hard, and stretched his numb body with his hands on his waist. He smiled slightly with a wave of his hand, saying, "I¡¯ve told you so many times, I am a genius that has been hardly seen in the world. If an ordinary doctor saw your wound, you would have died. But for me, it was just a tiny thing."


    The fatd always took himself to be the genius that had not been seen in 100 years, so he always demanded himself to act like a real genius. He adored his Senior Brothers¡¯ manner, so he did not like to mutter things.


    Last night, to cure Ning Que, he gave him a very valuable pill that was hardly ever found in the world. But it was so worldly to emphasize this because he already gave it to him. Besides, it totally did not fit his taste, so he did not exin the details, but just shook his sleeves to show that he did not care about it.


    Of course, if someone had stood in front of him, they would see his fat face slightly trembling because of his pity and regret.


    Chen Pipi restored calm when he turned around, and looking into Ning Que¡¯s eyes, he made a request, "Can I see your big ck umbre?"


    Ning Que said after he went silent for a while, "I don¡¯t have the strength, do it yourself."


    It made Chen Pipi lose his mind. He frowned and looked at Ning Que for a while, bent down his body with difficulty, and grabbed the handle of the ck umbre.


    He felt a little bit cold when he held it at first. The wood that made the handle seemed to be ground from an ordinary tree in the northern part of the empire. He did not know what was smeared on the ck umbre, for it seemed a little oily. Except for that, you could see nothing strange.


    Chen Pipi looked at the ck umbre in his hands for a long time, and found nothing. He put it back down at Ning Que¡¯s side, saying, "Last night, I inquired about something."


    "What?" Ning Que asked tiredly.


    "Yesterday, the Vermilion Bird woke up." Chen Pipi stared at his eyes.


    Ning Que frowned slightly, thinking of the feeling when he passed out on the street due to serious injury, and his fear that appeared for no reason when he walked with Sangsang and held the ck umbre several months ago. But he really did not know the portrait of the Vermilion Bird woke up at that time, so he only shook his head.


    Chen Pipi did not find any problems, so he paused before he continued, "Last night, a Sword Master was found dead in Chang¡¯an."


    Ning Que went silent.


    Chen Pipi looked at him with a forced smile, saying, "You have many wounds made by swords. Although you don¡¯t bleed now, your wounds were burned by fire, rather than being old wounds."


    Ning Que smiled, and lifted his head saying, "What on earth are you trying to say?"


    "You were wounded very much, however you didn¡¯t go back home to lie down but came to the Academy by carriage. It only shows that you were injured by the sword in the morning. At that time, the Chang¡¯an Local Government chased you very close, so you couldn¡¯t go back home, but escaped to the Academy. The Chang¡¯an Local Government wouldn¡¯t dare to block a carriage going to the Academy, not to mention search you here.


    "Yesterday morning, the Sword Master died, the portrait of the Vermilion Bird in the street woke up, and you were very badly injured by a sword yet without a trace of blood, and your wounds were cauterized by an invisible fire, which only means one thing."


    Chen Pipi looked at him and frowned, saying, "You are the person who killed the Sword Master, and the person who annoyed the Vermilion Bird. But what confuses me all this time is that you did all of this and you are just an ordinary person.


    "I admire you. Your first name could be Fu, then Mine could be Hua."


    Ning Que leaned against the wall tiredly, saying, "The problem is that you struggled so hard to save me, so I believe you won¡¯t take me to the government. Then why do you bother to ask all this?"


    Chen Pipi lifted his eyebrows, saying proudly, "Because I, the genius, want to prove to you that nothing can be hidden from me!"


    Ning Que smiled at him, and said suddenly, "There is no such big family in West Hill as what you said in your messages. There is only one ce that can influence cultivation and themon world and make the Academy fear¡ªthe Haotian Divine Hall.


    "You are not some inheritor of a big family, but the selected inheritor of Haotian Taoism. I don¡¯t know who your master was when you were a child, the hierarch of Haotian Taoism or some Great Divine Priest? And what confuses me most is, as a genius given great hopes by the Haotian Divine Hall in West Hill, chosen by the hierarch as the inheritor and received by the Academy... why you are so fat?"


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 117: A Boiling Hot Towel

    Chapter 117: A Boiling Hot Towel


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    After hearing the analysis, Chen Pipi was startled at first, then furious, feeling that his pride was hurt. He scowled at Ning Que gloomily, neither approving nor disapproving, and reprimanded him in a cold voice, "What a bunch of nonsense! Small potatoes like you, I could easily crush you to death. Do not unt your little tricks in front of me!"


    Therge-figured prodigy put on a solemn look, oozing an air of scorn, while Ning Que appearedposed and fearless. Leaning against the wall, smiling, he asked suddenly, "Have you ever killed someone?"


    Chen Pipi parted his lips slightly, nning to rebut with some arrogant words, which yet could note out, only to find himself searching his toes.


    Ning Que observed him interestingly, and continued, "How about a chicken then?"


    Chen Pipi bent his head with his hands folded back, and his mouth tightened into a line, refusing to answer. He wriggled his stout figure to and fro, like an embarrassed child whose pride had gotten hurt.


    Ning Que startedughing, then sighed. "I presume you might have killed some ants by ident when crossing a road. A pair of hands as delicate as yours, I¡¯m afraid, have probably never touched a single drop of blood... Do not imitate others to make a bluff, as it merely has a reverse effect, that is, to make oneugh. Another thing to remember, do not go around talking about me."


    Having had a good lesson, Chen Pipi covered his face with his sleeves, and left in embarrassment.


    ...


    ...


    It was early in the morning and Ning Que could still make it for his lessons, but he had barely struggled back to life, and was fatigued mentally and physically. Hence, it might not have been the best time for him to pretend to be a diligent student. He vaguely recollected that the female professor would ask a leave for him, so he decided to have a rest back at Lin 47th Street.


    Availing himself of the big ck umbre as a crutch, the seriously injuredd walked slowly out of the old library, like an old man with a stoop doing morning exercises. He strolled leisurely along the skirts of the wend in the morning sun rays, and out of the front gate of the Academy.


    Outside of the in-looking stone gate was a stretch of green meadow that was like a big felt nket, in which dozens of te-paved carriagenes were partly visible, and farther along was arge collection of blossoms. When in mid-summer, the blooms would give way to exuberant leaves and small fruits.


    At the far end of the meadow, drivingnes, and trees stood a carriage, which had been waiting for a while, and even the horse lowered its head tiredly. Next to the horse squatted a little servant-dressed girl, who had not had a wink of sleep for a day and a night. Her swarthy little face appeared greyish-pale out of exhaustion and worry, as though it was applied by one of Chenjinji Cosmetics Store¡¯s powders.


    Yesterday morning, Ning Que did not return in the wake of killing, and some serious-looking local-government runners came and made some inquiries. The tter of hoofs of the Yulin Royal Guards on the streets told Sangsang that something had gone amiss. She forced herself to suppress all of her uneasiness, and waited in silence in the Old Brush Pen Shop. The carriage which took Ning Que had not yet shown up and, eventually, she felt she could not wait any longer.


    Inquiring of a coachman, Sangsang was assured that Ning Que had left with a carriage to the Academy, and contemting a while, she then produced 10 silvers and asked the coachman to take her to the Academy. From then on, she hunkered next to the carriage and meadow, silently waiting.


    She was not informed of Ning Que¡¯s condition, yet was quite sure that he was seriously wounded, and that he might have hidden away somewhere to cure himself. She did not dare to fish information from instructors or students, so waiting was all she could do.


    Sangsang squatted beside the trees, watching the gate go from being shrouded in darkness, to being shone on by the rising morning sun; watching lights go on and off in study rooms; watching an army of antse and go in front her shoes; watching people walk in and out of the Academy; and hearing the loud chants of the students. Nheless, there was no sight of her young master.


    Some students came with carriages and saw the maidservant of Ning Que squatting beside thene. They, mostly out of curiosity, hade to her for a chat. She gave noments, only looked in the direction of the gate of the Academy.


    Sangsang saw the person she longed to see after watching the whole night, which she felt was almost as long as her entire life.


    She rubbed her sore eyes, and her little pale face was gradually suffused with color. She closed her eyes and held her hands in front of her chest, murmuring something, then propped herself up quickly. Her weak and delicate body almost fell over, as her legs were stiff from being in the squatting posture for such a long time.


    Ning Que, holding the big ck umbre, walked slowly next to her, and peered at this familiar swarthy face, which was evidently worried and exhausted. All of a sudden, pathos arose from Ning Que¡¯s heart. Though they had been through countless situations traversing life and death, it was still worthy of a celebration to meet each other in the wake of his near-death experience.


    Opening his arms subconsciously and trying to hug her, Ning Que just found that the little handmaiden had already grown a lot since they left the City of Wei, reaching the level of his chest. He paused for a moment, stretched out his hand, and rubbed her head instead.


    Lifting her little face, Sangsang beamed.


    Turning and walking toward the carriage, they supported one another, feeling connected, and said no more.


    The coachman yawned, and was quite tired from a night¡¯s makeshift sleep in the carriage. He wearily raised his horsewhip and whipped into the air, and his left hand lifted the reins. The horse started heading forward, and the carriage slowly moved.


    In the carriage, Ning Que said in a coarse voice, "I¡¯m beat now, I¡¯ll tell you the whole story when getting back home. Remember to bring the sword."


    ...


    ...


    Having arrived at Lin 47th Street, Ning Que, due to his serious injuries, had slept as if he was dead, not opening his eyes all along. Sangsang took out the Pu sword, put it into the big ck umbre, and fastened them onto her back. With the help of the coachman, they carried Ning Que together like a rice bag into the Old Brush Pen Shop, and tucked him into a quilt.


    It was mid-summer, and the quilt was heavy and warm. Soon, Ning Que was starting to sweat, and finally awoke, not knowing how long he had slept.


    Opening his eyes, Ning Que recognized it was his home, exhaled a sigh of relief, allying all the fear buried deep inside of him, which made his extremities a bit cold.


    Staring at several zed tiles on the roof through which some sunlight came in, Ning Que was quiet for a while, then suddenly said, "I mentioned to you a student called Chen Pipi... Take a note for me, as I owe him one. At some proper time or ce, remind me to repay him."


    Sangsang was pouring boiled water into a bucket and preparing to get him a shower, and did not expect him to be awake already. She went over and sat next to him, asking "But how to repay him?"


    "Although I am not sure how he did it, he saved my life. I told you many times that your life and mine are of utmost importance in this world. Therefore, it is fine to repay him at whatever cost."


    Ning Que looked at Sangsang¡¯s contemting face, reminding her with a smile, "Of course, not at the expense of our lives."


    "What on earth happened, young master?" peering at his pale cheeks, Sangsang gently asked.


    "The tea specialist was a cultivator, and I was injured badly. I only recall that I fainted on the street, and I don¡¯t know what happened after that."


    Ning Que was trying to recollect his memory of the strange incidents from yesterday morning until now, with a vague kind of feeling of when he fainted in particr. With a confused look in his eyes, Ning Que frowned and repeated, "Curiously, I have no idea whatsoever what happened.


    "Cook anything, I¡¯m famished." He did not enjoy being clueless about what had happened to him. As he could not figure it out, he just let it be, and gave it no more consideration.


    Something clicked in Ning Que¡¯s mind at once, and he supplicated Sangsang like a beggar. "Could you not make noddles with fried eggs or with pig¡¯srge intestines, please? It is hot and they must have turned sour and bad... How about we treat ourselves better tonight given my serious wounds?"


    Upon hearing this, Sangsang was feeling sorry, thinking to herself, "I am merely a handmaiden, how could I possibly shortchange you? I was only saving for your future marriage."


    "I gave the coachman 10 silvers..."


    She inclined her head, and continued softly, "While you were asleep, I asked for a bowl of pickled daikon from the antiquendy next door, and simmered it with a duck. It¡¯ll be ready in a moment. "


    Finishing her words, Sangsang fetched a boiling hot towel and wrung it out, put it where Ning Que could easily reach, and then walked outside and wiped her little red hands on her apron.


    ...


    ...


    "I gave the coachman 10 silvers." Sangsang meant to tell her young master that although she was inexperienced and frugal, she was by no means a maid who could not tell the severity of matters. She never said no when it came to something urgent.


    Ning Que was lying on the bed, watching her little figure bustling around. Reflecting on the irritating tone in her earlier words, he could not helpughing. Sangsang saw him lying against the head of the bed, swiftly walked to the window and shut it, andmanded him to get more rest.


    The light in the room was suddenly dim, except for a faint light shining through the zed roof. With a warm candlelight lit on a desk, Sangsang was apanying him quietly.


    Watching the candlelight, Ning Que¡¯s smile gradually faded away.


    Yan Suqing, the tea specialist, was a cultivator, which was the covert factor that considerably spoiled his n. Were he not lucky enough, he would probably be dead by thatke. Then it would have been impossible to have the chance to run away to the street, let alone hide away in the Academy for a night ande across Chen Pipi, a swindler in West Hill.


    During his unconsciousness, he was sure that something had transpired, otherwise, he could not exin how his wounds were healed nor the pain in his chest. However, he did not have the slightest clue of what exactly happened nor what Chen Pipi had done to him.


    Ning Que could not think anymore, and was feeling very tired mentally and physically. He felt his body was a bit slimy as he had sweat earlier on, and wanted to clean up a bit. When he had almost reached the towel, his hand went stiff.


    He suddenly realized that there seemed to be an invisible obstacle between his hand and the towel.

 Chapter 118: The Most Wonderful Sound in the World

    Chapter 118: The Most Wonderful Sound in the World


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    There was a nonsense-like truth that existed in the world: "Existence is the real being, so is nonexistence". It was very simple for the criterion of existence and nonexistence in the secr world. For instance, visible things like mountains were existent; audible things like sounds were existent; tangible things like fire were also existent. But if you could not see, hear, or feel it, then it was not nonexistent.


    But that criterion could not be applied to the world of cultivation. The Breath, or Primordial Qi, filling the world and the Psyche Power, produced by the integration of the Ocean of Qi and the Mountain of Snow which caused the vibration of the Primordial Qi, could not be perceived by ordinary people. They were incapable of seeing, or hearing, or feeling the Breath of Nature and the Psyche Power of cultivators. But that did not mean that such things did not exist.


    The Initial State, also known as the Initial Awareness State, referred to the psyche of cultivators that was output from the Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow toprehend the existence of the Breath of Nature. The Perception State indicated that cultivators could still stay in harmony with nature, and could even have some sensory exchanges and contacts with it after being initially aware of its Breath. Both of the two initial states were collectively called the Unreal State.


    Whether an ordinary person could embark on the way of cultivation could be easily judged by the above discussion. If he could see, or hear, or feel the Breath of Nature or the psyche, then he was really on the way.


    Staring nkly at his trembling fingers, the thin gap between the pulps and wet towels, and the transpiring heat, Ning Que knew that what he felt was something else rather than the heat.


    It was inurate to describe this kind of feeling with the word "touching"¡ªit was more like a sense of perception.


    Spirits existed in human brains. And spirits produced the psyche that referred to thoughts, while the Psyche Power was dying to be with you... Such enigmatic strength generated by these kinds of patterns were named the power of thoughts.


    Ning Que was exhausted at this time, as he had not recovered from the serious injury. There were no distracting thoughts in his mind except for the idea that he would like to pick up that steaming wet towel to take a good wipe on his body.


    It seemed that the Breath circting between Heaven and Earth finally understood his thoughts and felt the power of his thoughts at this time. The Breath infiltrated from the eaves, the window, theforter, and every drop of sweat and then converged in front of his fingers with a "Speed" beyond the range of speed, and then it finally fell on the hot wet towel.


    ...


    ...


    Dead silence reigned in the room. Ning Que gazed at his fingers like the famous flower-addicted girl of Yuelun Kingdom, and he was afraid to breathe or blink. He had to ensure with his utmost strength that his trembling fingers would not shake into afterimages. So he kept that posture with this unprecedented precaution, as if he was a frozen quail.


    After a long time, he gradually raised his eyebrows and slightly cocked his head like it was in slow motion, and red at his fingertips with apprehension and anxiety. Then he slowly closed his eyes to forcibly suppress the excitement in his heart, and started to meditate.


    After he got the Article on the Response of the Tao in Kaiping market many years ago, Ning Que had continued to meditate everytime and everywhere since then. He was involved in meditation before sleeping, while gazing at the sunrise after getting up, when feeling happy after winning three bowls of wine in gambling, and while staying in Shubi Lake after jumping into it with his whole bloody body. Though it was pathetic that he had never been aware of the flowing Primordial Qi, he was absolutely the most proficient at getting into the state of meditation.


    Gone were all the thoughts.


    Sticking to the heart.


    Galloping with the mind.


    Ning Que, whose acupoints and Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow within his body were blocked, and whose hopes had been destroyed countless times, finally heard or felt that long quiet Breath after spending 16 years in this world. It was the Breath of Heaven and Earth.


    He dared to swear on his mother¡¯s reputation, who loved him the most in the General¡¯s Mansion, that while this long and quiet Breath was minor and slight, it was definitely the most wonderful sound that he had ever heard. It was more wonderful than the sound of the Horse Gang falling off their horses by Shubi Lake; than the sound of Zhang Yiqi struggling to move with his staring eyes; and even more wonderful than the sound of silver crashing together in the money bag.


    There were stretched green leaves, blossoming flowers, tweeting birds, towering mountains, running waters, falling oranges in the islet, hundreds ofpeting boats, a broadnd, and a spacious sky within the long and quiet Breath.


    Ning Que did not know how to describe the beauty of the Breath. Perhaps only the weak breath that he heard those years ago could beparable¡ªthat year he found little Sangsang, who was frozen to blue among the dead bodies by the roadside, and after holding her in his arms for the whole day and night, her weak breath was finally heard.


    At that moment, he vaguely remembered the noises that were heard in the street when he was unconscious, and he realized their meanings¡ªThose breathsing from the hitching posts and sideboards of taverns along the streets; those breathsing from the courtyard and old pagoda trees and green leaves beneath the seats; and those breathsing from stone lions, wooden buildings, streets, pces, and city walls were all the gifts given by Heaven and Earth.


    What he heard was the Breath that was calm and long and moving toward the future from ancient times, and what he touched with his fingers were not material objects but their realities that could be determined. Though the doors and windows of the room were closed, he could still feel the gentle waves slowly swirling around him. No, these waves were more dignified than the wind. They were as gentle as a quietke and clean water, but nimbler than water.


    He could no longer suppress the emotion pouring out of his heart when he finally confirmed what he perceived. He awakened. Peering at the scrolls written by him on the wall and looking at the simple beams and patterns, his eyes were filled with excitement, but an extremelyplicated mood arose. He seemed to be able to see the gray wall and green trees in Lin 47th Street. Although the doors and windows were closed, and he knew that the present world looked the same as that in the past, but from this day on, the world... would definitely be different for him.


    Ning Que reached out his shivering fingers to aim at the bean-shaped candlelight on the table, and took a slow breath to urge his psyche to get into the Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow. And it took a very long time before he gradually released it.


    The candlelight on the table was disturbed. He was wondering if it was due to the wind, or his fingers, or his confused heart.


    "Is... this the Qi of Heaven and Earth?"


    He gazed at his fingertips, and nothing was seen. However, he could feel a piece of thin existence there, and he muttered to himself. Then he added in a low voice, "This is the Qi of Heaven and Earth!"


    His tender face was full of determination and affirmation, without any hesitation or self-doubt.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que jumped off the bed without dressing a piece of clothing, and his shoes were not worn backward, because he had no shoes to wear. He felt weak at the knees and nearly fell, and he supported himself to run out of the room, knocking over the bucket beside the bed and severely hitting his waist by the corner of the table. However, thed who was stricken to swoon by a great sense of happiness did not feel the pain at all.


    He pushed open the door, rushed into the small courtyard, and stood in front of Sangsang, who was cutting firewood. Looking at the little handmaiden with her bent and small body, he opened his mouth and wanted to say something, only to find his voice was a little hoarse, and he was hardly able to speak.


    Sangsang gave a puzzled nce at him and found his expression to be extremely weird, like he was either crying orughing.


    "Young master, are you all right?"


    She stood up, standing on her tiptoes and raising her arms out of habit. She wondered whether Ning Que had caught a fever by covering himself up and whether he was in a confused state of mind. But she found that she could actually touch the top of his head when standing on her tiptoes, and then she could not helpughing happily.


    Ning Que grabbed her skinny arms with his right hand to hug the little body into his arms, into his own naked arms, as he did many years ago. He murmured, "It¡¯s awesome that you are still alive, and I am... fine as well."


    He had not cried for many years since fleeing away from Chang¡¯an with the bloody hatchet. There were no tears today, but he did not know why he felt a bit warm and humid in his eyes, and a bit sour in his nose.


    Sangsang looked up with difficulty and she was shocked by the slight moisture in Ning Que¡¯s eyes. Then she figured out something with a frightened expression on her small face, and then two lines of tears flowed out from her willowy eyes.


    Silent speech was absolutely not enough to disperse the emotions of the master and handmaiden at that moment.


    Sangsang opened his skinny arms and tightly grabbed Ning¡¯s waist, and burst into tears. "Hum... Young master, this is a great joy. You should eat several more pieces of duck meat tonight."


    After the embrace ended, they separated. Ning Que looked down at the tears on the ck face of the little handmaiden. His lips moved slightly as if he was about to say something, but after all, he did not say it out loud.


    Sangsang immediately understood what he meant, and bowed her head in shame and wiped her tears off with her sleeves. She whispered, "I... I¡¯m going to order takeout from the Building of Pines and Cranes, six taels of silver for noodles."


    "Good girl." Ning Que rubbed her head dotingly.


    Sangsang got into the house to take out the silver from the box and ran into the shop. Suddenly, she thought of one thing, and then she stopped in front of the door, and turned around to look at him, and said in earnest biting her lips, "Young master, if you go out next time... to do such dangerous things, remember to bring me with you. It¡¯s tormenting waiting here in the shop."


    Ning Que looked at her quietly, and then nodded vigorously. "Don¡¯t worry. Such things won¡¯t happen again. At least this year, I won¡¯t do anything, and you don¡¯t need to worry."


    ...


    ...


    The Old Brush Pen Shop was closed early today.


    On the small wooden que hanging on the door, it had been written that "The owner is engaged", but Sangsang quickly changed it to "The owner had big days".


    A happy event was notplete without drinking to add to the fun. The master and handmaiden extravagantly ate six taels of silver of noodles from the Building of Pines and Cranes and drank two pots of wine. Sangsang, who had an amazing capacity for wine and who never got drunk, was drunk today. Perhaps she was very d indeed, or that she just regretted that the meal cost her so much money.


    Watching little Sangsang, who was lying drunk on the table, Ning Que was wondering how she could have gotten drunk earlier than him, scratching his head in surprise.


    He hugged Sangsang back to the room, covered her with a singleyer of quilt, and fanned her with a round cattail-leaf fan sitting by the bed to drive away those annoying mosquitoes. It was Sangsang who had served him over all these years, and he hardly did such things. But he was really skilled since he had done them many times when he was a child.


    The great sense of happiness and excitement gradually calmed down while he was waving the round cattail-leaf fan. He began to consider what had happened to him, with his eyesight subconsciously falling on the big ck umbre beside Sangsang¡¯s little face.

 Chapter 119: The Story of the Big Black Umbrella

    Chapter 119: The Story of the Big ck Umbre


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que had recalled some wondrous things that happened yesterday morning including those fantasy sufferings, but not dreamscapes, that he had experienced when he was in aa in the street. The strong power of the cultivator had been fully revealed at thekeside vi. He would not have defeated his rival even if he had brought all three podaos with him that day. As for the sufferings in the street, they were really dangerous. He could not have survived or even received such a lucky chance without the bestowments of Haotian.


    He firmly believed that Haotian had its own sake to make hime into this world, and thus he thought that he would not die for any reason. This belief supported him to get through the most difficult period of his childhood and each critical moment of his life and death. To him, the big ck umbre at Sangsang¡¯s bedside... was the gift from Haotian.


    The big ck umbre looked very ordinary, and no peculiarities could be seen except for its immensity.


    However, if it did not protect him from the invincible flying sword at the most crucial moment during that fierce battle in the early morning yesterday, and if did not help to keep him from the Yan Suqing¡¯s lifelong cultivating Sword Intent, Ning Que would have already died.


    The story of gaining the big ck umbre was nothing unusual, just like the situation where he found Sangsang.


    Many years ago, Ning Que held a baby girl, walking on the official road. It seemed as if it was going to rain, and he happened to see the discarded ck umbre by the roadside, so he picked it up.


    When the little boy held the thick handle of the big ck umbre, nothing strange happened. For instance, the pouring rain did not appear after the dark clouds; the distant Min Mountain did not totter; many dark clouds of smoke did not rise to the sky; no golden armor broke out of the clouds to say a lot of nonsense, and so on.


    He was not frugal when he was young, so he was ready to throw the ck umbre away after that rainy season due to its dirtiness. No matter how it was washed, it would not get clean. Furthermore, it was too heavy and troublesome for him, since he had to hold the baby girl along with the umbre as he vied for food that was distributed by the officials with tribes of savages, who were moving south due to the drought in the grasnds.


    However, what was wondrous was that little Sangsang always began to cry when the umbre was not found in his arms. Probably she had spent a long time sleeping with the big ck umbre. And no matter what Ning Que did, she did not stop crying, even the stolen candies did not have any effect. He had no choice but to pick the big ck umbre back up.


    Since then, many experiences over the past several years had proven that Sangsang¡¯s crying and Ning Que¡¯s decision were absolutely brilliant. The seemingly ordinary big ck umbre gradually showed its peculiarities on the asions when he was hunting with those old hunters or by himself.


    It was unclear what the greasy fabric of the umbre was made of. It saved Ning Que and Sangsang in several circumstances with its particr quality of beingpletely unafraid of the burning of fire and the cuts and stabs from knives and swords. Thus, they could survive the steep mountains and this perilous world. They owed much to it.


    Ning Que and Sangsang had been with this umbre for many years. Only they had long regarded it as a very important partner in their life did Sangsang say those words at the gate of Chang¡¯an that day, "Where there is the umbre, there¡¯re you and me."


    In addition to its beingpletely unafraid of the burning of fire and the cuts and stabs from knives and swords, the big ck umbre had many peculiarities. Although he was unable to discover them temporarily, Ning Que strongly believed that the umbre needed a slow exploration.


    That fight that happened yesterday morning was the same as those most dangerous battlefields over the past 10 years. He instinctively and totally gave his life to the big ck umbre at thest minute of his life and death, and it turned out that the big ck umbre did not disappoint him. And at the same time, he discovered another secret of the umbre.


    It could make the invincible flying sword lose all of its power, and it could make a sword master¡¯s lifelong cultivations unable to breakthrough, which was beyond the original physical defense peculiarities that it had previously demonstrated. And it entered into another fantastic state. Ning Que even faintly felt that the big ck umbre could probably restrain the abilities of all cultivators!


    It could be invulnerable and impervious, which could also be exined by its fabric, being made of some rare materials. But if his inference was correct, then what kind of reasons could be used to exin all of this?


    The big ck umbre, lying quietly next to Sangsang¡¯s little ck face, was just a dead lifeless object which was incapable of speaking or moving. Yet in the eyes of Ning Que, its tightly bundled greasy surface began to release a kind of mysterious and chill Breath, and then the Breath instantly disappeared when it was carefully observed.


    Generally speaking, humans would instinctively feel frightened when facing mysterious things, but Ning Que simply did not, because the world of cultivation he stayed in was replete with the Qi of Heaven and Earth and many magical legends, with he himself being the most mysterious participant. Besides, the umbre, which had helped keep out the wind and rain and which was used as a sleeping pillow and shield since his childhood, had be an indispensable part of his and Sangsang¡¯s life, so they would not feel fear for it.


    "What... on earth are you?"


    Having not recovered from his severe injuries and having been hit by the dizzy surprise and happiness, in addition to a few sses of wine, Ning Que already felt sleepy. He then fell asleep, watching the big ck umbre, and subconsciously hugged Sangsang into his arms over the thin sheets.


    "Snap!" The cattail-leaf fan fell to the ground with a slight sound.


    ...


    ...


    The sun with its dim light was hanging above the silent wilderness as the dark night was falling. The surrounding temperature was very low. A piece of the purest and the most extreme darkness spreading from the distance would soon upy the entire world.


    The silence of the wilderness did not mean that no humans existed there. Instead, there were many and all kinds of people. They watched Ning Que rather than look up to the sky, with their eyes full of hope, scorn, doubt, andplicated emotions.


    Ning Que knew that he had started dreaming again. Those dreams of the sea he had when he was not in meditation were the continuation of that dreadful dream from the journey. Although he was clear that he was in the dream, he still felt cold, as if the eyes of those people that he confronted in the wilderness, regardless of any kind of emotions that they had, concealed at least some subtle hostility.


    Darkness gradually invaded the wilderness, and half of the sky was covered by the pure night. At that moment, a thunderous sound was heard, and then instantly spread throughout the entire world.


    Many people in the wilderness were stricken by that roar of thunder. They fell to the ground, miserably moaning. For those people who could still stand, their expressions suddenly disappeared as if they were lifeless statues looking up again at the sky, looking at the ce where the thunder had resounded.


    The holy light lit up the entire firmament instantly.


    Above the lofty firmament and in the brightest and centermost position of the holy glories was an extremelyrge golden door. When it was slowly opened, a huge golden dragon, which was indifferently poking its head out, was faintly seen.


    The thunder was the exact sound of that door opening.

 Chapter 120: The Forgotten Semester Exam

    Chapter 120: The Forgotten Semester Exam


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Awakened from a dream at night, Ning Que effaced the sweat on his forehead. While sitting on the bed and watching the sleeping Sangsang beside him, he subconsciously stretched out his fingers to gently touch her frowning eyebrows, and then became lost in thought.


    Reflection made no sense for this strange and frightening dream. After a moment of silence, he left the contents of the dream behind, even not willing to memorize it. He stood up to pour a cup of cold tea and slowly drank. Listening to the loud discussion from the narrow alleys in the back of the yard, he knew it was still early and people were still enjoying the shade.


    "What he sees is the reflection of the Primordial Qi from the nature in his heart, and the purer this cultivator¡¯s psyche of meditation is, the farther range of Primordial Qi he can sense."


    He was too excited during the day, but now he waspletely calmed down. Thinking of the old man Lyu Qingchen¡¯s argument on the road, he found himself forgetting the most important issue¡ªWhen he went into the Initial Awareness State, how much did he feel the Qi of Heaven and Earth, rainwater, or a stream, or a shallow pond, or a river or... the sea?


    Now was not the first time that he entered the Initial Awareness State. He did not know whether the sensed Qi of Heaven and Earth world could still be regarded as a real projection. After a moment of thinking, Ning Que slowly closed his eyes, calmly resting his hands on his knees, and re-entered the meditation state to pass his thoughts over to the Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow, and then scattered them all over his body.


    After a brief moment, his cautious meditation in the spiritual world had been transitioned to the Perception State in the real world. He opened his eyes and extended his right hand into the air, as if trying to catch the faint candlelight. At that point, he reconfirmed that he could clearly sense the Qi atmosphere in the eaves, walls, and the air. Besides, he shockingly confirmed what he had felt...


    He thought it was the sea, the quiet sea.


    The old man Lyu Qingchen once said: "The most powerful cultivator in the world today, who is considered the most likely to break through to the five states, the vulgar South Jin Kingdom Sage of Sword, Liu Bai, sensed the surging Yellow River in the beginning of his cultivation." Ning Que had said at that time: "If someone could sense the sea, would this man be a cultivation genius more powerful than the South Jin Kingdom Sage of Sword?"


    For more than 10 years, he kept his meditation when he ate, gambled, read, wrote, slept, rode a horse, killed people, and wentmitting arson. Thisd¡¯s spiritual world contained a great deal of extremely pure Psyche Power. When he finally went through 10 acupoints out of 17 in the Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow, his umted Psyche Power finally ran out through the passage, and turned into a sonorous and forceful musical song.


    The Breath of Nature felt the song. Although the number of holes in the body¡¯s vertical bamboo flute was still small and the song was a bit sluggish, it felt the power of each note in the song.


    However, this power was so concentrated as to make the Breath of Nature produce a certain sense of exclusion. If the Breath of Nature Ning Que had felt was like the sea, then the Psyche Power he used to sense the Breath of Nature was like a tempered iron needle that was extremely small, but very hard and sharp.


    This sharp iron needle gently fell into the sea, causing no waves or sounds, but easily and silently prated the water surface with an infinite depth and then slowly fell into the dark abyss in silence.


    Ning Que did not know these very specific issues or think about any negative things. Just like a boy that had cried for an entire half a year hugging his mother¡¯s thigh and finally getting the new toy he had been longing for, Ning Que spent all night in constant meditation with the use of Psyche Power to feel that kind of novel and wonderful Qi.


    He kept weaving his palm in the air, trying to seize the bleak candlelight in the shabby room and to influence the bean-shaped candlelight on the table. Though he did not seed, it did not affect his interest at all and he repeated the movement.


    It was wonderful that the next morning, as he left Old Brush Pen Shop, he did not look haggard because of being awake all night. Instead, he looked very well and healthy. Maybe a blithe heart made a blooming visage?


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que rode the horse carriage to the Academy and watched the green meadow, the lush green trees, the clouds flowing over the mountains, the beautiful oriental morning light, the ck and white buildings, and eaves shrouded by the clouds. In his eyes, there was a beautiful halo over the world, and the Academy mountain that had already been very beautiful became even more charming, which made him want tough louder.


    Because of his excellent mood, in the face of ssmates who just came down from their horse carriages and students who held pancakes in one hand and books in the other hand at the Academy, he changed from his usual alienating temperament and stepped forward to greet them. However, today the Academy¡¯s atmosphere was a bit strange. More urately, the atmosphere around Ning Que was a little strange. ssmates seemed to be not interested in his greeting and some students came from a distance and circled around to face him and gossiped with contempt.


    Ning Que confusedly went into ssroom Three and then surprisingly found that those rtively familiar ssmates also behaved very weirdly, all casting a strange eye at him. Suppressing the doubt in his heart, he nodded to Situ Yn in the front row and walked to his own seat.


    Situ Yn looked down at yesterday¡¯s review papers arranged by math, as if not seeing his action. But when he passed by, she turned back to look at Ning Que¡¯s back, and shook her head with a sigh.


    I took two days off. Why do I feel that people see me with different eyes?


    Ning Que sat down to look at Chu Youxian next to him, and asked with a smile, "Do all people know that I got a cliff jump and have be a little jealous and hateful?"


    This was a joke, of course. However, cheerful and easygoing Chu Youxian had no smile on his face this time. He stared at Ning Que¡¯s face and seriously asked, "You really don¡¯t know what happened?"


    "I don¡¯t know." Ning Que spread both hands and innocently said, "The Empire began attacking Northern Yan again? Today there is an etiquette ss and the Lecturer is a bad-tempered Yan. So it¡¯s really worth worrying.


    "Will it be a bit improper when joking at this time?"


    Chu Youxian watched him and sighed, saying, "The entire Academy, from instructors to students, were staring at the semester exam the day before yesterday so as to see which one, you or Xie Chengyun, could win that gamble in the end. But nobody could predict that he took a plus in five courses but you didn¡¯t take the exam at all. This is why you think people behave weirdly."


    Ning Que was slightly startled and, after this reminder, finally remembered what had happened after Xie Chengyun and other Grade A Dormitory students broke into ssroom Three that morning, and that the semester exam in that gamble had ended the day before yesterday.


    What was he doing then? At that time he was leaning on the wall of the second floor of the old library, bing unconscious as his chest still had an invisible spear stuck in it, and waiting to die in thepany of a bowl of water and two cold steamed buns.


    "It turns out that the semester exam was the day before yesterday. I really forgot it, but I remember asking a female professor to take leave for me,"


    Ning Que exined with a smile.


    In his eyes, it was very naive and funny to gamble with Xie Chengyun on the semester exam scores. At that time, however, he had to ept it because of the anger of Situ Yn and his ssroom Three ssmates.


    Now as the semester exam and the gamble had missed because of other things, what had already happened could not be changed. Although it was indeed a pity to miss the chance of winning against that high-profiled Xie master, he would notment, feel deep sorrow, or cry like a high school sophomore who forgot to take his admission card for the entrance examination.


    In that morning when the Academy held the quiet and serious semester exam, he killed a man of strong cultivation at a smallkeside house and spent a very enigmatic time on Vermilion Bird Avenue. Having been back and forth between life and death, he met the greatest crisis of his 16 years of life and the greatest fortune. Compared with these things, that gamble meant nothing.


    "The problem is that you asked for leave." Chu Youxian looked nkly at him and said, "As long as you participated in the exam, even if the final result was bad, far worse than Xie Chengyun¡¯s, we wouldn¡¯t have any opinion of you. There is no doubt that nobody can always win in exams, and you epted the gamble just for proving your courage that day... However, no one ever thought that you were too afraid to attend the exam, which made everyone so disappointed in you."


    After listening to these words, Ning Que could not help but be slightly startled. A momentter he said with a smile, "What the hell? Does it mean I have courage if I struggled to go straight into the exam room regardless of my illness, looking pale and trying hard to hold the brush to take the test, and answered every question vomiting blood, and ended in only answering half of the questions with the snow-white papers all dyed red, and then I died due to blood flowing non-stop?"


    The remark was funny, but it revealed his extreme sharpness and anger.


    "You were really sick?" Chu Youxian felt his angry tone hiding in the words and said after a shock, "But now you look so well, who will believe you?"


    Then he sighed and said, "Yesterday the exam results were announced. Linchuan Wangying took an A+ for one course and Xie Chengyun got the remaining five A+. I heard that he studied extremely hard during these months to beat you.


    "Now there are rumors in the Academy that you came up with the idea of asking for sick leave because you knew you couldn¡¯t beat him but you also didn¡¯t want to lose in the exam."


    Ning Que frowned and said, "It is shameful to retreat without a fight, not to mention to not even participate in it. Although I think this semester exam gamble is boring to the extreme, I wouldn¡¯t be afraid, because I have promised it. If it was really like what you said, that I wasn¡¯t ill but asked for sick leave to avoid the semester exam, then wouldn¡¯t that be a coward¡¯s behavior?"


    Chu Youxian at this time really believed that he was very ill the day before yesterday. He looked at Ning Que sympathetically and patted his shoulder tofort him. "I believe you, but the problem is that others, especially Grade A Dormitory students, don¡¯t believe you. In their eyes and even most Academy people, now you... are a coward."


    Ning Que became speechless and could not help but smile and shake his head. He had been kind of angry and unwilling in his heart. But thinking of those wonderful feelingsst night, he decided not to think about these things. Since now he was a genius student of cultivation, why should he be angry with these naive kids?


    The word "show" was a very simple noun and required interaction between the two parties when bing a verb. He did not want to have a show for the ssmates who thought of him as a coward, but he could not stop some, who were automatically victorious because of his quitting, from showing off in front of him.


    And this was where most conflicts of the youth idol drama came from.

 Chapter 121: Unreasonable for Killing Barbarians since Childhood

    Chapter 121: Unreasonable for Killing Barbarians since Childhood


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    After the third bell sounded, Ning Que packed up the calligraphy stationery on the table and prepared to go to the old library as usual. He was anxious to leave Chen Pipi a message today, so he looked a bit of hurried when getting out of the study room.


    "We came over when the bell rang. I thought we were already very fast, but I didn¡¯t expect that we actually almost missed you, Ning Que. I don¡¯t understand why you¡¯re so anxious. Hurry to the old library so as to pretend to study hard, or hurry to leave the Academy, pretending not to know the semester exam and the gamble that day?"


    A group of people came from the doorway, led naturally by South Jin Kingdom Xie Chengyun and Zhong Dajun.


    After entering the door, Xie Chengyun greeted the students of Grade C Dormitory with a bow with hands folded in front. Though he could notpletely suppress that proud smile on his young face, he still seeded in showing his gentleness. However, Zhong Dajun beside him stopped in front of Ning Que and tapped his palm with a folded fan. He wore a weird expression on his face and his tone was full of sarcasm.


    "At least say something before leaving?"


    Situ Yn stood up and wanted to say something. But thinking that Ning Que really did not participate in the semester exam, which meant that Grade A Dormitory had naturally won the gamble, she suddenly did not know how to speak but had to sit down.


    Jin Wucai knew she was apetitive one and could not help but shake her head, and then got up to walk in front of Xie Chengyun, gently congratting him with a gentle smile on the face like that of a breeze.


    "How much do you want me to say something?"


    Ning Que looked at the Grade A Dormitory students at the door, feeling theplicated emotions of the ssmates behind him, and looked at Zhong Dajun after a thought and said with a smile, "Then I¡¯ll just say something."


    Then he added, "But it¡¯s none of your business. Please give way."


    Zhong Dajun looked unhappy, but did not say anything else. He backed away with waving his fan around.


    Ning Que and Xie Chengyun greeted each other with a bow with hands folded in front. As for what they were thinking now, discontent or disdain, it was something unknown to outsiders. It suddenly became quiet in the study room, for everyone wanted to hear what Ning Que would say.


    After a slight pause, Ning Que watched Xie Chengyun¡¯s pale cheeks and said with a smile, "There¡¯s no excuse. Since I didn¡¯t participate in the semester exam, I¡¯ve lost in the gamble. I remember that a treat was at stake. I¡¯ll treat you. You can pick the ce and people you¡¯d like to join you."


    Xie Chengyun was slightly startled and never thought that Ning Que would be so honorable to admit his failure. So he could not say those words that had been discussed with Dajun at Zhong Mansion yesterday.


    Zhong Dajun saw that Xie Chengyun not know how to deal with Ning Que and could not help but secretly get angry with this gentle friend and sneered. "You thought of such a lousy method in trying to fake illness to avoid losing in the semester exam. In the future, you can say you¡¯re not worse than Xiesan master, but just poor in health... If someone like you treats us, I really worry about what weird things would happen on the table and dare not go for it."


    Ning Que¡¯s eyebrows rose slightly. He looked at the gifted Tang schr from Yang Gu, and said very seriously, "I remember I received the letter of challenge from Xie Chengyun. Then whether the semester exam¡¯s scores are good or bad, the oue of the gamble is just between me and him. Why does it bother you? Whether you go for the treat or not, it still depends on me."


    Zhong Dajun did not get annoyed and gently shook the fan to nce at Xie Chengyun. Xie Chengyun did not mean to be so aggressive in front of Jin Wucai. But he could not help but feel disgusted seeing Ning Que defend himself so eloquently without the slightest shame and said, "Forget the treat. I just hope you can recognize your behavior is actually a disgrace to the Academy."


    "I paid to enter the Academy. The paid tuition is for the knowledge I received. So I don¡¯t think I need to be responsible for anything like a good reputation. Those things don¡¯t have anything to do with me."


    Ning Que¡¯s eyebrows rose even more steeply and he continued, "You said I pretended to be sick so as to avoid the exam. You¡¯d better not say this boring inference again. Since we aren¡¯t close, I absolutely don¡¯t mind suing you for ndering me."


    The atmosphere gradually became tense in the study room, for while Ning Que stayed too calm as well as quiet, it did not mean any concession on his part. Like what Xie Chengyun felt, most students looked at Ning Que with more despise.


    Chu Youxian coughed lightly twice and stepped forward to relieve the tension in the room. "It¡¯s also amonly used method in the business world for the weak party to avoid war to protect himself. Why¡¯re you so serious?"


    Ning Que stared at him and said, "Are you trying to help me or drag me down even further?"


    "Why not admit defeat if you can¡¯t beat him? Why use this rogue trick?" Someone suddenly said.


    Ning Que did not turn around to see where the sound came from, but knew it was from a student in the same ssroom. After a short silence, he looked at his ssmates around him who had faces full of disdain andplicated facial expressions. He smiled and then began to speak.


    "I don¡¯t care whether you believe what I say or not, or whether you¡¯ll call me a coward behind me. Because we¡¯re at different levels. You can say I¡¯m unreasonable, for I don¡¯t have the energy to argue with you."


    "Just like what Princess has said outside the old library that day, you¡¯re just the flowers in the greenhouse. You may look beautiful, but you have to hide from the storm outdoor. You guys do nothing all day but only swagger around to make some noises to prove your strength and ability."


    "But why bother me? If I¡¯m interested, I¡¯ll y with you. If not, I¡¯ll just quit."


    "Don¡¯t use those kinds of ethics and the likes to question me. You care about morality and ethics, but I don¡¯t care. When you were still in the nurse¡¯s arms and were scared by her Horse Gang stories because you were unwilling to drink your milk, I was already on the grasnds cutting the Horse Gang¡¯s heads for fun."


    "As I said before, I don¡¯t care whether youugh behind my back and treat me as a coward or a rogue. But you must remember that from now on, don¡¯t let me hear youughing at me. Because I hate it."


    "If you don¡¯t want your head to be a ball like those Horse Gangs¡¯, do not ignore my threat."


    After finishing these words, he did not look at the people in the study room but waved a hand at the Grade A Dormitory students in front of him, signaling for them to move away. He lifted his chin and pushed out his chest and walked out of the door, along the rain-hiding hall to the back of the Academy.


    His good mood was ruined because of this incident that had seemingly appeared out of nowhere. He became even more irritated when he thought of the ssmates who were familiar with him did not defend him but trusted in what Zhong Dajun had said.


    Since he became irritated, he also stopped ying at being a gentle and harmless primary school student and expressed his feelings directly.


    Chu Youxian looked at his back in the rain-hiding hall and hurried to catch up with him. He shook his head and said, "Well, you¡¯ve offended our ssmates, so I¡¯d better keep a distance with you in the future."


    "Then why did youe after me this time?" Ning Queughed and said.


    "You say they¡¯re naive kids. But the girls in a dozen of brothels of Chang¡¯an can prove that I¡¯m not a kid. So I don¡¯t think your words can hurt me," Chu Youxian said with a smile, "What¡¯s more, if I have a good rtionship with you, I may be able to get close to the favored girls in House of Red Sleeves in the future. You don¡¯t have to look at me like that. I assure you that I¡¯ll only see Dewdrop from a distance. I just want you to introduce Miss Luxue to me."


    Ning Que turned to look at him and said with a smile, "Aren¡¯t you afraid to offend a lot of ssmates?"


    "People in the Academy know that we have a good rtionship. If I ignore you because you fought with them, I¡¯ll be judged as ruthless by those pedantic schrs. You know I don¡¯t like reading and I don¡¯t think well of their pedantic behaviors."


    Chu Youxianughed at himself and stopped to say, "So I have tofort you in front of them. But as you said, I can¡¯t confront the whole Academy, so I have to go back now."


    ...


    ...


    For a soldier in a border town who had lived a dangerous life since childhood and could really be described as a murderer in the grasnd, the calm and peaceful life in the Academy was somewhat ufortable, let alone those ssmates who grew up in a pleasant world.


    Ning Que had just spoken from his heart. But for those students in the study room, this evaluation was undoubtedly the most vicious attack. They could not help but stare nkly at the scene.


    For Master Xiesan of South Jin Kingdom, the gamble was a very important thing. He did not enjoy either being beaten at the entrance exam or having failed at cultivating in the old library. He even received sarcastic jibes from the Fourth Princess. He had depended on the gamble to regain the confidence.


    It was indeed a rare good result for he had received A plus in five courses, but it was inevitable for Xie Chengyun to naturally generate some arrogance besides the joy. Today, he came to Grade C Dormitory with hispanions. He did not mean to humiliate Ning Que but to show off his aplishment.


    As for Zhong Dajun, he had felt that all the show was stolen by Xie Chengyun, Ning Que and a but fourteen-year-oldd, Linchuan Wangying after entering the Academy. As a brilliant schr trained by the Yang Guan Tribe, he was not willing to stay behind them. Xie Chengyun and Wangying were worth the reputation indeed, for they enjoyed a great fame before entering the Academy. One of them was his best friend, and the other was indeed young. But why should Ning Que be ced before him?


    Therefore, he was even more active than Xie Chengyun for this semester exam¡¯s gamble. Today he had entered Grade C Dormitory to humiliate Ning Que and expose this rogue¡¯s sinister face in front of the Academy students.


    However, neither Xie Chengyun, Zhong Dajun, nor those Grade A Dormitory students who apanied them to Grade C Dormitory for the scene had thought that Ning Que, after making such a cowardly act, would have no shame but was eloquent to criticize the others instead.


    They meant to humiliate Ning Que but were called being unreasonable and were humiliated by him. Therefore, those students, who had doubted Ning Que might be really sick on the semester exam day, did not want to think further in that direction.


    Not only those students but also all the young students in Grade C Dormitory were infuriated by Ning Que¡¯s seemingly forceful but unreasonable reprimand. Even the most ordinary students were much adored in the study rooms of their hometowns and they had never withstood such ridiculous mocking.


    "Forget it. Don¡¯t bother yourself arguing with that guy."


    Some students repressed the unwillingness in their hearts and reminded the others. "He¡¯s the Fourth Princess¡¯ old friend after all."


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 122: Your Plan after Cultivation?

    Chapter 122: Your n after Cultivation?


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "The term ¡¯Old friend¡¯ is not appropriate." Zhong Dajun red at that back in the Rain-proof Corridor, furiously saying, "Who knows how Her Highness meet him, and is cheated by him."


    Ahead of the study room, the strong-built Chu Zhongtian rubbed his head and said, "I have mentioned it to the elders in my family when I was back home. My fifth uncle wrote back to me and exined he had asked about Ning Que from Hua Shanyue, the Senior Captain of Gushan Commandery. He replied that Ning Que was merely a solider of the City of Wei who had escorted Her Highness on the journey back and might have made some contributions too. Her Highness wanted to repay his help, and so gave him special care in Chang¡¯an city."


    As the most outstanding one in terms of study among the thirty-seven grandsons of the sixteenth guard general Chu Xiongtu, Chu Zhongtian was a favorite with all his family members, so he needn¡¯t step aside when government affairs were discussed in his family. Therefore, his words were always trusted.


    "It seems that the encounter before the old library the other day was just a coincidence. As for his contribution on Her Highness¡¯s journey back... "


    Zhong Dajun snorted indifferently, "What contributions can he make as a foot soldier? Oh, I see, putting up tents, holding the horse and picking up argol can all be counted as a help. It is not strange that Her Highness gives him special care, for she is virtuous and kind. But who can predict that this vile guy should borrow Her Highness¡¯s fame to raise his own status. How mean he is."


    At these utterances, Situ Yn, who had been sitting in silence beside the table suddenly, stood up and retorted, "When does Ning Que borrow Her Highness¡¯s fame to raise his own status? Do you know what Ning Que actually did during Her Highness¡¯s journey back from City of Wei? I know. If he just did trifle things like picking up argol, why did Her Highnesse to see him personally that day?"


    Then her arched eyebrows tilted up and she continued in a deep tone, "You said Ning Que was vile and mean, then I wonder, what do you think of gossiping about others like this? If you really think he is low, then tell him in his face. But just like what he said, you don¡¯t have the courage, because you are afraid of him."


    Zhong Dajun became extremely awkward. He never expected this noble girl of Chang¡¯an to speak for Ning Que even if he had offended most of his schoolmates. So he suppressed his fury forcibly and defended himself, "I am not afraid. But we are all cultivated schrs, how can we fight so brutally with that young barbarian?"


    Situ Yn showed no intention of answering him but turned back to see herpanion whispering with Xie Chengyun. Frowning, she asked unpleasantly, "Wucai, wanna go back?"


    Jin Wucai took a furtive look at Xie Chengyun and then said to Situ Yn with a smile, "You go first, I¡¯ll goter... to the old library to read books."


    Situ Yn knew it was just her excuse, so she didn¡¯t bother with it. She packed up her stationery and walked to Xie Chengyun. Looking at this reputed talent from South Jin Kingdom she said, "Wucai is the most adored granddaughter of Libationer of Tang. Although you are quite famous for your talent in South Jin Kingdom, you still have to enter the Second floor first."


    Xie Chengyun understood what she meant quickly and replied with a confident smile, "I will try my best."


    Zhong Dajun was still offended by Situ Yn¡¯s defense of Ning Que, so he sneered, "If Mr. Xie fails to enter the Second floor, then nobody in our grade can make it. Or perhaps you think... that Ning Que can make it?"


    Situ Yn frowned at him and turned to leave with great anger. How could she promise that Ning Que had the ability to enter the Second floor in front of her schoolmates? She didn¡¯t have the confidence in him, not to mention that Ning Que probably didn¡¯t either in himself.


    ...


    ...


    After having three slices of fried steam buns and a bowl of golden millet gruel at the canteen, Ning Que passed through the wend at his quickest speed to the tranquil old library, where he went upstairs to the second floor. This second floor was not the one mentioned above. However, it held the same significance to him with its fragrant smell of books and faded ink.


    Inside the building it was pleasantly cool, as if the fragrance of books could usher in calmness, or merely because the fervor sunshine was prevented by the tightly-closed west window. Up the second floor, Ning Que found that hisints and grumbles previously aroused in the study room, like the hotness and sweat, were cleared off in an instant.


    Walking to the east window, Ning Que looked at the petite female professor who was delicate and peaceful, and respectfully bowed to greet her as usual. Then he straightened up. Staring at her pretty side-face with no trace of age and thinking of her indifferent reaction towards him when he was lying on the ground, heavily-injured the day before yesterday, he felt totally confused. He was about to ask for an exnation from her, yet finally gave up.


    The female professor seemed to have forgotten the scene she personally witnessed that day, and that thed beside her was the one who hadid against the wall, desperately waiting to die. She slightly nodded at him in greeting as usual without a look at him or a word. She was just peacefully copying the Hairpin-style Small Regr Script from the book and it was impossible to notice the slight movement of her lower jaw without carefulness.


    Ning Que smiled self-mockingly and rubbed his head. Then he wiped off those things from his mind and returned to the bookrack, squatting to draw out Wu Shanyang¡¯s Theory on Haoran Sword and then sat on the floor beside the west window to read it attentively by a faint light prating through the window paper.


    He was totally incapable of remembering the content of ssical cultivation books, and at the very beginning he even fainted at a look of figures in those books when his acupoints in Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow were blocked. Later he learned how to use Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong to deconstruct characters, which hence helped him to understand the implicated meanings behind the characters. Yet he was still troubled by those implicated intents. For example, the intent of those characters in this book about Haoran Sword was fiercely poking on him like sharp des tormenting him.


    He still did not know how many acupoints in his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow were reconstructed. However, his Perception of that peaceful Breath of nature was enough to prove that his former anguish of blockedness had been mercily taken away by Haotian. He wondered what differences would be made when he read those books again.


    There were indeed differences. The intent of those ink marks in the book entered his mind through his eyes, then gradually dispersed through his body, which waster transformed to a de touring around. During the process, the previously unbearable suffering in his chest changed into a feeling of depression... and he felt that something was blocked, very blocked, extremely blocked.


    The feeling was not good, which easily reminded him of that medicine made by Ma Yinglong pharmaceuticalpany. So after an attentive reading of more than an hour, he shook his head and put the book down, then walked to the west window to leave Chen Pipi a message.


    "First, you can congratte me, ¡¯cause my acupoints are no longer blocked. Second, I still fail to find anything useful in these books, why? Third, can you offer some simple and workable methods? Lastly, thank you,"


    Feeling a little regret, Ning Que went downstairs in the twilight and returned to Lin 47th Street of Chang¡¯an City by horse carriage. Then he began to look forward to tomorrow¡¯s Academy life, for he was curious about the answer from Chen Pipi.


    He didn¡¯t realize that this regret was actually an emotion that was totally undeserving. If those great masters from Haotian Divine Hall in West-Hill found ad freshly entering the Initial Awareness State had expected to begin formal cultivation within a day, they would call it greedy and expel him from cultivation.


    Simrly, if those Instructors of academy knew that one of their students, who just got ten of the seventeen acupoints in Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow unblocked, couldn¡¯t wait to learn Haoran Sword, the unique skill of the Academy, they would definitely call him a narcissistic idiot and hit his palms a hundred times as punishment.


    The engraving of Vermilion Bird by a Sage of thest generation in the Vermilion Bird Street of Chang¡¯an, the mysterious big ck umbre with unknown sources at his back and the Heavenly Power Pill from some holy ce of West-Hill were all most precious and marvellous existings in this world. Together, they brought such changes in his body.


    A saying in the world of cultivation went that cultivation was a gift from Haotian which was picked up by a lucky person. It was against the will of Heaven to force an ordinary person without any potential of cultivation to pursue it and such a power was only possessed by god, or just recorded in ssics and passed from mouth to mouth. Only Haotian Devine Hall of West-Hill Divine Kingdom owned such power, which needed great devotions of those Great Divine Priests in a higher state.


    Therefore, the ordinary cultivator beside Min Mountain, the Talisman Master of Military Ministry in charge of examination, the old man Lyu Qingchen he encountered in their journey back and Chen Pipi who left him messages could simply assert without any hesitation that Ning Que couldn¡¯t pursue cultivation.


    However, when the most marvellous existings-Vermilion Bird, ck Umbre and Heavenly Power Pill intertwined with Ning Que at the same time, the circle of life moving forward slowly began to be stirred. (This sentence can be neglected)


    In the pitch ck darkness before dawn, the cultivator Yan Suqing concentrated all his life power to break through the defense in Ning Que¡¯s chest made by his physical body. Later, the upper wing of Vermilion Bird changed into an intangible spear prating his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow through the wound, and straight after, the Vermilion Bird burnt all it could touch with an invisible fire which would have finally put Ning Que to death.


    The big ck umbre yed a key role at this moment. It protected him like shadowy willows warding off sunshine, while rebuilding the Snow Mountain in his body with continuous chilly power from the night sky. But it was not enough, because this reconstructed micro-world in his body was too fragile and unstable and could copse anytime.


    Just then, Chen Pipi contributed a Heavenly Power Pill, which was as preciously as a virgin girl contributing her chastity.


    God helped those who helped themselves. Perhaps Haotian began topensate him for the bitterness and harshness he had experienced during the first decade of his life.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t realize that he had encountered the most magical luck in this world. Even if he knew, he still would not understand the reason and remained unsatisfied and regretful after his fate was changed against the will of Heaven. This really infuriated others and rendered them speechless


    ...


    ...


    Chen Pipi was speechless and infuriated.


    At the word "congratte", Chen Pipi realized that the guy¡¯s fate should be forcibly changed against the will of Heaven and actually began his pursuit of cultivation. He then couldn¡¯t help gaping, losing his ability to utter a word. He even suspected he had a blurred vision.


    He had no idea of the miraculous fight with the engraving of Vermilion Bird and the one under the protection of the big ck umbre both using Ning Que¡¯s body as the battlefield. However, as a cultivation genius cultivated both by the West-Hill and the Academy, he could figure out some causes and effects. But no matter in what way, he still failed to predict that Ning Que should have such a miracle fortune!"


    His shocksted for quite a long time, rendering him totally speechless for some time. A strong sense of admiration and jealousy aroused from the depth of his prideful but kind heart. He couldn¡¯t refrain from being indignant again when he caught sight of those messages on the paper,


    It was hot and dry in summer. Although cool breezes sometimes visited and the chirping of cicadas outside the west window gradually faded in the night, Chen Pipi still sweated profusely, not knowing it was caused by his fatness or the indignation. He unbuttoned his clothes and wrote back to him with great anger,


    "First, I don¡¯t want to congratte you, ¡¯cause the thing is too absurd to understand. Second, the useless one is not reading books but you, an idiot in cultivation. Third, I admit I envy you now, so I¡¯m unwilling to give you directions."


    "Finally, please first thank Haotian and your ancestors, as for me... the hell thanks!"


    ...


    ...


    When he was young, actually very young, Ning Que was constantly brain-washed by a sentence, the general idea of which was: The knowledge one masters is like a circle. The more you know, the bigger the circle is. Then you will find there is more and more knowledge that you don¡¯t know.


    He used to hate this sentence, not understanding why his mother and teachers always taught him such a pessimistic argument. However, when he finally knocked open the door of cultivation, he realized what the sentence conveyed was so real which made him confused and helpless, for he found what he couldn¡¯t understand actually increased.


    Getting the message from Chen Pipi, he went to the second floor to read cultivation books, earnestly following the idea in the message. But no matter how earnest he was, he still couldn¡¯t get the trick.


    He had been ustomed to the lineal thinking mode of killing people at grasnd with three knives tied to the back. While it couldn¡¯t be counted as a bad thing, Ning Que decided not to think further when confirming that he couldn¡¯t go ahead, and turned to do something more important.


    Nobody knew what Ning Que would do first after confirming he could pursue cultivation.


    He didn¡¯t indulge in calligraphy in thepanionship of wine and songs all day long, nor did he find an Instructor of the academy to strongly ask for an intensive practice of the course of magic skills, yelling, "I made it! I made it!". He even didn¡¯t visit the princess¡¯s residence and brazenly tell Li Yu that he was now a big investment. Besides staying at Old Brush Pen Shop with Sangsang basking in happiness privately, where they would raise their heads to look at each other like two idiots and then giggle inexplicably, he just showed off to Chen Pipi and then left for the Southern City.


    At the gate of the famous Star-Picking Casino in the Southern City tonight, a master and his servant whispered nervously to each other.


    Thed had a delicate appearance. He had shallow dimples in his cheek and ck hair. He raised his head to take a glimpse at the golden powder-painted signboard of Star-Picking Casino and swallowed his saliva not knowing if he was nervousness or greedy. He then asked with his somewhat coarse throat, "Sangsang, if we win a big forter, will theye after us to kill us?"


    The dark little handmaiden felt nervous too. With a heavy casket in the right hand, she hid behind thed, listening to the bustlings spread out from that dim light and said in a trembling tone, "Young master, I¡¯m more worried about your method. Percepting Qi of Heaven and Earth can help you to see the counts on the dice? Are you sure about that? If you gamble away all your silverter, you mustn¡¯t use me as stake."


    "What nonsense! Moreover... even if I use you as stake, the casino may not even want you." Ning Que rubbed his hands together nervously, saying, "As for how certain I am, I have shown you many timesst night. I, your young master, never fight without confidence of sess. Surely I will win, and the problem is, how to escape after I win."


    "You have confidence to win... "


    It seemed that Sangsang was not anxious about the way to escape at all. After Ning Que assured her that they could win, she bit her lips and made up her mind to fetch a little folded paper star from the old belt. She then murmured, "I have taken out two hundred taels of silver from under the bed to change for a note, and in the casket, there are still one hundred taels of silver... Young master, you take them all and try to win more."

 Chapter 123: Perception

    Chapter 123: Perception


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The Star-Picking Casino in Southern City used to be the most profitable industry of Lord Meng, a big shot in the Jianghu world. After that bloody battle at Spring Breeze Pavilion, his power copsed and the casino was smashed into a range of ruins, which was just rebuilt and reopened two monthster when the situation restored its stability. But now, nobody knew who the Big Owner of the casino was.


    Although the casino was rebuilt out of ruins, it showed no hint of decline from its former time-honored brand that was decorated at a high cost, where there were polished wooden tables, high-hungnterns, and exquisite furnishings.


    Along the way, Ning Que and Sangsang looked at the gauze curtains around and listened to the deliberately muffled screams from the hall afar, and could not help but feel it was strange and questionable. At the frontier fortress, they used to visit casinos in the City of Wei and the bazaar of Kaiping County, yetpared with those wager shops full of the stink of sweat and wine and dirty words, the casinos here were a totally different world.


    No matter how luxuriously and nobly it was decorated, a casino was still a casino, where bloody battles urred with one¡¯s life as the stake. People in various trades lingered around. Although the young master Ning Que and his handmaiden Sangsang looked quite strange here, the stewards just randomly took some glimpses at them without showing any special attention, for they had been ustomed to weird gamblers.


    And those gamblers in the spacious hall of the Star-Picking Casino paid even less attention to them. These people, old or young, men or women, all stood or sat there despite the differences in their social status, no matter if they wore silk or linen. They were so densely crowded around more than 10 big tables all covered with brown nkets, nervously staring at the dicebox of ying cards or the ck triangle chips.


    It was quite hot in the midst of summer, thus seven or eight servant women were waving fans with long handles at the corridors on three sides of the hall to blow some wind into the hall. However, the hall was so crowded with gamblers that it was still suffocatingly hot inside, which, mingled with the fragrance of face powder and the smell of cigarettes and alcohol, gradually produced a vor with exciting ambitions. But for the basins of ice which were so luxuriously put under each table in the casino, this vor might have been stronger.


    A casino was not a ce for charity and the purpose of investing money here was to earn back more. The more that prodigal gamblers invested, the more they wanted to earn back. Ning Que sized up the details inside the hall and, looking at the dealers in indigo uniforms, he became increasingly more nervous, having no idea of the lowest limit to bet here and not knowing whether their silver was enough or not.


    He went to the counter to change for chips and inquired about the lowest limit to bet and the rules of the game, which made him relieved to some extent. When strolling at will in the hall with Sangsang, he saw somebody leaving a table where a dicebox was used to bet the number of points. Thus without any hesitation, he squeezed into the table before others could and looked directly at the table, disregarding the annoyed eyesight from those behind him.


    Throwing a dicebox to bet on whose point was bigger was perhaps the quickest and simplest method of showdown in casinos, which was exactly Ning Que¡¯s favorite method¡ªsimplest and quickest¡ªno matter if in killing or in gambling. Moreover, he was clear that he could cheat in only this kind of game, which therefore nailed him to the ground, showing no intention to leave.


    There were three dice with nine points as the boundary line, above which it was called "big" and below which "small". If the three dice all showed six points, it would make a "leopard" which meant a win for sure. If gamblers had the courage or were really unupied, they could bet on "leopard". If they got it, they won over all the other gamblers of the table and, moreover, the dealer also needed to pay them on behalf of the banker of the casino, which seldom urred.


    Gazing at the big dicebox on the brown nket which was at least twice asrge as an ordinary one, and the delicate-looking dealer waving her naked snow-white forearm and rolling the big dicebox like performing magic; listening to the clear and intense shes of the three dice inside the dicebox, and the final heavy knock of the dicebox against the table...


    Ning Que seemed to be hesitating and pondering with his gaze lowered, and had yet already begun his meditation. The Psyche Power in his brain passed through the Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow in his body and was perceiving the Breath of Nature around him slowly and softly, by which it would continue to perceive all of his surroundings.


    The perception was fantastic: The fluctuation of intangible Psyche Power diffused the Breath of Nature and rested on objects, which was transformed to a light sense of perception. This perception was reflected back to the fluctuation of his Psyche Power through the Breath of Nature and returned to his brain to form a not-so-clear picture with some as-of-yet invisible details.


    On the brown surface of the table was put a plump hand, which was from a boss of a cloth shop. After the dicebox settled on the table, he threw 50 taels of silver as chips to the "big", pressing the rest under his palm. 50 taels of silver was not a small amount of chips yet the boss did not bat an eye, but his palm pressing the chip was somewhat trembling.


    Ning Que did not care about the mental state of gamblers. Although he used to help Sangsang to support the family by gambling in the City of Wei, he understood even the most excellent gambler could not win forever. Today, he just wanted to make a big fortune in the Star-Picking Casino with that magical power, so what he cared about was how to perceive things that others could not see.


    Only the smallest chip of two taels of silver was left, yet he still pretended to be calm!


    Through subtle reflection from the Breath of Nature, he saw the number of chips under the trembling palm of the boss, and could not help smiling and talk to himself.


    "Saw" was not the exact word to use here. He just faintly felt the edge and the prominences of the chip, touching nothing mild and smooth, nor did he have a pictorial effect that he personally experienced.


    It could be imagined that if such an effect could be achieved by mobilizing the Breath of Nature, many cultivators in history would have suffered from constant nosebleeds, continuous tiredness and fatigue, or even being exhausted and disoriented to death because of their everyday peeping at girls¡¯ breasts and psychosexuality.


    The fine-looking dealer gently looked at the surroundings and opened the dicebox. The three dicey silently on the bottom of the dicebox and showed "Two, three, three" respectively, which turned out to be "small". The palm of the cloth shop boss slightly stiffened, with all five of his fingers grasping downward, tightly holding hisst chip. He then forced a smile to the people around him, nodded his head and went out.


    Just at that moment, the small figure of Sangsang eventually managed to squeeze inside and struggled to the side of Ning Que. She slightly stood on her tiptoes, refraining herself from being nervous and scanning over the piles of chips and the dicebox on the table carefully with her willow-leaf-like eyes gazing wildly.


    Then the sound of a tiny and clear sh between dice was heard again, unveiling a new round of gambling. The big dicebox rolled up and down in the fair hands of the pretty dealer and then fell on the table.


    "Please bet." The dealer looked at those gamblers beside the table with a smile and repeated the regtions of Star-Picking Casino just as what she had done before each new round: "Those who failed to bet within the time limit after the dicebox settles, please wait for the next round."


    The table for betting "big" or "small" was shaped like a semicircle, whose wild surface was separated into several regions by thinly-sliced white cloth. Besides piles of chips and several teacups, a cute and lovely hourss stood in the very middle of the table to time the game, which would be reversed by a specially assigned person after each rolling of the dicebox ended.


    Taking a glimpse at the fast-flowing fine sand in the hourss, Ning Que found the time was a bit limited, so he quickly concentrated on the big, heavy ck dicebox. He was so concentrated that an especially focused and nervous look appeared on his face. Then somebody beside the table burst intoughter and jokingly said, "Whose kid shoulde to gamble here? Maybe he thinks his longtime of staring can prate the dicebox?"


    Ning Que showed no interest in the joke because he was greatly strained at the moment. Furthermore, could he have told those guys who gambled for fun that he indeed could perceive the big, heavy ck dicebox?


    As he had said to Sangsang at the gate of the casino, he had never fought without the confidence that he would win during his lifetime. To win over all the others today, he had spent the whole night yesterday on testing his ability.


    He practiced feeling how deep the water was in the bucket through the bucket; feeling how many taels of silver were left under the bed through the bedte; and feeling whether Sangsang, who squatted below the window, had opened her eyes or not through the window. After repeated practices, he felt assured that he could control that trace of the Qi of Heaven and Earth, which, though could not be used to shake Mount Tai, would have no problem to be used to perceive it. Such confidence had encouraged him to go to the Star-Picking Casino. His practice in meditation for the entire night had greatly upgraded his speed and proficiency of mobilizing the Qi of Heaven and Earth, which was a benefit to him beyond his expectations.


    Based on the operation n they previously made at Lin 47th Street and their miserably few practical experiences, Ning Que imagined that when he looked at the ck dicebox, the subtle Qi of Heaven and Earth controlled by the Psyche Power in his brain could easily prate the thick wall of the dicebox and help him to feel the fine concaves and convexes on the surface of the dice. Yet things had gone astray. The Qi of Heaven and Earth he controlled just entered the surface of the thick wall and could not go an inch further!


    All of sudden Ning Que stiffened, staring at the big ck dicebox in great shock, not knowing what had happened.


    At that point, the upper part of the lovely hourss standing in the middle of the table was almost filled with sand, and some short-tempered gamblers began to urge him harshly upon seeing his reaction. He looked at the ck dicebox painfully at a loss, trying to figure out what was wrong with it.


    Following his usual practice, he should have given up in such a situation. However, he actually insisted, not knowing if it was because of the harsh pressure of the hourss and the urges or his strong unwillingness to resign. He tightly gazed at the dicebox with his eyebrows frowned, striving to upgrade the intensity of his Psyche Power which mobilized the Qi of Heaven and Earth to poke into the impregnable dicebox!


    Poke into it!


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth extremely condensed by Psyche Power finally perceived the wall as if it were an intangible fine needle!


    Feeling that fine tactile sense, which was like a heated knife being inserted into butter or fingers sticking into cream, and looking at the three settled dice on the bottom of the dicebox, Ning Que suddenly felt rxed, his frowning eyebrows gradually stretching.


    Before all the sand leaked into the lower part of the hourss, he took out that small star-folded note and gently put it on the side of "big".


    The good-looking dealer looked at him with a smile and slowly raised the dicebox.


    "Four, five, six."


    "Big."


    That star-shaped note was elegantly unfolded by that female dealer and put in the middle of the table as a way of publicity to other gamblers. Then Ning Que pushed the silver that he won toward himself with a thin bamboo ruler.


    It was rare to see a gambler using a note of 200 taels of silver to bet on "big" or "small" at the dicebox, even in the Star-Picking Casino. Besides the chips from the other gamblers, the banker of the casino was also required to pay a big amount of silver. Those chips, big or small, were all pushed to Ning Que, which were in factyered on high one by one, making them really attractive.


    Then a middle-aged man at the table said with a smile, "I seldom see ad at such a young age that can y with such a big stake. Moreover, you didn¡¯t lookcent. It¡¯s really precious to see ad with such calmness."


    Ning Que raised his sleeve to wipe off the sweat from his forehead and shook his head with a smile, saying no more words. He thought to himself, "If you owned the ability to perceive the dicebox like me, you could also be as indifferent as those who are disillusioned with the mortal world are towards gambling."

 Chapter 124: The Lad Loved Fortune, but Got It Immorally

    Chapter 124: The Lad Loved Fortune, but Got It Immorally


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The people who really saw through the vanity of the mortal world were totally different from those who pretended to see through it but still wanted to take a shortcut to fame and fortune. The former nearly lived a solitary life in those secluded ces, or waited to die in some remote and dpidated temples. Thus it was impossible for them toe to the casino, the most popr ce in Chang¡¯an, for the sake of money, and even stare at the dicebox as if it was their enemy who had killed their fathers.


    Upon thinking of this sentence, it was obvious that Ning Que did not ponder it over. In fact, the situation on the gambling table did not leave much time for him to think deeply or introspect. With the sound of rolling dice continuing and the big heavy ck dicebox being lowered and raised, his casino tokens in front of him kept growing. Though the female dealer had exchanged several big tokens for him, it still could not stop the momentum. Gradually, the tokens had be a small mountain.


    Ning Que, who bet his entire stake each game, had a seven-game winning streak ying the dicebox. Up to the seventh one, his stake was over 1,000 taels of silver. Even at Yin¡¯gou Casino, where manyrge-scale and horrific gamblings had been witnessed, such type of incredible and fabulous behavior based on extreme luck was still rarely seen.


    People around Ning Que and Sangsang became fewer and fewer, while more and more people surrounded the brown gambling table. A fever of enthusiasm erupted from these gamblers¡¯ expressions, but they would not like to get closer to thed in case the casino would be unsatisfied.


    The female dealer was still beautiful and elegant, but the smile on her face had be very reluctant. The dealer, iming that she was tired, quit dealing after apologizing to the gamblers. Then the casino delegated a middle-aged dealer. The gamblers around the table knew that the casino sent an experienced and skillful dealer due to thed¡¯s good luck or his formidable gambling trick. After recognizing her, some frequent visitors even surprisingly eximed that the middle-aged dealer was actually the top gambler at Yin¡¯gou Casino.


    The gamblers had not long dared topete with Ning Que inparing the number of dice. From the fourth game, many gamblers with all kinds of thoughts bet on their stake by following Ning Que, and also won a good few. However, after noticing the middle-aged dealer and hearing the discussion around them, most of them decided to wait and see for the time being.


    These years, Ning Que, who was known as the top gambler in the City of Wei, had umted lots of experience and approaches of gambling in the frontier fortress. However, there was not any possibility for him to beat those excellent dealers in Chang¡¯an with a gambling trick. However, what he counted on now was not the gambling trick. Instead, he relied on cheating with the Qi of Heaven and Earth as a cultivator. If the casino did not cheat, no one couldpete with him, no matter how excellent his opponents were in gambling tricks.


    Could a casino cheat? Of course. However, Yin¡¯gou Casino was one of the top three famous casinos registered in the Chang¡¯an Local Government. Unlike other small and illegal casinos in the alley, it would not resort to those cheating ways unless it was cornered, so they... had no other choice but to watch Ning Que continue winning.


    After the middle-aged dealer was on the stage, Ning Que had a three-game winning streak. Later, the crowds of gamblers behind him at some distance could not keep waiting and then began following Ning Que again with their stake. In such a circumstance, the casino lost more of their taels of silver at a faster speed. The middle-aged dealer still showed peace on his slightly ck cheeks, but it was hard to tell whether his face was cker or not.


    The sound made from the dice striking against the dicebox wall gradually disappeared. The dealer slowly moved his hand away from the dicebox, and then had a look at the hourss that was just overturned. Without looking at the other gamblers around the table, he smiled directly at Ning Que.


    "My guest, please make your decision."


    Holding the thin bamboo ruler in his hand, he slowly frowned. After a long silence, he stood up from the chair and then put his bamboo ruler to the smallest region closest to the middle-aged dealer.


    The casino tokens in front of Ning Que had been piled up like a small mountain. Due to the difficulty of pushing these tokens to specific areas each game, Ning Que, after themunication between him and the casino, was allowed to use the bamboo ruler if he wanted to bet his entire stake. Now, he put the bamboo ruler on it, meaning that he bet all of his stake on this game.


    The crowds of people around the gambling table abruptly made exmations. These gamblers in Chang¡¯an, who usually paid much attention to their demeanor and bearing, could not suppress their astonishment any longer, looking no different than those shouting and yelling soldier gamblers in the City of Wei.


    "Leopard!" (The numbers of three dice were the same ording to the casino rules.)


    "Leopard! Why would he bet on Leopard!"


    "Lower your voice... Does he purposefully lose some stake back to the casino considering his safety after winning too much just now?"


    "Nonsense! Even if he wanted to lose on purpose, it makes no sense that he bets the whole stake."


    Though the gamblers began discussing and eximing in shock, the middle-aged dealer behind the table was not influenced by the noise. He just peacefully looked at Ning Que and gently said, "My guest, are you sure?"


    Ning Que, who was absent-minded while staring at the mountain-like stake, reacted and nodded after being warned by Sangsang.


    You might win more if betting on Leopard, but the probability was too small. Therefore, no one, even the boldest gambler, dared to follow Ning Que. Upon watching the crowds, the middle-aged dealer, whose palm was on the dicebox, did not uncover the result, as if the dicebox was as heavy as a mountain. Suddenly, he raised his head and smilingly said to Ning Que, "Make a friend?"


    Having no intention of urging him to uncover the dicebox, Ning Que naturally understood what the casino meant from the talk. Then he also smilingly nodded and left the gambling table after saying a few words to Sangsang in a low voice.


    That beautiful female dealer, who had unknowingly reappeared beside the table, respectfully extended her right hand to lead the way for Ning Que.


    Ning Que and Sangsang were led to a decorative and luxurious room behind the casino counter. After the room was closed, all noises outside the room suddenly disappeared.


    Later, a slightly obese, middle-aged rich man walked out from behind the curtain. He greeted with a bow with his hands folded in front and sincerely said to Ning Que, "I¡¯m the manager of Yin¡¯gou Casino. I¡¯d be very appreciative if you made friends with us."


    Ning Que knew that he had already won enough money, and that was why he decided to leave the gambling table without urging the middle-aged dealer to uncover the dicebox. In addition, he ought to save the host some face. Before entering the casino, he had thought about how to leave after reaping enough stake. Now, since the casino first offered a way of reconciliation, he, of course, epted it without hesitation.


    "My distinguished guest, you had won 4,400 taels of silver before thest game, and the result of thest one was, indeed, a Leopard. ording to the rule, we should pay..."


    Ning Que said with a smile, "I know the rule, the payment should be doubled."


    This sentence was equivalent to giving tens of thousands of taels of silver to Yin¡¯gou Casino. Therefore, the expression on the manager¡¯s face suddenly became more gentle as he praised. "You¡¯re really a generous friend! In such a circumstance, I decided to give you a round number of taels of silver at my own responsibility to show our appreciation to you, on behalf of the casino and the boss,"


    the manager said in a very polite and friendly way. If his enemies who had witnessed his cattiness and cruelty before saw that he was so courteous to a gambler who had just won 10,000 taels of silver from him, they would definitely be shocked.


    After a while, the casino had changed all of Ning Que¡¯s stake to notes. He, with his stern eyes, immediately stopped Sangsang¡¯s shining eyes from her prepared movements of counting the notes. However, his nce at the number 1,000 on the pile of notes also automatically made him feel that his lips were a little dry.


    The manager smiled and said, "You are wee to y here anytime."


    "That¡¯s nice of you."


    Ning Que clearly knew what the manager actually meant, though the manager did not directly say it: They would not gamble since they were friends, so "wee anytime" meant the opposite, which suggested that they would not be weed at Yin¡¯gou Casino.


    When Ning Que was ready to leave Yin¡¯gou Casino with Sangsang, the manager seemed to just think of one thing. He said smiling, "If you still want to enjoy gambling today, I have a good suggestion. A new casino, which was transformed from a pawnshop of Lord Junjie, was opened in Western City recently. That¡¯ll be a great destination."


    The hidden meaning behind the words was very obscure. The manager presumed that thed must have a strong background and could figure out what he meant. However, he failed to realize that Ning Que, who actually did not have any strong background, instantly understood his meaning when the name "Junjie" reminded him of Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s introduction at the Spring Breeze Pavilion that night.


    At present, the Fish-dragon Gang has dominated the gang world of Chang¡¯an. Lord Junjie is finished, and his pawnshop was transformed into a casino. Like the current Yin¡¯gou Casino, there isn¡¯t a strong backer behind it. Since you, Ning Que, dare win so much silver at Yin¡¯gou Casino, why don¡¯t you get another victory in Western City?


    Standing by the window, the manager was looking at the young master and handmaiden walking toward the direction of Western City, gradually disappearing into the night¡¯s darkness. He could not help frowning and shaking his head, full of unwillingness and anger in his heart.


    The middle-aged dealer opened the door and came in with that big heavy dicebox. Looking at the back of the manager, he sighed after a short silence. "Thatd was, indeed, a cultivator."


    The middle-aged dealer was an excellent gambling master from the Great River Kingdom hired by Lord Meng before. He was mainly responsible for controlling the whole operation and seldom showed his strength. Today, he was forced to y in person, but still totally lost. Usually, the banker in the gambling game held a big advantage in ying dice. He believed that no one in the world could beat him if he was the banker, and no tricks would escape his eyes. Therefore, it was clear how thed seeded in beating him.


    His facial expression became paler and more terrible as he recalled that he, though he made a Leopard in thest game, did not dare to uncover the dicebox for the sake of the casino¡¯s reputation. Then he shook his head and said, "Even if he¡¯s a cultivator, we¡¯re too generous to him."


    "Lord Meng is dead. The reason why our casino could reopen was that Mr. Chen from the pce pitied the orphans and widow left by Lord Meng as well as other fellows living. Now we have to live with a low profile, so how could we dare to create a disturbance? What¡¯s more, what else can we do when, as you know, thed is a cultivator?"


    After reprimanding the dealer in a deep and low voice, he suddenly grabbed the ck dicebox on the table and then directly smashed it to pieces. In the broken dicebox, a golden inteyer, on which some pattern was vaguely carved, could be seen.


    "There¡¯s a golden inteyer with Fu characters engraved in the dicebox," the manager sullenly said. "Since thed can see through the dicebox, he, at least, is a cultivator in a real state. Do we have a better solution besides offering him the taels of silver?"


    The middle-aged dealer was stunned. He operated the casino all year round and had made many friends. Though he was amon person, he also knew the hierarchy of cultivators. He could not help thinking, was it possible that the so-youngd had entered into the No Doubts State?


    "Why does such a figuree to a casino?" he said angrily. "Now I really wonder whether he dares to be so unbridled or not in Western City. Though Lord Junjie is dead, yet some ordinary cultivators still haven¡¯t enough guts to provoke the backer of the new casino."


    The manager did not reply to the dealer¡¯s words. He was just staring the dicebox pieces on the table, the golden inteyer, and the Fu characters. The sight of these things gradually made him more and more indignant, and then he murmured, "I¡¯ve seldom heard that a cultivator made money by cheating a casino since the Tang dynasty has been built, because it¡¯s really a shame for a cultivator.


    "As a cultivator in a real state, instead of meditating in his sect,municating with his fellows, traveling around grand mountains and great waters, and sensing the Breath of Nature, he, unbelievably, goes gambling at the casino! What does he want to do?"


    The manager whispered as he raised his head and looked at the night¡¯s darkness through the window. "He¡¯s just bullying others."


    ...


    ...


    Before entering Yin¡¯gou Casino, there was only a paper star folded by a note of 200 taels of silver in Sangsang¡¯s old waistband. But now, it had be a thick pile of notes. Though her waist looked ugly with the notes bulging, she did not care at all, even innocently uttering someughter every now and then.


    "Young master, are we really going to the casino in Western City now?"


    "Of course. This method of making money can only be used once, so we just make enough fortune one time."


    Usually, a person like Ning Que, who had experienced many life-or-death situations before, was supposed to know when to stop. However, he had been poor for a long time. Thus, when he found such a good method to make money today, he could not help continuing to use it¡ªjust like those poor vigers, who were too impecunious to eat mutton though they had been herding sheep in the west of Yuelun Kingdom their whole lives and then suddenly found a treasure vase from which sheep could keep jumping out one after another.


    Even though in the prosperous Chang¡¯an, 10,000 taels of silver was, without doubt, a huge fund, but on the grasnd, this amount of money was great enough to make the Horse Gang around Shubi Lake kill themselves without Ning Que attacking. And if in the City of Wei, the property would prompt those middle-aged women who wanted Sangsang to be their daughter-inw to ignore Ning Que¡¯s mood and directly swarm into Ning Que¡¯s house to grab Sangsang.


    That thick pile of notes directly dizzied Ning Que¡¯s mind. Even Sangsang, whose chest was thin and t, was full of passion and enthusiasm now and could not wait to sweep away all the casinos in Chang¡¯an.


    As expected, there was a new casino in Western City, whose brand and decorations were obviously newer and bigger than Yin¡¯gou Casino¡¯s. Knowing that this casino was transformed from Lord Junjie¡¯s pawnshop, Ning Que, without any fear, directly went into it with Sangsang.


    Unsurprisingly, Ning Que kept the tendency of winning. Further, with more experience and stake, he resolutely won at a faster speed. Soon, the facial expressions of the dealers in the new casino quickly turned red. After a discussion, the casino invited Ning Que in a polite but a little threatening way to y a new game in the inner chamber.


    Anytime, anywhere, if the casino did not cheat, Ning Que would keep winning all the time.


    When he almost squeezed the new casino into a weak one, the backer of the casino, finally, was unable to bear it.


    A strong man in a turquoise robe, turquoise boots, and turquoise hat coldly looked at Ning Que beside the table and then said in a deep voice, "My friend, Mr. Qi appreciates you and would like to invite you to have some tea."

 Chapter 125: Whose Casino?

    Chapter 125: Whose Casino?


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    At that time, anky man in a thin turquoise robe was enjoying the natural wind at the top of the gate of Western City. Due to his thinness, his turquoise robe looked like it was hung on a bamboo pole, uttering constant sounds every time the night wind came.


    One would feel terribly ufortable on stuffy summer nights in Chang¡¯an. In some rich families, maidservants made masters cool with fans, and ice cubes could also lower the temperature inside the house. For themon families, they could only open the door and then half-nakedlyy on their bamboo beds in the alleyway. It was known that the higher you went, the cooler the night wind was. However, the really high Tang pce and grand city wall were certainly inessible to the masses.


    But thenky man in a turquoise robe could stand on the city wall because he was Qi IV, the new leader of the Fish-dragon Gang in Chang¡¯an.


    Cruel Qi IV was well-known in the Jianghu World. But actually, among all top executives in the Fish-dragon Gang in the past, he was the most ineffectual one. However, Spring Breeze Pavilion Old Chao had left Chang¡¯an, and other buddies like Chang III, whose identities had been uncovered, worked for the Imperial Court. In such circumstances, he naturally became the leader of the Fish-dragon Gang.


    Nowadays, his one order was able to summon 3,000 brave and loyal men in indigo robes. In addition, official organizations would treat him well, because now all people had known that the Fish-dragon Gang was actually a fish that the emperor delegated to the Jianghu World in the past. Without a doubt, Mr. Qi was the only leader in Chang¡¯an gangdom, so it was easy for him to have a view from the city gate tower.


    However, Qi IV, who was holding a jug of wine in the night wind, had not a bit of pride on his face. Instead, some bleakness and paleness could be seen on it, while each sip of wine was apanied by a sighing sound. He had sessfully be an art-gang leader from an ordinary gang leader.


    He missed Chao Xiaoshu and his other buddies very much. But now Chao Xiaoshu had gone traveling far, and it was also inconvenient to meet other brothers like Chang III and Chen VI due to their official identities. The wonderful memory of enjoying wine and meat in the past made Mr. Qi feel eager to return back to those times when he was under the leadership of other brothers, although now he had be a well-known figure in Chang¡¯an.


    Just then, a man rushed from the direction of the city wall. After greeting the city gate soldier, he hurriedly ran toward Mr. Qi and then shamefully said a few words by Mr. Qi¡¯s ear with his head lowered.


    Mr. Qi spouted a mouthful of wine with a "Pu!" sound. The wine, like some mist, fell to the ground outside the city wall from a great height, which might startle the eagles nesting on the city wall. He stared and asked, "Are you sure?"


    "Absolutely! I have sent someone to Yin¡¯gou and got the specific information. Thatd had won more than 1,000 taels of silver at Yin¡¯gou Casino before."


    Still in disbelief, Mr. Qi touched the back of his head and said with hesitation, "A cultivator illegally made money at the casino? Is there such a shameful person? I still feel kind of strange and confused."


    The subordinate helplessly said, "Nobody would believe it. At the beginning, the manager of Yin¡¯gou Casino also doubted it, but finally, he had no choice but to deliver the silver and then immediately inform us."


    Knowing that his subordinate did not dare to cheat him, Mr. Qi was certain that an extremely shameless cultivator was making money from his casino. He became furious at once when he thought of Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s previous instructions. Throwing away the little wine pot into the night darkness outside the city wall, Mr. Qi cruelly said, "Force him to spit out all the silver, or let our fellows directly chop him into pieces! What the fuck! You aren¡¯t so powerful like those Seethrough sublime beings. You think I won¡¯t kill you just because of your so-called tricks?"


    The words were true, but he could not do it directly. The Fish-dragon Gang was always disciplined and cruel. If Qi IV was forced to order his 3,000 fellows in indigo robes to hew a cultivator, he certainly could do it. However, what mattered was that there must be a sect or a master behind the cultivator. He had to look where the cultivator was from before making a decision.


    The city wall of Chang¡¯an was very high, so it was not an easy job to climb up or run down. When Mr. Qi ran back to the casino from the city gate, he had already felt tired and breathless. During that time, that shameless cultivator had won more silver.


    Hearing the news, Mr. Qi became angrier and was in a worse mood. However, when the pushed the door open and looked at the guy, his mood and face turned extremely weird. He wanted tough and to cry, but he failed to squeeze any tears. He was thinking, "What the fuck is this?"


    ...


    ...


    Hearing the words "Mr. Qi", Ning Que¡¯s face also instantly became very colorful when he saw the thin man in an indigo robee into the room. He felt kind of embarrassed because he was making illegal money at an acquaintance¡¯s domain. However, he still said, "Indeed we are friends... in fact not so close... How about this? Considering the face of Chao Xiaoshu, I offer you a 50 percent discount on all previous ounts."


    His reaction was very fast. The words contained three levels of meaning: First, if he behaved like they were close friends, it was embarrassing to get this silver; second, if he coldly acted like they were unacquainted, he was also worried that Mr. Qi would turn hostile; and third, he knew the Fish-dragon Gang was powerful, so he mentioned Chao Xiaoshu finally.


    Mr. Qi was kind of stunned by Ning Que¡¯s words and almost utteredughter due to his anger. Then he stared at him and said testily, "Are you sure that you want the silver of this casino?"


    In Ning Que¡¯s view, they were indeed acquainted, but had met just twice. In such a situation, did he not feel embarrassed if he refused to offer the silver? If the ount was small, he did not mind acting like a heroic and generous buddy in front of Qi IV. However, he had won more than 70,000 taels of silver before...


    For the over 70,000 taels of silver, he was willing to act like a dead body and then let Sangsang feignedly bury him, let alone disposing of the old friendship and so-called generosity. He looked at Qi IV and said after two sounds of gentle coughing, "Mr. Qi, I remember that when we first met, you said that as long as you live, I can do anything in Eastern City."


    "This is Western City!" Mr. Qi replied snappily. Then he stood up and got severalnd titles and contracts authenticated by the government from a locked box, and he threw these papers on the table in front of Ning Que, saying, "Anyhow, the casino belongs to you. If you enjoy such games, it is up to you."


    Feeling that he seemingly had heard some information by mistake, Ning Que rubbed his ears and then asked, "Whose casino?"


    Pouring a cup of tea, Mr. Qi said in anger, "I said that it was your casino."


    Picking up those several contracts on the table and having a nce, Ning Que saw his own name at the bottom of the paper. He was petrified on the spot immediately, and then raised his head to look at Mr. Qi, with eyes full of shock and confusion.


    "Elder brother Chao Xiaosho ordered many things before going traveling the world, and one of them was about you."


    "What was it?"


    "He said you have been so poor these years for so long that you are eager to escape from poverty. During that night, for only just 500 taels, you followed him to kill people regardless of anything. It was really very terrible... How could an outstanding figure be subservient for just a little food? Besides, he was afraid that you are stupid enough to be a killer due to poverty, so he had prepared some assets for you."


    As if looking at a ghost, Mr. Qi stared at Ning Que who was shocked and speechless, and then angrily sighed, "Elder brother¡¯s worry was really a hell of a foresight. A dignified cultivator illegally makes money at the casino! What the hell is this! I dare say you have be crazy due to poverty these years, right?"

 Chapter 126: Can You Deal with the Sudden Wealth Syndrome?

    Chapter 126: Can You Deal with the Sudden Wealth Syndrome?


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que was shocked as he stared at the deed in his hands. The man in turquoise robes had secretly left him a casino and felt a strange warmth spread down his chest. He asked, "Where is he now?"


    "He wrote in hisst letter that he was going to see the sunrise at Tai mountain." Mr. Qi said.


    As the warmth and shock receded, Ning Que thought about the sarcastic words Mr. Qi had said. He thought about how he had cheated to win and his ill-gotten gains from his own casino and began to feel his cheeks heating up. As a young man, he could not bear the embarrassment and in order to dispel the awkwardness, he said irritably, "Nobody from the Fish-dragon Gang told me about this".


    Mr. Qi raised an eyebrow and stared at him peevishly, saying, "Big brother took us to Lin 47th street to meet you especially before he left. He said then that you can look for me no matter what happens. It¡¯s been months and have you looked for me? How can I look for you when you are holding that position now?"


    It was only then when Ning Que remembered his other identity. Xu Chongshan had never contacted him after throwing that wooden pass at him. He had long forgotten that he was a secret guard of the empire.


    While he was hemming and hawing to veil his shame, Mr. Qi thought of something which made his eyebrows rise even more violently. He said, "You... are a cultivator? I know you are good at killing people, but when did you suddenly attain cultivator status and enter the real state?"


    "It just happened in thest two days. I¡¯ve just entered the Initial Awareness stage and am still far away from the real state." Ning Que did not know about the symbolled gold te within the dice cup in Star-Picking Casino and answered honestly. "I wanted to use the opportunity whilst it is still unknown and earn a bit of gold. While I can¡¯t do that now, please still keep it a secret."


    Mr Qi¡¯s voice sharpened in annoyance. "You¡¯ve won over ten thousand taels of silver from Star Picing. How are we going to keep this a secret? Chang¡¯an might be big, but there aren¡¯t many people bringing around a little handmaid with a tanned face. Anyone can find out if they put some effort in it."


    Ning Que smiled and said gently, "You¡¯re now one of the big bosses in Chang¡¯an. It would just take a word from you to make things good again. Would Star-Picking Casino defy your orders and continue their search for me?"


    Mr. Qi was unable to say no to his ttery. He scrunched his brows tightly and thought for a moment before saying, "It is not difficult to hide it, but what¡¯s the point of hiding the identity of a cultivator? Are you hoping that this thing will blow up and end up in court so that you may gain some fame? If this is what you intend to do, I¡¯d advise you to drop it. Chang¡¯an is not the countryside, there are hundreds, maybe even thousands of cultivators here. You cannot stand out. Why note clean to the lecturers at the Academy and gain something more practical instead?"


    Ning Que thought about the rumors that the Academy might open up the Second floor next year. He also thought about Xia Hou general who was opening the frontiers far away at the moment. After a moment of silence, he replied, "That¡¯s because I know that I¡¯m too ordinary, why let it be known and create trouble for myself? It would not be toote to let it be known when I am more secure and steady on this path."


    "You are not of the Fish-dragon Gang. Do what you wish. But since we have met, there are still some other things that we have to settle."


    Mr. Qi extended a slender finger and pointed at the deed before him. "This is a copy of the transfer agreement that you need to sign. Once you have done so, the gambling den would be yours and I no longer have to waste my energy minding it for you," he said.


    Ning Que thought that this wouldn¡¯t do. In order for a casino to run sessfully, you need someone with certain backing to run it. He was still studying in the Academy, and he could not imagine Sangsang minding ten over tables in dealer robes. His eyes gleamed. He smiled beseechingly at the man and said, "Big brother, won¡¯t you spare some efforts and continue minding it? I really do not have the ability nor the time to do so."


    ...


    ...


    After an intense discussion, Mr. Qi eventually lost to Ning Que¡¯s ttery and shamelessness and agreed to his terms. The casino would belong to Ning Que but the Fish-dragon Gang would manage it. Ning Que did not need to do anything but to receive his dividends every month ording to what was stated in their agreement.


    After the discussion, Ning que did not order supper nor called for a few girls to y with but instead brought Sangsang away from the west city¡¯s newest casino. He walked away hurriedly as if he was running for his life. It was only when they had reached the Lin 47th street did he realise that he had not remembered what his casino was called.


    Sangsang retrieved the thick wad of notes from the belt around her waist andid it within the box tly. Her eyes wandered around the sparse bedroom andnded on the roof beam and rat hole, thinking of where the safest ce to put the money would be. In the end, she adhered to their old ways and lifted the baseboard of the bed and stuck the box beneath.


    She turned around to see Ning Que staring nkly in his seat. There was a veryplicated and wondrous emotion on his face. He looked as if he had been hit silly by gold raining from the heavens but at the same time, looked as if the gold hitting his head had hurt him so badly that he wanted to cry.


    "Young Master, you¡¯re a little odd today." Sangsang looked at him curiously and asked, "You looked really pitiful when we left the casino. It looked like you owed them hundreds of taels."


    "Can I not look pitiful? I¡¯ve embarrassed myself thoroughly today. I have never done anything so stupid in my entire life." Ning Que answered angrily. Thinking of the wad of notes lying beneath his bed, the look of irritation on his face was reced with one of joy. "However, if I can earn this much cash all the time, I wouldn¡¯t mind being stupid for the rest of my life, " he continued.


    After saying this, he wiped the smile off his face before indicating for Sangsang to sit on the stool in front of him with his hand. He said in a very serious manner, "I think we need to have a family meeting".


    Family meetings were the hardest things he¡¯d ever experienced in his past life. His subconscious must have been so traumatised, he continued having family meetings in this life even though there were just the two of them. He had them often no matter whether they were living in the Min Mountain or in the City of Wei.


    Sangsang knew that the young master was going to speak nonsense endlessly. Handling it like a pro, she retrieved her needlework bag and changed into afortable pair of slippers before sitting down on the stool before him, ready to listen to his lecture respectfully.


    "Every dormitory in the Academy has wise sayings from famous people hanging at the windows. While I think that the calligraphy is only average, the sayings are pretty good."


    Sangsang was concentrated on weaving shoe soles. She did not raise her head when she heard that but only sniffed lightly, indicating that her young master should continue. Ning Que shook his head at her. She had always been like that when they held family meetings despite him telling her off several times. He could do nothing but to ignore her and continue his speech, hoping that his only audience wouldn¡¯t run off.


    "There was a saying that goes like that- One¡¯s environment changes his temperament. One¡¯s upbringing changes his constitution. What does this mean? It tells us that when you have two thousand tales of silver, you cannot be as miserly as when you have twenty tales of silver. You can¡¯t eat leftovers... "


    Upon hearing this, Sangsang raised her head and looked at him with a face of dissatisfaction and a mournful expression.


    "Alright, thrift is a virtue. But you have to think about it. We are notcking in money now and have over ten thousand tales of silver. The casino will send us our dividends every month. We cannot live like when we were poor anymore, and we shouldn¡¯t try as hard and do everything we can to earn money."


    Ning Que sighed with regret, "In other words, schrs have to do schrly things. Cultivators have to do what cultivators do. They have to live with self-restraint and sophistication and not think about counting on his skills to earn money. It doesn¡¯t look well in the eyes of people. I have decided, I shall not win money through cheating at the casino. I¡¯m afraid the instructors at the Academy might die of anger if they found out about it. I¡¯ve also decided that I will take down all my writings from the shop tomorrow. As for the business, let¡¯s collect writings from poor schrs and sell them for marginal profits."


    Sangsang drew the needle from the sole with a tug. She bit the string and it broke with a little ping. She looked at Ning Que with a face full of question. "You¡¯re not even going to sell a single one? Young Master, don¡¯t you think it¡¯s a little like having sudden wealth syndrome?"


    Ning Que was startled by her words and coughed lightly, saying, "Your description isn¡¯t that apt. It¡¯s not called sudden wealth syndrome. It¡¯s more like, feeling at ease with afortable nest egg... We cannot disy any sudden wealth syndrome, nor is thefortable nest egg thatfortable. I guess we should still hang my calligraphy for sale but mark up the prices so that they won¡¯t sell for under one thousand pieces of gold."


    Sangsang thought that her young master¡¯s most expensive piece had only sold for twenty tales of silver and that was the only expensive piece he had sold. They had cooked up a feast to celebrate scamming an idiot then and now he¡¯s saying that he won¡¯t sell his calligraphy for under a thousand pieces of gold. There might be a lot of stupid wealthy people in Chang¡¯an, but were there as many idiots for them to scam?


    Ning Que saw the strong doubt in the handmaid¡¯s dark eyes and smiled. He said, "Remember, we are now filthy rich. We don¡¯t need that kind of ie. This is like spending a thousand pieces of gold to buy a horse carcass. It¡¯s just to get our name out there."


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang followed his instructions and took down most of his calligraphy works in the Old Brush Pen Shop before buying arge pile of writings from the Scent Workshop. When there are customers who would like to purchase Ning Que¡¯s writings, she would dutifully say that the owner¡¯s writings are extremely precious and they would only sell for one thousand pieces of gold.


    However, what happened after that did not exactly go ording to Ning Que¡¯s imagination. The reputation of the Old Brush Pen Shop did not go up, but business got even worse. They received nothing other than sarcasticments such as, "Did the boss go nuts from being poor?".


    Now that the two are stinking rich, they did indeed develop the Sudden Wealth Syndrom. Even Sangsang wasn¡¯t as obsessed with the shop¡¯s ie. Ning Que busied himself with studying in the Academy in hopes that he would ascend the second floor to learn more about the different magics.

 Chapter 127: A Perceptive and Touching Friendship

    Chapter 127: A Perceptive and Touching Friendship


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    There were six subjects in the Academy and they all had their own difficulties. Mathematics, Driving and Toxophily were easy for Ning Que, but the other three like Etiquette, Calligraphy, and Music were torturous.


    He could at least memorize Etiquette and Calligraphy. He believed that he could get through them as long as he possessed a heart that loved grades instead of money.


    However, music was out of his grasp. He was neither good at it, nor did he like it. He could not help but think of Chen Pipi¡¯s messages when he troubled over the flute in the study room daily. Chen Pipi hadpared him untteringly to a dumb piece of wood in those messages, that he was a flute that could not make any sound. Looking at the flute in his hands, he could not help but feel that this must be a limitation that Haotian had ced upon himself.


    If he wanted to graduate from the academy and enter the Second floor, he must not miss any examinations. He had already missed thest semester exam. As there was no hope for Music, so he had to work extra hard for the other five subjects. Other than the pressure of schoolwork, there was another reason for his current misery.


    The students in the Academy including most of those from ssroom Three had thought he had faked illness to skip the exams and was veryzy. While they did not take jibes to him in his face, they were unwilling to speak to him more than what was required of them. They mostly just tried to stay away from him.


    He wasn¡¯t that bothered about being left out intentionally. He had never been one to pant after those who ignored him. If he was left out, so be it, he would just study. However, sometimes he felt rather down when he walked alone around the Academy.


    At times like this, he wouldfort himself with images of being ignored by other students in his previous life when he received medals for being the best student in his province. As the saying goes, the tree that is the highest will have its branches broken by the wind. The bump in the river will be washed away by the rapids. A person who is of higher caliber will always have to endure gossip. The beam that pokes out will rot first. The fattest pig in the pen...


    Pft! Ning Que spat into the damp grassy ground. He raised his head and ignored the students who were going to ignore him. He held the paper bag in his hand and walked to the old library leisurely.


    He walked to the second floor of the old library and bowed to the female professor. Leaving the paper bag on the table by the west window, he walked to the shelves and scanned at the books on cultivation. Now that he could feel the Breath of nature and was able to win a lot of money from it, he felt regret that the books were still like Greek to him,pletely iprehensible. He could remember the strokes of each character, but not a single word stayed in his brain.


    He held the thick book called Diverse Laws Appreciation Dictionary and sat on the ground under the west windows. He looked at the bright sun shining through the cracks of the windows and began to read lethargically.


    As the seconds ticked by, the sunlight disappeared from the window slits. When he reached the seventeenth page using the Eight Laws of Eternity, the sun had dipped into the horizonspletely. Darkness epassed the old library and yet, he made no move to leave.


    The female professor at the eastern windows hadpleted her calligraphy of the day. She kept her brushes and inkwell before rolling her wrists gently. She could not help but smile warmly as she watched Ning Que looking at the dictionary dazedly. She did not remind Ning Que that it waste, but left the old library quietly.


    As the night deepened, the symbols on the shelf began to glow. Ning Que was not frightened, but stared at the symbols intently as the glow faded and the symbols returned to its original crude greyish-white state. He watched as the shelf slid away from the wall silently, revealing a chubbyd who was panting heavily.


    Other than the numerous correspondence via messages, this was the second time Ning Que and Chen Pipi met in person. The first time they met, it waste into the night and Ning Que had straddled the fine line between life and death. When he awoke lethargic in the morning, he did not see how the fellow looked like clearly. However, he would not miss the opportunity this time. He opened his eyes wide and looked at him for a long time.


    "I must say, you really are quite fat."


    Ning Que looked at Chen Pipi in admiration. "I wonder what you¡¯ve been eating in the past 16 years to get so fat. It¡¯s a good thing you¡¯re rather solid, so you don¡¯t look that disgusting. But there is something I really don¡¯t understand. Are you really the first person to score six A plus in the entrance exam in a hundred year? Did you get A plus in Driving as well? Where did they find a horse that can tolerate your weight and run fast at the same time?"


    Chen Pipi¡¯s round face was full of displeasure upon hearing this long disparaging remark upon their meeting. His eyes which looked like beans were filled with annoyance. He huffed, "Driving... I chose to drive in that exam!"


    A look ofprehension filled Ning Que¡¯s face. He praised Pipi sincerely, "That was a wise choice."


    Chen Pipi held his hands up to his forehead. He couldn¡¯t be bothered to continue the conversation and asked directly, "What did you want to see me for?"


    Ning Que smiled gently and said, "Let¡¯s talk about those non-important thingster. I brought you something to eat."


    He dug into the paper bag and brought out severalrge white buns as well as some other small dishes. He said enthusiastically, "Let¡¯s talk while we eat. The Academy¡¯s canteen has got really good salted vegetables. I don¡¯t know if you guys get it in the mountains. The buns are a little cold, I don¡¯t know if you¡¯re used to it or if it¡¯ll fill your tummy."


    Chen Pipi looked at the food and refused to sit down. "I know you have something to ask of me, but I really didn¡¯t expect you to just bring a few cold buns and salted vegetables. Is this how you beg for help? Shouldn¡¯t you at least bring some crab porridge?" he said incredulously.


    "You have to pay for the crab roe porridge from the canteen, it isn¡¯t included in our dormitory fees. That¡¯s such a waste." Ning Que smiled and continued to indicate for Chen Pipi to sit down. "Furthermore, there¡¯s no need for us to say such things like begging for help. It¡¯s called sharing information."


    "Sharing?" Chen Pipi looked at him contemptuously. "With your lowly skills and my genius?"


    Ning Que did not let his scorn hinder him but continued to wave his hands at Chen Pipi, asking him to take a seat. He answered seriously, "I just started on the path, but who knows which one of us would end up further? If you¡¯re nice to me now, I will be able to reciprocate in the future. There is no loss for you. Furthermore, I can teach you math, why not?"


    Chen Pipi was somewhat persuaded by Ning Que¡¯s words. He sat down with a proud sniff and reached out for a cold bun and some salted vegetables before cramming them into his mouth.


    "Why do you only move around at night? Isn¡¯t it better for us to meet in the day?" Ning Que said.


    Chen Pipi answered with a mouth full of bun, "Senior sister Yu stays here all day to write calligraphy. How would I daree? You have to understand, the Academy bans us from helping students outside of this building. I am risking a beating from the seniors just by leaving you instructions in the message. Shouldn¡¯t you be more grateful for this?"


    "Am I not treating you to buns right now?" Ning Que answered with a smile. "I know that the rules of the Academy are strict. The instructors wave their fists around indiscriminately for no rhyme or reason. Why do I hear that you¡¯re more afraid of Second Brother?"


    Chen Pipi looked at him. He knew that thed was very curious about the happenings in the mountains behind the Academy. After a coldugh, he said, "The cold hard rules of the Academy are practically made of cotton aspared to Second Brother¡¯s fists."


    The two sixteen year olds ate with much gusto, and before you knew it, the buns and salted vegetables were gone. Chen Pipi found the female professor¡¯s water bottle under the east windows and drank from it before rubbing his tummy. He looked at Ning Que and pretended to be nonchnt, saying, "What do you want to know today? If it is about how you can enter the second story, you might as well forget about it. Teacher might dote on me, but I cannot say anything about things like that."


    "We¡¯ve known each other for some time now. Do I look like someone who would hanker over a free lunch?" Ning Que smiled cheekily to hide his disappointment. "I wanted to ask you, now that I can feel the Breath of nature, what should I do next?"


    "You¡¯ve only just entered the Initial Awareness State. You have to cultivate your heart and stabilize your cultivation. You mustn¡¯t be greedy." Chen Pipi exined seriously. His brows scrunched suddenly and his right hand which was drawing secretly behind his back froze. He looked into Ning Que¡¯s eyes and asked uncertainly, "You only have 10 open acupoints?"


    Ning Que answered honestly, "I tried to look into it yesterday, but the image in my brain was too blurry. The Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow looked like two ck blobs and I couldn¡¯t make out how many points were blocked. I would like for you to help me look today."


    Chen Pipi sighed and shook his head. "No need, you only have ten acupoints. You¡¯re straddling on the fine line between being able to cultivate and not. If your willpower was even one notch lower, you will definitely not be able to."


    He looked at Ning Que without expression, all the while thing that Ning Que, that fellow, had eaten such precious Heavenly Power Pills. He might not know it himself, but there must definitely be other interesting incidents. He had finally been able to sessfully open his acupoints and change his fate, which was a feat by itself, but he had only managed to open 10, and was below average amongst cultivators. It was such a pity.


    Ning Que did not show any disappointment, but had only smiled after freezing up slightly. "It¡¯s better to have 10 than not a single one at all."


    "You don¡¯t have to be entirely disappointed. Not everyone who enters the second floor is geniuses at cultivation." Chen Pipi felt that he had tofort Ning Que even more when he didn¡¯t disy any self-pity. He patted his shoulder and said, "The teachers don¡¯t pick disciples by looking just at their potential for cultivation. If you¡¯re able to excel at a certain subject, you might get noticed too. You¡¯d most certainly be able to enter the second floor then."


    Ning Que knew that Chen Pipi was trying tofort him and he smiled gratefully. His gazended on the row of shelves behind him subconsciously. He knew that the path to the legendary second storyid behind those shelves. He just didn¡¯t know if he¡¯d be lucky enough to pass through it. Or would he have to, as the female professor puts it, pry it open?


    He retracted his gaze and continued asking, "If the Initial Awareness State is to know the existence of the breath of nature, how do you continue to use it? I can perceive the existence of objects through the breath of nature, but I cannot move them. I am not being greedy, but am just curious."


    "You can perceive the existence of objects?" Chen Pipi looked at him with wide eyes.


    "That¡¯s right," Ning Que held up a finger and listed the objects he felt. "The first night, I perceived the mes, and then the pillow, paper, bed...and the silver under it, the tree in the courtyard and a bowl of hot and sour noodles."


    Chen Pipi¡¯s eyes got even wider if it was even possible. He thought to himself, one needed to be in harmony with the Qi of Heaven and Earth as well as be able tomunicate with it to perceive objects. But this... could only be done in the Perception State. How did Ning Que manage it?


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 128: Sangsang, My Natal Item!

    Chapter 128: Sangsang, My Natal Item!


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Chen Pipi scratched his head and asked questioningly, "You... are sure that you can perceive things like candle mes, pillows, papers and noodle soup? You¡¯re certain that your eyes weren¡¯t open?"


    Ning Que furrowed his brows as he saw that Pipi did not believe him. "It is true that my eyes were not open. Furthermore, there was a wall and a bed board between me and the objects. I can¡¯t see it even if I wanted to. Right, I went to the casino at the Southern city with my friends and was able to feel the notches in the dice through the dicebox. Is this not perception?"


    "Of course it is since you can¡¯t see it through the dicebox." Chen Pipi tilted his head and seized up Ning Que with his eyes.


    Ning Que did not notice that there was something different with the way Pipi was looking at him. He thought about what happened to him in the casinost night and his promise to Mr. Qi and Sangsang to not use such methods to cheat and earn money. He could not help but feel rather unwilling. He looked at Chen Pipi and was about to say something before mming up away. However, he could not stop the question from bubbling up and asked in a low tone, "Is there a way to move the dice without touching the dicebox?"


    Chen Pipi was shocked and stared at Ning Que as if he had seen a ghost. He scolded angrily, "You¡¯ve changed your fate against all odds and can finally cultivate. But you¡¯re only thinking of ways to cheat? Is there anyone else like you in the world? You really don¡¯t know how to count your blessings!"


    At this point, the young cultivating genius could no longer suppress the emotions within him. He had always been jealous and even hated Ning Que¡¯s good fortunes. He pushed up his sleeves and made a move to hit Ning Que.


    Watching his movements, Ning Que quickly waved his hands and exined, "I only thought that if I could move the dice without touching the dicebox, it would mean that I can control other things through the energies of heaven and earth. I only chose an example that could be easily understood, don¡¯t get so angry. Would I be so dumb to use the Qi of Heaven and Earth to gamble?"


    Chen Pipi sat down and breathed heavily upon hearing the sincere and believable exnation. He stared at Ning Que with annoyance before tempering his emotions and exined, "The Initial Awareness State is an unreal state. You can only feel the Qi of the Heaven and Earth and might be able tomune with it, but you cannot affect reality with it. It is only after you have entered the No Doubts State when cultivators can channel Qi through Psyche Power and move objects in reality."


    "This is the logic behind sword masters controlling flying swords and martial warriors fighting without having to touch their enemies physically." Ning Que thought.


    "That¡¯s right," Chen Pipi continued. "You have to enter the real state if you want to move the dice without touching the dicebox."


    "The No Doubts State is the third stage." Ning Que shook his head and sighed. "How can I reach that state in a short period of time?"


    Chen Pipi looked at him weirdly and could not be bothered to speak inly about what was realistic and what wasn¡¯t. He said, "Even if you entered the real state, don¡¯t even dream about being able to control anything using the Qi of Heaven and Earth. Those who are able to are all master cultivators. They only achieved the ability to do so by breaking some invisible barriers."


    "Are there any specifics behind the ability to control objects for cultivators in the No Doubts State?"


    "Of course there are. You¡¯ve mentioned that you¡¯ve seen a battle between cultivators. Have you seen a sword master revealing three rows of flying knives under his robes? Have you seen the disciples of Buddha conjuring 36000 bronze Buddhas at their enemies"


    Ning Que thought back to the night at the Spring Breeze Pavilion where Chao Xiaoshu killed the two cultivators. The sword master from South Jin Kingdom had indeed only one sword. He died after the sword was damaged. The sadhu from Yuelun Kingdom had more weapons, but they were but a copper bowl and prayer beads.


    "Cultivators from the No Doubts State to the Seethrough State have their own unique objects that they perceive. If you want to enter the real state from the unreal state, you have to first cultivate your own unique object. It is also known as the natal item."


    Ning Que asked, "What is a natal item? I¡¯ve only heard of the natal year."


    "The sword master¡¯s sword is his natal sword. A talisman master¡¯s natal talisman is most important to him. The sword and the talisman are natal items."


    "What is the psyche master¡¯s natal item?"


    "If you can only understand inyman terms, then think of it that he is his own natal item." Chen Pipi answered in annoyance. He suddenly thought of the term that Ning Que mentioned earlier and asked curiously, "What is a natal year?"


    "... Do you know what ellipses are?"


    "... I don¡¯t know, and I don¡¯t wish to know. As for why cultivators need their natal items, you have to understand two things. Firstly, the Qi of Heaven and Earth are everywhere. Even the smallest stone or a withered willow or a ripple on theke have their own Qi of Heaven and Earth. Secondly, cultivators don¡¯t depend on the Qi of Heaven and Earth to directly influence objects on earth. They must use it as a bridge to transfer their psyche power upon the objects, causing the Qi of Heaven and Earth within the object to start vibrating."


    "Sorry to interrupt, why do we need unique items in this case?"


    "This is the same example from when I left you the message, the cultivator¡¯s psyche power is like one¡¯s breath. The Qi of snow and sea mountains are like flutes and bamboos. Only when you are able to blow into it and make a sound will the Qi of Heaven and Earth understand it. And that is when you can feel the Qi of Heaven and Earth. But the thing is, the quality of everyone¡¯s flutes and bamboos are different, and yet the Qi can understand them. However, that does not mean that every object can understand or like them all. That is why cultivators have to look for and cultivate their own natal items. It is like finding a partner who can understand and like their own music. I¡¯m already exining things point-nk to you. Do you understand?"


    "I do understand, in general. Is it like the theory of shared vibrations?"


    "What is shared vibrations?" Chen Pipi rubbed his face tiredly. He ignored Ning Que¡¯s interruptions and continued, "When a cultivator enters the real state, he would be able to find an item that fits with his own aura. His state of cultivation would rise easily from there on. But it is too difficult to find a natal item that fits perfectly, which is why many cultivators choose to carve symbols to alter the unique state of each item and cultivate their psyche power for many years to achieve a connection with it."


    Ning Que thought about what Lyu Qingchen had talked about regarding sword masters and bucket masters and what not and understood that Chen Pipi was telling the truth. He scratched the back of his hands and smiled, "So you¡¯re saying that in order to be a sword master, I have to find a good sword, hug it every day in bed and be familiar with it before cultivating a rtionship with the sword?"


    "If you want to understand it in such a ridiculous way, so be it." Chen Pipi could not be bothered with him.


    "Hey, you¡¯re the one who said that we have to be in tune to each other!" Ning Que gestured indignantly before he thought of another important question. "How many natal items can a person have? What is yours?"


    "Why should I tell you what my natal item is?" Chen Pipi red at him. "The greater your abilities, the more intricate your item. The more you can identify the minute differences in the Qi between Heaven and Earth, the more natal items you can have. In the Seethrough state, you can control trees andkes once you can identify their aura. But an average cultivator would just choose one to ensure that everything works."


    "If I choose to hug a sword to bed every night, can I split my attention and control the dice?"


    "As long as you have the energy to study it, you can y around with small things like this. Hey, why are you still thinking about this? It doesn¡¯t seem like you¡¯re using it as an example."


    "It¡¯s just an example. An example. Don¡¯t think too much about it."


    ...


    ...


    And so, the chubbyd of sixteen imparted his knowledge to the sixteen year old beginner cultivator until early dawn. He hadpletely forgotten the rules of the Academy and the promise he made to himself. He spoke seriously, while his audience listened attentively. The various logics behind the world of cultivation was exined in simple terms.


    He had lived in the hidden grounds of the almighty West-Hill Divine Kingdom. For the past sixteen years, he had focused on cultivation and lived without being affected by the happenings of the secr world after having left home for the Academy. He didn¡¯t have a nasty bone in his body. Other than being a little prideful, the heart in that chubby body was clearer than the shiniest crystal out there, touching the hearts of others.


    Having lived on the Min mountain and grasnds and endured much bitterness, and having killed many since the age of four, Ning Que had experienced much deaths in his sixteen years of life. Beneath the jubnt exterior, he hid a careful and cold awareness. In the hours spent together with Chen Pipi, he had felt nothing out of the ordinary. It wasn¡¯t until yearster when he recalled this moment that he realised how lucky he was.


    Ning Que returned home at twilight the second day and ordered Sangsang to close up the shop and prepare dinner before sitting in the chair next to the window in his room. He looked at the little courtyard and therge tree and fell into a daze.


    Falling into a daze was equivalent to meditating. He was spreading his psyche power through the Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi towards the various objects in the house and courtyard. ording to the method Chen Pipi taught him, the best way to connect to an object that was in tune with him was to keep a heart of joy and follow the lead of his psyche power.


    A weak but pure wave of psyche power emanated from his body, feeling every breath the heavens and earth took before moving off. He could feel the newly embroidered shoe soles beneath the window, the ants crawling around under the tree, and the wad of notes and ingots under the bed. He could perceive many things, but did not receive any reply.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth existed within everything on earth. ording to Chen Pipi¡¯s instructions, every object would have a natural rejection against the psyche power of a cultivator. If these objects can feel the kindness and joy within the psyche power of the cultivator and the two¡¯s energies can get along well, there will be a reply.


    "Kindness and joy... should I try this on the brushes, ink and paper in the shop?"


    While he was pursuing this train of thought, Sangsang¡¯s sudden exmation could be heard from outside the windows. Immediately following that, was a tinklingughter reminiscent of bells.


    He opened the windows curiously to see Sangsang¡¯s back facing him while trying to get water from the well. Her little hands were swatting behind her back while she said, "Young Master, stop tickling me. It¡¯s itchy... itchy."


    Inside the house, Ning Que looked at the writhing Sangsang in shock. He could understand if Sangsang, who had grown up with him was the one who was most in tune with him. However, was he going to use her as his natal sword?


    Absolutely not! As he thought of the possibilities that were unfolding before his eyes, he took a deep breath and shook his head vigorously in objection.


    If he did that, when he faced general Xia Hou in the future and defeat him, wouldn¡¯t that mean he¡¯d have to chant the sword forms and say, "You thief, don¡¯t you dare be arrogant... herees my natal item, Sangsang!"

 Chapter 129: Genius in the Academy

    Chapter 129: Genius in the Academy


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    At the critical moment of life and death, he could rely on what Sangsang had, but not Sangsang herself.


    Ning Que held his jaw sitting by the window, and gawked at the little girl thinking if he should try on the calligraphy stationery so that Natal Items could be finalized. However, the pen he usually used was a brush rather than a magistrate pen; the ink was pine ink rather than graphite; the inkstone was made of mud; the paper was the budpaper.How could they be used as weapons? Furthermore, they were all things that a schr used. It always seemed improper to let calligraphy stationery fly in the air and be involved in the war with cultivators.


    He fiddled with something in his hands while pondering on these difficult questions - now the Old Brush Pen Shop had plenty of silver taels, and Sangsang had even done things like covering the entire bed with silver taels. At present, silver taels had been changed into notes that did not have so much the same hand feel as silver taels. He kept a new tael of snowke silver, and yed with it every day - Snowke silver was cool and smooth with a really good grip. For a poord who struck it rich, it was infinitely morefortable than things like walnuts and stone balls.


    For the rest of the time, Ning Que continued maintaining a clear, bright and kind heart, continuously trying to keep his breath in harmony with his Psyche Power and aura. Meanwhile, he seeded in making the candle sway and extinguished it and made a corner of the piece of paper that was affixed to the wardrobe fly, but he still failed to find a suitable object. This situationsted tillte into the night.


    The chirping of cicadas and the hot summer remained. The dim bean-shaped candlelight on the table released constant endless heat, and the master and servant in unlined robes sat at the table, staring at each other in silence for a long time.


    Sangsang crouched at the edge of the table resting her head on her arm. She opened her willowy eyes to watch the restless silver ingot slowly moving and reflecting the candlelight on the table. She said in an undeniable tone, "Young master, although this piece of silver does respond violently to your Psyche Power, I still strongly object. If you throw it all away in a fight, what shall we do? An ingot of silver is equivalent to twenty-two taels. All our property will be gone in a few years of fighting."


    ...


    ...


    The next day, Ning Que went to the Academy, and stayed in the old bookstore till midnight before he left. Chen Pipi wriggled out when the bookshelf slightly moved, and Ning Que bounced up to tell him what he had experienced at Lin 47th Street, and then asked a question that seemed important to him, "Why can¡¯t I still not remember the contents of these books ?"


    "Didn¡¯t Sister Yu tell you? In the old library, all the books and texts on cultivation were written by the grand cultivators of the past. Every ink in the book is the umted Psyche Power power of those Divine Talisman Masters. Only when you enter into the state of Seethrough, can you see through its hidden meaning, you are still far away from that state."


    Ning Que remembered the female professor¡¯s warning to himself and Xie Chengyun. He scratched his head and sighed. Suddenly he thought of something and looked at Chen Pipi and said, "Does this mean... you are at the upper state of Seethrough?"


    "No," Chen Pipi answered indifferently without a trace of shame on his face.


    Ning Que, now understood very well the character of this fellow. It was the calm expression that helped him guess his real state which might have been above the superior grade of Seethrough. He was greatly shocked considering that Lyu Qingchen did not manage to step into the Seethrough State with one foot until he was old and frail. The fatd in front of him had already surpassed the Seethrough state and entered the Knowing Destiny State!


    "You¡¯re so young... You... are a unique genius." He looked at Chen Pipi¡¯s big round face and said with admiration. "You don¡¯t look like a genius nor a grand cultivator in the Knowing Destiny State, but you really are."


    Chen Pipi was speechless and didn¡¯t know how to respond, but thought to himself, "Are you worshiping or ridiculing me?"


    Ning Que was in awe of him after knowing that this guy was actually a Grand Cultivator. He felt that he was talking with an old man who exhibited celestial behaviors with a white beard, and he said respectfully, "I mean... Genius, surely you can solve my dyslexia as you¡¯re so talented. Please give me some pointers."


    It seemed that Chen Pippi really liked the mild and sweet voice and the overt ttery. He smiled before replying, "A word needs to be read as a whole, because a word is a world with its own soul. You can avoid being injured by the calligraphy style by deconstructing words with the Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong, but you can only see some fragments of this world, and that naturally can¡¯t be registered in the spiritual world. An ordinary person who hasn¡¯t reached the superior grade state of the Seethrough wouldn¡¯t be able to read these books. In the opinion of a genius like myself, you can probably find some tricks that rely on the Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong.


    Ning Que moved a bit closer and listened attentively.


    "You¡¯re good at calligraphy, so you can deconstruct these words into strokes by using the Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong. For example, you can try to unintentionally remember the order and number of strokes, and then reconstruct them in the mind with the method of calligraphy after leaving the old library. Consequently, the word¡¯s still that word, but it no longer has the structural psyche given by Divine Talisman Masters who copied these books that year.


    Ning Que was deep in thought.


    Chen Pipi warned, "I just put forward a possibility. Whether you seed or not, it will require you to conduct numerous experiments. The final result may work, or may not work."


    "It¡¯s better to try than do nothing at all." Ning Que suddenly remembered the attempt he madest night in ordance with the guidance of Chen Pipi. He then excitedly stood up and took out the prepared flint to light up a candle. After putting the candle on the table at the west window, he returned to his original ce, and said, "Please see if my practice in cultivation has seeded."


    As his voice dropped, his middle and index finger on his right hand merged into a sword, which stabbed the candlelight in the distance once he waved his arms. The Psyche Power exuding from his body controlled the Qi of Heaven and Earth, and finally disappeared along with his fingertips.


    There was no sound of thunder, no great movement of the heavens and the earth.The dim candle on the table shook gently for a few moments and quickly regained itsposure. It was as if a few wisps of summer wind had blown in through the west window crevices.


    Chen Pipi frowned and after a moment of silence, he uttered shaking his head, "Weak."


    He spent a difficult night cultivating his ability to interact with objects in the Academy and finally learnt this ability, but could only receive the word [ weak ] from his peer. Although he knew the guy was a genius in cultivation, and that his current state was as dim and disdainful as the candlelight on the table in the eyes of the genius, Ning Que felt a bit unhappy. He took the silver ingot, and heavily mmed it on the floor in front of them, and said with extreme annoyance, "Please look at this before you make ament."


    A momentter, Chen Pipi stared at the silver ingot that was slowly turning and moving on the floor. He then said incredulously, "Your response is not bad... Aren¡¯t you the greedy type? Are you that fond of taels of silver?"


    Ning Que suppressed the pride in his heart and rubbed the spot between his eyes that was starting to hurt due to the excessive output of Psyche Power. He thoughtlessly whispered as mildly as possible, "I¡¯m not greedy, and the silver ingot knows I always care for them."


    "In other words, these silver taels are aware that you¡¯re too mean to spend them, so they¡¯ll give joyful responses to your perception? You¡¯re not only weak, but extremely weak."


    Chen Pipi looked at him mockingly, and said, "It¡¯s eptable to cultivate the silver ingot into your natal item as you please, though I have never seen any cultivator doing so before. I must warn you that you¡¯ve already exerted all your strength, yet this silver ingot still struggles like a dying white maggot. So what¡¯s the use?"


    ...


    ...


    Chen Pipi returned to the back mountain after spending half of the night in vain. He stepped on the stone path that was enveloped in fog and could not help sighing when thinking of the precious cultivating time he had wasted on that guy.


    The mist suddenly cleared off and in front of the stone path, a tall figure abruptly appeared. In the darkness, one could clearly see that the guy¡¯s ck hair was neatlybed, and the tinsel ribbon on the waist was at the exact position, and the ancient crown cap on his head was as motionless as the eave.


    "Why do you go to the old library at night? Which book can¡¯t you remember so that you have to read at night? Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re just there to check on ancient ssics such as Rites of Zhou."


    Looking at his most revered Second Brother, Chen Pipi gave a deep bow but he wore a bitter look on his face, and truthfully reported, "Second Brother, I went to the old library where I met a friend in the front department of the Academy, and we talked."


    "Hm..." The Second Brother continued with appreciation, "Gentlemen agree best in sincerity, regardless of wealth or poverty. ssmates from the front department are still friends. You¡¯re worth rewarding since you can ovee your greediness andziness to be apanion, but you should remember the rules of the Academy. You shall not speak about certain things."


    "No way!" Chen Pipi raised his neck and cried graciously, "Don¡¯t you know how timid I am? I dare not give away any information. We just talked about mathematics."


    Upon hearing the word "mathematics", the serious Second Brother suddenly remembered the question that Chen Pipi brought back from the back mountain one day. He thought of the painful time he had spent day and night in the room, while he was absorbed in calcting, hiding from his fellow students and sisters. A rare tremble crossed his brows and he said in a hoarse voice, "So it¡¯s that guy."


    Second Brother got gloomy and turned around to walk on the te ground, since he did not want to remember the painful time nor the entire room of papers on which no answers were written.


    Chen Pipi thought of something, and then quickened his pace to catch up with him. "Second Brother, I¡¯d like to ask you a question." He panted following him joyfully.


    "What¡¯s up?"


    "There¡¯s a guy who doesn¡¯t have much potential for cultivation. Only 10 of his 17 acupoints were open and he could barely perceive the Breath of nature and enter the Initial Awareness State as of fourteen days ago. However, he¡¯s strangely capable of responding to the outside world and even made the first step into the No Doubts State. Can... he be regarded as a genius?


    Second Brother suddenly stopped and turned to give Chen Pipi a cold look. He could guess whom they were talking about. It was thed in the front department. He frowned for a while before answering in a very positive tone, "Certainly not."


    "Why not?"


    "He entered the Initial Awareness State, the Perception State, and then the No Doubts State in fourteen days... Not a single genius like him exists in the world. Geniuses of this kind may only be monsters, because I, as a genius, still took 15 days toplete these processes."


    Second Brother spoke these words with no facial expression of exultance or arrogance, but the implied meaning in the speech was the utmost of pride and self-confidence. It took him fifteen days to break through three states and no one in the world couldplete the same things in less than fifteen days.


    Chen Pipi noticed Second Brother¡¯s prim ck hairdo, and could not admire him more. He thought he still took 17 days to break through the three states after taking Heavenly Power Pills. Second Brother attained enlightenment in the rural ce like Linquan County, and only took him 15 days without wise instructors or Tao sects. He was indeed more vigorous than Chen Pipi who was an amazing genius for cultivation. Then Chen Pipi asked with admiration and curiosity, "How about eldest Brother?"


    "Eldest Brother... is also a monster." Perhaps Second remembered something from the past. His hands stretched up to adjust the slightly crooked hat and he solemnly said, "Eldest Brother was enlightened at the age of thirteen, and then dazed for seventeen years in the Academy before understanding the meaning of the No Doubts State.


    "He didn¡¯t enter the No Doubts State until the age of thirty?" Chen Pipi asked incredulously. "Eldest Brother is too... "


    Second Brother looked at him and replied sarcastically, "Too dull? Eldest Brother reached the No Doubts State at thirty, but then he only took three months to realize the Seethrough. Of course, I¡¯m already at the superior grade of Seethrough."


    He remained silent for a long time and then he looked up at the night fog amidst the mountain with a long sigh. "That day, Eldest Brother realized the Seethrough in the early morning, and then reached the Knowing Destiny State while he was observing the clouds in the evening. He entered two of the most wonderful states in one night. The professor praised him for even he himself couldn¡¯t do it."


    The voice faded in the night fog in the mountain. Second Brother and Chen Pipi who proimed themselves geniuses were indeed geniuses of the Academy. They fell into a long silence recalling the scene then the schr revealed a smile in the twilight.


    The road to cultivation was long and endless. The higher one climbed, the more difficulty one would encounter. So many cultivators who were regarded as geniuses during their childhood could reach the Initial Awareness State and then the Perception State at the age of five or six, the No Doubts State and even the Seethrough State at sixteen or seventeen. However, for those cultivators, entering the Seethrough was like falling into the quagmire, it would be hard to make further progress for decades.


    The eldest Brother who entered the No Doubts State at thirty was not the gifted one in the potential for cultivation, he even seemed dull. Yet he could realize the Seethrough in three months and most frightful of all, he could enter the Seethrough and understand the destiny in a day. His experience and fortune were really incredible. Perhaps no other person like him existed in the entire world of cultivation.


    There was a long stretch of silence before Second Brother spoke, looking at Chen Pipi, "Eldest Brother is considerate and kindhearted. He is a real gentleman. He rose unexpectedly with his umted strength and attained enlightenment in a day. You and I are far from beingpared with him in terms of his great umtion.


    Chen Pipi nodded repeatedly. He revered Second Brother who was rigorous and solemn. Yet both of them were very proud with the same temperament, so he knew some stories of this brother. Tonight, he knew for the first time that eldest Brother who was always gentle and generous to fellows, courteous to professors, and who dressed in the old robe holding old books and a water scoop, and who looked more like a disciple of the Academy, was actually a genius. Then he could not help but nervously reflect and self-examine himself. Had he ever shamelessly shown off in front of the eldest Brother during the two years before the eldest Brother went touring around for studies with his professor?


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 130: A Young Man Faded into Oblivion in the Academy

    Chapter 130: A Young Man Faded into Oblivion in the Academy


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Following the Second Brother across the te ground, along a trail up the mountain wreathed in mist, Chen Pipi took a while to digest the shocking news and couldn¡¯t help going back to the original question.


    "Second Brother spent fifteen days to clear the three States. I took seventeen days, and it took merely fourteen or fifteen days for Ning Que. Could he already be at the same level as us? Or was it that he contemted and umted the Psyche Power ever since he was born, and that now he reversed his destiny and all the Psyche Power gushed out and helped him break through three States at once? If we counted from his birthday, it was nearly the same for Ning Que as for the second brother who had put in 16-17 years to step into No Doubts State. Then, it should not be a big deal, right?"


    The words came out from Ning Que the other day in old library"No one can be sure who will stay longer on this road."Upon recalling the secretpetition between Eldest Brother, Second Brother, Ning Que and himself, Chen Pipi shuddered to think that the idiot might overtake him some day, hisrge figure trembled slightly.


    "Among the seventeen Qi orifices of Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow, Ning Que had got through ten of them. Even though his built-up Psyche Power of sixteen years was pure and strong, it was highly probable that an out-of-tone tune was all he could do. Without ess to Knowing Destiny State, Ning Que could only manage to pull some shoddy tricks or pilfer some silver due to his inconsistent and unstable breath of nature, even at the pinnacle of Seethrough State. I am a real deal, no doubt. There is no way he could catch up with me."


    "s, the poor Ning Que! Though you have been introduced to the road of cultivation, you would still be easily pushed around given your frail physique and breath of nature."


    After perusing this, Chen Pipi felt relieved and thought he¡¯d better give thed a heads-up, lest he might pride himself on being some gifted man and go around to show off, then get beaten up someday by real ones.


    Arriving at the residence, the Second Brother asked suddenly before heading off, "Only fourteen days?"


    Chen Pipi looked down at his fingers, counting earnestly himself, and recollected the night when he saw Ning Que severely wounded. Chen Pipi was not sure that his orifices were got through at that time or after taking Heavenly Power Pill, as it simply pivoted when he reshaped the Snow Mountain. Chen Pipi looked up and said in a reverent manner, "It could be fourteen or fifteen days, or maybe fifteen and a half if he woke in the morning."


    Staring into his eyes solemnly, Second Brother answered, "Younger Brother, a man living in the world should conduct himself rigorously. Precision is a necessity for philosophy of life, that is, one is one and two is two, and your answer is vague and imprecise. You go and find out how long exactly he spent on reaching the third States. This is a test for you."


    After his long preach, Second Brother crammed both his thumbs in his golden silk waistband, strode forward in a triumphant and solemn fashion. A few faint words wafted in the night air.


    "Like I said ... it can¡¯t be fourteen days."


    ...


    ...


    Though the Article on the Response of the Tao was learnt by heart; contemtion was executed all the time during the stay in City of Wei; conversations were exchanged with Lv Qingchen along the journey, chats and talks with Chen Pipi were made in the old library, Ning Que had a little knowledge of the world of cultivation whatsoever, nor did he understand why he could cultivate all of sudden, let alone he was conscious of which State he was in so far, in short,rgely ignorant of the theories and the practicals.


    He was not aware that his speed of improvement had troubled Chen Pipi and the Second Brother, and thought perception of breath of nature and outside world was a natural course of cultivation. Hence, it was nothing special, as he felt it was the same as those cultivators who practiced in mountains, Buddhist and Taoist temples.


    The Academy life and attitudes from peers gave him a hint. As the days went by, the aftershock of his sick leave in the semester exam had abated, and it started to be felt. No one continued to secretly point fingers or nced at him from corners or by windows, as a matter of fact, no one cared about his existence ever since.


    Presently, he didn¡¯t attend lessons in Toxology, Driving, Mathematics or Music, the first three were unnecessary for him, and thest one was useless for him. Without semester exams, there was no chance for him to correct the early nder or reim his reputation.


    The Academy was one singr body, in that case, collective awareness could be both blindfolded and manipted. Though students would not mock or scorn at you in your face, gossip never ceased behind your back, and suddenly came to a halt when you neared. Of course, Ning Que was never invited to any parties, and a growing intangible estrangement formed between them and Ning Que.


    The estrangement made those who believed in him in the first ce gradually drift away from him, conforming to the collective consciousness. Chu Youxian treated his as usual though, Ning Que¡¯s prolonged stay in old library and Chu¡¯s frequent absence from lessons led to decreasing contact between them, despite Chu Youxian¡¯s consistent attitudes towards him. As for Situ Yn, she knew that his majesty appreciated Ning Que and that Ning Que¡¯s sick leave was no escape, yet she couldn¡¯t bring herself to stand up for him in such atmosphere.


    Ning Que¡¯s temperament would not allow him to beg for friends. On ount of having nopany, he leave quickly to take away lunch as soon as the bell rang and tour around pond to the old library. Consequently, there was much less time he spent with his ssmates, and they drifted away even further.


    In the course of time, Ning Que, the fortress soldier who once scored three Grade As in the Academy Entry Examination, the assiduous student who made Xie Chengyun spit blood, the handsomed who earned his name at the House of Red Sleeves, gradually faded into oblivion, and became a long forgotten student in the Academy.


    The recent trends among young students in the Academy were something like ¡ª¡ª a fine paper written by Wang Ying from Lin Chuan, a beautiful poemposed by Zhong Dajun, the achievement of Perception State by Chen Simiao, a student rmended by the Military institute who resided in Grade B dormitory beat an instructor in a ss of Toxology, Miss Situ reprimanded Chu Zhongtian again ...


    Xie Chengyun, an outstanding gifted young man from South Jin kingdom, remained popr in the limelight of the Academy. Two hot topics followed since he obtained five Grade As in semester examination: one was that he was seen cuddled with Jin Wucai, the granddaughter of Old Chancellor. The other was he finally broke the Perception State, and proceeded into No Doubts State. The instructor Cao Zhifeng had a look at his improvement, andmented that it was highly likely that he could enter into the Second Floor next Spring.


    Time went by quietly and quickly, a sudden cool breeze blew off some yellowish leaves from branches, ushering in the Autumn.


    Ning Que in his autumn academic uniform walked out of dining hall, towards the old library, with a bowed head along the way. Before he stepped onto ane cut across all buildings to the wend, a group of people came into view, and a handsome male student seemed to be their leader.


    It dawned upon Ning Que that the student¡¯s name was Chang Zhengming, who was from the Yulin Royal Guards, he had been rmended bt the Military Ministry just like himself. He heard from his peers¡¯ asional talks that it was this young man that shot ten sessive gold rings, and even defeated an instructor once. He was a rising star in the Academy.


    Ning Que thought it had nothing to do with him anyway, and was about to take a detour. Unexpectedly, Chang Zhengming suddenly addressed him in low voice, "Ning Que, we are all rmended by the military. Are you nning to continue idling away? Submission without a fight is not something a man from the Tang military should do."


    Ning Que came to a halt, turned back and said smilingly, "Though we were students rmended by the military, we are now here, and no longer military. It is best not to im ourselves as Tang military. As for submission or idling away, I have nothing toment since this is just what you think and has nothing to do with me."


    Chang Zhengming frowned, and said, "If you want to prove yourself, then you ought not to give up opportunities. Should you take lessons in Toxology, I¡¯ll give you a chance to challenge me."


    "Is this charity?" Ning Que looked at him, shaking his head and said, "It seems that you have no idea what I said the other day in the study room. Let me be clear, I am no delicate flower in a greenhouse. There is no need for gentle breeze nor special care to prove my perseverance and capability. While you were with Yulin Royal Guards, I was stationed at the fortress, my merits and chopped heads were all on the military records. I believe other things are not necessary to prove myself."


    Finishing this, he turned around and left.


    Chang Zhengming was far from cheerful as before as he gazed at the retreating figure. Ning Que¡¯s absence of semester exams on pretext of sickness made those students from military ministry feel rather shamed. As a tradition, Tang military prided their glory more than anything. Chang Zhengming, therefore, couldn¡¯t figure out what was Ning Que thinking about.


    Out of thene to one side of wend, Ning Que came to notice that there were two female student giggling nearby theke. One with slender figureughed absentmindedly, and he could discern some sorrowful and admiring looks in her eyes.


    Chu Youxian once told him that the girl¡¯s uncle served in the royal court, which meant that no one dared to offend her. As such, he wondered where her blues came from.


    Following their eyes across the sereneke, frolicking ducks and soft meadow, Ning Que saw a young man and woman standing shoulder by shoulder. The handsome man and the beautiful woman, were Xie Chengyun and Jin Wucai. The two seemed to be enjoying themselves. A soft waft lifted their billowing clothes slightly, making them almost look like a pair of god and goddess. It was a treat for the eyes indeed.


    Ning Que watched the admirable couple, the jealous young girl looking from afar, the picturesqueke and students around theke quietly. He smiled, shook his head, and left. left.


    He was growing calmer and moreposed these days, deliberately dismissive of exclusion and scorn from his peers. He found himself even taking a liking to this tranquility since something fundamentally changed in his mentality. He was not who he was before.


    On the road of cultivation, after all the trials and tribtions, a broader and wider world now presented itself in front him inparison with one where he used to live. Fondness, hatred and envy, these emotions on the earthy ins havd be in to him. Being on the path of cultivation, he was confident that he could go far on the path. Those hidden towers, misty mountains and formidable enemies would eventually be the ornamentalndscape to his road. Since this is so, why not calm down and carry on?


    There was no shortage of beauty, nor the eyes to find beauty. As long as you are level-headed, beauty woulde easily. Theke, the couple, the Academy and all these were beautiful in Ning Que¡¯s eyes, even Xie Chengyun was. The scenery of the Academy was beautiful despite the fact that he was all but forgotten by the Academy.


    Due to the exclusion from peers, Ning Que kept himself busy with reading and cultivating in the old library. He strolled alone through the academy. While this may seem forlorn in others¡¯ eyes, he was the only one who knew how great the academy was when you savour it alone, especially the ces that only he knew of.


    Along the path by the wends, there was trail near the old library leading to the mountain. Behind a row of lush old trees, Ning Que found arge carpet of uncharted meadow, in which a forest of unknown trees towered, tall and straight. Most trunks were free of branches, probably due to strong gales. Only a few twigs and branches sat at the top. The hundreds of tall trees stood closely, leaving an impression of countless wooden swords thrusted in the meadow upside down, serried and grand.


    Casually walking among these trees, Ning Que sat under one of them and leaned against the trunk. He took out his notes and started reading the first part of A Brief Introduction on Five Clutivation States . Not long ago, he finally managed to avail himself of Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong to rbine the books of old library, and learned them all by heart. The note was one of the copies he made for himself through sheer memory.


    The woods were quite far from the Academy, separated from the wend by two stretches of meadow and known to few people. Ning Que, therefore, was not concerned that someone might see what he was reading. He buried himself in the notes and murmured to himself, "I can now lift paper, move candlelight and silvers with willpower, then does it mean I am in the No Doubts State? If so, why were those students so excited when Xie Chengyun broke into No Doubts State?"


    A soothing and soft voice flowed behind him, "Xie Chengyun was not twenty years old yet, so his entrance into No Doubts State was considerably difficult for him. It was justifiable for them to cheer for him. As for your strange experience, Pipi was a kind-hearted child and willing to help you, so your entrance is a matter of fact."


    Startled, Ning Que recollected himself after recognizing the voice. He stood up swiftly and dusted grass off clothes, bowing to the female professor standing behind him by the tree. "So it is you."


    The female professor walked around from the tree. She had a delicate figure and kind countenance, yet an air of maturity and gentleness could be felt. Her appearance and demeanor was not helpful in guessing her age, which gave her a charmingly mysteriuos air.


    She looked at thed and sighed, "I have been practicing regr script for about twenty years in the old library and you are the only intruder to my seclusion. This Unyielding Sword Woods was my favorite spot in the Academy, and here you are, What a pain in the neck!"


    Ning Que looked at the female professor whoes name he still did not know despite having known for half of year. His eyes brightened suddenly.


    "Do not presume that every encounter was by chance."


    The female professor smiled and said, "I will not teach you. If I were to do so some day, you don¡¯t need to ask."

 Chapter 131: A Tranquil and Chill Autumn

    Chapter 131: A Tranquil and Chill Autumn


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que scratched his head and gave her an embarrassed grin, knowing the female professor saw through his intentions.


    The female professor smiled and said, " There is no need to avoid me, I¡¯m here just for a casual stroll."


    Ning Que picked up the topic, asking reverently, "May I ask why you are fond of these woods, professor?"


    There was a short pause. The female professor, with her hands behind back, lifted her head and observed the autumn leaves for a moment before answering calmly. "Years ago, someone used to practice Tao enlightenment in this Sword Woods. That person was the one and only I truly admired in the Academy. I thought his scent might still linger here, and every time I came here, I felt quite gay. "


    "The one and only you truly admired?" asked Ning Que, confusedly. "Was it the headmaster who practiced Tao enlightenment here?"


    The female professor smiled without saying anything.


    Ning Que watched the slender figure with hands behind back looking up at the sky with an air of grandeur around her. He scratched his head and said, "Should the master you admired still be here, you two might be friends."


    The female professor shook her head, said softly, "Should we meet, I would like to try his sword energy and see for myself if it was really that majestic and unparalleled."


    Ning Que thought of the book on Haoran Sword in the old library, which remained an enigma to him when he heard the words "sword energy".


    "There is a real spirit in this woods, if you can observe and interpret it, then don¡¯t waste it, and have a closer look."


    The female professor turned around, shot him a nce and said, "Though cultivators do not deign to contend withmon people, you should not indulge yourself overly in this simple life of reading books and enjoying the scenery. After all, how could one achieve his ambition if they were too unambitious? Tang students of your ss will all go to the frontier fortress to gain some experience next autumn. You ought toy the groundwork firmly this year, otherwise wouldn¡¯t it be a pity to die in battlefields? "


    Ning Que made bowed wholeheartedly for her enlightening words, and noticed the word she used. He asked curiously, "Teacher, are you not from the Tang empire?"


    Shaking her head slightly, the female professor resumed her gentle steps out of the woods.


    Ning Que gazed at her beautifully retreating figure, and inquired, "Professor, as your student, I do not know your name yet."


    "My name is Yu Lian."


    Yu Lian? Ning Que thought to himself, "What an average name, it even sounds a bit tacky! How could a female professor have such a name?" Suddenly, the old question resurfaced in his mind, and he braced himself to ask loudly, "Professor, could you reveal your age?"


    The corner of Yu Lian¡¯s lip curled up, but she didn¡¯t stop or turn around. Her soft voice wafted through the woods as she said, "If I recall rightly, it is not polite to inquire about a woman¡¯s age."


    Watching her disappearing figure, Ning Que mocked himself, "Why would I be interested if you didn¡¯t look like a sixteen-year-old girl by all outward appearance and yet exude a mature air of thirty-year-old woman?"


    ...


    ...


    It was a clear and crisp Autumn. The skies were high and littered with white clouds. The forest was filled with red-tinged leaves like rouge on a girl¡¯s face, and the thawing frost cleansed dusty hearts at every corner of the world. In the Academy, Ning Que studied and practiced cultivation as usual and was less anxious than before. Slowly immersing himself in the world of cultivation, Ning Que patiently went to great lengths to concentrate his willpower by establishing contact with candlelight, paper and silver over and over again. However, he was not in a hurry to find his Natal Item. Sometimes, he would converse casually with Chu Youxian, discuss math questions with Situ Yn in an inconspicuous corner, banter with Chen Pipi through letters, or chat with him directly by over two bowls of crab spawn porridge at midnight.


    There was no more hatred and no more blood. Studying and waiting became Ning Que¡¯s life. He awaited the day when his strength improved, his enemies drop their guards and grew weary. He awaited the winter in autumn. After winter came spring and that was when the Second Floor admitted new blood. And next autumn, he will return to the frontier fortress.


    Ning Que finally had time to lead a life of his own and not merely struggle to survive ever since he picked up his sword and chopped off heads at four years old. When he reminisced upon his lifeter, his time in the Academy was one of the most peaceful and blissful period of his life other than when he was without thepany of Sangsang.


    The borders of Tang and Yan Kingdom embraced Autumn as well, nheless, the stationed troops of both kingdom in the valley did not appreciate its scenery and tranquility. While major war had not broken out for years, to be stationed at distant frontier itself was not an easy mission. The borders were situated in the north and temperatures dropped as autumn came. The masses all resorted to blowing on their numb hands and rubbing them together, leaving no mood for enjoying autumn.


    At near dawn, two men dressed in Yan clothes crossed the border and walked into the Tang military camp. This was the most fortified military forces of Tang, and was also the ce where Defender-general of the State camped. As such, the inspection for those who enter was extremely rigorous and thorough. The two men produced a secret seal issued by the Military and sessfully passed through all the checks after a long time.


    Waking into a tent where the Information Agency temporarily camped, the younger of the two turned around and stole a nce quickly at the nearby grand Middle Army Tent. As his gazended on the waving military g, a cold look shed through his eyes.


    After entering the tent and making sure that no one was listening in, the middle-aged man stared at hispany coldly. He reprimanded in low voice, "It cost our court an arm and a leg to obtain the secret seal from the Military in Chang¡¯an. We cannot afford any mistake in today¡¯s assassination. Precaution is everything. You should not have looked there just now."


    The younger Yan soldier was full of indignation, and said, "It is just a butcher. As if my faraway nce would alert him that there was an imminent assassination."


    "You have no idea that how many want that butcher dead. And yet he is still alive and kicking." The middle-aged Yan man stared at him coldly and said, "The distance from here to the Middle Army Tent was meticulously calcted by the Privy Council, and was good enough to start a sneak raid. However, did it ever ur to you that he would also be aware of our existence from there."


    "There is no need to be overcautious." The younger oneined disobediently.


    At that moment, the middle-aged man¡¯s face changed dramatically as he looking outside of the tent incredulously.


    ...


    ...


    Though it was not far from the capital of Liang Zhou state, no one dared to return to the capital for a rest due to the rigorous rules of the Tang military. The border between Yan and Tang was even more strictly watched. The military took the opportunity before winter dawned to put pressure on their enemy country. As such, no soldier dared to return to the city without permission. Tens of thousands of troops camped here like an endless ocean. Amongst the military gs topping the tents of the campsites which looked like little hills, the g on the Middle Army Tent flew the highest.


    Outside the Middle Army Tent, no patrolling soldiers were visible. It was as quiet as back gardens of the royal family. Inside, the light was dim. A kerosenemp hung from the tent top, lightening up a bed with expensive furs spread out on it.


    A middle-aged man attired a in-looking undergarmentid on the expensive furs lying. He had thick eyebrows like ck worms, red lips as if had been drinking blood and had a strong-built body visible beneath his thin clothes. Even though he was in a sound sleep, an aura of death could still be felt.


    As if he could feel that something amiss, the middle-aged man opened his eye and looked outside the tent. While he remained straight-faced, the re in his eyes was electrifying.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 132: The Great General As Powerful As Thunder

    Chapter 132: The Great General As Powerful As Thunder


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The middle-aged Yan citizen didn¡¯t see the electrifying gaze from the remote tent. However, as the most powerful psyche master in seclusion at Yan Kingdom, he could sharply capture the changes of Qi of Heaven and Earth and felt an icy air as if it was from the deepest earth was heading towards him, breaking through the air and entering him.


    Frightened by the change, the middle-aged man adjusted his breath and made a move first! His skinny hands made an emblematic gesture in front of his abdomen. Dappled blood spots appeared on his palms like red wintersweet flowers, and psychic power spewed out of his body!


    The air in the far-off tent was affected by this psychic power and suddenly whirled as a storm. The middle-aged general lying in a bed of luxurious furs raised his eyebrows slightly.


    The luxurious furs under his body split and rolled up like living things, and a leather sheet was ripped into ropes by force, wriggling like snakes and instantly binding him downward.


    Although these split furs and leather ropes seemed powerful and horrible, they could not bind the general. What truly worked were the vigorous Qi of Heaven and Earth and the strong invisible psyche power attached to them!


    The young man was a great sword master from Yan Kingdom who had recently achieved fame. He had stepped into the seethrough state when he was barely thirty years old. Being deemed as a cultivation genius, he was naturally proud. The young one knew that they have been found by the enemy when he saw that his partner was terrified as if there was a great enemy in front of him. Considering that their enemy was ruthless and powerful, the young one was serious rather than slight. Raising up his sword-like eyebrows, he bit his tongue, spat out blood on his sword and gestured sword forms andpletely drained his power.


    Slipping out of its sheath, the sword behind him became a silver dragon and pierced through the tent. It split the thick darkness before dawn and stabbed into the middle army tent with shaking light.


    The middle-aged man remained indifferent as he allowed the leather ropes infused with the Qi of Heaven and Earth and the invisible forces of psyche power to bind him as the torn furs danced in the air rapidly. The iron body hidden beneath his clothes showed no sign of fight.


    He stared at the flying sword buzzing in front of him with his furrowed brows and looked at the shadow of the sword flying like a dragon, powerful and untraceable. All of a sudden, his brows rxed and smiled scornfully.


    The ropes which were powered by Qi of Heaven and Earth and that invisible psyche power tightened around the middle-aged man, splitting them into grids. At this time, the flying sword came one meter of him in a sharpness speed, humming. The sword would stab into his forehead in the next moment. He was in an extremely dangerous situation.


    At this moment, the middle-aged man tightened his mouth, and casually said, "Attack!". He wore a bored, disdainful and tired expression.


    The word "attack" came out of his mouth easily, clearly but not loud. However, when this voice echoed in the tent, the dark clouds above swirled quickly, enveloping the earth. Then a Haotian thunder cracked in clouds.


    Boom!


    Nobody could figure out where the thunder came from. Was it from the clouds or the mouth of the disinterested man? After the thunder, a roar resounded all the middle army tent of Tang. A powerful breath which was too strong to resist enveloped the camp.


    The flying sword that had broken into the middle army tent suddenly quivered as if had been hit by an invisible giant hammer. Quivering and whining, the flying sword struggled to escape. Unfortunately, the eyes of the man were like lightning and his words were like thunder. Is there anything faster and stronger than thunder in the world?


    Crack! The former silver-dragon sword was shattered into a hundred brittle pieces, sttering everywhere. No one knew where these pieces went.


    The waving luxurious furs were ripped into pieces and seemed to be fixed, floating in the air in silence. The ropes that had bounded the middle-aged man tightly were like snakes chopped by sharp knives, dropping down onto the ground lifelessly. They could no longer control him!


    Yet this thunder, from clouds and the man¡¯s lips, didn¡¯te to an end. Instead, it thundered through the tent, and released an unparalleled power once more. The grand and firm middle army tent exploded, like a wineskin filled with too much wine, then numerous tent debris mixed with items flew out!


    In the next moment, a small tent near the middle army tent was overturned and sted into pieces. Tang bodyguards in it were awakened, rubbing their eyes, helplessly staring at the vast sky. They have yet to figure out what had happened and were frightened by a horrible explosion and sprawled on the ground subconsciously.


    Tents of Tang army were blown up into the air one by one, like flowers sprouting at the frontier. A straight crack appeared southwards from the ruined middle army tent. No matter tents or stables, where the crack passed, they copsed in a minute. But it was amazing that neither soldiers nor horses were injured.


    All of sudden, the booming power came to the end of the crack where the two people from Yan Kingdom were hidden. Bearing the power, the middle-aged one knew that they had no chance of escape. He nced at his young partner who was shivering with pity subconsciously before he shook his head slightly.


    A fierce gale sprang up and the small tent was pulled apart in a breath.


    The cervical spine of the middle-aged one was broken with a click. His head shook off his body, then, like a ripe watermelon, fell into the ground and exploded, leaving a body filled with fear pitching forward and sshing blood everywhere.


    The desperate eyes of the powerful young one who was in a seethrough state spurted blood. Then his whole body withered like a sand sculpture blown down by wind, bing a horrible pool of flesh and blood.


    ...


    ...


    An rm bell rang hurridly. Frontier soldiers of Tang quickly responded and strengthened the defense of their camp. The left-wing cavalry started to prepare their knives and horses, marching toward Yan territory with a poker face. But at the center of the camp everything kept in order. Heavily armed generals and bodyguards patrolled the ruins, searching for the enemies.


    All of a sudden, no matter the bodyguards who were searching for enemies, the soldiers who were cleaning rubble, or those grooms who wereforting startled horses, everyone all stopped almost at the same time. Standing straight at where they were, they put their right hand on the chest and saluted in awe. "General Xia Hou!"


    There were calm steps. The middle-aged man walked over indifferently. He was wearing a shiny suit of armour. Some indescribable talisman inscriptions with certain meanings on the armour could be seen faintly. These talisman inscriptions in ck didn¡¯t dilute the coldness, but added a bit more power.


    He was one of the top four generals in Great Tang military.


    He was... great general Xia Hou who controlled the whole army.


    General Xia Hou ranked first in martial arts as a cultivator in the world. His body was as strong as steel. Besides his indifferent expression, he had brutal rules in managing his troops and was fierce and fearless. Over the past twenty four years, he had been unbeatable in North China. Gaining territory for the Emperor and defeating the enemy, he had a high position in the imperial court and was respected by subordinates. Yet in the hearts of Yan people who suffered great pain because of him, he was a devil on earth.


    The military intelligence tent which was torn into pieces had already be a ruin. Subordinate officers cleaned up at their fastest speed and surrounded it with warning tape, waiting for general¡¯s inspection respectfully.


    Looking at the beheaded body of the psyche master, Xia Hou said after a moment of silence. "Twenty four years ago, you were amander of a pioneer camp and suffered a disastrous defeat by me. You were frightened and escaped because of shame. I heard you have been hiding in West Yan these years and never expected that you would have the courage to kill me yearster. "


    Finishing these words, he looked down at the pool of flesh and blood without expression. He sniffed at it and said, "You actually dared to try to kill me as a little sword master in a seethrough state. You were looking for death."


    At this time, a middle-aged man walked up calmly. Wearing civilian clothes, the man saluted to the general and then presented several broken objects respectfully. He said, "Barracks found out that there was nothing wrong with defense. These two assassinaotors could implement their lunatic n and infiltrate the military camp without any problems because they brought with them seal documents issued by military ministry."


    Hearing this infromation, Xia Hou silently stared at this man¡¯s eyes and didn¡¯t speak for a long time.


    Other subordinates would be trembled beneath his calm gaze and kneel down to beg for forgiveness without knowing the reason. But this man was different. This man named Gu Xi. No one knew where he came from, but they knew that he was good at strategy and dealt with private business for Xia Hou. He was Xia Hou¡¯s most trusted man. Meeting his gaze without fear, Gu Xi said peacefully, "It doesn¡¯t mean anything even though the document came from the military ministry of Chang¡¯an"


    Gu Xi knew that thest thing the general wanted to hear was that this assassination was connected to Chang¡¯an city. What¡¯s more, there was no evidence to prove it. So he answered very surely.


    General moved his gaze away from Gu Xi and didn¡¯t bring up any topics rted to Chang¡¯an military. He held his hands behind his back and looked at the twilight in silence for a long time. Then he narrowed his eyes and said with no emotion, "They found a psyche master who harboured resentment against me most of his life and a young sword master who was cocky, arrogant and self-opinionated enough to assassinate me. It seems that some Yan people don¡¯t want that crown prince to return."


    This time, Yan Kingdom had sent a genius great sword master and a secluded psyche master to assassinate him. It seemed that they have paid a heavy price and spent all their energy and expectations on it. And the situation was indeed very dangerous. Nevertheless,pared to the general¡¯s unparalleled martial, this assassination was more like a desperate death trip.


    Hearing the seemingly illogical analysis, Gu Xi praised, "General, you are indeed wise. It is the right year that the Crown Prince returns to Yan Kingdom. No matter the assassin seeds or fails, his majesty will burst into rage. If you submit a written statement, I am afraid that the Crown Prince will have to continue staying in Chang¡¯an city. "


    Xia Hou said without emotion, "I will never let their wish fulfilled. Give orders to all officials that they are not to mention this assassination. Later, I will write a secret letter myself to exin the whole thing to His Majesty. The Yans wish to keep Prince Long Qing at Chang¡¯an to restore their national power. They are daydreaming! "


    "Maybe Prince Long Qing himself dosen¡¯t want to stay at the Yan Kingdom either." Thinking of the information sent by military ministry the other day, Gu Xi said with a smile, "He can go to the second floor of the Academy to study with the headmaster of Academy. It¡¯s better than being a back up prince. "

 Chapter 133: If You Hadnt Danced That Year

    Chapter 133: If You Hadn¡¯t Danced That Year


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The dawn light got brighter and brighter. General Xia Hou walked to the eastern front emotionlessly. He was followed by Gu Xi and a team of personal guards who were all silent. The light of rising sun shone on his armor, emitting a faint white luster, which made him look like a mighty statue of God standing in the holy halo.


    After Xia Hou entered the temporary Middle Army Tent and listened to his subordinates¡¯ report on the left-wing cavalry¡¯s attacking Yan territory this morning, he kept silent for a long time and then looked up to say, "Kill three hundred Yan prisoners as a penalty."


    At this moment, there was no third person in the tent besides himself and Gu Xi. Gu Xi looked at him, bit his lip, and then tried to persuade him not to. "General, you have decided to keep the assassination as a secret before, only sending a secret letter to his Majesty. If you kill the prisoners of war before the battle, I¡¯m afraid it might be difficult to conceal the incident. Not to mention, those Yans will certainly take the initiative to kick up a fuss over the matter."


    Xia Hou said indifferently, "Yan army entered Tang territory. They vited the old and the weak and burnt their viges. We should kill three hundred Yan prisoners of war as revenge. I¡¯m sure no one dares to object it."


    After a moment of silence, Gu Xi said, "But it¡¯s ominous to kill prisoners of war, His Majesty... won¡¯t like it."


    Xia Hou pulled aside his helmet and quietly watched the loyal subordinate who had apanied him for more than twenty years and said, "You should know His Majesty doesn¡¯t like me much. I have managed to survive up till now because I have achieved an imeasurable feat for the Empire. The Tang Empire always strictly enforced the rules for reward and punishment. As long as I continue to contribute and the officials in the court don¡¯t have any evidence against me, His Majesty won¡¯t bother me. So it doesn¡¯t really matter whether His Majesty likes me or not. And if His Majesty likes me too much, I really don¡¯t know what to do. "


    Only two of them could understand the hidden meaning in this dialogue, especially in thest sentence. After a moment of silence, Gu Xi was about to say something, but the horizontal embroidery on his cuff suddenly brightened up.


    "Go ahead." Xia Hou said.


    Gu Xi silently bowed with hands folded in front and left the tent.


    In the empty tent, Xia Hou smiled bitterly and self-mockingly. He whispered, "I¡¯ m so lucky to meet such a kind emperor like His Majesty, or I really don¡¯t know how many times I¡¯d have died. Gentleman can be bulled by reasonable methods, but is it possible for me to bully His Majesty with benevolence? The emperor just cares about old friendship that was unknown to others, so he allows me to live for these years."


    After a short moment, Gu Xi lifted the curtain and walked back. He held a secret letter with firecquered paint in his hand and walked towards Xia Hou. He said softly, "The Military Ministry has delivered a written letter, saying that it was a bit unsafe in Chang¡¯an these days. There seemed to be a murder in Southern City and it even alerted the Yulin Royal Guards."


    Xia Hou said with faint sarcasm, "The court officials took advantage of his Majesty¡¯s kindness and tried to kill my subordinates. They have suffered losses because of Chao Xiaoshu a few days ago. Haven¡¯t they learned to behave themselves in front of his Majesty?"


    "It really has nothing to do with the court officials." Gu Xi shook his head and replied. "There was a Seethrough state master who died in that murder in Southern City, and that person used to be a former Military Ministryy official. That is how the fuss came about.


    Xia Hou gaze hardened and squinted at him. He said, "Continue."


    "Do you still remember this person called Yan Suqing, a former Military Clergy Appraiser? Few people know he was a Great Sword Master... "


    After a pause, Gu Xi looked at the general meaningfullyand continued. "This person should have received enlightenment and learnt Swordsmanship in Haotian Divine Hall of West-Hill. He was expelled from the Military Ministry due to a certain matter and has followed a tea merchant of Chang¡¯an to dawdle all his days. No one expected his sudden death in the end."


    The atmosphere gradually became tense within the tent. The candlelight in the corner flickered with unease. After being quiet for a long time, General Xia Hou asked indifferently, "In the thirteenth year of Tianqi era... how many people died like him?"


    Gu Xi softly answered. "The censor Zhang Yiqi died of a car crash. The former Xuanwei General Chen Zixian suddenly died in Eastern City. With Yan Suqing whose head was cut off, there are three people who died this year."


    Tang Empire¡¯s folk custom was simple and firm. There was arge poption in Chang¡¯an. Although itsw and order was excellent, there was one or two unnatural deaths every day. The three people mentioned did not refer to the number of unnatural deaths in the thirteenth year of Tianqi era, but the deaths rted to past events.


    "If Her Majesty hasn¡¯t stopped her birthday banquet this year and allocated some free money to the Military Ministry, they wouldn¡¯t have thought about searching for the veterans to send constion money and found that the forgotten Chen Zixian has already died."


    Gu Xi looked at Xia Hou and softly said, "Now Yan Suqing¡¯s head has been cut off. The modus operandi is very simr to the former case. If we can make sure the so-called ident of the censor Zhang Yiqi... is also a murder, then we can find the truth."


    "Not everything has its truth." General Xia Hou said indifferently, "Those people in the two cases have already died. And who will remember these things?"


    Gu Xi replied, "When the fisherman tosses out his fishing, he would always think that he could catch all the fish. But in fact every time he pulled the out, he would always find a few has slipped through the. On my notes, there are at least eleven people alive from Xuanwei General mansion."


    General Xia Hou slowly closed his eyes and said, "Those who survived were some casualborers. They were set free ording to thews of Tang Empire. But those servants and maidservants who were bonded for life have all died. I don¡¯t believe those casualborers who had nothing to do with them dare to harbor hatred towards the imperial court and haveid low for many years to wait for revenge."


    "We still need to investigate it." Gu Xi said anxiously, "At least we should send someone to investigate the censor, Zhang Yiqi¡¯s death as we have said previously. And I don¡¯t believe there are rted people left in the two cases. But I¡¯m worried that a certain noble in the imperial court has taken advantage of the series of murders to better his position in court."


    Xia Hou said ndly, "The Princes are still young, and the fourth Princess is nothing but a little girl. If it is His Majesty who wants to bypass thew to deal with me, he would have sent someone to cut my head off ten years ago, there is no need to use those mean methods."


    "But there is another noble in the imperial court." Gu Xi nced at his face and said carefully.


    Upon hearing this remark, Xia Hou¡¯s face suddenly went pale and he stared at Gu Xi coldly . "Twenty years ago, when you swore the oath to follow me, I warned you not to mention that noble in front of anyone as long as I was alive. Have you forgotten?"


    Gu Xi buried his head deeply in repentance. His heart was filled with weary and he sighed helplessly. He thought to himself, "General, you don¡¯t want to let the world know the rtionship between you and the noble. I¡¯m afraid the noble doesn¡¯t want to let the world know either. But you chose to get away from Chang¡¯an and keep mum. Who can be sure if the noble would use some more extreme methods? As we all know, we gain a heart of steel upon entering the pce gates..."


    Xia Hou looked at his repentant subordinate in front of him. He thought of his loyalty and recalled those years where they have arduously crossed the strait by ferry in the rapid rivers. His expression cleared and he said in a low voice, "But you¡¯re right. The murders in Chang¡¯an must be investigated. Dispatch a Psyche Master. "


    After a brief pause, he added emotionlessly. "Warn the serviceman. Even if he finds out something, he is forbidden to act on his own. Present all the evidence to the Military Ministry and Chang¡¯an Local Government. The investigation is a matter for the imperial court after all."


    Gu Xi epted the order and left.


    In the empty tent, Xia Hou relieved the heavy armor from his body and then sat on the couch. He silently watched the faint candlelight that would be swallowed by the bright sky outside the tent and kept motionless like a statue.


    His face was a bit pale. His previous thunder-like cry had killed two cultivation masters. It had looked mightly and tough, but no one knew he had been injured from it.


    As a strong man of Peak state of Martial Arts in the world, his power could be considered unparalleled. With a little Psyche Power, there would be vigorous Qi of Heaven and Earth travelling inside and outside his body. Psyche Power could not hurt him, nor could the flying sword. In fact, he could have chosen a simpler and non-destructive method to kill those two cultivation assassins from Yan Kingdom,.


    However, he was General Xia Hou who was known for his ruthlessness, coldbloodedness and brutality. There were too many powerful enemies for him in the world. He must maintain the invincible image in front of enemies and his subordinates. Therefore, he must choose the most arrogant and mighty means as a response, even at the expense of his hurt body and psyche.


    In order to cease the steady stream of assassinations, he needed use arrogant means to forcibly crush most enemies¡¯ fighting desire. It was probably what a lot of unworldly sublime beings were forced to do.


    The curtains lifted and a manservant carrying a bowl of well-prepared bird¡¯s nest and Chinese date porridge carefully entered. The manservant looked pretty and the refined beautiful porcin bowl on the te was obviously not an ordinary object.


    General Xia Hou took the porridge bowl indifferently and drank it. He then waved his hands signalling for the manservant leave.


    He knew that those officials who were jealous of him in Chang¡¯an have been secretly spreading the rumor that General Xia Hou liked pretty manservants and had different kind of sexual taste. He was indifferent to this rumor and was not angry at all. His Majesty and those who truly dreaded him were well aware of the fact that he had not been close to a woman and refused to have any maidservant to serve him ever since he killed his favorite concubine by boiling her to death.


    The incident happened when the censors¡¯ attack was the strongest and the general¡¯s position was precarious. Those who thought they knew the inside story assumed that he used prying into military secrets as an excuse to use such a cruel mean to kill his favorite concubine to deter a certain eunuch who was ordered to enter the barrack to question him.


    However, only Xia Hou himself knew that, the fact that the eunuch came to question him at that time had nothing to do with the papers of the censors from the imperial court. The things he were afraid of were also unrted to the censors who did not have enough power.


    It was a summer with short nights and long days. The luster spread by Haotian was not only warm but zing. Serious questioning letters from the West-Hill Divine Kingdom were handed over to the Chang¡¯an Imperial Pce directly. Even the Unknown ce expressed grave concern. In the vast Min Mountain not far from the the barrack, there were countless vague Taoist and sword lights.


    "Shuang, you shouldn¡¯t have danced the devil dance that day."


    Xia Hou stared at the gradually frozen porridge in his hands and thought that the gentle woman he loved most would be the first to notice. He then took out a handkerchief with a smile and gently wiped it off. He could not help but shake his head and repeated expressionlessly. "You really shouldn¡¯t have danced that dance, although... you were really beautiful dancing it."

 Chapter 134: Letters from West-Hill

    Chapter 134: Letters from West-Hill


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "In a world filled with holy lights from Haotian, the demons¡¯ dance should not have appeared. Faced with West-Hill Tao Sect, especially the pressure of that temple, who can protect you? His Majesty, Headmaster of Academy, the abbey dean or that person?"


    "The former Emperor was the emperor of Tang, who could order hundreds of thousands of cavalries of the empire to sweep the world, smashing all Taoism temples into pieces while shouting, with merely several words. And as he had the Academy behind him, he could ignore holy lights from Haotian. However, why did he turn against the West-Hill Divine Kingdom for a saintess of Diabolism?


    "That person is practicing Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation. Then who else can protect you for fear that he has long forgotten his female disciple, you, during degeneration. Me? I am just a general with brute force, not the headmaster of Academy nor the temple dean. I don¡¯t have that kind of power... So I have to protect myself with your death since I need to stay alive for protecting more important people in my life."


    Many yearster, the great general, whose hair on the temples had turned white, was silently recalling the demon¡¯s dance that had confused the Three Realms of that year, without any emotions on his face, in the military barracks at the border between the Tang Empire and the Yan Kingdom.


    What happened in that year originated from a letter from the hierarch of Haotian Taoism in West-Hill Divine Kingdom to the capital Chang¡¯an. In that letter, the hierarch of Haotian Taoism changed his consistent gentle attitude towards royals of the Tang Empire for peaceful co-existence and conflicts avoidance. Instead, he expressed extreme anger to royals of Tang on behalf of hundreds of millions of believers in Haotian Taoism with a harsh usation of the collusion between a great general of Tang with the remnant of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, and asked for an exnation.


    At the same time as the letter was issued, three lofty Great Divine Priests, who seldom left the West-Hill Divine Kingdom, led countless powerful strongholds of Taoism to cross the border and reached the vast Min Mountain, not far from where Tang¡¯s frontier military force located. This represented a strong warning: If Tang did not give a response to believers all over the world; Haotian Taoism would take the risk to turn hostile towards the Tang Empire by killing the remnant of the Devil¡¯s.


    Few people knew that crisis, which ended while Tang just began to turn angry and was about to react with the cruel boiling kill of the beautiful woman by General Xia Hou. While the Haotian Taoism was satisfied with the response, Tang avoided a war against the whole world again because of the woman¡¯s death.


    People in Tang definitely would not be afraid of a war. However, none would be willing to sacrifice for a saintess of Diabolism. Therefore, few people knew the whole story and there had been rumors since then. People guessed his Majesty treated General Xia Hou with mercy all these years tofort his grief of killing someone who he loved at that time.


    It might not be the truth. Nevertheless, the truth of history was always hidden in the ditch in front of the door. None would like to dig out the truth as you had to endure too much sludge and stench.


    Many years had passed in the blink of an eye. It came at the fall of the 13th year of Tianqi era of Tang, while the former saintess of Diabolism called Murong Linshuang had turned into a poor and unknown concubine in memory. However, another letter written by the hierarchy of Haotian was sent to capital Chang¡¯an from West-Hill Divine Kingdom again in this autumn.


    "I did not read the former letter, but I heard that my father was very angry at that time, tearing that letter into pieces and spreading them all over the pce. While he sent Eunuch Cui to ask Xia Hou about the truth in Yan territory, he ordered the Defender-general of the State Xu Shi to secretly mobilize troops and prepared to attack West-Hill Divine Kingdom once they turned hostile.


    The prince of Tang looked at the letter in his hand and shook his head with a wry smile. His wrinkles in his eyes were now hidden, and he said annoyedly, "What exactly do those old priests want to do?" "Now I was asked to give the letter to my emperor brother. Although the tone of the letter is fairly gentle, after all, the death of Yan Suqing is an internal affair. They don¡¯t have the right to inquire even if Yan used to be a disciple of West-Hill. How could my emperor brother not be pissed off?"


    A steward of the imperial mansion stood behind him politely and said with a smile, "Everyone knows that his Majesty does not like those priests from West-Hill. As the hierarchy of Haotian has a high profile, he probably does not want to directly send this letter to his Majesty and be rejected directly. That was the reason why he asked you to deliver."


    Then he continued respectfully, " Anyway, you are the only one who is qualified to deliver messages between his Majesty and the hierarch of Haotian."


    "Well, do I want to be a go-between?" Li Peiyan sneered and said, "In the first year of Tianqi era, my emperor brother just took the position and visited Daze in the South. He asked me to stay in the capital Chang¡¯an to supervise the country. However, I was young and impulsive at that time, believing the words of these guys from West-Hill. My emperor brother was very angry with me. It took many years for me to fix our rtionship."


    It was well known that the Tang royals and the West-Hill Divine Pce belonged to the secr and religious worlds respectively. They did not like each other. However, his Prince Highness was regarded as an outlier, who was not only in a good rtionship with Haotian in Tang, but also asionally connected with the West-Hill Divine Pce. Suchmunications originated from a corporation in the first year of Tianqi era.


    The steward looked at his Royal Highness, who slightly raised his eyebrows. Although he had served his Highness for so many years, he still couldn¡¯t see why his Royal Highness took the risk to make friends with West-Hill. He never dared to ask, but at this time seeing his Highness in a trance with the letter, he finally made up his mind. He looked out of the window, and then whispered, "Your Highness, you have strong external assistance force to keep you safe inside... "


    Li Peiyan hesitated for a moment after hearing this. He sized up the steward, who had been serving him since he was a child, with a faint smile. Then he suddenly patted his shoulder and quietly said, "You really understand me as you have lived here for such a long time."


    The smile on Li Peiyan¡¯s face immediately disappeared after the steward left. He slightly knocked the bells beside the desk, sending for a bodyguard. He thought for a while and said in a cold voice, "There is something wrong with the steward. Ask secret guards in the mansion to keep an eye on him."


    "No. Kill him directly!" Li said seriously, "As he dares to sow dissension between me and my emperor brother, he must die. Then ask the Military Ministry to check how did the steward enter the Imperial Mansion when I left the Imperial Pce, especially his connections with West-Hill."


    After arranging these things, his Royal Highness spent a long time alone in his study, sitting at his desk and recalling what happened that year. While he was thinking, his straight and sword-like brow eased up slowly. He did not think he was wrong in dealing with Xuanwei General and killing all vigers in Yan territory as he did these things for Tang.


    Tang now had countless cavalries and great soldiers. And there were the Academy and the Headmaster of Academy. Even the West-Hill Divine Kingdom did not dare to show any hostility. However, as Tang would go on forever, how about theter generations became weaker? The Headmaster of Academy would one day die, then how? How about the enlightenment of the seven volumes of euphemism in the temple came true? In order to keep a good rtionship with Haotian Taoism, whose believers were all over the world, the death of these unimportant men did not matter.


    As long as the fundamental interests of Tang were not affected, he didn¡¯t care about those who died innocently.


    Neither did his emperor brother, he believed.

 Chapter 135: The Couple in Daming Palace

    Chapter 135: The Couple in Daming Pce


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In the early autumn, the Daming Pce in the north of Chang¡¯an was quiet and peaceful among the dense old trees. For hundreds or even thousands of years, these old trees were extremely tall and strong. But they still could not cover the pce¡¯s magnificent verve or suppress the solemn atmosphere of the world¡¯s political center.


    Qing Si Temple was the most beautiful ce in the pce. Looking at the back mountain from theke behind the temple, one could see the gradually withered leaves falling after gusts of autumn winds, and the mixture of lush green with the bright colors like yellow and light red. All in all, the scene had a mysterious enchantment.


    The bright-eyed, high-spirited Tang Emperor Li Zhongyi gently held the soft hands of the empress, watching the early autumn scenery in front of the mountains in front of the temple, and then signed softly. "The trees grow up through thousands of years of trials and tribtions. The Tang Empire was set up to be respected by others through countless wars and sacrifices of numberless famous warriors. In those days, Pei Yan actually sacrificed the Tangs and even the generals for the sake of those Taoist priests from West-Hill. I¡¯m afraid he didn¡¯t think it to be such a surprise in the eyes of those Taoist priests. If the Tang Empire couldn¡¯t resist the pressure of outsiders to sacrifice its own courtiers, how would such a Tang Empire make the others shudder? As the emperor of the Tang, why didn¡¯t I care about it?"


    The empress handed the letter from West-Hill back to him, gently leaning against him. There was a natural feminine gentlenessing from her beautiful eyes and brows between nces. She whispered to persuade him. "It is already in the past. Your Majesty, why do you bother yourself with it?"


    "The dead courtier was still my courtier. If he was not my younger brother, if not..." The emperor looked deeply at the empress and said, "How can I just spare them for this?"


    The empress knew what he wanted to say, and slowly stood straight to calmly look at the mountains as well as the old trees outside of the bar. She said, "At that time, His Majesty traveled to Nanze. The prince received a letter from Haotian hierarchy and also felt that it was a bit tricky. After all, Zhishou Abbey also broke the silence and showed concern. Who in the world could make sure if the omen indicated by the Seven Tomes of Arcane existed?"


    After a long time of silence, the emperor said slowly, "When I was young and studied in the Academy, the Headmaster of the Academy once taught me that for the temporarily iprehensible things, one should admit its existence without having to deal with it. If one couldn¡¯t even deal with anything in the world, then why bother to think about those things in hell?


    "After all, the legend is just a legend. The year that I ascended the throne, the three missionaries from the Unknown ce traveled to the Wilderness and didn¡¯t have the slightest clue. If the Seven Tomes of Arcane in the temple clearly indicated that, why couldn¡¯t those people find it either? In that case, what happenedter was nothing more than the wickedness of anxious swindlers.


    "You said that the prince might have been horrified that year. It¡¯s indeed possible. But he has stillmitted the most fatal mistake. Since childhood, he has grown up under my protection, so he couldn¡¯t clearly see the reason why the Tang Empire could keep ahead in the world, regardless of the West-Hill Divine Pce, and even didn¡¯t care about the pressure from Zhishou Abbey and Xuankong Temple. In addition to strong national conditions and the Academy¡¯s shelter, what is more important... The Tang Empire neverpromised."


    The emperor sometimes used "I" as self-address, for each section¡¯s subject he referred to was not the same. The empress quietly watched his familiar side face and noted that he deliberately missed a name. She said, "I didn¡¯t speak for the prince. But this matter involved too many people. He must be cautious."


    "He was cautious for an illusory tale and sacrificed the lives of innocent courtiers andmon people for a possible cmity..." The emperor frowned slowly and then mocked himself with a smile. Then he softly sighed. "I can understand a lot of people¡¯s difficulties and pressures. That¡¯s one of the reasons why I didn¡¯t punish them during these years."


    The empress bowed slightly, forcibly suppressing the sensation in her heart, and then whispered, "I made Your Majesty embarrassed."


    "I¡¯m the lord of the world. It doesn¡¯t matter if I bear some criticism for my woman."


    With a longugh, the emperor took her into his arms and pointed toward the mountains in front of the temple where the forest was getting dpidated. He said, "Nowadays, there are many constraints in this country and the Tang cavalry have recuperated for many years. It¡¯s not necessarily a bad thing if the prediction of the Seven Tomes of Arcane in Zhishou Abbey is indeed true. By then, I¡¯ll lead the empire warriors to extend the Tang territory to the other end of the world. Then I¡¯ll go with you to the white bone temple in the myths and then see the autumn scenery. And I¡¯ll write an exquisite good paper as a sacrificial rite for my ancestors. It can also be considered to aplish your sect¡¯s million-year dream for you."


    The empress looked at his familiar face and recalled his love and protection toward her over the years. Her eyes were full of admiration and love. She said in a quiet voice, "Your Majesty is so ambitious. I really like it."


    "It is said that ¡¯the fish jumped across the sea¡¯. The sea is indeed wide, but there are always coastal restraints. It can¡¯t contain the aspiration of my generations and the great empire. So why don¡¯t we put our eyes on the higher and wider sky without borders?"


    Upon hearing this, the empress thought of the scene that was often seen these days in the imperial study and could not help but chuckle with her lips covered by her sleeves. She moved her eyes and added, "¡¯The flower blooms on the shore astride¡¯? It looks like Your Majesty really loves the words. In that case, if Your Majesty can really lead the Tang Empire to extend its own territory in the future, we have to ask the penman to cope with your sacrificial paper of the imperial ancestors."


    "On that day, I meant to give the five characters meaning ¡¯the fish that jumped across the sea¡¯ to Chao Xiaoshu. I didn¡¯t expect that this guy actually had to leave. At that time, I felt a little uneasy. But I saw the characters that the penman had written for me."


    The emperor bowed gently to kiss her face and smiled to say, "These characters are sufficient to broaden the mind of the emperor. The penman knows me very well. If they can find him, I¡¯ll give him substantial rewards."


    The empress looked at him with interest and said with a smile, "How will Your Majesty reward him after finding that person? Will you invite him to the imperial study as a writing minister? In my opinion, I¡¯m afraid he has guessed your mind and is reluctant to have a busy life as a writer in the study. Therefore, he has continued to hide from view these days."


    The emperor thought of such a possibility and annoyedly said, "It is surprising that no one could tell anything from the characters after I had taken the calligraphy to ask a few Grand Secretaries in the imperial court. I also sent many people to secretly visit the great pen shops in Chang¡¯an. But nothing was found. I really don¡¯t know where that person is now. When I think that person might be a certain official in the imperial court, who secretly made fun of me when seeing me every day, I¡¯m filled with grievances and can¡¯t wait to seize him and cut his head off."


    "Your Majesty enjoys the calligraphy every day inside the imperial study. You love it so much that you can¡¯t bear to part with it. If you really find that penman, I don¡¯t believe you¡¯ll cut his head off," the queen said with a smile.

 Chapter 136: Those Days in the Study With Three Idiots

    Chapter 136: Those Days in the Study With Three Idiots


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "It¡¯s a pity there are only five characters, it isn¡¯t enough to satisfy me." The emperor held his wife¡¯s hand and said with a sigh and face full of regret. "They did not dare to say it to my face, but you know well that I have only the ability to appreciate good works. But... I amcking in the writing department."


    "I tried the Double-hook method yesterday, but it¡¯s not even close enough to those five characters." The empress smiled and suggested, "Your Majesty, if it pleases you, you can get every official proficient in calligraphy to try it."


    The emperor patted her hand andughed gaily before shaking his head. "It seems that you¡¯re the only one who understands me. I have already forced those old fogeys to stay back after court. They are writing in the imperial study right now. I have said to them, it mattered not if their granddaughter was having a birthday celebration or if their son was marrying today. I will not let them leave until they can write the characters exactly as the way they are."


    Some rather interesting events had happened in the pce recently for the seven words, "The flower blooms on the shore astride". However, no matter how much the emperor had enjoyed the calligraphy; it was simply a pastime for him. In order not to get the censor harping on him, His Majesty had not ordered any of the departments in court to join the search, but only sent out men to search secretly throughout Chang¡¯an. He had also told a few subjects that he was close to and ordered for them to keep a lookout for him.


    Several months had passed and the most famous bookstores and galleries of Chang¡¯an had already been searched. The most famous calligraphy artist had been summoned and questioned, but yet, the secretive calligraphy artist who had left those words could not be found. In fact, several famed calligraphy artists could not even understand the style the phrase was written in.


    The main reason for the situation at hand was that these people could not think out of the box.


    From the Emperor of Tang, the officials studying the calligraphy in the imperial study to the calligraphy artists on the streets. Everyone looked at the masterful strokes of the brush, the imposing characters, the quiet strength and beauty with hidden pride in the characters that looked almost alive in awe. To these people who could not stop praising the work of art, the author of this mysterious piece must be a calligraphy master who had been living in seclusion. Someone who could write a piece of such caliber must be a cultivator who hade from a long line of calligraphers. Why would he sell his works on the streets?


    And because they already had this impression, no one visited the Scent Workshop and questioned the poor schrs who sold their calligraphy writings there. Nobody visited the streets and alleys and asked for newly opened galleries as well. As such, nobody connected the dots between the recent ruckuses in the imperial study with the Old Brush Pen Shop in Lin 47th Street.


    One day, tourists from the Great River Kingdom detoured into Lin 47th Street in the Eastern City after visiting the Chang¡¯an Pce. They walked into what looked like a normal shop selling normal calligraphy.


    They stood with their hands behind their backs and looked at the average looking works hanging on the walls and could not help but furrow their brows and shake their heads. It was then when their eyes brightened and one eximed, "It is true that they say there are hidden masters everywhere in Chang¡¯an of Tang. They have such quality writings even in a random small shop by the streets... Youngdy, is your boss around?"


    Sangsang was eating her chicken noodles. She lifted her tanned face and smiled, "My boss isn¡¯t around. If you¡¯re asking for the price, this Zhongtang calligraphy is worth three thousand gold pieces. No discounts."


    This was a shop that sells a normal Zhongtang calligraphy piece for three thousand gold pieces with no discounts. What kind of style was this? This was the style of Master calligrapher Wang of the Great River Kingdom at his peak! The tourists were stunned and could only smile. They did not say anything but left the shop with their robes billowing behind them.


    "They say that the people of Chang¡¯an are generous and friendly... I think they must have gone crazy from being poor!"


    As a certain boy and his handmaid got richer, someone¡¯s calligraphy got progressively more expensive until the price became exorbitantly high. These days, the Old Brush Pen Shop saw many customers leaving the shopining or in shock.


    Sangsang was already used to this and could no longer bring herself to feel anything in particr about this scene. She just continued to keep her head down and slurped her chicken noodles. She finally understood that for the price of a bowl of chicken noodle soup, she could buy six bowls of hot and sour noodle slice soup. But the chicken soup glistening with oil was very vorful indeed.


    Ning Que yed with two shiny silver balls carved from silver ingots and entered from the house behind and leaned against the shopfront like the scion of a wealthy family. He looked the retreating backs of the customers andughed at them, without noticing that he was dragging down the reputation of Chang¡¯an, saying, "Don¡¯t ask for the price if you can¡¯t afford it. Sangsang... close the doors, let¡¯s have hotpot!"


    As the spring passed and autumn retreated, winter came to stay. It was the middle of winter in the thirteenth year of Tianqi. Ning Que and Sangsang had been in Chang¡¯an for almost a year.


    Having been ignored by his peers in the Academy, he had more time to cultivate and chat with Chen Pipi. Sangsang stayed on the Lin 47th Street and minded the shop with declining business. Sometimes, she would answer to the Princess Lee Yu¡¯s invitation to visit and the two became close. Ning Que could not understand the burgeoning friendship between the two, and could only ept that the two were probably fated so.


    After a sweaty hotpot session with four tes ofmb, Ning Que washed his feet in hot water and climbed into bed. He listened to the howls of the wind through the window cracks and rubbed his cold face angrily, "It hasn¡¯t snowed, yet why is it so cold? Who said summer was bad in Chang¡¯an? Who is so irresponsible to say that?"


    Sangsang smiled and huddled into the other end of the nkets after removing her outer coat. She rubbed her icy red hands from doing theundry and said, "Young Master, count your blessings. We are leading way better lives than we did in the City of Wei."


    This was a very honestment. The bed the two were lying on had over ten thousand dors worth of notes hidden under it. They also receive a healthy dividend from the casino in the Western city every month. In their hearts, they were chanting, "We don¡¯t need no money anymore. We are rich. We are filthy rich..."


    Since they had so much money, they decided they needed to improve their lives. While the two remained moderately thrifty, it was much easier going from being poor to having money. They ate chicken noodles instead of hot and sour noodle slices. They atemb instead of salted vegetables and porridge. It got colder previously and they built a bed-stove with quality charcoal. They drank good tea in a room that was as warm as the weather in spring. Aspared to their lives ten years before, they were practically living it up.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t really mind even though heined about the cold weather in Chang¡¯an.


    Now that he could see the enigmatic cultivation world and control the Qi of Heaven and Earth through Psych power, he could turn the silver balls in his hand and lift sheets of papers off the table as he wished. While the papers flew about messily and the balls moved slower than Chen Pipi due to the weak psyche power that he could force out of his body and his poor ability to control the Qi of Heaven and Earth, he did not mind it at all.


    The northern winds blew urgently outside the windows and a silent night passed. When they woke up the next day, the streets and alleys were nketed with ayer of fresh snow. The trees adorned with silver waved at the passersby walking past it. Ning Que put on a robe and stood outside the Old Brush Pen Shop with Sangsang. The two looked at the beautiful scene before them and thought about the eventful year they¡¯ve had. The snow that they were so sick of looking at in the City of Wei took on an entirely different meaning.


    "Our days are good." he sighed in satisfaction.


    Sangsang smiled and nodded.


    ...


    ...


    They lived quietly and rather blissfully. There was no bloodshed over revenge nor was there boredom that bordered on bitterness. The two eventually grew up between the days at the Academy and the Old Brush Pen Shop. They eventually got forgotten by those around them and disappeared willingly into the peaceful days.


    She did needlework and washed the dishes. He read his books and series he copied from the old library. In the repetitive days, time eventually made its presence known. As the hours ticked by, the bustle of the new year slipped away. Themb hotpots, hot tea and ink faded away in the silence and the spring of the fourteenth year of Tianqi dawned upon the two.


    It was yet another spring. Willow catkins fluttered in the air as the women of Chang¡¯an who had been stifled by heavy winter robes emerged for breath. Ning Que left his curtains up on the way to the Academy in appreciation of the women who still shuddered slightly in the cold spring breeze but yet insisted on revealing their milky white chests.


    He nodded at Situ Yn who was seated at the front row before walking to his desk right at the back. There was no one else who would acknowledge him. He was used to the cold shoulder treatment and did not care. He sat down and retrieved notes from the Etiquette ss and began revising.


    They had an Etiquette ss in the morning. The instructor of ssroom Three was the Assistant professor of Etiquette, Cao Zhifeng. He was also the Psyche master in Seethrough State from the Yan Kingdom who had hit the General¡¯s grandson, Chu Zhongtian on the first day of school. No one dared offend this man with such a reputation.


    The bell rang and Cao Zhifeng entered the ssroom. What the students of ssroom Three thought was weird was that while their teacher did not look cold or stern like before. Instead, there was a hint of glee that could not be contained.


    Something unexpected followed after that.


    Cao Zhifeng looked at the students and took a moment to think. Just as the students thought that he would put down the heavy book tomes he was carrying and start lecturing, he coughed lightly and extended his fingers in the air and yed a soundless tune with them. He said seriously, "There are changes in the Qi of Heaven and Earth. We shall not have ss today. ss dismissed."


    He turned and walked out of the ssroom after saying that, leaving behind a ssroom full of shell-shocked students who erupted into discussion.


    "What is this? The professor... what¡¯s wrong with him?"


    "Is he ill?"


    "He could just take sick leave if he was ill. Why would he do that? What does it mean that there are changes in the Qi of Heaven and Earth? It changes at every moment. It¡¯s not like it just changed suddenly today."


    "Pft, this one is good. Does this mean we can use this excuse if we don¡¯t want toe for ss in the future?"


    Chu Youxian bumped shoulders with Ning Que and asked incredulously, "Why did Old Cao go nuts today?"


    "How would I know?" Ning Que could notprehend this either. But not having ss was good news for him. He¡¯d have more time in the old library. He looked at the documents that he hadid on his desk and wondered why he had spent so much effort preparing for ssst night. He shook his head, gathered his books and prepared to leave.


    At this time, someone in front said, "Did anyone notice the joy in Professor Cao¡¯s face? There is someone important visiting Chang¡¯an today. The professor wanted to go wee him. That¡¯s why he gave such ame excuse."


    "Who could garner such excitement from Old Cao? Last winter the minister from the Ministry of Rites came to hand out constion money. It was three hundred taels of silver! The Minister of Rites! And yet, Old Cao looked as if the Emperor of Yan Kingdom had died."


    "You¡¯re too mean. Those whoe from defeated countries can¡¯t help but feel like that." The student in front smiled and replied, "As for whom the bigwig visiting today is, and why Old Cao would be so excited, it¡¯s because it has something to do with him. While he is an experienced instructor from the Academy he is first and foremost, a man from the Yan Kingdom.


    "Why would you say that?"


    "The person visiting today is Prince Long Qing from the Yan Kingdom. How could Professor Cao not be excited?"


    "Who would believe that? One would understand if he missed his country and was excited because he could see a royalty from his country. But the crown prince of Yan had been living in Chang¡¯an. I don¡¯t see Old Cao paying his respects to the prince every day."


    "You ignorant creature."


    Chu Youxian listened to the argument and muttered sarcastically to Ning Que, "The Crown Prince of Yan is but a hostage. How could theypare him to Prince Long Qing? To the people of Yan, having been beaten by Tang for hundreds of years, Prince Long Qing is theirst hope for Yan. How could Old Cao not be excited at hising?"


    "Prince Long Qing?" Ning Que asked curiously, "The brother of the Yan Crown Prince?"


    "His younger brother."


    Ning Que knitted his brows and said, "Why would the people of Yan put their hopes of revitalizing their kingdom on Prince Long Qing? Even if the Emperor of Yan passes on, the next person to seed the throne should be the Crown Prince."


    "That¡¯s where the issue is. From what I¡¯ve heard, many in the internal affairs of the Yan Kingdom are not in favor of the Crown Prince seeding the throne... Many believe that Prince Long Qing is a rare genius."


    Upon hearing the words "rare genius", Ning Que¡¯s knitted brows rxed. He gathered his books and smiled, saying, "This one¡¯s a genius, so is that one. I¡¯ve only been in Chang¡¯an for a year and I¡¯m already tired of hearing the word genius. This genius musn¡¯t be so rare if there are so many of them popping up this year."


    "Whoa..." Chu Youxian replied jokingly, "You seem really quiet usually, and I thought you didn¡¯t mind that incident from back then or cared about the attitudes towards you. I never thought you¡¯d remember that. You look like you don¡¯t even care to give your attention to geniuses like Xie Chengyun and the likes. But take note, Prince Long Qing is not Xie Chengyun."


    Ning Que stopped what he was doing and looked at him, waiting to hear what he had to say.


    "Prince Long Qing is a true genius." Chu Youxian said seriously.


    "You¡¯re speaking true nonsense." Ning Que replied before he was shocked by the debate that floated towards them.


    The name Prince Long Qing had evoked several shouts of surprise and exmation in the study room. There was yet another round of debate. Some who had lived in the frontiers like Ning Que had never heard of this name, however, they were the minority. Some had developed questions simr to himself. What kind of person was this Prince Long Qing whom all the people of Yan were cing their hopes upon for the revitalization of their country? Who was this person who could make Professor Cao as excited as he was just now?"


    "He might be the prince of Yan, but since his brother was sent to Chang¡¯an as a hostage, the royals of Yan Kingdom sent him to several countries to study. He stayed for several months in the Yuelun Kingdom, the Great River Kingdom as well as Southern Jin. He even entered the Revtion Institute in the West-Hill Divine Kingdom and took first ce just after a year in the institute."


    The Academy of South Chang¡¯an was the oldest, most renowned and respected academy out there. However, there are also other famed academies in other countries as well. The Revtion Institute of the West-Hill Divine Kingdom had instructors hailing from the divine hall and was one of the best. Being able to ce first in a ce like this was not easy. However, while this did not answer any questions, it did mean something to the proud students of the Academy.


    In his third year at the Revtion Institute, Prince Long Qing traveled to different ces with his teacher to do missionary work. That autumn at the Lanke temple of Tile Mountains, his teacher entered a debate with a Buddhist monk that could not be resolved. Prince Long Qing smiled and went forward to debate with his seven disciples for three days and three nights and won seven rounds of debates. The first disciple even vomited blood. He only smiled and shut up when the elder of the Lanke temple came out of seclusion to speak. The elder praised him for being so knowledgeable and his debate skills were second to none. He said that the prince could enter sacred grounds after ten years of training if he could enter Buddhism.


    "How could the West-Hill Divine Pce bear to have their prized disciple stolen away? When Prince Long Qing entered his fourth year at the Revtion Institute, the head teacher epted him as his core disciple and even allowed him to start learning how to handle affairs of the judicial department in the Divine hall... I heard that Prince Long Qing is but one step away from the Knowing Destiny State. He¡¯s very favored by the Haotian Taoism and is the second most important person in the judicial department. He specializes in guarding against devils and holds a key position in that too."


    "The second most important person in the judicial department of Divine hall?" A student said without care, "This sort of bigwig doesn¡¯t even amount to much in the Great Tang. If he was in the Southern Jin or the Great River Kingdom, he would have been someone even the emperor wouldn¡¯t dare touch. Why would hee to Tang, to Chang¡¯an?"


    "Because Prince Long Qing... will enter the Academy for further studies."


    "Enter the Academy? Is this bigwig about to be one of our peers?"


    "Dream on, He has already been studying in the Revtion Institute for years and is already an important figure in the West-Hill Divine Pce. How could he be our peer? He came to the Academy for the Second floor."


    "Other than cultivating in on the second floor, he had alsoe to Chang¡¯an for another reason. He is here to take over his brother as the hostage. The Emperor of Yan is old and dying. No one knows how much longer he can live. Our emperor ces much importance on filial piety and has agreed to the crown prince¡¯s return, but asked for a royal with enough power to take his ce. After much consideration, who else but Prince Long Qing has sufficient power to do so?"


    "The West-Hill Divine Pce has cultivated the prince for many years and has proven that this talent is indeed one to watch out for. The people of Yan ces think well of his talents and think even better of his rtionship with the West-Hill Divine Pce. They think of him as the hope for Yan Kingdom¡¯s revitalization. In their eyes, this prince is much more important than the crown prince who had been a hostage for years. What I don¡¯t understand is why they suddenly agreed to the Tang¡¯s request."


    The discussion between these students from reputable families had painted a clear picture of the situation in the minds of the others. The young prince who was about to enter the Knowing Destiny State carried the burden and hopes of the people of Yan. The West-Hill Divine Pce would also like to cultivate this young talent whom people are depending upon to revitalize the kingdom. If he wasn¡¯t a genius, who was?"


    There were manyplicated and conflicting emotions within the young prideful students within the study room as they thought about the prince¡¯s aplishments. Some were jealous and in awe while others were disbelieving. However, this disbelief was totally unjustified in the face of all the aplishments of the prince.


    The study room was abnormally silent. Chu Youxian looked at his ssmates and smiled. He said, "You¡¯ve forgotten to mention the thing he¡¯s most famous for... The prince is extremely handsome. Some people say that he is the most beautiful thing on earth. He is well cultivated and elegant. When he entered the Yuelun Kingdom in his youth, he attracted many looks from young women on the streets. I heard that many pairs of shoes were torn, many vocal chords were screamed hoarse and a lot of girls cried that day."


    This was an extremely curious incident that many students in the study room would not know about. The boys who were talking confidently about the prince would not mention this fact. The moment the girls in the room thought about this piece of gossip, their faces brightened. Even Miss Gao who had been unhappytely widened her eyes and had a curve on her lips.


    "Ladies, it¡¯s a little toote for you to moon over him."


    One of the things that Chu Youxian was best at doing was to deliver blows after delivering bad news. He smiled at the girls cheekily and said, "Prince Long Qing is already betrothed to the Princess Lu Chenjia of Yuelun Kingdom. She had the biggest crush on the prince. They fell in love when the prince studied Buddhism in the Yuelun Kingdom. The princess studied at the Revtion Institute just to be with him every day. What chance have you got? Everyone knows that Lu Chenjia is the greatest love-sick fool in the world. You are no match for her."


    The expressions on every girl in the ss stilled upon hearing that, but no one could say anything to refute Chu Youxian¡¯s ims. They lowered their heads. Situ Yn looked at the expressions on the girls¡¯ faces and changed the subject, washing away the love-sick expressions they had.


    Lu Chenjia, the greatest love-sick fool in the world was also a renowned beauty. There were also two other girls who were often brought up when Lu Chenjia was mentioned. One was the disciple of the Master calligrapher Wang of the Great River Kingdom. She was quiet and vivacious and enjoyed calligraphy and was known as a calligraphy addict. The other was a disciple from the Revtion Institute whose identity was a secret. It was said that she was gentle and lovely but was only interested in Taoism. She was interested in cultivation and nothing else, which was why she was known as the Tao Addict.


    "Everyone knows about the Flower Addict and the Calligraphy Addict. The other beauty has always been secretive. Everyone knows there¡¯s a beauty in the West-Hill Divine Kingdom, but no one knows her name or where she is."


    Situ Yn listened to the conversation and hesitated before speaking up. "It is true that nobody knows what the Tao Addict¡¯s name is. But I heard that she is the most important person in the judicial department of the Divine Hall."

 Chapter 137: Shocking Changan with One Piece of Calligraphy

    Chapter 137: Shocking Chang¡¯an with One Piece of Calligraphy


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    This Tao-addicted beauty was actually rumored to be the number one figure of the Judicial Department in the West Hill Divine Pce? Those words rendered the hubbub in the study room to a total silence in an instant. All the students looked at each other in a speechless shock. What kind of charming woman should rank atop the Prince Long Qing?


    "Hard to believe? Do you really think women are inborn inferior to men?"


    Catching sight of those looks of her ssmates, Situ Yn knew the doubts among them and could not help saying with a frown, "That Tao-addicted beauty is mysterious who seldom shows her talent in public and is naturally unknown to others. But as far as I know, Prince Long Qing never appeared to be unconvinced when mentioning this superior."


    "That Tao-addicted beauty is still very young, isn¡¯t she?" An Academy student sighed, "The West Hill Divine Kingdom is really a holy ce shrouded in the splendor of Haotian. It has actually produced so many young talents in cultivation. Not even mentioning that Tao Addict, how can our Tang Empire find one to rival Prince Long Qing after he is enrolled in the Academy?"


    At these words, Jin Wucai frowned slightly and wanted to say something, but finally refrained herself from doing so. A femalepanion beside her perceived her expression and said for her with a smile, "We have excellent Mr. Xie in the Academy. How about letting himpete with that Prince Long Qing?"


    "Mr. Xie just entered the No Doubts State in the early autumnst year, while Prince Long Qing is merely one step away from the Knowing Destiny State. So he is at least a strong one at the Seethrough State. There are at least five levels between the two, how can hepete?"


    Without saving face for his female ssmates, that student continued with a sneering smile, "Even if Mr. Xie could show better performances in the courses of poetry, literature, mathematics, and rites than Prince Long Qing to some extent, do not forget he is from South Jin, not our Tang Empire."


    "Who said that we don¡¯t have such talents?" Situ Yn retorted with an unpleasant frown. "Wang Jinglue is said to be invincible among those below the Knowing Destiny State. He is just a few years older than Prince Long Qing, and as long as Prince Long Qing hasn¡¯t entered the Knowing Destiny State, he will have few chances to defeat Wang Jinglue, not to speak of the young generation of our Tang Empire."


    The student showed confusion and said, "Wang Jinglue, who is invincible to those below the Knowing Destiny State, is indeed eligible to bepared with Prince Long Qing. But it seems he has disappeared for a long time, and his location is still a mystery."


    Through a nce at Situ Yn, Chu Zhongtian found no objections in her eyes, so he smiled and said to his ssmates, "I heard Wang Jinglue was sent by the emperor to serve the Defender-general of the State, and even if Prince Long Qing really came to Chang¡¯an City, it is still impossible for Wang Jinglue toe back, because it is against military discipline. So let¡¯s forget him."


    Ning Que was listening quietly in the rear of the study room to those arguments, and only after he found that Prince Long Qing was no longer mentioned and the problems of the talent shortage were discussed full of emotion did he stop listening. He simply packed his belongings and prepared to leave the study room for the old library.


    "Even if we don¡¯t mention Wang Jinglue, there will also be other talents in the Tang."


    Jin Wucai felt somewhat ufortable, probably because Xie Chengyun was directly considered to be notparable to Prince Long Qing. She stood up and smiled at the other students, saying softly, "Not only cultivators can be called talents. Those outstanding ones in the field of military, arithmetic, articles, poetry, and calligraphy can be called talents as well. I heard from my grandfather that a big blockbuster was made recently in the pce because of a piece of calligraphy. His Majesty loved that calligraphy, and my grandfather also said that the calligrapher was greatly talented in calligraphy. Couldn¡¯t such a calligrapher be regarded as a talent of our Tang?"


    "I heard that story, too." Chen Zixian, the son of a bookstore owner, took a look at Jin Wucai and timidly said, "Several groups of people were sent by the pce to inquire from my father, yet he hadn¡¯t the least idea of that. However, from eunuchs from the pce, he learned that the libationer and several great calligraphers confirmed that the mysterious calligrapher must have been immersed in calligraphy for many years to have such a force and structure in writing characters, who... perhaps can¡¯t be a talent of the young generation."


    Jin Wucai simply intended to let the previous topic pass, so of course would not answer these words. She gently smiled and drifted to other aspects, asking, "Grandpa has copied that piece of calligraphy in the Imperial Study one month ago. How is your family?"


    "My family just runs a bookstore, how could wepare to yourdy¡¯s family." Chen Zixian replied with a smile, "But the pce pushed us so hard, so my family helped to contact two big calligraphers to copy two volumes in the pce."


    The topics of their chats in the Academy had always been random. Today, professor Cao gave them a long period of spare time, which allowed them to make more chats with a quick shift of topics. A moment ago they were still discussing Prince Long Qing and the Tao-addicted beauty, while at this time all their attentionpletely shifted to the legendary piece of calligraphy.


    After a repeated discussion, the students were surprised to find that this thing was known to all, and that piece of calligraphy had long been the focus of the upper ss of Chang¡¯an City during the recent months.


    Why would an anonymous piece of calligraphy that had mysteriously appeared in the Imperial Study make His Majesty fondle it admiringly and directly order all the ministers and great calligraphers to copy it in person? If you did not know the ins and outs of this matter and what was written on that piece of calligraphy, then you simply could not get involved in those chats during teatime in those ministries and Yamen.


    "His Majesty awarded my grandpa his own copy, but my grandpa did not let me see it," Jin Wucai said softly.


    In fact, the entire Chang¡¯an City knew that the Tang emperor ardently loved calligraphy, yet wascking in the strength of writing characters. All the students forcibly held themselves fromughing out loud, thinking that the libationer would not allow others to see the emperor¡¯s calligraphy, which might usher in sneers. Miss Gao, who used to be a person of few words, somehow felt unpleasant at the soft tone and gentle manner of Jin Wucai, so she said with a bit of pride, "My family was also awarded with a copy. Pitifully, it was not the emperor¡¯s own copy. But it used the Double-hook Method, which makes it quite simr to the original."


    Double-hook, a method of copying, hooked along the exterior lines of the original work on both sides with a thin line, and then filled in the nk inside with ink. A copy made in this way was most close to the original, which was ordingly quite precious and was applied to copy masterpieces.


    All the students were again eximing at Miss Gao¡¯s words. On the one hand, they marveled at the fact that the anonymous piece of calligraphy was indeed beloved by His Majesty. On the other hand, they secretly discussed that a family with its members serving in the pce was really glorious, for it enjoyed a Double-hook copy awarded by the emperor.


    If a superior loved something, the subordinates would love it even more, not to mention it was the thing loved by the Tang emperor. Throughout the Tang Empire calligraphy was fond of by all, putting it at a high-respected status. Now that all the noble families in Chang¡¯an City had been aware that His Majesty was deeply fond of that section, they unavoidably would do some mutualparisons.


    Those being awarded with a copy would feelcent, while those not would feel somewhat uneasy. Even those who had gotten a copy from the emperor would inevitably makeparisons between their versions... A trivial section of calligraphy had actually blown ink from numerous residences and disturbed countless nobles.


    Some civilians staying at the Academy for the night curiously asked Miss Gao about what was written on the section, and what charm the characters had that could make His Majesty so delighted. As Miss Gao had already spouted out those words, naturally she would have to continue. She showed a smile and then boasted that the piece of calligraphy was something second to none.


    "Excuse me, excuse me."


    Ning Que came over from the back of the study room with several books under his arms. When others discovered that it was him, they suddenly stopped their discussion indifferently as was usual, and restarted their chat after he had walked out of the study room and had entered the rain-proof corridor.


    No one was willing to point out the shorings of that section of calligraphy which was so deeply loved by His Majesty. Furthermore, the section was indeed exquisite and worthy of appreciating. Those who had seen the original one, no matter if they were ministers or calligraphers, all marveled at and praised it, following His Majesty¡¯s mind. Therefore, although Miss Gao¡¯s remarks were slightly exaggerated, no other students showed any doubt.


    Jin Wucai knew why Miss Gao said so, thus she merely smiled without refuting. She followed her words and sincerely praised the section of calligraphy. Then the topic of discussion shifted to the most mysterious, yet attractive, aspect of the matter¡ªWho wrote that section?


    "Who wrote it?"


    "So far, nobody knows. It is said that it appeared in the Imperial Studyst spring. Then they searched in the pce for more than six months, and even those great calligraphers were asked about it. But nobody admitted to it."


    "Is it possible that it was written by the schrs that sell their calligraphy in the Scent Workshop? Don¡¯t look at me like that. Many heroes are from the wilderness and great talents tend to seclude themselves in the woods. Who dares to say that those schrs running calligraphy stalls can¡¯t write peerlessly excellent work?"


    "It sounds right, but if it is really from some poor schr selling calligraphy, how could he secretly put the section of calligraphy into the Imperial Study? If he does have such an ability, then he wouldn¡¯t be poor."


    "What a mystery! It is strange that the calligrapher does not stand up to admit it. You know, in view of the great appreciation from His Majesty and the disturbance he has made in the court, as long as he is willing to show up, no one will use him of what he did. Instead, a great wealth will await him ahead."


    Jin Wucai¡¯s thin eyebrows frowned slightly and then she said after a moment of silence, "I feel that the calligrapher is probably secluded in some tiny calligraphy store in a street or an alley of Chang¡¯an. Rumor has it that the calligrapher didn¡¯t appear after such a long effort of hunting in the pce. Probably he can¡¯t get the news from the ce he is living in now, and the pce will certainly search for him in famous calligraphy and painting stores and the like in Chang¡¯an. Then they can¡¯t think of such ces at the moment.


    "As for why that section of calligraphy could have been found in the Imperial Study, nobody knows."


    She then offered a possibility with a smile. "Perhaps some minister cherishes a talent from a poor family, and took it secretly to the pce and deliberately left it in the Imperial Study to let His Majesty find it? But if so, he would have already made it clear."


    The other students all thought her words reasonable and responded with a smile, "If it is really a small shop between the alleys, we can search for it after ss. If we really find that calligrapher, maybe we can get a reward from the pce."


    Chen Zixian cowardly interrupted, "I heard... Ning Que opened a small calligraphy and painting shop in Eastern City."


    The others stiffened at his words and then burst intoughter, finding it rather ridiculous. A student who was from Yang Guan and familiar with Zhong Dajun looked at the vanishing figure of Ning Que at the end of the rain-proof corridor and sneered, "If that section of calligraphy in the Imperial Study was written by that guy, then I am willing to kiss his smelly foot!"


    The study room was filled withughter again.

 Chapter 138: No Headline

    Chapter 138: No Headline


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Listening to her schoolmates who were making fun of Ning Que, Situ Yn sullenly stood up and then pulled Jin Wucai outside the study room. At first, she carefully looked at her femalepanion and wanted to warn her something, but then she quitted the idea when she thought that her gentle and taciturnpanion actually had nothing to do with it. Thus, she just asked another question with a sigh, "Will you go there this afternoon?"


    Jin Wucai smilingly replied, "You mean Prince Long Qing¡¯s reaching Chang¡¯an?"


    "Yeah, though I have no interest in such kind of handsome man, I still want to have a look out of curiosity," Situ Yn smilingly said.


    "I can apany you. How about booking a room at the Building of Pines and Cranes where we can view the long street?"


    Situ Yn looked at her and banteringly said, "No need to apany that big talent today? If you really want to see Prince Long Qing and wouldn¡¯t like to leave Xie Chengyun alone at the same time, you could go together with him."


    "He naturally won¡¯t be there due to Prince Long Qing¡¯s arrival," Jin Wucaiughingly said, "Young men have their own pride, especially for him."


    Thinking of what Ning Que was treated these days, Situ Yn said with a little disdain, "He what? He should be prouder by nature?"


    ...


    ...


    The associate professor Cao Zhifeng skipped his ss to wee his own country¡¯s renaissance hope outside the city. Many students in the Academy were also having a discussion on whether they should join the fun in Chang¡¯an City. Inparison, Ning Que, who was walking below the sheltered corridor, was just deeply thinking of the cultivation. Even the discussion about ssmates¡¯ handwriting works failed to catch his attention, let alone such kind of boring thing.


    However, he still couldn¡¯t help envying and admiring for a while, considering that the Prince Long Qing had already caused such sensation in Chang¡¯an even before arriving. Though, there wasn¡¯t too much shock element in this kind of envy and admiration.


    A great figure of the Judicial Department in West-Hill Divine Pce? A talent being about to enter Knowing Destiny State? Such kind of glory might shock other people. However, for Ning Que, even though he got along with Chen Pipi every day, who had entered Knowing Destiny State at the age of 16, he still couldn¡¯t find out why Chen Pipi was called a unique cultivation genius by others. He thought Chen Pipi had two eyes, a nose and a mouth, just like amon person, except that Chen Pipi would produce more waves due to his obesity when jumping into water...


    Ning Que arrived in Chang¡¯an for the first time in early 13th year of Tianqi era, and then he got acquainted with such great figures as Chao Xiaoshu and Chen Pipi. Such experience naturally made him more eye-opening and informed, so the name of Prince Long Qing could hardly arouse Ning Que¡¯s much attention, though the fame of this well-known prince had sessfully shocked other students in the Academy.


    After entering the old library and politely greeting to the female professor, Ning Que was quietly reading that book about Haoran Sword. Outside the west window, the spring sunshine gradually became nt and faint. Later at night, the female professor left the old library and then the bookshelf was gently slided again.


    "Prince Long Qing reaches Chang¡¯an today," Ning Que said, looking at Chen Pipi.


    Chen Pipi, scratching his head with full confusion, asked, "Who is ... Prince Long Qing?"


    Ning Que felt a little surprised and asked, "You don¡¯t know Prince Long Qing?"


    "Why should I know of the what prince?" Chen Pipi sat down with difficulty. He took a sip from a small wine pot Ning Que passed to him, and then said, "Is this guy famous?"


    "Quite famous," Ning Que answered, staring at his eyes, "He is not only a prince of Yan Kingdom, but also the second figure of the Judicial Department in West-Hill Divine Pce. What¡¯s more, he is regarded as a cultivation talent like you, so I can¡¯t believe you don¡¯t know him."


    "The Judicial Department?" Chen Pipi shrugged his shoulders, causing a tremble of his cheek fat. Then he indifferently said, "So what? There are too many idiots who call themselves talents in West-Hill. I should know of everymon guy from that ce?"


    Ning Que confusedly and surprisedly looked at him and asked, "You once said you are the heir of West-Hill Divine Pce, didn¡¯t you? Even if you have left West-Hill for four years, how could you forget such a figure?"


    "That¡¯s just your blind guess. When do I admit I am the sessor of West-Hill Divine Pce?" Chen Pipi put down the wine pot and then sulkily said, "If you insist your opinion, I have to doubt your intelligence."


    "You aren¡¯t the heir of West-Hill Divine Pce?" Ning Que quickly suppressed his astonishment and then smilingly looked at Chen Pipi and said, "What a pity! I have had got ready to depend on you."


    Chen Pipi surprisingly asked, "When do you show great respect to me, a great talent, in order to let me infer that you want to rely on me?"


    Naturally, both of them wouldn¡¯t take it serious because these were just some jokes between friends. Ning Que suddenly thought of one thing and asked, feeling puzzled, "To be honest, the rtionship between my Tang and your West-Hill was really bad. In this world, only the two ces had the capability and qualification topete with each other. In other words, they could be called their respectivetent enemy. In this case, why would Academy ept a guy from West-Hill Divine Pce? Ain¡¯t they worried that some secrets might be stolen by West-Hill Divine Pce?"


    "The recruitment of Academy just focuses on one¡¯s ability and temperament, but not the origin and background. It provides an education opportunity for all people without discrimination. Headmaster of Academy dares to ept such a talent like me as an ordinary student, let alone just a tiny second figure of the Judicial Department in West-Hill Divine Pce."


    Chen Pipi contemptuously satirized. Then he suddenly changed the topic and said with worrying expression, "The Judicial Department of Divine Hall is mainly engaged in suppressing foreign and heretical sects. They usually rank in a very high position and carry out the killing in a cruel way. The people there are all crazy and mad-brained. In Chang¡¯an, they certainly dare not do something outrageous, but outside Tang, you¡¯d better not provoke their people either, though you don¡¯t have to fear them and these guys outside Tang may be not so strong."


    Noticing Chen Pipi¡¯s prudence, Ning Que carefully nodded and then emotionally sighed with his head shaking, "I heard that the first figure of the Judicial Department in Divine Hall is a female who is called Tao Addict by the world. Considering that Prince Long Qing had already been a troublesome barrier, I really can¡¯t imagine the toughness of this female."


    "She is much more than toughness!" Chen Pipi, after hearing the two words "Tao Addict", suddenly became hysterical. He, waving his right hand hard, said, "This female Ye Hongyu is absolutely a maniac, but not a so-called Tao Addict. In my eyes, such figures from Divine Hill like Prince Long Qing are just small potatoes. Even if you displease them, I can protect you. However, if you encounter that female, you must keep away from her, because I also would avoid her as much as I can."


    Astonished by Chen Pipi¡¯s hysterical and exaggerating reaction, Ning Que recalled Chen Pipi¡¯s strange and loathsomement on female on their previous letters. He couldn¡¯t help connecting the reason with the first figure of the Judicial Department in Divine Hall. At once he remembered the discussion at the study room about the Tao Addict. They all said the beautiful female was very mysterious and no one knew her name. However, Chen Pipi just directly uttered the name of this beautiful Tao Addict in a familiar way...


    "You said you aren¡¯t the heir of West-Hill Divine Pce..." Ning Que half-smilingly looked at him and said, "But you have exposed yourself. If you insist your description, I have to doubt your intelligence."


    Upon hearing the words, Chen Pipi felt a little surprised and then scornfully said, "Wanna make a bet?"


    "Time is the only criterion for testing truth." This was the second time Ning Que said it after arriving in Chang¡¯an, and then he seriously added, "It is a very stupid thing to make a boring bet about truth, just like a cultivator, with his distinctive ability, making money frommon people at a casino."


    A little confused by the words, Chen Pipi, scratching his head for a long time, failed to make a reply.


    Ning Que suddenly frowned and asked, "Today at the study room, the discussion about Prince Long Qing is very heated. I just can¡¯t understand. Is the Knowing Destiny State...really marvelous?"


    "It is certainly very fantastic for a man to enter the Knowing Destiny State. Few people have the gift of cultivation, and among these people, just a very small group of people can enter Knowing Destiny State. In the whole world, you can hardly find several mighty Knowing Destiny State cultivators."


    Chen Pipi, slightly raising his jaw, seemed very proud, as if he was telling Ning Que, "Look at me! Look at me! I, a genius, am one of the very fantastic Knowing Destiny State cultivators."


    Having a nce at him, Ning Que said with emotion, "In such case, maybe I am just misguided by a rare Knowing Destiny State cultivator like you who was extremelyck of requirement being a mighty one."


    Chen Pipi was irritated and rebuked, "What do you mean? You mean I amck of the quality as a mighty cultivator?"


    Ning Que smilingly said, "You are worse than it. Youck the most crucial thing¨Ctemperament...Do you understand the word ¡¯temperament¡¯? It is totally a kind of feeling, irrelevant with your corpulent shape and boring talking."


    Chen Pipi angrily said, "State is state. What¡¯s its rtionship with temperament? As I have already entered the Knowing Destiny State, there is absolutely no existence of other states like superior Seethrough State in my eyes!"


    "No evidence," Ning Que perplexedly said, "You say you are a mighty Knowing Destiny State cultivator, but how to prove it?"


    Looking at the evilugh on Chen Pipi¡¯s face, Ning Que was a little shocked and quickly said, "Don¡¯t prove it by beating me hard! You often say I am a fool in cultivation, so what can it prove even if you defeat a cultivating fool?"


    "So how to prove it?" Chen Pipi innocently asked with hands spreading, "You can find a superior Seethrough State cultivator to let me bully?"


    "Good idea!" Ning Que smilingly said, "You know the female professor of the Etiquette Department Cao Zhifeng? I heard that he is a Psyche Master in Seethrough State. How about this rival?"


    "Bullying an instructor?" Chen Pipi stared at him as he said, "You want me to be hung on the wall after being beaten hard by Second Brother?"


    Pretending to make a deep thought for a while, Ning Que said, "It is indeed inappropriate to bully an instructor. How about targeting Prince Long Qing who is in Chang¡¯an right now. Though he is a great figure of the Judicial Department in West-Hill Divine Pce, yet he is still a nobody in your eyes. What¡¯s more, he will be a suitable target for your proving, for he is just one step close to Knowing Destiny State."


    "This target seems really pretty good..."


    Chen Pipi frowned as he was thinking of how to give a lesson to that prince in Chang¡¯an without alerting Second Brother. Suddenly, he realized something and angrily said as he stared at Ning Que with his soybean-sized eyes, "Something seems wrong with this idea! Have you been irritated at the study room and then you want to stir up trouble on purpose?"


    "Your elder brother is never the kind of person that stir up trouble."


    There wasn¡¯t any shame on Ning Que¡¯s face though his evil plot was directly revealed by Chen Pipi. Instead, he confidently added, "You always say you are a rare cultivation genius, but nobody knows you. Inparison, another cultivation talent arrives in Chang¡¯an now and everyone admit that he is a real genius. So how can you call yourself a rare genius?"


    "If I were you, I wouldn¡¯t have put up with it. You don¡¯t have to degrade him in front of the public, but at least you should tell him that only who is in your state could have the right to be called a real genius!"


    "Come on," Chen Pipi scornfully red at him and said, "Now I believe what your experience is true. If you didn¡¯t grow up in an evil and dirty condition, how could you possibly be this evil at such a young age?"


    Upon hearing it, Ning Que burst intoughter and stopped goading Chen Pipi. Out of the curiosity on Chen Pipi¡¯s state, Ning Que suggested with a low voice, "How about having a simple performance now?"


    Chen Pipi stared at Ning Que as if he was looking at a ghost, and then unbelievably said, "Showing the ability of Knowing Destiny State? Ning Que, we are the well-respected cultivators, but not those monkeys performing in streets and alleys."


    "Of course you are not a monkey, and I am not a street performer whipping a monkey, either. How could it be a street performance in the old library where there isn¡¯t an audience? Just show your state ability as a lesson to me."


    As Chen Pipi refused to show his state ability, Ning Que became more curious about it and kept persuading him. When he referred to "a lesson", it sessfully persuaded Chen Pipi. For this simr-aged friend, Chen Pipi¡¯s cultivation state was much higher than Ning Que. However, he never got any corresponding feeling of pride and Ning Que never showed any shocking and admiring expression, either. Heretofore, it seemed that Ning Que finally showed his admiration.


    "The old library isn¡¯t a suitable ce," Chen Pipi carefully exined after thinking for a while, "Every character, written in the books by the precedent masters in the old library, represents a Divine Talisman. If I show the ability of Knowing Destiny State in this building and cause the backfire from the Divine Talisman, it will be impossible for me to withstand it, even for Second Brother."


    ...


    ...


    Among five cultivation states, Knowing Destiny State was the most advanced and enigmatic one. Ning Que knew it from Lyu Qingchen on his journey to Chang¡¯an from frontier fortress. At that time, he was just a green hand in cultivation, an extremely long distance with the Knowing Destiny State. As if the ant was never envious of the flying eagle, Ning Que never thought about the Knowing Destiny State. Therefore, even if there was a young and mighty Knowing Destiny State genius beside him, Ning Que never gave a thought on viewing the enigmatic power of Knowing Destiny State before.


    Today, when Ning Que heard from his schoolmates¡¯ heated discussion about Prince Long Qing¡¯s arrival in Chang¡¯an, he could not help but felt envy and jealousy, and of course, a little resentment, since they usually ignored Ning Que in daily life, as if he was just a stranger for them. Such different treatments naturally made the youngd realize that he was facing a huge gap in states between him and Prince Long Qing.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t feel the same way towards Chen Pipi who had already entered Knowing Destiny State, for Chen Pipi was his friend and once saved his life. However, Ning Que indistinctly felt resistance and hate to Prince Long Qing who had been treated as a genius and in a high position since he was born. Maybe such thought was simr to the poor¡¯s hostility to the rich?


    Unfortunately, no matter how Ning Que persuaded, Chen Pipi refused to show the enigmatic ability of Knowing Destiny State all the time. As the spring night became darker, Ning Que had no other choice but to leave with disappointment at the thought of Sangsang, who was waiting for him at home.


    When he walked along the edge of wend before entering the buildingplex of Academy, he suddenly stopped. A shocking expression gradually appeared on his face as he stared at the shallow wave of water nts.


    The wend of Academy was shallow but clear. If you walked along the river in daytime, you could clearly see countless of red and ck carps swimming around the water nts, like a beautiful picture of fish snuggling nts. If you walked at a starry night, you could see fish¡¯s squama reflecting the star light. The glittering light on the wend formed an illusory starry sky which was more beautiful than the real one.


    Ning Que went to the old library every day, and usually left after the sun was blocked by that big mountain behind Academy. Therefore, he was very familiar with the wend and the beautiful scene of fish in daytime and at night. Tonight, however, he suddenly realized that there was something different between the present wend and the usual one.


    It seemed that the star light reflecting from the water nts of the wend was a little darker than usual. Carefully looking at the water, Ning Que found that those red and ck carps were totally still like various-color sculptures between the water nts, which should be happily swimming around!


    The fishes were still and the star light naturally stopped glittering, so the wend seemed darker and more peaceful than usual. What on earth kind of power could keep fishes stand still between water nts, as if the star hanging on the night sky? The standstill was neither a death nor a simple solidification, because the life breathing could be sensed from the wave and nts. It seemed that these fishes just left a virtual projection in the water but their bodies had gone to another connecting world during this period...


    The miracle-like picture was a usual epitome of Knowing Destiny State?


    After a long time, Ning Que gradually became awakened. Turning his stiff neck around with difficulty and then looking at the old library behind him, he saw that familiar figure disappearing beside the window.


    With a gentle ¡¯Pa¡¯ sound, a ck-body fish with a red tail happily swam and jumped above the water. After enjoying a gulp of star light, it fell into the water again, having no idea what had happened before.


    ...


    ...


    After returning to the Lin 47th Street, Ning Que still kept silent. The previous sight of that miraculous scene in the Academy was beyond his imagination, so his current mood became veryplicated. He felt a little shocked and frustrated, butter the frustration was transformed into a slight depression and ambitious hope.


    With his whole brain filled with the miraculous power, Ning Que didn¡¯t realize that today¡¯s Lin 47th Street was a little bustling. Mr. Wu in the fake antique store was passionately describing something to neighbors below that big locust tree, and Mrs. Wu, who was usually harsh to her husband, just looked her man boasting without stopping him. Instead, she kept gentlyughing on one side, with her thick rouge dropping from her face.


    "Wow, the Knowing Destiny State is indeed fantastic. How could he manage to do it? Why those fishes just stood still? It looked like a previous magic that fishes marched forward like abreast soldiers. However, it wasn¡¯t the simr way because the old library was so far away from the wend."


    "In the past, Lyu Qingchen told me that Knowing Destiny State cultivators could essentially master the running rules of Qi of Heaven and Earth and could understand the origin of the world. But...the origin of the world wasn¡¯t a particle? To be honest, its function was like a refrigerator, given that those fishes could livingly swim and jump again after being still."


    After entering his shop and closing the door, Ning Que sat on the round-backed armchair and then began muttering with his hands supporting his cheek. After a long while, he suddenly felt something wrong. Finally, he realized that there wasn¡¯t Sangsang¡¯s voice and an immediate cup of hot tea at home. If in the usual situation, the maidservant would doubt whether her young master began talking nonsense after Ning Que kept talking for so long, but today it didn¡¯t happen...


    Raising his head in surprise, Ning Que saw Sangsang staring at a point in the air and uttering foolishugh beside the desk. Her hair appeared a little unkempt like a silly girl.


    "Er...Are you possessed?"


    Hearing this sentence, Sangsang was suddenly awakened. She stood up in a hurry and then said, "When did youe back, young master?"


    Ning Que irritatedly said, "Your young master had been back for over one hour! I can tolerant those naive schoolmates¡¯ ignorance in Academy, but why am I being treated the same way at home?"


    A shameful expression appeared on Sangsang¡¯s slightly-dark face and then she immediately fetched a cup of tea for him.


    Suddenly thinking of the heated topic in Academy today, Ning Que raised his eyebrow and looked at the back of his handmaiden. After a little hesitation, he asked, "Did you...go to watch Prince Long Qing¡¯s arrival, too?"


    Sangsang poured down half the prepared cup of tea and then filled it with boiled water. After having a try in person and confirming that the temperature was suitable, she gave it to Ning Que and then shyly said, "There was little business...in the daytime anyway. Besides, Mrs. Wu kept inviting me, so...I agreed to have a look."


    Ning Que automatically breathed a gulp of cold air and looked at her little face in surprise. He couldn¡¯t believe that Prince Long Qing was attractive enough to charm a twelve-year-old handmaiden?


    Sangsang misunderstood Ning Que¡¯s expression from his eyes. She tidied her unkempt hair in a hurry and then carefully exined, "That Prince Long Qing¡¯s carriage group chose Tong South Street, but not Vermilion Bird Avenue. The street was narrow and crowded, so my hair was unkempt. But young master needn¡¯t be worried the safety of our taels of silver, because I didn¡¯t take it outside the shop."


    "Am I worried about this?" Ning Que angrily rebuked.


    "So what are you worried about?" Sangsang asked in curiosity with her eyes open like salix leaves.


    "Er..." Ning Que stroked his head and thought why he was worried and angry, but he failed to figure it out. After a while, he just skipped the thinking. Carefully looking at the little handmaiden from head to feet, Ning Que said withughter, "I never expect that my Sangsang will so eagerly long for love one day. However, I had a piece of bad news to tell you. That prince already had a fiancee."


    Sangsang red at him and said, "Young master, you said I couldn¡¯t get married if I am less than 16. This year I am just 13 years old, so it is impossible for me to think of the marriage stuff."


    "In my view, you won¡¯t be like an grown adult even if you are sixteen," Ning Que said as he poked her smooth forehead with his finger, "Look at your foolish behavior just now! Do you feel embarrassed that you have begun longing for love at the age of 13?"


    "I just followed Mrs. Wu," Sangsang lowered her head and then exined in a low and guilty voice, "That Prince Long Qing was indeed handsome."

 Chapter 139: The Truth Hidden in Catkin

    Chapter 139: The Truth Hidden in Catkin


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que recalled that little Sangsang kept staring at Third Prince Xie at the announce result day, and then he realized that little Sangsang, just like him, was a mortal who focused on people¡¯s appearance. "But why she never stares at me? The reason is quite simple: I am not handsome." Thinking of this, Ning Que said in a gloomy voice, "Generally speaking, a handsome man doesn¡¯t have a wise brain, such as that Prince Long Qing".


    Putting her head on her slim arms, Sangsang said fascinatedly, "Young master, I just want to figure out how he is born with that face. It¡¯s so pretty; I am wondering where he buys his makeup, from Chenjinji cosmetic store or Yuzhiyuan cosmetic store? Well, it would be great if I can take a closer look and even better if I could touch his eyebrows."


    Looking at her face, Ning Que remembered that in all those years, except for doing housework, his little handmaiden almost had no interests. Thinking of this, a sense of pity rose from his heart. After a moment of silence, Ning Que smiled and said, "Prince Long Qing is supposed to enter to the second floor of the Academy, if you want to look at him closely I could bring you there. At that time you could cheer for me by the way."


    "Good idea!" Sangsang pped her tiny hands and sat up straight, and then she seriously stared at Ning Que and said, "but I¡¯ll just drop by on the way to see him when I am going there to cheer you up."


    "You are so sweet, that¡¯s my girl."


    Ning Que smiled and rubbed her head, and then he walked toward the backyard with his hands behind and thinking, "No matter for my own life or for my little handmaiden¡¯s dream, I must try every effort to enter the second floor of the Academy".


    ...


    ...


    Another spring came. The catkin was fluttering in the air. They were flying above wells in the market street, flying across quiet and luxurious residence at southern city, flying through busy Vermilion Bird Avenue and flying over the high vermilion wall. The catkin naughtily touched the animal-carvings on eave, and then gently fell down, making the wet floor ofundry became a thin nket.


    "I¡¯m wrong, I¡¯m wrong. If his Majesty askedst year and I was a bit braver to admit it, now I will not be in this awkward situation. Right now what I feel is like I see a gold mountain, but I dare not to touch it."


    A voice with Hebei ent resounded in the air which was filled with catkin. A deputymander of Great Tang named Xu Chongshan who was slightly overweight was standing in front of the handrail of the side hall. Gathering his hands in his sleeves, he watched those ministers who were joyfully and haughtily walking out from inperial study, and looked at those copies treated like treasures by them. And then his disdainful eyesight gradually turned into a sight that missing his first lover and his family.


    "As you see, I am a boor so why would I y tricks like those ministers? I screwed up everything! I reaped what I have sown. Now that His Majesty likes it deeper, and the more people are involved, the more I am afraid to admit that I lied to his Majesty. As a saying goes, selecting a wrong path would lead you astray."


    The young eunuch Lu Ji nced at the deputymander, and then he advised in a low voice and said, "Your honor, we have been waiting for months, yet no matter how secret Ning Que hid, the imperial court would dig him out one day. At that time, not only you and me but also our imperial bodyguard office would be sentenced for lying to his Majesty, so what if we... make a gamble?"


    "How?" Xu Chongshan snorted and replied, "His Majesty likes it, her Majesty likes it, and those ministers like it, no matter real or fake. Anyway, his Majesty has been disappointed for such a long time, if he finds out that you and I have kept the truth for such a long time, all his disappointment and likes will turn into anger, by then, Ning Que won¡¯t get into any trouble, yet you and I will be responsible for it instead."


    When talking about important things, the deputymander lost his ent. Lu Ji didn¡¯t dare to interrupt him. He rolled his eyes and thinking, "If that day reallyes, then I must be the one who takes the responsibility. This matter... should be solved."


    "Lu Ji... who do you think is the most trusted person by his Majesty, in additon to her Majesty?" Xu Chongshan suddenly asked.


    Lu Ji shocked for a while, realizing that the deputymander had already seen through his mind. With a sour face, he bowed, thinking for a long time, and then he replied indeterminately, "The Master of Nation?"


    "I don¡¯t care what methods you use, but you need to handle this matter properly. Let his Majesty knows who wrote those words through the mouth of the Master of Nation, and keep the bodyguard office out of this at the same time."


    Xu Chongshan arranged few words, and then lifted his leg to walk toward the gate.


    Taking over this troublesome matter from the deputymander, Lu Ji definitely unwilling to let him stand out of the trouble. So Lu Ji followed anxiously and gabbled in a low voice, "Deputy Commander, it¡¯s always easier talk than to do. What am I supposed to do?"


    "If I know how to do it, what¡¯s the point to have you here?" Xu Chongshan red back and angrily said, "As a deputymander, I am busy dealing with official business, how can I have time to deal with such a little matter?"


    "It is not a supernatural soldier or a magical talisman, it¡¯s just a section. How could it be so influential? That Prince Long Qing is also a trouble. I actually need to send soldiers to maintain order at Peach Alley. He is just a little more handsome than other men, why all the girls and wives in Chang¡¯an are so crazy about him?"


    After these words, the deputymander left with a flick of his sleeves. A faintpliance of him could be heard, "What a messy world!"


    ...


    ...


    The peach flowers in Chang¡¯an city haven¡¯t in a full bloom, while the flowers in Jingyuan graveyard at suburb have just got numerous pinky flower buds. The graveyard located among forests and mountains. People who had the right to bury here mostly were officers or rich businessmen of Tang Empire. Now it was a good time to have an out in spring and visit graves. Dense puffs of gray smokes were following graves and in front of a me prevention screen was a warm heap of piling up ashes from the burning of paper money.


    A slender middle-aged man in a gray robe stood at the highest ce of the graveyard, silently watching the movement below. He didn¡¯t walk down from it until people in front of the stone grave left there.


    Looking at the introduction of censor Zhang Yiqi, the middle-aged man in a gray robe kept silent for a moment, and then he came to the tomb. His right hand slowly touched the newly cut grass and his palm was very close to the root of the grass but notpletely touched it.


    This man was called Lin Ling. He was a martial arts expert and a psyche master in a seethrough state. He acted under the order of General Xia Hou to investigate the truth of the death of Zhang Yiqi and arrived at Chang¡¯an in early winter. During the half a year, he read many files about the three homicide cases with the help of his friends in Military Ministry and went to the smithy at the east of the city and also went to the pavilion at south several times. As for this graveyard, it was his fourth time toe here.


    There were few questionable points in thest two homicide cases, but a case without a murder was the biggest questionable one. Yet this martial arts master couldn¡¯t find out any connections between these two cases. What¡¯s more, he was under themand of General Xia Hou to investigate secretly. So before he found any conclusive evidence, it was inconvenient to get in touch with relevant departments in court, and naturally, there was no way to get help from governments, such as the Chang¡¯an local government.


    As for the file about Censor Zhang Yiqi, Lin Ling has read it over and over again, yet he still couldn¡¯t find any questionable point. This case was more like a traffic ident which happened when an aged censor escaped from the brothel in a hurry because of his fear of his wife than a murder. However, what he didn¡¯t know was that because of the censor¡¯s wife was hard to get rid of, this file was so convincing that even experts from the court couldn¡¯t find out any questionable points.


    If Lin Ling were others, he would leave Chang¡¯an as no evidence could be found after months and submit his results to northeast Military Ministry. Yet Lin Ling was different from others. He was a man in a seethrough state and a soldier in Tang. Before beingpletely confirmed, he had enough perseverance and patience to preserve, not to mention that he knew better than anyone else that General Xia Hou and Military Counselor Gu Xi would never ept any vague conclusion.


    Before departure, the Military Counselor Gu Xi had urged him that among the three homicide cases, the case of Zhang Yiqi was the most crucial one. In fact, the general didn¡¯t let him investigate whether the three cases had a connection but rather to make sure that the death of Zhang Yiqi was really a traffic ident and no questionable points were left.


    "Suburb of Chang¡¯an, graveyard for the rich..." Staring at the tomb, Lin Ling slightly raised his eyebrows, and sighed in an imperceptible voice, "now that I can neither ask Chang¡¯an local government to open the coffin of Zhang Yiqi and check his body nor open his coffin by myself, then how could I find out if there are any problems with the death of the censor?"


    Although he got nothing and seemed to be caught in a dilemma, he never thought of leaving, instead he became more determined. He stept back a few steps and raised his blue robe to sit down on the ground.


    What he did next would consume his practice a lot since it¡¯s more like searching a tiny stone hiding in the grass. Worst still, he himself didn¡¯t know whether there was a tiny stone. However, he still made up his mind to do it, because only in this way could he persuade himself to leave Chang¡¯an.


    Thus this strong man from northeast board army sat down among tombs, letting the catkin gently fall on hispel and letting the young peach buds look at himself mockingly. He sat from morning to the afternoon. His shadow became short by the ramp length, and his face was getting paler.


    A long time passed. Lin Ling slowly opened his eyes and nced at the tomb not far away from him with a great shock. His eyes looked puzzled but relieved, because he had confirmed something or confirmed something he suspected.


    Gently rising sleeves to wipe the sweat that was about to drip from his eyebrows, he struggled to stand up. Holding his wrist because of tiredness, he deeply breathed the air mixed with the smell of smoke above the tombs and slowly walked toward the Chang¡¯an city.


    On the second day, the tranquility of the tomb of Zhang Yiqi was disturbed once again. The people who came here were neither his ferocious wife who was in flood of tears nor his plump concubine who had no tears at all, but Lin Ling and several runners of Chang¡¯an local government.


    Today Lin Ling didn¡¯t wear his blue casual clothes but his military uniform, in which he seemed very doughty. Lin Ling turned back and bowed to a local government runner, gently said, "Your honor, since I am already willing to sworn this with my life, may I ask when could we open his coffin?"


    The runners scattered to make a room, then Shangguan Yangyu, the prefectural magistrate of Chang¡¯an city, came over with his eyebrows frowned.

 Chapter 140: A Haze of the Rusted Nail

    Chapter 140: A Haze of the Rusted Nail


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Because of the frowning eyes, Shangguan Yangyus¡¯s two triangr eyes looked even uglier. He gently rubbed the sparse beard under his jaw, looking at Lin Ling with an abomination, and said, "Indeed, you have brought back the return document from the Military Ministry and Imperial Center Administration also proved your identity. So the government won¡¯t punish you for your leaving the barrack privately. However, you should be aware that the case has already ended for a long time. If the coffin is to be reexamined for your unproved words, isn¡¯t it too rash?"


    Those words showed that the conversation between the two sides did not go well previously in the yamen of Chang¡¯an Local Government, let alone a pleasant dialogue. After a moment of silence, Lin Ling said softly, "Dear prefectural magistrate, if Chang¡¯an Local Government insists in not re-examinating the coffin, I have to invite someone of the Military Ministry."


    "You¡¯re using Military Ministry to threaten me?" Shangguan Yangyu had always been a coward official. But now he had the opportunity to be the leader of the local government in Chang¡¯an and was unwilling to lose face in front of his subordinates. So he sneered and reminded the opposite. "The censor is buried in the tomb. Even if the case is changed, it¡¯s also the capital¡¯s security problem. If the government doesn¡¯t say anything, even the Military Ministry is not justified to intervene it. Do you need me to go to the Royal Government arguing with your general?"


    Lin Ling thought about the military adviser¡¯s suggestions before the departure and looked at the prefectural magistrate of Chang¡¯an City. He suddenly understood something and said with a smile, "Your Grace, I just found something doubtful. So I informed Chang¡¯an Local Government. Since you¡¯re willing toe to the cemetery, you must naturally want to investigate the case. But I just don¡¯t know what you need me to pay attention to. Please say it bluntly."


    Shangguan Yangyu became slightly happy. After gently rubbing the beard and thinking for a moment, he said emotionlessly, "If any case has something doubtful, whether the censor¡¯s or ordinary people¡¯s, the government is on behalf of his Majesty to manage the jurisdiction of Chang¡¯an City and naturally has to seriously deal with it. But you have to be clear, this matter has nothing to do with the Military Ministry or General Xia Hou."


    Lin Ling understood the implicit meaning in the prefectural magistrate¡¯s words. After a moment of pondering, he lowered the voice to ask, "I¡¯ve returned to Chang¡¯an for other business. But identally I discovered... something wrong with the censor¡¯s remains in the tomb?"


    "That¡¯s it." Shangguan Yangyu nced at him indifferently and said, "And you have to remember that regardless of theter oue of opening the coffin, you can only secretly investigate it before finding the suspicious culprit. Especially don¡¯t let the wife of Censor Mansion know it."


    An officer who listened to these words said embarrassedly, "Your Grace, if you want to open the coffin to have an autopsy, you¡¯d better inform the Censor Mansion. Otherwise, it¡¯ll be very hard for us to be in the right if weter start awsuit."


    Shangguan Yangyu listened to the subordinate¡¯s advice but did not answer, still quietly watching Lin Ling. The meaning of his reaction was very clear. The opposite must bear the responsibility of ignoring the Censor Mansion to open the coffin.


    Neither in the name of the Military Ministry or General Xia Hou, if it did not go wellter, one also had to bear the responsibility. Lin Ling¡¯s face showed a bitter smile. He thought that Chang¡¯an city¡¯s officials, whether the Book officials he has dealt with the other day or the prefectural magistrate who lowered the status toe on his own today, were all so cunning.


    If under other circumstances, Lin Ling was certainly unwilling to bear the responsibility. Without the protection of Military Ministry and the general, even if he was a Psyche Master in Seethrough state, he would get in trouble when facing the anger of the Censor Mansion. However, ordered by the general, he was very sure there was something wrong with the remains in the tomb. So after a moment of silence, he watched the officer Shangguan Yangyu and nodded to say, "As you wish."


    "Very good." Shangguan Yangyu looked calm but began to feel the rising anxiety inside the heart. This Psyche Master from the northeastern border army dared to bear such a heavy responsibility, which showed that he was very sure about the situation in the tomb. Therefore, there seemed to be some conspiracies hidden in the censor Zhang Yiqi¡¯s death.


    The coroner official held all kinds of tools waiting beside the censor¡¯s tomb. Until at noon in the spring, with the most positive Qi in a day, the cemetery workers shouted loudly and transferred a clean tomb that was swept by the family yesterday into a noisy site under themand of Chang¡¯an Local Government officials.


    The tomb was opened from the back, with a ck coffin lying peacefully in the damp grave. The workers put the wooden racks above the tomb and tied seven ropes. They shouted together and spent a long time to hang the heavy coffin up.


    As the coffin was opened, Shangguan Yangyu quickly covered his nose with a handkerchief, only to find nothing smelly after a moment. He frowned and looked inside at a distance from the crowd. He saw the coronery who was stooping his body to have a careful autopsy and vaguely saw something that might be the bones or funeral objects.


    After a moment, the coroner went outside the crowd and bowed to Shangguan Yangyu with a respect. Then he uncovered the oil-soaked mask on the nose and mouth. And the sound was made apanied by a rich mint smell.


    "Your Grace, I didn¡¯t find anything doubtful."


    "Ah?" Upon hearing this, Shangguan Yangyu nced at Lin Ling who kept silent beside. His eyes did not show anger or disappointment after being fooled by others, but showed the sense of questioning, for he clearly knew it was certainly not so simple.


    Lin Ling looked at the coroner and asked, "Have you checked the censor¡¯s head?"


    "Of course I did." The coroner did not know his identity, so he answered it very bluntly.


    After a long time of silence, Lin Ling looked at Shangguan Yangyu and said, "There is a hard object stuck in the censor¡¯s skull. I¡¯m not sure it¡¯s an iron nail or something else."


    Shangguan Yangyu sneered at him and thought his subordinate would never covet the first credit. As long as he dyed for a few minutes, someone really still could not hold anymore. He indifferently said with slight ridicule, "I heard that it was extremely inauspicious for a Psyche Master to check the remains of the deceased with Psyche Power. You have kept silent on it before. So I can understand you."


    Lin Ling looked a bit pale and said with a self-deprecated bitter smile, "In order to maintain the dignity of the Tang¡¯sw and keep justice for the government officials, at this crucial moment I have to ignore some rules for the time being."


    "Good point." Shangguan Yangyu slightly lifted the jaw and indifferently said, "So if there is any discovery, you¡¯d better say it in advance. Don¡¯t waste our time and efforts."


    Lin Ling calmly epted it and then no longer hid anything. He directly led Shangguan Yangyu and the coroner to the ck coffin, and raised his arm to point at the remains covered by the cloth. He said, "It should be indented in the scalp. So we can¡¯t see it with naked eyes. If you remove all the fur and scalp, you can find the problem."


    Respect was also needed for the deceased if a coroner official opened the coffin and examined the corpse. The coroner seldom opened the belly or disemboweled, not to mention a Tang censor lying in the coffin now. When the coroner heard that he needed to peel off the entire scalp, he could not help but embarrassedly saw the prefectural magistrate and rubbed the hands to ask, "Your Grace?"


    "Just do it." Shangguan Yangyu indifferently said, "If you can¡¯t find any problems, someone will naturally take the initiative to plead guilty to the imperial court. The Censor Mansion wouldn¡¯t be angry with a nobody like you."


    Lin Ling silently stood next to the coffin and shook his head with a bitter smile. He thought at this time the man actually did not forget to repeat and stress it like a rustic viin rather than the prefectural magistrate of Chang¡¯an City with a high status.


    At this time Chang¡¯an Local Government¡¯s clerks and runners circled around the coffin and drove the curious cemetery workers away. They looked at the coroner¡¯s movements and could not help but guess what was under the scalp.


    The remains of the censor in the coffin have long been decayed, and the cloth strand clinging to the hair has already been lost. The scattered thin hair adhered to the scalp. The coroner carefully removed the fur and the mud-like scalp below. Then he sprinkled water on the slightly yellowish white skull and wiped it with cloth for a few times.


    A very small wound appeared on the top of the skull, on which there was stained blood or coagtion of carrion. With the cloth wipe and water rinse, it became clearer and clearer so as to see the thing inside the wound.


    The officers and the local government runners around the coffin all held their breath. Shangguan Yangyu kept furrowing the brows. With the coroner moving the hawkbill with his hand, people became tenser and stiffer.


    Just like extracting a rusted knife from a bone, the horrifying sound came from inside the coffin. With full sweat on the forehead, the coroner prevented the skull from being ripped off by pressing it with one hand and slowly pulled out that thing with the other hand. He finally took out the hard object hidden in the censor¡¯s skull.


    It was a very long iron nail. Maybe it has been soaked in the blood or corpse water for too long, which has been covered with rust, but the front was still extremely sharp.


    Watching the nail in the coroner ¡¯s hands, the crowd next to the coffin all gulped, as if seeing that one dayst year, the censor¡¯s skull was stuck by a cold iron nail. They could not help but feel shocked and kept shaking the head. Someone even subconsciously shrank the neck.


    Lin Ling has always been quiet beside, for only he had basically been able to determine what would be seen in advance at this moment. He looked at the prefectural magistrate of Chang¡¯an City who wore an extremely awkward expression and said calmly, "Your Grace, here is the doubt. Next, it¡¯s Chang¡¯an Local Government¡¯s business to investigate it. I¡¯ll no longer participate in it."


    Shangguan Yangyu silently stared at the rusted nail for a long time. Suddenly he looked up at the man and coldly said, "My investigation naturally doesn¡¯t need your participation. But I must remind you that when time is mature, I¡¯ll naturally report the matter to the Penalty Ministry and write a paper to his Majesty. If I hear some rumors outside before the real culprit is found, don¡¯t me me for involving the general."


    Lin Ling greeted a bow with hands folded in front, and then got away from the cemetery.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que did not know the censor Zhang Yiqi¡¯s coffin has been reopened and reexamined by Chang¡¯an Local Government, and the iron nail he stuck in the brain has also been found. So he did not know that when he had just embarked on the revenge road for less than a year, the heavy haze has been overshadowed his way.


    He still felt it was brilliantly bright on his way ahead, for in another two days it was the opening day of the Second floor of the Academy, exactly the time when he was determined to take a chance.


    This day, the spring was warm and the scenery was beautiful. In order to cheer up the six people like Xie Chengyun in the course of magic skills to Second floor, the other Academy students went to an elegant and expensive feast. Among them, there was Ning Que dragged by Situ Yn.

 Chapter 141: Maybe the Day after Tomorrow

    Chapter 141: Maybe the Day after Tomorrow


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Having gone outside to travel, the Headmaster had not yet returned, but the Second Floor of the Academy would be open soon. It was unknown where that news came from. However, ording to the instructors¡¯ response, it had basically been determined to open the Second Floor the day after tomorrow.


    Everyone knew that to enter the Second Floor of the Academy was difficult, even more difficult than climbing into the sky. Those students were clear that they probably would not encounter such a lucky thing as being blessed by Haotian. So, the people who could enter the Second Floor should be Xie Chengyun or the other five students in the course of magic skills. Therefore, after school, some people began to appear to encourage them.


    This matter actually had nothing to do with Ning Que. As a ssmate, he was forgotten by the Academy students and became a nobody marginalized by the others. No one could expect that his entire mind was focused on the Second Floor. After ss, he intended to go to the old library for the suggestions of Professor Yu or Chen Pipi because he wanted to know whether he could enter the Second Floor at his current level and state. But before leaving, he was forced by Situ Yn out of the Academy.


    In Miss Situ¡¯s words, for this kind of collective activity, he needed to participate in it no matter how unsocial he was, even if he was marginalized by his ssmates. If he often appeared and no longer walked alone in the woods and meadows like a ghost, then there would be a day when their resentment for him was resolved.


    Ning Que never thought that he needed to try so hard to fit into the social circle of his Academy ssmates, exchanging that attitude to get friendly circumstances, but Situ Yn was extremely kind to him in daily life. Thus, after a moment of thought, he also left the Academy for Chang¡¯an City with the students.


    The students selected a gathering ce in Southern Chang¡¯an, which was a restaurant that had been rebuilt from an elegant and expensive mansion just beside ake. There was a que hanging above the restaurant, on which was its name written by the Libationer: Victory House.


    The Victory House was the topmost elegant restaurant in Chang¡¯an City, which covered a huge area and had extremely refined luxurious decorations and furniture. Its guests were the officials of the Imperial Court and the wealthy people from the four cities. If the Academy had not been famous enough, it would have been extremely difficult for them to book a table in the open air.


    Now, the spring was warm and the grass was growing taller. There were severalyers of veil-like leaves in the mahogany tree outside the mansion that danced with the spring breeze, which was extremely beautiful. Over 100 young men and women smiled beside the bar or happily circled theke or lifted the veils to walk through, suddenly making it the best ce for them to have fun.


    Ning Que stood in amon corner, holding a small teapot in his hand and calmly watching his joyful ssmates in the spring breeze. He thought that he would probably not see any enthusiastic facester on during the feast. So, he sat in a corner in a daze and decided to leave early. As a result, he summoned the manservant from the Victory House and gave him some money to call for someone to take a message to Lin 47th Street. Therefore, Sangsang could bring the horse carriage here and wait for him outside.


    After a long period of time, the prodigal students chose the mostfortable table beside the bar. Those student couples who were lovers went off somewhere peaceful behind the veil into the bamboo forest. Not until then did thergekeside terrace be gradually quiet. Situ Yn acted as the leader of the Chang¡¯andies army and stood up to generously say a few words, which were nothing but a blessing for the six people in the course of magic skills to achieve good results in theing days as well as a wish for all ssmates to make academic progress and the like.


    After this, all kinds of nuts and delicate food were served. The students started drinking and enjoying themselves. In the liveliest ce, one could clearly hear the ttery and blessing of the students toward those six people, including Xie Chengyun.


    "I heard that the Second Floor would only recruit one person this time." The child-like Linchuan Wang Ying looked at those big brothers and sisters around, and then turned to the side and asked, "Did they have the same rule before?"


    Xie Chengyun smiled and looked at all his ssmates around him. He calmly answered, "Every time the Second Floor opens, the rule is different. This time, it¡¯s possible to recruit only one person. Though it¡¯s pretty difficult, I will try my best to meet the expectations of my ssmates and pay back the teachers¡¯ cultivation."


    Zhong Dajun opened a fan with a snap and said with augh, "Chengyun, you are now in the No Doubts State. And even Professor Cao called you the most skilled person in the course of magic skills and believes that you can go to the Second Floor. If you don¡¯t have the confidence, then who else can enter the Second Floor this year?"


    Linchuan Wang Ying thought about it and could not help looking slightly gloomy. He swiftly showed an admiration for Xie Chengyun on his young face and then said, "Brother Xie, if you do enter the Second Floorter, please remember to tell us exactly what it looks like in there. I¡¯m really curious about it."


    Xie Chengyun gently patted the shoulders of thisd and said, "You are still young. Even if you can¡¯t get into the Second Floor this time, you¡¯ll make it next time. You¡¯ll see it for yourself."


    At this moment, a rushing of hoof beats resounded outside the Victory House. The students drinking beside theke did not care about it because there were often some cavalries galloping in Chang¡¯an City every day. Only Ning Que, who quietly sat in the corner, looked up to see where the hoof beats hade from, for he knew these cavalries were not the Yulin Royal Guards but the border army soldiers, who had truly experienced the bloody battlefield.


    A momentter, a young dusty general in a military uniform went over to thekeside terrace led by a few subordinates. He looked at those students drinking in the spring breeze and could not help slightly frowning, lifting up the veil to go directly somewhere much quieter inside the house.


    The feeling of blood and iron carried by several Tang soldiers was extremely different from the rxed, casual atmosphere at thekeside terrace. When they appeared, the Academy students subconsciously lowered their voices. The officers, dressed in military vests and light armor, marched forward with long easy steps and looked very powerful. However, they turned several tables askew, which brought about some unhappiness in the Academy students.


    The Tangs valued military exploits the most and the border guards were their most beloved ones. If it was on a weekday, even the ministers of the Imperial Court would not care about the slightly reckless movements of these officers. However, here at thekeside terrace party, those Academy students were extremely young, and more or less kind of arrogant in nature. Therefore, some students did not hold the anger in their hearts but sneered toward the backs of a few officers, and then said, "Even if Xu Shi were toe here personally, he wouldn¡¯t dare to disrespect our Academy even a little bit. But these military soldiers are actually acting so supercilious."


    Xu Shi was the Defender-general of the State, certainly the topmost of the Imperial Army. But in those proud Academy students¡¯ eyes, he seemed to not be particrly powerful. Those Tang officers, who had been striding forward, suddenly stopped upon hearing those words. The young general turned his head and coldly looked at the Academy students.


    After a moment of silence, the young general said in a faint tone of irony, "It turns out to be the Academy students. In the spring, you don¡¯t go hunting in the mountains but hang around together in the city. Our sessive generation is really getting worse."


    The Academy students on the terrace could not tolerate that, so they all got up and wanted to argue with him. Unexpectedly, the young general did not retreat and seriously continued, "When I read in the Academy, the proud one had to have true ability. Now you guys have only learned a little superficial knowledge but begin to show off with yourical talent..."


    Not until hearing those words did all the students know that the young general was actually a Senior Brother from the Academy. They could not help keeping silent and did not know what to say. But the young general did not let them off and reprimanded them. "Even if Xu Shi were toe here personally, he wouldn¡¯t dare to disrespect the Academy even a little bit? You are right indeed. But you must remember that General Xu respects the dean and the instructors, not useless students like you!


    "In the future, behave yourselves outside. If you let me hear that the Academy students are making some arrogantments again, don¡¯t me me for beating you based on the Academy rules!"


    The first lesson of the Academy was about etiquette, which was also their rule. The Academy¡¯s rule was that whoever had more power or a higher status was in the right. It was the teaching that all students had long kept in mind. At this time, they heard that this Academy predecessor was about to take out the Academy rules, so naturally, no one dared to randomly retort.


    Situ Yn opened the veil, looking at the situation there. Then, she could not help suddenlyughing and said when looking at the young general, "Brother Hua, you¡¯re a dignified Senior Captain of the Gushan Commandery. Why are you angry with these little sisters and brothers?"


    Listening to these words, the students looked at the young general with even more different eyes. The Gushan Commandery Senior Captain, Hua Shanyue... was a famous character of this young generation in the Tang military. No wonder that he behaved so powerfully just now.


    Hua Shanyue looked at Situ Yn, who hade from behind the veil, and sighed as he shook his head. He said, "I forgot that you were still studying in the Academy. There is something urgent today. I¡¯ll go to greet the general tomorrow evening."


    Situ Yn nced around at this most-secluded backyard of the Victory House and figured out who he was here to see after anxiouslying back from the Gushan Commandery. With a slight smile, she said, "Later, I¡¯ll go inside to pay my respects."


    "Of course you can." Hua Shanyue faintly nced at the Academy students around him and suddenly saw some familiar faces in the corner. He slightly hesitated but did not say anything as he continued with a smile, "You can take Wucai. But don¡¯t bring any other unrted people."


    "The best students of the Academy are here." Situ Yn gave him an untraceable reminder with a smile.


    Hua Shanyue gratefully smiled and understood what she wanted to say. Then, he quickly left after making a bow with his hands folded in front.


    ...


    ...


    When everyone was drunk, the lively ce became even more lively and the deste one even more deste. Situ Yn unexpectedly avoided the eyes of the other students and quietly went to the mostmon corner behind the veil. She looked at Ning Que, who was stretching half of his body to look for a frog, and frowned while saying, "Why don¡¯t you want to talk to them?"


    "They look repulsive and make boring speeches." Ning Que saw a water reptile on the moss of theke sneak into the dark and he regretfully sighed. He turned around and looked at her to say, "This is probably how I appear in their eyes, so why should I have to get close to affect their appetites?"


    Situ Yn seriously looked at him and said, "You¡¯ve been wandering like a ghost in recent months. I really don¡¯t understand it. Don¡¯t you want to clear your name by telling them that you didn¡¯t avoid the semester exam bet?"


    "The semester exam bet is really such a boring matter. Of course, I¡¯m not used to being wronged. But since I have been wronged, I¡¯ll look weak, diffident, and disgusting if I were to join them again."


    Ning Que answered with a smile, "Of course, I¡¯ll clear my name."


    Situ Yn asked, "When?"


    Ning Que thought for a moment and then uncertainly replied, "Maybe... the day after tomorrow?"

 Chapter 142: Two Men From the Yan Kingdom

    Chapter 142: Two Men From the Yan Kingdom


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "When the Second Floor is opened and all goes to silence, suddenly you get up with a smile and say, ¡¯I can...¡¯"


    Situ Yn looked at him, shook her head while smiling, and said with a sigh, "That picture looks good and the story is wonderful also. But unfortunately, you and I are the poor people who can¡¯t go for cultivation."


    "I can..." Ning Que thought that even if he had said so, the girl beside the bar would probably not have believed it. So, he gently smiled and turned his head to look at the lively ce through the veil. He leisurely said, "If the Second Floor is only recruiting one person this time, then I don¡¯t understand why they are still so happy."


    Situ Yn smiled to say, "Because Master Xie is so much more popr than you. Even if some people envy him, they won¡¯t show it on their faces but they¡¯ll cheer for him like Zhong Dajun."


    After a moment of silence, Ning Que suddenlyughed and said, "Have all of you forgotten someone?"


    Situ Yn was stunned for a moment, and then immediately, she understood what he meant and could not help feeling shocked.


    Including her, all of the students in the Academy had forgotten about Prince Long Qing from the Yan Kingdom. Probably in the minds of all the students, Prince Long Qing was the bigwig of the Judicial Department of the West-Hill Divine Pce and an umon cultivation genius in the world. So, they subconsciously put this man in a higher position, and never thought topare him with themselves. Moreover, that prince, who attracted thousands of young girls when he entered Chang¡¯an City, had been living a simple life in Peach Alley and had found an excuse not to participate in any of the pce banquets. He really kept an extremely low profile.


    "Everyone knows that the purpose of this Prince Long Qinging to Chang¡¯an City is to take over the Crown Prince of the Yan as a hostage. But his identity as a prince and the invible dignity of the West-Hill Divine Pce require another reason to justify his presence here. So, the rumor that he wants to enter the Second Floor of the Academy... might be true."


    Ning Que looked at her and continued, "If the Second Floor of the Academy is really only recruiting one student now and Prince Long Qing also wants to enter it, then who do you think his opponent will be, Xie Chengyun or Linchuan Wangying?"


    "Master Xie is outstanding indeed but can¡¯tpete with Prince Long Qing. And Wangying is still young now..." Situ Yn gradually digested the shock in her heart and suddenly thought of a possibility. She asked, "Maybe Prince Long Qing is not on the enrollment list?"


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "If he is, what should these happy guys do?"


    He smiled and seemed tofort her. "But I think Xie Chengyun wouldn¡¯t be discouraged if he knew that Prince Long Qing willpete for the only spot with him. On the contrary, he might be motivated to have a stronger fighting will."


    Situ Yn shook her head and said, "Prince Long Qing is about to enter the Knowing Destiny State, but Master Xie has just entered the No Doubts State. The difference between their states is too great, so their will of fighting won¡¯t y a big role."


    Looking at those ssmates who were drinking happily on the terrace, she thought that Prince Long Qing decided to casually walk nearby just to make the Academy students ashamed the day after tomorrow when the Second Floor was opened. She said gloomily, "Although Master Xie is from the South Jin Kingdom and not the Tang Empire, he has been studying in the Academy for a year after all. If he can enter the Second Floor, our Tangs can ept it. But if it is... Prince Long Qing who is epted over all the students to be the only one that enters the Second Floor, the elders in the Imperial Court will certainly be angry and disappointed with our Academy students."


    Prince Long Qing was from the Yan Kingdom, with an identity as a hostage. However, he was also the bigwig of the Judicial Department of the West-Hill Divine Pce, a rival of the Tang Empire. If such a person directly beat out the young Tang generation in Chang¡¯an with his great strength, that would be a severe p in the face of the Tang Empire.


    "I don¡¯t understand why the Academy follows this rule this time." Situ Yn frowned and looked at the anxiously swimming fish in theke. She said, "Does it deliberately help feed Prince Long Qing¡¯s me?"


    Ning Queughed andforted her. "It has not yet started. We don¡¯t know how to enter the Second Floor of the Academy, either. How can you predict in advance that the only one who can enter the Second Floor is Prince Long Qing?"


    "The West-Hill Divine Pce is the old enemy of the Tang Empire. Even from the position of an enemy, I must admit that Prince Long Qing is absolutely the best figure of the young generation in this world and can hardly find an opponent."


    Situ Yn said with a gloomy mood, "It¡¯s not shameful to recognize the enemy¡¯s power. What really makes me feel distressed is that there is not a person in this generation who can actually contend with him even though there are a lot of talents in the Tang Empire."


    "There is," Ningughed and said.


    Situ Yn looked at him with a smile and said, "It¡¯s not convincing if you want to talk about yourself."


    "Well," Ning Que sighed, spread his arms, and said, "you don¡¯t have to worry about these things. It¡¯s all about reputation. Even if Prince Long Qing moves his body, making the men shameful and the women dizzy, the Yan Kingdom still has to pay tribute to the Tangs, and the West-Hill Divine Pce still doesn¡¯t dare to provoke us. So there will be no essential changes."


    "It¡¯s about honor and dignity, not reputation. Since you¡¯re from the border army, why don¡¯t you look like a soldier at all?"


    "What should a Tang soldier look like? Just like Hua Shanyue, who looked steadily forward with a hilt in his hands and walked like a fierce wind? I don¡¯t think so. The soldiers guard the homnd and open up new territory. They don¡¯t rely on working style but on something else."


    "What else?"


    "Discipline, courage, and trust."


    "Well, you should know Hua Shanyue, shouldn¡¯t you?" Situ Yn curiously looked at him.


    Ning Que thought of the previous eye contact with that Senior Captain of the Gushan Commandery. After a moment of silence, he replied with a smile, "He¡¯s the leader of the young generation of the Tang military, but I¡¯m just an ordinary person. We don¡¯t know each other, but just met once one year ago. And I remember that he disliked me at that time."


    Situ Yn did not know those things that had happened on the grasnd journey. She said with a smile, "I find that there seems to be few people who like you in Chang¡¯an City."


    Ning Que shook his head and refuted that. "You obviously don¡¯t know me very well. You can go to ask my neighbors on Lin 47th Street. Everyone likes me except for the wife of Wu Er next door. Last time, I also took you to the House of Red Sleeves, didn¡¯t you see that those girls like me?"


    "Forget it." Situ Yn looked at the quiet yard in the deep Victory House and said, "Are you going to follow us or go in alone?"


    "What for?" Ning Que followed her gaze and shook his head, saying, "I don¡¯t want to eat with Her Highness, and she might not even invite us in."


    "You really guessed correctly that the princess is here." Situ Yn smiled and said, "Her Highness usually does not call us in on weekdays, but since all the Academy students are gathered here and the guest that His Highness invited is definitely not an ordinary character, then she¡¯ll invite us in for sure."


    Ning Que thought for a moment and then understood the hidden meaning of her words like Hua Shanyue. He could not help satiricallyughing and silently thought in his heart, "Li Yu, you eventually could not help developing your power among the young generation of the Tang Empire, enhancing your influence and showing your strength to the guests at the same time..."


    "It¡¯s impossible for more than 100 people to go in." Heughed and said, "They need to pick out some guys with good grades and morality to go in to greet Her Highness. But I¡¯m not one of them."


    Situ Yn remembered encountering his little handmaiden, Sangsang, one day in the princess¡¯ mansion. She was annoyed and said, "You¡¯re an old friend of Her Highness. And you two are familiar with each other. If I take you in, who would dare to object to it?"


    ...


    ...


    The boss of the Victory House must have had a good background to buy the former censor¡¯s mansion to open the restaurant in Southern City. But managing this restaurant for a living, the boss had to be a powerful figure who could deal with all kinds of people. He did not earn much money when the Academy students booked thekeside terrace. But on the weekdays, he would definitely think of ways to get close to them for his convenience in the future. Today, however, he did not have any contact with those students at all. Instead, he respectfully stood outside like a manservant.


    With dishes of food in their hands, dozens of maidservants walked among the quiet houses. After having been trained, they did not make the slightest sound. There was only the whistling of the wind blowing through the treetops that could be heard in the house. The boss of the Victory House stared at everyone¡¯s movements with his sharp eyes. When he confirmed that there were no problems, he became a little bit rxed and raised his arm to wipe away the sweat from his forehead.


    The host and the guest, who could book the most quiet and the most expensive backyard in the Victory House and made the boss serve everyone like a manservant, had to be the distinguished ones in today¡¯s backyard feast. Today, the banquet host was Lee Yu, the Fourth Princess of the Tang Dynasty. Her guest was really an honored character. And if it went as expected, the guest would have no chance to return to Chang¡¯an City for the rest of his life after leaving.


    At the end of the shiny ebony floor were two short tables sitting beside each other. A young-looking man sat beside the table on the left-hand side. He wore a in gown and had a jade hairpin in his hair bun. He had straight brows and bright eyes, appearing to be extremely calm and gentle. Only a few faintly visible silver hairs inadvertently revealed his depression from these years.


    As a hostage in Chang¡¯an for nearly a decade, the Crown Prince of the Yan calmly looked at Tang Princess Lee Yu and held a winess in his hand. He slowly and firmly drank it up and then said withment, "In the fourth year of the Tianqi era, I traveled to Chang¡¯an and re-entered it as a hostage for six years. So, I¡¯ve actually known Her Highness for 10 years. Although you went to the grasnd for two years during that period, we also grew up with each other¡¯spany. Now this time, I don¡¯t know when we¡¯ll meet again, so I feel kind of sad about it."


    "Brother Chongming, we both know that if you still want to see me in Chang¡¯an City, it must be for two reasons. Because of that, we¡¯d better not meet each other. Or if I have a chance, I¡¯ll go to Capital Cheng to visit you."


    Lee Yu smiled slightly and held a small ss that she had yed with for a long time between her fingers. Then, she gently sipped it. In fact, during the banquet, both of them knew that after the crown prince returned this time, he would certainly seed the throne after the death of the Yan Emperor. If the emperor wanted to enter the Tang capital, Chang¡¯an, there were only two possibilities: One was that the Yan Kingdom had been exterminated by the Tang Empire and he, as the emperor, had been taken to Chang¡¯an as a sacrifice to heaven. The second was that he had led the Yan armies to attack Chang¡¯an City.


    For these two possibilities, the former was too bleak and thetter was kind of impossible. So, Lee Yu said that they had better not meet each other.


    "It¡¯s better not to meet." The crown prince smiled and said, "As you said, if you have the chance in the future, just go to Capital Cheng to see me. And then, I¡¯ll be the host and treat you to something special."


    "I¡¯m not a kid any longer. Delicious food can¡¯t allure me." Lee Yu smiled and said, "But Brother Chongming, you¡¯ll be the emperor in the future. If I ask you for something, it¡¯s also very convenient."


    One was an orthodox heir to the throne of the Yan Kingdom. The other was the Tang Princess with the highest status. It seemed that they only talked about their childhood friendship before their separation. In fact, a future dispute might be hidden in any sentence.


    After a short moment of silence, the crown prince showed a bitter smile on his slim cheeks. He made a toast and whispered in a low voice, "The emperor of a country... is something that is hard to be. I have lived in Chang¡¯an city for nearly a decade and have long been ustomed to the climate and customs here. In fact, I really don¡¯t want to go back."


    "Brother, you are wrong. Your father is very old now and in poor health..." Lee Yu gently shook her head.


    "What is wrong? My father didn¡¯t like me then, so he let mee to Chang¡¯an as a hostage. He didn¡¯t feel hurt or sorry at all. For the entire eight years, I lived a low-key and painful life in Chang¡¯an city. Have I received afort letter from Capital Cheng? In fact, the entire Yan Kingdom... has it long forgotten me?"


    The Crown Prince of the Yan raised his winess to drink, with a touch of pain shing in his eyes.


    "I spent two years on the grasnd. I was also very worried that Chang¡¯an City would forget me, but it turns out that as long as you¡¯re still alive and you return, the memories from long ago will be rekindled."


    Lee Yu looked firmly at the crown prince and said, "In those years, Brother Chongming, you suggested that I should go to the grasnd so that I could keep out of the affair. I¡¯ve benefited from that a lot. And now you¡¯re about to return. Of course, I have to send you several gifts. I know you probably don¡¯t want them. But you have to remember one thing: No matter how bad the situation is in Capital Cheng, you¡¯re directly the crown prince after all. So no one can take your throne away!"


    Prince Yan quietly looked at her and could not help feeling a sense of sympathy after thinking what she had done for his younger brother over the years. Heughed at himself and said, "Now the problem is not that someone wants to snatch my throne, but this throne does not yet belong to me. In the eyes of all the Yans, my wise and enterprising brother is better suited to have that throne than the cowardly crown prince who has lived in Chang¡¯an for many years."


    He paused for a moment and then continued to softly say, "Although I have been gone from Capital Cheng for many years, I still remember some things from when I was a kid. It seemed that Long Qing was born a genius. From riding or shooting to poetry, books, or even cultivation, there seemed to be nothing that he couldn¡¯t do. Compared with him, a crown prince like me doesn¡¯t have the slightest peculiarities. So, it bes a very natural thing that the emperor likes and dotes on him, and the ministers trust and rely on him.


    "Moreover, he is now the bigwig of the Judicial Department in the West-Hill Divine Pce."


    The crown prince looked at Lee Yu and said, "Since he entered the Revtion Institute in West-Hill, Long Qing¡¯s mother has begun to expand their power in Capital Cheng. By now, that momentum is so strong that it can¡¯t be suppressed by manpower, for he has strong support outside. Besides, the strong support... is from West-Hill."

 Chapter 143: Debut

    Chapter 143: Debut


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    It was quiet inside the peaceful house. Lee Yu straightly looked at the eyes of the Crown Prince of Yan. After a long time, she gently opened the lips and softly said, "One can¡¯t seed without a strong aid outside. Longqing has a hidden aid in West-Hill Divine Pce but doesn¡¯t show it. If Brother Chongming you are willing, I believe my father won¡¯t mind sending a letter to your father."


    In this world, only Tang Empire had the power to rival with West-Hill Divine Pce. However, after listening to these words, the Crown Prince did not have any reaction or show the ecstasy, but fell into silence for a long time.


    "Although I don¡¯t understand why West-Hill Divine Pce agreed that Prince Long Qing should rece you as the hostage in Chang¡¯an City and I don¡¯t want to think about the purpose of Prince Long Qing¡¯s trying to get into the Second floor of the Academy. I only know that the current situation is extremely beneficial to you. Is it just your chance that he can¡¯t control Capital Cheng remotely when he is in Chang¡¯an?"


    Lee Yu looked at the Crown Prince¡¯s gently falling eyshes and calmly said, "West-Hill Divine Pce is indeed a wonderful and holy ce. The bigwigs of Judicial Department are really great to put such a character as a hostage. Perhaps a lot of people in South Jin Kingdom areughing at the Tangs acting absurdly. But these people simply don¡¯t know there is only one ce in the world to look after the character II as a hostage. That ce is the Academy."


    The Crown Prince finally broke the silence and looked up solemnly at Lee Yu¡¯s eyes to say, "As far as I know, even the great Emperor of Tang has extremely limited influence on the Academy. If the president doesn¡¯t want to limit Longqing¡¯s personal freedom, but lets him into the Second floor to make further progress, what should I do?"


    Lee Yu frowned slightly and whispered. "Academy, after all, is in Chang¡¯an City. You don¡¯t need to worry about it."


    "This has nothing to do with worry." The Crown Prince quietly said, "I know better than anyone else. Long Qing is such a proud person. If a person like him is willing to give up his pride, agreeing to ept the examination to enter Second floor of the Academy, it shows that the Academy is a very important ce for him. The thing that Longqing is best at is to turn all the people or things that he thinks important for him to his aids."


    "You¡¯re worried that if Long Qing enters into Second floor of the Academy, the Academy people will support him?" Lee Yu firmly shook her head and said calmly, "The Academy never intervenes the internal affairs of the Tang Empire, not to mention the throne dispute of another country ."


    The Crown Prince shook his head and said with a bitter smile, "Anyway, I always feel it¡¯s bad to let him into Second floor of the Academy."


    "If it¡¯s a purely bad thing for Longqing and West-Hill, they wouldn¡¯t agree with the request of the Emperor a few months ago." Lee Yu seemed to think of something and suddenly frowned to talk to herself, "If he can¡¯t get into Second floor... "


    "I heard there was a great genius from South Jin Kingdom in Academy... " The Crown Prince of Yan whispered.


    They exchanged their eyes and shook their heads almost simultaneously. The Second floor of the Academy has imed to only receive a person when opened this time. In fact, it was all because of this handover hidden behind the scene. That position has been meant for that Prince Long Qing. And even if they could arrange somepetitors, no one would win him.


    At this moment, there urred the regr footstep sounds on the wood corridor outside the quiet house. The Crown Prince confusedly nced at Lee Yu. She answered with a smile, "Hua Shanyue and his fellows."


    As soon as she finished the talking, Senior Captain of Gushan Commandery Hua Shanyue in a military uniform and several officers walked into the long hall. They first held a fist to bow to Lee Yu, and then greeted the Crown Prince of Yan.


    Then the maidservants reset the wine table. Hua Shanyue and the others epted the order to sit down, which made the house back to quietness.


    Lee Yu calmly looked at the Crown Prince and said, "I¡¯ve ordered Senior Captain Hua to hurry back to Chang¡¯an so that you two can see each other before Brother Chongming you leave."


    "I¡¯v stationed in Hebei Province for years and may be transferred from Gushan Commandery to Shanyin County next year." Hua Shanyue added.


    Shanyin County was in the southeast of Min Mountain, near the Yan territory. The government soldiers Tang Empire has stationed in the county might not be like the terrible border army led by General Xia Hou, but were the nearest armed forces in Capital Cheng of Yan Kingdom within the territory of Tang.


    In earlier years, the Crown Prince has seen Hua Shanyue and knew he was the fanatical admirer of the fourth princess Lee Yu and also the key training target of the young generation in the Tang military. Naturally he could think Lee Yu called the man back to Chang¡¯an in no time, not for seeing him off but for the deeper meaning.


    After Hua Shanyue himself admitted that next year he would be transferred to Shanyin county, the Crown Prince instantly understood the meaning of Lee Yu. He looked at the wine bottles and fell into thinking for a long time. Although there was no facial expression on his face, the struggle and the conflict in his heart have reached to an extreme point. After a long time, he said with a hoarse and low voice, "If it doesn¡¯t develop to thest phase, I¡¯ll never use your chessman."


    Lee Yu calmly replied, "If you don¡¯t have to go to thest step, it¡¯ll naturally be a happy ending. But if you really need me one day, I hope Brother Chongming you have the courage to use the chessman. I want you to understand that this is not only for the benefit of Tang Empire, but also for my hope that you can get what has belonged to you."


    The so-called farewell was only a final endorsement of certain transactions and promises. Although they had a ten-year friendship, it was hard for the banquet back to the originally rxing one when it came to the state affairs and tore off the external friendship. Therefore, the scene looked a bit embarrassing for the time being.


    Hua Shanyue remembered what he has previously seen outside the house and said with a smile, "Some people booked the terrace on thekeside of Victory House. It¡¯s pretty noisy, but much livelier than here."


    "Oh?" Lee Yu slightly furrowed the brows and curiously asked, "Who¡¯s so generous?"


    When saying this, she totally did not feel herself to be the most generous for having booked the most quiet and expensive backyard in Victory House. After all, she was the most beloved Princess of Tang Empire. Who couldpete with her?


    "They¡¯re the Academy students this year, including Situ Yn and Wucai. I met Situ just now and she said she wouldter go to toast and greet. I thought today Her Highness specially saw off Chongming Crown Prince and didn¡¯t know whether it was convenient. So I didn¡¯t ept it at that time."


    "All the Academy students are actually the pirs of Tang Empire or the whole world. Why not see them?" Princess Lee Yu, who was known for her virtue and cherishing talents, naturally would not miss this opportunity of gathering young talents. She smiled and looked at the Crown Prince to say, "I believe Brother Chongming you also want to see the new Academy students, right?"


    "Of course." The Crown Prince quietly nodded.


    ...


    ...


    The Academy students, who were drinking and enjoying on thekeside terrace, did notpletely forget the previous Hua Shanyue¡¯s reprimand. But he was the Senior Captain of Tang military and also the Academy¡¯s predecessor. Besides, what he has said was sharply merciless but pointed at the truth. Therefore, there was no reason for them to refute. They could only act dumb andforted themselves in the name of Brothers.


    After meeting the noble who held a banquet in the backyard of Victory House, all the students discovered that the so-called pride of their own was indeed not suitable in Chang¡¯an. In this magical city, when one casually urinated in the side alley, he might meet the high-ranking noble who also drank too much. When one boasted in a tea shop, he might meet a Prince from Yuelun Kingdom. They just wanted to have fun together this time, but never expected to meet the Tang Princess who was seeing off the Crown Prince of Yan...


    Victory House upied a very wide area, whose backyard was the ancestral legacy of an old censor in the year of Shenfeng and could amodate two or three hundred people. But after all, it was the princess who called them to go inside. There was no possibility to let all Academy students line up to greet so as to turn the quiet yard into a market. Only some students with good grades and reputation were chose as the representatives, naturally including Xie Chengyun and the other five people in the course of magic skills, well-known talents like Zhong Dajun, the Chang¡¯an noble like Situ Yn and Chu Zhongtian, and someone.


    When all the Academy students entered the quiet yard, Lee Yu was whispering to the Crown Prince of Yan. Suddenly she slightly furrowed the brows and consciously looked towards them. As expected, she saw that familiar but repulsive face in the crowd.


    For most of the year, she often summoned Sangsang to the Princess Mansion to speak with her. She had never seen Ning Que. But she still knew what Ning Que has done in the Academy through various ways.


    She knew that semester exam gamble and he waster isted by the other Academy ssmates. However, she has never spoken up. They just met each other on the road, so an Academy student¡¯s experience was not qualified to attract her attention. Even if she was willing, she could not show it in many circumstances.


    "Her Highness."


    "Crown Prince Chongming."


    The students including Xie Chengyun, Zhong Dajun and Linchuan Wangying stood in front of the courtyard¡¯s veranda and sessively greeted to the two honorable nobles on the table. After several times of answering questions, they performed well, especially Xie Chengyun and Linchuan Wangying. Lee Yu felt rather satisfied, but felt pitiful that Master Xie was from South Jin Kingdom instead of Tang Empire.


    "Brother Chongming, what do you think of our Tang¡¯s young talents?" Lee Yu asked the Crown Prince with a smile.


    The Crown Prince smiled and said, "Tang Empire is powerful in the world and the Academy is also an eternally sacred ce. Of course, they¡¯re extraordinary."


    At this moment, suddenly some noisy sounds came from the quiet backyard of Victory House, including sounds of blocking and scold. It seemed that some people were marching straightly towards this side. Lee Yu looked at the channel outside the corridor behind the bamboo trees and held a small winess with her fingers. She did not speak, but slightly furrowed the brows. Hua Shanyue sitting on the four-point-six-meter chair behind her looked serious and reprimanded. "Who is so bold to dare enter Her Highness¡¯s feast!"


    The noises outside the yard quickly turned into some still messy butpletely different sounds. The instrument sounds behind the corridor in the bamboo grove suddenly became out of tune, mixed with faintly surprised crying of girls and the sound of the shocked messenger¡¯s knocking over the table. Then all of those sounds disappeared in the next moment.


    In the quiet courtyard, under the rain-covering corridor, and next to the bamboo wall, there was no sound but silence that led to palpitation, except those footsteps that fell in the stone path and seemed to fall on the hearts.


    The slow footstepsing from outside the house did not belong to one person, for they were not regr. But all the courtyard people seemed to hear only the footsteps of one of them. His footsteps were so stable as to release the taste of pride only by audition. It seemed that his each step was on the road to the Firmament.


    ...


    ...


    The Victory House boss looked painful and helpless and bent his body to walk in front like a pitiful manservant. Although it was undoubtedly the fastest way towards death for him to lead the outsiders to enter the fourth Princess¡¯ feast, these guests behind him were also very distinguished. What was more important was that the other party offered the reason he could not refute at all.


    The person walking on the stone path was Grand Secretary of Tang Imperial Library Zeng Jing. This man, an official trusted by his Majesty and Empress, had a faint smile on the face and did not reveal his real emotions.


    In the right-hand side of Grand Secretary Zeng Jing was a middle-aged man who dressed in ck robes, wearing Haotian divine sword on the waist. He was the vice president of Revtion Institute in West-Hill Divine Pce and Priest Moli who visited the capital Chang¡¯an this time.


    Although the rtionship between the Empress and the Princess was ordinary, they were in a naturally hostility position because of a major event about the throne in a certain year in the future. Now the major chancellor of the Empress was about to enter the Princess¡¯ feast, followed by bigwigs from West-Hill Divine Kingdom. Who would like to put himself in this terrifying turbulence? Besides, in the crowd there was...


    Grand Secretary Zeng Jing and Priest Moli came here hand in hand. Surely they were about to attract the attention of all the people in the yard. But in fact, at this time everyone paid attention to the young man behind them.


    There was a kind of person who had a natural charm in the world. Even though he was a muddyd in thousands of people or an ordinary girl among numberless devout believers, no matter how low-key and silent he was when walking in the crowd or how many morous bigwigs around him, you would definitely see him at the first nce and never were able to move away the eyes when he was in the picture.


    The young man in the crowd was such a person. He was about twenty years old, wearing a lifeless service uniform of Judicial Department in West-Hill Divine Pce and a shank-style ordinary sword on his waist. His footsteps were gentle and steady and followed Grand Secretary Zeng Jing and Priest Moli into the courtyard. Instantly he won all the people¡¯s attention.


    His handsome facial features were as impable as a legendary look, reflecting the faint sky light from the treetops and shaking the threadlike willow catkins. As a result, Prince Long Qing appeared in the people¡¯s vision, just like the child of God.


    His face did not reveal the slightest negative emotions but only calmness. However, just like the clear but rigid footsteps, everyone present could feel the pride that was hidden in his body but he disdained to show.


    It became temporarily quiet. The people in the quiet courtyard subconsciously stood up to greet him. The Academy students instantly guessed this man¡¯s identity, revealing a touch of helplessness on the faces. They looked slightly disturbed, with the extremelyplicated moods.


    Lee Yu sitting on top of the seat slightly lowered her eyes, with a cold vignt surprised look fleeting by. The Crown Prince sitting in front of her looked moreplicated, mixed with sigh and sadness. Then he slowly stood up and said with a gentle smile, "Long Qing... I haven¡¯t seen you for years."


    At this time, Ning Que, who has been sitting in the most remote corner of the courtyard and keptining that the etiquette was not in line with ergonomics, finally noticed these uninvited guests and surprisedly looked at that distinguished Prince Long Qing in the crowd. He said with praise, "Ta-da, the hero finally debuts."

 Chapter 144: Let the Debate Begin

    Chapter 144: Let the Debate Begin


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    ording to the exnation given by Priest Moli of the Revtion Institute, Prince Long Qing suffered a cold on his way from West-Hill to Chang¡¯an, and he had been recovering from it at the Peach Alley all this time, for which he hadn¡¯t been able to visit his brother earlier. Knowing that His Highness the Crown Prince was to make his return tomorrow, he forced himself toe and meet his brother despite not having fully recovered from his cold.


    Being such an important figure of the Judicial Department of the West-Hill Divine Pce, and powerful enough to be on the verge of entering Knowing Destiny state, no one would believe that a cold would have any effect on him. Everyone knew that, Prince Long Qing simply didn¡¯t want to see the Crown Prince too soon. Nevertheless, if that was the excuse given by West Hill, they had no choice but to ept it as it was, unless they wanted to engage in direct argument, which obviously wasn¡¯t the case given the circumstance.


    From the second Prince Long Qing walked into the courtyard, everyone¡¯s attention focused on him, especially the female Academy students, who couldn¡¯t help but whisper among themselves expressing their admiration for him. Having heard this excuse given by Priest Moli, they were curious to see how the Prince would respond, and whether he¡¯d look awkward or ashamed.


    Prince Long Qing didn¡¯t respond. He simply sat quietly at the desk below that of the Yan Crown Prince as Priest Moli exined, without showing the least bit of awkwardness. To be fair, his perfectly beautiful face showed pretty much no emotion apart from a calcted smile that was obviously out of courtesy. It was like proving to the audience that, I know it is an excuse and a very bad one, but it is nevertheless none of my business.


    He looked so serious and solemn that it couldn¡¯t even be softened by his beautifulplexion. It was now that people started to remember the other extraordinary role of Prince Long Qing in addition to being a heartthrob and a prodigy in cultivation: he headed the Judicial Department of the Divine Hall, which bestowed him with unprecedented power and authority.


    As both parties took their respective seats, they were properly introduced to each other. Upon realizing that the man apanying Prince Long Qing was Zeng Jing, the Grand Secretary. The Academy students sat beneath them rose again to show their respect.


    Zeng Jing was the official of Counsel who lived across the Xuanwei General back in the days. His inability to handle his household affairs angered Her Majesty the Empress, though in the end he managed to obtain the trust of His and Her Majesty by upsetting the noble families of Qinghe County. He then managed to work his way up swiftly to be one of the most important officials of the court.


    The Academy students were obviously proud of themselves, but if they could not gain ess to the Second floor after all, they would eventually end up bing officials of the court, and they could not afford to upset such an important person. But for Ning Que who was sat at the corner faraway, he had in mind something else. He inquisitively nced at this high officer from a distance and thought to himself, -you certainly didn¡¯t look so venerable back in the days when I was little.


    "Wang Ying, humble student from Linchuan, I¡¯m honored to meet the Grand Secretary."


    "Zhong Dajun, humble student from Yangguan, honored to meet the Grand Secretary."


    "Xie Chengyun from South Jin, honored to meet the Grand Secretary."


    Xie Chengyun stood up elegantly and smiled as he greeted the Grand Secretary with folded hands. A few people noticed that he didn¡¯t refer to himself as a humble student, but this was not because ofck of respect for the Grand Secretary, but simply because he didn¡¯t want toe across as a lower being than certain people.


    "Young Mr. Xie III is known for his intellect throughout the nation. I have heard about your outstanding performance during examinations in South Jin Kingdom even from here in Chang¡¯an, and I¡¯m very pleased to hear about your hard work and academic progress in the course of magic skills here at the Academy too."


    Zeng Jing caressed his beard as he smiled at Prince Long Qing and said, "Your Highness is also known as an unprecedented prodigy of the times, and now that you will be admitted to the Academy, you should make friends with these outstanding and talented youths here."


    Hearing this, Prince Long Qing nodded slightly, as if agreeing with the Grand Secretary. However, his movement was so subtle that it hardly showed any sincerity, and his beautifulplexion was simrly expressionless. It¡¯s not like he was arrogant or anything, but the veryck of emotion was an urate trantion of his attitude: he simply didn¡¯t give a damn.


    An eagle would not bother despising a mere ant, nor would a great mountain look down on a tiny hump, since they simply didn¡¯t belong to the same world, and therefore they¡¯d see no need to express any emotion. Though thisck of concern represented the greatest sense of pride and arrogance, making the one being disregarded experience the cruelest form of humiliation.


    Xie, who was known for his intellect and elegance among those of the Academy was left standing in solitude for a while, before smiling destely and finally returning to his seat. His smile looked slightly bitter if only anyone looked closely.


    ...


    ...


    What happened was simply a minor interlude. The real problem here at the Victory House banquet remained hidden behind the curtains. The encounter of Prince Long Qing and the crown prince of Yan involved the internal conflict and struggle in regard to the crown session of the Yan Kingdom, regardless of whether these two brotherspeted for it or not. Princess Lee Yu was obviously on the side of the crown prince, and the fact that Prince Long Qing was apanied by the Grand Secretary, though apparently ordered by His Majesty, no one could be sure that he wasn¡¯t a representation of the actual political inclinations of Her Majesty the empress.


    The crown session of the Yan Kingdom not only involves serious implications in the rtions between the two nations, and it could further strengthen or weaken the power shift and bnce between the two major imperial powers of the Tang Empire. Nevertheless, in the presence of the Yan nationals, the West-Hill priest and the students, both Her Highness the princess and the Grand Secretary were obliged to maintain the dignity and generosity as elite members of the Empire that they both represented.


    "I have had the pleasure to apany Prince Long Qing in his explorations of Chang¡¯an and its surroundings, and I have been much impressed by the intellect and wisdom of His Highness, without yet mentioning his exceptional cultivation talent! I would assume that it must be a piece of cake for his highness to gain ess to the Second floor of the Academy too."


    Zeng Jing caressed his beard and openly praised Prince Long Qing. No one knew what this loyal servant of the Empress had in mind for tantly praising a foreign guest in the presence of all the Academy students. It was rather inappropriate even considering his intention of suppressing the alliance between the princess and the crown prince of Yan.


    The Academy student representatives who were present were the most outstanding elite of the Academy, with a high sense of pride and dignity that was engraved deep in their bones. They might not have heard about the crown session at Yan Kingdom, but having seen how Prince Long Qing tantly ignored Xie Chengyun earlier, they already disliked him greatly. Now that they heard Zeng Jing mention about the Second Floor, it suddenly reminded them that this young man was indeed their greatest rival.


    Zhong Dajun raised an eyebrow and said, "It ain¡¯t that easy to get into the Second floor of the Academy."


    The open culture of Tang made such interruptions under these circumstances not so unusual, especially among the impulsive. The Grand Secretary simply smiled and said nothing, as if he wasn¡¯t surprised at all by such response.


    Priest Moli who had remained quiet throughout the banquet nced over everyone coldly and said, "West-Hill Divine Kingdom is known for nurturing numerous outstanding talent, and Prince Long Qing is the most extraordinary genius of the Revtion Institute for the past decade. At the age of twenty he is at the verge of entering Knowing Destiny state, which ces him at the top of the world among the younger generation. So you tell me, who should be given ess to the Second floor of the Academy if not him?"


    Being the deputy headmaster of the Revtion Institute, he enjoyed prestigious and respectable status. No one expected him to speak up in such a forthright and even impertinent manner. However, despite the boldness of his words, he cleverly backup up his ims with genuine facts and examples which gave him more credibility: indeed, who could ever be entitled to enter the Second floor of the Academy if not the strongest being of the younger generation in the world?


    "Being on the verge of Knowing Destiny state should not be confused with the actual Knowing Destiny State."


    Hua Shanyue, Senior Captain of the Gushan Commandery said sternly, "Many people im to be prodigies in this world, and yet they lingered around that stage all their lives without being able to take a step further towards the Knowing Destiny state. I might not be as talented as Prince Long Qing, but he is only at the top of the Seethrough state right now, therefore I am skeptical of whether he can be considered as the strongest among the younger generation. I wonder if the Priest is trying to over-tter the prince."


    The Priest of the West-Hill Divine Pce had been highly regarded and respected throughout the nations they have visited. Nevertheless, as soon as they entered the city of Chang¡¯an, despite the superficial kindness and courtesy at the official receptions, the vast majority of people felt the same as Hua Shanyue did at this moment. They utterly despised those Daoists who they regarded as mere magicians and clowns. As soon as they were overwhelmed by fury, there was no room for any further courtesy or subtleties, and they didn¡¯t even hesitate to escte the dispute with all kinds of brusque skepticism and mockery.


    Priest Moli did his best to contain his anger, he gave Hua Shanyue a harsh look and said coldly, "It¡¯s true that Great Lake, South Jin and Yuelun Kingdoms have all seen the rise of young and powerful talents. In contrast, I now beg to be enlightened on big names from Tang!"


    Hua scowled right back at him and said, "Wang Jinglue of our great Tang Empire is currently serving under the Defender General, and his title is merely that of a bodyguard due to restrictions of the Imperial Center Administration. In that sense he¡¯s certainly not a big name, even though no one to date has been able to snatch the title of ¡¯Invincible prior to Knowing Destiny¡¯ from him!"


    These words hit the crowd really hard. Tang¡¯s Wang Jinglue didn¡¯te from West-Hill, and he had nothing to do with Buddhism either. He ascended to his current level solely relying on himself, and he was known to be ¡¯Invincible prior to Knowing Destiny¡¯. Even though Prince Long Qing came from the Divine Pce and imed to be an extraordinary cultivation genius, there was no way he could im to be unparalleled before he really entered the Knowing Destiny state, or defeated Wang.


    The ced sumbed to a brief silence which was quickly interrupted by a very calm voice, which belonged to Prince Long Qing who kept quiet throughout the banquet until now.


    He raised his drink and looked at Hua Shanyue quietly, though it felt like he was gazing towards somece really faraway, in the midst of the military camp by the massive swamp. Then he said coolly, "Invincible prior to Knowing Destiny...I¡¯ve been wanting to change his title for a long time, unfortunately I haven¡¯te upon the chance to do so."


    "General Hua, I would much appreciate it if you could ry my message to Wang Jinglue, that I look forwards to seeing him in Chang¡¯an."


    "You must understand that, I am not at liberty to leave Chang¡¯an right now."


    Prince Long Qing withdrew his gaze and looked into Hua¡¯s eyes impassively, then he said, "if he couldn¡¯t make it on time, then I won¡¯t have the chance to change his title for him."


    Gazing back at those calm and expressionless eyes, Hua felt a shiver deep down and decided to hold back what he was about to say. In the eyes of the Prince, he saw not the fury upon being challenged, but calm and confidence just like before.


    Everyone present understood what he meant: if Wang Jinglue failed to make it on time, he¡¯d not have the chance to change his title for him, not because he couldn¡¯t fight against Wang, nor because he thought he could lose, but because...


    He was firmly confident that he would enter the Knowing Destiny state in the near future, and if he fought Wang then, thetter would still be able to maintain the title of "Invincible prior to Knowing Destiny". The sense of such certainty in making it to Knowing Destiny state, and the subtle disappointment he expressed about perhaps not being able to defeat Wang Jingyue...it was a kind of self-confidence andposure that required unimaginable experience, toughening and strength in life.


    Seeing how everyone present was impressed by a prince of Yan Kingdom and enemy from the Judicial Department, Lee Yu looked obviously displeased and slowly frowned her brows. Thinking about the old men at the Imperial Center Administration, and thinking about all the young and powerful talents who gradually emerged over the past few years throughout the neighboring nations, it made her feel rather helpless.


    For centuries, Tang had been a powerful empire with unrivaled military strength. Still and all, without the intervention of those at the back mountain of the Academy, it was extremely difficult to find anyone to counter external enemies at the individual level. Needless to say, such situation was utterly unfortunate.


    She nced over the Academy students who were present and thought to herself angrily, -if you really were the cultivation genius that Master Lv Qingchen ced such high hopes on, I wouldn¡¯t need to undergo such awkward circumstances seeing my dignity being challenged by this prince! - As she immersed in her thoughts, she still failed to find Ning Que amongst the crowd, and this made her even more frustrated.


    ...


    ...


    At the alley beside Victory House, Ning Que stood by the horse carriage and as he waved impatiently at Sangsang he said, "Hurry up! Didn¡¯t you make a great fuss at home about wanting to see that Prince Long Qing up close?"


    Sangsang went on to exin with a serious face, " Young master, I only mentioned it once and never made a fuss about it."


    Ning Que spread his palms and said, "Fine then, would you like to see him or not?"


    Upon getting a positive response, Ning Que took Sangsang to the Victory House and felt slightly sore for having to pay the attendant a piece of silver. Then they walked through the terrace which was no longer noisy, approaching the nice and quiet house. He was thinking to himself that, if Sangsang wanted to see him then he will take her to see him. He was now pretty familiar with Lee Yu, and there shouldn¡¯t be any problem anyway.


    Having grown up together and relied on one another for so long, the two of them have developed the habit of always keeping an eye on whatever the other person liked and saving it for one another, such as fried-egg noodles or hot and sour shredded noodles, such as Lu Xue, or money, or even a prince.


    In the midst of the quiet courtyard, everyone¡¯s attention was on the debate that took ce earlier, and they were then so impressed by the powerful self-confidence in the calm words of Prince Long Qing that no one noticed how Ning Que brought Sangsang in.


    As the music yed and people whispered, Priest Moli sat there arrogantly as the principal guest, and Zeng Jing looked expressionless. The atmosphere was starting to feel tense.


    Xie Chengyun stared at his cup and suddenly shook his head and smiled. He took a deep breath and stood up swiftly. He greeted Prince Long Qing and said to him, "I beg to be enlightened."


    The courtyard suddenly quieted down, and the instruments stopped ying in the background. Lee Yu looked at Xie who stood there solemnly, and she showed him some respect and appreciation. But she couldn¡¯t help but feel slightly disappointed as she remembered that he wasn¡¯t one of Tang¡¯s own.


    Half-kneeling on the floor, Prince Long Qing tidied his outfit and looked at Xie Chengyun straight in the eyes, finally showing a serious expression for the first time tonight, and he said: "After you, Brother Xie."


    ...


    ...


    At the corner of the courtyard.


    Sangsang half-kneeled behind Ning Que and carefully peeked at the front, then she whispered in disappointment, "Young master, we are too far away, even further than the other day out on the street, I can¡¯t even see his face clearly."


    "Shush...don¡¯t interrupt." said Ning Que as he chewed a mouthful of pickled fish skin, "Didn¡¯t you see the show is about to start? It¡¯s a rare opportunity to witness a debate between two great intellectuals!"


    Sangsang obviously had no idea of what the debate was, and she continued to peek with great wonder, asking, "Who do you think will win then?"


    Ning Que took a sip and shook his head," I just hope Xie Chengyun won¡¯t lose too badly."

 Chapter 145: A Good Drinker Never Shows Off

    Chapter 145: A Good Drinker Never Shows Off


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The topic of debate was given by Grand Secretary Zeng Jing, and just at the beginning of it, Mr. Xie, who was invincible in debate in the Academy, realized what an unshakable mountain that he had to confront.


    After grooming himself, Prince Long Qing began to debate with a dignified look, not because he was fearful of his opponents, but because he respected the exchange of wisdom during debate, which meanwhile served as an appreciation of Mr. Xie¡¯s courage to some extent. However, when the debate started, he directly revealed his uparably true level without showing any mercy.


    Numerous words flew out from the lips of Prince Long Qing as if they were delicate lotuses. Countless ssics from previous sages were cleverly cited and organized by him while incorporating the topic, which were then changed into aplex, yet clear,work. It took those listeners a long time of pondering to understand the meaning between the lines. What made the students more shocked and speechless was that Prince Long Qing was actually not using ssics from Haotian Taoism of West-Hill, but was just citing views from the ssics in the Academy!


    As Ning Que had judged, Xie Chengyun was only able to give a few rebuttals in the face of the emotionless argumentation of Prince Long Qing, and soon after, he was trapped in the ocean made by those lotuses of words, where no mistakes nor indefensible points could be found. All he could do was helplessly wait for thework to be more and more intense with no way to fight back at all.


    Ning Que was not skilled at seeking truth through citing the ssic books for debating, nor would he be fond of it. Since the age of four, after realizing that those mathematical problems solved in the Mathematical Olympiad ss were totally useless for his begging career, he had firmly set himself a living standard: No matter how wonderful an idea or a thought was, if it could not help him in fighting or earning food, it would be meaningless to his life and did not deserve to be further studied.


    Well.. calligraphy was an exception because he loved it.


    In short, he did not like debate and, thus, could not form a favorable impression of Xie Chengyun. As the one neglected by the Academy for six months, he found it difficult to have any sense of group honor, yet he was also unwilling to see that prince, who could remain devastatingly handsome with a poker face and continued to behave so arrogantly. So, he hid himself in the dim corner with Sangsang, who was also unable toprehend debate, enjoying wine and vegetable dishes regardless of what was happening around him, waiting for the debate to end.


    "The Headmaster of the Academy once said when all his disciples were gathered: If one can remain unchanged in their behavior for three years, then it can be called the Tao."


    Finally, Prince Long Qing concluded his speech with the opinion expressed in an essay by the Headmaster of the Academy from 30 years ago, which at the same time ended this lop-sided debate.


    The courtyard was shrouded inplete silence. All of the students speechlessly watched the indifferent prince, not knowing what to say. Even those female students, including Situ Yn and Jin Wucai, were shocked with their backs slightly damp. Such a thoughtful man with a rigorous method of debate was really terrifying, not to mention that what he cited was all from the Academy ssics. Furthermore, he even used the doctrine of the Headmaster of the Academy to draw a conclusion, so how could they shamelessly continue to make trouble over nothing?


    At this time, all those in the courtyard finally understood why Prince Long Qing gave people a sense of pride and indifference although he looked handsome and quiet with gentle manners and said few words. He should not be med for his arrogance. The problem was that others would naturally feel themselves inferior when confronting his strong capability. Then, gradually, the prince got used to this way of getting along with others and, hence, became a superior outstanding man without needing too many words.


    ...


    ...


    "Beforeining that others always like to climb over your back, you ought to think about how you took the initiative to squat first." Ning Que looked at his ssmates, who were as still as frozen quails, shook his head, and said, "You all treated me with such loftiness, yet turned into hatracks today in the face of a tough one. How shameful you were."


    Sangsang picked up the wine cup that he had quietly handed to her and took a sip, then she looked to the front and said, "It seems that Prince Long Qing is very powerful."


    As if he were answering the confusion of the little handmaiden, Priest Moli, the vice president of the Revtion Institute, looked at the students andplemented with great satisfaction, "The debating capability of Prince Long Qing is even greatly appreciated by the elder of the Lanke Temple."


    The atmosphere was somewhat embarrassing at the moment. The middle-aged general from the Gushan Commandery, who was sitting below Lee Yu on the left, suddenlyughed and said, "I, Zhang Jianxin, am a rough man and can¡¯t understand what the prince and that young master were debating about. But I know that wine is a good thing to liven things up at a banquet. Today, we all came to see Crown Prince Chongming off. In our Gushan Commandery, we don¡¯t have anything special, so I just brought dozens of vats of Nine-river double-distilled wine, and have called those lieutenants to carry them into the backyard. So, I will invite you to have a taste."


    Those remarks were straightforward, yet polite. The Nine-river double-distilled wine produced in the Gushan Commandery was not ordinary wine. It was a kind of high spirit brewed by double distition, which had been used by an emperor of the Tang Empire to soften the minds of the barbarians in the grasnd and corrupt the strong will of the tribes there, which had thus helped to get a miraculous effect. Since then, it had be a secret craft under the strict protection of the Empire and was often used as a bargaining chip with the tribes of the grasnd and was rarely served for consumption.


    The reason why the Nine-river double-distilled wine was rarely served for consumption and was even not chosen as a tribute wine by the pce was that it was not easy to brew the wine. But more importantly, this wine was so strong that an ordinary brawny man would be drunk after drinking only one bowl of the wine. Although it met the generous and brave temperament of the Tang people, it would be too unpleasant to be drunk after just a few sips of it when you were leaning against a rail, enjoying the wine and the breeze and thinking yourself to be grand and unrestrained. Therefore, the Tang people had to painfully abandon it.


    The rarely seen double-distilled wine from the Gushan Commandery was separated into smaller pots and sent to all the tables. Then, more refined wine sets were offered, which slightly relieved the previous tension. But no one had expected that the general from the Gushan Commandery called Zhang Jianxin would ask for the maidservant to change the small wine cup in front of him for a big bowl. After filling the bowl with the liquor, he stared at the eyes of Prince Long Qing, saying in a muffled tone, "I don¡¯t know if the West-Hill Divine Pce forbids drinking."


    Prince Long Qing looked at the small wine cup in front of him, shaking his head with a faint smile. This was the first time that his expression was different as gentleness and indifference appeared on his handsome face, revealing another sense of charm, thus, making those girls dizzy with fascination again, despite the fact that they were just now annoyed at him for discrediting the Academy¡¯s reputation.


    General Zhang suddenly looked serious. He raised his left hand to hold the bowl with both hands and solemnly said, "Back then, I once fought against the cavalry of the Yan Kingdom at the foot of Min Mountain. Now nearly 10 years have passed and the two countries have formed a good rtionship. So, with this bowl of wine, I want to propose a toast to Prince Long Qing. Hopefully, you won¡¯t mind. But the wine is so strong, and on the grasnd, they say that after three bowls of it, one cannot ride a horse. I don¡¯t know whether you, the prince, can, or rather, dare... to drink?"


    With these remarks, the room became still again.


    In the corner, Ning Que looked in that direction and shook his head, saying, "Is he trying topel him or is it just a joke? Vulgar, so vulgar! The guys from the military troops of the Tang who have withdrawn from the front line are so honest, or perhaps stupid. The prince is a genius at the Peak of the Seethrough State, and you should initiate a drinking game with him! It¡¯s just like gambling with me, your young master, in a dice game. It¡¯s simply looking for abuse."


    While speaking, he emptied the bowl that had been previously filled with rice wine and poured the fine wine of the Gushan Commandery from the pot into the bowl. He then carefully covered it with his sleeve and handed it to Sangsang behind him. That double-distilled spirit was indeed extraordinary, the fragrance of which filled the air in an instant. Sangsang was normally calm, but now she could not even restrain herself from showing delight, as even her eyes were burning brightly.


    In the depths of the courtyard, Grand Secretary Zeng Jing found the scene embarrassing, so he stood up to abate it. He lightly patted the folding fan in his hand, looked at General Zhang Jianxin, and suggested with a sudden seriousness, "Now, for the sake of our good rtionship, how about drinking together?"


    In the face of such seriousness from the Grand Secretary, even themanders from the Tang frontier troops dared not disobey. However, for some unknown reason, Zhang Jianxin persisted in holding his bowl with both hands as if nothing had happened. He looked at Prince Long Qing coldly, saying, "Whether we drink together, or just serve it between the two of us, I was just wondering... whether the prince drinks."


    Taking a sip of the liquor, Ning Que tightly furrowed his brows because of its spicy taste. When he heard those words, he felt something like taking just one dipper of water to drink from 3,000 miles of water, which meant being single-minded to love, was indicated.


    He frowned as he stared in that direction, figuring that the general surnamed Zhang previously imed himself to be rough... perhaps was just a disguise which deliberatelypelled the prince to drink via a vulgar method. Using a coarse and crude manner to fight against an adversary¡¯s elegance and arrogance would be a surprise trick under the current situation of the Empire¡¯s reputation being constantly hurt. Perhaps it was Lee Yu who had incited him secretly.


    However, just like in debate, which was one of the two basic elements that made Prince Long Qing so proud of himself, these things had nothing to do with Ning Que. Realizing that Sangsang loved this double-distilled spirit very much, he busily poured the wine out of the pot and then secretly handed it to Sangsang sitting behind him. Next, he secretly stole wine from a ssmate next to him to give to Sangsang and tirelessly repeated the whole process cautiously and happily.


    When the two hid themselves in the dim corner of the courtyard to steal wine, the situation in the courtyard had changed again. Most people thought that Prince Long Qing would ignore that invitation of a winepetition from the Tang general out of his constant indifference and arrogance, yet they only perceived a sudden sh of a light smile upon his face. With a slight wave of his right hand, a pot appeared in his hand silently.


    Soon after, Prince Long Qing lifted up the lower part of the pot, from which crystal-clear wine rushed out apanied by its spicy fragrance and filled the big bowl instantly. Not allowing the wine to overflow, he raised his left arm as quickly as a whirlwind to send the bowl toward his lips, and he drank the wine up at the same speed as that of a whale inhaling water or that of a tornado. How nonchnt he was!


    General Zhang Jianxin looked somewhat stupefied, as if he had not expected that Prince Long Qing, who was well-known for his indifference, solemnness, and arrogance, should turn out to be so casual and unrestrained in the face of his invitation of a winepetition. Then, after a moment of distraction, he realized that he was still holding the bowl, and thus immediately sent it to his lips and drank it up.


    However, just when he was about to withdraw the bowl from his lips, he found that Prince Long Qing on the other side of the table had unnoticeably poured himself a second bowl of wine, handsomely drinking it up again.


    Then the third bowl, the fourth bowl, the fifth bowl... Even on the grasnd, there were tales about the Nine-river double-distilled wine from the Gushan Commandery, where, after drinking three bowls of it, one could not ride a horse. Now that Zhang Jianxin dared the prince topete in drinking this wine, he should naturally be an expert in drinking. However, he finally failed in thispetition with the prince, who constantly swallowed the wine without batting an eye. And finally, he flopped down to the ground with a flushed face.


    Then, maidservants carried General Zhang away, who was full of the stench of wine. All those from the Tang Empire sitting in the courtyard felt ashamed. Inviting others to have a winepetition was in itself a vulgar thing to the extreme. And what was worse was that the extraordinarily refined prince, who looked as handsome as those in the pictures, should get aplete victory in the end. It was not only vulgar to the extreme, but also a shame to the extreme!


    Holding his eighth bowl of wine, Prince Long Qing gradually drank it up, rather than putting it down when his opponent flopped to the floor. Then, he calmly looked at the others and said with a trace of a weary smile from deep in his heart,


    "In my life, I first worked hard to seek Taoism and was then in charge of court rulings. In terms of wiping out the remaining forces of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and punishing the betrayers of Taoism and heresies and evil doctrines, I was always harsh and strict, never allowing any mistake to be made. So far, it could be said that no other objects were able to stir my heart... with only one exception, which was fine wine.


    "Wine can help us to feel the way of nature and understand the mystery of the enigmatic world. It is a fine gift given to us by Haotian. So, I always think that if cultivation is used to dispel the effects of wine, it will be a reckless waste of this valuable gift. Although I liked drinking wine from a very young age, I seldom drink it. After I left Capital Cheng during my childhood..."


    He calmly nced at the crown prince, his elder brother who seemed to have been forgotten by everyone in the courtyard, and he continued, "... I have only drunken liquor four times in these years, one of which was at the Royal Pce of the Yuelun Kingdom. I was misunderstood by some people in that affair with Lu Chen Jia, so they in turnspeted drinking with me. The wine was not as strong as it was today and we didn¡¯t stop until all the wine pots in the pce had been emptied. During the following three days, the pce was filled with the stench of wine, yet I was not drunk.


    "Wine is an extremely fine product, and simultaneously, the devil¡¯s music that can erode one¡¯s bones. So, I rarely drink, unless I have to, such as in that situation in the Yuelun Kingdom, or today, when the generalpelled me." He indifferently continued, "Or perhaps, there are wines worthy to be drunk, such as this fine double-distilled wine from the Gushan Commandery, or there are opponents that are worthy to drink with."


    Then, Prince Long Qing once again filled the bowl in front of him and lifted it with a single hand. He looked at Xie Chengyun sitting below and said, "This bowl is to the bravery of Prince Xie."


    Xie Chengyun slightly stiffened, and then, with a sorrowful sigh in his heart, he changed for a big bowl, filled it with wine and drank it in response from a distance.


    Then, Prince Long Qing poured another bowl of the liquor. Turning to Wang Ying sitting beside Xie Chengyun, he calmly said, "Wang Ying from Lin Chuan, you¡¯ve known etiquette since the age of 12. I have read your notes on etiquette, which were written the year beforest."


    Wang Ying was no older than 15, who was still too young to understand the previous strife at the banquet, thus, he never expected that he himself would be mentioned. Therefore, he could not help feeling excited and happy when he heard that Prince Long Qing, who had conquered all those present with his charisma, should have read his notes on etiquette. So, he hurried to lift the little wine cup in front of him and drank it up.


    Unsurprisingly, after a moment, both Xie Chengyun and Wang Ying slumped on the stable because of the strong alcohol. However, they drank the wine in such a peaceful way that no one from the Academy felt annoyed. Instead, Zhong Dajun and those sitting below him all filled their cups with the wine and waited for Prince Long Qing to mention them.


    Holding his bowl of liquor, Prince Long Qing looked at the other students, showing no further intention to make a toast, instead, he brought the bowl to his lips and slowly drank the wine up. Then, he put the bowl down without taking a look at those sitting below. The other Academy students would naturally feel unpleasant, and even Ning Que, who had filled his bowl following the trend, was out of sorts. The good impression of that guy that had just been formed had all suddenly gone.


    Prince Long Qing looked at the empty bowl with a faint smile and slightly sighed, "The Academy... what big fame it has. I only hope that the real Academy won¡¯t disappoint me."


    "How conceited you are!" Lee Yue somewhat scoffed at him and said, "If you do not know what the real Academy is, how can youe to be a hostage from such a long distance? How can the hierarch Lord and the three Great Divine Priests allow you, such a bigwig in charge of the Judicial Department of the Divine Hall, to quit the job and study in the Academy?"


    After a short while of silence, Prince Long Qing looked up and calmly answered, "You are right, Your Highness."


    Lee Yu quietly looked at him and suddenly said, "Long Qing, I admit that you are really talented and have the capital of being proud. But now that you are in charge of the Judicial Department and have a good knowledge of Haotian doctrine, you should be well aware of the principle that one should let nature take its course and be free from forcibly insisting. But why do you force yourself to be against your own will and pretend to be so arrogant?"


    Prince Long Qing remained silent for quite a long time after being questioned, and a gloss gradually appeared over his handsome face. He then replied slowly but firmly, "Our country is weak and we haven¡¯t found a solution, so what I can do is to behave more proudly."


    He made the reply calmly and frankly, which made it clear that the Yan Kingdom was too weak to be an opponent of the Tang Empire, and he, a royal member of the Yan Kingdom and, meanwhile, a disciple from West-Hill, should remain proud though he was a hostage in Chang¡¯an. Only in this way could he continuously remain strong despite the weakness of his mother country.


    Then he continued, "As for not drinking, it has nothing to do with pride. It is just because I cannot find an opponent in drinking."


    Situ Yn could not help retorting him in a whisper, "Men¡¯s ability should be shown on the battlefield, rather than in any drinking game. What is the point in drinking so much wine?"


    "Thisdy is right." Prince Long Qing calmly replied, "Only good debaters can debate with each other, and good drinkers can drink with each other. Today, we didn¡¯t have a debatepetition, then naturally, we won¡¯t havepetitions in drinking."


    Who could debate with Prince Long Qing? The most excellent debater, Xie Chengyun, had been utterly defeated. Who could drink with Prince Long Qing? He had swallowed nearly 10 bowls of the liquor, and imed that he had never gotten drunk in his life.


    Then another period of embarrassing silence followed. What an unbearable shame it was for the Tang Empire and the Academy to be stunned by a person from the West-Hill Divine Pce with nobody daring to challenge him! Lee Yu slightly clenched the silk handkerchief in her slender hand and was about to leave. Suddenly, she heard a sound of gurgling from the corner.


    At the moment, the courtyard was in an audible silence, even the sound of a pin dropping to the ground could be heard. So, the actually subtle sound of gurgling wasparatively amplified, which attracted all those in the courtyard and made them puzzled.


    The sound was like a spring flowing through a waterway made by moso-bamboo and then falling into an icy stream, or like a long-necked stork freshly waking up in the morning who was proudlybing its feathers around its neck in the grass of the wends. It sounded pleasant and attractive.


    Everyone, including Situ Yn, gazed wide-eyed at Ning Que sitting in the dark corner. They carefully listened to that sound of gurglinging from behind him, looking somewhat confused.


    A momentter, Sangsang, the small-figured handmaiden dressed in a maid costume, kneeled out from behind Ning Que, holding an empty bowl with both hands. Then, she was stunned to find that she was in the spotlight, and not knowing why. Everyone in the courtyard looked at her as if they were looking at a god.


    Sangsang felt very unustomed when she discovered that she was being stared at by so many pairs of eyes. Then, she raised her right sleeve to wipe her mouth and gingerly put the bowl down on the table in front of Ning Que, and then quietly returned to her original ce.


    It was only then that the others finally noticed that in that corner beside the square table, neatly ordered in a line, were four empty wine pots.

 Chapter 146: Giving Thanks After a Ceasefire?

    Chapter 146: Giving Thanks After a Ceasefire?


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que deliberately chose the darkest and most unnoticeable position upon entering the courtyard. However, he did not expect Sangsang¡¯s drunken voice to give them away like a firefly in the night despite how low-key he was being.


    He felt extremely ufortable facing the questioning and shocked gazes and even more so when he spotted the Princess¡¯s baleful re. He thought to himself, "Lee Yu, you idiot, don¡¯t drag me into these muddied waters. No matter what a genius I am, I cannot go against Prince Long Qing."


    Reality never does quite match up to ideals. There would always be a difference between the two. One would always attract something they are trying to escape from. The next moment, Ning Que heard Lee Yu¡¯s deliberately unconcerned question.


    "Ning Que, are all the four bottles of wine beside you empty?"


    Ning Que nced at the four bottles and scratched his head, answering, "It seems so."


    Lee Yu smiled, "The bottles may look small, but there must be more than 10 bowls of wine in those bottles. This is really strong liquor, how did you manage to drink them all? You are indeed a drinker."


    Ning Que looked at her from afar and knew that Lee Yu was secretly happy even though she was scolding him by all outward appearances. However, he would re up, leave and take Sangsang with him if she dared say anything else. He replied honestly even while he thought about that, "Sangsang drank them all."


    "Sangsang is only a girl of 13, I did not expect her to be able to consume such strong liquor."


    Lee Yu twirled the little wine ss between her fingers as she said that with a spurious smile. She did not look at Prince Long Qing nor say anything against him. However, everyone in the crowd knew that there was an underlying meaning behind her words.


    It is said that those good atbat will fight, and those who are good at drinking will drink. The girl had drunk over 10 bowls of strong liquor and was still not drunk. Is that considered being good at drinking? Your Highness, would you drink with amoner?


    Priest Moli looked at the shadows and focused on the two. He saw that Sangsang, who was behind Ning Que, was wearing the uniform of a handmaiden. He asked unhappily, "Is the girl a student of the Academy?"


    The truth will always prevail. The students from the Academy and Ning Que were mere acquaintances. In fact, there existedpetition between them. As such, no one would try to hide the truth. Someone answered, "That is Ning Que¡¯s handmaiden."


    Priest Moli was enraged and yelled, "This is an important farewell feast for the Crown Prince of Yan. It was difficult enough for us to allow the students of the Academy here. How could you let a little handmaiden in with you!"


    This anger was not staged, but a revtion of his true feelings. The West-Hill Divine Kingdom had always been strict about hierarchy. Attending the same feast and drinking the same wine as a handmaiden was the ultimate insult to those who lived in the divine pce throughout the year.


    However, this was Chang¡¯an and not the West-Hill Divine Kingdom. Lee Yu looked at the Assistant Headmaster of the Revtion Institute indifferently and said ndly, "I¡¯m close to the youngdy, she is a friend of mine."


    "The royal family of Tang is indeed gracious. They don¡¯t even care about etiquette and rules. However, Your Highness, there are two royals from the Yan Kingdom and myself from West-Hill. Did you not consider how we¡¯d feel?"


    Priest Moli said angrily, "Is this how the Tang treats their guests?"


    Lee Yu¡¯s face darkened at his words, "The feast today is to bid farewell to an old friend of mine. Who knew that there would be people who would show up uninvited. Unless this is how West-Hill guests behave? There are two kinds of guests, good and bad. If someone thinks that the Tang Empire is a bad host, they should first think about which kind of guests they belong to. If they still do not know, they should show themselves out."


    This was the strength of the Tang Empire. Everyone, including Lee Yu, could bite their lips and bear it when they lost to reason. However, no one couldpete with the Tang if they had the upper hand, or if pressed. Priest Moli turned red with rage but did not dare say anything to the Princess of Tang who looked ready to unleash her anger on him.


    This battle of wits and words sounded more like a one-sided argument. Some had stopped their discussions upon noticing the change in the atmosphere. Prince Long Qing did not seem to have noticed Priest Moli¡¯s rage, nor did he feel any of that strength exuding from the Princess. He looked at the corner silently, smiled, and raised the bowl of wine to his lips.


    The celebrations came to a halt as everyone looked towards the corner. Sangsang hid her face behind Ning Que and asked, "Young Master, what¡¯s happening?"


    Ning Que looked at his wine ss and the wine bowl that Sangsang used. He drummed his fingers on the table silently before saying, "Is the wine good?"


    Sangsang nodded, "It is."


    "Do you want more?"


    "...Yes."


    Ning Que raised his head, turned around and smiled at her, "Then continue to drink."


    Sangsang looked a little shy and said, "There are so many people looking, how I can sneak a drink?"


    "You don¡¯t need to drink sneakily."


    Ning Que raised his head and smiled brilliantly. His left dimple was so deep, and it could hold bottles of liquor. He pulled Sangsang from behind his back and said, "Sit beside me and drink openly. Drink as much as you wish until you can drink no longer."


    Sangsang hurriedly crossed her legs together and sat beside him. She smoothed down the front of her shirt and lowered her head to avoid the gazes. She spoke in a soft voice, "How can I do that?"


    Ning Que looked at Lee Yu, who was seated across the courtyard. He raised his hands at her in a show of helplessness. Lee Yu smiled and asked the students of the Academy, "Who are the ones who are preparing to enter the Course of magic skills on the Second floor? Are you all prepared?"


    Since it was spoken by Her Highness, everyone had no choice but to answer. Much less the students of the Academy who could guess the thought that went behind her question. No matter whether they were shocked or curious, they could do nothing but to retract their gazes from the corner.


    Sangsang did notprehend what this meant. She only knew that no one was looking at her anymore and rxed. However, the moment she did so, the faint aroma that floated from within the wine bottle became all the more enticing.


    She looked at the bowl filled with wine before her. Noting that no one was paying any attention to her, she quickly grabbed the bowl with two hands and gulped it down before wiping her lips with her sleeves. Her hands quicklynded on her knees as if nothing had happened.


    Prince Long Qing who had witnessed this scene from afar smiled. His gazended on the ground not far from himself as he lifted his bowl and drank.


    ...


    ...


    It was a strange feast.


    It was a farewell feast for the crown prince of Yan, but the gently smiling crown prince who did not speak a word had been forgotten. The princess and the students of the Academy were having a lively discussion about life in the Academy and variousrge-scale events in the future. However, no one really paid attention to the contents of this conversation. Every one was either thinking of or stealing nces at two spots.


    The handsome Prince Long Qing drank the strong liquor silently, looking as if he was thinking deeply. The tanned handmaid, silent as a bunny, kept her head down even as she gulped the wine down.


    Prince Long Qing looked as if he was upset, as his expression became graver as he continued drinking. Sangsang¡¯s eyes got brighter as she drank. The pieces of conversations and stolen nces that scattered through the air felt as if they were slightly drunk too as theynded silently at these two spots. It seemed that no one was looking, but in fact, everyone was.


    Due to orders, the boss of Victory House had to move all 30 casks of liquor from Gushan Commandery to the backyard before leaving them at the two uppermost corners.


    Sangsang had stayed in the pile of bodies for too long as a child that rainy day, resulting in a cold constitution. When she got ill, she could keep alive only through the use of alcohol to raise her internal temperature. This was why Ning Que was used to carrying a wineskin with him at all times.


    Sangsang had fallen in love with drinking as she had grown up depending on it for survival. She also found that it got progressively harder for her to get drunk. It was just that the two were really poor when they were little kids. They could not drink to their heart¡¯s content even if they bought the cheapest burnt wine from Min Mountain or horse milk liquor of the lowest quality on the grasnd. She had always enjoyed strong alcohol. However, the stronger the alcohol, the more expensive it was. Even after the two had be suddenly rich in Chang¡¯an, they did not drink like how they were drinking tonight.


    The Nine-river double-distilled wine from Gushan Commandery was the strongest liquor in the world and they did not have to pay a single cent to drink it. To Sangsang, who had led a hard life, this was the greatest pleasure in the realm.


    The bottles by the table emptied one by one. She had forgotten why her Young Master had brought her here today. It was to see some prince or another. She had also forgotten what kind of asion or how many people had looked at her. She just felt happier and her eyes got brighter with each drink.


    Prince Long Qing did not drink any slower than Sangsang. The dark grave look on his handsome face gave way to an indescribable interest and excitement that he had finally met his match.


    Over 30 casks of liquor had been drained.


    Those present looked at the empty bottles and could not believe that the amount of wine that could kill a few horses had actually gone into the bellies of two people.


    Prince Long Qing did not use his cultivation skills to dispel his drunkenness. The ten over bottles of liquor he had consumed had loosened up his usual aloof expression. There was also some slight confusion in his eyes.


    Sangsang, who was sitting in the corner, was flushed and her belly was distended with liquor. Her eyes were way brighter than usual. However, other than that, she was as quiet as usual and showed no trace of being drunk.


    Ning Que looked at Prince Long Qing and at Sangsang before bursting intoughter. He tapped his chopsticks heavily on the wine bottle, emitting a sharp clear sound. It was the sound of victory after a ceasefire.


    All was silent.


    ...


    ...


    The trace of haziness from the alcohol cleared from Prince Long Qing¡¯s eyes. He looked at the corner impassively and asked, "Lad, are you Ning Que?"


    Ning Que stood up and answered, "Indeed."


    "That¡¯s your handmaid?"


    "Yes."


    "Reward her."


    Ning Que and Sangsang looked at each other, noting theck of hesitation in each other¡¯s eyes. They smiled and replied politely, "Thank you, Your Highness."


    Prince Long Qing spoke to his attendants.


    The Taoist child attendant from West-Hill walked before them and looked at Ning Que gently. He spoke with the air of one reading the royal decree, "The prince hade to Chang¡¯an to pursue his studies and would like to hire people for his pce. Haotian has granted you this glory. You now have the opportunity to present your handmaid as a servant for the prince. Quick, thank him for his mercy."

 Chapter 147: You are so Beautiful

    Chapter 147: You are so Beautiful


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In this present world, servants and maids were equal to private property and could be dealt with at will. It was a little better in the Tang Empire, where deliberately hurting servants was banned by Tangw, but buying and selling them was not banned. It was not rare in Chang¡¯an to see to beautiful concubines and maids given to others. However, giving concubines and maids among the nobles was even a little legendary and romantic.


    When the child from West-Hill spoke of the intentions of Prince Long Qing, people did not think it was strange. The students of the Academy and the Tang people, like Hua Shanyue, took a dislike to the child¡¯s arrogant attitude. But because the two sides had different sses, they went silent.


    In people¡¯s opinions, Sangsang was just 13 or 14 standing beside Ning Que, skinny like a bean sprout with dark skin. Prince Long Qing wanted to take her back to sleep with him not because of her look,of course, but had some interest in her because of their drinking game.


    The bigwig from West-Hill fancied a normal maid in Chang¡¯an because she was good at lyre-ying, chess, calligraphy, painting, drinking, and so on, it was a literary pursuit in the upper ss. If Ning Que was willing to give the maid to Prince Long Qing, the prince would give him a valuable gift. Perhaps it would be an anecdote in the future.


    Therefore, no one felt astonished, strange, or even annoyed. Instead, some people like Zhong Dajun cast an envied eye at Ning Que, and thought he would have many benefits if he gave Prince Long Qing a maid.


    Princess Lee Yu also kept silent at this time, but her silence had nothing to do with her demeanor. She was thinking about something that happenedst year. She looked at Ning Que with a spurious smile, because she knew this thing could turn in an interesting direction.


    ...


    ...


    In fact, when he heard about the child¡¯s gentle but extremely arrogant deration, Ning Que was in a daze for a long time, and then he understood what they wanted. The reason why he reacted slowly was he never thought that someone would ask for Sangsang and would have such a hateful attitude.


    Why? I¡¯m sorry. No reason. It was just because he was Prince Long Qing, the bigwig from the Judicial Department of West-Hill Divine Pce. He liked your maid, and wanted a maid to drink with him when he was bored. Therefore you should send her away, she who you had raised and slept with for a dozen years, then you expected he gave you some silver or granted you a bright future when the prince was happy?


    It made no sense in fact. Ning Que¡¯s mood was so bad, but a bright smile was on his face. He said to the distant table, "Prince Long Qing, you look so beautiful."


    He reacted slowly, but Sangsang, who reacted extremely slowly ordinarily, reacted more slowly than him due to drinking too much alcohol. She just realized that the prince sitting beside the table wanted to steal her from her young master, so she could not help but refute him. "Young Master, he bes ugly now."


    ording to the people¡¯s minds, this matter had nothing to do with Sangsang herself. As long as her master was willing to give her away, then she just should obey. They only cared about Ning Que¡¯s answer and were quietly waiting for his reply.


    Most of the people guessed that Ning Que would say yes, but a few of them thought he should say no. No one had expected that Ning Que¡¯s answer would have nothing to do with this thing, it seemed to be unreasonable. "Prince Long Qing, you look so beautiful... what hell was that?"


    As Prince Long Qing became sober, he was quietly looking at the small empty wine jars. He suddenly heard the words and, frowning, lifted his beautiful face and said lightly, "Thank you. I know."


    "Now that you know you are beautiful..."


    Ning Que looked over there and said seriously, "Then you shouldn¡¯t think too beautifully."


    ...


    ...


    After he said that, everyone in the room was astonished.


    Even though some people thought that Ning Que would refuse to give his handmaiden away, or he would take some polite way to refuse¡ªfor example, he used this handmaiden well, the handmaiden was lowborn, or she could not go to a refined ce¡ªthey never thought that he would refuse so rudely and harshly.


    You thought too beautifully, how you dare to want my handmaiden!


    Prince Long Qing¡¯splexion gradually sank, and he then turned to smile suddenly.


    Ning Queughed, exining, "The reason is simple, because I don¡¯t agree."


    Prince Long Qing slowly stretched out his hands from his sleeves and put them on the table quietly. He looked at Ning Que sitting in the dark corner, saying slowly, "If that is so, you may have missed a lot."


    "I never worried about missing anything," Ning Que answered.


    Prince Long Qing¡¯s eyesight fell on his face from a remote distance, and after being silent for a while, he said, "Even my friendship?"


    Ning Que lifted his eyebrows and answered, "Maybe your friendship is not as valuable as you think."


    Hearing this, Prince Long Qing¡¯s picturesque eyebrows were like ted with ayer of frost, saying unhappily, "It looks like you value your handmaiden very much."


    Ning Que answered with a smile, "Does this concern you?"


    Prince Long Qing said indifferently, "The handmaiden¡¯s master is so interesting, which intrigues my interest more."


    Ning Que shook his head, saying, "Drink your interest with wine, if you could drink more."


    ...


    ...


    When these two were talking with each other, the Victory Messuage was very quiet, even the birds perched outside on the Yanyu Veranda were so nervous that they did not dare to tweet. The others began to show various expressions, which gradually became strange. They had not expected that an ordinary Academy student like Ning Que would talk with a bigwig from the Judicial Department of West-Hill Divine Pce and manage to get the upper hand. Moreover, his way of expression was extremely satiric and tough.


    Prince Long Qing¡¯s expression was still calm, but everyone could see his angry emotion and his bossy words. He asked coldly, "But I am still curious, who has the qualifications to be her master?"


    Under the strong coercion, Ning Que seemed to feel nothing, and answered with a slight frown, "In fact, it still has nothing to do with you. But now that you are so interested, I only can say... you don¡¯t have the qualifications at least."


    "If I don¡¯t have them, who does?"


    Prince Long Qingughed out loud, but no one could feel any happiness in hisughter, only strong confidence and arrogance. As his smile vanished, he cast his eyes on the silent Princess Lee Yu and asked, "Does the Princess have them?"


    Ning Queughed with a clear dimple on his left face, saying, "No, she also doesn¡¯t."


    After he said this, the people were astonished again. However, before the people had more emotions, Lee Yu made exnation with a smile on her face. She said to Prince Long Qing, "I asked him for Sangsang so many times, but he just ignored me. As for you, I think you don¡¯t have more chance than I do."


    The West-Hill people and Yan People, like Prince Long Qing, had the upper hand for a long time on the scene, and Lee Yu smiled and watched them silently the entire time. Now she used some words to shut them up as she was the favorite princess in the Tang. "Even though you are the peerless talent, the bigwig from the Judicial Department, and the prince from Yan Kingdom, but can youpare yourself with me? I wasn¡¯t angry with Ning Que, how could you be particr about him?"


    It was a simple but powerful logic, and it was a typical Tang person¡¯s reasoning and style.


    The princess endorsed him with some words, so it seemed that this crisis would stop. Sangsang pulled Ning Que¡¯s sleeves, saying with a lifted face, "Young Master, let¡¯s go home?"


    Ning Que nodded his head, smiling. The people, including Lee Yu, thought that he would just leave, but instead, he rubbed Sangsang¡¯s head and said to Prince Long Qing seriously,


    "Prince, I want to ask you some questions."


    Hearing this, the people on the scene thought about what Xie Chengyun had said before. Suddenly, they turned silent, and the students from the Academy looked at Ning Que in astonishment. They thought Mr. Xie had totally failed in the debate, how could he who avoided exams by pleading illness surprise people?


    Prince Long Qing¡¯s face hardened. He tidied up the front part of his clothes and sat up, and stretching out his right hand, he said, "Please."


    "Don¡¯t misunderstand me. I have no interest in the debate. In fact, I am not good at it. I am just confused about your previous confidence, so I wanted to ask you some questions."


    Ning Que took a step forward, asking, "Prince, does the firmament have eyes?"


    How could the sky have eyes? Even the stars could not be counted as eyes. Although Ning Que said it was not a debate, Prince Long Qing still took it quite seriously. He pondered, then he understood. Haotian was higher than the sky overlooking the people, then...


    "The firmament has eyes of course."


    Ning Que asked then, "Is there Primordial Qi in the world?"


    Prince Long Qing answered, "Of course."


    Ning Que asked the next question quickly. "Is there a regrity in the change of Primordial Qi?"


    Prince Long Qing answered, "Yes."


    "Does a locust tree have a root?"


    "Yes."


    "Does a worm have life?"


    "Yes."


    "Do normal people have minds?"


    "Yes."


    "Does the Tang have an emperor?"


    "Yes."


    "Does West-Hill have a doctrine?"


    "Yes."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que asked at a quicker and quicker speed, but these questions were so simple and had nothing with debating. Prince Long Qing also answered faster and faster. Their Q&A was as quick and clear as fried beans. People on the scene were so confused about what on earth he wanted to do. At that time, they heard the next question.


    "Do socks have holes?"


    "Sure."


    Prince Long Qing stopped speaking with his eyebrows lifting. Then he smiled, looking at Ning Que standing in the center of the ce. It was like he was looking at a pitiful worm whose cleverness was grinded. He answered with an indifferent mood,


    "No."


    The series of problems were vapid and even boring. However, because it concerned Prince Long Qing and had something to do with the conflict from before, people on the scene listened very carefully. When Ning Que asked, the students also thought together and answered with Prince Long Qing in their hearts. When Ning Que asked thest question, they even answered "yes" in their hearts. Once they heard Prince Long Qing say "no", they were astonished after they understood that Ning Que had set up anguage trap.


    Situ Yn frowned and thought for a while. Looking at Ning Que, she shook her head and said to Jin Wucai, "What a pity, he couldn¡¯t make a fool of Prince Long Qing."


    Prince Long Qing was certainly the bigwig of the Judicial Department of West-Hill Divine Pce and the talent who attracted people. He was a yer. However, he found that Ning Que asking him these questions was only to lure him into some mind-set¡ªwanting him to make mistakes on these simple and stupid questions and wanting him to admit that socks have holes in front of people. So naturally, he would not fall into the trap.


    He looked at Ning Que with pitiful expression, and said, "I don¡¯t think that I listened to your question patiently. Yet in the end, you are just ying petty tricks, which truly disappoints me."


    Ning Que looked at him and smiled, then he shook his head after he was silent for a while, saying, "Of course I¡¯m ying some tricks. But it is a pity, Prince, that even you can¡¯t deal with the trick, which really disappoints me."


    No one understood what he said, they just thought he began to talk nonsense out of shame. Even the students who were alienated from him turned their heads, being reluctant to admit that they were ssmates.


    Ning Que shook his head, then looked down at Sangsang, saying, "Remember the story that I told you in your childhood? How do the majority of bears die?"


    "They die because of stupidity."


    Sangsang said, "You were right on that day. Most of the men who are too-beautiful are stupid."


    Then she looked at Prince Long Qing and exined carefully, "If there are no holes in socks, then how can you get your foot in?"


    ...


    ...


    All the people became quiet again. The ones who figured it out were astonished and lowered their heads, shamefaced. The ones who did not figure it out could guess why the other people were astonished from their looks, but they had no time to lower their heads.


    Lee Yu and Situ Yn could not help but smile. But the people from West-Hill had a very embarrassed look. As well as Prince Long Qing himself, after Sangsang called him a stupid man and figured out that it was anguage trap, his face clouded.


    "Just now, I asked you and you also answered me. We all know Haotian has eyes. He just looks at everyone, we are just like worms living in Primordial Qi, so we should follow some rules."


    Ning Que looked at Prince Long Qing, saying quietly, "These rules are the valuable words from the emperor or the Law of Tang in our Tang. In your West-Hill, it should be a sacred doctrine. No matter what it is, we should admit that everyone¡¯s private property shall not be infringed upon. Therefore, my things always belong to me. If I don¡¯t agree, you can¡¯t take it from me."


    Now people just realized his meaning was hiding behind these seemingly boring questions.


    Ning Que continued to say, "My asking you this question is to let you know this. Even though you give the answer that even a three-year-old boy knows, it is meaningless. The socks have holes surely, and my maid is mine as well. As long as I don¡¯t agree, you can¡¯t steal one Qian from me."


    Prince Long Qing stared at him and, after he was silent for a long time,ughed and said calmly, "You make sense. But I also know other reasons. If you have no power, you can¡¯t protect yourst penny."


    Ning Que smiled and asked, "Prince, are you threatening me?"


    Then he looked at Zeng Jing and Lee Yu, making a bow with his hands folded in front, and asked seriously, "Princess, and Grand Secretary, he is threatening me. What shall I do?"


    Grand Secretary Zeng Jing was surprised, and he smiled, "Maybe you heard wrong. It won¡¯t happen."


    Lee Yu smiled and answered, "Do you want to fight him just with your weak abilities?"


    Suddenly, she said, "However, I really don¡¯t know who dares to threaten my people in Chang¡¯an City."


    That was the real threat.


    Priest Moli was angry. He patted the table and was ready to stand up. However, just at that time, Prince Long Qing coldly looked at his teacher of previous years, suppressed him, and then looked at Ning Que, asking,


    "You are also a student from the Academy. Can I see you on the Second Floor?"


    Suddenly, some people answered, "He didn¡¯t even pass the exam for the course of magic skills, so he can¡¯t enter the Second Floor."


    Zhong Dajun was the person who interrupted them. Just now, Ning Que¡¯s question embarrassed most of the people, and he felt the most awkward. At this time, when he heard Prince Long Qing ask the question to Ning Que, he first said Ning Que did not have the ability of cultivation, and had no qualifications to enter the Second Floor, which seemed to be a way that he could humiliate Ning Que.


    Prince Long Qing looked at Ning Que and said, "What a pity."


    Ning Que smiled after he was silent for a while, "There is not much pity in the world."


    Sangsang pulled his sleeve and said for a second time, "Young Master, let¡¯s go home."


    Ning Que looked at Zhong Dajun and his students. "I know you are ashamed of being ssmates with me. Today, you only think I just yed anguage game. I don¡¯t care what you think. I just want to remind you that you should put more attention on your study. If you can¡¯t answer this question that even three-year-old boys can, it will be time for me to be ashamed of you."


    After he said this, he gave a salute to Lee Yu and some officials, then he left with Sangsang.


    He walked out of the yard, and said, "The peerless talent... the hope of the world...¡¯¡¯


    Then he shook his head, and said, "Pia, Pia!"


    Hearing his voice, people were silent and embarrassed. Prince Long Qing¡¯s face was so ugly now.

 Chapter 148: Hope Exists in Mans World

    Chapter 148: Hope Exists in Man¡¯s World


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    PIAPIA it was the the crisp sound made by the soles of your shoes when they pped your cheeks. Unfortunately, people in Chang¡¯an City had not seen the performances of aedian who dressed in a skirt in their world, which might result in their inurate understanding of what he wanted to convey. Ning Que took Sangsang out of the courtyard and then left through the side door after chatting for a few seconds. However, they did not go far in the carriage before they heard the hurried sounds of horses approaching from the rear.


    Sangsang slightly straightened her slim shoulders and looked up at him, with her willowy eyes full of doubt and vignce.


    Ning Que patted her on the shoulder with a smile, andforted her. "Even though the Prince was very angry he wasn¡¯t crazy to send underlings to kill or beat us in Chang¡¯an City, they wouldn¡¯t be so stupid as to catch up with us after we just set out."


    His judgment was right. The elegant carriages hanging with soft ropes brandishing the royal insignia, were catching up with them fast. In this circumstance, the coachman quickly moved his carriage to the roadside, but he never expected that the carriages with the royal insignia of the Tang Royals would slowlye to a halt as well.


    The blue curtain was lifted and Lee Yu¡¯s pleasant face appeared. She furrowed her eyebrows, yet with a smile on her lips, it was hard to guess her true emotions.


    Ning Que and Sangsang quickly got off the carriage, and walked to the window to give a respectful salute. Perhaps he had no respect for the Princess, but he dared not reveal it on this busy street.


    "A few days ago, I heard that you were no longer popr among your ssmates in the Academy." Lee Yu smiled looking at him, and he continued after a pause, "Though you stood up for the Academy at the banquet today, you still failed to convince your fellow ssmates to feel the same way you do judging from which, your poprity in the Academy isn¡¯t bad, but really poor."


    Ning Que replied with a smile, "Speaking of poprity, it¡¯s a very strange thing like the weeds on the city wall. They always creep towards the side where the wind blows. Sometimes it just indicates that the wind isn¡¯t strong enough."


    "That sounds funny," said Lee Yu with a smile.


    Ning Que scratched his head before catching a glimpse of the woman behind the window, replying, "I wouldn¡¯t talk too much if Her Highness couldn¡¯t understand"


    Lee Yu dered, "Others must be surprised at the way you talk to me and your presumptuousness."


    "Her Highness, one of my old friends, is so virtuous that I naturally needn¡¯t try too hard when speaking with you," Ning Que exined with a smile, making a bow with hands folded in front.


    Lee Yu sighed and stared into his eyes, "You young fellow, always do the exact opposite."


    Ning Que considered what she said a bit strange. After a moment of silence, he replied with a smile, "It¡¯s me that Her Highness should me. At least I believe I¡¯m regarded as unbridled enough in the eyes of Prince Long Qing today."


    At the thought of Prince Long Qing¡¯s gloomy face, Lee Yu feltfortable as if her whole body had been washed by the spring breeze. She took a satisfied nce at Ning Que and then at Sangsang next to him, and praised, "You did well today. However... you dare to offend citizens of Yan Kingdom and West-Hill Divine Pce for the sake of congeniality, your courage is much greater than that of previous years. To be honest, you¡¯re really different from that of your original temperament."


    The inquiry seemed normal but incisive. Only those people who had real contact with Ning Que knew that border town soldiers always attached more importance to real things, such as life and death, rather than imaginary names such as shame.


    Now Ning Que felt somewhat amused while he recalled the harsh moment at the banquet, and he smilingly shook his head, exining, "I don¡¯t know why I was so upset when I saw Prince Long Qing¡¯s way of doing things. I really wanted to lift the table and kill him after hearing the little Taoist boy¡¯s words, but... You know, I¡¯m unable to kill him with such little capability, so I had no choice but to entice his ¡¯interest¡¯ by using a few harsh words."


    "Is it just ¡¯interest¡¯?" Lee Yu said with a smile, and then she gradually withdrew her smile and looked at Ning Que solemnly, while thinking of the big event that would take ce the day after tomorrow and recalling Crown Prince of Yan Kingdom, Chongming, who seemed to have been ignored at the banquet today. She fell into a long silence before whispering, "Only one person can enter the Second floor this year. Is it possible that the person... is you?"


    Ning Que did not know how to answer, gazing at the serious woman inside the window.


    "I don¡¯t care what people of West-Hill Divine Pce and Yan Kingdom are thinking about or what kind of agreement has been reached between them and the court, all I know is that I really don¡¯t want Long Qing to be admitted to the Second floor."


    Li Yu said, staring at his eyes.


    Ning Que nced back at her and reluctantly spread his hands, saying, "Prince Long Qing, the bigwig of Judicial Department of West-Hill Divine Pce, is a cultivator standing on the threshold of the Knowing Destiny State. On the other hand, I¡¯m... just an ordinary student of the Academy. You must think too highly of me to expect me to be a stumbling block on his glorious road?"


    The re in Lee Yu¡¯s eyes gradually faded. Watching Ning Que¡¯s clean, fresh but still ordinary face, she thought to herself that she was really out of her mind to count on this guy. She could not help butugh at herself. She then extended her hand out of the window and gently pinched on Sangsang¡¯s cheeks, and said pridefully, "You¡¯re more capable than your young master."


    During the past six months, Sangsang often went to y in the Princess Mansion so that she had be quite familiar with Lee Yu. Thus, she did not resist such kind of intimacy. She burped and then said softly, "Young master is the one who is trulypetent."


    ...


    ...


    Hua Shanyue, the Senior Captain of Gushan Commandery, rode over to the royal horse carriage, and suddenly opened his mouth, watching the horse carriage that was about to disappear around the corner, "Haven¡¯t seen you for a year, and I never expected ad from the border town to be admitted into the Academy."


    "Last year on the trip, Lyu Qingchen once told me, ¡¯since we can be certain without any doubt that Ning Que can enter the Academy, then why can¡¯t we believe that he can get into the Second floor?¡¯"


    Lee Yu gazed out at the lively crowd in front of the street, and calmly said, "I suddenly remember those words and the strange hope that Mr. Lyu reposed on him, seeing him so eloquent in the courtyard, I can¡¯t help wondering if I¡¯m wrong this time?"


    "Today he performed wonderfully at the banquet, and didn¡¯t bring shame on the Tang Empire and the Academy, but... After all, these are only verbal skills. If he meets head-on with Prince Long Qing, the unique cultivation genius, in the battlefield or the examination, and then it¡¯s true that he¡¯s highly esteemed just as he said earlier."


    Hua Shanyuemented without taking it seriously. In his opinion, it would be inappropriate even ridiculous for him topare Ning Que an ordinary student of the Academy to Prince Long Qing.


    "Maybe you¡¯re right."


    After drawing down the blue curtain, Lee Yu leaned back in the cushion sewn with gold thread, and raised her elbow to support her jaw. In her sharp but clear eyes was a slight grin.


    "If you¡¯re really talented, then you will eventually be my talent in the future," She thought with a smile, and murmured, "At least I already know what your weakness is."


    ...


    ...


    While the coachmen were chatting together in the middle of the street, arge group of people had walked out to the front door of the Victory House. Those who wore Taoist robes and looked solemn were from the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    Prince Long Qing was walking with a calm expression at the center of the crowd. As he stepped out, his beautiful appearance drew screams from the women in the streets, but he just stood in awe and stillness and was not moved to happiness or to aversion by the shouts of joy and admiration.


    Slowly setting foot on the golden carriage engraved with talisman characters, he kept silent for a brief moment with his eyes closed, but he suddenly opened his eyes, and calmly said, "That student of the Academy wasn¡¯t actually a cultivator."


    Priest Moli, vice president of Yutian Academy in West-Hill, looked cautious sitting opposite him. Although the two had a teacher-student rtionship, a chasm of subordination began to exist between them and no one dared to cross it, after Prince Long Qing became the second under Tao Addict of the Judicial Department in the Divine Hall.


    Priest Moli furrowed and angrily said, "I wonder if it has been deliberately arranged by the Tangs."


    Thinking of the little handmaiden who stole a drink of wine while hiding in the dark corner, Prince Long Qing nkly shook his head.


    Outside the carriage, a melodious musical sound was heard, and no one knew where it came from.


    Prince Long Qing suddenly gave a gentle smile, whose handsome appearance was as eye-catching as the flowering peach, and he emotionally murmured, "It seems that I have entered Chang¡¯an, and my Taoist heart has been covered with dust, for the sake of a little handmaiden."


    Being sure that Ning Que and Sangsang were not cultivators, he stopped caring about that, for his pridey at a higher level. He came to Chang¡¯an City to enter the Second floor of the Academy, However...


    With his smile gradually fading, Prince Long Qing indifferently said, "Go and check who the student is. I really hate him."


    ...


    ...


    Back to the Old Brush Pen Shop at Lin 47th Street, Sangsang unwrapped the big ck umbre wrapped in the coarse cloth, and prepared to do the cooking. They drank lots of spirits today, but those delicate fruits and exquisite dainty small dishes loved by the nobles were really hard to fill the young master and handmaiden who had been honed by the sandstorms in the frontier fortress.


    Ning Que sat in the chair by the window, gazing at the sky with his hands holding the windowttice, He remembered the encounter in Victory House today, and suddenly frowned, "I don¡¯t know why I really hate that guy."


    He did not say which guy he was referring to, yet Sangsang knew exactly who the guy was. She poured the well water into arge tank and wiped her hands over her apron and then said, looking back at the window, "I wonder why I dislike that prince now as well. I was supposed to touch his face today and ask what kind of powder he used."


    The next day, Ning Que went to the Academy as usual, and found the way his ssmates looked at him was a bit weird, probably because they all knew what had happened yesterday. He just did not know what kind of psychological activities they had. Their eyes were still possessed with a faint sense of contempt that was quickly taken back.


    After the bell rang, Situ Yn seized him in the Yanyu verandas and in a regretful voice said, "You helped retain the Academy¡¯s reputation yesterday. Everyone was a little grateful, maybe even guilty, but why did you say those words to provoke the crowd before you finally left? Unfortunately, you lost the opportunity to make your peace with them."


    "I didn¡¯t screw this up, so why should I give them a chance to fix it?"Ning Que replied,ughing he then left for the old library.


    It waste at night.


    Ning Que watched Chen Pipi who breathlessly wriggled out of the bookshelf. Then Ning Que handed him the expensive crab porridge and put down a futon for him. After that, Ning Que carefully bowed with his both hands folded and saluted him.


    Chen Pipi held the crab porridge, stunned and speechless.


    Ning Que seemed extremely sincere, much more sincere than most of the salted duck eggs adulterated in the crab porridge of the Academy. He stared at Chen Pipi and said in sincerity, "Only one person can enter the Second floor tomorrow, and I¡¯m dying for it to be me. I really don¡¯t want Prince Long Qing to be selected. What do you say... how much hope do I have?"


    "Don¡¯t look at me like that. I know Prince Long Qing¡¯s like the Son of heaven, while I¡¯m just an ordinary clod of earth in the world. It seems impossible to defeat and win him at states of cultivation and abilities, but I think... "


    "What if you secretly tell me the examination question, and then maybe hope will still exist in the world?"

 Chapter 149: View the Mountain Scenery on a Speechless Night

    Chapter 149: View the Mountain Scenery on a Speechless Night


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    After Ning Que uttered these words, quietness prevailed in the old library. Chen Pipi stared at his eyes and fell into a long silence before his thick lips slightly moved and uttered, "You look really beautiful."


    Upon hearing this, Ning Que became angry and red back at him, coldly saying, "Even if you refuse to tell me about the exam papers, you don¡¯t need to talk to me with this attitude. I don¡¯t believe that I won¡¯t be admitted to the Second Floor without your help."


    Chen Pippi looked at him andpassionately shook his head, saying, "You¡¯ve said many times that you wanted to enter the Second Floor, and I didn¡¯t care much about it. And thinking that your talents weren¡¯t really much worse than mine, it won¡¯t be too difficult to defeat those so-called geniuses, like Xi Chengyun, after cultivating for more than six months under my guidance, but... Some things aren¡¯t meant to be. West-Hill Divine Pce is unexpectedly willing to let Long Qinge to Chang¡¯an City, and you have no hope to defeat that guy."


    "I remember very clearly what you said a few days ago, that Prince Long Qing was somewhat weak in your eyes, like cats and dogs. Now you say I¡¯m totally iparable with him. So do you mean I¡¯m even worse than cats and dogs?"


    Ning Que said, angrily waving his sleeves.


    Chen Pippi raised his fleshy arm and patted him on his shoulder, and sincerelyforted him. "Do you need to make it so clear? I didn¡¯t speak frankly because I just worried that I would hurt your dignity too much."


    "Then what does it matter to tell me about the exam paper?" Ning Que cried in annoyance. "It¡¯ll do you no good if I can¡¯t enter the Second Floor. If Prince Long enters the Second Floor and finds out your true identity, you would get into a lot of trouble!"


    "Because you¡¯re out of luck."


    Chen Pippi looked at him in sympathy and said, "Although the Second Floor will be opened on the date that was proposedst year, the Second Brother and professors of the front department have taken charge of this matter, since the Headmaster of the Academy and Eldest Brother haven¡¯t returned from their travels.


    "The professors won¡¯t let me see the exam paper. Even if I knew about it, I wouldn¡¯t take the risk of being whipped by the Second Senior in order to let you know. Second Brother is upright and earnestly hates nothing more in his life than evil tricks and tant maniptions. If he knows that you want me to help you in this way, you¡¯ll be beaten up and driven out, even if you have already entered the Second Floor."


    He patted Ning Que on his shoulders once again, and soothingly said, "You¡¯re really out of luck. If the Headmaster and Eldest Brother were in, I might go to plead for you. The Headmaster would most likely agree to specially enroll you since they¡¯re so affable. What a pity."


    Ning Que sat crossed-legged on the floor, thinking that his own luck was poor to the extreme, and he could not help bitterly murmuring, "The Headmaster is too irresponsible since he has spent a whole year on his tour. How could there be so many fun ces in the world?"


    Chen Pipi looked disdained andid bare his mind. "Why do you want the Headmaster to hurry back to the Academy? Isn¡¯t it because you hope that he can help you in the exam?"


    After a brief moment of silence, Ning Que made a heavy thump on the floor and looked up at Chen Pipi, saying seriously, "Well, I won¡¯t count on you. But please tell me how to deal with the entrance exam. It¡¯s much better to know the approximate scope and method of the exam than being confused in my current situation."


    "That¡¯s eptable." Chen Pippi happily swallowed half a bowl of the crab porridge, and vaguely continued. "However, talking about such things is of no use."


    "Why not?" Ning Que asked in anxiety.


    "Because exam methods are all different each time the Second Floor opens. The specific content of the exam has been set in advance by the Headmaster a few years ago. You may be required to write a piece of calligraphy, or to draw a picture, or to go swimming in the wends, or they may see who will eat faster. Speaking of that year..."


    Chen Pipi started introducing it with great interest, while Ning Que¡¯s mind had wandered away to somewhere else. When hearing that the exam might be about writing and painting, he got a buzzing sound in his mind and a great sense of happiness emerged. However, the sense of happiness or surprise immediately turned into frustration and absurdity after hearing the following words.


    "Wait, wait, wait, wait, swimming or eating? What the hell is the exam about?"


    Chen Pippi put down the crab porridge, and said looking at him innocently, "I¡¯m not the Headmaster, how could I know what it¡¯s about? But this information was personally told to me by Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters, so it might be true."


    Ning Que slightly raised his brows, looking at his fat face, and asked with hesitation, "Then... What¡¯s the exam that you took part in about?"


    Upon hearing this question, Chen Pipi gently waved his sleeves to flip off the dust that did not actually exist, and then an eased smile appeared on his face. Then he said softly with a really calm style, "I¡¯ve told you that I¡¯m not amon genius in cultivation. That year I took an A+ in six courses and then was directly admitted into the Second Floor. The Headmaster smiled to wee me on the mountain road, while Eldest Brother genially rubbed my head. And I needn¡¯t sit for the exam to test my abilities anymore. This... could be called free admittance?"


    Ning Que stared at thecency that was poorly concealed in Chen Pipi¡¯s small bean-shaped eyes, and he suddenly gave birth to a strong impulse to give him a hard punch. Yet he had no choice but to sulkily give up the idea when thinking that the fat guy was a cultivator who was even more vigorous than Prince Long Qing in the Knowing Destiny State. Then he said with a sneer, "In my opinion, you¡¯re like arge pot of steamed bread."


    Chen Pippi touched his head, and curiously asked, "White and fat, but really cute?"


    "No, I mean you are indeed a foodie!" Ning Que eximed, "You im yourself the baby of the Academy and the most favored little brother of the Second Floor, but you still don¡¯t know what the exam is about. I actually pinned all my hopes on you and bought you such an expensive bowl of porridge!"


    Thinking of Prince Long Qing¡¯s protracted posture in the opening of the Second Floor tomorrow and thinking of his own dismal situation and Chen Pipi¡¯s helpless look, he got more irritated, then he took the bowl of the porridge back and quickly poured it into his own stomach.


    "Oh, how can you eat it all!"


    Chen Pippi seemed rather angry, not knowing whether it was because his crab porridge was stolen or he was scolded as a foodie by Ning Que. He indignantly denounced him, pointing at Ning Que¡¯s nose. "I¡¯m a useless foodie, but without me, you ah..."


    "I¡¯m... indeed a dead dog."


    Ning Que bowed his head, and his expression could not be seen. Only his tired voice and gloomy tone could be heard.


    "Actually I always consider myself as a real genius who learns things fast, including killing horses, cattle, and chickens, but I am really discouraged about cultivation. I¡¯ve struggled with it for many years and finally made it outst year. However, I don¡¯t have any confidence in confronting Prince Long Qing. Thus, I subconsciouslye to you for help."


    He looked up and said in self-mockery, "I¡¯m dying to enter the Second Floor, but I really have no confidence in defeating Long Qing and finally bing the unique one."


    Chen Pipi had witnessed Ning Que progressing from an ordinaryd who knew nothing about cultivation to the present state step by step over the past six months. He was sure that this friend of the same age was also a genius, but it was interesting that Ning Que was not aware of it due to hisck of a normal frame of reference. Needless to say that Chen Pipi, and even Prince Long Qing, were both beyond the reach of Ning Que, since the time he spent in the world of cultivation was too short, after all.


    Looking at Ning Que¡¯s expression of self-deprecation, he gave birth to a strong sense of sympathy, and then sighed before smilingly saying, "Though I can understand your distress of being an ordinary person, but... You still can ask me if you have any questions about cultivation, just as you have over the past few months. In that case, there aren¡¯t too many differences whether you can enter the Second Floor or not."


    Ning Que shook his head and replied, "I¡¯m learning from you presently, but I will never surpass you no matter how well I learn. But what if I have the chance to learn from the Dean?"


    Hearing these words, Chen Pippi stared with his small, round eyes and immediately ended up pitying him, and shouted, "If you reach my level, you won¡¯t be dissatisfied!"


    Ning Que wearily leaned back against the wall, closing his eyes. He was too exhausted to talk and seemed disappointed to the extreme.


    Chen Pipi felt sorry and suddenly raised his two tight eyebrows on his forehead, then whispered, "In fact... not all the students who can enter the Second Floor are geniuses in cultivation. Sixth Brother is a good cksmith born by the Good cksmith."


    Ning Que suddenly opened his eyes.


    Instead of watching him, Chen Pipi continued with a frown. "The Headmaster holds the nature of students in high esteem. Yet it remains essentially the same although methods of the exam at the opening of the Second Floor vary every time. So, no matter what type of exam it¡¯s going to be tomorrow, your first priority is to stick to your heart, and make it to the ultimate, and then maybe you can have a chance."


    "To the ultimate?" Ning Que said to himself.


    "It¡¯ste now, please go back."


    Chen Pipi took a nce out of the window at the stars in the spring night, and said, "There are only a few hours left before the opening of the Second Floor."


    ...


    ...


    After returning the Old Brush Pen Shop, Ning Que could not fall asleep. Hey in his bed, staring at the ceiling above his head. And his seemingly calm eyes were actually hidden with anxiety and loss, due to which his body seemed tense.


    Even he himself could not make it clear why he had such a strong desire to enter the Second Floor of the Academy¡ªpresumably due to his immense yearning for the world of cultivation. For instance, his arduous efforts, such as blood vomiting for getting upstairsst year, made the love of each cell in his body for that world deepen, and as he finally stepped into the magical world and saw more strange sceneryst year, he was increasingly eager to see more scenery.


    When people had gone through plenty of hardships and finally mounted a dangerous peak, they would look around and find a higher peak amidst the white clouds faintly in the distance. If one could ovee his fatigue, then he always wanted to reach the higher peak, to see more beautiful scenery that he had never seen. Ascending the tower to view the mountain scenery, climbing a high peak to view the city scenery, and sitting on clouds to view the scenery of the entire world¡ªa meaningful life should have been like this.


    Sangsang sat on the bed staring at his cheek, and wanted to pass him some power by holding his hand with slight strength. She would like to transfer some kind of confidence with her reluctant, but sincere, smile.


    At night in spring of the 14th year of Tianqi, the entire Chang¡¯an City, and even the whole world, were concerned about the opening of the Second Floor tomorrow. However, no one knew how important it was to that ordinaryd who was living in the old shop of the roughne in Eastern City of Chang¡¯an City, who had been mercilessly predicated to be incapable of cultivating.

 Chapter 150: The Opening of the Second Floor

    Chapter 150: The Opening of the Second Floor


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The opening of the second floor was very important to Ning Que. No matter whether he could grasp the opportunity or not, at least it was right before his eyes. To many people, the ability to face important events with grace was a quality to be admired.


    Having faced many tribtions in life, Ning Que was able to do this to a certain extent. Other than forcing himself to stay calm when facing important events, he had to do one of the most important preparation work for it. That was, he had to take Sangsang with him.


    The sun was barely up and Chang¡¯an was still enveloped in darkness. He brought Sangsang with him on the horse carriage and left the Vermilion Bird Gate. When they arrived at the Academy under the southern mountain, it was early dawn. The meadows around the Academy which were usually quiet were bustling today.


    The Yulin Royal Guards who were wearing their armor were patrolling the ce carefully. There were many officials from the Ministry of Rites seated beneath a temporarily erected canopy. Some men wearing official robes of Tang stood under the tree afar expressionlessly. While it was unknown which office they were from, they all exuded a dangerous aura.


    Ning Que thought of the Academy¡¯s entrance exam from a year ago as he watched the bustling yet dignified affair. He realized that the security was about that of the entrance exam. This was when he finally understood one thing.


    The opening of the Second floor was not only an important affair in his life. It was the same for the entire city of Chang¡¯an. Furthermore, Prince Long Qing from the Judicial Department of the Divine Hall was about to enter the Second floor. This affected the alreadyplicated rtionship between Tang, the West-Hill Divine Pce, and the Yan Kingdom. This was yet another important affair that the world had their eyes fixed on.


    Sangsang was unable to enter the Academy due to the strict security and poor luck this time. As such, she could only wait at the meadow outside the Academy¡¯s stone doors.


    There was still half a day away from the opening of the Second floor. Ning Que had deliberately turned up earlier, not because he wanted to wait on the grounds of the Academy in the sun like a stupid tourist. He walked into the familiar Academy, followed the path across the bamboo forest, circled theke twice, entered the old library and bid the instructor who had just woken up a good morning. Following that, he lifted his robes and made his way upstairs.


    He did not know if it was too early or if there was another reason, but Professor Yu¡¯s slender figure had yet to appear at the desk beside the eastern windows. Ning Que paused for a moment before walking to the desk by the western windows, wet his ink stone, and took a deep breath before writing freely without much thought. After he had ascertained that his mental state was indeed clear and quiet, he set down the brush and left.


    He walked past the dense forest behind theke. The view before his eyes expanded. The tender grass looked like a soft carpet of green under the morning light. Anyone who had seen it would feel like removing their robes and rolling on it for a while.


    This was one of the most remote ces in the Academy. Very few students other than Ning Que hade here in the past six months. Even if there were people, they would just sit at the edges of the meadow to star gaze or go on dates. They would not walk through the meadow and enter the belly of the dense forest.


    Ning Que walked between the trees on the high and treacherous grounds. He held out a palm and caressed the smooth tree trunks. Lifting his head, he watched the sparse branches. His brows lifted slightly, but he remained silent.


    "What did you do today?" The voice of the female professor rang out in the forest.


    "Your student greets you."


    Ning Que looked at the nearing figure and bowed. He straightened up and considered seriously for a moment before he answered, "I had a bowl of chicken noodle soup with pickled radish strips in the morning. After that, I took a horse carriage to the Academy. I stood outside the doors for a while before leaving my things at ssroom Three. Then, I walked around theke two and a half times and visited the lecturer at the old library. I wanted to go upstairs to ask you something, but you were not there. So, I wrote a piece of calligraphy and came here."


    The female professor stood before him. You could never guess her age from her face. She did not ask what Ning Que wanted to ask her, but after a moment of silence, she smiled and said, "It is a pity that you were not able to calm your heart down after doing so many things."


    Ning Que nodded and answered honestly, "I know I don¡¯t really have much of a chance. But I still have thoughts that I might get lucky. However, it is hard to calm down once I have these thoughts. Is there anything that you can teach me?"


    "I am but just an average person who entered the Seethrough state." The female professor flicked away hair that had been blown on her face and smiled, "There is nothing I can teach someone like you with grand ideas."


    Ning Que smiled and scratched his head awkwardly.


    There¡¯s no need to have strict metal calmness at all time. Even though you are well educated, you are but still ad. It is impossible for you to sit at the eastern windows every day, copying calligraphy for years like me.


    The female professor said softly, "There are many things in the world that don¡¯t depend on your ability, but whether you are willing to imagine. If you don¡¯t even dare to imagine and are controlled by self-doubt, then you are a weak person. I just want to know how strongly you want to enter the Second floor."


    Ning Que was about to say something, but the words spoken by the professor next shook him to the core.


    If you give up on entering the Second floor today, I can introduce you to a teacher who is on par with Liu Bai.


    ...


    ...


    There was a pregnant pause as Ning Que looked at the female professor and realized that she had said that as if it was nothing out of the ordinary. It was like someone saying they¡¯d give you a bowl of spicy noodles if you didn¡¯t want to eat a savory crepe. There was no hint of any boasting, but there was undeniable truth in her words.


    However... Liu Bai from the South Jin Kingdom was the Sage of Sword. He was recognized as the strongest swordsman in the world, and she was going to introduce him to a teacher on par with him? Where would one find someone like that in the world? And where did the female professor find him or her?


    Ning Que was shocked speechless. He did not know why, but he trusted her promise. However, he did not know why his answer was no when he finally managed to get his mouth to open.


    "I think I... will still give it a try. I¡¯d like to see if I can enter the Second floor."


    There was an interesting spark ofughter in the female professor¡¯s eyes as she asked, "Why?"


    Ning Que hesitated for a moment before answering, "I do not know why either, I just feel that I won¡¯t be able to rest until I give it a try. After all, I have toiled over this for so long and have put in so much effort into it."


    "Is that all?" The female professor looked into his eyes.


    Ning Que scratched his head awkwardly and answered, "Because I do want to check out the Second floor."


    The female professor looked at the awkward expression on his face andughed out loud. She said, "Wanting is the crux of the matter. You can achieve anything as long as you want it. A person¡¯s desire, or should we say, ambition, is the most beautiful thing in the world. Being able to persevere in your choice is the right decision."


    "I¡¯ve told you, these trees are like swords stuck into the ground. If you can uproot these trees, they will be swords that can pierce the heavens. A person¡¯s perseverance is also known as his ego and your ego is the sword in your hands."


    "It is such a pity." She turned and walked towards the forest of swords, leaving behind only a sigh.


    Ning Que did not understand what she meant and thought nervously to himself. [Did she mean that while his will was strong, it was a pity he was not Prince Long Qing¡¯s opponent?]


    As he watched the slender figure that was about to disappear into the forest, he asked, "Teacher, did you mean it when you said you¡¯d introduce me to a teacher if I didn¡¯t enter the Second floor?"


    The female professor did not turn around, but answered calmly, "It is true."


    Ning Que raised his palm to his forehead and smiled, "Is it toote to regret?"


    The female professor answered with a tilt to her mouth, "I already gave you a chance."


    ...


    ...


    Thoughts, perseverance, ego, ambition, sword.


    The female professor¡¯s words were likeyers of gauze. He could not decipher the true meaning of her words. However, Ning Que did understand some things somewhat. The female professor must have seen his nature if she had said something like that to him. Ever since he fled Chang¡¯an when he was four, Ning Que had relied on his mental strength to sustain him and he was able to gradually prosper from it.


    As he thought about what Chen Pipi had said solemnly about "staying true to himself", and "doing the extreme", Ning Que realized that what the female professor had said was just about the same. As he ruminated over it, he could guess what the exam ahead of him would be about even though he did not know how he would be tested on.


    "This should be something I am good at."


    Ning Que fisted his hand tightly and walked through theke and quietnes before he reached the front of the Academy which was bustling with activity.


    It was not clear when so many people had turned up before the Academy. The professors and doctors who usually spent their time studying their own topics had all moved various seats outside. They held hot cups of teas while discussing fervently what will happen on the Second floor today. Some had even ced bets.


    The students of the Academy had gathered even earlier today. While most of them did not even dare think of entering the Second floor, no one wanted to miss an event like this. They had gathered around all six students from the course of magic skills and tried to encourage them. Xie Chengyun from the South Jin Kingdom was the focus of this attention.


    It was almost noon.


    The Emperor of Tang, Lee Peiyan, and the princess, Lee Yu walked towards the Academy to the ritual music. Several court officials emerged from the meadow followed by envoys from various countries as well as several Taoists from the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    The trees by the path down the middle of the meadow had already blossomed. The hues of pink were beautiful against the skies. The peach trees right in front of the front gates of the Academy was at its peak and it waved in the light spring breeze.


    A young man in dark robes walked down the path. The beauty of the blossoming flowers dimmed beside his beautiful face. This man was Prince Long Qing from the Yan Kingdom.


    All the officials under West-Hill¡¯s Yutian Court¡¯s Assistant Director, Mo Li, stood up along with the envoys from various countries. The students who were just bustling with noise moments ago went silent. Even the professors who were used to the opening ceremony of the Second floor could not help but sigh in admiration at the young prince walking beneath sunlight and blossoming flowers.


    Ning Que watched the scene from a corner away from the crowd. Even after that day, no one would take an ordinary Academy student like him as an opponent of Prince Long Qing.


    A professor from the Academy walked over.


    Upon the entrance of the professor, everyone including the prince, princess and various other important figures from the West-Hill Divine Pce rose and bowed. This professor was a revered Divine Talisman Master who had been cultivating in the Academy. Everyone respected him, and furthermore, he was presiding over the opening ceremony of the Academy¡¯s Second floor.


    "Only one will enter the Second floor today."


    The professor said to the masses before him. It was unknown what talisman he had used, but his voice, which was musky with age, rang clearly but not overly loud in everyone¡¯s ears.


    "The exam is simple."


    He pointed at the hill covered in mists behind the Academy and said, "There is a path winding around the mountain. Whoever who wishes to enter the second floor should climb up the mountain. You may enter the Second floor if you reach the peak. If nobody can reach it, the person who reaches the highest spot will win."


    ...


    ...


    Are they judging one¡¯s ability to enter the Second floor of the Academy by mountain climbing?


    The people gathered in front of the Academy had looks of bewilderment on their faces. They thought that this was the most ludicrous method to determine one¡¯s ability to enter the Second floor. But Prince Lee Peiyan and priest Moli remained stoic. They have seen the opening ceremonies of previous years and knew that while the Academy liked to y at being mysterious, they would never joke about it.


    Everyone looked at therge mountain behind the Academy. The sun had already risen to the peak and its rays were scorching. However, it did nothing to dispel the mist on the mountain and no one could make out the features of the mountains clearly. They could only see that there was indeed a steep path beneath the fog.


    It was at this point in time when many students suddenly thought that of therge mountain right behind the Academy. They had never paid much mind to it because it was so silent it was as if it did not exist.


    The mountain was there. It had always been there. If so, why did they have to go see it now especially?


    The path to the mountainid behind the quiet alley of the Academy. It was a distance away from the fence near the Second floor. One could clearly see the foot of the mountain and the somewhat straight path up the mountain if they stood on the pavement near the fence.


    All was silent. Nobody spoke.


    As the seconds ticked by, no one made a move towards the mountain.


    "It seems that I shall make the first move."


    A voice suddenly rang in the tense silence. It was too much surprise that the person who would lead the move towards the Second floor was not a student of the Academy or the devout disciple of the Haotian Taoism, Prince Long Qing, but a young monk.


    The monk was about twenty. He was quite handsome and had on tattered but clean monk robes. He also wore a pair of straw slippers that were frayed. It looked as if he had walked through mountains and seas in them, but if you looked closely; his feet werepletely clean with no trace of mud at all.


    They were white and clean, like lotus flowers.

 Chapter 151: Ascending the Mountain

    Chapter 151: Ascending the Mountain


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Prince Lee Peiyan looked at the monk as his eyebrows knitted slightly in displeasure. He hade to the opening as a representative of the royal family. However, his main motive foring was to ensure that the agreement would be enforced. He had not expected any student from the Academy to beat Prince Long Qing. But he was slightly mad that no student of Tang nationality had stepped out bravely, but a monk in tattered robes had instead.


    "Who is this monk?" He asked the official from the Ministry of Rites beside him with furrowed brows.


    The official wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeves and replied softly, "He is a traveling monk from the Dadu Monastery of Yuelun Kingdom. He had applied earlier and was granted entry to the Academy today."


    Lee Peiyan was startled. He looked as if he had something to say, but chose not to in the end.


    Unlike what was imagined by the masses, the opening of the Second floor was not meant for just the students of the Academy. The Academy weed every single contestant, regardless of their nationality or sect.


    Those who could enter the Second floor would have an opportunity to meet the Headmaster of the Academy and receive his teachings. This was practically like receiving dew from Haotian, or honey from bees. Nobody could resist a temptation like this.


    Ever since the first opening of the Second floor years ago, young talents from the South Jin Kingdom, Great River Kingdom, and the Yuelun Kingdom would make their way to the Academy and try their luck. What was amazing was that everyone including their sects and countries would keep silent about this matter.


    The reason for it was simple. They could not dispell the young talents¡¯ desire to enter the Second floor of the Academy. They believed that the Headmaster was the epitome of virtue and had a heart as clean as the white clouds in the sky andrge like the mountains. They would not interfere with the internal matters of other sects. The most important reason was that they believed that the headmaster would treat all disciples of the Second floor equally and not show favoritism.


    Since this was so, if these young talents from South Jin and the Yuelun Kingdom could enter the Second floor, they would be able to learn the intricate skills of the Academy and build a close rtionship between their sect and the Academy and might even align their countries with the Tang Empire and build closer ties. Why would they not keep silent then?


    It was a pity that there was no fixed date for the opening of the Second floor and the numbers chosen were few. Most of those allowed entry in the past few years were mostly students of the Academy. Only a lucky handful was from foreignnds. However, this did not stop young talents from all over the world from joining the opening ceremony.


    The young Yuelun monk in tattered robes and straw slippers was one of them.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce who viewed themselves as the only sect who practiced the correct cultivation method and the spokesperson of Haotian would not be like sects from other countries who would hide andugh into their sleeves. Other than an unknown fat youngd that no one knew of, no one from the West-Hill had attempted to enter the Second floor until Prince Long Qing.


    ...


    ...


    Other than Prince Lee Peiyan, the professor who was presiding over the opening ceremony also wore a face of displeasure. While the Divine Talisman master who was sequestered in a building within the Academy in cultivation may not know how this batch of students was faring in their studies of cultivation, he felt that no student of the Academy should cower like a frightened rabbit behind others.


    Three other young cultivators from foreignnds walked towards the hill bravely, followed by the hopeful gazes of theirpanions. The students of the Academy who was silent for a long time finally started moving. Many could not help but turn their sights towards Master Xiesan.


    Xie Chengyun looked upon the crowd from afar. He looked at the young prince who had stolen much attention from him ever since his arrival in Chang¡¯an and could almost taste the bitterness in his mouth. He had been looking at him, paying attention to him, but the prince did not even notice him. How bitter this was.


    He had cultivated for so many years and given up on the position as Tanhua of South Jin toe forth to the Academy in hopes of entering the Second floor just to be a core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy. However, all these were fading into foam and disappearing with the appearance of this young man of his age who was simply more outstanding.


    Young Master Xie, who was from a prominent family of South Jin Kingdom and was much loved suddenly thought of the two lectures he had received in the old library and in the study room. One was from the Princess of Tang and the other from Ning Que.


    He turned to look at his ssmates from the Academy. He wanted to see Ning Que, but was disappointed that he did not.


    After a moment of silence, he thought of the twenty years he had spent studying and trying his best to cultivate and a look of stubbornness and relief appeared on his face. He stood up, took a deep breath and looked at his ssmates and said, "This is our Academy, are we going to be thest to ascend?"


    A happy smile appeared on Wang Ying¡¯s young face. He held his hands together and said, "Brother Xie, I shall go with you."


    The students of the Academy were excited and started cheering, sending off the six students from the course of magic skills who were about to ascend the mountain together.


    ...


    ...


    The light bustle within the students of the Academy attracted only a few curious gazes. The envoys gathered under the umbres of the West-Hill Divine Pce and the Yan Kingdom did not bother looking. Their gazes, as well as gazes from many others not under the umbres, were fixed on Prince Long Qing who looked calm and beautiful like a cherry blossom in winter.


    Rumors had spread about the incident at Victory House. Many have heard of how Prince Longqing, who held much power in the Judicial Department of the Divine hall had lost to some ordinary student of the Academy. However, those who truly knew what had happened knew that this was a small matter that had to do with words and alcohol. It would not affect the ce Prince Long Qing had in their hearts. As long as he had never been truly defeated, he was still a perfect god to them.


    There were several young cultivators who had walked towards the back of the Academy since the announcement. However, Prince Long Qing had kept silent and focused on the air before him.


    "Long Qing, when have you ever been so affected by themon people?"


    Prince Long Qing¡¯s mouth twitched upwards and muttered something in his heart. He turned his emotionless gaze towards ad tucked in the corner outside of the crowd and stood up slowly.


    It was a simple movement but excited those around him. The conversations around him got louder.


    "Prince Long Qing is about to ascend the mountain!"


    "Is he going to be the one to reach the highest spot?"


    "Of course! He is one of the strongest in the Seethrough state. I believe he will reach the peak!"


    "He is already a bigwig in the Judicial Department of the Divine Hall and he still had to participate in the examination to enter the Second floor. Themittee of the Academy really thinks too highly of themselves. Can¡¯t they just give him a ce?"


    "I suspect the Academy and the Tang Empire would use this opportunity to shake up the West-Hill Divine Pce."


    "There are so many eyes looking, would they dare try anything?"


    "Why would they try anything when the Headmaster of the Academy is epting disciples?! Some people really are beyond stupid!"


    ...


    ...


    Prince Long Qing heard every conversation around him but did not reveal anything on his face as if he had heard nothing.


    Under the numerous gazes, he raised his right hand and tapped the middle of his forehead slightly before looking at the sun in the middle of the sky. The sincerity and benevolence on his face turned calm and he walked towards the back of the Academy.


    "I don¡¯t like how you¡¯re trying to gain attention. Everyone knows you¡¯re strong and practically undefeatable. They want to see how you¡¯re going to do that. But you¡¯re waiting to gost when everyone has be impatient. You¡¯re going to stand up and make your way there slowly, flicking dust off your sleeves, pulling up your pants and posing with your sword. Do you think you¡¯re making your way to the bathroom?"


    Chu Youxian appeared beside Ning Que and gave him a shock. Ning Que who was tickled by his sarcasm smiled and shook his head, "This is too sour. Too sour."


    "Thank you." Chu Youxian looked at him with a happy grin, "I did not enter the Victory House the other day, but I heard of what happened. That was true sourness. I¡¯m just being direct."


    "There isn¡¯t much of a difference." Ning Queughed and said.


    Chu Youxian looked at the disappearing backs of his ssmates and Prince Long Qing before sighing, "It¡¯s a pity that you cannot shame the prince further in a situation like his today... Our ssmates are indeed narrow-minded. You¡¯ve done much for the reputation of the Academy before the people of West-Hill and Yan Kingdom, but Zhong Dajun is still uttering nonsense. I think they¡¯re asking for it."


    "It takes a form of courage to ascend the mountain together with Prince Long Qing." Ning Que looked at the bamboo forests at the foot of the mountain.


    The weather was good today, the air was especially clean and the skies were clear blue. One could clearly make out the path before him. The path on therge mountain behind the Academy could be clearly seen.


    Those staying in the Academy could see the people walking up the mountain path past the horizon. The young monk was leading and behind him, there were more people walking along the stone path. Xie Chengyun and the other six students of the course of magic skills were in the middle, followed by Prince Long Qing at the back.


    While the mountain was treacherous, there were no true obstacles to these young cultivators. This examination seemed simple to many, but in truth, the search for a disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy would not be simple. As such, the path up the mountain would not be easy.


    The young cultivators finally slowed down as they reached the steep mountain path. To those watching, they looked as if they were carrying an extremely heavy rock on their bodies. Every step they took was painful and toiling. It looked as if they were fighting against the entire world.


    The young monk from Yuelun Kingdom looked as if he was having an easier time. Only one person seemed not to be affected by the steep mountain path. He walked as if he was on t ground and surpassed the others. With his sleeves slightly behind his back, he did not look as if he was participating in a difficult challenge but was admiring the scenery instead.


    That was Prince Long Qing.

 Chapter 152: The Beginning

    Chapter 152: The Beginning


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The path before them was treacherous. Every step and every wave of their arms seemed to require every effort they could give. The young people walking along the path of the mountain behind the Academy looked like puppets controlled by strings. While they could not see their expressions, those in the Academy could feel the strain and pressure on them clearly.


    The selection test for the Second floor was simple yet amazing. Young cultivators from all around the world would be like clumsy wooden puppets upon stepping onto the steep mountain path. The scene before them was shocking. Other than those currently on the mountains, no one could guess what was happening. Even officials like Moli who had cultivated for many years had never experienced this and would not dare to guess.


    However, everyone believed that the Academy would not let these young peoplee to harm. Most would feel bored after looking at them for long. Giving a nce at the people standing around in the courtyard of the Academy, it seemed that no one else would give the test a try. The bigwigs from the circle of envoys gradually rxed and started talking amongst themselves.


    The Academy had provided some snacks and the bigwigs had brought their maidservants with them. Before long, there was tea and foodid out on the tables and the conversations started.


    The topics of the conversation between the envoys surrounded the Prince, Princess Lee Yu as well as Priest Moli of the Revtion Institute. These countries represented by the envoys have always been docile and submissive to the two superpowers, Tang and the West-Hill Divine Pce. They have never considered which party to submit to, for they were all two-faced.


    Other than managing the rtionship their country had with Tang and the West-Hill Divine Kingdom, there was another important reason for their trip to the Academy. These envoys wanted to see if there were any young talents from their country who would be lucky enough to enter the Second floor. They would then try to make contact with them. Even if no one could enter, they would still take note of any young cultivation talents for the court.


    The envoy from the Great River Kingdom was talking animatedly to a deacon from the West-Hill Divine Kingdom. He suddenly stood up and looked at an approaching mud dragon amidst theughter and conversation filled with mock humility and ttery. His expression changed as he pointed at that spot with a shaky voice and asked, "What¡¯s happening?"


    The mud dragon was actually four Academy deacons carrying a stretcher. Their fast pace had caused the grass beneath their boots to tear and yellow dirt to be kicked up, causing a flurry of dust particles. The four carrying the stretcher had reached t ins from the mountain quickly. They were not panting and looked extremely at ease. It was evident that they have done this frequently.


    The envoy from the Great River Kingdom looked upon the scene incredulously. On the stretcherid theatose young cultivator from his kingdom. He sighed and wondered why the first to be defeated in the entrance test today had to be a subject from hisnd.


    The true reason for his low spirits, though,id in not knowing how the cultivator had been defeated. He asked angrily beside the stretcher, "How did he faint ascending the mountain?"


    The deacon beside him answered expressionlessly, "Fainting ismon in the Academy. Going upstairs would result in one throwing up blood, not mention to ascending the mountain."


    "Please, move aside." The deacon said to the envoy impolitely. He lifted the stretcher and continued running towards the Academy, leaving behind a trail of mud dragon and unheardints.


    ...


    ...


    "Move aside. Water."


    The four deacons returned with the second mountaineer. An instructor of the Academy brought along ginger soup and medication.


    ...


    ...


    "Move, we need more water today. Don¡¯t block the way!"


    The deacons had returned once more with yet another stretcher in their hands. They yelled loudly and their return definitely generated more fuss than when officials of Tang leave the city.


    ...


    ...


    Chu Youxian could not help but think about all the fainting incidents over the past year when he saw this. He turned to look at Ning Que.


    Ning Que looked at the four deacons who were running back and forth the mountain and his mouth fell open slightly. The scene before him was extremely familiar and even slightly heartwarming. However, it was still a bad experience after all and the scene made his hands tremble and his tummy churn and he felt slightly nauseated.


    His face began to pale and he sighed miserably, "It¡¯s still the four of you."


    ...


    ...


    Behind the mists that covered the mountain path, the young cultivators trudged on slowly. asionally, one would fall to the ground groaning in pain and lose consciousness before being carried back quickly. Xie Chengyun was in the middle of the pack and continued plodding on even though it was difficult. It seemed to be easier for the young monk from Yuelun Kingdom. His tattered robes floated behind him in the wind as he walked ahead of the pack. He would look around him asionally. It didn¡¯t look like he was admiring the scenery but more like he was looking for a certain path.


    Prince Long Qing surpassed several people ahead of him and had his arms behind his back as he continued walking as if he was admiring the view around him. His expression was serene and there was no pride nor scorn on his face no matter how many people he surpassed or how many unconscious bodies he saw by the side of the path. He did not look at the young monk even when he surpassed him.


    There was a thick cloud of fog at the end of the path.


    ...


    ...


    Those who had stayed behind at the Academy were silent as they looked at the steep path with doubt and shock at its marvellousness. They wondered what manner of restraints the Academy had set to make the path so painful and difficult for the young cultivators from differentnds. Ning Que who stood in the corner was analyzing the situation as well. His main point of concern was not the path, but what was waiting at the end beyond the fog.


    Prince Long Qing had arrived before the fog. If he wanted to ascend the mountain, he had to at least enter the fog. No matter how dangerous the path was, he had to continue on.


    ...


    ...


    He did not hesitate upon reaching the fog and continued walking through it. After a while, the extremely curious young monk from Yuelun kingdom who had been looking around arrived before the fog as well. He did not know how far the fog extended, nor did he know how many ancient spirits of old treesid behind it. While he had looked apathetic before, he now looked slightly concerned. He looked at the fog quietly but did not move forth to enter it.


    ...


    ...


    Prince Long Qing disappeared into the fog. There wasn¡¯t a second person who hadpleted the path in the lower mountains who chose to enter the fog.


    Over half of those who wished to enter the Second floor had been brought back by the deacons. Only Xie Chengyun and a few were still trudging on the path. The promising young monk whom many had pinned on hopes had encountered a difficult problem. He stood before the fog, wavering slightly.


    Those watching in the Academy had alreadye to a decision looking at the current state of things. Nobody could defeat Prince Long Qing. While this was expected by many, watching Prince Long Qing¡¯s abilities that surpassed his peers still shocked many speechless.


    "The West-Hill Divine Kingdom is indeed a forerunner in the art of cultivation. It deserves the respect of many. The Revtion Institute is also one of the best schools in metaphysics. Who canpete with Prince Long Qing, for he has ascended the mountain so quickly? He is indeed second to none."


    The envoy from the Yan Kingdom was very pleased as he watched his prince with pride. However, he did not forget to tter those from the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    Priest Moli stroked his beard and was more quiet than usual. Only the glitter in his eyes revealed his pride and delight as he said, "Long Qing is indeed talented and favored by Haotian. The Divine Hall has been granted much responsibility in the judging. While the Academy is a ce of mysteries, the ability to ascend a mountain behind it does not deserve such praise."


    Everyone knew that he was praising the prince even as he said that. The envoy from the Yan Kingdom chirped in and made some small talk before turning to look at the Tang official beside him. He said ndly, "Everyone famous from the Tang Empire has gathered today. It is such a pity that there is no one particrly outstanding in this batch of students from the Academy."


    To those from the Yan Kingdom, the Tang Empire was like a cruel beast. They have never liked them and would never miss the opportunity to poke at the other¡¯s confidence and ambitions.


    The envoy did not dare to provoke the prince or princess directly and did not say this loudly. However, he did not make the effort to control his volume as well. His sarcastic jibe floated over to where the Tang officials were sitting.


    The officials of Tang sat under arge umbre. Their faces were filled with displeasure. There were five from the course of magic skills of the Academy who had failed the test. The only person left was Xie Chengyun and he was from the South Jin Kingdom. Furthermore, he was no match for Prince Long Qing. It could be said that the younger generation of Tang had failed miserably in today¡¯s examination.


    The expression on Prince Lee Peiyan¡¯s face was dark. He tugged on his sleeves and said in a low voice, "If I had known this would happen, I would have written to Xu Shi and had him send Wang Jinglue back. At least we wouldn¡¯t lose so badly."


    Lee Yu who was sitting beside him looked at him from the corner of her eyes and said sarcastically, "Uncle, isn¡¯t it your fault that Wang Jinglue had been sent to work under the Defender-general of the State?"


    Lee Peiyan looked at her with displeasure. He fell into silence for a while before answering with knitted brows, "Why would you mention this again? While it is known that Jinglue is second to none in the Knowing Destiny State. Long Qing had long entered the Knowing Destiny State. Even if he were to return, he might be no match for the Prince."


    "Is he no match, or do you wish for him to be no match?" Lee Yu¡¯s lips curled as she said sarcastically, "Uncle, you¡¯vee today to witness Prince Long Qing entering the Second floor personally... just so you¡¯ll be more at ease, no?"


    Lee Peiyan answered normally, "You have to understand, this is what His Majesty wanted."


    Lee Yu remained silent upon hearing that.


    Prince Long Qing had taken the lead in the opening of the Second floor as expected. While this was agreed upon by the Tang Empire and the West-Hill Divine Pce, the princess was still displeased hearing what the envoy of the Yan Kingdom had said and watching priest Moli¡¯s undecipherable expression. However, since Wang Jinglue had yet to return, and the students of the Academy could not help, who could regain the reputation of the Tang Empire?


    She looked at the subdued students subconsciously. She was unsure who she was looking at or looking for, but she wanted to find thest ray of hope amongst a face within the crowd of students.


    In the old library within the Academy, the window beside the west window had been pushed open. Along with the scent of spring breeze and flowers wafting in, came a chubbyd.


    Exceptional young cultivators from variousnds had walked by the old library, but neither Prince Long Qing nor the young monk had noticed him.


    "Chen Pipi scanned through theke and the squared roof of the study room andnded on Ning Que¡¯s figure in a dark corner. He held a bun to his mouth and chewed on it, murmuring to himself, "When are you going to be done with your preparations?"


    In the meadows away from the Academy, Sangsang had already opened the big ck umbre. She stood under the shade silently. She would look at the blue skies and the piercing sunlight asionally to keep track of time before spraying sunscreen from Chenjinji Cosmetics Store on her face and spreading it evenly with her small hands.


    She knew that the exam to enter the Second floor was to ascend the mountain. She also knew that her young master would definitely do so. Why would she worry then?


    "He has to be thest to set off and surpass people along the way to be the first to reach the peak. The prince¡¯s pretentiousness is really disgusting."


    Chu Youxian retrieved a handkerchief full of exquisite snacks from within his robes. He took a piece before offering one to Ning Que.


    Ning Que thought that if being thest to ascend the mountain was pretentious and disgusting, what would he be then?


    The faces of the officials of Tang within the Academy were filled with displeasure while the faces of Situ Yn¡¯s and the other students of the academy had shame painted on them.


    Ning Que looked at everyone and muttered, "I shall... give it a try."


    His voice might have been soft, but Chu Youxian heard it clearly. His hand that was holding onto the snacks stiffened and he stared at Ning Que¡¯s face, saying incredulously, "What did you say? You want to give it a try? Do you want to ascend the mountain?"


    Everyone heard Chu Youxian¡¯s exmation in the quiet courtyard and were shocked. They turned to face where the voice came from.


    Ning Que looked at Chu Youxian and said helplessly, "Xian, can your voice get any louder?"


    Chu Youxian was really startled, and he shouted loudly, "Do you really want to ascend the mountain? Do you really want to enter the Second floor?"


    Everyone in the Academy had heard him clearly and saw the whole situation clearly as well. Numerous eyes looked at the corner where Ning Que was. Their mouths were wide open in shock.


    Ning Que took the handkerchief full of snacks from Chu Youxian and wrapped it up as he said smilingly, "I¡¯ll take these as provisions for the journey."


    With that, he walked towards the mountain behind the Academy.

 Chapter 153: The Fourteenth Year, Last Summer, and Going Upstairs Today

    Chapter 153: The Fourteenth Year, Last Summer, and Going Upstairs Today


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The hero was always thest person to debut.


    On the dusty battlefield, a few sub-generals had fiercely fought with knives for a long time. Instead of holding off the other side, they often suffered defeats. Then a soldier in a silvery robe suddenly raised the bridle reins to directly rush over on a horse, killing all the enemies. He then stood in the wild with his spear as the twilight was shining on his face, looking extremely graceful.


    Gangs of youths were chopping at each other in the rainy streets, where the spraying blood was even denser and more intense than the rain. Dozens of corpses were lying in disorder on the streets from Western city to Southern city. And then a leader in ck who was holding a steel knife appeared, shouting and waving his knife as if a blood dragon was flying from one side to the other. Under the knife of such an extremely powerful guy there appeared no enemies who could rival him, beneath whose feet no lives survived.


    As for the reason why the youth in the silvery robe and the leader in ck did not get involved at the beginning until their subordinates and younger brothers miserably had gotten hurt and lost their lives¡ªit was, of course, not because they suffered from habitual procrastination as the storyteller had. Instead, it was because they knew for sure that their elegant demeanor could be highlighted only after a prolonged period of forbearing and brutal waiting.


    As the Second Floor opened, a great number of people began to ascend the mountain to climb towards the top. That included the highly desirable man, Prince Long Qing, who had already set off, while Ning Que was still silently standing in the corner and had not yet started up at the moment.


    He could interpret his dy as an attempt to analyze the problems that might arise in mountain climbing by observing those young cultivators¡¯ experiences of mountaineering. Yet he had to admit that the more important reason in his inner heart was that he actually did not care about the life and death of those climbers that were slogging on the sloping mountain road who were not his subordinates nor his sub-generals. Under such a situation where he had little confidence to get into the Second Floor, why not enjoy the thrill of thest stage?


    The hero was always thest person to debut.


    Even until the end, the hero would still be Prince Long Qing, who continued standing high above the masses and being too perfect to be human. At least at this very moment, Ning Que, the final presence, was undoubtedly the current hero.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que¡¯s idea was perfectly turned into a reality.


    When he took the pastry from Chu Youxian that was wrapped in a handkerchief and continued walking toward the back of the Academy in the courtyard, countless pairs of eyes that were full ofplex emotions, either surprise or frustration, but most of all, doubt, were caught by him.


    It had been a long time since the Second Floor was opened. People could see from today¡¯s mountaineering that it would be a great victory for Prince Long Qing. At this moment, howe some ungrateful guy had appeared here to disturb the others¡¯ solemn and sacred wait for the graceful prince, Long Qing?


    "It seems to be a student from the Academy."


    The envoy of Great River Kingdom, looking at Ning Que¡¯s clothes and ornaments, asked with knitted brows, "Is he the expert hiding in the Academy?"


    "Six students from the course of magic skills are all on the mountain, four of whom have been carried back. It seems that the instructors of the Academy don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on either, judging by their astonishment."


    Among the crowds of Academy students, Zhong Daojun, trying to suppress his shock, watched Ning Que, who was staying in the center of the discussion, and then asked with a sneer, "Did you go mad again? Don¡¯t you think you¡¯ve embarrassed yourself enough this year?"


    Situ Yn subconsciously took a step forward with her hands slightly clenching her sleeves, and gazed in front at Ning Que with her face full of curiosity and worry. Although she knew Ning Que was not as worthless as the ssmates had said, she really could not figure out why he had to ascend the mountain at this time and why he believed he had the opportunity to enter the Second Floor.


    Under arge golden umbre stood Lee Yu, who was looking at the neither-strange-nor-familiard, seeming to be lost in thought. She wondered why she had such a strong sense of confidence and hope in him, thinking of the scene on the journey back from the grasndst year, and thinking of what Lyu Qingchen had firmly said with a smile. But actually, she did not know where the strong sense came from.


    Li Peiyan took a look following Lee Yu¡¯s gaze with a serious and remorseless expression on his face. As Prince of the Tang Empire, he was keen to see a youth of the Tang Empire from the Academy stand out to fight back some dignity for the Empire, but thest thing he wanted was for this event to produce too many variables.


    Priest Moli did not consider Ning Que eligible enough to be a variable. He took a quick nce and no longer cared at all. Now Prince Long Qing had entered the mountain amidst the thick fog and might sessfully reach the top in the next moment. To Priest Moli, Ning Que was only the perfect foil to the glory of West-Hill and the prince, no matter whether he stood out for ying to the gallery or getting the instruction of the Academy.


    For those people who were less determined with a wandering mind, all of these looks¡ªespecially the inspecting and confusing vision from so many bigwigs around the stone ground of the Academy¡ªgathering on a person might be too heavy and crush a slender student.


    But for Ning Que, gazes from others were the existence of the least weight and power in the world, and the same went for more gazes. What he would do had nothing to do with these people, so the emotions in their gazes were of no concern to him.


    The professor, who was responsible for presiding over the opening ceremony of the Second Floor today, was nkly standing in front of the stone ground. Through the instructor¡¯s previous introduction, he learned that Ning Que was a student of the Academy, and some rumors about thisd had been heard this year.


    "Why are you here?" asked the professor.


    Ning Que shed an honest smile and greeted with a bow and his hands folded in front, asking, "Am I not allowed? I¡¯m unaware that a time-limit for application was included in your previously dered rules."


    "Definitely not. I just heard that you pretended to be ill and quit the semester examst year out of fear of losing out to your rival, so I can¡¯t understand why you here to ascend the mountain today."


    "If quitting the exam and ascending the mountain are on the two logically conflicting sides," Ning Que looked at the professor and calmly continued, "then that I dare to ascend the mountain today will dere that those rumors and usations against me in the Academy were false."


    Looking at this ordinary but eloquent student in front of him, the professor looked quite happy, smiling with his two silvery eyebrows rising in the spring breeze. Instead of making way for Ning Que, he continued to say with a hint of interest,


    "But I still want to know why on earth you ascend the mountain today."


    Ning Queughed and replied, "If asked by those people of West-Hill Divine Pce or envoys of the Special Envoy, I will certainly give them an appalling answer. For you, of course, I must answer honestly... To ascend the mountain, just because I want to."


    The professorughed, stroking his gray beard, and eximed shaking his head, "Good answer indeed. This is the best answer that I¡¯ve ever heard in recent years."


    Then he continued with curiosity, "What will you answer if you¡¯re asked by those guys of West-Hill and Yan Kingdom?"


    "If I am questioned, I will say..."


    Ning Que embarrassedly smiled and said, "Because the mountain is there."


    The professor was stunned and his fingers that were stroking his beard slightly stiffened. Then heughed and praised him, looking at Ning Que in a manner that said thed was worth teaching. "This is also a good answer."


    "Go ahead," the professor continued with a smile, "but the mountain road is steep and rugged. If you suddenly want to stop climbing halfway, juste down. And I¡¯ll always stand by you, ming anyone who dares to ridicule and deride you."


    Ning Queughed and gave a deep bow before taking his leave.


    The professor watched him going into the quiet alleyway, and thought that not all the students this session were useless guys, lightly stroking his beard and nodding with satisfaction.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que was very familiar with the path up to the mountain, at least for the part at the beginning. Theneway, wend, bamboo, and small building were all well-known and thekeside bluestones remembered his footsteps. He looked up and waved to say hello after arriving at the old library.


    The chubby Chen Pipi was leaning on the window, waving to downstairs outside. If he did not want to be seen by Prince Long Qing and those climbers, then they could not; but Ning Que would be naturally able to see him if he had allowed Ning Que to.


    "If you really can¡¯t climb up, don¡¯t try to be brave." Chen Pippi favorably reminded him.


    "Could you please say some lucky words?" Ning Que asked, looking up at him, "Why can¡¯t anyone, including you, believe I¡¯m capable of ascending to the top?"


    "The path up to the mountain won¡¯t be that easy." Chen Pippi spread his chubby hands and sincerely continued. "Moreover, you¡¯re really as weak as a cat or a dogpared to Prince Long Qing."


    Ning Que could not be bothered to continue the conversation and walked toward the side of the old library after waving his hands. He suddenly thought of something and then stopped, turning back to ask unwillingly, "No back doors indeed?"


    Chen Pipi, opening the windowttice, shouted, "Get out of here."


    Ning Que shook his head with a smile and kept moving forward. A back door was unexpectedly found after he bypassed the old library¡ªHe had spent a whole year in the old library watching thendscape of downstairs from the upstairs or walking around downstairs. He was quite clear that there was a shabby gray wall here, but now it became a door instead.


    Behind the door was a bluestone path, two sides of which were grown with green bamboo that gradually spread up to the distance between the jungle and grass on the mountainside.


    Ning Que stepped over the threshold and walked up toward the mountain along the trail in the bamboo forest.


    Without any abnormal situation urring, he walked gradually higher and higher along the path, crossing the fence below and passing over the picturesque bamboo forest, where people of the Academy in the distance could be faintly seen when he turned back.


    The front path became narrower and narrower, on which blue gstones had been reced with smaller stones. The woods beside the path were so quiet without any birds chirping that it got a bit weird.


    A sense of inexplicable and intense pain hit Ning Que¡¯s brain, which transmitted from his right foot the moment that it was set on the path, with his brows suddenly tightening and his face instantly turning pale like the snow.


    Ning Que felt weak at his knees and almost fell down because of the sudden pain, but he forcibly supported with his hands on the ground to pull himself up again after a humming sound, and then took a look at the side of the mountain road.


    Cliffs covered with moss could be seen amid the green forest. If carefully observed, it could probably be distinguished that those lines, like stone cracks beneath the dense moss, were actually some big characters engraved on the stone. Yet the vermilion that was painted on the strokes of those characters had long been obscured under the attack of wind and rain over the past many years.


    "What a powerful Psyche Power attack this is. Perhaps these words were left by Divine Talisman Masters..."


    Ning Que stared at those characters and his hands hanging aside were slightly shivering. At that moment, thousands of invisible steel pins were prating his feet. For an ordinary guy, this kind of pain might have already made him fall down on the ground and cried out in despair. But he was extraordinarily conscious even though his face was pale and his hands were shaking, as if the pain did not have any effect on him.


    Previously when he watched the distant mountain road from the Academy, he could see that Xie Chengyun and the others were walking with extreme difficulty and tardiness on the road. Though their facial expressions were not seen, their pain could be vaguely felt. Then Ning Que guessed what kind of inhibitors had been set on the mountain road, never expecting that examinations of the Second Floor of the Academy were so barbaric that such a drastic Divine Talisman was enabled at the very beginning.


    Now he finally understood why those outstanding young guys cultivating Taoism from all over the world walked with such difficulty and as slowly as puppets on this mountain road. Under the Divine Talisman, any natural environment surrounding the road might be a danger that prevented people from ascending the mountain. No one could avoid it, but must force their way!


    Ning Que tightly furrowed his brows, watching his right foot on the path paved with gravel. He nervously giggled suddenly and pulled his left foot up that had been left behind and stepped on the road by the strength in his waist and by leaning forward.


    He stepped as hard as he could, as if he would stomp the road to be broken.


    Numerous invisible needles sticking out from the cracks of the gravel stabbed deeply into his feet through his hard soles. That ultimate pain quickly reced the instantaneous itch and then clearly passed into his brain.


    Ning Que¡¯s face became paler. But his furrowing brows gradually stretched out, and he then took a deep breath as enjoyment, swinging his hands to move forward.


    ...


    ...


    Many people stared at Ning Que and began to pay attention to his behavior when he appeared on the mountain road. They watched intentionally or unintentionally, with concentration or with a quiet peer, out of real concern or just curiosity, or out of mockery.


    They watched Ning Que stepping on the mountain road and nearly falling to the ground with every step. Under this circumstance, some of them could not help but shake their heads, and some even uttered scornfulughter.


    Priest Moli was indifferently talking with the Special Envoy from Yan Kingdom, seeming to be totally unaware of what was happening on the road. Yet he still could not help scornfully shaking his head after seeing Ning Que falling down.


    As a genius in cultivation, Priest Moi could, after such a long time of observation, somehow vaguely guess at what kind of inhibitors had been set on the mountain road by the Academy. At this time, he could confirm that Ning Que at most had entered the No Doubts State, since Ning Que looked so miserable being suppressed by the Divine Talisman¡ªthe No Doubts State? It might probably be regarded as a good level in the course of magic skills in the Academy, but it was rather wishful thinking for Ning Que, who wanted to make a great coup after a couple of days of tolerance, to rely on his No Doubts State.


    From among the Academy students, Zhong Dajun pointed at the mountain road and said with a sneer, "Grandstanding is grandstanding, he just wants to steal the spotlight. He never considers how much harm will be brought to the reputation of the Academy to make a show of himself in this way."


    Situ Yn could not help but draw a breath when she witnessed Ning Que falling down. Hearing the mockery from the crowd, she red at Zhong Dajun and then moved forward holding Jin Wucai¡¯s hands to pull farther away from the ssmates.


    "Your hands are a bit cold," Jin Wucail said, looking at her with worry. Although Jin Wucai, the granddaughter of the Old Chancellor, was concerned more about Xie Chengyun, who was still struggling hard on the mountain road, she still feared for her female partner by her side because Ning Que seemed to have no chance to seed.


    "It¡¯s ok. I don¡¯t want to see their nasty faces." Situ Yn took a nce at the ssmates, who were talking to each other behind them, and continue with a sneer. "Even if Ning Que can only take a step on the mountain road, he¡¯s still stronger than these guys who don¡¯t even dare to give it a try."


    Jin Wucai stared at the leafy mountain road in the distance, saying in anxiety, "As it turns out, I¡¯m afraid that Ning Que can no longer take the next step."


    Situ Yn gave no reply and just focused her attention on the mountain road, silently cheering for her friend who had long been forgotten by the Academy. All of a sudden, a hint of pleasant surprise floated on her clear cheeks. Then she pointed to the distance with a light jump, shouting, "Look! Look! Ning Que is beginning to move forward again!"


    Most of the Academy students noticed what was going on. They witnessed Ning Que pulling himself up with difficulty and then moving his left foot to take a step forward after a brief moment of pausing.


    Then Ning Que took a second step, a third step, but four steps... Although it was evident that his body was trembling and moving at a slow speed, he seemed to walk more and more stable, as if each of his steps was deeply treading onto the hard mountain road!


    Someone in the crowd uttered a cry.


    A young official from the Ministry of Rites of the Tang Empire stood up and gazed at the mountain road with his face full of excitement. He did not know who the young student on the mountain road was and did not believe that the young student could defeat Prince Long Qing to ascend the summit. But he felt his previous pride and self-confidence that had been repressed return to his own body as the young student kept moving forward.


    Chu Youxian, who was taking out a second package of snacks to eat at the corner, became surprised and opened his mouth wide, yet he unexpectedly forgot to put the snacks into his mouth. Staring at the figure on the mountain road, he suddenly found that he had never actually gotten to know thed well.


    Lee Yu looked at the mountain road and fell into a brief moment of silence before giving a wee smile.


    Chen Pipi looked toward the mountain road leaning against the window of the old library, and said with emotion, "You¡¯re too harsh to yourself. Speaking of which... can anyone who¡¯s more ruthless than you be found in this world? I¡¯m wondering how far you can go? I still don¡¯t know."


    After finishing this sentence, he closed the window as a few green leaves fell off.


    ...


    ...


    A few green leaves fell off from the wind and then passed over Ning Que¡¯s shoulders tond on the ground finally.


    The green forest beside the mountain road wasprised of many kinds of trees, but this sector was mostly nted with bamboo, whose leaf edges seemed as sharp as pieces of sharp knives.


    The falling bamboo leaves actually were as sharp as knives, rather than only seeming to be as sharp as knives.


    With a sharp sound, the bamboo leaf that was sweeping over Ning Que¡¯s shoulders directly tore his clothes like a sharp knife and abraded his skin, and finallycerated a thin bloody cut.


    Ning Que looked at his shoulders without seeing any holes on his clothes, any blood on the bamboo leaf, or any bleeding cuts.


    But he knew that something had definitely happened because he received a clear and intense pain from his shoulders. He was even able to precisely feel the unbearable sensation of a foreign body in the bloody cut that was brought by the hairs of the bamboo leaf.


    He lifted his right hand to wipe his shoulder just as if he were dusting. This behavior, of course, could not remove the invisible wounds and pain left by the bamboo leaf. But he thought that it was marvelous that he felt much more rxed and could continue to move forward after finishing this movement.


    Other bamboo leaves rustled to fall off, rubbing against his cheek, his breast, and his back, and then rested on the gravel mountain road.


    His clothes were the same as before, but innumerable invisible rips and numerous sufferings were added that were unbearable for ordinary people. His face remained unchanged, but getting paler.


    A mountain breeze came, and countless pieces of bamboo leaves were swept up into the air, and then fell down like a rainstorm.


    Ning Que, walking amidst this bamboo rain, was no longer bothered to pull out the leaves that were about tond on his shoulders. Instead, he just continued to move forward in silence, as if in his bright eyes he could see the bamboo rain fallingst year when he killed Yan Suqing in the smallkeside house.


    He walked very attentively and hard. Every step he took was heavily trodden on the ground with dust sshing out of his shoe soles. He ran over the clutter of bamboo leaves and passed through the pain.


    While the bamboo rain was falling, it was the right time for killing and ascending the mountain.


    ...


    ...


    Someone might be able to enjoy some scenery when startingte, but it would be hard for them to keep pace with the others. Besides, they could only walk alone on the mountain road with no one being in front of or behind them.


    Ning Que felt a bit thirsty with his mouth seeming to give off smoke. He wanted to drink some water, and at that moment the sound of sobbing water was heard.


    He looked around, and saw a thin water flow that was gushing out of a crack in the cliff beside the road. It turned into a hand-sized puddle in a stone depression at the base, next to which clusters of wild grass grew.


    He did not go to drink the spring nor to pity the grass.


    Because the thin water flow suddenly turned into an impetuous yellow waterfall and hit him, as if it wanted to knock him out, onto the big moss-covered stone at the bottom of the deep pool.


    ...


    ...


    He continued walking forward with attentiveness and strength as before. Each step he took was intense and heavy. He walked slowly and steadily through the jungle along the mountain road and then came to the middle of a meadow.


    Without any tree shade, the zing sunshine was unceremoniously sshing down to coat the meadow with ayer of red, as though it would ignite everything on the sides of the mountain road.


    Ning Que took a nce at the sky with his hand covering his forehead, and then uttered a tired sigh. He noticed that a smallke reflecting light like a mirror was located beside the mountain road in front of him.


    Theke was small, tranquil, and clear enough that fish could be seen swimming silently inside.


    A little yellowish flower bloomed in a crack by thekeside.


    It was shivering amidst the blowing breeze, seeming to be extremely frightened.


    Small ripples spread out on the calmke, where small fish flicked their tails and disappeared among stones.


    An angry sea then appeared in the eyes of Ning Que. The seawater was extremely blue and even as ck as the ink that he was familiar with. It kept rolling, setting off mountain-like waves, making an angry roar, continuouslypping against the embankment and against Ning Que, who was standing on the embankment.


    His feet stood like a nail on the embankment, staring at the overwhelming raven-ck waves. Even though his body seemed to be hit by boulders and his drenched clothes were torn apart and brought back to the sea by the seawater, he still never took a step back.


    Then the sea stood up.


    The seawater that was as raven as ink, stood up like a wall. No, like the earth actually.


    The sea cutting the sky into two halves slowly pressed toward him. In the sea that divided the sky and the earth vertically were seen a whirlpool that wasrger than a mountain, seabirds that were fruitlessly flying everywhere with a intive whine, and death.


    Then the sea fell down.


    Ning Que fell down as well.


    He fell heavily on the mountain road, painfully tightening his brows and spraying a mouthful of blood.


    Theke was still calm, with nothing other than a few ripples.


    ...


    ...


    A peaceful but proud voice was heard in the depths of the mist.


    The style of this pride was different from that of Prince Long Qing, who pretended to be nonchnt. The one who the voice belonged to did not bother to hide nor deliberately show his pride. His pride lying in his strong inner heart was totally the genuine one, which was not disgusting.


    "A legend tells that the handwriting on the cliff is engraved by the former predecessors from the Academy. If someone opens the inhibitor and intends to break through it, the more he will be able to endure the pain and power implied in the Talisman. In return, the pain and power that the mountain road gives to this person will be stronger."


    That calm and proud voice continued. "Many years ago I fought with the eldest Brother, whose temperament you are quite clear about. It was impossible for him to be ruthless to me, but I still couldn¡¯t defeat him. Out of fury, I crumpled the mold that the instructor often used for making plum cakes, so the teacher made a brutal decision in a huff to punish me to go through the mountain road."


    A burst of exmation was heard in the mountain mist, and various reasons for this phenomenon could be included. Some people were marveling at the powerfulness of the eldest Brother; some were amazed at Second Brother , who was powerful enough to crumple the Headmaster¡¯s stainless-steel pastry mold engraved with Fu unarmed; some were impressed with Second¡¯s extreme bravery, who dared to let the Headmaster skip having plum cakes...


    "That year while I was crossing the mountain road, the movement that I stirred was certainly much bigger than that caused by this guy. In the end, I didn¡¯t fall to the ground until gctic meteorites flew everywhere. However, it isn¡¯t easy that this guy¡¯s capable of getting the sea into a rage."


    Someone in the mist agreed, and said with emotion, "It just seems that the more pain you can bear, the stronger pain that you have to suffer. This guy is a bit unlucky."


    "Unlucky?" someone asked in anger.


    "Unlucky," the man quickly exined.


    "¡¯You have never seen the Youngest Uncle, only the eldest Brother and I have seen him,"


    Second Brother proudly said, feeling relieved a bit, as if it was a very proud thing itself to have seen the Youngest Uncle before.


    "The Youngest Uncle once said that fate itself is a very cruel guy. If you¡¯re chosen to assume the mission, and then before confirming that you¡¯re qualified, it will do everything possible to break every bone in you and to strip every trace of your flesh and blood, allowing you to suffer the most extreme pain in the world so as to make your volition and temperament tough and eligible enough to be chosen by fate..."


    Someone was talking and recalling freely amidst the thick fog, while others whisperingly argued. "It seems that whom Second Brother admires most is the Youngest Uncle, ah."


    ...


    ...


    "It¡¯s nothing to get every bone broken, to strip every trace of flesh and blood, or to bear the most extreme sufferings in the world. While I stayed on the grasnd of Min Mountain, which of my bones wasn¡¯t broken? Which part of my body wasn¡¯t wounded?"


    Ning Que bent over to the hard mountain road, feeling the edges of the gravel beneath him. It seemed that all of the bones in his body had been shattered by the sea, but his eyes did not have the slightest fear, only indifference existed.


    With both hands propping him up, he struggled to get himself up and then lifted his sleeves to wipe away the blood on his lips. He looked back at the long winding road that he had walked through, shouting, "I read your book in the old libraryst summer!


    "I have seen your needles hidden in the books, the bamboo leaves as well! I was stunned by the damn waterfall! I was also swallowed by the stinking sea, but how about me? I am still standing here! Last year I was just an ordinary person knowing nothing, but I wasn¡¯t overthrown by all of that. Not to mention that I¡¯m already a genius who has embarked on the road of cultivation now."


    A quietness hung over the clearke in the meadow, with some arrogant shouts echoing there. No birds were frightened to fly out of the forest, no insects were startled to raise their heads up¡ªonly then did the echoes fade away and then disappear, and it finally returned to peace. Those little fish, shaking their tails, drilled out from the stones and then swam into the sunlight.


    Suddenly looking up to the blue sky that was not separated by branches, Ning Que gradually smiled and murmured, "Haotian master, you made me suffer a lot during these years, so you n to pay me back here?"


    Ning Que turned around and, while wiping away the blood dripping from his mouth and nose, he was struggling forward in slow and hard movements. He looked to be awkward and in pain, yet had a sincere smile on his face.


    He suddenly thought of something and he then said, full of regret, "Thank God? You should thank yourself first, since you¡¯re not easy in life and you¡¯re so capable. These are what you deserve."


    ...


    ...


    A long period of silence prevailed at the end of the mist.


    Second Brother suddenly had a sigh and said, "Although the state the guy stays in is bad and his cultivation ability is poor, his arrogant manner looks the same as Pipi¡¯s to some degree."


    Another faint voice was heard, "Second Brother, why do I feel that his arrogant acting embodies your style to some extent?"


    ...


    ...


    With the sun gradually setting, the temperature decreased a bit, but the mountain road was still bright. Ning Que was walking with difficulty, wiping away the blood and sweat. He did not care about his slow and hard paces because from the time he began to flee at the age of four, and especially when he climbed over the vast Min Mountain carrying Sangsang, he had understood a truth¡ªthat it did not matter even if someone walked slowly, if only could he keep walking, then one day he would reach the ce where he wanted to be and surpass all those people by the roadside who did not dare to start.


    At this point in his climb, Ning Que finally saw a peer.


    He took a gaze at the young man sitting by the side of the road, and nced over the official sword at the young man¡¯s waist. He remembered that he had heard from his ssmates in the Academy that this man appeared to be a swordsman from South Jin Kingdom and the forces the guy belonged to were hostile to Xie Cheng Yun¡¯s family. Ning Que just did not know whether the guy had anything to do with Liu Bai, the Sword Sage.


    Thinking of Liu Bai, Ning Que could not help remembering the words that the female professor said in the sword forest this morning. He then wiped the sweat from his forehead, recalling those soul-stirring incidents along the road, and could not refrain from feeling a bit of regret, but he immediately dispelled all of that remorse.


    The young swordsman from South Jin Kingdom fell down to the roadside, with pain and horror filling his face. His hands were clinging to a small tree like a drowning man holding thest piece of wood in the sea. No one knew what kind of spiritual impact he had experienced on this mountain road.


    Seeing Ning Que going by, the swordsman showed a few hints of shame on his face. He subconsciously bit his teeth and gradually seemed persistent in his eyebrows, ready to get himself up.


    Ning Que just quietly passed him by rather than stop to talk to him. Not knowing whether it was due to suffering too much impact today, those grievances and bad habits hidden well in his heart aftering to Chang¡¯an City started to irrepressibly break out.


    What if this guy gets up again after gaining my motivation? What if this guy can stand the spiritual impact on the mountain road? What if this guy can learn something from the pain just like I had, and even directly break through that state? Although this kind of small probability event only happens to such a guy like Prince Long Qing, won¡¯t I inspire a potentialpetitor with my own determination? What if the back mountain of the Academy is a ce for creating miracles?


    Ning Que thought and gradually stopped his steps, considering that he would not let such things happen. He turned to the young swordsman who tried to stand up with difficulty by holding onto a small tree, and said with the most sincere tone and expression, "Please give up if you can¡¯t stand any longer. We¡¯re just up here on the mountain, not knowing what else is lying ahead. Just now I saw lots of people being carried off the mountain on stretchers. The Instructor of the Academy said that two of the climbers had suffered such a great spiritual impact that their future cultivation might be affected."


    He raised his finger to point at his own forehead and sincerely said, "If you want to continue, of course, it is something to be admired, but I advise you to think it over."


    The so-called courage and determination were often the matter of an instant, and if someone took serious consideration, then everything would turn into a bubble. If that small tree was thest piece of wood that the young swordsman was holding onto in the sea, then what Ning Que said would be thest spindrift that would bat the wood away.


    The young swordsman took a glimpse at Ning Que and let go of the small tree that was tightly held in his right hand after pausing for a moment. He sighed to be re-seated and lowered his head, painfully and sadly.


    ...


    ...


    The second person Ning Que met on the mountain road was a young monk.


    The young monk, who was walking down rather than climbing up, was not so embarrassed as the young swordsman was. He was faintly smiling with his tattered robe flying in the wind, which revealed a sense of an immortal, while walking down from the mountain road.


    At the foot of the mountain, Ning Que had already figured out that the young monk¡¯s state was quite high, and that he was equal to, if not better than, Prince Long Qing. It was obvious that the monk still had some strength left now, and Ning Que could not understand why this person would give up.


    "You¡¯re not continuing?" Ning Que asked.


    The young monk shook his head with a smile and said, "The mist isn¡¯t good, so I will give up."


    Upon finishing these words, the young monk kept an eye on the blood leaving Ning Que¡¯s face and body. He then asked, with his brows slightly wrinkling and his smile fading away, "Why are you so embarrassed?"


    "I¡¯d also like to ask why you aren¡¯t embarrassed," Ning Que replied.


    The young monk suddenly said, quietly looking at Ning Que, "I suddenly feel that you might threaten me in the future, and I¡¯d like to get you killed before you be strong enough."


    Ning Que shook his head, pointing to the end of the mountain road, and said, "There¡¯s the Academy, and here¡¯s the back mountain, you don¡¯t dare to kill me. Besides, thanks for telling me that. I¡¯ll try hard to kill you first if there is still a chance to meet you next time."


    "Want to get the other one killed? Shall we tell each other our names?" The young monk smilingly said, "My name is Tao Enlightenment, from the Wilderness."


    Ningughed and replied, "I thought you were a monk from the Yuelun Kingdom. I still have a question that has bothered me for a long time, but it seems impossible to ask about it now."


    Tao Enlightenment smiled and asked, "Your name?"


    Ning Que tidied up his clothes, and solemnly said, greeting him with a bow with his hands folded in front, "I am from the Academy, Zhong Dajun."


    ...


    ...


    Shortly after passing by the young monk, Ning Que encountered a third man on the mountain roadside, a young Academy student named Wang Ying, who had fallen into aa.


    Ning Que held a handful of water from the side of the road and poured it onto Wang Ying¡¯s face, then looked back down the road, thinking that the monk must have seen this unconsciousd, yet did not stay to do him a favor. So he really did have nopassion, then what he said about killing might be true.


    Among six students from the course of magic skills, in addition to Xie Chengyun, only Linchuan Wang Ying still insisted on climbing on the road, but in the end, thed could not hold up for too long. Ning Que took a nce at Wang Ying¡¯s flushed face, knowing that his fainting was caused by a frightened mind. Although he knew how to handle it, he really had no energy nor time to go picking herbs in the valley.


    He stood up and shouted toward the foot of the mountain, "Where are the four porters?"


    Following which, a noise of the vibration of clothes was heard in the woods, where the four deacons of the old library were running toward him carrying a simple stretcher. They took a look at Wang Ying, who was unconscious, and exined to Ning Que, "We were taking a rest just now, so we didn¡¯t discover him.


    "In addition, we¡¯re deacons of the library, not porters." That person was seriously exining it, but then screamed in great fear when he suddenly saw Ning Que¡¯s face. "How is it you again!"


    Ning Que sourly replied, "I said that at the foot of the mountain."


    They were all acquaintances, naturally skipping some exnations. One of the deacons patted on his chest looking at Ning Que, and said with fear, "Fortunately, mountaineering is a one-off deal. If you ascend the mountain as you went upstairsst year, you, a person alone, can wear us out?"


    Ning Queughed, and then blood gushed out from his lips, since his wound was affected.


    "Bleeding," a deacon kindly reminded.


    "Nothing serious." Ning Que obliviously rubbed the blood from his lower jaw and curiously continued. "How are you able to enter the mountain road?"


    "We¡¯re not cultivators," the deacon exined.


    Ning Que gave a whisper, thinking with regret that if he could not cultivate on this dayst year, then was it easy to ascend this vast and tough mountain?


    "Stop wishful thinking. A lot of trouble is still lying in front of you on the mountain road," the deacon reminded.


    Ning Queughed, pointing at Wang Ying. "That little child depends on you, I¡¯ve to go now."


    After finishing thest word, he waved to the four acquaintances who had witnessed his ascension, and continued to move forward again, putting his hands on his back and humming a ditty.


    "Arrogant. Actually, isn¡¯t he also a child?" A steward shook his head and emotionally said, gazing at the figure at the top of the road, "The guy¡¯s unexpectedly able to cultivate, he doesn¡¯t know what kind of luck he has met."


    One of the stewards said with a smile, "Thinking of his tragic situation where he tried to go upstairs every dayst year, I considered that if a child like him, who can endure such hardship, cannot cultivate, then we can say Haotian is so unfair."


    At this moment, Wang Ying awakened after a simple cure. Hey on the stretcher looking at that fuzzy figure, and then subconsciously rubbed his eyes, but he was still unable to believe what he saw after getting a better view.


    Wang Ying murmured in shock, watching the disappearing figure, "Ning Que? How can this be? How did hee up here? He... he... why is he still humming?"


    In front of the mountain road came a children¡¯s song about the frontier fortress that was arranged by Ning Que. His voice was very hoarse, but very powerful, with an obstinate sense of strength like that of life.


    "I have a knife, yeah, cutting off all the grass on the mountains, ah...


    I have two knives, yeah, cutting off the enemies¡¯ heads, ah...


    I have three knives, yeah, cutting off all bad things, ah...


    I hacked you with one knife, ah...


    I hacked you with two knives, ah...


    I hacked you with each knife, ah..."

 Chapter 154: A Sheet of Paper, A Scroll of Calligraphy, Two Crashes of Thunder

    Chapter 154: A Sheet of Paper, A Scroll of Calligraphy, Two Crashes of Thunder


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Thousands years before the Tang kingdom was established, seventeen kingdoms were united and tried to annihte Tang, while Haotian Taoism had been secretely watching this happening. Nevertheless, the attempt failed disastrously. Since the sweeping defeat, the Tang kingdom had established its dominant and monarchy status, and even Haotian Taoism, the representative of divine salvation illuminating every corner of the world, had to turn a blind eye at this and bitterly swallow the reality.


    Up to date, Haotian Taoism was still popr and widespread in Tang, yet it didn¡¯t mean that West-Hill Divine Temple was as of holy and uttermost importance in Tang as it was in other kingdoms. In the eyes of Tang people, the South School of Haotian Taoism was the solely recognized religious institution that was entitled to preach and convey divine will, which was yet a deformed product born from the thousands-years-ago war.


    Nominally, the South School of Haotian Taoism of Tang was one of the subordinate sect of Haotian Taoism, and was governed directly by West-Hill Divine Temple. From Divine Priests who governed the South School to high-ranking Taoists, all practiced and cultivated Haotian Taoism. Their instructors and professors were originated from southwest sect. As a matter of fact, the South School of Haotian Taoism was more considered as part of Tang kingdom, and proved itself by being consistently in line with Tang, in terms of either emotional support or political stance. Should any disagreement between Tang and the Divine Temple ured, theTaoists of South School would have always taken a firm stand with Tang kingdom.


    Based on such reason, some old conservative Taoists in West-Hill Divine Temple persistently argued that those form the South School were unforgivable traitors and were worse than the Devil¡¯s Doctrine; And out of the same reason, Tang remained its steadfast trust in the South School of Haotian Taoism.


    Li Qingshan, the present Divine Priest of South School, was officially nominated by His Highness as the Master of Nation while governing Devine Pivot Department at the same time. The Devine Pivot Department was a ce where all cultivators in Tang and rted issues were governed and handled. Hence, Li Qingshan¡¯s duties revealed the real rtionship between Tang and the South School.


    The headquarter of the South School of Haotian Taoism was at the southern gate instead of the Vermilion Bird South Gate of Chang¡¯an, and right outside of the southern gate of the Royal Pce.


    The ck and white main Taoist temple was set off by lines of emerald green trees, looking faraway at the Royal Pce, which constituted a picturesque view. Compared with the Royal Pce, the temple was appearing tranquil and unassuming, less an air of solemn and gravity.


    In a side room deep down the temple, two Taoists were sitting on the far end of a dark wood floor, among whom one was d in a somber Taoist frock, girdled with a yellow waistband awarded by His Majesty. The man, looking like someone important, was the Master of Nation, Li Qingshan.


    Sitting opposite of him was a gangly and elderly man, d in scruffy clothes with a pair of greasy sleeves whichplemented well his two narrow beady eyes. In front of the respectable Master of Nation, the old priest was gazing at somewhere else, sitting cross-legged, and little respect could be felt from him.


    Li Qingshan looked reflectively at a teacup on table, and said, "The Second Floor of the Academy is opening today."


    "Hm." replied the old priest casually.


    Sensing something unusual, Li Qingshan lifted his head up, and saw that the old priest was ogling at an attractive middle-aged woman who was standing at the outside hallway and returning back a sheepish smile.


    Beholding this scene by his very eyes, Li Qingshan grimaced bitterly, and said "Older brother, you made an oath when you entered into talisman dering you would pursue the cause of pure Yang and restrain yourself from sex scandals. Why bother lingering in brothels every night, and pretending you are some hooligan?"


    This ogling old Taoist, Yan Se, was the sole Divine Talisman Master of South School of Haotian Taoism, shook his head disapprovingly upon hearing what Li Qingshan said, and refuted sincerely while stroking his wisps of his goatee. "What you said was not quite correct. When I was young I had sworn that extreme oath in order to enter the Talisman Taoism, and I have regretted it for half of my life. Although I don¡¯t dare to break my oath to have some romantic affairs, I suppose some ogling look would do little harm to my Taoism?"


    Li Qingshan smiled helplessly, thinking there was no way he could help this brother who though ranked high in Taoism yet preferred to hang out with women and stay in bustling life. Then he adopted a rather stern tone, and continued "After being enrolled in the Second Floor, Prince Long Qing will fall into the scope of responsibility of back mountain of the Academy, which means less duty for us then."


    Hearing the words, Yan Se finally became serious, perused a moment and replied, "Though he was young, thed now was the No.2 in Judicial Department. I bet he had a few strings to pull in the Divine Pce, so we¡¯d better stay out of this."


    The status of South School of Haotian Taoism was a bit vague andplex, as it ought to put interests of Tang first, and yet was traditionally a sub-sect from West-Hill, meantime inherited some historical grievances. With regard to Prince Long Qing who was generally considered as their key God¡¯s son of West-Hill, it was tricky to attend to even for Li Qingshan, if he shed the sacred amour of Master of Nation.


    Being the leader and Minister of Offerings of South School, they were perfectly aware of the unfathomable depth of the main altar of South School, therefore it had never urred to them that Prince Long Qing could not enter the Second Floor.


    "Inparison with West-Hill that had owned thousands years of umtion, our South School was terribly weak. To my knowledge, their strength was bottomless, and any junior could cause a trouble for us ... "


    Li Qingshan looked at Yan Se with a grave countenance, and said, "Brother Gong Sun has been practicing hard the union of talisman and array, and his energy and health are overly consumed. No one knows when he would restore to his normal state. Now the South School has merely one Divine Talisman Master, which is you, and yet you own none apprentice . I have absolutely no idea how we should tackle future problems."


    Cultivators who entered the Knowing Destiny State were generally called the Grand Cultivator, and talisman masters who entered the upper Knowing Destiny State were known as the Divine Talisman Master, which indicated that they possessed the power as mighty as God.


    In amon battle, talisman masters were no better than Grand Cultivators in terms of means, yet they were conducive to practicing cultivation, fortifying troops, arranging arrays and ranks, even making clouds and bringing down rain.


    However, the talisman was the most obscure discipline of all cultivations, and was extremely particr about aptitude and insight of one. This aptitude and insight was elusive and hard to be exined innguage, and only could beprehended through natural sensitivity to the talisman. Therefore, this was more like an innate talent, which could not be learned and practiced by sheer efforts.


    Rumor had it that Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword of South Jin kingdom, had once tempted to cultivate talisman, and yet even a well-known talented man like him could not make a progress on it.


    As a result, for all schools and kingdoms, there¡¯s no doubt that talisman masters were of uttermost important and valuable. It went even further that kingdoms and schools deprived of talisman masters were said small and unrecognized.


    There were no more than ten talisman masters in Tang kingdom, and most of them were immersed in letters and calligraphy, and lived a retired life, while no more than three travelled around the world. West-Hill Divine Pce imed to possess thergest number of high-ranking cultivators, yet a few talisman masters could be found.


    Yan Se in the South School of Haotian Taoism was one of a few talisman masters. Yan Se felt quite mncholy to think that there would be no talisman master in South School once he died, and swigged all the tea on table.


    Putting down the teacup, he raised his eyes up to sky, sighed, "The Academy appeared not to be involved with world affairs, yet functioned as a counterbnce to everything in the world. You got to respect them for their confidence. To my knowledge, there were three old pals in it."


    Old pals, in his words, referred to those respectable talisman masters.


    Li Qingshan frowned and said, "I heard that one talisman master was in charge of the opening Second Floor today. Have you found out who is it?"


    "Should be Huang He."


    Yan Se replied, "These years of retirement in the Academy didn¡¯t seem to help him dispense with his restless heart."


    "I heard that Prince Long Qing got defeated in Victory House a few day ago."


    Li Qingshan suddenly changed the subject, and said inly, "We belonged to one school, and he was their key student. As the Priest of the South Gate, I know i shouldn¡¯t gloat about it, and yet I just couldn¡¯t refrain my joys, and it was not easy to hold it every time upon the mention of this incident."


    "West-Hill Divine Pce had suggested Prince Long Qing should take the throne of Yan kingdom. That day when princess saw off the Yan prince was the opportunity that both Priest Moli and Prince Long Qing would not like to miss. They availed themselves of it, and let alone Zeng Jing was one of thepany."


    He turned to Yan Se, saying, "Only to find he got defeated on rhetoric which he was most skilled at."


    Yan Se took a mental notice of Zeng Jing, sighed and continued, "The Empress and princess were really ipatible like fire and water, weren¡¯t they? His Majesty was at his prime time, wouldn¡¯t it be too early for them to snatch the throne?"


    "The analogy of fire and water was a bit exaggerated. Since the Imperial Astronomer incident, I found that Her Majesty kept silent, while princess was too young to behave with discretion." Li Qingshan shook his head and continued, "but this had nothing to do with us."


    "They were all adored by His Majesty. Her Majesty got prince and Xia Hou at her back, while princess, Li Yu, was spoken highly among younger generation. Even though Li Yi was skilled at singing and dancing, her entourage was rather young and inexperienced,cking certain gravity."


    Nodding slightly, Li Qingshan said, "You are right. I heard that the student who defeated Prince Long Qing at Victory House was an acquaintance of princess. However, rumor had it that he was not qualified of cultivating."


    On hearing Ning Que, Yan Se frowned slightly, holding an empty cup aloft for a moment, then said softly, "I¡¯ve heard him, even run a check on him. He doesn¡¯t possess the potential to cultivate, otherwise I¡¯d choose him as my apprentice."


    Li Qingshan¡¯s countenance turned stern and grave all at once.


    As the leader of the South School of Haotian Taoism, he was fully aware of the difficulty of picking out an apprentice for talisman master, and his old brother was considerably cautious about his apprentice.


    Sensing a look of survey, Yan Se knew what was going on in his younger brother¡¯s head, then sighed and fetched a wad of paper and unfolded it on the table. It was from the ount book of House of Red Sleeves, and was full of creases. Yan Se valued it very much, as he carried it for months, yet no damage could be seen.


    "This was a note he scribbled down after drunk, without any rules of calligraphy, like a pile of branches, yet showing an immense strength, casual yet infusing his intent on very character, beyond the bounds of calligraphy. And I¡¯ve never seen such a handwriting."


    A pause followed, Yan Se continued, "It¡¯s a shame that not an inkling of primordial Qi could be felt."


    ...


    ...


    "Now we are living in a dilemma, and much more strength is required. You and I are the only cultivators from South School, meantime had some weights in Divine Pce. If you mean what you said and have considered Ning Que as your apprentice, then you know how it was crucial for us and for the South School."


    The master of nation Li Qingshan looked at Yan Se gravely, said in a low voice, "You¡¯ve got to make sure again whether he could cultivate or not."


    Yan Se gazed outside at azure sky and fluffy clouds, and shook his head slowly, "No need for another check. Thed was qualified bodily for talisman though, he couldn¡¯t cultivate. A shame indeed."


    Frowning, Li Qingshan said, "This was a quite serious matter, and one more check is a must."


    "The military checked, Xiao Lv did, the instructors in Academy did, your apprentice did too, all were in agreement that he was not capable of cultivating."


    Perusing at him, Yan Se paused and said, "In fact, I was not resigned to epting this, and went and checked myself. The result was the same."


    No one knew that the simple exnation revealed how much remorse the old Taoist had.


    A good moment passed before Li Qingshan giving a flick of his sleeves, saying, "One morest check, please."


    ...


    ...


    A young Taoist, with a yellow oil-paper umbre under his armpit, knelt down submissively, put aside the umbre, and pulled out a volume of files from Imperial Center Administration, lowered his head and reported in a calm voice, "Last summer a report suggested there was a cultivator in a gamble house, and investigation showed it was Ning Que."


    A dead silence filled the room. Yan Se¡¯s goatee twitched fervently, and he smacked a table hard like a mad tiger, growled, "Imanded you to confirm that night, and what did you say then?"


    "Master uncle..."


    The young man responded confoundedly, "The investigation made that night suggested that Ning Que was indeed incapable of cultivating, with none Qi orifices getting through."


    "Since your master uncle had asked for this matter, andtter reports had been written in Imperial Center Administration. Why didn¡¯t you tell your master uncle?"


    Li Qingshan stared coldly at his apprentice.


    The young man exined in a low voice, "Thed¡¯s identity was a bit special, so ..."


    "What¡¯s special about him?"


    "Ning Que seemed to be acquainted with Qi IV."


    "And?"


    "Qi IV was one of Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s men."


    "And?"


    "Chao Xiaoshu ... was with his majesty."


    The young man looked up at his master and master uncle, continued in a low voice, "If Ning Que was his majesty¡¯s secret agent, then the Imperial Center Administration must stay silent."


    Yan Se seemed unheard of his words, and merely goggled at those files on table. His pale lips were tremulous, murmuring, "Thatd now is able to cultivate? How could it be possible? His Qi orifices didn¡¯t get through at that time..."


    Li Qingshan saw veins were popped out vividly in his older brother¡¯s right hand, slightly trembling, bethought that he certainly couldn¡¯t restrain his excitement.


    "Senior Brother."


    "Yes."


    The two top shots of the South School of Haotian Taoism stared at one another, seeing determination in each other¡¯s eyes, and nodded.


    Li Qingshan said in a low voice, "As long as Ning Que was confirmed to be qualified as your apprentice, no matter whether he was a secret agent or secretly served the princess, we will bring him back for you to be your apprentice."


    ...


    ...


    The door of Old Brush Pen Shop at Lin 47th Street was knocked over. The neighbors, who were initially trying to fight against the injustice, subconsciously maintained quiet as they saw the local government runners surrounded the shop and some official with an air of danger.


    The Master of Nation Li Qingshan with Yan Se broke into Old Brush Pen Shop, and Ning Que was not in sight. But they noticed a couple of calligraphies hung on the wall, with Ning Que"s name on them.


    "Nice calligraphy."


    Yan Semented in a concise manner, looking at Li Qingshan, "If I¡¯ve got six out of ten¡¯s confidence earlier on, now it has increased to eight. And if only I can see his eagerness towards calligraphy, then my confidence will be ten."


    Li Qingshan frowned and asked, "What sort of confidence?"


    "If I could see his eager towards calligraphy."


    Yan Se stared at his eyes, and said solemnly, "You got to trust him to me. I am confident that in ten years the South School of Haotian Taoism will have one more talisman master."


    Before walking out of the door, the respectable talisman master looked around the shabby shop and shoddy goods, asked rhetorically, "Who could have thought that a talented calligrapher hiding in this shabby and remote book shop?"


    Upon hearing his words, it urred to Li Qingshan, and suddenly turned around to peer at the two calligraphies hung on the wall, and his eyebrow frowned further.


    ...


    ...


    Outside of the imperial study of pce, an eunuch called Lu Ji made a bow, said, "Master of Nation, His Majesty and ministers were discussing Yan kingdom affairs. His Majesty bid us before assuming porridge that if Master of Nation would like to appreciate calligraphies, then do so as you wish, only not to mess up bookshelves."


    Hearing this, Li Qingshan opened the door of imperial study without a hesitation.


    ...


    ...


    Yan Se gazed at the unfolded calligraphy, and five characters "Bloom in the Opposite World" were written incisively and vividly. His pale face steadily grew delighted and admiring.


    Li Qingshan thought his face was stern and asked, "Senior brother, did you see his eagerness?"


    "The intent of writing of this was distinctively different from the one hung his shop, but I¡¯m sure they were all from the same person," Yan Se returned with a trembling voice, "as for eagerness ... thed was as greedy as a fox that was staring at a chicken and hadn¡¯t had a taste of it for years."


    The young Taoist nced sideways, asked confusedly, "I had seen a copy of this at Old Chancellor¡¯s mansion. And Old Chancellormented that these five characters were filled with vigor and vitality, without the slightest sign of void and lethargy, and hard to be found anywhere else. Then, how could you discern eagerness?"


    "You know nothing!" Yan Se said reproachfully, "How could the characters show vigor if he was not eager to write down?"


    The young Taoist retreated a few steps back.


    Li Qingshan stared at Yan Se¡¯s eyes, asked abruptly, "Ten?"


    Yan Se evaded his eyes, said forcefully, "Ten!"


    Li Qingshan pped his sleeves,ughed loudly, and then leaves in the imperial garden whirled and fluttered .


    Yan Se stroked his goatee, and seemed intoxicated and smiled. Then, papers and brush pens in the imperial study were all trembled.


    "Find him."


    "He wasn¡¯t at home."


    "He¡¯s a student of the Academy, and he was sure at the Academy since the Second floor opened today."


    "He cannot cultivate, and what¡¯s the opening of the Second Floor in it for him?"


    "The problem is now he can, and we are desperate to look for him now."


    "You got a point."


    "You or me?"


    "If I go, it¡¯ll attract too much attention. And it wouldn¡¯t be an advantage if the Academy finds out what he¡¯s capable of."


    "Then I¡¯ll go."


    The Master of Nation and Minister of Offerings were in height of talking, but the young Taoist was hesitant whether to point out now while the two were so excited. Whether in South School or at Imperial Center Administration, his duty was to y a supplementary role for masters to find out what they miss, so even though he was aware that he had been reprimanded a couple times and that what he was going say would inevitably quench their excitement, he was left no choice but to spit out.


    "Master and master uncle, since Ning Que was qualified to cultivate, he would definitely try and enter the Second Floor ... what if he was admitted, what shall we do then?"


    Li Qingshan and Yan Se stiffened and shudder suddenly, thinking of one thing a momentter, breathed again with lingering fear.


    Li Qingshan re at the young Taoist usingly, snarled, "You idiot, even if he could cultivate, how could he beat Prince Long Qing? No way he could enter the Second Floor!"


    Yan Se shook his head, said, "I was concerned earlier about the troublesome West-Hill God son. Now I should thank him for extinguishing Ning Que¡¯s hope to enter the Second Floor."


    Li Qingshan produced a token from his yellow waistband, and handed it to Yan Se, said solemnly, "Do not let the Academy find out. Except the Academy, you can do whatever you like and use our South School¡¯s prestige if stopped by anyone."


    Receiving the token, Yan Se look at him amusingly, "Do whatever I wish?"


    "Whatever you wish."


    "Including Mo Li and Prince Long Qing?"


    "Sure."


    Grimacing bitterly, the young Taoist cut in untimely, "Master, Master Uncle, the two were sent to Chang¡¯an from West-Hill Divine Pce. It was already inappropriate for us not to cooperate with them, if go against them, I¡¯m afraid it would go too far."


    "Why it would go too far?"


    Yan Se shoot him an irritated nce, and snarled with his shattered and smelly robes vehemently shaking, "I¡¯ve lived 80 years to find an apprentice! I¡¯ll see who dare to stop me!"


    Li Qingshan said coldly, "Old brother, you¡¯ve got to bring him back. Our South School of Haotian Taoism¡¯s sessor all count on him. If anyone should stop you, kill them all."


    Outside the imperial study, the eunuch Lu Ji strained his ears to eavesdrop their heated discussion. Put more precisely, it wasn¡¯t actually eavesdropping, as for those high-ranking cultivators, any movement couldn¡¯t evade them, they just didn¡¯t care.


    Lu Ji nced at the closed door of imperial study, then at the direction of Pce of Counsel, and bethought that thed¡¯s identity was about to be disclosed. It was thest straw both for General Xu or himself.


    Setting his mind, Lu Ji couldn¡¯t care more and tottered on his frail legs towards Pce of Counsel, thinking to himself that he ought to beat master of nation to tell His Majesty. As for how to phrase this in front of His Majesty ...


    "Congrattions His Majesty!"


    "The calligrapher who wrote Bloom in the Opposite World is finally found out."


    "His ... his name is Ning Que."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que was not aware that Master of Nation and a talisman master were crying to make him as their apprentice with an intent to killing whoever stopped them, and saw him as their only hope to solve the dilemma where South School of Haotian Taoism had no sessor.


    Nor was Ning Que aware that his calligraphy he wrotest year at imperial study was copied many times and hung at many ministers¡¯ mansions and was going to surface again. A momentter, His Majesty would likely to hold his hands tightly with tears filled in his sockets, and told him that it took so much efforts to find him, followed by awarding him acres ofnd and a number of maidservants.


    Ning Que had the slightest clue of all these things. He was still struggling to climb the trail of back mountain, and all he knew was that it¡¯s getting harder, and that there was a wooden bridge at the end of trail, and that several climbers were awaiting at the other side of the bridge.


    The climbers were leaning against either trees or bridge head, all gloomy and weary. One of them looked at the seemingly endless trail, and slowly sat down disappointedly, his face pale and desperate.


    He was Xie Chengyun.

 Chapter 155: The Silver Road and the Wooden Door, into the Mist

    Chapter 155: The Silver Road and the Wooden Door, into the Mist


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The Fus engraved on the stone by the shore made the surroundings all the way into the waterfall and wild sea filled with thousands of needles and leaves, which caused great damages to Ning Que¡¯s physical and mental health. In this kind of simtive confrontation with this nature, the tougher he behaved, the more terrifying power would be shown by those engraved Fus. Although he had not been beaten up till now, he was extremely weak at the moment.


    He raised his arm to wipe the bloodstain at the corner of his lip. Then he walked over to the bridge and went through it. All of a sudden, the surrounding pressure, which was invisible yet existed everywhere, disappeared. He turned around and looked at the long mountain road. Knowing that he had finally passed the first level, he sighed with his heart still fluttering with fear.


    Two young cultivators were sitting beside the mountain road at the end of the bridge, who looked pale, and even a little desperate. While they heard the sound of Ning Que¡¯s footsteps, they did not look up at him as if the world had been meaningless for them.


    Ning Que walked towards them and said seriously while looking at them, "You should give up. It is not a shame."


    He did not stop when he passed Xie Chengyun. Nor did he have a conversation with the talented student, who was loved by all people in the Academy.


    Xie Chengyun¡¯s gaze was lifted up from the pair of feet on the mountain road. Then he looked towards the shadow, with which he felt familiar with confusion.


    Ning Que did know that the following mountain road was still weird as the three climbers, including Xie Chengyun, sat at the end of the bridge desperately and leaned on the tree. But he did not stop to observe or do anything else. Instead, he directly went up.


    The end of the mountain road, full of twists and turns, could not be seen. He walked silently and slowly while looking down, along the bluestone road which divided the wood and flowers in half. He turned several corners, passed by severalkes, and crossed over several flower fields. After climbing over a steep cliff, the sloping hill suddenly slipped downwards. He continued to walk through several fields, went by severalkes and made several turns.


    Then he looked up and saw the wooden bridge, the tree at the bridgehead, and the three lonesome climbers.


    ...


    ...


    While the mountain road forward obviously led to the direction of going up the mountain, he finally turned back to the ce where he started climbing. It was like the legendary ghost wall in forests to some degree. There came cold wind from the forests at the bridgehead and the day was getting darker, creating a gloomy atmosphere.


    Ning Que was not shocked or horrified, judging from his expressions. He just hesitated for a while as he was looking at the tree and the people under the tree at the end of the bridge. Then he turned around and stared at that mountain road, which he had climbed for once, and closed his eyes silently.


    After seeing the picture of the bridgehead before, he had guessed that the road might bring people back.


    The reason was very simple. Even if there was an abyss or beasts eating souls ahead, which might stop the three climbers, including Xie Chengyun, from continuing climbing, it was unreasonable that all three just gave up at the end of the bridge. And the look on their faces was not as tragic as they had been torched. It was more like a vainly lost futility.


    So why would the mountain road bring people back to the original ce? This was the problem that Ning Que now needed to figure out. Closing his eyes, he silently stood under the mountain road behind the bridge, with his hands reaching outside his sleeves to gently feel the wind.


    ...


    ...


    The seemingly forward mountain road could only lead people back to the original ce. If the secrets could not be discovered, then climbers could only try over and over again and then desperately turned back.


    The three morose climbers at the end of the bridge eventually gave up in such a dull and desperate cycle. They showed a sympathetic yet irony look as they saw Ning Que, a fellow traveler, stand at the entrance of the mountain road and think. They thought he wouldter try to go up the mountain road again, and then confusedly turn back like them.


    There was no sympathy orpassion on the face of Xie Chengyun. Ning Que was not appalled by this magical mountain road. However, when Xie saw clearly the expression of Ning Que when he came back from the mountain road, he was suddenly unable to speak in astonishment.


    After the Academy entry exam, Xie Chengyun had been regarding Ning Que as his strongest opponent in those days when they were trying to climb the old library. However, after that semester exam, he confirmed that he had overrated thed from the border town. Ning Que was absentminded by students in the Academy afterward. Although Xie Chengyun did not join them, he had indeed forgotten the previous opponent.


    After the Second floor of the Academy opened, his goal was to surpass Prince Long Qing. And he had imagined there would be a lot of other strong opponents in the exams. But he just did not think of Ning Que as he thought he had defeated Ning Que, to whom he need not pay much attention. Why bother to distract by someone who had lost the game before?


    Until today, he was shocked the moment he saw Ning Que go up and down from the mountain road. He realized that he had never defeated the opponent, nor did he clearly know him.


    As he had experienced in person, Xie Chengyun knew exactly how it felt to climb the mountain. At this moment, he naturally understood a man who could pass through the mountain road would not give up an exam for sickness. He made a sadder inference in his mind. The reason why Ning Que had not made any exnation or challenged him again was that Ning Que did not treat him as an opponent, not for a guilty conscience.


    Looking at Ning Que, Xie Chengyun struggled to stand on his feet leaning against the tree, and said after a moment of hesitation, "The mountain road is fake. The primordial Qi is flowing naturally. You cannot find a passage."


    Ning Que opened his eyes without turning around or replying. He was just staring at this mountain road ahead.


    He had read too many cultivation books in the old library during the year. Others, Xie Chengyun or anyone else, could hardly catch up with him regarding horizons. He just walked around this mysterious mountain road for a while, then he could judge that the hill was covered with an array tactical, which closely integrated with the cliff stone along the mountain road. It was so strong because of harmony.


    Unfortunately, array tactics and Talisman Taoism were the mostplicated and difficult to learn in cultivation. Even Chen Pipiif did not know much, let alone Ning Que, who had just read some books and gotten a basic knowledge of array tactics. He definitely could not break an array tactical.


    Ning Que thought for a while, then raised his hands to the chest and made a mind bridge with his fingertips. He output Psyche Power through the Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi, feeling the changing of Qi of Heaven and Earth along the mountain road. Then he slowly went up.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que again appeared on the road after a time not knowing how long.


    He still did not have any expressions. After back to the bridge, he turned around to keep staring at that diagonally uphill road.


    This time he focused on feeling the changing of the Qi of Heaven and Earth on the mountain road and tried to find a passage outside the array tactical. However, he found that the array tactical in the mountain was really amazing. When climbers tried to use their Psyche Power to control the Qi of Heaven and Earth and to sense the channels of the array tactical, the Qi of Heaven and Earth that was mobilized by the climbers would automatically make the array tactical change subtlely once it encountered the array tactical. These seemingly subtle changes were like cliffs for climbers.


    What more amazing was that the more powerful climbers¡¯ Psyche Power was, the richer Qi of Heaven and Earth that could be manipted would be. Once it hit the array tactical, the changing of the Qi of Heaven and Earth which covered the real mountain road would be more violent, directly destroying the climbers who just found those channels.


    This meant, the stronger Psyche Power of people who wanted to walk through the road was, the richer Qi of Heaven and Earth that could be controlled would be, which made it easier to discover the real mountain road. At the same time, it would elerate the changing of the array tactical, recovering the real mountain road.


    If a climber wanted to pass through this mountain road that was covered by the array tactical, there were only three ways: Firstly, you should be fast enough to turn into a sh and fly through it before the array tactical was triggered when you discovered the real mountain road. Secondly, if you were in a high state, you did not need to mobilize the Qi of Heaven and Earth to touch the Perception State. You just needed to use your psyche for a random look. Then you could break the array tactical and see the flow of primordial Qi on the mountain road and then find that road. Thirdly, you had strong Psyche Power to control the Qi of Heaven and Earth to sense the passages in the array tactical urately. But at the same time, you also needed to ensure that the Qi of Heaven and Earth would not be felt by the array tactical, thus preventing it from changing.


    There definitely were cultivators who were faster than the triggering rate of the array tactical, like those legendary sages who had entered the No Rules state. But apparently, Ning Que was not one of them. There definitely were cultivators who were able to see through the array tactical, too, such as Prince Long Qing who had already entered the fog halfway up the mountain. But apparently, Ning Que was not one of them, either.


    For Ning Que and those desperately confused cultivators at the bridgehead, in fact, they could only choose the third way. But it was nearly impossible under careful analysis.


    The changing of the primordial Qi, which constituted the array tactical on the mountain road, was like abyrinth made from things that softer than cream. Like blind people who could only touch those cream walls with their hands very carefully, the climbers had to find the passage in this way without changing the shape of the cream wall. Once it was changed, thebyrinth would change, too.


    To do all this, it was necessary for the blind man to have the gentlest hands in the world, which could gently catch the forest wind without being noticed by the wind, could take the clothes of a woman sleeping in the bed off without waking her up, and could brush through an ink stone without being stained.


    For a cultivator, this pair of gentle hands was the Qi of Heaven and Earth mobilized by their Psyche Power.


    They must ensure that the Qi of Heaven and Earth mobilized was precise and gentle enough to control fine needles to embroider flowers, allow flowers to stick to bees and allow bees to dance on needles. Only in this way could they achieve what they want.


    However, no cultivator in the world would be so bored to use the strong Psyche Power trained through meditation to forcefully turn the Qi of Heaven and Earth mobilized weak and gentle, and then spend countless hours to practice this useless skill for cultivation.


    "The man whoys the array tactical must be an old and abnormal man."


    Looking at the mountain road ahead, Ning Que gave a judgment to the man in the Academy who set the array tactical, which he thought was urate, in his mind. Then he put his hands into his clothes, touching the stack of extremely cool stuff, and silently thought, "But I seem to be abnormal, too."


    ...


    ...


    As previously on the mountain road at the other side of the bridge, when he was staring at the sky with his eyes wet and signing, the hardship he had gone through all these years seemed to turn into gift given by the God. A normal cultivator had no way to get through the mountain road in the third way, but Ning Que might give it a try. Although it might not necessarily work out, at least there was a wonderful possibility.


    Ning Que kept meditating as long as he had time, whether while he was eating, sleeping, staring nkly or writing, from a very young age. As all his acupoints of Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi were blocked, the Psyche Power obtained by meditation had been stored in Ning Que¡¯s mind, which had grown in


    Only an idiot would deliberately change the Qi of Heaven and Earth which he could mobilize weak and gentle with such strong Psyche Power. Ning Que did not want to, either. However, he was different from other cultivators as he was unable to cultivate at all. His fate was changed by coincidence and finally only ten acupoints of the Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow were opened in his body. The Qi of Heaven and Earth he could sense was extremely limited.


    As it was limited, it was gentle.


    In fact, Ning Que had been practicing these bored and abnormal skills for thest half year in Lin 47th Street, controlling the Qi of Heaven and Earth to finish some tiny and useless tasks. As the Qi of Heaven and Earth which he could control was extremely limited, he knew it was very difficult to win in battles. Therefore, he wanted to do it more subtly.


    Thed, who had finally entered the cultivation world, kept meditation and sensing the Qi of Heaven and Earth in his room under the candlelight and in the curious sight of Sangsang. He tried to control leaves, tubs, candlesticks, ck pens, papers and inkstones, the toilet and anything.


    Up to now, he was still not able to find his Natal Item and stuck in the No Doubts State. He still could not control the flying swords like those Sword Masters, who invisibly killed people.


    But he was able to control hundreds of fallen leaves under the tree in the courtyard to fly to the hearth and form a hill. He could control the tub to move from one side of the bed to the other side like a fat doll, which made Sangsang exciting and apuse. He could control the writing brush to slowly fall into the ink stone and then write on the paper like a child who just began to learn.


    Ning Que trained as hard as he was studying to kill beasts and people in Min Mountain. He practiced to control the Qi of Heaven and Earth, making leaves flying in all directions in the yard, water for washing feet splitting all over the room, and ink stains everywhere. These all proved his hard work, including the smell from the falling toilet, and the sweat of Sangsang when she was cleaning up the mess.


    It was hard and it was indeed penance. Although this method was very clumsy, hard work made up forck of intelligence. Despite it was perverted, most people simply could not do it.


    Therefore, even the God was touched.


    ...


    ...


    Xie Chengyun escorted the tree, looking at Ning Que under the mountain, and bitterly said, "Ning Que, I don¡¯t know why you have been hiding your strength. Maybe you look down upon me, but I can see you are just in the No Doubts State, like me."


    "Only cultivators in the Seethrough state can master the rule of the ups and downs of the Qi of Heaven and Earth. You won¡¯t go through this mountain unless a miracle urs."


    "Mistress Jian once told me that the Academy was a ce for creating miracles before I was admitted in."


    Ning Que took a thinyer of silver foil out from his chest, rubbing them into numerous pieces, and then went ahead. The mountain wind blew from the valley under the bridge, whistling in the hills. It blew those thin and light silver-foil pieces to the surroundings, like thousands of silver leaves, which then quietly fell on the mountain road.


    "It is a miracle that I am still alive. So I will turn everyday I live into a miracle."


    After saying these words, Ning Que moved forward while looking at the clear silver road in the mind sea.


    He seemed confident when he marched on the road, and then his movements became weird and clumsy.


    He lowered his body and crouched down very slowly with the help of the tree and then carefully moved two steps forward.


    Then he hurled his right hand into the cliff and struggled to turn right and take another step forward.


    ...


    ...


    People in the Academy were looking at the sloping mountain road in the twilight. All of a sudden, someone eximed. "See! it is Ning Que!"


    Somebody mocked and said, "What is he doing? He is lifting his leg while lying on the ground. Is he drilling a dog hole?"


    Slightly waving his fan, Zhong Dajun sneered and said, "He is actually good at this kind of things, such as drilling a dog hole to escape."


    Ning Que was thest to climb the mountain, and he held for such a long time, which was beyond most people¡¯s expectations, especially those ssmates who thought they were familiar with him. Besides shock, there were emotions of envy and hatred.


    Chang Zhengming slightly frowned his eyebrows while he looked at Ning Que, who was struggling to go ahead with ridiculous actions. He suddenly remembered his conversation with Ning Quest year in the Academy and muttered to himself, "I do not sure how long he can stay."


    "He is nothing more than a boorish fellow." Zhong Dajun snapped his fan with a sound of "pia" and resentfully said.


    Situ Yn turned around and nced at him, then coldly looking around the ssmates wearingplicated expressions, and mockingly said, "He has passed the six winners of the course of magic skills and justifiably be the first in the Academy. Aren¡¯t you now still convinced?


    All students were speechless.


    ...


    ...


    On the sloping mountain road, Ning Que¡¯s Psyche Power was scattered out of his body to mobilize the thin Qi of Heaven and Earth, sensing those pieces of silver foil on the mountain road, and then to find the gentlest passage of the array tactical with those silver-foil pieces.


    Ning Que had not been able to determine his own Natal Item. But there was no doubt that silver, apart from Sangsang, could best resonate with his Psyche Power for the time being in the world. He had not tried gold yet as he needed official certificates to exchange gold.


    With the silver-foil pieces, he was struggling to move upwards as he crouched, stood up and inclined to climb difficultly and awkwardly on the quiet mountain road. However, at least he was not brought back to the bridge again this time.


    Xie Chengyun stood at the bridgehead and confusedly looked at the mountain road. He had no idea how Ning Que had surpassed himself and embarked on the way which he could not make through.


    Looking at the ridiculous figure on the mountain road, which was getting increasingly far away, he could not help but think of the fact that he could asionally see the deste and lonely figure, who had been forgotten for thest half year, in the meadow in the past six months when he took a walk by theke with Wucai. He remembered his pride after that exam, and the figure that disappeared in the corridor of rain.


    He clutched his right chest tightly and looked Ning Que, who was at the end of the mountain road, reconciledly shouting. "Ning Que, you cannot surpass Prince Long Qing as he has gone in the fog for a long time."


    Ning Que disappeared in the corner of the mountain road.


    Xie Chengyun stared at that ce nkly.


    A voice rang from the turn.


    "At least I have surpassed you."


    Xie Chengyun fell to sit under the tree, clutching his chest. A mouth of blood was spit out by him.


    ...


    ...


    In the peak fog.


    "Second Brother, Ning Que is almost into the fog."


    "Has he passed the Wooden Door?"


    "No."


    "It is difficult for him to pass the Wooden Door as only cultivators in the Seethrough state can remember the words on it. He cannot rely on luck."


    "Ning Que had been reading books in the old library for a whole year. Can¡¯t he remember?"


    "Words carved on stone are deeper than ink on paper. A world will be added as it deepens a degree. Therefore, he may not be able to remember it while he can remember books."


    "Ah... Second Brother, is there a back door there?"


    "Pippi."


    "Yes, Second Brother, I know I made a mistake."


    "How far has Prince Long Qing walked in the fog?"


    "He has gone through 4,102 stairs."


    "No rest?"


    "No."


    "Actually he came so quickly to the twelve years old. It seems that the old priests from West-Hill are indeed talented."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que walked through the twisting mountain road, picking up a thin piece of silver foil, which had flown to the farthest ce, beside his feet. Then he looked up and looked at the mountain road, which faintly disappeared into the fog. He could not tell the end.


    There was a Wooden Door in the fog.


    He came to the Wooden Door and saw a wooden board on it with three Chinese characters.


    "A gentleman is not... "


    Ning Que slightly frowned while looking at the nk space on the wooden board. He then glimpsed at the powder stone under the wooden board, guessing that he was asked to fill in the nk.


    What was the fourth character?


    Along the road not far from the Wooden Door, he saw a stone, on which four characters were written.


    "A gentleman is not a vessel."


    "So easy?"


    He shook his head in surprise and then walked back toward the Wooden Door. However, when he picked up the powder stone and tried to write the fourth character, he stunned to find out that he had forgotten the character.


    Words would be forgotten the moment pens were raised.


    His fingers, which were holding the powder stone, turned slightly stiff. He walked back to the stone engraved with the words, quietly watching the handwriting. He guessed what the Wooden Door was designed to test. Probably none else in the world would be more familiar with this situation than him.


    He had been fighting with the obscure books on the second floor of the old library for the whole year since he was recruited by the Academy.


    "Look at my great Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong."


    Ning Que chose some dead branches from the roadside and ced them in order ording to the fourth character on the stone. He then slowly closed his eyes, expressionlessly disintegrating his memory in his mind. Suddenly he opened his eyes and smiled like an idiot.


    "You¡¯re truly an idiot."


    After ming himself, he raised his right hand to reach out to the stone.


    ...


    ...


    In the peak fog.


    "Second Brother, Ning Que has passed through the Wooden Door."


    "How is that possible? How could he pass through the Wooden Door with his idiot Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong?"


    "He did not use that way."


    "How did he remember the word?"


    "He first tried to dig that stone out directly."


    "Idiot! The Le Stone is an integrated part of the mountain. How to dig?"


    "Ning Que found it impossible to dig it out... He pressed the palm of his hand directly on the stone and printed the words on his palm."


    "What?"


    "Then he came to the Wooden Door and copied the fourth character over from his palm."


    "... "


    A silence hung over the mountains and mist. Then someone said with emotion, "This approach is really... ingenious."


    "Second Brother, did you use this method when climbing the mountain?"


    "What is ingenious? This is opportunistic! Do I look so shameless?"


    "Would Ning Que be the first one to open the Wooden Door in this way in the Academy?"


    The Second Brother¡¯s voice sounded after a long period of silence.


    "No."


    "Well, who is the first?"


    "Eldest Brother."


    "Eldest Brother was enlightened when he was thirteen years old, entered the No Doubts State at thirty, and then went into the Seethrough and Knowing Destiny State directly. During this process, he had not been able to get in a state to open the Wooden Door for seventeen years."


    "So during that seventeen years, he used this method to get through the Wooden Door every time he went up or down the mountain."


    ...


    ...


    Picking up the powder stone and spreading out his left hand, Ning Que meticulously started writing on the wooden board while looking at the red prints in his palm. Although the handwriting in his palm was in the reverse direction, it was not a problem for him at all as he was good at calligraphy.


    He legibly wrote the character, which meant a vessel, down on the wooden board. The moment he finished writing, a ray of smoke appeared.


    Ning Que took a step back and saw that the four characters on the wooden board had turned into three characters again as thest character disappeared.


    With a sound, the Wooden Door slowly opened in front of him.


    The mountain road behind the Wooden Door was straight up to the fog among the mountains, which was steeper and constituted by stairs. He did not know how many stairs he should climb to get to the top.


    Ning Que should have gone directly to the road behind the Wooden Door, but he was too curious to turn around and look at the Le Stone. It was not surprising that the characters carved on the stone really changed, from "A gentleman is not a vessel" to "A gentleman is never confused".


    "I wonder what Prince Long Qing saw."


    He curiously thought and walked through the Wooden Door to climb the stairs, disappearing in the thick fog among the mountains.


    ...


    ...


    The Academy was covered by quietness. No birds were twittering, and none was speaking.


    A student turned slightly pale, looking at the mountains, and muttered. "Luck, it must be luck."


    Zhong Daojun held his fan tightly and stupidly said in a hoarse voice, "This guy... How many things has he hidden... He is too insidious."


    No one cared about them, including Situ Yn.


    All people in the Academy cast their sights on the mountain and the misty mountains.


    Although they could no longer see the student, they still looked over there.


    The student from the Academy was the second to walk into the fog hanging on the mountain.


    Some people even began to wonder if this guy could get to the top of the mountain before Prince Long Qing?

 Chapter 156: Breaking through the Barrier

    Chapter 156: Breaking through the Barrier


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Just as he walked into the mist on the mountainside, Ning Que heard the sudden rush of horses galloping as tirelessly as rainfall behind him!


    Along with the gallop, those fearful memories thaty deep in his heart all these years suddenly recaptured him, which then uncontrobly inundated him and upied his entire body in an instant, making it extremely stiff.


    He bit his tongue to shake off the fear with his extremely strong willpower, then slowly turned around to look at those behind him.


    The mountain path in the dense twilight had somehow disappeared, and even those clouds had gone elsewhere. What he saw was just a magnificent city standing between heaven and earth, its huge shadow cut off the official road to the north.


    On the road, ten cavalrymen in ck armor were galloping towards him as fiercely as thunder. The surface of the official road resonated with their approach, as all the travelers sought to make way for them.


    Ning Que hid behind the tables and chairs of a tea stall, staring nkly at those cavalrymen driving past. Suddenly, he noticed that he was much shorter than those horses and passengers on the road.


    He looked down to find that only a single small shoe on his foot, and he hadn¡¯t noticed till now that his left foot had been punctured by a stone and was bleeding.


    ...


    ...


    After leaving Chang¡¯an City, he went north all the way, walking along with the caravans in a daze. After being questioned several times by those curious people from the Tang Empire, he found it could put him in danger, and so quietly left the travelers under the cover of darkness one midnight.


    He did not meet any wild beasts in the wild, and he could pick up fruits to feed himself, though the hunger never really left him. By the time he came out of the woods, he had almost reached the Hebei Province. By then he had be sallow and emaciated, so he didn¡¯t have to worry about being recognized. On both sides of the road, as well as in the mountains, were hunger-ridden kids like him.


    The Wilderness suffered from a severe drought, and the Hebei Province suffered from the severe drought too. In the first year of the Tianqi era, the Great Tang Empire was struck by a rare natural disaster. The new emperor had to confront a tough test when ascending the throne. Rushing from Daze to Chang¡¯an city, His Majesty urgently arranged for relief supplies for the people in the disaster areas. Refugees from the Wilderness had entered the Hebei Province, and those from the Hebei Province were proceeding to the south. Those who set off first were luckily relieved by the imperial court, yet the remaining ones in the Hebei Province who stayed around the vast Min Mountain had to face a more severe test.


    Along the official road, both imperial officials and local government runners were counting the number of refugees in order to distribute porridge. More and more refugees were migrating from the north to the south. For the people at that time, the north was like the underworld, a horrifying world of disease and famine.


    While the rest were all moving to the south, Ning Que continued, in the opposite direction, to the Hebei Province. He roughly proceeded along the road at the foot of Min Mountain, where he soon encountered ill-intentioned thieves. He hid himself in the grass to avoid being spotted. While in the grass, he found several icy corpses spread out around him.


    In a small wooded region where almost all the bark had been stripped off, he was surrounded by a group of scrawny refugees. Judging from their clothes, Ning Que judged that they were from the north of the Yan Kingdom. They had naturally flown into the territory of the Tang Emperor, since the royals of the Yan Kingdom couldn¡¯t afford the relief work.


    "Unfortunately, it¡¯s only a little kid, weighing just a few pounds."


    Those starving refugees stared at the muddy little boy. The eyes of their chief glowed green, looking like the wolves that Ning Que was to be quite familiar withter. But this wolf was a skinny one, whose fur was heavily festered.


    "We do not have any strength now, you¡¯d better take off your clothes by yourself, and then jump into the pot."


    The chief put his finger into the mouth, as if he wanted to taste meat. He looked at the boy lifelessly and said, "Be careful when you jump, do not spill out too much water. In such a year, no one has the extra energy to chop firewood and boil water."


    Seven or eight starving refugees surrounding the little boy slowly nodded their heads. They were not much more than skeletons, barely being able to move.


    Ning Que looked at them and said, "You don¡¯t have strength, but I do."


    The chiefughed, which sounded like a cry. He pointed his withered fingers tremblingly at the little boy¡¯s face and said, "If you still have strength, why not escape?"


    Ning Que did not say anything again. He took out the chopper, which had apanied him along the way, from behind his waist. Concentrating all his power which he had umted by eating fruit, wild grass, as well as the handful of rice offered by well-meaning people, he jumped up and chopped down straight towards the nose of the chief.


    He was too young, too short and too weak to jump high enough. But these starving people in the woods had been short of food for too many days and had already used up all their power. They couldn¡¯t do much more than merely gaze at his chop.


    Puff! The boy missed his target. The chopper, with which he intended to chop off the nose of the chief, actually poked into the bone above the eye of his enemy. Because the chief was starved to a skinny skeleton, the frame of his skull was quite clear. Therefore, the scene of a chopper poking into his bone was clear and the sound produced was also clear. The rusty de of the chopper directly prated his eyeball and went deep into his brain.


    Without even a hum, the chief stiffly flopped to the ground like a piece of wood.


    Ning Qi walked ahead while gasping. He stamped down on the neck of the chief. Then he put forth his strength to pull out the chopper, along with which a burst of bluish yellow liquid soared into the air. It was not blood.


    He gazed at the wizened eyeball hanging on the chopper for a long time. Then he raised his head and turned his sight to those ghostly starving refugees around him, saying, "If you want to eat a man, then eat yourself, for I will not let you eat me. "


    ...


    ...


    The mist hovering around the mountainside behind the Academy became heavier and heavier, which even devoured thest trace of twilight from the outside world. The weird squawks of night birds, maybe crows or something more sinister, were heard from elsewhere in the woods.


    Ning Que was climbing uphill along the tilting Mountain Path. Each time he took a new step, his body would be stiff for a long time. It had been a long time since he entered the mist and he had ovee a thousand steps, yet still did not know how far it was from the top of the mountain.


    Looking closely, you could find his eyes were empty and unfocused. It seemed that he was not looking at the road under his feet, but something in the far distance. Something that had urred a long time ago.


    ...


    ...


    He went all the way to the north and entered the backnds of the Hebei Province along the Min Mountain. The field waspletely upied by starving refugees from the Wilderness and the north of the Yan Kingdom. However, because of the longsting drought, people began to exchange their children to eat. Yet, even so, the vast majority of those starving people had be corpses by the side of the road or food in the belly of the wild beasts of the Min Mountain. With their deaths, Ning Que¡¯s path through the mountains had be safer.


    Then one day, the long-expected rain fell from the sky. From the cers in the country, vigers crawled out and kneeled down in the rainwater, crying and fiercely kowtowing to show their thanks to the mercy of Haotian. Even more had no strength to show any emotion for the severe hunger.


    In the heavy rain, Ning Que sat under a small tree beside the mountain, nkly looking around, not knowing where to go.


    These days, many refugees had ventured into the vast Min Mountain, hoping to could find something to eat despite the numerous wild beasts. Yet Ning Que didn¡¯t follow the trend because he knew he was too weak at the moment to kill the horrible beasts in the mountain, though he still could kill faint refugees with his full strength.


    He bit at the beef jerky he had taken out and tore off a few strips of shredded meat. He then raised his head to take in a few mouthfuls of rainwater, which was chewed together with the meat and swallowed into his abdomen, without any expression of enjoyment. The never-ending torment over these days had changed the white and tender young boy from the General¡¯s Mansion into an extremely dirty and thin one. The skin of the little boy¡¯s lips was severely chapped, and blood leaked out from his teeth from time to time as he chewed the meat.


    The rain got less dense. He checked the chopper behind him and, picking up the stick beside him, he continued northward along the road at the foot of the mountain. He made sure he could escape into the Min Mountain at any time. Because he knew that the rainfall would help the others to revive, and if so, those adults who revived would be healthier than ever. They could be his enemies once more at any time.


    Piles of corpses could be found along the road ahead, which had already decayed and filled the air with the stench of rot once soaked in the rainwater. A few equally skinny wild dogs were squatting beside the dead and eating them. One was biting an arm with bare bones, struggling to drag it back and sometimes making muffled whines, while another was sitting on its back legs like what human beings did, striving to bite at a thin and rotten thigh which was held in its two front paws.


    On hearing Ning Que¡¯s footsteps, those wild dogs stopped eating and looked up vigntly. They stared at the little boy on the road, spurting out a low and terrifying scream. Two of them determined that the skinny little boy would not be a threat to them, so they even abandoned the unsavory rotten corpse and began approaching Ning Que.


    Supporting himself against the wooden stick in his hand, Ning Que took off the chopper from behind his waist, half-lowered his body, and showed his slightly swollen and bleeding teeth. He roared at the two wild dogs like a savage.


    Probably sensing the smell of blood on this little boy and being rmed by the sense of danger emanating from the boy, which was out of proportion to his tiny figure, those wild dogs retreated with a squeak and scattered around the pile of death, waiting for him to pass before continuing their eating.


    Induced by the decayed corpses beside the road, those house dogs that ought to have belonged to nursing homes had turned into wild dogs scrambling for rotten food. Ning Que had already be ustomed to scenes like this along the way and so numbly turned without any feeling. He decided to leave immediately, or else he would be another resident among this rotten corpses if he really tussled with them.


    Just as he was about to leave, he heard a very slight sound.


    He looked back at the corpses steeped in the rain to find nothing. So he was ready to leave again.


    Just at the moment he was about to leave for the second time, the very slight sound was heard again, and this time, it was quite clear.


    It was the sound of crying.


    He returned to the pile of corpses, yelling, screaming, and waving a wooden stick and his chopper, hoping those wild dogs could be frightened away. Then he chopped off a decayed thigh with the chopper and threw it far into the parched field that had been freshly soaked in water.


    Making several whines, the wild dogs ran to the rotten thigh and began fighting for it, temporarily ignoring him.


    Following the faint weeping from below the pile of corpses, Ning Que began to move aside the corpses from the top of the pile. He really didn¡¯t have much strength at the time, but fortunately, the dead had died of starvation and were already like walking skeletons before their death. What¡¯s more, most of their inner organs had dposed into water and vapor, so it was not so difficult to move them away.


    Everywhere he touched was moist and slippery, like the sludge that was served as food in Chang¡¯an City during the Spring Festival. Ning Que whipped the decayed meat off his hands and continued moving the corpses until he finally found the source of that faint weeping.


    He turned over a half-bent corpse in the field which was dressed in servant clothes, then saw a little baby soaked in rainwater and fluid from the dead bodies. The baby was pale and weak with its blue lips and eyes closed, and no one could imagine how she had survived and cried out.


    Rubbing off the rotten meat against his trousers, Ning Que carefully picked up the baby, looked at her for a long while and then broke the silence, "You do not want me to leave, so that¡¯s why you cry?"


    Holding the baby, he jumped off the pile of corpses and walked along the road to the distance. Those wild dogs, which had been staring at him with their green eyes for a long time, issued a delighted whine at the sight of him leaving. They ran back to the pile of carrion and, a momentter, there came the sounds of ripping and chewing.


    Without any warning, it began raining heavily again.


    Ning Que nced at the Min Mountain in the far distance and then looked down at the pale baby. He figured, "If you continue to be drenched in the rain like this, I¡¯m afraid you will never be able to cry again." So he intended to find something to shelter themselves from the rain. That was when he saw a ck umbre by the side of the road.


    The ck umbre was extremely old and quite dirty.


    ...


    ...


    The mountain path was still shrouded in the mist.


    Ning Que slightly lowered his head. Standing on the steep stone steps, he could not move forward.


    ...


    ...


    Whiz! A feathered arrow urately hit a gray rabbit.


    Ning Que rushed to the rabbit in a sh and delightfully picked it up. With both of his hands crossed, he directly twisted the neck of the rabbit and threw it into the bag behind him, which was heavy and loaded with the bodies of his prey.


    Squatting under the tree, he made a sniff and then pulled up the kudzu behind the tree, where a steep path was found. Then he climbed along the path up toward the cliff, on which was a grasnd near a spring. On the grasnd, he viewed his biggest achievement in the past three days with great satisfaction.


    A blue sheep fell to the ground, screaming painfully. Beside her, twombs were helplessly looking at her as they used their heads to rub against her mouth and nose from time to time, not knowing whether they intended to give her courage and confidence, or tofort their beloved one before her death.


    Ning Que quietly walked up, picking up the end of a rope from the grass, and fiercely pulled it. The trap hidden in the grass was suddenly tightened and the twombs heavily flopped to the ground with a scream, their hooves tightly tied together.


    The big blue sheep, whose hind legs were caught in the trap, desperately struggled to move, looking at the sight of her trappedmbs and bleating anxiously.


    "Your fate is good, at least there is someone worrying for you."


    Ning Que went to the beast traps and shook his head at the sight of the twombs lying in the grass. Then he pulled out a knife from behind his waist, directly piercing it into the neck of the big blue sheep.


    ...


    ...


    "I am back."


    Dragging the dead body of the blue sheep, carrying a heavy bag and leading twombs, Ning Que returned to the shabby hunting lodge between trees.


    A little girl ran out to greet him. She was around the age of four or five with a darkplexion, wearing hide clothes.


    The hunting lodge was very shabby with dim light, and the Old Hunter sitting beside the copper brazier put down the tobo rod, looked emotionlessly at Ning Que, and spat a thick glob of sputum on the ground before asking, "How about the harvest today?"


    "Good." Ning Que replied.


    The Old Hunter¡¯s face was full of wrinkles, from which you could never expect any hint of love or kindness, but only greed and cold.


    "Let¡¯s eat."


    The Old Hunter grabbed a piece of meat to eat and felt something was wrong with the taste, so he shouted in abuse, "You wicked thing! I told you to put less salt! Salt is so expensive! Who gave you the money? How wicked you are! Feeding you is just wasting my money. I will raise you for another two years, and then sell you to prostitutes to get some money!"


    With her head lowered, the little girl was full of panic. Ning Que also lowered his head, looking at the sweet watery potato porridge, where his eyesight was reflected. From his eyes, one could see star-like mes burning.


    He had listened to this kind of scolding for years. He had endured this treatment where the Old Hunter ate meat, while he and Sangsang couldn¡¯t even drink the leftover broth for many years. He thought he had be ustomed to it, yet it seemed that he could no longer continue to endure it.


    Little Sangsang held the porridge bowl with her two little hands, her thin arm somewhat trembling, and suddenly she began to cough.


    Ning Que stretched out his hand to hold the bowl for her.


    The Old Hunter drank some spirit, and said on top of the wine, "You are sensible. If the bowl had broken, just see how I would have dealt with her."


    Taking a glimpse at the bowl filled with meat in front of the Old Hunter, Ning Que stood up towards him and persuaded sincerely, "Grandpa, Sangsang was ill against night. How about giving her a piece of meat?"


    The Old Hunter pped Ning Que¡¯s head, red at him, and cursed, "Prey is for you to eat? It is used to change for money and salt! You think I treat you badly, then go away! If you can seize a tiger and use the tiger bones to pay back the money I used to raise you for these years, then I¡¯ll let you go! I spent a great price on that steel trap, yet you are so useless!"


    Ning Que retreated without a word.


    After drinking, the Old Hunter went out to see the prey that Ning Que brought back today.


    A momentter, he indignantly came in with a whip, then began whipping Ning Que, scolding, "You prodigal son! I have taught you many times! Big prey should be ughtered back here! Who told you to kill it outside?"


    Ning Que¡¯s face was full of bloodstains, yet he neither avoided nor evaded, because he was clear that it was meaningless to do so. He just lowered his head and exined, "That blue sheep was too heavy, I couldn¡¯t drag it back if I didn¡¯t kill it first. Anyway, I was careful when killing it, and you can still get the whole skin off of it."


    "You can¡¯t drag it back? Then what¡¯s the use of you?"


    The Old Hunter furiously beat him, growling, "You only know the skin, but the blood is also able to earn money! You bastard!"


    "Bastard!"


    The Old Hunter walked out of the hunting lodge in a rage.


    Ning Que looked at Sangsang, who was holding the porridge bowl with her lowered head, and wiped away the blood from his face. Then he smiled at her, saying, "That¡¯s good. Do not try to block the whip for me, or else that old thing will beat me even more energetically. "


    Holding that big bowl, Sangsang vigorously nodded her head.


    "Wicked girl! Go and get ready the bath water!"


    The disgruntled abuse of the Old Hunter came from outside the lodge. No one knew what had aroused all his resentment.


    Sangsang looked up nervously at Ning Que.


    Ning Que was busy eating the meat that the Old Hunter forgot to hide. Then, after a moment of silence, he nodded.


    ...


    ...


    The inside and the outside of the vast Min Mountain were totally different worlds.


    Outside the mountain, it had already be the fifth year of Tianqi era of the Tang Empire, while for those living inside the mountain, the days were merely monotonous repetitions day after day. As for the Old Hunter who had retained Ning Que and Sangsang, he finally found a way of killing time in this monotonous world¡ªwhipping, abusing and the like.


    That year, Ning Que was already ad of about ten.


    That year, Sangsang was five.


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang was pouring hot water into the bucket, which was immediately shrouded by hot vapor.


    The naked Old Hunter in the bucket looked at her and scolded, "Damn you! You¡¯re so dirty, go and wash yourself."


    Sangsang nodded, and then walked out of the room. Later she dragged herself back after picking up the basin of hot water from Ning Que.


    The hot water was boiling, and was scaldingly hot.


    Sangsang stepped onto the bench, pouring it over the Old Hunter from his head to his feet.


    An extremely miserable cry sounded inside the room.


    The old hunter ran out, naked, with blisters all over his body. He squinted, for his eyesight was blurred, as he crazily waved the hunting knife in his hand, cursing out the most vicious words he knew.


    Bang! A crisp and loud sound of two metal mps hitting each other was heard, after which the Old Hunter flopped over, uttering an even more mournful scream.


    His right leg was caught in the stainless-steel beast trap used to hunt tigers and was half-broken.


    Ning Que and Sangsang came over, looking at the Old Hunter lying in a pool of his own blood.


    Even in such a situation, the Old Hunter still retained the ruthlessness of the mountain people, staring at Ning Que and scolding him even though he was dying, "You little git! You ungrateful thing! Damn you!"


    "Well, we have paid you back for all these years, and now it¡¯s time for revenge."


    Ning Que drew the hunting knife out from behind him, looking at the slouched flesh of the Old Hunter as well as the bloody root of his thigh, and then said, "I could have endured you for two more days, yet you didn¡¯t give me the chance."


    "If you had not promised to sell Sangsang to prostitutes, we would not have killed you."


    "If you had not gone to take a bath, we couldn¡¯t have killed you."


    Ning Que looked at him and, after a long moment of silence, he continued, "In fact, just now... if you had allowed Sangsang to eat the meat, maybe we would not have killed you. We just nned to sneak away."


    The Old Hunter heavily gasped, looking at him nkly.


    Then Ning Que clenched the hunting knife and firmly chopped it down.


    The head of the Old Hunter fell down.


    After a while, Ning Que walked out of the hunting lodge, the boxwood bow and the quiver on his back, the hunting knife on his waist slightly swinging.


    Sangsang followed him, holding the worn big ck umbre.


    "If you are tired, then climb onto my back."


    Then the two disappeared into the vast Min Mountain.


    ...


    ...


    Night hade, the thick mist in the mountain behind the Academy was as smooth and thick as milk.


    Ning Que stood on the stone steps, with his head lowered. After a long period of silence, he slowly raised his hands.


    He clenched his hand to make a hollow fist, as if he was holding an invisible knife.


    The night wind was wuthering around the mountain path.


    He slightly tilted and suddenly cut down, which broke through the night as well as the fog on the mountain path.


    After the cut, another step appeared.


    Total silence was found in the thick mist around the peak.


    Then a voice ofpassion sounded, "I do not know what kind of suffering Ning Que has experienced in his life, nor did he mention it in the old library. How could the mountain path be... so difficult for him?"


    "The Mountain Path stretches endlessly ahead, where all previous painful memories are changed into reality to block those who climb. If they can ovee them easily, it will be easier to climb up. But if not, and thus wanting to retreat, then the top will never be reached."


    The words from Second Brother were gradually heard. It was only now that they could find the slightest tint of respect and seriousness in his voice.


    "Both of the two climbers today are interesting, especially Ning Que."


    "Those painful memories in the depths of his heart, although I do not know what they really are, are things that he actually doesn¡¯t want to forget, and does not even feel regretful for. To see through them is moreover unnecessary in his heart. Facing the darkest corner at the bottom of his heart, as well as those painful experiences, he still chose the same path he did years before."


    "If he cannot see through them, then how can he keep his heart unchanged over the years?"


    "Since he doesn¡¯t want to see through them, then he can just break through them."


    "He wants to break the mountain path."

 Chapter 157: Illusions of Trees on the Hill Top and Crushed Pastries

    Chapter 157: Illusions of Trees on the Hill Top and Crushed Pastries


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que had run about among hunter viges while carrying Sangsang on his back, had fought bravely against beasts and hunters, had smelled the abhorrent stench of Yan military massacring viges, and had watched Xiao Zhuozi leave with the cultivator. Later, he had headed towards the City of Wei with Sangsang, and then enlisted in the Military Ministry to battle in wars.


    He saw the beautiful and tranquil Shubi Lake, himself charging forwards and shouting loudly with fellow soldiers, the savage and cruel horse gangs fleeing like startled rabbits, and golds, silvers, and other trophies that had been looted from horse gangs being wheeled back to the City of Wei serving as their military supplies.


    One day that winter when hogs were to be butchered, Ning Que had gone to the hog lot very early in that morning, listening to the desperate screeches of hogs and watching the surging blood gurgled from their necks. He had even assisted to blow some air off under the hogs¡¯ skin with a bamboo pipe under a butcher¡¯s guidance, and had busied himself with it throughout the whole night.


    Gazing at a dead hog that was to be put into a boiling pot to dispense with hairs, Ning Que, in a squatting posture, had raised his head to look at Sangsang, who had been standing next to him, and asked, "Does it look like how we killed Old Hunter?"


    Sangsang replied, "The hog was dead before boiling, and Old Hunter was boiled first."


    Ning Que thought about it and felt that there was indeed a distinct difference between them.


    Ning Que had freed twombs under Sangsang¡¯s entreaty before they left the Old Hunter¡¯s hut after killing him.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que was standing on the trail surrounded by mist of the night and was submerging himself in reflections of the past.


    Each stone step of the long winding mountain trail represented one of his past days. Therefore, he had gone through the first half of his life all over again while mounting it. This was not some surreal dream but vivid recurrence. His life was ridden with too much blood, death, bodies, and was merely interwoven with few joyful moments. How would it feel like when seventeen years of joys and sorrows turned up overnight?


    The heavy trauma made him forget that he was climbing the mountain. His face twisted in pain and his eyes unfocused on somewhere faraway. He slowed down gradually.


    He eventually stopped and his pupils turned normal steadily. He stared at the night mist, and said, "Wait and see, I¡¯ll kill them all."


    Having finished his words, he went on to mount, step by step. He stretched out his right hand into the gauze-like misty night and grabbed the hilt of a long and narrow sword. He then took out the sword and stabbed into the void in front of him.


    Numerous horse gangs¡¯ heads were cut off by the sword, and the Shubi Lake was red again. Scouts of Tribe of Savages were beheaded and fell off the back of horses, and the autumn grass were coated with blood. Familiar or strange faces were halved into unrecognized mash, then disappeared.


    In the night mist, he yed and killed all the way up the trail, from Min Mountain to the grasnd and back to Chang¡¯an. He killed the beefy censor, the Sword Master in thekeside small house and the old deputy general in the cksmith.


    All men and objects standing on his way were cleaved and destroyed by his sword, be it the enemies who had brought him torturous memories, or the fellow soldiers who had fought with him yet had had cold feet on battlefield, or the war horse which had charged deep in grasnd and saved his life.


    The rain pattered the Spring Breeze Pavilion, and he silently yed with his sword.


    The rain drenched Lin 47th Street, and he saw the little swarthy face resting against the gray wall.


    Ning Que finally felt fatigued and weary. He dropped his hand which held the sword tightly slowly and looked ahead along the trail into the darkness of night, and murmured to himself, "It¡¯s already hard to live, and torturous enough to live one life, why on earth would you make me relive it all over again?"


    He inclined his head and looked at Sangsang with a frown. He said in pain, "I know these were all illusions, of which I wasn¡¯t afraid. Yet I couldn¡¯t prove this was unreal, so I¡¯m really in pain. Just like the pain we used to be in."


    ...


    ...


    Prince Long Qing walked along the trail serenely, with his two sleeves billowing in the air. Yet a bit of exhaustion could be discerned in his eyes.


    He had been perfectly aware that everything he was going to see was illusionary before he had set his foot on the first stone step and walked into the mist. He could have availed himself of Taoist Heart to look through all this and ascend the mountain.


    Only when he started ascending did he realize that he had overlooked the difficulty of the Second Floor of the Academy, and that these illusions felt real and existent if you couldn¡¯t look through them, no matter how well your Taoist Heart was honed and hardened to a crystal clear state by West-Hill Taoism.


    Prince Long Qing¡¯s memory darted back to his youth when he was immensely favored by everyone and frolicked around freewheelingly. During that period of time, he had considered his father as the most powerful man on earth and his mother the most powerful woman, until one day, a conversation he had heard by ident had entirely torn apart his innocent fantasies about his parents.


    A heavy drought had hit the north that year, from the faraway wastnd to the northern part of Yan kingdom and Tang kingdom, uprooting countless refugees who lived off trees and leaves. At that time, a Tang ambassador to the Yan kingdom had been summoned and had a conversation with His majesty.


    "Your majesty of Yan kingdom, I sincerely hope your country could at least do something about it! I do not expect your impotent fortress military to guard those refugees from entering in our Tang kingdom, nor do I count on yourpetence to solve the livelihood problem of your people. But could you at least give us an estimate number of refugees when our Tang starts to alleviate the disaster?"


    The goatee of the Tang ambassador was quite long, wafting in air and somehow encouraging his arrogance, and he continued, "Our relief supplies would reach our capital in about ten days, and you might well do something about it before your people died offpletely. And please do not expect us to address all your problems! Though our Tang majesty ces the welfare of people as his priority and regards everyone as the same as Tang people, it does not mean that your Yan kingdom is part of Tang. And it would make even less sense if we gave our saved emergency food to your refugees for free."


    When he finished his soliloquy, the ambassador of Tang left deftly with a pair of sleeves billowing in the air. The young Prince Long Qing had gawked at his silhouette and realized for the first time that his father was actually not the most powerful man on earth and that some ambassador of Tang could reprimand his father without restraint.


    He had run towards his father and asked naively, "Father, why not send your guard and have that disobedient ambassador killed?"


    Upon hearing his words, his affectionate father turned furious dramatically and suddenly, for the first and only time in his life, he got pped.


    ...


    ...


    Standing on the trail, Prince Long Qing was perusing over the characters carved onto the boulder erected outside the woodshed, and said ironically, "A decent man shall notpete? How could it be possible to notpete? One who doesn¡¯tpete would be buried underneath, and I wonder, how on earth could a dead man be decent? "


    ...


    ...


    The endless trail was like one¡¯s life whose end could not be predicted.


    Prince Long Qing¡¯s life, if without the shinning coat of prodigy, could be regarded as monotonous and in. Some wondered if the prince¡¯s temperament had changed astoundingly due to the p from his father or from things he had learnt growing up. It was noticeable that he stopped goofing around and acting naively as a child and that he gradually became quiet and started to study hard. As time passed, he mastered how to conceal his feelings and stay aloof from everything.


    His mother¡¯s odd-eyed cat had stolen a pastry and died. As the result, all handmaidens had been flogged to death. He sat on his mother¡¯sp and listened to the horrible cries of the handmaidens who had been struck, Prince Long Qing was cracking shells of melon seeds while consuming them nonchntly, as if he had been entirely unaware that the poisonous pastry had been meant for him.


    As time went on, batches of servants had died in their pce. No one knew how many servants had been changed for his elder brother, who was the crown Prince, no one knew how many cats had died. No one knew how many of his handmaidens had been killed or others¡¯ handmaidens had been killed by his mother. Overall, all those deaths seemed not be able to disturb him, as if they were irrelevant to him.


    One day, Prince Long Qing started to reveal his talent for cultivation, and was prized by a priest of West-Hill Divine Pce who had stationed in capital. He decided to take him back to Revtion Institute to study. During the course of heading toward Revtion Institute, he had stopped by Yuelun kingdom and South Jin kingdom where he had witnessed many horrible things.


    Such as a lily flower in Yuelun Pce being watered by someone with boiling water, and the gardener who was in charge being dumped into a big boiling pot by Aunt Quni Madi; one of disciples of Sage of Sword Liu Bai in South Jin kingdom had been expelled from then school and then disemboweled on the street, with his intestines gushing out all over the ce.


    Prince Long Qing had watched all these undisturbed and expressionlessly. In his view, he was neither indifferent nor cold-blood, but was merely maintaining his Taoist heart clear enough, which was one of necessary qualities for obtaining heavenly power.


    ...


    ...


    In the night mist, looking at the increasingly near mountain crest, Prince Long Qing gave out a derisiveugh, and said loftily, "Nothing in this world could frighten me but Haotian Taoism, and nor could I sympathize with anything. Then, how would it be possible for this mountain trail to stop me?"


    ...


    ...


    Mounting the trail slowly, Prince Long Qing relived his previous life where he had been to the Revtion Institute, and it was there that he had been picked on and endured prejudices and ill-usage during the first half year as his favorite priest was defeated in a power struggle.


    He was now able to stay absolutely calm when reviewing those past moments that had angered him then as they shed before his eyes again. Compared with life in Revtion Institute, he now could emotionlessly return back to the other party either defeat or death.


    He had entered Judicial Department and started to hunt those apostates and heresies.


    He stood still and watched expressionlessly as a girl was flogged by a spiked whip, tearing and cutting into her smooth back.


    One student had bad-mouthed a hierarchic behind his back, and was found guilty of apostate. He was sentenced to a lifetime in a dark water prison. Prince Long Qing had pushed him into the water prison himself despite of their close friendship, and listened to his horrid wailing and curses while walking out of the prison into the warm daylight, with a straight face as usual.


    An elderly and weary man in Devil¡¯s Doctrine, who had lived in a mountain in seclusion for sixty years, had been captured by Judicial Department. Prince Long Qing had tied him to a wood pir while carefully avoiding his cuts which had been inflicted during torturous inquisition, and then he set fire to the wood under the pir.


    Opposite the roaring fire, an officer of the Judicial Department had snatched a baby from a young mother and had the mother beaten to death. The baby had been hurtled on to the ground into a mass of mash. He had watched all of this emotionlessly.


    Cultivation was to cultivate otherworldly Taoism, and if he had watched all earthly things from the outside world, then how could they disturb him? What he served was Haotian Taoism, and what he punished was sins and wrongdoings. He firmly believed that whoever he killed deserved it, then why should he show mercy to them?


    ...


    ...


    It was already deep in night. Many had left after the opening of the Second Floor, leaving behind figures such as the Prince of Tang, Princess Li Yu and priest Mo Li who waited patiently for the results. Only two were still on the mountain trail. Since the result had little to do with other kingdoms, why would those envoys want to stay and wait for so long?


    Certainly, students of Academy didn¡¯t leave, and they gazed at the mountain trail in silence, mixed expressions on their faces.


    Zhong Dajun looked at Xie Chengyun who was supported by Jin Wucai by one hand. His face was lost and gutted as he heaved a sigh and said, "Chengyun, let¡¯s go, there is nothing to look forward to. There is no chance that Ning Que could beat Prince Long Qing!"


    Jin Wucai nced at Xie Chengyun worriedly. She knew well that this man was mild-looking outside, but lofty and arrogant inside. Today, he already took tremendous hit mentally whenpared with Prince Long Qing. What troubled her more was that he now found that even Ning Que was better than him, and wondered whether Xie Chengyun would ever be able to collect himself.


    Xie Chengyun shook his head, peering at the blurred back mountain of Academy, and said, "I want to see the result."


    All of a sudden, someone eximed loudly.


    No one noticed when clouds lifted and the mist around the mountainside vanished. As starlight shone on the winding mountain trail, stone steps became visible in sight.


    The mist and cloud get together again after a short while and blocked the mountain trailpletely again.


    Yet in this short passage, many could see two silhouettes on the steps of the winding trail, one was already close to the crest. Judging from the figure, that was Prince Long Qing. The othergging behind should be Ning Que, who was struggling halfway up the mountain, a distance away from the top.


    Out of some odd mentality, arge number of students heaved a relief sigh, and murmured, "Good to know that Ning Que is still behind Prince Long Qing."


    Chang Zhengming nced coldly at the one who spoke, and said, "I now seriously doubt that if I have made the right decision to study here with you instead of working for the Yulin Royal Guards. I did think before that Ning Que was useless and had moral problems, but it doesn¡¯t mean that we should gloat about his failure to alleviate our humiliation."


    He continued with a cold face. "Do not forget that Ning Que is a Tang too. He is one of us and part of this Academy. However, Prince Long Qing is Yan, and belongs to West Hill. I now feel ashamed of myself, yet your unashamed manner makes me even more embarrassed."


    ...


    ...


    The earlier situation which was lighted up through starlight didn¡¯t evade from eyes¡¯ of priest Mo Li and instructors.


    Since Ning Que started mounting, jeers and ridicules about his inability to cultivate never stopped, but steadily abated when he overtook one after one young cultivator. Now, a long silence descended upon them when they were informed that he entered the mountain mist sessfully and was the only one left topete with Prince Long Qing.


    "Judging from thed¡¯s speed from this morning until now, it¡¯d be highly likely for him to take half of a month to reach the crest. And now Prince Long Qing is almost there, why not just announce that Prince Long Qing has been epted into the Second Floor? Why waste our time waiting for Ning Que?"


    Standing up and pushing his chair back impatiently, priest Mo Li who appeared confident and calm at first felt somewhat disturbed and irritated out of no reason.


    Lee Yu didn¡¯t even bother looking at him. She said mockingly, "If you are in hurry, you could ask Prince Long Qing to fly straight to the top. And as long as he reaches the top, who would care about Ning Que? But before that happens, no matter Ning Que scramble or hop, or how long he may take, I think you¡¯d better kept your doubt in your stomach."


    Furious, yet with nowhere to give vent to his anger, Priest Moli returned to his seat reluctantly.


    ...


    ...


    On this starlit night, Sangsang squatted on the meadow next to one side of road, spinning the Big ck Umbre lightly out of boredom.


    At the moment, the monk named Wu Dao came out of the Academy.


    He noticed the squatting Sangsang, and his eyes lit up suddenly. His body seemed frozen like a stone statue and he couldn¡¯t move anymore. He gawked at Sangsang silently, infatuated.


    A long while passed.


    Gazing at Sangsang¡¯s little swarthy face and a few wisps of yellowish hair hanging in front her forehead, the monk put his palms together devoutly and started to speak in his most gentle voice and reverent manner, "You look astonishingly gorgeous!"


    Leaning on the Big ck Umbre, Sangsang stood up and looked around baffled, and realize after a while that the monk was praising her. Frowning in doubt and squinted at him and returned in earnest, "Please do not be sarcastic."


    Wu Dao smiled lightly, putting his palms together and bowed, saying, "You are mistaken. I have a wisdom eye and can spot a jade inside a stone."


    A shade of red crept up her face upon hearing "a jade inside a stone". Sangsang reminded him again earnestly, "Even though I might look good to you, please do not praise someone like so again, as these words are used to scold someone in Chang¡¯an."


    "How could it be?" Wu Dao asked disbelievingly.


    Sangsang didn¡¯t feel veryfortable with his fervent looks, and turned back to look at the Academy, ignoring his existence.


    Wu Dao walked around to stand in front her, and inquired politely and gently, "May I know who are you waiting for?"


    "My young master."


    Wu Dao said in a serious tone, "No one in this world but I deserve your time to wait."


    Giving him a quick nce, Sangsang responded, "Given that you have already descended from the mountain, and yet my young master is still up there, I presume that you are not as good as my young master."


    "I just didn¡¯t want to walk in that mist." Wu Dao exined earnestly. As if something clicked in his mind suddenly, he asked confusedly, "The young master you are waiting for. Is he the student Zhong Dajun?"


    Looking at him and staying silent for a while, Sangsang returned, "Right."


    Wu Dao straighten his face and said, "Good, I already said I¡¯d kill him before mounting, now it seems justifiable to kill him."


    Sangsang turned her head away from him, ignoring himpletely.


    "Upon seeing your beautiful countenance like this velvety night, a love poem just urred in my mind."


    Intoxicated, Wu Dao gawked at her profile, and slowly recited, "For woman I adore, if you wish to learn Buddhism, I am willing to return back to a young man, mounting on that floating mountain, and ept tonsure despite of scars left on my head. Woman I adore, if you wish to learn Taoism, I am willing to return back to a young man, go to the shabby temple at the back of peach mountain, and wash shoes for those who carry wooden swords."


    Sangsang didn¡¯t pay attention to what he said, but stared attentively at the back mountain of Academy, frowning as she seemed to feel the exact pain and torture Ning Que was going through now.


    "I couldn¡¯t wait any longer while you are waiting for him in pain. I shall take you away to the remotest corners of the earth and apany you to see the ebb and flow of the sea, would it be alright?"


    Upon finishing this, he face turned solemn. He didn¡¯t wait for Sangsang¡¯s response and stretched out his hand toward her neck.


    All of a sudden, the hand he stretched out caught on fire turning his monk sleeve into ashes which flew high in the wind, leaving his bare arm exposed without cover.


    Shrieking, the monk retreated miles away as quickly as a fleeting shadow, staring at the meadow warily. He asked through gritted teeth, "Who¡¯s there?"


    A sudden clip-clop of a horse broke the night silence, and an eerie-looking ck horse carriage emzoned with intricate patterns was dragged uphill by a strong horse effortlessly. There was no dust rising beneath its hooves, as if it was galloping in mid-air.


    Yan Se, the Divine Talisman Master of Tang, drew back his hand from the carriage window. Yet the talisman he drew in mid-air lingered. The grass on the both sides of the road withered and yellowed rapidly.


    "Wu Dao, you obscene monk, if you dare stay any long in Tang, I swear I¡¯ll dismember you bit by bit using my talisman charm."


    Knowing who was inside the carriage, Wu Dao¡¯s face turned gloomy. He ced one hand in front of his body in defense, exining himself, "I am not an obscene monk, surely Master Yan wouldn¡¯t use your seniority against me?"


    "You came from remote wastnd, and how many could use their seniority against you?"


    As he alighted slowly from the carriage, Yan Se looked at the young monk aloofly. He said, "You are some nobody from nowhere and didn¡¯t even learn properly the rules of temple. Now remember that, this is the Tang Empire. This here, is Chang¡¯an. If I catch you misbehaving again in front of the Academy, no one in the temple will make a fuss if I were to kill you."


    Finishing this, he turned and looked at Sangsang who held the Big ck Umbre tightly. He frowned and said, "Are you Ning Que¡¯s handmaiden?"


    Sangsang nodded her head.


    Yan Se said, "Why did you wait outside?Come with me and wait inside."


    Sangsang replied, "I heard that I¡¯m not allowed to go inside."


    Upon hearing her words and knowing Ning Que still up on the mountain trail, Yan Se felt irritated and scowled, "Come with me! I¡¯d like to see who would dare to stop me in the absence of the headmaster!"


    ...


    ...


    Prince Long Qing walked out of the mountain mist.


    Ahead of him was arge t in and at the mouth of the trail stood a tremendous boulder.


    Climbing on that boulder should be considered as the sess of mounting.


    As he was preparing to get going, something clicked his heart. He tidied up his clothes, turned around, and bowed deeply towards a tree in the distance.


    Under the starlit sky, the crest looked as though it was bathed in daylight, and the water-like mountain mist shrouded the mountainside.


    Sitting under the tree was a man, his face could not be discerned from a faraway distance, yet he didn¡¯t seem to be too old. He wore a quaint robe and a high hair piece, looking grand and grave.


    Prince Long Qing didn¡¯t know who he was, but he did remember that before leaving West-Hill Divine Pce, the hierarch lord had reminded him that students in back mountain were not ordinary and should be dealt with extreme caution. The man¡¯s status could be very distinguished, as he could sit under the tree on the crest and wait for mountaineer.


    The man under the tree said peacefully, "My rank is No. 2."


    There was no change on Prince Long Qing¡¯s face upon hearing this, though, his heart was pounding fast. He remembered the legendary stories the woman told him, in which the second eldest brother was the most arrogant and yet most powerful figure. He bowed at the man again, deeper this time.


    The second eldest brother said inly, "Of course, You are good, good enough to enter the back mountain of the Academy."


    Prince Long Qing, though as noble and grand as he was, couldn¡¯t suppress his joy, thinking about the praise that was from the second eldest brother.


    "As long as you mount on that boulder, you¡¯d be considered as qualified and sessful. However, there¡¯s another fellow mountaineer still in the mist, you could choose to go ahead or wait for him. It seems rather unfair to ask you to wait for him, but I have to say that the boulder is extremely hard to mount on, harder than anything you¡¯d gone through. So you¡¯d better have some rest first before continuing."


    Prince Long Qing now knew there was another fellow mountaineer and frowned slightly. In his mind, there should be no one making it to the top except that monk, but he couldn¡¯t enter the mist given the inconvenience of his identity. As for the other ordinary people, they couldn¡¯t even reach the mist. Then who could follow and even catch up with himself?


    Second eldest brother said peacefully, "The choice is in your hand, you can go without dy."


    Prince Long Qing pondered for a moment, and bowed once more. He then sat cross-legged on the ground, giving his answer.


    ...


    ...


    On the misty mountain trail, Ning Que saw Zhuo Er sitting against the gray wall, drenched, his chest undting slightly. Ning Que watched his near-death aura in his pale face and eyes, and said after a long pause, "I could kill you with one swing of my sword, but why should I? You are already dead, whye and stop me again, I can help you with your business only when I reached the top."


    Zhuo Er leaned against the gray wall, watching him with a faint smile. His chest rose and fell deeply, and he made a hissing sound between his lips.


    "Fake, these are all fake, but how can I prove them so?"


    Ning Que lowered his head in the mist and found that he was standing on Lin 47th Street with that spring rain falling hard.


    Suddenly, lifting his head, Ning Que said, "Sangsang, where are you?"


    Sangsang stood next to him, lifting her little head and looking at him, asking, "What¡¯s wrong, young master?"


    Looking in front, Ning Que continued, "Sangsang, get out all silvers and find darkie a nice cemetery, and made him a nanmu wood coffin. Let him die in joy."


    Sangsang replied, "Well, fine... but young master, darkie is already dead, you can¡¯t get him to die again in joy."


    Ning Que continued, "Since he is alive again, why not let him die again."


    With this, he walked up to the gray wall and raised his sword. With a whooshing sound, Zhuo Er¡¯s head rolled and hit the gray wall which was soaked in the rain. The illusions cleared and the steep trail towards the top showed up.


    He looked over his shoulder and found Sangsang nowhere to be seen.


    "I¡¯ve said that these were illusions and wouldn¡¯t scare me off."


    Looking ahead at the real mountain trail in front him, Ning Que said towards the end of night mist, as if exining to them. "In my memory, Sangsang was a perfect handmaid, yet the real Sangsang isn¡¯t like this. Maybe you could trigger my mind to create a life-like situation, yet you didn¡¯t know that my memories weren¡¯t all real."


    A baffled sound wafted from the mist, "I don¡¯t know what¡¯s going on in your mind though, how did you know that Sangsang wasn¡¯t real?"


    "Sangsang is kind and benevolent, but she definitely wouldn¡¯t spend all our silvers on a dead ma. Not on Zhuo Er, not on herself, even not on me."


    Ning Que beamed, then lifted his sleeve to wipe the bleed oozing out from the corner of his mouth, walking up toward the crest.


    ...


    ...


    The crest shone under the silvery light. Instead of Chen Pipi¡¯s favorite date trees, old-resistant needle-leaved trees scattered hither and thither.


    Prince Long Qing sat on the grass, closing his eyes tightly, and adjusted his breath.


    A faint sound wafted from behind a distant tree, saying "Elder brother, thanks."


    Second eldest brother sat cross-legged in front the tree, looking serious and serene. He said emotionlessly, "You can ask for such trivial favors asionally. Furthermore, Prince Long Qing took advantage of taking one step ahead than Ning Que, so it¡¯s fair to ask him to wait."


    As the saying of the Academy went, "Rules are made by the stronger fist. The fairness of the examination of the Second Floor depended on who was looking at it."


    Prince Long Qing did start mounting a period of time earlier than Ning Que, yet he waited longer than a period of that time.


    Stars moved slowly in the night sky, with time ticking by.


    No one knew how long it took, and the mist was disturbed and cleared down the trail.


    Prince Long Qing opened his eyes and looked in that direction.


    Walking slowly out of the mist was Ning Que, shattered and shabby. His face was haggard and visibly bruised as if he was a beggar who had been chased by some fierce dog, bedraggled and dejected.


    Prince Long Qing considered his face and recalled who he was. He stood up slowly with this right hand clenched fist tightly.


    Ning Que fished out pastries wrapped in cloth, stuffing them in his mouth while walking towards the top, muttering in a vague voice to the person under the tree, "I¡¯m terribly sorry about beingte, sorry."


    When he noticed it was Prince Long Qing under the tree, Ning Que said in surprise, "It¡¯s wonderful that you¡¯re here."


    Then passing him a pastry, Ning Que asked, "Fancy a pastry?"


    Staring at the crushed pastries wrapped in cloth, Prince Long Que lost his words.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 158: An Exquisite Scenery

    Chapter 158: An Exquisite Scenery


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Prince Long Qing remembered who Ning Que was.


    For his whole life was looking at its brightest, and he seldom got the chance to be mocked at by others. Yet the previous time at Victory House, this schr who now stood infront of him and his little handmaiden mocked him twice consecutively. At least that was how he felt, thus he could never forget this schr.


    His despise for Ning Que made him order his subordinate from the Judicial Department to investigate on thisd after the event. However, the investigation result was somewhat disappointing. Indeed, this Academy student was just a piece of useless junk who was all talk only, yet unable to pursue cultivation. Hence, this junk could never be his worthy opponent and since that was the case, he felt that there was no need for him to remember such a worthless person.


    Before Prince Long Qing was prepared to climb the mountain, he had imagined the types of opponent he might meet on his way. For instance, it could be the young monk who had obviouslye from an unknown ce, or the young swordsman from South Jin Kingdom. He had even imagined that the Academy could have hidden some fighters at the final stage, but he had never thought that the person who would appear behind him was Ning Que.


    He silently stared at Ning Que¡¯s face, as a weird and unexinable smile appeared on his face.


    Since Ning Que noticed that the prince had no intention to eat the pastries, he retreated his offer as he grinned and said, "You don¡¯t have to look so shock. This is no illusion."


    Just then, two pieces of jade green bamboo leaves gradually flew across the starry night and paused infront of them, as though they were alive. The voice of Second Brother from the Academy was heard once again from under the tree.


    "The peak of the mountain would be therge boulder at the end of the mountain path. Whoever reaches the peak first would be shortlisted to enter the Second floor of the Academy. However, I must remind the both of you. Though it was only ten steps away to the final destination, the challenges that both of you would face will be much tougher than all the challenges you had experienced before. If you choose to force your way through, there is a high possibility that they will cause an irreversible damage to you physically and mentally."


    "Each of you, please hold the green bamboo leaves in your hand. Should you wish to give up, destroy it."


    Prince Long Qing and Ning Que bowed to the tree with their hands folded in front, before they each grabbed a green bamboo leaf and walked towards their final stage.


    They walked side by side. There was no expression on Prince Long Qing¡¯s face, neither did he quicken his pace. Beside him was Ning Que, who was busily munching the pastry as he walked. Allowing Ning Que to walk beside him was equivalent to admit him as his worthy opponent.


    "I am actually jealous of you."


    Ning Que took a look at the prince¡¯s side face as he wiped his dirty hand using the corner of his clothes. He then shrugged his shoulders and continued, "You are born into a good family, talented and lead a great life. Not only that, you have a beautiful partner who is crazily in love with you. Unlike me, I am born poor, have no talents and my life sucks. All I have is just a ck-faced little handmaiden. To be able to match up with you is honestly tough."


    When the both of them reached the bottom of therge boulder and infront of the two very steep and narrow looking paths that were on the left and right, Prince Long Qing suddenly turned around. He looked calmly at Ning Que and said, "You¡¯ve given me lots of surprises. If I know my opponent is you, I would not have waited."


    After which, Prince Long Qing raised the front of his clothes without hesitation and stepped onto the rocky path.


    Ning Que stared nkly at the rocky path infront of him, as his heart raced. For a guy who had been struggling through thousands of near-death experiences for years, he was clear that when a strong and arrogant man said such words, the man really meant it. That was when things be truly scary.


    ...


    ...


    The final two challengers were finally starting their journey towards therge boulder that was hanging at the peak of the mountain located behind the Academy. Their silhouettes were moving so rapidly that they were almost not visible.


    At the far end of a wide grasnd, an increased number of people were seen gathering under arge tree, as they were pointing at therge boulder and whispering among themselves. There were men and women, whereby some were sitting down while others were standing up. All in all, there were twelve people.


    One was carrying a three-stringed guqin at his back, while another had a chessboard mped under his arm. One had an ancient-looking vertical bamboo flute ced on his knee, while another was sping a small sewing frame in her hand, with a thin silver needle ced in between other fingers.


    There was also a muscr man standing behind the tree, carrying a very hefty and bulky hammer with his hands. While the others were busy in discussion, the muscr man was staring at the tall unique-looking antique crown that was ced on top of Second Brother¡¯s head. His eyes were burning with passion and curiosity.


    Chen Pipi walked out from behind the tree and was taken aback when he noticed the eyes of the muscr man. He immediately jumped out to stop the man and urged, "Sixth Brother, Second Brother¡¯s crown will certainly be ttened like a piece of paper if you were to hammer it down, so will your head."


    Second Brother, who was sitting cross-legged under the tree, sneered coldly and gradually turned around.


    Sixth Brother quickly hid his hammer to his back as he revealed his most sincere smile and exined, "Senior Brother, you must understand that I feel really uneasy if I don¡¯t use my hammer for a day. Seeing the crown on your head just makes me feel even more unbearable today. It is like seeing a bar of metal being ced near a hot oven, where you just have the urge of hammering it down."


    The exnation was rather ridiculous, to the extent that it sounded really absurd. Yet Second Brother just nodded his head to show his eptance towards his exnation, before he waved his hand and simply replied, "The result will be out soon."


    Yu Lian, the female professor from the Academy, was also at the peak of the mountain and she seemed to keep herself a distant away from the rest of the 11 people. She stood far away behind the tree within the parterre, as she smiled peacefully while watching the rest discussing about the situation.


    The man who had his bamboo flute ced on his knee watched the seemingly topplingrge boulder that had, in fact, stood strong for thousands of years under all kinds of rough weathers. He was filled with emotions as he said, "It seems like Prince Long Qing is still the strongest among all challengers. Indeed, one must not underestimate the power of No.2 in the Judicial Department of West-Hill Divine Pce. If nothing goes wrong, he¡¯s most probably our junior brother-to-be."


    Upon hearing the words "Judicial Department of West-Hill Divine Pce", everyone under the tree had their attentions on Chen Pipi.


    Chen Pipi¡¯s plump face turned pale as he hurriedly waved his hands and exined, "I¡¯ve never been to the Divine Hall. When I first get to know Ye Hongyu, she had just entered the Judicial Department. Well, from my perspective, that woman is certainly much stronger than Prince Long Qing."


    "The Tao Addict is among the world¡¯s three most addicts. No doubt it¡¯s extraordinary." The Senior Sister with the sewing frame smiled gently as she added.


    Second Brother replied with a stern expression, "Those from the upper-ss family are defintely more cultured and educated than the ordinary people. Though their acts might be displeasing to our eyes, and aspared to the Academy¡¯s way of handling matters, they r certainly only worthy of dust. However, those acts r sufficient for them to survive in this world."


    The people under the tree expressed their agreement in unison. Yet, in each of their heart, they were thinking that if the person who sat under the tree today was their Eldest Brother, he would definitely not say such arrogant and narcissism remarks. All he would do was to honestly list out the pros and cons of West-Hill Taoism.


    "Never have I thought that the person who can catch up with Prince Long Qing and be his final opponent is thatd named Ning Que."


    Once again, all eyes were on Chen Pipi.


    Chen Pipi sighed reluctantly as he asked, "Senior Brothers, Senior Sisters, why all of you are staring at me again?"


    The Senior Sister with the sewing frame smiled and answered, "Isn¡¯t he your friend?"


    Chen Pipi scratched his head and looked confused as he said, "I really never expect Ning Que to reach the top. Based on my own understanding towards him, this chap has a strong endurance level and his mentality is like a sicko person. He could push himself to the limit and not eat for days. Hence, the previous challenges should be impossible to stop him from advancing. Furthermore, he¡¯ve been reading books for a year in the old library, so there¡¯s a possibility for him to pass the Wooden Door. However, I am shocked that even the strong mist in the mountain was unable to stop him. This is really ridiculous."


    Someone questioned, "Which state is he in now?"


    Chen Pipi replied, "No Doubts State."


    A light breeze blew. The person who had posted the question was taken aback as he said, "Prince Long Qing is already in Seethrough State, almost reaching the Knowing Destiny State. If he can reach the bottom of the boulder, it is no surprise. However you said that the chap is only in No Doubts State? How did he manage to reach the final stage?"


    Second Brother took a nce at the person and reprimanded him in his deep voice, "Enough of the nonsense. Obviously, he walked up."


    In fact, that reply was a nonsense. Since the person who said that was Second Brother, whom everyone in the Academy respected after the Headmaster of Academy and their Eldest Brother left to travel around the world, all the juniors under the tree dare not stand out to make a noise.


    Second Brotherraised his eyebrows as he said unhappily, "You¡¯ve learnt from the Teacher for so many years, yet you are still unable to understand such simple logic! Where on earth is there a perfect standard golden rule in doing things? If everything has its own rule, then what for we still pursue cultivation? If all rules can never be changed, then why do we still eat and drink to keep ourselves alive? Why don¡¯t we just jumped off the cliff to end all of these?"


    Everyone under the tree suddenly became solemn. They knew that their senior brother was educating them, as they kept silent to listen to his teachings.


    "Even though Ning Que is only in No Doubts State, does it mean that he is unable to climb to the peak of the mountain? If only people like Prince Long Qing, who is in Seethrough State and almost achieving Knowing Destiny State, can reach the top to enter Second floor, then what¡¯s the purpose of this examination?"


    Second Brother continued calmly, "Being in No Doubts State means one is unable to climb the mountain? I¡¯ve told all of you before, our Eldest Brother used to be stuck at No Doubts State for a total of 17 years, yet he had climbed the mountain for numerous times. When did you ever see him giving up halfway and tumbling down the mountain before?"


    One hesitated and asked, "Senior Brother, I agreed with what you¡¯ve said. However, to ce our Eldest Brother on par with Ning Que, aren¡¯t you showing too much favor towards him?"


    Second Brother took a nce at therge boulder at the edge of the cliff, and replied calmly, "If Ning Que seed today, he will be the second person, after our Eldest Brother, who had managed to climb to the peak of the mountain with either a No Doubts State or lower."


    Listening to his words, the people surrounding the big tree at the top of the mountain kept silent. Only a faint bitter grumbling voice could be heard from Chen Pipi, "Our Eldest Brother had not even enter the No Doubts State, but Ning Que was already in No Doubts State three months ago. That¡¯s a big difference."


    "Actually, it would be nice if Ning Que be our junior brother," said the Senior Sister with the sewing frame as she smiled while watching Chen Pipi¡¯s bun-looking plump face and continued, "though he may not be as nice to pinch as Pipi, but he had dimples on his face which makes him really cute."


    Chen Pipi subconsciously shivered slightly as he hurriedly retreated behind Second Brother and popped his head out to exim, "Seventh Sister, aren¡¯t you thinking a little too far? Thest stage is not that easy. I¡¯ll ce my bet on Prince Long Qing."


    Senior Sister grinned as she exposed his true thoughts, "If Prince Long Qing is the winner, aren¡¯t you going to burst out crying?"


    Chen Pipi chuckled.


    "This long and winding mountain path takes into consideration of the challengers¡¯ determination andprehension, tests their states and reveals their true thoughts. As for thisrge boulder in thest stage, it only allows us to see their choices. To either Prince Long Qing or Ning Que, the difficulty is not too high."


    Second Brother spoke slowly, "Because the difficulty is not high, what it is ultimately testing is their judgement. Prince Long Qing has spent most of his life in the Judicial Department of Divine Hall where he is used to killing the women and the children with no change of expression. Most probably he should be able to make a decision fast."


    A wind blew across the mountain, as the leaves of the tree rustled and the long grass danced in the wind. The silver dark clouds by the cliff moved.


    Yu Lian, who stood away from the crowd and by the cliff, turned around and watched the sea of clouds behind him. The corners of his mouth raised slightly.


    Second Brother, who was under the tree, stood up instantly and his expression looked stern suddenly. He silently stared at therge boulder hanging by the cliff. After keeping quiet for a long while, he then started mumbling, "What a strong determination in Haoran Sword...did the Teacher change thest stage of challenge?"


    ...


    ...


    "Why is it you again? You¡¯ve died twice and revived twice. Do you wish to die once more? I seriously don¡¯t understand why do you keep popping out of my head. Are you just trying to remind me of the vigers that were ughtered by Xia Hou? Or are you telling me not to forget about how you were killed? Don¡¯t worry, I have yet to forget the tasks you¡¯ve left for me."


    "It¡¯s just that do you think Xia Hou is that easy to get rid of? You better stop blocking my way as I need to be faster than that Prince Long Qing. Wait till I enter Second floor of the Academy and be Headmaster of Academy¡¯s favorite obedient student, I¡¯ll get my opportunity to learn all the fantastic skills from the Academy. By then whoever you want me to kill, you just have to tell me through dreams and I¡¯ll do it for you. Now be good and let me continue my path, alright?"


    "Still not letting me go? Do you want to help me in training my knife skills? Could you choose another time instead?"


    Ning Que spoke as he walked towards the grey wall in the rain. He stared at his dying friend, who was sitting at the foot of the wall and revealed a weird smile on the face. He sighed reluctantly before he stretched his arm to reach for an invisible knife, shing both the grey wall and his friend into thin air.


    "Look at this. It¡¯s the same old trick again. Don¡¯t the people in the mountain behind the Academy have some new ideas?"


    Without keeping the knife into the scabbard, he ced the podao hilt on his shoulder and walked towards therge boulder. Since the knife could be usedter to ughter more "humans", such as those who he had not seen for a very long time. They could be his father and mother who he had not even dreamt for years, or perhaps Sangsang that handmaiden. No matter what, he knew that all these "humans" were fake, so he did not had any problem ughtering them.


    Suddenly, he stopped.


    He expressionlessly stared at the two expressionless faces infront of him, as he said, "Both of you are finally here."


    ...


    ...


    Prince Long Qing was filled with fear. Facing with such horror, he did not know how to make choices.


    His most adored woman was falling under a tree blossomed with flowers. Blood flow down from both of her eyes, which were not on her most favorite begonias. She was staring foolishly at herself instead.


    Yet he can¡¯t just watch her. He must look at her.


    Previously when he was walking through the mountain trails, he had arrogantly thought that other than Haotian, there were perhaps no one or nothing that could make him frightened. Yet at this moment, this woman, who was showered by the holy light, was right in front of him. As he looked at her red clothing fluttering in the wind, he knew that deep within his heart, he could never sweep away the fear he had for this woman.


    The whole world seemed to be filled with the holy light as it was unusually bright, to the extent that he could not clearly see the woman¡¯s expression on her face. All he could see was her fluffy red dress, her fluffy red sleeves and the two bright red flowers that were clipped to her hair.


    Dressed in red veil and dress, the woman looked bright and lovely, as well as scary. She smiled gently and said, "Long Qing, I heard that you wish to enter the Second floor of the Academy. Are you thinking that you could defeat me after entering the Second floor?"


    Prince Long Qing respectfully bowed and replied, "Long Qing dare not."


    Behind him was the Flower Addict, Lu Chenjia, lying in the flower bed. More blood tricked out from her eyes.


    "Do you honestly dare not do so?" The woman, showered in the holy light, calmly repeated the question.


    Prince Long Qing gradually raised his head and stared into the gems-looking pair of eyes surrounded by the holy light. He kept silent for a long time and before he could make his first most courageous decision in his llfe, he saw a silhouette.


    That silhouette belonged to a man. That man stood silently behind the woman, and it was as if he would not make a single noise even after several ten thousand years have passed. The holy light brushed against his face like a gale of strong wind that could lift the gemstones. It was as though Haotian was also quietly supporting the man.


    Prince Long Qing gazed at the wooden sword on that man¡¯s shoulder. He could not help but start shivering with fear.


    Without any hesitation, he turned around and walked infront of the flower tree. He then pulled out his official sword at his waist and slowly pierced it into the chest of woman whom he loved.


    As the edge of the sword pierced into the chest inch by inch, Lu Chenjia was quietly watching the man she loved. It was as if she felt no pain. Her eyes were no longer flowing with blood. There were no sign of hatred in her eyes, only peace andpassion could be seen.


    Prince Long Qing slowly lowered his head and looked at his own chest. It was unsure when an invisible hole had appeared at his chest.


    ...


    ...


    There were two faces, one was a face of a very old man, while the other was a face of a very young fellow.


    Ning Que looked at the old steward, then at his childhood ymate. He remained silent for a long time before he said, "So I gotta kill the both of you again as well. No wonder I keep finding something¡¯s not right. Now I finally understand. That¡¯s because both of you have yet to appear."


    He removed the long podao from his shoulder. Grabbing the hilt with both hands, he did not attack immediately. That was because he suddenly realized that the ce he was standing on had turned from narrow rock-made stairsteps into ckish yellow soil.


    In the wilderness, numerous people lifted their heads and gazed into the sky. As an endless piece of darkness started to spread over from the other end of the sky, hopes and peace were gone from the faces of the people. The world turned dark and only a few small beams of light could seep through the thick dark clouds.


    However, not everyone lifted their heads to watch the sky, at least not for the old steward and his childhood ymate who were standing infront, watching him expressionlessly. No matter where he walked to, they followed behind him quietly. Their eyes were fixed on his face.


    Ning Que pointed to the sky and said to the old steward, "In my previous dream, there seems to be an opened doorway there. However, this doesn¡¯t seem to continue from that dream. Could it be due to both of you?"


    After which, he lowered his gaze and looked at his childhood ymate, who was only half of his current height. He smiled and said, "Last time, there¡¯s an extraordinary huge and shiny golden dragon head popping out from the doorway. Actually, that scene is really dumb. It reminded me of those tortoises we saw when we were young at Pagoda Wan Yan, just that the ten thousand tortoises had their headsbined together to form one huge dragon head."


    The old steward¡¯s and the childhood ymate¡¯s faces remained expressionless.


    "Since it¡¯s a dream, obviously all those are fake."


    "And since all those are fake, then it is definitely not a story that has happened."


    "Since it is not a story, then there¡¯s nothing to continue from."


    In the wilderness, a very tall and huge man appeared. His snowy white hair draped over his shoulders.


    This was not the first time Ning Que had seen this tall man. He walked over as he was curious to see how this tall man looked like. However, the tall man did not appear to be turning around anytime. No matter how hard Ning Que tried, he was unable to see the other party¡¯s face.


    As he was trying to walk round the tall man, the old steward and his childhood ymate were still following him closely at his back. They turned round and round with him. The scene seemed a littleical, yet unknowingly depressing at the same time.


    The tall man stretched out his finger and pointed towards the half-darkening sky as he said, "Look, the sky is really turning dark."


    Ning Que lifted his head and looked before he replied, "I saw it."


    The tall man then pointed at the light behind the clouds and said, "It¡¯s still bright over there. Between the dark and bright, which side will you choose?"


    Without any hesitation, Ning Que replied, "Why should I make a choice?"


    The tall man did not answer his question. Instead, he snatched the bag of wine from a drunkard near him and started gulping from it. He then took away the piece of pork hind leg from a butcher¡¯s back as he squatted down and started munching from it. From the side view, the oil from the meat could be seen flowing from his mouth and dripping down from his beard.


    ...


    ...


    "Why do you want to kill the woman you love?"


    "Because only when you do right, would you be able to keep your heart right."


    "Then are my words the right words?"


    "Yes, because you represent Haotian¡¯s will."


    Prince Long Qing walked into the pure holy light, following the pace of the woman in red dress. In the past years, he had followed her to kill many people. As years gone by and more people were killed, he started to feel more and more peaceful. It was no longer just having no expression on the face, but he had attained a stage where he could feel peace from within.


    The woman in red dress suddenly turned around as she said peacefully, "If Haotian said you should kill me, what would you do?"


    Prince Long Qing was naturally fearful of her, and was even more afraid towards the man who stood behind her and carried a wooden sword at his back. Yet upon hearing her words, he could only be in deep thoughts for a short while before he raised the sword in his hand and pierced through her.


    Fresh red blood dripped down from the sharp edge of the sword as it pierced through the body of the woman in red dress.


    The woman in red dress looked at him in admiration and continued, "Long Qing, your heart has be very strong now."


    Prince Long Qing pointed to the invisible hole in his chest as he said without any expression on his face, "Look, I no longer have a heart."


    ...


    ...


    In the wilderness, the tall man asked Ning Que with his back facing him, "How did you make a choice in the past?"


    Ning Que answered him in a very serious and stern manner, "I am born in the dark, but my heart yearns for the bright."


    The tall man chortled as he leaned his body forward and backward. He used his sleeve to wipe his tears off the corner of his eyes, as he said happily, "Never thought that after so many years, I am still able to see another that bends with the wind."


    Ning Que alsoughed joyfully and said, "Look, I¡¯ve told you that it is not a must for me to make a choice."


    The tall man gradually stopped hisughter as he looked at the whirling clouds in the sky. Suddenly, he asked, "What if the sky were to fall?"


    "Why would the sky fall?"


    "What if?"


    "Then there¡¯ll be someone tall to support it...someone like you."


    "What if the tall person is unable to support as well?"


    "Then escape?"


    "If sky were to fall, where can you escape?"


    "Isn¡¯t this a ¡¯what-if¡¯ question? Why would there be so many ¡¯what-ifs¡¯ in this world?"


    "Since it¡¯s just a ¡¯what-if¡¯, why don¡¯t you just give me a casual reply? What are you afraid of?"


    Ning Que was taken aback as he stared at the backview of the tall man. Though the man said that he only expected a casual reply from him, he was not sure why he felt that he just could not give him a reply without thinking. As he watched the sky bing darker, he felt extremely fearful.


    The temperature of the wilderness suddenly dropped. Ayer of thin light frost formed on his clothings.


    The tall man sighed and said, "Why not we just return to your initial choice?"


    ...


    ...


    Since there was no heart, there was naturally no fear. Prince Long Qing took over the position of the woman in red dress, as he showered himself within the pure holy light. Grasping on to the great will of Haotian, he travelled around the world to get rid of the surrounding darkness.


    It was until one day while he was walking in the midst of a golden sandy desert, the man who stood silently behind that woman in red dress for years had finally appeared. The wooden sword carried behind his back was slightly trembling from the blowing of the scorching strong wind in the desert.


    Prince Long Qing watched the man, kept silent for a moment before he said, "From the time I¡¯ve made my first choice, my destiny is closely tied together with Haotian. Even if you are the strongest person in this world, you can never defeat Haotian."


    A gust of wind instantly blew across the desert and pierced the wooden sword into Prince Long Qing¡¯s chest.


    Prince Long Qing lowered his head and saw the invisible hole in his chest.


    The wooden sword that seemed to be able to pierce through anything in this world had coincidentally pass through the hole in his chest. Hence, it did not cause any damage to him.


    Just then, a golden flower grew and blossomed from the invisble hole in Prince Long Qing¡¯s chest, which instantly dissolved that wooden sword.


    He raised his head and said to the man¡¯s silhouette, which was gradually dissolving in the wind, "Look, this is our true logic."


    After which, he turned and left.


    Enemies whom he feared most in his whole life were dead one by one. Prince Long Qing strolled proudly on the golden desert. Though he had no heart, he remained proud. He knew that from now on, he himself would be the strongest and the undefeatable man in the eyes of Haotian. All darkness shall be gone in view of his brightness.


    No, all the darkness shall be destroyed.


    It was not sure how many years have passed as the darkness in the world were all destroyed by him. There were no longer any enemies or guilt left, and only the purest light remained to shine across the endless field.


    At this moment, the golden flower at his chest had grew evenrger to the extent that it almost covered his face. Even though he was in Tianqi state, the weight of the flower seemed to be a burden to him but unfortunately, he could no longer plucked it off his chest.


    All of a sudden, a faraway voice was echoed deep within his heart.


    He did not know whom this voice belongs to, but he knew the words from his voice were real.


    "Absolute brightness, is equivalent to absolute darkness."


    Prince Long Qing remained quiet for a very long time before hepressed therge golden flower at his chest with his hand. In a split second, therge flower shrunk rapidly and became a shiny golden sword.


    He screamed in pain as he struggled to pull out the golden sword from his chest. His face filled with despair.


    Indistinctly, he saw a few lost-looking faces floating in the sky.


    It was the man with the wooden sword.


    It was the woman in red dress.


    It was the woman he loved who had fallen under the flower tree.


    The three lost-looking faces stared at him, as though waiting for him to make a choice.


    All around him was brightness. All around him was darkness.


    Stepping forward would bring him into the light where he could continue his ughtering acts, yet that was where the light belonged to...


    Prince Long Qing was shivering as he stood in the middle of the desert. His painful expression contorted as his whole body was drenched with his perspiration.


    He lowered his head and stared at the green bamboo leaf in his left hand, resembling a source of life.


    ...


    ...


    All of a sudden, many people had disappeared from the wilderness.


    Ning Que took a nce at the familiar face of old steward who stood infront of him, and squatted down to look at his childhood ymate. After watching them for a long time, he suddenly lifted his head and shouted to the tall man with displeasure, "I still do not understand why I need to make a choice."


    The tall man, who was back-facing him, replied, "Just as I mentioned, it¡¯s just for casual discussion. Why are you so serious about it?"


    Ning Que stood up as the thin frost on his body fell apart. He said, "I am not choosing."


    The tall man then answered, "Sometimes, some things are worth for us to sacrifice. Sacrificing is a choice too."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "I did nothing wrong. Why should I sacrifice?"


    The tall man was shocked as he questioned, "You have no one or nothing you wish to sacrifice at all?"


    Ning Que frowned as he thought for a very long time. He hesitated before he replied, "Seems not."


    The tall man replied, "But a long time ago, you did make your choices."


    Ning Que looked at the old steward and his childhood ymate, before he said, "That¡¯s because I sacrifice others."


    "Sacrificing others is also a choice."


    Ning Que admitted, "Yes."


    The tall man hung the remaining pork hind leg at the butcher¡¯s back and said, "Make your choice again."


    The night was still the night.


    The temperature was continuing dropping little by little.


    Ning Que felt lost as he looked at the fast approaching darkness, as he immediately turned and looked behind the clouds where the light gathered. He could feel a formidable forceing from within as an unpreceding fear pressurized his body, causing the frost on his clothings and body to rapidly solidify into armour.


    He was unsure which direction should he choose.


    He stood all by himself in between the sky and the earth, which made him felt extraordinary tiny.


    The old steward and his childhood ymate were standing infront of him, as their visions were seperated by an invisible piece of ice.


    He grabbed tightly onto the green bamboo leaf in his hand.


    ...


    ...


    On the ground infront of the Academy, everyone was silently waiting for the final oue. At this point in time, no longer would anyone use the mocking tone to tease the Academy student named Ning Que, since he had already prove his own capability through action.


    Like a suddenly downpour of rain, the sound of horse hoof broke the silence in the Academy. Yan Se, along with Sangsang, alighted without any expression on his face. People who recognised his identity appeared shocked as they hurriedly stood up to wee his arrival. He was the strongest Minister of Offerings at Southern gate of Haotian and even at West-Hill Divine Pce, he would have his own private seat. His status was way above Mo Li, who was the Vice President of Revtion Institute, hence no one dare to show any disrespect to him.


    The Instructor of academy and students soon knew about the identity of this wretched old man, as they appeared shocked while watching and whispering about him. They did not understand why this big wig had suddenlye to the Academy at suchte and critical hours in determining who was eligible for the Second floor.


    No one knew the motive of Yan Se, including Lee Peiyan, the Prince, and Lee Yu, the Princess. Of course, Yan Se was not that foolish to exin his reasons foring to the people. After showing respect one by one to the people who deserved his respect, he walked to a seat and closed his eyes. His dry skinny palm would, at times, brushed across the back of his chair, revealing a little nervousness within him.


    Though the crowd was curious about the reason for the arrival of this famous Divine Talisman Master, but since he did not speak a word, no one dared to ask him as well. After a moment of silence, someone started to discuss about themotion at the peak of the mountain again.


    Most people were surprised over the powerful potential which Ning Que had hidden from them, yet they were determined that person who would gained victory atst and entered the Second floor of the Academy would definitely be Prince Long Qing.


    As a Divine Talisman Master, Yan Se was obviously in a very high state. No matter how soft the volume of the discussion were, he could listen to every word vividly. That fellow, Ning Que, is serious about entering Second floor and is almost seed? Then won¡¯t his long and hard effort in searching for his sessor be gone down to drain? He could not help but feel terrible at the thought of it.


    Just then, Priest Moli said calmly, "West-Hill always trust that our prince will not lose to anyone."


    "I know this chap, Ning Que, well. If you talk about dirty tricks, he¡¯s indeed good at it. But to enter Second floor..." Yan Se mmed the table loudly and shouted, "That¡¯s totally impossible!"


    Upon hearing these words, the crowd was taken aback. They had always thought that Tang Southern Gate of Haotian was always not in good terms with West-Hill Divine Pce, to the extent that they were like enemies to one another. Yet tonight, at such important event, Yan Se was in agreement with West-Hill Divine Pce? One must know that this man was the Senior Brother of Tang Master of Nation. Could there be some important hidden meaning behind his action?


    Yan Se had not thought that his true words would cause such amotion among the people, as he immediately held his temper, stroke his beard, and was no longer willing to voice out any of his opinions. Lee Peiyan watched the old Taoist beside him as he frowned his brows and thought about it. Could it be that his emperor brother heard from the pce that for today¡¯s Second floor examination, Ning Que was a variable and so he decided to send Yan Se over to express his interest?


    Just then, another horse carriage sped in. The person who had alighted from the carriage caused another round ofmotion.


    Lee Yu looked at the benevolent-looking eunuch supervisor, frowned and asked, "Old Lin, why are you here?"


    The eunuch supervisor from the Tang pce smiled humbly andmented, "Your Highness, I am here under the order of his Majesty toe and have a look."


    Lee Yu gestured him to step forward. She then whispered, "What is going on exactly?"


    Eunuch Lin lowered his head and whispered, "His Majesty wishes to meet someone, so I am sent over to wait for that person."


    "Who is the person Father wishes to meet?" Lee Yu asked, feeling astonished.


    Eunuch Lin grinned and replied, "A student from the Academy."


    After which, Eunuch Lin noticed Yan Se was sitting at the side. His expression suddenly turned cold as he said, "Master Yan, may I ask why are you here?"


    Yan Se red at him fiercely and said, "Do I need to report to you my whereabouts?"


    Eunuch Lin smiled sacrastically and said, "I am only an eunuch, how would I dare to ask about the whereabouts of a Divine Talisman Master? It is just that your Majesty would like me to send you some words. Your Majesty said that Master of Nation had cheated him a few hundred taels of silver about ten years ago outside the Scent Workshop. Now that knowing your Majesty is seeking for the talent, Master of Nation chose to hide the talent instead of reporting. Your Majesty hopes to hear a good exnation from the Southern Gate."


    Yan Se looked stunned upon hearing those words as he sunk himself into deep thoughts. He felt shocked as he wondered if his Majesty had knew about Ning Que¡¯s ability as well and wished to snatch his disciple away from him? What should he do then? The fact that he needed to snatch Ning Que away from the Academy was already a challenge for him, yet now he got to snatch him away from the emperor? Junior Brother did mentioned that he could settle this matter his way, but did that even include his Majesty?


    The crowd could not help but watched the two big wigs who had just arrived. Yan Se the Divine Talisman Master was needless to say, but Eunuch Lin was his Majesty¡¯s most trusted eunuch supervisor. Now that he had came under the order of his Majesty, what would that mean again?


    ...


    ...


    Though Sangsang had followed Yan Se into the Academy, no one noticed her presence and it was not known when she had left the ground. She quietly walked into the alley between the buildings of the Academy, and headed toward the back.


    She then passed by the wet ground, the dark and unlit old Academy buildings, the thick forest, and the deserted meadow. As she walked her way to the destination, she was admiring the sceneries in the Academy while trying to match up with the details Ning Que had described to her. She felt peace and warm within.


    Finally, she had arrived at Woods of ves. With the support of a smooth tree branch in her hand, she lifted her head as she squinted her eyes to look at the treetop hanging high above her. She then looked around for a clean area before she sat down with the big ck umbre in her arms as she faced towards the peak of the mountain.


    The clouds and the mist remained very thick in the mountain, preventing one from seeing the top of the mountain. Yet Sangsang, with the big ck umbre in her arms and body leaning onto the tree trunk, sat and watched quietly. For she knew that her young master was currently right there at the mountain peak and was going through a critical examination in his life.


    All of a sudden, a gust of strong wind swept across the Woods of ves, causing the leaves and grass to rustle as they hit against the tree bark, creating a continuous whipping sound. The impact was so huge to the extent that it created damages on the tree bark. Sangsang was terrified by the scene as she hurriedly hid her behind the tree and spreaded open the big ck umbre to cover her tiny body.


    Outside the dirty and old-looking umbre, the strong wind continued to howl violently within the Woods of ves. Stones and branches knocked against the umbre like flying arrows, producing loud thudding sound. This thudding sound, like the drums used in wars, could somewhat caused one to feel excited, yet solemn and tragic.


    In the midst of the violent wind, about ten to twenty trees were uprooted in the Woods of ves, causing the dirt to fly towards the dark sky.


    As though there were ten to twenty swords piercing towards the dark sky.


    Spattering dark red blood into the sky.


    ...


    ...


    On Pagoda Wan Yan in the city of Chang¡¯an.


    Master of Nation, Li Qingshan, looked at Huang Yang monk as heughed and said, "It¡¯s really unexpected that a monk came to visit today..."


    Huang Yang monk smiled gently and said, "It¡¯s simply because a love monk was enlightened by Tao, hence there is no need for you to be joyful about it. Instead, your mood seems very good today. Keen to share the reason?"


    Li Qingshan stood up. He gently swung his long sleeves, sighed with emotions and said, "After tonight, our Southern Gate of Haotian will have another young genius. After a decade, our Southern Gate of Haotian will have another Divine Talisman Master. Why should I not be happy about it?"


    Huang Yang monk sped his hands together as he sincerely praised, "This is indeed something to be happy about."


    Suddenly, Li Qingshan raised his eyebrows as he quickly walked to the side of the pagoda and stared toward the southern direction in the quiet night. His right sleeve began to tremble as he started calcting rapidly with his fingers.


    Huang Yang monk walked to his side, looking confused as he gazed in the same direction as Li Qingshan. He then said, "Why is there such a bigmotion for the opening of the Second floor this time?"


    Li Qingshan¡¯s body froze and the expression on his face darkened as he said, "It¡¯s impossible to snatch over now...The Headmaster of Academy, his level was indeed so much more higher."


    ...


    ...


    The violent gale within the Woods of ves in the Academy was only limited to the very small area and miraculously, it did not affect the surrounding environment at all. Other than Second Brother, who was at the mountain peak, and Yan Se, the Divine Talisman Master, who was currently at the foreground, the people who could sense these changes would only be the Grand Cultivators who had achieved above Knowing Destiny State, such as Master of Nation, Li Qingshan, and Huang Yang monk.


    Themoners at Chang¡¯an city were totally unaware of it. Furthermore, it waste in the night and most of them were already in deep sleep. Bloodstains were gradually surfacing on the grey wall of Lin 47th Street. Sewage in the newly-repaired drains by the Spring Breeze Pavilion suddenly appeared with red blood reflection. Thekeside small house, the cksmith¡¯s courtyard at Eastern City, the old and chipped stone lion disy outside General¡¯s Residence, the woodshed within the Grand Secretary¡¯s Residence --- bloodstains had gradually surfaced in these ces that were once stained with blood, and rapidly dissolved within a few seconds.


    ...


    ...


    Under the extreme pressure from the surrounding light, Prince Long Qing clenched his fist and broke the green bamboo leaf in his hand. As he looked around with his expressionless face, he realized that he was still at the mountain peak behind the Academy, standing below therge boulder and had yet to step upon the rocky trail.


    The night breeze blew and brushed against his clothes, rapidly drying the perspiration on his body. He remained silent for a very long time before he retreated a few steps to the grass patch. He then lifted his head and stared at therge boulder hanging at the edge of the cliff, only to realize that there was no sign of other humans.


    ...


    ...


    In the icy cold wilderness, Ning Que could somewhat sense a difference.


    "All of you should know that making such choices are not tough for me at all."


    He eximed loudly to the tall man, to the steward and his childhood ymate who were standing infront of him, as well as to the brightness and darkness above him.


    As he spoke, the thin frost on his lips cracked, broke and fell into pieces.


    He blinked his eyes, causing the thin transparent ice that blocked his vision to break off inch by inch.


    He lifted his right arm as more thin ice broke into piece and fell from his clothes.


    He then threw the green bamboo leaf away as he grabbed his long knife tightly and swung it downwards.


    After so many years, he had once again choose to kill the old steward and his childhood ymate infront of him.


    "My umbre is ck."


    "Her face is ck."


    "Since young, what I¡¯ve done is always on the ck side."


    "But that doesn¡¯t mean that I am wrong."


    "Since I did no wrong, there¡¯s no need for me to admit my mistake, nor there¡¯s a need for me to atone for my crime."


    Ning Que noticed that light behind the clouds had grew brighter and brighter as he felt the bigger pressure was exerting on him. He continued, "Even if you think I am wrong, I wouldn¡¯t care. What has your thinking got to do with me?"


    He spitted mercilessly on the ground before cing the long knife back onto his shoulder, as he walked away into the darkness without much hesitation.


    The tall man gazed at his backview in silence.


    ...


    ...


    Walking into the darkness was equivalent to walking into the starry night.


    Ning Que stood by therge boulder and the highest point of the mountain behind the Academy. He was peacefully admiring the beautiful scenery infront of him, where shiny stars filled the dark sky and the clouds were slowly floating beneath his feet. The surrounding was bright as though it was daytime.


    Though currently it was stillte at night.


    He took a nce at Prince Long Qing, who were standing far below the boulder. He did not say a word. Instead, he turned around as he continued to admire the stars, the cliff and the clouds around him, enjoying every moment when the mountain breeze blew in the spring night.


    Only arriving at the top, would one be able to enjoy such beautiful and attractive view.


    "The world is t."


    He lifted his head and nced faraway. He could faintly see ranges of mountains -- though he was not sure if they are Min Mountain or other mountains -- below the starry sky on the other end of the world.


    After 17 years of wandering around and drifting from one ce to another, seeing many lives and deaths, he had finally reached this moment. How could his mind and heart not flooded with millions of thoughts and emotions at this moment?


    At this split second, Ning Que thought of many things that happened in the past. He recalled the days when he had to walk along the mountain trails over and over again. Though he was welled up with lots of emotions at this point, yet the words that eventually came out of his mouth was so simple, honest and pure.


    Staring at the marvellous scenery right infront of him, Ning Que was lost for words as he startedughing out loudly.


    Hisughter caused his body to shake, his tears to flow and his mucus to drip, to the extent that the sound of hisughter was almost trembling.


    Then, he wiped away his tears and mucus, as he said in a serious tone, "This is f*cking beautiful."

 Chapter 159: Crack! Crack!

    Chapter 159: Crack! Crack!


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Under the big tree, people looked at thed beside the big stone who was smirking at the magnificent scenery on the mountain top, all sorts of feelings welling up in their minds. They just smiled without uttering a word. Second Brother still sat there rigorously. A gray-haired schr was reading an old book and it seemed that everything that was happening had nothing to do with him.


    A melodious sound of a vertical bamboo flute sounded, and it was from the man who picked up the very same instrument which had been lying on hisp to y the music; Then a mysterious twang was yed by a three-stringed plucked instrument; Seventh Sister picked up the embroidery needle, as delicate as hair, with her fingers and slightly paddled it in the air, during which the tip of the needle trembled at a high speed, issuing some crisp sound simr to that yed by metal instruments; The strong man lifted up the heavy hammer and smashed it on the ground, producing a sound perfectly matching the summit of the melody.


    The sounds produced by the vertical bamboo flute, the three-stringed plucked instrument and the needle were mixed into a rather ancient song, which melodiously spread out from under the tree and shrouded the top of the mountain behind the Academy. The clouds near the cliff were stirred to slowly move ahead and the pines were slightly swaying, seemingly to wee a guest.


    Standing on top of the big stone, Ning Que listened to the ancient song that had floated into his ears. Then he turned back to see those boys and girls under the big tree, who had different appearances yet showed the same gentle smile. At the sight of the figure of Chen Pipi under the tree, he realized that those were his new Senior Brothers and Sisters from the Second floor of the Academy, greeting him in this way, so he couldn¡¯t help but feel warm in his heart.


    Yet the warm feeling quickly turned to be spicily hot in his chest and abdomen. All those before his eyes vanished in a sudden darkness and then he flopped down.


    ...


    ...


    Prince Long Qing stood still on thewn below the big stone, as if he didn¡¯t hear this moving melody at all. His young face, which was as charming as the spring peach blossom, was still perfect, yet nobody noticed when his hair had be loose, dampened with sweat cluttering on his shoulders. He looked up and said, "It may be ridiculous. It may seem ungraceful of me, but I really can¡¯t ept it."


    Unnoticedly, Second Brother stood up during the melody and came next to thewn. He looked at Prince Long Qing as well as the unwillingness revealed in his eyes, calmly saying, "If I were you, I wouldn¡¯t ept it either."


    After a moment of silence, Prince Long Qing asked, "If you have extinguished all your feelings and love but still can¡¯t see through, then who can?"


    Second Brother looked at him with a touch of pity and answered, "If you want to obliterate them, it means you are fearful of them in nature, whether it is for choice or because of something else. Although I do not know what you saw or experienced, I can see that Ning Que is different from you, because there is no fear in his nature, so he needn¡¯t struggle to wipe it out."


    Prince Long Qing stared at his eyes, and asked with a strong puzzlement, "Fear is the nature of humanity. If he is a man, he will certainly be fearful. Ning Que is also a man, why wouldn¡¯t fear exist in him?"


    After a long time of silence, Second Brother shook his head, seemingly thinking that the situation was really confusing. He then said, "Perhaps this is the difference between small fear and big fear. Both of you can ovee small fears by instinct, but as for big fears like life and death, day and night, things would be different."


    Prince Long Qing got the meaning of his words. Then the end of his eyebrows suddenly tilted up, and he asked, "So you are saying that Ning Que has no faith."


    Second Brother replied, "Perhaps so."


    Prince Long Qing was startled, then immediately showed a self-mocking sad smile, muttering, "So I was beaten because I am so firm in my faith, by a guy who has no faith and always considers himself first. How can I be convinced?"


    Second Brother answered after pondering for a moment, "Maybe he has faith, yet it is hidden too deep in his heart, and even the illusion along the stone path can¡¯t drag it out to the surface. Or perhaps even he himself is not clear about his true faith."


    At this time, Chen Pipi carried a fainted Ning Que on his back and walked off the big stone, panting with the effort. For each step ahead, his plump face would gently tremble, which looked like ripples in theke. He was well aware that Ning Que¡¯s mentality was severely impacted, consuming most of his energy. Then after finally seeding in reaching the top, the sudden rxation had made him faint. Therefore, he wasn¡¯t too worried about him, just like those Senior Brothers and Sisters under the big tree, who all looked peaceful and calm.


    Looking at Chen Pipi¡¯s back and listening to the soft calling for the little Younger Brother to fetch water, Prince Long Qing squinted at the thought of the guy who was at times mentioned by the hierarch Lord and that woman, and then he incredibly asked, "That... guy is him?"


    It seemed that Second Brother never intended to conceal Chen Pippi¡¯s identity from others, so he nodded and answered, "It is him."


    Prince Long Qing stared nkly at the fatd who was ordered about, recalling the sighs, regret or anger when the Hierarch Lord and that woman in red skirt mentioned him. He found it hard to ept the sharp contrast between what he was in legend and reality - To think that thed in the Taoist Temple, who was said to be more talented than that man by the Hierarch Lord, would just be a humble Younger Brother on the Second floor of the Academy!


    The scene in front of him had greatlyforted him for he suddenly found that today¡¯s experiences were not so bleak and uneptable. After a moment of silence, he then sighed and said, "A real genius like him, actually being ordered about on the Second floor of the Academy. I had intended to startle the Academy by sessfully reaching the top, but now all of it seems really stupid and arrogant."


    "A real genius is a genius no matter where he is."


    Following his sight, Second Brother looked towards the big tree, saying, "Since he is a genius in the Taoist Temple, he will certainly be a genius in the mountain behind the Academy. Although you are still notparable to me, yet you needn¡¯t be so disappointed. Actually your performance has been very good today. If it were not for the slightly more favorable conditions and luck Ning Que had than you, the person being pleasantly greeted now would be you."


    Prince Long Qing sighed and deeply bowed to him, then he turned back to go down the mountain.


    ...


    ...


    The tranquility of thewn in front of the Academy had already been reced by buzzing discussions simr to flying bees. Those bigwigs in high positions still refrained themselves from showing curiosity, yet those ordinary officials, instructors and students couldn¡¯t repress their excitement and interest, eager to see the final result of today¡¯s contest to enter the Second floor. They just wondered about who was the winner.


    The professor in charge of opening the Second floor of the Academy slowly walked out. There seemed to be a little weird expression on his face, which was a mix of delight and shock, as if he wanted tough, yet refrained from doing so due to anxiety over something.


    Few knew the professor¡¯s origin or identity, including all the students in the Academy. However, this person presided over the mountaineering test for the entire day, which made his noble status evident. After several inquiries, they finally knew that he was a Divine Talisman Master secluded in the Academy to practice cultivation, so nobody dared to disrespect him. The moment they saw him appear on the stone step, they immediately stopped talking. However, theplex look on his face stimted ripples in their hearts again, feeling that something unexpected would ur.


    "Huang He¡¯er, what are you dawdling for?"


    The only person on the spot who dared to speak to a professor with such a tone, calling out his name directly and even deliberately adding "Er"(the suffix used to call a child) to his name was naturally Yan Se, the Divine Talisman Master from the South School of Haotian in the Tang Empire. Whether in terms of state, generation or age, he was above Professor Huang He. Adding to that, he had already been anxious about the result and couldn¡¯t help speaking so impatiently in the face of the other man¡¯s dawdling.


    "Now, I have the results of who is to be enrolled into the Second floor of the Academy today."


    Professor Huang He was unwilling to dispute with this Divine Talisman Master who was famous for his antics, so he just slowly announced to the crowd.


    Suddenly, Yan Se thought of a possible scenario, so he quickly stood up and reached out his hand to stop him. "No hurry!"


    At the moment when a full-scale drama which hadsted for a day and a night was about to end, and people could finally see the real look of the hero after he put down his silver mask... the drama was rudely interrupted, so a roar actually bursted out from the crowd outside the Academy despite revering the identity and status of someone as lofty as the Divine Talisman Master Yan Se. - Thew wouldn¡¯t punish numerous offenders. No matter how strong a Divine Talisman Master was, he still couldn¡¯t exterminate the hundreds of people present.


    Professor Huang bluntly gazed at Yan Se, thinking, "it was you that urged me to give the result, and now it was also you that asked me to hold it for a longer time, then what¡¯s wrong with you?" So he helplessly asked, "Why?"


    Yan Se rushed to the stone steps, and awe-inspiringly said with righteousness, "What a big event it was to open the Second floor of the Academy! Although the Headmaster of the Academy is currently absent because of his travels, you cannot be so perfunctory. Before announcing the result, don¡¯t you think you should first take a bath, change your dresses and burn incense to offer a sacrifice to Heaven?"


    His words suddenly stimted louder hissings, and even the Prince Li Peiyan and Lee Yu could not help taking nces at this old Taoist.


    Hearing the rising voices from the crowd, even a brazen-faced person like Yan Se would feel flushed and feverish. However, his strong thirst for a sessor had finally defeated his low sense of shame, so he rudely shouted to the crowd, "Who doesn¡¯t agree? Just stand up and refute my ims!"


    The crowd sank in silence again. No matter whether it was Priest Moli or those instructors and learned schrs of the Academy, all of them turned back, figuring silently in their hearts: "How dare we challenge you, a Divine Talisman Master of a rather high state one-to-one? We are not mad."


    Professor Huang He unhappily looked at him, "Uncle Yan, what on earth do you want to do?"


    There were very few Divine Talisman Masters in the world, the rankings among whom were not involved with their respective sects. They used another, simpler system which was in alsoplex in other ways that needn¡¯t be exined at the moment.


    Professor Huang He asked Yan Se about what he exactly wanted to do, but in fact, what he wanted was very simple.


    "If the Academy announces that Ning Que is the winner, and if this result is known to all those present on the grounds to beter spread to the rest of the world, it will be a done deal. Then how can my Younger Brother and I vie for him?"


    Regardless of the indignant eyes from all those present, Yan Se forced Professor Huang He to walk into a study room with him. Together with them were other bigwigs who were qualified to be involved in the affair, or powerful enough to change the final result.


    ...


    ...


    Priest Moli looked frustrated, feeling that there must be something wrong with what he had just heard.


    So he casted an inquiring look at the Prince next to him.


    Li Peiyan¡¯s expression looked a bit weird too. He felt he had heard correctly, so it might be that Professor Huang made a mistake when announcing it.


    In order to confirm it, he took a look at his niece next to him.


    The delicate face of Lee Yu was emotionless.


    Although she had countlessly thought of it, and numerous times expecting this result during the lengthy mountaineering test, she was still violently shaken when it really came true, and had difficulty recovering in a short time.


    Priest Moli slowly scanned over those bigwigs, and all the responses were the kind he did not want to see. He slowly stood up and looked at Professor Huang, confusedly asking, "You said the winner is... Ning Que?"


    Professor Huang He nodded gently and answered, "Indeed, it is Ning Que."


    Priest Moli stood by the chair, stiffened, and was speechless for a long time.


    As the vice president of the Revtion Institute of the West-Hill Divine Pce, this time, he led the delegation to visit Chang¡¯an City of the Tang Empire. Following the orders of the Hierarch, he was aiming to implement the agreement secretly reached by the two countries; that was, to send Prince Long Qing to the Second floor of the Academy.


    Priest Moli didn¡¯t have the slightest favorable impression on the Academy. He thought it unnecessary for a God-favored genius like Prince Long Qing to enter the Academy¡¯s Second floor. However, now that it was an arrangement of the Divine Hall, and the entire world knew that Prince Long Qing was going to enter the Second floor of the Academy, then he must seed in entering it, for it represented the honor and dignity of the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    However, no one had expected that after such a long time waiting, the one that would finally enter the Second floor was not Prince Long Qing but somebody else!


    Thinking about the consequences of the result being known by the West-Hill, the possible punishment he had to suffer under the indignation of the Hierarch, and the shaking of respect and revering towards the Divine Hall from billions of believers of Haotian Taoism, Mo Li felt a biting chill as if he was doused in ice water from head to feet, mumbling, "Impossible, impossible."


    Suddenly he raised his head and indignantly waved his hand at Professor Huang He to show his protest, "How can an ordinary Academy student defeat Prince Long Qing! The prince is only one step away from the Knowing Destiny State. What kind of thing is that student! The Academy must have cheated in the process!"


    If those outside the study room who were still waiting for the results knew it, they probably would share Priest Moli¡¯s opinion. You know, the studentpeting with Prince Long Qing today was not Wang Jinglue who was invincible prior to Knowing Destiny, but an ordinary Academy student whose name and even whose level of cultivation were unknown to the public?


    Could a field mouse defeat an eagle? Could an ant defeat a lion? Could an embroidereddy defeat general Xia Hou? No! All those were impossible, unless the wings and sharp beak of the eagle were broken, the lion was reduced to a pile of rotten meat and the empress married the embroidereddy to general Xia Hou, and, unless the Academy secretly yed dirty!


    At the same time those bigwigs in the study room threw their confused and questioning eyes towards Professor Huang He.


    Professor Huang He refrained himself from showing his anger and exined with a poker face, "As far as I know, Prince Long Qing performed well in the mountain. If it were in previous years, he would absolutely enter the Second floor of the Academy. But as we all know, this year the Second floor would only enroll one person. And Ning Que had indeed surpassed the prince at thest moment."


    Absentmindedly, Priest Moli returned to his seat. Suddenly he caught the sight of Li Peiyan, the Prince, who seemed to be thest straw to save his life. So he said to him, "Your Highness, ording to the previous agreement, the Prince is to enter the Second floor after recing the Crown Prince to stay in Chang¡¯an City. If he were not to be a student of the Headmaster of the Academy, how can our West-Hill Divine Pce allow the prince to leave the Judicial Department? If the Academy tries to find reasons to refuse him, then... "


    Li Peiyan slightly frowned, feeling rather embarrassed.


    Royals of the Tang Empire had always been respectful and polite towards the Academy and never interfered its affairs. The problem was, they did secretly make an agreement about making Prince Long Qing a hostage in Chang¡¯an City as the second-ranking figure of the Judicial Department of West-Hill Divine Pce, which was also recognized by the emperor. However, nobody from the royals of Tang Empire or the West-Hill Divine Pce could have expected that somebody would defeat Prince Long Qing to enter the Second floor of the Academy. So the current situation was totally beyond their expectations.


    Li Peiyan looked at Professor Huang He, and after a second of hesitation he suggested, "We¡¯d better give the matter a further thought... "


    Professor Huang He was ssy-eyed.


    Then Li Peiyan turned to Yan Se and the silent Eunuch in the corner, thinking, "now that the Emperor and the South School assigned you two to wait for the result here in particr, you should shoulder your responsibility of supervision and show your opinion and stance in this critical moment."


    Feeling the stare cast by the Prince, Eunuch Lin stood up and smiled to exin, "His Majesty ordered me to get somebody back from the Academy, and it has nothing to do with anything you all talked about. I naturally can¡¯t represent the royal pce to show any opinion or stance."


    "I¡¯ll express my opinion. I firmly object to allow Ning Que to enter the Second floor."


    Yan Se huffed and puffed, "Even using your ass to think about it, how can that guy be stronger than Prince Long Qing? How can he reach the top earlier than Prince Long Qing? There must be some problem... with the Academy."


    Professor Huang He¡¯s face darkened, and looking at Yan Se he rebutted, "Uncle Yan, although we have a close rtionship, you still have to show evidence."


    Yan Se stared at him and refuted, "Can the Academy prove it didn¡¯t cheat?"


    Enraged by his unreasonable words, Huang He angrily said, "Uncle, are you starting to act shamelessly again?


    "Yes, so what?" Yan Se teased with his wretched triangr eyes and shouted, "Anyway, the Headmaster is not in Chang¡¯an City right now."


    Now that the Headmaster of the Academy was not in Chang¡¯an City nor in the Academy, then as the Minister of Offerings of the South School of Haotian, what could scare him? - As a divine and lofty Divine Talisman Master, he could actually unscrupulously spell his intention. He was really a shameless one aboveboard.


    Those bigwigs in the study room were all stunned by Yan Se¡¯s impassioned opposition, and silently figured the reason why the South School of Haotian was strongly supporting the West-Hill Divine Pce today, given the previous dispute on the grounds outside the Academy.


    Priest Moli also gave a curious look at Yan Se, thinking that "Last year, this old Taoist had heavily humiliated the Headmaster of Revtion Institute when returned to the Divine Hall, and even had a big quarrel with the Great Divine Priest. But today, he is strongly protective. Maybe it was for the sake of Prince Long Qing¡¯s great talent?"


    It was indeed for the sake of a talent, but to their surprise, the talented man who had caused Master Yan Se¡¯s strong opposition to this result, and who he wanted to cherish, was somebody else.


    Professor Huang He looked coldly at Yan Se and said, "Uncle, although you are both high-positioned and respectable, this is after all a matter of the Academy. So no matter how strongly you object it, it will be useless."


    Yan Se angrily craned his neck and scolded.


    "The Academy is the world¡¯s Academy, so everyone has the right to express their doubts and opinions! It is also the Tang Empire¡¯s Academy, so as a citizen of Tang, I am more qualified to object! You said opposition is useless, but I still have to oppose! Ning Que can¡¯t enter the Second floor!"


    ...


    ...


    It wasn¡¯t noticed that Lee Yu had secretly walked out of the study room, returning to the Academy¡¯s entrance grounds.


    An official was standing behind her. After just learning from Her Highness about of today¡¯s mountain test results, he was suddenly stunned, with mouth opened and tongue tied. He immediately recalled it was exactly him who had suggested Her Highness that Ning Que was not talented and not worth cultivating, but now all he could feel was regret.


    "After this night, countless people will try to explore Ning Que¡¯s unknown background, and the fact that he had escorted Your Highness back to the capital would certainly be exposed."


    In an attempt to make up for the mistakes he had made, the official began to quickly think about tactics, and then he said in a disapproving manner, "Anyway, Ning Que has a closer rtionship with us, so Your Highness should remain in the study room to ensure that he can really enter the Second floor."


    Lee Yu indifferently sneered, "Those inside are older and more experienced than me, but they had neglected the simplest things." "The purpose of the Academy to open the Second floor is to enroll students for the Headmaster of the Academy. The sess of Ning Que means the Headmaster has chosen him as his student. It is pointless to change this fact, no matter how long and how fiercely they quarrel."


    Looking up to the mountain behind the Academy, she imagined how excited and happy thed would be at the moment. Then she recalled her journey backst Spring which was filled with killings and her invitation¡¯s refusal, several touches of nkness and confusion revealed between her brows, so she murmured, "At that time I thought I had already attached enough importance to him and offered sufficient sincerity at a big cost. But it is only now when I realize why he would refuse me; after all, I didn¡¯t really see through him."


    Catching Her Highness¡¯ expression, that official figured out where her disappointment came from, so heforted her in a whisper, "Your Highness treated that little handmaiden well, and I have heard that Ning Que and his little handmaiden are quite intimate. In this sense, he would be grateful to your kindness no matter when and what."


    "These are two different things."


    Lee Yu frowned and shook her head. After a moment of silence, she suddenly said, "Of course, they have be one thing now."


    ...


    ...


    The people in front of the Academy focused their hearing, wanting to listen what those big shots were talking about inside the room. They also wondered who was the first to reach the peak and who could enter the Second floor of the Academy. Many of them noticed that the princess had left the room at an earlier time and quietly stood not far away, so they couldn¡¯t help peeping at her in order to find the truth from her facial expression.


    It was not necessary for Situ Yn to do so because she was quite intimate with Her Highness, so she directly walked to Li Yu made a bow, then she nervously looked at her and asked with a trembling voice, "Your Highness, who won?"


    Looking at the direction of the study room and listening to the faintly fierce quarrelsing from the inside, Lee Yu suddenly tilted her brow and showed a mysterious trace of a smile. Then she decided to cut the Gordian knot and set it down ahead of schedule.


    "He won."


    From those simple words, Situ Yn naturally seized the meaning that Lee Yu wanted to express, even if she didn¡¯t mention the name of the winner. She raised her hand to cover the unbelievable exmation that was about to burst out of her mouth, shock and joy filling her bright eyes.


    Yet the exmation couldn¡¯t be restrained in the end, finally breaking the silence of the night in the Academy. The girl excitedly jumped up and ran to the crowd with augh, violently shaking the hands of her girlpanion.


    At this very moment, everyone knew the final result, even if Situ Yn didn¡¯t say it out. The pavement sank in dead silence.


    Zhong Dajun looked hurt, murmuring with his trembling voice, "how... how... how could it be him?"


    Xie Chengyun slightly flickered, gently setting himself free from Jin Wucai¡¯s support. He stubbornly stood upright and looked at Situ Yn with his pale face, asking in a hoarse voice, "You knew all along that he was hiding his strength? You must have been waiting to have a goodugh at us."


    After that semester exam in summer, Ning Que had been ridiculed, dismissed and neglected by those students in the Academy, and only Situ Yn and Chu Youxian treated him as usual. Chu Youxian was a rich family¡¯s scion, who originally bore a different trait from those Academy students, not worthparing. However, Situ Yn was from a big noble family, who should be the same kind of person, as well as Xie Chengyun with his talent. On the contrary, she would always treat Ning Que well - Today, when Xie Chengyun and other Academy students were astonished to speechlessness, they then carefully recalled what had happened that day and would naturally believe that Situ Yn had already known Ning Que was hiding his real power.


    Looking at the pale Xie Chengyun and the other Academy students who were as stunned, immobile as wood, Situ Yn sneered and said, "I do not know what kind of power Ning Que hides. I only know, if it were not for your sneers in the past six months, you wouldn¡¯t have turned to be the biggest joke today."


    In the eyes of all the students, Ning Que used to be a despicable guy and the biggest joke in the Academy. However, having witnessed how he had reached the peak, those students were extremely humiliated to find that her satire was so appropriate. In fact, they themselves were the biggest joke in the world.


    With a loud p, the remaining pastry in Chu Youxian¡¯s hand fell to the floor. He looked nkly at the mountain behind the Academy, and thought in ecstasy about him actually getting to know such a great guy. "If father knew it, dare he continue to say I made bad friends in the Academy? Dad, you made a big mistake this time!"


    The ce was as silent as a grave, with all the students immersed in deep shame. Some of them lowered their proudly-raised head, and some even became numb and stunned after the mental shock.


    At this moment, an angry shout sounded from the study room.


    "The cultivation of Ning Que is so poor, how can we let him enter the Second floor?!"


    ...


    ...


    The angry shout barely woke Zhong Dajun up from the huge mental blow. He raised his eyebrows and said quiveringly and quickly, as if he had seized thest sharp knife, "Listen! Listen! The speaker is Master Yan Se... "


    "He said the cultivation of Ning Que is poor and he can¡¯t enter the Second floor. That¡¯s Master Yan Se! He is the legendary Divine Talisman Master and the Senior Brother of the Master of Nation of our Tang. If he thinks this way, then who else can feel sure that Ning Que will definitely enter the Second floor?"


    Zhong Dajun turned back to gaze at Situ Yn and tremblingly said, "Did you hear that? Things are not what you have thought."


    ...


    ...


    Inside the study room, Yan Se shouted with a ghastly pale face, "See, this is the token of our South School of Haotian, and what I have said today represents the attitude of the entire South School of Haotian. I think both the West-Hill Divine Pce and the emperor will show respect to it!"


    Professor Huang He looked at him as if he were looking at an idiot. After a long time of silence, he frowned and asked, "Uncle, what on earth do you want to do here? Can you directly put out your request, and see if we can make apromise?"


    "Ok..." Yan Se quickly changed his expression. He smiled and pointed at Huang He, saying, "That¡¯s what you said. Ifter you can¡¯t give me a satisfying result, I won¡¯t agree."


    Professor Huang He helplessly looked at the Divine Talisman Master who was perhaps of the highest seniority in the city of Chang¡¯an, unfolded his hands and said, "Say what you want first."


    After coughing a couple of times, Yan Se said, "As for state and cultivation, Ning Que is quite far behind Prince Long Qing. Yet when ites to unorthodox ways, he barely has the needed potential and is worth cultivating. So I think he is not suitable for the Second floor of the Academy, and he is more suitable to be my disciple."


    Although he had tried to express the idea as t and natural as possible, his words still shocked those bigwigs in the study room. Professor Huang He strode ahead with his eyes widely opened, and even Priest Moli surprisedly stood up.


    "You say... Ning Que has the potential to be a Divine Talisman Master?" Professor Huang He stared at him and inquired.


    His reaction made Yan Se feel regretful about what he said, who secretlyined to himself about how could he had failed to tighten his mouth at such a critical moment, after keeping quiet for so long? Then he decided to be case-hardened and said with a cold humph, "Yes, so what? He was first chosen by me."


    In this world, the sessor of a Divine Talisman Master was as rare and precious as the Phoenix feather of legend. It was of crucial importance for both the Divine Talisman Master and the school the Divine Talisman Master belonged to.


    After hearing Yan Se¡¯s confirmation, those bigwigs inside could no longer remain calm. Priest Moli first rushed ahead and red at Yan Se, questioning, "Uncle! Now that you find a candidate who has the potential to be a Divine Talisman Master, Why not inform the Divine Hall first?!"


    "Nonsense. If I first inform you, will I still have the chance to get him?" Yan Se stared and answered.


    Now it¡¯s time for Professor Huang He to show a smile. He then gratefully looked at Yan Se and said, "Uncle, now that the Academy knows it, do you think we will give Ning Que to you?"


    There was a sudden change in Yan Se¡¯s face, who pointed at Huang He and furiously growled, "You, shameless viin! If it were not for your promise to make a negotiation, I wouldn¡¯t tell it to you!"


    At the thought of the entrance of a new student to the Second floor of the Academy, and the probability of this new student to grow to be a Divine Talisman Master, Professor Huang He felt ratherforted. He then saidcently, "Indeed we can negotiate. But if all negotiations have a preset result, then why bother negotiating?"


    Yan Se shouted angrily, "You¡¯re shameless!"


    Huang Heughed, "I learned from you, uncle."


    The answer drove Yan Se mad, who then furiously shouted, "Ning Que is the only one I, Yan Se, has found to have good potential during half my lifetime. If who dare to loot this disciple from me, we will be at daggers drawn. Even if his bones are broken and body burnt, I will go on sharpening his bones and sprinkling his ashes!"


    Huang He shook his head andughed, "Uncle, your words are so harsh and cruel. If it were not for the entire Academy behind me, perhaps I would really... feel scared."


    ...


    ...


    "I, Yan Se, half of my lifetime... Ning Que... potential... disciple... at daggers drawn... bones broken... sprinkling ashes."


    Those words uttered by Yan Se under furious indignation spread out from the study room like a thunder, which then exploded on the stone floor of the Academy¡¯s entrance.


    The trace of a smile Zhong Dajun had just squeezed out now froze on his face, which looked funny.


    If Ning Que¡¯s sess to reach the peak and the admission to the Second floor of the Academy was the first thunder exploding in the hearts of those Academy students, then the crazy and furious im of the high-positioned Divine Talisman Master to get Ning Que as his disciple, which meant he would probably be a Divine Talisman Master in the future, could be regarded as the second thunder.


    After the thunder-like shout, those students in the courtyard stood foolishly as if hit by lightning, not knowing what to say.


    Looking at the pale face of Zhong Dajun, Chu Youxian sighed with sympathy, saying, "If I were you, I would go to fetch a piece of overnight sour tofu in the kitchen to hit myself to death. This way, wasting fresh tofu will be avoided and the vor of sour tofu will match the acrid words from your dirty mouth."

 Chapter 160: Is the Master of Tang Empire Extraordinary?

    Chapter 160: Is the Master of Tang Empire Extraordinary?


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Divine Talisman Master Yan Se¡¯s mood was very bad now.


    He stared at Professor Huang He in the front and coldly said, "Anyway, your Academy can¡¯t have Ning Que."


    Professor Huang He slightly furrowed his brows and said with mockery, "If uncle can have that kid, why can¡¯t our Academy?"


    Yan Se loudly shouted, "Thatd is naturally suitable for practicing with Divine Talismans. Who else in the world is qualified as his teacher except me?"


    Professor Huang He contemptuously smiled and said, "Only the Divine Talisman Master is qualified to be his teacher? Well, although our Academy can¡¯t pick out other powerful figures, we can still find two or three Divine Talisman Masters."


    The tone of those words was like saying that he could always pull out two or three green radishes from his garden. A Divine Talisman Master was indeed rare and honorable. However, the Academy was not an ordinary ce after all. Even he himself was a Divine Talisman Master. In addition to the West-Hill Divine Kingdom, who couldpete with the powerful Academy?


    Yan Se suddenly paused and then stubbornly said, "Anyway, I saw him first. I¡¯ll never give him to you."


    Huang He sighed and said, "Uncle, you¡¯re a venerable man. Stop making a scene, okay?"


    "Bah!" Yan Se angrily spouted, then said, "Look at me, your uncle. I¡¯ve spent every day soaking in the brothel and hugging girls. My every pore is acting like a wretched rogue. So why do you think I¡¯m venerable?"


    "Even if uncle gives up his self-esteem to act shamelessly today, it won¡¯t be of any use."


    Professor Huang He looked at him and earnestly said, "It may work in front of His Majesty, the Nation Master, or even with the hierarch and the Great Divine Priest of the West-Hill Divine Pce. But our Academy won¡¯t buy it."


    The conversation in the study room might seemed ridiculous. However, no matter how they acted like rogues, the dispute between the two Divine Talisman Masters was bound to be excessively tense because of their identities. Therefore, the atmosphere in the room suddenly became dense.


    At this moment, Prince Li Peiyan suddenly smiled and said, "In fact, why argue about this matter? In my opinion, the Ning Que¡¯s cultivation has only reached the No Doubts State, far less than Prince Long Qing. Why not let Prince Long Qing enter the Second floor and let Master Yan Se have Ning Que? As a result, both the Tang Empire and the West-Hill Divine Pce would be satisfied, as well as Master Yan Se. Besides, Ning Que would still retain the identity as an Academy student. Therefore, the Academy will have two very promising students at the same time. Doesn¡¯t it sound like the perfect ending?"


    Professor Huang He listened to him and was slightly moved. It sounded reasonable, but it was not so persuasive.


    Li Peiyan looked at him and mildly said, "If the Academy is limited by the system and inconvenienced by this decision, you can let Ning Que quit on his own. As long as he himself gives up the qualification of entering the Second floor, who in the world would dare gossip about the Academy?"


    Professor Huang He frowned and said, "Why would Ning Que give up?"


    Instead of immediately answering his question, Li Peiyan turned to Master Yan Se and asked with a smile, "Master, I want to know if Ning Que bes your disciple and enters the South School of Haotian Taoism for cultivation, how will you and the Nation Master treat him?"


    "We¡¯ll regard him as a son or nephew and teach him all we know." Yan Se resolutely replied.


    Li Peiyan looked at Professor Huang He and smiled with hands unfolded. He said, "We all know that the Nation Master doesn¡¯t have any outstanding disciples, neither does Master Yan Se. If Ning Que enters the South School of Haotian Taoism and diligently continues his own practice, with the two masters¡¯ careful training he might eventually be the Master of Tang Empire. With such a bright future, why would he refuse it?"


    Professor Huang He finally understood where the previous question in his heart came from. He slightly closed his hands inside the sleeves and stared at the eyes of the Prince, secretly thinking how ruthless His Highness¡¯ trick really was. If Ning Que was really tempted by the prospect of being Nation Master of Tang in the future and decided to withdraw from the Second floor of the Academy, then they would loose their leverage to keep thisd from the South School of Haotian Taoism.


    Previously it was Yan Se who had made concessions and pretended to retreat while moving ahead. However, the situation had changed this time. It was time for the Academy to make concessions and think about amon ground. Professor Huang He undoubtedly said, "No matter how Ning Que thinks about it, I have to ask for all the Academy instructors¡¯ advice on this matter. Otherwise, isn¡¯t it too absurd?"


    ...


    ...


    In the early morning, still at dawn, Ning Que rubbed his eyes and woke up.


    ncing at the shimmer outside the window, he silently calcted in his heart and knew that he had not been unconscious for too long. He got up and went to the table. Then he lifted the pot of herbal tea and almost drank it all to refresh himself. He looked around and found that this should be the Academy¡¯s dormitory.


    He walked to the door and reached out his hands to slowly push the wooden door open. The delicate dawn light weaved in through the narrow doorway and shone into his eyes, making him squint. Suddenly he further roused up and watched that light, standing still in front of the door like a fool.


    What returned to his mind was the long mountain trail, the arduous climb from midday tote at night, the reliving those life memories of joys and sorrows, the dark Wilderness and the strange dreams.


    "I... reached the top."


    "I... entered the Second floor."


    Ning Que stared at the morning light from the door crack and realized what he had gone through. He could not help going nk for a moment, his face showing a confused smile. It seemed that even the smile could not believe everything that had urred.


    When he remembered thest step on the boulderst night and the painful choice on the Wilderness, he could not help shake his head with a smile. He thought about person responsible for the illusions, forcing a secr guy such as him to make metaphysical choices, which was like asking the butcher to think philosophically. Even if he could make the correct argument, he would never know the reasoning process.


    He looked upughing and went out, refusing to be a conservative man. Ning Que smiled and pushed the wooden door open. He walked into the beautiful morning light and then found several officials standing outside. In fact, he would have a very difficult choice to make.


    "You are not yet a student on the Second floor of the Academy, so you still have a chance to quit and choose another path. It¡¯spletely different, but absolutely of equal brilliance, setting your destiny to rock the world."


    Prince Li Peiyan sat in the chair and then took a slow sip from the hot tea next to him, which slightly diminished the tiredness caused by theck of sleep. He watched the silent Academy student in front and continued to say, "I think you should choose the second path, for it involves the harmonious diplomatic rtion between the imperial court and West-Hill. Although the Tang Empire never feared any enemies, nor surrendered to any external pressure, to have Prince Long Qing enter the Second floor was an agreement drawn by His Majesty personally and the Divine Hall."


    "As long as you take the initiative to withdraw from thepetition for the Second floor, it would solve the predicament many people face, mitigate the pressures on the Tang Empire, and make you benefit from all aspects." Li Peiyan noticed that Ning Que kept his head down and remained silent. He became slightly unhappy and then said, "As one of the Tangs, you should think for the Tang Empire. Of course, if I use this reason to make you exit the Second floor of the Academy, not to mention you, even I myself would feel it too absurd."


    "So I¡¯ll give you another good reason."


    Li Peiyan slowly leaned his body forward and stared at Ning Que¡¯s head. He said, "Master Yan Se is a prestigious Divine Talisman Master who did not hesitate to act a fool so as to take you back to be his disciple. You can imagine how he¡¯ll value and nurture you in the future. Decades of yearster, you¡¯ll be a Divine Talisman Master with high status and the hope of South School of Haotian Taoism. Master of Nation Li Qingshan has only two disciples who are good for nothing. And he respects his Senior Brother very much, and knows the meaning of a Divine Talisman Master for a denomination than anyone else."


    Ning Que was still silent, but had emotional waves rippling in his heart. He just entered the Second floor and then got the favor of the Divine Talisman Master. Just for a night, he had changed from an ordinary student, a nobody selling calligraphy in the small alley of Eastern City, to a person that both the Academy and the South School of Haotian Taoism fought to rope in. He was even seen as the hope for development - the hope seemed so big and iprehensible, which even caused a headache. Wasn¡¯t it one of Prince Long Qing¡¯s private vocabry?


    "I know you have a good rtionship with the Princess." Li Peiyan mildly said, "Here I can give you a promise. As long as you¡¯re willing to think for the imperial court, it won¡¯t treat you unfairly. I will personally owe you a favor. When youter enter into the Knowing Destiny State and be a Divine Talisman Master, of course, you¡¯ll be the next Nation Master of the Tang Empire."


    Li Peiyan continued to say, "The Second floor of the Academy surely has a very wonderful environment. But if you look back in its records, how many of its students could go down in history? But if you be the next Nation Master, your name would be remembered by countless people for a thousand years."


    The Nation Master of the Tang Empire in the future?


    Although Ning Que looked calm as usual, he had long been agitated by the words.


    He seemed to see a brilliant road developing at his own feet. It was really an iparably hard choice, whether giving up his hard earned ce on the Second floor to follow the Divine Talisman Master and contend for the Nation Master of Tang in the future, or, entering the Second floor to follow the Headmaster of the Academy to learn exquisite cultivation methods. He even felt that the choice on the cliff-edge and the Wilderness was much easier than this one.


    Ning Que looked at the Prince¡¯s face, knowing that as long as he nodded, he would have an infinitely bright future. He believed these words. As long as he had the chance to follow the Divine Talisman Master to study, he might really be the Nation Master in the future. If it wasn¡¯t this man who asked him to make a choice, maybe he would have already been tempted.


    Li Peiyan saw the emotional reaction in Ning Que¡¯s eyes, vaguely guessing how thisd would choose. He suddenly became serious, firmly holding the handle with his right hand, and then stared at his eyes to say, "This is a chance Haotian makes the imperial court grant to you. If you miss it, you would be about to embrace damnation."


    It was doubtlessly a pure threat. In the face of this threat, even if Ning Que really became a student on the Second floor of the Academy, he also had to think it carefully. Because he lived in this world, and he was bound to ept the rules of this world.


    Ning Que respectfully bowed with hands folded in front and said, "Your Highness, after all, I was an Academy student and have been studying in the Academy for one year. So I have deep feelings for it. I¡¯m willing to think for the imperial court, but I must also consider the Academy¡¯s interests."


    ...


    ...


    Some people put the pressure of the choice on Ning Que¡¯s shoulders without hesitation in order to avoid irritating the Academy. However, for Ning Que who seemed to be honest but slippery, how could he take the initiative to bear the responsibility? With a few sentences, he directly threw back the pressure of the choice.


    Ning Que was not worried whether the Academy would give him up and let Prince Long Qing enter into the Second floor. He and Lee Yu had the same understanding in this matter; since the Headmaster of the Academy hadn¡¯t returned, no one in the Academy dared to make the decision. In fact, there was an idea deep in his heart that if the Academy could not even withstand the pressure of the imperial court and eventually gave him so that he fully enrolled in the South School of Haotian Taoism, he did not need to stay in such an Academy. Why not be the Nation Master of Tang instead?


    What he and Lee Yu thought was not wrong. But there were always some deviations between reality and thought, for they did not realize that the instructors of the Academy quite adored Prince Long Qing and the instructors were not all from Tang.


    In the early morning, the Academy instructors sitting in the room were fiercely arguing. It was true that they were unable to reach the quickest conclusion, with the Headmaster absent. However, it was precisely for the same reason that they had the courage to express their own opinions.


    Vice professor of Etiquette Cao Zhifeng angrily said, "Many people think our Academy cheated in this exam. I don¡¯t know whether this is true or not. I only know that Prince Long Qing came out of the fog very early, so why did he stay outside the fog for so long? Why in the end did he make thest step with Ning Que? What happened during the process?


    Professor Cao was a senior professor of the Academy. What he said naturally made some sense. Although everyone in the room knew that the professor from Yan Kingdom expressed his doubts due to his unwillingness to ept the failure of Prince Long Qing, no one could exin this question he raised. And even some instructors secretly wondered whether those people in the Back Mountain cheated in the exam.


    An old woman in a blue coat, holding a bamboo broom in her hand, regarded the debating people as idiots and said, "What a boring discussion. Firste first served. Why do you make it soplicated? Cao Zhifeng, you have gone to Chang¡¯an City to see your Prince every day and sorrowfully cry on your way back to the Academy. You think he is the hope for developing your Yan Kingdom, but it has nothing to do with the Academy. I can¡¯t listen to you anymore. I¡¯m leaving."


    The honored female professor of Mathematics in the Academy went away. And so did several professors who dedicated to academic services and were unwilling to be troubled by trivial matters. Therefore, the debate in the room was getting fiercer. Many instructors thought that the imperial court¡¯s proposal really could make everyone satisfied. In that case, why not choose this? Was it necessary for Ning Que to offend all forces?


    When Vice Professor Cao Zhifeng got angry and passionate again, the door was suddenly pushed open with a squeak. All the instructors looked back in surprise, only to see a tender face stretching in after a short moment and a pair of ck moving eyes.


    The little boy came in; fresh, lovely with a bit of bashfulness. He looked at the instructors and asked softly in a mosquito-like voice, "My young master has something to ask you. So I carry the message for him."


    The instructors in the room knew the identity of this little boy, so they asked gently, "What¡¯s your master¡¯s question?"


    "My young master got up early this morning and found that there were still many unrted people staying at the Academy. He was really angered by." The little boy opened his eyes wide and looked at the crowd in the room to say, "He would like to ask you why the notice has not been posted after a night. What are those unrted people doing here? Do you want him to treat them?"


    Listening to these words, the instructors looked at each other and did not know how to answer. They all knew that Second Brother from the Second floor of the Academy was a bit slow-witted in reality. But they never thought that he would call the Prince and Master Yan Se as unrted people.


    Professor Cao Zhifeng nced at the little boy and said, "We haven¡¯t decided the person entering the Second floor, so naturally we haven¡¯t yet posted the notice."


    He thought that such an answer would make the other party unhappy. So he had already made his preparation to exin it in detail. However, he did not realize that the young boy was so shy that he lowered his head as he went out, just after hearing the answer.


    ...


    ...


    The instructors¡¯ debate in the room was resumed. But after a short time, the door squeaked again.


    There was sweat on the little boy¡¯s pink face. He obviously ran there and back very anxiously. The boy looked at the instructors and said, "My master asked, what do you mean by saying ¡¯we haven¡¯t decided the person entering the Second floor¡¯?"


    Professor Cao Zhifeng unhappily said, "We mean what we mean, we haven¡¯t decided the person. Ning Que actually was able to defeat Prince Long Qing and first reached the top. A lot of people have doubts about that and suspected about someone cheating in the Back Mountain. If people are doubtful, how can we decide it?"


    The little boy confusedly looked at Cao Zhifeng and woke up after a long time. He said okay and turned away to leave, not making entirely clear whether he actually understood the words of Vice Professor Cao Zhifeng.


    It was quiet in the room and the instructors did not argue again. Because they strongly felt that it would not be long before the Second Brother¡¯s little helper came back and continue asking stupid questions.


    ...


    ...


    Just then, the door was pushed open with a squeak.


    The little boy widened his eyes and looked at Vice Professor Cao Zhifeng, asking, "Young master asked, who¡¯s doubtful?"


    Professor Cao Zhifeng was stunned for a moment, looking at the little boy¡¯s confused yet fresh and lovely face. It was impossible for Cao Zhifeng to tell lies or speak about those people outside the Academy. So the professor moved his sleeves and frowned saying, "I¡¯m doubtful."


    "Oh," the little boy was about to turn away to leave. Suddenly, he thought of thetter half of what the young master said to him in the mountain and quickly turned around, embarrassedly scratching his head. He asked, "May I have your name?"


    "I¡¯m Cao Zhifeng." Vice Professor Cao Zhifeng unhappily said, "Why ask this?"


    The little boy took it for granted and said, "Because my young master wondered about who was doubtful."


    After finishing this sentence, the little boy turned around and ran to the Back Mountain again.


    ...


    ...


    Just then, the door was again pushed open with a squeak.


    The breathless little boy ced a hand on the door frame for support and looked at Cao Zhifeng. He said, "Young... young master said..."


    Cao Zhifeng could not helpughing and shook his head to say, "What did your young master say again?"


    The little boy swallowed saliva and looked at the professor. He seriously said, "My young master said ¡¯The Academy enrolls talents from all over the world, regardless of the nationality. Cao Zhifeng, you¡¯re one of the Yans, so I don¡¯t me you for supporting Long Qing. But you should remember that you are a professor of the Etiquette course. How is it you have the first ss for the Academy students? What¡¯s the Etiquette of the Academy?¡¯"


    The little boy repeated the words fast and smoothly, raising eyebrows on his little pink face from time to time to show the indifference and displeasure. He was obviously doing it in imitation of Second Brother, producing a very funny and cute scene, making the instructors in the roomugh a lot. Cao Zhifeng did notugh but instantly concealed a smile, and suppressed his anger to ask, "What does Second Brother mean?"


    "Cao Zhifeng, you¡¯ve talked about it in the study room. The Academy¡¯s Etiquette is the rule. The rule is set by the person who has the strength."


    The little boy looked at him and earnestly said, "The Headmaster of the Academy and our eldest Brother traveled to another country. In the Academy, I am currently the only one who has the strength to set the rule. Therefore, whether you¡¯re doubtful or not, you must listen to me and immediately post the notice."


    Vice Professor Cao Zhifeng nked out for a while and angrily waved his Academy¡¯s gown to protest. "What an overbearing behavior. How would we convince the public?"


    The little boy did not know that this was the true sentiment, even though it was a formal question. When he was ready to leave, he suddenly raised his small hand and said with joy while apuding, "Young master is really clever. He had guessed what you would say, so let me answer you. "


    Vice Professor Cao Zhifeng looked very embarrassed.


    The little boy looked at him and pretended to seriously say, "I don¡¯t need to convince them. I just need them to obey."


    Some instructors could not bear to look at Professor Cao¡¯s embarrassed look at this time and then added, "Even if this matter has nothing to do with His Majesty, Master Yan Se and West-Hill, we have to respect Ning Que¡¯s own choice."


    ...


    ...


    Once again the wooden door was pushed open. The little boy, whose clothes had gotten all wet by the sweat, lifted his sleeves to wipe his forehead, taking a long time to calm down. He looked up at the people in the room and retold the conclusion of Second Brother for thest time.


    "Respect Ning Que¡¯s own choice? Why should I respect him? As for the Master of our Tang Empire... "


    Here, the little boy deliberately made a long pause and lifted up his slightly sharp jaw to show a supercilious look against the roof. Then he clumsily uttered a groan from his little nose. All in all, he had cutely copied the look of that proud man on the mountain.


    "Is he amazing?"


    ...


    ...


    Above the cliff on the Academy¡¯s Back Mountain, there was a pine tree showing its wee with stretched branches and white clouds flowing around. The whole picture looked like an earthly paradise.


    Two people stood beside the cliff.


    One of them wore a very dirty and tattered robe.


    The other person wore a very weird old hat.


    The Academy¡¯s Second Brother turned around and looked nkly at the Minister of Offerings Yan Se in Haotian South School. Second Brother said, "You actually dare to ask the Academy for my instructor¡¯s student. Not to mention you, even the Haotian hierarch of West-Hill doesn¡¯t have the qualification."


    Yan Se showed a weird smile and looked at him to say, "Second Brother continues to be the world¡¯s proudest, with such a harsh tone. But I¡¯m older than you. I won¡¯t fight with you, lest someone say I bully you. But I really want to take away this Ning Que kid. Even if the Headmaster of the Academy were here, I would still insist on it. If you want me to remain without a sessor, I have to be ruthless."


    Second Brother looked at him and slightlyughed. He said, "No more excuses. If you¡¯re not confused, you should remember my position is higher than yours based on the Headmaster¡¯s or Pipi¡¯s. If you want to grab my student, you must fight with me."


    "If I say no fights, then there won¡¯t be a fight."


    Yan Se looked at the hat above his head and mockingly said, "The Academy¡¯s Back Mountain is your domain. I¡¯m not so stupid to fight with you. Anyway, if I don¡¯t start, you have no reason to fight with me. As for the matter about Ning Que, after all, it all depends on his attitude. In the future, me and my brother can promise him to be the Nation Master of Tang, which is better than staying inside the mountain every day and being bullied by those Senior Brothers."


    Second Brother showed a supercilious look towards the sky and thenughed. "Master of the Tang Empire... is amazing? You¡¯re still bullied every day by the imperial family and those old men in West-Hill. The Nation Master of Tang is not a master at all, just purely a wife who doesn¡¯t dare to cry when being wronged."

 Chapter 161: The View in the Spring Morning

    Chapter 161: The View in the Spring Morning


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Yan Se was so mad that his entire body was trembling with rage. However, he had not had the chance to react before he heard another voice.


    "Oh, I was wrong. Both you and Li Qingshan do dare toin. Only children whoin will get milk to drink. Your trouble now is that you don¡¯t know which side of the breast to drink from."


    Yan Se was startled by his words. He did not know whether tough or cry and angrily said, "Why must you be so crass?"


    Second Brother turned around and looked at him calmly. "Both shit and pee are natural. As long as the reasoning is sound, why you care about the vocabry used?"


    Yan Se nodded frantically and looked uprighteous for a moment, and not like someone who was uneducated. He sighed and said, "Jun Mo, oh Jun Mo, how do you want people to view you? I really don¡¯t understand how someone as proud as you are could live for so many years."


    Second Brother smiled slightly and ced his hands behind his back and stood behind the cliff, looking at the curling clouds. He replied, "I rarely leave the mountain and I don¡¯t annoy those I cannot afford to, not that there are many. The rare few who can annoy me dare not ascend the mountain to do so. This is why I can live as I am. As for you, you will never be someone I cannot afford to annoy unless you outlive me for a couple of decades. No matter abilities, state or seniority, which one can you surpass me in? That is why I can be prideful in front of you."


    "Don¡¯t you understand what it means to be respectful of the elderly and the wise?" Yan Se rubbed his sleeves angrily.


    "If someone who has managed to live for a long time deserves respect, wouldn¡¯t I have bashed my forehead in kowtowing to everyone as a child? There is logic behind being respectful to the elderly and wise, but you, Yan Se, which part of you is wise?"


    Second Brother looked at the Divine Talisman Master¡¯s wizened face with some scorn and exasperation. He coldly said, "If you were not so stupid to swear your entrance into the path of calligraphy using the Chunyang oath, would you be stuck in the Knowing Destiny state and be unable to move forward?"


    The words along with Second Brother¡¯s pitying tone pierced directly Master Yan Se¡¯s heart. He waved his sleeves around crazily and shouted, "I may not have been able to move forward, but it¡¯s not like you did either!"


    Second Brother raised his head to look at the heavens. He said, "You are old and your body is weak. You don¡¯t have many more years to go. Unlike you, I have felt and know that I may still have a chance. I will definitely be able to move forward."


    Yan Se paused. He thought of something and then, smiled sinisterly. "Rumor is that Liu Bai from the South Jin Kingdom made the first step forward and had managed to enter the turbid waves of the Huang River. When will you ever make it to the clouds?"


    Second Brother¡¯s expression changed upon hearing Liu Bai¡¯s name. He did not raise his guard though, but said excitedly, "He was a genius and was also a disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy. If he didn¡¯t make that step, wouldn¡¯t he be ashamed of himself?"


    Yan Se was speechless. There really was nothing he could do if even Liu Bai, the strongest cultivator in the world, could not make a dent in his pride and confidence. There was a silent pause before he asked, "What about... Ye Su?"


    Second Brother¡¯s brows furrowed and a look of hate spread on his face. They were talking about Yan Se, but how dare hepare himself to someone who was as useless as a pile of firewood. How ludicrous.


    Yan Se took a deep breath and thought to himself, "Are you not going to care about the World Wayfarer now?"


    He continued aloud, "What do you think of the other two? How are their chances?"


    Second Brother looked at the Divine Talisman Master and felt that his questions were getting stupider and refused to answer. He replied, "Stop talking nonsense. Are you more interested in finding a sessor or does the Southern Gates need another Divine Talisman Master?"


    Master Yan Se asked bewilderedly, "What is the difference?"


    Second Brother remained silent, waiting for Yan Se to think for himself.


    Yan Se suddenlyprehended the hidden meaning in his words, and did not hesitate to say, "Of course we want both!"


    Second Brother tilted his head and looked at him. After a pregnant pause, he said, "You really think so, don¡¯t you?"


    Yan Se asked with knitted brows, "What do you mean?"


    Second Brother shook his head andmented, "You really think so, don¡¯t you, dream on."


    Yan Se was speechless.


    Second Brother looked at him and said, "I¡¯ve already taken a step back. If you insist on taking two steps forward, we might just as well fall off the cliff together. We can see who survives then. If I do, I will let it go, if I die, you can do what you like. I think my solution is pretty simple, what do you think?"


    Yan Se could not be bothered, he said, "I am a man of the Talisman Taoism. If you don¡¯t allow me to prepare, I will, of course, be ttened when I fall. You¡¯ll survive when you release the magic on the mountain. How could youe up with such a cruel solution."


    "The choice is simple. Why do you hesitate for so long?" Second Brother waved his hand and said, "From what I see, having a sessor is more important. When you die, there will be no one to send you off on your deathbed. Wouldn¡¯t it be a pity to turn into ashes after a lifetime devoted to the Talisman Taoism? As for the Southern Gates of Haotian, they won¡¯t need a Divine Talisman Master as long as the Tang Empire doesn¡¯t fall and the priests of West-Hill do not preach within ournds."


    He continued, "I can decide on behalf of the Academy. As long as you do not pressure Ning Que to enter Hoatian Taoism when he enters the Second floor, you may teach him your rubbish talisman."


    Yan Se said angrily, "They are Divine Talismans, not rubbish talismans! Jun Mo, don¡¯t you dare be so high and mighty. I can just let it go if the Headmaster says so, but you are just a student of the Academy, how dare you..."


    He did not even manage to finish his rant when Second Brother red at him and waved for him to stop. He said, "Just tell me if you want it or not. If you weren¡¯t the first to realize Ning Que¡¯s potential, we wouldn¡¯t even give you this opportunity. Do you really think the Academy cannot find any other Divine Talisman Masters?"


    The conclusion of all debates ended not on one¡¯s ability to talk, but their true capabilities. With a simple statement, the Academy¡¯s capabilities were disyed and Yan Se withered like a leaf in autumn.


    Yan Se finally made a decision after a lengthy struggle. He looked down at the clouds beneath the cliff and the distant City of Chang¡¯an and sighed in his heart, "I¡¯ve let you down, junior."


    ...


    ...


    In a certain room within the Academy, Prince Lee Peiyan was working on a certain somebody¡¯s education. No matter which teachings of great sages he used, Ning Que would only give one standard reply.


    Ning Que looked at Lee Peiyan and smiled earnestly. " I am a student of the Academy, I obey the instructions of the Academy."


    The smile on Lee Peiyan¡¯s face gradually disappeared. He looked at Ning Que coldly and said ndly, "Very well."


    Ning Que seemed not to have noticed the change in Lee Peiyan but smiled politely, "Your Highness, you have honored me."


    Lee Peiyan pushed open the door angrily. If Ning Que was allowed onto the Second floor, what were they going to do with Prince Long Qing? If his royal brother found out about this, would he me him for not doing his job well? How would the court answer to the West-Hill Divine Kingdom?


    His face turned even darker as he thought about this. He looked at the official beside him and asked hopefully, "What did the Academy say? This is a win-win situation for us all, I don¡¯t think they¡¯d think otherwise?"


    The official smiled bitterly, "Your Highness, the notice is out. They have confirmed that Ning Que will enter the Second floor. I have asked them for the reason, and Professor Huang He said that this was a decision made by the Second floor, they need not tell us why."


    Lee Peiyan stiffened at the reply and the rage boiled within him. He might be the prince of the Tang Empire, but he had no influence on the Second floor. It would not benefit him to get mad and scold anyone. In that moment, he transferred all that rage onto Ning Que.


    Eunuch Lin appeared beside him and reminded him, " Your Highness, ording to your lowly servant, you need not worry how to answer to the West-Hill Divine Kingdom. Perhaps ignoring Ning Que might be better."


    ...


    ...


    Once he was certain the Prince and court officials have all left the Academy, Ning Que left the room and walked around theke. He suddenly spotted a chubby figure under the willow tree.


    Ning Que walked up and bowed deeply, saying, "Many thanks."


    Chen Pipi said seriously, "Since you want to thank me, you should go about it in a more practical manner."


    Ning Que thought about it and replied, "I will invite you to my ce for dinner soon. I¡¯ll have Sangsang make you Hot and sour noodle slices soup. Her cooking skills match the stall at Eastern City. I have never told anyone about this."


    Chen Pipi did not reply, but said, "We will be seniors and juniors from now on."


    Ning Que looked at his round face and while he did not want to, he sighed and bowed once more, saying, "Senior."


    Chen Pipi smiled. He held out his hands but made no move to stop Ning Que. He looked at Ning Que¡¯s head and smiled like a cat that caught the canary and said, "Junior, there is no need to be so polite."


    Ning Que raised his head, and the two smiled at each other.


    They have known each other for an entire year now. A pile of broken firewood who could not cultivate had finally joined the Second floor. No matter Ning Que himself nor Chen Pipi who had witnessed this miracle could express their awe at this.


    Chen Pipi said sentimentally, "Teacher had said once, that there is a type of cicada in the driestnd of the West. They stay beneath the ground for 20 to 30 years and awaken when the snow and ice melt and bathe them in it. They dry their wings in the cold breeze, and fly out into the skies then."


    Ning Que smiled and shook his head."Do you need to say this to me? Unless you¡¯d like for me to tter you?"


    Chen Pipi said, "I¡¯m not exaggerating. You were once a pile of useless firewood but have sudden ascended the skies. What¡¯s even more shocking is that you have the potential to be a Divine Talisman Master and even caught the attention of Master Yan Se of the Southern Gates.


    Ning Que had not known what was happening up till then. He had never heard of Master Yan Se, but have heard that he was a great Divine Talisman Master and was the senior to the Master of Nation. What did he see in him?


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que spotted a familiar skinny figure in a familiar ce, by the familiarke.


    He walked up and looked at Sangsang¡¯s haggard face. There were pieces of grass and leaves in her slightly yellowing hair. He brushed them off and said gently, "You¡¯ve waited for long. You¡¯ve had it hard."


    Sangsang lifted her small face and looked at him. She said seriously, "Young Master, you, are the one who have had it hard."


    After experiencing an entire night of pain in both his psyche and physical body and being assaulted by the joy of seeding, Ning Que fainted on the peak of the mountain. While he had rested, his thoughts were still scrambled.


    Sangsang did not tell him that she had hidden beneath the big ck umbre all night alone like a wounded animal. She hid from the wild and cruel gales and was tired, scared and weak.


    The two held onto each other and walked away slowly into the sunlight.


    ...


    ...


    The front of the Academy was quiter than it had beenst night. The officials and envoys have left early in the morning. Most of the students of the Academy had stayed behind. They gathered beneath the notice and raised their heads to look at the boy they had deliberately ignored for the past six months. Today, he had scared them speechless by reminding them of his existence in such a cruel method.


    The students did not leave after finding out the results of the Second floor entrance test. They might have wanted to see Ning Que subconsciously, to prove that this was not a hallucination. In fact, it might one might say that they¡¯re punishing themselves by doing so.


    The sun had dipped slightly and swallowed the foot of the hill behind the Academy along with the gentle spring breeze. Everyone¡¯s eyes turned towards the two figures, one slightlyrger than the other, walking from behind the Academy.


    Ning Que¡¯s school robes were torn and tattered after rolling around on the mountain for an entire night. He looked exceptionally pathetic with streaks of mud and traces of snacks sttered all over him. Sangsang who was beside him did not look any better for she was covered with dirt. There were still plenty of grass on her hair and shoulders. The big ck umbre she was carrying looked even older and dirtier.


    However, to the students of the Academy, the two who were walking slowly towards them were enveloped in the glow of sunlight. They looked extremely clean with the spring breeze dancing around them and looked like a part of the glow and dancing wind.


    This, was what they call being morous.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que stopped before the students and retrieved the handkerchief. He whipped it around to get rid of the remnants of the snack before handing it to Chu Youxian with a smile on his face. His gaze was heated with glee and enthusiasm.


    While life had not been difficult for Ning Que, it hadn¡¯t been great either since the semester exam six months ago. Other than the meadow and the and the old library, the only person who had stood by him was this friend of his.


    Ning Que¡¯s best quality was that he would never forget a grudge. However, the only ones he remembered were those that required bloodshed and not sarcasm that barely affected him. He would also always remember those who had done him a good turn. Other than Chan Xiaoshu and Chen Pipi, he would remember the two before him as well.


    Ning Que looked at Situ Yn who was enveloped in sunlight and smiled, "I rarely disappoint my friends."

 Chapter 162: We Are Worth More From Today On

    Chapter 162: We Are Worth More From Today On


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Situ Yn did not wear her Academy robes today but had on a pair of magenta archery robes instead. The robes would have looked old on anyone else, but with Situ Yn¡¯s clean and young face with prominent brows, gave off a youthful ir instead. She looked at Ning Que gleefully in the sun. Her smile deepened when she heard what Ning Que had to say.


    The expressions of the students wereplicated. They did not know what they could say or do to take away the awkwardness and shame they felt. The few students who had been rmended by the Military Ministry appeared and walked up to Ning Que. They greeted him with a bow, hands sped before them. Their leader, Chang Zhengming, looked straight at Ning Que and said, "We apologize."


    Ning Que looked at them in silence.


    Chang Zhengming looked at the expression on Ning Que¡¯s face and paused for a moment before exining, "It is not because you won thepetition or entered the Second floor. It also isn¡¯t because of your victory over those from the West-Hill as a representative of the Academy. My reason for apologizing is simple. I was wrong. I should not have suspected your moral character before finding out the facts."


    Ning Que smiled and answered, "We have both served in the army. There is no need to make thingsplicated. You have saidst year, that you¡¯d give me a chance to prove myself. While I had refused then, I know you meant well. The reason for my refusal is simple as well. I have no need to prove myself. Besides, my moral character had never been excellent."


    Chang Zhengming smiled slightly and moved out of his way.


    Several students from the Academy followed, each seemingly wanting to apologize. Ning Que did not see Xie Chengyun, but saw Zhong Dajun who looked slightly awkward as well as several students from Grade A Dormitory who had made the loudest ruckus in the days following the semester exam.


    He was unwilling to spend any more time on this, and even more unwilling to listen to the half-hearted apologies. He wanted to draw over what had happened in thest six months like running an ink brush on paper.


    He wanted these people to always feel the guilt and pressure within them, for he knew that it would make them ufortable and unhappy.


    He became very happy when he thought of that.


    After he bowed goodbye to Situ Yn and Chu Youxian and nodded at Chang Zhengming and the students rmended by the Military, he turned and walk out of the Academy with Sangsang. He did not even bother looking at the students from Grade A Dormitory.


    Zhong Dajun clenched his fist tightly with an ugly look on his face as he watched Ning Que¡¯s retreating figure. He yelled unhappily, "Ning Que, I have nothing to say if you do not wish to ept our apologies. You have indeed made it to the Second floor and hold victory over Prince Long Qing. You¡¯ve used this to shame our misunderstanding. But are you drunk on victory right now?"


    Ning Que stopped when he heard that. He turned to look at Zhong Dajun and the other students who wished to apologize. They looked lost and some of them petnt. He said, "Firstly, it wasn¡¯t a misunderstanding. Not every cold jibe can be exined away as a misunderstanding. You might have exined it that way to someone else, but it won¡¯t work on me. I do not ept it."


    "Secondly, you¡¯re not worth my shaming. My goal is to enter the Second floor. Prince Long Qing wasn¡¯t even my goal, much less you. But since I have shamed you anyway, I will be d to ept this fact. Finally, about being prideful..."


    "Pride is one of our greatest quality as the people of Tang. I am proud today not because I have beaten Prince Long Qing and made it to the Second floor. Chang Zhengming gave me an opportunity to prove myself, but I have refused then. I have said it before, that is because I do not need to. Why would I need to?"


    Ning Que hugged Sangsang close to his chest as he looked proudly at his peers who had conflicting emotions on their faces. He said, "I have always been proud. I did not suddenly be prideful. It is just that you did not understand and still do not understand it. You all do not have enough ss to understand it."


    Ning Que said naught a word more after this prideful statement and walked straight out of the Academy.


    The students all looked at his retreating back like carved birds, still and unmoving. Zhong Dajun¡¯s face was red with rage and his fist was clenched extremely tightly, but he refused to say a single word. Chang Zhengming sighed deeply while Situ Yn shook her head with a bitter smile. Why did he have to p his opponents¡¯ faces if he knew that they had already fallen and felt that they had no ss?


    Ning Que saw two other persons when he walked out of the Academy. He bowed politely to Professor Huang He who had presided over the ceremony earlier. The professor smiled like someone who had seen gold hidden under his bed and nodded several times. Ning Que did not recognize the dirty Taoist priest on the left but could guess his identity. He bowed even deeper at the man.


    Master Yan Se looked at the clean-shavend before him. With his lively eyes, he did not look as pathetic as he usually did but looked like a doting grandfather instead. He sighed, "You must already know the results. You may learn tothe scrawly handwriting from me when you are free."


    It was a great opportunity to study Talisman Taoism with a Divine Talisman Master. Ning Que had found out about the results of the dispute from Chen Pipi and could hardly suppress the excitement bubbling within him when he heard what Master Yan Se had said. He bowed yet again and said sincerely, "It is my honor to be able to study Talisman Taoism with a great master."


    Yan Se sighed, "You have just entered the Second floor and haven¡¯t been affected by the pride that seems to affect everyone there. Not bad, not bad."


    Ning Que raised his head and looked at the uncouth old Taoist. He hesitated for a moment, but could not suppress his curiosity. He asked, "Master Yan Se, we have never met before that, how did you know for sure that I have the potential to cultivate in the Talisman Taoism? I know I should not have any doubts since I have the opportunity to study with you, but I¡¯m worried that I might disappoint you."


    "Disappoint?" I saw the memo you left behind at Dewdrop¡¯s room at the House of Red Sleeves. I had someone check up on you and was really disappointed when I thought you could not cultivate." Yan Se looked at him fondly and continued, "Why would I be disappointed now that you¡¯re able to cultivate and even enter the Second floor? Unless, of course, you have suddenly forgotten how to write."


    It took some time before Ning Que recalled letting off some steam after a wild night at the House of Red Sleeves. But what was so special about the memo? How did Master Yan Se deduce that he had the potential for cultivation just by looking at that sheet of paper from the ount book?


    Yan Se could guess what he was thinking just by looking at his expression. He smiled and said, "I can see your potential from a few chicken scratches on a sheet of paper and you can¡¯t. That¡¯s because I am a Divine Talisman Master and you are a student.


    Ning Que understood what he meant, and bowed to receive his teachings.


    "We can talk more about all theseter. Today, you shall apany me to the Southern Gates Temple. There are thousands and millions of talisman out there. You are but still a sheet of white paper. If we want to draw the world on it, we have to start with the simplest step in cultivation, which is setting the brush on it. This will be a long journey to undertake, and you¡¯ll have to hold on tight."


    Ning Que and Professor Huang He were equally shocked upon hearing Yan Se¡¯s instructions. They asked in unison, "What¡¯s the rush?"


    Master Yan Se was silent. The wrinkles on his face told a story of joy at meeting a sessor and a myriad of indescribable emotions. He turned to look at Ning Que and said gently, "I¡¯m very old."


    Professor Huang He bowed slightly and moved to the side upon hearing this. Ning Que too could hear the sadness, worry, and urgency in his statement. His heart twisted slightly and he nodded his acquiescence.


    Apletely different voice rang out as Eunuch Lin arrived on the scene and smiled at those present. He said, "Master Yan Se, Ning Que will not be able to apany you to the Southern Gates. He has to go somewhere with me."


    Yan Se startled slightly. He looked at the eunuch and recalled what someone had told him yesterday. The eunuch did note to the Academy to watch the ceremony but was on an assignment to retrieve someone for His Majesty. Could that person be... Ning Que?


    "The court won¡¯t miss him too much should he go with me now." Yan Se said unhappily, "I fought with the Academy for a night and a day just for this student. How would I answer to my junior afterward? Why are you in such a hurry?"


    Only Yan Se could ignoremands from the court tantly as the only remaining Divine Talisman Master of the Southern Gates of Haotian. And only he alone would speak like this to the powerful Head Eunuch. Eunuch Lin did not get angry, but smiled and answered, "You, Master Yan have waited half a day for this student... but the Emperor has been waiting for half a year."


    The Emperor had been waiting for him for half a year. This alone rendered those standing in the doorway of the Academy speechless.


    The students of the Academy were still milling around on the pavement not far away. The young students thought that what they had done was just a misunderstanding that could and should be forgiven and that Ning Que was being petty by not forgiving them. Theyined bitterly about Ning Que¡¯s pride and uncouthness and couldn¡¯t wait to see his downfall. After that, theyined about Chang Zhengming and the students rmended by the Military Ministry and how they shouldn¡¯t have apologized for something that they didn¡¯t do wrong. Didn¡¯t they know how great the pressure was on those who didn¡¯t get to apologize?


    Nobody dared to say anything bad to Situ Yn who was the beloved daughter of the General, however, she was not spared from dirty looks. Situ Yn was very irritated by theints but was also tickled by her peers who were still trying to find out what was happening at the doorway furtively. She shook her head and was speechless at the antics.


    The doorway was suddenly silent. The students could not hide their curiosity and all turned to look over.


    ...


    ...


    They did not understand what Eunuch Lin meant when he said that the Emperor of Tang had waited for Ning Que for half a year. Master Yan Se knew what had happened. He was even the one who had proven the incident, it was just that he didn¡¯t think of it just then. Professor Huang He had sequestered himself in the Academy and studied cultivation all day and didn¡¯t know about what happened in the secr world. Both Ning Que and Sangsang were shocked and confused. They looked at each other, and Ning Que asked, Eunuch Lin, what do you mean?"


    Eunuch Lin looked at him and smiled, "Did you visit the Imperial studyst spring?"


    Ning Que had been focused on ascending the mountain and studying cultivation ever since he entered the Academy. He had already forgotten his position as a secret guard of the Tang and the words he had written in the imperial study. His misbehavior in the imperial study had been shoved to the back of his mind, but Eunuch Lin¡¯s word jolted them right to the front.


    He kept his expression cid, but his heart thudded furiously. He wondered if someone had discovered his barging into the imperial study and if he was about to be punished. However, the words he had written were so unlike his usual style, how did the court find out it was him? Even if he was about to be punished, it should be done by the bodyguard office, why would someone as important as Eunuch Line?


    Ning Que thought about many things in that moment. The Emperor was known for his benevolent nature and now that he was a student of the Second floor and of Master Yan Se and had also heard that the Southern Gates thought well of him, perhaps the Emperor wouldn¡¯t behead him? It took him mere seconds that it took for him to think this through, and he answered honestly, "Indeed."


    He tried to appear calm and look like he had nothing to hide, but everyone could hear the nervousness in his dry voice.


    Eunuch Lin rubbed his smooth jaws andughed, "It is indeed you, that¡¯s good. It is just that this is a major issue, so I have to make sure before we enter the pce. I have a question from the emperor."


    "Please, do ask." Ning Que said.


    Eunuch Lin looked into his eyes and said, "His Majesty would like to ask you, whates after the flower blooms on the shore astride?"


    Ning Que replied, "The fish that jumped across the sea."


    "What are you waiting for, please,e with me to the pce."


    Eunuch smiled and continued, " Master Ning."


    ...


    ...


    It was quiet out at the front doors of the Academy. The students who have gathered around also quietened down and listened to the conversation curiously. However, since they were a distance away, they could only hear the asional word.


    "Master Yan Se is about to ept that lucky sod as his disciple! Why is he still standing there? Which royal household is that Eunuch from? What are they talking about? It seems like they¡¯re going to visit a royal household?" The students guessed wildly.


    Jin Wucai looked at the imperial horse carriage outside the Academy and looked slightly hesitant. She repeated the words she heard,"Across the sea... The shore astride? His Majesty has waited for half a year... What does this mean?"


    She returned to the doors of the Academy after sending food to Xie Chengyun who had stayed in the dormitoryst night. She was about to return home with Situ Yn, and did not witness the apology nor the prideful words, but this conversation instead.


    An incredulous expression appeared on her face as she looked at Ning Que who stood beside the horse carriage. Her voice trembled as she voiced her thoughts aloud, "Could it be... could it be that Ning Que was the one who wrote that piece of calligraphy in the imperial study?"


    Her voice was soft but carried to the ears of the other students. There was a deafening silence on the pavement where they stood.


    Everyone knew of the calligraphy that Jin Wucai talked about. His Majesty loved that piece no one knew who left behind. It was said that His Majesty would stare at it in a daze when he was worried about the country¡¯s affairs. Everyone knew that His Majesty had once invited many of the world¡¯s greatest calligraphy masters to copy the original work and then granted the ones who did well positions as schrs of the court instead of giving out useless rewards.


    It is a fact that everything favored by the Royals would be favored by the people. This happened in the Tang Empire as well. Since the Emperor liked calligraphy, everyone, especially the schrs loved it even more. Since His Majesty loved that particr section of calligraphy, the schrs of the country treated it as an interesting subject. Court officials would talk about it whenever they could no longer hold a debate.


    The Grand Secretary would say that His Majesty had granted him a copy, and the High official would say that the copy granted to him was the most exquisite and closest to the style of the original. However, those copies could neverpete with the one hung in the imperial study.


    Everyone agreed with His Majesty¡¯s appraisal of the calligraphy piece once they had seen it in person in the imperial study. They felt that it was a rare piece of art. It would still be considered an excellent work even if the emperor didn¡¯t like it so much. Furthermore, with the excitement surrounding it such as the missing calligrapher and the mysterious appearance of the piece in the imperial study gave this piece a mysterious air.


    Secrecy was a curious thing, for more and more people got curious about the calligraphy and its mysterious author. The entire city was aze with excitement over it. The students of the Academy would talk about it in their daily lives as well. Jin Wucai and Miss Gao who were children of officials had the opportunity to see it with their own eyes, but who would have thought...


    That the calligrapher was Ning Que.


    ...


    ...


    Chen Zixian looked at Ning Que and said cowardly, "I¡¯ve said, when we talked about that section calligraphyst year that Ning Que owns a little calligraphy shop in the Eastern City. He might really be the one who wrote that."


    Nobody answered him as they fell silent. Some were shocked, and others awkward.


    There were many from ssroom Three who remembered the discussionst year. They remembered how they had talked andughed about Ning Que behind his back and their sarcastic jibes against him after hearing Chen Zixian¡¯s statement.


    But who couldugh now?


    Ning Que, who had been thought to be useless at cultivation, and a coward destitute of virtue for feigning sickness during the exam, had seeded in ascending the mountain. He had surpassed all his peers who didn¡¯t think much of him. In fact, he had even beaten Prince Long Qing. To the students of the Academy, this was a lightning strike right through their hearts.


    The high and mighty Divine Talisman Master had cared naught of what others thought of him and had used all the tricks he had to poach Ning Que as his disciple. This was the second lightning strike to the students.


    Most people were struck silly after the first two strikes. They could only attempt to find a way to escape the hole they dug for themselves.


    It was then when the third strike of lightning appeared.


    Ning Que was the calligrapher of the famed piece and was about to enter the pce to meet the Emperor. His future was brighter than most present.


    When the third strike of lightning shed, the students were no longer proud, apathetic, innocent, or tried to defend themselves, questioned him, or find any other reason to be dissatisfied with the way things were. They were struck by lightning and looked like several burnt trees, smoking from the top. Their robes were charred and their brains fried.


    Their faces burned with shame as they thought of how loudly they hadughed.


    The more exaggerated they hadughed back then, the more they felt like digging a hole and jumping straight into it.


    They had disregarded him, but could not tear their gazes from him now.


    "I heard Ning Que use an interesting expression once."


    Situ Yn said suddenly, "It¡¯s called tired of judging the interesting. I never understood how one could judge interesting things or why it would be tiring. I finally understood today. Once you¡¯ve been shocked enough times, it¡¯d be boring and you¡¯d be numb to it."


    Chu Youxian stood beside her and shook his head, "I still think this is awesome."


    Situ Yn smiled and waved her fist around forcefully. She looked at their peers around them and said, "It is indeed awesome."


    She looked at Zhong Dajun¡¯s pale face. He turned around subconsciously, not daring to look back at her.


    She looked at the student from Yang guan and said, "I remember someone had once said that he would wash Ning Que¡¯s feet if Ning Que was the one who wrote the calligraphy."


    The student looked extremely horrified and backed away quickly.


    Situ Yn smiled beatifically and asked, " I can get Ning Que to throw you his shoes. They must smell really bad after climbing the mountain for a day and a night."


    The student gave a loud shout before falling over. He seemed to have fainted from the fright.


    ...


    ...


    The horse carriage sped down the wide and straight streets of Chang¡¯an. One would asionally hear the shouts of the guards yelling at people to give way and the angry replies. The Tang Empire had always been a stickler for rules. The horse carriage that disregarded them tantly obviously belonged to the pce, but the people of Chang¡¯an did not care.


    Ning Que and Sangsang sat in the dark carriage. They did not know what to do in the opulent carriage and would asionally nce at each other. They have been to several important events and met the owner of arge sum of money. However, they were still nervous about meeting the emperor formally and sitting in a royal horse carriage.


    "There¡¯s no need to be nervous, His Majesty loves your calligraphy." Eunuch Lin tried tofort them.


    Ning Que had just left the mountains moments ago and was now entering the depths of the royal pce. It was quite hard for him to wrap his head around it for the moment. He hesitated for a second and asked, "Sir, are you sure His Majesty has asked me toe into the pce because he likes my calligraphy and not for anything else?"


    Eunuch Lin paused for a moment. He did not know if he should cry orugh and said, "Your "Flower blooms on the shore astride" has made its rounds around the entire city of Chang¡¯an. Did you not know about this all this while?"


    Ning Que could finally rx. He smiled and replied, "Other than cultivation, I like being recognized and getting rich the most. If I had known His Majesty liked my calligraphy and was searching for me, I¡¯d jump right into the trap... no, I would bring the most exciting writings I have written and barge into the royal pce screaming all the way that I wrote them. Haha, I¡¯m just afraid that the bodyguards would beat me up."


    Eunuch Linughed at Ning Que¡¯s slightly silly and interesting statement. He ruminated over it before saying, "The Yulin Royal Guards would never let you in if you barge into the pce with your writings. But why would the bodyguards beat you up?"


    Ning Que¡¯s heart stuttered.


    Eunuch Lin smiled and continued, "You entered the pce and imperial study without permission. Do you think we won¡¯t check the incident before allowing His Majesty to meet you? I know you are a secret guard and your rtionship with Chao Xiaoshu."


    Ning Que remained silent.


    Eunuch Lin sighed, "Even though the Eastern City might be slightly less well off and the people rarely talk about this, but you own a calligraphy shop and should know about the discussions amongst your peers. What have you been doing? You were in the dark for almost a year."


    "I rarely get together with my peers. And as for this half a year... I was busy studying."


    Ning Que thought of the Old Brush Pen Shop and it¡¯s quirks and smiled. He suddenly thought of an important thing, and the smile slid off his face. He asked Eunuch Lin for permission to return to Lin 47th Street to clean up.


    Eunuch Lin was very displeased upon hearing the request. His Majesty had waited for Ning Que for almost half a year and yet Ning Que was in no hurry to give thanks but wanted to go home and wash up. What was this? Did he not tell him the rules clearly? They would definitely allow him to wash up in the pce before meeting the Emperor.


    However, Ning Que was very obstinate about the matter and insisted on returning to the Lin 47th Street. Eunuch Lin could do nothing about it and decided that since His Majesty thought so well of this student, he would acquiesce to his request without making things tense.


    ...


    ...


    Lin 47th Street looked extraordinarily beautiful in Spring. Cherry blossoms emerged from inside the walls of the Ministry of Revenue¡¯s warehouse, peering curiously at the shops across the street.


    Last night at dusk, Li Qingshan, the Master of Nation had visited the street along with other officials to check on Ning Que¡¯s calligraphy. They entered the Old Bush Pen Shop rather violently and the shop¡¯s door had been pushed opened so forcefully, it had fallen off its hinges. The scene looked rather disastrous.


    Ning Que¡¯s heart sank when looked at the gaping hole that once held the shop door. He leaped off the horse carriage and charged in.


    Thedy boss of the fake antique store next door said loudly, "Why are you in such a rush, nothing was lost. I guarded the shop the entire night."


    Ning Que turned back to look at her and suddenly felt that the woman, who had a thickyer of foundation caking up her face, never looked so beautiful. He gave her a most passionate hug and said happily, "Aunty Wu, thank you so much, thank you so much!"


    The boss of the shop looked at the scene rather unhappily, "Do you have to hug her even if you¡¯re grateful? She¡¯s my wife!"


    Ning Que smiled, "Of course I know she¡¯s your wife, she¡¯s your only wife."


    The boss smiled proudly and took a sip of his tea before saying, "Who knows?"


    The woman was about to get angry when Ning Que stopped her, saying with a grin, "Aunty Wu, don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ll remember what you¡¯ve done for me today. If he dares marry a second wife, I¡¯ll take care of him."


    Aunty Wu smiled and agreed.


    Mr. Wu said angrily, "You little thing. Who are you to poke your nose into my business?"


    Ning Que pointed at the royal horse carriage behind him and grinned, "Can I poke my nose in it now?"


    Mr. Wu finally saw the imperial seal on the horse carriage. He was frightened silly just thinking about how miserable his life would be from now on.


    Ning Que did not get Sangsang to boil water for his washing up when they entered the dark Old Brush Pen shop. Instead, the first thing that he did was to lock up the shop and remove all the calligraphy hanging on the shop.


    He handed the pile of papers to Sangsang and said seriously, "From today on, you have to guard what I write on with your life, just as you guard the big ck umbre."


    Sangsang¡¯s eyes widened and asked curiously, "We live when the papers live and die when they die?"


    "These are not just papers."


    Ning Que caressed the papers in her hands and said happily, "This, is money."

 Chapter 163: The Freshest Thing Is only A Bowl of Chicken Soup

    Chapter 163: The Freshest Thing Is only A Bowl of Chicken Soup


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The wooden door with flowers carvings gradually opened, revealing a young eunuch who lightly swept his long sleeves and quietly retreated himself.


    Ning Que was taken aback as he saw the huge and tall door in front of him. He tidied up his appearance before entering through the doors with a serious look on his face. Seeing the precious stationaries that he had not seen for a long time and breathing in the smell of the ink that lingered in his memories, he could not help but shiver as he recalled the incident that happenedst year.


    Infront of the book shelves stood a middle-aged man, with his back facing the main door of the imperial study room. He was dressed in thin in cotton top and a belt sewed with ck and golden threads was ced at his waist, making him seem skinny. Though his face could not be seen, Ning Que had easily guessed the identity of the man.


    Without any advice from the eunuch, he was not sure when he should kneel or bow with his hands infront to show respect to the man infront. By right, it should be the former, yet not many Tangs were willing to kneel down to people. For a moment, he felt lost and embarrassed.


    The middle-aged man suddenly spoke. His gentle, warm tone and the content of his speech had managed to release Ning Que from his embarrassment in time, "Don¡¯t you think of kneeling down. You ain¡¯t offering sacrifice to Heaven."


    Just a simple sentence from him, Ning Que started to be fond of this middle-aged man. He would have imagined that an emperor of Tang should appeared to be cold, strict and majestic, yet he was such a warm and friendly person.


    "Understand that you¡¯re my secret guard?" The middle-aged man took a shabby-looking book from the shelves, as he flipped the pages and asked casually.


    Ning Que bowed deeply and replied, "Yes."


    "Isn¡¯t this secret guard a little too secretive? Even I myself don¡¯t know about it." The middle-aged manughed as he took out a bookmark from the side of the shelves and ced it inbetween the shabby-looking book to mark the pages. Suddenly, he asked, "How did you get into this roomst year?"


    At this moment, Ning Que was wondering how he should address himself as. After hesitating between "humble student" and "low-rank officer", he decided that "low-rank officer" should certainly be eliminated. After listening to the man¡¯s question, he subconsciously replied, "Student was ordered to enter pce for some task, and was asked to wait in this room."


    The middle-aged man made a soft "ehh" sound, as though he was suspicious of something. He remained silent for a while before saying, "Since you¡¯re here for some tasks, then why do you enter my imperial study room? No one saw you entering?"


    At this point of their conversation, Ning Que was feeling less anxious, but more suspicious. On his way to the pce, he had tried to imagine the scene of him meeting his Majesty, and he thought that upon seeing him, his Majesty would definitelyughed happily and hurriedly stopped himself from kneeling infront of him. His Majesty would then gently stroked his own beard while admiring Ning Que¡¯s young and adorable face. His Majesty¡¯s face would be looking so pleased as he confessed to Ning Que that he had been searching high and low for him, and would definitely reward him withnds, women and any officier position he wanted in the pce...


    However, the fact was that though Ning Que was not so pretty as Prince Long Qing, but under such exciting scenario, he would also tend to think pretty far-fetched about things.


    Just as he was feeling slightly disappointed and confused, he heard his Majesty¡¯sst question, which made him understand something all of a sudden.


    Last year, that young eunuch named Lu Ji brought him to the imperial study room. Since his Majesty had searched for him for about half a year, and that "The Flower Blooms on the Shore Astride" calligraphy has made such a big wooha, that young eunuch Lu Ji and Commander Xu Congshan had no reason not to confess about this matter. His Majesty failed to find him all these while and this would meant one thing --- Neither Commander Xu Congshan nor the young eunuch Lu Ji had reported to his Majesty about the fact that he had entered imperial study room.


    As for the reason behind their doings, there could be numerous reasons, such as they had forgottened about it, or they had gone crazy, or they worried that this matter would give them troubles instead, etc. At this moment, Ning Que was unclear of the reason, but he was clear that if his reply to his Majesty now did not match up with the answers given by Commander Xu and the young eunuch, it would bring great troubles to the both of them, or perhaps to himself as well.


    Hence, he frowned his brows and thought carefully. He then shook his head and replied honestly, "I doubt anyone knows about it."


    His Majesty heard his answering from his back and bursted outughing loudly. He ced the shabby-looking book back onto the shelves and turned towards the young student, who was standing by the imperial study room main entrance. He said with emotions, "What a person with good character. No wonder Brother Zhao likes you."


    Ning Que stared at the middle-aged man who stood infront of the book shelves, only to realize that he was just a simple-looking man with slight grey hair. He was not as majestic as he had imagined, neither did he had the vibe that was scarier than the Vermilion Bird. Moreover, seeing the man¡¯s expression and smile on the face, he knew that he had answered correctly, though he was unsure which part he did answer correctly.


    His Majesty gazed at Ning Que. All of a sudden, he gestured for him as he smiled and said, "Come over."


    Seeing the smile on his Majesty¡¯s face, Ning Que was slightly worried, but he quickly suppressed his feeling as he walked over nervously.


    The Emperor pointed at the calligraphy on the table as he grinned and asked, "Is this your work?"


    Ning Que took a nce at the calligraphy. Therge characters written on the yellow paper had instantly made him recall how joyful and proud he felt after writting these words on that day. He replied softly, "This is indeed student¡¯s ridiculous work."


    "Not ridiculous at all." His Majesty smiled and added, "I like your writing."


    The process of praising one another had finally started, yet Ning Que suddenly realized that he was unsure how he should react. Perhaps his Majesty had expressed it in a tone that was too natural and casual. There was only admiration, without any agitation on the Emperor¡¯s part. It was just likementing that Her Majesty had done a great job in peeling the garlic or had baked delicious cookies. Under such situation, how could one react or even thank the Emperor?


    The Emperor obviously did not expect Ning Que to feel touched by his sentence. He gently stroked his beard and looked the words "The Flower Blooms on the Shore Astride". After admiring them for a while, he then said with emotion, "Your Majesty had searched really hard for you."


    Before that, the emperor was using "I" to address himself, yet when he suddenly switched to "Your Majesty", the atmosphere in the imperial study room changed instantly. Furthermore, this sentence had a strong hidden meaning, much stronger than the one before. It was the switch from pure to strong intense admiration. Ning Que was not used to the former and could not react, but when it was switched to thetter, he had trouble reacting to it as well.


    The Emperor grinned at him and suddenly said, "The Fish That Jumped Across The Sea, The Flower Blooms on the Shore Astride. You¡¯ve only added one sentence, which seems prettycking. Now that you¡¯re here, why don¡¯t youplete it with two more sentences? Do you need your Majesty to prepare the ink for you?"


    Letting Tang Emperor prepare ink and stationaries for you was the best luxury a schr could have in his whole life. In fact, they did not even dare to think of having such luxury. It was a way better treatment than having all thedies from House of Red Sleeves to help you prepare ink and serve you.


    Upon hearing it, Ning Que was taken aback and he sincerely rejected the offer, "How can I ept this? As for ¡¯The Fish That Jumped Across The Sea¡¯ sentences were originated from his Majesty. Student was just copying. If I were to continue...and right infront of an expert like you, how will student dare to show one¡¯s ipetence?"


    Since young, he had been drifting and wandering in the wild. Even in Tang Empire, he was struggling to survive. In fact, he did not have much experience hanging out with the nobles. That time he could get along with Tang princess Lee Yu while escorting her back to from the grasnd was because Lee Yu acted as a maidservant. Though he already knew Lee Yu¡¯s real identity, he was determined to treat her as a maidservant so that he could be himself along the way. However, at this moment, he was facing the man who had the strongest authority in the world. How should he behave infront of him then?


    If today was an inexperienced young man facing the emperor, the imperial study room would be in a great mess. Ning Que was still Ning Que. He was still the kid who could survive under the harshest circumstances. Besides having the chopper tied to his waist and his courage to kill humans, he must also be a sweet talker and had the skill to act innocent whenever necessary, in order to handle such situation.


    In regards to cheering the top and bootlicking the nobles, as long as he was willing to do it, he could do better than anyone. In the past as a young soldier from othernds in the City of Wei , he could pleased every soldier in the city. To be able to let every general in the City of Wei adore him like their own nephew, his ability of bootlicking must be great. If he were to use such ability to bootlick the emperor now, it would be an easy job for him.


    Upon listening to words that depicted how a skillful person had obtained suddenly inspiration and was just showing off in the presence of an expert, the Emperor was stunned and could not help but raise his head to look at Ning Que¡¯s face. He then broke into a chuckle as he reprimanded, "Aren¡¯t you over-ttering me? Everyone knows that your Majesty is bad in calligraphy, so how can you refer me as an expert? Moreover it¡¯s infront of you."


    Ning Que chuckled. He was well-known for having a thick skinned personality, hence he was not affected by those words at all. Furthermore, he had seen before his Majesty¡¯s work, which was indeed...bad, but so what? No matter how fake it is, one still has to tter the Emperor. Even if his Majesty know himself that his own calligraphy is bad, he will still be happy to hear people ttering him. Moreover, that person who tters him is me?


    Watching Ning Que¡¯s unaffected expression, the Emperor was indeed d about it. He thought, though the calligrapher I adored is much younger than expected, but he has a good taste. The remark he gave was definitely just to bootlick me, but since he sounded sincere, perhaps my calligraphy skill did improve a little, at least to the extent that it¡¯s quite remarkable?


    "Enough of casual talks. Since your Majesty had found you, it¡¯s time for you to perform tonight. Write some words and let your Majesty admire them."


    "Your Majesty, student had exhausted most of the energy at the Academyst night, and my body felt weak as well. Not that student is unwilling to abide to your request, but it will be quite impossible for student to write any good calligraphy now. Afterall, calligraphy talks about being energized and focus..."


    The expression on the Emperor¡¯s face suddenly turned awful, but on the thought that what he said made sense, and understanding that the Second floor of the Academy examination was very tough yet thisd infront of him was able to defeat Prince Long Qing to enter Second floor of the Academy, thisd was definitely a great man in future. However, he was also worried that thisd would be ambitious and if he only treated him as a calligrapher, it might make the other party feel ashamed too.


    Ning Que felt embarrassed as he confessed, and was secretly observing the Emperor¡¯s expression at the same time. All of a sudden, like magic, Ning Que took out some pieces of calligraphy from his sleeves and ced them neatly on the table.


    "Your Majesty, these are some of the recent student¡¯s work which student has handpicked. Would appreciate if your Majesty could give some advice."


    When the Emperor heard him saying such words, and seeing the pieces of calligraphy on his table, his eyes brightened. He instantly bent over and unrolled the calligraphy, before he started admiring the words as he kept silent for a long time.


    After god-knows-how-long, a gasp of admiration broke the silence in the imperial study room.


    The Emperor shook his head and eximed in admiration, "Great work! Truly great work!"


    He turned around and looked at Ning Que with spark in his eyes as he said, "Brother Ning, I heard that you¡¯ve a shop at the Eastern City of Chang¡¯an. I believe there are more great works being written over these years in the shop. Hurry and bring them all over. Let your Majesty admire all of them."


    Ning Que was taken aback. Looking at the Emperor¡¯s hungry-for-calligraphy expression, he awkwardly replied, "Your Majesty, student¡¯s calligraphy, such as this, and that, are basically sold for money."


    ...


    ...


    Not far away from the huge and majestic city wall, there was a serene Taoist temple hidden within the woods. That was where South School of Haotian Taoism was located.


    Deep inside the South School of Haotian Taoism, the Divine Talisman Master Yan Se, who were previously filled with heroism and busily arguing with Second Brother, had instantly became a child who admitted his mistake. He folded hisps and sat on the dark wooden floor. He stroked his dry and frizzy beard as he innocently stared at the floor infront of him. His eyes were no longer shabby-looking and he dared not look at the other party. Even so, the wrinkles on his face were all cramped together and filled with guilt, as he looked as though he wished to beg for forgiveness.


    Tang¡¯s Master of Nation Li Qingshan looked at his Senior Brother, his eyes looked like thedies in the pce who were filled with hatred. All his respect for his Senior Brother had instantly be disappointment and anger.


    "Ning Que could not enter South School of Haotian Taoism. This means that even if he¡¯s your student, after your death, our South School of Haotian Taoism will never have our own Divine Talisman Master. This also means that after our deaths, there is no one to take care of the South School."


    Master Yan Se lifted his head andughed foolishly towards his junior brother. He thenforted him and said, "It¡¯s not that serious. Afterall, Ning Que is still my student. Once he be a Divine Talisman Master in future, there is no reason for him to see South School fall. Furthermore, though I am almost near the end of my life, but you are still young. By the time you passed away, Ning Que might long be dead. If that¡¯s the case, what use will he have?"


    Li Qingshan stared at his Senior Brother without any expression. He kept silent for a long while before he sighed, shook his head and said, "Senior Brother, do you seriously not know the difference between the two? If Ning Que were to enter South School, I can hand over the authority to him and he would be my Tang Master of Nation. By then, it would be tough for South School to fall. However, if he¡¯s only your student, he will at most be a visiting professor at South School, and what¡¯s the use of having a visiting professor? Liu Bai at South Jin Kingdom is the visiting professor for West-Hill Divine Pce, but when did you ever see Liu Bai putting in effort for the Divine Hall?"


    Yan Se agreed to the request stated by Second Brother from the Academy, to take in Ning Que as a Talisman Taoism student under his name in exchange for letting Ning Que to enter South School of Haotian Taoism. He was ashamed of his own choice, and was unreluctant to face Li Qingshan upon returning. Now that Li Qingshan had exined the seriousness of his choice, he felt worst and could not even look into the eyes of the other party. Instead, he walked away embarrassingly.


    As he passed by the corridor of trees, the disciples of South School of Haotian Taoism politely bowed at him and made way for him. However, Master Yan Se was in no mood to present his pleasant side today. He hurriedly dashed through the corridor with a ck face, headed straight for the side door instead of the main door, and walked into the side alley. He then stretched out his hand to flick the leaves on his shoulder, which made him felt slightly better.


    Though he indeed let down his sect, but he had finally found his sessor. Yan Se was feeling guilty, but he could not hide his happiness either. Just now at the South School, infront of Master of Nation Li Qingshan, the feeling of embarrassment and guilt had overtook his happiness, but now that he was in the side alley, he could finally revealed his happiness.


    Just then, a horse carriage stopped at the alley. Looking at the mark on the shaft, he was stunned.


    A man, who looked like a steward, alighted from the horse carriage. He took a nce at Master Yan Se from head to toe and looked confused at the appearance of this taoist. It was after a long while before he recalled what his owner had instructed him, as he humbly smiled and said sincerely, "Good day, Master Yan Se. I am the steward from Anle Duke¡¯s mansion. Under themand of my master, I was tasked to look for you. Heard that you have some writings..."


    Master Yan Se gazed at the steward¡¯s face coldly. Without thinking much of the steward¡¯s intention, he answered directly, "Get lost."


    After which, he pushed the steward out of his way and arrogantly marched his way towards the head of the alley.


    The steward¡¯s face turned ck, but at the thought of Yan Se¡¯s Divine Talisman Master identity and the high social ranking this master was in, he dared not grumble. Instead, he followed closely behind Yan Se as he cried, "Master, please allow me to finish my sentence."


    Suddenly, the voice of an old man echoed in the alley and said, "Think about Master Yan Se¡¯s status and your status. No matter what request Anle Duke has for Master Yan Se, he should either formally invite him to his residence or respectfully pay the master a visit. This is the most basic respect a junior should have for the elderly. Yet he sent a steward over instead? What an impetuous act."


    The steward dared not offend a Divine Talisman Master, but that did not mean that he dare not ofend the people in Chang¡¯an city. Upon hearing this piece of advice, which in fact was directly tauting him, his temper rose as he stomped out of the alley. Staring at the old man with a head of grey hair standing by the green bamboo carriage, he gestured his hand and cursed, "What is my status..."


    Suddenly, his body froze and his voice trembled. He hurriedly kneeled on one knee and with a bow, he said, "How would I dare to trouble the Grand Secretary? How careless of me! I will pass on your message to our Hou Master."


    The old man with a head of grey hair looked inly at the steward, who was still kneeling down on the floor. He gestured his hand for him to rise and added, "Never thought that your reaction is pretty fast. I would say that you must be a responsible and trustworthy steward."


    The old man was Wang Shichen, the Grand Secretary of Tang Imperial Library, who had been in the position for the past three dynasties and was in favor of the Emperor. Even the Prince Lee Peiyan would need to bow and show respect to him upon seeing him, so it was needless to say for Anle Duke.


    Though the steward from Hou Residence was not sure why Grand Secretary Wang would appear at the alley of the Northern Gate, but how would he dare to question? He bowed to the two old man and quickly escaped on his own horse carriage.


    Master Yan Se frowned as he stared at Grand Secretary Wang, followed by a bow with his hands ced infront and asked, "Old schr, today is a rest day and there¡¯s no need to hold court, why are you here? Coming out for a stroll is definitely not an eptance reason."


    "I had an argument with the Old Chancellor a few days ago, is this reason eptance then?" Grand Secretary Wang coughed twice before answering.


    After some thoughts, Yan Se pulled up his sleeve and retorted, "Didn¡¯t both of you arguedst year winter? That¡¯s not a few days ago."


    "Whatever it is, that ¡¯The Flower Blooms on the Shore Astride¡¯ double-hook facsimile is currently in that old fellow¡¯s residence. Not only does he forbid me to see, he often use it to piss me off," Grand Secretary Wang could not hide his frustration as he stroke his beard and added, "That double-hook facsimile is focusing too much on the strokes. Though it does have the look, but it doesn¡¯t project the same feeling of the original. How can it be better than the facsimile his Majesty has given me?"


    "Your saying does not make any sense," Yan Se was clear of this incident, so he shook his head and exined, "As everyone knows, if you want to copy the original piece, using double-hook method is the best way to go."


    Yan Se was the only official Divine Talisman Master in the Northern Gate of Haotian, whereas Wang Shichen was a respectable man who had gone through three dynasties. Both of them knew each other for a long time and both shared amon identity, which is the world¡¯s calligraphy master. Speaking of the best method to create facsimile, both of them would never admit defeat.


    "Even if the double-hook method is the best," Wang Shichen smiled gentle and added arrogantly, "So what? Wait till I¡¯ve obtained the Chicken Soup Calligraphy, I will not hang in my study room but in the main hall. Just to piss that old fellow off."


    "Hold on," Yan Se asked surprisingly, "What¡¯s that Chicken Soup Calligraphy?"


    "That piece of ount book you¡¯ve took from the House of Red Sleeves."


    Grand Secretary Wang stared into his eyes and said solemnly, "Now that the news is spreaded, those calligraphies that were sold at Old Brush Pen Shop in the Eastern City were confiscated. I felt that there¡¯s nothing special about those calligraphies, but this Chicken Soup Calligraphy is different. You managed to see the potential of Divine Talisman Master in Ning Que from this Chicken Soup Calligraphy, and this makes it meaningful. If you could let me have the honor to hang that calligraphy at my residence, isn¡¯t that even better?"


    Yan Se sighed with emotions and said, "Indeed, this rumor spreaded quicker than a book."


    The Grand Secretary Wang gazed at him and said, "Enough chatting. Anle Duke was a fool to send a steward over to ask it from you. But my case is different. I am the Grand Secretary of three dynasties, and what I wanted is your student¡¯s writing. I am already giving you face so you better not shame me, or things will be rotten between us."


    "I could almost feel that gangster vibe from your words, and I don¡¯t feel that you are saving face at all," Yan Se went mad and continued, "Both of us know each other for more than ten years. I never would have thought that a Grand Secretary of three dynasties would lose his cool over such a trival matter!"


    Grand Secretary Wang snarled, "If it¡¯s other matter, I won¡¯t care. However, this Flower calligraphy is getting too famous in Chang¡¯an and that old fellow had been pressurizing me. If I don¡¯t do something to win back my face, how am I, a Grand Secretary of three dynasties, going to keep my foothold?"


    Yan Se looked at him. He opened his mouth abruptly and said, "10 thousand."


    Grand Secretary Wang¡¯s angry face suddenly softened as he chuckled and bargained, "Four thousand."


    Yan Se drew out the thin piece of ount book paper from his sleeve and handed over as he said, "Deal."


    Grand Secretary Wang took over the thin piece of paper without looking as he turned around and returned to his green bamboo carriage. He then shouted at his subordinates, "What are you waiting for? Hurry back to the residence. Also, get me the best Chef Xing from Rong Bao Zhai Restaurant. Let San prepare for a house party tomorrow to celebrate my birthday and invite guests to admire this Chicken Soup Calligraphy!"


    The green bamboo carriage hurriedly departed as it brushed against the direction of the wind. A conversation between the Grand Secretary and his chambein could be heard faintly.


    "Master, your 80th birthday wasst month."


    "Dumbass! Elder brother¡¯s servant is having birthday this month!"


    "Invite that girl, Jin Wucai, as well. Most most most importantly, don¡¯t forget her miserable old grandpa!"


    "If he refuses toe, I will personally invite him over!"


    ...


    ...


    At this moment, Ning Que was nervously facing the Emperor and searching for the right opportunity to tter him. Never did he know that the memo he scribbed when he was drunkst year was already sold for two thousand taels of silver, and not to mention, that¡¯s a discounted price due to friendship.


    As for the receipent of the memo who had never seen it before, it was Sangsang. At this moment, she was speechless and panicking at the Old Brush Pen Shop along Lin 47th Street.


    Listening to the continuous knocking of the door, peering at those anxious-looking stewards who were waving those cash notes in their hands from the crack between the door and its frame, and looking at the people who were excitingly discussing about them across the street, the little handmaiden had no idea how she should handle such messy situation.


    She then recalled what her young master reminded her before he left. She tidied and packed all the writings she had collected before she revealed the bed frame and took out the box in it, where she ced all the writings together with the precious cash notes. She then grabbed two thick metal chains to lock all windows and doors.


    After she was done with all these, she returned to the front of the shop and secured the wooden board that was used to loosely prevent the door from opening withrge metal nails. This made her felt better. She couldn¡¯t be bothered with the waves of uproar outside as she swept away the perspiration on her forehead, carried the big ck umbre on her back and took the important items which Ning Que had told her. She then quietly slipped her way out through the small door in the backyard.


    At this time, the day was still early and it was the time for lunch. As Sangsang strolled her way into the House of Red Sleeves, there were no noisy scenes nor loud giggling from thedies. All she could smell was the endless fragrance from food and wine. Since she haven¡¯t eaten for one whole day, she could not help but swallowed her saliva.


    Mistress Jian¡¯s maidservant, Xiaocao, was at the top floor looking down and stoning at the railing when she suddenly saw Sangsang walking into the building. She instantly felt ecstatic as she rushed her way down and grabbed Sangsang¡¯s hands with both her hands. After a while, she started grumbling,


    "Why didn¡¯t youe and visit us these days? Or did your young master stop you from going out? Mistress Jian told Ning Que not toe over to such area with an intention of letting him focus on his studies, yet he make use of you to show his displeasure! Also, I¡¯ve heard that you¡¯ve been invited to the princess¡¯ residence as a guest. Is it now that you know these nobles, you¡¯ve decided to forgo poor friends like us?"


    Sangsang could not be bothered by her grumbles and instead, she was more focused on being faster than the rest of the people in Chang¡¯an city. She asked directly, "My young master had written a piece of memo here when he was drunkst year, where was it?"


    Xiaocao was taken aback by this abrupt question, and she replied, "I¡¯ll help you ask around."


    A few minutester, Xiaocao came running back and said, "I¡¯ve asked. Seems like Dewdrop Sister had took it away that time. Why are you looking for it? It had been a long time, so probably it was already thrown away somewhere."


    ...


    ...


    Cao Youning usually spoke with confidence within Chang¡¯an city since his brother-inw was an assistant minister and when the Minister of works position was left vacantst year, his brother-inw was appointed as the next Minister of work. Yet no one expected a sudden change at the beginning of this year when a high-ranked officer returned from He Yun Pce and became his brother-inw¡¯s greatest opponent. The Emperor kept silent throughout this whole incident, and none of the prime minister and Grand Secretaries coulde out with a better idea to resolve this problem.


    During this critical period, the assistant minister became quieter and stayed low. Cao Youning¡¯s words had also be weaker in Chang¡¯an city and at this moment, he was not only weak, but became humble when facing Dewdrop in the House of Red Sleeves.


    "My gooddy, please do me a favor and give me that memo."


    Cao Youning watched the full figuredy who was sitting infront of him. If it wasn¡¯t for that matter, he would have pounced onto her without thinking much, yet today, his only focus was totally on the memo and he could not care much about other things.


    He sincerely said, "About the student named Ning Que, he¡¯s the author of that Flower calligraphy. Now, the Emperor has already confirmed his identity and is having a chat with him in the imperial study room. If this is a lie, I could have save up some silvers. But you and I are friends, and there¡¯s not reason for me to treat you badly. So neither should you ignore my request, Miss Dewdrop!"


    Dewdrop, who had already cool herself down from the initial shock, rubbed her forehead and replied helplessly, "But that piece of ount book paper..."


    Cao Youning seriously corrected her and said, "Not the ount book paper. The news from the Northern Gate had been spread to the whole of Chang¡¯an city and now, everyone knows about that writing. That writing is called the Chicken Soup Calligraphy."


    Dewdrop unwillingly waved her hand and said, "Alright, whatever you say. But that...Chicken Soup Calligraphy, is honestly not with me. When I took it that day, someone took it away that night."


    "Who?" Cao Youning asked anxiously, "My deardy, you gotta recall it. You must understand that memo is very unique. It is from that memo that the person, whom the Northern Gate worshipped, determined Ning Que has a potential to be a Divine Talisman Master. That memo is going to be famous in the future!"


    Dewdrop smirked and said, "What is there for me to recall about? That Old Taoist was not only dirty-looking and had a weird temper as well, yet he was pretty generous. How can I forget such a person who is our frequent customer?"


    Upon listening to her description, Cao Youning was stunned but he suddenly smacked his thigh and eximed, "Gosh, mydy! He¡¯s not any dirty old taoist. That Taoist must be the Divine Talisman Master, Master Yan Se!"


    Dewdrop was shocked as Dewdrop was shocked as she covered her mouth with her handkerchief and could not utter a word. She thought, what is exactly happening in this world now? It¡¯s only been a day yet many changes have happened. Her cuted has suddenly be a great calligrapher that the Emperor had searched for half a year, and the dirty old taoist thate over every month, except forst month, is actually a Divine Talisman Master!


    Suddenly, she remembered another matter as she quickly stood up and instructed her maidservant to carry an old and worn out table from behind.


    "Take a look at this table, the scribbings on top is by that dirty old taoist...no, I mean by that Master Yan Se who was only offical Divine Talisman Master who is the senior Brother of the Master of Nation and whom was worshipped by South School of Haotian Taoism. He had used this talent to copy the Chicken Soup Calligraphy on this table!"


    She used her hand to sweep away the dust on the table. Starting at those scribblings, she felt that she was indeed someone who was good at seeing people for she had the ability to foresee what wasing. As she started to admire her own talent, she could stop talking and kept going on...


    Cao Youning looked closely at the scribbings on the table. Though they were messy, the carvings were deep. His eyes brightened as he said joyfully, "Say no more, miss Dewdrop. Quote me a price."


    Dewdrop covered her smile with her handkerchief as she stated without feeling any sense of embarrassment, "Three thousand."


    Cao Youning stood up and said with determination, "Deal."


    "Not for sale."


    The courtyard door was suddenly pushed opened as Sangsang and Xiaocao marched in quickly.


    Cao Youning was confused and asked, "Why not for sale?"


    Sangsang looked carefully at the scribbings on the table as she stared at Dewdrop and said, "Sell the printed copy only."

 Chapter 164: A Banquet in the Palace

    Chapter 164: A Banquet in the Pce


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Upon hearing the word, the expression on Cao Youning¡¯s face suddenly changed.


    It would naturally appear weird if he carried a desk back to the mansion of Grand Secretary, no matter how delicate it was packed. After all, it was unique in the world. However, a book of rubbings... could be copied without any limitation, if ink and paper were provided. If he really took the book of rubbings to the mansion, how could he exin to his brother-inw?


    Looking at the uninvited handmaiden with a slightly-ck face, he sullenly said, "Who are you?"


    Having a nce at him and knowing his intention, Dewdrop reluctantly but smilingly said, "The desk you want to buy belongs to that...Master Yan Se, but the writing was Ning Que¡¯s original works. The girl was Ning Que¡¯s handmaiden, whose voice, to be honest, matters a lot. If you really want to take something valuable home, I advise you to be more polite."


    Cao Youning was shocked and quickly epted Dewdrop¡¯s suggestion. Politely greeting a bow with hands folded in front to Sangsang, he honestly said, "Though the book of rubbings must be valuable in the future, yet now I just want to purchase something unique."


    Sangsang thought that the man should be treated well since he was the first customer after Ning Que became famous. With a short thinking, she peacefully said, "I stamp a seal for you. If you are still unsatisfied with it, my young master will ask Master Yan Se to make a signature on this book of rubbings."


    After finishing the word, she fished out a seal from her clothes.


    Cao Youning looked at the seal in her hand in excitement and asked, "This is...the private seal of Mister Ning?"


    Sangsang slightly frowned because she felt very strange that her young master was named Mister Ning, as it was very simr to the name of Mistress Jian.


    After a short silence, Cao Youning made his condition, "Could you promise that mine is the only one with a private seal?"


    Sangsang nodded her head.


    Raising his head and looking at Sangsang¡¯s eyes, Cao Youning said, "Please make an offer."


    Sangsang said, "Three hundred taels of silver."


    ...


    ...


    After exchanging a piece of paper and a red seal with three notes, Cao Youning left the house in excitement and disappointment. Until seeing his back disappear outside the door, Dewdrop and Sangsang retracted their eyes and looked at each other.


    Xiaocao happily hugged Dewdrop¡¯s plump arm. She shook Dewdrop¡¯s arm and said, "Sister Dewdrop, earn three hundred taels of silver only at the cost of some ink and cloth. Now you can make a big fortune."


    Dewdrop smilingly said, "Only the first piece could worth this price. Besides, it was mainly due to Ning Que¡¯s private seal."


    "But it could be copied easily!" Xiaocao counted with her fingers and said, "This business is much more cost-effective than dancing and singing."


    Dewdrop just smiled and didn¡¯t reply more. After taking a cup of tea and having a gentle sip, she kept looking at Sangsang.


    During the period, Sangsang did nothing but just looked at Dewdrop in silence.


    The atmosphere in the room suddenly became a little weird.


    Dewdrop slowly put down the cup. She raised her head and smilingly said to Sangsang, "Seven-Three. You get seventy percent and I take Thirty percent."


    Sangsang rushed to House of Red Sleeves today because Ning Que asked her to find that Chicken Soup Calligraphy. However, it was toote. The original calligraphy had been taken by that Master Yan Se. In addition, the chirography trace left on the desk, also had already been a fortune maker of Dewdrop.


    Previously, she just kept looking at Dewdrop quietly, because she wanted to know how Dewdrop would deal with it. Now listening to the suggestion, Sangsang felt very satisfied and smilingly nodded to Dewdrop.


    Raising her sleeves in front of herughing mouth, Dewdrop said in a low voice, "With the old desk, I can easily overtake Lu Xue. You can bring Ning Que here when you are free. I want to make himfortable and happy, even if at the risk of being punished by Mistress Jian."


    Sangsang justughed and didn¡¯t catch the topic. She walked to the desk and watched it in curiosity.


    When she entered the room just now, she just took a quick nce. It was her first time to witness the original works of Chicken Soup Calligraphy. The words of the calligraphy, which was appreciated by a Divine Talisman Master and caused sensation in the whole Chang¡¯an City, were the following.


    "Sangsang, your young master, I, am drunk today and won¡¯te back to sleep, so you must remember to drink the stewed chicken soup left in the pot."


    Looking at the first two words of the scratchy handwriting, which was her name, Sangsang kept silent for a long time. Then she burst intoughter, with her slightly-ck face full of pride and happiness.


    After Sangsang left the courtyard in thepany of Xiaocao, Dewdrop¡¯s maidservant came in and, with her eyes rolling, said, "My girl, the memo was indeed written by Ning Que, but the desk belongs to us. Besides, it is this ce where Master Yan Se stayed at night and made the writing back then. It is appropriate to share profits with Ning Que and his maidservant, but the Seven-Three proportion is really unfavorable for us."


    Smilingly and gently poking at the center between eyebrows of the loyal maidservant, Dewdrop said, "Look at you. How shallow you are when analyzing some problem. First of all, the first two words of the handwriting is the name of Sangsang. What¡¯s more, if I take the bigger part now and one high official asks for it someday, how can I refuse? But now, Ning Que and his maidservant get the bigger part, so I am just an agent for them. If some people dare demand the desk forcibly one day, they have to get Ning Que¡¯s agreement first before targeting at me."


    The maidservant was a little confused at first and then realized what she meant. Gently biting her lower lip, she said, "But Dewdrop...the rtionship between you and young master Ning Que is quite good, and you two sometimes call each other in the name of elder sister and younger brother in private. This time, you push him to the frontline, is it a little..."


    Watching her maidservant who wanted to say something but suddenly stopped, Dewdropughed and said, "You think I am mean and unkind to him? I am wondering whether you are my maidservant or Ning Que¡¯s. He hasn¡¯t been here for several months, but you still miss him very much. There is no need to worry the thing this time. At present, Ning Que is appreciated by his Majesty and be the sessor of a Divine Talisman Master. Even if he can¡¯t capriciously bully others in Chang¡¯an City, but at least no one dares to bully him at random."


    ...


    ...


    Several types of fresh snacks and two pots of fruit winey on the desk beside the window of the second-floor private room in House of Red Sleeves. A woman sat beside the window and looked at Sangsang who was apanied by Xiaocao. The woman smilingly said to that middle-aged customer beside her, "Look at that girl. She was the little handmaiden of young master Ning Que. We all think that she must be Ning Que¡¯s woman in the future. If she doesn¡¯t have the identity, why would the maidservant of Mistress Jian be so close with her?"


    The middle-aged man, with slightly-white eyebrows and iron-likeplexion, looked a little old and experienced. He looked out of the window to where the woman pointed, and then curiously asked after a short silence, "The young guy named Ning Que unexpectedly became well-known in Chang¡¯an within a day. I just feel confused that why all of you call him young master Ning Que in such a merited and smooth way, given that he wasn¡¯t so famous as now some days ago?"


    The womanughed with her sleeves covering her mouth and then exined in a low voice, "Young master Ning Que isn¡¯t an average person...though the women here didn¡¯t know his specialty before. However, there must be something distinctive in this youngd, because he can let Dewdrop lovingly call him ¡¯younger brother, younger brother¡¯ and let Lu Xue speciallye back to dance for him in her vacation."


    The middle-aged man slightly raised his eyebrows and asked in surprise, "Why?"


    After a little thought, the woman found that it was very difficult to conclude why Ning Que was so popr and liked by the women here, though they truly quite liked him. Then she just shook her head and smilingly said, "Since he entered here for the first time, Mistress Jian has found something special in him. Maybe Dewdrop knows more specialties about him? Anyway, he deserves our calling him young master, given Mistress Jian¡¯s attitude towards him."


    The middle-aged man justughed and stopped talking about the matter. After drinking some fruit wine and having some chats with the woman, he left away.


    After leaving House of Red Sleeves, the middle-aged man went on a carriage. He ordered the cart driver to travel around Chang¡¯an City at random, and then the carriage stopped at the North City. After paying the carter for the fee and walking across two alleys, he reached behind a building group which was solemn and surrounded by green tress. With a knock on the back door, he entered into the mansion.


    Inside the study room of Chang¡¯an Local Government


    Looking at the middle-aged man in front of him, Shangguan Yangyu coldly asked, "It takes three months to narrow the number of suspects to seven. However, among the seven names, why Ning Que would appear at thest ce? Why would you doubt him? Do you have any evidence?"


    The middle-aged man was Tie Ying, a group leader of the Ministry of Penalty in Chang¡¯an Local Government. He had worked for the Ministry of Penalty for more than ten years, so he was very experienced in investigating cases. Right now, upon hearing the question of his superior, he answered after short hesitation, "Ning Que was in House of Red Sleeves when Zhang Yiqi died."


    With his facial expression suddenly changing, Shangguan Yangyu rebuked, "There were over one hundred persons in House of Red Sleeves right then, and they all should be suspected?"


    Tie Ying, lowering his head and holding his fists, said in a low and deep voice, " But I feel there is something wrong in this guy."


    Shangguan Yangyu slightly frowned and unhappily said, "How could we investigate cases by feeling?


    "Zhang Yiqi died outside the sidedoor of House of Red Sleeves, and at that time the case wasn¡¯t treated as a murder case. Thus, it is very difficult to find evidence, given that the spot hadn¡¯t been examined and no one in the house was been interrogated at that time."


    Tie Ying quickly continued, "But if my lord trusts my instinct to this case, please allow me to keep chasing it. I have been dealing with murder cases for the whole career, and I can smell that there must be something wrong in this case."


    Shangguan Yangyu seemed very interested in it and asked with his hand catching beard, "What problem have you smelt?"


    "In the past, Ning Que¡¯s economic situation wasn¡¯t decent, even a little poor. How could such ad enjoy entertainment in House of Red Sleeves? Why would Mistress Jian appreciate him and other girls like him? What on earth did he aim to do in House of Red Sleeves? I think the problem lies in his rtion established with House of Red Sleeves, when he shouldn¡¯t have any rtions with it."


    Looking at the indifferent expression on the prefectural magistrate¡¯s face, Tie Ying became serious and then began stating another thing he was investigating, "Soon after Censor Zhang Yiqi died, Huiyuantong Bank exchanged several notes totally worth two thousand and two hundred taels of silver."


    "The signature on the notes was Sangsang, Ning Que¡¯s handmaiden. How could he get so much money when he was noteless and his handwriting works were cheap at that time? Who gave him these money? And why? What things did he order Ning Que to do?"


    Listening to the information, Shangguan Yangyu frowned a lot. After a long silence, he said, "Leave other clues alone and just look into the note. Only if it is really illegal, you are allowed to go deeper."


    ...


    ...


    The dusk color shined into Chang¡¯an Local Government.


    Standing beside the green tree in the courtyard, Shangguan Yangyu, whose face was supposed to be red under afterglow, looked steel-blue, which was very inharmonious with the surroundings. He looked at Tie Ying in front of him like looking at his enemy who had killed his father. His cold voice was uttered from his teeth, adding more coldness to the solemn atmosphere, "The note was deposited by Fish-dragon Gang to Huiyuantong Bank. That is, the two thousand and two hundred taels of silver was given to Ning Que from Chao Xiaoshu. As to the reason, I suppose you can figure it out, if you haven¡¯t forgotten the bodies covering in the street beside Spring Breeze Pavilion at that night."


    "I won¡¯t forget that night," Shangguan Yangyu said coldly, "I could take the position of prefectural magistrate of Chang¡¯an City because many high officials were knocked down at that night. As to the identity of Chao Xiaoshu, I think there is no need for me to remind you. Ning Que took the two thousand and two hundred taels of silver, which meant that he worked for the court. In such case, you still want to keep investigating it?"


    Tie Ying forcibly suppressed his shock and said, "My lord, there are many doubtful points in this case. At Spring Breeze Pavilion that night, there was indeed a masked man beside Chao Xiaoshu, but I heard that he was a young master from Yuelun Kingdom. Whether therge amount of moneyes from the rewards to it or from other sources, I think it should be carefully examined more."


    Shangguan Yangyu angrily roared, "What else do you want to check? Do you know who Ning Que is? Even if you didn¡¯t know him in the past, but at present and in the future, who in Chang¡¯an City doesn¡¯t know this figure? Evidence! If you have evidence, I will investigate deeper for his Majesty, imperial court and themon, even though it may sacrifice my official position. However, you don¡¯t have any proofs. What you own is just the hell instinct and the sense of dog-like smell. If you insist it, don¡¯t me me for dismissing you today!"


    After being scolded by the lord¡¯s rebuke, Tie Ying lowered his head and kept silent.


    Shangguan Yangyu, calming down a little, looked at him and dryly asked, "Did you inform the Military Ministry of this case?"


    Tie Ying raised his head and nervously exined, "My lord has ordered me to investigate in a secret way, so I certainly don¡¯t dare to reveal it. I can promise that no one knows Chang¡¯an Local Government has ever doubted Ning Que except my lord and me."


    "All right," Shangguan Yangyu gently rubbed his lower beard and said, "Erase the name of Ning Que and investigate another six suspects first."


    Tie Ying epted the instructions and then left. After returning to his house and having supper, Shangguan Yangyu nkly sat in front of an oilmp. Suddenly, he frowned and stared at the oilmp and then unhappily asked, "Why another threemps are lit? Turn them off immediately!"


    The wife of prefectural magistrate was tying shoes with strings on the other side of the room. When she heard her husband scolding, she confusedly raised her head and asked, "My lord, you are a high official in the government now. Why are you in such a bad mood? Is there any trouble in your work today?"


    Shangguan Yangyu wasn¡¯t attractive in appearance, even looked a little ugly. As for temperament, he was very insidious and mean. However, he received a lot of praise in dealing with his domestic affairs. He married his wife, who was also unattractive in appearance, when he was an average person. After he got quick and high promotion, he treated his wife as usual and never thought of marrying a concubine. They closely got along with each other, and even shared many private and secret things.


    After telling his wife the daytime thing, Shangguan Yangyu frowned and said to himself, "When I took the position in Chang¡¯an Local Government back then, what I did first was summon Tie Ying to my staff from the Ministry of Penalty, because I know he is very experienced. As he says, he has a strong instinct to murder cases. If...Ning Que is really rtive with the death of Zhang Yiqi, I don¡¯t know how to deal with it."


    Mrs. Shangguan slightly frowned and stopped her needlework. She poured a cup of hot tea for Shangguan Yangyu and then gently said, "Since my lord governs the safety of Chang¡¯an City and gets sry from the court, some cases still need to be investigated if necessary."


    "But there isn¡¯t any evidence, and..."


    Shangguan Yangyu looked at his wife and sentimentally said with a sigh, "I really don¡¯t dare to investigate. His Majesty appreciates him, and I heard that he has been admitted as a student of the Second floor of the Academy and a sessor of a Divine Talisman Master. If there is no agreement from the court, how dare I investigate such a powerful figure?"


    Mrs. Shangguan was shocked and said in confusion, "How would such kind of figure be involved a murder case?"


    Upon listening to the words, two bright light suddenly shed across Shangguan Yangyu¡¯s ugly eyes. He gently patted the writing desk and said in a deep voice, "Madam, you do make a point. How would such kind of figure do something like this?"


    "It¡¯s inappropriate to adopt what a woman like me blindly suggests when my lord analyzes cases."


    Shocked by his reaction, Mrs. Shangguan quickly added, "What if he was the murder?"


    Looking at the hot tea in front of him, Shangguan Yangyu said in an unswerving expression, "There will be no ¡¯if¡¯, and it must be other people. Even if he is really the one...he isn¡¯t the right one, either."


    ...


    ...


    Seaweed mixed with golden sauce, four small dishes in a te, shii-take added with marinade, drunk shrimp decorated with flowers and chicken soup simmered with tonic medicine...listening to the dish names announced by an eunuch and looking at the extremely delicate dishes in the tes, Ning Que couldn¡¯t help raising his head to have a look at the pattern-carved pirs. Not until being shed by the bright light of the bronze pirs, did he realize where he was and what he was doing.


    Previously in the imperial study, his Majesty asked for some of Ning Que¡¯s handwritings for appreciating, but was refused by Ning Que who said the works were written for business. Ning Que thought it probably would infuriate his Majesty and made him punished. However, it was surprising that his Majesty didn¡¯t expel him though his Majesty was indeed a little angry. Instead, his Majesty led him to outside the imperial study and showed him around the garden. Finally, they arrived at a huge and quiet room and were served with substantial and delicate dishes.


    What a proud experience for Ning Que to have supper with his Majesty of Tang in the pce! Later, that gentle and elegant Her Majesty even filled a bowl of soup for him in person, which was another great glory. Even though Ning Que had long been ustomed to the life and death and other terrible dangers, he couldn¡¯t helping bing excited and nervous.


    After taking a piece of iced bamboo shoot into his Majesty¡¯s mouth, her Majesty smilingly said, "Since we are having a meal, I advise you not to keep mentioning how many times you have appreciated and admired the handwriting works of Bloom in the Opposite World. Otherwise, Ning Que needs to thank you and be modest, so how could he quietly enjoy the dishes?"


    His Majesty was indeed in a good mood. He smilingly said as he was chewing the bamboo shoot, "So let¡¯s just enjoy the meal."


    What the emperor said was an imperial edict. Ning Que held the gold-ted bowl with redcquer and began enjoying food. Right now, however, he didn¡¯t have the mood and time to taste the food vor. Instead, he just kept thinking of and analyzing what he saw today. Now, he knew that the rtionship between his Majesty and her Majesty was, as it was said by many people, deeply attached to each other, but who was the owner of the empty seat in the opposite?


    With gentle sound of hitting jades and light fragrance, the Fourth princess of Tang Dynasty Lee Yu, who was dressed a beautiful skirt and apanied by pce maids and mammies, walked into the room. Ning Que, a little shocked, subconsciously looked at her face. In the past, he just thought the princess had a pair of pretty eyes. However, today he found her very beautiful and elegant with her delicate make-up and gorgeous skirt, thus he unintentionally showed a surprising expression.


    Lee Yu felt even more amazed as she saw Ning Que sitting in the pce. She covered her lips with her hand and asked in surprise, "Why are you here?"


    Though she had slept for the whole day to refresh herself after returning to the pce from the Academy, she still felt a little tired now. Thus, she neither knew the heated discussion outside the court, nor Ning Que¡¯s visiting the pce.


    His Majesty looked at them and asked in confusion, "Little Yu, you knew him before?"


    Lee Yu quickly calmed down and smiling exined, "Father, we had already known each other when Ning Que escorted me back to Chang¡¯an from the grasndst year. Last night, I went to watch thepetition for the entrance of Second floor in the Academy and he was the winner."


    Lee Yu¡¯s journey from the grasnd to Chang¡¯an was really very difficult and dangerous. Her team set off in the Golden tribe, passed City of Wei and then survived in the violent battle at the entrance of North mountain road. His Majesty clearly knew what his daughter had suffered during the journey, but previously he didn¡¯t know that a soldier in border town named Ning Que once saved his daughter¡¯s life."


    Listening to Lee Yu¡¯s concise narration aboutst year¡¯s journey, his Majesty¡¯s eyes on Ning Que were different from before. It contained not only the pure appreciation, but also more sincere preference.


    Lee Yu smilingly asked, "Why father summons Ning Que today? I don¡¯t suppose it is about the Second floor of the Academy."


    "I have told you before that a piece of wonderful handwriting works suddenly appeared in the imperial study," his Majesty looked at his daughter and happily said, "You know what, the five words ¡¯Bloom in the Opposite World¡¯ was actually written by Ning Que. Your ability to discover talents is always admired by all people. However, you fail to discover Ning Que¡¯s talent even if you are acquainted with him. From this point of view, their words can¡¯t be trusted all."


    "How could I have such kind of ability? I just want to look for talented people everywhere for father and the court."


    Under the service of maids, Lee Yu slightly pulled her skirt hemline aside and slowly sat by the desk. She looked at Ning Que opposite her and said in a seemingly smiling way, "I know Ning Que has a gift in handwriting, but I truly have no idea he is so excellent in it. However, in my view, what he is good at most is pretend to be weak and deeply hide his actual ability, which can be equivalent to a fake pig eating a tiger. I don¡¯t know where he learns such a boring style."


    There were some deep meanings of Lee Yu¡¯s words, but Ning Que failed to figure out a suitable way to respond. Thus, he just pretended to miss the information and kept enjoying his dishes. Now that he was said to be a fake pig, he certainly would try his best to y the role well. However, he didn¡¯t find the pce banquet dignified and serious at all, when he heard theughter of his Majesty and her Majesty and saw Lee Yu¡¯s look which made fun of him from time to time. Instead, it was more like a supper in an ordinary family. Of course, there weren¡¯t ordinary leeks and pancakes in this banquet, but the seemingly delicate dishes didn¡¯t satisfy Ning Que¡¯s appetite, even for a pig¡¯s.


    Fiddling with the tasteless marinade shii-take with his chopsticks, Ning Que doubted that whether the pce cooks actually got false qualifications for cooking. Later, he began deeply missing the leftovers at the Old Brush Pen Shop in Lin 47th Street, even missing that pot of chicken soup at home which had turned sour.

 Chapter 165: A Night Conversation at The Palace

    Chapter 165: A Night Conversation at The Pce


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "In fact, I don¡¯t want to live in the Imperial City."


    Standing by the bar, the Tang Emperor Li Zhongyi raised his hand pointing to the dark blue wall in the far northern direction and said with a sign, "In less than ten miles out of the city, we can see Daming Pce. There are verdant hills, thick trees and cool winds. If I stay there in summer, I¡¯ll feel much cooler and don¡¯t need to listen to the ministers¡¯ quarrel in the imperial hall. Thus no one will bother me every day, and I¡¯ll be a lot easier."


    After the meal, the Emperor took Ning Que to walk around the pce, the so-called digestion but in fact chatting. Just now, the sky started to be dark and Chang¡¯an City¡¯s lights were lit early. So one could see a lot of sceneries by looking out.


    Ning Que stood next to his Majesty and watched his hansome side face, thinking why he would share the feelings. "Was it really so difficult for the Emperor to find a talker in the deep pce?" Before Ning Que tried carefully to analyze the problems hidden in this treatment, he remembered the hot weatherst year in Chang¡¯an and felt a strong sense ofpassion. So Ning Que respectfully said, "His Majesty might as well get out of the city as soon as possible this year."


    The Emperor folded the sleeves behind the back and looked at the night imperial city to say with a sign. "In early years, when the Empress has said she wanted to move to the Daming Pce, the ministers cried and ran into tears to persuade with the rules of ancestors, for they dare not urge me for dying the management. Although I¡¯m the Tang Emperor, I can¡¯t be free to pick a dwelling ce. Even if no one has ever dared to be against my will these years, I have to move until the mid-summer so as to close the old guy¡¯s mouths."


    After listening to the words of his Majesty, especially the obvious grudges, Ning Que could not helpughing secretly.


    The Emperor suddenly turned around and interestedly looked at him to say, "This year, I and the Empress will move to the Daming Pce. Why don¡¯t youe with us to live there for several days? Yu Er always thinks it¡¯s lonely and boring outside the city, but in fact the scenery is extremely beautiful."


    Ning Que¡¯s smile on his face disappeared very fast, for he felt a bit awkward when listening to these words. It was unlike a emperor who invited the favored administer to the pce for a rest. The casua tone resembled that of the rural old farmer, who suddenly saw a young rtive from the county town and then kindly invited the man to eat some fruits in his own farmhouse, speaking highly of his own sweet well water.


    Ning Que was very clear what it meant when the Emperor invited him to the Daming Pce for spending the summer, .


    Where there was an emperor, there was a royal pce. Where there was a royal pce, there was a writing administer. Such an administer near to the Emperor had a high statue and was respected by the people. Although not involved in the imperial affairs, he had a great influence on them. Although with the littile sry, he could earn countless silver by writing some calligraphies and poems. If in the past, Ning Que, of course, was willing to be such a writing administer. But now he was no longer thed soldier of the border town. In addition to silver and prospect, he has seen that enigmatic world. Therefore, he was no longer willing to be an administer.


    "Thanks for his Majesty¡¯s appreciation, but as a student I¡¯m ashamed to ept this. It should be a wonderful thing to get his Majesty¡¯s guidance on calligraphy day and night... "


    Ning Que respectfully greeted a bow with hands folded in front and peeped at his Majesty¡¯s face. He said, "To be honest, who don¡¯t want to be outstanding and glorify the family name? But I as a student have just entered the Second floor and haven¡¯t seen the headmaster. It¡¯s really inconvenient... "


    "I just talk about it at will. Why are you so serious?" His Majesty said with a slight smile, "There are many unrealistic words in what you said, and I don¡¯t want to correct them one by one. But as for the matter of being outstanding... why doesn¡¯t Chao Xiaoshu want it?"


    Ning Que did not know how to answer and had no choice but to keep silence.


    Suddenly the Emperor looked at him and asked, "Do you know where Brother Chao is?"


    "As for the big brother Chao, I really don¡¯t know." Ning Que answered.


    The Emperor came to the bar, touching the cold stone bar with his slender palm and looking at the pce with the night scenery. After being silent for a moment, he softlymented. "There was a school of royal court poems, such as red leaves, court wall and pce maids. However, in this imperial palce, not only the pce maids or concubines but also I am locked here. Now I recall the moments when I as a crown prince often went to Chang¡¯an City and went straight into the Spring Breeze Pavilion with Chen and the other for drinking or fighting with Chao Xiaoshu. What a pity! Those moments are really lost in past."


    Listening to his Majesty whotemted the present and recalled the past with emotion. Ning Que felt bitter in the mouth for a while, thinking why the honorable Emperpr told the secrets to him. He just wrote a section and met the Emperor for the first time today. How could he be qualified to bear such trust?


    As if being aware of Ning Que¡¯s doubt, the Emperor turned the head and looked at him faintlyughing. "I chose Chao Xiaoshu. Chao Xiaoshu chose you. There was the name of Spring Breeze Pavilion for my valuing Chao Xiaoshu. You followed him to Spring Breeze Pavilion to kill overnight for Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s valuing you. Soter you were sent by him to the secret guard and entered my imperial study to leave that calligraphy there. Until then did I know who you are. It seems to beplicated but in fact shows one thing."


    Ning Que knew that he could no longer be silent at this time. He had to behave himself well, so he quickly asked, "What kind of thing?"


    The Emperor smiled and said, "It shows that there is fate between me and you, just as between me and Xiaoshu."


    "The word fate is really good." Ning Que joyfully thought in the heart. "His Majesty thinks he has the monarch-minister fate with me. Then in this secr world, I¡¯ll have a talisman, or even free from death. In the future, I¡¯m afraid a lot of things will be much easier."


    The Emperor looked at him and said with an invisible smile, "Since there is a fate between me and you, you should stop being so stingy and take more written calligraphies in the shop to the pce for me. You can regard this as I borrow them from you."


    "The word fate is not good." Ning Que painfully thought in the heart. "It¡¯s the so-called mysterious imperial pce. Once the sections, equal with notes, enters the imperial study, there¡¯s no way to see them again. As for borrowing, it is even more ridiculous. If the Tang Emperor borrows a few things from one, how dare one go to ask them back?"


    At this time in this ce, Ning Que could no longer refuse his Majesty¡¯s request of borrowing sections for a view. As the Emperor of Tang Empire, he had the qualification and power to be unreasonable. But today his Majesty has invited Ning Que to eat and talked heart to heart not only the exhortation but also friendship and fate. Therefore, Ning Que had to lend them.


    Ning Que looked up and resolutely said, "Tomorrow I¡¯ll send the works of these years to the pce for his Majesty¡¯s guidance."


    The Emperor was full offort, gently stroking the long beard under the jaw, and then watched thed in front to nod slightly. He secretly thought that thisd has not yet been a full idiot.


    Ning Que¡¯s determination on the face quickly became sadness and frustration at the next moment. He looked at the Emperor and bitterly said, "His Majesty was actually waiting for me here."


    "The Tangw values discipline first. Even if I¡¯m the Emperor, I can never grab and keep the people¡¯s stuffs."


    The Emperor smiled proudly, looking at Ning Que¡¯s painful look. He said with afort, "Naturally I¡¯m not a freeloader."


    Ning Que became excited after hearing this and thought that the Emperor would not be too stingy even if it was the cost price, or the price under friendship and monarch-administer fate.


    The Emperor pondered and said, "Compared with your beautiful ink words, taking gold and silver as a return seemed to be too vulgar."


    In the opinion of Ning Que, the most elegant thing in this world was silver. As for gold, it could be ssified as sacred stuff. At this moment, Ning Que felt so disappointed after hearing that his majesty despised the vulgar gold and silver. But all he could do was to control himself not toment it and continue to listen patiently. He secretly thought that if the Emperor did not give silver, some things like treature, silk or makeup powder were also fine. Although he did not need them, Sangsang absolutely liked those. He could even send the remaining to the girls in House of Red Sleeves.


    At this time, the Emperor naturally did not think of thisd¡¯s bad idea that Ning Que actually prepared to send the gift given by him to the brothel girls for decoration. After a moment of thinking, the Emperor suddenly thought of a matter and said with the shining eyes, "Master Yan Se has taken you as a disciple, saying that you have the potential of Divine Talisman Master. There is exactly one thing suitable fot you in the pce."


    Ning Que curiously asked, "His Majesty, what is that?"


    "I can¡¯t show it to you now. Even if you see it now, you won¡¯t understand it." The Emperor looked at him and smiled to say, "When Master Yan Se reports that you really enter the Fu path, I¡¯ll give it to you."


    Ning Que slightly frowned and thought of the gift that was even rted with his own cultivation. Since his Majesty refused to speak, Ning Que had to thank the kindness for the gift that he did not even get or know about.


    Seeing the darkness in the sky, he remembered something that he had thought of before entering the pce. So he respectfully reported. "His Majesty, I as a student have now entered the Second floor of the Academy. Should I quit the job of secret guard?"


    The Emperor slightly startled and shook his head as an opposition. Then the Emperor looked at his eyes and said, "I have seen the files presented by the Military Ministry. You have performed extremely well in the Wilderness of the frontier fortress, even beyond my imagination. You¡¯re loyal to the Tang Empire, kind to therades, good at resolution and capable of killing. I just need such a secret guard like you."


    "But in the Academy, I really don¡¯t know what to investigate."


    Ning Que seemed to casually ask this question. But in fact, Ning Que was trying to find the answer to his one-year puzzle from his Majesty¡¯s reply. Whether did the imperial court have the doubt about the Academy? Was he an undercover inserted in the Academy?


    The Emperor looked at him and unhappily eximed. "Idiot! The Academy is the foundation of my empire. How can I be so confused to shake the foundation? Who lets you investigate the Academy? I want you to be aware of those cultivators!"


    Ning Que quickly pretended to be a loyal administer and showed his approval. In fact, he still did not understand how he could keep watch over other cultivators when he studied in the Academy and only kept contact with those cultivation students. As for the Emperor who reprimanded him as an idiot, Ning Que was even unhappier, for he called others as idiots in the daily life... But this was the Emperor. So he had to let it go.


    The Emperor said slightly happily, "In the future, you follow the Headmaster of Academy to learn in the Second floor. It is a great opportunity. You must grasp it and work hard. Compared with your study, these things I delivered to you can be finishedter."


    After a pause, the Emperor looked at him and said with a solemn expression, "The future of the Tang Empire depends on young people like you. You were a glorious soldier at the frontier fortress and now the most trusted secret guard, and a student of Headmaster of Academy. So the Tang Empire won¡¯t let you down, and you can¡¯t embarrass the Tangs. Understand?"


    Ning Que heard of the Emperor¡¯s trust and respect in the words and felt a little stern. He replied, "Yes, I do understand."


    The Emperor looked back at the pce outside the bar, which was like a star and a light candle, and said indifferently, "In a short period of time, I¡¯ll not give you the governmental position in the imperial court. Because the whole world now knows that I appreciate your section."


    Ning Que did not understand what kind of logic was in the words.


    "If you are promoted, even for your other ability, the courtiers will think I do it for your section and let you be. But when ites to the imperial affairs, they will regard calligraphy as meaningless. Although I don¡¯t care how the courtiers and people think of me, I do care about how the historians would write about me. So I won¡¯t give you a high official position or live in my favorite Daming Pce."


    The Emperor turned to look at him and said, "Because I don¡¯t want to be a foolish emperor in the history book."


    Ning Que greeted a bow with hands folded behind and sincerely said, "His Majesty is an eternally wise emperor."


    The Emperor smiled and joked. "This is an eternal ttery."


    Ning Queughed and did not feel embarrassed.


    ...


    ...


    By walking around the pce for a circle, the Emperor has finished expressing the feelings and robbing the section. When Ning Que was about to leave, his Majesty specifically asked the favorite daughter to send him to outside the court, which made Ning Que feel glorified a lot.


    There were two long shadow on the stone shone by the centern. Ning Que walking behind could not helpughing. Lee Yu heard hisughter and confusedly looked back, seeing his expression and the shadows on the ground. She guessed what he wasughing at and could not help furrowing the brows. Then she said with a low voice, "This is in the pce, not Northern Mountain Road. Behave yourself."


    In the face of Lee Yu, Ning Que did not have any psychological pressure at all. Heughed and said, "Her Highness, what are you talking about?"


    They walked to outside of the court and stood on the stone stairs. Then they stopped.


    Lee Yu looked at him with an invisible smile, with a much more beautiful face shone by the pcenterns.


    "What else do you hide from me?"


    "A lot." Ning Que nced at her with a smile and said, "What do you want to know?"


    Lee Yu thoughtfully said, "All of them."


    Ning Que nearly said that she was born a beauty. But he looked at the pce maids and pce mammies around and reacted in time to stop saying those ridiculed words. Instead, he respectfully said, "It would be a very long story. I¡¯m afraid Her Highness can¡¯t wait for so long."


    Ning Que pretended to show the respectfulness, but in fact still had the tone of usual randomness. And this usual randomness was frivolous and rude for the Princess of the Tang Empire. Those pce maids and pce mammies on the stone steps have lived in the pce for a long time, experienced in obseving speeches and behaviors. So they heard Ning Que¡¯s unrespectfulness and suddenly became very unnatural.


    In the daily life, those pce mammies would certainly scold Ning Que. However, they today have seen the attitude of his Majesty towards Ning Que and noticed that Her Highness were not disobedient. So they thought they had some deviations on thinking and then turned the heads so as to not listen to the dialogue by being away from Her Highness. They even made those pce maids lower the heads with cold eyes.


    Lee Yu walked down the stone stairs and approached Ning Que. She smiled and said, "Speaking of time, if you have time a few dayster, you cane to my mansion. This year, I¡¯ve always heard Sangsang talked about your stories. So I want to hear how you¡¯ll tell your own stories."


    Ning Que knew there was a strange affection between Sangsang and the Princess, which was beyond the ss and the age. But he firmly believed that Sangsang absolutely would not talk about the his mission and secrets with outsiders. Lee Yu¡¯s remark was nothing more than a trial and a test. Ning Que said with a modest smile, "Her Highness should be clear that I¡¯ll be very busy from now on. So it¡¯s hard to fix the exact visiting time."


    Lee Yu furrowed the brows and said, "Even I have the time, you don¡¯t?"


    Ning Que quietly looked at her and suddenly softly asked, "Her Highness is trying to recruit me again?"


    Even if Ning Que guessed it right, she looked calm as usual and said with a smile, "Is it not a natural thing?"


    After hearing her natural approval, Ning Que startled instead and said a moment of silenceter, "Now the price is different."


    Lee Yu smiled and shook her head to say, "Last time, I regreted not to see your true potential and underestimated your confidence. But this time I think it should be different. Maybe I¡¯ll offer a price you can¡¯t refuse."


    Ning Que looked at her beautiful face and said, "There are few things in the world I can¡¯t refuse. But Her Highness, you¡¯re truly one of them."


    Lee Yu slightly startled, with a slight anger appearing in her eyes and a touch of blush on her cheek. Ning Que¡¯s pun could be said to be rude and shameless, or respectful and ttery. She felt shameful but did not know how to deal with him.


    A momentter, she looked at Ning Que with faint sarcastic and said with a smile, "You¡¯re really pretty."


    Ning Que suddenly turned away, secretly regretting not using this sentence previously. As a result, she stole this sentence for her use.


    ...


    ...


    Outside the court, it was young eunuch Lu Ji who waited to take Ning Que out of the pce.


    Walking along the Imperial Garden for a long time, they finally saw the imperial city gate in the darkness. The wobbly pcenterns have been far away from the eunuchs and pce maids passing through the pces. Lu Ji, who has lowered the head and led the way ahead, slowed down his footsteps and kept the voiced down to say "Thank you".


    Ning Que knew what Lu Ji thanked for, so he shook his head with a smile and did not say anything.


    ...


    ...


    Outside the Imperial City, it was the court bodyguard Deputy Commander Xu Chongshan who was responsible for guarding the night pce.


    After a harsh or even kind of perverted long examination, Ning Que was finally taken to the duty room next to the imperial city gate. He rewore the shoes and the belt andter looked at Deputy Commander Xu. Then he said with a bitter smile, "Why you waited for me here?"


    There were only two of them in the room.


    Xu Chongshan looked fully helpless and looked at Ning Que to seriously greet a bow and gratefully said, "I¡¯ve worried about it the whole day. After all, I still have to express my gratitude to you."


    Ning Que looked at him and shook the head to say, "Lu Ji took me out of the pce and you are here for the night duty. His Majesty certainly knows this thing. I even think whether his Majesty specially left us some time for a united stance."


    Xu Chongshan said with deep regret, "It¡¯s toote now. Even if his Majesty has guessed something, I still have to shut my mouth."


    Ning Que looked at the nominal boss and said with afort, "Guessing is different from knowing after all."


    Xu Chongshan came over with two rough short legs and looked at Ning Que. Then he seriously said, "If this time I really lost his Majesty¡¯s favor, I¡¯ll follow you from now on. My legs are too short to run fast, so you must wait for me."


    Ning Que has told a pun when talking with Lee Yu and then heard another pun at the Imperial City gate. The pce bodyguard Deputy Commander¡¯s position and attitude directly surprised Ning Que who kept waving the hand and said, "Your Grace, please don¡¯t say so. My waist and legs are good but not so strong."


    Xu Chongshan pretended to be displeased and said, "You have a thin waist but a fat thigh. Don¡¯t be so humble."


    Ning Que heard this weird ttery with a serious ent of Hebei Province and could not help shuddering. So he quickly changed the topic and lowered the voice to ask, "Your Grace, is it easy to expose our secret guard identity? Before entering the pce, Eunuch Lin has pointed out my identity."


    Xu Chongshan exined. "Eunuch Lin is the server of his Majesty and of course knows the list of secret guards. Except for few people in the pce, no one knows your identity, including Her Majesty."


    Ning Que remembered that previously in front of the Empress, his Majesty really has not talked about secret guards with him. So Ning Que started to be at ease.


    Suddenly he thought of one thing and asked earnestly, "How about... Her Highness?"


    Xu Chongshan looked a little embarrassed and thoughtfully said, "Guessing is different from knowing. Didn¡¯t you say these words before?"


    ...


    ...


    "Nice to meet you, my emperor brother."


    "Sit down please."


    The Emperor waved his hands at will, indicating the Prince Li Peiyan to sit down, and then put down the papers at hand. Suddenly, he thought of one thing and asked, "Last time I let someone deliver the two barrels of double-distilled wine to your mansion. Did you drink it? Do you like it?"


    Li Peiyan frowned and honestly said, "That wine is too scorching."


    The Emperor said unhappily, "If it isn¡¯t scorching, why drink it? Since childhood, you had a poor body but was still spoiled by mother. So your body continued to be so weak."


    Li Peiyanughed twice and said, "Anyway, I have the emperor brother to cover me. I am fine with being weak."


    After finishing this sentence, he became serious and stood up from the chair, beginning to enter the monarchy-administer time period. He reported, "West-Hill mission team is ready to leave and Long Qing is also about to leave Chang¡¯an. I urge his Majesty to leave this person in Chang¡¯an."


    The Emperor said casually, "The previous agreement was for the young man to enter the Second floor. Since he had no ability to enter, I¡¯m not to me. And the agreement is also invalid, so let him go as he wants."


    Li Peiyan felt a little surprised listening to those words and anxiously said, "My emperor brother, he¡¯s the hostage of Yan Kingdom. How can we let him leave?"


    "The Tang Empire is famous in the world for its cavalry warriors and the spirit of not surrendering, not for some hostages who hang out in Chang¡¯an¡¯s brothels every day." The Emperor said with a slight ridicule, "In those years, the Yan Emperor sent his crown prince to Chang¡¯an, not for my sake but for his own benefits. If I did¡¯t ept his son, wouldn¡¯t he be afraid every night that my cavalries might break into Capital Cheng at any time and entered his pce? In order to let that old guy sleep better and live a few days more, I had to ept it."


    "You have to understand that it¡¯s these emperors of Yan Kingdom and South Jin Kingdom who urgerly sent hostages to Chang¡¯an City, not I want them toe. My Tang Empire even has to spend money and food on those damned crown princes."


    The Emperor waved his hand and said, "Let Prince Long Qing go as he wishes. Chang¡¯an City doesn¡¯t raise useless men."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que got off the horse carriage in the alley of Lin 47th Street and quietly slipped to the narrowne of back courtyard. He spoke out the cipher at a distance from


    the wall. Then the back door of Old Brush Pen Shop was pushed open with a squeak. Ning Que dodged in with the fastest speed.


    Ning Que took over a hot towel to wash his face and put the feet in a hot water basin with proper temperature. He felt sofortable as to utter a groan, with the tiredness from yesterday to today swept away. The tightened spirit for a long time has finally soothed down.


    During the whole day, he climb


    ed the Academy¡¯s back mountain, defeated Prince Long Qing to get the qualification of entering the Second floor, and changed from a forgotten Academy student to a genius who the Academy and South School of Haotian Taoism asked for. Afterwards, it was discovered that he was the owner of the calligraphy section. So he entered the royal pce, had a meal with his Majesty, and chatted with the imperial family...


    Shock after shock, a wave was followed by another wave. They all happened witihin one day, which was really hard to imagine and might also be very difficult for someone to copy in the future. In the outsiders¡¯ eyes, it was already dizzying enough, let alone Ning Que himself. When Ning Que finallyy on the familiar bed, he still felt somewhat absentminded


    and unreal.


    Sangsang added half a scoop of hot water to his foot-washing basin and squatted on the floor to look up at him. She curiously asked, "Young master, what does the Emperor look like? With a long and white beard?"


    "It¡¯s Santa us who has a long and white beard, not the Emperor."


    Ning Que reclined on the bedclothes and pointed the aching thigh with his fingers, indicating Sangsang to massage a few times. He said, "His Majesty, ah, in fact, is not too old. I really do not know what kind of person he is?"


    This was a very honest remark. For the Emperor of the Tang Empire, Ning Que has always felt somewhatplicated in the past few years. From that natural disaster to the many details of the City of Wei stronghold, he could feel the Emperor nowadays was a legendary wise monarch. However, whenever he thought of the bloodshed in General¡¯s Mansion and those murders who were still sitting in the imperial court, he had to put a question mark for the wise monarch in the heart.


    From the frontier fortress back to Chang¡¯an City, he began to chase down the murderers who participated in the case of General¡¯s Mansion that year. During this process, he found out that the Emperor did not look into this matter but secretly did many things these years, such as demotiong them and keeping at a distance with them. Although thisck of justification is far from sufficient, Ning must have admitted that for a country that has been forgotten by the world for so long and without any evidence of conviction and any necessary refutation, Your Majesty the Emperor has done enough.


    As for the culprits in the case of General¡¯s Mansion, the Prince Li Peiyan and General Xia Hou... one was the younger brother of the Emperor. The other was the mainstay of the Tang Empire. They were still enjoying the fame and fortune. However, Ning Que could understand it.


    Ning Que silently said in the heart, "His Majesty, if you can¡¯t deal with your own younger brother, then let me do it for you."


    Sangsang sat on the bed, waving a small fist rhythmically to beat his thigh and looking at his face. She could not help feeling curious and asked, "Does Her Majesty look beautiful? Her Highness seems to dislike her. Butst time when I was in the House of Red Sleeves, I heard Xiaocao said that Her Majesty was the best-looking woman in the world, so his Majesty only liked her these years."


    Feeling the percussion of her small fist, Ning Quefortably narrowed his eyes and said. "You should spend less time with Xiaocao, for you can¡¯t learn any skills from her but only talking about the imperial harem like a gossip woman."


    Sangsang said: "I¡¯m just curious."


    Ning Que suddenly thought of one thing. So he opened the eyes and said with a sigh, "There¡¯s nothing special with Her Majesty. It¡¯s also hard to summarize his Majesty. But at least I know he is truly a master on business."


    ...


    ...


    The master and the maidservant stared at the silver box on the bed, or urately the paper in the box, and showed the same distressed look. After a long time of silence, Sangsang looked up and a little unwillingly asked, "Send all of them to the pce?"


    Ning Que answered with a husky voice, " Of course not, two thirds at most. No... just a half. "


    Sangsang began to pick up some sections from inside the box. And she was very slow and unwilling, with a distressed expression on her face. Ning Que also felt very distressed and said with regret andment, "If I had known one day a piece of paper I randomly wrote would be equal to a silver note, how could I throw so much and burn so much? Even if I wrote it badlly, even with a lot of ink, a section still could be equal to half of a note. In this way, didn¡¯t we throw away a number of notes these years?"


    Listening to these words, Sangsang¡¯s eyes suddenly became bright. She jumped out of the bed unusually quickly and rudely dragged Ning Que off the bed, lifting up the mattress to reach her hands in for a long time. Then she took out a small box and opened it on the table. She took out the paper inside andter eximed. "Young master, I picked up a lot of sheets of paper that you had thrown in the past. Can you exchange these for money?"


    Ning Que felt a little startled, subconsciously picking up a piece of paper on the top for a look, and then found that it was the mourning section he had written on the night when Zhuo Er had died. He was shocked and asked, " I have already thrown this section. When did you pick it back?"


    Sangsang smiled and no longer spoke.


    Ning Que was shocked and speechless. After a long time, he came to himself and extended his both hands to hold Sangsang¡¯s little ck face. He affectionately said, "Sangsang, how can I live without you?"


    At this moment, his stomach suddenly growled.


    Ning Que took back his hands to rub the belly and took a look at the night scenery outside the window. He said, " It takes a long time for dawn?"


    "Yes, young master." Sangsang asked in curiosity, "What¡¯s the matter?"


    Ning Que seriously said, "At this time I miss the hot and sour noodle slice soup very much."


    Sangsang puzzled and asked, "I heard there was at least a hundred dishes on an imperial banquet. Young master, were you not full?"


    Ning Que said with a ridicule, "Those innocent people didn¡¯t know the Royal Pce. Although there were all kinds of delicious food on the banquet, they still focused in delicacy and elegance. How could they serve the food like moving a mountain? I¡¯ve now had the imperial feast. In the future you should not say that kind of words outside, lest people would mock our short vision after hearing that."


    Sangsang agreed and continued to ask quietly, "The royal feast must be good. But young master, were you full or not?


    Ning Que looked slightly stiff and honestly said after a moment of silence: "Not yet."


    Sangsang smiled and said, "I¡¯m going to cook some noodles."


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 166: Back Mountain

    Chapter 166: Back Mountain


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Sangsang got up early in the morning andbed Ning Que¡¯s hair before fetching the hot water. She went out of the shop to buy two bowls of hot and sour noodle slice soup, specifically adding two spoons of beef cubes. After Ning Que washed his face and brushed his teeth, he began to have breakfast with an unlined garment on. Sangsang opened the box to take out a set of matching clothes and socks - Last night, the Academy spring clothes had been ironed extremely well, with new socks. Today the clothes were so conscientiously and solemnly treated, which was onlyparable to the previous spring when the Academy opened.


    With Sangsang¡¯s help, Ning Que started getting dressed. He pulled hard on the brand-new, densely-wovence belt with both hands. Sangsang held a lot of wooden tokens from the bed to squeeze them inside his belt. But she actually did not finish stuffing them all for a long time.


    Ning Que took the small and ancient wooden token from her hand, slowly touching its smooth lines with a fingertip. He secretly thought the purpose of His Majesty, who had sent him this ID token of the Imperial Center Administrationst night. This wooden identification seemed to have existed for many years.


    The ID token should be tied to the belt rather than being kept inside the clothes. But Ning Que currently had too many tokens at hand - the secret guard token, the Academy¡¯s token, the one for the Second floor, his visiting professor ID given by the Fish-dragon Gangst year, coupled with the newest Imperial Center Administration¡¯s token he received yesterday. If he hung all of them on his waist, he would be ready for a countryside dance.


    Ning Que touched his now lumpy waist and moved it in front of Sangsang. He said, "We¡¯ve been in Chang¡¯an City for one year. We have also earned a lot of money and tokens. But this young master of yours doesn¡¯t have a thick enough waist. I¡¯m afraid I won¡¯t be able to hang any more tokens in the future."


    Sangsang raised her face and looked at him with a smile, "Young master, don¡¯t be socent, okay?"


    Ning Que proudly said, "I pretend to be quiet and gentle outside. Why can¡¯t I becent at home?"


    Out of the Old Brush Pen Shop¡¯s door, under the rays of dawn, the horse carriage had long been waiting, quietly parked in the alley. But today old Duan did not wait in the carriage but honestly stood in front of the shop with a very deferential appearance.


    Old Duan did not know about the Second floor of the Academy, or The Flower Blooms on the Shore Astride. Butst night he was called by the horse carriage owner who had said old Duan was lucky and must serve Ning Que well in the future. So he earnestly worked at home to appease his wife and got up at the dark hours of the morning, changing into a clean suit, and unprecedentedly brushing his teeth with a willow twig dipped in expensive medical powder. He came to Lin 47th Street waiting for Ning Que in advance after brushing the carriage clean.


    Looking at the clean wheeler and horse carriage, Ning Que could not help feeling somewhat surprised. Through a few questions, he guessed that the horse carriage owner must know something and could not help shaking his head with a smile. He thought it was really difficult for him not to becent.


    The wheels ground on the stonene of the alley, and the carriage was gradually moving away from the Eastern City, out of the south gate of Chang¡¯an City through Vermilion Bird Road. On the imperial road, the carriage ran towards the Academy that looked like a fairnd under the distant dawn.


    Ning Que looked at the green trees, wildflowers, and the field beside the road through the window. He looked calm as usual, for he had seen the scenery on this road too many times and was unable to trigger more thoughts. After a moment, he put down the curtains.


    In the slightly shaking carriage, he slowly closed his eyes, with the exhaustion and tension long gone from his body after taking time recovering. But this was actually the first time for him to have a chance to calmly recall the experience of these days.


    Morning light passed through the curtains and then dimly brightening his eyes, which had an intensity close to the Wilderness light ushering in the uing darkness. His thoughts drifted back to those strange dreams and those strange fantasies during the mountain test.


    After a long time, Ning Que opened his eyes and shook his head.


    From the past, he once again recalled the mingling of light and darkness, those most distant, innermost summons from the world. And then he found that he had nothing to do with those matters at all. If thest choice was the test of the Academy, why did the Grand Cultivator of the Academy make such an enigmatic fantasy? And why did he guess it right?


    The test of the Academy¡¯s Back Mountain was too metaphysical and solemn. Ning Que was just a weak cultivator who had just entered the No Doubts State. Making him answer this question was just like having a philosophy professor at Heidelberg University ask a child who had just entered elementary school, "Who are you? Where are you from? And where are you going?"


    That child would not painfully hold his head and think for half a century before finally bing a statue and answering with silence. He would certainly reply with a loud voice, "I am Vic. Ie from Frankfurt. I¡¯m going fishing on the Neckar River."


    Perhaps the philosophy professor at Heidelberg University also taught theology. Perhaps the professor was almost the same as the ancient Zen master of China who loved ying that kind of back-to-nature game. When they listened to this answer, they felt fiercely shocked and thought that the child¡¯s answer seemed simple but in fact straightly pointed at the ultimate road. Therefore, they gradually felt that kid was an unprecedented genius.


    Soon Ning Que would formally enter the Second floor of the Academy to study. But to be honest, until now Ning Que still did not know why the Academy, the long road, and the bigwigs setting the illusion choices had selected him. After a long time of thinking, he could onlye to this conclusion.


    "The Headmaster of the Academy was too profound to be confused and I¡¯m just that little kid."


    ...


    ...


    On the straight wide official path of Southwestern Chang¡¯an, a team with a few horse carriages and dozens of knights were silently moving forward. These horse carriages were mainly decorated by ck and gold, revealing the somewhat invisible mixture of luxury and seriousness. Although the knights were not in armor, their tidy ck gowns and rock firm facial expressions still emitted a sense of sacred invincibility.


    These knights were precisely the well-known Papal Guardians of the West-Hill Divine Kingdom, the most elite cavalry in the world. And in the several horse carriages, the people who were qualified to be protected by them were undoubtedly the bigwigs of the Divine Hall. At this time it was still early and the team had appeared on the official road in Southern Chang¡¯an. It indicated that they had left Chang¡¯an City as soon as the gate had opened.


    If the team of Divine Hall¡¯s bigwigs and the Papal Guardians were walking in other countries, they would surely attract the apuse of countless people and even many foolish followers would bow beside the road. But now they were in the Tang Empire and it was still early. Thus no one paid attention to them on the official path, or devoted tears of faith. The team only silently and swiftly moved forward, with a feeling of wanting at all costs to leave as soon as possible.


    Prince Long Qing sat in the middle ck-golden carriage, a transport bnced between luxury and sobriety. He calmly looked through the window, seeing the Tangs¡¯ houses and the fields which looked like golden nkets. He listened to the rapid hoof beats and the knights¡¯ breath, feeling the depressing atmosphere and weird silence, and then suddenly said with a smile.


    "When I came here, the entire Chang¡¯an City was jubnt. The believers, women and children walked in the streets to wee me, throwing fruits and flowers towards the horse carriage. When I left, it was so silent and calm. We even had to deliberately sneak away when they opened their gates. Don¡¯t I look like aplete loser?"


    The Vice President of Revtion Institute, Priest Moli, sitting opposite him slightly changed his facial expression and did not understand why Prince Long Qing had uttered such words. Forcibly suppressing a burst of anger, Priest Moli said, "Why did you feel so humiliated?"


    Prince Long Qing showed a faintly ironic look on his face and said, "No matter where the Papal Guardians are, they are dressed in golden armor, radiant like gods. But in the territory of the Tangs, they had to put down their weapons, or they would not be allowed to enter. This... is humiliating."


    Before Mo Li spoke up, he continued to say with a smile, "Vice President, you know why I lived in Peach Alley in Chang¡¯an City?"


    Priest Moli felt slightly startled and did not know whether Prince Long Qing was asked this question as a test. When he looked at Prince Long Qing¡¯s smile, his heart became colder and colder. After hesitating for a moment, he honestly replied, "Because peach is your Natal Item."


    "Right. Then do you know why I chose peach as Natal Item?" Prince Long Qing asked.


    Priest Moli shook his head. All the people in West-Hill Divine Pce did not know the real reason.


    "Because in those years when the Headmaster of the Academy went into West-Hill, he drank the wine as well as cut down all the peaches on the mountain. But no one dared toe out and stop him."


    Prince Long Qing looked out of the window to see those rapeseed fields with the sense of countryside beauty. Then he calmly said, "This was the biggest humiliation suffered by the West-Hill Divine Pce in a hundred years. I chose peach as a Natal Item so as to remind myself not to forget this humiliation."


    He continued to calmly say, "This time I abased myself to ept the academy¡¯s Second floor test, for I would like to have the opportunity to study under the Headmaster so that I canter take revenge in the name of the Divine Hall in the future. However, I did not expect to be humiliated by Ning Que."


    Priest Moli tried tofort him, but found no suitable words.


    "You just said that my words are self-humiliating... In fact, that is wrong. Shame about this kind of thing has nothing to do with the initiator, but with strength. If I am stronger than others, then those words are a ridicule. If I am weaker than others, then the words be self-humiliating."


    "The Tangs could make the Papal Guardians give up their weapons. The Headmaster of the Academy could cut off all the peaches on the mountains. Ning Que could force me to flee Chang¡¯an like a dog. Not because they intended to humiliate me, but because they were more powerful in some aspects."


    "But I thank them very much for this humiliation. What I am telling you is good news. Perhaps I have already taken that step and now I only hope that Ning Que can really speed up his growth and make me have the opportunity to take revenge for this humiliation."


    Priest Moli was surprised and then immediately became ecstatic, thinking that if Prince Long Qing could enter Knowing Destiny State during the trip, then the Divine Hall might spare him this time for the humiliation.


    After the congrattions, he had secretly made up his mind that he must serve the Prince better in the future. Suddenly he thought of one thing and whispered. "The crown prince Chongming has returned to Yan Kingdom and you have entered the Knowing Destiny State. Should we inform the Emperor of Yan about the good news as soon as possible?"


    Prince Long Qing slightly self-deprecatingly said, "What¡¯s the meaning for letting father know about it? Topete for the throne? Is the Yan Kingdom throne more attractive than the Haotian cultivation?"


    Priest Moli sincerely advised. "But the throne should have been yours, Prince."


    "What¡¯s mine is mine forever."


    Prince Long Qing recalled those illusions seen in the Back Mountain of the Academy, especially the brightness and dreadful fear in hisst steps towards the cliff. His face turned slightly pale, but he immediately and resolutely said, "Anyone who wants to take away my things will die."


    His hand withdrew from the window, and a pink peach suddenly appeared over his fingers.


    He randomly put the peach in his own clothes. No one knew whether there was a transparent hollow under those lively petals.


    Prince Long Qing looked at the smokeing the houses and the rapeseed in the fields outside the window. After a long time of silence, he calmed down and said with a smile, "In a few years, I want to pull down all these ugly houses of the Tangs and eradicate all the rapeseed in the fields. Then I¡¯ll burn all of them, the sins and the dirty, to then rebuild a holy, bright world."


    ...


    ...


    As usual, the carriage parked beside the Academy¡¯s meadow. Ning Que got off the horse carriage and found that the atmosphere of the Academy today was very different from that in the past. There were still many students who stood in the distance watching him and went on their own discussions. However, the previous contempt and disgust in their eyes have changed to shock, envy and faint remorse.


    Under these gazes, Ning Que walked into the Academy and slightly nodded to Chang Zhengming beside the stone stairs. He saw a little boy standing in the morning light and waving to himself and could not help feeling slightly startled.


    Ning Que was momentarily shocked and then shook his head to say with a smile, "The fatd and Little Mister... it always sounds a little discordant."


    The boy was little but imitated the style of the old Headmaster. So Ning Que could not help smiling and asked, "Who is your young master? And why did you call me Little Mister?"


    The little boy smiled and touched his head. He exined, "My young master is named after Second. The title was the order given by my young master. You are the youngest one in the Back Mountain. So I called you Little Mister."


    Ning Que was very interested and asked, "Then... how about Chen Pipi?"


    The little boy said with an innocent voice, "In the past he was Little Mister. But now since you¡¯re Little Mister, he¡¯ll be the Twelveth Brother."


    Ning Que was pensive for a moment and shook his head to say with a smile, "The fatd and Little Mister... it sounded a little discordant."


    The little boy said seriously, "In fact... I also thought so."


    ...


    ...


    Today, Ning Que walked into the Back Mountain road of the Academy. Of course, it could not be the road that tortured him into half-death. The little boy led him to a secludedne, walking up taking a stone path beside the old library, and then stopping before the fog circling the mountain.


    "Little Mister, there is also a road in the Second floor of the old library. But my young master said today was your first day here, so we¡¯ll go this way."


    Ning Que looked at the clouds in front and subconsciously thought of the mist of the mountain road the day before yesterday, feeling that his body had be slightly stiff. A few silent momentster, Ning Que looked at the young boy and gently asked, "In the clouds... there¡¯s nothing strange, right?"


    The little boy chuckled and said, "Of course not, I often walked like this."


    ...


    ...


    That mountain fog was really not strange, from the bamboo to a flying sword, from a spring to a waterfall, and from a small pool to the sea.


    However, that mountain fog was very strange indeed. Ning Que just walked around a dozen steps and then actually arrived at the very middle of the Academy¡¯s Back Mountain.


    He moved his sleeves to wipe out thest wisps of fog in front of him. He looked at the fairnd-like scenery of the mountain under the morning light in front of him and could not help but be stunned.


    From the direction of the Academy, he could see the steep mountain. Facing east, there was actually arge t cliff terrace.


    Above the cliff terrace was a mirror-like smallke, blooming wildflowers, quiet grass and towering old trees.


    There were thousands of flower species, including peaches, but inconspicuous amongst them.


    Under the towering trees there were over ten simple-style houses with rising smoke.


    There was a silver line pouring down between the cliffs behind the house. It was actually a faraway waterfall.


    A group of ck birds fluttered among the cliffs and the waterfall.


    Under the morning light, with the beautiful scenery crashing into sight, Ning Que felt stunned and remained speechless.


    Feeling the Qi of Heaven and Earth of the Back Mountain and the taste of life, an idea was suddenly welling up in him.


    "- No matter who wanted to destroy such a beautiful scenery, I would kill them first."

 Chapter 167: Senior Brothers and Sisters (I)

    Chapter 167: Senior Brothers and Sisters (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "When I first came, like you, I was too surprised by the beauty to say a word."


    Chen Pipi came to stand by Ning Que at some point.


    Ning Que turned around, ncing at him, and asked, "Is it more beautiful than the ce where you once lived?"


    Chen Pipi looked at him, wondering if he had figured out where he came from. After a moment of silence, he said, "The solemn, respectful or sacred are not actually the beauty."


    He smiled and continued, "Wee to the real Academy."


    Ning Que answered with a smile, "It seems that you are my tour guide today."


    While Chen Pipi had not heard the words, tour guide, before, he roughly guessed the meaning. He smiled and led Ning Que to the cliff floor. Stepping on the damp ridges, they made all the way through the fields and meadows before they embarked on a wooden bridge,ing to theke as calm as a mirror.


    The white waterfowls sank and floated while they were preying on fish in the water. No matter they seeded or failed, they proudly raised their heads or ate the fish, or dried water droplets on their feathers. The sound of footsteps on the wooden bridge attracted the waterfowls¡¯ attention. However, they were obviously not afraid of people. Instead, they appeared to be curious, full of spiritualism.


    There was a pavilion in the middle of the wooden bridge, which was quiet and elegant as it located inke water. A woman dressed in a piece of light yellow Academy spring clothes was devoted to embroidering.


    Chen Pipi led Ning Que to the woman and said with a respectful salute, "Seventh Sister."


    The woman in the light yellow clothes looked up and nced at Ning Que beside him, then said with a smile, "Take your junior brother to have a look around."


    Ning Que greeted a bow with hands folded in front and respectfully said, "Seventh Sister, it¡¯s a great honor to meet you."


    Seventh Sister looked at Chen Pipi with a half smile and suddenly said, "From now on, you can get some free time."


    Chen Pipi chuckled in embarrassment.


    Ning Que felt puzzled and looked at them in confusion.


    Seventh Sister did not say anything more. She continued to embroider.


    They walked out of theke pavilion and came to the shore along the wooden bridge. Chen Pipi turned around and introduced to Ning Que, "Seventh Sister is named Mu You. She is proficient in array tactical. The mist you prated through when you climbed the mountain before was set by former predecessors, and now it is maintained by her alone. As for embroidery... Seventh Sister ran into a bottleneck two years ago. Neither Eldest Brother nor Second Brother could figure out a way to help her. Finally, the teacher decided to let her do embroidery. She has been embroidering for two years. I don¡¯t know if she hase through the bottleneck after all.


    The shock in Ning Que had never disappeared as it was his first visit to the Second floor of the Academy. He just behaved to be calm. He did not know many things, such as the rtionship between embroidery and array tactical. But as he could not understand, he knew it was useless to ask. So he kept silent.


    Chen Pipi guided him to the jungle in the west, passing by a very tall old tree. While listening to the beautiful sound of the lute and the vertical bamboo flute, Chen Pipi said, "The man who is ying the vertical bamboo flute is Ninth Brother, Beigong Weiyang, and that one who is ying the lute is Tenth Brother, Ximen Buhuo. They bothe from the Pole South Ind and are proficient in tonality. As for the cultivation they are pursuing, I¡¯m afraid even they themselves cannot tell it clearly."


    Ning Que was surprised and asked, "What? How can cultivators don¡¯t know the cultivation they pursue?"


    Chen Pipi shook his head and exined, "Teachers have never asked them to do homework. They just let them tinker with these useless stuff ording to their wills. I have been hearing them y since I came to the Academy. I have seen them do anything else."


    The music in the spring forest suddenly stopped. With a sound of grating, two men in white spring Academy clothes with wider bottom hems and bigger sleeves, which obviously had been changed, came out of the wood, handsome and calm. They did not look like students. They were more like recluses with celestial behaviors.


    Ninth Brotherwith a vertical bamboo flute in his hands looked at Chen Pipi and snappily said, "What do you mean that I cannot exin it clearly?"


    Chen Pipi said with a smile, "Then please tell us what you have been practicing in the Academy for so many years?"


    Ninth Brother furiously knocked Chen Pipi¡¯s head with the vertical bamboo flute.


    Chen Pipi clutched his head and annoyedly cried, "Ninth Brother, how can you hit me just as you cannot convince me interracially? Where is your ritual?"


    The silent man hugging the lute beside them suddenly said, "Good job."


    Chen Pipi looked at the man and said, "Tenth Brother, you used not to be such a person."


    Tenth Brother, Ximen Buhuo, slightly smiled, lightly holding the lute with his hands in front of him. Then he pulled a broken sound with his fingertip and said to Ning Que, "Dear junior brother, what Beigong Senior Brother and I are practicing is tonality. Suchymen like Chen Pipi, who only take the Qi of Heaven and Earth to fight, simply cannot understand the beauty of tonality. I hope you are not one of them."


    Ninth Brother, Beigong Weiyang, inserted the vertical bamboo flute into his waist and curiously said to Ning Que, "Dear junior brother, the other day we observed you climb the mountain, we discovered that you were free and easy. Master Yan Se said you have the potential of being a Divine Talisman Master. Besides, it is said that you are one of the Calligraphers in the city of Chang¡¯an, who have recently be famous. So you must be quite aplished in art. We should learn from each other in the future."


    Ning Que hurriedly bow with respect, while he was bitterly thinking that he did not understand tonality. As for the question whether it was vulgar or not... if one can sense the Qi of Heaven and Earth, he, of course, should use it to enhance his state, and then learn fighting skills. These two senior brothers actually put all the cultivation and even their lives into tonality. Elegant as they were, they just wasted their potential.


    "Dear senior brothers, I know nothing of tonality." He quickly responded.


    Ninth Brother, Beigong Weiyang, was very disagreeable and said while cuffing his sleeves, "Both tonality and calligraphy are beautiful things between heaven and earth. Art includes many intertwined disciplines. Since now you have met us, how would you know nothing of it?"


    Ning Que understood the good intentions of them and felt awful to reject, so he agreed that he woulde to learn tonality from them as long as he had spare time in the future. Even if he might not get improvements, being a listener would do him good.


    The two senior brothers were cast with the pleasing joy after they heard the words, praising Ning Que together. "Surely you are not ayman like Chen Pipi."


    ...


    ...


    Chen Pipi nced at Ning Que on their way to the houses on the cliff floor under the big tree and seriously asked, "Do you really like the sound of lutes and vertical bamboo flutes?"


    Ning Que nced at him and said, "I am totally not interested in that... You do not have to look at me in this way. This is my first day on the second floor of the Academy. The two senior brothers are so passionate. How can I refuse them in person?"


    Chen Pipi said with bitter hatred, "You idiot! Of course, you should firmly reject."


    Ning Que was puzzled, and asked, "If they want to y the vertical bamboo flute for me, I can just avoid them. So what is the problem?"


    "In the past few years, none of our senior brothers and sisters were willing to quietly listen to their performance. They could only y face-to-face with themselves every day, talking with each other and ttering each other. They have been boring to death, all they need is a listener. Since you have promised them, you will be forced to listen in the back of the mountain every day."


    Ning Que confusedly asked, "Are they extremely poor in tonality?"


    "They are absolutely first-ss yers in the ordinary world."


    Chen Pipi seriously said with his eyebrows bitterly dropping down, then continued, "If you are forced to listening to the same melody thousands of times, you will know the pain in it, despite they being great masters of tonality."


    Will I be fed up with eating a thousand bowls of hot and sour noodle slice soup without a break? Will Sangsang be fed up with eating a thousand dishes of vinegar-soaked cabbages ceaselessly? Will we both be fed up with having noodles in Building of Pines and Cranes for a thousand days? Of course we will. Then listen to the same song for a thousand times in a row will certainly be boring and tormenting.


    Ning Que asked with a shaking voice, "There are endless people in the world loving tonality, they won¡¯t always force me to listen, right?"


    "There are endless people who love tonality in the world, but as the two senior brothers view, there are very few people who are qualified to listen to the music they y. Those who can be their ssmates after entering the back mountain of the Academy are certainly qualified as they have all passed the test of the Headmaster of Academy."


    Ning Que kept silent for a long time and decidedly said, "I will hide."


    "I had once tried." Chen Pipi looked at him sympathetically and sighed, "Although the back mountain of the Academy is not small, it is not difficult to look for an individual."


    Ning Que was about to say something but suddenly found that the flower trees along the stone path shook and a person whose face could not be clearly seen rushed out. He was taken aback. Then he looked at the man and recognized him as a young senior brother. However, his hair and robe were covered with a wide range of petals, funny yet a little horrible.


    Chen Pipi pulled him to his side and seriously introduced, "This is Eleventh Brother, Wang Chi."


    Ning Que preener himself and greeted a deep bow to show his respect. "Eleventh Brother, it¡¯s a great honor to meet you."


    Eleventh Brother stared at him without greeting back, but picked up a petal on his shoulder and startledly asked, "Answer my question, if there is nothing besides heart, what is the connection between the flowers, which had been blossoming and fading for thousands of years before the Headmaster of Academy came to the back mountain, and the hearts of you and me? If no one walks into the mountains and no one admires, doesn¡¯t the flowers exist?"


    Ning Que was speechless and kept silent for a long time, then he turned around and innocently looked at Chen Pipi.


    Chen Pipi looked more innocent than Ning Que, meaning that if you did not know, we would not be able to leave.


    Eleventh Brother, Wang Chi, gently looked at him, waiting for a long time for his answer. Although he did not get the answer, he was not unhappy but mildly exined, "In my opinion, before you and I see the flowers, our hearts and the flowers are silent and lonely. When you and I admire the flowers, the flowers bloom in out hearts. Whether the flowers exist or not lies in the moment of appearance."


    Ning Que slightly opened his lip, still speechless, and looked very innocent.


    Chen Pipi felt guilty from the innocent look of Ning Que and said after coughed, "Eleventh Brother, the younger brother just came to the back mountain, I have to take him to meet other senior brothers.Can we discusster the flowers and heart?"


    Wang Chi gently look at Ning Que and said, "Little younger brother, can he help me with the thinking if you are not busy in the future?"


    Ning Que got the meaning of the words and felt relieved. He quickly agreed and then fled from the flower trees following Chen Pipi to those houses under the ancient tree of the cliff floor without noticing the sympathetic look on Chen Pipi¡¯s face again.

 Chapter 168: Senior Brothers and Sisters (II)

    Chapter 168: Senior Brothers and Sisters (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    There was a stove inside the house and a watermill outside. White steam filled both inside and outside the house. When a red iron was put in water, a buzzing sound emitted. When a hammer hit the red iron, there was a loud boom. Ning Que and Chen Pipi stood outside the threshold, looking at the half naked brawny man who yed with fire and iron like treating his lover carefully but rudely.


    After a long time, the noisy sounds in the house finally stopped. The brawny man took off his leather apron and picked up a towel to wipe the sweat on his face. He walked to the door and said with a simple and honest smile, "I am your Sixth Brother."


    Chen Pipi smiled at Ning Que and said, "The armor and weapons that Sixth Brother made are unique in the world. The armor General Xu Shi wears was personally created by him. If you have a need for this in the future, you cane directly to learn from Senior Brother. He¡¯s kind and helpful. Although he¡¯s not very talkative, he can finish the things he promised you."


    Ning Que had been staring at Sixth Brother ying with the hammer and iron, and vaguely felt something interesting from the rhythmic beats and powerful movements. After hearing Chen Pipi¡¯s introduction, Ning Que thought of the three knives or those arrows hidden at Lin 47th Street. His eyes suddenly became bright and Ning Que eximed, "Is Sixth Brother a Talisman Taoism Master?"


    "If you want my exact faction, I should be counted as a martial arts practitioner. But in my life, I have no time to learn how to fight. I only focus on the cksmithing work."


    Sixth Brother replied honestly, "Junior Brother, I know what you want to ask. The helmet and armor I make do have Talisman inscriptions. But I don¡¯t draw them. They¡¯re Fourth Brother¡¯s works."


    "Fourth Brother?" Ning Que asked with surprise.


    Sixth Brother looked at the dark corner of the house and said with a smile, "That¡¯s him."


    It was only then that Ning Que noticed that there was a very small sand table in the shady corner and a man in a blue spring uniform of the Academy sitting next to the sand table. The temperature in the house was very high, but the man actually did not have a drop of sweat or feel any sense of hotness, he was focused on the small sand table in front of him. He seemed to be a part of the house and easy to miss. If one closed his eyes, he would not feel him sitting there.


    "Fourth Brother recently went on the Mixing Fu cultivation."


    Chen Pipi exined it. "He wanted to turn the Talisman inscription and the steel in the weapon into a tighterbination, perhaps even making them into one eventually."


    Fourth Brother, who was seated in the dark corner, looked up and ignored Ning Que as well as Chen Pipi. He said to the half naked brawny man, "If Sanxing pattern is used to increase the front impact resistance, it naturally has no problem. But how about the tearing force from the side? If a martial warrior puts the Qi of Heaven and Earth over the body skin, it will be a little difficult to stimte the Talisman inscription on the armor."


    Sixth Brother went over to the other side, with Ning Que and Chen Pipi following behind him.


    On the sand table were three seemingly simple lines, which were slightly crooked. Intersecting them were a few very smooth semicircr arcs, which seemed like a line holding a few drops that were about to be integrated, but not yet fully integrated.


    Listening to the discussion of the two Senior Brothers, Ning Que knew that they wanted to modify the Talisman inscription on the armor so as to enhance the defensive ability. It was his first time seeing the use of Talisman Taoism. Therefore, he could not help feeling curious.


    "I don¡¯t understand Talisman Taoism or the use of these decorations. But I always feel that the semicircle is too smooth or... perfect." Sixth Brother scratched his head and said honestly, "I think that things that are too perfect will definitely notst."


    After a long silence, Fourth Brother said, "You¡¯ve been a cksmith all of your life, and are more familiar with the power than I am. Although I don¡¯t know why, I do believe your intuition. Indeed, these semicircles are way too perfect."


    Ning Que felt a little nervous, staring at the sand table paved by fine white sand, and wanted to see what changes Fourth Brother was about to make.


    Though no one took the wooden pen to draw, the white sand on the sand table rolled about magically. It seemed as if there was an invisible hand holding the lines in the changing shapes. No one knew how manybinations these lines have made up in a single moment.


    Ning Que stared at the lines on the sand table, his eyes shing rapidly as the lines changed. His thinking gradually could not keep up with the extremelyplicatedbination changes, and he felt a slightly irritating pain in his mind and a rising nausea in his chest.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que walked out of the house and came to the waterwheel, washing his face with some cold water. Only then did he feel better. He trembled and looked at Chen Pipi. "I really didn¡¯t expect those fragments of Talisman inscriptions to be so iprehensible."


    "Because the fragments could easily lead to mental fluctuations, not to mention that you have overestimated yourself by wanting to see so many changes."


    Chen Pipi used a bamboo tube to fetch some water and drank it. He wiped his mouth andughed. "Besides, Sixth Brother makes the stove in the house work all year around and smelts all kinds of stainless-steel materials. Though he doesn¡¯t fight, he has a very sophisticated Martial Arts cultivation. So he¡¯s fine staying inside. But a guy like you would faint in that heat."


    Ning Que did not mind being ridiculed by Chen Pipi, but felt excited when thinking of the Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters who he had seen in the Back Mountain of the Academy today, especially those seemingly crazy, but obviously very amazing, scenes.


    "Fifth Brother and Eighth Brother are ying chess. One was a South Jin Kingdom nationalist and another was a court chess yer of Yuelun Kingdom before they entered the mountain. They had tied more than 10 times. Later, they became Brothers after entering the mountain, but never forgot the grudges during those years. As long as they are free, they¡¯ll take a chessboard to sit under the pine tree of the mountain for a few days."


    Chen Pipi thought of the two Senior Brothers and said snappily, "They often forget to eat when ying chess. How would they remember that today is the day you enter the Second Floor? If I hadn¡¯t climbed all over the mountain to find them to send food all these years, I really think they would have vomited blood on the chessboard, and frozen to death and be two elegant ghosts under the pine tree."


    Ning Que listened to this narration and could not help but be speechless. He thought the people living in the Academy¡¯s Back Mountain were really strange enough and wondered why the Headmaster of the Academy had epted these people as students.


    "You know Third Sister."


    Chen Pipi continued, "At this time she should be still copying the minuscule characters in the old library. You can see her whenever you want. Don¡¯t ask me why she copies the characters every day beside the eastern window. I only know this is the assignment the lecturer gave her."


    Ning Que recalled the number of people in the cliff that night and silently counted. He said to Chen Pipi, "Eldest Brother has followed the Headmaster to travel in another country. So there should be two Senior Brothers that I haven¡¯t seen."


    "You haven¡¯t seen Second Brother. As for thest one, he is not Senior Brother, but an old gentleman who has a strange identity. He reads and stays silent all day, so Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters don¡¯t like interacting with him."


    Chen Pipi led him to the waterfall behind the cliff square and warned him. "I will take you to see Second Brother. You must behave yourself. Though the Senior Brothers and Sisters you¡¯ve seen acted a little odd, they are very good and kind. Second Brother is serious and upright, and always asking others to correct their misdemeanors. If you do anything wrong, beware of his punishment."


    Ning Que felt shocked after hearing this and nervously asked, "Then how should I behave with Senior Second Brother?"


    Chen Pipi looked back at him and said mockingly, "You have always been good at pretending, just behave as you did with the Senior Brothers and Sisters previously. I really didn¡¯t expect you to be so good at ttery."


    Ning Que said sarcastically, "A wise man submits to fate, and an idiot resists fate."


    Chen Pipi looked at him and sighed. "In addition to seriousness and uprightness, pride is the most prominent characteristic of Second Brother. And he hates seeing anyone be even more proud in front of him. So... please be careful."


    "You¡¯re always so proud, I think you¡¯ve been punished by Second Brother many times over these years." Ning Que looked at his chubby face andughed. "You don¡¯t need to worry about me, I will be the most humble person in the world in front of Second Brother."


    "It¡¯s toote." Chen Pipi looked at him with a half-smile. "The Mathematics problem you gave mest year has caused Second Brother to retreat into seclusion for half a month. Do you think proud Second Brother will forget that?"


    ...


    ...


    It proved that Chen Pipi¡¯s intimidation was nothing but a paper tiger¡ªWhen they walked to the small courtyard near that silver-like waterfall and finally saw the legendary Second Brother, Ning Que found that he was absolutely not the type of man who had a supercilious look and felt that his tone was very warm and kind without the slightest trace of pride.


    Standing above the stone stairs, Second Brother calmly watched them and asked indifferently, "Ning Que, little Brother he... sorry, I should not address him as little Brother... Twelfth Brother took you to visit the Back Mountain. How do you like it?"


    "I¡¯ve seen Senior Brothers and Sisters devote themselves to cultivation. They¡¯re really my..." Ning Que respectfully answered.


    However, before he finished the sentence, Second Brother raised the hand and interrupted with a cold voice. "Those guys only know about ying with birds, feeding fish, ying instruments and chess every day. They don¡¯t devote themselves to cultivation at all. Fourth Brother is very talented in Talisman Taoism, butcks something in his brain so that he was actually cheated by Sixth Brother and became a cksmith! The Headmaster is kindhearted and ignores them. Otherwise, I would have punished them many times over. It is really unwise for you to say they¡¯re your role models."


    Ning Que did not know how to answer him at all.


    Second Brother suddenly lowered his voice and asked, "What are you looking at?"


    After seeing that waterfall, Ning Que had decided on the tone for this conversation and made a lot of mental preparations, determined to y a shy quail in front of Second Brother and absolutely not look into his eyes rudely. But the ancient hat towering up like a very tallundry stick above the head of Second Brother was... too eye-catching.


    It would be difficult to look away from Second Brother¡¯s old hat no matter who was looking at it. Ning Que felt that he was talking to a stick. This weird feeling made it difficult for him to look calm.


    Compared with this high stick-like hat, Second Brother¡¯s appearance was much more normal, but also full of character.


    Second Brother had straight eyebrows and thin lips. Though not handsome, he did not have the slightest problem with his appearance. His ck hair wasbed neatly, meticulously hanging behind his back and not leaning to any side. His two eyebrows were exactly symmetrical, and even made people feel that there was exactly the same number of hairs on both sides. No one could pick out any problems from his calm and mettled eyes. His person as a whole made people feel that they could not praise or me him.


    Probably everyone seeing Second Brother would have this feeling. Because of it, Ning Que felt a little absent-minded. After suddenly hearing the sentence, he could not help but feel scared and said with a smile, "Senior Brother, young Brother is looking at your hat."


    Second Brother looked at him quietly and said, "Why did you look?"


    Ning Que looked very natural and confidently answered, "Because it looks good."


    Second Brother was slightly startled. Chen Pipi, who had been standing silently on the sideline, also felt shocked and cursed in his heart silently. Chen Pipi thought that he had known Ning Que for a whole year but he did not know that this person was actually so shameless.


    Even though Ning Que was good at ttery, there were times when he made people who epted the ttery feel a little shy or even angry, not to mention Second Brother of the Academy. At this important moment, Ning Que would not allow the opposition to have any chance to respond or revive. He chose a thing from his mind at random and asked puzzledly, "Second Brother, I returned to Chang¡¯an from the grasnd with Princess Lee Yust year. I met a Great Sword Master in the Seethrough State on Northern Mountain Road of Min Mountain. Someone said he was an abandoned disciple of the Second Floor of the Academy..."


    "It¡¯s hard to enter the Back Mountain of the Academy. How could he easily go out when he hase in?"


    Second Brother said, "There are distant rtives in the deep mountain and ignorant people in the world. They always think about having a rtionship with the Academy to improve their status. There are a lot of Second Floor abandoned disciples who appear every year. Should the Academy tell the world there is no such person every time they appear?"


    "I¡¯m worried that these opportunists would ruin the Academy¡¯s reputation." What Ning Que said was his honest opinion.


    Second Brother said sarcastically, "The people involved in it certainly know the truth. As for those who are not qualified to know, no matter what ideas they have, they¡¯re not qualified to affect the Academy¡¯s reputation. You can just ignore these things in the future."


    Listening to this sentence, Ning Quemented in his heart that he finally felt Second Brother¡¯s pride. It was indeed a very arrogant pride.


    One¡¯s eyes could reflect what one thought. Second Brother noticed the change in Ning Que¡¯s eyes. He thought that the new-entry young Brother was shocked by what he had seen today. So Second Brother tried tofort him. "The Back Mountain of the Academy, or Second Floor, in fact, is not as mysterious as people wish. It¡¯s just a ce where the Schoolmaster teaches students."


    ...


    ...


    "Do you feel helpless?"


    "Yes."


    "Don¡¯t you think that Second Brother is really boring and stereotypical?"


    "Yes."


    "Does his hat look like a stick?"


    "If I look at it for a long time, sometimes I suddenly feel that the cap looks like a folded paper toy."


    "No matter what it looks like, do you have any urge to break or squash it?"


    "... "


    When they left the courtyard and could no longer hear the sound of waterfalls crashing from the cliff, the two youngest members of the Academy¡¯s Back Mountain began to speak, certain that Second Brother could not overhear their conversation.


    Chen Pipi rubbed his cheeks, which had be kind of numb from maintaining a serious look, and looked at Ning Que. "Just say it."


    Ning Que honestly answered after a moment of silence, "Kind of."


    Chen Pipi looked at him solemnly and said, "Not only you, but we all have this kind of feeling. Senior Sixth Brother has even tried it several times."


    Ning Que opened his mouth slightly, looking at the fatd¡¯s face, and then hesitated before saying, "... I don¡¯t know what to say."


    Chen Pipi shook his head and said, "I¡¯m not so stupid to trick you into hitting Second Brother¡¯s cap. In fact, after seeing your performance today, I firmly believe that you¡¯re more likely to use some sinister ways to trick me into doing this great thing in the future."


    Ning Queughed and suddenly said, "I think it¡¯s quite good for Second Brother to be proud. At least he acts like a person."


    "I won¡¯t use what you just said against you."


    Chen Pipi¡¯s face showed that he obviously did not mean what he said. He patted Ning Que¡¯s shoulder sympathetically and said, "In fact, we all agree on this point, especially after Second Brother raised a goose two years ago."


    Ning Que surprisedly asked, "A goose?"


    Chen Pipi said with a smile, "We always thought that the reason why Second Brother raised the animal was that the goose is very proud and he finally found his own kind. In that case, he certainly should raise it well."


    Ning Que was startled and repeatedly shook his head with a smile. "That¡¯s so harsh and so vicious."


    Chen Pipiughed. "You don¡¯t buy it? You¡¯ll know why we say so after seeing the gooseter."


    They came to a gentle slope where wildflowers bloomed in the green meadow. The two chose a clean ce to sit down among the flowers. At the bottom of the slope was a gently flowing stream that seemed toe from the cliff¡¯s waterfall and might form a new fall after outflowing from the cliff square. But no one knew where it led to.


    The spring breeze mixed with warm sunlight, gently blowing on the faces of two young people. Theyy on the meadow among the wildflowers, with their hands behind their heads, and looked at the beautiful scenery feeling extremelyfortable.


    Ning Que looked at the stream under the slope and said, "In the Academy... I mean, below where we are, I asionally looked up at the mountain, but never saw a waterfall. And I never expected it to be so beautiful inside the foggy mountain."


    Chen Pipi squinted, looking at those ck spots at high altitude. He smiled and said, "This mountain is sorge that I haven¡¯t traveled all of it. Fourth Brother has said that the mountain¡¯s side facing Chang¡¯an City is a cliff. So the waterfall you mentioned most likely falls from there. I have gone to nce at it secretly. At the bottom of the cliff are all clouds and no one knows what is below it."


    "If it¡¯s convenient for youter, show me around."


    "Okay."


    Ning Que had excellent vision, so he could see the swimming fish fighting for food in the stream. He thought about those Senior Brothers and Sisters he met in the Back Mountain today and asked curiously, "Senior Brothers and Sisters... what state they are in?"


    "Second Brother has been in the Knowing Destiny State for years. But I don¡¯t know whether he is in the Upper State or the Middle State or whether or not he has seen that door. And then from Third Sister to Eleventh Brother, they are in the Seethrough State, maybe the Upper State, Middle State, or Lower State."


    The answer was somewhat beyond Ning Que¡¯s expectations. He looked at Chen Pipi in surprise and said, "You are in the Knowing Destiny State. How can Senior Brothers and Sisters still be in the Seethrough State?"


    Chen Pipi nced at him and said with sarcasm, "Firste, first learn. But there¡¯s no order for entering the state. Though I¡¯m thest to enter the Second Floor, it¡¯s not a remarkable thing for me to first be in the Knowing Destiny State. The so-called state is just some fighting means. In the Back Mountain, no one really cares about it. If we really fight with each other, none of them can beat me, from Third Sister to Eleventh Brother.


    "Don¡¯t you forget that I¡¯m an unprecedented cultivation genius."


    "How did Senior Brothers and Sisters enter the Academy?"


    "Of course, it was the Headmaster of the Academy who epted them."


    Chen Pipi did not notice that he actually began to talk nonsense after being affected a lot by Second Brother all these years.


    Ning Que said reluctantly, "I¡¯m serious."


    "Was my answer not serious?"


    Chen Pipi looked at him confusedly and said, "Who can draw straighter lines than Fourth Brother? Who can embroider better and be more subtle in the disposition of troops than Seventh Sister? Who can y zither and vertical bamboo flute better than Ninth Brother and Tenth Brother? Is there a better cksmith than Sixth Brother? As for those two crazy men ying chess, you can¡¯t find a third person who can beat them on the chessboard.


    "Our Senior Brothers and Sisters are all the top figures of different aspects in the world. They may not be able to beat others, but we can not catch up with them in other aspects."


    Ning Que seriously said, "I don¡¯t think so. I am rather confident with calligraphy."


    Chen Pipi chuckled.


    Ning Que alsoughed and suddenly thought of one thing, so he asked confusedly, "Since Senior Brothers and Sisters were already the world¡¯s top figures of different aspects before entering the mountain, why did the Headmaster call them into the Academy? Since they are invincible, they¡¯re still invincible if they cultivated further. Who can make them go further in their fields?"


    Chen Pipi looked at him and said seriously, "I¡¯ve said no one can beat them in their own field. In fact, there is a premise for my words. We must rule out the existence of one person."


    "Who?"


    "Eldest Brother."


    Ning Que kept silent for a long time before he gradually digested the shock. He stared into Chen Pipi¡¯s eyes and said, "You mean... Eldest Brother knows everything and is the strongest man in any field?"


    Chen Pipi said with a long sigh, "I only know that in the Back Mountain of the Academy, Eldest Brother is responsible for teaching and answering the questions."


    Ning Que was startled speechless and murmured after a long time, "Is there such an all-round man in the world?"


    Chen Pipi looked up at the flying birds in the blue sky and said with a smile, "Do you feel very frustrated? You are very proud, so am I. Second Brother is even prouder. But even he doesn¡¯t have any qualification to be proud of in front of Eldest Brother. The most interesting thing is that if you see Eldest Brother, you will find that he does not even know what pride is."


    Ning Que looked at the sky with hopelessness and said after a long silence, "In the world besides... a real man who was born all-knowing."


    Chen Pipi did not notice the pause between the words and said, "In the world, there¡¯s no one born all-knowing."


    Ning Que ridiculed, "If not born knowing, who can teach a person like Eldest Brother?"


    Chen Pipi replied with a jibe, "Idiot, Eldest Brother is the Headmaster¡¯s student. Of course, he was taught by the Headmaster."


    Ning Que became silent and suddenly thought that Eldest Brother¡¯s teacher was also his own teacher. Not until then did he understand that he had be a student of the legendary Headmaster of the Academy. He could not help feeling excited and agitated.


    Ning Que suddenly turned his head and looked at the big fat round face in front of him. He said, "I have a problem."


    Chen Pipi responded in bewilderment, "What problem?"


    Ning Que said seriously, "I entered the Second Floor of the Academy for cultivation and learning, not to enjoy the scenery. You showed me around the mountain today. But no one seemed to tell me what I should learn or how to learn."


    "First of all, you are now in the No Doubts State and can manipte a pitiful amount of Qi of Heaven and Earth. So there are many things you simply can¡¯t learn. Secondly, the Back Mountain learning is basically self-taught ording to the direction the teacher gives us. It all depends on our own perception and learning. If you have any problems, you may consult Eldest Brother. Now that the teacher and Eldest Brother have yet to return, you can only learn by yourself."


    "Eldest Brother... what¡¯s his state now?"


    "No one knows, except the Headmaster of the Academy. I even suspect that Eldest Brother doesn¡¯t know either."


    "Not again."


    "What I¡¯m talking about is true... because we always feel that Eldest Brother never cares about the state."


    "I suddenly thought of a problem. If Eldest Brother is really omnipotent in all fields, then why don¡¯t Fifth Brother and Eighth Brother ask him to y chess? In my mind, ying chess is the most likely to cause a violent atmosphere. No one cares whether the opposition is Senior Brother or not."


    Chen Pipi suddenlyughed as he remembered something. He could not help but shake his head and sigh. "That is because Eldest Brother has two most wonderful traits. Because of these two qualities, no one will ask him to y chess or do other things."


    "What qualities?" Ning Que asked curiously.


    "Eldest Brother takes everything seriously, very serious. So he moves slowly, very slow."


    "How slow?"


    "You cannot imagine it."


    ...


    ...


    "Even if I have to wait for the Headmaster of the Academy to return, I should do something on the Back Mountain."


    "You¡¯ll have a lot to do in the future."


    Ning Que suddenly felt that something was wrong and asked with hesitation, "For example?"


    Chen Pipi looked at him sympathetically and said, "A lot, for example."


    At this very moment, Ning Que finally recalled that Chen Pipi had looked at him with pity from time to time when he met the Senior Brothers and Sisters in the Academy today. He vaguely guessed something and asked in a low voice,


    "Now that I am the youngest Brother. Do you think you have ushered in a new joyful stage in your life?"


    Chen Pipi smiled at him and said, "Yes, I no longer listen to those elegant songs every day, or am forced to draw lines on the sand table by Fourth Brother, or am forced to step on the treadmill by Sixth Brother or am forced to insert a g inside the fog and draw lines by Seventh Sister, or am forced to discuss those confusing things by Sixth Brother, or am forced to count a lot of numbers forced by Second Brother, or am the first one to be hit on the palm."


    Ning Que said thoughtfully, "Because I am the youngest now."


    Chen Pipi patted Ning Que¡¯s chest and said gratefully, "Thanks to younger Brother, in the Academy."


    Ning Que smiled and opened his hands. He put his hands behind his head and looked at the sky, thinking that he must cherish the leisure time today, and started to ignore Chen Pipi.


    "I know you¡¯re an ambitious person with amazing ideas."


    Chen Pipi suddenly looked at the sky and said, "You are concerned about the states of Senior Brothers and Sisters, for you want to go beyond them. In fact, I don¡¯t agree with your lifestyle, for it¡¯s too tiring."


    Ning Que did not look back at him but stared at the birds flying lower and lower in the sky. He looked at the soft white bellies under their ck wings and murmured, "Living is a tiring thing."


    "I don¡¯t know what happened to you when you were young. But I think sometimes you should broaden your mind."


    "You mean that I am a very short-sighted person? Did I give the crab porridge to a pig?"


    "You know that I do not mean it in that way. I mean, you do not need to guard against Senior Brothers and Sisters. They are all good people."


    Ning Que said after a moment¡¯s silence, "I met a good man when I was four and I found that the good man wanted to eat me. Of course, I don¡¯t think Senior Brothers and Sisters would be such people. But I just met them and will of course feel defensive. You don¡¯t need to worry that I will turn out to be a psychopath. If I was going to be a pervert, I would have be one when I was a child."


    Chen Pipi turned to look at the side of his face and said, "At least here you really don¡¯t need to be too vignt. You can rx and enjoy yourself. The Back Mountain of the Academy is a good ce and you should cherish it."


    "Got it. I will cherish it."


    Ning Que seriously said, "Do you feel bored after staying on the mountain for so many years?"


    "Of course it still happens sometimes, otherwise how would I have met you?"


    Ning Que retracted his gaze and watched Chen Pipi. He asked curiously, "When will you return to West-Hill?"


    Chen Pipi might have recalled some bad memories when he heard that and looked embarrassed.


    Ning Que stared at his eyes and asked enticingly, "Is it something to do with women?"


    Chen Pipi swallowed with difficulty and said with a dumbfounded voice, "It has nothing to do with you."


    Ning Queughed and hit him on the shoulder. Ning Que asked, "What kind of woman do you like?"


    Mature men always talked about money and sexuality on the matter of women. Only young men discussed women with innocence. However, no matter if young or old, women were always the object that triggered a conversation.


    Upon hearing this, Chen Pipi suddenly became interested and said, "Do you remember the words I wrote in my first letter?"


    Ning Que nodded his head.


    "Forget those things, for I was just cursing."


    Chen Pipi said with a smile, "The girl I like must have ck and beautiful long hair, with a slim body and clean facial features. Of course, she must be pretty. It would be better if she can have little red cheeks."


    Ning Que surprisedly asked, "That¡¯s all?"


    After a moment, Chen Pipi added seriously, "As long as she¡¯s strong and independent, I¡¯m even fine with a fierce one. No woman can beat a cultivation genius like me. Besides she... must be a good person."


    Ning Que always thought that the words seemed to hide some pain of many years. But Chen Pipi was only a young boy in his teen years when he escaped from West-Hill to the Academy. How did he end up in a bad rtionship? Ning Que could not help feeling a little confused.


    At that moment, Chen Pipi¡¯s eyes suddenly lit up. He pointed at the creek under the slope and said, "Look, that is Second Brother¡¯s goose."


    A plump white goose shook its big ass as it walked to the creek with a small bamboo basket in its mouth. No one knew what was in the basket. And the goose put its thick hard beak into the bamboo basket, and then extended it into the calmly flowing stream.


    The disturbing voice in the stream attracted countless fish and they gathered in front of the great white goose. They pecked from time to time, but in a very orderly sequence. After finishing the food, they retreated quickly to make way for the fish behind.


    The white goose looked up from the water and proudly raised his neck against the sky to cry twice. Once again, it took the things in the bamboo basket into the stream and repeated the action with patience.


    Ning Que was shocked speechless by the scene in the river... This white goose was actually feeding the fish!


    "The goose Second Brother raiseses here every day to feed the fish, as if it is proud to think this is the most important task in its own life. It¡¯s same with Second Brother, who takes pride in lecturing us every day as if it was the most important task in his life,"


    Chen Pipi stood beside him and said with a smile.


    Ning Que was shocked and speechless. He thought that the Back Mountain of the Academy was really the most awesome ce in the world.


    ...


    ...


    Across Min Mountain to the north, there was a naturally formed mountain pass on the far northern teau that was even more deste than the Wilderness. On the teau of the southern pass, a team of thousands of women, children, the aged, and the infirm were struggling to walk on. The nights of this year were much longer than in previous years. As the temperature dipped, the Great Northern Wilderness tribe, known for its cold resistance, could no longer bear the harsher and harsher environment and was forced to leave the hometown where they had lived for more than a thousand years. Stepping on the mixture of snow and mud, they began to migrate southward.


    The Great Northern Wilderness tribe,posed of hundreds of thousands of people, had been away from the Central ins for such a long time that many of them had forgotten there still existed this region of the south in the world and that they had been long forgotten by that prosperous and affluent world.


    As the darknesssted longer and the temperature got lower, besides those poor tribal people, the animals and beasts originally living in colder climates were first to sumb to the harsh living conditions where they lived.


    Listening to the loud crying from the distant northern pass, a respected elderly man in the migrating tribe, with wrinkles filled with sadness and helplessness, looked solemn. The eyes of the women wearing fur were filled with despair. They had been hunting for their livelihood, and could clearly tell from the roar the scale of this group of herds invading southward from the Arctic region. If these cruel beasts caught up with the tribe, then the tribe would meet their end.


    There was a mess at the mountain pass, full of smudges in the snowynd.


    A girl stood in the snowynd with rotten fur wrapped around her body tightly. She wore a pair of dark boots on her feet, with her long ck hair braided under the fur cap hanging behind and gently swinging near her knees. The beast tail did not cover her fresh and lovely brows and eyes. But her small face was flushed by the cold wind. She was not more than 15 years old.


    Listening to the cries of wild beasts, she tightly held the hilt with both hands, staring at the ck line far away at the snow teau. Her body trembled slightly due to the tension and her young eyes became brighter and brighter.


    The hoof beats became gradually clearer. The deep eyes of snow wolves appeared in the Wilderness like stars. The atmosphere was depressing and terrible. The girl looked over there nervously and suddenly shouted with a childish tone, "Tang Xiaotang, you¡¯ll be the strongest woman in the world! Of course you won¡¯t die so soon!"


    As soon as she finished the sentence, she forcefully pulled a knife out of the snowynd.


    The knife was red with a big curve. It was longer and wider than herpact body. Held on her shoulder, it looked like a bloody crooked moon.


    She held the giant red-moon knife and shouted like a madwoman. Then she rushed at the Snowfield Direwolves spread all over the teau.

 Chapter 169: A Red Moon and Snowfield Direwolves

    Chapter 169: A Red Moon and Snowfield Direwolves


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Heading toward the south, the Snowfield Direwolves fought against beasts and resisted the hunger and cold. Their fur became a mess because of blood and dirty water, and their bodies were so dirty that their snowy white fur could no longer be seen. Having been starving for a long time, their bodies became bony and their shoulder des protruded up high, and their giant mouths had the stench of flowing saliva from time to time.


    However, no matter how weak they were, the Snowfield Direwolf group was still the king in this frigid world. Hundreds of giant wolves with huge bodies, which looked like a small mountain, orderly stood in a row on the Wilderness like insurmountable mountains.


    They stepped toward the narrow mountain entrance silently, staring at the small girl rushing toward them like staring at fresh meat in motion. A few young male wolves at the back were somewhat disordered. Their breath became more and more intense while their eyes became more and more greedy. Yet they did not dare to act frivolously.


    Then a deep roar resounded within the wolf group. A strong Snowfield Direwolf jumped out, lowered its head with its mouth wide open, then, like a mountain, it pounced upon the little girl.


    Even standing with four legs, a Snowfield Direwolf¡¯s height was still so much taller than the height of two girlsbined. The contrast between the giant wolf body and her small body produced a desperate feeling, which was exasperated by its thunder-like running sound.


    The jumping ability of Snowfield Direwolves was extraordinary. They rushed clumsily but their speed was very fast. The wolf rushed out several dozen feet in the blink of an eye and came in front of the girl. The strong hind legs of the Snowfield Direwolf suddenly kicked the ground, sinking its back and using its whole strength, to attack the girl with its front paws as fast as lightning!


    A big shadow enveloped the ground. Almost at the same time, the two furry paws with a stinking smell tore the cold air, covering the immature face of Tang Xiaotang. However, her eyes had no sense of fear. She slightly bent her legs and jumped into the air in a strange way, swiftly avoiding the attack and bouncing up 10 meters high!


    From hermanding position in the air, she overlooked the giant Snowfield Direwolf. Tightly holding up her huge machete, she used all her strength to hack at it, like a red moon in the sky that had broken through the chill, and she precisely chopped the wolf¡¯s head. "Crack!"


    The eyes of the giant Snowfield Direwolf seemed bigger than a human¡¯s head. But with a wound appearing on the wolf¡¯s neck, its eyes changed from indifferent into vast and desperate.


    Tang Xiaotang fell down on the wastnd, with her dark boots heavily stepping on the ground and cracking a few pieces of frozen ice. Then, she dragged her heavy machete, which was super huge, and quickly walked out of the shadow.


    The giant body of the wolf fell down like a mountain copsing, making a booming sound, and naturally failed to hit Tang Xiaotang. Staring at a certain location in the wolf group, her fresh and lovely little face shed a hint of determination. Dragging her huge machete, she suddenly sped up toward the rolling hills of the wolf group, andunched a sprint to attack them once again.


    An overbearing roar resounded at the back of the Snowfield Direwolf group, through which an irritability and anger could be sensed after their dignity had just been vited. After this roar, the entire wolf group started to howl, making the frozen ground slightly tremble. Hundreds of Snowfield Direwolves quickly spread out and began to surround the girl to kill her.


    The huge, heavy red machete was dragged on the ck ground of the Wilderness, producing a harsh screeching noise. Sparks could be seen due to friction from time to time. Yet, Tang Xiaotang just bit her teeth and lowered her head to rush forward, showing no care of her machete. Only when a giant wolf pounced in front of her would she lift her machete to hack at it.


    Lifting her machete with difficulty, she hacked at the wolves slowly, like a red moon casually moving through the night. However, even those Snowfield Direwolves with a fast speed could not escape the slow chops. Falling down on the ground with an angry howl, the wolves blood spurted everywhere.


    In just a few minutes, three Snowfield Direwolves had died under the red machete.


    Another two wolves pounced upon her, howling and bringing a wind with a rank smell. The wind beat the fur around Tang Xiaotang¡¯s neck. She bent her legs again and bounced into the air. However, the Snowfield Direwolves were so good at hunting and killing that they already knew her next move. So a giant one sessfully made a sneak attack and knocked her through the air!


    And at the ce where she would fall down, there were already three giant Snowfield Direwoves waiting for her. Roaring and jumping, the wolves showed their paws, which were as sharp as knives, to tear up the small body.


    A child-like angry voice sounded in the Wilderness. Tang Xiaotang forcefully reversed her body in midair. She used her red machete to cut as fast as lightning, producing a strong power. Atst, she narrowly prevented the attack and avoided those six horrible scratching paws, and almost hit a Snowfield Direwolf¡¯s head.


    She grasped the fur of a wolf and wrung it. Her machete drew a strange arc in the air, then directly stuck into the wolf¡¯s eyes. It made a miserable cry. Then, she jumped off of it andnded on the ground. Breathing heavily, she dragged her machete again andunched another attack toward the center of the group.


    Her face showed no feelings, and her bright eyes had no fear and no excitement, just determination. It seemed that nothing¡ªdanger, difficulty, or a horrible death¡ªcould stop her.


    ...


    ...


    The battle between the girl and the Snowfield Direwolf group still continued. At least seven Snowfield Direwolves died under her charming red machete. But some blood oozed from her mouth. No one knew when she had gotten injured.


    That red machete looked particr heavy. When walking forward, she could only drag it and struggled to move on. It seemed that she could never lift her machete up again.


    Every time that she feebly took back the red machete, it always seemed like that would be thest of her strength to hold up her machete. Yet, the fact was that she was able to raise her heavy knife again.


    And every time that she used that red machete to slowly chop in the frigid sky, it always seemed that she did not have any further strength to make another chop, and this would certainly be thest time. Yet, the fact was that she was certainly able to wield the heavy knife again.


    Compared to her small body, the giant bodies of the Snowfield Direwolves were like small mountains. Tang Xiaotang tightly held that huge red machete, which was like a red moon.


    She neither sumbed to the giant wolves nor slowed down her pace for holding the heavy red machete. When the Snowfield Direwoves pounced at her, that red machete slowly but precisely hacked at them, leaving the bodies of dead wolves behind, piling up like a small mountain.


    The battle between the girl and wolf group was silent but cruel, dull but furious. There was no shouting and no rest or break, only hitting against each other over and over again.


    If people living in the prosperous south could have a chance to personally witness a battle like this, to see a cute girl wearing tattered fur fighting against a wolf group, then they would understand what a real battle was and know what fearlessness was.


    ...


    ...


    The fighting wisdom of a Snowfield Direwolf absolutely could not be underestimated. Snowfield Direwolves were kings from extremely cold northern areas. Although this time they fought in a foreignnd and their power was affected due to the hunger and cold, they still could not be defeated by average people.


    The injuries on Tang Xiaotang were getting worse and worse, and her footsteps became heavier and heavier as well as the red machete that was held by her tiny hands. Although the wolf group still could not drive her to desperation, she could not get into the center of the wolf group either.


    A deep roar resounded in the wolf group for the second time. But this time, this sound was particrly serious, no longer angry, but with some taste of appreciation.


    However, an rming sight appeared to Tang Xiaotang¡¯s eyes after hearing the sound. Already guessing what the wolves would do, she hacked at them and tried to return to the mountain entrance. Unfortunately, several strong young wolves blocked her way.


    The Snowfield Direwolves started to distribute their force. They respected Tang Xiaotang, but would not to give up these tribespeople, who were walking slowly toward the south entrance, for in all probability, these tribespeople were thest food that they would have this month.


    So 10 strong Snowfield Direwolves surrounded Tang Xiaotang. Their mouths were slobbering and their fur was upright. They trapped her at the same ce in a desperate way.


    More and more Snowfield Direwolves walked by behind them and headed toward the direction of the mountain entrance. None of them looked back at theirpanions, even though they knew that most of those 10 would die under the girl¡¯s knife.


    When these 10 Snowfield Direwolves received the order, they felt desperate at first. And then their despair changed into cruelty. They stared at the girl that was surrounded, then extended their sharp paws, which were shining like steel.


    Tang Xiaotang looked back toward the south, with her ck hair floating in the wind, while some hair under her leather hat was touching her bloody lips. Seeing the wolves walking toward the mountain entrance, she thought of the women, children, and the elderly in the tribe, then her bright eyes became dim.


    Then, all of a sudden... a weird thing happened at the mountain entrance.


    The strong Snowfield Direwolf in front of the group was thrown into the air by a powerful horrifying force. Bing a shrinking shadow and crying intively in the air, it was like a poor wild dog.


    Then came the second one, and the third one.


    A bare-handed man appeared at the entrance. He casually wore fur-like clothes, exposing many parts of his body. His muscles were as strong as rocks and steel. It seemed that he was not afraid of the cold at all.


    Directly ignoring the angry wolves who were roaring in front of him, he stared at the back of the wolf group and said, "Withdraw, or die."

 Chapter 170: Brother and Sister

    Chapter 170: Brother and Sister


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    He said it coldly, calmly, yet powerfully. However, maybe the wolves didn¡¯t understand what he said or maybe the hunger was always more horrible than fear, they never stopped, roaring and rushing toward the mountain pass once again. Dozens of giant wolves made a charge. Their anger and steps shook the Wilderness and shattered the thin ice on the ground, their power was ghastly.


    A leg harder than steel kicked out, smashing the first one¡¯s nail, then the second one¡¯s shoulder. A great power through his paws and fur hit him. That wolf howled in pain and rolled away, leaving a deep trace. He didn¡¯t stop until hit on the other two wolves and had no more strength to stand up.


    The man slowly took back his leg and nkly looked at the direwolves getting closer and closer. Yet all of a sudden, several strong clusters of fire burst from his naked ankles. A gale blew without any signs. And the man bended his legs without anyone¡¯s notice, then he bounced up, like a rock shocked into the air more than ten feet by a strong power, fell down in a high speed, and then fiercely hit a wolf on the ground.


    Bang! There came a loud sound. Gravel and ck mud sshed high as if an explosion had taken ce.


    But the man didn¡¯t stop. He bounced up again, this time, not into the air but toward the direwolf group in a high running speed. He rushed into the direwolf group like a lightning. If he had a chance to wave his fists to hit wolves, he did it, and if not, he would use his body to knock them off. As for the sharp ws, he didn¡¯t avoid them or even payed a look, as if he was extremely confident with his steel body.


    Yet the weight of Snowfield Direwolves was so much heavier than his, even though he hit as a rock and sessfully defeated the array of direwolf and dyed their speed, he would also be hit by wolves and dropped on the ground every time, getting more scratches on his robe which was blooming like a flower.


    Everytime falling on the ground, he stood up with an indifferent attitude, and thenunched another attack. Although his furred robe had been torn into pieces, hanging at the waist, he had no emotion on his face. Those sharp ws left several scratches on his skin, yet they were inessible to his internal organs, not to mention that few slight scratches meant nothing to him.


    Comparing with direwolves, the man¡¯s body was much smaller, yet his power was greater. When fighting against an iron man who could not be beaten by scratching nor biting, those brutal and powerful kings from frigid areas could do nothing. Shortly after the battle started, the direwolf group was repelled back a long way, leaving arge space, due to the man¡¯s attacks which were as hard as stones and as dense as raindrops.


    A muffled roar sounded and issued an order.


    The Snowfield Direwolves gasped, standing a semicircle along the mountain pass. They stopped fighting for a while. Staring at the half-naked man, their ordinary indifferent eyes finally revealed fear.


    No one knew when the ten strong direwolves stopped attacking Tang Xiaotang. Their blood dripped off their white long fur, and they seemed particrly miserable. They stared at that Red Scythe in the little girl¡¯s hand and growled low in throat from time to time. However, nobody dared to defy the leader¡¯s order, so they got out of the way unwillingly, baring their fangs.


    Tang Xiaotang gasped to the mountain pass, dragging her heavy knife. During this time, she took off her fur scarf, used it to wipe the blood flowing from her mouth and nose, and then casually squeezed it into her belt.


    Walking to the half-naked man¡¯s side, she stopped and then turned around to stood side by side with him.


    They stood side by side, facing those hundreds of Snowfield Direwolves who were almost hopeless for being cold and starving.


    ...


    ...


    There was a slight uproar behind the direwolf group. The direwolves separated to make way for a direwolf. Just then a more giant direwolf slowly came up. This direwolf had smooth, supple and snow-white fur, and her body was muchrger as if a beautiful and noble snow mountain. However, what was strange was that this super giant direwolf was peaceful and gentle and also walked carefully as if she was afraid to step on something by ident.


    Tang Xiaotang was so astonished and said, "Wow, how can the wolf leader be so beautiful?"


    Yet the man corrected her, "This is a female one. She is not the leader, but the wife of the leader."


    Hearing this, Tang Xiaotang felt a little shock. When she carefully looked at the female direwolf, she saw an extraordinary strange scene which made her body a little stiff.


    Because in front of the beautiful giant female one, there was a small body walking slowly. All the Snowfield Direwolves who saw this tiny body would lower their arrogant heads and reach out their legs to show their absolute respect and obedience. A few young and strong giant direwolves even whimpered due to fear.


    That tiny body was also a direwolf.


    This direwolf was actually very strong and in half a person¡¯s height, besides he walked not that slowly. But walking among these Snowfield Direwolves who were as giant as mountains, this direwolf surely seemed small and walk very slowly.


    This was an ordinary direwolf.


    But he had a beautiful wife with snow-white fur and he could order these fierce Snowfield Direwolves.


    So the more ordinary he looked, the greater power he had.


    ...


    ...


    This wolf leader was actually an ordinary male one. Even the most knowledgeable hunters in the north Wilderness tribe had never seen a creepy scene like this, however, this scene was real.


    This ordinary male wolf came up and slowly look up to stare at these two human beings who were standing at the mountain pass. A hint of irritation and alert shed through his eyes, through which some wisdom could be sensed.


    After a moment of silence, the leader direwolf reached out his left paw and gently patted the hard ground for two times, and then he made a sharp but not aggressive howl.


    The man in furred robe took a step forward. He stared at the eyes of the leader who was ten feet away from him, and then slowly shook his head.


    The ordinary male wolf continued to reach out his right paw, stretching two paws forward, and slowly bowed his entire body. On the wrist of his body, the gray fur were standing on end and as hard as needles. And then the gray fur moved toward his neck with his deep breath, like hair on a lion¡¯s neck. The next time, a horrible roar resounded in the sky!


    "Aoao...Aoao!"


    The howling echoed in the quiet Wilderness, causing a fierce wind. Some ices covering the grass and mud were shattered into the air by the thundering roar. The wind with dangerous power blew toward the mountain pass!


    Hearing this roar, direwolves behind the ordinary male one were so afraid that they lowered their body and trembled with fear. It seemed that they even wanted to burry their body under the ground.


    Yet thergest and beautiful female wolf was the only one that was not affected by this roar. She stood behind the ordinary male one, covering him with her giant body, and kept a wary eye on the direwolf group and the mountain pass. It seemed that if anyone tried to attack her husband, she would tear them into pieces.


    Here came the howling and gale. Tang Xiaotang¡¯s left leg took a step back, deeply stepping into the mud. She held her heavy Red Scythe to ward off the gale power, and her small body couldn¡¯t stop quivering due to the gale, as if she would be blown off at any time and swallowed by the gale. From time to time small pieces of ice and branches shot at the knife like arrows, making out cracking sound.


    The gale force was too strong. Even though there were only ices, branches and mud, it still had terrible power. Tang Xiaotang slightly bent arms, lowered head and gritted her teeth, which seemed verybored.


    However, the man in furred robe was not affected at all. Just like the earlier time, he didn¡¯t hide or elude and was stern and forbidding. He stood in front of Tang Xiaotang, blocking most of the force. Those hard mud, branches and invisible power pped on his body, creating an ufortable metal friction sound and even sshing numerous white air turbulence!


    All of a sudden, the man took a deep breath, and then his face became red like fire. He stepped further, used his right hand to draw an arc in the air, lowered his body, and then jumped out and punched toward the ordinary male direwolf who was more than ten feet far away from him!


    Boom! A st caused by the fast power broke the gale and fiercely hit the head of the leader!


    The ordinary male wolf tilted his head to one side due to this hit. And then some blood flowed from his mouth with sharp fangs. He seemed not to be severely injured, yet the howling was forced to stop.


    The man took another step, ripped off those shabby fur hanging on the waist and shouted a wild roar at the direwolves who were not far from him-- Ao!


    His roar had no power but filled with an intrepid taste, as if to let the wolves know that the Wilderness was a ce being guarded by him and they had no chance to step forward!


    ...


    ...


    Silently staring at the powerful man for a long time, the ordinary male direwolf made a deep roar. Hearing this roar, the direwolves behind him unwillingly retreated to a further distance, and the female direwolf who had been protecting him retreated to the back of the group.


    Tang Xiaotang stood there dumbfounded and saw the retreating direwolf group. She wiped the blood without realization, and curiously asked, "Why they retreated? I don¡¯t understand why these giant direwolves would obey the ordinary one¡¯s order."


    "The reason is quite simple." Answered the man in furred robe, "because he is the most powerful one."


    The Snowfield Direwolves retreated more than ten feet, keeping a disciplined manner. However, that ordinary male direwolf didn¡¯t leave. He squatted not far from the mountain pass, silently staring at Tang Xiaotang and the man.


    "What is he going to do?" Asked Tang Xiaotang


    The man in furred robe didn¡¯t reply. He just silently looked over there, as if waiting for something.


    At this right time, that beautiful female direwolf who was as big as a snow mountain came over from behind and stopped at the side of the leader one. She gentlely lowered her head and loosed her mouth to put a little ball of fur on the ground.


    That little thing had snow-white fur, looking like a snowball which could move asionally. The female direwolf used her big mouth to softly touch that snowball, and her eyes were full of attachment and unwillingness.


    The ordinary male direwolf nced at the female one, being irritable and fidgety. Looking at the sorrow in his wife¡¯s eyes, he didn¡¯t do anything but gently rubbed her head to show hisfort.


    Seeing this, Tang Xiaotang figured out what the leader direwolf going to do. She was astonished and couldn¡¯t help covering her mouth with hands and her eyes were full of shock. And then she raised her head to look at the man standing right beside her.


    It seemed that the man in furred robe had never expected that. After a moment of silence, he resolutely turned away and walked toward the mountain pass without looking back.


    Looking at his back, the ordinary male direwolf made a sad and shrill cry.


    Suddenly, a shadow covered his body. He looked up and found that the little girl hade in front of him. Judging from her expression and actions, it seemed that the girl hadpletely forgotten to stay alert to his attack.


    Tang Xiaotang carried the baby direwolf in her hands like a treasure, without thinking that if this male direwolf got angry, she would be in danger. Looking at the male direwolf with her bright eyes, she said, "Don¡¯t worry. He won¡¯t against me, so your baby better be brought up by me."


    Staring at the baby in Tang Xiaotang¡¯s arm, the ordinary male direwolf kept silent for a while and then turned away and left.


    That female direwolf dragged her eyes away from her baby.


    Tang Xiaotang raised her head and said, "I will take good care of him, I promise."


    ...


    ...


    That overbearing yetmanding voice sounded again. And then hundreds of Snowfield Direwolves walked toward the broad Wilderness in the west. Tang Xiaotang vaguely saw that on the back of the tallest female direwolf that tiny ordinary male one was sitting there.


    Seeing them gradually walking far away, and ncing at the few dead direwolves body left behind at the mountain entrance, Tang Xiaotang suddenly asked, "Can they find another new coniferous forest before darkpletely fall? "


    The man in furred robe nced at the sleepy white wolf cub in her arms and replied, "They are direwolves, and we are humans. Snow deer nibbled the bark of the coniferous forests for living and direwolves eat meat of snow deer for living, yet we humans can eat both tree barks and vension, if necessary, we can even kill direwolves. "


    "There is no love in the Wilderness. I don¡¯t care about the others, and you shouldn¡¯t care about the others, either."


    Tang Xiaotang directly ignored him and held that direwolf cub more tightly in her arms, then replied, "He doesn¡¯t need you to feed him, anyway."


    Those scratches on the man¡¯s body which were left in the previous battle, at this time, had already be a touch of white lines, and those earlier white lines had disappeared without a trace. No scratches could be found at the man¡¯s iron body not all. No ones knew what kind of martial arts he had and why his recovery ability was so great.


    The wind began to blow and the snow started. Nightfall wasing. The direwolf group had gone far. The man and the little girl left the natural mountain pass and walked toward the south of the Wilderness. Their pace became faster and faster.


    Sporadic tribes from north Wilderness were moving southward. Strong men in those tribes set off earlier to fight against barbarians in grasnd, leaving the old, the woman and children at home who still had a long trip to reach their destination.


    Holding the direwolf cub, Tang Xiaotang followed the man and asked questions about that strange southern world from time to time.


    "Do we really need to go south? I think life in the Wilderness is very good."


    "Tang, what does that world look like? You are always unwilling to tell me."


    "Tang, have you ever been to Tang Kingdom?"


    "Tang, since Tang Kingdom has deported us to the north Wilderness and it has been our hereditary enemy, but then why your surname is Tang? "


    "Is it to remind us not to forget the hereditary hatred?"


    "But that is really meaningless."


    "I¡¯m really not used to living in strange ces, but I heard that there are cities in the south and I am wondering what a city looks like."


    The man called Tang didn¡¯t say a word until he heard this sentence. He stopped, stood in the Wilderness where was blowing and snowing, and then turned around. He looked at that little girl who was teasing the direwolf cub, and then he realised that she had been living at the Wilderness since she was born, so she never had a chance to see what a city looked like.


    "Cities... are very big and have lots of building. They are lively and prosperous."


    The man in furred robe recalled cities seen in Central ins when he was a child and exined to her awkwardly.


    Tang Xiaotang curiously looked up and asked, "What is a building?"


    The man answered after a moment of silence, "Something likes tents."


    Tang Xiaotang burst augh, which made her very cute, and said in an immature voice, "I see, a city is a giant tent."


    The man in furred robe suddenly had a heavy heart. Watching this little girl, he had an endless mercy and pity for her, and then he said in a heavy voice, "The life in the Wilderness is too hard. You should not have life like this."


    Tang Xiaotang replied, "Which life is not hard?"


    "I heard a ce which is not bad," The man in furred robe answered after a moment of silence, then he continued to say, "there is a Academy in the south of Chang¡¯an, the capital of Tang Kingdom. "


    Tang Xiaotang raised her arm to stab at the Fu characters on his back. And then she said with a smile, "Didn¡¯t you say that people in south call us left evils of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine?"


    "I will visit the master. We have been separated for almost twenty three years."


    Looking at her eyes, the man continued to say, "Nobody knows where he is. It may take a long time to look for him. I can¡¯t protect you during this period, so I need to find a safe ce for you."


    "Isn¡¯t it safe to live in the tribe?" Asked Tang Xiaotang.


    The man shook his head and said, "Since we are moving to the south, there must be battles with Tribe of Savages in the Central ins, which will definately startle the people in Central ins."


    Thinking that strange world and that Chang¡¯an Academy she had heard about several times, Tang Xiaotang couldn¡¯t help but feeling lost and puzzled.


    Seeing her expression, the man said, "The God is stern and merciless to us, yet we can still live, which means that only we human beings are the strongest and the most powerful creature in the world. There is no need to be worried."


    "I understand." Raising head up, Tang Xiaotang replied, "Whether we can enter the Academy or not, I will live well."


    And then the man said, "Before finding the master, I need to kill a person."


    "Who?"


    "A general of Tang Kingdom called Xia Hou."


    "His surname is Xiahou?"


    "No, his name is Xia Hou."


    "I see, just like you."


    "Yes. Tang is not my surname, it is my name."


    Watching the direwolf cub in her arms, Tang Xiaotang suddenly remembered one thing. So she lifted her cute little face with bright eyes, and asked, "I have a question, the male direwolf¡¯s body was so much smaller than his wife¡¯s, so how could they bore a baby under this situation?"


    The man was shocked for a while, and then he replied after a while, "I am your brother. You should ask your husband this question in the future."


    The wind and snow started again. The Wilderness was cold, yet the conversation between the brother and sister was even colder.


    ...


    ...


    A suburb in south Chang¡¯an city. A stone path behind a mountain of Academy.


    "People¡¯s feelings always present the most regret things in his own heart. So it is understandable for a fat man like you to find a girl who is cut and slender, yet has a tough character."


    ncing at Chen Pipi, Ning Que said in a serious tone, "The problem is, I still think that you should lose weight, otherwise what kind of girl could bear your two or three hundreds pounds weight? It¡¯s a problem if the difference of physical shape is too big after all."


    Showing no interest at Ning Que¡¯s ironies, Chen Pipi reached out to break a branch, waving like a child, then said, "That¡¯s why I added a condition that that girl must have great power."


    "You just want a powerful woman who painstakingly cultivates a strong power just to bear your weight?"


    Looking at him and reluctantly shaking his head, Ning Que said to him, "I guess if there is such a person, then it is you that been rested on and can¡¯t turn over for the rest of your life."


    Chen Pipi arrogantlyughed and said, "How can you find a girl who is more powerful than me? Even though this girl could be found, she must be an old woman living in the depth of a mountain. I am not blind, there is no way I will find an old woman."


    Suddenly Ning Que bursted augh, asking, "Then what about the woman in West-Hill?"


    "It is wrong to p people¡¯s face and talk about their weakness!" Chen Pipi rubbed his bulging cheeks and answered angrily, "If we really fight, how can that crazy woman win? I avoid to fight against her because of her brother, whom I am afraid of and respect."


    Ning Que said sincerely, "I wish you like a girl who has the strictest brother in the world in the future."


    Chen Pipi scoffed at him, "I am an unparalleled cultivation genius, only few people in young generation are more powerful than me: two Senior Brothers, a Senior Brother in West-Hill, a dumb one and a person as a mute whose name is Tang. " "Eldest Brother and Second Brother don¡¯t have sisters. Do you think that I am that stupid to find girls from the left three people?"


    Ning Que sincerely reminded, "Don¡¯t speak in absolute terms, leaving no room forpromise. If that day really happens, it will be useless to cry."


    "Stop making fun of me. I don¡¯t know what kind of woman you are interested in yet, a woman like Sangsang?"


    "Is Sangsang a woman?"


    Ning Que shook his head andughed, "A woman? I would rather to keep a dog."


    Chen Pipi said, "I won¡¯t tell Senior Sister what you said just now."


    Ning Que said seriously, "A bowl of crab porridge."


    Chen Pipi stopped to threaten him and then recalled the topic they just talked, he shook his head and said, "Dog is for eating, not keeping."


    Ning Que thought back a long time ago, as if seeing a snow-white dog in a flower bed. Keeping silent for a long time, he said, shaking his head, "I want to raise a Samoyed in my life, and then call him... Xiaobai. "

 Chapter 171: Should He Feel Awe at Those Peaks?

    Chapter 171: Should He Feel Awe at Those Peaks?


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Memories were mere memories after all, not to mention the memories of another world where people could not go back. Ning Que became absentminded for a short moment before quickly returning to the real world. He remembered the phrase Chen Pipi had previously said and asked, "Who is the mute person?"


    Chen Pipi saw the non-resistance from his eyes and replied after one moment of hesitation, "Buddhism World Wayfarer."


    Ning Que slowly furrowed the brows and thought that the words World Wayfarer sounded really awesome to the extreme. After a slight pause, he continued to ask, "Your Senior Brother of West-Hill must be World Wayfarer of Haotian Taoism. Then who is the dumb one surnamed with Tang?"


    "World Wayfarer of Devil¡¯s Doctrine." Chen Pipi looked at him and seriously said, "He¡¯s a very mysterious guy."


    Ning Que shook his head, thinking of those people who no one in the world knew but secretly stood at the peak. When Ning Que remembered there were only ten acupoints opened up on his own Ocean of Qi and Mountain, he could not help but feel somewhat frustrated andmentedly said, "I¡¯m still in No Doubts State and still can¡¯t learn many things in the Academy. I really don¡¯t know when I canpete with those people."


    "You don¡¯t need to be so inferior. You¡¯re only in twenties, but have been in No Doubts State. In no matter what sect, you¡¯re an excellent disciple."


    "Why don¡¯t I feel this way? I always feel that every cultivator I met is much better than me."


    Chen Pipi looked at him and sympathetically said, "When you entered the Chang¡¯an City, you met Chao Xiaoshu. When you entered the Academy, you met me and a group of abnormal geniuses in the Back Mountain. Longqing is also a genius in the eyes of the world. The more real geniuses you meet, the easier it is for you to think of yourself as a fool. But you must realize that you have entered the path of cultivation for only six months, and you¡¯ve left behind Xie Chengyun from South Jin Kingdom. Thus although your innate qualification is insufficient, you are still a genius inprehending and learning."


    "It seems to be the first time you¡¯ve praised me." Ning Que said.


    Chen Pipi shook his head as he said smilingly, "In fact, I have personally praised you many times, but don¡¯t want you to know it."


    "But my Ocean of Qi and Mountain only opens up ten acupoints. The truth can¡¯t be changed after all."


    Ning Que looked calm in the eyes and did not feel inferior because of the inherent qualification problems. Instead, he was filled with the yearning and exploration desire for the unknown world. He looked at Chen Pipi and asked earnestly, "I¡¯ve heard the practice methods of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Their practice does not seem to require the number of acupoints opened up in the Ocean of Qi and Mountain, but directly putting the heaven and earth inside the body... "


    Chen Pipi did not wait for Ning Que to finish the speech but directly pressed his shoulder to stop him. Chen Pipi said with the seriouest look ever, "What exactly are you trying to say? Do you want to learn from Devil¡¯s Doctrine?"


    "With the quantity of opened acupoints in my Ocean of Qi and Mountain, even if I have a better ability for understanding and harder cultivation, I still can¡¯t catch up with the real geniuses like you by step-by-step cultivation."


    Ning Que looked at him and replied, "You, as well as those World Wayfarers, have been in Knowing Destiny State. In front of you, I am nothing but an ant. In fact, if Prince Long Qing wants to kill me, he just needs to move his little finger and then I¡¯ll no longer resist. I hate this feeling very much, so I want to catch up with you, or even go beyond you."


    "Manpower is sometimes limited, and everyone has his own destiny."


    Chen Pipi seriously looked at him and said, "Cultivation is a gift Haotian has given to humans. There has always been only one road. We always insist on going so that we can know whether to go through or not. If you think it¡¯s too long and want to go a shortcut, it may turn out to be an abyss."


    Ning Que intended to say something.


    Chen Pipi shook the head and showed his usual seriousness and carefulness on the chubby face. He looked at Ning Que and said with a low voice, "What you have said proves you¡¯re just possessed. If you don¡¯t change this wrong idea immediately, you will definitely destroy the bowels and ultimately die from madness. By that time, there will be no more World Wayfarers but only death."


    Ning Que recalled the words of the old man Lyu Qingchen on the tripst year. After a short moment of silence, he said, "I know there are few chances for one Devil cultivator to eventually survive. But... after all, some people can still survive and they¡¯re very powerful. You also said just now that even your Senior Brother of West-Hill has no assurance to win the Devil¡¯s Doctrine sessor surnamed with Tang."


    "The key is not to be sessful, but lies in the right road. Devil¡¯s Doctrine goes against the God¡¯s will to put the world within the body, in an attempt to rece Haotian who is in charge of the world¡¯sws. Besides, in order to make their bodies strong enough to contain Qi of Heaven and Earth, they even tried countless kinds of evil means. Some branches of Devil¡¯s Doctrine even turns to cannibalism. As for those wicked people, their bodies have already been non-human. So they have even more inhuman thinking under the inhuman cultivation!"


    Chen Pipi no longer looked natural as he did on weekdays. He stared at Ning Que¡¯s eyes as he said with a cold voice, "Ning Que, I have to warn you that if I know you go for diabolism, I won¡¯t let you die from madness but destroy you directly."


    Did Devil¡¯s Doctrine live on the human bodies or try to stimte the spirit in this way? If human-eating meant being possessed, then was this world replete with the people cultivating the Devil? Ning Que remembered the numerous pictures he had seen during the drought of the North that year and many memories he was reluctant to recall when walking hard at the foot of Min Mountain. His facial expression became kind of stiff.


    "Devil¡¯s Doctrine sneaked into the Wilderness after being beaten by the righteous party. Now there are very few schools left in the Central ins. I do not think any other school dares to live on human beings. Maybe some schools choose a more normal method to improve the bodies?"


    After a moment¡¯s silence, he said, "If those schools of Devil¡¯s Doctrine use the cultivation method that doesn¡¯t hurt innocent people, why not try it? Since the Academy requires openness and tolerance, why do you so care about the difference of diabolism?"


    Chen Pipi shook his head and solemnly said, "Even those people of diabolism don¡¯t hurt innocent people during the cultivation, but they also hurt themselves. The practice method that takes the life as a bet is not the gift given by Haotian, but more likely to snatch the light of Haotian. Even if there is no problem with the cultivation method of diabolism, this idea itself is wrong and will only turn people into inhuman ones."


    Ning Que thoughtfully asked, "How to distinguish the right and the wrong? How to distinguish between human and non-human?"


    Chen Pipi looked at his eyes and said seriously, "People must know the awe while living in the world."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que officially entered the path of cultivation, with the peak-ascending triumph for less than half a day, and suddenly found a few higher peaks in the distance. Those peaks stood in the clouds, extremely high and steep. With his qualification, Ning Que seemed never to climb them up. Therefore, he inevitably felt a little sad.


    Besides the sadness, he even had some desperation he did not dare to utter - Even if he could go on cultivation with the ten acupoints in his Ocean of Qi and Mountain, how could hepete with those young men who have been in Knowing Destiny State and the sessors of different schools walking around the world? It was understandable when he could not cultivate in the past, for he and they had been in two different worlds. However, he and those real powerful men were now in the same world, which made him realize the big difference more realistically and clearly.


    How could he shorten this gap within the shortest time? How could he make the ten acupoints in his Ocean of Qi and Mountain no longer be an obstacle to cultivation? Ning Que, who had entered the Back Mountain of the Academy to ask the help from Chen Pipi, naturally began to look for shortcuts or non-righteous methods.


    He has never encountered the people of diabolism if not counting the Great Sword Master ying with broken fingers at the North mountain. He has never read any one of the diabolism cultivation manuals, but only heard some introductions of the old man Lyu Qingchen on the trip. It was these brief introductions that made he vaguely find the possibility for sess. Unfortunately, the serious or even cold attitudes of Lyu Qingchen and Chen Pipi made him soberly realize that if he did not want to be Linghu Chong chased by the Wu Yue Sword School, he had better not try this road.


    It was not bad if he really could be Linghu Chong. The problem was that Linghu Chong had the Devil¡¯s Doctrine saint Ren Yingying as his wife and its leader as his father-inw, so he would be enjoyable to go on the Devil cultivation with such a nepotism. But what did he have? Only a ck little handmaiden and his best friend who was the most righteous one among the righteous party.


    In front of Haotian divine light and the right course of the Academy, Ning Que finally realized that Devil¡¯s Doctrine that has been powerless no longer had any development space in this world. The difference between good and evil was as meaningless as turning Paris¡¯s Eiffel Tower upside down. To go on the Devil cultivation would only end in tragedy. He has long made his mind not to turn his life into a tragedy.


    Devil¡¯s Doctrine now was like a mouse across the street, which everyone cried to beat. Ning Que believed that if the others knew that he has been interested in the cultivation method of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, he must have an extremely miserable ending. However, Chen Pipi would not betray him. As his best friend, the fatd could not act like thew enforcement team of West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s Judicial Department, who subconsciously took a fire-punishment station upon hearing a word like Devil even if a poor magician was tied to the station. It was a kind of academic research. Why so serious?


    Thinking of these vacant things, Ning Que went down the Back Mountain. But he did not notice the strange eyes of those ssmates in the study room, and absentmindedly went out of the Academy.


    There were two horse carriages quietly waiting for him beside the meadow outside the Academy.


    Old Duan sat on one of the horse carriages. Another one was also ck, with a carriage made of some unclear wooden materials. It looked extremely hard and thick, with all kinds ofplicated decoration carved on the board. The steed in front lowered its head and gently shook, which looked extremely bored.


    Ning Que guessed out the owner of this horse carriage and talked with Old Duan for a few words. Then Ning Que first asked him to take the horse carriage back to the city, and then cleaned the clothes before walking to the front of this ck horse carriage. Ning Que greeted a bow with hands folded in front and said, "Nice to see you, Master."


    The horse carriage¡¯s curtain was drawn by an old hand. Master Yan Se exposed his head to yawn and looked at Ning Que as he annoyedly said, "You¡¯ve promised to follow me this afternoon. What time is it now? Even the Academy is a good ce to stay. But you¡¯re just in No Doubts State. Besides, Headmaster of Academy has note back yet. What can you learn here? Why spend such a long time in it? Did you sleep in the grass?"


    Ning Que was surprised and did not expect that he has guessed it right. Was it possible that Divine Talisman Master had the ability of fortune telling?

 Chapter 172: Talisman Taoism

    Chapter 172: Talisman Taoism


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The ck horse carriage sped across the main street. The speed was so fast that the green pastures outside seemed like an endlessrge green block from the window of the carriage. Ning Que stared outside the window and admired the view. He was feelingplex. The sight of the arrogant goose and weird people in the mountain behind the Academy made him felt as though he was starting his life in a brand new and mysterious world, and somewhat, it was rather unbelievable to him all of a sudden.


    As for the most mysterious Talisman Taoism which the legend had spoken of, other than seeing an old taoist doing tricks and burning a piece of talisman outside a Taoist temple in Chang¡¯an city, Ning Que knew nothing about it. However, sitting in this steady horse carriage made of Stainless-steel, he could almost felt that he was already in the world of Talisman Taoism. No matter how fast the horse carriage was moving, the passengers in the carriage could not sense any difort. As for the lonely horse in front of the carriage, it did not seem to mind the weight of the carriage at all.


    Yan Se watched the expression on his face and added, "You seem to have some questions on your mind."


    Ning Que turned around and looked at the old taoist, who was dirty all over. He hesitated for a moment before asking, "I am wondering if what kind of talisman is carved on this horse carriage, making it seems so light, just like dark magic."


    Instead of asking if there¡¯s talisman carved on the horse carriage, he directly asked what kind of talisman was carved. This question made Master Yan Se rejoiced, but the choice of word Ning Que used at the back made him frowned as he said unhappily, "Talisman is talisman. Why rte it to the dark side?"


    Ning Que had only subconsciously categorized such extraordinary things and experience as dark magic, and had never thought that to the Minister of Offerings at South School of Haotian Taoism, the word ¡¯dark¡¯ was so displeasing to their ears.


    The gentle trampling sound of the horse gradually slowed down and came to a halt. The ck horse carriage stopped on the street at the northern part of Chang¡¯an. Master Yan Se led Ning Que off the horse carriage before he took a nce at the nearby pavilion and the skinny-looking por trees outside the pavilion. He then turned around and told Ning Que, "Since you know that there¡¯s talisman carved on the carriage, go ahead and feel it."


    Ning Que was slightly taken aback, but he followed the words and went to the side of the horse carriage. He gazed at the ck carriage surface seriously and carefully. He confirmed that the carriage was indeed made of stainless-steel and theplicated scribblings were cut deeply on the surface by a type of sharp weapon. It was then covered by another lightyer of paint, making it looked extraordinary beautiful and slightly peculiar.


    Those scribblings were overlyplicated, to the extent that it had betrayed the principal of beauty. He spent a long time watching them but to no avail, and he gradually had a new thinking in his mind. Talisman inscription that is really useful should not be thisplicated, and thoseplex scribblings that looked like twigs were probably distractions used to camouge the real talisman inscription.


    He had read a few books on Talisman Taoism in the old library, but those were all introductions. He had not grasped any basic knowledge on talisman inscription yet and to search for the true Talisman inscription in this messy scribblings was practically impossible for him.


    However, since Master Yan Se wanted him to feel it, then it must be a kind of test for him.


    He thought for a while as he slowly shut his eyes and raised his arm to feel the inscription that was carved deep into the metal surface with his fingertip.


    Suddenly, he frowned his brows.


    Initially when he saw it with his eyes, he could not see anything strange about the inscription on the carriage. The moment he closed his eyes, with the help of his psyche power to control the Qi of Heaven and Earth, he started to perceive and discovered another faintyer of thing at his fingertip. Thatyer of thing was extremely thin, as if it was an invisible membrane that prevented his finger from touching the carriage.


    In a split second, thatyer he perceived disappeared instantly.


    Ning Que kept silent for a while and went into his meditation state, a state which he was best at. He once again used his psych power to perceive the tiniest changes in the Qi of Heaven and Earth, and indeed, thatyer of invisible thin membrane was back to the space between his finger and the carriage. This time, he was well prepared and he could perceive even deeper, to the extent that he could vividly felt a gradual movement in that thin membrane.


    The voice of Master Yan Se rang by his ears. "What did you feel?"


    Ning Que focused on the feeling and kept silent for a long while before he replied seriously, "A very light feeling of the movement in Qi of Heaven and Earth."


    Master Yan Se continued, "What kind of movement? What does it feel like?"


    Ning Que replied peacefully, "It¡¯s like water, yet lighter than water...emptier than water. It¡¯s more like wind, but it can¡¯t be wind."


    Master Yan Se watched Ning Que who stood beside the carriage, as he gradually frowned and asked, "Why can¡¯t it be wind?"


    Ning Que kept quiet for a moment and answered, "Because...the primordial Qi on the Talisman inscription moved in an orderly manner, as though it is instructed to move along a pre-set path within somepleted system. Wind is the movement of air, so it can¡¯t be moving in such orderly manner."


    The frowns on Master Yan Se¡¯s brows were rxed. He gazed at Ning Que¡¯s back and tears welled up his eyes. He felt both praised and amazed, because at this moment, Ning Que¡¯s performance was way better than he had expected.


    Ning Que¡¯s finger left the carriage as he turned around and said to Yan Se worriedly, "Master, I am just saying based on my feeling."


    "Feeling. That¡¯s the most important quality to have in pursuing talisman taoism."


    Master Yan Se gently touched his sideburn as he watched Ning Que in a fatherly manner. His husky and strangeughter sounded like an old farmer who had dug out an antique at his backyard. He said, "You¡¯re very sensitive, more sensitive than I am. I like it."


    Ning Que did not know how to answer him.


    "The movement in Qi of Heaven and Earth which you felt is the feeling of wind. The talisman I¡¯ve drawn on this carriage is a Wind Talisman."


    Master Yan Se looked at him as he added, "As for why the wind will move in a fixed line and in an orderly manner, like what you¡¯ve said...within aplete system, the logic is simple. That¡¯s because the talisman sets a fixed direction for the wind."


    "Come with me."


    Master Yan Se swung his sleeve gently as he ced his hands at his back and slowly walked towards the por trees beside the nearby pavilion.


    Ning Que walked to the front of the carriage and stood beside the horse. He looked at the big ck round eyes of the horse as he smiled and said, "You must be the world¡¯s mostfortable horse."


    That horse breathed out gently as it lowered its head and munched on the dry leave in the bag. Its silence had represented its agreement to such saying.


    Ning Que watched Master Yan Se¡¯s back and hurriedly followed his steps.


    ...


    ...


    Master Yan Se folded his legs and sat in the middle of the pavilion, with a small charcoal oven and a tea set at his side. Ning Que entered the pavilion and seeing that the Master was preparing the tea by himself, he quickly pounced forward to snatch over the task. Though that day it was this Divine Talisman Master who cried to have him as his disciple, but he would never be arrogant and missed any chance to please his teacher.


    The fragrance of the tea leaves was out the moment they were ced into the boiling water. Master Yan Se watched the quiet Ning Que who was busily pouring the tea and nodded his head in approval. He then used his index finger to gently knock on the te of the teacup, reminding him to sit properly and added, "There are many ways to cultivation, such as swordsmanship, stamina training and formation. Pursuers like us who can write talismans aremonly known as Martial Arts of Talisman. However, we don¡¯t address ourselves as that, we would name it as Talisman Taoism."


    Ning Que respectfully ced the cup of hot tea in front of the Master, kneeled properly and listened attentively to the Master.


    Master Yan Se lifted the cup of tea and gently sipped a mouthful before asking, "Do you know what Talisman Taoism mean?"


    Ning Que thought for a while and asked carefully, "Is it using talisman to cultivate taoism?"


    "Hahahaha..."


    Master Yan Seughed as he looked at Ning Que and shook his head. He said, "Everyone wishes to cultivate taoism via pursuing taoism, via sword skills, via killing and via love. Even the West-Hill Divine Pce was guilty of such thinking, what¡¯s more if it¡¯s you? What is taoism if what everyone does is equivalent to what ants do in their empire? Yet taoism is something that is intangible, and how does one go about searching for it? Talisman Taoism is actually very simple. Talisman is taoism."


    Talisman is taoism? Ning Que was wondering what it meant, yet he could not understand.


    "What is talisman? Taliman is inscription, lines and marks."


    The smile on Master Yan Se¡¯s face gradually dissolved, as he looked at Ning Que sternly, "The mark left by a snake that glided over the sand is a talisman. The veins on a dried leaf is a talisman. The muddy marks left by carriages on the street is a talisman. The veins within the beast¡¯s body is a talisman. The mark left by water movement is a talisman. The mark left by wind movement is a talisman.The cracks left on the dehydrated ground is a talisman. The clouds in the blue sky is also a talisman."


    Using the easiest way to exin it in the clearest manner, Ning Que was speechless. ording to the way Master Yan Se had exined, all the marks on earth are talismans. This idea was way beyond his own logical state of mind!


    After a long silence, he asked slowly, "Master, does this mean that one just needs to copy all the marks in nature to draw talismans?"


    Master Yan Se was slightly taken aback, as he looked at him andughed, "That¡¯s a painter, not a Talisman Master."


    ...


    ...


    A few leaves fell as the wind blew, and before they could touch the ground, the wind blew again as they gently flew to the top of the pavilion. They finallynded on the tiles that were drenched by the rainwater, where soft tapping noise was heard.


    "The veins with the beasts are talismans, but they can only maintain their lives; the marks left by water movement are talismans, but they can only follow Haotian¡¯s order to move from a higher ground to a lower ground. The veins on dry leaves are talismans, but they can only, as what they had always been doing, absorbing nutrients and water for the leaves."


    Master Yan Se calmly added, "These talismans are known as nature talismans. They are born from nature and disappeared in nature. They coexist with the Qi of Heaven and Earth, just like what every human on this earth is doing right now."


    "Nevertheless, whether humans are pursuing or researching on Talisman Taoism, they have already gone beyond the nature order, which also means that they have gone beyond what is needed to survive. Hence, the true meaning of Talisman Taoism is certainly originated from nature, but it must go higher than nature."


    Ning Que listened quietly. He faintly felt that though the Master was exining about Talisman Taoism, there were many worthy ideas behind his exnation.


    Master Yan Se drank finish the remaining tea in his cup as he looked at him and continued, "A talisman that originates from nature yet is higher than nature must first go through several stages: Copying, understanding, inducing, simplifying, purifying, andstly, charming. Talismans are actually lines and marks that humans have learned and extracted from nature talismans for numerous years."


    Ning Que helped the Master to fill the tea to the brim of his cup again before he sat back and inquired, "Then what is taoism?"


    "Taoism is to know."


    "To let who know?"


    "To let Qi of Heaven and Earth know."


    Ning Que felt shocked and confused. He asked, "To let Qi of Heaven and Earth know about what?"


    Master Yan Se stared at him and smiled gently as he said, "To let Qi of Heaven and Earth know what we wish to do?"


    "Humans cultivation will never leave the control in Qi of Heaven and Earth. In swordsmanship, psyche power is used to control Qi of Heaven and Earth to remotely control the flying sword, but it is rather indirect. Though a Psyche Master can directly control Qi of Heaven and Earth to attack the enemy, but it is too simple that it can only attack the opponent¡¯s pool of knowledge."


    "Only talisman taoism that is in between the two, yet its state is much higher than both. That¡¯s because the ultimate goal in talisman taoism is to let Qi of Heaven and Earth know what you want to do, so that Qi of Heaven and Earth can help you to achieve it."


    "Qi of Heaven and Earth has no eyes nor ears, so it will never know what kind of weird thinkings you have on your mind. It will never possibly know that you wish to freeze the raindrops into millions of sharp knives, then how do you let it know what you want?"


    "Talisman thenes into y as a bridge between human psych power and Qi of Heaven and Earth. A Talisman Master will use the psych power to freeze the Qi of Heaven and Earth within the lines and marks. With a shot, it will react with the surrounding Qi of Heaven and Earth, which allows one to control the surrounding nature."


    Ning Que indistinctly captured the essence of the question.


    Yan Se watched the expression on his face and asked, "You seem to have understood something."


    "I¡¯ve heard from a friend in the past that the Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow within a human body is like an instrument. The psyche power is like the air. Only when the air is blown into the instrument, will there be beautiful melody. That¡¯s when Qi of Heaven and Earth can listen and understand."


    Ning Que stared at Master Yan Se and added, "Listening to Master¡¯s exnation makes me wonder. Since Talisman Taoism is about using talisman to tell Qi of Heaven and Earth what you want, then can we say that talisman is equivalent to the Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow in our body?"


    "Your friend¡¯s state is very high, for his way of describing is very special."


    Master Yan Se gazed at Ning Que as he smiled and said, "Of course, you are teachable as well. The acupoints for your Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow are too little in your body, so no matter it¡¯s swordsmanship cultivation or others, it would be very troublesome for you. Talisman Taoism is different. As long as you can perceive Qi of Heaven and Earth, be aware of the small differences in your surrounding, and using talisman to write down and understand it, you will be sessful."


    Ning Que was puzzled. He questioned, "Since for thousands of years, Talisman Masters have been continuously learning how to record the nature talismans, then isn¡¯t there a readily-made talisman? If there is, then does this mean that without perceiving the movement in Qi of Heaven and Earth, one can still practice Talisman Taoism?"


    Master Yan Se started smiling as he gently brushed his beard and asked, "Are there any twopletely identical leaves in this world?"


    Ning Que thought in his heart, if you ask me about egg, I will really suspect if I am Da Vinci. He then replied, "No."


    "Then are there any twopleted identical humans in this world?"


    "Of course not."


    "If that¡¯s the case, you can never be me. Your psych power can never be identical to my psych power. Then why would writing two identical talismans enables the Qi of Heaven and Earth to know they mean the same?"


    Ning Quepletely did not understand.


    Master Yan Se looked at him and said calmly, "For Talisman Masters, our psych powers are like endless different vocabries and talismans are the ways these vocabries are grouped. The difference is that I am someone from Chang¡¯an who speaks formally, whereas you are someone from Northern Sea who speaks Martiansnguage. Even if we put our own vocabries into the same grouping, it is still impossible to create twopletely identical essays."


    "There are more than ten different types ofnguages in the world, and every Talisman Master¡¯s psych power is in apletely differentnguage. I did aposition and the Qi of Heaven and Earth can understand the generosity and agitated feelings in it. You, too, did aposition, yet the Qi of Heaven and Earth was lost and unable to understand it. It will start to wonder why the beginning contradicted with the back, and what exactly does the person wish to say?"


    Ning Que finally understood what he meant as he bowed towards Master Yan Se to express his deep gratitude.

 Chapter 173: A Divine Talisman Master in Few Years

    Chapter 173: A Divine Talisman Master in Few Years


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que Looked at the half cup of cold tea, pondering what the master had said. And he felt a sense of peacefulness.


    Master Yan Se slightly smiled and raised his skinny arm to draw simple lines in the air.


    Then, the air in this pavilion suddenly became drier. A faint me magically showed up in front of Ning Que, and disappeared in the next minute. Ning Que was so scared that he almost jumped from ground.


    Master Yan Se smiled and said,"Your friendpared the Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi into a string of a musical instrument, it was a good saying. The lines of Fu also could be regarded as strings of the instrument which were used to y songs that could be understood by the Heaven and Earth, yet I still think it would be better topare it into an article, for Fu not only lets the Heaven and Earth appreciate the beauty of melody but also clearly expresses ideas and seek tiny differences between activity and inertia. "


    After this, he raised his right hand again and used his index finger to draw six lines in the air.


    Ning Que felt moisture generated from master¡¯s finger, the moisture was brushing his face and making a slight noise. He reached out to touch it without realization, finding that his face was wet, as if being washed just now.


    "Using different lines and different Psyche Power, you can write a different article which can express different ideas and have different effect."Looking at Ning Que who kept touching his own face like a girl crazy, master Yan Se said with a smile, "Teaching you Talisman Taoism is like teaching you how to write an article."


    "How to write an article? After you have learnt ssics and sensed Qi of Heaven and Earth, how to finish yourst stroke to let the Qi of Heaven and Earth know what you are thinking? There is no trick in thest step, or we can say that we must have a trick. Then, what does a trick mean?" "Well, it refers to talent. If you can write, then you write, otherwise even you soak yourself in that Ink Lake day and night, you still can¡¯t write."


    Looking at Ning Que, master Yan Se continued to say, "Thest thing needed when studying Talisman Taoism is talent. Talent is the most precious gift that Haotian gives to us, only few people are lucky enough to have it, you are one of them."


    "This... is way too hard."


    Ning Que felt puzzled. He saw magic things happen, yet couldn¡¯t figure out how these things happen. The master had talked so much, but in the end he still talked about the metaphysics. What he had said was not useful at all. Stuff like talent couldn¡¯t be exined well, but then how could people use this inexinable talent to finish thest stroke of a Chinese character?


    "If studying Talisman Taoism depends on talent, the first man who found Talisman Taoism in the world saw the marks of Fu lines and copied them without realization, and then wrote the first Fu. But ording to your idea that Talisman Taoism can not be inherited, so how could he..."


    Ning Que weighed his words before continuing to say, "Pass this civilization?"


    Master Yan Se ruminated for a while before he answered, "Talisman Taoism can not be inherited, yet the spirit of it could. If Chinese characters can record ideas, it surely can record history then. It may be an coincident for that Talisman Master to find out how to write the first Fu."


    "Maybe tens of thousands of years ago, that Talisman Master walked to a cliff. After watching the cracks, he understood something, and then he concentrated all his power on the sword hanging on his waist, waved it toward that cliff, and put his power in it."


    "It was an coincidence to write the first Fu, but when this Grand Cultivator found the secrets hiding behind these sword scratches, he definitely would make another try. If he seeded again, the second Fu would no longer be an coincidence, but a natural object."


    Ning Que doubted and said, "Or may be that cultivator couldn¡¯t write the second Fu the rest of his life."


    Master Yan Se looked at him and said, "If the first cultivator failed, there woulde the second cultivator, the third one, and then the fourth one. Time is endless, cultivators are countless. They would continue to explore the world, in that situation, there must be a cultivator being seed. There is no doubt that this kind of thing will happen."


    Ning Que nodded his head.


    Master Yan Se said,"It is the same for Talisman Taoism. Talisman Taoism can¡¯t be inherited, but its spirit can. Before that cultivator died, he must tell his students. So his students would try. Maybe he seeded, maybe he failed, or maybe this sect would disapper. But I believe that a few yearster, there must be another cultivator who found the secrets of Talisman Taoism, and then told it to his students. As a result, there must be a sect being seeded and inherited to the present."


    Lifting up his head, Ning Que said with a deep feeling, "Only a few cultivators could seed. We will never know how many cultivators¡¯ techniques didn¡¯t pass down."


    "This is more like climbing a high mountain which you could never reach its top. Some people had to stop at the foot of the mountain, some people reached the half of the mountain, yet they were blown off by wind. Now it¡¯s the heyday of Talisman Taoism development. However, if you see it in a broader perspective, you will find that this mountain is infinitely high."


    Master Yan Se looked at him and let out a sigh, "The birth of Talisman Taoism is very difficult, yet the development of Talisman Taoism is more difficult than that. That¡¯s why when I found that you have a gift for Talisman Taoism, I were that thrilled. Since you are so lucky to get this talent, you must cherish it, not only for yourself, but also for Talisman Taoism itself."


    Through these words Ning Que felt endless lonely and pathetic, so he slightly stiffened his body, as if seeing scenes happened years ago.


    ...


    ...


    In ancient times, there was a wizard wearing furs and living in a tribe. Once when he finished presiding over a sacrificial ceremony, he came into a cliff cave to have a rest. While singing a mysterious song, he picked up a stone to paint on the wall.


    He intended to draw that beautiful and red me, yet unexpectedly, that painting med up when he only finished half of it.


    The wizard was too scared to say a word. He knelt down, kowtowing to it. His body covered by fur quivered with fear. People in the tribe rushed into the cave as soon as they heard the screams of the wizard, and then they also saw that burning painting and all knelt down, crying, screaming and regarding it as an evil.


    As the most wise man in the tribe, the wizard gradually calmed down and drove all the other people out of the cave. Seeing the fire gradually extinguished, he stared at the ck marks and hesitated for a long time before touching it, and then he was inspired and turned around to find that red stone, trembling repainting that picture on the wall again.


    From that day on, the wizard could no longer draw burning painting anymore, yet he had be the most greatest wizard in the tribe.


    ...


    ...


    Countless people died during the war between the Central ins and the Wilderness. Blood seeped into the ck earth, soaking grass and mud like chili sauce. A cultivator from Min Mountain squatted on the ground in silence, looking at his brother¡¯s dead body and holding a branch without knowing where it came from. And he drew on the ground without realization.


    Not far from him, the entire maroon Wilderness seemed live. The ground constantly waved and countless earthworms and insects were frightened by it and fled everywhere, as if there was a mutated giant earthworm under the ground.


    ...


    ...


    A student read the original Fu texts left by his teacher and kept copying them on yellow papers. He wrote, from ad to a middle-aged man and then to an old man. These yellow papers stock up in his room. Spider¡¯s web threaded beams, but he never stopped.


    A person sat on the towering summit of Zhongli Mountain, he was holding a drawing board, and all pigments were around him. Looking at the mountain and the flowing clouds, he drew paintings from sunrise to sunset, and then to another sunrise. He drew paintings from winter to spring, and then to summer. He never stopped.


    From ancient times to the present, those people who were lucky enough to, or identally to understand the true meaning of Talisman Taoism. And those students who wanted to grasp Talisman Taoism, they kept mimicking the lines of Heaven and Earth, they racked their brains to write an article, they run out of papers and writing brushes, they draw every single mountain and every single river, and all inks they had used could even ck pool water.


    No matter being seeded or failed, they never stopped trying with all effort. Just because of their persistence and trying, the most mysterious gift of Haotian was not taken back and was narrowly not inherited to the present.


    ...


    ...


    "Every Talisman Master shall shoulder the responsibility to pass down what they have grasped or we can say that it is an irresistible responsibility. Just because previous virtuous masters shouldered their responsibility, and tried their best effort, the Talisman Taoism shall exist in the world."


    Looking at Ning Que who was lowering his head, master Yan Se said in a serious tone, "Finding a student like you already satisfied my entire life. However, it is sad that, as we said the earlier time, Talisman Taoism can only be inherited from its spirit not its techniques, so whether Talisman Taoism spirit can be passed down or not at my generation, it¡¯s all up to you."


    Ning Que bowed to show his respect and replied, "I will try my best not to disappoint you."


    "Disappoint? What is disappointment? If I just want you to inherit Talisman Taoism, and then I believe you will not let me down for I have a pair of Talisman eyes and I know it is not difficult for you."


    "But my hope is more than that. I have a kind of feeling that there is a certain force which limits the inheritance of Talisman Taoism. You should know that none of Divine Talisman Master in the world, including me, could really see through Talisman Taoism. If we all unable to see it through, we naturally could not pass down the essence part, which is also the easiest part of Talisman Taoism."


    "I am too old to see it through. If you have a chance to achieve it in the future, I believe it will be easier to pass Talisman Taoism down. At that time, you can express ideas with Fu and control mountains and rivers by writing Fu... It may sound like a magic, but I strongly believe that one day all these cane true and must be realized by Talisman Taoism"


    Master Yan Se peacefully said to him, "Ning Que, I hope you can be such a person."


    The more you expect, the more disappointed you will feel. If Ning Que didn¡¯t want to disappoint master Yan Se, he had no choice but to shoulder the great expectation. Ning Que looked faintly into the distance, feeling like that two mountains were loaded on his shoulders.


    "Can I be such a person?"


    "You have to be such a person."


    Seeing master¡¯s old and sad face, Ning Que suddenly opened his mouth and said, "Master, please teach me the most basic knowledge."


    Looking into Ning Que¡¯s eyes for a long time, master Yan Se revealed a smile on his wrinkly face,forted him and said to him in a soft voice, "A thousand journey is started by taking the first step. I wish you good luck."


    ...


    ...


    "How to draw Fu lines?"


    "First, you need to sense Qi of Heaven and Earth, the more delicate, the better. Then, you draw the flowing trace of Qi of Heaven and Earth based on what you have seen."


    "If I can¡¯t see it, how can I draw it?"


    "Cultivators never see the world through eyes."


    "Through their feeling?"


    "Exactly. Follow your feelings to draw it."


    "Can I draw it like a blind?"


    "If so you have to stab your eyes first."


    ncing at Ning Que in a mad mood, master Yan Se reached out a few books and throw them to Ning Que.


    Ning Que was almost hit to death by these books.


    For what he caught was not a few books, but dozens of them. Besides, each book was thick, it seemed that if put these books together they would be heavier than Chen Pipi. Ning Que even didn¡¯t notice when the master moved these books here from the carriage.


    Ning Que casually picked one up and opened it, and then he saw those meandering lines on the first page, and realized that these lines were not characters, even not paintings because they looked so ugly. Ning Que nkly asked, "These... are Fu lines?"


    "Yes. These are Fu lines that I have collected my entire life, most of them are Taoist Fu."


    Master Yan se poured himself a cup of tea to wet his throat, and then continued to say, "These are the crystallization of the previous virtuous masters¡¯wisdom. When you observe the trace of Heave and Earth in theter days, do not forget to refer to those Fu lines."


    "I have said that these are articles that only belonged to the Talisman Masters from earlier generations who wrote them in their own characters. Even though you are good at coping and can recite all the articles, the reader still could not understand it."


    Ning Que regrettably said, "I know, the reader¡¯s surname is Heaven, his given name is Earth, and he is illiterate."


    And then Ning Que asked, "If it¡¯s useless to giarize, what is the meaning of learning previous Fu lines?"


    "Just like sensing Fu lines of Heaven and Earth, these Fu lines are for your reference. Do not let these things bind your imagination. You should observe these lines, understand their spirit, and then forget them. Atst you¡¯ll write Fu lines which belong to you."


    "Forget their trace and understand spirit? Isn¡¯t it mean to forget characters¡¯ figure and remember their meaning?" Ning Que suddenly recalled the reading process in old Library and was shocked into speechless. It turned out that the method of Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong should be used at this time!


    Noticing his shocked expression, master Yan Se frowned and asked the reason. After a moment of silence, Ning Que told Master Yan Se his reading method at the old Library, and also mentioned the origin of Chicken Soup Calligraphy.


    "One day I found that using the method of Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong can barely understand the Fu lines left by Talisman Masters. Because of excitement, I went to the House of Red Sleeves to cheer up and got drunk, so I wrote that Chicken Soup Calligraphy. Maybe I thought nothing when I got drunk, and then I wrote all my understandings into that calligraphy which was admired by your master."


    Finishing this sentence, Ning Que looked at the sky out of the pavilion without realization, wondering whether this was a fate?


    Master Yan Se said with a smile,"Haotian didn¡¯t choose you, you have abilities and talents to win his choice."


    ...


    ...


    "Master, earlier time you casually drew some lines, and then I felt some water on my face. I know this is Fu, but I am not sure that people can also draw Fu in the air? If each Talisman Master¡¯s Fu is unique, and then each Fu is absolutely different, you may control it by a writing brush and inks, but how can you control it in the air?"


    "Even writing brushes and inks can not guarantee each Fu ispletely the same, for different papers and different speed when you are writing. Fu follows Talisman Masters¡¯ heart. Subtle differences are not that important, instead only if these subtle differences are not disobey Talisman Masters¡¯ thought, and then they often can in line with Talisman Masters¡¯ feelings at that time, so the effect will be better."


    Mater Yan Se continued to say, "Speaking of writing Fu in the air, it is more unstablepared with writing with brushes and inks. But Talisman Masters who can write Fu without brushes and inks have already controlled his Psyche Power. In other words, the first stroke is different from the next one, and then the final writing is totally different."


    Ning Que asked,"What kind of Talisman Master can control his Psyche Power to draw Fu without writing brushes and inks?"


    Master Yan Se pointed at himself, answered with a smile, "A Divine Talisman Master."


    Ning Que suffered a great deal of mental shock and felt frustrated.


    "I divided Fu into two categories, one is certain and the other is infinitive. A certain Fu depends on external things. No matter it depends on writing brushes and inks or carves or a statue, this kind of Fu takes a long time to finish, but it has greater power. An infinitive Fu depends on nothing. This kind of Fu can be finished in a minute, yet it is less powerful."


    Hearing these two words, certain and infinitive, Ning Que felt excited and remembered familiar characteristics of verbs, stuffs like adding "to" after an infinitive verb. But next second he cleared his head and realizd that he was learning Talisman Taoism here, not learning English at a special ss. He rubbed his cheeks angrily, and then asked, "If so, why we have to learn infinitive, it... seems so hard."


    Master Yan Se stared at him as Ning Que was an idiot and replied, "Although the power of Talisman Taoism is great, cultivators in the same state, even a Psyche Master, can not beat a Talisman Master, but that is all talking. What if a Talisman Master really fights against other cultivators? If Liu Bai shoots a flying sword, is it possible that I find writing brushes and inks everywhere to write Fu?"


    "When I sense that damn flying sword which wasing from cloud, all I would do is taking Psyche Power as ink and drawing my spirit in the air. So I can stop it for a while and earn some time for me to think about how to draw a Fu to fight back. At this time, what is the use of writing brushes?"


    The more Ning Que listened to master Yan Se¡¯s proud exnation, the more he felt something was wrong. He hesitated for a while before asking, "Master, did you really fight against Liu Bai, the best sage of sword in the world?"


    "Hypothesis! It¡¯s a hypothesis!"


    Master Yan Se angrily yelled, thinking "That year my arm was hurt by Liu Bai¡¯s flying sword, yet I also destroyed his half eyebrow. I won¡¯t tell these brilliant achievements to you."


    "If you don¡¯t want an arrow shooting through your chest in the future, infinitive is something you must learn."


    "But... you earlier said that only a Divine Talisman Master can know how to write an infinitive Fu."


    "You are very talented in Talisman Taoism, and now you meet a marvelous Talisman Taoism Master like me. Will it be difficult to be a Divine Talisman Master? When you go back home, you need to recite these brochures first, after this, you need to carefully feel the Qi of Heaven and Earth... "


    Ning Que faintly stared at those thick books that piled up like a small mountain, wondering "Are these brochures?"


    Master Yan Se frowned and regrettably said, "You are still in a No Doubts State and can only understand a little rules of Qi of Heaven and Earth." "But if you are in a Seethrough State, you can involve yourself in Heaven and Earth. Or if you step in a Knowing Destiny State, you will know the essence of Qi of Heaven and Earth, plus your talent, it will be easier to cross the first stage."


    Ning Que was wordless, thinking "If I am in a Knowing Destiny State, why I bothered myself to study Talisman Taoism?"


    "Master, in your opinion, as my ability right now, after how many years I can be a Divine Talisman Master like you?"


    "If you can concentrate on Talisman Taoism and leave the Academy for mountain to conduct penance with me, may be... after ten years."


    Ning Que regrettably sighed and said, "Ten years."


    Master Yan Se angrily yelled, "Ten yearster you are under thirty years old. If you really be a Divine Talisman Master at that time, you are at least in top three during the thousand years cultivation history, won¡¯t you be satisfied?"


    Ning Que lowered his head, not because he was ashamed, but because he felt a little proud. He was thinking "With my talent, I can in the top three, if Chen Pipi knows this, will he be shameful?"


    Looking at his lowered head, master Yan se gradually calmed down. He silently said to himself "It¡¯s pity that I couldn¡¯t teach you for ten years."


    An extremely important thing urred Ning Que. He lifted up his head to look at master Yan Se, and said seriously, "Since I have made up my mind to learn with you, shall I change my appetion and call you teacher?"


    Pondering for a while, master Yan Se shook his head and said, "Since you have entered the second floor of Academy, Headmaster of Academy is your teacher, and then there will be no second person is qualified to be your teacher in the world... you just call me master, which also sounds great."


    Ning Que felt his respect to the Headmaster of Academy, so Ning Que said with a smile after thinking, "How about Shifu?"


    Master Yan Se smiled, thinking he was such a smart kid.


    ...


    ...


    Of course Ning Que was smart.


    He had proofed himself before, and so he did now. Yet addressing master Yan Se as Shifu had nothing to do with smart, it is a ability of reading some one¡¯s face and toadying him. That was a ability he learned through tough life.


    ording to master Yan Se, there was no one couldpete with the Headmaster of Academy who was his teacher right now, so others naturally felt unqualified to be his teacher. But after hearing for such a long time, Ning Que deeply felt that master Yan Se attached great importance to Talisman Taoism heritage and his sessor. Under this situation, Ning Que surely wanted to have an official teacher-student rtionship with him.


    "When I started to call master Yan Se Shifu, well, well, a cordial and friendly atmosphere was full of that pavilion, we got along very well, we talked andughed. Shifu gave me a first-meeting present in the end, why do you think he didn¡¯t give it to me at the very first beginning?"


    In the Old Brush Pen Shop at Lin 47th Street, Ning Que sat in his arm-chair, talking like a talking show yer and sshing his spittle everywhere.


    Sangsang, who was holding a hammer to fix their shop door destroyed the day before yesterday, directly ignored him.


    Failing to get a response, Ning Que felt a little bored. He scolded, "Can you concentrate on listening to me?"


    Sangsang was measuring the size of a te that she asked from a carpenter shop, so she replied, "I¡¯m busy."


    Ning Que angrily said, "Your young master will be a Divine Talisman Master in ten years, why are you not excited?"


    Sangsang turned back to look at him, and answered, "Young master, that thing happens ten yearster, but we have to fix this door today."


    Putting his teapot on a desk, Ning Que said, "Stop fixing it. Go out to buy something for me first."


    Feeling puzzled, Sangsang asked, "Why so hurry? The door is not fixed yet."


    "Buy me writing brushes, inks and something stuff like these."


    Ning Que wrote a note, handing it to her, and said, "It will take me ten years to be a Divine Talisman Master. It is too slow."


    "So I am going to study Talisman Taoism right now!"


    "Size the day! Size the hour!"


    Sangsang saw him with her bright eyes and looked at Ning Que who was waving with his arms, she hesitated for a while before asking, "Young master... "


    "Yep, what¡¯s up?"


    "Aren¡¯t you too smug right now?"


    "... Maybe kind of."

 Chapter 174: Life is Full of Craziness (I)

    Chapter 174: Life is Full of Craziness (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Senior Brothers and Sisters in the mountain of the Academy were from the South China Sea inds, other countries, or distantnds. There were actually none living in Chang¡¯an City. Having seen Brother II¡¯s lovely little livehand, Ning Que had thought to move into the back mountain with Sangsang. However, as a neer in the Academy, he considered himself unqualified to bepared to Brother II. It might be considered indecent for him to make such a request. Besides, he thought the back mountain, though beautiful,cked a sense of civil life. So he became the only non-resident student in the Academy.


    Sangsang rushed to the western street and bought back several pens, ink and bizarre materials as per Ning Que¡¯s list. She finished before the shops closed and streetlights were turned off. And then she was busy with cooking. She gave Ning Que the Old Brush Pen Shop¡¯s daily business report as she was cutting vegetables.


    "It was busy today, especially in the morning when the threshold was almost trampled. I had the shop door repaired yesterday, but it still wasn¡¯t solid enough and broke again. The crowds only died down after people heard that you weren¡¯t in."


    Suddenly thinking of something, Sangsang wiped her wet hands on her apron and took out a thick stack of name cards and invitations from the back room. She put them on the desk. "A lot of people left these inviting you to their mansions. There are too many, and their names are there in writing, so I didn¡¯t take notes.


    Ning Que nced at the invitations and name cards, and looked to the ssics of Talisman, thinking he was too busy to attend any appointments. He replied, "You pick out the important ones and put them aside after dinner. I¡¯ll handle themter."


    "How should I choose and manage them?" Sangsang asked seriously. As Ning Que¡¯s little handmaiden, she had no experience in dealing with bigwigs from the Empire. She had no idea which kind of invitations were important.


    "Just like selecting vegetables, you keep the fresh and expensive, and put aside the stale and cheap. As for what is fresh and expensive... I told you before about the imperial official system. Do you still remember? The ones from junior officials are expensive. I will handle and answer these letters out of etiquette, since what they really want is merely my calligraphy.


    Sangsang listened to his reply with her brows slightly furrowing, and then whispered, "Master, your calligraphy can be sold for money now. Isn¡¯t it a pity to give them calligraphy replies for free?


    Ning Queughed and continued to concentrate on the dozens of thick Talisman ssics in front of him. He had only read a few and really had no extra time to think about other things.


    Master Yan Se had given him a total of 33 ssics on Talisman, which recorded Talismans left by precedent Talisman Masters. Together they added up to 387 sections, and 2477 talismans, asplicated as the sea.


    Ning Que made a rough review of the ssics and gave a long and attentive gaze to one particr set of talismans. They seemed totally different and he could not find anything inmon between them. Gaining nothing, he frowned deeper and deeper.


    ording to Master Yan Se, the Fu characters were for Ning Que¡¯s reference only. As for how to write them, it all depended on his personal understanding. But how on earth was he going to get the references he needed toprehend them? They looked like tadpoles, graffiti, rain drops and silk, rather than characters or pictures.


    Ning Que randomly picked a book from the hill-like ssics and found that it was the first section of Volume Three, the beginning of the Water Volume. He was a bit excited when he discovered that the beginning was seemingly concerned with something like water, the most indispensable and closest thing to human life. This might make it easier for him to study it.


    There were four pages in the first section. Ning Que read carefully from the beginning to the end and discovered that more than a hundred Fu characters on these pages had simrities. Most of them consisted of six lines running from top to bottom, except that the six ink lines differed in thickness and length, and especially in their style ofbination and arrangement. In the strangest Fu characters, the six ink lines even entangled togetherpletely.


    "Are these all water characters? Is there a river that is the longest?"


    Ning Que stared with furrowed eyebrows at the Fu character written at the highest point in the Water Volume, the six ink lines that were neatly arranged and slightly curved in the middle. Gradually easing into tranquility, he envisioned the ink lines as water flows as if he could vaguely see the rainwater falling from eaves to the quartzite, blooming rain flowers, and then integrating again into the surrounding rainwater.


    Beside the desk were some materials such as ink and cinnabar. He had asked Sangsang to buy these cheap ordinary items, all of which, ording to Master Yan Se, were essential materials for writing Fu characters.


    Rather than continuing to watch the six ink lines, Ning Que poured water into the inkstone and began to slowly grind the inkstick. When the ink was sufficiently mixed with the water, he took a writing brush down from the shelf and gently dipped it into the ink till it was plump.


    He did this in a gentle and leisure way, but it was actually the way taught by Master Yan Se, forcing the Psyche Power to slowly run out of the Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi, to get through the paper window, to fall into the well at the small yard and finally to exquisitely experience the vor of primordial Qi in the water.


    He raised his brush from the inkstone but could not write on the paper. He sat with his wrist stiffened above the inkstone.


    Ning Que frowned slightly and looked at the six ink lines again, forcibly disassembling the Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong in his mind, only to find that the six lines suddenly separated, floated away and turned into a ck rain cloud that hung above his head. However, the dark ink cloud persistently refused to drip a single drop of water.


    With his wrist slightly quivering, Ning Que was ready to start writing, but his brush had stopped in the air. He could clearly feel that he was still incapable of writing the Fu character and connecting his own feelings with the well water, even though he hadprehended the meaning of the well water and this Fu character. It turned out to be wrong eventually.


    On a quiet night the candlelight gradually rose.


    There were two dishes and a bowl of rice on the desk. A bowl of water, lightly rippling with the night breeze, was ced under themp.


    Ning Que stood at the desk by the window, watching the Fu characters of Water Volume. His body was stiffening and his right hand that was pinching the brush was slightly shaking. He had kept this posture for a long time, but still failed to write on the paper.


    Sangsang sat at the bed embroidering shoes, asionally raising her head to nce at him.


    A few hours ago, she had finish eating, without asking Ning Que to join her. She knew that Ning Que was in a big trouble whenever he habitually began to study with all his effort. Though she was worried, she still kept silent. She was used to this kind of situation.


    Ning Que owned an excellent but poor quality that whenever he met puzzles that he was eager to solve with interest, he would be fully absorbed into the process. Before the answers came to him, he could not even sleep, and even the most delicious food was as unptable as candles in his mouth. The surrounding world was totally insignificant for him.


    The reason he could be regarded as a genius wasrgely because of his way of solving problems, which was actually a nuisance for the people around. He would forget to eat and could not fall asleep. He would keep torturing his body until he became extremely weak, even dangerously so. He would not awaken until he solved the problem or restored his sense to confirm that the problem was beyond his ability.


    The year when Ning Que found the Article on the Response of the Tao for the first time at the frontier fortress, he didn¡¯t sleep for two weeks. He had tried to force himself to enter the meditation state constantly so that he could perceive the Qi of Heaven and Earth. Sangsang, who was still young at the time, had painstakingly taken care of him for exactly half a month. It hadn¡¯t ended until the ex-general of the City of Wei, unable to bear the situation any longer, had asked his pro-soldiers to whip Ning Que awake. After that, both Ning Que and Sangsang had gotten a seriously sick.


    It was the same casest year when he ascended the old library. He had stayed up unconscious and been thrown outside the building every day. He would return home in a horse carriage with a pale face, and vomit continuously in bed like a drunken man, even spitting up blood. It was Sangsang who had apanied him and dared not fall asleep every night.


    After she finished embroidering the flower, Sangsang looked up and rubbed her tired wrist. She nced at Ning Que, who was as still as a statue, and then continued to embroider soles, hiding her worries.


    Over the years, she had be ustomed to Ning Que¡¯s craziness when solving problems.


    Ning Que had gotten used to being taken care of in such situations.


    ...


    ...


    When the night grewte, the oil burnt out and lights went off.


    Sangsang wasn¡¯t sure when she had fallen asleep in bed in her clothes. She awakened, rubbed her eyes and looked at the half-light dawn sky outside the window. She saw that Ning Que was still standing by the desk in his writing posture.


    Sangsang walked over to open the window and turned to the desk, finding that there was not even a single dot of ink on the white paper. Yet Ning Que was extremely frail after a whole night of suffering, and his dry eyes werepletely bloodshot.


    Sangsang stood by the window and stared into Ning Que¡¯s eyes for a long time. Ning Que did not see her at all. She shook her head and went out to cook.


    It wasn¡¯t until Ning Que was covered by a steaming hot towel on the face that he recovered from his selflessness. He sat in the chair with his whole body aching as if it had gotten rusty.


    Ning Que rubbed his face with hot water, brushed his teeth and then drank a pot of tea to recover his strength. He took the Water Volume from the desk and put it into his sleeve before leaving for the Academy.


    Standing in front of the Old Brush Pen Shop, he turned to Sangsang. After a moment of silence, he said, "The problems I am encountering this time are more troublesome than those before. It may take a few more nights. From tonight onwards, rather than stay upte with me, take good care of yourself; even though you haven¡¯t been sick for almost a year. If I wear out, you can look after me. However, if both of us fall ill, it will be impossible to make Aunty Wu next doore to take care of us. "


    Sangsang nodded.


    By the time Ning Que arrived at the Academy, study rooms had already begun sses. Aftering up to the old library alone, he took a deep breath and went out into the mist of the mountain.


    The elegant dawn light and beautiful cliffndscape appeared out of the mist.


    Ning Que had rested on the horse carriage traveling from Chang¡¯an City to the Academy, so he was slightly better in mentality. He seemed more vigorous as he enjoyed the beautiful scenery. He held the book tightly in his sleeves and considered lying on thewn to read. The back of the mountain of the Academy might be a fantastic environment for perceiving Talisman Taoism.


    At this moment, a clear voice was heard beside him.


    "Younger Brother... ah, you¡¯re here."


    Ning Que turned around and saw Seventh Sister. She was wearing a yellow spring Academy uniform. Hurriedly, he said, "Seventh Sister, it¡¯s a great honor to meet you here."


    Seventh Sister looked curiously at him. With concern she asked, "You seem to be in a bad state of mind today?"


    The biggest difference between Senior Sisters and Senior Brothers was that Senior Sisters were female, and Seventh Sister was a young and pretty woman. No matter how old a man was, he would never show his incapability by admitting that he was in a bad mental state in front of a beautiful young woman. Therefore, Ning Queughed and replied, "I entered the back of the mountain yesterday, so I was too excited to get a good night¡¯s rest."


    "Oh, then I don¡¯t need to worry anymore."


    Seventh Sister took a note out from her sleeve and gave it to Ning Que. With a smile, she said, "You know I¡¯m responsible for maintaining the array tactics in the mist now. This month is just the right time for an overhaul, so I need a lot of materials. Would you please fetch some from the front yard? You can find Professor Wen Lan directly. "


    Ning Que opened his mouth slightly, remembering Chen Pipi¡¯scentughter yesterday, and began to feel regret for his reply just now. He answered with a bitter face, "Yes, Seventh Sister."


    "Please be quick," Sister giggled and continued with some embarrassment, "Some fabric materials need to be changed, thus I have to bother you to help me."


    Ning Que opened his mouth wider. helplessly pointing at the thick fog behind him, he said, "Sister, you mean you want me to go into the fog and help you change the materials? I have... poor vision in the fog."


    Seventh Sisterughed with her sleeves covering her mouth like a weak woman, but she suddenly patted his chest like a strong man, and said, "I won¡¯t let you be blind in the mist. I need to check the array center and have no other choice, but to bother you."


    "Don¡¯t mention it. It¡¯s no bother," Ning Que said, opening his eyes. "Or should I ask Chen Pipi toe help us? It may be faster if we do it together."


    "Younger Brother, although you were familiar with him before ascending the mountain, he is now your Twelfth Brother after all. You should use the correct title." Seventh Sister looked at him with a sweet smile. "The Second floor of the Academy is not so pedantic as other sects in the world, but we still need to pay attention to matters such as honoring teachers and brothers, caring for friends and esteeming the truth."


    Ning Que understood what she meant and was not eligible to refuse her. He was merely a freshman and Younger Brother of the Second floor of the Academy.


    ...


    ...


    On the second day, when Ning Que came to the Academy and entered the back of the mountain, he looked rather haggard. The redness in his dry eyes was worse. He had not slept for two nights. Yesterday he had worked for Seventh Sister like a coolie running all over the entire mountain, so he had had intimate contact with the magical array tactical in the fog for the first time. However, his mental state had be worse to the extreme.


    Yesterday Senior Seventh Sister had said that the overhaul might take at least a month and that it had to be finished before the Headmaster of the Academy and eldest Brother returned. When Ning Que remembered this outside of the mist, he felt a chill throughout his whole body. He quickly slipped into the shadowed woods in the back of the mountain and lowered his body as a vole.


    He took an unusual Mountain Path, and only walked to the depth of the grass and forest. Seeing that theke as a mirror on the cliff was getting smaller and smaller and the waterfall between the cliffs at the opposite side was bing thinner and thinner, Ning Que could not help feeling happy. He assumed that Seventh Sister would certainly not be able to find him anymore. He rubbed his tired and tingling cheeks, and looked towards the distance leaning on a cedar, which seemedfortable.


    "Erm, someone¡¯s here on the mountain? Erm, it¡¯s actually you? Erm, why are you here? To bring us food?"


    Suddenly Ning Que heard two vigorous and tired voices from behind a hardy pine. He was sure that there were two people speaking, but the sounds magically mixing together seemed toe from the same person.


    Ning Que was shocked. He looked back and found two men of an unknown age, with long beards and messy hair. They were sitting on the opposite sides of a stone table beside the pine. It waste spring and there was a lot of heat even in the mountain. Yet strangely, the two men were still dressed in thick Academy winter uniforms, with stains all over them. He could not guess how long it had been since their uniforms had been washed.


    He immediately guessed that the two men were Fifth Brother and Eighth Brother, since Chen Pipi had told him about them. He forcibly suppressed his shock and respectfully gave a deep bow, saying, "I¡¯m Ning Que. It¡¯s my honor to see you here."


    "Younger Brother, it¡¯s good to see you. Come over here."


    Said the man with dirty beard and hair in an exhausted voice. Ning Que did not know if it was Sixth Brother or Eighth Brother.


    Ning Que walked over and found that the stone table was carved with dense lines. It had be a stone chessboard, with dozens of ck and white chess pieces, a few in the east and a few in the west. Ning Que did not know what it meant.


    He was suddenly startled when he looked down and saw that one of Senior Brothers¡¯ hands had reached his arms.


    " Brother..."


    "I¡¯m your Eighth Brother."


    "Eighth Brother... Why do you put your hand on my arm?"


    Eighth Brother shakily withdrew his hand, and asked nkly, "Younger Brother, why don¡¯t you have food with you?"


    Ning Que was speechless. He wondered if they were two children who would ask for candy from each person they met.


    "Younger Brother... no, Twelfth Brother came to tell us the night beforest that you would be responsible for bringing us food from now on. He did note to us yesterday, and neither did you." Eighth Brother watched Ning Que and said in a frightened voice, "Younger Brother, we haven¡¯t eaten for two days and two nights. Why haven¡¯t you brought us any food today?"


    Ning Que opened his mouth wide but was unable to speak. He thought to himself, I have not slept for two days and nights as well, but why should I be charge of their diet? Yet he couldn¡¯t really feel any malice seeing the wistful eyes of the two Brothers. They were like two pitiful babbling birds. Ning Que sighed and said, "I¡¯ll... go find some food for you."


    Fifth Brother, who always kept silent and only showed his yearning for food in his eyes, suddenly cheered up knowing that he was about to have food and would not starve to death. He stroked his jaw and said, "Hey... one or two days of hunger won¡¯t kill us."


    Eighth Brother stretched out three fingers and pointed them at Fifth Brother. In a trembling voice, he said, "You idiot, we haven¡¯t eaten for three days."


    It seemed Fifth Brother could not see the three fingers right under his nose. Instead, he looked at Ning Que and said, "Next time, you¡¯re first."


    Eighth Brother withdrew his fingers and nodded his head in agreement, saying, "Not bad, that¡¯s something serious."


    Looking at the Brothers nearly starving to death, Ning Que thought that they were destined to die of hunger.


    ...


    ...


    On the third day as Ning Que left the Old Brush Pen Shop at Lin 47th Street, the paper on the desk was still as white and clean as the first snow, without any ink blotches. The morning light was shining on his face, making him appear haggard and exhausted. His eyes were extremely bloodshot.


    He walked out of the mist and headed towards the mountain. He was blocked by a brush of light yellow after taking just a few steps. Seventh Sister gently watched him and said, "Younger Brother, I know you must have been busy yesterday, but not today, right?"


    Ning Que stared at Seventh Sister. He raised the heavy meal box in his right hand, and answered bitterly, " Sister, I spent the whole day ying chess with Fifth Brother and Eighth Brother. Now I¡¯m anxious to bring them something to eat, or else they may actually starve to death."


    "I see," Seventh Sister raised her brows slightly. "Don¡¯t waste your time on those two nerds. ying chess and lyre, after all, is meaningless. If you can help me overhaul the array tactical, it will probably be beneficial for your cultivation."


    Ning Que repeatedly said yes. He promised her that he would go see her embroidering in theke pavilion and help maintain the array tactical, after he went down the mountain. Only after giving her such a promise, was he able to get away. However, he knew in his heart that he would never go down the mountain to meet herter.


    Under the pine, the Brothers who were too hungry to speak were still staring at the chess board. Ning Que put down the meal box, and said, " Brothers,e and eat please."


    The food that Sangsang had preparedst night was still warm, and it smelled good when it was opened. Brothers were trembling to sit straight and started to eat, ruefully looking up at Ning Que from time to time and uttering vague exmations that were filled with regret.


    "Younger Brother does not hide his dullness. He¡¯s really clumsy, judging from his chess ying."


    "Younger Brother has never yed chess before."


    Yesterday Ning Que had lost twelve times. The Brothers finally confirmed that thed was one of the legendary chess rookies. They no longer asked him to y with them, which was a real blessing andfort for Ning Que.


    After bringing them the food, Ning Que went deep into the mist.


    He decided to make good use of the stolen half day and rest or study the books Master Yan Se had left.


    However, he¡¯d barely taken two steps when a man walked out of the jungle and grabbed his sleeves. Senselessly he asked,


    "Younger Brother, where are you from? Where are you going?"


    Startled, Ning Que stared at Eleven Brother with his silver hair. Suddenly he burst into tears. Fortunately, Eleven Brother did not ask who the little Younger Brother was, or Ning Que might have fainted on the spot. After a moment of silence, he let go of Eleven Brother¡¯s wrist and ran down the mountain, shouting, "Seventh Sister, where are you? I¡¯ming to help you."


    In theke pavilion, Seventh Sister¡¯s fingers, which were pinching an embroidery needle stiffened. She looked up towards the forest in the mountain, thinking in surprise, "How diligent the newly-enrolled little Younger Brother is! Compared to him, Pipi ispletely a sluggard."


    In the small courtyard before the waterfall, Second Brother raised his eyebrows in satisfaction, appreciating the proud white geese down the stairs. "It¡¯s been dreary in the back of the mountain for many years. The Younger Brothers and Sisters are all shameless. Finally, we have a Younger Brother who is focused on cultivation. How could I not feel happy?


    Somewhere in the mountain, Chen Pipi stood eating a drumstick behind a thatched cottage. He cleaned his oily face with his hand and turned to look into the depths of the mountain. He gasped in shock. "As if you¡¯re so humble and mncholy to loudly dere out, just to charm Sister. Ning Que, I¡¯m not your match indeed!"


    The vertical bamboo flute and lyre gradually stopped in the forest and a conversation could be heard.


    "I just realized we forgot one thing."


    "Yes, we haven¡¯t yet invited little Younger Brother to listen to the song weposedst month."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que had lived life to the max after he entered the Second floor of the Academy. He was so active that he was exhausted almost to death. The brush in the Old Brush Pen Shop still hadn¡¯t fallen and the white paper was still as white as snow. He was busy with many things; he spent nights solving problems without falling asleep, he went to the Academy in the early mornings and brought food and water to the Brothers.


    Eleventh Brother liked to discuss philosophical issues together and if he wanted to get rid of him, he had to be Seventh Sister¡¯s coolie and admire the Brothers¡¯ newpositions. As he sat among the long grass sleepily nodding his head, he was unexpectedly regarded as a musical talent in the eyes of the two Brothers. They thought Ning Que was nodding to show praise and understood the meaning of the song.


    The hot towel that Sangsang handed over was getting hotter and hotter, but still could not wash his fatigue away. He spent days and nights floating in the vast and mysterious sea of the Talisman Taoism, growing tired of Brothers¡¯ and Sisters¡¯ hospitality. Ning Que¡¯s eyes were bloodshot, full of red veins, frustration and dullness. His fingers exposed outside the sleeves kept drawing talismans in the air, depicting the thousands of Fu characters that he had silently remembered in his brain. He looked like a fool indeed.


    Chu Youxian stood in the meadow of the Academy. He peered at Ning Que and assuming he was miserable, he asked in shock, "What makes you so?"


    Situ Yn and Jin Wucai passed Ning Que the invitations from their families inviting him to gatherings in their mansions on behalf of the elders. Hearing Chu Youxian¡¯s words, they were quite taken aback by Ning Que¡¯s extremely weary face.


    Ning Que took the two invitations and pressed them into his arms. After giving a numb greeting bow with his hands folded in front, he walked towards the back mountain again. He appeared to be losing his wits.


    Chu Youxian, Situ Yn and Jin Wucai, watched Ning Que¡¯s figure from behind as he walked slowly in front. They were too astonished to utter a word. Situ Yn shook her head vigorously to drive Ning Que¡¯s ghost-like face out of her mind, murmuring, "Is there a ghost on the Second floor?"


    ...


    ...


    "Damn it! You saw a ghost!"


    Chen Pipi was so scared that he retreated backwards twenty meters. He did note back until after a long period of hesitation. He stared speechlessly at Ning Que.


    Ning Quenguidly replied, "It is you who has seen a ghost."


    Chen Pipi nodded, and earnestly said, "Yes, you actually look like a ghost now."


    Ning Que nced nkly toward the forest, saying, "I did see ghosts. In the back mountain, I saw two hungry dead ghosts who were so crazy in ying chess that they even wished to be fed with food; two elegant ghosts who were addicted to ying vertical bamboo flute and lyre to recreate themselves and who insisted on demanding I enjoy theirposition without even discovering I was actually asleep as I sat there; and another philosophical ghost who always asked nonsense questions when meeting a person..."


    He turned to look at Chen Pipi. With pain in his eyes, he said, "And you, a coward with no righteousness."


    "I know this is a non-human life, but don¡¯t forget I¡¯ve been in this life for several years," Chen Pipi looked at Ning Que and continued, "But no matter how hard it is, I haven¡¯t be what you are. What has caused you to be like this?"


    "I was following Master Yan Se in learning Talisman Taoism," Ning Que replied, looking at him nkly. "It has been a long time, yet I¡¯ve learned nothing. It¡¯s really difficult without direction and mind. I¡¯m not happy about it."


    "Did you use the Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong?"


    "I used everything I knew, but still couldn¡¯t find the right method."


    Ning Que slowly bowed his head and said with exhaustion, "I actually fear difficulty. I feel a bit desperate... you know? This is the first time in my life to feel desperate in learning."


    Chen Pipi recalled Ning Que¡¯s desperate performances in cultivation, and then nodded his head.


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "Even in the City of Wei, when I found I was incapable of cultivating, I was not so desperate and so eager to give it up as I am now. Because when I fell asleep at that time, I always felt like I was in meditation. Yet in front of those ssics on Talisman, I still know clearly that I can¡¯t aplish it even if I can get into a sleep-like state of meditation."


    Chen Pipi looked at his haggard cheeks and dim eyes, and suddenly said, "I¡¯ll take you to a ce and show you someone."


    Ning Que asked, "Where? Who?"


    "Don¡¯t let Eleventh Brother hear what you asked," Chen Pipi jokingly replied.


    Ning Que wanted tough but was too tired to even raise his eyebrows.


    Looking at Ning Que¡¯s poor appearance, Chen Pipi sighed. He took him by the sleeves and walked towards the back of the mountain.


    Aftering to a cliff, Chen Pipi stopped. Staring at Ning Que, he said, "Last time when you reached the top of the mountain, you saw an old gentleman and regarded him as your Brother, but in actuality, he wasn¡¯t."


    Ning Que remembered the old gentleman. He said, "You said you didn¡¯t know what to call him."


    Chen Pipi replied, "I really don¡¯t know what to call him. The gentleman entered the back mountain of the Academy very early on, even earlier than eldest Brother and Second Brother. Logically we might call him uncle, but the professors told me that he didn¡¯t belong to the Academy."


    Ning Que began to cheer up, imagining a big BOSS from legends hiding in the branches, like a wise man who gave advice to heroes. Peering at Chen Pipi, he asked, "The old gentleman... is he good at Talisman Taoism?"


    "No," Chen Pipi said shaking his head. "He doesn¡¯t know Talisman Taoism nor ways of cultivation."


    Ning Que asked, "Then why are you taking me to see him?"


    "You said this is the first time in your life when you¡¯re afraid of difficulty and want to give up. Do you really like cultivation?"


    Ning Que kept silent for a long time before firmly replying, "I do like it."


    Chen Pipi looked at him and said, "If you like it, you should stick to it. I am showing you the old gentleman because I want you to know a person who is really crazy about a type of Taoism will never give up."


    "If the old man can¡¯t cultivate... what is he obsessed with? What does he like?"


    "Reading..." Chen Pipi said with an aggravated tone. "He likes reading."


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 175: Life is Full of Craziness (II)

    Chapter 175: Life is Full of Craziness (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    At the end of Spring, green trees and dense flowers matched perfectly to contribute to a beautiful scene in the South School of Haotian. Deep inside the secluded temple, Li Qingshan, the Master of Nation of Tang Empire looked at the sluttery old Taoist on the opposite side after a long period of silence and said, "I always think there are some problems with the method."


    "What¡¯s the problem?" Master Yan Se looked at the teacup on the teapoy, thinking of the teacup in the pavilion that day.


    Li Qingshan answered, "Ning Que has great potential, but after all he is a green hand in Talisman Taoism. He is like a piece of nk paper waiting to be painted, and that Talisman Taoism has inherited the exquisite knowledge, which is acquired through your lifelongprehension. The decade of ssics about talisman is even the total essence umted for hundreds of years by our South School. But Senior Brother, all you did is to throw them to Ning Que and be indifferent to him. It is like pouring a basin of ink to that nk paper, which will, in no way, produce any delicate piece of calligraphy but a piece of smelly paper with ck ink."


    Master Yan Se went silent.


    Li Qingshan reluctantly said, "Now Ning Que is like a small empty teapot, which has been newly opened with a small break, but Senior Brother, you then forced to inject a whole ocean into it. Don¡¯t you worry that he fails to handle the pressure and break apart?"


    "If that kid knows youpared him to a teapot, perhaps it don¡¯t bother to inject the ocean of knowledge or something, because he will directly be enraged and burst into pieces."


    Master Yan Se smiled, and then solemnly looked at Li Qingshan, saying, "Ning Que is a piece of nk paper, but thergest one I have ever seen. Be it you or me, we are all inexperienced and unsure about drawing on it. I can only throw this basin of ink onto the paper and let him draw it himself. Now that it is impossible to paint with a bald brushpen, then let the piece of nk paper do it by itself. As to what can be finally drawn, it depends on his understanding and perseverance."


    "As for the analogy ofparing him to teapot... I admit that it is possibly unbearable for him to absorb all those essences of what Iprehended during my past life and those umted in South School for hundreds of years in such a short time. Yet Younger Brother, you must admit although this method is simple and crude, it is the quickest and the most effective way. So long as this small teapot is not broken, then the tea will overflow it some day."


    "But it is also the most dangerous and unreliable way."


    Looking at Master Yen Se, Li Qingshan muffled, "What if that piece of nk paper is directly pasted to the ground by the ink without even drawing by itself? What if this small teapot break into pieces before the fragrant tea can be forced out from its spout? Ning Que is not only the sessor of you, but also the disciple of Headmaster of Academy, and now, he is even a great young man whom the Emperor ced high hopes on. I do not understand why you need to push him so hard? Obviously, there are many more conservative and reliable methods."


    "Because he is anxious, so am I. The whole world seems to be anxious too."


    Master Yan Se looked up to see the north sky outside the South School, sentimentally saying, "To be a Divine Talisman Master within ten years? It doesn¡¯t meet the ambition of this student, or the ambition of mine. The world is gradually in turmoil, so it is hard for Ning Que to enjoy a stable and conservative environment for cultivation. The key point is, I recently found out that there isn¡¯t much time left."


    Looking at the hoary and old face of Master Yan Se, Li Qingshan sorrowfully said after quite a long time of silence, "I see."


    Master Yan Se smiled. He stood up difficultly from the floor and walked to the outside of the temple under the help of a middle-aged and charming female Taoist.


    Looking at his hoary and old back, Li Qingshan suddenly said, "Senior Brother, stop hanging out recently. How about staying in South School to chat with me? Although we belong to the same school for over a decade, we haven¡¯t even had a game of chess."


    Without turning back, Master Yan Se waved his hand smilingly and said in a hoarse voice, "You are not a young and beautifuldy, hence, it¡¯s really boring to y with you. Don¡¯t worry, if I¡¯m dying, I will definitelye back to see you for thest time."


    Li Qingshan shifted his eyesight to the small teapot where hot mist wasing out from its spout on the stove next to the table, without uttering more words. He figured in his heart, "Since you are determined to be the stove that boils the pot of tea, then I can only find ways to help that fellow."


    After leaving the Temple of South School of Haotian, Master Yan Se directly went to House of Red Sleeves to the small courtyard he was most familiar with.


    Dewdrop was now counting notes that she had earned with her maidservant. They had made a fortune just by selling copies of Chicken Soup Calligraphy. The sudden crack of the door and the sight of the naughty old Taoist standing at the door startled them to rise up.


    She used to think that this obscene Taoist was just generous, thus treating him with patience and hospitality. But the recognition of his true status had driven her to wee him at the quickest speed, without pretending to be maidenly.


    "The master hase."


    The girl Dewdrop deeply squatted to show her particrly respect towards him. She had intended to be more enthusiastic, but was too nervous to do so at the thought of the fact that this Taoist was said to be as important as those first-ss figures in fairnd.


    Making several strangeughs, Master Yan Se reached his hand to slightly wrest her plump waist, saying, "You don¡¯t need to be so nervous even if you know my status. After all, I am the one that have to pay, so I should please you."


    Dewdrop saw the situation and cuddled into his arms as she said with embarrassment, "You¡¯re here to tease me again. I thought you were a recluse with no fixed abode and would not stay in this earthy world for too long like those immortals. I was justmenting that we wouldn¡¯t see each other again."


    This had enraged Master Yan Se, who then said, "The cosmetics you wear are much more in my favor than the ink on talisman paper, then how can I bear to ignore them?"


    ...


    ...


    A few steps up the cliff, there was a cave of about ten meters height, above which birds were quickly flying in and out. On the gentle slope outside the cave stood a small two storey high wooden building, the surface of which was full of mottles after going through wind and storm and filled with traces of bird feces. It was not known how many years it had been standing in such a way under this range of cliff.


    Ning Que smelt a familiar smell although they were still some distance away from the small building, then he asked with his face turning slightly pale, "Do you smell it?"


    Chen Pipi exhaled and nkly said, "What smell?"


    "You even don¡¯t get such dense smell?" Ning Que stared at his eyes, and trembling said, "It¡¯s the stink from the grainy paper made in Huangzhou and the ink, which is making me sick now. Why do you have to bring me here?"


    Chen Pipi was sure that beside the old schr in that building there must be paper and ink, but he really didn¡¯t smell the smell of ink and paper which made Ning Que so sick with a pale face. He reached out his hand to tweak his nose, thinking that this guy must have been studying Talisman Taoism so crazily recently, to the extent that he had be so sensitive.


    Ning Que raised his sleeve to cover his nose and followed him to the wooden building. As he approached the building, the smell of paper and ink became denser, which made him even more ufortable. In recent days, he persisted in grinding the ink and carefully studying the paper yet was unable to write a stroke, so subconsciously he was quite fearful and disgusted by the smell.


    Below the wooden building there was an open stone tform, on whichy arge table. On the table, there were mountainouslyrge volumn of books.


    A gray-haired old schr was sitting behind the books.


    The old schr held an old book in his left hand, and a half-bald brushpen in the other. He sometimes chanted sentences facing the old book, sometimes wrote some figures on the paper with the brushpen. It was not known what wonderful things he came across when his long eyebrows drifted up to the air and his facial expressions brightened as if he wanted to dance.


    The old schr was too focused on reading and copying books to be affected by the chuckling flock of birds above the cave or the approaching Chen Pipi and Ning Que. It was as if when he began to read, the whole world would vanish in an instant except for the book he was reading.


    "Wonderful! Wonderful!"


    The old schr had found another piece of wonderful words in the volume and thus copied them down on the paper at the quickest speed. Then he licked the half-bald brushpen, as if it had the most delicious taste in the world, which should trigger him to dance with delight.


    Looking at the old schr, Ning Que turned back to Chen Pipi with great confusion, saying, "Indeed he is reading. But what¡¯s the use of seeing him reading? Is it helpful to my pursuit of Talisman Taoism?"


    "Eldest Brother once told us, many years ago, the Headmaster of Academy found this old schr had a big potential in cultivation, yet was directly refused by the old schr."


    Looking at the old schr who was crazily reading and copying books behind the table, Chen Pipi couldn¡¯t help but shrugging his shoulders and said, "In his eyes, reading is the most meaningful thing in this world. As for cultivation, it is really a waste of time."


    "This old gentleman does nothing but reading and he thinks nothing else worth doing. Even the Headmaster of Academy doesn¡¯t know how to deal with him. Moreover, he is bad-tempered, who will be enraged when interrupted by others during reading. Then gradually, no one in this Back Mountain of the Academy would like tomunicate with him, and even the best-tempered Eldest Brother won¡¯t bother with him."


    Ning Que looked at the old schr behind the volumes of books, and said with sympathy, "Perhaps reading makes him pedantic."


    "Yourment is still polite." Chen Pipi shook his head and said, "When he rejected the invitation of the Headmaster of Academy to pursue cultivation, Second Brothermented, "Reading has driven him to be a fool."


    A smile appeared on Ning Que¡¯s face, which then froze in an instant. Ning Que turned back to Chen Pipi and asked with hesitation, "Wait... The reason why you take me to visit this old schr who was said to be driven by reading into a fool, is that you want to prove, I will eventually be a fool like him after my crazy study on Talisman these days?"


    "The opposite is true." Chen Pippi took him to the stone tform and said, "Although we don¡¯t like the old schr, we still admire him. The purpose I bring you here is to tell you, your perseverance and hardworking that you think can prevail over your peers can actually be achieved by many others in this world. Or they can do it better than you."


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t understand what he wanted to express. So he just followed him to the stone tform, during which he suddenly came upon one thing, asking, "Besides this old schr, are there any others of a higher generation in the mountain? Do we have an uncle?"


    "We used to have a Youngest Uncle, who I¡¯ve heard to be that is the most vigorous figure in this world."


    Chen Pipi turned back and answered, "But sad to say, only Eldest Brother and Second Brother have seen him."


    ...


    ...


    Up the stone tform, Chen Pipi made a bow with two hands folded in front towards the old schr and said with a smile, "Schr, long time no see."


    Ning Que followed him to make a bow too, feeling it funny when he heard Chen Pipi called him schr.


    But the schr seemed to be deaf-eared, as if he didn¡¯t see the two men who hade to the front of him.


    Then Chen Pippi said it loudly again, "Schr, long time no see!"


    His voice spread into the cave from besides the building and returned after several echoes which sounded even louder and clearer. The voice had startled those flocks of birds that were busy with nesting or other chores, which then scattered in the sky with frightened screams.


    It was until then did the old schr wake up from reading and looked up confusedly at the two men who seemed to suddenly appear before the table. All of a sudden his expression froze on his face, where one could see the disgust from his eyes. Then he shouted in a hoarse voice, "Why do youe here again! Go away! Quickly! Don¡¯t interrupt my reading!"


    Chen Pipi took a glimpse at Ning Que, shrugged, and then exined to the old schr with a smile, "I bring the Younger Brother to you."


    "What is the good of your Younger Brother? Anyway he is not a book!"


    He fetched out his hands tob the gray hair drifting on his face towards the back of his head, and stared at Chen Pipi, angrily saying, "Last time you told me that the Academy would enroll a Younger Brother, and a representative form higher generation should be at present to show the seriousness of the scene, and you cheated me to stay at the peak for a whole night. Howe you take another Younger Brother here? You want to cheat me to stay there again?"


    "Oh, Heaven! Oh, Earth!"


    He looked at Chen Pipi with great detest and bitterness as if he had killed his father,ining, "Do you know how many books I can read for a whole night?"


    Chen Pipi answered angrily, "That day you brought seven books with you to the peak, Aren¡¯t they enough?"


    "There¡¯s no light on the peak!"


    "The stars there are brighter than light!"


    "As for reading, we have to borrow from sunlight or themplight, and how can we use the starlight!"


    "Why not?"


    "No feeling!"


    "Are you reading a book, or feeling?"


    "Idiot! Of course I have to feel good in reading!"


    "Idiot! One can fall in love under starlight, why can¡¯t you find feeling in reading under starlight?"


    Ning Que had already been stunned at their dispute and verbal fight beside the table. It was only until now did he realize this man was really turned into a pedantic by book, and started to believe why those Senior Brothers behind the Academy didn¡¯t show him much respect.


    The schr¡¯s face was flushed and his chest constantly fluctuating. Obviously he was notparable to Chen Pipi in quarreling because he was advanced in age and poor in health. What¡¯s more, he quickly realized that the purpose of Chen Pipi to pay a special visit here and quarrel with him was clearly to distract him from reading books. Since he was so sure that he had figured out the evil intention of Chen Pipi, how could he allow Chen Pipi to make it?


    "I won¡¯t talk to you!" He grievedly said, "How can I finish reading so many books if I don¡¯t make full use of my time? You knew what you are doing now? Are you trying to kill me? You are destroying my life!"


    Finishing this sentence, the schr began to focus on reading and copying books again, regardless of the verb attacks from Chen Pipi.


    Ning Que frowned at the thickly-dotted books on the bookshelf in the building, saying, "Although there are many books here, if you concentrate on reading, you can quickly finish reading them even if those books in the old library of the Academy was ounted. What has made him so painful?"


    Upon hearing these words, Chen Pipi shook his head with a bitter smile and led him to the cave.


    It was strange that inside the cave it remained dry. From the crack between the rocks above a beam of faint sunlight shone in to lighten the cave, which was hence not so dim. Some unknown trees grew in the cave, with constant chirping of birds sometimes heard around them.


    Looking up and down at the cave, Ning Que rested his eyes on the cliff wall, which suddenly made him stiffened and speechless.


    There were many wooden frames on the cliff, looking like a bookshelf magnified for numerous times.


    There are no nests, no treasures, no statues, nor potted nts but only one thing on those wooden shelves.


    Those were books.


    Countless books.


    A whole cliff of books.


    A mountain of books.


    ...


    ...


    "Since the establishment of the Academy, it has never ceased collecting books. Over the past thousands of years, numerous books have been stored here, ranging from ancient books to more recent ones. So it is really painful for the schr to read so many books."


    ncing at Ning Que, Chen Pipimented over those dense booksying as high as ten meters, "If knowledge can be calcted based on the number of books, then at least seventy percent of knowledge in the world is in the Academy."


    In Ning Que¡¯s eyes, the whole cliff of books was as astonishing as that inky ocean aroused on the Mountain Path during mountaineering, which pressed him too hard to take a breath. Then he barely woke up from the astonishment after a long time.


    Climbing up along the steep ropeway on the edge of the cave, they came to the third shelf, and then continued to move ahead for about ten meters on a wooden te which only allowed one person to pass each time. Ning Que stopped to look back at those dense books just before his eyes, gradually feeling confused. If those books had been collected from thousands of years ago, why they just grew slightly yellowish and faded even without being eroded by the environment. What was more strange was why those books exposed in the open air were not covered with thick dust?


    Chen Pipi, who probably guessed his confusion, said with a smile, "When you enter a certain state, you will probably know it¡¯s quite easy to remove dust from those books. With just a slight rise of your finger, the wind in the cave will do it for you."


    Ning Que was suddenly enlightened, who then immediately thought, if Sangsang could pursue cultivation, it would be easier for her to do the housework. While thinking, he randomly drew a book from the shelf, the cover of which wrote "Notes about Liangjing". Figuring it might be notes from a man of letter, he opened the book where words like white butt, rubbing to and from, protruding tongues and newly stripping bumped into his eyes, making him somewhat stiffened.


    He asked in great surprise, "Even erotic books are collected?"


    Chen Pipi answered, "The Headmaster of Academy said to open a book is always beneficial, and then how can we decide if it is good or not based on its title? If there is shit in your heart, you will regard everything as shit. If you are obscene, you will be disturbed by just reading seven volumes of sealed books. So they won¡¯t disturb you if you don¡¯t regard them as erotic books in heart."


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t help but looked admiringly at looked at the solemnness on his plump face, sincerely asking, "Then what do you regard them as?"


    "Me?" Chen Pipi waved his sleeves and calmly answered, "I haven¡¯t reached that state. Since they are erotic books,I can¡¯t regard them as other things. So don¡¯t push yourself too hard in such things."


    Ning Que looked at him and sighed with no more words.


    ...


    ...


    To a man who was keen on reading and regarded reading as the most important and the only thing in his life, a whole cliff of books which seemed to be countless was no doubt a big treasure, and also a big tragedy. Because it was after all an impossible mission to finish reading countless books during one¡¯s lifetime.


    Out of the Cave, Ning Que looked back at the old schr who was holding that volume of book, who sometimes chanted or copied books, to show his happiness or sorrowfulness. Then he somewhat understood why he behaved so extremely and anxiously.


    So he walked to the table, and made a deep bow with two hands folded in the front towards the aged schr, sincerely rathercking in a deep gift to the old schr, sincerely consulting, "Uncle, if finally you can¡¯t finish reading those books, what will you do? Won¡¯t you feel disappointed? What drives you to read on?"


    Unlike Chen Pipi who called him schr, Ning Que called him uncle, because he had entered the mountain earlier than him and was older than him, and more because Ning Que had a sense of inexplicable respect towards those who were persistent enough to do things in such an extreme.


    Perhaps he had found the sincerity from Ning Que¡¯s tone, or perhaps he had found something inmon with Ning Que, the aged schr didn¡¯t wave his hand impatiently to drive Ning Que away, instead, he slowly put down the volume of book.


    Then he recalled, "I forgot how old I was when I started to study in the mountain, but I remember when I was twenty, I thought myself to be able to finish reading all the books in the world."


    Ning Que quietly listened to him.


    The schr continued, "But when I was fifty, I found it was impossible, because while I was reading, others were constantly writing new books. Moreover, as I grew older, I became less energetic and read slower. What¡¯s more horrible thing is that I started to forget all those books that I read at a young age now."


    Looking at Ning Que¡¯s eyes, he smiled and said, "If you can¡¯t recall the books you have read, how you can say you have read them? So I have to pick up those books again and began to copy them while reading for fear that I may forget them again."


    Ning Que asked, "Then won¡¯t that be even slower?"


    "Yes." The schr sighed and replied, "So I¡¯ve already know that I could not finish reading all the books of the world in my life, even just those collected by the Academy."


    Ning Que asked with his eyebrows slightly frowned up, "Won¡¯t you feel disappointed?"


    "Far more than that,pletely desperate."


    The schr shook his head and said, "The day I realized I couldn¡¯t finish reading all the books collected here, I felt the whole world copsed. I didn¡¯t want to eat nor sleep; even... didn¡¯t want to read books."


    Ning Que could imagine how mentally-shaken a man was when he chose to stop reading books when all he could do was to read books and nothing else for the past years. He naturally rted it with his mental state these days and sincerely consulted after a moment of silence, "Uncle, How did you ovee the barrier?"


    "Because I asked myself a question."


    The schr said, "Do you really like reading itself, or reading all the books?"


    "Not after a long time I came up with the answer and what I really like is reading itself."


    "Now I am already 102 years old, and perhaps will close my eyes forever some day. But I can never be sure when I will die, then so long as I continue reading, what does it matter if I can¡¯t finish reading them? I canfort myself that every minute and every second before I die, I have been doing my favorite things. Then I will feel happy and satisfied."


    ...


    ...


    "Do you really like cultivation? Or killing others after reaching a certain state in cultivation?"


    "I need to think carefully about this issue."


    Walking on the Mountain Path behind the Academy, Ning Que recalled his previous dialogue with the old schr. Faintly he understood something very important. Listening to the melodious music from the cliff terrace, he slowly stopped.


    Chen Pipi looked at him and asked after quite a long time of silence, "Do you figure it out?"


    "Yes, what I really like is cultivation itself."


    Apanied by the melodious music, Ning Que thought of these things encountered in the Back Mountain of the Academy these days.


    Two Senior Brothers were addicted in chess game regardless of their hunger. Two others were immersed in vertical bamboo flute and lyre regardless of the surroundings. Eleventh Brother wore hairpins allover his head, who looked like a madman but was regardless of others¡¯ peculiar eyes. The uncle reading outside the cave persisted in reading books so enthusiastically although he was already one hundred years old.


    He also recalled the year when he rolled around in the woods of Min Mountain for the excitement after making some progress in the art of archery, the year when he screamed out of ecstasy with the sharpenness of his knife skill in the frontier fortress of the City of Wei,st year when he smiled towards the stars against the west window of the old library and every night when he became stiffened at the table...


    "Everyone will encounter many problems. If you want to solve these problems, one must concentrate on it and use the impulsion from your craziness. But the craziness must not be as heavy as the mountains thatpressed on your shoulders; instead, it should grow towards the joy which you are yearning for in the deepest of your heart."


    Looking at the beautiful Back Mountain of the Academy, Ning Que said, "I used to be crazy about cultivation, yet I forgot the root of this craziness is my passion in it, where there¡¯s no fabricated hope, fabricated disappointment, nor despair. Life is like answering a set of questions, it is full of different type of craziness and passion. If you like something, then just do it. I believe in the end, one will be able to find the answer to a question."

 Chapter 176: The Damn Flying Sword!

    Chapter 176: The Damn Flying Sword!


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Chen Pipi sincerely praised, "Well said."


    Ning Que shrugged and responded, "I often say some beautiful words that are even beyond my expectation."


    Then they exchanged their eyes andughed.


    It was not noticed when did the melodious music drifting on the cliff terrace stop. And as for the issue of craziness and preference, Ning Que had found a temporary answer, which made him less anxious than he was the previous days. Then he went down the mountain shoulder to shoulder with Chen Pipi, pondering whether he should go to sleep in the old library, after which he might return to the Lin 47th Street to go shopping with Sangsang and rx himself. But unexpectedly, with a gust of swaying in the dense woods along the path, two men walked out of it.


    Fortunately, there are two men here, and then it was impossible to be Eleventh Brother who was most frustrating. Unfortunately, these two men held lyre and flute, wearing loose Academy uniforms, who were exactly Senior Brother Beigong and Ximen addicted in tonality.


    "Little Younger Brother, yesterday when listening to the song, you didn¡¯t nod frequently, so I guess there must be some problems with the song."


    Beigong Weiyang, Ninth Brother, also got blood-streaked eyes. He warmly pulled Ning Que¡¯s sleeves and said, "Last night, Ximen and I stayed for the whole night to make some adjustments in the three sessive sections of the song, which we are satisfied. But after all, it was written by us, so our satisfaction is not reliable. Then I want to invite you to make somements."


    Ximen Buhuo, Tenth Brother, held the Chinese zither and sincerely said, "Little Younger Brother, thank you."


    Chen Pipi looked at Ning Que with sympathy, figuring you had just solved your problems in mentality, but again had to be disturbed by those trifles and chores. As the youngest one in the Back Mountain of the Academy, you have to endure so much pain!"


    Ning Que slightly stiffened. Looking at the burning eyes of the two Senior Brothers, he thought of the old schr attentively reading books beside the cave. So after a moment of silence, he greeted a bow with hands folded in front with a smile and calmly said, "Two Senior Brothers, I am sorry I can¡¯t appreciate the song today."


    "Then what else can you do? Those guys forced you to y chess or debate?" Beigong Weiyang unhappily said with a wave of his sleeve, "Don¡¯t feel embarrassed, I can deny them for you. Don¡¯t they know how precious your time is?"


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t helpughing at his words, shaking his head and saying, "Ninth Brother, today I won¡¯t listen to songs or y chess, nor will I debate with Eleventh Brother. I just want to have a sound sleep."


    Beigong Weiyang gazed at him with wide eyes and asked in confusion, "Why not listen to the song?"


    Ning Que gently replied, "Because I... don¡¯t like it."


    Beigong Weiyang was stunned at his answer. Fumbling the vertical bamboo flute in his hand, he distressedly asked, "Why? I saw you listen happily in the previous times."


    Ning Que answered with a smile, "I just wanted to make the two Senior Brothers happy. In fact, I was not that happy."


    Feeling bewildered, Senior Brother Ximen Buhuo interrupted, "But you frequently nodded your head during listening... "


    Ning Que sighed, "Because I was too sleepy."


    Hearing their dialogue, Chen Pipi was dumbfounded and gently pulled Ning Que¡¯s sleeve to draw him aside, reminding him in a whisper, "How can you speak to a Senior Brother in such a way? Don¡¯t say out even if you really don¡¯t like it."


    Ning Que looked distressedly at him and replied, "But it is the fact."


    Just at this time, a calm and solemn voice came from above the Mountain Path. All of them turned to be severe and less arrogant in an instant, be it the stunned two Senior Brothers or Chen Pipi who were ready to continue reminding Ning Que by further criticism.


    "If I don¡¯t like listening to it, I should say it out. We have to be honest. That¡¯s the virtue of a gentleman."


    Second Brother, who wore an ancient-style crown, walked down from above the Mountain Path with seriousness in his face. He slightly nodded his head to greet his Younger Brothers and appraised Ning Que undisguisedly, "The little Younger Brother really has the virtue of a gentleman. You should learn from him."


    Ning Que lost in his thought at the praise, because this was the first time that he was connected with gentleman, a weird creature in his heart.


    Looking at him, Second Brother nodded his head with a smile, and then he turned to Chen Pipi and the other two Younger Brothers, ordering with the resumed seriousness in his face, "From today on, no one is allowed to disrupt the cultivation of this little Younger Brother, or else you will be punished by the Academy regtion."


    He didn¡¯t speak loudly, yet his voice drifted to the far distance without being scattered as if it were a virtually object. Then it echoed loudly in the mountain with the wind and spread to all the other Younger Brothers and Sisters who were under the pine tree, the flower tree or on theke and clearly got the information.


    Beigong Weiyang and Ximen Buhuo had to agree despite their unwillingness, who then couldn¡¯t help peeping at Ning Que. Perhaps they were secretlymenting how uneasy it was to find a Younger Brother sensitive to the beauty of tonality who yet was taken away by the Second Brother.


    Of course Eldest Brother ranked No. 1 in the Back Mountain of the Academy. However, he was so mild person that the Younger Brothers and Sisters all felt intimate with him and thus was not afraid of him. The one they actually revered was this serious and stern Second Brother. As long as he ordered, no one dared to disobey.


    Thinking that Ning Que would no longer be bothered by these Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters, and what he himself had suffered when he freshly entered the mountain, Chen Pipi was very envious of this lucky guy, and meanwhile felt annoyed and unwilling to ept it, so he pretended to seriously ask the Second Brother, "Senior Brother, the array tactical of Cloud Gate is under big modification now, and Seventh Sister needs Ning Que to help her every day, so... "


    His words were not finished and implied bad intention. So Ning Que took a re at Chen Pipi, who rewarded him with a proud look. However, his bloat didn¡¯tst too long. What the Second Brother saidter had indicated what a bad luck that being long-tongued could bring to a person.


    "The modification of the array tactical of Cloud Gate hasn¡¯t finished? What did Seventh Sister do in the half year? Deal with the array eye... ah, it¡¯s really troublesome. The little Younger Brother is still a green hand, and how can he consume his time on such things. Pipi, I remembered I used to practice the array tactical of Cloud Gate with Seventh Sister the year beforest year, and now that you have experience, how about you doing the job?"


    The mouth of Chen Pipi was widely opened, who tried to cry but failed to shed a tear.


    "Little Younger Brother,e with me."


    Holding his sleeves behind, Second Brother slowly walked down the mountain.


    Ning Que patted the shoulder of Chen Pipi with sympathy and then quickly followed him.


    From those chats with Chen Pipi and other Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters, Ning Que knew that Second Brother was a proud and serious man, who was strict with both himself and others, so he somewhat felt afraid of him. However, it was this Second Brother that had solved a big problem for him today, which suddenly changed Ning Que¡¯s impression on him. He felt the Second Brother was absolutely the most lovely person in the world.


    One¡¯s psychological state would definitely affect his or her visual effect. Ning Que slowly followed the Second Brother to the Mirror Lake on the cliff terrace. The rigid gesture and the absolutely even-paced step of Second Brother had turned to admirable self-discipline in Ning Que¡¯s eyes. Even the high crown with the appearance of the rod for beatingundry on the head of the Second Brother became noble and unsullied.


    Then unexpectedly he sighed, "Your state, is really low... "


    Hearing that Second Brother spoke to him, Ning Que quickened his step to follow him and honestly replied, "Yes."


    "The Back Mountain of the Academy has little experience about how to cultivate disciples at No Doubts State."


    Second Brother slowly shook his head and said, "Although Eldest Brother was only at Initial State when he entered the Academy, he was taught by the Headmaster in person. Yet both he and the Headmaster are now on tour in other countries, so even I don¡¯t know what I should teach you."


    Ning Que sank in silence. Although he was a bit disappointed, at the thought that the Headmaster and Eldest Brother will return some day, he was not so anxious.


    While talking, the two went down the Mountain Path and arrived at the beautiful cliff terrace.


    Approaching Mirror Lake, Second Brother took a glimpse at the pavilion in the middle of theke a few paces off and the girl who was embroidering with her head lowered in the pavilion. Suddenly he stopped and after a moment of silence he muffled, "Although the Headmaster and Eldest Brother are both absent, you still have to take knowledge you learn in the Academy as the basis, because after all you are a student of the Academy. Our dignified Academy can¡¯t be defeated by the old naughtyTaoist Yan Se. So tell me, what do you want to learn?"


    Entering the Back Mountain of the Academy, one would really enter the world of cultivation. Ning Que was quite clear what he would encounter here, however, he was too upied these so he got a bad spirit, in addition, those Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters were too absurd, so hepletely forgot the thing. When suddenly asked by the Second Brother, he felt somewhat pleasantly surprised and meanwhile a bit disappointed.


    The world of cultivation was like an ocean, then how to make a choice? After practicing flying sword, one would be a Sword Master, and after practicing Psyche, one would be a Psyche Master. Then how about pursuing Martial Arts? Or perhaps I shall really find a stinkpot to practice and became an unprecedented stinkpot master?


    Suddenly he came upon an important question, so he asked with hesitation, "Senior Brother, is there any conflict between the cultivation of Talisman Taoism and other things?"


    Second Brother stood beside theke and shook his head, answering, "All schools obey the samew, and all the streams will finally flow into the sea. You needn¡¯t care too much about the beginning and the ultimate phase of cultivation, yet you have to pay special attention in the middle part. But you are still a green hand in cultivation, so don¡¯t worry too much about that."


    Looking at the back of the Second Brother, Ning Que pondered it over for a long time with his eyebrows knotted yet still couldn¡¯t make up his mind. He worried that Second Brother might be impatient if he kept silent for too long. Therefore, under this kind of mental pressure, he suddenly remembered that apart from those Array Tactical Masters in Military Ministry he asionally saw from a far distance in the frontier fortress battlefield, the first cultivator he met in his life was the Sword Master on the cross of Northern Mountain Road.


    The first cultivator he killed all by himself was the Sword Master in the smallkeside house, and the first book about cultivation he had read, besides those books about basic knowledge in the old library was Wu Shanyang¡¯s Theory on Haoran Sword . What¡¯s more, he liked the woods of sword behind the meadow of the Academy.


    "Senior Brother... I want to learn Haoran sword."


    Upon hearing those words, Second Brother slowly turned around and looked at Ning Que with a strange look, whose eyes gradually brightened. He praised, "Haoran Sword is not the most wonderful skill, but absolutely most worth learning by men."


    ...


    ...


    The story that Second Brother would teach the newly-enrolled little Younger Brother Haoran Sword had broken the longsted silence of the mountain behing the Academy, where it became rather lively. Those Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters who lived scatteredly in the mountain all walked out of their houses under prees or flower trees and stood here and there on the cliff terrace. They curiously looked at the two men beside the Mirror Lake, pointing to them and whispering to each other from time to time.


    Beigong Weiyang squatted under the bamboo woods, and couldn¡¯t help shaking his head at the two men talking to each other beside theke, saying, "Is the flying sword worth learning? It has little beauty, and what else can we use it to do except killing others?"


    Fifth Brother and Eighth Brother drilled out of the bamboo woods with chess boxes in their hands. Fifth Brother severely patted Beigong¡¯s head mercilessly and reprimanded, "Tiger is quite beautiful, then will you kiss it? The difference between men and beasts is not decided by beauty, but by wisdom. What future he can get if he learn ying flute from you?"


    Fifth Brother looked at the side of the Mirror Lake and shook his head to show his disapproval, "The little Younger Brother will go astray if he learns flying sword with Second Brother. If he learns ying chess from us, even if he cannot be a national yer, he can still have some gains in his wisdom."


    Beigong Weiyang looked at him annoyedly and said, "Fifth Brother, wisdom is not violence. You should not hit my head even if you don¡¯t agree with me."


    Fifth Brother gazed at him and answered, "I am your Senior Brother. Do you mean you can¡¯t ept it if I beat you?"


    Beigong Weiyang moved to the side, muttering, "I ept, and how dare I say no. But now that Second Brother requires the little Younger Brother to learn flying sword, let¡¯s stopining."


    Let¡¯s just neglect those who looked dim on the cliff terrace and who, like what the Senior Brother did, regretfully thumped their chest and stamped their face,menting that the little Younger Brother had been misled by the Second Brother to a wrong road. Second Brother and Ning Que beside theke were at the moment seriously talking with each other shrouded in the genialte Spring breeze.


    "Although you have read Wu Shanyang¡¯s Theory on Haoran Sword, the monograph was written by Mr. Wu Da, a previous schr of the Academy, in histe years. The book was mainly focused on the interaction and conflict between the Haoran Sword Intent and its surroundings."


    Second Brother looked at Ning Que and continued, "This book is even more focused on thew outside the Taoism, which is beyond at scope of knowledge and ability at your state at the moment. So now that you want to learn Haoran Sword, you need to start from the basis."


    Ning Que greeted a bow with hands folded in front towards Second Brother and said, "Please give me some advice."


    "The flying sword is the sword that can fly without the control of man." Second Brother calmly said.


    "Second Brother... is really good at talking nonsense." Ning Que silently thought in his heart, unable to remain calm.


    "The easiest way of using a flying sword is to control Qi of Heaven and Earth by Psyche Power, and then invisibly touch and control the sword to move it around your body. The power of flying swordy in three points: The strength of Psyche Power of the Sword Master; The amount of Qi of Heaven and Earth he could control, his strength of connection with the flying sword and the strength of the sword itself; The subtlety of the sword when it was flying."


    "Although you are still at No Doubts State, you can touch or even control objects by your Psyche Power, so it means your Psyche Power is powerful enough and has a good interaction with objects. But there is still another thing that is decided by your inborn condition, that is, the amount of Qi of Heaven and Earth that you can control."


    Second Brother looked at him and calmly said, "You can take the amount of Qi of Heaven and Earth that a Sword Master can control as an invisible rope in his hand. The more Qi of Heaven and Earth you can control, the stronger and longer the rope will be. Only a rope strong and long enough can carry the sword to a further distance, and you needn¡¯t worry about its being out of control."


    Ning Que said, "I understand."


    Second Brother looked at him and said, "The so-called swordsmanship, is actually different ways of Psyche Power to control Qi of Heaven and Earth to operate the sword. As for Haoran Sword, it will seek through straightness rather than curve. It requires resolution and determination to unsheathe the sword. If it is powerful enough, it can break through all barriers. I will dictate the Haoran Sword tactic to you, so listen carefully."


    "Thank you, Senior Brother."


    ...


    ...


    "Do you remember?"


    "Half of it."


    "Then I¡¯ll say it again."


    "Ok."


    Ning Que suddenly felt this conversation quite familiar. He thought to himself, shall I answer him I totally forget itter? And after that Second Brother might whisk his Academy uniform, saying with a bigugh, "Little Younger Brother, you get it. Then you can go to that dark ce to ughter the thieves."


    Second Brother asked with his eyebrows knotted, "How about now?"


    Ning Que woke up from his thought. Of course he didn¡¯t to answer him like what he thought, so he honestly said, "I can remember all of them."


    Then the knot of Second Brother¡¯s eyebrows gradually unfolded, and he then praised, "You really have a goodprehension."


    Just when finishing his words, he randomly waved his hand in the Spring breeze and a short and thin wooden sword without handle somehow appeared in his hand. He handed the sword to Ning Que and said, "As I have said before, you need to start from the basis. Now move the sword."


    Ning Que took over the hiltless wooden sword, feeling a bit of cool from his fingers. For a moment he should feel lost. And then after a period of silence, he took a deep breath and said, "Ok."


    Those disciples of the Second floor of the Academy looking on by theke all stood up when finding that Ning Que was finally about to move the sword. Their faces were filled with curiosity. Although they still insisted that it was totally wrong for the little Younger Brother to learn flying sword which was an unaesthetic and a stupid way to kill others, they still wondered what level the little Younger Brother was at.


    Ning Que slowly closed his eyes, holding the hiltless wooden sword aclinicly to feel the weight of it. He found the originally light sword became heavier and heavier, so he pressed the Psyche Power of the Ocean of Qi to the outside of his body and integrated it with the Qi of Heaven and Earth in the surroundings. By doing so, he faintly touched the wooden sword. Soter he winded the Qi of Heaven and Earth around the sword based on the method taught by Second Brother.


    "Rise."


    Ning Que opened his eyes and lowly shouted while looking at the hiltless wooden sword in his hand, along with which the Psyche Power from his Ocean of Qi spouted out, and soon after, the Qi of Heaven and Earth wound around the sword suddenly tightened and then vibrated to get up!


    ...


    ...


    In the Spring breeze by the Mirror Lake, a thin wooden hitless sword tremblingly flew up.


    That thin hiltless wooden sword flew very slowly and tremblingly, seeming to feel uneasy and frightened.


    The wooden sword was moving slowly in the air, every inch ahead seeming to be difficult andborious.


    And the trace of the sword was not regr at all, which was sometimes on the right of Ning Que and sometimes on the left. It at one minute bounced up and then was about to fall on the surface of theke.


    The wooden sword flying in the air was like an old woman with bound feet, having no sense of direction.


    And those disciples in the Back Mountain of the Academy all looked on by theke with their mouth widely opened, which couldn¡¯t be closed in a short time.


    The embroidery needle which was pinched by Seventh Sister in the pavilion at the heart of theke had fallen into theke without being noticed, which was then eaten by a greedy golden carp.


    Beigong Weiyang, who stood on the edge of the bamboo woods, looked at the hiltless wooden sword in the air and solemnly said, "If you use ¡¯fly¡¯ to modify the sword, I think this sword... will be ashamed."


    Chen Pippi standing only a few paces off shamefully lowered his head, unwilling to admit that man beside theke was his friend.


    ...


    ...


    The hiltless wooden sword tremblingly flew back.


    Gazing his eyes widely, Ning Que stretched out his hand in a sh to catch the sword for fear that it might fall down, feeling a lingering fear. He wiped off the sweat on his forehead and turned to Second Brother, asking with excitement, "Senior Brother, how do you feel about me?"


    The excitement on his face was his genuine feeling at the moment. He even spent more effort to suppress thecence in his heart for he had tried his best. In addition, this is indeed his best performance in flying a sword, if taels of silver were excepted.


    Second Brother stared at him, and after a long time of silence he said, "Little Younger Brother, you still can¡¯t cultivate your Natal Item, but your performance is already good... Take it easy,e on, you will seed."


    After saying those words, Second Brother left without turning back.


    Ning Que stunnedly looked at the back of Second Brother, and then he noticed that Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters looking on by theke began to return to the woods, who shook their heads during their travel back.


    He seized Sixth Brother who hadn¡¯t left because of fetching water and asked, "Senior Brother, what does it mean?"


    After a long time of pondering, Sixth Brother showed an honest smile and replied in a whisper, "Little Younger Brother, Second Brother has always been frank and outspoken, but he was so mild and indirect to you today... it seems really not good."


    ...


    ...


    Those Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters all left thekeside and returned to their original ce under the pine tree, under the flower tree and in the dense woods, where they continued to y lyre and flute, y chess game and remain in telesthesia. Nobodyughed at Ning Que, or came tofort him. Because in their eyes, the performance of Ning Que to fly the sword by theke was too absurd to bemented on.


    Ning Que stood silently by theke for a while and eventually found the most real answer from the attitudes of Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters and the exnation of Sixth Brother, thus feeling disappointed. However,he finally failed to refrain himself fromughing out at the thought of the scene that Second Brother wished to speak but stopped on a seond thought. Whileughing, he continued to practise the Haoran Sword.


    The performance which he thought was already good was actually terrible to the extreme in the eyes of those Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters of the Second floor of the Academy. The sharp contrast could be a huge mental blow to an ordinary person. But for Ning Que, especially the current Ning Que, it was nothing at all.


    Therefore, at the side of Mirror Lake in the Back Mountain of the Academy, one might find a hiltless wooden sword sometimes flying like a blind old woman with bound feet. It fluttered sometimes tremblingly, sometimes fearfully, sometimes aimlessly, or sometimes slowly. Sometimes it fell into the ground and sometimes nearly stabbed Ning Que, and one time it even flew into theke directly, forcing him to jump into the water to fetch it.


    After the repeated practice, Ning Que finally stopped with gasps when the remaining of Psyche Power in the Ocean of Qi was all pressed out. Then he flumped on a stone beside theke and hold a handful of coolke water to sprinkle on his face, sighing satisfactorily.


    It was not noticed when Chen Pipi came to thekeside after his today¡¯s modification of array tactical of the Cloud Gate. Looking at the pale face of Ning Que beside him, he suddenly said after a moment of silence, "There are some things you can¡¯t deal with just by risking your life."


    Ning Que looked up at the blue sky and white clouds, and said with a smile, "In the past you said cultivation is a gift that Haotian gives to us and we should not be too demanding towards it. If you are inborn unable to pursue cultivation, you¡¯d better give it up. Risking your life doesn¡¯t solve the problem. But now, at least I can practice cultivation."


    Chen Pipi shook his head and replied, "But if you always risk your life, how can your body bear with it?"


    "I¡¯m not risking my life. I just like it."


    Ning Que nced at him and picked up the hiltless mini-sword to freely wave it in the air, saying with a smile, "Some day, I will definitely make this sword into... a damned flying... sword."

 Chapter 177: Disobedient Dots

    Chapter 177: Disobedient Dots


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    There was a shop in front and a courtyard behind Old Brush Pen Shop, but both of them were really small and dangerous for Ning Que to practice the damned flying sword. It was eptable to hurt the nts and flowers, but would Sangsang wash rice and cook under the protection of the big ck umbre? Therefore, Ning Que did not practice swordsmanship after going back to Lin 47th Street. Once again he stood in front of the desk, using the brush to dip in ink and staring at that snow-white paper.


    Today he was not in a daze like a statue, but took a deep breath from time to time. He lowered the waist and paced around, making eyes frequently and even vaguely humming. His right hand holding the brush was no longer as heavy as it was the previous days, but easy to be suspended in the air where he painted with a distance from the desk. Although he still hadn¡¯t painted, he looked much more rxed.


    Sangsang cut the pumpkin into vertical bars and put them in the rice bowl for steaming. When she went into the house to take off the apron, she saw what Ning Que was doing. She curiously looked at Ning Que who walked around the desk and kept turning with his hands holding the brush to constantly wave in the air. Soon she felt a bit dizzy, so she clutched her forehead and said, "Young master, if you really want to write, then just do it."


    Ning Que stopped the random hopping pace as he said smilingly, "I know I can¡¯t, so why try it?"


    Sangsang wiped her wet hands and said with a smile, "Even if not now, you can just paint some ink paper to sell."


    Ning Que listened to these words and started tough. Suddenly Sangsang reacted and then surprisedly looked at Ning Que. She thought about what had happened today, for the young master actually did not turn into an idiot after holding the brush but actually was free to gossip with her.


    Then Ning Que apanied her to eat and asked her to make a pot of tea after the meal. He moved a chair to the small courtyard, sitting to stargaze and drinking tea for a leisure talk, and seemed extremely rxed and happy. Untilte night with open light, he walked into the room and took off his coat leaning on the bed. Suddenly he took out a book to read whole-heartedly, slightly furrowing his brows from time to time and slowly rubbing his fingers.


    Sangsang took the feet-washing water into the house, thinking of many strange things tonight, and then could not help feeling puzzled. After living with Ning Que for so many years, she was very clear that he would desperately struggle like the other days before when he was trapped in the puzzle. She really did not understand why he would suddenly be so rxed today. Has he already felt desperate for solving that puzzle?


    "Young master, what book are you reading?" She asked as she looked at the old book in his hands.


    Ning Que was startled by her question and then nced at the pornographic book he secretly brought out from the back mountain¡¯s cave. He coughed twice to cover up his embarrassment and turned away to avoid her vision. He said, "Something between men and women. You¡¯re too young to read it."


    Sangsang took off his shoes and socks from his feet, and then moved the stool to the other side of the footbath. She patted his thigh and gestured him to put his feet into the bowl. She said, "It is nothing but something romantic between gifted schrs and beauties. What¡¯s worth reading?"


    Ning Queughed and said, "How can you understand the joy in it... oh... great... don¡¯t scratch my feet bottom."


    ...


    ...


    In the cliff square of the back mountain in the Academy, fog faded and the scenery was quiet and elegant. A waterwheel behind the house was spinning with a squeak. Some depressing cksmith sounds sometimes came from inside the room. With the sound of iron put into the water, water vapors filled the room inside.


    In dark corners, Fourth Brother observed Talisman inscriptions¡¯ directions on the sand table under the glimmer from the window. When the water vapors blowed him, he slightly frowned and waved his hands to drive them off. But he still kept watching the sand table, looking rather focused.


    Theplicated and inexplicable lines on the sand table started to move slowly, following some unspeakablews and extending toward each other. Until their final contact, the lines changed again and were to bebined into a new mode. Fourth Brother¡¯s eyes became brighter and brighter, but his face became paler and paler. From his serious expression, people could know that this time the Talisman inscription¡¯s calction came to the most crucial moment.


    However, at this moment, a loud panic sound was heard on the cliff square outside the house, followed by an unobtrusive wind-breaking sound. Then a gray shadow of sword was seen, flying into the door crookedly.


    Sixth Brother who was concentrating on cksmithing suddenly furrowed his bushy eyebrows and used his right hand to carry a heavy hammer as if carrying a piece of paper so as to smash the shadow of sword. His smashing looked extremely easy and wonderful. No one could y such a delicate and urate hammer-smashing without decades of cksmith life for lifting the hammer day after day.


    However... because of the controller¡¯s panic and terrible abilities, that gray shadow of sword moved extremely slowly, but its crooked direction actually did not have any regr patterns. Because of irregrity, it appeared to be somewhat elusive. It sometimes flew upwards like proud Second Brother, while it sometimes hovered in the air swinging like Eleventh Brother who was addicted to philosophy. It really went an unusual way and coincidentally avoided Sixth Brother¡¯s hammer-smashing, flying to the dark corner with a whizzing!


    With a snap, the hiltless flying sword deeply hit into the sand table in the corner, with its de body trembling slightly and its tip urately hitting at the line¡¯s intersection of those Talisman inscriptions. Those lines suddenly broke down inch by inch as a rope that was suddenly liberated and no longer restored to the previous state.


    Sixth Brother held the hammer and nced at the sand table in the corner. With a simple and honest smile, he turned around and continued to forge iron.


    Until now did Fourth Brother notice this flying sword, for he has been absorbed in the sand table. He looked at the broken lines in the sand table and suddenly became extremely pale, with his body trembling violently.


    A figure appeared in the doorway, who gasped and tteringlyughed. "Senior Brothers, I¡¯m really sorry."


    Fourth Brother suddenly turned around and stared at that clean and lovely face at the door as if seeing the world¡¯s most dirty and hateful thing. As his pale face suddenly became red, he heavily spanked the sand table and growled. "Ning Que! Can¡¯t you find another ce? This is the third time! If it happens next time, I¡¯ll tear you to pieces!"


    ...


    ...


    "It¡¯s said that horses all stumble and men all make mistakes. So Headmaster of Academy will also be hungry. I just began to practice Haoran Sword, so it¡¯s understandable for me to make some mistakes. I really don¡¯t understand why Fourth Brother is so angry." Ning Que carried the wood sword walking along theke. He murmured to himself, "Luckily, Sixth Brother did not hit the sword. If he smashed the sword, I had to ask Second Brother for another one."


    His ability of controlling the flying sword was really bad to the extreme. With ten acupoints in his Ocean of Qi and Mountain, he could only control a little Qi of Heaven and Earth. With a non-smooth procedure, he naturally had a very poormand on the grass-roots forces. It was basically a wishful thinking for him to hit what he aimed for, for the sword often hit somewhere else.


    He walked pass Mirror Lake toe in front of a luxuriant jungle, opposite to Sixth Brother¡¯s iron house. He thought that in terms of his state and cultivation, even if he made an inner outbreak, he still could not make the sword fly across theke. Therefore, he suddenly felt a lot calmer in his heart. He adjusted his breathing and pushed the sword with Psyche Power after a moment of meditation. The wood sword in his hands flew upwards once again and circled around his head slowly for twops.


    Looking up at the flying sword in the blue sky, Ning Que felt extremely satisfied in heart and muttered with a praise, "I feel so good. Although I can¡¯t use it to kill, I can still use it for a juggle."


    When he was thinking so, that hiltless flying sword instantly got out of his Psyche Power¡¯s control and suddenly dived down from the air, with its tip pointing at his face. He was so startled as to hug his head directly lying on the ground, which looked extremely embarrassing.


    Before the flying sword was about tond, it might receive his Psyche Power or something else. So it forcibly resurrected in a weird way and flew again with its tip up. With a whiz, it rubbed his scalp and obliquely flew into the luxuriant jungle.


    Ning Que lying on the ground outstretched his fingers to make Sword Forms, only to find that the flying sword has gone beyond his sense of perception. Therefore, he scolded while climbing up. "This disobedient dot."


    At this time, there was a burst of rustling sounds in the jungle. Ninth Brother Beigong Weiyang came out, clutching his forehead in one hand and holding a vertical bamboo flute as well as the flying sword in the other hand. He looked very miserable.


    Ninth Brother went in front of Ning Que, looking at Ning Que nkly, and then pointed to his own forehead. Then he picked up the vertical bamboo flute to gently tap the wooden sword twice and solemnly said, "Younger Brother, if you don¡¯t have this talent, then don¡¯t force yourself... If you go on like this, it doesn¡¯t matter to hurt our Senior Brothers and Sisters. But if you scare away the birds in the woods, who else can listen to the sounds of our bamboo flute and zither?"


    Ning Que forced himself not tough and stepped forward to take over the wooden sword. He suddenly thought of one thing and said with a smile, "Ninth Brother, if there is no bird listening to the fantastic sounds, why not y one to your Younger Brother like me?"


    ...


    ...


    In the Innerke Pavilion, Seventh Sister embroidered while humming a soft and pleasant southern song. Suddenly she slightly furrowed her brows and put her wrist upside down. Then with a terrifying piercing sound, a fine embroidery needle in her fingers very precisely hit the wooden sword out of nowhere beside her right cheek. With a snap, the wooden sword fell to the bottom of theke.


    Ning Que breathlessly ran to theke, waving to Senior Sister in the pavilion, and said, "Seventh Sister... could you help Younger Brother to fetch that flying sword? I have been in theke to fetch it for three times today. I really have no clothes to change."


    Seventh Sister slightly furrowed her brows and looked at him to say, "Leave me alone. The dignified Haoran Sword was actually changed by you and turned into a wasp¡¯s tail needle, weird but powerful. If people from the back mountain didn¡¯t have the self-protection ability, I¡¯m afraid they might have suffered your sword injury."


    Ning Que sadly said, "Seventh Sister, this is not what I expected. It doesn¡¯t obey my order. What can I do? I can¡¯t beat it as a revenge."


    Those words were really kind of lovely. Seventh Sister used her sleeves to cover her face and smiled. Suddenly her eyeballs moved, with her fingers slightly flipping.


    After a slight whiz, Ning Que suddenly felt something more on his cor. He looked down and saw a glittering fine needle piercing the cor and stopping there, nearly piercing into his own neck.


    He stunnedly looked up to Seventh Sister in the pavilion, thinking that she was so far from him but still had such an uracy and intensity and she had such a terrifying needle craft.


    Seventh Sister stood up and looked at him as she said with a smile, "You idiot, since you can¡¯t control so much Qi of Heaven and Earth, why you have to learn the flying sword? Why not try the flying needle?"


    Ning Que startledly stood beside theke.


    ...


    ...


    "A needle is too thin and needs him to control Qi of Heaven and Earth like silk with his Psyche Power. And it is too difficult to wrap Qi around a needle. The problem is that it¡¯s smaller than the flying sword and needs a very high uracy to be controlled by Perception State."


    "I can¡¯t try it as I wish. The wooden sword¡¯s tip is polished round. However, even if this needle is polished t, people still will hurt when stabbed by it. If it really stab a certain Senior Brother, he will certainly not spare me by hitting me twice like that goose."


    In the pine forest of the Academy¡¯s back mountain, Ning Que stared at the thin needle in his fingers and enchantedly murmured to himself. When he thought that he had been chasing after by that white goose stabbed by a needle in its buttock for half a mountain, he could not help feeling a bit shuddered.


    "Rest, I must rest for a while."


    He stood up from a pine tree and went deeper. He slightly sniffed the light oily smell with his nose and easily found two Senior Brothers focusedly ying under an ancient pine.


    "Senior Brothers, please y chess with me."


    Fifth Brother saw him and became extremely embarrassed and shockedly said, "Younger Brother, how did you find us?"


    Ning Que honestly replied, "I¡¯ve learnt hunting in Min Mountain since childhood. So it¡¯s very easy for me to find a person in mountains."


    Fifth Brother nced at the guy looking samely embarrassed at the opposite side and tremblingly said, "Eighth Brother, I¡¯m your Senior Brother... Since today we still did not escape him, then you can apany the rookie to y chess."


    ...


    ...


    One day.


    Ning Que did not practice Haoran Sword, but honestly helped Sixth Brother in the iron house. From early morning to evening, no one knew how many times he has lifted up the hammer. Even if he has a strong body, he also felt sore all over his body.


    Sixth Brother took off the leather apron in front of his naked upper half body and took a scoop of water to Ning Que. Then he asked with a smile, "What is the matter on earth. You can say it now."


    Ning Que poured the water into his abdomen and uttered ament offort to say, "Senior Brother, Seventh Sister suggested me to try the flying needle. But the flying needle is too light and not easy to grasp. So I would like to ask you for its solution."


    "Although you are still in No Doubts State, you should have thought of your Natal Item. Right?" Sixth Brother asked.


    Ning Que distressedly said, "It¡¯s funny to mention it. Now I have the reaction to taels of silver, but I don¡¯t think I can take the silver ingot as the Natal Item."


    Sixth Brother was stunned for a moment and said after a moment of silence, "Then I¡¯ll... make some silver needles for you."


    Ning Que¡¯s eyes became slightly bright as he said, "Can they be a little heavier?"


    Sixth Brother looked at him and said, "Then it would be gold."


    Ning Que seriously said, "Although I haven¡¯t tried gold ever, I do believe I have a stronger feeling to it than silver."


    Sixth Brother became silent again and helplessly said after a long time, "The gold needle is too soft. I¡¯ll mix it with something else."


    Ning Que became extremely joyful and greeted a bow with hands in front. Then he suddenly thought of certain possibility and had much brighter eyes.


    ...


    ...


    The second day.


    In a calligraphy shop in Lin 47th Street of Chang¡¯an City, a little handmaiden with a ck face unhappily threw away a pot and rags, with an extremely bad mood. So she decided to take her private savings today to purchase many cosmetic powders in Chenjinji Cosmetics Store. And her young master had robbed a pile of silver notes out of home like a bad gambler and exchanged them for real silver and gold. Then he happily went back to the Academy¡¯s back mountain.


    When the rough cloth was untied, three podaos that have been polished shiny appeared in front of Sixth Brother.


    Ning Que stood next to the three knives, hopefully looking at Sixth Brother.


    Sixth Brother looked at podao and the gold and silver beside and became silent for a long time. Then he looked up and watched excited Ning Que to seriously ask, "From these things, I think Younger Brother you are going to y... flying knife?"


    "Right." Ning Que rubbed his hands and nervously said, "Senior Brother, I am best at ying with knives. Since a sword can fly, of course, a knife can also fly. Besides, with your help of mixing it with gold as well as silver, I believe it must be better than the flying sword."


    Sixth Brother finally turned to a stiff face. "But... have you seen such a big flying knife in the world?"


    ...


    ...


    In the opinion of Ning Que, all the enemies hate him, so their word attacks were all wort a fart. Those clever people were best at speaking, so theirnguage attacks were also worth a fart. However, such a simple and honest good man like Sixth Brother deeply hurt his self-esteem when Senior Brother mistakenly issuednguage attacks asionally and inadvertently.


    Because of the depression and his hurt self-esteem, Ning Que decided to calm down to think about what to do in the future. So he slipped into the Mountain Path and went straightly into the flower trees. He found Eleventh Brother who was muttering deep inside the trees.


    "Senior Brother, gain any new experience? Share with your Younger Brother."


    ...


    ...


    Someone flew a sword at theke, smashing the flowers as well as grass and hitting Senior Brother¡¯s head. It also disturbed Senior Sister¡¯s embroidery in the spring, those magical lines on the sand table, blue waves in theke and wet grass in the water.


    Someone flew a needle in the forest, adding a few more bloody wounds on his body. Not for too long, he was seen to be chasen after by a fat white, screaming over the mountain.


    Someone forged iron in the cksmith house, with all kinds of strange materials piled at his feet. They were mainly gold and silver, supplemented by precious stones. Sixth Brother stood aside to help him to finish the design, with a simple and honest face filled with grievances.


    In thete spring of the fourteenth year of Tianqi era, these pictures repeatedly urring in the Academy¡¯s back mountain. Many yearster, people living in the back mountain still felt afraid when missing and recalling those days.


    The Younger Brother, who has just stepped into the Second floor, practiced his broken sword as well as his broken needle and thought of those bad ideas to torment his Senior Brothers and Sisters. All in all, he really made them extremely distressed.


    "Are you crazytely?"


    Chen Pipi put his meal box down, watching Ning Que who was still satisfied when losing three rounds of chess to Eighth Brother, and thenmentedly asked.


    "What do you mean? Try a flying needle or a flying knife?" Ning Que confusedly asked.


    "All of them..." Chen Pipi said snappily, "You haven¡¯t learnt the Haoran Sword, or known much Talisman Taoism from Master Yan Se. Why do you have so much energy to make so many bizarre things?"


    "It¡¯s always good to learn more."


    "Why are you in such a hurry? Cultivation is a gradual and orderly progress. The most important thing is toy the foundation first."


    "My qualification is so poor, no matter how good the foundation is. So it¡¯s better to learn more."


    Chen Pipi sighed and said, "In my opinion... you had better still focus on Talisman Taoism. What it needs is the talent not the foundation."


    Ning Que curiously asked, "Why not learn them together?"


    Chen Pipi frowned and said, "Insatiable greed is not good for cultivation."


    Ning Queughed and said, "Since childhood, I¡¯ve learnt a truth. No greed, no sess."


    Chen Pipi was so angry as tough to say, "Until now do I realize that you are such a stubborn person, even more stubborn than Second Brother."


    "I won¡¯t tell it to Second Brother."


    "A bowl of crab porridge."


    "Impossible. Recently I¡¯ve taken too much gold and silver out of home and Sangsang has been very unhappy."


    "Well... how much did you take."


    "Two hundred Liang taels of silver."


    "Two hundred? Why did you make so many silver needles? You want to learn medical acupuncture!"


    "It¡¯s none of your business."


    "Well, well. Then I¡¯ll curse you with a few more words of idiots."


    "Pipi, you should remember that the back mountain is the Second floor of the Academy. Since we are all in the Second floor, naturally all of us are idiots."


    "... "


    "Idiot Chen, don¡¯t you agree?"


    "I... agree." Chen Pipi looked at Ning Que as if seeing a madman and said biting his teeth, "Even if you make those things for cultivation, why do you every day harass Senior Brothers? At the beginning, you were scared to pale when hearing that you were about to listen to their music and y chess. Why did you suddenly change the temper to listen to music and y chess every day?"


    Ning Queughed and replied, "I did not like it at the very beginning because I didn¡¯t like being forced by someone to listen to music and y chess. Now Second Brother has ordered everyone not to force me. So I still can do them when I choose to do them myself. Senior Brother Bei Gong is really good at blowing the vertical bamboo flute. Besides how can I look for the opportunity to y against the two major national yers outside the Academy?" "In the non-cultivation time, I can take those activities as an entertainment and cultivate my sentiments. In the future, I can boast to impress others with these things like World Wayfarers."


    Chen Pipi startled upon hearing it and held his own chubby cheeks to ask, "How about Eleventh Brother? Why do you annoy him?"


    "But Eleventh Brother doesn¡¯t feel me annoying."


    Ning Que leaned down and lowered his voice to say, "Have you ever noticed that listening to Eleventh Brother talk about those mysterious problems can not only help people sleep, but also help people get into meditation?"


    ...


    ...


    All disciples on the Second floor of the Academy held a collective meeting in the back mountain the same night. Even the schr of the small book house in the cave was also asked to be present. But the old man holding an old book has been concentrating on reading, not caring about what the people around were saying.


    Ning Que did not attend this meeting, not for he had already returned to his house in Chang¡¯an, but for the main topic of this meeting on the Second floor of the Academy was to study how to deal with his current problems.


    "Don¡¯t you think Younger Brother is very miserable? Haoran Sword was trained to be a wasp¡¯s tail needle... This is certainly not what he wants. But his qualification is limited, so he was forced to think about these messy ideas. I mean you should tolerate him more. Though heughs every day, I always feel that he has hidden tears in hisughter, with a shadow in his heart."


    The meeting was held at Second Brother¡¯s small courtyard. Seventh Sister was holding an embroidery rack, cross-legged sitting in the deepest part of a Lohan bed. Her posture was extremely casual, which proved that she was not afraid of Second Brother.


    Listening to these words, Fourth Brother with the most serious face frowned and said, "It¡¯s not a matter of tolerance. Am I really mad with Younger Brother? Now the most important question is how to help solve his cultivation problem."


    Third Sister Yu Lian quietly sitting in the corner of the room slightly smiled but did not say anything.


    Fifth Brother frowned and said, "I think the primary problem is to enhance Younger Brother¡¯s self-confidence. He bothers me and Eighth Brother to y chess with him every day. Even if he loses a lot, he also grins andughs. It¡¯s obvious that he has lost to numbness, even some metamorphosis. We can¡¯t let him be like this."


    All of them thought that those words seemed to make sense indeed.


    Ninth Brother tapped the vertical bamboo flute pipe and looked somewhere after a short moment of pondering. He said, "Since the teacher and Eldest Brother are not here, now Second Brother you¡¯re the one we respect in the back mountain. To be honest, that day when he practiced the sword at thekeside, what Second Brother you have said really hurt him. It says that it is better for the doer to undo what he has done. If Second Brother you can sincerely praise Younger Brother, he might be able to reinstate his confidence in practicing Haoran Sword."


    Everyone looked at Second Brother sitting in the middle.


    After a long time of silence, Second Brother said, "I... can not lie."

 Chapter 178: Seeing the Vermilion Bird Again

    Chapter 178: Seeing the Vermilion Bird Again


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    It was quiet in the small courtyard. After a long time, Seventh Sister suddenly uttered a sneer. However, after theughter, she still did not speak but picked pine nuts from her handkerchief to peel and blow. After a careful treatment, she handed them to Third Sister next to the couch.


    Second Brother frowned slightly, looked at her and said, "Younger Sister, what are youughing at?"


    Seventh Sister threw the pine nuts into her mouth and slowly chewed them for a moment. Then she casually pped her hands and slightly furrowed her brows, unafraid to wee his gaze. She said, "Are you sure that Second Brother can¡¯t lie? Then who lied to Prince Long Qing at the cliff that night?"


    After a moment of silence, Second Brother slowly replied, "Who said cheating...and lying are the same?"


    "Come on."


    Chen Pipi looked at Seventh Sister and snappily said, "Everyone knows the nature of Second Brother. He said he couldn¡¯t lie, so he couldn¡¯t. That night I asked him to help slow down Longqing. What he has said is not false. You didn¡¯t see how nervous Second Brother was. Although he looked quite calm, he has already kneaded a few pieces of hard rock under the tree into powders."


    "If you expect Second Brother to increase Ning Que¡¯s confidence? That smart guy can definitely see through by a nce!"


    Fourth Brother said, "The so-called confidence is always too mysterious. He failed to practice Haoran Sword. So we should start from the specific means. A flying sword¡¯s operating curve is easy to be calcted. Though the rtionship between air resistance and a flying sword¡¯s speed is a littleplicated, it is still feasible to count them out. Ning Que is strong in Mathematics. So he should understand it better if we teach him so."


    "No matter how you count, how to teach, how to engage in, after all, there is no way to solve the most basic problem of Younger Brother. He has only ten acupoints in his Ocean of Qi and Mountain. The Qi of Heaven and Earth he can manipte is too weak. If you can¡¯t solve this problem, it¡¯s still meaningless even if the teacher and Eldest Brother go home to help Younger Brother into Knowing Destiny State with some magical means. Because he will be the weakest one of Knowing Destiny State in the world."


    After a moment of silence, Second Brother looked at Fourth Brother and said, "You and Sixth Brother should just make those strange things for him first. His natural qualification is not good enough, so he needs to depend more on the help from external factors."


    Ninth Brother suddenly shook his head and said, "Why not let Younger Brother follow me and Ximen to learn to y the vertical bamboo flute and zither? At least he¡¯ll still have a means to earn a living after leaving the Academy in the future."


    Eleventh Brother smiled and quietly said, "Younger Brother recently often asked me about the knowledge of matters. In my opinion, he should follow me to learn. It¡¯s helpful for his state of mind."


    Seventh Sister grabbed some melon seeds from the windowsill and lowered her head to pick up the plumpest melon kernels. She then mocked, "Eleventh Brother, what if Younger Brother starve to death in the future by following you to learn these useless things?"


    Eleventh Brother looked at her and earnestly exined. "Senior Sister, my family is rich in the South. In the future I will inherit arge amount of family property. Even if Younger Brother is a loser, I feel no difficulty to raise him for a lifetime."


    At this moment, the topic gradually shifted to other directions in the meeting of helping Younger Brother Ning Que. Many people indulged in various suggestions and advice, passionately discussing and fiercely debating. Some were even deeply concerned about his livelihood issues in the future and showed that they could be responsible for the life of Younger Brother. These fraternity affections actually touched all of them.


    "Senior Brothers and Sisters, don¡¯t you think too much?" Chen Pipi looked at the people who were eating melon seeds, drinking tea and having a meeting in the house. He rubbed his back head and depressedly said, "I know better than all of you what kind of person Ning Que is. Although he is stupid in cultivation, he¡¯s by no means a real idiot. Don¡¯t you notice that since he entered the back mountain, all of us have been circling around him? Do we really need to care for him? I dare say that even if people all over the world have died, including the people in the house, he would not die or starve to death."


    Upon hearing these words, the people of Second floor of the Academy were all shocked. They thought of their experiences these days and changed their facial expressions. Beigong Weiyang slightly touched his flute and frowned to say, "You¡¯re right. When Younger Brother wanted to listen to a song, he would get into the woods to ask us to y one. If he doesn¡¯t want to hear it, he would firmly refuse. Why do I feel myself turn into a performer in front of him?"


    Fifth Brother patted his thigh, shook his head, and said with ament, "He said ying chess, then we yed chess. When I and Eighth Brother just entered the mid-round, he dare to interrupt us to join in the game. He even force us to hold back our temper to teach him, else he¡¯ll threaten to throw the chess pieces away. In front of Younger Brother... We are no more than two outdated teachers of a rural chess club."


    Sixth Brother looked at those thoughtful people and said with a simple and honest smile, "Ning Que treats me pretty well. Although he often has some inexplicable ideas, he helps me to forge iron and carry water. So I don¡¯t need to do so many things."


    Second Brother looked at those Younger Brothers who were telling their painful bloody experiences and slightly raised his brows as he said, "Ning Que is the youngest Brother. You guys as Senior Brothers should take care of him. Why mention these things?"


    Listening to Second Brother¡¯s precepts, the other people indoors looked at his serious look and felt scared at the same time, all lowering their heads to show agreement. Even Seventh Sister who had been very casual previously also put the melon seeds back on the windowsill.


    "Although I despise Yan Se¡¯s casual attitude, I have to admit that as a Minister of Offerings at the Southern Haotian, he is indeed a super-ss or even the most powerful Divine Talisman Master in the world, much stronger than themoners could have imagined."


    Second Brother slightly lowered his eyelids, looking at somewhere in front. After a short moment of silence, he continued to said in a low voice, "Based on Younger Brother¡¯s qualification, he can only go on the path of Talisman Taoism. He¡¯d better follow Yan Se to learn more from now on."


    All were silent in the house.


    Seventh Sister looked up and furrowed her brow slightly. She said, "But after all, Younger Brother is at the Second floor of the Academy and now counted as the teacher¡¯s private disciple. If the others know that an outsider teaches him how to cultivate, won¡¯t it make all of us shameful? Even if we don¡¯t fear the gossip in the world, will the teacher and Eldest Brother be disappointed with us after returning from the tour?"


    ...


    ...


    No one knew that aftering back to the Academy from the tour whether Headmaster of Academy would be very disappointed when he found that he suddenly had a private disciple with a bad cultivation qualification in No Doubts State who had only learnt a skill of Talisman Taoism from Haotian Taoism. Anyway, Ning Que had no disappointment at all. Although his Haoran Sword skill was only pretty on the outside while the inside was as rotten as shit, he has adjusted his mentality very well. And these days he not only studied in the back mountain of the Academy but also followed Master Yan Se to travel around Chang¡¯an every few days. They were close to Talisman Taoism in a rxing and interesting way. Therefore, he had a very fulfilling life.


    In those days of early summer, and early summer in the fourtheenth year of Tianqi era, residents of Chang¡¯an often saw an old and filthy Taoist wander around with a inly-dressed, yet cleanly-packedd.


    The old Taoist took thed to walk across the streets and alleys, seeing those old and broken buildings with the inheritation of hundreds of years, going to various taverns for drinking, asionally staying overnight in the cheapest open brothel, and for most of the time, watching those must-see scenery by the tourists.


    When they walked past that newly-renovated neighborhood in Spring Breeze Pavilion, Yan Se said with full ofments, "It was newly renovated, but has lost the original feeling. Fortunately, the pavilion is still here. Do you feel that pavilion¡¯s eave curves are beautiful?"


    Ning Que walked in the streets where he once hadughtered and looked at the ancient Spring Breeze Pavilion in the street corner, feeling somewhat absentminded. Upon hearing the words of the teacher, he woke up and carefully looked at four lines slightly protruding above the pavilion. After a long time of thought, he puzzledly asked, "I can¡¯t say how beautiful it is, but just think it has a very coordinated look. At the intersection of the tiles, the lines slightly go down andter tilt upwards, looking very smooth."


    "That is a water line." Master Yan Se pointed at the eaves lines and said, "The rain fell on the tiles and flew down following the direction of tiles stacks. It doesn¡¯t go across the water line, but the water line¡¯s shape owns the Talisman power of falling rain. So you will feel they¡¯re very smooth."


    "Master, what can the eave water lines exin?" Ning Que asked, "This pavilion was built many years ago. Those craftsmen at that time couldn¡¯t be Talisman Masters. Did they also understand thew of Qi of Heaven and Earth?"


    "What is thew? Thew is a regr pattern controlling things¡¯ operations. The craftsmen who had built Spring Breeze Pavilion might not have mastered thews governing Qi of Heaven and Earth. But there is indeed some kind of wisdom hidden in the eaves-building knowledge that has passed down for countless generations."


    Master Yan Se walked with him to the pavilion and said, "How does the rain flow after falling down? Why does it flow this way? The craftsmen building the pavilion did not know. Perhaps their ancestors only knew the answer to the first question, not the second one. But does it even matter? The first step of learning is always imitation for humans. With more imitations, they would be like the eaves where the essence of the simplest truth will be extracted, namely the undting line."


    When they walked into Spring Breeze Pavilion, Master Yan Se turned around and looked at Ning Que to say, "The first step of Talisman Taoism cultivation is to imitate. I asked you to read the Talisman ssics left by the predecessors and carefully feel the nuances among Qi of Heaven and Earth. It¡¯s very simr to the architectural experiences umted by the artisans over the years, except that they are subconscious oues and consume the time of several generations. But you have to take the initiative to master and feel. The less time you need, the better it¡¯ll be."


    After watching Spring Breeze Pavilion, the two left the street and the alley, as they kept walking along the gray wall next to a big courtyard till they were far away.


    When Ning Que stepped on the slightly protruding bluestone road and watched the babbling water near his feet, he naturally remembered the rainy night, the ditch that had once stained with blood and these iplete dead bodies piled on the bluestone road.


    Behind the gray wall was Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s mansion. Ning Que looked up. He saw some green trees in the courtyard and asionally heard some noises. He wondered whether Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s family still lived here and where Chao Xiaoshu had been.


    Master Yan Se, who has put sleeves behind his back and walked in front, seemed to guess what Ning Que was thinking in the mind and asked with a smile, "Chao Xiaoshu saw the calmke and then entered Knowing Destiny State. His perception and opportunity are rather rare. In terms of his qualification, if his Majesty has not forced him to stay with dark nights and muds in Chang¡¯an City, it would be impossible for him to burst into such a splendid glory."


    This was the first time Ning Que had known that Chao Xiaoshu was a Grand Cultivator in Knowing Destiny State. When he recalled that scene that he had followed the middle-aged man to go on a bloody battle at a rainy night, he could not help raising his brows slowly and had a kind of unexpressed arrogance feeling.


    "I believe you have seen Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s Swordsmanship."


    "Yes, Master."


    "What¡¯s special about it?"


    "As fast as lightning."


    Ning Que thought of that crooked wooden sword flying around theke of the Academy¡¯s back mountain, feeling very ashamed.


    Master Yan Se smiled at him and said, "Anything else?"


    Ning Que remembered one thing, but he licked his lips and did not say it. Although Yan Se was his Talisman Taoism Master, that thing was most likely to be Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s secret skill to keep alive. Therefore, he should not mention it to anyone.


    "It turns out that you are such a loyal person." Master Yan Se felt somewhat surprisedly nced at him.


    Ning Queughed and replied, "Brother Chao treated me well and still thought of my livelihood issues after leaving Chang¡¯an. He leaves much money for me every month. Those heavy taels of silver can prove our friendship."


    Yan Seughed and said, "Chao Xiaoshu can turn a sword into five. Even if you don¡¯t say it, I also know this thing. The reason why I mention this matter is that I just want to tell you something. When the five pieces des of sword shrouded his body like meteors, have you ever wondered why they could still listen to him when his Natal Sword was divided into five parts?"


    Ning Que really did not think about this issue after the bloody battlest spring. Because at that time he did not understand what was cultivation. Later, he still did not think about it, for he did not think of any problems within it at all. Until this time when they walked away from Spring Breeze Pavilion to the street, Ning Que was suddenly caught in contemtion after hearing the Master¡¯s question.


    Master Yan Se was not that kind of teacher who used a variety of problems to embarrass his student so as to get a great sense of superiority and sense of vanity and abusive pleasure. Master Yan Se saw Ning Que frown and fall in a painful thought. He straightforwardly exined, "Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s Natal Sword was divided into five small swords. The interaction between these five small swords depended on a kind of array tactical... I¡¯ve told you before that array tacticals can actually be seen as a sort of distorted talisman, big talisman that relies more on materials."


    Then he continued to say, "The Taoist sword knack is talisman, so is Buddhism Emblematic Gesture. And these two are both infinitives. Though the ornamentations on generals¡¯ battle armors are mostly fragments, they¡¯re also talisman, a kind of infinitive talisman."


    Ning Que nced at him and could not help saying with a bitter smile, "Master, I know you are the world¡¯s most powerful Divine Talisman Master and each Talisman Master should have the deepest, most sincere feelings and passion for Talisman Taoism. But... If it¡¯s really like what you said, can all the cultivation means in the world be attributed to the Talisman? Isn¡¯t this... too bullsh*ting?"


    Master Yan Se stopped and looked back as he confusedly asked, "Too? Too what?"


    Ning Que hesitated for a moment and said in a low voice, "Too narcissistic."


    Master Yan Se bursted into aughter, causing all the pedestrians in the street to look at them.


    When theughter gradually stopped, he looked at Ning Que and seriously said after a short moment of silence, "Cultivation focuses on disposition and need people to dare to think and do. In your lifetime, if you don¡¯t believe that you cane to an end, how can you step through those arduous risky peaks on the path of cultivation? The more outstanding a cultivator is, the more self-confident he is. And those best cultivators are bound to be self-confident to a extremely exaggerated state, probably that is narcissism like what you¡¯ve mentioned."


    Ning Que opened his mouth slightly and could not speak for a long time. He wanted to prove what his Master had said was wrong, but after a careful pondering, he thought that these words really made sense, especially when he remembered two extremely narcissistic proud guys like Second Brother and Chen Pipi in the Academy.


    ...


    ...


    After leaving Spring Breeze Pavilion for Moshan workshop in Eastern City, two of them came to an open road. Not far from them were Yulin Royal Guards riding horses to patrol. There were much less pedestrians on the street, thus the beautiful scenery of green trees and clean river was serene. It was visible for that magnificent imperial city not far, and even for some traces on the red wall caused by the wind and rain.


    Master Yan Se was totally not affected by the solemn atmosphere here and still held his sleeves, stepping with his old shoes, and wandered around leisurely on the street. He did not care about those Yulin Royal Guards¡¯ alerting and loathing eyes against them.


    Ning Que forced himself not tough and followed Master Yan Se. He suddenly remembered the engraved armors in the previous dialogue and recalled Old Lyu Qingchen¡¯s introduction on the tripst year. His eyes suddenly became bright. So he moved forward a few steps to the front of Master Yan Se and said in a very respectable and tender tone, "Master, I want to ask for a Talisman from you."


    Yan Se turned around and asked, "Ask for a Talisman? What happened to your house? Have you seen something unclean, or being pressed on your bed?"


    Ning Que opened his mouth and did not know what to say, feeling very helpless.


    Master Yan Se obscenely narrowed his triangle-shape eyes and said: "Just joking."


    Ning Que sighed and said seriously, "I want to engrave a Talisman on my own knife."


    After a moment of thought, Master Yan Se shook his head and said, "Some Talismans can indeed be used independently without a Talisman Master, such as books, armors and weapons. This kind of Talisman engraving ismon, but only a low-level means after all. It¡¯s not pure and its power is not so strong. What you own is the best. If it is your personal weapon, you¡¯d better make your own Talisman."


    Ning Que said with a bitter smile, "Then I¡¯m gonna wait for a long time before I can make it."


    Master Yan Se patted Ning Que¡¯s shoulder and said with afort, "I firmly believe in your talent in Talisman Taoism. Now you just haven¡¯t seen through that window paper. If you feel it slowly, you¡¯ll find hope appearing in front of you."


    "Look over there carefully."


    "What is there?"


    "Look at it yourself."


    "Master, I only see a lot of trees."


    "What¡¯s behind the trees?"


    "The sky is behind the trees."


    "I do not want you to see these things!"


    "Master, should I say I see the hope?"


    "I really can¡¯t say such mushy words."


    "Master, why don¡¯t you speak? To be honest, I really think that it is not appropriate for you to y a role of spiritual mentor based on your casual nature."


    "Ning Que."


    "Yes? Master."


    "If you go on, I¡¯ll use Grass Emblem to make you blind forever."


    In front of them was not the hope, but a Taoist temple in the green trees at the foot of the imperial city.


    Master Yan Se did not bring Ning Que into the South Gate Temple, for the both of them shared only a private teacher-apprentice rtionship. Ning Que, after all, was a student of the Academy. No matter what, it would be very inappropriate for Master Yan Se to get too close to Haotian Taoism.


    "I want you to see that cornice of the GuangMing Hall in South Gate Temple."


    Because of the previous conversation, Master Yan Se looked very angry, with a blunt tone.


    Upon hearing that, Ning Que looked over and faintly saw that cornice of the Taoist temple stretching up to the blue sky behind the gray wall and green trees.


    "Master, why do you want me to see this cornice? Should I once again understand thew generations of artisans subconsciously concluded from the falling rain?" "I¡¯ve seen Spring Breeze Pavilion enough, should we see it forever? We have seen many ancient temples, old pavilions, small bridges, flowing rivers and houses in Chang¡¯an City these days. If we continue to see, I am worried that Chang¡¯an Local Government will doubt that we are a pair of young thief and old thief."


    "Grass Emblem... "


    "Master, my bad."


    Master Yan Se suppressed the anger in his mind after a long while, pointing to the cornice deep in the Taoist temple, and then said with an unhappy look, "This time I don¡¯t want you to see the cornice, but those animal-carvings on eave squatting above the cornice. You release the Psyche Power to touch them and see what¡¯s there."


    Ning Que suddenly looked serious and slowly released the Psyche Power after a moment of silence. He touched the several semi-squatting animal-carvings on eave above the cornice from a distance. The presence of animal-carvings on eave went through Qi of Heaven and Earth back to the Qi of Ocean woven by Psyche Power and then became very clear. However, in the next moment, those animal-carvings on eaves seemed to be alive so that he could even see their eyes!


    His heartbeat began to elerate and his breathing became heavier and heavier. But the animal-carvings on eave among the Qi of Ocean and in his sight became clearer and passed over heavier pressure to him, which directly made his face turn pale and his body rather stiff.


    Master Yan Se stood beside him and did not worry when watching his reaction but felt calm and slightly joyful. Ning Que had such a sensitive response to the animal-carvings on eave, which slightly diluted Master Yan Se¡¯s anger caused by the previous ridicule.


    Ning Que shook his head and escaped from his earlier state, rubbing his eyes with both hands and looking at Master Yan Se. He said, "Master, I feel it and I also get it."


    Master Yan Se frowned slightly and seemed to haven¡¯t expected that Ning Que actually was able to extricate himself from the pressure of animal-carvings on eave.


    Ning Que took a look at the animal-carvings on eave that has be small again and said, "Master, do you want to tell me that these stone-made animal-carvings on eave are also Talismans and Divine Talisman Masters gave power and near-mighty pressure to them?"


    Master Yan Se said, "Yeah. But I¡¯m now even more curious why you actually didn¡¯t panic at the first contact with animal-carvings on eave."


    Ning Que looked at him and honestly replied after a moment of silence. "I have been contacted with animal-carvings on eave."


    Master Yan Se slightly raised his brows and asked, "When? Where?"


    Ning Que said, "Last spring, in the imperial pce. When my horse carriage passed theundry bureau, I did not know why I suddenly felt that they had survived when I saw animal-carvings on eave above the canopies of the pce. At that time, I was particrly ufortable."


    Master Yan Se became silent for a long time and suddenly reached out his hand to touch Ning Que¡¯s head. His eyes were full of mild appreciation.


    "When I listened to you and talked to you, I always feel that your disposition and state were really not suitable for Talisman Taoism cultivation. I even thought whether I had been misled by your memo and gotten the wrong person."


    As a superb Divine Talisman Master in the world, the old Taoist knew very well if ad who has not been in contact with cultivation could actually feel the pressure of animal-carvings on eave, it showed what kind of qualification he possessed in Talisman Taoism.


    "I¡¯m very d that you once again proved your qualification and ability."


    Ning Que smiled and said, "Master, qualification and ability are within the body. I don¡¯t need to prove their presence. In fact, they have always been there."


    "Today you¡¯ve said a lot of nonsense. But this sentence indeed makes sense." Master Yan Seughed and then continued to concernedly ask, "Is it the first time you have felt the pressure of animal-carvings on eave in the Imperial City¡¯sundry Bureau?"


    Ning Que fell into a long silence for this question.


    He remembered the spring ofst year, he and Sangsang had held up the big ck umbre, standing in the straight spacious street and in the drizzle, and then had became motionless for the Vermilion Bird figure carved in the center boulevard.


    After a long time, he looked up at Master Yan Se and said, "Actually... earlier on Vermilion Bird Avenue, that stone-carved Vermilion Bird figure has given me the same feeling. But I don¡¯t know whether it can be counted in."


    Master Yan Se listened to the answer, with his eyes narrowed into two slits, and then suddenly said, "Do you want to see it again?"


    ...


    ...


    Of course, Ning Que did not want to see it. It was not because the Vermilion Bird engraved in the stone had no nothing charming but fake. Because he was just subconsciously fearful of the Vermilion Bird figure on the stone road - Perhaps in the spring rain dayst year he had been terrified by the extermination sense of the Vermilion Bird figure on the central avenue. Perhaps he subconsciously remembered that near-death experience when he had fled to the streets at the hot summer nightst year. In short, that fear inside his heart was at its height.


    As a good student, however, he knew very well that every time a teacher asked a student whether he or she wanted to do it, the teacher just needed to show an attitude of respecting the student¡¯s wishe. In fact, the teacher would not want to hear any other answers except an affirmation. So when Master Yan Se asked him, Ning Que had to reply that he wanted to see it.


    The two of them walked from the foot of the Imperial City to the south all the way along the spacious and straight Vermilion Bird Avenue, as if walking on a grey ribbon embroidered with greences, from Chang¡¯an City the giant¡¯s head to his chest.


    Looking at the Vermilion Bird figure carved in the stone floor on the central avenue, Ning Que felt his mouth was somewhat dry and subconsciously put his hands into his cuffs. Then he gripped his hands tightly and felt his body a bit stiff.


    The Vermilion Bird figure was solemn and beautiful as usual. Its wings did not fully expand, which showed that it was about to spread its wings. The two non-angry but serious eye pupils have been carved well, for no matter from which point of view, everyone would feel that it was staring at himself. This was an attraction the Tang Empire residents must see aftering to Chang¡¯an City. Besides, its eyes were also a marvelous figure all the tourists were interested to discuss about.


    Ning Que stood in the crowd of people with different clothes, looking at the Vermilion Bird figure in the middle. Perhaps because of the noisy environment around or its poprity, Ning Que felt less fear in his heart.


    However, his body was still stiff, with still cold hands and feet. Because he always felt that this pair of eyes that has been staring at himself indifferently had nothing to do with the craftsmanship of the sculptors. The eyes seemed to tell him that this Vermilion Bird with a history of thousands of years... was alive.

 Chapter 179: Changan City Is an Array

    Chapter 179: Chang¡¯an City Is an Array


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "Seeing the Vermilion Bird again, do you have any new feelings?"


    "No...?"


    "Don¡¯t you think it is alive?"


    "Master, do you think so?"


    The master and apprentice had made their way out of the crowd at this time, walking along the Vermilion Bird Avenue towards the south. Listening to the words of Master Yan Se, Ning Que asked in surprise as he could not help turning around to take a look at the Vermilion Bird that was already out of his sight due to the crowds.


    Master Yan Se ignored him and kept going forward. "What kind of existence can be surely regarded as being alive, or animate?"


    Ning Que turned around to chase him up, thinking that most of the time he was sleeping while Sixth Brother asked this sort of questions.


    "Of course, this¡¯s a rtively difficult question, and it hasn¡¯t much to do with why I take you here to see the Vermilion Bird today." Master Yen Se continued, "I bring you here for I want to tell you that the portrait on the Vermilion Bird Avenue has nothing to do with an art sculpture. Instead, it¡¯s a Divine Talisman of Chang¡¯an City."


    Ning Que was slightly stunned. He really did not rte the Vermilion Bird with Talisman Taoism, because somewhere he could feel that the Vermilion Bird had a sense of terrifying power, an awful atmosphere from ancient times, which seemed different from the talisman, a magic with a subtle existence.


    "You said before, that we Talisman Masters regard all the cultivation methods in the world as talismans... this is a very narcissistic mentality, but I can tell you with certainty that the Vermilion Bird is a talisman, a Divine Talisman left by ancestral Sages."


    Ning Que tightly wrinkled his brows when words as Sage and Divine Talisman appeared in his mind. He then asked after a long silence, "Master, ording to you, only when Divine Talisman Masters take the step over, can they move the world with talismans. Had the ancestral Sage who left the Vermilion Bird portrait taken the step forward?"


    "Thousands of years ago, the Empire¡¯s capital was in Chang¡¯an, expanding its realm to the basis of the original cities, but the Divine Talisman of Vermilion Bird was already there. The Sage who painted the Vermilion Bird had inevitably exceeded the Knowing Destiny State, but was just not sure of the Tianqi or No Rules. Butst time I told you about moving the world, I guess... it needs a bit more profound."


    "Did he be an immortal? Is there such a great Grand Cultivator in the world?"


    "Thest state of cultivation on Haotian Taoism is to ascend to heaven and be immortal after going beyond Tianqi, which means immortality. Although I haven¡¯t personally seen it before, the number of predecessors who can ascend to heaven and be immortal in Taoist ssics isn¡¯t too small."


    "Myths are just myths, after all."


    Master Yan Se raised his brows and asked, "If an ordinary mortal meets a Divine Talisman Master like me, do you think he may regard me as an immortal?"


    Ning Que said with uncertainty, "...Maybe."


    "Therefore, to ascend to heaven and be immortal in Taoist cultivation is not that difficult as what people imagine. However, I guess these immortals, different from those in mythical novels, should be Grand Cultivators who have really detached themselves."


    "Master, I¡¯m still very curious about mortal life stories. I believe the Divine Talisman of Vermilion Bird must be particrly scary in might, but the problem lies in that Talisman Taoism is always calm and collected by nature. In this case, who can motivate this Divine Talisman?"


    Master Yan Se casually added, "The Vermilion Bird has been lying quietly on the stone avenue since the founding of the Tang Empire, and it has never been touched. However, once it¡¯s activated, judging from the observation of someone from the Academy and thest Master of Nation, its power will be probably equivalent to a full-blown attack from a Grand Cultivator who is at the top level of the Knowing Destiny State, or even more formidable in some aspects. "


    "Only the top level of the Knowing Destiny State, ah."


    "Only? What sort of attitude is this?"


    "Master, you are at the peak of the Knowing Destiny State, so is Liu Bai. I guess Master of Nation and the eldest Brother are also in the same state but I dare not guess the state of the Headmaster of Academy. Now I know many Grand Cultivators in Knowing Destiny State, such as Second Brother and Chao Xiaoshu. Even my foolish friend is a genius entering the Knowing Destiny State. Is the Knowing Destiny State... really rare?"


    "Ning Que."


    "Yes, Master."


    Master Yan Se shook his head as he looked at him, and said, "You¡¯re very lucky, or should I say you¡¯re unlucky."


    Ning Que confusedly asked, "Master, what do you mean by that?"


    "It¡¯s the West-Hill Divine Pce and the Academy that own thergest number of Grand Cultivators in the world. You¡¯re a student from the Second floor of the Academy and my apprentice, a Great Divine Priest of this Divine Hall, so you cane into contact with many powerful people of the Knowing Destiny State, while ordinary cultivators may be unable to meet such strong men in their lives. Hence, I say you¡¯re very lucky. However, you¡¯ve already been in contact with so many powerful men though you¡¯re weak in might. I really worry that you¡¯ll lose the courage to climb and transcend the mountain in front of which you¡¯re standing in awe."


    "Don¡¯t worry, master. In fact, I¡¯m also a very narcissistic person."


    "That¡¯s good."


    ...


    ...


    Unconsciously, Master Yan Se and Ning Que had crossed the whole Southern City along the Vermilion Bird Avenue, arriving near the gate of Southern City in Chang¡¯an City. The towering and majestic city walls shed a shadow which covered arge area of the street nearby.


    Master Yan Se and Ning Que were walking up towards the city wall. It was strange that none of the disciplined city guards came to stop them or to check their identities as if the master and apprentice were totally invisible.


    Ning Que was surprised and did not know why the master brought him to ascend the city wall, but he was toozy to ask, staring at the lower hem of the dirty robe swinging up. With regard to the matter about the power of the Vermilion Bird, he was still confused and could not help asking, "Master, how powerful is the Knowing Destiny State? I invited someone to make a performance once, but I¡¯ve never seen cultivators of the Knowing Destiny State fighting together."


    Master Yan Se frowned and asked, "Which Grand Cultivator was so silly as to show you his performance?"


    Ning Que implied that the Grand Cultivator was Chen Pipi, who was an idiot in living knowledge, but a good guy nheless.


    Master Yan Se growled, "As for the fight between people belonging to the Knowing Destiny State, do you want me to have a fight with Liu Bai again?


    Ning Que exined with a bitter face, "Don¡¯t get me wrong, I¡¯m just curious."


    They two climbed the tall city walls, while the wind blowing from the ins rose up along the ancient but still solid city walls with a few shrill cries from eagles, which made their robes to fly.


    Master Yan Se, standing on the edge of the gate tower with his hands brushing the bricks, watched the clearly visible mountain in the south, and suddenly said, "Your Second Brother in the Academy just needs to nce at you, and you would be dead. This is the Knowing Destiny State."


    Ning Que, standing next to him, stared at the mountain where he had spent more than a month living and studying, and silently thought.


    A nce, and you¡¯ll die.


    Ning Que carefully considered these words and feeling rather awed, he replied honestly after a moment of silence, "... Master, I understand. I¡¯ll be certainly more respectful to you and Second Brother from now on."


    Master Yan Se took him to another side of the gate tower where Chang¡¯an City could be seen.


    Chang¡¯an City,posed of innumerable squares and buildings, had turned into a puzzle at the foot of the tower. The Imperial Pce at North City did not seem so tall as before. If the Vermilion Bird Avenue right below was like a sharp and straight sword, then the Imperial City was the hilt.


    "What have you seen here?"


    In thest few days, Master Yan Se had taken Ning Que to tour around Chang¡¯an City, visiting a lot of monuments, and Ning Que was asked questions in every ce they visited. Ning Que understood that his master was trying to speed up his perception on Talisman Taoism. In fact, be it the eave of Spring Breeze Pavilion or those statues of animal-carvings on eave, they could really make his ownprehension of Talisman Taoism deepen. However...


    Standing on the gate tower and viewing the city, they could see the entire Chang¡¯an City in front, which had cast off the lively coat and only left the quietness and sense of separation after drawing back the light. Ordinary people were screaming in excitement to locate their homes. In terms of art and literature, one could probably be aware of the vicissitudes of history endowed by thousands of years, but as for Talisman Taoism, what could be seen out of that?


    "Chang¡¯an City, in fact, is a big array."


    Ning Que was shocked speechless by Master Yan Se¡¯s answer.


    "The magnificent city that collects the wisdom of numerous precedent cultivators and takes the Tang Empire Thirty years to expand andplete its construction will be surely taken for granted as the world¡¯s most powerful array tactical, named god-stunning Array."


    Ning Que opened his eyes to watch the Chang¡¯an City underneath, trying hard to make out the approximate appearance of the array tactical, but he found nothing at all.


    Master Yan Se looked at him and could not help smiling, and then said, "Chang¡¯an City, a god-stunning Array, naturally can¡¯t be observed with the naked eye, since most of its parts are buried in the ground. What I can tell you is that the array center is at the bottom of the Imperial Pce, while the array root is the Vermilion Bird Avenue."


    The old Taoist pointed to the direction of the pce, and then his fingertips slowly moved down along the Vermilion Bird Avenue, and continued: "The array root extending beneath our feet, is Vermilion Bird South Gate. However, it diverges through the city walls and then returns from all the city wall archways of the inner and outer city. "


    "You can also see Chang¡¯an City, the big array, as a vast and extremelyplicated Talisman incantation that consists of countless Divine Talismans. If only the array eye opens, this great Talisman incantation will be motivated to protect this grand City and its residents."


    Ning Que looked at the dense buildings in Chang¡¯an City and the crowds who were as busy as ants, but still joyful. Listening to Master Yan Se¡¯s words, he could not help feeling uneasy, bing speechless due to the sense of awe and reverence.


    "The Vermilion Bird we saw just now is the most powerful Divine Talisman in this great Talisman incantation."


    It was a long time before Ning Que could suppress the surprise in his heart. He murmured, looking at the grand city, "What would the city look like if this big array opened, darkening the sky or rolling the ck clouds, or trembling the earth while the city remains where it is..."


    "No one knows how the scene would look like, not the designer nor those precedent cultivators who were responsible for building the array. And certainly they don¡¯t want to know, neither do I ."


    Master Yan Se looked at him and seriously said, "Theunch of the frightened mind array indicates Chang¡¯an City is about to be conquered. If it that day reallyes, it only means that the Great Tang Empire has got to the brink of destruction."


    Ning Que suddenly thought of a key question, and then seriously said, looking at Master Yan Se,"Master, you shouldn¡¯t have told me such things, especially of the array center and array root. It¡¯s not good."


    Master Yan Se calmly said, "Do you know who is responsible for Chang¡¯an City, this big god-stunning Array?"


    "Who?"


    "Your master, me."


    Master Yan Se smiled and looked at him, saying, "You are my only sessor, who will be in charge of the god-stunning Array after I leave this world, so it¡¯s perfectly justified for me to let you in on some rted information in advance."


    Ning Que did not say anything, but turned around to gaze at Chang¡¯an City under the city tower with his pale face. He shook his head and made some strange voices in his mouth as if he was scolding someone or breathing cold air, but more like he was unconsciously talking to himself.


    A long time passed.


    He nced back at Master Yan Se, and said with resentment, "Master, don¡¯t scare me like that."


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 180: A Midsummers Rain

    Chapter 180: A Midsummer¡¯s Rain


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "If I scare you to death, where can I find my sessor?"


    "The problem is that it doesn¡¯t sound real to me."


    "Why not?"


    "Chang¡¯an City, God-stunning Array, to pass them on to me...? Why? For what?"


    "The number of Divine Talisman Masters who are eligible to preside over the God-stunning Array is small, yet they who can be absolutely trusted by the Empire are even much less. As for the three cloistered Divine Talisman Masters in the Academy, only little Huang He is a citizen of the Tang Empire, and uncle Gongsun has something wrong with his health. Yet, you are a student of the Headmaster of the Academy, and a disciple of mine, so why can¡¯t the imperial court trust you? Why can¡¯t I pass them on to you?"


    "Who can agree?"


    "I agree."


    "Master, is it enough only with your consent?"


    "His Majesty has agreed, and he told me that he promised to show you something after you formally stepped into Talisman Taoism."


    "He did agree... but... anything relevant?"


    "You¡¯ll understand when you see it someday."


    ...


    ...


    It would be, of course, a very happy and glorious thing to be a high-ranking Divine Talisman Master. However, if the security of the entire Chang¡¯an and even the entire Tang Empire was handed over to the bing a Divine Talisman Master, then this kind of happiness and glory would be multiplied immensely and would be finally turned into big responsibilities like mountains and strong pressure like the sky.


    Thinking of standing up on the city tower of Chang¡¯an in a few decades to overlook the whole world, Ning Que could not easily feel rxed any longer. Instead, he would carefully observe the lives of millions of Tangs and always continue preparing to make the decisions that ordinary people could hardly make for the longevity of the imperial court, which had been prosperous for over thousands of years. At this moment, Ning Que felt that it was a little hard to breathe in his depressed mood.


    Based on objective evaluation, anyd that had juste into contact with the cultivation world for less than a year and who was still in the No Doubts State would be nearly scared to death if he suddenly knew that bigwigs of the Empire had made such an important arrangement for his future.


    Ning Que was no exception, but after all, he had experienced too many shocks and impacts in his life. He was strong and wild enough. Especially after entering the Second Floor of the Academy, his mind had be more stable, and even calm, easy, and indolent.


    After getting back to Lin 47th Street, his mood soon returned to normal.


    Someone¡¯s old cat lying on the stone in the ally was squinting andzily basking in the sun.


    ...


    ...


    In fact, Ning Que was notzy. In those days, in order to avoid those enthusiastic Chang¡¯an citizens and stewards of different mansions, he still got up in the dark and went out early in the morning to practice swords, knives, and needles and to enjoy the wind, melodies, and games of chess in the back of the mountain of the Academy. After leaving the Academy, he would continue to go sightseeing around Chang¡¯an City and to visit Taoist temples all around, but now he was alone on the road without his master¡¯spany.


    Chang¡¯an City finally arrived at the most difficult period of the year¡ªa hot and stifling summer. Ning Que also finished traveling to more than 10 temples, and he eventually arrived at Wanyan Tower in Southern City. Unfortunately, as it was not the right time of spring, geese had already made their trip north to Xunyang Lake of the Gushan Commandery to spend the hot summer. Thus, he had no chance of seeing the shocking scene of tens of thousands of geese flying together around the ancient tower.


    Luckily, ces like Taoist temples always preferred to choose the world¡¯s most beautiful scenery as their background, so the Taoist monks were forced to rehabilitate some good scenery so they would not be miserably cursed at by mortals. Hence, although there were now no geese to enjoy at Wanyan Tower, at least a pagoda with ancient lichenous bricks and finely carved stone statues remained.


    Ning Que looked up at the pagoda for a while and did not perceive any enlightenment in Talisman Taoism, nor any beauty. Therefore, he shrugged and walked into the hall, but he was immediately absorbed in the statues that were smooth in lines, but exceptionally solemn in expressions.


    The world was enveloped by the Divine Light of Haotian, while the Buddhism Sect silently stayed at a corner of Yuelun Kingdom. Although some temples had been built at the edges of some cities, after all, they might not qualify as mainstream. Most of the Buddhist monks doing penance in the Wilderness had little effect on secr people. Like most people, Ning Que did not understand much about Buddhist doctrines. He just roughly knew that the so-called venerable ones in the Buddhism Sect were probably equivalent to Sages that ordinary people always spoke of. These were the legends or myths of ancient times.


    Stone statues of the venerable ones were ced sessively in the quiet Buddhist Hall. They were emitting a sh of quiet and yellowish sheen as light prated through from windows that were covered with yellow papers. They were varied in shapesughing, or speechless, or seeming bitter on their faces. Their hands out of their cloister robes were also distinctive¡ªputting their palms together, or lightly gripping together, or pressing their long figures together in strange ways.


    Ning Que guessed that these must be Emblematic Gestures of the Buddhism Sect, and he subconsciously imitated in ordance with these statues. He stretched his hands out of his sleeves to slowly put his palms together, and then spread his fingers to be crossed, or bent his fingers to drop his wrist like a lotus. He gradually felt something in his heart, but could not tell what it was.


    Out of the temple appeared the bright and heated sunshine again. He blinked his eyes and shook his head in disappointment. When he was about to leave, a middle-aged monk came out of Wanyan Tower and smiled at him.


    ...


    ...


    Such a shabby roof it was.


    The middle-aged monk ced a cup of tea in front of Ning Que and calmly said, "You can call me Huang Yang."


    Ning Que received the cup and expressed his thanks to him, thinking that the name was somewhat familiar. It seemed that the name had been mentioned by Master Yen Se.


    "You might be confused as to why I invited you to ascend upstairs and have a talk together."


    The middle-aged monk looked at him and smilingly said, "I¡¯m entrusted by someone to speak a few words to you."


    Ning Que, holding the warm teacup, felt puzzled and thought by whom the monk was invited and what he wanted to say? At this moment, he finally remembered the identity of Huang Yang monk. Suddenly he was shocked, recalling those stories of hearsay that in the past he had heard. He then quickly got up and said, "Honored to... see you here, Master."


    Huang Yang monk chuckled and said, "Many people feel troubled about what to call me. In the eyes of themon people, I¡¯m the so-called younger brother of the emperor, and I¡¯m often called lord. But I¡¯m merely a monk rather than a lord."


    Ning Queughed, not knowing how to reply to him.


    Huang Yang monk pointed to the hill-like Buddhist scriptures on the bookcase behind him and said, "I brought back these scriptures from the Wilderness and wanted to trante them into in characters so that their true meaning can be learned by themon people. Yet many volumes haven¡¯t been finished yet, due to my little talent and learning. So please don¡¯t mind if I directly start to tell you."


    The middle-aged monk sitting on the opposite side was the younger brother of the emperor of the Tang dynasty, the most respected Buddhist sublime being in the Empire. Although Ning Que had not yet been able to guess by whom the monk was invited, a sublime being like the monk would rather take time off and talk to him here than interpret the Buddhist scriptures. What the monk was going to say might be extremely important to him. Thus, Ning Que would not have the slightest grievances about that.


    "I know little about Fu characters, so I can only start from the cultivation process that I have experienced. The Buddhism Sect stresses enlightenment with a clear heart. The one with a Buddhist heart can be a Buddha. The Qi of Heaven and Earth around can be considered as the gift endowed by Haotian, or as some glories that have existed since ancient times. Whether Haotian has the same will as that of humans is still controversial among the Taoist Sects, Buddhism Sects, and Academy predecessors. So we won¡¯t talk about that today."


    Huang Yang monk was actually straightforward, without any greetings or changing or concluding in his remarks . He directly uttered a great proposition, but abruptly stopped to quickly enter the theme after a few exnations.


    "Cultivation in the Buddhism Sect is ascetic. The so-called ascesis does not that mean cultivators need to bear hardships, but spend lots of years walking between heaven and earth and intimately contacting with cliffs and streams. Some day in the future, a water flower may blossom in the still stream of a cliff. After that, cultivators might be able to perceive the Primordial Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    "Cultivation pays attention to understanding thews of Qi of Heaven and Earth, to perceiving how the Primordial Qi flows and how it bes static. Disciples of the Buddhism Sect also need to study, but what¡¯s different is that our study depends more on perennial umtion. That we can suddenly figure out these things is called enlightenment."


    The truly good students, even in front of Einstein, would not be passively waiting to be fed by geese as wiggling fish did in Back Mountain of the Academy. Instead, they would bravely and timely raise questions. Ning Que was definitely a good student, so he frowned and asked after Huang Yang monk finished those words, "To realize all the attributes of objects by being extremely familiar with their objective existence?"


    "You summed it up pretty well, no wonder that you can enter the Second Floor of the Academy."


    Huang Yang monk was slightly stunned and said, "It generally makes sense. However, in terms of the Buddhism Sect, the Qi of Heaven and Earth has existed before humans, and will be always existing after our death. This is an objective existence of transcending secr experience or even living experience. Hence, perception matters more than mastery for us, who live amidst it. Most importantly, we should not think to control it.


    "So the Buddhism Sect, unlike those general genres of cultivation, divides states with the degree of understanding and control of thews of Heaven and Earth. There¡¯s nothing at all in the No Doubts State and Seethrough. To have a decent study about the endless heaven and earth with a limited life, how can they have no doubts? As it is the mystery of heaven and earth, how can they see through?"


    Ning Que seriously considered his words, feeling that these views of the Buddhism Sect were somewhat too rigid, or at least not so positive.


    "The Buddhism Sect only tells about enlightenment. If you get enlightened, then you actually do. If you don¡¯t, then you really do not."


    Huang Yang monk looked at him and calmly said, "I have done penance with my master in all parts of the world since my childhood. After the master died of old age and poor health, I went to Yuelun Kingdom since I heard that there¡¯s a holynd of the Buddhism Sect in the far west of the Wilderness. And then I started to march toward the Wilderness with caravans of the kingdom. During the following seven years, I followed 17 different caravans to get into the Wilderness, where some caravans stayed withouting back, but more caravans returned to the kingdom with big rewards. Yet, I have never found the legendary holynd of the Buddhism Sect.


    "One of the caravans had approached the Wilderness four times, and so had I with this caravan. Hence, I was familiar with those carters and guards. A sandstorm struck one day, and then the caravan was trapped somewhere in a mound of Qiucheng. At nightfall, a Horse Gang also entered the mound to avoid the sandstorms. Thus, a killing urred for no reason."


    Hearing the words "Horse Gang", Ning Que subconsciously raised his eyebrows, and a sh of bright light passed through his eyes. At the same time, his body suddenly stiffened out of instinct, with killing intent covering his body. He then asked in a low voice, "Master, what happened then? "


    He knew that it was unnecessary to ask this question for he knew better than anyone else the cruelty of the Horse Gang in the Wilderness. But now, the master was bravely sitting here, so he guessed that something probably did happen to him, or the master had very likely attained enlightenment that day.


    Sure enough, Huang Yang monk answered, "The Horse Gang was somewhat dreadful about disciples of the Buddhism Sect. Not until after they killed everyone did they besiege me. It was at that moment when I was finally enlightened, after 20 years of penance with my master and seven years of going in and out of the Wilderness. "


    Hearing the Master¡¯s story, Ning Que seemed to personally be on the cruel scene in the Wilderness that night. He was feeling slightly uneasy in his mind, and he then consciously asked, looking at the other side of the desk, "Master, how was the Horse Gang afterward?"


    Huang Yang monk smiled and did not give a reply. Instead, he just slowly poured some tea into his cup.


    Ning Queughed, knowing that he had asked a question of no significance. Although the Buddhism Sect was particr about mercy and helping others, Ning Que clearly knew that the Buddhism Sect would get furious in front of viins because before he had seen the introduction of those venerable ones who had ring eyes. That Horse Gang menmbers had naturally died.


    Huang Yang monk continued, "As for how I got enlightenment at that time, I can¡¯t understand, even now. I just remember that my body was immersed in the outflowing blood of familiar peers, feeling that their blood was very hot, which made my skin burn and seemingly ze up."


    Hearing these words, Ning Que gently rubbed his fingers under the table, feeling that the blood stains left from childhood were still as viscous as before. Though they were much lighter in color now, they still made him feel a little ufortable.


    Huang Yang monk looked at him and continued, "I¡¯ve been puzzled and in pain for many years¡ªsince enlightenment muste, then why didn¡¯t ite earlier? "Even just half a day earlier¡ªthen my friends of the caravan wouldn¡¯t have been killed by that Horse Gang. After a long period of time, I finally came to understand the truth that reasons and Lucky Chances for everyone to attain enlightenment are various. When chancese, they actuallye. If not, you won¡¯t be able to force it."


    Ning Que understood that the master was giving him advice now.


    Huang Yang monk continued, "Blood shouldn¡¯t be hot nor burning, since it¡¯s not fire. However, it was hot and burning for me at that moment, burning up all my clothes, my body, and even my Buddhist heart. If enlightenment is the perception of thews of the Qi of Heaven and Earth, then everyone¡¯s enlightenment should be distinctive. Only what you feel is real, and what others teach are fake. Hence, you don¡¯t need to worry. Be slow, and you¡¯ll finally get enlightened."


    Ning Que spent a long time in silent consideration, and then gave a long bow before departing from the Goose Pagoda.


    A momentter, Li Qingshan, the Master of Nation of the Tang, suddenly showed up and said, looking at Huang Yang monk, "Grateful."


    Huang Yang monk shook his head and replied, "So many contacts in such a short period of time. Don¡¯t you worry that he will go wrong?"


    Li Qingshan quietly said, "Such a lineup, including a Divine Talisman Master who¡¯s standing in front of the threshold, a highly regarded younger brother of the emperor of the Buddhism Sect, and those freaks in the Second Floor of the Academy, will lead the way for a youngd who¡¯s just entering the cultivation world. If he doesn¡¯t go wrong, then his future will be predictable. If this still doesn¡¯t work, then... we can only wait for the Master to return home."


    Grand Cultivators standing at the top of the Tang Empire all devoted themselves to the educational work of Ning Que. ording to Li Qingshan, suchters as that lineup might appear again in the future, but surely no predecessors like them had evere before.


    Huang Yang monk kept silent for a while before smilingly saying, "I hope he won¡¯t disappoint you in the future.


    "The Military Ministry and the Imperial Center Administration have also investigated him in detail, confirming that he¡¯s undisputedly loyal to the Tang Empire. Being able to enter the Second Floor of the Academy proves that he has enough potential, or even the qualifies to be a Divine Talisman Master in the future. Most importantly, he¡¯s unlike other cultivators who don¡¯t understand the affairs of life and just do things in the clouds. Instead, he acts calmly and coldly, being courageous and capable of killing others by any means on any asion.


    "How can His Majesty miss a young guy like him? Not to mention the role that the young guy¡¯s section yed in their rtionship?


    "So, painstakingly cultivating him isn¡¯t because old guys like us expect him to give credit to us when he grows up in the future, but because the future of the Tang Empire needs a young man like him."


    ...


    ...


    Since finishing the delicate banquet that could not fill his tummy in the pce that day, Ning Que sent some sections into the pce through the Bodyguard Office. After that, he had never been again nor met the emperor of the Tang, so he did not realize that he had be the most important candidate of the talent training program of the Great Tang Empire. However, judging from the talk with Huang Yang master in Wanyan Tower today, he could more or less figure out why the younger brother of the emperor of the Tang dynasty was willing to show up in person, who was relied on much in the pce, in addition to the honor of Master Yan Se.


    He was not shocked even if he had guessed it a little correctly, especiallypared to the situation where, a few days ago, his Master pointed to the picturesque scenery in Southern City and told him that he would be responsible for the safety of the grand city. But, he would certainly give birth to some touching emotions.


    A few days after the meeting in Wanyan Tower, he had been pondering over the words from Master Huang Yang, especially the word "enlightenment".


    The more that he considered, the more he could confirm that the enlightenment that the Buddhism Sect stressed was actually the Seethrough, if it was put into the system of ordinary cultivation methods. It meant to preliminarily grasp the governingws of the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    At this time, Ning Que still remained in the No Doubts State, and only a small distance away from the Seethrough. The same went for Talisman Taoism. He just needed a bit of distance to draw out that talisman, but the distance that seemed small for him was the most difficult part to ovee.


    Whoever would inevitably give rise to the emotions of anxiety and impatience, seeing that they were only one step away from the peak of the perilous mountain, was always unable to step over. Some days ago, Ning Que really acted calmly and easily. However, he was always looking forward to theing of that day. Not until hearing those words about enlightenment from Master Huang Yang in the tower did he suddenly realize that expectations, while seeming to be quiet and with merit, were also an anxiety, and that was an obstacle to cultivation.


    After a whole night of thorough consideration, Ning Que stopped thinking about such things as the Seethrough and Talisman Taoism. He would still either go to the Academy for flying swords, enjoying songs, forging iron, and gossiping, or walk around in the famous ces in Chang¡¯an City. Yet, he did not think about on which day he could enter the Seethrough and set the first brush on the white paper. While watching cornices of the scenic spots, he was just purely appreciating their beauty, reflecting their lines into his eyes, and even printing them into his heart, rather than considering what he could perceive from them.


    One day in midsummer¡ª


    The Old Brush Pen Shop was enveloped in the trying stuffiness and humidity of the afternoon. Ning Que relied on a bamboo chair under a tree, looking vaguely up at the sky that was separated overhead by branches and green leaves. He picked up a wet towel from the basin beside the chair to p on his body twice from time to time in order to wash away the greasy sweat and summer heat with the well water.


    "Change the water, please. The water in the basin has gotten hot again. What terrible weather this is. Hurry up and fetch some fresh water from the well."


    He was anxious about the severe heat rather than about cultivation, shouting loudly in front of him.


    In order to resist those inexhaustible admirers and stewards, the Old Brush Pen Shop now was open only two or three days, and was often closed with the excuse that the host had a joyous asion. Sangsang was so bored during the day that she would clean the table again and again. Now, hearing Ning Que¡¯s annoying shouts in the courtyard, she quickly ran out and poured the old water out under the tree, and then went to fetch some new well water.


    At this moment, a long-awaited rain fell down, striking the eaves and leaves with a crackle. It then rapidly transformed into pouring rain like a thunderstorm, which still could not conceal the neighbors¡¯ ecstatic shoutsing from the back alley.


    "Young Master, get in the house immediately."


    Sangsang dropped the basin and hurried to close the window.


    Ning Quey on the bamboo chair without any movement. He stared at that falling rain, feeling the embrittlement made by raindrops hitting his naked skin, as well as the humidity covering the streets, while his expression seemed a bit strange.


    Sangsang looked at him from the window and shouted, "Why haven¡¯t youe in?"


    Ning Que opened his eyes, looking at the increasingly dense rain, and suddenly shouted, "Look, it is so beautiful."


    Sangsang thought that her young master was talking nonsense again. She waited for a long time and found that Ning Que was still lying silly in the bamboo chair. She did not worry that he would catch a cold in the hot weather, but was afraid that he would be a fool exposed in the rain. Then she walked out to the bamboo chair with her slim furrowed eyebrows and looked up at the sky just as he did.


    Ning Que found that she had a little trouble looking up, so he put his hands around her waist and held her in his arms.


    The master and servanty side by side on the chair, with their eyes gazing at the sky in the heavy rain.


    Sangsang watched the rain that was falling on her face like arrows, and surprisingly said, "It¡¯s really nice."


    Ning Que wiped away the rain on her face, and asked, "Do you think we are like an eave under millions of years of wind and rain?"


    Sangsang shook her head and said, "I don¡¯t think so. I feel like we¡¯re a city wall being shot at by a lot of arrows."


    Ning Que sighed, "What an unromantic girl."


    ...


    ...


    At night, the rain gradually stopped.


    Sangsang began cooking, while Ning Que dried his body and came to the desk by the window once again.


    He poured water into the inkstone, ground the ink stick, and lifted the brush, which was just as usual and natural as he had done for more than a decade.


    The piece of white paper on the desk was the original one, whose edges had rolled up during dozens of days, but it was still nk.


    He took his gaze away from the page of the Water Volume of the ssics of the Fu character, and gave a nce to the rain dripping from the eave.


    Then he dropped his wrist and set the brush down.


    The plump nib, which was like a treetop that had been engorged with rain, gently fell onto the white paper.


    One line, two lines, three lines, six lines.


    Six lines were finished.


    Ning Que took a deep breath, and then put the brush away.


    Sangsang came in with two bowls of rice with soybean sauce and put them aside before walking to the desk and taking a look with curiosity.


    Then she looked up at the roof, and unhappily said with her eyebrows slightly furrowing, "Is it actually leaking? Wasn¡¯t it a new house built in the fourth year of the Tianqi era? Young Master, you need to talk to Mr. Qi tomorrow and tell him to reduce the rent. "


    Ning Que reluctantly shook his head and said, "Have we ever paid the rent? Moreover, this house doesn¡¯t leak."


    "Doesn¡¯t leak? Young master, are you confused with a fever because you got wet in the rain? Do I need to go to the pharmacy..."


    Sangsang pointed at the nk sheet of paper on the desk and asked with concern, looking at Ning Que.


    However, without finishing her words, she, with her slim body, was held by Ning Que into his arms.


    Sangsang felt that her young master seemed very excited today. She had no choice but to open her arms, and motionlessly let him hug her.


    Ning Que held her tightly and smilingly said in her ear after a short period of silence, "Tell all those Chang¡¯an people who want to invite me to dinner that I¡¯ll have time to attend the meetings in their mansions from today on."


    Hearing those words, Sangsang slightly stiffened and looked again toward the desk.


    The six ink lines on the white paper had long disappeared.


    Only a puddle of water was left.


    It was either rain, or water.

 Chapter 181: Eating Rice but Flowing Eggs out

    Chapter 181: Eating Rice but Flowing Eggs out


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que certainly felt very excited after sessfullypleting the first Fu in his life, but soon he became calm and then a little emotional. This time, his happiness was not as strong as the ecstasy when he entered the cultivation roadst year. He had been thinking of cultivation for more than ten years, and he suddenly seeded almost as he was to give it up. Inparison, the sess of Talisman Taoism was reasonable and predictable, because he knew he had the ability toprehend it and the only problem was time.


    He felt excited but peaceful, so it was impossible for him to inform everyone by beating drums and gongs in streets and alleys. He just told those people close to him, but then he found in surprise that these guys¡¯ reactions were much stronger than his, which made him doubt who on earth wrote that water Fu on the white paper on his desk.


    In order to celebrate it, Sangsang unexpectedly employed the cook of Victory House to make noodles. The Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters in the Second Floor of the Academy all shared the news with each other. They thought that their Younger Brother would be absorbed in Talisman Taoism from now on and would give up practising his terrible flying sword. They happily jumped, danced, sang and yed the flute because their heads and the ass of the big white goose would be much safer. When Master Yan Se heard of it, he was shocked and silently sat for a while in the South Gate Office at first, and then went to the House of Red Sleeves for an indulgent drinking. As he was highly drunk, two lines of old tears somehow flowed down along his old face.


    The third day after that summer rain, the old and noble Chancellor of Tang organized a grand banquet in his mansion for a random reason. More than ten government officials were invited and they all drank for entertainment in the rain-proof corridor of the courtyard. Actually, they all felt confused but didn¡¯t dare to ask the host.


    Those bigwigs of imperial court naturally wouldn¡¯t sit with those middle-level officials at the same courtyard. Instead, they were chatting with the Old Chancellor in the main room. Upon listening to the cheerfulughter of the Old Chancellor, they felt much more confused than those officials outside the room. They were guessing what kind of joyous thing could make the Old Chancellor so happy, who led the literary field with his well-known academic articles and seldomughed. Was it because the border army seeded in fighting a big area ofnd for Tang, or because his granddaughter was to get married?


    In such asion, the atmosphere should be very joyful and hrious, no matter what was the reason. However, when they saw another old white-hair lord sitting by the left side of the Old Chancellor, they felt strange and embarrassed, even the Minister of the Ministry of Rites kept silent as much as he could.


    That lord was Wang Shichen, the Grand Secretary of the Imperial Library. In the whole court, few people dare to embarrass the Old Chancellor except several persons like the prime minister. Also, the Grand Secretary was one of them. In addition, all people knew that the two old lords were at odds all the time.


    The two lords had been a inharmonious rtionship for a long time, but it had nothing to do political and partypetition. Tang put itsw first, requiring every government departments to conduct their work ording to thew. Even for nobles or royal members, they didn¡¯t dare to break thew. Though there wasn¡¯t cruel punishment, it was very difficult to illegally circumvent thew or do some tricks. In such case, few officials dared to secretly form cliques for private benefits.


    Several ministers and high officials in the main room knew clearly that the resentment between the Old Chancellor and the Grand Secretary was due to a thing onpeting for a female¡¯s love at their young ages. At that time, both of them were students of the Academy, and they were close friends in the same ss. Unfortunately, they both fell in love to a beautiful and well-disposed female in their ss, who was the daughter of the prime minister back then. Most pitifully, the prime minister only had one daughter, so...


    Having a sneer and gently stroking his white beard, the Grand Secretary Wang Shichen looked at the Old Chancellor beside him and then said, "I heard you often sent your steward to Lin 47th Street recently, and subpurchased several pieces of handwriting works from other people?"


    "Right. Are you jealous?" The Old Chancellor grinned and said to Wang Shichen, "You don¡¯t have to say something about the face of imperial court. After all, Ning Que is a student of the Academy, so he is our alumnus. What¡¯s more, he has already entered the Second floor. Though I am much older than him, is there any problem for me to show my respect to him? Besides, I heard that these days you also frequently sent your stewards to the Old Brush Pen Shop, so don¡¯t criticize me."


    "Look at you, how would you an old man reply so much words to my few questions, if there is nothing shameful in your heart?" Grand Secretary Wang sneered, "Ning Que¡¯s handwriting is truly excellent. Both his Majesty and I appreciate it. Thus, is there something unsuitable for me to send some stewards to the Old Brush Pen Shop? I don¡¯t know whether your hard work gives you some authentic work, but I really feel sorry for you."


    Before the Old Chancellor answered, Grand Secretary Wang burst intoughter and said to other officials around the table, "I think everyone knows that Mister Ning¡¯s Chicken Soup Calligraphy is in my mansion now. I feel very well when I take a look at it in my spare time."


    Knowing that the word was against him, the Old Chancellor slightly raised his eyebrows.


    Grand Secretary Wang also raised his eyebrows and continued saying, "Actually, the number of Ning Que¡¯s handwriting works outside his shop isn¡¯t at a small number. However, I think no other works can bepared with the "Bloom in the Opposite World", except my Chicken Soup Calligraphy with implicit sense of Divine Talisman. Indeed, it cost me a lot to get the Chicken Soup Calligraphy. If I am not an old friend of Master Yan Se, how could I get the fantastic works?"


    Then he turned to the Old Chancellor and smilingly said, "Old man, I heard that your steward bought two pieces of rubblings of Yan on the Chicken Soup Calligraphy in the House of Red Sleeves? It is indeed needless. If you really want to view the authentic works of the Chicken Soup Calligraphy, just tell me. You don¡¯t have to invite me to this meal and bother other fellows, right?"


    The Old Chancellor got a little angry and, with his hands on the table, sneered, "If I want to have a look, you will bring it here?"


    "That¡¯s impossible!" Grand Secretary Wang smilingly said, "His Majesty knows the Chicken Soup Calligraphy is in my mansion and has already asked it for three times, but I refuse. If the works was sent to the pce, it definitely won¡¯te back. If I send it here, I am certain that you won¡¯t give it back to me even if you have to abandon your face, so I won¡¯t bite at the bait. This month, his Majesty has already visited my mansion twice, if you really want to appreciate the works, juste to my house."


    "Big Head Wang! Don¡¯t be so arrogant!" The Old Chancellor violently banged the table and angrily rebuked.


    Out of anger, the moral and literature master directly called the nickname of Wang Shichen now, which was very unexpected and embarrassing. If it happened in the past, Wang Shichen would definitely humiliate the Old Chancellor as his counterattack. But today, he took advantage of the Chicken Soup Calligraphy and acted like a winner. He unconcernedly shook his head and said in a sympathetic tone, "Diposure. You are too diposed!"


    Thinking of the purpose of today¡¯s banquet, the Old Chancellor forcibly suppressed his anger. Then he slowly took a seat and sneered, "Today¡¯s banquet is certainly for something important. For inviting you? You think your face is big enough because your head is big?"


    Grand Secretary Wang just smiled and ignored it.


    Watching two high officials who had served for three emperors ridiculing to each other, other ministers and officials around the table didn¡¯t dare to interrupt. Actually they had been used to this kind of scene. They had no other choices but to keep silent, because they knew it was useless to reconcile the quarrel.


    After a while, it seemed that some guests wereing, as some sound appeared in the courtyard.


    Grand Secretary Wang looked out of the door and then slightly frowned.


    The Old Chancellorughed and stroke his long beard with satisfaction, when he looked at the youngd who was entering the courtyard in the middle of other youngsters. Then he squinted at Grand Secretary Wang and said, "The authentic works of the Chicken Soup Calligraphy? Let¡¯s look at the author of the Chicken Soup Calligraphy first!"


    Right now these bigwigs from imperial court had already guessed the identity of the youngd. Before then, they knew the young guy more or less, but they still couldn¡¯t help sighing with emotion in their hearts, because the youngd was so young.


    Grand Secretary Wang looked very embarrassed.


    Back in spring, the whole Chang¡¯an was shocked at the presence of the author of the famous handwriting works "Bloom in the opposite world". Many high officials and noble figures wanted to get close to the author, so as to please his Majesty. Even for Grand Secretary Wang, apart from managing to get the Chicken Soup Calligraphy from Yan Se, he also sent his steward to invite the author for a banquet. However, to everyone¡¯s surprise, the man was deaf to all invitation and continued living steadily and peacefully in an ordinary alley.


    For ordinary calligraphers, if they treated bigwigs of Tang in this way, they would be immediately dested and forgotten by others, even if they are the second Master of Calligraphers. However, this calligrapher was deeply favored by his Majesty and he was a student of the Second floor of the Academy. Thus, these bigwigs didn¡¯t dare to suppress or threaten him and just unwillingly left him alone.


    As time passed, these bigwigs found that the man treated all people with the same attitude and never epted anyone¡¯s invitation. They though the man, a cultivator, might be more interested in other hobbies, so they gradually forgot it. They kept purchasing his expensive works without hesitation, but stopped showing enthusiasm to the person. Today, however, no one had expected that...this man would appear at the banquet of Old Chancellor!


    These government officials of Tang were all very clever, so, after few seconds, they figured out why the calligrapher broke his regr behavior. With a sneer, Wang Shichen looked at Old Chancellor and ironically said, "Congrattion on you having a good granddaughter."


    In fact, there were some vicious meaning hidden behind the word. However, as how Grand Secretary Wang replied Old Chancellor with normal words before, this time Old Chancellor acted like a victor. He just smilingly and sarcastically said, "It is a pity that your granddaughter failed to pass the examination of Academy."


    This sentence directly stabbed the biggest pain of Grand Secretary Wang these three years. With his facial expression slightly changing and fingers trembling, Grand Secretary Wang pointed to Old Chancellor¡¯s face with his finger and angrily rebuked, "You the old man, don¡¯t be socent!"


    Old Chancellor said with emotion, "As the first old man who seeded in inviting Mister Ning to a banquet, it is difficult to be notcent."


    Looking back to Ning Que outside the courtyard, Grand Secretary Wang irritatedly said, "Is it necessary to watch the old chicken when enjoying chicken soup?"


    Old Chancellorughed and sighed with his head shaking, "Diposure. You are too diposed!"


    ...


    ...


    In a summer storm the day before yesterday, Ning Que said that sentence to Sangsang as he finished an ink Fu in white paper, and then they began epting others¡¯ invitations. After sorting out the invitation cards, they surprisingly found that they had saved dozens of invitations within two months.


    They clearly knew that these bigwigs in Chang¡¯an treated him so politely and warmly because of the face of his Majesty. Previously, he wasn¡¯t afraid of refusing them, for he was backed by the Academy. However, if he started epting the invitations, it was of necessity to pay attention to the sequential order, because the Academy would be also embarrassed to speak for him if he offended a high official in etiquette.


    Yesterday by the river bank of Academy, Ning Que carefully consulted to Situ Yn about the issue. Finally, he decided to put Old Chancellor¡¯s invitation in the first ce. The reasons were very simple. First, as Old Chancellor was a noble and literary official, it was reasonable for Ning Que to visit him as a calligrapher student. More importantly, Jin Wucai, the granddaughter of Old Chancellor, was his ssmate. This kind of rtion wouldn¡¯t be criticized in any situations anywhere.


    The dishes in the Old Chancellor¡¯s mansion were, of course, much better than those in the imperial court, but also too light. Besides, the talk at the banquet was reallyck of fun. Remembering an evesting truth that you have to politely show your enough respect if a big wig favored you, Ning Que modestly and earnestly answered their words and behaved very well.


    After the meal, Old Chancellor naturally ordered his servants to get ready for calligraphy stationery and invited Ning Que to show handwriting talent.


    Afterpleting the writing, Ning Que, apanied by Jin Wucai and Situ Yn, walked out of the mansion. Through a short chatting, Ning Que knew that Xie Chengyun had already returned back to South Jin Kingdom during these days when Ning Que was busy learning Talisman Taoism. He noticed that when Situ Yn mentioned Xie Chengyun, Jin Wucai¡¯s facial expression was still peaceful, but some sadness could be unavoidably seen from her eyes.


    Since Ning Que had attended a banquet, there was no chance for him to refuse others. ording to the schedule made by Situ Yn, he should have visited the minister of the Ministry of Rites the second day. However, he had to change the original n to visit Grand Secretary Wang first, for he had met Grand Secretary Wang at the banquet of Old Chancellorst night. Before agreeing the request of Grand Secretary Wang at the banquetst night, Ning Que had clearly felt that if he refused the invitation of the white-hair Grand Secretary Wang, this guy would perhaps send some people to smash his shop in Lin 47th Street.


    The dinner at Grand Secretary Wang¡¯s mansion was more extravagant than that of Old Chancellor. Obviously, this old lord didn¡¯t serve him as an old hen that could be treated well just with some rice. Instead, he invited a lot of high officials from six ministries and three councils. If carefully counted, about half of the officials who were qualified to attend imperial court meeting were possibly standing in this courtyard!


    Looking at these high officials who wore all kinds of government robes in the courtyard, Ning Que was speechless out of shock. He thought how he would be worth such a grand face as he was just a young calligrapher?


    However, Grand Secretary Wang thought Ning Que was worth it. Standing in front of the step and joining Ning Que¡¯s hand, he made a grand introduction of Ning Que to everyone present.


    For Academy and Headmaster of Academy, for imperial pce and his Majesty, for South Gate Office and Yan Se, Grand Secretary Wang didn¡¯t mind giving enough face. Of course, he implicitly wanted to show off. On one hand, he would like to, by these officials¡¯ mouth, tell the whole country that Ning Que had attended his banquet. On the other hand, he wanted to let Ning Que know that he was more careful and attentive than Old Chancellor in entertaining him. In this way, Grand Secretary Wang implied that Ning Que should first let him appreciate handwriting works in the future, and should tell him what his Majesty thought...


    All people didn¡¯t leave after dinner. Grand Secretary Wang showed that precious Chicken Soup Calligraphy for others¡¯ appreciation. Later, the old lord requested Ning Que to stamp his private seal on the memo paper which was still wrinkled after repairing.


    With Ning Que¡¯s fingers slightly raising, the seal was separated from the surface of Chicken Soup Calligraphy, leaving a lump of eye-dazzling redness. A great rejoicing suddenly filled the whole mansion. Other officials were cheering by praising and pping hands, the chambein of the mansion was moved due to happiness, and all servants were muttering with each other. The old servant, who followed the family from hometown and had served Grand Secretary for nearly seventy years, was crying out of excitement. Holding his walking stick, he looked at the brightly-lit courtyard and tremblingly said, "My lord, young master defeated that Jin old man. The hatred of ¡¯robbing wife¡¯ was finally revenged a little..."


    After stamping the seal, Ning Que breathed a sigh of relief and thought maybe the assignment was finished. However, to his surprise, Grand Secretary Wang didn¡¯t want to let him leave. Instead, like Old Chancellor yesterday, he ordered his servants to get ready for calligraphy stationery. From the speed of cing the calligraphy stationery by stewards, no one present believed that they weren¡¯t overtime trained on it before.


    nkly looking at the superrge Huangzhou art paper in front of him, Ning Que felt like weeping but no tears. He thoughtst night Old Chancellor just took a piece of ordinary paper, but Grand Secretary Wang...wanted me to write a central scroll? Was it too cruel?


    After leaving the mansion of Grand Secretary, Ning Que sadly said to Sangsang, "We won¡¯t attend such banquet in the future."


    Sangsang asked in confusion, "Young master, several days ago you said we can¡¯t depend on only one skill if we want to achieve something ambitious, so we had to build a good rtionship with those bigwigs in mortal world while paying most attention to cultivation. But why now you say we won¡¯t attend such banquet in the future?"


    "When ites to having meals, chatting, praising bigwigs and bootlicking, I am actually very good at it, because I am unblushing after all."


    Ning Que shook his head and said with emotion, "But I have to leave a piece of handwriting after having a meal. Yesterday I was requested to write on an ordinary volume, but today the host asked for a central scroll. Tomorrow if the prime minister invites me, what should I write? Fill the newly-painted white wall with characters?"


    "These bigwigs aren¡¯t inviting me to their banquets; instead, they are totally robbing my money!"

 Chapter 182: Heading Back South for Food!

    Chapter 182: Heading Back South for Food!


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Some emperors didn¡¯t attend imperial court levees because they were reluctant to leave beautiful and pretty whores. Ning Que refused to have meals because he didn¡¯t want to leave his valuable calligraphy. Naturally, the ¡¯refusal to have meals¡¯ meant that Ning Que wouldn¡¯t attend other banquets in the future. This was not due to his objection to Tang Empire. He wouldn¡¯t go through something asme as a hunger strike.


    That terrible famine in his childhood left a serious psychological shadow in his heart, so he insisted that eating should be the most important thing in the world. There wasn¡¯t any celestial being who could survive without eating food. Even for the first mightiest man Sage of Sword Liu Bai would feel pale and tired if he didn¡¯t have food for several days. Anyone, no matter who he was, would die if he didn¡¯t eat.


    Male and female in love? During the days without food, even a rose representing love, or a naked peerless beauty, were simr to meat in many men¡¯s eyes.


    Buddhism Sect always propagandized the harm caused by women. Ning Que couldn¡¯t help thinking that it might be rtive to Buddhism Sect¡¯s lifestyle. The sadhus had to climb mountains everyday while just having vegetables, tofu and thin porridge in meals. Therefore, the semistarvation caused them to put forward this seemingly-right but actually-idiotic view. Yuelun Kingdom suffered famine most, but its development of Buddhism ranked first. Perhaps there were some rtions between famine and development of Buddhism. Theirmon people might not be interested in those male-female affairs when they were very hungry. In this circumstance, maybe Buddhism was their rtively-ideal ce to stay?


    Of course, Ning Que¡¯s views weren¡¯t totally right, but at least it conformed to some rules of human history. Usually, the most fundamental reason for internal and external wars was food.


    To make their stomach full, refugees dare fight with regr army. To make suremon people wouldn¡¯t fight with government, every country would do anything to capture morend, regardless of dignity and face. For the same reason, the northern wild tribe, who had been away from the Central ins for nearly one thousand years, was forced to move southward and attacked the valiant Tribe of Savages. In order to get food, they had no more redundant time and energy to worry about the anger of countries in Central ins and the aftermath.


    War was for food. Of course, it was necessary and crucial to provide food for those who fought for you. On the slightly-cold grasnd, cooking smoke rose from dozens of rough stoves as mutton was cooked in dozens ofrge pots. This was a necessity for fighting.


    Thousands of men in animal-fur clothes sat around the stoves and had mutton without any words. No matter wrinkled old men or youngds, they all showed a peaceful and steady expression. It seemed that they had lived here for many years, and not just having arrived here after a long journey.


    They were part of the north wild tribe army. That was, they were one part of the north wild men who still had fighting capacities. This time, the tribe had gathered all men who could fight, so it even didn¡¯t deserve the name ¡¯army¡¯. Along the grasnd border battlefield spreading hundreds of kilometers, the tribe had summoned all their ¡¯soldiers¡¯ who still had the ability to fight.


    The old, the young, the weak and women of the tribe were all left behind. It would take about a month for them to arrive at the border of the grasnd. If these men failed to capture the grasnd by this war, their families behind them would definitely be engulfed by coldness, darkness, hunger and enemies¡¯ de.


    For many years, the north wild tribe, depended on the Hot Sea for a living and had lived with extreme difficulty in the far-north cold region. It was impossible for them maintain too many people. In addition, the duration of dark night strangely lengthened and the temperature gradually decreased in the past years, so their lives became more and more difficult. At the end ofst winter, their tribe leader finally decided that the whole tribe had to go southward.


    There would be no food if they didn¡¯t go southward. In the south, there were plenty of grasnds, flocks of sheep and enough food. However, it was a pity that God wasn¡¯t generous when he bestowednds to human being. Most of thends had belonged to certain owners, including thisrge-sized fertile grasnd. If these Deste Men from the north wanted to get some grasnd, sheep and food, the owners of the belongings of course wouldn¡¯t agree.


    So, a war was inevitable.


    ...


    ...


    After about one thousand years, the Deste Men reappeared on the grasnd. This should have shocked the whole world, however, they had been away from the world for such a long time that many people had forgotten their presence, though they had once conquered the grasnd and severely threatened the countries in Central ins. Besides, both the tough natural environment and hard times caused their poption to decrease to such a low level that nobody would regard them as a threat. Thus, this incident was temporarily limited within the north of the grasnd.


    In fact, such circumstance was also highly rted to the wise decision made by the senior leaders of the Deste Man tribe. Before going southward, they had set a steady and clear target. The grasnd they targeted at belonged to the barbarians of Left-Tent, which was unrted with those countries in Central ins, especially that powerful and terrible empire. Though the wild soldiers were very brave in the war, they limited the range of war within the area of northern grasnd.


    The southward army of Deste Man had been to the border of northern grasnd for nearly one month. The fighting between the Deste Man army and the barbarian cavalries of Left-Tent had alsosted one month. Along the several-hundred-kilometer battle line, both armies had conducted at least one hundred different battles of different sizes, and most of these battles ended up with the victory going to the Deste Men.


    The cruelty of war could be greatly embodied by the cost of death, even for the victor. The Deste Man soldiers were taciturn, determined, brave and disciplined, so their individual fighting capacity was much stronger than an average barbarian on the grasnd. However, the number of the Deste Man soldier was too small. While they seeded in consecutively defeating the violent and crazy attack of one hundred thousand cavalries of Left-Tent, the number of death of theirpanies also grew increasingly.


    Crude stoves, steel pots, water and mutton. At a not-far distance, many dead bodies of theirpaniesid on the grasnd which had been covered with blood. A Deste Man Necromancer, whose face was painted with myron, calmly walked among these bodies. At times, he squatted and, with his fingers, gently touched the dead on between the eyebrows. Someplicated sybles were uttered from his dry lips, which sounded like both expiating the sins of the dead and extolling the dead.


    At a distance not far away from the dead bodies, ad from Deste Man of about thirteen or fourteen, blew his bone flute. The flute sound was sad and shrill, as if it wasining about their homelessness and struggling pain that Deste Man had experienced these one thousand years.


    A hoary and old voice added to the flute sound. A respected and prestigious elder sang a song that all Deste Man knew how to sing. The singing was deste and sonorous, showing a kind of shocking unyieldingness in sadness.


    "The sky turns cold; the earth bes cold too. Goshawks daren¡¯t look northward."


    "The Hot Sea ebbs; the Hot Sea rises. Snowwolves are being hunted by the Hot Sea."


    "Snowwolves are being chased; Snowwolves are dead. All day busy searching for deer."


    "Where to live; where to die. Where to bury white bones."


    "Min Mountain was grand; Min Mountain was majestic. Min Mountain was the real hometown."


    "Walk through the vast snow; Step on the thick frost. All day looking southward."


    "Walk through the vast snow; Step on the thick frost. No longer looking southward."


    "I go first, and youe after me."


    "I fight first, and youe after me."


    "I die first, and youe after me."


    "The homeward journey is near; the homeward journey is far. It¡¯s on my way."


    "I have gone, and you ought toe soon."


    "I have fought, and you ought toe soon."


    "I have died, and you ought toe soon."


    "I have died, and you ought toe soon."


    ...


    ...


    "I have died, and you ought toe soon." Thest two sentences were sung repeatedly and destely. Several young soldiers from Deste Man looked at that direction in silence. Their eyes, apanied with the elder¡¯s singing, emitted a kind of grand yet not sad atmosphere on the grasnd.


    Most of the soldiers from Deste Man kept silent. They just had mutton and drank smelly oil soup. They seized every second to replenish their strength during the short break, because no one knew when the next battle would begin.


    The ancestors of the Deste Man were once called ¡¯inborn soldiers¡¯ by people in Central ins. Now, the Deste Man had experienced the suffering of severe living environment for one thousand years. The word ¡¯fighting¡¯ had already been engraved in their vessels and bones, even the death of their partners wouldn¡¯t touch them at all. Even if the song, which had been handed down for one thousand years, could slightly resonate within their deep heart, it still failed to interfere with their preparation for fighting.


    Then at that moment, the horn calling for battle rang again.


    The grasnd trembled slightly as an unknown number of cavalries of Left-Tent rushed towards them.


    The Deste Man soldiers weren¡¯t rmed at all. After putting down the mutton and spoon and rubbing their oily faces with their sleeves, they picked up their heavy but seriously-damaged weapons beside them and slowly walked southward. They even remembered to put out the fire of stoves before they left.


    ...


    ...


    They walked slowly, trotted, sped up, and sprinted.


    The way the Deste Man soldiers entered the battlefield was very simr to the way the grasnd cavalries did, except that what they had was just two legs, rather than a horse. To everyone¡¯s amazement, however, these Deste Man soldiers in furred clothes and des and hatchets, who didn¡¯t look very tall or strong, could run at a incredibly fast speed if they sprinted.


    A low humming started. The grasnd cavalries, who were good at riding and shooting, pulled their bowstring of short bow at a long distance. Countless arrows flew over the sky and rushed at thousands of Deste Man soldiers like raindrops.


    With a whizzing sound, a Deste Man soldier running at high speed was right hit by a sharp arrow. The arrow, after shooting through leather armor, stayed in his chest, as if taking root. The soldier¡¯s blood quickly flowed out and reddened his leather armor. However, this soldier still rushed at the crowds of cavalries with his des and hatchets, as if he didn¡¯t notice his wound at all. Obviously, that arrow was blocked by his steel-like skin and flesh, so it didn¡¯t hurt any organs.


    There wasn¡¯t any military order or g signal. What the Deste Man relied on during a war were instinct and their mutual trust that was developed from fighting together for nearly one thousand years. When crowds of grasnd cavalries were just at about ten paces distance, all soldiers who hadn¡¯t been defeated by the cavalries¡¯ arrows drew out sharp hatchets at their waist with one ord, and then threw them out with all their strength!


    Those sharp hatchets spun at high speed, cutting through the air on the battlefield. The bright light on the hatchets reflected sunlight as many lines of snow-white shadow on the green grasnd, looking very beautiful yet extremely horrific.


    By virtue of strong defense, the Deste Man soldiers managed to survive from the first round of shooting by the grasnd cavalries. They kept sprinting as they entered into the effective damage range of hatchets and managed to quickly throw out their hatchets before the cavalries conducted their second round of shooting!


    While the arrow rain failed to kill many Deste Man soldiers, the storm formed by nearly one thousand sharp hatchets brought the cruelest attack to the grasnd cavalries. The heavy hatchets, with the force and spinning by the Deste Man soldiers easilycerated the light armor of the cavalries. The hatchet could make them fracture and spit blood should they just touch the calvery!

 Chapter 183: Desolate Man Stepping onto the Grassland (I)

    Chapter 183: Deste Man Stepping onto the Grasnd (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    A shriek pierced the air before the sharp axes fell, cutting deep into the head of the battle horse and chopping off the arms of the cavalry on the grasnd. Apanied with painful screaming and groaning noise, the grasnd warriors fell off the back of the horse as numerous war horses thumped loudly onto the ground.


    However, death and blood did not stop the cavalry on the grasnd. Instead, it had strongly motivated the highly-trained cavalry from the Left King¡¯s Pce. They swung the scimitars in their hands and cheered on, as they continued to dash forward towards their enemy despite of those axes.


    As opposed to the grasnd cavalries who were near insanity, the Deste Man warriors kept silent since the beginning of the battle. Regardless of whether they were running, dodging arrows, injured and fallen, or using their might tounch their flying axes, their lips remained tight. In this war of life and death, warriors should be burning with passion and fighting with their might on the battle ground, yet such silence made the scene even scarier.


    Should there be bystanders at the side of the battle ground, they would see that the widespread of noisy, crazy and driven grasnd cavalries had already won those voiceless Deste Man warriors in terms of vigour.


    The grasnd cavalries formed ck tides as they finally got closer to the silent but advancing Deste Man warriors, where they had their first collision. What was unexpected was that the Deste warriors who looked weak because of silence were not dispersed due to the collision. They were as strong as a skerry in the midst of the ck ocean and were not affected by the tides!


    A young Deste warrior lowered his body and pulled out the long knife from his waist as fast as lightning. The grasnd cavalry who was dashing towards him turned pale immediately as he was suddenly lowered. A painful shriek from the horse was heard. The horse¡¯s forelimbs were neatly chopped off.


    Another young and strong-built Deste Man warrior took advantage of the situation and positioned himself in front of the grasnd cavalry near him. He took a step forward with his right foot, lowered his bended body and used his shoulder to m hard onto his enemy. No matter how one looked at it, it was impossible for a human to injure a horse by mming his body against it, yet the shoulder of this young and strong Deste Man seemed to be hard like a rock. mming his body against the horse in a right angle, the Deste Man not only dodged the scimitar attack that wasunched at him, but hit the bull¡¯s eye, which was the horse¡¯s weakest part in its forelimb.


    Upon hearing the dull scream from either the man or the horse, the horse flipped over. At this moment, the grasnd cavalry on the horse quickly exhibited his great horse-riding technique as he turned over and got off from the saddle, escaping from the terrible crash and fall from the hefty horse. However, when the second his feet touched the ground, that young and strong Deste warrior lifted his long knife and slit off his head with a swoosh!


    Swish!


    As the ck tides formed by the grasnd cavalry approached, the Deste warriors with the long knives were swallowed by the tides in an instance. Yet momentster, ripples of blood were created within the ck tides as the young and old Deste warriors floated out of the ck ocean once more, covering themselves with blood and were ready for another wave of attack.


    The tide swarmed over the skerry and gradually retreated. But the skerry stood in the midst of the ocean silently. It was as though even a hundred million years had passed, it would never be broken apart!


    Nheless, these Deste Man warriors were not as senseless as skerry. Faced with the widespread and continuous waves of attack from the grasnd cavalries, they did not choose to remain silent and slowly counter those attacks forever. Instead, they sped up and went against the second wave of attack.


    With the skin of beasts wrapped around their freezing and slightly immobile legs, the Deste warriors dashed across the grasnd, along with grass roots and stones, and sneaked in between the grasnd cavalry like numerous shadows.


    They dodged all the arrows and attacks from the sharp scimitars as well as avoiding any collision with the horses. With five warriors in a team, they coordinated well with great tacit and understanding, as they split the grasnd cavalries apart from the center and surrounded them.


    At that time, the scene was impressive. Though the grasnd cavalries had already covered the whole battle ground, they still failed to use the shortest time to defeat those Deste Man warriors. On the other hand, those Deste Man warriors neither cared about those knives and arrows nor the number of grasnd cavalries each team had surrounded. They silently pulled out their long knives and started to dash towards their preys. The long des were sharp and their feet were swift. Blood sttered everywhere. Every now and then, there would be some grasnd cavalries fallen from their horse saddle, and the next moment, they would be cut by several knives into gruesome meat pieces.


    The grasnd cavalries at the outer-ring were not in time to aid those that were already within the battle ground. They tried their best to shoot their arrows at their enemies, yet the number of Deste warriors they could kill was also limited.


    In view of that high defensive and unimaginable speed the grasnd cavalries had, it should had been their battle on this wide and broad grasnd. Yet the winning side was leaning unexpectedkly to another.


    In fact, ever since the Deste Man tribe moved south and began to battle with the grasnd cavalries from Left-Tent King tribe, themon logic and idea one had about grasnd cavalries was totally reversed.


    Being defeated was not the scariest thing in battle. The scariest thing in battles was when one realised that whatever ideas or strategies one had from past battles experience were suddenly ineffective and useless. That kind of impact on one¡¯s mental health made one lost all his confidence in battles. In the previous battles, the reason that the grasnd cavalries lost was due to the extreme and unknown fear they had within themselves. Every time they sent their strongest assault team to battle, believing that they would win, they would end up bing the Deste Man¡¯s target board. No matter how strong their army was, or how discipline their soldiers were, they were still unable to block off the attacks.


    ording to the past battle process, the grasnd cavalries should have a mental breakdown by now, followed by a panic retreat out of the battle ground. They would gathered again to rest and recover their energy and stamina before they sent men to assult the enemy again, and then failed again. But today, the situation seemed different.


    The cavalries did not suffer from a mental breakdown when they were broken apart and surrounded. They were all prepared to face death. Hence, they appeared courageous as they swung the scimitars in their hands and exhibited their greatestbat skills. Though in the end, all of them would still die under the des of the Deste warriors. However, now, in order to get rid of one grasnd cavalry, the Deste warriors would need to put in extra efforts than usual.


    Surrounding the battle ground that was filled with blood, the grasnd cavalries who were supposed to provide assistance to their mates in the battle ground stopped upon hearing the low co sound, signalling them to return to the camp. They ignored their mates, who were falling one by one in the battle ground as they swiftly formed two teams, heading towards the east and west separately.


    The waves that attacked the skerry split into two, leaving the remaining few cavalries fighting with the Deste warriors in the center at the foreground. At the back, a magnificent-looking horse carriage came forward gradually.


    ...


    ...


    The horse carriage, decorated with gold and silver, was extremely gorgeous. At the center of the carriage was a disk made up of stainless-steel. The lines on the disk were messy yet connected, and they seemed to be moreplicated than hundred of millions of stars in the night sky.


    At the sides of the disk stood two expressionless strong-built men from the grasnd. Besides being armored with heavy metal, they each had a scimitar in their hand. As the Central ins had strict regtions on the export of metal, it was a rare sight to see heavy metal armor appearing in the grasnd. Hence, men who wore heavy metal armors would certainly be the most courageous and strongest warriors in the pce.


    Today, the two strongest warriors from the pce of Left-Tent in the grasnd were missioned not to kill or battle, but to protect the metal disk on the horse carriage, as well as the person sitting on the disk.


    On top of the disk was a skinny old man, who was wearing a golden royal costume. He wore a agate ring on his left finger and a talisman inscription was written between his brows using wolf blood, which clear stated his identity. He was one of the seven most respectable Necromancers at the Left King¡¯s Pce.


    The old and frail Necromancer gazed into the distance without any expression where the warriors were still killing one another. His dried, cracking lips moved quickly as his skinny dry fingers continuously knocked onto the metal disk, like the war drum apanied with continuous incantation, creating a mystical effect.


    Suddenly, a white cloud drifted across the clear blue and coincidentally stopped in front of the sun, casting the shadow onto the bloody battle ground in the grasnd.


    A few moments ago, several older Deste warriors had already noticed the unusual performance of the grasnd cavalry. When they realized that the grasnd cavalries behind him suddenly headed towards the outer ring instead of attacking them, leaving thousands of their team mates to death. Followed by a few shouting, the Deste warriors quickened their process of killing the enemies, while the other two hundred warriors hurriedly chased after the split-up cavalry teams towards the outer ring.


    Just when the cloud covered the sunlight and cast a shadow onto the grasnd, the Deste warriors suddenly discovered that they could no longer chase after the cavalries, who were heading towards the outer ring and walking along the ring to set up bows and arrows, for their speed was instantly slowed down by a lot.


    And the reason for the slowdown was because the solid grasnd below their feets had suddenly turned soft!


    The grass that were uprooted had slowly sank into the soft muddy ground, followed by the remains of the broken and abandoned weapon. The warriors¡¯ legs started to sink and they sunk even deeper into the grasnd as they struggled to run. The former battle ground had turned intorge swamp!


    The Deste warriors, who remained silent throughout, finally had a twist of fate. They strongly believed that they would obtain victory, yet today they fell into the grasnd cavalry¡¯s trap, not knowing what would happen to them next. The grasnd turned into a soft swampy ground, yet not a quicksand that could swallow them in. However, they still had difficulties in maintaining their bnces on this soft surface, and worst of all, they would not be able to make use of their strength, which was their swift running speed.


    After thousand of years of chasing snow wolves and snow deers on the boundless border of the Hot Sea, every Deste warrior was trained to have a pair of strong and fast legs, which was their best weapon. Yet now, their best weapon turned out to be useless. Not only were they unable to use it to chase the grasnd cavalries, what was worst was that they could not dodge the arrows like before, not even to prevent the enemies from hitting their weak points with the arrows.


    Whoosh!


    The cavalries walking outside the grasnd used the fastest speed to re-group themselves and arranged themselves into tworge troops. With bows and arrows, they sped towards the Deste Man warriors on their horses and surrounded them as they shot them down one by one.


    With a thud, a sharp arrow pierced into a young Deste Man¡¯s chest. He frowned in pain as he pulled out the arrow from his chest. However, before he could lift the long knife in his hand again, a second arrow came, followed by the third. Numerous arrows started to shower onto his body. And finally, the young man widened his eyes. He painfully and gradually kneeled down onto the ground, with his eyes filled with regret. His knees sunk into the soft ground and then he fell forward.

 Chapter 184: Desolate Man Stepping onto the Grassland (II)

    Chapter 184: Deste Man Stepping onto the Grasnd (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The sky was dark and the solid grasnd turned into swamp.


    No matter how strong the Deste Man warriors were, as long as they were unable to run at high speed like they did at the border of the Hot Sea, they had lost their most essential capability. In the eyes of the grasnd cavalry, who were busily pulling their bows, they had instantly became immobilized targets for their arrows. No matter how amazing their defense were, after numerous arrows pierced through their bodies, they would still eventually died from bleeding.


    Of course, using only arrows to kill these Deste Man warriors whose skins were as thick as metal and bones as tough as rocks, even if these warriors did not dodge them, they would also need a horrendous amount of arrows to do that. Under normal battle circumstance, no cavalry would bring along thatrge amount of arrows. However, ever since the Deste Man warriors moved south, more than ten tribes from the Left-Tent pce had lost the battles. The men from the grasnd had learnt their lessons via numerous defeated battles and finally, they decided that they would invite one of the seven Necromancers from the pce to support them. They had even sent their best cavalries. Thus, how could it be possible that they did not foresee they would requirerge amount of arrows today?


    The horses galloped swiftly like gust of wind and the arrows poured down from the sky. A grasnd cavalry blew a sharp whistle as he used his legs to kick the horse¡¯s abdomen. With his perfect archery skills, he urately aimed his target and pulled his bow. A Deste Man warrior, who was stuck in the middle of the group, was struggling to pull his legs away from the soft ground as he used all his might to waddle towards the outskirt of the grasnd.


    But when he took his second step, his leg was stuck in the swamp-like grasnd again. Furthermore, with the urate and terrifying shooting of arrows, the Deste Man warriors were slow in their assault. The strongest warrior among them ignored the arrows that were pierced all over his body as he bravely stepped through the thick muddy ground. When he was less than 20 steps away from the grasnd cavalry, an arrow stabbed through his knee and he hopelessly copsed onto the ground with a dull thud.


    Facing with such a strange trap, the oldest man among the Deste Man warriors had already noticed the weird horse carriage located behind the grasnd cavalry and the bunch of weird people on the carriage. Upon guessing that the sudden change of the grasnd must be rted to the carriage, the old man shouted a few words loudly. A Deste Man warrior with thick strong arms walked over with difficulty and stopped in front of him.


    The old man pressed his palm onto the back of this Deste Man warrior and after a low eximation, his face turned pale. An unexinable huge force was passed into the warrior¡¯s body through the palm.


    The warrior¡¯s arms instantly grew even thicker, as though something had entered his body. He forcefully endured the pain on his over-stretched skin and ignored the blood that was gushing out from the corner of his eyes. He gazed at the horse carriage which was parked at a distant. Suddenly, he roared like a beast as he pulled out arge axe from his waist and violently threw it towards the carriage!


    Swoosh! Therge axe flew across the air rapidly like a lightning as it passed through hundreds of metres before it hacked towards the pce¡¯s old Necromancer!


    In view that the sharp axe was approaching them with such a loud swooshing noise, the two strong men who were silently standing by the side of the Old Necromancer all these while immediately lifted the huge shield beside their feet at the critical moment and blocked it in front of the Necromancer.


    The collision of the axe and therge metal shield produced a loud crisp thud!


    The grasnd soldiers beside the carriage could not help but covered their ears and went down to their knees.


    However, the magnificent horse carriage only trembled lightly and went back to normal.


    Within the carriage, the Old Necromancer remained expressionless while sitting on the metal disk. He rapidly chanted the incantation as the wrinkles on his face became deeper. The Qi of Heaven and Earth surrounding him entered the disk with his incantation, as it flowed along theplicated Talisman inscription and beneath the grasnd. It was then projected out from another metal disc which was buried under the ground before the battle by the pce, which caused the grasnd to be more moist and soft.


    Thest hope for the Deste Man warriors was then gone. They lifted their heavy long knives and struggled in the swamp as they tried to waddle their way towards the outskirt of the grasnd. Their men were continuously being shot by multiple arrows and were bled to death. The whistle from the grasnd cavalries grew shrill as their scary faces filled with the joy of revenge.


    Damp grass, bloody mud and galloping horses, forming a brutal and despair scene.


    ...


    ...


    The grasnd suddenly became extremely quiet, clear and spacious.


    The cruel arrow shooting and killing continued on. Other than the buzzing sound at the ears, the swooshing sound of the flying arrows and the shrill whistle from the grasnd cavalry, there were no other sound. Those Deste Man warriors stopped struggling and instead, they tried to lower themselves in the grass swamp as they quietly defend themselves. They had stopped their attempts to get out of the swamp.


    Then the buzzing, swooshing and shrill whistle were gone. The noisy and messy battle ground had be extremely silent, or should it be said that silent was just an opposite way of describing the situation. In fact, those noises were gone due to one sound, which was heard by everyone in the battle ground.


    It was a dull buzzing sound of a heavy object falling through the air at high speed. It was neither the sound of arrows, nor the flying sword used in Central ins. It sounded more like a giant rock that was being thrown down from the cloud by Haotian and it was falling at a rapid speed.


    The Deste Man warriors, who had lowered their bodies to hide themselves in the swamp, raised their heads with difficulty and gazed up into the sky. They were prepared to face death and their eyes were already looking very peaceful, yet at this moment, they were filled with burning passion and respect.


    The grasnd cavalries who were riding the horses in the center of the grasnd, for whatever reason, felt fear and subconsciously slowed down their speed in pulling their bows as they turned around and looked.


    Both parties raised their heads and looked into the sky.


    A horrifying buzz sounded from the sky.


    The clouds covered the sunlight, casting a shadow on the ground.


    And right in the shadow,


    A man fell down from the sky.


    He brushed through the sky with his body covered with burning blood. As he fell from the sky that was over ten meters high, his horrifying speed expanded the air surrounding his body, creating a semi-circle mist. At the back of his legs were sparks spurting out like blood, though it was unclear whether those were produced due to the severe friction when he fell.


    This man was like a huge meteorite falling towards earth.


    And the ce where the meteoritended, was exactly on top of the gorgeous horse carriage which belonged to the grasnd Left-Tent pce.


    The two strong warriors in the carriage immediately lifted the heavyrge shield and block it on top of the Old Necromancer.


    The hands of the Old Necromancer trembled violently as he used his Psyche Power to gather his surrounding Qi of Heaven and Earth. He then lifted his head and his eyes were filled with extreme horror as he saw a leg falling towards him from the tiny cracks of the shield.


    That leg was wearing a verymon boot. The boot was a little tattered and the sole was slightly dirty. It was unknown how many grasnds, gobi deserts, dirt water and mountain rivers it had stepped on.


    But that instant when the old Necromancer saw the leg, he understood a logic.


    Death was near.


    ...


    ...


    The meteorite man stepped onto the hard and strong shield.


    However, the old boot sole could not withstand such powerful strength as it started to tear apart.


    Then followed by therge strong metal shield, which also started to crack apart!


    The two strong warriors who were lifting the shield could not even take a breath as their strong arms started to give way. That downward horrendous strength had instantly forced the muscles nerves to bulge out from their arms and their bones were crashed into powder. Blood were spurting out from the two warriors¡¯ eyes, noses and mouths like flying arrows.


    The boot no longer had any sole, therge shield was broken into flying metal pieces, and the Old Necromancer¡¯s primordial Qi shield was quickly dispersed as well. The leg was now stepped on top of the Old Necromancer¡¯s head.


    The Old Necromancer hopelessly stared as his skull was stepped on and into his neck. The leg continued to exert pressure downwards as it crashed and ttened the Old Necromancer¡¯s body, till it became a pile of meat puree.


    Yet the leg with the boot continued downwards.


    It smashed the pile of Old Necromancer¡¯s meat puree.


    It smashed the hard and strong metal disk.


    It smashed the carriage board.


    Bam!


    Meat puree and blood were spurted everywhere and dust were flying all over. The gorgeous horse carriage had instantly became a pile of trash. The broken but sharp metal pieces from the carriage flew out and pierced through the surrounding grasnd soldiers, bringing them to the ground.


    This leg that stepped through clouds and finally stepped onto the grasnd, which had been upied by the barbarians for nearly a thousand years!


    The middle-aged man dressed in furred robe, with a blood-stainedrge knife carried at his back, stood in the middle of the ruins. He stared at the stunned grasnd barbarians without any expression.


    The Deste Man warriors that were trapped and surrounded within the grasnd swamp gazed at the powerful man from far. They finally broke the silence with crazy cheers, and some of the young Deste Man were so agitated that they even cried.


    ...


    ...


    Deep within the mountain ranges and woods at the southern part, there was a simple-looking Taoist temple. As there were no path leading to it, it never had any tourist or visitor, so naturally, it did not have any burning incense. The Taoists in the temple did not like incense as well, as they felt that the smell was bad and unbearable. Unlike the normal Haotian Taoists, the Taoists in this simple-looking and old temple never mind about incense donations at all.


    Deep within the Taoist temple was a sereneke with seven thatched cottages, which was totally different from the simple and poor looking Taoist temple. Though the seven cottages were covered with thatches, they did give off an extremely dignified and solemn feel. The thatches were shiny white like jades and they were still looking fresh as before even after undergoing years of extreme weathers.


    In the first thatched cottage, a very big and thick ssics book was ced on a table made of agarwood by the window. Its cover was dark like dried blood, yet it also looked like a ck bloodstone that was created after hundreds of millions of years. The word "Ri (Sun)" was carved onto it.


    The ssics book had been flipped open. After the brush was soaked with adequate ck ink, a stroke towards the right was gently brushed against a page of the book.


    The middle-aged Taoist lifted the brush and stared at the words for a few seconds, before he nodded his head with satisfaction.


    On the in paper, there were two words. It was the name of a person.


    "Ning Que"


    Though the wind could not recognize the words, it could help to dry out the ink and made the words remain permanent on the paper. A few secondster, another breeze blew and flipped the pages to the first page of the "Ri" book.


    The first page waspletely nk and as white as snow.


    Followed by the second page, which had a few names written on it. At the top most was "Liu Bai", and not far from it, one could faintly see a "Jun". On this page, there was a name which was unique from the others and was written far from other names. It looked lonely yet strong and independent, as though this person was unwilling to stand together with the other strong people of Central ins.


    That was because he was a World Wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    He was the No.1 strong warrior of the Northern in.


    His name was Tang.

 Chapter 185: Arrangement of the Great Divine Priest of Judgment

    Chapter 185: Arrangement of the Great Divine Priest of Judgment


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    A middle-aged Taoist reached out his hands to close the ssics and walked out of the hut slowly with his hands held behind him. He looked at hispanion at the stone steps and said, "I didn¡¯t expect there to be so many people of thisgeneration to be on the "Ri" book."


    The Taoist at the stone steps asked confusedly, "Who is on the book today?"


    "Ning Que."


    "It sounds a little familiar... is it the Academy schr who beat Longqing?"


    "Yes. Although thisd has not yet entered Seethrough, he has already received Tao enlightenment. So he¡¯s eligible for entrance on the book."


    The Taoist at the stone steps was slightly startled but immediately praised, "Headmaster of Academy is really awesome."


    "Yeah." The other Taoist shook his head and said withplicated emotions, "Although Headmaster of Academy was not in Chang¡¯an when this littled called Ning Que entered the Second floor of the Academy, thisd is still his student after all. Thisd is so young but has started to learn Talisman Taoism. I believe that the name will appear in the first few pages of the "Ri" book in a little more than a decade."


    They finished talking about this thing before discussing something lighter. The Taoist said goodbye to hispanion and walked forward along the edge of a quietke in front of the hut. Apanied bykes, mountains and forest winds, he walked out the Taoist temple after a short time.


    As the breeze blowing from the cliffnded on his face, he squinted at the misty mountain at a distance and the majestic Taoist temples towering over the mountain. He smiled peacefully.


    It was quiet outside the simple Taoist temple¡¯s walls, which seemed to quietly watch the bustle, majesty and nobleness in the world over there. Inside the Taoist temple, there was an old board with an inscription of "Zhi Shou", which held traces of being ravaged by the wind and rain.


    ...


    ...


    The storm sea was hundreds of kilometers away from the east. A horrifying four-season hurricanended on the shore before passing hilly mountains and rivers to be a touch of breeze with plenty of moisture and coolness here. However, it did not have any destructive ability. So unlike Chang¡¯an City, it was not stuffy in summer.


    This country was notrge. It was not prosperous, for itsmerce was underdeveloped. Except for devout believers kowtowing around the mountains to worship the God, there were not so many other people. However, the sinister hurricane came here to be the breeze and drizzle. Therefore, there were beautiful but not dangerous mountains, quiet but not fast rivers, rich ins, and quiet forests with crying deers. It was really and favored by Haotian. Because of the beautiful hills in the west, this country was named "West-Hill".


    In Zhishou Abbey deep inside the mountain, one could see a mountain from afar. It was the Peach Mountain. Although the peaches in the mountain had been cut by someone holding some wine and a sword many years ago, it has long since recovered thanks to the spring rain and fertilends favored by Haotian. Among the mountain, the peaches of a different strain have been in full bloom from early spring tote summer, whose lush growth was rather attractive.


    Above the Peach Mountain, there were several neat and smooth cliff squares, as if Firmament had released the power of God and abruptly split them open with an enormous ax. There were innumerable different Taoist temples built on the cliff squares, which together became a brilliant solemn templeplex. It was the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    Divine Hall was built along the Peach Mountain and had threeyers. On the upper cliff square closest to the sky, there were four most spectacr Taoist temples. The Taoist temple that was close to the cliffside was built wtih huge ck stones and had a square shape rather than that of normal Taoist architecture. It watched the believers who bowed down on the Mountain Path indifferently through the times.


    This ck Taoist Temple¡¯s hall was extremely spacious. Hundreds of meters deep in the hall, there was a curtain woven by beads. Behind the curtain was a divine seat carved by a whole South Sea ink jade. Great Divine Priest of Judgement one of the three Divine Priests ruling the Haotian divine church, would sit on this divine seat weekdays listening to subordinate divine priests¡¯ reports and dealing with Taoist affairs.


    Great Divine Priest of Judgement wore a red gown. But today he did not order his subordinate to uncover the beard curtain. Instead, he looked nkly at the curtain and seemed to want to turn all the pearls and jadeites above it into powders.


    As one of the three Divine Priests of West-Hill Divine Pce, Great Divine Priest of Judgement was in charge of adjudication and ruled the most terrifying violence agency of Haotian Taoism. He had the most powerful cultivators of Haotian Taoism, with the strongest ability as well as the most terrifying honor in the world. For countless years, no one knew how many heresies have been secretly arrested because of his words or how much many survivors of Devil¡¯s Doctrine have be ghosts in the fire because he lightly raised his little finger.


    In the eyes of hundreds of millions of people in the world, even the Lord of West-Hill Divine Pce, Haotian hierarch, might not be so terrifying as this Great Divine Priest of Judge in a red gown. There has been even arumor that Great Divine Priest of Judgement¡¯s divine gown was bright red rather than ck like Judicial Department¡¯s, for it was dyed with all his enemies¡¯ blood.


    Such a Great Divine Priest was at the top of the world and had the supreme and fear-invoking authority. When he did not show the slightest facial expression, and look upon you with indifferent eyes, not only would the bead curtain in front of him would turn to powder in fear, but the Great Sword Masters travelled the world with just a sword and had no fear of royal authority might be so scared their hearts would burst.


    However, the bead curtain before Grand Judge did not break today.


    The person on the other side of the bead curtain was kneeling in fear, but still stood calmly.


    The beard curtain covered the person¡¯s body and face outside, only revealing a pair of shoes. This pair of shoes was as red as blood, embroidered with a few fish patterns. There was also an extremely fluffy red skirt hanging down to the knee. This person was obviously female.


    The Divine Priest of Judge looked away from the corner of the red skirt, and looked up slowly. He then asked emotionlessly, "Why hasn¡¯t Longqinge back?"


    The female outside the curtain replied, "Why hasn¡¯t Longqing, that coward, returned? How would I know? I have never been in charge of human affairs since I started ruling the Judicial Department. Why are you asking me, Uncle?"


    Her crisp sound went through the bead curtain and became even more exquisite. She should be young and was still a girl.


    Great Divine Priest of Judgement lowered his eyelids slightly and said, "The name of Ning Que appeared on the "Ri" book."


    A few silent momentster, the girl satirized. "Ning Que is a rival of Long Qing. If he could not get rid of such a small crawler in No Doubts State, would he still expect me to help? I¡¯ll regard it as an insult."


    A sudden surge of light appeared and then quickly disappeared in the Great Divine Priest of Judgement¡¯s eyes. He said with no emotion, "Longqing was defeated by this person. Of course, he has to win in person to recover his Taoist Heart. But I must remind you. Though this person is still only in No Doubts State, and is a humble little reptile in your eyes, this person has already entered the Second floor of the Academy to be Headmaster of Academy¡¯s student. Even if you take notice of him in advance, it wouldn¡¯t be considered as an insult."


    "Even if he studied under Uncle Yan Se to learn Talisman Taoism, he might not necessarily be able to be the second Uncle Yan Se. I think he doesn¡¯t have any qualification worthy of my attention for now."Outside the curtain, the girl in red proudly said, "Uncle, you should know that my goal has always been Jun Mo. No one else is qualified to distract me."


    "Jun Mo, the second disciple in the Academy... "Grand Judge softlymented, with a trace of irony floating on his old face. No one knew whether he was ridiculing the girl outside the curtain or other ignorant people.


    "A few years ago, you were led by hierarch Lord toe back for an Etiquette rite and had a chance to read the "Ri" book. You would not calm down after seeing Jun Mo¡¯s name because you could not imagine why there existed a cultivation genius in the world who was far better than you. So you always want to be better than this enemy you¡¯ve never met before."


    Grand Judge looked at the girl in red outside the curtain and said indifferently, "You say that the others are not qualified to distract you. But you have not thought of one thing. For Jun Mo who couldpete with me and your brother, what qualification do you have to be his opponent? How can you enter the eyes of extremely proud Second Brother in the Academy?"


    When he finished the words, a gust of wind blew from somewhere in the Peach Mountain, going through the spacious majestic temple and blowing the bead curtain gently. It wavered gently and gave off a burst of crisp sound. Outside the shaky bead curtain, one could vaguely see that thece on the girl¡¯s red skirt rose up against the wind.


    Great Divine Priest of Judgement seemed to not notice that the most powerful priest under hismand had became outraged for being despised and continued to say without any emotions. "Recently, the situation in the Wilderness seemed to be a little unstable. Deste Men continue to move to the south. I don¡¯t know where they¡¯ll eventually stop their steps. The hierarch Lord was worried that the survivors of Devil¡¯s Doctrine would take advantage of the chance to rise again, echoing the omen in the Divine Book. So he is about to issue the Divine Church¡¯s order. Of course, my Judicial Department should move first. So you should immediately set off to the north."


    The girl in red outside the curtain was slightly surprised and said after a moment of silence, "After all, they¡¯re just some small affairs. I¡¯m anxious to cultivate in the mountain so as to break my current state. I wish Uncle could choose someone else."


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgement watched the girl¡¯s figure outside the curtain and said, "Divine Hall recognizes your talent and perseverance in cultivation. That was why hierarch Lord and I saved you at all costs when you deliberately angered Chen Pipi, resulting in his leaving the West-Hill and when your elder brother wanted to cut you with a sword. But you need to be clear that talent and persistence does not grant you pride."


    "Your elder brother is proud and calm. Jun Mo is proud and dull. Because they have already been standing on the pinnacle of the young generation in the world, they have the ability to be proud. Whether you or Longqing, although good enough, you two are not that absolutely powerful. As long as anyone is capable of defeating you, you are not qualified to be proud. Because such a pride without absolute assurance of power will be a great obstacle to your Taoist Heart cultivation."


    "As long as one absolutely believes what he believe as right, his faith can be firm. As long as one absolutely believes that no one can beat himselves, his pride can be firm. Your elder brother and Jun Mo have believed this many years ago. How about you? In the legend of the world, the two priests of my Judicial Department are both great figures. In fact, what great abilities do you have? Longqing went to the Academy in Chang¡¯an this time, only to be defeated by ad in No Doubts State. I believe he will have some enlightment for it. It is a pity that you have never had a chance to be defeated under the protection of the hierarch and I."


    After a long time of silence, the girl outside the curtain asked, "Uncle, master and you decided to let me go to the Wilderness. Did you send me deliberately so that I¡¯ll experience defeat?"


    Great Divine Priest of Judgement said indifferently, " Headmaster of Academy once said ¡¯begging for benevolence¡¯. As for failure, only begging for failure can ensure you are undefeated. So we want you defeated in a hope that you can really be undefeated in the future."


    With her red skirt moving slightly, the girl outside the curtain bowed and then turned away.


    A Divine Priest of Judicial Department came from the side door of the main hall. He looked at the girl stepping on the bright gold beads towards the outside of the temple and the swaggering red skirt in the wind. He could not help but shake his head. He walked behind the bead curtain and greeted the respectfully greeted the Great Divine Priest of Judgement with a bow and bit his tongue.


    Everyone in West-Hill Divine Pce knew that the red girl¡¯s elder brother must be the next Haotian Taoism hierarch, and she was most likely to be the next Great Divine Priest of Judgement. So the subordinate who was faithful to Great Divine Priest of Judgement felt that the Great Divine Priest¡¯s reprimand earlier was too harsh.


    Great Divine Priest of Judgement knew what his subordinate was thinking and said expressionlessly, "Hierarch and I are sending her to the Wilderness to give her a chance to see how big the world is. Everyone had praised her as the Tao Addict and she does indeed have an addiction. I think she would not mind if it¡¯s good for her Tao cultivation."

 Chapter 186: Let Me Do It

    Chapter 186: Let Me Do It


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Upon hearing these words, the Divine Priest guessed that the hierarch and Great Divine Priest should have exchanged with that person on this arrangement. So he stopped talking and took out the scroll. He turned it over to a certain page and asked,"You Prison is almost full of people."


    You Prison was a ce where Judicial Department of Divine Hall jailed prisoners, which was located in the underground deep at the foot of Peach Mount¡¯s back hill. There was no sunshine all day long there. For thousands of years, unnoticedly how many strong men of Devil¡¯s Doctrine and insurgents contrary to Haotian doctrine had been imprisoned here? And then they have been executed or jailed until death.


    Great Divine Priest of Judgment closed his eyes and began to recuperate, no longer exining anything.


    The solution of Judicial Department to overcrowding in You Prison was very simple. That was to kill a group of people and burn their dead bodies. It could turn the torsos upying the space into ashes. There was absolutely no waste by putting ashes in water to moisten the peaches all over the mountain.


    The subordinate Divine Priest nodded, with a natural facial expression. It was clear that there was no psychological barrier in his heart.


    Great Divine Priest of Judgment suddenly closed his eyes slowly and asked in a whisper, "How about Great Divine Priest of Light?"


    When the subordinate Divine Priest heard the words of Great Divine Priest of Light, his body suddenly stiffened and he bowed his head to reply, "As usual, he recites the ssic doctrine. And he looks... the same as before."


    Great Divine Priest of Judgment jaw propped up his chin and thought with closed eyes for a long time, with his right index finger lightly tapping jade-carved Divine seat¡¯s armrest. Suddenly he opened his eyes and nkly said, "Inform the whole believers of the news that the thirteenth disciple of the Academy Ning Que has been recorded in the "Ri" book."


    Divine Priest looked at Great Divine Priest¡¯s pale face and asked after a short moment of silence, "Dear God, what intention of releasing the news?"


    Great Divine Priest of Judgment did not exin, but continued to indifferently say, "Besides, inform everyone for the murder of Spring Breeze Pavilion in Chang¡¯an Cityst year, in addition to Chao Xiaoshu, Ning Que also has taken part in killing Yuelun Kingdom¡¯s monk Wu Shi and South Jin Kingdom¡¯s swordsman."


    Divine Priest vaguely guessed the intention of such an arrangement and whispered after thinking for a while. "Even if the aunt of Yuelun Kingdom and Sword Garret were angry for it, who dare to take revenge? After all, Ning Que is a student of Headmaster of Academy and is in the territory of Tang Empire."


    "Even if he is out of the Tang Empire, is it possible for Quni Madi and Sword Garret to dare to avenge? After the matter of Spring Breeze Pavilion, Yuelun Kingdom and Sword Garret didn¡¯t dare to speak out. Because they knew if they were involved in the internal political struggle of the Tang Empire, they feared that the Tang Emperor would get angry so as to punish them. How could they dare to take revenge? But hatred, this kind of thing, can always easily excite some enthusiasm. Especially for a young man who is still in No Doubts State, even if they don¡¯t dare to kill, it is also a good thing for them to humiliate him several times."


    Divine Priest did not understand even if Yuelun Kingdom and Sword Garret found a chance to humiliate Ning Que, what was the point?


    Great Divine Priest of Judgment closed his eyes and began to recuperate, no longer exining anything.


    ...


    ...


    Behind the Old Brush Pen Shop at Lin 47th Street in Chang¡¯an City.


    In the early morning, Sangsang raised a bucket, ready to water flowers. But she suddenly heard a voice behind her. "Let me do it!"


    After a long, long time, a piece of scrawled Fu paper fell down from outside the window and stayed in the y pot for a long time. Then it was turned into wet water extremely slowly and gradually infiltrated into the mud to moisten the flowers roots.


    In the evening, Sangsang squatted in front of the stove, ready to make a fire and get some steaming rice. Then she suddenly heard a voice behind her, "Let me do it!"


    After a long, long time, a sheet of pale yellow Fu paper was stuffed into a stove hole by one hand and instantly turned into a me. It lit up the dry wood in the stove hole with extreme difficulty and then turned into a fire under the help of Sangsang¡¯s hard blow.


    In the middle of the night, Sangsang squatted in front of the bed and prepared to clean the bamboo mat. Then she suddenly heard a voice behind her, "Let me do it!"


    After a long, long time, a piece of Fu paper was rolled into a paper ball and thrown into a basin. It gradually spread out for being soaked to be soft. And after a long time, on the surface floated a thinyer of ice.


    Sangsang squatted next to the basin, staring at the water surface without a blink. Until she felt her eyes kind of painful, she started to rub them and stood up. She put the towel in the water to get wet, pursing up her lips tightly and silently wiping the bamboo mat on the bed. After she finished the wiping, she turned around to pour water.


    At this moment, she heard a voice behind her, "Let me do it!"


    Sangsang could not tolerate it any longer and forcefully threw the wet towel into the basin. With her hands put on her thin waist, she angrily turned around with her bright willow-shape eyes open and seriously said looking at the desk, "Young master! Don¡¯t you know how long I have to wait for your Fu paper to work every time?" "Don¡¯t you know such a long time of waiting ispletely enough for me to water flowers, light up the firewood, finish cooking, wipe the bed, and then have a rest? In City of Wei, you told me once that the dying one¡¯s time was murdering his life. Why do you always murder me?"


    Besides the desk, Ning Que held the brush and prepared to go on writing Fu papers. When he suddenly heard such a long period of usation, the excitement of his face became a little regret. So he embarrassedly said, "I¡¯ve just learned how to write Fu, and got kind of excited. So I always want to practice more. Why are you... so serious?"


    Ever since Ning Que got the enlightenment of Talisman Taoism in that summer rainstorm, he had been immersed in that magical world and unable to extricate himself. From early morning when they woke up until their falling asleep, he has been writing Fu in the small courtyard, making Sangsang do every housework non-smoothly.


    He did not stop writing Fu in the Back Mountain of the Academy. Now Senior Brothers and Sisters who have their own cultivation not only feared the sword and the arrow flying around, but also began to worry about the fresh water rushing towards them and thend ridge suddenly appearing at the feet of them. What was even more frightening was the mes changed from Fu papers... Now there was a sentence spreading in the Academy¡¯s Back Mountain: Fire prevention, sword prevention, and Younger Brother prevention. Therefore, those unhappy Senior Brothers and Sisters eventually made a non-difficult decision. If Younger Brother wanted to write Fu, he must be in Sixth Brother¡¯s cksmith house. Anyway, there was fire all year round there, they would not worry about his causing a fire.


    Ning Que thought that Senior Brothers and Sisters were a little exaggerating


    . What was the matter if they got some water on their faces and a few burned holes on their colored Academy clothes? They were at least some cultivators in Seethrough State. How could they be afraid of these? However, since he hasmitted a public outrage, he also had to honestly stay in Sixth Brother¡¯s room every day and kept refining Martial Arts of Talisman apanied by Sixth Brother¡¯s honest sigh and Fourth Brother¡¯s furious roar.


    Today, like a child with a fresh toy, he was never tired of ying with Fu from morning to night, as if he was never tired and bored. As time went by, the more Martial Arts of Talisman he grasped, the deeper he had an understanding of Talisman Taoism.


    He did not know his name had appeared on the first scroll of the seven-volume scriptures in that Unknown ce, somewhere in the deep mountain of West-Hill Divine Kingdom, shortly after the first drip on his brush formed at that summer rainy night. He also did not know that the supreme Great Divine Priest of Judgment of West-Hill Divine Pce had determined to dere his name to millions of believers in the world based on certain inexplicable causes.


    ...


    ...


    In fact, even if West-Hill Divine Pce did not promote it, Ning Que¡¯s reputation has been loud enough at least in Chang¡¯an City. Back Mountain of the Academy was hidden in the fogs, somon people looked at it but did not know the details about him. However, unnoticedly his Majesty¡¯s appreciation for him has shocked many people. Moreover, the quarrels between Grand Secretary Wang and Old Chancellor Jin, which havested for decades, have finally reached the highest level in the fourteenth year of Tianqi era due to several copies of the sections. Two parties, from the master to the servants in the lowest level, would argue with each other every several days. It indirectly caused those people in the remote streets and allies of Chang¡¯an City to begin to spread his story.


    "Last year, a golden boy and a jade girl walked along theke and faced the wind cuddling together. A lot of people got jealous of them. Ms. Gao sentimentally looked over there and her tears almost flew down. How about now? Xie Chengyun clearly knew that Jin Wucai was the most suitable candidate for daughter-inw, but couldn¡¯t pass the reputation barrier and went back to South Jin Kingdom with a gray face. He continued to be the young master of his family and a chancellor in the future, leaving Jin Wucaimenting alone in Chang¡¯an. Gee... "


    "Young master, why I feel you¡¯re a little jealous?"


    "What jealous? I said to youst year outside the Princess Mansion that I didn¡¯t understand love. But I knew that people who yed with love, especially young men, were all idiots."


    "But there are always men and women in the world."


    "Men and women do their thing, but do not mistake it as love."


    "What is their thing?"


    "Eh, the guys who go to House of Red Sleeves are mostly aiming for it."


    Ning Que and Sangsang got off the horse carriage, walking toward House of Red Sleeves while talking gossip.


    They two often came to House of Red Sleeves that they were very familiar with. They naturally walked across the side door, came beside the building, and entered into the hall. He deliberately picked up the morning toe over, for at this time there was no business in House of Red Sleeves.


    However, he did not expect that, after their entering the hall, those who should wear ordinary home clothes, wandering around with a yawn, and then would run to squeeze his cheek with their shining eyes and take him to y in the backyard when they saw him... seemed to be another group of people.


    Those girls were dressed in a very formal way, wearing expensive clothing that only appeared on an important asion. In the hall, they were divided into two lines, smiling but cautiously looking at him, as if to make a special ceremony to greet him. When they saw that Ning Que with Sangsang came out from the side door, they greeted a bow in a very neat order and said in a clear voice, "d to meet you, Master Ning."


    Upon looking at this scene and listening to this crispy sound, Ning Que could not help bing dumbfounded and looked at Dewdrop standing in front of the queue, asking, "Sister Dewdrop, what... are you doing?"


    These days Dewdrop has earned many taels of silver by selling chicken-soup sections and rubblings of Yan. She often contacted with Sangsang to pay silver. Unlike other girls who were affectionate, curious and cautious, she walked forward with a smile and lightly held his arm to take him inside, softly exining,


    "Your status now is not the same as before. Who dare to tease you as usual? After Mistress Jian knew that you entered the Second floor, she delivered red envelopes all over the building. The girls in the building fear your present aplishment as well as delight in the benefits you have brought. This is the first time youe back after a few months. Of course, everyone must wee you well."


    After entering the Second floor of the Academy, Ning Que has been busy with cultivation and had less contact with the outside world. However, these days he had gone to a few banquets, probably knowing he could be considered as a celebrity in Chang¡¯an City. But he did not really expect that he could have this kind of treatment in House of Red Sleeves and could not help feeling somewhat intoxicated.


    Unfortunately, there was not much time left for him to be intoxicated. Just when the girls finally digested their shock and fear in the hearts and prepared to ask him about those rumors, Mistress Jian¡¯s private maidservant Xiaocao went downstairs with a small cold face as usual and reiterated Mistress Jian¡¯s rules to everyone.


    Sangsang had the simr age with Xiaocao. They went to y in the back garden. But Ning Que took a long sigh and climbed hard to House of Red Sleeves¡¯s attic with two lead-irrigated legs. He reluctantly pushed open that wooden door and opened the beard curtain. Then he greeted a deep bow to the woman behind the curtain and sadly said, "I have entered the Second floor of the Academy. Why can¡¯t I do what I want?"


    Mistress Jian, with a broad forehead and a straight nose, was not a traditional beauty but had a kind of gentleness simr to a man. She smiled slightly, indicating Ning Que to sit down, and then said, "You¡¯re too young. Why are you always thinking about the thing between men and women?"


    Ning Que annoyedly said, "I just want to do what you forbid me to do. Besides, I¡¯ve been eighteen years old!"


    "I saidst time, you could call me Aunt Jane."


    Mistress Jian pushed the tea cup in front of him and said with a smile, "No matter how his Majesty appreciates you or the people of Back Mountain adore you, as long as I don¡¯t agree, there is no brothel in the entire Chang¡¯an City that would dare to entertain you."


    "My dear aunt..." Ning Que reluctantly said, "Why you do this to me?"


    Mistress Jian said with earnestness, "What kind of ce is the Academy? And the Second floor? Since you are so lucky to enter it, of course, all your thoughts should be ced on study and cultivation. Whye here to be tangled with this frivolous brothel? If you really provoke some unpleasant things, that¡¯s fine with you. What if you ruined the Academy¡¯s reputation?"


    "I think even if it was Headmaster of Academy, he would not care about these things." Ning Que said.


    Mistress Jian tilted her brows and said with a low voice, "Even if Headmaster of Academy spoke, he must also get my consent."


    Last year, Ning Que first came into Chang¡¯an City and mistakenly entered House of Red Sleeves. Since the first meeting, Mistress Jian has taken care of him like a seniority. To be honest, he has been puzzled about this, especially when Mistress Jian seemed to very familiar with the Academy. Coupled with this sentence heard at this time, he became more confused and tried to ask it out after a moment.


    "Aunt Jane, are you... quite familiar with the Academy?"


    Upon listening to these words, Mistress Jian slightly startled and held the tea cup on the table as a cover. After a short moment of silence, she replied, "I have not been to the Academy."


    Not entering the Academy did not mean that she was unfamiliar with the Academy. When Ning Que prepared to continue questioning, suddenly Mistress Jian directly asked, "Is Jun Mo still so old fashioned?"


    "Jun Mo?" Ning Que was confused.


    Mistress Jian looked at him and frowned to say, "He¡¯s your Second Brother. You don¡¯t even know his name?"


    Ning Que slightly startled and said with a feeler, "How dare I call his name directly? You should know how proud he is. So I forget how to call Second Brother."


    "Proud?" Unnoticedly Mistress Jian thought of something, with a trace of recollection showing on her face. Then she said with a smile, "Since entering the Back Mountain, the little Mo has learnt to act a proud appearance. He even made a wooden stick on top of his head."


    "Bump!" Ning Queughed loudly.


    Mistress Jian shook her head with a smile and suddenly asked, "How about that schr?"


    "The schr is still reading."


    "Everyone is fine."


    "Aunt Jane, why don¡¯t you ask about Headmaster of Academy and Eldest Brother?"


    "Ah? They¡¯vee back?"


    "No."


    "No? Since you have not seen them yet, what is the point for me to ask about them? But I believe Headmaster of Academy and Eldest Brother will do well wherever they are."


    Mistress Jian¡¯s voice gradually lowered down. She thought back to many years ago, with her eyes slightly moist.


    Ning Que vaguely understood something. The reason why the brothels¡¯ leader favored him more after knowing he was the Academy¡¯s student was because of her empathy for the past. But who had had a love affair with her in those years? In the Back Mountain, who looked like him? Second Brother... Little Mo? Or Senior Sixth Brother who had a bodybuilder¡¯s muscles and was very popr with girls? Could it be Headmaster of Academy? !


    ...


    ...


    He came to Dewdrop¡¯s small courtyard in the back garden and wrote some sections stamped with his private seal for Lu Xue and several most familiar girls. Finally he sent away those contentment girls and no longer thought of the rtionship between Mistress Jian and the Academy. He walked to Dewdrop with a grin, his eyes falling on her white soft chest. Then he could not help bing absent-minded.


    Dewdrop looked a little shy and waved her hands walking back. She said in a hurry, "Don¡¯t do it. Don¡¯t."


    Ning Que startled and thought although he hasn¡¯t really been intimate with her, he has cuddled and touched her a lot. Why did Sister Newdrop have such a big reaction today, as if he was a satypelling her?


    Suddenly his eyes lit up. He thought this was probably the legendary cosy. There would be a lot of fun if she refused him first and received himter. "I force you to retreat and you¡¯re shy to go behind the curtain. Then under red candles¡¯pany, we could..."


    Heughed and said, "Dear sister, no one can hear you even if you cry with might and main."


    Dewdrop looked slightly pale, repeatedly rejecting him, and then sadly said, "Dear brother, you really can¡¯t do it."


    Ning Que found something wrong with her and puzzledly asked, "Why not?"


    "Mistress Jian has said it... "


    "Last time we made a deal. We can secretly do it, ignoring her."


    "But... your master have stayed overnight with me yesterday."


    "Master?"


    "Master Yan Se."


    Dewdrop was ashamed in the extreme and clutched a silk scarf looking at him as she shyly said, "Although I work in the brothel, there are some things I still can¡¯t do. If people know I serve both the master and the disciple, how can I keep my reputation?"


    Today the master-disciple rtionship was even more powerful than that between father and son. Dewdrop was the top prostitute in Chang¡¯an city, who was extremely picky with guests entertained. She spent most of her time on serving tea, gossiping around and seducing them to earn taels of silver. There were few people who could really go into her tent within two years. So she was ashamed to serve both the master and the disciple.


    Ning Que startled for a long time and then furiously said, "If the master can touch, why can¡¯t the student touch?"


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que was not frivolous, but at the age of eighteen years just had some desire inside his body. Besides he has never been in contact with women, not to mention the so-called "lust came after acent life ". Now he had innumerable silver notes under his bed and reached a high peak in cultivation. Of course, he would inevitably be exceptionally curious and longing for the thing between men and women.


    He went back to Old Brush Pen Shop at night. When hey in bed, the summer heat in Chang¡¯an City and his body heat attacked him from both inside and outside so that he was tossing about in bed and difficult to fall asleep. In contrast, the hot summer in Chang¡¯an City was the mostfortable season for Sangsang with an innately cold body. She has long fallen asleep at another side of the bed.


    This little handmaiden had a very sweet sleep. She turned over in the bed when she had a dream, with her right leg bent to hit Ning Que¡¯s lower abdomen hard.


    Ning Que was so painful for this heavy attack as to utter a hum sound. His body bent up like a cooked shrimp and his face turned pale.


    After a while, his pain faded and he angrily stared at sleeping Sangsang, trying to pull her leg down.


    He touched Sangsang¡¯s small foot with fingers and suddenly felt a veryfortable coldness as well as tactile impression, as if he touched the ice fish in a wine cup on the dinner of Grand Secretary Mansion a few days ago, smooth and cool.


    In such a hot summer night, he felt reallyfortable holding such a small foot in his hand. Ning Que was reluctant to let it go, so he held it in his hand and gently touched it. Through the star light by the window, he saw that little foot in his hand was as white as jade and as beautiful as a jade-carved lotus.


    Ning Que held the cold foot and slightly wrinkled, not knowing what he was thinking in his mind.


    Maybe Sangsang felt slightly itchy, for his fingers touched the sole of her foot. She started to shrink her foot in her sleep but failed to extract her foot from Ning Que¡¯s hand. So she woke up and rubbed her vague eyes as she asked, "Young master, why do you grip my foot?"


    Ning Que was surprised and instantly felt that he changed into a poord who was badly hit by many women holding washing boards outside a bath house. He forced to suppress his embarrassment and exined with a trembling voice, "It¡¯s too... hot. Your foot is cool. I feel veryfortable to hold it."


    Upon hearing the exnation, Sangsang uttered an "Oh" andy back to bed. She adjusted her body by leaning to the right so that Ning Que could grip her right foot more conveniently and easily.


    After Old Brush Pen Shop came back to quietness, only some cicadas sounds were faintly heard from the street.


    After an unnoticed period of time, Ning Que suddenly asked, "Sangsang, how old are you... this year?"


    Sangsang replied with her eyes closed, "I don¡¯t know when I was born. You told me you had picked me up when I was still young. So I should be close to fourteen years old now."


    "Fourteen... "


    Ning Que silently repeated it in his heart and then released her foot in his hand. He said, "Have a good sleep."


    Sangsang opened her eyes and looked at him as she curiously asked, "Young master, don¡¯t you feel hot?"


    "I¡¯ll take a fan."


    "What is the use of a fan?"


    "Your foot smells bad, okay?"


    "I wash my feet every day. But young master, your feet are really smelly."


    "Anyway, I¡¯ll get a fan."


    "Young master."


    "Yes?"


    "Let me do it."


    A rustle sound came over from the other end of the bed. Sangsang climbed over to lie down beside Ning Que and held out her thin arms and legs to clutch him. She put her face on his chest, searching for afortable position to rub against.


    She snuggled in his arms and drowsily said, "It¡¯s cool now."


    Her body was still thin. She clutched Ning Que¡¯s legs and wrapped herself around his waist like a silkworm on an oak.


    However, after all, she was about to be a fourteen-year-old girl. He felt a kind of coolness and micro-sticity from her very thin clothing.


    Ning Que looked at the roof with his open eyes. He held a cold jade in his arms but felt hotter and hotter, and simply could not fall asleep.


    Unnoticedly cicadas on green trees of the street also became insomnia, crying for hotness.

 Chapter 187: Stone Walked in the Stream

    Chapter 187: Stone Walked in the Stream


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The next day, Sangsang visited the House of Red Sleeves again and called down Xiaocao from upstairs. They went together to a secluded ce. Looking at Xiaocao, Sangsang intended to say something but stopped on the second thought, her thin fingers constantly twisting her clothes, which indicated her nervousness.


    "Why are you looking so secretive?" Xiaocao gazed at her and asked, "What¡¯s wrong?"


    After a long time of hesitation, Sangsang said in a lowered voice, "Last night... my young master suddenly asked about my age."


    Xiaocao confusedly rubbed her head and asked, "Then?"


    "Nothing then." Sangsang shook her head and thought for quite a while with her eyebrows frowned. Then she continued, "I feel that young master is somewhat strange these days. For the past few days, he often said I was not sentimental."


    Xiaocao was too startled to take a breath. She gazed at the darkish face and thin figure of Sangsang with her eyes widely opened, saying undisputably, "You are so dark, so thin, and too young! He even thought of you in that manner! What a monster he is!"


    ...


    ...


    At the Back Mountain of the Academy, Ning Que pushed open the fence and entered the yard apanied by the roaring of the waterfall plumping into the pond. He vigntly waved his hand to drive away the white goose. When he saw Second Brother walked out, he couldn¡¯t help frowning his eyebrows. He thought to himself about the way Mistress Jian addressed Second Brother yesterday. "Did Second Brother really do something despicable, or something even worse, to Mistress Jian?"


    Second Brother handed over several books to him and said, "Days before, I came upon several books about old art of carving talisman in weapons in that cave, and then I remembered you were keen on carving talisman in weapons and thought that you would need them. So I call you toe and take a look at these books."


    Ning Que took the book to show his gratitude, yet didn¡¯t leave immediately after that. Instead, he looked at Second Brother¡¯s face with an intention to say something but finally refrained himself from doing so. And then after a long time of hesitation, he eventually couldn¡¯t help opening his mouth and asked, "Second Brother, has anyone called you Little Momo?"


    It was totally beyond imagination to associate the serious, straight and good-mannered Second Brother to nickname like Little Momo. When Ning Que finally mustered his courage to speak it out, he was prepared to be heavily beaten by Second Brother for fifty times. However, he never expected that when Second Brother heard the name Little Momo, he just froze suddenly instead of showing indignation, who thus looked lost in his thought, seeming to recall something.


    After quite a long time, Second Brother stared at his eyes and asked in a muffled voice, "You know Aunt Jian?"


    The reaction of Second Brother obviously revealed that he was an acquaintance with Mistress Jian. Ning Que shouted excitedly in his heart, thinking to himself, I was about to explore the truth behind the scenes hidden in the dark history of the Academy?


    "Don¡¯t think too much." Second Brother frowned and said, "Aunt Jian was familiar with the Youngest Uncle years back, so she is our elder."


    Ning Que slightly stiffened, never expecting that the truth was far from the possibilities he had figured out. This was the second time he heard about the Youngest Uncle in the Back Mountain of the Academy. Be it Chen Pipi who mentioned him previously, or Second Brother, they all looked serious and respectful when talking about the Youngest Uncle.


    It could be imagined how strong this figure, who was admired both by the proud and arrogant talents-Second Brother and Chen Pipi from their heart was. Ning Que wondered how unprecedentedly brilliant that mysterious Youngest Uncle was.


    "Senior Brother, what kind of person is ... our Youngest Uncle?"


    "Youngest Uncle... He is an extraordinary man. "


    "More extraordinary than the Headmaster of Academy?"


    "That¡¯s different kinds of excellency."


    "Where is he now?"


    "He is dead."


    ...


    ...


    The story about that Youngest Uncle didn¡¯t have a good end, so besides a bit of simple introduction, Second Brother didn¡¯t tell Ning Que much about his past. Naturally, Ning Que would feel disappointed, but no matter what, he couldn¡¯t be hugging the thigh of Second Brother and begged him to disclose something more like what Sangsang did to him when they were young...


    Leaving the yard, Ning Que went to the middle part of the cliff terrace in the opposite direction of the waterfall. He went under a green tree and felt a bit hot and dry, so he drew out a piece of tiny-tailored talisman paper and pped with his both hands, after which he folded his hands and then unfolded them. The moment the talisman in his hands disappeared, a half handful of clear water appeared.


    He used the water to wash his face and feltfortably cool on his wet cheek against the breeze beside the tree. He sighed satisfactorily and then helplessly, speaking to himself while shaking his head, "Although it¡¯s cool and enough to be used as a magic to tease girls, but it seems to be useless in fight."


    Master Yan Se, the Divine Talisman Master, would of course make the right judgement. Ning Que really had the rare potential or qualification in Talisman Taoism. These days, he immersed in the world of talisman and made an amazing and unbelievable progress. Although he just started his Tao enlightenment from that rainy night, he had mastered more than two hundred effective talismans by the time.


    It was a pity that his speed to exert the Talisman Taoism was too slow, by which it would be difficult to win a fight. What¡¯s more, the cultivation state of Ning Que was still too low, who was lingering in No Doubts State. If he relied on throwing talisman to fight against the enemy, he would already be chopped into hundreds of pieces by the flying sword. In addition, he had just started using talisman and he even carefully evaluated that he would rather use the three knives on his back to fight currently than rely on Talisman Taoism.


    Those words that had been mentioned unintentionally by Master Yan Se were kept in his mind. In a quick fight, a talisman must rely on infinitive talisman to win a cultivation fight with a Talisman Master at the same state. However, only Divine Talisman Masters could draw that infinitive talisman!


    After ten years, he could be a Divine Talisman Master... But what could he do if he encountered enemy during the ten years? Although Talisman Taoism would y a more important role in a fight after one entered the Seethrough State, it would after all only be used as an assisting skill.


    Ning Que was fighting all the time in his life. He fought for the survival and for eliminating the blood in his hand. Therefore, although he had been living a happy life in the Academy and Chang¡¯an City all these days, he never forgot to get prepared for possible danger in the future.


    Hardship had fostered his gloomy character behind his cynical appearance, and countless fatal tests had made him ustomed to guard against the arrow possibly shot from behind and the potential danger he might encounter in the future all the time.


    "If... Xia Hou is now standing by the tree, what can I do?"


    Looking at the big green tree, Ning Que seriously asked himself. Then he sank in a long time of silence, his thought constantly alternating between Talisman Taoism and Martial Art with the purpose of finding the way to strengthen his fighting capability.


    It was unknown how long had passed before he stopped thinking. Then he walked upwards along the t stone pavement on the right of the big green tree and traced the water vapor and the smell of stove to reach the iron-forging house of Sixth Brother.


    After entering the room, he didn¡¯t pick up the heavy hammer to help Sixth Brother with his work at first. Instead, he went into the dim corner and found Fourth Brother, to whom he bowed to say something.


    Fourth Brother slightly frowned. And then he nodded and stood up, leading him to walk out of the house.


    Behind the house was a clear stream, where all kinds of fancy carp were swimming almost motionlessly, as if they were jade statues frozen in water.


    The sky of the Academy was clear, and the fish of the Academy was happy. Although they needed to worry about those surprise attacks from birds, at least they need not work hard to find their food. And at regr time every day, a white goose woulde to feed them. Therefore, such a carefree life had led to their fatness andziness.


    Waterwheel moved on with squeaks to continuously draw stream water into a bamboo pipe, which was then sent to the iron-forging house.


    The two sat beside the stream not far away from the waterwheel. The bamboo woods had sheltered them from sunshine and endowed them cool and refreshing surroundings.


    Fourth Brother took out a pile of delicate carving graver, foot line and pigment from the pocket, and picked up a round stone from beside the stream. And then he began to carve on the stone with carving graver attentively.


    Ning Que imitated him to take up a round stone and carefully drew on it with a paint pen that had been dipped in stream water. With the movement of the tip of the pen, manyplicated lines connecting the front and back part appeared on the stone. Suddenly he felt it intractable and didn¡¯t know how to continue, so he couldn¡¯t help looking up to see the stone in Fourth Brother¡¯s arms.


    "Senior Brother, I think there is something wrong with the lines you drew. How can the Wind Talisman be carved so widely?"


    Without raising his head, Fourth Brother said, "The stone is too heavy. If you want to borrow the breath of wind to lift the stone, you have to carve more, deeper and wider lines, thus stimting more breath of wind."


    Looking at the stone in his arms as well as those lines on that stone, Ning Que frowned and said, "But more, deeper and wider lines also mean the breath of wind condensed in those lines will leak at a faster speed. How to solve the problem?"


    Fourth Brother raised his head and asked after a long time of silence, "Do you have suggestions?"


    Ning Que hesitatedly replied, "How about... using wood talisman to make a bridge to block it before hand?"


    "If you block it first, then how to condense the breath of wind into the talismanter?"


    "Open a small acupoint."


    "Open a small acupoint... After condensing the breath we block itpletely. When it has to be stimted, the acupoint of wood talisman will automatically open. It seems workable."


    "Then let¡¯s have a try?"


    "Ok."


    Beside the clear stream, the waterwheel turned over with squeaks and the rhythm of beating iron was also heard from the house behind the stream. All these sounds, mixed with the soft-voiced discussion between Ning Que and Fourth Brother, contributing to a peaceful and tranquil picture.


    It was unknown how long had passed before Fourth Brother finished carving talisman in the round stone. Soon after, Ning Que also finished his work. The two looked at each other and put their stones on a t ground beside the stream.


    Then they slowly closed their eyes, starting to percept, touch and stimte the talisman they had carved in the stone.


    Then a gust of wind rose from above the two round stones by the stream, and under the stones, ants and bamboo leaves all rustled to move.


    However, the stones remained motionless by the stream, which was as still as thosezy and fat fancy carps in the stream, which hid themselves in the shadow of waterwheel and bamboo leaves, reluctant to move an inch.


    Ning Que and Fourth Brother almost opened their eyes at the same time. They just gazed at each other, stunned.


    "We are just daydreaming." Fourth Brother sighed, "If you want to lift a heavy object, you have to draw array tacticals made of numerous talismans. Yet you should dream to achieve the same effect by using such a simple talisman, that¡¯s really... a daydream."


    Ning Que regretted to say, "I was thinking that since we had so many keen men in the Academy, there would be some miracles."


    "But it doesn¡¯t necessarily mean your method is not workable."


    Fourth Brother threw his stones into the stream water, and indicated Ning Que to do so.


    "Bump! Bump!" Water was sshed all around. Those fat fish which just eat and sleep everyday were scared to escape to all directions. They finally have the opportunity to do exercises. The stream water under the shadow of the waterwheel and the bamboo leaves became empty in an instant.


    "Try it again."


    Fourth Brother said to Ning Que.


    Ning Que stood by the stream and looked at the round stone at the bottom of the stream. Staring at the faint lines on the stone, he took a deep breath with his eyes lowered, and used his hands outside his sleeves to make a Psyche bridge. The Psyche Power in the Ocean of Qi was all integrated into the Breath of nature around him, which enabled him to clearly feel the round stone in the stream water.


    Suddenly slight ripples appeared on the shallow stream. It seemed that tiny flows of Qi spouted out from around the round stone and slightly swayed the water weed. Then the round stone somewhat quivered, as if it were about to walk.

 Chapter 188: One, Two, Three, Talisman Arrow!

    Chapter 188: One, Two, Three, Talisman Arrow!


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The round stones at the bottom of the stream slightly quivered, as if it intended to move yet failed eventually. Instead, those round stones just struggled to make several tiny swirls around. Then they rose to pass through the dense water weed and along with them, bubbles attached to the bottom of those weed leaves were brought up.


    "It proves that the talisman is effective, but it¡¯s too weak. So we can just achieve some effect with the help of the flotage of stream water." Fourth Brother lowered his head to see the pearl-like bubbles in the water and asked coolly, "Little Younger Brother, I appreciate your attitude to apply your knowledge of Talisman Taoism to real objects rather than talk empty talks. But I can¡¯t understand why you made this Wind Talisman so tiny? Where do you n to use it?"


    After a moment of silence, Ning Que answered, "I n to carve it in arrows, so it must be tiny."


    Fourth Brother looked back at him quietly and praised, "Good idea."


    Ning Que smiled, yet before he could smile to his heart content, he heard Fourth Brother said,


    "... Pitily it is still a daydream."


    He asked with big surprise, "Why?"


    Fourth Brother answered, "Carving talisman on suits of armour can help to defend ourselves and carving talisman on knives and swords can help to kill others. Don¡¯t you think somebody has thought to carve talisman on arrows? Since ancient times, numerous people have thought about the idea, yet they all failed."


    Ning Que frowned and asked, "Why?"


    "There are thousands of reasons but only one reliable exnation, which is, all the previous attempts to carve talisman on arrows failed. So at least up to today, it is a good idea that is bound to fail."


    "Failure is the mother of sess."


    "You are right, but don¡¯t forget, many mothers also give birth to unsessful children."


    "Then it doesn¡¯t matter if I try it again, right?"


    "And then you need to redesign your talisman line. Now only the columns of Daming Pce are wide enough for you to carve your talisman. Even if you are powerful enough to regard the column as an arrow, then where to find such a thick bowstring?"


    "Fourth Brother... "


    "Yes?"


    "It is until today do I find you speak so acridly."


    "As a Talisman Master majoring in this skill, what I focus on is to carve characters at extremely acrid (tiny) ces."


    "Good answer."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que has thought of carving talisman on arrow to strengthen its power and erge its shotting range a long time ago. In fact, earlierst year during their journey back from the grasnd when he heard about the narration of his hardship and sufferings in cultivation from the elder Lyu Qingchen, he has already formed the idea.


    After being tempered in Min Mountain and the frontier fortress for many years, he has fostered an excellent skill of shooting arrows beyondpare. Therefore, when thinking and analysing how to fight with those powerful cultivators, he would naturally choose arrow. If Talisman Taoism could be applied in arrow, the safety distance and the suddenness of the attack would be ensured in the fight against a powerful cultivator.


    When the elder Lyu Qingchen heard of this idea during their journey backst year, he directly denied it - Arrow was too light for a talisman to be carved on, and the primordial Qi would vanish too quickly. Unless these two intractable problems could be solved, or else arrow couldn¡¯t be the kind of weapon chosen by a cultivator.


    Back then, Ning Que had the least experience of Talisman Taoism, thus he didn¡¯t think too much. However, he was at present a sessor of Divine Talisman Master Yan Se and has encountered so many crazy and sublime beings in the Back Mountain of the Academy, so he always felt it possible to carve talisman on thin arrows. If it made sense, it would solve all the problems!


    Although Ning Que had been discouraged by Fourth Brother¡¯s acrid words by the stream, he didn¡¯tpletely lose heart. When back to Chang¡¯an City, he bursted in the temple of South School of Haotian Taoism to visit his master, who finally gave him some suggestions after being badgered with for three days and two nights. And then Ning Que returned to Old Brush Pen Shop. After pondering for quite a long time with the pen and ink and foot line, he eventually contracted the Wind Talisman he prepared to carve on arrows to its smallest size.


    ...


    ...


    It was midnight, and themplight was slightly swinging.


    Sangsang who was coated with white cloth allover slowly flew up from her bed.


    The white cloth was densely pasted with slender pieces of paper scrip.


    On those pieces of paper scrip one could faintly recognize some weird lines.


    A burst of muffled sob was heard from the tightly-closed window.


    The pale-faced Ning Que stood beside the bed, faintly looking at her.


    The whole picture looked extremely strange and horrible.


    After continuously drawing over forty Wind Talismans, he felt his Psyche Power in the Ocean of Qi was almost pressed out, and his face was extremely pale at the moment. However, at the sight of the little handmaiden slowly drifting up and those talismans pasted on her, he was filled with joy.


    With the fluctuation of Sangsang¡¯s thin figure in the air, Ning Que moved his hands up and down, emotionly saying, "What is the flying trapeze? This is! If I were to y magic, who cares about Liu Qian (a famous modern magician)?"


    Sangsang who was hanged in the air frowned and said, "Young master, I don¡¯t know who Liu Qian is."


    ...


    ...


    When arriving in the Back Mountain of the Academy, Ning Que took out that slender talisman and seriously handed it to Sixth Brother, saying, "Senior Brother, seed or not, it all depends on your skill."


    Sixth Brother took the talisman and examined it with confusion for quite a long time. Then he picked up the an arrow thrown by Ning Que the previous day and folded the talisman into a cylinder. And next he stuck the cylinder tightly to the thin arrow, finding them perfectly matched.


    "Although they are suitable in size, I¡¯m also afraid it still will failter."


    Sixth Brother took out the delicate scorper and sat at a bright ce near the window. He began to carve following the lines of talisman sticked to the arrow and his fingers moved quite stably without any trembles at all. The seemingly blunt movement of the scorper actually resulted in extreme uracy. Instead of pursuing the meaningless beauty of movement, he preferred to focus on the real effect. The hair-thin de perfectly copied the lines in the talisman.


    After finishing carving those talismans, Ning Que picked up the arrow and looked at it against the sunlight. He was shocked by the beautiful and smooth lines on the thin arrow and sincerely praised, "Sixth Brother, you are really excellent in craftsmanship."


    Sixth Brother put the delicate scorper into the leather box and answered with an honest smile, "I¡¯m a true craftsman."


    The two walked out of the house and reached the Mirror Lake.


    Ning Que first took a deep breath and calmed down. And next he put the arrow on a boxwood bow and slightly loosened and tightened his five figures of his left hand alternatively to transfer his Psyche Power from the Ocean of Qi to the lines of talisman on the arrow. In terms of an ordinary Talisman Master, his Psyche Power was the key and the talisman he wrote was the lock. Only his own Psyche Power could stimte and release the power of the talisman.


    "Buzz!" The tightened bowstring of the boxwood bow bounced back.


    Almost simultaneously, his Psyche Power triggered the talisman on the arrow.


    Between the bow, a gust of wind bursted out and quickly scattered, yet as for the arrow... it had gone elsewhere.


    The surface of theke was as quiet as a mirror, where no flying trace of an arrow was found.


    In the woods on the opposite side of theke, no flying trace of an arrow was found.


    Under the blue sky, no flying trace of an arrow was found either.


    If something flew by or climbed by or walked by, it must leave a trace, but where had the arrow carved with Wind Talisman gone in an instant?


    Ning Que nkly put down the boxwood bow and turned back to Sixth Brother with an inquiring look.


    Sixth Brother unfolded his hands, also showing an honest and confused expression.


    Just at the moment, Seventh Sister walked out from the pavilion in the middle of the Mirror Lake. She looked enraged with her thin arch brows inverted, whose body was covered with extremely tiny chips of wood allover, as if she had just crawled out from some warehouse of a logging camp.


    Ning Que failed to refrain himself fromughing out at her embarrassed look, thinking to himself, "she really looked silly."


    Since Sixth Brother cast weapons and engraved talisman all year round, he already fostered a pair of sharp eyes despite his simple and honest traits. He had already seen the trembling right hand of Seventh Sister which tightly clenched because of anger, and he also saw the cold metal arrow bunch held in her hand. He suddenly felt a sense of chilliness in his heart, his body somewhat stiffening. So he turned away without any word, walked into his iron-forging house and tightly closed the door.


    Not knowing what had happened, Ning Que looked back to see the tightly closed iron-forging house with confusion and then turned back to shout at Seventh Sister who was in the pavilion, "Senior Sister, do you see an arrow?"


    Seventh Sister difficultly suppressed her rage and forced a smile, asking, "What knid of arrow?"


    "It¡¯s an... arrow whose shaft was carved with various things."


    Seventh Sister smiled and took out the arrow bunch that was tightly grasped in her right hand, asking, "This one?"


    Ning Que answered with a surprise, "Yes, it is... eh, why there is only an arrow bunch? Where does the shaft go?"


    Seven sisters flicked the hair beside her cheek and flipped off the wooden chips in between her hair, saying with a fascinating and charming smile, "Here."


    Ning Que finally understood and turned to dart to the direction of the iron-forging house without any hesitation, shouting, "Sixth Brother! Help! Open the door! Quickly!"


    Hardly had he reached the iron-forging house did he stop running with a stuffy hum.


    He difficultly turned back to see the back of himself, with a pale face. He almost cried out.


    More than a dozen of embroidery needles were poked on his ass, which all went deep into his flesh.


    Inside the pavilion, Seventh Sister gently pinched the embroidery frame and said with a cold smile, "Knife, Sword and Needle, and now it should be arrow¡¯s turn! If I don¡¯t teach you some lessons, maybe you will even muck about with firearm!"


    ...


    ...


    After the short episode, They had to continue with the innovative work of studying Talisman Arrow. And because of the farce beside theke, they had been looked on by two more viewers, which was, Chen Pipi who just sent food to the chess addicts under the pine tree and was adling about contemporarily, and Seventh Sister, who couldn¡¯t concentrate on embroidery for fear that she would be showered by another rain of wooden chips and simply put down the embroidery frame to take a curious look.


    "Even if talisman can be carved on shaft, the shaft can still hardly bear the strength of Wind Talisman and the bowstring."


    With a lid in her hand, Seventh Sister patted away the remaining wooden chips off her shoulder and said to Ning Que and Sixth Brother, both of whom were busy with their next experiment, "If you do not solve this problem, then all your tries will be useless."


    "Has anyone tried this way before? Yes! Did they seed? No! Are those former sages and Divine Talisman Masters more talented than you? Did they seed? No! So I do not know why you should stick to this idea."


    Chen Pipi lifted the Stainless-steel pot for the delivery of food, shook his head and said, "It is a pure waste of time and life."


    The two onlookers seemed to offer various suggestions yet they never missed the chances to beat Ning Que¡¯s confidence. However, Ning also did not show any care, who directly pulled the bow and put the arrow on it, saying, "Get ready."


    "The fourth experiment of the unprecedented new-style Talisman Arrow, and now let¡¯s countdown, three, two, one,unch!"


    Chen Pipi shouted. The moment he shouted out the word "Launch", he lifted up the Stainless-steel pot to cover his face immediately. But because his face was too fat and too round, although that Stainless-steel pot was big enough, the outer part of his chubby face was still uncovered, making it ridiculous.


    Seventh Sister even reacted faster than him. When the word "Third" was uttered, she had already raised the lid with both of her hands to cover her flowery face with all her strength.


    Even Ning Que sheltered himself immediately behind Sixth Brother the moment that the Talisman Arrow shot out. The strong figure of this Senior Brother could block off any possible hurt.


    The previous three tests of shooting the Talisman Arrow had caused traumatic consequences. The fish drifted white-belliedly on theke and the bloody ckbird that was bombed into blurred figures were all direct evidence of this brutal force.


    Instead of covering his face, Sixth Brother carefully looked for the trace of that Talisman Arrow in the sky. As a weapon developer and manufacturer, he nevercked in such adventurous spirit. And then after a moment, he shook his head and said, "You may go out."


    Seventh Sister cautiously stretched a little half of her face out from behind the lid and asked, "Senior Brother, where is the arrow?"


    Sixth Brother pointed to the dense woods on the other side of theke and replied, "It seems to be over there."


    Chen Pipi put down the Stainless-steel pot and said with a bigugh, "That is where the two Senior Brothers ying lyre and flute."


    Seventh Sister waved his hand and said, "It ¡¯s all right, once the two Younger Brothers began to y lyre and flute, nothing can disturb them. They even won¡¯t move an inch if an arrow prinked into their asses, and then what¡¯s the matter with a wooden chip shower."


    Upon these words, Ning Que slightly trembled and said to Sixth Brother, "It seems the shaft really does not work."


    Sixth Brother took thest arrow from the quiver and asked, "Wanna try again?"


    Chen Pipi shook his head and said, "It does not make any sense. If Ning Que can sessfully develop the Talisman Arrow, he can open and build his own school. So why bother to learn the true meaning of Talisman Taoism."


    "I know you are cursing me," Ning Que shrugged and said, "But I still want to try again."


    Finding Chen Pipi and Seventh Sister nervously lifting the pot and lid again, he shook his head with a smile and said, "This time I will try on the original site, so you needn¡¯t cover your face."


    Taking off the arrow bunch from the Talisman Arrow, Ning Que released all his Psyche Power from the Ocean of Qi which directly stimted the talisman on the shaft.


    Suddenly the fine and delicate lines on the shaft lightened, around which all Qi of Heaven and Earth quickly concentrated, thus producing a gust of wind. The wind was constantly winding and rotating around the slender shaft.


    Staring at the shaft, Ning Que percepted the direction and regtion of that wind flow carefully with his Psyche Power.


    Suddenly, those lines visible on the shaft had somehow sunken deeply into the shaft. The wood that had made the shaft suddenly tightened which was then split into pieces of very fine Wood fiber!


    "Puff!" Suddenly smoke and dust were blowing beside theke and wooden chips were flying all over the sky.


    Bursts of coughing were brought out.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que whisked off the wooden chips from his body and said, "Ordinary materials can¡¯t be used to make Talisman Arrow, so we have to change the material."


    "Change for what?"


    "Stainless-steel."


    Chen Pipi shook his head and said, "The Stainless-steel can naturally withstand the tearing force of the breath of wind, but the problem is, arrows made of Stainless-steel... How to shoot them? Where to find such a bowstring?"


    "For the bow we can use mort, and as for bowstring... we also have solutions. But the problem is, the arrow made of Stainless-steel is so strong, and even I don¡¯t have the ability to shoot it out."


    Seventh Sister asked, "Will the Stainless-steel arrow be lighter after carving talisman on it?"


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "Fourth Brother and I tested it the previous days, and even if it can be lighter, it¡¯s just a little bit."


    Suddenly Sixth Brother interrupted, "I can use Stainless-steel to make a hollow tube."


    Chen Pipi said, "In order to strengthen your perception of the strength of the talisman on the shaft, I suggest you add some silver inside."


    Sixth Brother nodded, "It will be easy."


    The eyes of Ning Que gradually lit up.

 Chapter 189: Looking Towards the West

    Chapter 189: Looking Towards the West


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Sixth Brother looked at Ning Que and said, "If you change the arrow shaft into one made of mixed silver, you¡¯d have to redesign your talisman. I¡¯ll bring you a few pieces of mixed silver to try outter."


    Ning Que thought of the little handmaiden floating about in the Old Brush Pen Shop in the middle of the night. He scratched his head and said, "Sixth Brother, could you please help to prepare more of these materials. The previous talismans I tried were all very light. I think I need to make them heavier this time."


    Seventh Sister gave the wok lid in her hands to Chen Pipi. She pped her palms together and asked the two who were deep in discussion curiously, "Why don¡¯t you ask Master Yan Se to carve the talisman on the arrow shaft? Wouldn¡¯t a carving by a Divine Talisman Master be better?"


    A normal talisman master could only activate talismans written by himself. However, this rule did not apply to a divine talisman master in the enigmatic state. Master Yan Se was a divine talisman master of this caliber. Divine talisman masters of his caliber could seal the Qi of Heaven and Earth in their talisman and the user of this talisman could simply activate it with their psyche power.


    This was why divine talisman masters were important to the country¡¯s military and religious sects. However, the status of these divine talisman masters was sky high and regr martial arts cultivators would not dare to invite them to craft weapons for them. Furthermore, to have a divine talisman master carve on their armory would require them to have armor and weapons made of precious materials that could withstand immense power from the talisman. These precious materials were very expensive, which was why divine talisman weapons were very rare.


    Ning Que was about to ask Seventh Sister to exin the difference between the two when Fourth Brother who had been silent in a dark corner of the room spoke up. "The power behind the symbols a divine talisman master carve is immense. However, it is still a talisman made by others. It is better for him to carve his own symbols for a weapon he has to keep close to himself. This is so that they will be irrevocably linked and might even be able to sense changes in their surroundings. It is very beneficial in raising one¡¯s state and give them a boost in battle."


    He continued after a short pause. "Someone like Younger Brother here, who has an affinity with great opportunities can ask for Master Yan Se¡¯s help anytime. However, that is also why he shouldn¡¯t. He will find it hard to improve once he bes reliant on a fixed divine talisman. Furthermore, where is he going to get the weapon fixed should it be damaged if he isn¡¯t the one who drew the talisman on it?"


    Ning Que had once thought of asking the master to carve a talisman on his weapon. Master Yan Se¡¯s reply then was simr to Fourth Brother¡¯s. He nodded furiously when he heard Fourth Brother¡¯s words. He suddenly thought of the incident Chen Pipi mentioned when he first entered the Back Mountain of the Academy. He looked at Fourth Brother and asked curiously, "Fourth Brother, General Xia Hou¡¯s armor..."


    Fourth Brother replied, "The talisman on his divine talisman armor was designed by Professor Huang He. Sixth Brother and I merely did the carving and metalwork. All we did was some art."


    Ning Que was silent as he thought of the man wearing the divine talisman armor who had killed in the borders of Yan for more than ten years. His smile was filled withplicated emotions as he sighed, "This general of the Tang border is indeed someone to have Professor Huang He design his divine talisman armor and senior brothers work on it."


    Fourth Brother shook his head, his face devoid of expression. "The Four Great Generals of Tang have no effect on any of our actions. I might not be a divine talisman master, but if I do not wish to, not even General Xu Shi can get me to do anything. In the end, it¡¯s about giving Professor Huang He "face". We did not reject since he asked us to."


    "Are Professor Huang He and General Xia Hou close?" Ning Que asked nonchntly.


    Fourth Brother looked up at him. There was a slight pause before he answered, "Professor Huang He is a visiting professor at the Imperial Center Administration. He has helped our empire¡¯s army in raising their standards. This is just part of his job."


    Ning Que thought of the token hidden beneath his robes when he heard the mention of the Imperial Center Administration. He had not visited it since he was granted the token by His Majesty. He only knew that it was a bureau of the country that managed cultivators. He couldn¡¯t help but wonder if he could gain any benefit from his position in the Imperial Center Administration.


    He had walked by the stream and gave those arrows a shot by theke. Time in the back mountain of the Academy seemed to pass by faster than anywhere else. The sun was already falling, glowing red and gradually darkening. Ning Que took over the silvers wrapped in leather from Sixth Brother. He bowed at the seniors and left the mountain.


    Chen Pipi escorted him down. He stopped suddenly in the fog, with bewilderment written all over his face. "Did Master Yan Se really say that you will be one of the greatest three in history with your talent in Talisman Taoism?"


    Ning Que patted his shoulder in constion. "Are you feeling a little dejected now that you¡¯ve discovered that there is some aspect of cultivation that I¡¯m better at than you are? Well, be more open-minded. Why would you want topare when you can never enter the Talisman Taoism? Think of Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword. He will never be equal to me in this aspect."


    Chen Pipi¡¯s expression did not lighten when he heard Ning Queparing himself to the strongest cultivator on earth. Instead, he replied sarcastically, "I am a cultivator who is in the Knowing Destiny State. Will I be jealous of you, who are only in the No Doubts State?"


    "You can¡¯t put it that way." Ning Que rebutted. "I have only been cultivating for a year and have jumped straight into the No Doubts State from the Initial State. That¡¯s skipping three whole levels. Who knows when I¡¯ll be able to enter the Knowing Destiny State?"


    "You have only ten clear acupoints in the Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi. You have to admit you don¡¯t have much potential."


    Chen Pipi looked at him pityingly, "However, so what if the Headmaster forcefully trains your wooden block of a brain into the Knowing Destiny State? You¡¯d only be a wooden block that knows destiny."


    Ning Que wrinkled his forehead, "It is true that my Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi is blocked, but that doesn¡¯t mean I¡¯m a wooden block."


    Chen Pipi stood before the mountain trail in the fog. He looked at Ning Que and smiled, "Anyway, I¡¯m not sure if you really have the potential to be one of the top three in Talisman Taoism history. But I¡¯m sure that you¡¯ll be the weakest cultivator in the Knowing Destiny State even if you entered it. You can only affect the Qi of Heaven and Earth no more than three feet away from you. Would you dare im that you are a Grand Cultivator then?"


    Chen Pipi said this with an emphasis on the words "Grand Cultivator".


    Ning Que¡¯s ability to let words roll off his back had long been trained in the Min mountain and the frontier fortress. He did not mind the sarcastic jibe at all. Instead, he thought about how it was a pity that he hadn¡¯t seen the Headmaster of the Academy and the eldest Senior Brother even though he had been on the Second floor of the academy for months. His progress in cultivation might be even faster if the Headmaster of the Academy would guide him personally.


    "When will teacher and Senior Brother return?"


    "Nobody knows."


    "They¡¯ve been traveling around the world... Surely there must be a time where they will return to this country? It¡¯s been more than a year."


    "They¡¯ve been traveling, taking in the sights and meeting friends. They would, of course, be happier out there than cultivating in the boring back mountain. If I were them, I wouldn¡¯t want toe back either."


    Ning Que smiled and asked, "I heard that the Headmaster brings only Eldest Brother when he travels. Why does he not bring you along? You used to brag that you are his most favored disciple back in the old library. It doesn¡¯t seem like it."


    Chen Pipi shook his head andmented. "You don¡¯t understand. The world admires and respects the Headmaster. No one would dare to disrespect him, especially his students. But no one can be like Eldest Brother who can serve the Headmaster in a way he likes. If it were you, would you bring a spoilt daughter on a trip or a woman who can cook?"


    This was such a ludicrous statement, but Ning Que stood in the fog and considered it seriously. After a long deliberation, he answered, "I¡¯ll bring Sangsang. She can not only cook but serve as well."


    ...


    ...


    The summer had almost passed in the wilderness. The field was carpeted in luscious greenery that was slowly fading and the temperature fell gradually. Unlike the loneliness in the wild, the central ins north of it was bustling with life. Hundreds of tents filled the ground like clouds and people were barbecuingmb while singing and dancing.


    After several bloody battles, the Huangs had finally moved southwards to the warm south after a thousand years in the extreme cold of the north, sessfully defeating the barbarians of the Central ins. The left and right tent had sacrificed thousands of elite soldiers but were still unable to stop the Huangs from moving forward. They had no choice but to move their troops in the north towards the fields of the Central ins in the south, leaving the fertilend in the north of the ins to the Huangs.


    The brave Huang soldiers have gained victory and a piece ofnd to build their homes anew. To those from the Central ins, the climate and conditions were harsh. But to those who had worked hard in extreme cold in the north year round, it was practically heaven.


    Not long ago, thest of the Huangs consisting of the women, elderly and children had finally arrived at their new home. The number of those who had managed to arrive far surpassed their expectations when they first decided to migrate South. This surprised all them.


    Between the tents on the central ins, families reunited, and everyone settled down into a wonderful but foreign new life. The scent ofmb stew wafted in the air. The burning dung was a little odd, but it smelt like utter bliss to them when all the scents in the air came together.


    The celebrationssted all night and day and only ended on the second evening. The Huang soldiers celebrated with alcohol plundered from the royal family of the central ins, rewarding themselves and their families who have made it thus far and in remembrance of those who have died on the road to the central ins. There was no need for oilmps to be lit as everyone eventually fell asleep deeply as the sun rose.


    The light was lit brightly in a tent on the west of the field. It might look simple but was obviouslyrger than any other tent. The ten torches lighting it were hung high,ing up to a person¡¯s waist, lighting up the tent like it was day.


    The elders and strongest leaders of the soldiers celebrated their victory for an entire day. However, they have all descended into deep thoughts and silence while ruminating about a problem raised by a certain elder.


    "What¡¯s so scary about the Tangs?"


    A burly general answered in a low voice. His face was filled with puzzlement. "We are all born warriors. We can defeat the royal family of the Central ins with ease even if we were tired after our long travels to the south. Who can defeat us after we rest on thisnd for half a year?"


    An elder sitting in the deepest part of the tent looked at him calmly. He spoke up after a short pause, "Pride will weaken even the strongest warrior eventually. "


    The soldier who had spoken up previously looked incredibly nervous after being criticized by the highly respected elder. He lowered his head in repentance. However, you could see from his eyes that he did not understand the elder¡¯s fears.


    "Thisnd used to belong to us. We were once the strongest empire. Why were our ancestors forced from this beautiful fertilend and away to suffer in the cold north?"


    The elder looked at everyone in the tent. His face was devoid of any expression when he said, "That¡¯s because we were defeated by the Tangs."


    ...


    ...


    There was a pregnant pause. The elder said, "We want you to remember why our ancestors were forced to leave the grasnd not because we want to encourage revenge. But it is to remind you how strong the Tang empire is."


    "A thousand years ago, no one could defeat us as we fought on the ins. The West Hill Divine Kingdom had only wanted to spread their teachings and had no intentions of going against us. It wasn¡¯t until Lee Tang established his empire when we started losing and were almost annihted. We eventually signed an agreement to retreat into the north and swore to never return south to save our descendants. "


    The tent was deathly silent as the old man told the story passed down from fathers to sons.


    "Back in those days, our ancestors hadnds a hundred timesrger than what we do now. We had a poption a hundred times more than today. We had more strong men than the number of stars in the universe and they all died in the Tang¡¯s hands. Today, we have suffered for a thousand years, and yet, we only have a poption of a hundred thousand. How can wepare with our ancestors? How can we look down on the Tangs?"


    "The issue that we should concern ourselves with, is how we should deal with any issues arising from our contact with the Tangs."


    The response was resounding. "We don¡¯t want thend that belongs to those on the Central ins. We only take back thends that belonged to us. Even if the barbarians were banished to the south, and begin a conflict with those on the Central ins, it has nothing to do with us."


    Someone spoke up worriedly,"Moving south is indeed in vition of the agreement we signed a thousand years ago. If the Tangs use this to create trouble for us, what should we do?"


    The old man lowered his gaze. He said, "We are surrounded by enemies. The only ones who remain on the grasnds are barbarians after a thousand years. We, the true descendants of Heavenly Khagan have been forced to lead a difficult life by the Hot Sea. It would be fine if we could survive, but we can¡¯t. Moving south was a necessity. Darknessys before us and death behind. No agreement holds any meaning now."


    He raised his head, looked at the most important people of the Huang tribe and said in a low voice. "If we can avoid war with the Tang empire, we must. If they send an envoy, we should be on our best manners."


    His statement was met with a resounding agreement.


    Suddenly, the elder sensed the absence of a certain someone. His white brows furrowed. Even though the person would never speak up on his opinion at the elder meeting, he was the strongest warrior they had. His absence at such an important meeting was a little odd.


    "Where did he go?"


    "I don¡¯t know."


    The elder was about to speak up when he felt a subtle shift in the Qi from the west. This Qi was not strong, but the uniqueness of it touched his elderly heart.


    His body suddenly stiffened and an expression of fear and respect crossed his face. He moved his body quickly and kneeled towards the west, stretching his arms out before him in a strange show of respect.


    The elders around him have also sensed the Qi from the west. Their expressions changed as they kneeled quickly and kowtowed respectfully.


    The young leaders of each camp did not sense the strange Qi. They were startled and puzzled by the actions of the elders. However, they kneeled subconsciously towards the west and kowtowed as well.

 Chapter 190: Here Comes an Ox Cart

    Chapter 190: Here Comes an Ox Cart


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    There was an ox cart in the wilderness.


    The cart was an ordinary wooden cart that had slightly misshapen wheels from the long journey. It emitted slight creaks as it traveled on the hard grasnd. It bumped up and down, leaving behind an untraceable print behind him. The wheels would dig deeply into the soft wet ground and little fish would jump out as they passed.


    The ox was ordinary as well. Its strong legs held strong even though it had traveled far and wide. It grunted asionally as it walked on the hard ground. Sometimes, it would lower its head to munch on the grass, leaving behind a grass trail and ttened grass when it dug its hoof deeply into the wet ground.


    An ordinary wood cart and an ordinary ox from the Central ins appearing in the wilderness was something extraordinary. Anyone witnessing this would find it rather incredible.


    The driver of this cart was a wide-eyed schr. His dusty robes seemed more tattered that it was. However, his expression was friendly and trustworthy. It was curious how his straw slippers did not fall apart even though he had been on the road for more than a year. A waterdle hung at his waist and it swayed along with the movement of the ox cart.


    A sudden song wafted from the ox cart


    "I wasn¡¯t allowed home... it worries me.."


    The schr driving the ce smiled. He patted the ox lightly, signaling for it to stop. He turned around and said, "Headmaster, do you want to go home?"


    The curtains raised. A tall man with white hair walked out. He rubbed his waist and stretched his arms. He looked at the empty wilderness and said angrily, "We¡¯ve been out for more than a year, and yet, we hang around in the wild, have nothing to eat and nothing to do. Who wouldn¡¯t want to return to Chang¡¯an?"


    The old man was the Headmaster of the Academy.


    Eldest Brother smiled and helped Headmaster off the cart and onto a bench he retrieved from the cart. He said catingly, "It¡¯s good that we were able to see the sights along the way."


    The Headmaster was so tall that his robes covered the short benchpletely. He looked as if he was squatting on the grasnd and it looked rather funny.


    The Headmaster said, "What scenery is there to see? The Hot Sea has frozen, we can¡¯t even think of going for a hot bath in the springs!"


    "We had really good peony fish even though we didn¡¯t manage to soak in the hot springs." Eldest Brother said.


    There was a sea in the extreme north that had an underwater volcano. The waters there never froze, giving it the name Hot Sea. There was fish called "peony" in the depth of the Hot Sea. Peony fish were fat and sulent and when cut straight down with a knife, looked like a peony flower.


    Only people like the Headmaster and Eldest Brother would know about this.


    Headmaster stroked his long beard and nodded in agreement. He said, "Child, I cannot agree more with what you just said. All the difficulties in this journey are well worth it as long as we get to eat peony fish."


    Eldest Brother retrieved a knife as well as other cooking utensils and a pail from the cart. He thawed out a peony fish and began to slice it.


    The Headmaster looked at the wriggling fish on the board and praised, "Food has to be eaten fresh. The heat from the Hot Sea along with the cold in the northern regions have made this fish so sulent. It makes the long journey totally worth it."


    Eldest Brother smiled and did not reply. He carved the fish carefully. The fish was fat and sulent. Even the sharpest knife could hardly pierce its skin. Eldest Brother cut the fish slowly, his two different strokes looked as if theynded on the same spot. However, when he lifted his knife, it glistened with a thin slice of flesh.


    "You can¡¯t slice river fish too thinly, or it¡¯d lose its texture. But the Peony fish lives in the deep sea and its flesh is extremely bouncy. The thinner it is, the better. Child, you have indeed learned some things about life after all these years."


    Headmaster shook his head in praise. He retrieved soy sauce and a green colored condiment as well as ginger with his left hand and reached for the thin slice of fish with his right hand. He dipped the flesh in the bowl and brought it to his mouth.


    Headmaster closed his eyes in delight as he chewed. He had an expression of utter bliss on his face that seemed as sweet as the fish he savored. His eyes flicked open and he stared at the chopping board and the knife that moved too slowly. He said urgently, "Quick, quick."


    Eldest Brother smiled but did not move faster. He continued to cut it slowly.


    The Headmaster could not wait any longer and snatched the knife over. He sighed, "Child, you are good at almost everything. But you¡¯re just too slow. I can¡¯t wait any longer."


    Eldest Brother exined respectfully, "Your student is stupid, that is why I am willing to think for a bit longer before doing anything."


    "You have to learn more from Little Mo. Think when you should and don¡¯t when you don¡¯t have to."


    "Second younger brother is amazing. I cannotpare with him."


    "Wouldn¡¯t he be ashamed of his younger self if he heard you saying that."


    Headmaster started carving and was done within seconds. The board was filled with slices of fish that was as white as snow. It bore an uncanny likeness to a blossoming white peony flower.


    The bones and organs were wrapped in a thin film and it looked like a piece of amber.


    Eldest Brother retrieved two pairs of chopsticks. He only helped himself to the fish after Headmaster had eaten his fill. He then fed the amber like bones and organs to the ox.


    It was a fact that oxen ate grass. But... the ox ate fish. It chewed vigorously and shook his head, looking extremely happy.


    Headmaster was drinking a pot of wine when he saw this. He said angrily, "This is such a waste of good food! A cow eating peony fish! Should the fish be eaten in this way?"


    Headmaster retrieved another fish from the bucket after he said that. He rolled up his sleeves and started carving at the fish. There were slices of fish that resembled peony on the board within seconds.


    Headmaster picked up a slice of fish with his chopsticks. He threw it into the ox¡¯s mouth after dipping it in the sauce.


    Giving the ox peony fish was not a waste. Instead, not being able to taste the fishpletely was a waste.


    The ox chewed and stopped still. He teared up, shook his head and stomped his hoof while mooing.


    Eldest Brother asked, "Headmaster, is he happy or was it too spicy?"


    Headmaster replied, "Of course he is happy."


    Eldest Brother thought to himself, that the Headmaster is always correct. He picked up the chopsticks and fed the ox more fish.


    ...


    ...


    Even the Deste Man could not bear to stay in the extreme north anymore, yet the ox managed to make it there and back without even shaking. Instead, he was as fit as before. This was not an ordinary ox. It was not difficult to understand why he ate fish and not grass.


    Eldest Brother washed the utensils and sat down, looking towards the south. He said, "I wonder how the Academy is like now. Howrge was the impact of Deste Man moving southwards?"


    Headmaster sat down on the cart with his knees crossed. He replied while holding on to the book he was reading. "We will find out when we get back."


    Eldest Brother smiled and looked at the Headmaster. "I wonder who entered the Second floor."


    Headmaster looked at his book and lowered his head. He said, "You¡¯ll find out when you see it."


    Eldest Brother shook his head and smiled, "It¡¯s too far away, we can¡¯t go back anytime soon."


    He stood up and looked towards the north of the grasnd and smiled.


    A tall shadow appeared. It was made up of snowfield direwolves that had been chased to the south along with Deste Man. Hundreds of wolves stood in line like soldiers. Theirrge size made them look really impressive, but it did not garner any reaction from both the Headmaster and Eldest Brother.


    On the contrary, the reaction of the snowfield direwolves was rather odd. The ox from the central ins that was rarely seen by them should be as delicious to them as peony fish. But ferocious wolves did not leap over, but looked afraid and started whining before retreating. It seemed as if they could sense a fearsome aura from afar.


    These wolves were the very same ones that fought with the Tang siblings. The skinny male wolf brought along the beautiful female wolf, separating from the pack and towards the ox cart. The ordinary male wolf stopped about a hundred steps away from the cart and did not dare to move forward.


    The scrawny male wolf looked at the cart and seemed very agitated. It shivered and stepped backward. It raised its two front paws, looking like a student bowing at its teacher or seniors.


    Eldest Brother looked at the male wolf and remarked in surprise. "Teacher, isn¡¯t this the wolf from seven years ago? It got married."


    The headmaster smiled and did not say anything.


    Eldest Brother looked at the Headmaster. When he noticed that the Headmaster showed no sign of refuting his statement, he left the cart and walked towards the ordinary looking male wolf. He raised his hand and pointed at the north-west of the grasnd and said, "Do not continue southwards. There are too many people there. Walk in that direction. There is arge patch of boreal forest in five hundred miles."


    The wolf waved his front paws, mimicking a bow. Heid down with his head on the ground for a long while before standing up. He whined and looked at the ox cart, bidding it goodbye reluctantly before leading his pack towards the north-west.


    "Let¡¯s return to Chang¡¯an."


    The Headmaster rolled up his book, lifted the curtain and entered the ox cart.


    Eldest Brother looked at the meadows afar before sitting on the driver¡¯s seat and patted the ox¡¯s back lightly.


    The ox cart sped towards the south, ttering on the ground.


    ...


    ...


    Tang Xiaotang held the sleeping snow wolf in her arms and stood up as she watched the cart disappear beyond the grasnd. Her face was filled with disconcertment. She mumbled to himself after a long while. "That... that¡¯s the Headmaster?"


    Tang stood by her side, nodding as they watched the tracks left behind on the grasnd by the cart.


    Tang Xiaotang shook her head. She felt that the gluttonous old man waspletely different from the Headmaster she had imagined.


    After a moment of silence, Tang said, "I wanted to see if there was an opportunity for you to be the Headmaster¡¯s student. Since he did not show any sign of epting you, it shows that it is not time yet. Let¡¯s talk about it when the timees in the future."


    Tang Xiaotang was surprised and asked, "Do you mean that the Headmaster knew that we were watching here?"


    Tang turned around and walked towards the end of the meadow and said, "He is the Headmaster. He knows everything."

 Chapter 191: The Little Things That Happened Now and Those Years Ago

    Chapter 191: The Little Things That Happened Now and Those Years Ago


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Tang Xiaotang rubbed the tummy of the little snow wolf. She thought of what she had seen and asked towards the back of her brother curiously, "What¡¯s up with the wolf?"


    "Perhaps the Headmaster met the pack before when he traveled to the deste north. The wolves were probably able to sense things due to their meeting today. How else would an ordinary wolf be able to sense the power of Heaven and Earth?"


    Tang Xiaotang eximed, " The Headmaster can even teach wolves? That¡¯s amazing... Brother, who do you think is stronger? The Headmaster or the Overlord?"


    Tang¡¯s footsteps slowed down. He spoke after a moment of silence. "Teacher was not as good as the Headmaster then. But he has cultivated for twenty-three years... I think he¡¯s still not as good as the Headmaster."


    "Brother, you¡¯ve told me previously that most of the officials of Tang have studied in the Academy. Those from the Second floor are not to be provoked. The Headmaster has been the headmaster of the Academy for over a hundred years. Does that mean that the Headmaster has much power over the country? Isn¡¯t the emperor worried?"


    "What would he be worried about?"


    "His throne."


    "The throne holds no importance to the Headmaster."


    "Isn¡¯t the emperor worried about how the Headmaster would affect the court? Which emperor would want to be second to someone else?"


    "It doesn¡¯t matter whether he is willing or not. The Headmaster has been second to none for many years since before he was born. The Headmaster will not concern himself with a small matter such as the court."


    "Is the court a small matter? If we fight with the Tangs, will the Headmaster interfere? If he is really as powerful as you say, how can we fight against him?"


    "I¡¯ve said, the Headmaster will not concern himself with small matters such as this."


    Tang Xiaotang held the small snow wolf and hastened to walk beside her brother. Her eyes were widened in surprise as she asked, "This is a small matter? What¡¯s a big matter then?"


    "All matters are small to someone like the Headmaster. As for what¡¯s a big matter, people like us will never know. Why would we waste our effort trying to guess?"


    ...


    ...


    Where there are people, things will happen. And where things happen, trouble follows. The means to solve these issues were limited. Other than war and violence, the only other way out would be to hold meetings. When the Deste Men held a meeting in the grasnds to discuss their next steps, the Tang Empire in the south held their own meeting as well.


    The Daming Pce outside of Chang¡¯an was where the Emperor stayed in summer. Since the officials find it rather troublesome to leave the city, the matters discussed in court reduced. There was only one official court meeting held every three days.


    "Even though it is much cooler in the Daming Pce outside of the city, it is still very hot. This soup has been chilled with ice. Drink it before returning to the city. I will worry if you fall from the horse."


    Li Zhongyi, the Emperor of the Tang empire said to the officials. He took his own bowl from Eunuch Lin and drank it in a few gulps.


    The court matters that have been piling up for the past three days have finally been cleared. while the Daming Pce was cooling, there was nowhere asfortable as one¡¯s own home. While the soup was icy cold, it will never be as delicious as the one at home. The officials thanked His Majesty and drank the soup quickly as they prepared to leave the pce.


    Right before the officials prepared to leave, the emperor thought of something. He waved for them to return and said, "There is another small matter. The Military Ministry reported that the Left Tent riders have entered the Yan Kingdom three days ago and robbed the vige. I thought that it was a matter of the Yan Kingdom and did not do anything about it. However, it did not feel right to ignore itpletely. This involves the Deste Man moving southwards as well. We still have to think of a way to speak with the West-Hill and other countries. Quick, discuss it."


    The officials from the Military Ministry hurriedly replied, "The Left and Gold tent did not do anything out of the ordinary. Our reports say that they did not cause significant damages."


    "What has the people of Yan to do with me? This has nothing to do with the damage caused."


    The emperor raised his brows and the gentleness on his face hardened. He said, "When the Tang insisted on splitting the country lines those years ago, the Chanyus of the three kingdoms have all signed an agreement. Now that they have crossed the line, I care more about what right they have to dare cross it."


    To the officials of the Tang Empire, the barbarians of the grasnd were unable to cause much trouble even though they were an annoyance. They did not think that this was a grave matter of any sort. The minister of the Ministry of Rites ran his hand on his beard and thought about it from the barbarian royal court¡¯s point of view and said with a smile, "The Deste Man have moved southwards. Since the barbarians could not defeat them and had their most bountifulnd taken, they could only rely on plundering for a living. It is indeed difficult for them."


    The emperor shook his head and said, "Even if they have difficulties, they must tell the imperial court in advance to have the imperial court arrange for them since they were awarded by the empire. Now, they did not inform anyone and secretly started. Of course, it is not allowed. We must make them go back and then I¡¯ll listen to their difficulties."


    "Your Majesty is wise. Even though the Left-Tent Pce has been harassing the Yan Kingdom, they have crossed the line we drew back then. They are challenging the Central ins. As the leader of the Central ins, we should do something about it."


    The prime minister nodded thoughtfully. He turned around to look at the minister of the Military Ministry and said unhappily, "The general is not far from the Yan Kingdom. He can arrange for some soldiers to chase the Left-Tent Pce back. Why would you worry His Majesty about such small matters?"


    "Even though it is a small matter, we still need to send soldiers and arrange for generals. We also need to inform the court before entering the north of Yan for war. Otherwise, wouldn¡¯t the King of Yan be frightened to death?¡¯


    The officials of the Military Minister turned towards the dragon throne and said to the emperor seriously. "Your Majesty, I think that the empire needs to consider the Deste Man who have moved south seriously. They have gone against a thousand-year-old agreement and moved southwards. How should our empire react?"


    "Do not think that I do not understand what you mean. Which old general got bored and wanted to lead some soldiers into battle? Do you think that battles cost no money?"


    The emperor smiled all the while scolding, "The reports said that the Deste Man have taken over the north of the wilderness and stopped their people from moving anymore south... The distance between us is wide. If they do not bring trouble to me, I shall not bother with them. If we want to bring up the agreement from a thousand years ago, the Deste Man have been defeated terribly by us then. There were only a few hundred thousand of them left. There is no point in us continuing to hold this against them."


    ...


    ...


    The imperial court meeting ended. Master of Nation, Li Qingshan looked slightly troubled and said to the emperor softly, "The divine hall¡¯s reaction to this is rather suspicious. They sent out an edict for such a small matter. South Jin and the Yuelun Kingdom should be preparing to head north. It probably has nothing to do with the Left-Tent Pce making trouble at the border. Since the Deste Man have returned, the old ones probably sensed the Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    The emperor who had remained calm and collected during the court meeting furrowed his brows when he heard mention of the Divine hall. He said, "Taizu (Founder of the Tang Dynasty) worked with the West-Hill Divine Kingdom when he started the empire. They chased the Deste Man out of the Wilderness. A few years ago, youngest uncle entered the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and killed all the strong ones there left behind by the Deste Man. Now that they have fallen, what has the West-Hill Divine Kingdom to worry about?"


    Li Qingshan said, "The Devil¡¯s Doctrine and the Deste Man have an irreceable rtionship. That is why the Divine Hall is a little wary. This edict has spurred many countries towards the north. The West-Hill has even sent a regiment of cavalry. From what I see, other than being wary of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and helping the Yan Kingdom stabilize the frontiers, it is also for them to show off their prowess to the rest of the world."


    The emperor looked at his left arm and said, "They want to show off their muscle? Who was sent from the Yue Lun Kingdom and South Jin?"


    "It was reported that the Buddhist Sect of Yuelun Kingdom sent a few younger strong cultivators. The sword sect of South Jin has also sent people out. But what we really need to keep a look out for other than the cavalry is the Judicial Department of the Divine Hall."


    The emperor¡¯s eyebrows rose slightly as he smiled. "It seems that they are training their troops while also spreading influence. It is not suitable for us to send our own people there. It is just that it isn¡¯t convenient for us to interfere. If we do, we can control the whole situation. Since this is so, let Xia Hou go personally."


    Li Qingshan furrowed his brows. He said, "Doesn¡¯t it show that we take the barbarians too seriously if we send out General to settle these small issues?"


    "I know what you¡¯re worried about."


    The emperor looked at him and said, "I¡¯m sending Xia Hou there personally not because I think highly of the soldiers or the edict from the Divine Hall, or even the youngsters from the various countries. It is because... I want to see Xia Hou in person."


    Li Qingshan understood what the emperor meant. He shook his head and sighed. "General Xia Hou is world renowned. If he were to visit northern Yan personally, he would be ced as the general of the Union army. Your Majesty is wise indeed."


    The emperor thought of something suddenly. He raised his head and asked Li Qingshan, "The students who entered the Academyst year. Is it time for them to cultivate at the frontier?"


    Li Qingshan replied, "They have always left in autumn."


    "It is now the end of summer. It wouldn¡¯t hurt to go a little early. Where were they supposed to go originally?"


    "To the south under General Xu Shi, to fight with the Southern Zhaoshan tribe."


    The emperor shook his head. "They have already surrendered in spring. I did not allow Xu to return because I thought the humid air there would be beneficial to his lung ailment. It is peaceful there, what would the students learn there? Send my imperial edict to the Academy tomorrow, and have the students cultivate somewhere else."


    Li Qingshan could guess what the emperor had in mind. He asked, "To North Yan? In the Wilderness?"


    "That¡¯s right."


    The emperor said, "Since the West-Hill Divine Kingdom had already sent an edict and all the young ones from various countries are headed there to show off their powers, why should we stop our young ones from going? We have had rumors saying that we don¡¯t have any talented young ones from the Tang Empire recently and are not as strong as before. I want to show the world our great talents."


    Li Qingshan hesitated before saying seriously, "Your Majesty, there¡¯s indeed no exceptional talent from this batch of students, especially not one from the Tang Empire. Wang Ying is decent, but he is too young."


    "Isn¡¯t there Ning Que?"


    The Emperor said it as if it was a matter of fact.


    Li Qingshan replied, "Your Majesty, Ning Que has entered the Second floor and no longer needs to go to the frontier to cultivate."


    "He is still a student from this batch even though he has entered the Second floor. Let him lead the team." His Majesty said.


    Li Qingshan saw that the emperor was determined and tried to counsel him. "Let¡¯s not talk about how we are taking this too seriously if we send someone from the Second floor. Ning Que¡¯s talisman skills are ordinary and his talent for cultivation is ordinary as well. He is the weakest student in all history of the Second floor. How can a student in the No Doubts state beat all the young talents from all over the world? What will we tell the Headmaster if something were to happen in the Wilderness?"


    The emperor smiled, "Only polished jade will shine. You¡¯ve seen Ning Que¡¯s military records and you know what he is like. If he can¡¯t survive on the battlefield, who else will?"


    ...


    ...


    The Daming Pce was enshrouded in starlight and enveloped in wind from the north. The emperor leaned against the railings, a serious expression on his face. All previous trace of carefreeness present during the discussion earlier had disappeared.


    The pce maids and eunuchs have long left and it was silent. Only the empress stood by him silently, her brows furrowed with worry.


    "Do you mean there¡¯s really an underworld? If so, where is it? Is the Headmaster traveling around the world to find it? It is rumored that the Deste Man returned to the south because the darkness in the extreme north has be longer. Will there be a day when darkness stays forever?"


    Should the darkness stay, the country will fall. This statement was made by an astrologer years ago. Many inferred from the statement that women in the pce will bring the fall of the country and thought that the empress was the woman in the prediction. Some thought it was the much beloved Fourth Princess, leading to several tumults.


    After the incident, the empress secluded herself in the depth of the pce and no longer said anything about matters of the country. Princess Lee Yu married herself off to the grasnds because of the matter. It was no small issue indeed. The empress¡¯s expression changed slightly when she heard the emperor mentioning the prediction.


    After a long silence, she said in a low voice. "Who would have thought that Mr. Ke would enter the mountains with just a sword? Master¡¯s death on the battlefield was too sudden and there were many secret manuals that were not passed on in time. However, we have never heard of a ce like the Underworld in our sect."


    The emperor turned around and looked at her tenderly, "Your people have returned South. Do you not wish to visit?"


    The empress shook her head. She said, "A thousand years ago, the Divine Hall had sent someone to spread their teachings to the Deste Man, leading to the birth of a different branch of cultivation. However, it was thought to be of the devil by those from the Divine Hall and from then on, the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was inseparable from the Deste Man. Since we have left them so many years ago, they are no longer my people."


    She stopped there suddenly and looked at the emperor calmly. "You¡¯ve decided to have Xia Hou lead the army of North Yan. Are you suspicious of him?"


    The Emperor looked at the mountain shrouded in the darkness of the night and said after a long moment of silence. "Indeed."


    The empress looked at his side profile and suppressed the sadness in her heart. Her voice wavered as she said, "Many years ago, I took on the orders of my master from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine to head south. I used all my powers to seduce you in order to kill you. I failed in my task, and yet, you did not kill me, but married me instead and made me empress."


    The emperor thought of the incident that happened many years ago. He said, "Only my parents and Qing Shan knew of your identity then. If not for the Headmaster, it would have been hard for us to be together. However, even if the Headmaster didn¡¯t say anything, I would still marry you despite my parents¡¯ objections because you are the woman I want to marry."


    The empress said sadly, "That¡¯s why I do not understand. You are so gracious and loving towards me. Why are you so suspicious of Xia Hou? He has battled for our empire for years. Has that not won your trust? Do you think he will return to the Devil¡¯s Doctrine once more and bring soldiers back with him to the Deste Man settlement?"


    The emperor turned and looked into her eyes. "You¡¯re wrong. I have never worried that Xia Hou would return to the Devil¡¯s Doctrine or bring our soldiers to the Deste Man settlement. He knows very well that any General who tries to rebel will be met with death. He lost the chance to return to the Devil¡¯s Doctrine the moment he killed Murong Linshuang to prove his dedication to West-Hill. No matter the person who cultivated for twenty-three years or others from the Doctrine. The first thing one has to do is to kill them should they appear on the Central ins. Do not forget that Murong Linshuang was the favorite disciple of that person."


    The empress asked, her voice shaking. "Why else are you suspicious of him then?"


    The emperor replied with a straight face. "I am suspicious of his rtionship with the West-Hill"


    The empress smiled bitterly and self mockingly. "You know why this is so."


    "Why? Because he knew that the West-Hill Divine Kingdom had always been suspicious of him? Because he knew that they have always been suspicious of his rtionship with you? Will they find any evidence linking you with the previous saintess of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine?


    The emperor shook his head. "The Emperors of the Tang Empire would study with the Headmaster in the Academy for some time. The duration of their study depends on the speed of their improvement. I do not know if I should praise myself or feel regret. My time with the Headmaster was not long. But I remember something he said very clearly. "


    "There are many strong and brave people in this world. They wille to manypromises after the first and in the end, it will be a distorted emotional state. It will turn frompromises to active cooperation. They will turn from victims to the people executing punishment. And they will not even understand why this is so."


    "The West-Hill have been trying to guess your true identity over the years. They¡¯ve tried hard and Xia Hou has tried even harder to hide it. He¡¯s tried his best to curry favor with them and arranged for incidents to happen in the city while I was away. He had allowed for the viges on the Yan border to be sacrificed along with those searching for clues. He even killed his most beloved woman. In my opinion, these actions are one too many. So what if the West-Hill Divine Pce knew that you were the previous saintess of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine?


    The emperor patted the bar before him lightly while staring at the sky littered with stars. He sighed, "If Xia Hou didn¡¯t do all those things for you, I would have killed him years ago. I thought that he would understand that as the years went by, but it seemed that nothing has changed."


    "He has separated himself from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine years ago, but it is a pity that there are still demons in his heart. This demon is the lover he killed. It is the identity he received after betraying his sect. And you... the sister he thinks is many times more important than his own life. "

 Chapter 192: Synchronization

    Chapter 192: Synchronization


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    His Majesty decided that Ning Que would be the leader of the Academy students in the Wilderness practice this time. As Master Yan Se heard the news from his Younger Brother, an anger suddenly appeared on his ¡¯lewd¡¯ face and his white eyebrows kept tilting up and down, as if they were to be a ball of fire. He severely scolded, "What happened again?"


    Master of Nation Li Qingshan slightlyughed and said, "Back then I also felt strange, butter I guess I understand his Majesty¡¯s thought on my way here. Due to that thing about her Majesty that year, there is a health risk of his Majesty¡¯s body. Nobody knows when it will break out, so he has to think more about affairs of state in the future."


    Master Yan Se sneeringly said, "Tang is founded on the basis of military and is governed byws. Is there something about state affairs that his Majesty needs to worry about? He wants to imitate that hellhole South Jin Kingdom to appoint a useless assisting minister?"


    Li Qingshan shook his head and said, "Our South School of Haotian Taoism looks powerful, but actually, the number of mighty cultivators in noontide is few and weak. If Tang wants topete with the Divine Hall and maintain its strictw, it will unavoidably rely on the Academy atst. However, among those freak talents of the Second floor of the Academy right now, most of them are just interested in some personal hobbies and have no ability to govern the state. Besides, the most two powerful students of the Academy have totally be someone in another world and showed little interest in state affairs."


    "It is fortunately that the Academy has a student named Ning Que."


    "Ning Que... what¡¯s wrong again?"


    "His Majesty knows thisd very well. He is from the earthly world, so he has some ambitions and desires. Of course this isn¡¯t a negativement, because it means he is ambitious. Once he involves in the worldly affairs, the Academy will naturally keep an eye on it. In this way, the future state affair will be steady."


    After a short silence, Master Yan Se said with a sigh, "Actually, every thought that is rted to a too far future is too rigid."


    "I know what you mean. At present, Ning Que is indeed a small potato, but everything needs to be ready from the beginning. Since his Majesty appreciates him and would like to foster him, you don¡¯t have to be angry."


    "He has to involve in these worldly affairs when he just enters Talisman Taoism... In my view, it is absolutely a barrier, rather than a kind of training. If you want him to be a Divine Talisman Master within ten years, it is inadvisable and unwise to overly train him and give him heavy responsibility in advance."


    "How could Left-Tent pce on the grasnd dare to antagonize with Tang Empire? Besides, the order made by the Divine Hall is more due to the vignce to those Deste Men and remaining followers of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. There will be no real danger for Ning Que and other students of the Academy in this practice. No important thing will happen there, so you don¡¯t have to worry about the nonexistent heavy responsibility."


    Looking at his Senior Brother, Li Qingshan gently persuaded, "The cultivation of Talisman Taoism requires both innerprehension and external observation. Since it is so, the practice may be good for his cultivation, even if he will encounter some trouble. How could a piece of steel be a piece of Stainless-steel without being hammered and tempered; and how could a piece of white paper be a real Fu if it fails to bear the force of a finger?"


    ...


    ...


    The Academy hadn¡¯t received the written letter from his Majesty in Daming Pce. The students, who would go to south for practice in this fall, were talking about the not-so-cold weather in excitement. They had no idea that they would go to that slightly-cold and strange Wilderness soon. Ning Que also didn¡¯t know that he had been regarded as a key training target by the empire and that he would lead his ex-ssmates to the Wilderness. Right now, he was paying all his attention to memorizing Fu characters and developing Talisman Arrow.


    The wooden shaft had been changed to the material made from silver, stainless-steel and two other rare metals. Senior Brother Sixth carefully finished some extremely-light stainless-steel arrows with silver and hollow pipes. Ning Que used all heavypound bows, which were used in the examination of the Military Ministry, to disce the boxwood bow. With the assistance of Sangsang, who had fallen from the bed and then stood for countless time, Ning Que finally managed toplete the Fu character suitable for flying arrows. However, failure was still the ending in the next several experiments.


    Though this metal arrow was rtively much lighter than others, yet it was still much heavier than wooden arrows. The metal arrows, once leaving bowstring, would fly around irregrly and smashed the ground in a big area. The pot and shield in the hands of Seventh Sister and Chen Pipi made "Peng Peng Peng" sounds from time to time. Atst, the flying arrows would suddenly fall in theke and then hit severalzy fat fish.


    After several tests, he found the root of failure¨Csomething wrong in the coordination between the shooting of arrows from the bow and the stimtion of the Fu character. If the Fu character had been stimted when he drew the bow, the Qi of Heaven and Earth would cause turbulence of wind around. In such case, the original direction of the arrow would be severely influenced. In the worst case, the arrow couldn¡¯t be shot at all.


    However, if the Fu character, which was engraved on the shaft, was stimted by Psyche Power after the arrow had been shot, another problem would ur. The old Lyu Qingchen had mentioned it that year and Fourth Brother also talked about it this year. Arrow was a type of long-ranged weapon, so it must rely on fast speed, but the kind of speed could easily end the Psyche Power connection between the cultivator and his arrow...


    "Actually I don¡¯t think this trouble should ur. As I shoot the arrow, meanwhile, the Fu character on the arrow should be stimted. In such case, there is no need to maintain Psyche Power connection. With the assistance of Qi of Heaven and Earth gathered by the Fu character, the arrow is able to directively and steadily fly, but why does it fail now?"


    Ning Que, a little pale, was sitting on the threshold of the small warehouse by the forge-iron room and saying to himself in anger. These days he, out of depression, had scratched his head for so many times, so his hair looked like a messy bird nest.


    Seventh Sister, Sixth Brother and Chen Pipi, standing or sitting, looked at him in sympathy. These days, the experiment of flying arrow brought more happiness and jollification to the Back Mountain of the Academy, and it even had attracted that two Chess Addicts in the mountain to watch twice. However, as they looked at painful Ning Que, they couldn¡¯t help worrying about him. Unfortunately, no one could give a hand because the Talisman Arrow field hadn¡¯t been sessfully developed up to now.


    "You also know the root of failure. The two things, the shooting of arrow from bowstring and the stimtion of Fu character on the shaft, must simultaneously happen. If you failed to figure it out, a greater thought would be useless, either."


    Fourth Brother stood at the doorway of the forge-iron room and looked at them without any facial expression. Seventh Sister and Chen Pipi looked at each other and felt confused. These days, Fourth Brother, who was sharp at the practice of Talisman Taoism, never showed little interest in Ning Que¡¯s experiment and didn¡¯t have a nce at it, not to mention makingments. They even thought it seemed that Fourth Brother was sneeringly waiting for their failure.


    After standing from the threshold and politely greeting to Fourth Brother, Ning Que exined, "Indeed, it is the root, but I have noticed it the day before yesterday and then improved it. At every test, I have paid much attention to keep the two steps synchronous, but why does it still fail?"


    "It is impossible to achieve absolute synchronization if your stimtion depends on Psyche Power, no matter you stimte the Fu character before or after shooting the arrow. That¡¯s because the speed of human movement is definitely slower than that of Psyche Power. When you intend to stimte the Fu character, you just need to do it in your mind. Inparison, the movement of your finger will alwaysg behind it."


    Ning Que carefully said, "I know this point, so I shoot the arrow in advance."


    "How much time in advance? How do you count it? By feeling? How do you know your own psyche doesn¡¯t influence your finger movement? How do you know your consciousness can be precisely divided into two parts?"


    Fourth Brother looked at Ning Que and rebuked him in a deep voice, "Maybe you have a great aptitude in Talisman Taoism, but unfortunately you forget the most important part. If Talisman Taoism is used for practice, it can¡¯t be achieved only by feeling and imagination. Instead, it requires the most urate and intuitive method, and the method depends on nothing but skill."


    Ning Que exined, "But I really have kept it precisely synchronous enough."


    Fourth Brother sneeringly looked at him and said, "What¡¯s precise? What¡¯s synchronous? Synchronous means the same! Differences of one minute, one second, or one moment are all different from synchronization! There were so many Talisman Taoism Masters in the past and none of them were more stupid than you, but why did they still fail to develop Talisman Arrow? That¡¯s because they couldn¡¯t make it totally synchronous."


    After listening to the severe reprimand, Ning Que suddenly became calm. Since he was praised as the sessor of Divine Talisman Master by Master Yan Se and then gradually found his gift in Talisman Taoism, Ning Que naturally felt proud in his deep heart, though his facial expression still looked peaceful. Thus, he always thought that the problem of Talisman Arrow should be solved soon because he had spent enough wisdom and effort on it. He didn¡¯t realize his wrong attitude and superficial thought until Fourth Brother pointed the most crucial part out.


    Looking at Ning Que¡¯s earnest state, Fourth Brother became a little more peaceful and said gently, "Little Younger Brother, in fact, your idea about the design of Talisman Arrow is very excellent. In my view, you could make it, but you should be more careful and think more deeply about the most crucial part¨Csynchronization. If you can do it, I think perhaps we can witness a historic key breakthrough in the practice of Talisman Taoism. For the breakthrough, I hope you can keep trying."


    Ning Que sincerely said, "Thanks for your reminding, Fourth Brother."


    ...


    ...


    Early morning of the next day, Back Mountain of the Academy.


    Ning Que, obviously being awake all night, showed up in front of the iron-forge room again. For unknown reasons, he looked cheerful with high spirit, who should have been paler. His hair had turned into a messier henhouse from the previous bird nest, a proof that he had scratched his head and hair for so many times.


    His voice was slightly trembling, excited butck of confidence, "Senior Brother, you are right. It is impossible to maintain synchronization between human¡¯s psyche and body movement, so the idea of stimting Fu character after shooting arrow must be abandoned. Butter I think that is it possible to synchronously stimte Fu character by the action of shooting arrow? That is, right at that moment when the archer shoots the arrow, the Fu character on the shaft is exactly stimted by the action of shooting arrow. In such case, it totally relies on the objective coordination between body actions, irrelevant with the psyche of the archer."


    Fourth Brother goggled and asked, "The action of shooting automatically stimtes Fu character? This idea... is indeed interesting, but how could it bepleted? The Fu character will be stimted once you finish the writing, but how can you write it when you are to shoot arrow? If you write it in battlefield, how to make sure that it will synchronize with the movement of shooting arrow?"


    "It can¡¯t work by writing on myself, so it has to be done by the arrow. The Fu character on the shaft isn¡¯t finished in the beginning, but it just needs thest stroke. Thus, we can try to figure out a way to make the shaft to finish thest stroke by itself in the process of shooting the arrow."


    Ning Que, like a heresy who was about to receive a trial, nervously looked at Fourth Brother and asked, "What do you think of this idea, Senior Brother?"


    "The arrow finishes thest stroke of Fu character by itself as it leaves the bowstring?"


    Fourth Brother stared at Ning Que¡¯s eyes for a long time. Then he couldn¡¯t suppress his shock and excitement in his heart and said in a slightly-raucous voice, "Little Younger Brother, you... are a damn genius."

 Chapter 193: The Entertainer in the Princess Mansion

    Chapter 193: The Entertainer in the Princess Mansion


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Geniuses were often associated with theories because they were only responsible for offering possible solutions to a problem, but refused to be responsible for verifying the answer. Therefore, Einstein who had rtively bad mathematics scores could put forward the theory of rtivity and then continue in a daze. However, the validation of his theory had to wait until a few years when hard-pressed scientists went into the wilderness and stared at the eclipse for a long time.


    Ning Que was praised as a genius because he coulde up with ideas and wait for Senior Brothers to turn his ideas into reality without any effort on his part. Unfortunately, he needed the Talisman Arrow and, as the Talisman Master, he needed to personally participate in its creation. What was even more crucial was that as the youngest in the Academy, he didn¡¯t have the qualification nor the courage to impersonate the subject leader. Therefore, in order to turn a genius idea into a perfect technical design, he had to bear torment and continue drawing the Talisman on paper and do the most cumbersome and boring technical design work over the next few days.


    As the Natal Item of a certain someone, Sangsang had no choice but to y the crucial role in the Talisman experiment. After the passing of several springs and autumns, she finally became the little handmaiden in a wealthy household and spent happy days in peace. She didn¡¯t expect she would still need to struggle for life and drift around. Though she was somewhat dumb-witted, she could no longer endure the inexplicable and mysterious feelings. She decided to rip off the white cloth on her body and carried aundry tub to hide in the fake antique shop next door.


    Despite the loss of his most sensitive experimental tool, Ning Que still had to continue his research and development work. He stood before the desk biting the head of his brush and thinking hard about how he should improve his talisman to dramatically increase the speed of the arrows. What he found most troublesome was not knowing how to perfectly draw thest stroke of the talisman while shooting the arrow.


    His hair transformed from a bird nest into a chicken nest and finally into the grass nest that his Second Brother¡¯srge white goose formed in the water. His eyes shifted from exhaustion to excitement and back to exhaustion again, repeating until they turned into a dark mess. He felt like he was very close to finding a solution, but the answer seemed so elusive. When he reached out to explore, he only bumped into could immediately solve this problem, but felt that the answer seemed to still be floating in the clouds far away. He reached out his hand to touch and explore, only to bump into the water surface and the mirror surface. It was both painful and irritating.


    Just then, someone knocked on the shabby door of the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    Not seeing Sangsang anywhere, he shouted for her to answer the door several times. When no answer came, he btedly recalled that she had already hidden next door. He threw away the ink and brush in his hands and unhappily went to the shop front to open the door.


    A middle-aged man dressed in a short-sleeved turquoise robe stood outside the door with a respectful expression. Ning Que found the man somewhat familiar and epted the invitation the man handed over. He looked at the inscription on the invitation and finally remembered the man was the steward of the Princess Mansion.


    "What happened?" He rubbed his eyes and yawned. "Must I go?"


    The steward was startled by his reaction and said with a bitter smile, "Mr. Ning, I¡¯m not aware about the specifics, but it should be a private gathering based on Her Highness¡¯ arrangements. You¡¯d better participate."


    Ning Que was just asking. He didn¡¯t intend on showing off his fearlessness in front of royal powers.


    Ever since he stopped attending banquets in Chang¡¯an City, he hadn¡¯t socialized for some time. With him being so busy with the Talisman Arrow these days, he had even less of an incentive to answer to anyone¡¯s invitation. But this time, the other person was the most favored Princess of the Tang Empire. Besides, he hadn¡¯t seen Lee Yu for some time. It wasn¡¯t a bad idea to go and see what she wanted to say and he could improve his mood as well. Perhaps it might even help his current dilemma. So he answered, "I¡¯ll be there on time tomorrow."


    ...


    ...


    The warmth of thete summer gradually faded. From a distance, a leaf fan was still turning in the corridor, slowly ushering in breeze into the court and bringing freshness. Sangsang took Xiao Man to catch worms under several old trees. Ning Que and Lee Yu sat on the board of the court, sipping tea and idly gossiping. They made for a very rxed and pleasant scene.


    Only Ning Que¡¯s facial expression didn¡¯t match the scene. His eyebrows were knotted tightly and the tiny dimple on his left cheek became exceptionally clear as he gnashed his teeth and tightened his jaw muscles. Annoyed, he asked, "Your Highness, can I not go there?"


    "My father¡¯s written correspondence should have arrived at the Academy by this time." Gently turning her wrist to bring the tea cup near her lips, Lee Yu sipped the tea as she said with a praise, "The tea sent by Shanyin county is really good."


    He looked at her beautiful face and sighed. "Your Highness, can we just omit these vulgar salutations and figures of speech and get to the point? We¡¯re both youngsters. There¡¯s no need to test each other like those elderly people."


    Upon listening to the words of ¡¯figure of speech¡¯, she slowly tilted her thin brows and looked at him with a vague smile. But after all, she didn¡¯t use figure of speech. "If my father made the order himself, Mr. Jun Mo won¡¯t object to it. In my opinion, you have to go to the Wilderness."


    "I¡¯ve already entered the Second Floor. Why should I go and practice there?" Ning Que asked in confusion.


    Lee Yu was puzzled by his attitude and frowned. "Why don¡¯t you want to go? The Academy students will be the pirs of the imperial court in the future. Should you take them to practice in the Wilderness, they wouldn¡¯t dare disrespect you even if they don¡¯t remember your talents in the future."


    Ning Que shook his head. "The Wilderness is a very dangerous ce."


    Lee Yu looked at his eyes and said quietly, "If one stays too long in a bustling ce like Chang¡¯an, will this ambitious man be a decadent person? I don¡¯t believe such a small scene can frighten you. I¡¯m aware of your title of the wood-chopper in Shubi Lake. Are you afraid of those grasnd barbarians?"


    "It¡¯s wood-collector." Ning Que corrected the title.


    He went on to exin, "Though there haven¡¯t been any official battles between the Seven Cities Stronghold and the Grasnd Golden Pce for many years, the battlefield is no stranger to me and I¡¯m not afraid to return. But it¡¯s a matter of life and death on the battlefield. Those so-called invincible Academy students are terrible at battles. Who knows how many of them will die there? I have to be responsible for the lives of that group of children. The pressure is too great."


    Lee Yu smiled. "Don¡¯t you forget they¡¯re your ssmates. You say they are children, but do you really think you¡¯re much older? I don¡¯t know why you¡¯re now acting like an elder."


    Ning Que secretly thought that he was indeed about eight years older than them after all. Though he was far from acting as an elder, he always observed things cautiously. "The older one is, the easier it is to survive in the Wilderness battlefield."


    "But the truth is, you don¡¯t need to bear that kind of pressure."


    Lee Yu looked at him and calmly said, "The Academy is a great ce for the Tang Empire to train its talents. So you don¡¯t need to protect them like an old hen. It¡¯s a matter of life and death on the battlefield. Only those students who can return have the qualifications to be carefully cultivated by the imperial court. So just take them there. You don¡¯t need to care about their lives."


    Ning Que was kind of surprised and was quiet for a long time."Not care about their lives on the battlefield? Then why should I take them there? Can¡¯t the Military Ministry just send someone else?"


    Lee Yu didn¡¯t speak but looked at his fresh and pleasant face dotted lightly with a few freckles. She suddenly had a faint sense of regret.


    She came back from the grasndst year. She was the first bigwig to discover Ning Que¡¯s abilities in the Tang Empire and also tried to recruit him. Unfortunately, it seemed her recruiting strength was indeed not strong enough at that timepared to Ning Que¡¯s talent. In the short period of one year, thisd soldier in the City of Wei has be a sessor of the Divine Talisman Master, a Second Floor student, a celebrity in Chang¡¯an City...


    She used her slender fingers to slowly turn the teacup and gradually returned to the conversation. She smiled at Ning Que. "My father asked that you take the Academy students to the Wilderness. He doesn¡¯t value those students but took a fancy to you. He hopes you can earn some prestige for the Tang Empire and would like to see your abilities at the same time."


    Ning Que was startled. "Isn¡¯t His Majesty thinking too highly of me...?"


    "Because you have an ambition and some ideas, unlike those Senior Brothers and Sisters in the Back Mountain of the Academy. And my father values your ambition and ideas. In my Tang Empire, it¡¯s very important for youngsters to have an ambition."


    "I really don¡¯t know what ambition I have."


    "Or should I say... ideals?"


    "His Highness should be aware of my ideals. It¡¯s all some simple things."


    "But when you realize your childhood ideals, don¡¯t you have a greater ideal?"


    "For example?"


    Lee Yu looked at his pondering expression and said, "Do you want to be always practicing at the Back Mountain of the Academy?"


    Ning Que replied without thinking, "Yes."


    This problem might have confused him in the past, but it had not been a problem ever since Chen Pipi took him to the Book House in the cliff cave and he saw the schr who kept reading and writing.


    Lee Yu continued to ask, "But after gaining strength, don¡¯t you want to rely on your strength to do something you want and achieve some of your goals?"


    What came to his mind were a dpidated mansion, blood-stained stone lions, and his friend sitting in front of a wet wall. He felt his body slightly stiffening and he stayed silent for a long time so he could forget these ideas that couldn¡¯t be dered. He looked up at her and shrugged, saying indifferently, "I used to seek fame and fortune. But now I have my fortune and have be annoyed by my fame. So now I really don¡¯t know what to do in the future."


    Lee Yu watched him quietly and suddenly thought that this guy was now a student of Headmaster of Academy. Therefore, the world¡¯s fame and fortune didn¡¯t appeal to him much. She didn¡¯t know why she actually felt a sense of frustration.


    "I remember when you told Xiao Man a fairy talest winter in the wooden court we¡¯re sitting in now. The little princess in that fairy tale was proud but timid and ipetent. But the frog prince was somewhat ambitious."


    She spoke up after a long silence.


    When she first spoke, she felt something wrong and wondered why she would suddenly talk about that story. But since she had started it, she clenched her fists to calm down and continued the story. Perhaps it was the windyte summer heat or theziness of the pce maids in waving fans at the distant corridor, but she felt her cheeks bing somewhat warm.


    "If you want to do anything in the world, you should first dare to think about it. If you don¡¯t, you can never do it. And the so-called ambition, desire, or ideal still depends on your courage," she said in a slow voice.


    Lee Yu¡¯s emotions had gradually eased.


    It was very quiet in the courtyard. What could be faintly heard were the sounds ofrge leaf fans rotating in a faraway corridor, the surprised cheers of Xiao Man under the old tree, and the sound of rocks flowing into the pool between fake rocks.


    Ning Que saw the silence, gentleness, and even indulgence in her eyes and understood the meaning of her speech. He couldn¡¯t help thinking of the girl sitting beside the bonfire at the Northern Mountain Road who listened to his stories. But in a sh, he woke up and remembered she was the dignified Princess of the Tang Empire, leaving those spections on the past hovering in his mind. After a brief silence, he didn¡¯t answer the question but asked, "Is Mr. Lyu doing well recently?"


    Lee Yu didn¡¯t hear Ning Que¡¯s tentativeness and felt a sense of regret and sadness. But it was also a big relief for her. So she held an invaluable small bamboo mud pot with a dragon head in front and filled the teacup. She smiled. "Mr. Lyu refused to live in Chang¡¯an City and insisted on practicing in the Tile Top hill. A few days ago, he sent a letter saying he was in good health. Oh, he was very happy to know you¡¯ve entered the Second Floor of the Academy."


    Ning Que recalled Lyu Qingchen¡¯s selfless teachings on the journey. Back then, he was just an unknownd who couldn¡¯t even cultivate. Now he was the major training subject of the imperial court in the Tang Empire. He couldn¡¯t help feeling grateful and yearn for that time. It made his mood a lot warmer.


    "Your Highness, I¡¯m going to the Wilderness... Please take care of Sangsang for me."


    "You can count on me."


    Under the protection of the Fourth Princess of Tang Dynasty, there should be no one in Chang¡¯an City who would dare bully this little handmaiden. However, it was the first time Sangsang would leave him since she was born. Though he got such a positive answer, he was still a little worried. So he stared into Lee Yu¡¯s eyes and seriously said, "Don¡¯t allow others to bully her."


    Though questioned by Ning Que, Princess Lee Yu wasn¡¯t displeased. Instead, she was calm for she knew he was willing to let her take care of Sangsang despite showing some attitude because of his worry over his handmaiden.


    "I can assure you anyone who dares to bully Sangsang will die a painful death."


    "Your Highness, that¡¯s too cruel. Just kill the person and his entire family."


    "..."


    "Your Highness?"


    "Nothing. I have a letter here. Take it with you. I know you¡¯re not afraid of those Wilderness barbarians, but you¡¯re in a different ce after all. If something happens, you can take this letter and look for Crown Prince Chongming."


    Ning Que put the letter away in his sleeves, prepared to say words of gratitude. He suddenly raised his brows and listened to the breathing from outside the wall, wondering who dared to ignore the rules of the Princess Mansion and eavesdrop on their conversation.


    Lee Yu looked at his startled expression and turned around. She furrowed her brows. "How did youe here? Have you finished today¡¯s homework? Since when did the Imperial College allow students to leave ahead of schedule?"


    Ad dressed in bright yellow clothing walked out from behind a flower wall. He had bright eyes and graceful eyebrows but looked pale as if he hadn¡¯t seen sunshine for many days. His thin body andplexion made him look weak.


    Thed smiled. "Sister, don¡¯t be so fierce."


    Upon listening to the salutation, Ning Que knew thed¡¯s identity. He was the eldest son of the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty, the most promising sessor to the throne, Prince Li Huiyuan. He stood up and performed a bow with his hands folded in front of him.


    The young Prince raised his brows, a trace of unhappiness appearing on his pale face. He waved his hand. "Take your seat, please."


    From what the Prince saw, this man couldn¡¯t be an ordinary person to be seated opposite his sister. It was the first time this man had seen him, he ought to be kneeling or making a deep bow on the ground at least. A simple bow like that was too rude.


    While the Prince was fuming at Ning Que¡¯sck of courtesy, Lee Yu¡¯s expression turned cold and she said unhappily, "Where¡¯s your etiquette? You should be returning a salute to Mr. Ning."


    When he heard the name, Prince Li Huiyuan suddenly recalled the incident inside the imperial pce this year. He peered at Ning Que curiously and finally matched the figure in the legends with the person before him.


    Even if he knew this man was someone his father favored, he wouldn¡¯t show him any respect. But he feared his sister most in the world and quickly stood up to salute him when he saw Lee Yu¡¯s serious expression.


    Ning Que smiled gently and waved his hand to show his courteousness, yet he didn¡¯t move aside to avoid the Prince¡¯s salutation.


    Li Huiyuan noticed this from the corner of his eye and seemed rather displeased. However, as a child that grew up in the royal family, he quickly suppressed his anger and stood before Ning Que, holding his hands and speaking to him warmly.


    The Prince revealed a pathological nobleness on his pale innocent face and deliberately showed intimacy but couldn¡¯t conceal the indifference in his eyes. Being used to ignoring life and death and seeing deceit as well as dishonesty, Ning Que couldn¡¯t tolerate such a dishonest and even inferior performance. But he didn¡¯t show his unhappiness but showed his best acting and mental state. He was modest and passionate like a desert fire in the winter.


    An actor that made a living by ying different roles. With the gentle breeze and flowingke beside the corridor, Ning Que and the young Prince both performed on the same stage. This endless act they put on was an excellent performance of mutual humiliation.


    Lee Yu looked at the pair talking to each other and sensed the strangeness of it. She frowned in distress and stared at Ning Que, indicating for him to stop his act.


    The Prince suddenly appeared in the Princess Mansion and happened to meet Ning Que. Of course, Ning Que didn¡¯t believe it to be a coincidence for he knew what Lee Yu meant. But as for that thing, he wasn¡¯t qualified and unwilling to participate in it for now. Even if he wanted to, it would be a long timeter. So when he looked at Lee Yu¡¯s gaze, he smiled and no longer baited the Prince. He bowed at the two and excused himself.


    After leaving the Princess Mansion, he walked under a willow by the road and spotted a young Taoist holding a yellow paper umbre under his arm. He couldn¡¯t help feeling startled. He often visited the south gate of Haotian Temple on the other side of the imperial city recently and recognized the Taoist to be He Mingchi, a disciple of Master of Nation, Li Qingshan. He Mingchi was an extremely busy person in charge of important tasks of Imperial Center Administration. Ning Que didn¡¯t expect to see him in the Princess Mansion today, seeming as if he was waiting for someone.


    Ning Que walked over and asked curiously, "Brother Mingchi, who are you waiting for?"


    The young Taoist looked at Ning Que and smiled helplessly as he pointed in the direction of the court. "I was ordered by His Majesty to supervise the Prince¡¯s studies but he ran out of the Imperial College and I had to follow him."


    Ning Que thought that yboy Prince with a pale face really wasn¡¯t a good subject to get along with. It was a difficult job to supervise his studies. He looked at Fang Mingchi with sympathy and tried tofort him. "You can turn a blind eye to him."


    Fang Mingchi smiled bitterly and shook his head. "I was adopted by my Master and traveled in and out of the imperial pce with him since I was a child. I have be close with the Prince. Since His Majesty has given me this responsibility, I must take it seriously."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que then went under the old tree to find Sangsang, spoke with Xiaoman, and left the Princess Mansion.


    When he walked into the bustling street and alley, he watched the children ying around a well in the alley. He recalled the young Prince and rumors of the fight for the throne. He couldn¡¯t help shaking his head and sighing. "How unlucky the Princess is to have such a brother. I don¡¯t know how much more trouble she¡¯ll encounter in the future because of him."


    Sangsang asked curiously, "What¡¯s the matter with the Prince? Do you think he¡¯s also an idiot?"


    "If he¡¯s really an idiot, no one will embarrass him. However, he learned some tricks from the Princess... An idiot who tries to be smart finds trouble easily."


    Sangsang looked around and whispered, "Young master, that¡¯s a prince you¡¯re talking about."


    Ning Queughed. "Prince? Prince Long Qing? If that little Prince dares to provoke me in the future, I¡¯ll show him how hard it is to perform."


    "Young master, you¡¯re proud and arrogant quite often."


    "Two years ago, we could only participate in the distribution of taverns and gambling rights in the City of Wei. Now it seems we can participate in the assignment of the imperial throne. Why can¡¯t I be proud? Besides, there¡¯s no outsider here."


    Sangsang nced at him without speaking.


    "Just believe it. Since I entered the Second Floor of the Academy, I¡¯ve be the core disciple among them all. On the matter of throne session, the attitude of the Academy now seems to be very important. The Senior Brothers and Sisters in the Back Mountain certainly aren¡¯t interested in it. Probably I¡¯m the only one who is..."


    Ning Que said, "That¡¯s why the Princess would y this trick today. But in terms of the Prince¡¯s performance today, I suspect she¡¯ll regret it. She should¡¯ve told the little Prince in advance at least."


    Sangsang asked curiously, "Can the Academy actually y a role in such a great event like the imperial throne session? Young master, you¡¯ve be a core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy, so has your status also be high? Is the Headmaster of the Academy really so powerful?"


    Heughed self-mockingly. "You should remember I haven¡¯t seen my master until today, but I¡¯ve heard many rumors about him. Based on these people¡¯s attitudes, I can basically understand how powerful he is."


    "Young master, should we be regarded as the Princess¡¯ people?"


    "Xia Hou... should be on the Empress¡¯ side. Then I have to stand on the other side of the Empress, so that¡¯s the Princess¡¯ side. My point is that if we need to choose one party, we should choose the Princess. In fact, I¡¯ve figured this out a long ago. But everything is waiting for the right price to sell. If we want a proper price, we have to wait. And now our price is good, so we can start to sell."


    Sangsang suddenly stopped walking and looked up at his face. She said seriously, "When you mentioned the fairy tale about the Prince Frog, I also heard and understood it. Is this a good price?"


    After a moment of silence, he shook his head. "Not all toads want to eat swan."


    "Is swan not delicious?" Sangsang asked in confusion.


    Ning Que looked at her and smiled. "In the eyes of some toads, a grubby ck loach is much more delicious than a swan."


    Sangsang asked, "Young master, are you scolding me for looking ugly and ck again?"


    Ning Queughed. "It seems my little girl is finally willing to use her brains to think."


    Sangsang said earnestly, "So the more I think, the more I feel this is a very good thing. Based on what you told me when I was young, if one can marry Her Highness, he can avoid hard work for many years."


    Ning Que continued to move forward and said, "The question is how many people she has actually said those words to."


    This remark involved the most vicious spection on women. Sangsang frowned tightly and said unhappily, "Young master, you¡¯re always biased against Her Highness. She¡¯s actually a good person."


    "I don¡¯t care if she¡¯s good or not. What does it have to do with me?"


    "Just now you were talking about waiting for a good price to sell. What price will be higher than Her Highness herself?"


    "Hey, haven¡¯t you heard one only sells his acting but not himself?"

 Chapter 194: Heres the World

    Chapter 194: Here¡¯s the World


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    There was a very humble teashop behind the famous Restaurant Yi Pingxuan in the Western City of Chang¡¯an.


    There were two men sitting on a bamboo mat deep inside. The short and fat middle-aged one kept wiping off the sweat dotting his forehead. It seemed he was greatly impacted by thete summer heat, even making his Hebei ent sound somewhat dry.


    "You¡¯re a secret guard. You should always do what you¡¯re supposed to. Why not helpplete the task while you¡¯re in the Wilderness? I just want you to take a look, not investigate the case."


    The chunky man was Master Xu Chongshan, the Deputy Commander of the imperial pce bodyguards. Today, he deliberately left the pce to secretly meet Ning Que. Thetter sitting across him took out a handkerchief from his sleeves and began to wipe his sweat as well. It was clear he wasn¡¯t sweating because of the hot, stuffy summer weather but because of Xu Chongshan¡¯s words.


    "General Xia Hou... Do you have any idea what kind of important man he is? You tell me to see him, how do I see him? To see how many beards he got or how many times he goes to the toilet? Your Excellency Xu, I know this is His Majesty¡¯s order. But you should know, based on General Xia Hou¡¯s temper, he¡¯ll certainly be angry with me if he finds out I¡¯m spying on him. He¡¯ll find an unupied ce to beat me into slush and pack me into a bun to feed to the horses. Who wille and save me then?"


    "If General Xia Hou doesn¡¯t leave any evidence of your murder, the imperial pce and the Academy won¡¯t be able to help you based on the Tangws. If you can leave some evidence before you die, there won¡¯t be any problems..."


    "Haha, you know I¡¯m joking," Commander Luo added.


    Ning Que put down his handkerchief and stared at Commander Luo who was smiling in embarrassment. His joke wasn¡¯t funny at all.


    This time he was about to go to the Wilderness and was very likely to meet Xia Hou. If he had the chance, he certainly wanted to investigate the man but that was too dangerous. And he did not expect to receive this request at this moment. It seemed His Majesty still wasn¡¯t satisfied with Xia Hou. But what kind of role could he y in the process?


    When Commander Xu noticed Ning Que¡¯s silence, he thought the young man still had some resistance in his heart. So heforted him and said, "Don¡¯t worry too much. His Majesty¡¯s wishes are very simple. You only need to watch General Xia Hou¡¯s behavior and reactions and recount the details to His Majesty after you return. There¡¯s no risk involved."


    "His Majesty likes you and you¡¯re also a student of the Headmaster of Academy. Though General Xia Hou is brutal and cool, he¡¯s not a brutal wild boar in the mountains. He¡¯s not so stupid as to offend you for no reason."


    Ning Que wondered what he should do if he offended Xia Hou.


    "It¡¯s fine, right?" Xu Chongshan picked up his handkerchief and wiped his sweat again. He looked hopefully at Ning Que and said, "If there¡¯s no problem, I¡¯ll be returning to the imperial pce. If you¡¯re worried about something in Chang¡¯an City, tell me and I¡¯ll help you to solve it."


    Ning Que said, "You know I have a shop on Lin 47th Street..."


    Xu Chongshan hit his chest with gusto, looking extremely heroic. "I¡¯ll watch it for you!"


    Ning Que shook his head and smiled. "There¡¯s a little handmaiden. I¡¯d like to ask the bodyguard office to help me look after her."


    ...


    ...


    If people knew the Emperor of the Tang Empire sent a secret guard to watch the behaviors and words of the Empire General, it would certainly lead to a political turmoil. To keep it under wraps, the Emperor didn¡¯t summon Ning Que to the pce but ordered Xu Chongshan find a secret ce outside the pce to secretly pass on his confidential order.


    After receiving the order, Ning Que should have sealed this matter deeply in his heart and not tell anyone. But he never kept any secrets from Sangsang. So when he returned to Lin 47th Street, he told everything to Sangsang who was preparing to cook.


    She looked at him who stood by the window and asked, "Is it dangerous?"


    He picked up a brush and looked through the window."The main thing is to observe a man¡¯s speech and behavior, and then inquire about him. Xu Chongshan is right. There¡¯s no danger at all. If it¡¯s truly dangerous, I wouldn¡¯t do it."


    She lowered her head and continued to wash the rice. "So you¡¯ve agreed?"


    Ning Que lowered his head to continue drawing the Talisman. "As His Majesty¡¯s secret guard and a major training object among the young generation of the Tang Empire, I always emerge victorious if my country uses me... Ah, but not all the time. I must recognize my life can¡¯t be smooth sailing for too long. You should know why I didn¡¯t refuse."


    It was an opportunity he couldn¡¯t miss. He had been waiting for 14 years for an opportunity to approach Xia Hou. Now he could even observe him under His Majesty¡¯s secret order and look for a chance for revenge.


    Sangsang said nothing and rubbed the rice hard inside the basin with her little hands. The water gradually became rice paste after the manyyers of rice shell she rubbed out of rice. The rice got thinner and vaguer.


    "If you wash it a few more times, can we still see the rice in the steam pot?"


    Ning Que put his brush onto an inkstone and watched the picture outside the window. After a moment of silence, he said after a moment of silence, "Don¡¯t worry. I can¡¯t evenpete with a finger of Xia Hou. I¡¯m not so stupid to get revenge immediately."


    Sangsang stood up and wiped her hands on her apron. She stared at Ning Que who stood by the window and said, "Young master, since you can¡¯t take me there, you must control yourself when you see Xia Hou."


    "Last year when I participated in the Academy entry exam, I saw the Prince Li Peiyan. Didn¡¯t I control myself?" He shook his head. "We¡¯re hunters who grew up on Min Mountain. Our patience in waiting for our prey is the most powerful weapon we have."


    "What things do you need to bring with you?"


    "As usual, three things."


    He would soon bring the Academy students to the Wilderness at the frontier fortress and he might see Xia Hou there. He felt a faint sense of excitement as well as nervousness. Thinking of the potential dangers he might encounter, he was anxious to create the Talisman Arrow as soon as possible.


    Sangsang rolled the bottoms of her pants up and sat down by a well after dinner, cutting feathers and grinding arrow tips for him. However, he was absorbed on the white paper on his desk, drawing intricate lines of Talisman.


    ...


    ...


    Not every ce of the Wilderness was deste. Before the winter wind came, most of its grounds were covered with felt-like green grass. Only when it came to the end of the summer in the Central ins, would people feel a sense of slightly cold autumn in the Wilderness. The grass would then be covered by frost. They would turn yellow and white, showing a trace of depression.


    The hooves of a horse stomped heavily on the frost-covered grass taller than itspanions, stepping into the mud. Apanied by a slight neighing and heavy breathing, more and more horses appeared in the meadow, for the elite cavalries of the Left-Tent pce were escorting the tribe southward.


    Further into the southern areas, more than a thousand grasnd cavalries waved machetes and shouted strange cries. They prated the northern frontier fortress of Yan and instantly upied a touring vige, encircling a caravan.


    Along cracked gaps cut by the machetes was the stter of fresh blood, the flowing summer rice harvested by the vigers, and the scattering of precious tea and salt bags.


    The Yan vigers and caravan escorts copsed in a pool of blood, their bodies falling heavily to the ground like heavy cereal bags and caravan cargo. They instantly lost their lives.


    The grasnd cavalries shouted with excitement and, after killing everyone, began awkwardly retying the carriage and moving all the food and supplies they could find in their carriage. They then made their way back north.


    Summer was over and autumn was here. Winter was also near. The Left-Tent pce tribes that have lost their fertile pasture in the north couldn¡¯t support so many cattle and sheep. If they didn¡¯t hurry and grab enough food before the arrival of the first snow, they would usher in their extinction.


    The grasnd barbarians didn¡¯t once consider whether the vige they have massacred and the caravans should go through such a tragic experience.


    In fact, people in the Wilderness were aware of the importance of caravans. However, now that they were facing current panic up front. Even the most intelligent pce military advisers would not force them to think about long-term problems.


    The northern frontier fortresses of the Yan Kingdom were attacked by the cavalries of the grasnd barbarians. Countless caravans were plundered and countless viges snatched away. The news was quickly spread across the Yan Kingdom by the Wilderness¡¯ winds and then brought to the imperial pce.


    Crown Prince Chongming, who had just returned to his country, calmly put on his armor under the indifferent gaze of his father and led 3,000 soldiers to the northern border.


    When the city gate opened and the ritual music began, the people of the Yan Kingdom watching the bustling scene showed no excitement. They looked on indifferently as the Crown Prince¡¯s carriage drove by.


    The Left-Tent pce in the Wilderness was unable to restrain all the tribes. The barbarian cavalries had gone mad. The frontier fortress troops of the Yan Kingdom and several thousand guard soldiers who only knew how to eat, drink, and y couldn¡¯t stop the grasnd cavalries that had wind-like horses and speedy arrows.


    Fortunately, the West-Hill Divine Pce had issued an edict and all of the Central ins states were ready to provide support. However, the dastardly and horrifying Tang Empire would also send its cavalries. What a humiliating but helpless choice for the Yan Emperor and the Yans.


    Here was Capital Cheng, the capital of a weak country.


    ...


    ...


    In the Back Mountain of the Academy, the light of dawn gradually became brighter as the fog dissipated.


    Fourth Brother and Sixth Brother sat cross-legged beside a water wheel. After their meditation session, they nced at each other and began repeating the discussion they have had for several days now. In between them was a magical sand table, on which theplicated Talisman lines moved forward slowly before forming a wide range of possibilities.


    In the cksmith house close to a clean river, water vapor turned denser and denser under the water wheel. In a stove with fierce fires, some silver-like or iron-like metals were slowly bing soft and melting.


    Seventh Sister who has just gotten up stood near the upper steam, looking at the silent and worried expressions of the two. After a moment of silence, she threw the wet towel in her hands at a stone and turned to walk to the faraway waterfall at the cliff square.


    ...


    ...


    There was a mountain nearly 35,000 meters away from the capital of the South Jin Kingdom.


    Unlike the majestic mountain of the Academy in the southern suburbs of Chang¡¯an that was mostly covered in clouds and fogs all day, this mountain was calmly exposed to clear sunshine. Its every cliff and rock was clearly visible.


    The overall shape of the mountain was also distinct. Its three cliffs were rtively smooth, reflecting the light from the Firmament. The cliffs then gathered at the peak, making it look like a sword.


    The world¡¯s most powerful Sage of Sword, Liu Bai¡¯s school was at the foot of this mountain. It was a ck and white dichromatic old-style ancient garret.


    Dozens of young cultivators kneeled and respectfully made a bow toward the ancient garret.


    Behind them were swords tightly tied with grass ropes. Unlike ordinary Sword Master¡¯s flying swords, these were rtively long andrge. They were more like swords used by martial warriors and each was quietly hidden within their sheaths.


    Young swordsmen respectfully kneeled on the ground. The ancient pavilion was still and quiet. After an unnoticed period of time, they heard a soft but sharp sword-like sound. This sound was so sharp as if it could pierce the firm cliff walls behind the Sword Garret and all tangible things in the world.


    "You shameful men, don¡¯t evere back."


    The dozens of young swordsmen kneeling on the floor stiffened and facial expressions were frozen. They appeared nervous but also excited. They stood up and left after giving a positive reply.


    Dozens of fine horses were waiting outside, neighing.


    Young swordsmen rode the horses and held onto the reins, leaving their sect and heading north.


    Here was the Sword Garret, a ce full of aces.


    ...


    ...


    Turbid waves rolled upon the Yellow River. How many waves came to annihtion in an instant? Ferryboatmen held bamboo poles by the river bank, respectfully kneeling on both sides of the wooden road.


    The Sage of Sword, Liu Bai, had justprehended the sword spirit beside the Yellow River back then.


    Today, the new generation of cultivators of the Great River Kingdom was about to cross this Yellow River and head north.


    ...


    ...


    Under a white tower by the sea.


    A wrinkled woman dressed in strange clothes made of innumerable pieces of cloth looked indifferently at the younger men in front. She said with a hoarse and strange voice, "If you go north of the Yan Kingdom, you need to cross the territory of the Tang Empire. The imperial court has issued a document so that you can cross it anyway. I believe the Tangs will not cause you trouble."


    A young sadhu looked at the woman in surprise. "Master Quni, are you noting with us?"


    A trace of vicious hatred shed in the old woman¡¯s eyes as she angrily said, "In the Tang Empire, an evil ce with corrupted etiquettes and no belief, it¡¯ll make me feel sick if my shoe is soiled with even a granule of its dust."


    The eldest sister of the Emperor of the Yuelun Kingdom had cultivated Buddhism with her hair reserved from the earliest days of her life. She had a profound cultivation state and an extremely high status in the Buddhism sect. These young cultivators about to go to the Northern Yan under the edict of West-Hill could all be considered her disciples.


    She looked at those young men who were respectfully waiting for her order. She said proudly and indifferently, "I walked from the north, directly across Min Mountain. I¡¯d like to see if a Tang can stop me."


    Here was the Yuelun Kingdom, a ce shining with Buddhism light.


    ...


    ...


    The hooves of horses stepped on fertile fields as if they could squeeze oil out of thend.


    Hundreds of cavaliers moved forward underneath the warm sunshine. They wore pure ck armor painted with intricate golden patterns. In the bright light, the golden patterns twinkled across the surface of the ck armor, revealing a sense of solemn beauty and exerting a silent pressure.


    Several thousand devout Haotian followers who were preparing to kneel and kowtow at the foot of the mountain listened to these thunder-like hoof sounds. They quickly retreated beneath the trees by the roadside. When they saw the faces of the cavaliers, they knelt and kowtowed. They looked surprised and awe-struck.


    The West-Hill¡¯s divine guard cavalry was known as the world¡¯s most elite cavalry. Even if those followers who were devoutly kowtowing on the roadside saw just one of them, they would think it as a blessing from their ancestors. Today, they actually saw hundreds of them. They found it difficult to suppress their excitement. Some of the women even fainted out of excitement when they saw the solemn appearance of the sacred cavalries.


    Some wealthy and well-informed believers had guessed the reason behind the dispatch of these sacred cavalries. But they still couldn¡¯t figure out why the Divine Hall would attach such importance to those rioting grasnd barbarians.


    Among the several hundred sacred cavalries were several red-robed Haotian Taoism priests. In the middle of those priests was a young divine guard cavalry general with an extraordinarily handsome, celestial-like appearance. He walked in the sunshine and his armor seemed ted with ayer of Haotian divine light, perfect and invible as the son of God.


    Here was the West-Hill, a ce favored by Haotian.


    ...


    ...


    The Academy¡¯s Back Mountain was immersed in the deep night.


    Ning Que put his Talisman drawings on a table and sat down by the corner in exhaustion. He watched the shaking fire for a moment and fell asleep before he knew it. These days he was tired to the extreme and had overused his brain.


    "In such a short time, he actually came up with a solution. That day I praised Younger Brother as a Talisman Taoism genius and he really didn¡¯t disappoint me." Fourth Brother looked at the lines on the paper and nced at the sleeping Ning Que in the corner. "I don¡¯t know what gave him such a strong impetus."


    Sixth Brother calcted the number of metals needed for the Talisman Arrow material. He replied,"I can feel he¡¯s in a hurry... as if he¡¯s worried. I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s about going to the Wilderness."


    Fourth Brother said, "The Wilderness... the West-Hill Divine Pce worries about the resurrection of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. But Younger Brother belongs to the Academy after all. Why worry? Hadn¡¯t Youngest Uncle kill enough Devil¡¯s Doctrine survivors back then?"


    Sixth Brother said honestly, "Senior Brother, I really don¡¯t understand the logic behind this sentence. Youngest Uncle has killed many Devil¡¯s Doctrine survivors back then, but wouldn¡¯t Younger Brother be more worried if he actually met someone from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine?"


    Fourth Brother looked at him and asked, "Do you think the minister of the Ministry of Rites of the Tang Empire would worry about being killed by the Yans should he go to the Yan Kingdom?"


    Sixth Brother looked up and said after a moment of thought, "Of course not. If the Ministry of Rites minister visits Capital Cheng and even suffers a slight harm, I¡¯m afraid the Yan Kingdom will face extinction."


    "That¡¯s the same for Ning Que."


    Fourth Brother said calmly, "If the people of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine dare harm Younger Brother, won¡¯t they be afraid of facing extinction or being killed by Youngest Uncle again?"


    "But Youngest Uncle is dead."


    "Yes, but our teacher isn¡¯t. Besides, Second Brother had always wanted a chance to learn from Youngest Uncle."


    "Then what on earth is Younger Brother worried about?"


    Fourth Brother looked at Ning Que who was still frowning despite being in a deep sleep. After a moment of silence, he said, "I don¡¯t know, but he¡¯s Younger Brother. Of course, we as his Senior Brothers have to find ways to reduce his worries."


    "What can we do?"


    "First, we should make the Talisman Arrows for him."


    "Oh."


    When it came to the end of the dialogue, continuous heavy cksmithing sounds reverberated in the room. Sixth Brother moved his arm so quickly that his arm looked like a residual shadow. The sounds of iron being hit stretched one by one like a never-ending mine. However, even such a loud ruckus didn¡¯t wake up the fatigued Ning Que.


    Fourth Brother held the sand table and endlessly copied the Talisman designed by Ning Que. Based on the notes Ning Que made, he tried a variety of Talisman lines matches and even began trying the array tactics tobine the lines.


    The Talisman Arrow required special materials. Though much of its weight were reduced thanks to Sixth Brother¡¯s exquisite empty-tube design, it was still much heavier than ordinary feather arrows. That meant they couldn¡¯t use ordinary hardwood bows. The first thing they must do was to make a special bow before making the Talisman Arrow.


    Under the continuous sounds of cksmithing and the pouring of molten iron into the mud molds, the singr rigid bow partposed of mixed stainless-steels gradually came to shape. Most importantly, the part began to emanate a faint luster under Sixth Brother¡¯s careful drawing.


    Fourth Brother hadpletely mastered Ning Que¡¯s design on Talisman lines and walked over to guide the designing of that part. He looked at Sixth Brother whose fingers seemed clumsy but was holding the silver tray like it was an embroidery thread. He furrowed his brows and asked," What kind of scorper are you going to use? The material for the Talisman Arrow is very hard and requires high precision. Ordinary scorpers arepletely useless."


    Chuckling, Sixth Brother grabbed a small box from his sleeves and retrieved a transparent metal pellet, two-thirds of which was wrapped in mysterious metal slices. "I¡¯ll use high-hardness mixed sliver as its tray and diamond as the scorper."


    "Diamonds don¡¯t take hits well."


    "So I wrapped ayer of iron beneath it. Of course, it¡¯s not an ordinary iron piece but the same type of steel I leftst time when Professor Huang and we worked together to build General Xia Hou¡¯s armor."


    "What about the sharpness?"


    "I¡¯ve ground it for three full days. The cutting surface is very good. Look."


    Sixth Brother raised the diamond against the roaring fire. Bright yellow mes spread through theplex surfaces and turned into numerous beautiful lights, just like stars in the night sky.


    Next, the two men who were used to silence decided to eliminate their Younger Brother¡¯s fears. They started with the hardest part of this job, the archetypal build of the Talisman Arrow. And it was in this section that they encountered an unsolvable problem.


    "There¡¯s no problem with the proportions of the four metals, but there are too many impurities in them. I chose the best materials from the Military Ministry, but the material itself has impurities. It¡¯s hard to purify them under the furnace¡¯s temperature."


    Sixth Brother looked at the hot metal and scratched his head. He reluctantly said, "I¡¯ve never tried this method before. It requires a high temperature to forcefully merge these four metals. I don¡¯t know how to do it."


    Just then, the door was pushed open.


    Seventh Sister walked inside and looked at the sleeping Ning Que. Sheughed and turned to them. "I brought two helpers here. I don¡¯t know if you have any use for them."


    Fourth Brother looked at the two behind her and greeted them with a bow with his hands folded in front. Seemingly to have recalled something, he looked at the sleeping Ning Que with a smile and said, "I finally understand why those Talisman Master ancestors failed to make the Talisman Arrow. Besides Younger Brother, who else has the privilege of having two Grand Cultivator in the Knowing Destiny State be his cksmiths?"


    Second Brother came over without any facial expression and grabbed a heavy hammer.


    Chen Pipi smiled and came over, slowly closing his eyes in front of the stove fire.


    The fire suddenly became extremely bright before swiftly turning a faint blue color.


    Second Brother supported the hat on his head and swung the hammer with one hand, pounding at the burning metal.


    Bam!


    When the hammer was hit the anvil, it emanated a strong jet of electric-like energy.


    Besides Chen Pipi, the rest were all shaken and fell to the ground.


    A huge percussion thunder-like sound could be heard in the entire Back Mountain of the Academy.


    It caused waves in the clean stream.


    Fish swam uneasily.


    Inside the old library, a woman copying the Hairpin-style Small Regr Script upstairs looked up toward the east window and kept silent.


    Two chess addicts hugged a pine tree.


    Two music addicts tightly held the vertical bamboo flute and zither in their arms.


    The flower addict protected the flowers before her.


    The calligraphic addict continued copying her calligraphy.


    Here was the Academy, the world¡¯s only Academy.

 Chapter 195: Primordial Thirteen Arrows

    Chapter 195: Primordial Thirteen Arrows


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The thunderous howl from the hammer awoke Ning Que, but the next moment, it knocked him out again. Buried in his dream, Ning Que could hear thunder, rain andughter.


    After a while, he woke up and rubbed his eyes. He found himself leaning on the wall of the smithy the ze in the furnace was put out by dirt, leaving the room no longer warm. No one else was in the room.


    He rubbed his sore shoulders, rose on his foot and came to the window. A wooden box was lying on the table next to the window. Ning Que was surprised because there was no such a thing yesterday.


    The box was oblong, with a length of an arm. Ning Que opened the box and saw about six strangely shaped metal pieces. These metal things were dark on the surface, but when he had a good look, he found countless seams on the surface. These things were woven in countless thin metal lines. Its great tenacity was clear even at one look.


    Ning Que stroked the surface of the metal. His eyebrows rose when he felt the rough but strong feeling from his fingertip.


    Due to their strange shapes, the usage of these metal was not clear. The three tiny pieces of metal were the most strange, which were even too light to hit people, let alone the tiny-teeny silver tray on them, in which there was a shiny diamond stuck to them. All this made them not like a weapon at all, but like...


    "Are those wedding rings?"


    Ning Que muttered, with his starry eyes full of happiness. He already knew what they are used for. He started to assemble them without anyone guiding him how to do it because his hands were very familiar with the bow and arrow and very flexible.


    Clinks from the metal being put together sounded one after the other. Only after a short time, a dark metal bow was made. Ning Que held it in his left hand, his right hand drawing the eight specially-made lines out and putting them on the bow.


    It was finished. Ning Que put the bow on the table and looked at the dark arrow holder beside the box. He breathed deeply and pulled out an arrow from it.


    This was an arrow made of alloy.The shaft was long and thin. Despite the fact that is was actually hollow, it was still very heavy.


    Ning Que restrained his excitement and held the arrow with both hands. His left hand slowly moved towards the arrow bunch at its end and felt the special touch from it.


    He was very careful and didn¡¯t miss the strong, unbreakable feeling from the shaft. He looked at it carefully too. By the morning light from the window, he saw the scalelike lines on the shaft. No one knew how many times it took the hammer to hit it and how manyyers it had to make such a wonderful shaft.


    Between those tiny lines, there were some even deeper and more delicate lines woven together. However, the emptiness at the bottom made you feel that as though was one line missing. If only the emptiness had been filled, then these lines would have been more alive.


    Holding the heavy bow, Ning Que walked out of the smithy. He walked toward the bright sunshine and took a deep breath to refresh himself.


    The sound of snoring wafted from the grasnds between the house and Jing Lake. Ning Que looked ahead and found Senior Brothers sleeping under the trees beside theke with a few wine bottles scattered around. Among them, Chen Pipi was the deepest sleeper, he was even drooling. Seventh Sister was leaning on the tree and sleeping. In her hand, was a wine bottle shaking around. It was as if she was fishing. On the other side of the tree, Second Brother, who was the most elegant in dressing and always kept his crown straight, gave no attention to his tilted crown.


    Ning Que looked at his Senior Siblings in silence, he could guess what they had donest night just for him. His chest became warmer and warmer. He was so impressed that he didn¡¯t know what to say.


    Second Brother woke up and straightened his crown. He signed to Ning Que to follow him to theke, worried that those fast-asleep guys would be disturbed.


    Standing beside theke, the two were bathed in the sunshine. After a moment of silence, Second Brother said seriously, "Remember, on the journey to the Wilderness, you shall not dishonor our Academy. You are a famous person now, remember to mind your behavior. "


    Ning Que said with a smile, "I am not a famous person, I am just an average person."


    Second Brother stared at him, and said with approval, "I like your words, you don¡¯t care about fame, even when you are surrounded by it, you can see yourself. If our Senior Brother heard your words, he would see you as his bosom friend."


    The Senior Brother was the Eldest Brother of the Academy.


    Ning Que was in a daze, he felt a little shy somehow.


    "Thanks a lot, Second Brother. I know you all have worked really hard for me. If it wasn¡¯t you, I would need Professor Huang He to help me."


    "I am no expert of Talisman Taoism. But your master, Yan Se, is the leading character in this area. If even he can¡¯t help, then turning to professor will be in vain."


    "Speaking of that, I don¡¯t even know where these professors in our Academy live."


    "Professors are all guests of our Academy. Most of them are foreigners. They live in seclusion in different ces in the mountain."


    "Why have I never met any professor in the mountain?


    At this time, Second Brother said something nonsensical, "Because the mountain is big."


    Then he turned around and looked at the dark bow on Ning Que. "Do you want to give it a shot?"


    Ning Que nodded his head.


    Eleven Senior Siblings gathered around Ning Que. Some stopped sleeping, some stopped picking up flowers, pine trees or flutes. Even Third Sister, Yu Lian, who seldom met people, was also present. They were talking and discussing in excitement. Some were joking that they weren¡¯t interested in this at all, and the reason why they were here was just that the noise had woke them up.


    Ning Que put the long arrow on the steel bow. He took a deep breath, lifted the bow and aimed at the sky as if he wanted to shoot down the sun under the horizon at the other side of the grasnds.


    A squeaking sound was heard. The bow, which looked so strong, bent a little, the strings were tense and buried in the middle finger and ring finger of his right hand. Because of the significant meaning of this shot, he chose to use Three Finger Controlling the String way, which he was not very familiar with.


    As he was doing it, the discussing sound stopped suddenly. Senior Siblings of the Second floor of the Academy was staring at his finger excitedly and nervously.


    Theke was as clear as a mirror, so much that you could even see the fish swimming in it.


    A proud goose was sitting at the other side of theke and cleaning his chest.


    The tense string rubbed against his fingertip at a fast speed and shot ahead at a velocity that couldn¡¯t be seen by the naked eye when Ning Que rxed his arm.


    The sharp arrow bunch moved forward from the bow where his hand was to a point where the diamond rubbed against the shaft as if a pen wrote on paper and left a line on it.


    Thest line it left filled the empty space in the shaft and it was, thest stroke of the Talisman Taoism.


    The end of the arrow left the bow and a string of white liquid came out either because it was moving too fast or the Talisman Taoism was activated.


    Then...the arrow disappeared!


    No one could see clearly the track of the arrow and its position in the sky. Only Second Brother squinted and looked into the sky.


    Until then a st of wind wafted over making Ning Que¡¯s clothing flutter in the wind. The group felt cold suddenly. Dew appeared on Ning Que¡¯s left hand, in which the bow was held.


    The fish in theke swam slowly.


    The white goose finished cleaning himself and was ready to sing.


    After a while, people were still trying to find the track of the arrow. It was until then that they saw an empty hole appearing in the middle of a fluff of cloud, through which blue sky could be seen!


    Senior Forth Brother said in a quivering sound, "Is that because of the shot?"


    Senior Sixth Brother replied in a quivering sound too, "That is because of the shot."


    Senior Seventh Sister said in surprise, "Is that really because of the shot?"


    Senior Second Brother said matter-of-factly, "That is because of the shoot."


    The expression on everyone¡¯s face changed and a sigh of joy was heard from the group as they looked at the hole in the sky. Senior Sister Yu Lian furrowed brows loosened and a smile shed across her face. The idea that this arrow could fly so high and could be so powerful didn¡¯t even cross her mind.


    At that time, Chen Pipi rubbed his chubby face, looked at the sky with difficulty and asked a very crucial question, "Where is the arrow?"


    That was actually a very important question. But at that moment, when everyone just witnessed the first real Talisman Arrow invented, no one paid any attention to his question. Ninth Brother said in amazement, "How can we not have music at such a happy moment?"


    Tenth Brother nodded his head, put his fingers on the strings of his Chinese zither and said, "Arrows can¡¯t exist without strings."


    Eleventh Brother lifted the heavy hammer at his feet, and said in a silly manner, "That is not right. The arrow was made using my hammer by Second Brother."


    Seventh Sister said happily with a needle pinched in her fingers, "I also contributed a little."


    Ninth Brother put his flute to his lips and yed a joyful tune. When everybody started to join him singing, a squeal came from the sky and covered the music from the flute. It was as if a celestial being from heaven was ying the flute.


    Those of the Second floor of the Academy were normal human beings, but they were the cleverest ones. They knew what caused the sound right after the sound was heard. With a changed expression, everyone ran away at their fastest speed from Ning Que like a flock of animals looking for a safe shelter.


    While Ning Que himself had no idea what was going to happen. His mind was full of excitement. In a daze, he stared at the sky even without a blink.


    Second Brother and Chen Pipi nked him and looked at the sky with different expressions.


    The sharp squeal came from the remote sky to theke then a ck dot appeared in Ning Que¡¯s sight. It was the arrow! It was moving ao fast as if it could stab through his skull in the next second!


    Second Brother waved his sleeve making it flutter like a g. It caught the ck shadow that was about tond towards the ground. He tugged at it and changed the direction of the Talisman arrow which was moving at a terrifying speed and force.


    His sleeve made a hissing sound and tore up.


    A boom was heard, and half of the pavilion copsed.


    Ning Que looked very pale. He realized now what had happened. Looking at the dustyke, he muttered, "Jesus."


    Seventh Sister ran back wearing a pot on her head. Looking at the pavilion, she also said, "Jesus."


    Second Brother frowned and nced at her.


    ...


    ...


    The group gathered at thekeside again and started discussing in excitement


    Fourth Brother looked at theke and shed a satisfied smile. He walked through the wooden bridge, and when he came back, he was holding the arrow and a small box in his hand.


    "It is such a genius idea, using a diamond to finish thest stroke of the Talisman. But it is a pity that one arrow can only be used once. Althoughst night, together with Sixth Brother, we made a repairing tool we haven¡¯t tried out yet. If you need to repair the arrows in the Wilderness, you can give it a shot. "


    He handed the box to Ning Que and said seriously, "These Talisman Arrows are made of very valuable material and it took such trouble to make them. There are only 13 of them in the holder, so, remember to save them for the crucial times."


    Ning Que said, "Don¡¯t worry, I will. I won¡¯t use them up at one time."


    "You are not even able to shoot all these arrows at one go, " Second Brother said when he was washing his hands in theke. He stood up and looked around, "At your level, three arrows are the limit. Your body can¡¯t bear more arrows. "


    Ning Que looked at the Talisman Arrow in his hand, frowned, "Then what should I do?"


    Fourth Brother looked at the Talisman Arrow, said, "What a creative new design. It is not too much to say it starts a new era in weapon designing. Unfortunately, it can¡¯t be known and used by the whole world."


    "Why not?"


    "Because the Talisman written by Ning Que can only be used in coordination with his Psyche Power. That means to use the Talisman Arrows, the archer must be a good Talisman Master. There are few people in this world who can write such a Talisman, and even fewer of them are good archers. It is not that easy to use an iron bow."


    It was only upon Ninth Brother bringing it up when Ning Que started to feel the sore and pain on his right shoulder. The muscle there might have been injured because of the move he used before.


    Fourth Brother said, "Brother, you designed this arrow. Why don¡¯t you give it a name?"


    Ning Que looked at him and said, "Please name it, Fourth Brother."


    Fourth Brother said, "OK, then. Since you put your favorite silver in it, shall we call it Silver Arrow?"


    Ning Que¡¯s face changed when he heard the name.


    Second Brother said, expressionlessly, "Let¡¯s change it."


    Chen Pipi pointed to the say, and asked, "What about Breaking the Cloud Arrow?"


    First, an arrow broke through the cloud and then a big war would break out. Ning Que thought about this and shook his head.


    Second Brother thought for a while and said, "The Talisman Arrow works on the Qi of Heaven and Earth. In this world, there are only 13 of them. coincidentally, Our youngest Brother, Ning Que is the 13th student. So...let¡¯s call the arrows Primordial Thirteen Arrows.

 Chapter 196: Dawn

    Chapter 196: Dawn


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Alcohol and tobo were goodpanions and so were men and women. Therefore, knife and arrow were naturally goodpanions too. Ning Que joyfully smiled at the heavy Talisman Arrow he was holding, and Sixth Brother walked out of the iron-forging house with a long bag in his hand. When opening the bag, he found three podaos in it.


    These three knives were the ones that Ning Que sent to the Back Mountain the previous days. After re-hammered and forged by Sixth Brother, the knives were longer and slenderer than their former shapes, with the ck long hilt even more firm. The dim de reflected the morning light, isionally revealing some simple and clear lines of talisman, which looked delicate yet enormously murdurous.


    Second Brother said, "West-Hill Divine Pce has issued the edict, so there will be many young superiors from different countries sent to the Wilderness this year. I think the Judicial Department will assign persons too, so you probably will meet Prince Longqing again in the North of Yan Kingdom."


    The word "Prince Long Qing" made Ning Que tense in his mind, and subconsciously he felt a strong feeling to flee away. Although he won Prince Long Qing during that mountaineering, actually there was a big distance between the two in terms of the state of cultivation. If Prince Long Qing intended to take revenge of the previous two humiliations, he could definitely send Ning Que to hell.


    "Tomorrow I won¡¯t see you off, and I just remind you."


    Second Brother continued, "On the Wilderness, you are the representative of the students of the Academy, and Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters of the Second floor. You are the disciple of the Headmaster of Academy. Therefore, no matter in what cases, you are not allowed to bring shame to the Academy. Revtion Institute of West-Hill, Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom and White Tower Temple of Yuelun Kingdom, our Academy students have frequent contacts with guys from those ces and have never been defeated in either ying chess or ying music. So you are not allowed to be defeated either."


    "No matter in what situation?"


    "That¡¯s right."


    "What if I couldn¡¯t defeat my opponent?"


    "At least you shouldn¡¯t lose your face."


    Ning Que rubbed his head and asked in confusion, "Second Brother, how can I save my face if I am defeated?"


    The tip of Second Brother¡¯s brows slightly tilted and he scolded with dissatisfaction, "If you can¡¯t win them, then strive to win. You shouldn¡¯t give up if you really can¡¯t win. Try all means to escape and fight with the opponent again after years of cultivation. How can you always be defeated?"


    ...


    ...


    Following the emperor¡¯s proposal, the practice region of the Academy students was arranged in the Wilderness in the North of Yan Kingdom which was in tension contemporarily, and tomorrow he had to start off. When Ning Que walked out of the dense mist in the Back Mountain of the Academy, he heard the enjoining from those Lecturers echoing in the surrounding study rooms of the pavement, and outside the warehouse, the stewards were constantly carrying supplies that would be needed during their journey, and the steward of the Military Ministry was counting the weapons that would be assigned.


    Stepping out of the stone gate of the Academy, he found tens of steeds scattered on the green meadow under the morning light. Those steeds from stud-farm of the western city were quietly eating grass, some asionally knocked into the flowering shrubs in the depth of the meadow, knocking down a ground of autumn petals.


    Looking at those war-horses that were about to start their journey, Ning Que smiled and said sorry to Old Duan, the old carter who had waited for him for the whole night outside the Academy. Then he got on the carriage toe back to Chang¡¯an City.


    Just at the moment, something came to his mind. He jumped off the horse carriage with knitted brows and borrowed a firm bag back from the warehouse of the Academy, into which he inserted over ten heavy stones he had picked up along the road. Then he weighed the bag by hand and after confirming that it was heavy enough, he went to the edge of the meadow and holding the rail, whistled to the depth of the meadow.


    The not-so-loud whistle made the scattered war-horses alert. They raised their head, among which a strongest yellow horse waved his head and pushed out its peers, galloping friskly and unrestrictedly towards him.


    He fumbled the big yellow horse, and across the rail tied the bag to the knot beside the saddle.


    The seemingly inconspicuous bag was actually quite heavy for the stones filling it. The big yellow horse slightly bent its front legs and then quickly stood up. There was only a small problem in the bnce of its strong body, as well as its rapid gasp.


    Ning Que untied the bag and shook his head at the big yellow horse, figuring that the iron bow and thirteen arrows as well as three Podaos were already heavy enough, which, if added by his own weight, would fail the horse. Even if it could bear the load, it still couldn¡¯tst too long. What¡¯s more, when they entered the Wilderness, they had to pursue and attack others, under which situation the horse couldn¡¯t bear it long at all.


    As a solider for a long time at the frontier fortress of the City of Wei, he was clearer than other students in the Academy about the importance of the ride in the Wilderness. Since he had entered the world of cultivation, he was even more aware that except those Grand Cultivators in Knowing Destiny State, one had to rely on horses to keep the required speed.


    After pondering it over for a short time, he suddenly thought of the scene he experiencedst year. So he threw the stones out of the bag and jumped into the meadow to find the steward of the stud-farm of the Military Ministry. He took out his waist tag joker of Imperial Center Administration and whispered something to him.


    After returning to Chang¡¯an City, he didn¡¯t go back to Lin 47th Street immediately, instead, he went to the Taoist Temple of South School under the foot of the imperial pce. As a disciple, he had to report to his master before his travel faraway. What was more, his master might give him some other gifts.


    Master Yan Se knew earlier than Ning Que that he would be sent to the Wilderness. After days of consideration, he felt the Emperor¡¯s arrangement of this disciple was actually of some benefit. So his enragement gradually disappeared.


    Unlike Second Brother, he didn¡¯t warn Ning Que again and again that he shouldn¡¯t bring shame to his sect, but seriously said, "The barbarians in the grasnd are not scareful, however, those Deste Men back to the South and theirpanions are most dangerous. Generally speaking, few will dare to do harm to you in this world because of your rtion with Headmaster of Academy, the Emperor and me. But remember, after all it isn¡¯t the Tang Empire."


    "Master, please feel relieved." Ning Queughed and said.


    To the people of Central ins, the remote Wilderness often stood for mystery and danger. However, as for Ning Que who took chopping Horse Gangs in the Wilderness as his part-time job after he left Min Mountain, he was most familiar with the Wilderness. No matter what strong enemies he might encounter there, he believed at least he could save his life.


    Without this confidence, he would never ept the requirement of the imperial court.


    At the thought of those powerful ones such as the Papal Cavalrymen sent by the Divine Hall and the Judicial Department hidden in the dark this time, Master Yan Se¡¯s disordered brows slightly knitted. He severely looked at Ning Que and said, "Those enemies you encountered in the Wilderness previously are mostly ordinary men. Even the most cruel Horse Gang can¡¯t frighten you. But remember, this time the enemies you may confront are probably cultivators, or even remaining forces of Devil¡¯s Doctrine hidden in the Deste Man. Anyway, be careful."


    Ning Que withdrew his smile and earnestly replied, "I see."


    And then Master Yan Se finished hisst lecture before autumn, during which he exined the essence of Talisman Taoism-subtleties of characters. After the lecture, he handed a silk bag to Ning Que, exining that there were some tricks in the silk bag, which he could open at critical moments.


    The ck horse carriage was slowly driving ahead along the straight street. With the quivering of the gaps between the stone tes under the wheels, Ning Que couldn¡¯t help smiling at the silk bag in his hand. As was expected, he got a farewell gift.


    He couldn¡¯t figure out what was in the silk bag. Thinking of some famous episodes in stories and novels, he didn¡¯t intend to open it in case that it would lose its effect. If so, would he return to the Taoism Temple of South School to beg for a new one from Master Yan Se barefacedly? Ok, he would probably did that for his character, but it would be too troublesome.


    It was already dark at nightfall when he returned to Old Brush Pen Shop. The setting sun gleamed from the other side of Lin 47th Street and exactly flushed half of the street. He greeted Boss Wu of the neighbouring antique store, nced at the empty gray wall behind him and entered his shop.


    The rice was steamed in the pot, producing white mist which slowly coiled up along the tree in the courtyard and drifted to the aglow sky. Then it vanished in the sky before it drifted even higher, leaving no trace.


    Sangsang raised her face to see the mist disappearing in the sky, narrowing her willow-leaf-like eyes charmingly.


    Looking at the small figure against the tree, Ning Que said, "I¡¯m back."


    Sangsang turned back and nced at him, answering, "Young master, you are back."


    The dreary and dull dialogue was repeated again. During the years, when Ning Que returned to their little yard in the City of Wei, he used to have such a dialogue with this little girl in the yard or the house, and there was no exception in the Lin 47th Street of Chang¡¯an City. The only difference was, the word "young master" was added in between this time.


    The farewell dinner was not creative either. Although the bowl of amber-colored chicken soup indicated something solemn, it had nothing new worth mentioning.


    Since there was nothing new, Ning Que went to the bed and began to sleep after washing his feet and turning off the light.


    He didn¡¯t order anything to the little girl lying on the opposite side of the bed. Although this would be the first time for him to part from Sangsang for such a long time, he believed that the little girl could take good care of herself, because during the years, it was her who were looking after both of them. So she might lead a more carefree life without her fastidious and troublesome young master.


    It waste summer in Chang¡¯an City. The night was not that annoyingly hot and the chirping of cicadas was vanishing. The starlight shone on the tranquil leaves and reflected into the house through the window, painting the wall and the bed into their favorite silver.


    A burst of rustling was heard, and then Sangsang climbed from the opposite side towards him in her thin clothes, leaving irregr tracks on the silver quilt with her thin knees before shey in the arms of Ning Que.


    Ning Que opened his eyes and said, "I¡¯ve told you many times, you¡¯re a big girl now."


    Sangsang answered with "Hum" then nestled against him,ying her head against his chest, after which she refused to move again .


    This night before his departure was the same as those nights in the past years. No difference was found.


    ...


    ...


    The morning before his departure had nothing special either. Ning Que had a bowl of hot and sour noodle slice soup bought by Sangsang, brushed his teeth with the tooth set handed over by Sangsang, washed his face with the towel twisted dry by Sangsang and wore his autumn uniform of the Academy under the service of Sangsang. After all those were ready, he lifted his heavy luggage, pushed the door open and walked out.


    Under the bright morning light, he waved goodbye to the little girl at the door of their store and then slowly moved away with the horse carriage.


    The ck horse carriage stopped at the edge of the vast meadow at the gate of the Academy and then returned by the way they came. Today, Old Duan, the carter, needn¡¯t wait for Ning Que to go back to the city, because Ning Que wouldn¡¯t go back this time.


    The meadow had already been surrounded by hubbub of voice, where excited and nervous Academy students were saying goodbye to their parents. Parents seemed to have countless words to say and numerous articles to add to the luggage they had gotten prepared for their children. However, the young students¡¯ mind had already drifted to the remote north, as if they had seen their promising prospect to make a big achievement.


    Of course, not all the students were excitedly waiting for their oning journey, and one exception was Chu Youxian, who were surrounded by his wealthy father in the Eastern City together with his father¡¯s concubines in the far distance and whose face was filled withint and terror.


    Ning Que smiled to his direction and then turned to Situ Yn by his side, who looked bright and brave with her magenta archery robe, curiously asking, "It¡¯s so strange that nobodye to see you off."


    Situ Yn answered with a smile, "The so-called practice is actually an expedition. Father just encouraged me to fight bravely against enemies and didn¡¯t n to see me off. Anyway, nobody see you off either."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "I have no parents or rtives, whoe to see me off."


    Seeing the two people walking out of the Academy, Situ Yn said, "It seems there are personsing to see you off."


    The two walked out of the Academy were Yu Lian, Third Sister and Chen Pipi. Those students and their parents on the meadow knew the status of the two from the instructors, so they hastened to give way to them politely.


    A burst of autumn breeze softly fumbled the hair on the forehead of thedy, making it difficult to find out the real age of this petite-figured woman and bestowing the charming female professor an even younger look.


    After Ning Que entered the Second floor of the Academy, he seldom had the chance to talk privately with Third Sister, so he felt surprised when finding that she came to see him off, saying, "Many thanks, Senior Sister."


    Yu Lian handed over a small article to him and smilingly said, "I have nothing special to give you but just a few words. Remember, no matter in what situation, if you follow your own heart, you can easily go through it."


    "Thanks for your suggestion, Senior Sister."


    Ning Que turned to Chen Pipi. Looking at this friend who had given him enormous help in his course of cultivation, he asked smilingly after a moment of silence, "What do you n to give me?"


    A gust of morning wind visited the meadow and blew out crinkles on Chen Pipi¡¯s face, who then earnestly replied, "Ie to see... off."


    Ning Que shook his head with sighs and said, "You are more shameless now."


    Chen Pipi sighed, "Learn from you."


    Ning Que smilingly retorted, "Learn from each other."


    Chen Pipiughed too, and then seriously asked, "Anything I can do for you?"


    Ning Que intended to say he had arranged all the things, but on the second thought, he said, "You know."


    "Know what?"


    "I have a little handmaiden."


    ...


    ...


    As a young soldier from a border town, he first defeated Mr. Xie in climbing up the library, and then kept silent when neglected by the Academy, whoter neglected the Academy. During the mountaineering, he beat Prince Long Qing and finally became the only one entering the Second floor in this grade. This time he would lead all his ssmates to the Wilderness in the North of Yan Kingdom to practice. Undoubtedly now Ning Que had be a legend in the eyes of ordinary students in the Academy.


    His dialogue with Situ Yn had already attracted quite a lot of eyesights, then more focuses were rested on him following professor Yu Lian and Chen Pipi, which was aplicated mixture of respect, admire, or jealousy yet no hint of hate because they didn¡¯t dare to.


    When Ning Que lifted up the pile of heavy-loaded luggage from his feet to the direction of the meadow, the decade of eyesight focusing silently on him revealed emotions of shock and doubt. What kind of horse could bear so much luggage which seemed to be extremely heavy? What made him to walk to the meadow?


    Three podaos, separated iron bow and thirteen Talisman Arrow in the quiver, his familiar boxwood bow and ordinary arrows, all these were necessities on the journey, which even further included a folded small tent and the big ck umbre tightly wrapped in coarse cloth.


    The luggage was gotten well prepared by Sangsangst night which couldn¡¯t be condensed to be smaller. However, there were so many things packed in it that it looked as magnificent as a small hill.


    Ning Que walked to the rail of the meadow with his heavy luggage and raised his eyes to search for his target.


    On the other side of the rail, those military horses left out by the other Academy students were silently eating grass or taking rest with their heads lowered on the meadow, hard to see whether they were discouraged or not. Yet on the more vast grass faraway, a ck figure was running back and forth, making thunder of gallops like a ck lightning.


    Only when the ck figure slowed down did he find out it was an extremely strong ck steed. It constantly chased, bit at or knocked into the peers aside, frightening others escape to other directions. However, it had no n to give up and neighed proudly at times, making it all the more arrogant and mean.


    Ning Que smiled at the big ck horse and inserted his figure in between his lips to make a whistle.


    The whistling curled up above the meadow.


    The big ck horse which was unbridledly and proudly bullying its peers suddenly stiffened at the whistle and couldn¡¯t move an inch as if its four hoofs were nailed into the soft meadow. It looked like a wooden horse painted into ck leaving only a pair of dark eyeballs quickly turning around. One could obviously see the fear in its eyes.


    It difficultly turned the frozen neck back to the figure against the rail in the far distance, finally rting the worst memory in its mind to the guy.


    Then another whistling was heard, as if it was urging the horse.


    The big ck horse difficultly raised its hoofs and galloped to the rail with its head painfully lowered. Each step ahead was so reluctant and unwilling, behaving like a female star who was about to marry to a notorious wealthy family and unsure about her future.


    It slowly paced to the rail and looked at Ning Que on the other side of the rail, slightly waving the head and meanwhile ridiculously turned up its thick lips as if it was ying up to Ning Que to show its absolute obedience.


    It had been over one year since the Academy entry exam, yet the big ck horse was still as bad-tempered as before. However, in face of Ning Que, it still had no courage to show its bad temper.


    Yet when seeing the hill-sized luggage at the foot of Ning Que, it neighed out of terror and prepared to turn back to flee away regardless of its instinctive terror.


    Ning Que stared at it and said, "Just as usual."


    The big ck horse stopped.


    Ning Que continued, "If you don¡¯t listen to me, I will kill you."


    The big ck horse turned back discouragedly.


    Then Ning Que hanged his hill-sized luggage on its saddle.


    ...


    ...


    At the turn of summer and autumn in the fourteenth year of Tianqi era, the Academy initiated the practice of this grade.


    The leader of the group was the one that was even not seen by the Headmaster and Eldest Brother and could be called as the weakest disciple of Second floor of the Academy.


    In the backyard of the Old Brush Pen Shop, Sangsang stared nkly at the chuckling old hen, thinking to herself, "I should have killed you yesterday to let you eat more. What if he felt hungry on the road?"


    On the suburban road of Chang¡¯an City, Ning Que looked at the picturesque folk houses along the road, figuring it was not known for many days he couldn¡¯t drink the chicken soup cooked by her. Then he began to miss her soon after he left the city.


    The empire in the morning was covered by faint light.


    The gallops of horse, and the quivering of indigo robes

 Chapter 197: Mr.Thirteen from the Military camp

    Chapter 197: Mr.Thirteen from the Military camp


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In the 14th year of Tianqi era of Tang, after wandering in the extreme coldness for thousands of years, the Deste Tribe finally returned south to conquer therge piece of grasnd from the hands of Left-Tent pce. This directly caused the pce cavalry to harass and attack the southern part of Central ins. In order to manage the unprecedented crisis, the West-Hill Divine Pce announced an edict to gather all believers of Haotian Taoism and allies to assist Yan Kingdom in fighting against the barbarians.


    At the same time, Tang Empire would send an army from the West Road to fight along with Yan Kingdom and assist Yan soldiers in all ways.


    When the relief troop arrived, the border of the cavalry from the Left-Tent pce seemed more tame, especially when the vanguard of Tang relief troop came to the wilderness located at the northern part of Yan via the east of Min Mountain. Chanyu from the Left-Tent pce then strengthened his supervision he had for each tribe. There was no sight of any barbarian riding horses in the wild as the winter wind howled loudly.


    The reason why barbarian cavalries were tough to deal with was due to the wide grasnd which they owned behind them. As long as they sensed danger, they would hide themselves in the tall grasses so there was no way one could chase after them. Unless the rulers of every country were as ambitious and courageous as Taizu (Founder of the Tang Dynasty) in the past, there would be no way for them to remove this threatpletely.


    Hence, when the barbarian cavalries softened down their attacks toward Yan territory and Left-Tent pce sent their messengers over, the army at the northern part of Central ins in Yan territory stopped proceeding upwards. Instead, they chose to camp at that area and focused on defending their frontier fortress, thus calming the situation in that area.


    As for the ten thousand over soldiers that were stationed outside of Yan territory, they had called themselves as the Central ins National Allied Forces. In fact, other than the young cultivators from South Jin Kingdom, it was basically made up of Yan Kingdom soldiers and Tang relief troops for Yan Kingdom.


    By relief troops for Yan Kingdom, it was referring to the elite troop led by General Xia Hou, which had conquered the West Road of the Empire. This heartless and powerful army had managed to consecutively conquered the 11 cities within Yan Kingdom 10 years ago, leaving a very painful memory for the Yanmoners. Hence, aspared to the barbarian cavalries from the grasnd, these relief troops from Tang were much scarier and hateful.


    Due to the contrast between the strong hatred feelings and the weak military strength, all the soldiers in Yan Kingdom were very cautious towards the Tang relief troops in the west. Though on the surface they were being kind by sending meat and staples over as a form of respect, in reality, the Yan army kept its distance away from Tang troops, with each staying on the east and the west regions of the Northern Yan Border. They did not bother one another but were wary of each other¡¯s actions.


    Those young cultivators that came due to the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s edict were naturally on Yan Kingdom¡¯s side, whereas those practical students from Chang¡¯an Academy were obviously under Tang Military camp.


    By the end of autumn, the temperature in the north of the wilderness started to drop till one could see his own breath and the grass started to turn pale yellow.


    Outside the Military camp at frontier fortress located somewhere in Northern Yan, there was a meadow. On the meadow, there were a few bleak trees, where one could easily see through them to view the clear wide sky and scenery at the backdrop. From there, one could see something burning as ck smoke were churned out from the wilderness at the far end, and faint moaning sounds were heard from the injured soldiers lying on the horse carriage.


    Now that the situation at the frontier fortress was quietened down, there was a possibility that a peace talk might be held. However, deep within the wilderness, small battles between the Tang cavalries and the grasnd cavalries were still going on. Every now and then, bodies and injured men were sent back.


    Ning Que sat by the meadow where he gazed in the north-west direction, as he slowly touched the small te with his hands that were ced on his knees. The material of the te was strange. It was neither made of gold, jade, stone nor wood, but it was very solid. The te was given by Senior Sister Yu Lian before he left the Academy to start on his journey. At that time, he did not take much notice of it. It was only half way through his journey that he recalled it and took out to touch it. This was to satisfy his curiosity towards the purpose of this te, as well as to prevent himself from missing Chang¡¯an too much.


    Viewing down from the firmament in north-west direction, there was a faint ck line, though it was not obvious. However, he had been there and he knew how majestic those mountain ranges were. Suddenly, he felt speechless as he realized how boundless the firmament and the wilderness were.


    That faint ck line was the majestic-looking Min Mountain ranges that separated the northern region of the maind into two. Both Sangsang and him had spent their young days in Min Mountain trying to survive through scraps. It was only 10 years ago that they left there from the west cliff and came across Zhuo Er, whose homnd had been destroyed. Though these happened long time ago, the memories were still vivid in his mind.


    Since he had been there in the past, he remembered that up in the further north, between the Min Mountain ranges, there was an opening formed by the Mother Nature. With the Min Mountain ranges stretching miles across the maind that split the northern part of the wilderness into two, it had also separated Tang and Yan Kingdom. If the troops did not wish to go round the northern part of the wilderness, they would need to pass through that opening.


    Such important military ground was naturally in the hands of the Tang Empire. The elite troops from the Tang North Road was sent to camp at the ground, not for the purpose of protecting it nor to threaten either the Left-Tent pce from the eastern part of the grasnd or Yan Kingdom. What truly worried the Tang Empire was the strongest Golden pce in the wilderness, a ce that Princess Lee Yu was married to.


    The military camp in City of Wei which Ning Que had lived in for many years was one of the seven city military camps. The seven city military camps belonged to the most unconspicuous frontier fortress of the elite troops in North Road. Looking at it in the north-west direction now, Ning Que felt as though he could see the City of Wei behind at Min Mountain, a ce both Sangsang and him truly called home. This somewhat made him recall the past memories and as he started to miss the warmth provided by that city.


    He wondered how his old friends were doing at the City of Wei, whether General Ma was feeling better and whether had they receive the cash notes which he have instructed the horse carriage to send over in spring? If they knew that he have managed to lead a better life in the city of Chang¡¯an, how much wine would they drink to rejoice for him? Also, when should Sangsang and him return to visit them?


    "I¡¯ve been on standby here for more than a month, yet all we did was to sent cavalries out to investigate the situation. When can we do some real battles? It will be winter soon and if we choose to enter the wilderness then, the soldiers are going to suffer even more."


    A young officer wearing a polished armor sat beside Ning Que. He stared at the broad wilderness in front of him and the injured soldiers on the horse carriage, as he frowned and grumbled angrily, "I seriously don¡¯t understand what the people at the General¡¯s Mansion is thinking. Heard that General Xia Hou is still at his house in Tuyang City and has not even entered Yan Kingdom. This is ridiculous."


    Ning Que took a nce at him and smiled before saying, "Why would they need to use a butcher¡¯s knife to ughter a chicken? To defeat Left-Tent pce¡¯s cavalries, why would General Xia Hou do it by himself? By sending half of the West Road troop, the imperial court is already leaving some respect for the Left-Tent. The reason why General Xia Hou stays in Tuyang City instead ofing to the frontier fortress himself is because he knew that there will not be any battle. Since there¡¯s no need to infiltrate the wilderness, what¡¯s the point of himing?"


    This young officer was Chang Zhengming, a student of the Academy. With his outstanding results in riding and archery skills, he was trained by the Military Ministry and had served under Yulin Royal Guards. When he was asked to be in the front line for the relief troops and was sent to the most dangerous North troops, he had no opinions. In fact, he was so excited about the arrangement as he yearned to lead the cavalries to infiltrate the wilderness, just like how his ancestors had did it to help the Empire and made a name for themselves. He had never thought that he would be on standby for more than a month, and there was no intention of attacking at all.


    He was already very disappointed and upset by the situation. Upon hearing what Ning Que had said, he rebutted, "There were so much rackets in the Central ins. The Divine Hall sent out the edict and the Empire sent out relief troops. Just the expenses used to feed those soldiers¡¯ and horses¡¯ mouths could have been arge sum. How can there be no battles after spending so much money and effort to gather everyone here?"


    Ning Que smiled and replied, "Look. Do you think there¡¯ll be a battle?"


    Chang Zhengming pointed at the horse carriage below the meadow andmented, "Small battles are going on continuously. I don¡¯t think they are not fighting. There is already a tension between the two parties, so I believe they are just unsure when to spark off arge-scale battle."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "The small battles will continue because they are still negotiating with the Left-Tent pce. You gonna understand what¡¯s the final goal of gathering over 200 thousand soldiers at the southern side of the wilderness. Once you get it, you¡¯ll know why arge-scale battle is impossible."


    "Why is that so?" Chang Zhengming frowned as he questioned.


    Ning Que asked, "Any idea why Left-Tent pce wanna keep attacking the border?"


    Without thinking much, Chang Zhengming answered, "Because the barbarians are cruel and greedy."


    Ning Que replied sacrastically, "Nonsense...everyone is greedy in this world."


    Chang Zhengming hesitated and said, "Then is it because the Desolute Men are moving south?"


    Ning Que looked at the young officer and exined, "The Left-Tent pce¡¯s only enemy is the Deste Man Tribe behind them. The purpose of the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s edict is also to warn the Deste Men that moving south may result in the revival of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. As for Tang Empire...the Deste Man was defeated by us that time, so obviously, Tang got to be wary of their revenge should they revive again. So all in all, the one that everyone is worry of are those Deste Man warriors far away.


    The Deste Man had left the wilderness thousands of years ago. To those people in the Central ins, they are legends that were long forgotten. On the way to the frontier fortress, the Academy summarized and recalled what had happened for them, thus letting them understand the history between the two. For themoners in the Central ins as well as them, this tribe had remained as a mystery.


    "But I¡¯ve heard that the Deste Man tribe is only left with 100 thousand people. Even if all of them decided to fight for their tribe, it¡¯ll not cause a threat to the Central ins. On the other hand, should the Left-Tent pce sent all their cavalries, they will be like locust swarm attacking south..."


    "In you eyes, the strong Left-Tent pce, whose grasnd was being snatched over forcefully by the Deste Man, was being chased to the south and was forced to go over the line which we Tangs had drawn. This was something that can be aplished with only a 100 thousand of those Deste Men, who are the born-warriors. Now, why aren¡¯t you afraid of them since we have given them sufficient time in the North to build up their foundation and grow stronger? Why both West-Hill Divine Pce and imperial court are not nervous as well?"


    Ning Que smiled and answered, " Do not forget, with adequate food and drinks, it¡¯s easy to give birth and build families."


    Chang Zhengming kept silent for a long while before questioning again, "Then what should we do?"


    Ning Que stared at the distant ck smoke in the wilderness and thought for a while before he said, "Looking at the situation right now, I suppose West-Hill Divine Pce and imperial court have the same thinking, which is to force the Left-Tent pce Chanyu to have a battle with the Deste Man Tribe. We are in charge of providing him with weapons and food, they are in charge of fighting the war."


    Chang Zhengming was confused and asked, "They lost to the Deste Man and was forced to move south. Why would the Left-Tent pce be so dumb to return to battle against them again?"


    "And that¡¯s why we are here...The Divine Hall and imperial court are clear of their decision when they gave Chanyu the right to choose. Either he joins them in the battle, or he fight with the Deste Men with their support. For the former, he would definitely die, but for thetter, he might still have a chance to survive. After all, there¡¯s a difference between ¡¯definitely¡¯ and ¡¯might¡¯."


    Chang Zhengming was stunned, for he never thought that things would be soplicated. He sighed as hemented, "This is a tough decision indeed."


    Ning Que patted on his shoulder and added, "Chanyu thought so too."


    Just then, numerous cavalries from the West Road troops appeared behind the meadow. The captain who was leading the troops looked at Ning Que with a worry face. It seemed like he wish to approach him yet he dare not.


    Chang Zhengming gazed at the nervous-looking cavalries below the meadow and recognized them as the General¡¯s Mansion¡¯s direct cavalries at once. He was slightly taken aback and subconsciously took a nce at Ning Que, who was beside him.


    The Tang captain below the meadow looked up at Ning Que and said with distress, "Mr.Thirteen, we¡¯re too close to the battle ground and it¡¯s really dangerous. Shall we return to the military camp?"


    "Mr.Thirteen?" Chang Zhengming stared at Ning Que and asked questioningly.


    Ning Que nced at the nervous -looking cavalries below the meadow as he sighed reluctantly, patted off the dust from his buttock and stood up. He then exined to Chang Zhengming, "They don¡¯t know my real identity, only know that I am ranked 13."


    Chang Zhengming followed and stood up.


    "I¡¯m the lead for the Academy. Though I¡¯m not responsible for your life and death, but I would still need to be concerned about what you guys are up to."


    Ning Que stared at him and said, "Today, I¡¯m just here to understand more about your situation. But since I¡¯m being rushed by someone, I gonna take my leave first. I¡¯ll head over to the Blue Water Battalion tomorrow. Situ Yn and Wang Ying are there."


    "Take care then." Chang Zhengming added with a serious note.


    "I¡¯m just an ambassador going round to do checking and going round to eat, drink and spread my name. What¡¯s there to take care of?"


    Ning Que self-mocked before he waved his hand to gesture that there was no need to send him off. He then patted the dust from his buttock and went down the meadow.


    When he reached the bottom of the meadow, he looked at the captain who had been with him for the whole month, and the nervous-looking soldiers who were looking around, afraid that the grasnd cavalry could attack them any moment. He said reluctantly,


    "We¡¯re still within our Tang Military camp, why are u guys so nervous? Are all of you going to follow me everyday?"


    The captain replied with a stern tone, "This is an order from the top. We must ensure your safety."


    Upon recalling the freedom yet boring life at the frontier fortress for the past one month, Ning Que could not help but shook his head and remarked, "I am just an average practial student, yet I am surrounded by over ten elite cavalries everyday. How can I ept this? I am not General Xia Hou, I should not have such luxury."


    The captain remained polite and respectful as he exined, "Mr.Thirteen, though we do not know your real identity, but the order from the General¡¯s Mansion is clear. Your safety is much more important than the General¡¯s safety."


    This was indeed a truthful answer.


    Not many soldiers from the West Road knew about Ning Que¡¯s true identity. The reason why the General¡¯s Mansion was so concerned over his safety was also not because General Xia Hou knew about his identity as a secret guard and understood that he was on the order of the Emperor to spy on them, so he purposely distant him from his army. It was only for one simple reason.


    There were over ten students from the Academy that were sent to the front line for practice. It was the Tang rule that these students must undergo real battles and fight in order to be trained up to standard. Thus, from the officials in the pce, to the generals in the frontier fortress, all of them would only treat these youngsters as average soldiers. However, Ning Que was not an average Academy student, he was a student from the Second floor of the Academy.


    For all these years, no one from the Second floor of the Academy joined the troops for practice, except for Ning Que. As the core disciple of the Headmaster of Academy, if he were to get into trouble in the front line, or even if he were to just suffer from a small cut, everyone would be in deep trouble.


    General Xia Hou might be spared from his Majesty, but wouldn¡¯t have the courage to face with the Headmaster of Academy¡¯s disappointment in him.


    As such, from Chang¡¯an to the frontier fortress at the wildness near the north of Yan Kingdom, Ning Que was not as free as he used to be in the field riding on the horse, instead, he was escorted by the West Road troops like an important person.


    The Military camp was carefully taking care of his needs and ensuring his safety, and whether it¡¯s wine or meat, they would do their best to satisfy all his wants...except that they would never allow him to be near any danger. Hence, other than going around the frontier fortress to every military camp and showering his concerns to the Academy students like Chang Zhengming, he had nothing to do.


    Looking at the cavalries that treated him in an attitude of respect, Ning Que couldn¡¯t help but sighed again and put his finger in his mouth to make a whistle. In the next moment, a big ck horse came galloping from behind the meadow. Though there was a heap of luggage on its back, it was still able to gallop at a fast speed and its mouth was busily chewing. Though no one was sure what it was chewing that made it so happy since the grasses here on the meadow were all covered with frost.

 Chapter 198: Dark Blue As the Waist (I)

    Chapter 198: Dark Blue As the Waist (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In the night, it was windless around the border camp. So the red fire mes on a pyre could gently shake. Dozens of the Tang Empire¡¯s border army elites dispersed around or fell a sound sleep or vigntly stood guard. Only Ning Que and that captain sat next to the bonfire.


    During the daytime, the captain called Ning Que as Mr. Thirteen, as if not knowing Ning Que¡¯s true identity. But at this time beside the warm bonfire, he had already changed the appetion in a soft voice. "Your Excellency, we¡¯re really going to Dongsheng Stockaded Vige tomorrow? It¡¯s too close to the Yans. There may be some troubles there."


    Ning Que took a branch to fiddle with the sweet potatoes in the bonfire and looked up at him upon listening to these words. He could not help shaking his head and looked at the army elites around who did not pay attention to himself before saying, "I¡¯ve been at the frontier fortress for over one month and never got into any trouble. In my eyes, this is really troublesome."


    He looked at the captain¡¯s seemingly dull and honest face before saying with a sigh, "Don¡¯t you think our luck is too bad? There is only one secret guard in Tuyang City, you. And only you were sent out to follow me. I don¡¯t know who to ask when I want to ask the situation of Tuyang City."


    The captain said with a bitter smile, "When I knew I¡¯d be the one taking a personal protection for Your Excellency, I also feel helpless."


    "Could it be that General¡¯s Mansion knew your identity as a secret guard and was too embarrassed to deal with you? So they simply drove you away from Tuyang City and ordered you to follow me around... or did they even find out my identity?"


    The captain shook his head and said, "Please rest assured, Your Excellency. They should not know my identity. As for Your Excellency, I think neither the army adviser nor the camp couldn¡¯t guess you¡¯re actually his Majesty¡¯s secret guard."


    Ning Que pulled two roasted sweet potatoes out of the bonfire and gave one of them to the captain. Then he slowly torn the skin of another sweet potato with the tips of his fingers and lowered his head eating the white hot pulp with steam. He vaguely said, "It¡¯s great they did not find out our identities. I don¡¯t want to do anything under someone¡¯s secret watch."


    The captain picked up the cooked sweet potatoes that had rolled to the bottom of his feet, watching Ning Que¡¯s face under the shining mes, and did not know what to say.


    As for Mr. Thirteen beside, his feelings wereplicated. Other soldiers might not yet know who he was, but as a secret guard he certainly knew that Ning Que was a core disciple of the Headmaster of Academy. Why such a noble bigwig came to the frontier fortress? What made him more puzzled was why Ning Que came here even if it was so troublesome.


    This was a deserted wilderness where battlefield white bones were hidden in long grasses. If General Xia Hou was really enraged, he wouldn¡¯t care whether one was a student of the Second floor of the Academy. He would kill and throw Ning Que to the depth of grasnd. Who knew how he died? Even the Headmaster of Academy could not judge it.


    A faint noise came from afar, and the cavalryman in charge of night safety stood up and walked to the periphery. The captain nced there and changed the appetion for a reason of security. He whispered, "Mr. Thirteen, what kind of thing do youe to check this time? If you let me know, I can make relevant arrangements."


    "I was ordered toe here not for some investigation but to have a look for his Majesty."


    Ning Que threw the sweet potato that was almost bitten off into the bonfire, wiping the cuffs on his face with ends of his sleeves. He said, "But in terms of current situation, there is no way to see it."


    "You have a special identity. General¡¯s Mansion is worried about you and doesn¡¯t want you to get in any trouble. Of course, they hope you¡¯d better to be far from them. If you want to see... someone in General¡¯s Mansion, you can¡¯t make it without being in Tuyang City."


    The captain hesitated for a short moment before directly mentioning Tuyang City. He was well aware that if a bigwig as Mr. Thirteen was secretly ordered by his Majesty toe to the frontier fortress, the so-called inspection tour for the Emperor, of course, could only aim at the general. He just dare not directly say the name of General Xia Hou.


    The Academy students started from Chang¡¯an City and went out of the border to the frontier fortress of northern Yan Kingdom. When they passed by Tuyang City in the trip, an assistant of General Xia Hou was responsible for the reception on behalf of General¡¯s Mansion. Therefore, Ning Que had never seen General Xia Hou.


    At this time Ning Que heard the words of "Tuyang City" and thought of the great general famous for ruthlessness and tyranny in Tuyang City. After a brief moment of silence, he said with a smile, "I¡¯ll always go afterwards."


    ...


    ...


    On the second day, Ning Que and the dozens of elite troops of Tang who had been protecting him hit the road again and marched eastward along the simple frontier defense line of the northern border of Yan Kingdom. At noon, they arrived at the easternmost point of the western battleline that Tang army was responsible for. When they looked across a willownd, they could clearly see blue mountains and that yellow city not far from the mountains.


    More than a dozen army officers waited for their arrival outside Dongsheng Stockaded Vige. The general of Dongsheng Stockaded Vige did not know who was Mr. Thirteen. However, from the document of Tuyang City General¡¯s Mansion and those subordinate officers¡¯ excited expressions, he guessed Mr. Thirteen should be a bigwig from Chang¡¯an City and had some rtionship with the Academy.


    Ning Que looked at the soldiers outside the stockaded vige and smiled. Then he jumped down from the big ck horse¡¯s body and talked to the general first with a few salutations. And then he walked to the right until he stood in front of someone and said with a smile, "Have you been used to staying here?"


    This officer in front of him was a girl who was dressed in arrow clothes and was covered with the dust of the Wilderness. She looked at Ning Que as she said smilingly, "Although I don¡¯t feel asfortable as you do, I¡¯ve been used to it."


    Ning Que said with a smile, "Even if not, you have to get used to it. I told you before, the real battlefield was different with what you guys had imagined in Chang¡¯an City."


    Then he noticed that Linchuan Wang Ying also stood among the officers. The frontier sandstorm had blown away much shyness of this fifteen-year-oldd, who seemed to be a lot taller.


    He watched these Academy students who had better spirits here than in Chang¡¯an in less than one month when they came to the frontier. He said with a praise, "I¡¯m relieved to know you seem to be very ustomed to the life here."


    The general of Dongsheng Stockaded Vige walked behind Ning Que and became a little unhappy when seeing Ning Que did not pay attention to himself. He thought that even if Ning Que was a bigwig from Chang¡¯an City, Ning Que did not have any qualification to keep a high profile since now they were in the barracks.


    However, when he heard this dialogue, he immediately understood that Mr. Thirteen was really a powerful bigwig--Anyone who dared to speak to General Yunhui¡¯s daughter like this and dared to keep a high profile to the Academy students was a real bigwig.


    The Academy students¡¯ training goal in the future was to be imperial court officials, who had no rtionship with the military system. But the Tang Empire set up the country by force. So frontier practice was an integral part of the training program.


    Dongsheng Stockaded Vige was in the easternmost Tang military defense line and was close to some tribe in Left-Tent pce, and was also near to the Yan army as well as young aiding experts from Central ins. So it withstood double pressures and could be said to be the most difficult ce for the Yan-aiding troops.


    For a thousand years, the Academy¡¯s practice principle was where there was the most difficult environment, there were the Academy students. So in this yellow city stationed by 3000 soldiers, there was thergest number of Academy students. In addition to riding troops, there were eleven Academy students in total.


    On the journey from Chang¡¯an to the frontier fortress of northern Yan, Ning Que and the Academy students stayed together day and night and became very familiar with each other. Besides, those who participated in the practice were all Tang students and those disputes in the past have long disappeared. After more than a month, the two sides met again and naturally showed a good and lively enthusiasm.


    Only when young people experienced a real battle, a bloody fire, life and death, would they be quickly mature. It was also because of maturity, their enthusiasm for Ning Que was inevitably mixed with some admiration and sense of distance. After all, Ning Que was a student of the Second floor of the Academy, whose status was far above theirs.


    At the dark blueke, Situ Yn took out her handkerchief and made it wet, wiping the dust on her forehead. She looked back at silent Ning Que and asked, "Not used to being escorted imposingly?"


    Ning Que went to thekeside, watching the shadow of ten-thousand-year wood in theke, and then said with a smile, "It has always been the goal of such people like me to be escorted imposingly and respected. Since you grew up in General¡¯s Mansion of Chang¡¯an City and was famous for thedy army¡¯s dignity. How can you understand the mentality of ourmon people."


    Situ Yn stood up and handed her handkerchief to him. Then she said, "But I saw you smiled reluctantly before."


    Ning Que wiped his face and said, "In the past these students ignored me, andter made peace with me on the journey. Now they talk to me so respectably. I can¡¯t adapt to so many contrasts."


    "So you want to go alone to theke with me?"


    "Yes."


    "The army is a ce most emphasizing on ss. Military orders cannot be disobeyed. As long as it is a superior¡¯s order, no matter whether the military order is unreasonable or you think this will make you die, you must ride a horse and rush forward."


    Situ Yn looked at him and said, "When they left the Academy and came to the front line participating in several battles and were beaten hard by the generals for several times, they would naturally understand that strength matters most in the world after all."


    "Speaking of fighting and strength."


    Ning Que looked at her and said with a smile, "When I first met you, I thought you were nothing more than a rebellious girl who relied on the family. I¡¯ve never met the legendary women soldiers before and really did not think they could be superb. But I never expected you took the initiative to go to Dongsheng Stockaded Vige and did such a great job here."


    After all, those young men were selected from the different prefectures of the Tang Empire. Once they were used to the military camp¡¯s strict rules and brutal fightings, those Academy students in the practice soon began to show their abilities. Although they were only low-level officers, they did a great job in the parts that they were separately responsible for.


    Situ Yn was born in a warrior family and dared to bear the responsibility, whose performance was particrly outstanding. Within less than a month to Dongsheng Stockaded Vige, she had led the riding troop into the Wilderness for scouting six times, including two encounters with the pce riding troop. She beheaded more than ten enemies. Her military service has been reported to Tuyang City. She was waiting to be awarded and promoted soon.


    "Left-Tent pce doesn¡¯t have the courage to fully start a war. Those riding troops are not pce elites at all, just a small tribal¡¯s cavalries. Just for a good military record, so it was written like this."


    Situ Yn had a heroic spirit, without the slightest arrogance. She said, "It¡¯s nothing to kill some tribal cavalries. If I really encounter with pce cavalries, I¡¯m not sure about winning but only strive to kill more.


    Ning Que rubbed his somewhat stiff wrist. It was nearly two years since he had left City of Wei. His de had not been dyed with grasnd cavalries¡¯ fresh blood for two years. Upon listening to Situ¡¯s calm but very passionate words, he could not help missing those war time when he rode a horse around Shubi Lake and held a knife to cut enemies.


    "In fact, I have been very curious what kind of person on earth you are."


    Situ Yn turned around at theke, gently tilting her brows and very interestedly looking at Ning Que¡¯s face. She said, "My father had read your files in Military Ministry, but only told me some gists about you and refused to tell me too many details. When I was anxious to ask, he only said that if the future I had an opportunity to fight with you, I should listen to you on everything. I rarely heard my father had such a high evaluation on others. What exactly have you done in City of Wei?"


    "I¡¯m really proud to be evaluated like this by General Yunhui."


    Ning Que gazed over her shoulder, with his eyesight falling on the blueke surface. He thought of those years in City of Wei and said after a moment of silence, "In City of Wei, I mainly did one thing."


    "What¡¯s it?"


    "Killing Horse Gang."


    "I heard the Wilderness¡¯ Horse Gang was the most aggressive one. Even Golden pce¡¯s cavalries are not willing to provoke them."


    "Not so exaggerated. But Horse Gang¡¯sposition is veryplicated, including real Horse Gang and foodless refugees. I saw refugees from northern Yan in Shubi Lake. Such a long distance, I don¡¯t know how they climbed over Min Mountain. You¡¯d never think the most powerful Horse Gang I ever met was actually the one disguised by Golden pce¡¯s cavalry."


    "Golden pce¡¯s cavalry? You winned or they winned?"


    "I said I only did one thing, killing Horse Gang. If they won, how could I kill Horse Gang?"


    Ning Que looked at her and said, "I think the reason why General Yunhui said those words to you is that he presumably knew that I was good at killing for surviving in the Wilderness. In fact, this is not rare."


    Situ Yn looked at him and said, "You¡¯re amazing, for staying alive after killing so many Horse Gangs."


    Ning Que said, "I don¡¯t deny it at this point. It¡¯s said that cultivator is the strongest one in the world. But in terms of those cultivators I¡¯ve met, if they were put in the Wilderness, they definitely couldn¡¯t survive as long as they encountered a Horse Gang with one hundred men."


    "But you still want to be a cultivator."


    "Because I can kill. If I became a cultivator, I would be able to be a cultivator who could kill."


    After a short moment of pause, Ning Que said with a smile, "I¡¯ve always had an idea. You promise not to spread it outside."


    Situ Yn showed a great interest and said, "I promise. Go ahead."


    Ning Que went to thekeside and looked at the dark blueke that extended to the far northern side. He said, "A cultivator does have a strong personal power. But in my opinion, these cultivators in the world don¡¯t know how to kill."


    Situ Yn thought for a long time before she frowned and asked, "Is killing... the killing?"


    Ning Que looked at her and continuously asked a few questions, "How to spend the least effort to kill? How to kill the opposite when your strength is far less than the enemy¡¯s? How to use the environment, wind and even sunshine to kill? How to squeeze thest effort to kill in the case of serious injuries? How to kill without being killed?"


    Situ Yn shook her head, thinking she would pick up a bow and an arrow to shoot or a podao to cut when she met grasnd cavalries in the Wilderness. There were not so many methods at all.


    "If killing is soplicated, can you teach me?"


    "This kind of thing can not be taught. If you kill more people, you can naturally learn it. Therefore, frontier fortress camp is the best ce to practice the killing, and cultivators rarely cultivate in barracks."


    Ning Que said, "Fortunately or unfortunately, I have lived in City of Wei military vige for many years. And I think this is why General Yunhui felt that I was not bad, and also something you can¡¯t understand for now."


    Situ Yn looked at him and curiously asked, "You are the first disciple of the Second floor of the Academy toe to the frontier fortress for practice. Do you want to cultivate in the barracks?"


    "If I had the chance, of course I¡¯d be willing to try on the battlefield with the ability of a cultivator."


    Ning Que moved his steps again, walking along round white stones on thekeside to the east, and self-deprecatingly said, "But now it looks that, neither Tuyang City nor the imperial court will give me this opportunity."


    Situ Yn looked at his back and shook her head.


    Ning Que quietly watched the dark blueke, the reflections of trees and clouds in the water far away, and the depths of the Wilderness that could not be seen with naked eyes. He felt his fingers more and more itchy.


    No one knew whether any cultivator made a special trip to cultivate on the battlefield. But he was really interested in this idea. However, what really made him tickle was not the idea, but some very simple things.


    In the Wilderness, he sniffed the smell of horse dunging from the wind and the faint smell of unknown grass burning. He felt that every part of his body was slightly trembling as excitedly as the three long knives behind him. It was difficult to suppress his desire of rushing into the depths of grasnd on a horse and cutting down one after another enemy with a knife.


    Unfortunately, this faint blueke in front was not Shubi Lake.


    No one knew the name of theke around Dongsheng Stockaded Vige among grasnd barbarians. It was as slender as a waist, extending from here to the depths of the far north Wilderness, whose end could not be seen. Because theke was too deep, it was glowing with dark blue luster, like the sapphire that was melted and condensated into fments.


    "This is a saltyke. We can¡¯t drink its water. So we didn¡¯t camp here."


    Situ Yn looked at Ning Que who quietly looked at theke and raised her arm toward the mountains in the farawaykeshore. She said, "When the barbarian riding troop invaded the South in the past, they came from that forest all of a sudden. But no grasnd people have been near here these days."


    Ning Que looked at the faintly visible woods in the fog and asked, "Can we go through now?"


    "If crossing that forest, we¡¯ll arrive at the east line of the Yan army. In order to avoid any trouble, we didn¡¯t go through it too often. Of course, they did not oftene through it, either. Both parties agreed to ignore it."


    "Have you seen those people?"


    "What people?"


    "Young masters of all countriesing for West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s order, such as Sword Garret, White Pagoda."


    Situ Yn shook her head and said, "I¡¯ve never seen them. But after the encounter with riding troopst time, Dongsheng Stockaded Vige has despatched the army to exile that tribe. However, they encountered Papal Cavalryman of West-Hill Divine Pce."


    Upon listening to the words of "Papal Cavalryman", Ning Que turned around and asked, "Then what happened?"


    Situ Yn thought of the scene at that day and still felt somewhat angry. She said with a sneer, "It is clearly a battle of our Dongsheng Stockaded Vige, and we have basically wiped out the enemies. But those Divine Hall cavalries who have looked on coldly as bystanders rushed forward in the final moment."


    "They wanted to grab the military glory?"


    "Right, they cut off many leaders¡¯ heads. Wang Ying quarreled with them but didn¡¯t win."


    Ning Que said, "I thought Wang Ying has be much mature in the battlefield. I didn¡¯t expect he was still so childish."


    Situ Yn annoyedly said, "Do you think he should not quarrel with them?"


    "Of course not. What can we get even if we had a big quarrel with them? We used to fight with enemies in Shubi Lake. If the people of Seven Cities Fortress came to grab the military glory, we never quarreled with them."


    Ning Que looked at the calmke. He shook his head and said, "We directly draw a knife to chop them."

 Chapter 199: A Dark Blue Lake Like a Waist (II)

    Chapter 199: A Dark Blue Lake Like a Waist (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que had a military background and most hated this kind of thing like grabbing the military glory. As he said at this time, in the Wilderness outside City of Wei, if other forces of Seven Cities Fortress came to grab the military glory, he and his partners would directly draw knives to chop them. The party who won could have the military glory. The Wilderness¡¯ rule was just that simple.


    Dongsheng Stockaded Vige¡¯s Tang soldiers just watched that their exploits were snatched by West-Hill guard riding troop. In addition to a few scolds, they actually did not draw the knife to kill the opposite? He was puzzled as well as inevitably indignant. After a while, he calmed down, thinking that Tang army generals indeed should keep a low profile when they were away from Tuyang City.


    He shook his head and looked at the Wilderness around the farawayke. He said, "If I take the troop into the Wilderness for firewood and those West-Hill gangs dare to grab firewood, you¡¯ll see how I deal with them."


    Situ Yn did not say anything but walked slowly beside him along thekeside with her hands putting in the back. Suddenly she stopped and turned to look at him and said, "I¡¯ve gotten a family letter from Chang¡¯an saying they would arrange a marriage for me."


    The slightly cold weather made the girl¡¯s breath quickly change into a white fog, adding up a bit of beauty to her refreshing face. Ning Que looked at the fog in front and the girl¡¯s face. He asked after a moment of startlement, "Then?"


    Situ Yn shook her head, turned around and continued to walk along thekeside. She said, "I don¡¯t want to marry."


    Upon hearing her reply, Ning Que became more rxed. But suddenly he became a little serious, somehow feeling kind of confused or lost in the direction. He looked at the girl¡¯s back and said, "You should be careful with this kind of thing."


    Situ Yn did not turn around and said with a smile, "I¡¯ve heard a lot of ministers in Chang¡¯an City wanted to recruit you as a son-inw."


    Based on Ning Que¡¯s reputation now in Chang¡¯an City, and not to mention his identity as a core disciple of Headmaster of Academy, a lot of courtiers began to introduce their daughters to him, just because His Majesty admired and adored him.


    Ning Que smiled and said, "I guess General Yunhui didn¡¯t have such a tendency."


    Situ Yn looked back at him and said, "My father knew I was familiar with you. So he really thought of this idea."


    Ning Que felt his cheeks slightly hot and subconsciously touched them, but did not know how to answer her.


    Situ Yn put her hands in her back, walking forward on the white cobblestones in thekeside. She said, "But I did not agree."


    Ning Que looked at the restless ck tresses of this girl in a light armor. After a short silence, after all, he could not hold back his curiosity and some kind of emotion that could not be dered in the mouth. So he asked, "W...why?"


    "Oh, cause I don¡¯t want to get married."


    The girl¡¯s response was concise and powerful, whose crispughter awakened the thin ice films on theke. "There has been no female general in the Tang Empire these years and I want to be a female general. So I don¡¯t even have a thought of getting married."


    Ning Que listened to her heartfelt thoughts and could not help feeling somewhat ashamed. He kicked a white stone with a strange shape in front of his boots into theke and said, "I¡¯m addicted in the cultivation and have no time to consider these things."


    Situ Yn turned around and looked at the stone smashing the thin ice and falling slowly into the bottom of theke. After a moment of silence, sheughed and looked at him and asked, "What kind of woman do you like if you have time to think about it?"


    Upon this question, Ning Que could not help thinking of the dialogue with Chen Pipi in the Back Mountain of the Academy. After a long time of thought, he rubbed his jaw and seriously said, "I like beautiful girls, fair-skinned, nted eyes, and with a little red lips. It would be best if she has a plump body. In terms of intelligence, I wish she can be clever and does¡¯t always let me consider everything."


    Situ Yn looked at him and shook her head. Then she sighed and said, "Your request really is not high, and almost the same with the ideas of the vast majority of men in the world. There are no new ideas at all."


    ...


    ...


    Life had always been a very boring thing, both in Chang¡¯an City and in the Wilderness of northern Yan. Was there any essential difference between climbing stairs every day and wandering everyday?


    Each Academy student practicing in Dongsheng Stockaded Vige had his ownbat missions. It was impossible for them to spend every day with Ning Que to travel around the stockaded vige, having meals, drinking and chating. He had to go alone to visit the stockade vige, eat, drink and chat with himself. His life was monotonous and boring to the extreme.


    After a few days he finally could no longer stand living such a boring life. So he sneaked out with his big ck horse. He avoided the dozens of riding cavalries¡¯ sight near him and got out of the stockade vige to a bluekeside for rxing himself.


    Those dozens of riding cavalries no longer stayed close to him following behind like the second sun. Ning Que today went farther, running eastward 1000 or 1500 meters along the blueke. He found a secludedkeside and stopped his steps.


    He unloaded the heavy bag off the dark horse¡¯s back and hard pped its buttock for one time.


    The ck horse rarely had such a wonderful rxing time. With a pleasant loud neigh, it happily moved its hooves to step on mud and rushed into theke. And then it used a faster speed to run back to theke shore with a low and furious neigh.


    Its whole body was slightly trembling and kept rolling its thick tongue with a grumble as well as turning its lips. It was obvious that it felt freezingly cold for the coldke and didn¡¯t like the taste of salt water.


    "I¡¯ve never seen such a careless horse like you."


    Ning Queughed at it and pointed to the luxuriant hills not far away, saying, "Idiot. Where there is ake, there are naturallyke branches. Run to the other side to see if there is drinking water. When it¡¯s done,e back earlier."


    The big dark horse dissatisfiedly shook its head and moved the back hooves, shaking some icy coldke water out of its body. Then it scuttled away in ordance with the direction Ning Que pointed at.


    Ning Que piled a pot and cooked some fresh vegetable soup. He smelled the gradually diffuse scent and sat beside the quietke. Now Sangsang was not nearby to serve him. So he had to serve himself. Luckily, when Sangsang was young, he had cooked their meals alone and never forgot his adept cooking skills.


    There were perennial northwest cold winds blowing in the northern Wilderness, especially in the area between Central ins and the great grasnd. He sat beside thekeside wearing a thick jacket, with a wind-proof gown outside. Unnoticedly it was the bowl of warm fresh vegetable soup or his cultivation that yed a role. In short, he did not feel too cold.


    In the shallow part of theke, the water was very transparent. One could clearly see the white stones and fallen trees with a history of millions of years at the bottom of theke. If one looked further, he could see bluer and bluerke water. Stricted by mountain forests on the two sides and short cliffs, theke became slender and one could not see its end, for it had been extended to the depths of the far northern Wilderness.


    Ning Que sat on the stone and saw the beautifulke view in front. He thought it was kind of indecent to regard the blueke as a kidney. In fact, it should be a woman¡¯s weak slender waist that was not big enough to be held.


    The slightly shakingke water was like a blue gem that was about to melt and pushed the thin ices condensed by the cold air to thekeside one by one. Some gradually melted away, while others were ovepping together. With the winter bing colder and colder, these thin ices would eventually be thick and hard ice cubes.


    Ning Que looked at the thin ice moving up and down with theke and remembered those legendary people standing under the ice. He recalled those things mentioned in the previous days when he and Situ Yn walked by theke, and could not help showing self-mockery on his face.


    One must always consider the marriage after a certain age. He had not seriously considered it before, and indeed did not have any thoughts about Situ. But when he heard of Situ¡¯s refusal to yunhui general, he still felt somewhat unpleased. He also had this feeling on Northern Mountain Roadst spring. At that time, he was very clear that there was absolutely no possibility between himself and the Princess of the Tang Empire Lee Yu. However, when Lee Yu left away from his shoulder and stood up to slowly recover her graceful look, he still had a lot of unsure feelings in his heart.


    He scooped a bowl of water and put out the remaining mes in the stone stove. He re-sat down at thekeside, looking at those thin ices that were like sugar ces rather than ss. Then he said with a self-mockery, "Someone said that there were only two kinds of women in the world, the woman belonging to himself and others. Are all of men like this?" (...Liu Xiahui¡¯s words)


    However, he had always educated Sangsang to remind himself that anyone who talked about rtionship, especially love, was an idiot. So he did not take too long to immerse himself in this self-deprecating mood. Soon he was awakened by the horrorible prospect of his bing an idiot and began to think of something that was more meaningful for him.


    Ning Que hase to the Wilderness of northern Yan for more than one month, but has not seen Xia Hou. So there was no way to watch him on behalf of His Majesty. Although he was near Tuyang City, he did not make up his mind whether to go or not. He did not know what would happen if he now met Xia Hou. Although sporadic fightings over the Wilderness had been happening, the upper body of Yan-aiding army knew his identity and sent dozens of elite to offer him personal protection. Therefore, he could not kill enemies for a few rounds at will. Should he really waste the time like this?


    As a young man who survived so hard by himself, Ning Que was very clear about what to rely on. So he would not allow himself to waste too much time. After he thought of some meaningless things like the rtionship between men and women by theke and some meaningful but unfinished things like Xia Hou, he started his meditation and cultivation.


    Slightly cold wind was blowing from theke, making piled thin ices shivering on the bank and his eyshes closed tightly. There was a slender podao resting on hisp. With the deepening of meditation, the invisible Qi of Heaven and Earth gradually gathered together to his side, and then gently softly covered the de.


    The simple Fu character lines engraved on the knife seemed to sense something. The shadows caused by the natural light suddenly became deeper than before. And then the podao began to buzz and singrly vibrated.


    A piece of withered leaf, which was brought by theke wind and came out of nowhere, just fell onto the knife surface and was shot into the air. It was momentarily torn by an invisible force and became hundreds of tiny fments, and then fluttered into theke and disappeared.


    The podao on his knees was slightly vibrating, so was the clean water among the white round stones by theke in front. Those thin ices, which seemed to be fragile but in fact soft and sticky, gradually shattered and diffused aimlessly along theke waves. They mirrored the sky, as if presenting dozens of exactly same skies.


    The big ck umbre tightly wrapped in coarse cloth was lying silently beside him.


    After an unnoticed period of time, Ning Que finished his meditation, looking at broken ice cubes among the round white stones in front. He knew that he would not stay in No Doubts State for too long, for he has begun to approach Seethrough State.


    At first he got Tao enlightenment on Vermilion Bird Road, and then quickly broke through Initial State, Perception State and went straight into No Doubts State. Even he himself did not know how to do it. So for now he did not have any thought about breaking the cultivation realm. At this time, he felt he was almost about to break the realm, but did not know how to do it.


    He thought kind of confused, "Should I really go to Tuyang City and send a Fu character letter to ask help for Senior Brothers of the Academy?"


    Just when he thought so, he suddenly noticed more thin ices piled in front of him. He looked far in the direction of his right hand¡¯s front and saw a lot of shing mirror-like thin ices were slowly flowing over.


    He had lived in the Wilderness of Min Mountain for so many years. So he was very familiar with the wildke. Just after a few nces, he knew that there must be a hidden stream in theke and it pushed these thin ices over. But in this dark blueke like a beauty¡¯s waist, it was so calm on the surface. Where did the hidden streame from?


    He knew that there were no barbarians who dared toe to this forest on thekeside. So there should be no security problems. Suddenly, he thought of exploring it and got up to carry heavy bags. Then he went upstream along the mirror-like thin ices.


    Upstream, was there a beauty on the other side of theke?


    ...


    ...


    He went down thekeside for about a few miles and faintly saw that a stream in front was impacting the calm gem-likeke surface, producing innumerable beautiful small whirlpools. But there were luxuriant trees next to them. Although the trees¡¯ leaves have long fallen, the trees still could cover the movements behind the forest. So no one could see the stream.


    Ning Que knew that was the hiddennd he was looking for. He smelt a faint smell of sulfur in the nose and guessed there might be a hot spring over there. Then he could not help showing happiness on his face.


    Suddenly, a touch of jade whiteness came to his eyesight, then a touch of blueness shed, which was like thiske.


    Suddenly Ning Que showed vignce in his eyes, not for the touch of blueness that was deeply reflected in his eyes but for other reasons. Then he quickly pulled a bow and set up an arrow, aiming at somewhere in the jungle. He said in a low voice, "Come out."


    After the rustle in the forest, a dozen young people slowly walked out. Some of them also aimed at Ning Que with their bows and arrows. More of them watched him vigntly, holding the sheaths in their left hands and the long handles outside the sheaths in their right hands.


    Ning Que ignored the sharp arrows aiming at himself, but just aimed at that girl, the youngest of these people. The boxwood bow in his hands was stable as a mountain, whose string stretched like a moon. The arrow was motionless like ake stone, but gave others a kind of feeling. As long as he wanted, that quiet arrow on the string would absolutely pierce that girl¡¯s chest the next moment.


    This feeling was so strong that theds aiming at Ning Que had stiff facial expressions for nervousness. Those who held the slender sword handles even looked slightly pale. As for the girl who was aimed by Ning Que¡¯s arrow, she looked pale on her face, with her slightly elevated chest fiercely going up and down.


    Ad courageously jumped to the front of this young girl and bent his left knee forward to take a horse posture. He clenched his sheath with his left hand and faintly used his thumb to hard to withstand the ebony sword de edge, and then bent his right elbow back to lift up his wrist.


    Ning Que looked at the posture of thisd holding a sword and also looked at clothing quality of the boys and girls. He guessed where they came from and felt a little rxed.


    He looked at the braved holding a sword and said with a smile, "Arrow-chopped posture? It¡¯s useless for my arrow."


    Despised by the enemy, thatd suddenly showed an anger on his face.


    "I¡¯m one of the Tangs."


    Ning Que told his origin and then put down the boxwood bow in his hands. He did not nce at these young people who looked at himself nervously and put his arrow back to the quiver.


    Since he had guessed the origins of these boys and girls, he knew that there would be no problems. However, because the other side apparently had no fighting experience, he firstid down his arms to prevent the other party from making mistakes for tension.


    As he wished, when those boys and girls heard that he was one of the Tangs, they gave up the nervious expression in thest moment and became relieved. Then they put down their bows and let go of their sword handles.


    "We are disciples of ck Ink Garden in Great River Kingdom."

 Chapter 200: A Dark Blue Lake Like a Waist (III)

    Chapter 200: A Dark Blue Lake Like a Waist (III)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Due to the Lee royal family of Chang¡¯an controlling the world and the West-Hill Divine Pce, the rtionship between the Central ins countries and the Tang Empire had never been in harmony. Although they were terrified of the Tang Empire¡¯s powerful military force and dared not to show any rudeness, they absolutely had no good feelings for the Tangs deep in their hearts. However, the Great River Kingdom was a special case.


    There were forests and the vast territory of the South Jin Kingdom between the Great River Kingdom in the southern part of the maind and the Tang Empire. It was very difficult for them to get in touch with each other. However, the great distance might have been the reason for the great admiration of the Great River Kingdom. Since a long time back, the Great River Kingdom¡¯s emperor andmon people had always admired the Tang culture and sent envoys and students from time to time regardless of the difficult and long-distance traffic. The culture of Chang¡¯an City was extremely popr in the Great River Kingdom. Many details from Great River Kingdom¡¯s official system to the daily life of its people reflect the impact of the Tang culture.


    The boys and girls who appeared beside the jungle and the blueke wore light-colored dresses and had a gorgeous broad waistband. It was the most popr clothing style in the Kaihua years of the Tang Empire. These boys and girls had calm and supple facial features, with focused but determined gazes. The wooden swords with ck sheaths on their waists which were long and slightly curved were slender swords unique to the Great River Kingdom.


    From these details, Ning Que soon decided that they belonged to the Great River Kingdom. Both generations of two countries had a natural sense of closeness and trust for each other. They did not believe that the other side wouldmit malicious acts against themselves. Therefore, Ning Que did not hesitate to put down the bow and arrow in his hands. As he expected, when these boys and girls knew of his identity as a Tang, they soon showed their goodwill and reported their own sect and division.


    Great River Kingdom¡¯s ck Ink Garden was a ce where Master of Calligrapher Master Wang cultivated. These boys and girls who had appeared in the Wilderness of northern Yan were naturally the disciples of Master of Calligrapher. Most of them were female disciples, and only three or four were male disciples.


    The girl who was targeted by Ning Que with a boxwood bow came forward, blinking with curious eyes. She looked at Ning Que as if she was looking at an interesting object and asked, "Are you really a Tang?"


    The girl wearing a lotus colored dress had a shaggy scarf around her face and neck probably for the fear of coldness. With a naive face and smart big eyes, she looked particrly lovely.


    Ning Queughed and replied, "Do I have any benefits by pretending to be a Tang?"


    The girl covered her mouth tough and said, "In addition to the Tang merchants in the city, I have not seen Tangs from Chang¡¯an City. So I¡¯m a bit curious."


    A woman about 20 years old stepped forward and apologized to Ning Que with a bow. Then she took an identity document issued by the Military Ministry of Yan Kingdom from her arms and then invited Ning Que to take out his identity document.


    After all, it was the Wilderness, not far from the battlefield. So they did not give up their vignce just based on Ning Que¡¯s words. Ning Que understood their cautiousness and removed his backpack, and held out the document issued by Tuyang City to her.


    After confirming Ning Que as a Tang, these disciples from ck Ink Garden of the Great River Kingdom immediately became more rxed. The girls gathered together and looked at him curiously from a distance. The woman apologized sincerely and said, "I did not know your identity previously. So I was so rude to hold you at the sword point and point an arrow at you. I hope that young sir can forgive me."


    Tang girls were known for their rudeness and unreasonableness. Both Lee Yu and Situ Yn had such characteristics. So Ning Que rarely saw such a gentlewoman like this. He nced at ck Ink Garden¡¯s male disciples who stood at a distance honestly and well-behaved. He remembered the rumors that women came first and men second in the Great River Kingdom and could not help feeling a little strange. Since the Great River Kingdom valued girls over boys, why were these female disciples of ck Ink Garden so gentle and reasonable, and even too soft?


    He smiled and shook his head, "You¡¯re too polite. It¡¯s you who first discovered this hot spring. So I¡¯m the unpleasant guest. If there is someone who should apologize, it should be me."


    The twenty-year-old woman said after a moment¡¯s hesitation, "As expected, you as a Tang do say gentle words and have a generous temperament. I¡¯m ck Ink Garden¡¯s third disciple, Zhuo Zhihua. If you like this hot spring, why not... "


    If Ning Que was a normal soldier of the Tang Empire, the third disciple of ck Ink Garden would not be so gentle and courteous. Just because this ce was not far from Dongsheng Stockaded Vige and that ck gown Ning Que wore showed the world¡¯s first-rate quality in material and embroidery work, for it was a farewell gift from Mistress Jian in House of Red Sleeves. The women of the Great River Kingdom all understood the Tang clothing and guessed Ning Que certainly had an umon origin just after a nce. Maybe Ning Que was one of those Academy students who was practicing in Dongsheng Stockaded Vige. So her attitude became gentler and humbler.


    "It¡¯s not true." Ning Queughed and said, "I just wandered around theke, and found that theke was different. I guessed there might be mountain streams. I did not expect it to be a hot spring beforehand. You don¡¯t need to care about me."


    Upon listening to these words, the woman retained her calm expression but felt much relieved in her heart. Based on Great River Kingdom¡¯s respect for the Tang Empire, especially when she guessed Ning Que¡¯s umon identity, at any other time she would probably leave with her Younger Sisters and Brothers so as to offer this hot spring to Ning Que. But now it was inconvenient...


    "If so, we¡¯ll not disturb your rest."


    Zhuo Zhihua saw that he did not n to reveal his identity and felt inconvenient to rudely ask him. She smiled and bowed politely. Then she took the group of boys and girls and walked towards the jungle.


    Ning Que looked at the depths of the jungle, vaguely seeing water fogsing from the hot spring and a yellow cloth curtain around one-half-man size. He thought that the girls of Great River Kingdom probably took a shower in the hot spring behind the curtain. So there was no wonder that they had been so nervous beforehand. It would be terrible if they let other men peep at those naked girls.


    Ning Que actually did not expect to meet the female disciple of ck Ink Garden in the Great River Kingdom when walking along theke. Today his luck did not seem to be too bad. He picked up his backpack on the ground and turned around to walk towards where he came from. He remembered that he had previously passed ake and the scenery of a shallow pool among white stones there was not bad. So he intended to go there to meditate and rest.


    Just then, the rustle of footsteps suddenly came behind him. He turned curiously and saw the Great River Kingdom girl that he had pointed at with his bow and arrow running over. Her face was flushed red because she was running too fast, And the hairy beast tail around her neck has longe undone, which made her look much cuter.


    Ning Que asked, "What is the matter?"


    The girl, with her dark, big eyes, gazed at Ning Que¡¯s warm expression. She thought of the calm and cold-headed archer she had seen previously and subconsciously scratched her head, asking, "Could you tell me, when I came out of the woods with so many Senior Brothers and Sisters, why did you choose to aim at me with a bow and an arrow?"


    "If I say, to catch bandits, first catch the ringleader, do you believe it?" Ning Que replied smilingly.


    The girlughed, shaking her head, and said, "Of course not. I have always been the worst among so many disciples of ck Ink Garden. Besides, at that time I had no weapons in my hand and Senior Brothers had bows and arrows in their hands, and Senior Sisters had slender swords on their waists. You are so powerful. Of course, you didn¡¯t see me as the most threatening one."


    Ning Que did not expect that she could think of so many things from that aiming. After a slight pause, he honestly replied, "The reason why I aimed at you is that you are the weakest one in the crowd."


    Then he added. "When one is fighting against heavy odds, it would be better to aim at the most important or vulnerable one among the enemies. Then he would have better chances to bargain with them next."


    The girl looked at him curiously and asked, "If... there was really a misunderstanding, would you really shoot me?"


    There was no sense of resentment or exasperation, just pure curiosity.


    Ning Que nodded his head.


    The girl¡¯s dark eyes revealed her astonishment at that and she said, "Will the Tangs also bully the weak?"


    "The Tangs are also ordinary people, including good ones and bad ones."


    The girl puzzled and asked, "But you are not a bad guy."


    Ning Que looked at this cute cub-like little girl and could not help rubbing her head. Then he said smilingly, "There are no good or bad men on the battlefield, only the dead or the living."


    After a short pause, he looked at her reddish tender face. Maybe because he was affected by those memories, the smile on his face gradually faded away. He said seriously, "In the battlefield, you kill the enemy or the enemy kills you. Little girl, if you don¡¯t want to die here, you must remember this."


    The girl nodded hard.


    "So you ran over to ask about these things?" Ning Que asked.


    "Ah." The girlughed like an early lotus, with a touch of flush on her face. "And I wanted to tell you, my name is Cat Girl."


    After she finished this sentence, she turned to run toward the hot spring of mountain stream and never looked back.


    Ning Que looked at the girl¡¯s back and could not helpughing. He thought he had always heard that the names of those from the Great River Kingdom were very interesting. But he really did not expect someone to be called Cat Girl. This name really sounded not so nice, but really matched with the girl¡¯s curious dark eyes and hairy cuteness.


    He walked back along thekeside not too far and looked at a pond leaking out of white stones in the lower edge of the shore. The rocks in the bottom of this clear pool were as clear as book pages, whose scenery looked good. After he confirmed it was far enough and would not be misunderstood by those Great River Kingdom girls behind the yellow cloth curtain, he unloaded his package and sat down.


    Theke¡¯s air still had a smell of sulfur. The mountain stream was actually a hot spring, which was not potable. So he realized why neither the Wilderness tribes nor Yan Kingdom¡¯s coalition army chose this ce to set up a camp.


    "As is written in the story, the Great River Kingdom girls really like hot spring spa."


    He looked back at the distant corner of the vague yellow cloth curtain and subconsciously gently closed around the round stone beneath his right hand. This action did not show he was obscene but only showed that he recalled the previous touch on Cat Girl¡¯s head. After a brief moment of recalling, he understood this kind of feeling at this time was because he had not rubbed Sangsang¡¯s head for a long time.


    The scenery was beautiful around thiske and stone pool. It was quiet and pleasant. Most importantly, it was surrounded by an abundance of Qi of Heaven and Earth. Since he could not jump into the stream to bathe with Great River Kingdom girls, Ning Que was naturally reluctant to give up such a good ce for cultivation.


    The next day, he came to theke riding the Big ck Horse.


    He sat in theke wind in a quiet meditation with eyes closed. Then he opened his eyes and raised his fingers in the wind to gently paint some hard-to-understand lines. Only he knew that these lines were put together to be Fu characters.


    His gaze followed his fingertip to move in the air. When he met some difficult moments, he frowned thinking for a long time and waved his hand to erase all the imaginary Fu characters. And then he continued to use his fingers to paint intangible Fu characters.


    Before he knew it, the sun had moved to the highest point and the slightly cold wind became a little warm due to the sunshine. He undid his cor and stood up to stretch his upper body, rxing his stiff body and slightly sore arms.


    After azy stretch of and a pleasant extension of his arms, his gaze naturally floated to the right in front, on the vague yellow cloth curtain in the faraway woods and stream. Perhaps this was his body¡¯s natural response or psychological one. In short, he looked over to the other side and even heard the ssh sound of water and silveryughter.


    "The Great River Kingdom girls really like hot spring spa."


    He once again had ament and thought if they soaked in the hot spring yesterday, today and even every day, their smooth white skin would turn into wet white paper. Did those girls not worry about it?


    Outside the forest and stream, a few ck Ink Garden¡¯s male disciples stood guard. It proved the rumor of Great River Kingdom¡¯s valuing girls more than boys. Ning Que could not help thinking that Great River Kingdom¡¯s predecessor monarch was an empress and the legendary female who was disguised as a male traveling to Chang¡¯an City for studies and had some spread unclear story with the previous Emperor of the Tang Empire... If the Empress had no son or the country had no Master of Calligrapher, Great River Kingdom men¡¯s position might be even more miserable.


    The hot spring water was like goat¡¯s milk and the frolicking young girls were like deer. After all, this kind of imagination could not make Ning Que full. So he left the stone pool and looked for a drynd to begin putting up a stove for cooking. Today, he prepared to make a pot of milky mutton soup.


    "Can you cook?"


    Cat Girl appeared on the shore of theke, looking at Ning Que who was lighting a fire with curious eyes opening wide. She said, "I heard that men in the Tang Empire did not cook but only ate ready-made meals?"


    Ning Que had long known that she hade. He did not lift his head and said, "In Chang¡¯an City, I naturally don¡¯t cook. But in this wilderness, what else can I do except cooking by myself?"


    Cat Girl patted her palms, turned her ck pupils, and squatted beside him, saying bravely, "I can help you."


    Ning Que saw her hopeful face. Though he very much distrusted this Great River Kingdom girl¡¯s cooking, he stillughed and made space for her.To his surprise, Cat Girl cooking actually had extremely consummate cooking skills despite her young age. Only after a while, she haspleted all the procedures and then cleaned her hands. They were just waiting for the food to finish cooking.


    Ning Que listened to the boiling sound in the pot and sniffed the meat scent that has begun to overflow from it. Ning Que looked at her in surprise and became more confused about how the Great River Kingdom women were like. In a society that valued girls over boys, how did those women have such a gentle temperament and good cooking skills?


    Ning Que lifted up the pot anddled a bowl of soup before handing a bowl over to her. Cat Girl smiled and they two began to drink slightly the hot soup when sitting in the cold wind of thekeside. From the body to the heart, they have be warmer.


    "Is it warm in the Great River Kingdom?"


    "Yes," Cat Girl nodded, watching the thin ices on theke surface, and said with a shiver. "I really didn¡¯t expect it to actually be so cold in the Yan Kingdom. The cotton clothes I bought in West-Hill seem not to be wind-proof."


    "In a few days, when the real winteres, or when you go into the real depths of the Wilderness, you will know what is a knife-like wind. Since you are so young, why did you follow your Senior Sisters to the frontline?"


    "I am fourteen this year." Cat Girl kept her eyes wide open, puzzledly looking at him, and then asked, "Still young?"


    "Fourteen is not young?"


    Cat Girl slightly furrowed her brows and said with a pout, "If one is fourteen, she can be married. I¡¯m not young at all."


    It seemed that ording to the Tangws, a girl can only be married at the age of sixteen? Ning Que held a bowl of soup, watching the faraway hot fogs slowly rising from theke surface. He recalled that Sangsang was just fourteen years old this year. Could she get married in the Great River Kingdom?


    After drinking the mutton soup, Cat Girl ignored Ning Que¡¯s opposition and took off the hairy cor from her neck quickly, rolled up her sleeves and washed the pottery tableware clean.


    Ning Que looked at the busy little figure in thekeside and naturally thought of Sangsang once again. It had been more than one month when he left Chang¡¯an City, he rarely thought of his little handmaiden at home. Perhaps it was their simr age, figure or something else, but after encountering Cat Girl, he thought of Sangsang more and more often.


    "A little gift, showing my thanks for you."


    When Cat Girl said goodbye to him, Ning Que took a small box of cakes from his luggage and handed it to her.


    Cat Girl meant to decline, but looked at the beautiful emblem on the wooden box, her big eyes suddenly brightened up. She surprisedly shouted. "Is this Chang¡¯an City¡¯s... Osmanthus Cake from the Lotus Store?"


    "It seems like it."


    Mistress Jian asked Xiaocao to prepare the cakes for Ning Que¡¯s bag and undoubtedly the cakes Xiaocao had prepared were basically Sangsang¡¯s favorite food. He vaguely remembered that it really seemed to be called Osmanthus Cake of a certain store.


    "The sub-branches of Lotus Store sell the other cakes but Osmanthus Cake, for this Osmanthus Cake was made with the osmanthus outside Daming Pce."


    Cat Girl was delighted with the surprise and held the cake box as she was holding a precious thing. She carefully took out a piece and put it into her mouth and chewed, showing a very happy intoxicated smile on her face.


    Ning Que looked at the girl¡¯s smile on her face, feeling very happy. He recalledst year when he brought cakes to Sangsang from House of Red Sleeves, she also smiled like Cat Girl. Why was he thinking of Sangsang again?


    ...


    ...


    My love was on the mountainside. It was difficult to find her in such a high mountain. My sweetheart sent me Osmanthus Cake, but what should I send to her? The medicine to make her sleep? Ning Que always felt like he had read such a poem, but could not remember the specific date of this memory. He only got distracted by the words "Osmanthus Cake" in the poem. He thought that he should cause the young girl disciple to misunderstand him. Although there was no pear flower growing on his head, he did not want to bully a tender flower or a small grass.


    The fact has proved that Ning Que had thought too much, or ck Ink Garden people had had a coping n for this kind of thing. After he sent Osmanthus Cake, the very next day, the female disciple Zhuo Zhihua brought a big pot of fish soup for him as a return.


    The taste of stewed fish was really sweet and creamy. He could not pick up the slightest mistake with the attitude of those Great River Kingdom girls, making him feel overwhelmed by their special favor. Ning Que felt that he could not be such a freeloader. So he once again took out a box of cakes as a return.


    The time gradually flew away in an exchange between a variety of Great River Kingdom¡¯s stewed meals and various Chang¡¯an City cakes. It became colder and colder in the Wilderness of northern Yan and the winter was officiallying. The thin ice around thekeside got together, gradually melt and froze again like a whole piece of mirror. Only the ice surface beside the hot spring bank was still blue.


    Although they did not talk too much or even meet too many times. Ning Que became familiar with those ck Ink Garden girls in the Great River Kingdom, after all. The girls did not ask about his origin, sect or name. He did not ask them why they did not camp in the coalition barracks but chose toe to this wilderness.


    It became colder and colder in winter. Behind the yellow cloth curtain, the hot spring cascaded down along a cliff and turned into a stream and even a pool. White water vapors spread everywhere, making the ce as warm as spring.


    Because of the high temperature inside the cloth curtain, Cat Girl sat on the wet stones by the stream wearing only a small fur clothing and kicked her two feet. She happily ate several cakes held in her hands, with her thin fur clothing stuck to her growing body by the air of moisture, showing a few slightly raised body curves.


    She looked at the pool below the warm stream and shouted. "Thest two Osmanthus Cakes, you really don¡¯t want them?"


    Zhuo Zhihua went to the creek, looking at the direction of the pool, and said smilingly, "Hill Master, have a try."


    Only a vague figure could be seen behind the milky mists widespread above the pool. Suddenly a burst of cold wind blew from the depths of the mountains, disturbing the hot fogs above the pool through the cloth curtain. Then their view became slightly clearer.


    There was a rock protruding out of the pool surface.


    A young girl was sitting quietly on the rock, opposite the stream bank. Her lower body was wrapped in a thin white wet cloth and her upper body was naked. Her ck hair fell down on her naked jade-like back like a waterfall, with water droplets slowly falling from her hair end.


    "You guys have it."


    Zhuo Zhihua watched the girl in the pool and said anxiously, "Hill Master, the coalition forces are totally unwilling to care about us. The logistical men and camp quarter both make things difficult for us. Should we stay here all the time?"


    Cat Girl tossed the wet hair on her shoulders behind her back and walked to the edge of the pool and angrily said, "In my opinion, we might as well simply go to Dongsheng Stockaded Vige. The general of the Tang Empire will certainly wee us."


    Zhuo Zhihua rubbed her head and said reluctantly, "Although the Great River Kingdom and the Tang Empire have always had a good rtionship, We, ck Ink Garden disciples, came here after epting Divine Hall¡¯s edict after all. His Majesty dare not offend the Divine Hall. And don¡¯t forget, our master is a visiting professor of Divine Hall. If we leave the coalition to the Tang camp, we will bring trouble to our master."


    Cat Girl turned her ck pupils and said, "Senior Sister, you can simply reveal your identity to them. A few days ago Flower Addict, Lu Chenjia, went to the Military camp along with Revtion Institute, and those Yans and Yuelun Kingdom guys were rather honest and respectful. If you let them know that you are here too, they dare not to be so bad to us."


    The ck-hair girl on the rock in the pool said softly after a short moment of silence, "Why would you fight for such meaningless things?"


    ...


    ...


    There was a day when Ning Que came to thekeside earlier than usual. He put down his luggage next to the stone pool and thought that the ck Ink Garden girls should still be resting. So he nced at that ce.


    Then he saw a picturesque view.


    He saw a picture as beautiful as a view.


    In the dawn light stood a girl at the end of a branch diagonally extending towards the winterke.


    The girl was dressed in thin white clothing, with her ck hair casually tied behind her back like a waterfall. Her naked feet stepped on the delicate branch end. The branch rocked up and down gently, as did her body due to the blowing wind from theke surface, It looked extremelyfortable as if it was not the winter wind of the Wilderness but the warm spring breeze blowing on her face.


    Ning Que looked at her quietly and did not make a sound, for he subconsciously did not want to destroy this picture.


    The girl in white clothing who stood at the bottom of an inclined branch seemed to have sensed his eyes on her. So she softly lifted up her white sleeves, instantly disappearing behind the yellow cloth curtain.


    Only that thin branch was still swinging gently in theke wind.


    Ning Que looked at the trembling branch and slowly lifted his brow tips.


    He did not see her face clearly but only remembered that blue ribbon tied around her waist when she disappeared like a ghost.


    Her white clothing was like a cloud above theke.


    Her blue ribbon was like the water in theke.

 Chapter 201: Tomes of Arcane Lost in the Wilderness

    Chapter 201: Tomes of Arcane Lost in the Wilderness


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The girl in white disappeared behind the cloth curtain and never came out again. From early morning tote afternoon, Ning Que looked from time to time into the direction of the mountain stream, his neck and eyes starting to ache, yet he still failed to see the scene of a white cloth with a blue waist again.


    He secretly guessed the identity of that girl, but except for his confirmation of her identity as a girl disciple of ck Ink Garden in Great River Kingdom, he could figure out nothing more. So what he could do was only resentfully packing up his bags and returning to the Dongsheng Vige.


    During this period when winter shrouded the Wilderness, the situation in the Northern Yan Kingdom silently but clearly changed. The sporadic fighting between the coalition forces of Central ins and the pce of Left-Tent left a hundred more corpses of cavalry on the Wilderness, which meanwhile prevented all trades between the two parties. Now the determination and the chips of the two parties were quite obvious. Therefore, Chanyu of the Left-Tent Pce sent his messenger unexpectedly to the Central ins to show his intention of conducting peace negotiations.


    As was analyzed by Ning Que, no matter the West-Hill Divine Pce or the Chang¡¯an City, they never regarded the Left-Tent Pce as their true enemy. What¡¯s more, the Left-Tent pce was not the vulnerable one that could be defeated by one blow. Those barbarian cavalries migrating around the winter grass, though suffered losses from the Deste Men returning to the south, didn¡¯t actually feel fearful of the people of Central ins, especially the troop of Yan Kingdom in the east battlefront. Therefore, the coalition forces of Central ins epted the negotiating request of the Chanyu of Left-Tent only after some scoldings and discussion on the surface.


    Since it was necessary to start negotiation, there must be somebody who was responsible for unifying idea and leading the negotiation process. General Xia Hou naturally couldn¡¯t leave the Tuyang City ande to negotiate personally, and the Tang Empire would not allow the West-Hill Divine Pce to be in charge of the affair. So after several rounds of arguing, they finally decided that they all send representatives.


    The trial attack and defense in the wilderness had nothing to do with Ning Que, and the oning negotiation had nothing to do with him either. Although the top leaders of the Yan Kingdom Army knew he had a terrifying background, after all he did not have any military identity. In fact, his current status had made him qualified to conduct the negotiation on behalf of the Tang army. However, how could those strategists from the General¡¯s Mansion of Tuyang City dare to let him take a risk in the Wilderness, just like what they did in the past two months.


    The North wind was roaring outside the window yet inside it was warm. Ning Que was focused on reading books beside the table by a dim light.


    The captain looked at him and said, "Three days ago, some guys camouged as a trade team and fled out of the Tuyang City. Their target might be the Wilderness. Although peace talks will be started, the ban on trade has not been lifted. I do not know what these people are anxious about. I always feel they are not spies in the Military camp."


    The captain, as a secret guard of the Tang Empire, began to follow Ning Que¡¯s lead after knowing his identity. Normally a secret guard should only report what he confirmed rather than spected. However, at the thought of the strange trade team of Tuyang City, he finally failed to hold his mouth and probingly said, "I heard... general Xia Hou is the visiting professor of West-Hill Divine Pce."


    "Don¡¯t probe like a twat. I don¡¯t know what His Majesty wants to do. And it is also unnecessary for you to know what secret task His Majesty has given me to the Wilderness in the North of Yan Kingdom."


    Ning Que put down the volume of books, looked at him and shook his head, saying, "The whole world knows general Xia Hou is the visiting professor of West-Hill Divine Pce, so what? Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword, is also a visiting professor of the Divine Hall, and my master is a Great Divine Priest of the Divine Hall. Our Tang people believed in Haotian, then can we say that it is also sinful?"


    Looking at this subordinate who hesitantly opened his mouth, he smiled and waved his hand, continuing, "If the general Xia Hou wants to meet people from the West-Hill Divine Pce, then any time is ok, but why did he choose the wartime, and choose to secretly do it in the Wilderness of the North of Yan Kingdom? He is not an idiot, so do not think too much. You just continue to watch the Tuyang City for me."


    The captain epted the order and went out.


    Looking at the oil-light me turning faint, Ning Que slowly wrinkled his brows. As he had said earlier, the Tang people worship Haotian. However, it was known to all that the Empire and the Divine Hall were different, or else there would not be the South School of Haotian. As a general of the Empire, Xia Hou should be a visiting professor of the West-Hill Divine Pce... Why was His Majesty so tolerable towards him? Why after so many years, His Majesty suddenly lost his confidence in him? If Xia Hou really colluded with West-Hill Divine Pce underground and attempted to do harm to the Empire, what should he do? And the key point was what the Divine Hall could give him.


    When winter really came, the first snow visited the North of Yan Kingdom, and an Array Tactical Master also visited the Dongsheng Stockaded Vige. The Array Tactical Master had the letter of identification by the Middle Military Camp, saying that because of the bitter chilliness, the Middle Military Camp was afraid that the array tactical on all defense lines of the frontier fortress might be damaged, thus sending him to check and repair the possible damages.


    In the world, the number of cultivators was extremely small, and Talisman Masters and Array Tactical Masters were even rarer. No matter it was in a prosperous city or a bitterly cold frontier, such figures were always honored and respected. On the battlefield in particr, such good Array Tactical Masters could help to strengthen the soundness of military defenses. So this Array Tactical Master was warmly weed bymanders as well as ordinary soldiers.


    General of Dongsheng Stockaded Vige diligently weed the Array Tactical Master into his tent and was preparing to ughter livestock to treat him. But unexpectedly the Array Tactical Master waved his hand to signal for the servant soldiers to leave. After confirming that nobody was around, he seriously asked, "Is Mr.Thirteen here?"


    ...


    ...


    It seemed that the ck ID token couldn¡¯t reflect any light, yet dull darkness revealed no sense of dirty, which looked more like an inky jade having immersed in the Ink Lake of the Great River Kingdom for thousands of miles.


    The two ID tokens slowly approached to each other. When there was only a thin seam between them, they automatically connected as if they were drawn by some suction. Those hidden talismans, which seemed not eyecatching yet were in fact wonderfully and perfectly matched.


    Ning Que looked at the ID tokens and curiously said, "It actually has such a function."


    "ID tokens of Imperial Center Administration are all made for special purposes, and it is even difficult for the West-Hill Divine Pce to make a fake one. So when you see the ID token, you can confirm the identity of its holder."


    The Array Tactical Master from the Middle Military Camp exined to Ning Que with a few words and then stood up to greet a deep bow. He respectfully said, "Qv Xiangge, Array Tactical of MastersImperial Center Administration, greet you!"


    Looking at the gray hair of the Array Tactical Master, Ning Que did not want to ept the greeting. So he quickly propped him up, saying, "I¡¯m just an unofficial personnel of the Imperial Center Administration, so don¡¯t call me master."


    The Array Tactical Master looked at the ck ID token in his hand withment and smile in his eyes, exining, "Master, it is impossible for an unofficial personnel to hold such an ID token as yours. This kind of ID token has very high authority. Except the Master of Nation and charge of the Imperial Center Administration, even the World Wayfarers of the South School have no right to order you."


    Ning Que took the ID token back and put it in the air to examine it for quite a while, yet finding nothing special in it. He thought to himself that the day when His Majesty finally gave him this ID token, he even felt unsatisfied. If this ID token was really so powerful as what he had said, he seemed to have misunderstood His Majesty.


    "Even if not considering my official post in Imperial Center Administration, I was still the 34th generation of disciple of South School of Haotian. Since you are a descendant of Master Yan Se, you are my grandmaster. Then do you want me to kneel down and make kowtow towards you?"


    Ning Queughed and waved his hand, "I know I¡¯m senior in generation, but I never expected it is up to such a high level. Let¡¯se to the point, you must have something important to tell me with this special visit."


    "The Deste Men going south have forced the tribes of the Left-Tent pce to go south too. Anyway, that affair is not important. So after the Divine Hall issued the edict, the imperial court felt it quite strange. Even if they are afraid that remaining forces of Devil¡¯s Doctrine will revitalize because of the Deste Men, it is still unreasonable for them to be so serious."


    "As for the Apologetic Cavalry, it can be understood as the Divine Hall¡¯s demonstrating power to the world. However, besides Prince Long Qing, the Divine Hall has sent other more powerful figures. And many spies from the Judicial Department have hidden themselves in the Wilderness, and we don¡¯t know what is the result. Then what on earth do they want to do?"


    The Array Tactical Master looked at Ning Que¡¯s eyes and seriously said, "The imperial court ordered the Imperial Center Administration to make an investigation about the reason why the Divine Hall got into such a big arrangement. We have arranged many manpowers, which even include personnels of the Divine Hall who are disciples from our school... "


    The end of Ning Que¡¯s brow slightly tilted up when he heard the words, and then he asked, "Our Imperial Center Administration should have personnels in the Divine Hall?"


    The Array Tactical Master nodded and smilingly exined, "Anyway, the South School and the Divine Hall have the same origin. The Divine Hall has definitely sent spies in the South School, then naturally the South School can hide spies in the Divine Hall. So people of South School are natural people of our Imperial Center Administration."


    "You have exined quite clearly, please continue."


    "We spent a month to find out that it has something to do with the seven volumes of the Tomes of Arcane. But master, I¡¯m sorry to say that we have none other evidences than a piece of cloth."


    The Array Tactical Master took a piece of cloth out from his sleeve. From the way of sewing it could be found that the cloth was from the lower edge of the robe, which was torn off by brute force. Then they found there were two dull-red characters on the cloth which was almost as dark as ink: "Ming Volume".


    Looking at the two characters, Ning Que furrowed and fetched his hand out to touch the dark-red characters, saying, "This is a letter written with blood."


    The Array Tactical Master looked at him and whispered, "Ourpanions in the Divine Hall tried all means to send out only this piece of cloth, then no more information was sent out. Perhaps it has been found by others."


    It could be figured out that the spy of Imperial Center Administration in West-Hill who could find such a big secret and moreover send the information out from West-Hill Divine Pce must be of high status in Divine Hall.


    Looking at the two blood characters frowningly, Ning Que asked after a long time of silence, "Just based on these two characters... How can we confirm it has something to do with the seven volumes of Tomes of Arcane? If not, his death is really pitiful."


    The Array Tactical Master answered, "When seeing the two blood characters, nobody in the Imperial Center Administration rted it to the legendary seven volumes of Tomes of Arcane. Then the Master of Nation saw it and confirmed that Ming Volume was one of the seven volumes of Tomes of Arcane."


    Ning Que clutched the piece of cloth in his hand and looked up at his eyes. After a moment of pondering, he asked, "Then how to confirm that the Divine Hall sent powerful men to the Wilderness has rtions with this matter?"


    "Because this volume of Tomes of Arcane is probably held by the Deste Men." The Array Tactical Master answered.


    Ning Que felt puzzled and asked, "The Devil¡¯s Doctrine is born in the tribes of Deste Man, but why the Tomes of Arcane of Haotian were in the hand of Deste Man?"


    The Array Tactical Master looked at him withplicated expression, wondering why this core disciple of the Headmaster of Academy, also the future Master of Nation of Tang Empire, should have no idea about the most famous history of the cultivation world.


    "Master... many years ago, The Deste Men controlled the northern part of the maind and, as is known to all, established the strongest country stretching from the south to the north. Back then, the Divine Hall of Haotian sent the Great Divine Priest of Light to the Wilderness to deliver their sermon, aiming to cover the Deste Man with Divine light of Haotian."


    However, no one had expected that the Great Divine Priest of Light, who were superb in doctrine and of high moral prestige, should go astray in the process of delivering their doctrine to the Deste Man and created an approach of cultivation which was totally different from the main doctrine."


    Ning Que rubbed his head and unbelievably asked, "Is it the cultivation of Devil¡¯s Doctrine?"


    "Yes."


    The creator of Devil¡¯s Doctrine was actually the Great Divine Priest of Light of West-Hill Divine Pce? It was only until now did Ning Que know this secret history, thus feeling shocked inside. He thought to himself. "Finally we were all from one family."


    The Array Tactical Master continued, "The Great Divine Priest of Light is superb in practicing and strict in teaching, and he is most adept at inspiring the mortals. That year, the Divine Hall has put great expectation on him and even lets him take away one volume of Tomes of Arcane. Therefore, when he created the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and became the eternal enemy of the Divine Hall, the volume of Tomes of Arcane was naturally left in the Wilderness and never came out again on the Central ins."


    "Decades ago, the devil sect hidden in the Central ins was totally exterminated by the main sects of the Central ins, and even the mysterious Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine has been chopped into ruins by a sublime being of senior generation with a single sword. However, they still didn¡¯t find the volume of Tomes of Arcane."


    A man had chopped the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine into ruins with a single sword. Listening to these stories of the sublime being, Ning Que seemed to have seen those pictures, and felt stirred in his mind and numb in his skin. But not knowing why, he faintly felt that sublime being probably had something to do with him, or at least had something to do with the Academy.


    "Who¡¯s the sublime being?"


    "I don¡¯t know."


    "... "


    "Since there is no such book even at the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, then there is only one possibility, that is, as early as a thousand years ago, it was already brought to the extremely cold region in the north by the Deste Man. That region is too chilly and remote, and the Deste Man is strong. Even Grand Cultivators at Knowing Destiny State dare not rashly enter the region. So it is still a conjecture. But now, now that the Deste Man migrated to the south from that extremely cold region in the north, of course the Divine Hall will find the volume of Tomes of Arcane back."


    Upon hearing those words, Ning Que finally realized why the imperial court made such judgment on the intent of the Divine Hall. He also believed that the West-Hill Divine Pce, in order to reim the lost volume of Tomes of Arcane, would initiate a bloody war with no hesitation at the risk of thousands of people¡¯s lives, and even send Prince Long Qing or other more important people to risk their lives.


    From imperial monarchs to hawker pawns, all of us in the world knew that the seven-volume Tomes of Arcane were the most sacred ssics of the Haotian Taoism. But few knew what was the seven-volume Tomes of Arcane and what it was about.


    There were many legends about the seven volumes of Tomes of Arcane. Some people said that it recorded the will of Haotian to the world. Some said that it contained predictions about the world. Some said that the book itself was a supreme Taoism vessel condensed with power of heaven and earth. Some even said that mortals could practice cultivation at one look of the Tomes of Arcane, cultivators could break the realm at one look of the Tomes of Arcane, ghosts in the Underworld could be refined and reborn at one look of the Tomes of Arcane and sages could be immortals with one nce at the Tomes of Arcane.


    Ning Que had heard of these legends, but at that time his life had little rtionship with the seven volumes of Tomes of Arcane, so he didn¡¯t care about them. He even didn¡¯t believe that there were Tomes of Arcane in this world. Today, he finally realized that the seven volumes of Tomes of Arcane did exist, yet he still couldn¡¯t believe those legends were true. He thought the seven volumes of Tomes of Arcane were more probably secrets of Haotian Taoism, which recorded some world-shaking and peerless cultivation approaches.


    At this moment, he did not know that his name had appeared in the first volume of Tomes of Arcane.


    ...


    ...


    "The Tomes of Arcane is very important, and everybody wants it. But does it matter to me?"


    After all, he is a disciple of the Second floor of the Academy. Although he was still a bit too weak in state, he didn¡¯t remain too long in the shock and quickly awakened from it because he was more or less influenced by his crazy and proud Senior Brothers and Sisters at the Back Mountain. Then he looked at the Array Tactical Master and asked.


    The Array Tactical Master looked at the outside of the window and said softly to his ear, "Master of Nation asked me to give you a message. It is difficult to find the Tomes of Arcane in the Wilderness. Ordinary cultivators didn¡¯t have any power in the face of the Divine Hall. And after all Master Yan Se is still a Great Divine Priest of Divine Hall, so it is inconvenient for him to do it. You are just at the North of Yan Kingdom, so... "


    "So the task falls on me?" Ning Que stared at him and asked.


    "Exactly. As for the piece of cloth with blood characters, it is sent to you by a specially-assigned person from Chang¡¯an City under the order of the Master of Nation himself."


    Staring at the snowkes floating outside the window, Ning Que kept in silence for a long time and suddenly asked, "What are the Tomes of Arcane like?"


    The Array Tactical Master respectfully replied, "I don¡¯t know."


    Ning Que¡¯s eyes fell on his face and continued to ask, "And size?"


    The Array Tactical Master honestly replied, "I don¡¯t know."


    The eyebrow tip of Ning Que slightly twitched. He forcibly suppressed his anger and continued to ask, "Which volume did the Divine Hall lose?"


    The Array Tactical Master shook his head, answering, "I do not know, either."


    Then he pointed to the piece of cloth clutched in Ning Que¡¯s hand and said, "Maybe the Ming Volume."


    Ning Que took several looks at the cloth and frowningly asked, "Which volume... is Ming Volume?"


    The Array Tactical Master made several coughs. He looked at Ning Que and cautiously said, "As I have said before, I don¡¯t know."


    Ning Que was enraged and said, "You do not know anything, then how can I find it!"


    The Array Tactical Master innocently looked at him and hesitantly said, "I heard that even the Divine Hall doesn¡¯t have the quality to hold the seven volumes of Tomes of Arcane. The Tomes of Arcane are from the Unknown ce, then how can an ordinary one like me to know it?"


    The words "Unknown ce" had made Ning Que¡¯s eyebrow even more frowned. He thought of the half-revealed background of Chen Pipi and those little information he asionally heard in the Academy, then he felt it quite troublesome.


    "Master, you are the future Master of Nation of Tang Empire and the core disciple of the Headmaster of Academy. Every day, you practice cultivation at the Back Mountain of the Academy and can touch many more things than me. Then you should be clearer of the appearance of the Tomes of Arcane."


    Ning Que stiffened and thought, "Every day he was upied with cultivation and shooting arrows at the Back Mountain of the Academy and didn¡¯t care about those secret legends of the cultivation world at all, nor did he have the opportunity to gossip about such things from Senior Brothers and Sisters. Then shall I tell such things to you?"


    After the Array Tactical Master left, Ning Que sat beside the window to see the blizzard attacking from the direction of the Wilderness and pondered for a long time.


    It was until today did he realize that he still underestimated himself after entering the Second floor of the Academy. He had never expected that even the legendary things like the seven volumes of Tomes of Arcane should have rtions with him. If he could know it, he would have induced Chen Pipi to tell him his background with crab porridge and asked for the secrets of the Unknown ce and the seven volumes of Tomes of Arcane.


    Suddenly, he recalled that the General¡¯s Mansion of Tuyang City had assigned people to disguise themselves as trade team to enter the Wilderness, then his eyebrow tip gradually frowned again. Did it mean Xia Hou wanted to get the Tomes of Arcane that had been lost for thousands of years? If so, no matter how difficult it would be, he should make good preparations and arrangements for things he might encounter after entering the Wilderness.

 Chapter 202: Cutting Snow (I)

    Chapter 202: Cutting Snow (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que had never been much of a clean freak for he had grown up drenched in blood and rot. He would do anything in order to achieve his goals. As such, he had never thought that he would die from charging into a camp after not being able to beat Xia Hou with his skills.


    Some might think that it was glory, but he thought it was an idiotic behavior. Xia Hou would be still alive and kicking while you were dead. He might even use your skull as a wine cup. You wouldn¡¯t be able to do much if you were a white piece of bone staring at your enemy with empty holes for eyes.


    This did not mean that he would be a coward against Xia Hou¡¯s formidable strength. He would always take note of this General with all his gleaming medals and seach for a loophole and n every single detail for his inevitable fight against him. He even thought of how to drag Second Brother into this pile of dung even though it was quite immoral of him to do so.


    ording to his analysis, Xia Hou was at the peak state of martial arts. It was equivalent to being in the Knowing Destiny State. Along with Second Brother and Chen Pipi, who were both in that state, they should be able to defeat him. He just had to think about how he can drag them along with him into this war.


    However, before he could think of how to use the Academy against Xia Hou, he heard of news of the seven Tomes of Arcane being lost in the Wilderness. The thought of sneaking into thepany of travelling merchants from Tuyang City worried him slightly. If Xia Hou managed to get the Tomes and break the realm as easily as rumored, who would be able to get rid of him?


    He opened the windows and looked at the blizzard outside. He thought of the enemity between Xia Hou and himself and how he had to get revenge for darkie. He shook his head and said, "I won¡¯t allow such a thing to happen."


    There were over a hundred thousand relief troops from various countries on the North Yan border. Of which, some came from the white towers of Yuelun Kingdom, the Sword Garret of South Jin and the ck Ink Garden of the Great River Kingdom. However, no matter how you see it, only the strong general who had many years of experience fighting wars on the border had the ability to fight against the Judicial Department of the Divine Hall for the Tomes of Arcane.


    Of course, this would only be the case if the Tang empire or the Academy did not show their hands.


    Ning Que muttered to himself, "His Majesty guessed that the visiting professor of Divine Hall is in cahoots with the Divine Hall. Will Xia Hou enter into a conflict with the Divine Hall for the Tomes of Arcane? What can you gain from this?"


    Thinking about things while enjoying the sights would not result in a true solution. But he became more certain of his decision after this.


    Now that all the strong cultivators such as the Judicial Department of the Divine Hall, Prince Long Qing and even the Tao addict, Ye Hongyu, that Chen Pipi feared had gathered in the Wilderness, his appearance at the wilderness would make no difference given his mere No Dobuts State. However, he would still go.


    He would cross the river of rocks and the grasnd covered with snow and react depending on the situation. He would even help the West-Hill Divine Pce and was eeven willing to burn the Tomes of Arcane as long as Xia Hou cannot get his hands on it.


    With nothing happening around him, he closed the windows, stripped off his robes and climbed into his warm and toasty bed. He regreted that he did not bring along the pornographic novel he took from the cave at the Academy. As heid on the heated bed, he agonised over the happenings in the wilderness and how there was no one to tuck him in. He fell asleep shortly.


    The snow outsidended even heavier as he slept. The sky was bright when Ning Que woke up the next morning. He rubbed his eyes as the rays of sunlight pierced through the windows and into the room. The vast whiteness of thends outside the windows made his heart beat slightly faster.


    ...


    ...


    Theke had long iced over. Theke further away had yet to freezepletely. White snow floated on the ice, resembling mounds of beautiful white grass. The branches on the bank were weighed down by snow, which made them look like someone had knitted giraffes paltry white scarves.


    The big ck horse exhaled, hot steam emitting from his nose. The horse tracks left behind an abstract drawing on the snow. Ning Que rode on the horse and felt at ease as he looked at the blue sea covered with snow.


    He only realised that the water had frozen into a a piece of crystal clear jade after passing it. There clean surface had nary a snowke on it. He extended a hand and felt for the wind and understood that this was due to the northen winds getting stronger.


    While he was doing so, the wind brought along with it a several sounds. It sounded like the meeting between a metallic object and something hard and wooden. He stood on the saddle and looked towards where the sounds came from. He could see two figures extending blows from afar.


    He hade to thekeside even though he had decided to enter the Wilderness. Of course, there was a reason for this. It had something to do with the women of the Great River Kingdom by the hot spring. He had yet to decide on a n and did not expect to see this scene so soon.


    He could see a greater distance standing on the saddle and he saw the scene ying out clearly.


    ...


    ...


    Zhuo Zhihua stood up with some difficulty with the help of her junior sister. A stream of blood dribbled from her lips and sttered on the snow.


    An ascetic monk wearing a bamboo hat stood not far away from her. He was barefoot despite the cold weather. He held prayer beads between his thumb and index fingers in his right hand and a metal staff in his left which was stuck deeply in the snow.


    Zhuo Zhihua was the third disciple of the ck Ink Garden and was the strongest amongst all the young people there. However, she was still no match for the ascetic monk. She stared at the monk as she thought of the humiliation she suffered in the Yan Kingdom and today. She said, "The Military camp is one of the coldest and most humid ce and yet, you allowed us to stay. We couldn¡¯t wait to leave and hide away in the Wilderness. Are you still not satisfied?"


    The monk raised his head slowly. The bamboo hat shielded half his face and the only half that could be seen was cold and held no expression. He said, "The general of Yan Kingdom allocated your aodations. What has it to do with the Yuelun Kingdom?"


    Zhuo Zhihua wiped off the blood at her lips with a sleeve and asked, "Why would you want to fight us over this hot spring?"


    "You have used this hot spring for days. It should be enough."


    The reason given by the ascetic monk from Yuelun Kingdom was simple and crude. It was evident that he was more interested in chasing the young men and women from the Great River Kingdom from the hotspring than giving a real reason.


    "We have to be reasonable in all things."


    Zhou Zhihua looked down and tightened her hold of the long sword by her waist. She said in a low voice, "Even young children understand what "firste first serve" means. Do you not understand?"


    The monk replied coldly, "I am a monk. I do not bother with worldly things."


    Zhuo Zhihua adjusted her breath and raised her eyes. Determination shed brightly in her eyes.


    The sadhu noticed that she was prepared to draw her sword and knew that she might use a move from the ck Ink Garden. He frowned and said unhappily, "We are all righteous men and women. Must we fight to death? To be honest, I am but just looking after this ce for Aunt and the Princess. You¡¯d all better get out of here soon."


    Upon hearing the names the sadhu dropped, the determination that shed in Zhuo Zhihua¡¯s eyes dulled. She looked at the yellow cloth curtain behind her subconsciously. The girls behind her became even more silent.


    The aunt mentioned by a monk from the White Tower Temple of Yuelun Kingdom would of course be Aunt Quni Madi, the unreasonable woman of an extremely high cultivation state. The Princess he was talking about was one of the three renowned addicts in the world. The Flower Addict, Lu Chenjia.


    "So what if she¡¯s the flower addict? Does this mean she can take over a ce that belongs to others?"


    Cat Girl said loudly. She looked extremely adorable even while ranting at someone with her face was flushed in the cold and she had on a piece of fur covering her head. It just made someone want tough.


    However, the monk from White Tower Temple did notugh. His face which was shaded by the bamboo hat seemed even darker when he heard how the girl talked about the beloved and respected princess.


    "Young alms giver, do mind your words."


    Cat Girl hurrumphed and walked to Zhuo Zhihua¡¯s side. She said, "Senior Sister, rest a little."


    Then, she took off her shoes and walked forward, holding onto the long sword by her waist. She said to the monk, "I am Cat Girl of the ck Ink Garden. Do teach me something."


    Her girlish and adorable countenance dissipated the moment she wrapped her hands around the hilt of her sword. It was reced by a quite deadly aura. It was a strange sight for those watching to see her hissing as she stepped on the white snow in her white socks.


    The ascetic monk grew solemn. He extended his right hand and started turning the prayer beads between his fingers.


    "Kill!"


    A sharp but clear voice fell from Cat Girl¡¯s lips. A light green light shed from the snow forests. She whipped out her sword quickly and rushed towards the monk, crossing the distance of two men within a moment.


    The monk had no time to defend himself and backed away with a huff. His bare ck feet kicked up puffs of snow along with roots of grass beneath it. The ck prayer beads in his right hand flew up to his chest and started spinning around.


    A light green light shed and disappeared.


    The monk caught his ck prayer beads. There were multiple scratches on the hard beads.


    There was also a deep gauge on his robes. Traces of blood seeped from the torn cotton robes.


    If Cat Girl had managed to cut even a little depeer, he would have died with his guts spilt on the ground.


    Cat Girl held on to her sword and stayed in position. Her chest rose and fell as she breathed lightly. Her cheeks were rosy and her eyes were bright with excitement. It was her first true battle and she did not think she would gain victory.


    The monk lowered his head and looked at the sword mark on his chest. His strong chin trembled in rage. He stared at Cat Girl and said coldly, "You¡¯re just a young girl who¡¯s barely in the No Doubts State. Why are you so cruel?"


    Cat Girl¡¯s "Weing Snow with a Twist" was a secret sword move from the Great River Kingdom. It focused on being sly and decisive without allowing one¡¯s enemy any chance of fighting back. However, to the monk, this move was practically a sneak attack. How would she be able to hurt him if it wasn¡¯t so?


    The monk muttered his prayers and exuded his psyche power. The Qi of Heaven and Earth around him gathered as the fallen leaves and snow on thend rose and began flying around him. The prayer beads in his hands flew up with a woosh and towards Cat Girl¡¯s face.


    Cat Girl could feel the gust of wind heading towards her. She saw the ck prayer beads heading towards her, but could not react in time. After all, she was but just a girl on her first kill. She had thought that she had won and had spared her opponent, and that the fight hade to an end. Who would have thought that her opponent would strike again?


    At this crucial moment, her training by the Ink Lake under the Mogan Mountain kicked in. She gave a clear shout and trekked backwards and did a back flip. In the air, she whipped out her sword and cut at the prayer beads.


    However, the prayer beads which were hurtling at high speed seemed to be alive. It contorted and avoided the sharp de before turning back and wrapping itself on Cat Girl¡¯s sword.


    The prayer beads wrapped itself around the gleaming sword and exuded a great force. Cat Girl could no longer move her sword and cold only watch as the ascetic monk raised his staff and brought it down against her head.


    "Buddha is benevolent!"


    The ascetic monk shouted.


    Cat Girl could not avoid the prayer beads and could only watch as the staff headed towards her red face.


    The girls of the Great River Kingdom screamed in fear and were not able to render any help in time.


    At the yellow cloth curtain by the hot spring, a hand clutching a brush held still, as if it was preparing to do something.


    At this moment, a whistling arrow surprised all of them.


    The arrow appeared like a lightning strike. It passed over Cat Girl and her sword and managed tond in the small area between them and on the prayer beads itself!


    The arrow managed to lift the prayer beads off the sword and into the the trunk of a tree. The end of the arrow quivered, but the prayer beads which were pinned down by it quivered even more forcefully, unable to free itself.


    The sudden turn of events surprised everyone.


    Cat Girl¡¯s sword was freed and she used the opportunity to flip over and move her face away from the staff. The heavy staffnded by her side, causing snow and mud to fly all over the ce.


    The monk from Yuelun Kingdom did not need to turn around to sense that his natal beads had been attacked. His awareness prickled. However, the monk who was used to killing did not care about his enemy hidden in the dark. He bellowed and held his staff with two hands and rushed towards the young girl once more.


    The snow on the forest ground had countless of footprints. A shadow drifted by and a gleam of lightnded on the staff. The monk¡¯s fingers turned colder than the winter gales of the Wilderness.


    He dropped his staff and retreated.


    The gleaming de did not retreat. In fact, it moved forward, tearing through sleeves and cutting sholders before itnded on a throat.


    The monk dropped his hands and did not dare to move.


    Ning Que held on the thin and long podao and looked at the monk that was under it. He said, "Sir, you seem not to understand what benevolence means."

 Chapter 203: Cutting Snow (II)

    Chapter 203: Cutting Snow (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The monk could not wait to smash his staff into Cat Girl and turning her into mush and still wanted to scream that Buddha was benevolent. That was why Ning Que said that he did not seem to understand what being benevolent meant as he held the podao against the monk¡¯s neck.


    The skin on the monk¡¯s neck trembled beneath the de. He looked at Ning Que¡¯s clothing in surprise and said hoarsely, "You¡¯re Tang?"


    Ning Que nodded.


    The monk forced himself to calm down. He looked to the other side of the de and said, "What you have done is called a sneak attack."


    Ning Que did not look at him, but at the snowkes thatnded on the de and said, "If you say so."


    The monk did not expect this answer and was stunned speechless. His shadowed face beneath the bamboo hat stiffened in anger. He said, "Are you going to be unreasonable?"


    Ning Que smiled at him. "You weren¡¯t being reasonable either."


    The monk was speechless.


    Ning Que looked at him and asked, "How shall we end this?"


    The monk¡¯s eyes brightened slightly. He said, "I¡¯m not satisfied. Let¡¯s have a go again."


    Cat Girl who was listening to the conversation from the side said sarcastically, "Aren¡¯t you feeling ashamed? You were the one who made a sneak attack, but said that we crept up on you. Why should we fight you again?"


    Ning Que seemed not to have heard her. He moved the podao away from the monk¡¯s throat. He moved back a distance away from the monk.


    The monk looked at him silently before removing his bamboo hat with his right hand, revealing a bald head covered with green cloth as well alert eyes. He did not know who the young man who had suddenly appeared was and could not sense his state. There were only two possibilities. The young Tangd was of a state way higher than his, or that he wasn¡¯t a cultivator.


    Had he entered the Seethrough State at such a young age? The monk felt that the possibility of this was too small. Furthermore, Ning Que¡¯s impressive shooting and sword skills did not seem to be that of a cultivator. As such, he was pretty certain that he was an ordinary person. If this was so, how would he be able to defeat a cultivator like himself again?


    The monk from Yuelun Kingdom looked at Ning Que and took a deep breath. His dark feet plunged into the ground and melted the snow around it. The prayer beads stuck to the tree by a single arrow shuddered violently before pulling lose. It flew straight at the monk who caught it with his right hand.


    "Go ahead."


    The monk said to Ning Que with a heavy gaze which turned ferocious in a split second. His ck prayer beads spun up in the air. His metal staff followed closely behind, smashing towards Ning Que with a lound crack.


    Dried leaves, snow and mud flew as they sttered in the battle. The Qi of Heavena and Earth rang in dissonance as if it was about to explode.


    Ning Que held on to the hilt of the podao with both hands. The hilt was wrapped with hemp ropes used to absorb sweat. As his fingers grazed over the familiar ropes, he stared at the oing staff and the floating prayer beads without flinching.


    Just as the prayer beads rose to the highest of heights and almost disappearing from sight, he bent his knees slightly and leapt like a snow fox after its prey.


    The distance between the two pulled closer. He flipped and the podao flicked upwards, hitting the prayer beads which were about to wrap itself around the de.


    This was followed by an ear-piercing screech of the two objects rubbing against each other. The sharp de managed to stop the prayer beads from spinning. Ning Que turned his wrist, and flicked the prayer beads away with his podao.


    The prayer beads soared into the air and disappeared within the snow. The monk¡¯s dark face turned pale as he realised that he couldn¡¯t locate his natal beads with his sense of perception. He had suffered an inperceptible injury.


    Ning Que¡¯s first blow was sessful and he wouldn¡¯t stop there. He stepped forward as the podao fell behind him naturally. He twisted and held the hilt tightly with both hands, bringing down the podao with his entire might.


    The de tore through the air and falling snowkes.


    And hit the metal staff that was about to hit his face.


    There was a loud, thunder-like crash.


    A soft tear.


    A deeper cut appeared on the tattered robes. Fresh blood bloomed on the cotton.


    He kicked the monk on his knee with his right leg and twisted his wrist. The slender podao flipped in the air and hit the monk¡¯s throat with force, forcing back the agonized scream that was about to be released.


    The monknded on one knee as blood dribbled from the corner of his mouth and the deep cut on his chest. He looked extremely scary and pitiful. In reality, Ning Que had controlled himself and the monk was in no danger of dying. However, he paled even further after sensing the cold prickling on the back of his neck.


    Surprise, fear and confusion shed through his eyes. He did not understand. Forgoing what had just happened, how did a seemingly normal person manage to get rid of his prayer beads and force himself into such a hopeless state?


    In a matter of seconds, it was clear who the victor was. The young disciples of the ck Ink Garden of Yuelun Kingdom had to cover their mouths as they looked at the monk who kneeled pathetically in the blood soaked snow. They were not pitying the monk, but were surprised that the ordinary looking slender podao had managed to hit the prayer beads, tear through the monk¡¯s robes, his metal staff and the snow in a split second. It had even managed tond on the monk¡¯s throat. There was simply no chance of the monk making a second move.


    What surprised them even more, and was something that they did not uderstand like the monk, was how the Tangd¡¯s de had managed to pick off the prayer beads.


    This has nothing to do with his sword skills. Natal beads of cultivators of the Buddhism Sect were like the flying swords of the Sword Master. They were extremely fast and the naked eye would never be able to pick out it¡¯s trajectory. If one could not see them, they would not be able to predict where it would fly. Even the best sword skills in the world would not be able to pick it out and send it flying. However, this Tangd just managed to do it.


    It was reasonable that the flying arrow had managed to hit the prayer beads from outside the forest as Cat Girl was still fighting with the monk then. The prayer beads were entangled with the River Sword. However, how would they exin this?


    Ning Que held the hilt with one hand and looked at the Yuelun monk kneeling beneath his de. He shook his head and said, "You were the one who insisted on the second match. You cannot me me. We are all people walking on the Taoist path. Must we fight to thest man standing?"


    This was the exact statment the Yuelun monk had told Zhuo Zhihua earlier when he injured her. The young girls from the Great River Kingdom were appeased when they heard him repeating the words to the monk.


    The monk looked up at Ning Que and said hoarsely, "I admit defeat. May I know what your name is, great one."


    Ning Que looked at him in satisfaction. The monk¡¯s eyes held only fear and confusion but not hate. However, he was not satisfied with the question, which seemed like it came from a Wuxia novel. He frowned slightly and said, "Why would you want to know my name? Are you going to look for trouble with me in the future?"


    "I do not dare." The monk coughed twice and wiped the blood from his lips with his sleeve. "I want to ask my elders when I return. I cannot say that I was defeated by a nameless Tang."


    Ning Que was silent. He considered if he should report the name of his sect.


    The Yuelun monk waited in silence. The girls of the Great River Kingdom waited curiously as well. Even the girl behind the yellow cloth curtain halted her hand and ced her brush on its inkstone.


    Ning Que said, "If the elders of White Tower Temple ask, say that you were defeated by Zhong Da Jun of the Academy."


    The monk¡¯s stiff body trembled when he heard that Ning Que was from the Academy. His voice wavered as he said, "So you are from the Academy. This lowly monk was too daring."


    "You asked for my sect, and I¡¯m sure that the Yuelun White Tower Temple and even the Divine Hall will use it against me in the future."


    Ning Que looked at the green cloth covering the monk¡¯s bald head and said, "It is a pity though. I am a student of the Academy. I¡¯m sure that everyone would agree that there is no one who can go against the Academy as of yet."


    The monk¡¯s trembling got even stronger. He said, "This lowly monk does not dare to have such thoughts."


    "It doesn¡¯t matter if you have them or not. The Academy has always been a ce that values rules and being reasonable. The first lesson that we learnt was on etiquette. That is why I cannot help but to butt into things that go against rules and are unreasonable."


    "For a monk who is barely into the No Doubts State, how dare you be so ruthless. So what if it¡¯s the Flower Addict. Can you all just take over someone¡¯s territory just like that? Quni Madi... That¡¯s the name, now? She¡¯s got to follow the rules too."


    Ning Que thought of the etiquette professor, Cao Zhifeng and Second Brother as he lectured the monk.


    The professor had once said that the rules of the Academy was very simple. Whoever has the strongest fist makes the rules. It is etiquette to follow the rules. Second Brother¡¯s requirements of him on this trip to the Wilderness was simple. He was not to embarass the Academy no matter the situation. In other words, he was only allowed to bully others and not be bullied.


    He had actually said this to the girls from Great River Kingdom. He was just repeating it. However, when one had a sword against his neck, the speech sounded entirely different. The monk from Yuelunk Kingdom did not dare to doubt his words and only listened, aftraid that the hot-blooded Academy student would cut into his neck should he lose grip of his sword.


    "Scram. Don¡¯te back again."


    Ning Que lifted the podao and said to the monk.


    However, he murmured in his heart to his seniors in the mountains of Chang¡¯an and the proud white goose. "Your junior didn¡¯t embarass the Academy. He has started to bully others now."


    ...


    ...


    "Thank you, Senior Brother, for helping us out."


    "You¡¯re wee."


    Ning Que did not travel the Jianghu world openly. He stopped Zhuo Zhihua from bowing in order to save time and said directly, "The name of the Academy will not stop them for long. Even if the White Tower Temple will take care not to antagonise us, they can still give you trouble. Please be careful."


    Cat Girl frowned and said rather unhappily, "Senior Brother, why did you give that guy a second chance to return blows. What if you couldn¡¯t hit the prayer beads?"


    Zhuo Zhihua wondered why her junior sister was still ming the senior brother who had helped them out of goodwill. She was worried that this might annoy Ning Que, and smiled apologetically, "The monk should be a second generation disciple of the Yuelun Kingdom. To think that he lost against senior brother. You must be the cream of the crop in the Academy."


    Ning Que smiled turned rather stiff. He thought to himself, that he might regret it in the future having made a name for Zhong Da Jun in the world just because he was used to hiding his identity.


    ...


    ...


    He led his horse away from the hot springs and along theke. The snow had thickened considerably. Ning Que watched the scene quietly and thought about the battle today.


    Being a gentleman, showing sportsmanship and honour had always been like gas being expelled by humans. It was meaningless. He had given the monk a second chance not because he wanted the monk to ept defeat, but he needed an opponent to try out his de in order to test out his new battle style.


    The experiment could not be done within the Tang military camp amongst his own brethren as he could not bear to bring the knife down on them. It would not work on a true strong cultivator like Prince Long Qing as he might fight with his full strength. The monk from White Tower Temple in the No Doubts State he met today was the best opponent to try out his new skills. He was so suited for the experiment that Ning Que almost trembled in excitement when he held on the the sword hilt.


    He executed two swordys in the battle and noted thtat his speed and acuracy had improved greatly since the City of Wei. But that was not the main point. It was that he had not used any cultivation skills at all. He did not need it for someone like the White Tower Temple monk. This was the basis of his experiment.


    That rainy night at the Spring Breeze Pavillion, Chao Xiaoshu had killed countless of strong fighters from the underworld. The Sword Master from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had used his shadow of sword move and killed and maimed several elite bodygards of Tang. Compared to the average martial warrior, the cultivator is stronger and more difficult to defeat.


    In Ning Que¡¯s opinion, the most important reason for that was that the cultivator was able to control the Qi of Heaven and Earth with his psyche power. His natal flying sword or other weapons was way faster than any ordinary weapon in the world and practically impossible to catch.


    However, this was not an issue for him as he had already entered the cultivation world. He had only ten clear acupoint and had barely any potential for it, and could not exert much control over the Qi of Heaven and Earth. If he fought with an enemy with his flying sword, he would never be able to win based on just speed and strength. However, despite all that, his perception was excellent and he could sense the slightest change in the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    Not every cultivator can sense the slight change in the Qi of Heaven and Earth. Ning Que was trying to sense it. As long as one could do it, they would be able to know when their opponent would show their hand and how their natal item works.


    He had seeded today. This was why he could sense the trajectory of the monk¡¯s prayer beads clearly and in slow motion despite the fact that it could not be seen by the naked eye.


    Being able to ascertain the trajectory of one¡¯s opponent¡¯s natal item was only the first step. Using this battle style, Ning Que has to shorten the distance between himself and the cultivator in order to engage in closebat.


    It was just like what he told Situ Yn the other day. To him, most of the cultivators in the world stuck in their world of meditation and flying swords. They could practically be magicians, but they didn¡¯t know how to be executioners.


    Other than the strong fighters in the Peak state of Martial Arts and Devil¡¯s Doctrine, all cultivators have a fatal problem. Their physique was way weaker aspared to their abilities. If they didn¡¯t have any strong escort servants, death would be their only way out if they met his swordy which he honed over the years.


    Ning Que¡¯s had thought of this battle style due to his cultivation potential. Before he became a divine talisman master and copied many infinitive talisman, he had to think of other methods to defeat those of his same cultivation state or even higher. This had something to do with what Master Yan Se said to him before he left Chang¡¯an.


    Master Yan Se had looked at him calmly and said, "Even if you could kill all enemies within a mile with your flying sword, it would be nothing if they can protect themselves within a foot." Even someone like Liu Bai can do nothing if your Second Brother gets close enough. That is why it is important to mind the one foot of distance within yourself.


    The sword may travel miles, but it is not as important as the feet within yourself.


    Ning Que held on the the horse¡¯s reins and the two stared at the snow by thekeside.


    He stared at the miles ahead of him, pulled out his sword, and cleaved a single snowke that floated before him.

 Chapter 204: ID Tokens and Transfer Orders

    Chapter 204: ID Tokens and Transfer Orders


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    After Ning Que left, the young girls from the Great River Kingdom were talking about the previous events with excitement. With her feet bathing in the hot spring, Cat Girl said happily, "Brother Zhong was actually a disciple from the Academy. No wonder he was so good!"


    Zhuo Zhihua nced at her with a smile, "I already guessed that. After all, the Hill Master ordered us to treat him with great hospitality. If anyone else hade, she would have sent them away."


    She sighed, "Thanks to him, we needn¡¯t give up this spring. The Yuelun Kingdom and Yan camp should be sufficiently intimidated, so won¡¯t send people to force us to leave."


    Still thinking over the details of the fight, Cat Girl raised her head, her feet ying with the water, and asked out of curiosity, "Brother Zhong defeated that awful monk without using any of the cultivation techniques he has learned. I can¡¯t sense any fluctuations in his Psyche Power. Is he still considered a cultivator?"


    Zhuo Zhihua was taken aback a little, but then said, "The rumors say that there are no talented people in the Academy this year. Even the most advanced student of the course of magic skills, Mr. Xie, only just achieved the No Doubts State. Perhaps Brother Zhong was unable to cultivate because he was not in that course?"


    She hesitated, because she didn¡¯t really believe that any average student who couldn¡¯t cultivate could kill a monk from White Tower Temple only with the help of normal weapons.


    The yellow cloth curtain was hidden in a secluded area. The hot spring sporadically let out clouds of steam that lingered in the air. The sunshine filtered through the woods, covering everything with a glimmering light. A girl in white was writing slowly, as if she heard nothing of the conversation. As her pen moved, her silky-smooth ck hair fell from her shoulders.


    Suddenly, the peace was broken by the arrival of a letter from the Yan camp.


    ...


    ...


    Having considered the different techniques used by other cultivators, Ning Que believed in the principle that any cultivation that can¡¯t help you beat your enemy is worthless. He was among the best, especially when he confronted a less well-trained cultivator, but his state of cultivation was still just average.


    If he was asked now to go back and redo the bloody fight at Spring Breeze Pavillion with Chao Xiaoshu, it would be far easier to fight against the swordsman from South Jin and the monk of Yuelun Kingdom, and if he was asked to again kill the Sword Master at the cottage beside theke, he wouldn¡¯t suffer any terrible injuries.


    But of course, if he met the most powerful Grand Cultivators of Knowing Destiny State, Prince Long Qing, or Wang Jinglue, he knew he would be defeated immediately without any chance of victory, no matter how fast he reacted or how threatening his fighting methods were.


    Even if it happened in the Wilderness, Ning Que knew how he would react. He had some techniques he could use to save his life, such as his excellent ability for Talisman Taoism, or the silk purse Master Yanse had given him, or even the Primordial Thirteen arrows which contained the concentrated wisdom of all the students at the back mountain of the Academy.


    After his calm and objective assessment of his ability, Ning Que could clearly see how dangerous a trip to the Wilderness would be. He knew that it was very unlikely that he would be able to get the Tomes of the Arcane from any of the more powerful cultivators, who would surely be the best of the best inbat. However, there was still the distinct possibility to hinder them without drawing attention to himself and causing some trouble for Xiahou.


    He was going to hide his real identity and treat this trip like a holiday. If he did infuriate an unworldly sublime being and had no chance of escape or ce to hide, he would resort to hisst two ways to save his life, which he had wanted to keep secret.


    "Sir, you said you want to go alone? I will not let you unless I am dead."


    The man who dared to speak was a captain of the General¡¯s Mansion, but actually, he was also a secret guard of His Majesty. At this moment, his face was full of anger and determination. He swung his sword around elbarotely before pressing it against his own neck.


    "If you are so determined to go to the Wildness alone, you must kill me first."


    Looking at his captain, Ning Que shook his head helplessy.


    The administrative divisions of the Tang Dynasty were very clear and with strict boundaries. Although the Imperial Center Administration and the secret guard were both directly controlled by the King, there was no interaction between them. Thus, the captain had no idea why Ning Que wanted to go into the Wilderness.


    Ning Que cared more about how he could Travel through the Wilderness in a way that would be safe and easy to withdraw from than about the captain¡¯s opinions. The most direct way would be to travel to the pce, then cross the Hn Sea and find the Deste man¡¯s tribe, where he can enlist thousands of the best soldiers. But with such a grand escort, it would be impossible to look for the Tomes of Arcane without general Xiahou discovering his actions.


    It would certianly be heroic to go through the Wilderness alone. However, even though he was very confident in his ability and his familiarity with the Wilderness, he knew he would be easy to take down. After all, going towards the pce was like telling the Judicial Department of the Divine Hall and all the spies from thepeting parties just how confident he was.


    Only a sun that never set was justified in such confidence. If he showed up with such an image, he would immediately attract everyone¡¯s attention, and his true identity would be discovered. If the other parties knew that he represented the will of the Tang Dynasty and the Academy, even if they didn¡¯t kill him, they would have thousands of ways to restrict his movement, leaving him no possibility to reach his goal.


    That was what the General¡¯s Mansion at Tuyang city had done, giving him soldiers to escort him, who actually hold him back, travelling around the outskirts of the Wilderness. That was what the captain, with his knife on his shoulders and his angry expression, was doing right now. Ning Que looked at him, frowning, thinking about other things.


    "What would be the best way to travel through the Wilderness?" he asked.


    The captain was saddened. He had put his sword to his neck, but his master didn¡¯t care at all and insisted on continuing to the Wilderness. He even asked for his advice! Maybe it would take a serious injury to get his master¡¯s attention.


    Suddenly, Ning Que¡¯s face lit up, as he remembered the yellow cloth curtain at theke. He raised his head and said to the captain, "There is a student of the Academy, Zhong Dajun. He is training at the frontier fortress. He is currently at Chengshan Camp, where we has been for a couple of days now. I want you to imprison him. He must not be allowed to have anymunication with anyone. You must do this without giving any notice. Can you do that?"


    The captain was still holding his sword to his neck. He started to feel stiffness in his neck, and suddenly realised that his actions had been ridiculous. He said unhappily, "No problem. But master..."


    Ning Que waved his hand towards him and said, "Don¡¯t try to stop me. I am not scared of dead people, nor those who wish to die."


    The captain was hopeless. He was regretted working for such a cold-hearted boss.


    Ning Que looked at him and said, "You are holding the sword in your right hand. If you really want tomit suicide, you should put the de nearer to the right side of your neck."


    The captain lowered his head out of shame, then ran out of the room with his hands covering his face.


    Ning Que shook his head. He put his hands in his pocket and spent a long time going through all the ID tokens he found within. He wondered when he had be Doraemon.


    He had more ID tokens than secrets.


    They were ID tokens for the Academy, the Secret Guard, the Fish-dragon Gang, the Imperial Center Administration and even from Third Sister Yu Lian. They were mostly made of gold, wood, or stone, and presented a colourful pile on the table.


    "What would be the best way to arrange these ID tokens, I wonder?"


    He was pondered the ID tokens. The one for the Secret Guard would be useless. But the one for the Imperial Center Administration could be used tomand the Tang Dynasty¡¯s secret spies in the left tent of the pce. And if he found himself in a dangerous situation, the ID token of the Academy could definitely be used.


    ...


    ...


    The honourable Aunt Quni Madi and the famous Flower Addict Princess Lu Chenjia wished for a hot spring bath, a reasonable request. However, the spring was already in use by the girls of ck Ink Garden. A fight soon erupted.


    Both sides were cultivatorsing to help Yan follow the order from the West-Hill Divine Pce. Those sent from the ck Ink Garden of the Great River Kingdom were just students. The White Tower Temple of Yuelun Kingdom sent Aunt Qu, together with the Flower Addict Princess Lu Chenjia, who had a romantic rtionship with Prince Long Qing of the Judicial Department of the Divine Hall. It was clear who both the Yan and the Divine Hall would back.


    Ning Que defeated the monk from the White Tower Temple and saved the hot spring for the girls from the Great River Kingdom. However, soon after, a very hard mission fell on the shoulders of the girls.


    The countries of the Central ins wanted to reach peace with the pce of the Left-tent. To show their sincerity, the Divine Hall asked every country to gather some food and send it to the Wilderness to help the tribes of the pce survive the winter.


    However, even the most foolish people knew that it was not wise to help your enemy. Therefore, very little food was collected. After all, the food was just a gesture of goodwill. And that was why the gift would only arrive at the most freezing part of the Winter. It was cold and dangerous in the Wilderness, so sending the food was a very hard mission indeed.


    The mission became harder when the general¡¯s camp of allied forces decided to send only a few soldiers to escort the food, out of concern for their own defence.


    It was the girls of the ck Ink Garden from the Great River Kingdom who got the mission.


    Since they needed to follow the soldiers to escort the food, the girls would not be able to enjoy the warm spring or the beautiful scenery. They would be too busy with the responsibility of protecting the food.


    Cat Girl said angrily, "That is too much! Let¡¯sin to the Divine Hall."


    Another girl replied sadly, "What if this is what the Divine Hall wants us to do?"


    Cat Girl opened her eyes wide. She didn¡¯t understand the words of her Senior Sister. She could not understand how the fair, just Divine Hall of Haotian Taoism could decided on such an evil and unfair course of action.


    Zhuo Zhihua said, "Prince Long Qing will be the husband of the Princess of Yuelun Country. Based on that, who do you think the Divine Hall will support? Although we don¡¯t have enough proof, we can still guess the reason behind this order." The Aunt from Yuelun Country always bears grudges. She resents Senior Brother Zhong, but he is a student of the Academy and now a member of the Blue Water Battalion at Dongsheng Stockaded Vige. Because she is unable to fight with him, she has chosen to pick a fight with us. She just wants to show her pride."


    The girls at the Great River Kingdom grew worried when they thought about the danger they would meet on their long journey. They turned to the girl with ck silk hair.


    "Hill Master, it is time that you speak up for us."

 Chapter 205: Mo Shanshan Has No Mountains in Her Eyes

    Chapter 205: Mo Shanshan Has No Mountains in Her Eyes


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "Say what?"


    Without turning around, the young girl in ck hair spoke in a much steadier manner. Thus, she looked unusually calm, as if no sentiment could be felt from her.


    Zhuo Zhihua and Cat Girl nced at each other and both felt helpless. Zhuo Zhihua paced a few steps forward and said in a low voice, "I think the Divine Hall won¡¯t be so partial to the Yuelun Kingdom if they know that the Hill Master is here."


    The girl picked up her brush again and silently wrote on the desk. Then she said, "Now that we are summoned by the edict of the Divine Hall to help the Yan Kingdom, it¡¯s a natural thing to ept an assignment. How could it be called as being partial?"


    Zhuo Zhihua worriedly said, "That pce is deep in the Wilderness. If we meet horse gangs, guerris or some people with malicious intentions when we escort the provisions and fodder, what should we do?"


    Raising her brush and then dipping it for more ink, the young girl in ck hair gently said, "So what?"


    Having apanied her in the Ink Lake for many years, Zhuo Zhihua knew this was her temperament. She was just addicted to books and calligraphy and cared little about most of worldly things, but she wasn¡¯t cold nor unfeeling. However, the students of ck Ink Garden were facing an extremely dangerous situation right now. As the only person who could redeem the situation, she couldn¡¯t keep being unaffected like this.


    Zhuo Zhihua, with slightly clenched fists and severely looking at her long ck hair, said, "If Hill Master doesn¡¯t speak for us, we may die in the Wilderness. Maybe you could survive, but I would definitely die and so would Cat Girl. If that happens, those shameless and insidious people would feel happy and joyful about our deaths. The Yuelun Kingdom, which always wants to bully and oppress the people of our Great River Kingdom, may even celebrate it across the country."


    The ck haired young girl beside the desk put the brush with full ink back on the inkstone. After a short silence, she ced her hands into her sleeves and peacefully said, "Why would we die?"


    Listening to her words which were as usual, Zhuo Zhihua became more anxious and said with a helpless smile, "Because we are not strong enough to rival our enemies."


    The ck haired young girl calmly said, "If all students of our ck Ink Garden improve their states and then be cultivators of the Seethrough State, or we have another Grand Cultivator in the Knowing Destiny State like our master, who would dare be so rude to us, even if we are deep in the Wilderness? Who would dare frame us with such absurd tricks?"


    Zhuo Zhihua was shocked and didn¡¯t know why she said these words at this time.


    "The students of the ck Ink Garden are not powerful, so we are always bullied by other people and will be afraid of death when facing such kind of situations. If we are strong enough, we won¡¯t be fearful nor would we be bullied by others."


    The voice ck haired young girl was straight and smooth, like a thin ice on theke surface, without any fluctuations.


    "If one wants to be powerful, it¡¯s necessary to have the guts to face difficult experiences. Why no one in the world dares to look down on the Academy of Chang¡¯an? Because even theirmon students have to take part in battlefield practice and ept the life-or-death tests in the most dangerous ces."


    "When facing trouble, don¡¯t always count on me to speak for you. In the eyes of worldly people and you guys, maybe I have some reputation. However, you don¡¯t know that in this world, reputation is the most powerless thing. Strength, just like ink, is alwas only rtive to itself."


    Standing beside Zhuo Zhihua, Cat Girl looked at the young girl in ck hair and confusedly asked with frowning eyebrows, "But Senior Sister, your state is already so high, is it not powerful enough?"


    "The top of the Seethrough state...it indeed sounds seemingly powerful."


    The ck haired young girl peacefully said, "Wang Jinglue of Tang is named Invincible under the Knowing Destiny state; Prince Long Qing is just one step away from the Knowing Destiny state; the Tao Addict Ye Hongyu, she could even make Prince Long Qing fear. Compared with them, is the top of the Seethrough state something powerful?"


    Those three people were the mightiest figures in the younger generation. Her calm and cid mention was not only a warning to her peers, but also revealed her estimation that she naturally had a qualification topete with these three people.


    Listening to her statement, Cat Girl stretched her tongue out and said, "Senior Sister, your analysis is unreasonable. Even if the three people have a high cultivation state, they are also simr to you. If we are speaking of those stronger figures... maybe we can consider only those Grand Cultivators of the Knowing Destiny State. However, those Grand Cultivators are rarely seen in front of us, because they are the Great Divine Priests of the Divine Hall or great masters of different sects. Perhaps amon person would never have a chance to see any of them in his whole life."


    What the little girl said was indeed right. The Grand Cultivators of the Knowing Destiny State were like celestial dragons in the world, which were known but unseen bymon people. Sometimes they would appear in the clouds, and then they would suddenly hide in deep mountains. So it was very difficult to encounter them.


    If these remarks were heard by Ning Que, he definitely wouldn¡¯t agree. Those people whom he contacted and consulted with every day, like Second Brother who wore a wooden club over his head, Chen Pipi who fought for crab porridge with him, his master who stayed in the brothel every day, Chao Xiaoshu who had gone travelling, the Master of the Nation, the emperor¡¯s younger brother, Professor Huang He, not to mention the Headmaster of Academy and his Eldest Brother whom he had yet to meet...


    Grand Cultivators of the Knowing Destiny State? What was the difference between them and those cabbages seen everywhere in the field?


    The ck haired young girl had made up her mind, so other girls of the Great River Kingdom could only keep their many thoughts to themselves and made preparations to set off. However, Zhuo Zhihua, standing beside the riverke, unavoidably showed a worrying expression, as she looked at the distant, mysterious and dangerous Wilderness where there clouds were gathering and winter snow fell.


    They came from the southern continent and had never been to the Wilderness before. They had not yet experienced the food, climate, geography and culture of the Wilderness. Although the united army assisting Yan sent tour guides for them, how could they be reliable? Who wouldn¡¯t feel scared when having to enter a totally unknown world without any assistance of external forces and their own sect?"


    Cat Girl, who was still very young, cared less about these things. She was angry at the unfairness of the Divine Hall and the impudence of the Yuelun Kingdom, but she wasn¡¯t afraid of entering the Wilderness. She believed that there wasn¡¯t a real danger as long as her Senior Sister was with her, so she still had the mood to remember the Osmanthus Cake made by the Lotus Store in Chang¡¯an. In addition, she trotted along the river and said goodbye to Ning Que on such a snowy day.


    After listening to her about what the students of the ck Ink Garden faced, Ning Que kept silent for a while and then smiled at the little red-faced girl. His soft smile was filled with many hidden emotions, such as a kind of self-praise.


    Cat Girl looked at him and suddenly said, "Senior Brother, you smile so horribly."


    Ning Que was shocked and asked, "Is my smile not gentle, honest, kind and natural?"


    Cat Girlughed with a "GeGe" sound, which went along the riverke and caused several snowkes to fall down.


    Ning Que looked at her, trying to make his smile look more casual and kind. Then he said with an even more casual and kind tone, "It¡¯s such a coincidence that I also need to enter the Wilderness for some affairs."


    With her eyes glistening, Cat Girl looked at him and said, "Senior Brother also needs to enter the Wilderness?"


    "Yes."


    Cat Girl eximed with worship, "You going alone? You are so amazing!"


    "I am familiar with the Wilderness."


    Ning Que, who seeded in winning the little girl¡¯s trust with Osmanthus Cake, slightly smiled. He recalled his experience as a travel guide in the Wildernessst spring. It seemed that this winter he would be a guide again while returning to the Wilderness.


    Ning Que sessfully guessed that the young girls of the Great River Kingdom may have been discriminated and suppressed, but the guessing actually relied more on luck, rather than analysis. He wasn¡¯t a celestial from the heavens, so it was impossible that everything happened as he thought.


    Cat Girl took him to the camp of the ck Ink Garden and told Zhuo Zhihua about his n of tagging along. Zhuo Zhihua slightly frowned and confusedly asked Ning Que, "It seems inconvenient, since Senior Brother Zhong is a student of the Academy."


    In most stories told in novels, when you intended to go somewhere and suddenly encountered someone who happened to have the same route as yours, the person was perhaps an evil guy or a fugitive. As long as you had some life experiences, not like the naive and innocent Cat Girl, you would certainly feel that something wrong was hidden behind this kind of coincidence.


    Ning Que was a Tang man that the Great River Kingdom people liked, and he was a student of the Academy. In addition, the rtion between the young girls of the Great River Kingdom and Ning Que gradually became close after they shared food these days. What¡¯s more, he saved them by attacking a monk from the White Tower Temple. Considering these things, Zhuo Zhihua wouldn¡¯t like to connect anything evil with Ning Que, so she chose a roundabout way to refuse him.


    Ning Que asked, "Why is it inconvenient? Are you worried that the Divine Hall would be displeased if they know a Tang man was mixed in?"


    Zhuo Zhihua slightly lowered her head, which meant ¡¯Yes¡¯.


    Ning Queughed and said, "It could be solved if I dress up as a student of the ck Ink Garden."


    Looking at the students of the ck Ink Garden who were packing up their luggage not far away from him, Ning Que couldn¡¯t believe that the Master of Calligraphy would be at ease to send a group of inexperienced young boys and girls to frontier fortress for practice.


    "Since you¡¯re just sending provisions to the Wilderness, I think nobody would care to inspect me in the group during the journey. As to my identity being exposed... I think the younger brothers and sisters of ck Ink Garden are worth trusting."


    His tone was peaceful and gentle, but it had an irresistible force. This was the power of words. He directly skipped the reason why he went there, and just talked about something of the joint journey, leaving the core of the discussion behind.


    Zhuo Zhihua couldn¡¯t say a word and didn¡¯t know how to answer. She thought that if she refused the seemingly warm-hearted senior brother of the Academy in a tough voice, it might offend him.


    Ning Que smilingly looked at her and said, "Is there another problem?"


    Right at that moment, a peaceful but tough voice was heard from behind a yellow cloth curtain.


    "The problem is the reason why you need go to the Wilderness."


    The yellow cloth curtain was raised, and the young girl in white slowly walked out. Her white clothes, ck hair and that wide blue cotton belt around her waist made the whole dressing iner and neater.


    Ning Que recognized that she was the young girl who stood by theke and quietly viewed theke scenery that morning. Without saying more, he just smilingly bowed in greeting, with hands folded in front.


    The ck hair of the young girl in white was randomly but neatly spread on her shoulder. Below her long and slightly sparse eyshes, her peaceful eyes seemingly looked at somewhere without a precise focus. She looked a little indifferent, with no expression on her round white face. Her thin and red lips were like a straight line, as if her expression was made of wood.


    No matter her eyes,plexion or expression, none of these could be said to be of unrivalled beauty, but she looked very beautiful when all these features werebined together. Ning Que, whose adjective stock was scanty in his brain, only could quietly look at her and highly praised her in his deep heart, after failing to think of more precise words.


    The most attracting part was her eyes, which didn¡¯t shift or move but no one knew the point she was looking at. Therefore, she appeared a little dull and indifferent. Ning Que spent a long time retracting his sight from her eyes, to then pay attention to other details.


    There was a lovely pink hairpin in her ck hair. Due to the cold weather, her nose was slightly red. This kind of loveliness, after all, diluted her dullness and indifference to a certain degree.


    He repeated the girl¡¯s question, "Why am I going to the Wilderness?"


    The young girl in white was waiting for his answer silently, with her eyes seemingly on him, or the tree behind him.


    Ning Que felt a little displeased due to her scorn which seemingly hid behind her eyes, and then he said, "Why go there? Because I was very bored in the Dongsheng Stockaded Vige. What about this reason?"


    Obviously, it was aimed as a taunt.


    However, the young girl in white wasn¡¯t irritated, and still kept staring at him, or at the tree behind him.


    Ning Que suddenly felt that, aside from Sangsang, there was another girl who could defeat him in this world. He just helplessly shook his head and self-mockinglyughed, "I admit that it¡¯s certainly not a good excuse, but I believe you should also believe that I wouldn¡¯t hurt you.


    "I am familiar with the Wilderness, so I can give you some convenience to a certain degree if I go with you. For me, I need you to help me cover my identity. Therefore, a joint travel is a win-win choice."


    The young girl in white finally said a second sentence, but it was the same as the first one in essence.


    "Why?"


    Ning Que gently said, "Our two countries have maintained a good rtionship for generations, so it is a natural thing to join hands between the Academy and the ck Ink Garden."


    The young girl¡¯s third sentence was the same question, without any change whether it was expression or tone.


    "Why?"


    After seeing her keeping silence for a long time, Ning Que was defeated in the end, and then he hinted at Zhuo Zhihua to take Cat Girl away. When only he and the ck haired young girl were there, he carefully exined, "The Divine Hall was interested in the Wilderness and the Deste Men, so was my Tang country. In this case, the Academy needs to make its voice heard after all."


    The young girl asked without any expression, "Why would you hide your identity?"


    Ning Que exined with a sigh, "Because the Academy just wants to have a look. Besides... I am a senior secret agent of the imperial court. Of course, a secret agent should execute tasks in secret."


    Thetter part of the sentence was obviously in bber, but for some unknown reasons, the nonsense unexpectedly made the girl in white believe his words. With her long and sparse eyshes slightly blinking, she continued asking, "What¡¯s the benefit for my group?"


    "I represent the Academy, so no matter the Divine Hall or the Yuelun Kingdom, they will restrain themselves more or less if they want to oppress or bully your team."


    The young girl slowly shook her head and said, "They won¡¯t be afraid if you hide your identity."


    After thinking for a while, Ning Que looked at her eyes and said, "If we are in a deadlock situation, I naturally won¡¯t keep concealing my identity. In addition, I believe that for the sake of the ck Ink Garden¡¯s self-esteem, only in that situation would you want my assistance."


    The young girl slowly removed her eyes and looked at the trees by theke, or the thin ice on theke surface. Then she said, "Why should I trust you?"


    Ning Que replied, "The Academy is worth trusting."


    The young girl turned around and quietly looked at his chest and said, "OK."


    ...


    ...


    "What¡¯s your name?"


    "Mo Shanshan."


    "Mo Shanshan from Mogan Mountain."


    Ning Que thought, was that mountain behind ck Ink Garden named Mogan Mountain? (¡¯Mogan¡¯ means ¡¯Ink was dry¡¯ in Chinese.) If the ink was dry, how could Lord Wang, the Master of Calligraphy, practice calligraphy? Wouldn¡¯t that famous Calligraphy Addict cry due to worry?


    "The Academy¡¯s Zhong..." From some unknown reasons, he didn¡¯t want the name ¡¯Zhong Dajun¡¯ to be called from the lips of the young girl in white. So he added, "I¡¯m ranked thirteenth. You can call me ¡¯Thirteen¡¯."


    The young girl Mo Shanshan made a step forward and looked at his face at a very near distance.


    Looking at the nice little face near him, Ning Que felt very embarrassed.


    After observing the slightest expressions on her face, Ning Que was sure that she really didn¡¯t know who he was...


    The young girl Mo Shanshan nodded and patted him on the shoulder like an elder, and then turned around to leave.


    He had no idea that whether she was satisfied or not.


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 206: Behind the Mountain, Behind the Fence

    Chapter 206: Behind the Mountain, Behind the Fence


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Mo Shanshan was feeling both satisfied yet dissatisfied. She was happy that Ning Que didn¡¯t know who she was. That would prevent a lot of noise and troublesome. What she wasn¡¯t excited about Ning Que¡¯s ignorance meant she had to overthrow all her assumptions.


    Feeling conflicted, she didn¡¯t know what to say. So all she did was imitate what her teacher typically did. She patted Ning Que gently on the shoulder and turned around.


    Ning Que looked at her as she left, marveling at the arrogance and coldness of this girl from the ck Ink Garden.


    Noticing his expression, Cat Girl became worried and unhappy that he was misunderstanding her senior sister. But it wasn¡¯t her ce to exin on her senior sister¡¯s behalf so she could only snort angrily and leave.


    "I don¡¯t doubt that Senior Brother Zhong is from the academy. Since he¡¯s from the Chang¡¯an Academy, it¡¯s convenient for us both to do things. There shouldn¡¯t be a problem. But he¡¯s after all a Tang citizen with countless ways to enter the Wilderness. He could go with the Yan army or the imperial court envoy, but he just had to hide his identity and go with us..."


    Sitting by the bonfire at night, Zhuo Zhihua turned to Mo Shanshan beside her. With her eyebrows furrowed, she whispered, "Regardless of his exnation or how much influence of Tang imperial court and the Academy exert, this must be no small matter. Our Great River Kingdomcks power. If we get involved, it won¡¯t be easy for us to get out of it."


    Cat Girl shook her head, objecting that reasoning. "What¡¯s there to fear? There are definitely benefits thate with entering the Wilderness with an Academy student. Even if he may bring us trouble, we¡¯re basically carrying a safety amulet with us."


    Zhuo Zhihua smiled helplessly and ruffled Cat Girl¡¯s hair. Though the Great River Kingdom and the Tang Empire have had a good rtionship for generations, the safety amulet could turn out to be a cursed amulet should there really be a dispute between the Tang Empire and the Divine Hall as she had guessed.


    Mo Shanshan, who had been listening silently, interrupted just then. "Let him follow my horse carriage."


    Cat Girl pped gently and smiled. She tried tofort Zhuo Zhihua by saying, "With Senior Sister watching, what¡¯s there to worry about? Even if Senior Brother Zhong is a martial master from the second floor of the Academy, he probably wouldn¡¯t dare act recklessly."


    Mo Shanshan gently said, "He¡¯s not a student from the second floor of the Academy... Talking about this, it¡¯s really quite a pity."


    Cat Girl asked in surprise, "Senior sister, how did you find out?"


    Mo Shanshan stared at the flickering fire, her gaze turning distant as if she was looking at somewhere far away. "If he¡¯s from the second floor, how could he have not heard of my name?"


    ...


    ...


    That captain once doubted Ning Que¡¯s identity as a student from the second floor of the Academy due to hisck of knowledge of the secret of the seven Tomes of Arcane. Now Mo Shanshan had also excluded him as a student from the second floor due to his ignorance. If Ning Que knew this, he would have once again regretted focusing only on his cultivation on the Back Mountain of the Academy and neglected other things.


    On the second day, Ning Que rode hisrge, ck horse to the Bi Lan Lake. His horse couldn¡¯t stop shaking its head and expelling warm air carrying his heavy luggage. It looked extremely dissatisfied but didn¡¯t show any sign of copsing under the weight.


    After changing into themon student uniform of the ck Ink Garden and wearing a bamboo hat covering half of his face, Ning Que still wasn¡¯t happy with his disguise. He ransacked his luggage for the mask Sangsang made for him and wore it carefully.


    Mo Shanshan walked out from behind the yellow-clothed curtain. Instead of wearing her usual in white skirt and blue waistband, she had on a loose skirt in the manner of the girls of the Great River Kingdom. She had hidden her beautiful eyes and brows behind the translucent silk cloth hanging from her bamboo hat, obscuring her beauty from others.


    Both Ning Que and Mo Shanshan wanted nothing more than entirely changing their faces. But since they have already seen each other¡¯s faces, they found it somewhat odd to see they shared the same idea.


    They exchanged nces and brushed past each other without speaking.


    In that moment, Ning Que noticed Mo Shanshan¡¯s gaze behind the translucent silk cloth were not entirely focused on him. He couldn¡¯t help frowning. The girl¡¯s face was already behind the silk cloth, yet she was still trying to show contempt for him?


    He scoffed to himself. When it came to feigning indifference and coldness, not even Prince Long Qing was his rival. The girl was just a young one. She better not thinks she could affect his emotions with that kind of nce.


    ...


    ...


    When the students of the ck Ink Garden were done with the preparations, they headed east and arrived beside the tent of the joint armies. They received aid from the Central ins in the form of grain and fodder from the logistics department to support the Left-tent Pce. The joint armies of the Central ins and people of the Yuelun Kingdom understood clearly the true challenges and danger would show up after entering the Wilderness, so they didn¡¯t meet any obstacles at the moment.


    Apanied by the biting wind and cold morning sun, 200 Yan cavalries, over 100 cart drivers, and about dozen ck Ink Garden students from the Great River Kingdom left the frontier fortress together just like that and headed for the cold and vast Wilderness.


    The Yan cavalries guarding the grain and fodder rode in silence while the cart drivers were anxious and numb. The students from the ck Ink Garden rode around them to secure their safety. Besides the grain cart, there were two carriages belonging to the ck Ink Garden. Mo Shanshan sat inside one of them, with Ning Que riding his ck horse and following behind closely.


    After walking more than 10 miles, they couldn¡¯t even see the military tents behind them. Taking off his bamboo hat, Ning Que looked at the mounds of snow piling on the withered grass and listened to the screaming of eagles from somewhere far away. His eyes gleamed with joyful light. He hadn¡¯t seen scenery like this for a long time. Even the chilly air that hurt his lungs gave him a feeling of home.


    Nothing new happened in the following days. The team moved slowly through the Wilderness, leaving behind an impressive cloud of dust. They didn¡¯t meet anyone from the Horse Gang, any soldiers, or any strange events.


    With the Divine Hall assigning this tough task to the ck Ink Garden, they were obviously harboring the intentions to make things difficult for them. So, on the surface, they put on a show of courtesy and granted the ck Ink Garden the highest power. The entire 200 of Yan cavalries and all their carts had to obey the orders of these young girls.


    Shortly after Ning Que rode next to Mo Shanshan¡¯s carriage and said something to her through the window, the arranged Yan guide was dismissed. Then he became the one who decided on their route, selected their amodation, and arranged the timings.


    Under his guidance, the team walked along the hills not far from the Yaozi Sea. Though they couldn¡¯t find water every day, they could at least get adequate firewood. The team got up really early and, by noon, Ning Que would order them to search for a ce for amodation and prepare to rest.


    The leader of the Yan cavalries once objected, finding the distance they traveled each was too short. If they kept walking at this pace, it would be toote by the time they get to the pce. It was one thing to let the tribesmen starve to death, but it would be a big issue if they dyed the negotiations between the Divine Hall and the pce.


    The young girls of the Great River Kingdompletely ignored the leader¡¯s objections. In their view, their master had put this senior brother from the Academy in charge so all they needed to do was obey his order. What else was there to consider? As long as they could enter the Wilderness safely and return happily, they didn¡¯t care if the Divine Hall would be angry.


    Though the Wilderness had already entered winter, the weather hadn¡¯t turned too cold. The withered grasses and branches covered in snow were dreary, it was still an interesting journey for the girls from the south.


    Ning Que had never been to this side of the Wilderness east of Min Mountain, but he can¡¯t say he was intrigued by the scenery or journey. Guiding, searching ces to stay in, observing the wind direction, and examining animal feces were all things he had done countless times.


    Most of the time, he rode hisrge, ck horse slowly and freely. The reins and bridle of his horse were special and allowed it to freely graze the grasses. Ning Que¡¯s body and soul were special too. During this boring journey, his body and soul felt the cold heaven and earth and sought inspirations to break the realm.


    asionally, he would take Cat Girl to hunt some sheep to improve their lifestyle.


    What a great winter view in the Wilderness!


    What a great journey in the Wilderness!


    ...


    ...


    Before and after Ning Que and hispanions entered this Wilderness, there were many more powerful people from the Central ins who came to this mysterious and strange area. Among them were martial masters from the frontier of Tang Imperial, monks from the White Tower Temple of the Yuelun Kingdom, students from the Sword Garret of the South Jin Kingdom, and cold-blooded executioners from the Judicial Department of the Divine Hall.


    Naturally, Prince Long Qing was ranked top among those powerful people, standing on the edge of Knowing Destiny State. No one where he was, what view was he seeing, and what was on his mind at this moment.


    Yet few people knew the true controller of the Judicial Department of the Divine Hall who had oppressed Prince Long Ling to the point of suffocation had already entered the Wilderness alone under the order of the Great Divine Priest of Judgment a few months ago.


    Recognized as the most hardworking cultivator with the most lethal fighting capabilities among the three Tao Addicts in the world, Ye Hongyu was now standing at the top of a white-cloth curtain in the meadow by the Left-tent Pce. She stared north at the night sky without any emotion. Nobody knew what she was thinking about at the moment, but it was most definitely not about Prince Long Qing or her other subordinates.


    Let us rewind to the time when she had just left the Peach Mountain of the West Hill a few months ago.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s red dress was like a fire cloud floating out of a majestic temple.


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgment sat on a throne made entirely of the South Sea dark jade with an indifferent expression. He slowly turned his gaze from the pearl curtain and closed his eyes, asking in a low voice, "How is the Great Divine Priest of Light?"


    When the subordinate divine priest heard the name, his body suddenly stiffened and he bowed his head to reply, "Like usual. He recites the ssic doctrine each day. From the looks of it... there¡¯s nothing different."


    ...


    ...


    The Peach Mountain of the West Hill was also called the God Mountain. The sun shone brightly on its southside, with blooming peach flowers all over. Peach trees grew along its cliff, making the temple seem tall, magnificent, and splendid.


    Yet the north side was a steep cliff. The huge smooth stones looked like they were hacked by God because they had no cracks nor soil. Never mind peach flowers, not even wild grasses could survive here.


    While the wild grasses with the most tenacious vitality couldn¡¯t root themselves here, humans could.


    Countless years ago, some Haotian Taoism fanatics used an original method to open up several steep paths with their bare hands. During this process, innumerable people fell off the cliff and died. Not even their dead bodies were found, but they finally achieved what they wanted to do. Maybe that was why humans were superior to other creatures in this world.


    The middle-aged subordinate divine priest slowly traveled the steep stone path. The huge rock face was like a declining sky standing beside him and giving him great pressure. He could still stand tall before the God of Great Divine Priest of Judgment, yet he waspletely bent over now, like an ant crawling on the path.


    After walking down the path for a long time, the divine priest finally arrived at a ce deep inside the Peach Mountain that was surrounded by clouds and fog all year round. Sunshine couldn¡¯t prate the fog and people couldn¡¯t see their fingers. All they could do was feel the moisture in the environment and listen to the sound of water without knowing where the sound came from.


    Deep into the fog, there was a door. The divine priest kept silent for a moment in front of the door before pushing it and entering.


    A dark world stood behind the door. A faint smell of blood drifted through the dry passage. Dim light spilled on the iron wall, lending a mysterious and strange quality to the beautiful andplicated Fu characters.


    This was the You Prison, a ce most Haotian believers had never even heard of. It was a ce to lock up remnants of Evil¡¯s Doctrine followers and those considered as sphemous sinners by the West-Hill Divine Pce. Only those whose sins were so terrible that they couldn¡¯t be purified by the holy fire were qualified to be locked up here.


    The Haotian Taoism Divine Hall was built on the Peach Mountain. During its existence, no one could escape once they were put in the You Prison. Those powerful enough to escape wouldn¡¯t be arrested in the first ce and those who couldn¡¯t escape had to be separated from light, spending the rest of their lives being miserable and helpless in the dark.


    The divine priest lowered his head and silently walked through the dim passage. He walked for a long time, long enough to think the passage was endless. He thought he was going through the whole mountain when a wood fence showed up in front of him.


    This wood fence appeared very ordinary. It wasn¡¯t made of rare materials or had a Fu written by a Divine Talisman Master on it. The distance between each nk was so wide that a person could almost walk through it.


    Yet it was a wood fence like this that had imprisoned a certain someone for 14 years.


    The divine priest lifted his robe and knelt down in front of the fence. He kowtowed to the old man with thin and long hair behind the fence three times. With a trembling voice, he said, "Greetings, Great Divine Priest."


    The old man behind the fence was reciting from a ssic volume of Haotian in his hand when he heard a voice. He turned around.


    The old man had bony cheeks and a peaceful expression, his eyes sunk in and full of holy brilliance, a brilliance which was peaceful and pure. His eyes had no darkness as if he could see through everything in the world and the deeply hidden darkness in everyone¡¯s facade. His eyes were so very bright.

 Chapter 207: If Light Was Coming

    Chapter 207: If Light Was Coming


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Haotian was the highest and only faith in this world.


    Numerous earthly followers piously devoted their spirits and money to the Haotian Taoist temples all over the world. The Divine Hall located in Peach-Mountain of West Hill was the supreme center that influenced and even controlled these Taoist temples and secr imperial powers.


    The hierarch Lordmander was in charge of West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s sect. And three Great Divine Priests guided the sect¡¯s specific managements, who had extremely strong power, extremely dignified honor and extremely high status. Therefore, they were called as Gods.


    Three Gods were Great Divine Priest of Rtion, Great Divine Priest of Judgment and Great Divine Priest of Light.


    Among them, Great Divine Priest of Judgment was responsible for adjudicating the heresy and arresting Devil¡¯s Doctrine survivors. Under hismand, there were numerous strongmen. And he had the most powerful force and the strongest power exteriorly. Great Divine Priest of Rtion was responsible for understanding the purpose of Haotian, revising the ssics, and remotely controlled all the Taoist temples in the world with Seven Calligraphy. So he had a great secr influence.


    Great Divine Priest of Light was the most unique existence of the three Gods. He was not responsible for specific sect affairs, but had the power to touch all the sect affairs. Anyone who could be Great Divine Priest of Light must be an outstanding person who best understoond the Taoist teachings in Divine Hall, had the most determined faith, and most hated the dark shadows of the world.


    Back to the millennium ago, that Great Divine Priest of Light brought a scroll of Tomes of Arcane into the Wilderness for preaching. He could be described to bear the most arduous and most important historical mission of the sect of Haotian Taoism. From it, people could imagine his status. And out of no reason that Great Divine Priest of Light gave up Haotian to creat his own sect, thus creating Devil¡¯s Doctrined in the world in confrontation with Haotian Taoism. Even if Devil¡¯s Doctrine was harshly suppressed by West-Hill Divine Pce, it still was not eradicated. From it, people could imagine its power.


    The previous Great Divine Priests of Light in West-Hill Divine Pce were all such great figures. So in fact there was no ranking within Divine Hall. But Great Divine Priest of Light was secretly regarded as a head of the three Gods, second only to the hierarch.


    Over the past few years, dictates issued in the name of West-Hill¡¯s three Gods have asionally appeared in the world. But no one outside the Peach Mountain knew, that respected Great Divine Priest of Light was actually imprisoned in the dark You Prison of the Peach Mountain by Divine Hall and has been imprisoned for fourteen years.


    ...


    ...


    A middle-aged Great Priest kneeling in front of wooden fences was difficult to suppress the excitement in his heart. In the past few years, only he could often see the elderly person behind the wooden fences in the world. But each time he was as excited as he first saw the elderly.


    Nowadays he was the most trusted subordinate to Great Divine Priest of Judgment. Even if the two Priests Ye Hongyu and Prince Long Qing would not underestimate him. No matter how high his status became, as long as he went into the dark You Prison and came to the front of the wooden fences, he felt himself as if he was still ad who had juste to the Peach Mountain from the Kingdom of Song Taoist temple in the East Sea. However, the old man behind the fences was still the high-status Great Divine Priest of Light who was highly regarded by the believers.


    The middle-aged Divine Priest believed in Haotian, longing for the light. He was willing, but only willing to devote all love and admiration to the elderly who had guided him to embark on the bright road, even at the expense of his life and soul.


    The elderly man calmly looked at the middle-aged Divine Priest. The wrinkles on his face were as dense as the texture of the wooden fences. He looked very mild on his face, simply having no trace of the wise dignified aura of the Great Divine Priest of Light in those years.


    The middle-aged Divine Priest touched his forehead on the ground and said softly, "Great Divine Priest of Judgment asked about you, so Ie to see you here."


    The old man said, "Even if you don¡¯te to see me, I¡¯d like to see you."


    The middle-aged Divine Priest was surprised and said in a quivering voice, "God, what did you see?"


    The old man slowly turned around and looked out from a tiny ss hole in the room. There were dark fogs outside the hole and no visible sunshine. But he knew it was the north.


    The faint holy light deep in the old man¡¯s eyes gradually dispersed and his ck eye pupil singrly erged to upy his entire eyes. They looked like dustless transparent ck jades.


    "I saw the shadow of night appeared in Chang¡¯an City."


    Upon hearing these words, the middle-aged Divine Priest kneeling outside the wooden fences started to tremble his body.


    The Great Divine Priest of Light imprisoned for many years was still Great Divine Priest of Light. Every word he said had its own truth. For the middle-aged Divine Priest, it almost had no difference with the Haotian dictate.


    Great Divine Priest of Light had no ability to predict the running of all things in the world. It was the divine gift of the Divine Dictate God. However, as the Divine Priest who had the purest and steadfast Taoist Heart and brightness in his hair and blood. He had a very special ability, seeing the real darkness in the world.


    Many years ago, he had seen the shadow of the night drifting from the Wilderness to the Tang Empire. It was with this belief that West-Hill Divine Pce had done so many things in that mighty empire in the north at all costs.


    However, strangely it was after that case that he, who had a high status inside Divine Hall, was instantly surpressed down to the dust. In the face of the fury of hierarch Lord, especially the eyesight of Taoist in indigo, he as a wise mighty person could not do any resistance. Thus he had be a prisoner no one knew behind the Peach Mountain.


    The middle-aged Divine Priest said in a trembling voice, "I should report this matter to Judge God, no, hierarch Lord."


    The old man smiled and looked at him. He shook his head and said, "This hall... "


    Apanied by a deep sigh, the dust on the fence started to fly upwards.


    "And the temple behind the hall... has fallen corrupted."


    The Great Divine Priest of Light, who had been imprisoned for many years out of no reason, was qualified to indifferently criticize toward Divine Hall and even that Taoist temple. However, the middle-aged Divine Priest dared not to reply to the old man even if admiring the old man. He looked up and could not help concealing his excitement after a moment of confusion. He tremblingly said, "You... are leaving?"


    The old man quietly looked at him. His eye sockets have long recovered as ever and the holy glory made his eyes have an aura of more indifference and hollowness. He slightly quivered his withered lips and emotionlessly said, "You will die. Many people will die."


    "There are many people in Divine Hall who, like me, are willing to sacrifice their lives."


    The middle-aged Divine Priest did not hesitate and said with a perseverance, "For light tond on the earth."


    He had been imprisoned for fourteen years. Because of the ckness of the night he saw, he finally decided to flee from You Prison of Divine Hall. The old man quietly watched the middle-aged Divine Priest kneeling outside the fences, as if to see thatd taoist priest whose eyes were full of admiration and worship many years ago. The wrinkles on his face became deeper and deeper, filled with an aura ofpassion and pity.


    ...


    ...


    One night.


    The old man got up and walked to the seemingly loose and low wooden fences. He quietly watched the fences that had apanied him for 5,000 days and nights for a long time, and then said some words.


    "Since I have no confinement in my heart, how can the confinement stop me? Since my Taoist Heart longs for light, how can the light stop me?"


    After this sentence, the elderly man reached for the wooden fences with his hands. His action wasmon and casual, as if not fleeing from the confinement of years but just for leaving home so as to push that squeaky wooden door at home.


    His old fingers touched the wooden fences. The the wooden fences were silently broken into powders and turned into countless grains of shining dust drifting everywhere, and then like a group of fireflies came out of that tiny stone cave.


    ...


    ...


    Great Divine Priest of Judgment quietly sitting on the South Sea divine jade seat suddenly stiffened his body.


    Two tiny spots suddenly appeared in his eyes that were as deep as the sea.


    Puff! Thick blood was spurting from his lips, drenching a crimson gown.


    ...


    ...


    Fireflies came out from the tiny cave and went into the night mist, as if the oil was poured into a bonfire and lit up all the things around, especially those tiny particles in the haze.


    The dark valley that had never seen a light suddenly burned up.


    This burning had no temperature or the power of destruction, only brightness.


    Burning hill fogs instantly spread upward to the south of the Peach Mountain, to numerous Taoism Temples.


    In the deep dark night, the entire Peach Mountain was burning up.


    Especially in the Divine Hall of light, the Taoist sounds echoed,passionate and solemn. And it shone and stood out under the light.


    ...


    ...


    There was a pure white Divine Hall at the highest point of the Peach Mountain.


    A thunderous roar sounded inside Divine Hall.


    Apanied by the thunderous roar, the invisible me in the Peach Mountain gradually died out.


    The roar in the holiest Divine Hall was getting lower.


    The faint roar lingered within it.


    ...


    ...


    In the very far southeast positioned an ind.


    The storm of this ocean was more terrible than the stormy sea. No fishing or merchant ships had been here before.


    There had never been human footprints on this ind before.


    A thin Taoist in indigo was standing on a tall rock.


    Terrifying waves constantly pped the bottom of the reef, uttering thunderous sounds and making the ind rock tremble. However, he seemed to feel nothing at all.


    The Taoist in indigo quietly watched the depths of the sea and soaring hot fogs that were formed by submarine volcanic melting evaporation.


    Suddenly, he seemed to have sensed something and looked back at a far invisiblend.


    After a long time, the Taoist in indigo sighed and shook his head.


    ...


    ...


    That night, fourteen Divine Priests turned into ashes in the light in the Peach Mountain.


    That night, a total of three hundred people were executed in the Divine Hall of Light.


    That night, Great Divine Priest of Light who had been imprisoned for fourteen years sessfully escaped from West-Hill Divine Pce.


    He was the first prisoner in history who could flee from You Prison at the back of the Peach Mountain.


    ...


    ...


    In winter, it was the warmest time at sunset in the Wilderness. The red sun setting over the long grasses at a long distance emitted thest light of the day. Although it could not melt the snow, it added some redness to the cheeks of travelers.


    The sound of flying arrows and sound of a heavy object falling to the ground were heard in the Wilderness.


    People camping here overnight heard Cat Girl¡¯s surprise shout from a distance. "Senior Brother, your arrow skill is so good!"


    Someone picked up their prey. Ning Que fed the Big ck Horse and was ready to take a break. When he passed by the horse carriage, he found Mo Shanshan was absorbed in writing by thest sunlight next to the window.


    "Take care of your eyes."


    He stood by the carriage window and said kindly.


    Mo Shanshan looked up at him with her cold eyes, as if he was like the air.


    They had been in the Wilderness for some days. Ning Que inevitably felt kind of unhappy when he found that this girl was actually so proud as not to see himself with her eyes. He thought that he did not even care about the pride of the Tang Empire¡¯s Princess and how he could be defeated by her.


    So he was also toozy to look at her with his eyes, but squinted her writing by leaning against the window. His eyesight did not fall on the paper, but fell on her face. Then he found that her tiny round face was filled with concentration and selflessness.


    One was most beautiful at the moment when one was serious. Ning Que agreed with this statement. And once he picked up the brush, he often forgot about everything around. So when he watched the girl concentrate on writing calligraphy, his feelings towars her unavoidably improved a little.


    "I never expected that you were still a guy who was addicted in calligraphy. Your writting behavior is quite simr to mine."


    When Great River Kingdom boys did physical activities and were in charge of tenting and pegging, Zhuo Zhihua and other female disciples were piling firewood and cooking. When they listened to Ning Que¡¯sment, they actuallyughed out of no reason.


    They covered their mouths andughed. They looked at Ning Que, but did not tell why theyughed.


    Ning Que felt a little embarrassed. In order to cover up this awkwardness, he looked up at the sky and found that a few grain-like stars appeared on the edge of the Wilderness. He looked at the sunset in another side of the sky and subconsciouslymented. "There is still no moon."


    Inside the carriage window, Mo Shanshan put the brush on an inkstone, following his gaze, and confusedly asked, "What nonsense?"


    Ning Que slightly startled and remembered a few things. His smile gradually floated on his cheeks.


    Mo Shanshan looked at his side face through the window. The breeze in the Wilderness was blowing his hair and inside his hair appeared a cute little dimple. She suddenly found that this guy had such a sincere smile at this time.


    Suddenly Ning Que¡¯s palm catched the window, pushing his body moving upwards. Then he disappeared.


    On the top of the horse carriage, a soft sound was heard. Mo Shanshan looked up, wondering why he did so.


    In the wind of the Wilderness, Ning Que stood in the top of the horse carriage, watching the distant rising dust under the round sunset. He gradually wrinkled his brows and stretched his hand into his lips to blow a sharp whistle.


    Suddenly it became quiet in the camping ground and warrior horses began to stir up.


    ...


    ...


    Apanied by the sunset, Sangsang alone was eating nourishing noodles with fried eggs.


    There was no chopped green onion in the noodles, for she did not like eating onions. The reason why she put onions in it was because someone liked.


    She alone made herself up with Chenjinji Cosmetics Store¡¯s powders in front of a mirror and no longer saw someoneughing at herself beside.


    She slept alone, rolling from the left to the right and from the right from the left. The bed looked a lot bigger.


    On the bed, she kicked her legs and stretched her arms as she wanted and no longer worried about hitting someone.


    The life of a person living in Chang¡¯an City was veryfortable and very ufortable.


    Sangsang lying in bed looked at the tree outside the window and the stars in the leaves, thinking about why there was no moon. What on earth was the moon that young master had said? Where was young master now?


    Maybe because the bed suddenly becamerger and she was not ustomed to it, Sangsang did not sleep well for a whole night like those previous days. She has been tossing until the dawn. Then she yawned and kneaded her little face to get up. She pushed the door open and went to the alley to buy a bowl of hot and sour noodles soup, and then sat on the threshold of Old Brush Pen Shop.


    In the bright light of early morning, she tastelessly ate alone.


    ...


    ...


    In the southernmost frontier fortress of the Tang Empire, it was very noisy there, for numerous caravans were waiting for their entry.


    There was an ordinary horse carriage well-behavedly lining up.


    There was an old man with dry hair and deep eyes in the carriage, who was reposing with his eyes closed.


    He opened his eyes and looked towards Chang¡¯an, a distant city in the north. His eyes were full of gentle and majestic light.

 Chapter 208: Chaos in Changan (I)

    Chapter 208: Chaos in Chang¡¯an (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    All was silent at the southern gates temple at the feet of the imperial city. In fact, it was slightly lonely. The taoist priests and nuns walked along the streets silently, asionally raising their heads to look at the young taoist before lowering their heads quickly.


    The young taoist had a yellow oil paper umbre under his arm. His expression was cid and warm. He was the eldest disciple of the Tang Master of Nation, He Mingchi. Everyone in the temple knew that He Mingchi was a good-natured man. However, they knew that the discussion within the hall must have been very important to have someone of his status visit. Nobody dared to bother him.


    In the depth of the taoist templeid two cushions on the dark wooden floors. Master of Nation, Li Qingshan looked at Master Yan Se who sat across him and said, "Senior Brother, that person should be heading towards Chang¡¯an."


    Li Qingshan would usually return to the looks of his youth, being cheeky and full ofughter, before the Emperor and his respected Senior Brothers. However, his expression was unusually stern and especially serious today.


    Master Yan Se looked at him. His deep-set eyes were devoid of their usual pervertedness. Instead, there was a hidden sadness within them. He said, "God had barely escaped from that god forsaken ce. Why would hee to Chang¡¯an? Who is he looking for? Or is he looking for death?"


    Li Qingshan smiled. "Great Divine Priest of Light from the Divine Hall, the second person of Peach Mountain... Someone like this would want to shake up the entire of this city even if he was here to seek death."


    Master Yan Se spoke after a moment of silence. "The reason. I want to know why he¡¯sing."


    Li Qingshan retrieved a thin letter and ced it on the dark floors. He said, "ording to the Hierarch Lord¡¯s guess, it has something to do with what happened fourteen years ago."


    Master Yan Se frowned and did not continue this topic. It was evident that they did not wish to talk about what happened fourteen years ago.


    "What does the letter say?"


    "It is unknown how he escaped from the divine hall, but he managed to escape confinement. Great Divine Priest of Judgment linked his Taoist Heart with the confinement and was injured by the bacsh. Many other taoists and priests have been injured or maimed. The divine hall deduced that he woulde to the empire and hope that we can capture of killing him at all cost."


    Li Qingshan noticed that Senior Brother¡¯s gaze deepened when he heard that. He paused before continuing." The letter also mentioned that Great Divine Priest of Rtion has taken the strongest warriors of Revtion Institute¡¯s library towards the border. They are willing toe forth to Chang¡¯an to assist us as long as the court agrees."


    "If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that the Great Divine Priest has been injured, and that most of their people from the Judicial Department have been sent to the Wilderness, they wouldn¡¯t send anyone from the Revtion Institute. But I didn¡¯t think that that old man still had the strength tomit such an incredible act after being imprisoned for so many years. If it weren¡¯t for the situation now, he might be able to find the Tomes of Arcane for the Divine Hall if he headed to the Wilderness."


    It was uncertain if Master Yan Se was praising him or expressing his regret.


    Li Qingshan¡¯s eyebrows rose when he heard of the Tomes of Arcane. He said, "The Wilderness and thends above have been in a fervor over this issue. But the tomes have been lost for ages and might not even be in the Deste Man camp. That¡¯s why only the younger generation have been sent to search for it. If you, Senior Brother appear in the midst of man again, you¡¯d definitely have more sway."


    Master Yan Se shook his head and did not pursue the line of conversation. "What did the Emperor say?" asked he.


    "His Majesty wanted him dead long ago since he took advantage of the tumultuous times when His Majesty had just ascended the throne. However, His Majesty had made his stand clear. Even if we wanted to kill him, we can only use our own men. We will never allow those from the Divine Hall into ournds tomit the act."


    Li Qingshan looked at Master Yan Se in silence. "Senior Brother, you were very good friends with him then. Let me handle this matter."


    Master Yan Se shook his head. He said without expression, "Since this is a matter of the sect, there is no need to ask for help from the Academy. We cannot hope to kill him just by the strength of the Southern Gates and the Imperial Center Administration."


    Li Qingshan replied, "We cannot decide on things of this world just by impressions alone. Nothing in the world is impossible."


    "He was stronger than you back then. I believe that he is stronger than before now." Master Yan Se said directly.


    Li Qingshan smiled slightly, "In the "Collections of Huyang" from the Southern gates, recorded several interesting stories. There used to be a Grand Cultivator of the Knowing Destiny State called Nan Jin. He traveled across the Great River Kingdom and was killed by a little rogue who wanted his money."


    Master Yan Se knew what he was trying to say and could not help but furrowed his brow.


    Li Qingshan added tea to his senior brother¡¯s cup and said, "Senior Brother, while I am not of great talent, but I have entered the Knowing Destiny State a few years ago. As the Master of Nation of Tang, I¡¯m still stronger than that little rogue."


    "One can be above God, but still under the Heavens."


    Master Yan Se looked at Li Qingshan and said warmly, "Younger Brother, you have to remember this."


    "Anyone who has the ability to sit on the godly throne of Peach Mountain is someone who has the right to control the beings of the secr world. In the Taoist sect, the hierarch is the most respected and is of the highest status. However, if we just talk about one¡¯s Taoist Heart, the hierarch might not be any stronger than the three Gods, much less the Great Divine Priest of Light whom you have your heart set on killing."


    Li Qingshan smiled and did not say anything else.


    Yan Se knew that he did not take his words seriously and sighed in his heart. He thought of his friend¡¯s character and shook his head, saying, "Do your best, care not for those that are not easy. Everything is fate and Haotian will arrange it."


    Yan Se stared at the dark wood floors in a daze for a long while after Li Qingshan left. His old withered body looked exceptionally lonely in the cold halls and floors.


    He picked up the cold tea before him and dipped his finger in it. He wrote on the floor and wiped his hands on his dirty Taoist robe before leaving.


    The tea water on the floor dissipated gradually, leaving behind only a slight trace. One could still see, if they looked closely, that the word said "chaos".


    ...


    ...


    The old man was called Wei Guangming (Defending the Light).


    He was not called that because he was the Great Divine Priest of Light. He had been named so more than eighty years ago when he was born and only became the Great Divine Priest of light after using the name for decades and enjoyed the respect of millions of disciples.


    He only realised that not only was everything in life the will of heaven, but so was one¡¯s name as well. If it wasn¡¯t for Haotian making the decision for him to be born to farmers in the Kingdom of Song, how would he have a name like this?


    As the highly respected Great Divine Priest of Light of the Haotian Sect, there were still many willing to sacrifice for him even though he had been imprisoned for more than a decade. There were also many more who were loyal to him in other Taoist temples. Now that he had escaped from the Peach Mountain, there would, of course, be someone who would be willing to take him to Chang¡¯an secretly.


    He got off the horse carriage outside the city walls and walked through the deep Souther Gates tunnel. He walked along the stone path slowly with drooping eyes and a hunched body. He stiffened when he stepped on Vermilion Bird Avenue, as if he felt something, and then he turned eastwards and walked in that direction.


    To those watching, the old man was merely inconvenienced by a bad leg. They did not sense anything amiss. Nor did they know that when the old man¡¯s right footnded on the streets, the stone statue of the Vermilion Bird had opened his eyes slightly.


    The statue shut his eyes again after some time.


    ...


    ...


    "What a great formation."


    The old man smiled as he thought that to himself. He held his hands behind his back and continued walking on the streets with his back hunched.


    After a moment, he slowed down and stopped outside a certain well at a certain alley. His gazended on a withered yellow leaf and his brows furrowed.


    The withered leaf had veins on it and looked odd. However, it did not look odd to the old man. His eyes were able to see through all the darkness in the world. Everything that happened to him seemed as if it was covered by ayer of gauze. The truth was never hidden, but life and fate were.


    The old man held his hands behind his back and walked towards the inn at the end of the alley with his back hunched.


    He shook his head and thought, "What a great formation."


    ...


    ...


    The great formation of Chang¡¯an had never been ignited and was hidden. The old man could not see the Dark Shadow he had been searching for over fourteen years. However, the great formation that he was in awe of did not show any signs of discovering that he was the strongest of the strong from West-Hill.


    That was because he was not the Great Divine Priest of Light right now. He had held in all his aura and abilities and even forgot his Taoist heart. Right now, he was just an ordinary old man.


    He picked an ordinary inn and stayed in it. He visited the ordinary sights, the ordinary markets and ordered ordinary dishes while drinking ordinary tea. He listened to ordinary songs and spent an ordinary time walking around Chang¡¯an with his hands behind his hunched back like the most ordinary old man in Chang¡¯an.


    When winter came and the cold fronts got stronger, he bought an ordinary thick wool robe.


    An ordinary old man did not need to sleep much. On a certain morning, he woke up as the sky brightened. He walked around randomly and found a stall selling hot and sour noodle slice soup. He bought a bowl after being lured by the aroma. When he was done, someone spilt wine on the front of his robe.


    A young woman carrying a meal box walked over. She looked at the pathetic old man expressionlessly and pulled out arge towel from her sleeves like a magician pulling a rabbit out of his hat. She then wiped the stain off his robes and bought him another bowl of noodles.


    The old man thanked her. She shook her head and left with her meal box.


    The old man was stunned. He handed the bowl of noodles to a beggar from the Yan Kingdom who was even more skinny than he was and followed the young woman.


    The old man followed her to a street called the Lin 47th Street. He spotted a shop called Old Brush Pen Shop and he watched the young woman busy herself within it all day.


    The old man felt that the young woman was a fresh breath of air and was very adorable indeed. Her appearance and aura were that of a clear crystal bead. It would shine brightly when a single drop of sunlight meets it.


    The young woman had slightly tanned skin.


    She was dark but clean, and oh so bright.


    That was why, the Great Divine Priest of Light from West-Hill stood on Lin 47th Street in a daze. He liked her very much indeed.

 Chapter 209: Enemy of the World

    Chapter 209: Enemy of the World


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In the days that followed, the Great Divine Priest of Light who was now an ordinary old man left and return to the inn as usual. He ate and slept and visited the sights. He drank tea and listened to music and dozed off. And he would visit Sangsang at the Lin 47th Street every day without fail.


    He would watch Sangsang as he ate and slept. He watched her while he drank tea and listened to music. He watched her as he dozed off. He visited her everyday. Watching her became the most important part of his life after he found out the name of the little handmaiden of the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    One day, the old man visited Lin 47th Street with two osmanthus cakes from the Lotus Store. He was slightly curious when he saw the young handmaiden riding away on a royal horse carriage, but did not think too much of it. He felt slightly lost when did not see Sangsang busying around and when he saw the tightly shut doors of Old Brush Pen Shop. After being in a daze for a while, he suddenly recalled the reason for his visit to Chang¡¯an.


    He had long lost the dark shadow in his eyes. He did not know where the person was hiding in Chang¡¯an or if he was even in Chang¡¯an. He hadpletely forgotten the matter in the recent days.


    He thought of the matter as he stood in a daze near the grey walls of Lin 47th Street. He shook his head and left the osmanthus cakes outside the doors of Old Brush Pen Shop. He held the robes close to his body and walked through the tightly packed streets of the Eastern City and came to a mansion in the Southern City.


    There were two ash trees standing at the mouth of the street. Their leaves wavered half-heartedly in the winter winds. It looked rather pitifulpared to the verdant green leaves peeking through the yard walls from each end of the streets.


    There were two doors facing each other in the middle of the street. The old man did not even bother looking at the empty mansion on the right but walked towards the one on the left. The seals have long been battered by the weather and what was left stuck out at angles on the wooden doors between paint and wood.


    The old man stood before the house. He held his hands together, back hunched and looked at the remnants of the stone lions outside the doors. A strange emotion emerged from his deep-set eyes as he looked at the mud with a color of congealed blood.


    The old man stood there for a long time until a gust of wind passed through thene and through the neck of his thick robes. He coughed and hunched even further into himself.


    A voice apanied the wind that turned through the street.


    "Winter in Chang¡¯an this year is much colder than before."


    The old man replied, still hunched over, "It has been years since I visited Chang¡¯an. I do not know what the past winters were like."


    Then, he turned to look at the street entrance.


    A lone man walked slowly from it. His brows were straight and his eyes were bright and clear. He wore cotton Taoist robes and straw shoes and had a simple Taoist hairstyle. Behind him, he carried a long sword. He seemed more intimidating with each step he took, even the fallen leaves and mud before him seemed to fear him. They scattered to both sides of the streets even though there was no wind.


    This man was the Master of Nation of the Tang Dynasty, Li Qingshan.


    "You may stay in Chang¡¯an in the future. You might understand the winter here more."


    Li Qingshan stopped and looked at the old man, inviting the visitor to stay.


    If the man was an ordinary visitor, the Tangs would entertain him with good tea and wine. If the man came without invitation and was a visitor who bore grudges, the invitation to stay would, of course, mean something else altogether.


    The old man looked at him and slowly straightened his back. His skinny figure became tall and intimidating with just this simple action. He exuded a strong and intelligent aura.


    Facing the Master of Nation of the Tang Dynasty, he was no longer that ordinary old man who drank tea and ate and watched Sangsang.


    He was the Great Divine Priest of Light.


    ...


    ...


    Li Qingshan was the leader of South School of Haotian Taoism, the Tang¡¯s Master of Nation, the figure of authority to hundreds of civilians in the world. No one had seen him disying his cultivation state as he had no need to show his hands given his current status.


    However, even the children ying on the streets of Chang¡¯an knew that he was strong and capable. If not, how did he be the Master of Nation? To those in the cultivation world, Li Qingshan was a strong cultivator of the Knowing Destiny State. It was just that he did not show his cards. If he did, he would shock the world.


    However, the old man standing outside the ruins of the General¡¯s Mansion was no ordinary person as well. He had many loyal followers as the most respected Great Divine Priest of Light of the West-Hill Divine Pce after being imprisoned for fourteen years. Even the hierarch would not dare to kill him. He was the first person to escape You Prison after unleashing his powers, causing much chaos in the Divine Hall.


    A faceoff between the Tang¡¯s Master of Nation and the Great Divine Priest of Light; Who would be the victor?


    "The West-Hill sent a letter saying that you are very strong. Senior Brother said so too, he even said that you might be stronger than the hierarch."


    Li Qingshan looked at the Great Divine Priest of Light and smiled suddenly. He said, "I know that my heart is secr and I cannot keep my Taoist Heart clear. That is why I amcking in my cultivation state. If you¡¯re really stronger than I am, I do not think that this is something that I cannot ept. I will not think that this is something shameful as well."


    The Great Divine Priest of Light said, "You have been cultivating for many years and you still do not understand this. You might be just slightly slow."


    "That is why I do not understand you." Li Qingshan wiped off the smile on his face. He continued, " You are different from the other two Gods. My Senior Brother and I have never seen a trace of desire for power in you. You were not even interested in how Haotian had spread his glory amongst the world. You studied the ssics. You help those in need. You are benevolent, but do not see it as your calling. You are cold and aloof, but you do not use it to your advantage. You are someone who ispletely transparent. Or some might say, you are someone who has nothing to hide."


    Li Qingshan¡¯s voice grew frigid. "That is why I do not understand why you became such a person all of a sudden then. You¡¯ve done something like that and became the first Great Divine Priest of Light from the Divine Hill to be imprisoned. I don¡¯t understand why you¡¯de to Chang¡¯an after freeing yourself. What do you want to achieve?"


    "All things andws in the world are predetermined by Haotian. Even our ces on earth have long been decided. My ce is the Great Divine Priest of Light. My mission is to witness darkness. That is all."


    He paused for a moment and looked at the chaotic skies above the tangled branches of the yard walls. A benevolent smile lingered on his face as he continued, "If everyone is certain of their own ce and mission, things on earth would be much more simple. When I saw the darkness then, The Ruler should have been the one to cleanse it. However, since no one was willing toplete their own mission, I had to do something."


    He retracted his gaze from the skies and looked at Li Qingshan,"Darkness is always present no matter whether you see it or not. Since I¡¯ve seen it, there is no way to pretend that I haven¡¯t."


    Li Qingshan shook his head. He said, "If all things andws are predetermined by Haotian, why do we need to pursue cultivation in order to get answers? Where darkness is, Haotian will cleanse. You just have toplete your own mission in your own ce. Why do you have to do such things? If you are really clear on your ce and mission, you should still be the Great Divine Priest of Light, adored by all. Why would you be someone everyone wants to kill?"


    The Great Divine Priest of Light was silent.


    Li Qingshan looked at his wizened face and thought of the benevolent old man who studied the ssics painstakingly all those years ago in the Divine Hall. Aplicated emotion consisting of pity and hate emerged from his heart. He said with regret, "All the previous Great Divine Priests of Light are learned and intelligent beyond measure. But they are always easily affected. The more exceptional they are, the easier they fall prey to the dark. It has been so since one entered the Wilderness to spread their teachings more than a thousand years ago. I have been so since one entered the Wildness to preach a thousand of years ago, and another one disappeared in the Southern Seas six hundred years ago. It is so for you as well. Why is this so? I always think, that is it because you are all intelligent and have great willpower and too much confidence thates along with it. Is that why you all believe that what you see is the truth and the only truth? Is that why you drift further away from reality?"


    There was a pregnant pause as Great Divine Priest of Light considered the sincerity behind those words. He seemed to feel a little moved by it. His expression gradually calmed and he said, "If you see it, you see it. Everything that the eyes perceive exist objectively. Even irreality is real."


    Li Qingshan could not help but feel slightly angry when he heard that. He said in a low voice, "Other than yourself, no one else behaved so! You passed on a fake order from the hierarch fourteen years ago and made Li Peiyan and Xia Hou do that. His Majesty was furious and so was the hierarch. If you didn¡¯t want to go against the world, why would the world go against you? Why would His Majesty and the hierarch both want you dead? You were highly respected. Why were you locked up for so many years?"


    The Great Divine Priest of Light said, "I did not pass on a fake order from the chief monk."


    Li Qingshan¡¯s eyebrows twitched. He said,"Do you mean the hierarch framed you?"


    The Great Divine Priest of Light said with a cid expression, "Who would dare to do so?"


    Li Qingshan paused before continuing, "You were the one who did it."


    "That¡¯s right."


    "Have you never thought of what His Majesty and the hierarch thought?"


    "What has their thoughts to do with me?"


    The Great Divine Priest of Light¡¯s voice was calm. It was like the frozen surface of ake in winter, smooth and free of blemish. He talked of the incident that shocked the entire Tang empire and the West-Hill Divine Pce as if it was a small matter.


    Li Qingshan looked at him coldly. "Have you not forgotten about the matter since you¡¯vee to Chang¡¯an after freeing yourself?"


    The Great Divine Priest of Light was silent.


    Li Qingshan turned to look at the ruins of the General¡¯s Mansion and said with regret. "So many innocent lives were killed in Chang¡¯an because of your words. The General¡¯s Mansion has be so thanks to you. Are you still not satisfied?"


    "I¡¯m not," said the Great Divine Priest of Light cidly.


    Li Qingshan pointed at the mansion and said fiercely, "Everyone in the General¡¯s Mansion is dead, what are you still dissatisfied with?"


    The Great Divine Priest of Light shook his head and said, "No, one remains alive."


    Li Qingshan¡¯s pupils dted in shock.


    "No matter the Divine Hall or your Prince from the Tang empire, they have both agreed with me then. That was because nobody wished for the Son of Yama to appear in this world. However, I do not know why everyone thought that what I had seen was fake. You Prince thought that he had been bewitched by me. Your Emperor was exceptionally angry. That is why nobody was willing to continue searching even though they knew that one remained in the world of the living. They even prohibited anyone from speaking about it."


    "Why would I be imprisoned for fourteen years? That is because I knew that the Son of Yama remains on earth and is bing stronger. I will continue searching for him. For those who do not believe he is the Son of Yama will not believe in his existence. If I continue searching, both West-Hill and the Tang empire will encounter problems."


    "That is why they shut me up."


    There was a trace of sorrow in his voice as he continued, "The Peach Mountain, the Tang empire, and the world have rotted."


    "I do not want to go against the world, but the world is shrouded in darkness and is against the light."


    "I¡¯m the Great Divine Priest of Light.


    "My name is Wei Guangming. I defend the light."


    "That is why, the world is my enemy."

 Chapter 210: Escape-proof Net Outside Generals Mansion

    Chapter 210: Escape-proof Net Outside General¡¯s Mansion


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Who were those people? Who did not believe the legend of Son of Yama? Who could let Divine Hall make a sharp turn on attitude? Who could make the Tang Empire suppress the anger and calmly wait? Who could put Great Divine Priest of Light into the dust by saying a word?


    A view of a quiet mountain and an old abbey emerged in Li Qingshan¡¯s mind. His body suddenly became stiff. Many years ago, when West-Hill Divine Pce had granted him the rank of Great Divine Priest, he had visited that old abbey. It was only once in his life, but it was unforgettable for a lifetime. When he thought of it, he seemed to see that fluttering thin figure beside the cliff, feeling slightly cold all over his body.


    Great Divine Priest of Light said, "I don¡¯t know what exactly the abbey dean has thought. I respected him from my heart, but I still stuck to my own ideas."


    Li Qingshan silently looked at his old cheeks. Then Li Qingshan realized it was actually Taoist in indigo who personally had imprisoned Great Divine Priest of Light. Soon he thought of Great Divine Priest of Light was still able to adhere to his own ideas in front of Taoist in indigo and could not help feeling a great sense of admiration.


    "Because I insist, I will not give up."


    The luster in the eyes of Great Divine Priest of Light was quiet and deep. He slowly said, "I have not stopped using both eyes to see the world in these years after being imprisoned in the back of The Peach Mountain. In a certain year, I had once tried it."


    Li Qingshan frowned and said, "Yan territory murder?"


    Great Divine Priest of Light did not give an positive answer, but indifferently said, "Unfortunately, I still couldn¡¯t kill that person. I clearly see that shadow of the night is still floating in the world, sometimes thick or thin, disappearing or appearing from time to time. But in these two years, the shadow became more and more solidified, showing that person became more and more powerful."


    Li Qingshan solemnly asked, "Who on earth did you see? Is this person in Chang¡¯an City?"


    Great Divine Priest of Light gave a very difficult obscure answer. "My eyes can only see him there, not see his existence. One day I saw him appear in Chang¡¯an City. So I was so anxious toe to Chang¡¯an City."


    Although he said he was anxious, the old man still looked calm on his face, no sense of anxiety at all.


    Li Qingshan kept silent for a long time, as if to keep thinking in his heart to judge these words. Eventually he slowly but firmly shook his head and said, "The legend is just a legend. No one has discovered Underworld from the ancient time to today. Headmaster of Academy has travelled around the world for years. I heard that the abbey dean is also floating in the South. Presumably they are looking for the Underworld. If even the two of them failed to find the Underworld for so many years, then the Underworld inevitably is not a real existence. If there is no Underworld, there is naturally no Yama. Without Yama, there is naturally no Son of Yama."


    Great Divine Priest of Light said, "Of course there is Underworld, there is naturally Yama."


    Li Qingshan stared at his eyes across the winter wind in thene and asked, "Then where is that Underworld?"


    Great Divine Priest of Light said quietly, "I don¡¯t know."


    Li Qingshan said, "Then why are you sure there is Underworld?"


    Great Divine Priest of Light replied. "Because it exists."


    Li Qingshan suddenly felt like he returned to Scent Workshop of many years ago and met the crown prince who was more shameless than himself. Except beating the opposite, there was no way for him to carry on a normal conversation.


    Great Divine Priest of Light looked at him and said smilingly, "There are records of Underworld invasion and Invariant Yama¡¯s existence in "Ming" Handscroll. But they were lost millenary years ago, for that ancestor took "Ming" Handscroll into the Wilderness. Thus no one has seen it, so it was gradually forgotten and even turned into an unreal legend."


    Li Qingshan frowned and said, "However, you have never seen ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll."


    "I really didn¡¯t have the Lucky Chance to see the authentic ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll. But you must not forget that both that ancestor and I were Great Divine Priests of Light, and the inheritance of some narratives persisted in an unspeakable way."


    Li Qingshan looked at him and shook his head. He sighed and said, "God, have you ever thought that you just gave up all to be against the whole world because of your illusion and an unreal legend?"


    Great Divine Priest of Light shook his head and said, "My Taoist Heart is clear. What you see is what you believe. Then you naturally believe what you have seen. As long as you believe, then the illusion is often real."


    Li Qingshan moved forward one step after a moment of silence. When his grass shoes fell on the ground, a very light airflow sshed upwards, as if a stone fell into a calmke causing circles of ripples.


    "Only the Haotian can see all the world and all realities by one nce. Although you have a God tittle under the sky, you¡¯re a human being rather than God and Haotian."


    The eyesight of Great Divine Priest of Light fell on the top of his right foot moving forward. There was no trace of mood change in his voice. He calmly said, "Because I am not God or Haotian, you don¡¯t believe me?"


    "Yes."


    Li Qingshan¡¯s right hand was exposed outside his sleeves and looked very delicate. It was in the air shaking slightly, as if holding a dragon body that was constantly struggling to bounce. And his sword in the sheath behind him uttered a buzz, like a dragon who was about to go out.


    "Even if you are God, there is a God-stunning Array in Chang¡¯an City."


    Great Divine Priest of Light shook his head and said, "God-stunning Array would not be interested in an old man like me."


    Li Qingshan took a step forward. The more stringent buzz the long sword in the sheath uttered, the more strongly his right hand was shaking.


    He looked at the old face of Great Divine Priest of Light, and said in a low voice, "I know you wille here to see. So I let the South Gate put an Encircling Array Tactical around. I want to try to keep you here."


    "You can¡¯t." Great Divine Priest of Light said, " Even the Confinement of Priest of Judge couldn¡¯t trap me, let alone the Escape-proof Net."


    Li Qingshan said, "Escape-proof Net was granted by Haotian. Can¡¯t itpare with Judge God¡¯s confinement?"


    Great Divine Priest of Light replied. "Confinement cages the heart and Escape-proof Net cages the body. It¡¯s naturally more difficult for the heart to get out of the cage than the body."


    Li Qingshan turned to be silent, showing his agreement with this judgment. Then he said, "God-stunning Array will not arise for you. But if you have to get out of it, you¡¯re bound to use all the aura of your state. Then the big array tactical will have its own way to suppress you."


    Great Divine Priest of Light quietly said, "I am just an ordinary old man in Chang¡¯an City."


    Li Qingshan said, "I¡¯m here. You can¡¯t always pretend to be an ordinary old man."


    Great Divine Priest of Light looked at Master of Tang Nation who was slowly walking towards him and smiled to say, "Qingshan, you are a person with a great Lucky Chance. When you were young, you got to know the Emperor of the Tang Empire. You were respected in the secr world and also chosen by the elderly Taoist on the abbey so as to easily enter Knowing Destiny State and be much favored by his Majesty. But it is also because of your good Lucky Chance, you have never experienced the great fear between life and death in your lifetime. So how can you threaten me now?"


    Li Qingshan was so despised by him, but did not show any anger on his face. He smiled and said, "As I said earlier, if I were not your opponent, which was also a natural matter of course, I never expected to keep you here by myself."


    Great Divine Priest of Light¡¯s eyes in his sockets became deeper and deeper in color, gradually bing a pair of stark dark gems. He looked at the most subtle changes in Qi of Heaven and Earth in the street and alley and perceived increasingly dense breathing sounds around. Then he indifferently said.


    "I have also said before that you had a good Lucky Chance, too powerful but too little experience. When you first became Master of Nation, Liu Bai decided to challenge you and was stopped by Yan Se. So in your life, you have never fought with the most powerful men in the world. You don¡¯t understand that the number of enemies does not make much sense for people like you and me, unless it is so huge that it can make the earthly ground sink."


    After those words were finished, the dead leaves were floating above the streets again and dozens of crossbowmen appeared in the streets and alleys. Their sharp crossbow arrows reflected the coldness of chill and tight crossbow machines clearly gave off strong implied strength. Dressed in ck official uniforms, Imperial Center Administration¡¯s cultivation strongmen also gradually gathered around. In some farther workshops¡¯ rooms, Array Tactical Masters of the Tang Empire, responsible for theunch of Encircling Array Tactical, were constantly perfusing Psyche Power to the array eye.


    Hoof sounds started like a thunder. The armored ck cavalry of the Tang Empire, invincible in the world, began to assemble here in a fast speed. Their huge weight made the street ground shake up fiercely, as if the ground was about to sink at any time.


    Li Qingshan looked away from the mottled walls of General¡¯s Mansion. He looked at Great Divine Priest of Light¡¯s face and said with a deadpan expression, "Although you¡¯re God, your flesh is still mortal, fragile and vulnerable. Today in front of General¡¯s Mansion, I¡¯ll let you die. It can be considered to retrieve somete lights for those innocent people who have died in General¡¯s Mansion."


    Great Divine Priest of Light said, "I am the light."


    Li Qingshan micro-satirically said, "I did not expect you had changed from keeping thew to being so proud after being imprisoned for fourteen years."


    Great Divine Priest of Light calmly replied, "What you said makes sense. Pride is contrary to the teachingw. More urately, it should be said that since Headmaster of Academy is not in Chang¡¯an, then I am the light."


    Li Qingshan kept silent.


    With the momentum of the Dragon and Tiger to step into the streets, this Master of Tang Nation and Great Divine Priest of Light had so many interpetions, whose content was amazing but said in a calm tone, as if it was like teapetition. They hid all those fightings and aggressions in the wrist turning and the spoon picking-up. They observed each other¡¯s Taoist Heart and fought with their Taoist Hearts. When this conversation was over, it seemed that there was no oue. However, it could also be said that Great Divine Priest of Light has won the victory. Therefore, there was no need to talk about it again.


    Strong sounds of machine spring were heard and sharp crossbow arrows were darted like a heavy rain. The sharp sound of arrows darting to the air made the ears painful and caged Great Divine Priest of Light¡¯s body from all directions, not leaving any gaps.


    Almost at the same time, the Tang Empire¡¯s Array Tactical Masters, hidden in the faraway workshops in the distance, started the Encircling Array Tactical. In the streets outside General¡¯s Mansion, Qi of Heaven and Earth was experiencing a drastic change. Countless turbulences of primordial Qi turned into unmanageable primordial Qi locks, forcibly locking all the space around Great Divine Priest of Light.


    After a clear dragon buzz, the long sword behind Li Qingshan was humming and shattering the sheath. Then it flew like a lightning and became a Blue Dragon in the air. Within a short instant, it flew across half of the streets, bursting into Great Divine Priest of Light¡¯s old cheeks with the dragon-like hissing.


    This was a long-nned ughter of the Tang Empire. Because its target was the horrifying Great Divine Priest of Light, they had well prepared for it. There were many follow-up arrangements in addition to these mighty attacks on the streets.


    Whereas, the opposite¡¯s response was very simple.


    In the face of torrential arrow-rain, Encircling Array Tactical locking heaven and earth, and that flying sword turning into a Blue Dragon, a straight light came out from the old man¡¯s deep eyes. And then the second, third, thousands of, innumerable lights.


    Great Divine Priest of Light gave off countless lights.

 Chapter 211: Inheritance

    Chapter 211: Inheritance


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Thick winter clouds over Chang¡¯an City covered the sun in the rear. Among the streets outside General¡¯s Mansion in Southern City, a sun suddenly appeared. Its zing light burst out from Great Divine Priest of Light¡¯s eyes and immediately turned the dark world around into the shining daytime. Withered leaves, spotted stone walls, broken stone lions and old stairs were all covered with the glittering re andpletely lost their original appearances so as to be holy.


    Dozens of elite crossbowmen, known for their spiritual determination, threw away the crossbows on their hands and covered their own eyes. Then they fell down to the ground screaming. The crossbow arrows flying orderlessly had more miserable tweetings and had long been lost in direction in the ze. People could vaguely see those slightly shaking crossbow ends on trees and walls.


    The heavy-armor cavalries of the Tang Empire gathering on the street fell into a chaos. Those well-trained armored warrior horses seemed to sense the supreme power hidden in the incandescent white screen in the alley and respectfully bent their forehooves with screaming. They were so scared as to kneel to the ground, unnoticedly making many riders fall down.


    South School of Haotian Taoism Array Tactical Masters, who had hidden in the faraway workshop, looked even much paler on his face. Several people¡¯s clothings were covered with blood in front. They did not get any devouring of Qi of Heaven and Earth, but they have felt great shocks and fears in their sense of perception so that those spiritual shocks directly hurt their internal organs.--The exquisite Encircling Array Tactical that was inherited from West-Hill Divine Pce simply had no way to locate its target.


    Their cultivation aimed at Haotian Taoism. So they infused the power of the light into Encircling Array Tactical. However, Great Divine Priest of Light was full of light from his body to his heart, no trace of impurities. Therefore, it was impossible for them to use crystal clearke water to lock a mass of clean water!


    In the faraway Vermilion Bird Avenue, there was a breeze blowing up out of no reason. Those gravels on the Vermilion Bird figure that was deeply carved in the gstone were blown everywhere by this gusty wind. The tourists from different empire counties were blinded by the wind and sand and were covered by gravels. They subconsciously bowed to avoid them, or rubbed their eyes with hands.


    Even if they did not bow down or covered their eyes, they could not see that a very clear and very weak Vermilion Bird phantom, almost invisible to naked eyes, arose from the ground with its wings waving around. It rolled up those leaves and gravels, and then instantly swept a round over Chang¡¯an City in an unimaginable horrifying speed.


    Unfortunately, Vermilion Bird failed to find any enemy in Chang¡¯an City. A faintly angry cry was heard above the sky and winter clouds.


    Li Qingshan silently stood in front of the street outside General¡¯s Mansion, listening to that faintly angry cry above the clouds, and then slowly opened his tightly closed eyes. He looked at the deserted alley and became more and more serious.


    That Blue Dragon swimming among the streets uttered a reluctant whisper and slowly concealed its aura to be a sword back to the sheath.


    Vermilion Bird failed to find that person¡¯s trail. The spies spreading all over Chang¡¯an City also failed to find that person¡¯s trail. The numerous men arranged by the Tang Empire were forced to abruptly stop their actions.


    Thick winter clouds above Chang¡¯an City suddenly gradually spread, exposing the long-hidden sun. Soft sunshine gently softly sprinkled down towards thousands of mansions and cold houses. People could see it everywhere.


    That person did not start or revealed the slightest hostility and sense of fighting. He only emitted his own light and quietly disappeared like the sun light, no trace of his trail.


    The world was bright everywhere. How could one find the light?


    Li Qingshan looked up at the leaked light among the winter clouds and murmured. "Above the God, below the heaven... "


    "Senior Brother, I finally understand what you mean by this sentence."


    ...


    ...


    In the small yard behind the House of Red Sleeves.


    Master Yan Se stared at the rocking candlestick on the table. His wrinkled canthuses were slightly shivering, as if he was thinking of a certain important decision.


    Dewdrop reclined in his arms, slightly trembling her slender eyshes. She looked puzzled on her face, but dared not to ask when looking at his solemn facial expression.


    Why light the candlestick in the daytime? Could it be... this Divine Talisman master, whom no one dared to offend including Mistress Jian in the entire Tang Empire, actually had some strange interests in mind after refusing to have sexual enjoyments these days?


    Dewdrop looked at the gradual formation of the tear-like waxes on the candlestick, feeling her body a bit stiff. She thought that she herself actually heard a lot about this interest, but never had done it in person. She did not know whether she felt painful or peculiarly interested when the tear-like waxes fell onto her body. She wanted to refuse, but dared not to say it out.


    Suddenly, the candlelight on the table suddenly shone brightly so that every corner of the room was seen clearly. Dewdrop was shocked and almost fell down from Yan Se¡¯s legs.


    Master Yan Se stared at the candlelight that first burst into mes and then faded away. He squinted and kept silent for a long time, and then indulgedly rubbed Dewdrop¡¯s supple and tender buttock. He said in a slightly dumb voice, "After these days, I have some things to do. So I¡¯ll probably note here often. If... in the future you have something that even Miss Jian can¡¯t solve, you can go to the South Gate to find my Younger Brother."


    Dewdrop now knew the true identity of this Taoist and naturally also knew that Younger Brother he mentioned was Master of Tang Nation Li Qingshan. When she first listened to those words, she inevitably felt somewhat surprised, for she could find another very powerful backstage supporter in the future. But then she felt infinitely scared, for she felt that he seemed to be dying so as to say these words.


    There was no true love in the brothels, not to mention the huge gaps of age and status between Yan Se and Dewdrop. But out of no reason, Dewdrop looked at the Taoist¡¯s wretched face and actually felt a bit pitiful and sad. She subconsciously reached out her hands to tightly seize his Taoist Robe cor and totally forgot that she most hated the grease and dirt on this Taoist Robe on weekdays.


    ...


    ...


    An old man wearing a dirty thick cotton jacket sluggishly walked in the streets of Eastern City, with his hands behind his hunch back. There was a very light smell of hot and sour noodle slice soup emitting from the jacket.


    As previously stated in the dialogue with Li Qingshan outside General¡¯s Mansion, as long as the Headmaster of Academy was not in Chang¡¯an, he was the light and his only taboo was this big array tactical Chang¡¯an City. However, he did not have evil spirits, only the good ones and a pure Taoist Heart. Even though what he had done seemed to be rather vicious for all people in the world, he still believed he was the light. As long as this big array tactical Chang¡¯an City did not fullyunch the attack, how was Vermilion Bird Divine Talisman starting from the light able to find him?


    However, even if someone whose cultivation had reached to their state could notprehend the deepestw of the flowing Qi of Heaven and Earth, he had started to have some kind of feeling between man and nature. Therefore, he could faintly understand what would appear in front of the time river.


    The old man felt that he would die in Chang¡¯an City, and this feeling became intenser and intenser. He seemed to have seen the Underworld messengers began to dig a tomb for him in Chang¡¯an City, but just did not know what was written on his tombstone.


    End of life was not necessarily a sad thing. But just as Yan Se had a sense of nostalgia for the world, he also had a sense of regret in the world - In those years when he had put a foot across the threshold and saw the magical world over there, he had been reluctantly pulled back by some existences. But he was not resigned to this. Therefore, he wanted to receive a sessor before leaving the world so as to leave his inheritance that allowed his sessor to take a clear look at the world over there for him.


    It was very difficult for Divine Talisman Master as well as Great Divine Priest of Light to have a true sessor. Yan Se now had Ning Que and thus had no regrets. But he had on one. He even thought that until the moment when his life ended, there would be no sessor for him. However, he came to Chang¡¯an City and Lin 47th Street, and then saw Sangsang.


    The old man stood outside the threshold of Old Brush Pen Shop and watched this busy little handmaiden in the shop. His heart was full of praise and satisfaction, and he was almost moved to tears. He felt that although he had vited Haotian¡¯s intention repeatedly in his lifetime, at least in the final stage of his life, Haotian kindly granted the most precious gift to him.


    There was no better man in the world than this little girl to be the sessor of Great Divine Priest of Light, because there must be no second man in this world cleaner and purer than this girl.


    The old man crossed the threshold and walked into Old Brush Pen Shop. He bent over towards this busy little girl and said, "Hello."


    Sangsang turned around and put arge cloth in her hand on the table. Then she answered, "Hello."


    These days she had long been aware that this seemingly poor old man often appeared in the alley. Master Qi San¡¯s men even asked her if she wanted to drive away this old man. But she thought he was just an ordinary old strange man. So she rejected this proposal and even was toozy to pay more attention.


    The old man asked, "Do you know the biggest difference between a Taoist and a beast?"


    Sangsang did not think, but shook her head and replied. "I don¡¯t know."


    Then she grabbed the rag and prepared to keep wiping the table.


    The old man said sincerely, "Can you try to think?"


    Sangsang thought for a moment and said, "People are more beastly than beasts. So we are stronger than beasts and we can eat beasts."


    Upon hearing this answer, the old man apparently did not have any mental preparation and surprisedly asked, "Why do you think so?"


    Sangsang shook her head and said, "I said I didn¡¯t know. My young master told me this when I was young."


    The old man said with ament, "Your young master must be a clever man, a super evil or super good man."


    Sangsang thought for a moment and said, "Young master is the young master."


    She did not finish the sentence, for she did not have the habit of finishing the whole sentence. It had nothing to do with her whether the opposite could understand her or not. Her meaning was actually very clear -- The son was the son. The mother was the mother. The brother was the brother. The husband was the husband. The young master was the young master -- For her, Ning Que was another existence, different from the concepts of the evil, the good, men, women, the rich and the poor.


    After a moment¡¯s silence, the old man said, "In my opinion, the greatest difference between men and beasts is that inheritance. Beasts inherit their own blood essence at the cost of their lives, and the mankind wants to inherit the spirits. Both of their inheritances contain a very strong desire of leaving their trails on the earth for much longer."


    After a brief pause, the old man looked at the little girl¡¯s dark cheeks and said with a solemn look, "If the bearing in the inheritance represents the root of the family or the Taoist tradition, then such a strong desire can even be a heavy responsibility."


    Finally, the old man concluded. "This is the so-called inheritance."


    Sangsang looked at the quirky old man in front with her bright willow-shape eyes open. After a long time of thought, she assumed she had understood it and then seriously asked, "Are you looking for a wife to have your own child?"


    She looked at the appearance of this elderly person and judged his age. Then she said, "If you can confirm that you still have a chance to have a child, there are traders selling Yan women in Eastern City. They¡¯re not expensive and are easily raised."


    The old man fell into a trance and said, "I don¡¯t mean it."


    Sangsang stared nkly for a moment and shyly shook her head as she said, "I can¡¯t, I can¡¯t... give birth to children for others."

 Chapter 212: Lucky Chance

    Chapter 212: Lucky Chance


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    After a while, Sangsang looked at the old man and earnestly said, "If you only like women from your own country and don¡¯t like Yan women, I also know some brothel girls. But, if you want them to give birth to children for you, the estimated cost will be very high."


    The old man stood dazed. But, after a long silence, he finally sobered and solemnly said, "I don¡¯t want to find a wife to have my children. I¡¯m looking for a disciple to inherit my things."


    This time, it was Sangsang¡¯s turn to fall silent. She had not realized that she would be involved in finding a disciple. Her bones were not elegant and her life experience had not been bizarre. Although the cotton jacket on his body was really dirty, it seemed that he had not been begging these days. So, she did not think he looked like an Unworldly Sublime Being like in the stories Ning Que had told during her childhood.


    "Are you asking me to be your disciple, or are you asking me to find a disciple for you?" she inquired seriously.


    "I want you to be my disciple," the old man replied seriously.


    Sangsang decided to ignore him and squatted down as she began to wipe the legs of the table.


    The old man looked at the absolutely stainless, bright table legs and fell silent.


    The old man did not leave the Old Brush Pen Shop, instead, he silently followed Sangsang and watched her. He watched Sangsang wipe down the table legs and chairs, cleaning non-existent dust. He watched as she rebuilt the shop door that had been repaired earlier, closed the shop door, fetched water from the well, chose rice, dealt with vegetables, cooked a meal, cut garlic, and sat at the table, where she began to eat alone.


    Sangsang did not ask him to join her, however, she surprisingly did not ask him to leave either.


    Across the window, the old man looked at Sangsang as she sat silently having a meal and sympathetically said, "Aren¡¯t you bored?"


    Sangsang¡¯s hands stiffened while holding a bowl of rice. She looked down at the three vegetables mixed with white rice and nodded before she continued to forcefully chew her food, with her little ck cheeks slightly bulging.


    After dinner, Sangsang washed the dishes, her face, and her feet as she prepared for sleep.


    Beforeying down, she gave a sheet and some bedding to the old man, who had been on the patio¡¯s courtyard for a long time. She said, "If you don¡¯t have a ce to sleep, you can move some tables from the front and sleep on them for the night."


    The old man felt the weight of the bedding and became more and more resolved in his heart. He looked at the girl before asking seriously, "Do you believe in Lucky Chance?"


    Sangsang began to shake her head, but then she thought about an encounter from many years ago, and the life that she had devotedly lived with somebody over these years. Her willow-shaped eyes became a little brighter as she nodded.


    "I believe in Lucky Chance." The old man said, "I believe that everyone is destined to meet specific people and do something. These things are arranged by Haotian, namely Lucky Chance."


    The turbid eyes of the old man gradually brightened as he looked past the small courtyard toward the night scene of Chang¡¯an. He paused briefly before saying, "Many years ago, I saw the shadow of Nightfall in this city. Once I saw him, I became destined to meet him."


    "And once I meet him, we will not be separated again. However, I didn¡¯t see him clearly or meet the real one. I only know that he exists but I don¡¯t know where he is."


    "Then I saw a person in Chang¡¯an City who was born knowing. I think it¡¯s not right, there shouldn¡¯t be anyone born knowing in the world. So, the Lucky Chance between me and him began."


    "The Lucky Chance between me and him is to see him and kill him."


    "Nine months after seeing him, I started trying to kill him. But, I knew that I hadn¡¯t killed him, for he was still alive. I was also the only one in the world who could clearly feel that he was alive."


    "After that, the Lucky Chance became weak and I could no longer see where he was, except for one random time. But recently, I saw him again. So, I came to find him, renewing my Lucky Chance."


    The old man sitting on the high threshold, like a devout foolish woman, recalled those fragmented memories from the past. Sangsang silently listened to him for a long time and her willow-shaped eyes would asionally brighten or fade away. Then she asked, "When you find him... what will you do?"


    "Kill him," the old man replied.


    Sangsang asked, "If you¡¯re such a great person, why weren¡¯t you able to kill him over all those years?"


    "Because there isn¡¯t an absolute match of Lucky Chance between us... Not everyone can easily enter a city to kill people, especially me. So, only the people living in this city would be able to do the killing. The more crucial reason is that the entire world became skeptical of what I saw with my eyes, and they didn¡¯t believe me."


    The old man went on to say, "I don¡¯t know what will happen after I find him. Haotian¡¯s arrangement could never be guessed by mortals like us. But, I firmly believe that he is the person who has a great Lucky Chance with me. I thought I came to Chang¡¯an for understanding this Lucky Chance. That was until I... met you."


    The old man looked at Sangsang¡¯s slightly ck cheeks and her bright willow-shaped eyes, falling silent for a long time. He quietly thought about the real reason for making his many loyal subordinates sacrifice themselves, making the entire Peach Mountain and the Tang States feel uneasy, attracting him toe to Chang¡¯an City. Was it the shadow of Nightfall, or the girl in front of him?


    Sangsang¡¯s eyshes lowered slightly as she calmly asked, "What can I learn from you?"


    The old man looked at her slightly fluttering eyshes and hermon appearance. He said, "Divine Skill."


    Sangsang asked, "Is the Divine Skill very powerful?"


    The old man nodded and said, "Very powerful."


    Sangsang lowered her head even more, making her eyshes look longer. Then she whispered, "My young master is awesome. Would I be able to help him beat people after I learn the Divine Skill?"


    The old man smiled and said, "Certainly."


    Sangsang raised her head, looking up at the old man with her slightly dark face, and asked bravely, "Could I... beat you?"


    The old man looked at the little girl¡¯s small face and her ck eyes that were like two deep pools among mountain rocks. There seemed to be no trace of impurity, rather absolute transparency in the depths of those pools. He could not help but utter an internal sigh before saying in a predictably solemn tone, "Certainly."


    Sangsang asked, "What is the Divine Skill?"


    The old man answered, "Cultivation focuses on perception and it needs cultivators to manipte the aura between heaven and earth. Divine Skill is to perceive, understand, and control the Haotian Divine Light. The so-called Divine Light¡ªyou have seen it when you wake up early in the morning and when you close your door. You¡¯ve seen it in summer and in winter snow. In a word, you see it all the time."


    Sangsang slightly frowned and asked, "What is it?"


    It was a quiet night in Chang¡¯an City. There were numerous stars above in the sky, but it was not as clear as the daytime after all. The old man stood in the cramped courtyard and slowly spread his arms, seeming to take on all the light of the world.


    "Haotian Divine Light is the sunshine."


    Just when he finished those words, the old man stuck out the front of his right hand from his dirty cotton jacket sleeves, namely the tip of his middle finger, where it suddenly became bright. Some fluorescent lights converged out of nowhere and slowly released mes from the inside just like a bright flower. They covered all the lines on the flesh of his finger, looking holy white and making people feel respect.


    The old man looked at the little girl in front of him and calmly said, "It takes more than 10 years to perceive the Haotian Divine Light. So in the beginning, what is most needed is super forbearance and patience."


    Upon listening to this, Sangsang seemed to understand something. She raised her right hand and lifted up her index finger, putting the slim finger into the dark winter night. That slightly dark finger was gently shaking in the wind and then gave birth to a touch of dim light, as if it were a broken candle in the wind that might be quenched at any time but was never extinguished after all.


    The old man was enchanted as he looked at the light in front of her delicate forefinger and felt intoxicated as if he was drunk and did not want to wake up.


    In the winter of the 14th year of the Tianqi era, the Great Divine Priest of Light was fleeing from West-Hill Divine Pce and came to Chang¡¯an City because of some mysterious perception. He did not find the shadow of Nightfall, but found his own sessor. It was probably some kind of revtion.


    ...


    ...


    In the northwest border of the Tang Empire, somewhere in the grasnd not far from the City of Wei,


    a schr in a cotton jacket was cooking under a winter tree that was going to die.


    He calmly and attentively looked at the book held in his left hand. He suddenly remembered something and took thedle from his waist to scoop some water. He poured the water into a pot that had already had milky white soup in it and slightly suppressed the boiling water in the pot. As he was waiting for the water to boil again, he began to slowly and orderly cut the meat. Themb that was frozen into a perfect state became pieces of flying meat under his sharp knife, looking just like snowkes. However, his movements were too slow and the soup began to boil again before he had finished cutting the meat.


    The schr poured another scoop of water into the pot and continued to cut meat. The tall Headmaster of the Academy had long held his chopsticks and a bowl with seasonings inside, eagerly waiting beside the soup pot and angrily uttering anxious sighs from time to time.


    "When ites to fate or Lucky Chance... no one knows what he will see or encounter. And no one knows the meaning of what he sees or encounters. Ideas and reality often reside in opposite worlds. Like the general and the woman we saw in the City of Wei some days ago¡ªmaybe they will live forever or withdraw back to the Central ins next year. However, no matter how they develop, they are not as happy as they look."


    The Headmaster of the Academy used his chopsticks to tap the empty bowl. He shook his head and sighed. "Unhappiness does not mean that you will certainly remain in bleakness. I don¡¯t think that is a sad thing, but I feel it¡¯s filled with a sense of drama. Just like the soup and themb here¡ªhalf an hour has passed, but I have not eaten them yet. That doesn¡¯t mean that I will continue to be sad like this. Maybe the first bite ofmbter will be the best thing I¡¯ve ever eaten in my life."


    Every student needed to learn to listen to the true wishes of their teacher through those disguised words. As Eldest Brother of the Academy, the schr was, of course, the person who could best understand the preferences of the Headmaster of the Academy. So he put the book back into his waist and began to elerate the speed of cutting meat in order to prevent the teacher from really starting to get angryter.


    However, as Chen Pipi had told Ning Que, the elder brother worked really conscientiously and, therefore, very slowly. Although the Headmaster of the Academy was waiting by the soup pot holding his tableware like a beggar, which gave Eldest Brother unprecedented pressure, Eldest Brother still did not improve his speed of cutting meat too much.


    In order to distract the teacher to slightly relieve his current mental stress, Eldest Brother asked while cutting the meat, "Teacher, can¡¯t you see the future?"


    Upon listening to this question, the Headmaster of the Academy became furious. He pointed to the overcast winter sky and reprimanded him. "I don¡¯t even see the sky. How can I see the future?"

 Chapter 213: Get on the Horse and Youre a Thief (I)

    Chapter 213: Get on the Horse and You¡¯re a Thief (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The Headmaster lowered his finger, and looked at the re-boiling pot and the scraps of meat on the chopping-board that were still like a light snowfall and sulkily said, "If I know everything, do I need to act like a panic-stricken stray dog?"


    Eldest Brother was cutting the tasty but slightly toughmb, and then secretly thought with a smile, "Headmaster, are you really this disquieted in life?"


    The Headmaster put the bowl and chopsticks on the cutting board, rolled up his sleeves, and easily took the sharp knife from Eldest brother¡¯s hand. After several Shua sounds, all the mutton slices were flying in the air and instantly piled up into snowy peaks.


    Mutton could be easily cooked in the boiled water. The Headmaster was scrambling and eating alone with relish, with the soup dripping down his beard. He did not even consider to give precedence to his most loving disciple. The old yellow bull that was lowering its head and eating grass on the meadow looked up at him and displeasedly snorted twice.


    Looking at the teacher¡¯s happy appearance, Eldest brother shook his head, wiped his hands, and then walked slowly to the tree that was about to wither in winter. Staring at the blueke not far away from the meadow and those distant Horse Gangs that were barely visible on the opposite side of theke, he gradually raised his eyebrows and thoughtfully asked, "Master, Is this the Shubi Lake where Younger Brother lived?"


    Gradually with the passing of time, some unknown things would naturally be known one way or another, for instance, the one who was finally capable of entering the Back Mountain of the Academy was ad named Ning Que and not Prince Long Qing.


    The Headmaster was slowly drinking themb soup in the bowl. He felt so cozy that his long eyebrows seemed to fly in the winter wind. He then said looking at the nearke and some distant ce, "He grew up in the City of Wei, and became a man in Shubi Lake."


    Eldest Brother nodded his head and looked back at the headmaster, asking, "Headmaster, why did wee to the City of Wei?"


    The Headmaster, carrying the soup bowl in his hand, watched those Horse Gangs who were busy making a living in the Shubi Lake, and said, "After all, he¡¯s my student, though we haven¡¯t met yet. But since we¡¯re on the way there, let¡¯s call it a home visit ."


    Recalling the scene when he left the Academy in Chang¡¯anst spring and remembering the words that the Headmaster said at that time and the big ck umbre that thed carried on his back, Eldest Brother asked, "Headmaster, have you known for long that Younger Brother will be one of the Younger Brothers in the Academy?"


    The Headmaster put down his soup bowl and uttered a satisfying sigh, touching his belly. He said shaking his head, "There¡¯s no such thing as predestined. How can you predict it?"


    "Even Haotian can¡¯t arrange everything."


    The Headmaster looked up at the clear sky hanging over the grasnd in the winter, as if he could see that trembling little boy who was holding a chopper in a woodshed a dozen years ago, and then he said emotionally, "Many years ago, I met your Younger Brother once, and I felt he was just like one of my old friends. I never expected that he would actually survive ande to my side."


    Eldest Brother stared at the grasnd, and anxiously said, "I¡¯m wondering whether Younger Brother can handle entering the Wilderness on his own."


    The Headmaster replied, "The child doesn¡¯t have an easy life. The wilderness is his home, so he won¡¯t be too embarrassed there. If not, doesn¡¯t he still have you, his Senior Brother?


    Eldest Brother bowed his head down with a smile as warm as the spring breeze.


    ...


    ...


    The piercing sound of mighty arrows, like a sharp whistle, instantly tore the twilight over the camp.


    Because of the distance, when the arrows flew out of the camp, they were already out of shape and slow. They were Just like a drunkard who fell on the ground unharmed, but the campers knew that the sound of the arrows was intended to warn or show off, so their mood did not lighten up.


    In the distance of the grasnd, the cloud of smoke gradually dispersed, revealing more than 100 horsemen. On horseback, the savages in furs and cotton-padded vestments could be seen. They held the reins and barked wildly and excitedly, as though they had found arge number of prey.


    One branch of the Yan Kingdom cavalry in the camp was sent to meet them. When they were several arrows away, the prairie savages whistled as they circled the camp¡¯s shallow waters, refusing to approach, but having no intentions of leaving.


    Ning Que was the first one to find the trace of Horse Gangs. He jumped out of the horse carriage after giving out the first warning. He was silently leading the Big ck Horse, and always ready to get on the saddle. Yet he gradually wrinkled watching these grasnd barbarians who were whistling and walking around- on the grasnd in winter, it could be called arge group of Horse Gangs consisting of more than 100 fine cavalries. He did not know when they began to eye the grain team, and he subconsciously looked aside.


    The young men and women of ck Ink Garden lived in the Grand River Country in the far south for a long time. Only in legend did they hear of the savage terror of the northern Horse Gangs.This was the first time in their lives that they had ever faced these Horse Gangs on the grasnd. Although all the disciples from ck Ink Garden including Cat Girl, asionally showed anxiety on their silent brows, they were absolutely not flustered, each holding the long hilt of a knife, waiting for the battleter.


    At this time, three cavalries galloped out with the dust from the north of the camp, and quickly scattered away with the final ming twilight.


    The disciples of ck Ink Garden of Great River Kingdom were in-charge of escorting the grain to the Left-Tent pce on the grasnd, but cavalries of Yan Kingdom who were responsible for the security of the grain team did not obey the order. They were ambiguous, disobedient and displeased with each other, yet Zhuo Zhihua could not help but admire the three galloping cavalries.


    "Yan generals showed their quick response as they were the first to send envoys to the pce to give a message."


    Listening to these words, Ning Que shook his head and walked to the Big ck Horse¡¯s side, saying, "These barbarians may look like Horse Gangs, but they may actually be cavalries from the Left-Tent pce."


    Zhuo Zhihua and the girls next to the horse carriage were all amazed at his words.


    Ning Que did not exin but looked at those grasnd Horse Gangs wandering in the deserted wilderness and the three Yan cavalries speeding out like arrows, and said, "It might be sessful to send messages by envoys in the frontier fortress of Yan territory in the south, while they are deep in the grasnd, it will be impossible to out run the three cavalries. "


    After they defeated the monk in thekeside of Shubi Lake, in addition to their shared experiences recently, girls from Great River Kingdom increasingly trusted in Ning Que. They subconsciously believed his judgment. Cat girl even surprisingly jumped on the horse carriage, watching with worry as the distance between the three Yan cavalries grew farther and farther.


    The reaction of the generals from Yan Kingdom was not slow, but it was precisely because of the fast speed that Ning Que was unable to change the fate of the three cavalries, not to mention that he was now just an ordinary disciple of ck Ink Garden of Great River Kingdom.


    ...


    ...


    As the sun gradually set, the daylight on the grasnd became dimmer as the twilight became thicker. The three cavalries turned into tiny silhouettes on the blood-red canvas. No one knew whether they were shot by arrows or stopped by nooses, but they then suddenly fell to the ground, and there was no movementter on.


    Some timeter, dozens of Horse Gangs came over from the grasnd, and the bodies of the three former envoys were dragged by ropes behind the horses asionally hitting the low-lying area and mounds on the ground. They were so badly mutted that others could hardly bear the sight.


    The two groups of grasnd Horse Gangs converged and burst into loudughter, the so-called braying.


    This sort of scene on the grasnd was not new to Ning Que. That year he had also seen the corpse of the chief of Horse Gangs dragged at the Shubi Lake as a demonstration for a week, so he was not moved by this scene. However, such a ghastly se might make the young girls and civilians in the grain-delivery team have nightmares at night, and Ning Que could hear their breathing getting more fiercer and flurried.


    As for the 200 cavalries of the Yan Kingdom, the sight of theirrades being brutally killed and humiliated caused a greatmotion and they were only able to settle down under the force of their officers, who fought on the grasnd. No one was an opponent of these savages, at least until the Deste Man moved southward. The previous scene was proof that although the Yan forces and the disciples of ck Ink Garden were superior in numbers, the crowd could only hold back their anger and fear and set up a rough formation of wagons with their grain convoys and set up defensive offensives as fast as they could, waiting for the grasnd Horse Gangs to attack.


    The atmosphere in the camp became extremely depressing, as did the dozens of Yan cavalries after they had returned to camp. For all men, if not themselves, had heard of the cruelty of the grasnd Horse Gangs on the grasnd, especially when the peasants on the grain-delivery team looked ashen and trembling and unable to carry out even the simplest work.


    Surprisingly, these Horse Gangs did not attack at sun-set when the crowds in the camp had lost morale. Instead they just looked coldly on the busy crowds, staying a few arrows from the camp while holding the reins in their hands. Three of the Horse Gangs who looked like chiefs stopped in the forefront were waving their horsewhips, pointing and making judgements with arrogant looks on their faces.


    As night gradually fell, the bonfire in the camp was lit, and the Yan general himself set up a surveince post. The soldiers looked nervously at the outer edge of the pitch-ck periphery of the grasnd, thinking that they would never awaken once they fell asleep owing to the danger close at hand. It was almost certain that no one would be able to sleep peacefully as they feared that there would be a surprise attack by the Horse Gangs at night.


    Ning Que understood the behavior style of Horse Gangs. Be it the true Horse Gangs or the pce cavalry disguised as Horse Gangs, once they got on the horses and became thieves, they would firmly act in ordance with the behavior style of Horse Gangs - Horse Gangs would notunch an attack in the evening - Ning Que set up a tent for himself next to the carriage, and got ready to have a nice sleep, in order to meet the bloody battle tomorrow morning.


    The night wind blew, and lifted the curtains of the carriage, and his eyes narrowed, for he saw that the carriage was empty, and that the girl in white,Mo Shanshan, was nowhere to be found.


    He quietly climbed to the top of the carriage, looking out to the periphery of the camp by the dim light. There was a a circle of burning bonfires there, and a faint figure could be vaguely seen on the other side of the mes.


    No one but he, who had a keen eye, could have seen the thin figure on the Winter ins.


    Under the light of the mes and the starlight, the white clothes on the figure seemed thinner as if they would fly away with the night breeze. It was like a ghost or a spirit, and no one knew what it was doing.


    Ning Que stared in silence, deep in thought.


    Then he jumped off the carriage and fell asleep with his clothes on.


    As the night came to an end, suddenly there were several screams from the southwest part of the camp as well as the wild howling of horses. Cavalry of Yan Kingdom in the north who had been vignt looked nkly towards that ce in a state of horror.


    Ning Que sleeping in the tent next to the horse carriage had awakened.


    He listened for a moment, and looked through the cracks in the curtains at the girl¡¯s figure cut out by the candlelight in the carriage. Gradually the light came on. He smiled, and then closed his eyes and went back to sleep peacefully.


    In his dream he wondered when he became capable of writing such a powerful fire talisman.

 Chapter 214: Get on the Horse and Youre a Thief (II)

    Chapter 214: Get on the Horse and You¡¯re a Thief (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    No one dared to check out what was going on there at night, nor did others, like Ning Que who knew what had happened but did not want to take a look either. Only the next morning did people in the camp discover that the Horse Gangs that had stayed in the north had all disappeared but, they did not have time to be happy as they heard the sound of hoofs and sharp whistles again. The Horse Gangs had shown up again at dawn. What was different was that they kept a distance between them and the people in the camp this time, and were not as arrogant as they were yesterday.


    Zhuo Zhihua severely reprimanded the generals of the Yan forces instead of those girls from the Great River Kingdom who were cultivators of ck Ink Garden because they had different identities after all. Thus, those generals had no choice but to listen as the sulked, and then regrouped the team ording to the given instructions. Regardless of the Horse Gangs outside who were hesitant, they went through a gentle slope in the south, and then continued to march towards the pce towards the northeast.


    Only going out of the camp did people see a few dead horses lying in the southwest. They thought that there might have been a chaotic situation there yesterday. Scorched horses had been eaten by wild dogs in the wilderness and the site was awful. There was a trace of white mes left on the gravel, and it looked as though it had been burning the whole night. Both cavalries of the Yan Kingdom and the ordinary carriage drivers were in a total panic, and no one dared to speak.


    In the days that followed, the Horse Gangs continued to follow the grain-delivery team, but they were more cautious. They provoked them but they neverunched an attack. It was unknown why the group had been divided into several small teams. Each member nearest to the Horse Gangs that is about ten rides away from the grain team, was equipped with two horses, which obviously showed that they wanted to increase their speed.


    These people had gone deep into the Wilderness, which was not far from the Left-Tent pce. They might only need four or five days to reach there if the elite cavalries could ride as fast as possible. However, the team was marching at a slow speed because the grain carriages and civilians were included in the team now. Looking at their current speed, they would need at least half a month to catch up with the cavalries of the pce.


    After Ning Que spoke these words, they were perplexed about the background of these Horse Gangs, and they could not help but feel confused. Even if they caught up with the cavalries of the pce, there was a possibility that they might not be safe.


    Horse Gangs were walking around,sometimes they assembled and other times they scattered, seemingly the number fluctuated up and down. They always ensured that a certain number could be seen so as to maintain the pressure on the grain team. During these several days, although both sides were not really at war, people of the grain team were undermined by fear of being attacked at anytime and the depressive atmosphere, especially since some civilians looked extremely pale. It looked as if one strike of thunder in the sky could make them fall apart in fear.


    Zhuo Zhihua came to the carriage, looked at those distant Horse Gangs with worry, and then said, "We must do something to scare these Horse Gangs. If they keep following us in this way, our team might copse on us even if they don¡¯tunch an attack. What¡¯s more, it would be beneficial as it would increase the distance between us."


    The so-called benefits could not be revealed as this would inconvenience them, but the disciples of ck Ink Garden close to the horse carriage were clearly aware that if the camp copsed, they as cultivators would be naturally faster and therefore get away, if the Horse Gangs were further away. As for the encounter of the Yan force and the civilians, no one could care less about them in this dangerous Wilderness.


    Ning Que did not participate in the discussion.


    Both the Tang Empire and the Great River Kingdom were both on friendly terms. Ning Que also had a very good rtionship with these young girls. However, he was taking them into the wilderness on the basis of their strength only. At this dangerous moment, it was inconvenient for him to make too manyments.


    Apart from that, the more important reason was that his attention was still on the horse carriage.


    On Mo Shanshan, the girl in white with ck eyebrows.


    After seeing the fire talisman that night, Ning Que could faintly figure out the identity of the girl in white. Remembering the scene when he traveled back from the wilderness with the disguised princess of Tangst spring, he could not help but marvel at his own destiny and at Haotian¡¯s fate. No matter what kind of danger he met, it would be less dangerous for him being with such a person.


    The Cavalries of the Yan Kingdom who guarded the grains were more in number than the Horse Gangs together with the addition of the young disciples from ck Ink Garden. Thus it was hard to tell which side was stronger. Perhaps it was precisely due to this reason that the Horse Gangs had been just tightly encircling the grain team rather thanunching an attack. Not even a night attack had beenunched after the tragedy of the burning wildfire that night.


    The Horse Gangs did not ambush them at night, but the grain team on patrol could still not rx and instead only got more and more nervous. Maybe no one was able to see, except Ningque who woke up every night, Mo Shanshan in white appear at the border of the camp in the darkness. He knew she wasying talisman arrays.


    This situationsted for a few days. No matter how strong Mo Shanshan was, her Psyche Power rapidly reduced, and she wasn¡¯t able to continue for a longer time. Seeing her round cheeks behind the curtain gradually bing thinner and paler, Ning Que finally decided to get involved.


    He had learned Talisman Taoism from Master Yan Se, and he knew that the Talisman Masters could only be based on defense and that they were hard to make an attack, before entering the Knowing Destiny State. Although Mo Shanshan was in a high and profound state, shecked much experience in using Talisman Taoism inbats.


    It was deep at night, and there was no half-moon, but only a few stars, were hanging in the sky. Lights were bright in the camp, while the surrounding Wilderness was enveloped in darkness. No one knew how much danger was hidden there.


    The horse carriage slightly shook with Mo Shanshan¡¯s quietly getting off. She was ready to get to the camp to draw talismans andy arrays. All of a sudden her eyes went dim, she turned around and took a cold nce at the humble tent behind the carriage.


    Ning Que lifted the curtain and came out. He looked at her and said, "If you were the only person here, the Horse Gangs outside would be certainly unable to resist you. Yet now you¡¯re not alone, and you have to take care of so manypanions and grain vehicles, not knowing how long it¡¯llst. So if you keep going this way, you won¡¯t be able to hold on for much longer."


    Mo Shan looked at him as if she was gazing at the dark night behind him, with her eyes full of indifference. She then slightly lowered her eyes with the long and sparse eyshes gently winking, without saying a word.


    Ning Que quietly stared at her and continued, "If you¡¯re a Divine Talisman Master, you can certainly burn out all the Horse Gangs by drawing a piece of talisman. The problem lies in that you aren¡¯t a Divine Talisman Master as of yet, so you have to change your method."


    Mo Shan raised her head and looked at him, asking indifferently, "What method?"


    Ning Que replied, "It doesn¡¯t matter whether the Horse Gangs out there are true or not; or whether they¡¯re raised by the Left-Tent pce or the Yan Kingdom. To deal with them, we must use the way of the Horse Gangs."


    The faint starlight falling on Mo Shanshan¡¯s beautiful and somewhat dull face reflected her dark eyebrows clearer. She watched Ning Que and asked after a moment of silence, "What way?"


    "There¡¯s only one possible reason why the Horse Gangs would turn back, that is, profit. They¡¯ll naturally retrieve as long as they¡¯re assured that the price they pay will go beyond their profits."


    Ning Que continued, "It is clear that the information that these Horse Gangs have doesn¡¯t mention you, and they don¡¯t know of your existence, so they will be forced to change their n. Under this circumstances, we have the upper hand."


    Mo Shanshan quietly looked at him, and suddenly asked, "Do you know who I am?"


    Ning Que did not answer this question.


    Mo Shan repeated the previous question, "In what way can we get rid of these Horse Gangs?"


    Ning Que answered, "The so-called Horse Gang while on the horse he¡¯s a thief, when off the horse he¡¯s a civilian. They don¡¯t believe in moral judgment, and they even don¡¯t mind what the world trend is. Instead, they only care about whose knife is sharper. If we want to deter or shock them to retreat, just do as I said earlier, the way of the Horse Gangs."


    Mo Shanshan continued to repeat, "What way?"


    Ning Que looking at the girl¡¯s pretty but indifferent cheeks. He then suddenlyughed and said, "As I¡¯ve said earlier, the way of the Horse Gangs."


    He was very persistent and bored, but more so with Mo Shanshan. She continued to repeat, "What way."


    Ning Que shook his head with a smile, and replied, "We get on the horses, be thieves and go and kill them."


    Mo Shanshan concisely said, "I won¡¯t kill people."


    Ning Que simply said, "I can teach you."


    Mo Shanshan simply answered, "Ok."


    A momentter, Ning Que and Mo Shanshan respectively led a big ck horse and a fine white horse, and walked slowly towards the dark Wilderness outside the camp. Mo Shanshan suddenly asked with the night breeze blowing in her beautiful hair," Where do these horse Gangse from?"


    He could not make an urate judgment about the Horse Gangs who stayed around and seemed to ambush at any time -- he was acquainted with the Wilderness in the west and the Horse Gangs in the Wilderness. Furthermore, if he was to start with the cause of the problem, he alsocked enough information and analytical ability of the political situation.


    The grain team that was supervised by the girls from the Great River Kingdom carried the goodwill of the Central countries , as well as the intent of making peace with the Divine Hall. Now due to the tensions in the Wilderness, the original Horse Gangs had already fled away. These Horse Gangs that appeared here, obviously wanted to kill people and grab the grains but their main purpose had nothing to do with the grains, but instead sabotage the peace negotiations.


    There were a few reasons for this. The tribes of the Deste Men who had moved southwards from the extremely cold northern part would not be able to raise such arge group of Horse Gangs in such a short period of time. Even if the Yuelun Kingdom would like to harm citizens of the Great River Kingdom, no one would be so bored and evil as to upy a mild stream. Yan Kingdom had long been afflicted by the Left-Tent pce. Therefore, they would not want to miss the opportunity to pacify the North in one stroke. However, would the empire of the Yan risk taking a secret shot and offend the Divine Hall?


    After much deliberation, Ning Que was only able toe up with several simple possibilities. After all the deductions, he couldn¡¯t figure out who else was capable of raising such arge group of Horse Gangs on the grasnd.


    However, not being able to resolve this question did not really trouble him. With regard to the creature, Horse Gangs, whom he had been fighting with for many years, Ning Que ¡¯s attitude had always been clear - only the dead Horse Gangs were good ones.


    Then, he would kill a dozen Horse Gangs that strayed to close to him.


    There was a cloud drifting over the night sky, hiding thest few stars. The surrounding Wilderness, far away from the light of the camp, was dark. Only the weak sounds of hooves were faintly heard.


    Coming to the meadow that was within a stone¡¯s throw away distance to the hidden location where there were a dozen Horse Gangs, Ning Que gently lifted the reins. The big ck horse shook its head with some impatience, but still stopped as required.


    Horse Gangs were certainly vignt. Even the weakest sound of hooves would wake them up.


    Ning Que, with the slight strength of his waist and abdomen, ced his feet on the pedal to stand up, and then took the boxwood bow out from his back.


    Mo Shanshan gave him a nce, thinking what was the point of using arrows when they were so far away from them.


    The Horse Gangs in the distance were awake, ready to confront the fight.


    In the dark night, Ning Que could not see his five fingers that were holding the bow, so he quietly stared at that ce and then slowly closed his eyes. He drew his bow and aimed somewhere, and then released the bowstring.


    The bowstring was buzzing in the sky.


    A Horse Gang in the distance was hit by an arrow in the chest, and a pinch of blood burst out. He then fell to the ground with a muffled groan.

 Chapter 215: Get on the Horse & Youre a Thief (III)

    Chapter 215: Get on the Horse & You¡¯re a Thief (III)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Whether it was a thief or a soldier, people who sat on a horse¡¯s saddlemonly used short bows or machetes due to the limited space. Yet, Ning Que was different. Starting from the City of Wei, the boxwood bow and podao that he used were slightly longer, so he was ustomed to standing on the saddle, holding his body straight to shoot arrows by drawing his bow or to chop people by pulling out his knife. Although it was not that convenient to handle, in the eyes of onlookers, this position was actually quite majestic.


    When he shot another arrow in the darkness and killed the second member of the Horse Gang in the distance, Mo Shanshan, who had been standing behind him without any expression, finally showed some splendor in her eyes.


    Above the Wilderness were winter clouds, shading the stars. Even his hand holding the bow could not be seen in the dark night. However, Ning Que could urately shoot the Horse Gang member who was beyond a stone¡¯s throw away. It was really incredible, as if the night could not block his gaze and he was capable of seeing everything clearly in the darkness.


    Although Ning Que only had 10 acupoints through of all the acupoints in his body, and the Qi of Heaven and Earth that he could control was not abundant, his many years of meditation and mental exercise made his Psyche Power and Perception State condense like a needle, so he was sensitive to the variation of the surrounding aura. While he was ascending the mountain of the Second Floor of the Academy, that he was able to pass the trail depended much on this ability.


    At this time in the night¡¯s darkness, his ability to easily see the Horse Gang and lock them in front of his own arrows was due to his extremely condensed and sensitive Psyche Power. The Psyche Powering from his sense of perception touched the Primordial Qi between heaven and earth by relying on the night wind. Thus, for him, this Wilderness was as bright as daylight.


    This method may have never been used by other cultivators in the past because it wasted too much Psyche Power. If someone¡¯s Psyche Power was abundant enough, he could directly kill those ordinary people in the Horse Gang. Why did he use the Psyche Power as a means of detection?


    To put it in a nutshell, it could only be said that Ning Que had always been different from ordinary cultivators. The Qi of Heaven and Earth that he could handle was pitifully little, while his Psyche Power was so abundant and his sensitivity was so strong. And his will, which wholeheartedlybined cultivation withbat, was so strong. These several exmations contributed to such an emotional scene.


    When Ning Que shot out the second arrow, Mo Shanshan stood to the side, silently staring at him. As one of the best cultivators of the younger generation in the world, she was keenly aware that there was a very concise movement of Psyche Power at that moment, rising with the vibration from her side. She could not help furrowing her eyebrows, and wondering whether he was really a cultivator.


    The Horse Gang in the distance just woke up from their sleep, but there had been two fellows who were killed by arrows. Although they were amazed at how these arrows could be so urate in the darkness, they still made the quick reaction to jump on horseback and kick their horses forward to run toward the direction where the arrows came from. They wanted to narrow the distance between the two sides in the shortest time possible so that their enemy¡¯s terrifying archery could not be disyed. At the same time, in order to fight back, they let the darkness no longer be a like a curtain in front of them.


    Horse hooves resounded like rain.


    While the Horse Gang was running over, Ning Que pulled the bowstring and an arrow fiercely prated the head of a horse. It then mournfully fell to the ground, with the Horse Gang member on its back being thrown to the ground. Another arrow flew away, narrowly rubbing the cheek of a Horse Gang member.


    Those in the Horse Gangs on the grasnd were skillful in riding and Archery. When they were charging, they would curl their bodies around the bellies of their horses. Ning Que¡¯s arrows would be difficult to directly threaten them. Instantaneously, with increasingly clear and intensive hooves, he could vaguely see that nearly 10 men from the Horse Gang were sweeping through like a fierce wind, and even the reflected light of their sharp weapons could be seen.


    The Big ck Horse had not experienced a real battlefield, but it was not afraid while it saw its kin getting closer and closer. On the contrary, in its eyes appeared the glory of excitement, and it kept thrillingly driving its forehoofs, trying to rush forward without waiting for Ning Que to lift the reins.


    Looking at those of the Horse Gang who were getting closer and closer and listening to their mournful rage, Mo Shanshan did not know how Ning Que would deal with it. Then her fingers, which had kept in her white sleeves, gently picked up something.


    The Big ck Horse¡¯s excitement did not please Ning Que, and he gave it a heavy strike on its head in annoyance, indicating for it to be a bit quiet. However, he jumped off the horse. As soon as hended on his feet, without any hesitation, he rushed toward the Horse Gang, who had frantically swept over along with the dust and gravel.


    The distance between the two sides was bing very close. Being in contact with each other would be the only constant. No matter who would have insufficient time to draw their bows and shoot an arrow. The Horse Gang finally saw the enemy¡¯s appearance clearly. Then two riders, staying respectively on the right and left at the forefront, just lifted their reins to crash directly into Ning Que, while several riders following behind were strangely crying out and sat straight, pulled out their machetes from their waist, and kept waving them.


    with a screaming sound.


    Ning Que pulled out the podao from his back, and staggered his feet to avoid the two horses that wereing with a fierce wind. He turned his right hand, then two shes of white light were drawn out by the de, and blood suddenly appeared.


    The two horses were pitifully crying and suddenly fell forward, crashing heavily into the Wilderness with two muffled sounds. Their forehooves, which had been cut off by the podao, were flying in the air ording to inertia, spilling out two miserable lines of blood.


    The de struck following a curving, fatal, and cold trajectory. If reced by ordinary people, perhaps they could hardly avoid such a strange cleaving motion. Whereas, Ning Que was too familiar with Horse Gangs and machetes that they always used. He was so familiar with them that he could easily avoid his clothes being touched by them even with closed eyes.


    It was deep in the night, so there was not much of a difference between keeping your eyes open or closed.


    Thus, he easily lowered his head, turned around, and tilted his body to sessfully avoid several des that were hitting downward from the Horse Gang. And then he tightened his two hands, with the spindly podao tearing open a few terrifying gaps in the night sky, chopping down a few horseshoes, splitting chests and abdomens of the Horse Gang men, taking down a few strands of horses¡¯ manes. After that, he heavily and firmly stood in the hard mud of the Wilderness.


    In a moment, he rushed into the crowd of the Horse Gang. Two of the Horse Gang were killed under his podao and five horses copsed. Yet the Horse Gang¡¯s machetes did not leave a mark on him.


    At this point, the clouds gradually scattered in the sky, letting some starlight through. Though his face still could not be seen clearly, his stature was clearly visible. Horse Gang members lifted their reins to turn around, looking toward Ning Que, who was standing with a knife in the Wilderness. Their bodies stiffened and their hands tightly holding machetes were shaking, while still feeling extremely cold.


    Those in the Horse Gang rescued theirpanions on the ground that still had breath at their fastest speed, riding together toward the periphery for some distance. They looked nervously and alertly toward Ning Que, but had no courage to draw the bow to aim at him.


    Ning Que went over, listening to the miserable shouts from the horses whose hooves had been chopped off in the Wilderness at night. He pulled out the podao and carried it in his hand, then slowly and steadily, he cut the throats of those horses to let them die at the fastest speed.


    Then he watched the Horse Gang that was not too far away, stretching out his fingers to continue waving in the night wind. He did not know whether the opposition could see clearly his gesture or the meaning contained in that gesture.


    "Why not kill everyone in the Horse Gang?"


    Mo Shanshan looked at those escaping Horse Gang members in the darkness and asked, feeling puzzled.


    "Horse Gangs can¡¯t be killed off."


    Ning Que said, "At least for the men of this Horse Gang clinging to us, I can¡¯t kill them off by myself."


    Mo Shanshan turned around to look at him attentively. Yet, her eyesight was drifting, which seemed very inattentive.


    Ning Que stared at her pretty, little round face and said, after a moment of silence, "The reason why I kill people tonight is that I hope they can bring back an urate message."


    "What message?"


    "I want to tell them that there¡¯s still a man in the grain team specializing in killing Horse Gangs besides you, a Talisman Master. If the Horse Gangs want to eliminate us, they must pay a higher price. If the benefits they get and the risks they meet are disproportionate, maybe they will withdraw."


    Mo Shan said, "Although I haven¡¯t encountered a Horse Gang, I¡¯ve heard a lot of legends about grasnd Horse Gangs. They¡¯re well-known for their cruelty. Why would they retreat only because of some minor setbacks?"


    "The crueler they are and the more love they have for killing, the more fear of death... As for Horse Gangs, I may know more than you."


    He continued, "The purpose of killing the Horse Gang tonight, in addition to letting them bring back a clear message, is to teach you something."


    Mo Shanshan¡¯s refreshing eyebrows, which were as condensed as ink, furrowed. "Teach me to kill people?"


    "To kill people, or how to avoid being killed."


    Ning Que looked at her, and seriously continued, "You¡¯re the most powerful person on this team. When Horse Gangs attack, I can protect myself. But for those ordinary soldiers and civilians, they ultimately depend on you. A few days ago, you consumed your Psyche Power toy talisman arrays outside the camp. In my opinion, it¡¯s a waste of your time and energy."


    He said, "You¡¯re our trump card. So you should be kept for offense rather than defense."


    Mo Shanshan remained silent for a long period of time after hearing his words, and then she said, "I¡¯ve cultivated Talisman Taoism since my childhood. As far as I know, only Divine Talisman Masters can attack their own initiative."


    Recalling Master Yan Se¡¯s teachings in Chang¡¯an, Ning Que could not help butugh. He watched her expressionless, butic round face, saying, "Who says Talisman Masters who haven¡¯t entered the Knowing Destiny State can¡¯t make an attack? As long as proper measures are used, even frozen bread can be used to kill a person."


    Although he had a clear understanding of the grasnd Horse Gangs, with whom he had dealt for many years, the situation did not go exactly as expected. The Horse Gang left the grain team a little further behind on the second day, but did not disperse away. Instead, they merged into another group, watching the grain team from a distance.


    Distance created beauty, as well as a sense of security. Though the growing distance between the Horse Gang and the grain team had no substantial significance in safety, it was obvious that the mental stress of the Yan forces and civilians in the team were reduced. Even girls from Great River Kingdom asionally had smiles on their faces.


    Mo Shanshan lifted a corner of the curtain, and watched Ning Que, who was sitting on the Big ck Horse next to the carriage, and looked at his cheek, half of which was covered by a bamboo hat, and then suddenly asked, "Are you very familiar with the Wilderness?"


    Ning Que nodded.


    Mo Shanshan stared at the shadow cast on his face by the bamboo hat, saying, "It¡¯s so windy in the Wilderness. Normally ordinary people don¡¯t wear bamboo hats, but why do you and many Horse Gang people all wear bamboo hats?"


    Ning Que hooked thecing at his chin with his little finger, and then said, "It hascing, so you aren¡¯t afraid that it will be blown away. As for why we¡¯re used to wearing a bamboo hat... the sun is too strong in the Wilderness, and it can help to give you shade. The most critical thing is that it can cover your face."


    The purpose of covering their faces was not because they felt ashamed to face people, but do not let others see their faces. Both he and the Horse Gangs always protected their own identities thoroughly.


    Cat Girl looked at the Horse Gang walking nearly in parallel with the grain team in the northeast, asking with her thin brows furrowing, "Senior Brother, where do all these Horse Gangse from? It should not be too far away from the pce here. Is there no one to handle them?"


    "It seems that I have answered that question a few days ago."


    Ning Que lowered her hat, saying, "Many of the most powerful Horse Gangs have their own masters, and so does the Horse Gang following us now, obviously."


    Cat Girl asked with curiosity, "How do you know?"


    Ning Que looked at the distant Horse Gang, and then said after a moment of silence, "Because this Horse Gang is too disciplined."


    "Who¡¯s their master?"


    "I don¡¯t know."


    Ning Que shook his head, thinking that there were few forces that could afford to support such arge Horse Gang group on the grasnd. However, as was analyzed a few days earlier, those forces had no reason to instigate their Horse Gangs to rob the grain team.


    The countries of the Central ins called for peace talks with the Left-Tent pce. The grain team represented an attitude. The grain they guarded, although small in quantity, carried symbolic significance. If these Horse Gangs took aim at the grain, they should immediately withdraw themselves once they found the grain team hard to control. Unless their purpose to rob and kill the team was not for the grain, but to destroy the agreement, or aim at someone in the team. Then this situation would be very tricky.


    Thinking of this, he subconsciously took a sideways nce at the window of the carriage beside him. A corner of the curtain was blown up by the winter wind, revealing Mo Shanshan¡¯s indifferent and calm face.


    In his opinion, it was probably the girl in white in the horse carriage who was qualified in the team to attract so many Horse Gangs. Of course, when thinking about this question, he excluded himself in advance as he believed that no one actually recognized him, who was disguised as a disciple of ck Ink Garden mixing in with the grain team.


    The situation deteriorated as Ning Que considered. The grain team only spent a rxing day, then the atmosphere quickly became more nervous, and even scary, because, over the following two or three days, the Horse Gang did not leave. What was worse, small Horse Gang groups continuously appeared, joining up with the Horse Gang in the distance.


    It was not too far away from the pce here. Even elite cavalries were sent here to back the team up, and it only took them about two and a half days to get here. It would be impossible for the grain team to easily break out, thus they had to pin their hopes on reinforcements. That night, two bunches of fireworks rose up to the sky in the camp, brightly shining in the deep dark night, and also reflecting the mountain-like Horse Gang in the distance.


    Fireworks bloomed all the way and other Horse Gangs kept joining in. The number of those in the Horse Gang apanying the grain team was gettingrger andrger, and they gradually became a dark mass of people, crowds, and horses. People of the grain team would feel frightened, even just taking a quick nce at them.


    Ning Que became more and more silent. Looking at more than 600 among the Horse Gang in the distance, he felt more and more confused in his heart. "What do these Horse Gangs want to do?"

 Chapter 216: Get on the Horse and Youre a Thief (IV)

    Chapter 216: Get on the Horse and You¡¯re a Thief (IV)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Doing a simple mathematical analysis would provide one with an urate conclusion. For example, a middle-aged man who has seventeen concubines was definitely a rich man. An official who had two or more calligraphy sections written by Ning Que hanging in his study was not only rich but of a certain status as well.


    That was why it became evident that it was either the Pce or the Yan Kingdom that was behind the Horse Gang when the number of Horse Gang members escorting the grains silently grew to over six hundred men strong. Only Yan Kingdom and the Left-Tent Pce had the ability to feed so many men. However, Ning Que could not wrap his around the motives of the Horse Gang. Both the Yan Kingdom and the Left-Tent Pce should be open to and wee the peace negotiations.


    Ning Que grew silent as he grew tenser.


    There were two hundred riders from the Yan Kingdom and over a hundred civilians in the team sending the grains. Along with them were over ten young women cultivators from the ck Ink Garden of the Great River Kingdom. In the beginning, the two seemed to be equally strong. He had thought that they would move like the Horse Gang usually would if he scared them a little. However, he realized that the Horse Gang were not simply here to rob them, but had other intentions as he saw their numbers grow.


    There were now over six hundred riders from the Horse Gang. They held the upper hand for now. Even if he brought Mo Shanshan along and charged at them, he wouldn¡¯t even make a dent in their numbers.


    There were no new riders joining in. The six hundred riders from the Horse Gang followed the team bringing grains silently towards the north. The Horse Gang did not begin any attack and seemed hesitant as if they were waiting for orders.


    No matter whether they attacked or not, the Horse Gang brought about immense stress to the team escorting the grains as they surrounded them. It felt as if there was a dark cloud hanging over their heads that was threatening to rain down upon them. The pressure grew more and more intense and the atmosphere descended into fear and hopelessness. If they weren¡¯t in the frigid Wilderness, the pale Yan army might have abandoned camp right there and then.


    The invisible thread that hung between the grain escort team and the Horse Gang grew tighter and tighter. While nothing was happening as of yet, Ning Que was certain that the Horse Gang would lose all opportunity to attack if they didn¡¯t soon. The distance to the Pce was getting smaller with each step and there would be a point in time when the invisible thread would snap.


    It was not all snow and mud in the Wilderness. There were also abandoned sand cities and little hills. The grains team stopped for a rest in a patch of aspen forest. The Yan General looked at the surrounding Horse Gang and dispatched his sentinels. Even though there was no point to it, it soothed the worries of the people slightly.


    "If there are no reinforcements, the grains team will not be able to travel safely. We are not far from the Pce right now. There is a possibility we might encounter Chanyu¡¯s best riders or the cavalry from the Divine Hall. The problem is, even if they don¡¯t see the fireworks, you must have a way to inform them since you are a skilled Talisman Master."


    Ning Que¡¯s gaze shifted from the map before him and asked Mo Shanshan in a grave tone. Mo Shanshan was calm and collected as usual as if she did not see the Horse Gang that was circling around.


    After a moment of silence, she looked at Ning Que. Her longshes fluttered slightly as she said, "The Divine Hall wants to send some important figures to the Pce safely. There should be a team of Papal Cavalryman. They shouldn¡¯t be too far from us ording to the map, which means they should have seen the fireworksst night."


    Ning Que stared into her deadened eyes and asked, "If... they didn¡¯t see the fireworks, will they be able to find out that we¡¯re here?"


    Mo Shanshan nodded slightly, her dark ck hair cascaded down her back like a waterfall.


    Ning Que calmed down slightly and drank some water. After a moment of silence, he said, "I will get out of here first thing if the relief troop doesn¡¯t appear and our army can¡¯t resist the Horse Gang. Do you all want toe with me?"


    He was, of course, referring to the students of the ck Ink Garden of Great River Kingdom. It did not include the cavalry or civilians of Yan Kingdom.


    Cat Girl overheard what Ning Que said as she brought food over to them. Her face flushed slightly as she said, "Senior Brother... how can you say that?"


    Ning Que did not exin himself. He ruffled the girl¡¯s head indulgently before saying to Mo Shanshan, "You should know that I am a cold-blooded person. I consider my survival first before anything else. If the relief troop does not turn up, the grains team cannot hold off any attack from the Horse Gang. If you want anyone to survive then, you¡¯d be sending everyone to their deaths. That is why I hope that you will all make the right choice if ites to that."


    The grains team were extremely careful every time they stopped for a rest due to the circling Horse Gang. Other than sending out sentinels, the grains team had also organized their carts closely in order to prevent the enemy from charging into camp. Even though it brought about many inconveniences, it was better than death. That was why nobody thought it was a nuisance.


    A suddenmotion sounded beneath a dying aspen tree. Ning Que stood up and looked towards it. He shook his head, put on his mask and walked towards themotion. Cat Girl followed behind him curiously.


    The Yan army general stared at Zhuo Zhihua with a solemn face and said angrily, "If it weren¡¯t for you Southerners, why would I be sent to do such a terrible task? You want me to wait for the relief troops even in such a situation? I only have two hundred people. They have at least seven or eight. How do I wait? How are we going to fight this war? My stand is clear. I will take my people and spring an attack on them. So what if we leave behind these grains for the Horse Gang? Being alive is the most important thing here. It¡¯s your problem if you want to die with these grains."


    Zhuo Zhihua suppressed the anger bubbling in her chest. She pointed at the frenzied civilians and said, "What about them? They are people of the Yan Kingdom. Are you not going to care if they die as their General?"


    "Who will care if I die?"


    The General waved his hands around angrily, signing for his man to gather the cavalry in preparation to quickly escape from the circle the Horse Gang were trapping them in before they closed in on them.


    Some civilians who were near the conversation overheard it. They knew that their General was about to abandon them and descended into a frenzied furrow. There were angry yells and crying all around. Some even red at the cavalry so hard that they would have been reduced into burning embers if it was possible.


    Zhuo Zhihua and two girls from the Great River Kingdom held the hilts of their sword, stopping the Yan General.


    Zhuo Zhihua tried to convince him in a low voice but did not get any reaction. The Yan General looked at the Horse Gang surrounding them and was clearly anxious. He pulled out his knife and red at the girls. "You¡¯ll face my knife if you try to stop me!" He said coldly.


    Ning Que watched the unfolding scene behind Zhuo Zhihua. His eyebrows scrunched up slightly. He did not know the Yan General¡¯s name. He did not care what his name was. But he knew that if the General dared move, he would die beneath Zhuo Zhihua¡¯s sword. However, in a situation as tense as this, if they had any internal strife within themselves, everyone in this team would die even without the Horse Gang¡¯s attack.


    How could he keep these two hundred men strong team alive without stirring up any internal strife?


    He had to end it before it even began. Blow out the candle before it burns and everything will go back to how it should be.


    Ning Que stood up before Zhuo Zhihua and blocked the General from Zhuo Zhihua¡¯s sword.


    The General was slightly shocked when he saw thed wearing a bamboo hat and mask. He had always thought Ning Que was an ordinary disciple of ck Ink Garden. He did not know why thed stood up for him all of a sudden.


    Ning Que looked at the knife in the General¡¯s hand. He did not ask if he had to face the sword, but instead, drew his podao and sliced down.


    The podao dropped along with the General¡¯s head. The General fell, spurting fresh blood. He did not even have the chance to raise his knife due to the suddenness of the situation and that Ning Que was too fast and furious.


    There was a loudmotion. The confidants of the General were enraged but were stopped by Ning Que just as they were about to retaliate.


    Zhuo Zhihua, Cat Girl and the other girls from the Great River Kingdom stared at the scene dazedly. They could not speak as they watched the body before them flowing with blood. They did not understand why Ning Que did that.


    Ning Que signaled for them to tie themanding officers up.


    He stood in the middle of the crowd and at the civilians who looked back in fear. He looked at the cavalry who were filled with anger and fear. After a pregnant pause, he pointed at the Horse Gang surrounding them in the periphery and said,


    "That¡¯s the Horse Gang. They are violent and cruel. You must know that."


    He looked at the in body of the General at his feet before talking to the crowd again, "This is a dangerous situation. He wanted to abandon everyone. He wanted to live and let us die. He had to die."


    "Those who do not listen to orders will die as well."


    "Even if I do not kill you, the Horse Gang will do so."


    "That¡¯s why I do not wish to exin too much. Fight for your lives if you wish to live."


    There was a moment of silence. The cavalry and civilians of Yan looked at the seemingly ordinary disciple of ck Ink Garden. They looked at his calm eyes above the ck mask he wore and felt a piercing cold in their bones. They were calm because of the cold. They were calm because they knew that he was right.


    They looked at Ning Que¡¯s retreating back as he walked towards the horse carriage. Cat Girl stared at him with wide eyes filled with confusion. She scratched her head and realized that she did not understand this Senior Brother from the Academy at all. He had previously advised Hill Master to leave while they can. Why was his reaction so extreme when the Yan General prepared to do the same thing?


    The curtains lifted. Mo Shanshan looked at him and said, "The fickle minded are usually not good people."


    "I am not a citizen of Yan. These Yan calvary and civillians have nothing to do with me. Their life and death have nothing to do with me. But he is a Yan General. He had no right to abandon his people. I did not kill him because of this. It is simply because his death will be more beneficial to more people surviving this."


    "As for being fickle minded..." Ning Que examined his bow and arrow. "If you really can¡¯t hold them off, I¡¯d suggest you leave with me. I am not fickle. Both the Yan General and I are afraid of death. The only difference between us is that I have the ability to kill him, but he does not have the ability to kill me."

 Chapter 217: Get on the Horse and Youre a Thief (V)

    Chapter 217: Get on the Horse and You¡¯re a Thief (V)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The wind never stopped in the Wilderness in winter. It might not be strong, but it pierced deep into your very bones, robbing you of any trace of warmth. Mo Shanshan though wore a thin white dress with a jade blue sash around her waist that was the color of a deepke. It was a strong contrast to her usual slow gaze.


    Her dark brows rose slightly as she asked Ning Que, "You¡¯ve killed their General. Are you not worried that his people might hate you and not do their best in the battle or even surrender to the Horse Gang?"


    "The Military nted their trusted General here which was not in the interest of the soldiers. The dead General did not have a good rtionship with these cavalries, especially the Yan Kingdom calvary. I am a citizen of Tang and I understand this well."


    Ning Que used his fingers to check if the three podaos were held firmly by the string. He lowered his head and answered, "I killed the Yan General and stopped those officials. The two hundred men might be angry, but they are not sad. This angeres more from fear and unrest."


    Mo Shanshan looked at the bamboo hat which covered most of his face. "They fear you.. fear would make one want to stay far away from you. This might a reason for them to surrender to the Horse Gang."


    "Even the weakest soldier would find surrendering to the Horse Gang a tough decision to make. They would think about it over and over, but thinking requires a rxed emotional state."


    Ning Que raised his head. He looked at the Horse Gang who have been prowling in the outskirts but have yet to attack. He continued, "The situation right now is too tense. They might get shot by an arrow anytime." The Yan soldiers had neither the time nor the conditions to think. They were like a herd of wild horses who had lost their leader. Where a single horse go, they will follow blindly. What I want, is for them to follow blindly."


    Mo Shanshan looked at his side profile. "Were you in the army before?"


    Ning Que nodded.


    Mo Shanshan fiddled with her hair. After a moment of silence, she said, "I have indeed learned a lot in the time we spent together."


    Ning Que looked at her and smiled. "You¡¯re too kind. There is nothing good you can learn from me. If possible, I hope that you will never have the opportunity to learn these things."


    ...


    ...


    The two hundred Yan riders did not really grieve the loss of their high and mighty General who bossed them around and the officials who only knew how to pander to him. They were only slightly angry. However, just as Ning Que predicted, the loss of their leader led to anger and quickly turned into the feeling of loss and quietpliance.


    Every army who could fight had their own unique aura. However, the Yan army did not. If this was a Tang army, they would not be so docile and follow the lead of someone else after their General had been murdered.


    Ning Que was very d that the Yan Kingdom did not have any backbone.


    He did notmand them directly, but instead, passed his orders through Mo Shanshan from the horse carriage. Zhuo Zhihua and four other disciples from ck Ink Garden took over the positions of officers temporarily. They took charge of the order in camp, sending of sentries as well as managed theft prevention. Their orders were quickly carried out and there were noints from the Yan riders or anyone else. The order and atmosphere were better than before.


    The grain team continued their way up north, followed by more than six hundred members of the Horse Gang. ording to the orders from the horse carriage, their speed was carefully monitored and changed constantly. They speeded up and then slowed down. This was no doubt a sort of torture to the riders and the civilians driving the carts. However, they managed to do it and hindered the progress of the Horse Gang.


    The most dangerous part of the day was twilight. It was spent in silence as the team moved onwards. The team dragged on in a long line as they entered a rare low-lyingnd in the Wilderness. The skies darkened and light gradually faded.


    This low-lying area had two meadows that rose upwards on both sides of it. In the darkness, one¡¯s eyes could not see the end of the path. It was simr to the valleys of the south, but just that the terrain was not as tough nor steep.


    The ten Yan riders leading the way were surprised when they heard the whistle from behind as it signaled that they had decided to pitch their tents right there.


    Anyone with military knowledge would not set up camp in such a low-lying area with high meadows on both sides of it. If the Horse Gang took the opportunity to race downwards at the grain team, who had stretched out in a long line, their weak defenses would be broken. It was highly dangerous.


    Following that, a new order was passed down from the horse carriage. The orders were that the grain carts were to be gathered together in formation. They were to remove the carriages and to use them as shields. However, there were no orders for them to dig traps. Nor did they set up tripping lines for horses at the two ends of their formation. It gave the impression that the person in the carriage had long given up on defense and was waiting for the Horse Gang to attack.


    Twilight came and the bright red of the sky rushed at them before dying, enveloping the team in darkness. One could barely make out the people rushing to ce their shields and the rising smoke columns.


    Suddenly, the smoke died out, as if they had been frozen still by the cold air. Everyone who had been busying around turned to look at the meadow on their left. Their bodies stiffened and all were silent.


    Hundreds of Horse Gang members appeared on the meadows mere feet away from them. This was the closest they have got to them over the past few days. The Horse Gang stood still in the distance. In the light of the dying sun, they looked like a dense forest burning ferociously, giving one a strong sense of oppression.


    Ning Que rose his bamboo hat up by a few inches. He looked at the Horse Gang standing on the meadow and scrunched up his eyebrows. He noticed that the Horse Gang were more orderly and quiet today. There wasn¡¯t a single one of them who had charged up silently in challenge or to scare them.


    He noticed that the team fronting the Horse Gang riders had ten more riders than before.


    He was sure that he had never seen the masked riders before. That meant that the ten additional riders arrived today. The startling change in the Horse Gang was also due to these riders.


    "Even if they were not the representative of those backing the Horse Gang, these ten riders must be in charge." Ning Que looked at the Horse Gang who pointed at their camp with their riding crops. He looked at their mask and said in a low voice, "We have to get rid of those ten if we have the chance. We might be able to get out of this then."


    Mo Shanshan stood by him and looked at them. "You¡¯ve once said that their goal is not the grains. Killing them would be useless."


    "The Horse Gang are simply thieves. They do not take orders from anyone. They are more afraid of death than anyone else. I believe that no matter the Pce or the Yan Kingdom, they must have each bought out different sections of the Horse Gang."


    Ning Que looked at her and said, "That is to say, the Horse Gang before us do not belong to a singr entity. They are not a team. They only listen to the leader of the ten riders who arrived today. If we get rid of them, they will retreat."


    He added on seriously, "I¡¯ve said it once and I¡¯ll say it again. You are the strongest of the entire team. You must not show your hand until the very end. Otherwise, it¡¯d be a waste."


    Mo Shanshan¡¯s hooded lids and longshes cast a shadow on her snow white skin. She was extremely beautiful and adorable. However, her silence also made one antsy.


    Ning Que did not bother with her but removed the heavy bag off the back of the big ck horse. He then made his way into the horse carriage behind. He said seriously, "The things in the bag are very important to me. Please guard them well."


    Mo Shanshan looked up and said, "Your secret?"


    "Indeed." Ning Que replied.


    "You seem to have lots of secrets."


    "You too," Ning Que replied.


    Mo Shanshan squinted slightly and asked, "Why were you never worried that they might ambush us at night?"


    Ning Que looked at her eyes and the light creases at the side. He could not help but think of the leaves of a certain nt. Perhaps the willow tree?


    "The reason is simple. That is because it is difficult to find the gold hidden by merchants in the dark. If they search for it in daylight, they might get caught by the army. Ambushing us in the dark might also affect their shooting abilities, which is one of their best skills. They cannot ept this. It is unusual that they have followed us for so many days."


    Mo Shanshan¡¯s eyebrows rose. "Since this is unusual, why would they not also do an unusual night ambush?"


    Ning Que discovered that it was indeed easy to lose to the girl in white. He paused for a moment before replying, "This is wisdom exchanged with fresh blood and death of their elders. They will not turn their backs against it."


    "Perhaps we should say that they do not wish to turn their backs against it. Because it has been drilled into their bones and their subconscious." Ning Que looked at her. "It¡¯s like how you write your talisman. You do not need to think how to write, and your hands would make a decision before your mind does. It will move on its own."


    Mo Shanshan looked at him silently before asking, "You¡¯ve studied talismans?"


    Ning Que smiled warmly, "A little."


    Perhaps it was the nearing battle, or the beautiful twilight, or the impending night. Mo Shanshan looked much more affable to him right now even though her eyes were proud and slightly cold and wooden. He thought to himself, that she had reason to, given her current position in the world.


    Simrly, Mo Shanshan felt that the young Tangd looked much more affable now.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que spent the night with a few other riders from the Yan army. He ordered for them to sleep perched on a horse. They were not allowed to shed their armor. Simrly, he had donned on a light armor of the Yan army.


    "The relief troop is on their way. We will gain victory if we make it to noon."


    He looked at the slightly lost and numb cavalry of Yan seriously by the bonfire.


    There was finally a change in the expressions of the Yan army as hope glimmered in their eyes.


    Ning Que did not know if the relief troop wille. But he knew thate dawn tomorrow, the Horse Gang would definitely attack. If things did not go well, he would not hesitate to ride away on his big ck horse.


    He must not forget his package and Cat Girl, as well as Zhuo Zhihua... and Mo Shansahn. It seemed that he had too many things and people to bring along.

 Chapter 218: Get on the Horse and Youre a Thief (VI)

    Chapter 218: Get on the Horse and You¡¯re a Thief (VI)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    It was a random moment at dawn when the Horse Gang, who had followed them for more than ten days, finally made a move to attack. The sound that pierced through the dawn light was not a horn, but the whistling of an arrow.


    Hundreds of arrows fell in an arc from the meadows, tearing through the cold air and the remnants of sleep in the camp.


    While the grain team was prepared both mentally and physically, it was still a mess. In the rain of arrows, people screamed in fear and hid in all corners of the camp, trying to wriggle their way to the shields at the side.


    Sharp arrows pierced through the thick boards and could not move further. However, some pierced through the bodies and limbs of the civilians and army. Blood sttered, followed by painful groans. The arrows caused significant damage in just seconds.


    The Yan cavalry at the utmost south of the low-lying ins was not in the camp and suffered an ambush at the same time. It was only due to Ning Que¡¯s warningst night, did they manage to react fast enough. They held up round shields before their bodies or crouched behindrge rocks, watching anxiously as the arrows flew over their heads.


    The horses of the Yan riders screamed and trampled all over the camp. Several were injured and fell to the ground heavily. Ning Que ordered all the riders to ignore the arrows raining down on them. At that point, the rain of arrows had be less dense. They were to quickly get on the horse at the fastest speed possible.


    "Everyone, get on the horse. Prepare to move ahead!"


    Ning Que flipped himself onto the big ck horse. He lifted his head and looked at the edge of the meadow at the north.


    He was familiar with the ways of the Horse Gang in battle. Thezy thieves did not have the habit of bringing food and back up arrows with them. Even though they had nned this for long, they could not attack from a long distance alone. They would need to attack the camp eventually.


    A patch of dark forest appeared on the looming meadow on the north-east edge. Hundreds of Horse Gang members appeared silently in their leather armor and thick clothing. The curved des in their hands reflected the first ray of sunlight. It felt extremely cold. It was so cold that the breaths of those standing on the low-lying ins turned heavy.


    On the slopes of the meadow, a single masked Horse Gang member rose the de of his knife and issued amand to charge forward.


    Ning Que noticed that the de in the leader¡¯s hand was not curved, but straight.


    Hundreds of Horse Gang members sprinted wildly in the direction pointed by the straight de. The slightly messy sound of galloping horses became denser as their speed increased and eventually fell into an orderly trot. The ground shook as thousands of horse hooves trampled into it.


    The empty ins of the Wilderness at dawn seemed like arge drum with no ends. The clip-clop of horse hoovesnding on the ground sounded like a heavy strike at the drum surface. The ground tremored with every strike. Each step sounded like a p of thunder.


    The camp which had just experienced a baptism of flying arrows raining upon them have gradually calmed. The soldiers and civilians wielded swords and even wooden sticks in their hands as they guarded theager. They felt the ground tremor beneath them and listened to the thundering sound of horse hooves striking the ground. They looked at the Horse Gang who descended upon them like a tsunami of dark waters with sinking despair.


    At this moment, the disciples of ck Ink Garden from the Great River Kingdom drew their swords and stood up. They yelled for the soldiers and civilians to raise their weapons and walk behind the carriage.


    These disciples were young men and women in their teenage years. They had never seen such cruel or bloody battles before they received edicts from the Divine Hall and their teachers to train in the Wilderness. However, they had been greatly inspired by the Tangs and were firm and unafraid.


    There was naught a trace of nervousness or despair on their faces as they watched the Horse Gang rushing towards them. They looked at the cruel faces of the House Gang and the shiny curved swords listened to the arrogant yells and were even more determined as they faced it with quiet grace.


    The quiet determination of the Great River Kingdom girls affected the army and civilians in the camp. They held up the crude wooden spears in their hands. Even though they trembled, they still had the courage to face their cruel enemy.


    The sound of hooves meeting ground got louder as the Horse Gang approached. The dust storm in the meadow at dawn got thicker and the air got colder. The atmosphere was tenser too, as everyone in the camp watched on with fear and hope. Their breaths got shorter and shallower as they awaited the moment the Horse Gang would reach theirager.


    Ning Que was waiting as well. It was just that the moment he was waiting for was a little before the others.


    He watched as a hundred over Horse Gang members appeared in the North-West of the meadow. It was unknown when they had arrivedst night. They did not approach the Yan riders. It was obvious that they were there to round them in, in order to ensure that the five hundred other members of their gang can sessfully attack the camp at one go.


    Ning Que would not fight with them. He turned to look at the dust that had gotten thicker in the north. The Horse Gang was about to reach the low-lying ins. He pressed down on the bamboo hat on his head, drew the podao from his back and prepared to charge with the two hundred strong Yan army.


    "Don¡¯t ask how. Just charge with me."


    He looked at the Yan soldiers beside him who looked extremely nervous. He did not do anything else to prepare the men. With those words, he signaled with his hand and kicked his horse forward with his right arm outstretched, holding on to the podao.


    The big ck horse neighed lowly. It kicked his hind legs back and shot forward like an arrow.


    ...


    ...


    The five hundred men of the Horse Gang descended upon them like an avnche of dark waters. They sped up at the steep slopes and rushed down onto the nds.


    The dark ground on the tnd looked sturdy and stretched out over a hundred feet. The grain team had camped right in the center of it. It would take the Horse Gang mere minutes to reach them at their current speed. What was even scarier was that if they had no traps or trips to stop the horses or men to reduce their speed, they would easily be ttened by the hundreds of riders.


    There were no horse trips or traps. There were no hindrances to the Horse Gang on the t and sturdy in. The soldiers and civilians watched on as the features of the Horse Gang became clearer as they approached. Their bodies froze and the hands that held on to spears trembled. If they weren¡¯t sure that they would die if they surrendered or tried to escape, they would have thrown down the weapons in their hands at the first suggestion.


    The enemy had a one up on them. The grain team was unprepared and situated in a terrain that was undesirable. How would they be able to stop the Horse Gang? It seemed that there was no way to save the lives of the team. Even though there were two hundred Yan riders heading in their direction, they would be long dead by the time they arrived.


    But, the two hundred Yan riders did not ride in a straight line towards them but were headed east to the meadows. What were they up to? Heading up the steep slopes was time and energy consuming. Were they painting themselves as targets for the Horse Gang¡¯s arrows? Or... were they trying to escape?


    As she thought of Ning Que¡¯s insistence on not setting traps or horse trips and watching the two hundred riders sprinting towards the east, Zhuo Zhihua began to think of the worst. She did not want to admit that the Senior Brother from the Academy was such a horrible person. But what else could exin this weird move if not that he was afraid of dying?


    There was no time for Zhuo Zhihua and the other girls of the Great River Kingdom to get angry or sad. She spared ast nce at the big ck horse sprinting at the forefront and turned her eyes to the impending battle.


    The Horse Gang descended upon them like rolls of dark clouds, the hooves of their horses kicking up a storm of ck dust.


    ...


    ...


    There was a long deep sound.


    The Horse Gang member who sprinted at the forefront fell to the ground, lifting up a storm of dust. The war horse groaned and could not stand. Its front legs were broken.


    Following that, a steady stream of groans sounded. The first ten riders all fell like the first. The valley descended into chaos.


    Zhuo Zhihua held onto her sword as she watched the scene before her in confusion. It gradually turned into joy as she watched more and more members of the Horse Gang fall to the ground.


    ...


    ...


    The Horse Gang sprinted from the steep meadows and were at their highest speed when they arrived at the lownds. This speed would have been perfect in a normal situation. However, the problem was that this situation was nowhere near normal. This tnd was not your normal tnd.


    It was unusual to see a valley between two stretches of meadows in the Wilderness. This spot used to be a river many years ago but had dried up in thest thousand years, leaving behind the remnants of a seabed. Thest traces of the river could not be seen as sand brought along by wind covered it up. The two river banks had be the meadows while the river bed became solid gravel soilnd.


    Even the Horse Gang who had traversed the Wilderness did not know that this used to be a river. Ning Que did not either. However, he discovered that there were bright and smooth circr pebbles beneath the thinyer of sand when they were setting up campst night.


    The middle of the watercourse was slightly deeper and had umted a thicker amount of sand and mud over thest ten thousand years. It was not difficult for one to travel on horseback after thend had been covered with grass. However, near the river banks, which was the edge of the meadows, thend was covered by a very thinyer of stone sand. Should one exert a slightly greater amount of pressure, or if the wind blew slightly harder, one would see round pebbles as well as the natural potholes beneath.


    This was not a trap, not a trap set by Haotian for the Horse Gang. Even the heaviest Southern Mountain horse carrying two people on its back would not be trapped in this if it wasn¡¯t traveling at high speed. However, the Horse Gang was propelled by the steep incline from the meadow, and the horse hooves met the ground at high impact.


    Which was why the low lyingnd between the meadows became a trap set by Haotian for the Horse Gang.


    ...


    ...


    The horse hooves which moved so quickly they were like darting shadowsnded heavily on the tnd. The strong hooves dug into the ground and slipped further in before they could extricate themselves. Due to the high speed, the war horses were unable to keep their bnce and fell with their riders on to the ground.


    The hooves kicked up the ck pebbles and mud but were trapped between theyer of rocks beneath. The horses could not stop their momentum and their heavy weight pressed on their forelegs. There were loud snaps as several legs were broken, revealing blood, flesh and stark white bones.


    The riders behind those who have fallen have realized that there was a problem. However, they were unable to stop moving forward for the same reason- they were galloping at high speed. Their horses fell one by one at the edge of the low-lying ins, groaning at the impact.


    If the first hundred riders rushed down from the meadow like a tidal wave, the seemingly normal ck pebble ground surrounding the camp was like the famous breakwaters by the seaside of Song Kingdom. Their rounded rocks breaking the waves mercilessly.


    The waves rushed over and over and faded into froth over and over. The waves at the front moved forward, the waves at the back followed. Each wave was higher than before and crashed onto the previous wave. Each wave that followed was in a more terrible state than the previous one.


    The sight at the slopes of the valley was gory.


    Several horsesid on the ground with broken legs and necks. Their riders have fallen with them, legs broken by their own horsending on them. They pushed at the horses with all their might to no avail. The lucky ones have fainted or died, those who were not as fortunateid on the ground, groaning. Those who rushed down at high speed at the back of the team suffered the worst impact as they began to pile up above one another. Fresh blood flowed onto the ground, like juice being squeezed out of flesh.


    ...


    ...


    The Horse Gang¡¯s ability to fight was better than that of the grain team. Even though they have lost over a hundred riders in the first wave, they would still pose a significant danger if they took the time to regroup or even if they abandoned their horses and charged on foot.


    If the grain team consisted of a hundred soldiers from the elite troop of Tang, or even if they were ordinary soldiers, they might be able to turn the situation around by taking the opportunity to rush at theager and kill a few Horse Gang members.


    However, it was a pity that most of the people who made up the team were civilians. They might have the courage to hold up their spears behind the protection of the shield. However, they had no guts to rush up to kill the enemy. The point was, the three hundred Horse Gang members at the back who have managed to avoid the natural trap at the lownds. They were holding on to their bows and arrows while surveying the camp alertly.


    As such, all hopes of defeating the Horse Gangy in the hands of the two hundred riders on the south. Everyone in the camp knew then, that the two hundred riders who chose to ascend the meadows were not trying to run away, but were trying to avoid the trap that Haotian hadid in the old river course.


    ...


    ...


    The two hundred yan riders started moving off. However, it took a lot of effort and was slow moving as they tried to ascend the steep slope. This was especially so whenpared to the big ck horse running in the forefront.


    The Horse Gang who had been watching the Yan riders intently moved when they did. They sped down the meadow at their fastest speed, trying to attack the Yan riders from the side. However, they did not expect that they would ride up the meadows instead of through the valley.


    The Horse Gang looked at the Yan riders that they had no way of chasing. They whipped the riding crops in their hands and whistled for the troop to speed up. The hooves of their horses thundered through thend as they met the same fate as theirrades who sped down from the north.


    Their faces burned as the bitter cold windsshed out at it. Ning Que heard the painful wails behind him and knew that the Horse Gang would not be able to catch up with him. He started to think of weird questions as he gradually loosened up.


    The wind was able to make one¡¯s face burn. Was it because of heat resulting from friction? If this was the only reason, then how thick must his own skin be?


    Facing the storm with calm was used to describe someone who had an extremely good disposition. However, this could be learned inter life. Ning Que had faced death since he was a child and experienced many difficulties. He had learned to think about useless things when faced with big issues that had to do with death so that he would eventually calm down.


    It was like how he held the boxwood bow with both hands calmly even though the windshed out at him. He did not tremble even slightly.


    ...


    ...


    He moved his feet into position.


    Straightened his body.


    Held up his bow.


    He ced his fingers on the string.


    Tightened it.


    And released it.


    The arrow left the bowstring like a dewdrop dripping off a leaf. It fell slowly before changing shapes slightly. The arrow burgeoned out as it spun. The arrowhead wavered, its fletchings shook unsteadily. It followed aplicated trajectory and eventually flew in a straight line, tearing the air as it flew towards its target in the distance.


    The arrowhead touched dark, rough skin that had been tortured by the strong sun and winds. It tore throughyers of skin and muscles like paper just as it tore through the air, bringing with it broken bones and a stream of blood and only stopped shaking when it wedged itself deeply in his throat bone. The fletching continued to shake even faster, humming lightly.


    Three members of the Horse Gang were shot down consecutively. Blood flowed on thends as they fell off their horses without a sound.


    Ning Que¡¯s eyes were emotionless as he watched the scene around him. His bamboo hat was tied tightly with a string and did not move even when met with the strongest winter gale on the Wilderness. He stared at the nearing Horse Gang through the slit above his mask.


    Almost two hundred members of the Horse Gang were trapped in the round stones on the periphery of the low-lyingnds looking extremely pathetic. The three hundred members behind tried to salvage what they could but to no avail. Their formation was extremely messy, and the defense on the sides was extremely weak. They would definitely be defeated if arge knife cleaved at them at this moment.


    He led two hundred riders up the meadow to be thisrge knife.

 Chapter 219: Get on the Horse and Youre a Thief (VII)

    Chapter 219: Get on the Horse and You¡¯re a Thief (VII)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Being fast or slow each had its own pros and cons. This was not an argument, nor a philosophy question, but a very simple theory. The Horse Gang came charging down from the meadow, and because they were too fast, their momentum was messed up and caused them to fall horribly. Yet because the Big ck Horse was too fast, based on Ning Que¡¯s archery skill, he could only shoot three arrows during that short period of time before ending up at the border of the Horse Gang.


    He carried the boxwood bow on his shoulder as he stretched out his hands and held on to the podao that was ced horizontally on the saddle. He raised his arm up, pulling out a de and chopping off one of the Horse Gang¡¯s shoulder. Immediately, he sat upright and before the enemy¡¯s curved de could touch him, he used his knife to dig out another¡¯s eyeball.


    With the three people crossing each other¡¯s path in a split second, the blood and liquid from the broken Horse Gang¡¯s arm and dug-out eye ball started to spill out, sshing all over Ning Que¡¯s body and face. The fishy smell of blood and the odd smell from elsewhere were mixed together, creating a strange smell.


    People often said that the blood was warm while the wind was cold, yet Ning Que felt that the wind blown onto his face was warm and the blood sshed onto his face was cold. It was because he was very calm that even till now, he could still vividly remember the principles of battle which he had held onto for many years.


    Killing a Horse Gang was never better than injuring one. If a Horse Gang died, he would simply be dead. However, if he was seriously injured but not dead, he would be a burden to his Horse Gang mates. This meticulous thinking was indeed cruel, but useful.


    Seeing more than ten Horse Gang riding on their horses and charging towards him, Ning Que took a deep breath and clipped himself tightly onto the Big ck Horse with his legs. He held out the podao and dashed towards the enemies with the sharp de. Behind him, two hundred Yan cavalries had finally arrived. They formed a line of defense before they fiercely charged towards the messy-looking Horse Gang.


    ...


    ...


    The winter wind in the Wilderness blew again but this time, it failed to flicker Ning Que¡¯s fringe, for they were already soaked with Horse Gang¡¯s blood and entangled together in a lump on his forehead. This was exactly how entangled he was feeling within.


    The camp was a mess and gaps were already appearing from theager. The Horse Gang had temporarily retreated but it was only after they had decided to abandon their horses and attacked on foot. This caused great damages to the camp. Dying soldiers and bloody bodies were found lying all over the camp. If not for the help from thedies of Great River Kingdom, the camp would have been conquered by the Horse Gang.


    The situation was not pleasant within the Horse Gang as well. Not far away from the camp was a low-lying border areas, where numerous bodies of horses with broken hoofs were found lying on the icy cold ground, struggling with theirst breaths as they shook their heavy heads from time to time. Beside and underneath these horses were lifeless heads of the Horse Gang thieves.


    All the injured Horse Gang thieves were eventually brought back to their hives by their mates. And from this, one could observe that though the Horse Gang had suffered severe damage, they were still united as one. They could still get together tounch an attack again.


    Ning Que lifted his hand to wipe away the blood that was slowly flowing down his forehead. He looked back in the north-west direction where the camp was situated. There, the scene of the Yan cavalries busily ughtering the Horse Gang had gradually drifted further. He could not help shaking his head.


    In the eyes of themoners from the Central ins, the Central ins Horse Gangs were the most ferocious existence in the world. However, because he had interacted with these Horse Gangs for many years, he felt that they were the most useless existence. Their ferocious looks were actually used to conceal the weaknesses within their hearts.


    At this moment, the surrounding 600 thieves of the Horse Gang looked ferocious on the meadow. They could even have the courage to directly capture the men in the pce. However, if they were timid, they could be chased by a troop of Tang soldiers. Strength was the key for these Horse Gangs. Because of their high sensitivity towards strength, they were easily confused by it as well.


    Ning Que thought that he was clear of these Horse Gangs¡¯ characteristics and thus, he chose the right location to camp and the right time tounch an attack. He thought with the 200 Yan cavalries fiercely charging towards the 500 thieves from the Horse Gangs, they could easily win. However, he forgot that those soldiers that he was leading were not the experienced warriors from City of Wei, neither were they the West Road Tang cavalries from the Southern Blue Water Battalion. They were just Yan cavalries who were weak in battle.


    The battling skills of these Yan cavalries were worst than what Ning Que had thought.


    The 200 Yan cavalries, with the geographical and time advantages, theyunched an attack towards the Horse Gangs but failed to take them down. They could not even prate and attack their enemies once. On the other hand, the Horse Gangs who was suddenly caught by surprise by the attack, after a round of killing, could at least took down more than ten Yan cavalries. If not for the confusion in the Horse Gang arrangement, this surpriseunch of attack from the Yan cavalries could end up be digging their own graves.


    The battle between the Yan cavalries and Horse Gangssted for a while before both parties could not take it and decided to stop battling temporarily. Seizing this opportunity, Ning Que rode his Big ck Horse back to the camp. On one hand, he did not have hopes with the remaining 100 Yan cavalries, yet on the other hand, he felt that he needed to be on guard, an unexinable feeling that he needed to watch out for something.


    ...


    ...


    Suddenly, a sharp whistle whizzed through the icy cold air. Ning Que quickly dodged one side and an arrow brushed against his sleeve, flew past him and prated into the wheel of a carriage filled with grains. The tail of the arrow vibrated due to the impact.


    Ignoring the fact that his ck mask was soaked with the blood from the Horse Gang, which caused the smell of it to be rather unbearable, he put on the mask again. He then took off the boxwood bow on his back, pulled the string with his finger and shot a Horse Gang, who was in front of his camp, to death.


    He felt a sting, followed by soreness at his shoulder. He knew he had pulled too many arrows today. If he neglected the pain and continued to do so, his right arm might be destroyed by himself.


    Obviously, the Horse Gangs were not willing to give the soldiers in the camp too much resting time. After a short while, theyunched a second attack, ignoring the fact that they were still injured themselves. This unreasonable and risky move was already out of Ning Que¡¯s expectation from the Horse Gang. He felt more and more suspicious.


    200 thieves from the Horse Gangs came charging towards the camp in all directions.


    Those civilian soldiers in the camp were already feeling numb towards life and death. At this important juncture of life and death, they mustered all their courage, grabbed the thick wooden spears and passed through the gaps left between theagers. Then, without any hesitation, they pierced the spears outwards.


    As every wooden spear pierced through every Horse Gang thief¡¯s abdomen, fresh blood flowed profusely from the wound.


    In a split second, three thieves of the Horse Gangs climbed over theager. With the curved knives in their hands, they waved them towards the civilian soldiers with the wooden spears. Blood sttered everywhere.


    A shiny reflection of the sword was seen.


    The long and elegant sword ughtered the three thieves from the Horse Gangs.


    One of them was instantly killed where his body flew off from the scene. The other two had their limbs chopped off as they helplessly fell backwards.


    Those civilian soldiers, who were covered with blood, charged towards the Horse gangs like ferocious beasts. They grabbed wooden sticks and picked up stones from the ground as they surrounded the two limbless thieves of the Horse Gang and started attacking them. Without thinking, they crazily smashed and beat them up, repeating the same actions over and over again. Till there were no more noises from the enemies did they stop their attacks.


    After the Cat Girl swung her sword like a breeze, she would make a cute clear yelp out of habit. Yet shortly after, she was stunned by the bloody scene in front of her. Her red little face was covered in dirt, but they could not conceal the fear and panic on her face. After all, she was still young. Where else could she have seen such scary scene?


    Ning Que grabbed her by her neck, like a kitten, and threw her behind him. He then dodged an arrow and single-handedly pulled out his knife to block another arrow. Next, taking the opportunity, he chopped off the right arm of a Horse Gang member, who was trying to assassinate him.


    The Horse Gang member covered the wound on his right shoulder that was continuously spurting blood and groaned painfully, half-kneeling on the ground. Ning Que did not throw him another nce as he held onto his podao and walked past the Horse Gang member. He knew that shortly after, this injured Horse Gang member would be surrounded by the civilian soldiers and there was no need for him to waste any more energy on him.


    Once theager was broken, the people in the camp would all die. Based on this simple understanding, no matter they were civilian soldiers or Yan Kingdom soldiers, they had all became fearless. They started to grab whatever weapon they could find in the camp and as though their lives were betting on it, they attacked any Horse Gang thieves they saw climbing over the carriage.


    However, what truly enabled the camp to stand firm for so long was actually the disciples of ck Ink Garden from the Great River Kingdom. Though they did not have much experience with battles and had dependedrgely on their arrogance, perseverance as well as excellent swordsmanship, they had managed to wave their swords in the Wilderness on the meadow, causing the troublesome Horse Gang thieves to fall off one by one.


    Even so, there were too many Horse Gang thieves and too few disciples of ck Ink Garden. Though the civilian soldiers were doing their best, their strength was too weak to make any significant differences. Looking at the surrounding situation, it seemed like the camp could be infiltrated any moment and they were in a hopeless situation.


    Just then, in the middle of the camp, a clear crisp sound of the flute was heard from the carriage.


    Upon hearing the sound of the flute, Zhuo Zhihua, Cat Girl and the rest of the ck Ink Garden disciples became alert. Without much hesitation, they used maximum Psyche Power to force the Horse Gang to retreat before gathering in front of the grain sack.


    Hearing the sound of flute and seeing what happened, Ning Que felt that the situation was suspicious and weird. In fact, from his eyes which were not covered by the ck mask, one could see a slight sense of displeasure in them.


    ...


    ...


    This was the troop that was sent to deliver grains towards the Left-Tent pce. There were cavalries from Yan Kingdom guarding it as well as donkeys and horses carrying the grain sacks. Hence, other than those grains, there were also a lot of dry grass provided for the donkeys and horses.


    The carriages carrying the grains formed a roundager. All the sacks that were filled with dry grasses were gathered below the wooden carriages. One reason was to stabilize the carriage, and another reason was to reduce the damage caused by arrows.


    Upon hearing the sound of the flute, the ck Ink Garden disciples gathered in front of the sacks as they ced their swords in the air outside theager. Just then, the Horse Gangunched their third wave of attack.


    Not sure if it was due to the energy gathered in the ck Ink Garden disciples¡¯ swords, or due to other reasons, more than ten sacks of dry grass flew into the air and burst open. The sacks were torn into many shattered pieces. The dry grass in the sacks looked as though they had been punched violently as the grass was dispersed all over the area in a split second, like a grass rain.


    The moment when the dry grass sack shattered into a piece, a smell of extreme dryness filled the whole camp. The moment when every sack of dry grass formed the grass rain, a faint spark was seen in the air. And in an instance... the whole sky started to burn.


    The grass rain turned into the fire rain and fell from the sky, clothed the brightness of the sun. In an instant, the border of the camp became a sea of zing fire. This bizarre scene frightened the Horse Gangs and before they could react, they were swallowed by the sea of fire, causing them to be drowned and burnt to death.


    The civilian soldiers in the camp were also shocked by this bizarre scene. With various kinds of weapons in their hands, they noticed that though they were near the fire within theager, none was swallowed by it. It was as if Haotian was on their side helping them.


    It was only Ning Que who realized that when the dry grass collided together to create the spark and fire. There was a sudden change in the primordial Qi of Heaven and Earth. He could feel the power of the talisman within each sack of dry grass, and even saw the split second when the talisman started to burn.


    The talisman fire, with the help of the dry grass, started to burn, rapidly spread out andnded onto the Horse Gangs. They were hard to put out. Many Horse Gang thieves who charged to the front of theager were caught by the fire and were groaning in pain. They ran around, rolled on the ground, yet it was useless. Some went to look for water, but it was a challenge to find water in the Wilderness in winter. Other Horse Gang thieves tried to neglect the fire on their bodies and attempted to dash through theager. But before they could raise their curved knives, they were already howling in pain on the ground.


    Finally, the Horse Gangs had no choice but to retreat. There were more than ten charred bodies left outside the camp. Some of the bodies were hugging each other tightly. Perhaps it was due to the fear they had before death, which made them unclear as to who were their friends or foes.


    There was a stinky burning smell lingering in the air.


    There were cheers of victory echoing from the camp.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que stared at thedy in white, who was sitting in the horse carriage, and said, "I¡¯ve reminded you. You are the strongest here. Your Psyche Power is our most precious weapon. It should only be used at the right time, not whenever you like."


    Mo Shanshan raised her head and looked at him. Not sure if it was because she had seen too many bloody scenes, or due to other special reasons, her face was as white as a paper at that moment, even whiter than the clothes she was wearing.


    "Many people are dead. If I don¡¯t help out, more people will die."


    Ning Que looked at her andmented, "You are really a kind woman."


    Mo Shanshan slightly raised her brows and answered, "I am a woman."


    Ning Que suppressed his anger as he mocked and continued, "You aren¡¯t married yet."


    Mo Shanshan replied calmly, "Even if I am, it won¡¯t be with you."


    Ning Que kept silent for a while before he added, "If you still have Psyche Power, then leave thest one for me."


    He was a talisman practitioner and he knew how much Psyche Power the Talisman Taoism would drain out. Seeing how pale thedy was, she must had used up too much Psyche Power these days. Yet he had to admit that out of the whole team, thisdy in white was the strongest among all. Hence, under such circumstance, he could not help but felt slightly mad.


    Under this terrifying Fire Talisman, the Horse Gang suffered a great damage. However, on the meadow, there were another 200 Horse Gang thieves that were ready for battle. Mo Shanshan¡¯s Psyche Power was already running dry, and his true state was only at No Doubts State, there was no way for them to go against another wave of attack.


    Of course, Ning Que still had some cards under the table for him to survive the attack. However, if he were to use items such as Primordial Thirteen Arrows or things found in the emergency bag given by his Teacher on these Horse Gangs, it would be such a waste. Unless his life was in great danger, else for someone like him, who was just slightly less stingy than Sangsang, he would definitely not use them.


    The key was the relief troop. The troop that was in charge of grains had fought the battle for so long, yet there was still no sight of the relief troop. Should he know that there wasn¡¯t any relief troop in the first ce, he would have escaped with the Big ck Horse.


    "Is there any relief troop in the first ce?" He stared at Mo Shanshan and questioned.


    Mo Shanshan looked at him coldly and said, "Only the relief troops themselves will know."


    Ning Que gave up attempting to interact with her. He said directly, "Prepare tounch a sudden attack. My horse can only take another one with me, and I¡¯m taking Cat Girl. You shall settle your own men."


    Mo Shanshan asked, "How about those Yan and civilian soldiers who had battled with you for so long?"


    Ning Que answered, "They are just my acquaintances, not friends."


    Mo Shanshan gently shook her head and said, "I¡¯ll not leave."


    Ning Que gazed at her and said suddenly, "Didn¡¯t you realize that the ultimate target for those Horse Gangs on the meadow is to kill you? Besides you, who else deserve them to risk their lives in this lousy troop?"


    Mo Shanshan looked at him and said calmly, "If their target is me, those people died is because of me. That¡¯s why I shouldn¡¯t leave them alone here."


    Ning Que raised his brows and added, "Idiot. If you¡¯re gone, those Horse Gangs would follow you. Why would they attack those defenseless Yan and civilian soldiers?"


    Mo Shanshan smiled and replied, "Don¡¯t you try to trick me. I already have a taste of how cruel these Horse Gangs can be."


    All of a sudden, Ning Que felt that her usual restless eyes became extraordinarily clear and determined, as though they could easily see through his thoughts. He looked at her for a long time before he turned and left.


    The Horse Gangs on the meadow were now gathering for discussion. Perhaps they would have another wave of attack again.


    He used his palm to roughly wipe off the coagted blood on his face and changed a new mask for himself, as he walked past the camp filled with lying bodies and broken limbs. Whether it was the Yan soldiers or the civilian soldiers, when they saw him covered in blood, they automatically shrank away to one side. Even for Zhuo Zhihua and thedies from Great River Kingdom, they could only look at him with respect, and with fear.


    The battle with the Horse Gang till today, other than the Fire Talisman that helped to protect the camp with the grain supplies, the main credit should go to Ning Que, for numerous Horse Gang thieves were ughtered under his podao.


    Many people had seen how he had killed the Horse Gang thieves and knew how silently and quickly he could ughter them. However, what really made people trembled with fear was the calmness he disyed when he killed those Horse Gangs. That calmness in him seemed to bring out the cold attitude he had towards life.


    Though he could feel that weird stares all around him, especially with the terrifying look on the Cat Girl¡¯s face, Ning Que did not exin. Instead, he softly instructed the men to amend theager, while at the same time, observed the meadow and his surroundings. He was brainstorming the route to escape.


    The Horse Gang was afraid of death, so was him, but he was much clearer about a fact than most of the Horse Gang thieves ¡ª the braver you were when faced with death, the more difficult it was for one to die. This was a precious lesson he learned after numerous years of experiencing life and death since young.


    As for his cold attitude towards life...he was always cold towards the life of the Horse Gang.


    The reason why those Horse Gang by the Shubi Lake were afraid of him even though he was just an average soldier in City of Wei at that time, was that when he left City of Wei and entered into the Wilderness, the moment he got onto a horse, he became a thief.


    After all, Ning Que and his partners in City of Wei were born as thieves of the Horse Gang, and they belonged to the most ferocious kind.


    In those years, he had killed numerous Horse Gang thieves. If at that time he had a famous female Talisman Master with him like now, perhaps he would stay longer to y with those thieves.


    But not today.


    Because he was feeling rather uneasy. Not due to therge number of Horse Gang thieves, not due to the horrifying scenes in front of him, but the fact that he felt someone was watching him. He felt that the person had watched him for a long time.


    Not just a day or two, but for many days.


    ...


    ...


    At the east of the meadow was the highest peak. On the peak, there were more than ten Horse Gang thieves stood quietly, observing the chaos below them.


    Most of these Horse Gang thieves had only arrived on thisndst night, and it was their presence that caught Ning Que¡¯s attention. Unlike the average Horse Gang thieves, they had their faces covered with cloth, as though they were unwilling to let anyone see their true appearances.


    Obviously, these thieves were the leaders of the 600 Horse Gang thieves. However, for whatever reason, even if those Horse Gang thieves died at the gorge, or killed by Yan cavalries, or stomped to death by falling horses, they remained calm and quiet.


    When the Fire Talisman started to burn in the camp, shocking expressions were finally revealed on the faces of these Horse Gang thieves. All but one leader in the front row, who maintained hisposure.


    The gaze of this Horse Gang thief looked old, and he was clearly in his middle age.


    "Indeed, there was a powerful Talisman Master in the troop that was delivering the grains. Perhaps it was thatdy Talisman Master. Those ck Ink Garden disciples¡¯ swordsmanships were excellent, no doubt they were taught by the Master of Calligrapher."


    The Horse Gang leader said coldly, "It has already been so many days. Even if that person was the legendary Calligraphy Addict, her Psyche Power should be running dry soon. Let the men below be prepared for another wave of attack."


    The main purpose of the continuous attacks during the day and night was to drain out the Psyche Power of thedy Talisman Master hidden in the troop. It was vivid that this leader was very patient in his nning. Now that he was non-hesitant to send his subordinates to drain off thest bit of Psyche Power of thedy Talisman Master, which also showed how heartless he was.


    Sensing the hesitation from his subordinates who were beside him, the leader slightly frowned and said in a cold voice, "The Central ins are now nning to cooperate with the pce. Besides the Deste Man, the next most unlucky party would certainly be the Horse Gangs that are under your lead. Kill those who deserved to be killed and stop the cooperation. To aplish this goal, it is worth sacrificing some lives."


    One of his subordinates did not understand andmented, "I doubt Chanyu and the Divine Hall would be deceived by such an obvious trick."


    The leader continued coldly, "What I want is the truth. The truth is more convincing than any sayings. Kill these people below and the cooperation would not be able to continue."


    Suddenly, the people on the meadow thought of that bigwig and instantly understood what the leader meant.


    The leader gazed at a point in the camp and said, "Continue with the attack. If the person with the big ck horse attempted to escape, it¡¯s time for us to attack him ourselves. Remember, the goal of this operation is to make sure that person dies."


    The thieves only knew that the person whom the leader was referring to was the male disciple from ck Ink Garden. Prior to that, though he had revealed his strong capabilities, no one knew about his true identity. As such, many were confused upon hearing the leader¡¯s words. They thought that in order to create a bigmotion in the Wilderness, their target should be thedy Talisman Master in the carriage instead.


    A thief who stood behind the leader hesitated for a moment, before he mustered his courage and said, "Sir, too many subordinates were killed in this operation. There is no way for us to battle further. I¡¯m afraid that if we push them too hard, these thieves may break down."


    It was a strange way of addressing, for it didn¡¯t sound like how Horse Gang thieves should address one another. It was more like how officers addressed one another.


    The leader of the Horse Gang took a nce at him and said, "If you guys have been leading these thieves for nearly the past ten years yet failed tomand them, that what¡¯s the purpose of letting you guys stay alive?"


    That Horse Gang thief was taken aback by his look. He shivered, kept silent and dared not speak of another word.


    The Horse Gang leader looked down at the camp and said without any emotion, "These thieves do not know where they stand and thought that they were the real Horse Gang thieves. However, you guys must not forget your own identity."


    "Up the horse as a thief, and down the horse as soldiers. As for all of you, all of you are the General¡¯s soldiers."


    Upon listening to this, there was a moment of silence on the meadow. After a long time, someone questioned.


    "Sir, how do we deal with thedy Talisman Master in the carriage?"


    "No matter how strong a Calligraphy Addict is, as long as she¡¯s not into Knowing Destiny State, it will be useless. Once she runs out of Psyche Power, she¡¯s like an average person. Let¡¯s say even if she has the ability to battle further, do you think she can stop us from killing that youngd?"


    ...


    ...


    Since the beginning of the battle till today, the thieves that were quietly standing on top of the meadow had finally left separately and returned to their own troops. They were beginning to prepare for their final, and also the strongest wave of attack. Only the Horse Gang leader was left alone on the meadow.


    The Horse Gang Leader lifted his right hand and pressed the bamboo hat on his head lower as he quietly gazed down at the youngd who had knives and arrows on his back, covered in blood and was wearing the ck Ink Garden uniform. He remained silent for a long time and suddenly let out aplex smile.


    Fromst year in Chang¡¯an till now, he had been observing thisd named Ning Que for a long time. Though he had yet to find evidence that pointed Ning Que towards the death of the censor Zhang Yuqi, nor had he discovered anything that proved that he was in bad terms with the General, for whatever reason, he just felt that this youngd was indeed a trouble.


    Because Ning Que was suspicious. Moreover, the fact that he entered the Second floor of the Academy, became the only sessor for the Divine Talisman Master, Yan Se, and being adored by his Majesty, even if he was just 1/10 suspicious, there was still a need to be alert for remaining 9/10.


    It was especially when Ning Que came to the frontier fortress in the North of Yan Kingdom. No one knew if his arrival was due to secret order from the Emperor, and no one knew what this would mean to the Academy. Hence, a trouble turned into a stress. There was no point suspecting the suspect, no need to investigate whether this person was involved in the sensor case, and no need to find out if this person was against the General in the dark. They could only, and should only do one thing, which was to help the General to wipe off any threat.


    With such a thought, theplex smile on the Horse Gang leader¡¯s face was gradually gone.


    Should it be a different time or location, no one in this world would dare to have the intention to kill a disciple from the Second floor of the Academy in a bright daylight. However, now they were in the Wilderness, and no one knew the rtionship between the Horse Gang and the General.


    The imperial court was already suspicious of the General and those Horse Gang must be cleared off no matter what. Today, they nned to kill Ning Que and stop the cooperation. In the process, they had cleared off most of the Horse Gang thieves. This was indeed a great n to use one stone to kill several birds.


    Hence, when Ning Que pretended to leave Blue Water Battalion and when the news of ck Ink Garden disciples guarding the grain troops to the wilderness was spread to General¡¯s Mansion, he immediately, without much rest, rushed to Tuyang City to lead the matter himself.


    This was a great opportunity given by Haotian. If he missed it, he would certainly be punished.


    ...


    ...


    Just as the Horse Gang decided tounch another wave of attack, Ning Que was prepared to escape with his horse. When the Horse Gang leader was about to take advantage of the opportunity to ughter him, galloping noises were heard once again from far away by the meadow in the Wilderness.


    Everyone, including the ck Ink Garden disciples and the civilians from Yan Kingdom who were below the meadow and was ready to defend themselves for any waves of attack, as well as the Horse Gang thieves who were preparing to charge down from the meadow, had the same reaction. All of them slowed down on what they were doing and gazed in the direction of the galloping noises.


    In the west of the meadow, a troop of cavalries came charging towards them.


    There were not many cavalries in the troop, about a hundred. However, both the soldiers and the horses were equipped with gorgeous ck armors rimmed with gold. They appeared magnificent and strong, as though there were a million of them.


    They were the strongest cavalries in the world, the Papal Cavalryman Troop from the Divine Hall.


    Cheers were heard echoing below the meadow.


    On the other hand, the Horse Gang rapidly gathered their troops and were ready to retreat.


    Yet, what happened next were out of anyone¡¯s expectation.


    A frail-looking hand was stretched out from the horse carriage situated in the middle of the cavalryman troop of Divine Hall. The hundred cavalryman of Divine Hall slowed down their pace. Keeping the distance of more than a thousand feet apart, they stared coldly at the meadow withoutunching an attack towards the Horse Gang.


    The people within the Grain Troop camp were shocked and cheers gradually subsided. It became a dead silence. Some had guessed the intention of these cavalrymen of Divine Hall and revealed a disappointed and unbelievable look on their faces.

 Chapter 220: Shameful to Stick Together, So Choose to Stay

    Chapter 220: Shameful to Stick Together, So Choose to Stay


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    At this time, the morning sun had already climbed into the sky, bringing a trace of rare warmth to the Wilderness. On the meadow, several hundred cavalrymen of Divine Hall stood silently. Their ck armor was painted withplicated golden patterns. Theplicated armor patterns shone in the sun with a holy glint. The g in front of the queue stood in the wind and looked very solemn and holy.


    This group of cavalry was the world¡¯s famous West-Hill Divine Pce cavalry, also known as Apologetic Divine Forces. After they left West-Hill a few months ago, they reached the frontier fortress in the Wilderness via the capital of Yan Kingdom Capital Cheng. This time, they were ordered by the top of Divine Hall to escort some important bigwigs to the pce for negotiation. It was also the team that Mo Shanshan had talked to Ning Que about.


    The night before, they had already seen the warning fireworks shot by the food team camp, and also received the letters in Fu characters for help through other ways. But perhaps because of the danger of being isted and strange in the Wilderness, the cavalrymen of Divine Hall did not immediately rush to help, but followed the original course, steadily moving forward. Until this moment in this ancient river, they had encountered each other in the meadow valley.


    Among the cavalrymen of Divine Hall were more than a dozen Yuelun Kingdom monks, Revtion Institute students, and a horse carriage.


    The door opened, and a little foot in blue shoes stepped on the carriage board and walked down. It was the foot of a wrinkled old woman who wore a very strange robe. The robe seemed to consist of innumerable different kinds of fabrics and was so thin that no one knew how it could resist the cold wind in the Wilderness.


    It could be considered a kind of trial for the cavalrymen of Divine Hall to escort Revtion Institute students and Yuelun Kingdom White Tower Temple disciples to the pce. And this woman was the leader of this team, for she was the respected Aunt Quni Madi of Yuelun Kingdom.


    Because of historical reasons, the rtionship between Yuelun Kingdom and Great River Kingdom had always been extremely bad. A few days ago, they had some minor friction over that warm stream in the southern frontier fortress of the North of Yan Kingdom. So Aunt Quni Madi, a very narrow-minded woman ording to the rumors, directly ordered through Divine Hall to let the girls of Great River Kingdom ck Ink Garden undertake such a sinister task of sending grains. At this moment, she looked at the sieged ck Ink Garden disciples under the valley and surely had no impulse to rescue them.


    However, she was, after all, a Bhadanta and predecessor in the cultivation circle. So she also needed to maintain the dignity and glory of Divine Hall. The meaning was hidden in her narrow, dark heart naturally could not be directly shown in front of all people.


    Quni Madi looked at the messy camp below the nearby nting valley and showed no emotions on her face. Her each wrinkle was replete with the taste of coldness and strangeness, and her voice was hoarse and sharp, making others feel very ufortable.


    "They could send letters in Fu characters... I don¡¯t know who the Talisman Master is in the grain camp, but I suppose the person has great power and is able to deal with the Horse Gang, at least having the ability of self-protection. We¡¯vee from afar and if we blindly go to rescue them, it may easily cause damages. I¡¯m afraid we will also affect their defense deployment. So let¡¯s wait here to observe the situation first."


    In the food team camp, not far from the bottom of the meadow, there were dead bodies on the ground full of flowing blood, and the horse carriage array that was about to copse. The Horse Gang on the northeastern gentle slope had already assembled for the next assault. Everyone knew that people in the camp could not stick it out any longer. Quni Madi said those words, as if talking nonsense. However, those White Tower Temple monks and Revtion Institute students seemed to have not heard what she was saying.


    Themand of the cavalrymen of Divine Hall slightly nodded to show that he had understood her. He did not show any strange emotions on his indifferent face.


    The Haotian Taoism Sect and the Buddhism Sect had always been in a good rtionship. Especially in recent years, because of the Judicial Department Priest Prince Long Qing, West-Hill and Yuelun Kingdom had be closer and closer. He, as themander of the cavalrymen of Divine Hall, was directly under the Priest¡¯smand. So he had always extremely respected the views of Aunt Quni Madi.


    Themander of the cavalrymen of Divine Hall himself was not willing to lead his subordinates to go to rescue those people below the meadow. He needed to protect the Revtion Institute students and the White Tower Temple monks in the queue, and especially the noble in the horse carriage. If he rashed out so as to make her be frightened, how could he exin it to the Priest?


    Although he was a master in the Seethrough State, whose 100 subordinate divine riders were the world¡¯s most powerful elite ones, there were still at least 2 to 300 Horse Gang riders who could fight on the opposite meadow. If they wanted to kill these Horse Gang people, they themselves were bound to be damaged. Every cavalryman of Divine Hall had an extremely noble life, only bleeding for the dignity and shine of Divine Hall. How could they take a risk for those humble people below the meadow?


    Besides, Great River Kingdom was close to the Tang Dynasty. The whole West-Hill Divine Pce had been dissatisfied with it for many years. This time, the Divine Pce just wanted them to taste some bitterness. As for those Yan Kingdom men and cavalry... they were just the men of Yan Kingdom¡¯s crown prince Chongming and had nothing to do with the Priest. So it did not matter whether those men would die.


    As for Divine Hall¡¯s reputation and moral issues... themander indifferently thought. He supposed that the Horse Gang would judge the situation not to go too far when seeing Apologetic Divine Forces here. And what Divine Hall thought as the right was always right, not allowing others to doubt it.


    Themander slowly raised his right hand, gently swinging forward to indicate the subordinate cavalry to be divided into three teams¡ªfront, middle and behind. They slowly spread along the edge of the meadow and made preparations of rushing down, but obviously made no battle preparation.


    In the camp below the meadow, there were vague cries of despair and scolding sounds. Quni Madi listened to those foul words and became more gloomy on her face. Her anger was overflowing among her numerous wrinkles. Then she said in a cold voice, "A group of humble men. I¡¯d like to see what ability a disciple of the Master of Calligraphy has gotten."


    The horse carriage in the center, which the cavalrymen of Divine Hall were guarding, always kept very quiet.


    A beautiful young girl sat calmly on the soft couch and was focused on picking stamens for a pot of orchids in front. No one knew how she took care of it so as to make this pot of delicate orchids so lively in the cold Wilderness. Unfortunately, the girl herself was as pure and clean as an orchid, so she actually outshone all the colors of those orchids.


    ...


    ...


    People in the food camp had been fiercely fighting with the Horse Gang from the early morning until this moment. They had long been exhausted and more than a hundred wounded men gradually lowered their moans. Numerous dead bodies were orderly put in the middle of the camp. The carriage boards in theager were severely damaged and some of them looked charred, which were already shaky and were not able to withstand a second Horse Gang attack.


    People in the camp had long been desperate. Just at this time they suddenly saw the cavalrymen of Divine Halling on the meadow and thought they had seen hope. They could not help falling into ecstasy or even shedding tears. The young girl Mo Shanshan, who had always silently sat in the horse carriage, also put down the ink brush in her hands and finally became rxed after confirming the reinforcements¡¯ arrival.


    However, after a while, the cavalrymen of Divine Hall on the meadow slowly moved forward in three lines. But people in the camp did not see theme to aid orunch an assault action. So the cheers in the camp gradually subsided and the people had great doubts and anxieties in their hearts. Some Yan soldiers thought that the formation of the cavalrymen of Divine Hall should be used to suppress and not to attack. Soon this spection spread to everyone in the camp at an extremely rapid rate, suddenly bringing about a new round of despair and suffering.


    They first saw hope from despair, and then fell into despair again. Besides, they had seen the hope that was not far away from them fall into despair. No matter how strong-willed or pious to Haotian Taoism or respectful to Divine Hall they were, they could not help crying and then getting angry.


    There was countless crying and scolding resounding in the camp, and it was noisy everywhere. The people used all the bad words they could think of to scold the cold-blooded cavalrymen of Divine Hall above the meadow, venting their despair and anger.


    Zhuo Zhihua tightly closed her lips, looking at the cavalrymen of Divine Hall at the top of the meadow as well as the olddy in a cloth robe in front of the cavalrymen. She did not speak, but there was a me of hatred burning in her eyes.


    Her right shoulder was cut open by a Horse Gang scimitar. After a simple bandage wrapping, it was still bleeding outwardly at this time.


    Because of the old woman in Yuelun Kingdom, ck Ink Garden disciples had been sent to the Wilderness by Divine Hall for implementing such a difficult task. And when today they were facing a dangerous situation, the opposite party actuallypletely ignored the righteous friendship, sitting on the side to watch. It was really a disgraceful action by this woman.


    Cat Girl angrily said, "The old woman is always a damned jerk, but how can¡¯t the cavalrymen of Divine Hall rescue us? Don¡¯t they know they will be punished by the Judicial Department if they don¡¯t obey the doctrine?"


    Zhuo Zhihua showed her disdain on her face and fiercely spat at her feet, thinking that the cavalrymen of Divine Hall had always been ruled by the Judicial Department. So who dared to say that they disobeyed the doctrine with that shameless behavior?


    Ning Que lifted up his hat and looking toward the top of the meadow.


    This was the first time that he had seen the real Papal Guardians of West-Hill Divine Pce. He thought of this cavalry¡¯s legendary justice and majesty, watching their actions at this time. He could not help feeling a bitplicated in his heart.


    "In any event, those disciples of Great River Kingdom ck Ink Garden hade to aid Yan Kingdom under the Divine Hall¡¯s edict. Howe those cavalrymen of Divine Hall were not willing to lend a helping hand?"


    Ning Que touched his face that was full of bloodstains, thinking with regret that there were actually some people who were more shameless than himself in this world. He still underestimated the shameless degree of the world after all.


    ...


    ...


    The advent of the cavalrymen of Divine Hall also caused a great impact on the Horse Gang. Although the cavalrymen obviously did not intend to aid the camp under the meadow, the Horse Gang was deterred not to take any reckless action for those over 100 well-known Apologetic Divine Forces. Therefore, the Horse Gang started to retract in the battle and several Gang leaders quickly rode back to the meadow for their next instructions.


    In the face of the pressure of the cavalrymen of Divine Hall, the Horse Gang suddenly became nervous. One of them asked for instructions in a trembling voice. "Your Excellency, we can¡¯t fight against Divine Hall¡¯s cavalrymen. We¡¯d better retreat now. Even if we can kill those people in the camp, I¡¯m afraid it will be adverse to the general when Divine Hallter finds us involved in this matter."


    The Horse Gang chief indifferently looked at the cavalrymen of Divine Hall in the distance. His emotionalughter came out from his cloth mask. "They want to wait until both sides are defeated and wounded? After so many years, cavalrymen of Divine Hall only learned these petty tricks. I really don¡¯t know why they have such a big reputation."


    Then he looked at his subordinate beside and said calmly, "Even if we were all dead, how could Divine Hall find out our identities? Won¡¯t you scratch out your entire face before death?"


    This time, the Horse Gang leader led his troops to attack the food team. One of his important purposes was to torture all these Horse Gang men to death. He naturally would not cherish the lives of his subordinates. As for the cavalrymen of Divine Hall in the faraway meadow, he did not fear them at all.


    It was said that Apologetic Divine Forces of Divine Hall were the most elite cavalry in the world. But he, as an important figure in the Imperial Border Army, did not consider the opposite side at all. Even if there were strong men of cultivation hidden among them, in the current situation, the opposite side should not be determined to stop the battle at a great price.


    "Go down together."


    The Horse Gang leader gently lifted up the reins, with his boots lightly kicking the horse¡¯s belly, and then slowly went down to the meadow.


    ...


    ...


    One moment ago, Ning Que was ready to escape. In this moment, Ning Que saw the arrival of the cavalrymen of Divine Hall and thought he no longer needed to escape. The next moment, Ning Que saw the shamelessness of the cavalrymen of Divine Hall under bright armor and decided not to escape.


    The cavalrymen of Divine Hall on the meadow just blocked the best route for his earlier fleeing n. But that was not the main reason why he had decided to stay and fight with the girls of Great River Kingdom.


    If the cavalrymen of Divine Hall rode horses to aid them at this time, the Horse Gang, who had been exhausted and had many casualties, would definitely be defeated. However, there would be fewer casualties among over 200 people in the camp. The reason why the opposition chose not to aid now was that those cavalrymen of Divine Hall and those unknown noble people valued their lives much more than these Yan militia soldiers, in addition to some reasons he temporarily did not know for the time being.


    Divine Hall was famous for its universal brightness, but actually acted so shamelessly. Although he might sometimes act shamelessly, he was still ashamed to be concluded as the opposite. Moreover, he was very clear that these cavalrymen of Divine Hall were all subordinates of Prince Long Qing. And he and Prince Long Qing, no matter when, could only be against each other.


    And his precarious instinct toward the Horse Gangs still existed. He still felt that someone was indifferently watching him. Before the Divine Hall¡¯s eyes, he could not get rid of this precariousness and had to erase this emotion.


    Ning Que walked to the horse carriage and looked at a big package quietly resting on the carriage board. He frowned and thought the Divine Hall people above the meadow were looking here. So he decided not to use Primordial Thirteen Arrows. Because ording to Second Brother¡¯s viewpoint, the person who was worthy of his Primordial Thirteen Arrows in the Wilderness should be strong men like Prince Long Qing at least.


    He pulled out something that was tightly wrapped in a coarse cloth and looked like a stick. At this time, of course he should take life-saving things with him.


    "Can you still use the talisman?"


    Ning Que looked at Mo Shanshan¡¯s pale face and asked.


    Mo Shanshan looked up at him as if looking at the Horse Gang who was regrouping opposite them. She did not answer him, but slowly raised her right hand, with a slightly yellow paper held in her two thin fingers.


    Ning Que¡¯s eyesight fell on the thin yellow paper in her thin fingers and then continued to say, "This time we should cooperate well and be fierce enough."


    Mo Shanshan took back her gaze, with her eyshes quietly resting on her white skin, and then she nodded.


    Ning Que jumped out of the horse carriage and reached out his hand to wave at Cat Girl. He said, "It¡¯s meaningless to leave water for this moment. Go prepare a bucket of clean water for me."


    Cat Girl felt puzzled, but still went to prepare the water ording to his words.


    He took the Big ck Horse to walk to the camp¡¯s periphery.


    In the beginning, his pace was very steady and slow.


    Gradually he sped up.


    Then he scurried.


    He turned his body onto the horse¡¯s back and pressed the horse¡¯s belly with his legs, urging the Big ck Horse to rush out like ck lightning.


    Just like an arrow, he rushed straight toward the Horse Gang chief, who had just rushed down from the meadow.


    His boxwood bow string lightly vibrated.


    An arrow moved forward.

 Chapter 221: To Kill with Psyche Power; to Break through with Talisman

    Chapter 221: To Kill with Psyche Power; to Break through with Talisman


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The archery of Ning Que was the best in the world. No matter it was the grasnd barbarians who were excellent in riding and shooting or the Horse Gangs lived on bowstring, they were notparable to Ning Que. Besides his uracy and method of controlling bowstring, his speed of shooting arrow was even more astonishing.


    At the moment he borrowed the force of running ahead to draw the bowstring and shoot the arrow all at once. The arrow was even as quick as lightening. When the string of boxwood bow was still slightly quivering in the wind, the arrow bunch had flew to the front of the Horse Gang leader¡¯s face and was about to shoot him to death.


    At this critical point, a small round shield leaned out from beside the Horse Gang leader and breathtakingly warded off the arrow. A muffled sound like that of beating drum was heard and the Horse Gang holding the shield made a stuffy hum and his ride retreated for several steps.


    However, the Horse Gang leader behind the shield didn¡¯t move to hide himself, and moreover, there was not any change in his facial expression, not for Ning Que¡¯s arrow was too quick for him to make any reaction, but for he knew that the arrow couldn¡¯t hurt him.


    At the previous moment, the Horse Gang leader and his several trusted subordinates came from the meadow and entered the group of Horse Gang who had gotten ready to make assult and caused chaos. Then Ning Que took the time and thought he could hurt his enemy. But unexpectedly his enemy so easily warded off his arrow which clearly indicated that they had already gotten prepared. So suddenly he felt horribly chilly in his heart.


    The muffled sound of the arrow deeply probing into the round shield seemed like the signal of make assult. Under the stimtion of handsome reward and threat of strict punishment, over two hundred Horse Gangs who were still able to ride a horse crazily yelled and waved the curve knives in their hands. Following the ten leaders at the front of the team, they suddenly rushed to the camp of grain team.


    Because the distance between the two parties had been drawn closer ahead of time, the belt of gravel at the lower edge of the meadow couldn¡¯t prevent the Horse Gang¡¯s assult any more. Theager outside the camp of grain team was already broken and nearly two hundred soldiers and civilian workers of Yan Kingdom that had survived were now standing in front of their heavily-injured peers and corpses of theirpanions. Their hands tightly holding their weapon were trembling slightly and they looked quite despair.


    After having a rest during this period, the disciples of ck Ink Garden guarding at the breach of the battle array had not totally recovered, and moreover, their Psyche Power had nearly been exhausted and they even couldn¡¯t hold the delicate swords in their hands. Then how could they ward off the enemy?


    In the horse carriage at the back, the girl Mo Shanshan slightly lowered her head, several strands of hair inably hanging on her forehead. Her pale face looked especially withered and her fingers holding the inky pen were turning pale for her having secretly exerted her strength, which yet looked so weak.


    As the Horse Gang rushed to the camp, it seemed that nobody could prevent the oning ughter with the exception of Ning Que who rode on his Big ck Horse to dash into the flood of Horse Gangs. It seemed he was brave, but what could he do on his own?


    Across the broken part of the te of theager, Ning Que saw the masked leader at the very front of the Horse Gang. The eyesight of the two finally met in the chilly air of the Wilderness. Somehow Ning Que felt his heart beating faster and the previous vignce that had perplexed him for a long time became stronger and stronger.


    However, at this moment he was not allowed to think more, to ponder over more or to hesitate. Now that he was on the horse, he should take the spirit that when getting on the horse, you were a thief, and drew his bowstring and waved his knife to kill all the enemies.


    The Big ck Horse took a heavy breath yet it didn¡¯t slow down, and in an instant they had rashed to the front of theager. Just at the moment, Ning Que abandoned his bowstring and fetched out his hand to hold the hilt on his back, yelling loudly.


    He just yelled out a simple broken sound rather than any special name, which sounded like roars of some beasts in the wild. But he believed the girl in the horse carriage could understand his intention. Although they didn¡¯t negotiate ahead of time, somehow he believed she should understand him, as what Sangsang did.


    Mo Shanshan in the horse carriage understood him. Her ck hair drooped on her forehead and her eyes slightly focused, with which her two slim fingers slightlybined like two stones heavily knocking to each other. The yellowish Fu paper clutched by her fingers should break into numerous pieces as tiny as sand and then vanished.


    In the wilderness ahead of theager of the camp, all of a sudden, the Qi of Heaven and Earth fiercely fluctuated, abruptly producing a vor of extreme driness. The Horse Gang that had suffered heavy losses was frightened by the vor and subconsciously exerted all their strength to draw the rein and escape to the both sides.


    Without any spark nor dry grass, yet right ahead of the brokenager, raging mes were burning out of nothing. The fierce me suddenly spurted along the blowing of wind and during the fluctuation it became more violent and finally formed a fire wall.


    In fact, the power of the girl Talisman Master¡¯s fire talisman was not as strong as her previous ones, after all she had lost too much Psyche Power. Just because previously she had to defend against the Horse Gangs who might make assult from all directions of the roundager and the area that the fire talisman should cover was too big. But at this moment, the fire talisman only needed to cover the area that several miles ahead of the Big ck Horse, so it looked extremely violent.


    The fire wall outside the camp just appeared to be violent, yet in fact it did little harm to the Horse Gangs. What¡¯s more, it exactly blocked ahead of the Big ck Horse, which looked as if it would devour the the Big ck Horse as well as Ning Que riding on it.


    Just before the Big ck Horse was about to rash into the fire wall, Ning Que rode on the horse and stramped the saddle heavily with his feet. Then with the tightening of muscle in his waist, belly and thigh, he suddenly jumped up.


    The Big ck Horse violently roared and its hoof tip deeply throbed into the mud to forcibly braked its heavy body. When it was about to touch the fire wall, it changed the track of running so dangerously and escaped to the right rubbing the fire wall.


    At this time, Ning Que had already jumped onto the fire wall and beneath his shoes were terrible mes. He jumped to that side, and his hands tightly holding the hilt took the advantage of the power to make a draw. "Gong! Gong!" the podao was drawn out.


    The fire wall had prevented the eyesight of Horse Gangs, so they didn¡¯t see that Ning Que had jumped up from the horse back. When they saw that Ning Que jumped over the fire wall, Ning Que had alreadye right above the Horse Gang leader.


    Before the battle, he had said to Mo Shanshan that if they could kill this leader that had just arrivedst night, the Horse Gang would be in chaos. And if the Horse Gangs were in chaos, the cavalryman of Divine Hall would not lose this valuable opportunity - He was sure that people from the Divine Hall were as shameless as he himself, so he could find out their choices¡ªThat¡¯s why he chose to exert the exhausted girl Talisman Master¡¯sst Psyche Power to create this opportunity.


    He was quite skilled at jumping over fire wall and making sudden attacks. When they three killed Xia Hou outside the mouth of Northern Mountain Road, he had done it, so that¡¯s why he was so confident. His eyes staring at the Horse Gang leader were focusing and calm. The podao he held with both hands changed into two beams of bright light and chopped down with insistence and certainty.


    However, when he jumped out of the fire wall and touched the Horse Gang leader¡¯s eyesight again, he found that his enemy¡¯s sight seemed actually more focusing and calmer than him, thus the hint of chilliness produced during his previous rashing on horse involuntarily increased.


    Two podaos broke the winter wind in the Wilderness and chopped towards the neck of the Horse Gang leader. However, the Horse Gang on the right and left seemed to have known the direction of Ning Que¡¯s de though apparently they were still dashing ahead, so they made judgment ahead of time and reached out two thick wooden shields to ward off the de!


    Then with two times of heavy muffled sound, numerous cracks like spider suddenly appeared on the wooden shield. While as for Ning Que, he couldn¡¯t borrow any power in the air and was back-shocked upwards to the inclined rear in the air. And the two podaos should be inserted in the wooden shield and couldn¡¯t be drawn back.


    Because the rides of the Horse Gang were still dashing ahead, when Ning Que fell down from the air for the second time, he coincidentally remained heading towards the Horse Gang leader. When still in the air, Ning Que¡¯s right hand shed to his back and drew out the third knife!


    And almost at the same time, a fire blossom bloomed before Horse Gang leader, which, though not vigorous, was enough to scorch his face. And this was exactly a skill of Talisman Taoism that remained unused by Ning Que!


    ...


    ...


    An invisible power appeared in the air and tightly wrapped the fireball changed from that Fu paper inside. The me suddenly weakened as if it were sealed by a transparent ss ball, which fell down dejectedly and inably along the shoulder of the Horse Gang leader.


    The right hand of the Horse Gang leader turned, with which a stiff metal shield delicately flew to the half air and exactly warded off the third knife of Ning Que that had been condensed with all his strength. A huge sound was heard when the knife and the shield met, which greatly roiled the air.


    His three knives were all predicted and sealed ahead of time and the Talisman Taoism he secretly drew had been broken. It seemed that this Horse Gang leader knew all his methods and had made ns directing at him!


    During the fierce fight, he findly figured out that these Horse Gangs tracing the grain team didn¡¯t target at robbing the food, nor the girl Talisman Master in the horse carriage. From beginning to the end, their target was him!


    In the biting winter wind in the wilderness, Ning Que felt extremely cold both physically and mentally.


    Yet coldness wasn¡¯t equal to despair, and in his mind, there was no such word as abandoning. When he was still in the half air, with a muffled sound, he forced out all his Psyche Power from sense of perception with all strength, and then those delicate Talisman inscriptions of the podao suddenly lightened. Meanwhile, the other two podaos inserted in the wooden shield lightened too.


    "Crack! Crack!" the wooden shield was cracked and the two podaos fell to the ground. As for the third one in his hand, it chopped against the wind and caused a streak of bright de, which rolled with the aura of nature and chopped towards the Horse Gang leader again!


    ck sand was caused fluttering over the ground, where a very deep knife cut was found. However, the Horse Gang leader was actually unhurt. Ning Que¡¯s chop condensed with Qi of Heaven and Earth should have missed the target and chopped to the ground!


    His sight was totally blurred, and he suddenly felt something not so good, but was not allowed to react. All of a sudden he flew again to the air yet fresh blood instantly was spurted from his mouth and nose.


    The Horse Gang leader slightly raised his head and indifferently looked at Ning Que from whom blood was spurting out. His left hand hanging beside the saddle which slightly touched the saddle and quickly figured something now stopped. He thought to himself, "Thanks to your adventure, I finally dead-locked you."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que was drifting aimlessly in the air, which blood spurting out from his mouth and nose like a fountain. A strong and overwhelming Psyche Power, following an invisible trace, rose from the ground and prated the air. It finally throbbed into the part between his brows and directly probed into his sense of perception.


    He felt as if countless silver needles were quickly stirring in his mind. An absolute ache beyond description was fiercely trembling him. He was not such a man that couldn¡¯t bear pains, who had even stood up to the Psyche Power attack in that frustrating in the Back Mountain of the Academy. However, this Psyche Power from the ground was too strong for him to bear, so in an instant, he felt faint and blur-minded.


    Before losing his consciousness or dying, his instinct that had been fostered in the past decade¡¯s experience between life and death, he subconsciously fetched his hand out to his back to hold the familiar umbre handle. However, under the attack of the powerful Psyche Power, he could merely touch it yet failed to draw the umbre out.


    He began to fall down, during which he struggled to open his eyes and looked at the ground with blurred sight and just saw the Horse Gang leader raising his head to see him too. Now he could confirm that this leader should be a great Psyche Master at Seethrough State!


    How noble and powerful it was for a great Psyche Master at Seethrough State. If he was in the military camp, he must be a general. If he served in the imperial court,he must be a Minister of Offerings. If he was in the earthy world, he would be respected. Why such a man should disguise himself as a Horse Gang to kill me?


    Ning Que realized he had underestimated his enemy. If he had known that he was the target of the enemy and his opponent was a great Psyche Master with great power earlier, he would have used the Primordial Thirteen Arrows absolutely at the beginning. Although Second Brother had also said such words, this Horse Gang leader was definitely not weaker than Prince Long Qing!


    ...


    ...


    The Horse Gang leader, or we should say, Lin Ling, a great Psyche Master in the fortress army of northeast Tang Empire, slightly raised his head and narrowed his eyes. Looking at Ning Que who was spurting blood in the air, he shew aplicated expression in his eyes, a mixture of beingcent, fearful and proud.


    If the Military Minister wanted to investigate somebody, it would definitely dig out all his past and background. The strength and fight habit Ning Que had shown at the entrance of Northern Mountain Road and the fact that he learnt Talisman Taoism from Master Yan Se were all in their list of investigation.


    A great Psyche Master at Seethrough State had made such careful and meticulous preparation before his fight with a greenhand at No Doubts State. If by doing so he still couldn¡¯t kill his opponent, it just proved that Haotian was unfair.


    Anyway, Lin Ling still felt proud when seeing Ning Que was about to die. Because even though he was the strongest Psyche Master in the fortress army of northeast, the person he killed today was a student of the Second floor of the Academy and the core disciple of the Headmaster of Academy.


    So that¡¯s why he felt both proud and fearful. Therefore, after confirming that he had killed Ning Que, he decided to kill his trusted followers beside him immediately... as well as he himself. He wouldn¡¯t allow this affair to trouble the general.


    ...


    ...


    The horse carriage between the camps that had been in silence for a long time suddenly moved, yet the movement was earthshaking.


    The whole carriage broke, with curtains, wooden blocks, metal and essaries spraying to all directions like arrows.


    With the broke of the carriage, the girl in white drifted to the air, her delicate and waterfall-like ck hair drifting with wind. She looked at the firewall, and her scattered eyesight suddenly focused. Her pale face abnormally flushed and then she pointed out one finger.


    The slender finger drew several lines in the biting winter wind of the Wilderness.


    With her finger breaking the air, the wind and the heaven and earth, an invisible power formed with the drawing of lines.


    This was the Infinitive Talisman which could only be drawn by Divine Talisman Masters at Knowing Destiny State!


    The finger of the girl in white fiercely trembled, as if she was suffering from great pain.


    Finally, she just managed to draw a half of this talisman rather than the whole one.


    She indifferently nced at the side of the firewall and could faintly see that the figure of Ning Que was falling down at a high speed.


    She closed her eyes, falling backwards to the ground.


    The unfinished talisman suddenly copsed and contracted, causing all the surroundings to copse and condense with it. And in a very short time, it condensed into a mass of transparent air.


    The invisible and transparent power of talisman, like fists waved out by God with full strength, violently rushed out and broke a huge hole in the firewall!


    Over ten Horse Gangs fell down from their horses one after another, blood spurting out from them.


    The pupil of the Horse Gang leader severely condensed. Even if he was a great Psyche Master at Seethrough Sate, he still sensed the horror of the power.


    Although the talisman was unfinished, it was still the Infinitive Talisman that only Divine Talisman Masters could understand.


    Divine Talisman.

 Chapter 222: Victory, has Nothing to Do with Light

    Chapter 222: Victory, has Nothing to Do with Light


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Themander of the cavalryman of Divine Hall emotionlessly looked at the lower part of the meadow, caring nothing about the lives of those people on the grain team in the camp. He just wanted to see whether he could have an appropriate opportunity to dispatch his troops during the chaos.


    From the lower part of the meadow there suddenly passed a fierce shock of Qi of Heaven and Earth, and the strong and subtle-stated aura of Talisman Taoism was clearly and directly reflected in his sense of perception, resulting in a dramatic change in his emotion.


    Quni Madi was a stone-hearted old woman. The wrinkles on her face didn¡¯t move a bit when she saw those flocks of Horse Gangs waving their Curved Knives towards civilian workers of the Yan Kingdom who had no little time to escape.


    But when the horse carriage broke into pieces, the girl in white floated out into the air and drew the talisman. All the wrinkles on her face suddenly changed from the stony lines to disorderly catkins in the wind which were all piled up in a state of shock and amazement.


    "She¡¯s the Talisman Master from the camp!"


    "Should she actually draw Infinitive Talisman? Does it mean she has entered the Knowing Destiny State?"


    Quni Madi with a sombre expression, looked back at the carriage in the midst of the cavalry, and secretly thought about how her beloved niece would react if she knew.


    The curtain of the horse carriage was tightly closed, and the girl as tranquil and pure as orchid had perceived the terrible power of the talisman from below the meadow and gradually raised her head. A a faint feeling of realization came over her face, and then she softly said to herself, "It¡¯s sister Mo."


    She figured out the identity of the Talisman Master across the curtain just by the fluctuation of the talisman power. It seemed that this young maiden was not totally unaware of what was happening below the meadow outside the horse carriage.


    ...


    ...


    The Half Divine Talisman changed into an invisible, high-speed air mass and instantly broke the air above the camp like the mighty fists of the gods. It blew out a huge hole in the firewall and more than ten horsemen were killed by the shock. Then it came to the leader of Horse Gang and suddenly condensed with the winter wind.


    The leader of the Horse Gang knew that now was the crucial time to test his mettle. So with a stuffy groan, his fingers hanging beside the saddle trembling fiercely,his thumb slightly and speedily tapped the lines of his middle and index finger. By doing so, he forced out all his Psyche Power in the sense of perception mercilessly.


    The dense Psyche Power that had been umted from over ten years¡¯ of meditation was forced out and suddenly collided with the power of Divine Talisman attacking head-on. The collision of the two strange powers had produced numerous weird white lines around the leader of Horse Gang.


    Those white lines were tiny torrents in the air, which flew at a different speed from the surrounding air, thus appearing white because they produced deviated refraction of light.


    It could break the nk air so fiercely and make it roar at very tiny points. How terrible it was for the Half Divine Talisman and the power that a great Psyche Master had umted for over ten years to collide with each other.


    In the numerous air torrents filled with madly-drifted catkin, several blood drops sshed out from the corner of the Horse Gang leader¡¯s eye, and the horse¡¯s foot-steps retreated in a tumultuous and confused way.


    Because of the overwhelming power of this unfinished Divine Talisman, the Horse Gang leader had to condense all his Psyche Power to confront it and attack the falling Psyche Power of Ning Que who was squirting blood. It was only natural that his mind went nk for a very short period.


    Over ten thousand steel needles in Ning Que¡¯s sense of perception suddenly disappeared and the pain lingered in his mind. But finally he woke from the faint and muddled-state and remained sober for a while.


    This brief moment of soberness was more than enough.


    He drew out the big ck umbre from behind his back and shook his wrist. The thick cloth was torn, and the big ck umbre, which had not seen the sun for months, came to light, and bursted open like a ck lotus on his head.


    The big ck umbre slowed down the speed at which he fell down and prevented him from falling to his death. The key point was, the surface of the big ck umbre which looked extremely greasy and dirty absorbed most of the terrible Psyche Power attacking from below.


    When his body was still drifting in the air, Ning Que dropped the knife downwards.


    Now there was still some distance between him and the Horse Gang leader below, so the podao couldn¡¯t chop his enemy. However, needles were sessively shooting out from his wrist to break the air and directly probed in the eyes of the Horse Gang leader along a strange, unpredictable and invisible line like what happened every day at the Back Mountain of Academy!


    The Horse Gang leader was a great Psyche Master at Seethrough State and his state of cultivation was almost the same as Mo Shanshan, the girl in white. However, it was still difficult for him to fight against the unfinished Divine Talisman and his whole body was restrained by the fatal primordial Qi in the air.


    What was even beyond his expectation was that Ning Que, who had obviously been badly injured and was about to die, had hidden such a skill. The trace of silver needle, which was almost invisible because of its high speed, was about to probe into his eyes, yet he could only forcily lower his head at the risk of being hurt by the torrent of primordial Qi before him.


    "Poof!" The silver needle probed into his brow ridge in an instant!


    The needle was so deeply probed in that nobody could trace its end, and then a drop of blood like a port-wine mark immediately appeared.


    The Horse Gang leader felt a sharp pain in his brain and then everything before his eyes went ck.


    The darkness was not caused by the pains, it was just really dark.


    Because the big ck umbre fell before him.


    Under the big ck umbre, Ning Que clearly and directly waved his podao out.


    In an instant, the de cut into the body and broke the bones.


    In a sh.


    An arm flew to the sky.


    ...


    ...


    A terrible bloody scar appeared on the right shoulder of the Horse Gang leader, blood gushing out like a fountain. The force of the podao still remained, so he yelled painfully and with a howl, he fell off his horse¡¯s rump and fell heavily to the ground.


    Before he fell down, his skinny right hand pointed at Ning Que who was about tond on his back and abruptly open it.


    Ning Que was rather badly wounded. His chest felt like it was suffocating and gushed out blood again. Finally he fell down.


    He exactly fell down on the horse of the Horse Gang leader.


    He was not aware of the fishy sweet smell between his lips and tongue . Before losing his consciousness, he chopped his podao again towards the Horse Gang leader, yet this time, what he chopped was not the Horse Gang leader who had already been chopped off, but the crupper.


    A deep bloody scar suddenly appeared on the crupper.


    The horse, which was startled by the pain, crazily rashed to the front and collided head-on with the burning firewall!


    ...


    ...


    Then another hole on the firewall in the camp was made below the transparent hole previously produced by the pration of the Divine Talisman into the firewall.


    A burning horse carrying the badly-injured and feeble Ning Que rashed ahead and ran wildly through the hole with yells. Its horsehair and horsetail had already been burnt into ashes and almost devoured by the violent me.


    The inferno caused by the Fire Talisman was so terrible that the horse forcibly ran through it and was burnt to death instantly and flopped to the ground. Ning Que, who was lying on its back, fell down to the ground at the same time and came to a halt after several rolls.


    Despite the protection of the big ck umbre, the corners of his clothes were still spitting mes, which might at any time turn into a big me. He sat down on the ground and turned his head and looked around. His voice was hoarse and he shouted, "Water!"


    Under his previous order, the Cat Girl prepared a big bucket of clear water and waited by the side. She didn¡¯t participate in the defense and she was anxious as she witnessed her Senior Sisters fighting a bloody battle with the Horse Gangs. She couldn¡¯t wait to kick the bucket over and never expected that the situation of the battle could change so dramaticly. It was only until now that she understood Ning Que¡¯s earlier intentions.


    With a swoosh sound, the whole bucket of water was poured over Ning Que, which put off the burning mes on Ning Que¡¯s clothes in an instant. He was as weak as a cat and was directly knocked to the ground by the pouring water.


    The Big ck Horse approached him at a high speed from one side of the camp. The horse appeared to be anxious, lowering its head and constantly rubbing against Ning Que. It seemed to worry that if Ning Que fell down, he would no longer stand up again.


    Falling to the wet ground, Ning Que was really too weak to stand up. Luckily he didn¡¯t lose consciousness and still opened his eyes.Looking at the horse¡¯s face, which was very close to his face, he drew a smile with great difficulty.


    From the beginning of the fight till now, especially thest moment when he killed the Horse Gang leader,he encountered numerous extremely dangerous situations and countless suffering. It was man¡¯s instinct to automatically fall into aa when confronting unbearable mental and physical sufferings. However, he seemed to have some talent when it came to fighting against his physical instincts and managed to maintain hisst bit of soberness.


    With a great deal of difficultly, he raised his right arm and put the big ck umbre, which was even more dirty presently, on his chest, and then he put the ace-pack that had been constantly tied to his middle finger in his arms.


    It was only when he had done these two things that he was truly relieved, but he was still strong and determined not to faint from hisck of energy. Thrusting his knife into the wet ground next to him, he stood up with a muffled grunt, looking at the fighting around the camp, and trying to help, only to find that his body had been badly hurt by the Psyche Power.


    Probably he would not die because he had done what he had to. As for those who were still fiercely fighting with each other around theager, he was powerless to change them.


    Something came to Ning Que¡¯s mind and he turned back to have a look.


    In the messy camp, the horse carriage that had been blown into pieces was presently only left with its lower body te. On the te sat Mo Shanshan, whose white clothes were covered in mud.


    The maiden Talisman Master had forcibly used the Divine Talisman which could only be exerted by a Divine Talisman Master. It was more than she could handle and she was seriously counter-attacked by her own talisman, which, coupled with the exhaustion of the Psyche Power in her sense of perception, had directly made her fall into aa in the air and she fell down.


    Perhaps it was due to the shock that Mo Shanshan had now awakened.


    She slightly lowered her head and her hair on her forehead was in a mess. She pressed her right hand on the ground to support herself and her long and thin eysh which could be faintly seen among her hair were constantly trembling. All that could be perceived on her face was feebleness, as if she might faint again.


    Suddenly thunderous hoofbeats were faintly heard from the far distance. Looking at the gust of dirt that had been stirred up on the meadow, Ning Que knew that the cavalryman of Divine Hall had started to act as he had expected. Then he said to the Cat Girl beside him, "Later when you clean the battlefield, look for my two podaos."


    ...


    ...


    The firewall on the front of the camp was intended to give Ning Que an opportunity to kill the Horse Gang leader, yet it didn¡¯t cover an arearge enough to ward off those Horse Gangs. During the previous tangled fight, the Horse Gangs yelled and waved their curved knives and rushed in when theager consisting of tes and hay bags was already badly damaged. Those disciples of ck Ink Garden, holding their sharp knives, fought against the enemy with great determination, but the fight took a heavy toll on those soldiers and workers of Yan Kingdom in a very short time.


    At the moment, the Horse Gang leader was missing. Nobody knew whether he had been taken away by his trusted subordinate because of his serious injury, or if he had died and his corpse stamped into the mud by the hoofbeats. This had greatly impacted the Horse Gangs and the assaulting queue was in an array of disorder. Moreover, the defense forces in the camp were on the edge of great danger.


    If the cavalryman of Divine Hall on the upper part of the meadow remained unmoved at the moment, then who could predict whether the camp would be ughtered or the flock of Horse Gang would copse under unbearable pressure.


    Those big wigs in the meadow were all shocked by the astounding Half Divine Talisman that Mo Shanshan previously drew, yet they neglected Ning Que who jumped over the firewall and finally killed the Horse Gang leader.


    Themander of the cavalryman of Divine Hall had felt something, his sharp eyes had faintly noticed the trace of a figure on the other side of the burning firewall, but he didn¡¯t know what exactly was happening at that time. But... he saw the badly-injured Horse Gang leader forcibly taken away by several riders and the current mess of the flock of Horse Gang who were about to be defeated.


    The cavalrymen of Divine Hall who refrained from rushing downwards from the meadow to save those in the camp were afraid of the two or three hundred tough Horse Gang who were heavily guarded and still good at fighting, so themander didn¡¯t want to take the risk of losing the noble lives of the cavalrymen of Divine Hall. But presently, the Horse Gang leader was dead and the Horse Gang was about to copse. This was the time for the cavalrymen of Divine Hall to show their power and umte their battle achievement. As amander who was excellent in fighting, he would definitely seize this opportunity.


    "The Horse Gang is massacring followers of Haotian, so as the Papal Guardian of Divine Hall, you know what you should do."


    Themander of cavalrymen of Divine Hall drew out his official sword from his waist and pointed towards the extremely chaotic and bloody camp on the lower part of the meadow and said sternly. The sunlight shone over his solemn and upright face, which had a righteous countenance and looked holy.


    "For the light, go!"


    Under the instruction, a hundred cavalrymen of Divine Hall moved ahead, with weapons carved with Fu characters tightly held in their hands. They raised their whips to order the horses to rush to the campsite from the upper part of the meadow with high speed, which stirred up arge amount of gravel.


    Their ck armour, painted in aplicated golden design, looked like countless sunflowers blooming under the sun and shining brilliantly. Those cavalrymen of Divine Hall initiated their rescue effort with an upright and brave spirit.


    Faced with the Papal Guardians who had the finest cavalry in the world, the Horse Gang, who had fought for half a day and were almost exhausted, sank into a state of panic and confusion because their heavily-injured leader had left, thus they had no power to resist them and retreated in defeat.


    Even the strongest and most ferocious Horse Gangs couldn¡¯t defeat ordinary cavalrymen of Divine Hall, not to speak of their curved knives, which were as fragile as a branch or wooden stickspared to the talismans of the cavalrymen of Divine Hall.


    It didn¡¯t take long for the cavalrymen of Divine Hall to defeat all the Horse Gangs around the camp. The idea and n of themander had been perfectly executed at a low cost.


    Light, won the victory again.


    ...


    ...


    The six hundred Horse Gangs suffered heavy losses from death and wounds, with the remaining ones escaping to all directions. The cavalrymen of Divine Hall had to clean the battlefield, chop off the heads and protect the noble on the upper part of the meadow, so they just chased the fleeing Horse Gangs as a symbolic pursuit, that gave the Horse Gangs, who previously fought with the cavalry of Yan Kingdom, a chance to escape away from the battlefield.


    The fight on the meadow was violent, and the fight between the two hundred cavalrymen of Yan Kingdom and the Horse Gangs was equally horrific. At this moment, only forty of them rode back to the camp and all of them were somewhat injured.


    The fight which started in the morning had caused people to die constantly. But thanks to theager and the braveness of ck Ink Garden disciples, the number of the dead was not huge. On the contrary, the most grievous casualties appeared during thest period of the battle. Since the brokenager and Mo Shanshan who had used out all her Psyche Power could no longer protect more people, countless soldiers and worriers of Yan Kingdom were killed by the curved knives of Horse Gang.


    A young male disciple of ck Ink Garden was besieged by several Horse Gangs and died in a horrible way.


    Zhuo Zhihua and other girls from the Great River Kingdom stood numbly before his Younger Brothers dead body, their eyes were filled with sorrow and indignation. The Cat Girl, the youngest one of them, had already burst into tears and her eyes were all swollen up.


    The was an air of sadness in the camp,and and there was a sound of heavy hooves outside the camp.


    The cavalrymen of Divine Hall had turned back from the short-distance chase of the defeated and dispersed Horse Gangs and had regrouped.Their ck and gold-ted armor gleamed in the sun, and their orderly processions seemed to be full of order and power.


    If these were ordinary times, those soldiers and workers of Yan Kingdom who believed in Haotian Taoism would probably show admiration and enthusiasm towards them out of their absolute respect to the West-Hill Divine Pce, or would have even knelt down on the ground and bowed sincerely. However, presently they were too sorrowful to notice the cavalrymen of Divine Hall outside the camp. Those who asionally looked at them appeared to be indifferent and their eyes faintly revealed a sense of hatred.


    If these cavalrymen of Divine Hall had rushed to help them instead of waiting on the meadow, they would definitely have defeated the Horse Gangs with the cooperation of the disciples of ck Ink Garden, especially that powerful girl Talisman Master. However, they didn¡¯t and this directly caused the heavy casualty on the camp at the end.


    Many cold dead bodies now lying on the ground in the Wilderness should have been warm, and many dead ones should have survived and returned to Yan Kingdom to see their beloved ones. However, all this would not be possible because of the selfishness and cruelty of the cavalrymen of Divine Hall.


    Therefore, nobody in the camp would wee the cavalrymen of Divine Hall.


    Men never see the back of their heads, and light never finds its own darkness, especially when you think too highly of yourself and when you regard yourself as the absolute light.


    The cavalrymen of Divine Hall who lined up outside the camp, did not think there was anything wrong with their earlier inaction. At the time, the Horse Gangs were still energetic and strong to fight, and should they have let their noble cavalrymen of Divine Hall to fight for those ordinary civilians and shed blood? On the contrary, in their mind, the Horse Gangs were finally defeated because of them. They protected the lives of those presently in the camp, so they were qualified to be praised and appreciated, rather than treated so coldly and with such hostility.


    The different and solemn faces of some cavalrymen of Divine Hall even revealed a sense of contempt and indignation. But for the silence of themander, they would have easily rushed into the camp, drown out those civilians who dared to cast hostile eyes towards them and whipped them bitterly.


    Looking at their indifferent faces , and thinking of their earlier shameful aloofness and their present disgusting expression, the Cat Girl flushed in anger. She wiped away her tears and was about to rush towards them and curse them out.


    Zhuo Zhihua drew her behind and forcibly suppressed her sadness and indignation. She bowed before themander of the cavalryman of Divine Hall riding high on the handsome horse and then led her younger sisters to deal with the affairs on the camp, saying nothing.


    All those left were distressed. The soldiers and workers of Yan Kingdom had wounds all over their bodies, so they supported each other. Looking at the scattered dead bodies of theirpatriots, and their broken arms and legs and the blood, it was impossible to feel happy that they survived a big disaster. Many of them began to yell with tears, and the whole camp was shrouded in thunderous cries.

 Chapter 223: Flame and Seawater

    Chapter 223: me and Seawater


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Listening to the continuous cry from the camp, themander of the cavalryman of Divine Hall slightly frowned.


    He could understand the indifference of the students of ck Ink Garden from Great River Kingdom, but he didn¡¯t care. Instead, he just scornfully ignored them and signalled his subordinates to sweep the battlefield by raising his right hand.


    Cold and gorgeous sword des pricked into the necks of Horse Gang. Their heads were cut down by the slight movement of the des, and then were thrown into big bags, regardless of the eyes on the head were open or closed.


    The cavalrymen of Divine Hall began collecting the heads of the Horse Gang.


    Though many Horse Gang members around the periphery of the camp actually died of the first counterattack in the early morning, from that talisman fire and from the desperate fight of the camp team, yet right now no one in the camp would fight for the military exploit with these cavalrymen of Divine Hall.


    The people in the camp were just busy with treating and curing severely-wounded persons, transferring dead bodies, clearing up losses, saving few left provisions and digesting sadness and anger in their heart.


    With the broken and ckager as a boundary, two different worlds were naturally formed inside and outside the camp.


    Looking at the camp like a ruin and the obviousbat traces, themander of the cavalryman of Divine Hall couldn¡¯t help showing some admiration when he imagined the bloody battle with the Horse Gang before the reinforcements came.


    His eyes, slightly narrowing, were fixed on that carriage wreckage on the center of the camp, but he didn¡¯t find the figure of that young talisman master and that ck shadow.


    After a short silence, he slightly kicked his horse abdomen and rode it to an opening ce behind the students of ck Ink Garden, who were busy with treating and curing severely-injured persons. Later themander asked, "Who¡¯s your leader here?"


    Zhuo Zhihua forcibly bandaged the blood cut of a civilian worker¡¯s broken arm with a piece of cloth. She gently raised her hair which was mixed with blood on her forehead, and then turned around to look at themander on the horse, but didn¡¯t answer his question.


    Listening to the question, a student of ck Ink Garden subconsciously looked back at a carriage in the camp.


    Suddenly thinking of the task that Ning Que assigned to her, Cat Girl handed the medicine to a Senior Sister beside her and then trotted to outside the camp.


    ...


    ...


    Besides mule carts, the provisions team had three horse carriages. That horse carriage of the young female Talisman Master had been destroyed into pieces by the initial effect of Half Divine Talisman, while another two horse carriages were still intact.


    At this time, the Big ck Horse was wearily waiting outside a horse carriage. The light inside the horse carriage was dim, and it would be a little brighter only when a corner of the carriage curtain was raised by the winter wind of the Wilderness. There was a parcel quietly sitting on the board. From the sunken level of the board, it could be obviously judged that the parcel¡¯s weight was inappropriate with its volume.


    Ning Que wiped off the blood flowing from his mouth and nose, and then cleaned his hand by stretching his hands into the water of the basin beside him. Later he took over a little bronze box and, after looking at the kind of shabby object inside it, could not help shaking his head.


    "How could a girl just have such a small amount of cosmetics?"


    "It¡¯s theirs, not mine."


    Mo Shanshan, sitting opposite to Ning Que, looked at him with full concentration, as if it was the only way for her loose and indifferent eyes to urately focus on his face. Obviously, her eyes contained some confusion right now.


    "As I know, the young girls of Great River Kingdom pay much attention to makeup. Last year a kind of eyebrow-raising makeup became popr in Chang¡¯an and I heard that it exactly came from your country. How could you girls care nothing about makeup?"


    Ning Que grinded cosmetic rouge with his head lowering, and his movement seemed very skillful and experienced.


    "A cultivator, no need to care about the makeup and appearance."


    Mo Shanshan quietly looked at him and found that he didn¡¯t want to discuss the topic more. With her ck eyebrows slowly raising, she asked, "Why do I need makeup now?"


    Ning Que raised his head and stroked her hair in front of forehead. His several simple and casual movements sessfully and quickly made her waterfall-like ck hair into a shape, and then he picked up a very delicate wooden hairpin beside him to fix her hair.


    "Because now we need a spunky Mo Shanshan."


    He carefully selected the size of rouge and casually exined, "The people of the Divine Hall are all in mental disorder. By rationality, they wouldn¡¯t be crazy at any time, though they are indeed shameless. However, no one can ensure that they won¡¯t do anything crazier so as to cover up their shamelessness."


    Ning Que took up a blob of rouge with his fingernail and made it slowly melted and then dipped on a pure-white cotton handkerchief. Later he signalled the young Talisman Master to upturn her face and said, "In our team, you are the only person that can frighten them, so you must look more invigorative. You can¡¯t look so weak as now, which seemed to die at any moment."


    "What¡¯s the rtion between these two things?" Mo Shanshan earnestly asked.


    "Though your identity as a well-known Calligraphy Addict can awe that group of cavalrymen of Divine Hall, yet it may stimte some crazy guys easier if you are in a too weak condition. Once they be demented, they won¡¯t care more about your such identities as one of Three Addicts or a disciple of Master of Calligrapher Lord Wang...I know it¡¯s hard to exin this kind of psychological factors, but you just need to know that many fierce and intense killings were merely due to a casual nce from one to the other."


    Actually, from when they saw dark blue by the Winter Lake together several days ago to the joint travel and fighting in the Wilderness, Ning Que had figured out Mo Shanshan¡¯s real identity, but it was the first time to say it straight.


    In this world, there was only one young female Talisman Master who could draw Half Divine Talisman.


    That was because there was only one Calligraphy Addict in the world.


    ...


    ...


    Mo Shanshan had learned from the Master of Calligrapher in Mountain Mogan since she was very young. During these over ten years, she was addicted to books and talisman, so she had little experience in secr affairs. When getting on with Ning Que, who lived in the bottom line of the society and had to kill other people for survival from a very young age, she naturally could learn many useful things.


    It was uncertain that whether she understood Ning Que¡¯s words. Anyway, she upturned her face straightforward.


    On her little face, both cheeks slightly bulged and her eyes and brows were as beautiful as a picture. Though pale and tired now, she still looked very pretty.


    Holding the little handkerchief dipped with rouge and looking at the little face near him, Ning Que was a little surprised and then smiled.


    Two years ago, he was still busy with killing Horse Gang, gambling, drinking and teasing Sangsang in City of Wei. How could he imagine there was one day when he stayed with Calligraphy Addict, one of the three Addicts, in the same carriage and she would obey his instructions without any objection?


    The rouge was spread on her face and gradually scattered with his fingers slowly moving.


    It was neither a heavy makeup nor a light one.


    Under Ning Que¡¯s fingers, Mo Shanshan¡¯s pale face gradually became ruddy.


    The touch by the gentle fingers on the young girl¡¯s little face felt quietfortable. Especially when his fingers flowed to her slightly bulged cheeks, it touched stretchy, soft and plump.


    Mo Shanshan just sat quietly to let him freely continue the makeup on her face, with her head lowering and eyebrows shaking slightly.


    Soon, the makeup was finished and the young girl¡¯s pale face became obviously fresh and beautiful. The ruddy face looked extremely real.


    Ning Que thought when his makeup ability became so skillful? Later, he intended to pencil her eyebrows, but when he noticed her thin and ck eyebrows were as pretty as a wonderful picture, he gentlyid down his pencil after a short thought.


    ...


    ...


    Mo Shanshan looked at him and suddenly asked, "Do you often do these things?"


    Ning Que recalled his daily life after he became wealthy in Chang¡¯an, and also thought of the pile of rouge powder from Chenjinji Cosmetics Store under his bed at Old Brush Pen Shop. He just gently smiled and said, "I have done these things many times because there is a girl at home."


    Mo Shanshan stopped asking questions, with her long and slightly sparse eyebrows blinking. She turned around and opened the carriage curtain to look outside. It seemed that her face, which had turned ruddy just now, became pale again.


    The people inside the camp were busy with carrying the bodies of the dead and collecting wooden materials. They probably intended to cremate their dead fellows. Outside the camp, those cavalrymen of Divine Hall, who were busy with collecting heads of Horse Gang, also nearly finished their job, with their ck and gold-carving armors tainted with blood. That bag containing an unknown number of heads obviously swelled.


    Instructed by the West-Hill Divine Pce, the joint army of Central ins entered into the Wilderness to assist Yan army. Except the Tang army in the west front, the contribution of the army in the east front depended on the number of heads. Today, the cavalrymen of Divine Hall achieved a big contribution because they collected at least three hundred heads.


    Actually, this contribution was mainly attributed to the students of ck Ink Garden and the soldiers and farmers of Yan Kingdom, but the cavalrymen of Divine Hall unscrupulously stole it. Though Mo Shanshan didn¡¯t care about it, yet she could clearly feel that the anger of those people who were silently preparing for cremation in the camp was getting stronger and stronger.


    Themander of the cavalryman of Divine Hall looked at the young female Talisman Master and couldn¡¯t help being shocked when he noticed her good condition. He thought it unbelievable that she could recover her strength so quickly after forcibly and riskily surpassing cultivation state to perform Divine Talisman. No wonder she could be named as one of three Addicits, just like his Priest.


    "We didn¡¯t know that Hill Master was the leader here, so we offered ated assistance. I hope Hill Master can forgive us."


    Themander of the cavalryman of Divine Hall was in a peaceful state. Just by one sentence, he left out his fault of taking no action and being a bystander when the camp was severely attacked before. After showing his respect to the Calligraphy Addict Mo Shanshan by greeting a bow with hands folded in front, he said, "My lord is sitting in the horse carriage on the meadow now, and she ordered me to invite Hill Master to meet there."


    The west Papal Guardians were directly administrated by the Judicial Department. His lord was certainly that Flower Addict, she wasn¡¯t the Tao Addict Ye Hongyu. Mo Shanshan knew it clearly, and she also knew the Flower Addict was in the meadow.


    "Ordered by the Divine Hall, ck Ink Garden has the responsibility to escort provisions to pce. Thus, I had better stay here to perform my duty."


    Mo Shanshan said, looking at themander on the horse.


    Themander just smiled and said, "My lord and Hill Master haven¡¯t seen each other for several years, so she is deeply looking forward to meeting you."


    The word was peaceful and emotive, but also naturally exuded a kind of forceful invitation.


    Mo Shanshan looked at him and said expressionlessly, "She could havee here to meet me just now, if she really wants to gather with me. Since she chose to stay on the meadow, I think there is no need to meet me right now."


    The word was peaceful and ironic, but also directly exuded a kind of stronger toughness.


    Themander felt a little annoyed and just silently looked at her who was sitting in the front of the horse carriage. No one knew what he was thinking of, but finally he just turned around to leave without saying any words.


    When he arrived at outside the camp, a cavalryman of Divine Hall came to in front of his horse, with two podaos in his hand.


    Themander looked at theplicated lines and patterns engraved on the two podaos. Though he couldn¡¯t understand the meaning immediately, yet as a mighty cultivator in Seethrough State, he instinctively and amazedly sensed the beauty and state hidden in it.


    As he was ready to take these two podaos as his trophies and intended to carefully study it some day, there was a clear yet very angry sounding from a not-far distance.


    "They are ours!"


    Cat Girl angrily red at themander on the horse, with her face full of sweat and her clothes filled with dirty dust and blood. Obviously, she had been looking for these two podaos outside the camp for a long time.


    Themander just slightlyughed and got ready to leave with his horse rein gently pulled. He absolutely didn¡¯t care about the sound.


    Cat Girl sprinted to in front of his horse like a gust of wind. With holding her ebony thin handle and staring at him, she refused to get out of the way and undisguisedly showed her hatred in her clear eyes.


    Several cavalrymen of Divine Hall rudely came to her and tried to push her away.


    With a ¡¯Ling¡¯ sound, Cat Girl unsheathed her sword and didn¡¯t any fear as she was facing several cavalrymen of Divine Hall who were much taller than her. She said in a slightly tremble yet indignant voice, "You have already cut the heads of Horse Gang down, and now you still want to rob our weapons?"


    Themander of cavalryman of Divine Hall coldly looked at her and said, "Students of ck Ink Garden use either talisman or sword. When do you begin using podao?"


    Noticing the quarrel here, other students of ck Ink Garden, including Zhuo Zhihua, rushed to the spot. When they saw their petite younger sister being surrounded by these shameless cavalrymen of Divine Hall, their anger, which had been suppressed long, quickly erupted. With the sound of unsheathing swords intensely heard in the air, the students of ck Ink Garden were at a military confrontation with the cavalrymen of Divine Hall.


    The atmosphere suddenly became extremely tense. The tired students of ck Ink Garden didn¡¯t retreat half a step by virtue of their steadfast and tough spirit, although both the strength and the number of cavalrymen of Divine Hall were in the lead.


    A winter wind blew in the meadow. Mo Shanshan came at a slow but confident pace, with her white dress waved by the wind. Her facial expression and eyes were indifferent. Impatiently looking at the cavalrymen of Divine Hall and themander on the horse, she coldly said, "My fellows of ck Ink Garden can use podaos if we want. Do we have to report such kind of thing to the Divine Hall?"


    Themander silently looked at her and then suddenly said, "Hill Master¡¯s words seemed a little rude and unreasonable."


    Mo Shanshan said, "Will the present Divine Hall think a steal also have a point?"


    Themander felt slightly sullen and insulted. Looking at her and other students of ck Ink Garden who were holding swords in front of his horse, he coldly said, "How irreverent you are topare the Divine Hall with a steal! Do you want the Judicial Department to ask Master of Calligrapher how on earth he teaches disciples?"


    Mo Shanshan peacefully replied, "On behalf of my teacher, I am waiting for the guidance of the God of the Judicial Department."


    Though themander clearly knew the Calligraphy Addict was pretending to be spirited right now, he still didn¡¯t dare to offend her. Staring at the young female Talisman Master¡¯s eyes, he suddenly said, "Hill Master was instructed by the Divine Hall to escort provisions to the pce, which was rtive to the peace negotiation of both sides. However, the provisions werepletely destroyed now. I don¡¯t know how Hill Master will exin the ident to the Divine Hall and the joint army. If the peace negotiation of both sides was broken due to it, I wonder whether Hill Master could be responsible for it."


    "How to exin to the Divine Hall and the joint army is my affair, which is none of your business," Mo Shanshan, with her eyebrows slightly blinking, gently said, "Even if I don¡¯t exin, it is impossible for you to kill me here..."


    Raising her head and silently looking at the eyes of themander, she said, "Or kill all people here."


    Themander of the cavalryman of Divine Hall slightly frowned.


    After gently stroking her hair to behind her shoulders, she peacefully said, "Now that you are unable to kill us all, what are you still doing here? Put down the podaos and leave right now."


    After a long silence, themander randomly threw the two podaos on his saddle to the ground. He looked at her with smile and then said, "Hope I can meet Hill Master again in the pce."


    Cat Girl sheathed her sword, pushed away the cavalrymen of Divine Hall in front of her, and then rushed to beside themander¡¯s horse to pick up the two podaos. She tightly held them in her arms, as if they were her babies, and stared at the cavalrymen in vignce.


    Without replying themander¡¯s invitation, or threat, Mo Shanshan directly turned around and walked back to the camp.


    ...


    ...


    In thete winter Wilderness, the sun would disappear soon after it appeared along southern low sky. The battle began in the early morning, but when they finished clearing up the battlefield, it was nearly at dusk and the light had be dim.


    An intense clop on the meadow sounded like a thunder, and then the sound gradually lowered. The cavalrymen of Divine Hall, escorting Aunt Quni Madi of Yuelun Kingdom, the young girl in the horse carriage and other figures of Revtion Institute and White Tower Temple, continued their trip to the pce, leaving lines of smoke and dust.


    The blood-like dusk covered the camp, making those bloodstain on the ground and carriage boards more ill-favored. The broken carriage boards, carriage debris and dry grass were piled up together, as if they would be burned up under the setting sun.


    After a while, these things were indeed ignited. By virtue of of the wilderness wind, the fire became fierce all of a sudden and gradually engulfed the dead bodies.


    With the "pipipapa" sound, some pictures of melting, cking and distorting, which could make people extremely frustrated andplex, were hazily seen. The air began pervading a disgusting and terrifying empyreumatic smell.


    The survivals around the cremation ground all lowered their heads and began chanting the song of Haotian Taoism together. With the monotone syble repeated again and again, they prayed that the souls in the fire could sessfully go back to the arms of Haotian. At the beginning, the sound was noisy and irregr, but gradually it became more and more regr, making the atmosphere full of depression and sadness.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t get off his horse carriage due to serious wound. He pulled aside the carriage curtain, silently looked at the distant me and listened to people¡¯s low chanting voice. Suddenly he raised his head to look at the high and far sky.


    The sky in the Wilderness was still clean as he usually knew. Right now, however, it was naturally divided into two totally different worlds under the shine of setting sun. One side near the night was as blue as ocean, while the other next to the day was zing like a fire.


    In this world, he couldn¡¯t exin why all he saw and heard in Chang¡¯an in his childhood was the belief to Haotian. What¡¯s more, his master, Master Yan Se, was a Minister of Offerings in the South Gate of Haotian and was a Great Divine Priest who had a seat in the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    Therefore, he naturally believed in Haotian as most people did in the world.


    At this very moment, however, in front of the countless souls in the fire and under the ocean-and-me sky, Ning Que¡¯s view to this world was gradually and irresistibly changing.


    ...


    ...


    People gathered on the meadow again and spent a long and cold night here. The next early morning, tens of survived cavalries from Yan Kingdom carried their injured fellows southward. They were a direct army of Prince Chongming, and they clearly knew why the cavalrymen of Divine Hall behaved as onlookers when they were attacked yesterday. In such situation, even if they went to the pce, they knew they couldn¡¯t get any justice at all, even might possibly be punished by the Divine Hall. Thus, they naturally chose to return home.


    None of the students of ck Ink Garden of Great River Kingdom went back with Yan¡¯s cavalries. Instead, they set off northeast to the pce of Left-Tent by taking two horse carriages and several horses.


    Looking at the deste scenery outside the carriage window and the left snow in the thin grass, Ning Que coughed and then took out the handkerchief that Sangsang prepared. After wiping the blood on the corner of his mouth, he turned around and asked the young girl in white opposite to him, "Why do you still go to the pce?"


    "After all, an exin is needed on the issue of the provision team, and..."


    With her eyes slightly lowering and her eyebrows gently shaking, Mo Shanshan said after a long silence, "I¡¯m very angry."


    Looking at her, Ning Que smiled and then said, "I find I kind of like you."

 Chapter 224: In a Horse Carriage

    Chapter 224: In a Horse Carriage


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Upon hearing these words, the female Talisman Master bowed her head and looked at the white dress on herp. It seemed that thece was very beautiful. But in fact, there was nothing on that in white dress.


    The horse carriage was still moving and the wind on the Wilderness lifted the carriage curtains away. Morning sunshine sprinkled in and reflected on the ck and white interior decorations inside of the carriage, falling on her ck hair and white face so as to be separated into several rays of light. A calm and certain voice was uttered slowly from her lips. "I think I already have someone that I like."


    The morning sunshine also fell on Ning Que¡¯s body. He did not expect that his habitual way of speaking would make her misunderstand him. He had an embarrassed smile, which looked very mild in the morning light. "I like a lot of people. I often use ¡¯like¡¯ to express my goodwill. I hope it didn¡¯t make you feel too brusque."


    The Wildernessnd was blown dry and hard by a cold wind. The wheels running above thend were shaken upwards from time to time. The horse carriage was not big and two people sat opposite at a close distance. With the ups and downs of the carriage, their knees were about to touch together.


    Ning Que moved backward and leaned against a cotton pad beside the window. His sore body finally found a supportive point so that he could not help making a pleasant sigh. He looked at the girl¡¯s beautiful face that was close to him and said, "This world just runs like this. You don¡¯t need to be unhappy about those disgusting things."


    Yesterday, he put on makeup for Mo Shanshan and tied her waterfall-like ck hair behind her head. When she woke up this morning, she still retained the hairstyle, you could not tell if she was not concerned about these things or if she felt Ning Que¡¯s craft was really good. So, she went to touch her bangs as usual, only to find that her slender fingers touched nothing.


    She seriously asked, "Liking and hating are both emotions. How can we suppress them?"


    Ning Que leaned against the window and slightly squinted for the morning light sprinkling from a curtain¡¯s edge. After a short moment of silence, he said, "I didn¡¯t mean to suppress this mood, but we should not be affected by this emotion. Getting angry is to use others¡¯ mistakes to punish ourselves. It is not worthwhile."


    Mo Shanshan slowly furrowed her eyebrows as ck as ink and persistently said, "But I¡¯m just angry."


    Ning Que looked at her eyebrows and suddenly wanted to use his finger to touch them. But he retracted his hand back to his sleeves and said, "Since you¡¯re angry, of course you should use the fastest speed to vent it. So I support you to go to the pce. But have you ever wondered what you will do once you have met the cavalrymen of Divine Hall or the noble in the pce?"


    Mo Shanshan nkly shook her head. Her intuition told her that she should go to the pce and find those cavalrymen of Divine Hall and those people on the meadow, seeking justice for those dead sisters and brothers as well as the soldiers andmon people of Yan Kingdom.


    Ning Que seemed to guess her thought. So he looked at her and seriously said, "Justice has never existed. Even if your strength and identity are strong enough, sometimes you¡¯re not necessarily able to seek justice. So a thing like venting has nothing to do with justice, but with fairness. What¡¯s fairness? When others hit us, we hit them. When others scold us, we beat them. When others try to kill us, we kill them first."


    Mo Shanshan looked at him with her eyes open. It seemed that she did not expect that a lot of thingsing from his mouth could be so simple and presumptuous. She wrinkled her brows and asked, "You... the Tangs all view things like this?"


    "Most of us." Ning Queughed and said, "We were educated like this from the moment we were born."


    Mo Shanshan stretched out her hand to lift up the curtain of the window beside her. She watched the wild deste view of the Wilderness that was gradually moving backward and a few lonely birds in the faraway sky. She thought of the person in the horse carriage on the meadow yesterday and said after a short silent moment, "What if I reach the pce and can¡¯t kill those people?"


    The cavalrymen of Divine Hall and the noble they protected naturally could not be killed easily, even if the killer was a world-known Calligraphy Addict. Ning Que looked at her nk facial expression, vaguely guessing that the status of those people on the meadow might be very high.


    "Who were those people on the meadow yesterday?"


    Mo Shanshan turned to look at him and whispered, "Revtion Institute students and White Tower Temple monks. If you want to ask about the person in the horse carriage, she is the Princess of Yuelun Kingdom as well as the favored one in the Revtion Institute."


    Ning Que¡¯s frowning brows gradually stretched out. The change of his facial expression did not mean that he had rxed, but showed that he was a bit surprised. Then he said, "Flower Addict Lu Chenjia? What did this legendary persone to do in the Wilderness?"


    Mo Shanshan looked at him and suddenlyughed. Her somewhat stiff expression suddenly became vivid with this rare smile. Especially her indifferent cold eyes, which actually instantly became a little lovely.


    "You don¡¯t know that Mo Shanshan is a Calligraphy Addict, but do know the name of Flower Addict."


    Ning Que smiled and thought that if this person was that Flower Addict, then it was really wishful thinking for them to go to the pce to seek justice. His smile gradually converged and he looked at Mo Shanshan to say, "You can not kill, but want to vent. Maybe I can offer you some ideas. For Flower Addict Lu Chenjia, what does she like the best or value the most?"


    "She¡¯s a Flower Addict. Of course she likes flowers the best."


    Mo Shanshan confusedly looked at Ning Que¡¯s face as if seeing an idiot. She said, "In addition, people all know she crazily fell in love with Prince Long Qing. In fact, she is a very lofty person."


    After a moment of thought, Ning Que said, "Venting is nothing more than bullying people. If you want to go to the pce for venting, you¡¯d better start with two things¡ªflowers and loftiness."


    Then he began to seriously make ns for Mo Shanshan. Once they met Lu Chenjia in the pce, they should use any kind of way to vent the anger of the ck Ink Garden disciples and not cause a too big sensation.


    Mo Shanshan listened to these almost childish tricks, but felt that they were really some insidious ideas after careful thought. She slightly furrowed her brows and looked at Ning Que¡¯s smile under the morning light. She watched his fresh little dimples, suddenly feeling that his smile was so evil as well as so cute.


    Bullying people was Ning Que¡¯s favorite thing. He even liked bullying the strong by being weak more than he liked having sex. He secretly thought he had bullied Prince Long Qing in advance one time and did not know how Flower Addict thought of him after she knew this. When he was just excitedly imagining this scene, he suddenly found Mo Shanshan was intently looking at him. It was not until then did he find that he had overacted, so he could not help but awkwardly smile.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que asked, "Are you familiar with Flower Addict?"


    At this time Mo Shanshan was grinding an inkstone and stretching some paper. In order to keep a distance from Ning Que, she tried her best to make her waist and buttocks that pressed against her calves lean against the window. She replied, "A few years ago she had been to Mogan Mountain, I spent dozens of days with her."


    Ning Que leaned against the carriage board and looked up at the decorations inside the carriage. He slightly tilted his brows and asked, "What kind of person is Flower Addict? Beautiful? Does she love flowers like a legendary flower addict?"


    Mo Shanshan suddenly stopped her right hand holding the brush and looked back at him. She asked, "Are you very interested in her?"


    Ning Que said smilingly, "I am really curious what Prince Long Qing¡¯s fiancee looks like because I have always wondered, is there a woman in this world who won¡¯t feel inferior when she sees Prince Long Qing¡¯s perfect face?"


    Mo Shanshan gently put the brush on a shelf and turned around by touching the board with her hand. She slightly tilted her head to look at him and asked, "Have you seen Prince Long Qing?"


    "Even if I have not seen him before, I have heard of him. Everybody knows that His Highness is the most beautiful man in the world."


    After finishing this sentence, Ning Que found that the young girl was still staring at him. He knew that she did not believe this. So he had no other choice but to raise his hands and said smilingly, "Well, I admit that I did see him."


    Mo Shanshan quietly looked at him and secretly thought of something. Her eyesight, which had been quiet like a ripplingke in autumn, suddenly became bright. She slightly moved her lips and wanted to ask, but finally did not do it. She seemed to be a little uneasy.


    Perhaps in order to hide her uneasiness in the previous moment, she slightly bowed and slightly blinked her eyshes. Then she put her hands on herp to sit back and spoke about another thing. "You have analyzed that the target of that Horse Gang wasn¡¯t forage, but me. In fact, their goal should have been you."


    She looked up at Ning Que as if looking at the Wilderness view outside of the window behind him and seriously said, "I very clearly saw the picture behind the fire wall. They have prepared to kill you."


    She still did not ask the question that she had wanted to ask. But Ning Que knew she had long been suspicious of his identity. It made him feel a little grateful when she did not directly ask this question. However, at this time he still hesitated when to tell those Great River Kingdom girls about his true identity. So he did not know how to answer her.


    When they mentioned the fire block in the battle yesterday, he remembered that horrifying hollow that the Half Divine Talisman had stricken on the fire wall. He said, "At that time I thought it was thest burning Fire Talisman you could disy andter you would be too exhausted to disy the simplest Talisman Taoism. I never expected you had hidden yourst magical attack."


    Mo Shanshan suddenly leaned her body forward and very seriously bowed to him. Then she whispered, "Thanks to Senior Brother for your fighting advice the day before yesterday. Shanshan appreciated it very much."


    Ning Que was startled and remembered a few days ago that he had very severely reprimanded her by saying that she was a woman who did not understand fighting and did not know about leaving the most powerful forces for the most crucial moment. At that time, he had notpletely guessed her identity. At this moment, when he thought he was actually teaching a Calligraphy Addict how to fight, he could not help feeling somewhat proud.


    "Anyway, thanks to your Half Divine Talisman, we could survive."


    At that time, he had been in a critical situation and had not had a clear feeling about that earth-shattering Divine Talisman. However, he thought deeply and thoughtfullyst night, and he found this female Talisman Master opposite him to be more and more amazing.


    It was not a remarkable thing to cultivate in five states and cross states to challenge others. As Chen Pipi had said, based on his cultivation qualification, even if he entered the Knowing Destiny State, he was also the weakest one in the Knowing Destiny State in history. If there were no other tricks, any strong man in the Seethrough State could try to cross the state to challenge or even kill him.


    However, the state was the state. Mo Shanshan actually still stayed in the state of Seethrough. At that time, however, she was actually able to disy Infinitive Talisman that only a Divine Talisman Master could exert. This fact made Ning Que deeply shocked and extremely puzzled.


    Master Yan Se judged that he was the world¡¯s most hard-fought Talisman Taoism genius. But when Ning Que looked at this white-clothed girl in front of him, who was quietly kneeling with her hands on her knees as well as her beautiful calm cheeks, he unexpectedly had an unconfident mentality.


    "Master, didn¡¯t you choose me for knowing that the world¡¯s most talented Talisman Taoism sessor was taken away by the Master of Calligrapher? What you have done only makes your disciple shameful."


    Of course, Mo Shanshan could not guess Ning Que¡¯s psychological activity at this time and even did not know that he wasining about one of the most respected Divine Talisman Masters and bemoaning his own fate. She held her hands together to bow and conscientiously asked, "Senior Brother Zhong..."


    Ning Que woke up and carefully corrected her. "I said you could call me Thirteen."


    Mo Shanshan was startled and thought this name sounded somewhat awkward. After a moment of hesitation, she shyly said, "Senior Brother... Thirteen, I want to ask you something."


    Ning Que saw her serious and conscientious facial expression. He did not know what she was about to ask, but he set his mind and greeted her with a bow with hands folded in front. He said, "Go ahead, please."


    Mo Shanshan said, "When I was young, I followed my teacher to a mountain for Talisman Taoism cultivation. For more than 10 years, I only contacted two things¡ªcalligraphy and the talisman. I would like to invite Senior Brother to teach me how to fight and how to win."


    Ning Que looked at her conscientious expression and understood that it must have been the battle yesterday that made this naive but well-known female Talisman Master suffer a certain impact of her view of the world. Therefore, she had this kind of request.


    Regarding the cultivation state, he knew his mediocritypared with Senior Brothers and Sisters of Back Mountain, Prince Long Qing, and this female Talisman Master opposite him. But when it came to fighting, he had been struggling for his life and dancing on a de since childhood. His whole life was non-stop fighting, which made him very confident.


    "Fighting is a very simple matter. That is how to make your opponent lose his ability to hurt you under the premise of protecting yourself. Therefore, we must first understand what kind of strength we have and what kind of strength the enemy has."


    Ning Que pointed at the horse carriage roof above them and said, "We must first know how high it is from the roof to the floor, and then know our height so as not to stand up to hit our heads. Of course, maybe we would pierce the roof. But I don¡¯t think many people would want to measure the hardness of the roof with their own head."


    He used very simple words and metaphors to clearly describe the preparation before a battle.


    When Mo Shanshan was thinking, her eyes became more nk. Hepletely did not know where she was looking. She whispered softly, "How can we judge that the opponent has lost his ability to hurt us?"


    Ning Que most liked answering this kind of seemingly foolish but very important question. He leaned against the cotton pad beside the window, waving his hand in the air, and then replied. "Breaking arms and legs is the mostmonly used means of making others seriously injured. But if you need to make sure that the opposite side loses all hisbatting power, keep in mind one sentence: You¡¯re only safe when you¡¯re dead."


    Upon listening to these words, Mo Shanshan¡¯s eyes looked a bit confused. It seemed that she did not understand why Ning Que always directly talked about death every time it came to fighting. In her childhood, she studied from Ink Lake teachers that, in the cultivators¡¯ contest, did not necessarily have to win by putting others to death.


    Ning Que looked at her facial expression and realized this Calligraphy Addict was really a pure white lotus born in Ink Lake. Before she came to the Wilderness, she had actually beenpletely ignorant of the world¡¯s suffering. He could not help patiently saying, "If you cultivate in Ink Lake, of course you don¡¯t need to think about these matters. Just like me, if I hide in the Academy to study at this time, all I would need to do every day is to y chess, hit iron, and listen to songs. What a happy life I would have. But outside the small building, the world is full of dangerous wind, snow, rain, and swords. Since you have set foot in it, you have to understand how the word ¡¯sinister¡¯ is written."


    Mo Shanshan listened to his sincere words, nodding to show that she had understood him. At the same time, she gratefully nced at him. But unfortunately, her gaze was still very casual, which did not make Ning Que feel her gratitude clearly.


    "Senior Brother Thirteen, if the strength of the opponent is far beyond yours, how do you beat him?"


    "Hill Master..."


    "Senior Brother Thirteen, you can directly call my name."


    "If the others know that, they will inevitably feel that I am not respectful."


    "Please call me Sister Shanshan."


    "Sister Shanshan, the question you just asked... basically has no solution. If anyone can answer this question perfectly, then he is the most powerful person in this world. Because he has more ways to defeat the person more powerful than himself."


    Mo Shanshan slightly furrowed her brows and seriously asked after a long moment of silence, "Senior Brother, your words... are ironic?"


    Ning Que stared at her and found an ufortable fact from the bank of this dark blueke that, in addition to Sangsang, there was someone who finally appeared to be able to beat him numerous times in the world.


    "Sister, you can think it is ironic. But please do not think too much. I often use irony in my speech to deepen the listener¡¯s impression. Because this is a very important matter."


    Mo Shanshan nodded and continued to ask, "Then how can we defeat the enemies that are more powerful than us?"


    Ning Que seriously answered, "When we encounter a far stronger enemy than ourselves, I insist that we have only one choice."


    Mo Shanshan slightly raised her small face and asked with an expected look, "What choice?"


    Ning Que said, "Escape."


    "... "


    "No need to be speechless. Escaping is also a kind of fighting. Because when facing an opponent far more powerful than yourself, you might not escape even if you want to. If you want to, I can start to teach you from the escape."


    "Senior Brother, it is indeed of very good character to consider failure before talking about sess. But I still want to learn how to win first."


    Mo Shanshan sat on a small window sill with her hands holding an ink brush, and was ready to carefully record.


    When Ning Que looked at this picture, he could not help feeling a little proud, recalling that, like her, he had carefully recorded every word of Mr. Lu¡¯s on paper with an ink brush in the horse carriageing back from the Wilderness in the spring ofst year. He had a lot ofplicated feelings and carefully said after calming down,


    "Your thought is correct too, there are not many other people in the world whose cultivation state can surpass yours. I believe most of the time the opponents you face are like the Horse Gang yesterday, far weaker than you."


    He said seriously, "In the face of opponents weaker than ourselves, we should not be sympathetic andpassionate, or proud and arrogant. We should treat opponents as the most powerful enemies, rather than weak.


    "But you have to remember that in the attitude of war, you can¡¯t despise your opponent but should tactically choose the right fighting method. When you¡¯re strong and your enemy is weak, you should be as tough as a tiger to hunt him with your full power. Using your full power like a tiger is not really to use all the power in your palms to kill the weak rabbit, but to focus on your mind so you don¡¯t give the weak rabbit any chance of escape. A direct hunt for the rabbit can help you avoid chasing until exhaustion and entanglement so you can save your strength. If a hunting tiger appears, hundreds of rabbits don¡¯t dare to move."


    Mo Shanshan recorded those words and looked up at him to ask, "What if two tigers meet?"


    Ning Que said, "You can pretend to be hurt and beg for mercy by saying that you have silently loved him for 10,000 years, trying your best to weaken his mind. You can hit his mother, kill his family, p his children in the face, and try every way to anger the opposition. If you wear shoes, go to a thornynd. If you wear thick clothes, choose a bitterly cold ce. Try everything possible to create a suitable background for your fighting. If he has great power and you have sharp ws, you can fight while running to cut his skin and make him continue bleeding. If he has sharp ws and you have great power, you can quietly wait and allow him to slightly harm you. Then you choose the perfect opportunity to kill him. All in all, try your best to hide your shorings and grab the best fighting chance."


    Mo Shanshan listened to his endlessments on various situations. She became more and more absentminded in her eyes and she subconsciously muttered, "It sounds like it¡¯s veryplicated. Where can I find so many methods?"


    "If nothing works, you just have to remember thest one."


    Ning Que looked at her and seriously said, "When two tigers meet, the brave one wins."


    Mo Shanshan seriously looked at him with her eyes open. After a long period of silence, she fully understood the meaning of his words. Then she softly said withment, "Senior Brother, you know so many things."


    Ning Que felt that her gaze always seemed to be focused elsewhere. Upon listening to this praise, he could not help feeling a bit weird. He said, "Sister, you have countless admirers in the world. If you often praise me, I¡¯ll feel a bit overwhelmed."


    Mo Shanshan furrowed her inky eyebrows and puzzledly asked, "Senior Brother, how do you know so many things?"


    Ning Que adjusted his sitting position and said smilingly, "The Academy teachers have taught us a sentence: Genuine knowledgees from practice. Sister, if you had been fighting since childhood just like me, you¡¯d naturally understand so many things."


    Mo Shanshan looked more and more confused on her face. "Brother you¡¯ve fought so many... Were you very naughty in your childhood?"


    Ning Que felt his body slightly stiffen and felt it really hard to talk with this white lotus of ck Ink Garden.


    Mo Shanshan asked, "Senior Brother?"


    Ning Que exhaustedly waved his hand and said, "Sister, I also have a question to ask you."


    Mo Shanshan asked, "What question?"


    Ning Que looked at her eyes and asked, "Why do you never look me straight in the eyes?"


    Mo Shanshan looked at him and puzzledly asked, "When?"


    Ning Que felt that she was looking at the Wilderness outside the window and sighed, "Anytime, anywhere. For example, now."


    Mo Shanshan suddenly thought of one thing and her expression became slightly stiff. After a short moment of silence, she quietly exined. "I was fond of calligraphy since childhood and have copied too many sections. So my eyes are not very good."


    Ning Que slightly opened his lips and did not know what to say. Then he realized that the well-known Calligraphy Addict was actually short-sighted. Besides, from her eyesight, did she still have astigmatism?

 Chapter 225: Enter the Palace

    Chapter 225: Enter the Pce


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Since Ning Que had pulled his bow and arrows to help them in the edge of the dark blueke and had hunted together on the way to the Wilderness, Ning Que and Great River Kingdom ck Ink Garden disciples had already been very familiar with each other. After fighting a bloodybat side by side below the meadow, they had gotten even more intimate.


    Over the following days, Ning Que had been in the horse carriage for recuperation. At the same time, he reformed the female Talisman Master¡¯s conceptions of the world, life, and fighting. So he seldom went out, and even took breaks and had meals inside the horse carriage.


    In the eyes of those ck Ink Garden disciples, it looked a little strange. They knew clearly that Hill Master seemed to be indifferent in nature but, in fact, was mild and moderate. But she had never been so close to a young man. Zhuo Zhihua also thought that this was not appropriate, but just felt that Ning Que had suffered a serious injury. So Zhuo Zhihua was too embarrassed to let him get out.


    In fact, Ning Que had recovered quickly and no longer had hemoptysis by the second night. His sense of perception that had suffered great turmoil had gradually subsided, and his asional episodes of dizziness never appeared again.


    ck Ink Garden disciples like Zhuo Zhihua were not too clear of his physical condition. But Mo Shanshan had witnessed his whole recovery process and could not help feeling kind of puzzled.


    On that night when Ning Que drew his bow to kill a few Horse Gang men, Mo Shanshan had felt Psyche Power fluctuation beside her and had guessed that Ning Que must be a cultivator. For this, she was not too surprised, for a wonderful ce like the Academy must choose umon students to go alone into the Wilderness to perform a task.


    However, that Horse Gang leader was a Psyche Master who had entered the upper Seethrough State. If she had not learned Half Divine Talisman on Mogan Mountainst spring, she would have had no way to hurt the leader. If such a strong Psyche Master had used their full strength to attack Ning Que, generally Ning Que was very likely to be an idiot because of his severely damaged sense of perception, if he was even able to survive. How could he be so talkative and enraptured now? Was it possible that his Psyche Power was even stronger than hers?


    Calligraphy Addict was not good at talking with people, especially not willing to pry into others¡¯ privacy. So even if she had doubts about Ning Que one after another, she did not ask him but quietly sat by the carriage window. She used elegant small characters to record his guidance and carefully chose what she could study to learn by heart.


    Ning Que spoke highly of her when seeing her characters, for Mo Shanshan¡¯s calligraphy was indeed excellent. When her ink brush fell on the paper, the characters were round and not exaggerated, but soft and powerful. The vigor of her writing style flickered but was clear, well-suited, fresh, and gratifying.


    At this moment, he realized the reason why the ck Ink Garden female disciples hadughed so happily when, in the camp a few days ago, he had praised that the female Talisman Master wrote in a simr style as his¡ªCalligraphy Addict was addicted to calligraphy. The calligraphy here was an elegant calligraphy of writing and sections rather than amon book for reading and cirction. In the eyes of the ck Ink Garden disciples, he, as an ordinary person, dared to say that Talisman Master wrote in a simr style to his, which was indeed a ridiculous thing.


    The ck Ink Garden disciples got on the horse carriages and rode horses, diverting from the northeast to the northwest at an ice crossing. On the direct way to the pce, they rarely saw people but more often saw cold-proof furry sheep and destends. The road was still difficult for them to walk on.


    The carriage was constantly fluctuating. Ning Que saw her hand motionlessly holding a brush beside the window and her tidy handwriting on the paper. He could not help giving birth toment. Since his own reputation of a Talisman Taoism genius had be unreal in the face of this girl, could his title of a calligraphy master also be stolen by her?


    He put the cotton pad to the rear of the carriage andy downfortably, with his face very close to her white skirt edge hanging on the floor. Then he stretched out his hand to take out one of the sheets of paper on a small table and could not help being startled when he looked down at it.


    There were very familiar words on that piece of paper.


    "Sangsang, I, your young master, am drunk today and won¡¯t..."


    When Ning Que was watching the young female Talisman Master quietly writing beside the window, he remembered Third Sister at the east window of the old library and started to miss the Academy in the south of Chang¡¯an, the days in Back Mountain, and those lovely Brothers and Sisters. At this time, as he suddenly saw his own Chicken Soup Calligraphy copy in the faraway Wilderness, he began to miss the alley of Chang¡¯an Eastern City, the days in the Old Brush Pen Shop, and that thin, ck girl.


    Out of the corner of her eye, Mo Shanshan noticed that he had changed his facial expression. So she turned around with her hands ced on the floor and found that he was looking at her high-priced Chicken Soup Calligraphy. She could not help feeling startled and asked, "Senior Brother Thirteen, do you also understand calligraphy?"


    It must be said that this girl Calligraphy Addict was really not good atmunicating with others. If other people inquired, they probably would say: "Senior Brother, you also like calligraphy?" But she was too straightforward andpletely ignored the listener¡¯s feelings.


    Ning Que had long been ustomed to her surprising words emerging just like Second Brother¡¯s ancient crown from time to time. He simply did not mind and shrugged to reply. "A little bit."


    Mo Shanshan had asked him whether he knew Talisman Taoism and his answer was: "A little bit". At this time, when they talked about calligraphy, his answer was still: "A little bit". In front of other people, he would probably have the confidence to say that he was a Talisman Taoism genius and a calligraphy master. But in the face of the well-known Calligraphy Addict, he felt that it was easier not to lose face if he kept a low profile.


    Mo Shanshan looked at him and suddenly asked, "What do you think of this section?"


    Her facial expression was very focused, as if she valued Ning Que¡¯s answer very much.


    Ning Que did not expect that she would ask for his opinion. He said, "You mean Chicken Soup Calligraphy?"


    Mo Shanshan looked at him and seriously said, "Senior Brother, you are a student of the Academy in Chang¡¯an. Of course, you must have heard about Chicken Soup Calligraphy. I heard this was a masterpiece made by a person in the Academy. So I¡¯d like to hear your opinion."


    There was an old sentence which said: Knowing yourself is always the most difficult. But no one knew it was also difficult toment on oneself, especially when the listener did not know it and one wanted to praise himself.


    Although Ning Que did not have any malicious intention to hide his true identity in front of ck Ink Garden disciples, it would inevitably be embarrassing to be exposed, for the rtionship between the two parties had be so intimate. Therefore, he had to keep the information for the time being before any proper opportunity appeared. Therefore, at this point, it was more embarrassing for him to face this situation.


    And he did not know what the female Talisman Master thought about Chicken Soup Calligraphy and its writer. It would be fine if she loved or admired it. Was it not very troublesome if she hated his calligraphy? This possibility was not small. Although it was said that no calligraphy master could rank first, there were always shes of poets and calligraphy writers that took ce during their meetings in Chang¡¯an City. So a person who was good at calligraphy, like Mo Shanshan, would always despise other calligraphy writers.


    Men of letters despised each other, so did calligraphy writers.


    "This sect writer fully showed the vigor of his writing style and did not know to hide it. With a scattered character shape but without spirit, it seemed to be original. In fact, the writer just used some evil means and writing styles. It didn¡¯t have an honest elegant style, so it¡¯s worthless."


    He did not hesitate to calmly demean Chicken Soup Calligraphy and hid all the awkwardness and bitterness in his body. He dared not reveal his slightest true feelings. This might be the so-called price he had to pay.


    Mo Shanshan quietly looked at him and seemingly wanted to distinguish if what he said were true words or arbitrarily derogatory ones. After a long period of time, she again conscientiously asked, "What did Senior Brother think of the Flower Blooms Sect?"


    Ning Que looked at her and, with a slight shock, said, "Sister, you even read the Flowers Blooms Sect?"


    Mo Shanshan shook her head and said, "I collected some copies of that calligraphy writer in the Academy. But the Flowers Blooms Sect was hidden deep in the court. Even its copies were also collected in those royal mansions in Chang¡¯an City. So I only heard its name but didn¡¯t see it."


    Ning Que felt slightly rxed and said with a smile, "I have never seen it, so I can¡¯tment."


    Mo Shanshan slightly lowered her eyesight on that Chicken Soup Calligraphy copy in his hands. No one knew what she was thinking. She just gently sighed and turned around, continuing to write her Hairpin-style Small Regr Script.


    In the battle below the meadow on that day, she saw the picture over the fire wall, but failed to see a fleeting fire in front of the Horse Gang leader¡¯s face. If she had known that Ning Que beside her was also a Talisman Taoism master, perhaps her idea would have beenpletely different and have had a totally different performance at this time.


    ...


    ...


    Deep into the Wilderness, they went from the northeast to the northwest. Soon they could see that touch of dim mountain shade in the faraway sky.


    Min Mountain was the world¡¯s most magnificent and the longest mountain, extending south from the depth of the Wilderness to the southern Hebei County of the Tang Empire, a ce close to Chang¡¯an City. No one knew know how many kilometers it had extended, as if it was a precious sword left by Haotian in the northernnd.


    Min Mountain was interrupted in the middle of the Wilderness. It formed a natural canyon, in whose western sidey a city heavily guarded by the elite North Road soldiers of the Tang Empire. And due to this interruption, Min Mountain was also divided into two, North Mountain and South Mountain.


    The vast Min Mountain that Ning Que had lived in was its southern section. And its northern section was set deep in the Wilderness, which was called Zhashi Mountain by the barbarians, namely Tianqi Mountain. It meant if one walked out of this mountain, one would be abandoned by Haotian.


    There was a fertile pasture in the east of Tianqi Mountain. Left-Tent Chanyu¡¯s tribe had lived in that pasture for generations, and the pce was also there.


    Ning Que looked at that mountain shadow in the faraway sky dome through the window and naturally thought of Min Mountain in the south, the North Road military fort over that mountain, and those old guys in the City of Wei. He had left Blue Water Battalion to be in the food team and the Wilderness for many days. But that mountain was still there, as if it had not changed its appearance at all.


    It seemed that it was near but was actually far away, not to mention it was such a magnificent steep mountain. The pce was nearby, but it would still take some time to arrive there. As the distance got closer, Ning Que became more and more silent. He spent more time to hide in the horse carriage and refused toe down. Even Cat Girl called him to see cranes in the wend, but he did not move an inch.


    Because he needed time to think about two very important issues.


    The Horse Gang who had attacked them in the meadow must have tracked them for many days. Later, it had been determined that the goal of the Horse Gang was Ning Que himself. It showed that the force behind the Horse Gang had known that Ning Que had left Blue Water Battalion to enter the food team.


    Whose subordinates were the Horse Gang or the groups of the Horse Gangs? Who wanted to kill him? Who was the Horse Gang leader? A Psyche Master in the Seethrough State certainly could not simply be a Horse Gang leader. In the battle, Ning Que had felt a kind of military aura, which made him feel heavy-hearted.


    The Horse Gang leader¡¯s right arm was cut off by Ning Que. If the leader did not die in the Wilderness after being rescued by his subordinates, he would certainly need a ce for healing. Amon Horse Gang gathering ce could not cure such a heavy injury. That leader needed a doctor, drugs, and time efficiency. But the ce that was close to the meadow and could help cure a broken arm happened to be the Left-Tent Pce.


    The forage had been ruined. Ning Que did not object to Mo Shanshan insisting on taking ck Ink Garden disciples to the pce. In addition to the friendship formed in the fighting, another reason was this point.


    Even though the person behind the Horse Gang was the pce Chanyu or someone else, Ning Que firmly believed that as long as the Horse Gang thief was alive, then at this time there was at least a 90% chance for the leader to hide in the pce.


    Ning Que wanted to find the leader to ask him some questions and then kill him.


    In addition, he was still reflecting on what he had done since he left the Academy and came to the Wilderness.


    From an early age, he had analyzed and summarized every difficult battle of life and death afterward. Just because of that, he could survive with Sangsang.


    Introspection had be somehow a kind of instinct to him. However, his introspection in the horse carriage this time was much deeper than every reflection in the past years, and even went all the way back to all his behavior after he had left the City of Wei and entered Chang¡¯an.


    After a long period of silent thought, he confirmed that after leaving the City of Wei, especially after entering the Academy, his many behaviors or choices were not the most appropriate ones, for he was caught in some kind of misunderstandings.


    While in the City of Wei, he became ustomed to fighting alone, probing the enemies¡¯ information for the general and chasing the Horse Gangs with his fellows. So, this time he took the Academy students to practice in the Wilderness. With two important tasks delivered by His Majesty and the Master of Nation, he was still ustomed to doing so, disguised to enter a food team for his wish of acting secretly.


    However, he had forgotten that he himself was no longer a minor soldier in the City of Wei, a scout or a wood-cutting man in Shubi Lake, but a core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy, a student of the Academy¡¯s Back Mountain, a golden secret scout of His Majesty, and a visiting professor in the South School of Haotian Taoism and the Imperial Center Administration.


    Acting secretly meant that his innumerable identities and backgrounds that made people envious and have admiration all had no significance. When thatmander of cavalrymen of Divine Hall knew Mo Shanshan was a Calligraphy Addict, he dared not to do or say anything wild. If Ning Que showed his identity as a disciple of the Academy¡¯s Back Mountain, how did those Horse Gangs dare to convene to attack?


    There was also an extremely important point¡ªBefore leaving the Academy, Second Brother in Back Mountain specifically reminded him that the Academy people could only bully others instead of being bullied when going out of the Academy. How arrogant those words were. And now he did not show his identity as a disciple of the Academy¡¯s Back Mountain, who would know this was an arrogant Academy person even if he really behaved arrogantly?


    Ning Que used his hand to hold his jaw, leaning against the horse carriage window. He watched the faraway mountain range and faintly visible tents. Then he could not help thinking withment that even if a poor boy in the countryside earned a lot of money after going into the city, this boy would only secretly buy some houses and eat several bowls of hot and spicy shredded noodles. He had been amon person for too long. So some time was still needed for him to get used to bullying others.


    ...


    ...


    The cold winter hade and there were frozennds everywhere. Maybe because of the terrestrial heat among the mountains, there were scattered lively green grasses on the pastures below Tianqi Mountain. Those tents were in full bloom between the grasnds like white clouds.


    Two horse carriages and a couple of weary horses carried the Great River Kingdom ck Ink Garden disciples to the grasnd periphery. With no food team behind them and no guarding cavalry to protect them, they looked rather bleak.


    A peace talk had officially begun between the Left-Tent Pce of grasnd barbarians and the Central ins Coalition Army. All forces took their cavalries to gather here. From a long distance, one could hear those noisy lively sounds and did not know how many people were drinking or talking there.


    A group of pce cavalry weed those ck Ink Garden disciples to the camp. It was clear that word of the meadow attack and that Half Divine Talisman had spread, and they knew Calligraphy Addict was in the horse carriage. So the performance of the cavalry could be counted as respectful.


    On the contrary, the Central ins ambassadors and guards in the camp looked somewhat indifferent towards the ck Ink Garden disciples. They did not understand since the forage was destroyed, why these people did not return to the North of Yan Kingdom, but to the pce. Did these ck Ink Garden students not know that Divine Hall and some bigwigs in the coalition forces were extremely dissatisfied with their performance?

 Chapter 226: Choosing a Campsite

    Chapter 226: Choosing a Campsite


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Those dozens of tired people on horses naturally could not affect the situation in the Wilderness. They had nothing to do with the negotiation between the barbarians¡¯ pce and the Central ins liaison army. After they had experienced the Horse Gang looting and lost their forage, they still adhered toing here. ck Ink Garden disciples themselves knew that they were here for seeking justice. But in others¡¯ eyes, they were forced toe and wait for the Divine Hall judgment result and had a dark prospect. Naturally, no one was willing toe close, even if it was said that Calligraphy Addict was in the horse carriage.


    The pasture beside the grandiose mountain was expansive. Although there were tens of thousands of people gathering here in winter and all kinds of tents everywhere, there were still plenty of ces to be used to arrange for people. In order to show their sincerity, the pce agreed that the Central ins coalition troop could choose ces to deploy soldiers and horses at will. The person responsible for this was a manager of West-Hill Divine Pce. After he indifferently bowed to Zhuo Zhihua, he directly brought those ck Ink Garden students to a location.


    There were two tents that were not far away from the coalition troop¡¯s middle tent, just behind it. But they seemed to be a bit remote on a slightly higher terrain. Those ck Ink Garden disciples walked into the tents and saw the prepared equipment. They found that it was not bad, knowing it was probably because of Hill Master that the coalition troop treated them like this.


    Since they had been brought by the pce cavalry to this ce, except for the manager of Divine Hall, no top figure of the coalition troop or bigwigs of Divine Hall had appeared to greet them until now at this moment. Besides, ck Ink Garden disciples had seen the apathetic eyes of those people from the Central ins countries the entire time. So they knew that they had deliberately been excluded and ignored, inevitably feeling somewhat depressed.


    Cat Girl was still too young, so she naturally could not think so much. She looked at the thick wool nket in the tent and thought that she could finally sleep well tonight, no need for squeezing into a narrow horse carriage with Hill Master. Thus, she appeared to be kind of happy.


    Ning Que had experienced being deliberately expelled and ignoredst year in the Academy. So he was used to it and did not care too much. He just regarded that this camp location seemed to be a bit inappropriate.


    He went outside the tent and looked toward the distance.


    The Big ck Horse carrying heavy luggage came in front of him and gently touched him with its head. It gave off a harsh breathing bellow like pulling a wind box, and looked extremely tired.


    Ning Que touched the mane on its neck and scolded it with a smile. "Don¡¯tin in front of me all the time. How could such little things make you so tired? We¡¯ll leaveter, so don¡¯t hurry to unload the luggage. If you¡¯re hungry, look for some grasses for yourself."


    The Big ck Horse stared at those unclear grasses in the winter wind with its big eyes open and very painfully thought that these grasses were scarcer than barbarians¡¯ hair and there was no way it could get full from that.


    The Big ck Horse was violent in nature. But once it was tamed, there was no doubt that it was the world¡¯s rare good horse. If others found its true strength, they would treat it as a treasure. How could they be like Ning Que, who treated it as a freely raised dog and kicked it out of the house to let it go into the streets to pick bones left by the neighbors?


    However, it only listened to Ning Que¡¯s orders. When it saw that Ning Que did not n to ask for some dry grasses for it, it was dejected and randomly kicked its horse hooves walking out of the camp. No one knew where it could go to find some food.


    It was still early, but due to the short daytime of the bitterly cold northernnds in the winter, the sun in the sky dome looked faintly like one in thete evening. The sun was slowly dropping to the ground, with its light gradually bing dusky red.


    A burst of cold wind came from behind a gentle slope. Ning Que took a cotton scarf out of nowhere and tucked it into his cor. He said to Zhuo Zhihua beside him, "This is a wind gap here. It¡¯ll be cold at night."


    Among those ck Ink Garden disciples, Zhuo Zhihua was the oldest one, with a gentle and calm temperament. Upon listening to Ning Que¡¯s reminder, she knew that the previous Divine Hall manager kept such a boring mean idea by bringing them here for camping. Even though she felt somewhat irritated, she did not know what to do about it.


    Ning Que pulled over a grasnd man who walked by their side and gently and honestly gave a long speech.


    Mo Shanshan did not get out until she heard those obscure words of Ning Que. She lifted off the curtain and went out. When the grasnd man had left, she walked over to Ning Que and said with her knitting eyebrows, "Senior Brother, you even understand the barbariannguage?"


    Because of the powerful Tang Dynasty and the constant preaching of Divine Hall, the Central insnguage had be extremely popr in the grasnd. However, there were still many barbarians who were ustomed to speaking their oldnguage, which was the so-called barbariannguage.


    Ning Que said, "I¡¯m better at western barbariannguage."


    Zhuo Zhihua asked, "What did Brother Zhong say to the man earlier?"


    "I asked him if we could make our own tents on the grasnd."


    Ning Queughed and continued to say, "The barbarian said we were the most distinguished guests of Chanyu. So as long as it was Chanyu¡¯s pasture, we could choose to stay in any ce."


    Upon hearing these words, those ck Ink Garden disciples outside the tent all understood his meaning and started tough. They thought choosing another campsite was not bad. Since Divine Hall had treated them so, why should they get too close to it?


    Zhuo Zhihua smilingly looked at Ning Que and thought that there was not a mature man in her sect and, in the face of many problems and choices, they really had less courage. Even Hill Master had no way to change the situation like this.


    "Where should we move to?"


    Ning Que looked toward the upper grasnd.


    Under the Divine Hall¡¯s edict, all of the Central ins countries had sent aid to Yan Kingdom to join the war. On the two frontier fortress lines of the North of Yan Kingdom, there were at least hundreds of thousands of people gathering there. However, now it was impossible for all countries to pull everyone up for the peace talk deep in the Wilderness. So only the cavalries guarding the noble gathered together, which had at least a thousand soldier riders.


    At sunset, the tents on the grasnd were everywhere and their gs were drifting with the wind. A small number of tents on the western grasnd were arranged in a very orderly way. And those gs flying in the cold wind looked extremely vigorous. As for the cavalry queue vaguely seen, it was more well-ordered than the Central ins alliance cavalry.


    It was generally considered that the most elite cavalry in the world was the West-Hill Divine Pce Papal Guardians. But the number of cavalrymen of Divine Hall was too small, strictly restricted to below 1,000 riders ording to the Papal disciple. So the truly extremely powerful cavalries that could dare to conquer the world were the other two cavalries.


    They were the pce cavalry of Golden Chanyu and the Tang cavalry on the Wilderness on the other side of Tianqi Mountain.


    Ning Que pointed to the well-ordered tents on the west side of the pasture and those familiar banners. He said, "We are camping over there."


    Those ck Ink Garden disciples recognized that this was the camp of the Tang army and was slightly startled. After a short moment, they all agreed with his proposal. Great River Kingdom and the Tang Empire had been in a good rtionship for generations. Besides, now they camped over there under the Divine Hall¡¯s edict. So they believed that no one could say anything mean, no matter who it was.


    Unfortunately, those childish Great River Kingdom girls still did not expect that after they had abandoned the camps designated by Divine Hall and chose to live next to the Tang camps, they would still attract many people¡¯s attention and provoke a lot of criticism.


    Those people watched more than 10 people riding tired horses in the dusk walking toward the Tang camps under the sunset. Swordsmen from South Jin Kingdom looked indifferent. Yuelun Kingdom monks showed ridicule in their eyes. The Divine Hall manager said with a gloomy face. "Let them go if they want to seek support from the Tang."

 Chapter 227: Big Black and Little Snow (I)

    Chapter 227: Big ck and Little Snow (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The wilderness was cold in winter despite wind being blocked by the mountain ranges and hot springs flowing through. The discussion between the Pce and the Central ins was at its height after a few days of it.


    The cavalryman of Divine Hall had escorted the noble forth as the Chanyu¡¯s consort loved flowers but was unable to cultivate them in the harsh weather conditions of the Wilderness. A letter had been written, pleading for the Divine Hall to allow Lu Chenjia to visit the Pce to learn about horticulture in person.


    This had nothing to do with the discussion. But they had left just as the discussion came to a stalemate. It was just like the girls from the Great River Kingdom who were sending grains. They were intricately linked.


    No matter the Left-Tent Pce of the Deste Man or the various countries of the Central ins, nobody wanted to continue to fight. The reason for the months of plundering by the and the killings that followed was due to the Deste Man moving southwards. The first cause of this was theck of resources and the second, their attitudes. This discussion was merely the two sides arguing about the size of their army and the amount of grains they should provide.


    It was reasonable for the two sides toe together against the Deste Man after their appearance on the surface of earth after a hundred thousand years. However, who should take charge of this? And who should send more armies?


    The Deste Man were born warriors. The hundreds and thousands of dead grasnd cavalry from that battle in the north that spring was proof of this. The price one had to pay to stop the Deste Man from moving southwards and to chase them back to the extreme cold in the north was a heavy one. Who would want to have their man charge right at the front?


    With regards to this matter, the Divine Hall and the Tang Empire both maintained their strong stance. The army had been exerting its force on the frontier fortress on the North of Yan Kingdom. The younger generation of cultivators from various cults was working on it as well. The Left-Tent Pce of the grasnd had suffered losses in their battle with the Deste Man and the Chanyu could not maintain his strong stance any longer.


    The discussion was mostly a battle of endurance. The discussion would naturally be smoother once a certain party backs down. The parties involved finally arrived at a consensus on the second day Ning Que and the disciples of ck Ink Garden arrived at the pce.


    Before the first grass sprouted next summer, the Left-Tent Pce would head up north and attack the Deste Man. As for the Central ins, they had only agreed to send six thousand cavalries but had promised to provide generous mary support as well as most of the grains and armory needed by the Left-Tent.


    The news of the sessful negotiation was carried by the wind and spread throughout the grasnd, which exploded with hoots of celebration as well as muttered curses. The Pce camps prepared wine and food and also decided upon an impromptu Ge Mumu gathering.


    Ge Mumu meant celebration in the Man dialect. It was thergest celebration held on the grasnd. The Pce¡¯s decision to hold an impromptu Ge Mumu gathering was due to the sessful negotiations and also taking the opportunity to allow the civilians of the Pce to interact with those from the Central ins in order to do away with the enmity. No one knew if it would work though.


    As the music struck up and colorful gs flew in the sky, the people on the grasnd grew more lively. Those who werepeting in equitation and archery in the open were surrounded by crowds watching.


    They wore thick robes made of leather or cotton. While they came from differentnds, they stood together in their separate camps and watched the Ge Mumu gathering, the performances and cheered together.


    When themb catchingpetition ended and the victor had received his prize, the anticipation for the uing archerypetition reached its highest buzz.


    An archer from the Pce was crowned the victor as his arrows were clustered on the red target. Everyone in the crowd cheered loudly.


    Ning Que and the girls from the Great River Kingdom watched on in the crowd.


    No one from the Divine Hall cared that the disciples from ck Ink Garden had arrived and it suited them just fine as they watched the bustle around them. Mo Shanshan stayed in her tent and practiced calligraphy as usual. Everyone was used to that and did not ask her out.


    Cat Girl watched the victorious archer being paraded on the shoulders of his brethren and huffed lightly. She tugged on Ning Que¡¯s sleeves and said, "Senior Brother, why did you not participate? No matter riding or archery, you are way better at it than them. Wouldn¡¯t it be great if you won all the prizes?"


    Ning Que looked at her and smiled, "Of course not."


    He felt as if he was looking at the younger version of Sangsang whenever he looked at her. That was why even his speech was warmer when he spoke to her.


    "Those who dare to showcase their skills at the Ge Mumu are all good hunters of the grasnd. The Yan archer was impressive. Even if I had entered thepetition, I might not win."


    He was being truthful. There were many hidden talents in the Central ins and the Wilderness. There was no guarantee that he would win. But he wasn¡¯t being entirely truthful either. If Ning Que had given his all, no matter themb capturingpetition or the archerypetition, there was no one who could beat him.


    Cat Girl looked at him in resignation and sighed, "Senior Brother, you are great at everything but you are just too humble."


    Ning Que could not help but smile. He thought that no matter Mo Shanshan or Cat Girl, they would both try to butter up to him. If he hung out with the innocent girls from the Great River Kingdom for too long, he might actually float up into the air from all the kissing up they do to him.


    He ruffled her hair and said, "You¡¯ll understand when you grow up. If you always want to emerge at the top and show off, there will be one day when the wind will blow and break you."


    The Great River Kingdom had always been highly influenced by the Tang Empire. They were strong and always looked toward victory. They ced great importance on glory and thought that it was as important as one¡¯s life and would fight for it with their lives. That was why Cat Girl did not understand Ning Que. Her eyes were filled with questions and curiosity.


    The Ge Mumu festival included various entertainments in the form ofpetitions. The Pce would also provide delicacies for those who attended the festival. Cat Girl was lured by the wafting scent of barbequedmb and forgot her questions in a split second. Zhuo Zhihua and the other girls from the Great River Kingdom were all attracted by the scent of milk tea and other foreign delicacies and gradually disappeared into the crowd.


    The agreement was a good cause for celebration. The Pce¡¯s grasnd was no doubt the safest ce on earth at that moment. Ning Que looked at the various dishes disyed at the stalls with curiosity. The girls from the Great River Kingdom who sampled the dishes smiled and did not look worried at all.


    A suddenmotion sounded in the distant part of the grasnd. The volume of chattering and celebration increased and the winter clouds seemed as if they were about to be dispersed by a sudden heat wave.


    Cat Girl held on to her barbequedmb leg and looked around curiously with herrge eyes. However, she was unable to see what was happening as she was blocked by the crowd.


    "The horse race must have started."


    Ning Que held hermb leg for her as it looked as if it was about to fall from her small hands. He held out a handkerchief and gestured for her to wipe the grease off her lips. He said, "The people of the grasnd are nomads. Their best skills include riding and archery. Horses are very important to them, which is why the horse race is the most important segment of the Ge Mumu festival."


    Cat Girl said excitedly, "Senior Brother, I want to see it!"


    Ning Que held a glisteningmb leg in one hand and Cat Girl¡¯s hand in the other and the two walked towards the crowd.


    He did not bring her to the periphery of the horse racing tracks but brought her to a slope on the outskirts of the camp. The grass on the slope had yellowed and was awaiting the arrival of spring. While the wind was strong on it, they had a great view of the tracks.


    The Pce ced great importance on the Ge Mumu this year since the Central ins was participating in it. This was especially so since they were good at horse racing. The tribe had taken down hundreds of tents especially just for this in order to make space for arge piece of emptynd in the middle of the grasnd.


    The victor of the race was decided by speed. It was simple but exhrating. The race had begun. Ten odd horses cantered on the grasnd. Their hooves were like rain,nding on the ground and kicking up ayer of fine dust. Those with sharp eyes could see the trembling muscles of the horses beneath their glistening skin.


    They empty patch ofnd meant for the race was fenced up. Ning Que stood on the slope and looked down on it and could make out that they had already gone through one-third of the track.


    It was clear which horses were going toe first as they split into two packs. There were three horses leading the race. ording to the costume of the riders, the first three horses belonged to the Pce, the Divine Hall, and the Tang army.


    The horse that the Divine Hall rider rode was pure white and had strong legs. When it ran at full speed, its coat glistened like an iing snow storm.


    Ning Que was unlike most army men. He had never loved horses. But after spending years in the frontier of the City of Wei, he knew his horses well. He could not help but exim when he looked at the pure white horse, "That horse is not bad at all, if it had a good rider, it would be second to that dumb one."


    It looked rather funny when he raised the glisteningmb leg in the air as he said that


    Cat Girl held up a small knife that she had bought from a nomad earlier and was attempting to carve a slice of meat from the leg. She said unhappily when she heard that, "How is Big ck dumb? Senior Brother, you make him carry heavy things all day and don¡¯t get him good food. Even if he¡¯s dumb, you¡¯re the one who made him so."


    The Big ck that the youngdy defended was the Big ck Horse.


    ...


    ...


    There was a tent set up before the Pce tent at the horse track in order for the nobles to watch the race. They stood before the tent and watched the intense race and discussed smilingly themselves.


    At the corner of the resplendent tent, the Chanyu¡¯s consort looked at the quiet girl beside her and said, "Princess Chen Jia, it seems that this horse will not let you down."


    The leading snow white horse was one that the Chanyu¡¯s consort had gifted the young girl withst night. It was being ridden by a rider of the Divine Hall today, which was why its performance was out of the world.


    The girl smiled and replied, "Thank you for your gift, princess."


    The princess looked at the girl¡¯s wless appearance and thought of her past. She smiled warmly at the girl and said, "Only a horse that is out of the world would be fitting of the other-worldly Flower Addict. Have you thought of what you¡¯d like to name it?"


    The girl looked at the white horse which was speeding through the grasnd and was filled with joy. She thought of that person never did likeplicated descriptions and thought for a moment before saying softly, "I shall call it Little Snow."

 Chapter 228: Big Black and Little Snow (II)

    Chapter 228: Big ck and Little Snow (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    During the fierce horse racing, over 10 steeds had finished one-third of the race among the stirred dust. Ahead of the yellow valiant horse of a pce cavalryman and the jade-dotted horse of a Tang military man was a snow-white steed, which presently was definitely number one.


    From its stable, rhythmic nodding and the steady steps of the Snow Horse, one could judge that it still had the energy to spare. It seemed that if thepetition continued like this, it would undoubtedly be the first one to run through the finishing line.


    However, just at that moment, a burst of yelling with curiosity and astonishment was heard from the starting point of the race track. Numerous people were shouting at something.


    Following their shouts, Ning Que and Cat Girl looked in that direction, where they found a pure ck steed rushing onto the track as quickly as an arrow shot from its bowstring and chasing the group of horses in front of it at a terrifying speed.


    The horse racing had already begun and nobody knew where this Big ck Horse hade from. Nobody was riding on it and nobody was instructing it either. Who knew why it would run onto the track?


    Looking at the Big ck Horse, Ning Que slightly opened his mouth, definitely not knowing what to say.


    Cat Girl rubbed her eyes with the back of her fingers and said curiously, "It seems that I have seen this horse somewhere before."


    ...


    ...


    Maybe the Big ck Horse had been stimted by the speedypetition of its grasnd peers, and after it ran onto the track, it ran ahead faster and faster even without the whish and kicking of a reinsman. Its four vigorous hooves quickly galloped on the slightly stiff ground, stirring up blossoms of dust, whose body was actually drawing out a ck figure!


    Those on-lookers looked at the Big ck Horse running at a terrifying speed and felt dumbfounded and shocked. They thought to themselves that there should be such a speedy horse in this world. The dense mass of the crowd produced waves of shouting when the Big ck Horse passed by them.


    Those who attended the Ge Mumu knew more or less the art of riding. The horse would feel lighter without a rider on it. Yet meanwhile, without the instructions of a rider, the horse would have no idea of how to allocate its power, and furthermore, at thest moment of the sprint, it would have no chance to be stimted by a sh. Therefore, although people were astonished at the speed of the Big ck Horse, they still did not believe that it could catch up with the horses ahead of it. In addition, those horses had covered quite a long distance.


    Based on these ideas, those on-lookers along the track were still eximing about the surprisingly high speed of the Big ck Horse that had suddenly appeared, yet those who cared more about the final result had reset their focus on the horses in front.


    The horse-racing site that was prepared by the pce this time was extremely big. Now that the distance was long and there was a big gap between the strength of those horses, the distance between those horses becamerger andrger. The two steeds from the pce and the Tang army were still running with difficulty after the snow-white horse at the very front, yet it could be obviously seen that it was impossible for them to catch up with it.


    ...


    ...


    It was quite important to enter the Wilderness and carry out the peace talks with the Chanyu of Left-Tent Pce. Therefore, the Tang Empire had specifically sent General Shu Cheng from the Military Ministry to take charge of the event. Now, this generaling from afar stood at the front of the king¡¯s tent and looked at the situation of the horse racing in the Wilderness. He looked somewhat gloomy at the dialogue between the Priest of the Revtion Department of Divine Hall and the Chanyu.


    Whether the cavalry is invincible is decided by their ability on the battlefield, not the speed of the horses.


    Thinking to himself in this way, General Shu could do nothing but helplessly see that the horse representing the Tang Empire had little hope to win and was even left farther and farther behind by the snow-white horse. And he even could not ept that fact when thinking that the snow-white horse was a gift given to the Divine Hall by the pce.


    When the attention of those bigwigs before the tent was all on the three horses at the very front, in the Wilderness the cheers and exmations really rolled over from the far distance like the waves in a tide, getting closer and closer.


    The Chanyu and the Priest of the Revtion Department of Divine Hall, who were ardently chatting, somewhat stiffened. They raised their eyes to see into the far distance, wondering what on earth was happening there. General Shu was no exception. He gradually frowned because previously they had heard the cheers and exmations yet did not expect that it had something to do with this horse race.


    Of course, the tide-like cheers and exmations had something to do with the Big ck Horse. It was only when it fiercely rushed past those on-lookers like a storm did they have time to burst into cheers. The tides of cheers spread more and more quickly, which indicated that it was running faster and faster and had almost reached the horses in the front!


    Those people¡¯s initial guess was right. A horse without a rider had no idea how to allocate its strength over a long-distance race. However, it was not difficult to overturn that assumption because it was not necessary for the Big ck Horse to allocate its strength, because its strong body seemed to contain endless power. If so, why bother to save any strength?


    Under the sunshine of the Wilderness, the Big ck Horse looked unparalleled, ck, and charming. With its crazy sprinting, its muscle tightened and rxed in turns at a high speed and seemed to be trembling. The shadow of its hooves under its body had almost be invisible because of its horrifying high speed. Then in this way, it easily passed the horse at the back of the racing group.


    It must be known that the horses in the front had finished one-third of the race before the Big ck Horse had secretly run onto the track at the starting hurdle. But it managed to catch up with the others even it had not reached the finishing line. The speed was really unbelievable!


    The Big ck Horse continued to crazily sprint. It surpassed the second horse, and then the third horse, without a rest and without any hesitation. Its slightly red eyes could not see the otherpetitors at all¡ªwhat it wanted was just surpassing and running ahead!


    Those people attending the Ge Mumu in the Wilderness were shocked speechless by this scene. What they could do was subconsciously take out their hands to hold their heads and exim after being overstimted. Some herdsmen even began to suspect that maybe the Big ck Horse was the legendary Pegasus, or else it could not run at such a high speed!


    Nobody knew where the Big ck Horse hade from and to whom it belonged to. But presently, they were all astonished at the strength and speed it had disyed. Furthermore, when they saw it constantly surpassing others with an indomitable will, they felt their blood was boiling for the ck figure and began to crazily cheer for it!


    The Big ck Horse surpassed the jade-dotted horse of the Tang army.


    The Big ck Horse surpassed the yellow valiant horse of the pce.


    When all those present were astonished, including the bigwigs before the king¡¯s tent, the Big ck Horse continued to shock the Wilderness by irresistibly running to the rear of the snow-white steed of Divine Hall!


    The snow-white horse that was darting ahead looked like a silver dragon, while the Big ck Horse was like a violent gust of ck sandstorm which intended to devour the silver dragon!


    At a corner of the tent, the queen of the Chanyu could hardly hide her astonishment, so she covered her mouth with her hand. In order to select a gift for Lu Chenjia, the Flower Addict, the tribes of the pce had spent a long time to finally find such an excellent snow-white horse without any variegated color. But unexpectedly, it was challenged.


    Lu Chenjia, the princess of Yuelun Kingdom, was quietly sitting there and looked at the Snow Locus Herb beside her, and then she was attracted by the restlessness outside and the expression of the queen. So she looked at the Wilderness and slightly tilted the end of her slender eyebrows.


    When the cavalryman riding the snow-white horse heard the hoofbeats behind him bing clearer and clearer, based on years of experience he knew that his opponent was approaching, so he turned back only to be startled by the big head of the ck horse.


    Because the eyes of this strange Big ck Horse were so singr, whose brightness was filled with craziness and testiness, as well as several traces of blood. It seemed eager to bite him to death. Actually... The Big ck Horse really opened its mouth and revealed a mouthful of white teeth, severely and madly biting into the air!


    It was too fast after all, so it failed to bite the waving tail of the snow-white horse. It bitterly stared at the crupper of the snow-white horse, its four hooves stamping the ground even more quickly. So in an instant, it surpassed the crupper of the snow-white horse.


    Then the bystanders in the Wilderness burst into thunderous cheers.


    The cavalryman riding the snow-white horse looked shocked. He bowed his head and tightened his right hand holding the reins. He understood that since the snow-white horse was a gift given by the pce to that noble girl, it was already his great honor to ride the horse on her behalf. If he lost the race, he would not have a good result.


    From the beginning of the race until now, the horsewhip held by that cavalryman was only superficially waved two times and never really rested on the snow-white horse, because he did not dare to leave any trace of blood on the horse of the noble girl. However, the situation became tense now and the Big ck Horse that had abruptly appeared seemed to have the ability to surpass him. Therefore, he hardened his heart and was prepared to heavily sh on its crupper with the horsewhip.


    Just at the moment, nobody had expected that when the snow-white horse found that the Big ck Horse was beside it, it suddenly sprinted even without any whipping from the cavalryman, as if it was greatly stimted by something else!


    It was only now that those bystanders realized that previously this snow-white horse had not exerted all of its strength at all, that was why it appeared to be so elegant and stable. But now, when it was stimted by the Big ck Horse, it began to disy all of its power and skills and was actually rushing ahead crazily instead of showing its elegance!


    Now the white blizzard had really begun!


    The white figure was following it tightly, refusing to be left behind!


    The exmations and cheers in the Wilderness reached their summit at the moment. The winter clouds drifting in the sky gradually became sparse, making it quite clear, so people could see things more clearly.


    Now the snow-white horse and the Big ck Horse were almost running neck and neck, while the snow-white horse was faster by half a body length. They sprinted all out and madly beat their hooves and waved their heads, regardless of being elegant or not. Because of the craziness of their running, their rtive speed looked extremely slow and even appeared about to stop.


    The finishing line was near, just in front of them.


    Those bystanders gradually felt that the Big ck Horse would in no way surpass the snow-white one¡ªsome of them even felt it a pity and silently made a sigh in their hearts.


    The Big ck Horse had no time to sigh. Since it was born, it had been in the Military camp in the North of the Tang Empire and the stud-farm outside Chang¡¯an City. It had bullied countless peers and human beings and was only bullied by one person. But it was the first time to run so madly and pant with such difficulty as it had today.


    When all others believed that it could not surpass the snow-white horse, it just could not admit it, ept it, and reconcile it. It pressed all its power out and ignited all its desire. Although it seemed to be impossible for it to win, it still quickened its pace, stamped on the ground, and chased after the snow-white horse inch by inch, like the way darkness covers the ground!


    Its hooves broke the ck ground and the darkness devoured the blizzard.


    Just when they were about to reach the finishing line, it finally surpassed the snow-white horse and won first ce!


    The Wilderness sank in silence, and then it burst into thunderous cheers!


    Those bigwigs before the tent were all silent and then they made numerous sighs.


    Some strong ones with sharp eyes even noticed that just before they had reached the finishing line, the Big ck Horse even had the strength to turn back and give a mocking look at the snow-white horse, and meanwhile turned over its thick lips at high speed, showing a contemptuous expression.


    General Shu of the big Tang Empire nkly looked at the Big ck Horse, muttering, "That horse looks so familiar."


    The chief figure sent by Divine Hall to negotiate with the pce was the Priest of the Revtion Department. Looking at those horses passing by the finishing line, he frowned and looked indifferently at themander of the cavalryman of Divine Hall beside him.


    The eyes of the Priest of the Revtion Department were cold and frigid.


    Themander of the cavalryman of Divine Hall felt cold and frigid too.


    He knew what was hidden in the cold eyes of the Priest¡ªThe cavalryman of Divine Hall riding that snow-white horse was the excellent one that he had specifically selected from the cavalrymen ahead of time, and he rode the horse of Princess Chen Jia. However, he was defeated by a Big ck Horse that no one knew where it hade from and furthermore, he was defeated in such a way!


    The cavalrymen of Divine Hall were in charge of the Judicial Department and were not directly managed by the Revtion Department. But the Priest was of such a high status, and if Princess Chen Jia was unhappy with the result, how would Prince Long Qing deal with him?


    Such ideas made themander even more frightened. He bitterly stared at the Big ck Horse, which was gasping in the Wilderness, and thought to himself, "Where on earth did you bitche from? I will definitely kill youter!"


    "Which tribe does this Big ck Horse belong to?"


    The Chanyu of the Left-Tent Pce, standing at the very front, looked at the steed with the bright ck skin under the sun and was very fond of it. Then he waved his hand, ordering, "Go and ask them. I want it, I can exchange anything for it!"


    ...


    ...


    There was some distance between the gentle slope and the grasnd, yet how could Ning Que not recognize his dear adorable horse, especially the enchanting nce back before reaching the finishing line and its degrading behavior of crazily turning over the thick lips. Those behaviors were so unique. He thought in silence, "What is wrong with this guy today? He shoulde to race with others, which was totally different with his usualziness."


    Cat Girl had already confirmed that the Big ck Horse was the horse of the Senior Brother beside her when it was halfway through the day. Now when she saw that the Big ck Horse had so amazingly won victory, she excitedly apuded on the gentle slope and grasped the sleeve of Ning Que to constantly shake him, excitedly saying, "Senior Brother, you see, Big ck won!"


    Ning Que sighed with emotion, "This guy always likes showing off. Why isn¡¯t it like me?"


    The excitement of Cat Girl was interrupted by his sigh, so she pursed her mouth and asked, "I can¡¯t understand what¡¯s wrong with showing off? You should know¡ªvictory is the greatest honor."


    Ning Que did not answer her but helplessly thought to himself, "Big ck behaved so arrogant publicly, what if it was recognized by others? I am still hesitating about when to show my identity, and shall I be guided by a horse? Anyway, isn¡¯t it right for a man to guide the horse?"


    The tense and fierce horse race had quickened the heartbeat of all those participants in the Ge Mumu, who thus neglected their surroundings. Cat Girl, who knew the background of the Big ck Horse, was even more nervous and it was unknown where she had left the gigot handed previously by Ning Que with only gradually condensed mutton fat and fragrance in her hand.


    After she wiped her hand clean with the handkerchief, she thought it over and then said to Ning Que, "Senior Brother, the handkerchief is dirty now. How about I wash it and then return it to you?"


    Ning Que smiled and directly took the handkerchief, answering, "I can do it myself."


    All the things that he wore and in his package were prepared by Sangsang before his departure, so he was always careful. If the handkerchief was left in the Wilderness, he was afraid that he could not exin it to Sangsang when he got back to Chang¡¯an.


    Cat Girl had no other intentions by saying that and was unaware of what Ning Que was thinking about at the moment. Looking at the Big ck Horse in the Wilderness, she happily waved her hand to it and said with a delightful smile, "Senior Brother, although you never give Big ck enough food to eat, and enve it every day, it still shows its talent when it is necessary. If you continue to treat it in such a way, you should be careful that when it is selected by others and taken away that it doesn¡¯t miss you. Then you should not feel regretful and distressed."


    Hearing those words, Ning Que recalled a busy and thin figure, as well as that dark face, then his heart somewhat contracted. Following Cat Girl¡¯s eyes, Ning Que looked downward and his heart uncontrobly contracted in a more fierce way. Under such a shock, he held Cat Girl into his arms at the quickest speed and took out his hand to cover her eyes.


    ...


    ...


    In the Wilderness, those steeds that had sessively passed the finishing line were all heavily gasping. They were sometimes slightly kicking their front hooves to resume their strength following the methods they were familiar with. And there were specially assigned persons to help the riders off the horse to take a rest.


    The Big ck Horse gathered its strength at an unparalleled speed. After only a short moment did it restore its power and spirit. Over 10 people from the pce standing around it curiously looked at it up and down, and meanwhile inquired from the surrounding people about its master.


    It seemed that the Big ck Horse quite enjoyed the feeling of being focused on by millions of people. It slightly waved its tail, appearing to be very proud, and sometimes it stretched out its red and long tongue to lick at its thick lips.


    A few paces off, the snow-white steed was heavily gasping while being led by the cavalryman of the Divine Hall to slowly walk to the side. When seeing the degrading behavior of the Big ck Horse to roll its tongue and lick at its lips, it showed an expression of hatred in its eyes.


    The Big ck Horse happened to see it and was suddenly stimted like when it had been threatened by Ning Que previously. So it madly squeezed those people off to the side and rushed at the snow-white horse at full speed.


    The snow-white horse was also a rare steed with gifted talents, who had never yet seen such a silly peer with a rough body and abnormal energy as the Big ck Horse. When it intended to kick back to defend itself, it failed to do so because of its extreme weakness.


    The Big ck Horse severely bit at the neck of the snow-white horse. Although no blood was seen, it really bit in a bitter way.


    The snow-white horse wailed out in pain.


    Biting at the horsehair of the snow-white horse, the Big ck Horse put its front hoof on the white horse, with its strong body unreasonably pressing on its opponent, from which everybody could figure out what it would do next.


    Thenughter burst out from all directions.


    The queen looked embarrassed, who then stood up to severely order her subordinate to quickly separate the two horses.


    Looking silently in that direction, Lu Chenjia still remained as tranquil as a newly-bloomed orchid, yet her hands inside her sleeves gradually clenched.


    All of sudden, a sharp whistle was heard from the distance.


    The Big ck Horse suddenly shivered as if it had heard the spirit-inducing bell ring. It got off of the snow-white horse and knocked away those who wanted to rein it. It began to crazily run ahead again to the outside of the campsite as quickly as ck lightning.


    During the crazy rushing, it proudly thought, "I just scrambled a supper from your troughst night, yet you, white hag, should ask for so many sisters to deal with me? So you really think I have no way to tackle you?"


    The chilly wind was as biting as knives and the Big ck Horse was as energetic as fire, whose paces were like dancing steps.

 Chapter 229: The Wilderness at Night

    Chapter 229: The Wilderness at Night


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t be bothered with the bustle on the Wilderness. Instead, he brought Cat Girl with him back to camp. He lifted the curtains and entered the tent. He looked at the luggage piled in the corner before turning to look at Mo Shanshan who was writing calligraphy seriously. He asked, "Didn¡¯t I tie the ck horse outside the camp? How did it get away?"


    Mo Shanshan ced her brush on the inkstone and looked at him expressionlessly, "You tied him up since he returned at dawn. I was left alone in the tent after all of you have left. It kept whining and kicking and looked as if he wanted to go out to y. So I released the rope and let it out to have fun."


    Ning Que looked at her and did not know what to say. He scratched his head and said, "You let him out because he wanted to go out to y. Why does this sound wrong? It is a horse and not a person."


    "The Big ck Horse is rather intelligent. I can understand what it is trying to express." Mo Shanshan did not want to exin anymore and turned around and picked up her brush from the inkstone and prepared to write again.


    Cat Girl ran to her side excitedly and said, "Senior Sister, you are right. The Big ck Horse is not only intelligent, it is incredible. Did you know, there are many people out there trying to capture it right now?"


    Mo Shanshan lifted a brow and asked, "What happened?"


    Cat Girl described how the Big ck Horse had suddenly appeared and won the horse race. She then said, "As for what happened after that, Senior Brother covered my eyes, so I didn¡¯t see."


    Mo Shanshan looked at Ning Que.


    Ning Que thought to himself, how should he describe the thing that happened?


    He lifted his hand to his mouth and coughed. He pretended not to see Mo Shanshan¡¯s gaze upon him and walked out of the tent. He stood on the frozen ground of the Wilderness and looked at the Tang g waving not far away in the west as well as the heavily guarded camp. He began to think about other things. How should he start looking for the Horse Gang head?


    ...


    ...


    As the Tang representative in the discussion, General Shu Cheng brought with him several trusted subordinates from Chang¡¯an. There were three hundred elite soldiers from the north-east who were responsible for security. Their gs waved in the air. There was an asional whinny from a horse. The Tang camp was orderly and structured.


    In the center of the Tang camp was a tent. General Shu Cheng removed his helmet and touched his white hair. He sat behind his desk and gestured for his subordinates to bring some food. He had drunk plenty at the Pce tent but did not eat his fill.


    General Shu Cheng ate without saying anything.


    The loyal subordinate beside him noticed his thoughtful expression and thought that he was upset due to the gossip behind the horse race. He suggested in a gentle voice after a moment of thought, "General, our cavalry is good at war, but isn¡¯t exceptional at trival speedpetitions. Since we have lost, we can¡¯t stop the Aunt from her gossip."


    "What does that olddy know?"


    General Shu said sarcastically. As the Tang general, he had to be mindful of his words towards Quni Madi, the sister of Yuelun Kingdom¡¯s ruler. However, in the privacy of his own tent, he had no reason to be kind towards the Aunt.


    The subordinate saw that the General wasn¡¯t upset about the gossip and thought about another incident. He looked at the guards patrolling outside the tent and asked in a low voice, "Genearl, are you worried about Tuyang City?"


    The imperial court had confirmed to help the North of Yan Kingdom in summer. General Xia Hou from the eastern camp would have been in charge of it. But who would have thought that His Majesty would order the military ministry to interfere with the discussion between the barbarians of the grasnd and the Central ins. General Shu Cheng had arrived at the Pce. While it was true that he hade under orders of the imperial edict, he had also grated on the soldiers of the frontiers. When he had passed Tuyang City, General Xia Hou had excused himself saying that he was patrolling the borders and did not even meet him once.


    "I would be unhappy too if I were General Xia Hou."


    General Shu Cheng smiled slightly and ced his chopsticks down. He took the towel he was handed and wiped his face. He said, "There¡¯s no need to guess. I am indeed thinking about something. But it has nothing to do with the two things you guessed earlier."


    The subordinate wrinkled his brows. He thought to himself, that the agreement between both parties had already been made. The next event would be the discussion with the army of Central ins about the venture up north next year as well as hammering out the details regarding the aid they would render the Left-Tent Pce. These were all practically settled. If the general wasn¡¯t upset about losing the horse race or worried about the ire of Tuyang City, what was he thinking about?


    "I was thinking about the Big ck Horse." General Shu Cheng smiled.


    The subordinate finally understood. He thought for a moment before saying, "Chanyu seems to be interested in the horse as well. But since you like it so, I will think of a way to let the Pce steward know of your interest. I believe that Chanyu would not be so stingy and will give you the horse as a show of good-will."


    General Shu Cheng looked at the subordinate and sighed helplessly. He scolded, "I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re thinking. I was not thinking about getting the Big ck Horse for myself. If the Chanyu wants the horse, he will only find himself in trouble."


    He looked at the confused look on his subordinate¡¯s face and shook his head. He looked at the blue skies outside the tent and said with a slight frown, "When I saw the Big ck Horse earlier, I thought it looked really familiar. It¡¯s as if I¡¯ve seen it somewhere before."


    General Shu Cheng threw his towel on the desk and said with regret, "I only remembered earlier that I¡¯ve seen the horse at the driving examinationst spring when I represented the Military Ministry on patrol during the Academy entry exam.


    The subordinate paused slightly. He thought of the ck horse that sped through the Wilderness like a ck bolt of lightning. Did the ck storme from the empire?


    "You¡¯ve seen how bad of a temper the Big ck Horse has earlier. Last spring during the entrance examination at the Academy, every candidate who chose the horse was thrown off it. Even the young daughter of General Yunhui was no exception. I was patrolling above the meadow and thought that no one could subdue the horse. And then, ad entered the stud-farm."


    General Shu Cheng narrowed his eyes as he thought of what had happened. "The Big ck Horse became docile before thed. I thought it was weird then, but when thed became famous in Chang¡¯an, I realized that the horse was indeed intelligent. It knew before everyone, that thed was incredible."


    The subordinate asked curiously, "Who is thed?"


    The general looked at him and said, "Ning Que."


    "Ning Que..." The subordinate murmured the name to himself and suddenly, a look of shock appeared on his face. He said, "Are you talking about Sir Ning, whose writing took the city by storm?"


    "I do not like ying with words." General Shu sighed, "I only know that Ning Que entered the Academyst year and entered the Second floor this year. He is now the Headmaster¡¯s core disciple. I also know that when he left Chang¡¯an, the stud-farm sent the Big ck Horse to him especially."


    The subordinate asked, "Then... Why did the horse appear at the pce?"


    He knew that he had asked a stupid question the moment he asked it. For such an intelligent horse would not be far from his master. If the horse is at the pce, its owner must be here as well.


    "The average person would not know that Ning Que is ranked thirteen on the Second floor of the Academy. But the Military Ministry knows that he called himself Mr. Thirteen and had stopped by the frontier of North of Yan Kingdom. I just didn¡¯t expect that he woulde to the Pce personally."


    General Shu frowned slightly and said to himself in a low voice, "If even the Academy has ced much importance in this discussion, could it be true that the Deste Man of the north is really that troublesome? Or are there other secret things that are happening?"


    The subordinate paused for a minute before asking, "General, since Ning Que is here at the pce, why did he not reveal himself nor did hee forth to camp to meet you?"


    General Shu paused for a moment and smiled, "He is the core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy. He is of such stature. He must have his own reason for not revealing himself. I don¡¯t have that much clout I guess. I just think that things are getting more interesting."


    ...


    ...


    As twilight descended, the bonfire was lit andmbs were ughtered. Together with the sweet scent of alcohol, the night arrived at the Wilderness.


    People from all around the world had gathered at the Pce. There were also many nomads from the surroundingnds who hade to participate in the Ge Mumu festival. Under the fire light and the musk of alcohol, people talked excitedly about what they had witnessed during the day. They talked about which warrior was the strongest and who was the most urate shot. Of course, the ck horse that burst into scene crazily was brought up frequently as well. Many tried to guess who its owner was.


    The owner of the Big ck Horse did not hear the high-spirited discussions. Nor did he indulge in the alcohol or meat. Instead, he stole clothing belonging to the nomad of the grasnd and headed to the camp of the Great River Kingdom under the cover of the night. He got near to the Tang campsite silently before turning south and sat down on a hignd.


    After an unknown period of time, a shadow from the Tang camp headed towards him. From the speed and bodynguage, one would think that the person was extremely cautious and alert.


    "I never understood, how do you decide that the person approaching is one of yours just based on a picture sticking from a wooden stick outside your camp? What if it was ced randomly by any yful person on the grasnd?"


    Ning Que asked the man. Even though there was no fire on the meadow, one could make out the appearance and costume of the person from the starlight. It was a Tang cavalry looking honest.


    The man did not reply, but looked at him suspiciously. He did not understand why the fellow would be talking about such useless things in such a situation.


    Ning Que extended his hand and so did the other soldier. They looked as if they were about to shake hands, only to hear a sudden p. Two ID tokens melded together, fitted to the veryst inch.


    Under the starlight, the Tang soldier could see the lines etched on Ning Que¡¯s ID token. His expression changed immediately as he greeted him with a bow. He said with much respect in a low voice, "I did not expect Sir toe personally."


    "You don¡¯t know who I am, how do you know I am a Sir?" Ning Que askedughingly.


    The Tang soldier smiled and said, "The ID token says so clearly. You are a visiting professor, so of course I have to address you as Sir."


    Ning Que looked at the man and asked in a slight surprise, "The Imperial Center Administration is the cultivation yamen. I can see that you do not have a trace of Psyche Power. Have you entered the Seethrough State?"


    "I would not have to work so hard ande to the Wilderness if I were in the Seethrough state."


    The Tang soldier smiled and exined, "Even though the Imperial Center Administration might be in charge of cultivators, but not all employees are cultivators. There are many ordinary people like myself."


    Ning Que had left the Blue Water Battalion and entered the Wilderness due to the news from Master of Nation, Li Qingshan who had in turn received it from the Imperial Center Administration. They would have left him an informant near the Pce if they wanted him to cooperate.


    He looked at the man and said, "Let¡¯s cut the chase and talk business."


    The soldier smiled and answered, "If Sir wants to talk about nothing, we can talk about nothing. If he wants to talk business, we shall talk business."


    Ning Que paused for a second. He smiled and thought that the man was indeed a member of the Imperial Center Administration. He must have been in contact with stuck-up cultivators that he didn¡¯t have the usual awe and respect an ordinary person usually had for cultivators. However, he spoke with a certain ir and acted in such a way that was indeed rare when dealing with cultivators.


    He asked directly, "Do you know my mission?"


    The Tang soldier replied honestly, "I don¡¯t know."


    Ning Que nodded and said, "That¡¯s good. Because what I am about to ask has nothing to do with the mission."


    It was the soldier¡¯s turn to be surprised. A look of respect appeared on his face as he thought that this was indeed a visiting professor of the Imperial Center Administration. He had spoken so casually even as he was about to do something so shameless like using the imperial court¡¯s power to settle his personal things.


    Ning Que continued, "How many people are there in the Tang camp?"


    "Including the cavalry and grain soldiers along with administrative staff, about five hundred or so."


    Ning Que looked at the flying g in the Tang camp and furrowed his brows, "It doesn¡¯t seem like there are so little people just by looking at the camp site."


    The soldier exined, "A person rides three horses, so we need arger space."


    "How well do you know the situation at camp?" Ning Que had only asked casually. He thought that the man was only an ordinary cavalry and would not know the situation well.


    However, he did not expect that the man was nted by the Imperial Center Administration in the north-east camp. He observed the camp every single moment of the day. When he heard Ning Que¡¯s question, he did not hesitate to nod and said, "I know the basics."


    Ning Que looked at him and thought that his luck was pretty decent and asked, "Did anything out of ordinary happen in thest five days? For example, any injured cavalry... or general?"


    The man thought and shook his head, "No."


    Ning Que paused before asking," Regarding food and medicine, is there anything worth looking out for?"


    The man was about to answer no when he thought of an incident. He pinched his brows and thought for a while before saying, "There was indeed something. A certain camp has indeed used more food than before. This is not surprising, but there has been some issue with the amount of medicine we keep as well."


    He did not wait for Ning Que¡¯s question, but instead continued, "The medicine we bring with us is controlled heavily. That is why I think there is a problem. Other than the mysterious disappearance of medication to stop bleeding, the next that we are missing is some tranquilizers. But we don¡¯t need this kind of medicely."


    Ning Que¡¯s eyes brightened as he heard this. He knew that his guess was in the right direction. He looked at the lit up Tang camp and asked, "Which is the tent? Can you find out who is inside?"


    "There are three hundred cavalries escorting General Shu into the wilderness. They all came from Tuyang City. Those tents belong to the eastern army and security is strict. An ordinary cavalry like myself will not be able to go close to it."


    Ning Que¡¯s brows furrowed slightly as his gaze swept through the camp slowly. He said, "If security is this strict, is there any way I can slip in to take a look?"


    The man did not even think, but shook his head, "Unless you barge in. "


    He looked at Ning Que¡¯s serious expression and quickly added on, "Sir, even though you are a much-revered visiting professor in a strong state, but barging into the military camp would still be a problem. Even if you¡¯ve managed to get in, many would die. How will you exin this to the imperial court?"


    ...


    ...


    There was no way to slip in, so he had to barge in. Even though he was already a student of the Academy, deep within him, he still thought of himself as a part of the empire¡¯s army. Pulling his sword at his brethren was something he could not do, which was why he had to think of another way in.


    As the night got deeper, the soldier nted by the Imperial Center Administration returned to the Tang Camp, leaving only Ning Que on the meadow.


    There was some sparse yellow grass covering the frozen ground. It looked like the beard of a malnourished old man. Ning Queid on the grass and looked at the stars above his head, pondering.


    A shadow covered the star-studded skies above his head, as if the real darkness of the night was arriving.


    Ning Que looked at the face of the ck horse and at its thick curling lips looking as if it was trying to curry favor and could not help but to scoldughingly, "Everyone in the pce is trying to capture you, how dare youe back to see me?"


    The Big ck Horse nudged his shoulder gently, looking extremely docile and even well-mannered. It looked as if it was telling Ning Que that he shouldn¡¯t be angry and that what others said did not matter.


    Ning Que stood up and brushed the dirt and grass off him. He punched the horse¡¯s neck lightly and shook his head, lecturing, "A person is afraid of bing and a pig is afraid of bing fat. It¡¯s easy to get into trouble when you¡¯re famous and when a pig gets fat, they get ughtered for mean. Are you not afraid that someone will steal you away now that you¡¯re famous?"


    The Big ck Horse shook his head and opened its mouth. It¡¯srge white teeth looking rather scary in the starlight, as if it was smiling sarcastically. It looked rather devilish, proud and silly at the same time.


    Ning Que fixed it with a stare and smiled, "So do you mean that you¡¯ll be treated like treasure even if you were stolen away? And that you wouldn¡¯t be treated like a bull and being ordered around by me?"


    The Big ck Horse lifted its hooves and tapped on the ground lightly on the ground, agreeing to Ning Que¡¯s words silently.


    Ning Queughed and pointed at the middle section between his strong legs and said, "I don¡¯t know why the army didn¡¯t sterilize you and neither did the stud-farm. I don¡¯t know how you escaped being a eunuch, but you should be sure that I don¡¯t have any intention of slicing it off."


    "But my being benevolent doesn¡¯t mean that everyone else is. If you are still hot-tempered and end up in the hands of Chanyu or his consort, do you think you can still keep your balls?"


    A cold breeze passed through the meadow.


    Fear showed in the dark eyes of the Big ck Horse. It could be the cold, or something else, there was a sudden movement as the horse tried to keep his legs closed, but due to the muscr buttocks, it was unable to keep itpletely closed.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que aplished yet another spy mission in the night. He organized the information he had on the Tang camp and took the time to educate the Big ck Horse. He had done so many things, but the people at the bonfire by the Pce had only done one thing, namely drinking.


    The Wilderness was like heaven in spring and like hell in winter. The harsh winter winds blew and it snowed frequently. It was extremely cold, which was why the people here liked to drink to keep themselves warm. They loved strong alcohol.


    The people of the Central ins and the barbarians of the grasnd beside the bonfire had always been in contention over two things, business and war. The wars at the frontier and the retaliation by the soldiers of the Central ins had led to many deaths. How would an agreement between the bigwigs settle the feud that hadsted so many years and paid with so much blood?


    Filled with conflicting emotions, the people from the two tribes beganpeting in drinking. Even though they guzzled the alcohol, they were unable to dispell the hatred they felt for the other party. Instead, it just unleashed their emotions and it eventually became apetition on who could drink more and then, a full brawl. The soldiers in charge of maintaining peace had to run around trying to stop fights that broke out in many different ces, the entire ce was in chaos.


    There were a few lonely tents pitched on the periphery of the field. They were near to the Tang camp, but not within the boundaries of it. They were not affected by the chaos by the bonfire and remained extremely silent, exactly like the person living within.


    The girls from the Great River Kingdom saw many interesting things at the Ge Mumu festival. They returned to the camp by evening while Mo Shanshan sat in the tent quietly the entire day. She had her wrist on the white paper on her desk, writing frantically. It felt as if she did not realize what being bored or tired meant.


    At this moment, the curtain to the entrance lifted. Zhuo Zhihua and another girl entered. She looked at Mo Shanshan warmly and said, "Hill Master, you have a guest."


    Mo Shanshan stopped writing. She ced her brush into a clear water urn and turned around.


    The young girl had on the uniform of Revtion Institute of the Divine Hill. Her eyes were proud as she walked into the tent. She looked around the tent, trying to calm herself down. However, she could not help but feel nervous when she saw that the youngdy in white turn around.


    This was her first time meeting the legendary Calligraphy Addict.


    Mo Shanshan looked at her ndly, "Who are you?"


    The Calligraphy Addict was used to speaking directly. She did not like speaking more than she had to and was used to carrying a nd expression on her face. That was because she felt that making an expression was a rather torturous thing to do. She was used to lookingnguish and impolite, because...


    Her eyes were not good.


    But just like Ning Que, who did not know that she had an illness of the eye, the girl from Revtion Institute felt humiliated. Her tightly wound emotions became rather irritated. However, she did not dare to be impolite.


    It was still, her first time meeting the legendary Calligraphy Addict. Even though she was slightly proud and impolite, it was eptable to the students from the Revtion Institute who had to deal with another Addict on a daily basis.


    The student from the Revtion Institute bowed politely. "Princess Chen Jia would like to invite Senior Sister Mo to a meeting tomorrow."


    Mo Shanshan looked at her quietly and thought of the old friend she hadn¡¯t seen in a while. She thought of the friend in the horse carriage below the meadow who stayed silent through the gory fight and replied after a short pause, "I got it."

 Chapter 231: The Career Prospects of the Young Spy

    Chapter 231: The Career Prospects of the Young Spy


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    A green leaf dropped down to the luxurious wool carpet quietly.


    Lu Chenjia red at the beautiful print and the solitary leaf in the center of it in silence, and remained pensive for a long while. Then she said softly, "What we feel for each other is something that blossoms naturally like the orchids in the valley. Why should I mention it intentionally? Do I need to prove something with it?"


    Mo Shanshan replied simply, "He said it is called showing off affection, and it is a sign ofck of confidence. I don¡¯t understand what he means by showing off, nor do Iprehend what made him say that. Likewise, I don¡¯t know what you are trying to prove either, but I do know that it is natural for orchids to blossom in the depths of the valley, though it is no longer natural when you bring the orchid to my sight and trim it carefully in front of me."


    She left it at that, and left directly without saying goodbye.


    Lu Jiachen stood up and a slight sense of sadness escaped from her watery eyes. She looked at her and pleaded, "The hot tea you wanted hasn¡¯t been served yet, why so rush? I brought the alluring herb from the Peach Mountain especially for you. I remember it was your favorite in those days."


    Mo Shanshan stopped briefly but didn¡¯t turn back, and she said calmly, "Instead of a cup of tea, I would have hoped to see you at that camp at the meadow, where you could have offered me one ss of water."


    Lu Jiachen¡¯s tightened her knuckles as she held the scissors and said softly, "At first I didn¡¯t know you were at the camp, and I never thought the horse gang would pose as a treat to you. Do you really think I could sit backfortably in the carriage without batting an eyelid if you were really in danger?"


    Mo Shanshan held on to one side of the floor screen and said, "I said before that this is not just about the joys and sorrows of you and me, but that of the whole world. You may be able topletely disregard any emotion that is beyond your own, but I cannot do the same, nor am I interested in bing someone like that."


    ...


    ...


    The screen slid open, and the emotionless girl in white walked out slowly, being weed by all the ck Ink Garden disciples who had been waiting outside with nothing to do but too much tea to drink. At the same time, students from the Revtion Institute at the other side also stood up.


    Mo Shanshan nodded as she looked at Zhuo Zhihua, letting her fellow disciples know that their Hill Master had indeed been pretty harsh with that Flower Addict. This obviously pleased them greatly.


    At this point, the ck Ink Garden disciples turned down the hospitality of the Revtion Institute students and proudly walked out of the extravagant tent, unwilling to even engage in polite conversation.


    The girl in white looked at the crisp blue sky outside the tent, and remembered how Lu Chenjia eventually failed to maintain her pride and was truly defeated. This notion gave her utter satisfaction and she finally understood what it was really like to intimidate someone, and that revenge and retaliation were not limited to pen and paper or violence.


    As this thought crossed her mind, she turned and nced at Ning Que who stood among the girls and secretly wondered how a disciple of the Academy of Tang who should be bold and magnificent in mindset came to be so meticulous and observant.


    Once the girls from Great River Kingdom returned to their territory, they could no longer contain their curiosity and started asking about what their Hill Master said to the Flower Addict. The tent was filled with their questions, and even Ning Que looked at her with wondering eyes.


    Mo Shanshan was quiet for a little while, and then she told them about the conversation she had had earlier.


    "She finds the joys and sorrows of this world irrelevant to her? So the fact that our senior brother died at the Meadows is also irrelevant to her? I supposed that we meant nothing to the princess, as she would probably consider a mere flower more significant than us."


    The Cat Girl yelled loudly as she held on to the box, which was supposed to be a gift to the Revtion Institute from the ck Ink Garden, and for some reason, she brought it back.


    "The flower addict princess might look quiet and gentle, but her mind is set beyond this world. This whole thing is actually quite irrelevant to her. If someone is really to me, it would really be the cavalry of the Divine Hall, as well as the olddy who stood and watched coldly at the meadow."


    Zhuo Zhihua shook her head and nced at the box that the Cat Girl was holding. She frowned and asked curiously, "What is that?"


    "This is the secret weapon. Brother Zhong and I bought it from someone else yesterday for 100 Liang of silver."


    The Cat Girl sneered as she held the box tightly, "It is a pity that sister Shanshan won¡¯t use it."


    Mo Shanshan caressed the papers on the desk gently with her hand and said, "Chenjia didn¡¯t say, but I have already taught her a lesson, so there is no need for further humiliation."


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t help but shake his head as he heard this. While on their way here, one of the things she taught this girl was the ultimate lesson of finishing off one¡¯s job properly in a fight. Getting one¡¯s revenge was not different with a fight. If the war was already on, it would certainly be best to humiliate the rival to death.


    Seeing how the Caligraphy Addict was about to start practicing again, he suddenly realized that he had been too engrossed in cultivation ever since he entered the Back Mountain of the Academy, and he had neglected calligraphy for a long time already. All of a sudden, he noticed something else: Since the day of the catastrophic battle when he did her hair in the horse carriage, she kept the same hair style, tying her hair back in a simple way, showing her fair and pretty face, giving her a purer and gentler look.


    Zhuo Zhihua informed everyone: "The Divine Hall is summoning us or a meeting this afternoon to discuss aiding the pce, and the matter of sending troops to fight the Deste Men next year. All disciples from all factions must attend. We must eat early and waste no time."


    People of the grasnd lived onmb, and rice was not part of their diet. The Pce obviously regarded their guests from the Central ins highly, but the precious and expensive rice was exclusively served to the Divine Hall and the Tang army. As a result, the disciples of the ck Ink Garden had to conform to eat the greasymb meat andmb soup once again for lunch today.


    Despite the efforts devoted to cooking it in a number of ways,mb was stillmb. Ever since they left the Blue Lagoon, the youngdies had hardly been eating anything else, and after enjoying so many novel dishes at the Ge Mumu gathering yesterday, they found the plentiful dishes ofmb rather unappetizing.


    Ning Que was the only one who continued to genuinely enjoy his food. Having grown up poor and experienced the deadly times of famine, he hadn¡¯t ever wasted a single morsel of food.


    While he was chewing slowly, his brain worked quickly thinking about something else. The fact that the Horse Gang came for the kill collectively meant that his identity must have been made. He just couldn¡¯t figure out the extent of exposure, and how many people from the pce actually know about his existence. The Tang military camp in the east consisted entirely in elite cavalry from the north-east border army, what was the rtionship between General Shu of Chang¡¯an and Xiahou? ording to His Majesty¡¯s secret decree prior to his departure, as soon as he revealed his identity, General Shu would probably be sitting his ass right next to him?


    Up until this moment, he still didn¡¯t realize that the Big ck Horse was also a liability in exposing his identity. One must say that His Majesty the Great and the handsome Old Chao of the Sping Breeze Pavillion made a big mistake in the deployment of Ning Que, despite their extensive experience and lifetime knowledge of people. Ning Que would have made an excellent general in battle, but he was a total failure as an undercover spy.


    ...


    ...


    After finishing his lunch, Ning Que wiped off the grease and held the rather heavy square box he got from the Cat Girl, with which he walked towards the bustling area near the pce as he enjoyed the pleasant warmth of the winter sun.


    The Ge Mumu gathering managed to attract a huge amount of people, and people meant business. The bustling grassy area is where the merchants gathered. It was not only the merchants from nearby tribes, but also a few groups of courageous merchants from the central ins, who have been crafty and somehow sneaked their way in here following the Divine Hall negotiation team.


    Inside the box he had with him was something a Yan merchant sourced to wow the Chanyu¡¯s queen. He paid the high price of 100 Liang of silver the night before, and even used Lu Chenjia as an excuse to be able to obtain it.


    Since Mo Shanshan refused to use it and he could not possibly take it back to Chang¡¯an, he certainly wasn¡¯t willing to let it freeze to death in the freezing cold Wilderness. Thus he decided to find the Yan merchant and return it, even if he could only get 80 Liang back. Despite the fact that he was probably a hidden millionaire in Chang¡¯an, 100 Liang still meant a considerate amount of money, and he¡¯d be a sore one to lose it, not to speak of having report it to Sangsang once he got back.


    Unfortunately, he was stopped by someone before he reached his destination.


    Hearing the steps of people gradually approaching from all directions, and seeing the arrogant and cold faced Revtion Institute student standing in front of him, Ning Que raised his eyebrows, hoping that these Haotian believers won¡¯t show their weapons and start a fight like the gangsters in Chang¡¯an south town, so he stood there without making a move.


    A dozen students surrounded Ning Que, standing in seemingly scattered positions that actually blocked any potential route of escape. Though just as Ning Que had anticipated, they didn¡¯t actually barge in to smack him; instead, the proud student standing in front of him actually greeted him very politely.


    The Revtion Institute student said, "My brother from the ck Ink Garden, would you be kind enough toe and see someone?"


    Ning Que firmly believed that, if he his reply was negative, what would happen next would be very inappropriate for children to witness. He wasn¡¯t actually afraid, but he could guess it was the young girl who had enough authority to send so many Revtion Institute students to fetch him. So he simply smiled and followed them obediently.


    On the green spotted meadows outside the camping tent, Lu Chenjia the Princess of Yuelun Kingdom sat on a beautiful white horse, and she raised her hand to send everyone else off, so that only the two of them and a horse remained on the meadows.


    She looked down at Ning Que from high up, with a rather unusual expression, and only after a long silence, she said softly, "I have known Shanshan for many years, and despite not seeing each other for a while, we still wrote to each other. I was very surprised to find that, the Calligraphy Addict talking to me today in the tent seemed to have be apletely different person."


    Ning Que didn¡¯t expect the young girl on horseback to be so straightforward, and he found her interrogation so abruptly that he didn¡¯t even get a chance to check out what this legendary beauty actually looked like.


    Lu Chenjia didn¡¯t wait for his reply, and with a firmer gaze she said, "ording to her, she learned many things from someone, and I am very curious about who that someone is, hence forgive me for being so bold to request your presence."


    Ning Que looked slightly startled, and then answered sincerely, "Your Highness, I don¡¯t know what you are talking about."


    Lu Chenjia raised her gaze to the faraway fields without even looking at him and continued to say, "I don¡¯t know either, since when did the ck Ink Garden of Great River Kingdom recruit a male disciple like you? Who are you, really?"


    Ning Que clenched his fists and swore to himself bitterly that, if His Majesty asked him to go undercover again once he returned to Chang¡¯an, he¡¯d definitely refuse even if he was charged with mutiny, since thetter was probably mean a slower death anyway.

 Chapter 232: Farewell to being a Nobody

    Chapter 232: Farewell to being a Nobody


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    A tinge of bitterness arose in Ning Que as he stared at the beauty riding the white horse, her hair dancing in the wind. He knew he didn¡¯t have many choices in thisplicated situation. Should he wrestle the girl off the horse and subdue her? Should he reveal his identity as a student of the Academy? But he didn¡¯t know what name should he use. Zhong Dajun or something else?


    But the problem was the girl¡¯s reputation as one of the Three Addicts in the world. Though her cultivation was lower than that of Tao Addict and Mo Shanshan, it was in the seethrough state, enough for her to have the upper hand against him. As for the other option, Ning Que was still hesitating.


    Up on her horse, Lu Chenjia looked calmly down at Ning Que, who can tell she didn¡¯t care for his reply from her expression. "Unkind, harsh, gloomy. I¡¯m so disappointed at the Calligraphy Addict I saw today. She used to be like me, one of the rare innocent and pure people in this word and one of my few friends in this disappointingly evil world. I really want to know who made her change so much."


    "There are vile and ignoble means in this world, taken by people like you as wisdom. I don¡¯t understand, and I don¡¯t want to get involved. I also want her to stay away from those things. I hope you stay away from her from now on."


    Ning Que looked up at the pretty princess and said gently, "Your Highness, I don¡¯t think I don¡¯t need your advice on my rtionship with the hill master. I don¡¯t think such an advice will be effective, either."


    "Shanshan is natural-born innocent andcks social experience. When she first meets crafty men like you, perhaps she¡¯ll find your little tricks refreshing and regard it as a reason. But don¡¯t you forget, men are like the dirt and dust in this world. No matter how you disguise yourselves with prettynguage and actions, you ultimately can¡¯t hide the filth inside you."


    Lu Chenjia looked at him coldly, without unconcealed disgust. "I don¡¯t want her to be fooled by you and inevitably be disappointed in the future. That¡¯s why I came to talk to you."


    Hearing these words, Ning Que became certain with something. This legendary Flower Addict wasn¡¯t a naive girl who knew only about flowers and nts,pletely ignorant of worldly affairs. On the contrary, she was so intelligent and sensitive that she could swiftly find out the reason behind Mo Shanshan¡¯s change. There was another thing for certain: she was obsessed with cleanliness whether mentally or physically.


    He remembered how this beautiful princess was seated in the horse carriage surrounded the cavalryman of the Divine Hall, watching in the sidelines in the fight against the horse gang. Looking at this girl as lovely as lily magnolia, his confusion deepened. Where did her psychological mysophobiae from? How did her mysophobia manifest in her everyday life?


    "Are all men as dirty as mud and all women as clean as spring?"


    Ning Que looked at her in the eye and smiled. "Is this what you want to say, Your Highness?"


    There was a minor change in her expression. She didn¡¯t think this evil-minded man would summarize her thoughts so sinctly nor there would be such a pride hidden underneath his calm and gentle appearance. She stopped mocking him and nodded.


    He suddenly chuckled. "What about Prince Long Qing?"


    When he was discussing with Mo Shanshan how to handle Lu Chenjiast night, he proposed to use Prince Long Qing. When it came to a princess who lived in the imperial pce, who had never suffered any hardships in cultivation and romance, he could only look for her weakness through the gaps of her perfect life. Everyone knew about the romance between her and Prince Long Qing. With her deep feelings for him, that man was naturally the best target.


    Lu Chenjia could tell Ning Que¡¯s intention when she saw his wicked smile as he brought up Long Qing. She sneered and said calmly, "Foolish and filthy as you are, it¡¯s natural that you wouldn¡¯t understand a perfect man like him. He lives in a ce of light where you¡¯ll never be able to reach."


    When he heard the words ¡¯perfect man¡¯ once again, he couldn¡¯t help remembering how Sangsangmented how ugly Prince Longqing looked in a tavern in Chang¡¯an. He couldn¡¯t help shaking his head and smiled.


    When Lu Chenjia saw how he inexplicably smiled, her expression turned solemn. He was obviouslyughing at Prince Long Qing. For her, that offense was worse than humiliating herself.


    He withdrew his smile and looked at the beautiful girl on the horse, asking seriously, "If everything in this world beyond your West-Hill Divine Pce and meadow is filthy and evil, I want to know if you think what happened at the grasnd that day was clean."


    Lu Chenjia looked at his eyes and replied calmly, "That has nothing to do with me. I only know that you deserve death if you want to estrange me and Shanshan and lure her into the path of evil."


    He never shied away from her gaze. "If you really want to kill me, I¡¯m afraid I¡¯d be dead by now. Why would you even bother making a special trip here to talk to me privately?"


    Lu Chenjia gently stroked the neck of her horse and said softly, "I¡¯m here to remind you that no matter your intentions, you can¡¯t trick me and everyone else even if you can fool Shanshan. You¡¯re just an insect-like nobody and there are too many people who can make you suffer a pain worse than death."


    He looked even calmer, and responded softly, "Your behavior now is no different than the evil means in this dirty world that you loathe."


    She looked at him and said, "Haotian witnessed all the misery happening in this world and showed up in this world disguised as an old woman, helping the kind and punishing the evil. I¡¯m the same. I don¡¯t want to get involved in the dirty means that you do, but it doesn¡¯t mean I won¡¯t use them to punish evil."


    At that moment, the disgust and coldness in her eyes were reced by calmness and serenity. That made him feel even more ufortable for when she looked at him with those clear, beautiful eyes, it was like she was looking at a loach struggling in the mud. There wasn¡¯t anypassion, only natural indifference.


    She was the Flower Addict of the Three Addicts in this world. In the first ce, she was like a fairy atop the clouds who shouldn¡¯t be tainted with evil thoughts. Ning Que was just an unscrupulous nobody who used his cunning to approach her friend. For her, it was a matter, of course, to speak to him so indifferently. Even the way she ordered him was reasonable and natural.


    This was the norm in this world. Ning Que had nock of such experience since his childhood, having seen even colder expressions. His skin had long thickened to be as strong as a wall and he didn¡¯t mind the girl¡¯s look at all. He smiled and replied, "It¡¯s always better to be alive than dead. I really can¡¯t think of what kind of situation would force a person to want to die rather than live."


    Lu Chenjia asked, "Do you really want to know?"


    He smiled. "That¡¯s too dangerous to be curious about. It¡¯s better to restrain my curiosity and be safe."


    Lu Chenjia stared at him quietly before giving him a smile. "It¡¯s true you¡¯re a nobody, destined only for small tricks and fancy words. When ites to the real world, you¡¯ll never be able to show even the slightest bit of courage."


    Perhaps she wanted to provoke him with her words so she would have a reason to punish him. Or maybe she was somewhat disappointed and impressed to see how he had reacted.


    Yet Ning Que was suddenly silent after hearing her words.


    He looked up to the sky, staring at the puffy cloud that drifted over the grasnd. He frowned as he began to reflect on his journey over the past two years after leaving Wei city.


    The cold winter breeze swept his clothing and her hair. He didn¡¯t speak and neither did Lu Chenjia. It was all silent.


    "Back when I was still in Wei city, the most powerful officer was General Ma with hundreds of men under him. He was truly impressive. But who I met was General Xiao Qi, who led a seven-strong cavalry. I was very excited as I would be receiving a reward for my achievements in the army. But he didn¡¯t even look at me in the eye and left in a rush after giving me my reward. Perhaps he doesn¡¯t even remember who I am to this day."


    Ning Que turned his gaze back to the girl, smiling at her. "That was when I realized I would just be a nobody no matter what aplishments I made in the army. Back then, I didn¡¯t know what cultivators even look like. I thought you people are those fairies who fly all over the sky. I didn¡¯t know what your world is like and think you all live in some paradise in the heaven."


    "For a nobody like me, the Divine Hall, Prince Long Qing, and the Three Addicts were too abstract an existence for me to ever hope to approach."


    He pointed at the floating cloud in the sky.


    "But it seems many things have changed now. For example, I¡¯m traveling with Book Addict in the same carriage. For example, you¡¯re now sitting on a horse, rather than on a cloud. You¡¯re so close to me."


    Ning Que smiled at her. "We¡¯re so close that I can touch your face if I extend my hand. I believe no one has ever touched your face besides the King of Yuelun Kingdom and Prince Long Qing... Don¡¯t be mad at my words. I¡¯m only saying that to prove my point. The changes I mentioned earlier came so rapidly and drastically that I could only ept them passively. I didn¡¯t have the time to analyze them orprehend a certain truth. That was what caused so many problems."


    Lu Chenjia looked at him silently. "What truth?"


    "That I¡¯m no longer a nobody, so I shouldn¡¯t think and act like a nobody."


    Ning Que chuckled, showing his deep dimples. The gentle breeze stroke his face, his eyes reflecting the clouds in the sky. He had never felt so refreshed and confident.


    He knew this girl wasn¡¯t psychologically well and had prepared some underhanded tricks to deal with her. However, when those tricks didn¡¯t work, he suddenly remembered what his Second Brother had told him before his departure. If it was Second Brother, what would he do in this situation? Second Brother was his idol, and Youngest Uncle was Second Brother¡¯s idol. If it was Youngest Uncle, what would he do?


    Knowing Second Brother¡¯s proud character, he would probably take off his crown and use it to hammer her face repeatedly until she was bloodied and bruised. He would definitely not be a gentleman. If it was Youngest Uncle, he would likely unsheathe his sword and instantly behead the girl. When the girl¡¯s body fall to the ground, he would step on her face.


    He wasn¡¯t a powerful cultivator like Second Brother, whose cultivation was at the Knowing Destiny State. Neither did he resemble Youngest Uncle, who may not be around but still left behind a powerful legacy. He was just a novice with a pitiful No Doubts State cultivation. But he was, after all, a core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy.


    He didn¡¯t have the ability to defeat Flower Addict. He couldn¡¯t drag her off the horse, beat her up, get Mo Shanshan to sketch her pitiful state, and send the drawing to Prince Long Qing. But since he had detached himself from the world of nobodies and establish his identity, he naturally had his own n.


    "I only managed to buy this gift after telling the Yan businessman that it¡¯s for you. I spent a hundred Liang of silver for this. It¡¯s truly not cheap."


    Ning Que held up the box he had been holding all along and untied the cloth over it. Inside was a delicate sapling wrapped with a protective film of paper. He tore the paper off and showed her the stunningly beautiful blue petals and the green stems of the tree. "Of course, I believe you won¡¯t change your perception of me even in the slightest even if I give this to you. Therefore, I¡¯ll only let you take a look."


    Lu Jiachen was stunned to recognize the sapling to be the rare seven-petalled blue lotus. Such a lotus had petals of a very faint blue. They were stunningly beautiful and could resist drought and coldness, yet were rare in this world because they easily sumb to insects.


    "The seven-petalled blue lotus... It¡¯s truly an excellent flower. It¡¯s not unreasonable to sell it for one hundred Liang of silver in the market."


    Though Lu Chenjia was disgusted with Ning Que, she was still the Flower Addict and had a great love for flowers. Herment was incredibly objective and honest. She suddenly scowled, eyebrows knitting. "Though it can endure the cold, it¡¯s still a flower native to the south Yan. How can it withstand the cold winds of the grasnds? Hurry up and put it away!"


    Ning Que was very obedient. When she ordered him to put it away, he really did. But it wasn¡¯t the flower, but his hands.


    The sapling fell from his hands, hitting the ground. When it hit the tough soil of the wastnd, its fragile pot shattered as if it was made of ss. Its protective film of paper was torn and scattered. The beautiful flower instantly lost its charm, with wilting petals and broken stems. From the looks of it, it would never live again.


    Lu Chenjia¡¯s expression changed. She held onto the rein and nudged her horse forward but it was already toote. The beautiful blue petals scattered all over the ground, flying as they were swept by the wind. They were gradually contaminated by the dirt. The sapling was buried under the protection film, making for a pitiful and pathetic sight.


    Looking at the dead flower, her beautiful face paled and a flicker of pain crossed her eyes. She gradually turned around and stared at Ning Que quietly. "Are you... trying to provoke me?"


    A tragedy was when a person was shown the most beautiful thing in life, and then forced to see it destroyed. Everyone had a different idea of what was the most beautiful thing in life, depending on one¡¯s values be it money, power, or knowledge.


    For Lu Chenjia, the most beautiful thing in life wasn¡¯t worldly happiness but the flowers and nts that remained untouched and unconcerned with the mundane world. She wouldn¡¯t feel sad if any of the cavalrymen from the Divine Hall died. Perhaps she wouldn¡¯t even feel moved even if the students of the Revtion Institute dropped dead in front of her.


    But when this flower fell into the mud, she truly felt a burst of heartache inside her.


    She knew Ning Que did it deliberately. Therefore, there was also an anger that brewed in her heartache.


    ...


    ...


    When they heard the sound of the flower pot shattering, the students of Revtion Institute all rushed over at the fastest speed without any idea of what had happened. When they saw the unconcealed pain and anger in Lu Chenjia¡¯s eyes and the dead flower on the ground, they could guess what was going on.


    The world knew how much Lu Chenjia love flowers. For this young man wearing the uniform of the Mochi Garden to do something like that in front of her was a deliberate act of provocation.


    Infuriated, the students unsheathed their swords and surrounded Ning Que.


    Lu Chenjia dismounted her horse and walked toward Ning Que. She asked, frowning, "How does it benefit you if I¡¯m upset and angered?"


    Ning Que smiled at her and exined, "I remember you telling Shanshan that you don¡¯t care for the joy and sadness of the world. That¡¯s why I think it shouldn¡¯t matter to you what my rtionship to Shanshan is and how I¡¯m affecting her. As for this lotus, it¡¯s something I paid money for. It has nothing to do with you even if I kill it. And it has nothing to do me whether you¡¯re sad or angry about it. Since that¡¯s how it is, you can¡¯t interfere with me smashing this pot."


    Lu Chenjia looked at him in the eye. "Flowers can¡¯t talk, all they can do is bloom quietly. In your hands, they be a sacrifice for your battle against others. Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s unfair to them?"


    Ning Que returned her gaze. "It¡¯s not fair either to people who died on the grasnd, like my brother from the Mochi Garden. Now, they can¡¯t talk either and that¡¯s why the world is cruel to them. Naturally, I¡¯m not the kind who likes seeking justice for others. What I care about is you threatening me earlier. That¡¯s why I want to upset you. That¡¯s only fair."


    Lu Chenjia asked, "Who exactly are you?"


    It seemed like a trivial matter to break a flower pot in the grasnd but it was an act akin to pping this girl on the face. And she wasn¡¯t just a regr girl.


    She was the Flower Addict of the Three Addicts. Behind her was two monstrously powerful powers, the Divine Hall and the Yuelun Kingdom. Being such powerful and esteemed, even a Prince from Tang wouldn¡¯t dare provoke her this way.


    Thus, even in her moment of furiousness, she was still guessing Ning Que¡¯s identity. Was he just a foolishly ignorant man who didn¡¯t care for his life? Or did he had even more powerful backing than her?


    Before revealing his real identity, Ning Que first revealed his other identity as the master of the mighty ck horse. The students had been wanting to know as well.


    He put his fingers to his lips and whistled a clear and loud sound. In a moment, they heard the fast and loud thumping of hooves. The horse heading toward the source of the sound was obviously in high spirits.


    A dusty ck horse came from afar, rushing into the meadow. It cautiously paced toward Ning Que¡¯s side. It gently arched its shoulder, looking very docile.


    The white horse behind Lu Chenjia stepped back after seeing the ck horse. Remembering its miserable experience yesterday, it wasn¡¯t at allforted by the gentleness of the ck horse. It started retreating.


    The rein fell from Lu Chenjia¡¯s hand.


    She studied Ning Que, together with his horse and the dead flower at his feet, and said coldly, "So it was... you."


    He saluted her with his hands folded in front and respectfully said, "It was me."


    For the past two days, Ning Que¡¯s horse had been the focus of many discussions in the meeting of Ge Mumu. Many esteemed people were looking for it, wanting it to be their mount. Its sudden appearance attracted many people running after it, bringing them to the meadow.


    Lu Chenjia¡¯s voice was cold. "You think I wouldn¡¯t dare to kill you with so many eyes watching? I¡¯ve said earlier, filthy things like you are only apt at using small tricks, forgetting the fact that strength is everything."


    "I know I¡¯m weak. But I also know well strength isn¡¯t everything."


    Ning Que retrieved an ID token from his clothes. "Sometimes your backing is even more important."


    One student read the words on the token and frowned. "Fish-dragon Gang? What¡¯s that?"


    Ning Que was stunned and smiled when he looked at his token. "Sorry, it¡¯s the wrong one."


    He took out another token and showed Lu Chenjia.


    The students of Revtion Institute were a little shocked, but still, someone said, "So what if you¡¯re a student of the Academy?"


    He shook his head. "Read more carefully."


    The students obeyed him and finally understood what his token represented. Everyone was so shocked into silence. For a moment, they didn¡¯t know what they should do with the swords in their hands.


    Lu Chenjia¡¯s expression turned colder when she saw the token.


    "Is there anyone who still wants to kill me now?"


    Looking at the students around him, Ning Que said sincerely, "If no one wants to kill me, I¡¯ll be leaving. The meeting held by the Divine Hall should be starting. I don¡¯t really have time to waste."


    He smiled at Lu Chenjia. "I have a few words for you."


    "Firstly, if the difference between a famous figure and a nobody doesn¡¯t lie in their morals but their backing, then I¡¯m not a nobody."


    "Secondly, you don¡¯t have the ability to make me feel like dying was better than living. Not even the three Gods in the Divine Hall have the right to do so. Therefore, I hope you would save all that nonsense when we meet in the future."


    "Finally, there are no perfect people in this world. I¡¯m not and your partner Long Qing isn¡¯t either. At least, I don¡¯t think he¡¯ll dare call himself perfect in front of me."


    Ning Que jumped on his ck horse and rode toward the grasnd. He didn¡¯t forget to deliberately step on the pathetic dead flower as he climbed onto the horse.

 Chapter 233: Would I Tell Lies (I)

    Chapter 233: Would I Tell Lies (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Looking at that ck horse taking off with such speed, many herdsmen and Pce soldiers chased after it in excitement. However, students of the Revtion Institute were still silently standing on the meadow. Many of them had already guessed Ning Que¡¯s real identity. Remembering the matter that had been kicked around in the cultivation world from spring to this moment, they could not help worrying about Princess Chen Jia¡¯s emotional state.


    Princess Chen Jia¡¯s fianc¨¦ was Prince Long Qing. This excellent man had lived a good life. Neither the Elder of Lanke Temple nor the chief of the Revtion Institute could break his perfect inner and outerposure. He was only defeated once in the mountaineering of the Academy in the south of Chang¡¯an, although not many people knew the specific circumstances of that event. Nevertheless, failure was failure.


    Is today the day when Lu Chenjia first meets the man who defeated her fianc¨¦? Students of the Revtion Institute worried that she might feel depressed, hence, they did not dare to look at her, which probably caused her to feel embarrassed and angry. They had to slightly lower their heads, seeming to look unwittingly at the ground of the Wilderness.


    Seven Lotus Petals were scattered everywhere on the meadow making a big mess. There was no sign of embarrassment on Lu Chenjia¡¯s pretty face, but her calm mind which resembled peaceful water began to be restless.


    After pulling out a rare scarf from the side of the saddle of her Snow Horse, she walked to the broken flower pots, and picked up the lotus that was almost withered and that had turned ck in the cold wind, and then carefully wrapped it up. She mounted the horse with the lotus in her arms, and then rode towards her own tent.


    One of the disciples of the Revtion Institute behind her picked up the courage and reminded her, "Your Highness, today the Divine Hall will have a meeting to summarize the border issues that have arisen in the past few months and to discuss a n on how to deal with Deste Men next year. It¡¯s important that you attend the meeting."


    Lu Chenjia lightly lifted the reins, without ignoring the voice behind her or the meeting that the Divine Hall called. Instead, she silently watched the distant big ck horse that was approaching the tent while lost in deep thought.


    After the news of the opening of the second floor of the Academy in spring came out, she quietly paid attention to the Second floor. She prayed that her partner would get his own reward and enter the Back Mountain to be one of the core disciples of the Headmaster of Academy. However, she did not expect that such a proud and confident guy who seemed unlikely to be defeated, actually... failed.


    Since then, Prince Long Qing returned to West-Hill. Although they never discussed the matter on the Second floor of the Academy, she could clearly feel that there were some subtle differences between the present Longqing and the former Longqing. He was still proud and confident full of dazzling glory, but under his proud exterior there was something hidden that was unclear and unnatural, and a very pale ck shadow clouded his glory.


    Lu Chenjia knew that all this was caused by that guy, Ning Que.


    For people like Prince Long Qing and her, failure was not a terrible thing. They had urately understood the rtionship between failure and sess at an early age when the started learning cultivation. However, Longqing was at a very high cultivation state with a clear Taoist Heart, only one step away from the Knowing Destiny State, while the guy called Ning Que had just learned the cultivation, weak in strength and low in the cultivation state. When there exists such a huge gap in cultivation, defeat by a person of a lower cultivation could be an unimaginable blow to the mental state of Taoist cultivators.


    In a rtionship between two people, generally one¡¯s joy and sadness are always based on that of the other one, while ignoring the joy and sadness of the outside world. As for the guy who defeated Longqing to enter the Back Mountain of the Academy, she certainly disliked him to the point of hostility. If it wasn¡¯t that the barrier of the Taoist Heart could only be lifted away by Longqing himself, she might have even gone quietly to Chang¡¯an and humiliated that guy.


    Other than feelings of hostility and displeasure, she was inevitably a little curious about him. She, just like everyone else, did not think that the Headmaster of Academy would practice favoritism in receiving disciples and that the Academy would use shameless tricks to recruit students. Then, what on earth made that guy named Ning Que to be better than Longqing in the eyes of the Headmaster? What kind of person was he?


    Today she finally saw him, and finally knew what kind of a person he was.


    She believed that she would never forget Ning Que¡¯s vicious and bitchy appearance when he smashed the flower pots and taunted her. In spite of this, she still could not forget the time he had spent in the Academy. She felt miffed and embarrassed.


    She grasped tightly on the reins with her fine hands, watching senselessly the Big ck Horse in the distance. The horse that was going to enter the tent was being chased by many people. She silently thought in her heart, "Are all disciples of the Back Mountain of the Academy as shameless as Ning Que?"


    ...


    ...


    The countries in the Central ins were ordered by the edict of the Divine Hall to help the Yan Kingdom resist the barbarians. The Tang Empire and the Yan Kingdom were located in the North frontiers, and sent arge number of cavalrymen. The other ns of the Central ins sent their younger generation of practitioners toe and serve their orders. Now that the Allied Forces had made peace with the Royal Court, it was only natural for the forces of the various countries toe together and n for the future. There was no doubt that the convener was also the Divine Hall.


    The Left-Tent pce spent a lot of manpower and materials putting up a fairlyrge tent where the bigwigs of the Divine Hall would discuss business. They had shown their sincerity. The tent had a circumference of about a hundred steps. It used the bamboo as the backbone and all itsponents were stretched together by the use of cloth. There was adequate light in the tent. It was so spacious that even if there were hundreds of people staying together inside the tent, it wouldn¡¯t seem crowded.


    The Priest of the Revtion Department of the Divine Hall was the most distinguished person in the tent. He was naturally sitting in the middle position. On his right hand sat Shu Cheng, General of the Tang Empire, but on his left the position was empty.


    Generals of Yan Kingdom, disciples of Sword Garret of South Jin Kongdom, monks of White Tower Temple of Yuelun Kingdom, and other disciples of the sects of smaller tributaries were all sitting at their proper positions ording to their rankings. Seats for the disciples of Revtion Institute were still empty, while the Calligraphy Addict, Mo Shanshan, and disciples of the ck Ink Garden of Great River Kingdom had already sat idly on the seats on the opposite side.


    The positions of the disciples of ck Ink Garden were close to the people from the Tang Empire, ranking higher than those of South Jin Kingdom and, Yuelun and other countries. The Great River Kingdom was weak, and they would not have such a courteous reception. Mo Shanshan was so famous for being a Calligraphy Addict that no one in the tent, except for a few people, was eligible to sit on her left-hand seat, thus the Divine Hall had no choice but to make this exception.


    The proceedings had not yet got to the point. At this time, an old woman with white hair and wrinkled skin in a ragged garment was walking slowly into the tent, with a crutch in her hand, coughing from time to time.


    The Priest of the Revtion Department bowed to show his respect. He then smiled and said, "Sorry to trouble you, Aunt."


    Including Shu Cheng General, all people in the tent stood up and saluted the woman, the elder sister of the Lord of Yuelun Kingdom. Although she abandoned the title of Princess Royal because of cultivation, powerful Buddhism Sects and temples hid behind her. Both the Divine Hall and the Tang Empire would not neglect her.


    Mo Shanshan did not stand up. Instead, she just quietly looked at the lower hem of her white dress, as if she had found some unpleasant dirt there. She did not get up to show her respect, neither did the disciples of ck Ink Garden who was behind her. These girls knew that the old woman was on the meadow that day, thus they all revealed some hatred in their eyes.


    If everyone was drunk and only one was sober, then the one who was awake would be the odd one out. If all people stood up and only one was seated, then the one who was seated would be the odd one out.The bustling sounds from people in the tent who were exchanging pleasantries with the old woman and the scene of waves of people bowing down one after another, made the girls from the Great River Kingdom who remained seated stand out. It gradually quieted down in the tent, and the atmosphere suddenly became quiet and strange.


    Aunt Quni Madi red at the girls, who still looked refreshed and pleasant from their month away in the wilderness. She was angered by theirck of respect and by the hostility in their eyes. She was even more furious when she waved her sleeves to sit by the Priest and without waiting for anyone to speak, she said in a gloomy voice, "The North wilderness tribes have an inseparable rtionship with the Devil¡¯s Doctrines. No one knows exactly how many evils of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine still hide in the Deste Men. To punish and dispose of evils is inevitable for people like me, thus it was not hard work. However, the first step in dealing with Deste Men is to strengthen our own ability by fostering internal solidarity in the sects. "


    The old woman looked at the young disciples of the younger generation in the tent, and then said in a cold voice, "You performed well during these few months of fighting. However, some of you behaved improperly and the result was terrible, which nearly ruined the event of the Divine Hall. Whether you¡¯ll get punishment or not, I think you should do some self-reflection first.


    By this time, most people in the tent had already understood that the disciples of ck Ink Garden had escorted the grains here and that they were attacked by Horse Gangs. They thought that Aunt Qu was probably talking about this matter, and they did not know how the Calligraphy Addict and the disciples of ck Ink Garden would exin the situation.


    As expected, Quni Madi revealed a sense of scorn and slight anger in her deep eyes. She then said in a cold voice, "In order to foster cordial rtions with different countries, the Divine Hall decided to aid the pce by sending forage. Now that batch of forage has been totally destroyed. Although Chanyu did not say anything, and the agreement didn¡¯t go wrong, someone needs to take responsibility for this, as Haotian is always upholding justice.


    Hearing how the respected Aunt directly made that clear, the tent fell into a deep silence and only some long-short breath could be vaguely heard. Many people turned to look at Mo Shanshan who had been sitting silently.


    Hearing these words, the Priest smiled. He was aware that the old woman was not pleased with ck Ink Garden and wanted to take advantage of the issue to borate her own ideas. Nevertheless, he was told by the Great Divine Priest of Rtion when he left toe here that Mo Shanshan was a recluse. If they wanted her to be the backbone of the Divine Hall in the future, she still needed to be sharpened. So he did notment on the issue.


    General Shu Cheng came a long way from Chang¡¯an City, but did not care about these internal fissures in the Divine Hall. Yet the Empire had been friendly with Great River Kingdom. Now he was a bit displeased seeing that girls of Great River Kingdom were under the coercion of Quni Madi. He then slightly frowned and asked, "What happened on earth?"


    The Priest of the Revtion Department through his beard and hair had all turned white, he still looked very young. After giving it some thought, he said mildly, "Chen Bachi, themander of the Papal Guardians of the Judicial Department has personally experienced the matter. Let him tell you."


    These words seemed arbitrary, but in fact extremely subtle. The Papal Guardians of the Divine Hall were governed by two Priests of the Judicial Department, and they had nothing to do with his Revtion Department. It was because of this reason that he let themander give hisments, knowing that no matter what happened afterward, the Revtion Department would keep out of the affairs and maintain a transcendent and fair position.


    That guy named Chen Bachi who was themander of the cavalryman of Divine Hall looked at the crowd in awe and said, "... that day the disciples of ck Ink Garden faced the battle with cowardice and fear. They actually let the Horse Gangs break into the camp, and the soldiers and civilians of Yan Kingdom suffered great casualties. I saw that things were going wrong, so I took the risk and led the troops in a surprise attack, and they finally surrounded the Horse Gangs..."


    The disciples of ck Ink Garden looked at each other in despair as cold chills run down their bodies. They were speechless and their clenched fists slightly trembled. They had been living in Mogan Mountain since childhood, and they were shocked that there was such a shameless guy in the world.


    Cat Girl¡¯s face was shed, and she shouted angrily at themander of the cavalry, "Chen Bachi, Shame on you!"

 Chapter 234: Would I Tell Lies (II)

    Chapter 234: Would I Tell Lies (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Cat Girl whose face was red with anger pointed and yelled at themander of the cavalryman of Divine Hall.


    The Priest of the Revtion Department seemed a bit annoyed. Aunt Quni Madi¡¯s eyes suddenly lit up with anger. She stared at the girl and said in a cold voice, "What a humble person you are! Didn¡¯t your master teach you anything? Is it your turn to speak?"


    Zhuo Zhihua took two steps forward and pulled Cat Girl back. She saluted the several bigwigs sitting above, and after suppressing the anger in her heart, she said in a shaky voice, "Aunt, this matter has something to do with the reputation of the ck Ink Garden. Besides, Younger Brother Shi was buried in the meadow. Aren¡¯t we allowed to say something?"


    Quni Madi¡¯s wrinkled face showed a trace of disgust. She then said in a gloomy voice, "As a disciple of the Master of Calligrapher, he deserved his death as he was even less capable than the Horse Gangs, and was even been defeated by them."


    The Yuelun Kingdom and the Great River Kingdom, just like water and fire, had been fighting each other for the past hundred years because of the Tianmu forest area. No one knew how many big and small wars had taken ce between the two sides. Their rtionship could be described as the blood feud between generations.


    The Yuelun Kingdom with its vast territory was also the ce where the Buddhism Sect prospered. Its strength was far more powerful than that of the Great River Kingdom. Especially in recent years, the rtions between the West-Hill Divine Pce and the Yuelun Kingdom had be increasingly favorable. If the Tang Empire had not been friendly with the Great River Kingdom, perhaps monks of the Yuelun Kingdom would have long embarked on the territory of the Great River Kingdom.


    Quni Madi, the sister of the Lord of the Yuelun Kingdom, was certainly very hostile to the people of the Great River Kingdom. In the past few months, she had been involved in the coercion of Yan forces in the camp, grabbing of the hot springs and in the difficult task of escorting the forage.That was why she was so blunt to these disciples of the ck Ink Garden, with harsh and tyrannical words.


    Disciples of the ck Ink Garden had been constantly humiliated and framed by the Yuelun Kingdom, since they left the Mogan Mountain of the Great River Kingdom for the frontier fortress of the North Yan Kingdom. Now in the pce tribe of the Wilderness, the Yuelun Kingdom unashamedly mocked their dead during the meeting called by the Divine Hall. Even though the girls were gentle, they still could not suppress their anger, so they all stood up one after another.


    The sound of sharp swords was heard and a dozen slender swords glittered as a sense of chill filled the air. The swords were all aimed at Aunt Quni Madi. At this moment, they had long forgotten how noble the old woman was.


    In the huge tent, after seeing the disciples of the ck Ink Garden pull out their swords, monks from the White Tower Temple of the Yuelun Kingdom all got angry and stood up.They tried to rush to the front to protect Quni Madi.


    Quni Madi raised her old arm, indicating that sadhus did not have to be so wrathful. She gave the girls who were holding the swords in their hands an indifferent look, with her mouth slightly pulling up, seeming extremely disdainful.


    The people in the meeting called by the Divine Hall would not allow these girls to act recklessly. Yet Aunt would have rather than the girls be carried away by hatred. Once they dared to attack her with swords, then either the people in the Divine Hall or cultivators from different countries would deal with them severely. More importantly, in this case, even the Tang general who had kept silent would not be able to intervene on their behalf.


    Zhuo Zhihua tightly held the fine sword in her hand, and looked back.


    Just like her, lots of people all turned their gaze towards that ce.


    Mo Shanshan still sat quietly on the chair. It seemed that she did not hear Quni Madi humiliate her own sect and she did not have any opinion on the event that had happened on the meadow either. It seemed that she could feel nothing. She then looked down at her own white dress as if she wanted to turn the smudge of dirt into a lotus flower.


    Due to her silence, the atmosphere in the tent became more and more tense. No one knew whether the girls would get angry and pull out their swords, and sequentially, consequences would follow.


    The Priest of the Revtion Department of the Divine Hall sitting at the head of the table became even gloomier. For Quni Madi and disciples of the ck Ink Garden, the bigwig had enough reason to be displeased, for example, neither of them respected him.Yet, because of the rtionship between the Judicial Department and the Yuelun Kingdom he did not utter a word.


    The air became tenser. Quni Madi¡¯s old face looked more disdainful. If things went on this way, the girls from the Great River Kingdom would be humiliated. However, if these girls dared to defy the Divine Hall and attack her, they would scarcely escape the misery.


    "The Headmaster of the Academy once said that the truth can only be made clear through talking and arguing. Whatever the truth is in the Horse Gang robbery, we should listen to the opinions of both parties. You girls should talk calmly. Is there any need to pull the swords out? Don¡¯t you know Aunt Quni Madi is always straightforward and to the point?"


    These remarks were tactful as they implicitly mocked Quni Madi¡¯s way of acting and talking, but also faintly expressed the favoritism towards disciples of the ck Ink Garden. People in the tent could not help but murmur a bit. However, the one who uttered these words was General Shu Cheng of the Tang Empire. It was improper for the Priest of the Divine Hall and Quni Madi to question him.


    Quni Madi uttered a cold groan and she said, looking back at General Shu, "I¡¯d like to hear what they will say."


    Zhuo Zhihua was good-natured and good at solving problems. She took this opportunity to lightly reprimand the girls and asked them to step back. Then she took a few steps forward and bowed with hands folded in front of her. After that, she narrated carefully what had happened on the meadow that day.


    ...


    ...


    When the same story was told by different people, its oue was the same, but its process might have been different. As for what Chen Bachi said, the disciples of the ck Ink Garden were a bunch of useless, timid cowards. They caused the destruction of the caravan and brought about the heavy casualties of the army and civilians of the Yan Kingdom. While in Zhuo Zhihua¡¯s version, themanders of the cavalryman of the Divine Hall on the meadow were cold-blooded and selfish. They refused to lend a hand even when they saw their colleagues in danger. It was not until the disciples of the ck Ink Garden were going to get a bloody victory, that they finally appeared to grab the military glory.


    Zhuo Zhihua did not mention Aunt Quni Madi, or the people of the White Tower Temple of the Revtion Institute, or Flower Addict, Lu Chenjia, who were all on the ground that day. However, everyone in the tent knew why the group of cavalrymen of Divine Hall entered the Wilderness, so they all slightly changed their facial expression after hearing what she said. At the moment, cultivators from the South Jin Kingdom, the other countries, and the Tang army subconsciously looked at Quni Madi in a somewhatplicated way.


    All the people in the tent believed the story of the disciples of ck Ink Garden was true, because there was no reason for these girls to offend both the Divine Hall and the Yuelun Kingdom in order to shift the me. They would not be severely punished, even if all the supplies had been destroyed. Furthermore, no one knew what problems they would face after offending these bigwigs.


    Belief was the basis of the human heart, yet there was nothing as willful as a person¡¯s heart. Often, power would end up being more important than proof. The stronger the background, the more power thaty behind the words they said.


    The Great River Kingdom was weak and small. Although there was a Master of Calligrapher in the ck Ink Garden, but he was only a visiting professor. How could it stand up to the Divine Hall and the Yuelun Kingdom as an equal?


    Quni Madi stared coldly at Zhuo Zhihua who had finished re-telling her version of the story and returned to her seat. After a brief silence, she suddenlyughed strangely and raucously. " I was on the meadow that day as well. ording to your statement, should I also be med for the failure of the cavalryman of Divine Hall to take part in the battle in time? Do you mean to say that I too am cold-blooded and selfish?"


    Zhuo Zhihua looked up quietly at Quni Madi with her eyes full of determination. She then said, "I wasn¡¯t aware that you were on the meadow. Whether you had anything to do with the fact that the cavalrymen of Divine Hall didn¡¯t give timely rescue, I certainly don¡¯t know. Whether you are to me and selfish or not, you need to judge by yourself."


    There was a big uproar in the tent. No one expected that the female disciple of the ck Ink Garden had the courage to directly challenge Quni Madi. Some people even secretly admired her courage.


    Quni Madi red at Zhuo Zhihua and shouted, "Complete Nonsense! In order to shift the me, you dare to confuse right from wrong by framing the Divine Hall as well as me! I have tender affection for the younger generation, and intend to make it easy on you. I thought a little punishment would be enough, but I never considered that you¡¯re actually so unscrupulous. Don¡¯t me me for teaching you a lesson on behalf of your master!"


    Cat Girl stared at her, and said without any sign of weakness, "You¡¯re old, but you still tell lies. You really have no shame!"


    Quni Madi was extremely angry. She thenughed and sat back in her chair, keeping silent to wait for the final result.


    The Priest of the Revtion Department was speechless. He stroked the white hair on the top of his head and sighed deeply in his heart. He was a bit displeased with the old woman, yet there was nothing he could do to her.


    In the previous disputes between the two parties, disciples of the ck Ink Garden had a sense of propriety. They just aimed at the cavalries of the Judicial Department without involving Quni Madi and people from the White Tower Temple of the Revtion Institute. Yet this old woman actually got herself involved - She used her prestige to force the Divine Temple to rify its position - if the Priest¡¯ster decision showed any favor towards the ck Ink Garden, it would mean that he believed what the girls said and that the highly respected Aunt Quni Madi was afraid of death and even had the intention of killing others.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce had been very friendly to the Buddhism Sect. They had mutually exchanged goods for thousands of years. Although they revered the Taoist, they always supported each other. In the secr world, the Divine Hall needed the loyalty and the Minister¡¯s offerings more from the royalties of the Yuelun Kingdom. Not to mention that both sides could only describe what happened but had no actual evidence. Even if disciples of the ck Ink Garden could provide some evidence, and the Priest was willing to punish the cavalries of the Judicial Department for the sake of justice, he had no choice but to believe what themander said so as to preserve Quni Madi¡¯s reputation.


    "Has the resentment between the Yuelun Kingdom and the Great River Kingdom been this deep?"


    After a short period of silence, the Priest watched the people in the tent and then quietly said, "The peace talks between the Central ins and the pce have been settled. Although the forage was destroyed, it isn¡¯t a big deal. I¡¯ll punish the disciples of the ck Ink Garden to copy the light scriptures three times. However, in the previous dispute, disciples of the ck Ink Garden¡¯s usation against the cavalrymen of Divine Hall was false, and they were even disrespectful to the elders. You should make a sincere apology to Aunt."


    Once he finished giving his judgment, he looked back at the Tang army.


    After a moment of silence, General Shu Cheng concluded that such a light punishment was indeed a rare mercy from the Divine Hall. He nodded and gentlyforted the girls from the Great River Kingdom, "Disciples of the ck Ink Garden, you are probably not afraid of writing."


    Aunt Quni Madi still looked gloomy. Obviously she was very dissatisfied with the views of the Priest of the Revtion Department. Yet she was also clear about the dark dispute among the three departments of the Divine Hall. Besides, she knew that the matter involved the cavalries of the Judicial Department and that the Revtion Department would not be too partial. Thus she kept silent and indifferently raised her head to wait for the apology.


    Hearing the Priest¡¯s final opinions on the matter, no one knew the thoughts of the monks of the White Tower Temple. Yet like disciples of Sword Garret of South Jin Kongdom, they all knew that the Tang army had a good rtionship with the Great River Kingdom, and it might lead to more disputes, if the disciples of ck Ink Garden were bullied too much. Now that they knew that the Tang army was satisfied with the results, they were finally relieved.


    No one cared about the feelings of the girls from the Great River Kingdom. They stood alone in the corner of the tent in anger and confusion, with their hands still holding the fine swords.


    They had thought earlier that it was impossible for the Divine Hall to have a justified hearing, because the Apologetic Divine Forces were the cavalries of the Divine Hall. However, they never imagined that the final result of the Divine Hall would turn out like this.


    Everyone thought that the punishment given by the Priest of the Revtion Department was mild. Yet the girls from the south had a firm and persistent personality, and their only concern was the hidden injustice rather than the gentleness.


    So they were in a rage.


    However, facing the bright and majestic Divine Hall, plus the entire cultivation world and the fact that everyone in the tent was relieved, what could they do? Were they really to apologize to the olddy?


    So they were at a loss.


    All the disciples of the ck Ink Garden, including Zhuo Zhihua, turned back and looked at Mo Shanshan who was sitting quietly in the chair.


    ...


    ...


    Mo Shanshan slowly stood up, without any trace of emotion on her clear and indifferent face, while her red and thin lips werepressed into a straight line. She seemed particrly staunch, which was a sharp contrast from her soft ck hair.


    Her dress flowed down like running water. She stood there looking up at those bigwigs and shaking her head, she said quietly,"Priest, I can¡¯t ept this result."


    Many people in the tent kept their eyes on her, wondering what she would say. ording to the rumors about the character of the Calligraphy Addict, people were not that worried. However, they did not expect that the Calligraphy Addict in the rumors was very different from the real Calligraphy Addict in front of them. Her response was so simple and ruthless.


    There was no emotional debate nor angry usation. From the beginning of the meeting, she had been silent. Not until the Divine Hall finally gave a conclusion, did she open her mouth and say that she would not ept the result.


    If she did not ept it, then it would be considered that all the previous things did not happen at all.


    The Priest¡¯s expression changed a bit. He slightly leaned forward to watch Mo Shanshan who was sitting nearby. His snow-white hair slowly released a sh of coercion. He had been waiting for the Calligraphy Addict to reveal her attitude. However, she did not give her view until all the parties came to the final conclusion. He regarded it as a provocation against the dignity of the Divine Hall.


    "Hill Master, I¡¯m always respectful to you, and I really want to know what your attitude is."


    Mo Shanshan stared quietly at the Priest and bowed to him, saying, "My attitude is I won¡¯t ept the result. Such an unfair result, neither my master nor I will ept it."


    "There¡¯s no need to mention the Master of Calligrapher, even if he¡¯s present today, the results would still be the same."


    Quni Madi stared at her white cheeks with indifferent eyes, and asked in a gloomy tone, "Since Hill Master does not ept the result, does that mean that you think that the Divine Hall and I are unjust in this matter?"


    Old, shrewd and shameless, what an Aunt she was. She was a noble precedented cultivator herself, but twice today she made no room for conversation. Her gloomy words were like a cold sword prating directly into their hearts.


    Everyone in the tent knew the Calligraphy Addict¡¯s elegant and simple personality. Although her previous performance had surprised everyone, they all thought that she would remain silent as Aunt Quni Madi mentioned the Divine Hall in front of her.


    However, the Calligraphy Addict surprised everyone once again today.


    Mo Shanshan looked nkly at the olddy, saying quietly, "You treat us unfairly indeed."


    The sound of deep breathing was heard in the tent.


    The Priest looked quietly at her and said, "Hill Master, you can¡¯t me the Divine Hall for being unjust without any evidence. I don¡¯t want to send a letter to Mogan Mountain. Please be cautious."


    Mo Shanshan¡¯s eyebrows gently trembled, lookingnguishingly at the distance and she said, "What I don¡¯t understand is why the words of fellows of the ck Ink Garden and I can¡¯t be used as evidence, yet the same does not apply for them?"


    Silence prevailed in the tent. The Calligraphy Addict¡¯s remarks pointed directly at other people¡¯s hearts and indicated the most fundamental issue of this matter today. However, whether remarks could be evidence or not had nothing to do with the degree of credibility, but it was about the people who made the remarks. The effectiveness of the remarks of the rich and the poor in the courtroom was different. Things always happened that way. What could she do?


    Quni Madi suddenlyughed in a hoarse and old voice. When herughter gradually faded, she looked at Mo Shanshan who was not far away, saying with contempt and sarcasm, "Who in the world, will believe that I, Quni Madi, will tell lies?"


    It was not who would believe it, but who dared to believe it.


    After a moment of silence, the Priest looked at the disciples from various countries in the tent and then asked, "Does anyone know where the Horse Gangse from? Were there any sectarian disciples passing the meadow that day?"


    No one replied, because there were actually no other cultivators passing through the meadow on that day. As for those Horse Gangs, some members might have escaped, but how could they be found now out in the vast Wilderness?


    Mo Shanshan lowered her head in the quiet tent, staring at the tip of her shoes peeping out from her skirt. She remained silent for a long time, thinking of the words that someone once said to her in the carriage, the words about the story between a tiger and a rabbit, and between two tigers.


    "I can ept the punishment of the Divine Hall, but I can¡¯t ept themander¡¯s previous ount that disciples of the ck Ink Garden are faint-hearted and cowards, and that they even fear to confront the Horse Gangs."


    "I¡¯ve always wondered how I can prove my courage and ability."


    Her fingertips gently swept to Zhuo Zhihua¡¯s waist and took out a small sword. She gazed nkly at themander of the cavalryman of Divine Hall who was called Chen Bachi, saying, "Although you¡¯re also a cultivator in the Seethrough state, I won¡¯t bother to challenge you since you¡¯re not eligible. Thus, you don¡¯t have to worry."


    Mo Shanshan slightly turned her sight, which fell on Quni Madi¡¯s ugly old face that was like a dry field. She then said calmly, "I¡¯m Mo Shanshan, a disciple of the ck Ink Garden. Please school me."


    Following which, she ced the little sword across her palm with the de facing downwards. She exerted pressure on her wrist and was ready to cut it open.


    "Hold on!"


    The Priest and General Shu were really startled. They both stood up to stop her.


    The Great River was deeply influenced by the Tang style. Even in a duel, it still used the rules of Chang¡¯an City. To cut sleeves was to invite someone to join the duel, while to cut the palm was to fight to death!


    The response of other people in the tent was slower than that of the two bigwigs. Yet after they became aware of the intention of her action, they were all shocked and stood up collectively to the sound of falling chairs.


    Mo Shanshan issued a duel invitation to Aunt Quni Madi, a deathmatch!


    As everyone knew, Mo Shanshan was one of the most three famous Addicts among the cultivators of the younger generation, a master at the Seethrough state. However, the name of the so-called "Three Addicts" was rted to appearances of the three women, in addition to the cultivation states. Yet the person she was challenging today was a top hand of the Buddhism Sect, Aunt Quni Madi, who had been long-established.


    Even though she was a Calligraphy Addict, no one was optimistic about her ability to ovee the predecessor who had possessed the forceful cultivation for decades.


    Therefore, all people thought that the Calligraphy Addict was incredibly beautiful because of her will today. This kind of beauty was even more thrilling.


    Quni Madi looked coldly at the younger generation. She then slowly stood up with her skinny hands that were like an old tree being supported by the armchair.


    The Priest of the Revtion Department stared at Mo Shanshan, and furiously reprimanded her, "What¡¯re you doing! Put away the knife now!"


    Mo Shanshan acted like she hadn¡¯t heard what he had said. Her right hand held the hilt more tightly.


    ...


    ...


    A chaotic noise was heard outside the tent.


    The drapery of the tent was lifted, and Ning Que came in leading the Big ck Horse. What he saw was the scene where Mo Shanshan was gripping a knife in her palm. He was so surprised and anxious that he angrily shouted, ignoring so many people in the tent, "What¡¯re you doing! Put down the knife."


    Mo Shanshan looked at him in the distance, and slowly put down the knife in her hand. She then whispered, "Other than this method, I can¡¯t think of any other way to wipe away the humiliation of my dead fellows. They¡¯re dead and can no longer speak. However, no one seems to care about them."


    There was no expression on her face. She was so calm as if she was talking about other people¡¯s petty affairs.


    However, in the eyes of Ning Que, the young girl standing lonely over there was obviously fragile and sad.


    Only he could see her fragile sadness.


    ...


    ...


    People then looked following Mo Shanshan¡¯s eyesight towards the drapery of the tent.


    Their nces at Ning Que were full of curiosity and surprise. The Priest of the Revtion Department could not stop the Calligraphy Addict, but what he said was exactly the same thing as the big Priest. Hence, the Calligraphy Addict obediently put away her knife.


    Next, people in the tent noticed the trust in the quiet eyes of the Calligraphy Addict, and the reliance hidden in the bright eyes of girls of the Great River Kingdom. At this moment, they finally found that these girls had been ustomed to pinning their hope on this young man. Thus, they could not help feeling more confused.


    Seeing the Big ck Horse that Ning Que was leading and remembering those pictures on the horse race tracks in the meeting yesterday, they were shocked and speechless. They were all wondering who this young man was?

 Chapter 235: Would I Tell Lies (III)

    Chapter 235: Would I Tell Lies (III)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Cat Girl rushed in and re-told what had happened before in the assembly tent. She was about to burst out in anger when she mentioned Quni Madi¡¯s words.


    Not knowing the identity of the young man, the crowd in the tent kept silent and watched as Ning Que and Cat Girl talked. They were curious about what would happen next. " The Priest of the Revtion Department has made his decision while Aunt Quni Madi is standing aside with a murky face. Will there be any changes?"


    Suddenly, there was a great noiseing from outside the tent. It turned out that lots of men from the tribe of the Pce arrived at the tent behind the Big ck Horse. The noise didn¡¯t fade away until the steward of the Divine Hall who was in charge of keeping order went out to address the crowd.


    Ning Que soon realized what had happened as Cat Girl recounted the events. Remaining silent for a while, he hung the Big ck Horse¡¯s halter on the smoke pipe at the entrance of the tent but didn¡¯t tighten it up. Looking at Mo Shanshan from some distance, he said, "I get it, but that doesn¡¯t justify you cutting your palm, there is always a way out."


    Immersed in silence, the crowd inside the tent looked at Ning Que both curiously and ironically. They all knew that evidence was meaningless and could not be used to testify about the encounter of the horse gang on the meadow.


    Unlike the crowd who concealed their thoughts and feelings, Cat Girl recalled the anger and resignation of her senior sisters of the Sect earlier on. She stared at Ning Que with wide-open eyes and asked straightforwardly, "How do I prove it?"


    Ning Que answered seriously, "I can prove it, I was there."


    Shooting a nce at the disciples of the sects from various countries of the Central ins within the tent, Ning Que raised his right hand and pointed at the Commander of the cavalryman of Divine Hall, and said, "I can prove that the cavalrymen of Divine Hall on the meadow back then had stayed dispassionately and left us in the lurch before we rolled back the Horse Gang. After we defeated the Horse Gang, this Lord Commander cunningly lead the cavalries to rush down the meadow, cut the heads of the Horse Gang and took the credit. I, for a time, thought that he had toyed with the idea of getting rid of us witnesses."


    Hearing these words, the crowd burst into an uproar. This young man, unexpectedly, not only was he straightforward about the cold-blooded deeds of the cavalrymen of Divine Hall, but he also used them of a more serious crime, killing the witnesses!


    As the uproar gradually faded away, the crowd looked at Ning Que with uncertainty on his usation of the cavalrymen of Divine Hall. Nobody believed that he could turn over the situation, instead, they thought that he was ying with fire.


    There was a trace of displeasure on the face of the Priest of the Revtion Department. He had never expected that the Calligraphy Addict would be so doughty just when the drama was about to end, and that the young man who came from nowhere would deliberatelyplicate the issue and make the situation even worse for him.


    Before he was about to rap up, out of the corner of his eye he noticed General Shu on his right hand side. He had an unusual expression on his face¡ª¡ªa meaningful smile.


    The Priest of the Revtion Department put on a stern face, wondering if the General from Tang knew this guy.


    Despite its sublime ce in the world, the West-Hill Divine Pce always remained alert and showed great respect to the cavalry of the Tang Empire. Seeing General Shu¡¯s face, the Priest with doleful eyes, didn¡¯t utter a word.


    Facing the usation of being cold-blooded, selfish and indifferent to the friendly forces, robbing the military and even attempting to kill the friendly forces, Chen Bachi, the Commander of the cavalrymen of Divine Hall, felt depressed like wet clouds in the Min Mountain.


    Staring maliciously at Ning Que beside the drapery, he didn¡¯t realize that Ning Que was the dark figure behind the firewall below the meadow. He noticed Ning Que¡¯s clothes and angrily rebuked him, "From your clothes, I can tell you are just a disciple of the ck Ink Garden, how dare you use me of this matter?"


    Shaking his head, Ning Que said, "I¡¯m not the disciple of the ck Ink Garden."


    When he finished speaking, he took Cat Girl by her hand and walked toward the meeting tent. He stepped calmly on the solid carpet wearing his leather boots, and he barely made a sound. The disciples of each sect on both sides of the passageway had curious expressions on their faces, wondering where his calm confidencee from now that he had admitted that he was not the disciple of the ck Ink Garden.


    The Commander of the cavalrymen of Divine Hall opened his eyes wider and caught a nce of Aunt Quni Madi.


    Since Ning Que appeared in the meeting tent, Quni Madi had been indifferent and silent and didn¡¯t even look at him once, for she was too proud to notice these nonentities. Not until she sensed the gaze from the Cavalry Commander, and then she raised her head to look at Ning Que who was just walking inside. With a cold voice, she said, "Now that you¡¯re not the disciple of the ck Ink Garden, why did you show up at the camp of the food supply team and wear the clothes of the ck Ink Garden? You devil from the heterodox doctrine! How dare you pretend to be one of us? (turning to the disciples) Catch him and make a detailed inquiry!"


    This type of confidence was brought by status and strength. Aunt Quni Madi, the Mighty One with powerful forces, didn¡¯t even care to discuss or negotiate with her opponents. Instead, she would just strike her opponent as much as she liked. "Who would dare to say anything even if one was deeply wronged?"


    Unlike the disciples of other sects inside the tent who were still hesitant, those sadhus from the White Tower Temple of the Yuelun Kingdom had already stood up with canes in their hands after hearing the words of Aunt Quni Madi, itching to take the young man down.


    Mo Shanshan frowned at the situation, before she could give orders, the girls behind her cried out aloud and took swords to hold up the monks of the White Tower Temple. Things got messed up.


    Just at that very moment, one monk of the White Tower Temple saw Ning Que¡¯s face clearly. Genuinely shocked, he stopped his senior brothers and junior brothers, and walked quickly to Quni Madi, and whispered in her ears.


    This was the monk who had acted under the order of his master to discuss ownership of the hot spring, wounded Zhuo Zhihua, hit Cat Girl and was finally beaten by Ning Que and was badly injured. So it was easy for him to recognize Ning Que at their second meeting for that encounter had left a deep impression on him, besides, Ning Que hadn¡¯t worn a mask.


    When Quni Madi heard that this young man was the disciple of the Academy, her deep-set eyes glistened and the wrinkles on her face stretched as if they were soothed by a breeze. She stared at Ning Que and said in a hoarse voice, "So you are the disciple of the Academy in training. How dare you be so arrogant, you think I wouldn¡¯t dare to teach you a lesson?"


    Ning Que had walked to the foreside of the tent, he dropped his hand and let Cat Girl go to the disciples of the ck Ink Garden. Looking at the old woman, he frowned and said shaking his head, "I am just trying to verify the words of the disciples of the ck Ink Garden, why do you act in haste to lecture at me? Do you think you are my teacher? Or are you afraid that I will tell the truth? What scares you so much?"


    He asked the questions in a calm and moderate manner without any aggressiveness. But since they were targeted at the cranky Aunt Quni Madi who had status and position, the usation in these words was obvious. So conceivably, the crowds were greatly shocked by the arrogance of the disciple of the Academy.


    With no expression, Quni Madi looked at Ning Que coldly as if he were dead. People who knew her were conscious of the fact that she had already be extremely furious.


    "I don¡¯t know which instructor in the Academy is your teacher. But as far as I can see, I¡¯m qualified enough to lecture you. Well, speaking of the truth, I¡¯m eager to see what evidence you¡¯re going to show us."


    Quni Madi¡¯s voice was hoarse and unpleasant and was muddled with contempt.


    Ning Queughed and said, "My word is evidence."


    The Commander of the cavalrymen of Divine Hall got angry and snapped, "Nonsense! Since when can one¡¯s words be taken as evidence?"


    Ning Que showed no anger, he gently replied, "I¡¯m aware that in the past the words of this olddy were treated as evidence. Then why can¡¯t my words be treated as such?"


    The audience burst into a repetitive uproar, not because of the toughness of the disciple of the Academy, but because she was addressed as the "Old Lady". Ning Que definitely knew the identity of Aunt Quni Madi, but he addressed her in a very casual manner. He not only showed boldness but also outright contempt!


    Old Lady? Quni Madi had never been called that.The Administrator of the Yuelun Kingdom or the Three Great Divine Priests of the Divine Hall was modest and treated her with respect. She was so angry at the unexpected humiliation from a junior, that her body was shivering and her hoary hands holding the chair tightly. It seemed like she was about to attack Ning Que.


    Ning Que would have been dead already if he weren¡¯t the disciple of the Academy. In spite of Ning Que being the disciple of the Academy, she wasn¡¯t going to do the Tang Empire any favors and be soft to him.


    The Commander of the cavalrymen of Divine Hall couldn¡¯t control himself anymore, he flew into a rage, patted heavily on the console table and indignantly denounced, "Aunt is the sister of the Administrator of the Yuelun Kingdom and Bhadanta of the Buddhism Sect, you cunning rat, how dare youpare yourself with Aunt!"


    Walking to the girls of the Great River Kingdom, Ning Que signaled to those anxious girls to stay calm with a gentle smile, then nodded to Mo Shanshan to indicate that everything was under control. Suddenly, the smile on his face disappeared, he split the console table into two halves with a heavy strike and lectured the Commander, "Then who are you? How dare you speak to me like this!"


    The crowds inside the meeting tent were now convinced that the young man a reckless guy. Aunt Quni Madi was just an old woman to him, and he didn¡¯t seem to care much for the Commander of the cavalrymen of Divine Hall. Shocked as they were, they did not make an uproar but just looked coldly as the situation developed.


    The tent fell into deathly stillness, even a cat walking on the solid carpet would attract the eyes of everyone present.


    Ning Que tidied up the front part of his clothes and intended to take out the ID token made of elm from his waist. But he hesitated, wondering how to take out the token and whether to show pride or contempt?


    It was always difficult to freely and easily take out one¡¯s credentials, whether it was the trump card or the ID token.


    If a local government runner took out his ID token, showed it to the robbers, then calmly introduced himself as a government official, the robbers would be frightened and fold their hands for capture. While the god of gambling would stretch out his trump card at the bottom, and with a smile say to his opponent on his opposite side that his point was just a little bitrger. His opponents face would turn to ash, and he would ce his hands on his chest and fall to the ground.


    One¡¯s action, expression, and tone should be consistent with the token showing move, so as to seem moderate instead of bullying others, extremely proud yet showing no ill temper.


    The proud Ning Que had many acquaintances who were as proud as he was. But Second Brother was the only one he admired a lot and the only one who had an infinite charm.


    Ning Que had the thought that if it were Second Brother who took out the ID token, he would shock so many mighty ones and charm numerous girls. Nope, Second Brother wouldn¡¯t care to take out his ID token, the wooden club above his head was itself a perfect ID token.


    Considering the fine example of Second Brother and his warnings, Ning Que always kept in mind to maintain a generous gesture when representing the Back Mountain of the Academy for the first time. He had been regretting the casualty with which he took out his ID token on the meadow earlier, and became more hesitant this time around.


    If he were to hold the ID token in the air like holding a torch, then everyone would be able to see it clearly but it would also be foolish; while it would look handsome for him to draw out the ID token like drawing out a knife, if people weren¡¯t able to clearly see the characters on the token and misunderstand him as initiating an attack, what would he do? Though he didn¡¯t fear the Aunt of the Divine Hall, he was aware that the Old Lady could kill him with just one finger...


    The atmosphere got tense and depressed with a deadly stillness. Everyone kept their eyes on Ning Que, and noticed that he had put on a weird expression and was likely immersed in deep thought. They would be extremely surprised if they knew that Ning Que was just thinking of trivial matters that had nothing to do with what was going on right now.


    General Shu Cheng, who was from the Military Ministry of Chang¡¯an, had been watching Ning Que since his entry into the meeting tent. Already guessing Ning Que¡¯s identity, the General looked at Ning Que¡¯s face and thought it inappropriate for Ning Que to give a self-introduction. So he coughed and said with a smile, "Mr.Thirteen, since you¡¯re not a disciple of the ck Ink Garden, would you please sit here beside me?"


    General Shu¡¯s words attracted the attention of all.


    Ning Que was surprised to find that the General already knew him, he became dumbfounded for a second and then relieved himself. Nodding at Mo Shanshan, he walked toward General Shu Cheng.


    "Allow me to introduce this young man."


    Standing up, General Shu Cheng gently patted Ning Que on his shoulder. He first nodded to the Priest of the Revtion Department, then looked at the crowd inside the tent, and said in a calm and warm tone, "Ning Que is the most famous calligrapher since Tianqi of Tang Empire and is deeply liked by His Majesty. Despite his identity as the sessor of Master Yan Se, the Great Divine Priest of the West Hill, it is worth to mention that he won against Prince Long Qing during thepetition of the Second floor of the Academy."


    Facing the crowd, Ning Que made a bow with hands folded in front.


    ...


    ...


    The tent fell into sudden silence, but the crowd all nced at Ning Que with shock and adoration in their eyes.


    The Priest of the Revtion Department looked curiously at Ning Que smiling with no words. Though he had guessed something earlier, he was still shocked at the affirmation of his guess, but he showed little emotion.


    In the quietness, Ning Que stared at Aunt Quni Madi, whose face had turned gloomy and said, "Had you said earlier that no one would ever believe you could tell lies?"


    After a pause, he turned to face the crowds and asked warmly, "Then I would ask who would believe that me, as a student of the Second floor of the Academy and one of the core disciples of the Headmaster of the Academy, could tell ties?"


    His words apparently frightened every one present, and nobody dared to respond.

 Chapter 236: Slightly Venting by a Thorn Stick

    Chapter 236: Slightly Venting by a Thorn Stick


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Just as Quni Madi asked about it, everyone became quiet after his remark. Not everyone believed what Ning Que said, but none of them dared to doubt him. People believed in him not because he had a noble and holy reputation, but because he ranked thirteenth in the Back Mountain of the Academy and had a teacher named the Headmaster of Academy.


    To the people of the world, West-Hill Divine Pce naturally was the most sacred and holiest ce. While the Academy in the southern suburbs of the Tang capital Chang¡¯an was the noblest ce. The reason why the Tang Empire had invincible cavalries in the world, smooth domestic politics, and harmonious people was that the majority of the imperial court and all county magistrates had the Academy education background. The Academy alone was already a noble majestic ce, let alone the Second floor of the Academy.


    Those core disciples of the Headmaster of Academy lived on the Second floor and rarely showed up in the secr world, so they gradually became the legendary figures. But when they asionally appeared, they could belittle princes and dwarfed officials, and even put themselves at the same level with bigwigs of Divine Hall. Who would have the courage to question such a character?


    Mo Shanshan once said to her Brothers and Sisters while at a hot spring in the dark blueke that reputation was the most powerless thing, for the power was the power itself just as the brush and ink were only the writing materials. Therefore, today in the tent, during the debate about the Horse Gang on the meadow, all the people actually tended to believe ck Ink Garden disciples, for Mo Shanshan was famous all over the world. But it was the Divine Hall and Yuelun Kingdom that went against her. So no one wanted to or dared not to believe her.


    It was Ning Que who said the same words at this time. Behind him stood two unattainable peaks, the Headmaster of Academy and the Tang Empire. At this moment in the tent, the most powerful speaker was him.


    The screams broke out atst, and the people in the tent who were horrified and speechless, looked at Ning Que. There was nothing but an exmation of suppressed but irrepressible emotion, and then all voices disappeared again, and the tent reverted to its previously silent state, except for the sound of rapid breathing.


    As for those who cultivated in all kinds of sects, the name "Ning Que" was definitely not new to them, although he had only entered the cultivation world with plentiful primordial Qi this spring.


    Under the agreement of Judicial Department¡¯s Great Divine Priest, Divine Hall had been advertising his name. So all the Haotian followers soon knew of the man named Ning Que who had helped another legendary man to behead a Yuelun Kingdom monk and a Sword Master of the South Jin Kingdom in Spring Breeze Pavilion of Chang¡¯an City overnight. People all over the world knew of this man named Ning Que who had defeated the dazzling Prince Long Qing as perfect as the son of a god in a contest on the Second floor of the Academy.


    What was even more shocking to the world was that everyone knew that this name "Ning Que" had appeared on the "Ri" book of the seven Tomes of Arcane. Although no one had seen that book and many people had their doubts about this, they all believed it was true since the news had spread under West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s agreement.


    When Ning Que first entered the Second floor of the Academy, he had be a sessor of Divine Talisman Master and even had the qualification to write his name on Tomes of Arcane. With such shocking experiences, how couldn¡¯t he make the young cultivators of all sects in the tent shocked, reverent and envious?


    Maybe because of the Spring Breeze Pavilion matter and those dead people involved in it, Sword Garret of South Jin Kongdom disciples and the monks of Yuelun Kingdom White Tower Temple showed a bit of hostility besides awe and admiration in their eyes.


    In fact, ck Ink Garden disciples were the ones who were most shocked. Cat Girl¡¯s face slightly flushed and stared at Ning Que. Her bright eyes were full of joy and incredible expressions. The girls tightly covered their lips so that they did not scream out of shock.


    They thought that Ning Que was just an ordinary Academy student and they never expected that he would be a core disciple of the Headmaster of Academy. They could not believe their own ears as they thought of the time when they had met beside a hot spring and had killed enemies side by side in the Wilderness.


    After Mo Shanshan heard that name, her gaze became fixated on Ning Que and her hands in her sleeves, that used to hold a brush as steadily as a beautiful mountain, slightly shook. There was still no expression in her dull round cheeks but only a touch of tiredness that suddenly appeared in her eyes and brows. She sent the little saber in her hands back to the Zhuo Zhihua¡¯s waist.She sat back in her chair in silence, her wandering eyes bewildered. She did not nce at Ning Que anymore.


    Ning Que did not notice the subtle mood changes of the girl at this time. After he sat next to General Shu Cheng, he did not say more but just quietly watched the Revtion Department Priest.


    Because he did not look at Quni Madi, the noble Aunt looked increasingly gloomy.


    The Revtion Department Priest did not see Quni Madi, either. He looked at the silver hair in front of his eyes and suddenly smiled, and then quickly made a decision. He looked at Ning Que and said, "Mr. Thirteen, how do we deal with this matter?"


    On hearing himself being addressed as"Mr. Thirteen", Ning Que was slightly startled, for he thought the bigwig of Divine Hall had long been aware of his identity at the frontier fortress of North of Yan Kingdom. Suddenly Ning Que remembered something and understood why the bigwig addressed him this way.


    Once upon a time, there was a mountain, an Academy in the mountain, a Headmaster in the Academy, and the Headmaster was the tallest one... This passage might only be a jingle to the earthly people, but an undoubted truth for bigwigs in the cultivation world, especially the people like the Divine Hall Priest who knew a lot of historical secrets.


    Of course, the sentence that the Headmaster was the tallest one did not mean he was tall in height, although he was indeed tall. It not only meant his high status in moral, articles and ideological state, but also referred to his high seniority.


    ording to Haotian hierarch Lord¡¯s and Lanke Temple Elder¡¯s childhood memories, the Headmaster of Academy had lived for at least one hundred years. And ording to the self-deprecating words the Headmaster of Academy had said, living for a longer time would always be more advantageous, such as seniority. Therefore, in this world, no one had the same seniority with the Headmaster of Academy.


    Even those who were contemporary with the Headmaster¡¯s disciples had already died. So when Master Yan Se had talked to Second Brother Jun Mo that day in the Back Mountain of the Academy, they had had such a dispute on seniority. Therefore, whether Divine Hall or the real bigwigs of Buddhism Sect, they never called those disciples in the Back Mountain of the Academy with traditional seniority appetions.


    The Academy itself also had this problem, as there was a big generation gap between the forecourt and the Back Mountain. In order to avoid such an unspeakable embarrassment, they formed an appetion habit. The forecourt instructors called those in the Back Mountain ording to their age, such as Mr. First and Mr. Second. This habit gradually spread outside the Academy. Because the people in the Back Mountain basically did not show up in the secr world, a lot of people gradually forgot it. Probably only the bigwigs of Divine Hall still remembered this rule.


    Therefore, Ning Que was Mr. Thirteen.


    Whether in Military camps, or in the world of cultivation strongmen.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que was not a typical Tang. However, he had joined the army since adolescence. Although now he was no longer the little soldier of a border town, he still retained a lot of habits in this respect. What disgusted him the most in his life, were those jerks who did not helppanies but robbed military exploits. Ning Que knew that cavalrymen of Divine Hall had robbed Blue Water Battalion¡¯s military exploits at Dongsheng Stockaded Vige. After he went into the Wilderness and experienced that bloody battle, he did not have any good impression of cavalrymen of Divine Hall. Since he was Mr. Thirteen, he had inevitably developed a temper. So when he clearly knew what kind of answer the Revtion Department Priest wanted to hear, he still did not do as the Priest wished.


    The Revtion Department Priest fell into silence.


    As an important figure in Divine Hall, he should certainly defend the people of Divine Hall. However, in recent years, there were two celebrities, Tao Addict and Longqing, who came from the Judicial Department that was experiencing a rapid expansion. In addition, Light Department had to keep a low profile owing to a secret matter. So the whole Judicial Department had be extremely arrogant. As the Revtion Department Priest, he had been dissatisfied with its arrogance for a long time. Today Ning Que took the Academy¡¯s reputation as a guarantee. So he followed his own meaning and was fearless of being criticized as detrimental to the dignity of Divine Hall and was not afraid of the censures of Tao Addict and other people afterward because it could be regarded as maintaining the Divine Hall¡¯s reputation of brightness and fairness.


    Since he was determined, he looked at Ning Que and said with a smile, "Themander of cavalrymen of Divine Hall, Chen Bachi will ept 40 beatings of thorn sticks and will report to the Judicial Department god for deposition. His cavalries will be punished with hardbor for six months after going back to The Peach Mountain. What do you think of it?"


    This penalty did not include Quni Madi, Flower Addict and Revtion Institute disciples. But it was also natural, for he could not make any rash decision even if he was the Revtion Department Priest.


    Ning Que knew that it was impossible for him to ask for more. So he gently nodded with a mild expression and naturally did not forget to praise the bright side of Divine Hall. At this time he did not show the shyness of the Headmaster¡¯s disciples.


    General Shu Cheng softly touched his beard and showed his agreement. So this incident had a final conclusion. At the time of deliberation, there was no one who went to ask for Quni Madi¡¯s opinion.


    Quni Madi sat beside the Revtion Department priest. Her old face looked dark and grim and her old hands tightly holding onto chair rails kept shaking. She was naturally not afraid of anything but could almost not suppress her inner anger.


    Upon hearing the 40 beatings of thorn sticks, themander of cavalrymen of Divine Hall, Chen Bachi¡¯s face instantly became very pale.


    A thorn stick was a special punishment tool inside Divine Hall. With dark pine wood as a pir, it was wrapped with misceneous steel thorns.There was a rumor that many years ago the first Great Divine Priest of Judgment understood the meaning of Haotian after having carried this thorn stick on his back for twenty years. As a subordinate of Judicial Department, he certainly knew this legend and was aware of how many sufferings such a thorn stick would cause.


    In the past years, he had followed Prince Long Qing to supervise around and arrest the Devil¡¯s Doctrine survivors, renegades and betrayers. He had used a thorn stick to beat those wretched people and made it worse than death for them. He had seen those blood cuts and messy twisted flesh like linen ropes on their backs. But he never expected that he would have a simr treatment today.


    He was a master in the state of Seethrough and had a very important position in the Judicial Department. However, as Divine Hall had a strict hierarchy and the Revtion Department Priest had made such a decision, he dared not to resist or express his objection and protest. He only tightly bit his teeth and allowed the Divine Hall steward to drag him out.


    A cultivator in Seethrough was very powerful, but his body was no different from that of ordinary people. Soon after a heavy muffled beating sounded outside the tent, themander of cavalrymen of Divine Hall, Chen Bachi, finally could not help uttering a miserable painful howl. He wanted to bite his teeth so as not to cry out and shame the Judicial Department, but he could not resist that kind of severe pain under the Judicial Department¡¯s thorn stick, even if he had gritted his own teeth.


    The people in the tent heard the muffled sounds as the thorn stick beat his back, the miserable howlings and even faint hissing sound as the thorn stick¡¯s fine steel wire hook tore out his flesh. They could not help but have slight chills running inside their bodies.


    Upon hearing these sounds, Great River Kingdom girls tightly bit their lips and thought of those dead Younger Brothers under the meadow. They finally felt relieved a bit after having been gloomy for a long time. They could not help looking toward Ning Que and their eyes were full of gratitude.

 Chapter 237: Its Been A Long Time Since I Last Saw Your Trick

    Chapter 237: It¡¯s Been A Long Time Since I Last Saw Your Trick


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    After Chen Bachi was lifted from outside the tent, no one believed that he was previously the seriousmander of cavalrymen of Divine Hall with a bright future. It seemed that both the Emperor and the Saints would be tragic prisoners as long as they were stripped of their clothes and flesh was torn out from their backs forming an inexplicable blood painting.


    The Revtion Department Priest nced at the fleshy body on the nket and his facial expression did not change in the slightest. He spoke in a harsh tone, of course mainly reiterating thews of Divine Hall and warning everyone that Haotian¡¯s eyes of fairness would always watch the world and anyone who dared to offend him would be punished.


    Ning Que did not seriously listen to the remark. This was not because he was disgusted with this bigwig of Divine Hall or because he wanted to express strong contempt for hypocrisy but because in his view, sometimes hypocrisy was also a good character to have. The reason why he could not concentrate on it was that the person mournfully lying on the nket was staring at him.


    Chen Bachi, whose blood was flowing like a stream and whose tendons were twisted together, looked up at Ning Que¡¯s eyes with his unblinking gray pupils. There was nothing emotional in his eyes other than indifference. But it was this kind of indifference that deeply demonstrated his hatred towards Ning Que.


    As amander of Divine Hall Apologetic Divine Forces and a strongman in Seethrough, he had never suffered such humiliation before.


    He knew that he was not qualified to hate the Academy and he was even less likely tounch a cold revenge on Ning Que. At the same time, he also believed that the two Priests of Judicial Department, especially Prince Long Qing, would certainly avenge him in the future. So even though he was in pain and his mind slightly hazy, he still stared at Ning Que because he wanted to remember his face clearly.


    The matter of the Horse Gang on the meadow had ended with Divine Hall¡¯s severe punishment on themander. Therefore, even if Chen Bachi stared at Ning Que, Ning Que no longer had any other means to deal with this. Ning Que could not beat him like those bullies in Chang¡¯an West City just for staring at him.


    However, Ning Que was not afraid of anything and he knew the hidden meaning behind that indifferent look in the eyes of that bloody man lying on the ground. So he slowly squatted down to his level and unceremoniously red back at the man. He said, "Sir, your gaze shows your hatred towards me. But unfortunately, you can¡¯t kill me with your gaze."


    "You should know that when we were in the camp, we anxiously pined for you toe down from the meadow."


    Suddenly, he remembered that Master Yan Se once told him that a real Grand Cultivator, such as Second Brother, could kill someone with just one nce. He then thought of how he himself needed to rely on an ID token and the reputations of the Academy and the Headmaster of Academy to bully people. He could not help feeling somewhat resentful, for he could only rely on the Academy¡¯s reputation to scare others.


    No one could detect Ning Que¡¯s resentful mood at the time. On the contrary, many people in the tent were angered by his presence. Especially when they saw that the miserablemander of cavalrymen of Divine Hall had blood and rotten flesh all over his body and listened to Ning Que¡¯s continuous harsh mockeries. In the eyes of all sects¡¯ disciples, Ning Que who had ordinary eyes and brows as well as a lovely countenance could not really be regarded as an evil person but simply a scum who bullied people.


    Aunt Quni Madi could no longer repress her anger and pped her chair. Then she shouted out loud, "Enough!"


    Ning Que got up and looked towards Quni Madi. He shook his head and said with a smile on his face, "Not enough."


    There were nervousness and silence in the tent. Everyone looked at this young man who had a cute little dimple on his cheek when he smiled and they could not wait to take a pair of scissors and poke through that dimple. They thought that Divine Hall had punished the subordinate and everyone had kept silent. Was that not enough?


    "Earlier on I came into the tent and stopped Hill Master fromunching a life and death fight with you. My interruption was a bit rash because I knew that you Aunt was getting old and weak. If Hill Master really misused her power to hurt you, someone would gossip about it. But I didn¡¯t think that she did anything wrong."


    Ning Que looked at the old woman¡¯s cold look on her wrinkled face and the disdain as well as anger in her eyes. He thought of those scenes he had seen with his own eyes aftering to the frontier fortress of North of Yan Kingdom. He thought of how the despicable shameless old woman bullied, framed, and used her power as well as prestige to push Great River Kingdom girls into a dangerous situation. He frowned and said:


    "I should first ask you, when the food team camp was besieged by the Horse Gang, the cavalrymen of Divine Hall stood by as onlookers. Aunt you were also in the meadow. Did you know about this? If you knew, why didn¡¯t you meddle?"


    Before his voice spread, he quickly asked again, "Earlier when Divine Hall punished its subordinate, aunt you said ¡¯enough¡¯... weren¡¯t you also meddling in things of Divine Hall? If so, why didn¡¯t you meddle that day on the meadow?"


    Ning Que looked at Quni Madi¡¯s old muddied eyes. His tone was very serious. He definitely was not joking. Though his puzzled expression looked mild and he said those words slowly, there was a very tough meaning within them.


    Aunt Quni Madi was so angry that her whole body started trembling. She did not expect that the new disciple of the Academy¡¯s Back Mountain would actuallypletely ignore to respect an elder and instead wanted to teach her a lesson after themander Chen Bachi had paid such a bloody price.


    The Revtion Department Priest frowned slightly. In his opinion, even if Ning Que was a core disciple of the Headmaster of Academy and might represent the attitude of the Academy¡¯s Back Mountain, Divine Hall absolutely did not allow him tounch an attack on Aunt Quni Madi, for Divine Hall had expressed its wish for harmony after the humiliation and bloodshed of a strongman.


    Divine Hall was doomed to maintain her dignity because of the rtionship between the Taoist power and the kingship of Yuelun Kingdom, Aunt Quni Madi¡¯s status in the cultivation world and the Buddhism Sect powers behind her.


    So the Priest cast a very casual nce towards Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom.


    ...


    ...


    Both the Headmaster of Academy and the students on the Second floor of the Academy seldom appeared in this secr world. But those worldly sects still greatly revered the Academy, for there were many legends about the Academy that were popr among different countries and sects that had been passed down from generation to generation. And the legends actually had formed a certain cogitation pattern. Besides, absence made the heart grow fonder thus, the longer the people did not see the Headmaster of Academy and people in the Back Mountain, the more mysterious people in the Academy became.


    Now, they finally saw a disciple on the Second floor of the Academy. But there was nothing extraordinary about him, for he could not summon winds by opening his lips or call the rain by raising his hands. Besides, he showed such pride that their esteem caused by a mysterious and profound sense naturally faded away. Especially for those South Jin Kingdom Sword Masters, they were extremely proud to have the world¡¯s first strongman Sage of Sword, Liu Bai, and also knew that thisd named Ning Que was the culprit who had killed a certain Senior Brotherst year. It was more appropriate to say they were hateful rather than awe-inspiring.


    Of course, that nce of the Revtion Department Priest was so as not to let a South Jin Kingdom Sword Master jump out and kill Ning Que. South Jin Kingdom Sword Masters would not do such a stupid thing. With just one thought of the legend about the Peach Mountain, one would know that even if the Sage of Sword, Liu Bai, was here in person, he would not offend the Academy for no reason.


    A South Jin Kingdom Sword Master said in a low voice, "Mr. Thirteen, you are not a man of Divine Hall. How can you meddle in the matter of Divine Hall?"


    Under the Priest¡¯s gaze and the hatred of the South Jin Kingdom Sword Master towards Ning Que, this Sword Master could only utter a question and a rebuttal. Of course, since no one dared to question the Academy, it was also considered as a brave thing.


    This sentence was naturally aimed at Ning Que¡¯s censure to Aunt Quni Madi.


    Ning Que nced at that South Jin Kingdom Sword Master. He shook his head and said, "Are you an idiot?"


    As soon as he uttered these words, he was shocked.


    Sangsang had asked him if he thought everyone but himself was an idiot. He said there were indeed many idiots doing stupid things in the world. He used to refer to people as idiots behind their backs in front of Sangsang. Those idiots even included the Tang Princess. When he eavesdropped on the Emperor calling others idiots in the imperial study, he got a simr feeling from the Emperor. He and Chen Pipi had formed a bad habit of insulting each other as idiots via letters.


    Only that... when he started cultivation, went into the Back Mountain and walked the road of bing a bigwig, he seldom experienced such delight. So this time he felt a familiar longing and missed the word ¡¯idiot¡¯ for he had not said it for a long time.


    He smiled and looked at South Jin Kingdom Sword Master and continued in a soft and gentle voice. "Such an idiot. My master Yan Se is Great Divine Priest of West-Hill Divine Pce, with three levels: Gods of Revtion, Light and Judge. As his only sessor, I saw someone corrupt Divine Hall¡¯s reputation. If I didn¡¯t meddle, wouldn¡¯t I let down my master¡¯s teaching and shame Haotian?"


    At this time, one would probably turn back to ask the Revtion Department Priest: Your Excellency, do you think I should meddle or not? However, Ning Que did not ask, for he knew that his arrogance or his profiting at others¡¯ expense was proper, but the excess arrogance and profiting too much would only bring him more trouble. At this time, obviously, the Revtion Department Priest did so in the name of equality. He had hunted in Min Mountain for many years and was very clear on what to do when he encountered a simr situation. So he no longer objected it.


    The questioning full of courage and perseverance from the South Jin Kingdom Sword Master was blocked back by Ning Que¡¯s casual words. In the tent, no other person questioned his qualification of caring about the Divine Hall¡¯s affairs. Although the whole world knew that only based on political considerations, West-Hill Divine Pce granted the two Great Divine Priests of South School of Haotian Taoism. However, if they questioned this at this time, weren¡¯t they not going against West-Hill Divine Pce in its presence?


    Aunt Quni Madi¡¯s face was so dark that her body slightly quivered when she stared at Ning Que¡¯s eyes. Suddenly sheughed hoarsely and croaked. She said loudly, "A woman doesn¡¯t serve others but her husband. But a disciple has two masters. I won¡¯t ask Yan Se. But when I meet the Headmaster of Academy in the future, I¡¯d like to ask him what he was thinking. Will he ruin his one-hundred-year reputation for a despicable and disgraceful disciple?"


    Although there was no explicit statement, the implied meanings of the words were directed at the two masters. Although Ning Que had not seen the Headmaster of Academy, he had lived in the Back Mountain for a long time and did not allow anyone to be so presumptuous.


    And he knew that today he could not control this shameless old woman. So he felt displeased for having no other way. However, he did not expect that she would show her weakness at this time. So he decided to take advantage of this chance to punish her.


    Ning Que¡¯s smile slowly faded away and he calmly said, "Previously you asked who my master was and wanted to teach me on behalf of my master. Now you know who my teacher is. But it seems that you also want to teach him."


    He pped his palm on a table next to him, making the table fall down and the tea cups flew around sshing tea all over!


    Ning Que pointed at Quni Madi¡¯s nose, changing his facial expression like turning over a book, and furiously said, "ording to the rules of seniority, you as an olddy should call me uncle! How dare you try to teach me? Don¡¯t you know how to respect an elder? Do you want to ask the Headmaster? Do you think you can see the Headmaster at will? Do you want to teach him? Do you even want to bully your ancestor?"


    Previously themander of cavalrymen of Divine Hall nkly stared at Ning Que and thought this was the greatest humiliation he had ever had in his life.


    At this moment, Quni Madi stretched out her trembling fingers and pointed at Ning Que, thinking that never before in her life had she been humiliated like this. However, due to the silence in the courtroom at this time, the olddy quickly understood that there was no way for her to get revenge today. Because Ning Que could simply not be reasoned with.


    Ning Que was unreasonable.


    He only talked about seniority.


    ...


    ...


    As the sister of Yuelun Kingdom Emperor, she had the iparable strength and extremely high status among the people of the Buddhism Sect. In the past decades, when she met people who were less powerful in strength, she bullied them with her strength. In case she met powerful people, she bullied them with her seniority. Besides, everyone respected her, so she had fared on smoothly all the way and gradually developed this kind of temperament. It could be regarded as hating evil in a good version or being arrogant and narrow-minded in a bad version.


    She did not expect that someone would actually use this tactic to deal with her, and the only thing that she could do was listen to his words honestly, because there was nothing wrong with the other party ording to her normal habit of speech and action.


    The seniority of the Headmaster of Academy was indeed very high. Even if she was an elder woman with the highest seniority in Buddhism Sect, they had a gap of two generations. This meant that she should respectfully call Ning Que uncle if it was strictly required.


    She humiliated her uncle and questioned her ancestors... This was equal to deceiving her teacher and bullying her ancestor.


    Quni Madi was so exasperated that she felt dizzy in her mind. She actually seemed to vaguely see those fellows who dared not to look up under her fierce censures and pressure of seniority all these years. She wondered if she had to suffer the same humiliation today.


    She stared at Ning Que and her skinny old hands hanging outside her sleeves started trembling violently. There was a strong wave of Qi of Heaven and Earth surging in the tent.


    Ning Que looked up and watched her from a higher position. He calmly put his hands behind his back, there were no traces of aura fluctuations around his body.


    He did not need to say anything, for he had clearly expressed his meaning.


    "Come and hit me. Come and hit me. Do you dare to kill me? If only you old woman really got mad and dared to hit me in front of so many people. I don¡¯t need the supermundane killers like Eldest Brother and Second Brother. All I need is to send Mr. Twelve Chen Pipi to kill you with only a nce."


    This respected aunt had not entered Knowing Destiny State.


    Ning Que looked at her and shook his head. He sighed and said, "As a mighty person of Buddhism Sect, you actually don¡¯t know how cheap your life is. No wonder you an elderly woman has such low morals and till now you still haven¡¯t entered Knowing Destiny State."


    Although Quni Madi had a royal identity, she had perseverance and fortitude on cultivation, distinguished status, noble seniority and powerful strength. The most painful and regrettable thing in her life was that she could not step over that high threshold.


    After continuous stimtion, she almost let her anger get the best of her. But she knew she could not attack Ning Que here. So she had been suppressing herself. But she never expected to hear such a sentence in the end!


    Aunt Quni Madi forced herself to swallow the fresh blood that was about to pour out of her dry lips and used herst soberness to have a ckout. Whether this was true or not, she just fell down backward.


    Everyone eximed in the tent.

 Chapter 238: Crooked Calligraphy

    Chapter 238: Crooked Calligraphy


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Aunt Quni Madi had to be carried out of the tent by disciples because of her physical difort. Whether it was the asional cold or an urgent heart attack, one could only guess by watching the Yuelun Kingdom and White Tower Temple monks who seemed to emit fire from their eyes.


    Ning Que looked at the old woman¡¯s frail silhouette, showing no sympathy. He thought in his heart, "I haven¡¯t even seen the Headmaster of Academy. You actually want to me him. What kind of stick do you think you are?"


    He turned his eyes and suddenly had the absurd idea of putting the big ck umbre that sat behind him over his head. He secretly thought that he would be more like Second Brother if he did so.


    He was showing his arrogance for the teachings of Second Brother. Although his idea was absurd, it was natural for him to have this association.


    Everyone in the Academy tended to be proud and arrogant, including the legendary Youngest Uncle, Second Brother, Senior Brothers, Senior Sisters and Ning Que. The people in the tent had been somewhat shocked and angry. But when they thought of the long-circting stories, they had to keep silent. The Academy had an arrogant quality. If it was weak, it would be bullied even if it wasn¡¯t arrogant. If it was strong enough, no matter how arrogant it was, others dared not to offend it, just like Quni Madi.


    Because of the things that had happened, the follow-up meeting agenda had be much simpler. Ning Que did pay much attention and let his thoughts drift. When he came to himself, the Divine Hall meeting was over and many of the people in the tent had dispersed.


    The Revtion Department Priest smiled slightly and left to rest. General Shu Cheng looked at Ning Que. With a smile, he said, "I know it¡¯sfortable to stay with refreshing girls. But we have a camp here and you have already shown your identity. Are you still going to the barrack of ck Ink Garden? It might not be good for the imperial court¡¯s reputation."


    "I see. Of course. I¡¯ll go with you."


    Ning Que felt quite embarrassed by the general¡¯s mockery. He knew that in many people¡¯s eyes, it was improper for him, a disciple of the Academy¡¯s Second floor, to follow Great River Kingdom girls all the way north into the Wilderness under a disguise.


    The young girls and students of ck Ink Garden were still surprised. They wanted toe forward and talk to Ning Que but dared not considering his true identity.


    Ning Que smiled at the girls, preparing to say something. But unexpectedly Mo Shanshan stood up silently and went outside the tent without a word. He could not help feeling startled.


    Zhuo Zhihua sighed in her heart and apologized to Ning Que with a smile. She stopped Cat Girl who was about to move forward and asked her sisters to bow to the Tang army. Then she followed Mo Shanshan outside the tent.


    Ning Que could not help touching his head. He wondered what was wrong with Calligraphy Addict.


    ...


    ...


    It was quiet in the Tang camp. All the patrol soldiers looked serious. Under the escort of a few guards, Ning Que and General Shu Cheng walked slowly among them. No one dared to disturb them.


    A banner blew above the camp in the cold winter wind. Ning Que looked up and could not help thinking of life in the frontier fortress of the City of Wei. He missed it so much. He was about to mention it when General Shu Cheng looked back at him with a faint smile. And then Shu Cheng said expressively, "Calligraphy Addict is a good girl."


    Ning Que knew that he must misunderstand them. He could not help but bitterly smile.


    General Shu Cheng shook his head, touched his beard and said, "Mr. Thirteen, no need to say more. She is Calligraphy Addict, a proper match for a disciple of the Academy¡¯s Back Mountain. The Tang Empire and Great River Kingdom have had a good rtionship for generations. I believe both the Academy and His Majesty will be very satisfied with this marriage."


    Ning Que suddenly understood why the General and the previous Revtion Department priest had had such gentle eyes when giving their farewell, just like matchmakers.


    Because of his current identity, his marriage was no longer a purely private affair. He needed to ask for permission from the imperial court and the Academy. Besides, among female disciples in various sects of the world, few could match with a core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy. Of course, Calligraphy Addict was the best candidate.


    Ning Que did not really know how to exin. He really appreciated Calligraphy Addict. She wore a white shirt with a blue ribbon and stood on the branches. But no matter what, it was his own affair after all. How could it be a thing for others to decide? In order to resolve his embarrassment, he changed the conversation topic by saying, "I thought that the Priest would tend to maintain the dignity of Divine Hall by any means. I didn¡¯t expect his punishment to be rather fair."


    "The Revtion Department is in charge of the Revtion Institute. And Prince Long Qing had a pleasant experience in Revtion Institute during those years." General Shu Cheng said, "So the rtionship between the Revtion Department Priest and Prince Long Qing has been somewhat subtle. Especially in recent years, the Judicial Department has be more and more powerful and Prince Long Qing has be well-known in the world. So the Revtion Department is under tremendous pressure."


    Ning Que said with ament, "I see. But I didn¡¯t expect there would be so many secr disputes in Divine Hall."


    "Divine Hall shines all over the world. But after all, the resources avable to it are not unlimited. So three Great Divine Priests lead their own forces separately and certainlypete with each other. However, the three Great Divine Priests are above God. So naturally, they can¡¯t fight like individual rogues or gangsters. As a result, the real contests appear among the three Priests. "


    General Shu Cheng continued to exin. "There are two bigwigs in the Judicial Department. Tao Addict is addicted to Taoism and doesn¡¯t care about specific matters too much. Prince Long Qing takes a specific management of Judicial Department deacons, Apologetic Divine Forces and secret spies. If the Revtion Department wants to crack down on the arrogance of the Judicial Department, of course, their efforts should first be aimed at Prince Long Qing."


    He looked at Ning Que and said, "In spring, you won against Prince Long Qing. It was an intolerable humiliation for a lot of people in the Divine Hall. But the whole Revtion Department probably felt very grateful for you."


    Ning Que thought of the Revtion Department Priest with silver hair but a young face. He frowned slightly and said, "The Revtion Department Priest, how old is he? Is he stronger or weaker than Long Qing?"


    If he could know this, he could roughly infer the true strength of the younger generation in the Divine Hall. The reason he wanted to know this was that he always tended topare the Academy with the Divine Hall.


    "The Revtion Department Priest Cheng Lixue should be just over thirty years old this year. And as for his cultivation state," General Shu Cheng shook his head before continuing. "Both the Military Ministry and Imperial Center Administration have only a rough estimate on the cultivation states of the Divine Hall people. Just like Prince Long Qing, everyone says he only needs one step to enter Knowing Destiny State. But no one knows how big that step is."


    Ning Que no longer thought about these issues. He looked at a quiet faraway tent. After a short moment of silence, he said, "General, there¡¯s one thing I may need your help with."


    ...


    ...


    The disciples of ck Ink Lake walked on yellow winter grass towards their camp. Cat Girl saw Ning Que and the Tang general go into the Tang camp. She reluctantly took back her gaze. With knitted brows, she asked curiously, "Brother Zhong... no, Senior Brother Ning had a strange expression when he finally faced Aunt Quni Madi. I don¡¯t know how to describe it." ..


    The girls thought of the previous scene. Aunt Quni Madi had been so angry that her body trembled. Her face had been dark, as if she was likely to drop down at any time. However, Ning Que had stood in front of her with a gentle smile, even raising his face instead of hiding or avoiding her. It was difficult to exin the temperament or feeling revealed from his body.


    Cat Girl bit her finger and thought for a long time. She was suddenly enlightened. She pped her small palms excitedly. Looking at her Senior Sisters, she said, "I know, Senior Brother was really bitchy at the time... haha, but I like it."


    The Great River Kingdom girls were startled. Then they realized that the word "bitchy" was indeed the best choice to describe Ning Que at the time. They could not help covering their mouths andughing. They also liked his bitchy manner.


    Only Mo Shanshan in front did notugh. She did not have the slightest expression on her silent face.


    Zhuo Zhihua looked at Shanshan and gradually hid her smile, showing a trace of anxiety.


    Back at the camp, Mo Shanshan seemed to havepletely forgotten the previous conflict and scenes in the tent. She calmly poured water, grinded an inkstone, wet her brush and sat in front of the desk, ready to write.


    Zhuo Zhihua waved her sleeves to signal for the sisters to leave temporarily. She walked to the table and half sat with her knees bent. She looked silently at the expression on Shanshan¡¯s white cheeks. After a long time, she whispered. "Why did you leave like that?"


    Mount Mo Shan stiffened her right hand which held the brush slightly. After a moment of silence, she replied, "Then how should I leave?"


    She was Calligraphy Addict, a Hill Master with the highest status in ck Ink Garden under Mogan Mountain, and thest core Master disciple of Calligrapher Master Wang. But she was not old. In the eyes of Zhuo Zhihua, she was more like a childish sister who was addicted to Calligraphy.


    Zhuo Zhihua quietly looked at her and gently said, "Mr. Thirteen has helped us a lot all the way. Today in the tent if he hadn¡¯t shown up to defend us, I¡¯m afraid ck Ink Garden would have more troubles. Even if it¡¯s not for hispany these days, just out of gratitude, you should say goodbye to him."


    Mo Shanshan gently turned her wrist. The ink brush touched the yellow paper. She wrote a horizontal character stroke and whispered. "I¡¯ve never told anyone before, but actually, the Horse Gangs came for him. Since then, we have no reason to be grateful to him. On the contrary, it¡¯s he who has dragged us down. He should have opened his mouth to speak for us in the tent today."


    Zhuo Zhihua looked at the crooked horizontal character stroke on the paper. Zhuo Zhihua could not helpughing and immediately said with a soft sigh, "You know it¡¯s not what I¡¯m talking about."


    Mo Shanshan looked at the earthworm-like ugly characters on the paper, feeling slightly angry. "Then what are you trying to say?"


    Zhuo Zhihua looked at Shanshan¡¯s slightly annoyed eyes and said with a smile, "I mean since you¡¯ve secretly liked Sir Ning for so long, now that you¡¯ve seen the real person, why not go tell him?"


    Mo Shanshan was startled yet continued to bend forward and write. "I don¡¯t know what nonsense you¡¯re talking about."


    Zhuo Zhihua smiled and said no more. She left the tent, leaving Mo Shanshan alone to contemte.


    Mo Shanshan did not think anything, for the thoughts in her mind had be a mess. She just unconsciously held the brush and kept writing. She opened her thin lips slightly. With annoyance, she muttered to herself. "So you¡¯re that guy. But you¡¯ve been hiding it from me. Why should I go talk to you? I can¡¯t be so bitchy... "


    As she murmured to herself, a touch of shame and annoyance appeared in her eyes at times. A slight blush also appeared on her heaved pink cheeks.


    On the yellow paper were tangled ink characters, which were so ugly that even she could have written better when she was three years old.

 Chapter 239: Those Things That She Couldnt Put Down

    Chapter 239: Those Things That She Couldn¡¯t Put Down


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "I rank thirteenth, so you may call me Thirteen."


    ...


    ...


    "You¡¯re also familiar with talismans?"


    "A little."


    ...


    ...


    "Senior Brother Thirteen, are you also familiar with calligraphy?"


    "A little."


    ...


    ...


    "Senior Brother Thirteen, what do you think of this Chicken Soup Calligraphy?"


    "The strokes in this piece are unrestrained, appearing leisurely butcking in soul. This piece seems novel, but in actuality, the calligrapher used some underhanded tricks to mimic the proper method of doing calligraphy. Itcks honesty and elegance, not at all worth a mention."


    ...


    ...


    Like the Wilderness cold winds that constantly entered the tents, those conversations during their journey kept emerging in Mo Shanshan¡¯s mind. Her dazed eyes appeared more and more confused, even somewhat lost.


    He ranked thirteenth in the Academy. Who else could it be but him? Besides that man, which Tang person would dare show so much contempt for the Chicken Soup Calligraphy and the Flower Blooms Section? Besides, he had admitted to knowing about Talisman Taoism a little that night. Why didn¡¯t she put two and two together? She probably had known about this deep down.


    She looked at the sheet of paper seemingly marked with a child¡¯s scribbles on the table and reached out to turn it into a paper roll. She was so embarrassed and angry that she didn¡¯t want anyone to see her. But she didn¡¯t know if this feeling came from the twisted calligraphy or her lost heart. However, whatever it was, her embarrassment wasced with annoyance at the moment.


    He apanied her throughout the long journey and eventually even staying in her carriage. But she didn¡¯t know this man was that man. She even admitted liking Senior Brother Thirteen in front of him, though he wasn¡¯t aware it was he that she was talking about and she didn¡¯t know the man she had a crush on was the same person in front of her. However, now she finally knew they were one and the same.


    Calligraphic Addict was known to be a girl of good breeding and manners. For her to do something like that, how could she not be embarrassed? If that man knew the truth, how could she not feel like dying of shame? Zhuo Zhihua even wanted her to exin to him, how could she not feel annoyed?


    With trembling fingers, she pulled out that well-preserved copy from the side of the table. When she looked at the words on the paper, her long and thin eyshes brushed gently across her cheeks as if trying to hide the blush on her fair skin.


    News of the surprising Tang calligrapher in Chang¡¯an came to her in spring. She found out there was young calligrapher who had received the deep admiration of the Tang Emperor in a distant foreign country. She habituallymanded her deacon to collect copies of the calligrapher¡¯s works. Though she didn¡¯t see the legendary Flower Blooms Sect piece, she saw this copy of Chicken Soup Calligraphy.


    The legendary young calligrapher was epted as the sessor to the Divine Talisman position simply because Master Yan Se loved his Chicken Soup Calligraphy. As someone who had been learning from the Divine Talisman and Master of Calligrapher, Master Wang, Calligraphic Addict naturally knew how strict the Divine Talisman Master would be when it came to the requirements for the sessor. Thus, she had been carefully observing this Chicken Soup Calligraphy for a long time.


    She didn¡¯t see the potential Master Yan Se saw in the calligrapher, nor did she shed tears like the girls in the House of Red Sleeves did after listening to Master Yan She¡¯s take on the meaning of the calligraphy piece. But she wasn¡¯t far from bing a Divine Talisman Master herself so she could tell there were many meanings hidden in this calligraphy piece.


    In addition, she had also seen many other copies of this piece. Proud as she was, she had to admit the young calligrapher from Chang¡¯an City wrote very well. Besides the Master of Calligrapher, no one was his rival in this world.


    When news of the mountaineering test on the Second Floor of the Academy reached the Great River Kingdom, she was shocked to find that the calligrapher had actually defeated Prince Long Qing and became a disciple of the Headmaster of Academy.


    She used to be good friends with Flower Addict and they often exchanged correspondence. So she knew very well that Prince Long Qing was a nearly perfect person, but he actually lost to that man. Now, even the Headmaster of Academy also epted him as a student. Then... this person surely was decent in terms of morality, temper, and eloquence?


    Just then, she saw something different in the Chicken Soup Calligraphy when she gave it another look. On the corner was a simple, scribbled-on memo. Though thenguage and strokes were unorganized, yet it gave off the subtle amiableness of nature. Such a proper and matter-of-course style, such open and candid style; it was as if the Haotian Divine Light had emitted thunder from the clouds, forcing the world to look like this from now on.


    She was curious it was under what kind of circumstances that prompted the man to write such a sentence. Due to some certain reasons, she had always believed it to be foolish to judge people by their words. But since the spring of this year, she couldn¡¯t suppress the feeling she began to have for the young man far away in Chang¡¯an City because of these words.


    Such a feeling wasn¡¯tplicated, but very subtle and crystal clear.


    She hadn¡¯t met that man, only seen his words. But their minds as fellow calligraphers were in tune. When she looked at his words, she felt like she was seeing him in person. It was as if the man was by her side.


    From spring and all the way to summer, she had been quietly looking at the man¡¯s calligraphy piece beside the Ink Lake under Mogan Mountain. In the legends, theke was said to be ck but was, in fact, clear and clean. The water reflected the stars in the sky as well as the girl¡¯s calm, smiling face.


    The man was behind her, looking at the calligraphy piece in her hands and her face reflected on the water. He didn¡¯t speak and neither did he have to. He quietly watched her beside the Ink Lake.


    ...


    ...


    Mo Shanshan looked at that copy of Chicken Soup Calligraphy and she blinked slowly. The flush on her face gradually faded and the embarrassment in her eyes had long turned into confusion and restlessness. She looked at the piece for a long time before asking in a whisper, "So you¡¯re him. Who¡¯s Sangsang mentioned in the piece?"


    "Sangsang, your young master, I, am drunk today..."


    Was Sangsang his little handmaiden? Had she been with you for many years? So he would so naturally trust and rely on her. Was it out of habit or was there something else? Why hadn¡¯t she heard him mention about Sangsang throughout the journey? Oh right, he was still pretending to be someone else and naturally wouldn¡¯t bring this up. But who on earth was this Sangsang?


    Master Yan Se could understand Ning Que¡¯s purposeful forgetfulness from the piece. From the brushstrokes, the girls from the House of Red Sleeves could smell the fragrance of the bowl of chicken soup from their homes. But she could feel the importance of the person, Sangsang, to the calligrapher.


    Just then, Zhuo Zhihua lifted the curtain and came in. She couldn¡¯t help a smile when she saw Mo Shanshan holding her chin next to the book table, in a daze. She often saw her Hill Master in this condition by the Ink Lake this year, so she understood well about she felt even if others didn¡¯t.


    "Look at it again after dinner and think of what to do," she joked.


    It was precise because Zhuo Zhihua was close to her that she was able to guess her feelings. That was why Mo Shanshan felt the mixture of annoyance and embarrassment when she faced her.


    Mo Shanshan was feeling disturbed and confused by the name at the beginning of the Chicken Soup Calligraphy, but when she heard Zhuo Zhihua¡¯s words, she couldn¡¯t help feeling even more embarrassed. She had never been ashamed of her life for she had never been fond of anyone. How could she not be embarrassed now that her thoughts were known to her dear Senior Sister?


    She used her hand to hold her round and pink cheeks, her sparse eyshes gently brushing across them. She pressed her red and thin lips into a straight line. Looking at piles of luggage carefully sorted out in a corner of the tent, she suddenly said angrily, "Send these bags to him."


    Zhuo Zhihua smiled. "I don¡¯t have the time."


    Mo Shanshan turned and looked at Cat Girling in behind her. She said in a low voice, "Catty, you¡¯re familiar with that guy. Send the luggage to the Tang camp for him."


    Cat Girl scratched her head in puzzlement. "Why? Brother said he would be back soon."


    Mo Shanshan slightly furrowed her brows. "Why do you have so many questions? He¡¯s a Tang. He can¡¯t always stay in our tent. Send the luggage to him. Then we¡¯re even."


    That thin copy of Chicken Soup Calligraphy was still on the table. That faint figure was still reflected above the surface of the Ink Lake. The tacit understanding of fighting side by side for thousands of miles was still in her memories. How could she erase everything by returning the luggage?


    Her feelings weren¡¯t a luggage. Because they had no weight, so it was difficult to mention and even more difficult to put down.


    ...


    ...


    In that moment, Ning Que wasn¡¯t aware the youngdy in white was so embarrassed and annoyed in the ck Ink Garden¡¯s camp that she was ready to liquidate her shameful emotions and unspeakable memories. If he knew, he would have been too excited and nervous to say a word. Though he was running away from the path of being nobodies, he stillcked the conscience of being an important person. Calligraphic Addict had a crush on him? Holy crap! How did this differ from Butterfly Sister liking him? The same Butterfly Sister who still wore tight pants to dance exotic dances!


    It was because he didn¡¯t know these that he could be drinking tea and resting in the Tang camp at this time. He looked particrly rxed, for it was his own ce after all. Whether spiritually or physically, he could finally properly rest under protection. Unfortunately, he couldn¡¯t rxpletely rx. There was still something important that needed his attention.


    At night, a military order appeared in the Tang camp. General Shu Cheng convened all departments and announced the result of the proceedings of the Divine Hall that day. They also went over the specifics of the attack on the Deste Man tribe next spring.


    The order of the Middle Military Camp was somewhat peculiar. The main force responsible for attacking the Deste Man tribe should be the elite cavalry of the Left-Tent Pce. Even if the northeast border army of the Tang Empire would join the battle, battle affairs shouldn¡¯t be discussed by General Shu Cheng and the captain officials, whocked the qualifications to do so.


    However, a military order was as heavy as the mountain in the Tang Empire. Though the cavalry stationed in the pce was beneath the Northeast Front Army, no one dared defy it because of the order from the Middle Military Camp. With intensive footsteps, captains of all levels rushed to the Middle Military Camp. The patrolling cavalry had also been deployed, leaving only defensive forces in the periphery of the camp.


    Ning Que lifted the curtain and went out, moving eastward in the deserted camp. He came to a stop somewhere forty paces away from a tent and reached out to take therge, ck umbre wrapped tightly with cloth from his back.


    That tent belonged to a general in the northern border army of the Tang Empire. There was a faint smell of herbs and blooding from the tent. If his senses hadn¡¯t turned acuter after cultivation, he might not have missed the smell.


    That man was still bleeding after so many days. Ning Que really had no idea know how he managed to survive.


    With a flick of his wrist, Ning Que opened the umbre.


    He held the umbre and walked over to the tent.


    At twilight, the sky was dyed as red as blood as snow began to fall from the clouds hanging over the camp.


    The snow was extremely little and sparse. A few snowkes fell on the greasy surface of the umbre, looking rather dainty.


    ...


    ...


    Small snowkes fell on the umbre without a sound. Strong boots stepped on the withered and yellow grasses, also without a sound. Ning Que held the umbre and walked into the vice general¡¯s tent.


    He was met with a knife shing down his face!


    Like a machete, the knife had a powerful force and was as bright as snow.


    The people in the tent knew he wasing, so he couldn¡¯t make a surprise attack.


    Ning Que knew someone was in the tent and thus wasn¡¯t surprised by this attack either.


    Hispels suddenly rising with air, he kicked his right foot as quick as lightning and heavily stomped on the attacker¡¯s thigh. With a muffled snap, the attacker curved his body like he was a shrimp. The machete missed its target and fell on the ground.


    With a striking sound, Ning Que removed his slender podao from its sheath, emitting a bright light. He gently sliced the attacker¡¯s throat, causing a burst of hot blood hitting the top of the tent.


    With a burst of rough wind, someone attacked him from his right. Without even turning his head, he lifted the two fingers of the hand holding the umbre and an intangible Fu character materialized out of thin air. An inexplicable uneasiness appeared in the tent.


    Another attacker from the Horse Gang clenched the machete with both hands. Borrowing the momentum from hurling himself forward, he threw himself at Ning Que with an amazing speed. It was as if he wanted to first split the umbre and then slice Ning Que in half from above. However, when he rushed behind the umbre, he didn¡¯t find the umbre. Rather, he found himself in a white zing sea of mes.


    The mes in the air alternatively burned and dimmed inside the tent. The fire on the attacker¡¯s head was still burning. The machete on his hands didn¡¯t cut the umbre or anyone, only the air.


    Ning Que had long twisted his body out of the way and was waiting on the side. He watched as the attacker¡¯s face began melting and deforming in the mes. He watched as the attacker¡¯s eyes twisted in fear and his big lips opened to utter a cry. He lowered his body, wielding his knife.


    He sliced the attacker, sending his burning head flying into the tent.


    Blood gushed from the attacker¡¯s sliced neck, hitting the top of the tent and mixing with hisrade¡¯s blood.


    With his umbre in his left hand and knife in the right, Ning Que continued to silently walk toward the tent.


    The headless corpse fell with a thud behind him.


    There was not the slightest bit of emotion on his face underneath the umbre.


    Whether in the past, present, or future, he had no mercy for people from the Horse Gang or those masquerading as one.


    His attacker¡¯s burning head rolled on the ground, reaching the tent. It stopped somewhere near a bed, its mes gradually dying with a scorching smell.


    There was a pale middle-aged man lying on a sleeping mat looking thin and weak. His shoulder was tightly fastened with a piece of cloth. Blood was still leaking from his body and there was even a faint smell of decaying flesh.


    The middle-aged man stared at Ning Que as he gradually came closer. There was a sudden gleam in his eyes and he began trembling violently all over. He seemed to be in a great deal of pain, yet also appeared to carry a strong sense of determination.


    In the tent, Qi of Heaven and Earth had suddenly be disorganized. A sudden cold wind swept the ce without rhyme or reason, instantly blowing away the snowkes on Ning Que¡¯s umbre. However, like the cold wind, his umbre also blocked the magnificent the middle-aged man¡¯s Psyche Power, built on decades of meditation as well as the determination rising from a life-and-death situation.


    Not a shred of that power could prate Ning Que¡¯s sense of perception at all.


    "Since you were ordered to kill me, you must know very well who I am."


    Ning Que walked to the front of the middle-aged man and stared down at him. "I admit your Psyche Power is really powerful," he calmly said. "But even if you¡¯repletely whole and without injuries, where did you find the courage to try and defeat a Second Floor disciple of the Academy when I¡¯m well prepared? Not to mention you¡¯re so severely injured now."


    "And don¡¯t you feel like your broken arm is recovering too slowly? That you can¡¯t stop your wound from festering even if you keep cutting off your decayed flesh? That¡¯s because there¡¯s something on my knife."


    Ning Que raised his right arm and pointed his podao at the middle-aged man¡¯s face. The podao glowed with a cold light. Besides theplicated Talisman inscriptions, it appeared very ordinary.


    "Both you and the one who ordered you to kill me knew I was a Second Floor student of the Academy and Master Yan Se¡¯s sessor. That was why you managed to stop my killer movements under the meadow that day. But too bad you didn¡¯t know two things about me."


    "I¡¯ve been hunting for a living since childhood and hunted manyrge beasts living. So I would asionally use poison and wipe my knife with snakeroot juice from Min Mountain. It¡¯s not a particrly strong poison, but it can be troublesome."


    The middle-aged man lying on the mat looked very pale on the face. He could no longer fight back after forcing out thest Psyche Power in his sense of perception. He listened to Ning Que¡¯s calm words and fear unwittingly crept into his eyes. As a strongman in cultivation, he really didn¡¯t understand why Ning Que, a core disciple of the Headmaster of Academy, would use so many vicious methods in addition to cultivation means.


    "I believe you won¡¯t have any more strength to fight now. But you¡¯re after all a Psyche Master in the Seethrough superior grade state and an important figure in the northeast border army of the Tang Empire. I need to keep my guard up. So please excuse me."


    He waved the podao in his hand, where it gleamed briefly. The middle-aged man didn¡¯t die, but a horrible bloody cut appeared on his shoulder. Even hisst remaining arm left his body!


    The middle-aged man tried very hard to turn and look at his shoulder, confirming his arms were all cut off. He couldn¡¯t help his sense of despair. When he felt the burning pain in his shoulder shoot up to his brain, a miserable cry escaped his lips.


    Ning Que put his potao back to its sheath and found a few rags in the tent. He stuffed a rag into the middle-aged man¡¯s mouth and wrapped his shoulder wound with the rest. The wound soon stopped bleeding thanks to Ning Que¡¯s skill in wound dressing and after he dumped half a bottle of medicine on it.


    He lowered his head and earnestly treated the middle-aged man. "Earlier I mentioned there were two things you didn¡¯t know about me. The other one is that I¡¯m a man with a wed character."


    "Though I¡¯ve just started my cultivation, I¡¯m still not a supermundane person. There are many things I can¡¯t let go. For example, I¡¯ll be sure to take revenge now that you¡¯ve tried to kill me. For example, I¡¯ll want to know the reason you want to kill me."


    Hepleted the wound dressing and sat next to the middle-aged man. Removing the rag from his mouth, Ning Que said, "You¡¯ll definitely be unable to lift anything in the future. Then you must learn to put things down like stupid things like loyalty and the like."


    No one would cut the other person¡¯s arms in an interrogation by torture, but Ning Que had done so and forced the middle-aged man into a desperate situation. For him to begin asking questions at this time... It seemed to be a cold-blooded and unreasonable behavior. The truth was it waspletely justified. If not for such a cold-blooded and disordered mental impact, how could he break into the mind of a cultivation strongman?


    The middle-aged man closed his eyes in pain and tightly closed his withered lips. He seemed very afraid he would involuntarily reveal what Ning Que wanted to know once he opened his lips.


    Ning Que looked at him and calmly said, "It¡¯s useless to fake despair. You¡¯ll still have hope as long as you¡¯re still alive. You¡¯re still breathing so you still owe me an exnation."


    "For example, who are you?"

 Chapter 240: Those Worthless Things

    Chapter 240: Those Worthless Things


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In the Middle Military Camp, General Shu Cheng was discussing with officers of all levels from the Northeast Front Army. He suddenly noticed the fluctuation of the Qi of Heaven and Earth from the depth of the camp. When he heard the miserable cry a whileter, he couldn¡¯t help the shift in his expression.


    Looking nervous, a vice general stood up and looked ready to rush out the camp.


    General Shu Cheng red at him and asked coldly, "Xu Yin, what are you trying to do?"


    Xu Yin, the vice general of the Front Army, turned and looked at the iron-d General Shu. Finally understanding the reason for such a meeting today, he forcibly suppressed his shock and exined in a low voice, "Something strange is happening in the camp. Maybe an enemy spy has sneaked in. I should be inspecting it as the vice general of the Mountain Battalion."


    "There¡¯s no need." Ranking far above Xu Yin, General Shu Cheng stared nkly at him. "The imperial court is carrying out its mission. You don¡¯t need to inspect it."


    Xu Yin seemed to be heavily hit on his chest. He was not only worrying about the situation in the camp but also about the imperial court looking into the Horse Gang issue. Then it might involve even more people. So he gritted his teeth and asked, "Why am I not aware of what the imperial court is investigating? And we¡¯re now in the depth of the Wilderness. Would the imperial court send someone just to investigate?"


    General Shu Cheng mmed the table. "Enough! Does the imperial court owe a little vice general like you an exnation? Shut up and sit down!"


    ...


    ...


    The pale middle-aged man was the chief of the Horse Gang who had killed the grain team in the Wilderness. He looked at Ning Que¡¯s face with his tired eyes and said weakly, "Since you can find me, why are you still asking for my identity?"


    "I found you because I guessed your identity. But a guess isn¡¯t enough, after all."


    Ning Que took back his umbre and continued, "Your identity isn¡¯t really important here. And it was easy for me to find out. All I need is to paint a picture of you and have the Military Ministry check it out."


    The middle-aged man frowned in pain. "Then go and investigate it."


    "I can¡¯t return to Chang¡¯an now that I¡¯m in the Wilderness. And even if I find out your identity, it doesn¡¯t tell me the things I want to know. For example, if I vited the Tangw and killed, no one would dare to say a bad word about the Headmaster of Academy."


    The middle-aged man slowly closed his eyes. "I¡¯m Lin Ling, one of the main generals of the Northeast Border Army Inner Camp of the Tang Empire."


    Ning Que looked at his pale cheeks, silently repeating the name again in his heart. "Very good. Next, tell me who instructed you to kill me."


    The middle-aged man tightly pressed his bloodless withered lips together. From the looks of it, he seemed unwilling to say another word.


    Since he was the main general of the Northeast Border Army Inner Camp, then his superior was naturally General Xia Hou. In fact, Ning Que had no need to ask and the middle-aged man had no need to answer. They both knew very well who was it that wanted to kill Ning Que. But an inference will never turn into an evidence. As Ning Que had said earlier, the Psyche Master Lin Ling confessed his identity because he knew it didn¡¯t mean anything.


    Ning Que looked at the middle-aged man with tightly pressed his lips. Out of the corner of his eye, he looked outside the camp and saw a faint shadow of a figure there. After a moment of silence, he said seriously, "I¡¯ll swear by the Headmaster¡¯s character. If you¡¯re willing to tell me who ordered you, I¡¯ll let you go back alive. I¡¯ll also have the Academy ensure your safety."


    Lin Ling opened his eyes to look at Ning Que but still kept silent.


    "I¡¯ve sworn by the Headmaster¡¯s character. Don¡¯t you believe me?" Ning Que asked, showing his palms.


    Lin Ling replied with difficulty, "Nobody ordered me. It was my own decision."


    "Even if it was your decision, someone must give you permission to do so. You may be a strongman in Seethrough, but you¡¯re still not qualified tomand more than 600 Horse Gangs in the Wilderness."


    Ning Que looked into Lin Ling¡¯s eyes. "I want to know that person¡¯s name."


    Lin Ling sucked in a breath. "Is it really important to hear that name from my mouth?"


    "For the investigation of the imperial court... maybe not." After a pause, Ning Que continued, "But it¡¯s very important for me."


    Lin Ling suddenlyughed and his pale smile seemed off. "If it¡¯s important for you, then how can I say it?"


    Ning Que frowned and realized he had underestimated Xia Hou¡¯s prestige in Lin Ling¡¯s heart as well as Lin Ling¡¯s loyalty. He gently touched his knees and asked after a long silence, "Do you have parents or children?"


    Lin Ling seemed to have guessed what he was getting at and smiled bitterly. "No."


    Ning Que¡¯s eyes, his smile appeared wicked and proud.


    After a short moment of silence, Ning Que continued with a gentle expression. "Then as a cultivator, you must have a sect, right?"


    Lin Ling replied, "Yes, but I rarelymunicate with my sect after entering the army. I have no feeling for it, either."


    "You¡¯re lying."


    Ning Que looked at him and said quietly, "If you have no feelings for your sect, you can just tell me what it is. But you immediately avoided mentioning it. This proves you¡¯re trying to defend it."


    Lin Ling was startled and frowned in pain. "It¡¯s up to you whether you believe it or not. Either way, I won¡¯t say a thing."


    Ning Queughed. "Have it your way. Whether you¡¯re lying or not, you should know what kind of crime it is to entice the Horse Gang to attack the food team, especially to murder a Second Floor disciple of the Academy."


    Lin Ling appeared determined as he calmly said, "It¡¯s just a death. Who doesn¡¯t die in the end?"


    "Of course it¡¯s not as simple as a death. Though I think death really is the greatest threat, I know people like you have always believed there to be more important things than life and death in the world."


    Ning Que looked at Lin Ling¡¯s eyes. "I¡¯m a disciple of the Headmaster of Academy and a trusted official of His Majesty. In this case, I can condemn your elders, wreck your sect, and even kill all your rtives and your same-sect disciples. Maybe you don¡¯t care about their lives. What if there¡¯s a childhood ymate among those rtives or a Senior Sister who made your bed among your same-sect peers? Won¡¯t you feel... sorry to them?"


    Lin Ling didn¡¯t understand what Ning Que meant by childhood ymate, but he could hear the unconcealed thirst for blood in thetter. His body that had been cold for excessive bleeding dropped several more degrees in temperature. The tent seemed actually seemed even bleaker than the blizzard outside the camp.


    "I¡¯m not used to making such threats because I¡¯ve very few capitals to do so in the past."


    Ning Que seriously said, "And I don¡¯t want to threaten you. I just want to know an answer, an answer that both of us know. I just want to hear it from your mouth."


    A conflicted look appeared on Lin Ling¡¯s withered and thin face. A feeling of despair and guilt gradually overflowed from his gray eyes. Ning Que looked at it carefully and calmly added, "I swear by the Headmaster¡¯s character."


    After an unnoticed period of time, the dying Psyche Master finally muttered several weak sybles from his withered lips.


    Ning Que lowered his head and listened quietly and seriously. From time to time, he would ask questions.


    After hearing all that he wanted to know, he stood up and looked at the dying man. Though Lin Ling seemed to be carrying some guilt, his expression was also calm and rxed. Ning Que nodded at him, showing his respect.


    He then pulled out his podao from its sheath and cut down, the cold de slicing Lin Ling¡¯s throat.


    Complicated emotions including guilt, calmness, and fear in the Lin Ling¡¯s eyes turned into gloomy shock and despair. He stared with his great eyes that couldn¡¯t be closed even if he was out of breath.


    Ning Que walked out of the camp and looked at a Tang soldier who was waiting for him. "I¡¯m really sorry he didn¡¯t make it."


    This Tang soldier, who was sent here by the Imperial Center Administration to be in the Border Army, had witnessed what had happened from beginning to end as a bystander. He didn¡¯t know how to answer Ning Que and kept his silence as he stared at the blood still smeared on thetter¡¯s de.

 Chapter 241: A Small Pause

    Chapter 241: A Small Pause


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    When one did not have a breath or could not shut his eyes, it was the so-called dissatisfied death. Ning Que did not close Lin Ling¡¯s eyelids in the tent and did not feel anything heavy in his heart, and even quickly forgot this matter after leaving the tent.


    He had killed too many people in his life and had seen too many dead bodies as well as many people with dissatisfied deaths. So he did not care about it at all. The deceased wanted to retaliate out of resentment? Then did not hesitate toe back as a ghost.


    Ning Que never felt forgiveness for those who tried to kill him. As long as he was able to achieve his own goals, any vows or promises were worthless.


    Previously he had not sworn by his own personality but by the Headmaster¡¯s. Naturally, it was because his personality was not as worthy as the Headmaster¡¯s. As for whether the Headmaster¡¯s personality would be bankrupt because of his behavior...


    Anyway, the Headmaster did not know about it. Those who do not know anything cannot me anyone else for it.


    If others knew the truth about this matter, they might find it kind of immoral for Ning Que to do so. For instance, the Imperial Center Administration spy beside Ning Que at this time, who had a nervous expression on his face. No one knew what this spy was thinking.


    This was because they did not know the nickname Ning Que had acquired in the City of Wei when he was a child -the immoral one.


    Ning Que was such an immoral person. But as he left the frontier fortress with Sangsang to return to Chang¡¯an City, the things they had experienced, grand or bloody or marvelous, didn¡¯t give him a chance to show his immorality.


    The Horse Gang who had attacked the grain team and tried to assassinate him, and the remaining leaders and chiefs had all died out. The matter on the Tang Middle Military Camp had also been carried out very smoothly without any ident.


    This cavalry belonged to the northeast Border Army. But General Shu Sheng was ordered by the Emperor toe here. Therefore, the vice general Xu Yin, the cavalrymander, who was suspected of covering up for the Horse Gang, had no reason for resistance but only held his hands up awaiting capture.


    General Shu Cheng pointing out the identity of Ning Que who had investigated the Horse Gang case, was naturally one of the important reason for suppressing the battalion soldiers. But the most important reason was the discipline of the Tang army. Though the Tang Northeast Border Army has been under themand of General Xia Hou for many years, it was still an imperial army, not Xia Hou¡¯s private army.


    Today, the Tang Empire held great power and an all-epassing heart. So the idea of allegiance to the Emperor has been deep in the minds of every proud soldier. Because of this, the people in Chang¡¯an City never worried about any heresy showing up in the four border armies.


    In the Middle Military Camp, Ning Que talked to General Ning Que about the previous situation, and then selected some records of the secrets Lin Ling had confessed. He asked some generals and private guards to write those records on a volume and send it back to Chang¡¯an City.


    That Imperial Center Administration spy has already returned to his own tent. Besides, a secret document would be delivered to the Nation Master through the Imperial Center Administration via a relevant channel and then be directly handed over to the imperial pce.


    So Ning Que was not worried that the Horse Gang case would disappear. He was more worried about another thing at this time. -- Why did Xia Hou want to kill him? There wasn¡¯t sufficient reason to even if Lin Ling suspected that Ning Que had a connection with the censor¡¯s case and decided to act on his own. Ning Que was a core disciple of Headmaster of Academy. Even if Xia Hou was the Emperor¡¯s favored official, Xia Hou must take a great risk to kill Ning Que. If there was no motivation or incentive persuasive enough, why did Lin Ling bring trouble to his own master?


    General Shu Cheng saw that Ning Que seemed to be in deep thought and assumed that Ning Que was thinking of something else. So he said softly, "Although Lin Ling was a Psyche Master of the northeast Border Army, this matter may have nothing to do with the general. After all, there is only one confession and no record on the spot. Mr. Thirteen, I¡¯m only responsible for reporting this matter to Chang¡¯an."


    Ning Queughed to show that he understood that even if he now had a very distinguished status, this kind of honor belonged to the Academy¡¯s Back Mountain rather than the secr world. In fact, it was kind of delusional to ask the imperial court to inquire a border general because of only one sentence.


    Under theplicated gazes of the people in the Military camp, he walked out of Middle Military Camp and went to his own tent. Within a few steps, he saw a small figure running towards him outside a fence.


    Cat Girl flushed slightly, waved her hand with a gasp and said, "Senior Brother, your luggage is too heavy. I really can¡¯t move it. Do you want to take it yourself?"


    Ning Que had originally wanted to move back to the Tang camp where all the Tang soldiers lived. After all, it was where his people were staying. But today he had killed a number of Horse Gangs disguised by the northeastern Border Army Inner Battalion and also caused the highest officer of this army be handcuffed. Although no one dared to show him the slightest disrespect or hostility, theplicated emotions in those eyes really made his headache.


    "No need."


    He stretched his hand through the gaps in the fence and patted the little girl¡¯s head. Then he said with a smile, "I¡¯ll go back to sleep at night."


    Cat Girl was overjoyed. She pped her hands together and said, "Great. Senior Sisters said you wouldn¡¯te back."


    ...


    ...


    After the identity of Ning Que as a disciple of the Second floor of the Academy came to light, the girls of ck Ink Garden thought that he had no reason to stay with them any longer and would certainly move back to the Tang camp. Perhaps they might not see him in the future. So when they thought of the mutual support they had given each other along the way, the jokes as well as the golden roasted goats, they could not help but feel regretful and sad.


    Therefore, when Ning Que took the Big ck Horse and showed up outside the tent, they received a warm wee from the young girls. Even the Big ck Horse was patted many times by the girls¡¯ soft and fragrant hands. It gently shook its head, kicked the hard floor under its feet, flipped its thick lips from time to time, and looked particrly proud and pleased.


    Only Calligraphy Addict Mo Shanshan was indifferent or stiff as usual. It could be said that she looked even more indifferent.


    Ning Que walked into the tent and saw she was looking down and writing small characters. He said a few words to her but did not get any response. He could not help but feel somewhat weird and went forward to see what she was writing. But he was scared by her cold stare and retreated.


    "I won¡¯t be angry with you since you¡¯re shortsighted."


    Ning Que silentlyforted himself and walked out of the tent to the Big ck Horse. He pulled out some stuff that looked like dry grass roots from his arms and put them into the Big ck Horse¡¯s mouth.


    Suddenly the Big ck Horse¡¯s eyes became bright and swallowed them into its belly after a few mouthfuls of chewing. And then it lowered its head and kept rubbing his face, just like a little coquettish dog asking for a few more. But its body was too huge, it looked so funny trying to cozy up to Ning Que, much less to snuggle up to him.


    Ning Que was toozy to care about it and annoyedly pushed its big head away. He then looked towards a faraway ce covered by northern clouds.


    It was a ce where the Deste Man lived.


    Ning Que looked at it quietly and understood some things.


    A lot of people were going over there.


    The imperial court and the Academy did not send people there. He represented the imperial court and the Academy.


    Xia Hou wanted to do some things there and did not want any interference or be found by the imperial court or the Academy. So he did not hesitate to kill Ning Que at a great risk, for he was willing to fight to his death for that matter.


    What could this army general be so desperate for in the barren cold wilderness,?


    It was Tomes of Arcane, of course.


    Ning Que looked at the northern Wilderness and thought to himself smilingly. "This matter arose from Tomes of Arcane and seems to end with Tomes of Arcane. But I don¡¯t know whether there is a good-looking vixen among those parties snatching Tomes of Arcane."


    "I like your ck horse."


    A voice came from behind him suddenly.


    Ning Que turned around and saw a beautiful girl in white next to the Big ck Horse. He looked at her red lips that were pursed in a straight line and herbed neat ck hair. He always felt that there was a pause in the middle of the sentence he had heard, but also felt that he might have been mistaken.


    Because she still looked stiff and her eyes, as well as brows, still looked so beautiful, without any charm or shyness or change.

 Chapter 242: The Yellow Mud Inkstone and the Snow White Ground

    Chapter 242: The Yellow Mud Inkstone and the Snow White Ground


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que looked at the young Talisman Master in front and said after a long time, "I also like it."


    Upon listening to consecutive confessions, especially his bad master¡¯s, the Big ck Horse opened its mouth to expose its white teeth and felt extremely happy.


    Mo Shanshan nced at the Big ck Horse and asked, "Why did youe back?"


    Ning Que nced at the Tang camp and said, "I went there to deal with something. But I¡¯m used to staying here."


    The words "used to" sounded rather pleasant. Mo Shanshan¡¯s expression rxed. She gently tucked her hair behind her ears and looked at him, saying, "I¡¯ll go north with the Divine Hall the day after tomorrow. What are your ns?"


    Ning Que did not listen to the second half of the meeting carefully. At that time, the Revtion Department Priest had recounted a letter from the hierarch Lord. In the letter, the hierarch Lord demanded that the powerhouses of the younger generation should take advantage of the winter season and sneak into the northern wilderness tribes to gauge the strength of the other, search for Devil¡¯s Doctrine survivors, and even carry out some cleansing if necessary.


    Of course, these were nominal ims. In fact, Divine Hall also wanted to test and trial all the sectarian disciples through this visit. Although the Divine Hall had not fought with Deste Man tribes for more than a thousand years, it was clear that they were still strong. Otherwise, the Left-Tent pce¡¯s elite cavalry would not be so miserable. In order to avoid vain sacrifices, the demands were stringent on the group of young cultivators marching north again. They had to be masters above Seethrough.


    As a leader in the younger generation, Mo Shanshan was naturally in the group.


    "You want to go north?"


    Ning Que frowned slightly and looked at the beautiful face of this young girl in front. He thought of the conflict between ck Ink Garden and Divine Hall these days and could not help feeling worried. So he asked, "Who else is going?"


    Mo Shanshan¡¯s answer was concise as usual, orpletely confusing.


    "The same people."


    Ning Que smiled bitterly and became speechless. He knew that everyone thought that he was clear of the strength division of the world¡¯s sectarian cultivators as a disciple of the Second floor of the Academy. The problem was that he really did not know who exactly those people were.


    Mo Shanshan saw his expression and thought that he was thinking of something else. She said, "Prince Long Qing has not appeared yet. I think he should be in the north now."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "Don¡¯t believe those rumors. I have no thoughts of contending with that Prince on everything every time. The so-called enemy of life is too arrogant and not suitable for me."


    Then he remembered the powerful girl Chen Pipi had once mentioned and became curious. He looked at Mo Shanshan and asked, "I have seen two of the three Addicts in the world. What kind of person is the Tao Addict? Will she appear when you all head to the northern Wilderness?"


    "I haven¡¯t seen Tao Addict. I don¡¯t know if she hase to the Wilderness. As for Prince Long Qing, you¡¯re really not his opponent now. So I don¡¯t think you would want to challenge him."


    Mo Shanshan said, "In addition, you don¡¯t like othersparing you to Prince Long Qing. I don¡¯t like to be called as one of three Addicts in the world. But I can clearly tell you that Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu, is addicted to Taoism cultivation and is stronger than Long Qing. And Long Qing is stronger than me. So she¡¯s the strongest one of us three."


    Ning Que looked at her slightly glittering eyshes and said, "Before we be Divine Talisman Masters, Talisman cultivators like us are always at a disadvantage when fighting with the people in the same state. So you don¡¯t have to care about it."


    Mo Shanshan looked at him puzzledly and asked, "What don¡¯t we have to care about?"


    Ning Que was startled and said, "Don¡¯t care about Tao Addict being better than you."


    Mo Shanshan shook her head and said, "There is always someone stronger than you in the world. Why should I care about this?"


    Twilight had long arrived and it was dark everywhere. The cold wind of the Wilderness blew on the girl¡¯s face, fluttering her long and thin eyshes gently. She looked calm and tranquil and there was no trace of reluctance.


    Ning Que looked at her for a long time andmented about the girl¡¯s state of mind. It was just that he had been floating in the stinking world for so many years that every pore of his was full of a stench of bronze and a thirst for sess. So he could not understand this kind of calm attitude. Just like a porter on a dock who could not understand why some stubborn learned men would rather starve than to write ttering articles, he did not know how to express his appreciation even if he could understand her a little.


    "I¡¯ll go there too."


    He raised his arm and pointed at the vast Wilderness in the faraway north.


    Mo Shanshan frowned and asked, "Why? The Divine Hall¡¯s edict can¡¯t force you to do so."


    Ning Que looked at the end of the Wilderness and said after a short moment of silence, "I¡¯m going to find something or to prevent others from finding that thing. I didn¡¯t need to do it, and just yesterday, I was still considering if I should just leave. But today I find that this thing is still worth doing."


    Mo Shanshan¡¯s facial expression gradually disappeared and became stiff. She asked, "Why?"


    Ning Que looked at her and said with a smile, "Because it is no longer a matter of the imperial court or the Academy. It¡¯s also my private affair."


    Mo Shanshan quietly looked back at him, his side profile under thest twilight and that little dimple. She suddenly opened her mouth and said, "Those who made a special trip to kill you should know your identity of the Academy disciple."


    Ning Que nodded.


    Mo Shanshan looked down slightly and said, "But they dared to kill you. Simrly, in the face of so many people in the tent, no matter how you provoked and mocked Quni Madi, and even showed disrespect for Divine Hall, no one dared to offend you. But if you enter the depths of the Wilderness, those deste ces, anyone can kill you. As long as one buries your body in the snow, no one would know who the murderer was."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "They can¡¯t kill me so easily."


    Mo Shanshan looked up at him and said, "Although you¡¯re the core disciple of Headmaster of Academy, your strength is too weak and your state is too low. The Deste Man is powerful. Those who are going to Deste Man tribes for an inquiry are in Seethrough at least. In other words, any person can beat you. So how difficult could it be to kill you?"


    When she said these words, her gaze was casual as usual and her facial expression was calm and dull as usual, not deliberately showing any mockery or ridicule. But because of this, it showed that she was very serious and honest when saying these words.


    The more honest one was, the more hurtful his words were.


    So Ning Que felt that she had hurt his feelings and self-esteem.


    The fiery heart in his slightly stiff body was riddled with blood and sweat because of this Calligraphy Addict girl¡¯s words, as if she had gotten a stronger means than Divine Talisman and her each word could cut him one time.


    In his opinion, when the food team was attacked, he would have walked away lightly with his horse if Calligraphy Addict had not stuck with those Yan Kingdom soldiers. Even that northeast Border Army Psyche Master could not stop him from doing so. However, he never expected that he was so vulnerable in the eyes of Calligraphy Addict.


    "Can everyone beat me as if they were beating a dog?"


    Ning Que stared at Mo Shanshan¡¯s beautiful small round face with his eyes wide open and forcibly suppressed the shame and anger in his heart. He said annoyedly, "Do you want to try? I still haven¡¯t shown my many abilities. If you really force me, beware that you may not beat me into a dog and this dog will bite you first."


    Upon listening to those extremely indecent words, Mo Shanshan felt angry and ashamed, her cheeks flushed slightly.


    Ning Que stared at the blush creeping up her face and instantly forgot his previous anger. He asked curiously, "You said that ck Ink Garden disciples didn¡¯t like using rouge. When did you begin to use it?"


    Mo Shanshan was increasingly shamefaced. But this time she was ashamed as well as angry.


    She did not want to pay attention to this guy, so she flicked her sleeves and turned around walking towards the tent.


    Ning Que looked at this girl¡¯s back and was startled. He speeded up and chased over, shouting. "Don¡¯t rush off. I haven¡¯t said everything clearly. You have to listen to me."


    Mo Shanshan stopped and did not look back. She said indifferently, "What?"


    Ning Que turned around and stood in front of her, very solemnly bowing to her.


    Mo Shanshan was slightly startled.


    Ning Que flushed and said, "I¡¯d like to discuss a matter with you, Hill Master."


    Mo Shanshan looked at his smiling face and thought of that face reflected by Ink Lake water surface in summer. She could not link these two at all. So she felt more and more depressed, whispering. "What?"


    "I knew, even as a child, what danger was."


    Ning Que¡¯s smile disappeared and he said very solemnly, "The Divine Hall didn¡¯t require all factional powerhouses in Seethrough to enter Deste Man tribes. Since it is to check the ce out, of course, furtiveness is key. So you can go alone. If that is so, can¡¯t we go together?"


    They have been together and even in the same carriage in that long journey. Was it not enough? What did he want to do? Mo Shanshan opened her eyes, watching him in close proximity, and suddenly did not know where to put her hands. She asked in a very low, tremoring voice, "Why?"


    "If we go to the Deste Man tribes together, we can cooperate with each other to increase the chance of surviving even if we really encounter those legendary Devil¡¯s Doctrine Elders. The most important thing is that we can perfectly neutralize the danger should the Divine Hall men or Yuelun Kingdom monks secretly attack us."


    Ning Que felt that his idea was more and more reasonable and waved his arm excitedly, saying, "If we meet Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu, or a person even more powerful than Tao Addict, we certainly can¡¯t beat her. Then you hang on to the Tao Addict and I ride the Big ck Horse to escape. As long as I can escape, I can be a witness. Would the Tao Addict dare kill you?"


    Suddenly, he noticed Mo Shanshan¡¯s face bing kind of pale. Her usual scattered dull eyes became extremely sharp and faintly angry mes were jumping in her eyes.


    Ning Que thought she might misunderstand him, so he hurriedly exined. "Vice versa. I can drag this strong enemy, and you escape. Then the other would still not dare to kill me, the core disciple of Headmaster of Academy. So it¡¯s just a small game where we each be witnesses. I don¡¯t want to make you a scapegoat."


    Hope and disappointment ensued. And in particr, this heart-wrenching expectation would make every young girl feel ashamed and annoyed.


    Although Mo Shanshan was not an ordinary girl, she was a young girl after all.


    Just as Ning Que was not normally shameless, he was shameless after all.


    Mo Shanshan stared at his eyes. The burning mes in her eyes gradually tapered down and turned into indifferent coldness until they were about to exhaust the virtuous and quiet temperature of the legendary Calligraphy Addict. She said slowly, "In the face of strong enemies, you just want to flee... Don¡¯t you think you look too weak and shameless?"


    Her calm and indifferent words revealed an apparent sense of contempt and disdain. Although Ning Que was used to this young Talisman Master indifference and quietness along the journey, it was totally different from contempt. He was somewhat annoyed and said, "I¡¯m going to be beaten into a dead dog. Why not escape?"


    Mo Shanshan looked at his self-satisfied face and thought he was actually shameless to express dissatisfaction. Her hands in her sleeves slightly trembled, as if they might be clenched into a fist and hit out at any time.


    She stared at him for a long time, just like studying a piece of inkstone. She seemed to see clearly whether this was a precious yellowstone, or a cheap and worthless yellow mud inkstone.


    A long time went by.


    The girl looked at him and asked disappointedly, "Headmaster of Academy... how could he ept you as a student?"


    Ning Que stretched both hands before him and honestly replied. "Because he himself didn¡¯t know he had a student like me. Sometimes I also think whether he would regret after knowing I¡¯m such a person."


    Mo Shanshan looked at his sincere look and did not know what to say. This time she understood that her original view was correct and judging a person by his calligraphy was a very stupid thing.


    Reality and imagination were two different things. She has been psychologically prepared for this. As she got to know him better, she just did not understand how a person writing those sections could be so shameless. Why was the man in real life so different from the man on the Ink Lake surface?


    "Come here."


    Mo Shanshan suddenly spoke up and went to the side of a table, spreading a reel


    of bud paper made in Xuanzhou.


    Ning Que did not understand why, but walked over and sat down. He looked at the thickness of the slightly yellowish paper and those soft flules on them. Then he loudly praised. "Good paper. I have only seen such good paper in His Majesty¡¯s imperial study."


    Mo Shanshan ignored his praise and poured water into an ink stone expressionlessly. She lifted up an ink stick lightly and ground it for a short moment. Then she pointed at those curtain-like brushes on a pen holder and said, "Pick one."


    Ning Que vaguely guessed what she wanted him to do and could not help but feel a little nervous. After a short moment of silence, he very carefully picked a purple brush he usually used and then began to adjust his breath.


    Sure enough, Mo Shanshan said without any facial expression, "Write."


    She did not mention any reason for the request, but just a single word, concise and straightforward.


    Ning Que asked honestly, "What should I write?"


    After a short moment of silence, Mo Shanshan said, "Write a memo."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "I don¡¯t need to leave a message to anyone right now. Why should I write a memo?"


    As soon as he finished his words, he adjusted his breathing and calmed down slightly. He slightly stilled his wrist and the sharp brush tip fully dipped in ink fell on the bud paper made in Xuanzhou.


    He was now a famous Calligraphy writer in Chang¡¯an City. However, the girl he faced was a world-famous Calligraphy Addict. Of course, he did not dare to slight it. Contrarily, he wanted to show his respect by performing at his highest level.


    Within a short moment, he raised his brush and moved back his wrist. Then a cursive Calligraphy was done.


    His force was vigorous and his craft was changeable. The characters were round as well as significantly steep.


    Ning Que put down his brush and looked at them for a short moment, very satisfied.


    Then he looked at Mo Shanshan and felt somewhat worried, for he did not know if she was satisfied.


    Mo Shanshan turned to the opposite side of the table and pushed him aside. She leaned into the ink paper and carefully read it for a long time, not showing any emotions on her face or eyes.


    She looked at those flying cursive characters on the paper and silently thought it was indeed an expensive Huangzhou y inkstone.


    Her own inkstone was a Huangzhou y inkstone.


    Twilight had faded away and night came. Unnoticedly there were several lights ignited in the tent. A dim yellowish light shone on Ning Que¡¯s side face and clearly reflected his quirky expressionbined with uneasiness and confidence.


    Mo Shanshan looked at his side profile and suddenly remembered that side profile by a carriage window on the journey. She recalled the young man with a dark and poisonous mind who taught people to kill. Then she gradually understood something.


    Whether it was an expensive Huangzhou y inkstone or cheap yellow mud inkstone, it was a good inkstone as long as one could use it to write good characters.


    At that time, he was the same man and the man she liked very much. Why else would she be in a hurry to say that there was already someone she liked when he told her that he kind of liked her?


    Mo Shanshan understood her own mind and could not help feeling shy and lowered her head, revealing a silent smile. This smile was so unspeakably beautiful under the glow of a dim light.


    When her eyes fell on the ink paper, the smile on her face became a bit reluctant. She thought these characters were indeed good, but unfortunately not the words she wanted. She did not want a wide scroll but just wanted a small memo.


    "When will you write a memo for me?"


    "I like your calligraphy."


    Mo Shanshan looked up at Ning Que and calmly said. There was no pause or unnaturalness in this sentence.


    ...


    ...


    In a corner of a camp at night, the young female Talisman Master held the piece of paper and quietly looked at it. No one knew what she was thinking of.


    Cat Girl looked over and furrowed her thin brow tips. Her bright eyes were full of dissatisfaction. She said indignantly, "There are so many ungrateful men in the world. I never expected that Senior Brother Ning was also such a person."


    Zhuo Zhihua startled slightly and thought she really should not tell these things to this little girl. Then Zhuo Zhihua said with a smile, "Since Mr.Thirteen doesn¡¯t know about Hill Master¡¯s affection for him, how could you call him ungrateful?"


    Cat Girl put a milk piece into her mouth and chewed it hard, saying with a grunt, "Not knowing is worse."


    Zhuo Zhihua said with a smile, "It¡¯s not your business. Hill Master isn¡¯t a normal girl who doesn¡¯t dare tell him."


    ...


    ...


    The cold wind was rustling and snow was drifting. There was still a long way to go, so they stopped to rest.


    In the depths of the Wilderness, almost near to Deste Man tribes, it was pure white between heaven and earth. asionally one could see a few trees in the snowfields and some footprints left by beasts.


    Just before entering this piece of the snowfield, Ning Que received thest intelligence report sent by Imperial Center Administration and secret guards, confirming that the caravan from Tuyang City did not stay in the pce for too long and turned north at a mountain mouth in front and then disappeared.


    He picked up a branch and sketched a map in the snow and his own route thereafter.


    "I want to see your characters."


    Mo Shanshan picked off her snow-capped hat. She watched him and calmly said.


    Ning Que said painfully, "I¡¯ve written all journey. We¡¯re about to see Deste Man. Should I still write?"


    Mo Shanshan pointed at the t snow field in front and said, "Hurry up. I like to see your characters."

 Chapter 243: The Desolate Men Are Intriguing

    Chapter 243: The Deste Men Are Intriguing


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    They left the pce and headed north again. The route Ning Que gave was very clear, namely following the caravan out of Tuyang City. But when they came to this snowfield pass, the intel from Imperial Center Administration and secret guards had been interrupted, leaving them no option but to explore the rest of the way by themselves. Fortunately, they have been extremely cautious all the way and always kept Tianqi Mountains clearly visible on their left hands side even in the snow. Even if they could not catch up with the caravan, they could at least return via the original route.


    It was unclear whether it was his writing or his shameless character that yed a role, but eventually Mo Shanshan did not leave with the Divine Hall strongmen, but went north with him. In this lonely journey, the two often talked about Calligraphy and Talisman Taoism. They both learned a lot from each other, especially Ning Que who mastered more basic methods of Talisman Taoism through her presentation. He even vaguely felt he was about to break through the realm, which made him very happy.


    Mo Shanshan was in a good mood too. As she had said, she liked to see Ning Que¡¯s calligraphy. Every time they stopped to take a rest, she would see Ning Que holding an ink brush or a twig to write on a mud or snowfield, making this dull journey more interesting as the snowfield became his inkwell.


    As the twig moved swiftly in the snow, Ning Que looked at his own calligraphy and nodded with satisfaction. He found that under the pressure of Mo Shanshan, he improved his cultivation state as well as calligraphy skills.


    Mo Shanshan pulled the scarf from her chest to her shoulder and slightly tilted her body forwards. She looked down at his calligraphy attentively and made slow gestures in the air with her index finger as if to mimic him.


    Ning Que knew about her poor eyesight and he was used to her concentration and posture every time she contemted calligraphy. Under the pass, a whiff of cold wind and snow was blowing, making a howling sound through her scarf. Her ck hair was drifting backward and her face blushed lightly, it was a beautiful sight.


    Behind a snow dome, the Big ck Horse raised its head and kicked its front hooves out of boredom. No one knew it ate all day to be so unafraid of such cold weather.


    Next to it was a maroon mare with a mat on its back and cloth that wrapped its hooves, though it still seemed to be a bit cold, and kept leaning towards the Big ck Horse, carefully and gently rubbing thetter, as if wanting to seek for warmth while trying not to annoy him too much.


    The Big ck Horse gently snorted, looking slightly displeased but did not move away after all. Instead, it stood proudly in the snow, blocking the snow and wind on the right side of the maroon mare.


    Mo Shanshan slowly ceased movement of her fingers as she hadpleted her tracing, but she didn¡¯t look up and instead continued to carefully study calligraphy on the snow, as if trying to firmly engrave them in her mind.


    Ning Que removed the ck mask from his face and asked, "Yesterday, I asked you about how to break through the realm. You said everyone¡¯s situation was different. The higher one goes, the more difficult it gets. But I just wanted to enter Seethrough from No Doubts State, which shouldn¡¯t be very hard to achieve. Why didn¡¯t I make any progress for such a long time since we left Dongsheng Stockaded Vige?"


    Mo Shanshan straightened her body to look at him and said quietly, "You began to be enlightened this spring and now in less than one year, you have seen the Front Gate of Seethrough. If you didn¡¯t lie, then it can only mean that you¡¯re a Taoism cultivation genius. It also exins why the Headmaster of the Academy chose you as his student."


    Ning Que asked, "You¡¯re saying thatpared to others I¡¯ve already done really well?"


    Mo Shanshan batted her eyshes subtly and asked, "Who do you mean by the others?"


    After a brief silence, Ning Que replied, "Prince Long Qing."


    Mo Shanshan said with a serious face, "I thought you didn¡¯t buy the ridiculous argument of the archenemy?"


    Ning Queughed and said, "It is said that Prince Long Qing is only one step away from entering the Knowing Destiny State. If he really makes it, I can never be his archenemy even if I want to. Besides... "


    His smile gradually disappeared as he went on to say, "The Divine Hall respects the Academy, but respect doesn¡¯t mean fear, especially for someone like Prince Long Qing who will certainly find the opportunity to personally defeat or even kill me in order to improve his so-called Taoist Heart. If he really entered Knowing Destiny State, he could really kick my ass big time."


    Mo Shanshan continued to look at him, as if looking at the snow outside the dome. She tried to guess what he was thinking and after a long silence, she whispered, "You want to defeat him?"


    "Pride and confidencee from strength. But I ain¡¯t no Second Brother."


    He went on to say, "That¡¯s why I don¡¯t expect to defeat him now. But I¡¯m thinking that if I could dy his footsteps into Knowing Destiny State, maybe one day I can catch up with him."


    "I think you should have time, though it might not be enough."


    Mo Shanshan looked at him and showed a very rare smile on her usually expressionless face. The smile looked a little out of practice, but it was nevertheless full offorting warmth and encouragement.


    "Among the five realms of cultivation, the final one is the hardest. Knowing Destiny is a very tough one. Although I can now manage to aplish a Semi-Divine Talisman, it was only a Lucky Chance I ran into. I was never able to see the threshold of Knowing Destiny State."


    Mo Shanshan continued. "Although Prince Long Qing is recognized as the first man of this young generation who is most likely to enter Knowing Destiny State, I believe he only saw that threshold. He still needs some time to ovee that threshold. I¡¯ve been thinkingtely that, it¡¯s part of the reason why Divine Hall let us enter the Wilderness."


    Something suddenly crossed Ning Que¡¯s mind as he frowned and asked, "You also once said that Long Qing is not as strong as the Tao Addict. If Long Qing has seen the threshold of Knowing Destiny State, how about Tao Addict?"


    "Perhaps she¡¯s got one foot over? Or perhaps she just saw the threshold too."


    Mo Shanshan said, "Tao Addict¡¯s strength not only lies in her cultivation state, but also in her subtle mastery of Taoism. It¡¯s said that the Divine Hall hierarch had once praised her mastery of all cultivation methods. You may get a glimpse of her strength from that."


    Upon listening to the words of "mastery of all cultivation methods", Ning Que couldn¡¯t help feeling shocked. When he was about to ask further, he suddenly raised his eyebrow and stretched his arm to grab the big ck umbre behind him.


    Outside the pass, there was a very subtle sound of arrow shooting in the snow and wind.


    Although Mo Shanshan was not as sensitive to sound as Ning Que, as a cultivator in Seethrough Superior State it didn¡¯t take her long to detect the arrow too. She moved her fingers swiftly and snatched a piece of Fu paper.


    Ning Que raised his hand to stop her, for he managed to hear that the arrow wasn¡¯ting for them.


    An arrow shot deep into a gentle slope outside the snow dome.


    A snow rabbit hidden in the slope was shot in its hip, it struggled desperately and jumped into the pass.


    As it fell into the snow dome and bounced a couple times, it dropped dead.


    Ning Que¡¯s calligraphy on the snow got kicked into aplete mess.


    Heavy footsteps sounded on the snow slope outside the pass. Ning Que nced at Mo Shanshan signaling that he could deal with this on his own. He released the umbre handle, and held the hilt of the knife.


    Someone dressed in animal skin and cotton clothes climbed over the edge of the snow dome, searching for the injured snow rabbit. Upon seeing the two horses before noticing Ning Que and Mo Shanshan, the stranger was startled and pointed a bow and an arrow at them.


    Ning Que frowned and looked at the short bow in the hands of the stranger. He noticed how the bow material was somewhat special, the twisted wires shining slightly in the bowstring, which didn¡¯t look like animal tendon. Then Ning Que noticed strands of long hair drifting out from the stranger¡¯s hat brim. He looked carefully at that face, and noticed it was a woman in her thirties.


    He held the hilt, looked at her calmly and said, "We mean no harm."


    Mo Shanshan nced at him not knowing what he was going to do. Although she could confirm that the woman was just an ordinary person, shouldn¡¯t they be more cautious being so near to the Deste Man tribe?


    The woman listened to Ning Que¡¯s words and looked a little surprised. She hurried backward, stepping on the edge of the snow dome until she set herself far enough away from Ning Que, slightly relieved, she asked, "Central ins people?"


    The tone of her speech was a bit strange, for she rarely flicked the tip of her tongue. And thepse between words remained even, which made her words sound straightforward and tough. But they could still understand these three words.


    Ning Que looked back at her and asked sternly, "The Deste?"


    The woman did not answer his question but looked warily at the two. She pulled the short bow tighter, uttering a tense sound as if the arrow would be shot anytime. Then she continued. "Central ins people?"


    Mo Shanshan wasn¡¯t good at lying nor did she need to given the circumstance, so she nkly replied, "Ie from the Great River Kingdom."


    The woman shook her head and said, "Never heard of it."


    Mo Shanshan pointed at Ning Que and said, "He is a Tang. I think you should have heard of it."


    Ning Que thought to himself that this ain¡¯t good, for the Tang Empire exiled the Deste Men to the Cold region in the Far North a millennium ago. Given the history of hate and hostility between the two sides, this Deste woman was sure to freak out upon finding out that he was Tang!


    His right hand holding the hilt slightly stiffened, ready to strike ahead of her attack.


    Unexpectedly, upon hearing the word "Tang", the woman was only slightly startled and did not react too violently. Instead she seemed to have calmed down and said, "I¡¯ve heard of the Tangs."


    Ning Que frowned and asked, "You have?"


    "Yes." The woman said in her peculiar tone, "Everyone in the tribe knows that we moved away many years ago, for our ancestors did not defeat yours."


    Even more confused, Ning Que asked, "So if you know I¡¯m Tang, why aren¡¯t you mad?"


    The woman withdrew her bow and arrow, saying nkly, "We lost the fight and we epted the failure. Why should I be mad?"


    Ning Que scratched his head and said, "It seems to... make sense."


    ...


    ...


    This was the first time that Ning Que and Mo Shanshan met the Deste. Through their brief contact and conversation, the two discovered that the Deste Men were totally unlike rumored monsters who could eat rocks and drink molten metal. In fact, they hunted, conversed, wore clothes and worked hard for a living every day just like any ordinary person.


    That Deste woman disregarded them and pulled the arrow out of the snow rabbit¡¯s body and carefully checked out the wear of the arrowhead. Then she grabbed some snow and rubbed the blood off the rabbit and threw it into a bag on her back.


    Mo Shanshan looked at her in quietness, and suddenly asked, "Why did youe to the south?"


    This time Ning Que nced at her.


    He came to this wilderness upied by Deste Men for a clear goal, not for Divine Hall or the peace of Central ins countries. He was to find the Tomes of Arcane. Of course, he did not want to deal with these fierce Deste Men.


    The Deste woman nced at her and said, "Why can¡¯t wee?"


    Mo Shanshan said, "This ce belongs to others."


    The woman said, "Many years ago this was our hometown. After we left, it was upied by these barbarians. Why can¡¯t wee back?"


    Mo Shanshan looked at her and asked very seriously, "But generations of grasnd barbarians have lived here for so many years. Now you have upied theirnd. How can they survive?"


    Ning Que looked at her and thought."Although you¡¯re a genius Calligraphy Addict, how could you ask such a stupid question?"


    This Deste woman looked at Mo Shanshan as if seeing an idiot and said, "How could we survive if we didn¡¯t take it back?"


    Ning Que burst outughing.


    Mo Shanshan nkly nced at him as she took the reins of the maroon mare and followed the Deste woman across the edge of the snow dome to walk down the gentle slope.


    Ning Que paused briefly and hurried to keep up.


    The Big ck Horse was stunned for a while to find that no one cared about him as everyone just left! It resentfully kicked snowkes and tried to keep up with them as he carried the heavy luggage.


    ...


    ...


    After several conversations, Ning Que felt that Deste Men were really rather interesting and had a simr temperamentpared to the Tangs. However, he still wasn¡¯t ready to make much contact with them. But he didn¡¯t expect it when Mo Shanshan seemed to think otherwise.


    Mo Shanshan looked at the Deste woman who walked in front with a bow on her back and whispered. "We¡¯ll be fighting the Deste Men next spring, so obviously we should find out the true situation of the Deste tribe. The Divine Hall sent us here for intel, and this Deste woman doesn¡¯t seem to suspect us. Isn¡¯t it the best chance for us?"


    Ning Que shook his head and thought that he had nothing to do with the war between Divine Hall and the Deste Men. However, since Mo Shanshan insisted on making this encounter part of her earthly trial, he could not oppose it.


    Not long after they walked out of the snow dome and turned east, they saw a solitary tent painted with something resembling ck mud on its surface, which seemed to be able to shelter from the wind and cold. But it was still a long way till they arrived at the settlement of the Deste Men, so they wondered why the woman lived here.


    The Deste woman didn¡¯t invite them in, nor did she show much hostility toward them. She let them into the tent and threw arge chunk of dry meat to them, and then poured them two bowls of hot water.


    There was not too much salt in the dry meat and it was tasteless to chew. But if it was mixed with saliva for a long enough, it would give off an original vor of raw nature. After leaving City of Wei, Ning Que rarely had ess to something so crude, so he kept chewing happily and simply could not spare any time to speak.


    Mo Shanshan thanked the woman and tore two slices of meat into her mouth and chewed slowly. Judging from her expression, one couldn¡¯t tell whether it was tasty or not.


    The Deste woman kept her head down and worked attentively on a piece of animal skin and did not pay attention to them.


    In the tent, there was no quarrel, simply silence.


    Ning Que sensed a weird atmosphere and could not help looking up at Mo Shanshan. "Didn¡¯t you mean to explore the enemy and the real situation of the Deste Man tribe? Can you achieve this by staying quiet?"

 Chapter 244: This Is Very Meaningless

    Chapter 244: This Is Very Meaningless


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Mo Shan nced at him. Her eyes looked nk and even a little confused. It was clear that she was really not very good at it, though she was a world-famous Calligraphy Addict.


    Ning Que forced himself not tough. He looked at the dry meat in his hands and began to chat with the Deste woman.


    He was very good at chatting. The reason why he could survive in such a dangerous environment since childhood was that he was ruthless enough and good at ttery, which was another important quality. So every general in the City of Wei, His Majesty the Emperor, Master Yen Se and the female professor Senior Sister beside the east window all liked him very much.


    Therefore, soon the Deste woman, who lowered her head and dealt with the animal skin, began to chat with him enthusiastically. Although her ent was slightly weird, they had no problem conversing when both of them slowed down.


    "There are a lot of fish in Hot Sea, a wide range of fish."


    The Deste women grabbed a pile of dry grasses and wiped out the bloodstains on her hands. And then she made a gesture by separating her arms. "My man has seen such a long fish. But talking about deliciousness, every annual festival of sacrificial light, the patriarch will send brave men to dive into the sea in search of roe fish. That kind of fish is really tasty."


    Ning Que put aside the dry meat in his hands and curiously asked, "Roe fish?"


    "Yes, we call it roe fish because its roes are big."


    The Deste women stretched out her fingers and drew in the air exaggeratedly. And then she shook her head and said, "Aftering to the south, we raised more sheep than before. But it¡¯s inconvenient to eat fish."


    From the conversation, Ning Que knew that in spring Deste Men moved southwards from Hot Sea in a cold area and robbed many meadows of the pce. Before the winter, they have reserved enough forage as well as sheep. But probably due to tradition, their tribe still sent Deste Men to hunt around.


    Cold wind and pieces of snow hit the tent. It made a dull sound in the wind as the tent was painted with a kind of peculiar paste. Ning Que thought of the previous situations seen along the way and felt somewhat puzzled. So he asked, "Even if you came here to hunt, you didn¡¯t have toe to such a faraway ce. It¡¯s always unsafe to be far from the tribe."


    He had hunted in Min Mountain since he was young. So he was well aware of the dangers associated with hunting away from one¡¯s tribe.


    The Deste woman said, "This is a tribal rule. In the winter ceremony, one must live alone throughout the winter."


    Ning Que asked curiously, "What is the winter ceremony?"


    As soon as he finished his words, he suddenly raised his brows. And Mo Shanshan who had been quietly sitting beside also looked towards the door.


    A heavy curtain was lifted up and a short figure rushed in, delightedly shouting. "I¡¯m back."


    It was a thin little boy with a fat round-headed badger on his shoulder. His face was full of joy and pride. But when he saw Ning Que and Mo Shanshan, he suddenly became rmed.


    "They¡¯re guests." The Deste woman stepped forward to take over the prey on his shoulder. She used her fingertips to gently pull it, swiftly blocking a bloody wound of the badger, and then patted the little boy¡¯s head with a smile.


    Ning Que guessed that the boy was no more than 12 years old. He could not help but be shocked that the boy was actually able to hunt such a big cold badger that in such a cold weather. And then he remembered the life in Min Mountain when he was younger than the boy many years ago and could not help the emotions welling up within him.


    "This is my son."


    The Deste woman looked at the two astonished Central ins people andughed heartily, saying, "The winter ceremony I just mentioned is his ceremony. ording to the tribal rule, in the winter when a kid turns twelve, his parents will apany him into the mountains to hunt. The kid can be regarded as an adult if he is able to hunt half a cart of prey before the North Hot Sea thaws."


    She looked at the little boy sternly but could not conceal the tenderness in her eyes. She said, "Next year, he will be a warrior and then will have his own family. Therefore, this winter ceremony is thest time for us to be with him."


    A 12-year-old Deste boy would be a warrior? Before Ning Que got out of such a shock, he immediately remembered her previous words of "have his own family" and could not help feeling envious. He said, "We Tangs can¡¯t get married so early."


    Upon hearing the word of "Tangs", the little Deste boy who had been somewhat precarious suddenly became more nervous and subconsciously wanted to hide behind his mother. But he remembered that he was having a winter ceremony and would soon be a tribe warrior. So he forcibly summoned the courage to walk in front of her mother and red at Ning Que mercilessly.


    The Deste woman pped the back of his head heavily and reproached harshly. "Does a fat Badger count? You need half a cart of prey in the winter ceremony. It¡¯s fine if the cart is a little one like the one back home. But have you not seen the big one pushed over by the man in autumn? The cart those barbarians use is so big. It¡¯s not easy to fill half the cart."


    The little Deste boy was kicked out of the tent by his mother¡¯s stick and intimidation. He carried a wooden bow and arrows and once again started the difficult hunting that waspulsory for one to be a Deste warrior. Ning Que listened to the Deste woman¡¯s conclusion on home-made carts and barbarians cart and could not help butugh happily.


    The Deste woman bowed her head and continued working. She held a piece of smooth wood and kept rolling it on the fur at her feet. From time to time she raised her arm to wipe the sweat on her forehead. Ning Que thought of those prey that had been covered with snow outside the tent and thought that this kind of work was really hard. So he asked, "Sister, where is his father?"


    "He died in the war with those barbarians in spring."


    The Deste woman did not lift her head or change her tone. She still spoke in a hard and straight tone as if she was telling a story that had taken ce a long time ago and had nothing to do with herself and even was nearly forgotten.


    Suddenly, she looked up and stared at Ning Que, asking, "You... will the Tangse and fight with us?"


    "Probably not?" Ning Que looked at the woman¡¯s facial expression and said in an aggravated tone, "Certainly not."


    It would be a decision made by the emperor and the imperial ministers whether the Tang Empire would send its armies tobat the Deste Men. Ning Que certainly did not know about it. But whether it would happen or not, he could only say it would not and gave an absolute negative answer in front of Deste Men.


    Mo Shanshan did not say anything but just nced at him again.


    The Deste woman was startled for a moment after hearing his reply and gave a rare smile. She said, "That¡¯s great."


    Mo Shanshan looked at her quietly and suddenly asked, "Even if the Tangs don¡¯te, there are many other countries in Central ins, especially the Divine Hall. Aren¡¯t the Deste Man worried?"


    The Deste woman leaned forward and pressed her weight onto the wood piece against the animal skin. And then she muttered. "As long as the Tangs don¡¯te, there¡¯s nothing to be worried about."


    It was dark and the snow outside the tent stopped. The Deste boy came back. But this time he looked a little ashamed, for there was nothing in his hands or on his shoulder. The Deste woman did not say anything but cooked a pot of hot soup. And then she found amb leg from a snow pile and put it into the pot with some spicy seasonings. The four ate the meal in silence.


    "You can only stay here for a night."


    The Deste woman put away an evisceration knife, looking at Ning Que, and added, "This is a rule of the winter ceremony."


    Ning Que expressed his gratitude and then took Mo Shanshan out of the tent.


    The two walked toward a snow slope that was not far away.


    At this moment, the snow and wind outside the tent stopped and the clouds had scattered. There were numerous stars in the lofty ck night dome. Starlight was scattered on the hills of the wilderness which were covered with snow, reflecting a faintly blue light.


    "From Chang¡¯an City to the Wilderness, I have heard some stories on Deste Man from the Instructor of the academy."


    Ning Que breathed in the cold and fresh air outside the tent, looking at faintly visible dry tree silhouettes under the star light, and then said, "Do you know why it¡¯s called the Wilderness?"


    Mo Shanshan had lived in the south of the Great River Kingdom for a long time. So she was very unfamiliar with this area. After hearing his question, she could not help but furrow her eyebrows slightly and said after a short moment of thought, "Isn¡¯t it because thisnd is wild?"


    "There are endless evergreen grasnds and all kinds of beautifulkes. There are evergreen forests in the magnificent Tianqi Mountain and countless beasts living here. How could it be wild?"


    Ning Que looked at her side profile and said smilingly, "The Wilderness is not wild. The reason why it is called the Wilderness is that this beautifulnd belongs to Deste Men."


    Mo Shanshan looked at his eyes and asked, "What do you want to say?"


    "Nothing."


    Ning Que said, "You looked at me many times in the tent. What did you want to say?"


    Mo Shanshan looked at him and said earnestly, "I want to remind you that they are Deste Men, our enemies. Be careful not to forget your position when you try to get information and deliberately show goodwill to them."


    Ning Queughed and looked at her after a pause. He said, "What position should I hold?"


    Mo Shanshan asked nkly, "The Devil¡¯s Doctrine survivors are certainly our enemies."


    Ning Que looked at her and asked puzzledly, "I have always wanted to know, why are the Devil¡¯s Doctrine survivors our enemies?"


    Before Mo Shanshan answered him, he continued. "I think the Devil¡¯s Doctrine has a different cultivation method with Haotian Taoism sect¡¯s. So it¡¯s just at most regarded as a branch of the Divine Hall. How could it be an incarnation of evil?"


    Mo Shanshan silently frowned and stared at his eyes, as if she was seeing a very strange thing. Her eyes were filled with a sadness and sympathy. She said, "Don¡¯t let others hear you say so. Don¡¯t... let me hear that."


    Judging from her expression, Ning Que felt that she was not joking and could not help but feel slightly startled.


    After a long while, he stepped on a dry branch, driving it into the snow with his soles and said calmly, "In the past, you practiced in the Ink Lake and did not experience many worldly affairs. Now that you¡¯ve seen so many ugly things and the Divine Hall people¡¯s performance on the meadow, do you still feel reverence for the Divine Hall?"


    Mo Shanshan looked at the stars in the night sky and blinked. Her eyes drifted as she tried to focus on something but found it difficult to do, making her look slightly disconcerted. After a long time, she said softly, "Even if I don¡¯t revere the Divine Hall, I must revere Haotian."


    Ning Que followed her gaze, shaking his head, and then said, "Reverence is meaningless."


    Mo Shanshan looked back at him and said very seriously, "But the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s evil behaviors are real."

 Chapter 245: The Millennial Verdict

    Chapter 245: The Millennial Verdict


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    So they lingered in the tales of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine in a winter¡¯s night, alongside the falling snow and hurling wind.


    As usual, such tales always involved a hideous past filled with bloodshed and evil doing including murder, rape, and torture. For instance, there were stories of an Elder Feng who was particrly intrigued by human skin, whereas another Elder Yun carried out deeds that could even make elder Feng vomit.


    Ning Que listened quietly to the young girl, and he didn¡¯t vomit, because he had seen worse hells in this life.


    As he thought of the attitude of the good old Mr. Lv regarding the remnant survivors of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, he seemed to have a better grasp of the attitude of the mainstream cultivators towards thetter. Nevertheless, his own attitude remained unchanged.


    Of course, he wouldn¡¯t attempt to persuade Mo Shanshan or other devout Haotian believers either, because beliefs were often difficult to reason, and he could only try to reduce her sense of vignce by other means.


    "Over the past years, Devil¡¯s Doctrine has seen a scarcity in talent reservoir, and they have been lying low altogether. Why should we be so vignt still?"


    Mo Shanshan looked at him and replied, "Lying low doesn¡¯t mean they don¡¯t exist. In fact, A Devil¡¯s Doctrine that is in hiding is even more terrifying, especially when the tribe of the Deste Man is now moving south at the moment. As a result, the Divine Hall should obviously beware of the resurgence of the lingering curse of the doctrine."


    Ning Que turned to look at the isted tent in the snow and as he thought of the mother and son from the Deste tribe in the tent, he shook his head and said, "Even though Devil¡¯s Doctrine emerged from their tribe, you cannot treat every Deste Man as being part of the Doctrine. Moreover, it has been over a millennium, and the Deste Men have probably long forgotten about their past."


    "Among the Deste Men, Devil¡¯s Doctrine is referred to as the Enlightenment Doctrine."


    Mo Shanshan said with a serious face, "Back in the days when Tang Empire defeated the Deste Men, they were forced to migrate up north to the Cold Region. Many of the powerful ones of the Enlightenment Doctrine stayed back in the South and were scattered in the grasnd and Central ins. They never ceased to attack the Divine Hall in the open or in hiding, thus the origin of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    Hearing about the Enlightenment Doctrine, Ning Que naturally remembered the Great Divine Priest of Light whose original intention was to preach in the Wilderness but ended up founding Devil¡¯s Doctrine single-handledly, and the "Ming" Handscroll that went missing in the Wilderness.


    Mo Shanshan remained poker-faced and went on saying, "Every so often, the powerful forces of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine would head towards the cold region of the pr north regardless of all hardship, just to recruit disciples and sessors among the tribe of the Deste Men. Given such close ties between them, it¡¯s only natural for the Divine Hall to get wary about the southward migration of the Deste Men."


    "Why would Devil¡¯s Doctrine do that? If they wished to flourish in this world, shouldn¡¯t they be recruiting extensively? Why take so much trouble to recruit the Deste Men as disciples?" Ning Que asked as he couldn¡¯t understand.


    "Their doctrine would obviously attempt to expand in the south too, but their cultivation method consisted in forcibly acquire and contain the Qi of Heaven and Earth in their bodies, and the rules of heaven would not allow it as it is damned. When ordinary human beings proceed with this form of cultivation, they are prone to self-destruction due to their inability to contain so much Qi. On the other hand, the Deste is equipped with a physical constitution that happens to be fit for the methods of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, and for that reason, they are destined to be chosen as their disciples, and the most powerful ones are also destined to emerge from the Deste Tribe."


    Ning Que had his reservations, thinking that, perhaps it wasn¡¯t the physical constitution of the Deste Men that made them fit to cultivate these methods, but the other way around: the Great Divine Priest of Light who founded Devil¡¯s Doctrine back then could well have created this method of cultivation exclusively for the Deste.


    He looked at Mo Shanshan and said, "You must know about the Great Divine Priest of Light who founded Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    Mo Shanshan nodded.


    Ning Que went on to say, "If we were to disregard the way the Devil¡¯s Doctrine methods disrespect Haotian, don¡¯t you find this whole matter utterly interesting? Devil¡¯s Doctrine is pretty much like a branch of Haotian Taoism."


    Mo Shanshan frowned slightly and looked right into his eyes, "Even though they name themselves after light, they still worship the Yama. How can such evil ways be mentioned in the same breath as Haotian Taoism?


    Being reminded of the tales he heard as a child, Ning Que was momentarily startled and asked, "Isn¡¯t Yama just a legend?"


    Mo Shanshan turned to look at the ns and said with a soft voice, "We¡¯ve all heard about this tale as a child, but no one knows where the Underworld is, and whether Yama really existed nor would anyone worship him. Even the Devil¡¯s Doctrine has their reservations on this matter; they worship Yama, but on the other hand, some of their own are terrified about the emergence of Yama, because ording to their creed, the emergence of Yama is associated with theing of darkness, and they... dislike darkness."


    Ning Que listened to her exnation, and as he envisioned those Devil¡¯s disciples who worshipped Yama in their dark caves while hoping to nevere to face Yama. The thought of this made himugh as he remarked, "what a bunch of paradoxical weirdos!"


    The starlight reflected from the snow-covered ins, making the night almost as bright as dawn. The air was so pure after the snowfall, making the tents of the Deste Tribe settlement in the center of the snowfield fully visible from afar. It looked quiet and beautiful just like a fairytale.


    Ning Que nced at the sight quietly, hardly being able to associate the Deste tribe with those dark tales of the past and their history of bloodshed.


    At that very moment, a massive ck cloud shifted closer from the south, covering up the sky above as well as ckening the starlight behind it, without leaking a shred of light. The whole world went dark.


    ...


    ...


    On the now pitch ck snow ins stood a few isted tents near the mountain ridge.


    Inside those tents lived Deste Men who practiced winter rituals, just like the mother and son.


    A few rocks stuck out from the snow-covered ground outside one of the tents. All of a sudden, the rocks moved, and they were actually three men dressed in ck. The material of their attire was extremely thick and tough, and their faces were covered by their hoods, making them look just like rocks as they appeared out of nowhere without making any noise.


    They were deacons from the Divine Hall Judicial Department, or perhaps it was more appropriate to call them executors, as they were the ultimate nightmare of all remnants of Devil¡¯s Doctrine and Haotian renegades.


    Just as the Central ins nations were still nning their attack for next spring, Divine Hall Judicial Department had already deployed armies of terribly powerful deacons to infiltrate the depths of the Wilderness.


    The attitude of the Divine Hall towards the Deste was very simple, just like Ning Que¡¯s attitude towards his enemy: only a dead Deste was a good one. All Deste Men must die. However, these deacons carried important missions, and they were not powerful enough, nor were they willing to enrage the countless powerful warriors of the Deste tribe.


    And yet, as they came face to face with these lone Deste Men tonight, they found it impossible to suppress their disgust and abhorrence of darkness, as if they could sniff the most repugnant odor of the world, just like a lynxing across hole-digging rats at night. Despite theirck of facial expressions, they were hardly able to contain the utter excitement they felt inside.


    The way they were brought up, and decades of influence from the environment they lived in made their reactions always instinctive, and the cruel chase and extermination of heresy became the greatest source of joy and excitement in their lives.


    Thus as the three deacons walked into the isted tent, it never crossed their mind the repercussions of infuriating the Deste tribe, and whether it would jeopardize the mission of the Divine Hall. All they could think about was to eliminate the source of the repugnant odor and exterminate these rats, consoled by the thought that, considering the few numbers of Deste Men left, killing off one would greatly contribute to the cause of Light.


    After a few brief sounds, they took the Deste warrior by surprise and were sessful in subduing him and constraining his wife and son.


    One of the deacons slowly removed his ck hood and looked at the Deste warrior expressionless as he reached out and put his hand on top of the man¡¯s head, and with the voice of a truly devout, uttered the following words, "In the name of Haotian, execute."


    A shred of extremely pure ray of light shone from the palm of the deacon, and it was as if this light could pierce through solid matter, revealing the bones of his palm so clearly, while also brightening the dark face of the Deste Man, as well as the rage, angst, and bitterness in his eyes.


    The wife and son of the Deste Man were already dead on the floor, blood tears running down from their faces.


    The next moment, the Deste Man suffered a painful death under the Divine Light of Haotian.


    The three deacons slowly covered their faces again with their hood, and walked out of the tent in silence.


    The ck clouds above the Wilderness concealed the starlight, and the snow and wind kept blowing and beating on their ck deacon robes, making pping sounds.


    In the shadows of their ck hood, the pale face of the three deacons blushed in a strange way. It took them a long while to readjust their heavy breathing out of excitement back to normal, before walking away atst.


    Once again after so many years, the deacons of the Haotian Divine Hall were able toe face to face with their ultimate nemesis and thrust the blow of the millennium.


    What took ce on that night of heavy wind and snow was certainly worth a ce in the creed of Haotian or historical records of the many Central ins nations. Nevertheless, all traces were buried by snow, leaving no clue whatsoever for theter.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que and Mo Shanshan woke up almost at the same time.


    They were sleeping in the corner of the tent, and it felt rather humid and cold. However, that wasn¡¯t what woke them up. In fact, it was because they detected people approaching, very powerful people.


    Mo Shanshan looked at him and said, "I sensed a feeling of the Haotian Divine Light. They muste from the Divine Hall."


    Ning Que nced at the mother and son of the Deste Tribe who were soundly asleep, frowned and said, "What do we do now?"


    Mo Shanshan seemed puzzled as she looked back and asked, "What do you mean?"


    Ning Que shrugged and replied, "Whose side do we pick if they start to fight?"


    Mo Shanshan also frowned. She never considered this question since being a believer of Haotian. She took it for granted that she always stood by the Divine Hall. Was there any necessity to consider anyway?


    Ning Que smiled and reminded her, "Don¡¯t forget that we are now living with the Deste tribe, and if it were the ice-cold deacons from the Judicial Department of the Divine Hall who areing, they would certainly consider us as traitors."


    Mo Shanshan calmly replied, "We can exin it, we are here to collect information."


    Ning Que smiled and said, "I don¡¯t think they¡¯ll buy that exnation."


    The freezing wind and snow funneled in as the tent drapes lifted, and three rock-like ck shadows appeared, looking quiet, solemn and powerful in the light of the tiny bonfire inside the tent.

 Chapter 246: Breaking the Confinement

    Chapter 246: Breaking the Confinement


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The curtain was lifted up, bringing wind along with snow into the room. It made the dim bonfire flicker suddenly and almost die out, and the temperature inside decreased sharply. It was so cold that the breath of the Deste mother and her son, who were sleeping under the quilt, turned into mist. However, despite the cold, they did not wake up.


    The three deacons of the Judicial Department of the Divine Hall were dressed in ck. They were staring at the mother and her son and listening to their long and peaceful breathing. The three deacons paced toward the sleeping people, while reaching their hands out from inside their sleeves.


    Suddenly, the Deste woman lifted the quilt with her hand. She had a small crossbow in the other hand and aimed it in the direction of the deacon in front. Actually, she had woken up a while ago but, looking for an opportunity to attack them unexpectedly, she pretended that she was still fast asleep.


    A sharp arrow was fired from the crossbow and flew toward the deacon.


    The deacon waved his sleeve, which was like a ck cloud.


    The arrow went into his sleeve and disappeared.


    Then, with a glowing light rising from that sleeve, a slim Taoist Sword flew out, breaking through the dim me and dashing toward the woman¡¯s chest.


    But somehow, the woman¡¯s body moved suddenly, and the Taoist Arrow missed her chest and passed by her shoulder.


    The arrow ripped open her fur robe and only caused a small wound on her dark skin¡ªit was as if her skin was even harder to break through than steel.


    Sensing the strangeness in the tent, the other two deacons looked in the dark corner of the room while the first deacon reached out toward the little boy, who had just woken up and was still sleepy, and dragged him to his feet. Then he summoned the Taoist Arrow back and fired it directly at the little boy¡¯s throat.


    The Deste woman fell on the ground because of the arrow that hurt her previously. Although the wound was not serious, it seemed that she was suddenly weakened by the strange power of the arrow. Unable to rescue her child from the arrow, she made a sad groan like a dying female animal.


    Somehow, with a clear sound, the countless tiny sharp Taoist Arrows went into the ground, which had been softened due to the burning bonfire, turned into small dark holes, and disappeared.


    But the Deste boy did not die¡ªJust when the Taoist Arrows were about to stick into his body, an invisible hand dragged him away.


    Just like his partners, thest deacon also turned his head toward the corner. Only hearing two different breaths, the deacons had not expected more people to be there. But they were certain about the presence of other enemies because, just then, more sounds of breathing drifted out from the corner.


    The two people hiding in the corner revealed their breath.


    Ning Que previously noticed the movement of Mo Shanshan¡¯s right hand and knew that she had saved the little boy. He was now more confident about the following situation.


    Mo Shanshan looked at the three men hidden under their ck hats. Their dark outfits covered them all the way to their feet, reminding Mo Shanshan of an Institute of the West-Hill Divine Pce, which frightened or disgusted people the most. She frowned, and asked, "Are you deacons of the Judicial Department?"


    The three deacons did not nod or answer. They were staring at Mo Shanshan and Ning Que silently. Mo Shanshan and Ning Que could not see their eyes because of the angle of the light, but they could sense their enemies¡¯ threatening power and brutality.


    Mo Shanshan frowned even more. Although she understood why the Divine Hall was so nervous about the Deste Men, she still could not figure out why the deacons from the Judicial Department wanted to kill the mother and her son secretly. She thought to herself that maybe the mother and the son actually were important figures who could make a serious impact on the Divine Hall.


    Nicknamed Book Addict, she was not as afraid of the ck deacons as the normal Haotian followers were. But she was still a true believer of Haotian, and her master was a visiting professor of the Divine Hall, who hade to the Wilderness by order of the Divine Hall. Based on those two reasons, she would not choose to stand against the three deacons from the Judicial Department.


    So, to make sure the three deacons did not misunderstand her intentions, she decided to tell them who she was.


    But at that moment, the deacon leader asked first, "Are you from the Central ins?"


    His voice was neither as hoarse as the sound made by stones rubbing against each other, nor was it tough. He was just talking normally and peacefully, but it still made people scared.


    Mo Shanshan was taken aback for a moment. But when she saw the Deste mother and her son, who were standing behind Ning Que and protected by him, she believed she knew why these deacons were so hostile. "We are from the Central ins, but don¡¯t misunderstand," she exined mildly.


    Before her words were finished, the leader deacon shook his head and said unemotionally, "I don¡¯t misunderstand at all."


    "You are from the Central ins, but you are with Deste people," the second deacon said coldly.


    The third deacon also said in the same nonchnt way, "Since you didn¡¯t kill these two Deste people, you are either betrayer of Haotian, or the remnants of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    The leader of the deacons calmly concluded, "Therefore, there is no misunderstanding. You deserve to die."


    There was no pause when the three deacons said their words in turn. The words just flowed out of their mouths naturally, as if they had said those same words countless times, or maybe they did not even need to think about it because they were just so right.


    Ning Que was amazed at the speed and fluency of the deacons¡¯ speaking. He did not understand why their boss, Prince Longqing, was not just as interesting when they had met in Chang¡¯an.


    He could not help chuckling at that thought. He turned to Mo Shanshan and said, "I said no one would believe you, but you didn¡¯t agree with me."


    Then he said to the three deacons, "Is it necessary for people who want to be deacons to be able to say those lines without thinking? Speaking of that, it must be challenging to say it as well as you can."


    It was funny that he said those words seriously.


    These three deacons from the Judicial Department of the Divine Hall came to the Wilderness because they wanted to kill several Deste people, including this mother and her son. They considered killing a serious job¡ªwhether it was for the magnificence of Haotian, the prosperity of the Central ins, or the long-standing foundation of the Divine Hall.


    But Ning Que was good at making serious things funny, and funny things serious. He also made the three deacons very angry because they felt like he was humiliating them about their beliefs.


    The flickering anger in their eyes was covered by their ck hats. But the shivering ck coats and the dramatic undtion of the Qi of Heaven and Earth in the room revealed the deacons¡¯ outrage and also delivered a message: These deacons were about to fight.


    Mo Shanshan looked at them nonchntly. "We can exin."


    The leader responded in a cold voice, "We will hear your exnation after you surrender."


    Before the words had finished, he stepped forward, his thin and pale hands reaching out of his sleeves and reaching down toward Ning Que¡¯s head. Countless golden lights poured out from his fingertips. Ning Que was locked in a cage made by those lights.


    Since the three deacons had appeared, there was no noticeable expression on Mo Shanshan¡¯s face because Mo Shanshan believed that, even if they were to be enemies, she and Ning Que would not be defeated. However, when seeing the golden lights, a twinge of surprise shed across her face. "Is that the Confinement?"


    The Confinement was one of the most profound Taoists skill in Haotian Taoism, and a secret of the Judicial Department, that confined the enemy by forcing the fluctuation of the Qi of Heaven and Earth to change. And when used sessfully, it could defeat people who were two states higher. It was said that the Confinement was almost like a Divine Skill when used by the leader of the Judicial Department.


    Seeing that the deacon could easily use the Confinement, Mo Shanshan was certain that he had to be an important figure in the Judicial Department. She frowned and tried to remind Ning Que, "Don¡¯t fight back."


    ...


    ...


    The surface of the light threads was light gold, the same color as the clouds at sunset in the Central ins. Looking at these threads, which were too tiny to be seen clearly with the naked eye, Ning Que was very confused. He did not believe that these lines were real, however, he could sense that the Qi around him was cut into tiny pieces. This showed that he was in great danger.


    He was always cautious about tricks that he could not understand, let alone that he heard Mo Shanshan¡¯s warning, therefore, he did not immediately fight back. He was just so confused about the mechanism of using Taoist Law to control space. If the Confinement could cut space, then when used on enemies, it would cut them all into small pieces!


    However, this deacon did not do that. Ning Que knew it was certainly not because people from the Divine Hall were lenient. The truth was that his enemy was unable to do it, which meant that the Confinement that he was using was not a real Spacial Taoist Law... Speaking of which, you needed to reach the highest State of the Five States to manipte real space. So, it would not be so easy to meet such a person.


    Ning Que was studying those tiny lines around him. Thanks to his great perception, he could clearly see the structure of the lines. He found that this Taoist Law did not cut space, it just formed turbulence in the air around him by interfering with the fluctuation of the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    The streams of Qi were like the wooden bars of a prison cell¡ªthey appeared to be unbreakable. Because of the thorns that lurked within them, if you pushed with your bare hands, they would end up covered in blood.


    Buried in his own thoughts, Ning Que appeared silent, or even a little dumb. It did not mean that he surrendered to his enemies though, he was just observing the current situation. However, he did not know that his enemies were very simr to him in terms of personality.


    Just like Ning Que, these deacons would not stop attacking their enemies until their enemies were clearly losing. The leader of the deacon group nodded slightly. Reflected by the light of the fire, his face looked pale and peaceful. Then he made a loud and low yell. At that moment, his palms turned really bright and a dark shadow flew toward Ning Que¡¯s belly.


    The belly was where the cultivators¡¯ acupoints of Snow Mountains and Ocean of Qi were. Once attacked in the belly, it was very possible that the cultivators would die. Hence, the dark shadow sent by that deacon was very threatening.


    Watching what was happening, Mo Shanshan started feeling very angry.


    But she did not get the chance to fight back.


    Because, before she could, Ning Que did.


    Suddenly, in the dark tent, a clear stunning de shed, outshining both the shimmering bonfire and the golden Confinement in the deacon¡¯s hands.


    Ning Que waved his podao toward the Confinement in front of him. When the sharp de touched the golden lines, a buzzing sound was heard. It was as if the lines were melting the de. However, suddenly the intricate Talisman inscription on the de turned bright.


    A strong power carried by the Fu character gushed out of the de and smashed the gold lines into ashes. It easily defeated the Divine Light of Haotian, which was carried inside the Confinement.


    Thousands of sounds broke out at the same time when the lines were cut. It sounded like the strings of thousands of iron musical instruments or iron kites had simultaneously broken.


    "p! p! p!"


    Thousands of gold lines were cut into small pieces, flying with the wind like soft catkins, having no power at all.


    What happened was not because the Confinement Taoist Law was unworthy of its name, but because the deacon was unable to use the real Taoist Law. It was not because Ning Que suddenly leaped from the No Doubts State to the Seethrough State either, but because his podao and the Fu character were made by his two Senior Brothers of the Back Mountain.


    There was no way that a single nameless figure from the Judicial Department could be a match for the wisdom and state of the core disciples of the Headmaster of the Academy.


    ...


    ...


    Breaking the Confinement was only the beginning.


    Ning Que was more merciless than the people from the Judicial Department. Once he started fighting, he would rarely stop before his enemies were dead.


    So, after cutting the gold threads, his de went straight into the chest of the deacon without any hesitation.


    The sh of the de illuminated the deacon¡¯s pale face against his ck robes.


    A tiny silver needle plunged into his eyeball, with only the end of it glistening outside.


    It happened too fast for the deacon to cry out in great pain or be amazed by Ning Que¡¯s advanced ability to control the Qi of Heaven and Earth. He only had enough time to realize that his gathered Psyche Power had dispersed because of the pain in his head.


    Then he was cut into two pieces by the falling sh of the de.


    His body had not yete apart, and only a clear line of blood was seen on him.


    And suddenly, he died.


    ...


    ...


    The second deacon stepped backward with his hand waving in front of his body, throwing out many Divine Light threads.


    Ning Que threw his sword away and jumped up like a flexible monkey. He avoided those dangerous lines and jumped on top of the deacon.


    A small piece of clothing fell down.


    Ning Que reached out his hands and grabbed the bones on the deacon¡¯s face and, at the same time, his knees hit the deacon¡¯s chest as fast as lightning.


    After a snap was heard, the deacon¡¯s chest bones were all broken.


    Both of them fell outside the tent andnded on the ground, which was covered with snow.


    Ning Que tightened his hands and broke the deacon¡¯s neck.


    ...


    ...


    The third deacon went quietly behind Ning Que and reached out toward him. The light between his hands was as bright as a flickering ze.


    Ning Que ignored him.


    Suddenly, in the deacon¡¯s palms, the flickering Divine Light turned into real fire.


    His hands and his entire body were burning underneath his ck coat.


    He suddenly turned into coal.


    And in the next second, his body turned into ash.


    With nothing inside to support it anymore, the ck coat fell to the ground.


    Ning Que turned to Mo Shanshan with a smile showing on his face. Then, he went back to the tent and picked up his podao.


    At that moment, the body of the deacon who had died first slowly separated into two parts. Blood flowed out from the tent, dying the snow on the ground red.


    At some point, the clouds had drifted apart, and several stars shone in the sky.


    Everything looked pale.


    And Mo Shanshan also turned pale.

 Chapter 247: White Snow and Black Eyebrow Never Cheated Each Other

    Chapter 247: White Snow and ck Eyebrow Never Cheated Each Other


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The rain had stopped and the light of the early morning sun gradually appeared. The beasts looking for food were walking among the hardy woods, with the snow on the trees shook off. The original yellowish ck of the trees added some color and vitality to the vast snowfield. However, looking at the thick bloodstain which was gradually covered by snow outside the tent, the young girl¡¯s face was still pale.


    Mo Shanshan in the Mogan Mountain never killed a person before arriving at the snowfield. Later she began killing some people in the snowfield. Even so, she didn¡¯t kill a fellow beforest night. For a person who believed in Haotian, the men from the Divine Hall were, of course, her fellows.


    Her master was a visiting professor of the Divine Hall and she believed in Haotian too. This time, she was ordered by the Divine Hall to investigate enemy¡¯s situation in the snowfield. However, she unexpectedly had killed three deacons of the Judicial Department of the Divine Hallst night.


    Mo Shanshan wasn¡¯t scared but felt a little confused. It was hard for her to mentally ept this fact. After thinking of it for the half night, she still couldn¡¯t figure it out. Why had the situation back then developed into the current one? Why had she naturally burnt that deacon of the Judicial Department into flying light ash by her incineration talisman without any hesitation, when Ning Que began fighting against them?


    Holding a bowl of broth, Ning Que were squatting on the door of the tent and enjoyable drinking it. Obviously, the corpses of those deacons in ck, which were not far away from him, didn¡¯t make any influence on his appetite.


    His eyes fell on Mo Shanshan¡¯s pale face. When he noticed her loosely indifferent eyes became a little frustrated and helpless, he knew what was wrong with her. He stood up and consoled her, "If you regret what you have done, you will achieve nothing except for adding more burdens to your mentality."


    Mo Shanshan slowly shook her head, with her beautiful eyebrows gently blinking. She looked at his eyes and seriously said, "Introspection can prevent us from making more mistakes, or you think introspection is unnecessary?"


    "If you are talking about the inexplicable battlest night..."


    Ning Que shrugged his shoulder and drank out thest mouth of broth left in the bowl. He said, "There¡¯s certainly no need to introspect. I won¡¯t consider whether they are bigwigs of the Judicial Department of the Divine Hall. All I know is they want to kill me. Therefore, it¡¯s natural for me to fight against them."


    Later he seriously added, "The three deacons were weaker than us, but they intended to kill us. As a result, they were killed by us. In general, they made the mistake due to their low intelligence quotient. However, if we were killed by them in that situation, it was about the emotional quotient. In the former situation, it was called stupidity, which still could be cured by medicine. But in thetter situation, it was named simpleton, which was incorrigible."


    Listening to such vulgar words, Mo Shanshan couldn¡¯t help frowning. After recalling the battle processst night, she seriously argued for the dead, "The Confinement of Taoists Law is a kind of passive means like the Qi of Heaven and Earth or the Encircling Array Tactical. Yesterday that three deacons just wanted to subdue you, but not to kill you right away."


    "Butter that man would like to disable my ability."


    Ning Que smilingly said, "I¡¯m not used to reasoning with others after being disabled. As I mentioned before, such kind of simpleton in emotional quotient can¡¯t be cured."


    Mo Shanshan said carefully, "Since I was there, of course, I wouldn¡¯t let you be beaten to disability."


    The ordinary words showed a kind of merited confidence. The young girl¡¯s killing three deacons of the Judicial Department of the Divine Hall made her a little absent-minded, but it didn¡¯t represent that, in her mind, three deacons were more powerful than her.


    The word, which meant protecting someone more or less, might displease many hot-blooded young boys. However, when Ning Que listened to it and looked at her eyes, he was moved and then somehow felt a little nervous.


    In order to get rid of the nervousness immediately, he shook his head and said, "Even if these deacons were unable to defeat us, what should that Deste mother and her son do? If the three deacons wanted to kill them, would you stop it or not?"


    Ning Que looked at the young girl and smilingly said, "You have a warm heart, so it is impossible for you to be a bystander when they were bullied. Moreover, considering that we were offered so much dried meat by them, won¡¯t you feel embarrassed if you don¡¯t help them?"


    Mo Shanshan slightly lowered and looked at her tiptoes below the fringe of her thick cotton skirt. She absolutely had no idea what she should say to thisd. In her view, though both of them weren¡¯t afraid of the men from the Divine Hall, yet the way Ning Que talked about killing the deacons of the Judicial Department was very casual, as if they just incidentally killed two sheep on the way.


    The young girl said in a low voice, "But they are the men from the Divine Hall."


    When dealing with the dead bodiesst night, Ning Que found a piece of ID token from a deacon in ck, who was killed into two halves by him. Mo Shanshan confirmed the identity of that deacon in ck. It seemed that he was from the family of a very important figure of the Divine Hall. However, Ning Que didn¡¯t fear it because no one could me him if there was no evidence for his killing.


    Like many people in the world, he believed in Haotian too. However, after experiencing a homeless and miserable life on the bottom of the society from an early age and witnessing the ugliness of the world, Ning Que didn¡¯t have too much respect to such a kind of legendary ce as the Divine Hall. What was more, since he returned to Chang¡¯an and was epted by the Academy, he was long and deeply influenced by the pride and narcissism in the back of the mountain of the Academy. Thus, his reverence for Haotian and the Divine Hall became weaker and weaker.


    In addition, his handmaiden once admired the beauty of Prince Long Qing whom Ning Que had two battles within Chang¡¯an. Though he seemed very calm when his handmaiden showed her admiration to that prince, he actually had felt very ufortable about it for a long time. Furthermore, the two youngds had a bloody fight on the meadow not long ago. As a result, Ning Que¡¯s respect to the Divine Hall totally faded away and even generated a deep hatred.


    In such a situation, there was little difference for him between killing three deacons of the Judicial Department of the Divine Hall and butchering three sheep. Thus, it didn¡¯t cause any trouble or confusion to him in psychology and mind, and he even had the mood to admire the beautiful face of the young girl.


    When Ning Que was looking at Mo Shanshan¡¯s innocent and helpless facial expression, he subconsciously wanted to touch her lovely plump cheeks. Suddenly, her identity as Calligraphy Addict crossed his mind. He forcibly calmed down and considerately said, "I will deal with the dead bodiester. No one will know about it as I am very good at covering it."


    It was a pity that there was only one Academy in the world, and only the Academy had the ability to teach such a student as Ning Que. Though Mo Shanshan was the well-known Calligraphy Addict, she still couldn¡¯t ignore those figures of the Divine Hall with a casual smile as Ning Que did.


    Looking at the young girl who still kept silent with her head lowered, Ning Que shook his head and then smilingly said, "Don¡¯t forget what happened on the meadow. In fact, your Younger Brother was killed by the men of the Judicial Department of the Divine Hall, though they didn¡¯t do it in person. Therefore, from the simplest emotional perspective, you shouldn¡¯t be on their side."


    "If one is against you, you should be against him or her. Now, the Divine Hall has done something harmful to you, so you don¡¯t have to consider their death. In the past, you hadn¡¯t met any Deste Man, so you actually don¡¯t have to help the Divine Hall kill the Deste Man, who came southward for a thousand miles. That woman from the Deste Man tribe didn¡¯t hew you with a knife at her first sight of you. Instead, she offered you a piece of meat and now she is making broth for you...Do you know what the piece of ¡¯one-thousand-year¡¯ meat represents? It is a kind of predestined rtionship!"


    Ning Que raised his arm and gently patted her on her shoulder. He turned his head and smilingly said, "Thank you very much, elder sister."


    The curtains were pulled open. The woman from the Deste Man tribe walked towards them with a bowl of broth and several pieces of whole-grain bread in her hands. She nodded at Ning Que and smilingly said, "Actually, we should thank you for what you did for usst night."


    The body of the Deste Man was very special and their muscles were very strong. Last night, the woman¡¯s shoulder was hurt by the Taoist Sword of that deacon in ck. However, she could recover quickly after Mo Shanshan used her talisman to remove the force of Haotian Divine light left on the woman¡¯s wound.


    Hiding behind the curtains, the boy from the Deste Man tribe curiously looked at the youngd and girl from Central ins and then asked, "You are from Central ins, but why would you help us kill those Central ins men?"


    With eyebrows slightly raised, Ning Que inspiringly said, "Because we are two good Central ins people."


    The boy confusedly scratched his head and didn¡¯t know what the good Central ins person meant. Before their tribe marched southward, their senior statesmen held a tribe meeting, but such a kind of noun wasn¡¯t mentioned.


    Suddenly, he recalled one thing that a senior statesman said before and then patted on his forehead, as if he had figured out what was going on. He looked at Ning Que and said, "The senior statesman said you Central ins people like internal strife most. Is it an internal strife?"


    Listening to the word, Mo Shanshan felt a little hot on her cheeks and didn¡¯t know how to respond.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t feel surprised at what the boy said, and he just smilingly patted the boy on his head.


    ...


    ...


    Through his strong demand and persistence, Ning Que finally managed to persuade the girl to join the clearing of the dead bodies with him. It wasn¡¯t because he wanted to see a pale young girl trembling when she faced dead bodies. Instead, he really felt that Mo Shanshan was an innocent and inexperienced girl. Though she was well-known in the world, yet she was still like a quiet floret beside the Ink Lake, who couldn¡¯t resist heavy wind and rain. If Ning Que didn¡¯t help her grow up soon, he¡¯d better not expect her help during the journey, and she even might be a burden to him.


    ording to his life experience, dealing with dead bodies was the second fastest way to help an innocent and inexperienced young girl growing up. As for the best way, he hoped it wouldn¡¯t ur to him anymore.


    Angrily dragging the heavy load and luggage, the Big ck Horse walked towards the forest deep in the snowfield with the youngd and girl. Behind the tight leather, there was aplete dead body and two iplete yet bloodless ones on the ground and arge bunch of stone grass which covered traces.


    Mo Shanshan silently walked in front of them. Her cotton skirt¡¯s hemline had been wet by snow, but she didn¡¯t realize it because she was still trapped in that kind ofplicated yet confused emotion. Since her childhood, she had absolutely admired Haotian, so how could it be possible to erase her respect to Haotian by several simple sentences? She still felt something wrong on this thing, although she thought what Ning Que said before did make sense.


    For an innocent young girl who had peacefully lived by the Ink Lake for over ten years, the difficulty degree of transforming her worldview was only simpler than that of transforming her love view. Looking at her back, Ning Que felt a little helpless and tired.


    While walking on the bleak snowfield, his thought suddenly flew to distant Chang¡¯an, to that shop in the alley and to that little ck handmaiden. He thought that if Sangsang was beside him, the whole thing would be much easier. Because Sangsang wouldn¡¯t doubt anything he said.


    Of course, Sangsang¡¯s views on the world, life, love, money, food, and death were just his views.


    ...


    ...


    Several stout tree mice warily looked at the scene below the tree. Both that natural pit stacking several parts of human bodies and the fresh bloody smell made them a little intranquil.


    Ning Que threw arge bunch of stone grass into the pit and looked at that pale and serious face of the deacon in ck beside his right feet. After a short silence, he seriously said, "The Divine Hall needs to be revered, so does the Academy. The back of the mountain of the Academy always rejects entering the human realm for a long time. Since I entered the Wilderness this time, I represented the face of the Academy. However, during the journey, it seems that the other people didn¡¯t respect me so much."


    He looked at Mo Shanshan and smilingly said, "If my Second Brother were threatened by the Judicial Department of the Divine Hall, could you guess what he would do? He mustn¡¯t have just killed several people as I did."


    Slightly frowning and thinking of Second Brother of the Academy, who was extremely proud ording to rumors, Mo Shanshan said, "What will he do? Will he directly kill Tao Addict or Prince Long Qing?"


    "Second Brother certainly won¡¯t do that, because such kind of people as Tao Addict and Long Qing are too weak in his eyes."


    Ning Que smilingly shook his head and said, "I guess he may directly rush to the Peach Mountain and fight against that Great Divine Priest of the Judicial Department. His idol is Youngest Uncle. If my master isn¡¯t strict with him, I¡¯m afraid he has fought against other people everywhere long before. If there is an excuse like this to fight, how could he let it slip?"


    Looking at him in surprise, Mo Shanshan thought what kinds of entrics were living on the Second floor of the Academy?


    "I¡¯m not so strong and mighty, but glory is my life. If who dare ignore the existence of my Academy, I will fight against him with my life."


    Ning Que looked at the sky in silence. There was a kind of mixed emotion and determination in his tone. If a drop of tear ran down from his eye or a piece of snowke flown to his eyebrow now, the picture must be more wonderful.


    After apanying with him along the journey, Mo Shanshan knew Ning Que¡¯s shameless disposition more or less, though they weren¡¯t familiar with each other like old friends. When she suddenly heard his determined words at this time, she couldn¡¯t help feeling moved.


    She seriously stared at his side face and kept silent for a long time, but she still couldn¡¯t believe her judge. She unconfidently asked in an extremely low voice, "Are you telling a lie or telling a joke?"


    Ning Queughed and said to her, "Since I don¡¯t have to cheat you, it¡¯s certainly a joke."


    Mo Shanshan seemed very unsatisfied, with her eyebrows slightly frowning, as if a rare and precious brush was heavily carving on paper.


    Ning Que stoppedughing like before. He looked at her eyes and seriously said, "But seriously, I never think the Divine Hall has the qualification to represent Haotian. Who can prove that Haotian allows the Divine Hall to represent it? Maybe it is we who are chosen by Haotian and the justice and righteousness of the world need to be maintained by us. Therefore, if the Divine Hall does that sort of disgusting thing again in the future, we must reject indifference and fight against them if necessary."


    Ning Que¡¯s word still sounded inspiring, but this time Mo Shanshan wasn¡¯t puzzled by him. Instead, she looked at his eyes and thought for a long time again. Later she tried to make it sure and asked, "It should be...a joke?"


    Looking at her slightly-wrinkled but lovely nasal tip and the confusion and nervousness in her dull eyes, Ning Que couldn¡¯t helpughing happily. He drew out a piece of Fu paper and said, "It also could be called a lie."


    Mo Shanshan looked at his back and suddenly asked, "Why are you fond of telling lies?"


    Without turning around, Ning Que just said, "The habit was formed at my very young age, because sometimes it was impossible for me to survive if I didn¡¯t tell lies."


    Mo Shanshan continued asking, "What on earth is your purpose ofing to the Wilderness? Why do you teach me those gloomy things? Why do you teach me how to kill people? Why do you ask me to get used to these things?"


    The questions asked by a simple and innocent person were all very simple. They were direct due to simpleness, so they could directly reach the inner heart by piercing countless hidden silk cotton armors, such as lies and jokes.


    These questions were hard to answer. After silently thinking for a moment by a snow pit, Ning Que decided to tell the truth. He looked at her and peacefully said, "I need to grab an important thing in the Wilderness. As you mentioned before, no one would care about my background of the Academy at a critical time. At that time, I may be bullied by others like a dog, not to mention grabbing the thing from them."


    Mo Shanshan looked at him in silence and let him finish his talk.


    Ning Que flipped that piece of Fu paper into the snow pit and then said in a very serious tone, "So I need your help."


    Mo Shanshan slightly lowered her head and looked at somewhere on the snowfield. After a short silence, she asked in a low voice, "What do you want to grab?"


    "One of seven volumes of Tomes of Arcane."


    Looking at her long slightly-blinking eyshes and sensing her emotional change now, Ning Que said, "You agree to go with me, and I wonder whether it¡¯s relevant to this thing."


    Mo Shanshan slowly raised her head and kept silent for a long time. Later she gently said, "My master told me the thing after he heard about it. I don¡¯t expect to seed in grabbing it, but I¡¯m very curious and that¡¯s why I¡¯m here."


    Ning Queughed and said, "You¡¯re curious about the Tomes of Arcane and those mighty figures who may capable of grabbing it?"


    Mo Shanshan just smiled and felt easy and rxed when talking with him, because it seemed that he could correctly hear what she thought in her mind.


    Ning Que still intended to say something.


    Mo Shanshan gently shook her head and seriously asked as she looked at his eyes, "I didn¡¯t tell you before and neither did you, so is it a tie, rather than a kind of mutual cheating?"


    Usually, this kind of simple way of thinking only existed in the innocent children world, but the young girl just naturally and directly expressed it. Ning Que just naturally epted it and seriously nodded. He even felt relieved a lot, because he had few friends and didn¡¯t want to lose one out of no reason.


    Later Ning Que looked at her and seriously said, "But your mindset should be corrected. Since we are in the Wilderness, we shouldn¡¯t let the chance slip if we get one, so don¡¯t say any expectation. If we daren¡¯t think about it, we will really get nothing in the end."


    Mo Shanshan looked at him and seriously asked, "Is it also a kind of education to me?"


    Ning Que embarrassedlyughed and said, "Anyway, I have counted about the thing. If both of us can cooperate well, even Prince Long Qing may not be our rival. Why don¡¯t we have a try?"


    Mo Shanshan smiled and said, "Let¡¯s have a try, but how to share if we seed?"


    "At that time we can write copies. You bring one back to the Ink Lake and I bring the other back to the Academy. In fact, I haven¡¯t met the Headmaster of Academy so far. If I can give him one volume of Tomes of Arcane as a present for the first meeting, it will be very exciting..."


    Ning Que became more and more excited.


    A blob of shyness suddenly shed over Mo Shanshan¡¯s eyes and then she said, "I want the one you wrote."


    Ning Que waved his hand and generously said, "You pick first."


    Standing on the snowfield, both of themughed happily and simply when imagining the nearly-impossible bright future.

 Chapter 248: Someone in the Mountain

    Chapter 248: Someone in the Mountain


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Their silly smiles seemed exceptionally white against the snow white forest. Their smiles were so infections it could be felt by each snow particle on every branch and every strand of grass beneath the snowy ground. However, the burning mes from the Fu paper in the snow pit before the two did not catch on. The mes did not grow anyrger as the bitter winds blew across it.


    Ning Que looked at the tiny mes on the ck robes covering the body of the Judicial Department¡¯s deacon. It was then, when he discovered, rather awkwardly, that his abilities were very much beneath the young Talisman Master beside him. The talisman that Mo Shanshan had drawn without much thought yesterday had reduced the Judicial Department¡¯s deacon into ashes without a single scorch mark on his ck robes. However, the fire talisman he had worked hard on in Chang¡¯an City was very weakpared to it. How many days would it take to burn the corpsepletely?


    Mo Shanshan noticed the awkward expression on his face and could barely stop herself fromughing out loud. She lowered her head in order to hide her smiles. Her fingers which were left outside her robes made a flicking action and the mes in the snow pit grewrger.


    The dazzling white embers flickered. Ning Que who was standing by the side had barely been able to feel the warmth of it before he realized that the snow had melted and was seeping through the ground. The body of the deacon had already burnedpletely, this time, together with the ck robes and could no longer be seen.


    Ning Que sighed as he looked at the sight before him. The art of drawing talismans depended on one¡¯s potential. Using a talisman depended on how one applied it. His talismans were a far cry from the Calligraphic Addict¡¯s and felt rather resentful when he couldn¡¯t even understand how she had applied it.


    "Master Yan Se said that I was a rare genius in Talisman Taoism in over one thousand years. But now that we have been together for some time, I feel that he hadn¡¯t been truthful. Either that or his views must be really different from the Master of Calligrapher."


    He looked at Mo Shanshan¡¯s beautiful clear eyes and was certain that she was about his age. However, he couldn¡¯t ask for her age without feeling awkward. So he shook his head and said with regret, "You are a true Talisman Taoism genius."


    Mo Shanshan looked at him and asked in a serious manner. "Senior Brother XIII, when did you start studying Talisman Taoism?"


    Ning Que counted back and replied, "In spring. It¡¯s been almost six months."


    Mo Shanshan looked into his eyes quietly and sighed softly after a long while. She said, "Well, Master Yan Se is indeed right. You¡¯re indeed a genius in Talisman Taoism."


    Ning Que was very happy when he heard that. This was especially so when he thought of his bragging to Chen Pipi. He felt much more secure about his abilities and he smiled while asking seriously, "Am I really very strong?"


    Mo Shanshan nodded. She thought of something and asked curiously, "What is your teacher like?"


    Ning Que thought for a while before he replied honestly, "He is a creepy and perverted old man."


    Mo Shanshan was slightly surprised. She thought of it for a moment beforeing to a conclusion. She said softly, "I was asking about the Headmaster of the Academy. I am very curious as to what kind of person could teach the students of the Second floor."


    Ning Que smiled bashfully. He replied, "You might find it hard to believe. Even though I am traveling through the Wilderness as a core disciple of the Headmaster, I have yet to meet him."


    Mo Shanshan blinked. She did not seem to think that this would be his reply.


    Ning Que considered the question for a while before he said seriously, "ording to the Senior Brothers and Sisters of the Second floor, I imagine the Headmaster must be a very proud, showy and amazing dude."


    Only the guys from the Back Mountain of the Academy would dare to address the Headmaster as a dude. Ning Que¡¯s description was mostly nonsense though. Someone like Mo Shanshan, the Calligraphic Addict, would, of course, be well aware of how the Headmaster was like. Wouldn¡¯t someone in a high cultivation state like the Headmaster have every right to be proud and showy?


    "How is your master, the Master of Calligrapher, like?" Ning Que asked curiously.


    A mix of emotions appeared on Mo Shanshan¡¯s face upon hearing the mention of her teacher. There were respect and uncertainty. She lowered her head slowly and turned to walk towards the snow forest, unwilling to talk about this.


    Ning Que looked at her retreating back and frowned. He turned back to look at the snow pit to make sure that the corpse had been destroyedpletely before speeding up to catch up with her.


    Hoovesnded on white snow. The Big ck Horse lowered his head and trotted on with the heavy luggage on his back.


    He looked at the clear prints on the snowy ground of the forests and the young man and woman before them. He wondered to himself why they weren¡¯t worried about leaving prints when leaving but had to drag grass behind them when they came.


    The Big ck Horse had a sudden epiphany and could not help but be annoyed. He shook his head angrily, kicked up his hooves and sped towards the periphery of the forest just like the way he did on the way there.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que tied the branches and some firewood that the Big ck Horse had searched high and low for behind the horse. He patted the back of the horse in satisfaction before drawing an odd grass from the front of his robes and stuffing it in the horse¡¯s mouth as a reward.


    Mo Shanshan looked at this disy curiously and thought to herself that those from the Second floor of the Academy were really odd. Even their beasts were odd. It seemed as if it could understand humans. She wondered how this was possible.


    Ning Que spoke, "We have to clear all traces of our journey from the snow. The best solution would be if Haotian deigns to send snow. However, if it doesn¡¯t snow, we have to be more cautious. We mustn¡¯t take the same road we took whening here."


    Mo Shanshan did not understand. She asked, "I know that the grass used previously was for this, but why did you burn them and have Big ck search for branches?"


    Ning Que exined calmly, "Because I wanted to try writing my own fire talisman and see how strong it would be. But I wasn¡¯t certain if it would burn, which was why I used the grass as fuel. It seems that it didn¡¯t work, so you have to help again."


    Ning Que was really shameless to be able to speak about his own ipetence in such a calm manner. However, the Big ck Horse who had tried his best to suppress his need to hurry while erasing all traces of their journey got even sadder.


    Mo Shanshan did not notice the shamelessness in his statement. After a moment of silence, she sighed. "I grew up in the Ink Lake and was brought up by Teacher Qu. He had never allowed me to explore the secr world. If not for the edict of the Divine Hall and that I¡¯ve grown up, I might not have left the mountain."


    Ning Que could see, from her description, an old Grand Cultivator watching a child of five or six by thekeside, sternly ordering her to clear her heart and hold a pen.


    Mo Shanshan looked at the mountain ranges a distance away and said quietly, "The three addicts of the world are addicted to Talisman Taoism and Calligraphy. They are addicted to cultivation and to nts. If they really wanted to enter the human realm, they would be easily defeated by a clever and artful person like yourself.


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "I am not being humble, but even if I were more sly and practical, I would never be able to beat you guys. One¡¯s state can easily defeat all plots."


    Mo Shanshan softly replied with her head lowered. "I have suddenly understood something. I don¡¯t understand the things of the secr world. Lu Chenjia is like me, she might not understand as well. If I were the person sitting on the horse carriage on the meadow and the people who were being attacked by the Horse Gang were from the Yuelun Kingdom, perhaps I might not be bothered either."


    Ning Que looked at the strands of hair that strayed in the wind by her face and said, "No, you are different from the Flower Addict. She is addicted to flowers and can think of people as fertilizers or mud that will benefit her flowers. You may be addicted to calligraphy, but the world you see is a normal world. You do not think of the blood we ordinary people shed as ink to use."


    Mo Shanshan thought that his description was gory but appropriate. She lifted her head and looked into his eyes and said seriously, "Am I really different with the Flower Addict?"


    "Of course." Ning Que smiled. "Even though both of you are ignorant, you are kind and ignorant."


    Ignorance was not gory, but notpletely appropriate either. Nobody would like to be called ignorant. Mo Shanshan furrowed her brows while retaining a trace of happiness in her eyes. She asked, "Are you joking?"


    Ning Que wanted to say that he was being truthful. But when he looked at the beautiful face before him, he nodded.


    Mo Shanshan turned around and did not say anything else. Her thin red lips were pursed and her cheeks puffed out. She was not trying to control her anger, but herughter instead.


    "If only... you weren¡¯t such a liar. Of course, you are already very good, because you know how I feel, which was why you lied."


    Mo Shanshan lowered her head and continued walking as she thought to herself. She did not leave any trace of her steps in the snow even though she stepped in it. She did not intend for it to happen, but she felt that she was really floating in the air.


    ...


    ...


    Back at the tents, Ning Que and the woman from the Deste Man tribe entered a serious discussion. He asked her to do some things. The woman who participated in the Winter Etiquette and followed the rules of never returning to her tribe left her child to the young man and woman from the Central ins and returned to her tribe.


    After two days, the woman brought back rtively bad news. Ning Que did not care because he knew that it was a difficult thing trying to gain the trust of the Deste Man tribe as a person from the Central ins.


    It was lucky that he still managed to gain some rather useful information. For example, he knew of recent happenings such as the traveling merchants from Tuyang City and how the Deste Man tribe had taken over the Wilderness.


    The temperature dropped as they left the winter forests and headed north. This could be because they were about to enter the foothill in the extreme north of Tianqi Mountain. Mo Shanshan¡¯s roan horse would definitely not be able to bear the cold. As such, they left it with the mother and son from the Deste Man tribe.


    Once they had bidden their farewells, the two teens and a ck horse began on their journey once more.


    Mo Shanshan asked, "What shall we do next?"


    Ning Que replied, "We shall enter the mountain."


    Mo Shanshan was slightly shocked. She asked, " Are the Tomes of Arcane in the mountain?"


    Ning Que looked at the snow-capped peak in the distance and stayed silent for a while before saying, "I am not sure. But I am sure that someone from the Divine Hall is on the mountain."


    ...


    ...


    There were no nts due to the extreme cold and high altitude. The mountain gales were extremely strong, blowing away all dust and snow on the ground, revealing the back rock beneath.


    There was a young man dressed in the robes of the Judicial Department standing on the cliff protruding from the ck rock walls. He looked at the clouds, wind, and snow afar as if he was part of the rock wall.


    Even goshawks would not have been able to get onto the cliff he was standing on. However, it posed no difficulty to him. There was not a trace of pride on his pale wless face because he was Prince Long Qing.

 Chapter 249: The Beginning of Ones Cultivation

    Chapter 249: The Beginning of One¡¯s Cultivation


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "How did you manage to shoot those Horse Gang that night?"


    "It¡¯s simple. I used my Psyche Power to determine their positions in the dark."


    "How did you make sure you would wound them considerably?"


    "I used my Psyche Power."


    "They were so far away. How did you manage that?"


    "That¡¯s because my Psyche Power is strong."


    ...


    ...


    "But... your potential for cultivation is not great. You aren¡¯t able to control much of the Qi of Heaven and Earth."


    "A needle might not be as strong as a knife, but it can still pierce a person¡¯s skin."


    "That¡¯s such an odd way of thinking. Furthermore... don¡¯t you think it¡¯s such a waste to use this method in a fight? You have to use your Psyche Power to determine the position of your opponents and you still have to gauge their silhouettes. You¡¯ll drain your Psyche Power in the sense of perception too quickly."


    "As I¡¯ve said before, my Psyche Power is strong."


    ...


    ...


    "Have you thought of bing a great Psyche Master?"


    "No."


    "Why not?"


    "Because I am a genius in Talisman Taoism. I want to be a Talisman Master like you."


    ...


    ...


    "You didn¡¯t use a talisman that night when you killed the deacon of Divine Hall."


    "I am ustomed to using my knife. There is a talisman carved on my knife."


    "Your method of fighting is really different from other cultivators."


    "I am a genius. Of course, I would take an unusual path."


    "But why do I feel that you were forced to make this decision."


    "My pride is injured by you once again."


    "I do not know how to lie."


    "That is why you were able to injure me."


    ...


    ...


    "Do you feel the high levels of Qi of Heaven and Earth in this forest?"


    "Yes, a little."


    "You seem to be rarely aware of the aura of Heaven and Earth around you."


    "I care more about the aura in my own body."


    ...


    ...


    These were the kinds of conversation between Ning Que and Mo Shanshan all the way from the peak of the snow cliffs in the Wilderness to the bottom of Cang Mountain. Sometimes, Ning Que would feel as though he was back in the Back Mountain of the Academy or in the old library, talking to the annoying Chen Pipi who could not stop spewing nonsense.


    What he considered nonsense was very important to Mo Shanshan though. The young talent who was addicted to calligraphy and talisman could understand Ning Que¡¯s methods in cultivation better through their conversations. Her expression got more and more worried, frustrated and lost as the two approached the Snow-capped Peak of the Tianqi Mountain.


    The two rested beside a hot spring stream. Ning Que looked at her slightly hooded lids and the longshes on her pale white skin. He thought of the changes in her emotions as they journeyed and could no longer suppress the curiosity within him. He asked seriously, "What are you worried about?"


    Mo Shanshan lifted her head and looked at Ning Que silently as if he was a sparkling jewel about to be buried in a sandstorm. Her eyes were filled with worry as she said softly, "I am worried that you will join the Devil."


    Ning Que was startled, and then, he smiled.


    Due to thebination of having been influenced by novels in the other world, life experience in this world as well as the jovial atmosphere in the Academy, he had indeed found it hard to feel any disgust for the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. However, he was also a practical person. He knew that there was no sin in thinking, but if he were to cultivate the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s arts, he would attract a lot of trouble.


    He smiled, "I am a core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy. I will not be like those poor souls who are unable to retaliate after having been shamed and trod on. Unlike them, I will not sell my soul to the devil for power."


    Mo Shanshan looked at his clean and adorable face silently. She thought of what she had seen and heard throughout the journey and was certain that he was a person who would do anything to reach his goals. She could not sense an ounce of respect for Haotian in him. The method of cultivation he had chosen passively or impassively ced emphasis on his physical skills andckedmunication with the Breath of nature. If he continued on this way, it would be easy for him to go astray.


    This was especially so now that he was getting closer and closer to the mountain ranges abandoned by Haotian.


    Mo Shanshan lifted some snow by the hot spring and blew it. She stared at the ck and white mountain ranges not far away. After a moment of silence, she said, "Will you promise me something?"


    Ning Que asked, "What is it?"


    Mo Shanshan turned around and looked at him. She said seriously, "If we encounter any arts from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, please do not learn them."


    Ning Que could not help but be surprised when he heard that. He looked at the deste mountain ranges that hung between Heaven and Earth as he wondered. He had heard about someone from the Divine Hall entering this mountain from the Deste Man tribe and guessed that it had something to do with the Tomes of Arcane. But why would Mo Shanshan mention about the arts of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine suddenly?


    Mo Shanshan blinked and said softly, "The Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine is within this mountain range abandoned by Haotian. The mountain isrge. Other than the sublime being who destroyed the Front Gate, not many people know of its existence."


    Ning Que¡¯s shock gradually dissipated. He frowned at the mountain and said after a pause. "I did not know about this. No one told me about it."


    "The information from the Deste Man tribe stated clearly that the people from Divine Hall created trouble in the Wilderness in order to attract attention from the powerhouses and senior statesman of the Divine Hall. The true powerhouses of the Divine Hall have all infiltrated this mountain."


    "News from Chang¡¯an say that the Divine Hall is searching for the Tomes of Arcane and they think that the Deste Man tribe have it. I wonder why they have entered the mountain then."


    He retracted his gaze and looked at Mo Shanshan with furrowed brows. "If the Divine Hall think that the Tomes of Arcane is within the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, and they have always been within the Tianqi Mountain, why did the Divine Hall note in search of the Tomes of Arcane before this then? Why would they onlye when the Deste Man have moved southwards?"


    Mo Shanshan shook her head. She tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ears and said, "It is the will of heaven for supermundane items such as the "Ming" Handscroll from the Tomes of Arcane to appear in the world. We cannot understand or guess this Lucky Chance. But in my opinion, the probability of the Tomes of Arcane being in the Deste Man tribe is not as high as it appears in the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    Ning Que asked, "Why"


    Mo Shanshan answered, "Because items like the Tomes of Arcane should belong to the Unknown ce."


    Their conversations in the forest at the foot of the mountain surprised Ning Que constantly. A hazy memory of a mention of the Unknown ce floated in his mind, but he could not remember it clearly.


    He asked solemnly, "What is the Unknown ce?"


    Mo Shanshan was shocked. She realized that he was not joking and answered gravely, "It¡¯s a ce where people cannot go."


    Ning Que rubbed his forehead and said helplessly, "Can you exin further?"


    Mo Shanshan looked at him with furrowed brows as if she was looking at a very odd tree. After a moment, she continued, "The Unknown ce are mysteriousnds outside of the secr world. It is rare for people to see these ces with their own eyes. People who have entered the ce will not talk about it either. That is why there are only rumors of the Unknown ce floating about in the cultivation world after thousands of years."


    Ning Que asked confusedly, "If the Divine Hall is an Unknown ce, then the Devil¡¯s Doctrine is a branch of the Divine Hall in my opinion. Why would it¡¯s Front Gate be considered an Unknown ce?"


    Mo Shanshan answered his question grimly, "I asked my teacher the same question when I was little. ording to the teacher, it is because the Great Divine Priest of Light who started the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had already be a devil that had gone beyond five states when he started the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. That is why.


    "Beyond Five States?"


    Ning Que thought of the sage that Lyu Qingchen mentioned as well as the terrifying states of Tianqi and No Rules and could not help but felt his heart waver. He felt that one probably shouldn¡¯t get near to that Unknown ce.


    "Other than the abandoned Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s Front Gate, I believe that there are other powerhouses who have gone beyond the five states in the Unknown ce. It is just that there aren¡¯t a lot of them and they don¡¯t appear in our realm. Only a young apprentice would enter the human realm every few years or so and they¡¯d be called a World Wayfarer. Once these World Wayfarers enter the human realm, they would be Grand Cultivators in the Knowing Destiny State. Even Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword from the South Jin Kingdom would fear them."


    Mo Shanshan looked at Ning Que with conflicting emotions in her eyes. The message that her eyes gave off was that the world she had seen with her own eyes were different from what she had just talked about. She did not believe it.


    Ning Que did not notice that. He ruminated over the shocking news that had just been shed about the cultivation world. He thought about his daily life in the Back Mountain of the Academy and was rather annoyed that Second Brother, Third Sister, and Chen Pipi didn¡¯t even mention something so important to him.


    He frowned and said, "If something like the Tomes of Arcane can only exist in an Unknown ce, those who are able to steal the Tomes should be the World Wayfarers from the Unknown ce. I thought that thepetition was just people of the Tao Addict or Long Qing¡¯s caliber and that I had a chance. But if we meet Grand Cultivators in the Knowing Destiny State, we have no chance against them."


    Due to some reasons, Mo Shanshan felt that she could not understand what thed was trying to say. Her brows looked tightened as though they were drawn with ink. "What exactly are you thinking about?


    Ning Que answered earnestly and honestly, "I was thinking if we should return to the south immediately. If you are unhappy, I can invite you to Chang¡¯an and treat you to Osmanthus Cake."


    Mo Shanshan stared at him with wide eyes and looked at him incredulously. She did not know what she should say.


    Ning Que did not know what to say either and contemted in silence.


    It was rather ludicrous how the trip to the Wilderness had ended up like this. Incident after the incident had urred right before their eyes. No one had reminded or given him any warnings. He was only informed of news as important as the "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane right at the end. No matter how he thought about it, the way things have been dealt with are very much different from what the reputation of the Tang Empire or the Academy would do.


    The Emperor and Nation Master, Li Qingshan, probably wouldn¡¯t hurt him. Master Yan Se wouldn¡¯t either. The Senior Brothers and Sisters in the Academy might not have been involved in this matter. He trusted that Second Brother would at least show some excitement about the Unknown ce. But why did all these people let hime without telling him anything?


    His Majesty, as well as the elders of Southern Gates, probably had their own ns for him as the first person of the Second Floor of the Academy to participate in the practice. But what was Second Brother thinking? Ning Que thought about it. His eyes gradually brightened and then dulled as if he had received a sudden scare. His entire body stiffened.


    He thought of something someone had said, "Fate itself is a very cruel guy. If you¡¯re chosen to assume the mission, and then before confirming that you¡¯re qualified, it will do everything possible to break every bone in you and to strip every trace of your flesh and blood, allowing you to suffer the most extreme pain in the world so as to make your volition and temperament tough and eligible enough to be chosen by fate..."


    ...


    ...


    Chen Pipi was the one who told him this.


    Second Brother was the one who told Chen Pipi about it.


    The legendary Youngest Uncle was the one who said this.


    Everyone in the Back Mountain of the Academy knew that Second Brother was the most ardent follower of Youngest Uncle. He was his most passionate fan. He tried to imitate Youngest Uncle no matter in his way of speech or behavior. This reminded him of the famous statement made by Youngest Uncle. Second Brother had tossed Ning Que into the empty Wilderness. Ning Que, a weak cultivator in the No Doubts State had to face the powerhouses of the Divine Hall and the World Wayfarers from the Unknown ce. He had to face the cruelties of life and receive an answer.


    Ning Que could not help but shuddered as if he was a child who was about to drown. He stared at the mountain helplessly and cursed Second Brother bitterly for his stupidity.


    At this moment, the Big ck Horse trotted over after having filled his belly somewhere. Its eyes filled with bitterness.


    Ning Que looked at the Big ck Horse and thought of the time when he ran at a supernatural speed at the pce. The fear and unease in his heart gradually calmed. He frowned for a long time before asking,


    "Is the oue more important, or is it the process?"


    Mo Shanshan froze for a second before answering, "I think the process is more important."


    Ning Que shook his head. "I used to think the oue was more important. And when I was learning talismans, I thought the process was more important. I now understand that they are equally important. But it is just that without the process, there will be no oue."


    Mo Shanshan said, "You are usually not a person who would say something like that."


    Ning Que suddenly smiled. "That is because I now know why I am here in the Wilderness."


    "Why?"


    "It has nothing to do with the "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane or the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. I came to the Wilderness to join the Academy¡¯s practice. The students of the Academy practice in order to join the army and the war. I practice cultivating."


    Ning Que said certainly, "The Academy sent me to the Wilderness so that I will learn something from everything I¡¯ve gone through. This is the process. The goal of this cultivation journey is to break the realm and enter the Seethrough state."


    Mo Shanshan lifted her eyebrows and said incredulously, "You¡¯ve only received enlightenment at the beginning of spring and attained a sense at the end of spring before proceeding to the No Doubts State. It hasn¡¯t even been a year and you¡¯re thinking of breaking into the Seethrough state?"


    Ning Que replied earnestly, "I have told you once that I am not far from the Seethrough state."


    Mo Shanshan shook her head lightly and said, "Wang Jinglue from the Tang Empire entered the Seethrough state at 16, but he received enlightenment at four. I entered the Seethrough state at 14 but received enlightenment at three. I do not know about the Tao Addict, but I am sure that Prince Long Qing had spent a lot of time on cultivation even though he entered the Seethrough state at a young age. I have never heard of anyone attaining this state within a year. Even though you are a core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy, you have never met him. This idea is..."


    Ning Que smiled as he thought to himself, "It¡¯s because you have never stayed in the Back Mountain of the Academy. There are too many perverts in cultivation there. It was just that other than Second Brother, the other Senior Brothers and Sisters did not seem very interested in cultivation. If they only spent their passion for chess, music, and flowers on cultivation, they would have long entered the Knowing Destiny State.


    Ning Que¡¯s confidence was renewed when he thought of the Senior Brothers and Sisters whom he could rely on in the Back Mountain of the Academy. He looked at the snow mountain and felt a boundless sense of pride filling his chest. He said loudly, " Are World Wayfarers that impressive?"


    Mo Shanshan¡¯s ruby red lips parted but no sound emerged upon hearing that. Her expression bordered between annoyance and helplessness. How did she end up like such an idiot by the Ink Lake that summer?


    Ning Que looked at her speechless expression and smiled in satisfaction. "Do not be shocked. Do not respect me either. I am such a person who would dare face the cruelties of life, fresh blood and dangers head-on.


    ...


    ...


    Prince Long Qing stood by the ck rock walls. He was tired of looking at the fluttering snowkes further away from the leaden clouds. He turned back to look at the deste depths of the mountain ranges. That was the end of the northern foothill of Min Mountain. However, it was called the Tanqi Mountains no matter in the dialect of the barbarians of the grasnd or the annals of the Divine Hall.


    After having betrayed the Divine Hall and starting the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, the Great Divine Priest of Light led his disciples there and built the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. From then on, the mountain that had been desecrated by filth was abandoned by Haotian.


    A snowke was carried by the wind from the cliff wall before him. It did not manage to touch his beautiful face before it was blown away. His brows gradually furrowed.


    Another Great Divine Priest of Light had betrayed the Divine Hall after a thousand years. What kind of mark would this leave the brightness of Haotian and what would be the impact of this on the Divine Hall¡¯s work?


    Even though he was brought up and cultivated as a promised child of heaven by the Divine Hall and was the perfect gentleman in the eyes of the world who held the majority of the authority in the Judicial Department, he was still inexperienced. Ranking above him was the Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu, the God of the Judicial Department, and the Hierarch Lord. He did not have much right to participate in matters regarding the betrayal of the Great Divine Priest of Light. He could only think about it.


    The Great Divine Priest of Light had destroyed confinement, left the You Prison, and betrayed the Peach Mountain. He had left behind chaos in the West-Hill Divine Pce. At almost the same time, the Great Divine Priest of Rtion who had returned from the south had sacrificed half a head of white hair in exchange for a decree from Haotian.


    Due to the Deste Man moving south, the desecrated Unknown ce within the Tianqi Mountain had finally appeared on earth after more than ten years.


    The Divine Hall had never given up on finding the "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane lost in the Wilderness. ording to rumors, the Taoist sect had once visited after the madman demolished the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine with a single sword, but nothing was found. That was why the Divine Hall had thought that the Deste Man had brought the scroll from the Tomes of Arcane to the northern Cold Region.


    However, it was at this time when the Great Divine Priest of Rtion had sent such a decree.


    Prince Long Qing¡¯s frown tightened. It did not affect his handsome face but made it look more somber.


    The Devil¡¯s Doctrine Front Gate was the only Unknown ce that had been destroyed. But should they reopen the ce, it was certain that they will discover many new things. Those things might not be important to the madman or the person who went in search of the Tomes of Arcane after but was very precious to the Tao Addict, himself as well as various young cultivators in the world.


    He believed in Haotian fervently and had a heart that faced the light. He would of course not be interested in the filthy dark arts of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. However, he was still a priest of the Judicial Department and knew of the truth that had been buried by time. Even though he might not be able to find the "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane, it would be arge boon to gain something from the madman¡¯s teachings.


    How much Lucky Chance would that require though?


    Prince Long Qing looked at the mountains abandoned by Haotian. "This must be a form of cultivation as well," He said calmly.


    Ten feet below, a deacon of the Judicial Department dressed in ck robes appeared. He bowed to Prince Long Qing respectfully and said something. His voice seemed to be broken by the piercing wind. It would have been indiscernible to an ordinary human but was exceptionally clear to Prince Long Qing.


    The skilled cultivators of the Divine Hall have appeared. Powerhouses of the Deste Man and even some senior statesman have been attracted to the west. The eastern side of the Tianqi Mountain seemed exceptionally empty today. Except...


    "13 deacons have gone missing?"


    Prince Long Qing looked at the subordinate below the cliff expressionlessly. It seemed as if it was a routine question. There were no emotions in his speech. Only he himself knew that he was irritated when he heard the name of that deacon.


    Of the 13 missing deacons of the Judicial Department, was one named Luo Weiyang. He was a subordinate of his in the Lower Seethrough state. This did not mean anything. What was more important was that he was Luo Kedi¡¯s brother.


    Luo Kedi was not very important either. But the thing was, he was the favoredmander of the Hierarch Lord.


    The subordinate below the cliff was extremely fearful and nervous due to the prince¡¯s dark expression. He lowered his head and continued his report. "Mr.Thirteen from the Second floor of the Academy has already left the pce. He should be heading here. We do not know which route he is taking, but we know that he should be traveling with the Calligraphic Addict from the ck Ink Garden."


    Prince Long Qing¡¯s sword-like eyebrows lifted and an enigmatic smile appeared on his face. He muttered to himself, "That¡¯s interesting. You¡¯ve started to travel the world. But has there been a World Wayfarer as weak as you over the past thousand years?"


    The smile dropped from his face slowly, and together with the cold winter gales that drifted past his face, turned into ice.


    As a powerhouse who had the right to be proud, Prince Long Qing had only been defeated by Ning Que once in his life. That was why his pride would fade into anger and unhappiness after hearing Ning Que¡¯s name.


    It was true that he had hidden it well as he remained peaceful and calm as usual. From the beginning of spring to start of the cold winter, nobody from the Divine Hall could sense it. But he knew that those anger and unhappiness were always there.


    Due to his loss, he found himself started aiming for the threshold into the Knowing Destiny State when spring left Chang¡¯an that year. It was there on the other end of the mountain, waiting for him to cross it. But also due to his loss, he found no way to get closer to it, much less crossing it even though he could see it on the mountain.


    Anger and unhappiness would not affect one¡¯s Taoist Heart. However, the resentment and unbnce would affect the path towards the light for one¡¯s Taoist Heart.


    He was proud, which was why he was resentful. He did not dare second-guess the Headmaster¡¯s choice. But he felt that there were other reasons resulting in his loss to Ning Que since the academy entrance exam was not presided over by the Headmaster personally.


    Because he could not be any less skilled than Ning Que.


    He had to attack and even ruin that guy from all aspects to prove this point.


    That was what the God of the Judicial Department had said. While the hierarchy did not say anything, his cold gaze did. The contemptuous smile of that crazy woman, Ye Hongyu, said the same. That was why he knew this was what he needed to do.


    "I will wait for you in this mountain."


    Prince Long Qing looked at the ck and lowly rocks at the foot of the snow-capped peak. Heughed self-deprecatingly. "How can the first man who was going to defeat a World Wayfarer not feeling any sense of aplishment at all?"

 Chapter 250: The Blossoming of Peach Blossoms

    Chapter 250: The Blossoming of Peach Blossoms


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Hatred, resentment, anxiousness, and fears were the emotions that were hindering the cultivators. They were like sticks of firewood that hung by one¡¯s Taoist Heart and be a fence that blocked the fresh air and water from the outside. Should this situation remained for long, everything inside the fence would wither.


    The inability to enter the Back Mountain of the Academy was the first hurdle Prince Long Qing had met on his path towards Taoism. Ning Que was the firewood outside his Taoist Heart. One of his major motives for cultivating in the Wilderness was to move this firewood. There were many ways to break the fence around one¡¯s Taoist Heart. For example, one could learn the ssics, or force himself into an impasse before erupting. However, the simplest method was to chop up the firewood into sawdust and allow the wind to blow it away.


    That was why when Prince Long Qing had found out that the piece of firewood called Ning Que wasing and that there was hope in breaking the fence around his Taoist Heart, his Taoist Heart had brightened considerably from the darkness it was previously enshrouded in. He felt arge gust air gushing from his chest and into the high mountains.


    It was at that moment when he began to see the world differently. The aura of heaven and earth swirled between the ck rocks of the snow-capped peak. The flow of rich,plex and unspeakable words seemed to be able to be mastered. A door appeared in the clear air between the mountains in the distance, much more clearly than ever before.


    Open the door, cross that threshold, and one would be able to know one¡¯s destiny.


    Prince Long Qing held his hands behind his ck shirt and looked at the distance passionately. He was silent for a long time.


    It was unknown how much time had passed when he finally retracted his gaze and looked at a snow-covered tree by his side.


    The snow gradually melted under his gaze. Droplets of waternded on the dry branches and met at its end. It then formed into a crystal of water which froze into ice rapidly from the winter winds.


    In the process during which the water crystalized into ice, there seemed to be a curious carving knife in the wind. The crystal of water did not freeze circrly, but instead, it blossomed. Petal after petal peeled from the center until a shape was formed.


    It was a crystal clear peach blossom but it gave one a sense that it was colored vividly.


    Colorless pure water had frozen into ice but looked as if it was colored. It was very amazing.


    Prince Long Qing looked at the ice cherry blossom that wavered with the wind as it sat on the branch. There was no pride or satisfaction on his beautiful face. Instead, a look of self-deprecation appeared between his brows. He sighed softly.


    "Just a bit more time."


    He had once thought that he was about to enter the Knowing Destiny State on the horse carriage departing from Chang¡¯an when he returned to West-Hill from Tang in spring. He had even thought that he would attain that state on his journey. However, what had happened after had awakened him from this dream. He had returned to cultivating calmly after that.


    One could only move forward on the cultivation path that stretched on ahead. There was no turning back. One could travel through it fast at the beginning, but it gets more and more dangerous as one continues on the path. The threshold that separates the Grand Cultivators and ordinary cultivators was even further up the path. The bar was so high, it was up in the clouds and the climb up was treacherous. Even though he had already seen it, he did not know how much time it would take to get close to it and cross it.


    Prince Long Qing did not feel down just because of that. He was still young and had already seen the threshold. He had the right to be pridefulpared to those who have cultivated for a hundred years and still did not know the path. This was especially so since he now knew he was getting closer to it.


    Every inch forward was extremely difficult when one came close to breaking the realm. That was why every inch forward was touching and even intoxicating.


    The snow on the bald branches of the trees had all melted and flowed to the tip of the branch. They all froze into crystal clear peach blossoms. The light refracted in the air was beautiful and the beauty seemed beyond this world.


    Prince Long Qing¡¯s extended a pale white hand out of his ck sleeves. He held up a single ice flower with three fingers against the sun. He looked at it for some time before saying softly, "Long Qing, you are really strong."


    At this moment, a clear voice sounded from the mountain path afar. The voice was full of surprise and curiosity.


    "Are people from the Central ins all so shameless?"


    Prince Long Qing¡¯s smile disappeared and he looked at the direction from which the voice came from expressionlessly.


    A girl that with a child-like appearance appeared on the cliff.


    The girl was wrapped in several tattered pieces of leather and furs. She wore a pair of old dirty ck boots and had a leather cap on her head. Her beautiful ck long hair was braided into arge it thatnded near her knees. It swayed along with her. Arge furry tail from a beast covered most of her face, but could not hide the youthfulness in her eyes.


    Prince Long Qing did not sense any movement in Psyche Power from the girl. His brows lifted as he thought to himself that she was an ordinary person. How did she appear in the piercing cold of the Tianqi Mountain and how did it escape his notice?


    He thought of only one possibility. He looked at her coldly and asked, "Are you a Deste Man who have returned south?"


    The girl was not more than 15 or 16 years old. Her face was wind-swept and red from the cold. She nodded forcefully when she heard his question. She then said, "I am Tang Xiaotang, what about you?"


    Prince Long Qing did not reply. He looked at the furry beast by the girl¡¯s side and frowned. He asked, "A rabbit?"


    Tang Xiaotang shook her head and said, "It¡¯s not a rabbit. It is an adorable white wolf."


    Prince Long Qing did not want to talk to the Deste Man girl any longer. He twirled the ice peach blossom between his fingers and prepared to send her off back to the heavenly realms of Haotian.


    The little white snow wolf who had been sitting quietly by Tang Xiaotang¡¯s side suddenly arched its back and stood up. It bared its fangs and looked at him alertly. It was just that the snow wolf was too tiny. Even should all his fur stand up, he¡¯d just look like an adorable giant snowball. It did not look scary at all.


    Prince Long Qing thought of the white horse that his fiance had gifted him and he suddenly smiled. He thought to himself that he shouldn¡¯t harm such a rare snow wolf when he killed the Deste Man girlter. He thought that his fiance would like the wolf very much.


    Tang Xiaotang did not be uneasy because of the little wolf¡¯s alertness. Her dark eyes were filled withughter as she asked the prince, "Do you intend to kill me?"


    They were on a vast snow mountain with was no hint of another living person nearby. What kind of world was it that a young girl of 15 or 16 years old would ask a stranger who was about to kill her if he was about to end her lifeughingly without feeling afraid? There were only two reasons. She was either a silly child, or she was the one to be afraid of.


    Prince Long Qing¡¯s lips curled and heughed self-deprecatingly. He thought that he had read about this kind of situation in one of those trashy novels. He believed that the Deste Man girl was truly a little weird. However, there was no way a girl this young could threaten him in this world.


    As he thought of this, a sh of bright red appeared before his eyes. Like koi wriggling around in ake, the sh of red had appeared several years ago. It was a representation of a past that made him very unhappy. And because of this memory, he felt rather annoyed at that moment. His expression darkened, and his beautiful features resembled the ice peach blossoms.


    He looked at Tang Xiaotang expressionlessly. "I have killed many from what remains of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. But I have yet to kill anyone from the Deste Man of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Youngdy, you should feel honored."


    Tang Xiaotangughed. She ced her hand behind her back and looked at Prince Long Qing who was standing beneath the tree. "I¡¯ve killed many beasts like wolves and sheep. But I have never killed anyone from the Divine Hall. You should feel honored."


    Her lightughter was a show of contempt. Her contempt for him meant that she was provoking him. From Prince Long Qing¡¯s point of view, her provocation at him meant that she was provoking the Divine Hall and was disrespectful to Haotian. That was why he got mad. However, his expression remained calm.


    No matter how he saw it, he was certain that it would be a one-sided battle. It was like an adult bullying a little girl. However, he did not expect the first person to move was the girl wrapped in tattered pieces of leather.


    Tang Xiaotang did not make the first move with her hands.


    But with her feet.


    She kicked at the snow on the ground. A deep footprint appeared in the snow. It was so deep it looked as if it was concaved into the ground. The dirty ck boots that looked ordinary did not tear, only appeared to be slightly out of shape.


    Then, Tang Xiaotang ran towards the tree with peach blossoms hanging off it.


    Arge flurry of snow would rise strongly as her feet kicked against the snowy ground. It was as if her tiny body was a heavy mountain. The cliff began to tremor slightly.


    The crystal clear ice peach blossoms shook, fell off the branches andnded on the ground.


    Tang Xiaotang came with the snowstorm.


    Prince Long Qing¡¯s eyes narrowed. His left hand that fell against his ck Taoist robes began to shake lightly. The ice peach blossoms which were about to fall from the branches were touched by the primordial Qi of heaven and earth. Like several arrows, they flew towards Tang Xiaotang.


    These crystal clear ice peach blossoms refracted beautiful lines of light under the sun and filled the cliff with hindrances. A powerful strength grew between each fragile petal.


    The winter winds blew across Tang Xiaotang¡¯s slightly red face. The beast tail that hid her face emitted a whirring sound. Her speed was so fast, one could barely see her with their bare eyes. One did not know where she hid such great power in her tiny body, and one could not imagine that her slender legs could run at that speed without breaking.


    Due to her fast speed, she had nowhere to hide when the terrifying yet beautiful ice peach blossoms appeared before her eyes and got closer to her face.


    Tang Xiaotang had learned to fight with her brother since she was a child. Hiding did not exist in her dictionary.


    Her right hand was always behind her body when she ran at high speed. It was only when her vision was filled with ice peach blossoms when she finally pulled her hand from behind.


    She pulled out arge blood red curved sword.


    The curved sword was ridiculouslyrge, especially when ced beside her tiny body. It seemed terrifying as well. The de was a bright blood red. One could not imagine where she had hidden the sword on her previously.


    The blood-colored huge de cleaved down from above with a whistling sound.


    The transparent ice peach blossoms shattered with the sound, filling the ground with ice shards.


    The magic that Prince Long Qing executed skilfully was of course not that simple. A strong Qi of Heaven and Earth rushed out from the broken ice blossom once it shattered.


    However, Tang Xiaotang was already ten feet away from her starting point at this time. She had already cleaved apart her fifth ice peach blossom.


    The peach blossoms continued to shatter, turning into useless shards of ice before falling limply onto the ground.


    The magic imbued with the peach blossoms drew up countless of waves of Taoist Qi on the cliff. The tremors drew up snow and ck rocks. However, it did not catch up to Tang Xiaotang¡¯s speed but onlyplemented her prowess. Compared to her, it was sluggish and weak.


    The blood-colored huge de wielded in Tang Xiaotang¡¯s hands cleaved apart a peach blossom, and another one, and a third.


    It kept on cleaving until it reached Prince Long Qing.


    Prince Long Qing¡¯s eyes brightened. He sent the ice peach blossom in his right hand forward, blocking the blood-colored huge de. The transparent petals sprang open and multiplied.


    The sharp de.


    And the seemingly fragile ice peach blossom.


    Met.


    And was victorious over most on earth.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth gave an intense jerk within the snow cliff.


    The tree that had several peach blossoms on it earlier was torn to shreds by the turbulent flow in the air.


    Prince Long Qing hissed but did not retreat.


    The hair tie that kept his ck hair tied broke, releasing a wave of ck hair. He looked slightly pathetic.


    The pale right hand that held on to the ice peach blossom trembled slightly.


    A tiny crack appeared down the ice peach blossom between his fingers.


    Tang Xiaotang stepped through the clouds dextrously like a nimble bird. She backflipped andnded on the snow-covered ground lightly.


    Sheughed and looked at Prince Long Qing and his messy hair. She said, "You are really handsome. You look like the women from the Great River Kingdom in embroideries. But it seems that you can¡¯t really fight."


    Prince Long Qing red at the young Deste Man girl. It took a lot of effort before he could stop his teeth from chattering out of anger. A trace of blood appeared from the corner of his lips.


    The color was a vivid as the pistil of a peach blossom.


    ...


    ...


    Strands of ck hair danced across Prince Long Qing¡¯s beautiful pale face. His eyes were abnormally cold and his hands which were outside his sleeves trembled slightly. The peach blossom with a tiny crack had disappeared. The divine sword on his waist that was gifted to him by the hierarch personally began to buzz.


    Tang Xiaotang looked at him and scratched her head. "Your state is really high, but it is true that you cannot fight. Your peach blossom is quite interesting. It¡¯s better than this sword of yours, You have got to use that sword of your hierarch¡¯s if you want to spar with mine. You will only die faster if you abandon your peach blossoms and use your sword now."


    Prince Long Qing tried to wipe off the blood at the corner of his mouth slowly. He looked at her with a half-smile. "We can try that."


    Suddenly, a strange look appeared in Tang Xiaotang¡¯s eye. It wasn¡¯t fear or excitement. It was as if she had sensed something strange that had annoyed hering closer.


    "There¡¯s no time to try today. I have something on, so I have to make a move first."


    Tang Xiaotang looked at Prince Long Qing and said, "I have to remind you, this mountain belongs to my family. If I see another of your people from the Divine Hall, I will kill every single one of you."


    Prince Long Qing could sense the aura that was heading towards them rapidly and could not help but frown. He felt very annoyed. He stared at Tang Xiaotang and said in a low voice, "Do you think you can leave today?"


    "This is the third time I¡¯m going to say you can¡¯t fight."


    Tang Xiaotang looked at him pityingly, "We disciples of Daming Sect are best at running. How will you catch up with me unless you¡¯re already in the Knowing Destiny State? Do the Divine Hall not teach these anymore?"


    A clear voice could be heard from afar, "Tang Xiaotang. Don¡¯t run if you have the guts."


    Tang Xiaotang could not help but shivered when she heard the voice. She replied angrily in a loud voice, "Ye Hongyu, you crazy shrew. Don¡¯t be such a menace if you have the guts!"


    And then, she turned around and started running with the little white wolf. She ran faster than the wind.

 Chapter 251: A Stingy Addict

    Chapter 251: A Stingy Addict


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    A gust of blizzard blew. A young girl appeared on the edge of a cliff. Her red blood-like clothing gently waved in the wind. On her waist was an ordinary ckce that bound her short and slightly loose red skirt that exposed her bare legs. Her legs were smooth with a dazzling sense of temptation. The red boot on her calf was like a tail of a koi carp.


    When this young girl watched Tang Xiaotang leave, one could only see a small side of her face, a face as clean as water and as calm as a distant mountain. Judging from her facial expression, it looked like she had gone through a lot. But her slightly tilted lips not only showed her ridicule, mncholy, surprise but also her true age.


    Prince Long Qing looked at her and suddenlyughed. He sighed and ignored the loose ck hair on his shoulders. He sat next to a deformed winter tree, picked up a piece of woodchip, and gently touched it with his fingers.


    The girl in the red dress quietly watched the wind and snow caused by Tang Xiaotang who was running at a high speed at the faraway mountain. She did not look back, but said in a much colder voice than the snow and wind around, "When encountering an enemy, you should be brave like a tiger or a lion fighting for a rabbit. You have disappointed me so much."


    Prince Long Qing ignored her and lowered his head down, gently inserting the chip of wood into the soil in front of him. He stared at the chip of wood that looked like a small log of firewood and said after a long time of silence, "Should I say I was injured for underestimating my enemy? That¡¯s not my style. As for whether you were disappointed or not, it¡¯s not my business. I¡¯m just curious. Based on your peculiarity, on meeting such an enemy, you certainly will not let her go. Why don¡¯t you chase her at this moment?"


    She said with no emotion, "What a naive idiot! I worried that you would copse after this setback, so I spent my precious time talking to you. If you suffered a setback in a brothel and had a body problem, another idiot, Lu Chenjia, would worry about it. But if you really copsed and could not enter Knowing Destiny State, it would be bad for the Judicial Department. This is a thing I should worry about."


    Her bare unbent legs and her graceful waist vaguely visible under her red skirt made her look pure as well as charming. Probably it was because this girl never cared about the confusion she caused to men and her mind was all ced elsewhere.


    Prince Long Qing looked up at her calmly and asked, "Do I really know nothing about fighting?"


    The girl in the red dress did not hide her contempt for him and said sarcastically, "You seemed to seek from a firm Taoist Heart, but in fact it was all about pleasing the hierarch and the Priest. These years, you¡¯ve led a group of useless men everywhere to kill another group of more useless men every day. You often went to the fire criminal tforms and Prison, but have you ever fought with a real strongman?"


    Long Qing looked at her back and said with slight ridicule. "If the strongman you mentioned was yourself, should I dare to fight with you? Do you forget how the God punished me when I tried to challenge you on the first day I left the Revtion Institute all those years ago?"


    Upon hearing his ridicule, the girl in the red dress suddenly cried, "Idiot! Do you think the status I have today is because of others? Do you want to die now?"


    Her voice was like an invincible sword, trying to forcibly cut one mountain open. The friction sound between its de and hard rocks made others feel terrified. After a rustle sound, those small beasts hiding around the snow cliff were all shocked and jumped out. They blindly scattered around and then they all fell to the ground.


    Prince Long Qing¡¯s face became slightly pale and then quickly returned to normal. He watched her back shaking his head and said with no emotion. "Now I naturally can¡¯t defeat you. Of course, you won¡¯t kill me, either. So your words don¡¯t make sense at all. If I can enter Knowing Destiny State in this mountain, I¡¯ll try to challenge you."


    After finishing this sentence, he added seriously. "Even if the hierarch and the God interfered, I hope you will still ept it."


    The girl in the red dressughed. Her crispughter echoed around the snow cliff and clearly showed her strong self-confidence and strength. It amazed Tang Xiaotang that she could hide such a powerful force in her small body. How could the girl in the red dress still hide such strong self-confidence in her graceful yet seductive body?


    Prince Long Qing quietly watched her back, the red dress band behind her, her naked and charming legs. Though he was not distracted by these, he did not hide the appreciation in his gaze.


    There were boulders and sawdust all over the ck rocks of the snow cliff. The girl in bright red stood out in such a cluttered and deste environment. Her pride and self-confidence shed with the environment. However, in anyone¡¯s eyes, this girl standing on the edge of the cliff seemed to be part of this snow cliff and its surroundings. No one could distinguish the girl in red with the surrounding.


    Cultivators in Seethrough state could integrate their own consciousness with the Qi of Heaven and Earth. But if one cultivator could integrate his own existence with the heaven and earth, he not only understood thew of the flowing Qi of Heaven and Earth but also had almost mastered this kind ofw in essence. And therefore, almost realized the origin of the world.


    It was called as Knowing Destiny State.


    Prince Long Qing looked at her back integrating with the snow cliff, knowing that this girl was much closer to the threshold of Knowing Destiny State than himself. She just needed to gently lift her feet to step over it. She only needed a chance.


    They had entered the Revtion Institute and the Judicial Department in session. He and the girl in the red dress were considered as the most promising ones of this young generation in the Divine Hall. When he led the Judicial Department to stand out in the world, the young girl was addicted to Taoism and ignored the others. So she was less well-known than he. However, no matter how hard he tried, he could never catch up with her, whether in the cultivation world or in the secr world, in the ranking list of the Divine Hall or in the cultivation state.


    Was it because she was Tao Addict Ye Hongyu?


    ...


    ...


    Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu, quietly watched the faraway snow dust in the snow cliff and emitted a touch of cool and powerful luster in her eyes, saying, "On your path of cultivating Tao Heart, there is Ning Que, I , and now Tang Xiaotang as your firewood obstacles. I really don¡¯t know when you will unplug these firewoods. I hope you won¡¯t let me down again. If you still can¡¯t enter Knowing Destiny State within three years, I will directly kill you because I won¡¯t hand over the Judicial Department to a loser."


    Prince Long Qing did not answer, for he knew she was capable of doing this kind of thing. He also knew that although he was regarded highly by the hierarch and the God, he was a nobodypared with this girl who had a strong background.


    Tao Addict suddenly nkly said, "She¡¯s Tang¡¯s sister."


    It came from nowhere. But Prince Long Qing understood it, for he knew who Tang was. His cheeks suddenly became pale and he fell into a thoughtful silence.


    Tao Addict did not look back, but seemed to be able to see Long Qing¡¯s expression. She nodded slightly and seemed to be very satisfied with his response, saying proudly and disdainfully, "Since she¡¯s a Tang, of course, only Ye¡¯s sister, me, is qualified to defeat her. A loser like you doesn¡¯t need to think about it too much."


    Facing this contemptuous mockery, Prince Long Qing did not get angry nor did he ridicule her back. Instead he very seriously bowed to her back and said calmly, "Thanks."


    There was a fence around his Taoist Heart.


    A fence had three stumps.


    Over these years, Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu, had depressed his heart like a touch of dark twilight. And she was the first stump on this fence. In the mountaineeringpetition of the Academy, Ning Que inexplicably defeated him and became the second stump. Today, on this sudden encounter, a little Deste girl defeated him and became the third stump.


    As time went by, Tao Addict had less negative influence on him. Because there was always something one needed to adapt to, just as those who believed in Haotian could not go against it. Prince Long Qing rarely considereduching a challenge to Tao Addict before his entering the Knowing Destiny State.


    Not every failure had an impact on his Taoist Heart.


    A stump like Ning Que was deeply wedged and made him writhe in pain. It was very fresh and easily caused his negative emotions¡ªBecause Confinement outside the Taoist Heart was just like a thorn in the heart. He was unwilling to ept this fact, for he should have won the mountaineeringpetition as a man favored by god and ignored that little soldier of the border town. But he finally lost to that guy. So the thorn would always exist.


    He had not yet pulled out the stump, Ning Que. Today he was beaten by another unknown Deste girl. If Tao Addict had not exined anything, it would have been harder for him to enter Knowing Destiny State.


    However, since he knew that the little girl was Tang¡¯s sister, his displeasure naturally faded. Just as Ye Hongyu had said, Tang¡¯s sister should certainly be as strong as Ye¡¯s sister. So it was not difficult to understand his defeat, for he was not well prepared.


    So Prince Long Qing sincerely expressed his gratitude.


    Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu, turned around, looking down at Prince Long Qing sitting beside a deformed tree. There was no expression on her delicate and beautiful face, even much calmer than her short red skirt swinging along with the wind.


    "You don¡¯t need to thank me. Though I insist that you¡¯re a perverted idiot, you should not be too weak since you¡¯re in the Judicial Department. The stronger you¡¯re, the stronger the Judicial Department and the Divine Hall are. If you¡¯re weak, the Divine Hall won¡¯t be weak, but I¡¯ll still feel ashamed and will not stand it at all."


    ...


    ...


    Tao Addict went to chase after Tang Xiaotang. No one knew when the two had encountered in Tianqi Mountain and how long their chase hadsted or was about to continue in the blizzard.


    That cardinal short skirt was like a blooming flower on the ck walls of the snow cliff. Each time it bloomed, it would go forward and suddenly appear in another mountain, and then disappear in the distance.


    Prince Long Qing quietly watched the disappearing redness and wondered whose sister among the two legendary figures, Ye and Tang, was more powerful.


    He had fought with both of them and confirmed that Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu, had attained a higher state. But as Tang Xiaotang had said, before a Haotian Taoism cultivator entered Knowing Destiny State, a person from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine with a tough body was more suitable for fighting. But why did Ye Hongyu keep chasing after that Devil¡¯s Doctrine survivor?


    In the past years, he had led the deacon of the Judicial Department and mighty Apologetic Divine Forces in search of Devil¡¯s Doctrine survivors, betrayers and heresies in the Central ins. He had never really had any real trouble before. But today he finally believed that, as the Deste Men moved southwards, those Devil¡¯s Doctrine strongmen who had long been hiding began to appear.


    Their encounter was the first time for Prince Long Qing to fight with the real Devil¡¯s Doctrine stongman. Although his opponent was only a little girl, she waspletely different with those older Devil¡¯s Doctrine believers he had met before.


    When they first met, he was defeated by a girl of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. His ego and pride naturally suffered a lot. But he had a firm Taoist Heart and would not copse because of this.


    The Divine Hall hierarch and Ruling God hadmanded them to enter the depth of the Wilderness for Tomes of Arcane and to check the movements of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. But it was also a rare opportunity for trial and cultivation.


    Just... Tao Addict wished to be defeated, but was not yet defeated.


    He did not want to lose, but still lost.


    Over and over again.


    Prince Long Qing picked up a piece of woodscrap again and stuck it in the mud infront of him.


    A short momentter, the long-short woodpiece seemed to be a fence and surrounded him.


    His disheveled ck hair scattered behind his shoulder. His ck Taoist Robe that had been very clean was covered in dirt and snow mud, looking a bit messy. There was a worried expression hidden in his wide brows.


    He closed his eyes and used his hands to gently touch his knees. He calmed down and chanted a passage from Haotian doctrine.


    There was a fence made of firewood outside his body.


    There was a fire burning in his heart.


    He wanted to destroy the fence and set the me free.


    He got enlightenment from his failure. From then on, he no longer failed and naturally knew his destiny.


    ...


    ...


    At this time, Ning Que could not confirm where Prince Long Qing was in Tianqi Mountains. He even did not know this son of god who was loyal to Taoism had regarded him as an obstacle like a useless woodpiece that must be unplugged before his entering Knowing Destiny State.


    "In Shubi Lake, I was called as firewood-collector and barbarians or Horse Gang liked to call me firewood-chopper."


    He led the Big ck Horse and happily described his past to Mo Shanshan beside him. In this lonely journey into the mountain, aimless searching made them easily bored. If they did not chat often, he was really worried that he would leave at once and ignore Youngest Uncle¡¯s nonsense.


    Chatting always needed two people. After all, there was no person in this world like Zhou Botong, a talkative figure in Chinese novels. But Mo Shanshan had lived beside the teachers of Ink Lake since childhood had few secr experiences. Except a period ofmunication with Flower Addict, Lu Chenjia, via letters, she had only a life span of pen and ink. So she only spent a short time exining her life.


    Ning Quemented that Calligraphy Addict had a clean, simple and happy life. In order to kill time, he had to tell his own stories. Fortunately there were too many things in his life. Even if he removed those that were too bloody or vited the human moral, he still could not finish the rest within three days and nights.


    Mo Shanshan had been quietly listening and asionally showed a smile on her slightly round face that became a little red from the blizzard. After Ning Que reminded her several times, she soon learned to ask at the right time, "And then?"


    Later, as her question of "And then?" continued, they came to the quiet Snow Mountain. Ning Que finally confirmed that the Deste Man did not lie to him. The caravan from Tuyang City indeed went south without entering the mountain. He could not help feeling somewhat doubtful. Could it be that Xia Hou had given up on looking for the "Ming" Handscroll of Tomes of Arcane?


    It was a bit tough in the winter in the Wilderness. Both of them were cultivators, so they could resist coldness and heat. But they still felt a bit cold from the wild snowy wind. And this rolling mountain in front was also a great challenge for them.


    This north section of Tianqi Mountain was steep and difficult to walk on. Combined with the coldness and dangers, neither Deste Man nor grasnd barbarians could ever go into the mountain. Although the Big ck Horse was strong enough, Ning Que did not dare to take it into the mountain.


    After he unloaded the heavy luggage, he heavily patted on the Big ck Horse¡¯s hip, saying, "Find another ce to have fun. If you can¡¯t find food, you go back first."


    The Big ck Horse suddenly felt much relieved and ignored what he had said, neighing happily and loudly and running down along a gentle slope on the mountain. It remembered that it had vaguely seen a coniferous forest northwest on the road. Although it did not like eating barks, those cold-resistant squirrels surely had hiden something for the winter and pine nuts seemed to taste good...


    Mo Shanshan looked at the Big ck Horse who instantly disappeared like ck lightning. She tightened the scarf on her neck and asked in a state of confusion, "Will it find something to eat?"


    "It¡¯s a foodie and therefore, good at finding food."


    Ning Que searched for the luggage for a long time and then pulled out a piece of cloth. He looked at the girl with a smile, adding. "The people in the back of the mountain are a group of foodies. Sometimes I really feel that the Big ck Horse naturally belongs to the Academy."


    Mo Shanshan kept silent for a long time and softly asked in doubt. "The Headmaster... is also a foodie?"


    Ning Que did not hear her question clearly. He held up the blood cloth in his hand and aimed it at the unreal light in the sky. Facing the sunlight, he wanted to see what was hidden inside, but ultimately only saw some blood.


    "If this is a test, are there no tips?"


    Ning Que watched the blood cloth sent by the Nation Master, Li Qingshan, over and over again for a long time. He said annoyedly, "There should be a treasure map in it. If not, how will I find the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine? If we two can enter Devil¡¯s Doctrine by casually and blindly wandering in, why is it known as Unknown ce?"


    Mo Shanshan gently shook her head and said, "Let¡¯s go into the mountain first."


    Ning Que nodded and carried the luggage on his back, digging his boots deeper into the snow.


    Mo Shanshan curiously looked at the baggage on his shoulder, wondering what exactly was inside it that it looked so heavy.


    Ning Que looked at her frozen eyshes like frost silks and her reddish cheeks, suddenly asking, "Are you cold?"


    Mo Shanshan nodded, for she did not want to hide anything from him.


    "Why did you not say it earlier?"


    Ning Que passed a piece of Fu paper to her and said, "Put it on your waist. It can keep you warm. If it¡¯s not enough, you can ask for more. I still have a lot."


    Mo Shanshan listened to him and put the slightly yellow Fu paper on her waist. Later she felt a bit confused and wondered why she followed his order. When the warmth gradually seeped into her waist, she could not help but be amazed. "What¡¯s this?"


    "My first experiment product, the fire talisman."


    Ning Que carried his luggage walking towards the valley and said with a smile, "It failed. There is no way to condense the fire within the Breath of nature. It can only warm up slowly. When I left Chang¡¯an, I thought it must be cold in the Wilderness. So I wrote a few more."


    When Mo Shanshan heard these words, she suddenly felt a chill on her cheeks that had gradually heated up because of warmth and shyness. She said in a trembling voice. "Using Fu paper... to warm up? How many fire talismans do you have?"


    Ning Que said, "I didn¡¯t count. Maybe dozens. They¡¯re useless, after all. You can use them as you wish."


    Mo Shanshan slightly blinked her eyshes, suddenly breaking the frost silk on them. She stared at him and could not say anything. She simply thought that writing talisman took a lot of Psyche Power, how could he waste his valuable Psyche Power on an unnecessary trifle?


    She was addicted in Talisman Taoism all her life and regarded it as a priority. So the more she thought of it, the angrier she became.


    Ning Que turned back to see her look and could not help wondering. "What¡¯s wrong?"


    Mo Shanshan looked at his eyes and said very seriously, "You¡¯re such a squanderer. Don¡¯t do this in the future."


    Ning Que smilingly scratched his head and did not answer her.


    It might be really wasteful to use Fu paper as a heater.


    However, he had plenty Psyche Power and he could recover very quickly.


    Most importantly, Sangsang had a weak body and feared the cold.


    He had written hundreds of such talismans in Old Brush Pen Shop. So Sangsang certainly would not have such a tough life in this winter.

 Chapter 252: A Resentment Meeting on the Snow Cliff

    Chapter 252: A Resentment Meeting on the Snow Cliff


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Even the devout worshippers who wandered around and kowtowed to the Peach Mountain of the Divine Hall always had a direction. However, there were no treasure maps hidden in crimson fabrics. There was only the imperial court which hadpletely backed off after throwing the heavy responsibility on Ning Que¡¯s shoulders, and Second Brother was totally irresponsible.


    Hence, the journey to the Wilderness became tangled and frustrating for Ning Que. In his view, this journey was a process of cultivation; the guys who were warming themselves around fires in the warm rooms of the Pce in Chang¡¯an City were all old and useless. Ning Que was extremely irritated at them and did not know what to say.


    He did not know what to say or how to walk. During the first few days after they entered the northern Tianqi Mountain, Ning Que and Mo Shanshan walked silently and monotonously. He was


    efficient at hunting and tracking, but still could not ovee the difficulty of an entire night of fierce northern wind and heavy snow.


    When walking in an area where the wind was particrly strong, Ning Que pretended not to notice the female Talisman Master¡¯s frowning eyebrows. He felt forced to give her a heating charm. When he was ready to move forward, he suddenly stopped and looked upwards.


    Mo Shanshan looked at his expression. She assumed that he had probably seen some more Snow Mountain sheep which he might want to shoot down for dinner. She shook her head gently and didn¡¯t say anything. She merely embraced the warmthing from her belly.


    Instead of bringing out his bow and cing the arrow, Ning Que slowly frowned and then sat down in the snow. He closed his eyes to force the Psyche Power of the sense of perception out of his body. He began to sit quietly, perceiving the aura of the surrounding world.


    The snow came with the cold wind, and after a little while, a thinyer of snow had piled on his clothes. Mo Shanshan looked at him in worry and confusion. She wanted to flick away the snow for him but decided eventually not to do anything.


    A moment earlier, Ning Que had felt a familiar auraing from the depth of Tianqi Mountain. Speaking logically, it was impossible for him in his current state to perceive anything from such a long distance. However, the aura had just suddenly appeared in his sense of perception. It indicated that it was not Ning Que who had perceived the aura, but the aura that had ignored the whirling snow and taken the initiative toe to him.


    This analysis shocked him. He wondered which state the Grand Cultivator was in, that he could allow Ning Que to perceive his existence from such a long distance. Could it be one of the No Rules from legends? Were there any Sage-like existences that had transcended five states on this vast mountain?


    In order to confirm that his perception had not gone awry, he sat down without hesitation and began to meditate. With the concentration of his spirit and the release of the Psyche Power in the sense of perception, the auraing from somewhere far away became clearer and clearer. It came to him as the snow in the wind traversed the long distance, and then gently fell on him. It then slowly and inexorably entered his body through his cheeks, mouth and nose.


    The horrible and unimaginable aura of a stronger being,ing from afar, instantly upied his sense of perception. Under this situation, even for people like the Tao Addict, the first thought that came to mind might be getting as far away as possible.


    Instead of escaping, Ning Que sat quietly to gain perception, because as mentioned earlier, this terrible and powerful aura made him feel familiar and even closed. Yet the problem was that, no matter how much he recalled his memory, he still could not remember whether he had ever met a Grand Cultivator who possessed this kind of aura in the past two years.


    The strong aura was not overbearing, but extremely proud. It was like a cedar surviving at the top of a Snow-capped Peak. It did not bend over, even if it was covered with a millennium of snow. It would rather overlook the mortal beings at the foot of the mountain instead of looking up to the sky.


    Ning Que closed his eyes and quietly felt the taste of the aura. Suddenly, a sh of light passed, and several visions appeared in his sense of perception. The images looked like the green and calm meadow in front of the Academy; the numerous books that were too proud to be understood bymon people in the archaic library; the white goose that proudly fed the fish in the back of the mountain; the ancient crown on Second Brother¡¯s head; the flower that Eleventh Brother was fondly watching and the forest where trees were pointing straight to the Firmament like swords atop the mountain under the Academy.


    He slowly opened his eyes, looking towards the depth of the mountains in the distance and felt the peace and persistence contained in the aura. He did not know why he suddenly felt sad and almost shed tears, because... the familiar aura still retained its owner¡¯s pride and obsession, but without any information. It had found Ning Que only because it also felt acquainted with his smell. It did not want to stay on this mountain; it wanted to return to its most familiar ce.


    It wanted to go back home, back to the Academy.


    ...


    ...


    When Ning Que was awakened, the wind and snow had stopped, and his body had umted a thickyer of heavy snow.


    He had stared at that ce for a long time, thus he had understood something and confirmed something. He suddenly asked, "Did you feel that?"


    Thick snowkes fell down from his clothes.


    Mo Shanshan stayed silently beside him. She did not know what had happened. Hearing his question, she furrowed her brows and replied, shaking her head, "Feel what?"


    Ning Que stood up and dusted the snow off his clothes. He picked up his package and said, "Let¡¯s


    go."


    Mo Shanshan asked, "To...?"


    Ning Que pointed to the huge mountain in the distance where the powerful and proud aura arose.


    "There!"


    Mo Shanshan said, "We don¡¯t have a map."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "They have sent me here because they know I don¡¯t need a map."


    ...


    ...


    Walking on the snowy trails was difficult, but less difficult than climbing up to the sky. Ning Que who had a determined mental state and the young Calligraphy Addict who always had a strong mind were walking firmly towards that ce. It did not take them too much time before they arrived at a steep cliff.


    It took them half a day to climb the steep snow cliff. They stood at the top. A gust of wind was blowing; it was fresh and cool like the spring, much unlike the fierce snow and cold wind of winter.


    They kept walking forward along the long snow cliff. Soon, they found the origin of the spring breeze. At the end of the snow cliff was a deep quiet valley, where there were several green broad-leaved trees growing. He didn¡¯t know if they were able to grow here due to the climate or if there were hot springs nourishing them. The valley wasrge. It looked green, a sharp contrast to the icy world of the snow cliff that was only white and ck.


    Mo Shanshan was enchanted by the green scene in front of her. After a long period of silence, she subconsciously turned back and nced at Ning Que. He had led the way here. She did not understand how Ning Que could know this kind of valley existed in the depths of the Tianqi Mountains. At the beginning, he had had trouble finding a map.


    Ning Que was not as calm as her. He looked nkly at the green valley and the spring that could vaguely be seen in the depths of the valley. He felt the familiar aura bing more concise and clearer. He could not help feeling nervous.


    This aura had kept him silent for days. Now he finally confirmed that he was not mistaken. After a


    sudden sense of sharp tension, he became absolutely rxed from head to toe.


    Standing at the top of the snow cliff, he suddenly shouted to the green valley, "Zhang Wuji, where are you?"


    The voice reverberated in the valley for a long time before disappearing.


    Mo Shanshan looked at him with no expression on her face, probably thinking he might go crazy again.


    Ning Que calmed down his delightful mood and said to her in a soft voice, "I think we found the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    Mo Shanshan looked slightly surprised. She asked, "Is it that simple?"


    Ning Que stared silently into the valley under the snow cliff, and then shook his head, saying, "There are many things that seem difficult in this world. And yet, they turn out to be very simple as long as you can understand the links among them."


    Mo Shanshan shook her head in a simple and straightforward way, and then said, "I don¡¯t understand what you mean."


    Ning Que looked at her and said, "There was a predecessor who found the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine and cut it into ruins with just a sword. Do you know who he was?"


    Mo Shanshan shook her head and continued, "The teacher never told me. It seemed he didn¡¯t want to say."


    Ning Que said, "I don¡¯t know who he was, either, but I can probably guess who he was and confirm the rtionship between him and myself. Because of this rtionship, I can easily find the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    Hearing his words, Mo Shanshan¡¯s eyes gradually lit up. She had probably guessed who the predecessor that he was talking about was. However, since he did not make it clear she did not go on.


    "Prince Long Qing should also be in the mountain," she reminded him.


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "If the Divine Hall knew the location of the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, why didn¡¯t theye here before the Deste Man went south? Besides, ording to my estimate, there should be no good things remaining in this valley. Why did the Divine Hall ask Prince Long Qing toe to the Wilderness? I believe they are of the same mind as that of the Academy. They just want us to have cultivation."


    Mo Shanshan blinked her eyes slightly and quietly said, "Sometimes cultivation is a matter between


    two people."


    Ning Que did not mistake her meaning; he understood what she meant. After a moment of silence, he said, "If Long Qing can only fulfill his Taoist Heart by defeating me; do you think I¡¯ll give him this opportunity?"


    Mo Shanshan shook her head and said, "As for cultivation, many things arepelling most of the


    time."


    Ning Que said seriously, "We¡¯re all righteous people. How can we start a fight as soon as we meet each other? Moreover, the Tianqi Mountain is so vast, how easy is it for us to encounter each other?"


    Someone¡¯s voice suddenly carried over from the snow cliff. The voice contained veryplicated emotions; they seemed somewhat surprised, delighted, confused and determined. Eventually the


    emotion died down.


    "I didn¡¯t expect to meet you so soon."


    Ning Que and Mo Shanshan looked back and saw a man sitting at the end of the snow cliff, just a few hundred meters away.


    As the temperature on both sides of the snow cliff was distinctly different, the right half of the person¡¯s body was covered with thick snow, while the ck coat on his left side was free from snow. It seemed that he was sitting on the dividing line between two worlds, one side of which was wind, snow and darkness, while the other side was spring and brightness. It was an extremely odd sight.


    With his voice, the thick snow that covered his body slowly melted and fell off. His perfect cheeks, due to the chilly wind and frost, looked haggard. His ck Taoist robe that had once been clean was now full of dirt. The dark hair that fell to his shoulder made him look a bit embarrassed.


    However, he still looked calm, awed and bright as the son of God.


    ...


    ...


    The world was so big that a person, even if he was powerful and prominent after growing up, still could not find any information about the neighbor¡¯s little girl who had given him lollipops, till the day he died.


    However, this world was also very small. Maybe when a person ate a bowl of unclean pork giblets and went to thetrine at the corner of the street, he might suddenly encounter the shameless guy who hadpeted with him for that little girl¡¯s lollipops.


    In the Buddhism Sect, loving apart and resentment meeting meant suffering in human life. Where there was life, there was suffering. Therefore, living in the human world often required that people leave their loved ones and then continuously meet with people they disliked.


    After the examination on the second floor of the Academy, in the eyes of those at the top of the secr world and those in the cultivation world, Ning Que and Prince Long Qing were destined to be enemies for life.


    And they hated each other indeed.


    Thus, no matter how big the world was or howrge the Tianqi Mountain was, they were certainly destined to meet.


    ...


    ...


    Prince Long Qing looked at the man and the girl on the other side of the snow cliff, and suddenlyughed.


    He was able to pass his voice hundreds of meters; so naturally, he could also see their faces clearly.


    How could he forget the man¡¯s disgusting face? How could he forget his tender freckles? How could he forget his dimples? How could he forget the time this man had walked out of the thick fog like a fool and passed him the squashed pastries at the top of the mountain behind the Academy?


    However, he had never expected that Ning Que and the Calligraphy Addict could actually find this valley. Logically speaking, only the Divine Hall had a map. Besides, if the sky did not give guidance, and therge tactical array outside the valley was eliminated, even the people from the Divine Hall could not find their way here.


    "When I came here a few days ago, this valley was still covered with frozen snow."


    There was no emotion in Prince Long Qing¡¯s voice. He said, "I have been sitting here watching the snow and ice melt. I¡¯ve seen the rejuvenation of green leaves and the differences between each day, as if witnessing a miracle. I¡¯m truly impressed."


    He looked at Ning Que who stayed on the opposite side of the snow cliff and calmly continued,


    "You¡¯rete to arrive. Or I can say you¡¯re early, because there are still a few days before the gate opens."


    Ning Que¡¯s warm and sincere voice sounded in the distance, "Your Highness, do you know when the gate will open?"


    Prince Long Qing was agitated by the enthusiasm in Ning Que¡¯s voice. He said in a low voice, "I


    don¡¯t know. But since you and I are all here a bit early, maybe we can find a way to upy our time."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que did not possess Prince Long Qing¡¯s ability of talking with others regardless of distance. He


    opened his palms and put them aside his mouth, shouting, "ying chess, or ying a melody, or idle talking. These are the kinds of thing I¡¯m good at now. As for fighting, forget it. I can¡¯t defeat you, and it¡¯s disgraceful for you to bully me." Mo Shanshan stood beside him and bowed her head after hearing these words.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que¡¯s remarks were so wretched and frank that even the young girl who admired him could no longer listen to him. Let alone Prince Long Qing.


    Prince Long Qing looked at Ning Que in the distance and took a deep breath.


    The night of climbing the back mountain of the Second Floor had been the greatest setback he had ever suffered. A few days ago, he had been defeated by Tang Xiaotang, which made him feel extremely frustrated. And now, today, he had finally met Ning Que. The spark that had been buried in the ash of his chest and abdomen gradually became robust. It burned his body and Taoist heart and was about to light up his ck taoist robe.


    Let this fire burn, set the sky aze and burn the fence!


    Prince Long Qing looked down at the fence made of branches. He reached his hand to randomly draw a piece of wood out from the middle, and then slowly put it in the snow. He smiled.


    ...


    ...


    Taking out a piece of wood from the fence... Ning Que could not figure out what it meant. However, Mo Shanshan understood. She raised her head and stared expressionlessly at Prince Long Qing. She stretched her hands out of the cotton cuff and casually made a pinch in the snowy wind. She then picked up a few pieces of cool snow and several talismans.


    With this movement, the Qi of Heaven and Earth on the snow cliff was violently disturbed. The young Talisman Master¡¯s heavy cotton robe, for whatever reason, magically became soft. It flowed gently in the mountain breeze, like a gossamer and beautiful skirt.


    It seemed there were not any changes on the snow cliff, but Prince Long Qing and Mo Shanshan could see that the fluffy snow had be fluffier than before, and even the cliff below the snow had also be soft. The power of Talisman Taoism had been quietlyid among them.


    Prince Long Qing frowned slightly and quietly looked to the other side of the snow cliff. It was then that he discovered the Calligraphy Addict was stronger than in legends. He did not know if she had seen the threshold, but she was already close to the Knowing Destiny State.


    He looked towards the other side and asked in a deep voice, "Ning Que, are you going to keep hiding behind the girl?"


    Hearing these words, Ning Que quickly stood behind Mo Shanshan and squatted slightly. After confirming that the girl¡¯s body couldpletely cover him, he reached his head out. He then smiled and shouted, "Don¡¯t try to stimte me. I¡¯m such a person. You can¡¯t discourage me. Just think about other ways."


    These words showed no shame.


    Prince Long Qing could not imagine why the Headmaster of the Academy¡¯s disciple was so shameless. Hence, he became gloomier and angrier as he increasingly felt that it should have been he who was qualified to be the Academy¡¯s disciple.


    He provoked, "Do you think you can hide behind a girl all your life?"


    Ning Que ced his head on Mo Shanshan¡¯s shoulder and looking to the other side of the snow cliff, he said naturally, "I¡¯ll certainly keep away from you if I can¡¯t win. I just hope that you don¡¯t learn from me. Although there is not much chance of that, if I can¡¯t win against you in my entire life..."


    He continued seriously, "I¡¯ll hide behind her forever. What can you do to me?"


    The anger on Prince Long Qing¡¯s face gradually faded, revealing an expressionless calm.


    Ning Que stared shamelessly at Long Qing with vignce and considered what he should doter.


    Mo Shanshan looked a littleplicated. Her long and thin eyshes twitched gently, while her thin red lips were tightly pressed together. Her lips were so bright; they appeared more intense than the hue of the white snow and the emerald valley.


    Hide behind me forever?


    His entire life?


    She slowly lowered her head. Her hands that were holding the Fu paper were quivering slightly, not because of nervousness, but from something else.

 Chapter 253: A Bet of Breaking A State

    Chapter 253: A Bet of Breaking A State


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Prince Long Qing slowly stood up and the snow residual on his ck clothes fell on his boots. He looked at the other side of the snow cliff and said softly, "You can hide behind Calligraphy Addict all your life. But the question remains. Does she have the ability to shelter you forever? And does she want to do that?"


    After he said that, he stepped over the low fence made of wood and nkly walked along the snow cliff to the other side. The snow cliff was extremely narrow, but it looked a little wider because of the snow residual. In fact, it only allowed several people to walk side by side. It seemed to be a natural stone bridge in the sky, dividing a snowy foothill and a verdant valley.


    The face of the snow cliff facing the verdant valley was extremely steep. There were some weeds growing randomly on its dark gray rocky wall, making it difficult to climb. Besides, there were no roads on the cliff, making it very difficult to descend.


    Within a short moment, Prince Long Qing had walked over 300 meters away. He looked at Mo Shanshan and said mildly, "Sister Shanshan, this time you practiced in the Wilderness. Have you seen Chen Jia? She often mentioned you at West-Hill."


    Mo Shanshan had already woken up from her bewilderment. She looked at him with a dignified and gentle look, prepared to say something. Unexpectedly Ning Que jumped out from behind her, looking at Prince Long Qing, and said first, "Your Highness, as the Priest of the Judicial Department in the Divine Hall, you should know what happened on the meadow and in the pce. Isn¡¯t it a bit toote for you to sweet-talk us?"


    Prince Long Qing looked slightly displeased, for he did know the conflicts between Calligraphy Addict and his fianc¨¦e. He was a proud person but nevertheless, he was gentle with Calligraphy Addict out of respect for her. If he had tried to y up to them as Ning Que said, wouldn¡¯t that have made him a viin?


    He looked at Ning Que in the distance and suddenly frowned. Because he found that Ning Que had improved a lot within months. So he said, "It seems that the back of the mountain has helped you a lot, for you¡¯re almost entering the Seethrough state."


    Ning Que looked at him andughed. "Your Highness, you¡¯re joking again. If it was of no help, why did wepete with each other so hard and make other people watch us?"


    Upon hearing the mockery hidden in Ning Que¡¯s words, Prince Long Qing did not be angry, but looked at him and said calmly, "Sometimes I believe that you and I are predestined enemies. Because we kept running into each other in Chang¡¯an City, in the back of the mountain and in the depth of Tianqi Mountain."


    Ning Que said, "This kind of fate, I¡¯d rather abandon it."


    During the dialogue, Prince Long Qing did not stop walking towards the other side of the snow cliff.


    He looked at Ning Que smilingly and suddenly said, "Haotian bestowed thousands of Lucky Chances on people. Whether you want it or not, you can¡¯t avoid it if one Lucky Chancees to you. Now I¡¯m breaking the realm and entering Knowing Destiny State. And you¡¯re entering Seethrough. Why don¡¯t we gamble on the date of breaking the realm?"


    "What if the Headmaster of Academy knew of my gambling?"


    Ning Que thought of all kinds of cards in Seventh Sister¡¯s room in the back of the mountain and said seriously, "Furthermore one needs his own cultivation plus a Lucky Chance to break the realm. Why should I gamble with you on the date of breaking the realm?"


    Then he looked at the approaching Prince Long Qing and said, "And why should I give you a chance toplete your Taoist Heart? If you¡¯re really my lifetime enemy, I won¡¯t do anything that may be helpful to you."


    The first part was a lie and the second part was a sincere exnation. Prince Long Qing slightly startled and did not expect that Ning Que was actually being frank. He could not help smiling and said, "Do you want me to humiliate you so that you can have this gamble?"


    Ning Que said seriously, "Buddhism Sect once said that one doesn¡¯t need to care about the humiliation. Your Highness, if you want to humiliate me, please go ahead."


    Prince Long Qing was really startled and silently watched him for a long time, saying, "Are you really a Tang?"


    Ning Que answered, "You can consider me a Yan."


    He was startled again and shaking his head he said smilingly, "Today, I find the name ¡¯Yan¡¯ is not pleasing to the ears."


    Prince Long Qing was a Yan, whose pinyin "Yan" sounded liked another word which meant to be a eunuch. So he did not want to tolerate it any longer.


    He looked at Ning Que coldly and said, "You don¡¯t want to have a fight, but I do."


    Ning Que looked at him and said, "Even if I don¡¯t fight back, you still want to fight. Do you want to kill me?"


    Prince Long Qing shook his head and said, "Just to defeat you."


    Ning Que became much more serious, quietly watching that gaunt but handsome face of Prince Long Qing. After a long silence, he said in a serious tone, "Your Highness, please don¡¯t try to defeat me, for I won¡¯t give you the chance. If you touch me, I will kill myself now."


    ...


    ...


    The snow cliff was very narrow and seemed to be very long. But they still walked to its end.


    Prince Long Qing stood opposite Ning Que as well as Mo Shanshan on both sides of the snow cliff. It started snowing gradually.


    On this asion, Ning Que had made such a speech.


    If you do not buy me a gem, I will kill myself right now. If you do not make me breakfast, I will kill myself right now. Such quarrels were quitemon and such words were usually said by some olddies. Because only when they quarreled in the marketce, would they use such terrible means.


    However, Ning Que said it solemnly and in a serious tone. Unlike a bad-tempereddy who hit her husband and cursed her neighbors, he was like a calm and generous gentleman who picked up a slightly yellow leaf in the wind and was about to travel away with a sword.


    Ning Que had made too many life and death choices in his life. So he was calm when he uttered the words "kill myself" which in turn made them sound more powerful than those of anyone else.


    The intractable and sturdy Big ck Horse had been arrogant throughout the sturd-farm. However, when it heard of Ning Que¡¯s threatening words in the meadow of the Academy, it was suddenly shocked with numb limbs and was loyal to Ning Que after that.


    Prince Long Qing was a human being. Of course, he could understand Ning Que¡¯s remark¡ªI just did not want you toplete your Taoist Heart. Defeating me and killing myself were two different things¡ªMore crucially, from these seemingly calm words, he could feel that Ning Que would really dare to do such a thing. If Prince Long Qing forciblyunched a fight, Ning Que would really kill himself.


    In the Judicial Department, he had seen many people, who were not afraid of death and did not care about the lives of others. They were his subordinates, Devil¡¯s Doctrine survivors and the betrayers. But he had never seen one who was so vicious or careless with his own life.


    Mo Shanshan also understood Ning Que¡¯s words and her cheeks wrapped in a scarf looked slightly pale.


    Ning Que looked at Prince Long Qing and said, "The Academy and the Divine Hall don¡¯t get along well, but they have no interest in fighting with each other. But if I died here today, it would be very troublesome. So I must remind you that Yan Kingdom is too weak and my Second Brother has always been unreasonable."


    Prince Long Qing looked at his face and slightly frowned, saying, "You either hide behind a woman or behind the sect. I am beginning to wonder if you¡¯re a Tang. I even doubt whether you¡¯re a man."


    "What you said means nothing to me."


    Ning Que looked at him and replied earnestly. "Except a few people in this world, most people would like to hide behind a sect. If today you were banished from the Divine Hall and expelled from the Peach Mountain, and those Devil¡¯s Doctrine survivors who had a grudge with you all these years and those people who dared not to offend you both wanted to kill you. Can you take it?"


    Prince Long Qing silently looked at him and suddenly found that this young guy had actually seen this world through a dark lense, no trace of passion like themon young people.


    Mo Shanshan looked at Ning Que¡¯s back and also fell into silence. She had quietly listened to their dialogue for such a long period of time and naturally thought of Ning Que¡¯s instruction in the carriage on the trip to the pce.


    "What if I couldn¡¯t defeat my opponent?"


    "Run away."


    "What if we met?"


    Ning Que said, "You can pretend to be hurt and beg for mercy, trying your best to weaken his mind. You can hit his mother, kill his family, p his children in the face, and try every way to anger him. If you wear shoes, go to a thornynd. If you wear thick clothes, choose a cold ce... "


    Today, she saw Ning Que¡¯s response. These seemingly absurd and funny words showed that Ning Que was a cold-blooded person who could use unscrupulous means and ignore any honor or dignity for a victory. Ning Que must have gone through many tests of life and death as well as humiliation in his life to get to such a point.


    ...


    ...


    Prince Long Qing looked at Ning Que¡¯s face and suddenlyughed. His ck hair on his shoulders gently swung along with the cold wind, as if he was about to drift away. But the words slowly slipping from his thin lips did not show that he was about to leave.


    "I can see from your response that you seem to be a shameless rogue, but you actually have a great tough will. If one understands you, he will want to drink with you three thousand cups. Unfortunately I know you can¡¯t drink too much. By the way, I can never forget your little handmaiden with a good drinking capacity. If you agree, I¡¯m willing to give you three cities of Western Yan Kingdom in exchange for her. It¡¯s quite good to have a drinking partner in the future."


    For no reason, the Son of god in West-Hill mentioned Sangsang who was in Chang¡¯an City, naturally not for a realment but a tough attempt at trying to pull away the fence in his Taoist Heart.


    Ning Que slightly tilted his head and looked at Long Qing very carefully and meticulously, with no trace of emotion in his eyes. He was thinking who in Chang¡¯an City had told Long Qing to test him with Sangsang.


    Then he smiled and said, "She¡¯s worthless. But I wouldn¡¯t trade her for a country."


    Prince Long Qing slightly tilted the corners of his lips and said, "It seems like this little handmaiden really means a lot for you."


    Mo Shanshan slowly furrowed her thin and dark brows. She looked at Prince Long Qing and heard the implicit threat in his words as well as his determination to enrage Ning Que.


    And then she felt some subtle changes in Ning Que, from a previously unscrupulous person to a stubborn young man left in the snowstorm.


    She knew that Prince Long Qing finally found Ning Que¡¯s weakness and could not help slightly lowering her eyes. And then she quickly entered into an absolutely peaceful state of mind. The Fu paper in her fingers started trembling despite theck of wind.


    Ning Que suddenly said, "I have a horse."


    The blizzard suddenly disappeared on the snow cliff and it became quiet.


    "It¡¯s a dark horse."


    Ning Que straightened his body, watching Prince Long Qing, and continued calmly. "Your fiancee Princess Chen Jia also has a horse."


    "A white horse."


    "Whether it¡¯s a dark or white horse, a stallion or a mare, it¡¯s a good one as long as I can ride it ."


    Upon listening to these words, Prince Long Qing suddenly became angry and took another step forward. The snow residual on the cliff became a snowstorm floating from the ground toward the sky.


    Mo Shanshan slowly looked up at the gradually approaching Prince Long Qing and thought of Ning Que¡¯sst sentence in the carriage. A cold wind blew by and her face became stiff but charming.


    Prince Long Qing nkly looked at her and said, "Ink Lake really wants to fight the Divine Hall? But I¡¯m really curious about how powerful Calligraphy Addict¡¯s Half Divine Talisman is."


    "Did I say I wanted to fight with you? Did I say she wanted to fight with you?"


    Ning Que suddenly raised his right arm pointing at his face and said, "In the pce, my ck horse defeated your white horse. And I also want to see if I can defeat you. So I ept the bet you mentioned earlier."


    ...


    ...


    Mo Shanshan looked at the side of his face in a puzzle and wondered why he epted it now when he had rejected it earlier.


    Prince Long Qing did not want to agree, but he saw an embroidered purse... hanging on Ning Que¡¯s wrist.


    It was silver-blue and embroidered with simple decorations. It gently shook in the blizzard and looked very simple.


    However, Prince Long Qing knew that it was not simple at all, for he could feel the powerful aura that came out of that purse. So he decided to wait and hear what Ning Que wanted to say.


    In any situation, aplete Divine Talisman was worth waiting a moment for.


    He said nkly, "You continue."


    Ning Que said, "We gamble on the date of break the realm. The one who breaks the realm wins. The loser destroys his own Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi. If I lose, I¡¯ll leave the Academy. If you lose, you¡¯ll leave the Divine Hall."


    He said in a verymon tone, but the bet was extremely umon.


    After destroying Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi, one cultivator would be a useless person. The additional conditions were extremly vicious, making one cultivator¡¯s life worse than death. He was actually gambling with the two most precious things of a cultivator.


    Ning Que looked at him and said, "This gamble is good for you, for you need to remove me from the path to cultivate your Tao Heart. You don¡¯t need to thank me. Though you were never an obstacle to my cultivation, I still wanted to kill you from the beginning. However, I didn¡¯t want to take a risk but now I will give myself a chance to kill you."


    Prince Long Qing quietly looked at him and suddenlyughed facing the blizzard on the cliff.


    On the snow cliff, a dangerous gamble began.


    "In the name of Haotian."


    "In the Headmaster¡¯s reputation."


    Ning Que looked at Prince Long Qing and said with a smile. "I hope you¡¯ll be alright the next time we meet."


    And then he gradually hid his smile and said slowly and firmly, "If you¡¯re well, I¡¯ll be a super idiot."


    After finishing the sentence, he took Mo Shanshan and they jumped off the snow cliff towards that verdant valley. A short momentter, a flower-like ck umbre suddenly appeared among the steep rock walls and they suddenly fell down in a slower speed.


    Prince Long Qing walked to the edge of the snow cliff and watched the bottom of the rock wall. He remembered that it was obviously a Divine Talisman made by uncle Yan Se in that purse. Soon he felt a little disappointed.


    Ning Que had a low state and a bad moral quality. But after all, he still was the World Wayfarer. Although Prince Long Qing was the Son of god in West-Hill, he could not arbitrarily kill Ning Que. Unless he really did not care about provoking a war between the Academy and the Divine Hall¡ªFortunately, today he tried his best to push Ning Que to make a gamble with him. The Academy should not meddle in it.


    He thought that he finally could remove that firewood from his Tao Heart, which made him calm down. He slowly walked back along the snow cliff and sat cross-legged behind that wooden fence, meditating in the snow and wind. As time went by, he gradually became a snowman, waiting for the day of breaking the realm.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 254: A Lake in the Valley

    Chapter 254: A Lake in the Valley


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The steep cliff rose abruptly and the wild grass between the cracks of the cliff was smashed into a green line that swiftly disappeared. As the cold air pped against her cheeks, Mo Shanshan used her left hand to tightly clutch Ning Que¡¯s waistband. She neither felt afraid nor screamed because she believed that Ning Que would nevermit suicide.


    "Peng!" The big ck umbre opened in the air. Their bodies jerked, and the speed at which they fell slowed down. They drifted along with the wind and away from the cliff, toward a broad-leaved forest not far away from them.


    Mo Shanshan narrowed her eyes due to the wind. She raised up her head to see that umbre, which blocked the snow. Even though it had been battered by the fierce wind, it only had slight deformations. There were no traces of it tearing at all. Because it was so solid, she could not help wondering what material on earth this umbre was made from.


    Ning Que gripped its handle tightly with his right hand as hard as iron. He held Mo Shanshan¡¯s waist with his left hand and his eyes focused on the ground, which was getting closer and closer. He was in no mood to feel the warmth from Mo Shanshan¡¯s skin. He had hugged little girls and jumped down from cliffs many times, so he knew that even though the umbre was solid, the umbre cover was not big, so it would be ufortable when theynded on the ground.


    When they were 10 feet away from the ground, a faint but pure light came out from Mo Shanshan¡¯s finger. All of sudden, the air became thicker, and the falling speed was slowed down for the second time.


    Ning Que knew that Mo Shanshan had done something. So he stopped his talisman preparations and held onto her waist tightly.


    A dull, thumping sound was heard as he bent his legs and fell to the ground. His muscles and skeleton first became tight and then loosened the moment that hended, sessfully absorbing most of the impact. Yet it seemed that the girl in his arm had sensed nothing.


    Ning Que released his hand and nodded at her to show his appreciation.


    Mo Shanshan shook her head in reply and calmly left his arm.


    The forest floor was carpeted with fallen leaves and it was soft to step on. No one knew how many years these leaves had been umting, but it was weird that there was no rotten smell.


    Although this was a broad-leaved forest, these trees had just begun to sprout and could not keep off the sporadic snow that fell from the snow cliff, making them appear to have green constetion patterns among the snow.


    They walked into the green forest and disappeared from sight for a moment.


    ...


    ...


    They continued to walk and had gradually moved farther away from the snow cliff. No more snownded there from the world outside of the mountain. The sky above the valley was still gray and,pared with the forest dotted with green, it was much more deste here.


    Maybe because of the pressure from the oath, or because Prince Long Qing had talked about Sangsang, who was far away in Chang¡¯an City, Ning Que became very quiet after entering the forest. He was not as active as usual and just kept walking in silence.


    Mo Shanshan was silent also. Watching his back, she thought about the conversation that had happened earlier on the snow cliff. She thought about that little handmaiden whom Ning Que tried to protect, even against his original intention, and thought about that oath, which, although not bloody, was cruel. She became dejected, then worried. No sound was made as she stepped on the leaves and she did not speak either.


    When looking down from the snow cliff, this green valley was notrge at all. But when they came here in person, they found that the valley was very deep even though it did not appear to be. They walked for a long time without any conversation, yet they still had not reached the end of the valley.


    This ce was far away from the snow cliff. So there was no need to worry that they would be heard or chased. Staring at that big ck umbre behind Ning Que¡¯s back, Mo Shanshan could no longer bear the curiosity within her. She asked, "Why didn¡¯t you fight?"


    Ning Que stopped and turned back to ask, "Why should I fight?"


    Looking into his eyes, Mo Shanshan said in a serious tone, "You taught me how to fight before in the carriage. At that time, you said that when two tigers meet, the most important thing to remember is... only the bravest one can win."


    After being silent for a moment, Ning Que replied, "In front of Long Qing, I am not even a tiger."


    Mo Shanshan looked at the silk bag hanging on his wrist and said, "With a Divine Talisman in hand, even a kid could be as powerful as a tiger."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "Shifu had put in much effort to write this Divine Talisman that can be used by a person in the No Doubts State. As a disciple, I shouldn¡¯t use it at just anytime. Besides, you and I both study Talisman Taoism, and we should clearly know that because I didn¡¯t make this Fu, it¡¯s hard to let it reveal its real power. I didn¡¯t have the confidence to hurt Long Qing with it."


    Mo Shanshan raised her head slightly and said in a serious tone, "You have me."


    Ning Que said sincerely, "Thanks. But after all, this is between me and Long Qing. So it would be unreasonable to let you take the risk. What¡¯s more, you came here under the edict of the Divine Hall, and I would never let the rtionship between you and the Divine Hall get worse because of me."


    He looked toward the forest and at the cliff that he could barely see. Ning Que said, "We all came here to get the Tomes of Arcane, so I will still run into him in the end. He wants to drive me to desperation, likewise, I want to do the same to him. Things would be easier if I could get rid of him first."


    Mo Shanshan slightly frowned and said, "Prince Long Qing is not a person that can be gotten rid of easily."


    Ning Que exined, "He wasn¡¯t easy to get rid of before, but now, we have a bet. The situation is totally different. As long as I break the realm first, he will naturally be gotten rid of."


    He spoke slowly and in a peaceful tone as if he was saying something that would surely happen.


    Mo Shanshan looked at him, suddenly realizing that he had never thought that he would lose the bet. Even if he should win, did he consider what he would do if Long Qing went back on his words? Even though that prince devoutly believed in Haotian, if he needed to destroy his practice and leave the Divine Hall, even an oath sworn in Haotian¡¯s name would not be binding.


    She asked, "What if you lose this bet?"


    Ning Que simply answered, "I won¡¯t."


    Mo Shanshan continued to ask, "I said if..."


    Ning Que was slightly startled and said, "If I lose, so be it. I have suffered so much to clear my acupoints, am I that stupid to follow that oath and make myself an invalid?"


    Mo Shanshan could not believe what she heard, and asked, "What about the master¡¯s reputation?"


    Thinking about that powerful Psyche Master called Lin Ling, who came from the Tang army of the pce and died with regret, Ning Que revealed a smile on his face.


    "I haven¡¯t seen my teacher yet. But ording to my Senior Sisters and Brothers, I think that he might not care about it. On the contrary, if I lose this bet and really turn myself into an invalid and leave the Academy, he might be furious about how he could have such a stupid student."


    Mo Shanshan still could not understand his words.


    Ning Que exined, "What I mean is that the Headmaster of the Academy doesn¡¯t care about his reputation, either."


    "What if Prince Long Qing doesn¡¯t fulfill his promise when he loses?"


    "If I breakthrough a state first, he has no choice but to fulfill his promise."


    "It would be a big challenge to break through two states at once. Even though you have entered the Seethrough State sessfully, you are still at a lower level, how can you breakthrough two states and win this? No matter how good you are at fighting, the disparity in skill between you and Long Qing is stillrge."


    Staring at her, Ning Que suddenly ask seriously, "If a person is disturbed during a crucial time when he is trying to break the realm, what would happen to him?"


    Mo Shanshan could not figure out why he would care about this. But after thinking for a while, she answered, "It depends on what kind of disturbance it is."


    Ning Que replied, "Thergest one."


    Mo Shanshan said, "At that time, the person who is trying to break the realm would be terribly hurt, and he may not be able to break that realm for the rest of his life."


    Ning Que nodded and said, "That couldn¡¯t be better."


    After that, they were silent again.


    ...


    ...


    It seemed as if they were walking aimlessly. In fact, Ning Que had always been walking in a specific direction. That strong and arrogant aura was like amp in the Heaven and Earth that directed him to cross green forests, through a wend, and take a mountain path which was muddy, rough, and covered by moist fog. Atst, they arrived in front of ake.


    Thiske was not big, covering an area of a thousand feet. Its shoreline was winding and its water was calm. Nobody knew how many years thiske had existed among this fantastic valley because no trace left by human beings could be found here.


    Compared with that snow peak of Tianqi Mountain, the verdant valley was warm. But in fact, the valley was still cold, as cold as the winter in Chang¡¯an. Some thin ice was frozen along theke¡¯s shoreline and was spread everywhere when the water swelled, and then the water would be frozen on another peaceful surface.


    No human traces could be found here. It seemed that thiske was a naturalke in the valley, but Ning Que did not think so. A familiar aura came right from the depths of theke. Ning Que stood by the bank of theke in silence, staring at theke for a long time. Through its transparent water, he saw white sand and round stones lying under the water, yet he found nothing strange.


    Mo Shanshan could not sense the strong aura. But she did sense that something else existed here. She walked beside Ning Que, looked at the swimming fish, and said softly, "Thiske is a big tactical array. But it is weird that theke itself is an array eye, which goes against the rules of a tactical array."


    Ning Que stayed silent before saying, "The tactical array of an Unknown ce definitely differs from other tactical arrays."


    "You mean thiske is the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine?"


    Looking at the snow peak reflected in theke, she suddenly remembered something recorded in the codes, and then said in a quaking voice, "It¡¯s been recorded in the codes that there is ake at the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Is this thatke?"


    Ning Que answered, "It must be this one."


    Mo Shanshan looked at this ordinaryke and could not believe that they had found the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine so easily. She said, "I never thought in all my life that I would see the remains of the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine in person."


    If other cultivators saw the Front Gate in person and saw the Unknown ce that all the people talked about, they would be thrilled. They might even crazily jump into theke.


    If Ning Que had seen thiske at another time, he would have been thrilled, too. But right now, he was very calm. Because whether the "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane was hidden under theke or the remains of that predecessor, all of that had nothing to do with him.


    He suddenly asked, "Does thiske have a name? Is it mentioned in the codes of Divine Hall?"


    Mo Shanshan asked, "Why do you care about that?"


    Ning Que looked at her and answered with a smile, "Because in the future, the history books will record that the 13th student, named Ning Que, from the Second Floor of the Academy broke a realm at thiske, so how can thiske not have a name? It doesn¡¯t sound good if we call it the Unknown Lake or a Lake Without a Name."


    Mo Shanshan let out a sigh, thinking that breaking a realm was tough and enigmatic and it would not be easy to achieve. He was too arrogant. She reluctantly said, "The Devil¡¯s Doctrine called themselves the Enlightenment Doctrine, so they called thiske Daming Lake.

 Chapter 255: Fishing in the Daming Lake

    Chapter 255: Fishing in the Daming Lake


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The lush valley seemed like a foreignnd, isted from the rest of the world. Theke reflected tall snow-capped peaks. Though a bitingly cold blizzard was raging atop the Tianqi Mountain outside, it remained warm inside the valley. It made the ce feel even stranger.


    Ning Que and Mo Shanshan didn¡¯t find anything that looked like geothermal hot springs, so they only chalk up the anomaly to the tactical array. They couldn¡¯t help their shock when they thought of how a great tactical array was able to alter the season. They became even more certain that the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, hidden away for decades, must be inside theke before them.


    As was said by Prince Long Qing, It hadn¡¯t been the time for the Front Gate to open and actually they didn¡¯t know when it would open. They just knew when it opened, it would be anomalies, so presently what they could do was nothing but wait and get well prepared.


    Ning Que went to sit at a big stone beside theke, looking at the strange small fish without scales swimming in the clear water. After a moment of silence, he suddenly asked, "How to break the realm?"


    The question was straight yet stupid. No Grand Cultivators in the world could answer it because during the boundless process of cultivation, what people saw and perceived were different, so there was no simple answer!


    If a question like this could be answered, then the Headmaster of Academy would be the most suitable person to answer it. Wouldn¡¯t that mean his Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters of the Second Floor of the Academy would have already broken through their realms numerous times?


    Ning Que was quite clear that obstacles would inevitably appear one after another in his cultivation, so he had been peacefully awaiting their arrival. However, he had been stuck at the Seethrough State for several months without seeing any progress. Now that he had a bet with Prince Long Qing, the time limit also gave him another form of pressure, prompting him to ask the question.


    Mo Shanshan looked at him and softly answered, "Only you can answer such a question."


    Ning Que reached his hand into the coolke water, startling away a few fish. After a moment of pondering, he said, "I thought willingness was the most important. To break through the realm, first you must have the will or it¡¯ll be even more difficult. The second was confidence. You must believe you can break through the realm."


    When it came to cultivation, his experience was somewhat unusual. Thanks to the Vermilion Bird umbre and the precious pill from the Unknown ce, he had somehow advanced from the Initial State straight to the Perception State. He then progressed to the No Doubts State, jumping over the most difficult challenging period of deciphering reality from illusion. But in the summer, he once observed the rain and came to understand Talisman Taoism, thus he had some experience.


    Being at the threshold of the Seethrough State, he had a strong desire for a breakthrough. The heavy pressureing from Prince Long Qing and the time limit turned into motivation for him. How could he still bother remaining his calm?


    However, looking at the fish swimming freely in the clear water that he startled earlier, he knew very well what hecked the most at the moment.


    Earlier, he had promised Mo Shanshan that he wouldn¡¯t be defeated. In their following conversation about the Daming Lake, he also appeared to be confident. But that wasn¡¯t true confidence. How could he muster up the confidence in front of an excellent West-Hill disciple who had been in the Knowing Destiny State for many years?


    Further, breaking into a realm was an enigmatic matter. It was capricious, just like the blizzards in the Wilderness that came and went as they pleased. They could carry snowkes with them with a gust of wind even on sunny days, or not appear even on the most bitingly cold days.


    Mo Shanshan walked up to the stone and followed his line of sight to look at theke, "You¡¯re not confident?"


    "I always thought myself to be a talent and that there wasn¡¯t anything I couldn¡¯t learn. Even when I found out I don¡¯t have the talent for cultivation, I still believe myself to be smarter than others. You know,st year I was still thinking how could I hack a person at the Seethrough State to death using three des."


    Ning Que looked at her and earnestly said, "Later when I started cultivating, everything went smooth and remained the way when I started practicing the Talisman Taoism. My master and many others all believed me to be a talent but my confidence had been weakened for I¡¯ve now met many real cultivating talents. That includes you."


    Mo Shanshan¡¯s eyshes fluttered. She didn¡¯t know what to say.


    People like his Eldest Brother and Second Brother were the true cultivating geniuses! His same-age peer, Chen Pipi, who had entered the Knowing Destiny State was the true genius. The Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu, was nothingpared to them! Prince Long Qing was nothing at all! So was he!


    "We haven¡¯t even mentioned the Unknown ces. When I think of how many World Wayfarersing from that ce are Grand Cultivators at the Knowing Destiny State, my entire body feels ufortable. I feel like there¡¯s no meaning to this at all."


    Mo Shanshan lifted her head and earnestly asked, "Then how can I help you boost your confidence?"


    Ning Que replied seriously, "I need praise."


    Even if her face grew several more inches, there was no way for her topliment him face-to-face. But this allowed her to confirm that he knew nothing, so she decided to use another way to help him.


    She looked at Ning Que and sighed, "Do you know how many Unknown ces there are in this world?"


    Ning Que wiped off the water on his hand and said mockingly,"How can I know them when they¡¯re called Unknown ces?"


    She shook her head, "The Unknown ces are actually one abbey, one temple, and one gate... and the Second Floor. The abbey is the Zhishou Abbey, the temple is the Xuankong Temple, and the gate is the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. The Second Floor is naturally the Second Floor of Academy."


    Staring at her face, Ning Que was too shocked to say anything.


    He took a long time to suppress his disordered thoughts and shouted angrily,"You told me they¡¯re mysterious regions outside the secr world, which few had the chance to see. Even those who managed to enter would refuse to talk about their experience there. That¡¯s why they¡¯re called Unknown ces. But the Academy... It¡¯s just located in the south of Chang¡¯an City! Everyone knows where it is, so how can it be called an Unknown ce?"


    "The Second Floor of the Academy rarely appears in this world, though it¡¯s true that it belongs to the mortal worldpared to the unknown Zhishou Abbey in the mountains and the Xuankong Temple far in the mortal world."


    Mo Shanshan looked at him and said, "Someone once said the secr world and the supermundane world are two isted ces without anything inmon. Whoever can find theirmon ground ought to be a sage."


    Her expression sobered, perhaps at the thought of the regrets andments her master once made and the guy¡¯s legend in the world of cultivation. "If people do find themon ground, they should be called sages. Though the Elder of the Lanke Temple once said that the Headmaster of Academy refuses to call himself a sage, the Second Floor of the Academy is naturally the ce where the sage resides."


    She stared into Ning Que¡¯s eyes, "You¡¯re from the Second Floor of the Academy, the only ce with a sage in the mortal world. No one has the right to affect your confidence. So why shouldn¡¯t you be confident?"


    Ning Que said in disbelief, "Based on what you¡¯re saying, doesn¡¯t this mean I¡¯m one of those legendary World Wayfarers?"


    Mo Shanshan nodded at him. She then honestly added, eyebrows furrowing, "Yes, though the legendary World Wayfarers aren¡¯t as weak as you."


    Once again humiliated by this simple-minded girl, Ning Que didn¡¯t rebut her this time. He hadn¡¯t recovered from his shock and anger. It was only now that he realized all his arrogant mocking of the World Wayfarers had been directed at himself as well... When he recalled how he and Sangsang went to west Chang¡¯an City and won all the money from the casino there, he couldn¡¯t help feeling ashamed for he had stepped into a stinky ditch twice.


    The Second Floor of the Academy was an Unknown ce? Was he a World Wayfarer? It would still be reasonable if previous World Wayfarers of the Academy were strong figures like Second Brother, but the proud man wearing a wooden stick on his head and those crazy and inexplicable seniors in the Back Mountain? How did they look anything like Unworldly Sublime Beings?


    Mo Shanshan looked at him. "Now that you¡¯ve learned the truth, did you find your confidence?"


    Ning Que broke out of his reverie. "I¡¯m a World Wayfarer of the Academy, so I¡¯m much better than Prince Long Qing in terms of background, charisma, and conduct! Why wouldn¡¯t I have the confidence to trample all over him?"


    She didn¡¯t expect he would regain his confidence at this point and couldn¡¯t help being quiet. After a pause, she softly said, "You don¡¯t need only need strong will and confidence when you¡¯re on the verge of breaking through the realm. You need opportunity as well. When I was 14, my teacher gave me a volume of scripture he had personally handwritten. After reading it for half the night, I came to understand the mystery of heaven and earth. I hope you¡¯ll find your opportunity as soon as possible."


    Recalling Master Huang Yang¡¯s guidance atop the Wanyan Tower, he nodded.


    But an opportunity was something that came with luck, like that rain in the summer. If it hade any earlier orter, he wouldn¡¯t have understood the Talisman Taoism. Like theke water, it must first fill the water before watering the causeway covered with weeping willows. But a special way was needed to water the causeway but not flood it.


    Ning Que was neither the typical Tang person nor the typical cultivator. He wasn¡¯t good at sitting around and prattling about general principles. Nor was he good at calming himself to understand Taoism. His cultivation, like his way of survival, always revealed a sense of persistence and cruelty.


    He acted this way during his difficult practice of meditation in his childhood. He acted this way when he persisted in going to the old library of the Academy despite spitting blood. Later, when he realized that life was full of craziness, he still practiced cultivation through the method of solving problems, though he no longer pushed himself that hard.


    Watching the faintly discernible threshold of the Seethrough State at the bottom of the clearke, he started cultivating again.


    If he didn¡¯t know how to break through the realm, then he would just have to see it though.


    He looked at the beautifulke water, the rosy clouds at twilight, and the stars reflected in the water.


    He broke a branch of the willow tree and found a fishing hook somewhere in his package. He then put some slices of dried meat given by the deste woman on the hook and dropped it into the peacefulke. His movement had disturbed the stars reflected in water and startled the fish hiding under the stones covered by the quilt of night. He began fishing.


    Perhaps it was because the willow branch beside the Daming Lake had been immersed in the aura of nature brought by the great tactical formation of the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine for thousands of years. It was iparably firm and very suitable to be used as a fishing rod.


    The willow branch fluctuated on the surface of theke, reeling in a fish in just a short while.


    Instead of raising the willow branch, he just held it peacefully as if he was holding the most important thing in his life.


    The fish struggled to break free from the hook and finally escape into the water with a ssh, leaving a faint trace of blood.


    Without a bait nor a hook, the willow branch quietly stayed in the water. Ning Que just sat on the stone beside theke like that for the entire night. To him, the fish in theke were like the opportunity he might need to break through the realm.


    Those willing to be fished, he weed them to be hooked. Those that weren¡¯t, he wouldn¡¯t force them.

 Chapter 256: Think it Over

    Chapter 256: Think it Over


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Mo Shanshan was staring at theke.


    She was the most excellent Talisman Master of the young generation. Before Ning Que had appeared, she was the sessor of the Divine Talisman Master.


    As was said by Master Yan Se, arrays were big talismans, and a most excellent Talisman Master was no doubt a most excellent Tactical Array Master. The reason why she constantly stared at theke was to see through this marvelous tactical array in Daming Lake.


    After examining theke for a whole night, she finally figured out what had caused the valley to be so verdant.


    There was a big tactical array deep in theke, whose function had not been made clear yet, but it was powerful enough to ward off eyesight or even the perception of Psyche Power. And above the valley, there should be another more powerful tactical array that helped to ward off the effects of nature.


    ording to her analysis, it was extremely cold this year and the cold air hade from the north. Therefore, the big tactical array shrouding the valley from above broke with the change of climate, which released the vitality that had been locked in the valley. And then the valley gradually flourished, which produced the verdant one that she saw now. This also matched with what Prince Long Qing had said on the snow cliff.


    However, although the big tactical array had broken and the valley had be verdant again, the cold air also invaded from outside. So the vitality in the valley had to fade before it reached its peak, which was why there was thin ice on theke now.


    Mo Shanshan sat silently beside theke, and her hands resting on her knees constantly tapped as she tried to figure it out. However, she still could not figure out what would trigger the big tactical array in theke.


    "Does it mean that the array center can only lose its efficacy and the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine can only reopen after the wholeke freezes or is emptied by triggering some key?"


    She furrowed her brows slightly and hesitated at the glistening and peacefulke. The deeper she went into this tactical array, the more wisdom and power she found hidden in it, which defied nature. So she could not help but feel respect for the Devil¡¯s Doctrine back then and the predecessor who had made this big tactical array.


    At dawn, Mo Shanshan gradually opened her eyes and awoke from her thoughts. She then turned to her side to see Ning Que sitting on the stone still fishing. It was funny that he had obviously fallen asleep with his eyes closed, yet his head nodded up and down with theke waves as if he was fishing with his head.


    Perhaps Ning Que felt her gaze on him as he woke up, rubbed his eyes, and then his belly. He looked at the girl watching him attentively and asked, "Are you hungry?"


    Mo Shanshan nodded slightly. Looking at the reflections in theke she softly said, "I will cook now."


    Their reflections in the water were quite clear and appeared to be closer.


    Ning Que asked, "I¡¯m really sick of the dried meat. Do we have anything else to eat?"


    Mo Shanshan looked at the willow branch in his hand and curiously asked, "Did you catch any fish?"


    Ning Que smilingly answered, "Even the hook was bitten off by that fish. How can I catch one without a hook?"


    Mo Shanshan stood up, her cotton skirt fluttering in the morning breeze. She slowly reached out with her right hand, and with the fluctuation of the chilly breath of the talisman, a block of ice suddenly appeared in the water of theke. Inside the crystal ice was a fat fish with no scales, which looked as beautiful as an icy amber drifting slightly with the waves.


    Ning Que sighed at that scene. "Junior sister, you have already perfected using Talisman Taoism. I don¡¯t know when I can reach such a level."


    "Once you break into the realm of the Seethrough State, you will find this trick to be easy."


    Mo Shanshan said that calmly, yet what she thought was different. This Talisman Master, who regarded Talisman Taoism as the most holy thing, silently thought, "If not for your desire to eat fresh things, if not for the warm talismans you pasted on me, and if not for the fact that you were at the critical moment of breaking the realm, I wouldn¡¯t do that."


    Ning Que took the ice out from theke and looked at the jade-like ice under the morning sun and the fat fish which was still breathing inside of it. He suddenly recalled the time beside the wends of the Academy that Chen Pipi had shown him a scene of the Knowing Destiny State, and the state of the fish at that time was even more marvelous.


    "I¡¯ll go and pick up some edible wild herbs, and then we can stew some fish soup," he happily said.


    Mo Shanshan shook her head, indicating that she would do it by herself. She silently thought, "I even used a talisman to freeze fish in order to help you to break the realm, so why would I mind stewing fish soup for you?"


    Ning Que looked at the figure of the busy girl with his head tilted. He could not help rubbing his head because he never expected that some day the Calligraphy Addict woulde to serve him. However, he had been ustomed to Sangsang serving him over the years, so he did not feel that it was uneptable.


    The fish soup was ready after just a short time. Ning Que inserted the willow branch rod into the stone seam and fetched salt from his package to sprinkle it into the soup, and then hedled out a bowl of white soup and sipped it.


    His luggage was as heavy as a small hill. And in fact, it was no different from a small hill because it held numerous things.


    Mo Shanshan raised her arm and wiped the dirt off of her beautiful round face with her sleeves. She turned her bright eyes to look at Ning Que with anticipation and nervousness, asking, "How does it taste?"


    Of course, it was good to enjoy a bowl of warm fish soup after being in thend of ice and snow for such a long time. So, Ning Que praised it with a smile and then said, "It¡¯s a pity that I didn¡¯t bring any seasoning, then it would taste better."


    He said that casually while his main point was still praising her. But, this was the first time that Calligraphy Addict had made food all by herself, and furthermore, she had other special thoughts, so she was not so happy with that sentence.


    She held a bowl of fish soup with her head lowered and slightly blew off the foam and hot steam on the surface as her long eyshes fluttered slightly. After a moment, she softly asked, "Is it worse than what you ate before?"


    "How can we make tasty food in the Wilderness!"


    Ning Que drank the soup in the bowl and began to eat the fish. He then said vaguely, "The one back home never made any tasty food. It all has the same taste, and I¡¯m already tired of it."


    Mo Shanshan sensitively noticed that the word he used was "one" instead of "handmaiden", so she became even more silent. After a moment, she raised her head with a strong will and earnestly looked at him, saying, "I will make it better."


    When they were done drinking and eating, Ning Que continued fishing on the stone beside theke. After being immersed in water for such a long time, the willow branch in his hand had already grown white and there was no hook nor bait on its tip. Except for some mischievous fish that asionally touched it, no other fish showed any interest in it at all.


    Mo Shanshan spread the volume out and began to write not far away from him. The brilliant winter sunlight, which was reflected by the Snow-capped Peak around Daming Lake into the verdant valley, looked warm and glorious.


    When he got bored while fishing, Ning Que would asionally leave the stone ande to see what the girl was writing. After making somements, he would then write some characters and listen as the girl madements.


    They were both calligraphy enthusiasts and were not afraid of boredom. In this isted verdant valley, they sometimes wrote and appreciated each other¡¯s calligraphy and sometimes appreciated theke view. Time moved slowly and nothing special happened.


    Of course, most of the time, Ning Que was still fishing beside theke.


    The big tactical array outside of the verdant valley had totally faded, which allowed the cold air from outside and the rejuvenated vitality of spring from inside to collide. It was now the exact peak of the vitality and the broad-leaved forest beside theke had grown out numerous green leaves so marvelously in a short time, which werefortably waving in the wind.


    When spring reached its peak, people would feel sleepy due to the warmth. So Ning Que, holding that willow branch, unknowingly went to sleep.


    He woke up abruptly and raised his head to look at his surroundings. Yet before his eyes, there was no peaceful and beautiful Daming Lake, nor Mo Shanshan. What he saw was only destion.


    He was in the Wilderness again, thend that only appeared in his dreams instead of in reality.


    The Wilderness that he saw now was not covered with corpses and blood, nor did it have fearful people looking up at the sky, the indifferent butcher and wine drinker, or that big and tall figure.


    What it had was merely chilly air, the deste and dark Wilderness, and the faint caws of a ck crow in the distance.


    Ning Que rubbed his eyes and looked in the direction of the crow. What he saw was not ck crows all over the sky, but only three columns of dark smoke stably hanging in front of the Wilderness. The smoke coldly looked in his direction, as if it had life.


    It reminded him of a previous dream, the dream in the journey. In that dream, he also saw a simr scene and somebody said beside him, "It¡¯s getting dark".


    It was getting dark.


    Looking at the three columns of dark smoke far away, Ning Que suddenly felt chilly, and frost gradually appeared on his eyshes. He felt his clothes be thinner because he finally saw the real appearance of those three columns of dark smoke.


    It was not smoke, but numerous rays of light or perhaps fragments of light. ck light and fragments of ck light converged to make the darkest smoke in the world, as if it could devour all other light.


    Out of fear, he subconsciously waved his hand, wanting to break and disperse the dark smoke with the willow branch. But the next moment, he found the willow branch had turned into the big ck umbre.


    "Poof!" The big ck umbre quickly unfolded and covered his body.


    And all of a sudden, he felt much safer.


    ...


    ...


    Beside Daming Lake, Ning Que was struggling to break the realm.


    On the snow cliff about 10 miles away from Daming Lake, Prince Long Qing, who took on the bet with Ning Que of breaking a state at the cost of his future life, had stepped on the threshold of the Knowing Destiny State.


    With only one foot on the threshold, he could not maintain his stability. It was like he was standing at the boundary of two worlds, so he might go forward or backward. Stepping forward, he would embrace the Haotian Divine Light, and backward, he would degenerate.


    Prince Long Qing had been sitting quietly on the snow cliff for quite a long time. The blizzard on Tianqi Mountain had blown thick snow onto the right side of his body, which looked like armor, yet the left side of his body remained in the verdant valley. With one part of his body shrouded by snow and the other part by vitality, he really looked strange.


    Suddenly, he stood up and calmly flipped the snow off of his body, caring nothing about escaping the cliff of enlightenment. He just slowly went below the cliff and caught a white sheep.


    And then, he let the sheep go.


    Against the verdant valley and facing the Snow Mountain, he was immersed in his thought as if feeling something. The verdant green in the valley crept up along the cliff like vines, and in the snow under his feet, green grass gradually appeared, which was as numerous as the stars.


    If you wanted to break a fence, why trap yourself inside the fence?


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 257: Breaking the Realm While Cooking Fish

    Chapter 257: Breaking the Realm While Cooking Fish


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    -


    ...


    ...


    Standing before the verdant valley and facing the deste Snow Mountain, Prince Long Qing was silent, knowing that he had to decide once again. What he chose was not important, but the key point was the spirit that he showed in the process. Based on his previous mountaineering experience in the Academy, this time he turned and walked toward the verdant valley without any hesitation.


    The moment that he lifted his foot and his boot left the snow, the blizzard above the snow cliff and behind the peaks suddenly stopped. He looked up to find that those thick and heavy clouds had disappeared somehow, revealing a blue sky.


    The azure and tranquil sky was what truly existed, however, what was reflected in his Taoist Heart and sense of perception was totally different, with half of it being a clear and quiet ck and the other half as brilliant as the stars.


    Again he was standing at the boundary between light and darkness. After a short moment of silence, he smiled and shook his head, stomping ahead along one side of the snow cliff that was near the verdant valley. After each step, green grass would grow beside his boot, which spread quite marvelously and flourishingly and was about to cover the entire snow cliff.


    The fence at the other end of the snow cliff that had imprisoned him for many days had already broken and was scattered on the ground. Among it was a piece of firewood, the top of which vaguely revealing a hint of green. The greenery, though faint, was extremely pure. When approaching it, he found that it was actually a green leaf as small as half of a fingernail.


    A new bud had grown from the dead firewood! Perhaps more green leaves would grow from it and even bloom soon since the bud had grown so fast.


    Prince Long Qing silently looked at the green bud, showing nothing on his face, yet deep in his heart, he was greatly moved. The so-called Knowing Destiny was to know the origin of the world, to master the rule of the Qi of Heaven and Earth or even thew of life, and only in this way could a cultivator be called a master of Taoism. Now, he was merely an inch from the Knowing Destiny State, and no obstacles from any Taoist Heart could stop him.


    So, he would break the realm when the green leaves all grew out and flowers were in full bloom.


    However, he became more serious now, for being interrupted was taboo at the moment of breaking the realm.


    If he could break the realm of the Knowing Destiny State on Peach-Mountain of West Hill, the Great Divine Priest of Judgment would naturally protect him. Now, however, deep in the Snow Mountain of the Wilderness, he had to depend on himself to deal with all the possible dangers and obstacles.


    Just at that moment, a sound of clothes stirring the air was heard.


    And then, Ye Hongyu, the Tao Addict in red, appeared on the snow cliff. Her ck Taoist bun was somewhat messy and her beautiful face appeared tired, which indicated that she had expended most of her energy in that chasing race with Tang Xiaotang.


    As she nced at Prince Long Qing, her crystal, cold eyes revealed a trace of hospitality and appreciation. Yet, she just sat close to him, without any special actions or words, and watched the surroundings indifferently.


    Prince Long Qing nodded to her to show his gratitude, and then he sat beside the firewood and slowly closed his eyes, quietly waiting for the moment of blooming and weing the Knowing Destiny State.


    ...


    ...


    Deep in the verdant valley, Ning Que slightly lowered his head on the stone beside Daming Lake and seemed to have been sound asleep. The willow branch in his hand moved up and down along with his breath, which sometimes vibrated in theke water.


    A fish swam up from the depths of the water, waving its tail in a strange way. The reason why it was said to be strange was that it did not swim as lightly and gracefully as its peers did and it looked a bit tired. Borrowing the light that shone into the water, it saw the constantly vibrating willow branch and swam over to it, and then carefully and lightly, it held onto the branch with its lips.


    The fish knew that it was a willow branch, a branch which, having been soaked in water for a long time, had turned white and fat and looked ugly. There was no meat nor worm on the branch, but the fish still wanted to hold it, because it believed it should be there and its destiny was to be there. The willow branch looked so intimate, as intimate as a part of its body.


    In his dream, Ning Que unfolded the big ck umbre and then he woke up to find that he was still tightly holding onto the willow branch. When rubbing his eyes with his left hand, he found that the willow branch, which had no fish pay attention to it for a long time, moved again, and he could even faintly feel the other end of the branch drooping downward.


    He lifted up the willow branch to find that there was a fish on the other end of it. The fish was constantly wiggling its tail, sshing water all over. But the strange thing was that no matter how hard the fish wiggled and struggled, it held onto the willow branch and did not give up.


    Ning Que thought to himself, "How foolish this fish is."


    ...


    ...


    In the vast northern Min Mountains was Tianqi Mountain, which stretched some 500 km around and was as enormous as the starry sky. That verdant valley was only an inconspicuously small ce in the Tianqi Mountains, where there were far more towering Snow-capped Peaks and disorderly cliffs.


    Two steep cliffs, which were almost upright, had stood there in silence, face to face, for tens of millions of years. Between them, there was a horrible bottomless valley. On the two cliffs, two people sat in silence facing each other, just like the cliffs silently did.


    On the east cliff, a taoist priest with peaceful eyes and a thin figure was sitting. He was wearing a thin pale blue garment without a cor and held a thin sheathless wooden sword on his back. An ordinary ebony fork was inserted in his Taoist bun, which was made by his ck hair. The fork was not as stable as a green pine, but was more like a cloud against the beautiful sky.


    On the west cliff sat a man who had peaceful eyes and a strong body and was wearing a winter coat made from hide and cotton. He did not hold a weapon in his hand, but the plump muscle under his coat seemed to contain infinite power. He casually wore a pair of boots, which he had picked up somewhere, on his bare feet, as if he could break the sky with just one kick.


    The delicate-looking Tang Xiaotang, who stood behind the man, was tightly holding a giant scarlet knife and vigntly looking at the taoist priest that was holding a sword on the other cliff. She felt a bit cold.


    She knew who the taoist priest was. And she was even more clear that, even though there was a deep valley between the two cliffs that seemed insurmountable, her senior brother or the taoist priest could meet anytime they wanted to.


    That was because they were World Wayfarers of the Zhishou Abbey and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, respectively.


    A gust of chilly wind blew up the valley, stirring the taoist priest¡¯s clothes on the east cliff. He slowly began to speak, and it was just as clear as if he was just speaking beside your ears, even though he was over 10 feet away.


    "I haven¡¯t seen you in 14 years, but you are still the same stony Tang."


    Tang replied, "But the proud Ye Su seems not as proud as he was before."


    Ye Su calmly said, "You¡¯ve been like this for three days and nights, do you want to continue?"


    Tang continued, "This is our territory."


    Ye Su shook his head and said, "But the Tomes of Arcane are our Tomes of Arcane."


    Tang then shook his head and said indifferently, "But this Tome of Arcane is ours."


    Ye Su replied, "The Devil¡¯s Doctrine has declined, and all the other branches have disappeared. We haven¡¯t seen your master for a long time and I¡¯m afraid he has already passed away. Now, only you and your young sister remain, but you think you can fight against the torrent of fate?"


    Tang replied, "There are firm rocks in the torrent."


    Ye Su silently looked at him, then he suddenly said, "You don¡¯t take any action because you have your reasons."


    Tang looked at him coldly and said, "You don¡¯t take any action because you also have your reasons."


    After a moment of silence, Ye Su said, "I have waited 14 years for the chance to consult him. If I fight with you before the chance, I think it will be a disrespect to that chance, to myself, and to him."


    Tang coldly replied, "That can¡¯t be called a reason because you are not qualified to fight with him at all."


    Ye Su slightly said with a smile, "Anyway, I need to give it a try. Are you interested?"


    Tang shook his head and directly said, "I cannot beat him, and in addition, he is not my reason."


    The tip of Ye Su¡¯s eyebrows tilted up slightly and he asked, "Have you ever seen him?"


    Tang nodded.


    Ye Su said, "Now that we both have reasons to not take any action, will we really continue watching them on the cliff like this?"


    Tang looked off into the far distance at somewhere in the vast mountains while asking, "Which one do you think will be the first to break the realm?"


    Following his gaze, Ye Su looked in that direction and calmly said, "We are both Taoism believers, so I naturally believe that the Prince will win."


    Tang said, "I believe Ning Que will win because he is the disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy."


    Ye Su said nothing further.


    Tang also said nothing further.


    The two of them on their respective cliffs remained silent and the bet was made.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que did not know that his realm breaking was no longer merely just a bet with Prince Long Qing, but another more important one that would directly impact two real and powerful World Wayfarers.


    From his expression and behavior, one could not find a trace of anxiety or nervousness, as if he were not affected at all by this bet of breaking a state. He took the foolish fish off and waved at Mo Shanshan to have her step aside and took out from his luggage all the seasoning and animal oil that he could find. He was ready to make a fire and fry the fish.


    Fish in Daming Lake were fat with fine meat and had no scales. Their bellies, in particr, were almost crystal clear. After the fish was thrown into the pan, a special fragrance apanied the sizzling.


    Holding a branch, Ning Que stood by the fire, carefully and attentively watching the color of the fish¡¯s belly. He furrowed his brows in concentration and was more careful than he was in cultivation and enlightenment. He only turned the fish over once in a while.


    He did not choose firewood, but luxuriously chose talisman fire, and maintained the temperature with precision. When he was carefully frying the fish, he exined to Mo Shanshan, "As for things like frying fish, the cooking duration and heating temperature are very important, and you should not casually turn it over. It is like governing a country and practicing cultivation: Strategically, we can look down upon it, telling ourselves it is nothing at all; but tactically, we need to pay attention to it and be careful."


    The Calligraphy Addict could not bear his begging and had given him two Fire Fus. At the thought of using Talisman Taoism to cook, she could not help feeling sad and distressed. But, she felt what Ning Que had said was somewhat reasonable now after his exnation.


    The semitransparent belly of the fish gradually swelled in the moderately heated oil, and then a shining cold fishhook was revealed.


    Ning Que stiffened. It took him quite a while to figure out that this fish was the exact one that had bitten the hook, and the same one that hadter taken away both the hook and the bait.


    A willing victim that allowed itself to be caught. Back then, you were unwilling to be caught, so why did youe back to bite the hookless branch?


    Looking at the fish that was fried to a golden brown and so fragrant in the pan, he slightly tilted up the tip of his eyebrows and smiled.


    He handed the willow branch to Mo Shanshan and turned back to thekeside. When he looked at the reflection of the Snow-capped Peak in theke, the Psyche Power in his sense of perception was released with his mental state, but he did not perceive the Qi of Heaven and Earth around him...


    because his Psyche Power had integrated with the Qi of Heaven and Earth around Daming Lake.


    As he slowly closed his eyes, his mental state was sent out constantly along with the Psyche Power that had integrated into heaven and earth. He saw the moss stones beside theke, the swimming fish in the water, and the grit under the fallen leaves¡ª he saw everything.


    He did not see them with his eyes nor under the light. He did not touch the surroundings by using his Psyche Power to control the Qi of Heaven and Earth and then perceive them. Instead, it was a kind of direct and subtle perception of heaven and earth.


    Then, Ning Que opened his eyes and looked up to the sky. In the azure sky, there were white clouds transformed into different shapes, such as the shape of someone from the Horse Gang, the shape of a horse, the shape of Shubi Lake, the shape of the trees on Min Mountain, the shape of the cornice of Spring Breeze Pavilion, and the shape of the old library. They were all figures that he had seen.


    He reached out his trembling fingers to lightly draw something in the wind, muttering, "Actually, there are talismans all over this world."


    Holding that willow branch, Mo Shanshan looked at the fried fish in the pan, her beautiful face full of nervousness. She did not know when she could move the fish. Gradually, the smell of burnt fish came to her, and along with that, the semitransparent belly of the fish suddenly exploded. The hook was sted away, falling into theke and disappearing instantly.


    Listening to Ning Que¡¯s murmuring and looking at the messy fish in the pan, she said in a low voice full of shame, "The fish broke."


    Ning Que turned back, looked at her, and earnestly said, "I broke it as well."


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 258: An Arrow Ruins His Life

    Chapter 258: An Arrow Ruins His Life


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Tiny drops made streams, which then converged into a river. The river had arduously rolled on for thousands upon thousands of miles through valleys, hills, ins, and mudts, and finally, it mightily and torrentially flowed ahead and gushed into the sea. How joyful it was! It was exactly how Ning Que felt now.


    Originally, he was only an urchin in Chang¡¯an City that had unexpectedly suffered from misfortune. He had seen and experienced the ugliest and most dangerous things in this world and had to roam about with Sangsang at such a young age. And in the end, life had made him a young wood-chopper in the border town.


    He had known that there was Taoism in this world, but had no idea at all how to practice it. In the Kaiping Market, he found the Article on the Response of the Tao, yet for years could not get any inspiration from it. He had not known that all his acupoints were blocked until he came across the sage, and hence, the so-called cultivation was only a daydream for him. Fortunately, his acupoints were activated, so he finally understood Taoism and entered the Academy, which made all hisints disappear.


    Today, he finally overcame the key obstacle on the path of cultivation and entered the Seethrough State, so he felt uparablyfortable, mentally and physically. Standing beside theke, he supported himself with both hands on his waist and leaned backward to see the drifting clouds in the blue sky. Only through shouting or smirking could he now fully express the happiness that he felt.


    Looking at Ning Que, Mo Shanshan felt that his figure was in such harmony with the surrounding scenery. She felt the aura sent by the wind and understood what he had experienced, and thus, she was showing a sincere smile.


    Looking at the clouds in the sky and those above theke, as well as those real or illusory Snow-capped Peaks hidden among the clouds, Ning Que was feeling andprehending what the Seethrough State had brought him. He did not yet have a direct cognition of the real meaning of entering the Seethrough State, but at least he could obviously feel that he had a deeper understanding of Talisman Taoism.


    The fine weather, theke in winter, and the verdant valley, actually, all of these things in nature were talisman lines.


    Because of this new understanding, he had a strong desire to unfold a piece of paper, grind some ink, and wield a brush pen beside theke so he could write down all of the lines of nature that he had seen with his eyes and sense of perception.


    But he did not do that because he had other more important things to tackle.


    ...


    ...


    There was a gentle slope on the south bank of Daming Lake and near the steep cliff of the verdant valley. With the dissipation of the tactical array, spring was resurrected and the gentle slope was already covered with green weeds, which then spread into a meadow. But the outskirts of the meadow where it was near the cliff were invaded by the cold, thus appearing to be blighted and withered.


    Ning Que and Mo Shanshan stood in the frost-covered grass, both looking up into the far distance where the snow cliffy. Today, the sky was a cloudless blue, providing clear vision. But those numerous particles invisible to the naked eye made the sight of that snow cliff dozens of miles away be blurry, so they even could not see the snow cliff.


    Although he could not see the snow cliff with his eyes, that did not mean that he could not see it another way. Since Ning Que had just now entered the Seethrough State, his spirit and aura were at their peak, and his already sharp perception was now sharp to the extreme. An extremely bright mass of light came clearly out from his sense of perception, which was golden yellow with an unusual brilliance. The edge of the mass shined out in all directions like a beautiful flower.


    He was shocked by what he saw with his sense of perception and asked subconsciously, "Is the Seethrough State... so powerful? Did it actually help me to perceive that scene from such a long distance?"


    Mo Shanshan looked in the direction of the snow cliff dozens of miles away, pensively saying, "It¡¯s not the Seethrough State that had helped you to perceive the aura of nature from so far away, but because Prince Long Qing has reached the critical moment of breaking the realm. What he will break into is the Knowing Destiny State, so naturally, it will be earth-shaking. Now, he is only a step away from that state, so the Taoism that he has umted over decades of cultivation and his Psyche Power are all released, strongly interrupting the Qi of Heaven and Earth. That¡¯s why we can see it."


    After a brief silence, Ning Que smiled and said, "Although there is one step left, I still won."


    Mo Shanshan looked at him and asked, "What should we do next?"


    Ning Que said naturally, "I will tell Long Qing that I have broken the realm, of course. Now that he has lost the bet, he will get rid of his Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qiter, so why should he bother to break the realm with such difficulty now? If he admits that he is defeated, then perhaps he will be in less pain. It would be too cruel to get rid of them after he has entered the Knowing Destiny State."


    Mo Shanshan nced at him with aplicated mood, thinking silently, "Now Long Qing is only one step away from the Knowing Destiny State, which cultivators wish for, and will soon be a Grand Cultivator. At such a moment, will he really keep his promise at the sacrifice of his cultivation and his identity in the Divine Hall? Ning Que, you are not usually as naive as you are being now!"


    "Now, the problem is, how do we tell him that he has lost the bet?" asked Ning Que.


    Mo Shanshan shook her head slightly and answered, "At the moment of breaking the realm, the Taoist Heart is transparent, so we can feel him. His Perception State is extremely sharp, so he should already have known that he was defeated the moment that you broke the realm."


    Ning Que looked at that invisible snow cliff and, after a moment of silence, asked, "Then what is he waiting for?"


    ...


    ...


    Prince Long Qing was waiting for the moment of blooming.


    A hint of green on top of the firewood had broken out, and more than a dozen flourishing green leaves sprouted out a pink-peach blossom, which burst forth at a visible speed. Its tender petals slowly unfolded one by one and were trembling in the wind somewhat, and one could faintly see some dewdrops from above.


    Four petals had unfolded, and the fifth one was slowly, but firmly, stretching out.


    If thest petal fully unfolded, that would be the time of flourishing, the time of full bloom.


    And that would be the Knowing Destiny State.


    The fluctuation of aura from the depths of the verdant valley had clearly reached the top of the snow cliff and entered his keenest sense of perception. He knew that Ning Que had broken the realm, but so what?


    With his eyes closed, Prince Long Qing calmly and joyfully sat on the cliff, outside of the fence and in front of the green leaves and pink peach blossom. He was waiting for the moment of breaking the realm.


    Perhaps, it was at just the next moment.


    In the eyes of the Grand Cultivators in the Knowing Destiny State, those fellow travelers on the path of cultivation would be nobodies. Any obstacles that might impact their Taoist Hearts would not exist because, once they entered the Knowing Destiny State, they would be the supermundane ones who had separated from the secr world. So naturally, they would no longer need to care about the rules and principles of the secr world.


    Sitting on the other side of the snow cliff, Ye Hongyu, the Tao Addict, did not look at Long Qing, because she knew that he would surely enter the Knowing Destiny State today. But instead, she felt bored and could not help furrowing her brows, feeling somewhat impatient.


    It was strange that, as outstanding ones of the young generation in the West-Hill Divine Pce, Prince Long Qing and she were in charge of the Judicial Department together. Though they had never had any open strife, they had secretpetitions. During recent years, she had always had the upper hand. But now, witnessing Long Qing about to enter the Knowing Destiny State, she was somehow indifferent toward it, as if she did not regard it as a threat.


    She did not stare at the verdant valley either because she had perceived the change of the Breath of nature in the previous moment and knew that the disciple of Academy named Ning Que had entered the Seethrough State. Although it was beyond her expectation, she did not care too much about it, thinking secretly, "At the worst, I can kill both Ning Que and the Calligraphy Addictter to protect the honor of the Divine Hall, and then, who else in this world would know about this bet?"


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que looked into the far distance and asked with the tip of his eyebrows tilting up, "Will he shamelessly break his promise?"


    Mo Shanshan softly answered, "Right now, he won¡¯t admit defeat."


    "But it¡¯s a fact. He has to admit it."


    Ning Que said, "On that day, I told you that he has to keep his promise if I were to enter the Seethrough State first."


    Mo Shanshan turned back to look at him nkly. She could not understand how Ning Que could force Long Qing to keep his bet of breaking a state from over 10 miles away. Moreover, Long Qing was about to enter the Knowing Destiny State.


    "In a casino, you have to acknowledge the loss."


    Ning Que put the luggage on the ground and took out a heavy wutong box, saying, "If somebody dares to disobey that rule, or is caught cheating, the most useful part of his body will be chopped off."


    There were strangely shaped metal pieces inside the box that had dark surfaces and were woven with countless thin metal lines. They looked as if they contained an extremely tenacious power.


    Mo Shanshan furrowed her brows. She had entered the Wilderness with Ning Que and knew that the heavy luggage was important to Ning Que, but it was not until today that she realized that the luggage contained these strange things. And she still did not know what function they had.


    Ning Que took the metal pieces out from the box, his fingers slowly rubbing along the rtively coarse surface of the box. Soon after, he quickened his speed, and along with the sounds of metal scratching together, a darkish metal bow was rapidly made.


    Next, he began to wind the bowstring. From the dark-colored quiver, he drew out a darkish alloy arrow, the shaft of which was covered with scale-like microgrooves. It was unknown how many times the shaft had been forged to have such an effect. If one were to carefully examine it, they would find lines deeply carved between the microgrooves on the shaft. These were the lines of talisman exactly.


    Mo Shanshan looked at the darkish metal bow and arrow in Ning Que¡¯s hand in a daze, and subconsciously raised her hand to cover her lips in great shock.


    These were the unique Primordial Thirteen Arrows made by the unique Academy.


    They made their first appearance in the world in the vast Tianqi Mountain.


    ...


    ...


    The day that they made the bet of breaking a state, Ning Que asked Mo Shanshan what would happen if, at the critical moment of breaking the realm, the realm-breaker was suddenly attacked from the outside world. Back then, Mo Shanshan answered that the breaker would be fiercely counter-attacked and would even have no hope of breaking the realm again in his life¡ª so he decided to force Prince Long Qing to keep that bet.


    Standing on the upper side of the withered meadow under white frost, Ning Que looked at the remote cliff over 10 miles away and focused on that golden blossom in the sense of perception that was about to fully bloom. He was emotionless and as calm as a winterke.


    The aura sent out from Prince Long Qing on the verge of entering the Knowing Destiny State was very brilliant, as if it were a bonfire at night. Its rity made it unnecessary for Ning Que to aim at Long Qing.


    Your happiness is the sun in my world.


    Today was a good day and was suitable for shooting arrows.


    Ning Que took a deep breath and raised the metal bow to aim at the cliff far away. He gradually drew the bow backward with his right arm, and the shape of the firm bow slightly changed as the bowstring dug deeply into his fingers.


    "The world is t, good!"


    Upon saying this, he loosened his finger.


    The tense bowstring rubbed against his fingertip and sprung back at a fast speed, allowing the Talisman Arrow to shoot out with a great force!


    The sharp arrow bunchr moved forward from the bow where his hand had been holding it. And after it covered some distance, the diamond iy on the bow slightly rubbed against the metal shaft, as if a brush pen had written on paper and left a line on it.


    It was exactly in the empty space of the Fu character on the shaft, and thest stroke of that Fu character.


    As the end of the arrow left the bow, a string of white liquid came out with it, either because it was moving too fast or because the Fu character was activated.


    And then, the Primordial Thirteen Arrow disappeared in the white liquid.


    ...


    ...


    Prince Long Qing, sitting on the snow cliff with his legs crossed, sensed the fluctuation of the aura of heaven and earth from off in the distance, and he even perceived the hostility and homicidal intent of Ning Que. But he did not care at all, nor bother to open his eyes.


    Now in his sense of perception, the darkness had faded and brilliant stars were about to cover the entire Firmament. On the firewood behind him, the peach blossom had bloomed, leaving only thatst petal, which would unfold quickly.


    The higher your degree was on the path of cultivation, the more difficulty you would encounter when breaking the realm and the more dangerous it would be. However, since they were so far away from each other, he did not think that his opponent had the ability to affect him.


    Only the sword of Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword, or the legendary Sage in the No Rules State could hurt someone 10 miles away from them. But did they really exist?


    Moreover, he had Ye Hongyu, the Tao Addict, to protect him.


    So, those were Prince Long Qing¡¯s real thoughts when he was about to enter the Knowing Destiny State for the first time in his life.


    And soon after, he discovered that he was wrong.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que had just broken the realm, whose aura of spirit was at the peak, yet he immediately shot out the most powerful Primordial Thirteen Arrow without even adjusting himself or enjoying his happiness for a while.


    The Psyche Power umted over the past 10 years, the persistence fostered by those struggles and hardships, the cognition of heaven and earth, and the hatred, unwillingness,ints, and coldness were all poured out with that shot.


    It had nothing to do with gratitude or revenge, but indeed, it made him happy.


    The water in Daming Lake rolled over turbulently, and the fish inside of it panicked.


    From the meadow to the snow cliff, countless leaves fell down and the treetops all bent away in a panic, thus forming a hollow.


    The invisible arrow was moving forward through the hollow.


    That arrow,


    startled the peacefulke,


    stirred the dense forest,


    and made the newly bloomed peach blossom wither.


    ...


    ...


    Prince Long Qing opened his eyes in shock, and looked in the direction of the verdant valley, his face suddenly turning pale.


    He then looked down at his chest, stunned, and the expression in his eyes suddenly turned into extreme grief.


    A flower was blooming from his chest, which was covered with a ck taoist robe.


    But it was not the golden flower that had appeared after he was enlightened by the West-Hill Taoists Law in his dreams.


    It was a flower of blood.


    And behind the flower, there was a hole.


    An empty hole.


    There was nothing inside it.


    ...


    ...


    The previous moment, the ckish and thin Primordial Thirteen Arrow disappeared from Ning Que¡¯s bowstring and faded into the white liquid of primordial Qi.


    And the next moment, the Primordial Thirteen Arrow appeared before Prince Long Qing.


    It seemed that a Talisman Arrow could fly, disregarding the constraints of time and space.


    The tough Talisman Arrow directly pierced through the chest of Prince Long Qing where the flower of blood appeared. It had greatly disturbed the Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow inside his body and then continued to sh ahead like ck lightning until it probed into the mountain far behind the snow cliff.


    "Bam!"


    The snow in the middle of the mountain began to copse, which then formed a white torrent that thunderously flowed down.


    Suddenly, the blue sky turned gloomy, and ck clouds clustered in the northern part of the sky in the Wilderness.


    Looking down at the empty hole in his chest, Prince Long Qing began to tremble.


    The arrow arrived too fast for him to react. It pierced through his chest and vanished too quickly for the blood from his wound to bleed out.


    And the peach blossom on the firewood had withered.


    The brilliant stars in his sense of perception had all broken while the remaining darkness was torn into small pieces.


    Prince Long Qing¡¯s lips twitched upward to nkly force a smile, but the smile was heartbreakingly and piercingly full of pain.


    Tiny drops made streams, which then converged into a river. The river had arduously rolled on for thousands upon thousands of miles through valleys, hills, ins, and mudts, and finally, it mightily and torrentially gushed ahead and was about to enter the sea. But now, how dismal it was to be blocked by a cliff thousands of feet high and crash into pieces! That was exactly how Prince Long Qing felt.


    Originally, he was a prince in the capital of the Yan Kingdom, who asionally had happy encounters. He had experienced the most prosperous and the luckiest things in the world. As a youngster, he had already toured around all of the countries to make adjustments and finally, he became a handsome god in Peach Mountain for the sake of Haotian¡¯s gift.


    Today, he was finally about to reach the moment of surpassing that key obstacle of cultivation and enter the Knowing Destiny State, and thus, felt extremely happy. Against the verdant valley, he faced the Snow-capped Peak and, with the peach blossom newly bloomed on the firewood by his side, he felt that his life was on the verge ofpleteness.


    But just now, an arrow had flown from somewhere.


    That arrow destroyed all that he had.


    How much pain he was in!


    ...


    ...


    -


    -


    -


    .


    -

 Chapter 259: Ning Ques Destiny for Whether Entering Knowing Destiny State Or Not

    Chapter 259: Ning Que¡¯s Destiny for Whether Entering Knowing Destiny State Or Not


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ye Hongyu floated to Prince Long Qing. She furrowed her thin brows slightly, looking rather serious. She stretched her jade-like palm and put it on his head. A light and pure Taoist aura spewed out from her palm, instantly covering his body.


    The light and pure aura gradually became denser and glittered with a golden beam just like Haotian Divine light. She ced a pill on his lips with her left hand. She gently shattered the pill and pushed it into his stomach.


    Her concise and rapid movements caused the overflow of blood in Prince Long Qing¡¯s chest and abdomen to magically stop. One could vaguely feel that a very intense aura of life was repairing something.


    This pill was a superb medicine Tao Addict had brought from the temple in her childhood. The Taoist aura with a very intense aura of life was the secret skill of the Peach Mountain. She actually dragged Prince Long Qing back from the edge of death with it.


    Prince Long Qing looked very pale, but it was unlikely that he would die on the spot. However, no matter what Ye Hongyu did, he did not respond. He merely bowed silently and looked at his chest.


    A drop of sweat slipped down from his temple and was instantly blown away by the snowy wind under dark clouds. In order to save Prince Long Qing, she had suffered a great deal of damage in a very short period of time.


    She simply said, "It was too fast."


    Normally, proud Tao Addict would never bother to exin anything, even if the other was Judge God. However, today she had been on the snow cliff for the purpose of protecting Long Qing. But she had not stopped the arrow, and this had resulted in his injury. So she felt it necessary to exin to him.


    The arrow had been so fast that she could not react in time.


    Prince Long Qing did not answer her. Maybe it was because of his injury or maybe he had other reasons.


    He looked at his chest without any emotion. He knew that he could cure his physical injury within months. However, the Ocean of Qi, especially the damaged Taoist Heart that had broken the realm, could never be repaired.


    In his sense of perception, the stars had been broken into hundreds of millions of cluttered lenses. The dark sky was twisted into a mess and floated around in space, gradually upying all the corners of his eyesight.


    He looked at the hole in his chest like a fool as if seeing this chaotic world. He recalled memories and experiences he had had.


    A torrent of vivid images shed before his eyes. Indifferent faces reflected by fire; semi-scorching bodies on stakes and their painful cries; bony corpses in You Prison; the proud and calm faces of those watching; all changed into countless pieces of snow. These images shed by and swept over his ck Taoist robe.


    He had killed a lot of people, including strong and violent men; chaste and tender virgins; charming and plump whores; old and thin elders; young and lovely children. He had put all his mind into the Taoist pursuit and been loyal to Haotian. He had not hesitated to kill those people.


    However, he found that the feelings he had once had killed others at the stake had all been unreal. Only the pain of his being destroyed was real.


    He envisioned his dark and hopeless future.


    Ye Hongyu stared at his gloomy face, knowing that his pride and strong cultivation had beenpletely destroyed by the arrow. She could not help eximing, "Do you want to destroy yourself?"


    Prince Long Qing suddenlyughed. His hoarseughter sounded weak. He looked to be in extreme pain and confusion in the gradually increasing snowstorm. He softly murmured, "I¡¯ve already been destroyed."


    For a Son of God in West-Hill who was willing to devote his life to the bright Haotian and Taoist cultivation, if he could no longer enter the Knowing Destiny State, he would only survive like a dog.


    With difficulty, he turned around painfully. He looked towards the snow and wind outside the cliff and the increasingly dark sky deep in the Wilderness. He said with frustration,"I¡¯m the Prince. I should be the Yan Emperor. My feet were once standing on two sides of the Taoist sect and the mortal world. I should be unique in the world. But I was destroyed. And now I¡¯ve been abandoned by Haotian in this cruel dark world."


    In the eyes of Taoist people, fortune was a gift Haotian bestowed to human beings, while misfortune was a punishment. He had been lucky all his life. But today in the mountains he had been abandoned by Haotian. He suddenly found himself ruthlessly abandoned. No matter how strong his will or how pure his Taoist Heart, he could not deal with such a terrible result.


    He slowly stood up. His severely wounded and extremely weak body shook in the snow and wind. He painfully uttered a beast-like cry as he struggled to straighten his body.


    He ignored Ye Hongyu at his side and took a direct step forward.


    With no ground below his feet, he rolled down the snow cliff.


    With an oppressive impact sound, he fell to the bottom of the cliff.


    Wrapped in his ck robe, lying in the snow, his body became motionless.


    Ye Hongyu went to the edge of the cliff and silently watched the snownd below.


    As time went on, the snow and wind on the cliff became stronger. Prince Long Qing, who was almost buried beneath the snow, suddenly moved and stood up with extreme difficulty. He clutched his chest andmely walked down the mountain. He asionally fell down and then climbed up, as he moved slowly toward the dark clouds in the northern Wilderness.


    He was worse than death, just like a fool.


    He could not enter the Knowing Destiny State; he was like a wounded wild dog without a home.


    Because of his violent struggling action, the arrow wound in his chest that had been temporarily stopped by the Taoist aura burst open again. The fresh blood spilled from his fingers and dripped onto the snow, leaving a long red trail below the cliff.


    It did notst long for it was quickly covered by the snow and wind.


    His miserable and pitiful figure was also covered by the snow and wind in the end.


    Ye Hongyu watched his figure disappear into the snow and wind. She remained silent.


    She did not know when he would fall down again, unable to climb back up, and eventually turn into an icy cadaver in the frigid Wilderness. She only knew that the guy who had once been capable of threatening her was alive in body but dead in the heart.


    After an unknown period of time, she slowly turned around and quietly looked towards the verdant valley on the other side of the snow cliff. She said with no emotion, "Some people have to die, so... "


    She stopped speaking abruptly and stared into the distance, falling into silence for a long time. The snow and wind gradually blew her face, making her detached beautiful face as cold as an ice-carved beauty.


    Suddenly, she blinked.


    The icy frost on her eyshes fell into pieces.


    The grass, which had previously upied the entire snow cliff, was rapidly wilting with the destruction of Prince Long Qing. The peach blossom on the firewood was also dying petal by petal. But as she blinked, the situation on the snow cliff changed again.


    The green grass no longer withered or flourished. The peach blossom no longer died away nor reopened. They just remained in stillness in her blinking moment, as if time had frozen all living things.


    Some things were not frozen. The snowstorm still blew quietly on the cliff and her red dress danced with the wind.


    The cold wind swirled with snowkes circling around her body, gradually bing a clear snow girdle. It continued to spiral around her waist at a high speed. The two pieces ofce floating behind her red dress were blown up by the wind and gently tapped the snow girdle on her waist as if a brush was dipped into clean water. The snow girdle suddenly became bright red.


    ...


    ...


    On the two steep cliffs in the depth of the Tianqi Mountains, the Zhishou Abbey Wayfarer, Ye Su, and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine Wayfarer, Tang, were sitting silently opposite a deep and dark canyon that stood in the middle. When the peach blossom beside Prince Long Qing had opened or Ning Que had broken the realm as he cooked the fish, they had not had the slightest emotional change on their faces. The only trace of emotion was in the moment when the arrow flew through the entire verdant valley.


    "A nice shot."


    "It was a good shot."


    Ye Su gazed into the distance and said indifferently, "Only the Academy could have such a good arrow."


    Tang looked at the other on the opposite cliff and said in a low voice. "I only know you lost."


    Standing behind her brother, Tang Xiaotang clenched her blood-color huge de, watching vigntly and slightly excitedly.


    Ye Su slowly stood up. His thin body and simple Taoist bun looked particrly lonely among the gray and dark cliff walls. Suddenly he felt something and again looked into the distance. He tilted his lip corners and showed a warm smile.


    Tang also felt the movement on the opposite snow cliff and his expression changed slightly.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que slowly put down his arm. His hand that held the iron bow trembled slightly, for this shot had cost him too much Psyche Power. His shoulder muscles were severely hurt. But he still could not help showing a happy smile on his pale cheeks.


    The dazzling light in Prince Long Qing¡¯s sense of perception suddenly extinguished. Even if he did not die, he could not open the heavy door of the Knowing Destiny State. If what Mo Shanshan had said was true, he might never again in his life enter the Knowing Destiny State.


    It was his first time using Primordial Thirteen Arrows in actualbat. Ning Que did not feel surprised at their terrifying power to destroy a strong man like Prince Long Qing. When he had been in the back of the mountain, he had been in No Doubts State. But now he was in Seethrough. When Brother II had shot the arrow, it had shattered his sleeves. Prince Long Qing had been in a critical moment of breaking the realm. Could Prince Long Qing be stronger than Brother II?


    Mo Shanshan looked at him with her dark eyes wide open, looking rather confused. She closed her thin red lips tightly. She seemed endlessly puzzled and shocked.


    Ning Que rubbed his shoulders, looked at her and said with a smile, "Are you shocked by my bow and arrow?"


    Mo Shanshan gently nodded.


    Ning Que proudly said, "Isn¡¯t it powerful?"


    Mo Shanshan nodded again.


    Then she said solemnly, "You¡¯ve won the gamble. Why did you still shoot?"


    Ning Que said, "The purpose of fighting is not to win, but to make the enemy fail."


    Seeing her puzzled gaze, he continued. "Winning without the enemy¡¯s failure is a fake victory. If one appears to lose but makes his enemy fail, that¡¯s a real victory."


    He had modified many of Mo Shanshan¡¯s thoughtspletely. So she was almost able to understand his interpretation of battles. But there were still many things she could not understand, such as why he must make Prince Long Qing suffer such a terrible failure.


    "Although you¡¯re the Wayfarer of the Academy and have the support of the Tang Empire, Prince Long Qing is still a great leader of this young generation. He is favored by Great Divine Priests in the Peach Mountain and a Son of God in West-Hill in the eyes of the Haotian believers. You destroyed him in such a way. Have you not considered what consequences this might lead to?"


    Ning Que replied without emotion, "If this is a gamble, he has to pay the price after losing. If this is a battle, I never consider the consequences until the enemy is absolutely defeated."


    Mo Shanshan looked at his eyes and shook her head. "This justification is not sufficient. You¡¯re clever enough. You should be very aware that even if he entered the Knowing Destiny State, he dared not to kill you. You should be more aware of what consequences this would lead to after you killed him. But you still chose to shoot the arrow without hesitation. Why?"


    After a short moment of silence, Ning Que said with a smile. "He shouldn¡¯t have mentioned Sangsang."


    ...


    ...


    When Ning Que heard others mention Sangsang, he would be the coldest, most terrifying and shameless person in the world. He would do anything to kill someone who tried to threaten or control him with Sangsang.


    Only in this way could he be sure that others would not threaten him, and he could avoid anxiety and pain. It had be his living habit and greatest instinct.


    This kind of instinct had begun 14 years ago. It had continued from the drought and famine in the northern part of the Tang Empire to the bathing cask of Old Hunter in the wild forest of Min Mountain and had apanied him to kill countless Horse Gangs in the grasnd outside the City of Wei.


    Sangsang was his weakest point and his greatest principle. He would never allow others to hurt her, whether it was Prince Long Qing or the Tang Emperor or even the Headmaster of Academy.


    In Chang¡¯an City, the princess, Lee Yu, thought that she had discovered Ning Que¡¯s weakness and lifeline, namely Sangsang. On the snow cliff a few days ago, Prince Long Qing had tried confirming Sangsang as his weakness and lifeline ording to the intelligence of the Divine Hall.


    However, all of them were wrong.


    Sangsang was not Ning Que¡¯s lifeline.


    Sangsang was Ning Que¡¯s life.


    ...


    ...


    Therefore, in order to save Sangsang, it was natural for Ning Que who most feared death to ignore his own life and the lives of others. He did not care about the war or peace in the world, either. Therefore, even if the other party was Prince Long Qing, Ning Que would still choose to kill him with one arrow. And Ning Que never minded the consequence and felt very happy.


    After a short rest in the meadow, Ning Que recovered himself a little and prepared to put the Primordial Thirteen Arrows back in his wooden box. Suddenly he tilted his brows and felt a slight pain in his eyes, as though he had been stabbed by a needle.


    He was shocked. He looked up again to the snow cliff in the distance. Suddenly a very bright light appeared in the peaceful and silent world of the sense of perception. The light was incandescent, cold and powerful, even more dazzling than the one when Prince Long Qing had tried to break the realm. It made others feel very frightened.


    Someone was breaking the realm!


    Someone was breaking the realm on the snow cliff!


    Someone was entering Knowing Destiny State on the snow cliff!


    The person who was entering Knowing Destiny State was stronger than Long Qing!


    Ning Que felt the aura of the Haotian Divine Light in the incandescent light and inferred the identity of this person in the shortest time and the fastest speed. Suddenly he became extremely shocked.


    But he did not hesitate or think of anything else. He quickly picked up the iron bow, put an arrow on it, took a deep breath and shot the arrow toward the faraway cliff!


    The staticke became violently turbulent; the air in the forest was ill at ease.


    Before the white turbulence of Qi of Heaven and Earth disappeared in front of the iron bow, Ning Que quickly took out the embroidered purse Master Yan Se had given him and firmly clenched it in his palm. He stared at the broadleaf forest in the south of the valley and said to Mo Shanshan in a low voice.


    "Get ready to kill another person... Tao Addict ising."

 Chapter 260: A Song for Tao Addict

    Chapter 260: A Song for Tao Addict


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    It was very difficult for cultivators to break the realm, including Prince Long Qing on the snow cliff and Ning Que beside the Daming Lake. Both of them had spent several days of penance to achieve it. But sometimes breaking the realm was also very simple. Ning Que had once obtained enlightenment of the Perception State and then entered the No Doubts State. He did not feel it had been difficult to cross the obstacles between the three states.


    It was also very simple for the Taoist girl in a red skirt to break the realm. When the wind and snow changed into a girdle around her waist and the peach blossom and grass on the cliff became static, she became a Grand Cultivator of the Knowing Destiny State.


    It was known that Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu, had a higher state than Prince Long Qing. When he had almost reached the threshold of the Knowing Destiny State, she had already stepped onto the threshold long ago. But no one knew why she did not step over it. When Long Qing was about to enter the Knowing Destiny State, she did not feel jealous or scared at all.


    Because she could enter the Knowing Destiny State at any time she wanted.


    In the depth of the verdant valley, a violent aura fluctuation appeared, mixed with a terrifying talisman sign.


    Ye Hongyu floated above the snow cliff with tightly closed eyes. Her red skirt ribbon extended in the air encircling her body and her beautiful face was filled with quietness. She seemed not to notice the movement in the distance. However, the snow and wind around her body suddenly blew wildly and made her red dress ribbon flutter.


    As the strong aura skyrocketed in the depth of the valley, the red ribbon floating in front of her was shattered into numerous butterflies in the sky. The vague shooting orbit of the arrow passed through the red butterflies and rubbed her shoulder flying


    diagonally to the faraway sky, and then disappeared.


    The arrow shot from the depth of the verdant valley failed to prate her body, but still wounded her shoulder. The red blood flowed down from her white tender shoulder. The broken ribbon fell to the snow cliff; the blood flowed to her left hand and trickled


    along with her fingertip.


    Before the blood dripped on the snow cliff, a jade-like white hand caught it.


    Ye Hongyu opened her eyes; they did not have the slightest emotion. She looked at the depth of the verdant valley and suddenly jumped down from the snow cliff. She stepped onto the ridge of the cliff and drifted into the dense hardwood forest with the wind.


    As she entered the forest, her ribbon passed through the fine branches and young leaves flicked her face. It seemed that her body, the forest foliage and the air around her had merged together, bing a part of the natural world. If one only perceived but did not use the naked eye to see, he could not find her at all. She floated indifferently into the depth of the valley with the wind in the forest.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que made a very rapid judgment. He had guessed that the strong person breaking the realm was Tao Addict. He had already ruined Prince Long Qing. Would he still want to destroy another hope of the West-Hill Divine Pce? No matter how firm one¡¯s will was, he would be embarrassed in the face of such an unexpected situation. But his response was even faster than his judgment. He did not hesitate to use Primordial Thirteen Arrows once again. The action seemed toe even faster than his thinking.


    Since he had already killed one, he did not care about killing another. Besides, he had destroyed Prince Long Qing. Tao Addict had suddenly broken the realm and obviously wanted to kill him. He could feel the hidden danger from the wind in the verdant valley.


    Unfortunately, his second Talisman Arrow did not cause the same effect as the first. His physical condition and mental state at this time were not as good as when he had broken the realm. More crucially, he did not expect Tao Addict to break the realm so fast, even before his swift and resolute shooting!


    He clearly felt a tearing pain in his right shoulder. The Psyche Power fluctuation caused by his using the talisman in his sense of perception made him feel slightly dizzy. But he knew that he could continue and shoot again as long as he did not give up. So he was not discouraged. He held the iron bow and put a Talisman Arrow between his fingers, aiming at the distance calmly, showing no emotion.


    The light on the snow cliff suddenly faded away and disappeared. One could vaguely see the faraway forests moving against the wind and broad leaves swinging. asionally a gorgeous red cloth swept among them. At such a distance, he could only see it asionally with his naked eye. He could not locate her position using his sense of perception. How could he aim at her?


    Ning Que¡¯s hand controlling the bow trembled. He knew that the current situation was terrible, but he only felt panic for a short moment before quickly making a decision. He put the iron bow behind his back and picked up the arrow box. He turned around and ran to the bottom of the meadow shouting, "Run!"


    A moment ago, he had calmly pulled the bow. Now he was running away like a frightened rabbit. Mo Shanshan¡¯s fingers that had constantly moved for a calction suddenly stiffened. She looked at the back of Ning Que who had run to the bottom of the meadow. Puzzled and confused, she asked, "Shouldn¡¯t we get ready to kill her here?"


    Ning Que did not return and shouted, "That woman is too cruel. We can only be killed by her. Run!"


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang was Ning Que¡¯s life. Sangsang was a poor handmaiden who had been abandoned since childhood, had been soaked in corpse water, had suffered from a congenital cold-feeling disease and had been ordered around by Ning Que for years. If Sangsang was his life, this indirectly proved that...


    Ning Que had a hard life.


    He had finally managed to avoid Prince Long Qing¡¯s revenge through his bet of breaking a state. He had taken a long arrow shot and destroyed the Prince Long Qing¡¯s life. He had thought that everything would go on smoothly and he would take away Tomes of Arcane after the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine opened and find the familiar Taoist aura before returning south. He never expected that he would usher in an even more powerful enemy.


    Once they entered the Snow Mountain in the Wilderness, they would certainly encounter some powerful enemies, including West-Hill Divine Pce. For this, Ning Que had clever ideas and ns to cope with them. He was confident about dealing with any danger, for he had taken Calligraphy Addict and Primordial Thirteen Arrows with him. But he had never expected that Tao Addict would start to break the realm after Long Qing¡¯s failure and actually turn into a horrible Grand Cultivator!


    In the Yellow River, the waves behind drove on those before so that he couldn¡¯t stand the waves. For example, after he hit a kid, the unreasonable parents came to argue with him. After he beat some rogues, their godfather came to get revenge. After he bullied a man from a rich family, this man¡¯s terrifying sister who was cold, arrogant and inherited the great legacy came to reason with him. All in all, he had a very hard life.


    ...


    ...


    On the peak of the cliff, the Red Scythe Tang Xiaotang clenched in her hand suddenly fell to the ground. She raised her hand to tightly cover her small mouth. She looked at the distant aura and thought of her brother¡¯s words. An unbelievable and extremely anxious look appeared in her eyes. She said unhappily, "The crazydy actually broke the realm of the Knowing Destiny State?"


    "If I meet her again, I can no longer defeat her. What a shame!" The Deste girl suddenly noticed the movements on the opposite side of the cliff and looked at the lonely Taoist robe drifting away from her. She was shocked and said, "Why did he go? His sister became a Grand Cultivator. Shouldn¡¯t he say something? Doesn¡¯t he want to help her?"


    Tang looked at the fleeing Taoist on the opposite mountain path and felt the Taoist¡¯s loneliness incongruent with the heaven and earth. He thought of the conceited young Taoist priest fourteen years ago and gradually furrowed his brows as wide as iron thorns, saying, "A person who has broken the realm of death naturally doesn¡¯t care about his rtives."


    Tang did not mind that the Taoist priest who had just left the cliff was more powerful than the priest from years previous. Although he didn¡¯t know exactly how the other party had broken the realm of death, he knew that people in that state tended to be indifferent about their surroundings and their Taoist Hearts would continue to exist in a new way. So the Taoist priest naturally would not care about his sister.


    He looked towards the verdant valley in the distance. After a short moment of silence, he said, "Tao Addict is really amazing. I don¡¯t know how such a young girl could resist the temptation of breaking the realm and forcedly seal her state in Seethrough for such a long time. Could it be extremely important for her to catch up with her lonely elder brother?"


    Tang Xiaotang did not understand and asked, "Forcibly seal her state? Why would she do that?"


    "Sometimes cultivation is like climbing mountain peaks or scooping water from ake or filling the sea with stones. It¡¯s all about perseverance. But in the end, the Lucky Chance represented by thest step, scoop, and stone is the most important."


    Tang said, "When one breaks the realm, different Lucky Chances lead to different gains. Tao Addict has already reached the final phase, namely the onest step to the peak, onest scoop to dry theke and onest stone to fill the sea. But she didn¡¯tplete thest phase and resisted the temptation of bing a Grand Cultivator in Knowing Destiny State with great perseverance, forcing herself to stay in Seethrough. She meditated and cultivated different Taoists Laws, and just waited for thest Lucky Chance."


    Tang Xiaotang asked, "Today she suddenly broke the realm and entered the Knowing Destiny State. Has her Lucky Chancee?"


    "Follow the natural Taoists Law. The most magical thing about Taoism Lucky Chance is to let nature take its course and gain what one should gain. Today Long Qing was destroyed on the snow cliff, so naturally, she became angry. Because Ning Que had stayed with Calligraphy Addict, she needed to break the realm and enter the Knowing Destiny State if she wanted to vent her anger and kill them. This type of need is natural for her. So she naturally broke the realm and entered the Knowing Destiny State."


    Tang turned around and looked at his younger sister with pity, saying, "I didn¡¯t expect that Ye¡¯s younger sister was such a woman. Her cultivation perseverance and her pursuit of a strong power have be almost insane. No wonder she is known to the world as Tao Addict. Tangtang, if you can¡¯t be strong quickly, you will never be her opponent."


    Tang Xiaotang did not feel annoyed that her elder brother considered her to be inferior to Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu. She spit out her tongue and proudly said, "If I go to Chang¡¯an City and be a student of the Headmaster of Academy, I can definitely defeat her."


    After a short moment of silence, Tang nodded and said, "You¡¯re right."


    Tang Xiaotang suddenly thought of something and gazed into the distance. She frowned and said, "Brother, if I¡¯m the Headmaster of Academy¡¯s student, Ning Que will be my Senior Brother. Should we save him?"


    Tang stood up and said,"Tao Addict is strong indeed, but Ning Que is also the World Wayfarer of the Academy. How could a core disciple of the Headmaster die in such an easy way?"


    He suddenly fell silent and looked at the deste Snow-capped Peak. The cold wind above the cliff kept blowing his iron-like chest. He saw nothing but seemed to see what he wanted to see.


    Tang Xiaotang stood beside him and asked curiously, "Brother, aren¡¯t the Tomes of Arcane in the Front Gate?"


    Tang slowly shook his head and said, "My teacher didn¡¯t tell me."


    Tang Xiaotang said withment, "When will the teacher reappear? Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation... do we really have to wait for 23 years?"


    After a short moment of silence, Tang said, "It¡¯s been almost 23 years."


    At this moment, an intermittent singing suddenly sounded on the naturally formed mountain path between the opposite peak and cliff. The lonely Wayfarer of Zhishou Abbey walked alone in the lonely world and sang an obscure Taoist song.


    "It blossomed on the Iron-arrow Cliff and sprouted on the fat-fish chopping board. The sea was full of rocks. I slept in the stable and you were on the other side of a rope... "

 Chapter 261: Standing on Ice, Speaking to Kill

    Chapter 261: Standing on Ice, Speaking to Kill


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    With treetops swinging against the wind and leaves swaying to thend, the red shadow quickly approached the Daming Lake. Neither the dense forests nor the cold wind could slow down the movements of the red shadow.


    Ning Que and Mo Shanshan rushed down the meadow towards the other end of theke. Although they ran really fast, they were still too slow to catch up with the Grand Cultivator in the Knowing Destiny State. The shadow of the Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu, had already floated out from the forests and fallen on the wends at the south shore of theke the moment they got the north shore.


    There was no threat of dialogues or negotiations. The Tao Addict looked at the two people on the other side of theke, indifferently raising her right arm and pointing out his index finger in the air with a very light and slow breath of aura.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth above the slightly swingingke suddenly fluctuated as if an invisible sword had abruptly cut off the beautifulke and the surrounding mountains. After a loud noise, the green and turquoise water tumbled and flew to both sides with rolling white waves, forming a deep gully, which was about several-feet-long and seemed to directly be in the bottom of theke.


    The deep gully that seemed to have been cut open by an invisible giant sword originated from the slim fingertips of the Tao Addict, tearing the wends on the southern bank of the Daming Lake, the aquatic nts and fish in theke, and theke water without any formidable condition. Like a straight line, it pierced directly to Ning Que and Mo Shanshan on the northern bank of theke.


    Ning Que felt the horrible auraing from afar, knowing that he could not find a suitable shelter at the moment even if he had turned into a rabbit. Therefore, he stopped and turned around without thinking too much and got ready to shoot a Talisman Arrow.


    The iron bow was pulled with s strong power. The bowstring was as tight as his mood at this time. But he did not release the string as there was an invisible sword between him and the Tao Addict in a red robe. The aura of heaven and earth experienced a turmoil in that space, which caused an intense flow of air and even gave the light a strange refraction.


    He could not aim at the Tao Addict.


    However, that invisible sword had torn theke and the grasnds at the northern shore, approaching Ning Que.


    Ning Que loosed the bow to let go of the arrow and held the big ck umbre behind him.


    Mo Shanshan had been standing beside Ning Que and silently watching the girl on the side of theke. As the Calligraphy Addict, who was as famous as the Tao Addict, she definitely had a wired feeling as her counterpart had broken the realm of the Knowing Destiny State.


    Maybe she wanted to get rid of the strange feeling in her heart or for some other reasons, she did not escape when she was facing the invisible Taoist Swording from the other side of theke. Instead, she quietly came forward and began to write in the soft wind along the shore with her right hand, which was as white as a jade.


    Two lines of very unhealthy flushes appeared on her face. Her slender fingers writing in the slightly cold wind shivered slightly. A powerful invisible talisman was born in the wind with a few lines drawn by her fingertips.


    She knew both her original state and strength were worse than the Tao Addict. Now as the Tao Addict had entered the Knowing Destiny State, she did not hesitate to y one of her most powerful methods at this moment, Half Divine Talisman.


    The lines in the wind shrilled, and then instantaneously copsed into numerous extremely fragmented fragments. The talisman force of her fingertips abruptlypressed and turned into a transparent air mass in a second.


    The transparent air mass and the invisible Taoist Sword encountered at the northern shore of the Daming Lake, suddenly creating numerous extraordinarily fine turbulence as catkins in the air.


    The next moment all these catkins exploded and the Taoist force and talisman force, which was contained thepressed together, violently erupted around the clearke. Theke surface suddenly startled as if the water had jumped into the air!


    With a loud deafening noise, arge amount of theke water jumped up and sshed among the green valleys. The ice, which was getting firmed, at the heart of theke was shaken into pieces.


    Responding rather quickly, Ning Que loosed the ck umbre, lifting the bow again, and shot another arrow with the fastest speed to the opposite side of theke at the moment when theke copsed.


    The air was full of thin ice and Qi of Heaven and Earth. However, it seemed that Ye Hongyu was able to see everything across theke. She waved when he had just raised his bow. The thin ice, which had just copsed into the air, instantly filled the space between the two people as if they had received an order.


    Those ice cubes seemed to be more fragile when they faced the iron arrow with the talisman force. The powerful and terrifying Primordial Thirteen Arrow approached the Tao Addict after piercing all the ice like a thunderlight with crackling sounds.


    Ye Hongyu quietly watched the man on the northern bank of theke and did not escape.


    The Talisman Arrow flew through her previously wounded shoulders, very close and even blowing the pieces of her broken red robe off. But it failed to hurt her. It flew into the jungle with countless sounds of booming. Many green trees were shot down by this arrow.


    At this point, the water cut broken by the invisible Taoist Sword flew back and filled the deep gully with scattered ice floating on the surface like wild duckweed.


    Ye Hongyu flew up with the wind and elegantly fell on a piece of thin ice, standing.


    She was already a Grand Cultivator who had entered the Knowing Destiny State at this time. However, she was still not confident enough to avoid the Primordial Thirteen Arrows of Ning Que across theke. So she did not evade at all but opted to disrupt the trajectory of the arrow. The speed of the Primordial Thirteen Arrows was really scary, which could not be changed by merely a piece of thin ice. However, there would always be some kind of interference and there were dozens and even hundreds of pieces.


    The Taoist bunbed with her ck hair did not move in the wind, making her look more delicate and bright. Standing on the thin ice, she calmly looked at the other side of theke with a very light and emotionless smile in her eyes.


    Mo Shanshan, who looked slightly pale, stared at the woman on the thin ice without saying a word. Her right hand hanging out the sleeves slightly shivered and she felt slightly sweet in her throat. She thought with a bit confusion and unwillingness, "Is the Knowing Destiny State so powerful?"


    Silently looking at the girl in a red robe on the thin ice, Ning Que severely clenched his fist, not out of reluctance, but to ease the pain of the torn shoulder and quickly let his right-hand stop tremble.


    This was the first time for him to meet the legendary Tao Addict and feel her power, which was not only the strength of the state but also the incredibly precise and urate degree of control over the Taoists Law.


    It appeared to be easy to change the trajectory of the Primordial Thirteen Arrows with hundreds of pieces of thin ice. However, it was actually very difficult to achieve. The angle between the thin ice and the arrow bunch in the air must be extremely urate before tiny differences could be made into an infinite superposition. It was hard to control a piece of thin ice, let alone controlling hundreds of pieces of ice at the same time in such a short period. What kind of urate controlling ability did one need to do so? How could she do it?


    There were still ups and downs of water in theke. Ye Hongyu, standing on the thin ice, also gently went up and down. She calmly looked at Mo Shanshan and said, "The Half Divine Talisman cannot be neglected. You have made a lot of progress and can be my opponent now. If you can be an actual Divine Talisman Master in the Knowing Destiny State, you may beat me one day. However, it will still take many years for you to get there."


    Mo Shanshan bowed and did not say anything.


    Ye Hongyu then looked at Ning Que and mocked him, "Are you Ning Que? I know you are the weakest World Wayfarer in the world, but I really never expect that you will be as weak as this. You embarrass the Academy."


    If others mocked Sangsang, Ning Que might be very angry and would immediately jump up to greet his or her ancestors. However, he felt nothing when he was mocked by others. Looking at the girl on theke, heughed and said, "Do not say that, I let you bleed."


    He did not raise his iron bow to aim at the girl as it had been proved in the previous battle that the Primordial Thirteen Arrows were not able to kill a Grand Cultivator in the Knowing Destiny State. He would not do anything he was not sure about. At this time, since the Tao Addict would like to talk with them, he certainly desired to speak with her.


    ording to his judgment, the Tao Addict seemed to have a good grasp of killing him and Mo Shanshan together.


    But as they were enemies, they used harsh words towards each other. His words would be connected with the love affairs between men and women if he was talking while eating and drinking. However, both the Tao Addict and the of Addict lived in the mountains of the cloud for their entire lives. They could not get the sexual indication of his words. As a result, they did not make any response at all, which let Ning Que down.


    He went on asking, "Can I ask you a question?"


    Ye Hongyu calmly looked at him without any emotions in her eye as a bobcat looked at a bamboo mouse. She did not have the intention to disdain or y with him as it was meaningless. She peacefully waited and softly whispered, "What?"


    Ning Que asked, "Did Prince Long Qing die?"


    "No."


    "Very good, since I cannot kill him, then you cannot kill me."


    Looking at the Tao Addict above theke, Ning Que said sincerely, "I admit that I am indeed the weakest World Wayfarer in history. I admit that it is a shame for the Academy and my teacher that I cannot beat. But I want to remind you that if you kill me, they will be more embarrassed. At that time, none can help you."


    It was a very boring means that he once again relied on the Academy and the Headmaster of Academy. However, judging from what happened in the Wilderness pce and countless stories recorded in the annals of history had proved that this was the most effective means.


    Only the next moment he found that this method did not work on the Tao Addict.


    Ye Hongyu eyes gradually grew bright and said seriously with her eyes focusing on him, "Of course I know you are the core disciple of the Headmaster of Academy, so it is more interesting to kill you."


    While her voice and eyesight were calm, Ning Que felt extremely cold as he found a strong sense of madness and excitement hidden in this calmness.


    Ye Hongyu looked at Ning Que, who took on a solemn look. She stroked her chest, no longer suppressing the excitement, and said, "I have always been wanting to kill someone from the Second floor of the Academy, but I cannot find a reason. Today I am so happy that you give me a reason as you destroyed Long Qing."


    Ning Que felt dry in his mouth. He frowned and asked, "Don¡¯t you fear to start a war with the Divine Hall and the Academy?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "It is my greatest wish to fight a real strongman from the Second floor of the Academy since my cultivation."


    Ning Que did not know what to say but to look at her. He was finally convinced that the Tao Addict was really a crazy monster, who even scared Chen Pipi and let him form an idea of perverted men and women.


    Ye Hongyu looked at the two people at the shore of theke and smiled, charming and pure, and sincerely said, "I am very happy to have a chance like this. So to express my thanks to you, I decide to... kill you by myself."

 Chapter 262: Tao Addicts Fish

    Chapter 262: Tao Addict¡¯s Fish


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que looked at the Tao Addict¡¯s expression and listened to her words. He could not help feeling stunned and realized that it was indeed the moment of life and death. After a brief silence, he looked toward Mo Shanshan who also looked right at him. So the two people made eye contact beside theke and in the wind and knew of each other¡¯s true feelings.


    If the Tao Addict had not entered the Knowing Destiny State, the Calligraphy Addict and Ning Que would have acted more calmly and never been threatened by her. However, what was strange was that though it was unusually dangerous, they looked a little anxious but not frightened at all.


    Ye Hongyu did not care about their eye contact, for she had great confidence and arrogance to defeat and kill them in the deep valley of the boundless mountains.


    Theke, which had be a bit calmer, shook again as her psyche moved. The clear water was sucked up by an invisible wind and slowly turned around her graceful body. Later the end of the water detached from theke surface and formed a transparent water bundle. Soon, dense twists and turns gradually appeared on the surface of the transparent water bundle, which turned into numerous light slices and looked like silver scales when the faint light of the sky projected onto them. And the water bundle around her waist turned like a fish.


    As she gently flicked her slender fingers, that thin fish-like water bundle around her waist ejected like an arrow and broke through the slightly cold air above theke, rushing toward the two people on the northern shore of the Daming Lake along with the terrifying aura of heaven and earth.


    Mo Shanshan furrowed her brows and stared at the water fish that was flying towards her at a high speed. She put her left hand behind and stretched her right hand out of her cotton sleeves. And then she used her index finger to quickly draw several lines in the air. She ignored the quick consumption of her psyche power and once again decisively applied a Half Divine Talisman, filling the air above theke full of the talisman aura.


    As the water fish made by the condensation of Tao Addict¡¯s aura reached the shore and was about to make contact with the transparent air mass formed by Half Divine Talisman, suddenly a very bright light shot from deep inside the transparent water bundle. Just like the pure and holy Haotian Divine Light, the light suddenly shone brightly after the reflection of the innumerable scales on the surface of the water fish. It instantly sparkled throughout the verdant valley and the Daming Lake, as if the sun in the sky came here!


    The zing light suddenly broke out and was ruthlessly thrust into the clear ck pupils of Mo Shanshan. The young girl gently groaned and her face instantly became pale. Because she felt a shock in her sense of perception, her control of the Divine Talisman suddenly became weak.


    Ning Que did not anticipate that the tiny fish-like water bundle could have produced such a strange Taoists Law effect. A sh of light came to his eyes, making him feel a severe pain. He could not help groaning and almost fell to the ground.


    Apanied by a series of fizzing sounds, that semi-transparent fish-like water bundle shone brightly and continued to move forward mightily when the Divine Talisman was still weak. It was almost about to tear apart that transparent air mass!


    It was a very simple but extremely effective means to condense the psyche power into the water bundle and weaken the enemy with a stronger light. Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu, had reached a perfect level on the mastery of the Taoists Law and the meticulous calction of a battle.


    The Haotian Divine Light became more dazzling as it was refracted by the transparent scales. It made Ning Que and Mo Shanshan beside theke feel a great pain in their eyes and no longer see anything at all. They were almost about to be hit by the water bundle that contained a terrifying power.


    However, at this time, a strong talisman suddenly appeared beside the Daming Lake. It looked so calm, pure and peaceful, but was particrly powerful because of this quality.


    The transparent water bundle that hade to theke immediately became still. No matter how the powerful bundle struggled, how theplex scales on its surface reproduced, how intensely the zing light reflected from its depth, it no longer moved forward further. It seemed that a giant hand between the heaven and earth stretched out and caught the water fish indifferently.


    The wind on the northern shore of the Daming Lake suddenly stopped and the breeze suddenly disappeared. Suppressed by that powerful talisman, the air ceased to flow. The debris that had fallen down in the air also became motionless in the air.


    This kind of motionlessness was not an absolute one, but a kind of stillness that everything was forced to stop and could not struggle.


    Half theke was trapped in this motionlessness. The restlesske water struggled to flow out but failed. The thin ice on theke struggled and gradually broke into pieces. The ice pieces did not spread out in all directions, butpressed inwards and continuously became smaller as it was squeezed.


    A green leaf floated from the bank to theke and was immediately torn to pieces by the talisman force. However, the pieces were tightly tied into a bundle and did not spread out. They just turned into a group of green furs and looked very amazing.


    There seemed to be a great number of ropes appearing beside theke. It bound all things and limited their movements. Because this talisman was called the Restriction Fu.


    ...


    ...


    The embroidered purse Ning Que clenched in his left hand had broken. It was dark inside the slightly scorched purse and nothing was in it. The Divine Talisman had started with his mental state and began to bind everything it could encounter on theke.


    Standing on the thin ice of theke, Tao Addict¡¯s fluffy red Taoist dress was pressed against her body by the force of the Restriction Fu. Her graceful undted body was wrapped by the thin, soft material and looked extraordinarily beautiful and tempting.


    Her redce belt that had floated in the wind fell down and was forced to bind her thighs. The bright redce was entangled with her bare legs, revealing a sense of evil beauty.


    Unfortunately, the water bundle that was trapped by Restriction Fu was still shining brightly. So Ning Que was unable to open his eyes for a moment. Otherwise, if he saw the Tao Addict bound by thece, he would certainly feel veryfortable both for his eyes and his minds.


    Ye Hongyu knew what she looked like at this time. She certainly did not think how beautiful or tempting she was when the clothing stuck to her body and the curves of her body were presented. She only felt very shameful and angry.


    In addition to anger and shame, she was more alert in her mind at this time. Because she was faced with a strong andplete Divine Talisman. Although it was far less powerful than the Divine Talisman Master¡¯s, she could not ignore it. This terrifying Restriction Fu could not constrain her Psyche Power, but had bound her body.


    At this crucial moment, Mo Shanshan took the first shot and opened the fingers of her right hand like an orchid, instantly dispelling the Half Divine Talisman that had fought against Tao Addict¡¯s water fish. And then she suddenly thrust her left index finger like a sword.


    There was a strong dryness appearing on theke. There was no me in the air, but it was hotter than a me. The half-acreke water near the north bank suddenly boiled up and a mass of water mist showed up.


    After the water fish shone, Ning Que kept his eyes tightly closed, but used the Psyche Power in his sense of perception to keenly perceive the surroundings. He could clearly perceive the fluctuation of the aura of heaven and earth, except locating Tao Addict who was integrated with heaven and earth.


    When that dryness had just appeared, he knew Mo Shanshan was ready to use the Fentian Fu.


    As soon as the water mist appeared above theke and slightly covered the shining light, he opened his eyes and took the bow with the fastest speed, and then shot an arrow at the Tao Addict hidden in the mist above the water!


    There was no sound, only a very thin ck hole formed by the mist on theke and the high-speed swirling fog beside the hole. The hollow Talisman Arrow made by a mysterious iron just came to the front of Tao Addict!


    The Divine Talisman bound Tao Addict¡¯s graceful body, so she should be able to avoid the Talisman Arrow. However, to his shock, the fish-like water bundle that had also been bound by the Divine Talisman seemed to perceive his thought before his shooting and forcibly broke its water body, and then instantly returned to her front!


    There seemed to be a moaning cry appearing in the misty fog on the surface of theke.


    The water fish was directly torn to pieces by the powerful Primordial Thirteen Arrow. Later it turned into water droplets and fell into theke, as if it were a heavy rain.


    At this time, Ning Que finally knew that Tao Addict¡¯s Natal Item was actually a fish.


    ...


    ...


    Tao Addict¡¯s left shoulder was severely wounded again. The fresh blood was spewing out of her shoulder, but did not flow into theke due to the majestic Restriction Fu. It turned into numerous round droplets of blood against her bare white shoulder de.


    If the water fish had not blocked the Talisman Arrow at the most critical moment, she might have been shot and killed by that arrow. However, even though she was alive, she was seriously injured and broke her left arm. More crucially, her Natal Item had been devastated and might not be repaired in the future.


    Her beautiful face was unusually pale. She stared at thekeside over the water mist coldly and indifferently. She said with a hint of madness, "Uncle Yan Se¡¯s Divine Talisman is really powerful, but unfortunately you¡¯re not him."


    Ning Que ignored her words and put the fourth Primordial Thirteen Arrow on the tight bowstring. His fingers controlling the string shivered slightly and blood dripped from his lip. After the continuous Talisman Arrow shots, his sense of perception got a huge shock and his body was severely harmed. However, he only had one idea at this time. He wanted to shoot her dead at all costs when she was bound by the Restriction Fu. For this purpose, he was even willing to use up all the 13 Talisman Arrows.


    However, Tao Addict absolutely would not give him any chance tounch an arrow.


    A shrill, irritating, grim cry was heard above the Daming Lake.


    Tao Addict could not escape from the Restriction Fu for the time being, but she did not need to do so. Because she was really furious at the moment and wanted to kill the other at any cost just like Ning Que. She was even willing to sacrifice her Natal Item that had been broken into two parts for being seriously damaged!


    The water fish that had struggled out of the Restriction Fu to rescue her was torn apart into two parts. One part was shot by the Primordial Thirteen Arrow and turned into a rainstorm. And the other was lying still over theke surface.


    With that grim cry emitting from Ye Hongyu¡¯s red lips, the water fish suddenly calmed down, as if it moaned before its death. And then it suddenly exploded!


    After the explosion, the transparent water fish turned into a heavy rain. The dense scales on its surface were stripped from its body by some magical power and shot into the shore of theke!


    A transparent fish scale turned into a small and sharp Taoist Sword in the air.


    Thousands of transparent fish scales turned into numerous small and sharp Taoist Swords in the air.


    As the water fish was transformed into a rain on theke surface, thousands of Taoist Swords shot towards the two people on the shore of theke like a torrential rain. They were as irresistible as a dark cloud over a city and seemed to be able to destroy everything in the world!

 Chapter 263: Disappearing Daming Lake

    Chapter 263: Disappearing Daming Lake


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    It was said that it was very cold when one was in a high ce. With a high state, Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu¡¯s numerous Taoist Swords that were casually sprinkled onto theke like a rainstorm were also very cold. Theke water condensed into des that were covered by a thin frost and had already be the ice.


    Numerous frost-covered swords covered the light from the top of the Firmament above the valley and came to theke as a dark mass. At this time, a flower-like umbre opened before the swords, whose color was as dark as the night sky and suddenly dwarfed all other swords.


    At this critical moment, Ning Que opened his big ck umbre.


    Just like clich¨¦s that people were tired of seeing, this choice was not surprising. But just as themonly used words in essays were essentially gathered by schrs over the years, the big ck umbre could withstand all dust in the world, cover eyes and the sun, and would not leak in the face of a heavy rain.


    Small and sharp Taoist Swords hit in the thick greasy surface of the big ck umbre densely like a real thunderstorm, uttering huge depressing percussion sounds. The Taoist Swords could not pierce the umbre and all became broken pieces of ice due to the forceful impact, then turned into mist and dissipated before the ck umbre.


    When Ning Que held the umbre, he pulled Mo Shanshan behind him. The two squatted under the big ck umbre as if a semicircr night appeared above their heads, leaving no gaps.


    Although the Taoist Swords could not pierce through the big ck umbre, the forceful impact umted and remained on the umbre surface, and then passed to Ning Que¡¯s hands clenching the umbre along the handle that was made of certain material.


    He lowered his head and frowned. His arms trembled constantly and his fingers turned pale. He had exhausted all his strength, but could not withstand a burst of strong impact from the ck umbre over and over again.


    Numerous Taoist Swords turned into aplex sword array in the air beside theke. They fell down in an orderly way andunched a continuous bombardment. Their speed became faster and faster and even their icy des were followed by bright red tails as if they were burning!


    The big ck umbre handle slipped from Ning Que¡¯s fingers and hit his chest heavily!


    Fresh blood dripped from his lips apanied by a painful muffled sound. However, his left hand clenched the middle section of the umbre handle. He hooked his right hand to the upper frame of the ck umbre tightly like a wire and used his chest to support the handle of the umbre.


    The bombardment of the Taoist Swords continued. The power from the big ck umbre surface became stronger and stronger. His fingers hooking the umbre frame were cut and shed blood. The frame even gradually sank into his fingers.


    Ning Que stared at the vaguely visible white bones of flesh and blood, his cheeks bing pale due to intense pain. Even his body started to tremble, but he still had no intentions of letting go.


    He had always been cruel to himself, especially at the critical moment of life and death. So he would not let go of his ck umbre before numerous Taoist Swords beside theke. Because he knew that he and Mo Shanshan would die if he were to let go.


    The blood flowing from his broken fingers did not drip down to the ground, but on the umbre surface along the umbre frame. Suddenly there appeared a touch of light in his sense of perception. But at this moment, he really had no energy to look for that light¡¯s true appearance. He could only stare at the dark umbre surface and wish that the Psyche Power of Tao Addict would exhaust quickly.


    After shooting Prince Long Qing with an arrow, he knew that the Divine Hall, especially that Tao Addict, and himself had be sworn enemies. But there were still much admiration and respect in his gaze when itnded on the ck umbre.


    A Divine Talisman bag Master Yan Se had personally written on, the epoch-making Primordial Thirteen Arrowsbining wisdom and energy of the back of the mountain of Academy coupled with Calligraphy Addict Mo Shanshan who had understood Half Divine Talisman. What kind of power was this?


    The Tao Addict had entered Knowing Destiny State on the snow cliff. An ordinary Knowing Destiny State Grand Cultivator would have died on the spot in the face of such a power and Ning Que¡¯s hidden treacherous means, or Ning Que and Mo Shanshan¡¯s hidden treacherous means. But the Tao Addict did not die.


    Although seriously wounded by the two Talisman Arrows, the crazy Tao Addict still did not die. She had not only survived but also stood on theke¡¯s thin ice indifferently. Though restricted by a Restriction Fu, she resolutely gave up her most precious Natal Item and made up her mind to suppress Ning Que and Mo Shanshan with numerous Taoist Swords.


    Ning Que had heard that the West-Hill Divine Pce hierarch had once praised the Tao Addict for being good at different kinds of cultivation methods. Now it seemed to be true. The Tao Addict not only had a wonderful state but also owned a more shocking quality demonstrated in the battle, namely her perseverance, determination and endless means. He could not help thinking. "I actually can¡¯t kill you even by doing so? It seems that I must find ways to kill you."


    ...


    ...


    Although this Restriction Fu in the Daming Lake was not employed by a Talisman Master and had thus lost some talisman power, it was very scary in both the duration and strength, for it was written by Master Yan Se after all. Even if it was Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu, who had a high state and a strong ability, she had no way to get rid of it in a short time.


    She was once again shot in her pale shoulder by a Primordial Thirteen Arrow. Beads of blood clots tightly clung to her naked upper arm, looking somewhat bloody. Her tidy solemn bun had already be a mess. When her strands of dark hair floated in the air, they were bound to her cheeks by the Restriction Fu. Under the contrast of her ck hair, her pale skin looked particrly beautiful as well even though she looked somewhat shabby.


    However, Tao Addict did not show the slightest expression on her face but looked at the big ck umbre beside theke coldly.


    As a core disciple of Headmaster of Academy, Ning Que looked so weak. But the Academy had sent Ning Que to practice in the world on behalf of the back of the mountain and would surely give him some means of life-saving. Therefore, she was not surprised whilementing the great defending ability of the big ck umbre.


    What really surprised her or even felt faintly respectful of was the ability Ning Que had shown in the battle. This ability did not refer to his state or control of Breath of nature, but his clever use of all fighting methods and his precise choices on the timing of attack that could even be vaguely called as some temperament.


    Today, in the Daming Lake, in order to kill Ning Que she had almost exhausted her mind and employed the Haotian Divine Skill that she rarely used and understood not long ago. And she finally even used the hierarch¡¯s powerful Taoists Law of numerous swords in Haotian Taoism sect. However, she still could not kill Ning Que and was even seriously injured by him.


    All of them, including the miserable wounds on her shoulder, the still slightly warm blood on her palms and blood clots clinging to her upper arm, made Ye Hongyu feel angry, ashamed and even mad. But her eyes began to burn like those sword-shape water formed by scaly ice and revealed a frenzied coldness--this kind of eyes could only appear in the face of a truly admirable opponent.


    She hade to Peach-Mountain of West Hill looking for strongmen and searched for heroes in all corners of the world in order to prove herself. She had fought with many masters over the years, but very few people had gained her respect or even admiration. Because in her opinion, those so-called masters did not know how to employ their states and vigorous strengths and were just as worthless as stubborn schrs.


    Until today, when she encountered Ning Que, the weakest World Wayfarer in the history, who was actually a very rare cultivator who understood the essence of fighting. Although he had a low state now, he was bound to be extremely powerful when in a fight between life and death--she was very certain of this, for she was also such a person.


    The big ck umbre supported them under the torrential Taoist Swords and seemed like it might copse at any time, but had not copsed. The mist that came from the ice swords became denser and denser, gradually burying the umbre. The Tao Addict looked at it nkly and said seriously in her heart, "I can¡¯t kill you even like this? It seems that you really have to die."


    ...


    ...


    Ye Hongyu was addicted to Tao and in proving Tao via life and death. So she fanatically chased after fighting. Ning Que was addicted to life and clung on to life instead of braving death. So he fought in a hard way. Though their reasons were different, the explicit qualities they formed were somewhat simr. If they found out about each other¡¯s childhood, they would probably be clear that they were the same kind of human beings.


    Because they had the same temperament and philosophy, they admired each other and developed a more intense wish to kill. Because it was not easy to kill the other, they respected each other and had to kill the other.


    The Taoist Swords attacked the ck umbre, while the umbre resisted the swords. The Tao Addict standing above theke could not move her body at all and the wounds on her shoulder were still bleeding. It was uncertain when her Psyche Power would be depleted. Ning Que who was hidden under the umbre could not move either. The wounds between his fingers kept bleeding and he was not sure when he would drop the umbre.


    As time went by, Ye Hongyu looked pale but had no sign of Psyche Power exhaustion. Ning Que lowered his head and tightly closed his lips that looked pale due to the loss of blood, with no intention of letting it go.


    The battle scene beside Daming Lake changed from the extremely dynamic state to an absolute still one, except the sword and the umbre. But the hidden dangers were more and more intense, for destruction woulde when one side could not hold on.


    The situation seemed to have entered a dead end. Both of whom were so ruthless as not to see the result of this dead end. Whether they survived or died could only depend on whoever could hold on to the end.


    In this case, there seemed to be a girl who had been forgotten. But she was Calligraphy Addict who could not be forgotten. In fact, it was she who offered the ultimate solution to this plight of life and death.


    ...


    ...


    Mo Shanshan stood up outside the big ck umbre.


    Ning Que felt very surprised.


    Watching the oing dense Taoist Swords, the Talisman Master girl calmly bit her finger. Blood dripped from her fingers, which she gently stretched out in the air.


    After her action, the oing Taoist Swords suddenly became a bit slow.


    The droplets of blood dripping from her slender fingertips were suspended in the air strangely.


    Then Mo Shanshan¡¯s fingertip gently dipped into the blood suspended in the air, as if a slender brush dipped in Huangzhou muddy ink. She dragged a piece of invisible paper in the air and drew a bloodline.


    It was still the Half Divine Talisman. But this time it no longer followed an invisible line but a clear bloody line. The talisman intention besides was not less than the original one but more vivid, as if it was alive.


    The most powerful Half Divine Talisman written by Calligraphy Addict in her life did not go to the Tao Addict standing on theke surface. Because it was too far away and she knew that she would not be able to knock down the mighty girl even if she shot the Tao Addict.


    She sent her Half Divine Talisman to the Daming Lake!


    Just as a dry brush that had drawn an ink picture, it rushed to fresh water in an urn to clean itself.


    There suddenly appeared more numerous fine bloodlines in the clean water of Daming Lake, just like cinnabars.


    With this stroke as a guide, an ancient aura arose from the bottom of theke, making one feel a heart-stirring sense of worship.


    The Daming Lake became alive again. The steaming water gurgled and mist encircled the whole valley.


    The Daming Lake disappeared without a trace. Theke water lost its wave sounds and mist covered everything.


    That ancient aura gathered in the rich water mist and suddenly soared, instantly upying the entire verdant valley. Then it instantly climbed the spectacr Snow-capped Peak and finally soared towards the distant dark sky.


    It seemed that it was about to tear off this sky.

 Chapter 264: How to Set Up Stone Array Tactics (I)

    Chapter 264: How to Set Up Stone Array Tactics (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The distant ancient aura skyrocketed from the mountains, piercing the dark skydome. But it suddenly converged and went back when it was nearly about to touch the sky. Floating snow on the top of Snow-capped Peak gradually flew and the aura of the green valley came to chaos. Powerful winds danced in the air and annihted all things in the twinkling of an eye.


    Tao Addict¡¯s numerous ice swords, Calligraphic Addict¡¯s Half Divine Talisman, the Restriction Fu released from the embroidered purse by Ning Que and boiling water were all swallowed by the fog driven by the powerful winds and disappeared without a trace.


    Ning Que and Mo Shanshan were tossed away by the soaring aura and woke up after a short moment of dizziness. He looked at the heavy fog encircling the heaven and earth and could not help but feel a little cold. Such a horrible aura waspletely unlike a power a human being could exert. Even a powerhouse in the peak of Knowing Destiny State could not make it.


    His quiver and luggage were still beside him. He was shocked as well as very puzzled. Because this wild aura directly devoured everything, including the aura of the Tao Addict. But why was he still intact, and not suffering any harm?


    "What talisman... is this?"


    Ning Que found it difficult to suppress the shock in his heart, so he looked at Mo Shanshan and asked.


    Mo Shanshan lifted up her sleeves and wiped the fresh blood shedding from her lip corner and then shook her head.


    Previously, she used her blood to write a Half Divine Talisman and threw it towards the Daming Lake, triggering a mutation in the valley. But she did not seem to have thought of such a consequence. When she found that she could no longer hear the waves of the Daming Lake in the silent surroundings, fear appeared in her ck eyes and she said in a trembling voice, "It has nothing to do with me."


    The two supported each other by the arms and stood up with difficulty. All they could see was water mist and they did not know exactly where they were. Ning Que did not understand her words very well, so he looked at her confusedly.


    Mo Shanshan coughed twice gently and felt the distant ancient aura still lingering in the heavy mist. She said in an awe-stricken and longing mood, "This aura is a vented power when the Front Gate tactical array of Devil¡¯s Doctrine opens. Previously I only tried to open the tactical array. But I really didn¡¯t expect the tactical power to be so powerful when it was opened."


    The Front Gate tactical array of Devil¡¯s Doctrine opened?


    Ning Que felt very surprised.


    Prince Long Qing had said, a few days ago, on that snow cliff that it would take time to open the door of the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. These days he had been in Tao enlightenment besides the Daming Lake and did not feel any sign of the opening of the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Unexpectedly, Mo Shanshan actually had the ability to see through the Front Gate big tactical array of Devil¡¯s Doctrine and made it open in advance!


    In view of this, he looked at Mo Shanshan with a bit more admiration in his eyes. He thought the three Addicts really deserved their well-known reputation. Mo Shanshan looked gentle and quiet usually and did not demonstrate any special abilities. But in a critical moment, she could always bring many surprises to others. The Calligraphic Addict girl was actually able to reach the utmost talisman tactical array state.


    Under Ning Que¡¯s fervent gaze, Mo Shanshan felt it ufortable to see the admiration and praise in his eyes. She bowed her head shyly and exined in a low voice, "These days you enlightened Tao and broke the realm beside theke. I had nothing to do, so I looked at this big tactical array of the Front Gate for a long time and understood it a bit."


    She bowed her head and kept whispering. "And it¡¯s not an original array tactical. It¡¯s just a hidden one outside the Front Gate."


    Although Master Yan Se once said that the talisman was a tactical array. Ning Que had also been used by Seventh Sister as a coolie to repair the tactical array at the back of the mountain of the academy, but his knowledge of tactical arrays was still extremely poor and he could not fully understand what was an original tactical array or a cover one. However, he was well aware that the situation had alreadye to a dead end at the moment when Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu,unched an attack. Later, Mo Shanshan opened the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, which directly broke the dead end. It was more important than anything else.


    Ning Quemented, "The Tao Addict is really strong. Both you and I cannotpete with her after she entered Knowing Destiny State. But unfortunately you¡¯re here, then the Daming Lake is a wrong battlefield for her."


    Mo Shanshan looked up and showed joy in her eyes. From the frontier fortress of North of the Yan Kingdom to the depths of the Wilderness, she had always felt she did not deserve the title of Calligraphic Addictpared with Ning Que, for she could not help him too much. So she inevitably felt somewhat sad. But when Ning Que praised her usefulness at this time, she said softly, "I just gave it a try."


    Ning Queughed and said, "Excessive modesty is considered prideful."


    Mo Shanshan nodded smilingly.


    Ning Que looked at the heavy fog around them and frowned slightly. He asked, "What do we do next? If the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine has been opened, how can we enter?"


    The fog was too thick, covering all that was before them. And the aura of heaven and earth was in a turmoil so that his sense of perception could only perceive something chaotic. It was hard to find the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s doctrine in this environment. He did not even know where they were at this time. Were they still in the verdant valley or somewhere else after they were tossed away by that aura?


    Mo Shanshan closed her eyes and stretched her slender fingers out of her cotton sleeves into the fog. She bent her fingers to count and perceive. A momentter she opened her eyes and said with knitted ck brows, "Let¡¯s wait for the fog to dissipate first."


    Fogs always converged and then dispersed. After a short time, the change in the Qi of Heaven and Earth caused by the opening of the big tactical array of the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was gradually appeased by the real world. The fog in mid air first dispersed and one could vaguely see the sky at a high altitude. For an unknown reason, the original gloomy snow cloud had already dispersed, exposing a corner of the blue sky.


    The fog spread faster and faster. From the blue sky to Snow-capped Peak and green lush trees on the peak, all of them entered Ning Que¡¯s vision. Because he had seen Snow-capped Peak for a few days, coupled with his rtive position, he was stunned to find that they were in the heart of the Daming Lake at this time!


    However, there was clearly real ground beneath their feet. How could they be in theke? Where had the Daming Lake water gone? If the water had directly evaporated with the opening power of the Front Gate big tactical array of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, there should be mud at their feet. But the ground felt hard and solid at his feet, which was obviously somewhat strange.


    The fog continued to disperse from the sky to the ground. Ning Que was able to see the tip of green broad-leaved forest branches in thekeside. Judging from the height of the tip of branches, he was more and more certain that they were at the bottom of theke, and doubt grew in his heart.


    But at this time he did not have time to think about the reason for the mysterious disappearance of the Daming Lake. He saw the fog gradually dispersing and green trees gradually emerged. So he got his bow and arrows ready again as fast as possible. He endured the great pain in his shoulder and ignored the fresh blood still flowing from his fingers, vigntly searching the surroundings with his naked eyes and Psyche Power.


    Their visions became clear again and the aura fluctuation of heaven and earth had be calm. But as the fog that had previously protected him like a trench disappeared, the Tao Addict might find them at any time and once againunch an attack.


    When the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine opened, he and Mo Shanshan were not seriously injured. So he naturally did not believe that the crazy Tao Addict would suffer any serious damage.


    The sharp, cold arrow bunch of his Talisman Arrow moved slowly and steadily, aiming at everything he could see in all directions. It was ready to leave the tightly twisted string any time, shooting at the red dress that might appear.


    However, he still did not find Ye Hongyu when the fog cleared no matter whether with his naked eyes or Psyche Power. He did not even hear the slightest noises and the whole verdant valley became quiet.


    It was not absolutely quiet, for there were gurgling sounds of springs and streams around.


    Ning Que did not know where the Tao Addict was, but his intuition told him that it should be safe at this moment. So he slowly took back his bow and nced at Mo Shanshan beside him. And then he walked a few steps around and stepped on the gravel with his shoes, emitting some rustling sounds.


    They were indeed at the bottom of the Daming Lake at this time. But they were not stepping on ck mud, nor silver sand, but angr stones.


    A few days ago he had attained Tao enlightenment and had broken the realm beside the Daming Lake and felt that this piece of the quietke was not toorge. But today, when he walked on the bottom of the dryke, he found that it was reallyrge, just like a huge hollow stone bowl.


    It was still a winterke a moment ago and had suddenly be a dry gravelnd in the next moment. What an incredibly wonderful picture it was. But the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, an Unknown ce, had been very magical for them. So they did not show too many emotions, although they found it difficult to suppress the shock in their hearts.


    After a brief moment of observation, the two finally found where theke water went. There was water in the rubble at their feet, but only a very thin and shallowyer that drifted in one direction along the crevices of the gravels and then converged into a t stream. And then, the stream flowed down to the lower ce and eventually disappeared in the center of theke bottom.


    There was nothing strange in the center of theke. But it could devour so muchke water in such a short period of time, which naturally made it weird. It seemed that there was a huge ancient monster opening its greedy mouth there.


    Ning Que and Mo Shanshan nced at each other and walked to theke center along the direction of the clear water flowing at their feet. However, before they took a few more steps, he suddenly furrowed his brows and felt it difficult to lift up his legs as if there was lead attached to them. Beside him, Mo Shanshan¡¯s face became extremely pale and she herself also looked as if she was in agony.


    "What¡¯s wrong?"


    Ning Que felt a dreadful aura. He frowned and looked around, but he did not see anything strange.


    There were gravels at the bottom of theke, nothing strange indeed. They were just stones.


    Some stones wererge and some were small. They had different shapes, including hollow-shaped stones like artworks, round stones like drums, slender stones, and strangely weird stones that were hard to describe.


    Some were full of green mosses, while others were as smooth as jade. But no matter what kind of stones they were, there was no trace of theke water on them, as if they had not been soaked in the water for tens of millions of years.


    The stones in the mountain and the valleys appeared in their sights as if they urred in their chests at the same time. Even the sleek stones were full of invisible sharp edges so that people who saw them felt clogged in their chests.


    They felt so ufortable and were in pain. They were full of resentment, unwillingness, and stubbornness.


    Ning Que looked at these stones in front and finally felt its strangeness.


    Mo Shanshan stared at these stones at his side and suddenly flushed. Her eyes became extremely bright and her thin lips slightly quivered. And then she said incredulously, "Are they... Stone Array Tactics?"


    Ning Que asked, "What are the Stone Array Tactics?"


    Mo Shanshan said in a trembling voice, "The West-Hill book once recorded a kind of tactical array. It could go across the heaven and earth and was powerful to an unimaginable extent. Compared with it, Judicial Department¡¯s Confinement tactical array was simply vulnerable."


    Her face was full of reverence and admiration. She looked at the stones that seemed to be lying around randomly and said, "I always thought that this tactical array only existed in legends. I didn¡¯t expect... someone actually could arrange it."


    Ning Que asked curiously, "These stones are... the legendary powerful Stone Array Tactics across the heaven and earth?"


    Mo Shanshan turned around to look into his eyes, saying seriously, "Stone Array Tactics... are stones."

 Chapter 265: How to Set Up Stone Array Tactics (II)

    Chapter 265: How to Set Up Stone Array Tactics (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que stood among the stones in the mountain and valley, feeling that aura. He clutched his chest and frowned slightly, not speaking out for a long time. And it seemed that dozens of hard-headed pebbles were stuck in his chest at this time and were about to reach the top of his throat. Blocked by those stones, he felt panicky and ufortable and could not say anything.


    Previously, he failed to understand Mo Shanshan¡¯s words "Stone Array Tactics are stones". When these stones with different shapes came into his view and blocked his chest and abdomenpletely, he realized that the so-called Stone Array Tactics was the ufortableness between his chest and abdomen. And the ufortableness finally changed into stones and made people unhappy.


    Stones were the mostmon but most unusual things in the world. For thousands of years, it existed quietly in the world. Grass grew on it but was only something extrinsic. Stones could crack but was still stone afterward. Even if stones were changed into gravels after weathering, it was still the reincarnation of stone. Its body was so strong and pure as if there would never be any change within it.


    Ning Que looked at tens of millions of stones stuffed in between heaven and earth. He could not help but think of Master Yan Se¡¯s words. Pavilions and terraces would be blown apart by wind and rain, but stones kept silent and unchanged for a millennium. Stones seemed to be impure but were pure to the extreme in nature.


    Everything in the world had its own aura, namely the primordial Qi. It could also apply to jade and gold. Only stone was the most silent and low-key, for its strong aura was converged deep inside its body and never emitted wantonly. So for cultivators, it was difficult to perceive the existence of stones and even more difficult to control them.


    He thought that these stones hadid quietly at the bottom of theke, in mountains and ridges for countless of years and cultivated their own aura but did not let the others know. Ning Que suddenly understood something.


    ording to Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s cultivation method, one absorbed the natural aura in his body and recreated his own world inside. It was a great desecration and disrespect of the Haotian doctrine. So it was called the devil.


    Were the stones in this Great Blockage Formation simr to those unpopr people using the Devil¡¯s Doctrine cultivation method?


    Wasn¡¯t this stubbornness across heaven and earth a silent revolt towards Haotian?


    ...


    ...


    When one reached the top of the talisman tactical array cultivation, he would have a sympathetic response.


    Mo Shanshan was addicted to Talisman Taoism as well as tactical arrays. She felt the wonderful magic of this Great Blockage Formation and found that she suddenly seemed to have be a silent little underwater stone with a millennium of history among them.


    Because of the aura of the Great Blockage Formation, exhaustion appeared on her pale cheeks. But she did not care about the pain in her body but look at her surroundings focused. She looked at those scattered rocks and thought of the hidden secrets among them intently.


    Ning Que looked at her furrowed brows. He shook his head, and then said, "There is a certain attitude hidden in these stones. I think that the only person who has the guts to set up the Great Blockage Formation, could only be Great Divine Priest of Light who entered the Wilderness to preach but eventually betrayed Haotian and set up Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    Mo Shanshan looked up to reveal surprise and puzzledness on her beautiful and slightly round cheeks. After a short moment, she understood that since it was the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, the sublime being who set up the Great Blockage Formation would, of course, have a rtionship with Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    She believed in Ning Que¡¯s reasoning. Although she felt it somewhat regrettable that such a beautiful and magical big tactical array was created by the people in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, she did not consider too much and was quickly immersed in the stones in the mountain and the valley once again.


    At the bottom of theke was dry gravel and lying in the wilderness were numerous stones. Such a scene could not be called beautiful. But in the eyes of the Calligraphy Addict, they were superbly beautiful and contained a great wisdom that made her heart palpitate.


    "How do we set up Stone Array Tactics in the heart?"


    She watched the numerous stones lying between heaven and earth with an intoxicated expression, murmuring. "That person used thousands of acres ofke water and covered the sharpness of Stone Array Tactics with the softness of theke water. When the cover tactical array was opened, theke water descended naturally and the Great Blockage Formation reappeared in the world. This kind of craft is really wonderful."


    Ning Que had suffered a lot since childhood. Although he could write well, he could not make a good poem and had no aesthetic taste. In the face of stones in the mountain, he really could not see anything beautiful or some wonderful crafts. He only felt the stones in his thorax and abdomen which were about to emit from his throat. He was so ufortable, he was in a hurry to find ways to leave or go in. He watched Mo Shanshan¡¯s intoxicated expression. He still interrupted her very unpleasantly, though he was somewhat unwilling to do so, "Since this big tactical array was so powerful, can we still go in?"


    It was said that the Calligraphy Addict had a quiet and pure nature. But since she was a Calligraphy Addict, shepletely forgot others when being addicted to something. She had even forgotten her own injuries and was not so easy to rouse. As a result, she did not hear Ning Que¡¯s words and said sadly, "... this Great Blockage Formation was actually destroyed once. Now probably only a part of it remained. What a pity! I really want to know what it looks like when the intact Great Blockage Formation opened in those years. Is there anyone who can make it reappear in the world?"


    She was very sad, but Ning Que felt somewhat happy upon listening to that. He thought they would have been dead already if not so. So he casuallyforted her. "We should look for a way to go in first. In the future, you can learn more about the tactical array. It won¡¯t be difficult for you to make it reappear."


    Mo Shanshan kept silent and no one knew what she was thinking. Her slightly thin and slender eyshes gently winked and she opened her thin lips slightly after a short moment. She looked at Ning Que and said seriously. "Brother XIII, you¡¯re right. There are very few people in the world who can see the Stone Array Tactics. Since I have seen and got some enlightenment, I¡¯ll find ways to make it reappear in the world in the future. If I don¡¯t cultivate hard, they¡¯ll really disappear. I¡¯ll be responsible for it then."


    Ning Que did not expect that his random sentence actually made her take the initiative to take on such a heavy responsibility. There were always intermittents for the heritage in the cultivation world. If someone could regain this magical big tactical array, it would, of course, be a good thing. But he felt somewhat worried if such an important task would affect her mental state in cultivation. So he became silent for the moment.


    Suddenly he thought of a problem.


    Only one part of these stones in the mountain was so powerful. How invincible were they when intact? This legendary tactical array called Stone Array Tactics could actually make Calligraphy Addict so fascinated and leave a name in the West-Hill scriptures. How could its foundation actually be destroyed? Who exactly had the ability to ruin such a big tactical array back then?


    Thinking of this question, he looked at an ordinary stone in front of him. He squatted slowly and stretched out his fingers to gently strike the two mosses on the stone. As his fingertips moved, the mosses fell down, revealing the deep nicks inside it.


    Those nicks were clear sword marks, covered by theke water and mosses for decades.


    Ning Que turned around and looked elsewhere. He found that there were simr line-shape mosses on some stones in this Great Blockage Formation. Presumably, there were simr sword marks under those line-shape mosses.


    There were two sword marks on the stone, concise and even a bit rough. Theyy on the left side and the right side, but revealed unmatched toughness. Many yearster, the mosses attached to the sword marks and formed a word.


    Ning Que touched them with his fingertips, feeling the residual thin aura in the sword marks. It was clear that these simple and powerful sword marks had directly destroyed the foundation of the Great Blockage Formation.


    The aura in the sword marks was very familiar and close, as it was the same aura that had led him to this verdant valley a few days ago. But thetter was a lot weaker and should only be the remnant of the former.


    Then he noticed that some stones¡¯ sections were too smooth. It was obvious that they had been cut. When he found three pieces and put them together, it turned out that a piece of stone was cut into three pieces by two sword strokes.


    The three pieces came together as a whole along the smooth sword marks and emitted a few floating specks of dust from the cracks. The remaining aura also became much denser.


    Ning Que silently looked at the sword marks on the stones in front of him, as if once again seeing that cedar with a kind of tenacious vitality on the top of Snow-capped Peak. umted snow of a thousand years could not bend it. It was proud and powerful but maintained a sense of imperiousness. It overlooked themon people but disdained the skies.


    Many years ago, the aura of that person breaking the formation was very simr to that of the Great Blockage Formation. Both of them were so stubborn, unwilling and full of edges. However, they were varied in essence after a thorough examination.


    The Great Divine Priest of Light, who had set up the Devil¡¯s Doctrine a thousand years ago, had locked his unwillingness and resentfulness inside the stones when establishing the Great Blockage Formation. So the stonesid between heaven and earth in a silent posture and expressed its attitude and strength to the sky with silence and edges.


    Decades ago, the aura left by the formation-breaking person¡¯s sword marks passed on much brighter and clearer messages. Although silent, he did not bind himself and blindly enjoyed his release, so freely and easily. When he felt slightly dissatisfied, he would straighten his waist and stab the other with a sword. He did not speak out for he disdained to do so. Once he opened his mouth, he must let the whole world know.


    ...


    ...


    How to set up Stone Array Tactics?


    Mo Shanshan said that only a thousand acres ofke water could make it.


    Ning Que looked at the sword marks on the stones and knew there were other answers many years ago.


    Decades ago, still in this verdant valley, a thousand acres ofke water silentlyid here.


    Suddenly a gust of wind appeared and the Front Gate tactical array of Devil¡¯s Doctrine opened, making the wholeke water empty. As the water fell down, the stones appeared.


    As the stone appeared, the Stone Array Tactics also appeared across heaven and earth, blocking the worldly roads.


    A schr in turquoise robes rode on a little donkey walking on the road.


    Suddenly the front road was blocked and the stones in the mountain and the valley made him unhappy and annoyed.


    So he pulled out the official sword on his waist and cut this legendary Great Blockage Formation into ashes.


    And then he rode a ck donkey and continued to scold and walk on. With a lighted face and joyous eyes, he felt rather pleased.


    How to set up Stone Array Tactics?


    With the Great Spirit in his heart.


    ...


    ...


    Decadester, Ning Que kneeled down in front of the sword marks on the stones and respectfully kowtowed three times.


    The familiar aura on the sword marks was condensed into a mountain in his sense of perception. This mountain was high but not steep, simr to the back mountain of the academy. Suddenly, he felt a slight soreness in his eyes and infinite emotions welling in his heart.


    Such a figure was really worthy of Second Brother¡¯s lifetime of worship, for Mistress Jian to think of for the rest of her life, and for Ning Que to feel proud of from his knees to the faintly tingling top of his head.

 Chapter 266: Predecessors Sword Style, Juniors Addiction

    Chapter 266: Predecessor¡¯s Sword Style, Junior¡¯s Addiction


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Mo Shanshan was still immersed in the shock of seeing the Great Blockage Formation, so she didn¡¯t notice what Ning Que did. Looking at the stones that were scattered everywhere in the valley, she frowned and said, "Although it has been destroyed, the remaining power is still strong, I can¡¯t figure out just how strong it is on earth in such a short time. Do you still insist on going inside?"


    Ning Que aimed to enter the Front Gate to look for the Tomes of Arcane, especially now that he sensed that familiar strong breath that was far away and was pretty sure he knew whom the aura belonged to, so he naturally wouldn¡¯t give up. Ning Que turned to look at her and asked, "Do we still have a chance to retreat?"


    Mo shanshan looked at the surrounding stones, did some calction for a while, and then she nodded and answered, "We just entered this big tactical array, so there is a chance to go back. If we go further, we can never return. I don¡¯t know what danger lurks ahead."


    Staring at the scratches on the stones in front of him, Ning Que suddenly asked, "Do you believe in destiny?"


    Mo Shanshan was slightly startled and didn¡¯t know why he asked such a question.


    Ning Que looked at her and exined, "Right now, I believe in destiny more and more. I came into this valley with you, a Calligraphy Addict, so I believe that the god has already arranged everything for me."


    Mo ShanShan understood what he meant.


    At this point, Ning Que suddenly sensed something. He suddenly turned back, shot a Talisman Arrow from his bow and aimed at one direction. The arrow pointed at a red figure.


    Tao Addict Ye Hongyu appeared again. She stepped on some sharp stones with her bare feet and quickly moved forward. Her bare legs under her red skirt were tight, her left shoulder was still bleeding and her face was pale. It seemed like the burst of breath when the Great Blockage Formation restarted caused her injury. Yet the injury was not serious.


    The red figure in front of them whistled. It looked like they were far away from each other, but actually, they were very close. Logically speaking, they should have had a fight in the next minute, but somehow her direction changed. She intended to move straight forward, but was forced to turn right, atst, she started to circle around.


    Ye Hongyu stopped and stood on a stone in silence. It seemed that she figured out why this happened. Raising up her head to look at Ning Que and Mo Shanshan, she said, "You are so lucky."


    Because earlier if the Front Gate hadn¡¯t opened when it did, there was a possibility that Ning Que and Mo Shanshan would have be a pool of flesh and blood by Tao Addict¡¯s thousands of Taoist Sword. That¡¯s why she said they were lucky.


    The Great Blockage Formation was really amazing. Even though they were standing face to face, and could hear each other, it was not real. Ning Que tried to aim at Ye Hongyu using his Primordial Thirteen Arrows but there was a weird refraction brought about by the stones, even space was deformed, thus he couldn¡¯t shoot at her sessfully.


    Acting force and reacting force alwaysplemented each other. Primordial Thirteen Arrows couldn¡¯t aim at Tao Addict, in turn, Tao Addict couldn¡¯t find where they were exactly either.


    After making sure, Ning Que stopped pulling the bow and nodded to Tao Addict who was standing on a stone and stayed close by. Ning Que nodded toward her like she was just a passerby who he ran into. And then Ning Que left toward the direction of flowing water with Mo Shanshan.


    The further they went, the less the water under theke was. However, the power of the Great Blockage Formation became stronger and stronger. Aura of Heaven and Earth moved unevenly. It seemed like the air started to have sharp edges, making it painful to be breath.


    Ning Que rubbed his cheeks which became numb due to the difficulty in breathing. He asked Mo Shanshan, "Soon, Ye Hongyu will figure out how to walk in the direction of the flow of water. Do you think she will be faster than us?"


    Mo Shanshan looked pale, even her long eyshes seemed frail. She replied weakly, "I can find a path in this Great Blockage Formation, but she can¡¯t."


    The only one who has a strong will can stick to his own way, and the one who has a strong will is usually arrogant in some respect. At that time, Mo Shanshan was trying to figure out thew of this tactical array, most of her energy had been consumed, but the words "she can¡¯t" were fearless and full of confidence.


    Hearing this, Ning Que was relieved and helped her to walk forward.


    They walked carefully on the stones. With the passing of time, Mo Shanshan became weaker and weaker, yet she forced herself to keep a clear mind so as to guide them in the right direction. Yet she was too weak to walk and had to be helped.


    Seeing her pale face and her quivering eyshes, Ning Que shook his head and directly carried her on his back. He said before she opened her mouth, "I am stronger than you. I can hold on for a while longer."


    Without resisting, Mo Shanshan gently gave a response and slowly rested her head on Ning Que¡¯s shoulder. Her long ck hair covered Ning Que¡¯s chest. She closed her eyes, as quiet as being asleep, and asionally pointed out the direction.


    The power in the messy stones was strong. Sharp forces prated through their bodies, which was extremely painful. Not to mention that Ning Que was now carrying a girl. He told Mo Shanshan that he could hold on for a while, but in fact, he had already run out of strength.


    Nevertheless, Ning Que had walked through that tough mountain path in the Back Mountain of the Academy, so he had lots of simr experiences. More importantly, every time he was about to give up, he would be motivated and encouraged by the sight of some clear sword scratches and moss.


    A few decades ago, that man broke into the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine with his sword. At that time, the Great Blockage Formation had not been destroyed and had ten times more power than it had today, but that man just broke into it. A few decades had passed, as that man¡¯s junior, how could Ning Que not have the same strong will as him? And how could Ning Que give up and shame him?


    ...


    ...


    Tao Addict Ye Hongyu stood on a stone, watching the two figures disappearing from the messy stones. Her skirt was torn and the wound on her shoulders was horrible. She had been left there all alone and seemed so lonely.


    She didn¡¯t recognize the messy stones were the legendary Great Blockage Formation, but she knew that these messy stones contained great terrible power, that even she felt scared.


    All of a sudden, she yelled in anger. Her voice spread out and echoed among the stones, reaching higher green cliff wall and then being reflected back. The empty space made her feel more lonely.


    Her angry voice suddenly stopped. She ripped a piece of cloth from her skirt and then used it to wrap her wound carefully. Not paying attention to her exposed body, she jumped off that stone and walked along a thinyer of water to the center of theke.


    Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce once praised her for knowing allws. Yet even though she was addicted to Tao practice, she still couldn¡¯t understand the talisman world. She only knew the Front Gate should be the ce where the water disappeared and should be the center of theke, yet she couldn¡¯t figure out how to pass through these messy stones to get to the ce where she wanted to go.


    Relying on what she saw and her psyche power, she made her own judgment. However, after taking a few steps, she found herself lost again. Those scattered stones were like peach trees on the Peach Mountain, they all had the magic power to distort space.


    If she kept going in this way, there was a possibility that she would never reach the center of theke, or that she would be stuck in the messy stones, until she lost her mind and died of thirst.


    Ye Hongyu nced backward. She was sure that at this time she still had a chance to leave this ce. If she went further, she may get stuck in the stone array and might never get rid of it. Considering this, shepsed into a long silence.


    Then she noticed the moss growing on these stones and saw sword scratches that had been hiding under the moss for decades.


    She vaguely thought of who the man was, and then her indifferent eyes became bright, her body quivered as she became thrilled which caused some blood to ooze out from her shoulders.


    There was no doubt that for those cultivators who were qualified to know the secret, all regarded that crazy man who broke into the Front Gate alone with his sword, and beat the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, as the most powerful man in the world.


    That crazy man became a West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s enemy forever, and he was punished by Haotian. Since then nobody, including the three gods, wanted to mention his name. However, Tao Addict Yu Hongyu was addicted to improving her power through battles and dreamed of bing the most powerful person in the world, so she admired great men so much. When she heard that story, she had worshipped him.


    Among the present cultivators, she worshipped her brother the most, but among the past cultivators, she worshipped that crazy man the most. Today, she had encountered many frustrations, what¡¯s more, she was in a dilemma because of these messy stones that caused her great humiliation. In this situation, she encountered the sword scratches left by her idol, she was both shocked and speechless.


    She finally saw the legendary scratches, seeing that historical scene, was like seeing the world she had worshipped and yearned for. Suddenly, a great power arose from her chest and destroyed the sharp power of the tactical array.


    Through expiration and inspiration, Ye Hongyu became calm. She slowly pulled out her sword which was hanging on her waist. Using her hands to hold it and looking at the scratches on the moss, she said in a firm tone, "Since Mr. Ke left sword style here, how can I let him down? "


    When she finished speaking, a strong wind started to blow. She focused her mind on the cleaving stones in front of her. She didn¡¯t understand tactical array and didn¡¯t know how to find a path, therefore, she would deal with it in an easier way--the cleave stones which stopped her would open a path. She was not sure whether this was right or wrong but facing the sword style of the senior, she knew she had to do it.


    ...


    ...


    Daming Lake dried up, leaving stones scattered everywhere. Compared with the green valley, theke looked so deste which made people feel sad.


    Tang stood at theke bank, looking down at the messy stones. After a moment of silence, he said, "Everything has changed since that man came here, so did the Stone Array Tactics."


    Tang Xiaotang stood beside her brother and also looked down at the messy stones out of curiosity. Vaguely hearing the sound of metal cleaving stones, she stuck out her tongue and said, "That bitch is so crazy."


    Tang replied, "People all call us crazy devils. If they want to enter our divine ce to see what a devil looks like, how can they not be crazy? As the saying goes, if you are not crazy you will never be a devil. That man was also crazy at that time."


    This was the first time Tang Xiaotang hade to the divine ce. She asked nervously, "Brother, should we really let them in?"


    "Our Enlightenment Doctrine is always called ¡¯a dead ce¡¯. So even if they enter there, they may note out alive. But in order to get the Tomes of Arcane, it seems that they will enter regardless of death."


    Thinking that Ning Que had now entered the Front Gate, Tang frowned his dashing eyebrows. There was something he couldn¡¯t understand, he murmured to himself, "Are you just going to stand by? Do you have the confidence to save him in the divine ce? Were you... really on the other side fourteen years ago?"

 Chapter 267: The Grand and Inconspicuous Stone Cave

    Chapter 267: The Grand and Inconspicuous Stone Cave


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In the verdant valleys, on the bank of a driedke and on a pile of rubble, stood Tang Xiaotang. She released the sp of the beast tail at her cor and revealed a tender face tinged with red. She heard the sound of sword meeting stone from afar and asked, "Brother, are the Tomes of Arcane really in there?"


    Tang shook his head. "I don¡¯t know."


    Tang Xiaotang did not understand, so she asked, "Then why did the old fogeys from the Divine Hall send people here?"


    Tang answered, "ording to news from the Central ins, the Great Divine Priest of Rtion prophesied after returning from the south. The prophecy said that the Tomes of Arcane would appear when the holynd opens upon answering the call of heaven."


    Tang Xiaotang scratched her head and asked, "But didn¡¯t you say that the holynd is now a piece of rubble after it was destroyed? There isn¡¯t anything there. How can the old fogey called Revtion be sure that the Tomes of Arcane are there?"


    Tang said, "The three Gods of Divine Hall each have an amazing sense. The Great Divine Priest of Rtion can sense the will of Haotian. Rumors say that he has a strong ability for making prophecies. Who wouldn¡¯t believe in his words?"


    Tang Xiaotang suddenly thought of the singing Taoist priest on the cliff. She did not know why, but fear stabbed at her heart. She asked woodenly, "Brother, do you think that person wille and take the Tomes of Arcane from us by force?"


    Tang was silent for a long time. He shook his head, "No, because there is someone more important than the Tomes of Arcane in his heart."


    ...


    ...


    As time passed, the night became longer in the Far North of the world. The weather got colder too. It was at this mountain abandoned by Haotian where the verdant valleys that have disappeared for decades appeared again when it answered the call of heaven. All was empty in the Daming Lake. The legendary Great Blockage Formation was activated once more, triggering the aura of the earth. It shot up towards the skies, by the Snow-capped Peak, looking magnificent.


    The reopening of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s Front Gate brought about ripples in the Qi of Heaven and Earth. Even though it flickered out in a short amount of time, it rippled out of the boundless Snow Mountain and to far-away ces.


    In the Wilderness surrounding the Tianqi Mountains, ck mud met white snow. One would spot an asional beast caressing on the snowy ground. The sounds of the cold winter winds on tents were like cleaving knives. The wind itself was the sharpest of all hunting knives.


    Ye Su walked between heaven and earth silently. The ordinary Taoist robes he wore were as smooth as the cliff¡¯s walls. He did not seem to be affected by the cold wind at all. His steps, which seemed ordinary, traversed at least ten over feet. His feet left no trace on the snow and he floated as if he was a deity.


    He came to a stop when the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine opened in the mountains far away and the Qi of Heaven and Earth rippled and reached his world from behind. He turned around to look at it expressionlessly but did not have any thoughts of going over to take a look.


    As a World Wayfarer from the Zhishou Abbey, Ye Su knew of the prophecy by the Great Divine Priest of Rtion before anyone else. He knew that the "Ming" Handscroll of the seven Tomes of Arcane would reappear in the Wilderness before the Great Divine Priest of Rtion did.


    It was just that as a cultivator at his level who could see past death and all things, he no longer cared about objects of the secr world, much less the Tomes of Arcane.


    Furthermore, since he had lost the bet with Tang regarding Ning Que and Long Qing¡¯s bet of breaking a state, he had to honor it. It wasn¡¯t about him being cynical, he just didn¡¯t want to allow any darkness to stay in his heart.


    His appearance in the Wilderness had nothing to do with the Tomes of Arcane nor the move southwards by the Deste Man or the reopening of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s Front Gate.


    He had lived in the abbey since he was a child. The first books he had read since he could, were the six scrolls from the Tomes of Arcane. He had always been cynical of the world. The move southwards by the Deste Man might be a major issue in the secr world, but it did not hold his attention at all. The reopening of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s Front Gate might be interesting, but the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had long fallen apart and posed no problem.


    There were not many people or things that could make him leave the Zhishou Abbey.


    But the person who stood on the line 14 years ago definitely could.


    Ye Su really wanted to meet that person. He had thought about it for many years, but it was just that the person was always within that great mountain or beside it. Even though he was proud and strong, he had no way of getting closer to that person.


    This year, that person on the line had finally left that great mountain and came to the Wilderness.


    He did not know where the person was.


    But he knew that he would meet that person.


    Because the unique aura of the great mountain and the person¡¯s character had already decided on that.


    That person will protect that guy, Ning Que.


    When Ning Que encountered true danger, that person would definitely be beside him.


    So he just had to wait for Ning Que to encounter true danger.


    It was just that Ning Que was right outside the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine right now.


    Why was he leaving the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s Front Gate for the south then?


    ...


    ...


    There was arge ceruleanke south of Tianqi Mountain. It was deemed sacrednd by the barbarians of the grasnd who called it the Hn Sea. A thinyer of ice floated on the surface of theke. Many men from the tribes on the grasnd who lived by theke were harvesting aquatic nts before the icy surface frozepletely.


    Traveling merchants from the Central ins would appear wherever there were barbarians from the grasnd. However, it was the middle of winter and the war between the grasnd and the Central in¡¯s coalition forces had just ended. It was a little odd that a merchant caravan from the Central ins appeared by the Hn Sea right now. However, these businessmen were generous with their spendings and had paid the down payment for the leather goods they needed next summer. That was why the tribe leader had silently assented to their existence and even left an empty spot for them to camp on.


    The traveling Central ins¡¯ merchants were cooking on a fire by theke. Due to the mild weather, they did not hide in their tents but sat around the bonfire. Should one observe their actions, one would notice that one of the merchants amongst them was their leader.


    The merchant who looked rather wealthy was munching on an oilymb leg. He would grumble asionally. It was evident that he was not satisfied with how the people on the grasnd had treated them. A burly middle-aged man wearing a cap stood beside him and was probably a steward or guard. He tried to cate the merchant in low tones but received a thorough verbalshing instead.


    Suddenly, several pieces of white clouds appeared in the clear cerulean skies. It looked as if an invisible giant hand had tried to tear away at the blue canvas and added white paint on it.


    The grasnd barbarians and merchants from the Central ins had noticed the anomaly in the skies at the same time. They looked at them in surprise.


    The merchant leader cursed.


    The submissive burly middle-aged guard looked at the wisps of clouds with half-closed eyes. His expression was grave.


    It was not known why the wealthy merchant¡¯s expression cleared and dared not curse anymore after looking at the middle-aged man¡¯s grave expression. He lowered his head to hide the respect in his eyes and asked something in a low tone.


    The burly middle-aged man looked at the clouds in the skies quietly. He felt the ripples in the aura of heaven and earth from the far away northern mountains. His hat hid the jumble of emotions that appeared on his face. Longing and warmth and after a long while, peace appeared on his face. And within all these,id a faint trace of repentance or even sadness.


    And then, the middle-aged man said four simple words, " The door is open."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que piggybacked Mo Shanshan¡¯s frail body as he stepped on the rocks strewn about on the ground messily. They reached the middle of theke and saw arge stone door. The stone door was enormous and looked like a small mountain as they looked at it from below.


    Even thergest city in the world, Chang¡¯an, did not have a stone door asrge as this.


    It was enormous. That was why this was the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    Ning Que had never thought that he would find the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine so easily and could not believe his own eyes. He did not try to understand how such arge stone door could be hidden in the Daming Lake and why he didn¡¯t spot it when they traveled in The Great Blockage Formation. He turned around to look at the path they took earlier subconsciously.


    The stone door was not visible at all when he walked in the rubble and sharp array. But when he walked out of them, the stone door appeared in front of him, as if the stone door would only allow itself to be seen by the people it chose to reveal itself to.


    The opening of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s Front Gate was easier than finding the Front Gate. One did not have to recite any spell, nor was there any scary scheme that they had to pass. When Ning Que¡¯s right hand touched the rough but stately stone door, there was a puffing sound followed by the sshing of a thickyer of dust that had umted over the years. And then, the stone door opened slowly.


    Ning Que raised his head and looked at the majestic Snow-capped Peak that was even taller than before. And then, his gaze met Mo Shanshan¡¯s surprised and weak stare before he walked through the door.


    ...


    ...


    Majestic, dignified, solemn, ambitious, sacred... These traits were usually built unto an enormous space. Just like the Chang¡¯an city that even goshawks dare not enter at will, or the Divine Hall that overlooked the people on the Peach Mountain. These feelings would arise when these buildings were in stark contrast to the tiny bodies that belonged to humans.


    These emotions overtook Ning Que and Mo Shanshan as they entered therge stone door, climbed up numerous stone steps and entered the main hall of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s Front Gate.


    That was because the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine wasrger than any other structure they had ever seen.


    The Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was on the mountain. To be more exact, it was in the majestic Snow-capped Peak by the Daming Lake. The Devil¡¯s Doctrine had formed the space by hollowing out the middle of a tall Snow-capped Peak.


    Space wasrger than one could imagine, deeper than the deepest end of the world and taller than the tallest skies. It even made one felt that it was a ce that could only appear in dreams. Only Haotian had the ability to create this ce.


    A stream of light shone into the ce. Several enormous rough stone beams hung in the air. There were an evident knife and axe markings on these pirs. These beams were strong and thick enough for four-horse carriages to cross together side by side.


    The two looked at the straight hanging wide stone beams before them and realized that they could not see where the beams ended. The thick beams suspended in the air farther out looked as thin as spider webs in therge space.


    The thick stone beams gathered in the middle like a spider web and came together in a stone tform farther in the middle of the empty space. There was a temple on the tform. The temple should be enormous, but when looked upon from the cliff walls, stood like it was carved from a grain of rice by a skilled craftsman. As for Ning Que and Mo Shanshan, who stood looking at the temple from afar, they looked like a grain of sand on the rock walls in therge space. It was as if they did not exist.


    The two looked at each other and could see the shock in each other¡¯s eyes.


    Anyone would find it hard to repress their respect in the face of such an incrediblyrge existence. They would want to kneel and worship it or even feel incredibly small and tear up.


    Men were just ants in the face of such magnificence.


    However, the thing that truly shocked Ning Que was that the space that looked as if only Haotian had the ability to create was made by humans who were like ants thousands of years ago.

 Chapter 268: Someone had been Here

    Chapter 268: Someone had been Here


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    After a long time, Ning Que gradually woke up from his shock. However, he still felt confused.


    The back of the mountain of the Academy was also one of those Unknown ces in the legends. However, it only exuded gentleness and warmth, unlike the harsh mental impact that this ce gave off. He thought to himself that this must be the difference that Mo Shanshan talked about the other day. The back of the mountain of the Academy connected the divine and the secr world while the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine stayed indifferently above the secr world.


    The Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had long been abandoned after being buried in snow for decades within the Tianqi mountain. It looked utterly deste and its emptiness and magnificence made it even more so. Ning Que thought back to when the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was still going strong and how numerous believers knelt on the stone beams to worship and could not help but sigh.


    The abilities the Deste Man wielded were unbelievable, for they were able to dig such a huge space within the Snow-capped Peak a thousand years ago. Ning Que thought about how it was the Great Tang empire that had managed to chase these Deste Man out of the Wilderness and to the Far North Cold Region. He sighed and a strong sense of pride welled up within him.


    Then, he thought of a few more things as he looked at the majestic and otherworldly structures before him. The Devil¡¯s Doctrine was not of this world because cultivators of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had forced the heavens and earth within their bodies, going against Haotian. Perhaps the Great Divine Priest of Light who had formed the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had had the Deste Man dig out such a space within the Tianqi Mountains to prove that humans could have the same abilities as Haotian did?


    In a world where Haotian¡¯s brilliance shone upon them, this silent way of expressing disrespect for Haotian could be described as extreme arrogance. It was no wonder why Enlightenment Doctrine was called the devil.


    After looking at their surroundings in silence, Ning Que helped Mo Shanshan walk on the stone beams.


    The thick stone beams joined the insides of the Snow-capped Peak together and met each other in the air. The stone beams were wide enough for four-horse carriages to travel on it side by side. Looking at the collision marks and the rubble, it was certain that nothing could smash these beams since theynded from above a thousand years ago. There was no way that the beams would even shake as the two walked on it.


    However, the beams were suspended high up in the air and provided no cover on the sides. The wind whistled and swept through space, echoing through it. It was extremely scary. Ning Que looked at the empty world beyond the stone beams and listened to the wind. He felt his legs stiffening up. He thought that if the wind blew him away beyond the beams, he might stay in the air for a long time before falling into the depths of the ground.


    The walk to the central beam was long. The two walked for a long time and had not even covered one-third of the distance. The temple on the suspended beam hanging afar looked minuscule. The feelings of fear and insignificance from walking in such a magnificent space faded as they walked on.


    Ning Que and Mo Shanshan steps were faster than before. They even looked at the scenery around them even though it was dark and nothing could be seen.


    And then, he noticed that there appeared several deep lines beneath his feet. These lines were gouged deeply within the stone beams. The lines extended wildly with no sense of order and tiny rocks rolled about within the lines along with the mountain wind.


    Ning Que examined it seriously by the light shining from above. He realized that the lines formed a simple drawing when assembled together. The strokes were fierce and powerful and looked as if it was made by a metal weapon such as a de or an ax. It looked like an ancient petroglyph.


    The petroglyph moved along with their steps and gradually revealed before them.


    The petroglyphs wererge and there were many of them.


    The first petroglyph was of a monstrous flood.


    A man with blurred facial features stood on a cliff by the flood. He wore a grass skirt around his waist and held a pick in his hand. He yelled at the skies angrily in the rain.


    The second petroglyph was of a wildfire in the mountains.


    Several women with blurred facial features stood by the forest alight with mes. They wore short skirts made of coarse cloth and held pots of water in their hands. They wept pitifully beside wheat fields.


    The third was of a world nketed in snow.


    Dozens of farmers with blurred facial features wearing thick clothing made of beast pelt held various types of tools in their hands. They ignored the falling snow above their heads and were focused on fixing the roof.


    The forth petroglyph was of a tremoringnd.


    Thousands of unidentifiable ck spots stood in the fields of scarrednd. They seemed to be burying their dead and saving those who survived. They did not yell angrily nor cry but continued living their lives.


    Every petroglyph was of Haotian¡¯s releasing his wrath upon the world. The drawings were of mankind¡¯s suffering and struggles. The people in the drawings were blurred out, but their human identity was clear.


    The petroglyphs on the stone beams continued to spread. Following mankind¡¯s ability to wield tools, their firm willpower, and understanding of nature, they became calmer in the face of various disasters. Their hearts might be burdened with sadness and anger, but no matter what, they would survive and they had survived until today.


    Ning Que and Mo Shanshan looked at the petroglyphs below their feet as they continued walking. The expressions on their faces turned grave gradually. Even though they were unable topletely understand or confirm the true reason behind why those from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had carved these petroglyphs, they certainly felt something as a member of the human race.


    Thest petroglyph at the front of the stone beam was extremely simple. There were fewer lines than the previous petroglyphs. At the bottom were three rows of straight lines interspersed with numerous small stone caves. They probably represented the human race that had multiplied and had taken over the world. The round caves looked like men¡¯s hands raised in the air for celebration.


    Above the three straight lines were a circle and a semi-circle.


    Mo Shanshan frowned lightly and looked at the picture beneath her feet that was so simple but hard to understand. She thought about the messages that could be hidden within it, but did not think of anything no matter how she thought about it.


    Ning Que stared at thest petroglyph. His hand that was holding Mo Shanshan up started to tremble slightly. He felt his body bing slightly cold and could vaguely guess something. However, he felt that his guess was too ludicrous.


    It was a pity that he was in the deste Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. There was no time for him to think it through carefully. He had no time to think of the Fauvism symbolisms or problems surrounding Fauvism. Even if he had wanted to think about it, the petroglyph on the tform suspended in the middle of the Snow-capped Peak would not allow him to.


    ...


    ...


    Numerous stone beams gathered here, forming a natural tform. The stone tform was suspended in the middle of the air, several feet from the ground. The wind from the outside blew inwards, blowing the dust off that temple.


    There were several white skeletons heaped outside the temple. The dust fell through the cracks of the white bones and flew up again. The cycle had repeated countless times over the years. Under the white bonesid a thickyer of dust, which made others feel that theyid in a muddy river.


    Walking down the stone beam, the first thing that Ning Que saw was the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s temple eaves. The second was the pile of bones lying in the aged dust outside the temple. He could not move his eyes from that.


    The Devil¡¯s Doctrine had experienced fierce battles when they were destroyed then. Many had died outside the temples. As the time went by, their bodies turned into white skeletons. Only the sharp marks on their bones and the scattered broken bone bitsying around were witness to the brutality that had happened then.


    Ning Que helped Mo Shanshan through the pile of bones. They came to the steps near the temple and discovered several intact corpses. Their heavy armor had protected the bones within it and these bones did not scatter. Some bones that looked like branches were still holding on to their weapons. Even death could not make them release them.


    He had seen too many deaths in this life. He had seen even more cruel ones, which was why he could remain calm. He even knelt down and examined theplete corpses. However, Mo Shanshan had never seen such terrifying or cruel things. Her beautiful face was pale and she wrung her hands together, unable to speak.


    The weapons clutched in the bony hands were extraordinary. They remained pristine even after decades. Ning Que noticed that there was a strong Fu character aura on their armor and was even more surprised. He thought that these men must have been the powerhouses of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine then.


    He extended a finger and wiped the dust off the armor. He had wanted to take a closer look at the Fu character. When his finger touched the surface of the armor, a crisp click sounded. The armor that had looked indestructible cracked open instantaneously.


    The crisp clicks sounded one after another. The armor of the previous generation of powerhouses from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine cracked. The aura of the Fu character left behind on them also dissipated in the air and could no longer be felt.


    The crack in the armor was smooth and shiny and was obviously made with a sharp object such as a sword. Who could cut through such a powerful armor so easily with a sword? Furthermore, the sword style was one that cut through objects and yet not left behind any trace. It had stayed in the armor for decades and only appeared when Ning Que¡¯s fingers touched it today.


    Ning Que knew the answer to that question. He stayed silent.


    Mo Shanshan was shocked at first. She looked at Ning Que who was silent, and then calmed down and looked slightly ashamed. After that, she experienced several other emotions as well.


    The two walked up the stairs and pushed open the temple doors.


    They opened the door to see a mountain. There was a stone stele that was as huge as a mountain.


    The stele was made from an entire piece of stone. Its surface was extremely smooth.


    "A no-word stele?"


    Mo Shanshan was the first to notice the stele. She thought of the legends she had heard and said in surprise.


    Ning Que was looking at their surroundings alertly. He asked subconsciously, "What¡¯s a no-word stele?"


    Mo Shanshan replied dazedly, "When the Great Divine Priest of Light founded the Devil¡¯s Doctrine against Haotian¡¯s will, he said, ¡¯Only time will know me and my sins.¡¯ That was why he requested that not a single word should be written on his stele so that the world couldment on him freely."


    "So the body below this stele belongs to the Great Divine Priest of Light?"


    Ning Que raised his head and looked at it. His expression turned into shock immediately.


    Words had appeared on the no-word stele.


    A line of words that were beyond this world.


    "Ke Haoran of the Academy vanquished the Devil¡¯s Doctrine here!"

 Chapter 269: A Dying Monk in the Pile of Bones

    Chapter 269: A Dying Monk in the Pile of Bones


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The words were carved deeply into the stone with a sharp de in awe-inspiring strokes.


    Ning Que looked at the line of words on the stele. His brows rose slowly. He did notment but looked at it in silence for a long time. And then, he left without saying anything. He looked to the side, avoiding the bones by his feet.


    He walked around the no-word stele a couple of times before returning to the front of it. He raised his head once more, looking at the stele in silence. His brows were raised so high that they looked as if they might take flight. He pointed to the words on the stele and said with a small smile, "My Youngest Uncle wrote that."


    Mo Shanshan had once heard her teacher mention this sublime being who had vanquished the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. However, the name of this sublime being had never been revealed for some reason or another. She had once wondered if that person was the same senior who had disappeared from the Academy aftermitting a deed that had shocked the world.


    Ning Que¡¯s odd actions throughout their travels from the Wilderness to the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, especially the kneeling and worshipping in the Stone Array Tactics had allowed her to confirm her suspicions. She had finally obtained a confirmation from Ning Que. However, she still found herself speechless with shock. How powerful was the person who had vanquished the Devil¡¯s Doctrine with a single sword?


    Her brows furrowed and her red lips pursed into a single line. After a moment of silence, she looked at Ning Que¡¯s raised brows and drifting expression. She asked softly, "You seem very proud."


    Ning Que nodded honestly. He looked around himself in an attempt to negate the impact those words had on him. He realized that there remained a strong aura on the bones of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s powerhouses. He was shocked, especially so as the bones were stronger than the average steel. So many powerhouses of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had died under his Youngest Uncle¡¯s Haoran Sword. It was evident how scary his Youngest Uncle¡¯s state was then.


    Ning Que had long guessed that this Youngest Uncle was one of the most powerful beings in this world from the reactions of Second Brother and the others at the back of the mountain of the Academy. However, he had not guessed that he was that powerful. Could it be that he had already passed through the five states and became a Sage when he had broken into the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine back then?


    As a disciple of the Second floor of the Academy, Ning Que could not help but feel proud that he had a Youngest Uncle like that.


    However, pride could not be eaten. Ning Que and Mo Shanshan had experienced many difficulties before finally reaching the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. They had done this for the "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane as well as the aura left behind by Youngest Uncle. After they had stood before the stele for a moment and gathered their thoughts, they continued their trek towards the depths of the temple. He could sense Youngest Uncle¡¯s aura in the hall behind the stele.


    The Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s main hall was majestic as well. It looked like a simple building held up by a single beam. The oil paintings on them gave it a sense of sacredness. There were hundreds of stone statues by the sides of the wide passageway. These statues were of curious divine devils that were rarely seen in the Central ins. They were ferocious and silent.


    The passageway was deep but dry. There was no hint of dampness at all. It seemed that the venttion and lighting were done well when the Deste Man had constructed it. It was still bright as the two walked on.


    As they entered the depths of the main hall, the aura that moved Ning Que became even thicker. It felt as if it was about to be a tangible being. He looked at Mo Shanshan silently. They did not know what they would seeter. No matter the "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane or the secrets of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, he only hoped that he wouldn¡¯t see what he didn¡¯t want to.


    The number of bodies in the passageway grew. As they made a turn, they saw piles of bones lying above each other, forming a small mountain. Ning Que helped Mo Shanshan forward and looked at the deeper and deeper sword marks. He thought about the bloody battle that had happened then and could not help but feel his heart pounding.


    The main hall at the end was an ordinary room. The room would have felt wide and spacious usually, but the piles of bones and dried corpses took up the entire middle of the room, making it seemed a little crowded and small.


    "How many have died then."


    Mo Shanshan eximed subconsciously as she looked at the mountain made up of bones in shock. Her hands were cold and her voice trembled. As a core disciple of the Master of Calligrapher from the Divine Hall, she had never felt any pity for the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. However, after all she had seen today, she could not help but feel the hopelessness felt by the Devil¡¯s Doctrine then.


    Ning Que looked at the mountain of bones and said after a moment of silence, "I do not know why Youngest Uncle wanted to vanquish the Devil¡¯s Doctrine then. But I guess he had his own reasons and there was a cause for it."


    Then, a voice sounded from the middle of the pile of bones.


    "There are many times in the world when many things don¡¯t require a cause or a reason. That is because when you think about causes and reasons in another way, they are but just delusions. There are many reasons today for why he did that. But the truth is, he simply came and did it."


    ...


    ...


    There were only silent bones in the room and still sword marks on the walls. It was silent as if it was not of this world. However, the voice that had sounded was especially clear even though it was feeble.


    The voice was soft and weak but exuded calm and peace. It sounded clear to Ning Que and Mo Shanshan and was like a thunderbolt to their ears. However, this had nothing to do with the quiet environment.


    The verdant valleys had been buried in the depths of the Tianqi Mountains for decades. The Daming Lake had disappeared from the realm for decades. The Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had cut off all ties with the world for decades. ording to spections, this ce had long be a ruin. It was impossible for there to be any trace of life within. And that was true from what the two had seen. However, there was someone alive buried in the past of bones and sword marks!


    Ning Que was shocked speechless. He quickly pulled Mo Shanshan behind him and raised his bow and arrow. He used his most powerful weapon and shot at the pile of bones and bodies in the middle.


    After looking carefully, he realized that there was a person in the mound of bones and bodies.


    That person was very old. He was bald and toothless. There were only two extremely long white brows that hung off his face and reached his chest. The person wore extremely old robes of a monk. The robes were tattered and the threads and pieces of cloth hung from his body just like his brows.


    The person was extremely skinny. His limbs looked like firewood. There was no muscle nor fat on his body and a thinyer of skin was wrapped around his jagged bones. The two ck holes that were his eyes looked terrifying. However, the gaze that his eyes exuded was kind and warm.


    Other than the thinyer of skin that had long lost its sticity, the old monk looked almost like the bones and bodies around him. That was why it was so difficult to spot him in the pile of bones.


    There were two very fine chains that went through the monk¡¯s drum-like abdomen. The other end of the chain was nailed on the hard wall behind him. The fresh blood of decades past had turned ck over the years and was painted on the tatters of his robes.


    This image was rather strange and the old monk within it was terrifying.


    Ning Que¡¯s finger trembled and he almost shot his arrow that was in the bowstring. Mo Shanshan sped a hand to her mouth before she could make a sound. They had stopped themselves in time due to the benevolence and warmth in the old monk¡¯s eyes.


    "Who are you?"


    Ning Que held on to his bowstring tightly as he asked agitatedly. He aimed at the old monk in the middle of the Bone Mountain.


    The sudden appearance of an old monk in the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine which had disappeared from the world for decades was hard to exin. It was unthinkable how the old man had managed to survive despite being so thin. And things that did not have a rational exnation were usually fraught with danger.


    "Who am I?"


    The old monk raised his head slowly. The chains that pierced through his belly rattled. A trace of pain appeared on his sallow face. However, his gaze remained warm as he reminisced.


    A look of understanding passed through his eyes after a long time. Lips twitched on the loose skin as he smiled with difficulty. He said, " I am a person who has bounded himself."


    "I havemitted a grievous sin in the past and regretted it all my life. That is why I have locked myself in this ce with metal chains. I swore that I would use the rest of my life to help these souls pass on in order to atone for some of my sins."


    Every slight action or words from the old monk would cause him pain from the metal chains that passed through his body. However, his weak voice and gaze were filled with benevolence like a gentle spring breeze.


    Ning Que looked at the shriveled old monk with an aura of spring and asked in shock, "What sins have youmitted?"


    The chains rattled again. The shriveled old monk smiled as he looked at the bodies strewn around him. He extended a finger with great difficulty and gently touched a white femur before him. He said, "I havemitted murder."


    "Committed murder?"


    The old monk looked at him calmly and said, "I entered Buddhism at 20 and became a monk. I thought that with benevolence, I would be able to help the world with the light of Buddha. Who would have thought that it would lead to the birth of these bodies? That, is my act of murder."


    Ning Que understood it but did not understand it either. It was rumored that these bodies of the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine were killed by Youngest Uncle. The sword marks, as well as the words on the no-word stele, made it seem that the rumors were rather close to the truth. Why would the withered old monk say that this was his act of murder?


    "You... do you know my Youngest Uncle?" He asked.


    The old monk looked at the two like a senior looking at his juniors. He asked gently, "Crazy Ke is your Youngest Uncle. That makes you a disciple to the Headmaster of Academy. Who is this youngdy?"


    Ning Que and Mo Shanshan could feel the man¡¯s kindness and trust. There was perhaps even a trace of doting warmth. They revealed their identities subconsciously.


    The old monkmented softly, "I had thought that I would spend the rest of my life atoning for my sins. I did not think that I would meet the descendants of my enemies. Does this mean that the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine has opened?"


    He looked at Ning Que puzzledly, " You are the Academy¡¯s wayfarer of this generation? You seem to have only broken the realm and entered the Seethrough state only a couple days back. Why is your state so low? Could it be that the Academy has gotten weaker with each generation?"


    Following that, the old monk looked at Mo Shanshan and smiled, "I¡¯ve stayed in the Bone Mountain and not heard of anything. I do not know how much time has passed and only felt that I have slept and woken up. It seems that even little Wang has a sessor now."


    Ning Que knew that he was the weakest World Wayfarer in the Academy¡¯s history. However, he was still annoyed when the monk pointed it out. However, he thought of how the old monk had stayed in the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine for decades, and how he had called Youngest Uncle Crazy Ke and the Master of Calligrapher little Wang. He knew that the man was an Unworldly Sublime Being and could not bring himself to scold him.


    It was just, who exactly was the withered old monk?

 Chapter 270: Liansheng 32 (I)

    Chapter 270: Liansheng 32 (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    A man of old age and high status deserved respect. The withered old monk had sat on the Bone Mountain and atoned for his sins for decades. It seemed that he wasn¡¯t a useless old one like Quni Madi. Ning Que kept his bow behind him but did not step forward. He looked at the withered old monk from about ten feet away and said respectfully, "I¡¯m indeed a student of the Academy. The Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine has indeed opened. But I do not understand why your senior would say that this floor full of bones are the results of your sins?"


    The old monkughed weakly. He said, "This is aplicated story."


    One would always hear an incredible story from a long time ago whenever they met someone interesting in a valley. Perhaps it was because Ning Que had already anticipated this, he was very calm and said softly, "Please, senior, tell us about it."


    The old monk was silent for a while before he recalled, "Back then, Crazy Ke started to travel the world on behalf of the Academy. He had an ordinary cyan-steel sword strapped to his waist and no one dared to go against him. The Devil¡¯s Doctrine was strong, arrogant and bloodthirsty. Several innocents were killed ruthlessly by those from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. The meeting between the two was doomed to be like a thunderstorm."


    "That thunderstorm was heavy and bloody. The powerhouses of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine spread across the Central ins all died at the sword of Crazy Ke. The West-Hill Divine Pce and those on the right Taoist path wanted to take the opportunity to remove all power from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    "Crazy Ke stood in the rain and yelled at the heavens and earth with no respect in his eyes. The old fogeys from West-Hill Divine Pce did not like him, of course. The Devil¡¯s Doctrine was tortured in that storm and came up with a solution. They wanted to use the faction between the Academy and the Divine Hall to set up a trap, forcing the two into war."


    "During a great meet at the Lanke Temple¡¯s Yuean hungry ghost festival one year, the cultivators of various countries of the Central ins met. There was dancing. The Devil¡¯s Doctrine used this opportunity to kill many at the Lanke Temple and framed the Judicial Department of Divine Hall. That was how the story began."


    The old monk was as withered as a ghost. He spoke of the bloody and cruel past but his expression remained collected like the spring breeze. He spoke of the bloody images of the past in just a few words.


    Ning Que helped Mo Shanshan sit by the wall. He looked at the old monk in the Bone Mountain and thought of the story that the old man had told them of the distant past. He said after a moment of silence, "Framing someone has always been a stupid act."


    The old monk¡¯s lips twitched upwards and he smiled with great difficulty. His eyes were wet as he looked at Ning Que. He said regretfully, "The Devil¡¯s Doctrine in the world outside must all be dead. Even if there were any survivors, I would guess that they are all living in hiding, like rats in the gutter. I suppose a child like you would not know what the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was like then, and how frightful the power they wielded was."


    It had been two years since Ning Que left the City of Wei and entered the world of cultivation. Other than the meeting with the Deste Man some time ago, he had only seen a Sword Master with the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s cultivation methods at the entrance of the Northern Mountain Road. That Sword Master was not very strong, in his opinion, which was why he did not find the Devil¡¯s Doctrine fearful.


    The old man¡¯s eyelids closed like wilting leaves. He seemed to be thinking of the arrogance and bluster that the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had back then. It seemed to be a blow to his peaceful mental state. And then, he continued in a soft tone, "The methods of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was stolen from the heaven. Those who cultivate using their methods are extremely strong and do not have any ripples in their Psyche Power. They are able to avoid any methods of detection from other cultivators. Those from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine used this to their advantage then and entered various countries of the Central ins, or entered the state and formed three generations of senior statesmen. It was rumored that some entered the countryside and built up arge family. They set up awork so strong, that there were people from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine in the Imperial Center Administration of Tang empire and high positions in the West-Hill Divine Pce."


    The old monk raised his head slowly and looked at him calmly, "If not for fear of the Academy and other Unknown ces, the Devil¡¯s Doctrine would have taken over the world when they came into their full power. They did not dare to do things against the will of the heaven. But would they leave any holes in their plots? No one would believe that, in truth, the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had paid a heavy price to unveil the Priest hidden in the Judicial Department of the Divine Hall for decades at the bloodshed at the Lanke Temple."


    Ning Que frowned and asked, "What has the bloodshed at the Lanke Temple to do with the Academy and Youngest Uncle?"


    The old monk sighed once more. His sigh was bellied with pity as he said, "The Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s bloodshed at the Lanke Temple during the Yuean hungry ghost festival looked as if they were going against cultivators on the right Taoist path. But in actual fact, it was against the officials of the Tang empire. But they had wanted to provoke Crazy Ke, so their actual targets were the poor women who only knew how to dance from the Tang empire."


    Ning Que tensed up when he heard that. He had heard from Second Brother that Mistress Jian and Youngest Uncle were lovers. He wondered if those dancers were the girls from the House of Red Sleeves. However, since Mistress Jian was well alive and would asionally give him a rough dressing down, who had died then?


    The Devil¡¯s Doctrine had paid a heavy price for this scheme. They would certainly know who Youngest Uncle would barge into the Peach Mountain for. It was just like if he saw Sangsang lying in blood when he returned to the Lin 47th street and all the evidence pointed to the pce. He would not hesitate to bring his knife with him and barge through the pce gates and into the imperial study. He would tear up "The Flower Blooms on the Shore Astride" and cut the emperor into 365 pieces...


    "But Youngest Uncle did not barge into the Peach Mountain. He destroyed the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    Ning Que looked at the man in the Bone Mountain and asked in confusion, "What went wrong in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s plot?"


    The old man sat in silence for a long while before he finally smiled. There was a myriad of emotions in his wizened smile. There werement and shock, bitterness and a bit pride.


    "There was nothing wrong with the plot that they set up. The whole world had thought that the Judicial Department of Divine Hall was the one who killed those at the Lanke Temple then. And there were no other thoughts on who else could have done it when the Elder who had been living in seclusion in the back of the Lanke Temple came out and used the attackers, stating that they were from the West-Hill."


    The old monk looked at him and said, "But Ke Haoran did not believe that."


    Ning Que asked puzzledly, "Why didn¡¯t Youngest Uncle believe that?"


    The old monk replied, "It would be difficult to fool someone like Crazy Ke."


    Ning Que was shocked, and shook his head, saying, "This is not a reason."


    The old manmented, "I asked him the same question then."


    Ning Que listened attentively.


    The old monk smiled, "In this very same room, he said, ¡¯Will I, Ke Haoran, be so easily fooled?¡¯"


    There was a moment of silence.


    "And then?"


    Ning Que asked. He supposed that every story had a continuation and an ending.


    The old monk asked, with a bit surprising, "And then... does the world not know yet?"


    Ning Que replied, "The storyteller is different, the content of the story might change."


    "This story has a simple ending."


    The old monk¡¯s voice grew even weaker. He said, "The Devil¡¯s Doctrine did not manage to fool Crazy Ke, so he went to the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. The leader of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was full of himself then. He was not overly fearful and simply thought that he would kill him if he came. Crazy Ke did not want to be killed, so he killed all of them."


    He did not want to be killed, so he killed all of them.


    This was such a simple statement, and the story was simple as well. However, the simpler one put the shocking past that resulted in annihtion and a history buried in past, the more rming it was. After decades of years, only the old wizened monk and the countless bodies left in the main hall of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine bore witness to what had happened then.


    Ning Que looked at the old monk¡¯s deep-set eyes. "Why are you atoning for your sins? What have you to do with this?"


    The old monk raised his slender arms. The cloth on his arms was ragged. He extended his fingers. The joints beneath the skin over his fingers were scary and looked like a pair of skeletal hands from the Underworld. However, the aura that exuded from his palms was silent and warm. It was benevolent, like two white lotuses fallen from Haotian.


    The aura wielded in the white lotus Emblematic Gesture was abnormally strong and concentrated but not lethal. The bones around the old monk glistened with the flow of the aura and looked as if they wereing alive.


    Ning Que stared at the old monk¡¯s hands before his abdomen and could feel the auraing from within. He was shocked speechless. The power that the old monk had exhibited was of a state so high it could not be measured. It was the strongest he had ever seen in this life.


    Mo Shanshan sat by the wall. She looked at the old monk¡¯s skeletal hands that had formed into Emblematic Gesture of white lotuses. She thought of what her teacher had said once, and could not help but allow the shock she felt made its way onto her face.


    "There is a lotus in the west thatnded in this world. It was born with 32 petals, and each petal is unique. They each make up a different world."


    ...


    ...


    "I atone for my sins because the sins are mine."


    "Because there was never any plot by the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. The plot was mine."


    "The Priest from the Judicial Department was from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. I knew about this many years ago. I knew what they wanted to do, but I did not do anything. I sat on the cold ck seat and propped my chin up with my hands and watched them finish the matter quietly. Then, I found a suitable time and told Ke Haoran about it."


    "But I underestimated Ke Haoran. I did not need to show him the evidence that I had kept carefully, and he knew that the matter was done by the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. That was great, so I sat quietly on the cold ck seat and propped my chin up with my hands and waited for the moment to arrive quietly."


    The old monk who was as skinny as a ghost sat on the Bone Mountain. His bony hands bore the lotus emblem and his eyes were gentle and benevolent.


    Ning Que looked at him with wide eyes and asked in a trembling voice, "Who exactly are you? What did you want to achieve back then?"


    This was the second time the old monk had heard the question. He lifted his head towards the skies slowly, jostling the chains in his belly. He made a clear sound, allowing the pain to show on his wizened face once more.


    The old monk looked at the skies with a gentle gaze in his deep-set eyes. The white lotus flowers in his bony hands blossomed.


    "I wanted to vanquish the Devil¡¯s Doctrine then. I wanted Ke Haoran to die. But he did not die despite the thunderstorm that was the Devil¡¯s Doctrine that I created with all my efforts and directed at him."


    "As for who I am?"


    The old monk retracted his gaze from the skies and looked at the two, "I am the judge."


    ...


    ...


    "Divine Lord Lotus?"


    A voice filled with disbelief sounded from behind suddenly.


    Ye Hongyu, the Tao Addict, who was dressed simply appeared. She looked at the skinny old monk sitting on the Bone Mountain and the Emblematic Gesture he made. Expressions of joy and disbelief filled her face.


    Mo Shanshan eximed at the same time, "Master Lotus?"

 Chapter 271: Liansheng 32 (II)

    Chapter 271: Liansheng 32 (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ye Hongyu had suddenly appeared in the main hall of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Her left shoulder was soaked in congealed blood and her skirt was in tatters, unable to cover herpletely. She looked utterly pathetic, but her eyes were shockingly shiny.


    Ning Que did not know that outside the Front Gate she had used all the strength to split the rock before her before reaching where they were with much difficulty. However, it was evident that she had suffered greatly judging from her appearance and he could not help but be in awe of her.


    Aspared to the vague respect he felt, he was even more nervous when he saw the Tao Addict. He quickly held on to the hilt of his de behind him with his right hand and was prepared to get rid of this fearful enemy at her weakest.


    However, he realized that Ye Hongyu did not bother with him at all. Mo Shanshan who leaned against the rock wall did not concern herself with her either. Both the Tao Addict and the Calligraphy Addict looked at the skinny old monk in the Bone Mountain speechlessly and somewhat intoxicatedly.


    ...


    ...


    To the east of the West-Hill Divine Kingdom near the sea, there was arge circr stone. It was used against the fearful waves. Behind the rock was the Kingdom of Song. It could perhaps be due to the rainy days and winds, many great people came from the humble little country. There were a great number of priests in the Divine Hall that came from the Kingdom of Song. The Great Divine Priest of Light who had been imprisoned for many years came from this ce. And in a dark night many years ago, the lotuses in the garden of a certain mansion in the capital of the kingdom Song bloomed. Together with the blooming of the lotus flowers, was the birth of a baby boy. As such, the baby boy was named Lotus.


    The child named Lotus was not exceptional in his youth. He was like the other young masters around him who went to school and took exams. After that, he received an official position and married. The couple did not have any children before his beloved wife passed on from an illness. After the death of his wife, Lotus stayed by her grave in a hut. He grieved beside it for three months.


    On a stormy night, Lotus walked into the rain. He stood in tranquil contemtion for half of the night before walking back in wet clothes. He picked up a brush and wrote an essay in remembrance of his wife. After that, he threw the brush into the grass that had grown on the grave,ughed out loud thrice and walked away.


    In the years after, Lotus explored the world and visited many different cultivation sects. His essay in remembrance of his wife had made its way into the world and caused many to cry. His name was well known and the sects met him with respect but did not tell him anything about cultivation.


    On the second autumn, Lotus traveled to the Tile Mountain. It rained, and he sought refuge in the Lanke Temple.


    That night, he slept in the back hall and heard an old monk talking about the Buddhism Sect. He thought about it into the deep night and returned to the main gate of the Lanke Temple and rang the bell. He entered the temple and told the receiving monk that he wanted to enter a debate with the host of Lanke Temple.


    The debatested for an entire 32 days. Lotus¡¯s speech was as flowery as lotuses blooming on the clouds of the Tile Mountain. A bird from the heaven hidden in the tree by the edge of the cliff chirped gently during the debate, attracting schrs and celebrities from around the world.


    The debate at the Lanke Temple became yet another grand event after the Yuean hungry ghost festival. Lotus¡¯s name began to circte in the world.


    On thest day, the previous Haotian hierarch from the West-Hill Divine Pce came from the Peach Mountain. He invited Lotus to join the Divine Hall as a visiting professor before the masses. Lotus smiled and rejected his offer. Then, the Elder who had lived in seclusion in the Lanke Temple of Tile Mountain appeared. He touched the top of his head and hair fell off from the top like ck lotuses. His Buddhist Heart became increasingly firm.


    In the autumn when the leaves began to fall, Lotus left the Lanke Temple in the Tile Mountain. He traveled across the great river and reached the Ink Lake. He crossed forests and entered the Yuelun Kingdom before disappearing into the Wilderness north-west of Yuelun Kingdom. Nobody knew where he went.


    After several years, a monk returned from the Wilderness. He traveled between the pce and the masses, between verdant mountains and seas. He told the princes and nobles and the ordinary folk about cause and effect as well as Lucky Chance. He was well-versed in Buddhism and did well everywhere. The world respected him.


    Mr. Lotus disappeared from the world. And the world gained a Master Lotus.


    At the peak of their power, the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s infiltration into the Central ins was hard to prevent just like it was hard to prevent the darkness at night. There were two Elders from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine who were most mysterious. They secretly yed off the other sects of various other countries and created several bloody tragedies. However, no one knew exactly where the two Elders of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine were hidden.


    That spring, Master Lotus was invited by the Haotian hierarch from West-Hill to teach in the Divine Hall. During the meeting, the vice headmaster of the Revtion Institute spoke with contempt and neglect. Master Lotus walked up to him and killed him before the Hierarch Lord and other powerhouses of the Divine Hall. The vice headmaster of the Revtion Institute was one of the Elders of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    The hierarch of Haotian Taoism invited Master Lotus to the Divine Hall once more, not as a visiting professor, but to be a Great Divine Priest of Judgment, a position that had been empty for years. Master Lotus said that the time was not right, and refused once more.


    Mater Lotus left the Peach Mountain for the Tile Mountain. He had attained Tao enlightenment there then, and now that he had returned, he visited the Lanke Temple to practice. He did not receive any visitors for the next two years and was gradually forgotten by the world.


    One day, a high ranking monk died suddenly while sweeping the floors at Lanke Temple. The whole temple was shocked. Master Lotus stepped out of his room and admitted that he had killed the monk. This monk was yet another Elder from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine who had concealed himself in the Central ins. Master Lotus had secluded himself in the Tile Mountain for two years to verify this.


    The two most mysterious Elders of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine who had hidden out in the Central ins were both dead. Most of the bloody secret ns of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine were all exposed. Master Lotus¡¯ name was well renowned across the world.


    The White Tower Temple of Yuelun Kingdom, as well as the Lanke Temple of Tile Mountain, named him as a guard to the Front Gate of the Buddhism Sect inmemoration of his deed.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce invited him to view the six scrolls of the Tomes of Arcane as a reward and also named him the Great Divine Priest of Judgment.


    Master Lotus became the first Buddhism Sect disciple in history to be the Great Divine Priest of West-Hill Divine Pce.


    Several yearster, the bloodshed before Lanke Temple happened. The Priest of the Judicial Department of Divine Hall was involved in the matter and Master Lotus, grieving from the death of an old friend was willing to assume responsibility. He disregarded all attempts to make him stay from the Peach Mountain and insisted on resigning from the position as Great Divine Priest and left. He stayed hidden and no one knew where he went.


    From then on, Master Lotus had disappeared from the world of cultivation. However, his name remained in the world until today.


    In the memories of today¡¯s world, Master Lotus had always exuded benevolence and mystery. The benevolence came from his action and the mystery was due to the legendary life that he had led.


    Master Lotus was good at writing essays and calligraphy. He had traveled the world, studied the ssics and cultivated. He attained Tao enlightenment in the Lanke Temple and entered the Knowing Destiny State after only several years. He was well versed in Buddhismws and knew all the different ways of the different sects. He was a great writer and calligrapher of his generation. He was a guard of the Buddhism Sect Front Gate and also a Great Divine Priest of Judgment of the Divine Hall.


    A man who was willing toe close to all beauty of the world, who had the ability to bring enlightenment to the world, who was willing to shoulder the burdens of the world; a man who was this perfect had never been seen before and might never appear again.


    To many, such a perfect person could not have been cultivated inter life. He must have been born this way. That was why the people said after he disappeared, "There is a lotus in the west thatnded in this world. It was born with 32 petals, and each petal is unique. They each make up a different world."


    His monastic title was Liansheng 32.


    He was like a white lotus who had floated into the mortal world. With each blooming of a jade petal, he would show a big power that brought sce to the filthy world.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que stood in the Great Blockage Formation outside the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He knelt and kowtowed to the mossy sword marks. He was worshiping his elder, the kin in his blood. He felt admiration and longing within him.


    To the Tao Addict and Mo Shanshan, Master Lotus was like a great mountain that they had not stopped paying attention to since they started cultivation. A sense of closeness and admiration flowed in their blood.


    That was why they did not care about what Ning Que wanted to do, and had no wish to fight. They kneeled and kowtowed respectfully to the withered old monk.


    Compared with the Calligraphy Addict, the Tao Addict was visibly more excited. She was the Grand Master of the Divine Hall¡¯s Judicial Department. Master Lotus was once the Divine Hall¡¯s Great Divine Priest of Judgment. He was practically her senior. Furthermore, while the Judicial Department held most of the power in the West-Hill Divine Pce, their darkened names surpassed their sacredness due to their bad name from keeping prisoners. In the past century, it was only when Divine Lord Lotus held a position could the Judicial Department take control of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and gain respect from the masses. The elderly members of the Judicial Department still talked fondly of those times, which was why Divine Lord Lotus¡¯ status was different in the eyes of those in the Judicial Department.


    She could not suppress the shock and excitement in her heart. She looked at the Emblematic Gesture at the old monk made and said in a trembling voice, "Your disciple, Priest Ye Hongyu of the Divine Hall Judicial Department pays her respect to Divine Lord Lotus. Those from the Peach Mountain thought that you had ascended to heaven and became an immortal. I did not think that I would be so lucky to meet you, Divine Lord Lotus."


    Master Lotus did not expect that he would see a newbie from the Judicial Department here. He was slightly startled, but said with warmth and regret, "I have said before that I did not know how much time has passed in my time on the mountain. It seems that was very true indeed. A young and loveable youngdy like you has been dragged into this pool of muddied water. That is such a pity. A pity indeed."


    If someone else had described the Judicial Department as a pool of muddied water, Ye Hongyu would have tortured that person. However, she did not react to this right now because the person who had said that was an old ancestor of the Judicial Department. She did not have the guts to behave unreasonably. Furthermore, Divine Lord Lotus¡¯ voice was gentle and benevolent. He spoke like a grandfather to a grandchild, and it made her feel warm and slightly shy.


    The three addicts were world-renowned. Both the Tao Addict and the Calligraphy Addict knelt before the Bone Mountain like obedient children while Ning Que stood still. Mo Shanshan pulled at him surreptitiously, but he pretended not to see her.


    Ning Que was not like the Calligraphy Addict or the Tao Addict that had studied within sects since they were children. They knew about the legends of the cultivation world. However, he had only managed to enter the cultivators¡¯ world after many difficulties two years ago. The Senior Brothers and Sisters in the back of the mountain of the Academy did not have much interest in telling stories, which was why he wascking in knowledge regarding some things. He had never heard of Liansheng 32 before.


    That was why he did not kneel in respect like Mo Shanshan and Ye Hongyu did.


    When he heard the words "Divine Lord Lotus", he looked at the old monk sitting in the pile of bones andughed. He said, "So you were the Great Divine Priest of Judgment of Divine Hall. No wonder you wanted to vanquish the Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    His smile gradually dimmed. He stared at the old monk and said, "But I would still like to know, why did you spend half your life on a plot trying to harm my Youngest Uncle? I wouldn¡¯t do it even if I had too much time on my hands."


    There was someone in the world who would speak with such disrespect to Divine Lord Lotus!


    Ye Hongyu who knelt before the Bone Mountain red at Ning Que. Her eyebrows were raised and looked like tiny sharp swords.

 Chapter 272: Join the Devil (I)

    Chapter 272: Join the Devil (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The old monk looked at Ning Que warmly and said with a slight smile and said, "You seem not to have heard of me."


    Ning Que was slightly startled, he replied, "Should everyone have heard of you?"


    A self-deprecating smile appeared on the old monk¡¯s wizened face with some difficulty. He said, "It might sound a little funny, but I thought that after several decades, the young people would still remember my name."


    Ning Que did not know what to say. He looked at the cold gaze shooting from Ye Hongyu¡¯s eyes and the confoundment in Mo Shanshan¡¯s dark eyes. He thought to himself, "Was what this Divine Lord Lotus said true?"


    "If you know my story, you should know how I attained Tao enlightenment in the Lanke Temple. I used to preach as the chief monk in the Xuankong Temple. I passed through the Divine Hall twice but did not enter. In the end, I became one of the Great Divine Priest of Judgment. But I doubt that even the two youngdies know, that I once almost became a High Priest of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    The old monk looked at the three youngsters who could not contain their shock. He said gently, "Since the Devil¡¯s Doctrine could infiltrate the various countries of the Central ins, the various Buddhist sects of the Central ins would, of course, have simr tactics. There is no need to be so shocked."


    "Looking back at my life, I have once experienced too many things. I even feel that they were very excited when I think about them in the middle of the night. But when I think through them carefully, the thing that I am proudest of is that I had a friend like Ke Haoran. You asked me why I wanted him dead?"


    The old monk looked at Ning Que, his expression was still benevolent, but slightly bitter. "Because he was my greatest friend, I knew of his earth-shattering abilities. We traveled through the wild mountains together when I was younger. When we met again, I realized that he had gotten stronger, and was getting closer to the darkness of the night."


    "There are many types of friends. I wanted to be a good one. The greater Ke Haoran¡¯s ability was, the more I could not ept the changes in his view of the world. Which was why I would sacrifice everything, even my dreams, to bring him into this bloody storm. I would rather he died together with the Devil¡¯s Doctrine than for him to join the devil."


    The room descended into silence when they heard of this soul-stirring piece of the past. Ye Hongyu and Mo Shanshan lowered their heads subconsciously. The young Talisman Master had heard the rumors surrounding this matter, while the Tao Addict lived in the West-Hill Divine Pce and knew more about Mr. Ke¡¯s story than most.


    Ning Que had never heard of this before. In the stories that the Senior Brothers and Sisters told at the Back Mountain, Youngest Uncle¡¯s image was grand and proud. He held the cyan-steel sword with one hand and was second to none. He was never linked with the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    Ning Que¡¯s brows rose on his forehead. He looked at Master Lotus and asked, "How would my Youngest Uncle join the devil?"


    The old monk sighed, "The devil enters through one¡¯s heart. Anyone can join the devil."


    Ning Que was not your typical Tang citizen. However, he had the Tang¡¯s attitude. He could not believe such a saying. He shook his head and said calmly and certainly, "My Youngest Uncle is second to none. He is the strongest no matter in ability or spirit. He has no need for help from the outside. Why would he need to cultivate the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s method?"


    The old monk said gently, "He had never cultivated the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s method. Just as you said, he had no need for their methods. But what you don¡¯t know is, Ke Haoran was like the Great Divine Priest of Light from a thousand years ago. He would not be seduced by things and causes but would travel up that path because of his own thoughts. He had turned his back on the light of Haotian and walked towards the night the moment his view of the world changed."


    Ning Que was startled and said, "I do not understand."


    The old monkughed when he heard such an honest reply. He shook his head lightly and slowly before wiping the smile off his face. He said calmly, "He had be the devil when he picked up that sword."


    Ning Que asked, "The Haoran Sword?"


    The old monk acknowledged it tacitly.


    Ning Que thought of the book "Exploring the Haoran Sword" he had read in the old library and also how Second Brother had taught him his sword move in the Back Mountain of the Academy. He remained silent before shaking his head. "The Haoran Sword has nothing to do with the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s methods."


    The old monk looked and him and smiled, "The world only knew of the Haoran Sword, but not the Great Spirit. If you have the lucky chance to one day understand what the Great Spirit is, you would understand why I said that."


    Ning Que seemed to have vaguely understood something. It seemed that Youngest Uncle¡¯s state was very strong then and had walked himself into a corner trying to achieve a breakthrough. He had created the Great Spirit simr to what the Great Divine Priest of Light had done a thousand years ago. However, this Great Spirit was something that Haotian had banned, just like the methods of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    "I still do not understand."


    Ning Que looked at the old monk in the Bone Mountain and smiled, "Anyway, I will not believe that Youngest Uncle would join the devil."


    This was him being unreasonable. No matter the Tangs or the Academy, they were the best at being unreasonable. He thought to himself, "This was, after all, something that had happened decades ago, what could you do to me, even if you were the Divine Lord Lotus?"


    "It was ascertained that Mr. Ke had joined the devilter on."


    Ye Hongyu turned around and said suddenly, "He died from receiving heavenly punishment."


    Ning Que froze and then, he leaped up like a wild cat whose tail had been stepped on and yelled, "Punishment my arse!"


    It was strange that Ye Hongyu did not retaliate angrily at his cursing. Instead, she looked at him with a myriad of emotions. There was a moment of silence before she said, "I will allow you to live for now out of respect for Mr. Ke."


    Ning Que came to a sudden realization that what she had said was the truth when he saw her reaction.


    Back in the Back Mountain of the Academy, Second Brother had only said that Youngest Uncle was dead. He did not say how Youngest Uncle had died. No matter his master, Master Yan Se or the other cultivators he had met, no one mentioned about the Youngest Uncle from the Academy.


    That was how Youngest Uncle had left this world.


    Youngest Uncle was Second Brother¡¯s idol and Second Brother was Ning Que¡¯s. That was why Youngest Uncle was his greatest idol. It was a pity he had only heard fragments of rumors and had no clear idea of the whole situation. That why he was only vaguely proud of the whole situation.


    Now that they havee to the Wilderness and felt the prideful and confident aura in the Tianqi Mountains that was like a snow cliff and pine trees, Youngest Uncle hade alive in his mind. He had traveled through the mountains following that aura and entered the verdant valleys. He had broken the realm and attained Tao enlightenment by theke. He had stepped through the various formations confidently ande to the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    It was here where he finally heard of Youngest Uncle¡¯s story and guessed the ending to it. In the shock, pain, and loss, he suddenly understood that this was the progression of the story.


    A person as proud and confident as Youngest Uncle would, of course, pull out the sword at his waist and point it at Firmament when there was nothing worthy of a second look in the world.


    It was just that, could a man be victorious over the heavens?


    Ning Que stood in the Bone Mountain silently, he was lost for words.


    The old monk sat in the Bone Mountain silently. He descended into silence just as he had decades ago when he heard that Ke Haoran had been punished by the heavens for joining the Devil. A trace ofpassionate Buddha light glowed from his skeletal face.


    "After everything, he had still died like that."


    The old monk bowed his head and sighed. One could not make out if it was one of praise or sadness. Following the sigh, his skinny body loosened suddenly. Traces of dust exploded from either within the cracks of his bones or the tatters of his monk robes.


    ...


    ...


    At the end of an old story came love and hatred of a new one. Everything in the world happened in a nd cycle. Ye Hongyu¡¯s bare legs became taught and her right hand came to hold the Taoist Sword by her waist.


    Ning Que was shocked. He looked at her back with furrowed brows and quickly said, "Are you in such a hurry to fight onsidering Master Lotus¡¯ state right now? I think we should save him first."


    The monk raised his head slowly and looked at the young man benevolently. He smiled, I am a person who has bound himself. Who can release me should I not wish for it to happen?"


    Ye Hongyu knew that Ning Que was buying time. She held the hilt of her sword tightly. Just as she was about to turn around, she saw Divine Lord Lotus shaking his head at her from the Bone Mountain. She could not help the mild tremor that passed through her heart and she stopped moving.


    The old monk smiled, "I have hidden here to help these souls move along to atone for my sins. I have long avoided the fights and deaths of the secr world. Why must you children let me see all of this? Bones are everywhere before us, is there any need to kill more?"


    Ye Hongyu was puzzled. The legends say that when Divine Lord Lotus was still Bhadanta of the Buddhism Sect, he had killed someone before the Divine Hall¡¯s hierarch and powerhouses. He would unleash the wrath of Buddha thunder when he got angry. How could he be the benevolent monk before them right now?


    However, even with her tough spirit, she subconsciously rxed as she looked at the benevolence gaze in Divine Lord Lotus¡¯s deep-set eyes. There was no desire to fight left in her and she slowly released the hilt of the sword in her right hand.


    The old monk said gently, "I have never thought that there would be a day when the Front Gate of the Devil Doctrine would open and that young people such as yourself would enter. I suppose that there must be many outstanding young people in today¡¯s world. It must be a torture for you young people to listen to these nd old stories. But I would hope that you can bear with me and listen on as you are the future of the cultivation world."


    Ye Hongyu did not consider for a second longer. She bowed and sat back down again after hearing that.


    Mo Shanshan sat cross-legged on the ground.


    Ning Que would even have him tell his story for three days and three nights as long as he did not have to fight with the Tao Addict. He did not make any objections, but said sincerely, "Master, please teach us."


    Ye Hongyu frowned slightly, disgusted at his shamelessness.


    ...


    ...


    "The world thought that the Judicial Department of Divine Hall were the culprits of the bloodshed at Lanke Temple. Only I and a few from the Divine Hall knew that it was the doing of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Ke Haoran had found out the truth while we were waiting for the right time to tell him. Of course, this was just the firstyer of the truth. To tell the truth, I still do not know how he came to find out even today."


    "That day, I watched hime to the side of Daming Lake on his donkey. He waved his hand and dispelled the water in theke. I watched as he took out his sword and dismantled the Stone Array Tactics. I feltforted because I thought that my plot was sessful."


    The old monk paused for a long time when he got to this part. Then, he said softly, "I thought, then, that no matter if he destroyed the Devil¡¯s Doctrine or was destroyed by the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, he would never have the opportunity to join the Devil. And I would have done my best by our friendship."


    Ning Que thought that Youngest Uncle was very unfortunate to have a friend like that.


    The monk¡¯s voice was filled with regret and pain. "However, I have never seen someone kill like this my entire life."

 Chapter 273: Join the Devil (II)

    Chapter 273: Join the Devil (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The old monk sighed with deep emotion, "I was debating at Mountain Wa during autumn that year when the hierarch came to see me. By the next autumn, I left the Central ins and traveled towards the Wilderness to seek Taoism. The world thought that I had been living in seclusion at Lanke Temple during that period, but that¡¯s not true. In fact, I was invited by the Divine Hall and had been silently cultivating the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. This is what I meant by the reverse osmosis of the Central ins¡¯ right path previously."


    Ning Que shivered slightly upon listening to his words. "Could it be that this old monk had almost be the leader of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine that year?" He thought to himself silently. It was really an excellent n for the West-Hill Divine Pce to invite this great man, Lotus the 30th, to join the Devil, for he could help to raise the trustworthiness of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. After all, there was no doubt that his state, techniques, and mind were the top in the world.


    The old monk had no idea what Ning Que was thinking about as he nced around the dusty grey stone walls in the room warmly, as though he was looking at the clean walls of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s main hall years ago. He then slowly continued, "Based on the impression from the world, people from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine are evil and rotten jerks who ought to be killed and this is not far from the truth. Indeed, people from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine often kill the innocent without any reason. They also kidnapped and forced children to cultivate the Devil¡¯s skills. As such, many people died every year. Yet, could this Devil¡¯s Doctrine be the end of everything?"


    "In my time, the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was at its peak and was divided into seven main schools with 28 sects. Each sect was different, from their cultivation ideas to their ideas of entering the human realm. Some were simr to how monks cultivate in Buddhism where they isted themselves from the world. If that was the case, how could such sect be evil doers?"


    The old monk withdrew his attention and looked at the three people in front of him, as he said calmly, "Just like any other religions, there are good and evil people in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. I admit that most of the people in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine are evil, but that doesn¡¯t mean that there aren¡¯t any good men. However, when that sword split apart the stone array and fought its way into the Front Gate to start the blood war, who would know if the people who died under that sword was good or evil?"


    "I was present in this mountain when Ke Haoran fought his way into the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s Front Gate."


    The old monk gradually lowered his head. A dry bone cracking sound was heard from his cervical spine as if his head might fall off anytime. He said, "I had been living in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine for numerous years. Hence, it was natural for me to know many people. I knew men who were greedy, who loved spoiling his wife as well as men who loved giving his children a ride on his back. Yet on that day, all these men I knew were killed."


    "The purpose of my sneaking into the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was to destroy it. When those people died in front of me, I should rejoice. Yet, I couldn¡¯t and I had no idea why. I saw those familiar faces split into halves in front of me. I saw those lively children being torn apart in front of me. I saw the fresh blood flowing out of them profusely and staining the bottom of the no-word stele red with my own eyes. The blood flowed down the stone staircase, along with the stone columns which all of you have seen, and into the pitch dark cliff. I suddenly realized that I was very upset."


    Ning Que frowned and said, "That¡¯s enough."


    The old monk gazed at him withpassion, as he shook his head slowly and said, "The massacre was not due to your Youngest Uncle. Though I still remember the scene, I am not ming him for it. I just want to understand. What exactly is the Devil?"


    "Is it the Devil¡¯s Doctrine that kills the innocents, or is Ke Haoran who crazily killed them off the Devil? Did my concern about Ke Haoran joining the Devil and allowing him to massacre the people made him the Devil instead? Or was it me, who was behind all of these plots, the true Devil instead? When I saw the ground flooded with blood, I started questioning myself."


    The old monk¡¯s voice began to sound doubtful. It was the same kind of doubtfulness that one had when viewing the sky while standing on the Peach Mountain, or when one stood in the midst of the ruins while feeling emotional about his past. It was the doubtfulness one had for himself and the world.


    "How do you differentiate the right path from the devil one? What exactly is the devil?"


    "If we differentiate via the mindset and views, then the Devil¡¯s Doctrine is the Devil since they killed the innocents. Then again, which cultivator does not kill? The Buddhism Sect often say that everyone is equal, so if you kill, you¡¯ve joined the Devil. Then what about butchers? What about you and I who threw stones at wild dogs when we were younger? When our hands were covered with grease as we sucked, munched and enjoyed the delicious taste of the trotters, have we thought that those were meat from pigs? Have we joined the Devil ourselves while doing all these acts?"


    "If it¡¯s dependant on one¡¯s birth identity, then the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was born a thousand years ago by the Great Divine Priest of Light. History had stated that the Great Divine Priest of Light was a respectable, temperament,passionate and intelligent being, so which part of him was born evil? After all, the Devil¡¯s Doctrine originated from the "Ming" Handscroll among the seven Tomes of Arcane in Haotian Taoism school. Hence, it in itself was a school of Taoism. Why would it be the Devil?"


    The old monk quietly stared at the three youngsters in front of him and spoke softly, "When the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was conquered, the ce was flooded with blood. I lived in guilt for numerous years after that day and have been thinking of this question for numerous years."


    Ning Que and Mo Shanshan kept quiet as they thought about the old monk¡¯s words. Each of them had a different thinking.


    However, Ye Hongyu raised her head suddenly and without any hesitation, she said, "Divine Lord Lotus, what you¡¯ve said is not true. The Devil¡¯s Doctrine is the Devil has nothing to do with the mindsets, views nor the identity from birth. The skills itself simply belongs to the Devil."


    "When Haotian shone the earth with its Divine light, she had provided it with warmth and light, so as to cultivate a pleasant environment for living things to grow. This, in turn, created an exchange and movement of aura between the Heaven and the Earth. However, the skills cultivated by the demons in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had forcefully taken over the natural primordial Qi as they absorbed them into their bodies. Should these demons continue to steal this generous gift provided by Heaven, the aura between the Heaven and the Earth will gradually decline. The world will thene to an end. As such, what should we say about them? This proves that their skills have humiliated Haotian, as well as messed up the order of Heaven and the Earth. This is an act of disrespect and thus, it is the Devil."


    The youngdy¡¯s voice was extremely firm, determined and clear. When the topic was about the difference between Taoism and Devil, she had presented her arguments calmly and strongly in front of the Divine Lord Lotus, the man whom she respected and looked up upon. She said in her low voice, "The difference between Taoism and the Devil does note from mindsets nor the identity from birth, but from the fact that one creates while the other destroys the world. It¡¯s the same with the difference between ck and white, or light and darkness. They can never exist together. Hence, I disagree with your thinking."


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s clear koto-like voice helped to clear the doubts in Mo Shanshan. She nodded her head slightly in agreement. The difference between Taoism and Devil should be determined by whether one had good or evil intentions for this world.


    In the past, Ning Que had a problem understanding why the West-Hill Divine Pce, Buddhism Sect and the cultivators in Tang Empire seemed pissed every time the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was mentioned, which made his heart palpitate with fear. Yet today, Ye Hongyu¡¯s words finally made him understand the logic behind it.


    The Devil¡¯s Doctrine made use of the primordial Qi to its own advantage. The higher state the cultivator was in, the more they absorbed. If the Devil¡¯s Doctrine spread and influenced everyone to cultivate with them, there would be a possibility that the primordial Qi of the whole world would be absorbed by its cultivators till it went dry. By then, this world would be destroyed. It was the same logic as breeding a herd of sheep on a grasnd. If the grass and leaves were all consumed by the herd of sheep, the grasnd would turn into a desert and eventually, the sheep would die.


    He finally realized that the reason why the whole world viewed Devil¡¯s Doctrine as their enemy was due to an environmental problem.


    ...


    ...


    When the three world¡¯s addicts, Tao Addict, Calligraphic Addict and Flower Addict, came into an environment which Ning Que was very familiar with, they had be the intelligent, cultured and educated pretty young girls who were shameless to study till 3 A.M. every night. Such girls often have a kind of stubbornness or addiction in them, and they enjoyed arguing with others about what they thought was true logic.


    The Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu, was simr to many other cultivators in the world, such as Ning Que. On her path to cultivation, she had doubts about the world, Taoism, and the Devil. She had also thought hard about such things and even to reflect on her thinkings. However, what made her different from the others was that she did not limit herself to the stubborn thoughts that the world had and stopped thinking about such issues. Neither did she let her hatred towards the Devil be a natural part of her. Instead, she kept on widening her knowledge about the world. From there, she analyzed the issue and finally, came up with her own conclusion.


    The conclusion that one got after going through such deep thoughts would definitely be much more certain and firm than the mindset of an average cultivator. Hence, even if she was facing Divine Lord Lotus with respect and fear, she was still very determined with her own stand. She was not willing to back out because she believed that this was the true logic.


    Her stand was neither fabricated nor fanciful. She did not bring up the arguments about opportunity, karma or retribution. She only talked about benefits, on how Taoism and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine could benefit or harm the world. Because this was a simple logic, so she was certain that she was right, and thus it was tough to argue against.


    Yet Master Lotus was indeed a master. With only a simple sentence, he managed to weaken Ye Hongyu¡¯s standpoint. That was because Master Lotus had seen more, thought longer and learned in a harder way. Moreover, Ye Hongyu¡¯s conclusion was not good enough.


    "Just as what I¡¯d said, I had spent a long time living in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and had experienced many of its skills though I¡¯d yet to find the "Ming" Handscroll. I believe that I understand the Devil¡¯s Doctrine deeper than anyone in this world."


    The old monk looked at Ye Hongyu warmly and said, "I had the same thinking as you in the past. However, after I saw the cultivators in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, observed them from birth to death, and noticed their rtionships with the Heaven and Earth, my thinking had changed. You were the same as me in the past. Both of us had forgotten an important issue."


    "Even though the cultivators in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine were strong and had long lives, they would eventually die. When they died and their bodies hardened, the Qi of Heaven and Earth which they had absorbed for several decades during their cultivation would disperse and return to the Heaven and Earth."


    The old monk kept silent for a moment before he smiled gently and said, "After you understand this, you wouldprehend that the goal of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was not to build another world. Instead, they wished to iste a space for themselves in this world. That space could be theke, the mountain, or perhaps a beautiful grasnd. Whichever it is, that space would ultimately belong to a part of this world."


    "Both were born on earth and grew up under the blessing of Haotian¡¯s Divine light. They cultivated through breathing and absorbing. In the end, their bodies turned into ashes as their aura dispersed and returned to Haotian. It may be true that each of them has walked different paths, but their beginning and ending points are the same. If that¡¯s the case, can you tell me essentially, what¡¯s the difference between the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and the Buddhism Sect?"


    Ye Hongyu was taken aback and could not answer his question. She felt that there was something wrong with the Divine Lord Lotus¡¯ words, but she could not pinpoint the problem within the short period of time.


    The old monk gazed at her peacefully and said, "I know what you¡¯re thinking. If the cultivators in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine died, they certainly would not cause any damage to this bnced and mightly world. But what if they have obtained immortality, which was what the Taoism cultivators, or should I say, what you have stated out of your caution and enmity towards them? Yet, when was there an immortal person in this world?"


    Ye Hongyu gradually sat on her legs. Her ck hair that was rested on her shoulders flowed down weakly. She appeared disappointed. It seemed that his words had impacted her Taoist Heart. On normal days, if she were to hear anyone dering that Taoism and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine were the same, she would definitelyugh coldly and ughter that person. Yet today, these words wereing from Divine Lord Lotus, a great man whom she respected and feared. Most importantly, there were no loopholes in the words that the Divine Lord Lotus had said.


    The old monk seemed to sense her insecurity and fear, as he looked at her pitifully and withpassion. He sighed softly before he raised his right arm with difficulty. A bright light shone between his fingers.


    Ye Hongyu was stunned as she looked over.


    Ning Que and Mo Shanshan were confused when they looked over.


    The three of them could sense the holy aura emitting from the skinny stick-like fingers of the old monk.


    "That year, I decided to iste myself from the rest of the world to redeem my guilt. I set up a confinement in this room. This confinement is the world outside my body. At this ce, the aura of the Heaven and the Earth is very thin but as time goes by, it can be slowly absorbed into and umted in the body. Now, the Qi of Heaven and Earth is circting within my skinny body and that is the world within my body. When the two worldse into contact with each other, a miracle will happen. This is because the confinement is from the Taoists Law, while the aura circting within the body is from the skills of the Devil. When Taoists Law meets with the Devil¡¯s skills..."


    The old monk quietly looked at the pure holy light revolving around his fingers. He calmly said, "Divine Skill is created."

 Chapter 274: Join the Devil (III)

    Chapter 274: Join the Devil (III)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The light surrounding his stick-like fingers gradually faded away as it swayed like a small heatless fire. It reminded one of the littlemplights on a windy and stormy night that seemed to extinguish anytime yet it would never extinguish.


    Ye Hongyu gazed at the holy light between Master Lotus¡¯ fingers, her eyes perplexed. Mo Shanshan was not any better than her as her eyes filled with shock. They could clearly feel the holy aura emitting from the light and couldn¡¯t help thinking over Master Lotus¡¯ words. They could not keep calm.


    Ning Que¡¯s cultivation state and knowledge were not as high as the twodies. Hence, he did not appear as shock as them. He was only surprised why the old monk¡¯s enigmatic Divine Skill was not pressurizing at all despite his advanced state? It was as if his existence was fictitious.


    The light emitting from the old monk¡¯s fingers was translucent, warm and bright. It was not zing, neither was it scorching. It was simr to how the sunshine shone onto all the living things on earth, depicting an indescribable high state.


    Mo Shanshan mumbled, "When Taoism connected with Devil, they would join the Gods?"


    The old monk smiled and looked at her. His eyes filled with admiration as he said, "For the past decades, I have been brainstorming about the differences between Taoism and the Devil. I¡¯d used the Taoists Law outside my body to confine a world and the Devil¡¯sw within my body to confine another world. Finally, I¡¯ve discovered a possibility, which what you¡¯ve mentioned just now."


    Upon hearing these words, Ye Hongyu was finally awakened from the shock. She then recalled that whether the connection between the Taoism and the Devil could enable them to join the Gods, one would need to attempt to join the Devil first. She stared at the old monk in the Bone Mountain distressingly and felt that her own judgment was too absurd. How is it possible that the Divine Lord Lotus...


    "Your guess is right. I have indeed joined the Devil."


    In the midst of the Bone Mountain sat a skinny stick-like old monk. For the past decades, the air had been dry and cold. Only the thin cracks at the ceiling of the room in the Bone Mountain revealed slight moisture. It was unclear how many days did those moisture take to umte and form a tiny drop of water.


    The old monk slowly lifted his head as he gently raised the corner of his mouth. A drop of water fell from the ceiling and onto his cracked dry lips, which formed a smile on the skinny old monk¡¯s face. That smile was full ofpassion, which made one¡¯s heart ache upon watching it.


    The old monk grinned as he stared at her and said, "That year, I was worried that Ke Haoran joined the Devil. It was unexpected that I¡¯d join the Devil in the end as well."


    ...


    ...


    At this point of time, Mo Shanshan and Ye Hongyu were too stunned and shook up by the fact. Each of them was in their own deep thoughts, and only Ning Que alone was still observing every movement of the old monk.


    The moment they stepped into the main hall of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and followed by meeting this legendary man who had been isting himself to atone his sin for decades, Ning Que had many doubts on his mind. How did this Master Lotus manage to survive without any food and drinks for decades? However, after noticing that Mo Shanshan and Ye Hongyu did not have such doubts, he guessed that perhaps this master was already in a state that was beyond average mortals¡¯ imagination, a state that made him an inediate.


    Now that he observed how the drop of water that was formed from the moisture umted at the cracks of the ceiling dropped andnded on the old monk¡¯s cracked lips, he couldn¡¯t help but be in a daze. He thought that this old monk must have been very clear about the regr pattern of the water droplets. For the past decades, he must have repeated this process for numerous times, or perhaps, missed this drop of water for numerous times, which made him full of regrets. Else why would he be so proficient in this?


    The moisture in between the cracks had been serving this legendary man who had been atoning his sins for decades. Whoever seen this scene would feel pitiful and respectful towards this old man. Yet Ning Que¡¯s heart was hard as steel. He raised his brows and thought, if he was here to atone his sins, then why did he even attempt to survive? If he had nned to atone for his sins via suffering, then why would he feel miserable when he missed the drop of water, which made him master the habit of raising his head to catch hold of that drop of water at the right moment?


    As Ning Que was thinking of these things, Master Lotus had already begun his argument and analysis about the highest level in Taoism cultivation with Ye Hongyu and Mo Shanshan. He couldn¡¯t help but frowned, as he thought that since Master Lotus could brilliantly debate at Lanke Temple till the hierarch of the Divine Hall came to visit, his standard was certainly not simr to that of Prince Long Qing. After all, he had locked himself up in the Devil¡¯s Pce and debated with himself every day for several decades. Who could possibly win him in the argument then?


    Indeed, as time went by, only the old and sorrow voice was heard in the room.


    "If there¡¯s true logic on earth, debating will make things clearer."


    "What exactly is a cultivator searching for? If what we are searching for is the method to know the world better and the strength to change the world, then why would strength be ssified into good and evil? Only the person using the strength can be ssified as good or evil."


    "A knife can be used either to chop vegetables, sculpture the carrot or to kill people. A stone can be used either for y, to build foundation or to kill people as well. Ake can be used either to breed fishes, to row boats or to kill people too. A mountain can be used either to climb, to build a temple on it or to kill people."


    "Everything on earth that can be used to help people, can also be used to kill people. However, these things are not at fault. Instead, humans are the souls of everything. They give spirits and purposes to everything. Thus, the me should only go to the humans. The differences between Taoism and the Devile from the method or the path taken, which is simr to all things on earth. As such, why should we me them? Hence, the one and only to me is human."


    The old monk¡¯s words were notplicated nor deep at all. There was no hidden meaning nor was there a need to read between the lines. He had slowly put across a pure and simple logic, allowing the three youngsters to listen to the cultivation world he knew about.


    The old monk sounded weak. His slight hoarse voice and tone were filled with his passion andpassion towards this world. Though his voice was calm, it was very convincing. Whatever he said sounded like golden words.


    At first, Ning Que wasn¡¯t even listening to the old monk, yet he was unknowingly being attracted by his words. He sat on the ground and began to listen to him attentively. Since he came from the Wilderness, he had been feeling tense. However, upon listening to his benevolent voice, he felt more rxed and his body was less tense.


    The Devil¡¯s Pce seemed to have umted several years of loneliness as it had isted from the world¡¯s rowdiness. Only the old monk¡¯s voice was gradually spreading like the lotus flower and echoing in the ce. His voice and expressions were finally transformed into the dews on the lotus petals as they reverberated between the walls and his soul. A series of reverberation came one after another gradually, and the warm feeling somewhat made one ufortable.


    A white bone with half-dried flesh was left in the midst of The Bone Mountain. The white bone was facing the sky and its dried fingers were stretched to the back of his head as though they were supporting his head. Its fleshless right leg was ced on top of its left knee. It seemed to be quietly and happily listening as well, and it looked extraordinarily at ease. Not sure if it was the creation of the wind or the water droplets, the head of the white bone would shake slightly, as though it was agreeing his words.


    After an unknown amount of time, the teachings that were reverberating between the room and the souls had gradually stopped. The old monk gazed gently at the three youngsters, who were in deep thoughts. Upon seeing their troubled faces, he gently smiled and said, "The Front Gate is opened. Riots would certainly rise again in the world. By estimation, I believe it¡¯s time for me to leave soon."


    Ye Hongyu raised her head in awe. She was lost for words.


    The old monk looked at both his hands, which had formed into the lotus sign once again. He remained silent for a moment before he said briefly, "I¡¯d seen the world using the secr eyes throughout my whole life and it was fruitful. I was born as a buddhist, practiced as a Taoist yet ended up joining the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Now that I¡¯ming to an end of my life, I recalled the words of that Great Divine Priest who had created the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He said if you know me, you will me me. Yet as time goes by, one will feel that it doesn¡¯t matter at all. After all, one will need to return to where he came from. Hence, why should I be mindful of who knows me or who mes me?"


    "Only, who on this earth can really put down life and death totally? Even if one had gone through life and death, how certain that one would not leave any feeling for the world? Or even hope to leave some marks in the world? It¡¯s the same for me."


    The old monk slowly raised his head and looked at the three youngsters. He grinned and said, "I¡¯ve cultivated all three religions and had isted myself from the world for several years to atone my sins. I dare not say that I have achieved a lot but I did obtain something from the past years. I hope to pass down the little strength that is left in my weak body. Not sure which of you is willing to gratefully ept my mantle."


    It was rumored that for Grand Cultivator who had cultivated to the highest point, due to their deep understanding towards the world, they could even know when they were going to leave the world. Master Lotus had locked himself in the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine to atone his sins via suffering for the past several years. In the end, he met with the few disciples at the Front Gate. This opportunity is probably a turning point of life and death. Hence, when the three of them heard him saying that he was about to leave this world, though they were shocked, they were not totally unprepared of it.


    Yet, when they heard that Master Lotus had decided to leave his mantle with one of them, the cool and calm Ning Que could not help but be shaken by the idea. Ye Hongyu¡¯s mind was wavering as well. She held her fist tightly and was speechless.


    The two most important things in life were none other than knowing the way to understand the world and having the ability to change the world. Master Lotus¡¯ way of understanding the world was already heard by all three of them previously for a long time. However, the ability to change the world was naturally dependable on the strength and state of a cultivator.


    The right path of cultivation would never have a way to pass down the strength, only the strong ones from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine could pass down their strengths to the chosen ones via initiations before they died. If Master Lotus wished to leave his mantle, then he should be using this method as well!


    What kind of person was Master Lotus? Ning Que had never heard of him before, but now he was very clear.


    He was a person who had cultivated in all three religions before and lived in tworge Unknown ces before. He was once a protector of the Front Gate of the Buddhism Sect, a Great Divine Priest of Judgment of the Divine Hall, and had almost identally be the leader of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He was qualified to be his Youngest Uncle¡¯s traveling partner and had stayed in the forbidden mountain for numerous years to connect cultivation with the Devil¡¯s skills to create the Divine Skill! He was such a legend, and thus, he was definitely the strongest human in the world!


    If he was able to obtain his mantle, how many years could he save on this tough and long cultivation path? How powerful could he get? What type of world would he be able to experience after that?


    Most importantly, Ning Que was certain that if he could obtain the old monk¡¯s mantle, he would not need to wait for a long time before he could kill General Xia Hou, Prince Lee Peiyan and those sneaky shadows hiding behind them. He would not need to borrow the strength from the Academy and put his seniors into a tight situation. He would also be able to simply get his long overdue revenge.


    His loving parents who had died in a pool of blood, his childhood friend who was stepped to death, his blood-stained chopper, the two people who had fallen in the woodshed, Darkie who was by the grey wall on a rainy day, as well as the innocent vigers who were ughtered in Darkie¡¯s hometown. All these scenes had suddenly appeared in his mind as they silently stared at him.


    Actually, he had long forgotten the hatred he had for the massacre that year, but he was scared of this calmness. Hence, he felt the need to root this hatred deep within his bones. Though this hatred had already turned sour, it had also be the most vital pir of support in his life. When this pir was mixed together with his greed for power, it became a strong and an irresistible seduction.


    This seduction was like an invisible hand that lifted him from the ground and encouraged him to spread his legs apart with difficulty as he moved his way into the Bone Mountain.


    Suddenly, he stopped moving.

 Chapter 275: Join the Devil (IV)

    Chapter 275: Join the Devil (IV)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Just a few steps forward to climb up the Bone Mountain and epted Master Lotus¡¯ mantle, Ning Que would be able to exploit the skills that could tyrant the world and became the world¡¯s strongest warrior. He would be able to inherit the enlightenment from the Divine state through the connection between Tao and the Devil. Yet it could mean that he might need to ept the power of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    When Tao and the Devil connected, one could join the Gods. This was such a beautiful saying, yet under this beautiful robe, was the original naked truth that everyone knows ¡ª by epting the transferring of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s power, it meant that this power was neither from self-enlightenment nor the state of Psyche Power, but its real presence came from the natural Qi of Heaven and Earth. If this was not considered evil, then what was?


    Before one could join the Gods, one got to join the Devil first? In this quiet and secluded room, Master Lotus could peacefully discuss the Devil, but in the real world outside this mountain, diabolism was deemed as evil and its presence was not epted by the world. To the Central ins, they were the devils that could destroy the country, the sects and everything.


    Ning Que was one of the Headmaster of Academy¡¯s core disciples. Ye Hongyu was the most favorited Tao Addict among the younger disciples in West-Hill Divine Pce. If people with such statues were discovered to have joined the Devils, they would be hated and abandoned by the whole world, just like these quiet ranges of mountains located in the south of the Wilderness.


    Just advance a few more steps, he would join the Devil. How could he do that? Yet if he inherited Master Lotus¡¯ mantle, he would be the strongest warrior in the world with unlimited power. The thought of owning such powerful energy and strong skills was truly seducing. Could he miss such a rare opportunity?


    Ning Que could feel the heaviness of his legs, as though a thousand worth of pure silver were hung on his legs, making his movement difficult.


    The gentle andpassionate voice, like the golden words from Buddha, seemed to reverberate by Ye Hongyu¡¯s ears. Her eyes looked nk and confused. At times, they appeared to be determined and bright. Yet at times, they looked to be struggling with pain.


    Simr to Ning Que, she was in a mentally unstable yet extremely rxed state. Her thoughts were wavering between Master Lotus¡¯ teachings and what she were taught since young.


    To be able to inherit Master Lotus¡¯ mantle was a great seduction to any cultivator in the world. Yet, if it was just pure seduction, it would not make someone who was loyal to Taoism like her to be slightly interested in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s skills. However, deep within her heart, she could not rebut against God¡¯s viewpoint. In fact, the more she thought about it, the more she agreed with his words.


    The eyebrows on Ye Hongyu¡¯s pretty face twitched into a frown, making her looked in pain. She stretched out her left hand and ced it on her soft breasts as she sunk her nails deep into them. It was as if she was trying to dig out her unsettled heart from her chest. However, she had used too much strength and this caused the arrow wounds on her left shoulder to tear apart once more as blood gradually flowed out from them.


    She mumbled in a soft voice, "Is there really a third path?"


    At the same time, Mo Shanshan, who was kneeling on the ground, turned pale. Her lips were tightened into a thin straight line and there was no focus in her beautiful dark eyes. She was in a mess.


    Master Lotus did not rush them nor appeared impatient. Instead, he gazed at them peacefully and a gentle yet sorrow smile stretched across his dried and skinny face. Perhaps he was hoping that they could ovee that barrier themselves and made their own choices.


    The realization of the differences between Tao and the Devil had caused a mental breakdown to Ning Que and the twodies, plunging them into the trough of pain and struggles. Such pain had mainly resulted in confusion and mental instability, yet they werebined together with a rxed and empty feeling within them. This caused the pain and struggling feeling to be gradually gone like streamwater. Warm spring water like aura had filled their minds instead as they slowly settled their hearts and eased their tensions.


    As the fear and negative emotions gradually faded within them, the three of them felt secure. Master Lotus was a righteous and pure man who had no reason to cheat them into joining the Devil. He shouldn¡¯t have any bad motives against them as well since he was a powerful man and would not need to waste so many efforts to hurt them.


    The real reason that made them more rxed was still seduction. The seduction of inheriting a strong ancestor¡¯s mantle. The seduction of being able to understand the true logic of the world. The seduction of blending Tao and the Devil together to form the Divine Skill.


    This seduction was simr to the grasnd, the starry sky, the fragrant taste of the butter cake during childhood, the feeling one got as one stood at the peak of a mountain looking down at the world, and the possibility of getting one¡¯s name passed down from generations by carving it onto the mottled city walls.


    The great door of seduction was slowly opening up to them in front of their eyes.


    Behind this door was an unfamiliar, yet fertile piece of pasture. As long as they were willing, they could lie on this piece of soft and green pasture, as they enjoyed the beautiful starry sky and everything they owned.


    Among the three of them, Ye Hongyu¡¯s state was the highest and her understanding towards cultivation was the deepest. She had seen the power of the real strong warriors, which made her determined and focused in pursuing such strengths. Hence, the seduction she felt was naturally the strongest among all.


    Suddenly, she heard the creaking sound of the tattered wooden bed, which reminded her of her weak and thin legs giving way when she was a child, as well as the humiliation and anger she had in the past.


    Then she recalled her senior who had a bun on his head and carried a wooden sword on his back. At that time, her senior was an arrogant and lonely youngd. As time passed by, her senior became more and more lonely. Was it because I couldn¡¯t catch up to him no matter how hard I tried? If I have the capability to be by your side and apany you to enjoy the freezing breeze on the cliff, would you be less lonely then?


    She raised her head abruptly and realized that Master Lotus was looking at her with his sorrow eyes. It was as if his eyes could see through her pretense. She suddenly felt a chill down her spine. She was fearful, for she felt that the door was going to close on her soon.


    "This is not joining the Devil...not joining the Devil..."


    She mumbled to herself. Her eyes became brighter as she stepped forward and towards the Bone Mountain.


    "Yes."


    "No."


    She stopped in front of the Divine Lord Lotus and kneeled down on both knees. A few white bones were crushed under her knees as she humbly lowered her head and sincerely put down all the biasness she had for the world. She had opened up her mind to the world.


    ...


    ...


    At the same time, Ning Que had also perceived the scene of him lying on the green pasture and enjoying the starry sky. His heart was serene and peaceful. Though this picture was filled with beautiful and pure seduction, something wascking that prevented him from advancing. As he had stopped in front of the door for too long, lots of thoughts started to appear in his mind, making him felt that something was wrong with the situation.


    A bright light shed in his mind. It wasn¡¯t a lightning, but it was more like a spring rain that had truly cooled him down in an instance. As his mind got rid of the confused status, he recalled the doubts that were on his mind previously.


    If he volunteered to atone his sins, then why would he need to chain himself up? Would someone with such a high state like Master Lotus put himself through senseless physical tortures just to atone his sins? Such legendary man would have great determination and perseverance. He would have a wide knowledge regarding this world lives and deaths. Hence, why would he, for no reason, go against Buddhism just because the Youngest Uncle had fought his way into the Front Gate and killed numerous devil cultivators?


    Even upon seeing such cruel acts, he himself would still be able to uphold his own stand firmly. Then why couldn¡¯t someone, who was much stronger than him, do so?


    These doubts kept hitting his mind like rain droplets and in the end, they gathered to form a possibility. This old monk did not iste himself to atone his sins, but was locked up by someone to make him suffer and reflect on his sins!


    With such a thought, Ning Que suddenly woke up. He realized the warm spring water that surrounded him and the peaceful yet sorrow aura had all disappeared. Instead, he found himself in a dry and severely cold environment. He then discovered that all the emotions and feeling which he felt previously were actually controlled by the old monk¡¯s power!


    He gazed outside the Bone Mountain in awe. All he saw was Tao Addict kneeling on the stack of white bones in front of the old monk. The old monk¡¯s hand was already on the top of her head. A strong feeling of fear and panic overtook his body all of a sudden!


    Mo Shanshan disconcertedly walked to the edge of the Bone Mountain. Ning Que immediately shouted and stretched his arm to pull her back. He then quickly took the metal bow on his back, ced an arrow and aimed directly at the once buddha-looking yet now cunning and dark-looking old monk who sat deep within the Bone Mountain.


    ...


    ...


    The frail-looking boney palm covered with thin skin graduallynded on the youngdy¡¯s head. As it gently touched thedy¡¯s silky ck hair, a slight sense of painfulness from his struggle with lust had suddenly appeared in the old monk¡¯s gentle-looking eyes.


    The struggle was only for a moment before the old man¡¯s gentle expression on his dried skinny face was torn apart in an instance to reveal his craziness within. In the end, his expression became extremely cold and quiet, like the stars on a silent night. There was no emotion on his face.


    A thick and pure but not powerful aura was forced out from the bottom of the old monk¡¯s palm.


    Ye Hongyu suddenly opened her eyes. Seeing the old monk¡¯s pale face being right in front of her, she could feel her Psyche Power gushed out from her sense of perception. Her body became very weak and she immediately knew what was going on.


    Her bright eyes turned cold, her body started to wriggle like a fish as she screamed with anger. Both her hands swung in the air as she consecutively changed four types of Sword Forms and gathered the surrounding Qi of Heaven and Earth to form a mock sword. She then pierced the sword into the old monk¡¯s chest.


    She was indeed a strong Tao Addict, for she was still able to make the fastest move that every cultivator could make despite being in an unexpected situation where she was facing the Divine Lord Lotus, a man well-respected by many cultivators. It was also the most correct move she should make. Her move was simple, direct and cold. It was a cruel Taoism move that could kill both the enemy and herself.


    However, this move which made use of her years of devoted cultivation, or should it be said, the strongest Taoist Sword she had ever use in her life, had gone down the drain. This was because...when she consecutively switched between four Sword Forms, she had failed to gather any Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    The primordial Qi should be everywhere and as long as there was primordial Qi, Psyche Power could be used to sense and control it. Ye Hongyu, the Tao Addict, was an expert in such skills. Even if she was at the brim of death, she wouldn¡¯t make any mistake in her Taoism skills. Yet now she was unable to gather any Qi of Heaven and Earth. There could only be one possibility: There was no presence of Qi of Heaven and Earth surrounding the old monk!


    There were many methods of blocking the Qi of Heaven and Earth. However, in order to make a space with no Qi of Heaven and Earth at all, ording to Ye Hongyu¡¯s knowledge, there could only be one method ¡ª¡ª by creating a real confinement area!


    Ye Hongyu was very familiar with Judicial Department¡¯s confinement. She was even one of the few who had seen the Great Divine Priest of Judgment setting up a confinement space with her own eyes. Yet the confinement space that had locked up the Great Divine Priest of Light for decades was not as powerful as the one before her right now!


    As she felt her psyche power being drained out and her body getting weaker, she lowered her head and strengthlessly kneeled on the stack of white bones. Looking at the mountain of white bones beneath her with her gradually blurred vision, she revealed a look of despair and hopelessness.


    White bones as the fence, and dried bodies as the barrier. What a powerful and horrible confinement area it was.

 Chapter 276: Join the Devil (V)

    Chapter 276: Join the Devil (V)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Now that the situation had changed with the Tao Addict being captured, it was only natural for Ning Que to escape with Mo Shanshan as far as possible. But he did not. Instead, he prepared to use his Primordial Thirteen Arrows to resolve the problem, because he knew there was no way for them to escape.


    When he pinched the tail of the Talisman Arrow, the old monk¡¯s palm had already released a powerful gush of aura.


    As he pulled his metal arrow to the maximum, Ye Hongyu was already weakened and her head lowered.


    He saw the look of despair in Ye Hongyu¡¯s eyes. He had also noticed the cold and heartless look from Master Lotus.


    Mo Shanshan was taken aback by him as she suddenly woke up from her dreand. She threw her ck flowing hair behind her as she drew in the air with her right hand. She knew that all three of them were in trouble and thus, she drew the most powerful talisman, Half Divine Talisman.


    Facing the powerful double attack, the old monk, who was sitting within the Bone Mountain, showed no expression on his face. He had only given a in look to his two attackers, as he stared into their eyes.


    With just a simple stare, Ning Que could feel an intense pain in his head. It was as if Second Brother¡¯s wooden club had repeatedly knocked him on the head in a speed of light. In the next moment, his vision went ck as he loosened his grip.


    Mo Shanshan could only feel her chest and abdomen being slitted apart by a sharp knife. The previously Stone Array Tactics umted within the big tactical array outside the Front Gate poured out. Even so, it wasn¡¯t a feeling of relief, but a feeling of unlimited pain. The finger, which was used to draw the talisman, froze.


    The Talisman Arrow left the bow and flew past like a dark shadow. At this moment, Ning Que¡¯s sense of perception was in confusion and he had lostplete control of the arrow. The metal arrow swooshed past, flew nted and into the corner of the Devil¡¯s Pce. It directly burst therge boulder apart and the broken rocks had mounted together in a corner!


    The Divine Talisman was circting between Mo Shanshan¡¯s sleek fingers as it gradually became dimmer and weaker. It was simr to amp light that was getting dimmer due to theck of air cirction and was silently extinguished after the wind blew.


    At the same time, fresh blood was spurted out from their mouths as they fell weakly onto the ground and unable to get on their feet again.


    Master Lotus stared at the two people who had spurted blood and fell onto the floor without any expression. His pupils were dark, cold and narrow like rice grains, which made him look like a devil. His dried chest seemed to be emptier than before.


    Behind the simple in stare was, in fact, a horrendous high-level state power. The old monk was jailed for decades and the Psyche Power which he had umted for the past decades would be drained in an instance through that simple stare.


    Without any expression, Master Lotus stared at Ye Hongyu, who was kneeling in front of him now. He gently patted her head, which was now surfaced with veins, like a tender-hearted lover and all of a sudden, he revealed a smile on his face. It was the same benevolent smile as before.


    With such benevolent and tender-loving smile, he lowered his head and ced it beside the Tao Addict¡¯s slightly cold face. He looked as though he was tenderly kissing and whispering to her softly. He then lightly touched his lips on her left shoulder, where he sucked gently.


    Like a leech, the wrinkled lips sucked greedily on the soft bare skin of the youngdy. His dried skinny cheeks vibrated in a rhythmic manner as fresh blood gradually flowed through his lips and quenched his thirsty dried throat. The blood started to moisturize his internal organs which had not been well-utilized for decades.


    After a moment, the old monk raised his head and looked at the youngdy between his palms. His eyes filled with warmth as he gazed at her pitifully. A light and exquisite Buddhism aura revealed on his face. Even the drop of blood left on his dehydrated lips made him appear merciful as well.


    Her sense of perception waspletely under his control. With her Psyche Power being totally drained by him, her body became extremely weak till she couldn¡¯t even lift a finger. The powerful Tao Addict was now as helpless as a newborn baby as she stared at the old monk without any expression and reaction.


    She knew that she probably wouldn¡¯t be able to live past today. The arrogantdy would naturally not beg for her life. Even when she felt a sharp pain on her shoulder and was disgusted by his previous acts, she remained calm, for she did not want to give the Divine Lord Lotus any sense of excitement. This was the only resistant that the arrogantdy could put up before her death.


    "Your blood is filled with the power of light and is thickened with extremely pure Taoism aura. It was rare for me to taste such exquisite power-filled blood, even decades ago."


    Master Lotus gently looked at her pretty face, as he said regretfully, "It¡¯s only a pity that you¡¯re no longer a virgin. The dark shadow in your Taoist Heart added a sense of annoyance in your blood. Else it will beparable with the cheerful beauty that year."


    Upon listening to his words, her hands that were strengthlessly ced on the broken bones to support herself began to tremble, but she stubbornly remained quiet and cold. All of a sudden, her pupils narrowed as she saw a very strange scene in front of her.


    Master Lotus¡¯ skinny and ghastly face had indistinctly inted, making it looked plumper than before. His wrinkled and pale lips appeared to be redder, as though he was alive once again.


    This reminded Ye Hongyu of a legend regarding a skill from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, which made her shiver with fear.


    Master Lotus no longer looked at her. Instead, he raised his head to look at the moisture between the cracks of the rock. Perhaps it was because life was returning to him, or perhaps it was due to the delicious youngdy¡¯s blood, he could not help but began to recall all the beautiful and prideful memories he had. He mumbled, "Remember that year when the new Emperor of South Jin Kingdom took over, there were many beauties dancing in the hall..."


    His old hoarse voice came to a pause, as he gazed at the two people on the ground, whose life and death were unknown.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que was neither dead nor concussed. He could only feel soreness and pain all over his body, as though his bones were broken. He sensed that he couldn¡¯t control his body movements and understood that his sense of perception must have been seriously damaged by the old monk¡¯s stare.


    He used his elbow to support his body as he tried to crawl up. He hoped to grab his bow and arrow again. He hoped to draw out the big ck umbre behind his back. He hoped to pull out his three knives. Yet there was nothing he could do as he couldn¡¯t move. All he could do was to stare hopelessly at the old monk.


    With only a simple stare from the old monk, both Calligraphy Addict and he were defeated, which was indeed horrifying. Feeling painful and confused, Ning Que recalled the time when he questioned his master about battles with cultivators in the Knowing Destiny States. That time, Master Yan Se used Second Brother from the Academy as an example and said that Second Brother could have killed him with only a stare...


    This old monk, who was jailed in the Bone Mountain for decades and whose body was so weak to a state where he was almost dying, could simply reach the level of Second Brother with only a stare. It was no doubt that this man was powerful and filled with energy decades ago. Which horrifying state had this man cultivated until when his body was still healthy? Could it be that he had already cultivated past the five states?


    At this moment, the old monk stared in his direction.


    He noticed the strange changes on the old monk¡¯s face and became speechless. He couldn¡¯t understand what had happened.


    Due to therge amount of power exerted to destroy the Great Blockage Formation, Mo Shanshan was mentally weakened. Moreover, her Half Divine Talisman was previously destroyed by the stare of the old man, which injured her badly.


    Now that she noticed the strange changes of Master Lotus, her body started to tremble vigorously. Her eyes were filled with fear and her face turned as white as sheet. She said in a trembling voice, "Tao Tie...are...are you...Tao Tie?"


    In the teaching book of West-Hill Divine Pce, it was stated that there was a strange demon in the past named Tao Tie. It did not have a body but only a head, and it was famous for being greedy.


    The teaching book of West-Hill Divine Pce had also stated another thing about Tao Tie. It was a very evil skill from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Strong cultivators that cultivated such skill would consume cultivators¡¯ blood and flesh to replenish and strengthen its own aura. It made one a greedy murderer, and hence it was the darkest and the evilest skill on earth. Most of the cultivators from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine were ashamed to be in the same religion with such people.


    This Tao Tie skill, which was despised by cultivators from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, was no doubt the most vicious skill of all.


    Ning Que had never heard of such devil skill. However, when he saw how Lotus gently sucked the blood out of Ye Hongyu¡¯s wound, he was already traumatized by the scene. After which, he could vividly observe the fast recovery speed of Master Lotus with his bare eyes. Thus, it was not difficult to guess the rtion between the two.


    Ever since he was born on this earth, he had witnessed many cruel things. He had even seen many horrifying and bloody scenes with his own eyes and thus, he understood that life and death were all fated. He could be described as being fearless. However, when he imagined how he would be slowly munched and eaten by this skinny and ghastly old monkter, the shadow cast on his childhood memories had slowly expanded. This made his face paler and his eyes were filled with fear.


    Perhaps it was to suppress the fear in his heart, Ning Que said to Mo Shanshan, who was beside him, "Don¡¯t be afraid. He has been stuck in this ce for decades. I doubt if he was as powerful as before. Moreover, the stare previously should have exhausted the Psyche Power which he had umted for years. If he could still battle, he would have killed you and me previously. Look, he couldn¡¯t even remove the metal chain that had prated his abdomen."


    The old monk took a nce at him and said gently, "Nice observation."


    Since the old monk was unable to remove the metal chain now, as well as he would require some time before he could digest Tao Addict¡¯s body and blood and transformed them into his strength, it would mean that Ning Que and Mo Shanshan were now rushing against time. They were nowpeting against the old monk to see who recover faster.


    Ning Que sat with folded legs, closed her eyes and put his hands together. Mo Shanshan pulled her left leg back and sat down with difficulties. Both of them began to meditate at the same time. After a while, both of them opened their eyes at the same time in shock and despair.


    Master Lotus stared in their direction and both of them could sense a strong wave of attack. This sudden wave of attack caused an impact on their internal organs, and their sense of perception were badly injured. It was impossible for them to mediate peacefully as usual.


    The two of them looked at each other, and with the tacit agreement, they decided to give up as they prepared to attempt the Talisman Taoism method. After all, drawing talisman would require lesser Psyche Power, yet in the next moment, they discovered that this method would not work as well!


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth in this dark room was very thin. Even if Talisman Taoism required very little Psyche Power, it still needed to make use of the Qi of Heaven and Earth. Without any Qi of Heaven and Earth, the talisman would be useless!


    The room was filled with Master Lotus¡¯ warm and pitiful voice.


    "White bones as a fence, and dried bodies as the barriers. This was just what you¡¯ve observed. In fact, this confinement space uses the green stone as fence and sword mark as the barriers. It was personally set up by Ke Haoran. Even I am unable to set such a confinement space up, nor can I destroy it. How can kids like both of you destroy it?"


    A confinement space personally set up by Youngest Uncle? Ning Que was taken aback as he looked around, only to realize that there were thousands of deep sword marks hidden on the mottled rock wall. Those sword marks seemed to be ovepping without any rtion with one another, yet together, they formed a dark barrier, which prevented any aura outside the Devil¡¯s Pce from seeping in.


    There were many other matters that were still unclear, yet Ning Que could finally confirm some things. He stared at the old monk inside the Bone Mountain and said, "I was right that you didn¡¯t iste yourself to atone your sins. In fact, you were locked up by Youngest Uncle to reflect on yourself!"


    The old monk kept quiet for a long time, before a pleased look appeared in his face as he said arrogantly, "If you know me, you will me me, but this is only in spring and autumn. Whether it¡¯s you, or others, or even Ke Haoran, have no rights to me me."


    Ning Que¡¯s voice trembled and asked, "Who are you exactly?"


    "A Buddha, a Taoist, a Devil, an immortal, a tiger or maybe a rascal? I had yed many different roles in this life, to the extent that I have forgotten who I am. Am I the Great Divine Priest from the Divine Hall, the protector of the Front Gate for Buddhism Sect, or the leading cultivator in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine? Then again, what has my identity got to do with the true you and me?"


    Thepassionate look on the old monk¡¯s face gradually dispersed with the blowing wind as he gently waved his torn and tattered long sleeves of his robe. His movement was appealing and charming, as he calmly said, "I am Liansheng 32. Everyone of us is different, yet I have no idea why people like to standardize us as the same? If I want to be a Buddha, I can be a Buddha. If I want to be a devil, I can be a devil."


    After the old monk finished his sentence, he revealed a pitiful look as he lifted Ye Hongyu¡¯s slender arm, lowered his head and took a bite. He then shook his head left and right, as he torn a piece of flesh with difficulties and put it in his mouth. He began to focus on chewing the piece of meat in a serious manner.

 Chapter 277: Join the Devil (Part VI)

    Chapter 277: Join the Devil (Part VI)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Human flesh was rubbery to chew on especially for an old monk without teeth. So he concentrated on chewing it with his hollow cheeks moving slowly. Bothpassion and greedy were reflected in his indifferent eyes.


    As he chewed, swallowed and the flesh was absorbed, his deep sockets and hollow cheeks were refreshed. His face regained vitality.


    The girl¡¯s little arm was like a piece of lotus root washed away by theke water, and with that heart-throbbing sound, it was eaten away alive with a piece of flesh. Blood ran down the wound, and her face was pale but strong and tight-lipped, refusing to utter a sound of pain.


    The old monk stuck out his ck tongue to lick off the blood near his mouth while maintained apassionate expression on his face. The stark contrast was even more chilling.


    Ning Que was stunned when he saw this and he found that things went beyond his expectation. Neither he nor Ye Hongyu saw thising. They never expected that the venerable Master Lotus would be such a horrible monster. Moreover, the most important thing was that even though he knew there was something wrong with the old monk, he was unwilling to believe it.


    After hepletely ate that human flesh, even if his face was still covered with the girl¡¯s blood, Master Lotus suddenly looked like a venerable and merciful Buddhism Sect Bhadanta.


    He looked down at Ye Hongyu who was looking back at him desperately and resentfully. He swept across her young face and said, "How could I do this to you. You are so cute."


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s sense of perception was blocked and she lost her body control. She could feel she was bing weaker and weaker and the finger on her face was as cold as a snake.


    "Why would I do that? Why didn¡¯t I resist the temptation of your blood?"


    The old monk¡¯s eyes became hollow and perplexed. He murmured to himself andughed, "I have saved all my Psyche Power for decades and I still have not been able to kill you two. Lotus you were too weak ."


    He calmed down and exined to the three young people and himself. "I had to eat something because I was trapped here for a very long time. I had to."


    He said in such a normal voice that Ning Que and the girls felt grim.


    Ning Que was sure that years ago when his Youngest Uncle broke the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, he trapped Master Lotus with an inhibition and made him suffer for so many years instead of killing him.


    Even if the old monk had a high realm of cultivation, he could not take such torment for so many years without breaking down. While he was about to die, the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine opened and Ning Que and the girls came in. They became his best bet for getting out of there.


    So the old monk pretended to be merciful and he used his legacy to let them rx their guard. The Tao Addict then finally opened her spiritual world to him and he was able to control it.


    Ning Que frowned and said, "Although I didn¡¯t know you before, they did. They kneeled to you as soon as they saw you. Both Master Lotus and Divine Lord Lotus have a great reputation in cultivation and they trust you. Why didn¡¯t you wait for them to help you get out, but instead took such a risk?"


    The old man smiled and said, "Because you can¡¯t unlock this array and I am the only one who can break this Confinement if I can get all my power back. I had to eat you up if I want my power back."


    "Even if we couldn¡¯t break this Confinement, our sect elders could," said Ning Que.


    The old monkughed and added, "There were only a few people who could break Crazy Ke¡¯s Confinement, and yes, some of your sect elders could. But unfortunately, they all knew the story of what happened in that year, and they would rather kill me by pulling down half of the world than save me."


    Ning Que paused and said, "You are not well liked."


    The old monk sighed and continued. "With the bones for so many years, I had given up for a long time and I never saw hopeing. You, three poor kids, came here when the door opened. I think it¡¯s destiny."


    Ning Que became silent and thought, "I, as the disciple on the Second floor of the Academy and the three addicts, are qualified to do something big in the world of cultivation. But in this former master¡¯s eyes, we are just three cute poor kids. It means time really matters for a cultivator."


    "I hadn¡¯t stored enough Psyche Power, so after you got in this room, I started my Buddhism Sect Torture Method to make you doubt yourselves. I thought you would be the weakest one, trapped in your delusion and never got out. I didn¡¯t expect you are the only one who stayed conscious. How did you do that?"


    The old monk smiled at Ning Que. Although he looked so skinny and ugly, he showed his arrogance to the world just like a free young man.


    Ning Que thought that he was using every minute to absorb the human flesh and had no time to hurt them, so he tried to rx and prepare at this moment. He answered, "Maybe you haven¡¯t tempted me enough."


    The old monk frowned a little and asked, "Doesn¡¯t my legacy attract you?"


    Ning Que answered, "I want power but I don¡¯t believe you."


    The old monk said, "I didn¡¯t lie to you. I have worked hard for many years to join the gods by connecting the Tao and the Devil."


    Ning Que froze and said, "I still need to join the Devil first."


    The old monk looked at him just like a goshawk looking at a chicken, and then he said, "I told you the Academy was degenerating. Look at you, even the words ¡¯join the Devil¡¯ scare you off."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "If I had to join the Devil to stay alive, I would like to do that. I will do what I need to. And since temptation has to carry some weight, the temptations that you showed in the Buddha¡¯s Magic Sound earlier are not strong enough for me."


    He said that with contempt and disdain.


    But Ning Que forgot that now Lotus was not the venerable Bhadanta he was before. Master Lotus quipped. "Is there anything more attractive than my legacy?"


    Ning Queughed at once. "I¡¯m a disciple on the Second floor of the Academy and I¡¯m going to take the Headmaster of Academy legacy. Even if I was going to join the Devil, I would learn from my Youngest Uncle. I think that is more attractive."


    When the old monk heard this, he choked. Even though he considered the three sects as the trash, he didn¡¯t expect he was at the same level as the Headmaster of Academy. What was more, he was humiliated and hurt by Ke Haoran so badly.


    "I haven¡¯t met a truly unselfish man in my life and also believe that there is no such thing as a free lunch. So the more merciful you pretended to be, the weirder I felt," said Ning Que.


    "I¡¯m wondering if the stories you told us were true or were they made up to fool us?"


    He was curious about the stories because they were about his Youngest Uncle. But it looked so creepy when they were sitting on the ground and talking about old stories together in a crisis of life and death.


    The old monk said, "They were true and I just skipped some important information. To Bloody Lanke Temple was nning by me. That beautiful dancer was also killed by me and I drank all her blood. She creeped me out that she died with a sweet smile on her pale face. I thought she was asking me why I killed her."


    He looked at Ning Que and said, "I was so scared when I saw her smile and I could not make that go away, so I had to cut her into pieces and eat her up. That was the first time I ate human flesh."


    Ning Que kept silent for a long time and suddenly asked, "Who was the dancer?"


    The old monk smiled and said, "I killed her to drive Ke Haoran crazy, so of course, she was his girl."


    Upon hearing this, Ning Que though for a long time and then he asked, "Did you do this just because you wanted to start a war between the Academy and Divine Hall or for some other reasons?"


    The old monk said coldly after a while, "There¡¯s no other reason. But from then on, Ke Haoran saw through this in the end and Wei Guangming began to suspect me for no reason, so I had to leave the Peach Mountain and hid in Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    Listening to his turbid breath, Ning Que knew this old strong master had little vitality after being trapped for so many years by his Youngest Uncle. He nned all of this because he knew he couldn¡¯t ovee them directly. What an insidious human-being.


    However, when he remembered that this man was capable of starting wars among the three sects all over the world and he put them in such a dangerous situation so easily, he realized that seemed reasonable.


    Ning Que looked at the old monk and asked what he cared for the most, "You can be an honorable bigwig no matter what you choose, Taoism, Buddhism or Devil Sect. Even if you don¡¯t choose, you also can be a legend. Why did you choose such a bloody and boring way? Why? Why do you want to fight against the entire world?"


    "It sounds familiar." The old monk said slowly, "Many years ago, Wei Guangming examined himself in this way. He treated the entire world as his enemy because he believed he was right. But I was not like him. I did this because I knew the world was wrong."

 Chapter 278: Join the Devil (Part VII)

    Chapter 278: Join the Devil (Part VII)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Suddenly, the old monk¡¯s extremely long white brows floated out of his inexplicable madness rather than leisureliness. He stared with his eyes open and hard rubbed the girl¡¯s hair with his skinny palms, shouting, "Is there anything reasonable in the world?"


    "I was the Great Divine Priest of Judgment sitting on the ink-jade divine seat. I was a patriarch of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, free to choose a sovereign. I was a guardian of the Front Gate in Buddhism Sect who could order thousands of monks. What a proud and splendid life I had! I was free to do anything sensational if I wanted, not mention to bing a Buddha or a devil. Was there anything reasonable?"


    "Don¡¯t you see many pigheaded people living in this dirty world? Don¡¯t you think the air you¡¯re breathing is also so pungent? Don¡¯t you feel it ufortable to breathe under a dirty silent sky for years? It¡¯s natural for people living between heaven and earth to eat meat, including pigs, dogs, chicken and others. There¡¯s nothing reasonable to say!"


    Ning Que suddenly said, "But it doesn¡¯t include eating human flesh."


    The old monk returned to silence. After some time, he regained the aura ofpassion and said thoughtfully in a soft voice, "Yeah, there is still something reasonable in the world. Only the degree is not the same." "In my opinion, the way in which you and I exist in this world is a collection of our own methods of knowing the world. After a rain beside the grave in those years, I¡¯ve been struggling to find out the true essence of the real world and eventually changed the way I existed in the world. I expected to change the world and searched for the world that was already impossible to return."


    "When I attained Tao enlightenment and debated in Lanke Temple, the West-Hill Divine Pce hierarch spoke highly of my eloquence and asked me to enter Devil¡¯s Doctrine as a spy of all the Central ins sects. But he didn¡¯t know I was actually born as a diabolism person."


    The old monk revealed a childlike smile on his old and skinny cheeks. There were no teeth inside his open lips. So he looked more like a newborn. And he made others feel a sense of innocence and purity, thus making his ridicule also look so naive.


    "I only sought for strength and ways to change the world. I didn¡¯t care about whether it was Taoism or Diabolism and who won or lost. The reason why I was willing toe to Devil¡¯s Doctrine was that I wanted to look at the lost Tomes of Arcane."


    "But the ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll was not in the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Those Devil¡¯s Doctrine people hid in mountains and in the Central ins countries like rats. Those Elders who fanned the mes and agitated the people like women also made me feel disgusted. So I left once again."


    The old monk showed a very strong sense of irony and disgust on his face, just like a woman who saw others selling vinegar added with two bowls of water in a marketce, full of natural pride and disdain.


    "I went to the Grand River in the South Jin Kingdom and Yuelun Kingdom. And finally, I went westward to the distant Unknown ce. In that Xuankong Temple, I finally heard the preaching of the chief monk, saw the brilliant Buddism lights and heard the Buddismnguage under the lights. After a few years, however, I found that the monks in Xuankong Temple were nothing but somemon people. The so-called Buddha¡¯snguage was deliberately mystifying and was no different from the fortune tellers in the street of the Kingdom of Song. What was more abominable was that the Buddhism Sect proposed penance and introspection. They could only humbly wait for the rotation of life, so how could they reach the ideal world?"


    The old monk¡¯s white brows floated upwards and then fell down. His eyes were full of dissatisfaction, just like a young schr who stopped the prime minister¡¯s sedan and suggested the minister revive the deste country. Obviously, he had a much better impression of the Xuankong Temple and the Unknown ce of Buddhism Sect than the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. But he was still angry with the non-aspirant attitude of the Xuankong Temple monks.


    "Finally, I returned from the Wilderness and was invited by the hierarch to enter West-Hill Divine Pce. With the help of my trusted aide in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, I killed two Elders. And then I revealed my identity and sat on the ink-jade divine seat of Grand Judge."


    Ning Que and Mo Shanshan had listened to him silently. And now they finally could not help but ask, "Since you¡¯re one of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, why did you help the West-Hill Divine Pce to kill the Elders of Devil¡¯s Doctrine?"


    "How could I have won the trust of the Haotian Taoism sect if I didn¡¯t do so? If not, how would that lousy Taoist temple allow me, a sessor of Xuankong Temple, to read their precious Tomes of Arcane? But that Taoist temple was so mean. I only read ¡¯Ri¡¯ book and ¡¯Sha¡¯ book even though I had done so many things for the Haotian Taoism sect."


    The old monk said indifferently, "Although I only read two books of the Tomes of Arcane, they were indeed extraordinary. I thought I had finally found a right ce and a good opportunity to understand the real world. But after I had spent some time in the Peach Mountain, I found that all the people in West-Hill Divine Pce were a group of cowardly idiots."


    Suddenly he looked down and saw that Ye Hongyu¡¯s eyes were full of anger. He knew that his ridicule of West-Hill Divine Pce had made this girl feel angry and could not help saying with a slight sneer, "Poor kids, don¡¯t you think so? Hundreds of millions of Haotian believers in the world know about the Divine Hall and don¡¯t know Zhishou Abbey. The people sitting in the white temples of the Peach Mountain should know what to do if they really had some guts. But what did they do? They were gossiped about by a shabby Taoist temple."


    The old monk thought of that blue cloth in that shabby Taoist temple and looked slightly serious while saying cynically, "They were a bunch of dogs. That shabby temple was nothing but a dog of Haotian! Haha!... They were all dogs!"


    Arrogantughter burst from his dry bleeding lips. The old monk¡¯s white brows flew up and seemed to be dancing freely. He was like a young swordsman who traveled around the countryside with a sword fighting for justice.


    A hoarse but boldughter echoed in the quiet dark room. Ning Que stared at the oldughing monk in front of the pile of white bones who seemed like he might fall anytime and felt the arrogance clearly conveyed in hisughter. Ning Que could not help but think that this old monk was really eligible to make friends with Youngest Uncle.


    "I¡¯ve lived in this world and searched around for so many years. But it was full of people as stupid as dogs and pigs. I still thought that Great Divine Priest of Light who had set up Devil¡¯s Doctrine had something amazing. So I returned to the Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    The old monk said indifferently, "However, I didn¡¯t expect that after so many years, the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was still as messy as the past. Its leader was indeed a loser, so muddle-headed and stubborn. He wanted to abolish the inheritance of the Saintess of Diabolism just because he was unwilling to sacrifice his own daughter. The rest indulged in the dull pleasure of killing, and were just as boring as beasts."


    "At this moment, I finally found a glimmer of hope in the Front Gate. It was a young boy. From him, I saw the possibility of reviving Devil¡¯s Doctrine and even changing the whole world. However, he didn¡¯t believe what I said at all, for I had killed his father to establish my reputation to the Front Gate. I brought so many wonderful cultivation methods from the sacred ce of Buddhism, but he didn¡¯t want to learn them but to learn Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation that couldn¡¯t give him a sessful future!"


    The old monk recalled and shouted angrily, "The only hope was shattered again. What should I do? Finally, I came up with a way. I wanted to destroy the world, including all the Taoist or Buddhism sects. So I could return the heaven and earth to tranquility and give birth to new shoots from the scorched earth. Only in this way could I change the world!"


    Ning Que looked at the nearly mad old monk and suddenly asked, "What exactly did you want the world to look like? Or were you just annoyed with the world and wanted to destroy it?"


    The old monk gradually hid his anger and calmed down again, saying, "You haven¡¯t even seen the appearance of this world. Do you think you¡¯re eligible to discuss the transformation of the world with me?"


    After a moment¡¯s silence, Ning Que said, "Since you had traveled around in search of ways to change the world, why didn¡¯t you go to the Academy? I think the Academy in those years should not be inferior to the ces where you had studied."


    The old monk said after a long silence, "There was already a guy named Ke Haoran in the Academy."


    Ning Que stared at his eyes and said, "So you didn¡¯t want to change the world. You just envied my Youngest Uncle and wanted to make yourself stronger so that you could defeat him. But you still couldn¡¯t make it. So you fell into despair in the end and wanted the whole world to die with you."


    The old monk was slightly startled and thenughed as if he heard the most ridiculous thing in the world. His empty hand kept rubbing at his shriveled abdomen. He said, "Would I be jealous of a madman?"


    Ning Que did notugh, but looked at him calmly and said, "You¡¯re a madman yourself."


    The old monk kept silent and then sighed softly. He said, "You¡¯re right. I was indeed somewhat jealous." I had no obstacles on the road of Buddhism and could cultivate both Taoism and Diabolism. In Xuankong Temple, I could be a Bhadanta. In the Peach Mountain, I could be a God. In Devil¡¯s Doctrine, I was a priest with the highest status. So I really didn¡¯t need to be modest, for I always thought myself as a peerless figure within a thousand years. But I never expected to actually encounter a guy more incredible than me."


    The old monk said with ament, "I learned lotus print of Xuankong Temple and got enlightenment easily. I learned Confinement tactical arrays of the Peach Mountain and could trap the whole world by waving my hands at will. I was an expert in the cultivation methods of 7 sects and 28 schools of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. I even regained the Practice of Taotie that had long lost its sessor and enlightened the Haotian oracle by reading two books of Tomes of Arcane. If it wasn¡¯t because I didn¡¯t want to be ordered by Haotian, I could be apocalyptic at any time. Do you think I¡¯m a cultivation genius?"


    Ning Que¡¯s heart trembled with each sentence the old monk said. Ning Que had never seen such a mighty cultivator in his life. Even Master Yan Se and Second Brother seemed to be far worse than him. Of course, a figure like him was a cultivation genius.


    He said honestly, "You¡¯re an expert in every cultivation method. You¡¯re indeed a great person."


    The old monkughed at himself and said, "Do you know how many cultivation methods Ke Haoran learned?"


    Ning Que kept silent.


    The old monk slowly shook his head and said, "He only learned one."


    Ning Que said in surprise, "One?"


    The old monk said quietly, "Ke Haoran could only use a sword, from a child-like woodchip sword in the very beginning to a sword piercing the sky. Both of them belonged to his Haoran Sword."


    Ning Que nced at the disorderly sword marks on the walls in the room and felt puzzled. If Youngest Uncle could only use Haoran Sword, how could he arrange such a powerful Confinement tactical array to trap Lotus for decades?


    The old monk seemed to sense Ning Que¡¯s and Mo Shanshan¡¯s doubts, so he smiled and said, "You said that I was an expert in every cultivation method. But Ke Haoran mastered every cultivation method by using one method. He could only use a sword throughout his life. But he could turn a sword style into all Taoists Laws in the world. The Confinement in this room is one example."


    A sword turned into thousands of Taoists Laws in the world!


    Ning Que was too shocked to say anything and thought about how many years of cultivation he needed to reach such a state.


    The old monk smiled and said, " In fact, I really felt helpless to meet such a person."


    "Ke Haoran was not as good-looking as I. His donkey was even worse than my horse. His feet sweated so much that they stunk when he took off his shoes. But he still liked sitting and scratching his feet. He got a bad temper and even scolded with the Headmaster of Academy for three full days and nights, just for a bowl of braised pork. All the people revered him even though he was someone like that. When I traveled with him, the people could only see him. No matter how many amazing things I had made, the people could only see him."


    The old monk wore a slightly bitter smile and raised his left hand to make a lotus print in front of his chest. He gently rubbed the head of Ye Hongyu as if he was spoiling a kid and continued, "Indeed I was jealous of him, so I wanted to do something amazing. However, I wanted to find a way to the ideal world more. He stood in my way no matter what I did. So I had to think of a way to make him die."


    "But he still saw through your plot." Ning Que said.


    The old monk said with ament, "At that time, Wei Guangming almost exposed my trick. So I had to hide in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Unexpectedly, Ke Haoran had seen through the matter at Lanke Temple and also chased after me. I didn¡¯t mind it at that time, for I always thought that the whole Devil¡¯s Doctrine could always kill him. So I was even somewhat d of hising and prepared to kill him."


    "I hadn¡¯t fought with Ke Haoran before. I knew he was very strong, but I didn¡¯t care whether he was the strongest man in the world. However, after all, I still didn¡¯t expect he would be so strong."


    The old monk said indifferently, "He was strong, so he won. This truth was eptable for the people in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. So I epted my failure. Even if he killed me with his sword, I had noints. But he should not have let me live."


    "He should not have let me live!"


    The old monk¡¯s skinny cheeks suddenly became distorted and his deep eyes were full of venomousness like a ghost fire. His hoarse voice seemed toe from Underworld and he shouted painfully. "He ruined all my cultivation and threw me in this dark room. He sealed all my Qi of Heaven and Earth with the Confinement I most admired and suppressed me like a monster in this dark ce where I couldn¡¯t see a blue sky for the rest of my life! He made me bear a lifetime of loneliness and despair!"


    "Could anyone endure loneliness and istion for decades? Do you know the despair I feel when I look at the lighting from outside the temple every day for counting days? Do you know what a terrible punishment it was to only look at these four walls for decades? Do you know, when a person stays alone for a long time, even quietness could be the most terrible torture?"


    The old monk stared at Ning Que¡¯s face grudgingly, as if he was looking at the face of that man in those years. His breath became unusually rapid because of his excitement and his voice became increasingly mournful, just like his mood at this time.

 Chapter 279: Join the Devil (Part VIII)

    Chapter 279: Join the Devil (Part VIII)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "There is only absolute silence, no sounds at all. No ants crawling by, no leaves rustling. Nothing at all. Your ears eventually be very sensitive because you desire so much to hear any sound. You can even hear the bodies around you rotting. You hear how the bloated bellies of the corpses explode and they sound like a thunder!"


    The old monk¡¯s shrill voice reverberated in the quiet room like a never ending roar of thunder.


    "All the bodies in the room have rotted, or dried out and these sounds have stopped. The sounds that have previously made you nauseated have be the most wonderful things in your memory. Do you know this feeling?"


    "In the end, you can even hear your blood flowing in your veins, your muscles losing its water content. You can hear your stomach drying out and sticking to your intestines. You hear them tearing. It¡¯s really interesting, isn¡¯t it? If you listen for a long time, you¡¯d definitely want to vomit. But the problem is, you can¡¯t."


    The old monk¡¯s eyes had lost all its shine. He reminisced about the decades of suffering like a granite statue. He muttered, "Even the strongest cultivators must eat or drink. You have to eat something, no matter how disgusting it is. If you spit it out, you will die."


    The old monk suddenly yelled shrilly, "I know that living like this is even crueler than death. I should have killed myself when I was imprisoned by Ke Haoran. But this fellow, he seemed bold and tough, but he had a heart more insidious than the devil himself. He knew that I thought of living, and he made it so that I could never die! He is the real devil!"


    Ning Que asked, after a moment of silence, "What did you eat to survive for the past decades?"


    The mountain of bones below the old monk consisted of both dried corpses and white skeletons.


    Ning Que¡¯s gazended on them, and could not help frowning.


    Mo Shanshan followed the trajectory of his gaze and found that there were several silvers of bones in the mountain of bones. There were marks on them that looked as if a beast had chewed on them. She had a sudden epiphany. Her body stiffened and her face became especially pale.


    The old monkughed loudly when he saw their reactions. Hisughter was bitter and shrill, and it sounded like a sad ghoul crying grievously. However, the tears that flowed from his eyes were cloudy and pebble-like due to the fact that he was severely dehydrated.


    Even the toughest man might feel sympathy for the old monk; looking at the pair of old, cloudy eyes, listening to the heart wrenching, crazyughter, and thinking of how he had been imprisoned in the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine for decades, leading a life worse than death. However, Ning Que did not feel anything like that. He looked at the old monk and said, "Sympathy is not something that can be pleaded for."


    The old monk¡¯s crazyughter stopped. He looked at Ning Que with what seemed like a ghost fire in his eyes.


    Ning Que looked at the rock walls and continued after a moment of silence, "It must be due to the fact that I have seen too much danger as a child. I am someone whocks a sense of security. I like thinking about what would happen to me should something happen all the time. Who would raise Sangsang? What would happen if Sangsang meets with an ident? How can I persuade myself to continue living?"


    "If someone treated Sangsang like how you did, I would think long and hard about how to revenge. It¡¯d be too easy on you if I were to kill you with a single stroke of my de. If I break your arms and legs and throw you into a shit hole, you might notst for long. You won¡¯t suffer for long. That wouldn¡¯t make me happy either."


    He retracted his gaze and stared at the old monk. He smiled lightly and sighed. "Now that I think about how you have spent thest few decades, I realized how Youngest Uncle is indeed a genius who is well versed in cultivation. He is even talented in torture methods. I will not pity on you. I will learn from such methods, and I can only hope that I will not have to use it in the future."


    The old monk did not know who Sangsang was, but Mo Shanshan did. She nced at Ning Que.


    The old monk smiled and did not say anything else. The questions that he had asked previously already released the anger he had felt for the past decades. He had something more important to do now.


    He lowered his head slowly and ced his dry lips on the girl below his palms gently.


    Ye Hongyu looked at the old monk coldly. However, goosebumps erupted on her skin. Anyone would find it impossible to get rid of the fear in their hearts when they were about to be torn into shreds and eaten slowly.


    A series of chocking sound rang in the quiet dark room.


    Ning Que had pulled out the podao behind his back. He leaped up like a tiger who had finally caught his prey after an entire night of waiting. He leaped towards the old monk in the Bone Mountain.


    He was suspended in mid-air and a shred of light sshed out like a thunderstorm.


    Ning Que and Mo Shanshan¡¯s sense of perception were severely injured by the old monk. They were no longer able to control parts of their bodies. However, they had managed to ovee this through unknown means and forcefully regained control of their bodies. At this time, the old monk was about to sink his teeth into Ye Hongyu¡¯s flesh and was not aware of the happenings around him. This was a good time for them to ambush him.


    The old monk managed to see the light reflecting from the de from the corner of his eyes. The podao in Ning Que¡¯s hands was only half an inch away from his neck. He would be unable to prevent his imminent death no matter from which angle one looked at it from.


    However, the ce from the corner of his eyes was sufficient.


    The old monk saw the light from the de and his mental state rippled.


    Other than the sacredness of Haotian, there was nothing faster than one¡¯s mental state.


    A power that, while not strong, was mild and pure in state exuded from the old monk¡¯s gaze. The numerous white bones in the pile of bones answered to the power and flew up. A strong femur stood and blocked the shiny de.


    It was unknown which powerhouse from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine this strong femur belonged to. Its spirit was long lost, but its strength still lingered. It collided with the de strongly. A deep gouge appeared, but it did not break apart.


    The entire room was filled with a Confinement tactical array set by Youngest Uncle back then. The Fu character set on the podao by the two Senior Brothers could not absorb any Qi of Heaven and Earth. He could not fight against the bone controlled by the old monk¡¯s Psyche Power.


    Ning Que harrumphed. An immense force came from the de, breaking his wrist. Blood spurted from his mouth as he was thrust backward with a great force.


    The white shards of bones activated by the old monk¡¯s Psyche Power began to beat on his body like a storm. He suffered hundreds and thousands of heavy blows and blood spewed from his body without stopping. The bones in his body cracked and broke.


    Ning Que fell to the ground heavily with a loud crack. More blood sttered on his shirt. It was fortunate that the bones had fallen to the ground after leaving the Bone Mountain as a storm and did not attack again.


    Neverending pain radiated from all parts of his body as if all the bones in his body had broken. Ning Que frowned. He set the podao on the ground and leaned against it to get up, but sumbed to the pain. He fell on a knee heavily.


    The old monk¡¯s face was pale and his cheeks were sunken. His pupils were bright and his body wavered lightly. It was evident that he had paid an enormous price countering the sudden attack from Ning Que. Several decades of power and the bite of flesh he had consumed earlier had long been expended. However, no matter how weak he was, he still controlled Ye Hongyu under his palms.


    ...


    ...


    Being separated from the Qi of Heaven and Earth was a scary existence for cultivators. There were several feats of Taoism that cannot bepleted without the Qi of Heaven and Earth. This was especially since Master Lotus had previously hurt their sense of perception with his high state. They were unable to use their perception to control their bodies. Cultivators in this situation were like calligraphers without their brushes and musicians without their instruments. They were aware of what to do, but had lost all abilities and would surely fall into a total despair.


    But Ning Que was unlike most cultivators in the world. He had just learned about cultivation. In the past ten years, he had fought on the thin line between life and death. He did not depend on any Taoist Laws or flying swords, but on the three swords behind his back and himself.


    Even the impact on his sense of perception by Master Lotus could not force him into a total despair. That was because his control over his physical body was stronger than anyone could imagine after numerous battles. He could control his bones and muscles. He had tightened and loosened his muscles at a high speed during the long conversation they had previously. He had wanted to rx his body, leaving the control the sense of perception had over him.


    One had to acknowledge that Ning Que was really good atbat. This was especially so when he was in a situation that seemed to be utterly hopeless, where he was weak and the enemy was strong. He would be especially calm and his will tobat would be even stronger then. It was a pity that the difference in abilities between the two was sorge that even the will tobat or analysis could not help to mend the gap.


    "The control you have over your body is so strong?"


    The old monk looked at Ning Que who was kneeling on the ground with a look of surprise. His brows floated in the air as he sighed. "Even though the Deste Man are strong in both spirit and body, but the connection between their body and perception is not as good as yours. It is hard to imagine that there is a wayfarer of the Academy in this generation that would be so well suited to cultivate in the Devil¡¯s arts. It¡¯s such a pity, such a pity."


    Ning Que was severely injured and could no longer hold the hilt in his hands tightly. His body wavered, but he eventually fell to the ground once more. He did not listen to what the old monk had to say clearly. Instead, he wiped the blood off his lips and coughed painfully twice.


    Everything had happened too quickly. Mo Shanshan was not mentally prepared for this at all. Now that Ning Que was lying in a pool of blood, her eyes were filled with worry. However, she had no way of getting closer to see how he was doing.


    Ning Que looked at her expression before he slowly maneuvered himself against her back with great difficulty. He coughed painfully again before saying in a weak voice, "I won¡¯t die for now, but I really can¡¯t move anymore."


    The old monk looked at him and got even happier as he looked on. He said in a pitying manner, "Such a talent. If you weren¡¯t a disciple of the Academy, I would want to teach you all my skills and see how you would end up in the future."


    Ning Que had once thought that he was a genius in cultivation. However, he had only entered the cultivation path after much difficulty. Once he had gotten on the path, he had seen too many true powerhouses. There were Second Brother, Chen Pipi and other weirdos like them. And then, he had met the Calligraphy Addict and the Tao Addict who were geniuses too. That was when he had gotten rid of such stupid notions and realized that he was but just an ordinary person in cultivation.


    That was why he could not help feeling that something was odd when he heard the old monk¡¯sment. The corners of his lips flicked up with difficulty. He panted and said self-mockingly, "I only have ten clear acupoints in the Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi. How could I be a talent?"


    The old monk looked at him and said weakly, "If you wish to cultivate in the Devil¡¯s arts, so what if you only had one clear acupoint?"


    Ning Que leaned against Mo Shanshan¡¯s back weakly. He looked at the old monk in the Bone Mountain and smiled with difficulty. He said, "Master, I am willing to cultivate in the Devil¡¯s arts under you. Will you let all of us go? Why do we have to fight to our deaths?"


    The old monk looked at him pityingly. He answered weakly, "Is this the time to make such jokes?"


    Ning Que coughed twice and gasped, "It is not a joke, I can swear on this by the name of the Headmaster of Academy."


    The old monk smiledboriously, "Ke Haoran and I have been life-long enemies. I know the truth of the Academy better than anyone else in the world. I might believe others, but I know that there is no one trustworthy from the Academy."


    Ning Que could not helpughing loudly when he heard that. However, pain wracked his chest and he started coughing violently again.


    The old monk looked at him puzzledly, "Why did you choose that moment to attack if you could have held back? Even though the timing was good, it was still a little too early. Would it not have been better if you waited for the moment when I start devouring her flesh?"


    Ning Que coughed up fresh blood and replied, "It was indeed too early, but I do not like watching people eat human flesh."


    The old monk¡¯s expression turned vicious when he heard the words "human flesh". He said coldly, "I have been chewing on bones and dried meat. In the end, the meat had turned into dried dregs. Do you think they taste good?"


    The old monk looked at the young couple leaning against each other and said bitterly, "The human flesh that I have eaten when I traveled the world was because they were part of my n and because I wanted to make myself stronger. Do you think I¡¯m a crazy pervert who likes eating human flesh? Do you really think that human flesh tastes good?"


    The old monk thought of the ck robes that had floated by the Devil¡¯s Pce decades ago. He smiled rather lunatically and said, "Ke Haoran sealed me in this jail away from the world. He forced me into eating human flesh. And then, there was a fellow who came here. He wouldn¡¯t release me or kill me no matter how much I begged. Instead, he got me another ten bodies and left them for me to eat. He said that this was a reward from Haotian. If I am a devil eating humans, what are they?"


    He looked at Ye Hongyu who was still beneath his palm. Her face was pale as she pursed her lips stubbornly, unwilling to beg or cry out in pain. He looked at Ning Que and said icily, "This Taoist woman is the first fresh meat I¡¯ve eaten in decades. It already tastes better than anything else. Do you want to try it?"


    Ning Que looked at the haunted eyes on the old monk¡¯s face. He said after a moment of silence, "No, I know that it doesn¡¯t taste good."


    Mo Shanshan who was leaning against his back weakly did not understand that. She thought that he was just speaking factually. Everyone knew that human flesh didn¡¯t taste good without having to eat it personally.


    However, the old monk had understood. Surprise filled his worn face and the enmity in his eyes turned into sympathy and benevolence. He sighed in admiration, "The Academy is indeed the Academy. I admire them."

 Chapter 280: Join the Devil (Part â…¨)

    Chapter 280: Join the Devil (Part ¢ù)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que knew that the old monk was praising the Academy for admitting someone like him. It would take an unimaginable amount of guts and an inclusive attitude. That was why the Academy deserved admiration.


    He said proudly, "In this world, victory belongs to the Academy."


    The old monk said mockingly, "However, the Academy will end up in ruins."


    Ning Que replied, "Everything in the world would. However, at least the Academy would not turn into ruins from your curse."


    The old monk looked at the severely injured and weakd who was proud and confident. It felt as if he was looking at the old friend from many years ago. After a moment of silence, he suddenly asked, "How long has Ke Haoran been dead for?"


    Ning Que was startled and said, "I do not know."


    "I¡¯ve once told him that the Haoran Sword had joined the Devil¡¯s path, but he did not care. I warned him that he would be punished by Haotian should he continue to be so prideful, and yet, he did not care either. I¡¯m sure that he has long turned into ashes and has been scattered throughout every stream and every mountain in this world. I wonder if he is still as proud right now. Hahaha..."


    The old monk lowered his head andughed like a madman. A single turbid tear appeared at the corner of his eye.


    Ning Que said, "Youngest Uncle should be proud even in death."


    The old monk raised his head and looked at him coldly. "But he still died before me. I have won."


    Ning Que said mockingly, "Some has died, but he is still alive. Some is still alive, but he is already dead."


    The old monk said emotionally, "You have such a sharp tongue on you."


    "Will I seed next time?"


    Ning Que suddenly asked sincerely. His body was still shaking beneath the cotton shirt. While this method expended a lot of energy, it was the only way to retain one¡¯s mobility when one¡¯s mental state was under the control of a person in a terrifying state.


    The old monk looked at him and said sincerely, "There will be no next time."


    Ning Que replied, "You are indeed the strongest person in existence that I can imagine. However, you are a defeated ruler who have been imprisoned for decades while I am a fierce young tiger who have just left the mountain. The Confinement that has blocked the Qi of Heaven and Earth has no impact on me. I am used to relying on my strength. There is no reason why you should recover faster than me."


    The old monk smiled lightly and said, "You do indeed have a sharp tongue. It is a pity that I am so old I don¡¯t have any teeth."


    He lowered his head and took a bite out of Ye Hongyu¡¯s naked shoulder after he said that.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s brows raised violently, but she refused to lower her head. She red at the old monk who was chewing on her flesh as if she was imprinting the image in her mind. She would not want to forget this even when she entered the Underworld.


    The old monk did not have any teeth. He used his gums to chew with great difficulty like a toothless old lion on the brink of death trying to tear apart the solid meat of a doe. Fresh blood dribbled from wrinkled lips.


    After a moment, the old monk raised his head and looked at Ning Que with a small smile. "You want to waste time away, so do I. After I digest the first mouthful of flesh, I will absorb the second even faster. You don¡¯t have to attempt to struggle. You¡¯d be happier weing death peacefully. I will destroy this Confinement and emerge from the mountain once I eat all three of you and regain my powers. Then, the world will be mine, and it could be said that it belongs to you three too."


    The old monk¡¯s voice was slightly muffled due to the flesh in his mouth. However, it was as warm as the waters in spring. Blood dripped from his aged lips, wrinkled skin and chin, but his smile was benevolent and looked like it was ted with Buddha light. The Bone Mountain and dead bodies beside him looked like a sacred lotus throne, emanating light. This image that hovered between Buddha and the Devil was extremely scary.


    Ning Que knew that what he said was true. He thought through all his ways of staying alive but did not find any that would break the status quo right now. No matter the pouch that Master Yan Se gave him, the Primordial Thirteen Arrows, or the Fu character on his podao, they all required a connection with nature before they could unleash their true powers. He could not help but think of death silently.


    He stared at the old monk and said resolutely, "The world will not be yours even if you can get out of here."


    The old monk thought of that glimpse of a sleeve of a robe. He smiled, "I have already joined the Devil. Would I be afraid of the powers of this world?"


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "There is still the Headmaster of the Academy in this world."


    The old monk descended into silence. And then, he said, "The Headmaster of the Academy would eventually die. Those from the Academy are too proud. The prouder one is, the easier it is for them to die. This is the fate of the Headmaster of the Academy. And this is the fate of the Academy. It cannot be changed."


    Ning Que frowned and said, "You¡¯re speaking nonsense."


    The old monk suddenly asked, "Who is the empress of the Tang empire in Chang¡¯an? How many great generals in the Peak state of Martial Arts have appeared these years? Have the Devil¡¯s Dance appeared again? Did the Headmaster of the Academy rush up and get revenge on the Peach Mountain after Ke Haoran was punished? Wait, there¡¯s something that¡¯s not right. This youngdy said that she was the Grand Master of the Judicial Department. Does that mean that the Divine Hall has yet to be destroyed?"


    Ke Haoran¡¯s punishment and the Headmaster of the Academy heading to the Peach Mountain; in his eyes, it seemed that the Divine Hall on the Peach Mountain would have been destroyed. However, he knew that the West-Hill Divine Pce still existed, so he could not help but wonder for he believed that his n was fool-proof.


    Ning Que did not know how he should answer the questions. It felt like the crazy questioning from a lunatic, but the questions were full of history and dust. And within the dust,id many hidden secrets that cannot be told.


    "I have nned many things before the Front Gate was destroyed. I arranged for the saintess to head south. I believe that she wouldplete what I have asked her to do. I have arranged for many disciples to head south. I trust that one of them would be able toplete the task I had set."


    The old monk looked at him and grinned slightly, his smile was so full of confidence it looked a touch tyrannical.


    "Back then, the Enlightenment Doctrine had already started to rot. I do not think that it is a pity that it was ruined by Ke Haoran. On the burnt ground, new sprouts will grow. I would rather set up a new Devil¡¯s Doctrine on ruins. The new Devil¡¯s Doctrine transnted on the rich soil of the Tang empire would definitely flourish and thrive."


    "I believe that my ns must be in motion after so long. I just have to wait quietly for the Headmaster of the Academy to pass away once I get out of here. Who do you think the world would belong to then?"


    Ning Que¡¯s body felt extremely cold when he heard that. He wondered to himself if there were many powerhouses of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine hidden around Chang¡¯an. Had all these people heeded his order to head south? If they allow this man to leave the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, what kind of storm would the world weather?


    "You must have thought that Youngest Uncle would kill you then. Even if you have hidden so many people and set up ns in the Central ins, what is the point of them once you are dead?"


    The old monk looked at him in ridicule. He looked at Ning Que like how the white snow on a snow peak would look at a summer worm. He said, "Even if I were dead, my ns would still survive. Ordinary people like you would never understand. A person¡¯s life or death did not matter. What is important is whether we can change the old world and wee a new one. And then, we can use the abilities of the new world to change certain rules. Why would it matter if I died if I can do all of that?"


    Ning Que asked, "What rules?"


    The old monk replied, "The rules of Greater Taoism."


    Ning Que asked, "If... you couldn¡¯t change anything after plotting for your entire life, then what?"


    The old monk smiled and answered, "At least I have worked hard at it."


    Ning Que furrowed his brows and said, "You would not hesitate to have the world die with you just because of your attempt?"


    The old monk said calmly, "What has the end of the world to do with me?"


    This was perhaps where plotters derive joy, Ning Que thought to himself silently. He really admired the old monk¡¯s plot. However, he was also extremely frightened, for it was always difficult to emerge victorious when in abat with lunatics.


    At this moment, the world-renowned Master Lotus was aplete lunatic in Ning Que¡¯s eyes. Ning Que did not understand what he was saying. Even if he did, he did not know whether it was real or not. He could not even make a sound judgment on what the person saying all that was like.


    The old monk was sometimes as innocent as a newborn baby, sometimes, he was as violent as an unreasonable woman in the market. Sometimes, he was as passionate as the young schrs in the capital who wished to save the world; and at other times, he was like a young swordsman who was full of pride, wanting to fight all evils in the world with a sword. At times, he was like a benevolent Buddhist Bhadanta, and at times, he was cruel like the devil himself.


    No matter which image he resembled, it couldpare to the real deal. One could not see any signs of falseness and each facade was inherently different but came from his heart. It was so pure, it made one¡¯s heart flutter. If he wanted to be a Buddha, he would. And if he wanted to be the devil, he could. He viewed the world as a true Buddha and a true devil with benevolence and indifference.


    He was simple but capricious. He was lonely and weak,plicated and annoying. He was sometimes jealous and sometimes sinister. He liked topete and would asionallyin. He was selfish and boring but pervertic and adventurous. He enjoyed sophistication and loved imagination. He was kind and benevolent, but also hatred and vengeful. He was domineering and prideful. He was silent and sad. He was full of contradictions and hypocrisy. He was happy yet sad. He was great and yet small.


    Liansheng 32, each petal was different.


    It was hard to imagine how a person¡¯s character and thoughts could be soplicated.


    Ning Que thought, could it be that this person has got 32 different personalities?


    ...


    ...


    The old monk was done with his speech. He closed his eyes calmly like a lotus going back to sleep at night. He began to unleash the secret power of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and attempted to digest the Tao Addict¡¯s flesh and convert it into the primordial Qi in his body.


    Ning Que¡¯s voice echoed in the silence of the room. However, his tone was uneasy and boring when no one replied. It even seemed desperate.


    "There is no devil in this world. It only came into existence because there are too many people like you out there."


    "You are the devil no matter which role you y."


    "Liansheng 32, every petal of yours is dirty."


    "When one links Tao and the Devil, they be God. But they might also end up being a lunatic."


    The old monk sitting on the mountain of bones did not have any reaction no matter what Ning Que said. He spent much effort trying to think of these seemingly philosophical statements, which were wasted in the dry air. It did not annoy his opponent nor did it do anything to harm his opponent¡¯s psyche either.


    Ning Que ced his head on Mo Shanshan¡¯s shoulder weakly. He stared at the bluestone ceiling. He knew that once the old monk devours and digests the second mouthful of flesh filled with the aura of Haotian Taoism, his state would return to one that he could not touch. Then, there would be no way to change their fates. His eyes dimmed.


    The light in the room of the Devil¡¯s Pce became dimmer and dimmer. Night hade to the world outside the mountain. The temperature dropped.


    He lifted his head and looked at the sword marks on the stone ceiling. Those were marks left behind by Youngest Uncle. They formed a Confinement that had kept Liansheng 32 trapped for decades. He sighed lightly in his heart.


    He had only nced at them in passing. He had not controlled his psyche deliberately. It must be that he was used to using the Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong in the old library. The crowded sword marks in his field of vision suddenly separated and became clear.


    Ning Que¡¯s gaze stayed on those sword marks for a long time. His mental state wandered together with the sword marks and a feeling emerged from within him. This feeling was obscure and hard to catch and examine. However, his body warmed up because of this.

 Chapter 281: Join the Devil (Part X)

    Chapter 281: Join the Devil (Part X)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The obscure feeling in his body did not garner much attention from Ning Que. He even thought that the warmth came from Mo Shanshan who was behind him. He only looked at the sword marks on the bluestone ceiling silently. He thought of how Youngest Uncle had waved his sword around him gracefully then and how hopeless he felt now, waiting for death. He felt ashamed and embarrassed.


    Waiting for death hopelessly was a sad thing. Those in this situation were usually silent. Master Lotus did not say anything, so Ning Que did not find himself wanting to say anything either. The room in the Devil¡¯s Pce was deadly silent.


    The deadly silent environment was just like Master Lotus¡¯s angry memories. They were indeed scary after a prolonged period of time. There was no sound of the breeze or the rustling of nts. Ning Que even felt that he could vaguely hear his lungs expanding and contracting. He could hear his hair chaffing together. He thought it was really incredible, but also scary.


    He would have thought that he had already reached the Underworld had he not been able to feel Mo Shanshan¡¯s soft body.


    Mo Shanshan leaned on his shoulder weakly, and she asked in a haggard manner, "Are we going to die?"


    Ning Que answered after a moment of silence, "It seems that way."


    Mo Shanshan¡¯s brow furrowed and she said, "Why can¡¯t youfort me?"


    Ning Que coughed painfully before he said self-mockingly, "It is afort to be able to die happy."


    Mo Shanshan understood what he meant. It would be a happy death if Master Lotus killed them straight. It would be the most terrifying thing on earth if they ended up like Ye Hongyu who had to watch herself get eaten alive.


    The young girl¡¯s beautiful face paled at that thought. Her longshes fluttered and her lips pursed tightly into a straight line. She was silent for a long time. Then, she looked at Ning Que whose brows were furrowed deeply from his coughing. She said with a mild tremble in her voice, "I have said that I liked your writing back at the pce."


    Ning Que did not know why the Calligraphy Addict would mention that at this time. After a moment, he smiled andforted her, "I know that I write well. I will write a thousand words for you when we get out."


    Mo Shanshan smiled lightly, "I have also said that I liked your Big ck Horse."


    Ning Que was startled. He said bitterly, "I can¡¯t bear the thought of leaving that stubborn thing to someone else."


    "I don¡¯t want the Big ck Horse." Mo Shanshan bit her lower lip, and then, as if she had decided on something, she said lightly, "I indeed like your words and the Big ck Horse. But I want to tell you something else."


    "I like you."


    This confession turned Ning Que into a block of wood. He looked at the haggard but beautiful face. He could smell the faint scent of the girl beside him. After a long moment of silence, he thought about how he should reply to this confession.


    This was the first time he had received a confession from someone of the opposite gender in both lives. This was one of the most touching things he had heard in both his lives. Even though it was a pity that they were in the dark Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and that they were on the brink of death. But it was still as touching as the rustling of a willow branch by theke. Was theke the Ink Lake at the foot of the Mogan Mountain?


    The girl beside him was one of the most beautiful women in the world. She was also a top yer in the cultivation world and was world-renowned. There were many young men who admired her but were too ashamed of themselves to say so. To Ning Que, Mo Shanshan was perfect if not for her bad eyesight that caused others to think that she was lofty and prideful.


    They were a perfect match no matter in their sects, family backgrounds or her political inclinations. The Tang Empire and the Great River Kingdom were allies, and the Headmaster of the Academy and His Majesty would both think well of this match. In terms of their hobbies, the two could be said to be the best match in the same Taoist path. If they were to end up together, other than having rtions, it would be wonderful if they could write and admire each other¡¯s calligraphy at night.


    But the crux of the matter was, did he like her? Of course, he did. Liking someone wasplicated for men sometimes. But most of the time, it was really simple. It was a given, to like someone like Mo Shanshan. Ning Que did like her.


    But it was just that they were about to die at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and he was still able to think about such matters for so long. When he finally roused himself, he could not help butugh. He felt that something was not right.


    This feeling was really weird. Nothing of the secr world mattered when one was dying. Furthermore, he had reflected deeply and was certain that he did like the girl who was as innocent as calligraphy and ink. However, he could not erase the feeling that something was off. It felt like a crucial step one would make before joining the Devil. There was something terrifying hidden behind a wonderful thing.


    What was that something terrifying? Ning Que did not know. He looked at the girl beside him and said bewilderedly, "Junior sister, Shanshan. I like your character and your appearance and also the way you handle things. At a time like this, I shouldn¡¯t... "


    There was no shyness that would be present on any girl after she confessed on Mo Shanshan¡¯s face. There was only warmth and calmness. She knew why Ning Que had hesitated and was even more certain than him why he had done so. She could not help but sigh lightly in her heart.


    She leaned into his chest gently and murmured, "You are really clueless about many things. I just didn¡¯t want to die without you knowing how I feel. I am in no hurry to hear any words offort from you. Everything you say now does not count and would not be fair either. I just wanted to tell you that."


    Ning Que wanted to retort that he wasn¡¯t clueless, but on the second thought he realized that he was clueless indeed.


    Why did he not express his true feelings, hug the girl to his chest, tell her that he liked her too and make up for the experience hecked in both lives? What was he afraid of?


    He was touched by Mo Shanshan¡¯s affection for him. He said softly, "I know."


    Mo Shanshan smiled contentedly. She shut her eyes slowly and leaned into his chest. She said, "That is enough."


    In the dark room within the Devil¡¯s Pce, a pile of bonesid in the middle. The old monk¡¯s palm pressed gently on the head of a beautiful girl who was bathed in blood. It was as cold as winter. In the corner of that room, was a couple who were about to wee death. They embraced each other lightly and spoke in soft tones like little animals. It was as warm as spring.


    This cruel and yet beautiful scene was heart wrenching and touching.


    ...


    ...


    Beautiful emotions could not make the world beautiful. It might look as warm as spring, but in actuality, the room became dimmer and the temperature dropped as night embraced the mountain peak outside the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Mo Shanshanid in Ning Que¡¯s embrace, unconscious. Ning Que who was heavily injured could feel the energy in his body slowly slipping away.


    He could vaguely remember the warmth he felt earlier. He raised his head subconsciously and looked at the bluestone ceiling once more. He suddenly discovered that the sword marks on the stone did not disappear together with the night, but had started to glow with mes.


    Youngest Uncle had killed many powerhouses of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine then. Had the blood on the sword meet the stone walls and be the ghost fire that it was today? But Ning Que clearly remembered that ghost fire was something that only stayed on rotting corpses. It wouldn¡¯tst for so long.


    He squinted and found that the sword marks on the roof were getting clearer. He was entranced by it and attempted to decode it using the Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong. He forgot about the injuries he had sustained and forgot to cough.


    The ming sword marks began to turn into numerous shards of light, and then, they started to spin in his vision. It felt as if he was lying on the grasnd and they were the numerous stars in the skies above his head. It was beautiful and calming.


    Suddenly, Ning Que experienced another feeling of warmth in his body. This time, he did not allow this feeling to slip, but he did not pay too much attention to it either. He just savored it.


    The stone ceiling with the sword marks on them remained in his field of vision as they spun in a certain order. The warmth seemed to correspond to that and began to spread in his body. It spread from his wrists to his neck and left behind afortable warmth where it passed.


    Ning Que mind had wandered by then. He chased the warmth subconsciously, wanting to dissipate the coldness in his body. His gaze moved together with sword marks and they gradually imprinted on his sense of perception.


    Those sword marks entered his pupils and his body, turning into a warm flow of air. It passed through his wrists and several joints. It entered his organs and turned into a presence that seemed almost tangible, hurrying him to stand up coldly. The sword style hidden in the sword marks was proud, how would it allow hopelessness and surrender before death?


    And so, Ning Que stood up.


    He raised his head and looked at the sword marks on the ceiling quietly. He did not seem to know when he had stood up.


    Mo Shanshan was shocked from her slumber. She looked at Ning Que who stood before her in stunned silence. She did not know what had happened.


    Ning Que looked at the sword marks above his head silently. He did not know how much time had passed, but his pupils grew darker but were shiny. It looked as if he was looking through an abyss.


    There was a clink as he slowly drew the podao behind his back.


    He looked at a perpendicr sword mark on the ceiling and stepped forward with his right foot.


    He looked at the clumsy, short and straight sword mark at a corner and his left kneended heavily on the ground.


    He looked at the gentle circle of a sword mark on the wall across him. He turned suddenly and struck out with his de.


    The de hummed, and the air between it split. There was a sudden gust of wind in the quiet room.


    ...


    ...


    The old monk had awakened. He looked to the side. He had used the Practice of Taotie and taken two continuous bites of the Tao Addict¡¯s pure flesh. His cheeks had filled out slightly and the life in his dried body became vigorous.


    Ning Que was waving his de around in the corner of the room. He stared at the sword marks littering the walls and ceiling of the room. He could not stop waving around the podao in his hand. He did not sense anything else around him and have seemed to enter a deep meditation state.


    The old monk could feel the aura of the sword marks around him slipping away and entering the body of the young man. His eyes filled with anger suddenly as he yelled shrilly, "You are already dead. Do you still want the broken sword you left toe back to life?"


    The old monk¡¯s cheeks that had just filled out slightly earlier began to sink. He pointed at the dried fingers of his right hand at Ning Que who was in a trance. He looked as if he wanted to kill him even if it took thest ounce of blood in him.


    Mo Shanshan was the first to react. She supported her body weakly and reached out behind her to hold on to a few hard objects tightly.


    Ye Hongyu who was so silent felt as if she was long dead, remaining beneath the palms of the old monk. She raised her head suddenly and her hands which were buried in the pile of bone shards began to tremble slightly. Stubbornness and a will to live glowed in her cold eyes.

 Chapter 282: Join the Devil (XI)

    Chapter 282: Join the Devil (XI)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Before she raised her head, Ye Hongyu looked at Ning Que with an emotionless gaze.


    Ning Que was holding on to his long podao and waving it along to the sword marks on the bluestone ceiling and walls. His expression was one of stunned confusion. His strokes were stiff and clumsy and he looked like a confused idiot.


    Ye Hongyu looked at him. He had been grievously injured by Divine Lord Lotus and should be lying on the ground limpidly. However, he was waving his sword around. She did not know what had happened to him but could guess that he had encountered an opportunity and was in an important process of enlightenment.


    A small opening appeared in the situation that had seemed to be a dead-end with Ning Que¡¯s encounter with this opportunity. She knew that Divine Lord Lotus would not give Ning Que any opportunities but she must grab hold of thisst chance.


    She started to cry out loud.


    Her tattered red dress suddenly lost all its color together with her cries. It turned a pale white as if all signs of life and blood were sucked away.


    Her pale face became abnormally red instead. The corner of her eyes and the tip of her nose were as red as flowers and looked very bewitching. There were two streams of red tears that looked like blood flowing from the corner of her eyes. Her hair flowed behind her, dancing in the air.


    Her state that had been doubly suppressed by the Confinement Formation and Divine Lord Lotus had returned to her body due to an unknown cause. The dark room was filled with the aura that belonged to a Grand Cultivator in the Knowing Destiny State.


    The Knowing Destiny State aura only red for a short amount of time before dimming. It was like a wild grass that had been pressed beneath a stone. It had barely managed to push the stone off itself to take a glimpse of the skies before being pushed down again.


    States would retract and disappear unexpectedly. However, this did not happen. The Knowing Destiny State within her did not copse and fluctuate, not because it was suppressed but because it was traveling downwards. It broke the bottom threshold of states and all the states that she had cultivated returned to the Seethrough state!


    She had already progressed to the Knowing Destiny State. How did she force herself to return to the Seethrough state? All cultivators in the world would only want to progress upwards. Who would turn their backs and walk downhill instead? Even if there was a lunatic who wanted to descend in states, how would they manage it? You were already taller than the willow tree by the Revtion Institute and skipped over the rocks by theke. Would you allow yourself to be shorter than the willow and not be able to step on the rock before you?


    This was something that had just happened and was puzzling. Why did Ye Hongyu do that? She had slogged and tolled before she had finally found a Lucky Chance and entered the Knowing Destiny State. Why did she use such an obviously dangerous mean to return to the Seethrough state? What was she trying to do?


    Unimaginable things continued to happen.


    Ye Hongyu lifted her head and stared at Divine Lord Lotus. Stubbornness and a will to live flowed from her eyes. Her red skirt had turned white and her state had plummeted to the Seethrough state. However, a strong aura gushed from within her, breaking the control of the palm on her head had on her and towards the old monk.


    ...


    ...


    One¡¯s state would never plummet automatically. It was rare to hear news about cultivators who were able to descend in states by themselves. However, Master Lotus had studied the ways of the devil and was well-versed in allws of the world. He knew of Ye Hongyu¡¯s intentions the moment her aura suddenly changed.


    There was a strong Taoist Law in the West-Hill Divine Pce. Thisw allowed cultivators to lower their own state. Once they used such a Taoist Law, the aura that they had learned and collected in the upper levels of their state would gush out in a split second. The force behind this power was frightfully strong as it was the explosion of decades of cultivation and meditation.


    It was just that the price to pay for this Taoist Law was too high. Which cultivator could bear to give up the states that they had spent much effort in cultivating and was more important than their lives and families to start all over again? Furthermore, it would be several times more difficult to break the realm if the cultivator wished to enter the state they were in if they were to try again after using this Taoist Law.


    For all the cultivation powerhouses in the Divine Hall who had the right to understand and learn such Taoist Laws, there wasn¡¯t anyone who was willing to use such Taoist Laws on the long road of cultivation. This was more painful and sadder than asking them to die. Powerhouses of the Divine Hall who used these Taoist Laws would have to be in a situation worse than death. It required a lot of courage and determination.


    The Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu was a Grand Cultivator in the Knowing Destiny State and had the whole world in her hands. She was, without doubt, one of the most influential persons in her generation. However, at this moment, she did not hesitate to allow her Knowing Destiny State to plummet to the Seethrough state forcefully. She did not care about the price that she was to pay.


    That was because she was in a situation that was even more frightening than death. Aspared to the cold Underworld, she saw a shard of hope, which was why she did not hesitate to face death in exchange for this slight chance. What else could she do other than burning her own state in this cold room devoid of Qi of Heaven and Earth?


    The aura that burst out of her body like a storm was the distance between the Knowing Destiny State and Seethrough state. This was half a foot of distance that the old monk¡¯s palm was jarred back from her head.


    The storm-like aura gathered near her body and the old monk¡¯s body trembled slightly. The fingers that were pointing at Ning Que shook. His expression was calm and he looked at the girl with fierce hatred from above. There were no human emotions in his deep eyes.


    He did not think that someone as young as Ye Hongyu would know such a high-level Taoist Law. He might not have been so surprised if he had known that this young Taoistdy was like him, who was well versed in all Laws and had the name Tao Addict.


    His withered lips cursed and a single lotus print formed in his right hand. A sacred light glowed from his fingertips, as bright as candlelight. The aura that was between Tao and Devil took up the entire mountain of bones within seconds.


    With the forceful suppression of Divine Skill, the old monk¡¯s withered palm made a reach to press down on Ye Hongyu¡¯s head slowly once more. Every inch downward looked slow, but could not be stopped.


    Ye Hongyu did not lower her head but stared into the old monk¡¯s eyes coldly without flinching. She bit her lips tightly and forced out the power she had from descending in states without holding back anything in an attempt to stop the withered hand from descending.


    She pressed her hands to the ground. Several shards of bones had pierced deeply into her palms. The pain kept her conscious and stubborn. Her wrists trembled violently and looked like bamboo shoots which were about to break. However, they supported her body stubbornly. Her body was shaking violently too and looked like she might fall over any time. However, she stayed stubbornly upright as well.


    The two paths of power within her body met andpressed. Blood flowed from the pores on her delicate face before congealing into tiny pearls of blood beforending on her now white skirt which had lost its colour previously.


    However, that withered hand continued to fall mercilessly.


    It fell inch by inch, even though she had already paid such a heavy price. She had even burned up her life power, but the distance between her state and Divine Lord Lotus¡¯s was too wide and there was no way to stop him.


    At thest moment, Ye Hongyu nced at Ning Que expressionlessly.


    Ning Que was still holding on to the podao and mimicking the marks of the Haoran Sword on the wall. He danced at times, and at others, he would descend into silent rumination while holding on to his sword. His mental state was separated from his body and he did not know what was happening at all.


    "I have tried my best, if you don¡¯t awake, there¡¯s nothing else that I can do."


    Ye Hongyu looked at Ning Que. A strong sense of hopelessness passed through her eyes which were made even more beautiful by the tendrils of blood within. She thought, "You idiot! When will you wake!"


    And then, she shut her eyes.


    The withered hand stillnded on her head.


    The old monk looked at the young girl beneath his palm with a heavy expression. His cheeks that have filled out slightly earlier had sunken in again and he was once again as withered as a ghost. He harrumphed and sent in all the power that he had gathered over the past decades!


    A strong gush of aura burst out from his withered palm.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s hair which had been dancing crazily in the air returned to her shoulders. She fell towards the ground slowly and two tracks of red tears flowed from her eyes. However, she still kept her cold gaze on the old monk¡¯s face stubbornly.


    The old monk was very pale and his body shook slightly. It was evident that he had paid a huge price to tame the power that Ye Hongyu had burned her life and state for.


    The fight did not end here. What made the old monk uneasy and alert was not the girl beneath his palm, but Ning Que who was dancing with his sword. That was because Ning Que was dancing the strokes of the Haoran Sword.


    He raised his withered palm once more. He pointed at Ning Que whose psyche had entered the sword style and was unaware of what was happening around him.


    Lotus did not use up all his power even though Ye Hongyu had unleashed such a terrifying Taoist Law. That was because he had to keep a reserve to ensure that he could kill Ning Que before he learned the sword style.


    He had to die and not leave any possibility of a future troublemaker. That was why he did not just simply nce at Ning Que, but waved his finger in the air with an intense expression on his face.


    A strong power that was almost tangible grew from his fingers. It broke the silence of the room and tore apart the cold air, piercing at Ning Que¡¯s back.


    Ning Que was staring at the sword marks on the stone walls dazedly. His mental state was empty and dazed, just like a young child staring at ants moving houses, unaware of a flying rocking at him from behind.


    Ye Hongyu, the Tao Addict, had already fallen into a pool of blood and had no strength to continue. He was in a vulnerable state. There seemed to be nothing that could save his life from Master Lotus¡¯ finger dripping with ill intent.


    At this moment, a white shard of bone flew up before Master Lotus¡¯ psyche.


    In theory, not even the strong bones of powerhouses from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine could withstand the power of Master Lotus¡¯ psyche power. Was there any tangible object that could stop the intangible psyche power?


    However, the dim light in the room refracted suddenly. The fire in the sword marks on the ceiling and walls grew as they were affected by an invisible object.


    While one¡¯s Psyche Power was intangible, it could still feel. Should light be affected and be forced to refract, what about one¡¯s Psyche Power? There was a sudden puff and Master Lotus¡¯ fingers missed. Ning Que continued standing with his knife, looking vacant.


    Two white brows floated up. The old monk looked at the corner of the room in surprise.


    It was a forgotten corner.


    And in the forgotten corner, was a forgotten girl.


    The girl had not disyed any amazing state or abilities since the beginning. She was really weak, which was why Master Lotus did not deign her important enough and forgot all about her in the corner.


    But she was Mo Shanshan.


    She was Mo Shanshan from Mogan Mountain.


    She was the Calligraphy Addict of the same rank as the Tao Addict.


    That was why, as long as she could move, she could still achieve things that ordinary people cannot even though she was weak.


    ...


    ...


    The old monk looked at Mo Shanshan but did not bother with her. He pointed his fingers and unleashed his power at Ning Que.


    Mo Shanshan was sitting on the ground with her knees crossed. Her head was lowered and she looked so weak that she might fall anytime. She reached for another rock with her right hand and tossed it at a distance. It might have looked like she was doing it at random, but it blocked the power from the finger once more.


    The old monk frowned. He waved his withered finger and focused his psyche power, pushing it at her chest.


    Mo Shanshan¡¯s fingers loosened and a fistful of white bones flew before her.


    Then, she lowered her head and coughed, blood dripping down the front of her robes.


    The young Talisman Master had already used up most of her Psyche Power after days of counting by the Front Gate and leading Ning Que through the big tactical array of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s Front Gate. Her sense of perception was also severely injured by Master Lotus earlier. However, she kept herself upright and used everything that she could touch beside her to form an array in an attempt to stop Master Lotus.


    Those white bones were not talismans, but arrays.


    Most tactical arrays in the world were just talismans in another form. It required a connection with heaven and earth and uses the aura of nature. One could not sense the Qi of Heaven and Earth in the dark room due to the Confinement Formation¡¯s suppression.


    That was why the array she had set up was different from the regr tactical array.


    An impressive person had changed and made this tactical array possible a thousand years ago. The original intention of it was not to get closer to heaven and earth, but to fight with it. That was why this tactical array was not used to move the Qi of Heaven and Earth, but to break it, and even block it.


    There was no Qi of Heaven and Earth in the room, so this tactical array could not break it. However, it could break and block all other intangible powers. For example, the power that Master Lotus had cultivated after eating two bites of flesh and decades of imprisonment.


    This array was called the Stone Array Tactic.


    The dozens of shards of bones between the old monk and Ning Que were what Mo Shanshan had studied and learned from the Great Blockage Formation outside the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Even though it was not as good as an original Stone Array Tactic, it was sufficient.


    Master Lotus¡¯s expression grew grave. He could sense the thick uneasiness and shadows in the rotation of life. That young man had understood the Haoran Sword style left behind by Ke Haoran. The young Taoist girl had managed to aplish an amazing feat of lowering her state and the girl who had looked weak and harmless was able to understand Stone Array Tactics!


    The lotus flower in the old monk¡¯s withered hand bloomed vigorously. Each petal was a strong Psyche Power attack.


    The young girl picked up the broken shards of bones and the rocks that had fallen from the walls. She kept mending the tactical array that she had just learned.


    Ning Que studied the sword strokes in silence within the simple tactical array formed by bones and rocks.


    There were loud scraping sounds in the pce. The old monk was expressionless and his gaze was as deep as theherworld.


    Fresh blood dribbled like a clear stream from Mo Shanshan¡¯s thin lips. It soaked through her thick white robes. Her long lushshes fluttered on her pale face as if she might shut her eyes anytime.


    Ye Hongyu stared at the old monk¡¯s aged face amongst the blood and bones. A passionate excitement glowed in her eyes. She looked crazy with the blood on her beautiful face even though she was weak. Sheughed loudly and oddly, "You old loony. Suck on! I want to see if you¡¯re faster or if he is before you suck all my blood. I want to see who will live on!"

 Chapter 283: Join the Devil (XII)

    Chapter 283: Join the Devil (XII)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Master Lotus gave her an indifferent nce before smiling suddenly. He lowered his head and sucked off the beads of blood on her delicate face as if he was sucking the dew off a lotus flower. And then, he bit off a piece of flesh.


    Pain shed through Ye Hongyu¡¯s eyes, but sheughed maniacally. "You are afraid."


    Master Lotus did not pay her any attention. He chewed the third mouthful of flesh and tried to regain his energy and vitality in the shortest time possible before Ning Que regained consciousness.


    He was the most terrifying and strongest person in that world decades ago. Today, there were three elite cultivators of the younger generation who had unleashed their powers before him. They had finally seen a glimmer of hope and fought hard for a chance in the face of death. This dangerous process was filled with confidence and determination. Even Master Lotus who had witnessed several earth-shattering events felt his heart palpitate and treated it seriously in a show of respect.


    The Calligraphy Addict had built the Stone Array Tactic to block Master Lotus¡¯s Psyche Power attack at the expense of her sense of perception. The crux of the matter was whether Master Lotus would regain his strength after using the Practice of Taotie to absorb the flesh and blood first, or would Ning Queprehend the Haoran Sword method and emerge from his muddled state before that.


    Ning Que did not know how dangerous the situation was. He did not know about the sacrifices and effort the Calligraphy Addict and the Tao Addict had made to stop Lotus from breaking him out of the cultivation state he had entered. He did not know what he was doing. Neither did he know why he felt a sense of familiarity when he saw those sword marks and mes. His body and the aura in his blood wanted to move along with these sword marks subconsciously. He had even forgotten everything that had happened before and the world outside.


    This state was very dangerous. It was like a helpless naked baby walking in the wild forests. He might be attacked and eaten by wild beasts anytime. However, it was also because this state was filled with innocence and purity that it was able to ept the images imprinted on one¡¯s soul from the exoteric.


    This state was called Empty Understanding.


    Ning Que felt great and powerful in the Empty Understanding state.


    There were only stone walls and the four corners of the bluestone walls in his eyes. The sword marks on the stone walls looked as if they hade alive. They entered his soul through his eyes and turned into numerous things.


    They were like stars circting in the night sky; like a stream dancing in the valley; like clouds floating in the blue sky; like a proud mountain in the world and like a traveler walking happily on a road.


    The flow of the sword marks was like turning a page of a book. Each page was painted with a clear map that appeared to be some amazing steps, or like a formidable swordsmanship style. It even seemed like an amazing exercise but was nothing at all but an attitude.


    He followed the sword marks in his eyes and began to imitate them. He waved his knife like a sword and began to think silently. He savored it with a smile and his pace became smoother and the way he waved his podao became more fluid.


    Vaguely, he seemed to have understood something deep.


    The sword marks that Youngest Uncle had left on the stone walls were originally a way of expressing his emotions.


    His pace was even smoother and his sword waving more fluid. In the end, it was even considered carefree.


    For travelers to see more of the world, they had to forget the weariness and pain they have experienced in their journey and should dance and sing while they were at it.


    A great mountain standing alone on earth and having to ignore the worshiping of ordinary folks would, of course, be proud.


    Following the direction of the wind, clouds would stop or float by in the blue sky.


    The stream in the valley flowed and took every collision with rocks as a game. It flowed along with gravity, and every collision created beautiful sshes. This was called jumping for joy.


    The numerous stars littered in the sky stilled or moved ording to their wishes as they smiled at the world.


    Everything happened naturally.


    This was a carefreeness called nature.


    And because of the nature of things, I would go when I want to even if there were thousands and millions of people before me.


    I have The Great Spirit, and so I would walk freely.


    This was a principle of the world.


    ...


    ...


    His injured sense of perception and the Psyche Power that he had gained from meditation over the past decade began to slowly move like the clouds, stars, and stream. They towered like therge mountain and was as cheerful as the travelers.


    The sword style hidden in the scattered sword marks on the walls floated with the mes and gradually entered his body. The sword styles flooded into him as his soul became enlightened. And then, together with the flow of Psyche Power, it stopped the joy.


    It was unknown how these sword styles existed. It became a warm flow once it had entered his body and it repaired his sense of perception in a short time. Then, it followed the flow from the middle of his forehead and pierced the Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi.


    The reparation of his sense of perception felt great. Ning Que stood before the wall with his knife in his hands. He was in a muddled state and did not know what was happening in the world outside his mind. However, his brows rxed subconsciously and then came together tightly. He could feel an intense pain radiating from his chest and stomach.


    The sword styles in the scattered sword marks flowed in his body brutally, as if there were tens of thousands of little swords ricocheting everywhere. They tore through his organs that the naked eye cannot see and riddled them with holes.


    This was scarier than the Taoist Sword that the Tao Addict had used by the Daming Lake.


    Then, thousands of small swords flew to his waist and abdomen where the snow mountain was and began to hit it without stopping. The sharp de cut through the hard ice at the Snow-capped Peak easily. Mounds of snow flew up and the rate at which the sword style was hitting the mountain increased rapidly. It had already made hundreds and millions of cuts in the blink of an eye. The cuts between the edge of the sword and the ice began to heat up. The Snow Mountain that had been silent for years began to melt and evaporate.


    Thousands of millions of small swords began to fly within his body or his consciousness. They flew towards a calm Ocean of Qi. And just like how they had hit the Snow Mountain, they began to focus on making hundreds of millions of cuts once more. The calm Ocean of Qi began to churn and a huge wave emerged as if the ocean itself was boiling. In the end, it began to boil and turned into a mist in the air.


    The Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi melted and evaporated into mist as they continued to flow through a certain passageway in his body. The flow was neverending and permeated throughout his body. It would leave some mist everywhere it went and the mist would coagte into a drop of dew and begin to moisten him.


    As the mist coagted to be drops of dew that moistened him endlessly, his body began to deconstruct and rebuild, just like the disassembling and rebuilding of an old house. The rebuilt house was beautiful, sturdy and unafraid of the wind and rain.


    Ning Que felt the warmth flowing through his body as if energy was pouring through his muscles and bones. This feeling wasfortable and strong and it made one feel intoxicated and reluctant to awake.


    The sword marks on the stone walls continued to spin. The deeply engraved sword style in the sword marks continued to enter his body endlessly, turning into numerous small swords that bombarded his Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi, moisturizing and strengthening his body.


    Time ticked by.


    A sudden shadow flitted past Ning Que¡¯s soul, which was immersed in pain and intoxication. He had suddenly remembered something and he became greatly afraid. His body felt cold even though he was in a ce filled with light.


    Would his Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi be ruined if pounding of the sword style continued? Could he still cultivate if his Qi orifices, that he had gone through several hardships to clear, disappeared?


    He suddenly regained consciousness due to the fear and anxiety.


    He looked at the sword marks on the wall uneasily. He was soaked in cold sweat and the air between his palm and the knife hilt was bone-piercingly cold.


    These sword marks and sword styles. They were Youngest Uncle¡¯s Haoran Sword.


    He finally understood what Master Lotus had meant.


    Practicing the Haoran Sword and the Great Spirit in his chest.


    If he wanted to practice the Great Spirit, he had to turn his back against Haotian and even be enemies with Haotian.


    Bing enemies with Haotian would mean joining the Devil.


    Youngest Uncle had joined the Devil the moment he had held on to this sword.


    That was why Youngest Uncle had been punished by the heavens and died.


    He had alreadyprehended the sword style of Haoran Sword. If he epted the sword style and allowed it to enter his body, he would be following in Youngest Uncle¡¯s footsteps.


    And he would also join the Devil.


    Following in Youngest Uncle¡¯s footsteps was something glorious and to be proud of.


    But it was also the most dangerous thing on earth.


    Even Youngest Uncle who was one of the strongest could not avoid death after he had joined the Devil.


    If he learned the Haoran Sword, how many days more could he live on earth?


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que looked around him distractedly.


    The old monk was practicing his Devil art in the mountain of bones. Ye Hongyuid beneath him, unconscious.


    Mo Shanshan smiled with difficulty when she saw that he was finally conscious. She could not hold on any longer, and fell into a dead faint.


    Night had longe to the world outside the mountain. The room was darker than ever.


    He held on to the knife and stood before the mountain of bones. His shirt was soaked with sweat as he stayed silent, not knowing how to proceed.


    The sword marks on the walls stopped moving as they waited in silence.


    The sword style in his body stopped flowing and waited in silence.


    His will awaited his final decision in silence as well.


    Even someone like Lotus would have to hide in the dark once he joins the Devil. If he wanted to walk proudly in the open like Youngest Uncle, he would be punished by the heavens and died no matter which cultivation state he was in.


    Ning Que looked towards the sky, but could not see anything. He could only see the cold stone walls and the colour of the dark night.


    This was the most difficult decision a cultivator had to make.


    Their respect for Haotian would not allow them to touch that world in the dark night.


    Even a cultivator who had not a shred of respect for Haotian would struggle due to the fearful considerations between life and death. He would think about it and meditate on it for half a life and would not reach a conclusion.


    He thought and struggled over it for what seemed to be an entire lifetime.


    In actuality, he had only considered it for the amount of time it took for thirty spring onion slices to fall from his palm into noodles with fried eggs.


    He wanted to live on.


    He wanted to live on with a certain person.


    This was the most important thing.


    Compared to this, Haotian was a pile of shit.


    Dog shit.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que raised his podao to rest in front of his brows.


    This would be thest time he worshiped the heavens.


    And his knifended.


    The dended on the stone walls.


    And onto the sword marks that Youngest Uncle had left behind all those years ago.


    His wrist turned the de and it followed the two sword marks, making two strikes on both sides of it.


    The mes beneath the de danced as if they were stars leaving the night dome.


    Following this simple movement, the sword style that had waited silently gathered.


    Numerous tiny swords gathered, and with the Ocean of Qi, they cleaved the Snow Mountain.


    At this moment, Ning Que knew that he had entered a brand new world.


    The Psyche Power in his sense of perception still existed, but it no longer yed music for the heavens. Instead, it created a beautiful new world in his body. There were trees andkes, mountains and seas in the new world. All it needed was life to multiply and fill it.


    A new path was created in the Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi. The path seemed to have always existed, but had been blocked and hidden. It had finally made its existence known. The majestic sword style turned into a certain aura and whistled through the path. It went forth with vigor and was endless. It rushed towards the skies.


    That was the Great Spirit.


    The minuscule stream of air spluttered. Dust and debris erupted from Ning Que¡¯s body


    His eyes glittered before they returned to normal.

 Chapter 284: Join the Devil (XIII)

    Chapter 284: Join the Devil (XIII)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Snow covered the yellow grass by the Hn Sea. The surface of theke had gradually frozen. The man on the grasnd was seizing thest opportunity to catch fish.


    The middle-aged man wearing a felt hat looked at theke silently. He looked powerful with the hard lines of his face and the beginnings of a beard. A subordinate stood behind him respectfully.


    This team of traveling businessmen from the Central ins had stopped here for days. Those from the tribe did not know what they were waiting for. They were too early to be waiting for the leather goods that would only be ready at the end of summer. But they did not bother the businessman due to the taels of silver and goods that they had gifted them with.


    His subordinate looked at the ice and snow gathered on the surface of theke and asked in a low hesitant voice, "Will the Tomes of Arcane really appear here?"


    The middle-aged man was silent before he said, "The Great Divine God had released news about the Tomes of Arcane being in the Wilderness since he returned from the south. He must have received confirmation from the abbey dean. I heard that Li Qingshan had also worked with Huang Yang and ascertained that the Tomes of Arcane would appear by the Hulun Sea. There shouldn¡¯t be any mistakes."


    The subordinate frowned. He thought for a moment before saying, "Sir, I should not question you. But I feel that it is a little risky for us to ce all our hopes on the prophecy of the Great Divine God."


    After a momentary pause, he said softly, "We can¡¯t keep the news from Tuyang City. If the imperial court finds out that you have left the General¡¯s Mansion without permission... Furthermore, we have received news that Lin Ling is indeed dead."


    The middle-aged man looked at the loyal adviser who had followed him for the past twenty years. He thought of the subjects that had been equally loyal but had died. He then touched the hair on his temples lightly and said, "We shall settle thatter. The situation at hand right now isplicated. We can only make a further move in this situation should we get our hands on the Tomes of Arcane. Everything else is just a small matter."


    He looked at the mountain ranges in the north, on the other side of theke. He said expressionlessly, "I believe in what the Great Divine God had said. Other than myself, there are not many in the world who would know that the exit of the Front Gate is at the Hulun Sea."


    The adviser asked with furrowed brows, "Why didn¡¯t you enter the Front Gate to search for the Tomes of Arcane? Even if there are many powerful parties who are scrutinizing us now, there are not many who have the power to enter the Front Gate. Grasping the opportunity would still be better than waiting passively."


    The middle-aged man looked at a spot in the far-off north silently. He did not answer the question.


    Mr. Ke had not taken the Tomes of Arcane away. They should still be on the sacrednd.


    He was unwilling to return to the Front Gate. Instead, he waited silently by theke for the opportunity to steal the tomes. Other than tactical considerations, it was also due to the fear in his heart. He was not very old then, but he clearly remembered the bloody images and the cold expression on his teacher who had several incarnations.


    The advisor looked at the middle-aged man who had a pondering expression on his face. He wondered silently about what the man would do after he steals the Tomes of Arcane. Would he present it to His Majesty, or would he return it to the Divine Hall, or would he keep it for himself?


    Could the Tomes of Arcane really change everything? In the past twenty years, the adviser had followed his master to severalnds, in search of a living. They seemed to have weaved a dense web, but the web had eventually wrapped around them, making it difficult to breathe. He could not help but sigh deeply in his heart when he thought of this.


    The middle-aged man stared at a far-off spot on the other side of theke. He once again thought of his teacher who had departed from this world.


    Over the years, he had struggled and fought to survive between the empire and the West-Hill Divine Pce to protect himself who was from the Enlightenment Doctrine and his sister who was hidden in the pce of Chang¡¯an.


    His teacher had traveled around the world amongst the various forces but was like a fish swimming in theke. He was at ease and exuded satisfaction and happiness. How had he managed that?


    ...


    ...


    Rough fingers stroke the stone tform. Animal skin fluttered in the wind. Tang stood in the abyss and looked at the huge vertical and horizontal stone beams as he recalled how his teacher had described the sacrednd. Hepared it to the world thatid before his eyes. It was made more deste due to its magnificence. He was silent for a long time.


    He walked to the edge of the cliff slowly, looking at the dark abyss. He thought of how the Haotian Taoism could lead the Central ins for a millennium and knew that there was a reason for that. He should not take them lightly. This was especially so for the Taoists in that Zhishou Abbey. They must be really powerful. They had ced much importance on this matter, so the Tomes of Arcane must definitely be in the Front Gate. Why have they not been found yet?


    He looked pce full of bones near his feet. He suddenly opened his mouth and said, "ording to what teacher had said, Mr. Ke had broken into the sacrednd with a single sword then. He did not kill everyone in the Front Gate. Before that, two disciples were evacuated southwards. Before teacher had left, he had confirmed that many of the disciples had been evacuated. Apart from those who had died in the war, many in these pile of bones hadmitted suicide. The front Gate had been sealed after."


    Tang Xiaotang stared at the sight with bright eyes. She looked at the pce below the beams. They had already passed by it earlier and had not discovered anything. She asked curiously, "Where did they go?"


    A gust of wind passed over the stone beam, scraping the shattered stones and their clothes. Tang could feel the aura of heaven and earth in the Front Gate through the wind. After a moment of silence, he said, "I can¡¯t feel them. They must have already left."


    The two siblings walked into the depths of the Front Gate. Tang¡¯s thick eyebrows rose slowly. He was uncertain about many things that had happened back then. There were also many things he had not understood when searching for the Tomes of Arcane. For example, he was certain that those people had already left the Front Gate, but why was he still feeling so uneasy?


    ...


    ...


    Decades ago, Ke Haoran had set the Confinement personally, separating this room from the world. As long as you did not enter it, you would realize that it existed. If you really enter this world, you would never be able to leave it as this world was a prison he had gifted Lotus personally.


    "Cough ... hum ... you have actually learned the Haoran Sword!"


    Master Lotus looked at Ning Que from the center of the pile of bones. He mouth was split wide open with a child-likeugh. His lips twisted downwards and he began to cry like a child. The sounds ofughter and crying came together and sounded hoarse and ugly.


    Ning Que held on to his podao and looked at him. He said, "Indeed."


    The old monk¡¯s gaze was as cold as ghost fire. He red at Ning Que and asked, "This is impossible!"


    Ning Que replied, "It has happened."


    The old monk¡¯s next statement came rapidly. He roared like the thunder, "Doesn¡¯t this mean you have joined the Devil!"


    Ning Que¡¯s face was nk as he replied calmly, "Indeed."


    The old monk asked solemnly, "Are you not afraid?"


    Ning Que replied, "I am not afraid of anything else in the face of death."


    The old monk said sarcastically, "But you have joined the Devil."


    Ning Que frowned, "So?"


    The old monk said sharply, "Those who have joined the Devil have to die."


    Ning Que answered, "But you are still alive."


    The old monk shook his head slowly. He said with slight ridicule, " These are twopletely different choices. The Daming Sect is but just hiding from the Haotian Divine Light in the dark like a mossy rock. Even though we say that we do not respect Haotian, we are particrly afraid of the existence of Haotian. That is why Haotian allows us to exist, even though we are a contrast to light. However, you have lost all respect and even fear for Haotian the moment you picked up the sword left behind by that person. That is truly joining the Devil. Haotian will not allow the existence of someone like you."


    Ning Que descended into silence. And then, he replied, "Living is better than death."


    The old monk was stunned, and then, he began tough maniacally. Cloudy tears streamed from the withered corners of his eyes slowly. He pointed at Ning Que¡¯s face with a skinny shaking finger and barely repressed his desire tough. He said viciously, "Crazy Ke had died from joining the Devil and you are following in his footsteps. I wonder if the Academy had been cursed. All of you will be destroyed by Haotian. This must be your fates."


    He stared into Ning Que¡¯s eyes and panted, "You have to be strong enough to be able to walk on this path resolutely. The faster you be strong, the faster you will die. Do not dream that you would be able to escape this fate."


    The old monk asked faintly, "When have the heavens spared anyone?"


    Ning Que was silent, he held on the hilt with both hands as if he was prepared to impale fate with it.


    And then, his answer rang in the dark silent room.


    "If man were to beat the heavens, why would they need to be spared?"


    ...


    ...


    The statement was both nd and proud. Master Lotus¡¯ face twitched. He looked at Ning Que silently and then said suddenly, "The one foot ofnd before a cultivator is his own world."


    Ning Que had heard of this saying before but did not understand why the old monk had said that at this moment.


    The old monk looked at him and said slowly, "You have been enlightened in the Haoran Sword. The sword style hidden in the mottled sword marks by Crazy Ke have entered your body. Then, this Confinement that has hidden the skies and earth must naturally cease to exist."


    Ning Que looked at him and said, "I know. I can even sense the Qi of Heaven and Earth entering this room. It is just that I need time to get used to this brand new aura in my body."


    The old monkmented, "It seems that we are still wasting time at this point."


    Ning Que said calmly, "Time is fair to everyone."


    The old monk smiled lightly and said, "My time is up."


    Ning Que replied, "My time is also up."


    With that, the monk raised his skinny arms slowly. The remnants of his tattered monk robes swung in the wind that had appeared. With this simple movement, the aura of heaven and earth seeped into the room through the cracks in the bluestone walls and turned into gusts of wind that surrounded his body.


    The Haoran sword style that Ke Haoran had left behind in the sword marks had mostly been absorbed by Ning Que and been used to transform his body and clear a path in his Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi. The sword marks without sword style were but just shapes. They were naturally unable to support the Confinement. Even though there were remaining traces of the Haoran sword style left on the stone walls, they were unable to prevent the old monk from connecting to heaven and earth.


    The Great Blockage Formation outside the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine could sense the sudden fluctuations in the Qi of Heaven and Earth. The mossy sword marks on the stones began to gleam with bright light and the Snow-capped Peak shone in the dark night. The Qi of Heaven and Earth entered the Front Gate rapidly, driving the aura between the rocks and even starlight forth.


    The fresh and vibrant aura of heaven and earth finally got through the broken Confinement and reached the pce that had been devoid of it for decades. And then, it flooded into the old monk¡¯s skinny body steadily.


    The old monk¡¯s deep eyes gleamed suddenly and turned into pieces of crystals. His skinny face filled up at a rapid pace that was visible to the naked eye. His two arms which were outstretched in the wind became smooth and supple.


    As he had said previously, his time was up.


    Ning Que¡¯s time was also up.


    He hadpletely understood the Haoran Sword aura that Youngest Uncle had passed on to him. He was able to control his changed body and was absorbing the aura of heaven and earth that rushed into the room greedily, converting it into his own power. He had taken in the Qi of Heaven and Earth into his own body. This was unmistakably a Devil¡¯s Doctrine art that was shunned by the world!


    A fresh and endless stream of the aura of the heaven and earth entered his body and was burned through by his Psyche Power. Then, it passed through the passage between the Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi, bing a formidable force. It was transmitted to various parts of his body through the meridians. His arms, muscles, bones, fingertips, and even his hair began to tremble at a high frequency as if they were jumping for joy.


    ...


    ...


    His feetnded on the ground and there was a snapping sound as he crushed a single bone before him.


    The second time hended, his feet had crushed a pile of white bones.


    Ning Que swept through the mountain of bones and arrived before the old monk.


    He held on to his knife with both hands and plunged it into the old monk¡¯s chest.


    The de trembled due to the powerful forceing from the hilt. It split the surrounding air and wisps of white currents could be seen. The talisman on the cold de was activated and the speed of the knife became even more terrifying.


    This was the fastest raid in his life. It was like electricity.


    This was the strongest strike he had made in his life. It was like thunder.


    There was no time to blink or think. He drove the knife into the old monk¡¯s chest with the strike of the electricity and thunder-filled Great Spirit. The sharp edge of the knife had already wedged into flesh before the old monk had time to respond.


    Master Lotus was still absorbing the aura of heaven and earth endlessly. His cheeks had filled out and his arms were restored. The vitality of his body was like that of a recently-bloomed lotus flower. However, he had not anticipated that Ning Que¡¯s first strike would be as great and difficult to avoid.


    He had already regained 10 percent of his state¡¯s power at his peak. He was Liansheng 32 who had many incarnations and overlooked themon people. Even if he had only regained a percentage of his strength, he would not have died with that strike.


    The skinny ghost-like hand had already filled out. His skin was white and tender, like two pure white lotus flowers.


    The white lotus bloomed, and its petals spread. The de stopped between the petals and did not move further towards the monk¡¯s heart.


    The aura of heaven and earth that had broken through the Confinement was still surging into the monk¡¯s body. He was still growing stronger.


    Ning Que harrumphed. He pped his left hand on the end of the hilt heavily.


    His left hand was like a heavy hammer.


    The podao delved deeper into the old monk¡¯s chest. Blood stained the sharp edge of the knife.


    The old monk looked at Ning Que coldly.


    A force that was so powerful that it was terrifying pierced his sense of perception.


    There was a puff, and blood sprayed from Ning Que¡¯s mouth.


    The bloodnded on the knife hilt.


    His left handnded on the hilt once more.


    He bore through the immense pain and his left hand-hammered down on the end of the hilt once more like a heavy hammer.


    The de drove another inch into the old monk¡¯s chest.

 Chapter 285: Join the Devil (XIV)

    Chapter 285: Join the Devil (XIV)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The old monk let out a piercing shrill scream as his lotus-like hands that were used to nip the de began to tremble vigorously.


    A wave of energy flowed down the de and met with the Haoran Sword that was affused into the de by Ning Que.


    Bam!


    A cloud of dust flew up in the dim Devil¡¯s Pce. The Bone Mountain started to copse, making the broken bones and bone shavings looked like rubbish as they flew around in the sudden gush of wind, hitting and creating mming noises on the rock wall.


    Both Mo Shanshan and Ye Hongyu, who were still in aa, flew along with the strong wind and were mmed to the corner of the wall.


    ...


    ...


    The Qi from Heaven and Earth, which Master Lotus was deprived of for decades, began to repair his weak and fragile body at a continuous and horrendously rapid rate. The first thing that grew to be powerful and strong was none other than his mental power.


    At the same time, Ning Que was also absorbing the Qi of Heaven and Earth, before transforming them into his own primordial Qi within his body. This would finally turn into a powerful energy which he had never experienced before.


    In the end, both of them were stillpeting with each other against time. It all depended on whether Ning Que could recover faster than the old monk in terms of strength. Once he got stronger, he would be able to kill the opposite partypletely.


    Thus, Ning Que used neither the talismans in the pouch nor the Primordial Thirteen Arrows. These methods would need to make use of the Qi of Heaven and Earth to strength the attack, as well as the user¡¯s Psyche Power being free from any disruption.


    Under this situation, he strongly believed, and could only believe the three des behind him. After all, these des were used to kill from Min Mountain to City of Wei and from City of Wei to Spring Breeze Pavilion. They were podaos that had once killed numerous enemies.


    Then again, absorbing the Qi of Heaven and Earth was a method belonging to the Dark and Master Lotus was a senior of the prior generation from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. It was a pity that regardless of the use of the method or the user¡¯s state, Master Lotus was way more experienced than Ning Que.


    Both parties¡¯ states were far apart from each other, thus thepeting of speed would no longer be fair. Since Ning Que did not manage to stab the other party¡¯s to death, the situation was getting worse for him as the time gradually passed by.


    He could vividly feel that his body was much stronger than before, yet his hand, which was grabbing the hilt of the podao, began to tremble weakly. Soon, he would not be able to hold the hilt tightly because the power that came from external to his de was starting to overtake his own strength!


    He lifted his head and saw the cold stare from the old monk.


    Their exchange of stares was no longer the same as before when they were fighting with their auras on the de. No destruction was created, but it was as gentle and quiet as the ripple created on theke surface when a dew rolled down from the lotus petal.


    The ripple spread out and a new world was created.


    ...


    ...


    Master Lotus¡¯ sorrowful cries spread across the night sky.


    "This is my world."


    Ning Que looked at the starry sky and kept silent. He knew that his sense of perception was finally once again being conquered by the horrifying stare from the old monk. He had also finally understood that a foot in front of any true strong cultivator was their world, thus the opponent¡¯s strength or perception within that area was still under their control.


    Suddenly, the sky began to shake. There was no crack, but the shock caused hundreds of millions of stars to fall. Those stars fell across the endless sky, hitting the Wilderness in front of him. The earth moaned in pain upon the impact as it started to tremble. Winter trees and frozen grasses were uprooted and were either covered by the mud or burnt by the falling stars into ashes.


    He knew the meaning behind this scene.


    Hundreds of millions of stars falling from the night sky represented the mental strength of Master Lotus. The moaning Wilderness and nts that were impacted by the falling stars was his sense of perception. When the Wilderness and nts were burnt into ashes from the impact of the falling stars, his sense of perception would be damaged. This would either kill him or make him into a useless man who had no sense nor perception.


    Ning Que stood on the Wilderness as he gazed at the wildfire in the distance which was caused by the impact from the stars falling onto the earth. He then looked at the scary-looking huge pit near him on the Wilderness. He did not brush off the mud that sttered onto his body, nor did he dodge them, because he had no idea how he could dodge them.


    Bearing the risk that he would be cursed by the Heaven, he had just inherited his Youngest Uncle¡¯s mantle. He thought that he could finally survive through this scary ordeal, yet in the end, he fell into such a hopeless situation where he could die anytime. Could this really be fate? Was this really Haotian¡¯s curse on him?


    He felt cold and truly hopeless. Yet behind such hopeless feeling was a strong sense of unhappiness and an urge for him to destroy all these stars.


    It was as if something had detected his strong unhappiness and urge, an extreme light-toned shadow gradually cast over his head and his whole body.


    He stared at the shadow, as well as his own darker shadow within the shadow before he turned around abruptly.


    There was nothing behind him in the Wilderness.


    Only a statue.


    A ck statue.


    The statue was like a human, yet it looked like a god as well. Because it was back facing the sun, its expression and body were immersed within the darkness of its shadow, thus one would not be able to see the features clearly.


    The stars in the night sky were still falling.


    Hundreds of millions of stars were continuously hitting the Wilderness at a more rapid speed, as they gradually destroyed Ning Que¡¯s body.


    Yet after this statue appeared, those falling stars, simr to how moths were mesmerized by the fire, were attracted to it by an invisible force as they started to fall ntly towards it.


    Unlike the loud noises created by the demanding falling stars when they hit the earth, these stars appeared to be weak like fireflies as they hit the huge ck statue.


    Hundreds of millions of stars, like a bunch of delicate fireflies, were continuously attacking, igniting waves and waves of weak sparks.


    Those weak sparks were also absorbed by the ck statue.


    The temperature of the ck statue began to rise and turned red, looking as though it had been painted blood red.


    It should be very hot now, I suppose?


    Ning Que thought as he stared at the huge statue nkly.


    All of a sudden, he felt a sharp pain in his waist. As he lowered his head to look, he saw green gasesing out from his belt. It looked as if his belt was catching fire, yet he had no idea exactly what was burning inside his belt!


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que was back to the real world.


    He then realized that the old monk had already pulled out the de from his chest by a few inches. The hard hilt had reached his waist and it was pressing on something in his belt. And that thing which was being pressed seemed to be burning right now! And it was making him crazy!


    Ning Que stared at the old monk¡¯s bright and moisture, yet cold and heartless eyes. His hands grabbed tightly onto the hilt as he pushed it forward fiercely.


    Fresh blood gushed out from the corner of his mouth, like a waterfall.


    He roared in pain. His feet looked as though they were nailed deeply into the rocky ground and his body leaned forward. He made use of the hard item in his belt to block the hilt of the de as he ced his weight onto the hilt, pushing the de an inch deeper into the opponent¡¯s chest.


    The old monk witnessed the de gradually going deeper into his chest as his eyes revealed a look of disbelief.


    His mental strength came into contact with Ning Que¡¯s body and disappeared into thin air in an instance. It was simr to how a cow disappearing into the sea, and the speed of loss was disquieting. Only within a short period of time, his sense of perception was gone by half!


    Using Devil¡¯s skill to absorb the Qi of Heaven and Earth was all dependable on the precision in controlling one¡¯s Psyche Power. At this moment, the Psyche Power within the sense of perception was wilting. Naturally, the Qi of Heaven and Earth that was moving freely within the Devil¡¯s Pce could no longer enter his body. In fact, it was now flowing towards Ning Que¡¯s body!


    The old monk could vividly sense the strengthing from the de in his hands was gradually increasing.


    He stared at Ning Que again, then lowered his head and took a nce at Ning Que¡¯s waist.


    A very light friction sound.


    Like the sound of the breeze that brushed across the lotus leaves.


    The sharp de sliced off several fingers as the broken fingers slowly fell onto the ground.


    Like how the pure-looking lotus flower fell off petals by petals.


    Ning Que hissed as he violently pushed the podao in his hand together with his ongoing willpower from the Haoran Sword. The bright de stabbed deeper into the old monk¡¯s chest and prated through his heart.

 Chapter 286: Join the Devil (XV)

    Chapter 286: Join the Devil (XV)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    No matter how strong the cultivator was, once the heart was being stabbed, he should be dead, right?


    Ning Que remained alert, because the old monk¡¯s state and potential were way beyond any opponent he had ever met. He was not sure of the survival skill of the other party, who was five states above him.


    Hence, he did not remove the de immediately. Instead, he stared into the eyes of the old monk who was right in front of him. He was searching for any sign of life in the old monk¡¯s frail-looking eyes. He turned his wrist with a jerk, destroying the old monk¡¯s heart directly with his cold, hard de.


    The old monk¡¯s body shook violently as he covered his chest in pain, but he did not die instantly.


    Ning Que frowned, as he prepared to pull out the podao to chop off his opponent¡¯s head.


    The old monk stared at Ning Que¡¯s waist and suddenly, began tough crazily. Hisughter was mad but weak, and in the end, he started sobbing as he said breathlessly, "I understand now. Could this be fated?"


    This old and strong cultivator had finally understood something from Ning Que before his death, as he mumbled, "Born as a Devil...Die as a Devil...I thought I could...escaped from the three reigns this life. Yet I got to wait till the moment before my death to realize that my whole life..."


    "...was bounded within this mountain."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que was not bothered by the old monk¡¯s words. He was not a believer in art, and had no interest in listening to his enemies¡¯ death wishes. All he wanted to do was to kill the other partypletely and terminate this horrendous experience.


    Yet when he wished to pull out his podao, he realized that the old monk¡¯s body started to turn into mud, causing his sharp and shiny de to be tightly stuck between the chest.


    Luckily, no powerful force was emitting from the de, neither did his sense of perception experience another wave of attack.


    Since he couldn¡¯t pull out the de, then why not push it in further?


    Ning Que hissed as he exerted force with his hands. The podao in his hands had directly prated through the old monk¡¯s body as he generously emitted the aura of Haoran Sword from his body into the de and towards the old monk.


    Upon receiving the wave of attack from the sword, the old monk gasped and puked a mouthful of blood.


    After being jailed in this ce for decades, he could only quench his thirst using the water droplets formed in the cracks of the rock, and fed himself with human bones and dried bodies. Though the old monk was a great cultivator who had broken the rules set by the world, he was eventually being cruelly tortured. Perhaps due to dehydration, the blood which he had vomited was sticky and ck in color, like the overused oil from the bottom of the stove pot.


    The old monk slowly sat himself up and ignored the fact that the aura from the Haoran Sword was gradually destroying every bit of life in his internal organs. As he gazed at Ning Que¡¯s face, his hands on his knees began to spread open and once again, he created his world¡¯s famous sign, the lotus print.


    As he was previously injured by the de, he was only left with a total of four fingers on both his hands. White bones could be seen from his broken fingers as blood seeped out from the wounds. The scene was horrifying. Yet when the ipleted lotus print appeared, a pure and holy aura suddenly filled his body. The warm andpassionate feeling had gradually spread out across the ground covered in broken bones.


    In the west, a lotus had fallen onto the earth. It was born with 32 Petals. Each petal was different, representing the different worlds.


    Now that only four petals remained, they hadbined to form a world. Yet this made the world peaceful.


    Since he was unable to escape from the three realms, since he could only stay within the mountain, then what was the point of creating numerous worlds in order to overtake the three realms? Then what for insisting to let the petals fly with the wind when blooming in this mountain quietly could emphasize more on its beauty?


    ...


    ...


    Master Lotus watched Ning Que¡¯s eyes quietly.


    Then Ning Que heard his voice.


    He wasn¡¯t controlled by Master Lotus¡¯ mental power to be absorbed nor was he being sucked into his enemy¡¯s world. Instead, both of their souls met each other in the mental world. From there, they could sense each other¡¯s presence, or intention.


    The moment they met, Ning Que could clearly sense that his opponent¡¯s intention was peaceful. There was no joy, but more of a serene feeling from realization. This piece of intention seemed to be familiar for him.


    ...


    ...


    Master Lotus¡¯ eyes seemed as warm as theke in spring, as he quietly looked at Ning Que.


    "What was I seeking for actually? What exactly were we seeking for? Could it be that there is another new world that is different from the past under Heaven¡¯s Way? I don¡¯t know, and I don¡¯t know if Ke Haoran knew it as well eventually."


    He then gazed at the motty sword marks on the rock wall. His pale-looking face revealed a smile.


    "In the end, you won. Your sessor won. Is he the final winner? The Devil¡¯s Doctrine was destroyed because of you and I, but will it be revived again due to him? My revenge to you, perhaps, begins from now. Yet I¡¯ll never know how it will end. Perhaps this is the beginning of my revenge on Haotian?"


    Master Lotus drew his attention back to Ning Que¡¯s eyes.


    A buzzing sound was heard within Ning Que¡¯s mind. He felt that many things had been passed to him from the old monk¡¯s stare. Those things were not exactly cultivation knowledge, but just some intangible feelings.


    "You have already joined the Devil. If you want to practice the Devil¡¯s skills, you got to practice Buddhism first before you start walking into the darkness. Though you have little chance of sess, and perhaps you¡¯ll die shortly after you start on this journey, but I still wish you luck. And I will curse you."


    Master Lotus quietly observed how he said hisst piece of words in this world before he slowly closed his eyes. Both his hands on his knees were spread open and rxed, like a wilting lotus.


    Ning Que¡¯s hands gripped tightly onto the hilt of the de, as he stared nkly forward.


    A light breeze with a soft hissing sound blew towards them and the old monk¡¯s body, which was still hanging by the de, suddenly cracked and dispersed with the breeze, like a soil statue. What remained were his broken bones that shattered onto the ground.


    The dust returned to the dust, the soil returned to the soil, and the bones returned to the bones.


    ...


    ...


    The son of an aristocratic family in the Kingdom of Song, Lotus, came to this world with a lotus. When he was still an innocent baby, he had already joined the Devil. It was not something he could choose because his family had already belonged to the Devil¡¯s Doctrine since his ancestors¡¯ time.


    After his marriage, his wife, whom he dearly loved discovered this secret, and was killed by his father.


    He stood beside her grave and swore that even if they couldn¡¯t be born at the same time, they could die at the same time. Hence, that night, he prepared to be buried together with her. That night, it was raining heavily and the wind was blowing strongly. He was in deep thought in front of the grave before he returned with his drenched clothes. That was when he started to travel around the world.


    He left his family and started to practice cultivation. He revealed his power at Lanke Temple, and got famous after that.


    He wanted to destroy the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, yet the hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce invited him to join the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. When he arrived at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine located deep within the Wilderness, he thought that he had returned home as he realized a sense of familiarity. That was when he understood that he was indeed born to be one of them. It was not the temple, nor the Buddhism, nor the Divine Hall, nor Mountain Wa, but a mountain that was abandoned by Haotian.


    He still wished to destroy the rotten and polluted, stinky-looking Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Then he discovered that he should help to rebirth it after destroying it. Thus, he decided to create a brand new Devil¡¯s Doctrine, then create a brand new world.


    He had great intelligence and he had cultivated all three religions. He nned to use the Devil to go against Heaven, and Tao to follow Heaven and finally made use of Buddhism to reach the other side, a side beyond the three realms, a side beyond averagemoners¡¯ knowledge. It was only then he could create a brand new world and wipe off the old world that belonged to the heartless Heaven. It was only then he could go back time and search for the things in the past.


    For that, he was willing to do evil things, yet he had no idea that while doing evil things, he did many shocking things and made a name for himself in the world. He killed tens of thousands of people, then finally, he met this person named Ke Haoran.


    At that time, he already had everything nned. All he needed to do was to hide behind that Moyu God picture at the Divine Hall in the Peach Mountain and waited patiently. He would wait for Ke Haoran to pass away, and for Headmaster of Academy to pass away and then begin his n of changing this world.


    Yet one day, he saw a woman beside Ke Haoran. The smile on that woman¡¯s face was innocently beautiful, just like his wife, who had passed away. He smiled at her warmly like a close friend, and that was when he decided to start his n early.


    He did not seed.


    He was jailed alone in this scary silent area for decades.


    He was waiting for hope in despair.


    When he finally saw hope, he died.


    Till the moment he saw death was approaching, he understood that he didn¡¯t really care about anything.


    He then understood that actually, he himself was just waiting for death.


    That year on that rainy night, he had no courage to dig open that grave.


    From then on, the world was just a lonely grave to him.


    He was a gravedigger that was possessed by the Devil.


    He was already a dead person in that grave.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que¡¯s expression remained nk as he stood still. His hands, which was holding onto the podao, were gradually lowered.


    Master Lotus was finally dead, yet the pieces of the consciousness that Master Lotus had previously passed to his mind remained.


    Those feelings wereplex and messy, just like Master Lotus himself.


    The energy left by thest sword style that was among the sword marks on the motty rock wall was still gushing into his body as it blended together with the Qi of Heaven and Earth to change his body. The greyish cotton was blooming on the tattered cotton-padded jacket as they shivered slightly in the wind.


    Ning Que rubbed off the blood at the corner of his mouth as he supported himself with his de and faltered his way to the corner of the wall. After he was certain that Mo Shanshan and Ye Hongyu were just knocked out and they were not dead, he felt relieved.


    If based on how he used to settle problems, he would have taken this opportunity to stab Tao Addict to death. Yet when he saw the horrible biting wounds on her body, he could not do it.


    Ning Que leaned onto the wall before he sat himself down. He then lowered his head and looked at his chest. He started to cough vigorously.


    He could feel the changes within his body, together with that consciousness which the old monk had passed to him. Fear and insecurity started to upy his heart. If anyone knew of this matter, how would the Headmaster of Academy and Academy react? Once he lost his most reliable dependent, how could he survive on in this world that was covered with the Haotian Divine light?


    After being injured by a series of consecutive attacks, his body was almost breaking down. He could finally be at ease now, yet the fear and pain from his injuries started to attack his mind, making him felt awful and anxious. He did not even have the time to think about how he could leave the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine as he frowned in pain. He had no idea how he could face the rest of his life.


    With his mind filled with confusion and terror, Ning Que leaned his body on the way and fainted.


    The Haoran Sword style on the motty rock wall gradually fell off as the wind blew as it quietly surrounded his senseless body. The Qi of Heaven and Earth flowed into his body at a very slow pace but it did not stop. It seemed like as long as he was alive, this would continue on and on forever.


    He joined the Devil in the midst of the mountain range that was abandoned by Haotian.


    At the same time, at a faraway ce in the south of the Wilderness, the Hot Sea started to freeze and the sky began to darken.


    This dark sky never seemed to be able to light up again.

 Chapter 287: The Same Night

    Chapter 287: The Same Night


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    While he was traveling through the mountain, she was waiting quietly in Chang¡¯an City.


    Different people in different ces felt a different coldness despite experiencing the same winter. Fortunately, the night was fair enough to submerge both the Tianqi Mountains as well as the city in darkness. In thete winter of Lin 47th Street, the Old Brush Pen Shop once again ushered in a typical night.


    Sangsang was seated on a small bench in the small courtyard, watching the white light dancing on her fingertips. The light illuminated her little tan face and made her willow-shape eyes look brighter, as if she was longing for something.


    The old man looked at her with a smile, his hands hidden in sleeves. The cotton-padded jacket on his body was much cleaner now and his grey hair wasbed over neatly. He still looked as ordinary and unassuming as ever, making it hard for people to believe that he was the Great Divine Priest of Light of the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    Snow started falling in the city several days ago and stopped tonight, clearing up the dark sky. Million of shining bright stars looked down upon the buildings on the ground, as well as the people that upied them.


    The Divine light gradually disappeared on her thin fingertips. Sangsang looked up at the stars in the sky and asked seriously, "Teacher, the Divine Skill can perceive and control the Haotian Divine light, namely the sunshine. So why can it also perceive and control the star light?"


    The old man removed his hands from his sleeves, ready to give an answer with some Haotian doctrines.


    Sangsang didn¡¯t notice his movement and squinted at the night stars, her eyebrows remained knitted. "Are these stars in the sky are countless suns? But they¡¯re too far away from us, so they look a little smaller and dimmer. Was that why their aura felt so much weaker at night when I use the Divine Skill?"


    The old manmented how he only thought of this point after cultivating the Divine Skill for three years, yet his new disciple had grasped it so soon. He couldn¡¯t help the manyplicated emotions that came to him, like joy, pride, and some disappointment too. "Theoretically, that should be so. But I¡¯ve once seen the appearance of stars years ago and it was different from how I imagined them."


    Sangsang turned her gaze to the old man. "Teacher, cultivators manipte weapons to attack others by controlling Qi of Heaven and Earth. How can we Divine Skill cultivators attack others?"


    The old man shook his head with a smile, thinking that his disciple still wanted to use Divine Skill to attack others. Not knowing the reason behind her obsession, he said softly, "Haotian Divine Light is the most static one as well as the origin of all primordial Qi on heaven and earth. But it¡¯s also the most violent because it can purify all things in the world into nothingness."


    A wilted leaf floated onto her knees. She looked at traces of snow remaining on the leaf and gently wiped them away. She looked at the old man and continued to ask solemnly, "What does Haotian Divine Light use to purify everything in the world? Is it like creating a fire through burning firewood?"


    He didn¡¯t expect her to use firewoods as an analogy for the purification of Divine Light and burst intoughter.


    He exined carefully, "You can think of Divine Light as numerous tiny particles that can¡¯t be seen by naked eyes at all. These particles can emit light and have an almost unlimited speed. However, when they spread out at such a speed, they¡¯ll lose all their power."


    "The transmission of the Divine Light is more simr to the rippling of theke water. The power contained in the waves is its power. But your analogy isn¡¯t wrong. Only when the particles in the Divine Light vibrate violently and produce an intensely high temperature that doesn¡¯t exist in the secr world, will it demonstrate its unique power of purifying everything in the world."


    The old man looked at Sangsang¡¯s thoughtful little face and said, after a short moment of pause, "The Divine Skill is a very powerful ability. But the greater the ability, the greater the responsibility. Anyone who wants to have this ability must have a corresponding moral character. One must be pure in heart and hold an upright outlook so that he won¡¯t be wicked. That way there wouldn¡¯t be any side effects."


    In his eyes, Sangsang was clean and pure from her hair to her toes. That was why he had been loitering around Lin 47th Street for so many days like he had found a treasure. He thought she was the Lucky Chance that Haotian had bestowed him.


    The reason why he spoke of the upright outlook so seriously was that he feared his disciple would be tainted by the darkness of the world and be discredited by the dust when he left the world in the future.


    There was a well in the courtyard, with a bucket of water next to it. The starlight infiltrated the water but couldn¡¯t linger there.


    Sangsang shook her head. "Transparency has no color. Both darkness and brightness are all colors."


    The old man fell into silence as he slowly pondered her words, finding them to be reasonable. He vaguely thought her argument to be right andmented that perhaps only truly pure people could realize the truth.


    Sangsang continued, "Young master once taught me that power was just power without any inclinations toward good or evil. He told me not to believe any sayings like "one is born good or evil.¡¯"


    The old man looked into her eyes, seeing nothing but conviction and trust in them. His expression shifted, thinking that the young master she spoke of seemed to be an interesting person.


    In his many visits to the Old Brush Pen Shoptely, he came to learn from Sangsang the many nonsensical sayings or epigraphs that young master had once mentioned. He became curious about how the young master could develop such a realistic and certain point of view,menting the young master¡¯s luck to have Sangsang to so unreasonably trust and rely on him.


    "Since you¡¯re more interested in the power of Divine Skill, then let¡¯s give a try."


    With a smile, the old man stretched out his index finger and a me of light appeared on his fingertip. There was no temperature to the white me, but in the next moment the courtyard was enveloped with a dry aura and the me quickly became heated.


    "First, we have to perceive and condense the Haotian Divine Light on heaven and earth as we¡¯ve done recently and ask it to radiate its heat and power beyond its light."


    The white me of light floated down from the old man¡¯s fingers and fell on the wilted leaf that Sangsang had brushed off from her knees. Following a gentle sound, the leaf and the remainders of snow on it disappeared instantly without a trace.


    Looking at the scene, Sangsang lowered her head to mull over it silently. When she looked up, she imitated the old man and stretched her index finger. A round and lovely me of light carrying an impossibly high temperature showed on her fingertip.


    The old man looked at the me on her fingertip. Though he had experienced too many shocks from this little disciple of his these days, there were hints of exmation and joyful satisfaction in his old eyes.


    Did she really condensed the Haotian Divine Light with just a nce and actually used it after a second nce?


    The old man was once praised as the most brilliant Great Divine Priest of Light after the legendary figure a thousand years ago. He was the person closest to Haotian in this world. However, he was well aware that he couldn¡¯t achieve that and that legendary figure wasn¡¯t able to either.


    Sangsang looked at the me on her fingertip, a hesitant look creeping onto her face. She seemed like she didn¡¯t know how to deal with it. She looked at the kitchen, the firewoods under the stove, and the water pot on it. She remembered she was preparing to boil water earlier. Her willow-shape eyes suddenly brightened as she gently flicked the me on her fingertip into the stove.


    That round me floated into the stove and gently fell on the dry firewoods. The dry firewoods were instantly lit with a sizzle and started burning. Soon, there were strands of steam emerging from the water pot.


    The me that floated into the stove didn¡¯t burn the firewoods into smokes, indicating that the Divine Light condensed by Sangsang was much weaker than that of her master in terms of purity and power. But she showed not a single hint of frustration and smiled happily instead. She thought it was wonderful that she didn¡¯t have to waste any dry firewoods or the me on her fingertip.


    "Teacher, the hot water is ready. You can wash the dishes now."


    The old man stood up and clumsily rolled up his thick cotton sleeves as he walked toward the kitchen. Fortunately what he had was broth fish noodles and not chicken noodles. It would be much easier to wash it as the bowl would not be so oily.

 Chapter 288: No Idler in the World

    Chapter 288: No Idler in the World


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    There were no idlers besides Ning Que in the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    After Sangsang had given shelter to the old man here, she was persuaded by him to start cultivating the Divine Skill and even sincerely called him "Teacher". But when she thought of his worthless appearance before their encounter, she decided to arrange a lot of housework for him so that he would not be an old idler who carried a teapot wandering around in the street,yout sunbathing, flossed his teeth, made pitiful faces, and even cursed at others.


    The old man was not used to it at the very beginning. Since he left the little Taoist temple in the Kingdom of Song decades ago, he had never done any chores such as washing dishes and wiping down desks. Whether sitting on the divine throne or being imprisoned in You Prison behind Peach Mountain, he had had countless servants. As a god above the clouds, how could he do housework like that?


    Now, however, he needed to learn how to do these things because it was Sangsang¡¯s request. And as Sangsang¡¯s teacher, he believed that a sessor should learn to honor teachers and esteem their teachings. But he was more aware that if he did not listen to this young girl, he might no longer be her teacher at any moment. And he absolutely could not ept that.


    As a result, the most brilliant Great Divine Priest of Light in centuries fell into a trap of life in front of Sangsang after he had arbitrarily defected from the Divine Hall and dismantled the Confinement tactical array of the Great Divine Priest of Judgment.


    If the secr pious Haotian Taoism devotees knew his current experiences, namely doing housework in a deste alley in Chang¡¯an City, they might be so indignant as to drop dead.


    No matter how incredible it was, the more that one did something, the more that he would get used to it and even began to enjoy it. As did the Great Divine Priest of Light. The old man rolled up his cotton sleeves, standing on the edge of the stove, and carefully washed the bowls with a sponge gourd in his hands. He became more proficient and even subconsciously felt happy, for he felt that he would not break the bowls today. There was a child-like proud look appearing on his old munificent cheeks.


    After finishing the housework that Sangsang had arranged, the old man walked to the shop front and put a temporary bed together using two square tables. He took out the bedding from a corner behind a shelf and made the bed. And then he blew out the oilmp andy on the bed, ready to sleep.


    The starlight of the winter night sprinkled into Lin 47th Street and prated through thettices of the shop. The old man looked at the frost-like starlight on the ground, pressing on an angle of the bedding that air leaked out from, andfortably uttered a sigh.


    He was very satisfied with his decision to leave Peach Mountain ande to Chang¡¯an City. He was so satisfied with his present life that he had forgotten why he had left Peach Mountain ande to Chang¡¯an City. He even seldom remembered that ck shadow. Perhaps he subconsciously wanted to live here longer.


    He was so d to find a sessor and was unspeakably happy to have found such a Divine Talisman sessor like Sangsang. The old man believed that there had not appeared such a figure in Haotian Taoism for a millennium and such a person probably would not appear again after a thousand years. Sangsang was certainly able to inherit his skills and would go farther than he himself had and she would eventually be able to see that wonderful world that he had only glimpsed.


    The old man felt that he was not far from death, but he still felt happy for he could see the future after his death¡ªa bright future that filled him with delight and admiration.


    In the courtyard behind the shop, Sangsang was also preparing to sleep. She poured the hot water into a bucket and started to wash her feet. She gently kicked the water with her white, lotus-like smooth and delicate feet, just like a duckling ying with water beside a pond.


    A 14-year-old girl living alone took in an unidentified old man and that old man had watched for days outside of the Old Brush Pen Shop. It seemed improper for her to do so, but Sangsang had still done it.


    That did not mean that Sangsang was a kind and innocent girl. She might be kind, but she had known the treachery in people¡¯s hearts after living with Ning Que for years in this earthly world. The reason why she took the old man in was that she had seen the holy shining light on his fingertip and confirmed that she could help Ning Que in a fight after learning the Divine Skill.


    This reason was very important¡ªFor the past 10 years, Ning Que had fought with others and killed people for her. She could only hide under the big ck umbre and asionally shout a few times. She thought that she had now grown up and should be able to do more things, such as helping Ning Que to fight or kill when necessary.


    After getting along for quite a while, Sangsang and the old man felt close to each other, like a family. Because she could feel who really treated her well, she found that the old man treated her almost as well as Ning Que did.


    "What is my young master doing now? It must be cold in the Wilderness."


    Sangsang opened her eyes and looked at the roof, her hands holding onto a slightly cool kang (a heatable brick bed), and imagined Ning Que¡¯s life on the Wilderness. This was the longest time that she had been separated from him and she could not get ustomed to it.


    Because Ning Que was not at home, she felt that she did not need to warm up all the newly-built kangs in the north of the room and began to be frugal as usual. There were only a few silver charcoal pieces under the kangs these days, making the kangs¡¯ surface a little cold.


    She took the talismans left by Ning Que out from the cab and carefully stuck them outside of her underwear. Logically speaking, Ning Que clearly forgot that no one besides himself was able to activate the heating of these fire talismans. But, perhaps because she had started cultivating the Divine Skill, her little body was gradually warming up.


    In this 14th year of the Tianqi era, the winter hade earlier and was colder than before. Sangsang raised her small hands to her mouth and gently breathed out twice. Looking at the mist on hershes, she thought of something and took Ning Que¡¯s bedding out of the cab after a short pause. She opened the door and went to the front shop, gently covering the old man¡¯s body with the bedding.


    A warm bed was the most sinister enemy for people needing to get up. So the next day, the old man woke upte. He looked at the bright sky outside of the shop and could not help feeling surprised when he realized that he had forgotten to queue up to buy the Hot and sour noodle slice soup.


    As he got up in a hurry and got ready for washing, he saw a note under a stone on a small bench that was beside the well.


    On the note was unskilled, but very nice, handwriting written by Sangsang.


    "At night, I remembered that a sister had called me to dine at her mansion. So, I¡¯ll probably spend a whole day there. Teacher, you don¡¯t have to wait for me to eat. If you get upte and don¡¯t buy the noodle soup, you can go to eat in the next shop. I¡¯ve already mentioned it to Aunt Wu."


    ...


    ...


    The snow had umted on ck tiles above the South School Temple of Haotian Taoism, which quietly faced the vermilion imperial wall not far away, under the light of dawn.


    The Nation Master of the Tang Empire, Li Qingshan, gently coughed twice. He looked at the volumes on the table and frowned slightly.


    An officer of the Imperial Center Administration that wasing to report greeted him with a bow with hands folded in front of him and said seriously, "Mr. Thirteen left the pce and now presumably has entered Tianqi Mountain. I don¡¯t know if he can find the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. As for the Tomes of Arcane... Sir Nation Master, if the imperial court doesn¡¯t send a master there, I¡¯m afraid it¡¯ll be very difficult to grab it in front of the Divine Hall."


    Li Qingshan shook his head and said after a short moment of silence, "When His Majesty asked Ning Que to enter the Wilderness, the imperial court didn¡¯t know the matter of the Tomes of Arcane. The decision of letting Ning Que give it a try had nothing to do with the imperial court, the South School, or the Imperial Center Administration. It was the will of Mr. Two in the Academy. So, the Academy should be responsible for it. You don¡¯t need to think about it."


    No need to think about it. That was because there was no sense in thinking of anything further. The book of the Tomes of Arcane that had been lost in the Wilderness attracted the attention of too many forces. In particr, the West-Hill Divine Pce was clearly prepared for this. Although the intelligence said that its Hierarch Lord God and three Gods were still on Peach Mountain, someone else in the Taoist temple might have gone there already.


    In the face of this situation, the Tang Empire would not beat the Divine Hall to grab the Tomes of Arcane unless it made a full attack. However, it was obviously impossible for the imperial court to do that. It could only ask the Academy to do such a thing. But, Li Qingshan felt confused as to why the Academy put all its hope on Ning Que, for Ning Que had a really low state indeed.


    Li Qingshan did not spend too much time or energy on this matter. He began to read other files sent by the Imperial Center Administration. He put all his mind on searching for the trail of the Great Divine Priest of Light. When the Headmaster of the Academy was traveling far away, there was such a formidable and horrible god lurking in Chang¡¯an City. Both His Majesty and he himself felt so uneasy about it.


    The ambush in the General¡¯s Mansion had finally ended in failure. Although the Tang Empire did not suffer any losses, it could be described as a fiasco for the South School of Haotian Taoism and the military, who had gained nothing after plotting it for such a long time.


    In that battle, Li Qingshan did not fight with the Great Divine Priest of Light face to face. But he knew that he had been defeated and he felt humiliated about the way of his failure. Would he have felt better if he knew that the Great Divine Priest of Light was working as a dishwasher at this moment?


    Where on earth are you hiding?


    Stepping on the ebony-bronze floor, the Nation Master slowly walked out of the pce, standing by the handrail and silently watching the withered flowers as well as the remaining snow for a long time. And then, he lifted his sleeves and left the Southern Gate Temple. His eldest disciple, He Mingchi, hurriedly followed up. He Mingchi nced at the clear sky, thinking that it probably would not snow today, but he still put a yellow paper umbre under his armpit.


    On the top floor of the Wanyan Tower¡ª


    Copying Buddhist scriptures, Monk Huang Yang heard a noise behind him and looked back. He saw Li Qingshan¡¯s slightly gaunt face, gently sighed in the bottom of his heart, and then got up to wee him. He looked at his tired appearance, saying, "In ordance with the Revtion God, the ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll should reappear in the Wilderness, near the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. But some days ago, you deliberately calcted once. Your cinnabar pen indicated that its location on the map was in the Hn Sea. So, there is still some distance between the two locations."


    It was quiet on the top floor of the tower. But Huang Yang was not in the habit of ordering the lesser monks, so others could hear the dialogue between these two people.


    Li Qingshan shook his head and said, "That book of the Tomes of Arcane belongs to Taoist treasure. The imperial court really doesn¡¯t have a right to grab it, neither does the South School. Since the Academy epted the task, I¡¯ll no longer care about this."


    Huang Yang quietly looked at him and said suddenly, "Will you keep paying attention to that matter?"


    Li Qingshan said quietly, "The God of Light is in Chang¡¯an City. His Majesty doesn¡¯t allow the Divine Hall to send its people here, so I¡¯ll be responsible for it. As the Nation Master of the Tang Empire, I have the responsibility of guarding the Empire and this capital."


    And then he looked at Huang Yang and said seriously, "You have to be careful these days."


    Monk Huang Yang put his palms together and said slowly, "What kind of figure is the God of Light? I¡¯m just a harmless nobody who copies Buddhist books in a broken tower. How could he think ofing topete with me in cultivation?"


    After finishing this sentence, he went to the tower and watched the magnificent Chang¡¯an City under the clear winter sky, saying with a calm smile, "If he really dared toe, he must show his real state in order to kill me, even though I¡¯m ipetent. By that time, in Chang¡¯an City this big tactical array could instantly suppress him."


    Nowadays, neither the West-Hill Divine Pce nor the Tang Empire were clear why the God of Light had fled from Peach Mountain to Chang¡¯an City. If it was for that prophecy and the old affairs from more than 10 years ago, it did not make sense. If he wanted to be disadvantageous to the Tang Empire, then Li Qingshan and Monk Huang Yang were undoubtedly most likely to be his targets.


    In that case, the former dialogue showed that Monk Huang Yang had thepassion and courage of feeding a tiger with his own body. Li Qingshan looked at the old monk clothes and shook his head after a short moment of silence, saying, "It¡¯s too passive. We must find him first."


    Monk Huang Yang turned around and found that a chessboard had appeared in front of Li Qingshan, who was stretching out his hand toward the chess box.


    He was slightly surprised and said, "Are you ready to divine again?"


    Li Qingshan stretched his right hand into the chess box, touching the slightly cool chess pieces, and then nodded.


    Monk Huang Yang frowned and said, "You divine at the expense of your life. Why do it?"


    Li Qingshan said calmly, "These days, my Senior Brother has been in Chang¡¯an City searching for traces of the God of Light. And until now, he has still found nothing. Since he took such a big risk to find that man, I also have to do something."


    Master Yan Se was the most powerful Divine Talisman Master in the world, even level with the Hierarch Lord and God in the West-Hill Divine Pce. Wei Guangming was the greatest God of Light for hundreds of years. No one in the world knew who was the more powerful of the two bigwigs. But this kind of search was extremely unfavorable to a Divine Talisman Master.


    A crisp sound emanated, like an early spring rain that hade to earth.


    Dozens of chess pieces jumped and rotated on the chessboard. Afterward, they stood still, no longer moving.


    These pieces had been arbitrarily taken out of the box by Li Qingshan. But surprisingly, there was only one white piece and the rest were all ck. Those matte-ck stone pieces silently bunched up on the left side of the board, surrounding the white one.


    Li Qingshan looked at the chessboard and kept silent for a long time, then said, "He¡¯s still in Chang¡¯an City. Not far from us."


    ...


    ...


    During this winter, Chang¡¯an City seemed to have been stimted by something and became as moody as it was in summer. It had been clear fromst night to this morning. However, after a short moment, the sky was covered by gloomy snow clouds and sporadic snowkes started drifting.


    He Mingchi looked up at the sky and heard the footsteps resounding in the tower behind him. He quickly pulled out the yellow paper umbre from his armpit and opened it. When he saw that the cheeks of the Nation Master were gaunter than before, he could not help feeling a tension in his heart.


    After leaving the Wanyan Tower and returning back to the South School, He Mingchi went directly to the back kitchen and was watching a factotum cooking medicine. As the eldest disciple of the Tang¡¯s Nation Master, he did not have a good qualification in cultivation. He also knew that he could not persuade his teacher to not consume the energy, and even his lifetime, to divine. So, he could only do what he could.


    Holding a hot bowl of medicine, he slowly walked into the quiet Temple of Taoism.


    Li Qingshan sat by the window, looking at the flying snow outside. Listening to the sound of footsteps, he did not look back, but signaled for He Mingchi to put the medicine bowl down.


    He Mingchi did not put the bowl down, but kneeled at Li Qingshan¡¯s side, bowing his head and holding the medicine bowl with both hands above his head. And then, he silently and stubbornly asked his teacher to take the medicine first.


    Li Qingshan sighed reluctantly and took the bowl. He slowly drank the medicine and then said withment, "You¡¯re too stubborn to be in charge of the Imperial Center Administration. If I die in the future, who would take care of you?"

 Chapter 289: A Thing of the Past

    Chapter 289: A Thing of the Past


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "You are not talented in cultivation. We can see that your level of Taoists Law has barely improved in thest ten years. And you are not able to take the Nation Master of Tang position, because you are not the type of person who knows how to deal with different people like civilian officials and generals in the court. In this case, as my student, you will face a very bad situation. The people who hate me will stand against you when I die, once they know you are not under the protection of the Nation Master title.


    Li Qingshan looked at his chief student, his eyes full of worry and helplessness.


    He Mingchi answered, looking down, "I am not talented, but I am used to the life of serving you and uncles, and doing errands like organizing archives. If you die, I will finish my work first and then stay near your tomb and practice Taoists Law, not to improve my state to Knowing Destiny State, but merely to live in the world a little longer."


    "You would guard a tomb alone? That sounds miserable."


    Li Qingshanughed. Then he put on a serious look and said to He Mingchi, "His Majesty asked you to supervise the Prince while he studies. I know you get along well with him, but you should watch out, as your rtionship might someday bring you major trouble. I think you should do some preparation in advance, in case this happens."


    At this moment, his voice suddenly became deep and low.


    He Mingchi was taken back; he moved two steps forward. His face became more and more serious and his eyes full of surprise. He raised his head but was unable to say anything.


    Li Qingshan looked at his disciple, and said with concern, "Many years ago, I met His Majesty at a fortune teller¡¯s. He was not as powerful then as he is today. After all these years¡¯ friendship, he always allows me to do unreasonable things. That is why I hope you can be a close friend of the First Prince. You are my disciple, and this is the way I protect you."


    He Mingchi was too moved to say anything.


    Li Qingshan looked at him fondly and said, "It¡¯s time for you to leave."


    He Mingchi left.


    Li Qingshan turned to look out the window, where snow was falling slowly. He contemted silently.


    Everyone knew that he had been a nobody before taking up this powerful position. Naturally, they thought he was a brainless and brash person. But being the National Master for such a long time, he had to think carefully about the important things happening in the court.


    It was very clear to him that the decision of which Prince should inherit the throne would be made solely by the King. As long as the Academy kept its promise of not intervening in politics, no one in the empire would dare to say anything about the decision, not even the prime minister or the Military Department.


    If His Majesty chose the Second Prince, everything would be as right as rain.


    But if His Majesty chose the First Prince, would the Empress agree with the decision?


    After so many years, it was still hard for Li Qingshan to understand the deep rtionship between the Emperor and the Empress. But seeing was believing, and Li Qingshan had seen how much they loved each other. However, he still wondered whether the empress would be willing to stay in the pce when the Emperor died.


    Gazing out at the snow, he sighed. Could he really rely on the chance that the empress, the former Saintess of Diabolism, would not try to obtain supreme power over the Kingdom? After all he was the Master of the Southern Gate Temple of Haotian.


    ...


    ...


    "Last month, uncle threw a banquet, wanting to introduce me to some officials in the court. But several officials heard I was going to the party and decided not to go, just so that they wouldn¡¯t have to meet me! Yet when that woman held a banquet a few days ago, all the ministers sent their wives to the Pce to cater to her. They would have even sent their mothers to the Pce if it was possible. I mean, what were they thinking? Do they not know that I am the First Prince?"


    In a quiet yard, a young man dressed in yellow was sitting in a chair, shouting angrily to the snow. There was no dignity on his face, only hatred and evil.


    Lee Yu was sitting next to him and watching the snow. She frowned. She had been worried recently about the things happening in the court, and hisments made her worry even more. She said harshly, "She is our mother! What do you mean by that woman? And your rude remarks about the officials are so uneptable!"


    The young man was the First Prince Li Huiyuan. He was a bit afraid of his sister, but still had the courage to say, "Sister, we only have one mother, and that is not her. She is not qualified to be our mother anyway. Those officials are all mean and evil jerks. What¡¯s wrong with pointing it out?"


    Lee Yu looked him in the eye and said seriously, "You are the sessor of the Kingdom, and there are countless eyes spying on you. You need to mind your words and deeds at all times. "


    Li Huiyuan sneered and said, "But father hasn¡¯t appointed me as the Crown Prince."


    "Enough!"


    Lee Yu furrowed her brows. She quickly changed the topic, "How is your studying in Guozijian?"


    Li Huiyuan shrugged. A careless expression crossed his face. "Father sent He Mingchi to watch me study every day. Even if I wanted to skip school, it would be impossible. Stop worrying. The Grand Secretaries all praised me for studying hard."


    Lee Yu watched his expression and was sure that he was not lying. This improved her mood, but she still reminded him, "He Mingchi is very busy. He needs to handle affairs in the Imperial Center Administration and watch you study. Remember not to vent your anger on him."


    Li Huiyuan was a little confused at her words. He asked, "I am getting along well with Mingchi. I would never me him for others¡¯ faults. But why do you care so much?"


    Looking at the falling snow, Lee Yu said slowly, "A couple of days ago, the Academy, the imperial court and the Southern Gate Temple made an agreement. When Ning Que enters the human realm in the future, he will not be a visiting professor of the Southern Gate Temple, but the National Master. He Mingchi is the current National Master¡¯s beloved student. He is very important if we want to win the support of South School of Haotian Taoism."


    "I never asked him, but I believe he will support us because of our rtionship."


    Li Huiyuan thought about how things would unfold in the future. He Mingchi would inherit his master Li Qingshan, the current National Master¡¯s influence, but he would never be a National Master. He felt very sorry for He Mingshan. "Ning Que will probably be an important person for us. I wonder how we can get him."


    Lee Yu became angry again. She raised her eyebrows and rebuked, "I said you need to be careful, but you dare to say everything. Ning Que is a core disciple of the Headmaster of Academy. No one dares to say they want to get him."


    Li Huiyuan didn¡¯t conceal his pride. He said scornfully, "Even if I cannot do it now, in the future, I will have the dragon throne. I will have countless aces serving in Imperial Center Administration and in the army. I have no reason to be scared of him."


    Lee Yu¡¯s anger grew. She stared at him in disappointment. "It was the Headmaster of the Academy who made the rule that the Academy is not allowed to interfere with politics and it has to obey thew of Tang Empire. The imperial court does not have the ability to control the Academy. So, if you want to hold onto your throne, you should remember to respect the Academy at all times. Do you hear me?"


    Li Huiyuan was shocked by the anger in her eyes. He nodded. To make her happy again, he held her hands and shook them gently. "I know, sister. I know now that no one is allowed to say they want to get the Academy. But I know you are powerful enough to get Ning Que."


    His words reminded Lee Yu of the trek, the stories beside the bonfire and the man with three swords on his back. She could not help butugh. "I am afraid I am not that powerful."


    A pce nanny appeared and said quietly, "The Little Prince woke up and Miss Sangsang told him some stories. They are now on their way here."


    Lee Yu nced at her brother and said, "You should go back to the Pce and study, in case father checks your homework tonight."


    Lee Huiyuan replied, "I could stay longer. Father never opposes me staying with you."


    Lee Yu frowned. "You really should avoid meeting her. You are ill-tempered and although Sangsang seems to be fine with it, she has a clear mind. She knows everything you are thinking."


    Li Huiyuanughed out of anger. "But she is just a handmaiden. You want me to leave just because of her?"


    Lee Yu didn¡¯t bother to exin. She grabbed him, lifted him out of the chair, and then called some eunuchs to escort him to the Pce.


    She watched the yellow figure disappear at the stone gate of the yard and shook her head. She knew that although her brother had improved considerably in the past year, he was still too young to understand matters thoroughly.


    Sangsang was indeed a normal humble handmaiden; her status was much lower than a Prince of Tang. But Lee Yu was clear that Sangsang was the key to getting Ning Que and keeping a good rtionship with the Academy.


    ...


    ...


    Lee Yu ced her brush on the inkstone. She looked at her calligraphy, a whole page of regr script in small characters. She turned around and asked, "What do you think of my writing? Do you like it?"


    Sangsang shook her head. "I am not good at appreciating calligraphy. I think as long as it is clean and tidy, it is good."


    Lee Yu didn¡¯t buy it. With augh, she said, "But your young master is one of the most famous calligraphers. After being with him for such a long time howe you don¡¯t know how to appreciate calligraphy? How do you appreciate his calligraphy when you apany him as he writes?"


    Sangsang looked at Lee Yu seriously. Her eyes were round and shiny. She said, "My young master¡¯s writing is definitely good. I don¡¯t need to think of fancy words to tter him."


    Lee Yu thought about her words carefully and found this handmaiden and her master very interesting. To make fun of her, she asked, "I don¡¯t know how you get along so well with each other, but I know, in your eyes, Ning Que is the best in everything. Tell me, he has been out of Chang¡¯an for a long time, have you missed him at night?"


    Sangsang and Lee Yu had been visiting each other quite regrly ever since they came to Chang¡¯an from the City of Wei. They had gradually be friends, ignoring the differences between their statuses. But when Shangshang heard this, she felt ashamed and angry. She turned around and didn¡¯t answer Lee Yu¡¯s question, which was very umon.


    Lee Yu smiled, she knew very well that only by making fun of each other, could they be closer. She also knew very well that under the angry, shamed face, Sangsang liked what she was implying.


    But Sangsang was too young to understand her own feelings. She didn¡¯t really know why she felt so ashamed. Ning Que was the same. He was not clear of his feelings either.


    Sangsang was standing next to theke and looking at the snow. Her slim figure and the backdrop of the flying snow made up a really beautiful picture, from which you could sense a lonely but expectant feeling.


    Lee Yu looked at this picture and envisioned Ning Que standing next to the handmaiden. She found this pictureplete and harmonious, so much that not a single part was in conflict.


    She sighed silently, trying to rid herself of the envy and regret arising in her heart. She remembered the piece of recent news and asked softly, "I heard that you harbored an old man recently in the Old Brush Pen Shop."


    Surprised, Sangsang turned and nodded.


    Looking at her thin dark face, Lee Yu felt her heart swelling with pity. She reminded Sangsang carefully, "Chang¡¯an is a safe ce and there are people guarding the shop. But still, please be careful about this type of thing."


    Sangsang sensed her concern and love. Sheforted Lee Yu, "It is fine. He is an honest man."


    ...


    ...


    He was a man of trouble. A decade ago, it was he who had led two bloody cases and killed countless innocent people, yet he was also titled Great Divine Priest of Light and symbolized purity. Whether the word honest really suited him was an uncertainty.


    But it was true that nothing had gone wrong in the Old Brush Pen Shop. Ning Que had asked for help several times from many different parties before he left, so Lin 47th Street was under heavy guard. It had thus be quite noisy; bodyguards from the imperial pce often came and watched the shop, and local government runners checked on the shop at least five times a day. Never mind the people from the Fish-dragon Gang, who almost never left the shop, and protected it from morning till night. All this made this humble street the safest ce aside from the Pce.


    It was ironic though. The bodyguards from the imperial pce, the Chang¡¯an local government, and the Fish-dragon Gang were all executing anothermand: find an old man. But it had never urred to anyone that the man they were searching for was in the very shop they were guarding.


    When evening fell, Sangsang remembered that it was time to prepare dinner for the old man. She left the Princess Mansion and went home.


    She opened the gate of the shop and walked into the yard. Her eyebrows frowned when she discovered the old man was nning to heat up leftovers as dinner, just like she had thought he would. She opened the boxed meal from the Princess Mansion and said, "Come and eat this."


    She had tried to teach the old man to cook a couple of days ago. But after witnessing the fruit of his cooking, she decided to save some rice and wood by giving up on her n. The rice had been so overcooked that it was as ck as coal and half of the wood pile had disappeared.


    Just as they were about to eat, someone knocked on the gate.


    Sangsang stood up. She was about to answer the door when she suddenly remembered something. She sat back down to eat.


    The old man understood. He picked a tiny bit of rice from his clothes and went to answer the door.


    ...


    ...


    The gate of the Old Brush Pen Shop opened. A monk was standing on the stairs.


    It was a handsome young monk, dressed in a very old robe, with a feeling of out of the mortal world.


    The monk was shocked to see the old man. He said, "I am not looking for you."


    The old man was also shocked, he turned around and said, "It is for you."


    Holding her bowl, Sangsang walked toward the gate. She tried very hard to remember who this young monk was and finally remembered that she had met this man once outside the gate of the Academy when Ning Que had gone to the Second floor of the Academy.


    The monk¡¯s eyes lightened when he saw Sangsang¡¯s dark face. He eximed in an excited shaking voice, "Oh dear girl, I, the Love Monk Wudao, have finally found you. I have made you some new poems."


    "You are a beautiful flower on the cliff, waiting for me to pick you up. You are a slim fish in theke, swimming through a of seaweed. You are the biggest obstacle in my road, and I choose to stay with you, never to start the journey again..."


    Sangsang nced at the Yellow Flower Fish in her bowl when she heard the words flower and fish.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 290: Blazing eyes

    Chapter 290: zing eyes


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Sangsang didn¡¯t think this poem was great, in fact, she thought it even worse than the one she wrote before for Ning Que to read when killing people. Besides, she remembered that this monk had threatened her and Ning Que at the outside of the Academy, therefore, she turned around and shut the door close.


    Wudao stopped the closing gate with his hand. He looked at Sangsang. The craziness and excitement on his face could not be more obvious, and said in excitement, "To make sure that you can travel around the world and enjoy the beautiful scenery with me, I promise that I will kill your master as soon as possible."


    Sangsang turned around and looked at his face seriously when hearing what he said.


    Seeing her serious look, Wudao was even more obsessed with her. He reached his hand out involuntarily to touch her face.


    As his finger moved towards her darkish face, he felt as if the clean and addictive smell of Sangsang was permeating through his body. His breathing became rapid and he said in a serious voice, "I have never met any girl who can make me feel so excited. You will be mine."


    His face was still serious when he said that, with no greedy or obsessed expressions crossing his face. His tattered robe looked nice and clean against the wind. However, it was as if there was hot blood flowing rapidly in every pore on his face, and his every word carried a horny smell.


    Sangsang stepped backwards to avoid his wet and sticky finger, as if the finger was as horrible as a snake¡¯s tongue. She nced at the bulging part between his legs and reached her hands to retrieve a basin expressionlessly.


    The water in the basin, which was used to wash vegetables yesterday was saved for flushing the toilet.


    The old man had gone to fetch the water from the backyard a moment ago and had been waiting there quietly.


    Sangsang got the basin from his hand and moved her arms, and then she poured the water forward.


    Ssh!


    The dirty water, together with sand and dirt, drenched Wudao from head to foot. Two pieces of smelly rotten leaves were seen lying on his bald head, which made his serious face frozen for a moment.


    With a snap, the wooden gate was closed.


    Wudao, soaked all over, was in a daze. He stood still at the foot of the stone stairs for a long time beforeing to his senses. Then, with a smile on his face, he wiped the water from his face and removed the leaves on his head.


    He had met Sangsang twice and always showed his excitement and enthusiasm. But now, cold and indifference appeared on his face for the first time after he was drenched by water.


    This was because he was angry and sad. He didn¡¯t understand at all why she, a handmaiden, should treat him in such a cold way. There was nothing irrational about him wanting to marry her and have sex with her. Shouldn¡¯t she feel honored and faint because of happiness when such an important figure like him picked her? How dare she pour water on him?


    However, the more she resisted, the more interested he became. Under his cold smile, the desire of wanting to upy her made his heart pound excitedly.


    Having noticed what had happened, a few men from the Fish-dragon Gang, who were keeping watch on the Lin 47th Street, walked towards Wudao and circled him. A man among them said in a low voice, "The people living here are Mr. Qi¡¯s friends. I should warn you that you should nevere back again if you still want to see tomorrow¡¯s sun. "


    Love Monk Wudao came from the Unknown ce, he didn¡¯t care a little about these normal people in Jianghu world. But the fact that there were many powerful men hidden in Chang¡¯an city and Tang Dynasty made him cautious. Let alone there were many civilians around, watching and judging his deeds.


    After a moment of silence, he said towards the shop with a smile, "I will be back."


    After finishing his words, he straightened his robe and walked straight away, ignoring the people from the Fish-dragon Gang. As he walked away, his robe was fluttered slightly in the wind and his straw shoes cracked the dead leaves on the ground.


    The bare branches cast shadows on his peaceful face.


    That night when he ascended the mountains to the Second floor of the Academy, Master Yan Se had burned the sleeve of his robe as a punishment. After that, Wudao left Chang¡¯an and traveled to the viges in the south. Being out of Tang Kingdom and civilization since the end of the spring, he didn¡¯t know any news about Chang¡¯an; he didn¡¯t know who that handmaiden was or who Ning Que was. But he had always hated Zhong Dajun.


    As spring turned into winter, it gradually became cold. Time passed by quickly and took many things away such as fear. Wudao plucked up courage and came back to Tang Kingdom. And a little bird told him that Master Yan Se was busy dealing with something, which convinced him that Master Yan Se would be too busy to care about him. Therefore, the fear of that scary Divine Talisman Master faded in him and gave him the confidence toe back to the capital city, Chang¡¯an.


    He came back because he really missed that handmaiden, in fact, he wanted her so much. It must be fate or luck that brought her into his sight on the second day after his arrival at Chang¡¯an. Therefore, he followed her all the way from the Princess Mansion to Lin 47th Street, knocked on the gate of Old Brush Pen Shop, but to his distress, only got a basin of dirty water and two pieces of smelly leaves.


    But it didn¡¯t matter because the me of excitement and obsession in him would not be put out by a basin of water.


    He was the Love Monk, who had attracted countless girls of all types. On his journey to Yuelun Kingdom and South Jin Kingdom, he never failed to appeal to any girl. Therefore, he had every reason to believe he would not fail to allure a handmaiden this time.


    When thinking that his wish was about to realize, Wudao felt really happy. He walked on the alley lined with trees, wearing a bright smile.


    ...


    ...


    An old man looked through the door, his eyes following the young monk. He watched the monk walking away and thought, "Even a pervert monk from Xuankong Temple was able to sense the specialness of Sangsang. It proves that Xuankong Temple is not an ordinary ce."


    He walked back to the backyard and found the basin lying in a corner. Sangsang didn¡¯t continue to eat. She was squatting next to the stove, staring at the small but pure Divine light on her fingertip, and thinking.


    "You don¡¯t want to eat anymore?" The old man said.


    Sangsang shook her head. The wood in the stove came to fire as she moved her fingers slightly, which made her furrow her brows.


    The old man smiled, and said, "Some monks are obsessed with couple-practice. I guess that is why that monk is so crazy."


    Sangsang didn¡¯t answer him. She was still gazing at the me and thinking about how to improve her Divine Skills quickly. At present, her level was so low that the Haotian Divine Light she can gather was very little. It was only as powerful as the normal me, which could only be used to burn wood, but not to fight against those powerful cultivators.


    Seeing her determined face, the old man sighed and said, "Worries are very harmful for cultivation."


    Sangsang didn¡¯t turn around, she said softly, "He said he will kill young master as soon as possible."


    Apart from those words, Sangsang didn¡¯t say anything or require anything. But it was very clear to the old man why she was so eager to improve; she wanted to kill the monk as soon as possible.


    Looking at Sangsang¡¯s back, the old man smiled without saying anything.


    ...


    ...


    The night was drawing near, with dim clouds floating near the horizon. It was time for dinner. On the silent alley in the eastern part of the city, tree branches cut the dim sky into many shapeless areas. Wudao looked away from the sky with a smile and was ready to keep going. However, in the next moment, his pupils tightened suddenly.


    There was a figure standing at the entrance of the alley. His face was hidden in the dim light. But judging from his hunchbacked outline, he should be an old man. It rmed Wudao that he didn¡¯t even notice when the old man came there.


    After a moment of silence, Wudao walked towards the entrance of the alley. As he drew near to the old man, he found the man¡¯s face rather familiar. In fact, he just saw him in the shop on Lin 47th Street. He was the man who was holding the basin.


    The man looked at him with a smile, and said kindly, "You are good at judging people, as you can realize Sangsang¡¯s potential talent. I would say you are among the best of the young cultivators."


    Wudao raised his hand slowly and stroked his head. Although the move was handsome, the sticky feeling between his fingers and the feeling that the two pieces of rotten leaves were still there were not nice at all. But he didn¡¯t want to do anything about it.


    He didn¡¯t want to address those small problems because he knew he needed to watch out. This old man may seem like an ordinary man, but he was no way an average person: he was able to appear in the alley without drawing his attention because he was a cultivator.


    But despite his cautious mind, Wudao was, after all, a proud young man. He saw himself as a cultivator who was as powerful as Prince Long Qing. Enjoying such power, he couldn¡¯t put up with that an old man was trying to teach him a lesson. So he said proudly, "Her name is Sangsang. I got it. You may leave now."


    The old man smile, "I know you are from Xuankong Temple."


    The expression on Wudao¡¯s face changed, as the old man surprised him by revealing his secret.


    The old man said peacefully, "I am very confused about why you appeared in the secr world. As it is very rare for the Xuankong Temple to expel apprentices. And you are a lot worse than Qi Nian, the person who represented your temple to go out, so you are not qualified to do that."


    The expression of Wudao became even more serious. He didn¡¯t expect the old man to know so much about Xuankong Temple, including things about Qi Nian. He was very on his guard now, his robe floating with the wind.


    He said in a husky voice, "Why do you dare to stop me if you know that Ie from the Unknown ce."


    The old manughed, "The unknown ce is powerful because no one knows about it. Its name is nothing scary once people get to the ce."


    Wudao couldn¡¯t be more rmed, he looked at the old man silently.


    "In Chang¡¯an city, many people know about Xuankong Temple and Zhishou Abbey. And the Academy is right at the foot of the mountain in the south part of the city. Your background is really nothing new for people here. But Chang¡¯an city is bombarded by a thing, which has kept Yan Se and the others busy. That is why you are so fearless. Don¡¯t you know that the name of Xuankong Temple can¡¯t make Tang people scared?"


    The old man stared at him and continued to talk, "I am rted to the thing that keeps everyone busy. So it is my responsibility to let you behave so boldly. I didn¡¯t expect you to harass my apprentice Sangsang."


    Wudao realized who the old man was. Suddenly the hunchbacked old man seemed to him much taller and bigger. He suppressed his shock and greeted the old man hurriedly. He changed his attitude immediately and said politely, "Senior master, I am wrong. I will leave right now."


    The old man stared at him, but did not speak.


    The alley was deadly silent for a while until Wudao realized what might happen next. He said huskily, "You can¡¯t kill me even if you are a bigwig in West-Hill Divine Pce. After all, I am from XuankongTemple. Let alone, My master is a preach master in the temple, who met you before."


    The old man was still looking at his eyes, peacefully and silently.


    Wudao was frozen in horror. He bit his tongue to keep himself calm and said, "I admit...the preach master is not my master, he is my father. I left because I am only an illegitimate child. Please pity me, senior master."


    Until then, did the old man start moving. He shook his head and said, "I am a betrayer who left the Peach Mountain. I have nothing to worry about and nothing can hold me back. I couldn¡¯t care less even should the remnants of Devil¡¯s Doctrine and all people from the three Unknown ces: Xuankong Temple, Zhishou Abbey, and the Academye to me. Let alone your father."


    The ragged robe on Wudao was shivering in the wind. He looked at the old man in the eye and asked shiveringly, "I didn¡¯t deliberately do that, what can I do to gain your forgiveness?"


    "I said before you are good at judging people because you understand Sangsang¡¯s talent. But I am afraid you only saw the surface because you still don¡¯t understand how important Sangsang is to me. The world is not bright anymore for me when she is not happy."


    Two streams of sweat flowed down from Wudao¡¯s head, as he noticed the very serious tone the old man had put on and when he heard thest two lines. He begged shiveringly, "I was blind then. Please forgive me."


    The old man raised his finger and reached to the chilly wind, "No, you only just be blind, right now. "


    Wudao was very scared when he heard that. He screamed and reached his hands out to do a very delicate Emblematic Gesture of Buddhism Sect, which became a barrier between him and the old man. Then he ran away fast in the opposite direction.


    The Emblematic Gesture had a very majestic and delicate aura. However, when it touched light at the old man¡¯s finger, it was as if snow met the sun and was melt down quickly, or dust fell into dirty water and lost its trace.


    Wudao was also trapped by the beams emitted by the me. His feet couldn¡¯t leave the ground, no matter how hard he tried to pull himself.


    He looked at the dim me between the old man¡¯s finger, his eyes full of fear.


    The light me appeared in his pupils and expanded until it took all the ce where fear was.


    Then, his ck pupils started burning.


    A scream was heard in the silent alley.


    ...


    The light was pure, so it was easy to dirty light.


    The light had no temperature, so it could be the hottest or coldest thing.

 Chapter 291: Making Smoke with Pine Twigs and Washing A New Urn

    Chapter 291: Making Smoke with Pine Twigs and Washing A New Urn


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    When the old man returned to the Old Brush Pen Shop in Lin 47th Street, Sangsang was still squatting beside the stove, frowning at the burning firewood. She was attentively thinking about those Divine Skills she had learnt.


    "Let¡¯s eat." The old man said.


    Previously Sangsang was absent-minded and didn¡¯t notice that the old man left for some time in the middle. So she stood up surprised at his words, and looking at the edge of his clothes wet from snow water, she faintly understood something. Then her lip slightly lit up to show a smile.


    The old man responded with a smile too and sat beside the table.


    Sangsang didn¡¯t ask what he had gone to do, but served him a bowl of rice. And then she warmed the yellow croaker, pinched with chopsticks the fattest one onto the pile of rice in his bowl, and added a spoon of delicious steaming soup on it.


    "What did Aunt Wu make at noon?"


    "Lettuce with mashed garlic."


    Sangsang asked, "Did it taste good?"


    The old man answered, "Good enough... but I don¡¯t understand, why she didn¡¯t put salted fish in the dish."


    Sangsang raised her head and asked with confusion, "Why salted fish?"


    The old man felt confused too. He looked at Sangsang¡¯s little face and said, "Butst time, you put it in the lettuce."


    Sangsang lowered her head and said, "When young master cooked lettuce in our childhood, he had no mashed garlic to put in the dish."


    The old man stiffened and sighed, "Eh, I remember, when I was young in Taoist temple, we rarely ate fried green vegetables. I don¡¯t know why I seek such enjoyment at this old age."


    "Young master said, ¡¯it is easy to go from being thrifty to being luxurious, but not as easy the other way round¡¯. It is the same for everyone, so master, don¡¯t be so self-reproachful."


    Sangsangforted him.


    ...


    ...


    At daybreak the next day, the old man got up, carefully put the quilt in order and returned it to the corner behind the shelf. And then he pushed open the door of Old Brush Pen Shopand and looked at the morning light faraway, narrowing his eyes.


    The sentence "it is easy to go from being thrifty to being luxurious, but not so easy the other way round." Sangsang quoted from Ning Que and it somewhat touched him. He found himself too indulged in thefort of Old Brush Pen Shop and actually forgot to seek for the shadow of Nightfall.


    The breakfast was also hot and sour noodle slice soup. After eating, the old man prepared to wash the dishes, when Sangsang gave him the tip to put them down and take a rest. The old man smiled, saying he would go out for a stroll and might not be back for lunch.


    "That¡¯s good. It¡¯s not proper to be indoor all day."


    Thinking it over, Sangsang fished out taels of silver from her belt and handed it to him, saying, "If you get tired, find a tea shop and have a rest. Don¡¯t make a fuss about spending money. Don¡¯t go too far either. If you lose your way, don¡¯t feel embarrassed to ask for directions from others. People in Chang¡¯an City are all warm-hearted. You can also look for any casino and tell them you know Mr. Qi, and then you will bring you back."


    Fearing that she would not stop her chattering, the old man took the taels of silver, carefully put it in his arms and repeatedly answered "yes" before he left.


    After leaving Lin 47th Street, he went straight to the north. He passed by the royal pce through the Eastern City and went out of Chang¡¯an City through the Xuanwu Gate. Finally, he reached a small hill covered with snow in the north of the city. Climbing high and gazing afar, he could naturally see things in the far distance. He looked into the north silently, where stars were dim, as if they were about to integrate into the brilliance of Haotian.


    ...


    ...


    The peach branches at the back garden of the Southern Gate Temple were covered in thin snow.


    Li Qingshan, the Nation Master, leisurely leant against the window sill and looked at the snow on the prune tree and the small bud that might never bloom. All of a sudden he coughed fiercely, and his coughing echoed in the tranquil pces of the Taoist temple. It sounded excruciatingly painful.


    Removing the handkerchief that had covered his mouth, he found there were spots of blood on it, which was like plum blossoms in full bloom. He red at the prune tree outside and scolded, "You ought to bloom in winter yet you don¡¯t, but you let your Taoist master bloom first."


    Taoist nuns and boys of the Southern Gate Temple were silently waiting outside the pce, their faces filled with anxiety, yet nobody dared to go inside.


    He Mingchi went over with a bowl of medicine and sighed to a Senior Sister to take away the yellow paper umbre under his arm. He stepped upon the dark and smooth Paulownia wood floor and walked to Li Qingshan, saying with grief, "Master, don¡¯t work with hexagrams any more."


    Li Qingshan took the medicine and slowly drank it up, and then he folded the handkerchief over and wiped off the remaining medicine soup on his beard. Looking at his favorite disciple, he said emotionlessly, "Last night Wei Guangming appeared. Sure enough he was still in Chang¡¯an City. He was among the three workshops, but I faintly feel he intended to leave. So there is something urgent to tackle."


    He Mingchi took the bowl and said, "The Military Ministry and the Imperial Center Administration have both gotten prepared. For fear of startling that man, they haven¡¯t sought him out in the streets at the north of the Scent Workshop. Now only Uncle is headed in that direction."


    Realizing that the Senior Brother was seeking for that terrifyingly strong guy in the Eastern City all on his own, Li Qingshan nodded after quite a long time of silence. He didn¡¯t say anything more but signed to those outside the pce to scatter and the disciples to leave.


    ...


    ...


    A ck horse carriage was headed for the streets of Eastern City in Chang¡¯an. If it was not examined closely and touched by hand, it would be difficult to tell that the carriage was forged with steel, which was carved withplicated and subtle lines. The special wheels ground on the tough stone path, making muffled rolling sounds.


    Master Yan Se in the horse carriage was leaning on the delicate soft seat. His triangle eyes were greedily seeking out the Great Divine Priest of Light through the curtain. Where was one to find such a serious, old, obscene face?


    If we did meet, then we could fight. If I really could not beat him to death, then I would die peacefully. It is not a big deal to kick the bucket now, anyway, we will all die one day. Moreover, I already have a sessor.


    The cornice of Spring Breeze Pavilion newly-built a year ago breezed over, which suddenly reminded Master Yan Se of Chao Xiaoshu, and then the disciple who had never been heard of. That disciple was a student of Second floor of the Academy, naturally the master didn¡¯t bother to worry about his safety. He only thought that it was a pity that he might not have a chance to see him again.


    Just at the moment, he remembered that day when Ning Que left Chang¡¯an, he earnestly asked him to look after that little handmaiden named Sangsang. Yet these days he was too upied to visit her¡ª The old Taoist waved his head, thinking to himself, "Now I have to seek that guy in Eastern City, then after that I will go and see her."


    ...


    ...


    Today, the first visitor at the Old Brush Pen Shop was not Master Yan Se, nor was it that old man gazing at the north outside Chang¡¯an City, but a young fatty. That fatty jumped off the horse carriage, and although he didn¡¯t shake the te ground of the Lin 47th Street as fiercely as an earthquake would, his plump cheeks rippled for quite a while.


    The young fatty pushed open the tightly-closed door of Old Brush Pen Shop and directly sat in the round-backed armchair of Ning Que. Then he felt that his thigh was nipped and ached, so he muttered something in anger and then shouted, "Serve tea."


    Actually he didn¡¯t think himself an outsider at all.


    Sangsang was preparing to make smoked bacon with pine twigs, a dish she had just learnt from Aunt Wu. She intended to give Ning Que a surprise by making arge amount of Jin (1 jin =0.5kg) of it. Suddenly she heard that shout and was surprised, because she didn¡¯t open the door these days. While cleaning her hands with a towel, she went to the front of the shop, closing the door immediately.


    Seeing that the little darkish handmaidening over first went to close the door, instead of serving him, the young fatty slightly froze and said with frowning eyebrows, "You close the door at daytime, how will you earn money?"


    Sangsang exined, "If I leave the door open, the threshold will be broken by those who scramble for sections."


    The young fatty stiffened and then agreed secretly in his heart. How could he forget that Ning Que was now quite famous in Chang¡¯an City! He looked at the little handmaiden and asked, "I¡¯m Chen Pipi, has Ning Que ever mentioned me?"


    Sangsang didn¡¯t show any surprise at the name, and she just slightly bowed and said, "Sangsang greets you, master Chen."


    Chen Pipi rubbed his lovely chubby jaw and looked up and down at the thin short girl. Suddenly he shook his head, saying, "It is right for Ning Que to ask me to look after you. Although a genius like me is born distinguished and totally different from those vulgar ones in the secr world, you will encounter problems sooner orter if you always take things for granted."


    Sangsang said, "I know you are Chen Pipi."


    She had been to the Academy several times, but never met Chen Pipi. Chen Pipi believed that there was definitely no problem with his uparable memory, so he asked in confusion, "Why are you so sure that I¡¯m that genius?"


    Sangsang looked at him and earnestly exined, "Young master often mentioned you. He said, you were fat but not ugly, nor obscene, we could even say, you were good-looking, which was quite rare. So I know it¡¯s you."


    Chen Pipi¡¯s right hand which was rubbing against his jaw slightly froze, and he thought to himself, "It is unknown how Ning Que ndered me in daily life." But at the same time, he felt somewhat pleased at thement although it mentioned "fat", so for a moment he actually didn¡¯t know what to say.


    "Let¡¯s change the topic."


    Chen Pipi coughed and pretended to be serious and mature. He looked at Sangsang and said, "On the request of Ning Que, Ie to see you today. After all, as his Senior Brother, I have the responsibility to do so."


    He was expecting that Sangsang would be moved, but obviously she wasn¡¯t. She just thanked him emotionlessly and then went to pour him a cup of jasmine tea.


    Chen Pipi looked at her figure and said, "Little Younger Brother said he would invite me to have a meal here. He said you are a skilled cook."


    Looking at his chubby face, Sangsang frowned and secretly thought, "No wonder you are so fat." But she had no intention to ask him to stay. She just put the tea beside him and softly said, "After young masteres back, I will cook for you."


    The meaning of that sentence was quite clear. "Now that Ning Que invited you, we have to wait for him to tell me personally. It is quite out of the question for you to barge in and beg for food this way. How should I treat you? I have to serve one more pair of chopsticks and more dishes. In view of your plump figure, I would have to add at least two dishes, which should contain meat. It will cost me a lot of money!"


    Chen Pipi was hurt by her words. Looking at the jasmine scum in the bowl, he couldn¡¯t help cramping in the face. He could do nothing but tell her the truth, "Ning Que said somebody smarter than me was hiding in this shop. After pondering it over I thought it is impossible, so Ie to verify it."


    Sangsang looked around the shop, and found nobody else was in there.


    Covering his forehead, Chen Pipi helplessly said, "That smart person is you."


    Sangsang stiffened, thinking to herself, "Ning Que always said I was stupid, and how can he think I¡¯m smart?"


    Although she felt happy at being praised by young master as the smartest person, she still felt confused. Frowning, she pondered it over for some time and suddenly recalled something, shyly saying, "I¡¯m not smart. I just have a good memory."


    Chen Pipi gave her a scornful smile and said, "Even in terms of memory, I don¡¯t believe there is someone stronger than me."


    Sangsang lowered her head to see the small and exquisite toe cap stretching out of her cotton skirt, having no intention to argue with him.


    "Ning Que is inferior in cultivation, and also has poor insight. My talent has been confirmed by the Haotian Taoism and is generally acknowledged by the back of the mountain of the Academy. Yet he dares to say that you are smarter than me! What¡¯s wrong with him!"


    Chen Pipi grew angrier at her reaction, and furiously said, "Why do you look at your toe cap? Am I the sort of man who would make things hard for you?(letting somebody wear a toe cap means making things hard for somebody)"


    Sangsang knew that this master Chen had a close rtionship with young master, but although she was quiet and somewhat dull, she still couldn¡¯t help feeling angry on hearing her young master being scorned at. Instead of looking at the embroidered shoes, she looked up at Chen Pipi¡¯s eyes and said very earnestly, "My strong memory is also generally acknowledged in the City of Wei."


    It was the truth. Back then in the City of Wei, she was always the most popr notary, because she had the best memory and never told lies. But as for the City of Wei and the Zhishou Abbey... there was really a huge distance between the levels. Yet Sangsang was still as earnest as before, showing no embarrassment, she outrightly told Chen Pipi that her memory was generally acknowledged by people in the City of Wei, it was really excellent.


    If two people said they were generally acknowledged respectively, then generally speaking, they would never acknowledge each other. Perhaps that was why people said, those learning martial art would always pursue No.1. Especially when facing a girl with such a temperament. If Chen Pipi wanted to prove he had better memory than Sangsang, he had to show his true ability instead of just relying on his words.


    "Let¡¯s have apetition." Chen Pipi said.


    Sangsang was not interested inpeting with others on intelligence or memory. What she cared about was the preserved meat still smoking by the pine twigs, so how could she agree with him? She walked to the backyard and picked up a stick to stir the pine twigs to make the fire bigger. She then took a new urn from the kitchen and carefully cleaned it well.


    The other day she made a chicken soup stew which had greatly pleased the old man, that even his beard got soaked with soup as he drank it. She thought that young master also like the stewed chicken soup, and was afraid the old urn would not be big enough to make the soup, so she went to a small shop in Anping Workshop to buy a new one. She prepared to make two urns of chicken soup stew in the future, perhaps it might be enough.


    Looking at the busy and thin figure of the little handmaiden, Chen Pipi shamelessly persisted, "Anyway, you should defeat me in some aspect, or else I won¡¯t go. Do you have books here? Let¡¯spete reciting books, and the loser should treat the other one. If you think it not interesting... Let¡¯s use taels of silver to gamble!"


    Hearing the word "taels of silver", Sangsang suddenly stopped washing the urn and looked back at Chen Pipi.


    Then she stood up and randomly wiped her reddish hands against her apron and turned back toward the bedroom. After a moment she went out with her face flushed, shilly and regretfully said, "I don¡¯t understand those talisman books of young master, but I don¡¯t have a chance to read other books."


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 292: Who Should Be The One to Leave?

    Chapter 292: Who Should Be The One to Leave?


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The regret on her slightly tanned face was obvious. It was evident that Sangsang had thought she would be victorious once she found the book. She would have been able to win plenty of taels of silver from her young master¡¯s pudgy Senior Brother. The slight blush on her face was because the books Ning Que had brought back from the Academy¡¯s cave were a bit unsightly...


    Chen Pipi was an intelligent person. He could tell what the little handmaiden was thinking based on her expression. The disdain made him shame. Angrily he said, "Find another way!"


    Sangsang looked at him with wide eyes. She thought that he was rather interesting. His soles had only left the ground no more than two inches, but hended forcefully. She was actually worried that the new urn she¡¯d bought might be shattered by the shock.


    Chen Pipi was indeed an intelligent person, even when he was upset. He could clearly perceive what Sangsang was thinking just by looking at her expression. He could not stop the shame creeping up on him and he quickly held down the quivering fat on his body. He said in a sad and aggrieved tone, "Ning Que¡¯s words have hurt my pride! If I don¡¯t win you today, I will write my name from right to left!"


    Sangsang thought to herself that Pipi¡¯s name written from the right to the left was still Pipi. It wouldn¡¯t make a difference unless he tacked on his surname. However, she was just a young girl with a desire to win. Her heart had wavered only because of the taels of silver, which had gotten her into trouble. She did not single out that point, but instead, looked at him seriously and asked, "Young master Chen, how much will you bet?"


    Chen Pipi extended a finger and said solemnly, "A hundred taels."


    Sangsang¡¯s willow leaf shaped eyes brightened considerably. "What would young master Chen like to bet on?"


    Chen Pipi asked, "What do you have plenty of in this shop?"


    Sangsang furrowed her brows as she thought. She chewed her lips and spected that young master Chen wouldn¡¯t do anything against them. He was a close friend of her young master after all. So, she undid her apron and entered the house.


    Chen Pipi looked at the tightly shut door and thought of something. Startled, he called out anxiously, "You can¡¯t use Ning Que¡¯s calligraphy! You look at them all day, that¡¯s not fair!"


    Sangsang brought out arge box and said to him, "Would you bet with these notes?"


    Chen Pipi looked at the thick wad of notes in the box and could not help but be surprised. Ning Que, the fellow who could not even bear to treat him with crab porridge, had hidden such wealth in his home. He was indeed a stingy fellow. He scolded Ning Que under his breath before asking, "How are we going to bet with these notes?"


    "Every note has its own unique serial number," Sangsang said as she lowered her head. She spoke faster than usual as if she was afraid that Pipi would not agree to her suggestion. "Nobody would be some as to look at them."


    Chen Pipi thought about it and found that the idea was indeed decent. In order to prevent counterfeiting, every bank had their own unique note coding system. Every note had numbers on it and they did not have a fixed order. They were extremely difficult to remember. It was an excellent choice for thispetition.


    Chen Pipi said, "Not bad. Let¡¯s use them."


    Sangsang smiled slyly and said, "Let¡¯s look and memorize them at the same time. You can recite first."


    Chen Pipi waved his hand and said generously, "How could I take advantage of a young woman like you. You can recite first."


    ...


    ...


    "Tong Bao Chen. Two-Eight-Eight-Nine-Four. Sheng Ji Gen Er Li Feng. Four-Five-Five."


    "Yi Mo Xin Bao Yin Sai. Nine-Seven-Five-Two-Four-Five-Six. Qi Yan Tang. One."


    Chen Pipi¡¯s face fell as Sangsang¡¯s child-like voice reverberated in the backyard. He no longer cared about thepetition rules. He reached out to grab the notes off the table and found that Sangsang had not made a single mistake.


    He knew that the serial numbers on the notes were odd and difficult to memorize. He himself could only memorize up to fifteen or sixteen notes. However, Sangsang had already recited the serial numbers of her 27th note. Judging by her expression and her speed, it would not be difficult for her to recite another ten serial numbers or more.


    Chen Pipi rubbed his numb and shocked face. He could not believe his own ears. He could not imagine that there was someone out there with such an amazing memory. Even Second Brother could not do this. No... Even Eldest Brother would not be able to beat this little handmaiden.


    Na Tian Xing Yun Feng. Four-Five-Five-Five-Seven-Nine..."


    Chen Pipi held out his hand despondently to stop Sangsang from continuing. He looked at the notes dejectedly and sighed. "You don¡¯t have to recite them anymore. I admit it. Your memory is better than mine."


    A rare sweet smile appeared on Sangsang¡¯s face. She spread her palms before him and said, "Many thanks."


    Chen Pipi took out some notes and ced them in her palms. He shook his head and said, "This is incredible. So incredible indeed. I can¡¯t believe that what Ning Que said was true. There are indeed many incredible people in the marketce."


    Sangsang ignored his exmation. She kept the new notes that she had won together with the ones she had and stacked them up, cing them in the box. Then, she carried the box carefully into the house.


    Chen Pipi suddenly thought of something. He yelled, "Hold on!"


    Sangsang¡¯s body stiffened. She rushed into the house, walking faster than she had before.


    Chen Pipi had a sudden epiphany. He said incredulously, "You¡¯ve memorized the words on these notes before!"


    The door was tightly shut and it was silent.


    Chen Pipi was shocked. After a long while of staring at the tightly shut door, he said sorrowfully, "I have never heard of anyone being so bored they would look at notes at home all day! And even memorize their serial number! Ning Que acts like he¡¯s never seen taels of silver in his entire life. But it seems that he¡¯s very different from you, money-minded wench! What kind of people are you two!"


    Sangsang hugged the box full of notes to herself and leaned against the wooden doors anxiously. What would she do if he forced his way in? She listened to the cursing and the yelling outside. She was frightened but at the same time she felt likeughing.


    Indeed, she had said that no one would be some to look at notes, but she had not expected Chen Pipi to believe her. Before Ning Que could earn notes with his calligraphy, these notes had been the best things on earth to her. Huddling beneath the nkets and counting notes in the middle of the night was the most interesting thing in the world when there was nothing else to do.


    ...


    ...


    Chen Pipi yelled outside the door, "Come out!"


    Sangsang pressed her back against the door. With her head lowered she said softly, "These notes are mine."


    Chen Pipi clutched his forehead and said, "I admit that they are yours."


    Sangsang lifted her head and asked curiously, "Then why do you want me toe out?"


    Chen Pipi said angrily, "The notes are yours, but you cheated in the previous round. We have topete again!"


    Sangsang lifted the bed boards and hid the box of notes beneath it. She looked at the door and yelled, "Young master Chen, it iste. You¡¯d better return to the Academy."


    Chen Pipi paused for a second and looked at the sky. He yelled angrily, "It¡¯s not even lunchtime! What are you talking about!"


    Sangsang came to the door and said humbly, "Young master Chen, I admit that I am not as smart as you and do not have a memory as good as yours."


    This made him even angrier. Shaking his head, he shouted, "Pfft, you¡¯re willing to admit anything now that you¡¯ve won a hundred taels of silver."


    Sangsang replied, "Young master said that fame and fortune were like drifting clouds, so there¡¯s no need to fight for it."


    Chen Pipi was speechless from the anger. She should not have mentioned fortune in her statement. He hammered at the wooden door angrily and howled, "Since you are not afraid to lose, why don¡¯t wepete again?"


    Sangsang knew that this was true. Furthermore, she had won a hundred taels of silver from him and should let him have his way. She pushed the door open and said solemnly to Chen Pipi, "Let¡¯s not gamble with taels of silver this time. Gambling is bad."


    How could she be so shameless, just so she didn¡¯t have to return the taels of silver? Chen Pipi was speechless as he looked at the little handmaiden¡¯s tanned face. He wondered what Ning Que had been teaching her.


    He said in a low voice, "Let¡¯s y chess."


    She answered simply, "I don¡¯t know how."


    Chen Pipi did not believe her. The girl before him had looked at the notes every day and could memorize the serial numbers of thirty odd notes. This was no ordinary talent. He said, "We have to."


    Sangsang¡¯s answer was even more simple. She nodded her head and murmured in assent.


    ...


    ...


    They borrowed a chessboard from the neighbor, Mr. Wu. It looked old but since Mr. Wu. operated an imitation antique shop, it was a fake. But when the chess piecesnded on it, it did feel rather formal.


    Chen Pipi did not feel as if he was ying with an opponent, neither did he feel prideful about being a superior chess yer. He pointed dazedly at where the ck chess piecended and asked Sangsang, "Why there?"


    Sangsang looked at him with wide eyes. Confused, she asked, "Why not?"


    Chen Pipi carefully exined the problem behind her move and then asked puzzledly, "You are a very intelligent person and your memory is impressive. Once you understand the rules you¡¯d only have to use your brain a little and you¡¯d know where the issue lies. Why are you unwilling to think a little more?"


    Sangsang answered seriously, "It¡¯s hard work thinking. So I don¡¯t usually bother."


    Chen Pipi was stunned. He could not bring himself to release the chess piece in his hand.


    At this moment, a voice rang from the door of the Old Brush Pen Shop. "You¡¯re ying chess."


    Sangsang looked at the door in surprise, "You¡¯re back so early?"


    The old man crossed the threshold and nodded. He retrieved the taels of silver from his waist and handed them over to her, "I didn¡¯t have tea."


    Sangsang rose and gestured for the old man to take her ce. She said, "I¡¯m going to check the smoked meat. Aunt Wu said that oil can drip easily from fresh meat in the beginning. I¡¯m worried that the pine branches will catch fire. Take my ce and I¡¯ll bring you tea a littleter."


    The old man grunted in assent and sat down. He looked at Chen Pipi and asked, "Who¡¯s move?"


    Chen Pipi looked at the wrinkled old face and his pure eyes. He could see the holy light emanating from the old man¡¯s eyes. He thought of the incident that had shocked Chang¡¯antely and was stunned. His fingers that had been fiddling with the chess piece trembled. He did not know if he should ce it on the chessboard or back into the chess urn.


    The old man looked at the situation on the chessboard and asked again, "Who¡¯s move?"


    Chen Pipi answered honestly, "Mine."


    With this, he stood up and prepared to leave the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    The old man looked up at him in confusion. "I was asking whose move it is on the chess board."


    Chen Pipi looked at him for a long time before sitting back down on the chair.


    The ck chess piece in his fingersnded softly.


    The old man stuck his hand in the chess urn and took out a white piece. He did not ce it down for a long time, as he was thinking about how to counter his opponent.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 293: An Encounter

    Chapter 293: An Encounter


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Sangsang didn¡¯t know how to y chess and had a terrible start. No matter how hard the old man contemted, he still couldn¡¯t change her inferior position. As the game progressed, it was obvious that the ck pieces were of the upper hand and about to win. However, there was no hint of pride on Chen Pipi¡¯s face. He looked extremely serious and earnest; his temples were even sweating profusely. The sweat dropped continuously down along his chubby face.


    On the contrary, the old man appeared to be calm and rxed. He drank the tea Sangsang handed him and put down his pieces casually, sighing. "I haven¡¯t touched chess pieces for fourteen years. I¡¯m afraid I¡¯m quite unfamiliar with them now."


    Hearing the words "Fourteen years", Chen Pipi had to wipe the sweat off his face. Although he pretended to be calm, inside he was groaning and yelling, "It¡¯s him! It¡¯s him!"


    The old man raised his head and smiled at him, asking, "I told you to put down your piece. Why do you want to leave?"


    Chen Pipi answered respectfully, "Because you are stronger than me. I can¡¯t defeat you, so I¡¯d rather leave."


    Looking at the sweat falling down from his face, the old man smiled and asked, "What are you afraid of?"


    "I¡¯m afraid of you." Chen Pipi replied honestly.


    The old man shook his head and sighed, "The reason I spent my whole life serving Haotian, was not to frighten others."


    After a moment of silence, Chen Pipi answered, "Often your original intention and the result can¡¯t be matched."


    The old man looked at him. He opened his mouth abruptly and said, "Your surname is Chen?"


    Chen Pipi replied, "Yes, I¡¯m Chen Pipi."


    The old man nodded and said, "You know, I was newly released. But in prison, I had already heard you escaped from the Abbey and are now a disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy?"


    Chen Pipi stared at the pieces on the chessboard and said, "Yes."


    The old man smiled, "Then why are you afraid of me? Even though you are not a core disciple of the Headmaster of Academy, I wouldn¡¯t treat you roughly for the sake of the Abbey. Anyway, Peach Mountain is not far from the Abbey."


    Chen Pipi raised his arm again to wipe the sweat off his face. He forcibly suppressed his nervousness and put down a ck piece on the chessboard, without uttering anything.


    The old man looked down to see the piece and slightly waved his head, saying, "It¡¯s said that living in this world is like ying chess. But I say it is like the chess lines rather than the pieces. No matter how far they are from each other, they will eventually meet."


    Chen Pipi smiled bitterly. "I¡¯d rather be a chess piece. ck and white never touch each other."


    The old man replied, "It just so coincidental that I came across a monk from Xuankong Temple yesterday."


    Chen Pipi thought this was strange. He asked, "A monk from Xuankong Temple actually appeared in Chang¡¯an? And now?"


    The old man answered, "He is blind, and may restore his soberness in several days."


    His calm ordinary tone actually shocked Chen Pipi. He rubbed his head in rage and red at the old man. Trembling, he shouted, "See?! See?! You want him blind, then he is blind, though he is from the Temple. Even if I¡¯m from the Abbey, so what? It¡¯s unlucky for me to meet you, yet you tell me not to be fearful. Are you kidding me?"


    The old man smiled and said, "The monk is a bastard of the Manjusri preaching. You are totally different from him."


    Hearing this, Chen Pipi gradually withdrew his anger and restored his silence.


    The old man asked, "How is the abbey dean recently?"


    Chen Pipi shook his head, "I don¡¯t know because I¡¯ve been in the Academy. Perhaps he is still on his tour."


    The old man nodded and said, "He usually stays at the south side of the sea."


    Sangsang approached with her new urn. Preserved meat was still hung on the pine branches in the backyard. She had used big firewood which could help fire smaller, so she could relieve herself temporarily. She came to ask her teacher for his opinion, "What do you think of this new urn?"


    The old looked up and asked curiously, "What¡¯s it for?"


    Sangsang replied, "For stewing chicken soup."


    The old man was confused. "Don¡¯t we already have one?"


    Sangsang exined, "It is too small. I¡¯m afraid that when young masteres back, it will not be big enough to make chicken soup for the three of us."


    The old man knew how important young master was to Sangsang. Hearing her answer, he realized that the girl still wanted him to stay once her young master returned. He had experienced and seen all the vicissitudes of the world as Great Divine Priest of Light, yet still felt somewhat warm in his chest. He was feeling incredibly happy.


    Then he remembered something. He looked at Chen Pipi on the opposite side of the chessboard, slowly furrowing, and said, "Do you know my girl disciple or... her young master?"


    The question shocked Chen Pipi, and he was stunned and even speechless. The greatest Great Divine Priest of Light of the West-Hill Divine Pce over the past century actually took Ning Que¡¯s darkish handmaiden as his disciple?


    Understanding his shock, the old man smiled and said, "It is all by Lucky Chance, nobody can exin why."


    Chen Pipi carelessly wiped the sweat off his face and then rubbed his palm against his thigh, in an attempt to rid himself of his confusion. He then said, "Her young master is my Younger Brother."


    Now it was the old man¡¯s turn to be shocked. He looked at Sangsang, confused. The sessor he¡¯d met by Lucky Chance was actually the handmaiden of a core disciple of the Headmaster of Academy. How could their lives be arranged by such fate?


    Chen Pipi stared intensely at the chessboard. He suddenly clenched his jaw and opened his mouth, saying, "I know it was him that defeated you and imprisoned you in You Prison. When I was young he often told me that you were actually the greatest one on Peach Mountain. I can¡¯t understand why you don¡¯t take action. It¡¯s rare for you to see me in this world."


    Sangsang began to notice the strange atmosphere on both sides of the chessboard. She stared curiously at the two, holding her new urn.


    After a pause, the old man put down a white piece on the chessboard and said peacefully, "That¡¯s the abbey dean¡¯s affair. Moreover, you can¡¯t change your rtionship with him. So it has nothing to do with you at all."


    He raised his head, looked at Chen Pipi and curiously asked, "You think I¡¯m a cruel killer?"


    Chen Pipi smiled bitterly, "Great Divine Priest of Light is peaceful and pure. You are known as being closest to Haotian in spirit. But as it is known to all, you are not an ordinary Great Divine Priest of Light. Those killed by the hierarch of the Divine Hall, the Great Divine Priest of Judge and the Great Divine Priest of Rtion twenty years ago, are still nothingpared to the number of people killed by you."


    The old man sighed slightly and said, "You¡¯re talking about those two things that happened more than ten years ago."


    Chen Pipi raised his head slowly and looked bravely into the bright ck eyes of the old man. He seemed to be able to see through the world. Chen Pipi¡¯s braveness came from his honesty. He said, "Headmaster and Eldest Brother are both absent. But now that I know you are in Chang¡¯an, I have to make you stay. Otherwise, I won¡¯t be able to face Second Brother back in the Academy."


    The old man shook his head and said disapprovingly, "Headmaster of the Academy I remember, from before I was imprisoned, was not that kind of moral vendors. There is no need for you to restrain yourself like this."


    Chen Pipi replied honestly, "If I dared to allow you to leave Chang¡¯an City with strained eyes and not say a word, Second Brother would beat me to death if he found out."


    The old man sighed, "He is not young anymore, why is he still so bad-tempered?"


    Chen Pipi said with sincerity, "Or perhaps, you will allow me to call Second Brother toe see you?"


    The old man shook his head with a smile, thinking to himself, " The shamelessness of this kid is somewhat lovely. " After a short contemtion, he turned back to Sangsang and said with unwillingness, "I¡¯m leaving."


    Holding the new urn, Sangsang stood by for a long time. She could not understand their words expect thest few sentences. She was aware that the old man who taught her Divine Skill was actually the Great Divine Priest of Light of West-Hill Divine Pce, and she could vaguely figure out that the whole world seemed to be searching for him.


    The new urn didn¡¯t fall from her arms and break into pieces. She held it tightly in her little hands because it was the only way to suppress the shock she felt.


    The old man looked at her and suddenly he said earnestly and seriously, "The shadow of Nightfall has left Chang¡¯an, and the Academy has found me. So I have to leave. Do... do you want to go with me?"


    Sangsang looked at therge urn with her head lowered. She inhaled the scent of fresh sand and didn¡¯t answer him. The old man treated her well. He was lonely and seemed to have put his life¡¯sst hope on her shoulder. The old man expected her to leave together with him. She was well aware of these things, but she had her own reasons to stay.


    She looked up at the old man and answered, "I have to wait for my young master at home."


    The answer was within the old man¡¯s expectation. He smiled, with bitterness.


    Just then, a gust of vexed scolding was heard from outside Old Brush Pen Shop, "Who knows when your young master, the silly thing, will return? But I¡¯m curious, who dares to take away the handmaiden of my disciple?"


    "Click! Click!" The torn shoe soles stepped on the ground. The loose greasy Taoist robe, came in along the wind with a foul smell. And then an old taoist priest sailed in, his triangle eyes showing something obscene and furious.


    When he caught sight of the figure beside the chessboard, under an ordinary cotton-padded jacket and bent like an ordinary old man, the obscene expression in his eyes suddenly disappeared. It changed into a flowing stream at a high peak, quiet to the extreme.


    Dead silence would be found before every storm.


    Wei Guangming, the Great Divine Priest of Light that had escaped from the Peach Mountain, had lived peacefully in an inconspicuous calligraphy store in an inconspicuous alley of Chang¡¯an for some time. And then on amon winter day, he met Master Yan Se.


    One was the Great Divine Priest of Light whose power over the past century was the most unfathomable in West-Hill Divine Pce. The other was the Divine Talisman Master who had gone the farthest on the road of Talisman Taoism. One was a traitor of Haotian Taoism, and the other was the Minister of Offerings of South School of Haotian Taoism. Such an unexpected and unreasonable encounter would startle even fate itself. What would it lead to?


    There was a long deadly silence in Old Brush Pen Shop.


    Master Yan Se looked at the old man.


    The old man looked at Master Yan Se.


    Sangsang stared at the two of them.


    Chen Pipi stared at the chessboard in front, with cold sweat running down like raindrops.


    ...


    ...


    Master Yan Se sighed andmented, "I have been looking for you for many days."


    The old man sighed andmented, "I¡¯ve been hiding myself from you for many days."


    Master Yan Se continued hisment, "I don¡¯t want to meet you in this way."


    The old man also continued hisment, "I don¡¯t want to meet you either."


    Then Master Yan Se withdrew hisment and looked at his long-gone old friend. Calmly, he said, "Now that we¡¯ve met, we have to do our duties besides talking about the old days."


    The old man stood up and bowed to his old friend, peacefully saying, "Please."


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 294: How about Playing Chess, Chatting and Having A Bowl of Noodles?

    Chapter 294: How about ying Chess, Chatting and Having A Bowl of Noodles?


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Master Yan Se went to the table, shook his head at the old man, and sighed. Then he turned around to see Chen Pipi, who was as timid as a quail with his head lowered, shaking his head and sighing again. He asked, "How has the abbey dean been recently?"


    Hearing this, Chen Pipi looked up and wondered, "You know I¡¯ve been in the Academy all these years, how would I know if he is good or not?"


    Yan Se slightly stroked his sparse beard and stared at him, impatiently saying, "Now that you do not know, we can¡¯t chat about the old days. Since you have escaped from the Abbey, do I need to save your face?"


    Chen Pipi became increasingly puzzled, touching the back of his head and answering, "Of course not."


    Master Yan Se growled, "Then why not offer me a seat? Why stand here like a dull goose?"


    Chen Pipi hastily got up and gave the seat to him, and then humbly stood aside. It was not until now that he realized that this old Taoist would actually y chess with the Great Divine Priest of Light, so he could not help but be surprised and feel helpless, thinking to himself, "Who knows what you damn old guys are thinking about? Who would expect that ¡¯please¡¯ from the Great Divine Priest of Light meant that he was actually inviting you to y chess."


    But Master Yan Se didn¡¯t care at all about what he was thinking. He just slightly stroked his taoist robe and sat down. He nced at the chessboard and found the ck chess was on the upper hand, so he felt pleased and nced praisingly at Chen Pipi.


    The old man on the opposite side of the chessboard smiled and stretched out his right hand, indicating for Yan Se to y his turn.


    Master Yen Se put down a chess piece and patted his mouth, saying, "How have you been doing recently?"


    Holding a white piece in his hand, the old man replied softly, "Every year when you returned to the Peach Mountain, you would go to You Prison to see me and naturally inquire how I was doing there. As of recently, I have been really good."


    Master Yen Se stared at the criss-crossed pieces on the chessboard. After a moment of silence, he suddenly said, "Even if you are not satisfied with your life in the Peach Mountain, why must youe to Chang¡¯an?"


    The old man answered with a smile, "That day, your Younger Brother also asked me this question."


    ...


    ...


    Although one of them did not wear a taoist robe, they were indeed two old Taoists beside the chessboard, the most excellent Taoists of Haotian Taoism in the recent years, who were both qualified to be crowned with eternal glory.


    Although Chen Pipi had been a Grand Cultivator at the Knowing Destiny State, whose status could make him unparalleled in this earthy world, facing the two old Taoists, he had no choice but to behave like a young student, who honestly delivered tea and dared not speak.


    Master Yan Se drunk his cup of tea, and licked off some tea from his front teeth. He frowned, displeased with the extremely bad-tasting tea. So he raised his head and said, "Back then, the abbey dean always thought you were the strongest one in the Peach Mountain, even stronger than the hierarch. How about now? "


    The old man recalled that Taoist in indigo, and answered with a slight smile, "In front of the abbey dean, who dares to call himself the strongest."


    Holding a ck piece, Master Yan pointed to thene outside the Old Brush Pen Shop and said, "Even if you are more powerful than the abbey dean, so what? Here is Chang¡¯an City. Here is my big tactical array. You can¡¯t defeat me. "


    The old man nodded. A figure at his level would definitely know that Chang¡¯an City was the legendary God-stunning Array. As the controller of the Array, Yan Se was undefeatable so long as he was in Chang¡¯an.


    "I still hold the view of the day."


    The old man smiled at the opposite side of the chessboard and said, "I am just a lingering-out old Taoist, and it will be a big waste to use a big tactical array like Chang¡¯an City on me. Presumably, you also think so."


    Master Yan Se sighed and said, "The word ¡¯lingering-out¡¯ is quite exact. We are both old and about to return to Haotian. Of course, it will be fine for us to enjoy ourselves in the earthly world for a bit longer. If you didn¡¯te, I could live longer, and you too could have more time in this world."


    The old man looked at him and said calmly, "You know my eyes can fortunately foresee the future sometimes, so I am well aware that it is hard for me to leave Chang¡¯an this time."


    Master Yan Se shook his head and said, "If so, whye here."


    The old man answered, "Everyone will eventually return to the source of life, which is, the embrace of Haotian. So I¡¯m not afraid of it. Time is only the order of different events, and as for us, we need to use time to do the things we should. If we can¡¯t finish doing those things, time will be meaningless."


    Master Yan Se sank in silence. He gently put the ck piece between his fingers on the chessboard and said, "So the reason why you came to Chang¡¯an City is to return to the origin of time, andplete the thing you didn¡¯t finish that year?"


    The old man answered without saying a word.


    Master Yan Se alsoughed and looked at him, saying, "The ultimate cultivation is the cultivation of the heart. How can we aged guys change the mind of others? Well, anyway, I now have a sessor and don¡¯t feel much attached to this world. Well, you were imprisoned then and probably didn¡¯t know it."


    The old man was very clear about Yan Se¡¯s attainments in Talisman Taoism, and clearer about how difficult it was for a Divine Talisman Master to find a sessor who has potential. Now he learnt that he actually found a sessor, so he could not help being surprised and feeling happy for him.


    Seeing his reaction, Master Yan Se proudly said, "My disciple is not an ordinary one. He understood the original meaning of Talisman Taoism after being showered in the rain, so in the future, he must be far better than me in terms of state. I don¡¯t want topete with you in other things, but my ability can be inherited, so in this aspect, I¡¯m much better than you."


    The old man gently smiled and looked at Sangsang, who had been silent. He then softly said, "I also have a disciple, and she is also quite good. I think she will at least not be worse than your disciple in the future."


    Strong confidence and his rare intention to dispute was revealed in his indifferent tone. In the eyes of the old man, Sangsang was a gift given by Haotian and the biggest Lucky Chance he had in his life. Even if Yan Se had luckily found his sessor, he still couldn¡¯t bepared with his favorite girl disciple.


    Master Yan Se slightly stiffened, and was shocked by the fact that the Great Divine Priest of Light had found his sessor before he died. However, following the eyesight of the old man, he was more shocked to find that the so-called sessor was actually Sangsang. So suddenly he looked shocked and he had an overwhelming feeling of absurdness.


    "Your disciple is this... little darkish girl?"


    The old man looked at him in surprise, and then answered seriously, "It is, but Sangsang is not darkish."


    "Ha ha ha ha ha!" With one hand pointing at Sangsang, Master Yen Se used the other to hold his belly which was aching fromughing. He looked at the old man and said, "Do you know, the disciple you are so proud of is the handmaiden of my disciple?"


    The old man was startled and frowned, asking, "Isn¡¯t that person the core disciple of the Headmaster of Academy?"


    Master Yan Se proudly said, "Taking advantage of the Headmaster of Academy¡¯s absence, I stole him so he could be my disciple too."


    The old man sighed, "I see. I didn¡¯t expect that young man to actually have such a good fortune... But even if Sangsang is his handmaiden, so what? In the future, Sangsang will inherit my Divine Skill. Even if she doesn¡¯t take my ce in the West-Hill Divine Pce, she will still be the most excellent figure among the young generation of Haotian Taoism. So how can your disciple bepared to her?"


    Master Yan Se sneered and contemptuously said, "Not to say that my disciple is the future Nation Master of the Tang, nor the achievements he will make under the instruction of the Headmaster of Academy. Let¡¯s just talk about their rtions. Even if this girl bes the Great Divine Priest of Light in the future, she still has to make the bed or even warm my disciple¡¯s bed."


    The old man sighed and said, "Do you feel proud?"


    Master Yan Se spit and fiercely said, "At least I¡¯m better than you in one aspect, why shouldn¡¯t I be proud?"


    ...


    ...


    The seemingly warm dialogue between old friends actually hid manyplicated things such as aura of Divine light. These childish disputes were just like a forey before a fatal fight.


    At this time, Sangsang took a broom and clear water from the backyard to clean up the phlegm on the ground. She did not understand what the two elderly people said and only felt that they were very powerful. To some extent, she was worried that they would quarrel or even fight with each other.


    Chen Pipi, who had been sitting beside the chessboard, was clear about what he had heard. In the midst of the aura of two peak-leveled figures, he felt that a fight was about to break out, thus he was extremely nervous and fearful. It was hard to tell when his fat body had begun sweating, and he even felt weak and limp.


    He could not sit down anymore, nor could he pretend that nothing had happened. He could not pretend that they were just two ordinary old guys quarreling under locust trees, beside wells or at the street corner, so he stood up and said with a gasp, "Can I go first?"


    The old man and Master Yan Se both looked at the chessboard and answered in unison, "No."


    Beside the chessboard, Chen Pipi was a stabilizer and also a witness. His family background was the stabilizer, and his status as an Academy student was the witness. If Master Yan Se failed to control the old man, he would start the fight ahead of time.


    Chen Pipi was frightened by their unanimous answer, and his chubby body trembled and knocked over the chessboard. The chess pieces all fell to the ground and were scattered everywhere.


    Looking at the empty chessboard, Master Yan Se sighed, "It seems we have to stop now."


    After a moment of silence, the old man nodded.


    Sangsang was holding her broom, nervously standing aside. Although she didn¡¯t understand what they said, she still faintly felt something bad would happen soon.


    Sangsang didn¡¯t want them to fight, for one was the teacher of young master, and the other one was her own teacher. Anyway, fighting was not as good as ying chess, even if they continued to quarrel with each other when ying chess.


    She put the broom aside and squatted down to pick up the ck and white chess pieces scattered on the floor.


    Then she came to the tableside with those chess pieces and put them on the chessboard one by one.


    The chess game was restored and none of the pieces were misced.


    "Fortunately I had nced at it, otherwise I would not be able to put them back."


    Sangsang patted her chest slightly and then looked at the two old men beside the table, saying, "Go on."


    The two didn¡¯t know what to say.


    Staring at those chess pieces on the chessboard, Chen Pipi didn¡¯t know what to say.


    Sangsang¡¯s held her hands together behind her. She slowly looked down at her old shoes and softly muttered, "They are ready, why not continue?"


    Suddenly she looked up, and her willowlike bright eyes gazed at the two old men.


    "Are you hungry? Then I will cook noodles for you. How about noodles with fried eggs?"


    ...


    --

 Chapter 295: On the Sly, Staying Together

    Chapter 295: On the Sly, Staying Together


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "Don¡¯t add shallots."


    "Don¡¯t add vinegar."


    "More noodles."


    The person who asked for thest request was obviously Chen Pipi. As he looked at the chessboard, which had been restored to its prior state, his thick eyebrows jumped quickly. Depression and shame filled his face right away, even making him forget about his current dangerous situation. How could he be proud of his brain and call himself a geniuspared with the little handmaiden, who was able to memorize the positions of all the chess pieces in just one nce?


    Looking at Master Yan Se, Wei Guangming smiled and said, "This female student of mine is quite excellent."


    Watching the thin figure disappearing from the back of the courtyard, Master Yan Se said with emotion, "She is indeed excellent."


    Sangsang¡¯s excellence that was praised by the two old men did not have much to do with her astonishing brain, and that shocked Chen Pipi. They were referring to a kind of disposition that could only be sensed by high-state elders like them. This special disposition was able to precisely and clearly reflect the world due to its absolute transparency, even though it looked a little dull.


    Master Yan Se withdrew his attention and said to Wei Guangming, "Both of us are old. Even if we don¡¯t have a serious fight, we are inevitably close to our natural deaths. Let¡¯s have a bowl of noodles since this is ourst meeting."


    Three bowls of delightful noodles with fried eggs were brought to them¡ªone without vinegar, one without shallots, and one with noodles overflowing the bowl¡¯s edge.


    After having noodles, the two elders finished their game of chess. They did not keep score, so no one knew who had won or lost the game.


    Later, they rejected Sangsang¡¯s reward of one more bowl of noodles and one more game of chess. They just began recollecting their history.


    Sangsang remade three bowls of tea. Each of them sitting on a small stool, she and Chen Pipi carefully listened to their memories like two students.


    Yan Se and Wei Guangming belonged to the oldest living generation in Haotian Taoism. During the past 14 years, one had enjoyed himself in the world while the other was imprisoned on the back hill of Peach Mountain. However,pared with the duration of their acquaintance, 14 years was so short after all. Therefore, theirmon memories and experiences were very long and colorful.


    They began recollecting from the time of being little taoist priests, to ying tricks in the Revtion Institute, and then to being appointed as Great Divine Priests in Zhishou Abbey. The two elders were busy talking together for a long time.


    Of course, Master Yan Se spent most of the time with his nagging. The Great Divine Priest of Light just smiled and listened peacefully. He asionally interrupted and argued a little in order to avoid some misunderstandings from the two juniors. For example, the beard of the headmaster of the Revtion Institute was actually burned by the current Hierarch Lord, but not by him with his Divine Skill. Besides that, on their way to Zhishou Abbey that year, he suffered from diarrhea because Yan Se had used a cold talisman on him furtively, and not because he was nervous.


    These naughty little taoist priests in the past had then be bigwigs in the world. The man who had once jokingly burnt the beard of the headmaster of the Revtion Institute had be a powerful hierarch of the Divine Hall, while one had be Master Yan Se and another had be the God of Light. However, when having such interesting moments, who could resist the temptation to asionally recall their memories?


    These memories were very sweet, along with a kind of unique reminiscence at dusk.


    The Great Divine Priest of Light did not realize that time had unknowingly passed so fast until he looked at the warm twilight outside of the Old Brush Pen Shop. It was already dusk.


    Silence surrounded the Old Brush Pen Shop in the twilight, and no sound could be heard on Lin 47th Street.


    The smiling old man just looked outside without saying a word.


    "At that time we were very young and naughty, but you were always the cleverest and the most well-behaved one."


    Master Yan Se looked at him and said, "After you reminded me, I just realized that this little girl, Sangsang, is indeed very simr to how you were at that young age. She is lucent, inside and out, without any impurities."


    The old man looked fondly at Sangsang, who was seated on a stool, and said, "She¡¯s better than I am."


    Master Yan Se said with emotion, "Do all those who can be the God of Light have to be so transparent? Is that what makes them closer to the nature of Haotian than us? But what does transparency represent? Can it reflect the original appearance of the world? If the world were dark, would you also be dark? Is that why so many Gods of Light go astray in the end?"


    The old man shook his head and said with a smile, "Transparency means having no color, but darkness represents no color and no light. In the bright Haotian world where you and I live, transparency means light and is the enemy of the darkness."


    As Master Yan Se heard the words ¡¯"the enemy of the darkness", he fell into a long silence. After a while, he slowly raised his head and seriously looked at Wei Guangming and asked him, "Do you remember Lotus?"


    The old man felt a little shocked and said with a frown, "How could I forget him?"


    Master Yan Se asked, "Does he represent light or dark?"


    The old man shook his head and said, "That year, he was the God of Justice and I was the God of Light. Actually, I began to doubt him when I saw some dirty blood exuding from that ck-Jade Seat. However, before I exposed him, he had predicted his fate and left Peach Mountain, and was killed by Mr. Ke in the end. Considering the reputation and fame of Haotian Taoism, the Divine Hall kept silent the entire time and didn¡¯t mention him at all. In my view, the Liansheng 32 were just made of dirt and mud with some pink color, no matter how dazzling and crystal-like they had seemed."


    Staring at his eyes, Master Yan Se said in a deep voice, "After the copse of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, the Divine Hall enrolled many mighty cultivators of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. If the light can¡¯t leave any opportunity for the darkness, then how do you exin this thing? If your choice to plot those murder cases that year was just your forced way to destroy the Dark Shadow, what about the shadows in the Divine Hall now?"


    The old man said, "That¡¯s different. That Dark Shadow is the offspring of Yama."


    Master Yan Se became angry and struck the table heavily and said, "Why are you so obstinate? The Underworld is just a legend and it has never appeared! That year you modified the edict of the hierarch and caused blood to rain in Chang¡¯an, but you failed to find the so-called Son of Yama in the end. Why are you still so ridiculous today!"


    The old man said, "Actually, both the abbey dean and the hierarch believed what my eyes had seen back then."


    Master Yan Se stared at his eyes and coldly said, "But it resulted in you being locked up in You Prison!"


    The old man looked at Master Yan Se peacefully and said, "I¡¯m the light of the world. Those who follow me won¡¯t walk in the darkness and are supposed to achieve the light of life. On the contrary, those who doubt me have to trudge in the darkness and will never be free."


    Angry at Wei Guangming¡¯s stubbornness, Master Yan Se wrathfully waved his sleeves and severely reproached him. "So please tell me where the Dark Shadow is! Where¡¯s the Son of Yama! Who do you want to kill in Chang¡¯an!"


    The old man said in a low voice, "I don¡¯t know, either."


    Listening to that answer, Master Yan Se was a little shocked, and a bitter smile appeared on his face. He looked at the old man and said in a trembling and sad voice, "Just because of an unknown person and illusory Son of Yama, a Great Divine Priest of Light, who was once as transparent as ss and as bright as light, became a wicked murderer. Furthermore, you were even willing to be imprisoned in You Prison for 14 years, which grieved many people. Don¡¯t you regret it at all?"


    After a long silence, a little confusion following introspectiveness asionally shed across the old man¡¯s face, and then the confusion quickly transformed into a kind of peaceful stability. He said, "But what troubles me is that I do know of its existence."


    With a frown, Master Yan Se looked at him and said, "Who on earth is he?"


    Looking at the darkness of night gradually covering the Old Brush Pen Shop, the old man peacefully said, "Since he¡¯s the Son of Yama, of course, he hides deeply. And perhaps, even he himself hasn¡¯t realized his real identity yet. If you ask me who he is, I can¡¯t answer you now. However, since I have seen him in Chang¡¯an, he must be in the world. He is the one, regardless if he had managed to escape from the General¡¯s Mansion or survived from among those dead bodies in the vige of the Yan territory."


    Suddenly, the old man frowned as he looked at Sangsang and asked, "What¡¯s wrong?"


    Sangsang¡¯s ck face became a little pale and her two little hands were tightly grasping her clothing, but her expression still looked peaceful. She replied to the old man¡¯s question, "I somehow feel a little tired now."


    With pity, the old man said, "Then go to bed right now."


    Sangsang looked back at Master Yan Se with her lips tightly pursed without saying a word.


    Master Yan Se said with a sigh, "If my disciple knows that you didn¡¯t have a good rest because of me, he will definitely not forgive me. Just go to bed. We two old men won¡¯t fight while you¡¯re sleeping. If we decide to have a final battle, we will wake you up."


    Wei Guangming looked at Chen Pipi and said, "The sky has turned dark, and the man that you waited for hase, so just leave."


    Chen Pipi wiped the sweat from his forehead, which seemed to flow unceasingly today. After respectfully bowing deeply to the two elders, he pushed open the door and walked out of the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    ...


    ...


    The pine twig that was used for the smoked bacon was still smoking. The smoke became thicker because Sangsang had forgotten it for a while. Probably due to that, Sangsang¡¯s eyes were slightly reddened by the smoke.


    After quietly washing her face and feet, she climbed into her bed and crawled beneath the cold nkets. Looking at the starry light outside the window, she imagined that Ning Que would probably begin muttering nonsense if he was looking at the same star right now.


    The bed was a little cool because of her frugality. Besides, the weather in Chang¡¯an this year was colder thanst year. She had been lying down for some time and still did not feel warm, therefore, she could not help blowing out two mouthfuls of hot air into her little hands.


    The starlight shone onto her palms, which were covered with bloodstains from being pinched by her fingernails.


    When she was listening to her teacher talking about the General¡¯s Mansion and the vige of the Yan territory before, she had felt a great fear in her heart. If she had not forcibly suppressed her mind with pain, maybe her body would have continued to tremble then.


    She did not hear about the incident at the General¡¯s Mansion from Ning Que directly. She did not ask, but she knew about it. She knew that Ning Que had killed the censor Zhang Yiqi and that cksmith. In addition, she even wrote amon piece of poetry. But, she still did not ask about it.


    Ning Que did not want to talk about it, so she did not ask. But as Ning Que said before, she was not stupid, just a little dull. Besides, if she needed intelligence, she could be more clever than anyone, therefore, Sangsang knew everything.


    "Son of Yama... it sounds like a very terrible thing."


    As Sangsang rubbed her little face on the cold pillow, she looked at the winter starlight in front of the window and said to herself, "But I¡¯ve been living with you for so many years, let¡¯s just stay alive together on the sly."


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 296: Besiege the Alley

    Chapter 296: Besiege the Alley


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "I heard that they¡¯re ying chess."


    "The game had been over since twilight."


    "But I¡¯ve to let you continue our chess game with me."


    "Your Majesty, the chess game always has an end."


    "Since I can¡¯t fall asleep tonight, I have to figure out some ways to kill time."


    Inside the imperial study deep in the pce, Li Zhongyi, the emperor of the Tang Empire, was angrily saying as he looked at the chessboard in front of him. The game had been on since daytime, but it wasn¡¯t even halfway through in thete night. Thus, the situation indeed made him impatient.


    Monk Huang Yang helpless smiled and replied, "His Majesty, the men like the Divine Priest of Light and Master Yan Se, are considered supermundane figures. No matter how we are wary of and respond to it, few things will change there."


    The atmosphere of Chang¡¯an this evening was nervous and depressive. Other than the shop in Lin 47th Street, the imperial pce was naturally the most heavily guarded ce. In ordance with the rules, since the Nation Master Li Qingshan wasn¡¯t by the emperor now, Monk Huang Yang, the younger brother of the emperor, would apany His Majesty at every moment.


    His Majesty scattered the chess pieces in front of him with his hand and walked out of the imperial study. He stood beside the trees, flowers, and snow. As he quietly looked at the city under darkness, he suddenly said, "Do you believe the tale about the invasion of Underworld?"


    Monk Huang Yang put his palms together in silence and shook his head.


    After a gust of night wind, His Majesty began coughing and the sound became louder and louder. Atst, the emperor painfully bent his waist due to the continuous coughing. He waved his hand and drove away the eunuchs and pce maids who came to him because of his coughing. After gently rubbing the corners of his mouth with a handkerchief, he looked at the darkness and said, "I only hope it wille earlier if it isn¡¯t just a tale."


    Monk Huang Yang recognized the ominous meaning hidden behind the emperor¡¯s words. Both his statement and the previous coughing made him frown. He looked at the emperor¡¯s and worriedly said, "His Majesty is suffering from a cold disease now, so it¡¯s better to go back to the room."


    The emperor slowly shook his head and said, "The Headmaster of Academy once said the cold disease inside my body isn¡¯t very serious. As long as I can suppress it, it¡¯s unable to threaten me. If I fail, that will be my fate."


    Huang Yang was the Younger brother of emperor of Tang dynasty, but he wasn¡¯t like the Nation Master Li Qingshan, who had been with His Majesty for so many years. Thus, he didn¡¯t know those old stories. For example, he didn¡¯t know the story between the emperor of Tang and the young girl of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Listening to the emperor¡¯s words, he felt worried and confused. Could it be that even the Headmaster of Academy was incapable ofpletely curing the cold disease inside the emperor¡¯s body?


    ...


    ...


    When Chen Pipi walked out of the door, the burning color in the Lin 47th Street instantly disappeared, leaving behind only a tall ancient hat left. Covering his head, he just walked in that direction and politely stood behind the owner of the hat.


    Looking at the closed door of Old Brush Pen Shop, Second Brother¡¯s expression was aloof and peaceful. However, his eyes were loomingly full of exciting fire, just like his tall hat that looked as if it was burning in the dusk.


    There was no one in the alley, and the doors of that fake antique shop and grocery store were all closed. A square stool somehow appeared by the grey-white wall below the winter tree. Second Brother seated stiffly on it, as steady as a pine on the cliff. What¡¯s more, that young and cute little boy was quietly apanying him on one side, just like a white stone below the pine.


    Looking at the closed door, Second Brother suddenly asked, "They still haven¡¯t fought yet?"


    Chen Pipi lowered his head and politely replied, "They are reminiscing their old days."


    There were some unpleasant expressions appearing on Second Brother¡¯s serious face. He said, "Old men always conduct things in a dtory way. Since both of them insist on their own standpoints, the result will depend on their fists and strength in the end. There¡¯s no need to spend such a long time reminiscing. They don¡¯t deserve to be called "Gentlemen" due to their dtory style."


    Chen Pipi rubbed his cold sweat left on his forehead and daren¡¯t say a word.


    Second Brother¡¯s absolutely straight eyebrow suddenly frowned. He gently raised the front part of his gown and then pped it. After adjusting his ancient hat which actually didn¡¯t move a bit, he said, "They still aren¡¯t fighting. Do I have to wait the entire night for it?"


    Noticing Second Brother¡¯s movement, Chen Pipi knew that his impatient Second Brother wouldn¡¯t like to spend time on the meaningless wait and was ready to enter Old Brush Pen Shop. Chen Pipi was instantly shocked and sweat immediately wet his clothes again.


    In the Old Brush Pen Shop at present, two terrific figures, Great Divine Priest of Light and Master Yan Se, were at a deadlock. If Second Brother were to join in, who would know what the fight destructions would ur and what it would do to damage the street?


    Thinking about the situation, Chen Pipi, regardless of his regr reverence to Second Brother and Second Brother¡¯s habit of keeping dressing neat, grasped Second Brother¡¯s sleeve tightly. With a trembling and slightly hoarse voice, he sincerely begged, "Senior Brother, please don¡¯t enter there."


    Having a nce at his crumpled sleeve corner, Second Brother asked expressionlessly, "Those two men can enter, why can¡¯t I?"


    ording to the real thought in Chen Pipi¡¯s deep heart, wind, rain, light, and color could enter Old Brush Pen Shop, but Second Brother couldn¡¯t. The reason was very simple. Though the two elders in the shop had ever killed many people, at least the current situation was peaceful. Chang¡¯an would be in a peaceful state if they could think twice before making a decision. However, if Second Brother entered Old Brush Pen Shop, he, who was inflexible in etiquette and raring for a fight, an earth-shaking battle would definitely happen in the shop!


    Besides, Chen Pipi had witnessed the excitingly burning fire in Second Brother¡¯s eyes, though Second Brother pretended to be serious and solemn. Actually, Second Brother had gathered a lot of desire to fight inside his body, because he was suppressed by Headmaster of Academy and Eldest Brother all the time and he had to preside over affairs of the Academy these two years. Today, the God of Light was a matched opponent for him, so how could he let the great opportunity escape?


    However, what Chen Pipi thought and knew wasn¡¯t important. He knew that if he advised Second Brother in this way, he would definitely be heavily bullied and Second Brother would still enter Old Brush Pen Shop in the end. Therefore, with his cute flesh on the face shaking, Chen Pipi advised in earnest, "Dtoriness isn¡¯t a fault. When Eldest Brother does something slowly, we still have no choice but to wait."


    Second Brother unhappily said, "How could other peoplepete with our Senior Brother?"


    Noticing that the mention of Eldest Brother still didn¡¯t work, Chen Pipi heavily and tightly grasped Second Brother¡¯s sleeve and said two sentences in a low voice. (Notes)


    Second Brother slightly frowned and waved his hand signalizing his cute serving boy, who was silently waiting beside him all the time, to return to the Academy. After adjusting his ancient hat and clothes, he just closed his eyes and peacefully waited in silence on the stool below the tree.


    ...


    ...


    From dusk to midnight, many people came outside the Lin 47th Street.


    General Huaihua, who looked impressive and strong, came representing the representing Tang¡¯s military ministry. A tough-looking Censor, on behalf of the imperial court, was on the spot. In addition, the Nation Master Li Qingshan, whose face was a little pale, also arrived.


    These figures representing different forces of Tang Empire gathered here only for one purpose. In other words, they came here for the rickety old man in Old Brush Pen Shop, for those bloody cases in Chang¡¯an and Yan territory caused by the old man that year, as well as for the treason case of Xuanwei General many years ago.


    For more than ten years, the empire didn¡¯t delve deeply into that thing because its involvement was too deep and wide. It was rtive to the prince and General Xiahou, even to the West-Hill Divine Pce and some more mysterious origins.


    However, the Divine Priest of Light, who schemed the n that year, had betrayed the Divine Hall now and arrived in Chang¡¯an in person. How could the emperor and officials of Tang allow him to leave Chang¡¯an safely?


    In the big asion like today, the men of Chang¡¯an Local Government and Fish-dragon Gang even had no right to appear.


    These big figures and their own subordinates all expressionlessly sat under big umbres at the entrance and end of the alley. No one knew the situation inside Old Brush Pen Shop, so no one went towards the shop.


    Some people had long noticed that a freak in a tall hat was sitting and a very fat young man was standing beside that grey wall. However, after knowing their identities, no one dared question it.


    The time was flowing little by little and stars filled the night sky. Li Qingshan slowly walked from the entrance of the alley and greeted a bow with hands folded in front to both of them. After that, he, like the two men, just silently looked at the closed door of Old Brush Pen Shop too.


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang didn¡¯t know there were so many supermundane mighty people and secr bigwigs surrounding Old Brush Pen Shop. On one hand, she just closed her eyes or wanted to sleep, because she thought falling asleep could relieve her. On the other hand, she thought if her young master knew the main culprit who should be responsible for the death of his whole family was sitting in the courtyard of the shop, would he be very sad?


    Sangsang just thought of it between waking and dreaming, and then she saw her birth parents in a dream.


    Sangsang had no idea who her parents were, and she was very curious about or missed the feeling. After all, Ning Que was just four years older than her, so it was hard topletely rece the role of parents.


    Finally, she encountered an old man in Chang¡¯an, whose cotton-padded jacket was tinged with Hot and sour noodle slice soup. She felt the old man was naturally close to her. She could see the unreasonable and unconditional love in his eyes, just like Ning Que¡¯s love for her. Therefore, she thought she met the same existence as parents. Later, she began calling him teacher.


    Sangsang woke up with a start and her cheeks were a little wet.


    ...


    ...


    Silence upied the whole night, just like a gradually-dying oilmp. Outside the shop door, the morning light was getting brighter.


    "The Divine Hall didn¡¯t dispatch people here, and you know the Tang Empire¡¯s work style."


    Master Yan Se said with a sigh, "We can¡¯t kill you by the cavalry troop in the city. If people like us wield our strength, it will only cause many innocent deaths and sufferings to others. However, it¡¯s impossible for the imperial court to let you leave, so it¡¯s a deadlock now."


    The old man kept silent. He clearly knew that since he was found by Tang Empire today, it definitely wouldn¡¯t allow him to escape again. He was the miraculous and powerful Divine Priest of Light. However, he would still be trapped atst, if the strong empire used its all strength to hunt him and he didn¡¯t resort to the protection of the city and its mass.


    "That year, I heard you said you had ever made a bet in that shabby abbey in the Kingdom of Song."


    Master Yan Se looked at him and peacefully said, "Make a bet for life or death one more time. If you win, you can continue to look for the shadow of Nightfall. If you lose, you should leave your life in Chang¡¯an, which is also a conclusion to the old thing that year and a constion to those nearly one thousand innocent people who tragically died because of you."


    The old man still kept silent.


    Master Yan Se looked at his eyes and suddenly said, "Just bet with me for that female student of yours."


    After a deep thought, the old man stood up and said, "Reasonable, admirable and worthy."


    There were three words in this sentence. The word ¡¯admirable¡¯ was for Yan Se, who, in order to seek a chance to battle against him, was willing to give up the backup of Chang¡¯an, a God-stunning tactical Array. In fact, as the controller of the array, Yan Se couldn¡¯t be beaten as long as he was in Chang¡¯an. No matter how mighty his opponent was, the array could at least ensure his safety.


    The word ¡¯worthy¡¯ referred to Sangsang. The winning or losing of the bet was rtive to his life or death, but it was still worth epting as long as it was for Sangsang. As for the word ¡¯reasonable¡¯, it was actually the note for the word ¡¯worthy¡¯: the old man was the light and he wanted to leave the light in Sangsang¡¯s world, so he should make ast but real luciferous choice.


    In a word, all of this was for Sangsang. It might seem unreasonable for many people, but in this old man¡¯s eyes, it was very reasonable. Many people would think it unworthy, but in his eyes, it was very worthy.


    Sangsang was a little handmaiden with ck skin and yellowish hair. She wasn¡¯t good-looking, not to mention pretty. In addition, she looked very unimpressive and her character wasn¡¯t loved by others too.


    People who didn¡¯t appreciate her would just consider her as a stalk of swinging barnyard grass which might die in the cold wind at any time. However, those that could really appreciate her would treat her like treasure. So far, only two people in the world, her young master Ning Que and her teacher the Great Divine Priest of Light, had been able to really appreciate her.


    Therefore, after Prince Long Qing smilingly threatened her safety, Ning Que worriedly and silently tried to break the realm by Daming Lake, and then directly shot one arrow at this young and dignitary figure of the West-Hill and crippled him.


    When Wu Dao made her unhappy and tried to harass her, the Great Divine Priest of Light, who gave up the yellow croaker on the table and went to the alley without any hesitation, directly and easily blinded the monk from Unknown ce.


    The morning light came to Chang¡¯an and then fell on Old Brush Pen Shop in Lin 47th Street.


    Eventually, Master Yan Se and the Great Divine Priest of Light terminated their reminiscence and negotiation hidden in the word. They decided to break the deadlock by a simple way, which was also a conclusion to that history of over ten years.


    The old hand slowly pushed the shop door. When the old man looked back, he found that Sangsang had been behind him.


    She hovered between waking and dreaming the whole night. She had awakened immediately when she heard the slight sounds from the courtyard and had hurried over.


    The old man silently looked at her and then suddenly asked, "Want to have a look?"


    Sangsang nodded frantically.


    The old man nced at Master Yan Se.


    Master Yan Seughed and said, "To be honest, she¡¯s indeed the most suitable eyewitness."


    Looking at Sangsang¡¯ s little face, the old man smilingly said after a short pause, "Bring that new urn. It hadn¡¯t been used for chicken tonic soup yet and isn¡¯t greasy, so it should be suitable for containing cremains."


    Listening to his words, Master Yan Se said, "If you have an old urn, carry it too. You¡¯ve earned a lot of taels of silver with my Chicken Soup Calligraphy, but I haven¡¯t even drunk the chicken soup you made yet."


    Sangsang lowered her head and said in a low voice, "If both of you don¡¯t go outside, I will stew chicken soup for you today."


    The old man tenderly looked at her and shook his head. Later he looked at Yan Se and said, "There¡¯s oil in the old urn, so the cremains would easily adhere to the wall."


    Master Yan Se gently waved his sleeves and walked out of Old Brush Pen Shop with loudughter, "My taoist robe is always stained with greasy dirt in my whole life, but I never avoid it. Do you think I will care about the thing that my cremains may be contaminated by greasy dirt after death?"


    ...


    ...


    - --

 Chapter 297: A Step off the Cliff

    Chapter 297: A Step off the Cliff


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The sun rose, gradually rousing Chang¡¯an from its sleep.


    Someone pushed the door to the Old Brush Pen Shop open, awakening all the eminences on the Lin 47th Street.


    The weather was colder than it wasst year yet it hadn¡¯t snowed for a long time. The remains of snow gathered under the trees turned greyer with each passing day. However, just as the door was open, snow began falling.


    Second Brother lifted his head to look at the sky and then turned his attention to the opened door.


    A ck horse carriage wasing from the alley amid the falling snow, its heavy metal body scrapping on the stone-paved road noisily.


    Master Yan Se and Great Divine Priest of Light came out of the Old Brush Pen Shop at the same time and entered the horse carriage.


    A whileter, a thin and frail figure also walked out of the shop.


    Sangsang appeared solemn as she carried the new urn with her left hand and the old urn with her right. The urns appeared heavy that she fairly struggled to climb up the carriage.


    The horse carriage headed out of the city.


    It remained peaceful on the Lin 47th Street. The general in the front of the alley and the censor at the end of the alley didn¡¯t take any action, only watching as the carriage left.


    Second Brother rose from his chair and brought Chen Pipi along with him as he followed the trace of the carriage with his hands behind his back.


    It was only then that the eminences in the alley dared to make their moves.


    That general ordered the Yulin Royal Guards hidden all over the city to return.


    The censor entered the pce to make his report to the emperor.


    Nation Master Li Qingshan watched the carriage that gradually disappeared in the snow and slowly made a bow.


    ...


    ...


    North of Chang¡¯an sat a rtively unknown mountain without any interesting backstory or beautiful sceneries, only trees. It was hard to walk on the mountain paths coated with the morning snow. Few travelers ventured here and a dead silence enveloped the mountain.


    The ck carriage stopped at the foot of this mountain. There were already cracks under the wheels made of fine iron. If they forcefully go up the mountain with the carriage, they would probably leave two gruesome tracks on the muddy path.


    The two old men were walking up along the mountain path as their clothes billowed out around them. One of them wore an old but clean cotton-padded coat while the other wore a new but dirty Taoist robe.


    Whether it was their clothes or their frail figures, both old men looked ordinary in every way. But as they walked along the paths in the snow, they left behind a deeply mncholic feeling.


    Not far from them, the frail Sangsang walked as she carried the two heavy urns. Lowering her head, she bit her lips and watched the winding steps ahead of her as if there was no end to them. She chased after the men with much difficulty.


    Master Yan Se moved away a branch in front of him. "I wonder which urn will be heavierter. Will it be the new one or the old one?"


    Walking beside him, Great Divine Priest of Light smiled. "It¡¯s all up to Haotian."


    Master Yan Se wiped his snow-stained hand on his Taoist robe and answered, "It¡¯s not a bad idea to fill both."


    Great Divine Priest of Light nodded. "They can be neighbors if we put them together."


    Master Yan Se gave him a look before continuing on his journey.


    ...


    ...


    The two men took a break under a cedar tree as they waited for Sangsang to catch up to them.


    Master Yan Se looked at his old friend¡¯s face and asked curiously, "Back then, did you ever make it to Tianqi Realm?"


    Great Divine Priest of Light closed his eyes, seemingly recalling the things that happened so many years ago. "Yes, but Iter was pushed into hell. I lost my chance of ever getting near to Haotian."


    Master Yan Se looked at him in a daze. "What an incredible opportunity it is to break into the fifth realm! So many cultivators spend all their lives looking for that opportunity, only to never find it. You actually went that far so many years ago. No wonder the abbey dean has looked all over the Peach Mountain but still regards you as the No. 1 in your sect."


    Great Divine Priest of Light sighed. "It¡¯s actually a kind of suffering to have it once only to lose it forever."


    Sangsang finally caught up to the cedar tree. Her small face was red and she was panting heavily.


    The two old men left no time for her to rest and started moving again.


    ...


    ...


    Master Yan Se said, "Your failure only proves that Haotian knows your actions to be a mistake so it decided to withdraw its gift to you. You insist on looking for the shadow of Nightfall and Yama¡¯s son, but what does it have to do with Haotian? You actually only believe in yourself, not Haotian."


    Great Divine Priest of Light answered, "There has been a question on my mind for decades. Why did every Divine Hall in history eventually leave the Peach Mountain? Why did those considered closest to Haotian would go down a path that Haotian would disapprove? That¡¯s how it was with the great master who set Devil¡¯s Doctrine thousands of years ago and the apostate predecessor. In the end, I¡¯m also walking on the same path."


    He turned to Yan Se and said after a long silence, "I¡¯ve been thinking about this question for a long time, including during every step we took up this mountain. Now that I¡¯m here watching the sun rising over the sea and basking in the red sunlight, I finally understand what we believe in is the light."


    Master Yan Se became silence, having understood what his friend meant.


    They both believe in the light, and Haotian might not necessarily represent the light.


    By then, the two old men had reached the peak of the mountain. Sangsang was resting under a tall white por tree, with the two urns beside her reflecting her rosy cheeks. She appeared very warm.


    East of the cliff, the sun had already risen above the clouds.


    Snow was still drifting by the cliff, with snowkes dancing before the rising sun. It was a very peculiar sight.


    Master Yan Se walked near the cliff and swept away a stray snowke floating before his eyes. Looking at the red sun in the east, he asked, "How did it feel when you entered the realm?"


    If he took one step further, he would be stepping into the clouds surrounding the mountain and the warm light.


    Great Divine Priest of Light walked up beside him and stared at the sun. "After your fight against Liu Bai in the Kingdom of Song, I became inspired by the falling red sun. But I only made it halfway there."


    "Whether it¡¯s halfway or all the way, you still made it there. I really envy you." Master Yan Se sighed. "No wonder Liu Bai was looking at you so strangely. I¡¯m still a person who realizes things toote."


    Great Divine Priest of Light recalled the sh of a sword that cut open the skies as if it was heading for an appointment thousand of miles away from many years ago. He thought of the ocean-rippling talisman that his friend performed and couldn¡¯t help smiling. "Logically, Liu Bai should already be there. Why aren¡¯t there any news of it all this time? Is it fear?"


    Master Yan Se thought of the strongest opponent he had ever met in his life and frowned, saying nothing.


    Great Divine Priest of Light smiled faintly. "Many think you ended your chances of reaching the fifth realm because you cultivated as a virgin. But I think there¡¯s always a way around it. Since you can fight Liu Bai, dubbed the world¡¯s No. 1, and not lose, you¡¯re sure to reach it too. So how¡¯s that working out for you...?"


    The wind billowed out Master Yan Se¡¯s Taoist robe in the snow. He watched that red sun shrouded in the clouds and said calmly, "I took Ning Que as my disciple and obliterated all my obsessionsst year. I had a feeling I was going to reach that realm but I don¡¯t know why I¡¯m not willing to take the step."


    He turned to Great Divine Priest of Light. "It¡¯s like what you said of Liu Bai. It¡¯s because I¡¯m afraid."


    Great Divine Priest of Light frowned. "Of what?"


    "The final destination of the Talisman Taoism is the ultimatew of heaven and earth. It¡¯s the essentialw. For my entire life, I¡¯ve been walking down the path toward the final destination. But that ce is a ce where only Haotian has the right to reach.


    Master Yan Se said expressionlessly, "To cultivate talisman means having to reach that forbidden zone in the end. What we need is self-enlightenment, not guidance from the heaven. What would happen if we enter the forbidden zone? That uncertainty is my fear."


    Tucked between clouds above the sea, the sun spilled its warm and bright light over every part of the cliff. It illuminated the people by the snow-capped trees and stones. That was the benevolent and generous Haotian bestowing the world with rules and life.


    Great Divine Priest of Light said, "Though it seems like I¡¯ve betrayed Haotian, what I cultivate is still divinity. Haotian gave me a pair of eyes that can see through everything and inexhaustible strength. The odds are with me during the day."


    Master Yan Se shook his head. "Chang¡¯an is my home. My feet once walked on every street in this city and traveled over all the mountains and rivers outside it. This mountain is considered my symbol. Your odds aren¡¯t all that high."


    Great Divine Priest of Light smiled. "No matter what, it¡¯s best not to disturb other people."


    Master Yan Se said, "That¡¯s why I ask that we leave Chang¡¯an."


    With a lift of his sleeves, a clear light shed. The unpleasant smelling from his sleeves suddenly dissipated, and a powerful and inexplicable talisman intent emerged from the crack on the stone.


    "I haven¡¯t seen Shan Fu in a long time," said Great Divine Priest of Lightmentably.


    He swept his cotton sleeves in the wind and stuck his hand out in the snow. The sunlighting from the east instantly illuminated his skinny right hand. Countless dim lights appeared on his fingertips before scattering, like fireflies taking flight.


    When the powerful talisman intent that emerged from within the crack of the stone merged with the dim lights, there weren¡¯t any terrible consequences. Instead, they stuck close to each other and fell from the cliff into the chasm, gradually forming an intangible shield. A seven-color streak of light danced on the shield, forming a beautiful rainbow in the snow.


    The two old men looked at the rainbow shield that enveloped the entire mountain and nodded with satisfaction. Then, at the same time, they then turned toward the quiet little girl who had her head lowered.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 298: Above the Sky

    Chapter 298: Above the Sky


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In an old pavilion, miles away, Second Brother looked in the direction of the mountain indifferently. The mountain had been right there a moment ago, and then disappeared suddenly, both in his eyes and in his heart.


    Chen Pipi stood behind Second Brother and scratched his head. He had no idea what was happening.


    The battle between the Great Divine Priest of Light and Master Yan Se, both at the peak of Knowing Destiny State was not that easy to watch. He was curious. There were very few battles like this, aside from the ones his Youngest Uncle had been involved in years ago.


    Second Brother was quietly observing. It seemed that he could see through what was happening, even though there was nothing but snow and wind. There was a kind of serious light in his eyes which seemed to chase the snow and leaves away.


    Chen Pipi knew his Second Brother could see what was going on. He asked, "What¡¯s happening? Are they starting to fight? Sangsang won¡¯t be hurt, will she? If she gets hurt, Ning Que will kill me."


    Second Brother frowned slightly and said, "Shut up and watch carefully."


    Chen Pipi stopped talking and thought, "I can¡¯t see anything."


    ...


    ...


    Master Yan Se took something out. He gave it to Sangsang with a serious look and a few private words.


    The Great Divine Priest of Light looked at Sangsang gently. He put an ID token in her hand and touched her head softly.


    All they could talk about were their dying wishes. However, they did not know whose funeral arrangements were going to be handled by Sangsang.


    Master Yan Se walked to one side of the cliff and closed his eyes to think.


    The Great Divine Priest of Light walked to the other side and watched the sun above the snow peacefully.


    Master Yan Se opened his eyes.


    The Great Divine Priest of Light took back his gaze.


    Master Yan Se focused on his old friend¡¯s peaceful face and began tough. He waved his right hand slightly in the air and a powerful talisman was formed. The strong power from the talisman made thousands of rocks float to the ground like huge raindrops.


    His slender fingers, which seemed to smell of the girls in the House of Red Sleeves, fluttered to start the Shan Fu.


    Rocks all over the mountainside fell like a heavy rain in summer. They hit the mountain and ground heavily, and left dents and dust everywhere.


    The Great Divine Priest of Light stood in this rock downpour with his right hand above his head. His coat which smelled like hot and sour noodle slice or chicken soup shook as he started his Divine Skills.


    A ray of Divine Light was burning on the top of his index finger. It was not threatening and it looked pure as if it was never going out into the rock downpour.


    As long as the Divine Light pointing towards the sky was not going out, the rocks falling down would not hurt him.


    The horrible rocks were still tumbling down. They dropped to the ground and then rose up into the air again and again. They seemed to never cease and it was as if there had been no trace of snow.


    The rocks in front of him suddenly turned around him for no reason.


    The Haotian Divine Light around his finger turned bright and lit up the whole cliff. Everything was clear.


    The rising sun had hidden in the cloud.


    But another sun had been born from his finger.


    ...


    ...


    Bright,passionate but fiercely cold. Gentle but strong.


    It shined the world and it was everywhere.


    The people who follow it must walk in the light. Those who turn against it will walk in darkness and will be destroyed.


    Stones on the cliff, grass between rocks, tiny flowers, trees and people under the trees all were bathed in the bright light and frightened.


    The rock downpour finally stopped.


    It began snowing again. The snownded on the invisible rainbow shield reflecting seven-color lights.


    Master Yan Se opened his eyes and felt this purest light in the world. He watched the snowkes in the air and waved his sleeve slightly.


    The sleeves went across his chest in a straight line. It cleared all obstacles like a wind.


    The subtle stone on the cliffs of the mountains suddenly became clear.


    The two muddy paths hidden in the woods turned to granite. The mud on the ground froze and turned harder than rocks.


    The sleeve drew one line; the crevice on the cliff drew another.


    The two mud paths were both vertical.


    Two horizontal and two vertical.


    They werebined.


    It was a character of jing (¾®).


    Jing Fu had been right there, showing the brightness of its contempt, disdains, and pride because it was the most powerful talisman in the world.


    The character of jing (¾®) was the principle of measuringnd, the core meaning of etiquette and of wonderful meaning.


    The simple but powerful Jing Fu was formed of straight lines, dividing space into perfect pieces.


    Jing Fu covered the whole mountain and cut everything, big and small.


    Rocks rolling down the mountain were smashed.


    Trees and grass on the mountain were smashed.


    Flying snowkes were smashed.


    Even wind blowing across was smashed.


    And thest thing was the cliff.


    The brightness everywhere was bing gloomy. It was falling apart with the disintegrating space.


    ...


    ...


    This was the final state Master Yan Se had been looking for.


    This Jing Fu covering the mountain had the true power. It could cut everything including space. It was thousands of times stronger than the one Wang Jinglue hade across in Spring Breeze Pavilion on that rainy night.


    Brightness also needed space. How did it stay bright in broken space?


    The Great Divine Priest of Light watched that Jing Fu in front of him and sighed inside. He knew that Yan Se had finally stepped toward the fifth realm.


    It was intolerable for Haotian to dim, even to destroy the Haotian Divine Light.


    His coat was broken. Even the lining inside had been cut into pieces by the Fu. The brightness covering his arms was as gloomy as the smashing by the Fu, but the Divine Light on his fingertip was still tough and firm, pointing at the sky.


    Maybe his faith had touched the maker on the Firmament...


    The Great Divine Priest of Light felt deep emotion. He looked up to the sky with tears on his face. He murmured, "Thank you for lending me your power, Haotian."


    The brightness from the sun in the clouds exploded with a powerful strength. It went through the snow and clouds. It entered his aged body through the mountain and broken space.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 299: New Urn, Old Urn, and Bone ashes

    Chapter 299: New Urn, Old Urn, and Bone ashes


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    A vigorous power, a brilliantly strong force, fell from the Firmament and entered the body of the Great Divine Priest of Light. Anyone with a small and fragile body would have been smashed into pieces, or beaten to a pulp, by that power.


    But this situation was not strange to the Great Divine Priest of Light. Many years ago, he had a simr experience and was thus inspired by Haotian. He knew he would be bestowed with the most precious gift by Haotian as long as he could show himself to Haotian wholeheartedly, and hence took advantage of this holy power.


    The Great Divine Priest of Light peacefully watched all those in the cliff with his clear and deep eyes, as if he had seen each line of Jing Fu cutting through space. The Divine light around his fingers had changed into a fleece of white light, which, with its pure glory, sent out an extremely frightening aura.


    Rays of pure Divine light spread out from between his fingers. Some were pouring downwards to protect his body like an umbre, while others were thrust into the space that had been cut into pieces like rays of sunshine.


    The light prated into the broken spaces, which then became bright. The terrible aura hidden in those Divine rays of light sustained the marginal lines of the broken spaces and prevented them from breaking.


    Master Yan Se used his strong talisman which was beyond the Five States to cut the space into fragments.


    The Great Divine Priest of Light used his heaven-inspired power to forcibly maintain aplete space.


    Countless fragments of space, like tens of thousands of tiny mirrors, reflected the air, the snow, the flowers, the grass and trees on the cliff. Although they were just broken pictures after being cut, they still existed.


    The lines of Jing Fu that had cut the space were slightly shaking. If those lines broke, the power of light would break through the confinement and return to the real world. If those lines continued to cut those fragments of space into smaller pieces, the space would continue breaking. No matter how bright the aura was inside, it would finally be dim.


    Which one was more powerful? The talisman borrowed from the aura of heaven and nature, or the power of Divine light borrowed from Haotian?


    Talisman Taoism was the principle that people learnt from heaven and earth by themselves, and the most deep-seatedw of the world that one could master. Light was the reward or perhaps the punishment that Haotian gave to this world. Which of the two would defeat the other?


    All those in the cliff, including the cliff itself had been cut apart, which, supported by the Divine light of Haotian, didn¡¯t totally disappear. Only a tree survived and it was not confined by those mirrors.


    It was an upright white por, with a little girl squatting under it.


    The little girl held an old urn with her left hand, and a new urn with her right one.


    Between the Divine light and the talisman she somewhat trembled, like a small grass trembling in the chilly wind.


    A ke of snow softlynded on her shoulder.


    She picked the snowke, feeling it melting between her fingers. Her willow-like eyes became brighter and brighter when she looked at their fight, yet her pupils became darker and darker, as if they could prate the light.


    The fight between a Divine Talisman Master beyond the Five States and a Great Divine Priest of Light at a Heaven-inspired state was actually invisible. However, both the old man and Master Yan Se blocked the white por and the little girl from their space mentally. Therefore, she was just a bystander.


    So the fight, totally iprehensible to the secr world, was something understandable in Sangsang¡¯s dark eyes, which was extremely beautiful and extremely ugly at the same time.


    The mighty aura, the Divine light, the fearless heaven and earth, and the powerful talisman, they all hurt each other, relied on each other and struggled against each other. The space confined the light, and the light broke through the space. Finally the light was condensed as the stars in the dark sky, as the ring fire in the Wilderness, and as the reflection of spring in dewdrops.


    Then it all vanished in Sangsang¡¯s eyes, as if it never existed. What was left was only absolute darkness and silence; more silent than the deepest night and darker than the darkest cloud. It was like the pupils of Yama.


    An ordinary little girl might have fainted from shock and bewilderment, but Sangsang didn¡¯t. She didn¡¯t know what had happened, nor did she understand it. But she still kept her eyes wide open to see all that she could see. She silently watched and waited. She strived to see what she could see and remember what she could remember, for she knew Ning Que would definitely wonder what had happened here today.


    Suddenly an extremely tiny glimpse of light appeared in the absolute darkness, and abruptly numerous rays of light spurted out from it, which prated the whole space in an instant. It was like the birth of a new world.


    Or like a thousand beautiful fireworks in the night sky.


    Looking at the beautiful fireworks, Sangsang rubbed her eyes muddleheadedly. When she opened her eyes again, she found that everything had disappeared, and the cliff was restored to its original state.


    The rainbow inhibition covering the anonymous peak was gone.


    Snowkes fell again.


    On the edge of the cliff stood two old men, both looking up at the sky.


    Atst they became real old men, coughing when the cold wind passed between the cliffs.


    Master Yan Se raised his arm to wipe his snot with the sleeves of his Taoist robe. He looked at the sky, murmuring, "I see."


    The right sleeve of the Great Divine Priest of Light¡¯s cotton-padded jacket had been reduced to nothing, so he inserted his right arm into his left sleeve to keep warm. Then he crouched down like an old peasant and squinted towards the sky.


    Master Yan Se pointed to a ce in the north and said to the old man beside him, "I saw an unprecedented big talisman, which had only two simple strokes. They both rose from the Wilderness in the north, one falling down in the west, and the other falling down in the east."


    Then he turned back to look at Chang¡¯an City, which he had secretly protected for many years,menting, "They met here."


    At that moment, he transcended the Five States of spiritual practice and even went further. He clearly saw the world on the opposite side, the real future. He knew the unprecedented big talisman would really exist and could be drawn by human beings, so he rejoiced and marveled.


    The Great Divine Priest of Light squatted beside the cliff. Following Yan Se¡¯s finger, he looked to the north, but he saw something different. As a man at a Heaven-inspired State, heprehended many things he couldn¡¯tprehend before.


    The old man looked back to see Sangsang, hesitation appearing on his wrinkled face. It was only until thest moment when he finally felt relieved and understood. He then smiled and said, "Finally, this is my Lucky Chance."


    Master Yan Se looked down at him andughed, "You still can¡¯t see it through? No matter what Lucky Chance it is, it has nothing to do with us. It¡¯s their business."


    The old man stood up, sighed and said with a smile, "Yes, the world will be theirs."


    Days ago, an old man was taken in by the little handmaiden of Old Brush Pen Shop. Back then, the old man asked the little handmaiden a question.


    "Do you believe in Lucky Chances?"


    "Yes."


    "I believe that everyone is destined to meet some people and do some things. These things are arranged by Haotian, namely Lucky Chances."


    "Many years ago, I saw the shadow of Nightfall in this city. Once I saw it, I was destined to meet him."


    "And once I meet him, we will not be separated again. However, I didn¡¯t see him clearly nor did I meet the real one. I only know that he exists but I don¡¯t know where he is."


    "Then I saw a person in Chang¡¯an City who was born knowing. I felt that it wasn¡¯t right, because there shouldn¡¯t be anyone born knowing in the world. So, the Lucky Chance had presented itself again."


    Many dayster, beside a cliff on the outskirts of Chang¡¯an City, the old man finally understood. Actually, his Lucky Chance was not the shadow of Nightfall, but the little handmaiden named Sangsang.


    A gust of winter breeze blew, and the two old men, standing shoulder to shoulder beside the cliff, were instantly blown to ashes, just like snow.


    So just like that, the most outstanding Great Divine Priest of Light of the West-Hill Divine Pce in the past century, peacefully left this world. His uparable talent and unparalleled ability crowned him as the strongest person in the Peach Mountain. However, he had been imprisoned for fourteen years because of the so-called Lucky Chance.


    He escaped from Peach Mountain and came to Chang¡¯an City, yet he didn¡¯t find the shadow of Nightfall. It was as if the only goal of his visit was to meet Sangsang, and take her as his sessor.


    On the brink of death, he was inspired by Haotian and could see the appearance of Nightfall¡¯s shadow for the first time. He saw that his sessor would continue to show extraordinary talents in this world, so he left without any regret.


    On that same day, the most outstanding Divine Talisman Master of Haotian Taoism in the past century, also peacefully left this world. During his whole life, heughed and cursed, treating life like a game.Though he had no reputation, he was strong and became the first person to go beyond the Five States in Talisman Taoism.


    The life of Master Yan Se was casual and natural. What he strived for was just to find a sessor. When he saw that Chicken Soup Calligraphy, he finally felt satisfied. All the time he spent lingering in brothels was so as to take that guy as his sessor.


    On the brink of death, he saw through the reincarnation of light and darkness, and saw that big talisman. He knew Ning Que, his sessor, would definitely draw a big talisman that he had never drawn during his whole life. He knew that guy would definitelyplete the thing that had been upleted by the previous Talisman Masters. So he left with great peace and even pleasure.


    Wind blew, snow fell and stopped. Now everyting was silent on the cliff.


    The only white por propped up to the sky, the lonely Sangsang rubbed her eyes. She held the two heavy urns with great difficulty and waded to the edge of the cliff. Then she knelt down beside the two mounds of ashes.


    The wind on the cliff was constantly blowing, carrying the ashes with it. Some were blown into the air and flew to the snow-covered ground, while some were even carried farther away.


    Kneeling down, Sangsang reached out her hands to pick up the ashes and put them in the urns.


    "Master will live in the new urn, because he likes to be clean."


    "Young master¡¯s Master will live in the old urn, because he is not afraid of the grease."


    She softly reminded herself and put the bone ashes into the urns, one handful after another.


    The annoying wind would blow from time to time, scattering the ashes all over. Some of the ashes were even blown onto her cotton skirt and her little face.


    Sangsang raised her hand to wipe her face, and then continued putting ashes into the urns with her head lowered.


    ...


    --

 Chapter 300: Wine, Successor, Potatoes

    Chapter 300: Wine, Sessor, Potatoes


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    At the abandoned pavilion, Second Brother was staring at the disappearing mountain silently. There was no expression on his face but calmness and silence. His hat was standing like a peak and his hands were held back.


    Soon afterwards, in the space where the lost mountain peak originally stood, numerous dark clouds converged and the snowkes danced wildly. Afterwards, some transparent things appeared in the distance and formed an invisible block. The invisible barrier was brilliantly illuminated, and so beautiful that one could almost see countless stars twinkling in the middle of it.


    No one knew how long had it had been when these shining stars suddenly disappeared.That space where the snow and clouds had gathered became dark. All rules andws seemed to end at that point.


    A bolt of lightning came down from the Firmament, and the distance between the two was so long that it was as thick as a river, but there was no sound of thunder, and no color, only pure white.


    The earth trembled, and the dark space suddenly disintegrated, and the mysteriously vanished peaks reappeared. In the meantime, the clouds outside the mountain were torn into pieces by two powerful auras, and slowly elerated into an unknown path where they gradually became a great whirlpool.


    Second Brother looked at the ce in silence and, after a long while, he said with sincere admiration, "This is the true Tao."


    Standing behind Second Brother, Chen Pipi observed the cloudy vortex and felt every inch of his skin going numb. He carefully perceived the strong aura that was slowly dissipating, and murmured in shock, "They have both broken the five states? This is unbelievable. How did they do that?"


    "He who can take a step can take countless steps. Who knows how many steps they have taken in the past."


    Second Brother frowned slightly and then walked up the mountain.


    When the mountains returned to the world, they were able to climb the muddy and unsettling paths of the past. The muddy paths became too hard to be changed as if they were remade by some great sculptor. The sputtered mud was now lying on the ground quietly, even the smallest bit could be seen clearly. So now they felt different about this mountain¡ªtreading on the mountain path as if it were a beautiful river and part of humankind history.


    Since the mountain was still there, its summit and cliff naturally remained as well, but they were rbined by some force into something new. Some stones were broken into powder like the fine sand in a beach.


    There was an aspen tree that was left standing. This tree was not damaged at all. This tree grew in cold mountains, but now it appeared here. It was very absurd.


    Sangsang knelt by the cliff and kept filling the two urns with the bone ashes that were still on the ground. She did this carefully, using her fingernails to dig out the ashes, cleaning them with her palm and holding them in her hands.


    She pursed her lips. Without crying, she opened her eyes wide and repeated the act of gathering ash like a machine. Even her bright eyes had no sorrow, only numbness.


    When Chen Pipi and Second Brother reached the top of the mountain, the first thing they saw was a picture that would live on in their hearts for a long time, allowing them, in some ways, to choose to support the girl in the future for no reason at all.


    Walking to the cliff side, Second Brother looked at the flowing cloud and reached out his hand to sense the aura which was almost gone. He turned around to see that little maid whose dress now was touching the ground, and said to her, "Let them stay here."


    "This is my teacher." Pointing at the new urn, Sangsang shook her head and answered.


    She pointed at the old one and continued to say, "This is the young master¡¯s teacher."


    Then she lowered her head and said, "The young master will want to know what my teacher looks like and will definitely want to look at his teacher again, so I will take them back to show them to the young master and not let them be blown away in the wind."


    ...


    ...


    Southern Gate Temple in the depths of the Temple Taoism interior.


    The Nation Master Li Qingshan was now staring at the reflection on the dark wood floor. He didn¡¯t notice that his face was so pale and gaunt because he only had that ugly, wretched face in his eyes at the moment.


    He knew he would never see that face again, and though he had sometimes felt helpless and even disgusted with that face over the years, he was still in a state of great sadness.


    "Was it because Senior Brother never obeyed the rules or was it because I was always being childish that I feel disgusted with him?"


    Looking at the reflected images, he barely smiled. Humans all knew him as a Nation Master, but few people knew his Senior Brother. That year, it was Senior Brother who helped him block off Liu Bai¡¯s sword. Today, Great Divine Priest of Light came to Chang¡¯an, and it was still his Senior Brother who solved this problem for him and died before him.


    "Master, it¡¯s time to take your medicine."


    He Mingchi lifted the tray over his head. He knew that right now master was very sad, but as master¡¯s student, he had the responsibility to take care of him, especially at this moment.


    "Just put it down." Li Qingshan tried his best to control his mood, and continued to say in a husky voice, "I will take the medicer."


    He Mingchi put down the tray, went out Temple Taoism quietly and then picked up his yellow-paper umbre. Before taking another step, he was stopped by a taoist nun and a taoist priest at the snow-covered garden.


    The death of Master Yan Se might have no influence on ordinary people, for not so many people had heard about him. But for the Southern Gate Temple Taoists, it was different and their faces were full of anger and grief.


    A Taoist nun asked in a trembling voice, "How could he hide in Chang¡¯an for such a long time?"


    ...


    ...


    It was still snowing. Outside the room, the sky was grey, as if it was angry. Inside the room, the atmosphere was heavy and gloomy , just like that grey sky. Generals all expressed their anger and shame.


    "How could he hide in Chang¡¯an City for such a long time?"


    The one who asked this question was General Xu Shi, a Defender-general of the State. He returned to Chang¡¯an as soon as he received His Majesty¡¯s secret order. However, on arriving in Chang¡¯an at noon, he heard the shocking news.


    He was the only one left of all who had once qualified to work with Master Yan Se, so this news hit him the hardest.


    General Xu Shi¡¯s face was somber. Looking at his subordinates, he said in a cold voice, "In the morning, our state just lost another great pir. I don¡¯t care who the enemy is, all I know is that His Majesty gave you enough time to find out and kill him, but you failed."


    All the generals lowered their heads in shame. Some of them wanted to say that it was the Imperial Center Administration that did not fulfill its responsibility, but seeing General Xu Shi¡¯s angry face, and due to the strong sense of honor they had as imperial soldiers, they didn¡¯t speak out.


    "Do not shirk your responsibility. Unless you forget your identity... you are soldiers! The ground you stand on is capital Chang¡¯an, you have an obligation to ensure its safety but you let an old man fight the enemy alone!"


    Then he turned to General Huai Hua, and sternly asked, "Why did you not take the initiative to fight back?"


    General Huai Hua stood up. He lowered his head and replied, "His Majesty ordered us to ensure the safety of citizens. Besides, If we ordered armored ck cavalry to fight, the citizens would have been affected. The enemy was too powerful, even if we tried our best, we still could not have stopped him."


    Xu Shi narrowed his eyes, and then shouted furiously, "Does being a Great Divine Priest mean nothing? You are too weak, as cowardly as mice, you only know how to hide and stand by like spectators! When did our imperial soldiers be such cowards! Don¡¯t you know how many cultivators in Knowing Destiny State sacrificed at war!"


    After finishing these words, he started to cough violently. It was too painful for him to stand up straight. His grey hair fluttered when he coughed and his wrinkles seemed to deepen. All his subordinates knew that his lung disease had started to re up. They quickly called for medical help.


    Xu Shi struggled to stand up straight, looking at his subordinates he said seriously, "I don¡¯t me you for what happened this morning. After all, it was South Gate and the Academy that handled this deal first. But I really want to know how Wei Guangming could hide for so many days without being found by our government. What happened on earth?"


    "Investigate it carefully. If it was our soldiers who didn¡¯t fulfill their duty because they were too afraid , then kill them all. If it was the Imperial Center Administration or South Gate Temple¡¯s fault, then report it to me. I will beg His Majesty to kill them."


    The General¡¯s coughing intermingled with his angersted for a long time.


    ...


    ...


    At peak of the Peach Mountain there were four grand Taoist Temples. When there was no sacrifice and offering giving ceremony, ordinary people were strictly forbidden to approach them, only a few divine officers were allowed. Under this situation, these temples seemed very deste.


    In the darkened hall near the cliff, some miserable coughing sound could be heard. Since the Confinement was destroyed by the Great Divine Priest of Light, the Great Divine Priest of Judgment had been in a bad state since then. Now he heard the news that the Great Divine Priest of Light was no more. He was astonished and couldn¡¯t help coughing.


    No sound could be heard in the Divine Hall, only silence.


    The white temple, which was the most austere, waspletely silent, for the Great Divine Priest of Light, who should have been in the Temple, had not sat upon the throne for nearly fifteen years, and he would nevere back again.


    Suddenly, a mournful sigh was heard in the pure white temple. It was so light and faint but it echoed in the whole Peach Mountain, like a powerful thunder, and then suddenly there was silence.


    After a long time, that voice was heard again.


    "How could the sessor of the Great Divine Priest of Light live with ordinary people and thene back again to the Taoist Temple?"


    ...


    ...


    On a far unknown ind in the south, a Taoist in indigo was standing on a high rock and watching the sea. He had spent many days here watching the sea. No one knew why he did this.


    One day, he felt puzzled, and then he turned to look at thend. He frowned and murmured, "What did you see on earth? And how many things did the sessor you found learn from you? Is it destiny that brought you together?"


    ...


    ...


    "You call this wine? Is this qualified to be called wine?"


    At a remote county of Gushan Commandery, a furious voice came from amon wine store which was located along the street.At the top of his voice was a very tall, red-faced old man who had used the liquor store owner. He was dressed in a purple sheepskin robe, and a ck overcoat, which should have been very expensive, but whether it was the weather, the dust, or something, it made him look a little old.


    The store owner was a strong middle-aged man. He started at the old man, and then spat at him. He replied with scorn, "This is our famous wine named Nine-river double-distilled wine in our Gushan Commandery. What¡¯s wrong? Are you not satisfied?"


    Hearing this, the old man raised his wine bottle angrily. He answered loudly, sttering saliva everywhere, "You think I never drink good wine? How could Nine-river double-distilled wine be so tasteless?"


    The store owner red at him, pped him and said, "I won¡¯t hit you because you are old! Don¡¯t go too far! Our Nine-river double-distilled wine is this weak ! What will you do!"


    The old man started to tremble in anger. He rolled up his sleeves and was ready to fight. He shouted, "You cooked chicken soup into vinegar, I put up with it! But how dare you try to convince me that this is wine! This is intolerable!"


    A short time passed.


    The old man had been knocked out of the tavern, and his carefullybed hair had be a mess. His ck robe had been torn open and he looked extremely embarrassed.


    Standing on the street, the old man shouted toward the wine store, "You are so rude! As an old man, I still respect older people. You don¡¯t even know how to respect the old!"


    Where would a shop selling fake liquor know such a profound truth? On hearing this, more employees rushed out the store and held crabstickes to beat him with.


    The old man shouted in fear and fled in panic, and he run even faster than the young man. Although in a hurry, he didn¡¯t forget to grab his wine bottle, thinking that bad wine was still better than no wine.


    He didn¡¯t stop until he came into a dpidated Taoist temple.


    An old yellow bull was chewing grass wearily, presumably because the grass didn¡¯t taste as good as fish or mutton. It was in a state of low spirits and began to kick its front hoof in anger.


    Seeing the old man running to the Taoist temple in embarrassment, the old yellow bull mooed, as if it wereughing at him.


    The old man gasped and opened his wine bottle. After catching his breath, he shook his head, and sighed. And then he came in front of a stone step, picked up a small stick, and used it to find something in the fire ashes.


    Then two potatoes rolled out.


    The old yellow bull slowly walked over, looking at the old man intently and affectionately.


    The old man was pissed off. He pointed at the two burnt potatoes and said harshly, "I let you take care of the fire. How can you eat this when they are almost burnt into ashes!"


    ...


    ...


    A far ce in the north. In the depths of Tianqi Mountain.


    Inside the forgotten the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    Ning Que woke up, yet failed to recall what had happened.


    He nkly looked around the dark room, finding that the bone mountain had crumbled into a hip of rubble. At the ce where the old monk stayed, only two iron chains were left. And in front of the chains, there was a pile of ash.


    Then, he remembered everything, and his body rxed in a second.


    However, looking at that pile of ash, he didn¡¯t know why he felt so sad.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 301: To Not Kill

    Chapter 301: To Not Kill


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que looked at his dirty ck hands and could not see what was different. He clenched his hand into a fist tightly and did not notice anything different. His arm was still the same size and did not turn into the legendary green monster that was super strong.


    However, he knew that something must have changed while he was unconscious. The aura in the sword marks on the walls around him had disappeared. The Qi of Heaven and Earth had also returned to normal. The aura must have calmed after it entered his body and tempered it.


    He used his Psyche Power to examine the goings-on in his body and discovered that his Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi still existed. The wide path thatid from the Ocean of Qi to the Snow Mountain had already stabilized. The path in his internal organs reached his lower abdomen and came together in a bright light before the Snow Mountain. Together with the movement of his Psyche Power, hundreds of silvers of Qi of Heaven and Earth and aura were released from it. They followed the flow of his meridians and scattered through his every bone and pore.


    When the Qi of Heaven and Earth that had been stored in the depths of his lower abdomen those worlds that were calmly stored in the depths of the lower abdomen radiated outwards, Ning Que felt as if he had been submerged in a hot spring where the temperature was just right. His body was warm, and the amazing thing was it did not make him tired, but excited. His senses were all sharpened.


    He looked at the sword marks on the roof and his mental state moved along with the directions of it. The warm, or some might say, burning hot, aura flowed through his meridians quickly. Then, he felt the bits and pieces of aura lingering in the air entering his body while he breathed.


    The infusion of the Qi of Heaven and Earth into his body was slow. It was way slowerpared to the infusion of the aura in Youngest Uncle¡¯s sword marks when he had first joined the Devil. However, he was clear that if he continued to meditate on and cultivate Youngest Uncle¡¯s Great Spirit, the Qi of Heaven and Earth in nature would continue to enter his body. While it might be slow, his state would continue to rise over time.


    "Is this joining the Devil? When will the never-ending demand from heaven and earth stop? When will the supply stop? Is this why it is called joining the Devil?"


    Ning Que bowed his head slowly and silently reflected on the path the aura in his body traveled. His face that was caked with dirt was filled with confusion and fear for the unknown. His shirt which was covered in blood and dirt seemed to sense his emotions and became stiff curled up in itself, looking wrinkled and ugly.


    All was silent in the room. He suddenly thought of something important and extricated himself from the cultivation state of the Great Spirit in the fastest manner and walked towards the corner of the room.


    Messy ck hair that was reminiscent of a summer waterfall syed out on Mo Shanshan¡¯s cotton skirt. Her white shirt wasyered with dust and blood after a difficult battle. However, it still exuded cleanliness in the dark room.


    Ning Que squatted beside the girl and sensed the clean aura exuding from her. He looked at her ck hair and white skirt and felt that he was very dirty for an unknown reason. He did not dare to reach out to touch her.


    This strange emotion was quickly forgotten. He helped the Talisman Master to sit up gently and retrieved a bottle of medication from his shirt and fed it to her. Then, he gently patted her back to help dispel the medication.


    Mo Shanshan finally regained conscious after some time. Her face was extremely pale from the blood loss. Hershes fluttered and her eyes opened to reveal tension and fear.


    The battle was still ongoing when she had lost consciousness. She did not know who had won and had even thought that both Ning Que and herself were in the old monk¡¯s grasp and were to be food for him like Ye Hongyu.


    It wasn¡¯t until she had seen that the old monk had been reduced to a pile of ash before she could finally rx slightly. She panted as she held on to Ning Que¡¯s hand and her body trembled. She seemed unable to forget the images of what had happened earlier.


    Ning Que¡¯s hand was crushed in hers in a painful manner. However, he did not say anything but hug her silently. He patted her back, trying to provide her with somefort.


    Suddenly, his brows furrowed and he pulled his hand out of her grasp. Mo Shanshan looked up at him. She did not know what had happened and her expression was dazed and slightly uneasy.


    Ning Que helped her sit up at the wall and took out his podao from his back before walking in the opposite direction silently.


    The Tao Addict had regained conscious and leaned against the wall, looking at them.


    Her pure and charming face had be pathetic due to the serious injuries and blood loss. However, Ning Que knew that she was a formidable opponent, so his heart did not soften due to her outward appearance.


    Self-deprecation and contempt grew in Ye Hongyu¡¯s indifferent gaze as she watched Ning Que walk towards her with his podao. She raised her right hand that was hanging weakly by her thigh and pinched her fingers together in a Sword Forms.


    However, before she could release her Psyche Power, a gush of sticky blood dribbled from her lips and sttered on her blood-soaked skirt, adding another dash of color on the shades of red on it.


    Ye Hongyu looked at the blood dripping on her skirt, and she smiled with a myriad of expressions crossing her face. She gave up on her attempt and leaned on the wall tiredly. Her expression and movements were both weak.


    She was the most severely injured amongst the three. Her sense of perception had been torn into shreds, followed by Master Lotus¡¯ use of the Tao Tie method on her and the impact of her forceful descent in state. She was no longer as strong as she was before.


    There were no excess emotions in her eyes as she watched Ning Que walking to her. There was no anger, no pleading, no despair nor any sadness. Even the contempt and self-deprecation had left, leaving only calmness behind.


    Ning Que stood before her with his knife and looked at her intently. Taking advantage of his enemy¡¯s weakness had always existed in his dictionary. He could do anything for both his and Sangsang¡¯s survival and to make life better for them. That was why he thought that he would definitely be punished by the heavens if he did not take advantage of his enemy¡¯s weakness.


    The girl leaning against the wall, who looked so weak she might die any moment, was no ordinary girl. She the Tao Addict, one of the strongest cultivators in their generation from the Haotian Taoism. She was also his enemy. How could he forget that he wasn¡¯t able to defeat her but had been defeated outside the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine even though he had used his Primordial Thirteen Arrows and the Talisman his teacher had given him? If he didn¡¯t kill Ye Hongyu now, wouldn¡¯t she kill him when she regains her state?


    What was odd, was that Ning Que did not plunge the podao into her chest. Instead, he looked at her silently for a long while. He looked at the huge wounds on her shoulder and arm. He thought about the missing pieces of flesh that had been swallowed by the old monk into his belly and was not part of that pile of ash.


    The slender sharp tip of the podao pierced the cracked stones like they were cobwebs.


    "I would definitely kill you if it was the past."


    Ning Que said to her seriously. He had made a difficult decision due to severalplicated reasons.


    Because were it not for the Tao Addict¡¯s effort, he would have died when he was in a daze when learning Youngest Uncle¡¯s sword style. Because of Mo Shanshan¡¯s softly spoken words behind him. Because he did not give a damn about heaven¡¯s punishment. Because he was certain that she was already unconscious at the final stage of the battle and did not hear the conversation about joining the Devil that he had with Lotus. And because of something else.


    "Since we have fought shoulder to shoulder, we arerades, at least within the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. I am unlike most Tangs who hold one¡¯s reputation in high regard. But I am a soldier of the Tang. I do not have the habit of killing myrades on the battlefield. If you agree that we arerades here, we can talk about any other issues when we get out."


    Ye Hongyu looked at Ning Que¡¯s face calmly. The time in which they have known each other felt longer than it actually was. She knew his character was very much like hers. He was a man who would use any means to reach his goal. As such, she was prepared to wee death and did not expect that he would provide such a choice.


    She was the intelligent Tao Addict, the Grand Master of the Judicial Department of Haotian Taoism who defends the light and upholds justice. That was why she did not tell him that he would regret it if he didn¡¯t kill her now and then like the usual stupid female antagonists. Instead, she looked at Ning Que solemnly and said, "I saved you earlier, and then, you saved me. We do not owe each other anything. You have not killed me today, when Ie to kill you in the future, I will return the favor."


    Ning Que nodded, "It sounds fair. Deal."


    He put down the long thin podao after that and crouched before Ye Hongyu. He reached out to tear at her skirts to check on her injuries. However, he was rather rough with not a trace of tenderness.


    Ye Hongyu looked finger prodding at her bare shoulder. She furrowed her brows slightly, and a distasteful expression that she could not suppress appeared in her eyes. However, she said cooly, "I know you mean well, but I hate men who touch my body directly. This is an uncontroble instinct. If you do not like it, you can treat my disgust as joy."


    Ning Que lowered his head to look at the two horrifying wounds with focus. He could vaguely make out the white of bones. He shook his head, not caring about the disgust in her expression. "Being liked by you is not anything good. You had better hate me. I have to tell you, these wounds look slightly troublesome," he said.


    Ye Hongyu did not hesitate at all. She asked, "What do you want."


    "You¡¯re the Tao Addict indeed. You¡¯re indeed straightforward." Ning Que looked at her pale side profile and said seriously, "I need to spend money to treat you. If the Great Divine Priest of Judgment ever asks how Long Qing was crippled, could you speak up for me? You don¡¯t have to lie, you just have to describe that ident objectively."


    Ning Que had stayed by the Daming Lake and worked hard at breaking the realm and gathering the intent to kill for over ten days before shooting that Talisman Arrow because Long Qing had threatened Sangsang. It was quite shameless of him to have the Tao Addict admit that it was an ident.


    Ning Que did not expect that Ye Hongyu had not mocked him, but had remained silent. After a while, she said slowly, "If you are worried that God will be angry because Long Qing had been crippled, I can promise to solve this problem for you.


    ...


    ...


    -


    -


    -

 Chapter 302: All Are Satisfied

    Chapter 302: All Are Satisfied


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Prince Long Qing had the most promise amongst the younger generation of the Haotian Taoism. He was the Priest of the Judicial Department and was the beauty who attracted women to the Taoist sect. However, he had been crippled in both body and spirit by an arrow on the Tianqi Mountains.


    Ning Que¡¯s arrow had robbed the West-Hill Divine Pce of their future Great Divine Priest of Judgment or perhaps even someone who could be even more important. How could the Divine Hall not be furious? And how would the Great Divine Priest of Judgment let him off?


    Even if the West-Hill Divine Pce gave face to the Headmaster of the Academy and the Academy and not kill him, they would surely want him to pay a heavy price. Ning Que shuddered every time he thought of bigwigs like the Great Divine Priest of Judgment teaching him a lesson. That was why he had said that to Ye Hongyu.


    His intention had been to find out how angry the Divine Hall could get. He did not expect Ye Hongyu to promise that the Great Divine Priest of Judgment would not give him any trouble. This answer confused him. It was understandable if the Tao Addict did not care that Prince Long Qing had been crippled if she and Prince Long Qing had an existing feud. But how could she promise that the Great Divine Priest of Judgment would not be angry?


    "Why?" He asked in confusion as he stared into Ye Hongyu¡¯s eyes.


    Ye Hongyu did not answer his question. She looked down at the terrifying bloody hole in her shoulder and annoyance shed in her eyes. She asked, "How long do you need to treat my wounds?"


    Ning Que riffled through his luggage to find suitable tools. He said, "It wouldn¡¯t take long if we were just staunching the bleed and removing the rot. But the old monk had taken two vicious bites and that dude hadn¡¯t brushed his teeth for decades. He was so filthy, and god knows what kind of poison he had in his saliva. We might need to get cut off some fleshter."


    Mo Shanshan had moved towards the two. She looked at Ye Hongyu¡¯s wounds and pity shed through her face as she furrowed her brows. She felt disgusted as she heard Ning Que¡¯s reply.


    Ye Hongyu did not react. She said calmly, "He did not brush his teeth indeed. I can confirm that since I had been bitten by him."


    Ning Que lowered his head and answered, "Filthy and smelly saliva is also troublesome."


    Mo Shanshan could not help but interject weakly, "Aren¡¯t you two disgusted saying that?"


    Ning Que and Ye Hongyu lifted their heads at the same time and looked at Mo Shanshan. She was pure and innocent like a white bunny. And then, they shook their heads simultaneously as they both felt that someone like Mo Shanshan who had never experienced truly disgusting things was so fortunate it made one furious.


    Ye Hongyu continued her discussion with Ning Que, " Taoists Law is based on the strength of light. It will not be affected by regr poison. You do not have to worry that the poison will remain hidden in flesh and bones to cause further problems."


    Ning Que procured some needle and thread and said to her earnestly, "Wounds heal fastest after suturing. The thing is, that old monk took off too much flesh. If we use this treatment, there is a chance that there will be two pits left on your shoulder and arm in the future."


    Ye Hongyu furrowed her brows and said impatiently, "So what if there will be two pits?"


    Ning Que shook his head as he sutured, "It won¡¯t look good. I thought you would mind."


    Ye Hongyu said contemptuously, "Only those of the mortal world would care about this."


    Ning Que lowered his head to look at the bloody gouge on her shoulder. He answered flippantly as he considered where to start with, "Your figure is great and you like wearing flowy red skirts. It¡¯d look weird if there were two pits on your body that is not covered. Even if you do not care, you have to think of the Divine Hall. You are the Tao Addict, the spokesperson of the Divine Hall. You have to look good."


    "I will start wearing the taoist robe from now on."


    Ye Hongyu said. And then she fell silent for a moment before she suddenly reached out for a dangling piece of flesh by the gouge and ced it on the gouge. She asked in a low voice, "If you sew it like this... will the pit be smaller?"


    Was there any teenage girl who did not care about their outward appearance? The Tao Addict was no exception.


    Ning Que did not notice the hidden meaning in her tone, which was why he did not take the opportunity to make any jibes at her. His gaze was fully attracted to her fingers and action. His fingers clutching the needle trembled slightly.


    There were few in the world who could remain as calm after being bitten alive by a ghostly old monk. She could even flip a dangling piece of sh back as if the body did not belong to her.


    Ning Que knew that she had to be in pain, but he did not see any trace of it on her face. He was surprised and even regretful. He had not met someone who was as ruthless as he was in a long time. Should he have killed her before he did anything else when he met someone like that?


    "Start suturing," Ye Hongyu said emotionlessly. "Don¡¯t hesitate."


    Ning Que could not repress his sigh. He thought to himself, that she would have long been dead if he had not hesitated.


    The fine needle pierced her pale skin, through theyers of flesh and back, stitching a line through the girl¡¯s delicate shoulder. Ye Hongyu looked on silently. She did not call out in pain, but her beautiful face grew pale.


    Mo Shanshan squatted on the other side of Ye Hongyu with her lips tightly pierced. She frowned as she watched the needle in Ning Que¡¯s fingers moving up and down. She tightened her hold on Ye Hongyu¡¯s hand subconsciously, wanting to transfer her energy to her and support her.


    In the dark Devil¡¯s Pce, the three most outstanding youngsters of the cultivation world cowered in the corner like three wounded rats after having seeded in overthrowing the most outstanding powerhouse of the previous generation. Having paid a hefty price for it, they cared for each other, and gave each other strength, as if they had forgotten the battle they had amongst themselves in the wild.


    ...


    ...


    It was finally over. The two bloody gouges in Ye Hongyu¡¯s body no longer bled. The flesh that had been stained with filthy aura had also been removed. Her face was extremely pale, but her pupils were unusually pride. She had no intention ofpsing into aa to avoid the pain.


    Ning Que kept his needle and thread and happened to meet her bright gaze when he lifted his head. His heart wavered unconsciously. He was curious as to how she had managed to grow in strength earlier and managed to turn the situation around when she had clearly been under theplete control of the old monk. He had been in the enigmatic state then and was only aware of the end result and not the process.


    Ye Hongyu could tell what he wanted to ask just by looking at his gaze. She was very confused too, in actuality. What had Ning Que learned when he was in a daze? Had that lucky fellow really inherited Mr. Ke¡¯s Haoran Sword from the sword marks left behind on the wall?


    The two were both puzzled and curious, but neither asked any questions. They were not certain if they could obtain a true answer from the other party and was even more unwilling to tell the other person their own answer.


    Mo Shanshan and Ye Hongyu rested against the stone walls. They needed a long time in order topletely heal from their injuries. Ning Que was the least seriously injured, and his vitality was not seriously weakened. As such, he walked towards the middle of the room.


    The mountain of bones had long been turned into a pile of rubble by the impact of the aura. It was hard for him to walk through the uneven rubble. He shook his head silently as he looked at the pile of ashes that had been the old monk.


    He did not know how he would appraise this Liansheng 32. He was the absolute powerhouse who was versed in both Taoism and the Devil¡¯s arts. To think that this person had stood shoulder to shoulder with Youngest Uncle, he must have been one of the few on the top of the world. The light ahead of him must have been scorching bright, but his choices had been crazy, and even absurd.


    Ning Que stood by the pile of ash and looked around. He looked at the sword marks on the stone walls and thought of how he had inherited the path of Youngest Uncle. A magnificent feeling grew within him, taking away the fear and uneasiness that joining the Devil had given him and the inexplicable feeling Lotus¡¯ death had brought him.


    It was at this moment that the odd sadness that he had felt when he regained conscious poured into his body once more. He looked at one side of the stone wall subconsciously. There was a twinge within him. He did not know that the wall faced the south.


    After a while, he shook his head in an attempt to rid himself of the inexplicable emotion. Then, when he turned to look at the ash on the ground once more, another feeling grew within him. He felt even more pity for the ash on the ground as he thought of the emotions and iprehensible shards of information that the old monk had transmitted through the spiritual world before his death.


    "Regardless of our previous grievances, we were still considered acquaintances. Even though our meeting was not pleasant, you are still considered a senior. You have once done marvelous feats in the world, and you deserve a ce to stay in death."


    Ning Que searched through the broken bones around him and found an inconspicuous iron box. It must be a relic belonging to one of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine powerhouses. He opened the box to find that it was empty.


    "This is a little small, but it is rather suitable since we only need to put in a portion of you."


    He squatted before the pile of ash that was once Master Lotus and lifted a femur. Then, he swept the ashes into the iron box sloppily as if he was sweeping up rubbish.


    ...


    ...


    They hade to the Wilderness with orders from their sect and waited for the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine to open to search for the missing Tomes of Arcane. However, they did not expect to survive the crossing of swords and arrows and that the Stone Array Tactics hidden beneath water and rock had not stopped them. They had met an old monster that everyone had thought was dead for decades within the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. They listened to numerous shocking tales and struggled between life and death several times over and in the end, they had managed to survive, albeit pathetically.


    As one of the most promising cultivator of the younger generation in the cultivation world, they each, of course, possessed more determination than any other person. However, after experiencing so many things, the desire to steal the Tomes of Arcane had abated plenty.


    Ning Que had inherited Youngest Uncle¡¯s mantle. He would be satisfied if he could bring the aura that had lingered far away from home back to the Academy.


    Ye Hongyu had been seriously injured both in body and spirit. She needed to rest, recuperate and recover. She hade to the Wilderness under orders to seek defeat, and she had been thoroughly defeated. She had also found the only way to seed through defeat by through her own will and determination. She was satisfied because she had gained such rare and precious experiences.


    Mo Shanshan had cracked the hidden tactical arrays of the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and had understood the Great Blockage Formation. She had learnt plenty. What was most important, was that she had finally told Ning Que how she felt at death¡¯s doorsteps courageously. No matter if she or Ning Que forget that moment in the future, she was the most satisfied of them all.


    ...


    ...


    --

 Chapter 303: Returning Home with Youth

    Chapter 303: Returning Home with Youth


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que lowered his head and arranged his luggage which was scattered on the ground. He asked, "Can you walk?"


    Mo Shanshan looked delicate as her face was more haggard than usual. She smiled shyly.


    Ye Hongyu leaned against the wall tiredly and frowned slightly. It was obvious that she could not move yet.


    It was one thing to be seriously injured, but there was another reason that made it difficult for them to walk. It was hunger. The three empty stomachs were so empty they could not even gurgle.


    Ning Que sighed, "Why are we so hungry? How many days were we unconscious for?"


    Mo Shanshan shook her head. "I don¡¯t know."


    Ning Que pressed down on his abdomen lightly with his palm. After a moment, he said, "It¡¯s been four days."


    Mo Shanshan squinted at him as if she wanted to look at him more clearly. She asked puzzledly, "You can know just by doing that?"


    Ye Hongyu who had been silent suddenly interrupted. "Have you gone hungry often?"


    Ning Que who had opened his luggage once more answered flippantly after hearing that. He said, "I might not be as knowledgeable in states as you guys, but there is no one as knowledgeable as I am about going hungry."


    Ye Hongyu said contemptuously, "I do not know where your disgusting confidence came from, that you¡¯d dare brag about going hungry when you have not experienced a childhood like mine."


    Ning Que was furious that Taoist woman who looked as if she was born with a silver spoon had questioned the suffering he had experienced. He lectured, "How would a woman like you know what it was like during the great drought?"


    Ye Hongyu smiled mockingly and was prepared to reply.


    Mo Shanshan sighed and looked at the two helplessly, "Is this even worth arguing over?"


    ...


    ...


    The reminiscence of their childhood suffering ended. Ning Que proved that his memory and fear of hunger was stronger than Ye Hongyu with fact as he pulled out some food from his luggage.


    He always had a mountain of luggage beside him.


    The Big ck Horse would carry it when he was around, and if he wasn¡¯t, Ning Que would carry it himself. No matter whether they were climbing the dangerously tall Tianqi Mountains, no matter what dangers they faced, he would never abandon these pieces of luggage. He understood the importance of being prepared. There was medication, weapons and a sleeping bag he fashioned himself as well as food.


    Ye Hongyu leaned against the stone wall and looked at the guy who tossed out various items from his luggage like he was moving homes. There was a strange look in her expression. When she saw the long slender ck box with his arrows in them, the look in her eyes deepened.


    That box held the arrows that had crippled Long Qing.


    These powerful weapons had made her suffer outside the Front Gate.


    She did not know which sect could make such arrows and did not remember when such a powerful arrow had appeared. She had dedicated her entire life to cultivation. Together with her surprise, came puzzlement and curiosity. She wanted to ask Ning Que, but knew that it was a life-saving ability of his, and so she could not bring herself to ask.


    Ning Que handed her a piece of dried meat and a small pouch of water. He said, "The meat made by the Deste Man is better than that of the army. Eat it with the water, but do not eat too much and chew slowly."


    With that, he walked to Mo Shanshan¡¯s side and sat down. He tore the dried meat into strips and gave it to her.


    Mo Shanshan smiled lightly and shook her head. She tried to lift her weak arm and raised it to her mouth. Ning Que shook his head and insisted on feeding her the strip of meat before raising the pouch of water to her lips and fed her with some water.


    Ye Hongyu did not notice what was happening beside her. She stared at the dried meat that was as hard as a rock in a daze.


    She had experienced many hardships in this life and witnessed many tragic events. It was reasonable to say that she should be able to ovee anything. However, when she looked at the dried meat and felt its texture, she could not help but think of the dried corpses in the Bone Mountain and Divine Lord Lotus, whose fingers that were like the dried corpses and his cold dry lips.


    She frowned slightly and stared at the dried meat as if she was staring at the Tomes of Arcane. After some time, she took a deep breath and delivered the meat into her mouth before chewing mechanically.


    ...


    ...


    After eating, drinking and resting, the three had recovered some energy and were prepared to leave. It was then when they encountered a new problem. Perhaps it was due to the breaking of the Confinement Formation or due to some other reasons, but the path forward into the Devil¡¯s Pce had copsedpletely. They wouldn¡¯t be able to clear the path forcefully with their current physical states.


    Ning Que looked at the rocks blocking their waypletely. He thought for a moment before turning towards the opposite wall.


    There were two iron chains on the stone wall. They were the two chains that had kept Master Lotus chained in the ce to endure the sufferings and torture of the world for the past decades. Now that the Confinement had broken and that Lotus was dead, there was but just rust left on the chains. The Fu character and aura had long dissipated and they were but just ordinary chains.


    Ning Que gripped the chains with two hands and breathed in deeply. He moved the aura in his lower abdomen out secretly and pulled at the chains with all his might. There was a loud bang, and the stone wall fell, revealing a deep passageway behind it.


    Ye Hongyu and Mo Shanshan walked towards him with each other¡¯s help. Ye Hongyu looked at the dark passageway that seemed to have no end and frowned slightly, "How did you know there was a passageway behind that wall?"


    "I guessed."


    Ning Que had answered nonchntly. However, the discovery of the passageway behind the wall with chains was based on a vague feeling from within his mind. He did not know where the feeling came from. He thought to himself if it was due to the messages that Master Lotus had sent to his sense of perception before his death.


    "The Devil¡¯s Doctrine is a ce where you can only enter and cannot get out of. It¡¯s more urate to say that there was an inhibition after the destruction of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Only one exit was left. I believe that there are many of these passageways, but they all eventually lead to the same ce."


    Ning Que said that subconsciously as the feeling in his mind appeared once more. Then, he was shocked and fell into a long silence while he looked at the passageway. He had finally understood that the pieces of information that Lotus had passed onto him would only emerge when necessary and tell him what to do.


    A chilling sensation enveloped Ning Que. He stared at the dark passageway dazedly, not knowing what to say. What kind of state did one have to have to leave something like this behind? What were these pieces of information? Were they Lotus¡¯ impressions of the world, or were they... the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s methods? What would it bring him?


    Ye Hongyu looked at his back and was surprised by his knowledge. There was no one in the Divine Hall who knew about the weird arrangement in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, but he did. However, she thought that it was the knowledgeable Headmaster of the Academy who had told Ning Que about the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s secret and did not link it to the dead Divine Lord Lotus.


    ...


    ...


    All four sides of the passageway were made of stones, and they look sturdy and extremely deep. It was very dark and even with three people looking, it was difficult to walk further without any light source. There were numerous forks in the path and the three picked a random one to discover that their luck had turned for the better. They had not taken a wrong path.


    Ning Que smiled bitterly as he stood on the cliff outside the passageway and looked at the clouds beneath his feet. He wondered about their change in luck. It was obvious that it was a bloodthirsty old ghost who had brought them here.


    The clouds were thick, and no one knew what was at the bottom of the cliff.


    ording to the distance they have traveled in the passageway, the three should still be in the Tianqi Mountains.


    Ning Que tightened the straps of his heavy luggage and pointed at a cable disc that had long fallen into disrepair. He said, "If you are not afraid, that should lead us up."


    There was a long rope beyond the passageway. And beneath it, hung a basket that was big enough for three. Their tense expression gradually loosened as they listened to the wind whistling past the basket and clouds at their fingertips rushing by.


    A faint light appeared in the clouds. Ning Que opened his mouth slightly and could guess that they had finally left the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He could not help but sh a happy smile.


    Mo Shanshan sat beside and smiled as she watched him.


    Ye Hongyubed her wind-tousseled hair gently with her fingers. She looked at Mo Shanshan¡¯szy gaze that was focused on him and at Ning Que who was so happy he did not notice and could not help but smile coldly.


    "Shameless couple."


    While she had said that softly, there were only three of them and the clouds in this lonely world, and it could be heard clearly. Ning Que was furious and wanted to fight her even though they were escaping death together at this moment.


    Mo Shanshan was shy, but not angry. She looked at Ye Hongyu and exined solemnly, "I do like him, but I know he doesn¡¯t like me enough. That is why you can¡¯t call us shameless for now."


    Ye Hongyu was startled. She did not expect a girl like the Calligraphy Addict would be like any other woman in the world when she fell in love. She could not help but sigh, and was speechless.


    There was nothing else Ning Que could do besides blink at the cold mountain breeze and trying to catch the clouds passing by them like an innocent child who did not understand them.


    ...


    ...


    It was unknown what methods the powerhouses of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had used back then, but they had managed to instal such a long ropeway in the inessible Tianqi Mountains. It took a long time before the basket touched the ground.


    Ning Que hopped out of the basket and looked back.


    The two girls by his side looked back at the same time.


    The clouds dispersed and at the end of the long ck rope, a solidary proud Snow-capped Peak could be seen.


    They had descended from that Snow-capped Peak.


    It was doubtful that they would ever wish to return to that Snow-capped Peak.


    Ning Que could not help but shake his head as he looked at the supermundane Snow-capped Peak where the Devil¡¯s Doctrine existed. He reached into the basket for his luggage, to find that a soft fluffy ball of fur.


    He looked at the Little White Dog in his hand and wondered where the thing hade from. He had been frightened enough for the past few days and hoped that he wasn¡¯t the Elder of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine in another form.


    Please... do not be the reincarnation of Master Lotus.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 304: The Figure from Above

    Chapter 304: The Figure from Above


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The Little White Gog was obedient and cute. It looked at Ning Que innocently with wide eyes.


    Ning Que looked at it dazedly, countless possibilities whirring in his mind.


    Suddenly, a satisfied expression shed through the Little White Gog¡¯s eyes. It opened its mouth widely and revealed shart short teeth. It snapped at Ning Que¡¯s wrist viciously, as if it wanted to bite off his hand.


    The innocent and adorable little white dog had transformed into a scary fierce beast within a split second.


    It snapped at Ning Que¡¯s wrist like an arrow, opening and closing its jaws forcefully at a speed that that surpassed what the human eye could see. It was as fast as lightning, and if it had really caught Ning Que¡¯s wrist, flesh and bones would have broken.


    Amon person would have been unable to avoid this sudden attack.


    However, Ning Que had spent his lifetime with danger and beasts. He was very sensitive to movements of beasts like these. He was very alert to the dangers in the forests, much less of this dog.


    When his fingertip made contact with the dog¡¯s neck and felt a slight power, he immediately reacted. He shoved his right hand into the Little White Dog¡¯s mouth and reached in without mercy as if he wanted to stick his entire arm into the dog¡¯s belly. Then, he searched for a soft piece of flesh within the sticky patch and pinched down forcefully.


    The Little White Dog howled muffledly, for his mouth to his throat was filled to the brim. There was no space for anything to move within it, much less for him to bite. The intense pain in the depths of his throat made him tremble violently as droll dripped down the sides of its mouth. It looked especially pathetic.


    Ning Que raised his left hand in the air and shook his head as he looked at the Little White Dog who kept drooling and whose eyes were red from its effort. He had hunted countless beasts in the Min Mountain and had encountered countless dangers. However, this was only the second time his prey had its mouth so close to him and he was forced to use such a risky move. The only other time was when he was surrounded by that pack of wolves as a child.


    Mo Shanshan and Ye Hongyu stopped gazing at the Snow-capped Peak and looked at the scene before them in surprise.


    Ning Que raised his arm high with the Little White Dog dangling from it. Half of his arm was stuffed within the Little White Dog¡¯s mouth ad it looked as if he was holding up a white fire torch, or a metal rod with a beast skewered on it, ready for roasting. The beast was still alive and drooling, making the image rather ludicrous and funny.


    "Where did the doge from?" Mo Shanshan asked with furrowed brows.


    "I don¡¯t know either."


    Ning Que raised his head to look at the Little White Dog on his arm, not flinching at the hot dampness and stickiness. He looked at the pitiful expression in its eyes and could not help but waver slightly. He felt that this little thing seemed to be able tomunicate with humans like the Big ck Horse and the goose Second Brother raised.


    Ye Hongyu looked at the snow white pup and felt slightly apprehensive, but did not say anything.


    Ning Que looked at the Little White Dog¡¯s fur that was as white as snow. He thought of something and sighed, "I used to want to raise a samoyed, but never had the chance to. Who thought that I would meet you?"


    Mo Shanshan did not know what a samoyed was, but she looked at the adorable dog that was kicking its hind legs in pain and drooling and pitied it for Ning Que¡¯s cruel act. She said, "Then you can raise this one."


    Ye Hongyu sneered and did a Taoist spell behind her back and looked at the mountain path indifferently.


    Ning Que rubbed the Little White Dog¡¯s head with his left hand and discovered that it had a familiar and intimate aura. He could not help wrinkling his brows as he thought of Youngest Uncle¡¯s mantle in the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. The Devil¡¯s Doctrine had felt familiar because of that, but what about the dog? Could it be that it was Youngest Uncle¡¯s pet?


    It could taste the scent of human flesh in its stomach, but it could not even bite down or even lick the human arm in its mouth. The Little White Dog felt miserable, and the pinching of that piece of flesh deep within its throat made it even more fearful and tamed.


    The Little White Dog looked at Ning Que with watery eyes. It looked as if it was begging for mercy and had submitted to him. This human¡¯s aura had made it so that he did not mind the submission. The tears in his eyes were due to the immense pain.


    "Don¡¯t look at me like that, for it would make me think twice."


    Ning Que looked at the Little White Dog and sighed, "Even though I really want a samoyed, and you have shown that you are willing to be taken in, but I can only say that this fated meeting that Haotian has provided is too cruel. I am just too hungry now, and you just look like a pot of fragrant dog meat."


    He pulled his podao out of its scabbard with his left hand and was prepared to cut the dog. He murmured, trying tofort the dog. "Eating is something more important than Haotian. Master Lotus had to eat human flesh every day to survive. So what if we eat some dog meat?"


    He suddenly thought that young women were easily taken in by adorable looking creatures like this, and that he had forgotten to seek the opinion of the two girls. He lowered his podao in one hand and held the dog with the other, saying, "We need fresh meat."


    Mo Shanshan could not bear to look. She turned around.


    Excitement shed through the eyes of Ye Hongyu and she asked, "Did you do this often?"


    Ning Que brandished his knife proudly and said, "I don¡¯t just eat dogs, I¡¯m already sick of eating the wolves of Min Mountain."


    It was only then, when the Little White Dog realized that this fellow was a bloodthirsty pervert who ate wolf meat. He was deathly afraid and had lost all hope, his soft little body stiffened as if it was a block of wood.


    Ning Que did not care if the Little White Dog was as soft as a cat or as stiff as a rock. He had eaten all kinds of food in this life and did not believe in the retarded statement that a prey would secrete poison to make its meat unptable if it were frightened before its death. He raised his knife and ced it on the dog, trying to decide where to start skinning it. After all, Sangsang had never liked that he killed young beasts after he had killed the old hunter. He needed to familiarise himself with its physiological structure.


    A furious roar sounded from the rope hidden behind the fog. The clear angry voice waspresed and sounded sharp due to the distance and the rapid approach of the voice.


    "Who! Dares! To! Touch! My!..."


    ...


    ...


    The clear angry voice had started off in the depths of the valleys afar. However, the person had already arrived in the fog above in the middle of the sentence and could be seen by the three on the ground before the end of the sentence.


    The fog was disturbed and broken. Then, a figure fell from the above like a rock. The figure jumped from the rope above and towards where Ning Que was standing.


    Ning Que held the Little White Dog and turned back to look at the fog. He could see the shadow of the person who was faster than a mortal. He was shocked, and wondered if a fairy had really fallen from the sky.


    As the worn-out leather boots grew bigger in their field of vision, the terrifying sound of wind got closer to his face as well. He finally understood that it wasn¡¯t a fairy who had fallen from the sky, but someone who wanted to kill him.


    There was a p of a sword!


    Ye Hongyu had kept alert for the appearance of the other party. She had been gathering her Psyche Power for a long time. She released her Taoist spell just as that figure was about to smash into Ning Que. An invisible sword style flew at the figure silently.


    The person who had jumped from the fog hummed and made a sign of the cross with two fists before his body and sealed Ye Hongyu¡¯s long-nned sword with his body. He flipped more than a dozen times beforending on the ground heavily. Smoke and sad flew around the valley apanied by a buzzing sound.


    The dust gradually settled, revealing the person.


    It was a little girl dressed in fur. She had on a fur cap and a beast¡¯s tail around her neck. From the looks of her exposed body and eyes, she was still very young. There were two long ck braids gently swinging behind her.


    She knelt on the ground on a single knee, and under her knee was a deep hole. However, there was no sign of pain on her face. Both her kneecap and her slender body were as stable as a mountain and did not look like they have been injured.


    The Little White Dog that was clutched in Ning Que¡¯s hand started to struggle violently the moment he saw the little girl. Ning Que could not be bothered with it and threw it on the ground viciously for a couple of times. One could almost see the whites of the little white dog¡¯s eyes.


    He ced all his focus on the girl who knelt on the ground with a single knee. He could hardly believe what he just saw and could not understand it no matter how he thought about it. There was someone in the world who had jumped from such great heights and did not suffer any damage even after she used both arms defending herself against Ye Hongyu¡¯s sword!


    ...


    ...


    The girl got up after a moment. Her thick long braids swayed with her movements. She looked at Ye Hongyu with a surprised expression in her clear eyes that were not covered by her fur cap.


    "What happened to you in the Front Gate for your state to fall so drastically... You were already in the Knowing Destiny State when you were on the snow cliff, why are you only in the Seethrough State now?"


    Ye Hongyu paled, and a self-mocking face appeared on her face. She did not answer the question.


    Ning Que nced at her. He had many questions about the battle with Master Lotus in the Devil¡¯s Pce and had guessed at the possibilities. It was until he had received confirmation from the girl that he became shocked and understood that Ye Hongyu had paid a heavy and terrible price.


    Positive emotions such as shock and gratitude had never stayed on his mind for long. He could see that the girl who descended from above bore a grudge against the Tao Addict. Ning Que would of course not stand there and be the first to be attacked. He walked behind Ye Hongyu silently in a casual manner. One could not figure out what he was thinking.


    Ye Hongyu looked at the girl indifferently and said to the two beside her, "This witch from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine is called Tang Xiaotang. Don¡¯t think that she¡¯s an easy opponent just because of her age. If the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had not been destroyed then, she would have been the saintess of our generation. She does not dare to fight me, and is very sly."


    Tang Xiaotang heard her mentioning about the battle in the Tianqi Mountains and was filled with rage. She retorted angrily in a loud voice, "I would fight you if you didn¡¯t use those despicable means."


    Ye Hongyuughed mockingly, unwilling to discuss the issue any longer. However, this made Tang Xiaotang even angrier and she raged at the unfairness. Her face that was not covered by the beast¡¯s tail grew reddish.


    Ning Que did not think that she was very witchy other than for her demon abilities when he heard that she was a witch from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He looked at her red face, clear, innocent eyes and ck long braids. And he suddenly felt that he had heard the description of the such a girl somewhere, but could not remember where he had heard it.


    ...


    ...


    --

 Chapter 305: The Shame of the Academy Steps onto the World Stage

    Chapter 305: The Shame of the Academy Steps onto the World Stage


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Tang Xiaotang looked at the three before her as she scratched her head in annoyance, thinking that it was really troublesome.


    She had watched the three entering the sacred grounds with her brother outside the Front Gate but had lost their tracks after that. She didn¡¯t think that they would meet in the valley. She believed that she was not any weaker than the three, but it was obvious that the three were not feuding, and she did not think that she was strong enough to defeat the Tao Addict, the Calligraphy Addict and the core disciple of the Headmaster of Academy.


    Whitey who had apanied her through the long andplicated passages earlier on, had suddenly gone missing. She had searched it for a long time before following the clues hopefully. However, she had heard a discussion on how to kill whitey and turn it into food in the mist. The joy that she had experienced at finding Whitey was quickly reced with anger. She had jumped from high above in her anger and had been ambushed with Ye Hongyu¡¯s Taoist Sword due to her recklessness.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s ambush did not harm her due to her state having fallen from the Knowing Destiny State to the Seethrough State for a reason that was still unknown to her. However, she was not made of rock no matter how strong her body with the blood of the Deste Man was. Her internal organs had been hurt in the shock for her jumping from a high ground, which others did not know for the moment.


    Tang Xiaotang shivered. It was only by then did she truly understand how dangerous it was. She had almost killed herself hurtling down. She knew that if her brother found out how muddle-headed she was, he would be very angry. She pulled down her fur cap on her head subconsciously as she thought of that. She stuck out her tongue at the thought and looked utterly adorable.


    "You all seem to have encountered many things in the sacred ground. It is our sacred ground, and not meant for outsiders like you to enter at will. I don¡¯t take advantage of your injuries, but you guys shouldn¡¯t take advantage of the fact that I am alone."


    Tang Xiaotang felt that the decision she had made hastily was very intelligent. She was about to head to Chang¡¯an to learn from the Headmaster of the Academy, so she shouldn¡¯t hurt that guy called Ning Que. Following that, she said in a clear childish voice, "The road is wide, we can just each take a side."


    Ning Que stood behind Ye Hongyu and did not wait for her to say anything. Instead, he said, "Young heroine, you do make sense. We shall leave you here."


    He knew very well of their situation. They had been tortured by that flesh-eating old monk for a long time. Even if they were the Calligraphy Addict and the Tao Addict, they were both weak to the extreme. Choosing to fight with a girl from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine who was full of primordial Qi was a stupid decision.


    The girl from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine looked adorable. However, Ning Que just wanted to stay as far away from her as possible. He was threatened by the girl¡¯s power, and also, Master Lotus¡¯ stories and actions had caused him to develop a fear of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Even though he had joined the Devil, it didn¡¯t mean that he could be naturally close to those from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Just like how Youngest Uncle had joined the Devil then, but had still destroyed the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    Ning Que rxed as he watched Tang Xiaotang who was about to say something. However, his body remained tense and his right hand, which was behind his back, clenched tightly. However, he forgot that his hand was still stuck in the Little White Dog¡¯s throat. As his fingers tightened, the Little White Dog was struck by intense pain and uttered a feeble cry.


    The weak and pitiful cry that sounded like a dying person calling for his family. Tang Xiaotang, who was about to leave, returned to her senses. She lowered her head in anger, and thought to herself that she might have injured her brain when shended, and had forgotten why she had taken the risk and jumped from high above.


    She looked at the three and suppressed her anger. She said, "Return Whitey to me and I¡¯ll leave."


    Ye Hongyu nced at Ning Que expressionlessly before moving to the side.


    Ning Que red at her. He raised his right hand and looked at Tang Xiaotang. "Is this your pet dog? No wonder it¡¯s so adorable. I was wondering why there was a dog in this valley. So it is a sacred dog of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    The dog that was suspended in mid-air looked really pitiful. His mouth was opened wide, and bloody drool dripped from his mouth. Its stomach heaved lightly with each breath as it looked at its owner pitifully. Its eyes had turned red due to its struggle.


    Tang Xiaotang looked at it and saw red. She ignored Ning Que¡¯s ttery and she grew angry with red eyes.


    ...


    ...


    There was a strong gust of wind and a strong blow. Dust settled slowly.


    Tang Xiaotang red at Ning Que who leaned against the smooth stone of the valley. She yelled angrily, "I¡¯m going to kill you!"


    Ning Que could not raise his arm due to the pain. The bone in it had been shattered into many pieces from the girl¡¯s blow. It was then, when he finally believed Ye Hongyu¡¯sment that the little witch from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was really scary.


    Blood flowed from his lips as he watched Tang Xiaotang. He said hoarsely, "I¡¯m giving you this, and we will consider this matter settled. If you want to fight, don¡¯t me me for not being nice. So what if you are from the Enlightenment Doctrine? I am the sessor of the Headmaster of the Academy."


    It was obvious that the title of being a core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy was much more impactful than that of the Divine Hall or the Buddhism Sect. Tang Xiaotang did not react.


    Mo Shanshan stood beside Ning Que and watched the girl who was getting closer to them.


    Ye Hongyu nced at Ning Que with a grin before moving further back.


    Ning Que shook his head at Mo Shanshan. "You¡¯d better conserve your energy."


    Mo Shanshan replied lightly, "So I should watch you be beaten alive just because of a dog?"


    "How would a person like me be beaten alive by a girl? I will not even consider this type of death a possibility."


    Ning Que stood up with the support of the stone wall. He clutched the pathetic looking Little White Dog tightly and looked at Tang Xiaotang. He said solemnly, "If you make one more step forward, I will strangle this pathetic dog."


    Tang Xiaotang¡¯s expression changed slightly. She stopped and said angrily, "How can you be so shameless?"


    Ning Que looked at her and said earnestly, "I think you are more shameless for taking advantage of my injuries."


    "Furthermore, you are really not our opponent. The Tao Addict is here. Since you couldn¡¯t even defeat her in the past, do you think that you can defeat her now? Don¡¯t hurry to rebut this. Think through this carefully. It is true that her state has fallen from the Knowing Destiny State to the Seethrough State. But you lost to her when she was still in the Seethrough State."


    Tang Xiaotang furrowed her brows slightly and thought that Ning Que¡¯s words seemed to make sense.


    Ning Que looked at her expression and added on, "Furthermore, she had been in the Knowing Destiny State for some time and has the experience of a Grand Cultivator. Experience is very important in a battle. I guess you do not have this kind of experience?"


    Tang Xiaotang shook her head and replied honestly, "The Enlightenment Doctrine does not have the five different states like the Taoist Sect. But it is true that my state now is not as strong as your Knowing Destiny State."


    The Devil¡¯s Doctrine did not have five states... Ning Que was slightly startled. He thought that this was a bad sign for his future. Wouldn¡¯t it be easy for others to discover that he had joined the Devil? He frowned and decided that he should first settle the currrent problem now.


    "Anyway, no matter what, you won¡¯t be able to defeat the Tao Addict. If the three of us fight together, you will definitely not be able to win."


    Mo Shanshan smiled slightly beside him, "I really can¡¯t fight anymore."


    Ye Hongyu spoke up from afar with a cool expression, "You can fight with your life if you want, but why should I?"


    Ning Que was furious. Was this the time for them to be so frank? However, he could tell from Mo Shanshan and Ye Hongyu¡¯s attitudes that there was no true danger anymore. So, he looked at the girl from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and said, "Well, the most important thing in life is to be happy. I understand why you are angry, but I hope that you can understand the injustice I have experienced."


    He continued, "Even though your dog has been frightened, but I can assure you that he didn¡¯t lose any bit of flesh. If I put it down and return it to you, I hope that you won¡¯t act rashly anymore. Okay?"


    Tang Xiaotang looked at the dog that was on itsst breath and could not be bothered to fight anymore. She nodded quickly.


    Ning Que removed his hand from the Little White Dog¡¯s mouth forcefully and handed it over.


    Tang Xiaotang held Whitey happily and stroke his white fur infort. Whitey nudged at her face weakly before burrowing his head in the girl¡¯s recently developed, soft chest.


    Ning Que stepped back and praised, "It is really an adorable puppy."


    Tang Xiaotang exined seriously, "Whitey is a snow wolf, not a dog."


    Ning Que received a sudden epiphany and said, "So it is a little white wolf."


    It was then when the little white wolf stole a nce at him from the girl¡¯s embrace. Its gaze was sharp and fierce, as if it was saying that it would bite Ning Que to death in the future if it had the opportunity to.


    "It is indeed a wolf." Ning Que thought to himself viciously. He would throw it into the back of the mountain of the Academy should it have the opportunity to and have Second Brother¡¯s goose teach it a lesson.


    ...


    ...


    Tang Xiaotang said to the three before she left, "Even though there is only this one path to leave the sacrednd, it was made by those from the Enlightenment Doctrine, there are many confusing arrays. There is a lot of mist these few days, be careful when you head out. You might not be able to get out if you get lost."


    Mo Shanshan bowed calmly, and replied, "Thank you for your reminder, youngdy."


    The young Talisman Master would not have hesitated to battle her to death if she had met such an important witch from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine in the past. However, she had gotten to know more about the difference between the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and Taoism from her travels from the Great River Kingdom to the Wilderness with Ning Que. She would not view the world as she used to, especially after experiencing something like Master Lotus.


    Tang Xiaotang replied, "You¡¯re wee, I just wanted to make him feel worse."


    She was referring to Ning Que. He smiled and said, "Why don¡¯t we travel together?"


    Tang Xiaotang looked at him and said with satisfaction, "You guys always say that the Enlightenment Doctrine is the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and that the Tao and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine belong to two different sects. Why do you want me to take you guys out of here now? I want you guys to beg me. Why don¡¯t you beg me?"


    Ning Que said seriously, "Oh no, the Academy has always encouraged inclusiveness. To the Academy, the difference between Taoism and the Devil¡¯s craft are but just conceptual differences. I have always admired Enlightenment Doctrine¡¯s predecessors."


    And then, he straightened his expression and said solemnly, "Miss Tang, please take us out with you. I beg you."


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 306: Where Four People Travels, Someone Crosses the Lake

    Chapter 306: Where Four People Travels, Someone Crosses the Lake


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    His first sentence disregarded not only the bloody war between the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and the Righteous Doctrinesting thousands of years but also the fact that the former was doomed under the sword of Mr. Ke of the Academy. Scandalous as these words were, they made some sense. When he spoke, Ning Que appeared righteous and retained his dignity as an Academy disciple.


    Yet the next sentence that came from him was an utterly shameless and lowbrow plea for help. He didn¡¯t hesitate nor did he try to conceal anything. He couldn¡¯t seem any more shameless if he tried.


    Tang Xiaotang looked at him with widened eyes, never once expecting him to ask for her help. She was stupefied. Was her brother telling the truth? Was this guy really a core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy?


    Even Mo Shanshan, who knew Ning Que very well, could feel her cheeks burning. A hint of embarrassment was seen in her eyes as she took a step away from him.


    Ye Hongyu shook her head with contempt. She had always believed everyone from the Academy to be incredibly proud as the only Unknown ce connecting the mortal and supermundane world. From the Headmaster of Academy to Mr. Ke to the new generation of disciples like Jun Mo, which of them would truly respect the Devil¡¯s Doctrine? Now Ning Que was shooting off his mouth here. It seemed to be true that the Academy educated everyone without discrimination.


    To be honest, Ning Que didn¡¯t have to beg the girl from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine to help him leave the Tianqi Mountains. If he tracked the iprehensive aura and fragments left behind by Master Lotus in his mind, he might be able to find a way out.


    That was the same method he used to bring Mo Shanshan and Ye Hongyu out of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. But he didn¡¯t want to do it again. He could pass it off as luck for him to find the right path among the deep, serene passageways thest time, but he would invite suspicion if he got lucky one too many times.


    "Miss Tang, where are you heading?" he asked.


    "I¡¯m going to the south."


    The south was an abstract concept, especially for them who were in the bitterly cold Tianqi Mountains far north of the continent. No matter where their destination was, it seemed they had to first head south. Yet Tang Xiaotang spoke seriously and Ning Que also listened to her attentively, even telling her his thoughts truthfully.


    "What a coincidence! We¡¯re heading to the south too."


    "A chance meeting is better than an intentional appointment, as the saying goes. Should we go together?"


    ...


    ...


    It was the mighty ones of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine who excavated the stone valleys into passageways throughout the boundless mountains. The stone walls were so smooth and steep as if cut by a knife, hard even for eagles to make a grip on. There wasn¡¯t even a hint of dust collected on the stone surface despite the wind, frost, rain, and snow over the years, leaving no hope for green grass or trees to grow.


    The Tao Addict of the West-Hill Divine Pce, the girl from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, the Calligraphy Addict of the Mogan Mountain, and the weakest World Wayfarer in the history of the Academy made for a strange quartet as they walked through narrow, lengthy stone valleys in silence.


    But silence wasn¡¯t quite the right word for it.


    "I think we, as the extraordinary young generation of the cultivation world, mustn¡¯t follow the same disastrous road that our predecessors did."


    Mo Shanshan appeared grim. "Disastrous road?"


    "Desperately fighting as soon as they meet each other. What¡¯s the point? Isn¡¯t it better to just stay calm and cultivate in the mountains, and then say hello and chat when we meet?"


    Ye Hongyu replied coldly, "If we don¡¯t fight, we can¡¯t cultivate."


    "I¡¯ve always disagreed with this line of thought but I won¡¯t be arguing about it with a cultivation freak with you. If you have the opportunity to visit Chang¡¯an someday, I¡¯ll treat you girls to noodles. It¡¯s the noodles with fried eggs that Sangsang makes..."


    Tang Xiaotang looked at Ning Que¡¯s side profile curiously. "Who¡¯s Sangsang?"


    "She¡¯s my little handmaiden. You may not know this but she makes the most delicious noodles in the world."


    Mo Shanshan smiled when she saw how Ning Que¡¯s haggard face lit up with delight after mentioning a certain name. She said nothing but felt a sense of inexplicable emptiness inside. That made her feel uneasy.


    Mo Shanshan smiled when she saw how Ning Que¡¯s haggard face lit up with delight after mentioning a certain name. She said nothing but felt a sense of inexplicable emptiness inside. That made her feel uneasy.


    He lowered his voice and said as he looked at Ye Hongyu¡¯s back. "Do you know Prince Long Qing?"


    Tang Xiaotang was infected by his actions and her quiet voice came from the beast tail."I know him. I saw how your arrow pierced his body earlier... You¡¯re really impressive to be able to shoot someone from that distance."


    He answered sincerely, "It¡¯s nothingpared with tactics of your Enlightenment Doctrine. You even dare to jump from that high ce."


    Feeling bashful, she lowered her head and murmured, "I was muddled in the head back then."


    Ning Que pointed at Ye Hongyu and said quietly, "There¡¯s no way the West-Hill Divine Pce wouldn¡¯t want to take revenge on me after I abolished Prince Long Qing. This woman wants to kill me all this time, but we¡¯ve agreed in your sacred site to fight after leaving this ce. If a battle is inevitable after getting out of the mountains, I can help you."


    Though he kept his voice low, he had no intention of hiding anything. After all, the four of them were walking together in the silent valley. It was impossible for him to draw up a conspiracy or y the game of tactical coboration.


    Ye Hongyu, who walked ahead of them, stopped and turned around angrily. "Can you just shut up? I feel sorry for the Headmaster of Academy to have you as his student. I can guarantee you¡¯ll be the shame of the Academy in the future."


    "You don¡¯t have to wait for the future. I¡¯m already one now."


    Ning Que replied with a smile. He was telling the truth. His ssmates ignored or mocked him for several months after his inexplicable fight against Xie Chengyun of the South Jin Kingdom. He heard the words ¡¯shame of the Academy¡¯ targeted at him countless times but he had long learned to turn a deaf ear to it. He didn¡¯t even consider it a derogatory term.


    His principle was still the same. As long as he could grow old with Sangsang in peace, he would do anything. The girl from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was the strongest of them all at the moment. She also appeared not to care for the Academy or its Headmaster. It wasn¡¯t a big deal for him to cozy up to her.


    If he was willing to, he could make anyone from the soldiers to the people of the City of Wei to Master Yan She to even the emperor happy. It wasn¡¯t a surprise for him to see Tang Xiaotang, the girl from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, be happy andugh cheerfully now and then.


    "So you¡¯re the sister of the legendary Tang! I¡¯ve heard much about you."


    Ning Que recalled Chen Pipi¡¯s words when they lied down on the meadow at the back of the mountain on his first day in the Academy. He was taken aback and remembered even things, including Chen Pipi¡¯s description of his ideal lover. He thought Tang Xiaotang looked increasingly familiar and realized, except her young age, she matched the description exactly.


    "Since you¡¯re heading south, you should reallye and visit Chang¡¯an. It has nothing to do with the noodles with fried eggs that I mentioned earlier. Chang¡¯an is the greatest city in the world and many interesting people live there. I want to introduce a friend to you. He¡¯s about my age but he¡¯s a genius who has entered the Knowing Destiny State years ago."


    Tang Xiaotang¡¯s eyes widened in surprise. "Is there truly someone who can enter the Knowing Destiny State at such a young age? Is he even better than the Tao Addict?"


    Ye Hongyu suddenly interrupted, saying, "That damned fatty has a bad temper, but his cultivation is incredibly fast in breaking through realms. At most, we can say Haotian favors some people more than others. If ites to battles, he¡¯s not your match."


    She paused for a moment before turning to Ning Que. "Is he doing well in the Academy in the past few years?"


    Ning Que only recalled that Chen Pipi and the Tao Addict were old acquaintances and the arrogant fatty would actually shiver after hearing her name. He scratched his head and answered, "He¡¯s doing okay."


    Ye Hongyu was silent for a long time after hearing this answer. She then said calmly, "That¡¯s good then."


    ...


    ...


    The four continued to walk in the still and somewhat deathly stone valley. Though they were the best youngsters in the cultivation world,ing from different sects, holding different ideas, even harboring a deep hatred for one another, there were no signs of bloody fights. Perhaps they became sick of the bloodiness and conspiracies after watching the old monk at the snow-capped peak or perhaps they weren¡¯t willing toplicate their innocent journey home with such matters.


    Truly, youth was a wonderful thing. Whatever they were addicted to, be it books, Tao, strength, or money, they retained an innocent and pure part inside them. They didn¡¯tpletely sink themselves in the mud-like worldly matters.


    Perhaps there would be fewer killings and disputes in the world if only youth remained and no one had to decay. People would retain their warm hearts. They would solve their conflicts by fighting one another straightforwardly without the need for calctions and conspiracies. The world would definitely be a simpler and lovelier ce.


    Sadly, everyone would eventually grow old and wise. More responsibilities would weigh down their shoulders, enough to make them bend their waists. They would be more diligent to think butzier to feel.


    At the south end of the vast Tianqi Mountains, the lower ridges plunged into the Wilderness before disappearing north of the Hn Sea. The merchant team from the Central ins had stayed in ce for a long time. Even as thekepletely froze over, they had no intentions of leaving.


    The middle-aged man slowly raised the edge of his cap and gazed at the Snow-capped Peak from afar.


    He believed someone was there.


    Was it someone from the abbey? The Haotian Taoism typically wouldn¡¯t only send the young generation like Tao Addict and Long Qing if they wanted to snatch the Ming Handscroll.


    But who, except him and the guy hiding in an unknown ce practicing the Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation, knew of the other exit at the north of the Hn Sea?


    But he wouldn¡¯t stop his n even if the abbey sent a World Wayfarer here. He had been swaying between the Empire and the West-Hill for many years and kept his silence all this time. He was desperate to escape that feeling so he decided to do something about it.


    If he had the Tomes of Arcane in his hands, then he could obtain true freedom.


    As one of the few strong sessors of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine left in the world, the middle-aged man was fully confident in the legend.


    "Is it you? The one who likes carrying a wooden sword?"


    The middle-aged man looked at the Snow-capped Peak from afar with a contemptuous smile. He put his half-eatenmb¡¯s leg back on his te and epted a scarf from his subordinate to wipe the oil from his hands before standing up.


    He stepped on the surface of the recently frozen Hn Sea and slowly walked toward the mountains opposite of theke. His every step was so firm as if he wanted to split the frozen surface into pieces.


    He had many enemies in the world, and they knew well that he didn¡¯t know how to swim and feared the water. But today, he insisted on crossing theke as if to cross over the line that contained all his past grievances.


    The cold breeze hit him squarely in the chest. He felt as if he had returned to being a young man. What a great feeling it was.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 307: A Slight eh to a Beautiful Debut

    Chapter 307: A Slight "eh" to a Beautiful Debut


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    It was the coldest time of winter. The cold winds blew fiercely against huge Tianqi Mountain. The temperature on the Snow-capped Peak was extremely low, but fortunately, the high peaks were not covered by the sea of fog that had spread over the lower parts of the valleys in the mountain range. The sun shined directly on the peaks. Although it did not increase the temperature there, the sunlight could still bring warmth to some people¡¯s hearts.


    As what the middle-aged man on the shore of the Hn Sea had guessed, there was indeed someone on the top of the cold and quiet Snow-capped Peak which hadn¡¯t shown traces of human activities for years. It was a Taoist priest who wore a thin cloth and had an ebony fork inserted into his hair bun.


    The Taoist priest looked calm with a thin body. He carried a wooden sword on his back as he quietly stared at the scenery below him. White clouds fluttered below the Snow-capped Peak, and below that was the deserted wilderness and the Hn Sea that spread out like a crystal-white mirror.


    Ye Su, a World Wayfarer from the Zhishou Abbey, and Tang, a World Wayfarer from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, made a bet at the summit of the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine several days ago on Ning Que¡¯s and Prince Long Qing¡¯s speed of breaking the realm.


    Finally, Ning Que had won while Prince Long Qing was crippled and... lost the bet.


    ording to the unspoken bet that they made, Ye Su could no longer join the snatching of the "Ming" Handscroll of Tomes of Arcane. However, it did not mean that he was forbidden to stand on the Snow-capped Peak to watch the scene from afar.


    He "saw" the middle-aged man at the Hn Sea, yet he did not look at the man, because the man could see Ye Su as well if Ye Su could see him.


    He came from the Unknown ce of the supermundane, but he knew clearly that there were many stronger beings hiding in the world, such as the middle-aged man at the Hn Sea. Even for those stronger beings of the Peak state of Martial Arts, who had nearly passed through the five states may be even as powerful as him, they would still act with respect and forbearance in front of him.


    Of course, if he were still the prideful wooden young master decades ago, he would have never cared about these things. However, he was not the boy he once was. His understanding of the world and himself was now on a whole different level.


    Yet he would asionally miss his hotblooded years of youth that was now a thing of the past.


    One of the reasons why he came here was that he wanted to see who would get the Tomes of Arcane in the end. Nevertheless, as he grew up in the Zhishou Abbey, he had begun to read the six volumes of the Tomes of Arcane as soon as he became literate, so the Tomes of Arcane was not mysterious or awe-inspiring to himpared to the mortals and cultivators of the world. Hence, he did note for the Tomes of Arcane, but for another more important reason.


    He was here to cherish, or perhaps tomemorate, or perhaps to in a way, recover some of his youth that had long since been lost to him. This youth was his pride.


    ...


    ...


    Ye Su silently turned around and looked towards a pond in the mountains.


    The pond was very small. There might be hot water gushing out from its bottom so the pond was notpletely frozen. However, it could not endure the howling cold wind, so its surface was still covered with a thinyer of ice.


    Perhaps it was a few days ago or a moment earlier when a small hole appeared on the thin ice on the pond. Even he could not confirm when the thin ice was broken.


    However, he was sure that the shape of the hole was unique, like the mark left by a wooden dipper.


    Fourteen years ago, he had seen the exact same mark, and he never forgot about it.


    ...


    ...


    Fourteen years ago, the most mysterious "Tian" Handscroll of the seven volumes of the Tomes of Arcane showed a very important sign. However, the Taoist who was in charge of keeping the Tomes of Arcane chose to remain silent about this.


    The Great Divine Priest of the West-Hill Divine Pce entered the Zhishou Abbey and read the Tomes of Arcane, and he did not say anything about it either.


    However, no one had expected that Wei Guangming, the Great Divine Priest of Light, would take a step towards the sacred field of Tianqi at that time. His dark and clear eyes saw the shadow of Nightfall befalling the world.


    The World Wayfarers of the three sects of Taoism, Buddism, and Devil in this generation gathered in the Wilderness.


    The three World Wayfarers were still young. They gathered under a small tree and silently stared at ants for a long time. They kept looking at the ck line for a long while before continuing on their own paths.


    At that time, Ye Su, the sessor of the Zhishou Abbey, was very proud and confident.


    He denounced Tang as a devil and the talisman Qi Nian as an outsider. After that, he cut the tree into 53,333 pieces with one swing of his sword, and then he read out a talisman with which he had been the most satisfied with so far.


    At that moment, he did not know that as the night falls, there was a schr on the other side of the ck line that they did not dare to step over. The schr had been sitting calmly by a small pond, and he had been joyfully reading a handscroll in his hand, with a wooden dipper on his waist. He would asionally scoop up water from the pond with his dipper to drink when he was thirsty.


    Afterward, he toured around different countries, broke the realm of death, traveled to the South Sea and excitedly reported to his master.


    The Taoist dressed in ck clothes on the reef watched him with a pitiful smile.


    Only then did he know that there was a man sitting on the other side of the ck line that day.


    Thus, he could not be so prideful and confident as before.


    Many yearster, after going through the prosperity of the secr world and the good and evils of the supermundane, he seeded in thoroughly understanding a lot of things. Hence, his confidence was naturally built up again. However, the spirit of youth and his pride had long since left him.


    He had always regretted that he did not have any chance to talk to the person on the other side of the ck line.


    But that was until today, as it seemed that he finally got the chance.


    Therefore, there was actually no one at the side of the small pond.


    He who stood on top of the Snow-capped Peak stared seriously at the pond on the mountainside. Both the ebony fork in his hair bun and the thin blouse on his body were absolutely still in the cold wind, just as his quiet and clean Taoist Heart at this moment.


    ...


    ...


    There was someone at the Hn Sea outside the Snow Mountain.


    The middle-aged man looked at thekeside in front of him and suddenly stopped in his tracks. He then took removed the hat that he had worn for many days, revealing his face. He gazed at the distant mountains. His thick eyebrows like ck worms furrowed and his red lips like dense blood slightly lifted, revealing aplicated smile.


    He once again continued walking against the chilly wind and reached thend beyond the frozen pond. His burly and solid bodypletely ignored the existence of the rough winds of the Wilderness and marched north, surrounded by a chilling aura.


    He did not go fast, but rather quite slowly. Every time he took a step, his foot fell into the frozen and hardened ground of the Wilderness, leaving a deep footprint.


    He headed north towards the Tianqi Mountain after leaving the Hn Sea. With the time passing, the chilling aura on the middle-aged man gradually diminished, and each footprint left by him became shallower than thest before they slowly disappeared.


    He did not blend himself with the heaven and earth as the Grand Cultivators who knew the destiny did, because what he practiced was not the Taoists Law. He used the terrifying Psyche topletely separate his physical consciousness from the heaven and earth, as if he had turned himself into a stone. If one were to close their eyes, they wouldn¡¯t be able to feel his presence at all.


    However, there was a sudden movement from the small pond which had remained quiet for a long time.


    A burst of slight buzzing sounds was heard at the side of the pond.


    These buzzing sounds were like the sound of a wooden dipper bailing the water, it was also like the sound leaves being rustled by the wind.


    But it was also like the sound of a hand slowly folding the pages of a book.


    ...


    ...


    "I heard you were enlightened at 13, entered the No Doubts State at 30, broke the Seethrough after three monthster and entered the Knowing Destiny State within a day."


    "I heard you climbed the back mountain every day during that 17th year without meeting any obstacles."


    "I heard that when you first climbed the back of the mountain of the Academy, you saw four words outside on Wooden Door."


    "The four words were The benevolent likes water. "


    "So you love to be close to clean streams and quiet ponds in your life."


    "That seems to be the case, even now."


    Ye Su listened to the sounding from thekeside of the small pond on the distant mountainside, and silently considered these words in his heart. After making an extremely restful and satisfied sigh, he smilingly took a step forward towards the edge of the Snow-capped Peak.


    As he took this step, the thin wooden sword behind him floated into the air with a buzz.


    The sun in the sky seemed to turn brighter all of a sudden.


    Thousands of beams of light shone on the wooden sword, which made the thin sword give out a dazzling golden light.


    A very pure sword style, like a condensed light, came from the top of the Snow-capped Peak. It was calm and powerful, ignoring any space and distance, and it instantly fell to the small pond that was thousands of feet away!


    Someone who could wield such formidable Taoists Law certainly stood at the highest point of the human world, at the top of the Knowing Destiny State. Although they had not yet broken through the realm, they wouldn¡¯t be too far away from the Tianqi state.


    How many times would people get to witness such powerful Taoist Sword technique in the world?


    ...


    ...


    When the pure sword style fell upon the small pond, the thin ice that encased the water within instantly thickened. Even the tiny hole was frozen at a speed beyond what the naked eye could catch.


    The sound of water was long gone, and a slight "eh" was heard somewhere at the side of the pond, seemingly to had been uttered abruptly.


    However, the person who made the sound reacted slowly. It took a while for his lips to move, and the "eh" sound seemed to be deliberately prolonged. The drawn-out squeak was more like the calling for the protagonist in an opera show¡¯s opening sequence.


    ...


    ...


    The middle-aged man at the foot of the mountain slightly frowned. At this moment, he had certainly perceived the sword style. Although he did not know where the sword style meant to stab to, he could vaguely figure out who the person he wanted to stab from all his lifelong cultivation.


    He had already arranged countless informants on the Wilderness and even called up the helpers in the Military Ministry. He was sure that the man undoubtedly appeared in Shubi Lake outside the City of Wei some days ago, and now how could he suddenly appear here?


    But he did not hesitate. As the strongest man in the human world, he could faintly feel his own fortune. He knew that it was an excellent opportunity for him. Besides, he had his pride. Thus, he ignored the meeting on the Snow-capped Peaks. Though the meeting was known by nobody, it was destined to shock the world. He then walked in awe towards the exit of the valley.


    A thin mist still enveloped the valley, covering the smooth and steep walls, so perfectly smooth that it seemed like to be a work of men. It also covered the sound of approaching footsteps, but it could never cover the figures of that young man inside.


    On the Snow-capped Peak, Ye Su, the sessor of the Zhishou Abbey finally met the schr on the other side of the line. Standing under the Snow-capped Peak, the middle-aged man thought that he would finally get to see the Tomes of Arcane. Thus, he didn¡¯t think all the time spent waiting was a waste at all.


    Whether it be fourteen years.


    Or a whole lifetime.

 Chapter 308: What Welcomed Ning Que Back to the World Was...

    Chapter 308: What Weed Ning Que Back to the World Was...


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The four youngsters walked on the steep and smooth cliffs with a hostile andplicated atmosphere surrounding them. Their injuries gradually got better in the past few days. However, their exhausted food supplies and hunger gradually weakened them.


    Ning Que never expected that the passage dug out by previous Devil¡¯s Doctrine masters would be so long. It seemed that they had already crossed the entire Tianqi Mountains while trudging through this tunnel. However, he still could not find the exit after a long time, which made him a bit anxious.


    He was the one who feared hunger most. Thinking back to how the three women had devoured half of his secret food supplies, he felt angry and stared at Tang Xiaotang while saying, "We¡¯ll all starve to death if we still can¡¯t find the way out. How many days do we still need before we can get out of here?"


    Tang Xiaotang slightly lowered her head and looked at the beast tail printed on her neck, whispering, "Soon."


    Ning Que took a deep breath and looked at her in disbelief. He then said, "We have been following you for so many days. Don¡¯t tell us now that you have never been here before when we are running out of food."


    Tang Xiaotang raised her little face. She looked at him and then said in grief, "The Front Gate had sealed decades ago. Of course, I never passed through it."


    "That seems somewhat reasonable. Just think about it. When my Youngest Uncle tried to kill you with a sword, you were still in your mother¡¯s belly. How can you know anything about this."


    Ning Que spoke in quite an unfriendly tone. He then suddenly dropped the subject and shouted, "Why didn¡¯t you tell us at the beginning?"


    The reason he dared to be so mad towards Tang Xiaotang was that he was too hungry. Under anxiety and hunger, he had no time to consider that the girl from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was now the strongest of the four youngsters.


    Moreover, while walking in the mountains these days, the girl from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had no vicious aura of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Instead, she was innocent, cute and even honest. Thus he had gradually forgotten her identity.


    Sure enough, Tang Xiaotang did not get angry. Instead, she shyly lowered her head again and went to the forefront.


    "If we have entered the Knowing Destiny State, how can this passage stop us?" Ye Hongyu said with a pale face. She looked at the smooth and cliff aside and continued in an indifferent tone, "After all, it¡¯s still a matter of strength."


    Ning Que mockingly said, "You don¡¯t have to continue tough at my sorry state and weak strength. You only took some sneak peek in the Knowing Destiny State and got kicked out from the state. If you¡¯re are still at the Knowing Destiny State, would you still be passing out because of hunger?"


    Ye Hongyu fell into silence. Her beautiful face seemed to be covered with ayer of frost.


    Mo Shanshan said weakly next to them,"We¡¯re already out of food now. Why do you still have the strength to bicker with each other?"


    Ye Hongyu said with a poker face, "I certainly won¡¯t bicker with him after going out of the mountain. I¡¯ll kill him directly."


    Ning Que ignored the threat from the Tao Addict. Since he got away from Chang¡¯an City as he was a child, he had experienced too many life and death situations. So it was impossible for him to flinch at this level of a threat. He did not even fear death. However, due to the profound lessons in his childhood, he did have an innate fear of hunger.


    After a short period of silence. Due to the fear and the frustration caused by this fear, Ning Que came to the side of Tang Xiaotang who ashamedly and quietly lowered her head. He thenughed, "Probably only the people from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine are stupid enough to cleave out a passage in the mountains, and turn the escape way into a dead end."


    Tang Xiaotang looked up at him with a solemn face and said, "Both the holynd and this passage represent our Enlightenment Doctrine¡¯s will to change the world. Please be respectful with your words."


    Ning Que did not want to give her a reply, especially after he had heard too many obsessive stories, which he always could not understand. Especially those from Master Lotus about the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s will of changing and creating a new world.


    Tang Xiaotang wrinkled her tender brows and said, "Please don¡¯t be like that, okay? If you think the Enlightenment Doctrine ispletely useless and we¡¯re a group of stupid people, then what are you doing here in our Holy Land?"


    Ning Que replied in annoyance, "If the ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane doesn¡¯t appear here, I won¡¯te even if the Headmaster of Academy asked me himself."


    Hearing the words of "Ming" Handscroll of Tomes of Arcane, Tang Xiaotang¡¯s eyes slightly lit up. She thought that she and her elder brother had found nothing in the Holy Land. Thus, her eyesight naturally fell on the iron Box tied with a ribbon in front of Ning Que, and she asked, "So did you find it?"


    Ning Que replied, "Don¡¯t look at me like this. All that¡¯s in the box is the ashes of an old man... Why do I always take it with me? Should I find somewhere and throw it away?"


    It was wonderful that during these days of walking in the passage they had talked a lot with each other. They talked about things from their childhood to their cultivation, and even about their favorite snacks. But Ning Que, Mo Shanshan, and Ye Hongyu tacitly did not mention their experiences in the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine to Tang Xiaotang or the old monk named Liansheng 32.


    It had nothing to do with Tang Xiaotang¡¯s identity of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine or the irreconcbility between the Taoism and Devil. It was also not because the experience was too painful that they were reluctant to think about it. Instead, it was because they had regarded the encounter with Master Lotus as one of the most precious cultivation experience in their lives, and they were unwilling to share it with others.


    Ning Que suddenly frowned and looked at Tang Xiaotang, asking, "Haven¡¯t you found the Tomes of Arcane yet? You should be familiar with that ce, as it is your hometown. Have you found anything?"


    Tang Xiaotang shook her head in dismay and replied, "There is nothing in the Holy Land."


    Ning Que thought that there were actually a lot of bones, ghosts and an old guy who was even scarier than ghosts in that ce.


    Many cultivation sects in the world gathered in the Wilderness. The West-Hill Divine Pce even bet big to look for the legendary "Ming" Handscroll of Tomes of Arcane when the Front Gate was opened. However, it gained nothing. The location of the Tomes of Arcane naturally became a great puzzle in people¡¯s hearts.


    Ye Hongyu said, "The Great Divine Priest of Rtion had said that the¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll would appear here. So it must show up."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "It seems that the Great Divine Priest of Rtion is probably wrong this time."


    Ye Hongyu slightly frowned and said without any hesitation, "It¡¯s impossible for the Great Divine Priest of the Divine Hall to make a mistake."


    Ning Que looked at her and said mockingly, "If the God of Light didn¡¯t make mistakes a thousand years ago, how could the Devil¡¯s Doctrine appear in this world? Or does the West-Hill always consider that the Devil¡¯s Doctrine is the product of truth?"


    Ye Hongyu tightly bit her lips and stopped talking to him.


    Mo Shanshan sighed weakly and smiled, "So are you done arguing with him?"


    Ye Hongyu nodded and said, " I did make a mistake before."


    Ning Que felt quite satisfied, thinking that no one in this world, apart from Sangsang, could beat him in an argument.


    Ye Hongyu immediately continued, "Since I¡¯ve said I¡¯ll kill him after going out, why do I have to keep contending with him?"


    Ning Que bitterly said: "I was just joking. Don¡¯t take it seriously."


    Tang Xiaotang, who was walking in front of them, suddenly said in surprise, "Yes, it¡¯s true."


    Ning Que was stunned, and asked, "What¡¯s true?"


    Tang Xiaotang looked back and pointed at the faint fog in front of the passage with her childish eyes filling with a happy expression. She then said, "That really is the exit. We are finally out of here."


    ...


    ...


    Looking at the faint light amidst the fog at the end of the passage, they could vaguely guess that it was an exit. After going through lots of hard work while running low on food, they should have excitedly rushed towards the exit while holding each other¡¯s hands and wearing ribbons on their bodies.


    However, they stopped and fell into silence. Even Tang Xiaotang was no exception.


    Inside this long-winding tunnel, they were isted from the world, so they could temporarily forget the background of each other¡¯s sect, the so-called good and evil, and the centuries of hatred and bloodshed that could not be washed away. However, once they got out of this mountain that was deserted by Haotian, they would be back to the real world, and the thought of those things weighed down heavily upon them.


    The four persons looked at each other and kept silent for a long time.


    Ye Hongyu suddenly said indifferently, "I¡¯m not used to pretending to be sentimental. After I go out, I need to spend some time curing myself. Therefore, to kill you and the evil girl from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine should be a matter done in the far future."


    Tang Xiaotang looked proudly at her and said, "You¡¯re still injured now, so I¡¯ll beat you when you recover."


    Mo Shanshan gently trimmed her cotton skirt and said with a smile, "Anyhow, it has nothing to do with me."


    Ye Hongyu sneered and said,"If I try to kill Ning Que, does it really have nothing to do with you?"


    Ning Que waved his hand to stop these meaningless conversations, and he then said, "Let¡¯s go out and talk about itter. Xiaotang, you go first."


    Tang Xiaotang stared at his eyes and seriously said, "I know what you mean. You worry there is something strange outside the fog, so you let me lead the way. Yet I¡¯m the disciple of the Enlightenment Doctrine, if the people outside are all from the Central ins, how can I escape? You¡¯re a man, yet you¡¯re really like what she said - the shame of the Academy."


    Ning Que seriously said with no change of expression, "How did you suddenly be smart?"


    Tang Xiaotang replied, "I¡¯m kind, but I¡¯m not stupid."


    Hearing these words, Ning Que naturally thought of Sangsang, who was just a bit stupid, but not an absolute idiot. He suddenly had a strong desire to return to Chang¡¯an City.


    He looked at the exit in the fog and said, "All right, I¡¯ll go first. The most powerful disciples of the younger generation of the Taoist, Devil and talisman sects are all here, together with me, a World Wayfarer of the Academy. Let¡¯s not even talk about people who dare to ambush us, I totally think that anyone who sees us of this super crew would be scared to kneel down and kowtow to us!"


    These words were obviously used for emboldening himself, just as that he had constantly bickered with the Tao Addict these days. He just wanted to rx the mood that was as dense as the stonewalls that surrounded them.


    No one knew that Ning Que, the core disciple of the Headmaster of Academy, had joined the Devil. Even Ye Hongyu just faintly guessed that he had inherited his Youngest Uncle¡¯s mantle. He did not know how the real and ruthless world outside the valley would wee him if the truth of his joining the Devil was discovered after returning to the human world.


    Ning Que walked into the fog after a moment of silence. He reached his right hand to his back and slowly held the handle of the big ck umbre.


    The big ck umbre was his greatest ally in this world, which is the warmest and quietest existence like the dark houses of wild cats. When facing Lotus in the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, he had not enough time to take it out, which almost cost him his life. At this time when he was about to get back to the human world from the isted mountain, the strangeness and vignce caused in this situation always made him ready to take out the big ck umbre.


    There was no hostile crowd waiting for them in the world outside the fog.


    Nor was there a sneak attack.


    What met Ning Que was a fist.


    A fist that was even bigger than the cheap y bowl bought by Sangsang.


    The fist was frank and righteous, full of hardness and strength.


    It came at him like the whirlwind, devoid of any evil intentions.


    It was not a sneak attack.


    But a blow meant to kill.

 Chapter 309: An Unstoppable Fist

    Chapter 309: An Unstoppable Fist


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    It wasn¡¯t a sneak attack.


    Ning Que had to admit it wasn¡¯t after thinking it over after the incident.


    The fist had appeared so openly and was almost a hundred feet away from his face. If it had been an arrow, it would be considered a sneak attack but not a fist.


    The only reason they saw the punching was due to the surrounding vapor being diminished into even smaller particles so that it no longer obstructed the view.


    The smooth and steep cliff became distinct.


    The mountain path also became visible.


    That was why Ning Que managed to spot the fist.


    He also saw that strong mountain-like middle-aged man.


    He didn¡¯t have time to think nor take a closer look at the man¡¯s face for the fist,rger than the size of a bowl, was lunging at his face without hesitation after breaking down the vapor.


    The fist expanded several times over, filling up his vision.


    It was so fast that it pressed the wind in the narrow passage toward the smooth wall instead of vibrating. Then all sound disappeared, leaving behind a dead silence.


    This was something even more terrifying than a sneak attack because the man was intending to kill him with his super strength.


    Facing a faster-than-sound fist that could push the air away, Ning Que only had the time to do one thing. It was something he had done millions of times before when facing death while growing up. It was an action he was very familiar with.


    The odd cry that appeared whenever he was threatened by death was stuck in his throat. Before the hair on his skin could even stand on its end due to fear, his big ck umbre was already open like a shield under the sky.


    The man¡¯s fistnded on Ning Que¡¯s umbre.


    The umbre didn¡¯t break and perhaps nothing in the world could break it at the moment. There was an exaggeratedly deep impression on the thick, oiled cloth of the umbre. It was the worst deformation that the umbre had ever suffered, a testament to the strength of the man¡¯s fist.


    The umbre began repairing itself instantly, so fast that it wasn¡¯t possible for the naked eye to see. The instant the umbre started repairing itself, the exaggeratedly huge impact that it absorbed started spreading all over itself.


    Ning Que lost grip of the handle, cutting several deep white wounds in his hand. There wasn¡¯t even time for the blood to ooze out for the third moment was also something beyond time.


    His eyes reflected the darkness of the big ck umbre. Inhaling and exhaling, his eyes turned bright as he stood tiptoe and prepared to leave the ground.


    Yet he couldn¡¯t finish any of his actions before the handle of the umbre rammed into his chest.


    But it was also thanks to all the preparation he did in that brief moment that he didn¡¯t die on impact.


    The handle fell down like a heavy mountain crushing on his chest.


    Ning Que¡¯s feet left the ground. His abdomen caved in and he started to fly.


    That horrible power, as great as a mountain, started weakening during his long flight.


    But he paid a big price for this. His blood was spraying like a waterfall.


    Though the pain in his chest was torturing him like the devil and the fear of death was stimting his brain, his eyes were calm and concentrated. He continued to adjust his posture as he fell while spreading the primordial Qi stored in his stomach through his limbs. He was trying to recover with the primordial Qi left by his Youngest Uncle.


    Yet that fist won¡¯t give him a chance to do so.


    More urately, that fist had never once stopped.


    That big ck umbre had failed to stop the fist, even for a short minute.


    The fist knocked Ning Que into the sky.


    The fist followed suit.


    The merciless and powerful fist followed him like Yama.


    ...


    ...


    That path leading out of the Tianqi Mountains was secluded and narrow, so it wouldn¡¯t be discovered whether from the outside or inside. So when the fist that knocked Ning Que into the sky in an attempt to kill him, it must pass the three young girls who had just reacted.


    Mo Shanshan was the first one to retaliate.


    How could she just watch Ning Que be killed? She noticed the fearsome power in the fist and realized the middle-aged man¡¯s aura was even stronger than her master¡¯s. Under the pressureing from various factors, the world¡¯s best young Talisman Master finally revealed an unprecedented disy of power. In an instant, before her eyes even blinked, she had finished drawing a mighty Half Divine Talisman.


    From afar, a dense talisman aura came and condensed into a formidable stream of air that rose to the sky.


    But the fist showed no hint of hesitation and continued to punch forward.


    The fist dispersed the stream of air and destroyed the talisman.


    The second one to make her move was Ye Hongyu, the Tao Addict.


    She didn¡¯t want to get involved in this battle for she had already recognized the man. She knew he was a visiting professor of the Divine Hall and was well aware of his strength. More importantly, she had no good will toward Ning Que and wouldn¡¯t shed a single tear even if he was minced into meat paste.


    But she couldn¡¯t help fighting back because the fist was too perfect.


    Only cold-blooded and straightforward people were capable of such a perfect fist and only people without thoughts of escaping could face it unflinchingly. At that moment, she realized that the man wouldn¡¯t hesitate even if he knew who she was. The resolute fist was all she needed to know about his attitude.


    She stood on the path where the fist would definitely pass and attempt to cut it down with her invisible Taoist Sword. She didn¡¯t harbor any hope of seeding because she knew she was far beneath her opponent despite being in the Knowing Destiny State. Sometimes, she would even think that not even God was as powerful as him.


    Per her expectations, her most powerful Taoist Sword seemed like a wooden one in front of the fist. The sword suddenly shattered into pieces of iron and disappeared without leaving any trace.


    Tang Xiaotang was thest one to fight back.


    Because she considered herself a descendant of the Enlightenment Doctrine, she believed that people outside the path were the self-proimed orthodox cultivators from Central ins and insisted on retaliatingst.


    She didn¡¯t know who the middle-aged man was, but she could guess. That was why there was no fear in her bright eyes, only excitement.


    She was excited not because she could defeat her opponent. Rather, she knew she would never be able to do it. So she didn¡¯t fight back like she would against Snowfield Direwolfs or use her blood-color huge de to cut Prince Long Qing. She folded her arms in front of her chest, making the best possible defense of herself.


    Just as she had expected, her crossed-arms atop her delicate chest was flung apart in an instant.


    The fist had always targeted Ning Que, only holding back its true power when passing the three girls. However, its trajectory was akin to a flood passing through a small mountain vige.


    Ning Que quickly closed his big ck umbre and used it like a tail to help him keep his bnce. Looking at the fist that was getting closer and closer, he was calm and concentrated and he was already gripping the hilt behind him.


    The oing fist meant the shadow of death was just in front of his eyes. He was terrified, but his past experience had taught him the more dangerous it was, the more he had to remain calm.


    Many times, it was this kind of calmness that allowed him to evade death.


    He hoped he could pull off the same today.


    It was as if Haotian or Yama heard his prayer. His calmness in the face of death allowed his memories of the message left behind by Master Lotus in his consciousness to be vivid in a sh.


    He didn¡¯t understand the message but he came to understand the fist.


    He even inexplicably thought of many countermeasures against the fist. Those countermeasures were strange and beyond understanding, yet... they required a state that he couldn¡¯t reach now!


    Was this the absolute difference in power among states?


    Staring at the fist, a trace of hopelessness finally colored his eyes.


    ...


    ...


    From the moment the fist broke through the fog and arrived in front of Ning Que, that middle-aged man had only threw a single fist.


    He had spent the past few days in deep thought by the Hn Sea and decided to put aside all his worldly problems and make a clean break from the past. Thus he gathered all the spirits of Peak state of Martial Arts in his fist.


    He needed only one fist to squash the four powerful youngsters of the current generation.


    There was no way to stop such a fist at all. There were few people in this world was worthy of him firing a second fist at them.


    And there was no one who could stop his fist.


    Not the emperor of Tang or the hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    But it stopped just as it was about to hit Ning Que.


    The fist, so decisive and perfect in Ye Hongyu¡¯s eyes, stopped in front of Ning Que.


    The extreme transition from movement to stillness was a testament to the man¡¯s amazing state of Martial Arts.


    No one in the world could stop the fist except the man himself.


    His fist came flying through ins andkes, passing the Tuyang City, to finallye here. The fist was so decisive and determined, even carrying the desire to fight the world, yet why did it stop now?


    ...


    ...


    A schr had mysteriously appeared beside Ning Que.


    The schr had thick eyebrows and a broad forehead. Dressed in an old gown and a pair of worn straw shoes, he seemed like a nice person. A wooden dipper and an old book were strapped to his waist. His clothes wereyered with dust yet he seemed clean beyond measure.


    It was impossible to tell the schr¡¯s age. He didn¡¯t exude any oppressive aura, merely choosing to stand quietly beside Ning Que. He even seemed a little naive and straighced.


    But as long as he was there, the fist dared not to move forward no matter how powerful and determined it was.


    That was because the schr was the Eldest Brother of the Academy.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 310: The Eldest Brother of the Academy

    Chapter 310: The Eldest Brother of the Academy


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Although the back of the mountain of the Academy was the only one which was involved in the secr world, it was still an Unknown ce. It was kind of mysterious to most people. Few people knew what it looked like or who stayed there because, since Ke Haoran, people from the Academy hardly ever showed up in the secr world.


    Not to mention the people in the secr world and the West-Hill Divine Pce, but even the Zhishou Abbey, Xuankong Temple, and Devil¡¯s Doctrine knew very little about the back of the mountain of the Academy. All they knew was that there were 13 core disciples studying there with unfathomable abilities.


    Second Brother Jun Mo and Chen Pipi were the most famous ones among all the core disciples in the upper circle of the cultivation world. Second Brother was famous for his pride and confidence while Chen Pipi was famous for his reputation as an unrivaled cultivation genius and was recognized by Zhishou Abbey when he was born.


    As for the Eldest Brother of the Academy, people only knew that he was a schr with a book in his hand and a waterdle on his waist who traveled with the Headmaster of the Academy all the time. Few saw him face to face and no one had ever fought against him.


    However, he was never looked down upon.


    That was because he was the only one who was qualified to travel with the Headmaster of Academy, and proud Jun Mo talked about him with indubitable respect as well.


    There were so many powerful and proud men in the world, including that middle-aged man, but no one could say he was more proud and more confident than the self-assured Jun Mo. So no one would try to challenge the Eldest Brother unless he was totally crazy.


    So when the schr showed up in front of Ning Que, that fist, which contained decades of killing intent and was not able to be stopped even by thousands of mountains, had to stop.


    The middle-aged man never had a chance to meet the Eldest Brother, but when he saw the book and the waterdle, he knew for sure that he was the Eldest Brother of the Academy.


    Whether the Eldest Brother was sitting in an oxcart with a book in his hand or taking water from a stream, once you saw him, you knew immediately that he was the Eldest Brother.


    There was only one Academy in the world and there was also only one Eldest Brother in the Academy.


    ...


    ...


    That middle-aged man had struggled in the world for fame and fortune for years. He had been pondering aside the Hn Sea and trying to cut off the past but he still had to stop his fist because he was afraid to lose. Ye Su was different from him.


    Standing on the peak of the Snow-capped Peak, Ye Su was trying to challenge the Eldest Brother of Academy.


    He was the sessor of the Zhishou Abbey and the most powerful World Wayfarer of Haotian Taoism. When he was young, he was just as proud as Mr. Ke and Second Brother. So if Jun Mo had a great deal of respect for the schr, then Ye Su thought the schr must be an honorable man.


    But he would never miss the opportunity to challenge the Eldest Brother of the Academy now that he had finally turned his pride and confidence into silence and solitude.


    He knew clearly that he was more powerful than before, but he was trying to regain what he had lost, so he had to meet that man.


    This idea even became a kind of desire, the more profound he cultivated and the clearer he understood the world, the stronger the desire.


    Stronger than the sunshine on top of the Snow-capped Peak.


    Now 14 yearster, he had finally met the schr and got an opportunity to challenge him.


    The middle-aged man tried to eliminate Ning Que on theke for a section of the Tomes of Arcane. If the schr did not want to watch Ning Que die, then he would have to do something.


    If the schr did not take action, Ye Su was not confident that he could make him move. But now that he showed up to save Ning Que, Ye Su could force him to have a fight.


    A thin wooden sword was floating above the Snow-capped Peak.


    The sun was so bright.


    Suddenly, the wooden sword changed into a golden sword.


    A strong but pure aura from the Taoist Sword hadpletely covered that small pool in the middle of the mountain.


    The snow on the Snow-capped Peak waspressed by that power into hard ice-boulders, which refracted the sunshine into colorful lights, making it look like jewelry.


    The movement of the powerful Taoist Sword was the best that Ye Su could do in his whole life. It had an ultimate killing intent that was inspired by his life-threatening moment during his penance in Zhishou Abbey.


    When seeing the Taoist Sword fly so fast and fall by the side of the pool, Ye Su sighed inside. Even he was surprised by its perfection and purity.


    The schr beside the pool was a little surprised and took a nce toward the Snow-capped Peak. His old coat was covered with dust and had the evidence of travel, but it still gave one the impression that he was extremely clean.


    It was unknown how much time had passed, a long time or just in the blink of the schr¡¯s eye.


    The ice boulders melted and turned into small streams.


    Standing on the snow cliff, Ye Su watched the ponding under his feet with a poker face.


    The powerful and pure killing intent couldpress snow into ice, but now the ice was melting. It meant that the sword style was giving way.


    And the thin wooden sword returned to his hand unconsciously.


    The schr beside the pool disappeared.


    Ye Su gave a mocking smile as he spat blood from his mouth.


    He wasughing at himself.


    He had known about him for a long time and been eager to meet him for years. But when they finally met, Ye Su tried his best to show the most powerful Taoist Sword and could not hold him any longer.


    ...


    ...


    The most powerful sessor of Zhishou Abbey could not keep the schr from leaving.


    The schr showed up beside Ning Que and asked the man at Peak State of Martial Arts to stop.


    Chang¡¯an had an Academy and the Academy had an Eldest Brother. Second Brother, who was known for his pride, said, "The reason that the Eldest Brother is always the Eldest Brother is that he is No.1 in the Academy."


    He was the No.1 in cultivation, chess, music, painting, embroidering, and cooking.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 311: Another Man Falls from the Sky

    Chapter 311: Another Man Falls from the Sky


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    It wasn¡¯t until the fist stopped that wind started roaring in the path, disturbing the Qi of Heaven and Earth and dispersing all the fog. The smooth surface of the steep cliff started peeling like forgotten pastry, leaving behind a rain of crumbs as thin as paper.


    The fist was incredibly firm without even a hint of a tremble. The joints of his fingers were a faint white, looking like sturdy bamboos amid the wind or even the spherical handle of a steel knife. It was proof of how strong the man was to be able to halt his punch abruptly at the peak of a great momentum while maintaining such stability.


    However, the Eldest Brother of the Academy was still stronger.


    Eldest Brother looked at the fist calmly without a word.


    The middle-aged man gradually bent his elbow, partially withdrawing his fist.


    Eldest Brother¡¯s gentle eyes fell on the middle-aged man¡¯s face.


    Thetter lowered his head and took a step back in silence.


    Eldest Brother¡¯s gaze rested on a chipped rock under the man¡¯s feet.


    The man furrowed his brows and took another step back.


    Eldest Brother calmly looked at his shoulder.


    The man retreated for the third time.


    Eldest Brother continued to stare at him.


    The man continued to retreat until he was about to step off the path.


    He suddenly stopped just then, raising his thick eyebrows. He looked peacefully into Eldest Brother¡¯s gentle eyes and his crimson lips moved ever so slightly. In a voice that sounded like the humming of hard objects, he said, "I apologize."


    When the words emerged from his mouth, he suddenly loosened his half-lifted fist and his five fingers unfolded like the blooming of an old bamboo before suddenly contracting!


    A gust of powerful and dominant aura came from the middle-aged man, billowing out his clothes and causing whistling sounds. His fingers, unfolding and then closing, released an invisible power that hit Ning Que¡¯s chest and abdomen across the air!


    The man was, after all, a powerful one at the Peak state of Martial Arts. Though he feared the Eldest Brother of the Academy, it was impossible for him to be a total coward in front of him and lose the courage to fight him.


    When Eldest Brother showed up, the man showed his weakness and continued to retreat. Just as he was about to reach the edge of the path, he took advantage of everyone¡¯s false sense of security that he wouldn¡¯t be able to threaten Ning Que and made his move.


    With a loud splitting sound, the woven belt in front of Ning Que¡¯s broke apart.


    The iron box fastened with the woven belt suddenly flew out, falling into the hand of the middle-aged man.


    The man had disyed his deep understanding of Martial Arts from the transfer of his killing intent into his fist to his dexterity with his fingers. He had grasped the best opportunity to take action and showed his immense decisiveness, proving that he could use military strategies and tactics in a martial art confrontation. He could be considered as having directed a military operation with miraculous skill.


    It was incredibly rare to see a man whose use of Martial Arts and military strategies was this impressive.


    Even in the Tang Empire, only the four great generals were capable of this.


    Now that the iron box was in his hand, the middle-aged man hadpleted his task. He looked at Eldest Brother without speaking and continued to retreat slowly out of the valley. Though he didn¡¯t seem as if he was quickening his pace, he traveled backward over 100 feet in an instant.


    ...


    ...


    Eldest Brother stiffened as he stared at the middle-aged man, surprised that the man would take action at thest minute despite nning to retreat. He sighed and said, "Why bother?"


    He didn¡¯t say it too slowly but his tone was soft. Moreover, there was an odd pause before each word, giving off the impression that the two words were uttered slowly.


    Even he failed to foresee the middle-aged man¡¯s action, thus having no time to react. Never mind Ning Que, who naturally had no response at all and didn¡¯t realize what had happened until the man had fled some distance away with his iron box.


    Besides, Ning Que had received such a shock that he didn¡¯t have the mental energy to spare on other issues.


    Based on the description he had recounted for many years, the middle-aged man with thick eyebrows and crimson lips seemed to be Xia Hou. Was it the man who killed everyone in the General¡¯s Mansion and turned his happy life into a cultivation in hell? The man who ughtered through so many viges at the fortress and killed Darkie¡¯s entire family?


    But who was this schr wearing a torn cotton-padded jacket and straw sandals beside him? Ning Que remembered seeing this man the first day he entered the Academy. It was the same clean and trustworthy-looking man who somehow knocked fear into his heart. He remembered the man wanting to exchange the waterdle now tied at his waist for his big ck umbre. Naturally, he had already guessed the man to be his Eldest Brother.


    Eldest Brother turned his attention to Ning Que. "Is the box important? Should we retrieve it?"


    Ning Que didn¡¯t understand why the man who might be Xia Hou would steal his iron box or why this schr who might be Eldest Brother would ask this question so leisurely either. The box contained Master Lotus¡¯ ashes and wasn¡¯t worth a thing. It wasn¡¯t necessary to take the risk of retrieving it, of course. To ask if they should steal the box back after it had been stolen for some time, wasn¡¯t that a bit slow of Eldest Brother?


    Ning Que suddenly recalled Chen Pipi¡¯s words. He told him that Eldest Brother was an exceedingly careful person, so he reacted slowly, extremely slowly... from what he had seen today, he could confirm that Eldest Brother was indeed a slow person.


    He greeted him respectfully with his head lowered. "The box isn¡¯t important. There¡¯s no need to get it back."


    He raised his head and carefully watched Eldest Brother. He was a schr wearing worn cotton clothes and shoes, with an old book and a waterdle strapped to his waist. There wasn¡¯t any powerful auraing from him. Most people wouldn¡¯t think of him as strong or powerful either.


    However, Ning Que felt safe standing beside him. He was calm and happy, feeling as if he was home. He knew no one would dare to bully him. It was as if he was under arge flourishing tree, not having to worry about being exposed to the rain and wind. The unquestionable sense of safety even moved him, resulting in his silence.


    Eldest Brother smiled gently, perhaps understanding his thoughts. Just as he began to seriously consider how to start a conversation with his Youngest Brother, he noticed something and looked up at the sky curiously.


    The middle-aged man¡¯s fist had cleared all the fog in the mountain path but some still remained around the mountain, obstructing his view of the Snow-capped Peak. He saw only arge hole torn through the mist, where a silhouette was standing.


    The figure had perhaps jumped from the Snow-capped Peak or even probably the sky, continuously tearing through the air and fog and producing a frightening screech. Its speed was incredible.


    A round hole appeared in the fog covering the mountain path with a booming sound, and a figure fell from the hole. The fog wrapped around him in a semi-circle and the bloody me on his two legs burned vigorously.


    A formidable and domineering aura came from the figure, spreading all over the ground and locking the area within 100 feet.


    The pair of old boots from the Cold Region of Far North gradually approached the ground andnded on top of the middle-aged man¡¯s head.


    The middle-aged man appeared as quickly as the spread of fire and retreated just as fast. However, it was evident the figure jumping from the sky had been hiding for a long time and domineeringly locked the surrounding area of over 100 feet. He had calcted precisely so that the middle-aged man wouldn¡¯t be able to avoid him no matter where he was retreating to.


    More importantly, he had been hoping that the middle-aged man would retreat. That way, the man would use up the strong aura that supported him in this world and meet a certain death!


    But what could he do if the middle-aged man didn¡¯t retreat?


    Thest time he jumped off the sky, he had stepped into the Wilderness for the first time. Back then, he had crushed the shield held by the most powerful warrior of the pce tribe with just one step and squashed the Necromancer into a puddle of blood!


    ...


    ...


    The middle-aged man didn¡¯t escape because he knew he didn¡¯t have the ability to do so. He could clearly feel his attacker¡¯s killing intent and the familiar, or perhaps even intimate, severity from him.


    He hadn¡¯t experienced such a feeling for years. But no matter how much time had passed, he would put up his guard and fall silent immediately at the smell of it. That was also his smell, something that belonged to the Enlightenment Doctrine.


    The middle-aged man raised his thick eyebrows, a sense of grimness finally appearing on his face. He stomped the ground with his two feet and transferred all his cultivation into his right fist.


    He threw a fist toward the sky!


    ...


    ...


    The pair of old boots, carrying with it the bloody mes, met the glistening fist in the valley.


    The powerful and dominant aura tore the Qi of Heaven and Earth in the valley into numerous tiny torrents. Those torrents had no way of escaping, only miserably shrouded by the different or even contradictory auras. Both the powerful and dominant auras turned into two semi-circle air bells.


    The semi-circle air bell beside the pair of old boots gleamed in red and spurted to the sky with a hissing sound.


    The semi-circle air bell beside the fist gleamed in gold and spurted to the ground with a simr hissing sound.


    Except for the sounds, the valley fell into a dead silence.


    The surface of the Hn Sea far from the valley suddenly fluctuated. For some reason, over ten tiny cracks appeared on the icy surface that had gradually solidified thanks to the cold wind. Water gushed from the cracks, where some not-so-fat fish jumped out and struggled on the icy surface for several moments before getting frozen.


    Then a sound was heard in the valley.


    The sound was loud, as if it was a big thunder, and contained raw power.


    Arge hole that was as deep as half a man¡¯s height appeared on the ground.


    Then a far-reaching echo resonated, sounding like the ring of a bell.


    Crushed by the two auras, the stone crumbs no longer danced in the air and fell down quietly.


    Mo Shanshan and the rest found that they weren¡¯t seriously hurt by the tremor resulting from the collision of the two auras.


    The two most domineering auras in the world had collided, leaking not even the slightest of their power. The two figures locked onto each other, responding perfectly from a distance. At the end, the two auras actually exuded a feeling of grandness. What a state the two fighters had reached!


    Even Eldest Brother couldn¡¯t help praising the collision of the two pure power in front of him. By now, Ning Que hade to stand behind him. He told him, "Youngest Uncle basically killed all the Devil¡¯s Doctrine masters of the previous generation. It¡¯s a rare opportunity to see a confrontation between two Devil¡¯s Doctrine masters. You have to watch carefully and learn."


    ...


    --

 Chapter 312: We Were Only Passers-By (I)

    Chapter 312: We Were Only Passers-By (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    These words showed Ning Que a shocking truth¡ª that the man who had jumped down from the sky was probably Tang, the World Wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, who was once mentioned by Chen Pipi. However, Xia Hou was undoubtedly a great general of the Tang Empire and a visiting professor of the West-Hill Divine Pce, so why did the Eldest Brother say that he was also a superior in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine?


    The manner and tone of the Eldest Brother were very calm, or in other words, very slow. Ning Que was shocked, so he had to spend more time to think it over. So when he supported Mo Shanshan and walked with the other two girls to the misty exit of the valley, that world-shaking fight had been going on for a long time.


    A hole as deep as half a man¡¯s height appeared on the firm, stony ground. At the bottom of the hole were two clear footprints in the center, from which numerous tiny cracks spread out to the surrounding area and eventually covered an area of over 100 feet, looking like a huge spider-web.


    Looking at the spiderweb-like cracks on the ground and thinking of the terrible power that was produced when the man¡¯s downward-moving foot and Xia Hou¡¯s upward-punching fist had met, he could not help feeling frightened and even absent-minded. Now that he had entered the Seethrough State and understood the Haoran Sword that was left by the Youngest Uncle, he could be called a superior. But he was quite clear that if he were to face such pure power, he would have no way to fight back, and would just be smashed into a puddle of blood.


    The two figures darted around the cracks. Their speed was too fast for the naked eye to see them, so others had to rely on the sounds of them breaking the air to judge where their specific location was. And those extremely severe and sharp sounds even pricked the eardrums of the bystanders.


    The two figures could not separate from each other at all because they were tangled with each other, and specifically, because the maning down from the sky silently focused all his killing intent on Xia Hou. Although the surrounding area of over 100 feet looked vast, under their terribly high speed, it appeared to be as small as a pinhead.


    These two superiors of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine from two generations had tempered their bodies to the extreme, and perfectly controlled their bodies to the extreme. But they still could notpletely avoid their opponents¡¯ attacks.


    Since they could not avoid each other, then they would be the first to beat their opponent to death. That was the fighting philosophy of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    Faster than the blink of an eye, the two figures had collided no less than ten times. Their strong auras surged out to the surroundings like a constant tide. The thunderous roars produced a sound simr to the ringing of bells in ancient temples, which seemed never to stop.


    Tang waved his fist in the air and brought out mes as red as blood. His fist pounded on Xia Hou¡¯s body, and it produced a deep impression of the two fingers. Between the lines of fire, the adust smell came out.


    Comparatively speaking, the fist of Xia Hou was more silent and firm. Surrounding his tough fingers was a faintly golden luster. When he punched Tang, it was like a blunt knife chopping toward him, which was like iron-forging when it struck Tang¡¯s body.


    The fists punched directly on his flesh, making thunderous sounds. More than ten deep holes intensely appeared on the cliff for some unknown reason. The smoke and dirt gradually faded, revealing the smooth inside walls of the deep holes. It looked extremely horrible.


    They really did deserve the title of having the strongest and most dominant bodies in the world. Their fists did not actually touch the walls but had prated them through the air with the intention to kill, as if the walls were just made out of dough. However, they seemed to have no special feeling when their strong fists punched each other.


    What on earth were these fists? What kinds of bodies did they have? The fists striking their bodies were like hammers striking an old bell. The sound became more and more intense, sharper and sharper. And the situation became more and more dangerous.


    A strong wind surged up beside the valley, bringing sand and small stones to crazily dance in the air. Standing behind the Eldest Brother, Ning Que and the other three people did not confront it face to face. But feeling the terrible power sent from the far distance, they still could not help turning pale. That was because their eardrums werepressed by the wind and the sound that the fists produced, or more so because their minds were controlled by those two powerful men.


    Staring at that maning down from the sky, Ye Hongyu turned pale, which reflected her true feelings. Gradually, she admitted that the ordinary-looking man who wore a fur-lined jacket was indeed qualified to be at the same rank as her elder brother.


    The gaze of Tang Xiaotang rested on the same ce. When she looked at her elder brother, her pale face was filled with anxiety, and her bright and clear eyes constantly showed an expression of cheering for him.


    Mo Shanshan stood beside Ning Que, and her little round face was a bit pale and her eyes were dim. Originally, she was the Calligraphy Addict who was greatly respected or even admired by the people engaged in cultivation, but this time in the Wilderness, she had met so many Grand Cultivators. It was not until now that she learned that the real strong figures always stayed behind the scenes, so she was greatly shocked. Especially thinking of the powerful states that those two men were in, and the fact that even her master, the Master of Calligrapher, might not be able to defeat them, she could not help feeling depressed.


    Ning Que thoughts were not asplicated as the three girls. He followed the Eldest Brother¡¯s instructions and watched the ultimate confrontation, which could barely be seen. And, with his excellent ability of perception, he even remembered to perceive the disturbance of the Qi of Heaven and Earth created by the two figures.


    However, the moment that he used his Psyche Power to perceive the surrounding Qi of Heaven and Earth, he knew that he had made a big mistake. Now, the Qi of Heaven and Earth inside and outside the valley was actually torn into countless pieces by the two men¡¯s fists. The torrents formed by those pieces flew around chaotically,plicated and intense in the extreme. If he wanted to perceive those changes with his current state, it was like a daydream. In an instant, his sense of perception was greatly shocked, his face turning pale. He had probably been injured.


    Those two men were too powerful. ording to the odds or the standardw of being bestowed by Haotian, figures with such dominant and powerful bodies should have no equal in this world. However, today they met two.


    Looking at the rain of debris, the increasing number of holes that mysteriously appeared in the rain, and the two severe and god-like figures, Ning Que did not recover from the shock until some time had passed. He asked bitterly, "Are we just going to watch them fight? Shall we go first? I always feel that it¡¯s dangerous to be around these monsters. Even if they were to just kick away a stone unconsciously, it would be more horrible than a crossbow arrow."


    The Eldest Brother looked at him in confusion and asked, "Then what should we do?"


    Ning Que looked at them fighting and said with a smile, "How about you use a finger to stab them to death."


    "How can that be possible? I¡¯m not a monster. I¡¯m already happy because they didn¡¯t take action against me. They have given the master and the Academy face. But I can¡¯t do anything if they want to fight. At least I can¡¯t stop them. As for taking the initiative to attack them, I feel that it is somewhat unreasonable and not at all virtuous."


    Eldest Brother was a virtuous man, so he would not take any action at this moment. He exined patiently and slowly, gently and movingly, "And in addition, I¡¯m not good at fighting."


    As a member of the back of the mountain of the Academy, Ning Que naturally knew those Senior Brothers and Sisters living on that mountain were all insane guys, except for himself, who appeared to be more normal. However, he still did not expect that the Eldest Brother would give such an answer. You stand here, saying that nobody has dared to take any action against you. Then you said that your opponents are monsters, instead of yourself? If you are not good at fighting, who else in this world can dare to say he is!?


    Discovering that the Eldest Brother was also unreliable, Ning Que found that his admiration toward him had instantly disappeared, even though the previously stable, warm, and intimate feelings from him still existed. Then he directed his attention to Tang Xiaotang and asked her, "Is that your brother?"


    Tang Xiaotang nodded.


    Ning Que confirmed it inwardly. A man who could fight forcibly with Xia Hou, a superior at the Peak state of Martial Arts, had to be that World Wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He continued to ask, "Why do people in your family like to jump down from the sky?"


    Tang Xiaotang was nervously eyeing the fight, so she answered casually, "It¡¯s hard to be injured by jumping, so we don¡¯t bother walking."


    Ning Que slightly stiffened, thinking to himself that this brother and sister of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine were really marvelouslyzy to the extreme.


    Just at this moment, the two howling figures finally rested.


    During the fight, the fur-lined jacket that Tang wore had been split under the tough punches of Xia Hou and was flying around in the wind. Then it plopped on the ground as if it had been dragged by lead. The upper part of his body was bare, revealing his muscles, which were as tough as rocks. On the surface of his face and body was condensed a thinyer of toughness. And his eyes, in particr, vaguely revealed a sense of ominous toughness.


    The end of Xia Hou¡¯s thick eyebrows had been burnt into ashes, losing all their vitality, which now looked like spiritless ck worms. His eyes were filled with agitation, as if the whole autumn were hidden inside them.


    Tang looked at him indifferently and said, "If you want to steal the Tomes of Arcane, I will kill you."


    Xia Hou gradually ripped off his worn clothes, thus exposing the armor inside. He looked at Tang and said coldly, "There are many people in this world who want to kill me, but none of them have seeded."


    The fight between these two superiors of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had originated from Tang¡¯s extreme intention of killing. He had silently followed Ning Que and the other people all the way, just waiting for Xia Hou to appear and steal the Tomes of Arcane. He had been secretly waiting for this sneak attack, or rather, strike, for many years, and he finally had the opportunity. He won by having favorable climatic, geographical, and human conditions. So it was obvious that Xia Hou was more heavily injured, but he still did not die.


    He stood there, still looking like an unshakable mountain, even though he had been heavily punched numerous times on his chest, even though his cotton jacket was filled with holes that looked like the mold of a plum cake in the Academy, and even though he had the least momentum now and had be restless.


    In the past, he had betrayed the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and boiled the saintess to death. He then imed loyalty to the West-Hill Divine Pce and became their visiting professor. He had been fighting for the Tang Empire for many years as a general. Therefore, such a powerful man would not die so easily.


    After a moment of silence, Tang said, "You are more heavily injured than I am. I still have a chance."


    Xia Hou shook his head, saying, "Anyway, you are not your master. So no matter how seriously I was injured, you have no way to kill me now. Instead, you are the leftover evil of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, but I¡¯m a visiting professor of Taoism and a great general of the Tang Empire. In this bright world and under the shine of Haotian, do you still think you have the chance to kill me?"


    Tang turned back and looked at the schr, earnestly asking, "What¡¯s your opinion, Mr. First?"


    The Eldest Brother shook his head and honestly said, "This has nothing to do with our Academy. I am just following my master¡¯s order and havee to the Wilderness and I¡¯ll take my Youngest Brother back to Chang¡¯an since it¡¯s on the way."


    An honest man did not necessarily speak honestly. Anyway, the Wilderness he had reached to take Ning Que back was not on his way.


    Tang nodded.


    Suddenly the Eldest Brother pointed at the Snow-capped Peak, and said, "I am just passing by, but I don¡¯t know what that man will think."


    A sword style attacked from above the Snow-capped Peak, and reached them across all the ice and through the snow in an instant.


    After a moment, a lonely man with a wooden sword, who was no longer proud, appeared on the snow cliff far in the distance.

 Chapter 313: We Were Only Passers-By (II)

    Chapter 313: We Were Only Passers-By (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    At the foot of Tianqi Mountain, two Devil¡¯s Doctrine strongmen were confronting each other. On the distant snow cliff, the Sword Wayfarer of the Haotian Taoism sect was drifting near. Compared with these truly amazing people, Ning Que was naturally a nobody. Although he now was a World Wayfarer of the Academy, the only qualified person to speak on behalf of the Academy at this time was the Eldest Brother, who was silently standing beside him. Therefore, no one paid attention to him and just treated him as a passer-by.


    Ning Que did not feel disappointed about being ignored. Instead, he was happy that he was forgotten by all the people present. Only in this way could he attentively look at the middle-aged man without worrying about being discovered by the others.


    He looked at the middle-aged man¡¯s thick dark brows and grim eyes. Though there was no change in his face, he gradually clenched his hands, which had been put behind his back. He felt somewhat thirsty and wanted to drink some bloody water.


    His life was directly changed by the middle-aged man named Xia Hou. Because of this man, his happy family had been destroyed and he had lived in a dark world that was like hell for many years.


    Revenge is the most primitive and most instinctual emotion of mankind. Of course, Ning Que also had this kind of emotion. Since he knew the man¡¯s name and identity, he had secretly investigated and watched this man for many years. So he was very familiar with this man, including his most unremarkable facial features and habits.


    But today was the first time for him to see this man.


    Though Tang was such a powerful World Wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and hadunched a strong attack, Tang had still failed to kill the man on the spot. After seeing this fierce battle, Ning Que finally had a clear knowledge of Xia Hou¡¯s power. He soberly realized that he still had a long way to go if he wanted to get his revenge.


    However, he did not feel scared or frustrated in his heart. Instead, he became more confident and calm and was firmly convinced that he would be able to kill the man one day¡ª no matter how powerful Xia Hou was, Xia Hou still did not attack the Eldest Brother. Even if he could not reach the state of the Eldest Brother, he was bound to have infinite possibilities as long as he was in the Academy.


    ...


    ...


    Tang looked nkly at Xia Hou and said, "While you were in Tuyang City, I really didn¡¯t know how to kill you. But, since you left Tuyang City and hid in the Hn Sea trying to kill people and grab the Tomes of Arcane, how could I miss this opportunity to kill you? You¡¯ve probably already forgotten that you were not the only survivor of the Enlightenment Doctrine during those years."


    Xia Hou said, "Many people want to kill me."


    Tang said, "No one has a more justified reason than I do, because I will kill you for the sect."


    Xia Hou said, "But you weren¡¯t able to kill me."


    Tang said, "The cultivation of the Enlightenment Doctrine focuses on the fearlessness in the world. The Deste tribe never fears any strong enemy. You dared not to hit that punch before. It shows that you¡¯re old and useless."


    He looked at Xia Hou and continued to say indifferently, "Even if I can¡¯t kill you on the spot today, at least I know something... The man who was the most powerful one in the Enlightenment Doctrine has now turned into a timid loser hidden in armor. How many days do you think that such a person can survive after being hit by my fist?"


    Xia Hou kept silent for a moment and looked at Tang, saying with slight mockery, "You just finished controlling your breath?"


    Tang said, "You too. It will take Ye Su some time to arrive here."


    "Very good."


    Xia Hou reached out his hand to tear off his tattered coat with countless holes in it and revealed bright dark armor inside. Numerous ck Fu characters were engraved on the armor pieces, showing a chilling and strong sense.


    Ning Que stood beside the Eldest Brother and noticed that the aura of Xia Hou¡¯s body suddenly rose again after Xia Hou showed the armor. He could not help feeling slightly afraid. He looked at the Fu characters on the bright armor and guessed it was the strong armor designed by Professor Huang He and built by two Senior Brothers in the back of the mountain.


    Tang silently looked at Xia Hou¡¯s armor and suddenly reached his hand out into the air, holding a blood-color huge de.


    The de had been handed to him by Tang Xiaotang.


    Tang said, "I didn¡¯t want to use this de, for a timid traitor like you is not worthy of it. Since you wear the Academy¡¯s armor, it¡¯ll be disrespectful if I don¡¯t use it."


    Xia Hou looked at this huge crimson de and naturally remembered a lot of things from many years ago. He said in a slightly husky voice. "I didn¡¯t expect that he had abandoned everything and actually left this knife to you for the Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation."


    After Tang had controlled his breath, he did not speak anymore. He suddenly started running toward his opponent like there were burning red mes spewing from his calves, and then mmed his hill-like body into him at a terrifying speed.


    The two Devil¡¯s Doctrine strongmen were too familiar with each other¡¯s cultivating skills and fighting methods. Because of this familiarity, they could not use any means to lure or dodge each other. They could only hit each other, just as they had used their bell-like punches in the beginning.


    This battle was not as horrible as the previous one.


    The two men separated quickly every time they hit each other. But this kind of fighting was even more dangerous.


    When the sand fell to the ground, Tang¡¯s left shoulder seemed to have copsed in, and his blood flowed out.


    A very deep gouge appeared in Xia Hou¡¯s armor. Theplicated Fu characters were no longer bright, but became extremely bleak. The armor seemed as if had been put in a warehouse for hundreds of years and was about to fall to pieces.


    Xia Hou slowly squinted and used his right hand to caress the cold iron box on his waist. His fingers wiped away the rust on it.


    As one of few Devil¡¯s Doctrine strongmen alive in the world, Tang was very aware of how powerful this traitor was. He was not sure that anyone could defeat his opponent, except for his teacher in the Front Gate who had disappeared many years ago.


    After losing the armor, Xia Hou might once again be the Enlightenment Doctrine strongmen who had been well-known in the Wilderness during those years. At this moment of life and death, Xia Hou, who was determined to use up all his energy and strength, was even more dangerous than before.


    However, Tang had silently waited in the Cold Region of the Far North for more than ten years and finally had the opportunity to go southward and kill this traitor. He certainly did not want to miss this opportunity. So, he gripped the hilt and tried tounch a second attack.


    However, his second attack did not seed.


    Because a wooden Taoist Sword pierced through the air and fell down on the solid ground between them after a mming sound, the sword¡¯s end slightly swayed and trembled, emitting a buzzing sound.


    An extremely lonely and grim aura spread in all directions along with the wooden sword, as though it was not a wooden sword, but an old tree that had lived in the Wilderness for many years and might copse at any moment.


    Looking at the wooden sword, Tang slightly frowned and found that the proud and lonely guy had gotten down from the Snow-capped Peak faster than he had imagined. He could not help wondering what had happened. That guy, who was already standing at the peak of five cultivation states, actually had reached a little further in cultivation within a short time.


    He looked at the wooden sword as lonely and grim as an old tree and knew that he lost the opportunity to fight with Xia Hou today, for he had a slight miscalction of that person¡¯s speed. After a brief silence, he handed the de to his sister behind him.


    Tang Xiaotang took the de and no one could see where she had put it.


    Xia Hou indifferently nced at Tang Xiaotang and slowly released the aura on his body that was as cold as rust and as hot as molten steel. And then, he silently retreated more than 100 feet.


    He retreated to offer up some space.


    There were very few people in the world who were qualified to make Xia Hou give way to them. But today, there were several qualified people at the foot of the mountain in the northern Hn Sea.


    Ye Su suddenly stood next to the wooden sword, his in light-colored shirt floating in the cold wind.


    He took the wooden sword out from the ground and put it behind his body. The lonely and grim aura of the wooden sword seemingly returned to him, making his body turn into a lonely old tree.


    ...


    ...


    This was the first time that Ning Que had seen Ye Su, the sessor of the Zhishou Abbey.


    At this time, he did not know his identity, but he guessed that he was certainly a great man.


    Many yearster, before that battle of life and death, he mentioned this encounter at the foot of Tianqi Mountain to Ye Su. But Ye Su did not have any impression of Ning Que at that time. Ning Que, however, could not forget it.


    I¡¯ve never seen such a lonely person. It¡¯s as if he didn¡¯t live in this world but in another world. And he seems to have been dead for many years, though he¡¯s alive now. More urately, in my eyes, he seems to be living as well as dead. What a poor man!


    ...


    ...


    Ye Su did not know that a guy, whom he treated as a passer-by, was feeling sympathy and pity for him at this time. Ye Su could only see that schr who wore old cotton shoes and seemed to have no sense of presence.


    After a short moment of silence, he thought of something and then calmly said to the one opposite, "Nice to meet you, Mr. First."


    The Eldest Brother replied, "Nice to meet you."


    Ye Su turned around and looked at that iron box held in the hands of Xia Hou.


    Tang also looked at that iron box.


    All the people except for Ye Hongyu looked at the box, for she looked at Ye Su with aplicated expression.


    Even the Eldest Brother also looked at the box. But there was not any intention to steal it in his calm and gentle gaze, only a sense of weird curiosity.


    Ye Su suddenly said, "Congrattions, Elder Xia, for recapturing the Tomes of Arcane on behalf of the Taoist sect!"


    Tang said, "The people in the Taoist sect are as shameless as they were many years ago."


    At this time, Xia Hou said indifferently, "This matter has nothing to do with the Taoist sect."


    Upon hearing this reply, Ye Su kept silent.


    In the Tang Empire, the emperor was suspicious of Xia Hou. Besides, Xia Hou rushed into the Wilderness and snatched the Tomes of Arcane, intending to kill the guy sent by the Academy. He would not be able to exin it to the government in Chang¡¯an City afterward. At this time, Xia Hou was surrounded by the others in the Hn Sea. If he wanted to keep his own reputation and rights, he had to im his identity as the visiting professor of the Divine Hall.


    Ye Su¡¯s congrattions were to give him a chance to do so. All he needed to do was to exchange the Tomes of Arcane for it, but Xia Hou did not ept this offer.


    Ye Su understood why Xia Hou was reluctant to ept it. As a general of the Tang Empire, Xia Hou had to be determined to bepletely separated from those experiences in the past. And Xia Hou thought that he still stood a chance under theplicated situation in the Hn Sea. Most importantly, Mr. First of the Academy still had not shown his attitude.


    After returning from the South Sea, the Great Divine Priest of Rtion made a prediction that the "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane would appear in the Wilderness. Everyone in the world believed this, especially Ye Su, who knew that this was definitely the conclusion of the abbey dean.


    Because of this prediction, all nations had dispatched people into the Wilderness and tried to enter the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Ning Que and the others had seeded in entering the gate. But those who were truly qualified to snatch the Tomes of Arcane had been watching in secret.


    The Tomes of Arcane were cicadas.


    The younger generation, including Ning Que, were mantises.


    Xia Hou was an oriole.


    Tang and Ye Su were hunters.


    The Eldest Brother was not involved in it. In his words, he was just a passer-by.


    However, when he passed by the shore of the Hn Sea, there was no longer any story about the mantis stalking the cicada, unaware of the oriole behind.


    So everyone looked toward that very ordinary schr.


    The Eldest Brother asked Ning Que, "Do you want that iron box?"


    Ning Que shook his head.


    Upon hearing the answer, the Eldest Brother did not hesitate and looked at the others, saying softly, "You do what you want. We were just passing by and we must hurry back to Chang¡¯an now. Goodbye."

 Chapter 314: Life is Hard

    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    This sentence clearly showed the attitude of the Academy and how they had no intention of joining the fight for the "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane. But why had the Academy changed the training grounds to the frontier fortress of North of Yan Kingdom? Why had the back of the mountain sent Ning Que all the way to the north?


    Ye Su slightly frowned and clearly did not understand why they defined themselves as passers-by. Ye Su looked at Eldest Brother and had something that troubled his mind. Apparently, Xia Hou did not expect this situation, either. Then, he suddenly tilted his thick brows. If the Academy people left, what was he supposed to do stuck between the Taoist sect and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine?


    Tang looked at Xia Hou and said in a low voice, "I have already said that you are old. Only an old and dying person would want to change his fate through a myth or the Tomes of Arcane. If a scroll of Tomes of Arcane could change everything, why did the Enlightenment Doctrine disappear back in the day? And how could the abbey dean continue to drift on the South Sea?"


    When Ye Su heard that his teacher was still drifting on the remote South Sea, his furrowed brows got even more tightly knit together.


    Xia Hou indifferently looked at Tang and said, "If you¡¯re not interested in the Tomes of Arcane, why did youe?"


    Tang said, "I came here to kill you."


    Ye Su did not pay attention to the confrontation between the two powerhouses of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Although Xia Hou was the visiting professor of West-Hill Divine Pce, it was evident that this general had shown disloyalty to the Divine hall for the act of attempting to steal the Tomes of Arcane¨Cthe same way he was disloyal to the Tang Empire.


    He quietly looked at eldest Brother of the Academy, and he slowly measured up this schr with no sense of presence. He wanted to see through the other party¡¯s intentions behind this decision.


    Xia Hou slowly lowered his head and looked at the iron box sped in his hand.


    At this time, the sound of hoof beats came like a torrential storm from the shore of Hn Sea.


    The ground shook slightly, and the countless strongest ck-armored cavalry of the Tang Empire rushed over from the south. The knights who had ridden through the wilderness in winter came like an endless ck tide with seemingly unstoppable momentum.


    Soon hundreds of ck-armored Papal Cavalrymen with golden talismans in the West-Hill Divine Pce, who had rushed from the east of the Wilderness, came to Hn Sea in a very short time. They were silent, intimidating, and invible like an army that had descended from the heavens.


    Two cavalrymen came to the shore of Hn Sea, and each of them started setting up the formation. They silently sat on their saddles with the horses next to the ice, ready tounch an attack at any moment.


    It was rather oppressive in the shore of Hn Sea and under Tianqi Mountain.


    In the eyes of the others, the Tang Empire¡¯s ck-armored cavalries and the Papal Cavalrymen of West-Hill Divine Pce were undoubtedly two most powerful and fearsome cavalries. However, because of some historical, political and religious factors, the two cavalries were never confronted on a battlefield, at least in the recorded history.


    Today, the two cavalries suddenly moved away from the Central ins and went deep into the coldke of the Wilderness. As reinforcements, they were an essential part in the snatching of the "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane. Is the fight going to break out today?


    With surprising speed and a terrifying impact like a moving hill, the heavily armored cavalry had always been a nightmare for various cultivators on a battlefield. Because the carefully crafted armors could protect war horses and riders from the attacks like the flying swords.


    At this time, these people standing at the foot of the mountain in the northern Hn Sea were the strongest men in the world, and they were certainly not the ordinary cultivators who would easily perish on the battlefield. The cultivators maintained their wits and remained confident about their chances even as they faced the ck armored cavalry. However, even the Grand Cultivator in Knowing Destiny State was also unwilling to get locked into a drawn-out battle with the armored cavalries on the Wilderness. Because in the historical records of the West-Hill Religious Code and the open-edge campaign records of the Tang Empire, some cavalry leaders had be mad and had sacrificed hundreds of precious heavy armored cavalry soldiers for a few deaths on the side of the cultivators in the Knowing Destiny State.


    As the cavalries gathered together like dark clouds and ck tides, they started to snatch the "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane in public rather than in secret.


    Looking at the Tang Empire¡¯s armored ck cavalry besides the Hn Sea, Eldest Brother hid his gentle smile and looked at Xia Hou, whispering. "General, are you going to revolt?"


    Ye Su lowered his head and whispered. "Does Elder Xia want to betray the Taoist sect and return to the Devil¡¯s Doctrine?"


    These two people spoke very calmly and gently. They represented two most powerful forces in the world: the Tang Empire and the Haotian Taoism sect. Even if Xia Hou were strong and had a loyal northeastern border military force, he would only be dead if he was abandoned by both of the powerful forces currently backing him.


    Xia Hou said after a short silence, "I¡¯m really old... The Tomes of Arcane are useless to you, so you don¡¯t have to care about it. But they¡¯re useful to me. Well, at least I hope it can be. So I care about it very much."


    And then he looked at Ye Su and said with an emotionless expression, "I¡¯m the visiting professor of West-Hill as well as the general of the Tang Empire. As a man of the secr world, I must rely on the power of the secr world. Today, neither you nor Tang has the confidence to defeat me. I suppose Mr. First won¡¯t meddle in it. So I¡¯ll take away the Tomes of Arcane."


    Eldest Brother seemed to have thought of something and sighed. "Why won¡¯t I meddle in it?"


    Xia Hou said indifferently, "Because I¡¯ll present the ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll to the Emperor of the Tang Empire. Today, in front of all people, I ask Mr. First to testify. ording to the rule set by the Headmaster, this is a state affair. No one in the Academy shall interfere."


    As an imperial general, he was far from the station without any imperial order, and at the moment he even ordered over one thousand armored ck cavalries to the depth of the Wilderness without permission. This would be considered treason under anyone¡¯s eyes. However, Xia Hou could justify all his behaviors as long as he could really present the "Ming" Handscroll to the Emperor afterward.


    If the Tang imperial court epted the Tomes of Arcane, it would be a matter of state affairs. ording to the Headmaster¡¯s strict order, no matter how unwilling the people in the Academy were, they must remain silent and should even offer assistance in secret.


    Today in Hn Sea, if Eldest Brother no longer meddled in it, Ye Su and Tang, the World Wayfarers of the Taoist sect and Devil¡¯s Doctrine would be even less inclined to together fight with him. So there was no doubt that Xia Hou, under the escort of over one thousand cavalrymen, had the best chance to snatch it.


    Eldest Brother sighed and said, "After doing so many things, all you want is to take a nce at the Tomes of Arcane?"


    Xia Hou said indifferently, "All I need is a nce."


    Eldest Brother kept silent and no longer said anything.


    Everyone was silent. The wind on the shore of Hn Sea blew the ground and their cheeks like sharp des. It was somewhat depressing and cold. Just like the randomly blowing wind, no one knew the end of this snatch for the Tomes of Arcane.


    At this time, a voice sounded out.


    "If the General wants to see the Tomes of Arcane, then why did you take my box?"


    Ning Que stared at Xia Hou with curious eyes. With clear and pure eyes, he looked so innocent and naive. But he had a malicious intention hidden in his eyes, for he wanted to see the disappointed look of the other.


    Only Mo Shanshan and Ye Hongyu understood what was intending to do. The rest of the people felt that his question was somewhat meaningless, for they thought that the "Ming" Handscroll should be in the iron box. Otherwise, how could Xia Hou be willing to withstand the pressures of West-Hill Divine Pce and the Academy for that box? Ye Su coldly nced at Ning Que. He thought that he had not seen the "Ming" Handscroll in person since it got lost. However, Xia Hou had already gotten this box for a long time and must have affirmed the thing within it in a certain way.


    Though Eldest Brother did not enter the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, he seemed to believe what Ning Que had said. He smiled with his soft and clean eyes and looked at Xia Hou, saying, "Yeah. Why?"


    Xia Hou looked at them and said indifferently, "Mr. First and Mr. Thirteen. Do you think your random words could stop me? It¡¯s impossible for me to misjudge the aura of the thing in this iron box."


    The box was verymon, but also very dense and heavy. It was perfectly sealed along the edges. There was a faint rust on its surface and a smooth metal luster emitted from the ce Xia Hou¡¯s fingers previously had touched. It was impossible for them to judge what was inside from its weight and touch alone.


    But Xia Hou could clearly feel the aura of the thing in this box. The aura was so familiar and awe-inspiring. This kind of fear arose from the deepest area of his sense of perception as if he instinctively felt frightened and reverent. He believed that as an Enlightenment Doctrine Elder, only he could clearly feel the aura.


    Noting but the "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane that had helped to set up Enlightenment Doctrine in this world could make him instinctively feel frightened, reverent, longing for approach yet afraid to do so.


    ...


    ...


    The iron box was opened with a cluck.


    There was no "Ming" Handscroll in it, not even a sheet of paper.


    There was only a box of grey ashes mixed with some bone remnants inside.


    As a powerhouse in the Peak state of Martial Arts, he could stand like a steady mountain even if he held giant tripod vessels with both hands. But at this time, he began to tremble with the small iron box in his hands. His face was getting darker and darker like ck iron.


    Xia Hou stared at the ashes in the box and kept silent for a long time. There was no trace of anxiety on his silkworm-like brows. He tilted, furrowed and then rxed his brows. His thick blood-like lips looked a little pale. After a long time, he squeezed out a sound that was like rusted metal surfaces scratching each other.


    "What... is this?"


    Ning Que looked at his face and said, "This is the remains of Master Lotus."


    Upon listening to the words "Master Lotus," both Ye Su and Tang slightly changed their expressions. Even Eldest Brother could not help ncing at the ashed in the box, wondering what these children had encountered in the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    Ning Que stared at Xia Hou¡¯s face and vaguely guessed that Xia Hou did have a rtionship with that ghostly old monk.


    Xia Hou just stared at the ashes in the box. After hearing the words "Master Lotus", he remained utterly still like a statue. There was no dejected look on his face, but instead, there was another peculiar expression that resembled someone on the verge of crying.


    After a long while, the weird look on Xia Hou¡¯s face gradually disappeared and a slightly bitter smile showed up. He looked at the ashes and sighed gently.


    The joints of his fingers holding the iron box suddenly became pale, for he seemingly tried to grasp it with more strength. However, he stopped the movement a momentter. He indifferently said, "Since it is the ashes of the older sublime being, I¡¯ll bury it."


    At this time, the situation had changed. No one thought that the iron box, which Ning Que and others had taken out of the Front Gate and had been judged by Xia Hou as a box with the Tomes of Arcane, actually only had bone ashes in it. Everyone kept silent.


    Eldest Brother looked at Xia Hou and sighed. "Why bother?"


    When Xia Hou obviously had wanted to give up and then changed his mind to snatch it, Eldest Brother once sighed and uttered the words of "why bother". At this time, he repeated them again. The words still sounded so slow and full of pity.


    Xia Hou silently looked at the ashes in the box and murmured, "Yeah. Why bother?"


    Everything, including the seven volumes of the Tomes of Arcane, the 32 Petals, Xia Hou¡¯s attempt to stop the struggling among light and darkness and live free on his own identity, as well as his teacher, Lotus, who had calmly and happily walked amongst the light and darkness, ultimately could only be a meaningless pile of ash.


    However, before bing ashes, people always fought and argued with one another for something they believed in. If one asked "why bother," perhaps they could onlyment that such is the harshness of life.

 Chapter 315: A Hard Life for Them (I)

    Chapter 315: A Hard Life for Them (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Xia Hou left and walked over to Hn Sea with the box filled with bone ashes. There, his countless powerful loyal subordinates were waiting for him. However, he looked so lonely, deste and no longer had the disposition of a high-minded unique general as before.


    Ye Su silently looked at Xia Hou¡¯s disappearing figure at the shore of theke and knew that this man had lost everything¡ª this famous general had been swinging between West-Hill Divine Pce and the Tang Empire for most of his life. He had offered all his loyalty and had given many feats in exchange for supreme glory. Today, in order to get the Tomes of Arcane, he threw away all these things that he had gotten through untold hardships and even countless grievances. However, he eventually got a handful of ashes. Afterwards, he would inevitably suffer the severe punishments of the Divine Hall and the Tang Empire. So he was bound to lose everything.


    Presumably, the West-Hill Divine Pce hierarch, Great Divine Priests of Rtion and Judge would have some pity for this important figure, Xia Hou, who had disregarded the high status and reputation of the Tang Empire. However, Ye Su came from Zhishou Abbey. So he did not care about these struggles in the secr world. He just unconsciously nced at the girl who had kept silent all this time.


    He noticed her messy red dress and her half-naked body. He did not show concern for her injuries, but frowned at her exposed youthful body.


    Because of his frown, Ye Hongyu¡¯s beautiful cheeks became pale. Since Ye Su came from the Snow-capped Peak, she had stared at him. Neither Xia Hou¡¯s iron box nor Eldest Brother from the Academy could have made her divert her gaze. However, Ye Su did not look back at her until this moment, when he finally nced at her. But his nce was full of disgust, and this hurt her feelings.


    Ning Que noticed her slightly strange expression and followed her gaze to the man with a sword who was floating like a fairy as well as a ghost. He thought that he had guessed the truth of the matter and asked in a low voice, "An old me?"


    Ye Hongyu slowly turned her head and looked at him with no emotion. She said, "I¡¯ll kill you."


    Ning Que quietly moved half a step behind Eldest Brother and proudly said, "Nobody can kill me now."


    Tang Xiaotang interrupted him. "Come on. He is her brother."


    At this moment, Ning Que knew what he had misunderstood and apologized to Ye Hongyu with a smile.


    The Wayfarer of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, Tang, was Tang Xiaotang¡¯s brother and the guy with a wooden sword was Ye Hongyu¡¯s brother. Ning Que thought Haotian was not really fair, for the brothers and sisters were all cultivation geniuses. And then he remembered that he had sincerely wished that Chen Pipi could fall in love with girls who had the most ferocious brothers in the world. At this time, if Chen Pipi and Ye Hongyu had no affinity in their childhood, would Chen Pipi develop a love story with this Devil¡¯s Doctrine girl called Tang Xiaotang in the future?


    As he thought of these things, Eldest Brother said, "Youngest Brother, let¡¯s go."


    Ning Que liked being called Youngest Brother, of course not by Chen Pipi or Seventh Sister, but by Eldest Brother or Second Brother. Because he felt a sense of security when he was called so.


    He was Youngest Brother of the Academy. Once something happened, for example, when Xia Hou¡¯s huge fists were about to beat him into a stupor, Eldest Brother or Second Brother would surely help him. This was undoubtedly the best thing in the world. So he gave a quick answer. "Eldest Brother, I got it."


    Ye Su suddenly looked at them and said, "It seems that Mr. First doesn¡¯t want to see us?"


    Eldest Brother quietly watched him for a long time. And then he said very slowly and seriously, "As a disciple of the Academy, I certainly hate taoist priests like you. Although I don¡¯t admire Youngest Uncle like Jun Mo, I still dislike taoist priests."


    Ye Su did not expect that this schr, who looked extremely mild, would actually talk about his hatred for the Taoist sect. He could not help falling silent for a long time. And then he slightly bowed and said, "Mr. First, thank you for taking care of my Youngest Brother, Chen Pipi."


    Eldest Brother shook his head and did not ept his gratitude. He pointed to Ning Que and said, "This is my Youngest Brother. As for Pipi, you don¡¯t need to thank me, for he¡¯s my Younger Brother, not yours."


    Tang suddenly bowed to him in a very serious manner and said, "I¡¯ll count on Mr. First in the future."


    Ye Su slightly frowned and wondered what he meant by this. Would those frail Devil¡¯s Doctrine survivors still want to have a rtionship with the Academy in Chang¡¯an?


    Tang Xiaotang looked at Ning Que and said in a childish voice, "Ning Que. See youter."


    The little white furry wolf stretched its head from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine girl¡¯s arms and stared at Ning Que emitting a low cry. Probably it meant that it would bite Ning Que if he dared to invite her.


    Eldest Brother confusedly nced at Ning Que.


    Ning Que spread his hands innocently, showing that he had nothing to do with the Devil¡¯s Doctrine girl.


    Eldest Brother no longer said anything. He tightly tied a scoop on his waist and walked outside.


    Ning Que tied the baggage behind him more tightly and followed Eldest Brother to walk outside. However, before he took a few more steps, he ran back to Mo Shanshan and said smilingly, "Let¡¯s go together, okay?"


    Mo Shanshan¡¯s slightly round face flushed and she nodded.


    ...


    ...


    The three people disappeared in the winter sunlight in the Wilderness.


    It was quiet on the shore of Hn Sea.


    Tang looked off at the distance and said, "He ranks first in the Academy, but never fights. No one dared to fight with him. I always thought I was no better than him. But what if he wasn¡¯t good at fighting? Unfortunately, no one dared to try."


    Ye Su looked in the same direction and said, "I tried."


    Tang slightly frowned as he did not expect to get this answer. He watched Ye Su and said, "What happened?"


    Ye Su calmly said, "Iunched an attack and he didn¡¯t."


    It was a simple description with a clear result. So Tang became silent once again.


    Ye Su looked towards Ye Hongyu and said, "You¡¯ve been doing well in these two years. I saw that you broke the realm on the snow cliff. But it¡¯s not good for you to be addicted to something."


    After finishing this sentence, he was about to leave.


    Ye Hongyu did not expect to hear such a warmment. Although Ye Su¡¯s tone was extremely calm and cold, the words "doing well" made her feel warm. She looked at the back of her elder brother and shouted sadly. "Brother..."


    Ye Su did not look back and said, "You can call me brother again only when Pipi returns to the abbey."


    Ye Hongyu saw that lonely man gradually walk away. She suddenly realized that the reason why she could not catch up with her brother was because her brother had never wanted her to stand beside him. Was that person really so important?


    Tang Xiaotang looked at her and said with sympathy, "You¡¯re very annoying sometimes, especially when fighting. But you¡¯re really pathetic being left alone by your own brother."


    Ye Hongyu stayed calm and did mind her.


    After all, Tang Xiaotang was still young. With innocent eyes, she kept asking, "Is Pipi your younger brother? Or how could your elder brother be so angry with you? And how did you bully that guy?"


    Ye Hongyu felt tired and said, "That guy is the fat one Ning Que mentioned in the valley."


    Tang Xiaotang surprisedly covered her mouth with her small hand, but touched the beast¡¯s tail. She said, "Good for you for having made a cultivation genius in Knowing Destiny State escape from home."


    Ye Hongyu did not know how to respond to this kind of praise. If she knew that her childhood gloomy bullying thoughts would eventually make her elder brother indifferent towards her, she wouldn¡¯t have done it.


    Tang looked at her and suddenly said, "Don¡¯t try to learn from your elder brother. Even if you¡¯re qualified enough to stand beside him, you¡¯ll be a half-dead boring person."


    Ye Hongyu scornfully said, "It¡¯s an after-death enlightenment. How can a Devil¡¯s Doctrine survivor learn about this Taoist Law?"


    Tang said nkly, "But I know I can kill you at any time after he leaves you here."


    The Taoist sect was against Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Since Ye Hongyu was the Grand Master of the Judicial Department in West-Hill Divine Pce, Tang should have killed her. However, he did not do so and just silently left with his sister. Perhaps because he thought of Ye Hongyu as amon and miserable little sister losing her elder brother when he saw Ye Su leave.


    Ye Hongyu stood alone and missed the lonely figure of her elder brother. After a moment, she also left and went slowly to the Papal Cavalrymen of the Divine Hall on the shore of Hn Sea.


    It had previously been extremely tense at the foot of the mountain, but now nobody was there. All the people hade for the Tomes of Arcane, but finally saw nothing but a box of a dead man¡¯s bone ashes. The bleak winter sun shone on the cold Wilderness and became dimmer above the cold winterke. The view frustrated everyone.


    ...


    ...


    Departure always made people feel bitter. But Ning Que did not feel this. Because he was sitting beside a winter forest with Eldest Brother and warmed himself by a bonfire. Some dried potatoes that had been plucked from the ground were hidden under the bonfire, vaguely emitting an aroma.


    In the distance, he heard an extremely exciting and joyous hissing horse cry. Following the sounds, he saw the Big ck Horse kept fluttering its head like a madman in a warm stream that had not frozen.


    Mo Shanshan was washing the Big ck Horse. When it fluttered its head, her head and face became wet. However, it was clear that what she had said outside the pce tent was not all a lie. She really liked Ning Que¡¯s Big ck Horse. So she was not angry for being wet, but smiling she revealed a charming girlish rare expression.


    "Eldest Brother, you are so admirable. In such vast Wilderness, you actually found it and drove it from the north to this ce. Why did it listen to you?"


    Ning Que looked at the schr beside the bonfire, full of shock and admiration in his eyes.


    Eldest Brother took a thick firewood and slowly yed with the bonfire. He gently exined, "My teacher has an old yellow bull and I often deal with it. So these animals probably feel me more secure. Youngest Brother, your Big ck Horse is quite good. If that bull goes back to the back of the mountain for retirement, your horse might help the teacher pull the carriage."


    Ning Que scratched his head and suddenly asked, "Eldest Brother, you¡¯re a great man. Those two guys we met are not as good as you. But they are also great. So I don¡¯t understand one thing."


    Eldest Brother looked up at him and asked curiously, "What?"


    "How could someone like the sessor of Zhishou Abbey, Ye Su, believe that the ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll was in the iron box? Tang is the sessor of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, why did he also believe it? If people like them were sure that the ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll would show up here, why did nobody find it?"


    Ning Que looked at Eldest Brother and seriously asked, "Where on earth is that Tomes of Arcane?"


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 316: A Hard Life for Them (II)

    Chapter 316: A Hard Life for Them (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Maybe the Big ck Horse feltfortable being touched by Shanshan¡¯s little hand or faintly heard Eldest Brother of the Academy saying that it would take the ce of the old yellow bull to pull the carriage for an old man in the future. In short, it suddenly stiffened beside the warm stream and its limbs stood between the gravels, just like a wooden horse.


    Ning Que did not pay attention to its movements, but just stared at the eyes of Eldest Brother. He waited for an answer with a curious expression full of expectations, even if it was an unsure answer. For the Tomes of Arcane, he had walked from the frontier fortress of North of Yan Kingdom and experienced many hardships including the threat of death. It was really difficult for him to ept that no one ever mentioned the whereabouts of the Tomes of Arcane after the previous snatch.


    Eldest Brother thought about it and said with a smile, "Since the Great Divine Priest of Rtion said that the Tomes of Arcane would appear in the Wilderness, Ye Su and Tang believed it. The reason why everyone stared at that iron box... Xia Hou probably sensed the aura of the iron box and firmly believed that the Tomes of Arcane were inside. Ye Su and Tang saw that Xia Hou had sacrificed so much for it and thought he must not have misjudged it. So they also believed that it was in the box. There was a moment when I myself almost believed it."


    "What did Xia Hou sense so that he regarded the ashes of Master Lotus as the Tomes of Arcane?" Ning Que slightly frowned and said, "I can guess he had a rtionship with Lotus. What kind of rtionship was it?"


    Eldest Brother said, "Xia Hou is Lotus¡¯ disciple. Since you¡¯ve encountered Lotus in the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, you must know what kind of figure the predecessor Lotus was. Xia Hou betrayed the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and must have feared every night that Lotus woulde back to trouble him. This is the so-called heart demon."


    Ning Que kept silent for a moment and suddenlymented, "Is there anything you don¡¯t know about, Senior Brother?"


    "Of course. Even the Headmaster of Academy admits that he doesn¡¯t understand many things, not to mention disciples like us. Younger Brother, you should know that there is no one who was born knowing in the world."


    Speaking of this, Eldest Brother suddenly stopped and looked at his faceughing.


    Ning Que did not notice the message contained in Eldest Brother¡¯s expression. He said, "Senior Brother, you seem to have missed the point. Can you not interrupt and just tell me where the Tomes of Arcane might be?"


    ...


    ...


    Beside the warm bonfire in the cold Wilderness, Eldest Brother and Youngest Brother had their first long conversation with each other. In Ning Que¡¯s memory, the long talk was warm and calm, no trace of strangeness in the conversation. But in reality, it was not as smooth as he thought because Eldest Brother was too slow and seemed to have thought for a long period of time before every sentence, ensuring that there was no mistake or misunderstanding in his words. This hypnotic speed easily made them miss the point of the conversation.


    At first, Ning Que asked about the whereabouts of the "Ming" Handscroll. A momentter, he started to narrate to Eldest Brother of all his deeds from Chang¡¯an to the Wilderness. The began from the Academy students in the Blue Water Battalion to the Great River King girls beside the warm stream, from the Horse Gang attack ordered by Xia Hou to the bullying in the pce, from killing the Grand Psyche Master Lin Ling at night to shooting Prince Long Qing as well as fighting with Tao Addict, from the messy sword marks left by Youngest Uncle in the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine to the ghost-like old monk among the mountain-like skeletons.


    In the previous conversation, Eldest Brother had maintained a calm look. Even when he heard about the Haoran Sword marks left by Youngest Uncle, he onlymented and sighed. However, when he heard that Ning Que had met the living Master Lotus in the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, his facial expression slightly changed.


    Eldest Brother looked at Ning Que and said sincerely, "The Confinement Formation made by Youngest Uncle¡¯s sword style had such great power? Even the teacher didn¡¯t know that Lotus was still alive. If I knew this, I absolutely wouldn¡¯t have let you enter the Front Gate alone. I had wished you could improve your cultivation during this trip and never expected that you had encountered so many dangers. Youngest Brother, I¡¯m so sorry."


    Not until this moment did Ning Que finally confirm that this trip to the Wilderness was the arrangement of the Academy. The Headmaster of Academy and Eldest Brother had always been secretly paying attention to him. But it was obvious that the seemingly omnipotent teacher and Eldest Brother beside the bonfire, who was so strong that no one dared to challenge him, were not really omniscient. At least they did not know that Master Lotus, had hidden in the Front Gate, and could make Xia Hou have a heart demon even if he had been reduced into bone ashes.


    Ning Que thought of the dangerous encounter beside the pile of skeletons and the ghostly old monk who had bowed down gnawing the flesh and drunk the girl¡¯s blood. He could not help shedding tears and said with grief and indignation, "How irresponsible you¡¯re, Eldest Brother!"


    "Sorry, I¡¯m really sorry. I didn¡¯t think about it, for I was busy picking up something in the Snow-capped Peaks."


    Eldest Brother shamefully bowed his head. Out of nowhere, he took out four darkish iron arrows with his right hand and handed them over.


    Ning Que took the four arrows and touched the fine andplicated Fu characters on them, feeling extremely shocked.


    After getting Tao enlightenment and breaking the realm beside the Daming Lake, he had shot a total of four Primordial Thirteen Arrows to kill Prince Long Qing and deal with Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu. Some of them had shot through the chest and abdomen of Prince Long Qing and entered the snow cliff rock afterwards. Some of them had rubbed the shoulder of Ye Hongyu and disappeared in the cloud. He thought that he could no longer find them in the future. He remembered the efforts of Senior Brothers and Sisters in the back of the mountain and felt sorry for losing the arrows. Unexpectedly, all of them actually returned to his hands now!


    Eldest Brother... How did you locate these four Talisman Arrows and bring them back?


    "These are good arrows. How many Younger Brothers have helped you in the back of the mountain?" Eldest Brother looked at the Talisman Arrows in Ning Que¡¯s hands and asked.


    "All the Senior Brothers and Sisters." Ning Que thought that the guys who yed the piano, chess and watched the flowers also encouraged him beside theke in the end. Might this also be counted as help?


    Eldest Brother felt somewhat regretful and said, "It was a pity that I was not there, otherwise the arrows could be even better."


    Ning Que was good at making the best use of the situation. So he moved to the side of Eldest Brother and said sincerely and seriously, "Can we try it again after returning to Chang¡¯an?"


    Eldest Brother was startled and then said honestly, "Okay."


    Ning Que knew that Eldest Brother must have seen through his intentions, but chose not to expose or ridicule him. In the face of such an honest man, he unexpectedly started to feel a little shy.


    "That Calligraphy Addict girl is really nice to you."


    "Eldest Brother, why do you say this?"


    "You should thank her."


    "Got it."


    Eldest Brother used a branch to dig out a few potatoes from the ashes under the bonfire and said, "Help yourself. They smell good. Don¡¯t eat these two. They are for Calligraphy Addict and your Big ck Horse."


    Ning Que stretched his hand to touch the potato and was almost scalded. He felt somewhat angry and said, "It¡¯s fine to leave one for Shanshan. But why give one to a horse?"


    Eldest Brother did not understand his argument, thinking that both the big yellow bull raised by the Headmaster of Academy and the white goose raised by Jun Mo dined with everyone on weekdays. Why not for the Big ck Horse raised by Youngest Brother?


    He shook his head and said, "When I was a kid and first entered the back of the mountain, I refused to eat meat. Because I always felt that everything had a spirit. Later the teacher beat me with a stick and I saw the yellow bull eat meat. Until then did I change my eating habit..."


    Ning Que listened to Eldest Brother talking about his memories while he dealt with the hot potato. Suddenly he thought of something and raised his head, shouting annoyedly, "Senior Brother, why did you miss the point again?"


    Eldest Brother looked at him in confusion and asked, "Did I?"


    "If Xia Hou mistook that the Tomes of Arcane were in the iron box because of Lotus, what about Tang and Ye Su?"


    "Tang didn¡¯te for the Tomes of Arcane. He just wanted to kill the betrayer, Xia Hou, on behalf of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    "What about Ye Su?" Ning Que asked.


    Eldest Brother scratched his head and said uncertainly, "He seemed to havee for me."


    After a moment of silence, Ning Que shook his head and said, "This is not so simple. The Great Divine Priest of Rtion said that the ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll would appear at the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine and in the north of Hn Sea. These supermundane people must believe this saying and havee here. If the Great Divine Priest of Rtion made a false prophecy, how does it benefit him and the Divine Hall?"


    Ning Que looked up at Eldest Brother and asked, "Where on earth is that Tomes of Arcane?"


    Eldest Brother looked at him and kept silent for a long time. And then he asked, "You really want to know?"


    Ning Que said, "Everyone wants to know."


    Eldest Brother said, "But even if you know, how would it help you?"


    Ning Que looked at him intently and said, "Senior Brother, do you know that curiosity killed the cat?"


    Eldest Brother shook his head and said seriously, "I don¡¯t know."


    He looked up at the dark winter sky in the Wilderness and said curiously, "In fact, I never understood why the Great Divine Priest of Rtion gave such a sign. Maybe this Youngest Brother¡¯s curiousity is also a sort of Lucky Chance?"


    After saying this sentence, he took the old handscroll from his waist and handed it to Ning Que.


    Ning Que, surprised, took it and vaguely understood something, but could not believe his own judgment.


    He looked down at the ordinary cover of the old handscroll in his hands. After a long silence, he finally plucked up the courage to turn over the first page. Because of his nervousness and excitement, his fingers were trembling when he turned the pages with a rattling sound.


    It was like the sound of theke water on the mountainside of the Snow-capped Peak.


    People did not know much about Eldest Brother of the Academy.


    They only knew the schr who wore an old cotton jacket and broken shoes. No matter how much dust he had on his clothes, he always seemed to be extremely clean. They only knew that the schr was calm and happy. He loved to hang around beside the mountain brooks and pools. There was always a scoop tied to his waist. When he was thirsty, he would drink a scoop of water. He always held a handscroll and read it often.


    No one knew that the handscroll in the schr¡¯s hands was the Tomes of Arcane.


    It was the "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane that had been lost in the Wilderness for years and had never shown up.


    ...


    ...


    They kept quiet for a long time beside the bonfire.


    In fact, Ning Que did not dare to seriously read the old handscroll, for he did not know what would happen after reading it.


    After a long time, he looked up with difficulty and asked in a trembling voice, "You¡¯ve kept this handscroll for all this time?"


    Eldest Brother honestly admitted. "Since I watched the sunset clouds and broke the realm those many years ago, the teacher had asked me to keep it."


    Ning Que gasped in surprise and found that he had been more shocked today than in the past decade. He could not help sighing. "No wonder Senior Brother hadmented for Xia Hou."


    The "Ming" Handscroll of the seven scrolls of the Tomes of Arcane had been in the hands of Eldest Brother. However, no one in the world knew it. Numerous people had greedily fought for the handscroll with their lives, including Xia Hou who gave up everything in the first half of his life.


    Why bother?


    What a hard life!


    Fortunately, Ning Que was the Youngest Brother in the Academy.


    For the Academy, all kinds of hardships in life, were usually the sufferings of others.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 317: The Appearance of the Tomes of Arcane and What Happens After

    Chapter 317: The Appearance of the Tomes of Arcane and What Happens After


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    An aura wafted from the yellowing papers as Ning Que flipped through the book gently by the bonfire. The aura was calm and collected and did not seem like it existed on the earth. It floated right up to the skies as if it would disperse into the gloomy clouds of winter and never return to the page again.


    However, the aura was too calm and was ipatible with all that was in the winter Wilderness. It couldn¡¯t merge even with the clouds that barely existed. There was no active resistance, but just silence and an unwillingness to even make a contact.


    There would be no interactions should there be no contact. In the frost covered forest in the Wilderness, not even the cultivator with the strongest Psyche Power could discover the aura emitted by this tome.


    However, the sky could. The blue or grey sky was like a mirror belonging to Haotian that reflected everything. That was why it could reflect the image of the aura clearly.


    The winter clouds gathered closely together were puffed up like winter nkets soaked in water. They reacted immediately after the "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane was opened. The thick clouds rolled and twisted and ensnared each other. They eventually separated and became thousands of puffs of clouds.


    The distant blue sky could be spotted among the thousands of clouds. The clouds looked as if they were dangling, like silent stones suspended in the air.


    Ning Que lifted his head and looked at the cloud-stones. He recalled the hundreds and millions of odd rocks in the Great Blockage Formation outside the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and seemed to have understood or felt something. He sighed with emotion.


    ...


    ...


    Somewhere in the dark Wilderness.


    Ye Su looked at the clouds with his hands put behind him. He seemed to have already grasped that thin wooden sword. His head was held up high, as if he was leaning on the sword. His clothes were thin and looked as if they would fly with the winter wind of the Wilderness. The emotions of self-mockery and indifference appeared on his face.


    Somewhere else in the dark Wilderness.


    Tang was also looking at the clouds, but with his hands by his side. He held onto what seemed to be two strong rocks with his head held up high like a giant rock that was about to fall off the cliff. His leather robe was thick and was not affected no matter how the winter winds blew. The calm expression that came from knowing the truth appeared on his face.


    Somewhere else in the dark Wilderness.


    Xia Hou lifted the reins lightly. He raised his right hand slowly and gestured for the armored cavalry behind him, which looked like a patch of dark clouds, to stop. Then, he looked up at the numerous clouds that looked like suspended rocks and could not help remembering the Front Gate that could once be seen in day and night. He remembered many things, and a trace of pain shed past on his solemn face.


    There were many people in the Wilderness at this moment. They did not have the ability to make contact with the calm aura that the Tomes of Arcane emitted. But they could see the odd happenings in the sky and could see the silent clouds that did not merge with the sky.


    They were surprised and fell into silence.


    The Great Divine Priest of Rtion¡¯s prophecy hade true.


    The "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane had appeared in the Wilderness.


    It was a pity that they could find out that the Tomes of Arcane had appeared, but did not know where.


    ...


    ...


    "Senior Brother, why did you not tell them that you have the Tomes of Arcane?"


    "They did not ask me. Also... I really didn¡¯t want to tell them."


    "That¡¯s true, we shouldn¡¯t tell anyone other than those from the Academy."


    "Indeed. They¡¯de and steal it from us if we told them. I do not want to fight with them. I¡¯ve also said before, that I am not good at fighting. Xia Hou and the others are so strong. It¡¯d be hard work defeating them."


    Ning Que noticed that Eldest Brother did not say that it would be hard, but that it would be hard work to defeat them. Heughed out loud once he got over the shock.


    "Younger Brother, what are youughing about?"


    "Nothing, Eldest Brother, I just think that you¡¯re a very interesting person."


    "Oh? What¡¯s so interesting?"


    "Everything."


    "Alright, I don¡¯t really seem to understand what you mean."


    "Eldest Brother?"


    "Youngest Brother?"


    "How do we close this Tomes of Arcane? We can¡¯t leave it open. The skies react so violently to it. What if someone tracks us down with the traces it left behind?"


    "There are three steps to close the tome. Firstly..."


    "Eldest Brother."


    "Youngest Brother?"


    "This tome is really odd. My sense of perception was severely impacted when I took a look at it. I want to close it because I felt like vomiting blood. However, what you¡¯re saying right now makes me want to vomit blood more. Could you please help me?"


    "I understand."


    "Eldest Brother?"


    "Youngest Brother?"


    "Why are you not saying anything?"


    "Didn¡¯t you ask me to help? When we were young, Jun Mo used to get angry really easily when we spoke. He said he felt like vomiting blood just like you. And I could help just by shutting up."


    "I was talking about the book... But, I will remember that when I chat with you in the future."


    "I understand."


    A hand emerged from the red light. It was Eldest Brother¡¯s hand. To Ning Que, the cover of the tome was extremely heavy. It intimidated him, and just a nce of it had shattered his sense of perception. However, it did not react abnormally in Eldest Brother¡¯s hand. He closed it easily.


    With the gentle shutting of the tome, the dangling rock-clouds slowly fluffed up and merged into one. It reverted into that gloomy patch of damp cotton and covered the entire Wilderness.


    The powerhouses in the Wilderness who sensed the change looked up at the clouds silently for a long while. Then, they left with a myriad of emotions silently.


    Twilight was closing in on them. The faint glow of the sunset shone through the clouds and onto the winter forest of the Wilderness. It flowed like the hair of a young girl and a gentle stream, reflecting numerous threads of gold. The Big ck Horse by the side of the stream looked like an awkward monster that jumped like a sparrow. The beautiful young female Talisman Master chased after it in her white dress. The shade of the bonfire by the forest grew darker.


    Eldest Brother moved the peel of his potato to the side. He asked gently, "Have you picked up the Haoran Sword?"


    Ning Que did not pick up the actual Haoran Sword that Youngest Uncle had used in the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. But he knew what Eldest Brother was actually asking, so he nodded and replied. "It¡¯s not a physical sword, but I have picked it up."


    Eldest Brother looked relieved and happy, he said with emotion, "That¡¯s good."


    Ning Que fell silent for a moment before asking seriously, "Senior Brother, why was I chosen to inherit Youngest Uncle¡¯s mantle?"


    The "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane had always been in the Academy. The Academy would of course not fight for it with the other sects. They had wanted the mottled sword marks and the aura that wished to return to their sect left behind by Youngest Uncle. Those sword marks and aura that represented Youngest Uncle¡¯s spirit and mantle had been left wandering around outside since it had been hidden by the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    The Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had opened once more decadester. And it was at this moment that the empire and the Academy had changed their ns for the autumn practice and had Ning Que bring a team to the Wilderness. He now understood why this was so.


    However, there were many Senior Brothers and Sisters in the back of the mountain of the Academy. His state was the lowest, and he was the most inexperienced. He had never met the Headmaster of the Academy, so he was of course not the most favored person. So why did he inherit Youngest Uncle¡¯s mantle?


    "Because it is your Lucky Chance."


    Eldest Brother looked at him tenderly. His gaze looked as if he could see through Ning Que¡¯s innermost thoughts.


    Ning Que muttered to himself over and over again. "Lucky Chance?"


    "What is a Lucky Chance? ording to our teacher, it means that it is something that happens without rhyme or reason but has causes and effects. He does not believe in it, but I do. I think that Master Lotus, the Divine Hall, the Deste Man heading southwards, these are all Lucky Chances. And it is so for you too."


    Eldest Brother said, "You entered the Academy because you wanted to. You came here because His Majesty needed you toe to the Wilderness. You could sense Youngest Uncle¡¯s aura, so you went. The night was arriving, and the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine that had been sealed for decades answered Heaven¡¯s call and opened once more. And you were there, so you went in. There is no need to exin this with reason, and it cannot be exined. However, there is both cause and effect in it. That is why this is your Lucky Chance and not mine or Jun Mo¡¯s or other Younger Brother¡¯s and Sister¡¯s."


    Ning Que looked at the mountain with the Snow-capped Peak afar. He thought that he had left Chang¡¯an when he was very young and had grown up amidst great sufferings on the south foot of the Min Mountain. He hade to the northern foot of the Min Mountain ten yearster as the youngest disciple of the Academy and had inherited Youngest Uncle¡¯s mantle. It seemed that something had yed a role in his life.


    He emerged from his thoughts after some time. He turned back to meet Eldest Brother¡¯s gaze that was as clear as water. He could not help being surprised and then grew sad.


    He did not mention the most secret parts when he told Eldest Brother about what had happened in the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. That was the reason for his sadness. When he had first met Eldest Brotherst spring in the Academy, he had feared Eldest Brother¡¯s cleanliness and aura that made one feel so close that one was unable to hide one¡¯s true thoughts. Now that he knew that the other was his Eldest Brother and would treat him well, he no longer feared Eldest Brother, but felt the struggle and pain within him.


    Should he tell Eldest Brother about him joining the Devil?


    The skies had darkened and the stars appeared and darkness was about to nket the Wilderness. The bonfire by the snow forest seemed even brighter. As the winter wind blew, the flying embers lit up the uncertainty on Ning Que¡¯s face.


    Ning Que lowered his head and looked at the bonfire before him. He did not speak for a long while. Then, he made up his mind and said tightly, "Eldest Brother, did Youngest Uncle join the Devil then? Was that why he was punished by Heaven?"


    Eldest Brother looked at him quietly and said, "That¡¯s right."


    Ning Que looked up and asked, "I have inherited Youngest Uncle¡¯s mantle..."


    Eldest Brother smiled. "The Great Spirit exists in the Haoran Sword. And the Haoran Spirit exists in the Haoran Sword. I have also studied the Haoran Sword."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "I didn¡¯t mean that."


    Eldest Brother seemed to know what he was struggling with. He waved his hand to stop him before continuing with a slight smile. "Youngest Brother, if there are things that you do not know how to face, speak with the teacher when you have a chance."


    ...


    ...


    -


    ...

 Chapter 318: Two Characters in the Carriage

    Chapter 318: Two Characters in the Carriage


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que vaguely understood what Eldest Brother had meant. However, he was not certain if what he had understood was what should be understood. A myriad of emotions rose within him and he fell silent.


    Eldest Brother looked at the expression on his face and could guess how he was feeling right then. He smiled and changed the topic. "Youngest Brother, would you be willing to give me the big ck umbre by your side?"


    Upon listening to this, Ning Que could not helpughing as he thought back to the time when he had just entered the Academy. He had met a schr in old robes then. The schr had said that he was willing to give up thedle by his side in exchange for the big ck umbre.


    Who would have thought that the schr would one day be his Eldest Brother?


    The night had grownte. The bonfire by the winter forest jumped wildly, like a passionate dancer clothed in red. The Big ck Horse that had gone for a walk at twilight had returned. His steps were lively and looked as if he was dancing.


    Apanied by the scent of grilled sweet potatoes and the crackling of firewood, the three and a horse spent a night on the empty filed by the winter forest. Ning Que and Shanshan¡¯s injuries were healing, and they didn¡¯t feel bad when enveloped in the warmth of the bonfire.


    They began their journey back to the south when they woke up the next morning. Eldest Brother had found an old carriage and a few nooses. Ning Que and Shanshan looked at the carriage before them and grew curious. However, they knew of Eldest Brother¡¯s capabilities and did not think anything else about it or ask any more.


    Only the Big ck Horse stared incredulously at the carriage that had appeared miraculously. He guessed that he had to shoulder the responsibility of getting everyone back on the long trek to the south and kicked his hoofs around in annoyance. However, his natural fear and submission towards Ning Que did not allow him to disobey the schr who had brought him from the northern foot of the Tianqi mountain.


    The wheels of the carriage made apletely different sound when it rolled over the hard frozen ground aspared to the loose snow. The Big ck Horse snorted and breathed out tufts of hot steam apanied by these sounds. The three seated in the old carriage gradually left the winter forest and made their way to the pce of the grasnd tribe in the south.


    Traveling could be interesting, but could also be boring. Even though Ning Que could not ask Eldest Brother about the internal cultivation practices within the Academy due to Shanshan¡¯s presence, there was sufficient time to ask him about the stories of the cultivation world.


    Ning Que had notpletely understood the cultivation world in the past. He did not know the origins of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, nor the history of the "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane. He did not know the Academy was a legendary Unknown ce, and did not know that he was the legendary World Wayfarer. He was the butt of many jokes because of this and had once put down the World Wayfarer before Mo Shanshan. It was like pping himself in the face.


    This had left an impact on his psyche and he craved to know more about the history of the cultivation world. He would not miss the opportunity to ask Eldest Brother who seemed to know everything about the world.


    Stories about the cultivation world continued in the carriage for the next few days. This was the perfect return trip to Ning Que, barring all the time he almost fell asleep because Eldest Brother spoke too slowly.


    They were nearing the Left-Tent pce of the grasnd and the Blue Water Battalion of the frontier fortress of the North of Yan Kindom was not far away. They would enter the borders of the Tang empire as they head further south. They would see Chang¡¯an and he would finally be able to eat noodles with fried eggs once they passed the second northern county through the north river. The life was good.


    The cultivation stories that Eldest Brother told Ning Que were not great secrets, or at least, they weren¡¯t to someone like Mo Shanshan, the Calligraphy Addict, who came from a famed sect like them. That was the reason why she was unable to be as excited as Ning Que as there were many stories that she had heard as a child repeatedly. When she looked at Ning Que¡¯s excitement, she really pitied and admired Mr. First of the Academy for his patience for his role as Ning Que¡¯s first teacher.


    Other than the asional thoughts, Shanshan was also in charge of watering and feeding the Big ck Horse. She would lean on the windows and cradle her chin in her hands and look out at the Wilderness in a daze most of the time. The winter scenery of the Wilderness was reallyckluster, and there were no green grass or clear water to look at, so her admiration of the scenery eventually turned into nk stares.


    Ning Que finally noticed the girl¡¯s oddness one day. He was startled by the faint troubled look on her beautiful face, and he asked, "Shanshan, what are you thinking about?"


    The two had long be close. Shanshan was no longer silent and girl who used her silence to hide her shyness and anxiety. She did not turn back to look at him when she heard that, but continued looking at the thick snow outside the window. She said softly, "I do not have any siblings or family, I wonder how it feels like to have one."


    Ning Que did not know how the Master of Calligrapher had epted her as a disciple and had never heard about her life. Herment had not only surprised him, but he felt slightly ashamed too. He thought about that rainy day at the Lin 47th Street and realized that he did not know what other wishes ckie had other than killing Xia Hou. He could not help thinking that his apathy in this lifetime did not really make him a good friend.


    After a moment, he emerged from his thoughts and smiled at Shanshan¡¯s beautiful face. He knew that the girl had such thoughts and troubles because of what she had seen by the Hn Sea.


    Mo Shanshan was the Calligraphy Addict and wasparable to the Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu, as well as Tang Xiaotang, the girl from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. However, the other two girls had a strong elder brother who had their backs. And when they appeared, nobody had noticed her existence. How did she feel? Was she envious, jealous, or sad?


    "I have once had a family, but never any siblings. So I do not know what having an elder brother is like. But if you have an opportunity to visit the one I have back home in Chang¡¯an, you can ask her."


    In order tofort her, Ning Que smiled and said, "But if you really wish to have an elder brother, I can be yours. I¡¯m not joking. Even if I can¡¯t get to Eldest Brother¡¯s state in the future, I will still be stronger than the other two."


    Mo Shanshan¡¯s long eyshes fluttered like willow branches floating on theke surface when she heard Ning Que mention "the one back home". She only turned around when Ning Quepleted his sentence. She looked at Ning Que¡¯s familiar and yet distant face and fell silent for a long while. And then she suddenly smiled and said definitely,


    "No."


    Ning Que was startled, and he scratched his head, asking, "Why not?"


    Mo Shanshan grinned and exined seriously, "Because you¡¯re too weak."


    Ning Que looked at the girl¡¯s beautiful face and pursed his lips. His heart wavered, again and again, thinking that her words were really hurtful to his self-esteem. Did he have to bear the name of the weakest World Wayfarer of the Academy¡¯s history for life?


    His long-suffering self-esteem was exceptionally fragile. He looked at Shanshan bitterly and said, "I believe that I will be as strong as those two one day. If you¡¯re not satisfied with that, I¡¯ll have Eldest Brother acknowledge you as a younger sister. Where would you find a stronger elder brother than Eldest Brother?"


    Eldest Brother had been looking at the two from his spot across them with a warm expression on his face. He looked like an experienced senior looking at his juniors. He could tell that there were many hidden meanings in the conversation but could also tell that neither of the two was sure of what they wanted. He ruminated over the situation for a moment beforeing to a decision.


    Other than thinking of the Academy¡¯s stand when making the decision, he also wanted to thank the girl for taking care of Ning Que. He liked the way how the girl thought and did things. It was also because he had some suspicions about a certain thing after traveling with the Headmaster of the Academy over the years, and also because of his past.


    Shanshan thought to herself that it was alright that Ning Que joked around with her since they were close, but how could he bring Mr. First, whose status was beyond reach, into the conversation, and even have him acknowledge her as a younger sister?


    The suggestion was so ludicrous that Mr. First would of course not bother with it. However, it wouldn¡¯t be interesting if he ignored it, how could they bore him? She felt even more troubled as she thought about it and red at Ning Que viciously. However, her attempt at making her eyes bigger to look scary did not work due to herzy eye. In fact, it made her look even more adorable.


    Suddenly, Eldest Brother looked at her warmly and said,


    "Sure."


    Silence fell in the carriage. Ning Que looked at Eldest Brother puzzledly. He did not understand how he had garnered such a response from his random joke. However, he would not assume that Eldest Brother was joking as well. Because... would Eldest Brother still be the Eldest Brother if he could joke around?


    Shanshan was speechless with shock and at a loss for what to do. She lowered her head, and hid her face with her hair, trying to hide the myriad of emotionsid bare on her face and the blissful expression that did not dare to emerge. She stared at the toe of her shoes and did not dare to move.


    Eldest Brotherughed at their reactions and added seriously, "It is my honor."


    Mo Shanshan finally understood that it was really happening. She lifted her head to look at Eldest Brother speechless from all the emotions welling up in her. She knew that it was a Lucky Chance to be able to acknowledge Mr. First of the Academy as her elder brother and that it would be very beneficial to her. A sudden fear struck her along with gratefulness as he looked at her with his warm gaze.


    Eldest Brother looked at her and asked calmly, "What are your ns next?"


    Mo Shanshan sat rigidly and wiped off the expressions on her face before answering solemnly, "I had wanted to meet my Senior and Younger Sisters at the Yan territory Military camp before heading back to the Great River Kingdom through the Capital Cheng and South Jin Kingdom."


    Eldest Brother grinned. "You have to pass through the South Jin Kingdom if you wish to return to the Great River Kingdom. But you do not have to pass through Capital Cheng. If youe through the Tang border and pass Chang¡¯an you can travel a little more. What do you think?"


    Mo Shanshan did not know why Mr. First had invited her to Chang¡¯an. She looked at Ning Que surreptitiously. Nobody knew what she was thinking about, but her face flushed prettily after that.


    "Are we going to his Chang¡¯an?" She lowered her head as she thought about it. However, what she said waspletely different. Her voice was softer than the mosquitos in the winter Wilderness. "I¡¯m just afraid that it¡¯d dy Mr. First¡¯s travels."


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 319: The One Addicted to Flowers Follows Silently

    Chapter 319: The One Addicted to Flowers Follows Silently


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Eldest Brother replied warmly, "We can change the way we address each other once we meet the teacher in Chang¡¯an. You can call me Senior Brother like how Youngest Brother does. Do not worry about my travel ns. As for me, cultivation is but a long journey. What¡¯s more, we have to head to Tuyang City, so it¡¯s on the way to Chang¡¯an."


    Ning Que listened to the conversation between the two and seemed to have sensed something. However, he was unwilling to think further subconsciously. And when he heard the mention of Tuyang City, he realized that they were about to meet Xia Hou, and could not help worrying.


    He did not speak up about his worries. For no matter how dangerous Tuyang City was, he could not convince someone like Eldest Brother to avoid it. However, his worries were evident to all.


    Eldest Brother said, "I did not know what had happened with the Horse Gang when we were at the Hn Sea. But now that I do, and what with him trying to steal the Tomes of Arcane, he has to answer for it."


    His speech was calm and warm, and the speed at which he delivered it was slow. The contents of his statement were simple and clear too, and the logic behind it was strong. No matter whether you belonged to the Haotian Taoism or the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, and no matter you were a royalty of an empire or a famed general, you¡¯d have to answer for being an enemy of the Academy.


    It had been long since someone had to answer for anything to the back of the mountain of Academy because it had been a long time since anyone had dared to be disrespectful to the Academy. Thest time anyone had to answer to the Academy was the numerous peach blossoms on the Peach Mountain of the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    ...


    ...


    The winds did not stop in the Wilderness. It swirled up a thickyer of snow, but had no ce to leave it but on the ground. The snow on the ground was still as thick and neither the rolling wheels or horse hooves could make too much of a sound as they ttened the ground beneath them.


    The wind and snow had stopped eventually one day. The sun peaked out from behind the clouds furtively, shining warmly on the ground. The urgent clopping of horse hooves could be heard from afar in the Wilderness. While the clopping of hooves was very clear, it was evident that there was only one rider. One could imagine the speed of the rider from the sounds of the hooves.


    The Big ck Horse pulled the heavy carriage through the snow with great difficulty. He lowered his head and smacked his thick lips despondently. When he heard the clopping of hooves, he raised his head suddenly and looked out far. His ck eyeballs rolled quickly, and he looked excited and exceptionally alert.


    A white shadow rushed out from behind the snow-covered hills like an arrow. It was an exceptionally handsome snow-white horse. It was the horse that had garnered attention at the horse racing event at the pce but had eventually lost pathetically to the Big ck Horse. There was a beautiful girl in leather robes riding it. She was the princess of the Yuelun Kingdom, Lu Chenjia.


    The Snow Horse had mud stains on its hooves and did not look as pure or beautiful as it once did. It was evident that they had traveled a long distance without time to rest. The girl on the horseback was just as beautiful, but there was sadness and worry etched on her face and she looked very haggard. The three Addicts were regarded as the most beautiful young cultivators of their generation. However, the Flower Addict was said to be the best looking out of all three of them. No one knew why she looked so haggard.


    The sprinting Snow Horse rushed out of the hills and saw the slow-moving horse carriage in the Wilderness. It slowed down and discovered that the horse pulling the carriage was the annoying ck trouble and could not help but whinny. It felt like rushing up to it and biting it, but the subconscious fear in it made it avoid the other horse. Her chaotic thoughts affected her actions, and her limbs which were weak due to their long travels gave way. It stumbled and barely avoided falling forward.


    Lu Chenjia¡¯s brows furrowed. She lifted the reins in her right hand and barely managed to control the horse. She was barely ten steps away from the horse carriage and could clearly see the people in it.


    The curtains of the carriage were lifted.


    Lu Chenjia looked at the window. Her gaze was as cold as the ice in the wild. Pain and hatred marred her ck pupils, and she no longer looked like the silent beautiful flower she once was.


    An average-looking schr with a warm expression looked at her when the curtains of the carriage window were liftedpletely. He nodded a greeting towards her, surprising Lu Chenjia. Then, she saw Ning Que and Mo Shanshan behind the schr.


    She could guess who the schr was. She sighed after a moment of silence and bowed politely. Then, she did not say anything, but kicked the horse¡¯s belly, nudging the nervous Snow Horse away from the Big ck Horse. She made her way to the depths of the Wilderness.


    "Where is she going? She¡¯s a youngdy and walking around in the Wilderness alone is really dangerous. She might be of high status and no one might dare to hurt her in the Central ins, but this is the Wilderness. Furthermore, she might encounter the dangerous blizzard. It would be a problem even if she were to meet with Deste Man. The Deste Man have no good intentions towards the Buddhist and Taoism sects."


    Ning Que looked at the Snow Horse disappearing into the distance and sighed.


    All were silent in the carriage as nobody replied.


    He was surprised, and realised that both Eldest Brother and Shanshan were looking at him with a myriad of emotions in their eyes.


    "What is it?"


    Eldest Brother smiled and did not say anything.


    After a moment of silence, Shanshan spoke up. "I realized that Ye Hongyu was right. You are indeed very shameless."


    Ning Que answered indignantly, "How was I shameless?"


    Shanshan lowered her head and said softly, "Chenjia is risking her life to search for her fiance in the Wilderness. She does not wish to meet us because she knew that you have injured Prince Long Qing severely. You know very well that you¡¯re the one who had caused all this, so why are you still worried about her?"


    Ning Que felt a little awkward and did not know what to say to disguise his shamelessness and decided to just shut up.


    It was at this time when the flurry of horse hooves clopping could be heard once more.


    They opened the curtains to see Lu Chenjia, the Flower Addict, heading back again.


    Lu Chenjia looked at Ning Que and suppressed the emotions bubbling up within her. She asked in a slightly hoarse voice, "Have you guys seen him?"


    Ning Que looked at the girl on horseback, and after a pregnant pause, he replied, "I haven¡¯t seen him since then."


    Lu Chenjia did not say who she was looking for and Ning Que did not mention when he hadst seen him. They both knew exactly what they were talking about. If they were too obvious about it, the hatred that was very well disguised between the two might end up in a true battle.


    Lu Chenjia stared at his face silently for a long while before she wiped her lips with her sleeves. Then, she dropped her arm to her side to hide the blood on it. She asked indifferently, "Could you please tell me where he might have gone?"


    Ning Que had shot through Prince Long Qing¡¯s chest on the snow cliff. And then, a bunch of things happened after that. Now that Ye Hongyu had met up with the Papal Cavalryman of the Divine Hall, this news must have spread throughout the Wilderness. The Divine Hall was furious, but the crux of the matter was that no one knew if Prince Long Qing was alive or dead.


    The one who was most concerned was, of course, his fiance. Lu Chenjia had ignored the objections and discouragement of Aunt Quni Madi as well as the others from the Divine Hall and had ridden the Snow Horse to the depths of the Wilderness.


    Ning Que looked at the Flower Addict calmly. He did not feel any guilt, and was, in fact, feeling rather confident and self-righteous. He ignored the hatred in her eyes and said, "We were too far away from each other then, so I do not know if he is still alive. You should ask Ye Hongyu about these things."


    Lu Chenjia¡¯s eyelids lowered when she heard his reply and the calmness of it. Then, she lifted the reigns of the horse and continued her journey towards the depths of the Wilderness. The figure of both horse and girl seemed extremely lonely and sad.


    ...


    ...


    In the foothills of the northernmost point of the northern slope of the Tianqi Mountain, ayer of thick snow covered everything between the heavens and the earth. It almost covered a simple leather tent. Other than the Deste Man, there was no one else who could survive in such cold conditions.


    There was a pair of father and son in the tent. They were thest of a Deste Man tribe moving southwards. They had justpleted their winter ceremony and were about to return to the gathering grounds of their tribe. However, they have to get rid of a certain trouble within their tent before they return home.


    That source of trouble was a young Central ins man.


    The young man had tattered clothes on, but the yellow tatters looked expensive. It could be guessed that he was no ordinary person. It was just that he looked too pathetic right now. The hole in his abdomen did not fester due to the cold, but had frozen into something like cured meat and looked extremely frightening.


    The Deste Man father and son had found him in the thick snowdrifts in the mountains. Although he obviously belonged to the Central ins, the pair had observed hunting traditions of the Deste Man and had brought him back to their tent and treated him.


    And even though the young man had regained consciousness, he still behaved as if he was a dead man. He stared at the linoleum on the ceiling of the tent with wide eyes and did not speak no matter what the pair asked him.


    The pair could not be bothered and continued to enter the Snow Mountain daily. They searched for the trace of young beasts and worked atpleting the task for the winter ceremony. They did not do anything more than just feeding the young man with a bowl of meat soup when they dragged their weary bodies back to the tent.


    It could be that Haotian was watching over him, or that he had an odd vitality hidden in him, the young man did not die from this. He had only just be oddly skinny. His eyes sunk in and his bones popped out. The face that had once been as beautiful as the gods in heaven had gradually grown ugly and dark.


    The young man sat up one day, and he panted in pain. He touched the gaping hole in his chest and pulled out a hunting knife from the corner of the tent while the pair were not paying attention. Then, he stabbed at the strong Deste Man father viciously.


    The Deste Man father did not expect that the young man he had saved would try to ambush him. He could just barely avoid the knife as it came at him. It was lucky that the man from the Central ins had been severely injured and was tired and weak. He had difficulty just holding on to the hunting knife. Furthermore, the Deste Man¡¯s skin was as hard as steel, and the de had only made a slight scratch on him.


    There was a loud p, and the little Deste boy who was about to turn 12 hit the young man from the Central ins with a solemn expression. Then, he started to curse loudly. The boy¡¯s voice was childish and sharp, and his pronunciation of the Central in¡¯snguage was slightly awkward. His cursing was as clear as the shattering of an ice stick, and did not sound dirty at all.


    The young man from the Central ins did not listen to the cursing boy. Heid on the ground and coughed painfully. He looked at his trembling hands, and the darkness of his eyes looked as if it were candlelight that could extinguish at anytime.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 320: Calling for Love in the North of the Wilderness

    Chapter 320: Calling for Love in the North of the Wilderness


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The tent was deadly silent. The young man looked at the hunting knife on the ground silently. His face was clear of any emotions. After a long while, he seemed to have recalled something, and a dim brightness returned to his eyes.


    He propped himself up with difficulty and looked at the Deste Man father and son. He allowed his usual strict and sacred expression to return to his face and said seriously, "So, ambushing someone isn¡¯t very interesting after all."


    He said the ludicrous statement seriously and sternly. His tone was like how it had been for the past ten years. It was calm and warm, coupled with pride and indifference from being of a high status.


    However, he was no longer the beautiful god-like creature of the West-Hill, but a filthy vagabond. The look was dissonant and ridiculous on his face.


    The Deste Man father and son found him funny, but did notugh. The Deste Man boy picked up the hunting knife from the ground and walked up to him, wanting to cut off his head like how he would cut off the head of a wild beast in the Snow Mountain.


    The noble young man who had ended up in the Wilderness finally felt death looming upon him when he saw the nearing hunting knife. It was the same feeling he had when he felt that arrow impaling him on the snow cliff.


    He was no stranger to this feeling. He had spent the first half of his life before a fire pit and had watched the fear and grief of numerous prisoners in the prison. It was just that he had never associated the emotion with himself.


    The young man from the Central ins was not afraid of death. At least, he thought that he wasn¡¯t. But he did not want to die at the hands of a boy from the Deste Man tribe. This death was too ludicrous and not befitting of his station.


    He did not die, because the father had stopped his son.


    The father shook his head at the son and lectured, "Since we Deste Man have saved him, there is no reason why we should kill him. Furthermore, it is obvious that this young man from the Central ins is brain damaged. It is not auspicious to kill a lunatic."


    The Deste Man boy asked, "What shall we do? We can¡¯t keep a lunatic around."


    The Deste Man father exined, "Since he wants to kill us, we can¡¯t keep him around anymore. Let¡¯s throw him out to fend for himself. Yama will decide his fate. This would be fair."


    It was extremely cold in the tent with the whistling wind. The young man was severely injured and was on the verge of dying. He would die within moments without the warmth of the tent and bonfire.


    The Deste Man father knew this very well. But no matter howpassionate the Deste Man were, they were not dumb. The father brought the young man out like how one would carry chickens, and tossed him into a pile of snow.


    ...


    ...


    The young man, was Prince Long Qing.


    He had been shot by Ning Que¡¯s Primordial Thirteen Arrow when he was on the verge of breaking the Knowing Destiny State on that snow cliff of the Tianqi Mountains. He had almost died from it, but what was even more serious, was that it had destroyed his cultivation states and confidence. History had proven that there were dire consequences if one was disturbed by anything when breaking the realm. They would experience a bacsh from the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    Ning Que¡¯s Primordial Thirteen Arrows were no ordinary objects or evil. Their impact on Prince Long Qing was not just the bacsh from the Qi of Heaven and Earth. The single arrow had resulted in him not being able to cultivate for the rest of his life. In simpler terms, he had be a pile of useless firewood from a cultivation powerhouse about to enter the Knowing Destiny State.


    There were people who were alive, but already dead. They lived in a despair that was worse than death.


    Prince Long Qing who was on the snow cliff that day had been someone like that. When the Tao Addict had pulled him back from the edge of death, he had fallen from the snow cliff like a zombie and made his way to the northern Wilderness woodenly.


    The reason for his heading to the north was because the dark night was longer there. Prince Long Qing felt that the light of Haotian had abandoned him, and chose to die in the dark. This way, he wouldn¡¯t dirty the eyes of Haotian.


    It was freezing cold and snow fell from above. He felt that he would be a corpse in the snow any minute now. However, it could be due to the pure aura that Ye Hongyu had infused into him, or the pill from the Zhishou Abbey, but he did not fall. Instead, he walked in pain for many days before losing consciousness in the valleys.


    He would have be a corpse in the snow of the northern Tianqi Mountain foot should nothing have happened. The pure aura in his body would dissipate and the effects of the pill would fade. Nobody would discover his death even a thousand yearster when the ice melts to reveal the frozen body. Would anyone remember a man called Prince Long Qing who had existed thousands of years ago?


    Prince Long Qing felt just as lost after being rescued by the Deste Man father and son. However, his thought on seeking death had faded. Anyone who had experienced a struggle between life and death would feel a stronger attraction to the human realm.


    He felt goodwill towards the Deste Man father and son who had saved him. However, hatred for the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and contempt for the Deste Man was deeply ingrained within him. The more gratitude he felt, the more painful he felt as well. He had finally decided to attack the Deste Man duo after a long contemtion and say what he hadn¡¯t had a chance to say.


    "I forgive you for your sins on behalf of Haotian."


    Prince Long Qing¡¯s mind and logic were scrambled. He hung in a state suspended between life and death, between light and darkness, between gratitude and hatred, between a glorious memory and a pathetic existence. And it was precisely because of this, he had made an inexplicable decision.


    Prince Long Qing finally sobered up after he was thrown out of the tent. He remembered many things. He was no longer the West-Hill son of the heavens who held peach blossoms in his hands. He was no longer the Prince of the Yan Kingdom who had led a sheltered life. He no longer had the right to shoulder the hope of reviving the Yan Kingdom. He was just a useless piece of cultivation firewood whose Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi had been destroyed.


    Hey in the icy cold pile of snow as images of the past shed through his mind. He did not know if it was because of the cold or the images, but his body stiffened up, and his gaunt and dirty face paled even further. The light in his eyes dimmed.


    The once Prince Long Qing had be a down and out beggar. He awaited death in the deste snow ins quietly. It was luck, or not, depending on how one saw it. Yama who controlled the darkness and death seemed to hate the faint light emitting from the beggar and refused to ce a sweet kiss on him.


    Prince Long Qing sat there until dawn arrived. His eyshes fluttered, and the snow that had gathered on it fell together with theshes. He looked at his chest, and discovered that he was not dead. Then, he stood up slowly and continued his journey towards the far-off north that was still shrouded in darkness.


    His expensive outer coat finally gave way under the snow and cold wind. They fell off his body in tatters. The royal bright yellow had long faded. What was left on his body, were just body-hugging under robes. It was sttered with ck blood and mud stains. It was so dirty one could not make out if it was blood or mud.


    The zing sun shone on the top of his head at noon. However, he did not feel the heat at all, as if he was living in a false existence. He raised his head weakly to look at the sky and squinted with difficulty before moving forward with all the strength in his body. There was an odd feeling where his footnded. When he looked down, he realized that his shoes had torn and a shard of ice had wedged deeply in the sole of his foot. However, he could no longer feel pain.


    Prince Long Qing trudged on weakly with a thin shirt on his back, naked soles, and a severely injured body. He did not know where he was headed but followed his instincts. He had no destination in mind, but he walked towards the north where the darkness seduced him like how the light once had.


    He had walked for an unknown period of time. However, he was weak and walked slowly, so he did not know how muchnd he had covered. He did not feel hunger nor pain. The desires of humans had faded when they encountered hopelessness and death. He had to continue walking towards the north, and while he did not have to eat, he had to prop his weak body up. He broke a tree branch and used it as a cane.


    It was difficult for trees to survive in the Far North of the Wilderness. There were no strong tree branches, and the thin one that bore his weight as he walked on for a few thousand feet broke into pieces. He fell heavily to the ground, and old blood that was grey in color spilled from his lips. He mbered up with difficulty and gazed at the far and endless Wilderness woodenly. He sighed softly and sat down.


    He did not know how many days he had walked for and how many miles he had covered, and yet, he did not find death. He did not make it to the dark north either. He felt a trace of regret as he looked at the sky. The orange in the sky was quickly reced by the dark night.


    He sat in the cold Wilderness for an entire night. And when the day arrived, the first ray of sun touched the snow ins and his lightly shuttered eyelids. He had lost his eyshes and the skin on his eyelids looked exceptionally shiny.


    "It still turned into day in the end." He looked at the first ray of light from the east and muttered hoarsely, "It¡¯d be great if it never turned light again. Why do I fear the light so much now?"


    The frantic clomping of hooves could be heard approaching from the south.


    Prince Long Qing looked towards the east dazedly, ignoring the sound approaching his back.


    The sound of cluttering hooves approached. Lu Chenjia leapt off from the back of the Snow Horse and rushed at him from a distance. Then, she knelt down slowly before pulling him into an embrace.


    The Snow Horse swayed and almost fell onto the snow ins. It had cantered for thousands of miles without resting at all. No matter how strong she had been, she was at his weakest state at this moment.


    Lu Chenjia embraced him lightly, touching his face with hers. She did not dare to hug him tightly, but was unwilling to let go, as if afraid that the man she loved dearly would disappear if she did and walk towards the darkness.


    A smile finally appeared on Prince Long Qing¡¯s face after many days. He looked at the rays of light from the east and took in the scent of the person beside him. He said hoarsely, "Don¡¯t you feel like you¡¯re hugging a corpse?"


    Lu Chenjia lowered her head and grinned, "If you would turn around to look at me, you¡¯ll find that I¡¯m very ugly right now too."


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 321: We Might as Well Not Fight or Meet

    Chapter 321: We Might as Well Not Fight or Meet


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    She was the Flower Addict, the most beautiful of the three Addicts. When she heard the terrible news, she did not hesitate to change into a pair of regr robes and rode on her white horse to the Wilderness. She did not rest for thousands of miles and her face was caked with ice and dirt. She looked extremely haggard, andpared to her usual attractive appearances, she was indeed ugly.


    Prince Long Qing did not turn around to look at her face. His gaze moved from the sunlight in the east to the dark night in the north. He could smell the faint stench from her and his heart twinged. He knew that his fiance was a stickler for cleanliness and could imagine how difficult her travels were as she sweated even in the freezing winter.


    He was suddenly annoyed due to the emotional pain and physical weariness. He lowered his head and looked at the ugly wound and said indifferently, "I had a dream once."


    Lu Chenjia did not know what he had wanted to say. She just held him in a loose embrace and pressed his gaunt and dirty face against hers.


    "On thest few steps when I mounted the back of the mountain at the Academy, I dreamt deeply. I faced one of life¡¯s most difficult decision in that dream, but I did not think for too long. I reached out to hold the Taoist Sword by my waist."


    Prince Long Qing looked at her hands that encircled his chest and said hoarsely, "Then, I pulled out the sword and plunged it into your chest. I did not turn around even though you looked at me so sadly."


    There was a sudden assault of wind. Lu Chenjia¡¯s body stiffened slightly, but her hands that embraced him tightened slightly as well. She could hear emotions that frightened her in that indifferent voice of his.


    "It hurt me as well, but I did not regret it. I believe that it was the right choice."


    Prince Long Qing lifted his hand with difficulty and pointed to the gaping hole of a wound on his chest. He said, "I spent many years in that dream, and then, a wooden sword pierced through my chest, just like how I had pierced your chest with a sword in my dreams earlier. I did not die. A flower grew from my chest. It was crafted from gold and was so beautiful, it was perfect. It reflected the light of Haotian and was so dignified."


    "The gold flower on my chest was thepensation that Haotian had given me for giving up everything for him. I held the Taoist Sword in my hands and walked on the path of light with the blooming gold flower on my chest. However, what made me sad and regretful, and even angry, was that I had paid such a heavy price in my dream, and yet, I did not make it to the end. Why was that so?"


    Prince Long Qing¡¯s eyes reflected the rays of light from the east that was rising slowly. They looked like ghost-fire, devoid of any human emotions, and were filled with despair and questions about life.


    "Why was it so? Was absolute light absolute darkness? But everything I¡¯ve seen and what my Taoist Heart had felt was light! Why did Haotian put me through such turbulent trials? Does he think that my Taoist Heart is not determined enough? My performance since I was a child was perfect, why did I have to endure such setbacks?"


    The light in his eyes faded and was reced by an indifference that was reminiscent of the darkness that first met light in the north. He fell silent for a moment beforeughing maniacally. He lifted his right hand and covered the gaping wound on his chest that looked like the lips of a dying old man. He said, "It wasn¡¯t until Ning Que shot an arrow through my chest on the snow cliff, and when there was no blooming of a gold flower and only the blossoming of blood flower filled with despair, did I realize. I realized that there was no perfect existence in this world. All that pride and glory in the past were just footnotes for the final destruction. Just like how the more beautiful the carving on the structure of the Taoist temple was on the Peach Mountain, the more sad one would feel when it falls."


    Lu Chenjia¡¯s hands which embraced him started to tremble. She could not understand what Long Qing was saying. While his words were clear, the meaning behind them was pieced from shattered logic, some of which werepletely iprehensible. One could only feel the despair and the resignation behind them.


    Prince Long Qing said slowly and forlornly, "I know that you truly pity me, but I no longer have the right to ept your pity now and forevermore. So don¡¯t pity me, but just talk to me."


    He pushed Lu Chenjia¡¯s hands away and said, "Do not worry that I will kill myself. Even though there is nothing that I will miss in this world and I have lost all hope, I will not seek death. That is because Haotian seems to think that I have not been punished or tortured enough and does not want me to die."


    Prince Long Qing was very weak due to his injuries. When his fingers touched the back of Lu Chenjia¡¯s hands, she did not resist, but simply loosened her hold on him.


    Lu Chenjia knelt by his side and looked at his face dazedly. He was no longer handsome, and his side profile was exceptionally cold and ugly. There were no tears or sadness in her eyes, as she looked on, but only love and pity that came from the bottom of her heart.


    "You¡¯ve said that nothing was perfect in the world, that means that there is nothing that cannot be changed. No matter your injury or your cultivation in the future, you will definitely be able to return to normal. The Hierarch Lord would definitely be able to heal you. I have also asked Aunt for the way to the Xuankong Temple, the Bhadantas from the Buddhism Sect would definitely have a way to treat you."


    Prince Long Qing replied, "When a man is on the brink of death, his Taoist Heart would apprehend many things. I have never been as weak as I am now, but I have also never understood myself as well as I do now. When my sense of perception was destroyed when I broke the realm, I had lost all hopes of continuing with cultivation in this life. The Hierarch can¡¯t, the Divine Priest of Light in the You Prison can¡¯t, and not even the silent guy in the Buddhism can."


    "Do not hold on to false hopes. Nobody can change my fate."


    He looked at a random spot afar and said, "I should have forgotten the four words that the Headmaster of the Academy left me on the rock outside the Wooden Door to the back of the mountain of the Academy. But I thought of them again randomly days before when I was on the brink of death. The fours words read, "A Gentleman shouldn¡¯t fight." I did not understand the true meaning of these words then, but thought that I knew them very well. That was why I sneered at them and fought even more. I have finally understood today, that the Headmaster of the Academy was talking about my character. And a person¡¯s character would decide his fate."


    "I have been fighting my entire life."


    "Even though you all do not know the true rtionship between myself and my brother, Zong Ming. But I was indeed fighting with him, and everyone knew about it, that we were fighting for the throne of the secr world."


    "I fought in the Revtion institute. I fought for the position as the first disciple, because I did not want to be bullied andughed at should the Divine Lord who loved me lose power. I fought for credit."


    "I fought in the Judicial Department department as well. If I didn¡¯t fight for power with an opponent like the crazy Tao Addict, would I be able to of equal position as her? What right would I have to be seated above God Moyu in the future?"


    "I have once shone brightly, I have once won. I thought that they were all spoils from my fights. Now that I am at the bottom of this pit of despair, did I understand that the Headmaster of the Academy had already seen through everything. He had seen that my sins and despair were the results of my fights.


    "I might as well not fight."


    Lu Chenjia knelt beside him weakly and listened to his mutterings with a lowered head. The strands of hair flying on her forehead moved like the lifeless grass of the Wilderness. Her face was pale and colorless.


    Prince Long Qingughed dazedly, his pale smile looking devoid of hope. He said, "Did you know? I once thought that I was really the defender of the light. No matter how many people I have killed and how much bloodshed I have caused, my Taoist Heart was still clean because I was assured that I was doing Haotian¡¯s will."


    "Since I was the defender of the light, and since I was doing Haotian¡¯s will, I would, of course, have to be a perfect person. That was why I took great care with my appearance, my clothing and the way I spoke. I rarely drank so I wouldn¡¯t lose control. I treated others warmly and was strict with myself. I was particr about my disposition, and even though I dealt with the annoying remnants of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, I have never attacked them on the sly. I had obviously reached the back of the mountain of the Academy first, but because I wanted to show that I was gentlemanly, I waited a long time for Ning Que. And in the end, what greeted me was a shameless enemy."


    Prince Long Qing looked at the faint sky and said, "I thought I would definitely die after I got injured. However, for some odd reasons or another, I didn¡¯t. I thought, could it be that Haotian had not abandoned me and that he was just steering me in another direction? So I tried to walk towards the darkness. I didn¡¯t care about anything else anymore. I gathered all my energy and courage and raised that hunting knife. I tried to strike at a little Deste Man boy who was only 12. But do you know what had happened? I didn¡¯t seed."


    "I was willing to abandon the light and had shamelessly surrendered to the darkness. But when I walked to the other side, why did I not seed?"


    A fearful expression crossed Prince Long Qing¡¯s eyes as he muttered, "This is not the story of a believer of Haotian, or a story of someone who had fallen to the dark. It is not a story full of pain and hope. It is just... a story of a man that had been forgotten by Haotian."


    "The struggle between light and darkness is indeed bitter. Surrendering to the darkness is even more so. But it is so full of vitality. It is alive. But what about me right now? I wanted to surrender to the dark, yet, I was refused. I wasn¡¯t even qualified for Haotian to abandon me. I am just a tiny creature left in the Wilderness and forgotten by Haotian."


    He coughed painfully, and scrunched up like an old man, as if he was about to be one with the pile of snow in the Wilderness.


    Lu Chenjia looked at him dazedly. The sadness disappeared from her gaze as she slowly stood up and said calmly, "I¡¯m going to kill Ning Que now."


    "Is there a point?" Prince Long Qing struggled to stand up. He turned around and cradled her haggard but beautiful face. He rubbed his dirty fingers on her skin and said, "There is no point."


    Lu Chenjia looked at the face before her and realized that it looked foreign to her. Her heart twinged painfully and she bit her lips lightly. She knew that she would never be able to bring Prince Long Qing out of the wilderness if she did not get rid of the despair and demons that gued his heart. And she knew that there was no way for him to return to the man he once was.


    She had known Prince Long Qing for many years. From the pce of the Yuelun Kingdom to the Revtion Institute. They had been in love for many years and he knew very well of the burning passion beneath the Flower Addict¡¯s cold and aloof outward appearance. He could guess what she was about to do and backed away from her, creating a distance between the two. He bellowed with an unusual coldness in his expression, "Don¡¯t try to knock me out."


    "I am a useless man, but I do not wish to ask you not to pity me and to stay away from me like what other useless people would say. Can¡¯t we just have a simple conversation? Why do you have to do such disgusting things like what happens in the theatre? Do you want me to cry like an idiot?!"


    Prince Long Qing¡¯s voice was hoarse as he bellowed at her angrily.


    Lu Chenjia looked at him with a pale face. She held her hands at her chest as if she was begging, or as if this action would sooth the pain in her heart, or as if she was proving to him that she wouldn¡¯t knock him out.


    All was silent in the cold Wilderness.


    After a long moment of silence, Prince Long Qing calmed down. His face that had once been perfect was devoid of vitality and hope. He spoke in a slow manner and in a cold and despairing tone, saying, "Don¡¯t pity me. don¡¯t make me feel as if you are pitying me. We might as well not meet if this is so."


    Lu Chenjia did not say anything, but lowered her hands that were on her chest.


    Prince Long Qing turned around and picked up the branch that had broken into two and continued walking towards the north.


    Lu Chenjia fell silent for a moment before following him towards the north.


    Long Qing was severely injured and walked really slowly. He did not walk more than ten feet even after a long time. He fell thrice along the way, and the tree branch was tossed far away during his fall. He did not have the energy to pick it up, and the wound on his chest tore open again. Blood seeped through his thin shirt and froze into pearls of blood in the winter winds.


    Lu Chenjia followed behind him. Her face grew paler, but she did not move forward to help him.


    Prince Long Qing was tired. He sat down on the hard ground of the Wilderness and picked up a handful of snow from the ground and stuffed them into his mouth. Then, he tried to stand up and continue towards the north. However, he did not manage to stand upright before falling to the ground heavily once more.


    He struck the ground beside him angrily. However, he was so weak, he did not even manage to make the snow on the ground flutter.


    Lu Chenjia watched him silently from behind.


    Long Qing knew that she was behind him. He panted for a moment before yelling, "I have said my piece. You¡¯ve already seen me, so why are you still following me? I will die before you if you follow me anymore."


    Lu Chenjia¡¯s body trembled before she caught herself. A spark of determination crossed her face. Even the most beautiful flower had thorns, and she had a threshold to her patience.


    She looked at the back of the man who was more like a dog and yelled, "Then I will watch you die!"


    Prince Long Qing stiffened.


    Lu Chenjia¡¯s face was pale, but she was determined not to cry. She yelled, "We have been together for so many years, but you have refused to allow me to see you clearly until the very end. Will you not let me watch you die? I really want to see you. If you want to die, die before me. I will bury you and marry someone else when I return to the Central ins."


    Long Qing fell silent beforeughing maniacally, "You¡¯re really one crazy woman. Even if you wanted to marry someone else, no one would marry you."


    Lu Chenjia shouted, "I would marry someone else. You¡¯d be dead by then, so you don¡¯t have to worry."


    Long Qing was silent, then, he continued northwards.


    Lu Chenjia did not say anything else, but continue to follow him northwards.


    The snow horse trailed behind them tiredly.


    From dawn to dusk, the winds in the Wilderness started once more.


    The piercing cold wind.


    The falling snow.


    They walked on together.


    ...


    ...


    --

 Chapter 322: The Prince and the Beggar

    Chapter 322: The Prince and the Beggar


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    He continued to march against the north wind on this endless journey.


    Prince Long Qing traveled alone in the blizzard while Flower Addict Lu Chenjia silently followed him from a distance. The Snow Horse slowly relieved fatigue by kicking its hooves in silence. They walked from day to night and then from night to day. They were slowly losing the sense of time and distance. The dark and heavy night color in the northern Wilderness still looked so far away, as if they hadn¡¯t moved a single inch thus far.


    During the journey, Prince Long Qing resulted to chewing a handful of snow whenever he was thirsty and swallowing several mouthfuls of saliva when he was hungry. The more he walked, the weaker he became, and he felt like he would fall anytime and never stand up again. Lu Chenjia was also waiting for that moment in silence. But even though he fell many times, he would stand up again every time. It was inconceivable how one with such a thin and frail body could possess such vitality.


    Silently looking at the figure about 100 feet away, Lu Chenjia kept a certain distance from him because she knew he wouldn¡¯t like it. She would also chew a handful of snow when thirsty and take food from horseback when hungry. When she was looking at that figure who was growing weaker by the minute due to hunger, it took her a lot of effort to suppress the urge to offer some food.


    They walked through the entire blizzard with howling wind rushing past them, yet the two people and one horse were still in the middle of the colorless Wilderness. The majestic Tianqi Mountains still could be faintly seen behind them, as if they couldn¡¯t escape from the desperate world no matter how they hard strove forward.


    One day, Prince Long Qing suddenly stopped walking. He looked at the endless darkness in the north, and his shriveled fingers began to tremble slightly and the branches he had been collecting for the past few days fell. The branches made a sound as they hit his feet. He lowered his head to take a look at his grey-white toes, and they didn¡¯t seem to be bleeding from the hit.


    He raised his head and once again stared at the darkness of the north. He then slowly turned around and shouted at Lu Chenjia who was about 100 feet away in a hoarse voice, "I¡¯m hungry."


    Lu Chenjia¡¯s eyes became wet and she almost cried. She forcibly calmed down and took out dry food with her shivering hands. After softening the food with warm water that she secretly prepared every day, she held the dry food in front of him.


    Without saying any words, Long Qing just looked at her rough, callus filled palms which were no longer delicate as they were before, and hurriedly swallowed the food. He rubbed his throat with satisfaction before setting off again.


    But this time, he, without any sign, reason, and words, stopped trying to walk northward. He thought he was abandoned by Haotian, and he also gave up chasing the darkness. Instead, he disappointedly turned around and walked towards the Central ins.


    Lu Chenjia looked at his retreating back with shock, and her newly-born happiness gradually became cold, because she was sure that Long Qing didn¡¯t decide to regain his hope. It was his real desperation. He had even lost his hope to the darkness. Yes, he was alive, but was this man the Long Qing she once knew?


    She led the Snow Horse and followed after Long Qing. After furtively observing his face, she lowered her head and said in a low voice, "Actually, returning to Capital Cheng is also a good choice. At the Peach Mountain in the past, you often said you missed the imperial garden. How about we go there together?"


    Prince Long Qing looked at her with his cold eyes. His stare no longer had that authoritative and proud look to it. Instead, it was cold due to his self-abandonment. He ridiculed her, "Why are you so stupid? What can we do in Capital Cheng? To be assassinated by those officials loyal to Chong Ming? Or to be sentenced to death by my father for political reasons?"


    Lu Chenjia was shocked, but she quickly came to her senses. She realized that if Long Qing returned to Capital Cheng of the Yan Kingdom, he perhaps wouldn¡¯t even be able to see tomorrow¡¯s sunrise, because he was just an ordinary person now, and not that young West-Hill figure supported by the Divine Hall. How could he survive in such a dangerous game of thrones?


    "The Hierarch Lord has always thought well of you, and besides, the God of Judicial Department may back you..." She cautiously said.


    "Stupid! You really think Peach Mountain is where the light and holiness lie?"


    Prince Long Qing looked at her and sarcastically said, "What appreciation? What value? Ye Hongyu won¡¯t lie and she doesn¡¯t need to tell the lie. I¡¯ve been shot useless by Ning Que, so what could I do for the Divine Hall? You really think my handsome appearance could help the Divine Hall attract more believers? Those old men in Peach Mountain fear nothing except Haotian. How would they have such cheap sympathy as yours?"


    The words were mean and harsh, but it couldn¡¯t be refuted. Lu Chenjia just lowered her head and murmured, "How about going to Yuelun Kingdom if we don¡¯t have other choices? You know I have got a garden in Jing Mountain, and I¡¯ve always wanted you to visit."


    She immediately realized her mistake when she uttered the two words of Yuelun Kingdom.


    As expected, Prince Long Qing¡¯s face became more indifferent and even some resentful emotion flowed from his eyes. He stared at her face and resentfully said, "I didn¡¯t go northward because you, an irksome woman, kept following me. Yama couldn¡¯t see my sincerity due to your annoying action. I don¡¯t want to die, so I have to head south. It¡¯s very simple, but it has nothing to do with you. Thus, you¡¯d better shut up if you¡¯d like to give me some food."


    Lu Chenjia slowly clenched her fists and tightly pressed her lips. Looking at her own shadow and that man¡¯s shadow opposite to her, she found the two shadows under the setting sun of the Wilderness unable ovep each other in any way.


    They continued on their journey, but this time, to the south.


    The blizzard had stopped, and there were fewer beast traces on the way. The longer they walked southward, the nearer they were to the bustling and the civilized world. However, the two people and one horse in the Wilderness always maintained a wary distance, so close yet so far.


    ...


    ...


    The Yan Kingdom was situated to the north of the maind and had a border with the Left-Tent pce on grasnd. What¡¯s more, Tang Empire, a terrible existence, was beside it. Therefore, its national strength couldn¡¯t be counted as a powerful one and its people weren¡¯t exactly rich and happy. Now it was right at the end of the year, and the country was in the midst of a harsh and cold winter. The homeless beggars without food and clothes could be seen everywhere in the streets of Capital Cheng.


    A weak and lean beggar might arouse people¡¯s sympathy, but the appearance of one hundred beggars would only trigger people¡¯s disgust and fear. What all the owners of the restaurants in the capital saw was streets full of beggars, and had long since grown weary of them. They naturally wouldn¡¯t even bother to offer porridge-like their peers in Chang¡¯an. Therefore, whether a beggar could be full in Capital Cheng depended on his or her ability.


    A beggar, who was as thin as a ghost, was holding a broken bowl while he aimlessly walked through the streets of Capital Cheng. He didn¡¯t attract much attention from the others. Though he was very familiar with the street view, it didn¡¯t cause catch attention. His attention waspletely absorbed by the delicious smell of the chain canteens and restaurants. Pitifully and quite obviously, he was unlike those old beggars who had their ways of earning their share of food. His stinking coat and messy, dirty hair made it impossible for him to enter those ces.


    Three consecutive restaurants drove him out without hesitation. The waiter of thest restaurant even rudely beat one of his legs with a stick, before kicking him out to the middle of the street.


    That thin beggar¡¯s face was full of dirt, and his age couldn¡¯t be told from his current appearance. With his hands on his waist and the broken bowl in his hand, he stood in the middle of the street and loudly cursed the restaurant. All kinds of filthy words even more disgusting than the dirt on him came flooding out his mouth. He didn¡¯t stop and only scrammed away when the waiter rushed outside with a stick in hand.


    At the other side of the street, the Flower Addict, Lu Chenjia pulled her Snow Horse and sadly looked at the scene. Her right hand tightly held the horse¡¯s rein, and there was a little crystal liquid forming in her eyes, but she could hold the tear because she knew hope still existed.


    On the way back from the Wilderness, she had tidied herself and dressed herself in clean clothing. However, she still looked very gaunt and pitiful due to her unhealthyplexion and thin figure. If her Snow Horse wasn¡¯t an obviously-precious object that most likely belong to an important figure, many city gate soldiers and bludgers would have probably molested her.


    These days she saw Long Qing anonymously returning to the capital of Yan Kingdom and watched him roaming every street and alley, the bottom of secr world. Also, she witnessed the scene of him being beaten by the waiter of the restaurant with a stick. When watching him struggle to survive, she wanted to give him a hand countless times, but she didn¡¯t dare. On the way back from the Wilderness, Long Qing stopped epting her food after he saw other people in the world. Every time she wanted to help, he would scream crazily and even threw everything beside him at her, no matter it was stone or mud, except that broken bowl of his.


    Lu Chenjia¡¯s sadness couldn¡¯t be described by mere words. Her sorrowid in Long Qing¡¯s current situation, in his driving her away, and even in her finding that the only thing that Long Qing could do now was just throwing her with stone and mud, just like a naughty child and a real beggar. Every time she realized that Long Qing would also be aware of the cruel fact, she couldn¡¯t imagine how painful and afflictive it would be for him, a sensitive and proud man.


    Prince Long Qing, who had now be a beggar, eventually received half of a cold and hard steamed bun from a woman¡¯s basket at dusk. Hecently put it into his pocket, thought of that half urn of cabbage soup hidden in his dwelling, hummed a song that he heard from a peer of the Revtion Institute of West-Hill in early years, and then walked out of the city in his pair of hole-filled shoes.


    There was a Taoist temple just outside the city, but Prince Long Qing didn¡¯t bother entering when he passed by. He didn¡¯t even nce at it. In the past, if the Taoist temple knew Prince Long Qing was there, they definitely would have emptied and cleaned the temple, and invited him into the temple like weing a forefather. However, when that little Taoist knew he wanted to lodge in the temple several days ago, the little Taoist¡¯s eyes were full of disdain and contempt for the prince.


    So instead of lodging in the Taoist temple, Long Qing resorted to taking refuge in an abandoned Buddhist Temple outside the city.


    The current Long Qing was very unkempt, with disheveled hair and a dirty face. His knotted hair couldn¡¯t be untied at all. Luckily, it was winter now, so the wound in his chest and abdomen didn¡¯t rot and no mosquitoes and insects followed him around. Otherwise, other beggars in the abandoned temple wouldn¡¯t have allowed him to stay.


    After he returned to the abandoned temple, Long Qing found that he wasn¡¯t too hungry. At least he wasn¡¯t as hungry as that time when he asked for food from Lu Chenjia in the Wilderness, so he decided to save that half of a steamed bun for tomorrow. Covering his slightly-bulged abdomen in satisfaction and imagining the taste of the steamed bun softened by the cabbage soup tomorrow morning, he fell into sound sleep.


    Lu Chenjia led her Snow Horse and silently looked at the light from that ruins of a temple at night. She knew there were many beggars inside and they were probably showing off their achievement today. After a short silence, she turned around and left, but she didn¡¯t go far. She decided to rest at a spot in a forest not too far away from the abandoned temple.


    She thought Long Qing didn¡¯t know that she was still trailing him, because she, after all, was a mighty cultivator in the upper level of Seethrough state while he was just an ordinary person. However, she forgot one thing. As a couple of lovers who had known and lived with each other for so many years, she was able to sense his location without using Psyche Power clearly. It had be a kind of habit or instinct.


    Luckily or rather, unluckily, however, Long Qing also felt the same connection with her.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 323: Bloody Bread

    Chapter 323: Bloody Bread


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In the morning, Lu Chenjia woke up from a nightmare and saw Long Qing¡¯s face.


    That face was so strange and dirty and so close to her that she felt very sad and scared. His eyes, which were no longer clean and bright but covered with dust, especially looked so cold and made her feel very ufortable.


    "I¡¯m leaving now," she said slowly.


    "You don¡¯t have to go. I¡¯ll go." Prince Long Qing kneeled by her side and cried, "Please, stoping. I¡¯m a useless man now. My begging in the street is not a kind of cultivation and I don¡¯t expect any magical blessing from Haotian. I¡¯m just scared to death and not brave enough to face the people or any matters either. I¡¯m just a rat in dark and I miss the days of being a tiger. I¡¯m living on rotten meat and I just want to be alive."


    Lu Chenjia looked at him and thought of that man before who was perfect and young. She touched his head and could not help crying out, "You don¡¯t have to live in the dark. You can live in a better way. At least you should live with me."


    Prince Long Qing lowered his head. It seemed that he did not want her to touch his hair. He begged her and said, "But I don¡¯t want anyone to know that I¡¯m alive, and if I were to stay with you, they would know it. So, let me be in the dark because no one there knows who I used to be."


    Lu Chenjia stared at him and gently touched his face, which used to be so familiar and so attractive to her.


    "You are the only one in the world who knows that I am alive. If you forget about me, I would be a dead man. I dreamed that I stabbed you with my sword, and if I could, I would do it without a second thought because I don¡¯t want to be that Prince Long Qing again. I just want to live a simple life."


    After saying this, he stood up and walked out of the woods without looking back once. The sun rose and shined on the dpidated temple. He stooped and went in. He stared at the wall that was covered with snow for a long time until he felt hungry, then he went to his bed to look for something to eat.


    But nothing was left there. The half bread and half pot of cabbage soup were gone. They even took the precious pot away.


    Long Qing turned around to look at the beggars in the temple and shouted, "Who the hell took my bread. Give it back to me! Where is my urn? Where is it?"


    Then he saw twocent beggars whose mouths were greasy and he rushed toward them immediately. He tried to get his bread back but he was too badly injured to fight back and was easily beaten down. Thest thing he could do was rolling on the ground painfully.


    He coughed violently with blooding out his mouth. The beggars in the temple looked at him without any mercy or pity in their eyes but took pleasure in his misfortune.


    He wiped the blood off of his lip and climbed toward his bed in difficulty. He put his head between his legs and murmured painfully, "I could have anything I wanted in the pce and be respected on Peach Mountain. Who would care about that damn half bread? You can grab my bread but you will never get any food from the pce. You son of a bitch."


    Lu Chenjia covered her mouth tightly and could not help crying. The tears fell from her pale face like dewdrops. Up until now, she had never cried, even when she was tortured by Long Qing both mentally and physically from the Wilderness to Capital Cheng.


    However, after seeing this, she could not let Long Qing hear her crying. After a moment, she turned around and left the temple like a ghost with her Snow Horse. She was so sad that she was not even thinking about where she should go.


    Soon after she left the temple, a new battle took ce inside of it. Maybe the beggars did not like Long Qing, who was more dirty and putrid than them, or he did not get along well with them, or maybe his murmurings enraged them. Regardless, they again beat him badly.


    A deep cut was made in his face and the blood washed away the dust that was on his face. Although he still had perfect skin, his face was eventually ruined.


    Long Qing touched his face and then discovered the blood on his hands. Heughed crazily. He tripped one of the beggars with his right leg and took out the broken pot to maliciously smash his face.


    A sharp piece of porcin deeply cut into the beggar¡¯s face and stuck in his eyeball. His blood spilled everywhere and looked very horrible, making the other beggars scream.


    Then, Long Qing quickly cut his throat with that broken piece from the pot.


    "He killed that man!"


    "Someone got killed!"


    The beggars surrounded Long Qing with weapons in their hands and shouted, but no one dared to stop him because he was so calm and had no expression on his face. His madness scared them off.


    Long Qing did not stop even though the beggar had died after being kicked several times. He kept punching his face so many times that the face was smashed even though his fists were weak. The blooding out from that face washed that damaged eyeball out of its eye socket.


    The expression on Long Qing¡¯s face turned strange and his eyes were sox without any light or shadow in them.


    He rode on the dead beggar¡¯s body and cried out, "The bread was so hard that it had to be swallowed with cabbage soup. Don¡¯t you know that? Why did you eat it without the soup? Why did you have to follow me? You ate my bread and I had nothing to eat. No one could give me bread anymore."


    His crying resounded all over the temple and he sounded crazy.


    The beggars who were not brave enough to watch this had all gone by now, while the others unwilling to leave their shelters were hiding in the corners. They stared at the madman and someone pleaded with him, "Listen, listen, we drank the soup, but the bread was kept because it was too hard."


    Long Qing heard this and looked at him, asking, "Where is it now?"


    The beggar pointed at the dead man under Long Qing and said, "On his body."


    Long Qing started to search the body and, finally, found that half bread. He stared at it and suddenly immersed the bread into the blood on the ground and asked, "Is it softer if it¡¯s soaked in blood?"


    No one dared to answer him. They watched him put that bloody bread into his mouth. They were terrified but they also felt a little strange. They could not help thinking that could they live better lives if they followed this crazy man.


    But what they did not know was that it was not important for Long Qing even if he would be a beggar-prince in the future because, in the past, he had been a real prince.


    ...


    ...


    Recently, people in Tuyang City, which was located on the northeast frontier of the Tang, were a little tense. It had be worse after the thousands of armored cavalry came back from the Wilderness. Even the wolf packs on Min Mountain were scared and did not howl at night.


    It was all because of the army in the city. People had heard that the Military Ministry in Chang¡¯an had interrogated the general about his military orders. They wanted to know why he did not report for this important military operation and they wanted an answer now. But they received nothing from the General¡¯s Mansion since General Xiahou had been sick and the grand red doors had not opened for a long time as well.


    One day, when the doors were open, the people knew that something important was about to happen next. They were wondering who would being out soon.


    A decrepit horse carriage slowly ran into the city under the gaze of the people.


    While the carriage was about to fall apart at any time, the horse in front of the carriage was so gant, huge, and cute when it was shaking its body. People in the frontier had seen so many horses but not one like this. They were all curious about what kind of person would drive a carriage with such a fine horse.


    In the carriage, Ning Que pulled up a corner of the curtain and saw a beggar under the city wall. He thought for a moment and said, "We never intended to be beggars no matter how difficult our lives were."


    The Eldest Brother looked at him and asked curiously, "Why not?"


    Ning Que looked at the broken bowl in front of that beggar and said, "Because food obtained through begging is easy to be stolen and always tastes bad. I would rather steal."


    Mo Shanshan did not get his point and thought seriously, "Are thieves and robbers more understandable and sympathetic than beggars?"


    "That¡¯s the point."


    Ning Que let the curtain down, looked at her, and said, "Understanding and empathy are so useless. You have to turn these emotions down if you want to stay alive in this dangerous world. I always consider those people as the biggest losers who, once in trouble, would feel lonely and desperate. They only could cry and hurt their own people."

 Chapter 324: The Darkness That Was Like Blood in Tuyang City

    Chapter 324: The Darkness That Was Like Blood in Tuyang City


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que and Prince Long Qing were often brought up together in the same conversation by those in the cultivation world since they ascended the mountain behind the Academy. Even though most people thought that Ning Que was not as qualified, many have considered the two as the legendary sworn enemies.


    In Ning Que¡¯s eyes, sworn enemies were a totally ridiculous term. For example, many thought that Master Lotus and Youngest Uncle were sworn enemies, and Master Lotus might even think so deep in his heart, which was why he was jealous and hated Youngest Uncle. However, Youngest Uncle was not even interested in the whole situation. In the end, it was just a matter of one¡¯s state. As long as one of the two was strong enough, he would have the right to disregard the other¡¯s struggles.


    Why would you turn back to look at your friend and an enemy used-to-be on the path of cultivation who had expended many times of your efforts when you were already standing beneath the green pine at the highest peak?


    Ning Que who was seated in the carriage at this moment did not know what Prince Long Qing had encountered. He knew that Prince Long Qing was crippled after he had shot the Primordial Thirteen Arrow. He was definitely crippled even if he were not dead. Prince Long Qing had grown up in the pce and was the handsome student of the West-Hill who had been protected by Haotian Taoism. He would not be able to disregard difficulties like Ning Que himself and meet obstacles withughter and coldness before surpassing them.


    He knew this very well, which was why he did not treat Prince Long Qing as a goal or an imaginary enemy after he had reached the peak of the back of the mountain of the Academy. No matter what happened to Prince Long Qing in the future, he believed that he would be able to defeat him many times over if he had defeated him once.


    Ning Que lifted the curtains once more and looked at the foreign Tuyang City. He had once passed through the city in autumn together with the students from the Academy as they headed to the frontline to practice. However, Xia Hou had not met with the students of the Academy and they had rushed by in a hurry. He did not take notice of the scenery of the city then and looked at it with interest this time as it held a special ce in his heart.


    Tuyang City was where Darkie had once lived and fought and Darkie was his first true friend in the first half of his difficult life. He looked at the grains lining the sidewall, and the strangely arched walls of the city. He recalled the letter he had received from a distant ce back when he was in the City of Wei and remembered that Darkie had once mentioned these ces to him and also what he had done there.


    Darkie was dead. He had died in that cold spring rain beneath the grey walls opposite the Old Brush Pen Shop. Ning Que looked at the scenery outside the windows and thought of the person he would never meet again. He felt rather odd.


    Eldest Brother and Mo Shanshan looked at him silently and could tell that his emotions were all over the ce. However, they did not know the true reason for it and thought that it was because of their imminent visit to the General¡¯s Mansion to meet Xia Hou. They thought that he was nervous thinking about what had happened with the Horse Gang on the grasnd and the Tomes of Arcane.


    "The Military Ministry can confirm Lin Ling¡¯s identity." Eldest Brother patted his shoulder and said warmly, "No matter whether Xia Hou would admit to what he had done, he would pay for his subordinate¡¯s sin of gathering the Horse Gang on the grasnd to steal the army provisions."


    Ning Que smiled. He did not really understand why Eldest Brother had brought him to Tuyang City, and was also not very certain what he had meant about paying for one¡¯s sins. He had already gathered enough evidence regarding the Horse Gang on the grasnd. However, it was not sufficient to trouble Xia Hou. The attempt at stealing the Tomes of Arcane by the Hn Sea and the urgent move to the Tang¡¯s frontier guards was not a sufficient reason to make him pay either.


    The main gate of the General¡¯s Mansion was wide and heavy. The long streets were clean, and a long line of guards stood respectfully at the side. Compared to this, the horse carriage looked unkempt and deplorable.


    The horse carriage did not stop outside the gates but drove into the General¡¯s Mansion instead. The guards were all very surprised and wondered which important person hade. General Xiahou was one of the most important men in the army, and not even those from the pce had the right to drive into thepound.


    The person in the carriage must be really important to not stop outside the General¡¯s Mansion. Someone like Eldest Brother would rarely appear in the secr world, and even when they did, they did not appear for long. Should someone find out that he hade to Tuyang City, it would mean bad news for both the imperial court and Xia Hou.


    The horse carriage continued into the depths of the General¡¯s Mansion and stopped by a patch beside the Winter Courtyard. A guard named Gu Xi invited the three into the courtyard. Ning Que looked at the man¡¯s back and shook his head suddenly.


    General Xiahou met with them at the gates of the courtyard. His expression was calm, but nobody knew how he truly felt.


    Some time had passed since the incident by the Hn Sea. Now that they have met again, both parties havee to a silent agreement not to mention about the stealing of the Tomes of Arcane. They just greeted each other as if this was the first time they met.


    There was a simple feast in the Winter Courtyard. There was no rumored monkey¡¯s head or other cruel and fancy dishes, and neither was there the legendary killing that General Xiahou used as a test for his guest¡¯s courage. Instead, there were only elegant dishes and three-grain porridge on the dark table. They ate in silence by the table.


    Ning Que had a bowl of porridge and picked up some salted vegetables with his chopsticks. Then, he had another bowl of porridge and ced more salted vegetables in his bowl. He fiddled with his chopsticks for a moment before he raised his head suddenly and looked at Xia Hou who sat at the head of the table.


    A word that interrupted the silence would indeed be like thunder.


    And a re in the silence was like lightning.


    Staring at one¡¯s host was very impolite. As the Youngest Brother in the Academy, behaving in this manner when his Senior Brother was present was rather unreasonable. However, Ning Que had done it because he really wanted to look at this person.


    Eldest Brother looked at him oddly before he smiled and continued eating. He seemed to feel that the porridge was much more interesting that Xia Hou, his Youngest Brother and the atmosphere in the room.


    Mo Shanshan lifted her head and nced at him puzzledly and worriedly. Her gaze drifted to the icekes and frost covered trees of the Winter Courtyard when she realized that Ning Que was ignoring her.


    Xia Hou kept his head down and continued eating slowly and solemnly. It was as if he did not feel Ning Que¡¯s sharp eyes carving on his face as he kept his expression cid.


    Ning Que looked at Xia Hou silently.


    Xia Hou waspletely different from the middle-aged man by the Hn Sea. His expression was just as cold, his brows were just as dark and thick, and his lips were vibrant. However, his domineering aura was hidden beneath his ordinary outer robes from the world.


    The seemingly ordinary outer robes were not an armor nor a military uniform. However, they were royal robes that the Tang emperor had put on him personally when he had returned victorious from war. His wearing the robes meant that he wasn¡¯t just a powerhouse at the Peak state of Martial Arts or even a bigwig of the secr world. He was the man who held the most power over the military.


    Ning Que thought, that it would be difficult to have such a bigwig pay even if it was to the Academy.


    Xia Hou continued eating his porridge slowly and solemnly. He was even slower than Eldest Brother. It was until a long timeter did he finallyplete his meal and raise his head slowly. He looked at Ning Que and asked, "Young sir, why do you keep looking at me?"


    Ning Que smiled, and said, "Because the great general is powerful."


    Nobody really believed what he said, but nobody would tear down this flimsy excuse either. Unless, of course, should Second Brother suddenly appear in the Tuyang City, or if someone was interested in judging the hypocrisy and impoliteness of both parties.


    The dishes were removed and expensive ck tea from Yanxi was brought to them. Xia Hou looked at Eldest Brother and said, "My sons are all useless and are suitable to present to you. I shall not call them forth to meet Mr. First."


    Eldest Brother smiled lightly and sipped his tea slowly. He had never been willing to speak when it wasn¡¯t necessary because he knew that he spoke slowly and nobody liked to listen to him.


    Xia Hou looked at Mo Shanshan over his cup of tea and asked, "Are you the Calligraphy Addict?"


    Eldest Brother put down his teacup and smiled, "I have acknowledged Shanshan as my younger sister."


    Xia Hou squinted in astonishment. He did not understand why the young Talisman Master from the Great River Kingdom had such a great Lucky Chance. After a moment of silence, he congratted the two.


    Mo Shanshan knew that the conversation that would follow in the Winter Courtyard would be about the internal matters of the Tang empire. She stood up and bowed and nced at Ning Que before leaving to feed the Big ck Horse.


    All were silent in the Winter Courtyard. There were only the scouring sounds of wind blowing the snow off the branches, like how arrow feathers brush by bowstrings or like mud sshing on hard armor on the battlefield.


    Xia Hou looked at the tea in his cup that was as thick and dark as blood. He fell silent for a long time before he tossed his hand back and drank the tea in a single gulp. His robes fluttered in the wind and he looked casual and at ease, as if he had just drunk a hot cup of liquor.


    The tea entered his throat like blood. His voice became chillier with an intent to kill.


    "When Mr. Ke entered the Front Gate with his sword, my brothers in the Enlightenment Doctrine either died or sought death. They were disced and led miserable lives. However, the Enlightenment Doctrine had always emphasized that the rules were set by the strong. That was why we did not hate or resent Mr. Ke. I was still a child then, and away from the strict governing of my family and teacher, I felt like a fish jumping over the sea and that the flower had bloomed on the shore astride. I was especially happy. I headed south to the Central ins with my sister and met many great friends after entering the army of the Tang and was even happier. "


    Ning Que did not look at him, but at his cup of tea before him. The tea in the cup reminded him of many things. He thought about that stone lion, the blood. He thought of another General¡¯s Mansion in the General¡¯s Mansion he was in now. Then, he was startled back into the present world by the voice. He frowned slightly, as he did not expect Xia Hou to openly admit his identity as one from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine right from the start.


    "Those from the secr world call the Enlightenment Doctrine as those from the Devil. I am what¡¯s left behind the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Mr. First is one of the core disciples of the Headmaster of Academy, and would certainly not mind. However, those of the secr world would. I have guarded the frontiers of the empire ever since my sister entered Chang¡¯an. I have worked hard and be a general. However, the unexpected had happened, and her identity as the saintess was exposed. The West-Hill Divine Pce made a fuss about it. The Hierarch Lord sent an edict to the imperial court and the three Gods headed to the Min Mountain to bring me down."


    Xia Hou looked at the ck tea in his cup indifferently. After a pause, he said, "I had anticipated the imperial court¡¯s protection then, or that the Headmaster of the Academy would speak up for me. But the imperial court did not make any moves, and the Headmaster of the Academy did not say anything. I could only kill Mu Rong and betray the Enlightenment Doctrine, bing a visiting professor of the Divine Hall and turned into a dog of Haotian. I did all of this just so that the West-Hill Divine Pce would not hurt the girl in Chang¡¯an because I was of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 325: You Are Not Old, but Please Retire

    Chapter 325: You Are Not Old, but Please Retire


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The most powerful man in the world raised his head and looked at Eldest Brother. He said warmly, "Could I ask, Mr. First, that if you were me, what would you choose to do?"


    Eldest Brother did not fall silent or smile. Instead, he looked at a tree in the Winter Courtyard silently, as if he was thinking about what had happened to him many years ago. He said, "If I were you, I would have killed as many as I could."


    Xia Houughed out loud when he heard his reply. "Hahaha, Mr. First, you are a person of high status, and you have the backing of Headmaster of the Academy. Would there be anyone who would dare disrespect you in this world?"


    Suddenly, his expression calmed and he said coldly, "But I am just a member of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, and my sect had long been destroyed. I am a dog that had lost its home... and became a dog to another household. I had only one choice."


    "It is difficult to be a dog too."


    Xia Hou adverted his gaze and struck the table lightly with his fingers. He said, "Dogs have owners, and while I look like a strong dog that can bite anyone I want, I do not know who my owner is."


    "I am a visiting professor at the West-Hill Divine Pce. I am the general of the Tang army. I cannot betray either the Divine Hall or the Tang empire. So what benefits can I bring to them?"


    "I can only continue fighting and conquering. I have gained territory for the Tang empire and destroyed enemies so that the emperor will not suspect me. I have to listen to the secret orders of the Divine Hall at the same time and help them settle issues within the empire that they cannot so that they will continue to trust me."


    "Living like this is really miserable. His Majesty would not trust me fully and the Divine Hall kept me at arm¡¯s length. Meanwhile, disciples of the Enlightenment Doctrine like Tang wanted to kill me. That¡¯s the first thing they will do when they enter this world."


    "I am a traitor. I became a traitor the moment I left the Front Gate. From this side of the river to the other one and then turned back. This isn¡¯t the switch between light and darkness but the attempt made by the darkness to continue living in the brightness of the light. It pants and searches in the light for hope and a chance to live on."


    "Sometimes, I think that death is not what is truly scary. What is scary is the past that weighs down on your back. The past that you do not want people to know about. When you carry the past for too long, they begin to grow on your body and in your heart. There is no way to lighten that burden, and you can only dream of pulling them out of yourself."


    "We always have to look forward. It was obvious that His Majesty didn¡¯t want to use me anymore when he sent the Academy to the frontier fortress to practice. If there is no use for a dog, it could be killed anytime. I have only managed to stay alive in the Central ins for so many years and attained my position through many struggles. I do not wish to be killed."


    "How can I avoid being killed? I can only do that if I¡¯m no longer a dog. How can I stop being a dog and be the owner of that dog? You have to have power. Many say that I, the general, am the most powerful man in this world. However, you know very well that this power is but just a power of the world and is not anything special. I still have a chain tied around my neck."


    "That was when I thought of the Tomes of Arcane. I wanted to gain power that is not of this world. I want to break that chain and not have to struggle between the two shores of the river and gain true freedom."


    Eldest Brother and Ning Que did not interrupt his long speech, but listened silently. They heard the muddled history and they listened to the general¡¯s recounting of his hidden anger and resentment, and they listened to the struggles that not many knew of.


    Eldest Brother looked at him and asked gently, "Why are you telling us this?"


    Xia Hou smiled and drank his cold tea. He sighed softly and continued, "I do not say this in hope of changing anything. It is just that these words have been tucked in my heart for many years and there was no opportunity to tell anyone about this. There are not many who are qualified to listen to what I have just said, and Mr. First, you are undeniably qualified for it."


    Eldest Brothermented, "Since it will not benefit you, why bother saying so much?"


    Xia Hou looked at him with grave eyes. He said, "I have once thought of asking to meet Headmaster of the Academy then and ask him to help me escape the pain and confusion. I thought that the Academy was the legendary ce that would teach anyone no matter their background. Since they could produce someone like Mr. Ke, it wouldn¡¯t be hard to help a disciple of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. However, Headmaster of the Academy refused to meet me, but only had His Majesty send me two words. I still do not understand what they mean."


    Eldest Brother asked, "What were the two words?"


    Xia Hou replied, "Do Nothing."


    Eldest Brother fell silent for a moment before smiling. There were many conflicting emotions hidden behind his smile. There was pity, some regret, and undisguisedpassion.


    "Judging by your recent actions, it seems that you have really yet to understand what Headmaster of the Academy meant."


    "Please, enlighten me."


    "Doing nothing, means that nothing should be done. General, your thoughts, and actions have been shown ever since you came to the Tang after leaving the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. You have used your martial strength and violence in war so that you could stay firmly entrenched in the great river and to not bring trouble to the person behind you. But have you ever considered, that things might have gone better if you had not done anything right from the start?"


    Eldest Brother spoke slowly and raised his hand to stop Xia Hou from speaking. He continued, "Let¡¯s talk about what has happened to saintess Murong Linshuang. The deceased emperor was very angry after receiving the letter from the hierarch and was prepared to meet at the West-Hill for war. But you were worried that person¡¯s identity would be revealed and killed Murong in order to gain the trust of the West-Hill. How could you then me the empire for not helping you?"


    "Nothing is permanent in this world. If you meet it with indifference and do nothing, perhaps all your troubles that followed the incident would not exist. It was a pity that you were too worried about that person and continued making mistakes and you are now at a stage where these mistakes are irreversible."


    Xia Hou clenched his fists tightly and said sharply, "But Headmaster of the Academy did not say anything then!"


    Eldest Brother regarded him coldly and said in a grave manner, "What right do you have to have the teacher speak up for you? How did you know that he would not if the Divine Hall had really acted? Do not forget, that if it were not for the fact that teacher had agreed, your sister would not have be the empress of Tang!"


    All were silent in the Winter Courtyard. Everyone in the General¡¯s Mansion had already been sent away and did not hear what Eldest Brother had said. Ning Que, who had understood what Eldest Brother had meant, lowered his head and stared at his teacup unmovingly. Only his trembling right hand revealed how he truly felt.


    The empress of Tang was Xia Hou¡¯s younger sister! She was of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine as well!


    ...


    ...


    A thin branch in the depths of the Winter Courtyard seemed unable to withstand the atmosphere or the snow on its branches. It broke loudly andnded in the snow. Eldest Brother pushed his teacup further away and raised his head to look at Xia Hou calmly, "If you¡¯re done, I shall continue with something you do not like to hear."


    Xia Hou squinted slightly. His fingers that had been striking on the table had long stopped.


    Eldest Brother asked, "Whose orders did the Horse Gang ambushing the grain army on the grasnd act on?"


    Xia Hou answered, "Mine."


    Eldest Brother asked, "The Tang cavalry of over a thousand by the Hn Sea, who sent them?"


    Xia Hou answered, "Me."


    Eldest Brother asked, "Who wanted to kill my Youngest Brother on the mountain path?"


    Xia Hou replied calmly, "Still me."


    Eldest Brother fell silent. Then, he looked at Xia Hou and said, "If so, you should retire."


    ...


    ...


    Was General Xiahou old?


    Whether it was the civil and military officials in Chang¡¯an or the emperor, or the hundreds of millions of civilians in the world, or the Great Divine Priests of West-Hill Divine Pce, nobody would think so. Xia Hou was at the Peak state of Martial Arts at the peak of his life. There were no signs of withering in both his energy and will. Many thought that he would take the ce as the strongest general in the world once General Xu Shi steps down due to his old age and ailing body.


    However, the ordinary looking schr dressed in old robes and tattered shoes had told him that he was old right here in the general¡¯s own mansion in the quiet and cold Winter Courtyard, and had told him to retire.


    Numerous lead-colored clouds gathered upon the skies of Tuyang City and loomed over the Winter Courtyard when the words left Eldest Brother¡¯s lips. The sky grew gloomy and the trees in the courtyard seemed to grow older before their eyes.


    ...


    ...


    Xia Hou squinted at Eldest Brother.


    He asked only one question after answering many. "Is Mr. First going to interfere with court matters?"


    Those qualified to know about the inhabitants of the back of the mountain of the Academy in the Tang empire knew that the Academy was forbidden from interfering with politics. This was the iron-d rule that Headmaster of the Academy had set for himself and all his disciples of the back of the mountain of the Academy. If there was no such rule, neither the teachers of the Academy or His Majesty in the pce would know for sure who ruled the empire.


    Even though there were many in the secr world who have not heard of Headmaster of the Academy, nobody would dare to defy him. To be more urate, the court officials, taoist priests, and monks who knew him would not dare to defy him. The Peach Mountain at the West-Hill Divine Pce going bald in a day that year was proof enough of this. Fortunately, Headmaster of the Academy traveled around the world from time to time, and it seemed that he did not speak without thinking.


    Headmaster of the Academy had said that those from Academy could not interfere with court affairs. Over the years, numerous court officials have been cultivated, and the Academy had never interfered with the court affairs even though they were most qualified to do so. Those from the back of the mountain of the Academy was no exception.


    Today, Eldest Brother had said that he would have the Xia Hou, the Tang general, retire. Was this considered interfering with court affairs?


    Xia Hou had managed to respond indifferently as a general of Tang and facing the pressure of the Academy. He was indeed a powerhouse at the peak. He possessed the confidence and strength that not many did and was a power that inspired awe in others.


    However, just a sentence of Eldest Brother was sufficient to destroy all the strength that Xia Hou possessed.


    "Headmaster of the Academy did not allow Academy to interfere with court affairs because he thought that they were not important. Cultivators should try their best to stay away from it. He wouldn¡¯t even blink even should the empire fall. You are a visiting professor of the Divine Hall and should know about what happened to him on the Peach Mountain. That¡¯s why you should know what are important matters to him. You secretly gathered the Horse Gang in the Wilderness behind the backs of the imperial court and the Divine Hall is but a small matter. You tried to steal the Tomes of Arcane is also trivial. You were a disciple of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine does not matter. What you have done over the years are but trivial matters to Headmaster of the Academy. But your attempt on the life of the Youngest Brother in the Academy is an important matter."


    Facing major events with silent grace was a quality that every powerhouse should possess.


    However, in the face of the important matter to Headmaster of the Academy, even the strong Xia Hou had to consider seriously. He did not think for long. The ck tea that was the color of blood in his teacup had not even cooled. He looked at the Winter Courtyard that had apanied him for many years with regret.


    "Since I am old, I shall retire."

 Chapter 326: Everyone Has a Chain on His Neck

    Chapter 326: Everyone Has a Chain on His Neck


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    There were many issues that seemed heavy before a decision was made. However, once the decision was made, the weight bearing down would disappear within seconds. The lead-like clouds that hung over the courtyard dispersed.


    That was how Xia Hou felt at the moment. The moment he mentioned that he was retiring, he felt much more rxed than before. His sense of perception and his eyes brightened, and he realized that this was the right choice after all.


    He had struggled between the Taoist and the Devil empires. Even someone who was as strong as him would grow weary in both body and spirit. He had been thinking long and hard about how to get out of the situation at hand and had only understood now. He understood that abandoning all wealth and glory and living like how the Headmaster of the Academy had mentioned, about not fighting and not doing anything, and retiring before he got old, was an ending that everyone could ept.


    No matter the West-Hill Divine Pce or His Majesty in the pce of Chang¡¯an, they would both allow him to leave the squabbles of the court and the cultivation Jianghu world. Furthermore, Mr. First hade personally to Tuyang City, and he indirectly represented the ideas of the Academy.


    "Mr. First is indeed generous." Xia Hou looked at Eldest Brother and said, "I will resign from all my official positions when I return to the capital at the end of autumn."


    Eldest Brother shook his head and said gently, "It¡¯s toote."


    Xia Hou squinted. He looked at Eldest Brother¡¯s grave expression for a while before saying in a low tone, "Mr. First, I am still the general of the empire. There are many people who count on me, and I have to arrange their affairs. Furthermore, the war between the Central ins and the Deste Man would begin after the spring. I need to watch over the war from Tuyang City."


    Eldest Brother fixed his gaze on him, as if he wanted to know the reason behind why Xia Hou had to watch over the battle.


    Xia Hou lowered his eyes and he fiddled with the teacup. He said, "After all, I was once a Deste Man."


    Eldest Brother stood up and walked towards the door. He stopped before he stepped out and said, "You¡¯re not allowed to go to West-Hill."


    ...


    ...


    The study of the General¡¯s Mansion was deep within the Winter Courtyard. There were many different types of weapons on the wall and not many books or calligraphy tools. A deathly and chilling aura reverberated in the room. A bleak ray of light shone through the window and it was instantly repressed.


    Gu Xi, a military adviser, stood by the study desk silently. He clenched and released his hands that were hidden in his sleeves. After a certain amount of struggling, he said hoarsely, "As your subordinate, I¡¯m unwilling."


    Xia Hou looked at the letter on his desk. The ink on it had yet to dry. He said with an indifferent expression, "I am but just a mortal without the Tomes of Arcane. As mortals, we have to resign to fate. Retiring is one of the best fates that I can see. I am writing a letter to Chang¡¯an stating that I am willing to resign from my positions and retire. I believe that His Majesty will give me face. I trust that Xu Shi or the Military Ministry will settle the remaining affairs in the army. As for you, if you¡¯re worried that the West-Hill Divine Pce will seek for you, you may retire with me."


    A touch of affection appeared in Gu Xi¡¯s eyes that changed into sentimentalism. He said self-mockingly, "I was sent by the Divine Hall to keep watch on you. But who would think that after so many years, we have truly be master and servant. General, you may retire, but I have to return to West-Hill and do my duties. I don¡¯t know if we will ever meet again."


    Xia Hou looked at him. "Do not worry too much. His Majesty and the other officials in Chang¡¯an would not do anything to me as long as I am willing to part with my military power peacefully. As for the Divine Hall, this is, after all, the suggestion of the Academy. They would not fight with the Academy for a retired general."


    Gu Xi nodded.


    Xia Hou looked at the faint light that shone through the window silt and fell silent for a long time. Then, he furrowed his brows slightly and murmured, "Mr. First of the Academy is just as generous and benevolent as I expected. But I wonder why Mr. Thirteen, the one called Ning Que, looked at me with such a strong intent to kill. He wants me dead really badly."


    The chilling deathly aura in the study grew with his words.


    As a powerhouse at the Peak state of Martial Arts, Xia Hou¡¯s senses were scarily sharp. He could sense the true intent of Eldest Brother. And of course, no matter how Ning Que hid it, he could sense the intention to kill in his gaze. Furthermore, at the feast in the Winter Courtyard, Ning Que had not hidden his true intentions.


    Gu Xi looked out of the window and said in a low voice, "I have once reported to you, that Lin Ling seemed to have uncovered something on hisst trip to Chang¡¯an before his death. It had something to do with the death of censor Zhang Yiqi. The evidence pointed at Mr. Thirteen. Lin Ling¡¯s attempt at killing him on the grasnd probably had something to do with it."


    Gu Xi lowered his eyes and continued, "14 years ago, the betrayal of Xuanwei General was notpletely settled since His Majesty had returned to the capital before he was expected and the West-Hill Divine Pce had dusted their hands off it. I can guarantee that there were survivors. I wonder if this Mr. Thirteen.. has something to do with that."


    Xia Hou was well aware of the results of the investigation made by the Psyche Master, Lin Ling, in Chang¡¯an. He was also very clear that other than the betrayal of Xuanwei General, the only event that could link the censor Zhang Qiqi and the people who died bizarrely was the massacre case in the Yan territory.


    After a moment of silence, he said, "I have killed many in the world over these years. There are even more people who would wish to kill me to seek revenge. Mr. Thirteen¡¯s hatred towards me is not very important. His Majesty and the Divine Hall are willing to allow my retirement. And the Academy had made their stand. No one would dare to kill me and no one would allow such a variable to exist."


    Gu Xi thought of the gaze that he felt when he had entered the courtyard. He considered it silently before saying, "Mr. Thirteen is odd. We should at least check him out."


    Xia Hou gave him a look of irony and asked, "What can you do even if you find out that he is that person?"


    Gu Xi answered, "Even if the imperial court would not interfere in this matter, they would have a way to settle it."


    Xia Hou said indifferently, "Lin Ling had tried to kill him on the grasnd. Even though I did not know about that, I will be held ountable for it. I tried to kill him by the Hn Sea for the Tomes of Arcane. That¡¯s the second time. Do you really think that the Academy would give me a third chance to try to kill a core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy?"


    Gu Xi replied after a moment of silence. "Perhaps there would still be many chances. The imperial court and the Academy cannot keep holding you ountable. That is very unreasonable."


    Xia Hou looked at him silently and did not speak.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que stood by the windows and looked at the snow covered trees in the courtyard. He wondered how much money from the military allowance that the imperial court gave to the Northeast Border Military Xia Hou had kept in his own coffers to build such a beautiful garden in the far frontier fortress. He wondered if the Minister of Offerings that the West-Hill Divine Pce gave him had been turned into the fake mountains in the garden.


    While his expression remained calm as he thought about it, his heart lingered on the conversation in the Winter Courtyard. And the shock that he received would not dissipate in a short amount of time.


    Xia Hou, a disciple of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, was a general who held important military power in the Tang empire. He had even be a visiting professor at the West-Hill Divine Pce. He was willing to be a dog of the Divine Hall and kill many innocents in Chang¡¯an and the Yan territory. All of what he had done was to cover his sister¡¯s identity. He did not want anyone to know that the empress of Tang was also a disciple of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine!


    Ning Que ced his hands on the slightly cold windowsill and turned around to look at Eldest Brother who was inside. He thought about how this ordinary looking schr with an ordinary aura had only used a simple sentence in the Winter Courtyard to persuade the strongest General Xiahou to give up all power and resign. He could not help sighing.


    The sibling rtionship between Xiao Hou and the empress had shocked him. However, he was even more surprised at seeing for himself the power of the Academy and Eldest Brother. He could not help asking, "Eldest Brother, how strong are you exactly?"


    Eldest Brother was reading. When he heard Ning Que¡¯s question, he rolled up his scroll and lifted his head to look at Ning Que. After a moment, he smiled and answered, "Strength is rtive. For example, the goshawk might seem stronger next to an ant. But it would never fight with the ant, so the ant is not weak."


    Ning Que spread out his palms and asked, "Senior Brother, what you have said is too profound. I don¡¯t understand."


    Eldest Brother smiled. He tucked the scroll into his waist and made his way to the window sill at a leisurely pace. He stood beside Ning Que and looked at the frozen trees and pond in the Winter Courtyard and said, "This world, no matter whether it had been prettied up or not, is actually made up of many different worlds. For example, the pce and the city, or the Divine Hall and the ruins of the Taoist temple. Or for example, the Unknown ce and reality that is full of smoke. It is said, that when the chief monk of the Xuankong Temple preaches, numerous flying ants were bathed in light and they rose in the air. What kind of state do you think the chief monk has attained? Or for example, the abbey dean of the Zhishou Abbey had managed to produce a disciple like Ye Su, how powerful do you think he is? However, all these people never will... at least, they have yet to appear in the world. They are like the goshawks who overlook the ants. They might be strong, but they will not hurt you."


    Ning Que asked curiously, "What kind of ce is the Zhishou Abbey?"


    Eldest Brother answered him seriously, "The Zhishou Abbey is a Taoist temple."


    Ning Que waited for him to continue seriously, but Eldest Brother did not.


    He smiled helplessly and suddenly asked, "Is Xia Hou the goshawk or the ant?"


    Eldest Brother sighed, "He would have been a goshawk flying in the sky above the Wilderness. It is a pity that he put a chain on himself. From then on, he became a sheepdog that had been trained by hunters. After that, he had no way of freeing himself ever again."


    Ning Que asked after a moment of silence, "Do you have to wear a chain to be a powerhouse who is a visiting professor in the Divine Hall?"


    Eldest Brother replied solemnly, "Xia Hou worries about the empress. It is naturally more difficult for him. However, you are right too. Being a visiting professor at the Divine Halles with its own problems."


    Ning Que thought about Mo Shanshan¡¯s teacher and frowned. "Could it be the same for Liu Bai and Mr. Wang, the Master of Calligraphy?"


    Eldest Brothermented, "The Sage of Sword, Liu Bai, was hailed as the strongest powerhouse in the world. Even the hierarch of the Divine Hall has to be polite to him. However, the Haotian Divine Light shines on all. As long as you live in Haotian¡¯s world, you have to abide by certain rules. We are lucky to be in the Academy, and are rtively freer and more fortunate."


    It was a simple statement, but it made Ning Que a little surprised.


    He had sensed something from the terms like rules and freedom in the statement. It was especially so for thest statement, that they were rtively freer and more fortunate in the Academy. It gave him a lot of new ideas.

 Chapter 327: Depressed yet Zealous

    Chapter 327: Depressed yet Zealous


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "Even the strongest one in the world should behave with discipline..." Ning Que had his eyes wide open and, rubbing his hands, he asked excitedly, "Eldest Brother, who is stronger, you or the Sage of Sword, Liu Bai?"


    The Eldest Brother looked at him in confusion and said, "The Sage of Sword, Liu Bai, the known strongest one in the world, is surely superior to me."


    Ning Que became dumbfounded and replied, "What answer is that? Fighting is not the same as quarreling."


    The Eldest Brother became lost in thought over what the meaning of quarreling was. After a long while, he mistakenly believed that he had gotten Ning Que¡¯s point, and exined seriously, "I¡¯m not good at fighting. Fighting is the specialty of your Second Brother."


    Ning Que was speechless by his words once again.


    The Eldest Brother looked at him and asked curiously, "Youngest Brother?"


    Waving his hands, Ning Que replied, "It¡¯s nothing, Senior Brother. I¡¯m just not used to the way that you talk."


    The Eldest Brother had a sudden epiphany and said, "So, that¡¯s how it is."


    Ning Que asked, "If the chief monk of the Xuankong Temple and the abbey dean of the Zhishou Abbey are like eagles flying in the sky, then what are you?"


    The Eldest Brother replied with a smile, "I am just an ordinary schr at the service of my teacher."


    Ning Que heaved a sigh and said, "It¡¯s hypocritical for you to speak like this."


    Shaking his head, the Eldest Brother sighed, saying, "Not to mention the abbey dean, the chief monk, and others from the Zhishou Abbey and the Xuankong Temple who are in a shocking state, there are outstanding ones among the marketce. Those ordinary looking drinkers and butchers might be Unworldly Sublime Beings who have already broken the five realms."


    Of course, the Eldest Brother was not being hypocritical. The reason why he kept telling Ning Que that he was not the strongest in the world was that he firmly believed that he was not. And he was very unwilling to see Ning Que take a wrong path and expatriate himself from the correct path of self-seeking because he appeared to be big-headed due to the power background of the Academy.


    It was a pity that Ning Que did not realize the Eldest Brother¡¯s good intention. By his straightforward logic, the abbey dean of the Zhishou Abbey was at the strongest level among the known cultivation world. However, his disciple Ye Su was just a weak chicken in front of the Eldest Brother. So it was quite reasonable to say that the Zhishou Abbey was far inferior to the Academy, therefore, he naturally felt proud and excited.


    So due to this feeling, he was not quite willing to ept the result of their conversations today in the Winter Courtyard.


    The Eldest Brother realized what was on his mind, and said, "Xia Hou is so strong that even Jun Mo does not have the full confidence of defeating him, not to mention killing him. Besides, he is the brother of the empress, who would dare to kill him without any charge? Very few people know about this secret except for the Headmaster of the Academy and His Majesty, so you should keep it safe."


    "Senior Brother, I don¡¯t quite understand why you let me hear the secret earlier."


    The Eldest Brother stared at him quietly¡ª it seemed that his clear eyes were about to look right through Ning Que¡¯s disguise.


    Ning Que looked back at the Eldest Brother and did not try to hide anything from his Senior Brother.


    After a long silence, the Eldest Brother looked at him sympathetically and said, "Because I want you to know."


    Ning Que lowered his head after a moment of silence and said, "Yes, I do need to know this."


    The Eldest Brother burst into a smile and told him, "If you study hard in the Academy, you can certainly kill him within five years."


    Raising his head, Ning Que looked in the eyes of the Eldest Brother and became startled for a second, feeling that his Senior Brother seemed to know everything, including his hidden secret.


    It doesn¡¯t matter that he knows. I struggled with life and death during those destitute and homeless years, so I always remain indifferent to others even though I seem to be undisciplined and naughty in appearance. But now that I have entered the Academy, be the core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy, and have so many Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters, there is no reason for me to be scared anymore.


    Ning Que looked at the Eldest Brother and said seriously, "I heard that the Headmaster of the Academy once praised you as ¡¯having heard the Way in the morning and having acted by the Way in the evening¡¯. That is the state that I have been longing for. Five years is too long for me, I want to achieve the goal as fast as I can."


    The Eldest Brother replied with an earnest voice, "The Headmaster of the Academy forbids the Academy to interfere with the affairs of the state. I have already acted rashly to let Xia Hou retire from office. If he does actually back off from the government, even the Academy could do nothing but let him go. At that time, there would be only one way left for you to kill him. And that is to challenge him face to face. Do you have the confidence to beat him?"


    ...


    ...


    Pondering the conversation that he had with the Eldest Brother in the room, Ning Que walked toward the General¡¯s Mansion. At the side door, he met with Mo Shanshan, who had just fed the Big ck Horse, so he invited her to wander about in Tuyang City.


    The cold breeze was like a knife cutting one¡¯s face during the winter in Tuyang City. The crowds that had watched the hustle and bustle had already gone back home, so there was hardly anyone on the street except for the patrolling Tang cavalrymen. Sauntering on the street was not fun at all. But for young men and young women, what mattered was who they were with, so both Ning Que and Mo Shanshan were in a good mood.


    Passing through the provision store, which was half-closed, Ning Que pointed at the rampart and told Shanshan that something had gone wrong during the repair of the arrow tower, so it looked weird but was very convenient to use. Afterward, he took her to an inconspicuous shop in an out-of-the-wayne to eat boiled meat, telling her that it was the only delicacy in Tuyang City.


    Mo Shanshan did not talk too much during the entire journey of viewing winter scenery, eating fresh meat, and drinking hard liquor. Instead, she just listened to him, followed his footsteps, and looked at him seriously with careless yet warm eyes, full of tender feelings.


    "Have you evere here to Tuyang City before?"


    "I passed by once."


    "Then, why are you so familiar with Tuyang City?"


    "Because... I have a friend who once lived here for a long time."


    Ning Que bought a baked sweet potato at a sheltered ce on the street corner, wrapped it with two pieces of rag paper, and gave it to Mo Shanshan, then asked her to go back to the General¡¯s Mansion first. He walked down ane and stared at the cornice of the General¡¯s Mansion in silence for a long time.


    The general in the General¡¯s Mansion was about to live out his life in retirement, having once made outstanding meritorious deeds for the empire. And now, he was well-behaved in requesting to leave the office, and would definitely gain respect from the imperial court and a happy ending for himself.


    While another General¡¯s Mansion in Chang¡¯an was once dripping with blood, the vige in the Yan territory was burned, leaving numerous bodies with no heads, and his friend Darkie died in the rain on the gray wall opposite the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    He was eager to kill the general, but he knew he could not. Even though he was not a soldier in the City of Wei anymore and had be a disciple of the Second floor of the Academy, he was still no match for him.


    Even when the Eldest Brother interfered personally, Ning Que could only watch his enemy¡¯s retirement from the office as he cast aside all of his past grudges and left with no trace of bygones and the blood that was spilled. Therefore, he watched the cornice of the General¡¯s Mansion in silence for a long time.


    On the smallne that was quiet and secluded, a middle-aged man wearing deep-colored cotton clothes came silently nearby. After confirming that there was no one around, he handed a note to Ning Que.


    This middle-aged man was the Array Tactical Masters of the Imperial Center Administration who had made contact with Ning Que at the Blue Water Battalion. With his status as the Array Tactical Masters in the frontier fortress, it was not difficult for him to find Ning Que in Tuyang City.


    With his eyes falling on the note, Ning Que was suddenly taken back, as his fingers holding the note were shivering in the cold breeze. After a short silence, he asked in a hoarse voice, "Why are you telling me now?"


    The middle-aged man looked at him with sympathy, and then told him in a low voice, "I couldn¡¯t find you in the Wilderness, so I stayed in Tuyang City and waited until you came back."


    Ning Que gazed at the note, and then closed his eyes and shook his head.


    Then, the middle-aged man walked out of thene silently.


    After a long while, Ning Que opened his eyes, destroyed the note in his hand, and then raised up his head to look at the winter sky and mumbled, "How could you die like this?"


    The note was sad news brought by the Imperial Center Administration of Tang from Chang¡¯an about the death of the Divine Talisman Master, Yan Se, of the South School of Haotian. Yan Se died along with the Great Divine Priest of Light, who betrayed and escaped from Peach Mountain within a mountain to the north of Chang¡¯an a few days ago.


    The seemingly simple message had greatly shocked Ning Que. There was not enough time for him to recall his first meeting with Master Yan Se at the meadow outside of the Academy; their questioning and answering about the Fu character in the Departure Pavilion the first time; and their traces that they left at numerous Taoist temples, Buddhist temples, as well as old and new pavilions. He was lost in sorrow.


    The note was short, yet it contained a lot of messages. Ning Que, to some extent, knew that the reason for the Great Divine Priest of Light¡¯s years of imprisonment on Peach Mountain was rted to the bloody case of General¡¯s Mansion. ording to the analysis, he came up with a strong intuition that the Great Divine Priest of Light had gone to Chang¡¯an to look for him!


    He had no idea where this intuition came from. After he received those fragments from the spiritual world of Master Lotus at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, he would alwayse up with some enigmatic intuitions, which he firmly believed in.


    "Master, did you die because of me?"


    Feeling depressed and awful, Ning Que looked at the dark sky and wondered if he would have suppressed his sorrow with the psyche to get revenge on the man who killed his master if that man was still alive. However, the Great Divine Priest of Light was also killed by the master, so what could he do for his master now?


    Ning Que withdrew his eyesight from the sky and looked at the General¡¯s Mansion and said with a sigh, "It seems that the bloody case of General¡¯s Mansion is rted to the West-Hill Divine Pce. Was it the Great Divine Priest of Light who asked you to take the move?" "Why would you do that? Someone such as my master died while you are able to live a peaceful life. Why is that?"


    After a short silence, he said, "After the general¡¯s retirement from office, he will be rewarded with thousands of hectares ofnd and severalrge mansions. He can y with cats, dogs, and even maidservants in his leisure time, or sit on a chair under the shade and have fun with his grandsons and granddaughters. Those will be great days."


    If Sangsang were by his side, she would know the true meaning of Ning Que¡¯s words: "Now that the days are great, then don¡¯t dream like that".


    Standing in the secludedne in Tuyang City and thinking about his friend who had died a long time ago and his master who had just passed away, Ning Que felt an endless sorrowing from his chest, and the sorrow was turning into boiling ashes.


    The boiling ashes elerated the cirction of aura inside his body, which brought about unspeakable subtle variations of his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow. The aura of heaven and earth from the surroundingnes and trees seemed to respond to these variations and cover him slowly and quietly, prating into his body through his thick jacket and his skin under, forming an inspiring and unstoppable force.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 328: That Aura Has Awakened

    Chapter 328: That Aura Has Awakened


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In a secluded alley with a winter tree leaning to the side, Ning Que who had felt something suddenly entered an inexplicable state. He stood silently under the shadow of the tree and sensed the aura with his eyes closed. He did not make a move for a long time.


    The aura of the heaven and earth hidden in the snow, bluestones, winter tree, and thene quietly surrounded his body. The path of the Snow Mountain and the Ocean of Qi in his body powered up exponentially, with an invisible but seemly tangible Great Spirit slowly flowing in it.


    When the Great Spirit was dispersed in various parts of the body, the aura in the path became rtively thin. Yet the path was gradually filled with the primordial Qi that flooded into his body from the heaven and earth. This feeling was like eating delicious food nonstop without worrying about being full.


    This feeling was very pleasant. When the Great Spirit in the path passed through the most delicate part of his body, it, as if spring water had cleansed his spirit and body, nourished every single muscle tissue and bone, and brought him a kind of a warm yet fresh sensation.


    The changes within his body caused some changes to ur on his body¡¯s surface as well. The thick jacket that Ning Que wore seemed to have absorbed enough rain, as it stuck closely to his body. The extremely quiet aura seemed to have a certain kind of attraction. It not only attracted the aura hidden in the snow and winter tree in the alley, but it also attracted things from the real world.


    No wind blew in the narrow alley, yet the shadow of the winter tree quivered ever so slightly. This was because the leaves on the branches were falling towards to his body, which made the thin branches stand up straight. At the same time, the dust that had piled up on the stone bs in the alley slowly drifted upwards and gradually gathered at his feet.


    An unknown amount of time had passed before Ning Que slowly opened his eyes. A bright light shed in his eyes before quickly fading away. The tree¡¯s shades under his feet no longer moved, and the tree branches that were as tight as bowstrings slowly curled back to their original form. Only the dust beside his shoes still kept umting, and this made it seem like his feet were sunk into thick a thick pile of dust.


    Ning Que watched the dust and did not say anything. He knew that the state of his cultivation and strength had improved significantlypared to just a while ago. However, he understood clearly that this improvement was not caused by original means of cultivation, but rather by the Great Spirit that had condensed once again in his body and had grown more powerful.


    After leaving the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, he had never cultivated the Great Spirit. Although it was the mantle left by his Youngest Uncle, because of his fear of Haotian, he subconsciously chose to avoid even thinking about these things.


    After hearing about the death of his master today, he vaguely understood the dirt that was hidden in those bloody stories. Looking at the cornice of General¡¯s Mansion and thinking of Xia Hou¡¯s happy life after his resignation, a mixture of grief, bitterness, and pain emerged in his heart. He had lots of dissatisfaction towards this world. All the emotions gathered together and finally turned into hot ashes. Not until he was burned to be uneasy, did the pride and strong Great Spirit in the body begin to awaken.


    "If I join the Devil¡¯s path even deeper, will I go further and further away from this world?"


    Looking at the lonely trees that stood by themselves in the winter and the gloomy sky that was separated by the thin branches, Ning Que sighed. His expression was still calm, but his spiritual world was somewhat unsteady because of the awakening of the Great Spirit in his body.


    The Great Spirit slowly flowed throughout his body. Even though it seemed like an unstoppable river, it actually encountered some obstacles from time to time. It had stagnated as it passed through those routes-like veins. He would frown slightly and he looked pale due to the pain and difort brought by this spiritual stagnation.


    After all, it was a matter of his mental state. While his Youngest Uncle was traveling the world with a sword, there were no infeasible roads or no undefeated enemies in front of him. He was arrogant and proud enough to be powerful, so he could cultivate the Great Spirit in his thorax and abdomen, and could act with the Great Spirit in the world. However, Ning Que always felt sad and aggrieved. Besides, he can¡¯t even freely express his feelings. So how could he bear the forceful and peerless aura of the Great Spirit?


    The general who lived in the General¡¯s Mansion would give up all his military power in the future and resign silently. In the eyes of all the people in the world, he had paid a painful price for what he had done in the past years and suffered enough hardships. Besides, they thought he had made a heavy concession to the Academy and the Divine Hall.


    But Ning Que did not think so.


    Ning Que was unwilling to let Xia Hou retire. If so, Xia Hou would be like other people whose names were on the oilpaper left by Zhuo Er. As the time passed, what those men had done before would be no longer cared about, and they would be forgotten in the mortal world, living a happy and peaceful life and die of old age.


    Ning Que wasn¡¯t willing to let it end just like that.


    It was precisely because of his unwillingness and understanding his own mind that the previous Great Spirit in his body could awaken and his cultivation state improved. However, this tight feeling in his heart was also what stayed in his spiritual world, and blocked the Great Spirit from flowing freely.


    He remained in silence as he looked at the cornice of the General¡¯s Mansion and the snow on the cornice in the distance. The smell of the green onions wafted into his nose continuously from the dinner tables of the houses on both sides of thene. The depression and grief in his heart had faded away, and what he needed to do was only to drive away the obstacle in his spiritual world. However, how should he drive away something as tangible as that? He remained silent, as he looked at the cornice of the General¡¯s Mansion and the snow on the cornice in the distance; smelled the vor of the green onioning from the dwellings on both sides of thene. The depression and grief in his heart had faded away, what he needed to do was only to drive away the unwillingness in his spiritual world. However, how could he drive away the unwillingness?


    To wipe this regret away, he needed to kill Xia Hou. However... Eldest Brother had already made it clear that as long as Xia Hou was willing to retire, the Academy that promised not to interfere courtly affairs would keep silent. Without any evidence, the Empire, always putting the Tang Empire¡¯s wishes above everything, would not impose any punishment on Xia Hou.


    Therefore, the only way Ning Que had was to challenge Xia Hou to a direct a duel.


    Eldest Brother had said that in five years, Ning Que could defeat Xia Hou. However, five years was too long. What if Xia Hou grew old and weak? What if he got sick? What if he had died of old age and sickness before Ning Que beat him? If he secluded himself in the mountain honing his skills while waiting to get revenge one day, there may be a chance that his enemy had already died before he could do anything. Time would then have taken away Ning Que¡¯s wish to deliver punishment himself. Wouldn¡¯t that just be the saddest thing ever?


    Ning Que knew that his emotions were fluctuating way too much at this moment. The depression he was in right now would only bring more harm than good for his cultivation. If he continues to stay in this state, then his entire spirit might join the Devil.


    He understood that he had to do something to temporarily dispel the devil in his mind. He knew that he was still weak and was unqualified to challenge Xia Hou, but both the Great Spirit running hard through his Meridians and the bitterness he had felt for all this time urged him to do something.


    He stood silently under the winter tree for a long time. Watching theckluster scenery of Tuyang City as he smelled the meat vored smokeing from houses, he remembered those letters written by Darkie in the past. He then made a decision walked towards the north side of the city.


    As soon as he took a step, he heard a whistling sound under his feet. The thick dust piled up on the shoes spread out and dispersed into the air before quietlynding on the wall under the tree.


    A sparkling clean quartzite was revealed to him after the dust cleared.


    There were two footprints that were two fingers deep left on the quartzite. The edges of the footprints were neat and smooth as if they were carved with a knife.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que walked against the cold wind of Tuyang City. He noticed that his strength was now significantly stronger, and his senses were also much sharper than before. He could clearly feel the rhythm of his body as he walked. The force that was passed through his shoes whenever he stepped on the ground resonated back like drum beats. The skin on his body that was exposed outside of his clothes could even feel the faintest traces of the gentle wind that blew past.


    The transformation his body had gone through due to the Great Spirit happened in a very short time. This indescribable feeling of power gave him a strong desire to prove himself. At the same time, all the piled up thoughts and feelings of regret he had under the tree also turned into a kind of uncontroble impulse.


    His current strong urge to destroy everything in his way strongly conflicted with the previous sense of responsibility that he had as a disciple of the back of the mountain of the Academy. Hence, he was still unable toe to a final decision of whether he should carry through with his revenge. It wasn¡¯t until he arrived had in front of the mansion in the north side of the city did his clear and steady paces finally calm him down. He understood what he needed to do.


    ...


    ...


    In the deep Winter Courtyard of the General¡¯s Mansion.


    Mo Shanshan looked at Eldest Brother who was behind the desk and whispered, "Something wrong with Ning Que¡¯s mood."


    Eldest Brother put down the book in his hand and watched the young girl with a soft smile. He thenforted, "What are you worrying about?"


    Mo Shanshan said after a moment of silence, "I think he¡¯s going to do something."


    Eldest Brother continued, "He can do whatever he wants."


    Mo Shanshan looked at Eldest Brother and asked, "Aren¡¯t you worried about him, Senior Brother?"


    Eldest Brother said with affection, "Most disciples of the Academy these years were only addicted people like me who only learned to cultivate or to study Taoism. Only Youngest Brother had desperately struggled in the mortal world since his childhood, so he was in some ways, the strongest person in the Academy. He has his way of judging on threats and dangers, and I trust his judgment."


    Mo Shanshan looked at him in the eyes and said seriously, "Even if whatever he¡¯s nning on doing brings trouble to the Academy?"


    After a moment of silence, Eldest Brother replied, "The Academy is not as powerful as what Youngest Brother imagines. But I think Youngest Brother always has his reasons for doing things. As for things like opportunities, I also trust in his judgment."


    ...


    ...


    In the side alley of the mansion in the northern Tuyang City.


    Ning Que stared at the tall grey mansion walls and decided to go in and have a look no matter what.


    Just like what Eldest Brother had said, Ning Que was very vignt to danger, and he also had a clear judgment on such things as opportunities. He rarely missed them.


    Killing people in Tuyang City was like killing people in front of Xia Hou. It sounded a bit ridiculous.


    Nevertheless, today was his best chance.


    Because Xia Hou decided to retire today, he became an old man¡ª an aged male lion would bex in patrolling his own territory, and his wrath might also be easier to be resolved.


    Ning Que walked to the gray mansion walls.


    He bent his knees slightly.


    The powerful Great Spirit in his body instantly poured into his legs.


    A muffled sound was heard between the shoes and the ground, with an invisible airflow gushing out.


    He bounced up 20 feet with ease and climbed over the tall wall.


    Hended in a garden filled with withering flowers.


    In front of the flower garden was a courtyard.


    In the courtyard was a pine-wood chair where a person was sitting.


    Xia Hou¡¯s most trusted military counselor, Gu Xi.


    Gu Xi looked at Ning Que in the flower garden, and then said with emotion, "I¡¯ve been thinking whether or not I should kill you, and yet here you are."

 Chapter 329: That Piece of Snow Was Falling

    Chapter 329: That Piece of Snow Was Falling


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que pushed aside the thorns in front of him and walked out of the flower garden. He stood at the t stone ground of the courtyard and looked at Gu Xi sitting in the chair, asking, "I didn¡¯t think I¡¯ve offended you before. Why would you wish to kill me?"


    Gu Xi slowly stood up from his chair and looked at him with a smile, saying, "Many things in the world need reasons, and killing people is no exception. But our killing is different from the court¡¯s cutting prisoners¡¯ heads, so you don¡¯t have to offend me. I want to kill you for I think you should die."


    Ning Que started to roll up his sleeves slowly and seriously. He stared at Gu Xi, who was not far away, and asked with a calm expression, "I really don¡¯t know why I have to die. Do teach me."


    The expression on Gu Xi¡¯s face seemed a bit strange, and his smile was sinister. His short beard trembled in the cold wind. He looked at Ning Que with a smile and asked, "Were the censor, Zhang Yiqi, and the other rted people killed by Mr. Thirteen?"


    Ning Que¡¯s fingers, which were rolling his sleeves up, suddenly paused, and then he then shook his head, saying, "I haven¡¯t heard of this person."


    Gu Xiughed heartily and praised him, giving him a thumbs-up. "Mr. Thirteen is good at killing people without leaving any trace. You don¡¯t even bat an eye when lying. You should have joined the court rather than cultivate. Yet..."


    As the word "yet" was spoken, his smile suddenly faded away and he then said in an extremely cold tone, "Although Lin Ling and I haven¡¯t found any evidence, I know you were at the House of Red Sleeves that day. Especially since I know that Mr. Thirteen intends to kill the general, you already have the reason why you must die."


    "To kill a person needs not only a reason but also benefits." Ning Que started to roll up the sleeves of his right arm. He lowered his head and continued, "I¡¯m really wondering what benefits you, as the most trusted subordinate of General Xiahou, can bring to General Xiahou after you kill me, as a core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy, in Tuyang City."


    Ever since Ning Que had left Chang¡¯an for the Wilderness and returned, he often used his identity as one of the core disciples of the Headmaster of the Academy while talking to people. Back then, it was because he wanted to oppress them with this identity. However, the situation today was different.


    He really could not understand why Gu Xi was determined to kill him. Didn¡¯t Gu Xi worry that, if Ning was killed, the Academy¡¯s and the Empire¡¯s wrath might directly turn him and his General Xiahou into ashes?


    Gu Xi stroked his beard lightly and whispered, "It¡¯s naturally a big risk to kill a student of the Second floor of the Academy, but it¡¯ll also bring great benefits. The great benefit is that you¡¯ll never threaten the general anymore."


    Ning Que finished rolling his sleeves, and his fists that hung down beside his legs could feel the chill of the winter wind.


    He shook his head looking at Gu Xi and said, "This benefit is far from enough."


    Gu Xi suddenly squinted and then said emotionally, "I have followed the general for half of my life. For what? So that the general can stand on top of the human world. However, after you two people came from the Academy, the general was forced to retire... won¡¯t I have to retire as well? Do you think I can ept it?"


    He looked at Ning Que¡¯s face, with his eyes filled with a sense of calmness and craziness, and then said pensively, "The general wants to retire, but I really don¡¯t want him to do so. It¡¯s a pity that I¡¯m not qualified to break the agreement between him and Mr. First. To force them to break the agreement, what else can I do except kill you, Mr. Thirteen? Haotian will always be kind, and you¡¯re the weakest World Wayfarer in the history of the Academy. It seems the best ending for you is death."


    Only then did Ning Que realize that the military counselor was mad. Ning Que slowly furrowed his brows and said, shaking his head, "But have you ever considered that it would be impossible for Xia Hou toe to a good end if you kill me? Everyone in the world knows you are the most loyal to him, so who will believe that killing me was your own decision?"


    Gu Xi gently pressed his palms together and sighed in excitement. He then continued, "So this is the best chance. You are weak, and everyone knows Mr. First has never killed people in his life. Therefore, if I kill you, he will most likely not take my life. Then I will stay alive, even living like a dog if I must. I will go to Chang¡¯an City, go to the court, and even meet the Headmaster of Academy in order to take the me for the general."


    Ning Que was slightly stunned upon hearing that Eldest Brother had not killed a person in his lifetime. He immediately thought of Senior Brother¡¯s gentle and courteous working style and realized that what Gu Xi had said about Eldest Brother might be true. Yet when Ning Que heard thetter half of his remarks, he could not help mocking him, "Although I don¡¯t want to boast, nobody will believe that you chose to kill someone with my backing of your own volition."


    Gu Xi shook his head and said with regret, "As long as I¡¯m alive, I¡¯ll convince the world that Mr. Thirteen of the Academy was killed by me and that it had nothing to do with the general. I shall even convince all the people in the world that I¡¯m a spy from the West-Hill Divine Pce. In that case, the reason why I killed you will have been to frame General Xiahou, to sow dissension between the Academy and military!"


    Ning Que gazed at his satisfied expression and continued, shaking his head, "It seems you¡¯re insane indeed. Though your n seems reasonable, even then who would believe you¡¯re from the West-Hill Divine Pce?"


    The strange smile shed on Gu Xi¡¯s face again. Gu Xi then replied, "People like Mr. Thirteen may not believe it. Yet His Majesty will believe it, so will Her Majesty. The most important thing is that the Headmaster of the Academy will believe it."


    As he said this, Gu Xi, a military counselor who was ustomed to take care of everything for the general from within the shadows, looked up at the grey winter sky. On his face appeared a clear smile, and he said emotionally, "Because I really do belong to the West-Hill Divine Pce."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que was left speechless. He had been struggling on the edge between life and death for survival ever since his youth. He had thought that he had already seen through the darkness andplexities of the world. However, as he witnessed Gu Xi confess his original and real identity as well as his crazy devotion to Xia Hou, Ning Que discovered that he still hadn¡¯t understood the real depth of the shadows hidden in the world.


    He tightened his belt around his waist and confirmed that it would not affect hister battle. After that, he raised his head and asked, "How are you so sure that you can kill me?"


    Gu Xi looked at him banteringly and replied, "Because you¡¯re the weakest on the Second floor of the Academy."


    Ning Que heaved a sigh, predicting that this title would probably follow him for many years toe.


    He objected, "But my Eldest Brother is in Tuyang City now."


    Gu Xi answered, "As you¡¯re here in my mansion, Mr. First naturally thinks you came here to kill me. Why would he intervene?"


    Ning Que asked, "If so, does that mean that General Xiahou won¡¯t intervene, either?"


    Gu Xi said with a smile, "That¡¯s right. So this is the best chance to kill you today. In fact, previously I was hesitating about whether to kill you or not. Fortunately, you came here on your own. What I can only do now is kill you."


    Ning Que said, "For me, this is also the best opportunity to kill you. Actually, I couldn¡¯t make up my mind about whether to break into your mansion and kill you. Yet as you happen to wish to kill me, thus I have to kill you."


    Gu Xi stared at him with interest and asked, "You already know why I want to kill you. However, I¡¯m still unsure why you must kill me. Could Mr. Thirteen enlighten me?"


    Ning Que gazed at his face, remembering the piece of oilpaper.


    The guy who wrote the note on the oilpaper had already died, and the oilpaper had been destroyed by Ning Que. However, Ning Que clearly remembered those names on the oilpaper. At the very head of the list were the two words "Gu Xi".


    Many years ago, Gu Xi had already been the most loyal and sinister dog of General Xiahou. Both the information found by Darkie and the archives of the Imperial Center Administration that Ning Que secretly saw through his master indicated that this military counselor was the liaison between Xia Hou and the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    It was exactly Gu Xi who had made the decision for Xia Hou. He charged the Xuanwei General for treason, and then the Xuanwei General¡¯s whole family was executed. In addition, the massacre of those viges in the Yan territory was also this military counselor¡¯s idea.


    These reasons were already enough for Ning Que to kill him hundreds of times over.


    However, facing Gu Xi¡¯s query, he did not make any exnation.


    His sleeves had been rolled up to the elbow, and his naked arms were exposed to the cold wind. His stable right hand reached to his back and held a hilt. Then a clink was heard as a spindly podao was pulled out. The de was zing a the frosty light in the cold wind.


    Ning Que walked through the courtyard at a steady pace, towards Gu Xi in front of the pine-wood chair.


    Gu Xi slowly squinted and his hands in his sleeves at his back were slightly quivering. It was not because of fear, but no one knew what these quivering fingers were doing.


    The sharp de pierced the quiet courtyard, cutting off the cold wind that blew in from outside the wall, moving towards Gu Xi¡¯s squinted eyes!


    Gu Xi¡¯s eyes narrowed even more. As quick as lightning, he shifted his focused instead on Ning Que¡¯s left hand, that had been hanging beside his body.


    In Ning Que¡¯s left hand¡¯s fingers was an embroidered purse.


    The purse emitted a strong talisman intent.


    It was the Divine Talisman left by Master Yan Se. In order to fight against Ye Hongyu at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, he had already used one. Today, in front of Gu Xi, a powerful military counselor of Xia Hou, he used the second one without any hesitation.


    However, the Divine Talisman in the purse... could not be activated!


    Gu Xi¡¯s eyes had narrowed into two slits, and the cold light in his eyes was oppressive.


    Innumerable talismans with various auras flew out from the sleeves behind him. Instantly, the Qi of Heaven and Earth in the courtyard was stirred up. Numerous subtle strands of primordial Qi were torn and began to flow within their bodies.


    Gu Xi was known for his sinister plots. Unexpectedly, he was actually a rare and powerful Talisman Master of the world!


    Those milky pools of spatial turbulence were like ck seams on the ground. The Qi of Heaven and Earth was like running water, quickly flowing away from Ning Que. The connection between Ning Que¡¯s Psyche Power and the purse was disturbed and could not maintain a smooth connection for a moment!


    The shiny and spindly podao in his hand seemed to have fallen into a quagmire in this seemingly transparent space. It was difficult to move. Although it was not far from Gu Xi¡¯s face, it seemed it could never get any closer.


    It seemed the air above the mansion could sense the incredibly chaotic talisman intent and the turbulence of the Qi of Heaven and Earth in the courtyard, and the sky turned gloomy. The water in the clouds above condensed into snow that slowly fell down to the ground.


    A snowke drifted over Ning Que¡¯s eyshes andnded on the back of his hand as it slightly shook while holding the hilt. The snowke instantly melted.


    The situation was extremely tense, and Ning Que was in a really dangerous situation. However, when the snowke fell on him, he did not even bat an eye, and his eyes remained calm and focused.

 Chapter 330: The Cracked Head

    Chapter 330: The Cracked Head


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Gu Xi had waited for a long time as he cast numerous talismans with his hands in the sleeves behind his back. Astonishingly, the order of these talismans seemed to have been carefully calcted. Their forces were diverse, but they did not cause absolute chaos or even self-annihtion. Theyyered upon each other until the final eruption and tore the Qi of Heaven and Earth in the lonely winter garden into a horrible turbulent ocean.


    The turbulent flow of the Qi of Heaven and Earth formed by countless Fu characters resembled a violent sea and covered the entire courtyard. It could cut off the connection between a cultivator¡¯s Psyche Power and the Fu paper or the Natal Item. This kind of talisman use was rather ingenious. From this, one could guess that Gu Xi had spent a long time on Talisman Taoism and possessed a powerful strength and state.


    Fortunately, the turbulent primordial Qi flow only rotated rapidly but had no lethality. So it did not harm Ning Que¡¯s body, rather it had sessfully prevented him from casting the Fu characters. From the very beginning, Gu Xi had guessed that Ning Que wanted to use that embroidered purse rather than the podao.


    The Fu characters in the purse could only be cast by Psyche Power. It seemed that Ning Que had to surrender. However, he did not change his expression and instead turned his wrist. His podao, which had seemed to be stuck in a quagmire, started to vibrate as the subtle talisman lines on it began to glow.


    His master¡¯s Divine Talisman was inside the purse, so he could not connect to it with his psyche. However, he had the podao held tightly in his hands and naturally was able to connect to the podao with his psyche. Soon the talisman lines borately made by the Academy¡¯s Senior Brothers began to show their true power. The de cut through the turbulent flow and towards Gu Xi¡¯s face!


    There was no expression on Ning Que¡¯s face as he waved the podao.


    Gu Xi nkly looked at the podaoing towards his face. He seemed topletely disregard the cold aura on the de. His right hand in his sleeve suddenly appeared between them from behind his back. A single finger gently fell on the podao¡¯s surface, like a falling snowke in the courtyard.


    The podao had just used its talisman power to cut through the turbulent mud-like flow. It was still moving slowly, and that finger could easily fall on its surface. But what could a single finger do to the cold and terrifying podao?


    The finger stroked the surface of the podao. As the fingertip moved, theplicated talisman lines on the surface suddenly lost their shine and those powerful talisman forces disappeared without a trace. It turned out that a tiny Fu paper was on the fingertip and the Fu paper was constantly releasing strong talisman power as the finger moved!


    The finger finally arrived at the hilt and the talisman lines on the slender podao had all lost their original bright luster. The podao turned into an ordinary piece of iron and could no longer move forward.


    This battle was very bizarre. Ning Que could not fully disy his state and strength at all, for his tricks, including the purse in his left hand and the podao in his right hand, had all been seen through by the other in advance. It seemed that this opponent knew all his fighting tactics and prepared well in advance. So he could do nothing but silently wait for death.


    Gu Xi squinted and quietly looked at Ning Que¡¯s face close to him, saying, "You¡¯re done."


    Ning Que felt that the podao was as heavy as a mountain and did not speak.


    Gu Xi looked at him and spoke calmly. "You killed three of my subordinates at the crossing of the Northern Mountain Road that year. So I know you have three knives and I¡¯ve prepared many talismans and tactics for them. It doesn¡¯t matter even if you have more knives. Besides, I¡¯m very aware that you¡¯re the sessor of Master Yan Se. Although I don¡¯t know how many Divine Talismans the master has given you, I still prepared for them and even sent someone to check the Taoist temples, Taoist monasteries, and pavilions that you and Master Yan Se had visited during your training. So I could evaluate your state of Talisman Taoism. Believe me, although you didn¡¯t use your poor little fire Talisman, I¡¯ve still prepared for it carefully."


    Ning Que looked at him silently.


    "You have strong Psyche Power, but you only have ten acupoints opened in your Ocean of Qi. Your cultivation state is at the lower level of Seethrough and you have a bad control over the Qi of Heaven and Earth. You came from the frontier fortress of the City of Wei and have a fierce and urate cutting style. You¡¯re strong and cruel, good at close-quarters battles. As the sessor of a Divine Talisman Master, you still have no strength in your Talisman Taoism, for you have only spent a short time on Tao enlightenment."


    "So I let you get close and use a podao as a cover for your talisman. But I still had the advantage from the beginning."


    Gu Xi¡¯s face was full of genuine regret. He said, "A battle between two people is like a war between two countries. It needs the mostplete and urate intelligence. The more one prepares, the more easily one tends to win. You didn¡¯t even know that I¡¯m a Talisman Master, how could you kill me? But I know everything about you. In front of me, you can¡¯t disy your strength at all. How can you not be killed by me?"


    Ning Que looked at his eyes and suddenly asked, "How do you know so much about me?"


    "Because I¡¯m a military adviser. I specialize in collecting and analyzing intelligence. As long as I start investigating someone, I can reveal every one of his secrets."


    Gu Xi said in the end, "In fact, what you made me most unsure of is that iron box that few people have ever seen. But I don¡¯t know why you didn¡¯t bring it with you today. Or did you think that a military advisor could only y with intrigues and was not worthy of all your secrets? As a military advisor, I wee such a careless enemy."


    ...


    ...


    A corner of the Winter Courtyard in the General¡¯s Mansion.


    Xia Hou looked at the strong tea that was as dark as blood and said slowly after a short silence, "Return to Chang¡¯an immediately after the fifteenth. Don¡¯t hesitate, have your mother return home, and clean up the old yard. Take out the pickled vegetables from the cer and dry them in the sun. They will be more delicious in theing winter when cooked with the in boiled pork. But you can¡¯t leave Chang¡¯an and should stay in the mansion. Don¡¯t contact the ministers or even go to the Prince¡¯s Mansion."


    The two young generals kneeling before the table were Xia Hou¡¯s two sons. One was Xiahou Jin and the other was Xiahou Duan. Brought up under a strict education, they were as honest as their own names and very humble.


    The two men were rather usually obedient in front of their father. However, today they sensed his disheartened feeling from their father¡¯s words. They guessed that their father was ready to resign and retire and could not help feeling surprised. They remembered the mysterious horse carriage that hade to the Winter Courtyard today and could not help asking, "Father, who were those people today? How dare they..."


    Xia Hou stared at the strong tea on the table as he said expressionlessly, "Don¡¯t guess or meddle in the matter. Your return to Chang¡¯an is my assurance to the Headmaster of the Academy and His Majesty. If you don¡¯t want our home destroyed, behave yourselves!"


    Suddenly, he furrowed his silkworm-like dark brows.


    On the table, there were rather fine ripples appearing on the ss of thick ck tea.


    Xia Hou turned his head and looked out of the window, knowing that Gu Xi should have started the hunt at this time.


    He did not know how Gu Xi had arranged the kill, just as he did not know the details of the Horse Gang attacking the food caravan on the grasnd. He only knew that Gu Xi was loyal to him and could be assured that this matter would not involve him after Ning Que¡¯s death, though he knew Gu Xi had some ns that even he did not know about. But would Mr. First really misjudge the situation and not interfere?


    ...


    ...


    Another corner of the Winter Courtyard in the General¡¯s Mansion.


    Eldest Brother nced at the north outside the window and lowered his head, continuing to read.


    Shanshan sat quietly as she practiced her calligraphy on the other side of the table.


    As Gu Xi had predicted, Eldest Brother assumed that Ning Que was doing the killing at this time, but did not expect that Ning Que was being killed. The reason why Eldest Brother was so sure was not that he had misjudged it as Xia Hou thought, but that he had the utmost faith in Ning Que. He had earlier mentioned this to Shanshan.


    He had traveled around with his teacher and had passed the City of Wei. He had made a home visit to his Youngest Brother, so he knew about Ning Que¡¯s experiences as he grew up. He believed that Ning Que was definitely the best person in the back of the mountain in terms of sensitivity to danger and the mastery of timing, although Ning Que¡¯s strength was really a little terrible. Ning Que would never start a fight without absolute certainty. Once he had started, Ning Que would certainly win.


    ...


    ...


    Numerous powerful Fu characters turned the courtyard into a furious ocean. The Qi of Heaven and Earth was torn into a turbulent flow. Ning Que¡¯s Psyche Power could not prate through it, let alone use the Qi of Heaven and Earth against Gu Xi.


    Ning Que could not activate the Divine Talisman in the purse at all. Because of the Fu paper on Gu Xi¡¯s fingertip, the talisman lines on the podao became normal patterns. His body was surrounded by the dangerous turbulent flow of primordial Qi. If amon person gently touched it, this man would die spurting blood. It seemed that at this time Ning Que had be a moth caught in a and could no longer live.


    However, the military advisor, Gu Xi, did not know that Ning Que had sufficient Qi of Heaven and Earth, thanks to the Great Spirit, in his body, although Ning Que could not control the Qi of Heaven and Earth in the courtyard.


    Amidst the cold wind and the falling snow, Ning Que took a deep breath and slightly changed the psyche in his sense of perception. The Snow Mountain in his waist suddenly warmed up and the Great Spirit umted in his abdomen instantly gushed out and poured into every part of his body.


    The talisman power of the podao had been exhausted. Therefore, he did not choose to pass the Great Spirit to the de, but decisively released the hilt and clenched his five fingers into a fist.


    Ning Que punched out.


    Gu Xi squinted and looked calm as well as confident. He did not know which cultivator in the world dared to use a fragile body to forcibly break through the dangerous flow of Qi of Heaven and Earth between them.


    Suddenly a gust of wind appeared on Ning Que¡¯s fist. Countless airflows spewed violently from his fingers and the pores on the back of his hand. They easily tore the turbulent flow of primordial Qi into pieces!


    There were two worlds, one inside and one outside his body. But there was no difference between them, for they had the same aura. Therefore, when the Great Spirit rushed out of his fist, the turbulent flow disappeared as a whirlpool was covered by flood!


    The squinting eyes of Gu Xi suddenly widened. He looked shocked as well as expectant.


    No matter how strong that fist was, it was not strong enough to tear through all the turbulent flows in that space. There were still some dangerous turbulent flows. He looked forward to seeing the next moment when the fist would be split into pieces.


    However, he was left disappointed.


    Ning Que¡¯s fist was not a fist, at least not amon fist.


    Because his fist was very hard.


    It was so hard that there were only some shallow skin cuts left on it when encountering the primordial Qi flow that could cut off a cultivator¡¯s whole body.


    Gu Xi stared at the fist that got closer and closer to him and found that he could not do anything at all. Because the fist was moving faster than he could react.


    There was only enough time for terror to fill his eyes.


    At least he had time to understand something.


    There was a kind of cultivator in the world who could fight without the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    There was a kind of cultivator in this world who had a physical body powerful enough to ignore the turbulent flows of primordial Qi.


    Ning Que¡¯s fist fell onto Gu Xi¡¯s face.


    Gu Xi¡¯s head suddenly burst apart.


    A headless body fell into the thin snow.


    ...


    ...


    The talisman power in the courtyard gradually faded away and those fine turbulent flows disappeared without a trace.


    A piece of Fu paper fell on the body of Gu Xi. Ning Que silently watched the me that was gradually burning up.


    "Intelligence is important in the battle. But you shouldn¡¯t be overly reliant on these little bits of information, as everyone living in this world has his own secret. The secret is often hidden in the deepest part of his heart and there may be no one who knows it."


    "My biggest secret is not that iron box, but something else."

 Chapter 331: There Was Snow in the Lane at the Beginning of New Year

    Chapter 331: There Was Snow in the Lane at the Beginning of New Year


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The military counselor¡¯s body was burnt to ashes in the courtyard, while the snow on the gstone gradually melted away around the human-shaped ind, under the effect of the weak fire talismans once mentioned by the deceased with such contempt.


    Ning Que stood aside in silence and felt satisfied with his former performance. He was not aware of his Eldest Brother¡¯s happiness for him in the Winter Courtyard of the General¡¯s Mansion.


    Ning Que had never expected the military counselor Gu Xi to be such a powerful Talisman Master that he could tear the Qi of Heaven and Earth apart into numerous broken turbulent flows. Gu Xi had used at least thirty Fu characters, yet it was incredible that these Fu characters didn¡¯t interfere with each other. Faced with the long-cherished preparations of the enemy, Ning Que withstood it in the most straightforward way. He had faith that he could crush all plots with his strength, and he was satisfied that he made it.


    When he tore through Gu Xi¡¯s head, his sorrows and bitterness seemed to fade away. He became clear-minded and recalled the thousands of stones at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He suddenly understood a lot of things.


    Under the shade of a tree in winter, he felt depressed. "How must I eliminate this depression? Call upon the Great Spirit from the chest? Or shed aside all indecisiveness and excessive caution, and simply focus on killing those that deserve death."


    "Ie from the mountain, the river, and the grasnd, and Ie from the General¡¯s mansion in the vige, and Ie to end your life."


    Ning Que spoke out the simplified version of Sangsang¡¯s poetry of revenge in a gentle voice as he held the podao and erased the footprints left on the ground. He was not worried about leaving traces to be noticed by Xia Hou, instead, he was only trying to hide any hints that he had joined the devil.


    After getting it done, he gently jumped back over the gray-white wall. As he once again smelled the fragrance of shallots from a residential house nearby, he paused for a moment and then walked out thene. There was only calmness and sedateness on his face, nothing like a Devil of Deathe from ghostdom stretching his bony hand out for revenge. He was just another traveler who pined for home and hearth.


    ...


    ...


    By the time Ning Que returned to the General¡¯s Mansion, the Winter Courtyard was in chaos as all the captains and servants were terrified and in shock over the death of military counselor Gu Xi. Ning Que walked silently, with no expression, to the horse carriage waiting outside the stone door of the Winter Courtyard and received his luggage from Shanshan.


    On the stone terrace outside the Winter Courtyard, General Xiahou was bidding farewell to his Eldest Brother. There were no feelings visible on his callous face, as though he was not bothered by the death his most loyal subordinate.


    Suddenly Xia Hou turned back his head to look at Ning Que.


    Ning Que stared back at him with a calm expression.


    Though he had just chopped off one of Xia Hou¡¯s arms, Ning Que didn¡¯t show any signs of tion or difort. Both he and Xia Hou had killed many people and vited severalws of the Tang Empire. They both knew that as long as they had the protection of their umon identities, as long as they left no traces behind, there was nothing that could be done against them.


    Seeing the arrogant eyebrow of the middle-aged man on the stone terrace and his undisguisedly murderous look, Ning Que recalled the unstoppable fist at the border of the Hn Sea, and the striking fist he had just used earlier, and broke into augh.


    Ning Que wanted to tell Xia Hou that he would be waiting for him in Chang¡¯an to kill him, but he held back and said nothing. He just took up the knapsacks, followed Eldest Brother onto the horse carriage, and gently lent a hand to Shanshan.


    ...


    ...


    "As a man, it is most important to stay happy."


    In the simple and crude carriage, Eldest Brother was watching the streets of Tuyang City pass by through the window when he said suddenly, "Hatred cannot be swept away with blood, thus killing is just meaningless."


    Then he looked back at Ning Que and said gently, "I¡¯m not talking about naively showing mercy to your enemies, but if the situation goes on like this, there will be no end to it. Furthermore, it is troublesome to be hunted by others continuously. Your senior brothers, senior sisters and I can hide in the back of the mountain of the Academy, but you cannot escape in the mortal world. Even if the name of the Academy is just as significant and thew of the Tang Empire is still as strict, the opponent wouldn¡¯t care if they has no fear of death."


    Listening to the teachings of his Eldest Brother, Ning Que thought for a while, then nodded his head and said nothing.


    The cold wind raised the curtain of the horse carriage, a strong scent of shallots wafted in from outside again. Ning Que looked out the window with wonder. The streets of Tuyang City, which were scarcely popted in the daytime, became boisterous at dusk. Soldiers andmon folk were wearing a joyful smile. It seemed that the bloody incident that had happened just a little earlier hadn¡¯t made much of a difference to their lives.


    Recalling something, Ning Que jumped out of the horse carriage and walked into a store selling local specialties. He bought some souvenirs for Sangsang and walked out of the store. Suddenly, there boomed a resonant sound from the wall far away. He shot a nce at it in astonishment and saw that several fireworks were firing into the sky and lighting up the gradually darkened night.


    He stood in the middle of the bustling street, a paper bag in hand, and watched the beautiful fireworks.


    Today was New Year¡¯s Eve, every single household in Tuyang City was wrapping dumplings, it was no wonder that the whole city was filled with the fragrance of shallots.


    Fireworks were zing, and the fourteenth year of the Tianqi era came to an end.


    ...


    ...


    Night had just fallen in the City of Chang¡¯an.


    There was a ck horse carriage at the corner of the Lin 40th Street with no horse there. Forged with stainless steel and cast iron, the darkened carriage was carved withplex lines, between which was a lot of umted ash, all of which seemed decadent.


    A white dishcloth showed itself from the bottom of the carriage, cleaning the ash wedged inside theplex lines on the carriage te. Soon the lines were visible again, and the whole carriage began sparkling.


    Sangsang put the dishcloth into the bucket and washed it forcefully, then wiped her frozen red hands on her apron. She caught a glimpse of the door beside the Old Brush Pen Shop, and made an effort to lift the bucket into the shop.


    Back on New Year¡¯s Evest year, Manager Wu and Aunt Wu of the neighboring store had invited Ning Que and her to dinner. Perhaps because of the tumult over the past few days, Aunt Wu wore a dull face when she asked her to dinner this noon, and didn¡¯t expect Sangsang to actuallye.


    Sangsang understood and didn¡¯t go to join them.


    She walked to the courtyard to pour out the dirty water and gazed into the two urns, one old and one new, ced in the corner. Then she went to the kitchen and cooked a bowl of noodles, but instead of making any fried eggs, she just put in some shallots and took it for granted to be her New Year¡¯s meal.


    Sangsang didn¡¯t care whether or not the neighbor invited her to dinner. She favored eating a simple meal when Ning Que was not home. Finishing the noodles, she closed the shop door, climbed onto the cool kang, and snuggled into the quilt.


    She was born with a physique deficient in cold resistance, so it was very difficult for her to warm the quilt with her body temperature. Luckily for her, she had already be used to falling asleep after a long while. She raised her thin fingers in front of her eyes and watched the burning Haotian Divine Light between her fingers to while away the time. Then she once again counted the notes below the pillow before she finally closed her eyes.


    On thest night of the fourteenth year of the Tianqi era, Haotian seemed to endow a firework-like beauty to the stars up above. They melted away the thick snow clouds above the sky of Chang¡¯an and shimmered their starlight upon the quiet and raucous courtyards of the capital.


    Starlight was falling upon the two lonely urns in the courtyard and back closure of the Old Brush Pen Shop on the Lin 47th Street. A lone cat seated among the residual snow on the wall was licking a scar left over from snatching the food of another feline. Raising its head to look at the stars, it mewed painfully.


    ...


    ...


    The prosperity of an empire required the unremitting efforts of a lot of people, especially for the bureaucracy that maintained the operation of the empire. On the first day of the new year, while themon folk of Chang¡¯an were still asleep or hungover, even the yamens of the court had already started performing their duties, let alone the office responsible for the safety and security of the capital.


    Dozens of runners from the Chang¡¯an local government came to the Lin 47th Street, where there was a thick cover of snow. Unlike the lively and warm atmosphere of its early years, the street had be depressed and solemn.


    The local government runners knocked open all the stores on the street and asked the people in there to leave in a polite and undisputed manner, allowing no one, no matter whether they were visiting rtives or just wandering through the street, to stay in thene.


    Mr. Wu, who sold fake antiques, cursed as he got on a horse carriage. Aunt Wu looked back at the closed shop door beside theirs, wondering if anything might happen to Sangsang, as the little girl was still inside the shop.


    Sangsang woke up early as usual. After eating the meal left over from yesterday and washing the desks, chairs, pens, and inkstones, she found nothing to do, so she sat at the desk lost in her thoughts.


    Just then, someone knocked on the door of the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    She opened the door.


    There stood several runners of the Chang¡¯an Local Government. They looked frosty and even ferocious, with the iron chains held in their hand nking continuously due to the force from the chilling wind.


    The leading middle-aged officer was wearing an official blue suit, his eyebrows were slightly white, and his face showed the vicissitudes of life. He was the best head constable of the Chang¡¯an Local Government, Tie Ying.


    Tie Ying was stunned to see the thin ck girl in front of him, and asked, "You are Sangsang?"


    Sangsang was lost for a second, then she nodded her head.


    Staring at her, Tie Ying frowned and asked, "Was there an old man who once stayed here over a few days?"


    Sangsang looked up at him.


    Tie Ying took out a portrait and showed it to her.


    Sangsang looked at it for a while and knew that they were looking for her master, and told him, "He is dead."


    "I know," Tie Ying replied, "This man is wanted by the court, and since you kept him for so long but never reported it to the local authorities, you have to leave with us to tell us about the details. You are suspected of harboring a fugitive."


    After thinking for a while, Sangsang stared at him and asked seriously, "For how long will I be leaving?"


    Tie Ying and the other runners of the Chang¡¯an local government behind him were shocked.


    They came here to catch a criminal under court orders, but never imagined that they were after a young thin and ck girl. What was even more confusing for them was that the girl was not the slightest bit frightened.


    Sangsang asked the next question, "Should I take my quilt?"


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 332: There Is No Blood in Sangsangs Eyes

    Chapter 332: There Is No Blood in Sangsang¡¯s Eyes


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The kinds of people who could be surrounded by runners of the Chang¡¯an local government at the door, yet still remain calm enough to ask whether to take their quilt, were either local ruffians and hooligans who had numerous contacts within the authorities or ruthless bandits who expected to die fighting. Obviously, Sangsang was neither of these two, so Tie Ying was lost for a while before he nodded his head.


    Sometimes, twists and turns could make the story more consummate. When Sangsang held a lump of quilt and followed the runners out of the Old Brush Pen Shop, a group of men wearing turquoise robes, turquoise trousers, and turquoise shoes blocked their way.


    The runners got nervous all at once for they knew ordinary fellows of the Jianghu world wouldn¡¯t dare to oppose the imperial court. They realized that these turquoise-robed men were the crew of the Fish-dragon Gang, which was now well known as the hired roughnecks of the imperial court.


    The Old Brush Pen Shop had been a key surveince target of the Fish-dragon Gang these days. When the runners of the Chang¡¯an local government brought chains to take down their suspect, they became alert to the situation. Especially when they saw Tie Ying enter the Old Brush Pen Shop, the crew responsible for watching this ce didn¡¯t dare to turn a blind eye to it and notified the gang leader Mr.Qi immediately.


    Sangsang saluted Mr.Qi with a half-crunching bow. It seemed a little funny when her little body was holding arge quilt.


    Mr. Qi nodded his head, then looked at Tie Ying and said with a faint smile, "Constable Tie, you should clearly be aware of who the owner of the Lin 47th Street is, the rtionship between the boss of the Old Brush Pen Shop and us the Fish-dragon Gang, as well the interlude about the shop that happened in the spring of the year beforest. So I¡¯m confused, what is it that is going on right now?"


    Tie Ying recalled the incident that everybody knew about, the overnight bloody massacre at the Spring Breeze Pavilion. He then replied that the local government runners had also been looking after the Old Brush Pen Shop, but today they werepelled to do so, and said embarrassedly, "Mr. Qi, I advise you to step away from this matter for today. I will let you know one thing¡ªthe prefectural magistrate is pretending to have a high fever fromst night and is refusing to get out of his bed. Even this magistrate had to resort to the trick of feigning an illness, let alone you."


    The prefectural magistrate of Chang¡¯an City had a fever and was lying in bed? Qi IV suddenly sensed an overwhelming danger from the words intentionally disclosed by Constable Tie. However, after thinking it over for a while, he still refused to step aside. Then he signaled to order his turquoise-gowned subordinates to block both ends of the Lin 47th Street, and said, "This is the order of brother Chao."


    Chao Xiaoshu of the Spring Breeze Pavilion was no longer the leader of the Fish-dragon Gang and had left Chang¡¯an for nearly a year, and nobody knew whether he would evere back to the city. But for Qi IV and the other brothers of the Fish-dragon Gang, that man would be their eldest brother and their leader forever. The words of brother Chao were more influential than even an imperial edict.


    Constable Tie looked at him, came close to him, and asked to him in a low voice, "Have you seen the guy at the street corner?"


    Mr. Qi looked out the street corner and saw a young man sitting in front of a store. The man was wearing a simple cotton-padded jacket, with a thin, darkened face and slightly peeling skin. It seemed like he had been exposed to the scorching sun for many days. He was sitting there like any ordinary person, but there was some indescribable sense of somberness and destion about him.


    "Who is that guy?" Qi IV squinted his eyes.


    Constable Tie replied, "Wang Jinglue."


    Qi IV suddenly showed a stern expression, and repeated after a moment of silence, "Wang Jinglue, the Invincible prior to Knowing Destiny?"


    For themon folk in the street, the world of the cultivators was a wonderful and remote ce, about which they had little knowledge. However, Wang Jinglue was different, because he was so famous that even themon folk knew that he was the hope of the younger generation of cultivators of the empire.


    Staring at Qi IV¡¯s face, Constable Tie said in a low voice, "I have no idea who reported to the Chang¡¯an local government that this girl had sheltered an escaped criminal. I only know that there is pressureing from the Military Ministry, and Wang Jinglue is the watcher sent by the Military Ministry."


    Mr. Qi frowned and said, "Wang Jinglue... Is he the Prince¡¯s man?"


    Constable Tie replied, "After the bloody case the year beforest, the imperial court issued an order to banish him to the battlefield of the southern border. He is the man of the hour in the Military Ministry, as well as a trusted follower of General Xu Shi."


    Qi IV wore a severe expression when he heard the name of General Xu Shi. Though he was the leader of the Chang¡¯an underworld and had the background identity of a member of the bodyguard¡¯s office, he still couldn¡¯t confront the top man in the military of Tang Empire face-to-face.


    Constable Tie shook his head and signaled the subordinate runners to take Sangsang away.


    Out of everyone¡¯s expectations, Qi IV still wouldn¡¯t step aside, though he was obviously frightened. Instead, he stared at Tie Ying and said, "I have sent a message to the imperial pce, please wait a little longer."


    Constable Tie frowned a little and said, "Is it necessary to acknowledge the imperial pce for just a little handmaiden?"


    Qi IV didn¡¯t exin, but when the runners heard the words "imperial court", they were frightened just like when the crew of the Fish-dragon Gang heard the words "Military Ministry". Now that the Fish-dragon Gang had revealed their intentions to not turn hostile and attack, and were just asking them to wait, they were more than willing to agree.


    There were numerous high officials, nobles and members of the imperial house spread throughout Chang¡¯an. Even an ordinary-looking Tea Specialist might be a cultivator. Therefore, the officials of the Chang¡¯an local government had be good at feigning illness while they patiently waited whenever they received such high profile cases.


    Tie Ying and the runners were willing to be patient, while certain others were not.


    For example, Wang Jinglue.


    After he left Chang¡¯an and went to join the army at the southern border under the decree of His Majesty, he had been bathed in a life-and-death fight for almost two years. The once top expert of Tang had thinned down on his face and got tanned, his once lotus-root-like fingers became thin and vigorous like bamboo, and his temperament turned more solemn and decisive.


    When Wang Jinglue saw the crowd of the Fish-dragon Gang blocking the runners of the Chang¡¯an local government, he restrained his temper and waited for a while. When he found that these men were going to wait even longer, he couldn¡¯t hold himself anymore.


    He fished out two copper coins and put aside the tea bowl, then got up and walked into the Lin 47th Street. With his feet stepping on the residual snow, the branches of the trees outside the wall on the street rustled with snow falling off, but not even a little bit of it fell upon his cloth jacket.


    The crew of the Fish-dragon Gang looked at him vigntly.


    So did Mr. Qi.


    Wang Jinglue walked slowly to the front of the Old Brush Pen Shop and quietly looked at Mr. Qi.


    Qi IV felt as of Wang Jinglue¡¯s stare was like a hammer heavily hitting down on his heart. He suddenly felt feeble and weak on his legs, and nearly copsed onto the ground. Then he quickly bit his tongue to clear his mind.


    "In the year before thest at the Spring Breeze Pavilion, I had wished to kill Chao Xiaoshu. I was too arrogant back at that time to notice that there were stronger individuals hidden in the night in the marketce."


    Wang Jinglue said, "But you are not Chao Xiaoshu, nor are you Liu V or Fei VI, or even Chen VII. You are the most useless Qi IV, thus the imperial court sent you to take charge of the Fish-dragon Gang. However, without Chao Xiaoshu, the Fish-dragon Gang now is not as powerful as before, and is not qualified to participate in this matter."


    After finishing these words, he turned back to look at the ck little face behind the quilt, then suddenlyughed and said calmly, "Let¡¯s go."


    Holding the thick quilt, Sangsang turned her little face to have a view of the ground ahead, then followed him out of thene.


    Cough! Qi IV failed to suppress the injuries in his body and spewed out blood painfully.


    He wiped away the watery blood on his face, then red at Wang Jinglue¡¯s back as he said severely, "Brother Chao is also a cultivator, but he¡¯s not an arrogant bastard you. He acts like an ordinary man around the brothers within the gang and even to the neighbors. Though I know nothing about cultivation, I do know about people, and I can bet you will never be able to catch up with him in your life."


    Wang Jinglue stopped his steps, then turned to look at him and said with a smile, "I had once wished to be at the top of the world, and I foundter that these thoughts were not realistic. So what? It¡¯s enough for me to be better than most of the people in the world."


    Mr. Qi knew that the brothers in the gang could do nothing in the face of such a powerful cultivator. After all, the Fish-dragon Gang was not an army. But there was no way he could allow Wang Jinglue to take away Sangsang.


    He didn¡¯t want to even consider the possibility that one day, when Brother Chao woulde back to Chang¡¯an and ask him what he was doing when Sangsang was taken away, he could just reply that he was spewing blood and freaking out.


    Qi IV looked once more at Wang Jinglue. Suddenly he showed an odd smile, drew out a knife from his waist and struck his own heart without the least hesitation.


    He would soon die under the de, but Mr. Qi showed no fear and didn¡¯t even spare a nce at the de. He just stared straight into Wang Jinglue¡¯s eyes without even blinking.


    Actually, when Mr. Qi decided to draw out the knife and kill himself, he was somehow both relieved and delighted, because he had finally found a way to hold back his opponent¡ªthrough his own death.


    Wang Jinglue was right about him¡ªeven as the gang leader of the Fish-dragon Gang, he was not an equal to brother Chao, and he was less likely to fight against the military force of the Tang empire and a cultivator at the peak of the Seethrough level.


    However, the Fish-dragon Gang, after all, belonged to His Majesty, and he was the leader of the Fish-dragon Gang. Even if his death couldn¡¯t change too much, he could still win some time until his death was transmitted to the imperial court and earned the anger of His Majesty.


    Meanwhile, as to the idea of death, he held no fear at all. He had grown up from his youth in the sewage ditches and the nights of Chang¡¯an. Though he hadn¡¯t killed many, he had already seen far too many dead men, bing indifferent to life to the extent of being quite daunting.


    Realizing the other¡¯s motives, Wang Jinglue¡¯s narrowed his eyes. He was shocked by the calmness and cruelty hidden in Qi Si¡¯s knife. As a cultivator, these mortals were nothing more than crickets and ants in his eyes. However, he still couldn¡¯t be as cold to life as this.


    Courage and uprightness always caused excitement and won the respect of men. Be they superior cultivators or rogues at the dredges of society, all would honor true courage and bravery when faced with such a scene.


    Wang Jinglue was no exception. He admired Mr. Qi¡¯s decisiveness and cruelty, thus he decided against discouraging Mr. Qi from killing himself.


    Sangsang was not a man.


    Sangsang was a woman.


    Sangsang, brought up by the pragmatist Ning Que, hardly knew what courage and uprightness were.


    So she stopped the sharp knife from piercing into the heart of Mr. Qi with the soft quilt.


    Sangsang retracted her hands and felt sorry for the damaged quilt.

 Chapter 333: The Future in Your Hands

    Chapter 333: The Future in Your Hands


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Mr. Qi was very surprised and confused. He could not understand why a sharp pain had appeared in his right wrist that was holding the knife when the de appeared. It was a burning pain that was clear and uncontroble, which was why he was not able to clear a path through his heart. What puzzled him more, was how the nkets in Sangsang¡¯s arms had appeared in the narrow gap between his chest and the knife.


    He was so stunned by the questions, that he had forgotten to stop the local government runners from the Chang¡¯an Local Government from taking Sangsang away. It wasn¡¯t until they had left the Lin 47th Street did hee out of the daze. He touched his shaven head somewhat irritatedly and swore before sitting down on the stone steps before the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    "Mr. Qi, please look after the things beneath the bed and the two urns in the courtyard. Don¡¯t lose them."


    That was what Sangsang had said before she left. He had decided to sit on the stone steps until Sangsang returned. He would eat, drink, defecate and sleep here. He would not leave the shop.


    ...


    ...


    There was a light snowfall in Chang¡¯an City on the first day of the 15th year of Tianqi era.


    Snowkes descended slowly onto the ground. Somended between branches and stayed as snow, and some in the cracks between the stone pavements and retained its structure. However, those thatnded on the thin shoulders dressed in thin clothes melted immediately.


    Sangsang looked down at the water stains on her shoulders and heaved the heavy nkets in her arms. It was a little tiring, but she did not want to ce the nkets at her feet. It wouldn¡¯t be good if it was soiled by the snow.


    The Chang¡¯an Local Government was silent. There wasn¡¯t an attending who came to attend to her, and there wasn¡¯t an official who had asked his subordinate to ask about the case. Officials and local government runners were all hiding in their respective rooms and refused to pass by the courtyard entrance. They would rather take the longer path even if they had to use the bathroom urgently.


    In fact, the officials had not even allowed her to enter the court previously. They had had her wait at the steps of the building. However, the thin handmaiden standing in the snow outside the yamen had attracted the attention of several passersby.


    The citizens of Chang¡¯an were most courageous and dared to scold even the emperor and prime minister, much less the Chang¡¯an Local Government. There were many ugly things said outside the government building, and there were many snowballs thrown on the ck doors of the Chang¡¯an Local Government.


    The officials were forced to let Sangsang enter the Chang¡¯an Local Government, but still refused to ask questions and only had her stand before the entrance to the courtyard.


    The slender and tiny little handmaiden standing in the snow with nkets in her arms looked very lonely and pitiful.


    Wang Jinglue watched her from the side. He thought of how Mr. Qi had pulled out a knife and tried to kill himself and felt that was really odd. Could it be that the little handmaiden was secretly a powerhouse? But there were no changes in the Qi of Heaven and Earth in the street then. He smiled emptily after ruminating on it. He thought that he must be thinking too much since the little handmaiden had a certain rtionship with the Academy.


    Xu Shi, the Defender-general of the State had been the one who ordered for the little handmaiden to be captured from the Old Brush Pen Shop and brought for interrogation about her rtionship with the Great Divine Priest of Light to protect the empire. However, the crime of harboring fugitives should be dealt with by the Judicial Department. It was stated clearly in thew of Tang Empire that the military was not allowed to interfere with cases that belonged to them. That was why the Military Ministry had wanted the Chang¡¯an Local Government to act and then, send her to the Military Ministry on treason charges.


    Wang Jinglue had already sent the name card and letter written by Defender-general of the State into the depths of the Chang¡¯an Local Government. He only had to wait for the prefectural magistrate to speak and satisfy the requirements of thew of the Tang Empire before he could take Sangsang away.


    However, the illness of official Yang Yu of the prefectural magistrate of Chang¡¯an City seemed to have exacerbated.


    The attendant looked at Wang Jinglue with a troubled look. He said, "The official has been running a fever since noon yesterday. He slipped into aa in the evening and had not drunk anything since then. There were two doctors who came from the Imperial Academy of Medicine, and they have not managed to cure him."


    Wang Jinglue looked at the man with disgust. He thought, if that man had wanted to feign illness, not even the divine pill of West-Hill Divine Pce could make him leave his bed, much less the imperial doctors from the Imperial Academy of Medicine.


    "When can the prefectural magistrate settle this?"


    "Actually... ording to your humble servant, if the Military Ministry wants to ask the little handmaiden anything, they don¡¯t have to bring her to the Military Ministry. To be honest, no one in the Chang¡¯an Local Government would dare to take responsibility for this. You can question her here."


    "Harboring a fugitive... Thews of the Tang Empire do not state that the Military Ministry is allowed to ask about that."


    "You can ask her privately. It wouldn¡¯t matter since it isn¡¯t an official questioning in the Yamen."


    Wang Jinglue waved the attendant away. After considering the suggestion for a moment, he walked to the courtyard slowly. He looked at the little handmaiden who stood in the snow, and at the snow in her yellow hair, and asked with slightly furrowed brows, "Are you cold?"


    Sangsang hugged the thick nkets. She was not cold, and so, she shook her head.


    Wang Jinglue took out a few documents from his clothes and put them on the nkets that Sangsang held. He flipped it open and pointed at the words on them and introduced himself. "I am Wang Jinglue, from the Mountain DargonTiger cultivation sect. I am registered with the Imperial Center Administration of Tang and work with the Military Ministry. I am authorized to question you ording to thews of the Tang Empire."


    Defender-general of the State, Xu Shi, was no doubt the most powerful man in the Military Ministry of the Tang Empire. They had toplete all the necessary procedures even if it was such a powerful figure questioning a little handmaiden. It wasn¡¯t because of the backing that the little handmaiden had in the form of the Academy, but because he wanted to show that he respected thews of the Tang Empire, and prove it to the Academy.


    Wang Jinglue had followed Xu Shi into battle in the southern frontiers for a long time. He knew the old general¡¯s tough attitude well and knew that the general need not worry about the Academy¡¯s reaction due to the Tang Empire¡¯s fair y policy and his unique status in the military.


    "That old man was involved in that bloodshed in Chang¡¯an City more than a decade ago. The West-Hill Divine Pce used him of betraying Haotian and everyone in the world searched for him. However, he had lived with you for many days in the Old Brush Pen Shop. I¡¯d like to ask you..."


    Wang Jinglue paused for a moment before he stopped the questioning. Sangsang hadid her head on the thick nkets and had no intention of listening to his questions, much less answering them.


    He asked in annoyance, "You are just a maidservant. Do not pin your hopes on your young master, or that the Academy would speak up for you. I do not wish to make things difficult for you. You just have to tell me about your rtionship with the old man."


    Sangsang lifted her head and looked at him. She said, "I can¡¯t say."


    Wang Jinglue asked in surprise, "Why?"


    Sangsang said, "Young master warned me when I was young that I shouldn¡¯t answer questions from strangers."


    Wang Jinglue didn¡¯t know what to say.


    It was then, when a calm but stern voice rang out in the courtyard.


    "Youngdy, there are some questions that you have to answer."


    A yellow oiled-paper umbre with snowkes on it had appeared in the Chang¡¯an Local Government.


    The person who had spoken was not the Taoist under the umbre, but an official in military robes beside him.


    Wang Jinglue frowned slightly. He had not gotten to know much about the powerhouses of the imperial court when he was a visiting professor at the Prince¡¯s Mansion which was why he had not managed to guess Master Yan Se¡¯s identity that night in the rain. Now that he was a member of the imperial court and knew about many more things, he could easily recognize the two.


    The official in military robes was the highest ranking official, Zhuge Wuren, of the Imperial Center Administration of Tang. The Taoist holding the yellow oiled-paper umbre was the disciple of Nation Master Li Qingshan, He Mingchi. The two men had appeared at the same time, representing the cultivators of the imperial court.


    Wang Jinglue did not expect that there were others who were interested in the tanned and skinny maidservant other than the esteemed general Xu Shi, whose temperament was odd. Did they not know who the owner of the Old Brush Pen Shop was?


    Zhuge Wuren nodded at Wang Jinglue politely and said, "I do not know which case the Military Ministry is investigating that they need to question this girl, but we do have some urgent matters to ask her."


    The Imperial Center Administration of Tang governed all matters rted to cultivators and have always worked closely with the military and South School of Haotian Taoism. Zhuge Wuren, who was in charge, had always been secretive. It was rumored that he was not a cultivator at all.


    Wang Jinglue had not sensed any aura, but grew even more vignt. An official who did not cultivate but was able to control all the strong cultivators in the imperial court and military was an impressive man.


    He Mingchi kept his umbre and exined to Wang Jinglue softly, "Mr. Zhuge and I went to Lin 47th Street only to find that the little maidservant had been brought to the Chang¡¯an Local Government by Mr. Wang. That was why we came."


    Wang Jinglue said, "I wonder what Mr. Zhuge would like to ask."


    Zhuge Wuren said coldly, "It is naturally a question that you can¡¯t hear."


    After a moment of silence, Wang Jinglueughed self-mockingly. He put his hands behind his back and walked out of the courtyard slowly. He said, "Better hurry up."


    ...


    ...


    There was a whoosh and the yellow oiled-paper umbre in He Mingchi¡¯s hands opened once more. An aura settled over the courtyard of the Chang¡¯an Local Government and the sounds of the world around it grew muffled with the opening of the umbre.


    Sangsang looked up at the yellow oiled-paper umbre curiously. She must have thought of her big ck umbre.


    He Mingchi thought that the little maidservant was worried, and smiled warmly. He exined, "It is just for soundproofing and would not cause you harm. Mr. Zhuge has something important to ask you, you just have to answer honestly."


    Zhuge Wuren stared into Sangsang¡¯s eyes and said in a surly tone, "Only you were present on that mountain when Master Yan Se and the Great Divine Priest of Light died. My question is, did Master Yan Se leave anything behind?"


    The official¡¯s tone was cold and He Mingchi could not help but frown. He might think that Younger Brother Ning Que was after all a visiting professor of the Imperial Center Administration, why did he have to be so stern with his handmaiden?


    Sangsang looked at the official and said seriously after a moment of silence. "Master Yan Se left that horse carriage for my young master."


    Zhuge Wuren yelled at her with hatred and annoyance. "You know that¡¯s not what I was asking."


    Sangsang was not frightened by him at all and answered very seriously. "No matter whether it is the horse carriage or anything else, they are for my young master. What has it to do with you?"


    Zhuge Wuren breathed in deeply and said coldly, "Some things are too important that not even the person it is bequeathed to can keep it. Those things would affect the future of the Tang Empire."


    He Mingchi did not speak as he held the umbre. He did not agree with the Imperial Center Administration, but had to admit that Mr. Zhuge was very right. In Chang¡¯an, a big tactical array had been protecting the Tang Empire for thousands of years. Its array eye must not end up in the secr world, in the hands of a little tanned and skinny handmaiden.

 Chapter 334: Just Invincible Prior to Knowing Destiny

    Chapter 334: Just Invincible Prior to Knowing Destiny


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Under the tree on that hill, before his death, the Great Divine Priest of Light had given Sangsang an ID token and touched her head affectionately. Master Yan Se had taken something out of his sleeves and given it to her, then left some words for her.


    After that, the two old men had been reduced to ashes on the edge of the cliff. Of course, Sangsang did not forget the details, so she knew what the officer in front of her wanted. However, she chose to pretend that she didn¡¯t understand him.


    Sangsang was not a smart little handmaiden who was good at lying. So Zhuge Wuren immediately saw through her words. His face became darker and darker, as if he was about to explode in rage at any time.


    He Mingchi gently coughed, then nced at him. The meaning of his gaze was very clear¡ªalthough the array eye was a matter of great significance, it was Master Yan Se who had passed it on to Ning Que after all. It was impossible for them toy im to it. If the imperial court was still worried about it, they could keep watch over the Old Brush Pen Shop and wait for Ning Que toe back to discuss the issue with him.


    Zhuge Wuren knew what he meant and said indifferently, "Taoist He, I know you¡¯re the Second Prince¡¯s studypanion. But I want to remind you that he is the Second Prince after all. You... really don¡¯t want to be the Nation Master of the Tang Empire?"


    He Mingchi suddenly remembered that Zhuge Wuren was close to the Empress. As many people knew in Chang¡¯an City, Ning Que had a close rtionship with the Princess, Li Yu. Was it because the Empress did not want Ning Que to be the Nation Master in the future?


    He smiled shyly and shook his head. The matter the other had mentioned made him not want to meddle in it anymore. However, he thought of something and could not help saying, "Sir Zhuge, you¡¯d better not forget whose maidservant she is."


    Zhuge Wuren kept silent for a short moment before a touch of decisiveness appeared in his eyes. He said, "This concerns the safety of the Tang Empire. I think the Academy will agree with me. Besides, I haven¡¯t been disrespectful to Mr. Thirteen. Will the Academy be angry with my interrogating a maidservant? There is a reason why the Academy doesn¡¯t meddle in the court administration?"


    He looked at Sangsang and said coldly, "You must hand over the things left by Master Yan Se and the God of Light."


    At this time, Wang Jinglue returned to the garden and looked at the two coldly, asking, "Have you finished? I¡¯ll be bringing her back to the Military Ministry now."


    He Mingchi puzzledly looked at him and asked, "What does the general want to know from this little maidservant?"


    Wang Jinglue answered, "It¡¯s about the God of Light and a murder case in Chang¡¯an City fourteen years ago."


    He Mingchi was silent as he slowly retracted the yellow oiled-paper umbre.


    Zhuge Wuren said indifferently, "Please tell Grand General Xu Shi that we¡¯ll be taking away this little maidservant, and not just for the interrogation. The prince has previously entered the pce to seek permission from His Majesty, in order to allow the West-Hill Divine Pce to take her back to Peach Mountain."


    Wang Jinglue slightly frowned and said mockingly, "Do you think the West-Hill Divine Pce can ignore the Military Ministry?"


    Zhuge Wuren slightly frowned and said, "ording to thew of the Tang Empire, the Military Ministry has no right to meddle in this case."


    Wang Jinglue slightly smirked. "In ordance with thew of the Tang Empire, the Imperial Center Administration is even less qualified."


    He Mingchi stood quietly at the side. Although many Taoists in the Southern Gate of the Haotian Temple had be extremely resentful towards the little handmaiden in the Old Brush Pen Shop for Master Yan Se¡¯s death, he did not share their view.


    On most days, any government institution other than the imperial pce would subconsciously withdraw if they found the military forces to be opposing them. However, today the Imperial Center Administration actually refused to retreat when faced with the Military Ministry, and they were determined to get the girl, even resorting to using the name of the Prince and West-Hill Divine Pce to suppress the other.


    They did not waste time with superfluous words, actually forcing each other into a dead end instead. In the end, it seemed that, ording to thew of Tang Empire, the Chang¡¯an Local Government, where everyone now stood, was the only ce qualified to interrogate Sangsang.


    Wang Jinglue said, "I heard that the prefectural magistrate had a high fever and couldn¡¯t get up at all."


    Zhuge Wuren said with a sneer, "Since the imperial doctor couldn¡¯t help, I had to ask the Imperial Center Administration to send some Psyche Masters to treat him. Even if his fever is rather high, he should still be able to hold a short conversation."


    ...


    ...


    The Chang¡¯an Local Government was the humblest institution in the Tang Empire, just like a bullied daughter-inw in a big family. Today, the Military Ministry, the Imperial Center Administration, and the Southern Gate Temple were all gathered in the local government¡¯s office. Under this immense pressure, the prefectural magistrate chose to feign sickness and refused to go out, while all the officials were as silent as a winter cicada.


    When Zhuge¡¯s words were sent to the back of the mansion, the prefectural magistrate, Shangguan Yangyu, knew that he could no longer feign sickness. He rubbed his sore throat gently and thought of the uselessness of that pot of ice water yesterday afternoon. He could not help sighing and shaking his head again and again.


    His wife said worriedly, "If you don¡¯t want to offend the Academy, you will have to offend so many other people. What should we do now?"


    A touch of cruelty appeared in Shangguan Yangyu¡¯s ugly little eyes. He said with a sneer, "They want to push me into a dead end and want me to exin to Mr. Thirteen afterward. They wish!"


    Surprised, she asked, "Milord, have you thought of a good idea?"


    Shangguan Yangyu looked at his affectionate old wife and sighed. He said pitifully, "Don¡¯t be scaredter."


    After finishing this sentence, the prefectural magistrate struggled to climb up from his bed and pulled out a hard stick from under the bedside desk. He wheezed painfully several times, then mercilessly hit his head with the stick!


    Bang! With a muffled noise, he broke his head and passed out.


    He had truly lost consciousness this time.


    A mournful cry from the wife of the prefectural magistrate sounded in the room.


    ...


    ...


    While the prefectural magistrate took measures to remain a miserable patient in his bedroom, another person entered the Chang¡¯an Local Government office.


    The steward bowed respectfully to the others and said, "Her Highness is in the pce and can¡¯te here in time. So she asked me toe over. What grave mistake has Sangsangmitted to bother so many officials?"


    Unexpectedly, the princess, Lee Yu, had found out about this matter so quickly. Wang Jinglue slightly frowned.


    He represented the imperial army, so he did not technically need to listen to the princess. But now no one knew which prince the emperor would ultimately pass the dragon throne to. So he felt it prudent to tread carefully in these murky waters.


    Zhuge Wuren did not give any exnation to the steward, expressing his attitude with silence.


    The steward did not get angry. At first, beforeing to the local government office, he had assumed that it must have just been a misunderstanding. However, when he saw so many bigwigs there, he realized that it was not as simple as Her Highness had thought. He also guessed that the little handmaiden must have something important hidden from them. So he gave a slight smile, then left immediately to inform the pce again at the fastest speed.


    As soon as the steward of the Princess¡¯ Mansion left, thetest news came out from the back of the mansion. The prefectural magistrate had already been seriously ill, and now fell into an unconsciousa. Apparently, he had cared about working for His Majesty as well as the people and had tried to get up to deal with the case, only to bump into the door because of his high fever.


    This kind of official who was diligent in government affairs was really rare¡ªit was this kind of excuse. Zhuge Wuren and the others did not believe it and angrily entered the back of the mansion. However, after a short moment, they came back withplicated expressions.


    "Is there such a shameless official in the Tang Empire?" Zhuge Wurenmented.


    He Mingchi thought of the horrible bloody wound on the head of the prefectural magistrate and sighed, "It¡¯s really well yed."


    Wang Jingluemented, "He would rather hurt himself than deal with the case. Good for him!"


    Zhuge Wuren suddenly said, "In that case, I¡¯ll bring this little maidservant back to the pce first."


    Wang Jinglue frowned.


    Zhuge Wuren said, "Someone in the pce will exin to the grand generalter."


    Wang Jinglue still frowned.


    ...


    ...


    People came and went. Snow rose and fell.


    The snow fell on yellow paper umbres, branches, eaves and the bedding. Perhaps the quilt was too big and blocked the little girl who was holding it. Perhaps the people who came and went were thinking about something important. So they forgot that the person they were discussing was right beside them. In short, Sangsang who was standing between the wind and snow was forgotten by them.


    No one noticed that she also frowned.


    Sangsang was a little girl unwilling to cause trouble for Ning Que.


    At first, the Chang¡¯an Local Government had only asked her about the case, so she hade here. And then she did all they had asked, including standing in front of the government, before the garden, in the wind and snow. But when she realized that the official really wanted to grab the things entrusted to her, and even seemingly wanted to bring her to the pce, she started to hesitate.


    Sangsang was a person who would fight over several taels of silver even at the cost of her own life. What¡¯s more, the thing that these people wanted to steal from her was obviously worth even more money. Besides, they were the things that her teacher had left for her and Master Yan Se had left for Ning Que. So she frowned.


    Her frown indicated her unhappiness and disapproval.


    She stretched her head over the thick bedding with difficulty and looked at the shameless official who had wanted to bring her into the pce and rob her belongings. A deep, subtle light glinted in her dark and clear eyes. And then the light zed quickly.


    Suddenly a cold wind blew over.


    The solemn Divine Light deep in Sangsang¡¯s eyes suddenly faded away. She slowly lowered her head.


    ...


    ...


    Wind was just flowing air. The reason why a cold wind suddenly blew over here was that a huge object abruptly appeared in the air. And that object was a very fat young man.


    The fat young man appeared in the park and caused a gust of winter wind. But he quickly drove away the winter wind and brought warmth to everyone. It was as warm as his handsome and lovely eyes and brows.


    "There are so many people here."


    Sangsang looked up at him and gently nodded.


    The fat young man looked at the three people and said, "If the prefectural magistrate of Chang¡¯an City dares to deal with the case, you may interrogate Sangsang as per thew of the Tang Empire. If he instead chooses to lie on his bed, you shouldn¡¯t stay here embarrassing yourselves."


    Zhuge Wuren became solemn as he looked at this person who was reproaching him. "Who are you? How dare you say so!"


    The fat young man chose to ignore these people and took the bedding from Sangsang¡¯s arms. "Let¡¯s go!"


    Sangsang followed behind him and prepared to leave as honestly as she hade.


    Wang Jinglue did not know who this fat young man was, but he could vaguely guess the person¡¯s identity. He looked at the youngster¡¯s back and could not help feeling a little excited. So he gently waved his sleeves and moved one step forward.


    The young man stopped and turned to nce at him.


    A vague aura passed through the two people instantaneously. The breeze stilled and those slowly falling snowkes trembled in midair, yet Wang Jinglue¡¯s body shook violently.


    Wang Jinglue grew more and more excited. His right hand slightly trembled on his side, as if holding a virtual sword.


    The fat young man looked at his right hand and frowned slightly. He struggled to move the bedding to his left shoulder, then raised his right hand. He stretched his index finger to make a pressing motion toward the other at a distance.


    With this pressing motion, Wang Jinglue¡¯s chest and abdomen suddenly copsed, as if being hit by an huge invisible hammer. He suddenly hit the wall behind him. A shocking and squeaking sound appeared among the dust and gravel.


    "No-boundary spirit!"


    "Natural Stream Magical Finger!"


    The snow and dust gradually subsided.


    The fat young man looked at Wang Jinglue, who was bleeding from the corner of his lips under the broken wall, and shook his head slightly carelessly.


    "Even if you are Invincible prior to Knowing Destiny."


    "You¡¯re also only Invincible prior to Knowing Destiny."

 Chapter 335: The Vigilance from the Secular World

    Chapter 335: The Vignce from the Secr World


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "Even if you¡¯re Invincible prior to Knowing Destiny, you¡¯re just Invincible prior to Knowing Destiny." There were a lot of other meanings hidden in these simple and even a bit repetitious words. There was tranquility, indifference, and strong self-confidence. Because only a Grand Cultivator in the Knowing Destiny State was qualified to say so.


    There were countless people who practiced Taoism in the world, but only a few who were able to embark on the path of cultivation. And those who could finally get into the Knowing Destiny State were even fewer. Those rare powerhouses either hid in the depths of different sects or silently sat in the highest positions of the Imperial Court. They rarely appeared before themon people. However, one of them appeared in the Chang¡¯an Local Government today.


    Zhuge Wuren looked at the young fat man in front of him with an extremely weird facial expression. He looked a little excited, afraid, and confused. As the highest official in the Imperial Center Administration, he often visited the Nation Master and Master Huang Yang. As a person from the secr world, he had seen thergest number of Grand Cultivators in the Knowing Destiny State. But he was still shocked at this time, for he could not imagine how such a young man in the world had entered the Knowing Destiny State.


    Even Prince Long Qing, the most favored one in the Haotian Taoism sect, and Wang Jinglue, who the Tang Empire ced great expectations on, were considered only to be very likely to enter the Knowing Destiny State. However, this fat young man had stepped over the threshold with ease and knocked Wang Jinglue into the wall with a single finger!


    After a short moment, Zhuge Wuren finally realized that there was only one ce in the world where one could have such an incredible cultivation, namely, the Academy in the south of Chang¡¯an City. Since Ning Que was a disciple of the Second Floor of the Academy, this man must also be one from the Academy. So, he asked in a slightly husky voice, "Which Mister are you?"


    After all, this official had overestimated the Academy so that he had asked which Mister the fat young person was. In fact, only this fat young person had entered the Knowing Destiny State several years ago in all the Unknown ces in the world, including the back of the mountain, the Zhishou Abbey, and the Xuankong Temple.


    Of course, he was Chen Pipi.


    Chen Pipi looked at Wang Jinglue, who struggled to stand up at the foot of the wall. He thought about those things that he had heard in the past and could not help shaking his head, saying, "A person of cultivation should be proud and confident, but not be arrogant. I heard that you once were a fat man. It seems that you even have lost the only advantage today."


    After finishing this sentence, he shifted the thick bedding to another shoulder and prepared to leave with Sangsang. He did not expect to hear Wang Jinglue¡¯s voice again, "If you continued to kill for several months without sleep, you would also lose weight."


    Wang Jinglue wiped the blood from the corners of his mouth and looked at his back, saying, "The Academy should not interfere in the court administration. I didn¡¯t expect that the Second Floor had directly sent Mr. Twelve to grab the girl today."


    Upon listening to these words, Zhuge Wuren learned that this fat young man was Mr. Twelve from the back of the mountain. He had previously asked about it, but Chen Pipi had simply ignored him. He could not help feeling a little bitter and painful. But he repressed the shock in his heart and said coldly, "Shouldn¡¯t Mr. Twelve exin it?"


    Chen Pipi looked at him and said nkly, "You bullied a little girl and are not qualified to hear my exnation."


    Wang Jinglue took his handkerchief out from his sleeves and covered his lips, which continued to bleed. He coughed as he said, "It seems that the Academy has put its own interests over the world. Does it really want to cover up for a little maidservant?"


    Chen Pipi looked at the three people and said disgustedly, "I hate people talking about the court administration and the secr world. You guys always think of the dragon throne in the pce. Some people want to test Youngest Brother¡¯s reaction with it. Some people even don¡¯t want Youngest Brother to be the Nation Master. So how can you be qualified to represent the secr world?"


    "Who wants to be the Nation Master? Who cares which person sits on the dragon throne? You don¡¯t have the same state as the people in the Academy, so you see a different world. Stop ying with these boring methods! Stop learning from those rural women who pondered whether the empress used a sauce when eating a scallion pancake! Otherwise, you would only embarrass yourselves."


    There were no harsh words in what Chen Pipi had said. He just honestly exined that there was an insurmountable gap between them. It made him naturally reveal an unquestionable sense of superiority.


    Zhuge trembled in anger. He Mingchi was silent and lost in thought with a bitter andplicated smile on the corner of his mouth. Only Wang Jinglue looked at Pipi thoughtfully and seemed to think of something else.


    Chen Pipi looked at the three people and thought that, fortunately, the Youngest Brother was not in Chang¡¯an City now. Otherwise, if the Youngest Brother knew that someone in the Imperial Court dared to bully his little handmaiden, whom he valued more than money, who knew what kind of tragedy would happen?


    Immediately, he remembered the serious expression of the Second Brother in the back of the mountain and could not help shuddering. He thought that he would be beaten to death by his Senior Brother¡¯s hat if Sangsang was harmed today.


    Under the pressure of the Second Brother, no one could stop Chen Pipi from taking Sangsang away, including the Imperial Center Administration, the Southern Gate Temple, the top person in the Tang Empire military, Xu Shi, and the emperor as well as the empress.


    Chen Pipi carried the bedding with Sangsang and, swaying as he walked, left the Chang¡¯an Local Government, which was strictly guarded. He left them with a final sentence before departing, "It¡¯s not finished. I¡¯ll deal with it when Ning Que returns."


    Zhuge looked a little scared. He Mingchi gently sighed. Wang Jinglue slightlyughed and left.


    Half an hourter, a picture of the red rising sun on the background wall of the Chang¡¯an Local Government hall tore in the middle for no reason. On this picture, the red sun was separated from the blue ocean, which made everyone cry out.


    Perhaps it felt the vicious meaning hidden in Chen Pipi¡¯s words.


    Perhaps this was just a warning from a fat student from the Second Floor of the Academy towards the Imperial Court of the Tang Empire.


    ...


    ...


    In the Mansion of the Defender-general of the State¡ª


    Xu Shi looked at the plum flower outside the windows indifferently. His gray hair wasbed tidily and the wrinkles on his face were like an array formation. The coughing sounds from time to time behind him could not distract him at all.


    As a grand general with the most outstanding military achievements in the Tang Empire, he could fearlessly face many things. However, when he really did so, he found that the situation was different from what he had envisioned.


    "Mr. Twelve from the Academy intervened, so I couldn¡¯t make the maidservant stay there. I still don¡¯t know how Wei Guangming has hidden in Chang¡¯an City for so long or what the real rtionship is between him and that maidservant. It is not clear what kind of responsibilities the Imperial Center Administration and Southern Gate Temple should bear in the death of Master Yan Se."


    Wang Jinglue looked at the mottled blood marks on his handkerchief and could not help frowning.


    Xu Shi looked back at him and said, "You¡¯ll cough blood for half a month."


    Wang Jinglue put his handkerchief into his sleeves and said calmly, "It seems worthwhile for me to cough blood for six months as long as I could see the legendary Natural Stream Magical Finger of the Zhishou Abbey and experience the no-boundary spirit of the Academy."


    Upon hearing this answer, Xu Shi felt somewhat satisfied and slowly nodded.


    Wang Jinglue looked at the old general beside the window and slightly smiled.


    As a nominal disciple of Mountain Dragon Tiger, he was actually a self-cultivator who depended on self-enlightenment for breaking the realm or cultivation. He heard from Xu Shi about the Unknown ce skills, including the no-boundary spirit of the Academy and the Natural Stream Magical Finger.


    In the past two years, His Majesty hadmanded him to follow the old general battling in the south of the Tang Empire. Though dull and stubborn, the old general had carefully educated and cultivated him. After living together for a long time, he actually respectfully regarded the old man as his master and father.


    "An Unknown ce like the back of the mountain is so powerful." After a brief silence, Wang Jinglue decided to confess to the general his true thoughts. "If they don¡¯t intend to interfere in the court administration, I don¡¯t think we should offend them."


    After Xu Shi listened to the words, the wrinkles on his face grew deeper. He said, "Who is the most powerful person in the world? It is not His Majesty or the prime minister, but a cultivator. I¡¯m also a cultivator and have seen the Headmaster once. From my decades in the military, I¡¯m more aware of the power of the Academy than anyone else. But as a soldier of the Tang Empire, I must be wary of those powerful cultivators and the Academy. If not, I¡¯ll fail to do my duty as a soldier."


    Wang Jinglue whispered, "I think it¡¯s not appropriate if you want to use this to see whether the Academy still respects thew of the Tang Empire. Because we can hardly prove that the little maidservant has sheltered an escapee ording to the existing evidence."


    "I really want to see the attitude of the Academy."


    Xu Shi turned around and looked at the faint sky outside the window. He said in a slightly cold voice, "But I prefer to know why the Academy did nothing to Wei Guangming, who had spent so long in Chang¡¯an City. What¡¯s the rtionship between this little maidservant and Wei Guangming? Does Ning Que have anything to do with this matter?"


    Wang Jinglue slightly frowned and shook his head, saying, "This kind of vignce... seems very unreasonable."


    Xu Shi said, "As a Tang, no one wants to offend the Academy. But this time, so many people want to offend it. Because that maidservant¡¯s background is humble. Even if they troubled her, they would not make the Academy furious, so she is the best object. Besides, the officials and some nobles in the pce began to be wary of the Academy like I have."


    Wang Jinglue still could not understand why they were wary of the Academy.


    Xu Shi said, "Why are so many people in the Imperial Court vignt against the Academy? Because the world isposed of the supermundane and the secr world. And everything in the secr world has always been under the control of the supermundane. The emperor in the Yuelun Kingdom must go through with the head touching of the Elder in the White Tower Temple before ascending the throne. And the emperors in the other countries must get the permission of the West-Hill Divine Pce. Therefore, the Taoist hierarch on Peach Mountain and the Three Gods are the true masters of this world. Behind them are the Unknown ces of Buddism and Taoism. If one could connect the two Unknown ces, he would be a sage... For the connection, one needs to enter the Human Realm. But why did the Academy enter the Human Realm?"


    Wang Jinglue finally understood the words. In the cold winter, his back was instantly soaked with sweat. There was no real so-called supermundane in the world. And the cultivators were in charge of all the countries, except for the Tang Empire. If the Academy entered the Human Realm and interfered in the secr world like the West-Hill Divine Pce, who could stop it?


    "The Academy must not interfere in the court administration. That is the golden rule made by the Headmaster." He seemed to suppress his uneasiness in his heart and said in a hoarse voice, "If the Academy really wanted to act like the West-Hill Divine Pce, it would have already done so."


    Xu Shi looked at the bleak sun above the clouds with his shimmering eyes and said slowly, "I never doubted the Headmaster. But you have to know that even the greatest man will die in the end. What if the people in the back of the mountain revolt once the Headmaster leaves the world? If they started to interfere in the court administration, there would be no imperial power. Do you think that the Tang Empire... would be the same?"


    "Now we¡¯ve confirmed that Ning Que was the person entering the Human Realm for the Academy. Otherwise, the Academy would not allow him to go to the frontier fortress and the Wilderness. I¡¯ve seen this person¡¯s resume in the Military Ministry. I must admit that he¡¯s a very good soldier. But I became more vignt toward him after knowing about it. Because a good soldier must be cold-blooded and ambitious. Whether for military achievements or opening up territory, that kind of ambition is like a wildfire and cannot be extinguished."


    Xu Shi said in a low voice, "The Tang Dynasty has been prosperous for a thousand years. Because, unlike those poor guys who kneel under the Divine Hall, we feel reverent as well as vignt toward the supermundane people. And we have never surrendered."

 Chapter 336: I Have Never Suspected

    Chapter 336: I Have Never Suspected


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Wang Jinglue shook his head and said, "The empire has existed for a millennium, and the Academy has existed for just as long. If anything were to happen, it would have happened hundreds of years ago. They wouldn¡¯t leave it just for our generation."


    Xu Shi said, "That¡¯s because we only had a Headmaster of the Academy for thest millennium. Only he could have taught those students with abilities to shake the foundation of the Tang empire."


    Wang Jinglue thought of the young chubbyd in the Chang¡¯an Local Government who could use the Natural Stream Magical Finger with ease. He lowered his head and fell silent.


    Xu Shi said coldly, "Birth, aging, illness, and death are all parts of life that Haotian has arranged for humanity. If the Headmaster of the Academy didn¡¯t die, we would not need to worry. However, if he does, we cannot entrust the safety of Chang¡¯an and the empire in Ning Que¡¯s hands. I don¡¯t care what methods you all use, but you have to steal the array eye from him."


    Wang Jinglue kept silent. He Mingchi¡¯s yellow oiled-paper umbre had not stopped him from listening to the conversation and he had already known beforehand what the Imperial Center Administration had wanted from the little handmaiden.


    "Why are you so persistent?" He could not help asking.


    Xu Shi reminisced about the past with narrowed eyes. The deep wrinkles on his face were like grooves on the ground washed away by rain. He said hoarsely, "That¡¯s because there once was a Crazy Ke from the Academy. I do not want the appearance of a Crazy Ning. Any crazy man could take the entire Tang empire down with them."


    With that, the old general started coughing. His painful coughs reverberated in the empty room like the sound of war drums on the battlefield. It was a long time before he finally straightened up with difficulty.


    ...


    ...


    Emperor Li Zhongyi sitting on the couch, quietly looking at his brother, seriously listen to his exnation. Suddenly his brow furrowed painfully, and he hastily covered his lips with a handkerchief to his chest.


    "I¡¯m not sure why the old general was so angry. Even if it might be because of his close ties with Master Yan Se back then, it¡¯s still rather odd. However, the Imperial Center Administration and the Southern Gate Temple approaching the little maidservant have nothing to do with Ning Que or the Academy. What is involved is too important, so it can¡¯t be outside the pce."


    Prince Li Peiyan did not notice the look of pain on the emperor¡¯s face. However, he felt slightly anxious when he did not receive any response from the couch after his exnation. He continued, "The maidservant was a little odd. There is something odd about the whole situation since the Divine Priest of Light has stayed in the Old Brush Pen Shop with her for so long."


    He raised his head and looked at His Majesty solemnly. "After a scolding from my royal brother, I have now repented. I understand the foundation of our Tang empire. I have answered to the West-Hill¡¯s invitation to enter the pce and pass on the message, but I have other thoughts. The Divine Hall¡¯s invitation to the maidservant to the Peach Mountain does not seem to bear any ill intent. ording to the reports to the Imperial Center Administration, the Divine Hall intends for the little maidservant to inherit the ce of the Divine Priest of Light. She is a citizen of Tang, and is also Ning Que¡¯s handmaiden. It would be beneficial to the empire if she were to inherit the position of Great Divine Priest of Light in the future."


    "It depends on whether that rascal Ning Que is willing."


    The Emperor thought about it for a silent moment before shaking his head. He waved his hand, indicating for Li Peiyan to step out.


    ...


    ...


    The dim light of winter sky reflected on the smooth gold bricks on the ground, reflecting the beautiful furnishings in the secluded pce and forming hundreds of beautiful dark frames.


    The Emperor looked down at the vase of plum blossoms in a gold brick in front of the couch. A hint ofughter appeared on his lips before he bent over and started coughing violently. The Prince had already left the pce and there was no one around him. The leader of the nation no longer had to suppress his cough, and it sounded painful as he coughed to his heart¡¯s content.


    The golden curtain swayed slightly, and the Empress came in with a bowl of medicine. She sat down slowly beside him and patted him on the back with a plump arm. She said gently, "Have the medicine."


    The couple in the Tang Pce was the strangest amongst all the emperors and empress in over a millennium. They loved each other deeply and had never lived apart since the first empress had died. There were no other concubines in the pce, and the couple stuck to each other like newly-weds no matter what. The eunuches and pce maids in the pce had long been ustomed to the way they got along, and had already left the two alone at this medicine-feeding time.


    The Emperor took the bowl and looked at the dark-colored medicine in it. He frowned and said, "I¡¯m so sick of it after drinking it for so many years."


    The Empress coaxed him, "The infirmary master had ordered so. You have to drink it."


    The Emperor sighed helplessly and drained the bowl. Then, he wiped his mouth messily with a handkerchief.


    The Empress took the handkerchief from him and tucked it into her sleeves. When she pulled out her hand from the sleeves once more, there was a candy in her palms. She fed it to the Emperor in a well-practiced action, as if she had rewarded the Emperor in this manner many times over the years.


    The Emperor sucked on the refreshing candy and leaned into the Empress¡¯ embrace. He closed his eyes blissfully and said, "Days like these are really good. I wouldn¡¯t trade it for the throne."


    The Empress sniggered. "Your words are like amoner¡¯s."


    She hit the Emperor lightly as she spoke, and then, she patted his back to help with the cough.


    The Emperor smiled. "Can¡¯t I speak like this? That¡¯s why I said I wouldn¡¯t trade it for the throne."


    He thought about Li Peiyan¡¯s report and then, raised his brows andughed. "In fact, I am a little jealous of Ning Que. He was luckier than I am to be able to learn from the Headmaster of the Academy. And he can speak freely. Even the little maidservant by his side is stronger than the woman by mine. At least she doesn¡¯t force him to drink medicine every day."


    The Empress was speechless when she heard Ning Que¡¯s name.


    The Emperor sat up and said, "Even though I hate that old goat, Wei Guangming, but I still respect him for his abilities. Ning Que¡¯s maidservant had the Lucky Chance to be his sessor. That was really shocking. When you have the chance, invite her to the pce and see if there¡¯s anything special about her and cate her while you are at it. After all, they must have been surprised by the events of today. Ning Que wouldn¡¯t say much, but I¡¯m sure he¡¯s thinking of something deep in his heart."


    The Empress nodded and said softly, "I¡¯ll arrange it."


    The Emperor looked at her gentle features and suddenly said, "Let Zhuge resign on his own."


    The Empress patted his back softly, her hand pausing when she heard that. She had always trusted Zhuge Wuren of the Imperial Center Administration. It was no secret in the pce. Then, she continued patting his back and said calmly, "Alright."


    The Emperor looked at her eyes. After a moment of silence, he continued, "As for Tuyang City, the imperial court has issued a warning edict. It is a sin to move the army without an imperial edict. I wonder how Xia Hou will exin that to me."


    Empress¡¯sshes fluttered. Her brother was involved in the incident and she did not know what else she could do but only stay silent.


    The Emperor looked at her tightly pursed mouth and sighed softly. "The Devil¡¯s Doctrine believed in power. They have remained silent in the world and not meet with Haotian and are the most stubborn of them all. You have always been this stubborn, not to mention him. I¡¯m just afraid that Xia Hou would not give in this time."


    The Empress raised her head and looked at him calmly in the eye. "I will write a letter to convince him."


    The Emperor nodded. "Very good."


    The Empress suddenly said, "The prince said that he could not understand why the military was furious. But in my opinion, I think that there are many who are worried about the Academy and how it would be when the Headmaster of the Academy leaves. You should pay attention to all these undercurrents."


    Before the Imperial Astronomer had read about the unrest in the country in the stars at night, one would often see the Empress reading reports on behalf of His Majesty in the imperial study. However, after that, the betrothal between Princess Lee Yu and the Chanyu of the Golden in the grasnd as well as the rumors had made the Empress silent. She never did bother with the country¡¯s affairs anymore. However, when she was alone with the Emperor, she would still asionally express her views as she had done many years ago.


    The Emperor respected his wife¡¯s opinion because he knew that she was capable. He shook his head and said, "I will not guard against the Academy. In my opinion, any citizen of Tang who cannot learn to trust the Academypletely would not be not qualified to sit in the upper echelons of the Tang Empire. This is because it shows that they do not understand why the Great Tang is so."


    "As for Xu Shi..." The Emperor furrowed his brows. He did not have any suitable ways to deal with this general who had worked hard and performed valuable services to the country. "He is loyal to the country and has performed many valuable services. It is just that he is a little cold and quick to anger. Furthermore, his lung ailment had gotten more serious. We don¡¯t know how long he will live for. Those who are on the brink of death usually view the world in darker shades. It is normal for him to be more vignt."


    The Empress made a move to speak but stopped herself. Worry was evident in her eyes.


    The Emperor held her hand and smiled. "You are still young, and our children are young. You should not be so gloomy. You have to remember, that we would not have been able to be together if not for the Headmaster of the Academy and the Academy. The Academy is as important to the Tang Empire as it is to us. I will not doubt or worry about it."


    The Empress smiled and turned away slightly. She checked the handkerchief she had tucked away earlier surreptitiously for traces of blood while the Emperor was otherwise distracted. She only became slightly happier when she discovered no signs of blood on it.


    She was once the Saintess of Diabolism and was the current Empress of Tang. However, she only viewed herself as an ordinary woman and did not wish to think about other things. She just wanted her husband and son to be safe and happy.


    ...


    ...


    "Many will be uneasy and guard against the Academy entering the human realm. The generals who guard the Tang Empire with their lives would. That¡¯s because this is the first time for them to discover that there is a threat that cannot be gotten rid of with martial strength."


    "However, to some others in Chang¡¯an City, this is a great opportunity. They can use the Academy¡¯s power, or stand, to gain some things."


    There was a copper brazier on a pedestal beneath the canopy of the Princess¡¯s Mansion. Lee Yu looked at the fire in the brazier and began to tell the Prince, Li Huiyuan, about a story that was yet to happen.

 Chapter 337: Out of the Blue

    Chapter 337: Out of the Blue


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "That dragon throne in the pce is something that not everybody can get their hands on, this is especially so for you and I. The Empress has the loyalty of General Xiahou and in the cultivation world, she has Zhuge from the Imperial Center Administration. She also has the support of the prince and the Nation Master. Even the prime minister is on her side."


    "She has too many chips in her hands. She is worried that variables would appear, and that the Academy entering the human realm would lead to a cold wind brewing. She is worried that the wind would blow all her chips out of existence and affect who the dragon throne would belong to eventually. That is why she is so vignt. This is a kind of fear that is buried in the hearts of many. Even if she might be able to remain calm, those who are loyal to her cannot. This is the reason for what had happened today."


    "And we have nothing. Hua Shanyue and the others are still young. It would take years until they are capable of taking over the ce of generals Xu Shi and Xia Hou. The schrs from Chang¡¯an had long entered the imperial court, but it¡¯d take time for their voices to be heard. That is why I wee the Academy into the human realm."


    "Once the Academy enters the human realm, should the Academy be attacked, no matter how much support the Empress has, as long as the Academy is willing to make their stand clear, the officials and the military, as well as the cultivators, have to remain silent."


    "How can we be certain of their stand?"


    "Because the person from the Academy who is entering the human realm is Ning Que. And I know him."


    "Ning Que is calm and emotionless. He might not help us because of what had happened in the past, and he might not even interfere with the matter. But there are some things that he must interfere with. And even if he doesn¡¯t bother with it, Sangsang would."


    "Everyone in Chang¡¯an thinks that Sangsang is just an ordinary maidservant. But what is interesting is that I have always know that that is not true. It is fortunate that I have always liked her, and she, liked me."


    "If I were to die on that day, Sangsang would care. Ning Que has got to care then. The Academy would have to make their stand clear then. Brother dearest, why would I die? Because death is what awaits us if we fail to get the throne."


    Lee Yu ended her narrative of a tale that had yet to happen. She picked up some tongs and arranged the pile of ash in the brazier. She raised her head and smiled at her brother before turning to head into the study.


    In the study, Lee Yu wrote a letter to Crown Prince Chongming of the Yan Kingdom. The letter would be sent to him through Hua Shanyue of the Gushan Commandery directly to the pce in Capital Cheng of the Yan Kingdom. This has nothing to do with speed, but cautiousness.


    In the letter, she mentioned what had happened in Chang¡¯an recently and also casually mentioned her past dealings with the master and servant of Old Brush Pen Shop. Finally, she expressed her condolences for the disappearance of Prince Long Qing.


    ...


    ...


    It was snowing in the pce in the capital of the Yan Kingdom, Capital Cheng. Crown Prince Chongming¡¯s gaze drifted to the dancing snowkes outside while he clutched on to the letter tightly.


    A certain official could not hide the joy on his face. He bowed deeply to Crown Prince Chongming and congratted him. "If Mr. Thirteen had really entered the human realm on behalf of the Academy, ording to the rtionship that the Princess had mentioned, the probability that the throne of the Tang empire wouldnd in Prince Li Huiyuan¡¯s hands is high. Your Highness, your rtionship with Princess Lee Yu is good, this is very helpful for your future governance of the Yan Kingdom."


    Crown Prince Chongming have gotten the underlying message that Princess Lee Yu had sent. He knew that the Princess was trying to boost his confidence. If Prince Long Qing was really dead, then he would be the only sessor to the throne of Yan Kingdom. He would benefit the most from it and the future Emperor of Tang would support him.


    There were many who knew that Prince Long Qing was felled by Ning Que from the Academy but nobody knew of where he was and whether he was dead or alive. He should thank Ning Que and celebrate the situation, but he did not express any joy when congratted by his subordinates.


    "Everyone in the world thought that I was fighting for the throne with Long Qing and that we hated each other. But you have all seemed to forget that we are, after all, brothers. We have once yed together in this pce. Now that he is missing and no one knows whether he is dead or alive, do you really think that I can be happy about that?"


    Crown Prince Chongming stared at the dancing snowkes dazedly, and he began to cry out of the blue.


    The official looked at the tears streaming down the Crown Prince¡¯s face and was shocked. He knelt down hurriedly and begged for forgiveness. However, he was still extremely joyful deep inside. He thought to himself, that His Highness, whom he served loyally, was really someone worth serving as he could still pretend to care about his brother at this moment, refusing to express how he really felt before the Emperor and everyone else.


    ...


    ...


    The South Jin Kingdom was in the south. The climate was warm and it did not snow even in winter. The stone mountain that looked like a giant sword reflected the light of the winter sun. Every nook and cranny of the rocks could be made out clearly. The ck and white old-styled pavilion at the foot of the hill exuded a prideful sword style.


    Over the years, many have discovered that a cultivator¡¯s will, boldness, and Lucky Chance was necessary for them to travel further on the long path of cultivation. And one¡¯s boldness was usually how prideful and confident one was.


    Sage of Sword, Liu Bai, studied the art of the sword in the pavilion. He was regarded as the strongest man in the world and would, of course, be extremely proud and confident. This pride and confidence were beyond the scope of regr pride of confidence and seemed toe out of the blue.


    The Sage of Sword¡¯s calm and sharp voice sounded in the pavilion. The voice sounded as if it was about to pierce through the clouds and through the disciples¡¯ eardrums. "I have said months ago, not to return if you were going to shame me. Why did you all return?"


    The disciples of the Sword Garret lowered their heads uneasily. They thought about the edict they had received from the Divine Hall to enter the Wilderness. They had fought with those from the grasnd, and then, with the Deste Man. They had not backed away from death and bloodshed, so when had they shamed their sect?


    Deep within the ck and white pavilion, rays of sunlight shone on a straw house by a pond through arge cave that had been eroded over the years.


    At this point, the sun has shifted and all was silent in the cave.


    A man with long hair covering his shoulders sat in the light. One could not sense a strong aura from him. However, if one dared to look at him directly, they would feel an unbearable pain in their eyes after some time, and would even start tearing up.


    That was because, his messy hair, the belt on his waist, the clothes draped over him, his gaze and his body, were all swords.


    The man himself was a sword. He was a sword that transcended heaven and earth.


    "Go to Chang¡¯an and see what kind of person Ning Que is. He had killed a brother of the Sword Garret when he was still cultivating. How much had he improved since he became a student of the Headmaster of the Academy? Weakest World Wayfarer of the Academy in history? I don¡¯t believe that. Even the weakest wayfarer in history would bring enough trouble to you."


    There was a young man kneeling before the straw house. He was tall and his knees looked likerge trees. When he heard the Sage of Sword, Liu Bai¡¯s sword-like voice, his face paled slightly. He tried to calm his sense of perception forcefully and said puzzledly, "But I¡¯m afraid he would have already returned to Chang¡¯an by the time I get there."


    "So what? Yan Se was willing to perish with Wei Guangming than to fight with me. I want to see if his sessor is stronger than mine. Do not worry that the Academy would stop you from challenging him. Since the sessor of the Academy is about to enter the human realm, he would be prepared to be challenged and to be killed. Mr. Ke had killed all the way back then, what right does this Ning Que have to be different?"


    ...


    ...


    Thentern festival urred shortly after the new year. Lights shone brightly at night in Chang¡¯an as families walked on the streets. Children held candies in their hands and chattered, running around on the streets. Young girls smiled shyly and exchanged secretive nces with their lovers. No one knew how many pairs of shoes, hats and purses would be lost on the streets.


    Aspared to the lively atmosphere of the people, the atmosphere in the pce was naturally solemn and dignified. The Emperor and Empress had invited the senior members of the court to a feast in the pce. After the feast, His Majesty had continued to admire calligraphy, sing and drink with his civilian officials. The Empress continued chatting with some of thedies she was close with.


    No matter the prime minister, or the grand secretary, everyone had to behave appropriately at a ce like this. However, when they saw Lee Yu sitting behind a desk at the head of the pce, they could not help the shock that appeared on their faces.


    All were calm in the Tang Empire. The country was peaceful and prosperous. The only thing that worried the people was the session of the dragon throne.


    Everyone knew that the Empress wanted her own son to sit on the dragon throne in the future. However, Princess Lee Yu felt that her own biological brother was the rightful heir. The two did not fight openly, but the hidden struggle between the two was numerous. The Princess marrying into the grasnd and the Empress not stepping into the imperial study both had something to do with this. Could it be that the two were prepared to bring it all to light now that Princess Lee Yu had appeared at a function like this?


    Nobody noticed the little handmaiden who sat beside Lee Yu silently due to their turbulent emotions.


    Lee Yu had not wanted toe, but the Empress had wanted to meet Sangsang. She had be very vignt because of this. Now that many were sure that Ning Que was the one from the Academy who was entering the human realm, gaining his support would mean gaining the Academy¡¯s support. What did the Empress want to meet Sangsang for?


    All thedies present were close to the Empress and were of course biased. However, they thought of the positions of their husbands and had to behave appropriately. They bowed to Lee Yu. However, only ady remained unmoving.


    This woman was the wife of Zeng Jing, the Grand Secretary of the Imperial Library.


    She was once the beloved concubine of Zeng Jing. The maindy of the house had killed her newborn daughter. If not for the Empress who had heard of the incident by chance and had sent them divorce letters in anger, she would have died without anyone knowing. How would she have attained the position and glory that she had today without the Empress?


    Mrs. Zeng was very grateful to the Empress because of this matter. She would sacrifice not only her husband¡¯s future, but also her life just to make her happy. That was why she had remained seated behind the desk and made no move to walk forward when the prime minister¡¯s wife and the other wives smiled and bowed to Lee Yu.


    She looked at the girl dressed in handmaiden clothing beside Lee Yu, and she thought to herself, that the Princess was bing more and more audacious. She had dared to bring her handmaiden to the Empress¡¯ feast.


    However, when she saw the handmaiden¡¯s tanned face and bright, willow leaf-shaped eyes, Mrs. Zeng felt that she looked familiar, and curiously, her heart began to twinge painfully.

 Chapter 338: Pigeon Soup (I)

    Chapter 338: Pigeon Soup (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Mrs. Zeng could not shake off the odd feeling for the entire night.


    She was no longer the first tough or the one tough the loudest when the Empress made a joke. She did not join in either when the prime minister¡¯s wife gossiped about what happened in Chang¡¯an. Instead, she stared at the dark and skinny little handmaiden beside Princess Lee Yu in a daze.


    Her odd behavior had gathered some attention, especially from thedies who had noticed that she was staring at the Princess. They all thought that it was rather odd. She did not emerge from her reverie even when the royal secretary¡¯s wife called her many times, and she had to gently nudge her to get her attention.


    The royal secretary¡¯s wife lowered her voice and asked in concern, "Why are you so out of it today?"


    Mrs. Zeng smiled painfully and did not exin because she could not exin it. She did not understand why the little handmaiden felt so familiar and why her heart was twinging in pain.


    Thedies could not help feeling confused by the presence of the little handmaiden beside the Princess as they chatted over tea with the Empress. When they had two pots of tea, the prime minister¡¯s wife could not help but ask about it. The Empress smiled and introduced Sangsang to the rest simply.


    That was when thedies realized that she was Ning Que¡¯s handmaiden. Even though they still had many doubts, they did not continue their questions. Furthermore, they were of noble status. While they did not treat their maidservants at home like dogs, they were of two different worlds. They asked about Ning Que casually, giving the Empress face.


    Mrs. Zeng watched herpanions speak with the little handmaiden and could not help asking questions as well. However, she did not care how many calligraphy pieces Sir Ning could write in a day. Instead, she asked for Sangsang¡¯s age.


    Sangsang was not used to the atmosphere in the pce. If it wasn¡¯t for the edict and Lee Yu¡¯s promise to apany her, she would rather cook porridge in the Old Brush Pen Shop. When she ate her meal served by the pce maids earlier, she truly felt that Ning Que was right to say that the pce was not a ce for eating.


    She felt that the questions the nobledies asked were very tedious until someone asked for her age. She thought that the question was simple and immediately answered seriously, "I was born in the Yuan year of Tianqi era."


    Mrs. Zeng lowered her head and counted on her fingers for some time before she calcted that the girl was about to turn 15. After a short pause, she said mournfully, "My child would be the same age as you are if she had lived."


    Thedies present in the pce were all close to the Empress and they all knew of the incident of the ferocious wife who had tried to kill both the concubine and child that had created a ruckus in Chang¡¯an in the Yuan year of Tianqi era. They could not help but look at Mrs. Zeng sympathetically when they heard that.


    The Empressforted her.


    Mrs. Zeng looked at the little handmaiden seated behind the table and smiled bitterly. She thought that she must have missed her deceased daughter too much, that she had lost all decorum looking at a girl the same age as her child. She really shouldn¡¯ have acted that way.


    There were many things that were difficult to get rid of once you have thought about it, just like Mrs. Zeng¡¯s pity for Sangsang that had appeared out of the blue. She tried to convince herself that she was just missing her daughter, but could not help looking at Sangsang dazedly.


    She felt that Sangsang looked more and more familiar as she looked on, especially the girl¡¯s tanned skin and beautiful willow leaf-shaped eyes. They all made her look really familiar. She could not help but ask, "I heard you mention, that you lived in the City of Wei in your early childhood with Sir Ning. Was the sun at the frontier fortress too strong, causing your tan?"


    Sangsang was startled for a moment before she shook her head, saying, "Young Master said that I have always been tanned."


    Mrs. Zeng could not help but fall into a daze when she heard her reply. She did not care how others looked at her and stared staring at Sangsang intently, as if there was something really beautiful on her face.


    The tea had turned cold, and the feast ended. Everyone bade their farewells.


    Mrs. Zeng stood outside the pce. She stopped the two when she saw Lee Yu and Sangsang.


    Lee Yu frowned, not knowing what the Grand Secretary¡¯s wife was trying to do.


    Mrs. Zeng knew very well that as the Empress most ardent supporter, she had not treated the Princess well. In fact, she had offended the Princess several times. That was why she spoke in a gentle and humble tone.


    "Your Highness, I felt a sense of connection to this little girl when I saw her today. You know about my child... and I hope that Your Highness could agree to let me escort her home."


    Lee Yu looked at her silently. It seemed that the Grand Secretary¡¯s wife really wanted to travel with Sangsang, even bringing up her daughter who had passed 15 years ago. Why would she do this? Could it be that the Empress had finally discovered the importance of the Academy entering the human realm and have decided to get close to Ning Que in such a roundabout manner?


    As she thought about this, she decided to refuse thedy¡¯s humble request. She smiled and said, "Sangsang doesn¡¯t like to interact with strangers."


    This was true. Sangsang was unwilling to interact with others. If they had not been in contact over the past two years, even Lee Yu would find it difficult to enter her world, much less the Grand Secretary¡¯s wife whom she had never met.


    At this moment, Sangsang who had stood beside Lee Yu silently suddenly said, "Sure."


    ...


    ...


    "Your name is Sangsang?"


    "Yes."


    "It¡¯s an interesting name."


    "It¡¯s alright."


    "Who named you?"


    "Young master."


    "Your young master is one of the greatest calligraphy of the world. He must have great talent in the art of poetry. The name he chose is certainly good, but what do the characters in your name mean?"


    "There is no deep meaning. Young master said that there was a barkless and leafless Sang tree by the road where he found me. He found me really simr to it and called me Sangsang."


    "Where did your young master find you?"


    "In the Hebei county. He has already forgotten the exact spot. We went to search for it once when we left the Min Mountain. But there were already shoots growing in the field, and many trees had grown to rece the barkless and leafless tree, so he could not recognize the spot."


    The lights were bright in Chang¡¯an this very night. There were many traveling and the streets were packed with people heading towards the Eastern City. Even the horse carriage of the Grand Secretary of the Imperial Library could not pick up speed and could only move slowly behind the people. However, Mrs. Zeng did not mind and was even a little happy because of it.


    The journey was long, and she could spend more time with Sangsang in the carriage and ask her more questions. Sangsang was also obviously different from her usual state. She answered all the questions from thedy and had spoken more tonight than the previous months added together.


    However, her memory of what had happened then was hazy, and what she knew were recounts from Ning Que. That was why she could not give Mrs. Zeng the answer she wanted no matter how she asked.


    No matter how long the journey was, it would eventually reach an end.


    The horse carriage of the Grand Secretary stopped outside the alley of the Lin 47th Street.


    Sangsang got off the carriage and bowed politely to Mrs.Zeng.


    Mrs. Zeng looked at the slender figure before the door dazedly, her heart twinging for an unknown reason.


    She had not been able to ascertain anything and knew that she might have been thinking too much. However, she had grown to like the girl and thought that it¡¯d be great to have a daughter like that.


    Mrs. Zeng lifted the curtains and asked uneasily, "Are you willing to visit the Grand Secretary Mansion as a guest?"


    Sangsang pondered over it as she held the key in her hands. She figured that it¡¯d be some days before Ning Que would return home and that the smoked meat was ready and did not need watching anymore. There was nothing to do even if she stayed at the Old Brush Pen Shop. And so, she nodded.


    ...


    ...


    An odd guest arrived at the mansion of Zeng Jing, Grand Secretary of the Imperial Library, a few dayster.


    It was odd because the guest was a little handmaiden. There were many mansions in Chang¡¯an belonging to officials, but no one had ever heard of any family inviting a handmaiden as a regr guest. That was why, when the chambein had led the handmaiden to the back courtyard, the servants by the willow tree all pointed at her in badly disguised surprise.


    And when the servants saw the wife of the Grand Secretarying up to the door to wee her, and even held the hands of the little maidservant with a smile that wasrger than her face, they were even more surprised.


    It didn¡¯t take long for those at the Grand Secretary mansion to find out the identity and background of the little handmaiden. There was plenty of gossip about it and many thought that their mistress was indeed the most loyaldy of the Empress within Chang¡¯an. She was willing to lower herself just to make Her Majesty happy.


    Grand Secretary Zeng Jing was not in his mansion. Perhaps he had, like the servants, thought that inviting a little handmaiden especially was too demeaning to his station. That was why only Mrs. Zeng and Sangsang were present for lunch. The spread was scrumptious and there were four or five servants waiting on them with carefully concealed expressions.


    Sangsang had waited on others all her life. Or to be more exact, she had waited on Ning Que, and was not used to being waited on. She seemed more subdued and was more silent that she was in the horse carriage during thentern festival.


    Mrs. Zeng watched as she ate her meal and traces of pity would asionally sh in her eyes. She looked at the maid beside her.


    The maid understood, and brought out the pigeon soup that had been prepared earlier.


    Mrs. Zeng carried the soup and walked to where Sangsang was sitting. She said, "Look at how small you are, you need some nourishment."


    As she said this, her hand slipped, and the bowl of pigeon soupnded at Sangsang¡¯s feet.


    Sangsang stood up and looked at her soaked dress and shoes. She did not say anything.


    Mrs. Zeng said frazzled, "This... hurry, go and wash up."


    Her cotton dress and shoes were soaked with the oil from the pigeon soup and did indeed need some washing.


    However, Sangsang did not move. Instead, she looked at her dress hem and shoes silently.


    She sensed that thedy had poured the pigeon soup on her intentionally.


    Because she saw very clearly, that thedy held on to the bowl tightly and her hand had not slipped.


    Sangsang was not angry. The pigeon soup had been ced outside for a long time and cooled down. It wouldn¡¯t have scalded her even if she had poured it onto her face. Furthermore, she did not sense any ill intent from thedy. Instead thedy was very kind. But why had she done that?

 Chapter 339: Pigeon Soup (II)

    Chapter 339: Pigeon Soup (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Sangsang often lowered her head. She did not like looking at people, but was good at judging people.


    In the words of the Great Divine Priest of Light, Sangsang was transparent inside out. She was like the crystals in the deep mountains that could reflect the true colors of the world. She knew clearly who was good to her in the world. It was a pity that she had only met one who was like Ning Que after so many years, and that he had died not long ago.


    However, she could still sense the kindness in Mrs. Zeng. As such, sheplied with her suggestion and followed her into the room. She removed the oily dress and her shoes before cing her feet in warm water.


    Sangsang¡¯s feet were very small and the color was different from other parts of her body. They were as pale as snow and looked like two white flowers floating in the basin of clear water.


    -


    ...


    ...


    Mrs. Zeng had not blinked once since they entered the room. When Sangsang undid her dress, her hands twisted nervously beneath her sleeves. When she removed her shoes, thedy¡¯s nails gouged deeply in her palms. When she saw the two white slender feet, she barely managed to stop herself from passing out.


    Mrs. Zeng did not pass out, however, she stayed on the verge of it after that.


    When Sangsang returned to the dining table, thedy held out of pigeon soup with shaking hands. She said in a trembling voice, "You have suffered much over the years. You have to nourish yourself well now."


    Sangsang was slightly startled when she looked at the appetizing pigeon and soup. She wondered to herself, that she had heard the woman say this line many times, but why had it sounded different this time?


    ...


    ...


    Grand Secretary Zeng Jing returned in the evening.


    Mrs. Zeng chased his subordinates away a little roughly and impolitely. Then, she stood before him. She did not say anything before tears started streaming down her cheeks.


    Grand Secretary Zeng Jing was not an easy man. After all, he was the man who had, after a night of painful deliberation, divorced his first wife, who was from the Qinghe County with the surname Cui, killed the chambeins and joined the Empress¡¯ camp. However, he knew that his current status in court was due to his wife¡¯s position in the Empress¡¯ court. Furthermore, he had always treated his wife lovingly due to their painful past. He could not help but be shocked when he saw that she had started crying even before she could speak.


    "Wife, did something happen at home?" He asked in a trembling voice. His wife wouldn¡¯t break down so easily unless it was something so terrible that she could not bear.


    Mrs. Zeng wiped away her tears and smiled at him. "My lord, it is good news."


    Zeng Jing asked curiously, "What good news is it?"


    Mrs. Zeng looked at his face and said, while crying andughing at the same time, "I have found our daughter."


    Zeng Jing could not help but ask his wife incredulously after he found out about what had happened on the night of the Lantern Festival and at their home today. "You mean, the little handmaiden is our daughter? Are... are you sure?"


    Mrs. Zeng red at her husband. "She is my daughter. Of course I am sure."


    Zeng Jing was both surprised and joyful at this sudden news. He stood up and asked, "Do you have any proof?"


    Mrs. Zeng said in annoyance, "I already said that she is my daughter, why would you need proof?"


    Zeng Jing smiled bitterly, "My darling wife, don¡¯t lie to me. Would you tell me if you didn¡¯t have concrete proof? I¡¯m sure you spilled that pigeon soup deliberately today."


    Mrs. Zeng covered her smile with a hand. "I can¡¯t hide anything from you. I had Chun cool down the pigeon soup just so I can spill it on her feet and have her remove her shoes so I can look at her feet. Guess what? Her feet were just like they were so many years ago when she was a newborn. They were white and soft, just like two lotus flowers!"


    Zeng Jing paused slightly and asked, "What other evidence do you have other than this?"


    Mrs. Zeng continued, "When I had the baby in the woodshed then, I was worried that someone might swap her out. I checked her over before I fainted. She did not have any birthmarks, but she was tanned all over like a piece of charcoal. However, her two feet were white and soft. Is this not considered proof? I don¡¯t believe anyone else can look like my poor child."


    Zeng Jing thought of that day that he would always remember. He thought of the blood across the street and the chaos in his home. He thought of how the ferocious first wife had used his daughter¡¯s skin color as an excuse and use Mrs. Zeng, the concubine, of having birthed a demon. Then, she had secretly instructed a few stewards to smuggle the girl out of the mansion... Could it be, that the little handmaiden at the Old Brush Pen Shop was his long lost daughter? Shouldn¡¯t she have died long ago?


    No one knew what he was thinking about. His brows tightened and then rxed as if he was worried about something.


    Mrs. Zeng could still feel the vague pain in her palms. She said, "My lord, why are you still hesitating? You should go and inform the Chang¡¯an Local Government and find a way to get our daughter back! I have tried my best earlier not to tell her just so I can wait for you to settle it. I can¡¯t stand the thought of my daughter being a maidservant for another day!"


    "You have never seen the child, but her hands were so rough, my heart hurts for her. She must have suffered a lot over the years. I heard that she did theundry and made the tea and does everything at that shop. She even had to fix the door when it was damaged. We don¡¯t even treat our servants like that. I wonder what kind of immoral young master of hers was thinking. He¡¯s using her like an ox! I have to..."


    Her tears started flowing as she continued, thinking of Sangsang¡¯s evil young master. She could no longer control her emotions as she left the study, and looked as if she was prepared to get Sangsang from the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    "Halt!"


    Zeng Jing said softly. Then, he sighed and furrowed his brows after a silent moment. "If our daughter had really been a maidservant in an ordinary family, then it could be easily settled. But do you know who her young master is?"


    "Ning Que is not an ordinary person. He is the legendary author of ¡¯the flower blooms¡¯ and is favored by the Emperor. Now that I think of it, isn¡¯t the name at the beginning of the Chicken Soup Calligraphy also Sangsang?"


    Mrs. Zeng was slightly startled. She had been in a daze after seeing Sangsang at the pce and had forgotten the Empress¡¯ introductions. It was only now that she remembered that the immoral young guy that she had scolded the entire day wasn¡¯t any son of a random official in Chang¡¯an, but someone that her husband brought up oftentely.


    "I remember now. Her Majesty did mention Sir Ning¡¯s name."


    Mrs. Zeng continued. "So what? Even if His Majesty likes his calligraphy, it is our right to retrieve our daughter. Who would be so immoral to stop us? I¡¯m sure that His Majesty would greet this news with joy as well."


    Zeng Jing furrowed his brows. "Do you know of Ning Que¡¯s another identity?"


    "What identity?"


    "He is a student of the Second floor of the Academy."


    Mrs. Zeng asked in surprise, "There is a Second floor to the Academy?"


    Zeng Jing said in a low voice, "There are many floors to the Academy."


    Mrs. Zeng frowned in confusion. "What kind of ce is this Second floor?"


    Zeng Jing answered, "Those who are able to study on the Second floor of the Academy are the core disciples of the Headmaster of the Academy."


    Mrs. Zeng could not understand why her husband had brought up somethingpletely unrted. She asked, "And who is this Headmaster of the Academy?"


    Zeng Jing looked at her. He sighed and shook his head. "You¡¯re really dumb. The Headmaster of the Academy is the dean of the Academy."


    Mrs. Zeng finally realized how difficult the situation was when she heard "dean of the Academy". However, her desire to recover her long-lost daughter was strong and was more important than anything. She said in annoyance, "Even the dean has to be reasonable, no? Furthermore, our daughter is only a little maidservant. We can just give Ning Que some money. Why would he have any objections?"


    Zeng Jing shook his head. He was an important official of the imperial court and was no stranger to Ning Que. He was involved in the earlier furor over "the flower blooms" and the ascension of the mountain at the back of the Academy. Everyone was now concerned about his identity as the Wayfarer of the Academy.


    Ning Que was the person from the Academy who was entering the human realm. His opinion was very important in deciding who would inherit the dragon throne. Zeng Jing knew that he was close to the Princess. As someone from the Empress¡¯ faction, he was worried that recovering his long-lost daughter would affect all their future ns.


    It was just that he would not tell this to his wife. Instead, after a moment of silence, he said, "Go to the pce tomorrow and see what Her Majesty has to say about it."


    Mrs. Zeng had never been to school and was not learnedpared to all thedies of the court. However, after that tragic incident and through the teachings of the Empress over the years, she had turned from the weak and helpless concubine into an opinionated housewife. When she heard her husband¡¯s words, she only raised a brow and said, "I don¡¯t care what the Empress has to say, I will definitely acknowledge my own daughter."


    ...


    ...


    "Mr. Thirteen, Ning Que... the Academy... why is this so?"


    In the depths of the pce, golden bricks sparkled warmly. The Empress murmured to herself as she held on to the letter in her hands with confusion and vignce etched between her brows.


    The letter hade from the General¡¯s Mansion in Tuyang City. Xia Hou had mentioned about thetest incidents in Tuyang City as well as his decision to quit his position and retire. He had asked her to help exin his decision to the Emperor.


    There weren¡¯t many in the world who knew of the true rtionship between the Empress and Xia Hou.


    The Empress knew how stubborn her brother, who loved her deeply, was. What had the two from the Academy done in the Wilderness and Tuyang City for her brother to admit defeat and retire?


    She was very willing for her brother to stay away from bloodshed. Retiring was a very good ending and she was veryforted after reading the letter. However, she was still confused about the events that had led up to this point.


    That was when Mrs. Zeng arrived.


    When she heard Mrs. Zeng recount what had happened to Sangsang tearfully andughingly, the Empress remained silent for a long while. Then, a warm smile emerged from the corners of her lips and she said, "This is good news."

 Chapter 340: I Cant Fall Asleep without You

    Chapter 340: I Can¡¯t Fall Asleep without You


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "Had she already done that thing with Ning Que as his handmaiden? But Sangsang is still young and it looks impossible." In some side chamber of the royal pce, Lee Yu leaned against a soft couch, delicately holding a teacup with her fingers. She said somewhat mockingly, "When I feel sleepy, someone ces a pillow behind me. When I feel thirsty, someone pours me fragrant tea. It is naturally good if we can always have our wishese true."


    The young eunuch in front of her lowered his head, not daring to say anything.


    As the former empress¡¯s own daughter, Lee Yu had grown up in the royal pce. Because of her intelligence and cleverness, she was much doted on by others, and her marriage on the far grasnd had won her more respect from the subjects of the Tang Empire. She could always get firsthand news from inside or outside the pce thanks to her reputation in the court and outside.


    "Did the empress say anything else?"


    With his head still lowered, the young eunuch softly answered, "Her Majesty said that she would support Mrs. Zeng to acknowledge her daughter. But Sangsang has served Ning Que for many years and they formed an intimate rtionship, so Her Majesty enjoined the Grand Secretary not to break their rtions."


    Lee Yu slightly frowned at those words. She recalled the enmity that arose between that guy and her beside the bonfire at the entrance of Northern Mountain Road that year, and could not help feeling indignant. She said coldly, "I have spent two years trying to get close to the pair, yet you should intend to do so just by recognizing a daughter!?"


    The young eunuch was even more frightened, constantly kowtowing on his knees.


    After a long time of silence, Lee Yu asked, "Are you sure that Sangsang is really the daughter of the Grand Secretary?"


    The young eunuch replied, "Judging by the reaction of the Grand Secretary¡¯s wife, it is most probably true."


    "Is there any evidence?"


    "I don¡¯t know."


    Lee Yu signaled for him to back off, leaving herself alone in the pce to stare nkly at thoseplicated and beautiful lines on the column for a long time. She was clear that her indignation came from her powerlessness, so she looked exhausted on the soft couch.


    Back then, when she invited Sangsang to y in the princess¡¯ mansion, Ning Que was just a down and out calligraphy writer on Lin 47th Street, so naturally, theirmunication had nothing to do with utility at all. However,ter on, Ning Que made his way in Chang¡¯an City and even became a core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy. He became a World Wayfarer of the Academy, and it could even be predicted that he could influence the inheritance of the imperial power of the Tang. In this sense, such amunication was naturally mixed with something else.


    Lee Yu felt there was no problem with her solution. When she asionally thought of her acquaintance with the little handmaiden, she was more convinced that an invisible hand was helping her and her royal brother. However, who would expect that, at this moment, Sangsang suddenly had be a daughter of Zeng Jing, who, actually, was a faithful hound of that woman!


    If Sangsang was really that baby girl that year in the Grand Secretary¡¯s Mansion, then how could their affection bepared to that between parents and daughter? In view of such an unbreakable rtionship, which side would Ning Que choose if they really had to scramble for power someday? At the thought of all that, Lee Yu felt vacant again, and her heart was filled with the depression of being abandoned by Haotian.


    ...


    ...


    Inside the Old Brush Pen Shop at Lin 47th Street¡ª


    "The damned steward stole you from the Official of Counsel¡¯s Mansion when your father and I were distracted. He sold you to a human trafficker. Now I guess the trafficker must have intended to bring you to other counties and sell you. But it was unknown why he had chosen Hebei County. That county was struck by a heavy drought, so even unable to take care of himself, he left you in the wilderness."


    Mrs. Zeng looked at Sangsang with wet eyes, wanting to reach out her hand. But looking at the big rag that was clenched in her hand, she was afraid that Sangsang would be unwilling. So she just nervously twisted her fingers, looking at her with expectation.


    Sangsang lowered her head and looked at her toes. She softly said, "That seems reasonable."


    Mrs. Zeng hurriedly replied, "Reasonable, of course, it¡¯s reasonable. My daughter, do you believe that I¡¯m your mother now?"


    After a moment of silence, Sangsang raised her head and asked earnestly, "And then?"


    Slightly stiffening, Mrs. Zeng at once said tenderly, "Then, you will go back to the Grand Secretary¡¯s Mansion together with us. That¡¯s your family. I have ordered maids to prepare your bedroom and have found maids for you. If you don¡¯t like those in the mansion, tomorrow I will ask the traffickers to bring some for you to choose."


    Sangsang slightly frowned, appearing to be indifferent because she did not know how to express her emotions now.


    Zeng Jing, the Grand Secretary, was silently watching them recognize each other. Although he also felt happy, he was not as excited as his wife was. After all, he had children with his ex-wife. When he saw Sangsang¡¯s little darkish face, he tended to think of those bloody days and the things that happened afterward.


    Although he had turned his misfortune into a blessing, he did not like those memories. Moreover, as a high official of the Tang, he cared very much about ethics and seniority, so he was a bit unhappy when Sangsang behaved so indifferently toward his wife.


    Then he said in an indisputable tone, "Go and pack up your things. Wait, having wandered outside all these years, it seems that you have nothing worth packing. Then go directly back with us. As for your census register, I will ask the Chang¡¯an Local Government to make it. And as for Ning Que, I will invite the Old Chancellor to negotiate with him. So there is nothing that you need to worry about."


    Sangsang thought to herself, "All of these years, young master and I have hidden so many banknotes here. Howe that isn¡¯t worth packing up?"


    Then she lowered her head again, silently looking at the tips of her shoes. Her darkish face looked nk because she was really at a loss now.


    Sangsang had imagined what her parents would be like, but that was only a natural reaction when she saw the parents of others. The reason was unknown but, whether Ning Que, her guardian, was toopetent, or the little handmaiden had so few requirements from this world, it was strange that she never envied those who had parents.


    The first man that she had seen in this world was Ning Que, and she had been living with Ning Que for all these years. Or it could be said, except for Ning Que, no one else existed in her life, so she had be unustomed to living with others. However, today she found that she had parents, and based on her knowledge of customs, parents should be the most intimate people in this world, even more intimate than Ning Que. So did that mean that Ning Que had be an outsider?


    Logically, she should have been happy to have found her parents, but at the thought that her former lifestyle of living with only Ning Que would be gone forever, she could no longer feel happy.


    Instead, she felt unustomed, or even conflicted. So, she slightly shook her head.


    Mrs. Zeng was slightly startled, and then understood what she had meant. She could hardly believe her eyes. Zeng Jing looked more serious and severe, and could not understand how there could be somebody who dared to refuse to acknowledge her parents.


    Judging from his face, Mrs. Zeng knew he was about to burst in anger, so she darted in front of him and softly said to Sangsang with a smile, "I know this is all too sudden for you to ept it. Or else, you could go to our mansion first. How about just being an adopted daughter of mine? I believe that you will ept me as your mother after living together for a long time."


    Sangsang looked at her and suddenly showed a smile, answering, "I know that you will treat me well."


    Looking at the sincere smile on her little face, Mrs. Zeng felt that her heart was about to melt. She reached out to take the big rag out of her hand and then held her hand, saying tenderly, "Don¡¯t you want to go with us?"


    Sangsang still shook her head.


    Mrs. Zeng asked in confusion, "Why not?"


    Sangsang replied, "Because young master hasn¡¯te back yet. I will ask him what I should do when he returns. If he thinks that you are my parents, I will, of course, ept you, and then I wille to visit you often."


    Mrs. Zeng had sensed something else from her words, thus, repeating her words in shock, "Visit us often?"


    Sangsang said, "Even if I ept you, I still have to live in the shop."


    Mrs. Zeng asked with surprise, "Why?"


    Sangsang looked at her and earnestly replied, "Recently, Ning Que has bezier. He is unwilling to do things and, perhaps, he has forgotten how to do them. So, I have to cook, wash clothes, mop the floor, and wipe the table. Sometimes, I have to drive away those chambeins whoe to steal waste paper. So, I really can¡¯t stay in your mansion."


    The couple froze. They could not at all understand how a little maidservant, who worked like a tired-out ve, was actually bent on doing housework for herzy young master instead of jumping into their arms with bitter cries upon finding out that she was the daughter of the Grand Secretary... What spell had that guy called Ning Que put on her that their daughter should say something like that?


    Sangsang continued, "Moreover, Ning Que sometimes thinks too much, so it¡¯s hard for him to have a sound sleep. Only by holding me can he fall asleep. While sometimes, I also like holding him because it¡¯s warm. So if we are separated, neither of us are able to sleep well."


    The couple nced at each other, just to see shock and confusion in the other¡¯s eyes. They thought secretly, "Had she already done that thing with Ning Que as his handmaiden? But Sangsang is still young and it looks impossible."


    The door of the Old Brush Pen Shop was pushed open from outside.


    Sangsang knew when Ning Que would be back, so she knew that it was not him.


    Chen Pipi strode over the threshold with difficulty and rubbed his exhausted round face. At the sight of the situation in the shop, he instantly cheered up, "Are you having some trouble again? What a coincidence! I, the genius, was worried that those guys were frightened by me."


    Sangsang exined, "There¡¯s no trouble, it¡¯s nothing interesting."


    Chen Pipi said, "Then let¡¯s y chess."


    Sangsang smiled apologetically at Mr. and Mrs. Zeng.


    ...


    ...


    A simple and crude horse carriage entered the east gate of Chang¡¯an City just at the moment the couple was about to leave the Old Brush Pen Shop full of regret. Around the horse carriage was a flourishing spring scene. It was Ning Que and his party, who hade back ahead of time.


    Outside Tuyang City, they met with the disciples of ck Ink Garden and together they went south. Today, these girls from the Great River Kingdom finally saw with their own eyes the highly-reputed magnificent city, so they could not restrain themselves from feeling excited.


    A corner of the carriage curtain was lifted up, and Mo Shanshan, wearing a white skirt, narrowed her eyes to appreciate the view and people of Chang¡¯an City. A touch of a smile appeared on her beautiful round face, indicating that she also was happy.


    The Eldest Brother kneaded his back, which was in pain because of the jolts along the way, and bitterly smiled at Ning Que, who was filled with excitement, asking, "Little Younger Brother, why are you so eager toe back to Chang¡¯an?"


    Ning Que seriously answered, "Don¡¯tugh at me if I tell you the truth. Although I¡¯m not picky about where I sleep, I still can¡¯t have a good sleep unless I¡¯m at home. So, I¡¯m eager to get back home to have a sound sleep."


    Ning Que was still afraid of beingughed at, even if the other person was his Senior Brother, so what he had said was not true. Only he himself knew why he could not sleep well and was so eager to get back.


    Outside of the Old Brush Pen Shop, no one prepared water for him to wash his feet, no one cooked noodles with fried eggs, no one handed him his things for washing up, and no one apanied him when he was full of sorrow. So, he could not live without Sangsang.

 Chapter 341: A Reunion with New and Old Friends

    Chapter 341: A Reunion with New and Old Friends


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The snow had not meltedpletely and the wind was still chilly. Although spring had not yet arrived, its fragrant smell had begun to spread throughout the streets of Chang¡¯an. More than 10 girls, who were as beautiful as flowers, giggling and pointing at the street scene, had attracted numerous passersby.


    Those girls all wore light-colored cardigan skirts, with broad, long, and gorgeous belts tied above their waists. Because of its unique style, the well-informed Chang¡¯an residents quickly figured out they were from the Great River Kingdom.


    The Tang Empire and the Great River Kingdom had a good rtionship for generations, so the people from those two countries naturally felt intimate toward each other. However, because of the long distance between the two countries, chances for Chang¡¯an people to see anyone from the Great River Kingdom became increasingly rare. Today, when they unexpectedly saw so many delicate-looking girls from the Great River Kingdom and the style of their skirts, some elders could not help sighing.


    They recalled the queen of the Great River Kingdom, who concealed her identity when studying in Chang¡¯an during the years of the Kaihua era. They began to tell the youngsters about that bitter love between the queen and the emperor of the Tang.


    But those youngsters of the Tang were even more excited. They stood under the eaves along the street, waving at those girls from the Great River Kingdom earnestly, shouting, "Wee to Chang¡¯an." Those who were braver even caught up with the group, running beside the girls and asking for their names and addresses.


    Although the Great River Kingdom admired the Tang, girls from the country were well-known for their gentleness and virtuousness. Previously, when they entered the city, they were giggling about Osmanthus Cake and the Wildgoose Temple. Butter, they calmed down, thus feeling ashamed, blushing because of their loss ofposure. Now, when being chased by those youngsters of the Tang who constantly asked for their names, they felt even shyer and all lowered their heads.


    Cat Girl looked at a young master, who was running beside her horse while gasping, and the undisguised joy and excitement in his eyes. She felt rather shy and buried her little face into the furry cor, thinking to herself, "I¡¯m so young, what are you rushing for?"


    Seeing that they were so warmly weed by the people of Chang¡¯an, Mo Shanshan, who had formerly felt uneasy, now smiled. She put the curtain down and began to refresh her spirit by closing her eyes. Her sparse and long eyshes slightly fluttered, as if her uneasiness had vanished. But why she was so anxious?


    Ning Que moved to her side, lifted up the curtain, and looked out.


    Most of the students of the Academy that had been practicing at the frontier fortress hade back to Chang¡¯an with him. The rapid march over the previous days was really too harsh for them, especially Zhong Da Jun, who was at the end of the pack with a pale face and was much thinner than before. He was in such a trance and looked as if he would probably fall off the horse at any time.


    Ning Que was quite clear about why he was in such a state. Back then, before he pretended to be Zhong Da Jun and went with the team of Mo Shanshan to the depths of the Wilderness, he had enjoined others to imprison Zhong Da Jun. Later, when his real identity was unveiled in the pce, that matter had totally escaped from his memory. So Zhong Da Jun was not released until he had left Tuyang City. It could be predicted that he had suffered a lot during the past six months.


    Definitely, Ning Que was far from being upright, but he had the least sense of guilt toward Zhong Da Jun, who was absolutely vicious. So he did not want to bother with him and whistled toward the front.


    Hearing that whistle, Situ Yn rode up to the side of the horse carriage. During the past six months, she had led her ssmates, fought wisely, bravely, and severely with grasnd barbarians and the allied forces at Blue Water Battalion, and won a ster reputation among the army. But her flower-like face had withered because of the hardship that she had experienced, and she was covered with dirt all over because of the thousands of miles that they had traveled. So, she could not help looking a little disheveled.


    Ning Que looked at her and said, "Come to my houseter, I¡¯ll treat you to noodles."


    "When did you be generous?" Situ Yn replied angrily, and then she pointed at her dirty face, saying, "When I was on the battlefield, I didn¡¯t care about these things. But now that I¡¯m back in Chang¡¯an, don¡¯t you think you should give me some time to freshen myself up first? Don¡¯t forget, I¡¯m a girl!"


    Ning Que pretended to be surprised, "I thought that a female general couldn¡¯t be called a girl."


    Situ Yn assumed a posture to punch him, so he hurriedly put down the curtain and hid behind Mo Shanshan.


    Mo Shanshan opened her eyes and smiled at him, saying nothing.


    Those who had returned after finishing the practice of the Academy were, of course, solemnly weed by the Imperial Court. Moreover, there were girls from ck Ink Garden of the Great River Kingdom that arrived together with them, so some officials of the Ministry of Rites were also present. Naturally, Ning Que had no patience to sit through this whole procedure, so he asked for the agreement of the Eldest Brother and Mo Shanshan, and then departed from them on Vermilion Bird Avenue. His carriage went directly to Eastern City.


    After a short while, Lin 47th Street was before his eyes. Ning Que jumped down from the horse carriage, looking at the familiar sight of the street and the gray wall, as well as the tree propping out of the courtyard of the previous warehouse of the Ministry of Revenue. He took a deep breath, feeling extremely satisfied. During the past six months, he had missed his armchair, the fragrance of ink, the well water, the chicken soup, the noodle soup, the noodles with fried eggs, and the banknotes under the bed very much. Today, he could finally embrace all that again. How wonderful it was!


    Suddenly, he saw a ck horse carriage parked beside the shop. He kept silent for a while when he saw theplicated lines on the carriage. He nodded at the horse carriage, and then walked on the stone steps and pushed open the door of the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    ...


    ...


    Inside the shop, Chen Pipi and Sangsang had finished ying three rounds of chess and were having noodles.


    Sangsang did not like ying chess nor gambling. But now that someone forcibly sent her silver, she could only bite the bullet to y chess with him under his insistence. When those newly printed notes with the fragrance of ink fell into her hands, she gradually forgot about the sorrow and loneliness that the death of those two old men had brought her and the disappointment the Grand Secretary couple had given her. She felt much better now, so she broke the rules and made two bowls of vegetable noodles for Chen Pipi and herself.


    Just at this moment, the door was pushed open with a creak. Sangsang was holding the bowl with her head lowered, sucking the noodles into her mouth. She silently thought, "Perhaps there is something wrong with the bottom of the pivot, I¡¯ll have to find some time to repair it."


    But suddenly, she felt that something was strange because the steps were so familiar, so she could not help raising her head.


    How could Sangsang continue eating noodles after seeing that guy? With white noodles still dangling from her lips, she grinned as her willow-like eyes narrowed, foolishly smiling with a mouth full of food. She spoke with a lisp, "Ning Que..."


    Ning Que smiled at her with his eyes scrunched up, which looked like crescent moons that did not exist in this world.


    Suddenly, Sangsang found there were others behind Ning Que¡ªone being a schr, and the other, a girl wearing a white skirt. The girl was beautiful, with a particrly lovely round face.


    Sangsang immediately realized that her mouth was filled with noodles, so her face must have looked plump and definitely not as beautiful as the girl¡¯s. Somehow, she was flustered.


    She hurriedly put down the bowl, and quickly sucked the noodles hanging from her lips into her mouth. But she nearly choked herself on the noodles. While coughing, she said softly, "Young master, you are back!"


    Then she lowered her head to look at the tip of her shoes, not saying anything else.


    Mo Shanshan silently stood beside Ning Que, but withdrew a little bit.


    She was somewhat happy, eager, and uneasy when invited by the Eldest Brother of the Academy to visit Chang¡¯an. But one could not find such emotions on her peaceful and indifferent face. She knew why she was uneasy. Sometimes, she even wondered if her expectation of being in Chang¡¯an was actually her expectation about Ning Que, or his little handmaiden.


    Following Ning Que, she entered the Old Brush Pen Shop and saw the little handmaiden eating noodles on the wooden bench. The first time that she saw her, she knew that this was the person she had wanted to see. That little handmaiden was Sangsang.


    The Sangsang that appeared at the very beginning of the Chicken Soup Calligraphy.


    The Sangsang that Ning Que always mentioned.


    During the summer nights, Mo Shanshan had scanned over the Chicken Soup Calligraphy beside the Ink Lake numerous times, so she was clearer than others, even Ning Que, about what absolute trust and intimacy were hidden in those disordered strokes of that handmaiden¡¯s name. So, she had been wondering what kind of handmaiden Sangsang was.


    In the grasnd pce, she said that she liked the Big ck Horse of Ning Que. In the Snow Fields, she said that she liked the calligraphy of Ning Que. And finally, when she was almost dying at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, she calmly said what she liked was not only the horse and the calligraphy, but also Ning Que.


    At that time, she thought that she would die, so she just followed her heart to say so. Yet, she did not die in the end, and what she had said could not be withdrawn now. So, she was convinced that she really liked Ning Que, and was even more eager to see Sangsang.


    But she felt a bit surprised when she actually saw Sangsang today. Because the girl was not the usual beautiful handmaiden that one would often see on the streets, but just a darkish, thin, and ordinary girl. She had not totally grown up because of her young age. In addition, when she held onto the big bowl and smiled with noodles hanging from her mouth, no one could have any other feeling than pity for her.


    Facing such a little handmaiden, Mo Shanshan felt that her previous assumption and even her uneasiness before arriving in Chang¡¯an had gone to extremes. So, she felt a bit ashamed and silently lowered her head after nkly looking at Sangsang for some time. She was now looking at the tip of her shoes and did not say anything else.


    It looked a bit ridiculous seeing both Sangsang and Shanshan looking at the tip of their shoes, and the Old Brush Pen Shop was shrouded in a strange atmosphere.


    Ning Que was immersed in the happiness of seeing Sangsang again, so he did not even notice it. As for the Eldest Brother, although he appeared to look up and down at the disys in the shop and seemed to have noticed nothing at all, he actually slightly sighed in his heart.


    Sangsang suddenly emerged from her daze with an "Ah!" and said in a flurry, "I will pour tea for the guests."


    She bowed to the others, took her bowl from the table, snatched the other one from Chen Pipi, who was also in a state of shock, and hurriedly went into the backyard.


    Ning Que was surprised when seeing her little figure vanish behind the curtain. "Although she is as busy as before, after such a long time of not seeing each other, why didn¡¯t shee to hug me?"


    ...


    ...


    Whether he had noodles in his mouth or not, Chen Pipi always appeared to be chubby, with a face that was even more round than Mo Shanshan¡¯s.


    He did not realize what was happening until Sangsang snatched his bowl as quickly as a whirlwind. Seeing the schr, who was holding his hands behind his back, he quickly sucked the noodles into his tummy, dashed behind him, and made a deep bow, saying respectfully, "Greetings, Eldest Brother!"


    The Eldest Brother turned back, and could not help smiling at his serious posture. He shook his head and slowly said, "Pipi, you are not the Youngest Brother of the back of the mountain anymore, you should behave..."


    Hardly had he finished his words when Chen Pipi open his arms and hugged him. He said joyously and sadly, "Senior Brother, finally you are back! No one knows where the Headmaster has gone off to have fun now, and then nobody could control Second Brother. He was so dominant and forced us to study ancient etiquette. The Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters were angry, but didn¡¯t dare to go against him. Eleventh Senior Brother was almost driven crazy and inserted cotton into his mouth as long as he could find any. So, you should take charge of the situation!"

 Chapter 342: Burying the Urns

    Chapter 342: Burying the Urns


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que heard two pieces of important information while Chen Pipi kept talking.


    Firstly, Chen Pipi said that headmaster was having fun somewhere. Secondly, he said everyone was fed up with the big bully Second Brother, but no one dared to fight against him. The next thing Ning Que saw was Chen Pipi, with an expectant and overjoyed expression, holding Eldest Brother tightly in his arms. On his chubby face, you couldn¡¯t find even any respectful or cautious expression. All this told Ning Que two things.


    Firstly, neither Headmaster of Academy nor Eldest Brother was in charge of the back of the mountain, or did they care about what other people thought about them. And that was why Chen Pipi was so fearless and straightforward while he was with them. And the truth was that Second Brother, who was always serious, was the scary and respectable one. Secondly, Chen Pipi was, indeed, a big liar.


    But at this moment, Chen Pipi had no idea what Ning Que was thinking of him. He wiped his tears and snot away, hugged Ning Que and patted him on the back, "Youngest Brother, you have worked hard... umm... this girl is really pretty."


    Ning Que pushed him away and looked back at Mo Shanshan, feeling really embarrassed. He thought Chen Pipi was a real shame of the back of the mountain of Academy. How could he just say a girl was beautiful when they had just met each other for the first time?


    Chen Pipi was not a pervert, in fact, his knowledge about sex was even less than that of Ning Que. If not for this reason, he wouldn¡¯t have been beaten so hard by Ye Hongyu a couple of years ago, or would he describe his fear of women in his first letter to Ning Que. When he said Mo Shanshan was so pretty, there were no hidden lines at all.


    Ning Que introduced Mo Shanshan to Chen Pipi. He said, "This girles from the Great River Kingdom. She is Mo Shanshan, thest student of Master Wang, the Master of Calligrapher."


    Chen Pipi was surprised, he said in an unbelievable tone, "You are the Calligraphy Addict?"


    When listening to the conversations between these students of the Academy, Mo Shanshan already realized that Chen Pipi was the youngest cultivator who was at the Knowing Destiny State. He was legendary. Full of surprise, she looked at him and nodded.


    Chen Pipi was taken back, he eximed, "That is why you are so pretty. But I guess I should stay away from you since you are also one of the three Addicts, like that woman. Umm... I think you look down on me? Do you know that I am a genius in cultivation, a genius of the genius?"


    Ning Que exined to him reluctantly, "Shanshan¡¯s eyes are not very good, don¡¯t get her wrong."


    Chen Pipi was a little surprised and said unreasonably, "I don¡¯t like anyone who is simr to Tao Addict anyway."


    Ning Que didn¡¯t bother to exin further, he asked, "Why are you here?"


    Chen Pipi answered, "Go ask Sangsang that question."


    Eldest Brother finished looking around at the Old Brush Pen Shop at this moment. He looked at those two, and said slowly, "Youngest Brother, didn¡¯t you invite us for dinner? When will dinner be ready then? I am quite hungry."


    Ning Que invited Eldest Brother and Shanshan to visit the Old Brush Pen Shop as soon as they returned to Chang¡¯an City. He really wanted to thank them for taking care of him on the journey and wanted them to see his real life in Chang¡¯an and be a part of it.


    Life should be simple and it always seemed to be quite simple too, but the conversations that happened today in the Old Brush Pen Shop suggested that it was not simple at all. Both Eldest Brother and Chen Pipi revealed some very important information, but it was done in such a vague way that no one knew what the other party¡¯s opinion was, let alone Ning Que and the other two girls.


    Because of all the guessing and investigating behind the conversations, this gathering didn¡¯t go very well. And it took such a long time for Sangsang to prepare tea, so long that before it was ready all the three guests decided that they were leaving.


    Mo Shanshan wanted to meet her mates, girls from ck Ink Garden from the Great River Kingdom, at the guesthouse at Ministry of Rites. Eldest Brother needed to go back to the back of the mountain, the reason for that, as Chen Pipi put it, was that the Headmaster of Academyr was having fun out of the Academy, so Eldest Brother needed to take charge of the affairs in the Academy. And Chen Pipi wanted to leave with Eldest Brother. When the gate of the shop closed as the three people left, the Old Brush Pen Shop became a quiet and peaceful world again, which only belonged to Ning Que and Sangsang.


    The first meal Ning Que had after he returned to Chang¡¯an City was made by Sangsang. It included a bowl of rice, some fried green vegetables and stewed meat and carrots.


    The burning coal in the stove brought warmth to the shop. Ning Que took off his coat and started eating. And Sangsang was sitting opposite of him, eating and adding more food to Ning Que¡¯s bowl from time to time. No one was talking, it was all so quiet.


    Ning Que went to the Wilderness for over half of a year, which was the longest time for the two not seeing each other ever since Ning Que found Sangsang in a pile of dead bodies. Although they were still as familiar as they used to be, Ning Que found that Sangsang had changed and grown up when he looked at her face.


    Sangsang didn¡¯t do the washing up after dinner, instead, she started telling him stories.


    "When the old man came to our shop that day, he was wearing very dirty clothes, he said to me that we had Lucky Chance to know each other and wanted me to be his student. I pitied him because he was so old, and I thought he could not eat a lot anyway. So I just agreed to let him stay."


    Even though Sangsang was telling the story as sinctly as possible, it still took her a long time to finish the story because it was a very long one. Ning Que listened to her talking in silence, he didn¡¯t ask any question or drink his tea.


    When the story came to the ending part, Sangsang led Ning Que to the courtyard. She pointed to the two urns standing next to it, and said, "My teacher is in the new urn, and your teacher is in the old one."


    Then she went to her bedroom, looking for something for a while. Finally, she found two tokens from somewhere and passed one of them to Ning Que. She said, "Master Yan Se left this to you. It seems that many people are after it."


    She showed him the other token and said, "My teacher left me this one. He said this token belongs to the Great Divine Priest of Light of the West-Hill Divine Pce. And if one day I take that position, I will need to hang it to my belt."


    That ID token reminded Ning Que of the bloody murders happened many years ago. He frowned slightly, feeling quite disgusted.


    Sangsang was silent for a while and then said, "It should be my teacher who plotted the murder happened in Xuanwei General Mansion. He said it was because he once saw a baby there who knew a lot as soon as he was born. Young master, was that you?"


    Ning Que nodded. He never mentioned the blood feud of his family, because he didn¡¯t want her to get involved in it and be as heartless as him. But he never meant to keep it secret from her either. So after so many years, gradually, she found out something about it.


    Sangsang stared at her and said seriously, "The Dark Shadow my teacher was looking for was actually the Son of Yama. Does it mean that you are the Son of Yama, if you were the person he was looking for?"


    Although he came from another world and his life was bizarre enough, he never thought he was rted to someone legendary, let alone Yama. After hearing Sangsang¡¯s word, he was a little surprised, then said mockingly, "Although in some sense I did see Yama once, I know I am definitely not his son. Your teacher was not only mad, he was an idiot."


    Sangsang said, "But there are many people who will believe his word, so we must keep it a secret."


    After thinking a while, Ning Que gave a hollow smile and said, "You are right. Apart from us, no one should know about it, just like no one knows about the notes under the bed."


    Sangsang suddenly lowered her head. Looking at the tips of her shoes, she said softly, "There is another thing."


    "Tell meter."


    Ning Que nced at the dark sky and picked the old urn up. He said, "I want to bury my teacher first."


    Sangsang pointed to the new urn and said, "There is another one that needs to be buried."


    Looking at the urn, Ning Que frowned and said with a cold voice, "He killed my family, all the people in Darkie¡¯s vige and my teacher. I already did what studied from the Academy said of forgiving people, if I can resist not to smash this urn."


    After finishing the words, he left the courtyard and walked towards the front area of the shop, with the old urn in his arms.


    Sangsang thought for a while and picked the new urn up.


    The humble horse carriage, which was standing outside of the shop, was taken back to the Academy by Eldest Brother. Only the ck horse carriage was still standing there.


    And the Big ck Horse was standing in front of it, kicking his hooves and feeling very bored.


    Ning Que walked to the carriage and stroked the surface of the carriage slowly. It was made of Stainless-steel and was therefore cold to touch. He felt as if the aura of Master Yan Se was still there, hidden in the intricate talisman lines.


    He sat in the carriage with the new urn in his arms.


    After a while, Sangsang also went into the carriage and carried the new urn in her arms, panting heavily.


    Ning Que looked at the old urn and said to the Big ck Horse, "Let¡¯s go to the southern part of the city."


    As if understood what he said, the horse started moving slowly.


    The wheels of the carriage rolled over gstones and clinked quietly. In the carriage, both the master and his handmaiden were hugging a urn silently.


    Not knowing how long it was.


    Ning Que suddenly nced at her and said, "Come here."


    Sangsang was happy to hear that. She was about to move with her urn.


    Ning Que looked at the new urn and said with a frown, "Youe and leave it there."


    Sangsang looked down at the new urn, and then looked up at the empty seat next to Ning Que. She carefully leaned the urn on the back of her seat, walked toward Ning Que and sat next to him.


    Ning Que put the old urn next to his feet and held Sangsang in his arms.


    Both of them were silent during the journey, only the sound made by the wheels could be heard. Sangsang leaned on Ning Que¡¯s chest, feeling very safe and rxed. But from time to time, she would nce at the urn, worrying that it might fall to the ground and spill her teacher¡¯s ash out.


    They arrived at the southern part of Chang¡¯an.


    Not far from the Academy, there was a meadow. Although it belonged to the Academy, no one took care of it. So even in the coldest winter, weeds were still knee-high and dead bodies were scattered around in the weeds.


    There were two newly made tombs in the weeds.


    Ning Que kowtowed twice to one of the tombs. Then he stood up and walked to the other one, with a gloomy expression, he said to Sangsang, "I told you to bury him somewhere further from here, why didn¡¯t you do it?"


    Sangsang ignored him and kowtowed in the same way as he did three times to the new tomb.


    Ning Que muttered helplessly, "You don¡¯t even listen to me anymore."


    Sangsang stood up, looked at Ning Que and said, "Why does it matter since they are already dead now? Besides, when they were choosing urns, they said that they wanted to be neighbors after they die."


    Ning Que looked at the tombs in silence for a long time before he shouted angrily, "How can you be neighbors when you are dead? You are ash now. Still want to chat and fight? Two idiots!"

 Chapter 343: Pride of the Academy

    Chapter 343: Pride of the Academy


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The Big ck Horse lowered its head and ate grass. The dried grass in the middle of winter was tasteless and bitter like the bark of trees. It spat it out painfully and looked at the two new graves in the meadow and the little handmaiden. It thought to itself, that between the two who might one day be his mistress, the one who bathed him in the Wilderness was better. This one was dark and skinny, and wasn¡¯t pretty. That one was fair and pretty and had gentle hands.


    As it thought about random things, it walked towards outside the meadow. Its body stiffened suddenly when it looked at the dark horse carriage. How could there be such a heavy horse carriage in this world? After he had been "selected" by Ning Que that autumn in the meadow, his life had gotten more and more terrible. Could it be that it would be so for the rest of his life?


    Sangsang brushed off the dust on her knees before the new grave. Then, she walked up to Ning Que and cleaned him up. It was then, when snow started falling.


    The was a sudden popping sound, and the big ck umbre opened above their heads, blocking the sky and the snow that fell from it. The two held the umbre over their heads and walked towards the horse carriage outside the meadow.


    Under the big ck umbre, Sangsang said softly, "Young master, there is something I have to tell you."


    "Do not worry." Ning Que thought of something and held out a box. "I spent half a month in Tuyang City, trying to find a gift just for you. Do you like it?"


    In actuality, he had bought the box from a shop before he left Tuyang City. He had not spent half a month or searched for the gift just for her. However, his expression was solemn and one could not see any trace of lying in it.


    Sangsang took the box curiously. There was an adorable y tiger crouching in a funny manner. Sangsangughed when she saw it and said, "I like it, it looks good."


    Ning Que said shamelessly, "Exactly, think of how much effort I had spent on it."


    Sangsang closed the box and asked, "Who¡¯s the prettydy in white?"


    The question sounded too natural, which made it seem sudden.


    Ning Que was startled, and then he smiled and said, "She¡¯s called Mo Shanshan, she¡¯s from the Great River Kingdom...."


    ...


    ...


    It was very quiet at night on the Lin 47th Street. Other than the sound of crackling fire in each household and the brushing of withered leaves meeting the snowy ground, there was also the sound of the Big ck Horse smacking his lips.


    Ning Que leaned against the stove after a refreshing bath. He took out a failed Fire Fu and crumbled it in his fingers. Then, he rubbed it evenly on his head. It took mere seconds for the warmth on the paper to dry his wet hair, making it smooth and tamed.


    "Let¡¯s prepare for bed." He wriggled into the warm and toasty nkets, feeling the warmth from the stove. Then, he suddenly realized that Sangsang was kneeling on the other bed and arranging her nkets. He asked oddly, "Why are you noting here?"


    Sangsang spread out the nkets and removed her outer robes, folding it neatly and cing it by her pillow. She said, "I¡¯m already old enough, we should sleep separately."


    Ning Que paused and realized that there was indeed truth in her words. However, he still felt a little odd. After thinking about it for a moment, he extended a hand and flicked his finger. The candlelight on the table extinguished ordingly.


    "Let¡¯s sleep then."


    All were silent in the room. After a while, there was a sudden rustling. Then, his nkets were lifted off him and a tiny cold body wriggled and leaned onto his chest.


    Ning Que hugged her and patted her on her back with his palms, just like how he used to coax her to sleep as a child. He felt the girl¡¯s body against his chest and inhaled the scent of her hair and sighed, "This is much morefortable."


    Sangsang nudged her head into his chest and searched for the most familiar andfortable position. She hummed in agreement.


    After some time, she suddenly opened her eyes, lifted her head, and looked at Ning Que, "I really have something to say."


    Ning Que lowered his head and looked at her. After a pause, he said, "I really have something urgent to tell you too."


    He did not reignite the candle. Instead, he found a heavy piece of silver by the starlight shining through the window and had Sangsang concentrate on it.


    Ning Que used his psyche and moved the Great Spirit from his body into his hands. He shaped the silver into a metal rod, and then, he fiddled with it again, and the metal rod became very sharp within seconds.


    Sangsang knelt on the stove with a nket draped over her. She asked puzzledly, "When did you learn magic?"


    Ning Que stabbed his arm with the sharp metal rod. The sharp edge of the rod pierced down deeply, leaving only a shallow white scar and not a drop of blood.


    Sangsang was shocked. She poked his arm with her fingers and said, "It¡¯s so hard?"


    "I learned the Great Spirit that Youngest Uncle left behind. My body had changed because of it. This Great Spirit is just absorbing the primordial Qi from heaven and earth and then keeping it in one¡¯s body."


    Ning Que looked at her eyes that reflected the starlight. After a moment of silence, he continued. "In other words, I am cultivating the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. To the world, I am a descendant of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    It did not matter to Sangsang even if he was the son of Yama, not to say the descendant of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Would her young master not be her young master after cultivating the Devil¡¯s Doctrine? Sangsang paused for a moment and thought of an important question, asking, "So... what teacher had said might be true. You are the son of Yama."


    "That¡¯s ludicrous." Ning Que kneaded the silver piece into a ball and covered them with a nket. He continued, "Do not mention about ludicrous things like that. I want to eat noodles with fried eggs tomorrow."


    Sangsang answered gruffly in the nkets, "Alright."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que headed to the Academy the next morning after eating noodles with fried eggs with extra scallions, pepper, and egg. He boarded the horse carriage that Master Yan Se had bequeathed him. He had already paid to get rid of the one he had owned previously.


    The horse carriage traveled through the meadows that glowed yellow in the winter sun. Upon arriving at the stone doors of the Academy, Ning Que leaped off the horse carriage and unshackled the big ck horse, allowing it to roam freely. He carried his bags on his back and entered the Academy, seeking for what the instructor had instructed them about practicing at the frontier fortress.


    Then he carried his heavy bags and walked past houses and through the narrow alley. He came to the edge of a wend and looked at the listless fish swimming beneath the thin ice and at the dense forest afar that looked like swords. He had arrived at the old library.


    The sights were familiar and held many good memories for him. Even though he had only been gone for half a year, he still missed it very much. The more he missed Chang¡¯an, the less he trusted the City of Wei. He lifted his head to look at the old library and saw that the eastern windows were open as usual. Ning Que suddenly understood something, that the ce he missed the most was home.


    He crossed through the fog that enveloped the mountains and waved thest wisps of fog away with his right hand gently. He had arrived at therge tform on the mountainside. He looked at the green grass and trees that did not belong to the current season and at the silver waterfall in the distance. He could not help shouting loudly, "I¡¯m back!"


    His shout reverberated in the empty back of the mountain of the Academy. After a long time, he did not receive any reply, and neither did his Senior Brothers and Sisterse to wee him excitedly.


    Ning Que could not help feeling a little embarrassed. He walked down the mountain path and towards the mirrorke. The expression on his face became happier, and more lively. Even though his Senior Brothers and Sisters did not appear, he had heard someone ying music and singing in the forest. There were sounds of chess piecesnding on the board and the pounding of hoe digging into the ground.


    There was a waterwheel by the creek, and the sound of metalworking rang in the house before the waterwheel. The monotonous and dry sounds have never stopped. Ning Que was slightly stunned for a moment. Then, he heaved the bags on his shoulders and walked even faster.


    However, someone stopped him.


    He looked towards where the voice came from and saw that the pavilion in the middle of theke that had been copsed by the first Primordial Thirteen Arrows had already been repaired. Seventh Sister looked at him smilingly and waved in greeting. Momentster, the solemn Second Brother and his funny crown walked out slowly.


    "Your performance during the practice was not bad."


    Second Brother stood by theke with his hands behind his back. He looked at the view before him and said that in a calm tone.


    At the back of the mountain of the Academy, getting the praise of Second Brother was harder than getting it from the Headmaster of the Academy or Eldest Brother. Ning Que could not help feeling surprised by the show of affection and did not know what to say.


    "It¡¯s nothing killing Long Qing. Your Senior Brothers and Sisters had spent much effort making those Primordial Thirteen Arrows for you to kill that guy, so it is a given that you have done so, so you don¡¯t deserve the praise."


    Second Brother turned to look at him with a rare expression of approval on his face. He said, "But killing Gu Xi in Tuyang City... you have done well. You did not care that you were in Xia Hou¡¯s city, and that it was the main camp of the Northeast Border Military, and you killed him with due reason. You have to know, that we disciples of the Academy care a lot about being reasonable."


    Ning Que had killed military advisor Gu Xi in Tuyang Cityrgely because of the Great Spirit in his body. He thought that he was really crazy after the matter and was worried that Eldest Brother would teach him a lesson on the way back to Chang¡¯an. He did not expect that Second Brother would hold such views.


    As if he had guessed what Ning Que was thinking, Second Brother said after a moment of silence, "I have always respected Eldest Brother, but what I respect, is his practice, his state of heart and morality. As for the way he deals with things and how he believes in forgiveness, I do not agree with them. If we really do good to those who do us a bad turn, what shall we do in return to those who do us good?"


    Ning Que thought about it seriously. "What do we do to those who do bad to us?"


    Second Brother replied, "We do a bad turn to them, of course."


    Ning Que praised him, "Senior Brother, what you have just said is great. There is great meaning in simple words."


    Second Brother looked at him and said, "This was what teacher taught us back then, so you are praising the wrong person."

 Chapter 344: Heavier than the Blade and Faster than the Arrows

    Chapter 344: Heavier than the de and Faster than the Arrows


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que knew that Second Brother was a solemn gentleman and hated being ttered. Or one could say, he hated ttery that was shallow and easily seen-through. That was why he had thought long and hard about his praise and said it in a most natural manner. It was a pity it was still wrong.


    It was like trying to pat the Snow Horse¡¯s beautiful bottom but ended up getting a handful of the Big ck Horse¡¯s butt. It was slightly awkward. However, his skin was thick and he did not flush even though he fell silent for a moment and stared at theke.


    "I heard that the Calligraphy Addict came back to Chang¡¯an with you?"


    "Eldest Brother has acknowledged her as his vowed sister and invited her over to Chang¡¯an to have fun. It has nothing to do with me."


    Second Brother nced at him and said coldly, "Is she going to marry Eldest Brother?"


    It was not a misunderstanding, but sarcastic mocking. Even Ning Que¡¯s thick skin could not bear the assault, and he could only lower his head and look at the tip of his shoes like what shy girls did.


    "Go for your things."


    Second Brother walked on the bridge towards the midke pavilion after that. His posture was stable, or one might even say that it was stubborn. Every step was measured and precise. The tall crown on his head did not move at all in the slight breeze.


    Ning Que looked at his retreating back and wondered why Second Brother liked to stay in the pavilion.


    One would not get an answer to this kind of question. And even if one had the answer, one would not dare to say it aloud. He shrugged and carried his heavy bags towards the smithy with the never ending thunderous sounds.


    In the white steam room, Fourth Brother, dressed in his winter uniform, was meditating at the sand table with the talisman lines by the dark windows. Sixth Brother did not wear a top and was hammering on metal by the stove.


    The two Senior Brothers stopped and turned around when they heard his footsteps. Upon discovering that Ning Que had returned, excitement shed on their faces. They asked, "Were the arrows useful? What about the de?"


    Ning Que had thought that the two Senior Brothers were excited at their reunion, yet only to find that they did not even ask about how he was. They were only worried about the fruits of theirbors. He could not help but smile bitterly. He bowed deeply to the ground to the two Senior Brothers, executing the most formal and solemn of all bows.


    He had encountered numerous dangers in the Wilderness. If not for the two Senior Brothers who had ved over the Primordial Thirteen Arrows and the talisman de day and night, he would have long been dead. They had saved his life, how could he not be grateful?


    Ning Que put down his bags and retrieved the Primordial Thirteen Arrows from the iron box. Heid them on the ground neatly and said, "The Primordial Thirteen Arrows were very useful. I¡¯ve looked them over, and they can be used again after some simple fixing."


    A sh of surprise crossed Fourth Brother¡¯s face. He counted the arrows on the ground and said incredulously, "You didn¡¯t lose any of them? How did you pick all them back?"


    Ning Que answered honestly, "Eldest Brother found them for me."


    Fourth Brother smiled, and thought to himself, that the arrows would certainly not go missing since Eldest Brother was there.


    The talisman arrows on the ground were the culmination of the efforts of everyone in the back of the mountain of the Academy, especially that of Fourth and Sixth Brothers. They had used everything they had learned and had barely slept and ate to make them.


    They have all heard of how Prince Long Qing had lost the bet and knew that Ning Que had used the Primordial Thirteen Arrows to gain victory. They had not counted on being able to see all the talisman arrows again, but were surprised to see that their youngest Younger Brother had returned with the entire set. To them, it was like all their children had returned safely, and they were naturally extremely happy.


    Sixth Brother looked at Ning Que and asked simply, "Does Younger Brother still need us to do anything?"


    Ning Queughed in embarrassment. He thought to himself that Sixth Brother dealt with the stove and metal all year round, and had not expected him to urately guess what he was thinking. Then, he removed the three podaos on his back and passed it to him.


    Sixth Brother¡¯s palms were extremelyrge. He grabbed the three podaos and asked, "Were they not useful?"


    Ning Que thought about what to say and said, "A bit too light."


    He had experienced many battles in the Wilderness. The three podaos had helped cut down many heads when he went against the Horse Gang. However, when he faced cultivation powerhouses like Lin Ling, Long Qing, Ye Hongyu, and Master Lotus, the podaos were not very useful even with the talisman lines etched on them.


    Compared to the Primordial Thirteen Arrows and the pouch, the podao¡¯s use to him was not asrge. However, he was used to going tobat with des and could not bear to abandon them, which was why he hoped that Sixth Brother could help to modify them.


    Sixth Brother lowered his head and looked at the three des. He asked, "How do you want to change them?"


    Ning Que looked at the three slender podaos and thought of many things. He thought about how he had killed the horse gang by the Shubi Lake with the three des and how he had killed assassins at the Northern Mountain Road. However, as his skills improved, and his position in the world changed, many things had changed as well.


    He used to carry the three des around with him all the time, and it had already be a symbol. He used to always think about how to deal with the three assassins who worked under Xia Hou. He could kill those assassins with a flick of his fingers today. He no longer needed the three des.


    He wanted to kill Xia Hou, but Xia Hou was one person. He only needed one de.


    Arge and heavy de.


    It¡¯d be great if the de could berger and heavier than the blood-colored curved sword that Tang Xiaotang had.


    Ning Que looked at the familiar body of the slender podaos and suppressed the reluctance in his heart.


    "Senior Brother, please make these three swords into one."


    ...


    ...


    Some Senior Brothers were ying music and singing, some were ying chess. There was a Senior Brother who was burying flowers, and a Senior Sister wrote Hairpin-style Small Regr Script by the window. The schr was studying outside the cave and Chen Pipi was somewhere in the mountain. Eldest Brother was traveling somewhere, and he could not find anyone to ask about those important questions.


    Ning Que did not dare to cultivate in the back of the mountain because it was a very important question and he did not have an answer. He did not dare to study Second Brother¡¯s flying sword or Seventh Sister¡¯s flying needle. He was worried that the Great Spirit in his body would move and burst from the top of his head to the clouds and that a monster woulde and quell him.


    So he wandered around the back of the mountain in boredom. Heid on the meadow and watched Second Brother¡¯s white goose feed the fish. Then, he could stay no longer, and left the Academy in the horse carriage and returned to Chang¡¯an.


    He thought that he should y the host, and went in search of the disciples of ck Ink Garden, wanting to take them around the city. However, Mo Shanshan had brought some of the girls from the Great River Kingdom to the imperial court and were not at their dwellings.


    So he returned to Lin 47th Street and brought Sangsang to the House of Red Sleeves.


    The House of Red Sleeves was one of the most elegant and expensive ces on earth. They did not need much business to earn a decent profit. That was why they did not open in the day usually, especially since it was midwinter. Thedies were all hiding upstairs or in the courtyard, nibbling on seed and gossiping. The building was even emptier than the back of the mountain of the Academy.


    However, Ning Que was no ordinary guest. He had entered the House of Red Sleeves back when he did not have money, and he had not spent much in the years that followed. He also had a rtionship that couldn¡¯t be easily defined with this ce. With the rise in his status, came the rise of his poprity in the House of Red Sleeves.


    The manservant in in robes was a little unhappy to see someone entering. He thought to himself that it must be an official who had just returned to the capital and did not know the unspoken rules of the House of Red Sleeves. When he saw Ning Que¡¯s face, he was startled and smiled widely at the two and invited them in. Then, he ced his hand at the side of his mouth and yelled, "Ladies upstairs,dies in the courtyard,e out and entertain our guest!"


    Ning Que was shocked, and then, felt amused. He thought to himself, that even though he might never reach a state like Eldest Brother, at least he was rather sessful in other areas. He had his own unique prestige.


    Thundering footsteps danced across the House of Red Sleeves as thedies heard that Ning Que had returned to Chang¡¯an. Dozens ofdies popped their heads out from the railings and waved the handkerchief in their hands at him excitedly while calling out his name.


    Ning Que could not help but remember the first time he hade to the House of Red Sleeves and the teasing that ensued when he saw that. He opened his arms wide happily as if he was about to hug all thedies. He yelled, "I missed you all to death!"


    ...


    ...


    Dewdrop took the hot towel from the maidservant¡¯s hands and ced it on his face. She said angrily, "Those shrews used to think that you are cute and teasable. Now that your status is different, they can¡¯t wait to devour you. If I hadn¡¯te earlier, I would like to see which part of you would remain untouched."


    Ning Que¡¯s voice sounded from behind the hot towel, "I wee their devouring."


    Dewdrop said sarcastically, "It seems that even your heart has gone wild after half a year away from home. Mistress Jian¡¯s orders are still being enforced. Don¡¯t dream of anyone really devouring you."


    Ning Que rose from the couch and wiped his face. Then, he tossed the towel at the maidservant and looked at Dewdrop with furrowed brows, "My good sister, when will she rescind that order?"


    Dewdrop pushed him back onto the couch and massaged his legs. She said, "You can go and ask Mistress Jian. I want to talk about something serious with you. The copies of Chicken Soup Calligraphy don¡¯t sell as well as they did. That table is darker than the bottom of a pot. Shouldn¡¯t you write me something to sell?"


    Dewdrop had never epted any customers since she started selling copies of the Chicken Soup Calligraphy. Even the most important official would leave when they heard that she had the backing of Ning Que and Master Yan Se.


    Ning Que was Yan Se¡¯s only disciple. He understood how every man felt and wanted her to stop her business as well. However, when he heard her tone, it sounded as if she did not know that Master Yan Se had already passed on. He fell silent, and then decided not to tell her about it. He smiled and said, "I will write as many as you want."


    Dewdrop hugged his head to her chest excitedly and rubbed it hard when she heard that.


    Dewdrop¡¯s full figure was something she was very proud of. Her body was like that of a dewdrop and Ning Que, who was tucked in her embrace was smothered by her overflowing bosom. However, when he thought of the fact that she was his Master¡¯s almost-wife, he did not dare to enjoy it, and struggled to escape her embrace.


    "I do not dare to go against morality." Ning Que said in a panic.


    Dewdrop said angrily, "Who knows where that teacher of yours had gone. What morals are you talking about?"


    Ning Que forced a smile and said, "Master had gone to the Peach Mountain to cultivate. I do not know when he will return."


    Dewdrop felt slightly dejected and could barely bring herself to smile. She said, "Let¡¯s not talk about him. Tell me, what fun have you encountered in the Wilderness? I heard that you have managed to kidnap the Calligraphy Addict and have brought her back to Chang¡¯an. Is she beautiful?"


    Ning Que was stunned. How could rumor speed be faster than the Primordial Thirteen Arrows? What¡¯s more, what kidnapping was she talking about?

 Chapter 345: The Person Entering the Human Realm (I)

    Chapter 345: The Person Entering the Human Realm (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    There were only two friends little handmaiden Sangsang could get along with in Chang¡¯an. The first was the Princess of Tang, Lee Yu, and the other was Mistress Jian¡¯s maidservant, Xiaocao.


    The difference in status between the Princess of Tang and the maidservant of a brothel was like night and day. But Sangsang treated the both of them the same. She spoke with them ndly and was silent most of the time, preferring to listen instead.


    Xiaocao hit the railings twice and looked at Sangsang, who was beside her. She asked curiously, "I heard that the Calligraphy Addict is one of the three Addicts in the world. I suppose she must be very famous. Is she beautiful?"


    Sangsang nodded.


    Xiaocao said furiously, "Men are indeed fickle."


    Sangsang looked at her puzzledly.


    Xiaocao said even more angrily, "I¡¯m talking about that young master of yours."


    Sangsang grew even more confused.


    Xiaocao looked at her worriedly and said, "Everyone in Chang¡¯an knows, that Ning Que brought home a beautiful woman from his travels. Are you not worried?"


    Sangsang looked at her and asked seriously, "What should I be worried about?"


    Xiaocao held her hands and said worriedly, "ording to what you have said, you often sleep with your young master, so you can¡¯t marry someone else anymore. You will definitely be his concubine in the future. He did not tell you anything and brought a woman home, so it must be that he does not have much feelings for you. If that woman marries your young master in the future, she will be in charge of household matters. What will you do then?"


    Sangsang lowered her head and looked at her hands that clutched the railings tightly. After a pregnant pause, she said softly, "Young master has to marry someone when he grows up. When young master and I first came here, we returned home and immediately discussed who would make a better wife for him. Even if he wants to marry Ms. Calligraphy Addict, I won¡¯t be upset about it."


    ...


    ...


    "You¡¯ve missed them to death? Which parts of them did you miss? Or do you wish for them to die? You¡¯ve been tortured for half a year in the Wilderness. And yet, you did not study in the Academy upon your return to Chang¡¯an but came to have fun in the brothel. I wonder how the Headmaster of the Academy and Yan Se had taught you. Are you prepared to spend your life with women upon entering the human realm? "


    Mistress Jian red at Ning Que, dissatisfaction written inly on her face as she berated him.


    Ning Que stood still and did not dare to retort. The ordinary looking woman before him was not ordinary at all. She not only ruled the brothel in Chang¡¯an, she had a close rtionship with Youngest Uncle and the Academy. He did not dare to act rashly.


    After his travels on the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, and having heard Lotus¡¯ memories, he could be certain that the girl, Xiaoxiao, who had died before the Lanke Temple had something to do with the House of Red Sleeves. Youngest Uncle had torn apart the Devil¡¯s Doctrine because of her death. Second Brother had once said, that Youngest Uncle was close with Mistress Jian. What had happened between them? He could have asked Mistress Jian about the girl named Xiaoxiao, but he figured it was a sad past and there was no need to bring it up again, which was why he did not say anything.


    He suddenly thought that Mistress Jian would like to know about Youngest Uncle. He said, "I have inherited Youngest Uncle¡¯s mantle."


    Mistress Jian was slightly surprised. She asked in a trembling voice, "The Haoran Sword?"


    Ning Que nodded, "Yes."


    Mistress Jian looked at him incredulously with deeply furrowed brows. She leaned forward and stared into his eyes sternly. "Only the Haoran Sword?"


    Ning Que was startled and nodded once more.


    Mistress Jian rxed upon his confirmation. She leaned back tiredly and said, "That¡¯s good."


    Ning Que looked at her expression and wondered if Mistress Jian had known the truth about Youngest Uncle joining the Devil.


    "I do not wish for you to walk down the same path as he did."


    Mistress Jian looked at him earnestly. "You have to go through many challenges in order to have the world acknowledge that you are qualified to represent the Academy to enter the human realm. He was just a little turquoise robed schr when he rode that ck donkey into Chang¡¯an. He couldn¡¯t control his mental state, and created chaos in the world and ended up in a miserable state where he couldn¡¯t even die in peace. You have to remember, to act discreetly and cautiously. You musn¡¯t offend too many people."


    This was the second time Ning Que had heard Mistress Jian seriously mentioning about entering the human realm in today¡¯s conversation. He could not help but grow curious about what that actually was. He heard her use Youngest Uncle¡¯s example as a warning to himself and could not help butugh. He answered, "Do not worry, I am not as strong as Youngest Uncle. If anything really happens, I will just hide in the Academy."


    "Do not think that the Academy is really the best in the world. If the Academy could really solve all things in the world, would your Youngest Uncle end up like that? So what if he managed to cut down all those peach blossoms on that mountain after the incident had happened?"


    Mistress Jian said coldly, resentment filling the crow¡¯s feet by her eyes.


    That was a resentment towards the Academy and the Headmaster of the Academy.


    ...


    ...


    ording to thew of the Tang Empire, students of the Academy were not allowed to join the army after graduation. That was why the imperial court, where most of the civilian officials hade from the Academy, had maintained a close rtionship with the Academy, while the army was more distant.


    This was especially so in recent times. Xu Shi, the Defender-general of the State was the figurehead of the army who remained vignt against the Academy. And he remained especially so against the supermundane beings of the back of the mountain.


    The vignce had be reality with the arrival of a memo from Tuyang City.


    In the memo, the famous general Xia Hou had made an earnest request to retire. The words used in the memo were filled with weariness and dismay. After the dispatch of the memo, there were many generals in the Military Ministry who feltpassion for him. A few bigwigs in the upper levels were especially angry as they knew that Mr. First and Mr. Thirteen of the Academy had visited Tuyang City and spoke with Xia Hou in the Winter Courtyard before Xia Hou decided to retire.


    Arranging for soldiers to enter the Wilderness without permission and the old case that had happened more than ten years ago had led many in the army to dislike Xia Hou. However, they believed that this was an internal issue and that if anyone were to punish Xia Hou, only His Majesty or the imperial court should be the ones to do so, and not the Academy. As for Xia Hou being a visiting professor of the West-Hill Divine Pce, it was not a major issue in the eyes of the citizens of Tang who were also believers of Haotian.


    Of course, no one dared to suspect the Headmaster of the Academy. It was just that the Headmaster had not appeared in the human realm for years. Not even His Majesty had seen the old man in years, which was why the army felt that the back of the mountain of the Academy was at fault.


    "I believe that if the Headmaster of the Academy knew about it, he wouldn¡¯t allow those from the back of the mountain to do as they wish."


    Xu Shi said coldly, "Cultivators should cultivate and not interfere with court matters. Just like the two Unknown ces hidden in the Wilderness. Those of the supermundane should care about what happens in their own world, and vice vera. Why must we be connected? Why do they have to enter the human realm?"


    "How goes the research on the case?" He asked.


    "The censor, Zhang Yiqi, did indeed have a nail in his head. The Chang¡¯an Local Government had preserved the evidence well, but did not continue their investigation then. On the day the assistant of Xuanwei General, Chen Zixian, had died at the cksmith, the Old Brush Pen Shop did not open for business."


    "On the morning after Military Clergy Appraiser, Yan Suqing¡¯s death, the Yulin Royal Guards discovered that the murderer had deliberately left behind a piece of cloth. They found an outer robe in another spot in the courtyard. The clothes were made at the Lanxiu workshop, so we do not know who they belong to. However, ording to the damage on the clothes found at the scene, we can be sure that the murderer was heavily injured."


    An official from the Military Ministry said, "Two days after the death of Yan Suqing, was the semester exam of the Academy. ording to students¡¯ recounts, Ning Que had made a bet with Xie Chengyun on the results of the exam. However, he took sick leave for the next two days. This had created a furore in the Academy and cannot be fake."


    Xu Shi said coldly, "Of course, he had to take leave since he was heavily injured."


    The army of the Tang empire was very capable. Once they started an investigation, they were able to move speedily and efficiently. It was scary how they didn¡¯t take long to discover all these clues.


    These seemingly insignificant clues were like a. It pointed at a vague figure, as if saying that the student of the Second floor of the Academy called Ning Que had an inextricable connection to the murders.


    "There is nothing that can withstand suspicion. That is because you will have a goal to pursue once you begin to have suspicions. It is only when you search for proof when you can find evidence. Who would believe that one of the core disciples of the Headmaster of the Academy is a cold-blooded murderer?"


    Xu Shi said expressionlessly, "I do not wish to know what had happened behind these murders, and I do not wish to know what kind of person Ning Que is and what he had against his victims. I just want to know if he had vited anyws of the Tang Empire."


    The official thought for a moment before shaking his head. He said, "There is insufficient evidence for now."


    Xu Shi frowned worriedly.


    The official looked at him puzzledly and asked in a low voice. "Actually... even if we find evidence stating that Ning Que was involved in these cases, could we really apprehend him at the back of the mountain and question him? General, we should just let the matter go."


    Xu Shi looked at the sun outside the window and slowly said, "The Headmaster of the Academy had once said, that thew of the Tang Empire came first." The Great Tang Empire of mine had run on this creed and strengthened its people the same way. Those from the Academy who have vited thew are punished the same way asmoners who have done the same. Even if we don¡¯t have evidence that Ning Que had vited thews of the Tang Empire, we have to let the Headmaster of the Academy know about it. We cannot allow Ning Que to be the Wayfarer of the Academy!"


    After a moment of silence, he said coldly, "It seems that I was right to be vignt against Ning Que. If our future Nation Master is someone evil like this, how can the Tang empire be peaceful? The cultivators from othernds have already entered Chang¡¯an. Arrange for things to go well for them. Order the Yulin Royal Guards to not stop the battle between the two."


    The official of Military Ministry shuddered before disagreeing. He said, "I disagree. Even if Ning Que is evil, he is a Tang citizen. How can we allow foreigners to deal with him?"


    Xu Shi turned around and said sarcastically, "Do you think that I am dumb?"


    The official replied fearfully, "Your subordinate does not dare. I just do not understand what you mean."


    "He has to face challenges since he¡¯s entering the human realm. It was like this for Ke Haoran, and it would be so for Ning Que. I just want to make the ying field fair. I believe that the Academy would not object to my ns."


    Xu Shi said coldly, "If Ning Que had indeedmitted those crimes, he would be punished by thews of the Tang Empire. But since we do not have evidence, I want him to lose and lose over and over again. I want him to lose his boldness and sharp edges!"

 Chapter 346: The Person Entering the Human Realm (II)

    Chapter 346: The Person Entering the Human Realm (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que did not know that he had be the male protagonist in a novel and was about to face numerous challenges brought by other minor characters in the book. He might seed continuously or fail continuously before finding out if he was the male protagonist or if someone like Long Qing was supposed to be the male protagonist and end up running around in dead-ends.


    He had been thinking about an important question since he returned to Chang¡¯an from the Wilderness. He did not dare to cultivate at the back of the mountain of the Academy if he could not solve the problem, much less to engage in battle with others.


    In order to solve this question, he had made his way to Chang¡¯an using his ID token as a visiting professor at the Imperial Center Administration in the morning of the second day, before the sun even rose. He came to the mountain path behind the old library of Academy and waited quietly.


    The fog on the mountain path dissipated the moment sunlight appeared in the east. Eldest Brother, who wore a pair of old straw slippers walked down the path slowly. He looked at Ning Que who was yawning beneath the tree in surprise.


    Ning Que bowed and asked, "Senior Brother, where are you heading to today?"


    Eldest Brother smiled and replied, "I have been traveling with teacher for the past two years and did not know that the imperial court had dredged out argeke under the Yanming Mountain south of Chang¡¯an. I took a walk there yesterday and the air was fresh, and the water beneath the ice was clear. There were fishermen who broke the ice and fished and I really liked that, so I want to go and look at it again today."


    Ning Que had already gotten used to Eldest Brother¡¯s talking speed and his nagging. He could filter useless information about the scenery and how he felt and capture the essence of the conversation. However, there wasn¡¯t a main point in Eldest Brother¡¯s statement. So he asked in annoyance, "Senior Brother, I have something to ask you."


    Eldest Brother asked in surprise, "Is it bothersome? I want to go look at theke, how about you ask me another day?"


    Ning Que said with great conviction, "We can¡¯t do it another day. We have to do it today."


    "Is it long?"


    "It could be long or short."


    "Youngest Brother, it would not be fun if it is just a riddle."


    "Eldest Brother, do I look like someone has nothing better to do?"


    After the short conversation, Eldest Brother and Youngest Brother of the Academy began to climb the mountain path.


    "The important question is... the question I wanted to ask you while we were roasting sweet potatoes by the fire in the Wilderness. You told me to ask the Headmaster of the Academy when we returned, but he is still not back yet."


    "Why do I feel like this question is a riddle by itself?"


    Ning Que stopped before the row of trees that had once scratched him badly and looked at Eldest Brother. He fell silent for a moment and breathed in deeply for several times. Then, he said as calmly as he could, "I have inherited Youngest Uncle¡¯s mantle at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. In Lotus¡¯ words, it means that I have joined the Devil. And it is true that there are some issues with my body."


    There was a slight breeze. Eldest Brother looked at a single gingko leaf that floated in the breeze on the mountain path. After a long silence, he turned to look at Ning Que. He nodded his head and said smilingly, "Alright."


    Ning Que looked at his eyes nervously and waited for what was about to happen. However, Eldest Brother did not do anything or say anything, but shook his head with a smile and continued up the mountain path.


    "So, you know that I have joined the devil... then?" Ning Que shouted at Eldest Brother¡¯s back puzzledly.


    Eldest Brother¡¯s voice could be heard from ahead. "I know, so I know, what else can I do?"


    Ning Que chased up to him and asked irritatedly, "Senior Brother, have you heard me clearly? I have joined the devil. Will the Academy burn me to death or will they close me up in the Back Cliff and not allow anyone to see me? What do the Academy rules say?"


    "They can¡¯t." Eldest Brother sighed softly, "The Back Cliff was used by teacher to imprison Youngest Uncle. You did not get into as much trouble as he did and have not sinned enough. You are not qualified to be imprisoned there."


    Ning Que was startled, and he asked, "So what will happen?"


    Eldest Brother looked at him and said solemnly, "Wait for teacher to return."


    Ning Que asked, "What if teacher doesn¡¯t?"


    Eldest Brother patted his shoulders and said, "Then let us pretend that we don¡¯t know, alright?"


    At this time, the two had arrived at the wooden door. After the long path through the mountain, Ning Que had considered the situation at hand seriously. However, he still could not understand Eldest Brother¡¯s attitude. Why did Eldest Brother not react in the way he had anticipated?


    The wooden door that could stop cultivators under the Seethrough state opened before the two.


    Eldest Brother took out a silk handkerchief and slowly wiped a bronze mirror clean before keeping it in his sleeves again.


    "I heard that you visited Mistress Jian at the House of Red Sleeves yesterday."


    "Yes."


    "She has had a hard life."


    Ning Que looked at the bronze mirror but did not know what Eldest Brother had used it for earlier.


    ...


    ...


    The two had finally reached the peak of the back of the mountain of the Academy. Ning Que stood at the edge of the cliff and looked at the clouds beneath his feet. His thoughts wavered as he felt the cold wind blowing him and thought of the scenery of that night when he ascended the mountain.


    Eldest Brother stood beside him and looked at the clouds. He slowly said, "The trip to the Wilderness was just a training session. You have done well and can officially represent the Academy and enter the human realm. You should be prepared for it."


    This was the third time Ning Que had heard about entering the human realm in two days. He looked at Eldest Brother uneasily. Even though he did not know what it meant by entering the human realm, he could vaguely guess that it was something troublesome.


    "Senior Brother, what¡¯s entering the human realm?"


    "Entering the human realm means returning to the human realm."


    Ning Que asked puzzledly, "Cultivators have experienced all sorts of challenges before bing supermundane. Why do they have to enter the human realm again?"


    Eldest Brother smiled, saying, "That¡¯s because cultivators have got to eat too."


    It was apelling reason since there was nothing more important in the world than eating. However, Ning Que could notprehend the logic behind it. Wouldn¡¯t any cultivator have the ability to earn money to feed themselves? Furthermore, what has a cultivator¡¯s needing to eat anything to do with the Academy? What has it to do with the Academy entering the human realm?


    Eldest Brother looked at the wisps of clouds that curled and unfurled beneath his feet. He said, "Cultivating is a luxury. The crafting of a natal item and other things all required a great amount of resources. Take your Primordial Thirteen Arrows for example. The bow and the arrow body required stainless-steel, a rare metal, and it required precious minerals. Why did no one in the cultivation world create something simr? Firstly, it is because they did not have ideas like yours, and they did not have the abilities that Fourth and Sixth Younger Brothers do. Also, the most important reason is that they are not like us at the Academy. We can use mines of the entire Tang Empire. It was not easy to make that bow and arrows of yours."


    Ning Que knew that the materials used for the Primordial Thirteen Arrows were special and rare. However, Fourth and Sixth Senior Brothers had been in charge of the nning when they had first crafted the bow and arrow. He did not know that the bow and arrows were crafted using materials of the entire Tang Empire and could not help but be stunned.


    He suddenly asked, "Do the other Unknown ces have to enter the human realm? I saw that Tang and Ye Su seemed to be traveling in the world and did not have any encounters with the secr world."


    "There are a lot of Buddhist temples supporting the Xuankong Temple. The Zhishou Abbey has got the West-Hill Divine Pce in the human realm and the West-Hill Divine Pce is supported by believers all over the world. They have most of the resources in the world."


    "There is only one Academy in the world. It is located in the south of Chang¡¯an. Thend beneath our feet is supported by the Tang Empire, which is how we can continue to exist."


    "It is said that the Academy is the only ce that links both worlds. Other than the fact that teacher likes to get close to the human realm, the another important reason is that we can only continue to survive if we appear in the human realm."


    A strong gust of wind blew through the mountain, forging a path in the clouds before the cliff. It revealednd that was covered with snow. One could vaguely see the outlines of several viges. It was the beautiful human realm.


    Senior Brother pointed at the spot andmented, "Look at that river and mountains. We cultivators do not produce anything, but we use up resources that regr folks cannot imagine. In actuality, we are supported by the most ordinary farmers and miners in all these viges. That is why we have to do something for them."


    Ning Que looked at the human realm beneath the cliff and asked dazedly, "What should we do for them?"


    "Younger Brother, do not worry. Entering the human realm just means maintaining the rtionship between the Academy and the human realm. It is not something troublesome. You just have to remember, we have to protect thew and order of the Tang Empire and maintain peace. So we have to remember thews of the Tang Empire and represent the Tang Empire and the Academy and participate in what happens in the world. Your trip to the Wilderness was the first step. When someonees forth to challenge us, you have to protect the dignity of the Tang Empire and the Academy."


    "How can I do that?"


    "To put it simply, you have to defeat all those who dare to challenge you."


    Ning Que was shell-shocked. He said, "It¡¯s this simple and violent?"


    Senior Brother said, "The Tao Addict has returned to the West-Hill. She has told others that your thoughts about cultivation are simr to hers. ording to what I know, the girl believes that the goal of cultivation is to battle. Younger Brother, is this what you think too?"


    After thinking about it, Ning Que could confirm that Ye Hongyu was a good judge of character. They were simr indeed.


    Eldest Brother said, "Then isn¡¯t battle the simplest and most violent thing in the world?"


    Ning Que looked at the clouds that were closing up again. His brows furrowed into a line as he said, "I always thought that something was wrong with that. Does it mean that I have to fight anyone who challenges me?"


    Eldest Brothermented, "It is true that it is not right. It is a pity that the Academy differs greatly from Zhishou Abbey and Xuankong Temple. Nobody knows where they are located, but all the cultivators in the world know where the Academy is. That is why we cannot roam the world like Ye Su and Tang but wait here passively."


    "Hold on, why do I think that something is not right the more we talk." Ning Que said, "Eldest Brother, you are always having fun with teacher out there. And I have never seen anyone who could enter the back of the mountain. Where did all the people who wanted to challenge the Academy go?"


    Senior Brother exined seriously, "They were all killed by Youngest Uncle."


    Ning Que was stunned. He asked, "What about the years after his death?"


    "His name lives on. What¡¯s more, every generation has their own battles."


    "So you mean that I am the Youngest Uncle of this generation?"


    "That¡¯s because you have inherited his mantle."


    Ning Que shook his head and asked cautiously, "So you mean that those who enter the human realm are thugs that the Academy use to maintain peace. I have to get rid of those whoe to create trouble in Chang¡¯an, right?"


    "Youngest Brother, you can understand it that way. But your use of the word ¡¯thug¡¯ isn¡¯t very nice. It is something like what Lotus had done to protect the Front Gate of the Buddhism Sect. You have to know, that inheriting the ways of Youngest Uncle is something that is enviable."


    After a brief silence, Ning Que replied solemnly, "You¡¯re fudging the issue, Eldest Brother, go on."

 Chapter 347: The Person Entering the Human Realm (III)

    Chapter 347: The Person Entering the Human Realm (III)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Eldest Brother did not understand the word "fudging", but Ning Que had be full of sorrow and pain due to Eldest Brother¡¯s fudge. A rush of malevolence was born in his heart. To vent his dissatisfaction, he was dying to steal the tall hat from Second Brother¡¯s head and then directly knock Eldest Brother out.


    Ning Que thought, "You and the Headmaster of the Academy traveled around the world the entire time, and the other guys on the back of the mountain were also engaged in their own hobbies like ying the flute, admiring flowers, and ying chess. All of you were living such happy lives. However, I, the youngest student in the back of the mountain, had to suffer from fighting with those challenges in the secr world. Why would that be so? Now it could be assumed that both the Academy¡¯s decision of changing the practice to the journey in the Wilderness and his thrilling inheritance of Youngest Uncle¡¯s strength in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine mountain..."


    Ning Que resentfully shouted, "It¡¯s a trap!"


    Eldest Brother said with augh, "Why would you say that it¡¯s a trap?"


    Ning Que angrily said, "Why should the person entering the Human Realm be me, rather than other Senior Brothers or Senior Sisters?"


    Eldest Brother sighed and said sincerely, "You also know that the other people in the back of the mountain just wander around the mountain and are crazy about flutes, books, paintings, ironwork, and Talisman Taoism. It¡¯s really unsuitable to ask them to enter the Human Realm because they¡¯re totally ignorant of worldly affairs and are as naive as children. If we insist on it, I¡¯m afraid they woulde back with severe injuries and tears in less than two days."


    "How about Second Brother? He¡¯s so mighty."


    "As for Jun Mo, he looks upright and reasonable, but his disposition of a gentleman is too obvious. Besides, he¡¯s incapable of dealing with something ostensible, so it¡¯s easy to be cornered by other people. His character is really a little..."


    At that, Eldest Brother paused for a while and then said with a smile, "A little rash. What¡¯s more, he has been admiring Youngest Uncle very much all the time. If he enters the Human Realm, perhaps there will be many bloody cases in Chang¡¯an."


    Ning Que continued asking, "What about Chen Pipi? He¡¯s the youngest Knowing Destiny State cultivator. If he¡¯s selected as the representative of the Academy, it definitely will frighten those people who want to challenge the Academy. Thus, he¡¯s much more suitable than me."


    "It¡¯s unsuitable for Chen Pipi to fight for the Academy due to his special family background." Eldest Brother looked at Ning Que and said, "But, Younger Brother, you are different, you have experienced a lot of worldly things. I think you must be totally different from us who spend most of our time living on the back of the mountain. Therefore, you¡¯re the most suitable one to enter the Human Realm. It¡¯s also a kind of a Lucky Chance, like what I mentioned in the Wilderness."


    "Don¡¯t talk this nonsense."


    Ning Que said angrily, "After listening to everything you said, I have eventually understood Senior Brother¡¯s main idea. You just mean that I¡¯ve experienced and witnessed many asions of life and death, and that my fighting experience is rich. What¡¯s more, unlike other innocent Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters, my heart has been polluted by dirty water for so many years and has already be very insidious. Also, unlike the frank Second Brother, I¡¯m sly and shameless enough to make a concession no matter what things I encounter. Above all, I don¡¯t have such a firm and special background as Chen Pipi¡¯s."


    "What you say is indeed true, but it really isn¡¯t the way that I think. Besides, the thing isn¡¯t as troublesome as you think," Eldest Brother said honestly, but he did not know that his honesty had actually caused secondary damage to Ning Que.


    "Youngest Uncle was also once in your position. Back then, he entered Chang¡¯an on his little ck donkey and then defeated 37 mighty cultivators. Who had he been afraid of?"


    None of Ning Que¡¯s ambition had been inspired by Eldest Brother¡¯s words. Compared with that legendary Youngest Uncle, who destroyed the Devil¡¯s Doctrine with a sword, Ning Que thought he was nothing at all at present, so he had no confidence to cause a stir.


    Suddenly, he thought of an idea and then asked, "Will the Academy give me a hand if the enemy is very powerful?"


    Eldest Brother said carefully, "If the opponent invites you to a duel in a correct manner, the Academy won¡¯t help you because it will lose too much face."


    Ning Que said in surprise, "If the Sage of Sword Liu Bai challenges me, I have to fight against him?"


    Eldest Brother consoled him, "He also can¡¯t afford to lose so much face... In my opinion, the people who will challenge you in Chang¡¯an in the next few years will be mostly young cultivators. However, there are a lot of mighty and secret people in many cultivation sects. Though your progress is very fast, your state isn¡¯t high enough due to yourte beginning, so you still need to be cautious."


    "Senior Brother, you know my state is still low, so your words really make me feel awkward."


    "No need to worry, because states increase from low to high."


    "In the Wilderness, those people were frightened like quails and didn¡¯t dare to challenge me when they knew I was a student of the Second Floor of the Academy. However, why do they dare to challenge me when I enter the Human Realm?"


    "Because that¡¯s the Wilderness, not Chang¡¯an. You can reject their challenge in the Wilderness, and even regard their action as a kind of provocation of the Academy. However, in Chang¡¯an, you have to ept their challenge because it isn¡¯t a kind of provocation of the Academy, but an opportunity to show cultivators¡¯ courage and honor."


    "Why?"


    "Because you¡¯re a citizen of the Tang and an Academy student."


    Ning Que found it hard to adapt to thetent rule, which was unreasonable yet a little heroic. After thinking for a long time, he was confused and asked, "I¡¯ve already defeated Long Qing, will other people still take big risks to challenge me?"


    Eldest Brother said, "But no one believes that you won that battle by your own strength. Besides, Ye Hongyu has made an evaluation of you to West-Hill, and it seems that herments on your real strength are also not so positive."


    Ning Que nkly said, "It¡¯s a pity that Ye Hongyu, my acquaintance, didn¡¯t speak for me and told the truth!"


    Later, he began to think about what he should do if someone powerful like Tao Addict invites him to a duel in Chang¡¯an. Or in other words, what kind of surrender looked more natural for him.


    Just then, Eldest Brother seriously reminded Ning Que, "Anyway, you can¡¯t lose, because our teacher can¡¯t lose face, either."


    The several "can¡¯ts" directly wiped out all of Ning Que¡¯s love and respect for Eldest Brother. He bitterly said, "Senior Brother, it seems that you¡¯ve forgotten the most important thing. The problem that I mentioned to you by the wooden door just now hasn¡¯t been solved. What should I do if other people discover that I¡¯ve joined the Devil? Will the Academy have to admit epting the remaining evil of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine?"


    "It¡¯s indeed a problem. Though it isn¡¯t a big deal to be criticized by others, it¡¯ll cause some trouble eventually. It¡¯ll be better if we can find some methods to cover it up."


    Eldest Brother said after a short pause, "You can give up using the Great Spirit of Youngest Uncle in fighting."


    Ning Que thought that Eldest Brother would offer an excellent idea in the beginning, instead, he heard such an irresponsible answer. He could not help recalling the scene that Eldest Brother said sorry for beingte at the back of the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He bitterly confirmed that Eldest Brother was indeed an irresponsible guy.


    ...


    ...


    After finishing the conversation with Eldest Brother, Ning Que vented his grievances to Second Brother and wanted to seek some sympathy or support from Second Brother. However, instead of sympathizing with Ning Que, Second Brother sternly said that it was an umon chance at cultivation. He even said with emotion that he wished that he could enter the Human Realm if he was not so well-known for his strength or if he could find an equal opponent.


    Listening to Second Brother¡¯s words, Ning Que finally realized the meaning of the so-called entering the Human Realm. The assignment was delegated to him because the Academy regarded it as a kind of cultivation, but not as an action to keep away from harassment. However, what he was best at in his life was hunting in the mountains and forest and chopping off heads in the dark. Thus, he was really a little resistant to this kind of cultivation.


    No matter how he resisted, he had to ept it in the end. Therefore, he began to seriously think about how to deal with all the possible fighting invitations that he would get in the next few years. In the past, he might have capitted in a casual way, but now that idea would not work because the Headmaster of the Academy would severely punish him if he did so. In the past, if he had met a powerful enemy, he probably would have beheaded the opponent by using some insidious methods, stealthily at night. However, that method would not work either because Second Brother would mercilessly beat him. Thus, he found that he really needed a helper.


    Sangsang was naturally the most suitable one, but he did not want to drag her into danger because fighting against those mighty cultivators might be dangerous. Besides, he also missed Old Chao from the Spring Breeze Pavilion. He thought that if they could fight together, there would be nothing to fear due to their strength and great teamwork. If so, he would not fear those people like Tao Addict, and there might be an opportunity to be famous if they could beat a Great Divine Priest of the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    Unfortunately, Chao Xiaoshu was gone.


    Fortunately, during the recent period, at least Mo Shanshan was in Chang¡¯an, so Ning Que should wee her as a host. Over the next few days, he went to the residence of those students of the ck Ink Garden, and went sightseeing in the city with Mo Shanshan. Sometimes, he also had a big meal in a famous restaurant with Cat Girl.


    Considering the tacit understanding that they had fostered in the Wilderness, Ning Que did not make enough exnation to Calligraphy Addict. However, theck of exnation usually would cause problems. In the eyes of those young girls of the Great River Kingdom, Mr. Thirteen of the Academy, who would arrive at their residence on time every day, obviously had some different feelings for the Hill Master.


    Chang¡¯an was sometimes snowy and sometimes sunny in winter. Ning Que and Mo Shanshan went outside, walking abreast. Sometimes they shared one umbre, and sometimes they looked at the same fish by the moat. When passing the Spring Breeze Pavilion, he talked about the story that had happened on that rainy and bloody night. When climbing the Wanyan Tower, he said there were many figures in stone in the back. In addition, they sometimes explored and discussed books, handwriting, and Talisman Taoism. The time passed slowly and peacefully.


    During these days, he did not receive any challenges from others, and did not see any flying Taoist Swords against him either. There was not any trace of the so-called challenges that a man entering the Human Realm had to experience. He thought it was absolutely right because the Academy was so well-known and no cultivators would be bored enough to challenge him.


    He was not worried about that thing anymore. Besides, Eldest Brother¡¯s words that day indirectly let him know the Academy¡¯s attitude toward joining the Devil. Now, he was apanied by a young and beautiful female Talisman Master. These things made his mood really good. He also thought that it sounded a little heroic and graceful to be called the representative of the Academy in the Human Realm. ording to what Eldest Brother said before, the Academy had the responsibility to help the Tang proceed forward in order. Did that mean that he could also voice his opinion on the session of the Tang emperor in several years? He could not help bingcent when thinking about those things.


    One day when the winter snow gradually melted, Ning Que was holding his big ck umbre outside the Ministry of Rites. On that day, he and Mo Shanshan had already decided to enjoy the great calligraphy of the predecessors. However, shortly after Mo Shanshan walked out of the Ministry of Rites, a young monk in thin monk robes arrived in front them. He put his palms together and then politely asked, "Are you Mr. Thirteen of the Academy?"

 Chapter 348: The Invitation from Lanke Temple

    Chapter 348: The Invitation from Lanke Temple


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The young monk was about 25 or 26. He was handsome and looked kind. His skin was slightly tanned and his thin monk robes fluttered in the wind, making him look rather ethereal. However, it was still mid-winter, and it was a wonder that he wasn¡¯t cold.


    Ning Que grew slightly wary, but it did not show on his face. His smiled slightly and asked, "Does this master know me?"


    The monk smiled and said, "This monk guessed."


    Ning Que asked in surprise, "You can guess something like that?"


    The monk calmly said, "That¡¯s because I have met the Calligraphy Addict before, that¡¯s why I guessed that you are Mr. Thirteen."


    Ning Que thought about the rumors floating abouttely and could not help but smile bitterly.


    Mo Shanshan looked at the young monk. Her usuallyzy gaze focused gradually as she thought about her previous meeting with him years ago. She said, slightly surprised, "It¡¯s Senior Brother Guan Hai. How have you been? What are you doing in Chang¡¯an?"


    Mo Shanshan introduced the monk, and Ning Que found out that he was a disciple of the Elder at Lanke Temple called Guan Hai. A strange expression crossed his face.


    This world was different from the world that Ning Que had once lived in. Not every housewife was highly skilled in both Buddhism and Taoism. Aspared to Haotian Taoism, the Buddhism Sect¡¯s influence was definitely weaker, and Buddhism was not as popr.


    However, the Lanke Temple was very well-renowned, especially to the regr folk. Nobody knew about the Xuankong Temple, but they all knew about the Lanke Temple. As for cultivators, the Lanke Temple¡¯s standing was higher than the White Tower Temple of the Yuelun Kingdom. Even Ning Que, who did not understand anything about the Buddhism Sect had heard of the Lanke Temple and was very impressed by it.


    Many stories have yed out in the thousand-year-old temple. Master Lotus had be world renowned after his debate with the Elder from the Lanke Temple. After that, he had cultivated in the temple in seclusion for many years. That bloodshed incident that had resulted in the destruction of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and changed the cultivation world had also begun at the Lanke Temple.


    Ning Que first heard of the Lanke Temple when Prince Long Qing had entered Chang¡¯an. Long Qing had be famous at the debate at Lanke Temple. Now that he thought about it, he could not help but think that perhaps all cultivators who want to be famous had to go to the Lanke Temple and enter a debate session.


    Lanke Temple had a very special ce in the cultivation world precisely because of these stories. The Elders who lived in seclusion at the back of the mountain were ranked high in seniority. The young monk was a disciple of an Elder at the Lanke Temple, and would rank higher than the legendary seven disciples of the Buddhism Sect.


    ording to Ning Que¡¯s character, he should be trying to get close to the young monk named Guan Hai. However, in recent days, due to the entering of the human realm by the Academy, he had been cautious about meeting those from other sects who hade forth to challenge him. He couldn¡¯t help but feel a little uneasy when he saw someone from the Lanke Temple appearing in Chang¡¯an.


    "So, you¡¯re a Bhadanta from the Lanke Temple. I wonder why I have never met you in the pce, Senior Brother." He smiled and said.


    The young monk uttered that he did not dare and said respectfully, "This monk wouldn¡¯t dare to call himself a Bhadanta. Furthermore, my teacher is a disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy. How would I dare to be called that by Senior Brother, Mr. Thirteen? As for the incident in the Wilderness, the temple had received an edict from the Divine Hall. It was just that the disciples of the Buddhism Sect values penance and not interfering with the mortal world, so I did not go."


    When he heard that, Ning Que thought to himself, that if he really did not interfere with the mortal world, he would not desire fame, and as such, would not seek to give Ning Que trouble. He felt a little relieved. Furthermore, the monk looked at him with admiration and that felt very nice indeed. He asked with a warm expression, "I wonder what tasks Senior Brother has to carry out in Chang¡¯an?"


    It takes two to p, so even though the monk did not acknowledge that he was a Senior Brother out of humility, Ning Que insisted on addressing him as so. We could see that Eldest Brother was right, that being flexible when dealing with things and the ability to improvise was a skill. He was indeed the prime candidate of the back of the mountain of the Academy.


    Guan Hai pulled out a letter from a yellow cloth pouch and said, "I have retrieved a document from the Ministry of Rites from the Tang Empire and am about to head to the Academy. I did not expect to meet Mr. Thirteen, so I will leave this invitation with you so that I need not make the journey there."


    "An invitation for the Academy?"


    Ning Que opened the yellow cloth to discover that the letter was not sealed. He took out a sheet of thin letter paper from the inside. The contents of the letter were simple and clear. The Elder of Lanke Temple had invited the Academy to send someone to participate in the Yuean hungry ghost festival next year.


    After the conversation with Eldest Brother, he knew that he would have to deal with all issues to do with the secr world on behalf of the Academy in the future. So he had to participate in Lanke Temple¡¯s Yuean hungry ghost festival. It was lucky that it was still a year away, and he could prepare himself for it. He could rest easy now that he could be certain that the Lanke Temple had sent someone to send an invitation.


    He smiled at Guan Hai and said, "Senior Brother had journeyed far from the Lanke Temple. I should y host, but I have already agreed to tour with the Hill Master. Shall we meet for tea and a chat at night?"


    Monk Guan Hai replied respectfully, "Mr. Thirteen, you are kind, but I have followed instructions passed unto me by my teacher toe to Chang¡¯an and have fallen behind on my school work. Since I have already passed the invitation to you, I shall return to the temple shortly."


    "Go on, go on. You have to go home eventually." Ning Que thought to himself happily. However, he kept an enthusiastic expression on his face and tried to get the young monk to stay. He even pretended to be angry like how the men of Hebei do.


    Monk Guan Hai refused repeatedly, saying, "I really can¡¯t afford to fall behind on my school work anymore. It is just that this is a rare visit to Chang¡¯an for me, and that I have met Mr. Thirteen in person, I would like to ask you for some advice as I have met with some difficulties in cultivation."


    "That¡¯s no problem at all. I will order a vegetarian feast at the Building of Pines and Cranes tonight along with two bottles of wine. We can drink and talk, or drink some tea. And we can analyze... er, what did I just say?"


    Ning Que had been talking excitedly and waspletely immersed in the act of entering the human realm. He only became fully aware of what he had done now.


    There were many things that did not require one to talk about it clearly, and it did not need to be spoken about clearly. That¡¯s because if it was so, it would make things ugly for everyone. Those from Academy, the West-Hill Divine Pce, and the Lanke Temple usually paid attention to their demeanors.


    Since they were supermundane cultivators, how could they behave like the ruffians of the secr world? They would not stab at someone with a watermelon knife without reason, or just because of some petty argument.


    Even if they were to fight, they would have to dress the issue prettily. They would dress it with a pretty reason. It was rare in the cultivation world to have people like Ning Que and Ye Hongyu who cared about victory and not demeanor and would jump into battle rashly.


    And the prettily clothed reasons were none other than asking about some difficult questions about cultivation, analyzing each other¡¯s state. Other than that, the naked truth was that they were simply asking for a fight.


    Ning Que¡¯s expression altered slightly when he ascertained that the monk from Lanke Temple had issued an invitation to battle. He looked at the slightly tanned face and could not help but think of Sangsang and Darkie¡¯s skin color. He thought to himself, that he must be fated to face down people of this skin color in this lifetime.


    After a moment, he said sincerely, "Monks highly regardpassion, why would you care about worldly things such as fame?"


    Monk Guan Hai said even more sincerely, "I have practiced penance in the temple for many years and have heard the Elders mention about learning from the Headmaster of the Academy back then. I know that the Academy is one of the best ces in the world and have always wanted to go there, but could never get away from my schoolwork. Since I have made a rare visit to Chang¡¯an, I would like Mr. Thirteen to be understanding of this monk¡¯s bad thoughts and teach me something."


    Ning Que stared at the monk¡¯s eyes and discovered that other than respect, there was only admiration and a determination to battle.


    Since the other party was so polite and full of admiration, how could he bring himself to scold him? His will to battle was strong, and he was a monk who practiced penance sincerely, so who could he persuade him?


    Ning Que did not know how he should respond to the situation at hand. He would have run away if he were still that person of the past in the City of Wei. However, he was now forced to carry the burden of the Tang Empire and the Academy. It would take quite a bit of effort even if he did run away.


    He had never been afraid of battle, and did not fear fight. He was just worried that he could not win.


    Guan Hai was the core disciple of the Elder in Lanke Temple. Core disciples were usually very strong. For example, Mo Shanshan, the core disciple of the Master of Calligraphy, or himself, the core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy... Alright, he had to acknowledge that he was the weakest Wayfarer of the Academy, and wasn¡¯t confident of winning.


    He still had to fight even if he couldn¡¯t beat him. That could be called bravery, or stupidity. Ning Que held on to the big ck umbre and descended into silence in the snowfall of Chang¡¯an. He struggled between bravery and the right choice, but could not find an answer.


    Mo Shanshan stood by the big ck umbre silently. Perhaps she had guessed the struggle he was experiencing at that moment. She lowered her lids, and hershes fluttered slightly. It took her plenty of effort to stop her smile from escaping.


    Monk Guan Hai was an honest man. He had heard of the Elder¡¯s respect and admiration for the Headmaster of the Academy since he was a child. He had never thought that he would win in a battle against the student from the Second floor of the Academy. When he saw that Ning Que did not speak for a long while, he wondered if Mr. Thirteen was considering if he should not beat himself up too badly, and could not help but be touched.


    "Mr. Thirteen, if you deem that my state of practice is too weak, why don¡¯t we sit down and talk?" He said sincerely.


    Ning Que thought that the Lanke Temple was renowned for its debate. Furthermore, the man¡¯s tanned skin and his name, Guan Hai, implied that he ate plenty of bean oil daily, and was well-versed in the art of debate. If they were to sit down and talk, he would lose in seconds. Wouldn¡¯t that mean announcing the first official loss for his first battle upon entering the human realm?


    Losing was not an issue, but the problem was that Eldest brother would not allow him to lose. It would bring shame to the Academy and the Headmaster of the Academy. And the Headmaster of the Academy wasn¡¯t someone who could bear being shamed, and this would result in a series of very serious problems.


    Ning Que lifted his head with these thoughts and his gaze met the monk¡¯s clear and sincere ones. His heart wavered, as he felt that he wascking in an important thing that he needed when fighting against the man.


    The falling snowkesnded on the oily surface of the big ck umbre, forming a thinyer of snow.


    Ning Que looked at the monk and calmly said, "Could I trouble Senior Brother to wait for me for half a day?"


    The monk Guan Hai ced his palms together.


    Mo Shanshan looked at him and asked, "What are you going to do with half a day?"


    "I need half a day to consider a very important question."


    With that, Ning Que folded the big ck umbre and carried it on his back. He walked in the light snowfall towards the south of Chang¡¯an. After an hour, he reached the newly formedke at the south of the city. Then, he slowly sat down in the snow.

 Chapter 349: Comprehension Before the Fish

    Chapter 349: Comprehension Before the Fish


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    There was argeke beside the Yanming Mountain in the south of Chang¡¯an City freshlypleted in the fall of the 14th year of Tianqi. The mortar in theke¡¯s stone embankment still smelt fresh. Theke had already frozen solid in the depths of winter and the humidity in the air had be ayer of ice on the dust, making it look particrly refreshing.


    Ning Que had heard Eldest Brother talking about theke some time ago, which was why he came here after he had left by himself.


    He sat in the snow for a very long time, but did not see Eldest Brother. However, he did see the fisherman who had fished through a hole in the ice that he mentioned. He saw the ropes that buzzed and turned and the horses that panted hot steam as they ran furiously to turn the ropes and move the fishing beneath the surface of the ice. He thought about something or another silently.


    The core disciple of the Elder at Lanke Temple, Guan Hai was the first direct challenger he met since he entered the human realm on behalf of the Academy. If he hid from it today, it would cause dire consequences for his mental state in cultivation in the future. If he did not dare to ept challenges from others, how would he ever have the right to challenge Xia Hou like what Eldest Brother had said?


    The key to his hesitation was the fact that he had joined the devil. He was worried that he would lose control in the heat of the battle and reveal the fact that he had joined the devil.


    Even if he had managed to control himself, the Great Spirit that Youngest Uncle had passed onto him was his greatest strength. Items that aimed to kill, like the Primordial Thirteen Arrows, could not be used in a battle to prove his cultivation state. He could not use his two strongest weapons, so what could he use to beat a strong cultivator like Guan Hai?


    He could not use the Great Spirit or the Primordial Thirteen Arrows, so he was still that broken cultivation firewood that only had ten clear acupoints in the Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi. The flying sword that his Psyche Power controlled did not fly but crawl. Other than Sangsang, he had not even found his own natal item. In Chen Pipi¡¯s words, even if he had managed to enter the Knowing Destiny State, it was as good as nothing in his current state.


    Ning Que sat in the snow by theke and looked at the grass in the pile of snow before him. He suddenly thought of the Fu intent that had covered the world in the courtyard at Tuyang City. He thought about the military advisor, Gu Xi, who could issue numerous talismans in seconds.


    He extended his right hand from his sleeve and flicked his fingers. A pale yellow Fu papernded on the surface of the ice. There was a poof, and it turned into a weak me before darkening and was frozen by the ice surface.


    While Master Yan Se was certain that he was the sessor of the Divine Talisman Master with the most potential, but his potential did not equate to his true capabilities. Talisman Taoism was a difficult cultivation path, and how could he be proficient in a short amount of time?


    Ning Que looked at the fishermen and horses that busied themselves on theke¡¯s frozen surface silently.


    He had once practiced the flying sword by the Academy¡¯s mirrorke, and had once broken the realm into the Seethrough State by the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯ske. However, he had sat by this namelesske below the Yanming Mountain for a long time today and had not gained anything.


    Time ticked by slowly but surely. The snow had long stopped, and the clouds above Chang¡¯an had dissipated. The sun began to fall, and its radiant red glow shone on the white ice as if it was about to burn up the entireke.


    Ning Que¡¯s heart wavered when he saw the beautiful, soul-stirring sight.


    He remembered, that his teacher had once said, that one had to write the character, but forget the meaning when writing a talisman. And that one had to fix his will to move the Qi when using a talisman. He had already understood what it meant to remember the characters but forget the meaning when he was reading on the Second floor of the old library. So how should he understand what having the will, but not having the intention meant? If the will meant his Psyche Power, what does Qi mean?


    It naturally meant the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    The activation of a talisman was the use of one¡¯s Psyche Power to activate the intention of the Fu character on the paper. The aura in the Fu character would then affect the Qi of Heaven and Earth around it. If the Fu character was strong enough, the effects would be beyond one¡¯s imagination. For example, it might burn, or stop or the rivers would reverse its flow resulting in the tilting of the heaven and earth.


    Only legendary sages that are of higher states than Divine Talisman Masters could write talismans like that. Ning Que was still many states away from that. The Fu characters that he wrote were too weak, and could only affect a tiny amount of the Qi of Heaven and Earth. It could only be used to dry hair and warm up little handmaidens and female Talisman Masters. It was difficult for it to even light up the dried branches in the stove, much less using it against the enemy.


    However, even though the Fu paper was weak, what if it could affect a sufficient amount of the Qi of Heaven and Earth? It would be like a match that could be extinguished at any moment by the bitter winds in the hand of that girl standing at the corner of the streets. What if there were explosives attached to the match?


    Right. That line of thought was too cruel, but seemed logical. Ning Que looked at theke surface that looked as if it was burning up, and a trace of joy appeared on his face.


    To the traditional Talisman Master, his thoughts at the moment werepletely against the traditional path, and werepletely meaningless. That was because everyone knew that the Qi of Heaven and Earth was spread equally amongst the mountains, fields, and rivers. Even if a certain famous mountain or river had slightly more of it, it would not reach the state that Ning Que had thought of because Haotian was fair.


    However, Ning Que was not a traditional Talisman Master.


    He was a Talisman Master who had joined the Devil.


    In the days that he had left the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s mottled walls for Chang¡¯an, his body had been slowly absorbing the Qi of Heaven and Earth in nature. It had been hidden deep within his body and had be the Great Spirit that belonged to him.


    The Great Spirit was also a type of Qi, and it was more concise and refined than the Qi of Heaven and Earth in nature.


    The pale yellow Fu paper fluttered before him. It could be the wind, or Ning Que¡¯s trembling hands, or because it had sensed the fearful aura that its thin body was being imbued with.


    The Great Spirit entered the Fu paper. Ning Que flicked his fingertips, and the Fu papernded on the ice surface of theke. At the moment before the Fu paper left his fingertips, his Psyche Power in his sense of perception erupted at the same time,nding on the Fu paper.


    The seemingly simple action actually required one¡¯s body movement to precisely match one¡¯s Psyche Power¡¯s move. There was no space for error. An average person would definitely not be able to do this, but Ning Que had the experience with Talisman Arrows and was thus familiar with it.


    As the pale yellow Fu paper was triggered, a sense of dryness oozed from the paper. The dryness would have be a small me based on the concentration of the Qi of Heaven and Earth by theke. However, when itnded on theke¡¯s surface, it extinguished like the Fu paper before it had, and then, turned into a ball of blue fire within moments!


    It was the burning of the Great Spirit attached to the Fu paper that had yet to dissipate and return to the heaven and earth.


    Ning Que looked at the blue mes dancing in the air and did not know if it was considered a sess or a failure. It felt obviously different from the talisman that he used in the past. However, why did the size of the me not change significantly?


    The blue mended on theke¡¯s surface as he thought about it.


    There was a light poof, and the blue mes disappearedpletely, leaving behind a hole the size of a bucket on the ice. One did not know how deep the hole extended from the shore.


    There was a sudden gush, and a fat fish jumped from the hole, pping its tail on the icy surface.


    It turned out that the insignificant looking blue me had actually burned through theke¡¯s thick ice in an instant!


    The fishermen¡¯s loud horns were heard from the distance. The work of ice fishing was at its most critical moment. As the horses pulled harder, the winch turned faster and faster. The beneath the ice was also dragged up, eventually reaching the surface of the hole, with numerous fish struggling in it.


    The air was filled with the sounds of cheering and celebrations by numerous people by theke.


    Ning Que looked at the fat fish that was still flopping about on the ice surface before him. He smiled happily and brushed off the grass and snow from himself and left with the sounds of cheering behind him.


    ...


    ...


    Chang¡¯an in winter under the twilight was exceptionally beautiful and peaceful.


    It reflected Ning Que¡¯s mood at the moment. He walked into the teahouse and looked at the two people who were whispering at the side of the window. Then, he suddenly smiled and said, "Talismans can really change the world."


    Mo Shanshan looked at him quietly and felt that there was something different about him.


    Then, Ning Que turned to look at monk Guan Hai and said calmly, "Let us proceed, whether with analyzing or learning."


    Monk Guan Hai stood up and looked at him with slightly furrowed brows. He, like Mo Shanshan, felt that there was something different about Ning Que. But it had just been half a day, what could have happened?


    ...


    ...


    Looking up, he saw the winter tree with dead branches and the walls behind it. Ning Que turned away and brought Mo Shanshan and Guan Hai to the Southern Gate Taoist temple at the foot of the city.


    They met a Taoist with a yellow umbre before the temple. He said softly, "Senior Brother Mingchi, we would like to use this ce."


    He Mingchi looked at the tanned monk and smiled, "Master Guan Hai, you¡¯vee early."


    Guan Hai ced his palms together and bowed.


    He Mingchi looked at Ning Que and said warmly, "Master is not in the temple, but since this is happening, I shall be in charge."


    Ning Que said, "Thank you, Senior Brother Mingchi."


    He Mingchi shook his head. He said, "This is Mr. Thirteen¡¯s first battle since he entered the human realm, and it would be held at the Southern Gate Temple. This is something that would be written in history books in the future. Who would be so dumb to refuse you?"


    The doors to the temple closed slowly.


    He Mingchi looked at Mo Shanshan and asked, "What does Hill Master think of the odds?"


    Mo Shanshan looked at the tightly shut doors and said, "I thought that Ning Que would lose for sure. But after half a day, I¡¯m not so sure after all."


    He Mingchi looked at the doors and smiled. "If he would lose for sure, why would he pick the Southern Gate Temple as his battlefield?"


    It was bustling before the usually quiet Southern Gate Temple. While no one said anything, the sounds of breathing and the asional whispering were sufficient to make it noisy.


    Everyone had appeared before the Southern Gate Temple of Haotian, wanting to find out the result of the battle the moment it ended.


    Just as how He Mingchi had put it. If Ning Que was not confident about his victory, he would not have chosen this ce to be his battlefield. No matter who won, the results would be spread throughout the world in the shortest possible time.

 Chapter 350: Hidden in the Fog

    Chapter 350: Hidden in the Fog


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que had deliberately chosen the main hall of the Southern Gate Temple as his battlefield.


    A fight between cultivators was too rming and could not be done on the streets. He did not want too many people to see his way of fighting, so he had to choose a confined space. That space had to berge enough, because this was the only way for cultivators of different cultivation sects to feel that the fight was fair.


    The main hall of the Southern Gate Temple was veryrge. The ck beam on top of it seemed to be a line reaching across the sky. The space wasrge enough to fit an entire millennium-old tall tree and could hold more than a dozen rockeries. However, there were no tall trees. There weren¡¯t even tables or chairs or gardens in the hall, but only the beam hanging high up and the pirs on the side, making the room look particrly empty.


    The ck wood nks on the ground seemed to stretch out endlessly.


    Ning Que and Guan Hai sat cross-legged on straw mats on both ends of the ck floor, facing each other.


    The two nodded at each other in greeting.


    Ning Que said, "I have no des or arrows, only talismans. I shall fight you with talismans today."


    Monk Guan Hai said, "I have the Emblematic Gesture of Buddha. And Buddha will protect me."


    The hall was too empty, and their voices echoed over the ck floors.


    Monk Guan Hai said, "Mr. Thirteen is aware that my respect for the Academy is real, and so is my admiration for you. However, I do want to win this battle today because I see my teacher as Buddha, but he regards the Headmaster of the Academy as Buddha. I get angry every time I think about this. And in order to get rid of this anger, I have to defeat you today."


    Ning Que looked at the monk in the distance and said, "If you want to defeat me, please, go first."


    Monk Guan Hai said, "It is not right for disciples of the Buddhist sect to get angry, much less attack first."


    After a moment of silence, Ning Que said, "If I were to attack first, you would have no chance to attack anymore."


    Monk Guan Hai raised his right palm before him and smiled without saying anything.


    Ning Que did not know that the monk¡¯s gesture was a solemn defense made by the Wisdom King of the Buddhist Sect, but he could clearly feel that there was an extremely pure aura of Buddhism in the empty Taoist Temple. The serenity gave rise to a sense of peace.


    However, since it was a battle, how could it be peaceful?


    Ning Que ced his left hand on his knee and slowly raised his right hand. His fingertips flicked, and a pale yellow Fu paper floated out slowly. The doors and windows had long been closed and there was no breeze in the hall. However, the Fu paper hung in the air for some reason, as if it was a loose leaf floating in the autumn wind. It fluttered and flew through the entire hall, and fell towards monk Guan Hai.


    When the piece of Fu paper floated about two feet away from the monk Guan Hai, he suddenly bent his right forefinger. With this, he perfected the gesture of the Wisdom King, and the aura around his body thickened several times over.


    The pale yellow piece of Fu paper appeared weak before this magnificent Buddhist aura, just like a fallen leaf in the autumn wind. However, just as the two met, the Fu paper suddenly burned fiercely. It became a huge ball of fire in an extremely short period of time and enveloped monk Guan Hai.


    Monk Guan Hai¡¯s expression did not change in the face of the scorching fire. He even slowly closed his eyes, and bent his right middle finger while holding it before his chest, giving his gesture a touch of softness. The Qi of Heaven and Earth in the hall was affected by the serenity and fell gently, forming a thin barrier around his body.


    The mes enveloped monk Guan Hai¡¯s body and burned through the thin Qi of Heaven and Earth¡¯s barrier. It made a strange hum, like the sound of burning firewood, or a kettle being boiled dry. However, one could clearly see that monk Guan Hai¡¯s expression was calm; the invisible barrier remained stable and was not affected at all.


    The talisman fires could notst long.


    When the talisman lost its power, the me that enveloped monk Guan Hai gradually extinguished. The invisible barrier reflected thest mes in a multitude of colors, like shards of broken ss. Within the barrier, monk Guan Hai¡¯s eyes opened and he fixed his calm and unwavering gaze on Ning Que, who was sitting on the opposite grass mat in the hall.


    It seemed that it was the turn for this powerhouse of the Buddhist Sect to attack. But Ning Que had said, that if he attacked first, then the monk Guan Hai would have no chance to attack back, and this was as exactly as he promised.


    As the mes burned the invisible barrier made from the Qi of Heaven and Earth around monk Guan Hai, the second piece of Fu paper had quietly floated out of Ning Que¡¯s sleeves. It floated close to the dark glistening floors towards monk Guan Hai. When thest of the Fu fire finally dissipated and the monk Guan Hai opened his eyes with the intention to return the attack, the Fu paper unleashed its majestic Fu power.


    A majestic thunderstorm descended from the skies above.


    However, they were within the temple beneath its roof. Where did the skiese from?


    The thunderstorm came from the air 30 feet above the ground within the temple hall, and then fell down noisily.


    It looked rather strange.


    Monk Guan Hai¡¯s defense gesture could condense the Qi of Heaven and Earth deep into the Wisdom God¡¯s armor and iste all intangible forces like Psyche Power or Fu fire. However, the rain in the temple that started in mid-air was tangible and could not be stopped by the invisible barrier. The monk was thoroughly soaked from head to toe.


    The chilly rainwater ran down the monk Guan Hai¡¯s thin monk robes and his slightly tanned face. He looked at Ning Que who sat on the grass mat in the distance, a strong sense of puzzlement grew in him. Why was his second talisman a water talisman?


    He had ascertained Ning Que¡¯s aplishments in Talisman Taoism from the fierce mes. Had he not already cultivated into a heavenly status, he would have been at a huge disadvantage. However, water was one of the gentlest and weakest things on earth. If one were to use only water talismans against his enemies, he had to be a Divine Talisman Master to gather all the water on earth and make it as strong as steel. However, Ning Que was obviously still a distance away from being a Divine Talisman Master.


    The rain flowed down monk Guan Hai¡¯s face, washing his puzzlement and doubts.


    The rain might seem majestic, but it did not cause him any harm. He decided not to think about it. The middle finger of his right hand held before his body popped up, flicking at a single raindrop.


    In fact, monk Guan Hai¡¯s finger did not really touch the raindrop, it was his sense that had touched it. Then, the raindrop understood his will, and with a poof, broke through the air in the hall and flew towards Ning Que like an arrow!


    Ning Que did not appear to have seen the raindrop. He did not make any move to avoid, but only lowered his head.


    Monk Guan Hai could vaguely see the raindrop seeping into Ning Que¡¯s hair through the curtain of rain. He could not help but slightly freeze as he wondered how the Lanke Temple would exin to the Academy if he really injured Ning Que.


    Unexpectedly, the raindrop did not seem to have any effects on Ning Que. He just quietly lowered his head.


    The third Fu paper he issued had already floated before monk Guan Hai. It released all its talisman power just as the rain stopped in the middle of the Taoist temple. The pure aura in the Fu paper seeped into every drop of water.


    The storm had ceased, and the rainwater flowed off monk Guan Hai, and on the dark glistening floors. With the seepage of the talisman power, the rainwater froze at a speed that could be seen by the naked eye. The water on the ground froze into miniature ciers, and thatnded on monk Guan Hai turned into a miniature icefall!


    The strong coldness shrouded the empty temple hall.


    The rainwater in monk Guan Hai¡¯s robes and face turned into ice. His eyshes became ice ridges beneath the eaves in winter. His body was covered by a thin transparentyer of ice, and he looked like an ice sculpture of Buddha.


    The water between the ice-sculpted Buddha statue and the ck floors had also been frozen. Those who once lived through winter would know, that such a freeze was stronger than the adhesion of asphalt. Monk Guan Hai had beenpletely frozen within the ice and could not use his powers. He would not be able to get out of this situation within a short time, and could only wait to be easily defeated by Ning Que.


    However, while Monk Guan Hai was not well-renowned, he was, after all, a core disciple of the secluded elder of Lanke Temple. His cultivation in Buddhist arts was above that of the seven disciples in the Buddhist Sect. Would he be so easily defeated by talisman ice?


    Monk Guan Hai remained frozen by the ice. While he was unable to move his body, his heart could. His lips could not move, but his mind could. There was a thick andpassionate aura emitting from his abdomen. It was hard to understand, but it was very solemn.


    It was the Buddhist Chant!


    As the Buddhist Chant rang in the empty hall, monk Guan Hai¡¯s eyelids quivered slightly. The ice on it fell, and the ice armor around his thin monk robes cracked. His hands were finally freed when the ice on his sleeves melted.


    A monk would execute Buddhist etiquette with both hands, which was why hands were the most important part of the Buddhist Sect¡¯s arts.


    Monk Guan Hai¡¯s hands had finally regained freedom. He pressed his palms together without hesitation, and the two Wisdom King gestures in each hand met. A mighty strong power burst out from him, and it broke the talisman ice around him into shards.


    Tens of thousands of ice shards hung around him, suspended in mid-air.


    Thest rays of daylight shone through the window cracks and were reflected and refracted by the myriad shards of ice. They turned into rays of golden light, bathing monk Guan Hai in the glow, and his Wisdom King gesture waspleted!


    It was at this moment when Ning Que lifted his head and looked at monk Guan Hai who was bathed in the Buddhist light. The left hand that had been resting on his knee all along suddenly tightened, crushing the Fu paper that he had been secretly holding for a long time.


    Ning Que had used the pouch that Master Yan Se had left him by the Daming Lake. He felt his heart stir as he sensed the power in the Fu. He had made his first intent Fu on his journey back to Chang¡¯an.


    It was the Scatter Fu that he was activating right now!


    This Scatter Fu did not float towards monk Guan Hai because it was an intent Fu. Ning Que could not use the method he had mastered today, by theke at Yanming Mountain. The Fu power floated, seeming a little weak.


    While enveloped in the golden glow, monk Guan Hai furrowed his brows as he sensed the frailty of the oing Fu power.


    Ning Que¡¯s activation of the Scatter Fu was not aimed at the monk, but at the surrounding shards of ice.


    The Fu power in the Scatter Fu was activated, and the shards of broken ice became even smaller.


    Dust was slightly smaller than the ice shards.


    Ice was water.


    Water that turned into dust would be clouds or fog.


    Fog filled the temple, as if the world had suddenly floated high in the clouds. The fumes obscured everything in sight, even disturbing the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    It was at this moment when the fog started to ripple.


    The fog dissipated slightly, revealing Ning Que.


    He stood in front of monk Guan Hai.


    He was just a short distance away.

 Chapter 351: Flower Falls

    Chapter 351: Flower Falls


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The fog had yet to dissipate and Ning Que had already crossed through it, reaching monk Guan Hai, leaving a pale shadow in his eyes. Nervousness finally appeared in the calm eyes of the young powerhouse from the Buddhism sect.


    Monk Guan Hai did two things when he saw Ning Que who had broken through the fog. He separated his two hands, and his right thumb pressed against his palm, changing from a Wisdom King gesture to a heart gesture. His raised left hand turned to a horizontal position, and pushed the strongest Wisdom King gesture in his palm towards Ning Que. His abdomen contracted suddenly as he breathed in to begin his Buddhist Chant.


    With the help of the two Buddhist sect emblematic gestures, the fog around his body began to move chaotically. Twilight shone through the milky white fog like flowers blooming in the air. When the first syble of the Buddhist Chant began in his abdomen, the flowers of the faint Breath of Nature began to form and fall downwards.


    Some of the flowers broke into several petals and fell like the rain while some flowers fellplete with their stems. They enveloped his body in a dense cloud. These petals and stems held the Qi of Heaven and Earth moved by the two emblematic gestures. Together with the Buddhist chant, they would frantically bloom upon making contact with an enemy¡¯s body, inflicting harm viciously.


    With a Buddhist heart gesture in his right hand, the Wisdom King gesture in his left and a Buddhist Chant that could shock his enemy, Guan Hai used the most powerful Buddhist Sect arts that he knew. This core disciple of the elder at Lanke Temple had a determined and pure Buddhist Heart. He could remain calm in the current situation and make the appropriate response.


    Compared to ordinary folk, regardless of whether they came from the Taoism or Buddhism sects, the greatest advantage cultivators had was speed. Before the average person could see the light, their throats would have been pierced by a flying sword. And before the average person had time to dodge, he would have been bathed in blood, battered by that rain of flowers. Monk Guan Hai knew that Ning Que was not an ordinary person, but in the face of his opponent¡¯s sudden attack through the fog, he was certain that his choice was the right one.


    It was a pity that he had forgotten something. Distance was necessary to reflect how fast, or perhaps one should say, to profit from the speed a cultivator had. And at this moment, the distance between him and Ning Que was less than a foot. He was right before him.


    When the beautiful flowers of the Breath of Nature fell, and when monk Guan Hai¡¯s hands were still making their emblematic gestures, Ning Que did something very simple. He smashed his fist on the monk¡¯s face.


    Two streams of blood spurt out.


    In a sh of pain and the sound of coughing, monk Guan Hai¡¯s heart gesture in his right hand and Wisdom King gesture in his left were scattered. The flowers from the Breath of Nature had also disappeared, and even the fog had dissipated.


    The fog dispersed, and the hall returned to its original quietness and emptiness.


    Ning Que retracted his fist slowly.


    Monk Guan Hai wiped the blood off his face. After a moment of silence, he said, "I have lost."


    What was left of the ice had melted and was flowing in the seams of the dark wooden floors, making a clear tinkling sound.


    Monk Guan Hai raised his head andmented, "Mr. Thirteen is indeed the sessor of a Divine Talisman Master. Your use of talismans was beyond imagination, and each of the four Fu characters that you have used was very creative and logical, like an essay with an introduction, development, transformation and a conclusion. It was beautiful. Finally, you abandoned the use of talismans and used your fist, proving that you have understood the true meaning of battle. It seems that I have overestimated myself in wanting to challenge you. No wonder you were so hesitant in the beginning; you mustn¡¯t have wanted to embarrass me too much."


    Ning Que did indeed show mercy at the end. He had an abundance of the Great Spirit in his body, and his body was strong. His fist had once crushed Gu Xi¡¯s skull like a watermelon, so how could it be that only monk Guan Hai¡¯s nose had bled?


    But in actual fact, he had only won by the skin of his teeth.


    Ning Que had used four talismans consecutively and had expended too much of his Psyche Power. However, he had plenty of Psyche Power in his sense of perception, so that was not an issue. The key was that the Great Spirit that he had imbued in the first three talismans had used up all the Great Spirit in his body. He had then tried to ambush the monk through the fog, forcefully after using a Scatter Fu, so his body was extremely weak after that.


    If monk Guan Hai had not chosen to use the most powerful Buddhist Sect art in response, but had instead continued to use the Wisdom King protection gesture, and strengthened his defense, he would only need a second more to seed in felling Ning Que.


    Ning Que looked at monk Guan Hai, who stood before him and admitted his loss sincerely. He thanked his lucky stars silently. This monk from the Lanke Temple was in a high state of cultivation, but chose a secluded life in the temple on the mountain to cultivate and study Buddhist scriptures. He did not seem to understand why one battled.


    He suddenly thought of something that Ye Hongyu had said when they left the hanging basket at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. "Most cultivators in the world do not understand what battle is. It is easy to defeat them."


    "It is a pity that my cultivation is not sufficient enough to recognize the legendary Academy¡¯s no-boundary spirit."


    Monk Guan Hai was still earnestly reviewing and analyzing the battle.


    His attitude was very sincere, and Ning Que¡¯s face burned slightly. He thought to himself, that he had refused to battle the monk on the streets not because he was worried that he would embarrass the monk, but because he was worried that he would embarrass himself.


    Ning Que extended a hand and helped him up.


    Monk Guan Hai thanked him, and then, said dazedly. "There is something that I do not understand. How did you dodge the raindrops that I flicked at you? Those drops of rain were imbued with my battle intent."


    Ning Que smiled and did not say anything, but collected himself secretly.


    Monk Guan Hai looked at his expression and could not help but say abashedly, "I am being presumptuous. I am being presumptuous."


    He thought to himself, that Ning Que had silently deflected his move, and must have used a special skill of the Academy. That skill must be of the same scale as the no-boundary spirit, and his question would be like trying to peek at the Academy¡¯s secrets.


    Ning Que smiled and shook his head, and then, helped him to walk out of the hall.


    Only he knew what he had done to deal with the raindrops.


    He did not do anything.


    He had just lowered his head and allowed the raindrops to fall on his forehead and then seep into his hair.


    The raindrops were indeed imbued with a fierce power.


    But Ning Que¡¯s skin had always been thick. His skin had gotten even thicker especially since he joined the Devil.


    ...


    ...


    The Taoists outside the Southern Gate Temple had been paying attention to the happenings within the hall silently.


    This was the first battle of the newest generation of the Academy since they entered the human realm.


    Some of the silver-haired Taoists could not help but think of the Academy¡¯s Crazy Ke. Their emotions were all over the ce as they thought of the bloodshed that the man had been part of since he rode his ck donkey into Chang¡¯an.


    The doors of the Taoist temple were shut, and no one dared to peek through the windows.


    Those standing by for the battle results could only see the fire and the dryness that flowed out of the window. That was followed by the pattering of rain, with water flowing out from below the door, to continue with a chill that was colder than the winter outside the hall. Then, there was a Buddhist light and a solemn Buddhist Chant before all was silent once more.


    It was silent in the hall and no one knew of the results of the battle. Did Mr. Thirteen of the Academy win, or did the core disciple of the elder at Lanke Temple win?


    Mo Shanshan stood beneath an old tree outside the hall, while looking at the building. Her eyes had suddenly brightened when Ning Que had used four consecutive talismans. And her expression was worried when the Buddhist Chant rang out within the hall, and a vague Buddhist light could be seen. And when silence returned, she could guess how the battle had ended, and she calmed down.


    Because she knew that someone like Ning Que might lose or die, but he would not go down without a sound.


    The doors to the hall opened, and Ning Que helped monk Guan Hai walk out slowly.


    The Taoists who were viewing the battle could not help but be shocked when they saw this, especially when they saw the traces of blood on Guan Hai¡¯s face. They thought to themselves, that Ning Que was indeed a disciple of the Academy who had entered the human realm. He had won with such ease.


    Of course, Ning Que was considered to be part of the Southern Gate of Haotian due to his rtionship with Master Yan Se. So the Taoists of the Southern Gate Temple could not help but express joy at his victory.


    After a short conversation with He Mingchi, Ning Que spoke briefly with monk Guan Hai. He said with an abundance of affection, that he would personally head forth to Lanke Temple to participate in the Yuean hungry ghost festival next year, and that they should speak more then. Then, they exchanged niceties and left.


    Snow fell once more as he walked out of the Southern Gate Temple.


    Ning Que¡¯s face looked extremely pale as he walked down the path leading to the city. The hand holding the big ck umbre was trembling slightly. Mo Shanshan, who was beside him, looked at him and sighed deeply. Then, she wrapped her arm around his. It looked like a lover¡¯s hold, but she was actually propping him up.


    Mo Shanshan said, "Even though Guan Hai is young, he has been trained by the elder of Lanke Temple, whose state is high beyond measure. His grasp on the Buddhism art is exceptional and is one of the many powerhouses in the Buddhist Sect. You have surprised me, by winning based on your own cultivation skills and not because of your talisman arrows or the pouch that Master Yan Se left you."


    Ning Que felt pleased with himself when he heard that Guan Hai was a powerhouse of the Buddhist Sect and that he had beat him. Then, he was a little annoyed when he heard that he had surprised Mo Shanshan. He said, "Do I seem weak to you?"


    Mo Shanshan smiled as she looked at the falling snowkes. "That¡¯s because you¡¯re really weak."


    Ning Que was speechless.


    Mo Shanshan stopped, then looked at his profile and said in a serious tone, "But you were very strong today."


    Ning Que replied seriously, "Thank you."


    Mo Shanshan thought of something, and she asked, "I think that there was something odd with the talismans that you used in the hall. You shouldn¡¯t be able to write such powerful talismans in your current cultivation state and yourck of understanding in Talisman Taoism. The talismans that I wrote were like that before I encountered the Great Blockage Formation at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    At her current status, she was naturally qualified to measure other Talisman Masters against her own cultivation skills.


    Ning Que only remembered then, that the girl¡¯s understanding of Talisman Taoism was way beyond his, and could not help but feel uneasy. He thought, that if she could see the weird method that he had used on the Fu paper, or even discover his Dark Methods...


    "That was not a talisman."


    Mo Shanshan caught a snowke in her hands. She looked at the sparkling snowke melting slowly in her palms and said, "I understand now. You were using your will like a talisman. Is this the legendary no-boundary spirit of the Academy?"


    Ning Que might be a student of the Second floor of the Academy, but he did not know what the no-boundary spirit was. But since Mo Shanshan did not think that he had used the Great Spirit instead of the Qi of Heaven and Earth, he would not try to exin it either.


    However, when he heard "the no-boundary spirit", he could not help but think back to the day when he had ascended the mountain. He had seen the words, "There is no boundary to the gentleman" on the stone outside the Wooden door. Could it be that the words held greater meaning?

 Chapter 352: Red Walls and White Snow, What A Lovely Scene

    Chapter 352: Red Walls and White Snow, What A Lovely Scene


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Nightpletely enveloped Chang¡¯an. In the darkness, white snow was dancing slowly in the dim light suffused by themps in the turrets of the imperial city. It was a very beautiful scene under the backdrop of the red wall of the pce.


    Being the most remote part of the moat, this area was enveloped in a quiet atmosphere. Even when the snow fell into the river, it would just disappear peacefully without making any sound. The two were walking at this moment and the sound of them treading on the fluffy snow was very clear against the silent environment.


    Mo Shanshan brushed a lock of her flying hair away. Looking at the flying snow and the red wall, she said quietly, "Snow is very rare in the Great River Kingdom, as it is located in the south."


    Imagining the far awaynd, which was supposed to be as warm as spring all year round, Ning Que said with expectancy, "I would like to visit it one day."


    "The Great River Kingdom has a small territory and poption, it is a weak country. What makes it worse is that its northern neighbor, the South Jin Kingdom, is strong, and the rtionship between the two countries is hostile. But despite all these disadvantages, it remains a peaceful ce and its people have been living a happy life for hundreds of years. Do you know the reason?"


    Ning Que shook his head.


    Looking at the imperial pce of Tang, Mo Shanshan said peacefully, "It is because of Tang and this imperial pce. Although the two countries are very far away from each other, and they are not even adjacent, Tang and the Great River Kingdom have always been friends. It is Tang that has been protecting my country."


    Although Ning Que didn¡¯t understand why she brought up this topic, he knew perfectly well that what she said was the truth.


    "It was clear to both the South Jin Kingdom and the Great River Kingdom that if the South Jin Kingdom did invade the Great River Kingdom, the soldiers and the King of Tang would not stand by. Every other country thinks Tang is too ambitious and warlike, only people of my country don¡¯t think so, because for us only when Tang exists, can the dangerous world be safe for us."


    Mo Shanshan said with a smile, "The world of cultivators is never separate from the secr world, because only when we are strong can we ensure that Tang and the Great River Kingdom are safe and peaceful. What you should do is to improve your own ability, so that Tang can be much stronger."


    Ning Que didn¡¯t get her until this moment. He knew that this afternoon when they were on the street outside of the Ministry of Rites, she felt his hesitation and therefore was trying tofort him by telling him the story of snow and the current affairs of the world.


    He said while shaking his head, "Thanks for yourforting, but actually, I am notpletely lost. I understand that it is not enough to keep the world peaceful only by avoiding wars. But I don¡¯t understand why such a sublime being like the Monk Guan Hai is still haunted by the feeling of wanting to win. Why does he have to fight with me?"


    "When seeing a very tall wall, people always want to go to the other side to see what is there. And when seeing a mountain, they want to conquer it and climb to the top to see the views."


    She pointed to the wall of the pce shrouded in darkness across the river, and said, "Cultivators are normal people. They are also very curious. But the difference is that they are also very proud and their pride can even intensify that curious feeling."


    Her words reminded Ning Que of the feelings he had when he was listening to Chen Pipi talking about the truly powerful people, the night when he sessfully climbed to the top of the back of the mountain and the excitement when he saw the mountains behind the sea of clouds.


    "For cultivators, the long trek of cultivation leads to the Unknown ce. But their respect for this destination fills them with the eagerness to catch up with others or even to surpass them. The problems are that they don¡¯t know where to find Zhishou Abbey or Xuankong Temple, but they do see the Academy and it naturally bes the mountain they must climb."


    In the dancing snow, Ning Que and Mo Shanshan were walking under the big ck umbre. When the conversations about topics of the Academy, the secr world and the challengers ended, they sank into silence for a long time looking at the thin iceyer and the melting snow on the river. Only calligraphy and Talisman Taoism sparked some asional talks between them.


    The life-threatening adventure on the Wilderness gave rise to a tacit understanding between them, and this feeling became even stronger as they had been traveling together in Chang¡¯an recently. When their shoulders touched slightly, when he smelled the scent of her hair, that feeling went deeper and deeper. When they realized that they knew exactly what the other¡¯s every gesture and expression meant based on theirmon love of calligraphy and Fu characters, a happy and peaceful feeling started growing in their heart.


    The snow finally ceased when they walked to a bridge on the moat.


    Ning Que stopped to close the big ck umbre.


    Mo Shanshan kept walking a few steps and then turned around to look at him. As she moved, her rich ck hair fell from her shoulders. Her dress was as white as the falling snow, stunning against the red wall.


    Ning Que looked at her beautiful face carefully. Her red lips were pressed tightly and her eyes were peaceful and concentrated, which made him a little nervous.


    Mo Shanshan was also looking at him, she said, "I said I liked you at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    Ning Que was taken back, then he said with difficulty, "I remember."


    Mo Shanshan rose her head, her round face full of pride and certainty, "I want you to like me."


    Ning Que looked at the red wall behind her. After realizing that there was nothing to look, he turned his eyes to the moat flowing under the bridge. To his disappointment, the river was not worth looking at either, as it was as dark as ink, so he had to move his eyes back to her face again. Finally he said seriously, "That seems fair."


    Mo Shanshan lowered her head to look at the tips of her shoes and said softly, "And do you like me?"


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que looked back to the wall again. This time, he found the wall a very beautiful backdrop, as it was higher than his eyesight and therefore took up arge proportion of the area he could see.


    Life was full of questions and addictions. Mo Shanshan was the Calligraphy Addict and Ning Que found that she was also a question, the hardest question he had met in his life. Therefore, before he made sure of the answer, he needed to think carefully and to roll over the past memories many times.


    It was at the blue seaside where he met her. That morning, he first saw her blue belt and then saw her sitting on the tree. Then they started the journey together, he remembered the coldness and freedom in her sparkling eyes and her cute little face. He also remembered how she demonstrated the Half Divine Talisman and how she fell from the sky. Then, they took a carriage on the way back, discussing about calligraphy and Talisman Taoism. After that, they went to the pce and then the Wilderness. On the way there, they trekked in snow and hunted fish together. Once walking through the valley carpeted with stone, she was on his back and guided him. He remembered she told him how much she liked his ck horse and his calligraphy. And she said she liked him at the mountain of bones when she was dying.


    The feelings and the thoughts he had before reemerged as these pictures passed through his mind quickly. He was still unsure of many things, but he was very certain of one thing. He felt so embarrassed that she started the talk first and didn¡¯t want to procrastinate one more second to tell her the answer.


    He looked at her and the her fluttering eyshes and said certainly, "I do like you."


    Mo Shanshan felt her body stiffen. She avoided his eyesight and walked to the bridge. A shy smile shed across her face when she looked down at the dark river.


    ...


    ...


    The fight between Ning Que and the Monk Guan Hai in the hall of the South Taoist temple didn¡¯t attract any attention of the secr world. In normal people¡¯s eyes, cultivators were like gods, who just flew in the sky and didn¡¯t care about anything. Ning Que thought this way too when he was not a cultivator. And when there was a fight between the so-called gods, unless it hurt their own interest, normal people could not care less and actually, they didn¡¯t even have ess to the information.


    But for different parties in the cultivation world, this fight¡¯s impact was huge. The failure of Guan Hai, thest student of the Elder of the Lanke Temple proved again that the Academy was the highest mountain in the world and it was indefectible. It also listed Ning Que as one of the most powerful cultivators.


    "Monk Guan Hai is not famous because he has been living on the mountain behind Lanke Temple in the past years. But he is powerful, and even I cannot defeat him easily. It is surprising that Ning Que should win the fight with him. It seems that he has been making huge progress recently, and I guess that now no one in the Peach Mountain still thinks he defeated Long Qing twice only by chance."


    In a dark room of the West-Hill Divine Pce, Ye Hongyu finished reading the document she just received and a smile shed across her beautiful face. She didn¡¯t wear her red dress today, but a very humble taoist robe.


    One of her subordinates frowned when he heard what she said and argued in a deep voice, "Surely no one could deny Mr. Thirteen¡¯s fast improvement. But he definitely defeated the Prince only by luck. After all, if the Prince wasn¡¯t facing the important moment of breaking the realm, how could he lose to that backstabber?"


    Ye Hongyu stared at him and said, "Backstabbing is also a part of the fighting as you can¡¯t expect your enemy to be fair and square. A fight is always fair, so is Haotian. Despite that Ning Que is infamous, he became a student at the Second floor of the Academy and was chosen to be the sessor of uncle Yan Se. So you must remember, there is always something for you to learn from him."


    That subordinate didn¡¯t dare to argue further, he lowered his head and murmured yes. But as soon as he went outside the room to a tree at the edge of the cliff, he sneered, looked at the direction of the stone hut and whispered to his mates.


    "During the journey to the Wilderness, the Divine Hall was weakened heavily; Prince Long Qing might be dead now, and this Grand Master Ye fought with someone so powerful that she dropped in the realm. I don¡¯t think it possible for her to enter the Knowing Destiny State again, but she was still bluffing and pretending to be confident in front of us. Does she not know she is funny and pathetic?"


    It was true that during the journey, Yu Hongyu was hurt badly and she had to drop in the realm, so that she may escape from death when Lotus attacked her with the Practice of Taotie. It was an irreversible injury.


    But she was still the Tao Addict. Being in the upper part of the Seethrough state, the whispers could not escape her ears. But she didn¡¯t be angry, she smoothed out her robe and closed her eyes.

 Chapter 353: Calligraphy, the Calligraphy Addict and the Academy

    Chapter 353: Calligraphy, the Calligraphy Addict and the Academy


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    As a holy ce for millions of believers of Haotian, the West-Hill Divine Pce was as much a spiritual ce as a rational ce. And of all its branches, the Judicial Department was the most rational ce. During the journey in the Wilderness, Ye Hongyu went through lots of challenges, because of which her cultivation power was devastated. And it seemed that anyone rational would know that her future was overshadowed. That was why her subordinates who used to respect her very much dared to speak ill of her now, and that was also why she had to take it silently.


    Few people knew that on a remote mountain in the south, there was a humble Taoist temple. The stele above the temple gate had its name on it, Zhishou Abbey. However, unlike the West-Hill Divine Pce, this ce never cared about the secr world.


    In Zhishou Abbey, seven huts were built next to ake, where the seven Tomes of Arcane were kept. But the "Ming" Handscroll which was kept in the fourth hut before it was lost, and for that reason, the fourth hut became extremely shabby, with straws on the roof withered sadly. On the contrary, the other six huts were glorious. It seemed that the straws on their roof were made of gold, shining and stunning under the sun.


    On the wooden stool in the first huty a ssic with a ck cover, it was so heavy and thick that it looked almost the same as a natural ck Blood Stone. That was the "Ri" book.


    The sharp contrast of the ck cover and the white pages looked very startling.


    The "Ri" book was open, or more likely, it was never closed for thousands of years. The first page waspletely empty, with nothing on it. But on the second one there were some words scattered around; the clearest words were the name of the Sage of Sword, Liu Bai, and somewhere not far away from it at the same line, was another name, Jun Mo, and then you could see names like Ye Tang or something else around, in a disordered way.


    Wind blew in, turning the pages as if it was an invisible hand. It turned the book to a new page.


    The page on show now was empty too as if it was covered by pure snow. But Ning Que¡¯s name appeared here earlier when he climbed to the top of the Academy and understood Talisman Taoism on a rainy night, but for some reason, it disappearedter.


    Wind was blowing around the pirs in the hut, soon it started turning the pages again. But this time it turned the pages from the back to the front.


    The book was turning quickly, so fast that it was hard to see the characters, but asionally, some names were clear, such as Lyu Qingchen. But most of the time, only a few words like Liu or He could be seen vaguely.


    The wind was still turning the pages, and finally, the book was turned to the very front pages, on which lots of names were written. Because of the names, this page looked as if it was a part of a nt with intricate and beautiful patterns all over.


    Prince Long Qing¡¯s name was written in a corner of the page, however, the name was so light that it seemed that his name could sink into the page and disappear at any moment. At another corner, Tang Xiaotang¡¯s name was written in a scratchy way. Mo Shanshan¡¯s name took up the center part of the page, written quietly and softly.


    There were still many other names, such as Wang Jinglue or the Monk Guan Hai, making the page a little messy. But at the top edge of the book, there was an empty area, with only one name in the area, it was Ye Hongyu.


    The three characters looked so proud and lonely. They were in a very rich and dark color, so much that as if it could fly out of the paper and go with the wind, especially the stroke at the top of the character, which extended out of the paper and stuck into the page in front of it, like a sharp sword.


    While at the corner at the bottom right, Ning Que¡¯s name could be seen if you look carefully as it was very insignificant.


    ...


    ...


    This morning, Mo Shanshan and Ning Que were at the southern part of Chang¡¯an. On the meadow out of the Academy, Mo Shanshan said softly to Ning Que, "I will write to you after Ie back to my country. But I still can¡¯t write your name nicely after trying many times."


    Looking at her eyshes sparkling in the morning light, Ning Que said, "You are not leaving right now, why do you say it like you are leaving me forever? We will definitely write to each other, but I also think maybe I can wait after Headmaster of Academyes back and then go to visit you with Sangsang."


    Mo Shanshan looked down at her shoes, thinking that maybe Ning Que never gave attention to his way of talking. But she could not change him, could she?


    They walked on the meadow. Ning Que guided Mo Shanshan around the Academy. After that, they walked past the wend, the old library, and the thick fog and arrived at the cliff.


    Just like Ning Que when he came to the back of the mountain of the Academy for the first time, Mo Shanshan was also deeply impressed by the beautiful scenery at the cliff, the peacefulke and the waterfall hung in the distance. She stared at this scene, and said, "This is the real Academy."


    Ning Que replied, "If you call the Second floor of the Academy the real Academy, then yes."


    Mo Shanshan said softly, "For cultivators, the holy ce, namely the Unknown ce is nowhere to be found, as it is out of the secr world. Although another holy ce, the Academy is in the secr world, how many people could actuallye here and see it?" "After meeting you, I first went to the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, then to the back of the mountain. How lucky am I!"


    Standing next to her, Ning Que was also enjoying the beautiful scenery. At this time, her words made him proud and delighted. He said, "You are with me now, and there are still many lucky things waiting for you."


    He was just saying it without giving it much thought, but it was really nice to hear. If they stayed together forever, then they would experience more things together. Mo Shanshan was not used to such sweet words yet, she lowered her head and felt a little shy.


    Ning Que was always shameless, he didn¡¯t feel shy at all. He led her to theke and said, "I will introduce you to my Seventh Sister, as apart from her, other Brothers all enjoy ying hide-and-seek, it is difficult to find them."


    Mo Shanshan was a little nervous as she was going to meet people closest to him at the Academy. While she was walking after him on the mountain path, she asked mildly, "Is it fine that you let people outside of the Academye here?"


    As a man, the best answer at this moment was just to say, but you were not someone outside, you were with me.


    Ning Que wouldn¡¯t be too shy to say words of this kind, but he had never been in a rtionship, so he was not aware of this answer at all. Seeing that she was worried, he said honestly, "Since you and Eldest Brother are sworn brother and sister, it is totally fine. And he had told me to show you around, if not so I wouldn¡¯t have taken you in today."


    Then they chatted with Seventh Sister when passing theke and went to visit Fourth and Sixth Brother at the smithy near the stream. Sixth Brother, who was used to be topless, was startled when seeing Ning Quee with a beautiful girl. He put on a coat at a speed quicker than that of him swinging the hammer. But Fourth Brother was still concentrated on his deduction, as if he didn¡¯t see them at all.


    The temperature in the smithy was extremely high and the room was full of vapor. Considering that Shanshan was a girl after all, Ning Que thought he would just chat with them then leave shortly. But when Shanshan saw Fourth Brother deducting, she didn¡¯t want to leave, instead, she squatted next to him and started studying the talisman lines on the sand table carefully, her face became very serious.


    Ning Que felt surprised, he also walked to the window to study the sand table. After a while, Fourth Brother looked up and nced at the girl, he said expressionlessly, "You know talisman?"


    Asking the Calligraphy Addict whether she knew talisman was like asking whether a butcher knew how to kill a pig, or whether a hunter dared to walk in a mountain. Ning Que knew that Fourth Brother didn¡¯t mean it, but worrying that Shanshan would feel humiliated, he said, "Senior Brother, she is the Calligraphy Addict."


    "Oh, so you are the Calligraphy Addict," said he, "but do you understand talisman?"


    Ning Que didn¡¯t know what to say at all.


    Among the three Addicts, Mo Shanshan was noted for being kind and elegant. At this moment, she didn¡¯t be angry at all, but she did feel a little confused. Looking up at Ning Que, she remembered his answer to the same question in the Wilderness, and said with a smile, "I know a little."


    Fourth Brother pointed to Ning Que and said, "How is your levelparing with that of him?"


    Without any thinking, she said immediately, "I am far better than him."


    Ning Que felt a little sad, not knowing what to say.


    Fourth Brother nodded with satisfaction, "Then you surely are qualified to watch me deducting."


    Looking at the talisman lines moving slowly, she asked with doubt, "Is it really deduction?"


    Fourth Brother answered, "If not, why are you studying it so carefully?"


    Mo Shanshan said with surprise, "But my master said the World te deduction has been lost many years."


    Fourth Brother shook his head and said, "It did get lost in the Kaiyuan period of Tang, but about forty yearster, the seventh master of ck Ink Garden, Master Ying, analyzed six years with a wise man from the Academy and re established the rules of deduction, and then they spent the whole life rebuilding the World te. Howe your master, the sessor of Master Ying doesn¡¯t know this?"


    Mo Shanshan looked at the seemingly normal sang table with great surprise. There were two parallel lines which seemed interfere with each other somehow. She frowned and said, "Are you deducing the number of lines existing at the initial time when the primordial Qi started interfering with a still talisman?"


    Fourth Brother didn¡¯t expect that this girl could know what he was doing at one look. His expression changed a little and said with great interest, "Do you also know something about it?"


    Looking at the sand table concentratedly, she said, "I studied a little about it, but I never thought you can deduct without relying on anything."


    Fourth Brother liked the concentration of Mo Shanshan very much. Then he turned to Ning Que and said with dissatisfaction, "Hurry to move a chair over here, you don¡¯t want Shanshan to keep squatting like that, do you?"


    Ning Que felt very wronged, he went to move a chair without saying anything.


    Mo Shanshan seated herself in the chair without thanking him or looking at him. She continued to study the sand table carefully and talked with Fourth Brother asionally.

 Chapter 354: The Fight between Two Different Opinions (I)

    Chapter 354: The Fight between Two Different Opinions (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    It was true that Ning Que was very talented in Talisman Taoism, but he was not as concentrated on cultivation as Fourth Brother or Mo Shanshan. Besides, due to the huge difference in their states, he could not understand a word of their conversation. So he spent a while standing next to the window and feeling really bored, then he left silently when he realized that no one wanted to talk with him at all.


    He left the smithy and went to a stream to wash his face. The cool water refreshed him and got rid of the dizzy feeling the high temperature and vapor got him. Then he sat on the bank, watched the big water wheel turning slowly and started thinking. He wasn¡¯t feeling sad because he was forgotten by those two people. It was the thing happened two days ago that kept his brain busy. He wanted to know how things should go after he said he liked her that night. Apparently Mo Shanshan treated him the same way she used to, normal and polite, did that mean he should take his time and don¡¯t be in a rush? He also got a strange feeling that he forgot something really important, but what was it?


    "I heard that you brought the Calligraphy Addict to the Academy?"


    Ning Que was startled by a voice sounded behind him. He turned around and found Chen Pipi walking towards him while saying something, whose hands hidden behind his body. Ning Que frowned to him because he knew what Chen Pipi would do after he found out Mo Shanshan was here, after all, he knew him too well. He knew that Chen Pipi would tease him a lot, rather than being so serious.


    Therefore, he said, "Stop thinking about using this thing to tease me. I just followed Eldest Brother¡¯s order."


    Standing next to the stream, Chen Pipi looked somehow great and tall, despite that he was a little chubby. With his hand still hiding behind, he said slowly, "Have you really thought through it?"


    Ning Que asked with a surprised expression, "Thought through what?"


    Chen Pipi darted a look to him and said in a serious expression, "Thought through whether you really want to be together with Mo Shanshan."


    Ning Que said scornfully, "Don¡¯t try to stop others from getting into a rtionship just because you were bullied too hard by Ye Hongyu earlier and lost all the confidence in girls. That is too pathetic."


    At the moment when Chen Pipi was about to say something, Ning Que leaned back suddenly and looked at his hidden hands.


    He was shocked when he saw two really red and swollen hands. He drew a breath and jumped to his feet. "What happened?" Asked Ning Que with concern.


    Chen Pipi looked at the grass and flowers across the river and said in a painful tone, "I spoke ill of Second Brother to Eldest Brother on the day you two returned to the city."


    Ning Que nodded and then asked, "Then?"


    Chen Pipi sighed when raising his swollen hands, "That was the end."


    Looking at his badly injured hands, Ning Que couldn¡¯t help but shiver a little. He said doubtfully, "Was it Second Brother?"


    Chen Pipi nodded.


    Ning Que said with great anger, "How could he treat you like this? How could he beat you for no reason?"


    Chen Pipi looked at Ning Que and said with moist eyes, "Youngest Brother, I am finally sure that you are a good man. You dare to me Second Brother just for me! But it was not out of no reason, Second Brother beat me as I vited a rule of the Academy."


    "I have learned the rules too, there was no such rule as forbidding people to bad mouth others."


    "Lying was forbidden though."


    "You lied at the Old Brush Pen Shop?"


    "Umm... not exactly, I just exaggerated the way Eleventh Brother ate flowers."


    "To what extent did you exaggerate it?"


    "I said that he ate all the flowers, but he actually only ate the tasty ones."


    Ning Que said unbelievably. "And Second Brother punished you just because of that?"


    Chen Pipi said in a sad voice, "Second Brother is a Gentleman, he follows rules strictly."


    Ning Que eximed, "But it is all nonsense to me."


    Chen Pipi said seriously, "You should remember, what Second Brother says is the rule and he is the only one qualified to make rules as long as Headmaster of Academy and Eldest Brother don¡¯t disagree with him."


    Ning Que nodded to show that he had remembered that rule firmly and patted Chen Pipi on the shoulder as afort. He realized the back of the mountain of the Academy was no safe ce either. In this case, it wasn¡¯t too bad to be sent to suffer in the secr world.


    At this moment, Chen Pipi became stiffened and disengaged himself from Ning Que¡¯s hand. He ran away along the stream towards the back of the mountain. His plump body was like a leaf, flying ten feet away at one second. Then he disappeared into the woods and lost track.


    Looking at him disappearing in the wood, Ning Que was amazed at the cultivation ability of the young prodigy; although he was not the athletic type of person, he could use the Qi of Heaven and Earth to move really fast.


    "I heard that you brought the Calligraphy Addict to the Academy?"


    Another voice was sounded behind him. Although this time it asked the same question, Ning Que reacted very differently. His body was stiffened, then he turned around quickly and bowed. "Second Brother, I am following what Eldest Brother said, at the same time, I also want to show her around."


    Second Brother nodded.


    Ning Que straightened up. He restrained himself from looking at the ancient crown on Second Brother¡¯s head, his sweat pouring down on his back. He realized that hisst sentence saved himself from being punished by Second Brother because without thest sentence, Second Brother would think that he thought Eldest Brother was more powerful than him and use the rules of the Academy to punish him.


    The expression of Second Brother was a little strange while he was thinking about something. After a while, he asked Ning Que, "Do you know why Senior Brother wanted to have the Calligraphy Addict as his sworn sister?"


    This question was hard to answer, as Ning Que was also unclear of what made Eldest Brother agree to it on the way back to the Academy. Mo Shanshan was of course a lovely girl, she deserved appreciation from everyone. But given that the back of the mountain of the Academy was not a normal ce, and Eldest Brother was not a normal person, this whole thing seemed a little strange.


    "It isplicated."


    Second Brother walked to the stream, looked around at him and said, "You did well in the war at the Southern Gate Temple."


    Being praised by Senior Brothers for the second time, Ning Que smiled with pride. Then he remembered the no-boundary spirit he thought after the war, he asked curiously, "When I climbed the mountain, I saw the sentence ¡¯An upright man has no boundary¡¯ at the outside of the wooden door, but what did Prince Long Qing see?"


    "He saw ¡¯An upright man doesn¡¯tpete with others¡¯."


    Looking at him, Second Brother said, "Master once said, ¡¯A man of integrity should notpete, if so he will be shot dead¡¯. But he still wanted to defeat you so much, so I guess he deserved to be shot by you."


    Hearing what he said, Ning Que was shocked and amazed at how Headmaster of Academy predicted future so urately. The words he left on the stele out of the wooden door already hinted what would happen that day.


    Second Brother was still thinking about the tricky problem. He noticed the admirable expression on Ning Que¡¯s face and said encouragingly, "You need to work hard the whole life to reach master¡¯s level."


    Ning Que nodded his head unconsciously.


    Senior Brother continued, "Master never got married so that he can concentrate on cultivating. It is the same for you; better not thinking about marriage if you want to be as powerful as him."


    Ning Que said surprisingly, "Temporarily?"


    Second Brother said seriously, "Better never getting married."


    Ning Que was so shocked dead right now that he forgot how dangerous it was to argue with Second Brother. He waved his hands and eximed, "It is impossible! If I were single for the whole life then I would be someone as sad as my teacher!"


    ...


    ...


    Mo Shanshan and Ning Que left the back of the mountain at dusk. At that time, all people living at the back of the mountain gathered together at the yard of Second Brother near the waterfall for a very important meeting.


    Everyone was present.


    Everyone except schrs came there, found a ce and seated. For this meeting, all of them, no matter those who were practicing vertical bamboo flute or string instrument or those who were in the middle of a chess game, stopped what they were doing.


    Normally they would never be so obedient. Even Second Brother sometimes could not find them when they were hiding from him. But today was different because Eldest Brother was back.


    As long as Eldest Brother was in the Academy, it was always easy to spot these people, no matter they pretended to be a stone, a squirrel, a flower or grass in the wood.


    There was no news recently in the Academy. The fact that Ning Que entered the secr world and defeated Monk Guan Hai, the sessor of the Elder of Lanke Temple failed to draw their attention, as in their mind, their own Younger Brother would never lose to anyone, although in terms of cultivation state, he was a long way away from themselves.


    Beigong Weiyang held Eldest Brother¡¯s shoulder and said bitterly, "Dear Eldest Brother, what on earth happened? Please can you make this meeting short, I am at the key point ofposing my music."


    Fifth Brother said impatiently, "We already threw a weing party when you were back. What is this time? I am about to checkmate Eighth Brother. I can¡¯t give him an excuse to cheat."


    Eighth Brother sneered and said, "I think the truth is you are about to lose. Why don¡¯t we just continue the game?"


    The yard was full of noise. Looking at the noisy crowd, Eldest Brother said helplessly, "Don¡¯t worry, don¡¯t worry. Take it easy."


    At this moment, a hand pped on the table.


    p!


    The room became deadly quiet. Second Brother nced at the crowd coldly, and everyone¡¯s head lowered.


    Eldest Brother frowned and said, "Jun Mo, don¡¯t be angry."


    Second Brother stood up quickly and said respectfully, "My bad, Senior Brother."


    That was the biologic chain at the back mountain. Second Brother could deter all the Younger Brothers and Sisters, who were not afraid of Eldest Brother at all. But when facing Eldest Brother, he became extremely obedient.


    Chen Pipi blew at his swollen hands. Looking at the docile Second Brother, he smiled, thinking that Second Brother was like a doormat.


    But with Second Brother watching them with cold eyes, no one dared to leave or talk anymore. The room was so quiet that you could hear the little noise made by a pen moving on a piece of paper.


    It was Third Sister, Professor Yu Lian, who was writing Hairpin-style Small Regr Script attentively as if all this was not her business.


    "I gathered you today because something has happened recently," said Eldest Brother, "Since Youngest Brother entered the human realm, there have been spections. Many officials in the imperial court tried to see whether he could agree to a designed marriage. Even His Majesty sent people to the Academy two days ago and expressed the same hope, and he asked about our opinion."


    Chen Pipi asked in surprise, "What kind of marriage is it? A perfect match? Or marrying down?"


    Eldest Brother exined to him seriously, "Youngest Brother is a man, for him, it is not marrying down. But still, I think the idea is not interesting, neither master nor Youngest Brother himself would like it. Cultivators should live with cultivators after all, not a girl from the imperial family, besides, it is up to himself really."


    He said in the end, "The Calligraphy Addict came here today and you have met her. What do you think of this girl? I personally really like her and I would like to see her marrying Youngest Brother. They would be as good together as the sound of a string instrument and a flute. But don¡¯t decide your opinion based on the rtions between me and her."


    His words made the crowd discussing curiously. They didn¡¯t understand why Youngest Brother¡¯s marriage gained so much attention from Eldest Brother, and he even consulted them.


    Only Seventh Sister noticed that Second Brother looked unhappy after hearing the words.

 Chapter 355: The Fight between Two Different Opinions (II)

    Chapter 355: The Fight between Two Different Opinions (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    As if making a footnote for Eldest Brother¡¯s words, Tenth Brother Ximen Buhuo touched the strings of his instrument and Ninth Brother Beigong Weiyang tapped on his flute. As they were doing it, wonderful music leaped from the instruments and floated in the room. As the tonality started, people also started discussing heatedly.


    "Ning Que was quite close with the daughter of General Yunhui, Miss Situ, and if the imperial court wanted to arrange a marriage for him, I think the bride should be her. At the same time, the Old Chancellor appreciates Ning Que¡¯s calligraphy, so maybe the bride could be Jin Wucai. But if we remember what happened in the past, Princess Lee Yu actually contacted him a lot, and even now they are still in close rtions."


    "But I think an arranged marriage is disgusting! It might be called an allied marriage, but somehow I feel like we are selling Youngest Brother to the House of Red Sleeves, except that in those officials¡¯ mansions, there is no Mistress Jian."


    "It is not like that, I think Eldest Brother just wanted to decide the marriage for Youngest Brother before the Pce forces him to ept an arranged marriage so that we could refuse the order from His Majesty without being too rude. Speaking of that, we haven¡¯t had a wedding for many years, it is time to have one!"


    "But I don¡¯t know whether the Calligraphy Addict is nice, I didn¡¯t see her today. Our Youngest Brother is an orphan, we should think carefully for him. Since shees from the Great River Kingdom, she should be living in the Ministry of Rites. Should we go to the city together and have a look at the girl for him tomorrow?"


    "Have a look? She is a girl, not an antique. And I need to remind you, Fifth Brother, she is the sessor of the Master of Calligrapher. I am afraid she might be at the same level with you in cultivation. If you two fight, you will probably lose, as you have been busy with ying chess these years and neglected cultivation. If you upset her, she might even kill you in Chang¡¯an City!"


    Eldest Brother shook his head many times as he listened to the silly words these silly people said.


    Seventh Sister swept the shells of the nuts on the ground into a small dustpan and looked at Eldest Brother. She said with a smile, "I like that girl. She has a round and soft face. If they get married, I will get the chance to pinch her face every day, that will be nice."


    Her words reminded Chen Pipi of the torture he had suffered all these years when she pinched his face, he unconsciously raised his hands and touched his face. But he forgot his hands were injured and it hurt so much that his eyebrows knitted together.


    Holding a cup of tea in his hands, Sixth Brother said honestly, "It is quite rare for a girl to stay in the hot smithy for such a long time. Based on this, I think she is good."


    Fourth Brother nodded, "It is good to have someone who truly understands talisman."


    Exchanging a look, Beigong Weiyang and Ximen Buhuo put their instruments down and said in chorus, "It is great that everyone likes her. Since you think she is good, we will think so too."


    Rumors about him and Mo Shanshan had been spreading in the city since they came back from the Wilderness. And people in the back of the mountain also knew it. It would be a perfect match as they liked each other very much and when Eldest Brother proposed it everyone who had seen her liked her.


    It seemed like the marriage of Youngest Brother in the back of the mountain would be decided right now.


    But at this time, a voice sounded in the room.


    "It is not good."


    Seventh Sister frowned slightly.


    Everyone looked at Second Brother in surprise as it was really unexpected that he should oppose Eldest Brother. After all, he respected Eldest Brother the most and he did anything he said without any hesitation.


    Seventh Sister said scornfully, "What do you know about romance?"


    Second Brother was expressionless, he lowered his head and looked at his shadow.


    Eldest Brother looked at him and asked mildly, "What is not good about her?"


    "I am not saying that she is not good."


    After being silent for a long time, Second Brother said, "I just think if he must get married, there is a better girl."


    Eldest Brother looked at him and asked, "Then who is that?"


    Second Brother rose his head slowly and looked at his eyes. He said slowly and firmly, "Sangsang."


    ...


    ...


    There were many Senior Brothers who had no idea who Sangsang was. They realized that the girl better than the Calligraphy Addict in Second Brother¡¯s eyes was actually Ning Que¡¯s handmaiden after they asked Chen Pipi.


    Fourth Brother said, "In the Academy, we never judge people by their identity. But it is illegal if one marries his handmaiden ording to thew of Tang Empire. That is a problem."


    Second Brother said, expressionlessly, "That is not a problem. We just need her expulsion from Tang Empire."


    Fourth Brother nced at him and didn¡¯t say anything.


    Eldest Brother looked at his eyes in silence for a while, and then he said with a smile, "I insist on my opinion."


    Second Brother looked back and said calmly and firmly, "I also insist on my opinion."


    "Most of the Younger Brothers and Sisters agree with my opinion," said Eldest Brother.


    Second Brother said expressionlessly, "You said we shouldn¡¯t consider this thing based on your rtion with Mo Shanshan, but it is a fact and no one can neglect it. So their opinion is meaningless."


    Eldest Brother said calmly, "Fine, their opinion should not be considered. But what about mine?"


    "I don¡¯t know why you think Mo Shanshan is the perfect girl for Youngest Brother," said Second Brother, looking at his eyes, "But I want to know the reason why you wanted to take her as your sworn sister in the Wilderness. Had you already started preparing for today at that time?"


    Eldest Brotherughed and said, "I just think she is really nice and they would be a good couple, that is all."


    Second Brother didn¡¯tugh, "But why aren¡¯t Sangsang and Ning Que a perfect match?"


    Eldest Brother looked at him for a while and said thoughtfully, "Why do you think Sangsang is better?"


    Second Brother stood up and walked to the window. Looking at the stars hung above the waterfall, he said, "At the day when Yan Se and Wei Guangming died at the same time, I and Pipi climbed the mountain after the fight and saw her kneeling on the ground and gathering their ash. I know she is kind and I also know that she and Ning Que will be together."


    The room was so quiet that even the sound of a brush pen moving against the paper was heard. Chen Pipi¡¯s nervous voice broke the silence. He said, "I also think Sangsang is quite nice."


    Eldest Brother smile with a mixed expression, he looked at Chen Pipi and said, "Then why do you think she is nice?"


    After thinking for a while, Chen Pipi answered, "I can¡¯t list specific reasons, but she is nice in every way."


    Eldest Brother was a little surprised to hear this answer, he shook his head and sighed. "Nice in every way."


    Eldest Brother was, of course, the head of the back of the mountain, he was so kind and mild that all the Younger Brothers and Sisters liked him and were never scared of him. They always followed what he said. But Second Brother ruled the back of the mountain well, he was in charge of everything and all Younger Brothers and Sisters didn¡¯t dare to oppose his opinion.


    Usually, it was easy to make a decision when discussing things. Everyone would agree with Second Brother, and Second Brother would agree with Eldest Brother. A situation like today never happened before.


    "I think what Second Brother said makes sense, although I have no idea what ¡¯gathering the ash¡¯ means."


    "Are you saying that Eldest Brother was wrong then?"


    "No, I am not. Both of them are right. It is me who has not got a clear mind, and because of that my view is definitely not as good and thorough as theirs. So, I am just going to follow their lead and agree with them. Whatever girl they think is suitable will definitely be the most suitable one."


    A deliberately said funny conversation didn¡¯t break the ice. Instead, it made the awkward situation even worse and the room sank into silence again.


    Looking at Second Brother seriously, Eldest Brother said, "Younger Brother, you don¡¯t understand many things."


    Second Brother looked back and said, "No, I don¡¯t. I don¡¯t know why you are against Sangsang, is it because she is the sessor of the Great Divine Priest of Light or is there some other reasons? You never want her to be together with Youngest Brother, but do you know that it is not fair for her?"


    After being silent for a long time, Eldest Brother said calmly, "I am not against her at all. But I admit it that I don¡¯t want Youngest Brother to be together with her."


    Second Brother stared at his eyes and asked, "Why?"


    Eldest Brother said, "I don¡¯t have any reasons, it is only based on my feeling."


    Second Brother said, "Senior Brother, I have always believed that everything has a reason."


    Eldest Brother looked at him and said, "You don¡¯t have to know the reason. Our master knows."


    Second Brother said, "Then why don¡¯t we wait until he is back?"


    Eldest Brother said, "Because the Pce already sent the message of arranging a marriage for him."


    Second Brother said coldly, "But no one will dare to actually do it if we don¡¯t agree."


    Eldest Brother frowned slightly.


    Second Brother said, "It has been ten years since I saw you frown. Why did you frown? Because you also agree that this is not right?"


    Eldest Brother was still frowning. He shook his head and said, "I frown because I found that you have never changed after all these years. You are still the hot-blooded youngster, who only believes in rules but can¡¯t see the big picture."


    Second Brother said angrily, "Our master will not ask us to change the path only because he can foresee the dangerous turns or dark figures down the path. He will not punish an innocent person for a thing that might happen in the future. I think you are wrong today, Senior Brother."


    People at the back of the mountain never saw a scene like this. They never saw Eldest Brother and Second Brother have different opinions or argue with each other. At this moment, the fact that the argument already turned into severe criticism and it shocked everyone so much that they didn¡¯t even dare to make more noise when breathing, let alone talk.


    Silence still ruled the room. Only the sound of a soft pen brush sweeping on the paper could be heard.


    People all looked at Third Sister writing around the corner. She liked the quiet and talked a little. She didn¡¯t have frequent contacts with others, but everyone knew that even master praised her wide range of knowledge and her broad and long-term view. They were hoping that she could break the deadlock.

 Chapter 356: We Were Kids

    Chapter 356: We Were Kids


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Under such a repressive and secluded atmosphere, even gazes seemed to have weight. Under the focus of so many eyes, the pen slowed down. Yu Lian, the female professor, nced at the regr scripts on the paper and nodded. She put the pen on the delicate inkstone and then looked at her Younger Brothers and Junior Sisters, who looked at her with eager eyes.


    She, the Academy Third Sister, really deserved the appreciation of the Headmaster of the Academy. Only with one sentence, she had settled the argument between the two Senior Brothers and directly made her judgment about their dispute.


    "Both of you are wrong."


    Looking at Eldest Brother and Second Brother, Yu Lian calmly said, "Neither the Calligraphy Addict nor that little maidservant is a good choice for Ning Que. Actually, there is no answer to the question. The most important thing between a couple is the feeling toward each other. No matter how persistent you are in your ideas, you still don¡¯t know the true feelings of Ning Que."


    Second Brother frowned, saying, "Little Younger Brother is an orphan. He doesn¡¯t have a family nor rtives, so the back of the mountain of the Academy is his family. Of course, the Headmaster or we, his Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters, should be responsible for his matrimonial affair."


    Yu Lian grinned, "That¡¯s why I said you were wrong."


    "You don¡¯t understand him. Back then, I saw how he ascended the old library. In the process, he vomited blood and lost consciousness from time to time. He became thinner and more silent, so I know his temperament. Even if he was asked by the Headmaster to marry the daughter of Haotian, he would still refuse it, let alone a marriage appointed by the royal pce or a person that we want him to marry. If he agrees, it will be useless for anyone of us to oppose it."


    She then turned to Eldest Brother and said peacefully, "One has to experience his own life, so it depends on his own choice. No matter which one he will choose, he should be responsible for the result, and he has to learn how to shoulder the responsibility. I believe the Headmaster will think the same way that I do."


    Finishing her words, Yu Lian put away the calligraphy stationery and left the courtyard without saying goodbye. Her loose-fitting Academy robe drifted with the wind and she disappeared into the darkness.


    During the unprecedented dispute between Eldest Brother and Second Brother, what Eldest Brother said was obscure, and what Second Brother indicated was ambiguous. Now, even what Senior Sister said was philosophical and profound. Actually, the three of them just felt something, which was totally baffling to the rest.


    The two Senior Brothers fell in silence, and Younger Brothers and Junior Sisters left silently following Third Sister. Mu You, the Seventh Sister, nced at the two with anxiety and then filled the teapot with hot water before she left.


    The candlelight was fluttering and one could faintly hear the waterfall behind the courtyard falling into the pond. Then, Eldest Brother slowly stood up after a certain period, whose clear eyes were presently filled with exhaustion.


    Second Brother stood up and bowed to him with respect.


    Eldest Brother said, "It seems that we were wrong, but I still hold my opinion. In addition, I can¡¯t understand why Ning Que shouldn¡¯t choose Shanshan now that they love each other."


    Thinking it over, Second Brother replied, "Because he can¡¯t forget Sangsang."


    Suddenly, Eldest Brother thought of a possibility and said with a frown, "Would he marry both of them?"


    Second Brother solemnly answered, "If he is so greedy, he will be punished by God. Although there is a big gap in the family background and status between the two girls, they are in no way those sort of vulgar girls and will not allow little Younger Brother to be so pleased."


    Eldest Brother silently looked at him and suddenly asked, "Jun Mo, how much on earth do you foresee?"


    After a moment of silence, Second Brother answered, "The day when Yan Se and Wei Guangming died, I saw something in an instant, yet didn¡¯t see it clearly. You mean you have foreseen the matter?"


    Eldest Brother forced a smile and replied, "I¡¯m afraid that even the Headmaster can¡¯t see it clearly, let alone you or me."


    Second Brother frowned and said, "I don¡¯t know how much Yu Lian got."


    "I¡¯m afraid it¡¯s less than what you and I have gotten, because her focus is always on little Younger Brother."


    Finishing his words, Eldest Brother sank in silence for a long time, pondering over something. Then he gently patted the shoulder of Second Brother and said, "Jun Mo, perhaps you are right. I simply don¡¯t have the heart to face the fact."


    Second Brother was tall, so when he saw that Senior Brother wanted to pat his shoulder, he habitually leaned ahead to make it easier for Senior Brother to do so. But in this way, the ancient crown above his head had nearly hit the face of Eldest Brother.


    They smiled at each other, with which all those negative feelings brought out by the previous dispute vanished.


    Only the words "don¡¯t have the heart" were left echoing with the thunderous waterfall.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que had the least idea about the conference in the back of the mountain of the Academy focusing on his marriage, nor did he know that a fierce dispute had actually broken out between two Senior Brothers, who were so superior in spirit in his eyes. Recently, he had apanied Shanshan to visit Chang¡¯an, and together they appreciated great works in various calligraphy stores.


    He had not had any rtionships in either of his two lives, and he even had no close physical contact with somebody of the opposite gender. So he did not know whether he was in love with Mo Shanshan or not. After Shanshan said that she loved him that day, their rtionship did not change. They treated each other as casually and calmly as they did before, and they had not even held hands. The only difference was, perhaps, the shyness that the girl asionally showed when their shoulders touched.


    It was exactly the shyness that had made up part of the pity that Ning Que felt in his understanding of love. When he and Shanshan toured around Chang¡¯an City, he often recalled the maidservant beside him when they were around the bonfire at the entrance of Northern Mountain Road, and Situ Yn, who strolled with him along theke at the North of the Yan Kingdom. Then he understood that the reactions of the other person were actually the sources of his happiness.


    It was a wonderful feeling, even if they did not have any close physical contact, or sweet words, or vows. So Ning Que was d to apany Shanshan. But, sometimes he felt empty when passing through the narrow alleys and the shadow of bare trees, or stepping on the melting snow beside theke.


    At dusk, they returned to Lin 47th Street. Under the locust tree at the entrance of the street, Ning Que invited Mo Shanshan again, "Come in, and have supper here."


    Looking at the gate of the Old Brush Pen Shop a few paces off, Mo Shanshan softly answered, "Don¡¯t bother."


    Ning Que asked puzzledly, "Why?"


    With her eyes resting on the tips of her shoes, Mo Shanshan softly answered, "I¡¯m already happy to have a chance to visit Chang¡¯an together with you. I¡¯m also happy to have appreciated calligraphy with you. And I¡¯m happy that you said that you liked me that night."


    Then she raised her head to see the inconspicuous dimple on his cheek. Her eyshes fluttered, and unexpectedly she raised her hand to touch the dimple, saying with a smile, "But that¡¯s not enough."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que was still thinking over Mo Shanshan¡¯s words back in the Old Brush Pen Shop. It would be easier for him to solve mathematical questions or understand cultivation than to understand a girl¡¯s thoughts. So, he felt puzzled.


    "Young master,e to have your meal."


    Sangsang scooped out two bowls of chicken soup from the small urn, and then asked, "Do you want some chopped shallots?"


    Ning Que answered, "Your chicken soup is most delicious, so I want the original taste. Don¡¯t add any chopped shallots."


    Previously, Sangsang would feel happy when praised by Ning Que. Although she might not necessarily smile, she would press the rice with the spoon when adding rice for him. But today, she just silently added rice for Ning Que as if she did not hear it at all. Then, she silently sat down on the opposite side of the table and picked up her chopsticks.


    Her expression suddenly reminded Ning Que of his elusive behavior these days. Then he smiled and exined, "That night I have told you that those shameless Senior Brothers and Sisters on the back of the mountain made me a hatchet man in Chang¡¯an, in case someonees to challenge the Academy."


    Sangsang softly answered and then continued eating.


    After drinking the soup, Ning Que added two scoops of soup on his rice and then made a clean sweep of it.


    All was silent beside the table.


    Suddenly, Ning Que raised his head, looked at Sangsang on the opposite side and asked, "Since your childhood, we have discussed what kind of sister-inw I should find for you."


    Sangsang put her bowl on the table lightly and looked over and corrected him, "That¡¯s young mistress."


    "That kind of appetion was used after we left the City of Wei."


    Ning Que burst intoughter at the thought of their past experiences of going to the House of Red Sleeves to select girls together with Sangsang. Then, he finally understood why he felt empty these days. It was because he had not asked for somebody¡¯s advice, or reported to somebody, or perhaps he wanted to hear something that could please him.


    He looked at Sangsang and seriously asked, "What do you think of Mo Shanshan?"


    Sangsang earnestly looked into his eyes, and after a long time, she raised her bowl again and answered, "Good."


    Looking at the little girl who almost buried her face in the rice, Ning Que asked curiously, "Very good?"


    Sangsang raised her face from the bowl and said, "Very good."


    Watching her crystal eyes, her soft yellowish hair, her little darkish face and the rice pasted on her cheeks, Ning Que sank into silence for a long time and then smiled without saying anything.


    "Nothing, I was just asking."


    He reached out his hand to take the rice off Sangsang¡¯s face and deftly threw it into his own mouth. Then, he continued with his meal in somewhat low spirits. He silentlymented to himself, "Anyway, Sangsang is still a child."


    After supper, Sangsang was upied with boiling water and washing dishes as usual, while Ning Que was busy writing his talisman. When he felt tired, he would write some sections to refresh himself. Late at night, he would bathe his feet in hot water and then go to bed.


    Winter had gone, but spring had not yete. The temperature at night in Chang¡¯an was still low. On their heatable brick bed, the two of them slept with their face facing the other¡¯s feet, just as they had previously.


    Sangsang¡¯s little feet were washed clean and were held in Ning Que¡¯s arms. Touching the smooth, tender and skin of her jade-white feet, Ning Que felt at ease. He suddenly kissed her feet, and then closed his eyes, falling into sweet dreams.


    It seemed to be the simple repetition of their nightly interactions over the past 15 years, but actually, Sangsang was sleepless.


    She silently gazed at the ceiling pasted with abandoned Fu paper with her bright eyes, as if she had seen the cliff wall in the cave of Min Mountain and the adobe wall in their courtyard of the City of Wei.

 Chapter 357: A Pitiful Kid

    Chapter 357: A Pitiful Kid


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Sangsang silently got up at midnight and put on her loose-fitting handmaiden robe. Then she wore her old cotton shoes, pushed open the door and walked to the courtyard.


    She wiped off the snow on the edge of the well and collected water to fill the water vat. She put the firewood in good order at the foot of the wall and then brought the broom to the front of the shop. She swept the floor, cleaned the table and tidied up the scattered calligraphy stationery. Finally, she squatted at the gate, checking over the house to see whether there was something that still needed to be cleaned.


    These were the things that she did every day, but today she was more attentive and careful than before. It was already dawn by the time she finished all these things. She squinted her eyes to see the slowly brightening sky, then went to buy two bowls of hot and sour sliced noodle soup at the entrance of the street.


    She silently finished her noodle soup beside the table, then washed her bowl. Later she returned to the bedroom to pack up her clothes. She took out the box from the floor under the bed and separated the silver notes inside into two equal piles, then put her half into her pocket.


    She went to the bed and looked at Ning Que, who was sound asleep. Her willow-like eyebrows gradually frowned, and she maintained the posture for quite a long time. After that, she picked up her baggage and left without any expression of hesitation.


    The door of Old Brush Pen Shop was opened.


    The door of Old Brush Pen Shop was closed.


    The door didn¡¯t make any sound, because it had been newly repaired by Sangsang. Thus it did not awaken anybody.


    Carrying her baggage, Sangsang left quietly, her thin figure disappearing down Lin 47th Street just as morning was about to visit. It never appeared again, as if she had never existed in the first ce.


    ...


    ...


    In the morning light, the Grand Secretary¡¯s mansion was tranquil, with its dark-colored gate tightly closed. Outside, the servant carefully limited the noise he made while sweeping the ground. Inside, those towering trees loomed over the garden in silence.


    Sangsang went to the gate and said something to the vignt servant. Then she turned to the gate with her eyebrows frowned and knocked at the gate.


    Somehow, maybe because she was feeling downcast today, she knocked at the gate so forcefully that it sounded like the fierce beating of a battle drum.


    The thunderous knocking suddenly awakened those living in the Grand Secretary¡¯s mansion. Some scoldings and unpleasant curses were heard from behind the gate. The servant, who was almost frightened to death by her behavior, rushed to just behind Sangsang and prepared to drive her away. Just at this moment, the gate opened.


    "Second Chambein, I didn¡¯t expect this hoyden to be so bold," the servant sputtered, drawing a sad face.


    The second chambein rubbed his drowsy eyes and looked at the little handmaiden with an unpleasant re. He waved his hand and was about to ask somebody to drive the girl away, but he suddenly felt that the girl seemed familiar. Then, subconsciously, he rubbed his eyes again and finally became sober. He recalled the matter everyone was gossiping about these days.


    "You... you... you are... the... the... La......"


    ...


    ...


    The Grand Secretary couple both wore casual clothes in their hurry, not even washing their faces or hair. They just quietly looked at the little girl before them, feeling utterly confused.


    Sangsang held fast to the baggage on her right shoulder and looked down at her tiny shoes, saying, "That day, you said I am your daughter?"


    Mrs. Zeng hurriedly nodded, with great happiness on her face. If the Grand Secretary had not held her, she would perhaps have fainted in ecstasy.


    Sangsang kept her head lowered. After a period of silence, she softly said, "When I was young, he... I heard about thew of the Tang Empire from him. Parents have the responsibility to rear their children before they get married. That day, you told me to move to your house. So based on thew of the Tang Empire, can I move in?"


    "Of course you can." Mrs. Zeng held her hand with great joy and said, "This is your family, of course you can live here."


    Besides feeling happy, Zeng Jing was also a bit confused by the thin dark girl. He remembered that day, no matter how hard he and his wife begged her, she still refused them and insisted on staying with her young master. As the Grand Secretary, of course he knew that Ning Que had returned to Chang¡¯an. So he was left wondering what had changed her mind so drastically for her toe back and behave as their daughter.


    Being a Grand Secretary, and an elder caring the majesty that went with the title of Father, Zeng Jing directly asked Sangsang about his confusion now that he had epted Sangsang as his daughter.


    Sangsang raised her head and seriously said to the couple, "I don¡¯t like him anymore, so I don¡¯t want to live with him anymore."


    Zeng Jing frowned. He remembered that the Empress had told them to protect the rtionship between Sangsang and Ning Que. So after pondering for a while, he said, "After all, you have been living together for many years. You have supported each other in the past and built a close rtionship. You had better inform him before you move back into our mansion."


    Sangsang took a nce at him, then suddenly turned around and walked out of the mansion.


    Mrs. Zeng was startled and quickly caught her hand. She said in a trembling tone, "What is wrong now?"


    Sangsang silently looked at Zeng Jing, saying nothing.


    Mrs. Zeng was flurried and nervous. She severely red at the Grand Secretary and said furiously, "Stop talking nonsense! If you dare to make me lose this pitiful kid again, I will kill you!"


    The Grand Secretary respected his wife. Although he didn¡¯t know what was wrong with his previous words, and felt enraged at Sangsang ignoring him, he still had to shut up under her harsh eyes.


    Sangsang said to Mrs. Zeng, "I want to live with you, but not with him."


    Mrs. Zeng rejoiced and said, "No problem. I will ask someone to move your father¡¯s things to the study immediately."


    ...


    ...


    When Ning Que woke up, he didn¡¯t see Sangsang. So he walked to the courtyard and shouted, but there was no response from Sangsang. He stretched himself and nced at the kitchen. There was no trace of Sangsang at all. He shook his head, then found the bowl of hot and sour sliced noodle soup on the table at the front of the shop.


    "I haven¡¯t even brushed my teeth yet, how can I have breakfast now?"


    He thought to himself at the sight of the hot and sour sliced noodle soup, his eyebrows knotted. During the past few years, Sangsang would hand him a bowl of clean water and the dental set when he got up every day. He had gotten used to this over a long time, so he felt unustomed to it when Sangsang didn¡¯te out.


    "Even if you were in such a hurry to buy the first and most delicious bowl of soup, you should first serve me as I wash my face and brush my teeth. Wait, the soup has been bought. Where the hell did you go?"


    Eating the hot and spicy shredded noodles beside the table, Ning Que spent some time wondering where Sangsang could have gone. Finally, he guessed that she might have gone to the vegetable market at the south gate to buy the cheap and fresh vegetables sold there, driven by her parsimony.


    "It¡¯s only a few coins cheaper. Is it necessary for you to get up so early and walk such a long distance?"


    After eating, Ning Que went to the backyard with the bowl whileughing at her in his heart. He randomly put the bowl down on the hearth and felt somewhat sleepy, so he went back to sleep again.


    When the sun had climbed higher in the sky, he woke up again and rubbed his eyes, then went outside without wearing his shoes. There was still no trace of Sangsang, so he shouted in great anger,"Bring me hot water! How can I go out today?"


    Nobody responded. Every corner of the Old Brush Pen Shop was in silence.


    Ning Que stiffened and walked into the kitchen. He found the bowl was still on the hearth, and there was neither firewood nor fire in the hearth. Of course there could be no hot water.


    He walked to the wall of the courtyard and sighed at the tidy firewood pile, then picked up a small bundle of firewood and returned to the kitchen to make a fire.


    It was not difficult for him to make a fire and heat up some water, although he hadn¡¯t done such trifles for many years. After all, it was he who had to manage their lives in the earlier years. The water in the pot was soon boiling.


    Looking at the hot steam, Ning Que felt that something was wrong.


    After the water was heated, he washed his face and even washed the dirty bowl.


    Normally it would be time for him to go to the Academy or to idle in Chang¡¯an. But today, he went nowhere other than the front of the shop. He sat on his armchair and looked at the disys that were polished till they shone, as well as the clean floor devoid of dirt. He felt absent-minded.


    After a long period of silence, he felt stiff to some extent. asionally, someone would pass by the shop, and he would raise his head at the sight of their shadows. But in the end, nobody pushed the door open to walk in.


    Nobody pushed open the door toe back.


    Ning Que had been waiting in silence until noon, after which he stood up, opened the door and walked out.


    He bought a roasted duck in the Bianyi Shop in the Eastern City and some green vegetables in the market, then returned to the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    Sangsang still hadn¡¯te back. After a moment of silence, Ning Que entered the kitchen and fried two dishes of vegetables and a bowl of steamed rice. Then he peeled the duck and arranged the pieces beautifully on the te. Finally, he put the dishes on the table at the front of the shop.


    Two pairs of chopsticks, two bowls of white rice, and a rich spread of dishes.


    Ning Que was satisfied with the dishes on the table. He put his hand on his knees and waited.


    However, nobody came back even after a long time.


    There were still two pairs of chopsticks, but only one person. What was worse, the rice and the side dishes had be cold.


    After staring at the food for a long time, Ning Que picked up his chopsticks and began to eat.


    But somehow his hands were trembling. He tried for a long time, yet failed to pinch even a piece of the vegetable.


    He wanted to pick up and throw away the chopsticks, yet he refrained himself from doing so. Then he gently ced them on the table.


    Suddenly he stood up and went to his bedroom. He rudely turned over the bed board and took out the box, then threw all the contents of the box onto the bed.


    Looking at those drifting notes, he was finally convinced that she had left by herself.


    Ning Que folded those notes and put them into his pocket emotionlessly. From the storage box in the corner, he took out the Primordial Thirteen Arrows that had been repaired the day before and put them into his bag, then inserted all the Fu paper into his sleeves. He took the chopper from beside the pile of firewood and put it on his waist, and finally, he hung the big ck umbre on his back and walked out of the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    He knew Sangsang would be safe, but he was clear that what he would now confront would be the harshest moment of his life, so he brought with him all his most important objects. It seemed that only in this way could he feelfortable again, and he assured himself that he would definitely bring back the most important person in his life.


    If he couldn¡¯t bring her back, then it wasn¡¯t necessary for him toe back either.


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 358: Looking for Sangsang

    Chapter 358: Looking for Sangsang


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que put a chopper on his waist, held the arrow box in his hands, and carried the big ck umbre on his back. He left the Old Brush Pen Shop and arrived in the street. He began his journey of looking for Sangsang.


    He first came to Wu Laoer¡¯s fake antique shop next door. He pushed the door open and came in, asking directly, "Aunt Wu, have you seen Sangsang?"


    The Old Brush Pen Shop was now a legendary shop on Lin 47th Street. Many things had happened there within just over a year. It made many people realize that the shop was not a simple ce. Aunt Wu saw Ning Que¡¯s expression and naturally felt a bit frightened. She kept shaking her head as she said, "No, I haven¡¯t."


    Ning Que did not hesitate at all. He turned around and left.


    Later, he came to a casino in West City and directly found the gang leader of the Fish-dragon Gang, Mr. Qi.


    "Have you seen Sangsang?"


    Mr. Qi said with a slightly different expression, "I saw her when I sent a note there a few days ago. But I haven¡¯t seen her recently. What happened to her this time?"


    Ning Que slightly frowned and asked, "What happened to her before?"


    Mr. Qi said, "Before you came back, the Chang¡¯an Local Government took her back for an interrogation. No one knew what case she was involved in. The Military Ministry took her away, so I could not stop it. But, you didn¡¯t need to worry about her, for Sangsang came out without being bullied the same day. Maybe the Academy meddled in it?"


    Ning Que did not know about this matter. After a short moment of silence, he thought that it was more important to find her first. So, he looked at Mr. Qi and said seriously, "Have your men help look for her in Chang¡¯an. I¡¯ll owe you a favor."


    Mr. Qi said, "I promise you that I can find her as long as she is still in Chang¡¯an City."


    Ning Que felt a little rxed in his heart. He thought that, as the biggest gang in Chang¡¯an, the Fish-dragon Gang had an official background and countless men spread out in all the streets and allies. No matter where Sangsang was hiding, they could surely find her. But, then he thought that it had been a long time since she had left so in the early morning. What if Sangsang had left Chang¡¯an City?


    So he went to the pce immediately.


    "Close the gate of Chang¡¯an City? Ning Que, are you crazy? Even the prime minister does not dare to do this kind of thing. Even if you kill me, I still can¡¯t do it because I don¡¯t have that authority and I don¡¯t want to make His Majesty think that I am a rebel!"


    The Deputy Commander of the bodyguards, Xu Chongshan, looked at Ning Que, who had his head lowered in front of him, and was thinking of continuing to scold him further. But he was stunned by the grimness that Ning Que had revealed. He quicklyforted Ning Que. "Rest assured. Now I¡¯ll write a letter asking the Chang¡¯an Local Government to find her for you. Okay?"


    Ning Que looked up at him and said, "It¡¯s not enough just to ask the Chang¡¯an Local Government. Can you help me issue an arrest warrant?"


    Xu Chongshan gave a gasp of surprise. He could tell that Ning Que was about to be mad today. So he did not dare to directly refuse Ning Que, but exined in a whisper, "Your little handmaiden has notmitted a crime. How could the Criminal Ministry issue an arrest warrant?"


    Ning Que took a small portrait from his arms and put it on the Xu Chongshan¡¯s chest, saying, "I am reporting a crime that Sangsang stole more than 10,000 taels of silver from me. Would that make the Criminal Ministry issue an arrest warrant?"


    Xu Chongshan took the portrait and looked at it. He thought that Ning Que¡¯s painting skills were not nearly as good as his writing. He was about to say something further, only to find that Ning Que had already left the Imperial City by the time that he looked up. He could not help sighing.


    Xu Chongshan looked at the grim back of Ning Que and sighed as he kept shaking his head. He thought that if anyone carelessly ran into a nearly mad person like Ning Que today in Chang¡¯an, they would be likely be killed. Suddenly, he thought of a certain rumor in the Imperial Court and hurriedly chased after Ning Que. However, Ning Que had gone too fast and had disappeared without a trace.


    ...


    ...


    With the help of the imperial court and the Fish-dragon Gang, Ning Que prevented Sangsang from leaving Chang¡¯an. He continued the search in Chang¡¯an City, including the morning market in the south of the city, the Chenjinji Cosmetics Store famous for its cosmetics, the Building of Pines and Cranes, as well as the House of Red Sleeves. But, he still could not find Sangsang. Everyone who had seen him was stunned by the grim intentioning from his body, as if he was about to uncover the entire city of Chang¡¯an.


    In the end, he went to the Princess¡¯ Mansion and heard the answer that he had wanted from Lee Yu. However, this answerpletely exceeded his expectation, making him suddenly feel lost.


    Ning Que looked at Lee Yu and asked, "Why didn¡¯t I know about this?"


    Lee Yu looked at him and said mockingly, "Maybe you were busy hanging out with the Calligraphy Addict in Chang¡¯an City recently. How could you have time to care for your little handmaiden?"


    Ning Que looked at her and asked seriously, "Your Highness, are youughing at me?"


    "No." Lee Yu looked at him and said coldly, "I¡¯m mocking you."


    Ning Que asked, "Why?"


    Lee Yu answered, "Because Sangsang is my friend."


    Ning Que said after a short moment of silence, "I see."


    ...


    ...


    It was quiet today in the Imperial Library Grand Secretary¡¯s Mansion, especially in the study, where it was even more tense. This kind of atmosphere was all because of Ning Que, who was nkly standing in the study with a dangerous aura exuding from his body.


    The Grand Secretary, Zeng Jing, had offered him a seat and the chambein had already served tea. But Ning Que did not sit down, for he had sat next to the table of the Old Brush Pen Shop for a long time. He did not drink tea, for he had felt bitterness in his mouth and had no mood for chatting.


    Ning Que looked at the bed in the corner of the study and frowned slightly. "Did the Grand Secretary sleep in the study all year round? Did they have a bad rtionship? Such a couple might not be suitable parents. And it was a bit strange. How could Sangsang¡¯s parents suddenly appear?"


    Over the past years, he had never thought about what he would do after Sangsang found her biological parents. So, he was now in a strange mood and felt somewhat strangely nervous.


    "First, I want to know whether Sangsang is in your mansion," he asked.


    Zeng Jing nodded and said with a smile, "Since we¡¯ve recognized each other, of course, she has toe back home to live."


    Ning Que asked him directly, "You say that she is your daughter. Do you have any evidence?"


    Zeng Jing said sincerely, "To tell you the truth, there is indeed no hard evidence. But a mother knows her own daughter. My wife remembers some of the characteristics of Sangsang. And the time that we lost our child matches with Sangsang¡¯s age. So, I don¡¯t think that we¡¯re mistaken."


    Ning Que looked up and said, "Please forgive me, for I am not in any mood to verify your wife¡¯s evidence. I only want to do one thing in your mansion¡ª to take Sangsang back."


    Upon listening to these words, Zeng Jing slightly frowned and thought that, as the Grand Secretary, he could not tolerate it, though Ning Que¡¯s had an extraordinary identity. So he said unhappily, "How can you break up my family? Since Sangsang is my daughter, how can she be your maidservant again?"


    After a short moment of silence, Ning Que said, "We can discuss this matterter. But shouldn¡¯t you first let me see her? After all, she is still my handmaiden."


    Zeng Jing frowned and said, "ording to thew of the Tang Empire, only the Chang¡¯an Local Government has the right to judge whether she is your handmaiden."


    Ning Que looked at him and said, "You¡¯d better not forget that I¡¯m the head of the household. As long as I don¡¯t agree, no one can relocate her. And you¡¯ll lose thewsuit in the Chang¡¯an Local Government because you have no evidence."


    Zeng Jing frowned even more. Before he had time to react, his wife, who had been waiting beside him with a forced smile, responded in advance. She angrily rushed to Ning Que and cursed, pointing at his nose. "You¡¯re such an unscrupulous master. You want my daughter to be your handmaiden? You wish! Awsuit in the Chang¡¯an Local Government? My husband is the Imperial Library Grand Secretary. He can just write a letter and the guy, Shangguan, would not dare to rule in your favor!"


    Ning Que had been at a loss and felt terribly scared, for Sangsang¡¯s parents had suddenly appeared. At this time, he was cursed by the wife of the Grand Secretary and suddenly became furious. He looked at the woman in front of him and said in a low voice.


    "You still don¡¯t know one fact. I¡¯m the core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy and a disciple of the Second Floor of the Academy. I¡¯ve been in the Imperial Study and had tea in the Princess¡¯ Mansion. If you dare to write a letter to the Chang¡¯an Local Government, I can let His Majesty send people to check whether your husband hasmitted corruption."


    Upon listening to his threat, Zeng Jing became furious and hit the table as he stood up and walked to the side of his wife. He pointed at Ning Que¡¯s nose and eximed, "How rude you are!"


    Ning Que did not feel scared. He looked at them and said calmly, "What the Academy has taught me is how to use a fist. Grand Secretary, you should understand that I will directly burn your mansion and hide in the back of the mountain of the Academy if you force me again. There will be no ce where you can look for justice."


    At this time, a noise came from the bamboo curtains of the study and a thin person came out.


    "You don¡¯t need to be afraid of him. The princess will definitely listen to me and he simply does not have the means if I want toe back here to live. As for the Academy, Second Brother promised me that he will not let Ning Que bully me. If he dares burn this mansion down, Second Brother will certainly burn him."


    Sangsang walked over to Mrs. Zeng and looked at Ning Que. She said those words with no expression.


    Ning Que looked at her slightly dark face and became startled. He smiled with aplicated emotion, as if he had jumped off of a cliff and finally caught onto a pine tree. He nearly fell down because his legs had suddenly became powerless.


    From the early morning up to this moment, from the Old Brush Pen Shop to the Grand Secretary¡¯s Mansion, he had gone to many ces today. He felt exhausted to the extreme from his spirit to his physical body. Now, he finally saw her. That kind of tension and fatigue changed into a feeling of exhaustion.


    The moment that he saw her, he felt rxed.


    Because he would not let her leave again.


    At this time, Ning Que finally rxed and recalled the fear in his heart from the entire day. He thought of the terrible feeling and could not help feeling a sense of me-like anger mixed with a totally unexinable sorrow. Finally, this mixed feeling became his innumerable words.


    "Good for you! Do you think you can get rid of me after finding your own parents? Second Brother? How could you have any support in the Academy? I¡¯ve already been cursed by Lee Yu in the Princess¡¯ Mansion. Do you still want me to be beaten by Second Brother after returning to the back of the mountain? Ah, you really deserve the title of the Grand Secretary¡¯s daughter. You acted like a beauty lifting up the curtain. Unfortunately, you don¡¯t have fair skin and can¡¯t be a beauty, but only be a little ugly girl!"


    His words were extremely harsh and unkind. Anybody who heard those would so annoyed as to quarrel with him. Mrs. Zeng had already covered her chest out of anger. However, there was no expression on Sangsang¡¯s little face. She just looked at Ning Que¡¯s eyes and said very calmly, "It¡¯s none of your business."

 Chapter 359: I Dont Like It

    Chapter 359: I Don¡¯t Like It


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que had never beaten Sangsang since she turned four.


    He had never won in the numerous fights with Sangsang since that day. For example, at this time, Sangsang had only used a sentence to resolve all the bitterness in Ning Que¡¯s words and turned it into a bolt of lightning that struck him, making his body stiff and his heart resentful.


    What has it to do with me? What has it to do with me? Why can¡¯t I poke my nose into your business? Ning Que got angrier the more he thought about it. He shook in anger just like Mr. Wu next door. He rolled up his sleeves and searched the study in the Schr¡¯s Mansion agitatedly like a cat on a hot tin roof.


    He wanted to find a wooden stick, and return to the beautiful life that he had led before Sangsang turned four. However, there wasn¡¯t any wooden stick in the study, and their lives could never return to the one that had led before she turned four.


    Even if he had really found a stick, he couldn¡¯t really ask Sangsang to remove her pants and beat her buttocks viciously. After a moment, he returned to Sangsang helplessly. He lowered his head and said, "Come back with me."


    Sangsang said in a low voice, "No."


    Ning Que lifted his head and looked into her eyes and asked, "Why not?"


    Sangsang replied softly, "Because I am not happy living there."


    "Why are you unhappy?"


    "No reason, I just am unhappy."


    "It¡¯s not that you have no reason. You have no brains!"


    "What has it to do with you?"


    Ning Que said furiously, "I am the young master and you are my handmaiden, of course it has something to do with me."


    Sangsang lowered her head and said, "You haven¡¯t allowed me to call you young master before we came to Chang¡¯an."


    Ning Que sighed softly and said sadly, "I have brought you up..."


    Sangsang lifted her head and said seriously, "You haven¡¯t raised me. I was in charge of doing theundry and cooking as well as the household chores since I was eight. I have brought you up."


    The emotional attack that Ning Que had nned for a while was interrupted coldly right from the start. He didn¡¯t even have the chance to talk about how he had cleaned up after her as a child. It made him feel awful, as if he was choking on hot and sour sliced noodle soup.


    He suddenly understood that Sangsang was not like the people in the City of Wei, and wasn¡¯t like his Senior Brothers and Sisters from the Academy. She was the person who knew him best in the world. She would not be cheated by all the emotions that he faked, and his best moves were useless against her.


    He said in annoyance, "I did earn those taels of silver, didn¡¯t I?"


    Sangsang furrowed her skinny brows and said, "But I thought of the way to earn those taels of silver. Had I not force you to sell sections after we came to Chang¡¯an, we¡¯d still be poor."


    Ning Que wasn¡¯t very clear-headed at the moment, and did not hear Sangsang referring to them as "we". If not, he would have felt much more confident. However, he did not hear that, and thus felt wronged and upset. He thought about the Horse Gang that he had killed by the Shubike in the Min Mountain resentfully, and how he had risked his life killing with Chao Xiaoshu. Even though he had done it to repay his kindness on behalf of Darkie, he had also wanted to earn more money for the family.


    He knew very well why Sangsang had left home. It had nothing to do with her finding her biological parents, and had nothing to do with anything else. After a moment of silence, he continued to roll up his sleeves.


    Sangsang kept her head low and looked at the tip of her shoes.


    Mrs. Zeng was shocked when she saw that, she thought that he was about to hit her daughter, and was prepared to rush up to hit the fellow or be hit.


    Zeng Jing pulled his wife back hurriedly.


    He looked at Ning Que and Sangsang in the study, and felt that the rtionship between the two was not like one of master and servant that he had previously thought. What was more amazing was, the two were obviously fighting, but it felt especially harmonious like a world that cannot be broken by anyone.


    Indeed. Together, Ning Que and Sangsang were the world.


    This was a world that had been born from great difficulty, however, cracks had finally formed in the old world, and it was about split or regroup. Changes were about to ur in the order of this world, but it was not known if it would be towards the light or the darkness. Perhaps there would be arge explosion and a new world would be formed.


    Ning Que looked at Sangsang and said solemnly, "We have to make this clear. I will definitely marry no matter what, we can¡¯t just live like how we have for the rest of our lives."


    Sangsang frowned at him slightly, feeling as if there was something off with his words.


    "Sorry, I said it wrong because I was too nervous." Ning Que hit the back of his head forcefully and said again, "We will spend our lives together, without a doubt."


    Following that, he continued, "But I do have to get married, I know that you might find it hard to ept in a short time, and I understand how you feel right now..."


    Sangsang suddenly asked, "You said that we will definitely spend the rest of our lives together?"


    Ning Que answered with certainty, "It is necessary!"


    Sangsang said, "And you have to get married."


    Ning Que nodded.


    Sangsang said, "You have to spend your life with someone else if you get married, how are you going to spend your life with me then?"


    It was indeed a problem, but it wasn¡¯t an issue for the thick-skinned Ning Que. He smiled and answered, "We can still spend our lives together even if I get married."


    Sangsang turned to look at Mrs. Zeng. "Are there any sons of imperial court officials who are still unmarried?"


    Mrs. Zeng was long shocked speechless by the two¡¯s conversation. She had never seen such a master-servant rtionship as a wife of an official in the imperial court. She had not managed to regain her wits when her daughter had suddenly asked the question, and she answered subconsciously, "There are still a few officials who are looking..."


    Sangsang turned around to look at Ning Que and said, "Then I shall marry them."


    Ning Que was stunned and annoyed, and then, he felt ashamed due to the annoyance. He berated, "How old are you? Why are you getting married?!"


    Sangsang replied, "I heard that one could get married at 14 in the Great River Kingdom."


    Ning Que felt himself getting smaller when he heard the Great River Kingdom being mentioned. His anger drained away, and he said tried to convince her warmly, "But we are in Chang¡¯an City."


    Sangsang said, "Even if we were in Chang¡¯an, I will be 16 next year and can get married."


    Ning Que was startled and he said furiously, "You are tanned and skinny, and have been a handmaiden for over a decade. Which son of an official would marry you?"


    Sangsang fixed her gaze at him and said, "I am the daughter of a first-ss Grand Secretary, and am a friend of the Princess. I am a disciple of the Great Divine Priest of Light, and Mr. Second of the Academy likes me. I have a few hundred thousand tales to my name. Why would anyone be unwilling to marry me?"


    Ning Que shook in anger and said, "It¡¯s fine if you didn¡¯t mention about that money, but I am even angrier now that you¡¯ve mentioned it. You actually split the notes. Do you really want to split this household?!"


    Sangsang reminded him, "We are discussing my marriage."


    Ning Que waved his hand and said forcefully, "You¡¯re not allowed to get married!"


    All were silent in the study of the Schr¡¯s Mansion when he said that. The Zengs¡¯ expressions wereplicated while Sangsang only looked at Ning Que quietly. Ning Que put down his hand slightly awkwardly.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que looked at her eyes and realized that Sangsang had grown up. She was no longer that child who bbered nonsense beside him. There was no going back now that she had grown up. The child had be a girl, and then into a youngdy, and would be a young woman. It was a process that cannot be undone. She had to start considering things that would happen when she grew up, no matter whether they brought her joy or grief.


    Girls had to get married when they grew up.


    Could he watch on helplessly when Sangsang marries someone else?


    No matter whether she was the skinny little girl or the youthful youngdy; or whether she had be naggy and bloated after marriage, or if she sat in a bamboo chair with silver hair.


    He could not watch her marry someone else as long as she was Sangsang.


    He would not allow her to marry, so why should she watch him marry someone else?


    Ning Que lowered his head and felt at a loss. He was a little flustered, somewhat awkward, and seemed to have understood something.


    He understood how Sangsang had felt when she left their home at dawn.


    He understood his own feelings.


    However, just understanding wasn¡¯t sufficient.


    Ning Que recalled the words he had heardst evening, and his body stiffened.


    He bowed deeply and respectfully to the Zengs, and asked them to allow Sangsang and him to speak alone. The couple looked at each other, sighed and left the study.


    "I cannot lie to you. I do like her."


    Ning Que looked at Sangsang whose head was still lowered. He continued, "You do not have to ask me, and I know what you want to ask. I did also like it when I peaked at the older sisters bathing, and I also said that I liked Dewdrop and Luxue at the House of Red Sleeves. But... she is different. I really like her."


    Sangsang looked down at her feet silently.


    Ning Que continued, "And I¡¯ve also asked you, and you said that she was good."


    Sangsang lifted her head and said, "She is indeed very good."


    Ning Que said, "But you do not like it."


    Sangsang replied, "She is very good, but it doesn¡¯t mean that I have to like it."


    Ning Que asked, "Why do you not like it?"


    Sangsang looked at him and said seriously, "I don¡¯t like that you like someone else."


    It was silent in the study for a long while.


    Ning Que said in a low voice, "But I already told her that I liked her."


    Like many times in the past, he would get suggestions and answers or even moral support from Sangsang in the face of really difficult decisions. However, he had forgotten that the problem involved Sangsang this time.


    Sangsang¡¯s little face remained emotionless. There was no anger or tears. She looked at him cidly and said, "I am hungry, and I want to go to bed. You¡¯d better leave."


    She was hungry, so she wanted to go to bed. There was no logic in her statement.


    Ning Que looked at her and said, "I can¡¯t sleep when you¡¯re not home."


    Sangsang did not say anything.


    Ning Que said, "Who¡¯s going to cook me noodles when I get hungry?"


    Sangsang did not say anything.


    Ning Que suddenly asked, "Shall I cook you noodles?"


    Sangsang still did not say anything.


    After a long silence, Ning Que said, "I shall go calm down a little. I wille to pick you up tomorrow."


    After which, he turned and left the study.


    Sangsang went to the door of the study and looked at Ning Que who was walking towards the flowerbeds. She said, "The eggs are in the rice vat in the kitchen. Use less oil when you fry it."

 Chapter 360: Scolding the Lake

    Chapter 360: Scolding the Lake


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que returned to the Old Brush Pen Shop. He realized that the door did not squeak when he opened it, and remembered that Sangsang had fixed it. He entered the kitchen and stuck his hand into the rice vat and retrieved a few eggs, and remembered that he was the one who taught Sangsang this when they were little. He walked to the water vat and to get some water to cook noodles. The vat was full, and he thought that Sangsang must have finished all the household chores before leaving home at dawn.


    He walked out of the kitchen and stood beneath the skylight for a long time.


    He was still carrying the ck umbre and holding the arrow box in his hand. There was also a chopper hanging from his waist. He had been running around and standing for the entire day. He had not sat down, drank any tea, or eaten anything. However, he was in no mood to cook and eat noodles but thought about the matters in his heart dazedly.


    The neat pile of firewood in the corner, the clean table and chairs out in the front had all stirred up many memories. As for what these memories were, only Ning Que himself knew.


    Every corner of the house felt empty without Sangsang. He was not used to it. He thought to himself, that it had only been a day, and he already could not bear the loneliness. He had left Chang¡¯an and been in the Wilderness for half a year. How did Sangsang spend her time at home alone?


    There was a cat on the courtyard wall.


    The cat looked up at the stars in the night sky.


    Ning Que nced at it, and took a piece of firewood from the pile in the corner and threw it at the cat.


    The cat who was pretending to be lonely was interrupted. It turned around and yowled angrily at Ning Que before jumping off the wall and disappearing.


    The house without Sangsang was devoid of any warmth and was shrouded in cold.


    Ning Que could not stay in a house like this, so he left.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que went to the Reception Yard.


    The disciples of the ck Ink Garden of Great River Kingdom lived here.


    Shanshan lived here too.


    There was arge bamboo forest in the Reception Yard that remained green even in winter. It seemed peaceful as light shone at it in the night.


    Ning Que did not enter the Reception Yard. He stood at the door in the rockery and looked at the light and shadows. His eyes were sharp, and he could vaguely make out the figure of a young girl who was writing something in the room that was farthest in the yard.


    Was she writing the two characters that made up Ning Que¡¯s name that was difficult to write well?


    Ning Que looked at the figure of the girl at the window silently for a long while.


    Then, he turned to leave for the south of the city.


    ...


    ...


    In the south of Chang¡¯an, and at the foot of the Yanming Mountain, was the Yanming Lake.


    Ning Que stood by theke and look at its surface silently. The ice on the surface had long melted but had not yet disappearedpletely in thest of winter. Instead, they had turned into something that resembled willow catkins. They looked like numerous soft gold threads under the light from the opposite end of theke in the distance.


    Plop! Plop!


    He picked up some rocks and threw them at the golden threads on theke¡¯s surface. One after another, he threw them until he had shattered all the ice catkins before him.


    He had thrown firewood to the wild cat, and now he was throwing rocks at ice catkins. It was for no other reason than that he was upset. He felt that his world had been shattered, so he would not allow others to hide in their world andugh at him secretly.


    He threw thest piece of rock in his hand at his feet. Ning Que put his hand on his waist and panted for a good while before he calmed down. He looked at the Yanming Lake in the night andined hoarsely, "The eggs are in the rice vat. Use less oil when you fry them? You¡¯re not even around and you want to control how much oil I use when frying eggs? Is there anyone as stingy as you? The eggs are in the rice vat, the water is in the water vat. Why didn¡¯t you say that the rice is in the pot? Where are you?"


    "What do you mean you brought me up? I killed all those Horse Gang and stole their prey. I¡¯ve done every bad thing possible in this life and gave you all those taels of silver that I toiled over to keep. And in the end, you say that you¡¯ve brought me up?"


    "Don¡¯t mention anything about me spending lots of money. Have I drunk in the City of Wei? Gambling... I did gamble, but didn¡¯t I do it to bring more ie to the family? Have you seen me behaving promiscuously? Have I ever paid when I visited brothels in Chang¡¯an? And yet, you are still dissatisfied with me?"


    Ning Que faced theke in the darkness and held a hand at his waist and raised the forefinger of his other hand like an angry woman. He scolded, "What do you mean I can¡¯t marry if you don¡¯t allow me to? Tell me what you want clearly! You silly little girl. What do you want? Make it clear!"


    "Are you asking whether I have ever thought of marrying you?"


    "Alright, I admit that I would asionally think about marrying you when you grow up. But you are still a girl, and I¡¯ve only thought about it. Would I really say it out loud? What if you get embarrassed and try to chop me up with a chopper when I say that? Even if you don¡¯t want to chop me up, who knows how many people out there would like to do that?"


    "Furthermore, even if I wanted to marry you, it doesn¡¯t affect me liking some other people, does it?"


    "Why do I have to like someone else?"


    "Hey, I like meat, that doesn¡¯t mean that I don¡¯t like prawns. I am an omnivore, and I like to eat some other things. So what? What can you do to me?"


    "What would you do?"


    "You could eat with me."


    "What did you say?"


    "I like women, so does it mean you have to like women as well?"


    "Erm, this doesn¡¯t seem to make sense indeed."


    His hoarse voice rang on the quietkeside.


    A conversation like the above would never happen in the Schr¡¯s Mansion.


    Because Ning Que did not dare to say this to Sangsang. He knew that if he really said it, the stubborn girl would turn and walk away without giving him a chance to plead his case. And Sangsang would definitely not ask those questions, but he knew what she was thinking about.


    That was why he could only say this at the foot of Yanming mountain at night, on the quiet, emptykeside, to theke that did not understand and could not retort. He scolded it like an idiot, and his voice startled the birds near theke.


    ...


    ...


    All were silent in the Grand Secretary¡¯s Mansion at night. Thedy¡¯s room had been prepared earlier and was decorated luxuriously. The makeup box was filled with rouge from Chenjinji Cosmetics Store.


    Sangsang used to love the rouge from Chenjinji Cosmetics Store, but she did not even nce at it today. She ignored the servants who greeted her withplicated expressions and just gazed into the bronze mirror silently.


    The bronze mirror was very smooth, and its sides were engraved with flowers. It was obviously an expensive object.


    Sangsang did not look at the bronze mirror, but only at her face reflected in it.


    It was a slightly tanned face. Her eyes were t and nd. Her hair was slightly yellow and limp due to undernourishment. Her willow-shaped eyes which used to be bright had turned dull. The face was not beautiful no matter which angle you looked at it from. It did not even look slightly pretty.


    "You¡¯re really ugly."


    Sangsang said to her reflection.


    She had not cried since she heard what Ning Que had to sayst night, or in the morning when she had left the Old Brush Pen Shop, or even when she had met Ning Que again in the afternoon. She had not even allowed sadness to touch her expression because she kept reminding herself not to cry no matter what.


    The weak and slenderdies could cry as they touched flowers because they were pretty. Even though she was weak, she was ugly. How would she have the right to cry?


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang rarely looked into the mirror. Other than not really caring about her appearance other than having pale skin, it was also because Ning Que, as a man, did not know how to dress up youngdies.


    When they were in the Min Mountain, the child would look at her face in the reflection of the calm stream. When they got to the City of Wei, the girl would wash her face andb her hair against the water in a basin. When they got to Chang¡¯an, Ning Que bought her a makeup box, and she finally owned a mirror.


    It was just that the mirror in the box was too small, and it was difficult to see her entire face.


    That was why Sangsang felt that the little tanned face in the mirror was a stranger to her.


    She felt that the person in the mirror was a stranger.


    She suddenly despised the person in the mirror.


    Sangsang shook her head and said, "You are really an annoying child."


    The Sangsang in the mirror lowered her head and said, "Why do you say so?"


    "Because you have caused him to worry."


    "I just want to give him space after his marriage."


    "But you know very well that he would not abandon you. You are forcing him to make a choice. He is already very good to you. How could you be so cruel?"


    "But he said he wanted to spend his life with me. Would it be the same if there was an additional person? Could we spend our lives together with another person?"


    "Why do you have to fight for it?"


    The Sangsang in the mirror answered sadly, "But that belonged to me."


    Sangsang who was looking at the mirror said softly, "But he would be very sad."


    "I have never fought for anything. But it¡¯s different this time. Even though he would be sad, and even though I have be an annoying child, and even though I have be more ugly. I would still fight."


    Looking at the mirror, Sangsang wiped off the tears from her face and said childishly.


    ...


    ...


    Under the morning light, theke at the foot of Yanming Mountain reflected a faint luster.


    Ning Que stood by theke with a hand grasping at his waist. He gasped tiredly and muttered something from time to time.


    He had not eaten or drank anything for a day and night and had yelled at theke for an entire night. His throat was extremely sore and his face was haggard.


    "Youngest Uncle scolded the heavens and earth heroically. What kind of feeling are you trying to invoke by scolding this littleke? Furthermore, you are just torn about unimportant matters."


    A voice rang in the forest by theke.


    Ning Que turned to look at the annoying fatso and said angrily, "You have been sexually abused since you were a child, which left a shadow in your heart. You¡¯re useless firewood. I would have you know, that the matters between men and women are truly important matters."


    Chen Pipi shrugged and said, "I know you are feeling awful, I shan¡¯t argue with you."


    Ning Que asked, "Why did youe?"


    Chen Pipi said, "I came for some things. The Academy held a meeting, but there was no conclusion even though there was plenty of argument. In the end, Seventh Sister said we should just bring you back and ask you what you think about it. You didn¡¯te to the Academy yesterday, so I was sent to bring you back."


    Ning Que¡¯s thoughts were jumbled and did not understand what he was saying. He thought of the question he had sought an answer for bitterly over the night and asked Chen Pipi seriously, "There is something I want to ask you, what do you like to eat the most?"


    "Crab porridge?" Chen Pipi touched the back of his head and asked, "Why are you asking this?"


    Ning Que said, "I love eating noodles with fried eggs the most, but if you had to eat crab porridge every day for every meal, would you get sick of it?"


    Chen Pipi thought about it for a moment before answering, "Would you not get sick of it if you ate it all the time?"


    Ning Que frowned and suddenly thought of a better analogy. He asked in a hoarse voice, "What about water? Would you get sick of it?"


    Chen Pipi said annoyedly, "What dumb question is that? You¡¯ll die if you don¡¯t drink water!"

 Chapter 361: Bun

    Chapter 361: Bun


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    One would die if they didn¡¯t drink water. Ning Que thought about this statement and asked solemnly, "If you want to eat the crab porridge that you love, you won¡¯t be able to drink water. What would you do?"


    Chen Pipi waved his hands impatiently and said, "There would not be a situation like that. Where can you not find water?"


    Ning Que asked persistently, "If the water had legs and could think for itself, and it wouldn¡¯t allow you to drink it and would run away when you get close to it. What would you do?"


    Chen Pipi was stunned. He thought about the question for a long time before answering helplessly, "If this was the case, then I¡¯d better drink the water in order to survive, even though life would be a little more bitter."


    Ning Que looked at the ripples of light on theke¡¯s surface andmented sadly, "Everyone else could have concubines... Alright, to put it in a better way, everyone else could have many different rtionships, why can¡¯t I? Why did the one I have at home learn to be jealous even when she¡¯s still a child?"


    Chen Pipi looked at the shadow that the Yanming Mountain cast on theke. He said, "Don¡¯t ask me about things like that. I¡¯ve never understood women. They¡¯re weird"


    Ning Que nced at him.


    Chen Pipi shook his head and said, "Do not think that you can get any help from the Senior Brothers and Sisters. There¡¯s no one experienced in matters like this in the back of the mountain. They¡¯re all geniuses and idiots."


    Ning Quemented, "I had thought that happiness was the most important thing in life, but I did not expect that she was so unhappy. It has already been ten years, and I have never once won over her at anything. Why¡¯s that so? Those in the world are all very good, and I like them very much. But she doesn¡¯t like them, and it seems that there¡¯s nothing that I can do. Is this fate?"


    Chen Pipiforted him, "Then you have to learn to ept fate."


    "I don¡¯t think this counts asforting me."


    Ning Que said, "Right, why did Senior Brother want to take me back to the Academy?"


    Chen Pipi said, "Everyone wants to know if you want to choose Shanshan or Sangsang. But it seems that we don¡¯t have to ask. I approve of your choice."


    Ning Que asked with a strange expression, "Why?"


    Chen Pipi looked at him and said, "Because I know you would choose her."


    Ning Que was silent for a long while.


    Chen Pipi frowned and rubbed his face. He asked concernedly, "How will you settle this?"


    After a moment of silence, Ning Que said, "When Sangsang was little, she did not want to wash her clothes. I taught her something then, that you have to deal with your own things. Since this issue belongs to me, I have to settle it myself. And it must not drag on."


    Chen Pipi said worriedly, "Aren¡¯t you worried you might hurt her?"


    Ning Que said with a smile, "Aren¡¯t I a fickle and heartless person?"


    Chen Pipi looked at him and said solemnly, "Your smile is fake and cheerless."


    Ning Que smiled gloomily, not knowing what to say.


    Chen Pipi said with emotion, "The matters between men and women are really the most troublesome things in the world. It looks like I¡¯ve really got to thank Ye Hongyu, for I do not have any thoughts about women thanks to her. As such, I do not have to experience the distress that you have."


    ...


    ...


    The two passed around theke and left Yanming Mountain and returned to the noisy streets. The morning sun was high up by then, and the citizens of Chang¡¯an have roused and were queuing up by the stalls.


    There were two monks standing beside a shop selling buns. One of them was a skinny martial monk. His hands that hung outside his robes looked like steel. The other monk was middle-aged and slightly tanned. He looked as if he had had a hard life.


    The two monks were silently chewing on the snow white buns in their hands. There were two bowls of clear water on the stones at their feet. Their robes were old and their expression indifferent, forming a sharp contrast with the lively city around them.


    "It¡¯s rare to see sadhus in Chang¡¯an."


    Chen Pipi frowned as he looked at the two monks from afar. "Especially sadhus as strong as they are."


    Ning Que looked at the two monks who chewed on their buns with their heads down. Hemented, "Everyone who has been born would experience suffering. I thought that I had suffered enough, and to think that there are people out there who are suffering more than me. They don¡¯t even have fermented beancurd to eat with their buns. They¡¯re really sadhus who have renounced the worldly life."


    Chang¡¯an City was thergest city in the world. There were many odd peopleing and going every day. Even though sadhus rarely appear, the two did not think much about it and walked past them.


    When they passed the two monks, Ning Que nced at the middle-aged monk.


    The monk raised his head to look at Ning Que at the same time.


    Ning Que stopped.


    The middle-aged monk¡¯s gaze at Ning Que was quiet and strong, as if he had been quietly scented by incense for thousands of years before a Buddha statue, and was without any impurities.


    The aura of the middle-aged monk was also extremely quiet and strong. Although he was standing in the crowded city and had half a white bun in his hands, it looked like he was standing in a Buddhist country with blooming lotuses, holding a green branch with dew on it.


    Chen Pipi stopped with Ning Que. He furrowed his brows silently and looked at the middle-aged monk. He suddenly said, "A world devoid of ugliness, and bing Buddha... are you from the White Tower?"


    The middle-aged monk ced his palms together and said, "I am Dao Shi of the White Tower Temple. Greetings, Mr. Twelve and Mr. Thirteen of the Academy."


    Dao Shi was a little-known sadhu.


    Chen Pipi had never heard of his name. Most cultivators have never heard of him. That was because Daoshi had been practicing penance in the countryside since he left the White Tower.


    But a cultivators fame was not directly rted to his powers.


    Chen Pipi looked at the sadhu who stood in the mortal world, but exuded a godly image and knew that the monk¡¯s state was very high.


    Chen Pipi nced at Ning Que.


    Ning Que looked at the middle-aged sadhu and suddenly asked, "Did youe to look for me?"


    Dao Shi said calmly, "Please, teach me something, Mr. Thirteen."


    Since he had entered the human realm, he would continue to face endless challenges. Youngest Uncle had defeated the powerhouses of the world with a sword and created a name for the Academy in the world. Ning Que was mentally prepared for a situation like this, but he was not prepared for it today.


    Ning Que did not like the Yuelun Kingdom or the White Tower temple at all because of the stories told on the journey to the Wilderness, the conflict with the Flower Addict, and because of that vile old woman called Quni Madi. However, his perception of the disciples of the Buddhism Sect did change after his battle with monk Guan Hai earlier.


    He looked at the middle-aged sadhu and said sincerely, "I have something urgent on today, could you wait a few days?"


    Dao Shi said calmly, "The Buddhism Sect is particr about fate. I havee a long way from Yuelun and met you in this vibrant city of Chang¡¯an. How could I miss this opportunity?"


    Ning Que frowned slightly.


    Chen Pipi looked at his haggard expression and knew that his emotional state these days and he was not well and that he had not rested. He could not help but shake his head. He smiled at Dao Shi and said, "How about me?"


    Dao Shi said seriously, "I am not an opponent of Mr. Twelve."


    Chen Pipi was stunned, and smiled in anger. "If you really want to challenge the Academy, it wouldn¡¯t make a difference whether I or my Younger Brother fight. Are you monks shameless?"


    A slight smile appeared on Dao Shi¡¯s tanned face. He said, "Those who serve the Buddha do not need to feel shame."


    Ning Que had not slept, ate or drank since yesterday morning. He had been tortured by fear and frustration and yelled at theke for an entire night. It did not make him feel better, which was why he was very annoyed at the moment.


    When he heard what the monk from the White Tower Temple had said, he got even more irritated. He was so irritated he couldn¡¯t breathe, and was so annoyed, he was bordering hysterics. He was so annoyed, he just said, "I admit defeat."


    The middle-aged monk said, "You have admitted defeat before we even got to battle. This is meaningless."


    Ning Que looked at the middle-aged man¡¯s darkish face and the deep wrinkles that looked like mountain streams on his face. After a moment of silence, he said, "You pick a ce then."


    The middle-aged monk said, "The Buddhism Sect is particr about fate. Since I have met Mr. Thirteen here, this ce shall be it."


    Ning Que looked at the people walking by him, and at the children not far away who were salivating over the hot buns. He asked coldly, "Have I offended you?"


    The middle-aged monk replied calmly, "We have never met."


    Ning Que asked, "Then why do you have to torture me so?"


    The middle-aged monk looked into his eyes and said, "You have insulted Aunt in the wilderness."


    Ning Que frowned slightly and said, "It¡¯s not like you¡¯re Yang Guo."


    Chen Pipi came to his side and whispered, "Even though I don¡¯t know who Yang Guo is, but I think you have seeded in stirring up his desire to battle. I have to remind you, that there¡¯re very weird arts in the Buddhism Sect. This sadhu walks on the path of lotus flowers and a world devoid of ugliness. You might not be able to beat him. Shall we just leave? Since I am here, he would not dare to stop you by force."


    Ning Que turned around to look at him and said, "Do you not feel that he is the one who had stirred up my desire to battle?"


    Chen Pipi asked, "Why do you wish to battle?"


    Ning Que answered, "Because I am annoyed."


    ...


    ...


    The middle-aged monk smiled at Ning Que and put down the bun in his hand.


    No matter how time passed, everything ends up as a mud bun.


    A bun appeared, a mud bun and a grave mound appeared before Ning Que¡¯s eyes.


    The solitary grave became clearer and bigger in his eyes, gradually obscuring the fog from the businesses on the streets, and were about to hide the happy smiles of children holding meat buns.


    Ning Que was not astonished. He knew that the disappearance of the real world in front of him did not represent anything in reality. It was just that he had been dragged into the sadhu¡¯s spiritual world.


    The middle-aged monk was a Psyche Master!


    A Psyche Master could use his Psyche Power and attack his enemy¡¯s sense of perception directly. He would use his Psyche Power to control the Qi of Heaven and Earth and attack his enemy¡¯s internal organs. It was strong and left no traces and was hard to defend against.


    The cultivationmunity had always been aware of the fact that among cultivators of the same state, the Psyche Master was the most powerful.


    Ning Que had met a Psyche Master before.


    The first cultivator he had met in this world was Lyu Qingchen. He was a Grand Psyche Master in the Seethrough State.


    But he had never fought with a Psyche Master.


    He had not expected that a Psyche Master from the Buddhism Sect would be so powerful.


    The deste solitary grave before him grew closer and closer.


    Reality grew closer and closer.


    Ning Que¡¯s sense of perception was empty.


    On the streets of reality.


    He closed his eyes, pulled out the chopper at his waist and chopped at the bald head.


    Before the grave in the spiritual world.


    He opened his eyes, and pulled out the chopper at his waist, and chopped down at the grave.


    It was filled with annoyance and a killing intent that had umted over a day and a night.


    It was all within this de.


    .


    ---

 Chapter 362: Clouds above the Mortal World, Buddha with a Bloody Face

    Chapter 362: Clouds above the Mortal World, Buddha with a Bloody Face


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que had almost no experience fighting against a Psyche Master.


    However, he did have a lot of fighting experience.


    When he realized that the quiet and joyful street in the morning, the hot vapor steaming out of the stuffed bun house, the happy children, the gossiping adults, and the rest of Chang¡¯an city were all disappearing before his eyes, he took the quickest response instead of wasting time being shocked and stricken.


    He closed his eyes, drew out the chopper from his waist, and recalled thest image he saw when his eyes were still open, then cut down forcefully following the traces left in his mind.


    The dull de, with chips of wood from the Old Brush Pen Shop, split exactly through the middle of the eyebrows of the middle-aged monk without the slightest deviation.


    ...


    ...


    The grave before Ning Que¡¯s eyes was far away, seemingly a thousand miles away.


    Yet it was near, seemingly just before the eyes.


    He drew out the long and thin podao and shed it down, as if to split it. The de, as if it was still carrying the grass stains from Shubi Lake, precisely hit the grave, moving from a thousand miles away to one step before his eyes, without swerving off by even an inch.


    However, the seemingly irresistible sh failed to split open the grave. Innumerable sparks rose up between the de and the grave, forming one continuous line of fire.


    Beyond the slender de of his podao, Ning Que could see an opening.


    ...


    ...


    On the street side of Chang¡¯an City in the early morning, the middle-aged monk calmly looked ahead with a serene yet firm face, as if unaware of the chopper embracing the morning breeze as it aimed to split apart his eyebrows.


    The skinny and shriveled martial monk standing by his side turned over his wrist to bring out an iron rod cast with refined iron, inserting one end in between the gstones while the other end blocked the chopper.


    There was an oppressive sh.


    Ning Que closed his eyes, then bent his knees and stood on his tiptoes. He then jumped five feet back towards the street through the rebound force, holding the chopper in front of his chest horizontally. His wrist was shivering and his face was pale.


    Chen Pipi, who was witnessing the fight, frowned.


    It was a well-acknowledged rule that there would always be a martial cultivator with strong closebat capabilities standing beside the Psyche Masters or Sword Masters that roamed the world. Thus it was not against the rules of the duel when the skinny and shriveled martial monk intercepted the threat to the middle-aged monk.


    Chen Pipi was not aware that Ning Que had no idea about the rules of the cultivation world. He was not angry at the unfair teaming up of the two monks of the White Tower Temple against Ning Que. Instead, he frowned because of the pedestrians that still wore normal expressions on the street.


    The children were tearing off the wet and soft paper that covered their meat buns.


    The men of the stuffed bun house were collecting copper coins condescendingly and indifferently while sorting buns into the bamboo baskets of their customers. It seemed like they did not even care to utter a word to promote their sales.


    Among the customers surrounding the steam oven, some were reprimanding troublemakers who jumped the queue, some were discussing the results of a gambling party fromst night, and some were mumbling about the rumors of the imperial pce. Yet when the fresh buns appeared in front of them, they inevitably and immediately stopped talking in order to plunder the buns.


    Nobody noticed the two foreign monks by the side of the street and the appearance of the two gentlemen from the back of the mountain of the Academy. Neither did anyone realize there was a silent and dangerous fight going on by the street side right now. The street was noisy and lively as usual, as the world indulged in harmony and joy.


    This was not "body in the mortal world and mind out of the three worlds".


    It was arousing the mind through dhyana, and an iron doorframe had been built in front of themon people.


    Chen Pipi did not expect the unknown middle-aged sadhu from the White Tower Temple to have such powerful Psyche Power of dhyana, and started to worry about Ning Que.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que floated backward for several steps.


    The lone grave from afar became clearer in his eyes.


    The grave was made up of ordinary bluestones and y without any peculiarities. However, there was no trace left on where he chopped down on the grave.


    A thousand miles away, your lone grave lies; my deep sorrows, in whom I can confide?


    Looking at the lone grave, Ning Que felt depression and a chill creeping up on him, as if the heat in his body was escaping in strands into the air.


    While in the spiritual world, how could there be a physical body?


    Ning Que looked at the lone grave a thousand miles away, and he knew that the cold and loneliness he felt from the grave were actually the attacks of Psyche Power of the middle-aged monk in the spiritual world.


    This tactic of the Buddhism Sect was brilliant or even magical.


    The Psyche Power of the middle-aged monk permeated in like the spring breeze¡ªthe gentler it was, the more dangerous it became. Once it came to the extreme point, at the point of no return, the person in it would either sing and dance, or sit and meditate, or get stuck their emotions and never extricate themselves.


    Even someone with a purer and more powerful mental state than Ning Que would still find it hard to face or even got lost in the attacks to the psyche of the Buddhism Sect.


    Ning Que was an exception, for he had once connected with Master Lotus in the spiritual world.


    Master Lotus had a thorough knowledge of Buddhism, Taoism, and diabolism, as well as a shocking level of cultivation, together with the experience of chanting sutras at Xuankong Temple and acting as the guardian of the front gate of the Buddhism Sect. Though he was dying when he connected with Ning Que in the spiritual world, and his residual psyche power was far beneath that of the middle-aged monk from the White Tower Temple, he had a much higher level spirit and realm and the methodical and patient guidance of his psyche power of dhyana was more charming.


    A sailor who had once fought violent storms at sea would find it hard to get trapped in a little rivulet. The same was true for Ning Que, who had once witnessed the 70 lotus petals, each of which carried the fragrance of an entirely different world. How could he be moved by a mere grave?


    Ning Que remained motionless, with no expression on his face, in front of the coldness and destion of the grave.


    He held on with his heart, concentrated his mind, abandoned the chopper in his hand, and created a horrific spiritual derger than a mountain through his Psyche Power, then chopped again towards the grave.


    Tough as it was, the grave was crushed immediately.


    Not smashed by the small chopper, but crushed by the mountain-like de!


    ...


    ...


    The hot steam from the stuffed bun house was swept out with the breeze that came in from the crowds rushing out to the street holding their buns.


    The white steam covered the middle-aged monk and Ning Que.


    It was as if they were among the clouds, not in the mortal world.


    When Ning Que released his right hand, the chopper fell to the ground with a light sound.


    He closed his eyes and silently stood in the middle of the crowd.


    The middle-aged monk suddenly turned pale, his body shivering fiercely as if he were about to lie down in the clouds and never wake up again.


    His palms were brought together slowly but firmly.


    The steam clouds gradually became quiet.


    The middle-aged monk regained hisposure at a snail¡¯s pace, refusing to fall.


    ...


    ...


    The grave was crushed by Ning Que into countless fragments of gravel that were sent flying all over the sky.


    After the stone rain dissipated, there appeared a giant stone Buddha a dozen feet above the ground.


    The stone Buddha looked amiable and benevolent. His opened eyes showed an unspeakable indifference and stateliness, as if thunder and lightning were brewing within them, and were filled with both mercy and rage towards the man in front of it.


    Mercy and rage were seemingly two ipatible sentiments.


    However, there was a perfect demonstration of both at the same time on the face of the stone Buddha.


    Pity for his misfortunes, wrath for his transgressions.


    The lips of the stone Buddhapressed into a line¡ªa shallow line carved with a knife as if it had not opened its mouth for thousands of years.


    Ning Que looked at the line and recalled the beautiful thin lips of the girl dressed in white.


    The stone Buddha did not utter a word.


    There was a Buddhist maxim spreading out between heaven and earth. The maxim was of two monosybles, its meaning was inexplicit, yet it was vigorous and far-reaching.


    Gravel was falling to the ground like torrential rain.


    Ning Que looked up at the sky and saw the soil and stonesing at him, but he did not know what to do.


    The skyful of gravel was like rain, falling upon his body and his face.


    When the actual pain of the body was transmitted to his sense of perception, he realized that every inch of his body and his entrails were being struck by the attacks from the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    At that moment, he recalled the scene where old Lyu Qingchen killed the schr at the crossroads of the Northern Mountain Road.


    The schr had joined the Devil and died.


    Ning Que had also joined the Devil, but he hadpletely merged with it.


    How could the invasion of the Qi of Heaven and Earth kill him?


    He felt nothing but pain.


    ...


    ...


    The steam from the stuffed bun house still drifted through the street.


    The middle-aged monk stood within the cloud and mist, his eyes deep and serene, with a burning spark in their deepest recesses wherefrom originated shock, rage and the lust to kill.


    He had never expected Ning Que, the youngest and weakest of the Academy, to have such a vigorous Psyche Power that could easily defuse the chilly attack of the gravestone a thousand miles away when his sense of perception was under attack.


    What shocked him even more was his failure to injure Ning Que when he controlled the Qi of Heaven and Earth with his Psyche Power to make a direct attack on the body of the cultivator in the form of a skyful of stone rain within the spiritual world!


    This horrific body strength was obviously not the defense formed by the safeguarding genuine Qi of an expert at the Peak state of Martial Arts. Then there could be only one reason¡ªa possibility that caused the middle-aged monk¡¯s shock and his lust to kill.


    The palms of the middle-aged monk that were formerly closed together separated from each other right now.


    He used his left index finger to dig up a hole from his right palm.


    Then he tore off a piece of bloody flesh expressionlessly.


    After this move, his darkish face grew paler, his eyebrows were showing unmistakable signs of senility, while his face was dried up and filled withyered wrinkles like the waste piles brushed with rainwater.


    He wiped the blood and flesh from his right palm on the dried up face.


    ...


    ...


    This was not the evil Bloody Emblematic Gesture of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    Rather, it was the most powerful and most resolute Blood Sacrifice to Buddha of the Buddhism Sect.


    Disciples of the Buddhism Sect using this tactic wouldter die, even if they had a deep cultivation realm.


    Unless it was for a moment of a crisis happening to the sect or encountering bitter enemies whose hate spanned over generations, no disciple would ever use this skill, which went against the ts ofpassion of the Buddhism Sect.


    When Chen Pipi saw the middle-aged man dig up his palm and wipe his face, he immediately realized what was going on. He was shocked at the resolution of the monk to kill younger brother Ning Que!


    At this dangerous moment, he could not help intervening to rescue his younger brother.


    Hisrge and wide academy clothes drifted and vibrated like a g even though there was no breeze.


    He slightly bent his index finger in the posture of the Natural Stream Magical Finger, then attacked the middle-aged monk along with the No-Boundary Spirit of the Academy.


    Just then, he witnessed something extraordinary.


    Something shocking enough to leave him stunned for a moment.


    However, victory and defeat in a battle in the spiritual world usually needed just one moment.


    -


    ----

 Chapter 364: Buddhas Head and Meat Buns

    Chapter 364: Buddha¡¯s Head and Meat Buns


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Unlike Guan Hai, the Lanke Temple¡¯s monk, whose heart was in the esoteric state and his cultivation was in palm emblems, the sadhu drinking water in the morning at street of Chang¡¯an in broken straw shoes had a clear goal for his trip. He wanted to use challenging the Academy¡¯s disciple who entered the human realm as an opportunity to cripple or even kill Ning Que.


    Ning Que had not rested for 24 hours. He had not slept or even sat for a while. He had eaten or drunk nothing. Physical tiredness and tons of emotions had exhausted him. It seemed that he would die no matter what in the face of such a terrifying powerhouse of the Buddhism Sect.


    Ning Que had encountered his greatest fear when he discovered that Sangsang had left home yesterday morning and he might never see her again. It was the first time he had the impulse to kill himself. He wrangled with the idea of whether he should in the middle of the night by the Yanming Lake where he cursed it.


    However, Sang Sang was still in Chang¡¯an City, and he had finally made a difficult decision. How could he die at this moment? If he died now, wouldn¡¯t it be a waste of all the pains and struggles he had experienced previously? If he were to die now, then he should had visited the House of Red Sleeves for a happy night.


    The middle-aged monk wanted to kill him, but he did not want to die. He had to kill the monk.


    After all, the pure white lotus flowers in the air were not really Sangsang¡¯s little feet. And no matter whether it was a stone Buddha or a real God hidden behind the curtain of flowers, it would not stop him from heading there with his big ck umbre.


    As long as that ce was not Sangsang that he would never be able to beat.


    Then nothing could stop him. He would destroy any barrier in front of him.


    ...


    ...


    The big ck umbre was very big and it blocked his vision and the sky.


    White lotus flowers fell from the sky slowly. Somended on the surface of the thick, greasy ck umbre, gradually melted and disappear. Some fell on the surface of the ck umbre like dewdrops on a drum surface, bouncing back into the air with a thwack sound. However, most of the white lotus flowers scattered in fear when they neared the ck umbre.


    Ning Que held the big ck umbre and walked towards the stone Buddha with a bloody face. He walked slowly but steadily, and he was unhurried. He looked like a tourist who was walking on a bridge across theke, trying to pick willows on the other side of the shore.


    As he walked, the shower of flowers was torn apart. Tens of thousands of lotus petals moved away slowly, trying to evade the ck umbre, thus causing several streaks of turbulence.


    Tens of thousands of lotus petals whistled and swirled in the air. They flew higher and toward the lonely sky and fell slowly onto the stone Buddha¡¯s face and body. Due to the sticky blood, these petals did not lift up into the air once more. Instead, they gradually covered the entire face of the stone Buddha.


    The white lotus petals covered the stone Buddha¡¯s face densely. Blood oozed out from the ovepping edges of the flowers, making them look especially clear. The petals were so many that they looked extremely terrifying.


    Ning Que walked beneath the big ck umbre in the thinning rain of withering petals.


    He was getting closer and closer to the stone Buddha.


    The middle-aged monk called Dao Shi was indeed very powerful, no matter his cultivation state or the ability to use the arts of Buddhism Sect. He was even as powerful as the Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu.


    However,it was pity that he was a monk who could only use Zen to attack and kill.


    But his target was Ning Que who carried the big ck umbre.


    Ning Que did not have too much experience fighting with Psyche Masters. That was why he had been forced into the extremely dangerous stage of the purend of lotus flowers by the middle-aged monk. However, he had used his powerful Psyche Power and strong body that he had acquired after joining the Devil and gained control of the situation.


    In theory, a Psyche Master was the strongest amongst cultivators of the same state. However, the big ck umbre was able to block all Psyche attacks. That was why Ning Que was the nightmare of all Psyche Masters.


    Ning Que had many doubts as to why the middle-aged monk would want to kill him and wanted to find the secrets behind it. That was why he was willing to use such a painful method of facing the rain of lotus flowers with his own flesh to gain time for questioning. Or perhaps he just wanted to feel pain? Physical pain could usually relieve emotional pain or annoyance. And he was already on the verge of breaking down from the annoyance.


    And since he made the decision, he did not bother with anything else. The killing intention exuded from Ning Que.


    A strong killing intent passed through his hands to the umbre¡¯s handle and to the whole umbre. Then, it spread to the air around him causing the rain of lotus flowers to evade it in fear before reaching the stone Buddha¡¯s blood covered face.


    Ning Que¡¯s killing intent had been brewing since Sangsang left home. It grew and became more terrifying as he searched on the streets of Chang¡¯an and had almost torn apart the entire city. Then, it had been blown by the night breeze by thekest night until it became as hot and hard as a sausage.


    You could eat it with alcohol, and it would motivate you to kill someone.


    Ning Que stopped at the feet of the stone Buddha and carried the big ck umbre like a knife on his shoulders. He looked up.


    The stone Buddha¡¯s face was covered densely in lotus petals, and blood oozed from gaps between petals.


    The Buddha¡¯s eyes were not covered by the petals, but in his eyes,passion and anger were reced by confusion.


    Ning Que looked at the Buddha¡¯s face that was covered in blood and petals. After a moment of silence, he used his right palm like a knife, and issued a blow at it from thousands feet away.


    There was no sharp sounds of a de striking.


    And there was not any de aura that could spread thousands miles.


    The thin rain of lotus flowers danced gently.


    All was silent before the Buddha.


    However, arge and deepsh appeared on the Buddha¡¯s face.


    It began from the Buddha¡¯s temple and stretched down diagonally to the left face, breaking the vague smile on his lips.


    The lotus flowers that had been cut through were smashed into a mud and flowed with the blood.


    The confusion in the stone Buddha¡¯s eyes was quickly reced with fear and shock.


    The lotus petals began to fall from the stone Buddha¡¯s face. It could be due to the stickiness of the blood, but each petal would bring a tiny piece of rock with it when it fell.


    As the petals fell, the cracks that had been present on Buddha¡¯s face grew deeper and its face was ruined. Then the left part of his brows, eyes, nose, and lips began to fall to the ground like stone rain.


    It looked as if thousands years of weathering was finished within this moment.


    The stone statue copsed, bringing up a flurry of dust and some lotus petals.


    Ning Que stood before the rubble with his big ck umbre.


    ...


    ...


    A single movement of Psyche would affect things thousands miles away and cause changes which needed thousands years.


    The battle in the spiritual realm had taken a long time, but in physical world, only a short moment had passed.


    At that moment, one more section of the intestines the skinny martial monk held in his hands fell out. Chen Pipi¡¯s whose face was pale, thought that Ning Que had died. Then, he decided that he would smash his obsessions and rules and begin on a lifetime quest of killing Buddha.


    A slight breeze came through the streets shortly after the moment.


    The slight breeze dissipated the steam from the bun shop and swirled around the corners of Ning Que¡¯s robes. It tousled his hair that was tied carelessly. It blew at the big ck umbre, causing it to sway gently.


    An aura radiated from Ning Que together with the morning breeze. The aura was filled with vitality, pride and confidence. It was extremely strong.


    Ning Que opened his eyes and looked at the middle-aged man who stood by the door of the shop.


    Because of this nce, the middle-aged monk¡¯s forehead sunk in with a soft pop.


    The sound was small, but it sounded terrifying in on the morning streets.


    The middle-aged monk¡¯s purend of lotus flowers had been ruined, and his dedication to Buddha destroyed. His Psyche Power had been blocked and reflected by the odd big ck umbre, breaking his brain!


    The dazed middle-aged man looked at Ning Que in shock, angrily, and sadly. Blood flowed from the corners of his lips as his throat gurgled. He yelled with all his strength, "You are... you are the m..."


    He was in a hurry to speak before his death but could only manage to say that.


    Chen Pipi¡¯s face was pale and he flicked his sleeves forcefully.


    The skinny martial monk who had been blocking him bellowed. He pulled down on the sharp de in his abdomen, and the blood that sttered out flew towards Chen Pipi as he tried to stop him again.


    Chen Pipi had already been stopped by him once, and would not give him another chance after the shock. The Qi of Heaven and Earth began to brew, and it easily deflected the blood that was heading towards him. There was a tearing sound, and his sleeves were torn to shreds and flicking out like lightning. Then, they turned into a thread of catkin that tapped the lips of the middle-aged monk, forcing the words back into his throat.


    Ning Que was even more certain that he must not allow the middle-aged monk to reveal his secret before his death. The Great Spirit exploded from his body and came to the other man. His hand cut down like a knife.


    His palm had not made contact with the middle-aged monk¡¯s neck.


    But a thin red line appeared on the middle-aged monk¡¯s neck.


    The middle-aged monk¡¯s head twisted and fell.


    At that moment, when the cloth from Chen Pipi¡¯s sleeves made a slithering sound and wrapped around that thin bloody line. It tied the middle-aged monk¡¯s head that was about to fall tightly to his body.


    The martial pale monk holding on to his intestines, turned around and squeezed through the crowds on the street.


    Chen Pipi looked at the back of the martial monk silently, as if he was hesitating.


    Ning Que nced at Chen Pipi.


    Chen Pipi looked at the sky.


    All was calm on the streets of Chang¡¯an. Some were selling buns, and children blew at their meat buns and took a bit carefully. They were both happy and regretful as they tasted the meat stuffs. They were happy that the stuffs tasted so good, but were regretful that they had reached the filling so quickly.


    The middle-aged monk outside the bun shop sat down slowly. No one knew that he had died, and no one noticed that there was a monk who held on to his intestines walking away painfully in the crowd.


    Ning Que took out his arrow box and began to assemble his bow and arrow quietly.


    He aimed at the calm and happy street of Chang¡¯an and shot a Primordial Thirteen Arrow.


    The talisman arrow flew through the air. No one knew where it ended.


    There were too many people on the street and he could not see if he had managed to shoot the fleeing martial monk.


    Suddenly, there was amotion at a spot further down. Someone yelled in fear, "Someone¡¯s dead!"


    Ning Que held his arrow box, carried his ck umbre and disappeared into a side alley with Chen Pipi.


    The distantmotion quickly traveled to the bun shop.


    The timid but curious children yelled in fear and called for their friends and run towards that direction.


    A little boy who held a big meat bun identally knocked the middle-aged monk sitting outside the shop when he ran by. He dropped the meat bun from his hands.


    The child looked at the bun rolling on the ground and was about to cry.


    The middle-aged monk¡¯s head fell off gently together with the strip of cloth tying it to his body. It rolled on the ground like another meat bun.


    The child rubbed his eyes and began to cry loudly when he saw the monk¡¯s head.


    The calm and joyful atmosphere on the streets disappeared with the sound of crying.


    After all, purend was fake.


    Reality was always much more sinister and dangerous.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 365: The Dead Master

    Chapter 365: The Dead Master


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    There were many quiet ces other than some noisy streets in the winter morning of Chang¡¯an. For example, the little alleys that crossed the city.


    Ning Que and Chen Pipi walked through the narrow alley. Nobody said anything for a long time. Chen Pipi nced at him with several emotions in his eyes, which were hard to describe.


    "If you want to ask? Then, ask."


    Ning Que rubbed his slightly pale face and dispelled the tiredness in his body.


    Chen Pipi shook his head.


    Ning Que suddenly asked, "Did you want to know what the "m" meant?"


    Chen Pipi shrugged and said nonchntly, "Mastermind? Anyway, I don¡¯t care about these things."


    Ning Que suddenly stopped. He raised his head and looked at the gloomy sky that had been segmented by tree branches. Chen Pipi looked up together with him with an odd expression, but did not see anything weird.


    Ning Que stared at the sky for a long time. Then, he suddenly smiled and looked at Chen Pipi, "I¡¯ve joined the Devil."


    Chen Pipi did not look at his eyes but continued to look at the sky. He said sarcastically, "This joke isn¡¯t funny at all."


    Ning Que looked at his chubby face and said seriously, "You know this isn¡¯t a joke."


    Chen Pipi said, "But I feel that this is like a joke."


    Ning Que did not intend to give up. He stared at him and asked, "If this is not a joke, how do you intend to deal with me?"


    Only Sangsang and Eldest Brother of the Academy vaguely knew about Ning Que having joined the Devil when he cultivated the Great Spirit at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine in the Wilderness. However, they had not never questioned Ning Que about this.


    Ning Que had discussed the Devil¡¯s Doctrine with Chen Pipi once. In that discussion, Chen Pipi had not disguised his hatred and despise to the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    However, Ning Que had wanted to confess to him under the winter skies because Chen Pipi had been too kind to him even before he became his Twelfth Senior. He was his closestpanion in Chang¡¯an apart from Sangsang. Since Chen Pipi had vaguely guessed the truth, he could no longer hide it from him. Furthermore, he did want to know how Chen Pipi would treat him.


    ¶ÔÓÚÕâ¼þÊÂÇé,³ÂƤƤµÄÓ¦¶Ô·½·¨ºÜ¼òµ¥,³ÁĬƬ¿ÌȷʵÎÞ·¨¼ÌÐøװɵ֮ºó,Ëû¿ªÊ¼³äã¶:Chen Pipi¡¯s response was simple. After a moment of silence, he could no longer pretend to be dumb. Then, he began to act stupid, "I didn¡¯t hear what you said."


    Ning Que yelled into his ears, "I have joined the Devil!"


    Chen Pipi jumped, and quickly covered Ning Que¡¯s mouth. He nced around nervously and said like scold, "It¡¯s not anything good. Do you want the entire Chang¡¯an City to hear you?"


    Ning Que said, "I just want to make sure you heard me clearly."


    Chen Pipi swiped at his ears and said irritatedly, "The martial monk¡¯s blood got into my ears when he cut his stomach open. My ears are a little ufortable, so I can¡¯t hear anything clearly today."


    Ning Que stood before him and told him the story, apanied with gestures, on how he had joined the Devil.


    Chen Pipi refused to look at his lips and gestures. He closed his eyes tightly and his brows twisted painfully.


    Ning Que reached out to pull his eyelids open.


    Chen Pipi could no longer tolerate, and he said like bellow angrily, "Why telling me? Isn¡¯t it good if I pretend not to know anything? Or do you want me to kill you?"


    Ning Que said shamelessly, "Senior Brother wouldn¡¯t bear to do it."


    The two guys looked at each other and bursted intoughter.


    They both understood that the matter was truly over.


    There was a teahouse in the alley. Ning Que had not eaten or drunk anything and run for a whole night. He had been heavily injured in the battle with the middle-aged monk. He was on the brink of mental copse. He could walk no longer when he saw the teapots outside the teahouse and smelt the scent of snacks.


    The two guys sat at the table near the window on the second floor. Ning Que cleared the table with shocking speed and began to daydream while he looked out of the window at Chang¡¯an¡¯s morning scenery, just like what he had done in the past 24 hours.


    Chen Pipi acted like Eldest Brother, and began to slowly pick out the flesh from the ms in spicy sauce. He could not help to worry when he saw Ning Que¡¯s expression. He wondered that if his Younger Brother¡¯s had been injured in the battle with the middle-aged monk, and that he became dumb after being cleansed by Buddhist¡¯s intentions in that purend of lotus flowers.


    "Senior Brother, could you do me a favour?"


    Ning Que retracted his eyesight from the scenery outside the window and asked Chen Pipi seriously.


    Chen Pipi was startled, and he asked, "What is it?"


    "It¡¯s like this..."


    "What art?"


    "That¡¯s what I meant."


    "What¡¯s the percentage?"


    "Thirty and seventy."


    ...


    ...


    Sound of footsteps came from the stairs of the teahouse as the two Brothers were engrossed in discussion. The two shut up and looked at the stairs in unison.


    He Mingchi walked up with the yellow oiled-paper umbre under his arms. His slight hunch made him look like a vige teacher who had books and a ruler under his arm.


    The government would of course be alerted by the mysterious deaths of two monks from the Yuelun Kingdom. The Chang¡¯an Local Government had no clue of this incident and did not know who hadmitted the crime. However, it did not take long for the Imperial Center Administration to ascertain the truth of the matter and to find killer.


    Ning Que invited He Mingchi to sit and poured him a cup of tea. He said, "I remember that the opinions of both parties are respected with regards to matters rting to challenges in thew of the Tang Empire."


    He Mingchi bowed to the two respectfully before he said after some hesitation. "However, thews of Tang Empire have never allowed a battle to death. Besides, all battles have to be registered with the government."


    Ning Que said, "Who would know how these matters end? As for registering, can¡¯t I register now?"


    He Mingchi smiled bitterly, "I will register the battle this morning when I return."


    Ning Que toasted him with the tea and smiled, "So why did youe for us?"


    He Mingchi put down the teacup and sighed, "The crux of the matter is that you were too vicious."


    Ning Que said calmly, "I would be dead had I not been vicious."


    He Mingchi held his teacup. After a brief moment of silence, he said, "That middle-aged monk is not an ordinary person."


    Ning Que and Chen Pipi did not say anything. They had already guessed that the middle-aged monk was somebody. It was likely that he came from the Xuankong Temple. However, knowing and getting confirmation were two things.


    "Dao Shi was not famous, and even the Imperial Center Administration doesn¡¯t have many records about him. I would have thought he was a nobody from the White Tower Temple, if I had not been curious and checked some old records and asked for information about the Yuelun Kingdom after he entered Chang¡¯an."


    He Mingchi looked at Ning Que and said, "Many years ago, the Elder of White Tower Temple found an abandoned baby outside the temple. The Imperial Center Administration thought that there might be more to the incident because the White Tower Temple was very close to the imperial pce and was heavily guarded. It would be very difficult to leave a baby there. That baby was Dao Shi."


    "Rumors said that monk Daoshi was rted to some noble of the Yuelun Royal family. And we have found that he had been cultivating in the Buddhism arts in the Xuankong Temple over the years. That was when we have received indirect confirmation of the rumors surrounding his birth. Everyone knows that even though that the Aunt is hateful, her status in the Buddhism Sect is super high and that she has a secret rtionship with the Xuankong Temple."


    "Furthermore, monk Daoshi and Aunt Quni Madi are different. Even though he had only returned from the Xuankong Temple for a short time, he had gained respect from the Buddhism Sect of Yuelun Kingdom. Mr. Thirteen had not only killed him this morning, but also cut his head off. This would only anger Yuelun Kingdom and the Buddhism Sect."


    Ning Que said, "I am facing a very troublesome issue these days. That issue concerns whether my world would end or be rebirthed. Don¡¯t tell me that the middle-aged monk might be Quni Madi¡¯s illegitimate son. Even if that old hag Quni Madi came personally, I would say ¡¯go f**k yourself¡¯ to her."


    He Mingchi sighed and said, "But his Senior Brother is Qi Nian."


    Qi Nian was the Buddhism Sect¡¯s World Wayfarer. He was the eldest disciple of the chief monk who preached at Xuankong Temple.


    Chen Pipi became silent. He had heard of this name many times as a child from his proud senior from West-Hill. That was why he knew that Qi Nian was very rough.


    Ning Que was also silent. The reason for his silence was very simple. It was because Chen Pipi was silent. He remembered who Qi Nian was, and understood who he had angered by killing Dao Shi.


    "I feel awful today."


    Ning Que said as a conclusion, "He bumped into my knife. That meant he was unlucky."


    ...


    ...


    On the streets of Chang¡¯an.


    A pair of hands picked up the head on the ground.


    The hands were slightly tanned, and have once held alms bowls. They have once bowed in front of Buddha, and once caressed a tree in silence. More often than not, they held an iron staff and walked the world with fluttering monk robes.


    The hands belonged to an ordinary sadhu from the White Tower Temple.


    he sadhu held the head with trembling hands. He knelt before the headless corpse outside the bun shop and managed to attached the head to the body after a long time.


    The body of the skinny martial monk had also been found and ced beside the middle-aged monk¡¯s corpse, who was in a sitting position with his knees crossed. The martial monk¡¯s intestines had been stuffed back into his stomach. His chest had been shot by a talisman arrow, which looked exceptionally frightful.


    The sadhu held his iron staff and knelt before the bodies of the two monks. He lowered his head slowly.


    On the streets, ten other sadhus from Yuelun Kingdom kelt as well, and ced their palms together with lowered heads.


    A breeze that came from nowhere entered the street and blew the monks¡¯ robes. Grief and indignation appeared on the tanned faces of the sadhus.


    The sound of chanting rose with the wind and passed through the streets.


    Many citizens of Chang¡¯an watched from two ends of the streets and they lowered their heads as they heard the chant.


    Snow fell down, covering the bodies of the two monks outside the shop, as if it wanted to cover the blood on their neck and body. It was thest snowfall in Chang¡¯an this winter.


    ...


    ...


    Decades ago, the Elder of the White Tower Temple of Yuelun Kingdom opened the doors of the temple to find a baby on the stone path. He leaned over and watched the child for a long time and asked the baby smilingly where it hade from. The baby¡¯s eyes were as dark as ck paint and were calm and gentle. His soft lips whispered that he came from where he shoulde from. The Elder was stunned and quickly carried the baby into the temple.


    The Elder named the boy Dao Shi, and felt that the boy was intelligent and would be the Bhadanta of the Buddhism Sect in the future. However, as time passed, the boy became ordinary and gained no reputaition. However, he often received the help from nobles in the pce.


    Monk Dao Shi was hardworking and practiced penance. He left the temple at 12 and traveled the world. At 16, he returned to the capital and felt for the slums at the feet of the pce and entered the purend of lotus flowers. However, he remained unknown.


    After some years, monk Daoshi gained instruction from a noble and headed to the Xuankong Temple in the Wilderness. He began to study and practice Buddhism under the chief preaching monk. However, he remained unknown in the world.


    Another year passed, and monk Daoshi heard of a certain incident and his Zen heart was touched. He returned to the Yuelun Kingdom from Xuankong temple. He toured 480 temples and began to be known in the Buddhism Sect.


    The Bhadanta of the Buddhism Sect of the secr world was in charge of the supermundane Xuankong Temple. Decades ago, the person was Master Lotus, and 10 years ago, the person was Master Huang Yang, the younger brother of the Tang emperor several years ago. Today, the person was Master Dao Shi, a monk from the Yuelun Kingdom.


    One day, the master came to Chang¡¯an due to a certain incident in the Wilderness, a thought in the secr world, and a word from the Buddhism Sect.


    He met Mr. Thirteen of the Academy, Ning Que, and died.


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 366: Cutting the Candle

    Chapter 366: Cutting the Candle


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    He Mingchi walked out of the teahouse and looked at the flickering snowkes. He felt that it was a little odd and gazed at the sky. Then, he turned around to look at the two upstairs before opening his yellow oiled-paper umbre.


    At the table by the window, on the second floor of the teahouse, Chen Pipi could not help but shake his head when he heard Ning Que say that the middle-aged monk had died because he was unlucky enough to have met him while he was in a bad mood. He said jokingly, "Wouldn¡¯t the Unknown ce have to send someone for you to kill when the two of you fight in the future?"


    Ning Que noticed how he had phrased the sentence and looked at him seriously, "It seems that you really like my Sangsang?"


    Chen Pipi said, "I would asionally visit the Old Brush Pen Shop while you were away in the Wilderness. And I do quite like her for many reasons. One of them being that she is the sessor of the Great Divine Priest of Light. We are after all from the same sect, which is why I am biased towards her."


    Ning Que said, "If so, you have to help me then."


    Chen Pipi said helplessly, "I must be mad to agree to your request."


    "I don¡¯t understand how that middle-aged monk called Daoshi could find me when he had just arrived in Chang¡¯an. How did he know that I would pass through that street? Someone has to give an exnation for this."


    Ning Que stood up and left the teahouse. Chen Pipi shook his head and followed behind him.


    ...


    ...


    The two came to the Reception Yard and passed through the dense bamboo forest. Cat Girl weed them happily and chattered on as she pulled on Ning Que¡¯s sleeves. She told him excitedly about the sights they visited in Chang¡¯an and what they had eaten. Then, the female disciples of ck Ink Garden surrounded him.


    The girls from the Great River Kingdom did not know who Chen Pipi was, but were weing towards him since he was a friend of Ning Que. Ning Que listened to the girls¡¯ description patiently and interacted with them with a slight smile on his face.


    When they arrived in the depths of the inner courtyard, the disciples of ck Ink Garden scattered. They knew that Mr. Thirteen hade for the Hill Master and knew to leave the two alone.


    All of them gave Chen Pipi a few strange looks as they left, wondering why the chubby boy didn¡¯t know anything about rtionships, wanting to tag along with Ning Que as he went inside.


    The environment of the Reception Yard was quiet. The lush bamboo forest appeared slightly bleak in winter, but it still had enough greenery. Some yellow bamboo leaves fell against the windowsill.


    Mo Shanshan quietly looked at the yellow bamboo leaves on the windowsill. Then, she turned around, picked up a brush and wrote a stroke on the faintly yellow paper. The bristle tips fell as softly as bamboo leaves.


    She looked up when she heard noisesing from the courtyard. An odd expression crossed her face as she had not expected Ning Que to suddenly visit. Moreover, she had not expected that he would bring the Academy¡¯s Mr. Twelve with him either.


    Ning Que looked at the white garbed girl, sitting at the desk by the windowsill. He looked at her ck hair cascading over her dress, her fluttering eyshes and beautiful round cheeks, then suddenly felt an urge to turn around and leave.


    He had spent a long time outside this small courtyardst night, watching the girl¡¯s silhouette at the window. Then he went to theke and struggled for a long time. In the end, he had thought that his cold and unfeeling nature would help in making him emotionally prepared. However, he suddenly felt an unbearable void in his heart when she saw her.


    This sense of emptiness was one that you would feel when realizing that a wonderful thing was passing by, yet you could do nothing about it. What¡¯s more, when a wonderful thing came, it had to be ruthlessly and stupidly rejected by him, at the risk of hurting the other person, bringing frustration and guilt. All of this made him feel remorseful.


    He was flustered over his guilty conscience. As to whether there was any heartache hidden in the deepest parts of his heart, Ning Que did not reveal a trace of it and did not tell anyone about it afterwards. He pulled Chen Pipi to his side.


    Mo Shanshan stood up from the desk and bowed at Chen Pipi before looking at Ning Que confusedly.


    Ning Que coughed twice and cleared his slightly hoarse throat. He gestured for Mo Shanshan to sit and tried his hardest to smile. He said, "We will deliver a cross talk today."


    Chen Pipi looked at him nervously. He asked, "What¡¯s a cross talk?"


    Ning Que said, "Cross talking, is an art of speaking. It focuses on speaking, imitating, teasing, and singing."


    Chen Pipi eximed with exaggeration, "So this is the case."


    Although Mo Shanshan had lived in seclusion by the Ink Lake and was not concerned with the goings of the world, she was the smartest girl on earth. She could guess something from the way the two were behaving. She furrowed her thin brows and then descended into dignified silence.


    Ning Que told severalic dialogues after that. He spoke, and wrote and acted. He did not care about the pauses between each scene and did not care if anyone understood him. He just continued talking. Chen Pipi had only heard some stories told by storytellers in the alleys of Chang¡¯an, but had never heard ofic dialogues. He had never participated in any cross talk performance in primary school and did not know how to return the dialogue. Anyway, he just "mm-ed" and "ah-ed" throughout the performance.


    "Why do I just have to say ¡¯mmm¡¯ and ¡¯ah¡¯?"


    "That¡¯s because you¡¯re the straight man and I am theedian."


    "But you said at the teahouse that the show was 30% joking and 70% ying seriously."


    "I was joking with you."


    ...


    ...


    Mo Shanshan hung up her delicate brush and looked at the two calmly. Her lips finally curled up and smiled when Ning Que said that he was kidding with Chen Pipi.


    Chen Pipi had been noting her expression nervously, and finally rxed when he saw her reaction. He said happily, "She smiled."


    Ning Que looked at him and said seriously, "Thank you for your help, Senior Brother."


    Mo Shanshan who was seated on the chair suddenly lifted her hand and pointed at Chen Pipi. She said, "Twelfth Senior Brother¡¯s straight... man acting wasn¡¯t very well practiced. So it wasn¡¯t funny."


    Chen Pipi wiped the sweat off his forehead and said awkwardly, "I¡¯ve just learned the part, please be lenient."


    Mo Shanshan looked at Ning Que and said, "I liked it more when you said it alone."


    Chen Pipi nced at Ning Que and headed out without hesitating. He left the silent room for the shadows of the bamboo forest and the couple in it.


    After a moment of silence, Ning Que said hoarsely, "Shanshan, you were right about what you said that day at the street..."


    He had not managed toplete his sentence before sweat started to pour in buckets like a thunderstorm from his stiff body, thoroughly soaking his robes.


    Mo Shanshan looked at him and her longshes fluttered. She listened to his voice and suddenly stood up. She did not allow him to finish what he had wanted to say. Instead, she said softly, "Thirteenth Senior Brother, please."


    Ning Que was slightly startled.


    Mo Shanshan spread yellow bud paper on the desk, and weighed it down at a corner. She poured water into the ink b and began to grind the ink. Then, she pointed at the brushes on the stand and said softly, "Choose one."


    Ning Que did not know what she wanted to do, but silently chose the kind of brush that he normally used.


    Mo Shanshan looked at him and said solemnly, "You promised me in the Wilderness that you¡¯d write me loads of calligraphy pieces."


    Ning Que thought about what had happened then. After a brief moment of silence, he replied seriously, "I will write as many as you want me to."


    Rare mischievous expression spread on Mo Shanshan¡¯s beautiful face. She said jokingly, "You¡¯ll write as many as I want you to? So how about writing endless copies?"


    Ning Que replied yfully, "Then I will never stop writing."


    Mo Shanshan looked at him silently, "So write for me forever."


    The doors of the room inside the bamboo forest of the Reception Yard remained tightly shut from day to dusk and never opened once. Ning Que discussed the art of calligraphy with Mo Shanshan and wrote her sections until night came with the need to light candles. The silhouette on the window became two people, and from the outside, it looked like two shadows joined as one.


    The candlelight flickered and Mo Shanshan trimmed the candle wick with a pair of small scissors. Then, she walked to Ning Que¡¯s side and watched him write. She knew that he was very tired, but also knew that he did not need pity at this moment.


    After all, he could not write forever, and she could not trim the candle wick twice. The door opened with a squeak and Mo Shanshan sent Ning Que to the door. Outside the threshold, they bowed at each other peacefully before saying their goodbyes.


    When they straightened up, Mo Shanshan looked into Ning Que¡¯s eyes. Suddenly, she walked forward and stuck her face in his chest rather clumsily. She listened silently.


    After a moment of hesitation, Ning Que hugged her and patted her back gently.


    Mo Shanshan leaned into his chest silently. Then, she said, "You still owe me a note."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que coughed violently and painfully after leaving the Reception Yard. It seemed that he could not lower the volume of the cough even if he held a handkerchief to his mouth.


    Chen Pipi knew that he was beyond exhaustion and had been severely injured in the battle this morning. He had been waiting for him outside the courtyard. When he saw him coughing he could not help sighing, "You were already heavily injured, but came to do something so emotionally and mentally draining. Isn¡¯t that injuring yourself even more? Why would you do this?"


    Ning Que smiled and stuffed the handkerchief back into his sleeves, not saying a word.


    Chen Pipi caught a nce of the specks of blood on the handkerchief and spoke after a brief silence, "Would the Calligraphy Addict be more touched if she knew that you were heavily injured and were coughing up blood?"


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "I had already made a decision, so she doesn¡¯t need to be moved by this. The result would only amount to make me happy. It¡¯s despicable."


    Chen Pipi patted his shoulders and said, "Let¡¯s go drink."


    Ning Que asked, "When did you start liking alcohol?"


    Chen Pipi said, "Second Brother heard that you need alcohol at this time to feel better. That¡¯s why he went to borrow two bottles of alcohol from Professor Huang He. We shall go drink it now."


    Ning Queughed and could not help but be touched by the fact that someone like Second Brother would be concerned about such things in life, and that Chen Pipi would apany him throughout.


    But the night was better spent alone.


    Ning Que rejected Chen Pipi¡¯s suggestion to drown his sorrow. Instead, he decided to return home and rest. However, when he reached the entrance of Lin 47th Street, he suddenly remembered that Sangsang was still at the Schr¡¯s Mansion. The Old Brush Pen Shop was as silent as a cemetery and the bed was as cold as a grave. He turned around silently after a moment.


    It didn¡¯t take long for him to reach the Building of Pines and Cranes. He asked for the fanciest banquet because he had wanted to do something meaningless even if he didn¡¯t want to get drunk.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 367: Chronicles of the Building of Pines and Cranes (I)

    Chapter 367: Chronicles of the Building of Pines and Cranes (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    It waste in the night and the time for the Building of Pines and Cranes to put up shutters. People inside the building were cleaning, and thus they embarrassedly refused Ning Que¡¯s request. Ning Que, of course, was unwilling to leave now, he took out a sheaf of notes, then drew one and gave it to the manager after thinking for a while.


    When he left the Old Brush Pen Shop yesterday, he was ready for the oue of never going back, in the case he could find Sangsang. So he took the most valuable things with him, including the Primordial Thirteen Arrows, and of course, the notes.


    Though it was only one note, the manager clearly saw its denomination and suddenly became frightened when he recalled the thick sheaf of notes in front of his eyes just now. He knew clearly that a guest who carried so many notes would certainly not be an ordinary person. The manager didn¡¯t dare to offend Ning Que. So he epted the note obediently and weed Ning Que to the building, arranging a private room near the window on the second floor.


    All kinds of delicacies were brought in the private room and put on the table. Ning Que, looking at the extraordinarily fresh night sky beside the window, was drinking the liquor slowly with a tiny cup.


    With beancurd sprouts mingled steamed pork, Ning Que gradually became more excited by the liquor and his eyes squinted. He looked upstairs at the stars in the sky, thought about the messes during these past two days, then knocked at the urn with chopsticks and hummed, "Can we meet once again, I have begged in front of Buddha for thousands of years..."


    At this time, there was a remarking out from the nearby room, "What is that garbage song? It is so rare to hear such an annoying song, and the lyrics are total nonsense."


    The Building of Pines and Cranes set a veranda at thekeside for the guests to rest at their leisure. Each private room had a small door which was connected to the veranda. At night when it was quiet, any slightly higher voice could pass through the doors, windows and the veranda to other room. Ning Que¡¯s singing sounds were just heard this way.


    It was just until then that Ning Que realized there was another guest in the Building of Pines and Cranes. By the aged voice, he knew the man was old, then heughed and said, "I don¡¯t agree with you, vulgarity is not always bad. Just take as example, when the aftereffect of drinking shows up and you can¡¯t remember other songs, but this one."


    The guest from the next room then asked curiously, "Does it have a name?"


    "Begging to Buddha," Ning Que replied,"If I don¡¯t remember wrongly, that¡¯s the name."


    The guestughed and mocked, "Buddhas only cultivate themselves and don¡¯t get involved in worldly affairs, let alone small love between mortals. Young man, if you truly want to get rid of these annoyances in the mortal world, there is no way but to avoid them. It¡¯s better to depend on yourself than to seek help from Buddha."


    Ning Que found these words interesting, so he looked at the next room through the window and tried to figure out who was this man drinking liquor and making fun as he did in the night.


    Below the firmament and stars, a man was sitting in the next room¡¯s veranda. Ning Que didn¡¯t see his face clearly as the light was dim and the man only showed the side of his face. Only one thing was clear, he was so tall that even therge and wide chair still seemed small for him.


    Ning Que looked at the tall figure, and found he was familiar but couldn¡¯t remember his name. Then he frowned and got lost in memories for a while,ter bursting into augh as he remembered the saying about why you have to remember every man you meet. So he shook his head and sat back in his chair, then took out a handkerchief and coughed up some blood.


    His depressing cough was reverberating on the veranda of the Building of Pines and Cranes.


    Ning Que put the handkerchief back in his sleeve. After thinking for a while, he carried the urn and the chair to the veranda, and then looked at the man, and said, "Do you mind if I sit here?"


    The man replied, "This is your ce."


    The manager of the Building of Pines and Cranes knew that thest two guests were sitting on the veranda. He was confused by them not fearing the cold, but he still asked a servant to ignite wind proof light at the edge of the veranda.


    With dim light covering the veranda, Ning Que saw the man clearly. Wearing a precious deep red fox-fur robe, the man looked hale with his beard waving in the night breeze, like a rich man in Chang¡¯an. Yet he gave people a mysterious impression. He didn¡¯t make others feel old though he was old.


    "How about chatting for a while?" Ning Que asked.


    The tall old man shook his head, and lifted the urn in his hand and said, "The first thing I do when Ie back to Chang¡¯an is to drink three urns of fresh liquor from the Building of Pines and Cranes. I won¡¯t waste my time chitchatting before I finish my liquor."


    Ning Que ignored him and sat back in his chair to watch the stars in the sky above Chang¡¯an, drinking his liquor slowly.


    The old man was sitting there, watching the firmament behind the stars as well, drinking liquor at his own slow pace.


    Ning Que¡¯s drinking capacity was ordinary and far smaller than Sangsang¡¯s. Especially when he was injured and fatigued, he fell into the dazed state soon.


    The old man looked extraordinary like an unfathomable hermit in the Jianghu world. However, his drinking capacity was also very poor and got drunk after a short while.


    Drunken men could be divided into many kinds. For example, the so-called martial drunkenness which was to vent anger, hit people, kick trees, and smash the wall; and the so-called literacy drunkenness which was to write poems, transcribe poems, and brag about their poems. Ning Que didn¡¯t belong to these types, so he was just mumbling to himself in the effect of drunkenness.


    The old man looked very funny after he was drunk; he was whispering continuously with his bright eyes staring at the firmament over the stars, as if he were talking to the sky. However, telling from the gloomy expression on his face, those words from his mouth would most likely be dirty words.


    The elder and the youth were drinking liquor next to each other, and both sighed.


    Ning Que was sighing about his life.


    Though he had lived in the Tang Empire for no more than twenty years, he went through a lot, even experienced death. There were so many things for him to recollect. For example, the men of Hebei County were more vicious than ghosts during the dry season; the men in the Min Mountain were more vicious than beasts, the men on the grasnd were more vicious than wolves, and the most enjoyable thing was the love from a beauty which was a thing that never should be given up, etc.


    While the old man wasining about more specific things under the theme of "the moral degeneration of the world is getting worse day by day". For example, an unscrupulous manager of a liquor shop added water into liquor; and even the Building of Pines and Cranes tried to fool the guests by faking the beancurd sprouts mingled steamed pork with other meat instead of ck pig meat from the south suburb of Chang¡¯an. Even the y of the spring y urn was changed, and there was a smell of Huangzhou y in the liquor.


    "The urn is used to hold liquor, not to grind the ink with it for writing. How could they use Huangzhou y!"


    The old man angrily waved his arm, his white beard shaking in the night wind.


    As the old man¡¯s voice was getting louder, Ning Que turned his head toward the old man and sighed, "You really take a serious attitude about life, but aren¡¯t you tired?"


    The old man frowned unhappily, then looked at Ning Que and replied, "One shall live properly while he is alive."


    After a momentary silence, Ning Que smiled and said, "That¡¯s because you have lived a happy life, so you may never know that sometimes, it can be called the luckiest thing to just be alive."


    The old man waved his hands like driving away mosquitos as if he were to expel Ning Que¡¯s clich¨¦ and self-remorse out of the veranda.


    Ning Que was nearly drunk now, and he didn¡¯t realize that the old man despised his subconscious expression of emotions.


    "I once thought I would be an ordinary man in a fortified mountain vige, seeking neither fame nor wealth. When the situation was getting better, I had the fancy that I could be someone with the power to determine the fate of others and to garner great aplishments. But now, I finally realize that I am just a man ying house in the mortal world."


    "Life is just like ying house. When you have immersed in the game for a long time, you may take it as real. The original indifference would turn into responsibilities or habits, which I formerly disdained the most with the influence by daily necessities such as fuel, rice, cooking oil and salt. It¡¯s probably because I have been thinking since childhood about what she would do without me, then I change my thoughts to what I would do without her. Of course, I could still live, or could I live an easier life? Then what is easiness? There couldn¡¯t be any easiness if the habit is broken. You would always have the feeling that something very important is missing from your life and some part of your body is gone too."


    Ning Que turned his head to the old man in the chair and then said smilingly, "Don¡¯t judge me because of these sentimental words. Do you know why there are always sayings like this? Because people would always find a way afterwards to demonstrate that these things are of great significance."


    He raised the spring y urn, looked at an imaginary moon and said, "I would feel ufortable if these valuable things were gone. Taking the night sky as example, I would be unhappy as long as there was no moon, no matter if it was the night sky fourteen years ago or that of the City of Wei, or Chang¡¯an¡¯s."


    The old man found this interesting, so he looked at him and asked, "Moon? What is it? Is it in the sky? I have never seen it or heard of it before."


    "The moon is a thing which can give out light. Sometimes it is round, sometimes it is curved. It looks very beautiful when it shows up during the night or during the day. The moon has its own uses, such as sheltering the sunlight, causing the tide and transforming werewolves..."


    Looking at the old man, Ning Que sighed and said, "I know that you won¡¯t believe this. You can just take my words as the wild talk of a drunkard."


    The old man replied, "If I were not drunken as well, I would take you to the Imperial Astronomer and force you to search for it with the instrument there in the night."


    Ning Que sneered, "Never mind, a wealthyndlord like you would not know about these enigmatic things."


    The old man became furious and reprimanded, "The older, the wiser!"


    Ning Que replied dismissively, "The younger, the more weed."


    The old man was speechless.


    Ning Que suddenly said, "Let me tell you one thing seriously and don¡¯t be afraid, I want to kill someone now."


    The old man was shocked and said, "You have just killed two men during the day, and you want to kill more right now?"


    Ning Que was drunken at the moment and didn¡¯t hear the old man clearly.


    He looked at the stars over the night sky with a sigh and said, "Sometimes a thought shes in my mind that there might be some defects in my character, for each time when I am unhappy, the lust to kill would arise in my mind."


    The old man looked at him and said solemnly, "There is nothing wrong with your character."


    Ning Que was stunned, then stared at him and said joyfully, "Do you really think so?"


    The old man sneered and said, "But there is something wrong with your brain."

 Chapter 368: Chronicles of the Building of Pines and Cranes (II)

    Chapter 368: Chronicles of the Building of Pines and Cranes (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que sneered at his words, and as a disciple of the Second floor of the Academy and enjoying equal poprity with Chen Pipi, he was bing more and more determined that he was a genius.


    Because he was tall, the old man had been sitting in the chair with increasing difort, but he finally found afortable position after several changes in posture. Half-leaning on the back of the chair, he held his lower jaw and looked at Ning Que and asked, "Kill someone when you¡¯re unhappy? Have you killed someone before?"


    Ning Que put the empty urn made from spring y beside his feet and replied, "I won¡¯t tell you how many people I¡¯ve killed because it is against thew of the Tang Empire, but you can just think about it."


    The old man shook his urn, which was already empty, and then muttered a few words, asking the manager downstairs to bring another two urns. Then he stared at Ning Que and asked, "Why do you want to kill people?"


    After silently thinking for a while, Ning Que shook his head and answered, "Though I¡¯m about to get drunk and you¡¯re already drunk, I still can¡¯t tell you about this."


    The manager trotted up to the veranda and put two urns of wine beside the old man with respect. He then bowed to him and backed off, without even uttering one more word, let alone did he urge him to settle the ount.


    He had no idea who this old man was, nor did the Big Owner of the Building of Pines and Cranes, a high official of the imperial court, know anything about him. It was merely that the Building of Pines and Cranes had been keeping a portrait for years and following a simple rule.


    The rule was that if there was an old man with an appearance like the one in the portrait that came to the Building of Pines and Cranes, every worker there should respect the old man like an ancestor. They should meanwhile leave him alone as if they were treating a personal enemy, for fear that the old man would be bothered and unhappy.


    There would be no harm to the Building of Pines and Cranes even if he was not the old man in the portrait. They would only lose some taels of silver or have some face loss. However, if the real ancestor were toe and receive inattentive treatment, then how could the Building of Pines and Cranes continue to stay in Chang¡¯an any longer?


    The old man swatted open the spring y urn, then joyfully had a drink and said, "When I was the same age as you, I also desired to kill people."


    Ning Que looked at his face and was not sure about the old man¡¯s age. But it seemed that he was quite old, so how many years ago was he referring to?


    "Who did you want to kill back then?" Ning Que asked curiously.


    The old man put the urn on the small table beside the chair, looked at the bare winter branches in front of the veranda, and said, "My mother was the third concubine of my father. When my father died three years after my birth, my mother and I were not amodated by the n. So my mother took me away from the old house and wandered from ce to ce. We had a hard time and suffered a lot of humiliation."


    "So, once I got the ability to kill, the first thing I wanted to do was to go back to my hometown and kill all the old biddies and rtives who had bullied me and my mother. Then I would go back to dig up my father¡¯s grave and turn his remains into ashes."


    The old man was talking about the most sinister things like killing, arson, and family extermination, but he showed a calm and gentle expression. He was now more like a naughty child lying down on a haystack than an aged man who had gone through the vicissitudes of life, telling tales of the bygone days from long ago with a childlike face.


    Ning Que stared at the old man, and then frowned and asked him, "So, did you kill them then?"


    With his slender index finger, the old man lightly knocked the y urn on the table. It made a clear and vigorous sound, which was just like a memorial tablet falling from a sequestered ancestral hall in an old house that had undergone a hundred generations.


    He looked at Ning Que and said with a smile, "I won¡¯t tell you."


    Ning Que was speechless and wondered about his stinginess and small-mindedness.


    "The man that I want to kill... he has murdered a lot of innocent men. Of course, I am not a Sage. The man ruined the most beautiful part of my life and killed my beloved parents. I swore to get revenge out of a personal grudge just like you had done in the old days. The only difference between us is that the men in your n were rtively easy to kill."


    After a while of silence, he continued, "While the man that I want to kill is powerful, with not only a high position, but also a background that is difficult for even me to handle."


    The old man stared at him, then frowned and said, "I imagine that you are also a big shot."


    Ning Que smiled and replied, "You have truly gone through the mortal world and known countless people with your insightful observations. To be honest with you, I am a decent man, because my teacher is a prominent figure."


    The old man said sullenly, "You¡¯re talking nonsense. Your teacher, of course... even if he is prominent, that¡¯s nothing to do with you."


    Ning Que ignored him and continued, "I¡¯m now evenly matched with the big shot whom I want to kill."


    The old man sneered, "Then what are you still depressed about? You can just seek the opportunity to kill him."


    Ning Que fell into silence for quite a long time and had a helpless expression on his face. Then he sighed and said, "But my positiones from my teacher, who is actually very rigid. In appearance, he would like to see his disciples stay flexible, yet he is very rational and always says to us that thew of the Tang Empire shall prevail. So, what do you think? Contradictory, right?"


    Hearing these words, the old man got embarrassed and reprimanded him. "Nonsense, does stay flexible have anything to do with thew of the Tang Empire? Can¡¯t you kill without using dishonest methods?"


    Ning Que did not notice the expression of the old man and staggered toward him. He actively picked up a new wine urn and opened the cover to dump the wine into his mouth, and said, "If thew of the Tang Empire shall prevail, then I shall find the evidence to engage in awsuit. But the question is, where to find the evidence? If I don¡¯t use dishonest methods, then how can I kill my enemy? Does that mean that I should show up in front of him and directly tell him that I want to kill him and then get knocked out?"


    The night breeze was flickering, and the old man sat up straight and stared at Ning Que. He became angrier at Ning Que for his imbecility and confusion. With his thin and lengthy palms grasping the chair, he was about to p Ning Que¡¯s face at any moment.


    Ning Que was already drunk and, of course, did not notice the rage of the old man. He was, on the one hand, drinking the tasteful wine and, on the other hand, sighing with emotions about revenge, unwillingness, and the moon. Those sighs then got more and more repetitive and boring and were lingering on certain keywords. But he still blocked his innermost thoughts subconsciously and, even after he was drunk, he did not speak of his identity or the name Xia Hou.


    "Old man, I used bank notes to knock open the Building of Pines and Cranes before. And what about you? How did you get in here?"


    "Haven¡¯t you seen the moon before? Poor old man."


    "As far as I can see, you are rich. Where does your moneye from? I earned my money from the casino in Western City. Are you engaged in business with them?"


    "Let me tell you one thing, this ugly cotton-padded jacket of mine is said to have been customized by my teacher."


    "The way that you¡¯re blowing your mustache is very funny."


    Ning Que mumbled continuously and pointed at the old man in the chair, and startedughing.


    Suddenly there was a muffled thud.


    Ning Que stoppedughing.


    He covered his forehead and looked at the old man in shock and confusion.


    The old man, with a thick and short wooden stick in his hand, looked at Ning Que and said furiously, "So many superfluous words! You¡¯re driving me crazy. Look at you, how dare you want to kill Xia Hou!"


    Not hearing thatst sentence clearly, Ning Que turned his eyes back and fainted.


    When he was about to lean backward and hit the ground in the veranda, there came a gust of wind.


    With his jacket flying up and his steps silent in his sandals, Eldest Brother showed up on the veranda and supported the tottering Ning Que and caught hold of the falling wine urn.


    Eldest Brother held Ning Que, who was now unconscious, and looked at the old man and asked, "Teacher, what¡¯s the matter with Youngest Brother?"


    The old man stealthily retracted the short wooden stick into his sleeve, made two coughs, and said, "No big deal. He offended me just now, so I punished him with the discipline of the Academy."


    Seeing the short wooden stick, Eldest Brother was so startled that he nearly fainted because his teacher had once used that stick to banish the Taoist in indigo to the South Sea. So, he was afraid that after being hit by the stick, Youngest Brother would either be dead or be an idiot.


    His face turned pale upon recalling this.


    The old man noticed that his face was pale but did not realize that he was worried about Ning Que. He frowned and said, "I told you ten years ago to keep a slower pace, so why are still rushing like this?"


    Eldest Brother sensed that something went wrong with Ning Que earlier, so he rushed quickly to the veranda of the Building of Pines and Cranes regardless of what would happen to him. He asked the old man worriedly, "Teacher, will Youngest Brother be OK?"


    The old man red at the fainted Ning Que and said, "This boy is like your Youngest Uncle and has a strong body. He was stuck just once, he won¡¯t die so easily."


    Perhaps the old man also realized that these words were not that convincing, so then he coughed and exined seriously, "Your Youngest Brother has consumed a lot today, it¡¯ll be good for him to sleep for a while."


    ...


    ...


    Eldest Brother of the Academy had only one teacher.


    That old man was, of course, the Headmaster of the Academy.


    The words from the Headmaster of the Academy were even more useful than an imperial edict of the Tang Empire. And for Eldest Brother, who had the life-long respect for his teacher, what his teacher said was equivalent to the truth. If his teacher said that the night was white, then the night was white to him; if his teacher said that Haotian was ck, then Haotian was definitely ck to him; and when it came to Ning Que, he would be fine if his teacher told him so.


    On the streets of Chang¡¯an in the depths of the night, the Headmaster of the Academy walked forward slowly, elegantly stepping on the scattered dead leaves with his hands sped behind his back. While the seemingly flustered Eldest Brother was following his teacher, carrying Ning Que on his back.


    "You¡¯re right, there is always a different one among the thousands of lights."


    The Headmaster of the Academy looked at the dim light in thene and looked at the Yulin Royal Guards patrolling afar. He said, "Though your Youngest Brother is neither an uncontaminated lotusing out of dirty mud nor a kind-hearted man, he does have somepassion in his seemingly cold-blooded body. The only thing is that he has hidden it too deeply."


    ...


    ...


    --

 Chapter 369: Cant Help Loving Her Even Without Seeing Her

    Chapter 369: Can¡¯t Help Loving Her Even Without Seeing Her


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "He has been sending taels of silver to men in the City of Wei and knows how to take care of Sangsang. I think that he will always respect you and Jun Mo, and will always maintain the sense of belonging to the Academy."


    The Headmaster of the Academy looked back at Ning Que who was unconscious, and said smilingly, "Of course these are trivial matters, but I think they may affect the boy¡¯s choices in the future."


    The Eldest Brother frowned when hearing Sangsang¡¯s name, but he didn¡¯t make anyment about it. Instead, he suddenly said, "Emerge unstained from the filth. I¡¯ve always remembered the sentence in your article ¡¯On the Love of Lotus¡¯."


    The Headmaster of the Academy stopped, then turned to look at his beloved first apprentice, and said slowly, "That article is actually telling your story."


    The Eldest Brother lowered his head and said, "I¡¯m embarrassed by the undeserved praise."


    The Headmaster of the Academy replied, "There is no perfect man in the world. With respect to morality, you¡¯re better than me, better than your Youngest Uncle and better than anyone I have met over these years. But you¡¯re not considerate enough and didn¡¯t act as well as Jun Mo, on regards to the thing that happened a few days ago."


    The Eldest Brother listened respectfully to the criticisms from his teacher, and said, "I¡¯m afraid that the Buddhism Sect¡¯s disciples have already found out that there is something fishy about the big ck umbre carried by our Youngest Brother, we should be more prudent."


    The Headmaster of the Academy looked at him in silence, then he suddenly flicked his sleeves. Dead leaves disorderly flew on the street and soared straight up into the deep night sky, as if to leave some traces behind the stars.


    "They haven¡¯t even found the Underworld, how could they find Yama?"


    "Moreover, if they can¡¯t find Yama himself, how could they find the child of Yama?"


    "Even I cannot help liking her, let alone your Youngest Brother, the loony."


    The Headmaster of the Academy looked at Ning Que who was still unconscious and smiled.


    Then he said calmly, "I¡¯ve said before that nobody can judge unknown and non-confirmable matters in advance, nor cut off the development of any possibility just to eradicate a probable bad oue, for life itself is a collection of numerous possibilities."


    The Eldest Brother recalled his argument with his Youngest Brother at the Academy¡¯s back of the mountain and the words he used at that time; he suddenly realized that he had forgotten the lessons taught by his teacher. His sweat gushed forth in floods and soaked through the old jacket on his body; it was unclear whether this was caused by his tiredness from carrying Ning Que on his back, or because of the astonishment felt in his heart.


    "Teacher, I was wrong."


    The Headmaster of the Academy smiled and turned his body forward while the Eldest Brother carried Ning Que on his back and followed his teacher. It was the deep in the night at the end of winter; a teacher was heading forward on the street of Chang¡¯an with his two beloved disciples, but it was unknown where they were heading.


    ...


    ...


    When night fell in Chang¡¯an, the majority of lights were out. Besides the lights on the walls of the imperial pce, only the boisterous casinos and brothels in the Western City had the lights still on, while the Southern City, filled with ministers and wealthy businessmen, was heavily guarded and was usually already shrouded in darkness at that time. However, there was one mansion that still had lights on tonight.


    Inside the mansion of the Grand Secretary of the Imperial Library, Mrs. Zeng was continuously wiping away her tears in a round chair of the study. There was a clear expression of anxiety and pity on her delicate face.


    The Grand Secretary Zeng Jing stared at her and sighed, "Now that our daughter is finally back, why are you still so upset? It¡¯s natural that she has a sense of alienation now, and I believe that one day she will call you mother, so don¡¯t be so hasty."


    Mrs. Zeng raised her head and replied to her husband sentimentally, "Of course I understand, and I won¡¯t force our daughter to act the way I expect today. I am just heartbroken as her mother, at the thought of her sufferings over the years, I especially can¡¯t resist shedding tears when I see her scrawny appearance."


    The Grand Secretary Zeng Jing was astonished and asked, "What happened to her?"


    "The small building in Jingmin Garden is provided with four close maidservants and four supporting maidservants for our daughter. But when I went there, I discovered that the eight girls had been driven out of the building by our daughter. I asked her why, and our daughter told me that she is used to serving someone all these years, and is not used to being waited on."


    Tears escaped from Mrs. Zeng¡¯s eyes when she looked at the Grand Secretary and said, "Do you know what I was feeling as her mother when I heard her words? And don¡¯t try to hide anything from me, I know the reason why you hesitated yesterday. You are just worried that Her Majesty intends to draw the Academy over her side and is not willing to see our daughter severing her rtionship with her damned master."


    The report from his chambein had left Zeng Jing a better impression on Sangsang. His daughter whom he hadn¡¯t seen for years was actually a calm, sweet and well-cultured girl despite the fact that she didn¡¯t talk too much and didn¡¯t seem pleasing. He nodded his head and smoothed his beard, then recalled the prescription of Her Majesty, and said after a moment of silence, "After all she is our daughter, I won¡¯t allow her to leave us once again no matter what is on Her Majesty¡¯s mind. Don¡¯t worry."


    There was suddenly an abrupt and hurried clopping of horse hooves on the street outside the Secretary¡¯s Mansion. The Academy was far away from the front door; however, the clopping was so loud, clear and even heart-stirring in the still of the night.


    The Grand Secretary Zeng Jing frowned and stood up to look outside the study.


    With hurried steps, the steward of the Secretary¡¯s Mansion brought a eunuch into the study.


    Looking at the eunuch, Zeng Jing frowned a bit more, then he waved his hand to dismiss all the servants, poured a cup of tea and delivered it to the eunuch. He opened his mouth but did not talk.


    All were silent inside the study.


    Zeng Jing assumed, wrongly, that Her Majesty wanted to inquire about Sangsang¡¯s return from the Old Brush Pen Shop, and had made a thorough mental preparation. However, before he had the chance to speak, the eunuch said to him smilingly, "Lord Zeng, it¡¯s the decree of His Majesty."


    Zeng Jing realized that the visitor was Eunuch Lin, then he fell into confusion. It was rare to see an abrupt decree like this during the night since the Tianqi era, when the Tang Empire was prosperous, the government officials were honest and upright, and the people were at peace. Even if something had happened at the border, his Majesty wouldn¡¯t send a eunuch to summon him to the pce. And the eunuch, out of his expectation, was His Majesty¡¯s favorite chief eunuch who had the highest rank.


    Eunuch Lin didn¡¯t leave too much time for Zeng Jing to think about the whole thing, and then said gently, "His Majesty is delighted by the reunion of your family. I suppose there would be a decree tomorrow, so I havee tonight to express my congrattions."


    It was not necessary for him toe at night, Zeng Jing knew there must be another story behind this decree.


    As expected, Eunuch Lin continued, "There is one thing, Sangsang is still the handmaiden of Ning Que on the household register. To prevent the disapproval among the people, His Majesty suggests you send her back to the Old Brush Pen Shop tonight."


    Zeng Jing was angered by this, thinking it was unreasonable for His Majesty to give a decree like this to separate a girl from her parents. Then he said in a low voice, "I need to see His Majesty at the pce."


    It seemed that Eunuch Lin had already guessed that Secretary Zeng would act like this and showed very little surprise. He stepped forward and whispered in Secretary Zeng¡¯s ear, "It is the wish of the Headmaster of the Academy."


    Zeng Jing was dumbstruck and asked with great care, "The Headmaster of the Academy... has returned?"


    Eunuch Lin sighed, "That¡¯s right, the Headmaster had not delivered any messages to the pce for years. You surely know the power of his words. Even if he tells His Majesty to tear down the Daming Pce, His Majesty would follow his instruction, as our Majesty considers himself as a lifetime disciple of the Headmaster and has never disobeyed his orders."


    Zeng Jing hesitated.


    At that time, Mrs. Zeng suddenly burst out with a trembling voice, "I¡¯ve lost her for more than ten years, if my daughter is not willing to leave, nobody can take her away from me."


    Mrs. Zeng was not from an upper ss family and had no rtion with therge households in Qinghe County. She was just amon civilian girl before she married to Zeng Jing. And in the Tang Empire, it was thosemon civilians who had the simplest, most determined feelings and view of merits.


    Power and strength would lose their charm before people with such feelings and views. No matter if it was the Headmaster of the Academy or His Majesty, they would both have to step aside for now.


    Eunuch Lin was panic-stricken for a while and developed a wistful respect for the Secretary¡¯s wife, and replied gently, "Madam, you¡¯re mistaken about the decree. Of course, it¡¯s up to Miss Sangsang herself. His Majesty is just suggesting that you two shouldn¡¯t stop her. If I may be allowed to speak to Miss Sangsang in person?"


    Secretary Zeng and Mrs. Zeng exchanged a look with each other; they both knew they shouldn¡¯t act too unyieldingly now that it was His Majesty¡¯s will. So they sent a servant to Jingmin Garden to check whether Sangsang was asleep.


    Sangsang didn¡¯t sleep well as she wasn¡¯t at the Old Brush Pen Shop. She stared at theplicated and beautiful patterns on the drapery for a whole night yesterday, while tonight she was stupefied, sitting beside the window.


    She came to the study.


    Eunuch Lin said only one sentence, "Ning Que is badly injured."


    Sangsang fell into silence for a while, then she turned around and walked out of the study as if she had heard nothing.


    Soon after, she came back holding her traveling bag.


    She bowed to Secretary Zeng and Mrs. Zeng, and then said in a low voice, "I shall go see him and I wille back tomorrow."


    Then she thought for a while, and added, "I wille back once he is fine."


    ...


    ...


    The bamboo forest inside the Reception Yard was like a ck green sea, and dense water grass in the Ink Lake swayed during the deep autumn¡¯s night wind. The disciples of the ck Ink Garden had no idea what Senior Brother Ning Que and the Hill Master had talked about, or what had happened during the day, and were asleep in their rooms.


    Mo Shanshan had not yet gone to bed. She was looking at the calligraphy pieces before her under the candlelight. These pieces were written by Ning Que during the day; although the ink on them was already dry, it remained fresh as if it were still carrying the smell at that time.


    Zhuo Zhihua walked in with a flimsy garment covering her shoulders. She looked at Mo Shanshan and asked worriedly, "What on earth has happened? Why should we leave Chang¡¯an in advance?"


    Mo Shanshan smiled with her eyes fixed on the calligraphy below the candlelight. Her red lips tightly shut were like the red lines on the willow, which represented marriage in the Great River Kingdom.


    "It is said that Ning Que had been injured beforeing here today."


    Mo Shanshan frowned, and asked briefly, "Who was his opponent?"


    "The Daoshi Monk from the Yuelun Kingdom. He challenged Ning Que on the street side and had his head cut off by Ning Que."


    Zhuo Zhihua said after a while of hesitation, "I¡¯ve heard that the Daoshi Monk has chanted scriptures and paid respect to Buddha in the Xuankong Temple for years. His cultivation state was high, so I suppose Ning Que must be badly injured."


    Mo Shanshan stood up, then she sat down again after a silence.


    "You were already injured when you were writing calligraphy, why didn¡¯t you tell me?"


    The candlewick, which had not been trimmed for a long time, was curled a little and shone dimly. The light was primrose yellow on the white skirt of the young girl, but yet failed to conceal the paleness on her face.


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 370: Porridge and Letters, Before and in the Future

    Chapter 370: Porridge and Letters, Before and in the Future


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que woke up and sighed before he even opened his eyes due to a splitting headache. The pain confused him, and he could not remember thest thing that happened at the Building of Pines and Cranes. He wasn¡¯t sure if his headache was due to a hangover or something else.


    He thought for a long time before he remembered the tall old man in fox-fur robes. He thought about the thick, short rod in the man¡¯s hand and understood the reason for his headache. He could not help feeling angry, or perhaps, a little ashamed. He was angry that the man had actually dared to hit him, and was ashamed that he, a core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy, had been beaten by a frail rich man of Chang¡¯an.


    Was he still lying on the balcony of the Building of Pines and Cranes? Ning Que felt around himself subconsciously, and knew that he was in the Old Brush Pen Shop by the hardness of the brick bed beneath him and the scent of the bedding. Who had sent him back? Was it the manager or the evil old man?


    The familiar scent of the bedding wafted past his nose. It wasn¡¯t an odd scent, but one that made him feel at ease. It was his and her scent. However, he also smelt another unfamiliar scent that he remembered clearly. It was a scent of beef and egg porridge. He suddenly felt confused, as if he had returned to the past.


    Many years ago, he brought Sangsang along with him to join the army in the City of Wei. When they passed through Tushi town, they had met a barbarian cook from the grasnd selling beef porridge. An old man had cracked an egg in his beef porridge in a very particr manner. The boiling beef porridge cooked the fresh egg into a slurry, and it became an amazingly fragrant and smooth dish. It looked tasty even from afar.


    Sangsang wanted to eat the beef and egg porridge, but Ning Que did not buy it as he was trying to save money. The two walked past the town silently. After that, he had killed a Horse Gang with the team in the City of Wei. When he received his first payment, Sangsang made beef and egg porridge for four days straight. The two ate it till they felt sick. That was when they realized that beef and egg porridge was very nourishing, but was ordinary after they had too much of it. And from then on, they never made it again.


    Ning Que opened his eyes and looked at the white paper stuck on the roof. He smelt the scent of beef and egg porridge wafting in through the cracks of the door. He rubbed his hurting head and sat up.


    Tugging on his robe from the foot of the brick bed, he pushed the door open and walked into the courtyard. He looked at the neatly stacked firewood in the corner where some pieces were missing on the very top row, as if a rat hade by and stole some in the middle of the night.


    Then, he looked towards the shop and realized that the vegetables, rice and roast duck that were left on the table the day before were missing. The table was wiped down and the floors had been scrubbed clean and were devoid of any dust.


    Hot steam floated from the kitchen. Ning Que walked over and discovered that the leftovers had been thrown out. The stove that had been cold for two days was heated up once more by firewood. A bowl of porridge bubbled noisily on the stovetop, steam and fragrance escaping from it.


    There was a small stool before the stove. Sangsang sat in her usual spot. She looked at the firewood, listened to the porridge cook and controlled the fire. She seemed a little tired, and her slightly tanned face was flushed by the fire. The tendrils of yellow hair on her forehead curled even more in the heat.


    Ning Que looked at her frail back. After a moment of silence, he walked up and patted her shoulder.


    Sangsang woke up. She raised her face to look at him. "You¡¯ve woken up?"


    Ning Que made a sound of agreement. He said, "It seems that you haven¡¯t slept much all night."


    Sangsang murmured in agreement.


    Ning Que said, "Go and sleep. I¡¯ll cook the porridge."


    Sangsang stood up from the stool and pushed the curly hair on her forehead back. She suddenly remembered something when she exited the kitchen, and turned back, "Mind the fire, don¡¯t let it grow too big."


    Ning Que said, "I know."


    Sangsang continued, "You can¡¯t drink, drink less in the future."


    Ning Que said, "I know."


    Then, he sat down on the stool before the stove. He removed the firewood that was burning too fiercely, and adjusted the heat, turning down the heat in the stove.


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang woke up at noon. She retrieved her towel and toothbrush and washed up simply. She went to take a look at the porridge in the kitchen, and then, walked to the front of the shop.


    There was a te of deboned and skinned roast duck on the table as well as two tes of vegetables with spring onion and garlic. Also on the table was a pot of beef and egg porridge, two pairs of chopsticks and two empty bowls.


    All the dishes were the same as the previous day other than the beef and egg porridge that Sangsang cooked. Ning Que had gone to the market and made them while she was asleep.


    Sangsang looked at the dishes on the table and suddenly lowered her head to look at her shoes that stuck out from beneath her skirts. She said in a low voice, "Have your injuries healed? If they have, I¡¯ll return to the Schr¡¯s Mansion."


    Ning Que said, "You don¡¯t have to go back."


    Sangsang froze slightly. She thought for a moment before scooping him a bowl of porridge and cing it before him. Then, she handed him chopsticks and began to serve herself porridge.


    "Let¡¯s eat some rice." Ning Que ced a drumstick in her bowl.


    Sangsang said seriously, "This is a dish, not rice."


    Ning Que replied, "It¡¯s all the same."


    Then, the two began to eat in the shop silently. He would asionally ce some vegetables in her bowl, and she would dip duck skin in sauce and ce it in his. Then, she scooped another bowl of porridge for him.


    Ning Que suddenly smiled.


    Sangsang smiled as well.


    ...


    ...


    There was a horse carriage outside the Lin 47th Street.


    Mo Shanshan sat by the window and peered at the Old Brush Pen Shop through the curtain. The doors to the shop were not closed and she could clearly see what was happening in the shop. She saw many things and many nuances.


    Her expression was calm as usual. However, hershes fluttered slightly.


    She had seen the Chicken Soup Calligraphy, and had also imagined many things about that boy due to that calligraphy. She had even begun to like the boy even before she met him due to the calligraphy. She had been very familiar with the name at the beginning of the calligraphy since summer ofst year.


    She even understood the importance of that name before Ning Que had. Therefore, she had ruminated over it several times in the Wilderness, and it was also the reason why she had to meet Sangsang.


    She had met Sangsang on the first day they entered Chang¡¯an. Beyond her expectation, Sangsang was a very ordinary handmaiden. Then, she saw Sangsang again today.


    The Sangsang she saw today was one that interacted with Ning Que alone.


    She looked at Ning Que and Sangsang who were eating in the Old Brush Pen Shop. Mo Shanshan finally believed that the two had already formed a world belonging to them many years ago. To them, everyone else in the world was outsiders, and any affairs of the world did not affect them either. It was difficult to leave even a trace in that world.


    They were like eyes andshes. It was just that the eyes would not usually see theshes and theshes would not fall into the eyes. However, they would notice the existence of each other when a wind blew from a world outside theirs.


    "But I am a hill, not a wind."


    Mo Shanshan pulled down the curtains slowly and handed a letter to Zhuo Zhihua who was sitting beside her.


    Zhuo Zhihua said hesitantly, "Are we going to leave Chang¡¯an just like that?"


    Mo Shanshan said calmly, "After all, it was Mr. First who had invited me. We shall head to the Academy in the south and meet him before leaving."


    Zhuo Zhihua sighed and did not try to change her mind. She took the letter and got off the horse carriage.


    ...


    ...


    After eating, Sangsang did the dishes while Ning Que opened the letter by the table.


    The letter bore the familiar handwriting of Mo Shanshan. Her handwriting was not delicate, and one could see a feisty spirit that could not be hidden in the calm.


    The letter ended like this.


    "Perhaps fate had arranged for both your worlds to be an individual one. You do not need someone to knock on the wooden doors from outside, and you do not need someone to call and disturb under the winter trees outside the courtyard. But I do not believe in fate."


    "We have traveled together in the Wilderness, and I have benefited plenty from it. I liked it a lot when we traveled together in Chang¡¯an winter."


    "You have once told me in the snow by the red walls that you liked me. And I have also once said that liking is not enough. And it is proven that it is indeed insufficient. But at least you have once said that you liked me. I like that a lot."


    "Chang¡¯an and Great River Kingdom are quite a distance from each other, but the distance is not as far as that from the Wilderness. If you really wish toe, and if I wish to go, the distance is not an issue. If you wish to visit me in the future, or if I wish to visit you, or if we meet anywhere else, all would be happy asions."


    "After experiencing so many things, I have many new ideas. When we meet again, everything that I have written in this letter will be stronger and better. I hope that you will work harder and not disappoint me."


    Ning Que was silent for a long while after reading the letter. Then, he walked to the bedroom and lifted the baseboard of the bed. He removed the box beneath and discovered that all the notes in the box have returned.


    He looked at the thick wads of notes in the box and could not help smiling. He understood that Sangsang already had the intention of moving back even if he had not said anything before lunch.


    He ced the box beneath the bed and looked at the letter in his hands. He thought for a moment before putting it in the pile of recycled paper on his desk. Then, he retrieved the big ck umbre and told Sangsang that he would wait for her outside the shop.


    Sangsang got water from the well after she was done with the dishes. She had already got some water at dawn and the water vat was pretty full. She quickly finished her chores and wiped at the non-existent sweat on her forehead out of habit. She began to dress when she returned to the bedroom, and then, saw the letter in the pile of waste paper.


    After a moment of silence, she wiped her hands dry on her apron seriously. Then, she picked up the letter, and took out the box. She ced the letter into the depths of the box carefully before cing the box where she found it.


    This was Sangsang¡¯s little ck box. There were things inside that were important to Ning Que, but he had thrown away for some reason or another. For example, the calligraphy that Ning Que had written on the night that Zhuo Er had died.


    She knew that the letter was precious to Ning Que, and kept it well for him.


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang opened the big ck umbre as she walked out of the Old Brush Pen Shop. She followed Ning Que out of Lin 47th Street.


    Ning Que was used to her making the bed, washing the dishes, and holding the umbre.


    After a while, he suddenly took the big ck umbre from her hands.


    Sangsang looked up at him confusedly.


    He smiled, "Let¡¯s go."


    Sangsang smiled, her willow leaf-shaped eyes creased. She nodded and hummed in agreement.


    The first rain in spring in Chang¡¯an was very precious.


    The two looked at the rain from under the umbre as if they were looking at the past and future.


    ...


    ...


    --

 Chapter 371: Visiting Relatives, Returning to the City and the Girl on the Bench

    Chapter 371: Visiting Rtives, Returning to the City and the Girl on the Bench


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que brought Sangsang to many ces in the first rain of the 15th year of Tianqi era. The first ce they went to was naturally the Grand Secretary¡¯s Mansion. After all, the Grand Secretary and his wife were Sangsang¡¯s birth parents. And from what had happened recently, he could see that their feelings for her were real.


    Ning Que felt nervous for some reason as he stood in the study, much unlike the strong image he presented the day before. Perhaps he knew that even if he did not need their agreement, he was naturally of a lower status to them. In fact, he was of a much lower status.


    The Zengs knew of Ning Que¡¯s identity and would naturally not treat him as an ordinary person. Furthermore, they knew that the rtionship between him and their daughter was not that of a simple master-servant rtionship. That was why they treated him with respect, vignce, unease and watched him intensely.


    The people in the study did not mention anything about pulling Sangsang off Ning Que¡¯s records. Ning Que was very unwilling to have this done. Grand Secretary Zeng Jing considered Her Majesty¡¯s desires while Mrs. Zeng only cared about holding Sangsang¡¯s hands. Tears were abundant in the few days that they stayed in the Old Brush Pen Shop and the Schr¡¯s Mansion, and nobody noticed this issue. Meanwhile, Sangsang was toozy to think about it.


    In the end, the two parties had a cordial conversation and established some basic principles for the future. Ning Que promised not to do anything that would harm their family reunion while those from the Schr¡¯s Mansion also agreed implicitly that Ning Que would have first dibs at some things and the meeting ended amicably.


    Following that, Ning Que and Sangsang visited the Princess¡¯ Mansion.


    Li Yu looked at the master-servant pair under the big ck umbre and sighed lightly in her heart. She looked at Ning Que and said calmly, "You should know why Her Majesty is taking this seriously.


    Ning Que had been busy yelling atkes, killing monks and writing calligraphy these two days and had not thought that the incident would have anything to do with the pce. However, the matter was notplicated and he managed to understand the reason for it after a moment of thinking. He said, "I don¡¯t think that I am qualified to represent the Academy¡¯s stance. Furthermore, I think that neither teacher nor Eldest Brother would be interested in making a stand about this."


    Li Yu said, "The issue is that we would need a clear stand from the Academy to maintain peace in the Tang Empire should the royal family not be able to make a decisive stand at that time."


    Ning Que said, "I believe that the court officials would have their own biases at that time."


    "What if the court officials were separated into two sects and cannot findmon ground?"


    Li Yu looked into his eyes and did not give him the opportunity to dodge the issue. She said, "Even though the Academy does not interfere with court matters, but its stand on the matter is important to the officials. Even though the military is estranged from the Academy, but should the Academy make their stand clear, I believe that there wouldn¡¯t be a general who would raise his objections."


    Ning Que frowned and did not say anything.


    "Why would a disciple of the Second floor of the Academy need to enter the human realm? That¡¯s because the Academy exists in the Tang Empire, and it needs the empire to be peaceful. And since you are the one who has entered the human realm, you need to bear responsibility for this."


    Ning Que sighed, "This burden seems a little heavy."


    Li Yu said, "Master Yan Se had entrusted the safety of Chang¡¯an to you. The burden on your shoulders are already heavy, what¡¯s a little more?"


    "One need not worry about having more debts, and one would not itch when there are more lice. Does this make sense?"


    Ning Quemented, "Your Highness should know that I was just an insignificant character when we first returned to Chang¡¯an together. It hadn¡¯t even been two years and I have had to bear so many responsibilities. I am not prepared for it. Furthermore, to tell the truth, I don¡¯t think I am capable of it."


    Li Yu said, "You are the disciple of the Headmaster and Master Yan Se. What had happened to you in the past two years since you came to Chang¡¯an were not miracles. You have ovee those steep hurdles through your own abilities and perseverance. However, if you look at it from the end result, I¡¯m afraid that there hasn¡¯t been anyone as lucky as you in the Tang Empire in thest five hundred years."


    "I do not have the abilities to bear the burden of Chang¡¯an City¡¯s security. There would also be someone else to worry about how the Tang Empire would continue on. Your Majesty¡¯s words really have no effect on me."


    Ning Que suddenly understood some things. He felt significantly lighter. He said, "I can ask the teacher or my Senior Brothers and Sisters if problems that cannot be solved arises. I believe that they are wiser than me. I will only be that guy who passes on the Academy¡¯s advice then."


    After a moment of silence, Li Yu smiled at him and said, "I hope that the person you see in the pce then will be me."


    Ning Que said, "I can only hope that you won¡¯t be disappointed when you see me in the pce then."


    ...


    ...


    The first rain in spring came and left silently. It disappeared without a trace after some pitter patter, leaving behind only dampness on the ck roofs and whitewashed walls of Chang¡¯an. The streets did not be colder; and it washed over the winter trees, wetting their bodies.


    Ning Que handed the big ck umbre to Sangsang and tied it on her back. She looked up at him and asked, "Why are your conversations with the princess always so hard to understand?"


    "They are just simple conversations." Ning Que thought of how Li Yu had supported the young power in the military who was loyal to her over the years. He said, "It is just that the person who makes the conversation is moreplicated."


    Sangsang said, "You did not say that she is an idiot today."


    Ning Que replied, "Even though I still think that the way she is going about things is a little idiotic, she is still your friend. And my rtionship with her is amicable, I shan¡¯t speak ill of her."


    ...


    ...


    They went to the House of Red Sleeves and the casino in the west. They even went to the Imperial City and met Mistress Jian, Mr. Qi, Xu Chongshan and some other people. Ning Que did not stay long in these ces and did not say much. He just brought Sangsang before them, and it was sufficient to show his intentions.


    Sangsang has returned, you need not worry. You need not worry about her safety nor Ning Que¡¯s vengeful aura that was about to engulf the city.


    They passed by the Southern Gate Temple when they left the temple. Ning Que looked at the temple¡¯s cornice and saw a sprig of winter sweet peeking out shyly. He suddenly thought of what He Mingchi had said. He looked at Sangsang and asked, "Even though I really hate that old man, you are his only sessor. I heard that the West-Hill Divine Pce had wanted to take you back with them. This means that you might be the Great Divine Priest of Light one day. What do you think of that?"


    Sangsang said, "Teacher did not tell me to go to the West-Hill."


    Ning Que smiled and said, "I have no intentions of asking you to go either. It is just that it is interesting to think that my Sangsang could be the Great Divine Priest of Light."


    "Having a Great Divine Priest of Light serve you tea and warm your bed is indeed something that you could be proud of. Aren¡¯t you worried that you¡¯d be drowned in rumors if the millions of believers of Haotian Taoism knew that you had such filthy thoughts?"


    Cheng Pipi had appeared before the two, and he said that to Ning Que mockingly.


    Ning Que looked at him and asked, "How do you always find me so easily?"


    Chen Pipi said, "That¡¯s because the stench of shamelessness on you is very strong."


    Ning Que could not be bothered to argue with him and asked, "Why have you looked for me today?"


    He suddenly remembered that Chen Pipi mentioned about the Academy¡¯s meeting when they were at theke at the foot of Yanming Mountain. Those at the Academy had argued but had note to a conclusion, and Seventh Sister had wanted to take him back for a questioning. He grew alert and asked, "What did Senior Brothers and Sisters argue about that they had to ask me to return to participate in? Are you trying to trick me so I can be their punching bag on behalf of you?"


    Chen Pipi looked at Sangsang, who was beside Ning Que. He said, "That thing has been settled."


    Ning Que asked in surprise, "How was it settled?"


    Chen Pipi said, "Because someone had already settled it, so the Senior Brothers and Sisters have settled it too."


    Sangsang pulled on Ning Que¡¯s sleeves lightly. She reminded him, "I think he¡¯s talking about you."


    Ning Que nodded and said, "I could also hear the oddity in this matter."


    Then, he turned to Chen Pipi and asked, "Since the issue is resolved, why have you stille to look for me?"


    Chen Pipi replied, "To get you to return to the Academy."


    Ning Que asked, "What happened again?"


    Chen Pipi said, "Teacher is back."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que stayed silent for a long while beneath the lonely winter sweet peeking out from the Southern Gate Temple.


    He had looked forward to meeting the teacher, the legendary Headmaster of the Academy since he entered it. However, the Headmaster had been traveling and had not appeared even after Eldest Brother had. It was very sudden to have someone tell him that the Headmaster had returned to Chang¡¯an.


    Ning Que did not know what kind of person the Headmaster was. He had not heard of any other legendary deeds that the man had aplished other than that snip on the Peach-Mountain of West Hill. However, he knew that someone who could be Youngest Uncle¡¯s Senior Brother, and someone who could teach people like Eldest and Second Brother was a person of the legends.


    And this man was his teacher. He was so proud of it and his teeth hurt every time he thought of that. He was finally going to meet the teacher today, and he was so nervous and anxious that his teeth hurt. He wanted to run away from this subconsciously.


    "I haven¡¯t brushed... I brushed my teeth. But... I am not prepared. Look, these clothes I¡¯m wearing... they haven¡¯t been washed in days. There are still porridge stains on them."


    Ning Que pointed at the beef and egg porridge stain on his robe. He exined nervously and seriously, "I think I should return to bathe, perfume and cleanse myself and change into new clothes before returning to the Academy."


    "Bathe, perfume and cleanse yourself?"


    Chen Pipi looked at him solemnly and said, "If the teacher knows that you have done all that, he will certainly have Second Brother beat you up badly. Teacher has always thought that only the deceased should enjoy such treatment. It will mean that you are treating him as if he were dead."


    Ning Que did not know that he had already called the Headmaster a dead old man on the Building of Pines and Cranes¡¯s balcony. He listened to Chen Pipi¡¯s threats and heeded his advice, agreeing to return to the Academy with him immediately.


    He looked at Sangsang and was about to ask her to return to the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    "I¡¯ll go with you guys."


    Chen Pipi nced at Sangsang and said, "Teacher must be very curious about your little handmaiden who is the future Great Divine Priest of Light. He had specifically ordered for you to bring her along."


    Ning Que nodded. Sangsang¡¯s held a nonchnt view of everything in the world other than him. She would go with them since he agreed to it.


    However, they were forced to stop before they even left Chang¡¯an.


    The Vermilion Bird Street before the South Gates of Chang¡¯an was filled with people.


    Something interesting had happened to attract so many people after the rain.


    Chen Pipi tip-toed and looked over the crowd.


    To see a long bench in an empty space in the middle of the crowd.


    There was a white dog lying beneath the bench.


    There was a girl lying on the bench.


    The girl was wearing tattered leather robes.


    There was a long heavy b of stone on the leather robes.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 372: Smashing Rocks on Thin Chests, Shocking Winter Grass with Shamelessness

    Chapter 372: Smashing Rocks on Thin Chests, Shocking Winter Grass with Shamelessness


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The girl¡¯s tattered leather robes were slightly thin. They were crushed beneath the heavy elongated rock, and it looked like they would break into pieces together with her tiny frame. One could not help but worry when they saw this.


    A ragged looking man in tattered robes stood beside the bench. His expression was wooden and his eyes were filled with fear. He lifted the hammer in his hands up high, but did not seem like he could bring himself to lower it.


    The crowd watching turned their heads away, not daring to watch. Some people tried to stop him concernedly while some could not speak due to nervousness. Others stared at the sight excitedly.


    The white dog beneath the bench sprawled on its front legs.


    "Smashing a rock on her chest?"


    Chen Pipi watched the scene that was happening and said incredulously. Ning Que was also surprised. Smashing a rock on one¡¯s chest was rarely seen in Chang¡¯an City nowadays, because it was rathermon. However, the person performing the act was a young girl, which made it rare.


    Chen Pipi said worriedly, "Let¡¯s not talk about how the hammer willnd downwards. That rock is about to crush the girl. This won¡¯t do. We have to stop it. It¡¯s too dangerous."


    With that, he squeezed through the crowd, wanting to stop the act from happening. However, before he could walk over, the girl on the bench red at the man, and the man¡¯s hands went ck from the scare, causing the hammer to fall.


    Suddenly there was a muffled thud.


    The heavy rock on the girl¡¯s body shattered into numerous pieces. They ttered from the bench, somending on the white dog by it. The dog shook its head.


    All were silent on the streets of the Southern City. Everyone looked at the motionless girl on the bench and wondered if she had died from the impact. Some people looked on pityingly.


    ...


    ...


    It was then when the girl flipped up cleanly. She dusted herself off and looked at the man beside her in annoyance. She said, "I chose you from that run down temple because you were strong. What¡¯s the point if you don¡¯t dare to use your strength? You mustn¡¯t do this next time."


    The crowd gathered around finally came to themselves. They looked at the girl who looked very young and saw her nonchnce before they realized that nothing untoward had happened to her. They apuded excitedly and the sounds of cheering and whistling sounded through the streets.


    The girl took off her leather cap and walked towards the crowd. Her ck its that had been stuffed in the cap before swung around her knees as they fell.


    The girl¡¯s smile was innocent and adorable. She was also well articted. The citizens of Chang¡¯an were already in awe of her when they saw her act of smashing a rock on her chest. There was no reason not to give her money after seeing how adorable she was. Before long, her cap was filled to the brim with bronze coins.


    She smiled happily as she held her hat that was heavy with coins.


    Some kind-hearted citizens of Chang¡¯an even lectured the ragged looking man. They told him that they shouldn¡¯t allow his young sister to do something so dangerous no matter how poor they were. They even said that if they saw him allowing the girl to break rocks on her chest again in Chang¡¯an, they would have the Chang¡¯an Local Government bring him back for an interrogation.


    The girl tossed the shard of rock that had gone through a hole from the front of her robe and walked up to the side of the ragged looking man. She patted her little chest and smiled at the masses. She exined smilingly, "Thank you all for your concern, but I am fine. I have been practicing this since I was young."


    The act of patting the chest was extremely heroic, but she was a young girl whose palms and chest were both small. This action made her look even more adorable, causing the crowd tough kindly.


    ...


    ...


    Chen Pipi stared at the scene with his mouth wide opened. He looked at the girl like a startled idiot and said, "This girl is tough. Is she not worried that her chest would be ttened and that she won¡¯t be able to feed her child in the future?"


    His gazended on the girl¡¯s chest and he said with sudden realization, "It¡¯s not like she had much of a chest in the first ce."


    Ning Que lowered his head slightly to nce at Chen Pipi¡¯s chest.


    Chen Pipi knew that Ning Que was implying that he only had arge chest because he was fat. He turned around, ashamed.


    Ning Que looked at the za and suddenly stiffened.


    The act of shattering rocks on one¡¯s chest had surprised him. However, he was shocked speechless when he saw the girl¡¯s child-like features.


    "Take Sangsang to the Academy. I still have something on and will go thereter."


    He said to Chen Pipi.


    Chen Pipi looked at him in confusion and reminded him, "Do not bathe, perfume and change."


    Ning Que smiled and said, "I won¡¯t."


    Chen Pipi emphasized, "You have to meet the teacher eventually. Do not think of running away."


    Ning Que sighed, "I understand. Even an ugly wife has to meet her inws eventually."


    ...


    ...


    In a quiet alley beside the Vermilion Bird Avenue, Ning Que lowered his head and looked at Tang Xiaotang in front of him. Hemented, "I wonder if you are mad to appear in Chang¡¯an City."


    The girl who had shattered a rock on her chest was Tang Xiaotang. Was there any other girl in the world who was as strong as the girl from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine?


    Tang Xiaotang raised her head and looked at him. She said, "My brother told me toe to Chang¡¯an."


    Ning Que froze slightly and asked, "Then your brother is crazy."


    Tang Xiaotang said displeasedly, "You are the crazy one. I have already told you at the Hn Sea that I would look for you in Chang¡¯an and y together. Why are you like this just as we have met up?"


    Ning Que could not understand the rationale and logic of the siblings from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He breathed in deeply and said, "You havee to Chang¡¯an to y? Are you in your right mind? This is the Central ins, the Tang Empire, Chang¡¯an City. And you, Tang Xiaotang, are the legendary descendant of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    Tang Xiaotang looked at him in confusion. She asked, "So what?"


    "So what?"


    Ning Que looked at the entrance of the alley alertly. He walked around a tree in the alley annoyedly before turning around to stare at her. He said, "The appearance of a descendant of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine in Chang¡¯an is like a bunny running to the side of a big ck bear who is pooping. It¡¯s like a moth flying into mes."


    Tang Xiaotang smiled andforted him. "So you are worried about this. Do not fear. We disciples of the Enlightenment Doctrine do not have any ripples in our aura. The cultivators here cannot see through us. So many seniors from the Enlightenment Doctrine had hidden in the Central ins then and nothing happened to them."


    Ning Que looked at the girl¡¯s childish face and did not know what to say. He forcefully tempered down the anger in his chest and exined seriously. "It is different now. There are indeed not many who would think that someone from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine would dare to hang around here in the open. But what did you do just now? You tried to perform shattering a rock on your chest! Do you think that the Imperial Center Administration would not check up on your past when you be famous in Chang¡¯an?"


    He continued, "Even if those guys in ck from the Divine Hall¡¯s Judicial Department cannot enter Chang¡¯an to capture you, do you think nobody would make a move on you? Those citizens of Chang¡¯an who pitied and admired you can apuse for you now. But when they find out that you are from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, they would eat you alive. Do not forget, that the Tangs believe in Haotian as well."


    Tang Xiaotangid out her hands innocently and looked extremely adorable. She said, "The journey from the Wilderness to Chang¡¯an was too long. I spent all my money when I got to Capital Cheng. I have begged my way here, and I thought that if I did that, I would embarrass the Academy and you guys, so I figured I would perform to earn some money."


    Ning Que was slightly startled. He only realized then, that Tang Xiaotang¡¯s leather robes were more tattered than when they had met in the Wilderness. Her leather boots had also cracked opened. She must have endured much difficulty on the long journey.


    Ning Que could not help but think of those times when he and Sangsang drifted around in the world when he saw the girl. He could not bear to scold her anymore, and he felt a little odd. So what Tang Xiaotang had said about embarrassing someone had gone over his head.


    Tang Xiaotang smiled. "The Tangs are really quite nice. There were many people who gave me directions and helped me look for the governor¡¯s office. When I begged for food, there were many times when they cooked fresh food for me. Nobody tried to hurt me, and you are also good to me. You have never thought of killing me before."


    Ning Que was not interested in getting rid of the Devil¡¯s guards. What¡¯s more, he had joined the Devil. In other words, the girl before him was one of his own. He had no intentions of killing her.


    After a moment of thinking, he pulled out some taels of silver from his robes and pressed them in Tang Xiaotang¡¯s palms. He urged her, "Go to the Building of Pines and Cranes and have something to eat. When I return..."


    Suddenly, he thought about that sly old man at the Building of Pines and Cranes who had a wooden rod hidden in his sleeves. He thought that was a rather dangerous ce as well. Instead, he passed his keys to her.


    "There is a shop called the Old Brush Pen Shop on the Lin 47th Street in the Eastern City. It belongs to me. Wait for me there. Let me remind you, do not jump in from over the walls. You have to use the doors. Do not touch anything once you get in."


    The Headmaster was waiting for him in the Academy, and he didn¡¯t have time to say anything more to Tang Xiaotang. After he had instructed her on what to do at his fastest speed, he ran towards the Southern Gates like the wind.


    Tang Xiaotang held the taels of silver in one hand and keys in another. She stared at Ning Que¡¯s retreating back and wanted to tell him that she had somewhere to go. However, since it waste, she just shrugged her shoulders cutely.


    ...


    ...


    The Big ck Horse had been abandoned at the back of the mountain of the Academy and allowed to roam freely. Ning Que did not ride a horse or take a carriage. Instead, he used the strength and muscles that knew no tiredness since he joined the Devil, and started running after he walked out of the Southern Gates of Chang¡¯an and into a thicket by the path.


    Winter grass that was full of vitality and even stronger bugs pped into his cheeks from time to time. He squinted and ran, and arrived at the side entrance of the Academy before long.


    On the state highway not far away, a convoy of carriages rolled towards the south slowly.


    Ning Que looked at them, and guessed that they were the girls from the Great River Kingdom who were leaving Chang¡¯an.


    He was silent for a long time as he stared at the retreating carriages. Then, he turned around and walked towards the Academy.


    He saw a girl standing in the grass by the path.


    He had just parted with the girl at Chang¡¯an, and they have quickly reunited.


    Tang Xiaotang gasped in the grass. She looked at him and said, "You run really fast."


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 373: Meeting Teacher and the Poor Guys Who Have No Status

    Chapter 373: Meeting Teacher and the Poor Guys Who Have No Status


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que was startled as he looked at Tang Xiaotang who stood in the thicket. He sighed and asked, "Are you a ghost? Why do you follow me wherever I go? It¡¯s useless no matter how fast I run."


    Tang Xiaotang had not even had time to react to his mean tone when the snow-white puppy rushed out from behind her and growled at Ning Que, disying his sharp teeth. However, it still remembered how it had been tortured by Ning Que on the mountain path in the Wilderness, and only dared to growl at him from beside its owner. It did not dare to go near Ning Que at all.


    "You run really fast. I almost thought that you were one of us from the Enlightenment Doctrine." Tang Xiaotang said, "But you will never be as fast as me."


    Ning Que said helplessly, "My dear miss, why are you following me around?"


    Tang Xiaotang said, "My brother told me to enter the Academy and be a student of the Headmaster."


    Ning Que stood still for a moment before he could ascertain that he did not hear wrongly. He had the urge to torch down the winter grass by the path before him. He said, "You and your brother are indeed both mad. You want to be a student of the Headmaster? Do you not know that he is the true leader of the Central ins?... Alright, since he doesn¡¯t appear often, he is at least a spiritual leader. Even if he did not get rid of you through some powerful means when he sees that you are from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, would he ept you as a disciple?"


    Tang Xiaotang said confusedly, "My brother said that the Academy does not discriminate."


    Ning Que said, "Anyway, my advice is for you to give up. I cannot take you to the back of the mountain of the Academy. Furthermore, I am the most favored Youngest Brother now. Why would I want a junior sister?"


    With that, he turned around and walked down the slope towards the Academy. However, Tang Xiaotang and the Little White Dog followed him no matter how fast he walked.


    Tang Xiaotangughed as she said behind him, "If the Headmaster knew that you were so shameless, he might not like you. He might even kick you out. Wouldn¡¯t it be just nice for me to take up your spot?"


    Ning Que thought to himself that he was willing to do anything in this life. He was used to sucking up to people. He thought of the generals in the City of Wei, and Master Yan Se. He had even managed to make Eldest Brother happy, how would the Headmaster of the Academy be able to escape from his grasp?


    "Can we still, can we still meet? I have prayed before Buddha for a thousand years..."


    At this moment, a song suddenly sounded from under the sloped stone path. The singer¡¯s voice was not wonderful. It wasn¡¯t hoarse, but had an odd whimsical feel to it. The lyrics, coupled with an out-of-tune melody made it sound like someone speaking, making it even more ludicrous and funny.


    Tang Xiaotang turned around to look at it curiously.


    The melody was foreign to Ning Que, but he seemed to have heard the lyrics somewhere. He suddenly grew alert, "How would anyone else other than himself know of this song?"


    Looking down the stone trail, he saw a tall old man wearing a dark-colored fox coat. He walked up a slope with a painted meal box in his hand. Was it not the man on the balcony of the Building of Pines and Cranesst night?


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que¡¯s head hurt as he looked at the old man. He thought of the wooden rod that had hit him, and a cold smile appeared on the corners of his lips. He prepared to stop the man and give him a good beating.


    As the saying goes, "Getting revenge means using your fists to return the beating the rod gave." This was what it meant.


    Ning Que knew that he was a good fighter even when drunk. The old man was not an ordinary rich man from Chang¡¯an, as he was able to knock him unconscious with his rod. He naturally grew alert, and the Great Spirit in his body swirled. His hands grasped at empty air, as if he was holding a knife. He was ready for battle within seconds.


    Suddenly, he noticed from the side of his eyes that the little white dog had hidden behind Tang Xiaotang¡¯s boots. Its ears were prickled upright, and it was making little noises of fear. His heart flipped slightly.


    He knew that the little white dog was not really a dog but a snow wolf from the Wilderness. Even though the little wolf was afraid of him, it had never shown any signs of submission. Why would it behave like so now? Could it be that the old man had made it feel fearful subconsciously?


    Ning Que had many dangerous encounters as he killed on the Min Mountain in the grasnd. His reaction time was trained to be so fast that it was beyond that of an ordinary person. This little detail was like a sparknding on a pile of dry grass, and it burst into mes in his mind as he thought of a certain possibility.


    This was the Academy.


    The tall old man wearing fox fur was very strong.


    As he thought of the possibility, Ning Que¡¯s heart began to beat furiously before turning cold. He then began to tremble due to the shock.


    At the most crucial moment, he perfectly disyed his ability to control his emotions and body.


    He looked at the old man walking up the stairs and did not reveal any other emotions on his face. The cold smile that had been on his lips blossomed like a flower, as if it had been met by the brilliant sun rays. The Great Spirit in him melted away into nothingness like snow in spring. His hands that had been grasping at a hilt rose before his chest in a fist. He bowed slightly and said warmly, "I never thought that I would meet this Sir again."


    ...


    ...


    The Headmaster walked up the slope with a meal box.


    He looked at Ning Que in front of him interestedly but did not say anything.


    Ning Que looked at the Headmaster calmly. One could not see anything different about his expression or his posture. Only he knew that his body that had been suppressed was fighting an intense battle with his strong will where the Headmaster was not looking.


    Beads of sweat appeared on his back, soaking through the back of his shirt.


    He had to use his will to forcefully suppress the fear and reaction of his body. So even though his expression was calm and his eyes were warm and sweet, he had already used most of his strength. His soles hurt, his calves and stomach hurt like they were tearing. He could cramp up any time.


    The Headmaster suddenly spoke. He said, "I am just an ordinary old man, you don¡¯t have to be so respectful."


    Ning Que objected vehemently, "Who would dare to say that you are an ordinary old man?"


    The Headmaster leaned forwards slightly and looked at him from above. His hair prickled as the Headmaster watched him. Then, the old man smiled and said, "Someone told mest night that I was a pitiful old man."


    Ning Que thought that the situation was going downhill, but wanted to make onest attempt. He smiled forcefully, "I spoke nonsense after drinkingst night. Someone like you, sir, would not me me for this."


    The Headmaster sighed, "I am on the brink of death and have decided to take on onest student. I haven¡¯t even died, and my student has already called me an old ghost of a teacher. Why do I even bother?"


    Ning Que felt as if he had been struck by lightning, but was determined to y the idiot and pretend that he did not understand.


    The Headmaster looked at him and smiled. He said, "Your ability to pretend to be dumb is world-ss. But your back is wet, and your feet are about to break the stone beneath them into smithereens. Why are you still pretending?"


    When the Headmaster pointed that out, Ning Que turned into a broken wine jug. He did not have the energy to push on. Instead, he fell to the ground with an exmation and rubbed his cramping calves and soles furiously.


    The Headmaster watched him as he sat on the ground and sighed. He shook his head and continued upwards with his meal box.


    The sigh was soft, but sounded like thunder to Ning Que¡¯s ears. He wondered if the Headmaster was extremely disappointed with him. What should he do?


    He had finally entered the back of the mountain of the Academy after encountering many challenges and facing death numerous times in this life. His current life began thanks to this teacher that he had never once met. Would he just watch it as it disappeared before his eyes?


    Ning Que leapt from the ground as if he had been poked in the butt. He limped forward and followed behind the Headmaster respectfully. He reached out for the meal box, wanting to help the old man carry it.


    The Headmaster did not hand the meal box to him. Instead, he looked at Tang Xiaotang who stood in the thicket confusedly and waved her over. Then, he passed the meal box to her.


    Tang Xiaotang finally emerged from her daze. She knew who the old man was from Ning Que¡¯s expression and their conversation. She took over the heavy meal box and smiled at Ning Que. Bringing along the little white wolf, she followed the Headmaster into the Academy exuberantly.


    Ning Que was extremely dejected as he saw the Headmaster¡¯s wide and tall back.


    He had thought that he was the youngest student of the Second floor of the Academy and would be able to make the Headmaster happy with his shamelessness and sweet tongue. He would then be a favored student in the Academy. However, who would have thought that the old man on the balcony of the Building of Pines and Cranes who did not look decent no matter which angle you looked from, and that the old man he hadughed at was his teacher?


    And looking at the situation now, the Headmaster might really ept Tang Xiaotang into the Second floor of the Academy. Wouldn¡¯t that mean that his position as the youngest and the most protected would be gone?


    ...


    ...


    They reached the cliff tform of the back of the mountain after passing through the fog.


    The Headmaster had gone somewhere.


    Tang Xiaotang stood under a gingko tree and was admiring the beautiful scenery of the back of the mountain of the Academy.


    Ning Que walked to her side and did not speak.


    The little white wolf ran around in the meadows below the slope. It was very excited and ran very fast as it had never seen such verdant soft meadows in the Wilderness; it looked like a white bolt of lightning.


    Suddenly, a ck lightning bolt appeared and surpassed the little white wolf in an instant. It was like a ck cloud that loomed over its entirety.


    It was the Big ck Horse.


    The little white wolf was scared silly by the Big ck Horse whose hooves were like giant trees. It curled up into a ball, not daring to move as it listened to the clopping hooves.


    Ning Queughed coldly, and was about to boast about his horse to Tang Xiaotang.


    However, he really couldn¡¯tugh today. The smile that appeared on his lips fell into an annoyed expression the next moment once more.


    The striking Big ck Horse was in actuality an escapee.


    Arge white goose tottered through the meadows chasing after it. Its movements were funny, but were speedy. Its long neck looked extremely like the crown on a certain someone¡¯s head and it looked extremely proud.


    The Big ck Horse squawked in horror at the sight of the big white goose. Its hooves flew as he sprinted through the meadow panting and looking extremely aggrieved.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 375: A Student, the Master and a Jinlan Tree in the Back of the Mountain

    Chapter 375: A Student, the Master and a Jin Tree in the Back of the Mountain


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In the Academy, there was the back of the mountain, and behind the mountain, there was a cliff.


    Everyone in the back of the mountain, expect Ning Que, had been to the cliff and was surprised by the impressive view. It was so brilliant that they didn¡¯t often go there. For them, that cliff was not a dangerous ce, but they knew very well that enjoying the view of the cliff and retreating at the cliff are totally different.


    Thest person in the Academy who was confined at the Back Cliff was a famous person, so much that no one outside the Academy was willing to mention his name, and they didn¡¯t dare to do that either. He was Youngest Uncle.


    Everyone knew the story of Youngest Uncle retreating at the Back Cliff. And they also knew how hard it was to break the confinement there; it required the highest talent and greatest perseverance. Thus, it was really a shock to everyone when the master said he would send their Youngest Brother to the Back Cliff.


    Everyone in the hut was silent. Theplicated expressions on the students¡¯ faces showed their disagreement with the Headmaster of the Academy¡¯s decision, but no one dared to say anything because the master, who was sitting in the chair, slowly closed his eyes.


    Apart from his big figure, the Headmaster seemed very normal. Apart from once cutting peach flowers on the West-Hill, there weren¡¯t other legendary stories about him known to the world. The Headmaster left fewer stories than his Younger Brother Ke Haoran, but every cultivator believed that he was the most legendary person in thest thousand years.


    People in the hut respected and loved their master deeply. And now when they didn¡¯t understand and approve the master¡¯s punishment to the Youngest Brother, no one knew what to do.


    Chen Pipi rubbed his hands and walked to Ning Que. He bowed deeply to the master and said in a shivering voice, "Master, that punishment is a little too much, isn¡¯t it?"


    Before Ning Que came to the Academy, Chen Pipi was the youngest student on the Second floor of the Academy. And except Eldest Brother, he was the master¡¯s most beloved student. At this time, he was the most suitable person to say something for Ning Que.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t stay in the back of mountain for a long time, and from thest spring until today, he had been in the Wilderness. But even so, all the Senior Brothers and Sisters liked this Young Brother. Seeing Chen Pipi plucked up his courage to beg the master, they also joined him.


    Everyone was trying to make the master happy and take his decision back; Seventh Sister walked to the back of the master and started massaging his shoulders; Beigong Weiyang and Ximen Buhuo talked about how steep the cliff was with a sad expression; Fifth Brother and Eighth Brother tried to change the topic.


    Eleventh Brother Wang Chi didn¡¯t do the same thing. He looked at the master in the eye and thought for a while. "If nothing is alive, then there won¡¯t be such a thing as a heart; if fur doesn¡¯t exist anymore, there won¡¯t be such a thing as hair; if flowers don¡¯t bloom anymore, there won¡¯t be such things as colors; and if one is not wrong, then there won¡¯t be such a thing as a punishment. Given that master gives Youngest Brother such a heavy punishment, I wonder what he did wrong."


    Wang Chi rarely spoke with people, he only liked talking with flowers. So, when he started arguing with the master, it was clear how worrying the situation was.


    Second Brother always followed etiquette and order strictly, so he couldn¡¯t be more respectful to the master. But at this moment, instead of reproaching Wang Chi for not respecting their teacher, he said slowly to the master, "Master, I have consulted all the rules of the Academy, and I don¡¯t think he did something that deserves such a heavy punishment."


    Third Sister Yu Lian was writing Hairpin-style Small Regr Script on a table around a corner of the hut. She stopped writing and looked at Ning Que and the master. She was thinking but still couldn¡¯t find a way out.


    The crowd was still trying to persuade the master, but he was sitting still with closed eyes at all times. Eldest Brother looked at the master quietly for a while, then he walked forward and bowed to him deeply.


    His move quieted the room and the noise stopped. Everyone walked back to their own ces and looked at him expectantly.


    The Headmaster of the Academy opened his eyes slowly. He looked at Eldest Brother unexpectantly and said, "You also want to say something?"


    Senior Brother straightened up and said seriously, "I believe master has your own reason, I can guess roughly what it is. But Youngest Brother has just entered the Academy. Although he did improve quickly during the adventure to the Wilderness, I don¡¯t think he is as powerful as Youngest Uncle."


    Second Brother frowned when he remembered the story of Youngest Uncle and said while shaking his head, "Master, Senior Brother is right. What if Youngest Brother couldn¡¯t understand it in ten years?"


    The master looked at these two students who had been studying with him since they were children. And he nced around the room, seeing the worried and expectant faces of his young students. With his long eyebrows moving slightly, he said, "He would never be allowed to go out if he couldn¡¯t understand. I never believe in Lucky Chance, but it worked on him. And now he needs to face his own Lucky Chance."


    His eyes were peaceful.


    It was just a slow nce around the room, but everyone got the feeling that master was staring at them at all times. His peaceful eyes were so determined that the crowd lowered their heads and didn¡¯t dare to say anything any more. The hut was as silent as a quietke.


    Ning Que heard Chen Pipi mention the Back Cliff once, but he didn¡¯t pay much attention. And he wasn¡¯t very shocked when he heard that the master would confine him there because he thought it would end anyway, maybe the master just wanted to use it to challenge him and improve him.


    However, he realized that being confined at the Back Cliff was a horrible punishment when he saw the reactions of his Senior Brothers and Sisters, especially when Second Brother asked what if he couldn¡¯t go out in ten years, and the master said then he would nevere out. He felt a little cold.


    It was said that everything could be a cultivation. But it was very different between normal cultivating and cultivating in a cold jail alone. No matter how powerful he would be after the confinement, Ning Que still couldn¡¯t ept that he would be imprisoned for ten years, or even for his whole life. He could never ept it.


    Ning Que looked down, thinking of his bleak future in a prison. His body was as cold as if he dropped into an icehouse. He didn¡¯t understand what mistake he made and why he was punished so hard.


    But there was no anger or unwillingness on his face when he looked up because he knew any emotion would be useless when facing the master. So he asked carefully, "Master, what will prove that I have understood?"


    The master said, "When you know about a thing thoroughly, you understand it."


    What he said sounded like useless words.


    Ning Que remembered when he couldn¡¯t understand at the Ocean of Qi in the Snow Mountain and when he thought for a long time about talisman. He understood something roughly.


    He was silent for a while, and then he said, "How can I prove that I already understand?"


    The master said, "When you are clear about it, you understand it naturally."


    Ning Que looked at him in the eye and said, "I think there should be a standard."


    Looking at this young student who insisted on finding the answer, the master¡¯s eyes lit up. His eyes were like dew on the pine, shining and reflecting the morning rays.


    "There is a standard."


    "Who makes the standard? You?"


    "It already exists."


    "Master, I can¡¯t stay at the Back Cliff for a long time though. His Majesty still wants to meet me, and I need to learn how to take charge of Chang¡¯an city properly. And in a few days, it will be the 100th day since the death of my teacher Yan Se, I need to go to his tomb and kowtow. How about I go to retreat eight days of every ten days?"


    The master¡¯s eyes turned brighter and brighter as Ning Que kept talking. And in the end, his eyes were even smiling. And the smile in his eyes was so big as if it could even flow out like water overflowed from ake.


    But suddenly, he stopped smiling and said slowly to Ning Que, "Last night on the tform of the Building of Pines and Cranes, what did you say you were?"


    "I was a person who was having a normal life on the Dragon Hidden Mountain," murmured Ning Que.


    The Headmaster said, "I don¡¯t know where the Dragon Hidden Mountain is, but I do know what normal means."


    Ning Que understood his words and looked up at the white straw hanging down from the roof. He knew someone like the master would never be angry about his student just because of the debate they had on the Building of Pines and Cranes. Then why did he want to lock him up at the Back Cliff? Was it because he joined the Devil?


    Youngest Uncle died because he got punished by Haotian. He also lost his fame and no one talked about him anymore. Maybe the master wanted to lock him up because he inherited the Great Spirit of Youngest Uncle and it reminded him of Youngest Uncle¡¯s story? Or maybe he wanted to maintain the good reputation of the Academy? Or maybe there were other reasons?


    Ning Que kept thinking, he felt that the thing he understood roughly became a puzzle again. The Great Spirit in his body started moving around when he was thinking, like a knife, it stuck towards his throat. He said in a husky voice, "Master... you are an unreasonable person."


    All people in the hut were very shocked. Second Brother looked serious and Eldest Brother sighed slowly. After all, no one dared to doubt or even criticize the master at such a formal asion, despite that they got along very well.


    The master didn¡¯t be angry, he said, "You already said your master was the most unreasonable person in the Building of Pines and Cranes. Didn¡¯t you?"


    Ning Que was silent for a while and then he said, "Please allow me to talk with my handmaiden before I go to the Back Cliff."


    "No need. I asked you to take your handmaiden here today so that you can take her with you to the Back Cliff. After all, you still need her to cook for you and look after you on the Back Cliff," said the master.


    It was not until then did Ning Que see the real reason the master asked him to take Sangsang here; he was prepared to lock him at the back of the mountain. Suddenly he remembered what Sangsang was like. And he knew she would not leave the Back Cliff without him if he was there. Then it meant that both of them would be locked at the Back Cliff.


    When he thought about that, the Great Spirit became as powerful as a sharp sword and stuck to his chest. He couldn¡¯t control his emotion anymore. Ning Que looked at the Headmaster in anger and clenched his fist.


    But he didn¡¯t do anything, instead, he looked at the master peacefully and took a deep breath to restrain his anger. Then he said mildly, "I will follow your order, master."


    The master watched his youngest andst student for a long time. He watched him thinking. He watched him feeling upset, then angry. He saw him losing control of the Great Spirit, and then trying to return to peace. And in the end, he saw him returning to normal.


    "Ha! Ha! Ha! Ha..."


    He burst intoughter and stood up from the chair. He stroked his ck gown and walked out of the hut without informing any students there.


    Outside the hut stood the Jin Tree that he and his Younger Brother nted many years ago. Looking at the green leaves in the tree, the old man said happily but with pity, "There are no such things as two leaves exactly same leaves, then how can two people be exactly the same?"


    ...


    ...


    --

 Chapter 376: Looking at Changan on the Cliff

    Chapter 376: Looking at Chang¡¯an on the Cliff


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Seeing that the master was walking towards the direction of the waterfall, Eldest Brother and Second Brother could guess something. But even so, they still thought that the punishment of locking Youngest Brother up at the Back Cliff was too harsh. It was right that when you force someone to suffer a great deal, they will be a whole new person, but not everyone was like Youngest Uncle.


    Yu Lian tidied the calligraphy stationery on the table and walked out of the hut. She stopped when passing by Ning Que and said softly, "If you can¡¯t make master change his decision, you should take your handmaiden and follow him. Don¡¯t let him wait for too long."


    Ning Que was staring at the master too, hoping that he would forget about him afterughing for a while. If so, he could just escape from this tragedy. But after hearing what Third Sister said, he realized it was just daydreaming. He sighed, smiled bitterly and then followed her to the chairs on the meadow.


    Senior Sister Yu Lian said to Tang Xiaotang, "Follow me, I will arrange amodations for you."


    Tang Xiaotang nodded happily. She waved goodbye to Sangsang and said, "It seems like I will stay here for a long time. Remember to visit me."


    Sangsang nodded.


    Tang Xiaotang followed Yu Lian. She was walking in a light mood, she was so happy that she was walking like a rolling stone, while next to her, Yu Lian was as elegant and quiet as a nice tree. Despite their small figures, their ages and auras were totally different. But when walking together, it looked really harmonious.


    Ning Que looked back at Sangsang and said with a smile, "I went to see the master just then. He was so happy to see me that he decided to teach me some secret cultivation skills, so I need to study carefully at the back of the mountain. Why don¡¯t you go home first to look after the shop and I will be back as soon as I finish my things."


    The master had asked him to take Sangsang here today so that there was someone to look after him after he was locked up. But Ning Que would never agree to have Sangsang be locked up there with him.


    Sangsang looked at him and said softly, "You were talking very loudly. And you know how good my ears are, so I heard all the talking."


    Ning Que was silent for a while, then he said, "Yes, I am punished to be locked up at the Back Cliff, I really don¡¯t know when I will break the confinement and go out."


    Sangsang looked at him in concern, "What should we do?"


    Ning Que looked at her.


    She shook her head, "I will definitely go with you."


    Ning Que said after thinking for a while, "Let¡¯s see how it goes. If I will be there for a long time, then you go to the Schr¡¯s Mansion first. I think no one will stop you."


    Sangsang didn¡¯t say anything.


    Ning Que looked at the path stretching towards the wood under the waterfall and the master who was about to disappear in the wood. After being silent for a while, he and Sangsang started walking.


    When the hut disappeared behind them, Sangsang looked around and pulled on his sleeve. She asked quietly, "Did the Academy decide to lock you up because you joined the Devil?"


    Ning Que replied, "Eldest Brother probably always knows what happened after I got the Great Spirit of Youngest Uncle in the Wilderness. The master definitely knows too. But I am not sure whether the punishment is about this. It wasn¡¯t mentioned in the hut."


    There was an old plum tree on the path.


    The flowers scratched Sangsang¡¯s darkish face and made the expression on her face even more serious. She said with a lower voice, "My teacher said you are the son of Yama."


    Ning Que said with anger, "Don¡¯t mention your silly teacher. I have told you I am not."


    Sangsang said with worry, "But is the Academy locking you up because of this?"


    Ning Que didn¡¯t want to admit it, but his mood turned heavier.


    ...


    ...


    Together with his mood, his steps also became heavy. Ning Que had no idea what was waiting for him in the back of the mountain. He took Sangsang¡¯s hand and walked slowly in silence.


    The ck gown in front was dancing in the wind. Sometimes it disappeared in the wood, and sometimes it reappeared next to the waterfall. The master was always somewhere they could see, although it looked as if he was walking fast.


    They walked past Second Brother¡¯s yard and went nearer to the silver waterfall. The sound of the waterfall was thunderous and in the air there was cool fog made by the sshes of the water. It made the air so refreshing.


    However, Ning Que was breathing fast because he really wanted to turn around and leave this ce with Sangsang. But he knew very well that was impossible. And even if they could escape from the Academy, they would not be happy because all the efforts in the past years were in vain. They would go back to the dim life again.


    Following the dancing ck gown, they arrived at the waterfall.


    Under the waterfall was a quietke. There was no water flowing towards the direction of the cliff tform, which proved that thiske was not connected with Mirror Lake. The water overflowed from theke and onto the stones on the right.


    Holding Sangsang¡¯s hand, Ning Que stepped on the stones and walked towards the direction of the flowing water. Together with the streams, he walked into a deep valley.


    The valley was very narrow, and only of 100 feet high. On the top, the rocks bent inwards and connected together, making it look like a natural cave. The air in the cave was humid and there was moss on the walls. The streams flowing out from theke were still teeming between the stones.


    In front of the valley was blue sky. And the valley cut it into the shape of a beautiful blue te. Ning Que and Sangsang walked towards the blue hole.


    As they walked further, the valley became even narrower. And the streams between the stones also became rapid, washing against the moss on the stones.


    Once they left the valley, they were faced with a steep cliff. The rapid water rushed and danced when flowing down from the cliff. And the line of the water cut the blue sky into two halves.


    Sangsang held Ning Que¡¯s hand tightly. She became speechless when looking at the beautiful scenery.


    The end of the dark path was an impressive view.


    The wind was howling between the mountains. Standing at the edge of the cliff and watching the waterfall falling down, you couldn¡¯t hear any sound. It was as quiet as if the cliff would never end.


    Ning Que couldn¡¯ t see the abyss. Actually, apart from the sky, he couldn¡¯t see anything.


    The cliff stretched towards the two ends of the sky. It was as big as the huge desert in the north of the pce in the grasnd. But this desert was in the sky.


    Compared with the endless cliff, the mouth of the valley where they were standing was just a tiny ce, and the waterfall was just a thin line. Ning Que looked at the distance and saw several waterfalls hanging down from the cliff, which were all different and special. Together they made a very beautiful scene.


    An endless cliff stood against the blue sky, from which thin waterfalls dropped down. They made a huge world, and anyone who stood here would be impressed by this beautiful scenery and no matter how powerful they were, they would always feel that they were so small.


    Ning Que walked one step towards the cliff and he looked down with Sangsang¡¯s hand in his hand. The cliff was shrouded in fog, with no end visible. No one knew how deep it was.


    The several waterfalls dropped from the cliff to the fog and cloud, sshing circles of clouds up. And then they disappeared. It was so mysterious that it seemed as if there was another world beneath the cloud and fog.


    The Back Cliff in the back of the mountain was a beautiful new world.


    But the beautiful world would easily make people feel so impressed that they didn¡¯t know what to do.


    Standing at the edge of the cliff, watching the cloud moving around and seeing the waterfalls dropping into the cloud didn¡¯t make Ning Que delighted and felt that he was in heaven. Instead, it made him scared.


    Thinking about the road he took, he was sure that this was the west of the mountain, and that was why during thest two years, on the way from Chang¡¯an to the Academy, he had never seen this mountain before.


    Although the cliff seemed very steep, there were narrow paths on it. Ning Que looked up and saw the master walking quickly on the cliff, sometimes to the left and sometimes to the right. But no matter how concentrated he was, it was still hard to know which side the master was on.


    Holding Sangsang¡¯s hand, Ning Que started walking up. They grew up in Min Mountain and were very familiar with climbing cliffs. So when facing this cliff, they were very calm as if they didn¡¯t see the steep cliff and the high sky.


    Higher on the cliff, less green was seen. At this ce, there was noke or hut, noughter or music, no pines or meadows. This was a totally different world, only a cliff stood here, facing the sky silently for thousands of years.


    At the end of the path, there were a tform meadow and a humble straw hut. At the edge of the cliff was a cave, and the master was sitting on the edge, looking in the distance.


    Ning Que walked behind the master and looked in the distance too.


    Far away from the clouds, he could even see Chang¡¯an city. At dusk, the golden rays shone on the dark city walls, reflecting a holy luster.


    That was the most majestic city in the world, the perfect creation of mankind.


    The image of the city at dusk filled Ning Que with someplicated feelings. He was speechless for a long time and then said quietly, "Chang¡¯an is really beautiful at this time."


    The master said, "Chang¡¯an is always beautiful."


    Ning Que said, "The people who built it were really amazing, aren¡¯t they?"


    The master opened the meal box and took out of two urns full of liquor. He said, "They are not amazing, the people who are protecting the city are amazing."


    Ning Que was surprised.


    The master drank up all the liquor and ate a slice of mutton. He stared at Chang¡¯an in a way that as if he would never be bored with watching it and smiled.


    Chang¡¯an was at dusk.


    The master was watching the city.


    He was watching his own Chang¡¯an City.


    Looking at his master, Ning Que felt aplicated feeling. It cleared away all the worry and negative feelings on his mind.


    What did it feel like when looking down at the world from the top of the clouds and looking down at the secr world from the supermundane world? Was the master protecting this city, or was he protecting the whole empire, or the whole world?


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 377: Trying to Escape from the Cliff Cave for the First Time

    Chapter 377: Trying to Escape from the Cliff Cave for the First Time


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In the twilight, the entry of the cave looked like a monster¡¯s opening mouth.


    That was what Ning Que felt like when he looked at the cave. He knew it was cliche, but he couldn¡¯t find a more suitable word.


    The cave was wide open as if it was ready to eat up all the things that entered it, including sun rays, seasons, time and all the feelings connected with time.


    Ning Que felt very cold when he started thinking about walking into the cave and not knowing when he would get out. It might take a couple of months, years, or even decades. Maybe in another ten years, he wouldn¡¯t see the girls in Chang¡¯an or eat hot and sour noodle slice soup anymore. Maybe when he was out, the girls in the House of Red Sleeves would be really old, Xiaocao would have got married and Dewdrop would have gone back to her hometown.


    Actually it was possible that he would be prisoned at the back of the mountain for the whole life, rather than for only ten years. But he didn¡¯t want to think about that possibility when standing in front of the cave.


    The negative feelings were all gone after seeing the image of the city at dusk. He was a student of the Second floor of the Academy, a core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy. And he trusted this mountain and people here. But he had been living a miserable life since his childhood, therefore when thinking of entrusting his life and freedom to other peoplepletely, his nature was to oppose this idea and even to run away.


    He looked back at the master, who was still sitting on the cliff, eating and drinking. "Master, why on earth do you want to lock me up? Is it because I joined the Devil? Or something else?"


    He was going to ask the master, whether it was because the God of Light thought he was the Son of Yama, so the master wanted to imprison him and iste him from the world. But he didn¡¯t say it because he believed he had nothing to do with the illusory Yama, and it was not worth it to mention the groundless legend that caused many people¡¯s deaths many years ago.


    The master said, without turning around to look at him, "What does ¡¯lock up¡¯ mean?"


    Ning Que thought for a while and replied, "It means to take my freedom away."


    The master said, "Freedom is very precious. Even life bes nothing inparison with it. The only thing that could be more precious than it is freedom itself."


    Ning Que still could not understand his words.


    The master put the chopsticks back to the meal box, picked up a piece of ginger and put it into his mouth.


    After a while, he stood up and looked at Ning Que who was at the mouth of the cave. He said, "Since only freedom itself is more precious than freedom, then there was only one reason to take it away from you. I hope you can gain better andrger freedom. It was very easy."


    Ning Que felt that he learned more things. He said hopelessly, "Master, why didn¡¯t you tell me this easy thing in an easy way?"


    After these words, he turned to the cliff cave and sank into silence. After a long time, he drew a deep breath and walked into the cave.


    Thest rays of sunlight shone on Chang¡¯an city and the iste cliff. The golden red color made everything looked like mes and the cave was like an entry in the fire, leading to an unknown ce.


    It was quiet in the cave. And without any wind, the air in the cave was cool and dry.


    Based on his experience of hunting and killing, Ning Que immediately closed his eyes and opened them again to adjust to the dark environment.


    Standing in the cave, Ning Que found it wasn¡¯t as dark as looking from the outside of the cave. Under the light from outside, he could even see the patterns on the stone walls clearly.


    Ning Que was startled.


    Did he just walk in like that?


    It was so easy.


    He turned around and saw Sangsang leaning on a stone at the entrance of the cave and looking at him with concern. And the master on the edge of the cliff his meal box, ready to leave.


    He was so near to the mouth of the cave, so near that he could even see the southern city wall beyond the clouds in the distance. But once entering the cliff cave, it was so different. Overwhelmed by the strong loneliness in his heart, Ning Que felt like the outside world had abandoned him.


    "Master."


    Looking at the master, who was about to leave, Ning Que asked in a shivering voice, "Is it possible that I will never make it?"


    "It seems that you get along quite well with them, as many people begged for you. If you really need to stay here forever, I believe they wille here to apany you. Don¡¯t worry, you won¡¯t be lonely."


    After finishing his words, the master walked down the mountain with the meal box in his hand. His loose ck gown was like a bird¡¯s wing burning in the red twilight.


    Ning Que smiled bitterly. If he really had to stay here forever, would friendship even matter?


    Even the best children could not apany their ill parents for a long time. How could he expect his friends to apany him for a lifelong time at this cave? He thought that if he was in the cave forever, the world would eventually forget him.


    But one person would definitely stay with him at all times.


    Ning Que looked at Sangsang. He felt that she was so far away from him, even though she was right at the entrance of the cave. He said, "If I can¡¯te out after three months, you will go back."


    Sangsang wanted to say something.


    Ning Que shook his head, "Don¡¯t force me to behave like a girl."


    ...


    ...


    It was said that the most powerful Divine Talisman Masters could map a ce and turn it into a prison. Ning Que never saw his master Yan Se do it, but he had seen the Confinement of the West-Hill Divine Pce, which was used by the deacons of the Judicial Department at the Deste Man¡¯s tent. And he had also seen the Confinement made by Youngest Under¡¯s Haoran Sword at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    It seemed that there was nothing at the entrance of the cave. And when there was a breeze, under thest of daylight, dust floated in the air and could go through the entrance freely. But Ning Que knew there must be something.


    The master imprisoned him in the cave and said he couldn¡¯t go out until he understood. It meant that he needed to learn thoroughly about everything in the world, only then would he be able to walk out of the cave.


    Being confined in the cave was a punishment, but it was more of a challenge.


    Whenever he was faced with challenges that couldn¡¯t be avoided, Ning Que always calmed down as soon as possible and tried to forget all the worries. He would not hurry to escape, but to make full preparations before facing the challenge.


    So he sat down and closed his eyes to meditate. The Great Spirit in his body started floating around and absorbing Qi of Heaven and Earth in the surrounding area.


    The sun fell down, and the city was veiled in darkness. While people in the city were already shrouded in darkness, those staying on the high cliff could still see some daylight.


    The light was on Ning Que¡¯s eyshes, making them so shiny as if he was wearing some makeup.


    When he was sure that he was at his best physically and psychologically, Ning Que stood up and walked towards the entry slowly but firmly.


    Thest daylight shrouded the entry, and he walked into the daylight.


    Suddenly he felt that all the air and even sunlight in the air was frozen. He met a great force, like sticky honey water, stopping him from walking forward.


    The nearer to the entry, the greater the force became. In the end, he felt that he was in a mire, unable to move any further. It was even hard for him to breath.


    Having felt the obstacle near the entry, Ning Que didn¡¯t try to break through it. Instead, he walked back in his fastest speed. He got rid of the invisible force after taking three steps back. And only after panting for a while, did he return to his normal state.


    Sangsang walked out of the hut on the edge of the cliff with a burning torch in her hand.


    Ning Que looked carefully at the entry under the light of the torch. He didn¡¯t miss anything, even the seemingly natural patterns on the walls or the tiny stone on the ground. But he still couldn¡¯t see any tactical arrays or any movement of talisman.


    It was not the talisman or array that made the inhibition, it was an aura that had appeared from nowhere.


    The aura was like the purest wine, very simple but also really strong.


    It drew all the Qi of Heaven and Earth around the cliff to the entry in a way that he couldn¡¯t understand.


    So much Qi of Heaven and Earth gathered at a small entry. It could be seen how hard the Qi of Heaven and Earth was pressed together, so much that it even had a qualitative change and became a substantial barrier.


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang held the torch and yelled at him, "Young master, how is it? Can you go out?"


    "It is not that easy to find the way out."


    Ning Que shook his head. Looking at her, he suddenly said, "Please move away."


    Sangsang stuck the torch on the ground with some difficulty and returned to the hut.


    Looking at the entry, Ning Que knew that he couldn¡¯t do anything to break the inhibition if it was made of some veryplicated tactical array or some Divine Talisman. However, it was made by some strong aura and was a physical barrier.


    For ordinary cultivators, this barrier had too much of the Qi of Heaven and Earth around, which could even interfere with their own ability to move the Qi of Heaven and Earth. But for Ning Que, it was an advantage because he didn¡¯t need to use the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    After inheriting Youngest Uncle¡¯s Great Spirit and joining the Devil, Ning Que¡¯s physical strength was increasingly stronger. So as long as it was a real barrier, he could just break through it. His eyes lit up when he found this could work.


    Ning Que believed that he could just rush out of the cave and return with Sangsang. Imagining the shocked expression on other Senior Brothers and Sisters¡¯ faces and the angry face of the master, he got very excited.


    The Great Spirit floated around his body and reached every part of it.


    Staring at the entry, Ning Que bent slightly and lifted his heel. Snap! His left heel stepped on the ground and left a clear footprint.


    By using this power, Ning Que moved as fast as an arrow to the entry.


    A loud sound was made on the entry.


    A figure shed past and hit the ground heavily like a goose shot by an arrow.


    Ning Que looked terrible after hitting the ground.


    He spat some blood out, whichnded on the footprint he left before like rain.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 378: Vegetable Washing and Load Carrying

    Chapter 378: Vegetable Washing and Load Carrying


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Under the red light of the torch, mottled blood on the footprints was like a dot of ink. Looking at the spot, Ning Que¡¯s face became a little pale, and he discovered that he was directly shaken back to the original ce by the inhibition at the entrance of the cave.


    His left shoe had already been smashed into something like cotton wool. He stretched out his hand and tore it off. Struggling to sit up and looking at the entrance of the cave, which had been shrouded in the night, he could not help feeling scared.


    Previously, he mmed into the wall at the entrance of the cave. At the moment that he was reaching the obstacle, the dense and even viscous Qi of Heaven and Earth seemed to sense something and suddenly rose violently and became an ocean of ??terror, which directly swept both his awareness and body away!


    Ning Que had never been to the Kingdom of Song, nor had he seen the famous Sea of Storms. But he believed that even the real Sea of ??Storms would not be more terrifying than the ocean he had sunk into earlier.


    The ocean, formed by the dense Qi of Heaven and Earth, was shaking violently from the bottom to the surface. Thousands of huge whirlpools had left him no time to react or struggle but pressed him directly to the depths of the ocean. The ubiquitous pressure in the deep Ocean of Qi turned into countless needles, punctured through his clothes, and pierced into his body.


    The Great Spirit, which seemed rich in Ning Que¡¯s body, was like a candlelight in this furious ocean. It was extinguished in an instant, with light scattering around with those fine needles. The pain caused by those countless needles directly destroyed the protection of his sense of perception and made him extremely miserable.


    Finally, the furious ocean produced a wave that sent him back to shore with ease.


    He could feel that the power of the wave was merely 1/10,000th of the strength of the ocean, but it seemed to be stronger than Xia Hou¡¯s fist in the Wildness of the Hn Sea!


    Sangsang heard the sound, hurriedly ran out of the hut, and saw Ning Que lying on the ground under the torchlight. Shocked, she ran into the cliff cave without hesitation.


    Ning Que swallowed the blood that had welled up into his mouth, and shouted, "Do note in!"


    Being together and oveing hardships for so many years, in order to survive, the two people had already developed a tacit understanding. Regardless of the circumstances, Sangsang always did what Ning Que told her unconditionally, and it had be something of an instinct. So upon hearing Ning Que¡¯s shout, Sangsang stopped entering the cliff cave no matter how worried she was.


    Leaning against the stone wall and looking at the pale face of Ning Que, she asked with a tremble in her voice, "What happened?"


    Using his hand to lift up his left foot onto his right knee, Ning Que closed his eyes and began to meditate.


    The Great Spirit flowed slowly in his body, confirming that there were no major problems in the sense of perception, Snow Mountain, or the Ocean of Qi, as well as the whirl of the lower abdomen¡ª especially confirming that the previous violent ocean had not destroyed the Great Spirit in his body. He calmed down and whispered, "I¡¯m fine. Still alive."


    He had had so many injuries during his life and Sangsang had seen him get injured so many times. As long as the injury was not too bad, neither of them would take it too seriously. It was all right if he was not dying.


    As the turbulent sense of perception became quieter and quieter, Ning Que stood up and walked slowly to the entrance of the cliff cave. He reached out his hand and pressed something gently in the air, immediately feeling obstructed. It did not feel like water, but more like a skin bag filled with water, soft but unbreakable.


    "Why didn¡¯t I feel the inhibition when I walked in?"


    He looked at the entrance of the cliff cave and thought about the magic of the inhibition. No wonder the Senior Brothers and Sisters were shocked during the day. It would not be a short time if one really wanted to break through it.


    Knowing that it was certainly a long process, he gradually calmed down and made a psychological preparation for the uing longsting battle. After being silent for a moment, he looked at Sangsang and said with a smile, "No matter what, we should eat first, or we will die of starvation without even aging. Let¡¯s go and see if there¡¯s anything to eat in the hut."


    He wanted to rx Sangsang using these words, but how could Sangsang feel at ease when looking at his pale face, his gloomy expression and forced smile, as well as the blood on his chest?


    "We have rice, oil, vegetables, and meat in the hut. I don¡¯t know when they were prepared. I had steamed the rice before, but the water in the tank onlysts for a maximum of ten days. I don¡¯t know where to get the water, either."


    Sangsang reported the current situation to him, and then walked back to the hut to get dinner ready.


    On the silent cliffs, the stars were shing in the night sky, and the floating clouds were faintly visible. This ce was so cold and lonely that it seemed not to be in the human world anymore.


    Ning Que leaned against the wall of the cave and looked at the night view in front of the cliff, feeling down. Although he knew that there had to be a profound reason for imprisoning him here, he still felt a little bit angry and upset. "I have done nothing wrong. Why should I get imprisoned in this ghost-like ce like a repenting cliff?"


    A sound of water came from the right front side. He looked over and found that Sangsang was washing vegetables on the edge of the cliff. The little girl probably had no idea of the wonderful scenery of the cliffs or the idea of feeling small in front of the grand world. After finishing washing the vegetables, she poured the muddy water directly down the cliff.


    Maybe only Sangsang could ignore such a dangerous cliff and concentrate on washing vegetables at the edge of the cliff. Did the white clouds under the cliff that were always soaked by the clear waterfall have the same feeling as when the muddy water was poured onto them?


    Ning Que looked quietly at Sangsang¡¯s figure, thinking that he was lucky that he would not have to hear any sh*tty folk songs nor worry about being thrown away like a ssh of water.


    ...


    ...


    The food was finished. Although the ingredients were simple, the smell of food still wafted into the cliff cave in the mountain breeze.


    Ning Que carved a deep line at the entrance of the cliff cave with a stone. When Sangsang was cooking, he slowly felt it many times with his palm and finally determined the range of triggering the obstacle.


    Sangsang held a bowl of hot food on the ground outside the cave. Then she used a piece of firewood to push the bowl carefully across the line under Ning Que¡¯s instructions.


    "This inhibition really doesn¡¯t work for nonliving things, otherwise, I¡¯d starve to death."


    Ning Que raised the bowl of rice with vegetables and bacon and spoke happily.


    They held their bowls full of hot meals, sat on the ground, and ate face to face, just like in the old days when they were in the Old Brush Pen Shop. The only difference was that, in the old days, they were separated by a table instead of the line of the obstacle.


    The line was very short, but it separated the cliff into two worlds¡ª the cliff caves and the cliff tform. Ning Que stayed inside the cliff cave, while Sangsang stayed outside of the line on the cliff tform. Fortunately, they were still together.


    ...


    ...


    Facing west, the cliff was located in extremely high terrain, without the cover of the Academy¡¯s tactical array or the embrace of green trees. The mountain wind was extremely strong, especially at night. The cold wind whistled back and forth, which caused a rapid decrease of the temperature on the cliff tform.


    While the bowl in Ning Que¡¯s hand was still hot, the one in Sangsang¡¯s hand already be cold. She huddled herself up subconsciously. She wanted to get closer to Ning Que, but she dared not cross that line.


    Seeing Sangsang shivering with cold, Ning Que thought of the fairy tale once again. His mood and eyes turned cold along with the decreasing temperature of the cliff tform. Sangsang had severe hypothermia at an early age. How could she stand this kind of torture? Suddenly, the hatred toward the Headmaster of the Academy, which had already disappeared, revived in Ning Que¡¯s mind and he muttered a curse.


    As he prepared to find a way to deceive Sangsang to leave and go down the mountain, he heard the sound of footsteps on the stone path beneath the cliff tform.


    Ning Que was only imprisoned for less than half a day, but he was d to hear those footsteps right now. He shouted, "Who is so nice toe and see me?"


    Suddenly, he understood the monkey¡¯s mood when he was crushed under the mountain.


    ...


    ...


    In the darkness, the Eldest Brother, with his hands sped behind his back, and the Second Brother, carrying a load, walked toward the cliff tform.


    The Eldest Brother was very rxed, while the Second Brother was carrying a load as heavy as two hills.


    When he took the things out of the load, the load turned out to be an all-epassing case. There was water, rice, vegetables, firewood, wine, books, chess, an instrument, and even two old hens.


    Sangsang rushed back to the hut happily with the two old hens in hand, thinking that she could stew chicken soup for her young master. Just now, he had spat out so much blood that he must have needed something good to make up for it.


    Looking at the old hens that she held in her hands, Ning Que was shocked and said, "Senior Brother, you are really generous. I don¡¯t know how you carried them up such a steep mountain. Why did you have to bring so many things? Do you really expect me to live in this cave for several years?"


    Although the Second Brother was one of the best martial talents of the world, he was not a professional porter. It was also a bit of hard work. He did not reply to Ning Que, but took out his handkerchief from his sleeve and carefully wiped the sweat from his neck. After adjusting his crown cap, he looked at Ning Que and said seriously, "Younger Brother, you should face the reality. It is definitely not a matter of ten days or half a month."


    Ning Que thought the Second Brother was really not qualified to visit a prisoner because he did not know how to say anything lucky at all.


    They set a bonfire on the cliff tform. Sangsang dozed off by the fire, wearing a buckskin coat. The coat was sent by Senior Sister Yu Lian and it was just the right size.


    The fire shone on the old coat of the Eldest Brother as if it were shining on a brokenntern. The fire shone on the crown cap of the Second Brother, like shining on a solitary peak with a single tree.


    Sitting in the cave and looking at this scene, Ning Que could not helpughing out loud and, pointing at the high crown cap of the Second Brother, he said, "It really looks like a piece of firewood."


    "What¡¯s so funny?" The Second Brother asked.


    "Why is it funny? I won¡¯t tell you." Ning Que said with a smile. "In fact, Second Brother, everyone thinks that you are funny with your crown cap. They just fear your anger, so no one has ever told you."


    The Second Brother frowned slightly and said unhappily, "Don¡¯t lie to me. You said that people don¡¯t dare to tell me, so why are you daring to tell me now?"


    Pointing at the line in front of him, Ning Queughed and said, "You see, I can¡¯t get out of the cave, nor can you get in. This is the only benefit I have gotten so far. How can I give up this great opportunity?"


    The Eldest Brother looked at them and smiled. He did not say anything and thought that Jun Mo would probably not be so boring anymore since he had met such a funny person like the Youngest Brother.


    The bonfire made some crackling sounds.


    The Second Brother made four cups of tea. The first cup was reverently served to the Eldest Brother, and the second cup was given to Sangsang. As for the third one, he shot it gently into the cave.


    The ck teacup fell to the ground, right in front of Ning Que, and stayed still after spinning around three times without a single drop of tea spilling out.


    The Second Brother attached the utmost importance to the rules of etiquette, such as the order of serving tea. First, he served the old or virtuous, then the young. As for the third cup which was given to Ning Que, it was only out of sympathy, pitying that he was in jail.


    Ning Que thanked the Second Brother and raised the teacup. He sniffed it but did not drink it. "Am I really not able to get out of here?" He whispered.


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 379: Trick Heaven and Earth

    Chapter 379: Trick Heaven and Earth


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "I can¡¯t get out of here" appeared twice in that sentence. The former one meant ability, and thetter meant reality. If they werebined together, that would be what Ning Que was thinking.


    The Headmaster of the Academy punished him to retreat into Back Cliff, and that made him feel despondent or even desperate. But he believed that, in the end, the Academy would release him and would not let him remain imprisoned in this cave until death.


    However, he was pondering in that cliff cave and started to doubt his judgment in less than one day¡¯s time. He thought that perhaps his punishment would be endless.


    Hearing his questions, the two people beside the bonfire were silent. Not knowing how much time had passed, the Second Brother shook his head and the Eldest Brother sighed slightly.


    The strong mountain wind whistled, and the mes of the bonfire on the cliff tform gradually became smaller.


    Holding a cup of hot tea and watching the mes, Ning Que suddenly felt a little bit cold and started to regret not fleeing with Sangsang, but instead, following the Headmaster of the Academy.


    The coldness and the fear of life-long imprisonment finally made him burst into a fury after a half day¡¯s tolerance. He shouted, "The first day seeing his student, the master puts him in a cave and prepares to imprison him forever. What is the reason for this? I didn¡¯t make any mistake nor vite any rules of the Academy. Who authorized the master to do that? Who does he think he is? The emperor or the prefectural magistrate of Chang¡¯an City? Don¡¯t we all know that thew of the Tang Empire is the number one rule? Confining me like this is illegal. I will sue him! I will get out and sue him!"


    The two Senior Brothers next to the bonfire knew that he was only venting and ignored him.


    Gradually, Ning Que calmed down and had a self-deprecating smile. He realized that though the Headmaster of the Academy is not the emperor, he is more noble than His Majesty, and his word is more effective than thew of the Tang Empire.


    The campfire shone around the cliff entrance. The Eldest Brother looked at the speckled blood stains on Ning Que¡¯s shirt, and he knew as he entered that, as expected, Ning Que had already begun to try to get out of the cave. So, he told Ning Que, "The cliff cave retreat is not easy. It took three years for Youngest Uncle to understand. You have to be patient."


    During the day, in the hut on the other side of the mountain, Ning Que had already learned that the Youngest Uncle had been imprisoned in this cliff cave. But not until now did he just learn that even the Youngest Uncle, the greatest legend in the world, took three years to get out, which made him feel much colder.


    No matter how confident he was, he did not dare to expect to bepared with the Youngest Uncle. If it took the Youngest Uncle three years, then how long would it be for him? Ten years? Or a lifetime?


    He lowered his head and said, "What if I can¡¯t get out? Holding me in this cave forever is meaningless to anyone. If I believe that staying here is beneficial, and when I get old, I realize that this is just a waste of my time, then I will have spent my life in vain."


    "Youngest Uncle once said, ¡¯Fate itself is a very cruel guy. Before you can confirm that you are able to take on a mission, it will try every method to break every one of your bones, strip every bit of your flesh, and let you suffer the most extreme pain in the world so that you will be tough enough to be chosen by fate¡¯."


    The Second Brother said as he looked at him. "Only the worst adversity can inspire true courage. Thus, this cliff cave must be deadly to you. Only in this way can you understand that thing and manage to trick heaven and earth. When you climbed the mountain with Long Qing, I saw your determination. It is possible for you to get out. I know that you have potential. Even though this matter is meaningless to the world, it is meaningful to you."


    Raising his head, looking at the Senior Brother beside the campfire, and thinking about the four-character word "trick heaven and earth" and the case that the Youngest Uncle was also imprisoned for three years in this cliff cave, he finally confirmed his suspicion that the reason that he was imprisoned was definitely rted to him having joined the Devil.


    He wondered about why the Youngest Uncle joined the Devil during his practice of Haoran Sword, and why the Headmaster of the Academy forced him into the cave. Ning Que suddenly wanted to know what exactly happened at that time because he seemed to be on the same road as the Youngest Uncle was. If so, he needed to learn from the Youngest Uncle.


    The Eldest Brother looked at Sangsang, whoy asleep all huddled up beside the bonfire. After a moment of hesitation, he smiled and said slowly, "I speak too slowly. Let Jun Mo tell you."


    The Second Brother said, "We have alle to this cliff, but have never been to this cave. In so many years in the Academy, only the Youngest Uncle was locked up here for three whole years."


    He looked at Ning Que and said, "You once spotted the Haoran Sword in the old library. Later, I also imparted the knowledge of the Great Spirit to you at Jing Lake. Now, you inherited thest breath of Youngest Uncle at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and possessed the Great Spirit. You should have understood that Haoran Sword and the Great Spirit are two things."


    Now, Ning Que realized that hiding the truth about joining the Devil was useless, especially in the presence of two Senior Brothers. After a brief silence, he said, "The Great Spirit will help the user breathe in the aura of heaven and earth into his body. ording to the creed of Haotian Taoism, possessing the Great Spirit means joining the Devil."


    It was obvious that the two people beside the fire had known this for a long time, and they did not show any expression of surprise.


    The Second Brother recalled the past and said, "Haoran Sword is the swordsmanship created by great predecessors of the Academy. If one practices it to an extremely high state, the flying sword can fly into the highest sky, which can match Liu Bai¡¯s Dahe Sword. At that time, although Youngest Uncle had great talents, and mastered Haoran Sword easily, he was not self-satisfied at all and he gained the Great Spirit through Haoran Sword. Youngest Uncle was only 16 when he did all of that."


    Ning Que had long been ustomed to the fact that there were so many geniuses in the back of the mountain of the Academy, not to mention that the Youngest Uncle was the idol of the Second Brother. Ning Que himself also felt the iparable power of the Youngest Uncle¡¯s sword style in the Wilderness. So, he was not too shocked when hearing that the Youngest Uncle reached the same state as the greatest warrior of today, Liu Bai, at the age of 16. However, thinking that the Great Spirit was created by the Youngest Uncle, he still felt impulsion in his heart.


    "Now we all know that the Great Spirit of Youngest Uncle is essentially in conflict with the creed of Haotian Taoism. In other words, it is the magic of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. When the master found this, he directly locked Youngest Uncle into this cave. It is said that the master also told those words to Youngest Uncle."


    Ning Que asked, "What words?"


    "When you understand, you cane out."


    Ning Que became silent.


    The Second Brother continued, "Youngest Uncle spent three years to figure out some truth. He stepped out of the cliff cave and rode a ck donkey out of the Academy into Chang¡¯an City, where he entered the human realm. After that, he used a cyan-steel sword to beat every top warrior in this world and went far into the Wilderness to destroy the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. In countless battles, Youngest Uncle¡¯s Haoran Sword was unparalleled, but it didn¡¯t raise any suspicions from Haotian Taoism or the Buddhism Sect."


    He looked at Ning Que and said, "Because Youngest Uncle understood something inside this cliff cave."


    Ning Que also understood something.


    The Second Brother continued after a moment of silence, "After Youngest Uncle destroyed the Devil¡¯s Doctrine by himself, because of something disheartening, he rode back to the Academy on the ck donkey, spent a night to ponder in the Sword Woods at the front of the mountain, and talked with the master for three days. Then, he came to the edge of the cliff to build this hut, which is in front of you right now.


    "After destroying the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, Youngest Uncle was recognized as the world¡¯s most powerful person. Countless Unworldly Sublime Beings came to challenge him. At that time, there was only the master, the uncle, the Senior Brother, me, and the schr to defend the Academy. A big tactical array did not exist. Anyone coulde to challenge, and it was more troublesome than what you encountered within the city of Chang¡¯an the other day."


    Recalling the scene of those splendid fights on Back Cliff, the Eldest Brother smiled.


    "Youngest Uncle never felt bored. When he felt anguish about pondering in the hut, there would always be some great fightersing to him as the test subject for his sword. Then he beat them, one by one. I¡¯m afraid the reason why the Zhishou Abbey and the Xuankong Temple were so silent in these years is that too many of their people died at the hand of Youngest Uncle."


    The Second Brother looked back to the cliffs not far away, recalling the battles from those days, and thought the strongest warriors who were in the peak of five cultivation states of the Unknown ce and had all been beaten by the Youngest Uncle. They were either killed or badly injured and had fallen from the cliff. Yet, no one remembered their names. Thinking about all of that, the Second Brother felt both proud and sorry.


    Those supermundane people, who clearly knew that the Youngest Uncle was invincible in the world, had stille to this cliff. They were truly respectable people. That kind of pride is that cultivators should have, but it could never be found from those cowards today who im to be cultivator.


    The Second Brother was also very proud. He always wanted to follow in the footsteps of the Youngest Uncle. He also wanted to recreate the world of the past where people were willing to sacrifice their lives for the sake of dignity and pride. It was very regrettable that those honorable people had died. How many people in this present world were worthy of a respectful fight?


    "Those supermundane warriors either died or escaped with wounds. No one dared to challenge the Academy again. This cliff was left in peace again. Then one day, Youngest Uncle suddenly left the hut and never returned."


    The Second Brother finished the story of the past.


    Ning Que was silent for a while. He once heard from Ye Hongyu in the Wilderness that the Youngest Uncle was eventually killed by God¡¯s punishment. Probably because of this, the Headmaster of the Academy destroyed every peach flower of West-Hill, and Haotian Taoism never mentioned the Youngest Uncle again. The greatest legend was gradually forgotten by the world.


    Ning Que wondered why the Youngest Uncle was punished by God. Was it because the Great Spirit was no longer tolerable to God, and he was already the most powerful man, which led to the anger of God? The Youngest Uncle spent so many years to think about a solution, but eventually still stepped on the road to doom. In that case, how could he, a nobody, figure this out?


    "As the master confines you in this cliff cave, it means that he treats you the like the Youngest Uncle. He has great expectations of you. If you can¡¯t even pass this first test, how can you meet more challenges in the future?"


    The Eldest Brother looked at him and said with a smile, "Your state is so much lower than Youngest Uncle¡¯s was at that time. You won¡¯t meet problems immediately. Though it is not raining, you should still bring an umbre. As you are still in a low state, it is easier for you to solve that problem than Youngest Uncle could at the time, so don¡¯t think about Youngest Uncle all the time. You have hope."


    Ning Que turned to the night sky outside the cliff cave.


    Returning from the Wilderness to Chang¡¯an City, he had been thinking about the problem of how he could hide the truth that he possessed the Great Spirit and joined the Devil. In the battle with Monk Guan Hai, he had made an attempt, but it was only able to hide the appearance, and it could not really solve the problem.


    If he wanted to deal with this, he must learn to tell a big lie and trick everyone¡ª even heaven and earth.


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 380: Three Solutions, or Just One

    Chapter 380: Three Solutions, or Just One


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Back then, Youngest Uncle first retreated in the cliff cave and then in the hut.


    The first time, he perfectly joined the human realm by using the Great Spirit within three years. However, when he became the strongest one and needed not trick others, he, on the contrary, had to confront more troubles.


    Therefore, he retreated again and reflected on it. It was unknown how long had passed before he left the Academy, finding that he had no way to trick himself. He decided to confront the Firmament and thus disappeared forever.


    Watching the night sky far away from the cliff tform and the twinkling stars on it, Ning Que, for the first time, attempted to touch the dark sky behind those stars with his eyes.


    "Except for Haotian Taoism, no one dared show disrespect to the Academy, which thus became proud, or even arrogant, based on its powerfulness. But Youngest Uncle was still a legend at the back of the mountain. Now that the Headmaster had epted Tang Xiaotang, the girl from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, it showed that the Academy didn¡¯t strictly distinguish itself from the devil, or at least, it didn¡¯t discriminate against the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. So why had the Headmaster imprisoned Youngest Uncle that year, and imprisoned me now?"


    He murmured to himself while looking at the dark sky, "Does he want to conceal us from your eyes? But you are the Heaven¡¯s Way, and the Divine Light, how can you have eyes?"


    Ning Que felt somewhat puzzled, feeling nervous in an instant. He knew he still had a little knowledge of the true origin of the world, so he was not qualified to think about those things at all. Once he did, it seemed that those stars were allughing at him, so he had to solve the most urgent problem now.


    That was, how to leave the cliff cave.


    Back then, Youngest Uncle had perfectly solved the problem.


    Now it was his turn.


    ...


    ...


    At night, those in Chang¡¯an who were qualified or who needed to know that thing were all summoned by the Academy. Later they knew two things. The first one was, after a two years¡¯ tour, the Headmaster had finally returned to the Academy. The second thing was, Ning Que, Mr. Thirteen of the Second floor of the Academy, was required by the Headmaster to retreat and practice cultivation.


    Zeng Jing, though a Grand Secretary of the Imperial Library and a first-rank official, was not qualified to be summoned by the Academy. However, since he had recently found his long-lost daughter, his mansion was actually the first ce following the royal pce to know these two things.


    "Retreat and practice cultivation? How long will that take?" Zeng Jing frowned and asked.


    Eunuch Lin shook his head and said with hesitation, "One month, or two months? Who knows. Perhaps those entric people of Second floor of the Academy think differently than us."


    Zeng Jing asked with confusion, "Based on thew of our Tang Empire and the rule of the royal pce, affairs concerning Academy, especially the Second floor of the Academy, should be dealt with by the Ministry of Rites. Nobody is qualified to know these things except the royal pce and the Military Ministry. So why did His Majesty tell you to inform me of these things?"


    Eunuch Lin bitterly smiled and answered, "That¡¯s because of the young mistress of your family. The Headmaster has asked her to take care of Mr. Thirteen. Now that Mr. Thirteen had to retreat and practice cultivation, your young mistress would apany him. Don¡¯t ask me when she can return, I really don¡¯t know."


    His words made Mrs. Zeng anxious.


    ...


    ...


    Two Senior Brothers said something to Ning Que before they left. Realizing that the Headmaster and the Academy wouldn¡¯t throw him in the cave and let things run their own course, he somewhat felt relieved. He found a ce that could shelter him from the wind, made the bed and had a sound sleep.


    When he woke up, he found it was still dark.


    He walked to the entrance of the cave and looked outwards. The Chang¡¯an City, in the far distance of the sea of clouds, was shrouded in the morning light, giving a beautiful sight. Now he realized the cliff faced the west, from where he could appreciate the view of the sunset. But if he wanted to see the morning light, it would take more doings from him than those people under the cloud.


    The burden Second Brother shouldered held many things, most of which were from the Old Brush Pen Shop. Perhaps it was Chen Pipi or some other Senior Brother or Senior Sister who had fetched them from Chang¡¯an City. Before sleeping, Sangsang checked them and found that the big ck umbre, the Primordial Thirteen Arrows, and the Box of notes were all there, and even toiletries were included.


    Sangsang handed those things to Ning Que who was in the cave. He then washed his face haphazardly and rinsed his mouth. After that, he suddenly felt refreshed and came upon a question, then, he frowned.


    "Here is the closestool." From his expression, Sangsang knew what he was worrying about.


    Ning Que said reluctantly, "It will be stinky."


    Sangsang said, "I will wash it frequently."


    Looking at the sea of clouds among the cliffs, Ning Que shook his head and sighed, "What a pity! The clouds will be polluted by the smell. But Youngest Uncle produced those stinky things too, then it will be no big deal if we do the same."


    After being refreshed, Ning Que pinched his nose when lifting the closestool.


    Sangsang couldn¡¯t helpughing at him, saying, "When you were young, you always did those things by yourself. But only a few yearster you actually detest the smell."


    Ning Que replied seriously, "One¡¯s disposition will change with the environment, and physical condition will change with what one eats. Now our status has changed, so naturally, I will feel differently about it. Wait, I have something important to negotiate with you."


    Sangsang asked, "What?"


    Ning Que replied, "I¡¯m thinking about buying a maid."


    Sangsang pointed to herself and asked in confusion, "Aren¡¯t I a maid?"


    Ning Que smiled and said, "Although you are still my little handmaiden, you are still the daughter of the Grand Secretary. It¡¯s all right for you to make the bed for me, but how can I ask you to do that heavy housework?"


    "I¡¯m not ustomed to being served."


    Sangsang added, "I will feel ufortable if someone else lived together with us in Old Brush Pen Shop."


    Ning Que thought it over, and replied, "It is indeed ufortable."


    Sangsang shook her head with a smile, and then entered the cave with a basin of clean water, asking him to wash his hands. Then she went to the corner to take the closestool and poured those dirty things down into the cloud from the edge of the cliff.


    After washing, Ning Que pulled off the towel to dry his hands and reminded her, "Put it further away. Although it is my own odor, I still find it disgusting."


    Sangsang agreed with an "Eh".


    Suddenly, Ning Que¡¯s hands froze in the air. Looking at her figure, he felt his eyesight blur.


    Suddenly he recovered and shouted in big surprise, "How did youe in?"


    Sangsang turned back with a big surprise too. It was only until now that she found she had entered the cliff cave, and she had already done it when taking the closestool. So she was astonished and hurriedly jetted out.


    A secondter, she supported herself against the wall and carefully looked into the cave, asking, "Are you OK?"


    Ning Que was puzzled and answered, "I¡¯m all right, but how about you?"


    Sangsang looked down at herself and then patted her chest, confirming that she was not hurt, and she didn¡¯t vomit blood either. She then said, "It seems all right... Do you want to try again?"


    Ning Que walked to the entrance of the cliff cave, standing inside the line drawn yesterday. He reached out his hand to press the air, and disappointedly found that he was still blocked by something.


    "I can¡¯t go out."


    He knew what was the matter, and then shook his head.


    The inhibition at the entrance of the cliff cave was specially made by the Headmaster to imprison Youngest Uncle and was targeted at his Great Spirit. The simple aura ced at the entrance of the cave would be activated when interacting with the Great Spirit. The stronger the Great Spirit was, the more power would be activated.


    Both Youngest Uncle and he had the Great Spirit inside their bodies. If he wanted to walk out of the cliff cave, he had to make the Great Spirit powerful enough to break through the aura left by the Headmaster, and destroy the Qi of Heaven and Earth condensed at the entrance of the cave. Or he should know how to harmoniously integrate his Great Spirit into the Qi of Heaven and Earth, and thus avoid activating that ocean of primordial Qi.


    And there was thest option, which was, to destroy the Great Spirit in his body.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Quemented when looking at the entrance of the cave. The inhibition set by the Headmaster was very simple, which was just his aura. But it was actually a big obstacle for those who wanted to break through it.


    There were many challenging questions in the world. The key point was, how to find the true answer out of numerous andplicated clues. This question given by the Headmaster was difficult, because it had several answers.


    It was hard to choose from so many answers. In case you were not confident enough to defeat the Headmaster by using the Great Spirit, were you willing to part with your powerful and precious Great Spirit?


    Time psed in his hesitation and struggle. Day after day, it would be more difficult to make a choice, which, thus became a great torture.


    If you finally decided to give up after being imprisoned in the cliff cave for years, you would be in great agony over why you didn¡¯t destroy the Great Spirit when you first entered the cave. It would be silly of you to do it after so many years of persistence. Under such anguish, were you still willing to give up?


    Obviously, Youngest Uncle didn¡¯t choose thest one, because he still had the Great Spirit when leaving the Academy and entering the human realm. Using his Great Spirit, he could behead all those devils. A peerless man like Youngest Uncle would definitely know earlier than him the real purpose of the Headmaster when he set the question. Judging from his temperament, Youngest Uncle would give up the first time if he really wanted to, instead of hesitating and wasting three years here.


    Ning Que never thought there was a possibility for Youngest Uncle to break through the inhibition directly with the Great Spirit, because he felt it unreasonable, and it had no sense of beauty.


    Youngest Uncle must have chosen the second method.


    "Three months."


    Ning Que kept looking at Sangsang who still dared not enter the cliff cave. He repeatedly said, "Three months. I¡¯m not as powerful as Youngest Uncle, so I need three months to think about whether I should use thatst method. If I¡¯m still unwilling to destroy my Great Spirit then, you know what you should do."


    Sangsang nervously asked, "You want to use that way? I¡¯ve never used it."


    Ning Que said, "I need your help."


    After a moment of silence, Sangsang asked, "Are you sure?"


    Ning Que answered, "I¡¯m sure."


    ...


    ...


    A piece of indigo clothing appeared beside the cliff, and was drifting to and fro with the wind. One could faintly see a delicate figure under the clothes. It was Yu Lian, the Third Sister who was the first to visit Ning Que today.


    Yu Lian stepped on the cliff tform, and sat before the line at the entrance of the cave. She took out an old book volume from her sleeves and handed it to Ning Que who was inside the cave, and then she softly said, "There is only one way for you to solve the problem."


    On the cover of the book were seven characters, meaning "Origin on Primordial Qi of Nature".


    Ning Que nced at the book and earnestly asked, "Which way?"


    Yu Lian stroked her hair and put it behind her ears, saying, "Study."


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 381: Three Books (Part I)

    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Yu Lian was the first school fellow that Ning Que knew from the back of the mountain of the Academy. Back then, she was a female professor of the Academy, while he was just an ordinary student who ascended the old library every day, fainting and vomiting blood repeatedly.


    In those memorable days, she and Ning Que sat beside the east window and the west window, respectively. One would copy regr script and the other would ponder over books. They seldom talked, except for the asional greeting with a nod.


    Later in the Sword Woods, they had a short conversation. And before Ning Que had left the Academy and gone into the Wilderness, she gave him a gift. Then, they had no furthermunication.


    Logically, they should have been in harmony because they had spent the spring and summer together in the old library, appreciating the newly bloomed flowers and the chirping of the cicadas. However, he actually had no idea how tomunicate with his Third Sister.


    Among the disciples of the back of the mountain of the Academy, Yu Lian was a special one. Ranking only after Eldest Brother and Second Brother, she was actually ordinary in her state of cultivation. She was quiet and gentle, not willing tomunicate with others, as if nothing could arouse her interest. So she seldom appeared in public.


    In people¡¯s eyes, she seemed to be copying the Hairpin-style Small Regr Script all the time with her head lowered. She did it while sitting in the old library, getting together with other schoolfellows. Even when the Headmaster opened the gate of the back of the mountain and imprisoned Ning Que, she still did it in her ventted hut.


    When Ning Que and Prince Long Qing ascended the back of the mountain, all those from the back of the mountain were gathered at the peak and talking with each other about the result, except for her, standing in the clusters of flowers alone, smiling quietly.


    As for Ning Que, the greatest difficulty in getting along with Third Sister was that he did not know in what manner he shouldmunicate with her because he could not judge how old she was. She was quiet and elegant, or even indifferent. Her loose Academy uniform and the unhurriedness in her eyes had endowed her with a calm disposition. And her pretty face and delicate figure would always mislead others to believe that she was a young girl.


    ...


    ...


    "Senior Sister, what book is that?"


    "A forbidden book."


    Her voice, though soft, greatly surprised Ning Que as he raised his head.


    "This book, called the Origin on Primordial Qi of Nature, was dictation of some Grand Cultivator over 100 years ago, and has greatly disturbed the field of cultivation. It was enlisted as a forbidden book by the West-Hill Divine Pce because it goes against the doctrine of Haotian. Peoplest saw it in a big family of the Kingdom of Song. But the family was miserably exterminated because of hiding this book."


    Holding the book, Ning Que¡¯s hands slightly froze. He did not expect that the book would have such astonishing history. So, he felt puzzled and asked, "How did the Academy get the book then?"


    Yu Lian smiled and answered, "It is called the Academy, so it should have all the books."


    Recalling the huge cave that stored numerous books besides that schr¡¯s room, Ning Que shrugged.


    "Senior Sister, what if I can¡¯t understand the book?"


    Yu Lian answered, "The Headmaster told me to visit your cave every ten days. You should study this book during those ten days. If there is anything you don¡¯t understand, write it down and ask me then."


    It was not until now that Ning Que knew it was the arrangement of the Headmaster.


    Yu Lian said nothing more but asked him to study hard. Then, she went down the mountain elegantly.


    ...


    ...


    So, during the entire day, except for having his meal, Ning Que did nothing but read that book.


    As his reading progressed, he gradually understood why it was listed as a forbidden book by the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    It was because, in the beginning, the book directly pointed out the details that it would illustrate and the arguments that it would use: With the creation of the world, all creatures were born. Then, the sun appeared in the sky and bestowed a condition and spirit on all creatures. With the cirction of living and dying, the spirit lingered between heaven and earth and in the wilderness, and it was the so-called aura of nature that cultivators could perceive. That was the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    Originally, Ning Que did not have any idea about the origin of the world, but he felt that the viewpoint was interesting. Perhaps it was this novelty that had led to it being forced out by the West-Hill Divine Pce. The book asserted that the aura of heaven and earth came from the creatures themselves, instead of Haotian in Haotian Taoism. If people were convinced by that idea, then how could Haotian Taoism maintain the reverence of cultivators toward Haotian?


    After entering the Academy, Ning Que read many ssics of cultivation in the old library, and the first one he read was A First Exploration of the Qi of Heaven and Earth. However, the book called Origin on Primordial Qi of Nature that he was reading now was deeper and more obscure than that one had been, so he had to read it slowly despite his great interest.


    From sunrise to sunset, he sat beside the entrance of the cave, silently reading the forbidden book under the sunlight. He was immersed in the wisdom of previous men and formed a new knowledge of the constitution of the world, especially the origin and quantity of aura, and thew of evolution.


    He did not know how the book might help him solve the problem left by the Headmaster and finish his seclusion. However, now that the Headmaster had asked him to read it, he would have no reason to stop. Because he believed that what the Headmaster wanted by imprisoning him in the cliff cave was not merely to make him a professor in the Academy.


    Ning Que was reading inside the cave, while Sangsang was watching him read the book from outside. He still felt that it was interesting even though a long time had passed. Every time he figured out an obscure narration, he would feel happy. However, Sangsang began to feel bored. Fortunately, she was already ustomed to boredom, so she washed her hair in passing.


    Gradually, Chang¡¯an City, the wilderness, the flowing clouds, and the cliff were shrouded in the darkness of night.


    After Sangsang had cooked a meal, Ning Que hurriedly ate it and then started reading again. Seeing that the torch was going out, Sangsang went into her hut and, after quite a long time, she found an oilmp and ced it in the cave.


    Under the rtively dim oil light, Ning Que continued reading attentively. The memory of his past life made him unwilling to study, however, it was still those memories and experiences that urged him to quickly learn from the book and use the knowledge. So he had to be absolutely attentive.


    Ning Que did not put down his book until midnight, when the oil in themp was about to exhaust. And he did not go to bed immediately but reviewed what he had learned today with his eyes closed.


    Because he had stayed upte at night, he still felt sleepy when he was awakened by the whistling wind outside of the cave the next morning. He thus could not help feeling annoyed as he thought to himself, "Where the hell is that noiseing from?"


    He rubbed his eyes and went to the entrance of the cave with a singleyered coat. Suddenly, his expression changed when he saw that fat guy, who supported his waist with his hands and was appreciating the view from the cliff. He was actually out of breath, yet still pretending to be something important.


    The sound that had awakened him was exactly the gasping of Chen Pipi as he climbed the stairs. But he never expected that a man¡¯s gasping could be so thunderous.


    "How could you be so exhausted?" He asked helplessly.


    Chen Pipi did not turn back. Supporting his chubby waist, he was looking at the lofty and steep cliff, the drifting clouds between the cliffs, and Chang¡¯an City under the morning light far off in the distance. He gasped and sighed with a hoarse voice like a schr, "s, once I ascended a peak to appreciate..."


    "Hiss!"


    Ning Que stopped him in the way to stop a donkey.


    Chen Pipi turned back and constantly waved his head, criticizing him, "Vulgar! Vulgar! Although Youngest Uncle indeed rode a donkey back then, yet facing such marvelous scenery, how could you spurt out such coarse words?"


    His expression enraged Ning Que, who then said in annoyance, "Now that you know I¡¯m in a bad mood, why still pollute my ears with those acidic and pedantic words? I might kick you off the mountain."


    Thinking of the steep cliff that was close at hand when climbing the mountain, Chen Pipi got cold feet. He patted his chest with lingering fear and said, "The cliff is too sharp. I nearly lost my life whening up. I really can¡¯t be in a good mood when I think that you will stay here for eight years or more."


    Ning Que smiled coldly. "Because you are too fat."


    It was Chen Pipi¡¯s soft spot, so he muttered this, not knowing how to counter him.


    Suddenly, his eyes brightened at the cliff cave, and he said in praise, "This is where Youngest Uncle once lived. Blocked by the sharp cliff, I didn¡¯t have a chance to see it previously. The cave is not an ordinary one. It has historic significance. It is a great honor to be able to live here. I really envy you."


    A stone was thrown out from the cave and nearly hit Chen Pipi¡¯s foot. The stone hopped on the cliff teau several times and fell off into the clouds, vanishing forever.


    Chen Pipi was taken aback, pointing at the cliff cave and shouting, "You wanna kill me?"


    Having sought in the cave for some time, Ning Que really could not find a second stone, so he darted to the entrance and scolded him, "You shameless creature! If it is so meaningful, then how about you live here? I¡¯ll give all the honor to you! Youe in! Youe in!"


    Chen Pipi coldly smiled. "If you are so capable, you get out."


    Ning Que insisted, "If you are so capable, youe in."


    Sangsang was standing beside the cliff cave, looking at the two Brothers as they quarreled with each other. Then she could not help saying, "I think both of you are capable."


    Ning Que and Chen Pipi turned to her at the same time.


    After a moment of hesitation, Chen Pipi earnestly asked, "Is that true, or just sarcasm?"


    Sangsang looked at him, offering no answer.


    Chen Pipi had always thought that he was a peerless genius. However, after he went to the Old Brush Pen Shop several times and yed chess with Sangsang, he did not have such confidence, at least not in the face of Sangsang. On the contrary, he cared quite a lot about what Sangsang thought of him and her praises of him.


    So Sangsang had hurt his pride to some extent with her silence.


    Looking at Ning Que inside the cliff cave, he mocked him, saying, "Only monkeys who are imprisoned in cages will throw stones at others, for they are so bored. So, I forgive you."


    Ning Que said, "I don¡¯t care. You can say anything you want. If you are capable, you can hit me too."


    Chen Pipi grabbed something from his arms and threw it into the cave.


    Ning Que was nearly hit because it happened so unexpectedly. Fortunately, he reacted quickly and leaned sideways, reaching out his right hand to seize that thing.


    It was a wrinkled book, with no title on its cover, but it had something like sweat stains.


    Ning Que felt disgusted at the thought that those sweat stains might be from the fat guy.


    "What book is this?"


    Choking down his nausea, he asked Chen Pipi.


    Chen Pipi said, "It has no title."


    "Then what is it about?"


    "The no-boundary spirit of the Academy."


    Ning Que did not understand and asked, "What?"


    Chen Pipi thought that he was tricking him again and said in great anger, "It is about the no-boundary spirit of the Academy! If you insist on saying that you don¡¯t understand, I will go and tell the Headmaster!"


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 382: Three Books (II)

    Chapter 382: Three Books (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "The no-boundary spirit of the Academy?"


    Looking at this rumpled book in his hands, Ning Que remembered that on the dayst spring when the Second floor of the Academy was opened, when he used all of his strength to reach the wooden door down the mountain, he saw the four words "A Gentleman Knows No-boundaries" inscribed on the rock. Thinking about that, he slightly frowned and fell into a long period of thinking.


    Days before that, he had heard from Second Brother that the four words Prince Long Qing saw at that moment were "A Gentleman Doesn¡¯t Fight", which was actually the note made by the Headmaster of the Academy for him. Therefore, the four words of "A Gentleman Knows No-boundaries" were undoubtedly left by the Headmaster of the Academy for him, or perhaps, the warning for his life.


    What did those four words inscribed on the rock mean? What was the rtionship between the "A Gentleman Knows No-boundaries" and this old book? Did the Headmaster already know in advance that he needed to learn the no-boundary spirit of the Academy?


    Ning Que looked out of the cave and asked, "How should I solve the problems in this book if there are any?"


    Chen Pipi said, "I wille up the mountain every ten days, so if you have any questions about this book..."


    Before he finished the rest of his words, Ning Que had already realized that these were sses that had been arranged by the Headmaster just like Third Sister Yu Lian had done before. He said while shaking his head, "Dream on, you are not Third Sister. You have toe up the mountain every day, otherwise, I¡¯m afraid that Sangsang and I will be bored to death."


    Chen Pipi mocked him, "Then why don¡¯t you beg me? Where is your previous terrible attitude? What else can you do to me if I leave right now?"


    Ning Que said, "Just get out of here."


    Chen Pipi instantly turned and started to go down from the cliff tform.


    Suddenly, he stopped and looked back at Ning Que for a long silent moment.


    Ning Que looked at him with a slightly odd expression.


    Chen Pipi said, "I heard that the teacher will give you three books to learn about. If you still cannot get out when you finish them, you might lose all the chances in your entire life to get out."


    Ning Que slightly frowned and asked, "What is the third book?"


    Chen Pipi shook his head and said, "No one knows."


    Ning Que remained silent for a while before he suddenly smiled and said, "If it is confirmed that I can¡¯t get out of this mountain for my entire life, please find a spoon for me."


    Chen Pipi asked with slight surprise, "For what?"


    Ning Que pointed to the deep dark inside of the cliff cave behind him and said, "I will use it to dig out a long tunnel and get back to the world."


    Chen Pipi could not help doubting his intelligence and said with empathy, "Don¡¯t feel so pressured."


    Ning Que knew that Chen Pipi was unable to understand what he really meant, but it did not matter, he knew it himself. Then he started reading that book.


    Chen Pipi sighed slightly, leaving the teau without saying anything.


    ...


    ...


    The Tao is invisible while objects are all tangible.


    Objects, as mentioned, referred to all the things without boundaries.


    People who knew the Tao would not set boundaries for themselves, and also did not care about the specific forms.


    Gentlemen who did not have boundaries would not be stubborn about the established rules.


    The no-boundary was a condescending attitude toward rules.


    ...


    ...


    ...


    Opening the old book that had no words on the cover, Ning Que was immediately attracted by its contents and could not help continuing to read.


    Other than eating and sleeping, he spent most of the following 24 hours reading and thinking. If he began to get bored with one book or his thoughts arrived at a standstill, he would read another book. In this way, time passed as he flipped through the books.


    Sangsang cooked, cleaned, and chatted with him when he got bored. After working up the courage toe into the cliff cave once again, Sangsang sat beside him quietly and sewed the soles of shoes.


    No matter in which ways these two books would help Ning Que solve those problems and free him from his imprisonment, he had learned a lot from the knowledge and wisdom of the ancient sages in those books.


    The book of the Origin on Primordial Qi of Nature allowed him to learn about this brand new assumption of the world for the first time, and he understood more new ideas in the following several sections.


    The so-called aura of the world was exactly an invisible particle that existed in nature. It was also called the Qi of Heaven and Earth by cultivators. ording to this book, all of the Qi of Heaven and Earth in this world originated from the sun, only a little of which was from the depths of the earth.


    These auras that had the same origin started to manifest different features due to the different objects that they coexisted with and the environmental pollution over time.


    For example, the Qi of Heaven and Earth in wood was totally different from that in rocks. Such differences were too subtle to be found by general cultivators.


    Ning Que remembered the feeling when he first met the Stone Array Tactics before the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine by Daming Lake. He found that the exnation in the book made sense even though it was different from what Master Yan Se had said earlier.


    After a while, he took out several Fu papers and cast, using his Psyche Power to carefully sense the slight differences between the fire and the mist in front of him, and then wrote down notes on the paper.


    After lunch, he put the empty bowls aside and started casting again. He usually wrote talisman for fun when he was in the Old Brush Pen Shop and, although their power was not strong enough, he had saved a great many Fu papers that were enough for such an experiment.


    He cast the water talisman this time.


    While the light yellow Fu paper disappeared in the air, the Qi of Heaven and Earth in the cliff cave slowly gathered together to form a ball of water and fell into that empty bowl.


    After some slight ripples, the water became still.


    Looking at the water that was gradually bing muddy, Ning Que¡¯s face showed someplex expressions. He then opened the book and started topare it with certain contents in the book.


    And then he cast the water talisman once again, letting the water fall down to the ground and keeping his eyes focused on the water that was gradually disappearing along the stone crevices just like numerous invisible snakes.


    The bowl was a tangible object, and so were the stone crevices. Even this entire world was also a giant tangible object.


    The water became a semicircle when it fell into the bowls, invisible snakes when it flowed through the stone crevices, a bead curtain when it was reflected by the clouds, and numerous particles when it was transformed into rain.


    The water itself did not have any tangible shape. It only became tangible when it interacted with some tangible object.


    That was what the no-boundary really meant.


    "Is the Qi of Heaven and Earth just like water?"


    It was not difficult to draw such a conclusion. Looking at that book, Ning Que did not show anycency. He was trying to find something in this book to prove that the inhibition of the cliff cave was relevant to this conclusion.


    After some time had passed, Ning Que woke up from his pondering. He kneaded the spot between his eyebrows exhaustedly and then noticed that Sangsang hade in.


    "Do you remember that you said that you were terrible at sewing when we were about to leave for the Wilderness? You sent all the needlework to Xiaocao because you didn¡¯t want anyone else in the city of Chang¡¯an to see your sewing. Where did you get these?"


    Ning Que asked.


    Sangsang raised her head and scratched her itching temple with the end of a needle, and said, "I got those from Seventh Sister when I went down the mountain yesterday. I have to do something to kill time."


    Thinking that it was indeed boring for her to stay on the cliff tform, Ning Que gave the book to her and said, "You can read this when you feel bored."


    Sangsang was surprised. "Am I allowed to read this book?"


    These two books had been secretly hidden by the Academy and were carefully selected by the Headmaster for his disciple. Regr people were not supposed to see this book, let alone Sangsang. However, Ning Que had already gotten used to sharing every good thing with Sangsang, sometimes he even put Sangsang first rather than himself.


    The most important reason was that he had grown to be a penny-pincher due to their childhood poverty. Though he did not have to worry about money, he still tended to make full use of everything.


    Ning Que said, "These are the best books in the world. You will regret it if you don¡¯t read them."


    Sangsang felt pity and said, "But I don¡¯t understand the contents."


    Ning Que said, "Even the shameless Great Divine Priest of Light wanted to ept you as his sessor. You must be very talented in cultivation, maybe even more so than me or Chen Pipi. I should¡¯ve developed your talent during all these years. Maybe you are really a genius in this aspect."


    Sangsang burst intoughter and said, "You¡¯re making fun of me again."


    Ning Que said, "Anyway, just take a look, it can¡¯t hurt."


    Sangsang was convinced. She took the book and started to read it carefully.


    Ning Que continued to read the book of the Origin on Primordial Qi of Nature. The more he read, the more sense he thought the book of the West-Hill Divine Pce made because, in that book, the Qi of Heaven and Earth absorbed by the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was regarded as the same as Haotian Divine Light.


    Suddenly, his eyes lit up.


    He saw a whole set of skills of Qi refreshing at the end of the book!


    When he inherited Youngest Uncle¡¯s skills at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, it was the remainder of the sword style in the sword mark left by Youngest Uncle that rushed through Ning Que¡¯s Ocean of Qi and Snow Mountain. Then, the Great Spirit rushed through his body, spinning the Qi in his lower abdomen, and it began to absorb the Qi of Heaven and Earth around him.


    At the moment, once Ning Que started to use his Psyche Power to absorb the Qi of Heaven and Earth, he would not be able to control the whole process nor know how to make the process more efficient.


    If the skill of Qi refreshing at the end of this book was for real, did that mean that he would be able to speed up cultivating the Great Spirit and improve his capacity in a short time?


    Holding the book, Ning Que¡¯s hands were slightly trembling. The suffering of being imprisoned in this cliff cave was immediately reced by surprise and gratitude towards the Headmaster and Third Sister.


    This book had to be shared. Such a discovery and happiness had to be shared! He turned back and wanted to share these with Sangsang.


    But Sangsang had already fallen asleep.


    Looking at Sangsang, who held the book and had deeply fallen asleep without leaning on the cliff cave, Ning Que could not help smiling. He thought to himself that she indeed did not have the talent for cultivation, or at least, she was not good at studying.


    After a while, Ning Que carefully read the part of Qi-refreshing Skill once again. When he was able to memorize every single word in that part, he slowly closed his eyes.


    He began to refresh Qi for the first time.


    The Qi of the Greatest Spirit.


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 383: Being Grounded for Cultivation (I)

    Chapter 383: Being Grounded for Cultivation (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Refreshing was supporting, nurturing, pitying, protecting, and healing.


    Qi Refreshing meant going through the procedures above for the essence that was absorbed from the aura of the heaven and earth.


    Following the book, Ning Que immersed himself in a meditation that was not as deep as normal, which enabled him to keep some connection with the real world.


    That connection was breathing, or in other words, inhaling and exhaling.


    The air in the cliff cave went into his lungs following the rhythm of his breathing and then returned to the outside through his mouth and nose. The Qi of Heaven and Earth settled down little by little and began to nourish every part of his body, even the smallest parts.


    Every time that Nig Que breathed, he could feel every trace of the Qi of Heaven and Earthing inside his body. It was subtle in the beginning, but it became clearer as he began to breathe rhythmically. He could even perceive that its quantity was increasing.


    After inheriting the legacy of his Youngest Uncle in the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, he had been having trouble transforming the Qi of Heaven and Earth to the Great Spirit for a long time. Now, he had finally discovered a way to cultivate the Great Spirit like he wanted. And he had anticipated bing stronger as it was controble. His initial shock turned to happiness for that was a pleasant surprise.


    The deep night wasing to an end as the sun began to rise. Inside the cave, Sangsang was sleeping in the corner, while Ning Que was sitting cross-legged, inhaling and exhaling with a strong intention.


    He felt the Qi of Heaven and Earth rushing into his body like an alcoholic would feel while drinking bottle after bottle of hot wine. He was so satisfied and drunk that he had no idea where he was or where he would be going.


    Under the dim light of dawn, the airflow in the cliff cave brought in a cool mountain breeze that blew over Sangsang. As she was woken up from her dream, she rubbed her eyes.


    She looked at Ning Que beside her with a confused expression.


    As the Qi of Heaven and Earth rushed into his body, Ning Que had the Great Spirit inside of him increasing at a slow, but unstoppable rate. Therefore, some changes were happening to his body.


    The changes were hidden deeply beneath his skin, muscles, blood, and flesh. No one could notice with their own eyes aside from Ning Que himself.


    Sangsang, however, could. She knew that something was happening to Ning Que.


    Because she discovered that something faint, even fainter than the wind, was attracted to Ning Que¡¯s body in this cave. The morning fog seemed to be summoned into the cave to envelop him as well.


    ...


    ...


    After a long time, Ning Que finally woke up.


    He stared at the blue sky outside the cave and thought quietly.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth was everywhere. It was among the mountains, the cliffs, the clouds, the trees, thekes, and the fish as well. In that way, the Qi that people cultivated with was still the Qi of Heaven and Earth. Therefore, were there any essential differences between the Genuine Qi of the Haotian Divine Light and that in the bodies of those in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine?


    The Origin on the Primordial Qi of Nature was about this theory. It tried to solve the cultivators¡¯ doubts theoretically and build a unified system. Thepletely new system would pull down the foundation of the Haotian Taoism doctrines. That was why it was banned by the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    But, the other book told Ning Que to ignore the way that the Qi of Heaven and Earth transformed. It was just the same as water in nature. No matter if the water was on a cliff, among the clouds, in the streams, in a peacefulke, or in the rushing river, the essence of the water was unchanged and it was still water.


    The two books had some connection theoretically. But the Origin on the Primordial Qi of Nature dropped the discussion about the forms and went down to the ultimate way of cultivating a certain specific Qi of Heaven and Earth because all the ultimate ways led to the essence of nature.


    The Headmaster of the Academy brought a difficult question to Ning Que when he kept him in the cave, and he also put three answers in front of him. The theories in those two books were two of them.


    He could possibly cultivate the Great Spirit to an abundant realm where he could ignore heaven and earth, or he could possibly make the Great Spirit in his body be in harmony with the Qi of Heaven and Earth by using his own no-boundary spirit.


    Chen Pipi had told him that there were three books. But now, there were only two here. So, what was the third one? And what could he discover from reading it?


    ...


    ...


    In the following days, Ning Que felt as if he had gone back to the early days when he was in the old library. He lived a peaceful and simple life. He ate, slept, read, and thought, and then repeated it, all very attentively. He spent all his dreary time and boring life on reading.


    With the help of those two books, Ning Que controlled the Great Spirit skillfully and the Great Spirit in his body became purer and thicker. Meanwhile, he had gotten a further understanding of the cirction rule and the reason for its existence. He even made great progress in Talisman Taoism.


    He was able to realize that the key to breaking the inhibition and leaving the cliff cave was to work out this question from the Headmaster of the Academy. But he failed to find any clues and he had no idea how tobine the two auras with light and dust or how to make them vanish.


    Ten days quickly passed by. The Third Sister Yu Lian arrived at the cave. Her loose uniform was briskly blown like a g while on the cliff, but was quiet as a piece of silk once inside the cave.


    Ning Que greeted her briefly and, without wasting a minute, he took out the paper with his recently encountered questions and asked her for advice about the difficulties he was having during reading.


    Yu Lian thought for a moment and started answering his questions. She answered briefly, perhaps even too briefly, but her answers always got to the point. Ning Que was inspired by these simple straightforward words and could easily see a new path out of the fog.


    In the end, Ning Que stopped for a while and began asking about the Qi Refreshing method that was in thest part of the book.


    Yu Lian frowned a little and remained silent.


    Ning Que noticed that Sangsang was doing embroidery in the sunshine outside the cave and he thought that this was the reason for his Senior Sister not answering him.


    Yu Lian smiled and said, "Our teacher won¡¯t mind if she listens because she is allowed to apany you here. And the Qi sounds like a Devil¡¯s Doctrine skill, but no one would care since we¡¯re in the cave far away from people."


    ...


    ...


    The next day, Chen Pipi climbed up to the cliff tform and waspletely out of breath.


    Ning Que teased him for a while. He was unhappy because Chen Pipi had not visited him for so many days.


    Chen Pipiined about the precipitous stone path and the high cliff, but he was not forgiven by Ning Que. He sighed and decided to leave Ning Que there. Then he started practicing the no-boundary spirit alone.


    "The no-boundary spirit means that no clue could be found by the appearance, like a wild goose¡¯s footprints in the snow, no one is able to figure out where it is."


    "When you want to move, then move without thinking. How could your enemy know what you intend to do?"


    Chen Pipi raised his right arm and, with his ring finger slightly lifted up, he pointed at the sky above the cliff.


    An invisible aura burst out from his finger and shot into the wall of the cliff cave, instead of following the direction in which the finger pointed.


    That was the mostpressed ultimate Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    It flew over Ning Que¡¯s shoulder and shot against the hard wall of the cave. A small, round, dark hole appeared on that wall along with a whizzing sound.


    No one knew how deep the hole was.


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 384: Being Grounded for Cultivation (II)

    Chapter 384: Being Grounded for Cultivation (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que did not react at all.


    He did not fully gather his wits until the invisible aura of finger had scratched his shoulder and struck a deep dark hole in the wall. A wave of freezing cold poured over him.


    He did not know that this finger of Chen Pipi was the Natural Stream Magical Finger of the Zhishou Abbey. What made him shocked was not the power of the aura of finger, but the unpredictable various changes when Chen Pipi used it.


    He clearly saw that Chen Pipi had pointed to the sky, so how did itnd behind him?


    Was that the no-boundary spirit of the Academy?


    "What cultivators practice is the control of nature and themselves. We need to use our inner Psyche Power to control the Qi of Heaven and Earth. Our bodies are just like wood; the Psyche Power is like fire; nature is the stove; Primordial Qi is the ingredients; and the method ofbat is how youbine the ingredients well together. Except for the factors mentioned, the key is the temperature at which you cook."


    "If you ask a chef how they control the heat, themon ones would tell you what kind of wood should be used and when to use it, or how long you should cook for. While only the top chefs would not tell you any theories because they know how the food on the stove is just by waving their hand in the steam. Such experience could only be obtained by numerous attempts and is hard to exin using words. Sometimes, people would feel that it is not realistic, but it can only be experienced by yourself."


    Looking at Ning Que in the cliff cave, Chen Pipi said, "The temperature of the heat is the intention."


    After thinking for a while, Ning Que understood what he meant. He knew better of the book which talked about the no-boundary spirit of the Academy.


    He remembered the example that Chen Pipi had mentioned in the letter when he went to the old library in the Academy for the first time, and said, "The desire for food and sex is part of human nature, using these as examples made it easier to understand."


    Third Sister and Chen Pipi were appointed by the Headmaster of the Academy to teach sses on the cliff, mainly to solve Ning Que¡¯s questions about the contents of these books. However, he could only learn about and absorb these by himself. After Chen Pipi had answered his questions, Ning Que decided to review all of these in the evening. For now, any further discussion would not help anymore.


    He had been grounded in the cliff cave for ten days, having no idea what had happened outside the Academy. He asked, "Is it still peaceful in Chang¡¯an City?"


    Chen Pipi said, "When has Chang¡¯an City not been? Why are you worried?"


    Ning Que said, "It seems like someone in the imperial court has something against me. I know someone even tried to take Sangsang to the Military Ministry for questioning before we arrived back in the capital. You were there as well."


    Chen Pipi nodded and said, "That was solved easily, don¡¯t worry about it."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "Then what about the two sadhus we saw on the street in the morning a few days ago? Even though Dao Shi is from the Xuankong Temple, he isn¡¯t capable of finding me so easily in such arge city like Chang¡¯an. That is more likely to be designed by someone."


    Chen Pipi slightly frowned and said, "What are you suspecting?"


    "Only the Imperial Center Administration and military departments can find out where I am." Ning Que said, "Maybe someone from either one of them notified the Xuankong Temple."


    Listening to this, Chen Pipi frowned even more and said, "Supporting others to challenge someone who is entering the human realm in the Academy? Even the military departments don¡¯t dare to do such a thing. Aren¡¯t they afraid they¡¯d be spurned by the citizens of Chang¡¯an City if their deed was discovered?"


    Ning Que had lived in the Tang army for many years, and he was clearer than anyone else on how the military operated. He said, "As long as it is favorable to the empire, the generals will be willing to do anything at any cost to get it done."


    ...


    ...


    After having a free meal of meat hot-pot, Chen Pipi wiped his mouth and ignored the dirty bowls and hummed all the way down the cliff. Although Ning Que had tried his best to curse him, he still did not fall off into the abyss.


    Ning Que shouted at Chen Pipi while he looked at the floating clouds, but he could not be heard outside the clouds, which made him feel disappointed.


    He stopped wasting time on this and went back into the cave, sitting cross-legged on the worn futon and closing his eyes, and continued to practice the Great Spirit as taught in the book.


    The floating clouds between the cliffs seemed like they had no feelings at all. Sangsang, who was washing bowls by the edge of the cliff, clearly felt the changes in the cave. She looked back but could not see what she had seen previously, as there was no mist in the morning.


    When the night came, Ning Que opened his eyes slowly andpleted the day¡¯s practice of Qi Refreshing. Looking at Sangsang, who was holding the dishes, he shook his head and said, "I¡¯m not hungry yet, you can put them aside. Get some sleep if you feel tired, or talk to me if you¡¯re bored."


    Sangsang knew that he was always worried that she would feel bored. She also knew him well enough to know that he would be in no mood or have time to chat until this problem was solved. She shook her head and smiled, put the meal box beside him, and then went back to the hut on the edge of the cliff.


    Ning Que was still sitting cross-legged. He spread out his hands on his knees. A light yellow Fu paper appeared in his left hand, falling apart slowly and releasing the talisman intent into the air. There was nothing in his right hand, but the light of the oilmp changed slightly.


    The auras between his two hands are different from each other. On the left hand, it is the Qi of Heaven and Earth that condensed by the Fu paper. And on the right hand, it is the overflowing Great Spirit.


    He looked at the two invisible auras closely in front of him, using his strong Psyche Power to carefully touch every single detail in the aura and wondered if he could discover something from it.


    Although the Qi of Heaven and Earth over his left hand and the Great Spirit over his right hand were both like invisible air, he could still tell them apart by using the perception of Psyche Power.


    Ning Que had read the two books and ruminated and practiced consistently since he had been grounded. Ning Que was now able to tell the auras apart, which looked the same but still had slight differences. However, he still could not find a way to unify the auras with different forms into the same, or even a simr status. He barely had any clue in this aspect.


    ording to the concepts in the book, the original aura inside cultivators of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, as well as the Great Spirit inside him, was all a kind of Qi of Heaven and Earth. If he could learn the original status through the current status, then he would be able to change the Great Spirit into the original form so as to break the inhibition in this cliff cave.


    However, he was still far from reaching that level, let alone learning the specific skills.


    He remembered that, on the day when he was challenged by Monk Guan Hai, he had found a way of using the Great Spirit with talisman after quite a while of thinking by theke under Yanming Mountain, which worked effectively. The disorder of the Primordial Qi caused by talisman could be utilized to cover the aura of the Great Spirit effectively. However, Grand Cultivators could always see through the skill.


    As the core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy and a student from the Second floor of the Academy, he probably would not die immediately even if someone realized that he had joined the Devil. But what if he was seen through by other existences?


    Sitting on the futon deep inside the cliff cave, Ning Que looked at the two auras in his hands and fell into a long period of thinking. Although he still looked calm, he felt terrified.


    Sangsang came back from the hut at the edge of the cliff, found a dry ce, and fell deeply asleep. Ning Que walked over to her, looked at her small dusky face for a long time, and tucked her in. Then he turned and walked deeper into the cliff cave.


    He had been focused on answering questions these days and almost had forgotten the cliff cave. He decided to forget the confusion at the moment and started roaming.


    The cliff cave was not big. The gate as tall as two people, entering which led to a small space. The wall was not very smooth and did not have any rocks on it. It could not be more normal. Continuing to explore deeper, there were two long caves on both sides.


    These two caves were rtively narrow, and they reached the end within only around ten steps. There was tough granite all over the walls at the end of the caves, providing no chance for them to go any further.


    Holding the oilmp, Ning Que looked toward the wall. There were numerous fine cut-marks, which were more likely caused by sharp metal rather than having been naturally formed.


    Suddenly, his eyes lit up.


    In the deepest ce of the Tianqi Mountains in the Far North of the Wilderness, in the pce of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, he once saw the sword marks on the wall left by his Youngest Uncle. It was the sword mark that had helped him understand what the Great Spirit truly was. He inherited the Youngest Uncle¡¯s skills and that was why he was able to beat Master Lotus.


    During the three years of the Youngest Uncle¡¯s imprisonment, he must have been extremely bored, as no colleagues had ever visited him. Was it possible that it was he who had made these two caves with a sword?


    If that was true, then would these marks contain some aura with some special meanings, just like the sword marks he had seen in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine?


    Holding the oilmp, Ning Que stood in front of these cut marks, feeling more excited.


    He went to grab a wooden stick and carried the oilmp to the entrance of the narrow cave. Under the dim light, he started to carefully check the small wave-like marks on the wall.


    No matter if he was right or not, it deserved to be tried.


    He looked at it for a fairly long time, but still did not find any aura in those cut marks or any rules of those lines. But he did not give up. He put his hands on the wall after a while of silence, slowing touching the wall and feeling the roughness of it.


    From the entrance of the cave to the bottom of the cave, from the ground to the top of the wall, he closely examined every cut mark for the entire night. A new day hade. He was exhausted but showed no sign of giving up.


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 385: New Green Life on the Old Cliff

    Chapter 385: New Green Life on the Old Cliff


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    From when the darkness covered the cliffs until the morning light shined into the cave, Ning Que had been looking at the original cuts on the cave walls for the entire night. Like a blind person, he carefully touched those cuts until his hand became a little bit red and even started to peel, but he still could not find any secret left by Youngest Uncle.


    After meditating, diligently reading books, and forcibly suppressing the anxiety in his heart and pretending to be calm for ten days, he was exhausted. Especially after a fruitless night, all the negative things in his mind suddenly broke out.


    His ubed ck hair ran over his shoulders and his face was full of fatigue. Looking at the two books on his knees, Ning Que muttered something that no one could hear clearly because his voice was dry and weak.


    Sangsang walked into the cave with a pot of clear water and nced at him worriedly.


    Ning Que took the wet towel and rubbed his face with it absentmindedly. When he wiped off the goop from the corners of his eyes, he tore a very narrow wound on his face. The pain made him frown repeatedly.


    The wet towel was cold. He had two red marks on his cheeks, either from fatigue or pain. The crimson color, which appeared on his slightly pale cheeks due to theck of sunlight, made his face not very good-looking. He looked very unhealthy, as if he had been sick for a long time.


    His spirit was extremely bad and, naturally, his speed of reading and studying had substantially decreased. He held two books and tried very hard to read, but he found that he seemed to still be the loser who read the ssics in the old library but could not cultivate. In his eyes, the ink characters started to float out from the paper, and began to swim like tadpoles and could not be caught.


    He reluctantly put the book aside and closed his eyes to review what he had learned in the past few days. However, his spirit at that time was too poor. He had lost his rity and had a great deal of deviation in his memory. When he thought about the difficult question of the Origin on Primordial Qi of Nature, he could not remember what Senior Sister Yu Lian had said even though she had exined the answer just the day before yesterday.


    Because of being annoyed and worried, the thoughts were naturally expressed. His husky, exhausted voice was so ambiguous that he just murmured to vent his negative emotions.


    However, he did not expect for Sangsang, who had been quietly sitting beside him sewing the soles of shoes, to suddenly say something that was actually Senior Sister Yu Lian¡¯s exnation from the day before yesterday.


    Ning Que was stunned for a while, and then he remembered that his little handmaiden¡¯s memory had always been better than others¡¯.


    Sangsang began to repeat the lecture given by Yu Lian and Chen Pipi. However, Ning Que¡¯s mental state was too poor to listen. After listening for a while, he shook his hand to signal that there was no need to continue.


    He tossed the two books beside the futon as if they were rubbish and stood up and stretched. He yawned and walked slowly to the entrance of the cliff cave and looked out at the world outside.


    The cliffs behind the back of the mountain of the Academy were really beautiful. However, the lines on the cliffs were like knives that pierced the heart of anyone who saw them. But they were not real knives after all, they were still lines when you had gotten used to them.


    The blue sky over the cliffs would never change. It just stayed there, calmly and silently. In Ning Que¡¯s eyes, the original beauty of it had gradually turned into the rigid blue paint of the worst painter.


    The same for the clouds and mist around the cliffs.


    Looking at the scenery outside the cliff cave, Ning Que suddenly felt chilly and thought, "It¡¯s been only ten days, and I have busy with cultivation. I haven¡¯t even paid attention to the scenery, but I¡¯m already sick of it. So how can I survive for ten months, or even ten years, in this cave?"


    As he began to feel empty and lonely, the stone path underneath the teau suddenly sounded lively. The sound was a mixture of footsteps and quarreling.


    It seemed that the never-changing cliff scenery, with the addition of these voices, suddenly flew away and became fresh, showing apletely different beauty than before.


    The emptiness and loneliness had never been associated with thendscape, it was only about people.


    ...


    ...


    "It is too hard to climb! It¡¯s terrible! Twelfth Brother said that we couldn¡¯t get up. I suggested to shout and say hello to Youngest Brother at the waterfall. That is enough to show our love, but you forced us to climb up here!"


    Ninth Brother, Beigong Weiyang, panted for breath. Heined as he exasperatedly waved his antique vertical bamboo flute. It seemed that he wanted to push all hispanions off the cliff. The mountain breeze blew through the flute and a low note rang out. It sounded like a cry, but resembled Ninth Brother¡¯s huffing and puffing even more closely.


    Fifth Brother wiped the sweat from his forehead and took off the dripping wooden chessboard on his back. He looked at Beigong Weiyang and mocked him and said, "We managed to climb up in the end."


    Beigong Weiyang cautiously moved toward the edge of the cliff. He looked down from the cliff, and then he moved backward like lightning. He patted his chest and said, "I¡¯m just worried that we won¡¯t be able to get downter."


    Seven Senior Brothers hade to visit him, making Ning Que very touched. He stood at the entrance of the cliff cave and waited for them excitedly. He waited for a long time and found that they were still only quarreling with each other, and finally, he could not help saying loudly, "Hey, I¡¯m over here!"


    ...


    ...


    The disciples in the back of the mountain of the Academy were always obsessed with their own things. Besides, as the back of the mountain was sorge, they could not meet every day. Sometimes, they even did not meet for one or two months. However, they did not grow distant because of this. As Ning Que was the Youngest Brother among them, naturally, he received much love from his Senior Brothers.


    The Senior Brothers and Sisters worried that their Youngest Brother had been imprisoned and left alone, and that he wouldin too much and be ill. They asked for permission from the Headmaster and hade together.


    However, when they saw their pale Youngest Brother, they did not know what to say. These weird people from the back of the mountain were really not good atforting or encouraging others.


    They cast their eyes on Wang Chi because they knew that he loved thinking and public speaking. The most important thing was that he ranked 11th, and he was the youngest aside from Ning Que. Therefore, such a difficult task would surely be given to him.


    Wang Chi was silent for a long time and organized the words in his mind. Finally, he squeezed out a false smile and said to Ning Que seriously, "Since the Headmaster did not stop us froming up to the mountain to see you, then we wille to see you every day. If you think about it this way, it wouldn¡¯t be too bad even if you can¡¯t get out in the end. It¡¯s actually a good opportunity to learn something."


    Ning Que¡¯s face suddenly grew dark, and he said, "Eleventh Brother, I¡¯m not a wildflower in the mountain forest that can only understand but not speak. Can you say something a little bit more auspicious?"


    Fifth Brother rushed to the front with his chessboard to alleviate the awkwardness. He sat in front of the line at the entrance and threw the urn containing the chess pieces to Ning Que and said, "The best way to forget your problems is by ying chess."


    Ning Que held the chessboard and said gloomily, "My body can¡¯t cross the line, so how can we y chess?"


    Fifth Brother realized this problem. As he reached out for the chess pieces, he said, "You tell us your moves, and Eighth Brother will make the moves for you."


    Eighth Brother waved the wide sleeves of the school uniform and walked over like a deity and then sat down beside Fifth Brother. He looked at Ning Que and said, "Youngest Brother, though I do this to keep you entertained, you have to do it seriously. Although I¡¯m ying on your behalf, I still do not want to lose to him."


    Beigong Weiyang sneered off to the side and said, "I heard that teacher gave Youngest Brother three books. Given his condition now, he must be exhausted. How can he y chess with you?"


    Ning Que thought that Beigong Weiyang was thoughtful.


    Beigong Weiyang turned to Ning Que and said, "Youngest Brother, let me and Ximen y a song for you to calm you down."


    Ning Que was silent for a second, and then said to Fifth Brother, "Senior Brother, I¡¯ll leave first."


    ...


    ...


    The sound of the melody was great and the sound of the chess pieces knocking on the wooden board was good as well. However, when they were added to the sound of Fifth Brother¡¯s yelling and Eighth Brother¡¯s constant suggestions to Ning Que about where to move the pieces, it was no longer beautiful. The cacophony could not be described.


    At this time, the cliff cave was no longer silent and lonely, but became like the busy market in Southen City of Chang¡¯an. Ning Que held a chess piece and wondered to himself if this could be regarded as a retreat?


    Suddenly, he missed the previous emptiness and loneliness.


    Fourth Brother, who had been silent the entire time, could not stand it any longer. He drove those weirdos away and said to Ning Que, who was relieved, "They were just trying to be nice."


    Ning Que answered sincerely, "I can tell."


    Fourth Brother also said, "The things that we have learned are not helpful for you to pass the test. Today, we mainly came here to cheer you up. Is there anything you want?"


    Ning Que smiled and shook his head. He was prepared to ask Sangsang to make tea for his Senior Brothers. Although he was now a prisoner of the Academy, he still had some good tea inside the hut.


    However, when he looked at Sangsang, he discovered that the little girl was standing at the edge of the cliff with Sixth Brother and pointing at the hut. He did not know what they were saying as Sixth Brother kept nodding.


    ...


    ...


    When Sixth Brother walked back to the entrance of the cliff cave, everyone found out what he had been discussing with Sangsang.


    Those two were preparing topletely renovate the hut. They nned to not only just reinforce and refurbish it, but mainly they wanted to build a shelter to connect the hut to the cliff cave.


    If it was on the ground, such a reconstruction project would not be considered a big issue. However, the hut was on the teau. The transportation of materials alone was a great problem.


    Beigong Weiyang¡¯s face suddenly became pale as he looked at the narrow stone path.


    As expected, his prediction was not wrong.


    Fourth Brother looked at the crowd coldly and said, "All of us shall help."


    ...


    ...


    These weirdos looked like ill and weak people who only cared about chess, trees, or music. But all of them were, after all, the Headmaster¡¯s core disciples. In fact, they were all great cultivators in the upper Seethrough State.


    New trees, old stones, and numerous materials were continuously sent to the cliff teau. Sixth Brother built using his own hands. This seemingly difficult task was sessfullypleted in less than half a day.


    The hut was given extra height, fixed by 14 beams at the edge of the cliff. Wang Chi snuck over to the grass hut on the mountain and stole a lot of frost-colored grass, their teacher¡¯s favorite. He fixed it onto the beams tightly with a thin metal chain. It looked not only beautiful, but was impervious to heavy storms.


    The porch between the hut and the cliff cave was designed more borately. Unstripped thin trees were used to build the structure and straw mats stolen by Seventh Sister from Second Brother¡¯s yard covered the structure. Many holes were cut into the mats and green vines passed through them, which added a touch of vitality to the sky.


    Standing at the entrance of the cave and looking at the beautiful new teau and his smiling Brothers and Sisters covered with mud and sweat, Ning Que felt the cold mountain wind be warm.


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 386: A New Weapon and A New Apprentice

    Chapter 386: A New Weapon and A New Apprentice


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The light was being cast on the vines, which were not dense but had many gaps. It was refracted by the small leaves and its brightness changed. Then, it became apletely different scenery.


    Ning Que expressed his most sincere gratitude to his Senior Brothers and asked them to stay for dinner. However, all of them made fun of this invitation.


    Theyughed and said that, although he was living on the edge of the cliff, he was just a miserable prisoner instead of a hermit. Why did he behave like a host?


    Senior Brothers looked like messyborers. They waved goodbye to him, leaned against the cliff beside the stone path, rubbed their sore necks, and marched down the hill moaning.


    Sixth Brother had to finish the work of refurbishing the huts, so he stayed a little longer. When the setting sun had gone down, he packed up and got ready to leave.


    As they were saying their farewells, Ning Que asked his Sixth Brother about the matter that he had entrusted to him several days ago.


    The Sixth Brother answered, "It¡¯s not difficult to cast your three knives into one. Actually, I have finished the design and arranged the process. However, in order to meet your requirements, the de of the new knives may be too heavy. Thus, we can¡¯t use the ordinary materials but a special material called Ball Toner. The imperial court has sent people to dig it out in the southern mines. They will return next month."


    He calcted the time and then said, "If the materials are avable, I can finish it before summer."


    After leaving Min Mountain for the City of Wei, the three slender podaos had always apanied him. With the podaos, Ning Que had killed so many of the Horse Gang; with the podaos, he safely entered into Chang¡¯an from the frontier fortress; and with the podaos, he survived the fight of Spring Breeze Pavilion and returned back to the Wilderness.


    During a series of fights in the Wilderness, Ning Que was disappointed to find that the three podaos could not provide him with steadfast confidence and the strongest support in the battles against cultivators. On the contrary, they had be a drag on him.


    At present, the most powerful weapons he had were the Primordial Thirteen Arrows and the Fu paper. Fourth Brother and Sixth Brother had repaired the Primordial Thirteen Arrows perfectly for him. However, he still wanted to have a melee weapon. Based on his experience and emotion, the knife was his first choice.


    A few days ago, Ning Que solemnly handed over his three podaos, which he regarded as partners of his life, to his Sixth Brother and asked him to cast these three podaos into one. This requirement was notpliant with the standard of smelting and casting in all respects, and seemed to be too simple and boring.


    Therefore, he had little expectation on this matter. But he also held a ray of hope in the depths of his heart. Now, he was greatly surprised and delighted to hear what the Sixth Brother had said.


    He knew that, even though the Sixth Brother was reticent on the outside, he had a fire-like passion from the inside and knew that he had a pure spirit tempered into steel, so he would not say something that was uncertain.


    The Sixth Brother looked at Ning Que and asked simply and honestly, "Does Younger Brother still need me to do anything?"


    "I can¡¯t wait to see the knife that you made for me. I wonder what it looks like. That is all I care about."


    Ning Que said with a smile. Seeing Sangsang standing under the vines, suddenly he remembered something and raised his brow slightly.


    When he and Mo Shanshan were on the bank of the Daming Lake in the Wilderness, they could not defeat the Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu. Especially when Ye Hongyu summoned the fish from deep in the water, which cast a shine in all its splendor and lit up the verdant valley and quietke, it urred to him that he did not even dare to try to fight with her.


    Ning Que could clearly remember the details of that fight. But the scenery of the rising sun above theke left a longsting impression of awe in his mind.


    If Mo Shanshan had not evaporated theke with her Divine Talisman and reduced the luminance of that radiant light, Ning Que would have been killed by Ye Hongyu at that time.


    Afterward, Ning Que knew that the Divine Skill that Ye Hongyu conjured was from the West-Hill Divine Pce, and she had just learned it a short time before. But its power was so formidable.


    As a disciple of the Academy, it was necessary for Ning Que to think about how to fight against Peach Mountain. As the sessor of the Youngest Uncle, Ning Que had sufficient reason to fight against the West-Hill Divine Pce. As someone who had joined the Devil, Ning Que had to consider how to defeat the powerhouses in Haotian Taoism at every moment.


    Especially after he ruined Prince Long Qing, the disciples of the Divine Hall had to expect to defeat or even destroy him. All these tasks would be carried out by Ye Hongyu.


    Ning Que had fought against her, talked with her, and walked with her. He knew that the Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu, had an unfathomable condition and potential, and she had acquired a wide range of sorcery. Meanwhile, he would never forget that she was that kind of cultivator, like him, who was proficient in the skills and nature of fighting. That kind of cultivator was very rare.


    At present, his state had improved quickly. But he believed that Ye Hongyu¡¯s speed would never be slower than his. Therefore, he had to try his best to narrow the gap between them.


    The first thing to do was to find ways to deal with the Haotian Divine Light.


    Ning Que asked his Sixth Brother, "Senior Brother, I wonder whether you can make something for me."


    Making things was the hobby of Sixth Brother¡¯s life. The Sixth Brother also knew that this Younger Brother always had some creative ideas in his mind. Therefore, he was delighted to hear that, and said, "Did you design this thing?"


    "No, I don¡¯t think so," he answered.


    With a little hesitation, Ning Que raised his hands and bent his fingers in front of his eyes. He began to describe the appearance and feature of that thing in a soft voice.


    Hearing his description, the Sixth Brother regretfully shook his head after thinking for a moment and said, "This is much easier than that knife. It is nothing special or difficult. I can finish it in ten days. You can take it when youe for the knife."


    After seeing Sixth Brother off, Ning Que sat at the entrance of the cliff cave and held his chin in his hands to watch Sangsang on the go in the corridor. Suddenly, he beamed with smilescently.


    The Sixth Brother felt disappointed because that thing was too simple and offered him no challenge. But Ning Que was very happy. If that thing could cope with the Haotian Divine Light, he could not be defeated by Sangsang even though she could learn the Divine Skill as the sessor of the God of Light.


    It was definitely significant for Ning Que to win in the fight against the Tao Addict of the West-Hill Divine Pce, or at least survive. Nevertheless, it was the most meaningful thing for Ning Que to win in the contest between him and his little handmaiden. This rted to his honor as a man and a patriarch.


    ...


    ...


    The huts upon the edge of the cliff had been renovated perfectly and the twigs of the vines were swaying in the wind. Apart from the beautiful scenery, the aura of life added another taste of feeling.


    Thepany of his Senior Brothers washed away the sense of being abandoned by the world and the miserable memory of vagrancy with Sangsang. Now, Ning Que had chilled his mind and continued to read and meditate. It was no longer as gloomy and depressing as it was a few days ago.


    The most significant aspect was the change of his mindset. When the Sixth Brother left, he told Ning Que in a casual tone that he could take that thing along with his knife after he made it through the barrier made by the Headmaster of the Academy. Ning Que did not feel pity from this line but responded to it naturally. This was attributed to his clear thought. Now that he had made up his mind to Sangsang, he would destroy his Great Spirit if he could not solve this inhibition after three months.


    It seemed that the decision was simple. However, it contained his determined resolution. Ordinary people could not bear this agony, but Ning Que could.


    Because of his inner strength, now he could be as calm as the sea.


    ...


    ...


    On the 21st day of his imprisonment in the cliff cave, the Third Senior Sister, Yu Lian, came to solve his problems on cultivation in ordance with their appointment. The difference was that this time there was another girl that apanied her.


    Looking at the girlish face of Tang Xiaotang, Ning Que was shocked and said to her, "Do you really stay at the Academy? Did my teacher ept you as his disciple? Should I call you little junior sister in the future?"


    Tang Xiaotang gave a little giggle and said, "Don¡¯t you want a little junior sister?"


    Ning Que said, "I¡¯m now a prisoner in the cliff cave. Of course I don¡¯t want a little junior sister, which would make me feel depressed. If you sang a song of the Deste Man, I might feel utterly difited."


    Nobody there could understand hisints or teases, and neither could Sangsang.


    Yu Lian beamed and said to Tang Xiaotang, "You¡¯re so naughty. Now, pay a formal visit to your Youngest Uncle."


    Ning Que looked back and forth between his Senior Sister and Tang Xiaotang, hesitated for a moment, and said in an uncertain tone, "Senior Sister, you epted Tong Xiaotang as your disciple?"


    Yu Lian nodded calmly.


    Ning Que was astonished.


    Tang Xiaotang belonged to the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Her elder brother, Tang, was the World Wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Who would have thought of such a thing that the Academy had epted her! People would see it as hard evidence that the Academy took the Devil¡¯s Doctrine under its protection whether she was a disciple of Third Senior Sister or the Headmaster of the Academy.


    Looking at Ning Que, Yu Lian said subtlely, "Younger Brother, you have seen my disciple. You know that her identity is quite special. So please don¡¯t mention her to others as far as possible in the future."


    It would definitely give rise to a heated dispute if this matter of the Academy epting a girl in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine as a disciple were to be open to the public. People in the West-Hill Divine Pce and millions of believers of Haotian would not allow this thing to happen.


    Even though the Academy was powerful, it could not turn against the entire world and the omniscient Haotian Divine Light. The thing that happened a long time ago was the best proof.


    Thinking of the Great Spirit in his body and his Youngest Uncle, who was punished to death by Haotian, Ning Que became silent for a moment. Then, wearing a solemn look, he said, "Of course."


    Looking at Tang Xiaotang, he found that the young girl was calm and had no misgivings. It seemed like she could not even realize how much difficulty and danger she would bring to the Academy once she became a student of the Academy.


    He would like to remind her of this harsh situation. However, thinking of himself, who had joined the Devil and brought so many troubles to the Academy and the Headmaster of the Academy had no choice but to imprison him in the cliff cave, Ning Que teased himself.


    "The Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu, and her elder brother, the World Wayfarer of the Zhishou Abbey, have seen her before. So you should be careful and try not to let her go somewhere outside of the Academy."


    Ning Que reminded Yu Lian of this.


    Yu Lian said calmly, "Since she has be my disciple, she would never be permitted to leave unless she has the capacity to defeat Ye Hongyu."


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 387: Youngest Uncle of the New Generation

    Chapter 387: Youngest Uncle of the New Generation


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Listening to their conversation, Tang Xiaotang asked in confusion with her eyes opening widely, "But I always covered my face with a fox tail, so how can they recognize me?"


    Looking at her new student, Yu Lian said slowly, "Everyone has their own unique trace, especially for cultivators. You can consider it as a scent."


    Ning Que did not join in the discussion. Instead, he just silently sat inside the cliff cave and looked very calm. However, his heart became very unstable due to his Senior Sister¡¯s previous words.


    When he was an ordinary student of the Academy, he once encountered Yu Lian in the Sword Forest. She indirectly expressed disapproval when she knew he wanted to enter the Second floor of the Academy. Besides, she also said that if he could give up entering the Second floor, she would introduce him to a mighty figure, who was not weaker than Liu Bai.


    Liu Bai, the Sword Sage, was recognized as the strongest human in the world, but Yu Lian was living in the Academy and far away from the outside world all year round. How could she know a mighty figure as powerful as Liu Bai? Ning Que clearly remembered his shock after hearing her words at that time, and also remembered her sigh of pity when he insisted on his original thought.


    Yu Lian¡¯s words today sounded as usual, but they were full of confidence and pride. It meant that since Tang Xiaotang became her student now, it would be nonsense if Tang Xiaotang couldn¡¯t beat or even kill the Tao Addict Ye Hongyu in the future.


    Her expression was still peaceful, but it wasn¡¯t a kind of deliberate pride and arrogance. It was based on an instinctive self judgment, so she just casually uttered the words.


    It was this kind of casual and ordinary demeanor that made her look more mysterious and unfathomable.


    Recalling their conversation in the Sword Forest, Ning Que¡¯s thought couldn¡¯t help bing a little confused. Everyone in the back of the mountain knew that Third Senior Sister was just at the upper level of Seethrough State, so where did her peaceful confidencee from?


    After a short thought, Ning Que concluded that it was due to themon temperament that all students in the back of the mountain shared. Third Senior Sister was only lower than Eldest Brother and Second Brother in seniority rank, so she, of course, was qualified to be confident.


    He said earnestly, "Senior Sister is the first one to ept a student among all peers in the back of the mountain. Congrattions!"


    Yu Lian said, "It¡¯s all our teacher¡¯s arrangements."


    She looked back at Tang Xiaotang and said calmly, "Come and salute your uncle."


    Tang Xiaotang walked towards the cliff cave and stood a little away from it. She stopped smiling, then carefully and seriously saluted Ning Que, "Youngest Uncle."


    Ning Que noticed that her worn fur coat had been reced with a new Academy uniform, and her pair of old leather boots also had been substituted with a pair of small green cotton shoes. Now, she looked very tidy and pert.


    Ning Que was looking at her. When suddenly hearing the words "Youngest Uncle", his mood somehow became veryfortable. In a second he realized where this kind of rxed mood came from.


    First, he need not worry that he might have a junior sister. Besides, he was one generation higher than Tang Xiaotang. Did it mean that the Wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine should also show some respect to him?


    Above all, ¡¯Youngest Uncle¡¯ was a very special and meaningful title in the Academy.


    Once, there was a Youngest Uncle in the back of the mountain of the Academy. He was the most amazing and powerful figure in the world, a legend extremely admired and missed by Second Brother all the time.


    Now, Ning Que was referred as Youngest Uncle by the next generation of disciples.


    In each generation, there was only one little Younger Brother, so naturally there was just one Youngest Uncle. He felt very proud and beamed upon thinking that there would be more and more people saluting and calling him Youngest Uncle in the future.


    After greeting Ning Que, Tang Xiaotang straightened up. She found that his expression kept changing and he was intoxicated with self-satisfaction, but she certainly did not know what he was thinking of now.


    They got to know each other in the Wilderness and then met again in Chang¡¯an. In the Academy, Ning Que was the most familiar person to her. In addition, their ages were close, so it was hard for her to sincerely treat him as an elder. She tilted her head and looked at him. Suddenly, she couldn¡¯t help giggling as she found his current expression veryical.


    Ning Que looked at her and said, "Call me Youngest Uncle two more times."


    Tang Xiaotang, of course, did not want to call him Youngest Uncle. In her eyes, how would Ning Que, who was weak and very shameless, be qualified to be her elder?


    Previously, she controlled her temper and politely called him Youngest Uncle. That was because her teacher ordered her to do so and it was necessary to meet all people in the back of the mountain before entering the Second Floor of the Academy.


    "Quickly."


    Without noticing her changing expression, Ning Que happily said, "I enjoy being called Youngest Uncle the most."


    "I¡¯m the only disciple of the third generation of the Academy."


    Tang Xiaotang gritted her teeth and said, "Is there anyone else?"


    Ning Que said, "So in the future, you shoulde here to visit me and call me Youngest Uncle from time to time."


    Tang Xiaotang angrily said, "I won¡¯te here to y with you in the future if you keep acting like this."


    Ning Que proudly said, "You have to follow my orders because my seniority is higher than yours."


    Tang Xiaotang irritatedly said, "Don¡¯t forget that I am the first disciple of the third generation of the Academy, which means that I will be the Eldest Sister of the Academy one day. Youngest Uncle you¡¯d better not tease me now if you would not want your children or students to be bullied by me in the future."


    Ning Que was a little shocked and said with emotion, "The flourishing Central ins, such a dirty and vile ce... it only takes a little time there to turn a pure girl from the Wilderness into a foxy one. So very boring."


    Tang Xiaotang decided to ignore him, and then walked to Sangsang¡¯s side. She pulled Sangsang¡¯s hand and led her into the hut. Later she began to ask about Sangsang¡¯s life in the cliff cave and whether she could do something for her.


    Sangsang was not ustomed to her cheerfulness and enthusiasm. After a while, she recalled that they previously had agreed to be friends outside a hut at the other side of the mountain. Soon, a cheerful smile crossed Sangsang¡¯s little face.


    Sangsang talked about the life on the cliff tform. It seemed everything was alright, though it sounded a little boring. Tang Xiaotang felt relieved after she made sure that her best friend did not suffer from a hard time and was not bullied by her Youngest Uncle Ning Que these days. Soon, both of them sat on the ground and began ying games.


    Sangsang was less than fifteen years old, and Tang Xiaotang was even younger. Actually, they were still young girls, especially in temperament. When they yed together, they enjoyed stone chess like other children.


    At the entrance of the cliff cave, Senior Sister Yu Lian was ncing through the learning problems that Ning Que had these days. After a short meditation, she raised her head and began solving and exining the problems in a soft voice.


    Ning Que listened carefully to his Senior Sister¡¯s elegant and gentle voice. He found that he suddenly understood many difficult problems after her brief exnations.


    Obviously, Yu Lian did not understand the Great Spirit, but she had a deep research and understanding on the operationw of aura, especially on the nuanced differences among various materials. Besides, she was extremely knowledgeable. She could easily recall a cultivation experience as example and make a suitable and exquisite metaphor. What shocked Ning Que the most was his Senior Sister¡¯s ethereal way of thinking. She was often able to find a possibility within impossibility and to discover clear water and green hills in a hopeless and despairing environment.


    Time passed slowly, and the sunshine outside the cliff gradually became stronger. Ning Que was absolutely absorbed in the new world that Senior Sister showed him. His admiration for his Senior Sister had reached the peak. He thought to himself that it was no wonder Yu Lian was only second to those two Senior Brothers at the back of the mountain in the Academy. She was really powerful and amazing, whether in knowledge, wisdom, or vision. Compared with her, even Chen Pipi alsogged far behind.


    ...


    ...


    Without any nonsense, Yu Lian¡¯s lesson was always clear and brief. Just after noon, she had already solved all Ning Que¡¯s problems.


    She didn¡¯t wait for Ning Que¡¯s thanks and didn¡¯t intend to make small talk either. Instead, she just stood up peacefully and called Tang Xiaotang out of the hut. After gently nodding to the cave she floated down the mountain.


    Between the narrow and steep cliffs, two petite figures and two pieces of Academy uniform with same style and size could be seen from time to time. Within a short time, they got to that waterfall.


    Previously in the hut of the cliff tform, Tang Xiaotang asked Sangsang to y stone chess with her.


    Stone chess was a kind of simple game that all kids from the Wilderness to the Great River Kingdom yed. There was not any obvious regrity in winning or losing because of its simplicity. However, she, unbelievably, failed to win a single game!


    Tang Xiaotang was a young girl of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine with a strong will and desire for winning. If it were other people, over ten sets of failures at the beginning might have made them feel bored and give up ying such a simple game. However, she insisted on ying with Sangsang, losing one hundred and twenty-nine sets in total!


    Stone chess was very easy, but she unbelievably lost one hundred and twenty-nine sets in a row. Tang Xiaotang could not figure out how on earth it happened. Although she had strong willpower, her little face unavoidably expressed depression and frustration now. She looked at her teacher beside her and asked sadly, "Teacher, am I stupid?"


    Yu Lian slowly went past the cliff and then walked towards that narrow gorge. She said, "No, you aren¡¯t stupid. You just stupidly chose the wrong opponent."


    Tang Xiaotang followed her and curiously asked, "I know Sangsang is the sessor of Divine Priest of Light , but ying stone chess isn¡¯t a kind of cultivation. Why did I fail to win a single game?"


    Yu Lian peacefully said, "In the past few decades, only the God of Light had real wisdom on the Peach Mountain of the West-Hill Divine Pce. The sessor chosen by him was certainly extraordinary. As for why you couldn¡¯t win a single game...that¡¯s because she considers you as her real friend. In other words, she yed with all her might."


    Hearing that Sangsang regarded her as a real friend, Tang Xiaotang¡¯s young face revealed a cheerful smile right away. She, jumping up and down like a naughty stone, chased after the figure of Yu Lian. Her previous frustration and sadness couldn¡¯t be found anymore, like leaves that had floated into the abyss carried by the wind in the canyon.


    Thinking that her good friend had to stay in that deste cliff all day long, Tang Xiaotang suddenly became unhappy again. Sheined, "It isn¡¯t a big deal that the shameless Ning Que is imprisoned, but why does Sangsang have to suffer from it..."


    Yu Lian stopped in her tracks and said, "That¡¯s your Youngest Uncle. How could you call him by his name?"


    Tang Xiaotang stuck her tongue out behind Yu Lian and argued, "I¡¯ve been used to calling him Ning Que."


    Yu Lian calmly said, "Make the mistake again after being taught and you¡¯ll be punished ording to the Academy¡¯s regtions."


    Tang Xiaotang asked with a slight shock, "What¡¯s the punishment?"


    Yu Lian said, "Walk up to the waterfall, and then jump down."


    Looking at that silver waterfall not far away, she said sorrowfully, "It looks a little high."


    Yu Lian said, "One hundred and twenty-nine times."


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 388: Jumping Down From the Waterfall and Talking About Beasts

    Chapter 388: Jumping Down From the Waterfall and Talking About Beasts


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    As suggested by her brother, Tang Xiaotang walked southward from the Wilderness thousands of miles away. After suffering a lot along the way, she eventually arrived in Chang¡¯an andter was admitted to the Academy.


    ording to their original n, she would aim to study under the Headmaster of the Academy. However, the Headmaster did not drive her out of the Academy due to her Devil¡¯s Doctrine identity, nor epted her as his student. Instead, he asked Yu Lian to be her teacher.


    For the world, though the Second floor of the Academy was still mysterious, the secr world was still connected to the supermundane world after all. For Tang Xiaotang and her elder brother, who had been at the top level in the cultivation field, had heard of many figures in the back of the mountain of the Academy. They certainly had heard of such big figures as Mr. First and Mr. Second as well as Chen Pipi who was regarded as a unique treasure by Haotian Taoism. Even for those people like Beigong Weiyang, they were also well-known in their own fields and countries before they began their cultivation in the Academy.


    However, few people knew that there was a Third Sister called Yu Lian on the Second floor of the Academy.


    When the Headmaster of the Academy ordered Tang Xiaotang to be a student of Yu Lian¡¯s, the little girl felt shocked, and then her first thought was to reject.


    The female professor in the green wide Academy uniform was elegant and amiable, but her cultivation state was not high. It seemed that her state was simr to Tang Xiaotang¡¯s, even weaker than hers. For Tang Xiaotang, who aimed to be the most powerful female in the world, it was impossible for her to be a student of another female whose state was weaker than her own.


    However, when she was ready to reject this, Yu Lian just gently looked at her.


    The Academy Third Sister¡¯s eyes were gentle and kind, just like her own temperament. She looked vulnerable, but was actually full of grace and elegance. It was that nce that suddenly made Tang Xiaotang well-behaved and repress her feelings of dissatisfaction.


    From an early age, Tang Xiaotang had been living a hard life in the Cold Region of the Far North. Both the Deste bloodline and the education of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine made her straightforward and tough. At her young age, she had already fought against terrible Snowfield Direwolves with her enormous blood colored de. What¡¯s more, she dared attack Ye Hongyu and even directly chopped off Prince Long Qing¡¯s ice peach blossom with one knife.


    However, such a young girl of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, who was extremely confident and dauntless, felt terrified when facing Yu Lian¡¯s peaceful and gentle eyes. All she could do was follow.


    "Jump down from the waterfall one hundred and twenty-nine times?"


    Looking at her teacher¡¯s petite back, Tang Xiaotang¡¯s shocked voice trembled a little. On one hand, the times were exactly the same as the number of times she was defeated by Sangsang in their games on the cliff tform. She did not tell the number to Yu Lian, but how did she know? Was it possible that her teacherpletely grasped the whole situation in the cliff tform while solving Ning Que¡¯s problems at the entrance of the cliff cave?


    Yu Lian turned around and said, "Obviously, you know you¡¯re unable to beat Sangsang in ying stone chess, but you didn¡¯t ept the fact back then until you consecutively lost one hundred and twenty-nine sets. It seemed very courageous, but actually, it was very stupid. If you¡¯re always impetuous and foolish like that, how can you beat Ye Hongyu in the future?"


    Tang Xiaotang argued, "Even if it seemed stupid, I just couldn¡¯t give up. If I kept ying, maybe I could win one set sometime in that situation."


    Yu Lian calmly said, "I know it¡¯s impossible for you to change your temperament, so I won¡¯t even try. Since you insist that courage is the most important thing in the world, I¡¯ll try to exercise and stabilize your courage as much as possible. Jumping down from the waterfall is one of the methods. Are you afraid?"


    This was the simplest way to stimte her. Tang Xiaotang, of course understood it, but even if she did, she still failed to control her temper and kept walking towards the waterfall.


    From this point of view, as Ning Que felt, perhaps Yu Lian was really a truly excellent teacher. She knew her student¡¯s character very well and was good at making the most of it.


    ...


    ...


    "We all know she practiced the Devil¡¯s Doctrine cultivation from an early age, so it¡¯s easy for her to jump down from the waterfall. Even if she gets hurt, it won¡¯t kill her. However, it¡¯s a difficult task to climb up through the wet cliff. What¡¯s worse, Senior Sister required her to climb up along the waterfall. You don¡¯t really see the might of the flowing water and how slippery the moss on the stone is!"


    "That little girl jumped down and climbed up for the whole night, with her nose, face and other body parts injured. It was very tragic! Second Brother¡¯s courtyard is near the waterfall, and he was the first one to oppose it. He thought that such a teaching method would ruin the student. Atst, even Eldest Brother spoke on her behalf, but guess what? Senior Sister outright rejected both Senior Brothers¡¯ requests!"


    "She is still jumping at the moment."


    "To be honest, the little girl is really stupid and obstinate to the extreme. She didn¡¯t say anything when jumping down from the waterfall, and didn¡¯t beg for leniency either, as if fighting against Senior Sister in her heart. You ask me how many times has she jumped? When I reached there at midnight, I didn¡¯t know how many times she had jumped before, but since then I¡¯d watched her jumping for more than thirty times. ording to the speed, she may have jumped nearly sixty times by then, but that¡¯s just half of what Senior Sister had instructed!"


    "One hundred and twenty-nine times! Even if she finishes it, I¡¯m afraid she¡¯ll be disabled! I don¡¯t know what on earth Senior Sister is thinking of! A female, who¡¯s gentle and elegant in daily life, to be so horrible after epting a new female student. Are there any emotional problems hidden within?"


    Today was Ning Que¡¯s twenty-second day of being imprisoned in the cliff cave. ording to the Headmaster¡¯s n, Chen Pipi came to the cliff tform, for instructing the no-boundary spirit of the Academy to Ning Que. However, it was obvious that the fat brother wasn¡¯t in a mood to lecture today. Sitting outside the cliff cave, Chen Pipi violently waved his arms and spat. He expressed his most sorrowful opposition and anger to the thing that was happening at the back of the mountain from yesterday to this early morning.


    After a long time, Ning Que understood what may have happened. Thinking about the little Tang Xiaotang getting such miserable punishment due to her rejection to call him Youngest Uncle, Ning Que could not help being a little anxious and fearful.


    Ning Que had already found that there was something wrong with Chen Pipi¡¯s mental state today. He asked with a frowning gesture, "ording to the tone you used to warn me before, you should have hoped that all remaining people of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine would die. However, I feel something different when I listen to your words today?"


    Chen Pipi, a little shocked, angrily said, "Since she¡¯s now a student of our Academy¡¯s Third Sister now, she naturally became a disciple of the Academy and our niece. Under the circumstances, what¡¯s the rtionship between her and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine? ording to what you said just now, it seems that I should have killed you first!"


    Ning Que sneered, "Come in if you can!"


    Chen Pipi scornfully replied, "Come out if you can!"


    Holding a tea tray, Sangsang walked towards Ning Que and Chen Pipi. She silently put down two cups of tea, and then nced at each of them.


    The two felt a little embarrassed, and then picked up the cups in silence.


    Sangsang shook her head and said, "You two had better change the topic."


    After a short hesitation, she looked at Ning Que in the cave and said, "I want to visit her."


    Ning Que knew she wanted to visit Tang Xiaotang, and then said, "Of course you should do it since you are friends."


    After Sangsang left, Chen Pipi suddenly asked, "You had met Tang Xiaotang on the Wilderness before. Do you know why this girl is so obstinate?"


    Ning Que began narrating his impressions on Tang Xiaotang.


    Holding his cup, Chen Pipi sipped the tea without tasting it. Thinking of the little girl, who once broke a big stone on her chest at the south gate of Chang¡¯an, he fell into silence for a long time.


    Then he looked at the white clouds between the cliffs and frowned. After a short deep thought, he said, "She¡¯s a Devil¡¯s Doctrine girl, but why is she so cute?"


    Ning Que didn¡¯t always have the notion that the Taoism and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine were extreme opposites. Since he joined the Devil, he was naturally disgusted to no end by this notion. He looked at Chen Pipi and ironically said, "Tao Addict Ye Hongyu is a precious girl of the Haotian Taoism, but in our eyes, why is she so horrible?"


    Chen Pipi muttered, "It makes sense."


    Looking at Chen Pipi¡¯s absent-mindedness on his round face, Ning Que suddenly thought of a possibility. After a short hesitation, he tentatively asked, "You kept watching Tang Xiaotang jumping down the waterfall from midnight to early morning?"


    Chen Pipi nodded.


    Ning Que took in a cold breath and said, "Indeed, the little girl has long ck and beautiful hair. Besides, she¡¯s very mighty and can tie with Ye Hongyu in a fight. Every aspect seems to fit your image of a perfect partner, except that she has a too powerful elder brother. But I have to warn you that she¡¯s a young girl of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. If it was in the heyday of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, there would be no doubt that she¡¯d be the Saintess of Diabolism. However, you¡¯re the precious young master of Haotian Taoism. Given that the Haotian Taoism and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine are natural enemies, the Academy can be a buffer, but which side will you take?"


    At present, Chen Pipi was still a little absent-minded, so he did not fully understand the meaning of the words. He just subconsciously and deridingly replied, "Whoughed at my decayed opinion of the Haotian Taoism and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine before?"


    Ning Que sighed and said, "But have you ever thought that she¡¯s one generation lower than ours and you¡¯re her twelfth uncle. Can it work? Will our teacher agree to it?"


    Eventually, Chen Pipi understood what Ning Que was talking about. His chubby body bounced off the ground a with ¡¯sou¡¯ sound, just like an stic fishball. He, with his face turning red, pointed at Ning Que in the cave and then scolded, "Appreciation! Do you know what the word appreciation means? Why is it that your brain is full of those filthy things!?"


    Ning Que said, "Anger can¡¯t persuade your opponent, but it will expose your true feelings."


    Chen Pipi furiously said, "That little girl is just fourteen or fifteen. Don¡¯t think and act like a beast!"


    Ning Que sneered, "I¡¯m afraid that you¡¯re worse than a beast!"


    Suddenly thinking of one thing, Chen Pipi scornfully looked at Ning Que and said, "You think everyone in the world can be a beast like you, that they would do something filthy to a little handmaiden of their own?"


    Ning Que could bear other things, but he could not endure this one. He shouted, "You fat-ass! I will definitely kick your ass today if I¡¯m allowed to go out."


    Chen Pipi sneered, "Come out if you can!"


    Ning Que angrily said, "Come in if you can!"


    Suddenly, both of them shut up at the same time, and then looked at the edge of the cliff tform with frightened expressions.


    They were very worried that Sangsang had suddenlye back and heard their extremely naive conversation again.


    They embarrassedly looked at each other, and suggested that there were no hard feelings after the chat by waving their hands.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 389: A Challenger Came to the Academy

    Chapter 389: A Challenger Came to the Academy


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "Did we swap lines just now?"


    "We did, we swapped e in¡¯ and ¡¯go out¡¯ with ¡¯beast¡¯ and ¡¯worse than beasts¡¯."


    "Would that little handmaiden of yours stop mocking us?"


    "It depends on whether she heard it or not."


    "..."


    "What kind of person is Third Sister?"


    "Are you asking me?"


    "Do you think I¡¯m asking heaven and the earth?"


    "What do you wish to ask?"


    "Third Sister... how did she get into the Academy back then?"


    "Back then, I scored six A+ and was invited to the Second floor of the Academy by teacher. Third Sister was already everyone¡¯s third sister. How would I know how she had entered the Academy?"


    "Could you not always brag about your aplishments everytime we talk about the Academy¡¯s history? I¡¯m already sick of it."


    "But I did score six A+. Who had managed to achieve that in all these years? I remember that you gave up on two subjects at the academy entry exam and submitted nk papers."


    "Just pretend I didn¡¯t ask."


    Ning Que and Chen Pipi sat outside the cliff cave. They mumbled as they chatted over the corn that Sangsang had prepared earlier. Their conversations were just as boring and childish as usual.


    Chen Pipi¡¯s thoughts were with the little girl from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and he wondered if she could escape from Third Sister¡¯s cruelty. He was not in the mood to discuss the Academy¡¯s no-boundary spirit with Ning Que at all. He sat at the cliff cave¡¯s entrance for a while before standing up and saying seriously, "I have forgotten something important."


    Ning Que waved his hands in acknowledgment and smiled. "It doesn¡¯t matter whether you need the bathroom urgently, or if the Headmaster is going to give you a test. It doesn¡¯t matter what your reason is. Just go."


    Chen Pipi smiled somewhat awkwardly and turned to walk down the cliff tform. He suddenly thought of something, and he pulled out an old book from his shirt and threw it to Ning Que.


    Ning Que held the old book in surprise and said, "Could it be... this is the third book?"


    The Headmaster of the Academy had prepared three books for him. He had studied the two of them and knew that he would see the third eventually. However, he did not expect that he would get it so easily.


    "No."


    Chen Pipi said, "The schr knew that you were imprisoned in the cliff cave. He wanted to visit, but felt that the mountain was too high and getting up was a waste of time he could have spent studying. He asked me to bring you this book as a gift to relieve your boredom."


    Ning Que looked at the book cover and asked confusedly, "The Tea Bible?"


    Chen Pipi nodded. "The schr said that tea could clear one¡¯s heart. If you have no time or no mood to make tea, you can read the Tea Bible and achieve the same effect."


    "I do not need to drink tea nor read the Tea Bible. My heart is clear."


    Ning Que said, "Why do you think that I still haven¡¯t gotten mad now?"


    Chen Pipiughed awkwardly. He turned and walked away from the cliff tform. After a moment, he stopped once more and wiped the sweat off his face before walking back to the cliff cave. He said helplessly, "There¡¯s something else. Second Brother wanted me to tell you something. I have to say it before I can go."


    Ning Que was slightly startled. He asked, "What is it?"


    Chen Pipi said, "A Sword Master from the South Jin Kingdom came a few days ago. He issued a challenge to the Academy."


    Ning Que smiled, "There is indeed someone who is unafraid of death in this world."


    Chen Pipi said, "The Great Sword Master is young but capable."


    Ning Que was surprised that even Chen Pipi was praising the man from South Jin Kingdom. He asked, "Could he be another Grand Cultivator in the Knowing Destiny State?"


    Chen Pipi shook his head. "They¡¯re not wild grass by the road. Do you think you can just meet one anywhere?"


    Ning Que thought to himself that there were at least five or six powerhouses in the Knowing Destiny State at the back of the mountain of the Academy including Chen Pipi. " Didn¡¯t that mean that they were wild grass and wildflowers?"


    Chen Pipi said, "The Great Sword Master from South Jin Kingdom had been in the upper Seethrough State for many years. I suppose that he must have seen the threshold of the Knowing Destiny State. He should be of Prince Long Qing¡¯s caliber when he first arrived at Chang¡¯an."


    Ning Que felt that this was really odd. Cultivators in the upper Seethrough state were indeed powerful. However, Chen Pipi had not even blinked when Prince Long Qing entered Chang¡¯an and created a furor. Why did he think so highly of this Great Sword Master from South Jin Kingdom?


    The crux of the matter was, the Great Sword Master was only in the upper Seethrough state. Why did he have the guts to issue a challenge to the Academy?


    He suddenly thought of a possibility and prodded, "Did the Great Sword Master from South Jin Kingdom leave after he lost?"


    Chen Pipi shook his head and said, "He did not lose, so he naturally did not leave."


    Ning Que said, "Even if Second Brother did not fight him, you could have just gotten rid of him. What happened?"


    Chen Pipi looked at him and said, "The Sword Master from South Jin Kingdom specifically said that he wanted to challenge you."


    Ning Que¡¯s suspicions were proved correct. He pointed at the bedding and futon at the cliff cave and said, "I am a prisoner."


    Chen Pipi consoled him, "You will get out one day."


    Ning Que took out a bamboo chair from the cave and leaned against the chairbackfortably. He said, "It doesn¡¯t really matter to me. Since the Academy is not afraid of losing face and not having anyone respond to the challenge, then just have the Great Sword Master from South Jin Kingdom wait outside the Academy¡¯s doors. Since it is not yet spring and the weather is still cold, I suppose he wouldn¡¯t wait for long."


    Chen Pipi said, "It is not that we do not want to fight, but we cannot."


    Ning Que was slightly surprised. He sat up and asked, "Why?"


    "Becuase we are no match for that Sword Master of the South Jin Kingdom."


    Chen Pipi said helplessly, "He would shout at the top of his lungs about sacrificing his body to the sword and some other idiotic things once he sensed that we were about to emerge. It seems like he wouldmit suicide any time."


    Ning Que said expressionlessly, "He canmit suicide if he wants to. Why do you guys care so much? At the most, you can have the workers from the front courtyard prepare a few buckets of clear water to wash the blood away after that."


    Chen Pipi replied, "It¡¯s because of his background. His family... and a few professors in the Academy are old friends. He only sits at the Academy¡¯s door and is very respectful and sincere. He said that he would wait for you to emerge from the mountain and have a fair battle after you are done cultivating in seclusion. We simply have no reason to chase him away."


    Ning Que said, "Why does he have to fight with me?"


    Chen Pipi said sympathetically, "It must be that everyone knows that you are the weakest amongst us all."


    Ning Que was already numb to words like this. Hemented, "But in the end, the weakest one is the one pushed out front by all of you to battle to death."


    Suddenly, he recalled what Chen Pipi had said earlier and asked, "Who is the Sword Master?"


    Chen Pipi reminded him, "He is from the South Jin Kingdom."


    Ning Que suddenly thought of the attention-catching name. His expression turned grave as he looked at Chen Pipi incredulously. He asked, "The most powerful being in the world, the Sage of Sword, Liu Bai... wants to challenge me?"


    Chen Pipi paused for a moment before saying annoyedly, "Do you think that is possible?"


    Ning Que gathered his wits and said awkwardly, "It seems to be rather impossible."


    "Even though the Great Sword Master from South Jin Kingdom isn¡¯t Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword, he is indeed rted to him. Since his attitude is so good, we cannot do anything even though we are disgusted and annoyed like we have eaten a fly. If Second Brother fought him today, how could he have a final battle with Liu Bai in the future?"


    Chen Pipi continued, "That man is called Liu Yiqing. He is Liu Bai¡¯s younger brother. It is rumored that he had been cultivating in the Liu¡¯s family home and had not entered the Sword Garret. That is why he was not famous and it wasn¡¯t until he came to Chang¡¯an with a single sword did the world know that the Lius have produced yet another young powerhouse in the Sword Path."


    Ning Que asked, "I have been imprisoned in the cliff cave by teacher and cannot go out in the near future. Why did Second Brother ask you to tell about this especially?"


    "Liu Yiqing has been sitting outside the Academy¡¯s doors for a week."


    Chen Pipi looked at him and continued, "He sits on the futon and drinks water provided by the Academy and dried food that he brought himself. He meditates all day and is just waiting for you to emerge from seclusion."


    "Looking at his behavior, I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if he waits outside the Academy¡¯s doors for a year."


    "Liu Yiqing is respectful, but stubborn. He only smiles and refuses to leave no matter how the professors try to convince him. He doesn¡¯t want to wait inside the Academy either."


    "Even though the futon under him blocks the path to the Academy for other students, he still sits outside all day. To others, he might as well have blocked the Academy¡¯s main door. Those who pass by cannot help but gossip and word of this matter have already spread to Chang¡¯an. I¡¯m afraid that it would spread to the entire world soon."


    Chen Pipi said, "Second Brother was a little annoyed, so he wanted me to tell you that a powerhouse hase to challenge you. He hopes that you can quickly settle the inhibition ande out."


    Ning Que was silent for a moment before he said, "How is Liu Yiqing¡¯s state?"


    Chen Pipi knew that he was not asking about Seethrough states or Knowing Destiny States, but the man¡¯s true battle abilities. However, he didn¡¯t have much battle experience and was unable to make a conclusive evaluation. He suddenly remembered that Second Brother had oncemented about something as he stood on the mountains and looked at the swordsman from South Jin Kingdom who sat with his knees crossed at the Academy¡¯s door.


    "Second Brother said that if Liu Yiqing didn¡¯t miss his Lucky Chance, he would catch up with his brother in the future."


    Ning Que was startled, and then, he descended into silence.


    He had never thought that something so exciting would happen outside the Academy in the 20 odd days that he had been imprisoned in the cliff cave. He had not expected that his entering the human realm had not ended after defeated Monk Guan Hai from the Lanke Temple or killing Master Dao Shi from the Xuankong Temple.


    There was still someone who wanted to challenge him.


    And that person was the younger brother of the most power Sage of Sword, Liu Bai.


    What was even scarier was that even Second Brother thought that the man had the potential to be the second Sage of Sword.


    Ning Que considered it for a long time before he suddenly smiled. He leaned back into the slightly cool bamboo chair and then, pulled out a scarf andid it over his face gently.


    Chen Pipi asked bewilderedly, "What are you doing?"


    Ning Que¡¯s voice sounded muffled from behind the scarf, "I want to sleep."


    Chen Pipi said, "Someone is blocking the Academy¡¯s door and he says he wants to challenge you. How can you still sleep?"


    "It¡¯s like what we have bantered over. Since he can¡¯te in and I can¡¯t go out, he can¡¯t hurt me no matter how strong that guy from the South Jin Kingdom is. Why should I be worried?"


    "Are you not worried that the Academy¡¯s reputation would be damaged?"


    "Would the Academy¡¯s reputation be ruined just because of my nap? I¡¯m certain that Second Brother would not bother about giving Liu Bai face when he can no longer bear it. He would definitely vanquish that idiot."


    Ning Que turned around andid downfortably inside the cave. He revealed his back to Chen Pipi and said, "Help me tell that Liu Yiqing, tell him that Mr. Thirteen is cultivating how to use martial arts and talisman together and has to cultivate in seclusion for at least three months. If he can bear the stench of horse dung in the meadows, the dust kicked up by carriage wheels and the low temperatures at night, he can wait for as long as he wants. I wouldn¡¯t care even if he waited until the flowers wither."


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 390: The Old Lady Sweeping the Floor

    Chapter 390: The Old Lady Sweeping the Floor


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Liu Yiqing was a quiet and gentle young man.


    His quietness and gentleness did not mean that he wasn¡¯t proud. He had just carefully concealed his pride beneath his quiet and warm exterior. Just like many years ago, he heeded his elder brother¡¯s orders to leave the Liu Mansion and joined the Sword Garret using an alias. He had remained mild no matter how cold his peers in the Sword Garret were to him and how they had treated him with enmity.


    It was because his older brother was the Sage of Sword, Liu Bai. He had the right to be proud, but he did not have to show this pride to the other disciples of the Sword Garret.


    However, in the face of the Academy in the south of Chang¡¯an, his quietness and mildness were more sincere because he knew that he had no right to be pride here.


    Out of respect for the Academy, he chose to sit at the side door in a secluded spot that was farthest away from the Academy¡¯s main doors. The shame that Chen Pipi had described to Ning Que in the cliff cave was naturally an exaggeration. However, the fact that a Sword Master from the South Jin Kingdom who had issued a challenge to the Academy was left sitting outside waiting for someone to emerge from seclusion had indeed generated much debate and attracted many stares.


    The morning breeze was rather cold at early spring. Liu Yiqing opened his eyes slowly and emerged from his meditation. He gazed calmly at the crowd watching him withplicated feelings.


    Most of those watching the Great Sword Master from the South Jin Kingdom were students of the front courtyard of the Academy. However, as time passed, news spread through Chang¡¯an and sparked the curiosity of many. Some curious people came with friends to see what he looked like.


    The side doors opened with a squeak.


    Professor Huang He walked out and stood aside futon. He looked up at the gloomy skies and suddenly sighed. He said, "I invited you into the Academy on ount of your older brother, but you refuse to do so. You have attracted so many people today, don¡¯t you think that this is a little ludicrous? Or have you decided to use this method to shame the Academy before you came to Chang¡¯an?"


    "I wouldn¡¯t dare to." Liu Yiqing stood up from the futon and bowed. He said, "I would not dare to be impolite to the Academy. I have just heeded orders ande here. I do not know how to answer to my brother if I leave without battling Mr. Thirteen. Since Mr. Thirteen is in seclusion, I will wait for him here."


    Huang He looked at the young Sword Master from South Jin Kingdom and felt as if he was looking at the obstinate man from many years ago. Even though the expression of the young man was calm and gentle, the stubborn in his body was obvious.


    "You can continue waiting if you wish to. There is water in the courtyard if you are thirsty, but the Academy will not provide you with food. So if you run out the food you have, go back to Chang¡¯an."


    Liu Yiqing replied, "Rest assured, sir, I brought plenty of food."


    ...


    ...


    Many disciples of the Academy came all the way to the side door just to look at Liu Yiqing from dawn to dusk. When they realized that the young powerhouse from South Jin Kingdom wasn¡¯t any special, and was still on his futon, they all felt bored and left.


    The citizens of Chang¡¯an who hade to watch came in droves. They surrounded Liu Yiqing and pointed at him and whispered to each others. Some even started arguing loudly due to differing opinions. The once quiet side door became noisy.


    "Great Sword Master... he must be a powerful cultivator?"


    "This is my first time seeing a real live cultivator."


    "I heard that he is already at the upper Seethrough state. He¡¯s at the same level as Prince Long Qing."


    "So what? I heard that the student he wanted to challenge from the Second floor of the Academy was the one who shot Prince Long Qing in the Wilderness. How can he win him?"


    "Speaking of which, this guy from the South Jin Kingdom isn¡¯t chicken like others from the South Jin. He had the guts to block the doors of our Academy."


    "I don¡¯t understand. The Academy¡¯s doors have been blocked by him. Why do the people in the Academy allow him to behave so arrogantly and not chase him away?"


    "Firstly, this guy from the South Jin Kingdom is sitting at the side door. Who else would pass by here other than us? Next, since the student of the second floor that he is challenging is currently in seclusion, it is awkward for the others from the Academy to act. Furthermore, wouldn¡¯t they harm their reputation, if they deal with the challenger in an improper way?"


    "That sounded making sense. Guess how many days the guy from South Jin Kingdom can sit here for?"


    "Ten days or half a month? Who knows?"


    "I only know that the man from South Jin Kingdom won¡¯t be sitting when the student from the Second floor of the Academy emerges from his seclusion. He would lose painfully and return to the South Jin Kingdom pathetically."


    The Tang Empire was the strongest of all. The second strongest was the South Jin Kingdom. The South Jin Kingdom ruled the south due to the support from the West-Hill Divine Pce and had always been trying to challenge the Tang Empire. The Tangs always felt that the South Jin Kingdom was below them. Though they watched out for South Jin Kingdom, they mocked and looked down upon them more often.


    A young powerhouse from the South Jin Kingdom issuing a challenge to the Academy was an unusual scene of the Tangs. After many years of peace, it was a rare opportunity to show those from the South Jin Kingdom who was boss.


    As for whether the man from South Jin Kingdom sitting outside the Academy could defeat the student from the Second floor of the Academy...The Tangs did not know who the student was and his state. However, they had never once considered that someone from the Academy would lose the battle.


    This had nothing to do with pride, confidence, and arrogance. It was just an aura that flowed in the blood of the Tangs. They would not think about failure before the battle begins because the aim of battling was victory. There were no other thoughts other than victory.


    ...


    ...


    Days passed, and the folks from Chang¡¯an who hade to watch the young man curiously and spoke in whispers. They argued intensely and came to a conclusion. They felt that the powerhouse from South Jin Kingdom looked arrogant now, but he was no match for those from the Academy. He would have a humiliating defeat.


    Days passed, and Liu Yiqing sat outside the Academy¡¯s side doors. He received the curiosity and scorns from others¡¯ stares. He heard their debates and the mocking jibes against himself and others from the South Jin Kingdom. His expression remained calm as if he did not care at all.


    A wildflower bloomed at the stairs of the side door. Spring had finally arrived. Liu Yiqing looked at the little flower and smiled.


    The smile on his face was warm, but the one in his heart was cold.


    As the younger brother of the Sage of Sword, Liu Bai, and the most promising disciple of his generation from the Sword Garret, he had the right to be proud and confident. Even when facing the Academy, he had only hidden the pride and confidence deeply in his heart. However, how could he not be mad when he heard those fools in the Tang Empire debating.


    Mr. Thirteen of the Academy, Ning Que?


    The Sage of Sword, Liu Bai had once warned Liu Yiqing before he left the Sword Garret, that other than Mr. First, Second and Twelve of the Academy, he was not allowed to lose to anyone else.


    The meaning was clear. In Liu Bai¡¯s eyes, other than Mr. First and Second as well as Mr. Twelve, whose name had been known to the Haotian Taoism for years, the others were not opponents of Liu Yiqing.


    Liu Yiqing knew of Ning Que¡¯s current state very well.


    How could a person who had just broken through the realm into the Seethrough state in the wilderness be his match?


    There were many different cultivation sects in the world whose view of Ning Que remained at this stage. At first, they had not understood why the Headmaster was willing to ept this disciple who was a totally loser. After that, Ning Que had defeated Prince Long Qing, Monk Guan Hai from the Lanke Temple as well as Master Dao Shi from the Xuankong Temple. The cultivation world began to think of the true reason for why the Headmaster would ept Ning Que as his student. However, still no one really thought that Ning Que was strong.


    The three battles that had secured Ning Que¡¯s ce in the cultivation world had be something that many cultivation sects studied in detail.


    The more they studied it, the more they felt that Ning Que had won the three battles thanks to the weapons that the Academy had provided as well as a touch of luck. For example, that odd iron arrow in the Wilderness. And there was obviously an external force working in Ning Que¡¯s favor when he battled with Master Dao Shi on the street of Chang¡¯an in the holynd of lotus flowers.


    Many from the cultivation world suspected that the fat young boy beside Ning Que was the legendary Mr. Twelve of the Academy. Or perhaps, Mr. Twelve had attacked secretly to defeat Master Dao Shi to be. It was just that there was no evidence. Furthermore, this was Mr. Twelve of the Academy, and his background was legendary. Nobody dared to raise their suspicion.


    But nobody asking did not mean that there were no suspicions.


    As it was, nobody truly believed that Ning Que was stronger than Prince Long Qing.


    Liu Yiqing was notified that Monk Guan Hai from Lanke Temple had been defeated on his journey to Chang¡¯an from the South Jin Kingdom. He began to grow vignt against Ning Que¡¯s methods on Talisman Taoism. He began to study Ning Que¡¯s past battles when he got to Chang¡¯an and finally reached a conclusion. Other than what other cultivation sects had concluded, this Mr. Thirteen of the Academy who represented the Academy in entering the human realm preferred to use trickery to gain advantages in battles.


    Liu Yiqing had practiced swordsmanship since birth. He practiced cultivation relentlessly and sharpened his wits and will. He suffered aplenty before he gained the status he had in the Sword Garret today. He had always hated those who yed tricks to their advantage, or perhaps, he should say that he hated those who were lucky. And to him, the guy called Ning Que was just lucky enough to be epted as a disciple by the Headmaster and continued to win glory after that.


    That was why he did not feel enmity against the Academy, but against Ning Que.


    Furthermore, he firmly believed that Ning Que was no match for him.


    There were two other reasons for Liu Yiqing¡¯s relentless enmity against Ning Que.


    Even he did not sense the reason himself. He was still practicing penance in the sword house of the Liu Mansion when the Second floor of the Academy opened. He felt that he had missed a precious opportunity and felt deeply regretful about it.


    And the opportunity that had passed him by had been taken by Ning Que.


    He looked at the annoying Tangs surrounded him as he sat on the futon outside the Academy¡¯s side doors. He said to himself that were it not for his brother¡¯s orders for him to grasp the opportunity to sharpen his wits and try to be noticed by the Headmaster and be his disciple, he would definitely beat Ning Que once he emerged from seclusion!


    An olddy dressed in blue robes and holding a bamboo broom emerged from the side doors. She walked to the futon and looked at Liu Yiqing¡¯s side profile. She asked, "Are you unhappy?"


    The olddy was very close to Liu Yiqing and he had only realized now. He was shocked, and said to himself that there were indeed hidden talents all over the Academy. Could this olddy be some Unworldly Sublime Being?


    But he did not sense any ripples of Psyche Power from the olddy.


    Liu Yiqing replied calmly, "There is nothing that I am unhappy about."


    "Good."


    The olddy in blue robes walked down the stairs with her back hunched and began to sweep.


    Liu Yiqing frowned slightly. He thought that the olddy knew very well that he was sitting there, why did she not pay attention while sweeping and brush up so much dust?


    The olddy seemed to have sensed what he was thinking. She stopped and after panting for a moment while holding on to the broom, she looked at him and said, "Someone wanted me to send you a message."


    "Liu Yiqing¡¯s expression turned solemn and he said, "Please, tell me."


    The olddy squinted at the gloomy sky as if she was trying to recall the message she was to convey. After a long time, she finally remembered it and said, "The man that you want to challenge, he is at the cliff cave cultivating in seclusion. He is cultivating..."


    "Oh, I remembered. He is trying to cultivate both martial arts and talisman."


    The olddy continued, "He said that if you can bear not to use the Academy¡¯s restroom, and the stench of excretion, the dust as well as the cold of early spring, then wait for him for three months."


    Liu Yiqing was silent.


    The Headmaster had returned to the Academy. Ning Que, Mr. Thirteen began to cultivate in seclusion. Many people knew about this. However, when he heard the olddy conveying Ning Que¡¯s message, he realized that Ning Que wanted him to wait for three months. He grew even angrier when he heard the ridiculous cultivating in both martial arts and talisman.


    It was true that cultivators needed to cultivate in seclusion often to receive Tao enlightenment. However, those who needed three months to do so were usually Grand Cultivators or those who were about to break the realm.


    Ning Que¡¯s state was so low, he was definitely not a Grand Cultivator who needed to ask the Heavens for enlightenment. Furthermore, he had just broken the realm and entered the Seethrough State in the Wilderness. Could he be about to break the realm once more to enter the Knowing Destiny State?


    ording to Liu Yiqing¡¯s understanding of the cultivation world, nothing liked that had happened before. Cultivating in both martial arts and talisman sounded like a joke. That was why he felt that everything was false. Even Ning Que¡¯s cultivation in seclusion was false. It was just an excuse to avoid battle!


    A look of distaste crossed Liu Yiqing¡¯s face as he said, "If Ning Que is not confident to represent the Academy in entering the human realm, he should just say so. How could he use such an excuse, he has shamed the Academy and the Headmaster!"


    The olddy in blue robes did not mind him after she conveyed the message. She hunched over and continued sweeping the floor.


    It was just that the bamboo broom in her hands jumped higher as she swept, as if she had felt the aura of early spring, and recalled the blissful days of her youth decades ago and wanted to dance.


    Dust and sand flew up beforending slowly. She deliberately swept the dust and sand towards the stairs as the broom danced.


    Liu Yiqing covered in dirt and looked extremely pathetic. His face was pale with anger and he yelled at the olddy, "No wonder Ning Que had asked you to deliver the message. So is this what he meant, bearing the dust? Is this the way Academy treats guests?"


    The olddy nced at him expressionlessly and said, "I have never heard of a guest who would sit outside his host¡¯s doors and refuse to enter no matter how he was invited."


    Liu Yiqing frowned slightly.


    The olddy looked at him and said, "Even if you wanted to wait for Ning Que to emerge from seclusion, you could wait inside the Academy, or Chang¡¯an. You could even write a letter to the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom to inform the situation, but you insist on sitting at the doors of the Academy. Everyone knows why you have done so, but it is just that the old one in the Academy and little Huang He are friends with Liu Bai, so it wasn¡¯t nice to say anything."


    "I have seen many young cultivators who became famous after practicing penance in the past century. They were all like you, and they thought the Headmaster was the spirit of the Academy. The other disciples were only lucky to be his students and gained lucky chances that you all could not get even even you worked hard for it."


    "I know you want to shake the world and be famous."


    "But you have chosen the wrong ce and the wrong person."


    "You do not like that others use trickery to their advantage, but you refuse to let Ning Que, who is the weakest on the Second floor, go. Is this not using trickery to your advantage? Once you take advantage, you have lost the root of the Liu Bai¡¯s sword style."


    "That is because your brother Liu Bai had never been a person who takes advantage of others."


    "And that is why he is the strongest fighter in the world."


    The olddy flicked at her blue robes and said, "You can¡¯t even bear dust, much less suffering and boredom. Since you cannot bear suffering and boredom, what right do you have to use the Academy as something to boost your fame? If you don¡¯t understand this, how can you build yourself to be legend?"


    Liu Yiqing did not speak as he listened to the olddy. His face grew paler and sweat poured down his back, soaking his shirt and the futon beneath him.


    After a moment, he straightened up and ced his hands on the ground before him. He lowered his head into a bow that was made from a disciple to a teacher and said sincerely, "Thank you, senior, for enlightening me."


    The olddy walked to his side and swept the fallen leaves and rubbish into a basket and said, "Do not thank me. I did note to remind you especially. It is just that you have been sitting at the Academy¡¯s side doors for a week, and I couldn¡¯t sweep for a week. If you really waited for that guy for three months, I wouldn¡¯t be able to sweep for three months. I hate to see rubbish on the ground."


    The olddy entered the side doors and leave.


    Liu Yiqing looked at the tightly shut side doors of the Academy, and couldn¡¯t help but feel that the rubbish that the olddy could not bear to see was himself. However, he was not angry, but began to think about it instead.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que would have been able to identify the olddy in blue robes should he be at the side doors of the Academy then. The students of the Academy would often see an hunchbacked old woman holding a bamboo broom and sweeping every corner of the Academy. This person and this scene were already part of the Academy¡¯s legend.


    That olddy was not a steward in charge of cleaning. She was the only female honorary professor in the Academy. She was a person of great power from the Mathematics department that no one dared to challenge.


    Ning Que had scored the only A+ in the Mathematics exam when he entered the Academy. Eldest Brother hade up with the question, but in actuality, he hade up with five questions and the olddy was the one who chose the one about cutting down peach blossoms.


    Ning Que, who was cultivating in seclusion on the cliffs thought of this question at the same time.


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 391: Exhaustive Testing

    Chapter 391: Exhaustive Testing


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    If Ning Que wanted to break out of the cliff cave where he had been imprisoned, he had to first solve the inhibition that the Headmaster had left at the entrance. He did not dream of being able to defeat the Headmaster, and could not bear to get rid of the Great Spirit in his body. Therefore, he could only choose the second method. He had to change the Great Spirit and make it get along with the Qi of Heaven and Earth in nature. He had to make sure that they were one andpletely wipe out the difference between the two.


    ording to Origin on Primordial Qi of Nature , the Qi of Heaven and Earth in nature, the Qi in the bodies of cultivators of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and the Great Spirit were essentially the same. However, as time passed and due to the differences in substances, they eventually grew to have different characteristics.


    Ning Que thought that backward induction would be the best method. He would use themon effects of the path of the Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi together with that swirling aura to change the Great Spirit in his body into the tiniest molecules and change it into its original state. After that, he would use other means to gain the colors in nature so that the Great Spirit in his body was simr to the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    However, when he started experimenting, he realized that this method would not work. His many failures led him to believe that there was nothing that could fight time.


    After numerous nights of thinking, he suddenly thought of something. The two books that the Headmaster had given him might not be two separate methods. Instead, they should be used together.


    He began to experiment with using the no-boundary spirit of the Academy. He molded the Great Spirit into the Qi of Heaven and Earth. Just like what Chen Pipi had said, the Academy¡¯s no-boundary spirit was the fire, and his body was the pot. The Great Spirit was the ingredients in the pot.


    What he needed to do, was to control the fire using the Academy¡¯s no-boundary spirit and use his wits, experience, and knowledge to season the food. He had to fry the Great Spirit in his body into a fragrant dish of Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    After deducting for a while, Ning Que felt that this method would work. He began to prepare immediately. The object he chose for this simtion was one that he was most familiar with. It was the water talisman that he had understood first.


    He created the purest water intent using the Fu paper and examined it seriously for a long time. Then, he carefully analyzed the characteristics and the minute differences in this aura before writing it down.


    He did not forget to practice the Academy¡¯s no-boundary spirit at the same time.


    He began the change once he had ascertained that he had aplete grasp on the characteristics and vor of Qi of Heaven and Earth the water talisman had cultivated and the essence of the Academy¡¯s no-boundary spirit.


    At twilight, he sat with crossed knees on the futon and closed his eyes slowly.


    When the morning mist rolled into the cave, he opened his eyes slowly and stood up from the futon.


    Psyche Power entered his body and flowed through it. Ning Que looked at the swirling aura in his body and perceived the Great Spirit in it. When he finally confirmed that the Great Spirit in his body had turned into the Qi of Heaven and Earth that carried water talismans¡¯ characteristics through the disguise of the no-boundary spirit, he could not help the look of surprise that crossed his face.


    ...


    ...


    After a moment.


    Ning Que wiped the blood off the corners of his lips and looked at the dancing dust particles at the entrance of the cliff cave silently. He tried to remember how he had triggered the inhibition when he tried to cross the mouth of the cave, and he began to think.


    The Great Spirit in his body had already changed thanks to the disguise the Academy¡¯s no-boundary spirit provided. It had already be a type of Qi of the Heaven and Earth. Why had he still triggered the inhibition at the cliff cave?


    How did the simple aura that the Headmaster had left behind discover that the aura in his body was still the Great Spirit and not the Qi of Heaven and Earth that flowed through the world?


    Morning light shone through the cliff cave from the blue sky.


    The bright light fell on Ning Que¡¯s eyes and he squinted.


    A thought suddenly struck him.


    There was no colorless light in the world, and that all lights contained more than one color. At least, the world that he was in right now was so.


    Even though the naked eye cannot see it, there were other colors in the rays. It was like looking at the Haotian Divine Light that looked seemingly pure, but was actually made up of many different colored light rays.


    Using the same theory, there was no singr Qi of Heaven and Earth in nature. The Qi of Heaven and Earth in the winds and clouds, trees and rocks might seem different. But in fact, since the beginning of the universe and through millennia of mixing, they all have other auras even though they kept their unique characteristics.


    Only the Qi of Heaven and Earth called up by Fu paper or tactical arrays was pure.


    Ning Que walked to the cliff cave and took out a Fu paper after some consideration. He touched it with his Psyche Power and ignited it into a fiery ball and allowed the wind to carry it towards the mouth of the cave.


    If he had based it on his old theory, then the weak ball of fire carried the Qi of Heaven and Earth. It would not be discovered by the Headmaster¡¯s aura and would be able to get out of the cave.


    There was a soft pop.


    The weak ball of fire was extinguished when it reached the mouth of the cliff cave.


    The inhibition at the cliff cave appeared hazily.


    Ning Que stared in silence, and his face paled.


    The inhibition that the Headmaster had left behind stopped not only the Great Spirit, but also other auras that were not the natural Qi of Heaven and Earth. In other words, as long as a cultivator caused a slight ripple in the Qi of Heaven and Earth through the Psyche Power in his sense of perception, he would be unable to leave the cliff cave.


    Ning Que thought of how his Senior Brothers and Sisters had visited earlier and realized that none of them had entered the cliff cave. They had not even stretched out a hand through the line. That was when he understood that they had long known about this interesting fact about the Headmaster¡¯s inhibition.


    He suddenly thought of something else, and he called Sangsang into the cave.


    He stared at the little handmaiden who came and went freely, and felt that his thoughts were bing even more jumbled.


    If the Headmaster¡¯s inhibition targeted unnatural Psyche power or talisman power as well as the aura of cultivators from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, why did the inhibition not react to Sangsang? Sangsang had cultivated under the Divine Priest of Light and carried at least one kind of aura in her body.


    Ning Que did not think about this anymore. Instead, he continued to examine how to break out of this ce.


    Having determined the true meaning of the cliff cave inhibition, he realized that if the Great Spirit in his body were to be modeled as the Qi of Heaven and Earth in nature, then it would not be possible to simte only one of them, but instead it would need to be simted into countless kinds of Qi of Heaven and Earth. The quantity didn¡¯t matter, but they must all be present.


    The problem was that there were innumerable types of Qi of Heaven and Earth in nature. Even if he had the Academy¡¯s no-boundary spirit, and the ability to observe the characteristics of various primordial Qi using talismans, how could he make the Great Spirit simte everything?


    The Great Spirit in his body was like a basket of green vegetables. Regardless of how many spices were put in, no matter how precise the control of the fire is, could he make more than 300 dishes using this basket of green vegetables?


    And there was a more pressing issue.


    "If I give you vegetables, can you make barbecued meat from them?"


    Ning Que looked at Sangsang.


    Sangsang thought for a moment before replying, "Of course not, but Mr. First brought some fresh pork over yesterday. If you want to eat braised meat, I can make you someter."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que did not wallow for too long. He immediately devoted himself to study and cracking the problem.


    The question left by the Headmaster was really too difficult. There seemed to be only three correct answers. But no matter which answer you chose, you needed great courage. Some of the answers were right before your eyes, but you would only realize that there was ayer ofplicated code to crack above the answers.


    He could not crack the code at all in his current state and ability. The code pointed to the origins of the world and the structure of nature.


    It was then, when he thought of that old woman in blue robes at the front courtyard of the Academy.


    At the Mathematics Academy entrance exam, Xie Chengyun used the exhaustive testing method to obtain a near-infinite number. Ning Que had obtained an A+ because he had found the answer just by taking one look at the question.


    Ning Que very good at learning, or rather, he tested well. And exams like mathematics were the best opportunity for him to use his talent for using tricks to his advantage. That was why he always looked down on his peers who did not know how to use forms and answering techniques but only calcted the answers honestly.


    He did not have any ready-made forms and could not find any tricks now. He could only use the method that he had once looked down upon and begin to crack the code using a most violent way.


    Cracking a code violently was also known as exhaustive testing.


    Exhaustive testing meant gathering all the answers and testing them one by one. As long as one had enough time and patience, he would eventually find the correct answer.


    There were some minor differences between cracking the code and Ning Que¡¯s attempts to violently break the inhibition at the cliff cave. He had to find the characteristics of several kinds of Qi of Heaven and Earth, and models the Great Spirit into it. It meant that he had to crack several codes and then gather the passwords together.


    This was the only way to find the final answer.


    This method was violent, but beautiful. But in actuality, it was stupid and there was nothing that one could do about it.


    The "exhaustive" in exhaustive testing meant to limit. It was a characteristic of this method of deduction. However, if you looked at it in another way, it also meant that the solver had already exhausted all his wits and was still unable to solve the question, which was why he had to resort to this method.


    In the days that followed, Ning Que began to use the exhaustive testing method to analyze and observe the Qi of Heaven and Earth. He did not know how many types there were, but he was not in any rush to break out of inhibition to try it out.


    Because he knew that this was an extremely voluminous project that could even be described as grand. There wouldn¡¯t be any results in 300 years, much less three months.


    But he continued to try.


    Because he had only given himself three months.


    If he did not give his utmost best during these three months, he would have many regrets on his deathbed when he thinks back to how he had personally destroyed the Great Spirit in himself.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que became more and more silent in the cliff cave. His hair, that he had no time to groom, was scattered behind his back and he looked rather rugged. His face grew haggard, but the luster in his eyes grew brighter and brighter.


    Chen Pipi would visit him often. He could not bear to see Ning Que torture himself any further as he looked at him. However, he could not bear to see him give up halfway even more, so he also remained silent.


    The other Senior Brothers and Sisters woulde by to visit too. They would bring the medicine and food they have gathered to Sangsang and have her cook them anytime to keep Ning Que¡¯s spirits up.


    Tang Xiaotang cultivated under the direction of Yu Lian and suffered plenty. Sheined bitterly to Sangsang when she had the opportunity to head up to the cliff and y. However, she felt somewhat ashamed when she saw Ning Que.


    And the days passed. It was now the middle of spring.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 392: Spring was Waiting for You

    Chapter 392: Spring was Waiting for You


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    As time went to blossom, Ning Que, who remained in the cliff cave, did not have the opportunity to get close to the fresh wildflowers in the fields. Fortunately, bouquets of flowers were often seen in the cave.


    Sangsang would asionally visit her parents at the schr¡¯s mansion in Chang¡¯an. However, she refused to stay over there and would return to the Academy on the day she arrived. She would pick some flowers and gather them into a bouquet on the way back for Ning Que.


    Ning Que had been forced to practice cultivation in the cliff cave and could only find out about what happened outside through Sangsang and Chen Pipi. However, these things seemed to have nothing to do with him.


    The Buddhism Sect and Yuelun Kingdom were both shocked and angered by his killing of the sadhu from Xuankong temple. However, it was a direct challenge, so the disciples of the Buddhism Sect could only remain silent on the matter. However, because Aunt Quni Madi who had lost her son was so furious, the king of Yuelun wrote a letter to Chang¡¯an requesting for the emperor to punish the murderer.


    The Tang Empire had never endured such provocations and this angered the emperor greatly. He summoned the envoy from Yuelun Kingdom and gave him a dressing down. He even called the king of Yuelun Kingdom an idiot. However, since Yuelun Kingdom had lost a future master and the Tang Empire had gained glory from this victory, the emperor did not send an army to punish Yuelun Kingdom. Instead, he sent an imperial edict stating that the White Tower Temple of Yuelun Kingdom was no longer allowed to evangelize within the Tang Empire territory. The sadhus who scattered in the viges and the wild were to leave the borders of the Tang Empire immediately, otherwise they would be severely punished.


    Such a powerful countermeasure naturally caused a great shock to Buddhist monasteries. The chief of Lanke Temple wrote a letter to Master of Huang Yang in Chang¡¯an City to confirm that the Tang Empire was only against Yuelun Kingdom and White Tower Temple, but her attitude towards the Buddhism Sect had not changed. They were only set at ease when the Academy confirmed that they would send representative to the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce remained silent on this matter. When the matter had almost blown over, they suddenly sent a delegation of diplomats to Chang¡¯an.


    The delegation from Divine Hall was led by the Great Divine Priest of Revtion. There were more than a hundred of them in the delegation, including the Revtion Department, three Priests from the Judicial Department as well as the personal secretary to the Hierarch Lord. This group was way bigger than the one that they had sent two years ago when Prince Long Qing came to the Tang Empire.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion was one of the three highest priest of the West-Hill Divine Pce. In the world shone upon by Haotian Divine Light, especially in countries other than the Tang Empire, his status was higher than that of a king.


    A bigwig like the Great Divine Priest of Revtion usually entered the human realm stealthily to practice should they even deign to leave the Peach Mountain of West-Hill. They rarely appeared in front of secr people and it was even more rare for them to visit other countries.


    The destiny of the Great Divine Priest of Revtion was the Tang Empire, the only country that was equal to the West-Hill. This trip caused a furor in the human realm, and the kingdoms of South Jin, Yuelun, Yan, Song and Great River tried to find at the true intentions of the West-Hill Divine Pce anxiously.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce was in charge of Haotian Taoism and had millions of believers in the world. Although the South School of Haotian Taoism handled various teachings in the Tang Empire, the West-Hill Divine Pce was still admired by many Tang citizens. That was why the Tang imperial court could not treat the West-Hill like how they had treated Yuelun Kingdom.


    The Tang Empire began to conduct meticulous preparations once they received the request to visit from the West-Hill Divine Pce. They arranged the standard of reception, when His Majesty should meet with the Great Divine Priest, what kind of etiquette should each party adopt at the meeting since His Majesty could not kneel in greeting like other kings but the Great Divine Priest of Revtion shouldn¡¯t kneel before His Majesty¡¯s feet either. In short, there were countless details that needed to be dealt with.


    The only thing that the Tang Empire did not need to specte was the intentions of the Great Divine Priest of Revtion¡¯s visit. Although this made many people feel nervous and puzzled, the people in Chang¡¯an City knew exactly the Great Divine Priest of Revtion¡¯s purpose of visit.


    In May, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion and his delegation arrived at Chang¡¯an.


    After a series of cumbersome and borate procedures, the West-Hill delegationpleted their visit, but had no intentions to leave. The Great Divine Priest of Revtion stayed at the Southern Gate Temple.


    The reason why this was because the true reason for the delegation¡¯s visit was not yetplete. To be more precise, the person that the Great Divine Priest of Revtion was looking for had yet to be found.


    The officials did not care about this at all because it was a matter that concerned the Academy. The person the Great Divine Priest of Revtion was looking for was in the Academy. She was serving her young master in the cliff cave.


    ...


    ...


    One day, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion suddenly appeared at the mansion of Zeng Jing, the Grand Secretary of the Imperial Library.


    Even though Zeng Jing was a first ss Grand Secretary of the Tang Empire, he as a Haotian believer was still so excited at meeting the God of West-Hill that he had almost fainted.


    There was yet another day, when the priest of the Revtion Department, Cheng Lixue asked the Tang Nation Master, Li Qingshan tentatively if he could arrange for the Divine Priest of Revtion to meet the Headmaster of the Academy.


    Li Qingshan thought for a moment before he promised to ask the Academy about this request.


    Half a dayter, Li Qingshan brought some bad news to them. The Headmaster of the Academy said that it was fine if the Divine Priest of Revtion wanted to visit the Academy since he had visited before. However, if they wanted to do what they wanted to, there was no point in seeing him. That was because the only person who could decide whether the girl could go to West-Hill was not her parents or the Headmaster. The person who could make decision was not sure when his retreat would end.


    ...


    ...


    If the West-Hill delegation continued to stay in the city of Chang¡¯an, and especially if the Great Divine Priest of Revtion stayed for too long, the various countries would be more anxious and the situation would be somewhat awkward.


    Fortunately, that long-arranged event had finally taken ce in the northern Wilderness as originally nned, sessfully attracting everyone¡¯s attention, and they forgot about the West-Hill delegation in Chang¡¯an.


    In ordance with the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s edict, the allied powers of the Central ins and other countries went deep into the Wilderness and joined the grasnd¡¯s Left King¡¯s Pce calvary. Theyunched an attack against the Deste Man who had just moved south from the cold region in the far northst year.


    The main force attacking the Deste Man tribes was the cavalry of the Left King¡¯s Pce and the army of Yan Kingdom. Strangely, the most powerful Northeast Border Military of the Tang Empire was responsible for the guarding their way back and rear service instead.


    When a tribe from the Left King¡¯s Pce cavalryunched a rebellion due to an unfair distribution of their loots, the Northeast Border Military of Tang, who had no action for a long time, spent an entire night quashing the rebellion and they cut off the heads of all the male of the rebel tribe.


    The battle with the Deste Man was very bloody, but when people saw the report of the battle, they discovered that General Xia Hou was still the one who had created the most bloody scene.


    General Xia Hou, who was known for his fierceness and viciousness, continued to gain victory and gained waves of praises from the people of Tang Empire. ording to the spections of many, General Xia Hou, who had stated that he would disarm and retire after autumn, was bound to receive the highest honor.


    ...


    ...


    Liu Yiqing had been sitting on a futon outside the Academy¡¯s side doors for more than two months. He was covered in dirt and looked extremely haggard. However, his eyes were extremely bright.


    He meditated on the futon for three days and three nights after speaking with the old woman in blue robes from the Academy. He did not eat or drink and eventually chose to stay. However, he grew quieter and quieter.


    When he reopened his eyes again after that, they were extremely bright and were like a sharp sword that had been washed by spring rain and were extremely clear.


    He was only meditating, but his state increased again.


    There were many in the cultivation world who were watching the Academy¡¯s side doors.


    Many now knew that Ning Que had gone into seclusion to cultivate both martial arts and talisman. Nobody had heard of cultivating martial arts and talisman together, and not many believed that it could be done.


    They had all simply deduced that Ning Que had finally realized that his state was too low after the continuous victory, and had decided to go into seclusion.


    ...


    ...


    The Peach Mountain of the West-Hill Divine Kingdom seemed a little deste as the Great Divine Priest of Revtion had brought a delegation out and also due to the rebellion of the Divine Priest of Light that had been hidden in the darkest corners of the teaching books.


    The Zhishou Abbey in the deep mountain was long used to this. When the straw houses housing the seven Tomes of Arcane started to buzz, the sound was crystal clear.


    At the highest spot on a certain page in the "Ri" book was the Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu¡¯s name. A certain name at an inconspicuous corner had already disappeared.


    A young taoist priest stood before the "Ri" book with a myriad of emotions.


    Haotian Divine Light shone on earth and the "Ri" book recorded the names and states of all cultivators in the world. There were three possibilities for a cultivator¡¯s name to disappearpletely from the book.


    The cultivator had passed that threshold and entered the fifth state.


    Or the cultivator had died, and everything was gone.


    Or, someone had used the inhibition to cut off the view of Heaven¡¯s Way.


    However, who had such an incredible ability?


    It was none other than the Headmaster of the Academy.


    An overwhelming emotion washed over the middle-aged taoist priest. He did not say anything.


    ...


    ...


    Due to many desires, for example, wanting to see who was stronger between a student on the Second floor of the Academy and the younger brother of the Sage of Sword. Or they wanted to see Mr. Thirteen of the Academy be beaten like a dog.


    In short, many people looked forward to the day when Ning Que would break out from seclusion.


    The West-Hill delegation in Chang¡¯an and the Great Divine Priest of Revtion who sat in the Southern Gate Temple were quietly waiting for him to emerge as well.


    However, no one thought that Ning Que might never be able toe out.


    ...


    ...


    It waste spring.


    The purple vines on the cliff tform grew lushly and sheltered all sunlight. It made the entrance to the cave look quiet. Thevender flowers on the twigs were in full bloom and were extremely beautiful.


    Ning Que walked to the entrance of the cave and casually coiled up his loose hair. He leaned against the stone walls and looked at the verdant greenery before him and the green fields farther away. He said, "It is only when you are broke out and have lost all hopes and passion for life that you can torture yourself like so. This, is the true meaning of exhaustive testing."


    Sangsang walked to his side and looked at the purple flowers that hung in the rain gallery. She thought that her careful care of them finally produced fruit. She said happily, "I heard that the fruits borne in fall are more beautiful. They are like beans and are very fragrant when cooked in a stew."


    Ning Que asked, "In autumn? Then we definitely would not be able to see it."


    Sangsang suddenly paused and she asked in surprise, "Young Master, you know how to leave now?"


    Ning Que smiled, "The meat is ready, we just need to put in some okra to simmer before it can be served."


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 393: The Very Last Qi

    Chapter 393: The Very Last Qi


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The main dish for today was the pork braised in brown sauce.


    Ning Que crouched at the entrance of the cave, holding his bowl and chewing the greasy pork. He looked at the steep cliff scenery and asked, "Chen Pipi will definitelye for a free meal as long as he can smell the meat. However, he came to see me less than before this month and always left in a hurry. What has he been up to recently?"


    Sangsang pushed the meat aside to one half of the pot with adle to pour some meat sauce onto her rice. Then she held her bowl and crouched beside him. She thought for a while and answered, "I don¡¯t know either. But Tang Xiaotang told me he was helping her with her difficulties in cultivation when she came to y."


    Ning Que was baffled, thinking back to the conversation about who was the real monster two months ago. He sneered and said, "Working out the difficulties in her cultivation? I¡¯m the one who needs his help, not that little girl. Taoism and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine are irreconcble. Now who¡¯s the monster on the back of the mountain?"


    Sangsang was unable to understand what he was talking about.


    Ning Que turned around and looked at her, "I heard that the Great Divine Priest of Revtion had visited the Schr¡¯s Mansion."


    Sangsang nodded and went on eating.


    Ning Que asked, "You didn¡¯t go back this time?"


    Sangsang murmured in confirmation.


    Ning Que looked at her dark forehead and asked in a low voice, "What¡¯s your n for this? The Divine Hall may be taking you, the sessor of the Great Divine Priest of Light, more seriously than any other previous sessors in the past, considering how they¡¯ve sent a Great Divine Priest to pick you up."


    Sangsang asked, "What¡¯s your opinion?"


    Ning Que thought for a while before saying, "Although I don¡¯t like the West-Hill Divine Pce and I still consider this to be ridiculous, I never expected you to be a Great Divine Priest of Light. Though I have to admit, it¡¯s truly a great honor, it would be a pity to not take it."


    Sangsang suddenly put the bowl down and red at him seriously. "What we should be most concerned about is how you can break out of here."


    ...


    ...


    Even the clumsiest bird will eventually find its way out of the woods, and even an idiot can gain sess if he tries hard enough.


    Despite being driven to exhaustion and madness for days, Ning Que showed his incredible perseverance and patience. Just like back when he was fighting for survival in Min Mountain, struggling with cultivation in the old library, anding upon a sh of inspiration in the rain, he finally achieved this impossible mission andpletely mastered the essential characteristics of the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    It meant he could eventually convert the Great Spirit inside him to the natural Qi of Heaven and Earth. With this, he could finally walk out of the cave without triggering the inhibition set by the Headmaster.


    He waspletely sure that he could now do this.


    After repeatedly being mmed back into the cave by the inhibition, he had gradually be increasingly pale and desperate. Yet he had also gained a new understanding of the maniption of the Great Spirit.


    He was right. The aura left by the Headmaster of the Academy at the entrance of the cave no longer reacted to his Great Spirit. However, he was surprised when he then crashed into an invisible and indestructible wall just as his right foot was about to go across the line.


    What the hell was it now?


    In the deep cave, Ning Que slumped his head between his legs. It took a long time to suppress the new wave of desperation and self-pity in his heart before he could start thinking intently once again.


    Suddenly, he figured it out. The very next moment though, he became disappointed once again.


    Once the aura left by the Headmaster of the Academy at the entrance of the cave sensed the Great Spirit or any unnatural aura, it would trigger the inhibition, which would summon all the Qi of Heaven and Earth around the cliffs. It would coagte a vast and blustering ocean to engulf every person who tried to break through it.


    On the other hand, it would turn into a wall or a fence instead when someone with no unnatural Qi of Heaven and Earth tried to pass through it.


    Comparing to the blustering Qi ocean, this static wall was not that horrible. However, it was still no easier to go through the aura left by the Headmaster of Academy.


    There was a way it could be that easy.


    Despite only being in the Lower Seethrough State, Ning Que stood a chance to forcibly break through the inhibition by increasing the Great Spirit. What was more, he had learned how to refresh Qi ording to thest section of Origin on Primordial Qi of Nature. As long as he could enhance his Great Spirit, even by a little, he might be able to break the wall.


    In other words, what he needed to do now was strengthen the Great Spirit within him as much as possible.


    However, the stronger Great Spirit thaty inside his body, the more dangerous it would be when passing through the inhibition, and the greater the reaction from the blustering Qi ocean after the inhibition was triggered as well.


    He was able to transform all of his Great Spirit into the Qi of Heaven and Earth of nature. It took him three months to do this, and it left him exhausted and fatigued. He had no more energy or determination to redo it, let alone to umte and transform even more Great Spirit.


    As soon as he realized this, he stopped cultivating the Great Spirit. He acknowledged that if he went to continue doing this, he would not only continue suffering, but also end up the same way as his Youngest Uncle.


    This possibility alerted him and even terrified him.


    This was a contradiction.


    This was the final test the Headmaster left for him.


    Hope in desperation, while huge danger existed in hope.


    How would he make his choice?


    Choose to keep waiting for the dawn of a new day, even if that day that neveres?


    Or to risk your life to bravely take even just one more step into the light, regardless of the danger?


    ...


    ...


    Sitting on the ground, Ning Que painfully contemted for a long time. He could note up with any solution, only feeling more and more upset. He kept murmuring, "Isn¡¯t this enough now?"


    He had no idea to whom he was asking, whether the Headmaster of the Academy or God.


    Then he spoke loudly, "Isn¡¯t this enough now?"


    He suddenly stood up and threw the bamboo chair beside him against the wall. The chair fell apart into pieces.


    Being grounded in the cave for three months, searching for hope but always losing it, and repeating the process until he was desperate, he hadpletely broken down in the face of these tedious and disgusting emotions.


    "ISN¡¯T THIS ENOUGH NOW?!?"


    Ning Que cried fiercely as he threw anything he could grab against the wall, including the chair, the bowl, the basin, the pan, and even the books. It seemed to be the only way he could abreact all his pent-up rage.


    Everything in the cave was smashed to pieces, including a vase of wildflowers Sangsang had plucked from under the waterfall over the mountain just yesterday.


    He fell on the flowers, looking upset and pathetic, like a lost boy who had lost hope of ever finding his way home.


    Absentmindedly, he remembered the day he met the Headmaster for the first time.


    They had met on the balcony of the Building of Pines and Cranes, and their meeting ended with the Headmaster¡¯s unreasonable sneak attack.


    Ning Que never did figure out why such an honorable man like him would attack his own student as if he was a hoodlum on the street.


    Now, he finally understood him.


    The Headmaster¡¯s sneak attack reminded him of thew of the Academy.


    The disciples of the Academy were always taught to differentiate well between right and wrong. So when they were in trouble, they would remain fearless and undauntedly go forward, using any means necessary to protect their beliefs. That was thew of the Academy.


    In other words, when your enemy far outmatched you and you were unable to talk sense into him, then just didn¡¯t bother.


    Ning Que raised his head and watched the exit of the cave.


    At this moment, he did not look to his predecessors, because the only one on this road before him was his Youngest Uncle, and his fate did not end well.


    He thought of the experts of Haotian Taoism, from the Tao Addict Ye Hongyu to the Great Divine Priests on the Peach Mountain, from the World Wayfarer Ye Su to the abbey dean of Zhishou Abbey, and finally, he turned his gaze to the blue sky thaty over the cliff.


    "I shall continue to cultivate the Great Spirit and I shall keep trying. I don¡¯t care if I trigger the inhibition, or what consequences it may bring in the future."


    He murmured, "I do not want to be grounded here anymore. I will definitely leave. Screw all of you!"


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang was doing the dishes in the hut while she heard the voices from the cave. She had just stood up to see what had happened when she heard these four words. She couldn¡¯t figure out who had offended him so badly for him to be cursing them like this.


    She moved to the cave and found it in a mess inside when she was about to step in. However, Ning Que was sitting on the ground peacefully like a statue of the Buddha in an ancient ruin.


    ...


    ...


    For nearly two months, Ning Que had been transforming his Great Spirit, so he had only a small pool left in his deep lower abdomen as there was not much Great Spirit saved over.


    But now, the Great Spirit seemed to respond his desperation as it started to churn.


    Maybe it had stagnated for a long time, for the Great Spirit started to seethe and swirl in a rush as it elerated,pletely disregarding Ning Que¡¯s Psyche Power.


    As a result, the cyclone inside him began to wildly twist and turn. The once shallow pool was about to roar and engulf him in wind and rain.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth in the cave was summoned from everywhere and rushed into his body.


    Ning Que clearly noticed what was happening, and he couldn¡¯t help feeling shocked. He thought, "I might die if I absorb so much Qi at once, just like the disciples picked by the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, who so often die at the beginning of their cultivation."


    For a moment, he intended to forcibly stop the cyclone.


    In the end, though, he chose to do nothing. He didn¡¯t know whether it was because he doubted his capacity to stop it, or if he was willing to risk his life for a glimpse of freedom.


    Feeling the Qi of Heaven and Earth rushing into his body, Ning Que turned pale and trembled, but he continued to sit sturdily upon the ground without moving an inch.


    ...


    ...


    The breeze that blew between the cliffs seemed to realize what was happening in the cave, as it all rushed through the cliffs and blew into the cave with the force and might of a hurricane.


    Sangsang was holding on to the wall of the cave as she barely held herself steady. She was worriedly looking inside, and wanted to wake up Ning Que, but she couldn¡¯t even open her mouth in the strong wind.


    Ning Que sat in the cave with his eyes closed and focused on the Great Spirit inside him. He had no idea what was happening around him as his clothes were blown about like a g in the wilderness.


    The wind was screaming inside the cave as it blew away all the debris from the stuff that he had broken. They were blown around him, circling him in the air and pulverized into smaller pieces as they crashed the wall.


    Even though the wall of the cave looked pretty solid, the outeryer was still smashed heavily and fell apart under an attack like this.


    Four words were gradually revealed on one of the walls.


    ...


    ...


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth around the cliffs rushed into the cave with the wind and injected itself into Ning Que¡¯s body. It overflowed through all his acupoints of the Mountain of Snow and Ocean of Qi, then ran haywire over his entire body. It gradually forced itself into every corner of his body.


    Ning Que felt his body expanding like a full wine bag. He could even feel every single hair and eysh on his face overflowing with the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    The cyclone within his abdomen grew bigger and bigger as it rotated faster and faster as well, which made him feel like he was going to be torn apart alive.


    He knew he would die if he let it go on like this, yet he never stopped. He was just murmuring the four words in his heart as he waited for the final moment toe.


    At the fleeting moment when the Qi that filled up his body was about to wound him, he curbed his nausea and the unreal but horrible pain caused by the shock to his sense of perception, then forced his Psyche Power tond upon the cyclone with his impressive willpower.


    In his eagerness to cultivate, he had been meditating over the course of many years. He meditated while sleeping. He meditated while thinking. He meditated while writing. He meditated while taking care of Sangsang. No matter when or where he was, if he could, he would meditate.


    He had far greater perseverance and desire than others. As a result, his persistence gave him far more plentiful Psyche Power after he finally broke through into the cultivation world.


    Therefore, when the Qi of Heaven and Earth injected itself into his sense of perception, took over his head, and drove away nearly all the Psyche Power he had umted, he could still retain his rity till the veryst moment.


    As soon as his Psyche Power touched the cyclone, he was hit by a sh of inspiration.


    It woke him up immediately.


    He thought of the simple aura left by the Headmaster in the cave.


    That was the one which summoned the Qi of Heaven and Earth from the cliffs andpressed it into a turbid ocean, isting the cave from the outside.


    Since the Qi of Heaven and Earth in front of him could bepressed, the Qi inside him could too.


    Memories of the three months of being imprisoned shed before his eyes.


    The inhibition of the cave, the Qi ocean, the book named Origin on Primordial Qi of Nature in which was recorded the method of Qi Refreshing, the other book with no name in which was recorded the No-Boundary Spirit of the Academy, the various kinds of Qi of Heaven and Earth¡ªall of these memories were bumped together, assembled, split and reformed.


    If it wanted to break free, then he would let it break free.


    Ning Que stopped being worried about whether he might get torn apart and paid no attention to nausea and the pain. He calmly watched the cyclone inside him, leaving it free to rotate and expand at a high speed.


    Then the very moment he waited for came.


    The mighty Qi of Heaven and Earth took over Ning Que¡¯s body.


    However, a fantastic picture appeared.


    The cyclone of the Great Spirit, which had expanded to the limit and was about to break through space, seemed to thin out at the edges because of its extreme expansion. Although it was soon refilled with more Qi of Heaven and Earth, the cyclone still trembled as it could no longer resist the gravitational pull at the center of the vortex.


    Therefore the cyclone began to shrink.


    It was shrinking slowly at first, but it soon sped up. In a twinkle, the size of the cyclone was reduced by half.


    This was no longer shrinkage. This was a copse.


    The mighty cyclone of the Great Spirit copsed into its own center as it became a dark little spot.


    The Great Spirit inside him left his bones, nails, hair, and eyshes as it was all injected into that one tiny dot.


    It waspletely silent in the void, with no sound and no movement.


    It was floating in the center of the void like a crystal drop of water.


    The drop was uncolored, crystal and pure as water.


    Ning Que stared at the waterdrop, his mind bing calm.


    The crystal waterdrop began to shine with a golden light.


    It was extremely beautiful.


    Each of the beams of the light contained the Great Spirit, and it radiated over his body, moistening every dry piece inside him like the spring rain.


    ...


    ...


    The cliff cave calmed down once again.


    There was no more storm of the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    The wind that blew through the cliffs stilled.


    The debris of the chair and pots fell to the ground.


    Only the petals of the wildflowers plucked by Sangsang were light enough to continue dancing in the air with the breeze around Ning Que, like many kaleidoscopes of butterflies.


    Ning Que opened his eyes.


    The petals fell over him.


    ...


    ...


    It was a mess inside the cave.


    Ning Que picked off the petals on his shoulders and walked over to the peeling wall.


    There were four words on the wall, sharp like knives and standing proud.


    They were inscribed by his Youngest Uncle when he had been imprisoned in this cave years ago, but somehow it had been covered over by moss and grime.


    Ning Que had said these four words before he decided to do this.


    Now, he watched the characters on the wall and thought of how he had felt when he said them. He had finally figured out the key to breaking the inhibition.


    He had always been short of thest piece. It was not about the Qi of Heaven and Earth or the Great Spirit. It was about the stubbornness to seek freedom against God.


    He looked at the wall and couldn¡¯t helpughing happily. It reminded him of his Youngest Uncle, who was just as stubborn as him years ago.


    He walked out of the cave and hugged Sangsang gently.


    Then he moved toward the cliff and looked over the clouds, to the deep valleys and the blue sky above them. He held his hands behind his waist and shouted loudly, "Screw all of you!"


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 394: The Third Book

    Chapter 394: The Third Book


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    There was no echo from the cliffs because the sky was in front of them. Ning Que¡¯ sounds disappeared soon after they left the cliff and did notst for long.


    Looking at the cliff scenery, Ning Que was silent for a minute and turned around toward the cliff cave, but he subconsciously stopped when he was going to step into it.


    Sangsang said, "If you want to go inside, go. I¡¯ll go with you."


    Ning Que nodded and went into the cave with her.


    He had been grounded here for three months and it afflicted his spirit and will badly. In those painful and hopeless nights, many times he had nned to escape from the cave with Sangsang just as soon as he broke through the inhibition and never came back.


    However, after he got out, he discovered that he was so peaceful upon arriving back here. The boring and disgusting walls looked naturally beautiful at this moment, which waspletely different from before.


    Only after one had gone through a storm could he see a rainbow and only after one had suffered in the storm was he able to see the most wonderful rainbow on the cliff tform.


    ...


    ...


    From the outside into the depths of the cave, it became darker. Ning Que was not adapted to it for it was his first time to go out in three months, so he extended out his index finger.


    The pure Great Spirit was released from the water drop and flew through his channels into the Snow Mountain and the Ocean of Qi. It ran along his Meridians to his finger and turned into a round white me.


    Sangsang saw all of these and poked out her finger as well. As she walked beside him, a white me came out of her finger.


    Their two mes illuminated the entire cave as if it were daytime.


    The only difference was that hers was stronger and more sacred.


    They looked at the mes on each other¡¯s fingers and smiled.


    Ning Que asked, "Is this the Haotian Divine Light?"


    Sangsang nodded.


    ...


    ...


    Like the theory in "Origin on the Primordial Qi of Nature", most of the aura in heaven and earth came from the sun. No matter how many different kinds the aura transformed into, as time passed by, it was still essentially the same, as well as the Divine Light summoned by both the Great Spirit and the Divine Skill.


    However, time was still the most powerful existence in the world. It was hard to imagine erasing its trace within the Great Spirit and assimting the Great Spirit and the Haotian Divine Light.


    Ke Haoran did it years ago.


    He cultivated the Great Spirit to the extreme and never had to simte other kinds of the essence, instead, he cultivated it to the purest existence in the world.


    It looked colorless to mixe all the colors of light together.


    It became colorless sunlight as well if all the Qi of Heaven and Earth was mixed together.


    The sunlight was the Haotian Divine Light.


    The only difference between the most powerful Great Spirit and the Haotian Divine Light was that the former was less dignified and had more different kinds of aura than thetter.


    Haotian owned the Divine Light and it only lent the Divine Light to cultivators.


    However, the Great Spirit belonged to the cultivators themselves, who acquired their own pride and integrity.


    Except for these tiny and irreconcble differences, they were essentially the same.


    The Haotian Divine Light could transform into numerous types of Qi of Heaven and Earth, so, when the masters of the West-Hill Divine Pce cultivated to the extreme, they couldprehend through analogies.


    The Great Spirit worked in the same way. Therefore, when Youngest Uncle figured it out, such a genius like him did not even have to learn, but with only one look, he could understand the essence of the West-Hill¡¯s Divine Skill. He carved thousands of the sword marks and built a confinement array just from the Great Spirit that was in them.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que looked at the light on his finger and figured everything out.


    He had not cultivated the same powerful Great Spirit as his Youngest Uncle at this moment, but he had gotten the principle and he was able to do some of it.


    He had been working hard to solve the puzzles left by the Headmaster of the Academy for three months and he finally found the answers. While doing so, he had gained a lot.


    Besides the change of the Great Spirit, the most important thing was that he seemed to have seen some basic structures of Haotian. Furthermore, he had faintly seen the other unexpected shore.


    These were the most valuable treasures and they would help and support him to go further in the future.


    Because of this, Ning Que had a further understanding of the connection of fate and perseverance, which his Second Brother had recounted twice.


    At this moment, Ning Que should be proud, but he did not feelcent. Just as he had done when he was at the bottom of Daming Lake, or when he saw his Youngest Uncle¡¯s sword marks in the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, he walked in front of the peeling wall and kneeled on the ground to take a ceremony as a disciple.


    It took his Youngest Uncle three years to get out of the cave, while it only took him three months. However, he knew clearly that it was not because he was smarter than his Youngest Uncle, but because he was given his smart Youngest Uncle¡¯s ideas and experience by the Headmaster of the Academy.


    You could never be taller than giants if you are standing on their shoulders.


    He inherited his Youngest Uncle¡¯s legacy, and as a result, he was nothing but a student of his.


    Only if he could possess his own perception of the world without the help of his teachers¡¯ wisdom and experience and build a brand new system could he possibly be a real giant. Only on that day could he return to this cave and proudly tell his Youngest Uncle that he was no longer a student at all.


    After finishing the ceremony, he stood up to walk out of the cave and came to the front of the cliff. He naturally thought of the master. Then, he rethought about the three months¡¯ prison time and well-understood the master¡¯s intention. The two books that he had given him not only contained the essential source of his Youngest Uncle¡¯s wisdom, but also told him two ways to break out of the cave, and taught him two other things as well.


    Patience and courage.


    ...


    ...


    Eldest Brother walked up to the cliff tform and saw Ning Que. He smiled gently and slowly said, "Our teacher asked me to check on you, and now I know why."


    Ning Que greeted him respectfully and said, "Thank you for taking care of me recently."


    Eldest Brother took the old hand scroll from his waist and handed it to Ning Que.


    Ning Que was startled and then suddenly understood. He looked at the old book and asked incredibly, "Is this the third book that he asked me to read?"


    Eldest Brother answered, "Yes."


    Ning Que was too shocked to say anything.


    He never expected that the third book that his teacher would give to him could only be read after he broke out of the cave. And the truly astonishing thing was that the third book was exactly the Tomes of Arcane.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 395: Reading the Tomes of Arcane

    Chapter 395: Reading the Tomes of Arcane


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The old scroll in Ning Que¡¯s hand was the Tome of Arcane, the "Ming" Handscroll.


    Last year, during autumn, the West-Hill Divine Pce issued an order for all Central ins countries to form a coalition with the Northern Expedition Left King¡¯s Pce. Yet silently, there were numerous strong fighters hidden deep in the Wilderness. All of these strong fighters were waiting for the opening of the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine in response to Heaven and their main reason for entering the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was none other than this Tome of Arcane.


    However, no one knew that this Tome of Arcane, the only Haotian Taoism handscroll that has lost its traces for thousands of years in the wild, has always been casually slotted by the waist of the Eldest Brother in the Academy.


    Beside the bonfire in the forest of the Wilderness, Ning Que and Eldest Brother once had a conversation about this Book of Heaven. They had even flipped open the cover page of this Tome of Arcane, which responded to that West-Hill Great Divine Priest of Revtion¡¯s prophesy. However, at that time, he was still incapable of even taking a nce at the Tome of Arcane.


    Ning Que held on to the "Ming" Handscroll as though he was grabbing a thick stack ofrge notes, yet it also seemed like he was holding onto Second Brother¡¯s high crown. He was exceptionally nervous, to the extent that his arm began to shiver a little.


    "Senior Brother, I seriously do not dare read it."


    Eldest Brother looked at him and grinned, as he said, "Since the Teacher told me to deliver this scroll to you after you¡¯ve broken out from the cave, I believe you should be able to understand some of the content now. You have to understand that this scroll is the most unique one out of the seven Tomes of Arcane. Try to understand as much as possible. I trust that it will be beneficial for you in some way or another."


    Ning Que recalled the horrifying pressure his sense of perception had experienced when he opened the Book of Heaven "Ming" Handscroll on the Wilderness. He smiled bitterly and said, "I¡¯m not too sure if that benefit is worth that level of pain."


    Eldest Brother said, "The historical origin of the Divine Hall Revtion Department came from this scroll. Some of the important ideas in the Buddhism Sect are rted to this scroll as well. The Devil¡¯s Doctrine was directly produced from the basis of this Tome of Arcane. This Tome of Arcane has directly created many changes in our world. Do you think it is worth it?"


    Ning Que suddenly felt curious and asked, "Eldest Brother, since you always bring this Tome of Arcane with you, I suppose you have read it for a long time. What kind of benefits did you achieve?"


    "Concrete benefits may not necessarily be benefits."


    Eldest Brother hesitated for a moment before he replied honestly, "Moreover, I have difficulty understanding many parts in this Tome of Arcane."


    Ning Que thought of a matter and said, "Senior Brother once said this before: If the seven Tomes of Arcane were opened in this mortal world, premonitions will definitely appear in front of everyone. Senior Brother has the capability of isting the aura from Tomes of Arcane, but I don¡¯t have such abilities. If I were to open this "Ming" handscroll now, isn¡¯t it equivalent to me telling the others that this Tome of Arcane is within the Academy?"


    Eldest Brother gazed towards the cliff cave.


    Ning Que understood instantly.


    Walking into the cliff cave, Sangsang had already swept and tidied a portion of the ground in advance. Ning Que folded his legs and sat down. After he calmed his heart and mind, without any hesitation, he reached out his arm and slowly opened the cover page of this Tome of Arcane, "Ming" Handscroll.


    The moment his fingers opened the cover page, an extremely peaceful and indifferent aura jumped out of the pale yellow paper as it began to diffuse towards the entrance of the cliff cave.


    The aura of the Tome of Arcane, "Ming" Handscroll, was non-mortal and it would, no doubt, spread towards the Heaven. If this aura was to reach the Heaven, it would then disy a premonition via an extraordinary method right before all mortals¡¯ eyes, announcing its own activation to the world.


    Ning Que had no idea how and through what method Eldest Brother had used to contain this clear and peaceful non-mortal aura when he read this Tome of Arcane. However, he was not worried that the Tome of Arcane will be discovered by the strong fighters on earth when he flipped open this Tome of Arcane today.


    That was because he was currently reading the scroll in the cliff cave and this cliff cave was inhibited by the Headmaster of the Academy.


    Indeed, the clear and peaceful aura produced by the "Ming" Handscroll was unable to blend well with the aura of everything in the cliff cave as it indifferently yet stubbornly diffused towards the entrance of the cliff cave.


    Yet right at the entrance of the cliff cave, the aura of "Ming" Handscroll met with the aura left behind by the Headmaster of the Academy.


    The two auras met each other. There was no earth-shattering image, nor was there any repulsion. The auras just silently stared at each other, as they gradually quietened down.


    ording to some county in the Tang Empire, "reading the Tome of Arcane" usually meant the existence of a type of dividing line between the reader and the object that was being read. It was impossible for the reader to understand anything from the object.


    After being imprisoned in the mountain cliff for three months, Ning Que ¡¯s state had advanced, where his energy and temperament had improved tremendously. However, aspared to the legendary Tome of Arcane "Ming" Handscroll, there was still a vastly huge distant apart.


    Yet, it was also due to the bitter cultivation and penance he had endured through for the past 3 months, which enabled him to control the vigorous concussion that was affecting his sense of perception with extreme difficulty. He could finallyy his eyes on the pale yellow paper.


    Till now, he was still unable to truly understand the Tome of Arcane, but at least he could finally see the characters on the pages clearly and remembered some of the mysterious sentences. It was just the clear and peaceful aura from the Tome of Arcane was unable to blend with the nature of the earth; hence, those sentences became increasingly broken in his mind.


    ...


    ...


    A few momentster, Ning Que closed the cover page of the "Ming" Handscroll without any hesitation.


    At this time, he had only read the first page of this Tome of Arcane.


    It was as if he was worried that he could not resist the temptation of reading the Tome of Arcane, he no longer took a nce at the cover page of this Tome of Arcane, to the extent that he just shut his eyes tightly and frowned.


    His sense of perception had reached its extreme limit and he could no longer bear the cold stare of the clear and peaceful aura from the "Ming" Handscroll. Thus, he must vacate himself from this world, which was way beyond his own ability.


    Those old and simple wordings on the first page of the Tome of Arcane were still circting in his mind, yet they were broken into tiny bits and pieces. They were like gravel falling after the mountain had copsed, where one could no longer see how magnificent the mountain had been.


    Reading the Tome of Arcane was indeed just about reading the Tome of Arcane. There was no way one could understand it, or even memorize it.


    Ning Que felt somewhat disappointed.


    Then again, without the appearance of the Headmaster of the Academy, he had managed to teach Ning Que some things via enclosing Ning Que in the cliff cave for three months.


    That was apparently the patience and courage he once thought of.


    Ning Que was not willing to give up that easily. He shut both his eyes firmly and he frowned his brows tightly as he clenched both his fists at his knees. He began to attempt to restore all these broken wordings from the Tome of Arcane back to its original form.


    Such attempt required brainstorming, and once a human began to brainstorm, the Tome of Arcane seemed to be sneering at him at a space of nihility, causing pain to his sense of perception.


    If it was by another person, the person would certainly be unable to re-organize these wordings from the Tome of Arcane.


    However, Ning Que was a man with adequate patience and courage.


    Most importantly, when he first entered the Academy two years ago, he was never sick of climbing the old library to read the calligraphies, even if it made him dizzy and vomit blood. After which, he finally managed to use Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong to get a step closer to those cultivators who were above Seethrough state and be able to understand words. He had a very sensitive inborn intuition towards words. Moreover, he had an ability that could not be described. Therefore, Master Yan Se was certain that he had the potential of a Divine Talisman Master.


    Now that he looked back, all these past memories and experiences, especially those sufferings and lost thoughts he had gone through, seemed like a preparation for him. They existed to prepare him to read this Tome of Arcane today.


    Guess that was what it meant by luck and such luck was neither arranged by the Haotian nor the Headmaster of Academy. It was achieved through his own hard work.


    As time went by, those mysterious broken sentences left by the Tome of Arcane, "Ming" Handscroll, in his mental world gradually restored and re-organized themselves. Like the numerous amount of gravel fell to the ground in a precise and orderly manner as they slowly began to reform a mountain.


    Ning Que finally recalled the few sentences on the first page of "Ming" Handscroll.


    The first sentence in the opening chapter was : Wise men, so were the Sun and Moon.


    "The cycle of the Sun and Moon, the light and the darkness, is an endless natural process."


    "And by nature, it is Tao."


    "Tao develops teachings."


    "When the teachings enter the period after noon, the night wille and the Moon will surface."


    Ning Que had no idea what these words mean on the Tomes of Arcane, but he could feel an unprecedented chill and fear. That was especially when he thought of a certain critical point, which instantly shocked him.


    He raised his head and gazed out of the cliff cave. He noticed that it was alreadyte night and realized that he had unknowingly brainstormed for a very long period. That Tome of Arcane on his knees was long gone and he had no idea where his Eldest Brother and Sangsang had gone to.


    Above the mountain cliff duringte night was a sky filled with stars, but there was no moon.


    Ning Que had seen the moon before. In this world, he had yearned for the moon numerous times, whether it was round or crescent or curved like a perfect eyebrow. Yet he had never seen it before again.


    Thus, he was very certain that there was no moon in this world. Perhaps no one in this world ever knew what a moon was. If so, why did it appear in the "Ming" Handscroll?


    The few sentences on the first page of the Tome of Arcane, "Ming" Handscroll, seemed to be some kind of prediction.


    The more Ning Que thought about it, the colder he felt.


    Therefore, after a while, he then noticed a tall and huge figure stood at the edge of the cliff, with its back facing him.


    At that split moment when he saw the big and tall figure, a warm feeling gushed into Ning Que¡¯s body, dissolving all his fear and uneasiness into floral fragrance in the summer.


    Ning Que stood up, massaged his nearly numb knees, and walked out of the cliff cave towards the edge of the cliff. He kneeled behind the tall andrge figure as he heavily pressed his forehead onto the ground.


    Now he had already understood the painstaking efforts the Headmaster of Academy had put in when he imprisoned him in the cliff cave.


    Upon hearing the sound of Ning Que¡¯s forehead knocking onto the ground, the Headmaster of the Academy did not turn his head. He gazed at the stars in the night sky, which seemed like diamonds embed onto a ck cotton cloth, and asked abruptly, "How many sentences do you understand?"


    Ning Que kept silent for a while, as he repeated the few sentences that he recalled from the "Ri" book.


    "Wise men, so were the Sun and the Moon. The "Ming" Handscroll mentions about the logic behind the cycle of the Sun and the Moon. The cycle of the Sun and the Moon, the light and the darkness..." The Headmaster of the Academy tightened his brows and said, "And what¡¯s a Moon?"


    Ning Que kept quiet.


    The Headmaster of Academy slowly turned around. With the dark sky surrounding the edge of the cliff, his silhouette seemed exceptionally big and tall.


    Ning Que stared at Teacher and he felt as though he had seen him before.


    The Headmaster of Academy looked at him and suddenly said, "When you were at the balcony of the Building of Pines and Cranes, you mentioned that I was a poor old fellow."


    Ning Que grinned embarrassingly and wished to provide an exnation. However, the Headmaster of Academy did not wish for his exnation as he continued, "Before you said I was a poor old fellow, you had mocked me with a sentence."


    "You mocked at me and said that I had never seen a moon before."


    "If that¡¯s the case, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ve seen a moon before."


    The Headmaster of the Academy looked at the night sky that was filled with solely stars. He remained silent for a moment before he questioned, "Then, what is a moon?"


    Ning Que did not know how to answer his question. His voice was slightly hoarse as he replied, "Teacher, how would I know what a moon is if you don¡¯t even know what it is?"


    The Headmaster of the Academy drew back his attention from the night sky and looked into Ning Que¡¯s eyes. He said, "That¡¯s because no one in this world knows everything about anything, including me. Yet you are a person who was born to know all."


    Upon listening to these words, cold sweat started to flow out from Ning Que and drenched his back.


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 396: Debating about Night with the Headmaster of the Academy

    Chapter 396: Debating about Night with the Headmaster of the Academy


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The word "Yue" had been existing in this world for a long time, like Yuelun Kingdom and its famous Yue tree, whose petal color is called "yuebai". However, the concrete meaning of "Yue" remained obscure.


    The "Yue" that the Headmaster of Academy asked here was for sure not the color, but the moon. This question made Ning Que nervous. If he were to behave as he had in the past, he would definitely y dumb. But this time, it would be very foolish to pretend.


    Because the master had pointed out that he was born a man who knew everything.


    With his head down, Ning Que felt cold sweat running down his back and soaking his clothes. After a long silence, he answered in a shaky voice, "The sun appears when the moon disappears. The light shines when the darkness leaves. So, the moon might be the one opposite to the sun, as the sun appears in the day and the moon appears at night."


    The Headmaster of the Academy replied, "Be more specific."


    Looking at the cliffs not far from him and the flowing clouds under the stars, Ning Que again fell into silence. Then he said, "Perhaps... there is a giant ball floating in the night sky that can reflect the light from the sun, making itself bright at night."


    He could not exin how he could describe the moon that did not exist in this world.


    The master watched him, smiled, and then helped him with an exnation that might not have been reasonable, but at least made sense. "It looks like you have seen something quite interesting in your dream."


    Hearing about the dream, Ning Que looked up at the master, who stood on the edge of the cliff with his clothes pping in the wind. Somehow, he had gotten something.


    "It¡¯s an interesting idea."


    The Headmaster of the Academy turned to the sky and said admiringly, "In an evesting night, we need some light."


    "Everything in the world has its opposite. There¡¯s the sun in the day and it¡¯s understandable to have a moon in the night. But if there really is a moon, where would it be? If the moon really reflects the sun, then is it true that the sun is in our world and we just can¡¯t see it in the darkness?"


    "Then when night falls, where is the sun? Does it really go down beneath the earth we stand on and rise at dawn?"


    "Doesn¡¯t that mean that the sun is turning around our world? But the world we live in is a t opennd with an endless abyss on its edge. Why did I never see the sun going down into the abyss after waiting for a dozen days? Did it just suddenly disappear?"


    The master looked at the sky and whispered. It was not Ning Que that he was talking to, but himself, who had spent years struggling for answers.


    After a few moments, he looked toward the distant Chang¡¯an City and frowned. "There are still many things that don¡¯t make sense. But if the world is really a ball, everything seems to make sense."


    People in the secr world had been ustomed to the sun¡¯s daily movement as well as being shrouded in the glory of Haotian, just like the breakfast stalls in the street and the moss alongside the well. They never doubted it or thought about why these things existed.


    But the Headmaster of the Academy was not a man in the secr world. He needed to think.


    Few people in the world could understand his whisper, and even the people who heard these words would think him a somewhat mad old man.


    Ning Que had gotten something. He seemed a little bit disconste and then a look of admiration arose on his face.


    Obviously, the master knew nothing about astronomy. He just followed Ning Que¡¯s description and further deduced, gradually approaching the truth that did not belong to this world, but another one¡ª not in the past, but far into the future.


    "I have looked at the sky for many years."


    The master pointed to the distant dark canopy above the cliff and stars, and said, "Those stars always remain in their positions no matter how many years have passed and will pass. They don¡¯t change, which means the earth and the sky are rtively still. This kind of stability is full of ssical solemnity and eternal beauty. But it would be a bore tost so long."


    Following the Headmaster of the Academy¡¯s arm, Ning Que looked at the sky. He did not know what the master intended to say.


    "The stars have been getting dimmer every day since the beginning of the Tianqi era. There¡¯s no difference in the eyes of mortals, except for me."


    The Headmaster of the Academy continued, "The Imperial Astronomer had seen their darkening once and predicted that ¡¯When night covers every star, no peace would be found in the country¡¯."


    Ning Que knew it was this sentence that would bring wars to the Tang Empire and indirectly lead Lee Yu to go to the grasnd for marriage several yearster. However, he just realized after hearing the master¡¯s words that the prophecy was real, at least the first half, and the stars really were getting dim!


    "How could there be no peace in a country?"


    The Headmaster of the Academy gave a little smile.


    Ning Que felt a bit rxed and did not expect what the master said next. "If the whole world falls into an evesting night, would the Tang Empire be the only ce full of turmoil?"


    Thinking of those simr prophecies in the "Ming" Handscroll and tales, Ning Que found it hard to control the tension and fear in his heart. He asked, "Master, is it true that there will be an Underworld invasion?"


    The Headmaster answered, "The ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll in the Tomes of Arcane has predicted the arrival of darkness. And there are also relevant tales in the West-Hill and Buddhism Sect literature. For many years, many sages have studied this matter. A thousand years ago, the Divine Priest of Light preached in the Wilderness andter created the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, and the Buddhism Sect firmly kept their temples deep in the mountains. They are probably all rted to the prophecy. As for whether the tale is true or not, nobody knows."


    Ning Que asked again, "So, even you have no idea at all?"


    "I have said that there is no one in the world who can know everything. Even a man who is born knowing, he can only know what he has seen in his dreams. For things never before seen, he still doesn¡¯t know."


    Ning Que fell into silence.


    Looking at the sky, the master broke the silence, saying, "Over the past two years, I have traveled with your Eldest Brother in the world and found the nights in the Cold Region of the Far North had be much longer. Even the Hot Sea is getting cold, so the Deste broke their promise and riskeding back to the south."


    Ning Que had heard about the Underworld tale and so did most mortals, but that did not make the tale real. The West-Hill Divine Pce had long ignored the tale, making it more obscure in the world.


    However, the Headmaster of the Academy himself was a tale. When he solemnly talked about the Underworld and seemed to have some evidence, the tale might be true.


    Sensing the coldness, Ning Que felt that his clothes had been frozen into the ice.


    "No one had noticed that thest winter in Chang¡¯an City was colder than the previous year. Of course, it might be a coincidence. I still think the Underworld invasion is just a story for kids. After all, nobody has ever discovered the Underworld, including myself."


    Looking at the pale face of Ning Que, the Headmaster said in a soothing voice, "Even if the evesting nightes, ording to the ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll and the Buddhism Sect¡¯s books, it won¡¯t be a short process. Instead, it will be very long, perhaps 100 years, 1,000 years, or even 10,000 years. Then, what does that have to do with us?"


    Ning Que said gloomily, "I don¡¯t believe what you said. If you don¡¯t believe in the Underworld invasion tale, why do you look for the Underworld everywhere? Besides, how could itst 10,000 years?"


    "Then you tell me, where is the Underworld?"


    The master looked at Ning Que with a meaningful smile and asked, "Or in your dreams, which direction is that in the world?"


    Feeling the Headmaster of the Academy staring at him, Ning Que remembered what the Great Divine Priest of Light said about his unbelievable origin. The cold sweat in his clothes had gone without a trace.


    "Am I really the Son of Yama?"


    "Had the master known a long time ago who I am?"


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que found it too hard to ept the exnation. He had no idea what Yama was at all, and he knew exactly where he came from. If he really was the Son of Yama, then the bloody turmoil started by the West-Hill Divine Pce in Chang¡¯an City seemed exinable. And he hated it for no reason.


    Seeing Ning Que¡¯s anxiety, the Headmaster of the Academy smiled and said, "Seeing people think always makes Haotianugh. If there is an Underworld invasion, leave it to Heaven¡¯s Way. What can you do to change it? If nothing can be done, what¡¯s the point of your pain and anxiety?"


    Ning Que did not agree with his master. He decided to follow his Eldest Brother, who had fought so hard for the Tao. He knew clearly that he might not be able to save the world from destruction or witness that happening and, therefore, live happily with Sangsang for the rest of his life. But as long as he could think, he would always wonder whaty at the end of time and why it happened.


    However, since the master no longer wanted to talk about this topic anymore, especially with the person in front of him, he remained silent regardless of the question that Ning Que asked.


    After a long silence, Ning Que suddenly raised his head and looked at the Headmaster of the Academy, "Then, please tell me how my Youngest Uncle died."


    He added, "It means a lot to me."


    Ning Que knew this was very important to him, for he was now walking on the same path which his Youngest Uncle had taken years ago, and this time, he wanted to change its ending.


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 397: If the Heavens Way Really Exists

    Chapter 397: If the Heaven¡¯s Way Really Exists


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The Headmaster of the Academy asked, "Have you ever wondered what the Heaven¡¯s Way is?"


    Ning Que thought for a while and found that he really had no idea about the existence of the Heaven¡¯s Way.


    "Never. But didn¡¯t you say that seeing people think always made Haotianugh?"


    "But sometimes, even if we are teased, we still have to think. If the baby gets teased after falling down in his first step and stops trying, he would never learn how to walk. If your writing is too bad when you first learn calligraphy and quit, you never would have be the so-called Sir Ning today."


    "Master, I think you are teasing me now." Ning Que said with a smile.


    He recalled all those years that had been spent on cultivation when he wholeheartedly studied the "Article on the Response of the Tao", and when he was teased by people in the City of Wei. He did not give up. That was why he was here today.


    And then he remembered that he and Sangsang had had a hard time with life which proved he was right. Heaven certainly did not always look down at the secr world and see joys and sorrows, because destiny was unfair to people.


    So after a moment of thinking, Ning Que said, "The Heaven¡¯s Way is so ethereal and intangible."


    The Headmaster was somewhat satisfied with his answer, and said, "We do not know whether Haotian is alive or not, whether it is tangible or not and where it could be. But we do know whether it is conscious or not. Youngest Brother proved it by death."


    The cool wind at night stirred the flowing clouds under the cliff, carried cold vapor and determinedly rushed into the cliff. Then, it scattered everywhere, rising to the cliff tform and adding a sense of coldness.


    Looking up at the distant and indifferent sky, the Headmaster said slowly.


    "If the Heaven¡¯s Way really exists, when it overlooks the world, those mortals striving for life on earth or the cultivators capable of controlling wind or rain, are all ants in its eyes."


    "If the Heaven¡¯s Way really exists, it would never pity or care about ants. But if there are some ants beginning to notice its existence, approaching it in the sky and even trying to challenge it, how could its consciousness and will ignore that?"


    "If the Heaven¡¯s Way really exists, it would be intangible and ruthless."


    ...


    ...


    Looking at the Headmaster detachedly standing at the edge of the cliff in the night wind, Ning Que was thinking about those words. After a long silence, he firmly said, "But the Headmaster is not an ant."


    The Headmasterughed loudly, and theughter was full of grandeur.


    Theughter suddenly rose from the edge of the cliff, and spurt towards the dark sky, disturbing the sea of clouds between cliffs, and until theughter drifted away, the clouds returned to calmness.


    Looking up at the stars and clouds, the Headmaster fell into silence. After a while, he suddenly said, "Tiger, chicken and stick. It is a pity that there is no bug."


    Tiger-chicken-stick was one of the simplest drinking games, but Ning Que knew that it was not what the Headmaster meant right now. The teacher was trying to express his view on Haotian by the simple but abstruse analogy. It was just too hard to understand for now.


    What the Headmaster had said dispelled some of Ning Que¡¯s doubts, but also generated some newer ones. If the Youngest Uncle was the ant that yearned for the sky, vited the Heaven¡¯s Way, and therefore died by the Heaven¡¯s punishment, then why did he do that?


    There were hundreds of millions of ants on the earth and surely more than one of them once looked up at the sky. And in the long years, there must have been many people who tried to fly towards the sky.


    Where did they go? Had they heroically died like the Youngest Uncle, or ascended to the glorious Haotian and be immortals as the tales suggested in the West-Hill literature?


    If the Youngest Uncle was too powerful to stay in the secr world, then why he did not ascend to the Haotian and be immortal, but choose to challenge the Heaven¡¯s Way?


    Was he too proud to do that?


    But even the most fierce and proud tiger would not easily challenge a hunter¡¯s stick for no reason.


    And there was another question. Why did the Headmaster still stay in the world? Was he not curious about the real Heaven¡¯s Way?


    Ning Que looked at the Headmaster, and said, "Teacher, there are still many things I do not understand."


    The Headmaster replied, "Maybe you will understand some of them when you finish the third book."


    Ning Que knew he could not make it in a short time. After a silence, he got his mind out of the enigmatic talk tonight and returned to the real secr world. He sincerely asked, "Now I can disguise the Great Spirit inside me into the aura of the world, but the body is a problem. If it gets touched by a weapon, people from Haotian Taoism would be able to perceive something."


    The Headmaster said, "Have you released the message that you are practicing with talismans and Martial Arts at the same time?"


    Ning Que awkwardly smiled, and said, "Yes, but I don¡¯t expect the message to fool everyone."


    The Headmaster said somewhat ironically, "As a cultivator, if you can defeat someone, then you can definitely fool him. If he cannot hurt you, then how could he possibly notice your body¡¯s secret?"


    Ning Que said nothing. He thought to himself about how a cultivators¡¯ fight was full of changes and danger. Even if he had improved a lot, how could he guarantee that nobody¡¯s weapon could touch his body? He could not guarantee that even if he was as powerful as Ye Hongyu.


    The Headmaster stared at him, kept silent for a moment, and then said, "After Youngest Brother left the cliff cave, nobody could touch him until the day he died."


    ...


    ...


    The Headmaster of the Academy left the tform. In the following nights, Ning Que sat between the cliffs and thought about the Headmaster¡¯s words. He carefully recalled the three months in the cliff cave and absorbed what he had grasped in those days.


    At dawn, Sangsang came to the tform, helped him to clean up and pack all their stuff. They walked down the narrow stone path to the foot of the mountain.


    Along the way, they saw the old beautiful sceneries, the steep stone path, and the waterfalls falling into the sea of clouds.


    Walking a few steps eastward along the canyon, they saw the figure of Chen Pipi.


    And then the senior brothers and sisters.


    All disciples from the Second floor of the Academy came here to wee their younger brother.


    Tang Xiaotang ran towards them. She took some stuff from Sangsang, gave Ning Que a stern look, and led Sangsang to the front hand in hand.


    Eldest Brother gently smiled at Ning Que, and said, "You have worked so hard these days."


    Ning Que greeted them with a bow with his hands folded in front and said to the crowd, "Senior Sisters and Brothers, how are you all doing?"


    The crowd happily surrounded him and expressed their congrattions.


    Eleventh Brother sent him a bunch of flowers which made Sangsang a little bit upset.


    Ninth and Tenth Brothers started to y their lute and flute elegantly.


    Fifth and Eighth Brothers found themselves idle and it was not a right time for chess. So they had nothing to do but congratte Ning Que again and again.


    Sixth Brother patted Ning Que¡¯s shoulder as a kind offort. But his iron-hammering hand almost killed Ning Que. And Seventh Sister affectionately pinched his face, which almost made it bleed.


    Second Brother standing at a distance seemed a little bit awkward. Looking at Ning Que¡¯s nervous gaze, he slightly nodded and gave him a rare smile.


    ...


    ...


    The back of the mountain today was full ofughter and cheers. In the airy thatched cottage, Seventh Sister, Tang Xiaotang and Sangsang had prepared a hearty meal.


    The meal was to celebrate Ning Que¡¯s improvement, the ending of the cliff cave life, as well as the teacher¡¯s return from pilgrimage which in fact had been three months ago. More importantly, it was Ning Que¡¯s apprentice ceremony, meaning that he had formally be a disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy.


    He knelt down before the Headmaster and respectfully kowtowed three times. But his body was too strong due to the Great Spirit; the three kowtows cracked the blue bricks on the ground without making his forehead swell or bleed. There was just some dust on it.


    Ning Que thought it was a great pity that he could not show his sincerity and tter his teacher.


    He stood up, took a cup of tea from his Third Sister, and handed to the Headmaster with both hands. The Headmaster slowly took a sip of the tea,pleting the apprentice ceremony. It was very simple.


    Seventh Sister came to Ning Que with a pile of clothes in her hands, and asked, "Brother, which color do you like?"


    Ning Que was a bit amazed, he looked at the clothes and found that they were all Academy uniforms worn in spring. Compared with the front Academy uniforms, the uniforms of the Second floor were almost the same except for their colors.


    He looked at his brothers and sisters and found that their selections were rather random. Third Sister wore her light cyan baggy uniform while Eldest Brother still wore his old clothes. The others wore uniforms of different colors. Some were red, some were grey.


    Seventh Sister noticed his hesitation, and jokingly said, "Be cautious, you have only one chance."


    Ning Que subconsciously looked at Sangsang. Since they left Min Mountain and came to the City of Wei, it was always Sangsang who decided what they wore.


    Sangsang nodded.


    Ning Que understood and said, "Senior Sister, I want the ck one."


    Seventh Sister smiled and said, "Good choice. You are the first person to choose this color at the back of the mountain. As a saying goes, the man dressed entirely in ck is always a good-looking man. But some idiot would never understand."


    Second Brother behind the Headmaster became somehow serious.


    Looking at Ning Que who was putting on his ck uniform, the Eldest Brother sighed.


    The Headmaster gently stroked his beard, and asked, "Why ck?"


    With the help of Sangsang, Ning Que buttoned up and sincerely replied, "I do not need to wash it too often."


    He was not joking. It never urred to him or Sangsang that wearing ck would make him good-looking. They cared more about how much water and soap could be saved.


    Eldest Brother was stunned.


    The Headmaster suddenly stopped stroking his beard, and shook his head with a smile.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 398: The Shame of the Academy Who Refused to Show His Face

    Chapter 398: The Shame of the Academy Who Refused to Show His Face


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    After the banquet, Second Brother walked to Ning Que¡¯s side and said, "The Sword Master from the South Jin Kingdom is still waiting for you outside. Since this is over, when will you head out?"


    Ning Que smiled and said, "Since no one knows that I have left the cliff cave, there is no rush. Just let him wait. Let me rest for a couple of days."


    Second Brother did not get angry, even though Ning Que¡¯s words were rather shameless. He just indifferently looked at Ning Que and said, "I have already informed the front courtyard instructor about the end of your seclusion. Don¡¯t even think about trying to stall for time. Settle this issue quickly. How could you let Liu Bai¡¯s brother continue to sit outside the Academy¡¯s door?"


    Ning Que thought to himself about how it had taken great efforts for him to get out of that secluded cliff cave. He only had enough time to grab some food, he hadn¡¯t even gotten the chance to take a shower yet. How could Second Brother be so heartless as to involve him in a fierce battle without a break?


    Ning Que grew angry, but he was wary enough to not show it in his face. He looked at Second Brother and said aggrievedly, "Alright, I¡¯m going to see the idiot right now."


    Chen Pipi came up to him worriedly after Second Brother left and said, "What are you going to do? That guy had been waiting for you outside the Academy in all the days when you were imprisoned in the cliff cave. His state and ability seem to have improved since he first came here. I think you might not be able to defeat him."


    "I don¡¯t care that much. Let me first have some rest."


    Ning Que looked at Second Brother¡¯s disappearing figure, and his facial expression grew impudent. He taunted the retreating figure in a low voice, "Now that the Headmaster is back, do you think you can frighten me?"


    Chen Pipiughed and said, "That is true. If Second Brother tries to discipline us as sternly as before, we canin to our teacher. However, what you don¡¯t know is that our teacher never bothers with matters like this. He usually stays silent and ys dumb. However, we may mislead Eldest Brother into thinking that our teacher has made his judgment, and so make him help us against Second Brother. Other than for rare issues like your matrimonial affairs, Second Brother would never dare to go against Eldest Brother."


    Chen Pipi¡¯s statement was rather convoluted. Ning Que fell silent for a moment before hemented, "I never expected you to be almost as shameless as me."


    Chen Pipi was about to strike back when he suddenly wiped off the flippant look on his face. He ced his hands behind his back and told Ning Que ndly, "You are my Younger Brother. I shall not argue with you."


    Ning Que was surprised for a moment, but then he heard the sound of footsteps behind him and spotted Tang Xiaotang from the corner of his eyes. With a mocking smile, he told Chen Pipi, "You really have guts, huh?"


    Chen Pipi did not dare to look at him, but looked at Tang Xiaotang instead.


    Tang Xiaotang did not mind him at all. She walked straight towards Ning Que and said in a crisp voice, "Ning..."


    The girl thought of something just as the word emerged from her lips, and she shyly held her tongue.


    She looked around to make sure that teacher Yu Lian was not around, and only then she patted her chest to calm herself. She cutely put her tongue out and continued, "Youngest Uncle, I want to take Sangsang out to y."


    In the early morning, there was a gentle spring rain in the back of the mountain of the Academy.


    Tang Xiaotang wanted to take Sangsang with her into the mountains to pick fresh mushrooms.


    Ning Que nced at Sangsang and thought back to how the little girl had apanied him in the cliff cave for the past three months. Even though she could leave the mountains and walk around asionally, she must have felt stifled. He patted her head and said, "Go ahead."


    Chen Pipi returned to Ning Que¡¯s side as he watched the two girls walking up the mountains, hand in hand. Thinking of their lives in the future, he emotionally said, "They have be good friends now. Should we startmunicating better now so that we won¡¯t be tortured too badly once we get married?"


    "You good for nothing."


    Ning Que looked at him disdainfully and said, "I¡¯ve always been the one in charge of my household. Come and discuss these issues with me if and when you can get Tang Xiaotang to wash your feet."


    With that, he turned and walked towards the mirrorke.


    Chen Pipi shouted at his back, "What are you going to do? Be careful not to run into Second Brother."


    Ning Que was furious. Chen Pipi¡¯s yelling was so loud, wouldn¡¯t Second Brother hear it?


    He turned around and yelled back at Chen Pipi, who was just three steps away. He shouted as if he was talking to a farmer on the opposite cliff, in a bright and clear voice that reverberated throughout the back of the mountain.


    "I will check the goods! Don¡¯t worry! I won¡¯t tell Tang Xiaotang about that thing! Can you hear me?"


    Chen Pipi couldn¡¯t even pretend that he hadn¡¯t heard it, as bitterness welled up. Considering how Second Brother, Third Sister, and even Tang Xiaotang had probably heard Ning Que¡¯s shameless lies as well, he wanted to dig a hole in the grass and jump into it.


    It was an ordinary looking podao.


    The dark slender podao looked like the pce¡¯s cornice in the dark. The lines were curved and smooth and the de reflected light. The long handle that was designed for a two-handed hold had fine hemp rope tied over it. Just by its appearance, it looked no different from one of the three original podaos.


    But Ning Que knew that it was a brand new knife when he held it.


    There was an entirely different feeling that came from the knife in his hands. The long slender podao was heavy beyond imagination, disproportionate to its size and length.


    One could imagine how dense the de was by its weight. And naturally, one could guess how strong it was.


    "You said you wanted to make the three des into one, so Ibined all three of them into this single podao."


    Sixth Brother looked at the podao in Ning Que¡¯s hands as if he was looking at his child. He said with a tense expression, "I thought it would be an easy task, but it turned out to be very difficult. Melting them into a single mold was easy, but hammering it into shape was the difficult part."


    Combining the podaos into one meant that he had to integrate three times the amount of metal into the original volume of one. Ning Que couldn¡¯t imagine how it might be possible unless it was hammered more than a thousand times. He couldn¡¯t help but feel grateful to his Sixth Brother.


    Sixth Brother handed over a scabbard made of leather and said, "The talisman lines on the de are the same ones that you designed. But Fourth Brother said it would be best if you engraved it personally."


    Ning Que profusely thanked his Sixth Brother, then prepared to carve the talisman. It was quite simple after the experience of crafting the Primordial Thirteen Arrows.


    However, he got distracted by a thought. After a moment of silence, he sheathed the heavy podao back in its scabbard and looked to his Sixth Brother. "Let¡¯s do itter." He said.


    "It¡¯s your weapon, so you get the final say."


    Sixth Brother said, "Youngest Brother, I have just one thing to ask of you. I am very satisfied with this de. If you want to name it, please think of a good name."


    Ning Que stiffened as he recalled how he had developed the talisman arrows together with him. He remembered the various entric names he had proposed, such as "Silver Arrows", "Cloud Piercing Arrows", and "Primordial Thirteen Arrows", then immediately understood Sixth Brother¡¯s concern. Feeling a sense of camaraderie, he said determinedly, "Rest assured, Senior Brother. I will have teacher name it."


    Sixth Brother hesitated for a moment, then said, "Youngest Brother, actually... our teacher is not very good at giving names either."


    The two brothers stared at each other. Eventually, they decided to abandon the issue of naming the sword for the moment.


    Ning Que opened the box and saw the other object that he had asked Sixth Brother to make. He said happily, "I never imagined it could be so well polished. What material did you use?"


    "Making this gadget wasn¡¯t very difficult," Sixth Brother said, "I asked the department of works for the ck crystals to make the frames. There are three pairs here, including one extra."


    Ning Que wanted as many of them as possible. He suddenly recalled something. He looked around him to make sure that Sangsang was not around. Then, he went up to Sixth Brother and whispered in his ear.


    Sixth Brother frowned and asked with a confused look, "Transparent crystals are easy toe by, it¡¯s not difficult even if you ask for a wless one. However, why must it have such a small curvature if it is just for keeping out the dust? It¡¯ll be difficult to polish and carve such a crystal, and the final quality of the product cannot be guaranteed even if we were to use water to polish it."


    Ning Que hesitated for a moment before saying, "I have a friend with bad eyesight. Her vision is a little blurry, and wearing this can help to improve her situation."


    Sixth Brother was slightly surprised. After a moment of thought, he felt that his Youngest Brother was indeed a genius to have such incredible ideas. He could even cure poor vision!


    Just as he was about to continue his questioning to find out how a transparent crystal with such a curvature could help those with poor vision, the heavy leather curtains were pushed open and Fourth Brother walked in.


    Fourth Brother looked over the knife on Ning Que¡¯s back and asked, "Have you carved the talisman?"


    Sixth Brother shook his head.


    Ning Que exined, "I have something to do in a bit, I will carve itter."


    Fourth Brother frowned slightly as he said, "So you are aware that you have something to do? Second Brother told you to quickly settle the issue, so what are you still doing here? Even though that crowd that gathered to watch the show can¡¯t enter the back of the mountain, I still feel ufortable just thinking about all the random people surrounding the Academy¡¯s doors."


    Ning Que grumbled to himself about how Fourth Brother cursed him to fight for his life just because his senior brother felt ufortable. Those Senior Brothers would, of course, feel that even this young powerhouse from the South Jin Kingdom was nothing more than an insignificant bug. Yet, that man was still the younger brother of Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword, and Ning Que might not necessarily be able to defeat him.


    He looked over at Fourth Brother, who was walking towards the Sandbox. He asked tentatively, "Senior Brother, where is Second Brother?"


    Fourth Brother impatiently waved his hand, gesturing for him to quickly settle the matter at the Academy¡¯s side door. He replied, "Second Brother went fishing together with teacher at the West Lake."


    Senior Brother could both enjoy the scenery and the fun of fishing at the West Lake. He could even apany and take the opportunity to tter their teacher. How blissful that was! However, I have to fight by the Academy¡¯s side door and struggle like a fish on a hook.


    Ning Que felt that it was really unfair and was reluctant to leave the back of the mountain. However, he was also worried that he would run into Second Brother if he stayed. That was more dangerous than dueling the younger brother of the Sage of Sword.


    He suddenly recalled that the most dangerous ce was often also the safest. He followed the sounds of the waterfall and stealthily walked over to Second Brother¡¯s yard. He ced his hands on the low courtyard walls and stuck his head over to look in. He only rxed once he was sure that the scary big white goose was not around.


    Ning Que casually pushed the doors open after brushing off the dirt on his hands. He saw the young and cute little servant in the house and said in a highly pleasing manner, "I want to bathe and sleep. Is there any hot water?"


    The little servant innocently stared at him with wide eyes.


    Everyone in the Academy knew that a young powerhouse from the South Jin Kingdom had issued Ning Que a challenge. Furthermore, that person was sitting on a futon at the Academy¡¯s side door and had waited for Ning Que for three whole months.


    The powerhouse from the South Jin Kingdom had been battered by the winds and scorched by the sun. He had been soaked in the rain and covered in dust. He had suffered aplenty in the past three months, and his sufferings might even be worse than Ning Que¡¯s, who had been in seclusion in the cliff cave. Ning Que knew of this very well, but did not immediately respond to the challenge aftering out of seclusion. He even had the mood to bathe and sleep instead?

 Chapter 399: A Big Show

    Chapter 399: A Big Show


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The little servant could only stare at Ning Que as he behaved unreasonably and pushed the doors open and requested to bathe and sleep. The boy only recovered from his shock after a long while and he asked in a trembling voice, "Sir, what... what are you going to do?"


    Ning Que smiled and said, "I want to eat you alive. Quick, bring me some soy sauce and horseradish."


    The little servant was shocked and a little ashamed. He said shyly, "Sir, I am not tasty. Young master often telled me that I do not like to wash my feet and am very smelly."


    Ning Que froze for a second and heughed loudly. He said, "Alright, I shall clean and eat myself."


    The little servant was an obedient child. He did not know how to refuse Ning Que¡¯s ludicrous request and went to boil arge pot of water in the kitchen.


    As the steam rose, Ning Que leanedfortably against therge bucket. He looked at the little servant who was busy trying to find a towel and asked, "Hey, I still don¡¯t know your name."


    The little servant put the towel beside the bucket and answered softly, "My name is Xu Jialun."


    "It is a good name, but it is too schrly. You have to change it."


    Ning Que waved his hand and said, "You speak so softly, you shall be called little mosquito. It sounds rather cute."


    The little servant smiled and fetched another bucket of hot water. Then, he said seriously, "Little mosquito is a good name, but Xu Jialun is the name that my young master gave me. Shall I go to ask him?"


    Ning Que got a shock and his head slipped and was submerged in water. He almost choked and he quickly said, "Don¡¯t you tell him. Don¡¯t you know how your young master is like?"


    After his bath, Ning Que really slept in Second Brother¡¯s yard. When he woke up, it was already past midday. The sun moved slowly to the west and shone on the courtyard.


    Ning Que looked at himself in the mirror after changing into brand new ck Academy robes and having the little servant style his hair. He was very pleased, and thought that anyone could style hair better than Sangsang.


    After thanking the little servant, Ning Que left the little courtyard.


    Even though he was very reluctant to battle with the younger brother of Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword, he knew that the man would not leave until waiting outside the Academy for three months. He could not hide in the Academy forever, so the battle had to take ce eventually. Then, he had better do it early.


    After having been in seclusion in the cliff cave for three months, his physical and mental state were perfect as he was able to smell the spring breeze and see wildflowers.


    It felt simr to how he felt when he had broken the realm at the Daming Lake in the Wilderness.


    ...


    ...


    The news re about battle between the younger brother of South Jin Kingdom¡¯s Sage of Sword, Liu Bai and Ning Que, Mr. Thirteen of the Academy had been spread for too long. Thus,pared with the battle between Ning Que and monk Guan Hai or Dao Shi, it attracted the attention of all cultivators and even folks from the secr world.


    Even though the Senior Brothers of the back of the mountain were anxious to have Ning Que settle the matter, they were disinterested in the matter. They were each obsessed with their individual obsessions and had long lost the desire to win. They did not care if Ning Que could beat the young powerhouse, or that he might get injured or die...


    No one in the world dared to kill the Headmaster¡¯s core disciple outside the Academy¡¯s doors. The young powerhouse from South Jin Kingdom might be the Sage of Sword, Liu Bai¡¯s brother, but even Liu Bai himself would not dare to do something like that because Academy had the Headmaster.


    That was why nobody came to send Ning Que off after his bath and quiet contemtion. Ning Que wore ck Academy robes and walked to the front courtyard in the spring breeze. In his mind, he was ready for the death fight.


    Of course, Sangsang would follow him.


    Tang Xiaotang followed Sangsang.


    Chen Pipi followed Tang Xiaotang.


    Ning Que suddenly stopped when he reached the meadows by the cliff tform of the back of the mountain. He looked at the stream below the meadow.


    Second Brother¡¯s big white goose was near the stream.


    It did not feed the fish today, but raised its head high and walked in the meadows proudly.


    The big ck horse followed behind it with its head lowered like being defeated. It did not dare to slow down nor walk faster.


    The little white wolf followed the Big ck Horse timidly. It carefully maintained the same pace as the two ahead of it.


    The big white goose walked seriously. It turned back when it reached the end of the meadow, walking in a perfect straight line.


    When it turned around and saw the Big ck Horse¡¯s look of being defeated, it honked angrily and sternly two times.


    The big ck horse lifted its head fearfully as if it had seen Ning Que. It pretended to look proud and elegant while trying to make friend to the big white goose. He tried to smile, making him look extremely funny.


    The four of them stood above the meadows and stared at the scene shockingly.


    Tang Xiaotang nced at Ning Que and said mockingly, "The horse that Youngest Uncle have raised is indeed quite like you. It is a scaredy-cat that is good at pleasing to others."


    Ning Que felt ashamed at how the ck horse was behaving and was annoyed at Tang Xiaotang¡¯s words. He said, "The little snow wolf of yours is quite energetic, but why is its tail always down?"


    Tang Xiaotang smirked, "It¡¯s better than having your opponent wait outside the Academy in the sun while you take a bath and sleep to recuperate. Youngest Uncle is indeed devious."


    Ning Que said, "Well."


    Chen Pipi had wanted to defend for Ning Que, but when he looked at Tang Xiaotang¡¯s youthful eyes. He said, "Indeed, this act of Younger Brother is quite devious."


    Sangsang looked at the meadow below and said, "That big white goose looks cool. It looks like he is training an army. Wouldn¡¯t that mean that he is the general of the back of the mountain?"


    "It¡¯s useless. No matter how proud the general is, his training of the army is for the emperor to see."


    Ning Que said as he looked at the old yellow bull who was resting in the grass by the stream with its eyes shut.


    Indeed, the big white goose led the big ck horse and the little snow wolf through the march four times and came before the old yellow bull. It lowered its proud head respectfully.


    The old yellow bull opened eyes slowly and nced at it. Then, it shook its head, showing as if the matter was too boring and turned around to eat some grass and went back to sleep again.


    Ning Que looked at the old yellow bull that chewed on the grass, reducing it into a paste but not swallowing it. Instead, it spat it out in annoyance. Ning Que looked at the three fellows that stood behind it obediently and wondered to himself.


    This was the incredible back of the mountain of the Academy. Even the beasts here were proud, so it was natural for a person here to be even prouder. He should go and prove his pride.


    ...


    ...


    The side door of the Academy was located in a very remote spot and was usually quiet. Not many came here other than those from the back of the mountain who would asionally pass through. However, Liu Yiqing, the powerhouse of South Jin Kingdom had issued the Academy a challenge and sat outside the door on a futon to wait. Because of that, the area around the side door became crowded and bustled with people. The students from the Academy¡¯s front courtyard and the citizens of Chang¡¯an came to watch look at the spot as if it was a tourist site.


    The side door was surrounded by more than a thousand people, especially today. If not for the imperial court¡¯s fast reaction, sending the Yulin Royal Guards to maintain order, the quiet grasnd would have been trampled by the excited crowd.


    It was rare enough to see cultivators in the secr world, much less a battle between cultivators. Chang¡¯an was a popr spot with cultivators, so the citizens here were slightly more knowledgeable about this. However, the opportunity to watch something like this closly was rare.


    The news of someone challenging the Academy had spread for three months. Everyone knew that this was where the battle would take ce. Many citizens of Chang¡¯an had alreadye to look at the South Jin man who sat outside the Academy. Many came to watch after hearing that Mr. Thirteen of the Academy who was chosen to be challenged had emerged from his seclusion.


    This was undoubtedly an interesting show.


    There was a bluestone road not far from the hill. Dozens of horse carriages were parked on the side. Thedies of Chang¡¯an had alle, as they were unable to resist the temptation of the bustling scene.


    In those dozens of carriages, of course, were some nobles who could not squeeze with themoners. They could not disregard their own status and behave like themoners who disregarded their safety and climbed higher and higher on trees just to find the best view.


    Among these nobles were officials of the Tang Empire, a few generals from the military, and cultivators from different sects who had heard about the battle.


    The envoy from South Jin and a few disciples of the Sword Garret stood by their horse carriage.


    A few officials from the Tang Imperial Center Administration stood near them, with smiles hanging on their faces.


    Taoist He Mingchi of the Haotian Southern Gate Temple held his yellow oiled-paper umbre under his arms and stood by a horse carriage silently.


    The ck horse carriage had aplicated gold pattern on it and looked majestic and beautiful. The area surrounding the horse carriage was empty on the crowded road, which was a sign of respect that everyone had for this horse carriage.


    This horse carriage belonged to the delegation of West-Hill Divine Pce.


    The Great Divine Priest of Rtion was not in the carriage. The battle between a student of the second floor of the Academy and Liu Bai¡¯s younger brother was not important enough for a bigwig like him toe.


    A young man with white hair sat in the carriage.


    He was Cheng Lixue, the priest in the Revtion Department of the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    Cheng Lixue¡¯s status in the Divine Hall was even higher than Prince Long Qing. He was on par with the Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu before her trip to the Wilderness. He was also an important bigwig.


    Cheng Lixue lifted the curtains lightly and looked at He Mingchi who stood by the window. After a moment of hesitation, he smiled and said, "Senior Brother He, why don¡¯t you get on and sit?"


    He Mingchi smiled and replied, "I have gotten use to stand."


    After a moment of silence, Cheng Lixue lifted his gaze to the Academy¡¯s side door below the hill. He looked at Liu Yiqing who sat on the futon and realized that the man remained calm despite the stares and debates that surrounded him.


    Half a day had passed since the news of Ning Que¡¯s emergence from seclusion had been let out. Yet, the person who should have appeared long ago did not show himself. The citizens of Chang¡¯an who hade to watch were bored to death and some had already left. However, Liu Yibai did not look annoyed and neither his posture nor clothes moved. This was rather scary.


    Cheng Lixue watched Liu Yibai¡¯s countenance change slightly and he suddenly asked, "Senior Brother He, do you think Ning Que wille out?"


    He Mingchi smiled and replied, "Ning Que is a person who is most unlike the disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy, so I cannot be sure either."


    Cheng Lixue thought about his meeting with Ning Que at the pce in the Wilderness and could not helpughling. He said, "He is indeed very interesting, but I suppose he should show himself soon."


    He should be on his way if he wasn¡¯t already here.


    The Academy¡¯s side doors were pushed open slowly from inside.


    A dark figure appeared before them.


    Cheering ensued.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 400: The Strongest in This World...

    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The well-made ck academy uniform swayed gently in the warm spring breeze. Ning Que appeared before the masses with his ck hair tightly tied up in a simple bun. His face was slightly gaunt and he looked more handsome than before. The image that Ning Que presented was exceptionally refreshing.


    There were many students from the Academy who came to watch the battle. Chu Youxian and others who were familiar with Ning Que were also present. When they spotted Ning Que, they could not help but cheer loudly. Affected by the atmosphere, the public grew even more excited. Some people even started whistling.


    Zhong Da Jun stood in a crowd of people and looked at the youth in ck fluttering robes on the distant stone steps. He recalled the scenes when they had first entered the Academy two years ago and a trace of spite and jealousy shed through his eyes. Then, these emotions turned into loss and loneliness. Ning Que and himself now were two people who belong in two different worlds. Even if he were a descendant of the Yang Guan noble family, he could no longer catch up with Ning Que, much less getting revenge on him.


    The spring breeze caught the cheers of the crowd and brought it to the dozens of horse carriages on the road of the hill. Thedies of Chang¡¯an who were on the cusp of romance lifted their curtains eagerly with hope and admiration on their faces. There were many faces that turned grave, including that of priest Cheng Lixue of the Divine Hall Revtion Department.


    Many people from all great cultivation sects in the world hade to watch the battle, except the sadhus from Yuelun Kingdom¡¯s White Tower Temple as they had been expelled from the Tang Empire by an edict.


    All these cultivators from different sects were very interested in Liu Yiqing, who was previously unknown but suddenly gained fame. They wanted to know what state and abilities the younger brother of the Sage of Sword, Liu Bai had. But what they were truly interested in, was Ning Que¡¯s performance in this battle.


    The Academy was the only Unknown ce linked to the secr world and was the opposite of everything the West-Hill Divine Pce was. In the hearts of those who knew of the other Unknown ces, the Academy was the most powerful one and was even stronger than the West-Hill Divine Pce. However, the crux of the matter was, how strong exactly, were the people on the second floor of the Academy?


    Everyone knew how great the Headmaster of the Academy was, but they did not know the extent of his power. Few have met Mr. First or Mr. Second of the Academy and they all came out from the meeting with exmations but few details.


    For decades, no one from the Academy had revealed their prowess.


    That was because no one from the Academy had entered the human realm since Mr. Ke.


    Until Ning Que.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce had forbidden everyone mentioning Mr. Ke¡¯s name and deeds since his disappearance. However, the world¡¯s strongest powerhouse then had left many scars and shocking deeds on the world. That was why every single cultivation sect in the world wanted to find out Ning Que¡¯s ability and state of mind.


    Everyone knew of the battle between Ning Que and monk Guan Hai in the hall of Lanke Temple, but not the details.


    The battle between Ning Que and Yuelun Kingdom¡¯s Dao Shi had shocked each cultivation sects even more. Ning Que had beat a high monk of the Buddhism Sect from an Unknown ce in the battle of Psyche. It was well known that the mind of Bhadanta from the Buddhism Sect, no matter his zen or his psyche, was the strongest in the cultivation world.


    Ning Que¡¯s act of cutting Dao Shi¡¯s head after the battle in the morning had shocked the various sects, and many did not think well of it.


    If a Buddha stops him, he would kill him. Should a God stop him, would he kill the God too?


    That was what Mr. Ke had done. He had killed his way to making a name for the Academy, and his deeds had resulted in the respect that people had for the Academy. Even though he had been punished by heaven, not even the West-Hill Divine Pce dared to criticize him.


    The cultivators had left their sects and traveled far to the Academy to catch this rare opportunity to see the true abilities of the second floor of the Academy for themselves. They wanted, even more, to see the Academy fail as they did not wish to see the birth of a second Mr. Ke.


    Tao Addict of the West-Hill Divine Pce had imed that Ning Que was the weakest World Wayfarer from the Academy in history. This had spread through the entire cultivation world. Even though Ning Que had won twice since he entered the human realm and had injured Prince Long Qing, many still believed in that there were tricks in the two battles.


    Many praised Liu Yiqing who had sat quietly on the futon as if he was not part of this world. They thought that he was indeed the Sage of Sword, Liu Bai¡¯s brother, as he had managed to reach the upper Seethorough State at such a young age. He had already shown signs of breaking the realm and was likely to beat Ning Que in his current state.


    However, when he saw Ning Que who stood on the steps and felt the freely moving aura in his body, he thought of the rumors that Ning Que had gone into seclusion to receive Tao Enlightenment. He could not help but feel that he had underestimate Ning Que¡¯s capabilities.


    Cheng Lixue touched his silvery-white hair softly and looked at the Academy¡¯s side doors below the hill silently. He suddenly said, "Senior Brother He, who do you think will win?"


    He Mingchi smiled, "Ning Que, of course."


    Cheng Lixue asked in surprise, "Why are you so sure?"


    He Mingchi replied, "Because he is a student of the Headmaster of the Academy."


    Chen Lixue received an epiphany and felt that his judgment earlier was rather ludicrous. He said, "That is true."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que stood on the steps and watched his excited ssmates from afar. He smiled and waved at them, and then, he looked at the man sitting on the futon by the side door.


    The man was very young, but looked like a tree with deep and long roots as he sat on the futon. He gave people a sense that he would not move an inch no matter how strong the winds were.


    Ning Que knew that the man came from the South Jin Kingdom and had waited for him outside the Academy¡¯s doors for three months. He also knew that this man, Liu Yiqing, was the younger brother of Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword.


    The Yulin Royal Guards had used some long ropes and barred the public behind it. There was arge piece of emptynd by the Academy¡¯s side doors beneath the stone steps.


    The field was huge, but the distance between Ning Que and Liu Yiqing was small.


    Liu Yiqing stood up and look at Ning Que silently.


    After a moment, the futon that had apanied him for three months broke into pieces.


    The young man couldn¡¯t help looking rather ragged after sitting outside the Academy for three whole months. He had no shelter and was drenched in rain and burned by the sun. His hair was tangled and his clothes were covered in dust. His nails, which were exposed outside his sleeves, were caked with dirt and mud and did not look like hands that were meant to hold swords.


    Compared to Ning Que, who had just bathed and changed clothes and looked especially clean and refreshed, Liu Yiqing looked like a beggar. However, his expression was cid as if there was not any dirt on his clothes and that they were much cleaner than the ck Academy uniform that Ning Que wore.


    Liu Yiqing looked at Ning Que with bright eyes.


    He was indeed exhausted and haggard.


    But his Taoist Sword had been washed by the bitter winds and rain outside the Academy for three months, and it was brighter than ever.


    He had waited for Ning Que for three whole months and had finally got to meet him today.


    The sword that had been washed so brightly that it shone like water in spring had the strongest sword style.


    "Ning Que?"


    Liu Yiqing asked.


    Ning Que nodded.


    Liu Yiqing suddenly smiled.


    The fragments of the futon at his feet lifted off the ground with his smile.


    The dust on the ground swirled without wind but did not fly about. They rolled about and scattered around the grounds, forming an extremely odd scene.


    When the dust rolled further away like a snake and was about to leave the empty piece ofnd. Those watching behind the rope watched the dirt that wasing towards them and stepped back subconsciously. However, there was no space for them to move and just as the dust was about to reach them, it gathered before the rope and stopped.


    A shallow mud ridge was formed.


    There were two worlds, one inside and the other outside the ridge.


    The world inside the ridge was one of battle, and shouldn¡¯t be disturbed.


    ...


    ...


    There were exmations of surprise around the side door of the Academy before dead silence ensued.


    The dozens of horse carriages on road were enveloped in the silence as well.


    Thedies in the horse carriages pressed their hands to their lips tightly in shock.


    The cultivators from various sects in the horse carriages looked at Liu Yiqing silently. They did not know how to react.


    The Sage of Sword, Liu Bai, had dared to allow his younger brother to challenge the Academy, so they were certain that Liu Yiqing definitely had a high state and was strong. They had already ascertained that Liu Yiqing was strong enough, but they did not think that he could be this strong.


    Liu Yiqing was able to use his Psyche Power just by smiling and had been able to spread the dust on the field so perfectly. This seemingly odd scene required a delicate control over the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    The officials of the Tang Imperial Center Administration looked at the side doors of the Academy silently. Worried expressions crossed their face. After Liu Yiqing¡¯s disy of his state, everyone thought that Ning Que was bound to lose.


    Cheng Lixue fell silent as he looked at the scene.


    Unlike other cultivation sects, the West-Hill Divine Pce who led everyone had already gathered information on Liu Yiqing years ago since he was the younger brother of the Sage of Sword, Liu Bai.


    Before Liu Yiqing became famous, the West-Hill Divine Pce had already known that he was a rare Sword Taoism genius and had ced him on their to-watch list.


    Cheng Lixue realized that Liu Yiqing was stronger than the Divine Hall had thought when he disyed his capabilities. He frowned worriedly.


    While the West-Hill Divine Pce did not want another Mr. Ke to appear from the Academy, they did not wish for the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom toe up with another Sage of Sword like Liu Bai.


    Liu Bai was the leading visiting professor of the Divine Hall, and the South Jin Kingdom was the greatest power that the Divine Hall held in the secr world. If the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom¡¯s capabilities grew with Liu Yiqing and grow even stronger, the Divine Hall¡¯s control over the Sword Garret would weaken. What would the Divine Hall do if they revolt in the future?


    "So you are a precious sword that the Sage of Sword had hidden for many years."


    Cheng Lixue looked at Liu Yiqing from afar and said bitterly, "Now that I see it, it seems like not even Ning Que, the core disciple of the Headmaster, could be your match today."


    ...


    ...


    At the side doors of the Academy.


    Liu Yiqing said to Ning Que, "You¡¯re finally here."


    His tone was calm, but he could not hide the pride and confidence in his mind which have been expressed obviously in his voice. He was about to beat the Headmaster of the Academy¡¯s core disciple today, and he could finally have a sense of pride and confidence that belonged to himself before the Academy from now on.


    If this were a normal story, Ning Que would fall silent after Liu Yiqing spoke. Then, he would say, "What wille wille," before losing the battle heroically.


    However, Ning Que never acted like a regr person. He would do anything to win the battle. He could choose not to look at the other party¡¯s cards even if he took a risk and not change his own.


    Ning Que did not look at Liu Yiqing¡¯s eyes that were as bright as a sword.


    He looked at the clean green tiles on the ground and said sincerely, " Your sweeping skills are the best in the world, just like your brother."


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 401: I Pulled My Blade Because I Recognized It

    Chapter 401: I Pulled My de Because I Recognized It


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Liu Yiqing was startled but not angered by Ning Que¡¯s words; instead, a look of recognition shed through his eyes, "I have been meditating on the futon for the past few days," he exined indifferently. "Even though I did not mean to, I affected the cleanliness of the Academy. That is why I tried to clean up by myself. I have practiced this a lot, so it¡¯s not really worth admiring."


    Ning Que did not expect that Liu Yiqing would remain calm and so grew vignt, even though he did not allow it to show on his face. He smiled and said, "I am more ustomed to using a broomstick."


    Liu Yiqing smiled at him mockingly, wondering if they had to argue for a while beforemencing the battle. It seemed like the rumors about Ning Que were correct; he would never miss the opportunity to mess with his opponent¡¯s mood.


    Just as he was about to reply, Ning Que suddenly wiped the smile off his face. He flicked at his Academy uniform with his left hand and held up his right hand in the air. He looked at Liu Yiqing attentively and said, "Please."


    His posture was imposing. The calmness and dedication on his face coupled with the simplicity of his words instantly led the crowd to cheer.


    Liu Yiqing narrowed his eyes at the rapid change in the atmosphere.


    ording to the cultivation world¡¯s description of Ning Que, Mr. Thirteen of the Academy was cruel, decisive to his enemy, and in the habit of talking rubbish and bickering like a child.


    The Judicial Department of West-Hill Divine Pce had once assessed him with the following words, ¡¯His bickering and childish impulses are all an act, he uses these means to disrupt his opponent¡¯s state of mind.¡¯


    Liu Yiqing felt that he had a deep understanding of Ning Que¡¯s character, which was why he could face Ning Que so calmly. Even as Ning Que uttered that mocking sentence that would frazzle many people and make them vomit blood, Liu Yiqing was prepared to speak for a long time with him under the stares of many.


    However, he did not expect that Ning Que would be so direct and simple today.


    Was it possible that he had really undergone some amazing change after practicing penance in the cave for three months?


    Liu Yiqing nced at Ning Que vigntly. Then, he turned to walk to the center of the clean, green-tiled ground. His emotions gradually settled to his initial calm as he walked.


    Ning Que also walked to the center and quietly waited.


    Everyone stared at the two as they walked from the Academy¡¯s side doors.


    Sangsang walked out from the side doors when no one was paying attention to her.


    Neither Tang Xiaotang nor Pipi turned up, probably due to Tang Xiaotang¡¯s identity as a follower of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    ...


    ...


    Liu Yiqing raised his left hand, which was slender and muddy, holding a cyan-steel sword.


    He stared at Ning Que before saying emotionlessly, "I know that your strongest weapon is your arrow, so I shall use my sword."


    Sangsang, standing beneath the tree at the field, dropped her heavy load when she heard that. She ced the big, ck umbre to one side and searched for the dark iron arrow box, ready to send it over when Ning Que spoke.


    Ning Que was silent.


    Staring at the cyan-steel sword in his left hand, Ning Que slowly rose his eyebrows.


    He recognized that sword.


    Two years ago, when he came to the city of Chang¡¯an from the City of Wei, he rented a shop on Lin 47th Street with Sangsang and opened the Old Brush Pen Shop. Business was bad back then, so he remembered his first customer clearly.


    It was raining in Chang¡¯an that day.


    A man stood under the canopy of Old Brush Pen Shop to take shelter from the rain. The man wore a turquoise robe and looked handsome and carefree. His smile looked as though it could brighten up the gloomy skies.


    The middle-aged man was thendlord of the shop, and was often armed with a sword at his waist.


    Ning Que remembered this middle-aged man not only because he was the first customer of the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    The middle-aged man came to the Old Brush Pen Shop holding an oilpaper umbre on yet another rainy day; Ning Que was squatting on the ground and eating noodles. The middle-aged man squatted beside him and said something to him,


    "I¡¯m going to kill someone."


    "I need a man by my side."


    Ning Que followed the middle-aged man into the rain at night due to these words, five hundred taels of silver and Darkie¡¯s request. He led him to the run-down Spring Breeze Pavilion and began to kill with that man. Having killed everyone, they returned to the shop and ate a bowl of noodles with fried eggs.


    The middle-aged man had a very arrogant surname but a very gentle first name.


    His surname was Chao, as the word in Tang Chao (Tang Dynasty).


    His name was Chao Xiaoshu.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que and Chao Xiaoshu had only met a few times.


    But he remembered Chao Xiaoshu, and would never forget him.


    He could also recognize the seemingly ordinary cyan-steel sword on Chao Xiaoshu.


    However, that sword was now in the hands of a powerhouse from the South Jin Kingdom. Liu Yiqing raised the sword in the spring breeze.


    This was not the Spring Breeze Pavilion.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que looked at the sword and after a moment of silence, said, "I won¡¯t use my arrows today. I shall use my de."


    He did not ask Liu Yiqing where he had got the sword.


    Instead, Liu Yiqing brought up the sword himself.


    "Do you recognize this sword?"


    Ning Que nodded, "That is the sword of Old Chao from the Spring Breeze Pavilion."


    Liu Yiqing looked at him and asked calmly, "Don¡¯t you want to know why I have the sword?"


    Ning Que thought it over, and replied honestly, "Yes, I do."


    Liu Yiqing seemed to be satisfied with this reply. He said, "Old Chao of the Spring Breeze Pavilion... is indeed an interesting name. I suppose all you could smell was blood two years ago, in that rainy night at the Spring Breeze Pavilion. You might have forgotten that you killed a Sword Master from the South Jin Kingdom."


    Ning Que thought back to that night silently. Though Chao Xiaoshu and he had killed arge number of people that night, the strong Sword Master from the South Jin Kingdom was hard to forget.


    He muttered, "So... that person was a disciple of the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom."


    Liu Yiqing said expressionlessly, "He was the core disciple of my Eldest Brother. You have to answer for his death since he died thanks to you two. Chao Xiaoshu lost to me, so I have his sword now. You¡¯re the only one left, which is why I have been waiting for you outside the Academy for three months."


    Ning Que¡¯s eyebrows had been raised since he saw the sword and hadn¡¯t fallen even when he answered Liu Yiqing. However, when he heard that Chao Xiaoshu was defeated by Liu Yiqing, his eyebrows dropped suddenly and his emotions calmed significantly, so much so that they seemed cold.


    Liu Yiqing said, "Would you like to know where Chao Xiaoshu is now?"


    Ning Que again, replied honestly, "I do."


    Liu Yiqing looked at him and said coldly, "Then show me your true capabilities and fight me! I will tell you what you wish to know regardless of the oue of this battle."


    Ning Que smiled. After thinking for a moment, he turned around and walked to Sangsang, who stood beneath a tree by the field.


    Liu Yiqing thought that he was going to retrieve that infamous iron bow, so he smiled proudly.


    Ning Que did not move once he stood before Sangsang.


    He had note for the Primordial Thirteen Arrows, but for another object that Sixth Brother had just made for him.


    He was ready to kill the swordsman from South Jin Kingdom.


    However, he changed his mind whilst standing before Sangsang.


    Because sometimes, being alive is a fate worse than death.


    He walked back to the field.


    Looking at Qing Que¡¯s empty hands, Liu Yiqing frowned slightly, "I want to see your true capabilities!" he demanded.


    "I have said that I won¡¯t use my arrows today. I will only use my de."


    Then, Ning Que raised his right hand into the air and looked him dead in the eye, "Because you, are not worth it."


    Liu Yiqing remained calm and asked, "Then who is?"


    "I¡¯ve shot Prince Long Qing and the Tao Addict with this bow. You are not as strong as them, so you are not worth it."


    With that, Ning Que breathed in deeply, pulling a slender falchion from behind him, which was ck and wless. He tightened his grasp on the hilt.


    His actions were simple and casual, but too determined to be interrupted.


    Just as he had done two years ago on that rainy night when the middle-aged man in turquoise robes ughtered his enemies with a sword but no shield, entrusting his life to Ning Que without hesitation.


    ...


    ...


    Liu Yiqing clearly sensed the change of aura in Ning Que.


    However, his emotions did not change. As his dirty clothes billowed in the spring breeze, Liu Yiqing was like a bright sword that had been washed by the spring water.


    His elder brother, whom he respected the most, had once told him that no matter what kind of enemy he faced or what changes urred in his enemy, he only had to pull his sword from its sheath and pierce it through the other person.


    So, Liu Yiqing pulled the cyan-steel sword out of its sheath and drove it at Ning Que.


    He drove it straight. He was like a rod, or a willow tree frozen in time.


    Flying swords did not pierce the skies, nor did sword styles spread through the air.


    This was a simple stroke of the sword.


    But also the most powerful.


    ...


    ...


    The Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom was different from other sects that cultivated in the sword. They did not simply cultivate how to master swordsmanship.


    The disciples from the Sword Garret did not use Psyche Power to control the Qi of Heaven and Earth, they use the Qi of Heaven and Earth to control the Natal Sword.


    The disciples of the Sword Garret trusted nothing but the hand wielding their own sword.


    Their strongest ability was using the sword in their hands.


    With the sword in their hands, they had no need to depend on controlling the Qi of Heaven and Earth, as they could focus the Qi of Heaven and Earth into the sword directly.


    This was the sword style of Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword.


    A river would appear with just a wave of the sword.


    They did not have enemies within a ten-thousand mile radius and they were invincible.


    ...


    ...


    The loneliness of the past years in the old house, the cold res he endured in the Sword Garret, what he had learnt in the three months spent outside the Academy, the mocking gazes of the Tangs, the discussions that angered him that he did not speak up about, and the pride in his heart were all in this sword.


    This simple sword was made up of everything that Liu Yiqing had cultivated in his life. The air above the de contracted around it, forming a vacuum.


    The few leaves dancing in the wind turned into dust before they couldnd on the ground.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth outside the doors of the Academy vibrated violently and streamed into the sword in his hands. Surging in and then out from the tip of the de, it turned into thunder.


    Within seconds, Liu Yiqing had crossed the distance between the two.


    The tip of the sword, carrying with it the wind and thunder, mmed directly into Ning Que¡¯s face.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 402: A Simple Hack

    Chapter 402: A Simple Hack


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Everyone watching the fight was stunned by the thunder and wind Liu Yiqing¡¯s sword had made.


    Silence lingered in the air; the audience was left speechless.


    How could such a simple stroke of the sword have such power?


    Amongst all the cultivators gathered, only one truly understood this move of the sword: Cheng Lixue, the Priest of the Revtion Department in the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    He realized how powerful and scary the move would be as soon as Liu Yiqing stuck his sword out. He was silent, his right hand holding on to the window ledge.


    A seemingly simple move, yet it embodied his willpower, his persistence of waiting for a hundred days, and it even resembled the sword style of Liu Bai!


    Simple, yet so formidable.


    Everything was the same, including Haotian Divine Light.


    Cheng Lixue was still holding the ledge. The terrifying sword style made him wonder what he would do before it. He would not be able to parry and his only option would be to run from it until he had nowhere to go. Only in this way would he have the slightest chance of making an escape.


    Even Prince Long Qing, when he was alive, would choose to escape and risk being hurt when facing such a powerful sword style, considering the thunder and wind it summoned. Certainly, he would suffer great injury if he attempted to kill his opponent.


    If it was the Tao Addict, would she be able to block Liu Yiqing¡¯s sword?


    He remembered what happened at the West-Hill and added silently; he was referring to the powerful Tao Addict before her journey to the Wilderness.


    Immediately afterward, he changed his mind.


    Even the Tao Addict before the Wilderness would not block the sword. Instead, she would attack him expressionlessly. She would see her enemy die before she would die.


    And so she would not die.


    She could handle Liu Yiqing¡¯s attack.


    ...


    ...


    The thunder and wind surged together with the overwhelming sword style.


    Facing this powerful move and dangerous situation, Ning Que closed his eyes.


    Someone who would close their eyes at this moment must want tomit suicide.


    But he didn¡¯t want to kill himself. Rather, he hacked forward whilst closing his eyes.


    He knew very well that with his current realm in cultivation, he could not parry this attack. He also would not try to kill his enemy first in the way Ye Hongyu would choose.


    Hacking was simple, simpler and requiring less skill than stabbing with a sword.


    His podao was also simpler than the sword.


    Swords were manmade. They were used for killing or making a salute.


    Swords could only be used to kill people, and nothing else.


    But podao were sharp things people found in nature, and they were first used for hunting.


    They can be used to kill people, but can also cut many other things, like wood.


    Holding the hilt of his podao, Ning Que felt the movement in the air when the de cut forward. He found a feeling of excitement that had been lost for a long time, returning to his body.


    He had not used his podao for a long time. He missed it a lot.


    Yet still, he was very familiar with the moves, even with his eyes closed.


    His moves were so refined they seemed graceful.


    His movements were so fluid that they made you feel rxed.


    Only Liu Yiqing felt threatened by the de, because it was pointing at him.


    As Ning Que cut forward, the Great Spirit in his body moved along the hilt and poured into the de. Holding such powerful Great Spirit, even the most sturdy podao in the Pce would shatter.


    But this one didn¡¯t. After being thoroughly tempered by Sixth Brother, it had thebined power of three podaos. So when the Great Spirit poured into the de, it started shaking at a speed so fast that it couldn¡¯t be seen by the naked eye. It looked like it would break at any moment, and yet it did not.


    The sound of metal nging against metal reverberated in the air!


    When Liu Yiqing demonstrated his move, the ground paved with dark bricks remained very clean. But Ning Que¡¯s podao brought the dust hidden between the seams of the bricks out into the open.


    ...


    ...


    The audience was made up of average people, so they didn¡¯t know what had happened. All they saw was that Liu Yiqing¡¯s sword was about to go into Ning Que¡¯s forehead, and Ning Que hacked down with his ordinary looking weapon.


    Only the advanced cultivators could sense the strong Qi of Heaven and Earth circling around the podao in Ning Que¡¯s hand. The quantity and purity of it was more refined and scary than that of Liu Yiqing¡¯s Sword of Wind and Thunder.


    Cheng Lixue held the window ledge with both hands. He was very shocked, his body was frozen in ce.


    He Mingchi was standing next to his carriage. Seeing this image, he raised his head and held a wheel with his right hand.


    ...


    ...


    Leaves were crushed by the powerful move of Liu Yiqing¡¯s sword. But Ning Que¡¯s podao turned the powder into nothing.


    A flower poking out from a seam of stones in the distance vanished.


    Ning Que¡¯s podao met Liu Yiqing¡¯s sword.


    The tremendous power of the podao suppressed the thunder and wind on the tip of the sword, making it tremble as if it were a candlelight attacked by a gust of heavy wind.


    Liu Yiqing was shocked.


    He didn¡¯t expect him to be so brilliant at cultivation. After all, he was the weakest among all students of the second floor in the Academy, and even the Tao Addict called him the shame of the Academy.


    But he didn¡¯t want to avoid his attack. Instead, he kept moving his sword and rushed forward.


    After meditating for three months at the side gate of the Academy, he was fully prepared. He had thought about all the situations that could happen during this fight, including the current; that Ning Que had rocketed to a new level of cultivation after his penance.


    He believed that Ning Que would hesitate when their weapons were about to touch.


    Because anyone would, if they were in his position.


    His sword would remind Ning Que of Chao Xiaoshu as long as he saw it.


    Ning Que would think, why was Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s sword in his hands?


    Did Chao Xiaoshu really lose to him?


    Is Chao Xiaoshu alive?


    "If Chao Xiaoshu is still alive, how can Ning Que hack his podao at me?¡¯¡¯


    "Isn¡¯t he worried that if he kills me, Chao Xiaoshu will die with me?"


    "Does he think he could escape from thinking of Chao Xiaoshu with his eyes closed?"


    All these thoughts circled through Liu Yiqing¡¯s head.


    He believed that Ning Que would think about all of those questions. Even if he had an unhumanly determined mind, he would still lose some focus, and then his move of the podao would be less fluent.


    The fight between two powerful men was to seek victory, but this often only depended on what was on their mind in the most vital moment.


    Liu Yiqing had been preparing for a long time to startle Ning Que.


    ...


    ...


    But Ning Que didn¡¯t hesitate at all.


    He closed his eyes and hacked his podao forward in a decisive and brutal way.


    He was not distracted.


    The reason why he closed his eyes was not to stop himself thinking about Chao Xiaoshu.


    He wasn¡¯t thinking about Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s sword, nor did he realize that Chao Xiaoshu might have been killed or was being tortured in the Sword Garret. It never even urred to him that if he dared to kill his enemy, Chao Xiaoshu would die.


    He didn¡¯t think, he only hacked his podao forward.


    And so, he could only focus on that.


    It was far simpler than Liu Yiqing¡¯s mind.


    And the attack of Ning Que was also far more powerful than that of Liu Yiqing.


    The podao in Ning Que¡¯s hand lit up suddenly.


    Countless golden lights spurred out from the dark de. Its light, as bright as the sun rising from the sea, and its colour, as rich as the burning clouds at dusk.


    Under the control of Ning Que¡¯s Psyche Power, the golden rays were bundled so that they didn¡¯t spread in all directions. Instead, they turned into a me, rushing towards Liu Yiqing¡¯s face.


    ...


    ...


    Chen Lixue¡¯s hands clenched on the window ledge. He stood up in the carriage.


    There was a snapping sound, the window ledge he held on to was crushed and a big hole was left in the carriage wall.


    Although standing next to the carriage, He Mingchi was too nervous to notice the loud noise. His fist tightened and his knuckles were deep in the wheel, spreading wood chippings everywhere.


    Looking at the side gate of the Academy, they eximed in disbelief, "Divine Skill!"


    ...


    ...


    A horrible scream was heard from the person lying on the ground in front of the side gate of the Academy.


    Thousands of rays beat Liu Yiqing¡¯s face like burning fire. The pure light burned brightly into his eyes, causing him to scream in agony.


    The sharp pain in his eyes distracted him from focusing on attacking his enemy. All the light had disappeared and his world becamepletely dark.


    The podao in Ning Que¡¯s hand hacked against Liu Yiqing¡¯s sword.


    It sparked great power.


    The wind and thunder on Liu Yiqing¡¯s sword died out quickly.


    The podao was still going forward as if it was burning.


    Then, the sword in Liu Yiqing¡¯s hand shattered into pieces.


    But the podao didn¡¯t stop.


    Ning Que only knew where Liu Yiqing was before he closed his eyes.


    So his podao hacked on the ground, rather than on Liu Yiqing who stumbled back, screaming.


    But that was enough.


    The burning podao hacked against the ground , spewing out mes. The Haotian Divine Light surged out from the de, turning into a bundle of thrilling Qi of Heaven and Earth which shot towards Liu Yiqing.


    There was a gust of heavy wind.


    Liu Yiqing¡¯s body was like a sandbag in the wind. It floated slowly in the sky and then dropped heavily on the solid ground. He rolled over on the ground more than ten times and only stopped when he hit a peach tree at the foot of the slope.


    As he hit the tree, a snap sounded, indicating that either the tree or his bones had broken.


    Liu Yiqing stood up, his right hand struggling to hold on to the peach tree.


    He looked very miserable, his clothes frayed and stained with blood and dust. A shower of peach blossoms fell on him, the color of which was even redder than blood.


    The scariest thing was that his eyes seemed to be perfectly fine at first, hostility remaining in them. But this was simply because he was blind, as revealed by his confused and worried expression.


    In the next few moments, he awoke from the daze and started feeling terrified. When his terror umted, he was left in a state of frenzy.


    He looked at the sky in a daze, his hands grabbing the handle of his sword tightly as if it were hisst straw, "How can you use Divine skills? Who taught you that!" He cried out, waving the sword handle crazily.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 403: Why Dont You Give in? (I)

    Chapter 403: Why Don¡¯t You Give in? (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    All was silent by the side gate.


    There was no sound among the crowd of people standing around or among the carriages.


    The only sound was the painful screaming from Liu Yiqing.


    All the cultivators were shocked and speechless.


    In their view, it was impossible for Ning Que to win the fight. After seeing Liu Yiqing¡¯s terrifying power before the fight, they were convinced that there was no way Ning Que could defeat the young swordsman from the South Jin Kingdom, no matter how much he had improved during his penance in the back of the mountain.


    The fight was so unexpected; it had such a simple beginning and a very violent ending. And all the audience had closely witnessed Liu Yiqing being thrown out in a horrifying way.


    Was Ning Que¡¯s attack the same as the rumor had said? Did he really manage tobine martial arts with talisman skills?


    Had he been practicing that during his penance and seeded?


    All the shocked cultivators were standing still next to the road and thinking.


    But those among the audience who were ordinary people weren¡¯t thinking about anything because they didn¡¯t understand the fight at all. In their view, students from the Second floor of the Academy were all supernatural beings, so it was natural that they could defeat a swordsman from the South Jin Kingdom.


    They were silent because the fight finished too quickly for them to be excited. And their intention of hailing the winner afterwards disappeared when they heard Liu Yiqing¡¯s crazy and horrible scream.


    The Tangs always admired strong people and sympathized with the weak. At first, they didn¡¯t like this person from the South Jin Kingdom at all, because he had dared to challenge the Academy. But when they saw his miserable situation and his blinded eyes, they pitied him and were all silent.


    ...


    ...


    "Why do you know Divine Skills?"


    Standing under the peach tree, Liu Yiqing looked up to the sky with dull, ssy eyes, his hand holding on to the hilt of the sword tightly. He was more sober than before and his face was scary and unsatisfied.


    He suddenly became angry again and crazily started stabbing everywhere with the hilt. He shouted, "I won¡¯t give in! Where are you, Ning Que? Come here and fight with me again!"


    He was very unsatisfied. And after finding out that his eyes were now blind, he was even more unsatisfied with the result and became outraged.


    He was Liu Bai¡¯s brother, the Sage of the Sword and the best swordsman ever, and he was predestined to be the leader of the new generation in the Sword Garret of the South Jin Kingdom. Even the Second Brother in the Academy agreed that he was talented enough to catch up with Liu Bai.


    His first attack had shown his brilliant state in sword cultivation. In terms of power and state, he was in no way worse than Ning Que. And even though he lost this fight because of carelessness, he shouldn¡¯t have ended up with such a miserable defeat.


    Liu Yiqing had always thought that the reason Ning Que could defeat Long Qing, Guan Hai and Dao Shi was not because he was more powerful than them, but because he was lucky and cunning.


    He had been preparing for three months for this fight. And no matter whether Ning Que used his iron arrows or the Divine Talisman Master Yan Se had left him, he had prepared different means to defeat him.


    But it never urred to him that Ning Que would use his podao.


    From the beginning to the end, he had only used his podao.


    And he had only used it for a single hacking!


    Liu Yiqing believed that if not for the Haotian Divine Light Ning Que had hidden in his sleeves so cunningly, he would have never been caught so unprepared, and lose in such a tragic way.


    In the dark, he reviewed the fight and became both angry and sad. He was so unsatisfied and he knew that if they could do it again, he would definitely win.


    He was still holding onto the tree, with his ssy eyes unfocused. He yelled towards the direction of the slope with the hilt in his hand, "Come here! Come fight with me again!"


    After looking at him for a while, Ning Que said, "Why should I fight with you again? You have just lost to me."


    Liu Yiqing turned around quickly after hearing his voice. He tripped and stumbled when trying to stare at Ning Que, "Because you cheated! I am not going to give in!" he shouted again.


    Ning Que still said mildly, "How did I cheat?"


    Liu Yiqing was touching the rough bark of the trunk with his left hand, trying to hold tighter to the tree and stabilize himself, "This is the Academy and you..." he said with hatred.


    Before he finished, Ning Que cut in saying, "The Academy? So you think that I had a geographical advantage? And we are in the south of Chang¡¯an, surrounded by the Tangs. So you don¡¯t have people backing you? And I just finished my penance today, so I am in my highest spirit today, so you don¡¯t have the perfect timing? "


    Looking at the angry expression on his face, Ning Que sneered mockingly, "Don¡¯t forget. It was you who had been waiting here for three months. The whole world knows that you were waiting for me to finish my penance, and you also chose the ce and time to fight. Then why don¡¯t you give in?"


    Liu Yiqing was shaking. His blood, mixed with dust, was dribbling to the ground.


    Ning Que never pitied his enemy. Although he didn¡¯t get the thing from Sangsang today, that was like saving the life of his enemy. He had nned to condemn Liu Yiqing to a life of suffering, worse than being killed. And after winning the fight, how could he skip the chance of giving him a mental blow?


    "If you are unsatisfied, be unsatisfied with your dumb thinking ability. You should never challenge the pride of the Academy. And you shouldn¡¯t have taken out Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s sword to challenge me."


    Hearing his words, Liu Yiqing startedughing crazily, his tears flowing over his face. He pointed what was left of his sword at Ning Que and shouted hoarsely, "I know you are cold, but I still underestimated how cold you could be. You have seen the sword, the sword belonging to a person who had saved you before. But you couldn¡¯t care less about its safety and were not distracted at all. The cultivation of the sword requires coldness, and I thought I was already cold enough. I really should not be unsatisfied about losing to you, because you are colder than me."


    This proud young swordsman finally admitted his failure for the first time, despite that his voice was still full of hatred and desperate mocking.


    Ning Que lowered his head and looked at the dust on the bricks. After a while, he suddenly looked up and said, "Firstly, Chao Xiaoshu and I are just eating buddies, we only talk about noodles with fried eggs and money. We never talk about each other¡¯s personal affairs."


    "Secondly, I don¡¯t know how you got his sword, but I do know that an idiot like you could never defeat him. Then how do you think you can distract me by using his sword? And how dare you not give in?"


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 404: Why Dont You Give in? (II)

    Chapter 404: Why Don¡¯t You Give in? (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que walked towards the peach tree.


    The sound of him walking startled Liu Yiqing. He nced around confusedly and tightened his grip on the hilt. Previously he said he wanted to fight again. But only until then did he realize that he was badly injured and couldn¡¯t even defeat a normal person, let alone Ning Que.


    Ning Que came before Liu Yiqing. Looking at his bloody face, he said, "I know you still don¡¯t want to give in because you think it was very cunning of me to hide my real power."


    Liu Yiqing was trying very hard to restrain himself from yelling or passing out under the great pain. He pursed his lips and his whole body was shaking.


    This young powerhouse from the South Jin Kingdom demonstrated his unsatisfaction with his silence and his gesture.


    "But you don¡¯t understand what battle is. You think your sword stroke was simple enough, but it was not, because you have been thinking for three months, thinking about how to deal with my arrows and talismans and what you could say or do to distract me."


    "But instead of using talismans or arrows, I didn¡¯t do anything. And I also didn¡¯t think; I didn¡¯t think about Chao Xiaoshu, the sword in your hand or your rtions with the Sage of the Sword. I was never frightened of you, and I didn¡¯t want to get more information about you, nor did I want to distract you. All I did was to draw my podao out from the sheath and hack at you."


    Liu Yiqing understood what he meant, his body shaking even harder.


    "That is a real simple attack," said Ning Que.


    After being silent for a while, Liu Yiqing said with aplicated expression, "I see."


    Ning Que argued, "No, you don¡¯t. You don¡¯t know that a real simple attack means that you need to have a simple mind."


    "You lost to me because you think too much, and you also talk too much."


    Liu Yiqing nearly fainted, his body shaking heavily.


    But Ning Que didn¡¯t stop. He continued, "Before our fight, you said that if I tried my hardest, you would tell me something about Chao Xiaoshu. Your words were very silly."


    He stopped and stared at the red peach flowers. "Because I would try as hard as I can even if you don¡¯t want to tell me anything. Your threat only made me see clearly how important it was to beat you hard. And now that I have destroyed you, it is your turn to tell me something."


    Liu Yiqing finally realized why he lost today. He was still unsatisfied with the result, but he had to give in. He closed his eyes with hatred when Ning Que was insulting him.


    After a while, the hatred in his eyes turned into nkness. The young swordsman, who was going to be the leader of the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom, knew that he would never be able to take revenge anymore because his eyes were blind forever and he was injured so badly that he couldn¡¯t even hold a sword.


    His pride had broken and disappeared after the fight with Ning Que. Staring into the dark world, he imagined how bleak his future would be. Desperation filled his chest and destroyed his strong mind. He sat down next to the peach tree.


    The hilt of his sword dropped from his right hand.


    He was too weak to hold it anymore, because Ning Que¡¯s remarks had taken away hisst straw.


    Ning Que picked the hilt up and kept silent for a long time.


    It was Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s sword.


    Of course he couldn¡¯t have lost to Liu Yiqing.


    Then why would the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom have his sword?


    To keep himself focused when fighting, Ning Que didn¡¯t think about anything. But now that the fight was over, his mind was full of the bad things that might have happened to Chao Xiaoshu and it made his hand shake slightly.


    After the fierce fight in the Spring Breeze Pavilion, lots of people thought Ning Que and Chao Xiaoshu were faithful friends and were very close to each other. But Ning Que knew clearly it was not the case.


    The rtionship between him and Chao Xiaoshu was more like that of andlord and a tenant, a leader of gangsters and a killer he employed or like what he had told Liu Yiqing, food buddies. For most of the time, they talked about food and money, rather than sharing each other¡¯s feelings and secrets. Therefore, he wasn¡¯t really familiar with Chao Xiaoshu, he had just met him a few times and had not even been to his home.


    There were always some people who showed up from nowhere, entered your life and talked casually with you. But after all this, the two were already bosom friends.


    Chao Xiaoshu walked into the Old Brush Pen Shop on a rainy day.


    And Ning Que met Zhuo Er at a small vige in the Yan territory.


    They seemed to be not close at all. They might not have gotten in touch for many years, or randomly written to each other. And when meeting on a boat, they would just drink with each other, chat a bit and depart.


    But they were actually very close. Even if they hadn¡¯t met for many years, they still could understand each other perfectly well with just a smile and could fight together against their enemy.


    And when one knew that the other was in danger, no matter what he was doing, he would not hesitate to help. Even if he was in the most important exam in his life or about to get married to a princess, he would give up all those things and ride a horse to where his friend was.


    Ning Que looked at the hilt in silence.


    He didn¡¯t know what situation Chao Xiaoshu was facing.


    He found it really good that he didn¡¯t know much about his friend.


    Because that meant that he didn¡¯t know whether Chao Xiaoshu also believed in the principle of ¡¯I would only be alive if I still had my sword.¡¯ And it meant he didn¡¯t have to confirm that Chao Xiaoshu was dead.


    Ning Que raised his head and looked at Liu Yiqing, who was sitting under the tree as silent as a dead man. He tightened his grip on his podao and pointed it at him.


    The crowd screamed, they didn¡¯t expect Ning Que to kill this person from the South Jin Kingdom.


    In the crowd, Professor Huang He frowned and shook his head in concern, trying to warn Ning Que to be more careful.


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 405: The Academy Is Always Very Polite

    Chapter 405: The Academy Is Always Very Polite


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que heard the screaming from the crowd, and he knew how unsportsmanlike it was to kill your enemy when they had surrendered.


    He nced at Professor Huang He and saw his worried expression and him shaking his head. He knew what he was worried about. If he killed Liu Yiqing under such circumstances, he would be an enemy of the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom as well as the powerhouse Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword.


    However, he had never even considered killing Liu Yiqing. Instead, he aimed to make him suffer a fate worse than death. He was quite satisfied with blinding him like this.


    But when he saw Liu Yiqing sitting under the tree with that pale face, he ced his podao firmly against his neck, as if he could kill him at any moment.


    This was because Ning Que knew very well that even those who saw death as a relief from their suffering in life would still balk in the face of imminent death. The more determined a person was, the more they would desire to live, and this greed for life would only increase as they came closer to the brink of death.


    Although Liu Yiqing looked very miserable and desperate, there was no doubt that he was very determined, and he would never actually wish to die.


    That was why Ning Que wanted to make him think he was about to kill him, just to get what he wanted.


    As expected, Liu Yiqing¡¯s body stiffened when he felt the cold de and sensed that Ning Que meant it. He said hoarsely, "You want to kill me?"


    "He would only be alive if his sword was still with him."


    Ning Que continued, "I guess Chao Xiaoshu is already dead since you have his sword. I have broken this sword, so do you think I would let you live after you killed him?"


    Liu Yiqing was scared. After hesitating for a while, he said, "I didn¡¯t kill Chao Xiaoshu."


    Ning Que said, "Your state isn¡¯t high enough to even injure him. But maybe you caught him using some cunning traps?"


    Liu Yiqing smiled nervously, "Chao Xiaoshu has entered the Knowing destiny State. Even with the help of some tricks, no one can trap him."


    Ning Que said, "We both agree that Chao Xiaoshu is too strong to be killed by you, but you do have his sword. It seems like there is only one possibility left."


    A thought crossed Liu Yiqing¡¯s mind. He suddenly became very nervous and refused to say any more.


    Ning Que asked after a moment of silence, "Was it Liu Bai?"


    Liu Yiqing did not answer this question.


    Looking at the branches of a peach tree, and the flowers dangling off them, Ning Que said suddenly, "Tell me what happened and what condition Chao Xiaoshu is in now, and I will spare your life."


    Liu Yiqing frowned and hesitated.


    A tumult started among the crowd of onlookers. It sounded like someone had started a furious ruckus.


    The sound raised Liu Yiqing¡¯s confidence. He looked in the direction of Ning Que. The white fog in his eyes looked even scarier when he became confident and proud again. He said, clenching his teeth, "Do you dare to challenge my brother?"


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "Liu Bai is my Second Brother¡¯s rival, not mine. But in the future, I don¡¯t mind stepping on him again once my Second Brother has beaten him into pulp."


    Liu Yiqing¡¯s face twisted with shock when he heard those words.


    He had never heard of anyone who dared to talk about his brother in such an irreverent tone.


    His brother, Liu Bai, was the best in the world. He was the Sage of Sword.


    No matter his friends or his enemies, they always spoke of him with the greatest respect.


    Who had ever dared to speak so matter-of-factly like Ning Que, that one day the Sage of Sword, Liu Bai, would be beaten into pulp?


    It had been a while since the fight ended. The audience couldn¡¯t hear the conversation between those two. They only saw Ning Que walk over to the defeated Liu Yiqing and draw his podao out to kill the other one, and they eximed.


    The representatives of the Divine Hall and people from the other parties were all silent. The envoy from the South Jin Kingdom and the two students of the Sword Garret hurriedly tried to run over to them, wanting to stop Ning Que.


    But the Yulin Royal Guards had circled the ce with a long rope, preventing anyone from getting into the ce. An argument quickly started between the guards and the three people of the South Jin Kingdom.


    The envoy said with anger, "He has lost and even surrendered. Why do you stop us healing Master Liu? What on earth do you want to do?"


    The Tang Empire was the strongest country in the world, and the South Jin Kingdom was the second. So the Jins always saw the Tangs as their rivals. However, the people of Tang had never regarded the Jins seriously, and as the proudest group of people of Tang, the Yulin Royal Guards ignored the envoypletely.


    Ning Que and Liu Yiqing hadn¡¯t spoken in a loud voice of Chao Xiaoshu, which was why the crowd and students there couldn¡¯t hear it. But the cultivators standing on the road and sitting in the carriages heard it clearly.


    The name of Chao Xiaoshu was once only known in the world of gangsters. However, ever since the fight at the Spring Breeze Pavilion, he had skyrocketed to fame all over the cultivation world, and it was then that the different sects found out about the existence of such a powerful cultivator in Tang who had even entered the Knowing destiny State.


    Had Chao Xiaoshu really been killed or locked up by the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom?


    All of the cultivators here knew the story of what had happened at the Spring Breeze Pavilion. They understood why Ning Que was so angry, and why he wanted to kill Liu Yiqing.


    However, no one felt it would be the right decision to kill him.


    Liu Yiqing was the only person who imed to know what had happened to Chao Xiaoshu. Therefore, the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom could just deny his story, as there was no solid proof.


    On the other hand, everyone here could see that Liu Yiqing was badly injured. No matter how unreasonable the Tangs were, they couldn¡¯t justifiably stop the people of the South Jin Kingdom from healing Liu Yiqing and taking him away.


    However, it was obvious that Ning Que didn¡¯t want Liu Yiqing to leave the Academy alive.


    The podao remained steady in Ning Que¡¯s hand.


    Liu Yiqing lowered his head. On the outside, it seemed like he had resigned himself to his execution. In reality though, he was keenly listening to the sounds around them carefully.


    The envoy from the South Jin Kingdom was still shouting at the soldiers of the Yulin Royal Guards, and the two students¡¯ faces looked so enraged that it seemed they might draw their swords out any minute now and fight their way through.


    The atmosphere tensed because of the confrontation.


    At this time, a voice rang out from the side gate, which had been quiet for a long time.


    The sound was peaceful, but also serious, as if no one was allowed to argue with it.


    "This person has been sitting here for three months and has shown his great determination. It was very impolite of us to not invite him in. And now, he has been seriously injured, even his eyes are blind. Judging by this situation, it would not be a good idea to force him to travel the long distance home. And it is certainly not eptable to just leave him there to let him die. This isn¡¯t how our Academy treats our guests. Youngest Brother, why haven¡¯t you brought him into the Academy to heal him?"


    Listening to the wordy nonsense he said, the crowd was initially confused at the message he wanted to deliver. But when they heard him say that they were going to take Liu Yiqing into the Academy, everyone became shocked.


    There were many amazing people in the Academy.


    But only one could talk so much rubbish in such a serious tone. He could be a bully and lock Liu Yiqing into the Academy.


    Of course it was the Second Brother.


    Ning Que smiled and sheathed his podao.


    Professor Huang He smiled bitterly and shook his head, wondering to himself how this had turned into such a troublesome matter.


    The fight between the brother of the Sage of Sword, Liu Yiqing, and Mr. Thirteen of the Academy, Ning Que, was finally over. The audience cleared away with unsatisfied expressions on their faces. Unable to understand what had really happened during the fight, those ordinary people were left amazed at how quickly the fight had ended. In their eyes, the entire fight was just a single stab of a sword from one person towards the other, while the other one hacked back.


    However, not understanding it didn¡¯t mean they wouldn¡¯t discuss it. This well-known fight would definitely transform into apletely different story after being retold many times by them, quickly bing a legend that was far more exciting than the real fight had been.


    Long after this incident, there would still be lots of people crowding around in a tavern or a temple, discussing the simple but powerful hack. For ordinary people in Chang¡¯an, it would be talked about even longer.


    The several carriages also left. Only the carriage that belonged to the mission from the West-Hill Pce remained there, standing alone.


    Cheng Lixue didn¡¯t leave. He walked out of his carriage and came over to He Mingchi. He nced at the side gate with a confused look.


    The side gate was closed. On the brick ground in front of the gate, there remained some blood stains and some ridges made of dust. In the beginning, they had been a testament to Liu Yiqing¡¯s power, but now, they seemed like nothing more than a farce.


    "Isbining martial arts with talismans really possible?"


    With his brows furrowed, Chen Lixue was buried in his thoughts. As a Priest of the Revtion Department of the West-Hill Divine Pce, he was a knowledgeable expert of cultivation. Yet he had never read or heard of anyone who had seeded in such a technique.


    "Even if you had reallybined martial arts with talismans during your three-month penance, why did you still use our West-Hill Divine Skill in yourst attack?"


    Chen Lixue asked himself a question.


    This was the same question asked by Liu Yiqing, right after he found out that he was blind.


    "Why does Ning Que know the Divine Skill? Who taught him?"


    As if hearing him echo his thoughts, He Mingchi, who had been silent till now, answered quietly, "Ning Que is a student of the Headmaster, that alone means that anything is possible."


    ording to the ssics in the West-Hill Divine Pce and the prestigious Gods, the Headmaster of the Academy was capable of practically any feat.


    Just when Chen Lixue was about to agree with this conclusion, he realized that it might not be as simple as that.


    He remembered the young girl he had seen just then.


    The young girl who had been quietly standing under the big tree.


    He understood.

 Chapter 406: How Can You Prove It?

    Chapter 406: How Can You Prove It?


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    West-Hill¡¯s Divine Skill was the most sacred and highest Taoist Law of Haotian Taoism. It was even called the source of all Taoist Law.


    Unlike the Divine Skill used by the deacons of the Judicial Department, this Divine Skill was not specifically a kind of magic. It was a divine weapon given to the cultivators from Haotian.


    The disciples on Peach Mountain who could use the Divine Skill were not necessarily the most gifted ones, but they did need to have the purest Taoist Heart and the strongest faith in Haotian.


    Ye Hongyu, the Tao Addict, could use the Divine Skill because she satisfied both requirements. Though Prince Longqing¡¯s faith in Haotian was firm enough, because of his worldly responsibilities to the royal family of the Yan Kingdom, he couldn¡¯t keep his heart clear. So even though he was gifted, he could not practice the real Divine Skill.


    For some reason, Cheng Lixue could not use the Divine Skill either.


    So he could not understand why Ning Que was capable of using it.


    That is, until he remembered the young girl who had been quietly standing under the big tree.


    He knew the little girl, because that little girl was the very reason why the Great Divine Priest had led the West-Hill mission to Chang¡¯an City. So he thought he had guessed the truth.


    ...


    ...


    There was a house in the middle of the wends of the Academy.


    Ning Que and Chen Pipi stood on the banks of the wends outside the house.


    Maybe because Tang Xiaotang had been called away by Senior Sister Yu Lian to practice her skills, Chen Pipi was quite silent and looked at the floating grass in a daze. Suddenly he lifted his head, looked at Ning Que and said, "That Divine Light came from the knife."


    Ning Que knew what he wanted to say. After a moment of silence, he suggested, "A special Taoist skill?"


    Chen Pipi shook his head and said, "The West-Hill Divine Skill is fundamentally different from that."


    Ning Que lowered and suggested once again, "I used the Divine Talisman in advance to pour Haotian Divine Light into the knife, so when I wielded the knife, Divine Light shone out of the knife. Is this exnation ok?"


    "Not so good,"


    Chen Pipi said seriously, "Your knife was surrounded by the Qi of Heaven and Earth at the start."


    "It was my first time. I had no experience,"


    Ning Que said sincerely, "There will be no more such mistakes."


    Chen Pipi mockingly asked, "Do you think you can deceive the world forever?"


    Ning Que retorted back, "Even if someone sensed the problem, who could find any proof?"


    Chen Pipi thought for a moment, then shook his head and replied, "No one, so far."


    Ning Que said in relief, "Then don¡¯t worry."


    Suddenly, a fearful howl came from the courtyard, then no more sound came. It was silent again. The two fellow disciples looked at each other, then turned and walked into the house.


    Within a secluded room of the house.


    The olddy wearing a blue coat looked at Liu Yiqing, who was rolling on the bed in great pain. She shook her head, then took the medical equipment back into her pocket. She said, "There¡¯s nothing more I can do."


    Second Brother nodded slightly and said, "Thank you."


    Ning Que and Chen Pipi opened the door and came in.


    Liu Yiqing bit his teeth to resist the pain in his eyes. He clutched the wooden bar near the bed tightly. He yelled as he said, "What do you want to do?"


    His wounded eyes were covered with a strip of white cloth.


    Ning Que looked at him and said, "You should already know what we want."


    Hearing Ning Que¡¯s voice, Liu Yiqing showed a grim expression on the part of his face outside the white tape. He said in a deep and dry voice, "You blinded my eyes today, and you will pay for thatter."


    Whether in a swordfight or a verbal battle, Ning Que was never a person who would ept defeat. He calmly listened to Liu Yiqing¡¯s threat, and then said, "If you really want revenge, why wait? You can kill me right now, because you should know very well that I really want to kill you."


    Liu Yiqing was shocked by how Ning Que had so tantly expressed his desire to kill him. He slightly stiffened in fear before saying, "My eldest brother is Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword. How dare you!"


    Cultivators were always concerned about their state of mind, so anyone, except for a barbarous person like Ning Que, who started to brag about his background was likely to either be desperate or was showing signs of a mental breakdown.


    However, Liu Yiqing did have some hope and confidence.


    The reputation of Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword, was far too great. Although the Academy didn¡¯t fear this person, it didn¡¯t seem like there was any need to infuriate the greatest legend in the world.


    At this time, Second Brother, who had been standing at the side quietly, suddenly said, "Since you are the younger brother of Liu Bai, please rest assured that the Academy naturally will treat you well."


    Liu Yiqing knew that the one who spoke must be someone of a high status in the Academy, and he might even be the rumored Mr. First or Mr. Second of the Academy¡¯s back mountain. He said sincerely, "Thank you."


    "You are wee."


    This was not out of courtesy. It was because Second Brother was a decent gentleman who did not want to lie. He didn¡¯t feel that doing something right was worthy of thanks.


    Second Brother continued, "I n to let you stay in the Academy to heal."


    Liu Yiqing was stunned, then he asked with a final shred of hope, "When will you let me leave?"


    After thinking for a moment, Second Brother replied honestly, "When Liu Bai sets Chao Xiaoshu free, I will let you leave. If he dies, then you will never leave."


    Liu Yiqing sensed the seriousness in Second Brother¡¯s words. The pain from his eyes and the fear of being confined forever in Academy made him even more panicked. He said anxiously, "Chao Xiaoshu is really not in the Sword Garret, and he isn¡¯t dead either. My brother let him retreat. He could only snatch Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s sword and wound him. Then he let him run."


    Ning Que finally knew for certain that Chao Xiaoshu had encounter Liu Bai. Naturally, he was beaten and lost his sword, but how badly he was injured?


    Second Brother asked, "How can you prove this?"


    ...


    ...


    The room was quiet.


    Liu Yiqing said, "Isn¡¯t it enough that Chao Xiaoshu is not in the Sword Garret?"


    Second Brother asked, "How can you prove that Chao Xiaoshu is not in the Sword Garret? How can you prove that he is still alive?"


    Liu Yiqing thought about how no one knew where Chao Xiaoshu was, so how could he prove that? He became more anxious as he said, "How can the Academy be unreasonable like this?"


    Second Brother said calmly, "Pay if you owe; get killed if you murder; get imprisoned if your brother kept hostages of ours. This is thew of God. You will not leave until Liu Bai can prove that Chao Xiaoshu was not captured by him, and is still alive."


    The old woman wearing a blue coat said, "I will write a letter to Liu Bai."


    Second Brother was surprised by this, and said, "Thank you."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que walked out of the courtyard and came to the banks of the wends. He couldn¡¯t curb the curiosity in his heart, and had wanted to ask that what kind of rtionship this honorary professor who likes cleaning had with Liu Bai. Unexpectedly, Second Brother did not give him the chance to ask. He patted Ning Que¡¯s shoulder and said, "Not bad."


    Second Brother was always a serious person. He paid great attention to courtesy. He treated the master warmly like spring, treated the Eldest Brother with passion like summer, treated the Younger Brothers and Sisters harshly like fall, and treated his enemies as the freezing winter. When he faced people like Ning Que, he seldom smiled, and praised them even less.


    That was why Ning Que nearly fell to the ground in glee when he saw the smile on Second Brother¡¯s face, heard the words "Not bad", and felt the weight on his shoulder.


    Chen Pipi pursed his lips enviously.


    Second Brother turned to Chen Pipi. The smile on his face was long gone as he said, "Although you came earlier than Youngest Brother, and have a higher state, yet you are still not as good as him in some respects. There is an old saying that goes, ¡¯You may hear the truth early, but you may not understand early¡¯. You should forget your identity as a senior brother and learn from him."


    Chen Pipi thought of Ning Que, "When did you forget my identity as your Senior Brother that you would teach me? I¡¯m a genius. What still needs to be learnt from Ning Que?"


    Though in his heart he disagreed, his expression remained respectful. He said several "Yes" repeatedly.


    Ning Que asked unconfidently, "Senior Brother, what am I good at?"


    Second Brother looked at him with great satisfaction and said, "In the end, you had said to that man that one day, I will kick Liu Bai¡¯s ass. Your vision and courage were very good."


    After a moment.


    Chen Pipi looked at Second Brother¡¯s receding back and said, "I wondered what I was asked to learn from you. It turns to be ttery."


    Ning Que patted Chen Pipi on his shoulder. Heforted him and said, "This is also knowledge."


    ...


    ...


    In Chang¡¯an City.


    The Southern Gate Temple in front of the Imperial City was quiet as usual.


    Only, inparison with the past, today¡¯s silence contained a bit of tension and a stifling atmosphere. No one could be found in these beautiful Taoist buildings, though in several streets outside the temple, countless great warriors from the Tang military and the Imperial Center Administration remained in hiding.


    Recently, the defenses of the Southern Gate Temple had be even more rigorous than that of the imperial pce. The Tang imperial court could not be med for their nervousness. It was because the bigwig living in the Southern Gate Temple was too highly respected. If an ident were to ur, the whole world would be pulled into a war.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtions of the West-Hill Divine Pce was living here.


    In a hall of the Taoist temple, an old man dressed in a gorgeous robe sat quietly in the darkness on the dark wooden floor. Around his eyes, the wrinkles looked like scorched earth.


    Cheng Lixue, the Priest of the Revtion Department, respectfully kneeled before him.


    "When Younger Brother Long Qing was ruined by him, the priests in the Divine Hall thought it was because of the horrible holy object given to him by the Academy. Even when the monk Guan Hai and Dao Shi were beaten by him, no one thought Ning Que was very powerful."


    Cheng Lixue organized the words in his heart. He paused for a second, then continued to speak respectfully, "Today, I watched him fight against Liu Yiqing, and I can confirm that he has already progressed to the upper Seethrough State. Compared to his state in the Wilderness, his progress is terrifying."


    The only person who could make Cheng Lixue so respectful was naturally the Great Divine Priest of Revtions.


    The Great Divine Priest slowly opened his eyes. Those wrinkles spread with the opening of his eyes like a drought-gued earth which was nourished by the spring rain for a whole night.


    "The Headmaster of the Academy returned to the Academy and was able to personally direct him. If his speed of advancement still remained like that of a normal person, that would be truly strange."


    The Great Divine Priest looked at the disciple in front of him and asked, "Why was he able to practice the Divine Skill?"


    Cheng Lixue said, "I wonder if it is rted to junior sister, Sangsang."


    The Great Divine Priest looked at him and asked, "How can you prove it?"


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 407: The Girl Kneeling Before God

    Chapter 407: The Girl Kneeling Before God


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Cheng Lixue hesitated for a moment before shaking his head.


    The God of Revtion reminisced about the past and said indifferently, "Did you know, that Mr. Ke of the Academy had once exhibited Divine Skills?"


    Cheng Lixue was shocked speechless to find that there were others outside of the West-Hill Divine Pce who could cultivate Divine Skills. He had barely epted the things that had happened to Ning Que thanks to Sangsang. But when the God of Revtion told him that someone else had already learned the Divine Skills, he found it too hard to ept that even though the person was the legendary Mr. Ke.


    The God of Revtion said, "It makes no difference to the Taoist sect whether Ning Que had learned the West-Hill Divine Skill from Sangsang or he had inherited the mantle of Mr. Ke."


    "But... Mr. Ke¡¯s belief in Haotian could not possibly be firm. How could he cultivate the Divine Skills? If Ning Que had learned it from him, what exactly are Divine Skills then?"


    Cheng Lixue said thoughtfully, "Since Ning Que was a student of Yan Se, we have to be more vignt."


    "One¡¯s beliefs have always been aplicated issue. As for what a firm belief is, only the great Haotian can make the judgment."


    The God of Revtion said ndly, "Your doubts are not the responsibility of the Revtion Department but the Judicial Department. Pen a letter back to West-Hill and have them settle it themselves."


    Cheng Lixue agreed and thought of the earlier message from West-Hill. He frowned slightly and said, "I heard that the God of Judgement has not yet fully healed and his mood recently..."


    The God of Revtion looked into his eyes silently. He said, "Of the responsibilities of the three departments in the Divine Hall, the Judicial Department¡¯s has barely anything to do with you. Yet, you seem to be affected by it."


    Cheng Lixue said surprisedly when he heard that, "I do not understand."


    The God of Revtion looked at the dark floors before him as if he was seeing the dark prison in the depths of the Peach Mountain. Hemented, "The original intention of the Judicial Department when they advocated for Ning Que was to anger the Sword Garret. The crux of the matter was that the battle at the Academy¡¯s doors originated from here, and was nned by the Judicial Department. However, those who are used to using violence have never understood that this was a matter between the Academy and Liu Bai. It was the Divine Hall¡¯s mistake when they interfered in it. The more they did, the more mistakes theymitted."


    Cheng Lixue only knew then, that the West-Hill Divine Pce had a hand in today¡¯s battle.


    The God of Revtion lowered his lids. The creases at the corner of his eyes deepened and he said wearily, "Senior Brother Guang Ming has already passed on. I am already old. I feel somewhat uneasy knowing that something serious is about to happen to the Judicial Department."


    Cheng Lixue asked anxiously, "Since you already know that something is about to happen, why not stop it from happening before it does?"


    The God of Revtion raised his head and looked at Cheng Lixue pityingly. He said, "You have been following me for over two decades. And you¡¯ve been in the Revtion Department for a long time. Do you still not know, that Revtions are from the Heavens? We might be able to know about certain incidents earlier than secr men. But those are things that Haotian allowed us to know. Stop it in advance? Wouldn¡¯t that mean going against the will of Heaven? Furthermore, the thing that will happen to the Judicial Department might not necessarily be bad for the Divine Hall."


    ...


    ...


    The Zhishou Abbey was an Unknown ce.


    Not many knew of the existence of this rundown Taoist temple.


    Even if they did, they did not know that this Taoist temple in the clouds of the Haotian Taoism Gates was but a mere distance from the Peach Mountain. They did not know that it watched the grand and majestic Taoist temples quietly.


    There was a little straw hut by theke behind the Taoist temple.


    Theke breeze entered through the windows once more, flipping open the first page of the "Ri" book of the Tomes of Arcane. It stopped on a page.


    The middle-aged Taoist by the table looked at the name on the page. He did not say anything.


    He had watched over the Tomes of Arcane for many years, but he had never seen something like this happening to the "Ri" book.


    The name had disappeared three months ago.


    The name appeared once more yesterday. However, it did not return to its original spot. It moved with theke breeze, and appeared on the page before it sometimes. It would asionally appear on the page after that, but it never stayed. It only returned to its original page at the very end, but its position had changed.


    The name used to be in an inconspicuous corner, but now, it appeared on the top of the page. It was like a smoke rising from the wild, almost touching the skies.


    "The Headmaster of the Academy is indeed incredible...That person had raised from the lower Seethrough State to threshold of the Knowing Destiny State."


    The middle-aged Taoist looked at the name that would not stay in one spot. He smiled and said, "I have watched over the Tomes of Arcane for years, and the rate at which your state had risen could be ranked in the top five. However, the elusiveness of your state is definitely in the first ce."


    Not far away, Prince Long Qing¡¯s name was just as faint as before. However, thest stroke of his name seemed to be darker than before, as if someone had added a drop of ink on it.


    The middle-aged Taoist did not notice the change in Prince Long Qing¡¯s name.


    His attention was fully on the name that would not stay still.


    Then, he lifted his head to look at the highest spot on that page of the Tomes of Arcane and nodded with satisfaction.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s name hung high up on the page as if it would leap out of the page anytime. The other names on the page trailed behind it at a distance.


    ...


    ...


    There was a gap in the cliffs of the Peach-Mountain of West Hill that looked as if it had been cleaved by a divine ax. And between that cliff, there was arge Taoist temple made from severalrge ck rocks. A figure d in blue stood on the stone steps before the temple which made him particrly small.


    Ye Hongyu no longer wore those bright red and beautiful dresses after returning from the Wilderness. Perhaps she had tired of the red that was the color of blood, or she wanted to hide the two terrifying wounds on her shoulders. Instead, she wore the greed taoist robes that the lowly taoist servant women wore.


    The deacons of the Divine Hall Judicial Department watched her with a myriad of expressions. Some were scornful, dismaying, pitying, mocking, disdainful and even angry. They were mostly negative.


    She used to be the Grand Master of the Judicial Department, second only to God. Everyone in the Haotian Taoism spoke highly of her. She was proud and cold. Even though she handed over the tasks of the Judicial Department to Prince Long Qing, she would punish the deacons mercilessly should theymit any mistake.


    Everyone in the Judicial Department respected her due to her coldness and strength. However, now everyone had found that the Tao Addict was no longer the same person, and that she was neither cold nor strong anymore, no one respected her. Some even looked at her with deliberately mocking expressions.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce had sent most of their powers into the Wildernessst year for the "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane. The Judicial Department was in charge of it, or in other words, Ye Hongyu was in charge.


    The Judicial Department had nned for a long time, but eventually failed. The general of the cavalryman of Divine Hall was punished, two deacons had mysteriously disappeared, Prince Long Qing had been ruined, they had failed at stealing the Tomes of Arcane. The Judicial Department that had once been cold and powerful now seemed weak.


    No one in the Divine Hall would have cared about thepeting of the "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane before. What had originally been something between cultivators had turned into a matter between the World Wayfarers of the Academy and other Unknown ces. Ye Hongyu was no longer qualified to participate in a battle of that level, and she shouldn¡¯t. Everyone thought that since she was the Grand Master of the Judicial Department, the failure was her fault.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce believed in the light of Haotian. But it wasplete darkness in Temple Taoism. The ability of the Judicial Department to work in the dark was a revered ability. That was why all those things that had happened would not have affected her should she still be the strong Tao Addict of the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    The issue was, Ye Hongyu wasn¡¯t strong anymore.


    She had encountered the terrifying Master Lotus at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine during her trip to the Wilderness. Master Lotus had used the practice of Taotie to devour her flesh. She had unleashed a secret sect skill to decrease her state just as she was on the brink of death to exchange for a momentary light. She had managed to escape death and return by working together with Ning Que and Mo Shanshan.


    However, she had just entered the Knowing Destiny State at the snow cliff and her State was unstable. A fearful bacsh had urred when she forced her State to decrease. It continued falling and did not even manage to stay in the upper Seethrough State.


    Judging from the current trend, her State might fall to even below the lower Seethrough State before stabilizing. What was scarier was, she might never return to the Knowing Destiny State.


    Was the Tao Addict still the Tao Addict if she was no longer strong?


    Those from the Judicial Department who only respected power no longer respected her as before. However, Ye Hongyu became more silent and calm in the face of these changes. She moved into a quiet and secluded stone house as if she had wanted to convey a message to the masses through this act.


    However, it led to more people feeling that she no longer had the right to be respected.


    The emotions in gazes of those people in the West-Hill Divine Pce turned even moreplicated. The mocking expressions in their gazes turned more and more in, and a saying begun to spread in the Judicial Department.


    Prince Long Qing was dead, so was the Tao Addict.


    The girl standing before the temple in green was just a useless person called Ye Hongyu.


    ...


    ...


    A deacon walked out of the Judicial Hall and invited her in with a warm expression.


    Ye Hongyu nodded slightly, and then walked into the ck hall.


    It was wide and open in the ck hall. There was a curtain woven with jade beads in the deepest part of the hall.


    Ye Hongyu walked very slowly and it took her a long time to reach the curtain.


    Behind the curtains was a divine throne carved from an entire piece of South Sea ink Jade. The color of the jade was like that of congealed blood.


    The God of Judgement held his head in his hands and sat on the throne. He looked as if he was resting and did not speak.


    Ye Hongyu stood behind the curtains quietly and did not speak as well.


    The air was still in the empty hall, and the silence dragged on.


    She seemed toprehend something.


    Then, she lifted the front of her green taoist robes and knelt before the God behind the curtains.


    Everyone in the Judicial Department had to kneel before the God of Judgement to show their respect and obedience.


    Only the Tao Addict did not have to do that in the past because she was proud and strong.


    But she was no longer the Tao Addict. And that was why she had to kneel, and she had to kneel more respectfully than the others.


    ...


    ...


    --

 Chapter 408: The Successors of Gods

    Chapter 408: The Sessors of Gods


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgment who sat above the ck jade throne slowly opened his eyes. He looked at the girl who knelt outside the curtains with her head lowered. Her face was devoid of any expression, but her eyes carried many different ones instead.


    After some time, the Great Divine Priest of Judgment said coldly, "Even though you are now useless, I hope that you have retained your good judgment."


    The slightly hoarse voice was calm and elegant, with an undertone of violence. It sent the curtain before him swaying wildly as his crisp voice reverberated in the empty hall like an incessant thunderstorm falling into an empty ceramic bowl.


    Ye Hongyu knelt before the curtains silently. Her expression did not change due to the rattling sounds or the power in the voice. She only lowered her head slightly to look more respectful.


    A deacon from the Judicial Department appeared from behind the curtains with an archive in his hands. He walked to her and smiledfortingly before handing it to her.


    Ye Hongyu received the archive quietly. She did not stand up but continued kneeling and read it carefully before descending into thought.


    The archive was sent by the Divine Hall delegation in the Tang Empire through a secret mean and was written by priest Cheng Lixue from the Revtion Department. It described the battle between Ning Que and Liu Yiqing at the Academy¡¯s side doors in detail. The emphasis of the description was on the Divine Skill that Ning Que had employed at the end.


    "You have met that person. What do you think?"


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgment¡¯s cold and solemn voice rang behind the beaded curtains once more.


    Ye Hongyu listened quietly to the sound of the curtain beads hitting each other. She started slowly, "Ning Que¡¯s progression in State has exceeded my expectations. As for the Divine Skills that the Revtion Department mentioned... In my opinion, it is just a skill that resembles the Divine Skill. ording to the details, the Qi of Heaven and Earth gathered on his de eventually turned into Haotian Divine Light. It should havee from within the de and not nature."


    All was silent within the temple.


    Ye Hongyu grew suspicious about Ning Que¡¯s true skills after having read the archive. This suspicion pointed to a surprising fact that led to the silence in the room.


    After some time, the Great Divine Priest of Judgment asked in a low voice, "Can you confirm this?"


    Ye Hongyu shook her head. She said, "Mr. Ke had once shown Divine Skills to the world. Furthermore, Ning Que¡¯s handmaiden had once been a student of the God of Light. No one would dare to suspect him with no evidence, and even if they did, they cannot tell the world of it."


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgment watched the girl kneeling before him emotionlessly. He suddenly said, "Can you prove it?"


    Ye Hongyu said calmly, "I could in the past, but not anymore."


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgment looked at the girl¡¯s demure expression and felt annoyance growing in his chest. He said angrily, "Then what use do you have?"


    After a moment of silence, Ye Hongyu said, "At least I still have my judgment."


    A thunderous cough sounded suddenly behind the bead curtain and did not stop.


    After a long while, the Great Divine Priest of Judgment finally managed to stop coughing. He looked at her coldly through the beaded curtains and said, "You have been defiled by the devil Lotus, and you need to purify yourself. Choosing a stone house to practice penance was a good choice. You need not deal with the matters in the department during this period."


    Ye Hongyu knew very well that the Great Divine Priest of Light¡¯s simple statement had stripped her of her position as the Grand Master of the Judicial Department. In actuality, she rarely interfered with matters in the Judicial Department ever since her return from the Wilderness and had gone into seclusion in the stone house. However, not concerning about that and being stripped of her right to interfere were two different things.


    Her strength had been severely damaged, and her State had fallen to the middle Seethrough State and would continue to fall. If she did not have her position as a priest in the Judicial Department, those who had been badly treated by her previously might act beyond their mocking and scornful gazes.


    Ye Hongyu knelt before the God and did not reply.


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgment leaned back tiredly and wiped his face with his hand. He looked at the girl on the other side of the curtain and a look of annoyance and scorn shed through his eyes.


    As a God sitting in the clouds, he would definitely not be able to ept that someone would try to keep her pride and refuse to kneel or lower her head respectfully before him. The Hierarch had admired Ye Hongyu¡¯s talents in the past, and he himself and the others in the abbey had thought well of her. That was why he had allowed her pride and watched calmly. However, she no longer had the right to be proud and so she should remain silent.


    "I have already sent a letter to the abbey with regards to this matter. Your brother expressed his gratitude for my decision."


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgment looked at the girl behind the curtains coldly, crushing thest glimmer of her hope.


    Sure enough, Ye Hongyu¡¯s expression turned bleak after hearing that. She began to tremble and her expression was full of self-deprecation and loss. She was like an egg that looked hard, but her thin shell had been broken to reveal the fragility within.


    After some time, she emerged from her daze and smiled sadly. She bowed deeply to the God behind the curtains and said, "Thanks to your care over the years I could attain my achievements up to now. Please ept my bow of gratitude."


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgment frowned as he watched the girl bowing before the curtains. He suddenly felt that his decision might have been a little hasty. Behind the sad smile on the girl¡¯s lips and her words filled with hopelessness and sadness lurked something that he did not understand.


    After the bow, Ye Hongyu stood up slowly. And just as she was about to leave, she looked at the Great Divine Priest of Judgment sitting on the Ink Jade throne and said softly, "Even though this might havee a littlete, I feel that the Judicial Department should not interfere in the matter between the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom and the Academy."


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgment coughed painfully again as he looked at her. He yelled sharply, "Your falling State is not scary, what is truly scary is the cowardice in your Taoist Heart. The West-Hill Divine Pce rules over the world and the Judicial Department carries out teachings and implements thews. Who would dare question this?"


    Ye Hongyu did not say anything else but walked out of the Taoist temple.


    She stood on the highest steps outside the temple and looked at the smokeing from the fields a distance from the Peach Mountain. After a moment of silence, she sighed, "Someone is going to die again."


    The deacon who handed her the archive had walked her out of the temple and was standing beside her silently. He could not help but sigh when he heard herment, and he said softly, "God has been ill in the past months and his cough is bad. That is why his temper has worsened. Do not think too much into his words. As for the Sword Garret, those who have to die will die."


    As the powerful and terrifying Great Divine Priest of the West-Hill Divine Pce whose State was at the peak of Knowing Destiny, he sat above the clouds and viewed the people in the world like they were ants. Someone like him should be immune to all diseases, much less a cold. If he couldn¡¯t catch a cold, why would he cough? If he didn¡¯t cough, would his temper be so bad?


    Ye Hongyu looked at the deacons from the Judicial Department who looked at her mockingly, scathingly and pityingly. She suddenly said sympathetically, "He wouldn¡¯t heal so easily after being hurt by the God of Light."


    ...


    There was a Hierarch Lord and three Great Divine Priests in the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    No matter whether the person sitting on the throne was old, ill, injured or imprisoned, they were treated with utmost respect as long as they are alive. They were Great Divine Priests that were respected and prayed to by billions in the world.


    On a certain dayst year, the Great Divine Priest of Light who had been imprisoned in the You Prison for decades betrayed his sect and escaped. Then, he went to a nameless mountain on the outskirts of Chang¡¯an where he fought with Master Yan Se and died.


    There was thus an empty throne in the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    It was waiting for someone.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce would not allow this situation to drag on for too long. When they found out that the Great Divine Priest of Light had left a sessor, the Divine Hall¡¯s most important task at hand was to bring that person back to the West-Hill.


    This matter was still kept under wraps and had not been announced to the masses.


    If anyone outside of the Divine Hall found out about this, they would be confused. Why did those from the West-Hill Divine Pce choose to keep the Great Divine Priest of Light¡¯s sessor, when he had betrayed them and brought harm to the Divine Hall?


    However, there was no question about the session to those from the West-Hill Divine Pce. Because the Great Divine Priest of Light who had betrayed the sect was still the Great Divine Priest of Light. Furthermore, over the years, the three sessors to the thrones in the Peach Mountains were not chosen by the Hierarch or the Great Divine Priests themselves. They were decided by Haotian.


    The three sessors of the thrones were all walking on their own paths.


    The session of the Judicial throne was decided by Haotian through an evaluation of the sessor¡¯s strength.


    The sessor of the Revtion throne was decided through Haotian¡¯s revtion.


    The sessor to the throne of light was a decision made by Haotian through the session of light.


    The Great Divine Priest of Light who was on the brink of death had found his sessor in Chang¡¯an. This must have been the will of Haotian. Then, that sessor would be the future Great Divine Priest of Light.


    The hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce and the God of Revtion grew more determined to have the true sessor of the Great Divine Priest of Light return, especially after they heard the news from the South Seas.


    ...


    In the Old Brush Pen Shop on Lin 47th Street.


    Ning Que silently looked at Cheng Lixue who stood before him.


    He had once met this priest from the Divine Hall Revtion Department when he was in the Right King¡¯s Pce of the Wilderness. Cheng Lixue had been calm and impartial in that fight and had left a good impression on Ning Que. However, Ning Que felt uneasy as he looked at Cheng Lixue¡¯s snow white hair.


    Ning Que felt that he was dreaming. Cheng Lixue was a bigwig from the West-Hill Divine Pce, but his attitude was sincere and humble. When Sangsang had served him tea, he behaved respectfully. Was he the son of Sangsang and him from the future?


    Ning Que held his cup of tea and spoke after a moment, "I somewhat understand what happened, but I cannot promise you anything."


    Cheng Lixue looked at him quietly. He suddenly frowned and said, "Even though there have been many misunderstandings between the Divine Hall and the Academy over the years, we still respect each other."


    Ning Que replied, "I respect Haotian Taoism."


    Cheng Lixue sighed, "Junior Sister Sangsang will one day be the Divine Hall¡¯s God of Light. Millions of Haotian believers including myself will have to kneel and bow before her. We would not dare to speak more than we should or sneak an extra nce at her. However, you, Mr. Thirteen, have had her make your bed and pour your tea. What kind of respect are you showing to our sect?"


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 409: The Men Who Are Not Easily Fooled

    Chapter 409: The Men Who Are Not Easily Fooled


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que looked at Sangsang who was cooking in the backyard when he heard that. After a moment of silence, he shook his head and said, "To be honest, I still think that this situation is ludicrous. I have watched her grow up, and I know that she is special. But I did not expect her to be so special to have the West-Hill Divine Pcee to us."


    Cheng Lixue said, "Even if Junior Sister Sangsang was the most ordinary person on earth, she became extraordinary from the moment Haotian chose her through the God of Light. As for us, we will definitely work in ordance with Haotian¡¯s will and will definitely bring her back to the Divine Hall."


    "I do not like to hear words like ¡¯definitely¡¯ or this kind of tone."


    Ning Que looked at the teacup in his hands and said after a moment, "This makes me feel as if you guys are threatening me. And I will think that you are trying to steal her away from me."


    Cheng Lixue looked at him and said, "You can understand this from a different point of view."


    Ning Que drank the cold tea and said mockingly, "How should I understand it since you are definitely going to take her back to the Divine Hall? Will you not do it if I disagree?"


    Cheng Lixue shook his head, "The throne of the God of Light cannot remain empty."


    Ning Que put down his cup and looked into Cheng Lixue¡¯s eyes. He said, "What would the Divine Hall do if I insist on disagreeing?"


    Cheng Lixue heard the steel in his words. After a brief silence, he said with a smile,"You should know very well what the God of Light means to Haotian Taoism and the West-Hill Divine Pce."


    "I don¡¯t know very well." Ning Que continued staring at him and asked, "Would the Divine Hall fight for her?"


    Cheng Lixue smiled at him without flinching. He said calmly, "If the sessor of the God of light ends up somewhere else in the world, the Divine Hall would wash the world with blood just to take that person back."


    Ning Que replied, "Since you have already said that the Divine Hall would only do that if the sessor ends up somewhere else, I am sure that you yourself, as well as all the other bigwigs in the Divine Hall, would all know that Sangsang is currently in Chang¡¯an by my side."


    After a pause, Chen Lixue said, "So I am here to invite Junior Sister Sangsang back."


    "Invite sounds somewhat nicer."


    Ning Que said, "But I want to ascertain how determined the Divine Hall is."


    Cheng Lixue frowned and looked at him, "You want to know if the Divine Hall would wage war over this? Against the Academy? Do you think that the Tang Empire and the Academy would battle against the Divine Hall over Junior Sister Sangsang?"


    Ning Que thought about the blood and warfare in Chang¡¯an many years ago and of General Xiahou who was alive and kicking. After a silent pause, he shook his head, "The Empire and the Academy would not wage a war against the Divine Hall over a mere girl. But if you take her from me by force, I can tell you that the Empire and the Academy would be embroiled in this war."


    Cheng Lixue¡¯s expression turned cold. He had only realized now that to Ning Que, Sangsang was not simply a handmaiden that Ning Que had known for a long time. And it was only now, did he realize that Ning Que would move heaven and earth for Junior Sister Sangsang.


    "Why would the Tang Empire and the Academy wage war against the Divine Hall for you?" He scolded sternly, "Are the Headmaster of the Academy and the Emperor of Tang shameless people who would create chaos just for your selfish desires?"


    Ning Que¡¯s expression did not change as he looked at Cheng Lixue, "Do not forget who I am. Should that day reallye, I have my ways to bring the Academy and the Tang Empire into this war."


    There was a long deadly silence in Old Brush Pen Shop.


    Cheng Lixue smiled bitterly at him, "Why can¡¯t you think on the bright side? Junior Sister Sangsang is not going to the West-Hill to be a prisoner or to suffer. On the contrary, she will receive aplete education on Haotian Taoism. She will be the most revered God of Light on the Peach Mountain. This would not be detrimental to the Tang Empire, the Academy or to you, so why should we fight?"


    Was it out of his own selfish desire to have Sangsang serve him for her entire life? Was that the reason for disallowing Sangsang from going to the West-Hill Divine Pce and bing the Great Divine Priest of Light?


    Ning Que looked at the loose leaves in his teacup and thought silently for a long time.


    Then, he suddenly raised his head and said, "Let me think about it."


    Cheng Lixue looked into his eyes seriously, "The God of Revtion cannot stay in Chang¡¯an for long. I hope that you can consider this seriously and not make excuses to fool me."


    ...


    ...


    That night, Ning Que brought Sangsang to the Grand Secretary Mansion.


    Mrs. Zeng was exhrated to see her daughter whom she had not seen in days. She pulled her into the house at the back and left Ning Que and Grand Secretary Zeng Jing in the quiet study.


    "What do you think of this matter, Sir?"


    Ning Que asked seriously. He wanted to find some moral support from the Grand Secretary¡¯s expression, such as the longing a parent has for their child. However, he realized that it was just wishful thinking.


    Grand Secretary Zeng Jing did look like he would miss Sangsang, but he looked more excited and surprised before looking overwhelmed and lost. To the believers of Haotian, or even a citizen of Tang, it was a glory to suddenly discover that their child could be the Great Divine Priest of Light of West-Hill Divine Pce.


    "I was thinking if I should return to my hometown and fix up the ancestral shrine. Would such a great thing happen to our family had our ancestors not been watching over us? If we fix it up, we have to change the entire structure of it. Even though it is not written in thews of the Tang Empire, if we follow what the Great Divine Priest of West-Hill of the Cui family from Qinghe County did a hundred years ago, the Zeng¡¯s ancestral shrine can be built like the prince¡¯s.


    Grand Secretary Zeng Jing¡¯s face shone brilliantly and he said with a slightly trembling voice. "We are in thends of the Tang Empire and have to follow the rules of the Empire. If we were in the South Jin Kingdom or the Kingdom of Song, we can even build our ancestral shrine like the emperor¡¯s. Mr. Thirteen, how do you think I¡¯vee across such a blessing in my life?"


    He suddenly noticed Ning Que¡¯s reticence andughed awkwardly. He said, "My apologies, I got a little overexcited. But, I¡¯m still better than that n leader of the Cuis from Qinghe County. I heard that when news of the West-Hill¡¯s choice of Great Divine Priest broke, the n leader was so excited he turned into an idiot."


    Ning Que smiled bitterly and said, "Being the West-Hill Great Divine Priest... Is that really all that great?"


    Zeng Jing was startled and shock filled his face. He thought to himself, that Ning Que was the core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy. Why would he ask such a dumb and ludicrous question?


    To those of the world, being able to be the Great Divine Priest of West-Hill was something that was even better than bing the Emperor. Was there anything better in the world than that?


    Zeng Jing suddenly emerged from his daze and looked at him incredulously, "Do you not want Sangsang to go to West-Hill?"


    Ning Que kept silent for a long time before he replied, "It is not that I do not want her to go, I just haven¡¯t thought it over."


    Zeng Jing said with a tremor in his voice, "Mr. Thirteen, you have saved my daughter from harm and cared for her over the years. I am very grateful for that. I also know that the rtionship between you and my daughter is beyond that of master and servant. But I have to ask that you seriously consider this and not make a rash decision."


    Ning Que did not say anything.


    Zeng Jing thought of a possibility but did not think that it was usible. He tugged at his beard and hesitated for a while before saying tentatively in a low voice, "I heard that the Gods are allowed to wed."


    Ning Que whipped his head up to look at him. He asked, "Really?"


    Zeng Jing looked at his suddenly bright eyes and was shocked. Could his wife¡¯s predictions be right?


    Thinking that the prediction might actually be true, Zeng Jing forgot the fact that Ning Que was a student of the Second floor of the Academy for a moment and held himself up like an elder. He stroked his beard and asked, "If Sangsang doesn¡¯t go to the West-Hill, what are Mr. Thirteen¡¯s ns for my poor daughter?"


    Ning Que did not notice the change in Zeng Jing¡¯s expression and he said, "I will marry her when she turns 16."


    Zeng Jing¡¯s hand that was stroking his beard trembled and three strands of his beard fell off.


    He had not expected Ning Que to say that he would marry Sangsang without hesitation just as he was about to speak and debate.


    "Main wife?"


    Zeng Jing¡¯s voice trembled as he asked.


    Ning Que shook his head.


    Zeng Jing grew angry.


    Ning Que said after he shook his head, "Of course she is my main wife, could she be my side wife?"


    Zeng Jing rxed and he asked smilingly, "Will you take concubines?"


    Ning Que said bitterly, "I wish, do you think that¡¯s possible?"


    Zeng Jing¡¯s smile grew even wider. His daughter could be the main wife of a core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy. And the man had promised not to take concubines. It seems that it was worth it not to be the Great Divine Priest of West-Hill if his daughter had a future like this.


    "Since this is so, then you shall decide if Sangsang goes to the West-Hill."


    Grand Secretary Zeng Jing had always been a decisive person. Otherwise, he would not have used his position in the Qinghe County, even against the will of Her Majesty, to divorce his main wife and kill the servants after they hurt Sangsang.


    When he heard Ning Que¡¯s words, he thought about the pros and cons of the two choices. Then, he did not hesitate to remove himself and his wife from the equation, leaving Ning Que to handle all the pressure.


    Ning Que said bitterly, "Shouldn¡¯t the family discuss this matter?"


    Zeng Jing touched his tender chin and shook his head, "Sangsang is still officially registered under your family. And the connection you have with her is deep. Sir should make the decision no matter no matter whether we look at it rationally or emotionally."


    Ning Que suddenly realized that his future father-inw wasn¡¯t a character that could be easily fooled.


    Zeng Jing smiled to himself coldly as he thought to himself, "Don¡¯t think that you can trick me into denying the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s request just because you are a student of the Second floor of the Academy."


    The night deepened.


    Mrs. Zeng brought Sangsang from the house behind with a face full of longing.


    Zeng Jing pulled his wife aside and whispered something to her. Mrs. Zeng covered her mouth in shock. When she looked at Ning Que again, her expression was widely different and she looked at him with great affection.


    "I thought that Sir might visit often, so I have ordered the servants to clear out a guestroom."


    Mrs. Zeng smiled sweetly at Ning Que, saying, "Why don¡¯t you rest here tonight."


    Ning Que felt as if he had traveled into the world of strange stories and had the urge to flee.


    "I still have something urgent to deal with."


    He stood up and told Sangsang to stay at the Schr¡¯s Mansion to apany her parents and then left.


    He went to the second street by the Spring Breeze Pavilion.


    Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s house was on this street.


    ...


    --

 Chapter 410: Borrowing the Sword (I)

    Chapter 410: Borrowing the Sword (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Qi Four had been waiting outside Chao¡¯s house. When he saw Ning Que, he heaved a sigh of relief and brought him into the house while he informed Ning Que of the recent happenings in a low whisper.


    It waste at night, but the lights in the main hall of Chao¡¯s house were bright. There were many sitting there quietly and the atmosphere was tense. They would smile warmly when they looked at the old man sitting at the front, but the smiles always seemed forced.


    Qi Four brought Ning Que to the hall. Everyone stood up, wrapped a hand around their fist and bowed before introducing themselves.


    "Chang III, Chang Siwei"


    "Liu V, Liu Si."


    "Fei VI, Fei Jingwei."


    "Chen VII."


    The people gathered in Chao¡¯s house were all past leaders of the Fish-dragon Gang. After the case of the Spring Breeze Pavilion, their identities had been revealed, so they could only leave the Fish-dragon Gang and return to the imperial court. Today, they held important positions in the Valiant Cavalry Battalion and Bodyguard office. Everyone had gathered here for that matter.


    Before Chao Xiaoshu left Chang¡¯an, he had specially brought these men to Lin 47th Street to meet Ning Que. Ning Que knew these people, and if he considered his own position as a secret guard, these were all his colleagues, and their appearance at Chao¡¯s house came as no surprise.


    Chang III and the others looked at Ning Que oddly.


    Before Chao Xiaoshu left, he had vaguely left the Fish-dragon Gang and them to Ning Que. But Ning Que had not epted it, and they could not understand why. They did not understand why Chao Xiaoshu had trusted Ning Que so much. However, two years had passed, and Ning Que had long be a famous person in Chang¡¯an. That was when they realized that Second Brother Chao had seen something special in this person.


    "This is Old Master Chao." Qi IV introduced.


    Ning Que looked at the silver-haired old man whose face was filled with worry. He felt annoyed for some reason and frowned, "One should not travel far if their parents are around. He has traveled happily and freely indeed."


    Old Master Chao sighed and defended his son, "He had wanted to take the imperial examinations and get a position as an officer. He slogged for half his life before he finally had a chance to escape all of that. So I just let him go."


    Ning Que was slightly surprised, he had never expected the old man to be so open-minded. He thought of how Chao Xiaoshu had been the emperor of Chang¡¯an¡¯s underworld for so many years, but the old man, who hade from a schr¡¯s family, had been indifferent to it. He must be a smart opinionated man who didn¡¯t have many ideas.


    After he thought through this, he found that he did not need to avoid the old man. He looked to the people beside him and said, "The Sword Master from South Jin Kingdom had been interrogated. Second Brother Chao must have fought with Liu Bai."


    Surprised gasps sounded in the hall. Chang Siwei¡¯s face was filled with worry. They had gone through life and death with Chao Xiaoshu and their confidence in him neared stupidity. However, when they heard that the person Chao Xiaoshu had fought with was the Sage of Sword, Liu Bai, they could not help but be shocked and be at a loss.


    The Sage of Sword, Liu Bai was the strongest powerhouse in the world. Even if Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s State had increased after leaving Chang¡¯an, he was no match for Liu Bai. They just didn¡¯t know how that battle had ended.


    Ning Que said, "Liu Yiqing does not know the results of the battle. Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s official sword was taken from him, so he must have been badly injured. We don¡¯t know where he is now."


    Qi IV scratched his head and said vexedly, "ording to Second Brother Chao¡¯s temperament, he would not do something so stupid like dying just because he lost that sword. What we need to verify now is how badly injured he is. Did he hide in some mountain vige, or had the people from South Jin Kingdom imprisoned him?"


    "He is not at the Sword Garret."


    Ning Que looked at everyone and said, "Liu Yiqing does not dare to lie about this. The Academy will keep him locked up before we find Chao Xiaoshu. Furthermore, the Academy had also written to the Sword Garret to ask Liu Bai about it."


    Although those present were all well-known in the Chang¡¯an underworld and were important figures in the imperial court now, they did not understand much about the cultivation world. They did not know where to start. And so, when they heard what Ning Que had said and found that the Academy was handling the matter personally, they breathed slightly easier.


    Chang Three added, "His Majesty knows of this matter too and will write a formal letter to the king of South Jin Kingdom asking them to hand over Chao Xiaoshu. I believe that they will consider it."


    Chen Seven had been quietly standing in the corner behind everyone. It felt as if he was not used to being seen by a lot of people. He suddenly said, "I feel that there is something off in this matter."


    Everyone including Ning Que looked at him.


    Ning Que noticed that everyone had mentioned their names when they introduced themselves. Only Chen VII had not. Then, he remembered that the Jianghu world in Chang¡¯an described these people from the Fish-dragon Gang as so: Chang III was cold, Qi IV was vicious, Liu V was savage, Fei VI was fierce while Chen VII was sinister.


    How sinister was Chen VII?


    "Sage of Sword, Liu Bai might have attacked Second Brother Chao because he saw a prey that he liked, or he wanted to deal the Tang Empire with a blow, or perhaps Second Brother Chao had eaten a maize from thends of the Sword Garret."


    Chen VII seemed as if he could not bear the weight of the eyes looking at him. He lowered his head and continued slowly. Even though his choice of words seemed funny, his voice was guarded and it sounded like a mouse in the shadow.


    "These are not important."


    "What is important is, why did Liu Yiqing challenge the Academy? Why did he use Second Brother Chao¡¯s sword. Why did he let everyone know about this incident?"


    "I am not a cultivator, and I don¡¯t know what cultivators usually think about. But I suppose if cultivators were human beings, then their thought processes must be no different from us regr people."


    Ning Que nodded and said, "I can attest to that."


    Chen VII raised his head slowly and a flickering light shone in his slightly small eyes, "Liu Bai is the world¡¯s strongest powerhouse, so he is not an idiot. He sent his own younger brother to shame the Academy, it would work if he wins. And if he loses, he could use the Academy to diminish his brother¡¯s cultivation State. That works too. He wanted to teach Second Brother Chao and Ning Que a lesson because the two of you killed his disciple at the Spring Breeze Pavilion two years ago, and that might also be a reason. But, sending Second Brother Chao¡¯s sword to make you think that he had died, and also causing his brother to go blind wouldn¡¯t be the reason for his action."


    Ning Que did not speak. He thought about the battle by the Academy¡¯s side doors and realized that there was truth in Chen VII¡¯s words. If he had not seen Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s sword in Liu Yiqing¡¯s hands, he would not have chosen to strike so heavily and made the Sage of Sword, Liu Bai¡¯s younger brother blind. It did not benefit him at all.


    "If I were Liu Bai, I would have gotten justice for the incident at Spring Breeze Pavilion after beating Second Brother Chao who had entered the Knowing Destiny State and sending my brother to defeat Ning Que. I have no reason to form a grudge against the Academy and the Tang Empire."


    Chen VII continued softly, "ording to reports from the Bodyguard Office, after you entered the Second floor of the Academy, your name began to spread in the cultivation world. Even though we were not cultivators, we all knew that your name was on the Tomes of Arcane. Many details of the incident at Spring Breeze Pavilion also spread."


    "The news would not have traveled so fast naturally. Someone was already fanning the mes then. They wanted the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom to focus on Chao Xiaoshu and you. That is why I believe that someone is pulling the strings behind these two incidents. Liu Yiqing bringing Second Brother Chao¡¯s sword is one of those strings."


    Chen Seven looked at everyone calmly. He said, "There is only one ce in the world that has the ability and guts to stir-up the Tang Academy against the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom. And there is only one ce that would benefit from this. That is the West-Hill Divine Pce."


    ...


    Outside the capital of South Jin Kingdom.


    There was a two colored pavilion by the cliff. It was the Sword Garret.


    The Sword Garret was built into the cliff. There was arge quiet cave and the top of the cave led directly to the cliff peak where light streamed in. There was a pool at the bottom of the hole and a straw hut. It looked like an independent world.


    Liu Bai sat in his little piece of heaven and looked at the fish blowing bubbles in the pond. He slowly reached out to push his long hair behind his shoulders. He asked ndly, "Can anyone give me an exnation?"


    Liu Yiqing¡¯s humiliating defeat at the Academy and news of his blindness had traveled to the South Jin Kingdom together with two letters from the Tang Empire.


    One of the letters was personally written by the Emperor of Tang.The letter was currently in the bedroom of the South Jin Kingdom¡¯s king. It angered him greatly, but he also felt that there was nothing he could do about it.


    The other letter was written by an old woman from the Academy. Itid quietly by Liu Bai¡¯s legs. It had already been opened, and probably read.


    Over twenty second-generation disciple of the Sword Garret knelt by the pond. They lowered their heads, not knowing how to answer to their teacher.


    How could they exin Liu Yiqing¡¯s defeat in the challenge?


    Liu Bai looked at the pond, his face devoid of emotions, and said, "My younger brother is now blind. Who can give me an exnation for this?"


    A disciple of the Sword Garret said angrily, "The Academy was too vicious. We have to..."


    "We have to what? Get revenge? Why do we have to get revenge?"


    Liu Bai said coldly, "The spirit of sword Taoism is one that is fearless. Since I wanted him to defeat and kill Ning Que, it is also logical that he could be defeated and killed by Ning Que. Furthermore, I sent him to the Academy just so he could be defeated and to polish his Sword Heart."


    The disciples were shocked speechless. They had only understood then that their teacher had expected Liu Yiqing to fail.


    Liu Bai nced at the letter by his side, and said frostily, "I just do not understand, I sent Yiqing there to polish his own sword, so why did he bring Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s sword?"


    Everything on the Sage of Sword, Liu Bai, was a sword. No matter his loose ck hair, the belt on his waist, his fluttering robes or his gaze, his shadow or his voice.


    When his voice was frosty, the disciples by theke seemed to see a sword rising from ice that was millennia old. Their eyes were pierced by the sharp sword style and began to tear.


    The disciples were frightened andid prostrate on the ground, not daring to say anything.


    Liu Bai turned around slowly and looked at the disciples coldly. He said, "My brother is an idiot in all other aspects other than sword Taoism. And because he is an idiot, he would not have thought of using Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s sword to anger Ning Que. So who thought it up for him?"


    The cliff cave behind the Sword Garret fell into silence.


    After some time, a disciple lying prostrate on the ground slowly got up. Then, he took two steps towards the pond and bowed deeply without saying anything.


    Liu Bai looked at the disciple and said with a frigid expression, "So is the Judicial Department definitely better than the Sword Garret?"


    ...


    -

 Chapter 411: Borrowing the Sword (II)

    Chapter 411: Borrowing the Sword (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The blind fishes in the tiny pool were still bubbling.


    The yellow grass on the pool bank was still scorched.


    Just like thepanion in that hut.


    Hearing Liu Bai¡¯s questioning, the disciple of the Sword Garret who had walked to the bank shook badly because of fear. He had decided to admit to everything, but he did not expect that the Great Master had already known his true identity.


    Liu Bai said, "I have been raising you for seven years and teaching you for seven years. Even if you were a cold sword, you could still be reimed. However, it did surprise me that the Judicial Department¡¯s men were born to be ruthless."


    The disciple was silent for a long time, then he bowed deeply again. He sincerely apologized and said, "I¡¯m sorry. I didn¡¯t expect it to end like this."


    Liu Bai said with no expression, "If the Judicial Department wants to use the Sword Garret to do the dirty job, they should at least inform me first. Taking without permission is not borrowing. It is stealing."


    The disciple said with emotion, "I didn¡¯t want to do this, but it was my duty."


    "I know." Liu Bai said impatiently.


    The disciple slowly stood straight, and calmly gazed at Liu Bai across the pool. He was able to withstand Liu Bai¡¯s powerful sword style, indicating that his true cultivation state was much higher than what he usually showed.


    Of course, even if his cultivation state was several levels higher than what he had shown previously, he still wasn¡¯t a match for Liu Bai. However, there wasn¡¯t a trace of fear on his face.


    Liu Bai, the Sage of the Sword was the strongest fighter in the world. Countless cultivators feared him. However, the disciple was the deacon of the West-Hill Divine Pce. He received orders from the ck Taoism Temple in Peach Mountain.


    In the words of Liu Bai, the disciple had simply used his authority to manage the Sword Garret. He maneuvered to borrow Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s sword and gave it to Liu Yiqing, who was about to leave for Chang¡¯an City, telling him a few words.


    Taking without permission was indeed not borrowing. It was stealing.


    However, since the men of West-Hill Divine Pce wanted to borrow the sword to do a dirty job, the unapproved borrowing could be regarded as borrowing.


    Even if this was stealing in others¡¯ eyes, it was still borrowing.


    After all, Liu Bai was a visiting professor of West-Hill. He had to act on the orders of Haotian. What could he do to the Divine Pce¡¯s man?


    "Regardless of whether Prince Long Qing died or not, he is ruined,"


    Liu Bai looked at him and said.


    The disciple said respectfully, "Indeed."


    Liu Bai said, "I also heard that Ye Hongyu was scrapped after she came back from the Wilderness."


    The disciple calmly said, "Yes."


    Liu Baiughed and said, "Will you return to Peach Mountain to take over as the Grand Master?"


    The disciple alsoughed and admitted with silence.


    Liu Baiughed more happily, and said, "Does it mean that you may be one of the Great Divine Priests in the future?"


    The disciple smiled and remained silent.


    The smile on Liu Bai¡¯s face suddenly disappeared. He looked nkly at the disciple and said, "Although it is an honor that my disciple can seed as the high priest, I suddenly realized that if you really be the Great Divine Priest of Judgment, it would be hard for me to kill you."


    The disciple suddenly became stiff, and he looked across the small pool.


    "Since you are not the Great Divine Priest of Judgment now, you have to pay for your stealing."


    The disciple¡¯s expression suddenly became chilly, and he wanted to say something, but he tasted something sweet in his mouth and sensed a slippery thing between his teeth. It was his own tongue.


    Immediately, his head was disconnected from his neck, and fell down on the bank floor. It rolled into the small pool. After a few moments, some blood showed on the surface of the water.


    The blind fish sensed the smell of food and began to spit blisters happily.


    The disciples who had been silently kneeling beside the pool walked up and began to clean up the headless body. They noticed that the neck cavity was smooth and bloodless, and the cut seemed to be covered with a transparent film. They could see the trachea, esophagus, the bones, and blood clearly. This scene made them feel sick.


    For Liu Bai, killing an important person of the Divine Hall Judicial Department was just like killing a mouse. The look on his face did not change at all, but when he looked at the letter from the Academy, he started to frown.


    "Find Chao Xiaoshu, send him back to Chang¡¯an City safely and trade my brother back."


    The disciples nced at each other and went to carry out his orders.


    At this time, a middle-aged man came in from outside. He looked at the blood bubbles in the small pool. He sighed, walked towards Liu Bai and said, "Senior Brother, is the problem solved?"


    Liu Bai said, "If killing could solve the problem, then the world in my eyes would be much better."


    The middle-aged man said bitterly, "I heard that the Great Divine Priest of Judgment thought highly of him. He was prepared to have that man return to the Peach Mountain to take over Ye Hongyu¡¯s ce. You could have just chopped off one of his hands, why did you have to kill him?"


    After a short moment of silence, Liu Bai said, "Bring me paper and pen."


    ...


    ...


    The light from the top of the cave shone on the pool, the hut beside the pool and the people.


    Liu Bai sat on the bank of the pool, close to the light. He pondered for a long time before picking up the pen. He wrote slowly and casually on the yellowish paper.


    He was not writing, but drawing.


    The soft ink pen moved on the unbleached paper. Lines twisted and knotted and trembled from time to time. A few lines constituted a long and narrow hollow thing, but it was hard to identify.


    This picture was very crude and it looked like the work of a naughty boy.


    However, such a crude and simple painting seemed to exhaust Liu Bai. His face looked pale when shone upon by the water¡¯s reflected light.


    The middle-aged man took a look at the painting and suddenly his body stiffened.


    "Can you tell what I painted? "


    Liu Bai asked.


    After being silent for a moment, the middle-aged man said, "It is a sword."


    Liu Bai said with satisfaction, "Since you can tell that this is a sword, your state seems to have risen."


    The middle-aged man forcibly suppressed his shock and asked, "Who do you want to give this sword to?"


    Liu Bai said calmly, "Send it to West-Hill and to Ye Hongyu."


    The middle-aged man could no longer control his emotions. He kneeled behind Liu Bai and said in a trembling voice, "Senior Brother, why are you doing this! Why do you want to send it to Tao Addict?"


    Liu Bai looked at the paper in his hand and said, "Because after the Priest of Light died in Chang¡¯an City, out of the entire Peach Mountain, I only admire this woman a bit."


    "But...but the Sword Garret and the Judicial Department have already turned against each other."


    The middle-aged man said with anxiety and trembling, "If Ye Hongyu really understands your sword style, and bes powerful, will she be an enemy of the Sword Garret?"


    Liu Bai said, "Even if I don¡¯t give her this sword, the Tao Addict will still be able to pass that threshold. I just hope she can be faster."


    He lifted his head up and looked at the light from the peak. He said nkly, "The damn Judge lent a sword to Yiqing. I will lend a sword to Ye Hongyu."


    Lending a sword was naturally aiming at murder.


    ...


    ...


    Peach-Mountain of West Hill, a remote stone house.


    "High Priest, I¡¯m just a messenger, but please forgive me."


    Chen Bachi looked at Ye Hongyu who was before him. His eyes were attracted to the loose blue robes and thennded again on her beautiful face.


    He used to be themander of Divine Hall¡¯s cavalrymen. Although he was forced to be tortured by Ning Que and lost his job because of the ck Ink Garden¡¯s disciples¡¯ confrontation with the Horse Gang. He was still in the Seethrough State, so he still had a very high position in the Judicial Department.


    In the past, his immediate supervisor was the Prince Long Qing but the person he feared the most was Ye Hongyu who was in front of him. Even if Ye Hongyu was down and out now, he would still find it difficult to breathe when he looked at her. He used the old title, and picked his words with extreme caution.


    After all, things were changing. Everyone in the Divine Hall knew that the Great Divine Priest of Judgment had suspended Ye Hongyu¡¯s job and asked her to repent.


    Perhaps influenced by this incident, Chen Bachi became a little more disrespectful than before. While Ye Hongyu looked calm on the outside, he looked her up and down, from her beautiful cheeks to her body.


    The reason why Ye Hongyu, Mo Shanshan, and Lu Chenjia were called as the Three Addicts in the World, was not just due to their high cultivation state, but also their beauty.


    Ye Hongyu was very beautiful. Her figure had always been very good and attractive.


    Now her petite and enticing body was covered by the loose blue robe, but Chen Bachi had seen too much of her wearing a red short skirt. At this time, the wide blue robe seemed to disappear, exposing that pair of tight and straight thighs.


    The young girl was still beautiful and moving, and she was now in a dim situation, which had added a bit of realism to her charm, giving people some courage to possess this beauty.


    Chen Bachi¡¯s eyes were a little bit guilty, but he did not dare to think anything nasty, because he didn¡¯t have such courage. It had nothing to do with the majesty of Tao Addict in his mind. It was only rted to what he was going to say today.


    "Lord Luo Kedi is themander of Hierarch and a confidante of the Hierarch Lord. Mydy should be very clear about his cultivation state. If he is willing to join thepetition battle for the Divine Priest of Judgment¡¯s position, the odds are great."


    Watching Ye Hongyu turning around, Chen Bachi respectfully lowered his head and said, "If My Lady feels that this is feasible, themander wille to show you his affection and determination. The Lord also said that as long as you agree, he would immediately go to the Hierarch Lord to propose marriage."


    Ye Hongyu looked at the respectful man before her, who was once her subordinate. After a moment of silence, she said calmly, "I need some time."


    Chen Bachi said immediately, "Of course, of course ."


    Ye Hongyu slowly closed the door of the stone house and then sat on the stone bed in the shadow again.


    Themander of Hierarch had proposed to her. It was more than something she deserved; a pleasant surprise for a woman who had almost lost everything but beauty.


    Her expression was still calm, but the body in the loose blue robe started to tremble uncontrobly. The stone bed creaked and seemed like it would copse at any moment.


    ...

 Chapter 412: Borrowing the Sword (III)

    Chapter 412: Borrowing the Sword (III)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine in the Wilderness, Lotus had contaminated not only her flesh and blood, but also her state of mind. Therefore, her Taoist Heart, which had been originally clear and bright, was covered with dust because of something in the past. And it seemed that it would be impossible for her to recover because her condition in the Knowing Destiny State was not stable.


    Any ordinary cultivator that came across such a setback would have been reduced to despair and given it up.


    But she was not an ordinary cultivator. Rather, she was the Tao Addict who was so obsessed with Taoism.


    She was clearly aware that every setback was a test of Haotian. As long as her Taoist Heart was strong enough, everything could be transformed into the most beautiful scenery alongside her long path of cultivation.


    In the Wilderness, she had seen the Stone Array Tactics embattled by the Light God. She had also seen Mr. Ke¡¯s Haoran Sword that could separate heaven from earth. All of those scenes were silently waiting for her to appreciate and absorb them.


    But the other people in the West-Hill Divine Pce did not know.


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgement did not know.


    Luo Kedi, themander of the God Guard, who intended to force her to marry him, did not know.


    As a result, the West-Hill Divine Pce nowadays treated her with indifference, sarcasm, scorn, and contempt. And what was worse, they were going to deprive her of the time that she needed most.


    Ye Hongyu needed time. She needed time to see through the scenery and the paper that covered her eyes.


    Therefore, she could calmly disregard theirplex expressions and execrable words. She could pretend to be a coward and even ignoble. She could kneel before God, so respectfully like a hopeless waste.


    However, the situation that she faced now had suddenly be difficult.


    Although Luo Kedi, themander of the God Guard, was a rare master of the Divine Hall, Ye Hongyu would never consider marrying him.


    It was not because of his age, nor his appearance, nor even the fact that she did not love him, since she could have no feelings at all for the sake of her cultivation.


    But simply because... he had asked her to marry him.


    He had asked her to marry him¡ª not implored, nor requested.


    That was an uneptable shame for her.


    Sitting on a stone bed in silence, Ye Hongyu clenched her cyan taoist robe, making her knuckles turn white.


    "Do I really have to go back to the temple?


    "Chen Pipi, you damned fatty, bastard, idiot. I just scared you a little in childhood. Why did you run away? Why don¡¯t you return to the temple now?"


    "As long as you don¡¯t return, my brother will never forgive me. Then, how can I go back?"


    Possibly due to remembering Chen Pipi or her elder brother, Ye Hongyu now could no longer control her emotions, even though she had managed to remainposed before throughout these days of endless humiliation. She silently lowered her head with her eyes full of grievances, sadness, and timidity.


    At the moment, she was no longer the Tao Addict nor a loser, but a very ordinary girl.


    An ordinary girl would naturally be prone to anger if she were forced into marriage, so Ye Hongyu became outraged now. She coldly stared at the closed door of the stone house, thinking that she should kill Chen Bachi, Luo Kedi, and all those who dared to look at her in that way.


    However, the anger in her eyes gradually turned into frustration and self-mockery because she had no time now and could not go back to the temple. It seemed that she could do nothing but sit on the edge of the stone bed, angrily and helplessly.


    At this point, someone arrived outside the stone house.


    "My Lady, there is a letter for you."


    The man outside the stone house did not address her as Priest, which was not deliberately respectful. But his few simple words contained enough respect that only she could sense.


    Ye Hongyu raised her eyebrows slightly as her expression changed.


    She had not been shown respect like that for such a long time in the Divine Hall.


    When the door opened, she recognized that the man was a very ordinary deacon of the Judicial Department.


    The deacon presented a letter to her with both of his hands respectfully and then turned around and walked away without a single word.


    Then the door of the stone house was closed and, once again, darkness reigned.


    Ye Hongyu walked back to the stone bed and sat quietly on the edge, looking at the letter in her hand and not uttering a single word for a long while.


    The envelope was made of in kraft paper and it looked like nothing special. There was not even any handwriting on the front.


    As a former Grand Master of the Judicial Department, she did not manage any of the affairs of the department, but she had a pair of eyes that could notice all the details in the world and find clues within them.


    The seemingly ordinary kraft paper was the mostmon craft of the Danzhou paper workshop.


    Therefore, this letter hade from the South Jin Kingdom.


    Ye Hongyu was sure that she did not know anyone in the South Jin Kingdom, so she did not know who had written this letter to her.


    She opened the envelope, pulled out the letterhead, and slowly unfolded it.


    The letterhead was a yellowish papyrus.


    And there was a pattern drawn on it.


    The painter was obviously not good at drawing. The lines were crooked and unsmooth, so unsightly and clumsy that no one could recognize what the pattern was.


    Ye Hongyu stared at the long hollow pattern on the yellowish letterhead, and then her fingers, which were pinching the two top corners of the letterhead, began to slightly tremble. She remained in silence for quite a long while.


    Now she understood what the pattern was.


    It was a sword.


    The sword of Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword.


    ...


    ...


    The Kingdom of Yue, in the southern part of the South Jin Kindom and east of the river, was next to the rtively quiet South Sea. Therefore, its fishing port was more prosperous than the Kingdom of Song¡¯s.


    A young man in a shirt walked out onto a fishing boat. He stretched his back toward the rising sun and squinted, giving a hint to his subordinates toplete the ensuing matters.


    The young man looked very handsome. The scar on his cheek did not make his face appear menacing, but rather gave it a sense ofposure.


    Squinting at the rising red sun, he felt the moist sea wind that yed upon his face. Suddenly, an unprecedented satisfaction surged over him. Then he whispered, "It seems quite good to live life in this way."


    The young man¡¯s subordinates were haggling with the fishmongers and salt businessmen. But all that had nothing to do with him. He just silently looked at the rising sun.


    The people at the fishing port only knew that the young man was a big businessman from the north, dealing with kippers. However, none of them knew how sessful and famous the young man used to be before.


    He had been the Prince of the Yan Kingdom, and the most outstanding and powerful young man in the West-Hill Divine Pce, and the handsome son of God who had nted several peach blossoms on the threshold of the Knowing Destiny State.


    Today, however, he was just a fishmonger.


    He was Prince Long Qing after all¡ª even though he had lost all his previous cultivation after being shot through the chest by Ning Que, and hadpeted for food with beggars in a deserted monastery.


    Even with no cultivation, he had his fists. And if his fists were not strong enough to fight against all the obstacles in the world, then he still had wisdom. Most importantly, he was alive, so he wanted to live better.


    Half a month witnessed him grow from being destitute to a gang leader by unifying all the beggar gangs inside and outside of the Capital Cheng of the Yan Kingdom. With a portion of the beggar gang¡¯s fortune and some loyal subordinates following him, he went to the Kingdom of Song, where he opened a wine shop. Within a short period of time, he managed to defeat all of his peers in the street and make his own shop dominant.


    After that, he sold everything from all the wine shops and teahouses to an official of the Kingdom of Song, asking for no profits. Having obtained 1,000 taels of silver, he began to engage in trade.


    He had a very good business selling kippers to the South Jin Kingdom or the Yan Kingdom from the Yue Kingdom.


    Sometimes Long Qing also sighed that he seemed to be good at anything that he engaged in.


    It took him such a short time to grow to be a big businessman. What else did he want?


    However, looking at the salted fish in the bamboo basket, he could not help wondering, "Even if I were to be the richest businessman in the world, what difference would there be between me and those fish in the basket?"

 Chapter 413: The Black Peach Flower Beside the Boat

    Chapter 413: The ck Peach Flower Beside the Boat


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    It wasmon to have emotions when facing the sea, but only a few people would have emotions when facing the salted fish. However, thinking about what had happened to him in the past year, even Long Qing couldn¡¯t help but sigh before the basket of salted fish.


    Yet, he was very clear that any emotion that was simr to his feeling now was too superfluous to him. He would again feel the unbearable pain and desperation which he tried very hard to ovee, so he decided to leave the fishing port silently.


    Suddenly, he stopped and slowly turned back. His delicate leather shoes slipped on the wet sticky ground slowly.


    On the sea, shone upon brightly by morning sunlight, there was a small boat which rose and fell with the waves. Long Qing still had much better eyesight than ordinary people. He saw a Taoist in indigo on the boat.


    The Taoist in indigo on the boat looked ordinary, with no special features. But Long Qing could not move his eyes away, as his body became extremely stiff because of great shock.


    The fishermen and stevedores, carrying heavy catches, walked through the slippery decks. The merchants were insufferably arrogant and bossy. They gave orders and urged their employees while smoking. The seabirds flew back and forth over the water and around the ship¡¯s bow. The fishing port of Yue Kingdom was still busy and noisy. It seemed that no one noticed the small boat.


    Long Qing looked silently at the boat and the Taoist on it, thousands of feet away. His eyes were disturbed by the fluctuations of the distant waves. He was no longer a cultivator, but his vision was still there. He was sure that the Taoist in indigo was a cultivator, but he could not identify the state of that cultivator at all. That Taoist was so powerful that even Long Qing who was once very powerful still could not identify the state he had attained.


    The Taoist in indigo on the distant boat stood at the bow with his hands sped behind his back. He looked up at the rising sun in the east. The entire person seemed to be melting in the reddish morning light.


    Long Qing looked at the back of the Taoist in indigo, and suddenly, he wanted to flee.


    At that moment, a calm and coercive voice sounded in his head.


    "Does ultimate satisfaction exist in the world?"


    ...


    ...


    The Taoist in indigo did not turn around. Naturally, Long Qing could not see whether he spoke or not, but Long Qing understood that the voice in his mind was a question sent by that Taoist.


    Listening to this question, his handsome eyebrows twisted slightly and he looked in pain. Looking down at a small shrimp that was struggling in mucus, he muttered and said,"What can I do if I can¡¯t be satisfied?"


    Then he raised his head and looked at the Taoist on the boat in the distance. He said with resentment and sadness, "The light has already abandoned me, and even the darkness does not bother to kill me. A good-for-nothing man like me can¡¯tin. What kind of life can I expect?"


    The voice of the Taoist in indigo sounded clearly again in Long Qing¡¯s head, even though he was thousands of feet away from him.


    "If you are bright, you can see bright things. If you are dark, you can see dark things. You have experienced so much in the past year. Have you not understood the real rtionship between light and darkness?"


    Long Qing remembered the dream when he climbed up the mountain at the Academy. It had made him extremely proud, brilliant but also feel pain and confusion. When he remembered the infinite golden light in his dream, he suddenly understood something, but his body also became chilly and started to tremble in the spring sun.


    "But that is not my initial belief."


    He stared at the Taoist in indigo. His trembling voice was like the wind blowing against the boat¡¯s stern. It spread coldly out of his lips and teeth, with endless despair.


    The Taoist in indigo did not turn around but still looked at the red rising sun with his hands sped behind his back.


    "Does belief make you satisfied?"


    Long Qing replied and said, "It used to."


    The Taoist in indigo was silent.


    Long Qing lowered his head and again looked at the struggling shrimp beside his feet. He asked in pain, "Is it really possible?"


    The Taoist in indigo said, "Yes."


    Long Qing asked in confusion, "Is it worth it?"


    The Taoist in indigo said,"It is up to you. If you are satisfied with your current situation, it¡¯s not worth it, but as long as you have a slight dissatisfaction, it¡¯s worth it. I¡¯ve always thought that there is no real satisfaction in the human world, so I think it¡¯s worth it in any situation."


    In the end, he returned to the initial problem.


    Long Qing forcibly suppressed his shock and confusion. He pondered desperately and twisted his eyebrows, recalling the past in a long silence, and guessing about his future.


    Was he really satisfied?


    In Capital Cheng, he led a group of baggers to loot food and conquer ces. He gained some money through stealing and cheating so that he could go to the Kingdom of Song to open a shop and start selling salted fish. If he continued like this, his life would be peaceful, and he would be an ordinary sessful businessman, marrying a beautiful and gentle wife, raising many children. After many years, when he became old and confirmed that no one from Yan Kingdom was after him, he would return to Capital Cheng secretly with his whole family and kneel beside the Imperial Road outside the Imperial Pce, to point at the emperor who was equally old, telling his grandsons that their grandfather had a good rtionship with the emperor, but he should have been the one sitting there.


    Then he would near his death and let his family carry him to the West-Hill Divine Kingdom to the divine mountain full of peach blossoms. He would join the crowd made of countless patients that came for help, and then he would lie weakly on a stretcher, watching the cold and arrogant cavalrymen of the Divine Hall ck deacons walking by, looking at the grand Taoist Temples on the mountain. Two lines of tears flowed on old wrinkled cheeks, and he would cry weakly and say,"I should have been the one sitting there."


    That kind of life was right. To have that kind of life, to do anything for it was worthwhile, even giving up his original belief and ept the most painful spiritual baptism.


    Long Qing stood in the morning lights beside the sea, and smelled salted fishes and the sea breeze. At that point, he lost his senses. He looked like a walking corpse without a soul. Suddenly, he kneeled down.


    With a crushing sound, his knees crushed the struggling shrimp in the mucus.


    He looked at the Taoist in indigo on the boat thousands of feet away. He kneeled and prostrated. His tears silently flowed on his face and he said with a trembling voice, "Please guide me."


    The voice of the Taoist in indigo sounded in his mind, "Follow me."


    Long Qing kneeled on the ground and felt confused. He did not know how to approach the boat, nor did he know how to follow the Taoist in indigo.


    When he looked up, he found that he was no longer at the fishing port but a vast blue sea. Seabirds dived into the water from time to time, sshing about.


    The Taoist in indigo was only two steps away from him.


    Not knowing when, he had boarded the boat.


    Long Qing looked at the Taoist in indigo standing at the bow. He was shocked and could not say a single word.


    When he caught a glimpse of what happened on the side of the ship, he couldn¡¯t help his pupils from shrinking.


    The South China Sea was much calmer than the East China Sea, but the wind and waves were still very strong. The ships that could sail in the South China Sea were very particr about their size and crafting. Before they were used in the construction, the shipbuilding wood must be piled on the shipyard for a long time to allow the wind, rain and sunlight to dissolve the stress in it.


    In other words, any shipbuilding wood was dead wood.


    However, at this time, the wood of the boat gave birth to a peach flower.


    Deadwood produced a new peach flower.


    It was a ck flower, trembling slightly in the sea breeze, and brightly shone upon by morning sunlight.


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 414: Under the Banyan, Beside the Pond

    Chapter 414: Under the Banyan, Beside the Pond


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In a little vige on the edge of the Great River Kingdom, a middle-aged man sat with a fishing rod under a banyan tree beside a little pond.


    His injured eyes were tightly bandaged up, preventing him from seeing the bubbles that indicated the locations of the fish or any movement on his line. An ordinary man would have be restless and depressed in such a situation, but he looked calm and peaceful as he held the fishing rod in a firm grip.


    The thin bamboo pole slightly drooped and bent into a curve. The fishing line went taut, and the sudden movement startled a nearby lizard. The sound of a tail swishing across theke mud could be heard as it scurried away.


    The middle-aged man tightened his right hand as he reeled in his catch. A slender fish was lifted out of the water, desperately struggling to escape back into the safety of the depths. He withdrew the rod and reached out his hand to take the fish off the hook, then threw the fish into the basket beside him. From his agile moves, one could tell this was a regr action for him.


    A woman wearing in clothes walked over to his back and happily praised him when she saw the day¡¯s catch in the basket. The woman looked ordinary, just a bit delicate. Her clothes were simple and in, yet clean. From only her appearance, she seemed just over 20, but the asional weary and numb look that appeared in her bright eyes added more than ten years to her age.


    The woman talked to him for a moment, then supported him as they walked to the back of the big tree.


    Behind the banyan tree was a small courtyard, with a tilted fence and a withered thatch roof. It looked like it had seen better years. Yet, the yard and the house looked tidy, exuding the same feeling that the woman gave to others.


    "It seems you¡¯ve really taken a liking to fish. If there¡¯s any of today¡¯s catch left, I can trade it for some of the distiller¡¯s yeast in town. I¡¯ve heard that it¡¯s a good lure for fish."


    The woman began talking as they reached the house.


    The man answered, "Actually, I¡¯m not really that interested in fishing. I just use it to calm down when I feel troubled. It¡¯s been quite a while since I couldst see anything, so I tend to get anxious."


    "Doctor Song had mentioned that your eyes will have recovered by today if there has been no problem with the treatment."


    The woman helped him to sit down on a chair and nervously looked at him. She wanted to untie the bandage but refrained from doing so, her fear of the result holding her back.


    Though the middle-aged man could not see anything, he seemed to have perceived her anxiety. He smiled andforted her, "If my eyes don¡¯t heal, I will ept it as my fate. So go ahead!"


    The woman¡¯s fingers nervously twisted as she scolded him, "Stop saying such ominous words! You will be all right, your eyes will see the world once again."


    With her trembling fingers, she began to untie the bandage, starting from the back of his head and carefully passing it by his ears. Oneyer after another, the bandage was slowly unwound.


    The sun cast its light into the small yard from above the banyan, lighting up Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s face. The part covered by the bandage looked a bit pale, for it had been hidden from the sunlight for a long time.


    His eyebrows were tightly knotted, eyes closed. Although he couldfort the woman by saying that it would be his fate, despite his easy-going nature, he still couldn¡¯t get rid of his own nervousness.


    The woman nervously scanned over his eyes with her head lowered. She cheered him up with her gentle voice, "It¡¯s ok. Open your eyes. Maybe you can see."


    With a flutter of his eyshes, the middle-aged man slowly opened his eyes for the first time a long while. In his deep eye sockets, one could see a pair of listless eyes.


    The woman was disappointed, her clothes visibly damp from the sweat caused by her great nervousness. She subconsciously loosened her cor as she asked with a bit of expectation, "Can you see now?"


    At that moment, a slight breeze passed through the branches of the banyan tree, causing a flutter of glimmering sunlight.


    A beam of light rested on his dim eyes, refusing to leave the contours of his iris, and thus his eyes became brighter and brighter. Just like the quivering of the fishing rod that caused ripples on the water, it all indicated a resurgent life.


    The things before his eyes became clearer and clearer.


    He saw a delicate-looking woman and her in clothes in the style of Great River Kingdom. He saw her nervousness and anxiety, as well as the crystal drop of sweat that slid down along her neck to between her plump breasts.


    He peacefully looked at her, saying, "I can see."


    The woman was excited. Suddenly she noticed his eyes resting upon her breast, so she turned aside shyly and hurried to tidy her clothes, trying to escape his gaze.


    He looked at her with a smile, his eyes filled with gratitude.


    If not for her careful treatment, her searching for medicine and doctors, and her endurance under the strange eyes of those vigers, his eyes could never have recovered this quickly.


    But he still didn¡¯t know who this woman was. This was the first time he actually saw her. From their previous conversations, he only knew she was a widow.


    "Thank you for taking care of me."


    He sincerely said.


    The woman tidied her clothes and slowly turned back, softly saying, "I still don¡¯t know your name."


    He answered, "I¡¯m Chao Xiaoshu. Chao with the character for dynasty, and Xiaoshu with the characters for small tree."


    His handsome and mature face left her both flurried and disappointed. She felt that he must be a man with quite a background behind him, and so would probably leave as soon as his eyes had healed.


    "This is all the money that¡¯s left."


    She thought of something and quickly fetched out a handful of taels of silver, handing them to over to Chao Xiaoshu.


    Thinking it over, Chao Xiaoshu epted the taels of silver, saying nothing.


    The woman felt somewhat happy, seeing that he didn¡¯t try to give her the taels of silver as a way to show his gratitude. She asked him to take a good rest, then went to boil water to make their evening meal.


    After supper, Chao Xiaoshu carefully took a bath, the first time he took one ever since his eyes were injured. He felt quite refreshed. He then put on the ordinary clothes of a farmer, which had been handed to him by the woman, who seemed very shy at the time.


    Walking out into the yard, he observed the flowing clouds in the dark sky, as well as the apparent halo around them. He knew it would take time for his eyes topletely recover, though he could see things fairly clearly now.


    Chao Xiaoshu narrowed his eyes at the thought of that sudden sword attack from the sky. Then he shook his head with a smile,menting that Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword, was indeed peerless.


    Despite being defeated under his sword, Chao Xiaoshu was calm, or even pleased, because it was only to be expected in his opinion.


    Different from the youngsters like Long Qing, Chao Xiaoshu had been immersed in the underworld in Chang¡¯an for many years. Although he was a real king of the underworld, he never persisted in pursuing the title of the strongest, so he had never been afraid of defeat. On the contrary, so long as he didn¡¯t die after being defeated, he would learn from the failure and make progress.


    Suddenly, a gentle pitter-patter awakened him from the memory of that fight against Liu Bai. It was the sound of a stream of water cascading down the smooth skin of the woman.


    Chao Xiaoshu didn¡¯t turn back to look into the house. Of course, he knew that if he were to turn around now, he would perhaps see a beautiful and charming silhouette framed against the window paper.


    He silently listened to the sound with a smile, somewhat immersed in it.


    After bathing, the woman walked into the yard and approached him.


    The fragrant aroma from her body gently overran Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s sense of smell.


    Water trickled down from her wet hair.


    Her clothes were damp, yet exuded the warmth of her body.


    The atmosphere was sultry and nebulous.


    ncing at the side of his face, she suddenly hugged him and said tremblingly, "Can you share your story with me?"


    Chao Xiaoshu quietly looked at her with his head lowered and replied, "My story is quite boring."


    The woman buried her head in his arms and murmured, "But it¡¯s a story of the world outside. I want to listen to it. At the very least, I want to have some stories to recall after you leave."


    Chao Xiaoshu raised his hand and softly fondled her wet hair, feeling her body be hotter and hotter.


    The woman secretly bit her lip. Then she took heart to raise her head as she tightened her arms around him. She reached her right hand into his clothes, trembling as she clumsily fondled him. Then she raised herself to the tips of her toes to touch his lips to hers.


    "I choose to be dissolute."


    She murmured with a slur.


    Chao Xiaoshu gently sucked her lips as his right hand slowly moved up from her waist. He grasped her beating chest through her thin clothes as he asked, "Will you still listen to my story?"


    Her face flushed, yet she didn¡¯t let go of him. She passionately kissed him back, murmuring, "I know you¡¯re about to go. I don¡¯t want to listen to stories. What I want is a memory with you."


    "I won¡¯t leave immediately."


    Chao Xiaoshu gently pushed her a bit away, kissed her forehead, and asked with an awkward smile, "How about telling you my story first?"


    A cool night breeze passed through the tilted fence and fumbled her thin clothes. The chill against her exposed skin made her sober. As she realized how shamelessly she had just behaved, her face blossomed into a burning scarlet hue. Yet, as she savored the remaining taste of his lips and his warm chest, she was unwilling to leave.


    "Don¡¯t you need to go back home?"


    "I¡¯m not in a hurry."


    Chao Xiaoshu answered her calmly. Although Chang¡¯an was a good home, where there were his friends, His Majesty, and his father, he was in no rush to return now. Because here it was peaceful. Herey that magnificent banyan. And here lived the woman who loved him.


    She half-heartedly argued back, "But your family will be worried about you."


    Chao Xiaoshu answered, "I will write letters to them."


    The woman felt embarrassed to some extent, remembering how she had thrown herself on him yet was refused. So, twisting her fingers, she turned around and hurriedly entered her house with the excuse of making the bed for him.


    The dimmp light shone upon the beautiful figure of the woman.


    With his newly recovered eyes, Chao Xiaoshu calmly admired that alluring and charming figure before him.


    That night, they still slept on different beds, but it was unknown who among them was tossing and turning, and who was wallowing in regret. The only sure fact was that the chirps of those insects were gentler and softer than they were before. Every so often there was the creaking of the bed board, which sounded like a moan.


    At dawn, a sudden hustle and bustle broke the quietness and tenderness of the small yard.


    Over a dozen vigers, led by a few elders, surrounded the small yard with pitchforks, hoes, and other such tools in their hands. Then they rudely plowed down the already tilted fence.


    The woman had been preparing breakfast. She wiped off the drops of sweat on her forehead and nervously looked at her fellow nsmen, trembling and trying to y up to them, "Fourth master, what can I do for you?"


    She was speaking to the gray-haired man at the very front of the mob. He was the n leader, and he wielded absolute authority over the vige and even the whole town.


    The n leader didn¡¯t answer her. Instead, he just red down at her indifferently, as if he was looking at a dead person.


    She was instead answered by a brawny man and several lumps of mud.


    "Adulterous bitch!"


    The brawny man severely scolded her.


    Those lumps of pungent mud had been thrown straight at her, dirtying her clean clothes and sullying her appearance.

 Chapter 415: Lets Go!

    Chapter 415: Let¡¯s Go!


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Telling from their reaction, the woman knew what she was most afraid of finally came to pass. Fear and grievance intertwined in her heart at the sight of the stinky mud on her clothes and at the thought of things that might happen. She couldn¡¯t refrain her tears and tremblingly asked the n leader, "What¡¯s wrong?"


    The brawny man furiously looked at her and yelled, "You allowed a man to live in your house! How dare you ask us why? How dissolute! You have brought shame to the whole n."


    The woman lowered her head in silence. She was panic-stricken and didn¡¯t know what to say. There was nothing between the man and her, but she knew they wouldn¡¯t trust her. And what¡¯s worse, she was clear that she was indeed dissolute, and she indeed had expected that something could happen between the man and her.


    The n leader coughed and prevented their rude behavior from continuning. He walked to the woman, looking at her lowered head, and meanwhile taking a nce at her plump breast, and then he sighed, "Linzi, although you are from the Yuelun Kingdom, did we treat you bad after you married to our vige?"


    With her head lowered, she said in a trembling and begging tone, "I¡¯m thankful to Fourth master and the other nsmen."


    Suddenly the n leader looked cold, and he said, "Chengge has died, and I have asked you to marry another one but you refused. You said you would preserve your chastity for him. So we didn¡¯t force you to remarry. But why do you have such an affair with that man?"


    The woman raised her head at his words. She nced at the brawny man and thought to herself sorrowfully, "You asked me to marry your son, how could I do that? Chengge had died after falling down the cliff when picking herbs, and he was just beside Chengge. Who knows what happened at that time?"


    At the moment, Chao Xiaoshu walked out.


    The vigers were enraged in an instant, seeing that he would dare to stay in her house and appear before them. They waved their hoes, preparing to hit him to death.


    But strangely the n leader prevented them.


    Chao Xiaoshu had been listening in the house for some time, and he knew what was happening. He had learned in Chang¡¯an that people in the Great River Kingdom were conservative. In some remote viges the status of women was extremely low. However, he never expected they would cause such a disturbance.


    He walked to the n leader and sincerely exined.


    The n leader shook his head emotionlessly, saying, "It concerns the reputation of our n, so how can we randomly forgive this dissolute woman?"


    Chao Xiaoshu calmly said, "If there is really something between us, will you also punish me?"


    After a moment of silence, the n leader looked at him and said, "I know you are from the Tang Empire, so you can just leave after apologizing to us and leaving us an amount of silver aspensation."


    Chao Xiaoshu nced at the trembling woman and asked, "How about her?"


    Hardly had the n leader opened his mouth when the brawny man severely said, "Drown her!"


    It seemed the vigers were extremely excited at the two words. Their thunderous cheers filled the small yard. They all shouted to drown her, strip her naked and beat her.


    Chao Xiaoshu looked around, to see the greedy and obscene expressions of those vigers and their twisted faces caused by excitement. He gently said, "It seems this kind of men can be killed."


    The small yard under the big banyan tree suddenly calmed down.


    It seemed that those nsmen had heard something, yet didn¡¯t believe what they had heard. The n leader suddenly became gloomy and looked at Chao Xiaoshu, preparing to say something.


    But hardly had he opened his mouth when Chao Xiaoshu turn to the woman and said softly, "Can I kill them?"


    The woman had just recovered from her astonishment.


    Already in despair, she was now seeing hope again from Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s gentle expression.


    Looking at those hateful nsmen, she suddenly trembled and cried, "I¡¯m not a native of the vige. I¡¯m from a forest of Yuelun Kingdom. I was sold to the vige by a human trader. My husband died, so they wanted me to marry the son of the n leader. But I don¡¯t want to marry him, I don¡¯t... "


    She never told an outsider about these things, because there was no outsider in this remote and secluded vige. Nobody trusted her. Even if they trusted her, they dared not show sympathy for her.


    So she wanted to know stories from the outer world, and expected to experience the outer world.


    She finally shouted out her inner thought, because she wanted to live.


    "That¡¯s good."


    Chao Xiaoshu looked at those people in the yard and asked, "Which of them should be killed?"


    Pointing at the gray-haired n leader and the brawny man, the woman quavered, "These two deserve to die the most."


    Chao Xiaoshu walked a few steps ahead.


    Those nsmen in the yard raised their steel forks and hoes, aiming to hit him.


    The fence was stamped on and scattered all over.


    Chao Xiaoshu picked up a bamboo de.


    And then he waved it twice.


    The heads of the n leader and the brawny man, flew away.


    Those nsmen were frozen at the scene, turning pale in an instant. Somebody shouted and then all of them crazily ran away, with no one caring about the two corpses leaning against the fence.


    "He killed them!"


    "Go and report it to the government!"


    The terrified and despaired shout sounded in the vige. It startled the fish in the pond, disturbed the birds resting on the banyan tree, breaking the peace and rule which hadsted for a thousand years in the vige.


    ...


    ...


    The headless corpses of the n leader and his son were still lying in the simple and crude yard.


    The woman looked pale, and was trembling. But her eyes were brighter than any other time in the past ten years.


    Chao Xiaoshu looked at her and asked, "Do you still want to live in this vige, on this yard?"


    The woman shook her head and murmured, "Never."


    Chao Xiaoshu said, "Thene with me."


    The woman surprisedly looked into his eyes, her eyes filled with joy. She nervously said, "Ok."


    She was too nervous to ask him where he would go. She would go with him anywhere he went, so long as she could leave this ce.


    But just at this moment, Chao Xiaoshu suddenly sank in silence, seeming to be hesitating about what he should say.


    The woman somewhat stiffened, and after a moment of silence she bitterly said, "Yes, I¡¯m dissolute and shameless, and how can you bring such a woman home? Please give me some taels of silver, and I will make a living by myself. See, I still have to borrow money from you, even though you may mock me."


    Chao Xiaoshu looked at her and said, "I give taels of silver only to that kind of woman."


    The woman turned pale and said bitterly, "I see. Although I¡¯m dissolute and wanted to throw myself at you, I¡¯m really unwilling to have your money by doing that."


    Chao Xiaoshu quietly looked at her eyes and said gently, "You¡¯ve misunderstood me. I meant I would only give money to my wife, so I wonder if you are willing to ept it."


    The woman took a long time to recover her from her astonishment.


    She rubbed her eyes, wanting to cry. But then she thought it would be disgraceful.


    Chao Xiaoshu smiled at her, then entered the house and packed their things up. Later he returned to the yard and said to the woman who was still in a daze, "Let¡¯s go."


    She took the package from his hands.


    Then they left.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que was thinking about three things.


    The first thing was, why Dao Shi, the sadhu, could so urately find him in Chang¡¯an City. Were there any tricks behind it? The second thing was, if after the Sword Garret challenged the Academy and Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s sword was taken, with the Judicial Department of the Divine Hall appearing afterwards, then why Chao Xiaoshu was not in the Sword Garret? Where did he go? The third thing was, how to deal with the request from West-Hill Divine Pce to take Sangsang away.


    Both of thest two things had something to do with West-Hill Divine Pce. Recalling Cheng Lixue¡¯s attitude towards the Judicial Department, he thought he¡¯d better go to Southern Gate Temple, where he could at least ask about these matters.


    Now the Great Divine Priest of Revtion was in the Southern Gate Temple. Before negotiating with such a bigwig, they should first unify their ideas, thus making their arguments more persuasive.


    "A girl should have dreams. Look at Tao Addict. Her dream is quite simple, which is, persisting to the end on the road of cultivation. And look at Situ Yn. She just wants to be the greatest female general. And even Tang Xiaotang, that wimpy kid, aimed to be the most powerful woman in the world."


    Ning Que murmured behind Sangsang, yet Sangsang was squatting beside the well, attentively salting little yellow croaker fish. She didn¡¯t respond to him at all, and was also unwilling to discuss the issue with him.


    "A dream can make you aspire, which will further enrich your life. A woman without dreams is like a listless eyeball, which will reduce you to a lifeless salted fish."


    Ning Que looked at her thin figure and sighed, "Of course I¡¯m unwilling to let you go. But now that you are capable, it will be a pity for you to be upied with chores and trifles every day. I¡¯m afraid that when you grow old, you may be regretful for your current choice."


    Sangsangid the salted fish in the bamboo basket and washed her hands with the chill well water. Then she turned back and said, "I¡¯ve seriously thought about that, yet I still can¡¯t persuade myself to go to West-Hill."


    Ning Que asked, "Why?"


    Sangsang earnestly answered, "As I¡¯ve said before, who will look after you after I leave?"


    Ning Que said, "That¡¯s indeed a troublesome issue. It¡¯ll be simple to find some handmaidens, yet the problem is, I will feel ufortable when sleeping without you."


    After a moment he shook his head and sighed, "But, if the reason why the Great Divine Priest of Light disappeared from West-Hill Divine Pce is for keeping you doing housework for me, or because I couldn¡¯t sleep well without you, it will be recorded in history books. And I will definitely be dug out from my grave after I die."


    That night, they had a deep discussion on that issue, and didn¡¯te to a conclusion until midnight, when they became tired and fell asleep.


    ...


    ...


    The next morning, Ning Que and Sangsang were preparing to pay a formal visit to Great Divine Priest of Revtion in the Southern Gate Temple after tidying themselves up and having breakfast. Suddenly they vaguely heard the Music of Etiquette from outside the shop.


    The peaceful and moderate music gradually approached Lin 47th Street. There would be cheers and talks wherever the music came, following which there would be absolute silence.


    Ning Que was somewhat surprised. He pushed the door open and looked towards the entrance of the street. What he saw were petals all over the sky, which drifted down along with elegant music. A god chariot slowly went toward his direction under the protection of a solemn guard of honor.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion wasing.


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 416: Lets Meet in the West-Hill in Three Years

    Chapter 416: Let¡¯s Meet in the West-Hill in Three Years


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The Yulin Royal Guards of Tang and escorts of the Divine Hall stood around the divine carriage. They had serious expressions and their eyes vigntly moved around among falling petals.


    There were neither any remains of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, nor any mobs. However, wherever the Great Divine Priest of Revtion passed by, it attracted the attention of many. Some devout women and elders kept kneeling and kowtowing, whilst those standing respectfully lowered their heads and bowed. They even didn¡¯t dare to look at the old man behind the curtain of the divine carriage.


    The divine carriage entered Lin 47th Street and then stopped in front of the Old Brush Pen Shop, causing a heated discussion among the crowd in the alley. They envied the owner of the shop very much. It was difficult for them to believe the Great Divine Priest of Revtion was actually here. In fact, they didn¡¯t even know that another Great Divine Priest of the West-Hill once worked as a hiredborer in the shop.


    Yulin Royal Guards set a cordon at the entrance of the alley, keeping the crowd away. The escorts of the Divine Hall upied several crucial ces in front of the Old Brush Pen Shop. With the curtain raised, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion slowly walked out of the divine carriage.


    Ning Que and Sangsang, who were standing at the doorway of the shop, weed the old man.


    Only the Great Divine Priest of Revtion and Cheng Lixue went into the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    Ning Que invited the Great Divine Priest to take a seat. He wanted to ask Sangsang to make tea for them but thought against it, because Cheng Lixue had once told him asking Sangsang to do such chores was a kind of sphemy to the West-Hill and Taoism.


    Four cups of teay on the table, with steam slowly gathering and then dispersing.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion, whose deep wrinkles were like mountains and rivers, looked like a very ordinary elder. Only this gorgeous divine robe revealed his distinguished status.


    Ning Que had met many bigwigs, but it was still the first time he was going to negotiate with someone as grand as the Great Divine Priest of Revtion. Thus, he felt a little nervous and didn¡¯t know how to break the ice.


    Sangsang was also nervous. Though Ning Que had exined the inheritance rule the Great Divine Priest of Light hadst night, Sangsang was still confused. She couldn¡¯t understand why the Divine Hall still insisted on taking her back, since her teacher had turned against the West-Hill Divine Pce in the end.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion looked at Ning Que and his little handmaid, and suddenly smiled. As he smiled, his wrinkles deepened and his slightly-sunken eyes became calm and deep all at once; like an old well in the withered hill covered by irregr stones.


    Facing the eyes of the Great Divine Priest of Revtion, Ning Que felt naked, as if his clothes had vanished. His instincts told him that the old man had seen through him.


    It wasn¡¯t about the body. Instead, the intentional dissimtion on his heart had been seen through, and even his fate track was also naked right now. There was nowhere to hide!


    Ning Que controlled his vignce and said, "I am Ning Que of the Academy. Greetings, Great Divine Priest of Revtion."


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion responded, "Just take a seat."


    Ning Que took a seat opposite to the Great Divine Priest.


    It was silent in the Old Brush Pen Shop. As the owner, Ning Que knew that he should be the first one to talk, but he really had no idea what to say on the matter.


    The steam emanating from the teacup gradually disappeared, and a piece of green tea leaf floated up from the bottom of the teacup.


    Ning Que¡¯s throat felt dry and he said in a tight voice, "Can we take some more time to think about it?"


    Cheng Lixue, who was standing behind the Great Divine Priest of Revtion, frowned and unhappily said, "You still need to think? Mr. Thirteen, please stop dying it, OK?"


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion raised his right hand to stop Cheng Lixue, and then he said, "I have to go back to the West-Hill due to some affairs, but a decision must be made before I leave Chang¡¯an."


    Without noticing the affairs in the West-Hill mentioned by the Great Divine Priest, Ning Que was thinking of other things. He constrainedly smiled and said, "My lord is going to leave? Have you bought any local products yet?"


    Cheng Lixue had an ugly look on his face.


    But the Great Divine Priest of Revtion justughed and shook his head.


    The smile on his old face gradually disappeared, and those deep wrinkles began stretching. The Great Divine Priest of Revtion peacefully looked at Ning Que¡¯s eyes and said, "You are aware of her importance to the Divine Hall."


    Sangsang looked down at the tips of her shoes outside her skirt hemline and quietly moved two steps behind Ning Que. She hoped he could block her but was not very sessful.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion looked at Sangsang fondly and said, "She¡¯s the sessor of the light."


    Ning Que said in hesitation, "Sangsang is still very young. If she takes up the post of the Great Divine Priest of Light in the West-Hill, her status will be the same as yours. It sounds rather inappropriate."


    Cheng Lixue nced at the Great Divine Priest of Rtion and then exined in a low voice, "The session of the God is a long process. Sangsang has to learn Taoism doctrine first in the West-Hill, and then experience all kinds of things in the mundane world during the practice in the Taoist temples around the world. Only afterpleting these procedures could she inherit the post of the Great Divine Priest of Light. These preparations are called the training of administration."


    Then he went on to exin further, "It is because it takes a long time for Sangsang to be the Great Divine Priest of Light that the Divine Hall is so worried and impatient now. It will be better if she can begin her training period as soon as possible."


    Ning Que suddenly asked, "Is she allowed vacations?"


    Being a little shocked, Cheng Lixue thought to himself how would the Divine Hall allow such arrangement as if it were any other ordinary school?


    However, before he said anything, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion smiled an said, "Yes."


    Ning Que looked at the Great Divine Priest of Revtion and asked another question, "How long?"


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion said, "As long as she spends more than half her time on the Peach-Mountain of West Hill."


    Ning Que asked again, "And she can leave the West-Hill during the vacation?"


    "Yes."


    "Can I go to the West-Hill to visit her?"


    "Yes."


    "If she bes the Great Divine Priest of Light, can she still get married?"


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion, half-smiling, looked at him and said, "Yes."


    Cheng Lixue looked at the Great Divine Priest in surprise.


    Ning Que stopped asking the Great Divine Priest of Revtion questions after this.


    Ning Que said, "If this is true, I will agree."


    The atmosphere in the Old Brush Pen Shop became a little more rxed. Unexpectedly, Ning Que added, "But it doesn¡¯t mean she agrees with it, even if I do. Now, you need to persuade her."


    Cheng Lixue got angry and reprimanded him in a deep voice, "How dare you be so rude to the Great Divine Priest!"


    Ning Que said, "I¡¯m not being rude to the Divine Hall. If the Great Divine Priest said no to any one of the item I mentioned before, I wouldn¡¯t allow Sangsang to go to the West-Hill. However, my agreement doesn¡¯t mean I will make her go. It just means I will support her decision."


    Absolutely ignoring the conversation between Ning Que and Cheng Lixue, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion was just looking at Sangsang quietly.


    Sangsang lowered her head and gently said, "I don¡¯t want to go right now."


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion looked towards Ning Que quietly.


    Ning Que said, "I have discussed this with her for a long time now. After all, she¡¯s just a fifteen-year-old little girl, so I really will feel uneasy if she leaves me now. How about going to the West-Hill after she reaches adulthood?"


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion smilingly said, "Next year?"


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "In three years."


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion said, "ording to thew of Tang Empire, a female is considered a grown-up when she reaches sixteen."


    "Thew of Tang Empire indicates a female can get married when she is sixteen, but it does not mean she is an adult."


    Ning Que said, "In my view, one has enough life experience and wisdom to arrange his or her future life only after he or she reaches eighteen years old. That¡¯s why I insist on her going to the West-Hill in three years."


    "Three years..."


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion sighed lightly and looked at Sangsang who was behind Ning Que.


    It was a nce that made the wrinkles on his face deeper, as if mountains and rivers were reshaped by a heavy storm and became more precipitous. His eyes looked quieter and deeper too. The old well, which silently hid in the depths of the mountain, also became a few feet deeper.


    Sangsang was nervously waiting for an answer.


    Ning Que was more nervous than her.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion looked at Sangsang and smiled, "We¡¯ll meet in three years at West-Hill."


    After saying these words, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion stood up and walked out of the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    The Great Divine Priest got on the divine carriage, apanied by his escorts. A solemn atmosphere was left hanging in the air.


    The master and the little handmaid at the Old Brush Pen Shop looked at each other.


    That¡¯s it?


    Ning Que didn¡¯t understand why the Great Divine Priest of Revtion said thest words so definitively.


    We will meet in the West-Hill in three years.


    The Great Divine Priest was sure that Sangsang would definitely go to the West-Hill?


    ...


    ...


    Following the Great Divine Priest, Cheng Lixue also left the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    He got on the divine carriage and lowered the curtain, kneeling down behind the Great Divine Priest. He said in a low voice, "I don¡¯t understand. Shall we really go back to the West-Hill? We haven¡¯t even gotten a promise from Sangsang."


    "There is no power in verbal promises."


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion took a white handkerchief from his sleeve and then gently rubbed his canthi with it. As the snow-like handkerchief touched his skin, the wrinkles on his canthi were just like flowers, scattering.


    Cheng Lixue lowered his head and said confusedly, "Since we are already here, why did we leave so quickly?"


    Looking at the handkerchief that was as white as snow in his hand, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion said after a short silence, "Because the matter concerning the Judicial Department is more serious than I thought before."


    Cheng Lixue raised his head and said, "But ording to what you said several days ago, that serious incident of the Judicial Department may not be bad for the Divine Hall. The Revtion Department just carries out the order of Haotian. If we prevent the ident in advance, it would be the same as disobeying Haotian."


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion said, "We aren¡¯t going to prevent it happening after returning to the West-Hill. Instead, we are going to make sure that everything falls back on track after the incident."


    Cheng Lixue¡¯s eyes fell on the Great Divine Priest¡¯s handkerchief his body became stiff, because there were several patches of bloodstains on the handkerchief!


    He discovered that the Great Divine Priest¡¯s canthi were bleeding!


    "I¡¯ve seen the light on the Peach Mountain in three years."


    "So in three years, she will go to the West-Hill."


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion continued rubbing the blood flowing from his canthi calmly.


    Cheng Lixue, confused and shocked, asked, "What else did my lord see?"


    "Light is our closest partner. Just a nce almost made me blind. What else would I possibly see?"


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion was smiling as he said this.


    He folded his white handkerchief and then wiped the blood off his eyes.


    The white handkerchief was gradually dyed red by the blood in his eyes.


    The deep wrinkles on his canthi were also reddened.


    They were more like a barrennd soaked by blood.


    ...


    ...


    Before the diplomatic corps from the West-Hill left Chang¡¯an, Ning Que paid a visit to the Southern Gate Temple. He got a piece of very important information from Cheng Lixue that the attack of the Sword Garret was indeed relevant to the Judicial Department.


    He grew increasingly worried for Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s safety. As he was thinking of whether to leave for South Jin Kingdom to seek Chao Xiaoshu, he suddenly received a letter from the Great River Kingdom.


    He thought it was from Mo Shanshan and could not help be excited.


    Later he found it was posted by Chao Xiaoshu, which made him disappointed and his worry turned into anger.


    "Why don¡¯t you write some letters to us in advance if you¡¯re safe and alive? He¡¯s having so much fun out there that he dares to forget his father! What an idiot!"


    The middle-aged man in a bright-yellow robe waved his sleeves angrily and scolded.


    "Maybe Chao Xiaoshu was unwilling toe back after being attracted to the beautiful widow in a small vige. Indeed, only an idiot could do such a thing!"


    Looking at the letter in his hand, Ning Que ridiculed Chao Xiaoshu bitterly.


    Deep in the room of the Tang pce, the sound of someone screaming ¡¯idiot¡¯ could be heard from time to time.


    Looking at the angry expressions of His Majesty and Ning Que, Her Majesty couldn¡¯t helpughing.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 417: Legend of the Building (I)

    Chapter 417: Legend of the Building (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    When it came to idiots, there were two people in Chang¡¯an who liked to scoff others by calling them idiots. One was the emperor of the Tang, and the other one obviously turned out to be Ning Que.


    However, His Majesty ridiculed people aboveboard and boldly, regardless of the varying situations, while Ning Que was used to make cutting remarks when chatting in private with Sangsang, totally demonstrating his quality of being petty. Consequently, he felt very excited to outrageously mock Chao Xiaoshu as an idiot together with His Majesty in the Imperial Pce, spluttering with exhration.


    The word "idiot" could be heard repeatedly and constantly in the quiet hall. It amazed and amused Her Majesty, the pce maids, and eunuches, provoking them to smile surreptitiously behind their hands. Nevertheless, the scene was more or less embarrassing. Her Majesty winked to her maid to leave the hall quietly along with all the other maids and eunuches.


    Sometimeter, His Majesty and Ning Que finally vented their grievances of Chao Xiaoshu, gasping and stopping, and the sound of "idiot" began to fade.


    The emperor, picking up a square towel from the couch, wiped the sweat from his face and looked at Ning Que with satisfaction. He was sometimes constrained by being a wise monarch, but today heforted and pleased himself by finding someone who he could abuse another person with.


    . "The Divine Priest of Revtion didn¡¯t clearly exin the whole thing to me before leaving Chang¡¯an. What¡¯s your n?"


    The emperor tapped the table, beckoning Ning Que to drink some tea.


    Picking up the tea bowl, Ning Que, rather than drinking the tea at once, answered, "We tentatively decided to discuss again it in three years. If Sangsang would like to go to West-Hill at that time, then we¡¯ll go."


    The emperor asked, "Tell me about your little handmaiden. How did she suddenly be a daughter of Zeng Jing and then turn out to be a Great Divine Priest of Light?"


    After sipping the tea and moistening his throat, Ning Que poured out the tale beginning from the year that he picked up Sangsang beside the corpses up to their experience inter years.


    . Keeping silent for a while, the emperor sighed with emotion, and said, "Her experience is really legendary and rare, as is the mutual affection between the two of you. You¡¯d better cherish her."


    Ning Que nodded.


    Looking at him, the emperor asked, "Why didn¡¯t shee with you to meet me today?" "Why didn¡¯t shee with you to meet me today?"


    . Ning Que said, "She went to the Princess¡¯ Mansion. She has always had a good rtionship with Her Highness. Besides, the little prince misses her a lot if he does not see her for a few days."


    Hearing his exnation, the emperor frowned anxiously.


    Ning Que knew what His Majesty was anxious about. After a short while of silence, he said, "Although these things are affairs of state, they are ultimately family matters."


    Remaining silent for a short while, the emperor then asked, "Does Headmaster of the Academy have any idea?"


    Ning Que shook his head.


    The emperor sighed and said, "Not surprisingly, the master, being broad-minded, shouldn¡¯t be bothered by these minor troubles."


    Silence struck the hall for a moment.


    Sometimeter, the emperor looked into Ning Que¡¯s eyes and asked, "I¡¯m wondering what on earth the animosity between you and General Xiahou is about."


    . Shaking his head, Ning Que blurted out without forethought, "There had been no animosity until I went to the Wilderness."


    "It means that something happened in the Wilderness."


    . The emperor looked at him and said, "So you have to kill a military advisor in Tuyang City."


    . Ning Que knew that he was talking about the death of Gu Xi. Upon second thought, he said, "I don¡¯t know what are you referring to. It is a capital crime under thew of Tang Empire to kill military advisors without authentication."


    . The emperor stroked his beard and scoffed, "You even refuse to reveal any information to me. You are most likely the only cautious one in the Academy during these years."


    Allowing himself a wry smile, Ning Que said, "Certain questions should not be given a response."


    The emperor said, "Then give me a reason."


    . Ning Que said, "In the Wilderness, the subordinates sent by General Xiahou disguised themselves like those in the Horse Gang and tried to kill me. What¡¯s more, General Xiahou himself was waiting to kill me in the north of the Hn Sea."


    These two things were already known to the court by the secret guards and the Imperial Center Administration. However, apart from a reprimand, there was no additional punishment for Xia Hou.


    . The emperor put the square towel on the table and said, "You should be clearly aware that Mr. First was under my instruction, and surely you should understand what I meant."


    "I¡¯m not holding any grudge. I¡¯m just confused why those bigwigs from the imperial military are so unwilling to let me off and where their hostilityes from."


    Ning Que said, "In the beginning, General Xiahou tried to kill me in the Wilderness. I could understand that he was blinded by the allure of the ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll, but what about General Xu Shi? As an important minister of the Tang Empire, the old general attempted to prey on my little handmaiden and now he seems dissatisfied with me. I used to be a soldier of the Tang Empire, thus, it is beyond my understanding why he keeps a wary eye on me."


    Those words were very in.


    Taking into ount either Her Majesty¡¯s emotion or the stabilization of the empire, apart from the precaution against the West-Hill Divine Pce, His Majesty would surely not impose severe punishment on General Xiahou as long as he was willing to retire from the court. Besides, the Academy had agreed.


    Ning Que seemed to have epted that decision, but he wanted the emperor to know that he could never ept the vague threat from the Tang military. He wanted an exnation.


    . After a brief silence, the emperor said, "Although General Xu Shi has never suffered a single defeat, he can no longer raise his head in front of Youngest Uncle. It¡¯s natural that he feels hostility toward the Academy. As to why he is vignt against you, I really have no idea. Perhaps you need to ask him yourself."


    Ning Que thought that even though he was a student of the Second floor of the Academy, it was infuriating that he still had to question the head of the Tang military.


    The emperor did not allow Ning Que to immerse himself in thought for too long. Rising from the couch, lifting his eyebrows, and looking at Ning Que, he cleared his voice. "Did you bring the thing here?"


    Touching the hard object in his arms, Ning Que said, "Yes, I did."


    "Well, then I¡¯ll take you somece."


    Flicking his sleeves, the emperor walked out of the hall.


    ...


    ...


    Thete spring was the most charming time in Chang¡¯an. Strolling in the royal pce, people could easily appreciate the flowers in full bloom, the exuberant green leaves, the statickes without a wave, and one or two pavilions off in the corner.


    The emperor took only Ning Que with him instead of any retinue or bodyguards, leaving the pce in the depths of the royal garden.


    Along the road, the eunuches and pce maids all backed off to either side with reverence and in silence when meeting them, and then they looked up at them, amazed and puzzled.


    The people in the pce all were quite astute, and they absolutely knew that the young man wearing ck beside the emperor was the legendary Sir Ning, but they did not know where His Majesty would go with Ning Que and why there were no followers apanying them.


    In the depths of the royal garden was a two-story wooden house. Although it wascquer-coated and looked very exquisite, it seemed a little shabby whenpared with the pce in the distance.


    The emperor took Ning Que to the front of the wooden house and said, "Here we are."


    Outside the house were dense trees and flourishing wildflowers that had not been pruned for a long time. Looking at the grass growing through the cracks in the paving, Ning Que thought that there would be very few peopleing.


    Then he raised his head, looking around. When he saw the wall of the royal pce, he was sure that the house was not only in the center of the royal garden, but also in the center of the royal pce.


    Pushing the door open, the emperor walked in.


    Ning Que followed behind him.


    After entering the house, the emperor went downstairs rather than going upstairs.


    A dark channel stretched deep underground.


    Looking at it with raised eyebrows, Ning Que thought that it was indeed the most important ce in the Tang Empire with nothing umon.


    ...


    ...


    Shining items such as luminous pearls were embedded in the stone wall of the channel, making people feel reassured instead of afraid.


    Following His Majesty, Ning Que went downstairs. Looking at those luminous pearls, he thought that he could probably buy the Building of Pines and Cranes with any one of them. Recalling the appearance of the wooden house upstairs, he increasingly believed that the designer of it was really frowsty coquettish.


    Thinking about these things, he suddenly looked up into the stone wall vigntly with his pupils shrinking. He saw several deep lines ahead of him from the shine of the pearls.


    The aura contained in those lines was absolutely not only peaceful and fair, but also cold and strong. It seemed that it could crush the channel into powder as long as it was emitted.


    Feeling it clearly, Ning Que gasped in surprise. As a talisman cultivator, he could surely understand that those lines were very strong Fu characters, but they were iplete. Those existing lines on the stone wall were part of the original Fu characters.


    Looking at these lines, he calcted how long that they had existed. He wondered with the shock what kind of state that the predecessor carving those lines a thousand years ago had reached as he was able to maintain the power of Fu to the present day. It was not even certain if a Divine Talisman Master like his teacher could do so or not.


    . The emperor noticed his expression as he was looking up at the stone wall. After a moment of silence, he said with emotion, "When my father took me here for the first time, I was as shocked as you are. I can feel the strength of these Fu characters, but I¡¯m usually unwilling to visit this ce."


    "What¡¯s the trigger for these Fu characters?"


    Worthy of being the sessor of Master Yan Se, Ning Que raised the most critical question. How did the predecessor carving these lines manage to keep the power of Divine Talisman after his death, even if he was a Divine Talisman Master? What should be known was that not all the Nation Masters of the Tang were Talisman Masters, as the present Li Qingshan was not.


    The emperor said, "There is no trigger, anyone whoes here without permission will be attacked and killed by these Fu characters."


    . Ning Que asked puzzledly, "No exception?"


    . The emperor nodded, saying repeatedly, "Yes."


    Ning Que could not help bursting intoughter and said, "We¡¯re people, aren¡¯t we?"


    . The emperor alsoughed, but after a short while, he stopped to say, "I¡¯m the emperor of Tang Empire with the Great Seal in hand, protected by royal ancestors, thus, these Fu characters can¡¯t hurt me."


    Ning Que said, "And what about me?"


    The emperor said, "You are now the owner of these Fu characters."


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 418: Legend of the Building (II)

    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Conflicting emotions crossed Ning Que¡¯s face when he heard His Majesty¡¯s words. He raised his hand subconsciously and touched the hard object beneath his ck Academy uniform.


    The dark tunnel underneath the building was not long. One could reach the deepest point of it and reach an empty underground hall without walking for long.


    Ning Que was mentally prepared for what he was about to see today. However, he did not expect the hall to be devoid of anything. The ground extended towards four corners until it disappeared into the darkness as if the space was endless. There was nothing else other than dust.


    Unlike what he had imagined, there were no curious treasures, armors or divine weapons. There were no weird creatures either, and he did not see any trace of tactical arrays. The ground was clean and empty, it made one¡¯s heart palpitate.


    This floor wasid with seamless granite. Who knew what kind of skills the craftsmen had employed when building the royal pce.


    Ning Que raised his head to look at the luminous pearls hanging from the ceiling like stars. He also spotted marks on the walls made by men and was impressed by the wits and mobility of mankind before the age of Tang.


    The Emperor brought Ning Que up the clean rocky surface and into the hall.


    Their steps whirled up theyers of dust that hadid dormant for thousands of years.


    The Emperor stopped in the middle of the stone surface.


    Ning Que noticed that there was a hole in the ground that had been seamless.


    The sides of the little ck hole were smooth and melded perfectly with the ground. It was only as deep as one¡¯s palm.


    The Emperor said, "You know what to do."


    Ning Que looked at the hole and suddenly asked, "That is the array eye?"


    The Emperor replied, "No, the one you¡¯re holding is the array eye."


    Ning Que was shocked beyond words.


    He had always thought that the array eye was an eye and that the object in his arms was the key to it. He had only realized that the array eye had always been with him, and felt frightened.


    After a moment of silence, he ced the object in his arms to the side and began to unravel the cloth wrapping it.


    The cloth was a scrap piece that Sangsang used for shoe soles and was very sturdy. Sangsang had wrapped it with multipleyers, so it took Ning Que a long time before hepletely unwrapped it.


    A pestle-shaped objectid calmly on the cloth.


    The pestle was made from a strange material. It was like metal, but also like a type of stone. It exuded coldness but its surface was warm and moist like jade. There was aplex pattern engraved on it.


    This pestle-shaped object had always been guarded by Master Yan Se in the past decades.


    Master Yan Se had given the object to Sangsang before his battle with the Great Divine Priest of Light. He had asked her to turn it over to Ning Que, which was why it was in his hands now.


    The Emperor looked at the pestle-shaped object on the ground silently. There was a trace of sadness on his face and he looked as if he was reminiscing about the past. Perhaps he had thought of Master Yan Se.


    Ning Que held the pestle and felt the moisture and coolnessing from it. He felt a little nervous and put his left hand on it as well. He took a deep breath, steeled himself and forced his hands not to tremble. Then, he slowly pushed the pestle into the hole.


    The pestle in his hands fell into the ground inch by inch. Ning Que did not feel any resistance, but felt that the ground was transmitting a slick feeling.


    There was a click when the pestle touched the bottom of the hole as if it was locking the pestle in. Half of the pestle was still exposed above ground. The patterns engraved on the surface of the pestle made it look like a carved flower.


    Ning Que did not know what was about to happen next. He moved back a couple of steps subconsciously, wanting to move farther away from it.


    However, the Emperor did not look rmed. He looked at the part of the pestle that was sticking out silently.


    Ning Que stopped beside the Emperor.


    After a moment.


    The segment of the pestle above ground suddenly lit up. To be more specific, the undecipherable patterns on the pestle lit up like a flower bathed in sunlight.


    Theplicated patterns glowed brighter and brighter and the light reached the bottom half of the pestle. Even the granite floors were bathed in the light, so much so that the fine lines of the rock could be seen.


    The light on the patterns solidified and became something like a luminous liquid. It began to flow through the lines, looking exceptionally beautiful.


    A crack silently appeared on the granite floors by the pestle.


    The crack spread at an incredible speed and crossed where Ning Que was standing in the blink of an eye, shocking him. Then, he realized that the crack was not truly a crack, but was a groove formed by the ground depressing.


    Many grooves formed on the previously clean and empty floors.


    More and more stone grooves appeared, and they grew closer and closer. It looked like an invisible knife had scratched several straight lines in the smooth shiny floors and split it into countless segments.


    The luminous liquid in the pestle flowed through theplex patterns and into the stone grooves by the side. Then, they flowed in the direction of the stone grooves like a stream. However, there was no stream like this in the world that could flow as quickly as the luminous liquid and then slow down when it reached the sides of the floor surface.


    It was unknown how much light was hidden in the pestle, but it continued to flow towards the ground without stopping. After a moment, the entirework of grooves lit up.


    Ning Que looked at the incredible sight before him, and a nervous grave look crossed his face. His eyes lit up and his gaze followed the movement of the luminous liquid in the stone grooves.


    The grooves at the corners were the deepest and held the most liquid. The four long lines surrounded the ground. The image was like that of a city.


    There was a groove in the middle that was very deep and wide. It shone the brightest and looked like a street.


    "Is this the Vermilion Bird Avenue?"


    Ning Que muttered to himself as he looked at the stone groove.


    The Emperor looked at Ning Que¡¯s expression and smiled gently.


    Suddenly, the calm luminous light in the stone groove rolled violently as if it was being boiled by a fire beneath the ground.


    Ning Que¡¯s expression turned grave.


    There was a faint buzz like numerous flowers blooming, or like the breathing of numerous trees, or like the cheering of numerous people.


    In actuality, it was the luminous liquid in the stone groove evaporating.


    The vaporized gases pervaded the air in the temple and gently swayed like clouds. Then, unable to resist the attraction to the stone grooves on the ground, they slowly converged into rays of light.


    The lines and surfaces of these beautiful and pure rays of light formed a three-dimensional image on the ground. There were numerous gleaming buildings that looked insignificant but real at the same time.


    Ning Que looked at the pce formed by luminous light before him, the Yanming Mountain that reached his waist and the Wanyan Tower to his right that reached his knees. He looked at the thick city walls that were bathed in light and was so shocked he could not speak.


    This was a miniature Chang¡¯an.


    But this city was real and alive.


    The Emperor walked out.


    Ning Que followed him, and when his feet stepped on the image of the Southern Gate Temple, his body stiffened slightly. When he stepped over the houses in the west, he grew wary and felt as if he had turned into a giant and might cause destruction should he not be careful. It was lucky that the lines and surfaces formed by light were not connected to reality and nothing happened when he touched them.


    Ning Que felt many different emotions as he walked through the miniature Chang¡¯an formed by light. He was very surprised as he looked at the familiar architecture and sights. He even found Lin 47th Street and the Old Brush Pen Shop. It was the size of a box.


    He finally walked out of the miniature city behind the Emperor. Ning Que felt much more rxed and he breathed out holding his chest.


    The Emperor looked at the miniature city and said, "Chang¡¯an City, in fact, is a big array."


    Ning Que had heard Master Yan Se mention this.


    "It is the greatest big tactical array in the world. It is a God-stunning Array."


    The Emperor pointed at the pestle a distance away and the pce beside it. He said, "The depths of the building we are standing in right now is the array center of this big tactical array."


    Then, he pointed at the widest, deepest and brightest stone groove and said, "That array root is the Vermilion Bird Avenue. The four walls of Chang¡¯an city are also array roots. The city wall archway is the gateway to life."


    "There are numerous Divine Talismans hidden in this big tactical array. The statue of the Vermilion Bird is thergest of all. Wei Guangming had avoided it when he masked his aura and hid in Chang¡¯an. Had he dared to show his State in the city, the big tactical array would have gone after him immediately."


    Ning Que listened intently.


    Then, the Emperor pointed at theke beneath the Yanming Mountain in the south. He said, "It wasn¡¯t easy to build this big tactical array in Chang¡¯an. And it wasn¡¯t easy to protect it either. The imperial court had spent arge amount of money in building the Yanming Lake, but it had nothing to do with the citizens of Chang¡¯an. It was to fix the big tactical array. The Imperial Center Administration had always been in charge of it."


    "The God-stunning Array had existed for thousands of years, but had never been activated. However, every Emperor in the Tang Empire would protect this big tactical array at all cost. Do you know why this is so?"


    The Emperor looked at Ning Que.


    Ning Que said, "That is because it is thest sanctuary of the Tang Empire.


    "Sanctuary is a good description."


    The Emperor said calmly, "With the presence of this big tactical array, Chang¡¯an does not have to worry. The Tang can be reborn in mes even if it falls apart."


    Ning Que said, "Master had once told me that if I ever had to activate the God-stunning Array, it would mean that the Tang Empire has encountered the greatest danger yet."


    "That is why this big tactical array had never be activated."


    The Emperor said, "As long as it continues to exist, no matter whether it is activated or not, Chang¡¯an would be safe. Then, the Tang Empire would be safe."


    Ning Que had seeded in ascending the mountain. He had been invited to the pce after entering the Second floor of the Academy. The Emperor had said that he would take him to see something in the future. That day was here and he had finally seen it.


    Master Yan Se had once brought him to the city towers to get an overview of the city. He said that he would leave the big tactical array in Ning Que¡¯s hands. Master Yan Se had since passed on and he finally had to take up the responsibility.


    He looked at the city of Chang¡¯an before him, and millions of thoughts streaked through his mind.


    ...


    ...


    --

 Chapter 419: Being Able to Grasp It, but Unable to Let It Go

    Chapter 419: Being Able to Grasp It, but Unable to Let It Go


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Master Yan Se had once said that Chang¡¯an was a big tactical array and also a talisman. And a talisman was an essay. Ning Que looked at the City of Chang¡¯an before him. His eyesnded on theparatively red light which was south of the stone groove, and he thought that this was probably the seal that one would use to imprint the essay.


    The bright red light was the painting of a Vermilion Bird. As Ning Que¡¯s gazended on it, the light distorted slightly, as if it had sensed something.


    In that moment, Ning Que vaguely understood how to activate the big tactical array in Chang¡¯an. It was so simple that he felt alert and uneasy.


    After leaving the shabby two-story wooden building, Ning Que and the Emperor crossed the imperial gardens, where they were greeted by the respectful gazes of the eunuchs and pce maids. They continued on to the imperial study.


    It was silent inside the study.


    Ning Que held the array eye pestle wrapped in cloth. It felt heavy in his hands, and after a moment, he spoke. "I am worried that I cannot do it."


    The Emperor looked at him and said, "You are Master Yan Se¡¯s only disciple. The Headmaster of the Academy has agreed that you represent the Academy entering the human realm. Who besides you can take it, if you don¡¯t?"


    Ning Que said, "Am I really to be the Nation Master in the future? Second Brother and Master hade to an agreement that I am only his disciple in cultivating talismans. I am not a member of the Southern Gate Temple."


    "Does the Tang Nation Master have to be a Taoist from the Southern Gate Temple? It¡¯s true that his has been the case for centuries for the sake of the West-Hill Divine Pce. But that doesn¡¯t make it a fixed rule. And don¡¯t forget, you are a disciple of Master Yan Se. The West-Hill Divine Pce cannot find fault with your status."


    The Emperor said, "Your tone suggests that you do not want to be the Nation Master."


    Ning Que replied, "The West-Hill Divine Pce wants to take Sangsang back to seed the position of Great Divine Priest of Light. I feel that something is off about this. And now, I¡¯m going to be the Nation Master of Tang, which makes me even more suspicious. "


    He said bitterly, "Now that I think about that, I would rather sell calligraphy in the Old Brush Pen Shop."


    "Qingshan is happy being the Nation Master and he doesn¡¯t look like he¡¯s going to die soon. Whether you will take over the position as Nation Master will be decided in the future, so you don¡¯t need to worry about it now."


    The Emperor changed the subject suddenly and said, "Talking about selling calligraphy. Ning Que, your calligraphy hasn¡¯t been seen in the market for a few days. Come,e, since you are in the pce today, write some for me."


    Ning Que nced at the Emperor and thought about how he was forced to give some calligraphy works to the Emperor for free every time he came to the pce, and if Sangsang knew about it, she would be totally heart broken.


    However, the Emperor chose his brushes, ground his ink and served him personally. Any calligrapher would find it hard to refuse with this kind of treatment.


    He sighed helplessly and walked to the table.


    There was a knock on the door of the imperial study.


    The Empress entered slowly, holding a te of food.


    Ning Que bowed slightly and retreated to the side.


    "Eat something first."


    The Empress smiled and pulled the Emperor to the tea table. She ced a bowl of yogurt in his hands and walked to Ning Que¡¯s side. She rolled up her sleeves and held up the ink stick, "Let me grind the ink."


    Ning Que thought to himself that he wasn¡¯t a free-spirited person like Li Taibai. Even though the Empress was buxom, she wasn¡¯t a fast woman like Yang Yuhuan, and what was this? He refused her at once politely.


    The Empress smiled gently and said to him in a mocking tone, "You don¡¯t mind it when His Majesty grinds your ink, but you do not dare to let me do it. Does this mean that in your eyes, I am scarier than the Emperor?"


    The Emperorughed out loud and pointed at Ning Que. He said, "She often grinds my ink when I write calligraphy. I shall let you enjoy such treatment today."


    What kind of treatment? The treatment only an Emperor should have?


    Ning Que smiled bitterly and did not refuse again. He stood by the table and waited calmly. He thought of what the Empress had said and felt that it was a little odd.


    He did think that the Empress was scarier than His Majesty.


    The Saintess of Diabolism had managed to be the Empress of the Tang Empire, the strongest nation in this world that was shone upon by Haotian Divine Light. This was odd and terrifying no matter how he looked at it.


    Furthermore, the Empress was Xia Hou¡¯s own younger sister.


    Ning Que looked at the silhouette of the Empress and was silent.


    ...


    ...


    The Emperor had stayed in the imperial study because he wanted to admire the calligraphy of Ning Que.


    The Empress and Ning Que left the imperial study and headed to the imperial gardens.


    The Empress stopped beneath a cherry-apple tree. She waved her hands and signaled for the pce maids to leave before turning to look at Ning Que.


    Ning Que knew that the Emperor had made an excuse to leave him and the Empress alone. Of course, it was not some absurd reason, it had something to do with the great general in Tuyang City. However, he did not understand why the Empress would do this personally. Wasn¡¯t she worried that others would find out?


    This is because he did not understand the rtionship between the Emperor and Empress. Or perhaps, one could say that he had never believed that a rtionship like that of a regr husband and wife could exist in the pce.


    The Empress was beautiful, charming and gentle. Her beauty outshone that of the cherry-apple tree.


    Ning Que thought that she indeed deserved the title of Saintess of Diabolism. She was indeed beautiful.


    The Empress looked at him quietly and said, "Has His Majesty told you?"


    Ning Que said after a short moment of silence, "I do not understand what you mean."


    The Empress said calmly, "General Xiahou."


    Ning Que nodded.


    The Empress said, "You should know about my true identity now."


    Ning Que shook his head, and confusion could be seen on his face.


    The Queen smirked and said, "You¡¯re such a naughty child. I do not understand why the Headmaster of the Academy would take you as a student."


    Ning Que smiled and said, "Alot of people have asked that question."


    The smile on the Empress faded, and she looked at him calmly and proudly. She said emotionlessly, "Xia Hou is my big brother. I was once the saintess of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    Ning Que had already found out this so-called secret of the Tang Empire in Tuyang City when he heard the conversation between Second Brother and Xia Hou. However, he did not expect that the Empress would acknowledge it tantly without any cover.


    That was why he was extremely shocked.


    The Empress looked at him and said, "I am very curious about what happened between you and Xia Hou. He is ruthless, and enjoys killing, especially on the battlefield. However, he is not the idiot that His Majesty and you believe that he is. He knows very well that it is not in his favor to kill the disciple of the Headmaster of Academy."


    Ning Que spoke after a bout of silence, "Two years ago at the Northern Mountain Road on Min Mountain, when General Xia Hou¡¯s subordinates attempted to kill Princess Li Yu, I was there."


    The Empress parted the begonia branches before her and walked into the imperial gardens with her hands behind her back.


    Ning Que followed her and looked at her back with appreciation.


    When they arrived by the calmke and stood before the flowering trees, the Empress said, "He did this behind my back. I even suspect that it was the Divine Hall that used his name to do it."


    She turned around and looked at Ning Que quietly. Then she said, "You are a cultivator now. You should know that if it was me or General Xia Hou who had actually ordered the attack, you and Li Yu would have not survived."


    Ning Que thought of the two cultivators in the upper Seethrough State beside Xia Hou and agreed silently. He said, "If this incident was arranged by the Divine Hall, Your Majesty would not be able to find any evidence since they belong to General Xia Hou anyway."


    The Empress smiled and replied, "Perhaps I might not be able to convince Lee Yu, but I guess that you, at least, would change your mind about what happened at the Northern Mountain Road two years ago."


    Ning Que said, "Lin Ling wanted to kill me in the Wilderness."


    He knew that the Empress would definitely know who Lin Ling was. She would also know about the incident, where they were ambushed by the Horse Gang, so he did not need to exin too much.


    The Empress said, "I still don¡¯t think that the incident with the Horse Gang has anything to do with Xia Hou."


    Ning Que replied, "I agree with Your Majesty. I don¡¯t think that Lin Ling informed General Xia Hou before doing it. But after the incident, Xia Hou admitted that he had attempted to kill me again north of Hn Sea."


    The Empress said, "Lin Ling would not do anything that would harm the interests of Xia Hou. He would not attempt to kill you unless he knew that only either you or Xia Hou would survive."


    Ning Que shook his head after a moment of silence. He said, "I used to only be an ordinary soldier in the City of Wei. I had never seen General Xia Hou, and he had never seen me. We have no other grudges besides these two incidents."


    The Empress looked into his eyes and asked, "Are there no other grudges?"


    Ning Que replied, "Yes."


    The Empress bent her knees slightly and bowed.


    Ning Que was greatly shocked and moved away to avoid her bow. He asked hurriedly, "Your Majesty, what is this for?"


    "What happened before has already been handled by Mr. First. Besides that, if there is really no other grudge, can Mr. Thirteen allow him to retire peacefully for my sake."


    The Empress remained in a half-bent bow before the flowering trees in a demure manner.


    ...


    ...


    Walking on the crowded Vermilion Bird Avenue, Ning Que looked outwardly calm, but his emotions rippled violently. The God-stunning Array that the Emperor had brought him to see and the bow that the Empress had given him were all pressures that he could not bear.


    The Empress had even mentioned Mistress Jian in the imperial gardens. Ning Que only remembered the rumors in Chang¡¯an then, and remembered that the two women were as close as sisters.


    All these did not affect his emotions.


    What had truly affected his emotions were other things.


    The war in the northern Wilderness was at a stalemate. The Tang army did not care about victory, and problems had arisen within the West-Hill Divine Pce. It seemed that they might just call for a truce and resume the war in the future.


    This meant that Xia Hou would return in autumn.


    Ning Que had long known that Xia Hou was from a Deste Man tribe. He naturally understood why the Northeast Border Military was so gentle in this war.


    Xia Hou was not as gentle as he was being now toward other enemies.


    Ning Que was no longer afraid of Xia Hou due to the support from the Academy. However, he did not know what to do after Xia Hou¡¯s return.


    His Majesty had tried to give him hints in the pce, and the Empress had personally asked for a favor. They had done this not because they were afraid that he, a cultivator in the Seethrough Realm, could stir up any trouble. They just did not want to involve the Academy in this matter and stir up even more trouble about Xia Hou¡¯s retirement.


    The Academy respected thew of the Tang Empire and the Headmaster of the Academy prohibited all students from interfering in any court matters. Eldest Brother had allowed Xia Hou to retire and it seemed that Ning Que¡¯s revenge was at its end unless he used thest method.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 420: The General (I)

    Chapter 420: The General (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    That was the method that the Headmaster had taught him with a rod on the balcony of the Building of Pines and Cranes. Eldest Brother had also taught him a vague lesson about it in the Wilderness. He had also thought of that method when he was imprisoned in the cliff cave.


    The method was simple, clear and was filled with power. However, from another respect, one could also say that it was a foolish one. It waspletely at odds with Ning Que¡¯s take on life, which appeared bright on the surface but was actually dark inside.


    Standing on the street of Chang¡¯an in the slowly darkening spring day, Ning Que thought about what would happen after autumn. In a while, he felt passionate, and then he felt sad. He did not notice a cloud drifting from the north.


    "Are you Mr. Thirteen?"


    Ning Que turned around to see a man bowing to him respectfully. The man wore ordinary clothes, but the clothes did not hide the unique tough aura that belonged to someone from the military.


    He had be a famous person in Chang¡¯an sincest spring. But there weren¡¯t many who have seen his face and could recognise him on the streets.


    Ning Que was a little wary, especially due to the identity of the other person.


    The man¡¯s next words state his identification.


    "General Xu Shi would like to invite you over."


    The Tang Empire was renowned for its military power and martial strength and it counted on its military force to unite the whole country. Naturally, the people of the Tang Empire respected those from the military and revered the four great generals of their empire.


    Defender-general of the State, Xu Shi, had fought for the empire on the battlefield for decades and had gained countless victory and glory. He conquered numberless territory for the empire. His efforts in gaining more territory for the empire were unparalleled. Even Xia Hou, who had built his great reputation in the recent years could notpare to him. He was the most highly regarded person in the military of Tang no matter in battle experience or in reputation.


    Ning Que knew that the most powerful general in the military did not have a good impression of himself. He did not know the exact reason for his bad impression, but he knew that he would definitely meet the general eventually. He just did not expect he would do that today, and did not expect himself to be followed by the Tang military just as he left the pce.


    General Xu Shi did not choose the Military Ministry, but had chosen the General¡¯s Mansion near the Vermilion Bird Avenue as the meeting ce. It meant that this was a private conversation.


    Ning Que frowned slightly as he followed the man into the looming General¡¯s Mansion. He was aggravated by the chilling aura exuded by the trees and rocks in the mansion.


    Entering the depths of the General¡¯s Mansion, he saw the general sitting by a desk on a quiet tform.


    The old general did not wear his court uniform or his official robes, or his armor as well. Instead, he put on a simple cloth shirt. He was not gardening or sharpening his sword. Instead, he was eating.


    The dishes on the table were simple. There were two bowls of brown rice, a bowl of pork belly and three slices green vegetables.


    The man who brought Ning Que into the mansion left silently.


    Ning Que stood outside the tform. After a moment of silence, he went up the stairs and bowed slightly to the general.


    The old general said, "Sit."


    Ning Que tidied his Academy uniform and sat facing the general.


    The old general said, "I did not think that you¡¯de so quickly. Please, allow me to eat before we speak. Mr. Thirteen, please forgive me for not treating my guest in proper manners."


    Ning Que lowered his head and said, "General, please do not say that. It makes me feel stressed."


    The general did not say anything else and continued to finish his food concentratedly.


    The old general¡¯s hair was white and his slightly tanned face was full of wrinkles. He was slightly hunchbacked. In the ordinary cloth shirt, he looked like any old man on the streets of Chang¡¯an. However, when he used his chopsticks to pick up the meat, it looked like he was holding a riffle and piercing it through his enemy¡¯s chest. He looked incredibly mighty.


    The general might be old, but he wasn¡¯t an old general.


    A general was a general.


    Especially before his enemies.


    The pork belly sauce mixed with brown rice smelt aromatic. However, it tasted ordinary. But the general enjoyed it as his white beard twitched asionally. When he crunched the three slices of boiled vegetables, it made great clear sounds, it looked like a devil in the Underworld was chewing human bones.


    The general ate very fast, perhaps because he had established such a habit in his military career. The dishes on the table were cleared quickly like a tornado had torn through it. Then, he swirled some tea around in his mouth and gargled.


    Ning Que said, "It is bad for your health to eat and drink so hurriedly."


    The general looked at him quietly and said, "You do not have to pretend before me."


    Ning Que was silent. Then, he decided not to pretend to be a gentle and caring young man.


    The general said, "A cultivator should leave the human realm, not enter it."


    Ning Que did not think that this conversation would be so direct that without any lead-ins or warning ,it got the key point at the start. He was slightly shocked and did not know what to do.


    He had thought that this would be a long conversation that was like boiling chicken soup. He thought it needed gentle mes, but did not expect that the fire was so strong and grew so rapidly. If he did not pay attention, the vegetables in the wok would char and be inedible.


    "Why shouldn¡¯t we enter the human realm?"


    Ning Que asked after a pause.


    The general looked into his eyes and said ndly, "Because to cultivators, mortals are too weak. They are like ants to them. A cultivator who enters the human realm will be arrogant and proud."


    Ning Que raised his head and looked back to the general¡¯s calm and pressing gaze. He said. "General, you have fought for the Tang Empire and have been living in the secr world for decades."


    "My identity as a soldieres before my identity as a cultivator."


    The general said calmly, "This is the greatest difference."


    Ning Que said, "I am also a soldier."


    The general shook his head slowly and said, "You were a soldier, and you were an outstanding one. But regretfully, you were not a cultivator when you were a soldier."


    "What is the difference?" Ning Que asked.


    The general squinted and said in a low voice, "If you were able to cultivate in the City of Wei, I would have trained you well into an impressive martial cultivator. You¡¯d then be able to understand what the battlefield is and then there would be no more stories that had happenedter."


    Ning Que said after a short moment of silence, "I do not understand what you mean."


    "I have seen all your files."


    The general¡¯s voice did not convey any extra emotions but remained cold and calm. He said, "You were not a bad soldier, but you did not have true battle experience with cultivators."


    Ning Que fell silent once more. He had joined the army in the City of Wei when he was very young. However, the Tang Empire was strong and not even the cavalry of the Golden Pce on the Wilderness dared to challenge them. He had indeed not experienced true battles. He had not seen the performance of cultivators on the battlefield in the years he was in the army at the frontier fortress.


    The general said, "Those of the secr world think that cultivators are strong. But they do not know that on the true battlefields against cavalry thate at you in waves, cultivators are equally weak."


    Ning Que thought about cultivators like Second Brother and could not agree.


    The general seemed to know what he was thinking and said coldly, "Even cultivators in the Knowing destiny State have no other choice but to die when faced with arrows raining down on him and thousands of armored cavalry against him. This has been proven on the battlefield countless times. Do you know why?"


    Ning Que shook his head.


    The general said, "That is because the body of a cultivator is too weak. Unless they can cross the threshold and pass through the fifth state and into the Limitless State, they cannot disregard the arrows raining down on them. Unless they enter the Tianqi State, and apprehend the dignity bestowed upon them by Haotian, they cannot overlook any impact by the cavalry. A single cultivator can never be the match for an army. "


    "What about those in the Peak state of Martial Arts like you, or General Xia Hou?" Ning Que asked.


    General Xu Shi said, "Martial cultivators use their Psyche Power to control the Qi of Heaven and Earth and train their bodies. They use their Psyche Power to condense the Qi of Heaven and Earth on their bodies. However, all humans have a limit to their sense of perception. One¡¯s psyche power is limited. If a cultivator who cannot be killed by one or 100, then I will send 10,000 people. Anyway, he will die in the end. You have to remember, that if cultivators in the Peak state of Martial Arts were really undefeatable, why would the empire have so many cavalries?"


    Ning Que ced his right hand on the table and looked into the general¡¯s deep-set eyes. He said, "One cultivator¡¯s life can exchange for the life of 10,000 ordinary soldiers. Can¡¯t he be considered as powerful?"


    The general looked at him with a straight face and said, "There will not be an ordinary cultivator in that 10,000 people. There are few Grand Cultivators in this world who have to be defeated by ten thousand people. Exchanging the lives of 10,000 soldiers for the death of a cultivator like that is a bargain in war."


    Ning Que became silent for the third time.


    He turned around to look at the trees standing straightly in the garden and at the rocks that were piled up randomly. He had to admit that the strongest man in the military had a viewpoint that was both correct and incisive. It could not be refuted.


    He knew the reason for this conversation between General Xu Shi and himself. That was why he felt that he could not be persuaded like this. He frowned slightly and said, "But general yourself and General Xia Hou are cultivators, too."


    The conversation had gone in a round-about and returned to where it had started.


    "Cultivating in Martial Arts is both difficult and clumsy. One cannot see any results unless they cultivate for decades. Many people practice it and be strong, but give up halfway when they gain some muscle and be the followers of Sword or Psyche Masters. That is why Martial Arts Cultivation is meaningless to many cultivation sects."


    The general said, "Only in the military can the martial cultivator have a chance to grow through war. To reach the peak of cultivation, you don¡¯t know how many you have to kill and how many injuries you have to suffer."


    Ning Que asked, "What has this to do with the thing that you want to tell me?"


    "What I want to say is, martial cultivators are all in the army. Just like what I told you at the beginning, they are firstly soldiers who adhere strictly to thews in both the eyes of man and themselves. Their cultivators identity is secondly important. They do not use umbres in the summer, nor wear heavy clothes in winter. They do not have many desires."


    "I understand."


    Ning Que looked at the leftover in the te that was containing the vegetable dish. Then, he said, "But I do not understand why you would want to tell me this. What do you really want to tell me?"


    The general looked at him with a face devoid of all expressions. He said, "What I want to tell you is that you are very weak. No matter how fast your state rises, you are still weak in my eyes and in the eyes of the Tang army. Should I give an order, the armored ck cavalry can crush you. You only have 13 arrows, and how many tricks can you y with a sword like Liu Yiqing¡¯s? So do not be arrogant and you need to learn to respect thews of the Tang Empire."


    Ning Que raised his head and looked at the general¡¯s wizened old face. He said, "I have always beenw-abiding."


    The general said coldly, "I have said, that I have read all your files. Since I have read all of them, they are not restricted only to what happened in the City of Wei. I know how many Horse Gang members have died under your de by the Shubi Lake. There were three families of hunters in the Min Mountain that have been killed in the arson youmitted. I know that as well."


    "I have said, do not pretend before me."


    The general¡¯s voice was frigid when he said, "It is fine to kill the Horse Gang, as thew of the Tang Empire do not protect citizens outside of its boundaries. However, how are you going to answer to what happened in the Min Mountain? There was a newborn in one of the families who died in the fire. How will you exin that?"


    "No matter how much you try to hide before the Headmaster and His Majesty, and no matter the image you present to the world and no matter how you pretend to be the frivolous fool after you came to Chang¡¯an, you can¡¯t change that fact. You are an unscrupulous, shameless, greedy, and savage viin."


    Ning Que lowered his head once more and did not say anything.


    He did not expect that the military would trace so far back in his history once they began checking. He felt that all his clothes had disappeared and that he was standing naked.


    This was not shame or guilt in his heart, but wariness and vignce. He had never thought that he was a good person and had never wanted to be one.


    He would do anything to ensure that he and Sangsang lived. Killing andmitting arson were nothing. The unscrupulous acts of the past that the military had uncovered were but just snippets of his past that was filled with blood. How could someone like him be a good person?


    Xu Shi looked at him and said in disgust, "Ning Que, you are not worthy to be a man."


    All was silent on the tform.


    Ning Que suddenly raised his head and looked at Xu Shi who was across him. He smiled and asked, "General, is everyone on earth sinless and as clean as snow?"


    The general looked at him and mocked, "Are you using the sin of others tofort yourself about your filthiness?"


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "General, you said that it is not easy to be a martial cultivator and that the soldiers of Tang have their own difficulties. These are not interesting to me, because you have not experienced my life and you do not know what I have gone through, so you cannot understand my choices at that time."


    He looked at the general and smiled, "You were caught by a hunter in the forests of the mountain. You did not know why. Perhaps you stole a rabbit from his trap ten days ago, or because the hunter was a damn rabbit himself. Or perhaps the hunter was a rtive of that damnable old hunter. He wanted to kill you. What would you do?"


    The general frowned.


    Ning Que did not wait for the general¡¯s reply. He smiled and continued, "Do not forget. You were not even ten, at that time. You were tired and weak from malnourishment and you took a five or six-year-old girl with you. You were injured and did not have any weapons. You only have a lighter in your pants and you are imprisoned in the woodshed."


    "I do not know what you would do."


    "But I would definitely light up all the dried grass and firewood in that woodshed."


    "I do not care if that hunter would die. I don¡¯t care if there was a baby in the room. I would set fire on that pile even if there was a paralyzed centenarian in that room."


    Ning Que¡¯s smile was gentle and his eyes were calm.

 Chapter 421: General (II)

    Chapter 421: General (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Xu Shi squinted.


    He had experienced many battles in his life. He had seen blood flow and thousands of corpses. He had seen many terrifying and horrible things. But the gentle smile and calm expression on Ning Que¡¯s face was startling and scarier than anything he had ever seen.


    In a sh, he thought highly of Ning Que and grew wearier of the danger that Ning Que represented. The pity that he had for Ning Que earlier disappeared without a trace.


    Ning Que continued, "Of course, the hunter and his family burning to death have nothing to do with me. I have only heard of this incident. I am curious, general, what would you choose under those circumstances? I have some other questions as well. Is there someone who is as innocent as a lotus in the world? Have you killed your foes in battle? Is killing your foe considered breaking thew of Tang Empire? Have your subordinates killed any barbarian women and children in the grasnd? If so, is this considered breaking thew of Tang Empire?"


    Then, he looked at the general¡¯s wizened face and asked, "General, you are an important official in the military and should of course stand behind the Tang. However, when powerhouses of our enemy countries entered our borders, you did not grow vignt but revealed my location to them. I would like to ask if this is considered breaking thews of the Tang Empire? Did you go against your own conscience?"


    Each question was like a blow to the general¡¯s heart. However, Xu Shi was not so easily affected by Ning Que¡¯s words. He smiled in anger and said, "Since you want to represent the Academy in entering the human realm, you have to face the challenges of other cultivators in the world. Why are you unwilling to have them known of your location? Unless you¡¯re afraid, or you do not have confidence and are afraid that you¡¯ll be a disgrace to the Tang Empire and the Headmaster of the Academy?"


    The general did not wait for Ning Que to speak. He wiped the smirk off his face and looked at Ning Que coldly. "Even if there was a viable reason for your cruel acts as a child, what about what happened after you came to Chang¡¯an from the City of Wei?"


    After he came to Chang¡¯an? Ning Que¡¯s brows slowly rose.


    There was a sudden gust of wind in the gardens. It was slightly chilly and the sky darkened as if it was about to rain.


    "Where were you in the 14th year of Tian Qi, when the censor Zhang Yiqi died?"


    "Where were you when the metalsmith in the east of Chang¡¯an died?


    "Where were you when the tea master Yan Suqing died?"


    The general looked at him and asked indifferently.


    Ning Que¡¯s expression did not change, but his body stiffened. If his questions to the general earlier was but just a little trick, then the three questions that the general asked him were a sharp de that could cleave off the head of a person.


    He finally understood why Xu Shi was so vignt against himself and even tried to investigate and beat him down secretly. There were many people who were aware of those three incidents, from Lin Ling, to this general today. They could even sense what had happened behind those incidents.


    Today, the conversation between the general and himself in the General¡¯s Mansion.


    Was checkmate.


    "You were at the House of Red Sleeves when censor Zhang Yiqi died. You were in the Eastern City when Chen Zixian died. No one knows where you were when Yan Suqing died. But that was the day of the Academy¡¯s exams. You had a bet with Xie Chengyun of the South Jin Kingdom, but did not turn up for the exams and even took two days of sick leave after that."


    The general stared at him, and there was an undeniable pressure in his gaze. He said slowly, "Do not think that you are really strong. Do not think that you can really hide from everyone. Do not think that you can erase the past just because you have be a core disciple of the Headmaster of the Academy. I have said that I know everything about you, and that is everything and not anything less."


    Not anything less. He could not miss anything.


    This was the spirit of the greatest person in the Tang military.


    This was the third time Ning Que had heard the general said something like this. He had fallen silent for many times today.


    All was silent on the tform. The trees in the garden trembled in the winds that came before the rain. The leaves that should have been living further up north rattled in the wind as if they would fall to the ground anytime.


    After some time.


    The general said, "The Headmaster of the Academy had once said that thews of the Tang Empire came first. This is the highest belief of not only the Academy, but the entire Tang Empire. I will continue to investigate into the past. And if I find that you have broken thews and interfered with the court in an attempt to stir up something, I will condemn you using thews of the Tang Empire."


    Ning Que reached out suddenly to pile up the dirty tes before him.


    Then, he stood up and looked at the General, "Thews of the Tang Empire ces emphasis on evidence. If you can gather evidence on these cases, I will wait for you in the Chang¡¯an Local Government."


    With that, he bowed and left.


    The Vermilion Bird Avenue was not far from the General¡¯s Mansion. Ning Que walked on the bluestone tiles on the street calmly. Very calmly.


    Someone had still found out the link between him and those cases. This made him very nervous, but he was not surprised by the conversation in the General¡¯s Mansion.


    Even if Xu Shi ruled the world as he represented the Tang Military, he could not arrest Ning Que without evidence and could not harm him.


    Because he was no longer a little soldier in the City of Wei or an outsider like he once was when he first came to Chang¡¯an. He was now a student of the Second floor of the Academy and a calligrapher that His Majesty trusted.


    Those who wished to harm him would have to first persuade the emperor and most importantly, the Headmaster of the Academy.


    Ning Que could not guess how the emperor would react. But he knew that the Headmaster would not care how many people his student killed. The Headmaster did not bother himself with things of the secr world.


    But the conversation in the General¡¯s Mansion had done something to his psyche.


    Xu Shi was right.


    From his fleeing from Chang¡¯an to traveling thousands of miles and into the dangerous Min Mountain. Ning Que had done many abominable things in those days when they drifted from ce to ce.


    He hadmitted those abominable acts due to the many kinds of evilness in the world he lived in.


    He had to do that to survive in a world of many evils.


    Aftering to the City of Wei, and then to Chang¡¯an, he came to a peaceful world. There, he realized that there were still many good people in the world, and so, he tried to be a good person in the general sense.


    There wasn¡¯t anyone who didn¡¯t want to be a good person.


    Ning Que wanted to be a good person too.


    That was why he had been learning how to be a good person since he entered the City of Wei. He had been learning since he entered Chang¡¯an.


    This sort of learning could be called a pretense, or the forming of a second personality.


    This personality was unstable. Sometimes, it was sharp and cruel, sometimes, it was silly and happy and naggy. Sometimes, it would be shameless and adorable. It was refreshing and lovely.


    However, his true character remained the way it was when he was four. It remained in that moment when he held that chopper dripping with blood in the woodshed of the Official of Counsel¡¯s Mansion.


    If faced with external pressure, if faced with death again, he would not hesitate to unleash that grim and cold personality.


    He had done so on that night he ascended the mountain to the Second floor.


    It was so when he met with the Horse Gang in the Wilderness.


    It was so when he shot Prince Long Qing by the Daming Lake.


    It was so, and it wasn¡¯t so.


    This was Ning Que.


    He had reached the statue of the Vermilion Bird unknowingly.


    It was then, when the rain that had been brewing began to fall.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 422: The Vermilion Bird Recognizes Its Lord

    Chapter 422: The Vermilion Bird Recognizes Its Lord


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    It was raining, the pedestrians on the street went to find shelter, and the tourists from other counties also left reluctantly, leaving Ning Que alone. He stood silently before the painting of the Vermilion Bird.


    He opened the big ck umbre, and rain fell on the tight umbre surface, making a dull sound.


    He looked at the Vermilion Bird painting that was gradually getting wet by the rain as he held the umbre and recalled many things.


    There was no need to mention the past. Today, in the Pce, her majesty¡¯s shocking half squat salute and General Xu Shi both made him feel troubled. Xu Shi¡¯s attitude, especially, made him very ufortable.


    This kind of difort was not anger, but was depression, because he had been a soldier of the Tang military. Like all officers in the City of Wei, Ning Que also treated the general of Tang Dynasty military as an idol. Whenever they mentioned the name of Defender-general of the State, they showed respect.


    Ning Que remembered a certain statement about the needs of the spiritual level. He liked to defend the City of Wei and conquer the prairie with hisrades. He liked to be respected and even feared by the people in Chang¡¯an. He liked the Senior Brothers and Sisters of the Academy. These were all very great spiritual needs.


    So he wanted to be a good man, and he wanted to be appreciated by the army¡¯s vital minister like Xu Shi. He did not want to be guarded against or be gotten rid of desperately. It was a pity that the world went against him.


    The spring rain became heavier like a mess, which was just like Ning Que¡¯s mood at this moment.


    The majestic painting of the Vermilion Bird was all wet by the rain. Its stately eyes seemed to be given life, and suddenly became vivid.


    Ordinary people could not perceive the change in the Vermilion Bird painting.


    However, Ning Que perceived it clearly. He looked at the Vermilion Bird ¡¯s eyes and felt the condensing air in the stone lines. He was clear about what happened.


    Two years ago, when he first entered Chang¡¯an City, he stood in front of the Vermilion Bird with Sangsang. He was once frightened by the chilling sensation of the painting.


    Later, he knew that this Vermilion Bird painting was a Divine Talisman, which could automatically sense the enemies who invaded Chang¡¯an City, and was able to destroy cultivators at the Knowing Destiny State.


    At this time, the enemy Vermilion Bird painting sensed was, of course, Ning Que¡¯s big ck umbre.


    With his cultivation state, Ning Que naturally was not able to resist the aura of the Vermilion Bird¡¯s painting. However, he withstood the spring rain and looked very calm.


    Not because of the big ck umbre in his hand.


    It was because of the pestle in his pocket.


    Ning Que reached into his pocket, and held the array eye pestle wrapped in cloth. He looked at the Vermilion Bird picture that was ready to fight and said, "Now, I will not be scared of you like a little bird in winter anymore. I¡¯m your master, what can you do to me?"


    The lord of the Vermilion Bird could not be self-dered. The mantle was passed down by Master Yan Se to him, confirmed personally by the Emperor of Tang, and finally epted by that pestle itself.


    The Vermilion Bird painting in the rain sensed a familiar atmosphere that had not been seen for many years from the person under the ck umbre.


    A loud whistle sounded in Ning Que¡¯ sense of perception and it was sharp and high, mixed with doubts, a bit of dissatisfaction, sadness and calmness.


    The rain washed constantly, and the chilling sensation from the Vermilion Bird¡¯s painting gradually faded away. In the end, it finally became quiet and turned into an ordinary stone painting.


    Ning Que knew that this represented the Vermilion Bird¡¯s acknowledgment of his identity.


    The sad whistling in Ning Que¡¯s sense of perception was the Vermilion Bird¡¯s recollection of Master Yan Se.


    Ning Que stood in the rain, holding the handle of the big ck umbre with his right hand, and the array eye of the God-stunning Array in his left hand. He had two opposing feelings, and he understood something.


    The Vermilion Bird recognized his Lord in the spring rain. It meant that maintaining the big tactical array protecting Chang¡¯an City became his responsibility. Since that moment, he became responsible for defending the Great Tang Empire.


    He loved thisnd and this country. He also loved the calm and happy life, and the people living here, so he was willing to take this responsibility.


    He was willing to do anything to maintain the peace of the Tang Empire, but this did not mean that he would sacrifice his life.


    His left hand held the array eye pestle, holding the future of the Great Tang.


    His right hand held a ck umbre, holding his own life.


    Each hand had to be grasping tightly.


    If there was a conflict between these, just like this lingering spring, what he needed to do was like using a knife to cut off the spring rain as he was in the old library, like the Headmaster¡¯s hitting him with that rod at the Building of Pines and Cranes. He would destroy all the entanglements and dissatisfaction.


    ...


    ...


    He had the conversation with the Headmaster of the Academy, on the balcony of the Building of Pines and Cranes that night. It went like this.


    "The people I want to kill are very powerful and have great status, and some of them have tricky backgrounds that are hard to settle even for me."


    "You don¡¯t look like someone who has no status."


    "Because my teacher is great, so I¡¯m very great as well. Evenpared to the billionaire I want to kill, the status gap between us isn¡¯trge."


    "So why are you worried? Just find a chance to kill if you wish to."


    "My teacher didn¡¯t seem to mind that we students are not reasonable, but in fact he is very stubborn, and very reasonable. He always said that thew of the Tang Empire was of utmost importance. If so, how can we be unreasonable?"


    "What¡¯s the rtionship between being unreasonable and thew of the Tang Empire? Can¡¯t you kill someone without using crooked ways?"


    At that time, Ning Que thought that he was talking to an ordinary rich man of Chang¡¯an City. Now that he recalled the words of the Headmaster, that conversation had a new meaning.


    Can¡¯t you kill someone without using crooked ways? Can¡¯t he kill Xiahou without employing crooked ways?


    Ning Que smiled, and tied the big ck umbre to his back, then he dashed into the heavy rain which looked like a curtain.


    ...


    ...


    He went to the House of Red Sleeves and met Mistress Jian. He talked about the conversation with Her Majesty in the pce. Before leaving, he nced around the bathhouse where he had killed the censor Zhang Yiqi.


    Then he went to the small courtyard beside theke at Southen City. When he walked under the green bamboo forest, he found that the small courtyard had already been sold to others after the tea specialist, Yan Suqing, was killed by him.


    He went to the cksmith workshop in the Eastern City and walked towards the backyard. He recalled the image of the old Chen Zixian falling under his knife. He was silent.


    "I used to be a nobody, and killed you guys. Now my status is different. If I stop for the safety and fortune. Then wouldn¡¯t you have all died in vain?"


    The rain eventually lightened. Ning Que prepared to return to the Old Brush Pen Shop, but he stopped at the entrance of Lin 47th Street, then turned to Chunxi Road and entered a teahouse.


    Xu Shi might have already guessed the connection between him and those murders. He might even link these murders with the tragedy of the General¡¯s Mansion. Even if he had not linked these matters so far, he would surely start to protect some people, some people who Ning Que wanted to kill.


    Other than General Xiahou, there were still some people on the oilpaper list left by Darkie. If he wanted to kill them, he had topete with the imperial court.


    Sitting on the second floor of that teahouse near the window, he looked at the rain outside. He carefully nned every step and confirmed that he would not cause too much trouble. Then, he began to prepare.


    He asked the shopkeeper for a pen and a piece of paper. After thinking for a while, he began to write quickly. After finishing the letter, he sealed it up and prepared to let the horse chariot send the letter to the Academy.


    At this moment, he suddenly saw a familiar figure.


    The man also saw him and said in surprise, "Why are you here, Ning Que?"


    Ning Que mocked him and said: "Chu Youxian, you¡¯re skipping ss again. Your old man will cut you off if he finds out."


    Ning Que was no longer the same person as before, but Chu Youxian was avish and cheerful man. He had themon characteristics present in the Tang people and was not afraid of the rich and powerful. He came to Ning Que and said, "If I can¡¯t get money from my dad, you can just write a letter for me. That will be enough for me to get support from anyone. Besides, given your social status, why should I pay for you if we go to House of Red Sleeves? You should treat me."


    Chu Youxian¡¯s eyes suddenly brightened and said, "Let¡¯s do this today, you have nothing else to do and you didn¡¯t bring that little handmaiden. Let¡¯s go to the House of Red Sleeves."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "I have something to do today."


    Suddenly he remembered something and handed the letter over saying, " Would you mind sending this letter for me to the Academy?"


    "You know that I hate going to the Academy," Chu Youxian said bitterly.


    Ning Que said, "I¡¯ll give you a calligraphy piece."


    "Zhongtang?" Chu Youxian said with great joy.


    Ning Que said, "Dream on."


    Chu Youxian took the letter and turned back to look at Ning Que mischievously.


    Ning Que could guess what he was thinking, so he said, "Don¡¯t trade this letter for money. Otherwise, you won¡¯t get the calligraphy and I¡¯ll go to your house to make trouble."


    "I was just appreciating the calligraphy. How can you say that it¡¯s stealing? Even if I stole it, I would not sell it. I will bring it back to my father who likes this. He will be pleased,"


    Chu Youxian was not angry even though Ning Que had uncovered his plot, and he said that with a smile.


    Ning Que said seriously, "This letter is very important. Don¡¯t ruin my business."


    Chu Youxian said, "If so, I will go right now. By the way, in a few days, there will be a gathering for the ssmates of ssroom Three. I forgot the reason, but Jin Wucai asked me to ask you whether you will join us."


    "If I have time."


    Ning Que did not give a clear answer.


    Chu Youxian turned around and went towards the exit of the teahouse. He suddenly thought of something and said, "What are you going to do?"


    Ning Que said with a smile, "I¡¯m going to kill someone. Do you want to go watch?"


    Chu Youxian felt bored. He waved his hand and walked down the stairs.


    Ning Que drank up the tea on the table, and watched Chu Youxian getting on the carriage. He carefully calcted the time, but he did not hurry to leave. Instead, he asked for a new pot of tea.


    He sipped the tea at the teahouse.


    It was raining outside.


    The rain and clouds covered the whole Chang¡¯an City. The sun was invisible. Only the dimming lights indicated that twilight wasing.


    Ning Que left some money and left the restaurant.


    With the waiter¡¯s surprised thanks for his generosity sounding behind him, he went to the Western Gate.


    He was not joking with Chu Youxian.


    He was going to kill someone.


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 423: Raining Street and Burning People

    Chapter 423: Raining Street and Burning People


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The night hade, and the light rain came again.


    A slim middle-aged officer holding an umbre walked on the rainy street. Given the color of his uniform, his rank was not low, but he had no following subordinates, except for a solemn general who was following him silently.


    The soldiers and lower officials at the Western Gate stood quietly under the roof. Their eyes moved with the footsteps of two officials on the street. No one stepped forward, and no one looked surprised.


    That middle-aged official was Huang Xing. He was themander defending the city gate. He was responsible for managing all the gates of both the entire Chang¡¯an City and the imperial city. The name of the general who followed him was Yu Shuizhu, who was vice general of the city gate¡¯s defending troops.


    Huang Xing was known for his diligence and sincerity. Since he took over as the city gate¡¯smander, he would choose a gate to inspect every morning and dusk. He would not bring any subordinate officials with him other than Yu Shuizhu. He had been doing that for years in any weather.


    The people at the gates of Chang¡¯an had long been ustomed to this. Only when the two officers finished the inspection, could they leave. This had be an unwritten rule.


    Based on the patterns of past years, Huang Xing would inspect the Western gate today.


    After the inspection of the Western gate, Huang Xing confirmed that there were no problems and he nodded. Vice general Yu Shuizhu looked back at the officers who looked tense and waved his hand coldly. The officers knew that their day had finally ended, and they left in relief.


    Standing on the rainy street outside the West Gate office, Huang Xing tilted his umbre and looked up at the rainy sky. He felt that his legs were a little bit tired and said, "I¡¯ve be old."


    Yu Shuizhu said, "My lord, you can still serve the imperial court for 30 years."


    Huang Xing said, "You have patrolled with me around the city gates every day over the years. Every day you have to return veryte. I know your wife has been dissatisfied. It was really hard for you."


    After being silent for a moment, he replied, "My life was saved by my lord. I should apany you to patrol every day. Even sacrificing my life for you is my obligation too."


    Today, the two well-known cleanhanded officers were once trooprades. Their fates were changed by a tragic incident and they had been closely linked together since then.


    If Huang Xing didn¡¯t make up his mind to go over to Prince Li Peiyan with Yu Shuizhu, he may have died with the general already. Even if he did not die, he would probably be exiled by the imperial court. If the Prince didn¡¯t protect him, how could he have the glory and burden of patrolling Chang¡¯an¡¯s gates?


    Unfortunately, they were remained influenced by the event that year. Although they were diligent and honest, they could not be promoted anymore. However, they were still rich.


    Huang Xing looked at Chang¡¯an City in the light rain. After a long silence, he suddenly said with emotion, "It seems that we went through Western Gate like when we returned to Chang¡¯an with the general."


    Yu Shuizhu¡¯s expression became slightly serious.


    Whenever they patrolled the city gate, they only talked about family matters and anecdotes of the court. Sometimes they also reminisced their military career. However, they never mentioned the general.


    They did not want to remember that tragic event and did not want to recall their role in that matter, perhaps because of guilt or fear.


    Yu Shuizhu did not understand why his lord would mention this and said in a whisper, "ording to the rules of the court, we should have entered the city from the Eastern Gate. Later, this matter was also taken out as evidence of guilt."


    Huang Xing sighed and said no more.


    The rain in the twilight was getting heavier and heavier. Locals had already returned to their homes. The subordinate officials of the City gate defender¡¯s office had also returned to their warm homes. The vigil watchmen were hiding in the Gate or in the office. The wet streets were empty and quiet. Only the two officers were standing in the rain and recalled past issues.


    The two carriages waited silently on the rainy street. They were the carriages sent by their homes. The stewards had gotten used to their pattern, and did note to remind them.


    At this moment, they suddenly heard someone walking towards them on the rainy street. The footsteps were very gentle and stable. But if it still could be heard when the person stepped into a puddle.


    It was a young man in ck and carrying a ck umbre.


    Strangely, the young man did not open the umbre but allowed the rain to fall on his body. His clothes were already soaked and the rain fell along his hair.


    Huang Xing looked at the young man in ck who came towards them and slowly raised his eyebrows.


    He just felt that this young man in ck was a bit strange but he did not feel any danger from him. He did not think that anything bad would happen.


    This was because they were in Chang¡¯an City where it was safe. They were at the heavily guarded Western Gate. Whether those brave and despotic female soldiers or those powerful cultivators, they would be humble and calm when facing the dignified and powerful military force of the Tang Empire.


    Indeed, nothing happened.


    When the young man met them, he took a look at Huang Xing¡¯s uniform and the light armor worn by Yu Shuizhu. He saluted and then walked out of the long street.


    Huang Xing noticed that when the young man in ck was saluting, his look was not of awe, but a veryplicated emotion. He said with a smile, "We think that this young man who doesn¡¯t use his umbre is weird, and he would also find us odd, two officers quietly standing in the rain."


    Yu Shuizhu said, "Indeed, let¡¯s go back."


    Huang Xing suddenly felt something in his hand, and he found a note in it.


    He did not read what was written on that slip of paper, but turned back and found that the young man had already disappeared from the street.


    Yu Shuizhu also noticed this. His brows suddenly twisted, and said heavily, "Being able to put a note in your hand silently, that young man is remarkable."


    Huang Xing was silent for a moment and he opened the note in his hand.


    The note was yellowish and it seemed to be verymon, but also very umon. The words were probably written in a mixture of cinnabar and another material. It was red like blood.


    Some lines were painted on the upper end of the yellow paper note. The lines together looked like a single word, but neither Huang Xing nor Yu Shuizhu could recognize the word.


    They knew the words under it, because those were normal texts.


    "Ie from the General¡¯s Mansion, and I will take your life."


    Their expression changed drastically, looking so terrified that they were like the gloomy and rainy night. Huang Xing¡¯s fingertips which were holding the note trembled slightly.


    The words ¡¯General¡¯s Mansion¡¯ on the yellow paper reminded them of those memories that were deeply buried in the deepest parts of their hearts. Those bloody memories were already blurred. Today, Huang Xing watched the Chang¡¯an City in the rain, and they remembered some. Now because of this note, all those memories came back.


    They were both very clear that the general referred on the paper note was not referring to Xu Shi, the Defender-general of the State, nor the great general, Xiahou. It referred to the Xuanwei General, Lin Guangyuan.


    Huang Xing sighed and said, "I sensed something and it¡¯s bing true."


    Yu Shuizhu said with a grave expression, "I will go to the Prince¡¯s Pce."


    Huang Xing nodded.


    They separated in the middle of the rainy street, holding umbres and heading to their carriages.


    Official boots stepped on the water in the street and made a sshing sound.


    At the beginning, the rhythm of the sound was very calm and stable.


    They walked on the rainy street faster and faster.


    This proved that their true feelings at this time were not as rxed as how they looked.


    Yu Shuizhu walked quickly, the expression on his face became more and more grim and severe. The fear in his heart was reced by anger. He only wanted to quickly report to the Prince that someone survived in that event.


    The sound of footsteps suddenly became chaotic.


    His left foot stepped into water, and the sound he made became much deeper.


    Because his foot could no longer be lifted.


    His feet fell into the puddle.


    There was an invisible sharp thin line on the ground of the rainy street. It cut his trousers, his flesh and his bones. His feet fell off.


    But it was not an invisible sharp thin line, but countless intangible sharp lines.


    Yu Shuizhu¡¯s knees were cut into two pieces, and next his entire thigh.


    Then his light armor was split into countless pieces.


    He was cut into countless pieces of fresh meat.


    Like ripe fruit, they all fell into the water making sttering sounds.


    ...


    ...


    Huang Xing holding the paper umbre walked as fast as he could towards his carriage.


    The oilpaper umbre in his hand was very old and his face was very pale.


    He did not want to die.


    Although his umbre was very old, and the entire city of Chang¡¯an thought he was honest, he had in fact stolen a lot of money these years. He wanted to survive to enjoy all the things money could buy.


    Although daily inspections of the city gate were very tiring, in fact, he enjoyed the fear of his subordinates when he inspected and the admiration of local citizens. He wanted to be alive and enjoy these.


    He thought he was andscape of Chang¡¯an City and he wanted to live for a long time.


    At this moment, he heard a sshing sound behind him.


    The sound of meat pieces falling into the water was different from the sound made by stepping into the water. It was very clear in the sound of falling rain.


    Huang Xing did not look back. He dared not to turn back.


    His hand holding a paper umbre trembled and he looked at the carriage not far and the steward bowing to him. His pale face showed a desperate look.


    The yellow strip of paper he held tightly in his hand was wet with rain and sweat.


    Suddenly, a bright me came out of his hands.


    Another fire sprouted from his officer uniform.


    Another fire sprouted out of his wrinkles on his old cheeks.


    Numerous fires, spitting out from the deepest part of his body, instantly melted his hair, eyebrows,shes, skin, fats, muscles, and bones. The fire burned everything.


    The long street in this rainy night was dark and damp.


    The person under the umbre was burning.


    After a moment, the paper umbre fell down to the ground andnded on the rain-covered street.


    Huang Xing who had been under the umbre had be ash silently.


    The umbre slowly rolled in the water and the handle was slightly charred.


    In ane not far, Ning Que stood quietly in the rain.


    Maybe because of the violent mood changes or the cold from the spring rain, his face looked pale and tired.


    ...

 Chapter 424: Buildings without Walls

    Chapter 424: Buildings without Walls


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In a rainy alley, Ning Que held up the big ck umbre over his head and nced at his soaked ck uniform.


    It wasn¡¯t very difficult to kill these two people, but it was challenging to kill them quietly before the Imperial Court and the Military Minister started investigating them.


    Huang Xing, who was burned to ash, was killed by his Fire Fu.


    And Yu Shuizhu was killed by a Jing Fu.


    Jing Fu was the most powerful Divine Talisman of Master Yan Se. He taught Ning Que it before he went to the Wilderness, but because it was very hard to understand, Ning Que didn¡¯t get it until he finished his penance and got out from the cave a couple of days earlier.


    Using the Great Spirit, Ning Que made a Jing Fu that was just an imitation of what Master Yan Se did. It was far less powerful than the real Divine Talisman. But this trick was good enough to cut someone into pieces quietly in the rain.


    In the dark night, Ning Que went to the Imperial Pce to have a word with Xu Chongshan, the Deputy Commander of the bodyguard and then he went back to the Lin 47th Street.


    Sangsang was very worried when she saw Ning Que drenched.


    Ning Que exined what had happened to her softly, went to have a cold shower and then started eating.


    In the dim light from a candle, he stared at the name list Sangsang left two years ago and fell silent for a long time. It reminded him of Darkie, who died on the opposite side of the shop.


    He also died in the spring and on a rainy day.


    Before he was killed, he left a piece of oilpaper, where the names of all the people involved in the two massacres were listed. And now after Ning Que killed Huang Xing and Yu Shuizhu, the people on the list were all dead.


    But there were still two people who got away with it. Zhuo Er didn¡¯t write their names down, because both he and Ning Que were very clear who they were.


    It was Li Peiyan, the Prince of Tang and the Great Zhenjun General Xia Hou.


    Sangsang walked to his back and asked, "Will you get into trouble?"


    Ning Que answered, "Even if that old general knows I did it, he couldn¡¯t do anything."


    Sangsang looked a little confused, "But why did you kill them in such a rush?"


    Previously before killing Zhang Yiqi, the censor and Chen Zixian, Ning Que always spent a long time doing some research to make sure that the Imperial Court didn¡¯t notice.


    And he had been investigating Huang Xing and Yu Shuizhu, the two key figures in the massacre at the General¡¯s Mansion, for a long time, but it was still a bit of a rush that he should choose to kill them today.


    "Some people in the Imperial Court already guessed it was me who killed all the people."


    Ning Que passed the name list to Sangsang beckoned her to put it away. "If I don¡¯t kill them today, it will be very difficult in the future."


    Sangsang took the name list over and asked, "If they still ask you to go to the General¡¯s Mansion tomorrow, I will go with you."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "It is fine. I have sent a messge to the Academy and there will be someone apanying me."


    ...


    ...


    In the next morning, some officials from the Military Ministry knocked on the door of the shop even before the Hot and sour noodle slice soup stand was set up.


    Ning Que was prepared for it. He pushed the door open and said to the official, who he had seen on Vermilion Bird Avenue the other day, "The general wants to talk with me again?"


    The official replied simply and nonchntly, "Please."


    Yesterday, right after Xu Shi, the general, talked with him seriously, Ning Que went to kill another two people. It was like smacking the Military Ministry on the face. Therefore, Ning Que was not surprised at all when finding out that General Xu Shi wanted to see him again. He only felt surprised that he called him to the Military Ministry today, rather than to the General¡¯s Mansion like yesterday.


    After departing from the Lin 47th Street, several carriages ran to the north along the Vermilion Bird Avenue. They went past Jianshen Archway and went into a bamboo forest.


    Ning Que looked out from the curtain and could vaguely see a patch of arge meadow behind the forest, which looked like the scenery in the Wilderness. He was very surprised.


    The Tang Empire was founded through lots of wars and its Military Ministry was the most important sector of all departments and the scarist ce in foreigners¡¯ eyes, because it was in charge of the four armies at the country¡¯s borders and the Yulin Royal Guards.


    This was the first time that Ning Que hade to the Military Ministry.


    He didn¡¯t expect to see such a beautiful forest and arge meadow near the Vermilion Bird Avenue, which seemed to be very humble and simple, but it actually couldn¡¯t be more extravegant in such an expensive city like Chang¡¯an.


    He also didn¡¯t expect that the Military Ministry was not heavily fortified at all. There were no high walls nor watchtowers, but only about ten separate buildings hidden among the bamboo.


    Those buildings of different height were scattered in the forest in a seemingly disordered way, but together it was a very harmonious picture. A stone path, wide enough for carriages to pass, winded through the meadow and connected the buildings together. The whole ce was very quiet and impressive.


    Hearing the sound of carriages rushing on the stone path, several officials quickly moved away to give way to the carriages and darted some confused looks at them.


    The carriages stopped in front of the highest wodden building.


    Ning Que walked out of the carriage and looked up at the building. It had three stories and there was an attic on the top. It had the same dark roofs and ck bricks, but the decoration on the roof was different from other buildings; its red beams were as straight as guns and its eaves were slightly curved like a machete.


    On the attic above the third floor, an old man in a court robe was overlooking the railing nkly and thinking about something.


    Yesterday, when they talked in the General¡¯s Mansion, the old man had been wearing his casual clothes, which meant that the talk between them was private and informal. But today they were going to talk in the Military Ministry and he was in his court robe, which indicated that this talk was no longer the same as yesterday; it was a serious and dangerous inquiry.


    Ning Que walked into the building and passed the busy officials who were tidying up the documents and dealing with the messages from the borders. He climbed up the stairs and arrived at the attic on the top. The view there was the best.


    The rain yesterday washed up all the flowery scents ofte spring and cleaned up the air. When the breeze swept across the attic, it was very refreshing.


    General Xu Shi¡¯s voice was as cold as the breeze.


    "Do you know why the Military Ministry only have buildings without walls."


    Ning Que walked towards the railing and stopped behind the old man. He shook his head and said, "No, I don¡¯t."


    Xu Shi turned around and said, "It is because the goal of being a soldier is to stop the enemies from getting into our territory. If the enemies are already in the city and have circled the Military Ministry, there will be no need to fight against them, we should bettermit suicide. Walls are useless here. As for these buildings and attics, they are meant to tell our soldiers to be farseeing."


    Ning Que said, "It is quite deep in meaning."


    Looking at him in the eye, Xu Shi said coldly, "Our country, Tang is never afraid of enemies from the outside, because our biggest enemy is ourselves; the strongest fortress always starts to fall apart from inside."


    Ning Que said, "Your words are also deep in meaning."


    "It is not deep in meaning, on the contrary, my words are easy to understand."


    Xu Shi continued in his cold voice, "I tried to warn you to set store by overall interests and obey thews yesterday, because Tang needs to be stable, and it can¡¯t afford to experience any internal disorder. Ning Que, as a student of the Second floor of the Academy, I suppose you see clearly what I mean."


    Ning Que said, "I was indeed, very impressed by your words yesterday. So after I returned to the Old Brush Pen Shop, I asked my handmaiden to get thew of Tang Empire and stayed upte to read it. As expected, I really learned a lot."


    Ning Que¡¯s perfunctory attitude raised the anger of Xu Shi. But he didn¡¯t show it, instead, he asked a question expressionlessly.


    "Yesterday in the afternoon, when Huang Xing and Yu Shuizhu died, where were you?"


    Ning Que frowned, seeming to try to recollect. After a moment of silence, he answered, "I was hanging out on the streets."


    Xu Shu continued to ask, "It was raining heavily at that time, how can you hang out then?"


    Ning Que said, "I love getting wet in the rain."


    "It was a Talisman Master who killed them."


    Ning Que answered, "He was too bold."


    Xu Shi said expressionlessly, "There are not many Talisman Masters in the world, let alone in Chang¡¯an city. The Imperial Center Administration has records of every one of them."


    Ning Que smiled, "Then you should ask the Imperial Center Administration to investigate quickly. There are not many Talisman Masters in Chang¡¯an, but there is still a fair amount of them. It will still be difficult to find the murderer."


    Xu Shi said, "You are a Talisman Master yourself."


    Ning Que replied, "I know quite a lot of things actually."


    "It was reported that when the murder happened yesterday at the West City Gate, a young man dressed in ck with a ck umbre on his back appeared there."


    Xu Shi stared at the ck Academy uniform he was wearing.


    Ning Que said, "I also have a big ck umbre on my back. It seems like it was me who went there. But there are many young people who like to wear ck clothes."


    Xu Shi said, "But will there be another young Talisaman Master who wears ck clothes and has a ck umbre at the same time?"


    Ning Que looked at him in the eye and asked, "So you suspect me of murdering the two officials?"


    Xu Shi said, "Yes, because you didn¡¯t make it clear where you were exactly when they were killed."


    Ning Que suddenly asked, "Are you questioning me?"


    Xu Shi answered, "Am I not qualified to do that?"


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "If I am still a trivial soldier, then you definitely are qualified to question me, but after I passed the first exam of the Academy, I have be a civilian, even if I am suspected, I should be arraigned by the Chang¡¯an Local Government, not by you."


    Xu Shi said, stony-faced, "Under His Majesty¡¯s order, the Military Ministry and the Pce share the right to rule the Imperial Center Administration. And you are a visiting professor at the Imperial Center Administration, why can¡¯t I question you?"


    Ning Que took the Imperial Center Administration visiting professor¡¯s token out and put it on the railing. He said, "I went to the Bodyguard office and checked yesterday. And I got the message that His Majesty had agreed my application of withdrawing from the Imperial Center Administration two days ago. I just forgot to return this token. If I remove it now, you will not be allowed to question me. "


    Xu Shi didn¡¯t expect Ning Que to do such a thing in advance. His furrowed brows unwrinkled and he said scornfully, "You are afraid of me questioning you."


    -


    --

 Chapter 425: And Where Were You?

    Chapter 425: And Where Were You?


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The scornful expression on the general¡¯s face didn¡¯t add some approachable feeling to him. Instead, Ning Que felt a heavy pressure. He said slowly, "I am not afraid. I am just unwilling to be questioned by you."


    "I totally agree with your opinion about the buildings without walls. Our country, the Tang Empire, will never copse no matter what happens to it from the outside. The only thing that could destroy it must start from the inside. If you insist on questioning me, I am afraid others will think that the Military Ministry is trying to oppress the Academy."


    He said, "I know you have no intention of doing that, but we shouldn¡¯t send this kind of misleading messages to our enemies. That is why I don¡¯t want you to question me, but to be fair, you also can¡¯t question me."


    "Ning Que, oh Ning Que."


    The mocking expression had disappeared on Xu Shi¡¯s face. He said to Ning Que coldly, "I would praise your integrity if you didn¡¯t deny your crime, but to shoulder it bravely. "


    Ning Que replied, "It is not bad to be a sweet talker either."


    "You are being too arrogant if you are determined to challenge the Military Ministry. Do you really think you are qualified to do that?"


    "Although I don¡¯t understand what your words mean,"


    Ning Que continued, after a short break, "I really don¡¯t know what it is that I am not qualified for. After all I am a core disciple of the Headmaster and I represent the Academy to enter the human world after my Youngest Uncle. "


    After staring at him for a long time, Xu Shi walked to the railing with his hands putting behind him. He oversaw Chang¡¯an city, which was sitting beyond the forest and the meadow, and said, "You were also a soldier before. I think you know clearly what a soldier¡¯s duty is. Do you really think that I don¡¯t dare to kill you?"


    As his words finished, a strong and cold aura was emitted from his stooped body, separating him from the surroundings.


    The refreshing breeze in the attic suddenly stopped, giving a halt to the swaying of the tree branches and making the fallen leaves stop rolling among the grass.


    From Ning Que¡¯s view, all the movement outside the attic was halted and thendscape outside looked like a framed painting.


    Even he became a part of the picture, unable to move anymore.


    Only the old man was free, he was not in it.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth in the attic was under the control of the old man. It also stopped moving and lost all its vitality. If the old man wanted, he could kill anything here easily.


    Under the humped body of the old man, there was the terrifying power. Ning Que fell silent, thinking to himself that the old man was not renowned for being the strongest person in the Military Ministry for nothing.


    His state in cultivation was nearly higher than the Peak state of Martial Arts.


    Ning Que knew that he could not fight against such powerful state, no matter what he did. Even the slightest movement of Xu Shi would send him to death, because his movement would summon the Qi of Heaven and Earth around to crush him to powder.


    Sweat ran down his back, drenching his clothes and his umbre on his back.


    However, he still looked very calm.


    In thisndscape painting, only the man standing next to the railing was able to move.


    It was lucky that the old man seemed to want to hear him saying something, so he didn¡¯t control Ning Que¡¯s mouth.


    "I went to the Imperial Pce yesterday."


    Ning Que continued, "His Majesty led me to the little building."


    He knew that as the leader of the Military Ministry, Xu Shi knew very well what the building in the Pce meant. As expected, the court robe the man was wearing moved a little.


    "Before I went to the General¡¯s Mansion yesterday, I went to the Vermilion Bird Avenue first."


    Xu Shi cut in before he could finish his words, "The Vermilion Bird...epted you as its master?"


    Ning Que said, "Yes. So I think you know very well that I am in charge of keeping Chang¡¯an safe now. If you are considering for Tang and executing your duty as a soldier, you need to protect me, rather than to kill me."


    Xu Shi stood next to the railing and looked into the distance with his hands behind him. After being silent for a long time, he murmured in pity and anger, "I just couldn¡¯t stop it from falling into your hands."


    Ning Que did not say anything.


    Xu Shi turned around and said expressionlessly, "The reason why I investigated you was that I didn¡¯t agree with His Majesty¡¯s decision of entrusting you with the Pestle of the Array Eye. And although I am an old friend of Yan Se, I think both he and the Headmaster made a mistake by trusting you so much."


    Ning Que didn¡¯t realize that the leader of the Military Ministry was a close friend of his master. He was even more confused at the things that happened recently. "Why?" asked him.


    "Because you are evil and cold, and I know clearly that if Tang really faced a life-or-death moment, you definitely would not risk your life to protect it,"


    Xu Shi said slowly.


    Ning Que was silent again. He had to admit that what Xu Shi had said about him was totally correct. He valued nothing more than his own life, yet yesterday when he was standing next to the Statue of the Vermilion Bird, he was excited and did promise to try his best to protect Chang¡¯an and Tang Empire.


    After a long time, he looked up and said seriously to Xu Shi, "But I can still promise you that at least I will try my best."


    "But how can I believe you?" asked Xu Shi.


    Ning Que asked, "Why can¡¯t you believe me?"


    "Because you are not worthy of my trust," said Xu Shi.


    Ning Que asked again, "What kind of people are worthy?"


    Xu Shi answered, "Those who seem to be yful and careless, but actually know what justice and respect are, like your master, Yan Se."


    Ning Que shook his head, "My master is already dead. Although you have known him for more than ten years, I think you don¡¯t know him well. He was never a fighter for justice and he didn¡¯t know what respect is either. He just knew what responsibility was, but I know that as well."


    "You have got too much blood on your hands, so you are not qualified to hold that pestle," said Xu Shi.


    Ning Que replied, "Yesterday at the General¡¯s Mansion, you asked where I was in the 14th year of Tianqi era when the censor Zhang Yiqi died, where I was when the old cksmith died, and where I was when the tea master Yan Suqing died. And today you asked me where I wasst night, when Huang and Yu died."


    Xu Shi looked at him coldly.


    Ning Que continued calmly, "You have asked me where I was so many times. And today I also want to ask you the same question. Where were you when Xia Hou was ughtering people of a whole vige in Yan and burning hundreds of innocent people to death? And where were you when he was burying thirty thousand of alive soldiers after they had surrendered? And where were you when he was killing everyone in the Xuanwei General¡¯s Mansion?"


    Xu Shi looked as if he had suddenly be a lot older when he heard those questions.


    The aura in the attic became less tense, and the view outside turned into life again.


    Ning Que stepped forward and came to Xu Shi. He continued, "I did kill lots of people, and you probably didn¡¯t kill anyone. But it does not mean that your hands are cleaner than mine."


    "You were right to say that I am not a good person, and I never cared about whether the world was unfair or ugly as long as it didn¡¯t affect me. Maybe I am not qualified to hold the pestle, but not many people are qualified to question whether I am qualified."


    "At least you are not qualified to question me."


    "Xia Hou got away with such a big crime and those generals and captains involved in the ughtering also did, because, ording to the Imperial Court, there wasn¡¯t any solid proof, and thew of Tang Empire reads that in such a case, he shouldn¡¯t be questioned. But both of us know very well what the true reason was; he contributed for Tang during the war and his army was useful for the Empire."


    Ning Que said, "Since the Imperial Court follows thew of the Tang Empire strictly, you need to find proof before you ask me questions rted to the murders. If you can¡¯t, please don¡¯te and bother me."


    After being silent for a long time, Xu Shi said nonchntly, "Than can you tell me, did you do it for justice, or for revenge?"


    "I am never a fighter of justice."


    Ning Que replied, "And there is no personal grudge between me and Xia Hou. I hate him just because he was not polite to me in the Wilderness."


    "No one will buy it." asked Xu Shi.


    "As long as both the Headmaster and His Majesty are fine with it, I don¡¯t think I need others to believe me."


    "You think His Majesty will spoil you like that forever?" asked Xu Shi.


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "This is not about whether he spoils me. I believe even if he did know about the whole thing, His Majesty would still think I am correct."


    Suddenly he felt that he had said enough today.


    So he turned and walked towards the staircase.


    But at this time, Xu Shi sighed.


    "You are really calm and I can see that you will be really excellent in the future. You would be even more excellent than Ke Haoran, but maybe you will also be more dangerous than him."


    Ning Que stopped when he heard those words. He remembered that His Majesty told him that Xu Shi never lost to any enemy at battlefields, but he had suffered great losses from his Youngest Uncle. Was Xu Shi really going to vent his anger towards his Youngest Uncle on him?


    Ning Que turned around and finally became very annoyed.


    "As the Defender-general of the State, you have my sincere respect, that was why I spent a long time exining. But if your real intention was to get me and thew of Tang Empire was just an excuse, why do you even bother to say so much to me?"


    "Thew of Tang Empire is never an excuse, it is the basis of the Tang Empire. If in your view, it is just an excuse, I really can¡¯t let things happen without controlling it."


    Xu Shi looked at him and said peacefully, "I have many ways to make you disappear without viting thew of Tang Empire."


    Ning Que replied, "And I look forward to that ."


    Then he shook his head and said, "But don¡¯t find more Buddhists to challenge me, I think you know it was not useful."


    Xu Shi asked, "You really think after you defeated Liu Yiqing, no one would dare to challenge you again?"


    Ning Que answered, "At least some bigwigs like you would not challenge me anymore, because losing to me would be too embarrassing for you."


    At this time, a voice sounded out behind him.


    "But it won¡¯t be too embarrassing for me."


    Ning Que turned around and saw a fat man standing next to the staircase.


    That man smiled and said, "I am Wang Jinglue."


    Ning Que turned to Xu Shi and said while shaking his head, "This is toome."


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 426: Who Was More Shameless and Better at Bragging?

    Chapter 426: Who Was More Shameless and Better at Bragging?


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que was quite satisfied with his performance. His words made Xu Shi sunk in his own thoughts, too distracted to keep questioning him. But he was surprised to see that his words didn¡¯t change Xu Shi¡¯s mind of finding a person to fight with him.


    When seeing that Wang Jinglue take out a challenge certificate issued by the Imperial Center Administration, he knew that a fight was unavoidable. It was reallyme, Ning Que thought to himself.


    And if Xu Shi had decided to beat him down with a powerhouse from the army, why did he still talk so much with him?


    Was Xu Shi really thinking that he could make him regret his crime and confess just by talking with him? That thought was alsome.


    Butme or not, Wang Jinglue was still standing here. His determined eyes and mild face all showed that he wanted a fight.


    Ning Que had never met Wang Jinglue, but he had heard of him. He knew that he needed to be cautious of anyone who dared to call himself the most powerful person among those below Knowing Destiny State. And he had heard a story from his master Yan Se.


    Two years ago at the Spring Breeze Pavilion, when Ning Que was killing someone at Henger Street at that rainy night, Wang Jinglue was waiting in a carriage on the street. They should have met each other, if not for the Jing Fu that separated them.


    "I have learned Jing Fu,"


    Ning Que said happily to Wang Jinglue. It was more like informing him of a piece of good news, rather than showing off.


    But Wang Jinglue wasn¡¯t happy for him. He said with a bitter expression, "It was said that it was Master Yan Se who let His Majesty send me to the general¡¯s army. I am very grateful for that. But why are you using him to insult me?"


    "I am just telling you the truth, I don¡¯t mean to insult you. And why do we have to fight anyway?"


    Wang Jinglue sighed, holding the certificate in his hand, and said, "This is the first challenge certificate the Military Ministry got from Imperial Center Administration in thest ten years. Do you still think the fight is avoidable?"


    Ning Que looked at Xu Shi and said scornfully, "You have found foreigners to challenge me before. But now you find someone from your army. Do you forget that we are all Tangs?"


    Xu Shi was silent, looking in the distance outside the railing.


    After breaking through the confinement in the cave, Ning Que improved quickly to the upper part of the Seethrough State. If not so, he wouldn¡¯t be able to do that powerful hack. But anyway, his state was still below the Knowing Destiny State.


    He was not confident enough to say that he could defeat Wang Jinglue, who was nicknamed Invincible prior to Knowing Destiny.


    "I don¡¯t ept the challenge."


    Ning Que said, "It seemed that I have to ept your challenge since the Academy has entered the human realm. But we are both soldiers of Tang, and it will be embarrassing for both of us if other people know that we fought against each other."


    "I have said that I won¡¯t feel embarrassed. It is fine for me," said Wang Jinglue.


    "I am more shameless than you,"


    Said Ning Que. He walked to the railing and looked at the meadow and forest outside. "Have you finished that thing?" yelled Ning Que.


    A young man a lot fatter than Wang Jinglue walked out from the forest. He rubbed his hands and walked slower than ady. It was obvious that he didn¡¯t want to go into the building at all.


    Ning Que yelled to him again, "If you don¡¯t hurry up, I will be beaten up!"


    The young chubby man suddenly became annoyed and yelled back, "Are you not worried that I will be beaten up then?"


    Ning Que peered at Xu Shi, who was standing next to the railing, and said, "Someone thinks he belongs to the upper ss. He won¡¯t be so shameless to beat a fat man up."


    ...


    The sound of him walking up the stairs was heard in the attic.


    Chen Pipi climbed up the stairs to the attic, panting heavily. He first bowed to Xu Shi respectfully, then he looked at Wang Jinglue and said, "You have to fight with me first."


    Wang Jinglue looked at him and remembered the fight in Chang¡¯an Local Government on new year¡¯s day. He looked even more worried and said helplessly, "Why are you here again?"


    Ning Que exined, "Of all the people on the Second Floor of the Academy, he was the only one I could get."


    "Wang Jinglue smiled bitterly, "I am Invincible prior to Knowing Destiny, but still it has to be prior to Knowing Destiny State, I am no match for Mr. Twelve. But I would like to fight with Mr. Thirteen first."


    Chen Pipi shook his head and took out a thick pile of paper from his clothes. He licked his finger, took the paper on the top of the pile and showed it to Wang Jinglue.


    "This is a challenge certificate from the Imperial Center Administration."


    "And it was issued and stamped earlier than yours"


    "I have got 62 of them and they are all issued earlier than yours."


    "Even if you are going to fight with Ning Que, you need to finish the 62 fights with me first."


    Wang Jinglue was shocked. He took the pile of paper and looked at them. He was never scared of anything and even when Chen Pipi beat him down with only one finger, he was still not scared. But now he was.


    Failure was not scary, but what if he failed 62 times?


    Chen Pipi didn¡¯t use the Natural Stream Magical Finger with the no-boundary spirit.


    But Wang Jinglue felt an urge to vomit blood as if he had been hit by the Natural Stream Magical Finger.


    Ning Que looked at the old man and said, "I thought you wouldn¡¯t choose such ame way like finding a person to fight with me. But I still did some preparation, in case it does happen."


    "ording to the rted rules in the fourth chapter of thew of Tang, anyone who wants to fight with me has to fight with my Tewlveth Senior Brother first."


    "If you don¡¯t want Wang Jinglue to vomit blood every day and die in the end, you had better not try."


    Wang Jinglue¡¯s face looked terrible.


    Chen Pipi walked to Xu Shi and bowed again. He said, "Second Brother wanted me to deliver a message to you. He said that the Academy is not allowed to interfere with the Imperial Court¡¯s affairs, in that case, the Imperial Court should better not do that to the Academy as well."


    Xu Shi had been silent since Chen Pipi showed up.


    As the most powerful person in the Military Ministry, he certainly didn¡¯t care about Chen Pipi. But he was still respectful to some of the people in the back of the mountain in the Academy, such as the very bold Second Brother.


    "Please also take my words to him,"


    Xu Shi said, "What should I do if someone in the Academy has already interfered with the business of the Imperial Court?"


    Chen Pipi was silent for a moment, and then he said, "Second Brother had expected such a question. He said that even so, the Academy would deal with it. But of course, if you have some solid proof that can show someone from the back mountain really did it, he would first tell the Headmaster and then discuss it with the Imperial Court."


    ...


    Chen Pipi and Ning Que walked down from the building and went back to the forest and the meadow.


    Chen Pipi said suddenly, "General Xu Shi is good."


    Ning Que looked at a tree standing before the stone path for carriages and said, "He is a hypocrite."


    Chen Pipi shook his head and said, "No, he isn¡¯t."


    Ning Que said, "He seems to care about justice, but actually he let evil people get away with crimes many times. Does that not make him a hypocrite?"


    Chen Pipi said, "The Headmaster once said that if one is good in nature, and he just gives in for something more important, then you can say he is not brave enough, but you can¡¯t say that he is a hypocrite."


    Ning Que kicked a stone away and said, "I consider the best man in the world an evil guy if he is not kind to me."


    Chen Pipi thought about it for a moment before answering, "That makes sense as well."


    Ning Que sniffed and looked at him, confused, "Why are you so sweaty?"


    The clothes on Chen Pipi¡¯s back was drenched by sweat.


    He exined, "Fat people can¡¯t stand the heat."


    Ning Que shook his head, showing that he didn¡¯t buy that exnation.


    Chen Pipi said annoyedly, "Your sweat had turned into salt. How dare youugh at me?"


    Ning Que said slowly like Eldest Brother, "I am just someone at the Seethrough State and I am the one involved in this whole thing. It is normal for me to be scared. But you are a Grand Cultivator at the Knowing Destiny State, how embarrassing is it that you are so scared!"


    Chen Pipi suddenly stopped walking and looked at him. He said seriously, "Do you know who Xu Shi is?"


    Ning Que shook his head.


    Chen Pipi said, "He is one of the most powerful people in the world. Just then in the attic, if he wanted, he could kill lots of people like us easily."


    Ning Que thought to himself, why didn¡¯t he feel that?


    "The scariest thing is his identity as the Defender-general of the State. He rules the Military Ministry of Tang, where there were countless powerhouses and thousands of cavalry. He was invincible indeed."


    Chen Pipi continued, "Why can¡¯t I be scared when facing such a bigwig?"


    Ning Que mocked him, "Then why am I not scared?"


    "Because you are an idiot."


    Cheng Pipi shouted at him, "Even Liu Bai would be terrified if it was him facing the whole Military Ministry. But you didn¡¯t take it seriously. What else are you if not an idiot?"


    Ning Que asked, "What was our Youngest Uncle facing against?"


    Chen Pipi said, "He was facing against the whole world. But what makes you think you are as powerful as him?"


    Ning Que said, "I am no way as powerful as him, but I know more tricks than him."


    Chen Pipi corrected him, "You should say that you are more shameless than him."


    Ning Que didn¡¯t bother to correct him. He suddenly asked seriously after remembering the talk in the General¡¯s Mansion yesterday, "Are cultivators really not as powerful as the army?"


    Chen Pipi said, "Yeah, something like that."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "But I don¡¯t believe it."


    Chen Pipi pointed at the wild geese flying in the sky and said, "If those wild geese turned into thousands of sharp arrows and fell towards you, what would you do? Would you turn the direction of the wind by using the no-boundary spirit? Or would you try to stop them using the Great Spirit? No matter what you do, you would die in the end."


    Ning Que said, "Of course I can¡¯t. But what if it was you?"


    Chen Pipi eximed, "If I can defeat the cavalry of Tang single-handedly, then I should change my name into the Headmaster of the Academy."


    Ning Que said, "When I saw you easily fly for a long distance into the woods to escape from Second Brother, I thought that a shower of arrows should be a piece of cake for you."


    Chen Pipi said proudly, "Of course I was fast and it was easy for me."


    Then his expression became bitter and he said, "But you can¡¯t always be fast and it isn¡¯t always easy. You always need to stop to rest and meditate. What will you then?"


    Ning Que did not say anything.


    Chen Pipi asked, "What are you thinking about?"


    Ning Que said, "I wonder whether you and Second Brother have ever vited thew of Tang Empire."


    Chen Pipi looked a little nervous. He asked, "Why are you thinking about that?"


    Ning Que replied, "Because if you did, I will tell the local government and let Xu Shi fight against you."


    Chen Pipi said, "I will be scared. But maybe Second Brother won¡¯t."


    Ning Que said, "Xu Shi imed that even someone as powerful as Second Brother couldn¡¯t survive the attack of armored ck cavalry."


    Chen Pipi said, "I never thought that the Defender-general of the State likes to brag too."


    ...


    ...


    .

 Chapter 427: A Package Wrapped in Blue Cloth

    Chapter 427: A Package Wrapped in Blue Cloth


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que asked, "Why do you think he was bragging?"


    Chen Pipi answered, "Because even if the armored cavalry is invincible, Second Brother can just run away from them."


    Ning Que said, "But you just said that it is impossible for you to run away from it."


    "Second Brother is different from me."


    Chen Pipi said, "He runs faster than me, and even your Big ck Horse can¡¯t catch up with him."


    A question suddenly urred to Ning Que. He asked, "The problem is, if Second Brother was really trapped by the army, do you think he would choose to run away?"


    Chen Pipi thought for a moment and said, "No, he won¡¯t."


    Ning Que said with pity, "In this way, it is right to say that no one can defeat the army."


    Chen Pipi shook his head and said, "But I think if Second Brother was surrounded by the army and didn¡¯t run away, he could kill two thousand people using all his power, and then the others left would be too scared to fight against him."


    Ning Que muttered, "That makes sense."


    Then he said, "Only imagining this scene makes me excited. It is a shame that we can¡¯t actually see it."


    They chatted while walking through the forest. Now that they hade to the Vermilion Bird Avenue, it was time for them to part.


    Ning Que held his two fists together and bowed to Chen Pipi. He said sincerely, "Thanks, Senior Brother."


    Chen Pipi sighed.


    Ning Que did not say anything.


    Chen Pipi asked, "Why do you want to do that?"


    Ning Que knew what he was asking about.


    He was asking why he wanted to kill people, why he wanted to fight against the Military Ministry of Tang, and why he held a grudge towards the general who was about toe back.


    Ning Que looked down at the grass at his feet, silent.


    He didn¡¯t admit anything when Xu Shi asked him the same question. And no matter who asked him this question, he would just say that he was innocent. But he didn¡¯t want to hide from Chen Pipi.


    Raising his head and looking at Chen Pipi¡¯s eyes, Ning Que said, "Xia Hou killed my whole family."


    Chen Pipi was taken back by this answer, and his expression changed suddenly. After a long time of silence, he reached out his hand and patted Ning Que on his shoulder tofort him.


    "Then you really should be angry."


    "But Xia Hou is not an ordinary person. You can¡¯t kill him whatever you do, because he is too powerful for you."


    Chen Pipi looked at Ning Que and said in concern, "And he is both an important general of Tang and a visiting professor at the West-Hill, with these two identities, he is really influential. Even if the Headmaster won¡¯t stop you from trying to kill him, do you think Eldest Brother and Second Brother will agree to help you? I can¡¯t defeat Xia Hou for you."


    Ning Que understood his words and he was touched.


    Chen Pipi asked atst, "What do you n to do when hees back to Chang¡¯an in thete autumn?"


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "I don¡¯t know."


    ...


    It was in the Pce of Tang.


    The Pce, being washed by the rain for a whole day, looked brilliant against the blue sky.


    Xu Shi had been looking at this Pce for more than ten years, and although he was so familiar with it, he was never bored looking at it. He was old and haunted by some old illness in his lung, but deep in his heart, he was just as active and passionate as when he just joined the Military camp in his youth.


    The Emperor put the bowl of medicine down and furrowed his brows. It seemed that the medicine was too bitter for him. He signed to the eunuch to leave and looked at the old general beside him. "Although we both cough a lot, our illness is different, so I can¡¯t share my medicine with you. Speaking of that, I said you should stay in the south and recover from your illness, why did youe back?"


    Xu Shi appreciated His Majesty¡¯s trust and care, but it didn¡¯t mean that he would agree with all of his decisions. He replied, "The Nanzhaoshan tribe have surrenderedst spring, and the south had returned to peace. I only need to leave some army there as a deterrent to the Yuelun Kingdom. There is no need for me to stay there. And although the humid temperature there is good for my lungs, I am not used to the humid air."


    The Emperor said, "Fine. With you back to Chang¡¯an and watch over the Military Ministry for me, I can rx a little."


    Xu Shi said, "But there is one thing His Majesty should pay more attention to."


    The Emperor was silent.


    Xu Shi said, "Please write to the Academy and ask the Headmaster to punish Ning Que."


    The Emperor turned around to look at him and asked, "Do you have solid proof?"


    Xu Shi said, "No, I don¡¯t."


    The Emperor asked again, "What did you say when I wanted to punish Xia Hou?"


    Xu Shi said, "I didn¡¯t say anything."


    The Emperor said, "But my brother, my prime minister, the minister of Dali Temple and the Empress said something. They all said that thew of Tang Empire wrote that when there was no proof, no one was allowed to be punished."


    He looked at the most loyal general in Tang and said mockingly, "At that time, I didn¡¯t oppose them after thinking for a long time, and you didn¡¯t either. Do you want to oppose them now?"


    Xu Shi was silent for a long time and said, "Even if we can¡¯t punish Ning Que because of theck of proof, I still think it was wrong to give the God-stunning Array to him."


    "You are an old friend of Yan Se."


    The Emperor said, frowning, "Why don¡¯t you trust his sessor?"


    Xu Shi didn¡¯t exin. He repeated stubbornly, "I don¡¯t trust him to take charge of Chang¡¯an."


    The Emperor thought for a while and said, "I trust him."


    ...


    It was the Old Brush Pen Shop in the early morning.


    Sangsang got up early as usual, but she wasn¡¯t busy chopping the wood, boiling the water and buying breakfast. Instead, she nced at Ning Que who was still asleep and walked out of the room silently. She went to the shop and searched a drawer below the disy case for a while before she found a neat package.


    It was covered in blue cloth, which had flower patterns on. She bought the cloth yesterday. No one knew what was inside, but judging from her careful manner when holding it, it should be something really precious.


    She walked out of the Old Brush Pen Shop, got in the arranged carriage and went to the House of Red Sleeves.


    As the best ce in the entertainment industry, the House of Red Sleeves was frequented by the noble. It closed atte night every day and didn¡¯t open until midday. So when Sangsang got off the carriage in front of the House of Red Sleeves, both the front gate and the side gate were closed tightly. The street was silent, and only the sound of someone sweeping the ground could be heard vaguely.


    Sangsang looked around to make sure no one noticed her, then she ran to the side gate. Before she knocked on the gate, it was pushed open by Xiaocao.


    The two girls looked very nervous as if they were stealing something. Xiaocao let her in without saying anything.


    ...


    Dewdrop was once the most famous girl in the brothels in Chang¡¯an, but she had not been working here for a long time. Because as a millionaire now, she didn¡¯t need to work in the brothel anymore. And even if she wanted to work here, someone in the Lin 47th Street had discussed with Mistress Jian and forbidden her to do that for his master¡¯s dignity.


    But Dewdrop still lived in the House of Red Sleeves. Her daily routine was to read, y instruments or hang out in Chang¡¯an. Sometimes she also taught other girls singing and dancing. She was having a rxing life, but her habit was still the same as in the past; she went to bed reallyte and got up at midday.


    But today was different. She got up before the sun rose up and had been waiting for someone next to the table after her maidservant washed her face andbed her hair.


    Seeing that her miss was so sleepy and yawning all the time, the maidservant wondered who the important person that she was waiting could be. She worried that Mistress Jian or the person living in the Lin 47th Street would be unhappy if they knew about this.


    The door of the room was pushed open and Sangsang walked in, but Xiaocao stayed outside.


    Dewdrop looked at the package, her eyes lighting up suddenly. She asked, "You are so bold. I didn¡¯t expect you toe alone."


    Sangsang put the package on the table and said, "If he asks about where you got it, you can tell him that I stole it."


    ...


    It was dawn.


    A small carriage with ck curtains left the House of Red Sleeves and went to ake in the south of the city.


    Theke was really quiet and there was a restaurant standing next to it, whose name, the Victory House, was written by the Libationer. It was the best restaurant in Chang¡¯an.


    Across the street, there was a quiet estate with ck roof and dark bricks on the roof, which was said to belong to the owner of the Victory House. It was called the Stone House and dealt with antiques.


    Compared with the Victory House, it was a lot less famous and only a few ordinary people knew about it. But the really rich and noble ones knew that this ce was where the antiques from the whole world were stored.


    The small carriage didn¡¯t stop in front of the Stone House, instead, it was led into the yard by a steward.


    Dewdrop walked out of the small carriage with the package in her arms.


    The boss of the Stone House was weing her in the yard. He was very polite and kind to her.


    As the founder of both the Victory House and the Stone House, this person was definitely not an ordinary person and he must have very strong backings. Dewdrop knew that she was no way as noble as him, despite that she was the ime most famous girl in Chang¡¯an. He was polite to her just because of the package.


    She put the package on the table without saying anything.


    The owner was surprised to see the cheap blue cloth, wondering who would wrap such a precious thing with this kind of cheap cloth. He suspected whether the thing inside was real, but when thinking about those valuable calligraphy pieces he got from this girl in the past one year and the rumors people in the calligraphy and painting circle were talking about, he decided to take the risk.


    Looking at the owner of the Stone House, Dewdrop restained her nervous feeling and said softly, "You have ten days to sell it, and I will be waiting for your good news at the House of Red Sleeves."


    The owner frowned and said, "Dewdrop, you know very well how much responsibility we need to take when selling this kind of things. I need to pay lots of money..."


    "Don¡¯t talk about money with me."


    Dewdrop smiled, "I am only a representative. This is not really my business, so you don¡¯t need to talk about money with me. And we both know what it means to the Stone House if these things are sold through your hands. You shouldn¡¯t get any money from the person who asked me to do it, instead, I really think I should ask some money from you for her."


    The owner knew that Dewdrop was very clever. He smiled, "It was wrong of me to say that. When it is done, I will pay you well to show my gratitude."


    Dewdrop went into the small carriage and left the shop.


    The owner asked all of his workers to leave, except for his most trustworthy manager.


    The manager looked at the blue package and asked in a shivering voice, "Is it really his calligraphy?"


    The owner said, "Would I care so much if they weren¡¯t real?"


    The manager remembered thements from those famous appraisers in the calligraphy and painting circle and believed that it was real.


    He stroked his bread and sighed, "I feel so bad for Sir Ning. He is such a famous and admirable person, but who would have thought that his handmaiden would be so greedy?"


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 428: Genuine Works

    Chapter 428: Genuine Works


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Cultivators and ordinary people belonged to two different worlds. That was why even though Ning Que had attained a name for himself by the side doors of the Academy, his status as a calligrapher was still more prominent in the hearts of the Tangs. Sir Ning¡¯s status was exalted to those like the manager and his peers.


    And because of this admiration for Ning Que, the manager felt that the little handmaiden was very shameless even though she was the reason that he was able to get his hands on the blue flower¡ª printed bag. He thought that the little handmaiden who had stolen the belongings of her master was very tasteless.


    The old manager thought about it for a moment. Even if he did not agree with the acts of the little handmaiden, he could not resist the temptation of money. He whispered, "Since the little handmaiden stole it, even if we don¡¯t give her a share, she wouldn¡¯t dare to report it. She wouldn¡¯t dare let Sir Ning know either. Why don¡¯t we..."


    "Perish those thoughts if you wish to live."


    The boss of the Stone House frowned hearing the manager¡¯s words. Warning him sternly, he said, "Do not speak of such things again. I heard that the little handmaiden isn¡¯t ordinary either. She has close ties with the Princess and from what I¡¯ve heard from the House of Red Sleeves, Sir Ning treasures this handmaiden."


    "Even if she eventually bes Sir Ning¡¯s concubine, the little handmaiden is just a gold-digger. How could she ever match up to someone like Sir Ning?"


    The old manager suddenly thought of something and said, "Big Owner, Sir Ning isn¡¯t an ordinary calligrapher. Will there be any problems when we sell this?"


    The boss said, "Sir Ning favors that little handmaiden. She takes charge of all his stamps. We have received the document approving the sale, so these are not stolen goods. Even if Sir Ning discovers this in the future, he can only trace it back to the little handmaiden. We do not bear any responsibility ording to thew of the Tang Empire."


    The old manager praised her, "Big Owner, we have nothing to worry about when you are the one settling these things."


    The boss picked up the blue flower-printed bag and asked, "Are they all in the side yard?"


    The old manager nodded.


    ...


    ...


    On the west courtyard of the Stone House, behind the three-floor main building and under a tree, theke breeze blew gently and was highly refreshing. Some men exited the room and greeted each other.


    Some of these men were from the South Jin Kingdom, and some were from the Kingdom of Song. Some came from Yangguan of the Tang Empire. There was even a great calligrapher from Chang¡¯an¡¯s Prosperity Ink House. They were all leaders in calligraphy appraisal in their country. Indeed, no matter whether they were silver-haired, or had frigid expressions, they all exuded confidence and pride.


    "Brother Mo Shi, you are here too?"


    "Brother Jiefu... who is that man beneath the trellis? He looks familiar."


    "I think we met him in the Yue pcest year."


    With the exchange of identities, the pride and confidence in the eyes of these people gradually turned into surprise. They found that the other men in the courtyard were also well-renowned like themselves, but they had never met each other. They did not expect to be gathered in this little courtyard today.


    Brother Mo Shi stroked his beard andmented, "Stone House has been doing well in recent years. They managed to invite so many of us in such a short time."


    Brother Jiefu shook his head and said with heavy emotions, "If not for the rarity of the items in this sale, and that they are so precious, I would not have turned up."


    With the mention of the details in this sale, the men, including the quiet one standing under the trellis, gathered closer. They whispered and tried to find out what everyone else knew.


    "How many scrolls are there in existence?"


    "Nobody knows the actual figure. We only know that the imperial study of the pce holds the most amount. I heard that the emperor himself took away more than half from the Old Brush Pen Shop."


    Brother Mo Shi said with regret, "They are hidden in the dark imperial study. We cannot see or appreciate them. They are unavable to the public and we cannot get close to them. This is really..."


    He wanted to criticize the sphemy that the Tang Emperor hadmitted. But even though he knew that the Chang¡¯an politics were liberal, he did not dare to do so.


    "The Libationer and Grand Secretary Wang each have a few in their mansions. The otherrge mansions should have about four, but the officials have hidden them in their mansions better than His Majesty. They don¡¯t take them out and show others easily."


    "There are many copies of the Chicken Soup Calligraphy, but no one has ever seen the original. Rumors say that it is in Grand Secretary Wang¡¯s mansion."


    "Some lucky ones managed to buy his genuine work at Lin 47th Street before he became famous. The price of these works had be exorbitantly high this year. They disappeared after being traded once or twice. There are about 12 of them."


    "I wonder if there are any central scrolls in the ones that Stone House managed to get."


    "Central scrolls? It¡¯s impossible for there to be any wide calligraphy scrolls."


    "If they are calligraphy sections, there must be more than three of them. Otherwise, the Big Owner of Stone House would not spend so much to invite all of us here."


    The calligraphy appraisers discussed this heatedly. It was then when the courtyard doors opened with a squeak. The boss of Stone House entered with a blue flower-printed bag.


    Everyone followed the boss into the hall. Their eyes did not leave the bag in the owner¡¯s hands. They were confused, but filled with anticipation.


    The bossid the bag on the table gently. He gestured to the bag with one hand.


    The old manager along with two other servants brought out water and towels.


    The calligraphy appraisers gathered around and washed their hands quickly and carefully. After drying their hands on the towel, they epted the oil blotting paper that the shopkeeper passed around and carefully blotted the water and oil from their hands. Then, they gathered around the blue cloth bag.


    The middle-aged man called Mo Shi rolled up his sleeves and looked at the coarse blue flower-printed bag. He said unhappily, "When did the Stone House be so plebian? Using cloth will only damage the calligraphy sections, it is so uncouth."


    The owner of the Stone House could not afford to offend the professional appraiser. However, out of a habit cultivated from his profession, he could not bear the scene before him.


    The owner of Stone Houseughed bitterly and did not exin. He opened the cloth bag and revealed the t box inside it. The box was made of cardboard.


    Brother Mo Shi was even more annoyed. He opened the box and then stiffened.


    The hall grew silent.


    The appraisers looked at the papers in the box in surprise. They were all shocked speechless and felt that they might be seeing things. After a while, someone eximed incredulously, "Seven pieces!"


    The boss walked to the side and sat down. He lifted the teacup to his lips and drank, smiling, "You guys look at it."


    ...


    ...


    The appraisers gathered around the desk and carefully removed the calligraphy section from the box. They were all leading characters in their professions. It did not take them long to certify that the seven calligraphy sections were all genuine work.


    Even though they could not confirm when the calligraphy sections were written, it was unanimously agreed that these were new works. But this did not affect the value of the sections. The appraisers were all shocked. They did not expect the Stone House to have such a big collection in their hands. Other than in the imperial study in the pce, there wasn¡¯t anywhere else in the world where one could see so many genuine works.


    What surprised them the most was thest section in the box.


    It was a wrinkled piece of memo paper.


    But to them, this memo was more valuable than the Xishan writings.


    There were only two words on the memo¡ª Chicken Soup.


    "Even though this is a genuine work, everyone knows that Grand Secretary Wang had bought the original Chicken Soup Calligraphy with 4,000 taels of silver. It is now in the schr¡¯s mansion."


    Brother Mo Shi frowned. "Could this be a new duplicate?"


    Those gathered around the table thought about it, and recognized that there was indeed a problem.


    Brother Mo Shi carefully held up the two corners of the memo with his fingertips. He held it up in the air and against the sunlight streaming into the hall as if he wanted to find out what was the problem with it.


    The appraiser from the Kingdom of Song standing across him suddenly gasped in surprise. He pointed at the memo and said, "There are words."


    Everyone looked at where he pointed. There was indeed a line of small characters behind the memo.


    "This is genuine."


    ...


    ...


    "Who wrote it?"


    The appraiser from the Kingdom of Song bellowed somewhat angrily. "Even though this Chicken Soup Calligraphy is a new duplicate, it is still a precious object. How could they write things on the back?!"


    Brother Mo Shi shook his head and looked at the line of characters. Hemented, "Who else, other than Sir Ning, can write characters like these? If it was indeed written by him, this only makes the work more valuable."


    "Could this Chicken Soup Calligraphy be the original?"


    "If it was signed by Sir Ning, of course it is the original."


    "What about the one bought by Grand Secretary Wang at a high price?"


    "That one... must be fake."


    All were silent.


    While they were not cultivators, they have all heard the story behind the Chicken Soup Calligraphy. Many thought that the Chicken Soup Calligraphy was worth as much as the precious flower bloom calligraphy hidden in the imperial study after the copies began to circte.


    Someone muttered in surprise, "How much should we set the appraisal value at?"


    "Wang bought this for 4,000 taels at a friendship price. Sir Ning was barely famous then."


    The quiet man under the trellis suddenly said, "Give it some time for the news to spread and it¡¯d be best if we can enrage Grand Secretary Wang."


    The man raised his head and looked at the boss of Stone House and other appraisers. He said, "30,000. If I sell this Chicken Soup Calligraphy for less than 30,000, I¡¯d be too ashamed to face anyone."


    With that, the quiet man did not return to his brooding but looked very proud. He looked as if he had pulled out a sharp knife from his sheath.


    Everyone finally recognized the man.


    The man was the most famous auctioneer in the calligraphy world.


    "Very well."


    The boss of Stone House stood up. Then, he suddenly remembered what Dewdrop had said. After a moment, he looked at the auctioneer and said, "We only have one rule: Sir Ning has the right to choose the buyer."


    The man frowned slightly because he had rarely heard of such requests.


    The boss did not exin.


    He did this because the seven sections were obtained disgracefully. Even though Stone House did not need to bear any legal responsibilities ording to thew of the Tang Empire, they were prepared for the sections to be taken back by Ning Que should thise to light. This rule was made to save his reputation. Furthermore, if the auction is invalid, it wouldfort those potential bigwig buyers.


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 429: The Auctioneer Speaks

    Chapter 429: The Auctioneer Speaks


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Fragrance wafted from the Old Brush Pen Shop¡¯s kitchen. Ning Que stood behind Sangsang and could not help asking, "Did anyone suspect that I was the one who released them?"


    Sangsang did not turn around. She said, "I heard that everyone thought that I secretly sold them."


    "I¡¯m sorry you had to bear the burden of being called a thief."


    Ning Que said shamefacedly.


    Sangsang nced at the fire in the stove and kicked the door shut whiledling out the tofu. She said, "Young master, its no problem as long as they sell well."


    Ning Que took the heavy bowl from her and said, "I hope so."


    There was a news spreading that there were seven calligraphy sections from the Old Brush Pen Shop that were about to go on sale in calligraphy and antique shops in Chang¡¯antely. It was rumored that these sections were stolen by a favored money-grubbing handmaiden.


    Of course, it was far from the truth. Six of the seven calligraphy sections were written by Ning Que on one of the nights. He was also the one who wanted to sell them. For them to take the longer route, involve Dewdrop into the situation and had no choice but to ruin Sangsang¡¯s reputation, it was for three main reasons.


    Firstly, Ning Que did not want anyone to know that he needed arge amount of money. That¡¯s because he did not want anyone to know what he was about to do with the money. Secondly, he was now a world-ss calligrapher and regardless from whichever perspective one sees it, selling own works was an embarrassing matter.


    And the most important reason of all, was that if he openly sold his calligraphy sections, His Majesty would definitely take them away shamelessly or only pay the official price for them.


    The calligraphy sections that His Majesty had borrowed from the Old Brush Pen Shop had never been returned. As for the official price... it was not sufficient for Ning Que¡¯s current needs. That was why he had thought of such a method.


    Sangsang cut off the ends of some salted vegetables and ced them on the dish with chopsticks. She asked, "Do you want to put some sesame oil on it?"


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "I¡¯m so stressed up by this matter till I am getting heaty. I¡¯d better eat lighter."


    Sangsang picked up some sesame seeds with her fingertips and scattered them in the beancurd. She asked, "I¡¯ve done the ounts with Mr. Qi yesterday. We still need a lot of money. Will the seven sections be too little?"


    "No matter how precious an object is, the value of it will depreciate if there are too many of them. It¡¯s like the rouge of Chenjinji Cosmetics Store. If they sell it everywhere on the streets, it wouldn¡¯t be so expensive anymore."


    Ning Que said, "I was worried that the seven calligraphy sections would cause the market value of my works to crash. But it seems that Stone House is indeed capable."


    Sangsang held up the bowl of beancurd with shiny eyes. She said, "I wonder how much they would sell for."


    Ning Que said, "The first six could probably sell for between eight to 10 thousand? The crux of the matter is thest Chicken Soup Calligraphy. I do not know for sure how much it could sell for."


    Sangsang asked, "Is that the original Chicken Soup Calligraphy?"


    Ning Que nodded and looked at the pestle shaped array eye that was left on an inconspicuous corner on the shelf. He said, "That Chicken Soup Calligraphy was wrapping the pestle that Master had instructed you to hand it to me."


    Then, he said with heavy emotions, "Master is an old cheat. I am so touched."


    His words were both mocking and ament. It was also because of the whirl of emotions he felt from the conversation he had with General Xu Shi a few days earlier. Xu Shi insisted that Master Yan Se was righteous and of the light. It was proven today, that the deceased master was a mischievous man. Ning Que couldn¡¯t help but feel relieved.


    Sangsang said worriedly, "I am worried that Grand Secretary Wang would be angry."


    Ning Que said mockingly, "He wanted to buy the Chicken Soup Calligraphy for four thousand taels of silver. Who else would master cheat other than someone so muddle-headed like Wang?"


    Sangsang said, "A cheater is still a cheater."


    Ning Que thought about it for a moment before he asked, "What news have you heard?"


    Sangsang said,"Grand Secretary Wang was originally from the Qing family of Chuan County. Lately, they have been nning on rebuilding their ancestral shrine and rewriting their ancestral records. The schr¡¯a mansion has taken to lead in doing that and have been preparing for several days."


    After eating the vegetable and beancurd porridge, Ning Que rubbed his tummy and got onto the horse carriage, which brought him to the Grand Secretary Mansion.


    This was not the Mansion of Imperial Library Grand Secretary Zeng Jing, but the mansion of Grand Secretary, senior statesman Wang Shichen. Grand Secretary Wang Shichen was both highly experienced and powerful, unlike Grand Secretary Zeng Jing. Comparatively, his temper was also worse than Zeng Jing.


    Grand Secretary Wang looked at Ning Que in the quiet study. Anger filled his slightly muddied eyes. He did not care that Ning Que was a student on the Second floor of the Academy and yelled at him shrilly. "You imprinted your seal on the Chicken Soup Calligraphy in front of everyone in my house. Why is there another Chicken Soup Calligraphy out there now? I do not care if your handmaiden had stolen it. I just want to know why there is another Chicken Soup Calligraphy!"


    Ning Que felt slightly regretful that he hade here today. After a long silence, he smiled bitterly. "I did not know about this until I received Master¡¯s remains. I was drunk when I wrote the memo in the House of Red Sleeves, so I had not recognized that was a duplicate at your mansion. I did not expect that the old man had an interest in that."


    "Interest? What kind of interest is that!"


    Wang Shichen¡¯s white hair crackled in the air as he descended beyond anger. He waved his trembling hand around and bellowed in anger. "He had taken the Chicken Soup Calligraphy from his sleeves when I went to the gambling den in Southern Gate Temple. What kind of interest is this? He had obviously nned to cheat me of my money!"


    Ning Que smiled and corrected him, "My master had never thought that you would be the one to get cheated."


    After which, he said seriously, "But that Chicken Soup Calligraphy was a duplicate of my master¡¯s and is naturally precious. Furthermore, he has already passed on, so please do not me him."


    Grand Secretary Wangughed coldly and did not reply.


    Ning Que suddenly asked, "I heard that your family is currently rebuilding your ancestral home."


    Grand Secretary Wang looked at him oddly and nodded.


    "With your status, I am sure that the Emperor would be the one toe up with the words on the horizontal inscribed board. However, do you need someone to write on the couplet boards in the ancestral hall and for the genealogy records?"


    Ning Que asked.


    The Grand Secretary Wang paused beforeprehending Ning Que¡¯s intentions. He was truly happy. The Chicken Soup Calligraphy might be precious, but to a schr¡¯s family, their ancestral halls and genealogy books were things that would be handed down to their descendants. It¡¯d be fantastic if Ning Que would personally write on these.


    "Thank you very much, I really appreciate it."


    Grand Secretary Wangughed happily before changing the topic. "Since Miss Sangsang had taken those sections, will you take them back?"


    As the senior statesman of the Tang Empire, he did not know that Zeng Jing had found his daughter. That was why he had many questions amidst the anger and bustle about the seven calligraphy sections of the Old Brush Pen Shop. He asked them to Ning Que in person today.


    Ning Que smiled and did not reply.


    Grand Secretary Wang understood what he meant and said indifferently, "Since this is so, I would like to buy the Chicken Soup Calligraphy. Would Sir Ning mind?"


    It seemed that the sections would sell for a good price with someone like Grand Secretary Wang entering the scene. Ning Que only had eyes for money and would not mind. He smiled happily.


    ...


    ...


    Chu Youxian alighted from the Horse Carriage and looked at the people walking to Stone House. The expression on his face changed slightly as he said in a tremoring voice. "My father might be wealthy, but there are so many wealthier people in Chang¡¯an. The people in front were royal buyers from the South cities. Do you expect me topete with those people?"


    Chu Youxian¡¯s father was a rich businessman from the Eastern City of Chang¡¯an. He was well-known for his love for art, which was why the Stone House had sent him an invitation for today¡¯s auction of the seven sections from the Old Brush Pen Shop. The invitation was in Chu Youxian¡¯s sleeves right now.


    Ning Que came to Stone House with Chu Youxian. He was not very interested in the sale of his calligraphy. But in order to make sure that there wouldn¡¯t be any problems and that the taels of silver would smoothly reach his hands, he decided toe and keep an eye on it.


    Chu Youxian looked at Ning Que and a worried expression shed through his face. His father had reached out his feelers about what would happen today upon receiving the invitation. He knew about the theft in the Old Brush Pen Shop. Since the sale today was of loots from the Old Brush Pen Shop, and Ning Que had insisted oning, he was sure that Ning Que was either here to make a fuss or to buy his calligraphy back. And no matter which of the above happened, they both sounded dangerous.


    "I will not make a fuss."


    Ning Que exined, "I am afraid that someone would."


    Chu Youxian did not understand what Ning Que said. He recalled that his father had been exhrated upon discovering his friendship with Ning Que. He decided to ignore what might happen and walked into Stone House.


    A servant brought the two into the courtyard after they showed them the invitation.


    Stone House was located beside a quietke. The slightly hot spring breeze blew gently through the willow trees and into the quiet halls. It was significantly cooler by the time it reached the building in the courtyard.


    The auction was held in a three-story wooden building. Only the side facing theke waspletely open. There was a tform in the middle of the floor. The tform was devoid of everything else but a screen. There was a calligraphy piece embroidered on the screen. One could not be sure which famous calligrapher it belonged to from afar.


    The refreshingke breeze entered once more, causing the screen to flutter. It traveled through the attic, dispelling the heat. Even the most uncouth person would feel slightly more elegant in a ce with such exquisite decorations.


    There were about twenty individual rooms in the three-story building. Each room was partitioned with bamboo and silk. The gentleke breeze caused the silks to flutter, revealing the bamboo frames. One could vaguely make out legs, but could not see who sat behind the partitions. It protected the privacy of those inside the room while ensuring theirfort.


    Ning Que and Chu Youxian were brought by a maid to one of the rooms on the second floor. Ning Que looked at the tform and screen and felt that he was right in choosing Stone House.


    Not much time had passed since they received the seven calligraphy pieces from the Old Brush Pen Shop and began their advertisement for today¡¯s auction. This meant that the South Jin Kingdom and other countries and the businessmen from these countries did not have time toe for this auction. The boss of the Stone House felt a bout of regret. He thought that he should not have been in such a hurry to invite appraisers over when he first got the sections. He should have allowed time for the news to spread.


    But the appeal of the seven sections, especially the Chicken Soup Calligraphy was toorge. Even though the major businesses of the South Jin Kingdom and other countries could not make it today, the envoys and a few royal buyers from these countries who lived in Chang¡¯an had all came. And they looked really interested.


    Whispers sounded in the attic of the Stone House. No one doubted the reputation of the Stone House, so they all believed that the seven calligraphy pieces were genuine. The whispers were of those who were considering whether to bid and their analysis on theirpetitors.


    The whispers died down as a middle-aged man in turquoise robes walked to the tform. The man tapped the gravel in his hands lightly, and a hushed silence fell.


    "Is that the boss of Stone House?"


    Ning Que asked.


    Chu Youxian shook his head and pointed to the person with the fan in his hands. "That person is called Zhong Li. It is rumored that hees from a branch of the Zhong family in Yang Guan. The rtionship between him and the family isn¡¯t good and he had not managed to be an official. He left Yang Guan angrily and started this. He had been involved in the auction market in the Kingdom of Song all this while, and is regarded as one of the greatest auctioneers. The Stone House had made such a big fuss over this today, so they¡¯d of course have to invite him."


    Ning Que thought of Zhong Da Jun when he heard that the person was from the Zhong family of Yang Guan. He couldn¡¯t help smiling and said, "I hope that this person is not as boring as Zhong Da Jun."


    Chu Youxian smiled, "The Zhongs of Yang Guan aren¡¯t all useless."


    ...


    ...


    Zhong Li stood on the tform and surveyed his surroundings calmly. Even though it was a simple sweep, those in the attic felt that he was looking at them. With that, he had revealed his skills as an auctioneer.


    Following that, he did something unexpected. He did not introduce the history of Stone House like he would in a regr auction. Neither did he greet the bigwigs in the attic. Instead, he began to speak. His voice was calm and his expression mild, and even slightly proud.


    "It is spring, and it is when gold and jade starts selling in the markets."


    "People say that gold ismon and jade is pure. However, today, jade ismon because we have invited everyone here today to admire the most elegant thing in the world today. It is the most beautiful creation of ink and incense in a millennium."


    Zhong Li smiled and said, "Perhaps it might disappoint everyone, that there will not be any fancy presentation, and neither will calligraphy sections from other fame calligraphers appear. And just like how gold ismonpared to jade, won¡¯t all other calligraphies in the world bemon before the seven sections of the Old Brush Pen Shop?"


    With that, the officials, nobles and businessmen in the attic of Stone House gasped in surprise. The auctioneer¡¯s words had ced the seven sections of the Old Brush Pen Shop on a pedestal. However, when they thought about it, those in the attic could not help but agree. Even though this event would boost the reputation of Stone House, it was undeniable that the great calligraphers of the past, or even famed works of the past or even works of the Master of Calligraphy could notpare to that of calligraphy from the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    Chu Youxian listened to the debates and sighs of admiration and praise in the room. His eyes brightened and he had a self-satisfied expression on his face. He fanned himself lightly and nced at Ning Que asionally. Wouldn¡¯t all these people be jealous of him should they know that the owner of the Old Brush Pen Shop was sitting right beside him?


    ...


    ...


    - --

 Chapter 430: The Buyer from South Jin Kingdom

    Chapter 430: The Buyer from South Jin Kingdom


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Chu Youxian fanned himself pleasedly and felt proud. The people in the Stone House attic sighed in admiration, especially the Tangs, who felt honored to have a calligraphere from them. One said that they had never seen such a young Grand Calligrapher. One mentioned that Sir Ning¡¯s calligraphy was the greatest in a thousand years. One regarded flower blooms section as the best cursive calligraphy section out there while another said that it was the Chicken Soup Calligraphy that deserved to be called the best cursive calligraphy.


    Ning Que felt ufortable listening to thesepliments. He might be thick-skinned, and had always been confident in his own calligraphy. But the reason why the praise made him feel a little uneasy was that his love towards calligraphy was true and he knew it clearly that he did not deserve such exaggerated praise yet.


    He knew that his writing was decent, even excellent. It was of a great standard in today¡¯s world. But he would not have achieved his status nowadays if not for the Lucky Chances that he had back then, when he was an idiotic teenager who had written down the five characters "The Flower Blooms on the Shore Astride" which got the mad love of the emperor. And thanks to Master Yan Se and the Academy, his calligraphy came to be known and admired by so many famous calligraphers.


    He thought about the spring rain in Chang¡¯an at that time. His calligraphy, hung on the walls of the Old Brush Pen Shop, witnessed that people passing by despised and distained them. There were days when they did not even have one customer. Only Chao Xiaoshu held an umbre and stood outside their threshold with a smile. Chao Xiaoshu knew it well that most of time, reputation was something attached on the appearance, just like the make-up on women¡¯s faces.


    However, no matter how sober Ning Que was, and no matter how calm he was after his self-reflection, he could not remain sober and calm when the people in the attic of the Stone House began praising him after hearing Zhong Li¡¯s words. The normal looking calligraphy sections were brought up to the tform by a girl who had taken Lu Xue¡¯s ce as the most favored girl in the House of Red Sleeves for the time being. Then, the calligraphy sections went to their new owners in the frantic bidding.


    Ning Que quickly calcted how much he would earn from the rapidly rising figure. He realized that as long as the Chicken Soup Calligraphy could be sold at a good price, it would be sufficient for his needs. He could not help but smirk, and anticipated that Grand Secretary Wang would spend a huge amount of money on those sections.


    As long as his reputation could earn him money, and as long as he could earn enough money, he did not care whether this reputation was inted or not. The shame and unease were just like flying ashes and dissolving smoke.


    Chu Youxian caught a glimpse of his expression and felt that Ning Que¡¯s smile was a little odd. He shuddered and whispered to him, "What are you going to do? Which one are you going to buy? The Chicken Soup Calligraphy?"


    He seemed to have made a great decision and said in a wobbly voice, "I took 50,000 taels of silver with me today."


    Ning Que was shocked and he looked at Chu Youxian, asking, "50,000? Why did you take so much money?"


    Chu Youxian replied, "My father gave it to me."


    Ning Que grew even more surprised. He asked, "Your father is really going to buy? He does not have to do this. I can write him a few and he can just give me a few thousand taels of silver."


    Chu Youxian thought Ning Que was being polite. He said with a worried expression, "I only found outter that my family sold half of ournds for me to enter the Academy. We really don¡¯t have any more money."


    Ning Que exined impatiently, "Which calligraphy in this world could sell for 100,000 taels? Even the best ink is not made of gold, nor is the best paper made of jade. The famous Night calligraphy by the Master of Calligrapher only sold for 8000 tales of silver. Do you think I am a deity?"


    Apparently, he did not know that the auctioneer, Zhong Li, had nned to sell the Chicken Soup Calligraphy for 30,000 taels of silver.


    The girl from the House of Red Sleeves walked up to the tform slowly with a heavy sandalwood table. The girl whose appearance was so beautiful that it made those who saw her forget their worldly desires, walked like a dancing willow. However, the gazes of those in the attic did not stay on her butnded on the memo paper on the table.


    The memo was carefully trimmed by the appraisers Stone House. It was not exaggerated, and added a sense of mysteriousness to it. A memo was no more than a memo. But to others, this memo was not just a memo, but an expensive note or a tiny country.


    The girl had obviously felt that no one in the Stone House was looking at her but at the memo she carried. However, she did not look annoyed or appear indifferent to it. She lifted her chin and looked considerably prouderpared to the previously gentle image she presented.


    Everyone in Chang¡¯an knew of the rtionship between Ning Que and the House of Red Sleeves. This legendary calligraphy section was written by Ning Que in the House of Red Sleeves after he got drunk.


    She was a girl of the House of Red Sleeves and was naturally proud of that fact.


    ...


    ...


    All was silent in the attic, and only the sounds of theke breeze caressing willow trees from afar could be heard.


    Then, there were sounds of heavy breathing.


    Everyone stared at the section on the table.


    Everyone knew that the origins of this Chicken Soup Calligraphy and the legendary stories behind this section. They had already known that thest auction piece from the Old Brush Pen Shop was the Chicken Soup Calligraphy. However, they still could not hide their shock when finally seeing the genuine copy of the Chicken Soup Calligraphy.


    The silence continued. Compared to the auction of the previous six calligraphy sections, the silence now seemed even odder. It felt as if everyone was waiting for something.


    Auctioneer Zhong Li stood on the tform calmly and silently. He did not introduce the Chicken Soup Calligraphy or ask of the opinions of the bidders. He allowed the silence to stew and wasn¡¯t worried about the atmosphere of the auction.


    Having never seen such a scene, Ning Que was a little worried.


    He worried that the silence wouldst for too long and the Chicken Soup Calligraphy might not sell at a high price. He had sacrificed quite a bit to sooth Grand Secretary Wang¡¯s hurt feelings.


    Chu Youxian could vaguely guess why Ning Que hade to the auction today. He also had an idea that the theft at Old Brush Pen Shop was but just a rumor. He whispered, "Do you want me to start bidding?"


    Ning Que thought about it and said, "Hang on, I know that the steward of Grand Secretary Wang would definitely bid even if no one does now."


    He recalled something and frowned. He said, "I am just worried that the emperor had heard of this and sent out a message so no one would dare to bid on this."


    Chu Youxian smiled and said, "You don¡¯t have to worry about this. I heard from Jin Wucai at the Academy yesterday, that the emperor had indeed mentioned today¡¯s auction only because it involved a theft. He asked the imperial court to take care of it but he was reprimanded by Grand Secretary Wang."


    Ning Que grew cheerful when he heard that. He said, "His Majesty has been trying to find ways to secretly bring my things into the pce. I suppose the officials are unhappy with that."


    Chu Youxian said, "Indeed. I also heard that Grand Secretary Wang and the Old Chancellor got angry at the same time. In the end, they forced His Majesty to promise not to use the country¡¯s vaults to buy the calligraphy section."


    Listening to these words, Ning Que was gratified.


    Chu Youxian added, "But I heard that Grand Secretary Wang has informed everyone that he would not let anyone who dares fight him for the Chicken Soup Calligraphy off easily. I suppose that is the reason for the silence now."


    Ning Que spluttered with anger when he heard this. "That old fogey. I have already gave him so many things and he dares to y tricks like this! You bid if no one else does after his steward bids."


    ...


    ...


    A voice finally rang out in the attic of the Stone House after a very long silence.


    The voice came from the best spot on the east of the third floor. Everyone knew that the steward of the Grand Secretary was seated in that room.


    The steward¡¯s voice was calm, but the price he bid was shocking to all.


    "Ten thousand taels."


    Everyone in the building was shocked, and there was a pregnant pause.


    Even though everyone had guessed that the Chicken Soup Calligraphy would sell at an astronomical price today, they did not expect that the first bid would exceed the final price of the Night Calligraphy written by the Master of Calligraphy. It had created a new record for calligraphy auctions.


    Ning Que leaned forward slightly. He rxed immediately after hearing the voice. He leaned back and thought that the old man Wang was generous enough. Even if no one bid after the steward, the amount Ning Que had was sufficient.


    Grand Secretary Wang was the senior statesman of Tang. He enjoyed the privilege to sit without greeting the emperor, and even the prince Li Peiyan had to bow to him. Such a bigwig had sent out information previously and had even bid such a high price today. All was silent in the building. It seemed that no one wanted topete with him.


    Ning Que thought so too, and then he wondered if he should have Chu Youxian bid more on the Chicken Soup Calligraphy. It didn¡¯t have to be too much, even two or three thousand taels of silver would be good.


    Zhong Li looked at the room on the third floor with a smile. He repeated the Grand Secretary¡¯s bid. He looked like the only one in the auction who was sure that this would not be the final price.


    Zhong Li seemed to be waiting for something.


    Unsurprisingly, just as everyone thought that the auction was ending, a voice rang out from a room on the west of the third floor of the Stone House.


    "15,000 taels."


    Everyone in the building was surprised once again, and silence fell in the room once more.


    Chu Youxian was so nervous that he felt very hot. He kept fanning himself and walked out of the room, wanting to see who had dared topete with Grand Secretary Wang.


    Ning Que grew much cheerier.


    ...


    ...


    Even though the Stone House was responsible for protecting its buyer¡¯s identity and privacy with the silks and bamboo curtains, this was Chang¡¯an City after all. There were few who could enter the Stone House and had so much money. Everyone knew who the buyer on the west of the third floor was, and debates rang within the building.


    "It is the royal buyer from the South Jin Kingdom."


    Chu Youxian panted heavily as he walked into the room. He wiped the sweat off his face as he reported the news that he just heard.


    "It¡¯s someone from the South Jin Kingdom?"


    Ning Que was a little surprised. Even though his calligraphy pieces were rather famous, the South Jin Kingdom had always held enmity against the Tang Empire. Those from the South Jin Kingdom did not seem that they would care much for a Tang calligrapher. Why would they choose such a ce to buy his calligraphy? It would mean inting the egos of the Tangs.


    Chu Youxian said, "I heard that the buyer is the subordinate of the Crown Prince of the South Jin Kingdom."


    Ning Que was shell-shocked. After a pause, he asked hesitantly, "The Crown Prince of the South Jin Kingdom isn¡¯t a gay, is he?"


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 431: So What if You Have Money?

    Chapter 431: So What if You Have Money?


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The royal buyer from the South Jin Kingdom on the west of the third floor did not mind offending the bigwigs of the Tang Empire and joined the bidding for the Chicken Soup Calligraphy. This must be the intention of the Crown Prince.


    The future emperor of the South Jin Kingdom that had treated the Tang Empire with enmity did not mind spending a bomb on the Chicken Soup Calligraphy and raising the fame of Ning Que, a citizen of Tang. Ning Que could not exin this other than that the crown prince must be mad. His thoughts eventually went southwards.


    Chu Youxian did not know about the oddities in Ning Que¡¯s questions. He answered, "The Crown Prince of South Jin Kingdom is famous for being lecherous. He is not gay at all. But I have never heard that he liked calligraphy."


    As the two were speaking, the bidding war for the Chicken Soup Calligraphy intensified. The bid was at 20,000 taels with both the steward of the Grand Secretary and the royal buyer from the South Jin Kingdom bidding. However, the two people bidding were enough to cause a fiery explosion in the hall.


    Ning Que listened to the louder and louder voices and the increasing figures. He had long abandoned all conjectures about why the Crown Prince of South Jin Kingdom would want to buy his calligraphy. He was very satisfied.


    Before long, the price of the Chicken Soup Calligraphy rose to 10,800 taels of silver.


    There were three taps on the bamboo screen. Grand Secretary Wang¡¯s steward walked out with a grave expression. He stood by the railings and looked towards the west and smiled coldly. "We Tangs have always subdued others with logic and virtue. This is Chang¡¯an, and I will of course not bully those from the South Jin Kingdom. Let¡¯s talk with our gold."


    The silk curtains in the west room were lifted. A pudgy middle-aged businessman with flushed cheeks emerged slowly. He wore cotton robes and had a jade pendant hanging from his waist, and looked extraordinary. He looked at the steward and said, "I bear a huge responsibility and dare not give up easily. Please forgive me, Sir Steward."


    The price had been called and they have seen each other and spoken. What followed, was naturally the resuming of the bidding process. Even though both parties did not increase the bid by too much, but as time passed, the price of the Chicken Soup Calligraphy eventually rose to an astronomical price.


    "30,100 taels."


    "32,000 taels."


    "33,000 taels."


    The Grand Secretary¡¯s steward looked at the South Jin businessman darkly as he bid 33,000 taels of silver.


    30,000 tales of silver was not a small amount to the Grand Secretary with his position as a senior statesman. No matter how strict thews of the Tang Empire were, they could not stop him from hiding such wealth in his mansion, so this amount did not seem too extreme to the steward. However, everyone knew that the steward was backed by Grand Secretary Wang. An official who spent tens of thousands to purchase a calligraphy section would cause tongues to wag, which was why he was eager to have the South Jin businessman back off.


    However, who would have thought that the royal buyer did not hesitate to add another one thousand taels of silver. Judging by his calm expression, it seemed that he would not mind adding another 10,000 taels to the bid.


    The Grand Secretary¡¯s steward glowered.


    There were some foreign dignitaries and businessmen in the Stone House. Most of them were citizens of Tangs who were very rich.


    They could not help but be annoyed when they saw how the royal buyer was behaving.


    It wasn¡¯t that they did not have money. No matter how much they liked Sir Ning¡¯s calligraphy, they felt that the price right now was too ludicrous. The royal buyer from South Jin Kingdom did not seem like he was here to buy the calligraphy section, but he was here to deliberately fight the Tangs for the section or was even here to p their faces.


    Debates rang in the air as two royal buyers from the Southern City prepared to bid. The atmosphere in the room burned and tensed up.


    The only person who could keep calm was the auctioneer Zhong Li. He had long known that the royal buyer from South Jin was in Chang¡¯an. He had long anticipated a scene like this. In fact, one could say that he was the one who caused this scene between the Tangs and the man from South Jin Kingdom.


    Zhong Li was the son of a concubine in the Zhong family of Yang Guan. Yang Guan was the most prosperous city in the Southern frontiers of the Tang Empire. It was very close to the South Jin Kingdom. In fact, Yang Guan used to be the northern part of the South Jin Kingdom three centuries ago. Those who lived there were very familiar with the South Jin Kingdom. Even though he had been chased out of the Zhong family very early on, he still was very familiar with what happened in the South Jin Kingdom. He knew how sensitive they were to the Tangs and of the odd pride that they had.


    And due to a certain incident, he was certain that the royal buyer from South Jin would not give up on the Chicken Soup Calligraphy. That was why he had dared to say that the Chicken Soup Calligraphy would sell for at least 30,000 taels.


    The calligraphy had indeed surpassed this amount, and Zhong Li could not help being proud about it. As an auctioneer, his greatest pride was that the things he had sold would end up in history books.


    As an auctioneer, Zhong Li could be calm, contented and proud of himself. However, the Big Owner of the Stone House realized that the atmosphere in the room was spiraling out of control and he could not bring himself to be happy. It would be great if he could earn moremission, but what would he do if he offended two bigwigs?


    The boss stood behind a pir on the first-floor corridor and looked at Zhong Li gravely, trying to signal to him with his eyes.


    Zhong Li understood, and began to calm the room down. However, with the addition of another Tang royal buyer in the fray, his attempt to end the bidding went up in smokes.


    Even Zhong Li, who had seen a more luxurious auction, grew anxious and frightened as he listened to the astronomical figures that continued to grow.


    This bidding had turned into a battle between the Tang Empire and the South Jin Kingdom. Even though it had nothing to do with powerhouses, or cavalry, and had only everything to do with money, it was beyond his control.


    Zhong Li lifted his sleeves and wiped his sweat. He discovered that he had underestimated the Chang¡¯an-ites¡¯ desire to protect their pride. He had also underestimated the impact that the Crown Prince of South Jin Kingdom had on the royal buyer.


    The royal buyer from South Jin bid another astronomical figure. Then, he looked at the Tang nobles in the attic and smiled, "The South Jin Kingdom is not as wealthy as the Tang Empire. I am just a little businessman who doesn¡¯t amount to much in your eyes. But the South Jin Kingdom is still arge kingdom and our country¡¯s vaults have plenty of gold."


    There was argemotion in the attic when he said that. Even though the Tangs present were all wealthy, but if the royal buyer from South Jin was using the country¡¯s vaults in thispetition, who could be his match? Nobody could unless the emperor himself brought out the gold in their country¡¯s vaults and started bidding.


    And just like what the businessman said. The South Jin Kingdom might not be as big as the Tang Empire, but there was plenty of gold in their country¡¯s vaults. How could a Grand Secretary or a royal buyerpete with him?


    Could it be that they really have to be pped by this royal buyer from South Jin?


    Even though they could continue to bid, what if the royal buyer decides not to?


    They couldn¡¯t refuse to pay after that. Thews of the Tang Empire weren¡¯t just decorative.


    ...


    ...


    "He¡¯s using the gold in his country¡¯s vaults to fight for face?"


    Ning Que looked at the royal buyer from South Jin and could not wrap his head around what had happened.


    Chu Youxian said mockingly, "That backward country doesn¡¯t have any rules. Do you think they are like the Tang Empire? To the South Jin Emperor and Crown Prince, the country¡¯s vaults are like their personal vaults. They can use it any way they want."


    It was then, when a subordinate from the Grand Secretary¡¯s manor walked to the steward and whispered to him. The steward who kept silent for a long while turned towards the royal buyer in the west room and said with a cold smile, "I wondered why the Crown Prince of South Jin was so interested in the Chicken Soup Calligraphy. So it is for the Hill Master of the Great River Kingdom."


    The royal buyer did not refute that and smiled, "Indeed, His Highness knows that the Hill Master likes this Chicken Soup Calligraphy a lot, and have decided to buy it for her."


    The steward looked at the South Jin royal buyer andughed out loud suddenly. He said mockingly, "Everyone knows that the Hill Master is in love with Sir Ning of Tang. That is why she likes the Chicken Soup Calligraphy so much. Does your crown prince think that he can rece Sir Ning in the Hill Master¡¯s heart with this calligraphy? That is so ludicrous!"


    The expression of the royal buyer changed drastically.


    Without waiting for him to speak, the steward continued sarcastically, "Trying to get a girl to fall in love with you by buying her things that she loves. I wonder what your crown prince is thinking! I did not expect that the South Jin Kingdom is full of useless people. You are useless on the battlefield, and your Sword Master from the Sword Garret is useless. You are also useless in love!"


    The royal buyer¡¯s expression grew ugly as he was insulted. His sleeves shook as his hands clenched tightly. However, there were no falsehoods in the steward¡¯s words. The South Jin Kingdom had never been a match for the Tang¡¯s cavalry on the battlefield. Liu Qingshan from the Sword Garret had indeed been defeated by Ning Que at the side doors of the Academy. The story between Calligraphy Addict Mo Shanshan, and Ning Que had spread in the world for days.


    The royal buyer attempted to stifle the anger in his chest. He said coldly, "Bidding for calligraphy depends on one¡¯s ability. Speak if you can afford to. Unless the Tangs only know how to fight with their words!"


    With that, the insults from the Tangs in the attic flew. However, he did not care, but only glowered at the auctioneer on the tform. It seemed that he was determined to kill them with money.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que did not expect that the Crown Prince of South Jin Kingdom would spend so much on the Chicken Soup Calligraphy just to get in Shanshan¡¯s good books.


    After a moment of silence, he took something from his sleeves and passed it to Chu Youxian. After some instructions, he lifted the curtains and walked out of the Stone House.


    Chu Youxian paused in surprise. Then, he clutched the object in his hands tightly, went downstairs and found the boss of the Stone House.


    The boss of the Stone House recognized him as the only son of Master Chu from the Easter City. He paused slightly and received the seal. He nced at it, and his expression changed drastically.


    The seal was Ning Que¡¯s personal seal. They rarely appeared on his calligraphy sections, so only a few calligraphy appraisers have seen it. But the boss had seen it on the back of the Chicken Soup Calligraphy.


    The boss only knew then, that Sir Ning had been watching the auction in the attic all this while. He saw the seal that Chu Youxian held out and thought that Ning Que was dissatisfied and angry, and could not help but feel uneasy. He wondered to himself if he had judged the incident with the calligraphy sections wrongly, and that the little handmaiden had indeed stolen them.


    He heaved a sigh of relief when he heard what Chu Youxian had to say.


    Chu Youxian signaled for him to bring him to the tform and pulled the auctioneer to the side.


    Those in the attic discovered the movement on the tform, and the debates and insults tapered off.


    The royal buyer from the South Jin Kingdom stood by the railings expressionlessly. He looked at the tform and was determined to bring the Chicken Soup Calligraphy back to South Jin no matter what tricks the Tangs yed.


    The boss wrapped his hands around his fist and bowed to those on the third floor. Then, he cleared his throat and said, "The Chicken Soup Calligraphy is sold to room 2B for 33,000 taels of silver."


    All was silent in the room as no one had been able to react.


    Then, as they all emerged from their dazes, ruckus ensued.


    Room 2B was the room of Grand Secretary Wang¡¯s steward.


    However, the bidding had not ended, why did Stone House say that the Grand Secretary had gotten the Chicken Soup Calligraphy?


    The royal buyer from South Jin Kingdom looked downstairs, steel-faced. He asked coldly, "Even if the bidding had to end due to the price, I have offered the highest price. Why did the calligraphy go to someone else? Unless you Tangs do business like this? Do you not care about your reputation anymore?"


    Chu Youxian recollected what Ning Que had said before leaving. He made sure that he remembered every single word correctly before saying mockingly, "So what if you have money?"


    "I won¡¯t sell it to you even if you have plenty of money."


    "Because Mr. Thirteen doesn¡¯t want to give the South Jin Crown Prince any face."


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 432: Purchasing the Lake

    Chapter 432: Purchasing the Lake


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que was the most inconspicuous person in the back of the mountain, but he was the most famous one as Mr. Thirteen among the folk.


    His legend was spreading in the frontier fortress and the story about the fight at the side door of the Academy had pleased the people in Chang¡¯an for a long time. People in the attic of the Stone House might not know about who was Mr. First or Mr. Second, but they definitely knew Mr. Thirteen was the owner of Old Brush Pen Shop, honored as Sir Ning.


    After Chu Youxian¡¯s words, people in the building kept quiet for a while, and then they began to cheer and shout excitedly.


    The royal buyer from the South Jin Kingdom held the handrail tightly and his face turned pale with rage. He stared at Chu Youxian ferociously and shouted at him. "Who the hell are you?"


    Holding a fan with one hand and putting the other one behind his body, Chu Youxian bowed and answered, "I¡¯m Chu Youxian from the Eastern City, the representative of Mr. Ning."


    Then he looked toward the western wing-room on the third floor and saw the ugly royal buyer. He smiled and said, "Anyone can buy the Chicken Soup Calligraphy but you. Any objections?"


    The royal buyer was so angry that his whole body started trembling. He said indignantly, "You¡¯re unreasonable."


    The Stone House¡¯s boss exined to him, "We¡¯ve sent the supplementary rules before the auction, since the seven copybooks would be sold by special rules. As we know, Sir Ning has the right to choose the buyer."


    The royal buyer from the South Jin Kingdom thought of the paper he saw on the desk minutes ago. Then he suppressed his anger and said, "Even if Sir Ning has the right to choose the buyer, he should do this personally. Why is this nobody doing it for him?"


    "How could Sir Ning in Old Brush Pen Shop have heard what happened just now? Has Sir Ning been here before? You guys should stop ying dirty tricks."


    The boss thought for a moment and answered, "You¡¯re right. Sir Ning has previously visited us, but he¡¯s absent at present. Before he left, he authorized Mr. Chu to make the decision."


    The royal buyer from the South Jin Kingdom was stunned.


    As it was mentioned earlier, Ning Que was very famous in Chang¡¯an. Especially after he chopped Liu Yiqing, Ning Que became more respectful in the Tangs¡¯ minds. Everybody would like to meet him.


    All the aristocrats and rich merchants gathered here for his calligraphy. As they knew he just left a few minutes ago, people regretted so badly because they had missed the chance to see him.


    Someone among the people yelled. All of a sudden, a lot of footsteps sounded in the building. Dozens of people opened the bamboo curtain and rushed down the stairs toward the yard.


    The Chicken Soup Calligraphy now belonged to Grand Secretary Wang. The people here had no chance to taste the "chicken soup", of course; they wanted to meet the person who cooked the "old hen". Therefore, in the twinkling of an eye, people left and the Stone House became nearly empty. The royal buyer stood beside the handrail and looked dreadful, however, he could say nothing more.


    "Please wait a minute, Sir Ning," one of them said.


    "Mr. Thirteen, please, our headmaster wants to invite you to visit."


    People walked out of the courtyard, passed through the woods and came to thekeside. Seeing the small boat drifting further, they waved to the boat and cried out to call him back.


    The boat was drifting away slowly. They saw a ck figuree out from the pitch-ck awning. He waved to the people andnded to leave.


    Seeing the back figure disappear at the alley beside the Victory House, people on thekeside regretted a lot.


    There was a rumor among the book and painting shops in Chang¡¯an that the seven calligraphies auctioned in the Stone House were stolen by the little handmaiden in the Old Brush Pen Shop. However, Ning Que¡¯s presence denied it somehow.


    When the auction was going very well in the Stone House, Sangsang, the little handmaiden was sitting in the study room of the Star-Picking Casino and staring at a pile of paper.


    Since the night when Ning Que helped Chao Xiaoshu fight in the Spring Breeze Pavilion two years ago, the whole underworld in Chang¡¯an was controlled by the Fish-dragon Gang. The study room in the casino once owned by the head of the Western City became the warehouse of the Fish-dragon Gang.


    The pile of paper on the table looked a little new and was written carefully. Although they were not excellent or as wonderful as the calligraphies in the Old Brush Pen Shop, they were still valuable.


    These were title deeds for houses andnd.


    Several old stewards with deep wrinkles of the casino were calcting while Mr. Qi was watching and standing by the side of the table anxiously.


    The old stewards quickly ticked off beads on abacuses, making noises in the quiet room. Although it sounded nicely, Mr. Qi looked more and more worried.


    The beads were moved fast and it would still take them a long time toplete. Sangsang put down the deed for a new building near theke and said, "We still need forty-one thousand four hundred and sixty-two taels of silver."


    Mr. Qi looked at her weirdly and thought, "Even the best managers in the casino haven¡¯t calcted the result, how can you know it?"


    Sangsang knew what he was thinking about. But she did not exin anything and just waited for the oue quietly.


    After a while, the old stewards finally finishedplicated calctions and their leader arranged all the papers carefully. He said, "ording to the letters of intent, we still need forty-one thousand, four hundred and sixty taels of silver."


    Their result was almost simr to Sangsang¡¯s since there was only a little difference.


    Mr. Qi looked at her surprisedly. It was amazing for her to calcte the number only by mental arithmetic.


    Sangsang knew she was right but she did not say anything, because she knew it was nothing big even if the old stewards took the wrong tax rate.


    Mr. Qi looked at her and beckoned to the stewards to tell them to leave. After the stewards left, he said, "Although the housing price under the Yanming mountain is cheaper than others in the city, it¡¯s unavoidable that someone will force up the price if we buy so much property at one time."


    Then he shook his head and said, "Even if we can force down the price somehow and inform the Chang¡¯an Local Government, we can¡¯t go too far. If we were reported to the court, I wouldn¡¯t know how to exin to Brother Chao. It¡¯s probably the cheapest price."


    The deeds for the houses andnd around the Yanming Lake were on the table.


    Yanming Lake waspletely dredged by the Ministry of Works recently, and the umtedke mud still piled up near the stone mountain. It smelled bad if people got close and it was said that theke would not be any better until next summer.


    That was why people in Chang¡¯an did not consider it as suitable for living, even if Yanmingke was a beautiful ce.


    Thend price of Yanming Lake was the cheapest in Chang¡¯an. Nowadays, most of the houses here were all dpidated and even the new houses were built by the spective citizens.


    After hearing his words, Sangsang nodded and said, "My young master has noticed that."


    Mr. Qi had beenmissioned by Ning Que to purchase the houses around Yanming Lake secretly. As the leader of the biggest gang in Chang¡¯an, he had many subordinates to do this for him, but he still couldn¡¯t figure out why Ning Que did this.


    "The Yanmingkeside is a good ce to travel but not as a ce to live."


    He frowned and said, "Even if you want to live there, you don¡¯t have to buy all the houses. It costs too much even though the price is low enough."


    Sangsang said, "I don¡¯t know, either. Maybe he just needs some peace and doesn¡¯t want to be disturbed."


    Mr. Qi shook his head and thought, "There are so many ces in Chang¡¯an that could be your home. Why do you have to do this?"


    This was an obvious loss.


    "It¡¯s more than forty thousand taels of silver."


    Sangsang looked at the deeds and murmured, "Is it enough?"


    Mr. Qi said, "I have some money but it belongs to the gang. I¡¯m not able to take it out as I¡¯m just its keeper."


    Sangsang nodded and said, "You have done enough."


    Mr. Qi waved his hand and said, "Maybe it would not be any trouble if Ning Que could deliver a message to the pce."


    Sangsang thought of his purpose and knew he would not like to have any rtionships with the imperial court. "Let¡¯s wait for the information of the Stone House."


    "Here it is."


    Ning Que entered the room and looked at the deeds on the table. "If the price is not going to be changed, we have enough money for them."


    Mr. Qi said coldly, "We¡¯ve offered a reasonable price and signed the letters of intent. If the owners are not stupid enough, they would not raise the price anymore."


    Ning Que was satisfied with Mr. Qi and he said, "The money will be sent hereter. Would you please sign the documents with the owners?"


    Mr. Qi said surprisedly, "With whose name?"


    "Brother Chao¡¯s name."


    It wasmon to consign one¡¯s family and property to someone of trust, so he answered, "Okay."


    "Can you keep it between us?"


    "For how long?"


    Ning Que thought a while and said, "At most until this winter."


    "No problem."


    Ning Que and Sangsang went to the Yanming Mountain instead going back to the Old Brush Pen Shop after they left the casino.


    They looked at theke and the yards across theke under the mountain.


    Although he was enjoying the bustling life in the Lin 47th Street, there were too many peopleing for him recently. That was why he purchased theke. Since the Great Divine Priest of Revtion¡¯s visit, he realized that they had to move.


    He bought this ce for some peace. However, there was no need to tell anybody about the deeper reason.


    Sangsang looked at the houses there and asked, "Are we going to live here in the future?"


    Ning Que nodded and said, "Theke will be solid in winter."


    ...

 Chapter 433: Cutting the Weeds

    Chapter 433: Cutting the Weeds


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    It waste spring or early summer and getting hotter in Chang¡¯an, but it was the best time in the Wilderness which looked like a green ocean when the breeze blew through the weeds. However, in the north, 50 li away from the Left King¡¯s Pce, and near the green ocean in the Min Mountain was variegated.


    All the burnt ground, the broken grassroots, the deep inserted broken arrows, and the marks of the tactical arrays, indicated that a war had just ended.


    The war began with the spring and ended inte spring. The cavalry of the pce had high morale and fought against the Deste tribes who were moving to the south. They both lost many lives during this nearly 100 day¡¯s wars. In the end, the Deste seeded in defending theirst line with difficulty and saved the most fertile meadows.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce had promulgated a decree to transport all the supplies from the other countries to the Yan Kingdom continuously. Although they got help from the best cultivators, they failed to drive the Deste back to the Cold Region. That was not only because the Deste Men were so strong but also the cavalry of Tang and the Papal Cavalrymen of the West-Hill were not ordered to take part in the wars.


    The postwar grasnd smelled burnt and stinky. In the meadow, under the Min Mountain were the cairns hanging all kinds of strips of cloth which were dancing with the wind. They were the cavalry¡¯s graves.


    Few corpses could be found in the grasnd since the Deste would try everything to bring their people¡¯s bodies back home no matter how cruel the battles were.


    What was more, no Deste Man was captured during the war.


    The cavalry of Tang was riding their horses and cleaning the battlefield. When they saw the cairns and remembered how the Deste men acted in the field, they felt alert and a little respectful.


    No one captured, no one abandoned. This was the Tang Military¡¯s iron rule. By seeing this, they finally understood why the Deste Man was called a born fighter and why their ancestors were desperate to drive them out of the Wilderness.


    Being also excellent soldiers, they had every reason to admire the Deste Men and were hoping to have a fight with them.


    However, they were ordered to escort supply, suppress mutiny, maintain discipline, and clean the battlefield instead of going to the center stage battlefield.


    This was the order from the Tang Emperor, and the General Xia Hou¡¯s as well.


    ...


    ...


    Xia Hou looked at the fertile grasnd under his feet and the grassroots that were stepped into the ground by his shoes. He slightly moved them and something like oil came out off the ground with a sizzle. In addition to the decay of the ck mud, there was more residual blood.


    Since the war began, his cavalry had not fought against the Deste directly, they had not even seen a Deste Man. However, he was not so curious as his subordinates who were eager to have a fight ¡ª because he was a Deste Man.


    Looking at the residual bloodstains on the ground, he thought of thest battle a few days ago and visualized his tribe men, whom he had not seen for a long time, being killed by the arrows and flying swords. He just twitched his eyes a little.


    This was his idea as well as His Majesty¡¯s, to not fight directly against the Deste. His Majesty knew his origin and allowed him to direct the war. That meant His Majesty agreed with him.


    For the trust of His Majesty, he was very grateful.


    A clear whistle came from miles away. He looked up and found a girl riding a horse and herding hundreds of sheep not far in the meadow.


    Soon after the war, people restarted herding sheep. From this point of view, life is always peaceful and simple while war is just the interlude.


    Looking at the healthy and bright-eyed girl in the grasnd, he remembered the moment when he met his sister in Hebei County after he betrayed his sect many years ago.


    He then confirmed the reason he appreciated His Majesty a lot: he had treated his sister well, a fact that was more valuable to him than his trust and tolerance.


    ...


    ...


    After Mr. Ke eliminated the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, Xia Hou went to the south and joined the Tang¡¯s army. Working hard for decades, he became a great general of the Empire and a respectful visiting professor of the West-Hill Divine Pce. However, no one knew he was a remnant of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and a son of the Deste.


    General Xia Hou was supposed to be invincible. However, in fact, the men who knew his origin had been threatening and controlling him all the way. His identity was like numerous threads that trapped him in the center like an armored beetle. He had no chance to get off, gradually bing silent and asphyxiated.


    His Majesty of Tang knew it, the hierarch of West-Hill Divine Pce knew it as well. They were like two indestructible walls that had been squashing him all these years. He could hardly breathe between them and would be killed if he drew close to either of them.


    He once tried to get close to both of them and tried again in the past years. However, he could not reconcile being loyal to both of them, and he had to be loyal to himself at the end. He fiercely tried to maintain the image of a powerful man to resist the two walls.


    Unfortunately, he could not keep it that way forever. He was still strong at present, but he was getting old. He would be sick or weak while the two walls would not copse ever. What was more, he had killed a lot of people, so a lot of people wanted to kill him.


    Therefore, he needed to be strong forever. That was why he went to the Hn Sea and tried to rob the Tomes of the Arcane. However, he failed before the schr.


    There was always a way out and every cloud has a silver lining! The schr cut off his hope of being strong forever. Instead, he offered him a possibility to stay away from the trouble and leave safely.


    "The summer ising. Everything is going to be finished."


    Looking at the grasnd in the spring breeze and thinking about theing summer, Xia Hou showed a tender expression in his poker face.


    His sister was the Queen of Tang and her name was Summer.


    The soft spring breeze touched his gentle face with the bloody smell in it. Some noises of weeding sounded behind him.


    In the meadow, not far behind him, more than a hundred cavalrymen from the grasnd and Yan soldiers knelt on the ground. They were decapitated by sharp knives and their blood poured into the meadow.


    These men were arrested for rebellion or misconduct and sentenced to death by General Xia Hou without being trialed.


    On the battlefield, the Northeast Border Military of Tang was responsible for maintaining military discipline and suppressing rebellions. However, the executions today were without a trial which vited thews of both the Divine Hall and the Tang Empire.


    However, thew of the Tang Empire could not bind a field general.


    Killing people like cutting weeds, Xia Hou did not even blink his eyes.


    ...


    ...


    An officer was riding a horse toward him from the Military camp.


    Xia Hou received a letter from him.


    Even though he had been defending Tuyang City for years and now he was in the Wilderness, he was the Great General of the Empire and he had a lot of informants in Chang¡¯an.


    Although he did¡¯t have a good friendship with the Defender-general of the State, Xu Shi, they respected each other. Some information of the Military Ministry would be gathered in the Military camp by these men.


    The letter described recent events that happened in Chang¡¯an.


    Xia Hou was aware of the two conversations between Xu Shi and Ning Que and he was told about the deaths of Huang Xing and Yu Shuizhu, so he kept quite a long silence after finishing reading the letter.


    Since he made a deal with the Academy in Tuyang Cityst year, he was not willing to pay attention to the stuff about entering the human realm, or he was not as upset as Xu Shi was.


    However, the deaths of Huang Xing and Yu Shuizhu alerted him.


    They both worked for the Prince and him.


    What was more, they were both involved in the event in that year.


    Xia Hou did not know why Ning Que aimed at him.


    He had killed Lin Ling in the Wilderness and then murdered Gu Xi in Tuyang City. Now, he killed Huang Xing and Yu Shuizhu. Everyone close to him was eliminated by this man¡¯s de.


    Although the imperial court and the Academy agreed on his retirement, someone had a second opinion.


    "Did anyone manage to escape?"


    Xia Hou frowned, thought for a moment, and then shook his head. He was sure that Lin Guangyuan¡¯s son was killed because the little boy was examined by himself.


    Then he remembered a rumor in Chang¡¯an.


    Ning Que had a good rtionship with the princess, Li Yu.


    Did he do this for the dragon throne?


    Xia Hou looked grim when he thought that someone would hurt his sister and his nephew after his retirement. He would try his best to kill anyone who wanted the throne.


    The execution continued.


    The heads of the soldiers were chopped and the sad crying sounded without a break.


    In the bloody smell, Xia Hou felt a killing intent.


    A man showed up in the blue sky above the grasnd.


    He jumped from the air and rushed toward Xia Hou with a strong intent.


    Xia Hou raised his head.


    Besides the figure of the man, there was ring sunshine.


    Then he had to blink his eyes.


    He was familiar with this.


    He had seen this in the Hn Sea.


    Then he had already seen this for several times these days.


    He did not panic, and stayed calm and cool.


    An aggressive force gushed out of his body.


    His leather boots sank into the mud.


    Then, the soft mud turned solid in the next moment.


    Centering on the boots, the grasnd became a wide cobweb.


    Xia Hou was standing in the center of it.


    Supported by the force of his feet, he flew toward the sky.


    His armor was blown in the air and he moved as fast as a bird, like a God in Heaven.


    ...


    ...


    Tang, the World Wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine jumped from the sky.


    The former powerhouse of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, Xia Hou flew toward the sky.


    They encountered in the air above the grasnd.


    Then it was a bolt from the blue.


    The loudest roar yet rang out in the blue sky.


    A strong shock wave spread from the air to all directions.


    The sheep eating grass miles away were shocked and feigned death on the ground.


    The girl who was shepherding fell down off the horse.


    The Tang soldiers who were carrying out their orders held their hands to their ears and knelt on the grass with pale faces.


    The fierce wind blew the grass down and up, making the broken grass fly all over the meadow.


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 434: Torn Armor

    Chapter 434: Torn Armor


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The two met in the air and collided like the legendary mountain in the air in the west of the Wilderness. The terrifying sh from the collision reverberated in the air.


    The sharp blood-color huge de buzzed vibrantly in the air. It looked as if it was about to cleave the blue skies. However, most of the de attack was blocked by a pair of iron fists.


    When the de broke Xia Hou¡¯s iron fists andnded on his body. A golden glint would shine from Xia Hou¡¯s war robes, and the de would be blocked.


    The blood-color huge knife was an invincible weapon belonging to the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Even so, it could not pierce through Xia Hou¡¯s flesh. Its weight and impact made it into a terrifying hammer, and itnded on Xia Hou in heavy blows.


    Xia Hou¡¯s iron fists were iron hammers by themselves, and they pummeled incessantly into Tang¡¯s chest.


    The two powerhouses of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine exchanged many bows within a split moment.


    They parried many times.


    And they collided many times.


    They collided once more.


    The two mountains suspended in mid-air collided, and then tore apart before colliding again. The thunderous sound from their collision rang across the Wilderness.


    The roars of thunder were so close that the flock of sheep lying on the grass stiffened in terror. They mbered up on four feet in fear and sprinted in all directions.


    The girl from the grasnd who fell off from horsebackid on the grass and stared at the two figures in the skies who looked like deities. She had long been shocked silly and had forgotten about her scattering sheep.


    The Tang soldiers who were carrying out their orders held their hands to their ears. They knelt on the grass with pale faces.


    Three lucky soldiers who were awaiting punishment by beheading could not cover their ears as their hands were tied up. They began to bleed from their eyes and noses and died due to the thunderous roar that was the collision of two powerhouses in the sky.


    The horses on the meadow ttered in panic.


    The loudest roar yet rang on the grasnd, and a strong gust of wind fell upon earth from the sky. Grass was torn up and blown about. The two figures in the sky broke apart, and each of them retreated ten feet,nding on the grasnd.


    There were two clunks that rang at about the same time on the grasnd.


    The aggressive aura of both Xia Hou and Tang spread out as theynded on earth. The grasnd beneath their boots caved in and became two pits. The grass in the pits withered, making the pits look like newly dug graves.


    "Enemies attack!"


    ""There are assasins!"


    The well trained Tang armies were flustered upon facing a powerhouse like the World Wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s Front Gate. They emerged from their daze and began to form a defensive line.


    The clopping of horse hooves and the sounds of armor could be heard constantly.


    Hundreds of Tang elite soldiers donned their armor and rode on their horses in the military camp below the meadow and gathered quickly. They split into two groups and sped out of camp. They quickly gathered around the meadow as they rode out with grass and dust at their heels.


    Along with the sounds of wheels thudding on hard ground, ten heavy crossbow arrows were wheeled out of the camp and aimed at the man on the meadow. A tactical array master began toy the tactical arrays under the protection of his strong escort servants.


    The expression of the Tang cavalry was grave as they looked at the man on the meadow.


    They only had one enemy. The Tang army was well-prepared. But they could still sense the danger ahead. The atmosphere on the meadows was heavy with unusual apprehension.


    Tang stood in the slightly concaved pit on the meadow. He stood before hundreds of elite Tang riders and numerous crossbow arrows. His expression remained calm and he remained silent as if he did not see anything.


    He only had eyes for Xia Hou standing not far away.


    Tang still wore his ordinary leather robe. However, the robe was obviously more torn up aspared to those in the past. Some ces had already worn away.


    His expression was calm, but his face was haggard.


    He had helped the senior statesman to lead a tribe to the Central ins, killing the allied armies over several days. In the recent days, he had attacked Xia Hou for a number of days and fought against the Tang army. He was exhausted even if he was made of steel.


    The battle with Xia Hou might have been short, but he was severely injured. There were several tears in his leather robe at his chest and one could vaguely see the blood in them.


    The blood-color huge de in his hands looked a little bit dull.


    ...


    ...


    The Tang army was, without any doubt, the strongest army in the world.


    They had conquered the Yan Kingdom in the East and the Wilderness in the North under the direction of General Xiahou in the past few years. They had never failed and were very proud of themselves.


    However, they could not be proud before this man.


    The Tang army was not afraid of cultivators. They felt that even the strongest cultivator was no different from an ordinary person when attacked by armored cavalry and crossbow arrows.


    However, they have never seen a cultivator as powerful as Tang.


    The cavalrymander stared at the man in leather robe afar. He said coldly, "How can we call ourselves the Tang cavalry if we don¡¯t kill that freak?"


    The hundreds of cavalry below the meadow heard these words and looked grim. They pulled out their podaos from their sheaths and yelled in unison, "Aye!"


    The sound of hundreds of podao pulled out from sheaths at the same time was a majestic song that sung heroically and tragically.


    In the days after the war between allied soldiers of the Central ins and the Deste Man, the man in leather robe on the meadows appeared by the Tang army seven times.


    The Tang cavalry surrounded him and tried to capture him seven times to no avail. Instead, many of their men were killed and the man in leather robe even managed to sneak an attack thrice and ended up before General Xia Hou.


    If the General weren¡¯t so powerful, he would have been killed by this man.


    An ordinary man couldn¡¯t bepared to a cultivator, and an ordinary cavalry couldn¡¯t bepared to a cultivator either. The Tang army could ept this fact, but they could not ept that they could not even stop this man. They could not ept that they had to depend on the Tang General to defend their camp.


    To the proud Tang cavalry, this was the greatest shame.


    The sorrowful tune of the military flute rang in the meadows. Almost 800 armored ck cavalry got into position slowly. The crossbow arrow and the Tactical Array Masters at the camp moved ten feet forward.


    The battle between the strongest cavalry and the strongest cultivator had begun.


    "You have be a cowardly viin after betraying the Front Gate. You only know how to hide in your military camps and you only know how to send your men to death."


    Tang said to Xia Hou.


    Xia Hou ced his fist before his lips and coughed twice. He held out a hand to stop his subordinates. Then, he raised his head to look at Tang. "My army has never participated in the war between tribes. You know why this is so. So I do not understand why you have tried to kill me sincest year, and that you¡¯d risk death just to do that."


    Tang took off his fur cap and threw it at his feet. Then, he walked out from the dipped-in spot on the grass and stood a distance away from Xia Hou. He said, "Because there are many in the Front Gate waiting for your return."


    Xia Hour furrowed his brows slightly.


    His brows looked as if they were carved from steel, and when they furrowed together, they seemed even colder and harder.


    There wasn¡¯t anyone living left in the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. There were only white bones and dried corpses. Those waiting for him were not people, but their vengeful spirits.


    "Your teacher and I had already left when Mr. Ke broke through the Front Gate. It had nothing to do with me, so you cannot me me."


    "But you became a visiting professor of the West-Hill Divine Pce after heading south."


    Tang said, "A traitor is a traitor. The ancestors of the Enlightenment Doctrine are all waiting for you back in the Front Gate. Senior Sister Murong is waiting for you in the steamer."


    Xia Hou¡¯s furrowed brows dimmed when he heard Murong¡¯s name. After a long silence, he said, "It is not that easy to kill me."


    Tang said, "If I reveal your identity to the world, who in the world would ept you?"


    Xia Hou said, "The West-Hill, His Majesty and the Academy. Their eptance is enough. Because it means that the world will ept me. And as long as the world epts me, the people in the world would not dare not to."


    Tang said, "The Tang Empire might have epted you because of your war efforts. He might have wanted to get rid of you long ago, but he did not want to enter into a conflict with the West-Hill. He did not have any evidence, which was why he asked you to stay at the frontiers. The Academy did not kill you because those in the Academy had long forgotten how to kill."


    "You may be right."


    Xia Hou looked at him emotionlessly and said, "But you are not the Haotian Taoism Sect. You are not the Emperor of Tang or the Academy either. So you cannot kill me. And in this entire world, only you want me dead."


    Tang said, "Why can¡¯t I kill you?"


    Xia Hou looked at the blood-color huge de in his hands. He looked at the de piercing deeply into the ground and said, "Because the divine de has dulled in your hands."


    Tang said, "And your armor has been torn."


    Xia Hou had changed into the war robe he was wearing in the morning. It was torn to shreds by Tang¡¯s de and the golden sheen of his armor could be seen from beneath.


    He was the great General of the Tang Empire. His armor was designed by Professor Huang He of the Academy and made under the supervision of the Academy. There were numerous talisman lines engraved on the surface that looked like it could provide him with unlimited protection.


    It just looked like that it could provide unlimited protection. In the end, there was still a limit.


    Tang¡¯s blood-color huge de had left a deep gouge in the armorst year by the Hn Sea. The battles in the past days had caused the armor to dim significantly. The chest area had dimmed significantly and had several cracks, signifying the breaking down of the armor.


    The armor would notst for long.


    "You have been injured."


    Xia Hou looked at the fist imprint and blood on Tang¡¯s chest. He said, "And you are badly injured. We would need 4000 armored ck cavalries to trap you at your peak. But you might die anytime now. If you want to kill me, you have to be prepared to be killed by me anytime."


    "Your cavalry will not be able to trap me unless you break my legs."


    Tang said, "But you know, my legs are not so easily broken. You wanted to do this three times in a row, but you did not seed. You will never seed."


    There was a momentary pause. He continued, "And you will never stop being injured."


    Xia Hou said, "Your injuries are worse than mine."


    Tang said, "But you¡¯re older than me."


    Xia Hou said, "We are all disciples of the Enlightenment Doctrine. Do you really believe in the nonsense that we weaken with age?"


    Tang said, "You might not get weaker as you age, but your spirit is not as strong as it used to be. For example, you are more afraid of death now than you were then. Of course, you have always been afraid of death after boiling Murong to death."


    Xia Hou did not say anything.


    "The older you get, the more afraid of death you get. The more cowardly you are, the more afraid of death you are. The one who fears death the most, dies most easily."


    Tang looked at him and said, "I will follow you as long as you don¡¯t return to Chang¡¯an. I will continue to fight against you and I want to see you die before me."


    Xia Hou did not say anything else but turned to walk down the meadow.


    The flute rang, and horse hooves thundered on the meadow. Hundreds of armored ck cavalry rolled forward towards Tang, who stood quietly on the meadow, like a wave.


    Xia Hou walked towards the military camp a distance away from the meadow and did not turn back.


    He listened to the whistling mes and the thundering shes on the meadow behind him but he did not turn back.


    They had fought thrice, but Tang did never lose his legs, and he did not find an opportunity to hurt his opponent¡¯s legs. Tang would not allow himself to die at the hands of the cavalry.


    Xia Hou knew this day woulde since he betrayed the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    He had not expected that the person who woulde to rid the Devil¡¯s Doctrine of its betrayer would be the disciple of the Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation instead. He admitted that Tang was right. He was more afraid of death now than he had been. But he had never been worried that he would die at Tang¡¯s hands, or legs.


    Because Tang was one of the world¡¯s powerhouse, so was his.


    If it had been the Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation, he would have no other choice but to return to Chang¡¯an.


    Xia Hou thought to himself.


    ...


    ...


    Over ten houses by the Yanmingke under the Yanming mountain had their new owners.


    New owners did not make much changes to the houses. They did not demolish and rebuild them, but they still spent arge amount of money to refurbish the area.


    Hundreds of workers and over tenrge carts were gathered by theke. They began to get rid of the mud by theke. The gardeners from the Schr¡¯s Mansion began to instructs the boatmen on which to nt lotus flowers in theke.


    Those who had moved out of the houses heard of what was happening, and brought their old and young to the Yanming Lake to watch the show. They watched the mud being carted away and the boat that was nting lotus flowers in theke. They thought about how this would look amazing next year, and couldn¡¯t help but feel envious.


    They might feel envy, and perhaps a little regretful. But they were not jealous or resentful. The people of Chang¡¯an had always been praised for their good disposition. Since that person had spent so much money in refurbishing the area, he had the right to enjoy it.


    Mr. Qi¡¯s Fish-dragon Gang was in charge of putting together the restoration of Yanming Lake. Ning Que¡¯s only request was for them to not move the structure of the houses and to nt some lotus flowers. Ning Que did not know much about the project and did not want to participate in it. That was why he still stayed in the Old Brush Pen Shop on Lin 47th Street.


    "Darkie reminded me before that Xia Hou was afraid of water."


    Ning Que sat by the well, peering into the deep and calm well water. He said, "But I do not understand why a cultivator at the Peak state of Martial Arts would be afraid of water. Perhaps Xia Hou said it as a bluff. So I will not try to drown him. I have decided to beat him to death before nting him as a lotus flower."


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 435: Blasting the Stream

    Chapter 435: sting the Stream


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In thete spring, it was getting hot and humid, but the well was quite cool. Ning Que was sitting on it, waving a kitchen knife in his hand and talking cheerfully.


    Sangsang hung up the clothes on the clothesline and wiped her hands on her apron. She walked back to the wall and picked up the brush toplete thest piece. "How will you do it?"


    Ning Que stood up and walk beside her. He pointed at something beside the wall and said, "Beat him, and then let him die."


    Sangsang put down the brush and turned around to look at him with a confused expression.


    Beside the wall was a wooden man with a base and a ck pan on his head which was carved by Ning Que and painted by Sangsang.


    "In order to beat him to death, I have to hit his body. It means I have to break through his defense."


    Ning Que said this whilst pointing the knife at the sculpture¡¯s head. Then he scratched his arm with the knife. Blood began to pour out from the wound.


    "Since I inherited Youngest Uncle¡¯s legacy, as you can see, I have had an unbelievable strong body. You have no idea, as a former member of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, Xia Hou has unimaginable body strength."


    He stretched his arm out to Sangsang and exined.


    Sangsang filled up a bowl of water to wash his arm and then covered it with a handkerchief.


    While she was doing this, Ning Que continued, "Since Xia Hou betrayed the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, joined the Haotian Taoism, and became a visiting professor of the West-Hill Divine Pce, they want to cover for him. Maybe they have taught the secret skills of Martial Arts cultivation to him."


    "Infact, that¡¯s a certainty."


    He looked at the ck painting on the sculpture and said, "Xia Hou can envelop his body with the Qi of Heaven and Earth concentrated by his Psyche Power. That defense is like the painting on the sculpture."


    "The most troublesome thing is his armor."


    Ning Que knocked the ck pan on its head with the knife and listened to the noise.


    All the four generals¡¯ armors are made in the Academy. Xia Hou¡¯s is designed by Professor Huang He and made by the Fourth Brother and the Sixth Brother together. Perhaps it¡¯s not so hard as Xu Shi¡¯s, but it is still incredibly powerful.


    "The armor, the protective Genuine Qi, and his strong body are the three things which protect him all day and night, and even my Primordial Thirteen Arrows cannot break through them."


    Sangsang could not understand his humor.


    She thought of the attitude of the Academy and said worriedly, "Assassinating the Great General of the Empire, even the Academy would not allow you to do that."


    Ning Que said, "When did I say I¡¯m going to assassinate him?"


    Sangsang asked, "Why don¡¯t we expose the rtionship between Xia Hou and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine?"


    "I promised Eldest Brother I would not tell anybody."


    "That includes his rtionship with the Queen."


    Sangsang said, "But you told me."


    Ning Que said, "You are not anybody."


    Sangsang nodded and said, "That¡¯s true."


    After a momentter, she thought about the auction held in the Stone House and asked, "You still have not figured out how to deal with Xia Hou, so why do you offend the Crown Prince of South Jin Kingdom?"


    Ning Que did not know what to say to her since he couldn¡¯t tell her that the only reason was because he was angry that the Crown Prince wanted to please the Calligraphy Addict with his Chicken Soup Calligraphy.


    Therefore, he changed the subject. "How did you used to see a cultivator?"


    Sangsang remembered the conversation between him and her when they were kids in the City of Wei and the burnt Article on the Response of the Tao . She said, "At that time, they were Gods to us."


    Ning Que said, "Then I am a God now. We are Gods."


    Sangsang smiled happily.


    Ning Que said with a smile, "I¡¯m not afraid of the Crown Prince of Tang, let alone the one of South Jin Kingdom."


    Sangsang reminded him, "There is no Crown Prince in Tang..."


    Ning Que sighed and said, "That is another problem."


    ...


    ...


    In the back of the mountain behind the Academy, under the waterwheel.


    The Fourth Brother, the Sixth Brother, and Ning Que were sitting in a trance by the side of the stream.


    Some time passed by.


    The Sixth Brother raised the ck iron item against the sunshine.


    Ning Que and the Fourth Brother looked up following him.


    It was an iron item like a wine pot with a lot of shallow lines on it, most of which were straight and looked meaningless.


    The Sixth Brother touched the lines with his sturdy finger and said, "Even enough."


    For a great master like the Sixth Brother, although he was not able to see the difference among the lines, he could feel it. If the touching told him that they were even, they were most definitely even.


    "The lines divide the area of the iron kettle into 64 parts, and although they are not exactly the same, they are still simr enough. Especially the depth and degree of the curve will guarantee an explosion."


    The Fourth Brother picked up a branch beside him and pointed at the pot, saying, "Little Brother¡¯s idea sounds reasonable, but we failed when we used the gunpowderst night. Maybe we can deepen the lines to make sure it will definitely burst apart."


    Sixth Brother shook his head and said, "If we deepen the lines, we would destroy the structure of the material. Then, if it explodes, it will be as weak as a firecracker."


    Ning Que hesitated for a while and asked, "What if we try with the real one?"


    "Will it work?"


    "Maybe."


    "I think it will."


    The Sixth Brother turned to look at the Fourth Brother.


    The Fourth Brother nodded.


    There was a helical port on the top of the small iron kettle. It was a perfect work of art that the Sixth Brother made strenuously. Ning Que unscrewed it and said, "If it doesn¡¯t work, we can use it as a wine pot."


    The Sixth Brother smirked.


    Ning Que put a yellowish Fire Fu into the iron kettle and screwed it.


    "How do we test it?" The Sixth Brother asked in anxiety.


    The Fourth Brother pointed at the stream and said, "Throw it into that."


    Ning Que felt a little nervous and then he threw the iron kettle into the stream upon hearing this.


    "Wait."


    Sixth Brother ran to the smithy and brought back two huge fine iron tes. Then he covered them with the tes.


    The Fourth Brother said angrily, "Even if it works, it won¡¯t be that powerful. Why are you so nervous?"


    The Sixth Brother answered seriously, "Did you forget what happened when he tested the Talisman Arrows?"


    The Fourth Brother thought of the half-destroyed pavilion, so he stood behind the tes with a different expression.


    Ning Que found they were both ready for it and he closed his eyes. His Psyche Power flew into the iron kettle under the stream from his sense of perception through the tes.


    Theynded on the Fu paper.


    Using his Psyche Power, he directed some Great Spirit into the iron kettle.


    The Fire Fu in the iron kettle began burning furiously under the stream.


    However, the fire was stuck in this small space.


    A moment passed.


    An explosive sound came from the stream.


    Boom!


    Numerous pieces of iron were shot out of the stream with shrills.


    Tuk, Tuk, Tuk!


    The sounds gradually subsided.


    After a long time, the three behind the tes pulled their heads out.


    Their clothes were drenched by the stream. Looking at the debris stuck in the iron tes and imagining what would happen if they were not protected by the tes, they looked pale and fear filled their bodies.


    The Fourth Brother who was always calm looked at the dead fishes and the half-destroyed waterwheel in the stream. He said tremblingly, "Little Brother, what the hell was that?"


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 436: Embroidering Flowers

    Chapter 436: Embroidering Flowers


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The stream bank did not tten from the explosion. However, the fish in the stream died, and they flopped over, exposing their white bellies and floating on the turbid water. Sixth Brother looked at the stream in shock. He suddenly said, "This is much better than the Primordial Thirteen Arrows. It can be used by any Talisman Master. However, we have to be more careful with the crafting, as it¡¯d be difficult for the masters at the crafters¡¯ to make them. Besides, most Talisman Masters are physically weak, and they¡¯d find it difficult to get close to the city walls on the battlefield."


    "These small iron kettles that can explode will be highly sessful in attacking the city. If it goes ording to what you said, the Tang army will sweep the world as long as we have more Talisman Masters who are as physically strong as our Youngest Brother."


    Fourth Brother muttered to himself, the paleness on his face retreating. There was still a trace of shock in his usually calm eyes as well as a few extremelyplicated emotions.


    "Master Yan Se had indeed had a unique foresight. I always thought that your potential in Talisman Taoism was impressive, but not as good as the Calligraphy Addict. However, when I think back to your Talisman Arrows, I now understand why Master Yan Se thought so highly of you. Youngest Brother, your imagination is limitless."


    He suddenly bowed deeply to Ning Que.


    Ning Que was startled, and quickly avoided him.


    Fourth Brother straightened up and looked into Ning Que¡¯s eyes. He said solemnly, "Talisman Masters may seem strong to those from the secr world, but they are often limited in battles. However, what you¡¯ve thought of today will allow all the Talisman Masters ess to a closebat weapon. I want to thank you on behalf of all the other Talisman Masters in the world."


    "Don¡¯t spread a word about it for the time being. We have to keep it a secret."


    Fourth Brother muttered to himself, "I have to go and ask Teacher about this. It¡¯s too dangerous. Too dangerous."


    There were numerous dead fish by the stream and it looked like a mess.


    Ning Que walked to the metal board and tried to pry out the shards of the iron kettle embedded in it. However, he was unable to even with his strength. He said to himself in surprise, "This is illogical."


    ording to his design and calctions, the Fire Fu would burn in the iron kettle, but due to theck of air in the kettle, even if it could sessfully explode, the results would not be as strong as what they had right now.


    That was why he felt it illogical.


    He suddenly recalled that he had imbued a gust of Great Spirit in the iron kettle when he triggered the Fu paper.


    The Great Spirit was essentially pure Qi of Heaven and Earth. When a talisman crafted by a Talisman Master was weak, giving the Fu paper a boost with pure Qi of Heaven and Earth could increase the powers of the talisman.


    This was something he had thought of when he sat by Yanming Lake after he epted the challenge of Lanke Temple¡¯s monk Guan Hai.


    He had imbued the Great Spirit in the little iron kettle previously. It was equivalent to pumping liquid oxygen into the little iron kettle. This would help the Fire Fu burn and cause the explosion to be stronger.


    Could other Talisman Masters other than himself do this? Ning Que thought about it by the stream. If he really used this on the battlefield, then the Talisman Masters¡¯ control over the Qi of Heaven and Earth had to be strong enough. In other words, this required the Talisman Masters¡¯ states to be very high.


    There weren¡¯t many Talisman Masters in the world, and a few among them were in the upper Seethrough State. Thus, it was just a dream to use the little iron kettle to turn tides in the wars of the world.


    But it could at least turn around battles.


    ...


    ...


    There was a loud gong by the stream, startling those in the back of the mountain of the Academy.


    The first to arrive by the stream was not a person, but the proud white goose.


    The big white goose looked at the turbid waters and the floating dead fish. It seemed to be upset about the death of its pets. It lengthened its neck and rushed at the three people on the bank and honked at them, looking very angry.


    Fourth and Sixth brother stood behind Ning Que and remained calm.


    Ning Que thought to himself resentfully that they cared more about their Senior Brother than their Younger Brother.


    He did not want to fight against the goose by the stream. Had a at the goose, and you would know how powerful it was inbat, and it wouldn¡¯t even be honorable if he defeated it. He hurried tofort it, saying, "I¡¯m sorry for your loss... I will buy two baskets of fish and pour them into the stream so they can apany you. Wooden Fish, don¡¯t be angry. Their sacrifice was necessary for the advancement of science."


    Second Brother¡¯s big white goose was called Wooden Fish.


    Nobody in the back of the mountain knew why Second Brother had named it so, since there wasn¡¯t anyone in the Academy who cultivated in Buddhism. ording to Seventh Sister¡¯s analysis, it could be that Second Brother had a habit of waving his rod to teach the big white goose a lesson. It looked like one hitting a wooden fish, so it was how the name came about.


    Seventh Sister could make wild conjectures, but the other Senior Brothers did not dare to verify it with Second Brother. The arrogant white goose had never been like a beast of the Buddhism Sect that would not retaliate if it was hit on the head or epted any grievances. In fact, the goose was prepared to hop over the stream to fight against Ning Que no matter how Ning Que tried tofort it.


    Fortunately, Second Brother arrived, and the big white goose shook its tail around resentfully before leaving.


    Eldest Brother had also arrived. He looked at the stream for a long while with a confused expression. He asked Ning Que, "Teacher was taking a noon nap before he got awakened by the ruckus. He wanted me to find out what was happening."


    Second Brother said respectfully, "The back of the Academy is usually like this when the teacher and Senior Brother were traveling. It had been so since Youngest Brother joined us."


    Ning Que thought to himself that it sounded like aint.


    Fourth Brother nodded and said, "We are testing iron kettle that Youngest Brother invented."


    Ning Que exined the iron kettle to the two Senior Brothers.


    Sixth Senior Brother brought out two iron kettles from the smithy and ced them in the hands of the two Senior Brothers.


    Eldest Brother looked at the iron kettle engraved with flowers. He praised, "Youngest Brother used space to constrain the fire, used the power of the fire to cause a kickback reaction and used the theory of firecrackers in a talisman battle. His design is indeed ingenious and interesting. However... any burning object will need air, and the same goes for Fu Fire. That is why we can¡¯t use Fire Fus in the depths of the ocean. But I wonder why Youngest Brother¡¯s Fire Fu could burn so vibrantly."


    Ning Que was thoroughly impressed when he heard this. He now understood why Eldest Brother led the Academy. Even though knowledge about burning was simple to him, he had not expected Eldest Brother to be so familiar with it that could even instantly think of other problems associated with it.


    Eldest Brother might be slow in anything, but his wits were fast.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que exined the method he used to Eldest Brother in private. He told him about the Great Spirit.


    Eldest Brother ruminated over it in silence beforeing to the same conclusion as he had.


    Cultivators who could use the iron kettle would definitely be able to use more powerful methods than the iron kettle. Those iron kettles were more suitable for Ning Que in his current state.


    However, Eldest Brother did not think that Ning Que¡¯s idea was useless. He seemed to have guessed Ning Que¡¯s intentions of making these iron kettles.


    Eldest Brother did not say it out loud. Instead, he sighed, and left the stream.


    Ning Que stood by the stream and thought in silence before leaving.


    ...


    ...


    In the meadows, Second Brother¡¯s little servant was feeding the wolves, horse, goose and the old yellow bull. He was in charge of taking care of these beasts at the back of the mountain.


    The precious food such as Solomon¡¯s seal that Ning Que used to feed the Big ck Horse came from Sixth Brother. He only found outter that these were all brought back by Eleventh Brother when he was tasting the flower and grass at the back of the mountain.


    Ning Que would be jealous of the food and treatment that the animals got whenever he thought of that.


    After speaking with the little servant and finding out Second Brother¡¯s ns for the afternoon, Ning Que ascertained that Second Brother would not be at the midke pavilionter in the afternoon. Then, Ning Que yed with the Big ck Horse which looked resentful. They cantered around on the meadows for a while, and then, Ning Que headed to the midke pavilion stealthily.


    Seventh Sister was embroidering flowers at the midke pavilion. The light on theke reflected onto her face, making her look ethereal.


    Ning Que sat beside her and said cheekily, "Senior Sister, Second Brother isn¡¯t around, why do you have to pretend to be demure and elegant?"


    Lifting her head and ring at him, Seventh Sister said, "When have I ever pretended?"


    Ning Que replied in good fun, "Did you not hear that ruckus by the stream earlier today?"


    Seventh Sister said, "Do you think that I am the schr who can be selectively deaf?"


    "Then why didn¡¯t youe and join us?"


    "I do not like joining trouble."


    "Look, you¡¯re pretending."


    "Dare you say it again?"


    "Every time something happens at the back of the academy, Senior Sister will be the first one to arrive there. You are really my warmhearted and kind Senior Sister."


    Seventh Sister said sarcastically, "I wonder what kind of oddity you have invented again. I didn¡¯t feel like watching. It is more important to guard my pavilion."


    Ning Que had destroyed the midke pavilion when he tried out the Talisman Arrowsst time.


    Ning Que said, "Speaking of which, I have found something fun recently."


    Seventh Sister¡¯s eyes were tired from embroidering flowers, and she was sick of pretending to be demure. Her eyes brightened when she heard Ning Que¡¯s words and asked, "What fun? Did you find it at the market?"


    Ning Que shook his head, and took out the blueprints for the houses by Yanming Lake. He ced it on her embroidery and said, "I bought arge house a few days back."


    Seventh Sister looked at the lines of theke and said, "It is indeed good to stay by theke."


    Ning Que replied, "Theke is the left eye of the God-stunning Array."


    Senior Sister was shocked. She looked up at him and did not say anything.


    Ning Que pointed at Yanming Lake on the paper and said, "I want to borrow the left eye of the God-stunning Array and set a tactical array on the houses by theke. But you know that your Younger Brother isn¡¯t very smart at these kinds of things."


    "You managed to nt the array gs lopsidedly back then. You are not just dumb. You are an idiot."


    Seventh Sister corrected.


    Ning Que asked, "Senior Sister, are you interested?"


    Seventh Sister¡¯s eyes grew brighter. She had long been entranced by the paper and did not even look at him. She said, "Setting an array is much more interesting than embroidering flowers."


    Ning Que wrung his hands nervously, saying, "Can you get this done in a hundred days?"


    Seventh Sister said, "What kind of array do you want? To kill or to defend?"


    Ning Que replied, "Is there a kind of array that can cast my Psyche Power to all ends of theke?"


    Seventh Sister waved her hands and said, "That¡¯s simple. I just need ten days."


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 437: Tearing Paper

    Chapter 437: Tearing Paper


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que found it rather odd that he did not see Chen Pipi or Tang Xiaotang at the back of the mountain.


    After leaving the back of the mountain, he walked by the old library. He went upstairs to read and saw the Third Sister, Yu Lian by the eastern windows. He went up and greeted her. She did not know where Tang Xiaotang was either.


    Were Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang really dating?


    He smiled when he thought of that. Then, his expression darkened.


    "Everybody has its own business. There is no point in worrying for others."


    Yu Lian put down the brush in her hands and looked up. She said to him, "Your businesses will always be your own and only you yourself can deal with them."


    It was already in thete spring. The eastern windows blocked the zing sunlight. The winds blew through the trees outside the window. And in the distant forest, one could already hear the faint calls of cicadas.


    Ning Que understood what Senior Sister meant. He looked at her tender face and mature expression and suddenly felt as if he had forgotten something important that had to do with her.


    ...


    ...


    The wind in summer had finallye to the depths of the maind from the sea. The West-Hill Divine Kingdom was located to the southwest of the Tang Empire, closer to sea and summer arrived here even earlier.


    The rain and warm air allowed the nts on the Peach Mountain to grow vibrantly. Several green nts began to grow on the jade white cliffs and fill the entire mountain with greenery. They grew on the broken walls of countless Temples Taoism, bringing beauty to the solemn ce.


    In the remote corner of the third cliff was a stone house. Compared with the luxuriant surroundings, that of the stone house appeared in and even a little withered. People rarely visited this ce.


    The stone house was notpletely enclosed. There were several vents on the side facing the cliff. Light streamed in through these holes which were not windows but at least allowed some light to get into the house.


    There was a desk beneath the vents.


    Ye Hongyu sat in front of the desk, reading the paper on it. She looked focused and serious, as if she waspletely captivated by the paper and had no interest in anything else.


    It was a letter from the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom with a crudely drawn sword on the paper.


    She had been looking at the sword on the paper and sitting in the stone house for days. She had not left the house, and food and water were delivered by the servants from the Judicial Department. She did not know that the cliffs outside the house had grown verdant and red with blooming flowers, nor did she know that the seasons had changed from spring to summer. Besides that, she did not notice the change in attitudes towards her from the people in the Divine Hall.


    On a certain night in summer, someone came to the stone house.


    The door was slowly pushed open, revealing the respectful face of Chen Bachi.


    Chen Bachi looked at the girl in gree taoist robe by the desk, appreciated the girl¡¯s figure under the taoist robe before lowering his head and said, "Themander is waiting for your reply."


    Chen Bachi was an official in the Judicial Department, who had once been themander of the cavalryman of Divine Hall. Themander he was talking about was of course not himself, butmander Luo Kedi who held a special divine guard position in the Divine Hall.


    Ye Hongyu did not react when she heard that. She remained sitting at her desk and reading her book calmly, in which she had hidden the letter with the sword drawing.


    Chen Baichi was not surprised by her cold reaction. After some mocking, he said, "Themander knelt before the hierarch for an entire night yesterday."


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s long slender fingers that were flipping the book stiffened slightly and her gaze that was on the book grew indifferent.


    "Themander¡¯s feelings for you are sincere. Even the hierarch can feel that. Themander wants me to tell you that he hopes you can understand it."


    Chen Bachi did not add anything else. In his opinion, if the Hierarch Lord had already silently agreed to the matter, the useless Tao Addict did not have any right to refuse.


    Ye Hongyu did not refuse, nor did she request for time to consider it like she did before.


    She did not turn around to look at Chen Bachi with angry and cold eyes that could form a Taoist Sword.


    She just remained silent.


    She looked at the book on the desk silently, and then flipped it to the back. She kept flipping it until she reached where the letter was. She stared at the crooked sword and said ndly, "It seems that even if I own you, there still isn¡¯t enough time."


    Chen Bachi did not hear it clearly what she was saying.


    Ye Hongyu took out the letter and tore it apart. She did not tear the letter into pieces, but used her nimble fingers to tear against the messy lines - to tore the sword off the piece of paper carefully.


    After a moment, a small, thin and lopsided paper sword appeared between her fingers.


    "What do you see?"


    Ye Hongyu held the paper sword between two fingers and asked Chen Bachi.


    Chen Bachi furrowed his brows and looked at the paper uprehendingly.


    Ye Hongyu said, "You don¡¯t even understand this. No wonder you¡¯d remain a blind man forever."


    After saying this, she handed her right hand forward and thrust the paper sword between her fingers to Chen Bazi¡¯s forehead.


    Chen Bachi had once been themander of the cavalryman of Divine Hall and he was in the upper Seethrough State. Even at Ye Hongyu¡¯s peak, he was only second to her. Now that Ye Hongyu¡¯s cultivation state had fallen to the lower Seethrough State and it was even about to fall into the No Doubts State. She was no longer the Tao Addict. How would he be afraid of her?


    Chen Bachi was both surprised and irritated by the paper sword heading towards his forehead. A sinister smile appeared on his face. To him, the paper sword with the length of one finger was ludicrous. He thought to himself that the Tao Addict would rather die than to ept defeat and he nned how to shame her.


    However, at the next moment, his smile froze.


    Because he could sense a great aura bursting forth from the thin paper sword, which enveloped his body all of a sudden.


    It was the great sword style.


    Chen Baichi seemed to see a ceaseless flow of turbid water rushing towards him. It seemed that the great river between South Jin Kingdom and the Great River Kingdom lifted off the surface of earth and rushed towards him.


    He was in a great panic, and his Taoist Heart froze.


    He only realized then that the paper sword was not ludicrous but he was.


    His pupils contracted as he thought of a way out.


    However, the sword style on the thin paper had alreadynded between his brows.


    Click. Click.


    There were two soft clicks.


    Two thin red lines appeared in Chen Bachi¡¯s eyes.


    The blood lines crossed his ck pupils and the whites of his eyes.


    Secondster, the red lines rushed up and blood sprung forth from his eyes.


    Pain and darkness took control over Chen Bachi.


    "Argh!... What sword is this!"


    He covered his eyes and fell to the ground, rolling around in pain. He howled in pain like a beast on the brink of death.


    Ye Hongyu stood up and undid the buttons on her green taoist robes. She loosened the straps on her inner garment and kept the paper sword between her fingers against her soft breasts.


    She felt exceptionally calm as she felt the paper sword touching her tender skin. She looked at Chen Bachi who was rolling about at her feet and said softly, "I know you like to look at my body."


    "My clothes are undone right now." She said.


    Clutching his face, Chen Baichi howled in agony when blood and other body fluids like fish gtin flowed from between his fingers.


    Ye Hongyu looked at him and said calmly, "It¡¯s a pity you can¡¯t see it anymore."


    ...


    ...


    Ate night in the beginning of summer, the previousmander of the cavalryman of Divine Hall, Chen Bachi, was ambushed and blinded. Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu of the Divine Hall who had once been proud, and then, forgotten and shamed and hurt, left the Peach Mountain under the covers of the night. After that, no one knew where she had gone.


    Many dayster, the Divine Hall delegation that was sent to Chang¡¯an of the Tang Empire returned to the West-Hill.


    ording to calctions, the delegation should have returned days before. But for an unknown reason, the delegation went to the South Jin Kingdom on the trip back, which resulted in the dy of their journey.


    The delegation of carriages slowly traveled along the steep cliffs of the West-Hill Divine Pce. The deacon officials in the delegation noticed that the atmosphere of the Divine Hall today was somewhat strange.


    When the elegant ck horse carriage with gold trimmings sped by, those from the Divine Hall would all back away, kneel and bow respectfully. However, there was something else other than awe in their gazes.


    Priest Cheng Lixue of the Revtion Department lifted the curtains and looked at the people by the path kneeling in front of God for wee. He couldn¡¯t help but frown when he saw the uneasy expressions on their faces.


    "Did something really happen?" He muttered to himself. Then, he turned to look at the Divine Priest of Revtion who was resting with his eyes closed. He said respectfully, "I will go and take a look."


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion did not speak.


    The horse carriages of the delegation were traveling between temples on the cliffs and there was another cliff before they would reach the temple of revtion. Cheng Lixue got off the horse carriage and looked at the cavalryman of Divine Hall gathered in front. His expression turned grave.


    Cheng Lixue walked to the cavalryman of Divine Hall who bowed at him. They did not get off their horses since they were already dressed in armor.


    He looked at Chen Bachi whose eyes were wrapped in bandages. He noticed that the cavalrymander¡¯s expression was dark, so he frowned and asked, "What happened?"


    Chen Bachi gritted his teeth and said, "Ye Hongyu betrayed and escaped from the Judicial Department and the Divine Hall. I have been ordered by Commander Luo to gather cavalry to capture and kill her."


    Ye Hongyu betrayed and left the Divine Hall?


    Cheng Lixue frowned, and his hair that was as white as snow looked colder.


    He had been worried ever since the Divine Priest of Revtion had prophesied that something major would happen in the Judicial Department. The delegation went to the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom for that. However, he did not expect that the event would still happen.


    He looked at Chen Bachi and said in a low voice, "I remember that you have already been stripped of your position as the cavalrymanderst year in the Widlerness. When were you reinstated?"


    "Yesterday."


    "Luo Kedi is themander of the divine guards. When was he able to interfere with matters in the Judicial Department?"


    Cheng Lixue looked at Chen Bachi expressionlessly. He said, "You are just a subordinate of the Judicial Department. How dare you to be rude to Priest Ye Hongyu. Isn¡¯t that insubordination?"


    Chen Bachi was an official of the Judicial Department and was not afraid of the Judicial Department¡¯s priest. Furthermore, he had been blinded by Ye Hongyu with the paper sword and was intent on revenge. He only cared about how to capture Ye Hongyu and then shame her on the punishment grounds, not Cheng Lixue¡¯s attitude.


    He said coldly, "This is what the Great Divine Priest of Judgment wants."


    Cheng Lixue stayed silent. He could not object it if this was the order of the Great Divine Priest of Judgment."


    Right at this moment, avish horse carriage drove by slowly.


    An aged voice rang from the carriage.


    "The Judicial Department does not represent the Divine Hall."


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 438: Sword Thunder

    Chapter 438: Sword Thunder


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The Divine Priest of Revtion was in the horse carriage.


    The proud cavalrymen of Divine Hall could not sit on horseback before the Great Divine Priest. They got off the horses and knelt before the horse carriage, ignoring sayings that they couldn¡¯t bow in armor.


    Chen Bachi¡¯s expression grew ugly, and he slowly knelt with the help of his attendant.


    "Ye Hongyu left the Judicial Department. But it does not mean that she has betrayed the Divine Hall."


    "Because leaving does not equate to betrayal."


    There was a sigh in the carriage.


    Cheng Lixue could sense the sadness of the Divine Priest of Revtion and he grew angry and sad. Cheng Lixue¡¯s snow white hair danced faster and faster. He nkly looked at Chen Bachi who knelt before the horse carriage and said coldly, "Go and receive your punishment."


    Chen Bachi violently whipped his head up to look at Cheng Lixue. If not for the bandages around his eyes, one would probably see vicious hatred in them.


    At the pce in the Wildernessst year, Cheng Lixue had been the one who had sent him to receive the punishment of beatings with a thorn stick. Ye Hongyu had betrayed the Divine Hall and blinded him, why did he have to be punished?


    The summer breeze sped through the cliff, lifting the curtains of the horse carriage. A wizened hand was revealed as itnded on the windowttice, knocking against it slowly.


    That was the Great Divine Priest of Revtion¡¯s hand.


    The cavalry and decons lowered their head and dared not look at the hand.


    Chen Bachi could not see, so he continued to look in that direction with a spiteful expression.


    The wizened old hand continued to knock on the windows.


    An aura enveloped them.


    Those by the horse carriage could hear the knocking, and an odd fear rose from their chest.


    One of them saw Chen Bachi¡¯s face and fell to the ground in horror.


    Chen Bachi did not sense or see anything.


    His expression was still spiteful, as if he was trying to find a rebuttal.


    However, he couldn¡¯t speak when he opened his mouth.


    He touched his mouth, and touched a wet and sticky object.


    There was something very sweet in his mouth.


    Then, he realized what had happened. The vicious expression on his face faded into terror and hopelessness.


    His tongue was gone.


    There was only blood and bits of flesh in his mouth.


    Everyone was terrified as they saw the blood streaming out of Chen Bachi¡¯s mouth. Some could not stop their shouts of terror from escaping. A few cavalrymen of Divine Hall subconsciously moved forward and stopped in a sudden. They knew that this was the punishment of the Divine Priest inside the horse carriage.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion¡¯s voice rang from the carriage again.


    "You shouldn¡¯t have spoken."


    "You do not know how to speak."


    "But you want to pass messages for others."


    "Then you shan¡¯t ever speak again."


    ...


    ...


    Thevish horse carriage dealt with matters of the cavalryman of Divine Hall and sped towards the four majestic temples on the Peach Mountain without dy.


    In the dark horse carriage, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion looked at the summernds in the Peach Mountain. After a long silence, he said, "I don¡¯t wish to and shouldn¡¯t interfere in matters in the Judicial Department. But it seems that I must interfere, so I did."


    Cheng Lixue did not speak. He looked at the divine priest¡¯s weary face and was suddenly annoyed at the bigwig sitting upon the Ink Jade Throne.


    The different horse carriages of the delegation had long split up, leaving behind only the ck and gold horse carriage of the Great Divine Priest of Revtion. It sped to the highest part of the temples and came to a ck colored, solemn temple.


    The horse carriage stopped before the grand and majestic temple, looking insignificant and lonely. However, the deacons, no matter which temple they belonged to, all appeared startled and respectful when they saw who was in it.


    They respected the Divine Priest inside the horse carriage.


    They were shocked that the Great Divine Priest of Revtion had appeared at the Temple of Judgment.


    The three Great Divine Priests of West-Hill Divine Pce had never entered other temples except their own¡¯s. This was out of respect for others, and because of their own pride.


    The people knelt on the stone steps outside the temple and by the pirs. They knelt by the roads and looked at the horse carriage uneasily. They did not know what happened earlier today.


    They watched the wizened Great Divine Priest of Revtion emerge from the horse carriage slowly. He walked up the stone steps slowly and entered the ck Temple of Judgement. The people watching were all surprised.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion was very old and frail.


    But he seemed strong and big when he walked into the Temple of Judgment. He looked just as tall as the roof of the temple.


    He walked across the smooth stone floors. Everyone in the Judicial Department knelt and weed him.


    It didn¡¯t matter what the Great Divine Priest of Revtion¡¯s presence at their temple meant to the Judicial Department. He could be here to shame or challenge them. But other than the Great Divine Priest of Judgment, there wasn¡¯t anyone who could reveal how they truly felt.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion walked into the Temple of Judgement. He stood before the empty halls and looked at the beaded curtains afar. He stopped and did not continue forward.


    He was here to talk, so he had to walk into the Judicial Hall. However, if he continued forward, the ill-tempered fellow behind the bead curtains would definitely think that he was here to fight.


    The Great Divine Priest of West-Hill was human after all, and humans would definitely have emotions.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion looked at the figure behind the beaded curtains and said, "I went to the South Jin Kingdom and brought back the ashes of someone."


    The beaded curtains in the depth of the hall moved even though there wasn¡¯t any breeze. It revealed the Jade Ink throne behind it.


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgment propped up his head on his hand and looked at the Great Divine Priest of Revtion with hooded lids. He stayed silent.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion shook his head and said, "You shouldn¡¯t have done those things."


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgment did not raise his head. He said coldly, "So what? I am second to Haotian only. Should I bow down to Liu Bai?"


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion spoke after a long silence, "You did not have to bow down to anyone before Senior Brother Guang Ming left. But after his leaving, you can only sit on the throne, and your head is thus naturally bowed down."


    The Great Divine Priest of Light had escaped from the You Prison and caused amotion in the West-Hill Divine Pce. A rare few knew that this old man who was known as the strongest Great Divine Priest of Light in centuries had overturned the Confinement that the Great Divine Priest of Judgment had built with his life force.


    Almost no one knew that his overturning of the confinement had brought harm to the Great Divine Priest of Judgment. He was still unable to leave the Ink Jade throne.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion knew about this, naturally.


    That was why he had said that.


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgment sat on the Ink Jade throne that looked as if it was made of the congealed blood of millions of people. He held up his head with his hand as if he was thinking. However, his head that used to sit upright and strongly on his shoulders was indeed lowered.


    He lifted his head slowly. His deep-set eyes were cold and cruel. He looked at the Great Divine Priest of Revtion who stood beyond the curtains and said, "I can lift my head anytime."


    A gust of wind tore through the empty dark hall.


    ...


    ...


    Those from the West-Hill Divine Pce did not know what happened in the Temple of Judgment. They did not know why the Great Divine Priest of Revtion had entered it and did not know what he said or did after meeting the Great Divine Priest of Judgment. They did not know what this meeting meant for history.


    They only heard the wild crazy winds. It was more frightening than the hurricane on the east shores of the Kingdom of Song. It sounded like the war cries of many giants.


    The winds swept out of the temple and onto the stone steps, pping on the stone pirs. Many knelt on the ground in fear, but could not hide from the wrath of the wind.


    After some time, the howling of the winds stopped, as did the wind.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion walked out of the temple. He looked the same as he entered, and his expression was calm. However, the wrinkles at the corner of his eyes had deepened.


    The people watched with respect and unease as he walked down the stone steps. He did not enter the horse carriage, but walked to the peak of the Peach Mountain and towards the purest and white temple. Shocking guesses erupted in their hearts.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion did not return to his own temple after leaving the Temple of Judgment. Instead, he walked to the most solemn ce in Haotian Taoism.


    The purest white temple belonged to the hierarch of West-Hill Divine Pce.


    No one knew why the Great Divine Priest of Revtion had visited the Great Divine Priest of Judgment, and then, visited the hierarch. Simrly, they did not witness what happened in the pure white temple. They only heard several roars of thunder ringing from the hall and across the Peach Mountain.


    ...


    ...


    There was a curtain of light in the deepest part of the white temple.


    The light curtain was formed by the purest Haotian Divine Light and possessed unimaginable power.


    The light curtain represented the rule of Haotian on the world.


    The figure of a Taoistnded on the pure Divine Light.


    The figure was extremely tall. He looked as if his head could reach the skies with his feet standing on the ground. He looked as if he could force heaven and earth apart.


    A roar of thunder apanied each word that the Taoist spoke.


    He was the highest ruler of Haotian Taoism on earth. He was the Hierarch Lord of West-Hill Divine Pce.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion bent slightly in a bow at the figure behind the curtain of light.


    A sound rang from behind the curtain.


    "Revtion, you think too much."


    The voice was calm, but caused the ray of lights to move when the sound crossed through the curtains. Then, it became the thunder that roared above the clouds.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion looked at therge figure and said calmly, "The Tao Addict represents the Divine Hall¡¯s future. Those idiots have chased her away, and I cannot ept that. Hierarch Lord, you have remained silent on this matter, and I feel that that is very stupid."


    The Great Divine Priests of West-Hill were people in unique positions. They were able to point out the Hierarch Lord¡¯s stupidity, which was hard to imagine. But what was even more unimaginable, was that the Hierarch Lord did not get angry, but instead, thought about it for a long while.


    "The Tao Addict cannot return."


    "I know."


    "She is ruined."


    "Possibly."


    "The Divine Hall needs power."


    "She can still be powerful."


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion said without expression, "I see more than any of you."


    After the Great Divine Priest of Light had left, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion was the one who could see the future most urately in the Peach Mountain.


    Even the person behind the curtain of lights had to agree with that.


    "Perhaps you might be right."


    The roaring thunder faded.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion left.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 439: Moving Trees

    Chapter 439: Moving Trees


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Luo Kedi,mander of West-Hill Divine Pce, was a tall middle-aged man who looked like a moving metal fortress in his armor. However, when he knelt down in front of the light curtain, and the giant figure, he humbled himself as if he were a dwarf or a thin servant.


    He was indeed the most loyal servant of Hierarch Lord in the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    A watchdog on the Peach Mountain.


    "Divine Hall is calling for strength more than ever. Since Ye Hongyu is gone, it is your duty to take her back. If she has not the strength we need, you shall kill her on mymand for the sake of the Hall¡¯s dignity, and then, you shall find alternatives to the needed strength."


    The Hierarch Lord said solemnly in the radiant light.


    Luo Kedi kowtowed to the Lord, like a fallen fortress.


    ...


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion returned to his seat, his aged palm gently stroked the sunflower vines woven throne. Looking at the hundreds of deacons and officers of the Revtion Department kneeling on the floor, the wrinkles on his face were as deep as the cracks on the Peach Mountain cliffs.


    Cheng Lixue waved his hand to dismiss the people, he walked to the side of the seat and whispered, "Finally, it happened. "


    The Great Divine Priest replied, "It is not the thing my deductions imply."


    Cheng Lixue was stunned and lost his tongue, he wondered if Ye Hongyu¡¯s defection was not what the Priest had foreseen, then what else could it be?


    "It has note yet."


    The Priest said in a tired voice, "Everything is destined by Haotian. The Buddist¡¯s wheel of life rotates all the time. What is destined to happen will happen sooner orter."


    Perhaps it was because of the exhaustion, or sessive meetings with the Great Divine Priest of Judgment and the Hierarch Lord, the wrinkles around the Great Divine Priest of Revtion¡¯s eyes were getting horribly deeper.


    Looking at these wrinkles, Cheng Lixue¡¯s heart was full of worries. He dared not bluntly ask, but essayed, "I have no idea where she might be."


    The Priest smiled, and answered, "It does not need a deduction to know...Since the fool had left West-Hill, she must have gone to Chang¡¯an City."


    A strange look appeared on Cheng Lixue¡¯s face. He did not understand why the Priest was so sure about it.


    "The Haotian Divine Light shines on every corner in the world. Where can she live except in Chang¡¯an City?"


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion sighed, and said with a smile, "Fortunately, Chang¡¯an is a nice ce where you can always find something interesting."


    Learning about the Priest¡¯s view on Chang¡¯an City, Cheng Lixue suddenly recalled his experience at the side gate of Chang¡¯an Academy. He slightly frowned and said, "Chang¡¯an really is an interesting city. During the battle between Ning Que and Liu Yiqing, I did not expect He Mingchi would perceive Ning Que¡¯s Divine Skill earlier than me."


    He Mingchi was the disciple of Li Qingshan, the Nation Master of the Tang Empire.


    At the side gate, Ning Que wielded his sword towards Liu Yiqing, the Divine Light shone brightly and cultivators present had no idea what happened, except for Cheng Lixue and He Mingchi.


    Cheng Lixue broke the carriage wall.


    He Mingchi crumbled the carriage wheel with his hands.


    As the Grand Master of Revtion Department, West-Hill Divine Pce, it was not surprising that Cheng Lixue could immediately conclude that Ning Que had used Divine Skill. But how did He Mingchi do that?


    Recalling what he had seen at that time, Cheng Lixue frowned again, and then he said, "I am sure He Mingchi has reached a higher state than me. He definitely is not as weak as the rumor suggests."


    "For hundreds of years, the greatest wish of every hierarch is to bring back the people from South School of Haotian Taoism. Besides those boring talks about dignity and honor, it is their expertise that we really value. Since the Younger Brother Qingshan is the Nation Master of Tang Dynasty, how could his sessor be such a loser as rumor suggests?"


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion said slowly, "I am wondering how Ye Hongyu¡¯s appearance in Chang¡¯an City will affect the rtionship between Divine Hall and the South School. We will see."


    Thinking of what recently happened in Divine Hall, the attitude of Hierarch Lord and Divine Priest of Judgement, Cheng Lixue said gloomily, "I am afraid Ye Hongyu would nevere back."


    The Priest shook his head and said, "She wille back one day."


    Cheng Lixue felt confused, and he said, "How can you be so sure?"


    The Priest sighed, and said, "How could the destined happen if she does note back to the Peach Mountain?"


    ...


    Summer wasing to West-Hill, as well as Chang¡¯an City.


    The early summer of Chang¡¯an City was still tolerable. However, the sun had be tiresomely zing, and gstones in the afternoon started heating up.


    The refurbishment beside the Yanming Lake was still going on. In order toplete it before midsummer, the construction team worked faster under the effects of reward and Fish-dragon Gang¡¯s pressure.


    From dawn till dusk, the sound of striking and grinding constantly echoed in thekeside houses. Fortunately, the original residents had already moved away, otherwise, there might be conflicts considering the noise and hot weather.


    With the passage of time, the refurbishment entered the final stage. Ning Que took Seventh Sister¡¯s tactical array drawing with him, and started to do his job.


    Thanks to the gold and the reputation of Mr. Qi from Fish-dragon Gang, workers were quite cooperative even if in their eyes, Ning Que¡¯s designs did not make sense at all.


    The refurbishment of thekeside homestead was about toplete, and Seventh Sister¡¯s tactical array seemed to take shape and then hidden among those buildings and flowers.


    The construction was not over. Ning Que still lived with Sangsang in the Old Brush Pen Shop. Hearing the news of their leaving, the merchants in the Lin 47th Street had a mixed feeling of rxation and attachment. They thought, after the bigwigs moved away, Fish-dragon Gang would not continue to keep the peace, and Chang¡¯an Local Government runners would never patrol the ce several times a day.


    Ning Que did not know what people were thinking. He was upied with the Academy study at the back of the mountain and the refurbishment, besides, he must go to the pce regrly.


    He went to the pce for the purpose of entering that wooden building. Shouldering the great responsibility of securing Chang¡¯an City and considering his n, Ning Que found he must get familiar with the God-stunning Array as soon as possible.


    People all praised him for his talents in Talisman Taoism. Since talismans and arrays were connected, he should soon be able to master the big tactical array his master Yan Se left to him. However, unfortunately, his talents seemed to have exhausted on Talisman Taoism and others. On tactical array, there were few.


    Ning Que did not know how to give up. Since he must master the big tactical array, the frustrations would not defeat him. To amend stupidity by diligence, as long as he could squeeze some time, Ning Que would go to the pce and learn.


    The emperor greatly appreciated Ning Que¡¯s attitude and allowed him to enter the pce at any time. When he wearily walked out of the building, the emperor would not let him leave but take him into the Imperial Study.


    After entering the ce more than ten times, Ning Que got acquainted with the head of Yulin Royal Guards, the bodyguards, eunuchs and pce maids, even with the Empress who ground the inkstone every day in the Imperial Study. But he was not familiar with the big tactical array of Chang¡¯an City.


    However, he still got something from it.


    In addition to certain unspeakable benefits, the greatest benefit he had gained was the countless old trees on the bank of Yanming Lake, and the things constantly being sent to him.


    Although thekeside house and thend were bought and registered under the name of Chao Xiaoshu, it was impossible to keep it secret from too many people.


    Lee Yu was the first to know the secret, and then Ning Que received a gift from the Princess of Tang Dynasty.


    Now countless old trees were transnted from Lee Yu¡¯s own fief to the bank of Yanming Lake. This generosity was invaluable.


    The emperor and the empress also knew that he was working on his new home. The empress rewarded him with a lot of antiques, while His Majesty gave him plenty of calligraphy treasures.


    This was the only thing Ning Que was dissatisfied with.


    ...


    As time past, Chang¡¯an City entered the midsummer. The sound of cicadas was getting louder in the Academy, and the refurbishment had beenpleted, a dozen houses were included in an open space, the old walls soften byke air were painted, and the narrow alley that passed through the courtyard was transformed into a stone path in the garden, where flowers bloomed quietly and beautifully.


    The merchants of Lin 47th Street led by Mr. and Mrs. Wu, a fake antique shop owner, were encouraged to hold a farewell dinner for Ning Que and Sangsang, ending their years in the Lin 47th Street.


    On the same night, Ning Que and Sangsang moved to their house on the bank of Yanming Lake.


    All the furniture had been prepared by the brothers of Fish-dragon Gang, freeing Sangsang from worrying about how to fill therge space of a dozen houses.


    As Mr. Qi strongly suggested, Ning Que kept the Old Brush Pen Shop since Chao Xiaoshu had already remitted his rent for many years. But it would not sell calligraphy anymore.


    When the next spring rain fell, there would never be ad unfulfilled or frustrated in the Old Brush Pen Shop, and there would never be a middle-aged man standing outside with an umbre.


    Apanied by the sound of cicadas and unknown insects, Ning Que walked with Sangsang on the stone path beside Yanming Lake. Behind them, the beautiful houses were their new home.


    The numerous old trees made the stone path and the house ever quiet. The passingke wind lowered the temperature. Compared with the heat outside, it was apletely different world.


    Sangsang recalled the first two summers when Ning Quey on the bamboo chair outside the back door and talked with the neighbors. It was like a hundred years ago.


    "I never dreamt that one day, we could live in such a big house."


    Many years ago, when they lived in a cave, a tree house, and a small courtyard in the City of Wei, they always imagined what would their future house look like when they got rich, now, walking in their ownkeside house, they realized how poor they were at that time.


    "Isn¡¯t it nice?"


    Ning Que asked.


    Sangsang nodded, and said, "It is much better."


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 440: Planting Lotus

    Chapter 440: nting Lotus


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Standing on the bank of theke, Ning Que looked back and saw the towering trees, pink walls and ck roof behind the trees. Ning Que thought this would be his own home; he couldn¡¯t help but sigh like Sangsang and said, "In the future, we will live in bigger houses."


    Sangsang was surprised. She looked up and said, "Only the Mansion of the Princess and the Imperial Pce can be bigger than this house."


    Ning Que reached out and held her in his arms, rubbed her head in and said, "We¡¯ll also frequently go to the Princess¡¯ Pce and the Royal Pce. If you really want to live there in the future, I will ask His Majesty."


    Sangsang leaned on his chest and smiled happily.


    The light that leaked from the green leaves of old trees suddenly became a lot weaker. Ning Que looked at the sky, and saw that a few big clouds flew on the sky above and covered the zing sunshine.


    He pushed Sangsang away from his arms and said, "Let¡¯s go boating."


    The distinct treatments did not make the little maid too ufortable. She answered with an "oh" and walked to the newly built simple dock.


    A 30 feet long wooden road stretched into the Yanming Lake,and two boats were tied in front of it. There were paddles on the stern and the boats had a roof. The boats were very new. It was Ning Que who bought the boats.


    Wooden paddles cut through the white clouds reflected in theke. The waves of theke began to rise and they swayed to the distance. The grass in the clear water was disturbed and the fish among the aquatic nts were scared.


    The boat left the dock and sailed towards the middle of theke.


    The center of Yanming Lake was a lotus field.


    Ning Que was half lying on the boat and his cor had been untied. Heid in the shade of the boat and sniffed the faint scent from the wind, then closed his eyes to rest.


    Sangsang stood at the stern and slowly rowed.


    "Close your eyes and feel it,"


    Ning Que said.


    Sangsang obeyed, putting down her oars and moving near Ning Que. She leaned on him and closed her eyes. The slightly sparse eyshes moved gently and the yellowish hair was waved by the wind.


    "What did you feel?"


    "Theke wind is very cool."


    "I was talking about the Qi of Heaven and Earth."


    "It looks like... it¡¯s stronger than on the shore."


    Sangsang opened her eyes and looked at the lotus field not far away. Her thin eyebrows twisted.


    Ning Que took a blueprint from his pocket. He pointed at the Yanming Lake which was fingernail sized on the blueprint and said, "Thiske is the left eye of the array of Chang¡¯an. The imperial court dredged thiskest year. To the public, it said that doing this was Chang¡¯an Local Government¡¯s request. In fact, it is the daily maintenance of God-stunning Array by the Imperial Center Administration."


    Sangsang asked, "The imperial court agreed to us buying the house beside theke?"


    "I¡¯m now in charge of this array of Chang¡¯an City, so why not?"


    Ning Que then said, "The reason why I had to spend every coin, even sell some calligraphy to buy this house is thiske. Thisrge array in Chang¡¯an City has never been triggered, but it is running slowly. Yanmingke is the left eye of the array, theke must naturally gather Qi of Heaven and Earth. Although the self-uniformity of heaven and earth is too strong, the concentration here cannot be too special, but it is good for cultivation."


    Sangsang nodded, but did not really understand.


    "The most critical issue is that if I can really control the big array of Chang¡¯an City, we can connect it with Seventh Sister¡¯s array."


    Ning Que said, "At that time, there is no need to start the God-stunning Array to shock the world. I also have the ability to use the power of Chang¡¯an City to nt someone¡¯s lotus."


    Sangsang said after thinking for a moment, "Sounds very difficult."


    Ning Que was thinking about studying in the pce these days, and said, "It¡¯s harder than hard."


    Sangsang said, "Young master, I believe you can do it."


    "I hope so, but there¡¯s not much time left for me."


    Ning Que looked at the lotus field nearby, thinking that in the autumn, these lush green lotus leaves would turn into dry yellow leaves and that man would return to Chang¡¯an. He became silent.


    "Go to the lotus field over there,"


    He said.


    Sangsang stood up beside him and walked to the stern, rowing again.


    "Let¡¯s row together..."


    Ning Que started to sing.


    ...


    ...


    Yanming Lake belonged to thend of the government and was not allowed to be sold. It was impossible for it to be Ning Que¡¯s private property. However, he bought the house on thekeside. The imperial court knew his identity and naturally would not force him to give up. The Yanming Mountain was not famous, and there were very few tourists. Therefore, Yanming Lake was in fact equal to being the privateke of his house. On the beautifulke, there was only one boat.


    Sealing up such a beautifulndscape, turning it into a private garden that can only be enjoyed by himself, and cutting off the opportunity for the people of Chang¡¯an City to get close to it, of course, they would appear to be somewhat selfish and even morally problematic. However, Ning Que and his servant were upstarts and they had never been the kind who cared much about moral issues.


    The more than ten acres of lotus fields in the center of theke were all nted by people Ning Que hired. Now, after a few days, they were nourished byke mud and the lotus leaves were already dense and the flowers were in full bloom.


    Sangsang rowed the boat slowly entered the lotus field. There was nothing, except green lotus leaves and the pink lotus flowers. It seemed they entered a quiet maze which was entirely different from the hot summer.


    The green round lotus leaves were like cattail leaves fanning the boat lying on the surface of the water. They stretched to the air and touched the boat from time to time, making the buzzing sound. The white, soft, tender and smooth like Jade petals were near the two people. They could even clearly smell the light fragrance.


    Ning Que leaned on the bow of the ship, and looked at the lotus leaves around him. He was holding a cattail leaf fan and slightly squinted his eyes. He looked at the beauty of the lotus field while practicing meditation and used the magic that he learned in the cliff cave to build Qi. He kept breathing in and out the aura of heaven and earth to nourish the Great Spirit.


    The drop of liquid of Great Spirit, which was formed in his body, was now more round and plump, and it looked liked water droplets rolling on the lotus leaf that would fall into theke at any time.


    The boat went deeper into the lotus field. Thekeside house and even the Yanming Mountain on the south bank were blocked by lotus leaves. Sangsang put down the paddle and sat down beside Ning Que, reaching out to the side of the boat and picking up a lotus¡¯s fruit between the leaves.


    Her little hand pressed hard and tore the fresh lotus, then picked a green seed from the inside. She carefully peeled off the lotus seed, picked out the thin lotus core, and sent it to Ning¡¯s lips.


    Ning Que did not opened his eyes, and ate the core of lotus seed between her fingertips. He felt a mouth full of fragrance; suddenly he opened his eyes and said, "The fresh lotus core is not bitter, so why bother to pick it out."


    Sangsang had already dealt with several lotus seeds, all fed into his mouth, and she did not listen to what he said. She still carefully picked out the lotus cores.


    "I heard that lotus cores can be used as medicine, so don¡¯t waste them."


    She said with her head down.


    Ning Que was speechless and said, "We are rich now. We don¡¯t need to be so frugal. I should use the effort to write few more calligraphies."


    Sangsang thought for a moment and agreed. She looked at the lotus core on her knees and made up her mind to toss it into theke, and washed her hands with theke water. Then, she walked back to the stern.


    "Where are we going?"


    Ning Que looked at the boat moving and asked.


    Sangsang said, "Going back to let you write a few more calligraphies. Buying this house has cost a lot of money. Though you have a lot of things in the pce, I counted the debtst night and found that we owed plenty of money to Mr. Qi."


    Ning Que said, "We are not in such a hurry, right?"


    Sangsangughed and said. "I tricked you for fun. Come on, say where you want to go."


    Ning Que said, "Anywhere."


    The boat moved freely in the lotus field.


    Ning Que opened the parcel next to him, and took out the iron can and carefully touched the straight stripe on it, finding that he did not have Sixth Brother¡¯s ability.


    He threw the iron can into theke very casually.


    In these days, Sixth Brother made a total of 30 small iron cans. He continued to make them in the back of the academy. As long as he had time, he would continue to supply.


    The small iron can was filled with enough iron scraps. The power was increased during the test, and it was ensured that it would not float when thrown into theke.


    The rtively troublesome thing was the Fire Fu in the can.


    Although Ning Que¡¯s Psyche Power was much richer than ordinary cultivators, it was still hard for him to use more than 30 Fu papers that were full of power.


    Sangsang was rolling his paddle.


    He leaned against the bow, throwing the tin cans into theke from time to time, ignoring the shocked fishes.


    The boat moved, and Ning Que throwed the cans arbitrarily. It seemed that he didn¡¯t pay any attention, but in fact, he tossed the small iron can into theke and kept its location in mind.


    The boat crossed the lotus field.


    It caused a wave and made pleasing sounds.


    Just like there were frogs jumping from the boat into theke.


    ...


    ...


    When the boat sailed out of the lotus field, the small iron cans had also been fully submerged into theke. At this time, the sky was covered by rain clouds. They did not know the time.


    Ning Que standing on the bow, looked at thekeshore that was getting nearer and nearer. The Yanbian Mountain, which was steep but not so high. He squinted his eyes. It was cooler than yesterday. Lake winds blew against his cheeks. It was veryfortable.


    The boat moved to the south bank. The two peoplended and went into the forest, walking through the grass. Finally they climbed to the peak of Yanming Mountain. The peak was not high, but was a good ce to overlook theke.


    Ning Que looked at the courtyard on the northern bank of theke. They looked at the lines on the wall which were partly blocked by the trees. Hepared them silently with his seventh sister¡¯s array to make sure there were no deviations.


    "If Haotian can give me enough time to let me connect thesekes and mountains with the God-stunning Array, then I believe I can kill anyone I want to kill in this ce."


    Just after he finished this sentence, it seemed that Hao Tian could no longer tolerate his arrogance. A bright sh shone in the cloud far away, and then thunder came rumbling.


    The heavy rain fell without warning, and it instantly turned into countless water curtains, covering the entire Chang¡¯an City. Yanming Lake and Yanming Mountain were silent in the rain.


    At the moment when thunder and lightning struck, Sangsang opened the big ck umbre at the fastest speed.


    Ning Que looked up at the ck umbre, and said, "It¡¯s easy to be killed by thunderstorms when you¡¯re holding an umbre."


    Sangsang said, "You said that when you were young, but we were not killed."


    Ning Que sighed and said, "It really is a very magical world, then close your eyes and feel it."


    It rained cats and dogs down.


    Thunder and lightning werebined with the rain.


    Sangsang stood at the edge of the cliff, facing the turbulentke, closing her eyes and holding the handle of the big ck umbre tightly.


    Not knowing how much time passed.


    Ning Que asked seriously, "How do you feel?"


    Sang Sang opened her eyes and the light in her eyes was brighter than the lightning.


    "I can feel everything."


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 441: Holding Umbrella

    Chapter 441: Holding Umbre


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Sangsang was a little handmaiden.


    But Sangsang was not an ordinary little handmaiden.


    Her memory was amazing. From the time she learned to count, she had been able to easily remember all the numbers she had ever seen. All the soldiers and citizens of the City of Wei could testify this.


    She was also very smart. This could be testified by Chen Pipi, who found himself dejectedly walked out of the Old Brush Pen Shop several times. Chen Pipi was a true genius, having been certified as such by both the Haotian Taoism and Chang¡¯an Academy.


    The reason why Sangsang often seemed clumsy, or even dull, was not true because she was dumb. In Ning Que¡¯s opinion, she was justzy and couldn¡¯t be bothered to think too much.


    Ning Que¡¯s understood Sangsang¡¯s special features far more than anyone else in this world. He was well aware of her unique abilities, like her intelligence. Yet over the past ten years, he made no effort to train or even think about these special gifts that Sangsang possessed.


    This was a choice he made on instinct.


    He had only picked up this baby girl from among the corpses on the side of the road in Hebei County, but he had never imagined that she might hide some secrets of her own. Deep in his heart, he had his own faint fears about her.


    The Great Divine Priest of Light had escaped from the clutches of West Hill ande all the way to Chang¡¯an City. Here, he took Sangsang as his disciple, and so Sangsang became the best sessor candidate for the seat of the next Great Divine Priest of Light of West-Hill Divine Pce. Seeing how all this had happened, Ning Que realized that this was all the guidance of fate upon Sangsang, a Lucky Chance for that baby girl who had lived through such hardship in her early life.


    The trappings of fate and the secrets of destiny had already grasped both Ning Que and Sangsang in their clutches. They could no longer afford to fear their fate. They could only recognize and ept it. In the past six months, Ning Que had stopped trying to escape and instead began to train Sangsang, trying to explore her true potential in cultivation.


    Today, the heavens above Yanming Lake were stormy and booming with the roar of thunder.


    Sangsang stood on the edge of the cliff. As she held the big ck umbre out in front of her, she said that she could feel everything.


    Two years ago, during their trip from the City of Wei to Chang¡¯an City, the elder Lyu Qingchen had once told Ning Que that when cultivators first gained enlightenment, the range of the Qi of Heaven and Earth that they could feel represented the qualification of the cultivator, and could even predict how far they could go in cultivation.


    Some cultivators perceived a pond, while others could feel ake. Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword, had encountered a raging river.


    Ning Que had perceived a warm sea. He had never spoken to anyone about this, as even he himself could not believe that his spiritual potential might be stronger than that of the Sage of Sword. In fact, it had already been proven several times that this feeling seemed to be misleading.


    Sangsang imed that she could sense everything. This did not mean that she was more powerful than Liu Bai. Rather, it represented another unique meaning, one which only Ning Que and Sangsang herself could understand.


    "Are you going to give it a try right now?"


    Sangsang handed the big ck umbre back to him.


    Ning Que took the umbre from her tiny hands. There was rainwater everywhere upon it, flowing in little streams in between his palm and the handle.


    Psyche Power seeped out from his sense of perception. It went through his palms and floated into the handle of the big ck umbre. Reaching the tip, it silently covered the oily surface of the umbre, then passed through the heavy rain and spread into Yanming Lake under the cliff.


    Now, even Ning Que could feel everything.


    He felt theke being beaten by the storm, with its surface rippling like boiling water. He felt the lotus leaves in the field being hit by rain, sounding like the steady beat of a drum. He felt the terrified frogs that were huddled under the lotus leaves. He felt that the rocks in the depths of theke that resembled small iron cans.


    Ning Que looked up at the sky and leaned the ck umbre back as the rainwater drenched his body within a second.


    The clouds in the sky were roiling and rumbling. The dark clouds overtook the sky, stretching into the horizon. Torrential rain poured down from theyers of dark clouds, like countless ck snakes biting andshing at everything within their reach.


    All of a sudden, a thick and straight bolt of lightning shed through the sky from over the northwest corner of Chang¡¯an City, instantly tearing through the roiling rain clouds without any resistance.


    The thunder came soon after, and it exploded over Yanming Lake.


    Boom!


    At the same time, the water over Yanming Lake rippled violently and sshed everywhere. The lotus petals shuddered from the shock, as if they could split apart at any moment.


    Ning Que looked down at the surface of theke, where the water had erupted like a fountain just a moment ago, and the debris of the flowers and leaves that had been pushed to the shore by the waves. He silently said, "Good."


    Sangsang wiped the rainwater from her face, not saying a word.


    That horrifying sh of lightning seemed to only signal the start of the sky¡¯s wrath upon the earth. shes of lightning appeared one after another, and Chang¡¯an City, which had just earlier been covered in the shadow of the dark clouds, now lit up under the periodic bright light. The sound of thunder boomed without pause, refusing to give any respite to the people of the city.


    Standing amidst the raging thunder, Ning Que held the ck umbre as he looked toward the northern shore of Yanming Lake. He opened his mouth to speak. However, drowned within the sound of the thunder and the torrential rain, only Ning Que himself could hear the words he spoke.


    Pointing at the house on the north bank, he said, "Start from the courtyard."


    He pointed at the turbulentke and said, "Continue to theke."


    Then he looked at Sangsang, then at Yanming Mountain, at where he currently stood. He said, "It ends here."


    Sangsang took the big ck umbre from him and said, "We can¡¯t let him get to the mountain."


    Ning Que remained silent for a moment, then said, "I¡¯ll handle it. Even if we¡¯re unable to kill him at theke, we cannot let hime up. I will go down to him instead."


    Sangsang said, "What should I do if you go down?"


    Ning Que said, "Stay on the mountain and watch over me."


    Sangsang said, "I can help you."


    "I don¡¯t doubt that you can help me, but that¡¯s only before I have to go down. Still, I believe that there will certainly be many people here on that day, such as Second Brother, so you will be safe as long as you stay here."


    Ning Que finished his words and walked down the hill.


    The heavy midsummer rain was rough and torrential, appearing and disappearing just as suddenly. It seemed to have no hesitation at all. By the time Ning Que and Sangsang reached the shore of theke, the rain had stopped.


    As the downpour had finally ended, they went back to the boat.


    Ning Que picked up the boat with one hand and overturned it, dumping the umted rainwater in the hull.


    The boat floated atop the calm Yanming Lake once again.


    After the heavy rain, the air around theke had be clean and refreshing. The summer heat had been swept away, and theke breeze was filled with the sweet tangy smell of broken green branches.


    The boat sailed into the corner of the field of lotuses.


    Here, branchesy broken and lotus petalsy scattered across theke surface. Theke water seemed turbid and seeped an aura of misery.


    No matter how powerful thunder and lightning may be, they could not have caused this.


    Among the lotus leaves and debris floating on theke, traces of iron residue could be vaguely seen.


    Looking over the broken branches in theke, Ning Que smiled and said, "With the crack of thunder, naught but a ruinedke remains."


    Tuyang City was located near the northeastern border of the Tang Empire. Ity beside Min Mountain, close to the Wilderness. It always remained extremely cool, even in the searing heat of midsummer. During the summer months, the rain would gradually increase, though the sound of thunder was rarely heard.


    The gradual increase of rain did not mean that the locals could luxuriantly digkes to nt lotuses like the people in the southern parts of the country. In Tuyang City, only the General¡¯s Mansion had a lotus pond, and only a few people were able to see the lotus blossoms. In any case, there weren¡¯t too many people in this border town that had an appreciation for poetry and flowers.


    However, when the people of Tuyang City saw returning troops of the Tang Empire cavalry with their broken and miserable appearance on the meadow outside the city, they were shocked and even speechless.


    It had been several years since the Tang Empire Army hadst suffered any kind of loss. In fact, the Northeast Border Military led by General Xia Hou had never been defeated. So why did the cavalry outside look like they had just suffered a bitter defeat?


    In truth, this was no more than a misunderstanding


    The Tang Empire Cavalry on the meadow outside Tuyang City had not defeated in the Wilderness. They had traveled a long distance, their armor was dyed gray with dirt and mud, and their horses were tired. The most critical thing was that all the soldiers¡¯ faces revealed expressions of numbness. There was a bitter atmosphere among the troops, which was why they had been regarded as broken troops.


    The cause of this numbness among the soldiers of the Tang Empire¡¯s army was the tribes of Deste Men in mountain woods.


    A sole man¡¯s leather robe had already been torn to tatters. Blood and water mixed with dust smeared on his clothes, which themselves were stolen from god knows where. He looked extremely tired, as if he might even fall down at any time.


    It was such a seriously injured man who had followed the Tang Empire cavalry from the depths of the Wilderness to the outskirts of Tuyang City and had never fallen.


    The Tang Empire Cavalrymen looked at the man in the distance with a numb expression. There was even some respect in their eyes.


    Over these past few days, this man had been following the Tang Empire cavalry, ready to attack the camp and assassinate General Xia Hou anytime. He tried seventeen times and failed seventeen times, but he still hadn¡¯t given up.


    The Tang Empire Cavalry did want to kill the man, but with his strength and perseverance he had proven impossible to kill, especially when the Tang Empire soldiers weren¡¯t willing to pay the price of their life to do so.


    Assassination, counterstrikes, geuri tactics, and encirclements happened again and again during this long journey. Yet, the man could not kill General Xia Hou.


    Neither could Xia Hou and his invincible cavalry kill the man.


    After having faced him time and again, like a group of beggars in the face of an aristocrat, all of the Tang Empire cavalry, even their proudest generals, could only feel numb now.


    The sound of approaching horse hooves warned the cavalry to split into two and create a path.


    Xia Hou dashed over on his horse and looked at Tang, who stood on the meadow in the distance. There were no emotions on his face.


    In the past few days, the Tang Empire cavalry had tried every possible tactic to kill that great warrior of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. They had even almost seeded several times, though they always failed eventually. Tang had also sessfully approached Xia Hou several times and forced Xia Hou into a fight against him.


    However, Xia Hou was never alone. He had countless horsemen as his guards. Hence, in this continuous battle of attrition, Tang would eventually find himself on the losing end.


    Today¡¯s Tang was close to that breaking point. He had suffered serious injuries over the past few days. There was no longer the look of a great warrior of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine on him, he was now more akin to a poor beggar. However, Tang was not dead yet. And Tang still persevered in killing him.


    Xia Hou had also suffered severe injuries. His Academy-made special armor had also been destroyed by the huge blood-red de in Tang¡¯s hands just the day before.


    "Tuyang City now lies behind me."


    Xia Hou looked at Tang on the meadow in the distance and said indifferently, "You no longer have any chance."


    Tang said, "I have told you that you are old."


    Xia Hou said, "And I have told you that words like old and frail mean nothing to you or me."


    Tang said, "The problem is that your heart is getting old. From the moment you decided to retire, you became old, and old is weak. Even if Tuyang City is less than a hundred miles away, you will definitely still die by my hands."


    Xia Hou kept silent as he realized Tang the truth in Tang¡¯s words.


    "But I own Tuyang City. And Tuyang City contains countless loyal troops."


    Xia Hou said, "And you have only yourself."


    Tang said, "If only you could understand that fighting is ultimately a matter of one person, maybe you would not have made so many mistakes, and you would not have been as old as you are now."


    In the sweltering heat of summer, the grass rippled underneath as the eagle soared overhead.


    There were countless wounds upon Tang, and his blood was still flowing. It fell on the grass and began to burn.


    Xia Hou covered his mouth tightly with his fist and began to cough. There was blood left on his fingers. He was like an injured eagle that huddled to recover on the rock wall.


    A bald eagle is still as majestic as any other eagle.


    But an old man is less than half another man. [1]


    [1] - The original ending phrase was a Chinese pun that used the Chinese words for eagle and hawk, where the word for ¡¯eagle¡¯ (ÀÏÓ¥) is obtained by adding the character for ¡¯old¡¯ (ÀÏ) in front of the character for ¡¯hawk¡¯ (Ó¥). The second line says that in a simr way, putting the character for ¡¯old¡¯ in front of the character for ¡¯man¡¯ only creates a person who is full of the stress of old age, and nothing more.


    --

 Chapter 442: Taming the Eagle

    Chapter 442: Taming the Eagle


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    A thousand years ago, the Deste Men were the masters of the great northern grasnds. Hence today, this grasnd was still called the Wilderness. There were eagles on the grasnd. Therefore, the Deste Men were good at raising eagles. Even if they were defeated by the Tang Empire and were forced to move to the Far North, to the Cold Region, the Deste Men still never gave up raising eagles.


    Xia Hou was a Deste Man and so was Tang. They were not unfamiliar with raising eagles.


    Looking at Tang dressed in rags on the distant meadow beside the mountain woods, Xia Hou suddenly remembered his eagle taming experience from his childhood. He remembered how the young eagle had nearly fallen from its iron perch, but it still refused to lower its stubborn head.


    Embroiled in a constant battle with Tang all the way from the depths of the Wilderness to Tuyang City back here in the south, he was always confident in his n to exhaust Tang¡¯s strength, just like taming an eagle. He had kept stoking Tang¡¯s anger and hatred in order to keep this strongman of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine in a constant state of rage and force him to consume all his energy in these daily battles.


    Xia Hou originally thought he was going to seed. He could see with his own eyes that the Qi in Tang¡¯s body was exhausted, his spirit had gradually withered, and his imprable body had softened as well. Tang could finally be injured, and he had begun to bleed. He thought that, with Tang slowly losing blood along this long journey, he would finally fall from exhaustion, just like the young eagle back then.


    However, against all expectations, Tang did not fall down. Instead, he was the one instead who felt an unprecedented sense of fatigue, weakness, and even fear in the deepest parts of his body.


    Was he the eagle that had been tamed?


    Xia Hou kept coughing, blood overflowing like water over the edge of his hand which covered his mouth. Yet, his face remained cold and calm, his brooding eyes cold like ice.


    He was not afraid of aging.


    Whether on the grasnds or the rocky shores of the Hot Sea, the oldest eagles remained at the top of the food chain.


    He put down his fist and took out his hand towel to wipe off the blood stains on his lips. He looked nkly at Tang and said, "Your perseverance surprised me a bit, but in the end, it is nothing but a surprise. After all, you are not your teacher. You could never threaten me unless you pass that threshold."


    Tang nced down at the long grass under his feet that had been painted red by his blood.


    The incessant fighting had caused him to suffer several serious injuries. That seemingly insignificant cavalry of the Tang Empire had brought him a lot of trouble because of their powerful military discipline and tactical organization. As the Qi in his body gradually dried up, his once indestructible body had finally started to bleed under the onught of des and arrows.


    The Devil¡¯s Doctrine was already dead, and he, the World Wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, was alone in this world. Let alone the innumerable Taoist priests of the West-Hill Divine Pce, even whenpared to the renegade Xia Hou, he seemed so lonely and weak.


    In a sense, all that remained of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine in today¡¯s world was him alone.


    He was the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    He held thest of the spirit and the pride of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, hence, he could not fall down. Not now. Not here. Especially not against him.


    So despite being seriously injured and unable to see any hope, he silently kept up his fight against Xia Hou and the thousands of soldiers of the Tang Empire cavalry. Even with these odds, he had fought all the way to Tuyang City.


    Tang lifted up his head and stared straight at Xia Hou and the countless mounted knights that surrounded him. He said, "Look at your body, which, like rotten wood, may seem sturdy on the outside but is fragile on the inside. And ask this of your seemingly strong heart: If I was truly no threat to you, then why are you still stuck saying these things to me?"


    Xia Hou stayed silent for a long time before he replied, "Not even you can follow me all the way back to Chang¡¯an. The Central ins are a world that have been blessed by the Haotian Divine Light. The heavens there cannot tolerate you. What choice do you have?"


    As thest and most powerful member of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, Tang could easily choose to live freely in the Wilderness and just stare at Ye Su from across the mountain. However, he was very clear that if he really did enter the Central ins, he would inevitably face the pursuit of the strongest warriors of the West-Hill Divine Pce. That was nothing but a dead end.


    "Indeed, I cannot enter the Central ins."


    Tang nced at Tuyang City, whichy not far away, and said, "I don¡¯t even dare to enter this city. Yet, I have injured you. I have made you weak and nervous. I know that you are doomed."


    Xia Hou asked, "Why say these meaningless words?"


    "I would never do anything meaningless. I would never say anything meaningless either. I am definitely not the only person who wishes to see you dead. Every time you leave the Military camp and enter Chang¡¯an City, or when you retire, the ghost of the people you burnt to death, the people you killed by the roadside, will gather behind your back and haunt you for life. Those ghosts will be grateful to me for hunting you all this way, and I will be grateful to those ghosts who will hunt you till you die."


    Tang finally nodded to Xia Hou to show his respect and said, "I wish you a happy retirement and a wonderful death."


    Upon saying this, he turned back and left the meadow, disappearing into the forest.


    Xia Hou silently stared at the empty meadow and the woods that gently shook amidst the summer breeze. With nothing left to say, he turned around and rode to Tuyang City.


    The wind blowing from the Wilderness shook the mountain forest and the tall grass and billowed through the g atop the city wall. It also swayed his hair outside his helmet, those silver strands dancing with the breeze.


    Since ancient times, reputable generals were like beautiful women: they were not allowed to be known for getting old and grey. Yet now, his hair was already greying.


    The first batch of guests were visiting the new house at Yanming Lake.


    The princess Li Yu and her stepson, as well as Situ Yn.


    Ning Que was happy to see the arrival of Situ Yn, and he did not have any opinion about the poor little Wild prince, but he felt a bit troubled to receive Her Highness, the Princess Li Yu.


    He had a good rtionship with Li Yu, but he was very clear that she would definitely bring him trouble.


    And unsurprisingly, when he and Li Yu were left alone in the quiet study, the trouble came.


    Outside the carved window of the study, there were several ancient trees. The trees sheltered them from the hot summer sun. The breeze was pleasant and the cicadas were humming in the woods, but they were not annoying.


    Li Yu was holding a bowl of herbal tea as she looked at theke, which was faintly visible outside the window. She smiled and said, "The noisier the cicadas are, the quieter the forest is. This really is a good house. It¡¯s no wonder that a miser like you was willing to spend so many tales of silver on it."


    Ning Que sighed and wondered if it was really necessary to start a conversation like this.


    He walked to Li Yu¡¯s side and said, "I would like to thank Your Highness for these great trees."


    The old trees around the house on the bank of the Yanming Lake were all from Li Yu¡¯s royal estate. These trees were of great value. On top of that, the cost of transporting these trees from the mountains to the city of Chang¡¯an was extremely high. Most importantly, there were many rare and ancient trees among them that one couldn¡¯t buy even if one had money.


    Ning Que was indeed a very important person, but Li Yu was the princess. She didn¡¯t have to please Ning Que. If she did him a favor, she would need to be paid back.


    "Well, they were just something from the mountain, they weren¡¯t too expensive."


    Li Yu walked over to the wall and looked at the antiques on the shelf. Her expression changed slightly. She said with a chuckle, "When I was young, I had asked father for this pen brush, but he said that it was gifted to her, so I couldn¡¯t have it. I didn¡¯t expect to see it in your study now."


    Ning Que looked at the pen brush made of ck jade. He said, "If you like it, you can take it."


    Li Yu said mockingly, "She gave it you, so how can I ask for it?"


    There were only two people in Chang¡¯an who dared to call the Empress a "she"¡ªLi Yu and her brother.


    Of course, even she could only address the Empress as such in private.


    Obviously, Li Yu did not care about letting Ning Que see her true attitude toward the Empress.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t respond.


    Li Yu smiled and looked at him, saying, "I heard that you have often entered the pce recently. You must be familiar with her?"


    Ning Que said, "We are much more familiar than before."


    Li Yu asked, "What kind of person do you think she is?"


    Ning Que answered directly, "I don¡¯t know."


    Li Yu thought for a moment and said with a self-mocking grin, "I¡¯ve been fighting against her for so many years, yet even I haven¡¯t been able to figure out what she¡¯s thinking about. How can I expect you to know her thoughts?"


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "Why are you so concerned about it?"


    Li Yu sipped the herbal tea in her cup, and her eyebrows twisted slightly. Then, she smiled and said, "It¡¯s good. Is this Sangsang¡¯s mulberry tea? I have heard of it several times, but this is my first time tasting it."


    Listening to Her Highness talking about the short stories of her family, Ning Que felt relieved, and he was just about to exin the recipe of the mulberry tea, emphasizing that it was his own invention.


    However, he was not prepared for Li Yu¡¯s next sentence.


    The atmosphere turned from good to bad in a single second.


    "You know, my idea is simple."


    Li Yu calmly and persistently looked into Ning Que¡¯s eyes.


    Ning Que did not avoid her gaze, saying, "I have already told you my thoughts."


    Li Yu said, "I know you have some issues with the Imperial Army."


    Ning Que said, "I admit that¡¯s true, but it is problem that can be solved, so I¡¯m not too concerned about it."


    "After killing Huang Xing and Yu Shuizhu, I doubt you can still talk with Xia Hou happily while letting the military¡¯s old generals believe that you are harmless."


    Li Yu continued, "These problems cannot be solved so easily. Maybe you really don¡¯t need to care about them. But if you wish to continue doing as you have, you have to take care."


    Ning Que said, "Those things Your Highness just mentioned, naturally I will not admit to them. As for the slight friction between me and General Xia Hou, I believe it will notst long."


    "Everyone knows that Xia Hou is the Empress¡¯s trusted follower."


    Li Yu said, "The empress now keeps hooking you in. Naturally, she doesn¡¯t want the conflict between Xia Hou and the Academy to continue to expand. But are you willing to let it go?"


    Ning Que thought to himself, "Even I know that the empress is the sister of Xiahou."


    Eldest Brother had already warned him about that. He certainly wouldn¡¯t reveal this big secret in front of Li Yu.


    Li Yu said, "If the enmity between you and Xia Hou really is only the conflict between you in the Wilderness, since Mr. First has already made his judgment, I hope that you will persuade yourself to obey him."


    Ning Que frowned slightly, wondering why she would choose the same position as the Empress.


    Li Yu whispered, "There are only a few young generals in the army who are willing to follow me. Hua Shanyue is leading the reservists of Hebei county. It¡¯s difficult for him to gain any military achievements where he¡¯s currently stationed. And with only his current qualifications, there¡¯s no way he can take over Xia Hou¡¯s position. Still, Xia Hou¡¯s retirement is a good thing for me, and I don¡¯t want anything else to interfere with this."


    This exnation was blunt and sincere. Even Ning Que was shocked.


    A momentter, he sighed and said, "Such things are really boring."


    Li Yu said mockingly, "You really are a student of the Headmaster of the Academy, even affairs of the throne of the Tang Empire can make you bored."


    Ning Que replied, "I¡¯ve told you before. Don¡¯t be too concerned about my attitude as a student of the Academy entering the human realm. I am only concerned with my mentor, senior brothers, and senior sisters. On your end, there is His Majesty the Emperor in the pce. There are the Nation Master and Huang Yang in the temples. There are those old generals like Xu Shi in the army. Whether the dragon throne is passed to your younger brother or to the son of the Empress, in the end, it is decided by these people."


    Li Yu looked at him quietly, then suddenly said, "But have you ever thought that even the Emperor and the old generals might not always be with us?"


    "Why did the Academy send you to enter the human realm? Why does my father think so highly of you? Why is Xu Shi so vignt to you? It¡¯s all for the same reason."


    "No one can resist the fate decided by Haotian. As time passes, the Tang Dynasty will eventually lose out to its fate. Some people are worried that you may be an evil eagle, one that goes against the wishes of its masters and harms the world after their death. The Headmaster of the Academy and my father remained silent. They have guarded you, tormented you, and polished you. They want you to grow from a baby eagle to a great eagle, to guard the Tang Dynasty once they have passed."

 Chapter 443: Weeping Willow

    Chapter 443: Weeping Willow


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Looking back on his experience, he left the City of Wei and traveled to Chang¡¯an, to be epted to the Academy. Then, he read the cultivation book desperately and passed the examination of the back of the mountain. However, he had no time to learn anything and was sent to the North of Yan Kingdom as the leader of the students from the front Academy. Now, he believed that this decision was made by both His Majesty and the Academy.


    When he arrived at the Wilderness, he was informed by the Imperial Center Administration that the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine in the deep Wilderness had opened and the Tomes of the Arcane had appeared. Therefore, Ning Que had no choice but to go towards the north. Undergoing so many tests and even torments, he finally inherited the legacy of his Youngest Uncle, which could be seen as the manifestation of the Headmaster of the Academy¡¯s will.


    His Majesty and Master Yan Se also entrusted the big tactical array of Chang¡¯an to Ning Que. All of these were solid proof of the imperial court¡¯s and the Academy¡¯s trust and expectations of him.


    Ning Que had already realized this. Therefore, it was not surprising to him to hear what Li Yu had said before. However, he had never ruminated that experience on ount of that even for somebody as indifferent as him, he thought that the experience was full of sorrow.


    "I don¡¯t believe that this situation will be reality in the near future. "


    Ning Que said.


    Li Yu bitterly said, "Sometimes when I think about the future, I feel nervous, sorrow and a sense of being at a loss. Talking about this may sound inappropriate, but everyone will get old and pass away. Now, it seems like my father is at the prime of his life. Actually, his health condition is not that good. Before I was married to the Golden, I had inquired about his health condition from the Imperial Hospital. My father was seriously injured in those years. Henceforth, he hasn¡¯t fully recovered and has always coughed. The medicines can¡¯t do anything for him. "


    Thinking about that time when he met His Majesty in the imperial study, he recalled his straightforward criticism and his constant cough, which made Ning Que fall silent.


    "Although Xu Shi is at the peak state of Martial Arts, he is old now. Besides, everyone knows that he has been suffering from a lung disease for a long time which can only be nursed but never cured. "


    "It seems like the most powerful backer of our Tang, the Headmaster of the Academy will be evergreen. But he is more than 100 years old now. Can he live forever? "


    Looking at Ning Que, Li Yu said peacefully, "It is an irreversible rule for people toe and go. Nobody can go against the current. The Headmaster of the Academy and my father are thinking about the future. How can we leave it be?"


    Ning Que took over the mulberry tea from Li Yu, which was already cold. He walked back to the desk and put both of his hands on it. Thinking silently for a while, he said, "At least this situation can stillst for many years. "


    Li Yu furrowed her brows slightly.


    Ning Que said, "The Headmaster of the Academy and His Majesty can still be alive for another 20 years at least. At that time, I will be much more powerful. Maybe Eldest Brother or Second Brother will take over the responsibility and position of the Headmaster of the Academy. I think at that time the Tang Empire will be as powerful as it is now. So I don¡¯t think we should consider too much about it."


    Li Yu said, "My request for you is quite simple, which I have told you before. When the decision for the imperial session to the Tang throne needs to be made by the Academy, please stand on my side."


    Ning Que did not turn back. He raised his hand looking at the ancient trees outside the window and the Yanming Lake in the remote part of the woods and thinking about what theke should look like in the winter. Thinking of Xia Hou, and his inseparable rtionship with the queen, Ning Que said, "If that dayes, I will not support the queen."


    This was a satisfactory answer to Li Yu. But she still felt a little regret that Ning Que did not want to express his attitude directly. Looking at the view of his back, she felt at a loss and sighed softly, "If I had known what you could achieve, I would have never left you when I first met you."


    Ning Que turned back and said, "At that time, we were two worlds apart. Besides, I am not a person who is willing to be controlled. So don¡¯t feel regret over it. "


    Li Yu walked slowly towards Ning Que. She looked into his eyes and it seemed that she wanted to know more about him.


    "I would not control you, but I can stay with you. I¡¯ve been wondering that if I didn¡¯t stand up beside the bonfire then, could we have stayed in the same world?"


    Recollecting the bonfire in the Northern Mountain Road, the maidservant, the fairy tale, and those conversations, Ning Que said with a slight smile, "The main reason is that what you offered me then was too little."


    Hearing that, Li Yu clearly figured out that the experience had touched him a lot, but made him evade. With mixed feelings of pity and joy, she said, "If I had known that your little handmaiden would one day be the Great Divine Priest of Light of the West-Hill Divine Pce, I would have offered you the highest price."


    Ning Queughed and asked, "What is your highest price?"


    From the perspective of normal girls in the world, Ning Que¡¯s appearance was more amicable than handsome. His smile was very cute, especially for his little freckles and his small dimples. Thedies in the House of Red Sleeves were attracted by his dimples, freckles and his friendliness at the beginning.


    Li Yu looked at his smile fondly. She raised her hands unconsciously and touched his small dimples in his face and said, "You freckles look lighter and lighter. "


    Ning Que felt the smooth skin of her fingertips and was distracted. He said, "Sangsang would give me her spare cosmetics from Chenjinji Cosmetics Store. Maybe that is the reason."


    Li Yu suddenly came to her senses and withdrew her hand.


    "I am the one who was taken advantage of."


    Ning Que stared at her and said in a serious tone.


    Li Yu blushed, but there was no sense of shame in her bright eyes. She looked up and teased, "If you¡¯re not afraid of Sangsang¡¯s jealousy, you can touch my face."


    Ning Que coughed twice and curbed the impulse to feel her smooth and pointed jaw. He put his hands behind and asked, "Where is Sangsang?"


    "She must be telling stories to little Wild."


    Li Yu rolled her eyes and said, "I shall stop making fun of you and find her."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que and Situ Yn walked around the Yanming Lake and they chatted casually in the cool and gentle breeze. Sometimes, they needed to push aside the annoying willow branches in front of them.


    Situ Yn did not take part during the spring war in the Wilderness and was a little upset because of that. However, this kind of frustration was ridiculous in Ning Que¡¯s mind.


    "I don¡¯t understand what you¡¯re thinking. What¡¯s the point of taking part in a war?"


    "Don¡¯t you feel bored if you can only read books in the Academy and do needlework at home?"


    "I am a man instead of a woman. If I were you, I would not feel bored."


    "This is not in ord with what you¡¯ve said in the Blue Water Battalion."


    They were walking on the green stone path in an atmosphere that was totally calm and innocent, which is the same as that time when they were beside the blue sea and white beach in the frontier fortress.


    "Keep away from her."


    Ning Que opened his mouth andmented suddenly.


    Situ Yn looked up at him. Knowing that he referred to the princess, she was confused and asked, "I don¡¯t understand. What do you mean?"


    There were always willow branches fluttering on Ning Que¡¯s face which made him kind of annoyed. He picked a branch and said, "When you were young, you could pridefully ride horses with her. But if you want to be a female general of Tang, you should realize that these are two entirely different things."


    Situ Yn thought quietly for a long time. Then, she raised her head and said to him, "I want to be the female general of Tang, instead of a general controlled by anybody."


    Ning Que knew that she understood him and nodded in appreciation. He knitted a locust with the willow branch and gave it to her. He said, "This is your reward."


    Situ Yn took over that cute locust made of willow branch and felt happy. She said, "You made this so quickly!"


    Ning Que picked another willow branch and said, "When Sangsang was young, she always cried from hunger. So I found some branches and knitted them into small toys to make her happy. I¡¯ve made quite a few these, so I can do them quickly."


    Looking at his face, Situ Yn made fun of him and said, "Look at your reflection in theke. You will notice how detestable your look of pride is right now."


    Ning Que proudly said, "I am good at it. Why can¡¯t I be proud of it?"


    Situ Yn blinked and asked, "Which one made you feel proud, your ingenuity or coaxing Sangsang?"


    Ning Que said. "Both, but thetter one makes me feel even prouder."


    Situ Yn coughed twice lightly and asked with smiling, "There was a time when everyone in Chang¡¯an knew of your affair with the Calligraphy Addict. Many people including Wucai have seen you traveling with her hand in hand. But after a few days, you started dating your little handmaiden. It is surprising that Sangsang suddenly became ady of the Grand Secretary Mansion. But your rtionship is much more surprising."


    Ning Que was shocked and asked, "Can¡¯t we?"


    Situ Yn lifted that locust in front of her eye mischievously. She said, "You can, but many people said you toyed with the Calligraphy Addict¡¯s feelings. They thought you were shameless."


    Ning Que shook his arms and said angrily, "What? How did I toy with her feelings? I¡¯m already in such a state. What do you all want me to do?"


    "What¡¯s more, when did we travel together hand in hand?"


    Ning Que put his arms in the breeze, and protested angrily, "I¡¯ve traveled with her. But I¡¯ve never touched her, not even her hands!"


    ...


    ...


    The new houses around the Yanming Lake werepleted. Due to Sangsang¡¯s ardent request, Ning Que did not hire any stewards or maids or waste any money on a celebration.


    But as Li Yu and Yn came here to congratte him, Ning Que thought he should still y host. Therefore, he returned to the back of the mountain of the Academy and invited his Senior Brothers and Sisters to his house.


    Not surprisingly, his Senior Brothers and Sisters had no interest in this kind of thing. He felt rxed but also a little embarrassed.


    However, the next day, Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang came for a visit.


    Ning Que pulled the oar and felt angry when he looked at the fat guy lying in the boat who sighed and urged him to move faster. He thought that ordinarily Sangsang was the one who pulled the oar and he was the one who enjoyed, but why he should serve that fat guy when he was here?


    He could only keep thisint in his mind. Because the Academy, to be exact, Second Brother devoted particr care to brotherhood and politeness. Chen Pipi was his Senior Brother, so he could ask Ning Que to do something. Although Ning Que was reluctant to it, he dared not argue with Second Brother.


    "Can¡¯t you be a little faster? Didn¡¯t you have lunch today?"


    Seeing that the boat ahead was going to enter the lotus field with Tang Xiaotang on it, Chen Pipi felt anxious and bellowed at Ning Que with rage.


    Ning Que threw the oar and raged, "You¡¯ve eaten all of the lunch. What can I eat?"


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 444: The Arrival of A Maiden Taoist Priest Drenched in the Rain.

    Chapter 444: The Arrival of A Maiden Taoist Priest Drenched in the Rain.


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Four people paddled two boats in theke. It should have been a wonderful activity. Unfortunately, while Tang Xiaotang and Sangsang were in the same boat, all Chen Pipi could do was to share the other with Ning Que.


    As the boat darted through the lotus field, Tang Xiaotang and Sangsang were chatting merrily about something in their hands. Looking straight ahead, Chen Pipi felt so sorry for the fact that he could not get closer to Xiaotang though he finally saved her from the clutches of his Third Senior Sister.


    "What are they talking about?" asked Chen Pipi.


    "I made several toys and objects out of the willow branches the other day." Ning Que said, "I had not done it for years, but she was still fond of such things. She would certainly want to brag about it since she¡¯s with a friend."


    Chen Pipi was slightly taken aback. Then he turned around, looking at Ning Que beside the oar, and said, "It doesn¡¯t look like it, but you are actually so good at pleasing girls."


    "Do you think everyone is such a bastard as you are?" Ning Que said in a sarcastic tone, "It has been so many days. Haven¡¯t you got the girl yet?"


    Chen Pipi lowered his head out of a bit of shame, with his hands rubbing nervously. "Don¡¯t talk nonsense," he said.


    Ning Que shook his head and sighed, "One can never know how thin-skinned you are from your big fat face."


    "It is the girl that is so thin-skinned." Chen Pipi argued, his voice trailing off.


    The boats sailed into the depths of the lotus field one after another. The traces left by the lightning storm and iron cans earlier had disappeared long ago. The green branches and round leaves extended far to the horizon, forming a scene that was quiet and beautiful.


    There was no way to know where Sangsang and Tang Xiaotang¡¯s boat was.


    Afterying down the wooden paddle, Ning Que walked into the canopy and handed a pot of wine to Chen Pipi. "Have you figured it out?" he whispered.


    Chen Pipi took the wine pot. He took a careful sip of the wine and could not help frowning due to its spicy taste. After a long silence, he said, "How could such thing be figured out?"


    "But you should know who you are."


    "Though you are always reluctant to speak frankly," Ning Que said calmly, "and it¡¯s still unknown to me whether you are the son of the Hierarch Lord or the abbey dean, you are, all in all, the pride and future of Haotian Taoism. Our teacher has raised you for so many years, but you will eventually have to go back."


    "Probably," Chen Pipi said in disconstion while looking at the 100-acre lotus field outside the boat.


    "Tang Xiaotang belongs to the Devil¡¯s Doctrine," said Ning Que.


    "What do you say about this?" Chen Pipi asked in low tones.


    "Think of and do your own things."


    "I just want to remind you," Ning Que said, "That if you are determined to return to Taoism, whether it is the West-Hill Divine Pce or the Divine Hall, it will be impossible for you to marry Tang Xiaotang."


    Chen Pipi looked up at him and asked, "Why did you choose Sangsang, but not the Calligraphy Addict?"


    "This is apletely different pain from the one you¡¯re experiencing now."


    Ning Que said frankly,"No matter who I choose, the worst that could happen me is just beingughed at and disdained, or to hurt another girl. But if you fail to make the right choice, or to set your mind, what is in store for you will be more than that. What is more, it will end even more badly for Tang Xiaotang."


    Chen Pipi frowned again. His round face, which was often sloppy and joyous, showed the unusual solemn look which finally turned to endless grief.


    "It is going to rain."


    With knitted brows, he swallowed the wine in one gulp like drinking a pot of poison. "I will take her back to the Academy first," he spoke with a little lisp.


    As Ning Que poked his head out of the canopy, all he could see was the cloudless blue skies above the lotus field, without any sign of rain.


    Chen Pipi patted his chest lightly and said sadly, "It is raining here... it is all your fault. We seldom hang out together, but you still mention such unpleasant things."


    ...


    ...


    The sky was clear, but there was a cold rain in Chen Pipi¡¯s heart, who was always optimistic, making every corner of his heart moldy.


    Ning Que felt pity for his Senior Brother. After sending away Tang Xiaotang and him, Ning Que sat by the window of the study and could not help feeling sad when recalling what Chen Pipi had said on the boat.


    At this time, the wind from the south bank of the Yanming Lake, rustling the lotus leaves in theke and dishevelling the willows on the bank, went around the thick trunk of the old trees and poured into the study.


    Sangsang sat in a chair, holding a cup of herbal tea in her hand. Her eyes squinted as the wind off theke blew into the window. "It really looks like rain," she said.


    As the little handmaiden finished her words, the rain began pitter-pattering.


    The falling rain drops washed away the summer heat of the trees in the courtyard, which soon became wet.


    "I didn¡¯t expect that it was really going to rain."


    Ning Que took the cup from her hand and drank the remaining tea to moisten his dry throat caused by worrying about his friend.


    Staring at the empty cup, Ning Que asked, "What did Tang Xiaotang say?"


    With arms holding her thin legs and her chin putting on the knees, she indulged in the reminiscences of the conversation on the boat in the lotus field. "Tangtang said she does not know," she said.


    Ning Que was slightly surprised. He asked, "Is that all?"


    "She said that she¡¯s got to ask what her brother thought of it first."


    When he thought of the terrifying powerhouse in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine who wore a fur coat and was like a rock, Ning Que suddenly sensed that theke wind from outside the window was a bit cold and thus felt more pity for Chen Pipi.


    As it rained more and more heavily, the summer heat was quickly washed away and the water collected on thewn was increasing, which formed several narrow brooks running towards the Yanming Lake.


    "Ten thousand rivers flow into the sea. It is thew of nature."


    Ning Que sighed with emotion.


    Upon hearing this, Sangsang raised her head and looked at him with a face of bewilderment, not knowing what he meant.


    "I mean, as to some things, all we can do is to worry passively, with no way to change them. We can only silently let them develop and give some blessings at most."


    Looking at the showers outside the window, he added, "Just like it is going to rain, or the littledy is going to marry."


    Sangsang became thoughtful, holding her legs tighter.


    Silence reigned in the courtyard. There was no more talking, only the pitter-patter.


    At the moment, there suddenly came a loud rat-a-tat on the front door of the house.


    "Rain, rain, rain. Good! Now it really rains."


    "Do you not have an umbre?"


    "This is the will of Haotian. You two just stay here overnight, but don¡¯t expect me to lend you an umbre."


    "Sangsang and I have set the rule since childhood that anything even our lives can be borrowed except two objects."


    "Money and umbre."


    The knock in the front yard was getting louder and quicker. Obviously, the visitor was getting increasingly annoyed by the heavy rain, trying to express his or her strong dissatisfaction through the knocks.


    Ning Que, however, did not care. Like his Eldest Brother, he strolled idly toward the door and kept teasing the visitor.


    "Why can¡¯t we lend the umbre? Hey, it is a long story, so I wonder if you are interested in it. But you should not leave just now... Oh my God! Why are you here?"


    ...


    ...


    As he opened the door, Ning Que stopped nagging abruptly. He looked out of the door, with his mouth opened and his hands holding on the heavy door, so stunned as if being struck by lightning.


    At the moment, he felt that he was really struck by lightning.


    Outside the door were not Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang.


    Instead, it was a maiden Taoist priest in a blue Taoist robe.


    She was soaked, with therge blue robe clinging to her skin and her messy, wet hair clung to her forehead, making her look rather pathetic.


    In her hand was a Taoist whisk, the end of which in her left arm was dripping constantly.


    Anyway, it was quite pathetic to look like a drowned rat. Therefore, her eyes were filled with a bit of anger and shame, rather than the previous indifference and pride.


    However, in fact, she was not embarrased at all. She was still so beautiful despite her pale face running with water and her eyes full of anger.


    Because she was one of the three most beautiful maidens recognized by the world.


    As the door was opened, a bedraggled pretty maiden in the heavy shower came into view. Her cheeks were pale and hair was a little messy, making her look weak and pitiful. Ning Que suddenly recalled many beautiful stories of Liao Zhai and a song about how beautiful she was yed in his head on repeat.


    Ning Que believed that the pretty maiden outside the door was definitely more powerful and beautiful than those fox demons in Liao Zhai.


    But he was not tempted by her.


    Because he did not want to die.


    He did not even want to see her.


    Though he was much more powerful now, he did not want to see her.


    So his first response was to shut the door.


    However, when he was trying as hard as he could to close the two heavy doors at an unprecedented speed, he found the doors were many times heavier than before.


    Because the maiden priest in the rain put her hand on the door.


    Ning Que could not imagine how much blood he would bleed under her Taoist Sword if he had really pinched her hand in the doors and caused her to bleed, but he did not stop closing the door.


    When the two heavy doors were going to pinch the maiden¡¯s hand,


    A light ray suddenly emerged from the wet thin hand.


    A gust of wind started at the gate of the courtyard, suddenly halting the shower pouring into the courtyard.


    The light, yet powerful aura spurted out from her palm instantly evaporated the rain on the palm surface and a tiny green leaf, and then shattered everything it touched.


    A loud clunking noise came from the gate of the courtyard.


    The people in the distant city of Chang¡¯an, while sheltering from the rain under the eaves, looked to the Yanming Lake where the sound came from, wondering if anyone was struck by such a deafening thunder.


    ...


    ...


    No one died.


    Only two doors were destroyed.


    Looking at the big breach on the door, Ning Que felt like weeping but had no tears.


    The sawdust sttered from the courtyard door spilled all over him, including his face. There were still lots of sawdust left on him despite the washing of the rain, making him look extremely pathetic.


    As he was watching the fresh smelling sawdust gradually turning from white to gray in the rain and thinking about the money he had spent for the two doors, the look on his face became extremely painful.


    He looked up at the pretty maiden priest soaked in the rain, his body trembling with pain, and shouted with anger, "Ye Hongyu, you¡¯ll pay me the door!"


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 445: The Guest That Made the Host Uncomfortable

    Chapter 445: The Guest That Made the Host Ufortable


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    There was a Taoist priestess in the rain. It was Ye Hongyu.


    She had left the Peach Mountain after blinding Chen Bachi with a piece of paper. She had left the West-Hill in the covers of the dark and came to Chang¡¯an. There, it rained heavily, and she grew exhausted. When she heard Ning Que¡¯s questions, she could not help but grow angry. She said irritatedly, "So what if I do not rpensate you?"


    Ning Que did not dare to provoke her when he saw the cold anger in her eyes. The beautiful female priestess beside him was the person he feared most in the cultivation world.


    He flicked off the sawdust on his face and said bitterly, "It¡¯s fine if you don¡¯t, why do you have to be so serious?"


    Ye Hongyu pushed him away from the entrance of the courtyard rudely and headed in. She said, "Find me a room. I want to stay here."


    Ning Que looked at the Taoist priestess walking into the courtyard and only emerged from his daze after some time. He ran after her and asked her with a dour expression on his face. "Why are you in Chang¡¯an? Why did youe? How did you know I live here? You want to stay here? How long do you intend to stay?"


    Ye Hongyu suddenly stopped in the shelter and replied, "There are some things that I need some time to think about."


    Ning Que asked, "What is it? How much time do you need to think?"


    Ye Hongyu held up her fringe that was dripping with water. She said, "It would take some time."


    Ning Que looked at the beautiful girl beside him and said nervously, "You are the Tao Addict from West-Hill. There are loads of people who would want to kiss your arse, and there are a bunch of ces for you to think at. The Revtion Institute, Lanke Temple, Zhishou Abbey, I am sure you know the way there. Why did you have toe to Chang¡¯an? Why must you think in my house?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "Because Chang¡¯an is the only ce where the Divine Hall cannot enter."


    Ning Que breathed in deeply and looked at her forehead. He said, "You... have betrayed them too?"


    Ye Hongyu furrowed her brows and said "Why do you say ¡¯too¡¯?"


    Ning Que said, "The Great Divine Priest of Light stayed in Chang¡¯an for over six monthsst year."


    Ye Hongyu did not speak. Instead, she turned around and continued down the end of the corridor. Her steps were calm and stable and she left a trail of water behind her.


    Ning Que followed behind her and yelled in annoyance. "Even if you had not betrayed them, you must have offended some bigwigs in the Divine Hall. Why should I offend the bigwigs that even you cannot afford to offend and had to leave the Divine Hall to avoid?"


    The statement was rather mind-boggling, but his intentions were clear. Both Ye Hongyu and himself were cultivators who were serious about victory and practicality and could understand what he meant.


    Ye Hongyu continued down the jiuqu corridor and looked at the forests outside. She said calmly, "I have said that I wanted to kill you when we were in the Wilderness."


    Ning Que replied, "I admit that you do have reasons to kill me, but it doesn¡¯t mean that I owe you anything."


    Ye Hongyu said, "Shall we void the incident where you shot Long Qing with that arrow on the snow cliff?"


    Ning Que sped up and came beside her. He looked at her slightly pale and haggard face. He repeated tentatively, "So does this mean you will not attempt to kill me in the future?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "Indeed, you may celebrate."


    She had said that Ning Que could celebrate since she wasn¡¯t about to kill him now. But it also meant that she could kill him anytime she wished.


    It was a simple statement that was filled with pride, confidence and even narcissism.


    Ning Que was also a narcissistic person. But beside the Tao Addict, he had to keep a tight reign on his narcissism because he knew how scary she was.


    Even though he was very happy to hear that she wouldn¡¯t attempt to kill him again, his male pride had been hurt. He lifted his brows slightly and asked, "Have you been injured?"


    Ye Hongyu did not try to deceive him. She said, "I have not healed from my injuries in the Wilderness."


    The seemingly silent battle with Master Lotus at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was a battle fraught with danger. Ning Que thought of it often, and he knew how important Tao Addict was in that battle. He knew that she was heavily injured, but had not expected it to still bother her till now.


    "No wonder I felt that your cultivation state had weakened. When I opened the door earlier and saw that you were thoroughly drenched, I thought you looked like a stray dog in the rain and looked really pitiful. I was wondering why I felt that you were pitiful."


    Ning Que looked at the girl¡¯s pale face and thought of how they had fought together in the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He was overwhelmed with emotions, and forced himself to calm down after a moment. He said softly, "But since you are already so weak, you don¡¯t really have much to offer. What would I gain from taking you in?"


    They hade to the end of the jiuqu corridor. They would reach the reception and study should they move any further in.


    Ye Hongyu stopped and turned around to face Ning Que. She said calmly, "If you feel that what I have suggested wasn¡¯t good enough, shall we fight?"


    Ning Que looked at her eyes that were reminiscent of water in autumn. He stared into them for a long while, wanting to see a hint of uncertainty in her eyes but to no avail.


    He would not hesitate to attack if he had seen any trace of uncertainty in Tao Addict¡¯s eyes, just like how he had shot Long Qing by the Daming Lake.


    He was a cold-blooded person. He knew that the Tao Addict was a rare unfeeling person in the cultivation world like himself. They would not hesitate to get rid of the other should the opportunity arise.


    Unfortunately, rather than uncertainty, Ning Que only saw exhaustion, fatigue and loss in her eyes.


    Ning Que shook his head and smiled, saying, "Are you kidding me?"


    Ye Hongyu looked into his eyes and said solemnly, "You know I wasn¡¯t kidding."


    Ning Que knew that Ye Hongyu¡¯s cultivation state had been badly damaged after forcefully lowering her state at the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s Front Gate. He had received Tao enlightenment and gotten into the Seethrough State after going into the cliffs. His cultivation state was above that of Ye Hongyu¡¯s, but he was not sure that he could beat her.


    Chen Bachi was amander in the upper Seethrough state. He did not know of Chen Bachi¡¯s miserable fate.


    He had only sensed the danger like those beasts in the Min Mountain.


    He continued to shake his head, and then, he extended his arms like a gracious host and brought Ye Hongyu through the corridor and to the hall.


    Sangsang stood at the threshold. She watched curiously as Ning Que brought a thoroughly drenched Taoist priestess in. She asked, "Shall I boil water for a hot bath?"


    "No, let me introduce our guest."


    Ning Que cleared his throat and tried to calm himself down. He pointed at Ye Hongyu and said, "Don¡¯t be fooled by her appearance. She is the powerful Tao Addict I talk about often. The one who kills without blinking."


    Ye Hongyu said, "You talk about me often after returning to Chang¡¯an?"


    Ning Que answered honestly, "I wanted to kill you, so I mentioned you often."


    Ye Hongyu nodded and said, "That does make sense."


    Ning Que looked at Sangsang¡¯s face and spotted the uneasiness on it. He said with a smile, "She is indeed very scary, but you do not need to be afraid. Only I do. She could be considered your Senior Sister."


    Then, he walked to Sagnsang¡¯s side and put an arm around her shoulders. He said to Ye Hongyu, "This is my Sangsang."


    Ye Hongyu felt that the thin handmaiden was very different from the Sangsang that she had imagined. She did not show her surprise, but bowed lightly and said, "Greetings, Junior Sister Sangsang."


    She was thoroughly drenched, and the raindrops dripped from her hair and Taoist whisk. Her wet robe clung to her curves and she looked utterly charming.


    However, she looked calm andposed and was the epitome of a solemn Taoist priestess.


    Sangsang was flustered, and half-knelt in a bow.


    Then, she stood up and looked at Ye Hongyu¡¯s beautiful face and curves beneath her wet clothes. She could not help but sigh and was filled with envy.


    Ning Que was much moreposed than before and finally noticed the Taoist robes that clung onto the Tao Addict. His eyes brightened and were filled with envy.


    Ye Hongyu looked at them without any outward expression. She asked, "Does it look good?"


    The master and servant pair nodded and praised, "It is indeed very good."


    Ye Hongyu could not maintain her icy exterior upon hearing their replies and natural response. She breathed in deeply and said, "I shall have a bath and then, the two of you can look as much as you please."


    ...


    The pitter-pattering of rain could be heard in the dark outside the window.


    Ning Que looked at the carved headboard of the bed with no intentions of sleeping. He said, "It¡¯d be really troublesome if she continues to stay here."


    Sangsang was sleeping at that end of the bed. She lifted the thin curtain and leaned against the headboard. She said seriously, "That¡¯s right. It seems like we really have to hire a maid."


    Ning Que definitely would not allow Sangsang to wait on anyone else. He said, "We have to hire a maid, this is not the true trouble. The trouble I am speaking of is more troublesome."


    Sangsang asked curiously, "What kind of trouble is it?"


    Ning Que thought of the figure clothed in red that flitted through the forests beneath the snow cliff in the Wilderness. He thought of the Divine Light on the Daming Lake and the flesh and blood at the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s Front Gate. He could still feel the piercing cold even though it was a rainy summer night. He felt the cold prate his body.


    He had encountered many dangerous things in this life. He had encountered even more dangers after returning to Chang¡¯an from the City of Wei and entering the cultivation world. However, only the Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu had truly made him feel the shadow of death creeping upon him.


    He had seen lots of powerhouses with a high cultivation state. Ye Hongyu was definitely not the strongest, but he felt that she was the most dangerous.


    That was because Ye Hongyu had a Taoist heart that was made of steel. She was as cold-blooded as he was, and she understood what true battle was. She was a powerhouse who was aware of life and death.


    What had happened in the West-Hill Divine Pce to cause Ye Hongyu to flee in the night for Chang¡¯an despite the enmity between the West-Hill and the Tang Empire?


    There weren¡¯t many people in the Divine Hall who could cause this.


    Was it the Great Divine Priest of Judgment or the Hierarch Lord?


    Ning Que knew that this incident would cause him trouble if he didn¡¯t deal with it well.


    Sangsang said concernedly, "How shall we resolve this?"


    "I cannot solve this problem that even Ye Hongyu can¡¯t. But luckily, I know lots of people who can solve the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s troubles."


    Ning Que said, "I shall bring up this trouble tomorrow."


    They did not speak, but they had not slept well either.


    Especially Ning Que, who felt nervous and uneasy upon thinking that Ye Hongyu was sleeping just a few feet away in the guest room. He only fell into a light doze at daybreak.


    When he woke up, the summer rain had already stopped and the skies were bright. He washed up hastily and brought Sangsang with him. They boarded the horse carriage and sped away from the Yanming Lake and to the Academy.


    ...


    ...


    --

 Chapter 446: Chalk, Powdered Ice, and Powdered Regrets

    Chapter 446: Chalk, Powdered Ice, and Powdered Regrets


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que rarely visited the front courtyard since bing a student of the Second floor of the Academy. It was awkward hanging out with his peers from the Academy back then. However, he was in a rush today to report about what had happened. Furthermore, it waste and the students at the front courtyard were still in ss, so he did not take the secluded side doors but brought Sangsang to the meadows, across the stone tablet and through the main doors.


    The rain had stopped and the weather was balmy. The sun shone down upon them as voices rang from the study room. There was a debate going on in the other study room. The Academy was filled with a peaceful ssroom atmosphere.


    An aged voice rang in ssroom Three. "The basis and the origins are the most crucial. If you cannot understand the straight line, how will you understand moreplex three-dimensional pictures? What is a straight line? A straight line is a straight infinite line. I will draw it for you..."


    After a while, the female Academy professor in blue robes raised a chalk and walked out of ssroom Three with a solemn expression. She drew a straight line in the air.


    There was no end to the straight line. The chalk in the professor¡¯s hand continued moving. Her steps were calm andposed and she left ssroom Three and walked towards the instructor¡¯s staffroom at the back of the Academy.


    Ning Que watched on in a daze. He patted Sangsang¡¯s shoulders and they followed the instructor into the staffroom, having forgotten the reason for their visit to the Academy.


    Cao Zhifeng, the etiquette assistant professor had used the change in Qi of Heaven and Earth as an excuse to skip ss to visit Prince Long Qing in Chang¡¯an. Ning Que had thought that the Academy¡¯s instructors were extremely ludicrous. However, the female professor who walked all the while holding the chalk had made him speechless.


    Was this also a method of skiving off?


    Walking outside the quiet study area, the female professor suddenly stopped and dropped her hand that had been stretched in the air. She carefully wrapped the chalk in paper and stuffed it into her sleeve.


    She looked at Ning Que and said, "You¡¯re here?"


    Ning Que bowed and said, "Greetings, professor."


    The female professor straightened her robes and said casually, "Yiqing is already blind, so, let him return."


    Ning Que knew of the rtionship between the professor and the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom. He was slightly startled when he heard that.


    Since Chao Xiaoshu was alive and Liu Yiqing was blinded, a price had been paid. Under such circumstances, no matter how arrogant the Academy was, they no longer had reason to imprison Liu Yiqing. Would the Sage of Sword not retaliate if they continue keeping his brother imprisoned?


    The female professor asked, "Is there a problem?"


    "There¡¯s no problem." Ning Que said respectfully. "I will go to the back of the mountain and ask teacherter."


    The female professor said, "The Headmaster wanted me to ask for your opinion. Do you have any issues with this?"


    Ning Que was shocked and he replied, "I... have no issues with that."


    The female professor smiled. Her face creased up like a flower and said, "Is this settled?"


    Ning Que replied seriously, "It¡¯s settled."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que walked on the pebbled path and through the Cloud Gate array. He entered the back of the mountain of the Academy and around the mirrorke waterfall. He walked to the breezy grass cottage and bowed. He said, "Ye Hongyu hase to Chang¡¯an."


    He was greeted by silence and the wind blowing into the grass cottage from the valley.


    There were people in the cottage, but they did not bother with Ning Que.


    The Headmaster sat within the cottage and did not move even though he was assaulted by the wind from all four sides. His beard and hair flew around him and he was immersed in his own world. He looked like a deity, but whatid at his feet was not a Chinese zither, but a messy table.


    Eldest Brother and Second Brother sat beside the Headmaster primly.


    The news that the Tao Addict had left the West-Hill Divine Pce ande to Chang¡¯an had not caused the three to express any surprise, much less shock.


    Ning Que thought deeply. Looking at how they were behaving, it seemed that this problem could be resolved. However, it was troubling to find that this was but just a small issue to them.


    He coughed twice and said even louder, "Cough... She¡¯s staying at my ce right now."


    Second Brother looked at him coldly and said unhappily, "Can¡¯t you see that teacher is doing something important right now?"


    Ning Que looked at the leftover food on the table and wondered what could be so important. " Wasn¡¯t it just that the Headmaster wanted to show off his culinary skills and Eldest and Second Brother were both sucking up to him?"


    The Headmaster waved towards the entrance of the cottage and said, "Strawberry shaved ice is just about to melt and this is the best time to eat it. You are quite lucky,e and have a bowl."


    Ning Que was not in the mood to eat strawberry shaved ice, but he brought Sangsang with him into the straw cottage resignedly.


    Second Brother looked at him.


    He sighed to himself and walked to the table. He moved the leftovers to a side, squatted down and separated the strawberry shaved ice in therge ceramic bowl into portions.


    He gave the first to their honorable teacher and the second to his great Eldest Brother. The third, he naturally gave to his great Second Brother. There wasn¡¯t much shaved ice left in therge ceramic bowl. Ning Que ted the shaved ice and was about to dig in. However, the Headmaster said, "Give it to the girl."


    Ning Que paused, before passing the bowl to Sangsang bitterly.


    Sangsang smiled shyly. Then, she picked up the bamboo spoon and scooped the ice into her mouth. She tasted it carefully and a blissful smile blossomed on her slightly tanned face.


    Ning Que asked curiously, "Is it that good?"


    Sangsang held the te in one hand and the spoon in another. She nodded seriously.


    Ning Que whispered, "Give me a bite."


    Sangsang nced at the Headmaster. She lowered her head and said, "This is mine."


    Ning Que was annoyed and he smiled coldly, "Have more since it is good."


    The Headmaster was delighted to see Sangsang eating happily. He waved his hands and said, "You can¡¯t eat too much even though it is delicious. The cold in your body hasn¡¯t beenpletely dispelled. It isn¡¯t good to eat too much of cold things."


    Sangsang agreed softly and picked out the strawberry bits from the shaved ice.


    The Headmaster suddenly remembered that Ning Que was around. He asked, "What did you say just now?"


    Ning Que said respectfully, "The Tao Addict hase to Chang¡¯an and is living in my house right now. I don¡¯t know what happened in the West-Hill Divine Pce that had forced her to leave the Peach Mountain."


    Second Brother said indifferently, "Even the Divine Priest of Light could leave West-Hill. Ye Hongyu being forced to leave isn¡¯t something that¡¯s beyond our imagination."


    Ning Que said, "But the West-Hill would definitely know that she is in Chang¡¯an. What should we do when they ask for her?"


    Second Brother frowned lightly and said disgruntledly, "The West-Hill had once asked for your Sangsang. Did you give her up?"


    Ning Que said, "That was different. Ye Hongyu isn¡¯t part of my family."


    Eldest Brother smiled warmly and said, "Since the Tao Addict... hase to Chang¡¯an... Perhaps...we should have her enter our sect... like Xiaotang."


    The Headmasterughed out loud. He said, "I heard that the girl is quite decent. Ask if she is willing to learn from me."


    Ning Que was startled, he did not expect the Headmaster toe up with this idea so casually.


    He thought of Chen Pipi¡¯s story and how Prince Long Qing hade to the Second floor entrance exam because of a promise. He could not help but specte that the Headmaster¡¯s greatest hobby was to ept all genius disciples of the Haotian Taoism as his own. What kind of hobby was this?


    Ning Que did not want Ye Hongyu to enter the Academy. But since this was the Headmaster¡¯s wish, he had no right to disagree as a student.


    He suddenly thought of the cold aura in Sangsang¡¯s body that the Headmaster had mentioned. It suddenly urred to him that he had not managed to cure Sagnsang¡¯s old ailment, but he had forgotten that there was a deity at the back of the mountain of the Academy.


    "Teacher, can you cure Sangsang¡¯s ailment?"


    The Headmaster looked at Sangsang who was concentrated on picking out the strawberries. He sighed and said, "The cold in the girl¡¯s body is an inborn ailment. The cold rain had only exacerbated it. She had suffered for many years, and not even the best doctors on earth can cure this."


    Ning Que thought that Sangsang hadn¡¯t rpsed often in the past two years. Could it be that she was slowly recovering by herself? He could not help but be surprised and said, "Teacher, you can¡¯t just wash your hands of this!"


    The Headmaster said, "I do not need to care about this."


    Ning Que did not expect the Headmaster to be so cold and grew angry. He said, "If you do not care about this, I... I... I will quit school!"


    He was still rational despite his great anger. Everyone looked up to the Headmaster and Ning Que could not think of any other way to force his hand other than to quit school.


    The Headmaster was even more incensed when he heard that. He lectured angrily, "You dumb idiot, don¡¯t tell others that you are my student in the future! The Haotian Divine Light is one of the brightest and warmest thing on earth. The girl had learned this Divine Skill from Wei Guangming. Why would she need to worry about the cold in her body? Why would she need me to do anything about it?!"


    Ning Que rxed and felt a little ashamed. He said, "Couldn¡¯t you just say so? Why did you have to say so much nonsense just to tease me? Teasing might cause the death of someone!"


    The Headmaster¡¯s beard floated around in anger. He said, "And you dare to rebut me! The number of years I have lived is many times that of yours. Even if we don¡¯t talk about age, don¡¯t you know anything about respecting your elders..."


    Second Brother was a solemn person who adhered to etiquette strictly. His expression grew ugly as he watched the two spars verbally in an uncouth manner. However, it was obvious that the Headmaster was enjoying himself, so he could only shut his mouth tightly and re daggers at Ning Que.


    Eldest Brother could not watch any longer. He shook his head resignedly and interrupted. He looked at Ning Que and said, "Youngest Brother, I heard that you bought an estate in Chang¡¯an."


    "Indeed." Ning Que replied.


    Eldest Brother did not say anything else. He lowered his head and ate his strawberry shaved ice.


    ...


    ...


    In the hall of the estate by the Yanming Lake, Ye Hongyubed her hair expressionlessly. Her green Taoist robe was still drying and she wore themon summer clothes of a Tang woman. Her dark smooth hair rested on her right shoulder, making her look more fragile and sweet.


    Ning Que looked at her and said, "I¡¯d understand if you refuse."


    Ye Hongyu stoppedbing her hair. She looked at him mockingly and said, "I can understand why you hope that I would refuse. Would you be pleased if I enter the Second floor of the Academy?"


    Ning Que said, "You can think what you want."


    Ye Hongyu said, "It is every cultivator¡¯s dream to be a student of the Headmaster. It is also the greatest seduction and I am no exception to that."


    Ning Que felt regretful and sighed to himself.


    Ye Hongyu looked at the woodenb in her hands and said, "I am sorry to say that I have to refuse."


    Ning Que smiled happily and said, "I am sorry as well... Can I know why?"

 Chapter 447: The Time Would Come for Stars to Fall

    Chapter 447: The Time Would Come for Stars to Fall


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que smiled happily.


    Ye Hongyu felt that his smile was very detestable and asked him coldly, "Can you smile any happier?"


    Ning Que said, "If you wish to see that."


    Ye Hongyu ignored him and continued, "I have already said that bing a student of the Headmaster is something to be proud of. However, there would definitely be a fight between the West-Hill Divine Kingdom and the Tang empire within the next few decades. If I study under the Headmaster as a person from the Divine Hall, what shall I do when the battle begins?"


    Ning Que had not expected such a reason and frowned. He said, "Long Qing had attempted to study in the Academy."


    "Unlike Long Qing, I am not trash. I know how important I am to the Divine Hall and I know what role I will y in that war."


    Ye Hongyu said expressionlessly, "I am also not like that idiot Chen Pipi. He did not think of the consequences of his actions before running away from the abbey and into the back of the mountain of the Academy."


    Ning Que said, "Even so, you can just watch from the sidelines."


    Ye Hongyu said, "I believe in Haotian and my life belongs to Haotian Taoism. How can I just watch from the sides when the war begins?"


    Ning Que felt ufortable hearing the girl talk about battles. Was she a person who was mad about wars?


    He could not help mocking her, "Why did you run from the Divine Hall if your life belongs to Haotian Taoism? You should have fought to your death if someone wanted to kill you."


    Ye Hongyu said, "The Divine Hall doesn¡¯t represent Haotian Taoism. Those from the Divine Hall are not qualified to represent the will of Haotian, at least not all of them could. Furthermore, even though I have left, I will return one day."


    "Well said."


    Ning Que nodded slightly and looked into her eyes. He said, "However, you might be the greatest opponent of the Tang Empire. Why should I provide you with a shelter in Chang¡¯an?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "I have also thought of this, so I have decided that I shall spare you once should we fight on opposite sides in a battle."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "It does sound tempting, but I don¡¯t think it¡¯s really suitable. War doesn¡¯t happen just because you want it to. The Tang Empire and West-Hill have been in peacetime for years. Even if they disagree over something in the future, they might not go to war. And even if they go to war, it might not happen while we are alive. Your offer is like the flowers in the mirror or the moon on theke surface."


    Ye Hongyu frowned slightly and looked at him as if she was looking at a fool. She said, "Have you not noticed that the cultivation world has been changing over the past decades?"


    Ning Que ignored the way she was looking at him and replied honestly, "I have only entered the cultivation world for less than two years. What kind of change would I notice?"


    "If you have read the teachings of the West-Hill or some historical ssics and understood more about the history of the cultivation world, you should know that cultivation is a difficult task. There weren¡¯t many Grand Cultivators who could enter the Knowing Destiny State."


    Ning Que said, "There aren¡¯t many now either."


    "However, there are many moreparatively."


    Ye Hongyu said expressionlessly, "Ever since Mr. Ke of the Academy entered the Knowing Destiny State, many cultivators in the world have done so and have even gone beyond the Knowing Destiny State. Other than Divine Lord Lotus, many, including Mr. First, Mr. Second, that guy Chen Pipi, many powerhouses from the West-Hill Divine Pce, Qi Ye and my brother, those from the Buddhism Sect and other abbeys from the Taoism Sect have entered the Knowing Destiny State."


    "Even though my state might have been damaged, I will join the Knowing Destiny State eventually."


    Ye Hongyu said it matter-of-factly as if she was saying that the cabbage should be stir-fried and not stewed.


    Ning Que shook his head.


    She looked at him and continued, "You don¡¯t have much talent and you¡¯re dumb, but you¡¯ve managed to rise in the state quickly. You will enter the Knowing Destiny State eventually."


    "What do you want to say?" Ning Que asked puzzledly.


    "The power in the cultivation world has risen collectively as a whole over the past decades. Even though the best of us might still be powerhouses of the previous generation, but a new generation of powerhouses have appeared."


    Ye Hongyu said, "Everything is fixed in the world. Haotian has already arranged everyone¡¯s ce in the world. Why would there be so many powerhouses?" "It might not make sense now, but I know that conflict is inevitable when there are too many stars in one sky. The appearance of many cultivators in the world would mean that there would be a battle to get rid of the weakest amongst them."


    Ning Que fell silent for a long while when he heard that. He had notpletely epted Ye Hongyu¡¯s calm but passionate deduction. However, deep in his heart, he too, had felt that something was about to befall the cultivation world.


    Ye Hongyu looked into his eyes quietly and said, "I do not care about the fate of others. But since Haotian had made me a star among many, I intend to be the brightest of all."


    Ning Que raised his head and looked at her seriously, "If wares, no matter whether you win or I do, let us think back of this day as we watch the stars fall from the skies."


    ...


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s reason for refusing to enter the Academy had left a dark spot in Ning Que¡¯s heart. It was not fear, but it pointed to a curiosity vaguely. It did not make him uneasy, but just like Ye Hongyu, he began to look forward to the future.


    He had to hide that dark shadow deeply in his heart because he had more pressing things to worry about right now.


    Eldest Brother had asked about his new house by the Yanming Lake when he was at the back of the mountain. Ning Que had fended him off, and Eldest Brother had not continued with his questions.


    Their conversation had seemed casual, but Ning Que knew that this wasn¡¯t the case.


    Throughout their journey from the Wilderness to Chang¡¯an, Ning Que had confirmed that Eldest Brother knew about what had happened between Xia Hou and himself even though he did not say so inly. Even if he did not know about what had happened more than ten years ago, he knew about what happened in the past two years.


    Eldest Brother knew what he nned to do. He was sure that Eldest Brother had guessed why he had bought that house by the Yanming Lake.


    However, no matter Eldest Brother, Second Brother or his teacher, the people on the back of the mountain in the Academy all remained close-lipped regarding his actions.


    The Academy respected thew of the Tang Empire. Eldest Brother would not agree with Ning Que¡¯s methods like the assassination of Huang Xing and Yu Shuizhu, but there was no evidence pointing to him.


    Ning Que knew that his decisions did not fit into the Academy¡¯s ideals.


    Eldest Brother hade to an agreement with Xia Hou on behalf of the Academy, asking him to disarm and retire. Having Xia Hou removed from the past and wiping away the old stories of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and West-Hill, and allowing the world to look towards the future peacefully was the best decision for the Tang Empire.


    It was a pity that it would never be Ning Que¡¯s choice.


    ...


    The next day, Chen Pipi brought Tang Xiaotang to the Yanming Lake just as dawn broke. He looked at the opened doors of the courtyard and scratched his head puzzledly. He said, "What happened?"


    He had visited the Yanming Lake again after a day of thinking. He had thought through those things and could answer Ning Que¡¯s questions in the lotusnd fearlessly. He was so eager to show Ning Que his loyalty that he wasn¡¯t too concerned about the doors being damaged.


    Since the doors were broken, they didn¡¯t have to wait for anyone to open them. Chen Pipi extended a leg and kicked wildly, damaging the doors further. He made a holerge enough for a person to pass through, and then held Tang Xiaotang¡¯s hand and led her in carefully. Tang Xiaotang thought to herself that the skill she practiced was that of the Enlightenment doctrine. Even if splinters pierced thousands of holes on Chen Pipi, they wouldn¡¯t leave a mark on her. Why did he have to be so careful?


    However, the girl did not have any intentions of moving away even as she thought so. She allowed Chen Pipi to hold her hand and they walked into the courtyard. The air was crisp and clear after a bout of rain. Her dark braids swung in the clean breeze.


    They walked through the corridor and met Sangsang. Chen Pipi did not want Tang Xiaotang to hear what he wanted to speak to Ning Que, so he had Sangsang take her to catch frogs by theke. Sangsang brought Tang Xiaotang towards theke but recalled that she seemed to have forgotten something. When she turned around, she saw that Chen Pipi had already entered the main hall.


    Chen Pipi crossed the threshold and saw a girl in maidservant uniform drinking porridge at the table. He asked curiously, "Is this your new maidservant?"


    Ning Que raised his head to look at him in shock.


    Chen Pipi did not wait for him to reply. He sat down at the table unceremoniously and hit the bowl on the table lightly. He said to the girl dressed in a cloth shirt beside him, "Bring me some porridge."


    He looked at Ning Que and said, "I have already told you, how can you manage without a dozen of maids in a house this big?"


    The girl in the handmaiden uniform had really risen to get Chen Pipi porridge. Ning Que held his bowl of porridge with an incredulous expression on his face.


    "Sir, your porridge."


    The girl ced the bowl of porridge before Chen Pipi lightly. Her words were humble, but her tone was cold. It was so cold that it sounded bordering cruel.


    Chen Pipi was startled when he heard the voice. He looked up and saw a stunning face and he inhaled deeply.


    Ning Que held his bowl of porridge and was prepared to hide in a corner.


    He had to abandon his furniture if he didn¡¯t want to die when a fight broke out between the two genius of Haotian Taoism.


    "Your maid is so beautiful!"


    Chen Pipi praised. Then, he picked up the porridge and began eating it. He mumbled, "How much did you spend?"


    Ning Que opened his mouth and only said carefully, "I can¡¯t afford her."


    Chen Pipi studied the maid¡¯s beautiful face and grew to like it even more. However, the more he looked at her, the odder he felt. He furrowed his brows and said, "Why does she look so familiar?"


    The girl who was eating porridge by the table was Ye Hongyu. However, her green taoist robes were dirty and damp, so Sangsang had washed it and they had yet to dry. She was wearing Sangsang¡¯s handmaiden uniform, and even though they were a little small for her, it made her look fragile and charming.


    Ye Hongyu looked at Chen Pipi and said calmly, "Ten years ago, it was you who used to bring me porridge, how could you forget?"


    There was a st.


    Chen Pipi had spat out the porridge in his mouth.


    Even at a moment like this, he had managed to turn his fat neck around so that he would not stter porridge over Ye Hongyu.


    It was evident how afraid he was of that person.


    Then, there was a shrill strangled shout and he flew upwards and knocked into the heavy beams beforending on the ground like a ball. He did not stop, but rushed out of the main hall like the wind.


    ...

 Chapter 448: Everyone Has A Painful Childhood

    Chapter 448: Everyone Has A Painful Childhood


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The estate by the Yanming Lake had not beenpletely torn down and rebuilt, but many ces had been refurbished. The main hall, reception and the study had beenpletely redone. The heavy beam above the hall had been painted over, so it shouldn¡¯t have umted too much dust. However, flecks of dust started raining upon them. It was hard to imagine how hard Chen Pipi had knocked on the beam when he had leapt into the air like a startled rabbit.


    Chen Pipi had left the spacious main hall, but the swirling air he left behind remained. Ning Que sat by the table holding his bowl of porridge and felt the sticky wet mess on his face. He wanted badly to smash his bowl to the floor.


    Chen Pipi had left the main hall extremely fast with his sleeves pping behind him and making odd noises. He was like a fat bird hurtling at high speed towards food. His feet had left the ground. He rushed to theke, leaving a trail of dust behind him. Had he managed to calm down, he would realize that his cultivation state seemed to have risen under this tremendous stress and he had gained unimaginable speed.


    Tang Xiaotang and Sangsang were ying with some willow branches by theke. The two girls looked childish and adorable as they sang tunes while ying like children.


    Chen Pipi dashed to Tang Xiaotang, and stopped beside her. He clutched on to her hand and said, "Let¡¯s go!"


    Tang Xiaotang looked at him with widely opened eyes and asked, "Where are we going?"


    Chen Pipi¡¯s answer was surprisingly sinct. He said, "Back to the Academy."


    "Why?" Tang Xiaotang was even more confused.


    Chen Pipi said with a trembling voice, "There¡¯s a monster in that house."


    If Tang Xiaotang was an ordinary girl who had just fallen in love, she would not think carefully about that if her partner¡¯s words were reliable or logical. She would have just pretended to be weak and followed him which was more suitable to her instinct.


    However, she was not an ordinary girl. In fact, she had sworn to be the most powerful woman in the world. When she heard Chen Pipi saying that there was a monster in the house, she was not afraid, but her eyes began to sparkle.


    She said happily, "We should fight the monster if there¡¯s one. Why should we run away?"


    Chen Pipi looked at Tang Xiaotang¡¯s braids that were dancing in the wind and felt bitterness welling up in him. He wanted to flee, but was forced to stay since it would be extremely shamed to do so if Tang Xiaotang wouldn¡¯t.


    Then, Ning Que and Ye Hongyu left the house through the side doors of the main hall and headed towards theke.


    Tang Xiaotang looked at the beautiful girl in the handmaiden uniform beside Ning Que confusedly. She rubbed her eyes subconsciously, trying to confirm that it was indeed Ye Hongyu. Ye Hongyu¡¯s presence surprised her, and her already bright eyes shone even more.


    It was brighter than the sun shadow reflected theke.


    She clenched her fist tightly.


    Chen Pipi stepped in front of her to stop her and said, "Calm down. Try harder."


    Ning Que came before the two and looked at Chen Pipi who seemed to cower before them and said angrily, "Calm down? I think that among everyone here today, Senior Brother, you are the least qualified to say those two words."


    Chen Pipi had never been willing to lose to Ning Que, much less in the presence of Tang Xiaotang. He was not willing to lose face and his male pride or perhaps self-respect took away the edge of fear. He turned around to look at Ning Que, but refused to even take a nce at Ye Hongyu.


    "Am I not calm?"


    Ning Que sighed, "You are indeed not calm. You are frightened... But I don¡¯t understand what you are afraid of. This is Chang¡¯an, not West-Hill."


    Chen Pipi adjusted his posture somewhat unnaturally. He red at Ning Que and refused to move. It was as if he was trying to convince himself that Ye Hongyu did not exist. However, his trembling voice betrayed his emotions as he said, "Afraid... What am I afraid... what? Who¡¯s afraid?"


    Ning Que pointed at the porridge on his face and shirt and yelled angrily, "Look at this! Would you spit out all that rice if you weren¡¯t afraid? You didn¡¯t dare to spit it out in her face, so you spat it on me?"


    It was only then, did Tang Xiaotang notice the yellow bits of rice on Ning Que. It looked disgusting, but was also hrious.


    Sangsang walked up to him and retrieved a handkerchief from her sleeve. She wiped Ning Que¡¯s face.


    Ning Que took the handkerchief and said angrily, "I¡¯ll do it myself. Don¡¯t touch this fellow¡¯s saliva."


    Sangsang turned around to look at Chen Pipi. She did not say anything, but only sighed.


    Chen Pipi looked at the porridge that he spat on Ning Que. He was already feeling extremely awkward, and when he heard Sangsang¡¯s sigh, he wanted to jump into the Yanming Lake beside him.


    Ye Hongyu looked at him and said, "If you jump into theke, the fish would be squished to death by you. Furthermore, it¡¯d be hard for you to climb back up, it¡¯d be even more embarrassing for you."


    Chen Pipi looked at her beautiful face. His shame was too deep for tears. They haven¡¯t met for years, how could she still know what he was thinking?


    Tang Xiaotang looked at him confusedly and asked, "You¡¯re not really thinking of jumping into theke, are you?"


    Chen Pipi nodded honestly.


    Ye Hongyu was shocked and said, "You are much more honest now than when you were as a child."


    Chen Pipi¡¯s shame and annoyance grew. He steeled himself to rebut and said, "Was I not honest when I was a child?"


    Ye Hongyu said calmly, "You peeked at me when I was showering when you were little."


    ...


    All people were silent.


    Theke was calm.


    Willow branches swayed in the wind gently.


    The wind was not silent.


    ...


    Tang Xiaotang looked up at Chen PIpi and asked, "Was it good?"


    Chen Pipi nodded and answered honestly, "It was good."


    Tang Xiaotang asked, "Is that why you ran away when you saw her?"


    Chen Pipi nodded again.


    Tang Xiaotang thought about it and said, "Then you have been tricked. I have fought with her and I know that she is a female gangster. She might intentionally led you to watch her."


    Chen Pipi was a little flustered. He scratched his head as if he had found the truth.


    Ye Hongyu said calmly, "Fatty Chen, is this what you think too?"


    Chen Pipi considered it seriously for some time and then shook his head. He said, "Even though we all know that you were indeed trying to drive me away, peeking at you was my own decision. I did not think of anything else then but to shame you."


    Then, he added hurriedly, "Because you used to shame me very often in the Taoist Temple."


    Tang Xiaotang turned to walk towards the other sideke bank.


    Chen Pipi was flustered and said, "I was only a child then, and she wasn¡¯t much older than me."


    Ning Que¡¯s gazended on Ye Hongyu¡¯s breasts and wondered how much they were at that time.


    Ye Hongyu felt his gaze and was mildly annoyed.


    Ning Que coughed twice and looked at Chen Pipi. Hemented and said, "So the two of you had such a past. I can¡¯t help you then. Senior Brother, even though you were young then, such uncouth acts are still really uneptable."


    Sangsang lifted her face and looked at him. She shook her head and said, "When we were little, you used to peek at those older sisters when they bathed. You had me be on lookout for you outside the female baths."


    Ning Que showed an awkward expression on his face, and he walked to Chen Pipi¡¯s side.


    ...

 Chapter 449: Summertime Languidness

    Chapter 449: Summertime Languidness


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Tang Xiaotang walked along theke bank to the wooden stack.


    After being teased by Sangsang, Ning Que found himself as embarrassed as Chen Pipi, and therefore urged her to keep Tang Xiaotangpany.


    So only three people remained under thekeside willow.


    Chen Pipi looked at the disappearing figure of Tang Xiaotang, and shouted ruefully, "Are you mad at me for this?"


    Without turning around, Tang Xiaotang answered him with a crisp voice which then echoed above the water.


    "I got mad because a glimpse of her could make you run away. I am not afraid of her. But you, a man who has reached the Knowing Destiny State, are so scared of her. Shame on you."


    The little girl, who had been fighting with Snowfield Direwolves and the monsters in the Hot Sea since childhood, had an optimistic fighting spirit shown everywhere from her shoes to her ck swaying pigtail behind. It was so hard for her to understand Chen Pipi¡¯s fear.


    Chen Pipi looked down to see his toes but could only see a bulging belly. He could not help but feel upset. After a long silence, he murmured, "I always had higher cultivation levels than her since childhood, but I could never defeat her in a real battle."


    Ning Que looked at him with sympathy, and asked, "Don¡¯t you know she is here with me?"


    Taking a nce at Ye Hongyu under a willow, Chen Pipi said peevishly, "I would not be here if I knew."


    Ning Que asked puzzledly, "Didn¡¯t Senior Brother tell you?"


    Chen Pipi shook his head.


    Ning Que said sympathetically, "What a bunch of bad guys."


    Ye Hongyu left the willow and walked towards them.


    And Chen Pipi turned around and walked towards that willow.


    The two brushed past, and Ye Hongyu asked with a little smile, "Don¡¯t you want a chat with your old friend?"


    Without looking back, Chen Pipi waved his hand and said, "Maybeter,ter."


    Ning Que remarked, "It seems that he is really too scared of you. He didn¡¯t even dare to make his favorite shameless pun before you."


    Ye Hongyu did not care about that shameless guy at all.


    What she was concerned about had nothing to do with Chen Pipi, or his rtionship with Tang Xiaotang. She said coldly, "I did not expect the Academy would take in a sinner from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    Ning Que was not surprised at her response. After all, she had wholeheartedly devoted herself to Taoism. He smiled and asked, "Why not?"


    There was some arrogance in his words.


    Facing the woman, Ning Que was definitely not powerful enough to be arrogant, but in the recent six months, he had known about the Youngest Uncle¡¯s joining the Devil and experienced his teacher and Senior Brothers¡¯ disregard of his own joining. He had understood the Academy¡¯s attitude and known it was powerful enough to be arrogant.


    Ye Hongyu said indifferently, "Since the Academy is involved, my opinion does not matter at all. But have you all ever thought about the consequences if this matter is known?"


    Ning Que said, "So what? As long as the Academy denies it, who can prove it? Does the West-Hill Divine Pce dare to search the back of the mountain?"


    "Haotian has countless devout believers who do not need evidence. One word from the Divine Hall would be enough for them."


    Ye Hongyu continued, "The Headmaster may not care about the West-Hill Divine Pce, but the inquiries and wrath of countless believers are troublesome. He cannot just kill them all."


    "If the Divine Hall really convinces the world that the Academy has kept a sinner from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, then the war that you mentioned yesterday wille earlier, which is certainly not what the Divine Hall wants to see."


    Looking at her beautiful eyes, Ning Que suddenly realized something, and he said, "Since the teacher and Senior Brothers had let Chen Pipi bring Tang Xiaotang here, they never tried to hide it from you. Instead, they want you to know it and pretend to know nothing."


    "I do not know how to pretend. I just know."


    "Since you are loyal to Haotian Taoism, you should know what is the best for the Haotian Taoism as well as the Academy."


    Ye Hongyu looked down at the bluestone seams and the blue mud. After a long silence, she said, "You are right."


    Then she looked up at Ning Que, and said, "Then what happened to her and the fatty?"


    Staring at the little girl at the center of theke and the stout man who was running after the girl while telling jokes, his heart softened, and he said, "Please also forget this."


    Ye Hongyu stood beside him. The interesting scene did not seem to amuse her. A look of seriousness appeared on her face and was gradually getting colder.


    "If you know where hees from, then you should have realized how many people would die once the Haotian Taoism finds out about it."


    ...


    ...


    A messy fight between two powerhouses of a new generation was avoided along the Yanming Lake. Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang returned to the Academy at dusk and did not meet Ye Hongyu again.


    After dinner, Ye Hongyu politely thanked Sangsang and gave herpliments. And then she entered her room with a dry robe in hand.


    "It seems that she did not live very well during the past six months in the West-Hill Divine Pce."


    Ning Que said while looking at her disappearing figure at the corridor.


    Sangsang casually asked while clearing the table, "How do you know?"


    Ning Que watched the mess on the table and said, "She really enjoyed the horrible food and thanked you."


    Sangsang felt a little uneasy and said, "I should have cooked. She thinks I made these dishes and must think I am a terrible cook after this meal."


    Ning Que said, "You are my handmaiden. You can only serve me. Why should you care about other outsiders? Besides, you are the inheritor of the Divine Priest of Light, which means you have a higher status than her in the West-Hill Divine Pce. So she should be the one to serve you."


    Without saying anything, Sangsang made him a pot of strong tea and started to wash dishes.


    Sitting by the window near the flower stand, Ning Que looked up at the darkening sky with the teapot in his hand and gradually frowned.


    He was thinking about something.


    Why did the people at the back of the mountain deliberately let Ye Hongyu know the existence of Tang Xiaotang? Was it really a deration of their extreme arrogance, or an early signal to show their respect for the West-Hill?


    He did not get anything until the tea got cold. Atst, something suddenly urred to him. Most people at the back of the mountain including his teacher and senior brothers were all simple and naive. They had no potential for plotting. They let Chen Pipi bring Tang Xiaotang here because they simply wanted Chen Pipi¡¯s families to get the news through Ye Hongyu.


    ...


    ...


    In the following days, the bank of Yanming Lake was very quiet. After two rainfalls, the summer heat lessened somewhat.


    Ye Hongyu stayed all day in her room. No one saw her except at meal time and no one knew what she was doing in that dark room.


    When she sat at the table, she became more silent, and Ning Que had noticed hernguishing and pale face, making him alert in secret.


    Zeng Jing, Grand Secretary of the Imperial Library, had visited once with his wife. After seeing thekeside house, the couple was impressed by Ning Que¡¯s work and were delighted to find there was no maidservant in the house. They believed their daughter was doted on and would live happily with Ning Que in the future.


    Before leaving, Mrs. Zeng took Sangsang in her arms emotionally and praised Ning Que. She told Sangsang to visit her often, and the next day, she sent a dozen of maidservants to them.


    Watching the in-looking and unresponsive maidservants in the courtyard, Ning Que could easily understand Mrs. Zeng. He amusingly wondered what Mrs. Zeng would do if Ye Hongyu attended dinner. After all, she was a very beautiful girl. It must bepletely different.


    Thekeside house was veryrge so these servants would not make it crowded at all. Sometimes Ning Que and Sangsang did not notice them. However, Sangsang was not ustomed to being served, so most maidservants stayed away from where she and Ning Que lived. The side hall and study remained quiet.


    Time flew at a sluggish pace. As midsummer approached, theke breeze was getting hotter and the sound of cicadas louder. There were now three residents in thekeside house, but only two of them were really living their lives.


    Ye Hongyu still spent the whole day sequestered in her room like a ghost.


    One day, Ning Que returned from the Academy and took a cold shower. While Sangsang dried his body with a towel, he asked about Ye Hongyu and learned that she did not have her dinner that night. A strange look appeared on Ning Que¡¯s face.


    Ning Que had always admired the Tao Addict. In his eyes, only people like her or himself could probably survive should the world be destroyed. Besides, she was not his friend, so he did not care about her whether she lived or died.


    However, he could not let her continue to iste herself and be an idiot at the end.


    That would be a great pity.


    ...


    ...


    The sounds of cicadas seemed to get louder and louder. Her room was next to a bridge, so she could hear the water patting the bank and bridge pirs.


    Ning Que walked along the stone path into the sequestered yard and gently knocked the door.


    It sounded like she was arranging something.


    The door opened. A pretty but extremely pale face appeared before Ning Que¡¯s eyes.


    Under the twinkling stars, her face seemed more haggard.


    Ning Que was astonished and asked, "Are you sick?"


    "You are sick."


    Ye Hongyu stared at him without expression and said, "What¡¯s the matter? I¡¯m busy now."


    Without answering her, Ning Que walked straight into her room and looked around. He did not find anything suspicious but unexpectedly noticed that her bed was very tidy as if nobody had slept there.


    "Have you got any sleep these days?"


    "Meditation is enough for me to refresh. Sleep will waste my time."


    "Meditation and sleep are not the same. I know it better than anyone in the world. What do you really want to do? Why are you in such a hurry?"


    Ye Hongyu said weakly, "I already told you that I left West-Hill and came to Chang¡¯an to get more time. Time is very important for me right now."


    Ning Que turned around to look at her eyes, and said seriously, "I don¡¯t care about your life and I do know some bigwigs in the West-Hill Divine Pce want you dead. But I would be in great trouble if the Tao Addict dies in my house. I don¡¯t want any trouble."

 Chapter 450: Let Us Cultivate Together (Part I)

    Chapter 450: Let Us Cultivate Together (Part I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In the midsummer evening, even the cold starlight could not add a bit of chill. However, Ye Hongyu¡¯s pale face and indifferent voice made people feel that they were in a snowy winter, instead of being in the courtyard beside theke.


    "I won¡¯t die, so nobody wille after you. I just need time to cultivate."


    Ning Que thought it was justified that she was cultivating. But he did not know what the amazing method of cultivation she had from the Divine Hall. Ning Que said softly, "You can cultivate alone. But cultivating with me is also a good choice. If you encounter some difficulties, you can talk with me. Maybe it will be beneficial to your cultivation."


    Ye Hongyu replied coldly, "How could you be so kind?"


    Ning Que did not bat an eye and said, "Cultivating with me may be a win-win situation."


    Ye Hongyu calmly said, "You¡¯ve said that even Chen Pipi dared not flirt with me with such bestial words. You are such a nudnik."


    Ning Que was startled and said, "I didn¡¯t use bestial words."


    Ye Hongyu silently looked into his eyes and saw that there was no shame and awkwardness in his eyes. She thought that the double cultivation method was a top secret in the Divine Hall. " Maybe he didn¡¯t know that?"


    However, she had experienced his indifference and impudence many times in the Tianqi Mountains while in the Wilderness. Therefore, she would not insist on her previous thought but said, "You are a student of the Headmaster, there¡¯s no need for you to learn from me."


    "I¡¯ve said that I didn¡¯t want to steal anything from you. I just want to share with each other."


    Ning Que paused for a little while and said with a smile, "All right, I do want to learn something from you. Although there is almost everything in our Academy, there are no ssics on Divine Skill."


    "You know the Divine Skills."


    He stared into her eyes and said, "By the Daming Lake, I saw the boundless grandeur lights."


    Ye Hongyu said, "Divine Skill is the top secret in Haotian Taoism."


    Ning Que said, "Sangsang is the inheritor of the Divine Priest of Light. She is qualified to learn the Divine Skill. However the Great Divine Priest of Light passed away too early, so, she learned little from him."


    Ye Hongyu frowned a little bit.


    Ning Que said, "What are you worrying about? Are you afraid that you will be reced by Sangsang as the number one in the group of West-Hill¡¯s young powerhouses?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "Are you goading me?"


    Ning Que said, "Yes."


    Ye Hongyu said, "I knew that it was your trick to goad me. Why should I agree?"


    Ning Que said with a smile, "Because you are the most powerful Tao Addict. How could you be afraid of being surpassed by Sangsang?"


    Ye Hongyu responded with a poker face, "I won¡¯t worry about something that will never be true."


    Ning Que asked, "Then, why don¡¯t you agree to it?"


    Ye Hongyu thought for a long time and said, "But what would you give me in return?"


    Ning Que answered in a very serious manner, "The house rent."


    Ye Hongyu looked at him quietly and said, "I have underestimated you."


    Ning Que asked, "My impudence?"


    Ye Hongyu nodded.


    Ning Que turned and was ready to leave the guest room.


    Ye Hongyu stared at his back and opened her mouth to suddenly say, "You can¡¯t be present and she can¡¯t tell you what she has learned."


    Ning Que stopped walking, looked back at her and said seriously, "I can swear this on the Headmaster¡¯s name."


    ...


    ...


    It was a bit of a pity that Ning Que had not discovered any of Ye Hongyu¡¯s secrets. Thus, he could not take advantage of them. But he believed that as long as she continued to live in Chang¡¯an, he would have the chance to discover her secrets one day.


    Lying in the big bed, like thest dozen summers, he held Sangsang¡¯s little feet, which were as white as lotuses and as cool as jade. He enjoyed the exclusive sense of coolness and refreshment in the hot summer.


    "I don¡¯t know why she agreed to it, but this is a good opportunity. She is the only one that I admire in the West-Hill Divine Pce. I don¡¯t mind how far you can go in the process of cultivating Divine Skill, but I believe it will help you in getting rid of the cold inside your body faster."


    Sangsang felt a little bit itchy and rubbed her feet on Ning Que. Then, she answered by grunting in a soft voice.


    Looking at the silvery starlight and hearing the intermittent cicada chirps, Ning Que found that the feet in his arms turned warm while his mind became increasingly calmer. He thought about how he had traveled with the Calligraphy Addict. Now, he was living with the Tao Addict. He wondered about Long Qing, as he might be dead. The Flower Addict mighte for revenge, but maybe he could convert this enemy into a friend. Therefore, he would have close rtionships with the three Addicts in the world. It must be a good story on everybody¡¯s lips.


    Thinking about this, he was very proud of himself. However, the silvery starlight turned into fluffy snow in front of Chang¡¯an¡¯s red wall in winter. It frustrated him to think about that girl in the snow with long ck hair and charming appearance.


    Sangsang had been able to perceive his most subtle mood change since they were children. She could sense that Ning Que was getting frustrated just from that moment of silence, so she asked curiously, "What are you thinking about?"


    Ning Que rubbed her little feet and said, "Nothing to worry about."


    He thought in his mind that it was such a helpless life that he could not even imagine beautiful and happy moments.


    ...


    ...


    No matter what the reason was, Ye Hongyu agreed to cultivate the Divine Skill with Sangsang. Although Sangsang¡¯s talent and potential in Divine Skill had already been recognized by the two Gods, namely, the Great Divine Priest of Light and the Great Divine Priest of Revtion, she had wasted her time in cooking and doing housework for 15 years. Therefore, there was noparison between her and the Tao Addict on the theory and understanding of the Divine Skill.


    Sangsang was a little bit nervous and went into the peaceful guest room. After a while, the peaceful room was full of sheen and the sense of solemnity. It seemed like a summer¡¯s midday but it was not that remarkable.


    That night, Ning Que and Sangsang had a long and serious conversation in their bed. After realizing that he had no potential in cultivating the Divine Skill of Haotian Taoism, he decided to respect the Headmaster. After that, he did not ask Sangsang about it nor peep of their cultivation.


    When Sangsang went to the guest room again, Ning Que was standing among several winter sweet trees in the courtyard and waiting in silence. In the summer, there were no blossoms at all. But the twigs had their own beauty. The same went for him. Although he received nothing from the agreement, it was still meaningful if Sangsang could take advantage of it.


    The same night, Ye Hongyu was eating her rice when she suddenly raised her head and said, "Do you know how remarkable your little handmaiden¡¯s potential is in cultivation?"


    Ning Que shook his head and then nodded, saying, "I know that it¡¯s remarkable. But I don¡¯t know how much."


    Ye Hongyu said peacefully, "It¡¯s so terrific that if I were you and knew that my little handmaiden¡¯s potential was much higher than me, I would feel ashamed and knock my head against a pir."


    Ning Queughed happily and said, "I haven¡¯t been peeped at when bathing and I still have my innocence. Why should I knock my head against a pir like how those women do in yamen?"


    Ye Hongyu looked at him and opened her mouth suddenly, "After this, I will definitely kill you even if it will cause a war between the West-Hill and Tang."


    Ning Que was shocked and sighed, "Have I be so important now?"


    ...


    ...


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s life did not change due to practicing the Divine Skill with Sangsang. She still stayed in her guest room and focused a little bit insanely on silent cultivation. Sometimes, she stared at the sword on the piece of paper under the natural light; sometimes, she went out of her room, stood in her courtyard, looked at the sky and talked to herself; sometimes, she touched the old winter sweet trees, lost in her thoughts.


    The paler she got, the brighter her eyes grew. The morenguished she was, the more determined she became. Ning Que, as the onlooker, finally knew why she was called the Tao Addict.


    Only "Addict of Tao" could describe the spirit, of this young female taoist priest.


    Involuntary, Ning Que thought of those who were in the back of the mountain, and the words that life was like a question and different people had their own addiction. He thought of himself, climbing the old library, entering the back of the mountain, learning Talisman Taoism, his days writing calligraphy and meditating before that and sighed, realizing that he and the Tao Addict were the same kind of people, which touched him a lot.


    Abruptly, he walked towards Ye Hongyu, who was beside the winter sweet tree.


    "Although determination is necessary for cultivation, penance is not the only method of cultivating. I have some experience in this. If you rx, you will find more besides what you focused on."


    Ye Hongyu turned back, looked at him and said peacefully, "Where did you get that pride and confidence to say that I haven¡¯t crossed the boundary you mentioned after a decade of cultivation?"


    Ning Que said, "But, at least, you can have a try now."


    Ye Hongyu said ironically, "How? Will you take me to worship the Taoist temple¡¯s mountain? Or will you take me to sightsee in Chang¡¯an like you took Mo Shanshan around? Or do you want to cultivate together?"


    Ning Que felt a little embarrassed, not on ount of cultivating together but because of the mention of the Calligraphy Addict. After a while, he calmed down, looked into her eyes and said seriously, "Let¡¯s have a fight."


    Hearing this suggestion, Ye Hongyu¡¯s eyes turned brighter. Being the Tao Addict, this suggestion suited her taste very much. She said with a smile, "You dare to fight me?"


    Ning Que answered genuinely, "Now your cultivation state has decreased a lot. What¡¯s more, your spirit has been torn down recently. So maybe it¡¯s the best time to defeat you."


    Ye Hongyu stayed silent for a moment and said, "ording to my definition of battle, the fight will not end until someone dies."


    Ning Que replied, "Yes, this is so."


    Ye Hongyu said, "Do you really believe that I am weak now?"


    Ning Que peacefully looked into her eyes and said, "Maybe it¡¯s just an illusion that you are in the lower Seethrough state. But if I don¡¯t sweep a house, how can I sweep the world? If I dare not challenge you..."


    Then he kept silent and continued in his mind. He thought that if he dared not have a fight with her who was injured and whose cultivation state had fallen, how could he challenge that powerful enemy?


    ...


    ...


    Many pieces of Fu paper were flying in the peaceful courtyard with the Great Spirit on it. Suddenly, the Great Spirit turned into magnificent Qi of Heaven and Earth. It made the wind in the courtyard grow wild and fierce.


    A green belt danced in the wild wind like a slim sword that had been tempered in repeated struggles, or like a fish swimming agilely in clear water.


    The willows behind the whitewashed wall of the guest room were shaking. Shades came together and then scattered. The waves in the Yanming Lake became dense, like the face of Chen Pipi facing the wind.


    Then, the wind stopped.


    The winter sweet trees in the courtyard had been cut into pieces and were squeezed by the two powerful aura rays into a line. The straight line ran through the middle of the floor tiles.


    Ning Que was on one side, and Ye Hongyu was on the other side.

 Chapter 451: Let Us Cultivate Together (Part II)

    Chapter 451: Let Us Cultivate Together (Part II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    A row of prune trees cut the view in the yard into two different halves; one side was summer and the other side autumn.


    Ye Hongyu stood still. The bun on her head was loosened, making her hair fall down from her shoulders. Her face was even paler than before, but her eyes lit up.


    Ning Que raised his arm to wipe the blood from the corner of his mouth.


    The fight was drawn, and no one died or lost.


    But Ning Que was wearing an expansive smile on his face. He was so satisfied with the result that as if the thread of blood at the corner of his mouth was smiling too.


    He didn¡¯t use the Haotian Divine Light disguised by the Great Spirit, nor did he use his podao. Only by using the Martial Arts of Talisman, he had managed to push Yu Hongyu to use her Taoist Fish, which made him really proud.


    More importantly, since he met the Tao Addict on the snow cliff in the Wilderness, she had be his deepest fear and his most desired goal. He had always thought that he still had quite a long way to go, but today he broke even with her.


    From a young soldier who was unable to cultivate and could only daydream during his meditation, to the person who entered the human realm on behalf of the Academy and broke even with the Tao Addict, it seemed that Ning Que had got everything easily. But only he himself knew how hard it was.


    At this moment, he ignored the fact that the Tao Addict had been injured and dropped in the state, and thought that he should be proud. It was the only thing he wanted to do.


    However, Ye Hongyu didn¡¯t want him to be too proud. Staring at the ground expressionlessly, she said,"You did improve a lot quicker than the Judical Department has reported. It is unexpected for me. But there is nothing for you to be proud of, because you cannot even force out all my strength."


    Ning Que didn¡¯t get frustrated by her words. He waved his fists excitingly, ignoring the pain in his belly and chest. He said hoarsely, "Don¡¯t copy Chen Pipi, it is not fun to argue with each other."


    Ye Hongyu raised her head slowly and looked at him.


    Her ck hair fell from her right shoulder, which was long and silky, like a pouring waterfall. It seemed tender, but was actually powerful.


    Her face was peaceful, her eyebrows were t and her eyes cold.


    Ning Que¡¯s face suddenly became serious. He pushed his Psyche Power to rotate the dew of the Great Spirit, sending strength to every part of his body.


    Ye Hongyu looked at him quietly and said, "Do you want to catch another stroke of my sword?"


    Ning Que took a deep breath, and said, "Please."


    Ye Hongyu untwisted the neck part of her taoist robe, revealing the white and smooth skin underneath.


    Ning Que was slightly taken back.


    When he first met her in the Tianqi Mountains, she was dressed in a red skirt, revealing a pair of straight long legs, so beautiful and attractive. At that time, she never tried to hide her beauty, and Ning Que knew that she must disdain to use it as a weapon.


    But why did she untie her cor now?


    The next movement of Ye Hongye shocked Ning Que even more.


    She reached her hand down inside the cor. As her hands moving deeper, her dark robe opened wider and more of her skin was revealed. The curve on her chest was beautiful and alluring.


    She took out a small piece of paper inside her underwear.


    It was as wide as two fingers, with a vague line of ink on the edge as if it was damped either by the rain or by her sweat.


    Ning Que looked at the thin piece of paper between her fingers. He felt as if he could sense the warmth of it.


    "Is this...a sword?"


    Ye Hongyu said peacefully, "This is the most powerful sword I have ever used."


    As the expression of Ning Que became more serious, he said, "I want to have a look."


    Ye Hongyu nipped the paper with two fingers and stretched her arm forward.


    She was standing at the other side of the prune trees, so there was quite a distance between them. But along with her slight movement, Ning Que felt as if the paper was right in front of his eyes.


    Ning Que knew the small wave of her arm was to draw her sword out.


    Then he saw the ink line at the edge of the paper clearly.


    Then he saw a thrillingly sharp and strong sword.


    That sword had no concrete shape.


    But it carried a terrifying power. The sword style was like an infinite waterfall pouring down from the sky continuously.


    The invisible power was in the yard, on flowers and in Ye Hongyu¡¯s hand. It rushed towards Ning Que¡¯s face.


    Ning Que felt the great danger around him and the Great Spirit in his body started rotating madly. But Ye Hongyu¡¯s sword was too fast, and the power it carried was too great. It didn¡¯t take any time to envelop Ning Que in and struck him before he could react.


    The sword style of the paper sword didn¡¯t embody in a sharp de. It was more like turbid waves, tossing Ning Que into the sky. He was like a scared bird, trying to escape backward and was mmed to the wall.


    The new paint on the wall was peeled off from the wall, revealing the dark bricks inside.


    Ning Que sat against the wall and vomited a mouthful of blood. His face was covered with the mixture of blood and the paint and his clothes were stained with his blood. He looked terrible.


    He raised his hand to wipe away the blood on his chest with great difficulty. Then he looked at the thin paper between her fingers and asked with a horrified expression, "What sword...is that?"


    Ye Hongyu didn¡¯t answer.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t know that the paper between her fingers was actually the embodiment of the sword style of Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword, who poured half of his power into the ink and left it on the paper.


    Everyone in the world agreed that the Tao Addict was unexceptionally talented in cultivation. But she still couldn¡¯t understand the paper swordpletely after pondering over so many days. However, only a little bit of studying of the sword was already powerful enough for her to blind Chen Bachi, who was at the upper state of Seethrough State. How could Ning Que fight against it?


    Ye Hongyu walked across the line of prune flowers and nodded towards the corner where Ning Que was. She said, "Thanks."


    She walked back to the guest¡¯s room after finishing these words.


    Ning Que held on to the wall to stand up. He looked at the closed door and thought for a while. He was confident to say that Ye Hongyu¡¯s secret was that tiny paper sword, and she said "thanks" to him because during all these days¡¯ penance, she finally made some progress when fighting with Ning Que.


    But he was still confused. Ye Hongyu was at the lower state of Seethrough State, but the paper sword she was hiding in her underwear could improve her power to the threshold of Knowing Destiny State or even further. Then why were those people in the West-Hill Divine Pce, who admired power more than anything still against her? Was it because she hid her real power? Then what was the reason for it? Why was she so anxious to be more powerful? Was there someone in the Pce that she wanted to defeat?


    He thought about a possibility and it shocked him so much that he forgot about his pain. He thought to himself, the Tao Addict was not called this name for nothing. The thing she wanted to achieve is much more difficult and exciting than the things he wanted to do.


    ...


    ...


    After the fight, Ning Que and Ye Hongyu discussed or fought many times. These two young people, who were the best fighters among cultivators, fought in the yard, at the lotusnd, under the shadow of willow trees and on the cliffs. The more they fought, the more absorbed they became. They felt like fighting against another self in the world.


    But during these fights, Ye Hongyu never used the thin paper sword, and Ning Que never won any fight. It was fortunate that the so-called life-and-death fights were only said to stimte them, or he would have been long dead now.


    Even without the help of the paper sword, the Tao Addict could still defeat Ning Que. After so many times of loss, a normal person would have be so frustrated and gave up. But Ning Que didn¡¯t. Instead, he cherished the chance to fight with the Tao Addict and kept learning from it.


    Ning Que really wanted to see the paper sword again and he was also amazed at the different Taoists Laws Ye Hongyu used. It was already very challenging to learn so many different Taoists Laws, what made it even more difficult was to choose which one to use quickly and decisively. It was as if she had known what he would do before he did anything.


    Except from the Primordial Thirteen Arrows, Ning Que had tried all methods he knew. He had even used the Haotian Divine Light made of his Great Spirit, but that didn¡¯t save him from losing the fight either.


    Ning Que recollected the fight they hadst year at Daming Lake and he remembered how Ye Hongyu removed the threat of his Primordial Thirteen Arrows. He was sure that she never tried to guess what he would do. It was her instinct to make her act that way, which made him even more scared. This instinct could make a person a lot more powerful than his enemy, even though they were on the same state.


    In a morning, after losing another fight, Ning Que couldn¡¯t help but ask Ye Hongyu, who was standing under a willow tree, "How did you do that?"


    Ye Hongyu also learned a lot from the fights with Ning Que. She felt much better and she understood even more about the paper sword now.


    And she confirmed once again that although Ning Que was not the most powerful enemy she had ever had, he was definitely the hardest to defeat. Unlike other normal cultivators, who could only fly on their silly flying sword or attack with those useless Fu paper, Ning Que knew how to fight.


    And because of this, she also confirmed a list of people on the Second floor of the Academy, who she would definitely kill. Ning Que was the third one on the list, only after Mr. First and Mr. Second.


    But it was her n in the future. She didn¡¯t care whether Ning Que can be more powerful now, and she even decided to teach him something, for she was very confident that she could still kill him anyway.


    "Do you what Knowing Destiny State is?"


    Her face was rosy, and she looked glorious. The refreshing shadow of the tree made her emotionless voice be refreshing too.

 Chapter 452: Why Fight with Someone Who Was Not in the Same State as Yours?

    Chapter 452: Why Fight with Someone Who Was Not in the Same State as Yours?


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Two years ago, during their trip to Chan¡¯an, Lyu Qingchen described what Knowing destiny State was for Ning Que. After he went to the Academy, Ning Que once asked Chen Pipi to show him what Knowing Destiny State was like. One night, when they had just left the old library, Ning Que was impressed by the beautiful picture he saw: under the starry sky, fish stopped swimming in theke as if they were stored into an amber or as if they were kites in the sky.


    "Cultivators that enter this state no longer just understand the flow pattern of Qi of Heaven and Earth from the surface, but grab the essence of the movement pattern of Qi of Heaven and Earth. They are able to understand the connection between Haotian and all living things in the world, and the principle of this world with rity. People who enter such a state can see the true will of Haotian and understand it."


    Ye Hongyu said, "Once you enter the Knowing destiny State, you will be a Grand Cultivator. You can understand the destiny of Haotian, so naturally that even the slightest change of the Qi of Heaven and Earth cannot escape your eyes. Therefore, no matter what your enemies want to do, it will always be within your experience and sense. That is the real scary part of the Knowing destiny State."


    Ning Que looked at the reflection of the willow trees in theke and pondered over this for a long time. Then he asked, "But you are only at the lower level of the Seethrough State. Why is it still so difficult for me to fight with you?"


    "I have once crossed that threshold and reached the Knowing destiny State."


    Ye Hongyu said, "Once you see it, you will never forget it. Even though my state is falling, my sense still stays at the Knowing destiny State. Of course you are not my equal."


    The willow branches were dancing in the breeze. They bent down low to theke and dipped into theke from time to time, rippling theke surface and breaking the reflections into pieces.


    Ning Que stared at the broken reflection of willow branches and light. He asked in a deep voice, "So, if I want to defeat a Grand Cultivator at the Knowing destiny State, I have to cross that threshold first?"


    "The barriers among the Five States of cultivation are very hard to break, which makes it almost impossible to defeat someone at a state higher than yours. But there is a small chance that it will still happen, if every factor is perfect and you also get some extra help."


    Ye Hongyue continued, "For example,st year in the Wilderness, you shot Long Qing on the snow cliff. And when I was below the Seethrough State, I once defeated an instructor in the Revtion Institute, who was in the middle part of the Seethrough State."


    "But being at the peak state of cultivation, the Knowing destiny State is nothing like the other four states; the gap between them is unreachable. Challenging a Grand Cultivator when you are not in the Knowing destiny State is like a mantis trying to stop a carriage on the road. You are doomed to be crushed."


    Ning Que watched the bugs chasing the shadow of the willow branches and asked calmly, "I just want to know if someone has ever seeded before. Even one example will be enough."


    "If you regard the fights between me and Chen Pipi as examples, then I can tell you that I can cross the barrier between states and defeat him any time. But you know that is an exception."


    "What about other examples?"


    "In the ssics of the West-Hill Pce, there are no records of a case where a Seethrough cultivator seeded in challenging a Knowing destiny State cultivator."


    Ning Que looked a little disappointed.


    Ye Hongyu looked at him and said with hesitation, "Although the ssics didn¡¯t record it, I have heard the seniors in the Divine Hall talk about Mr. Ke¡¯s story. He once left the Academy. It was when he was at the Seethrough State, he defeated a powerhouse at the Knowing destiny State on the way."


    Ning Que¡¯s eyes lit up when he heard the story without having any evidence.


    He clearly knew about the big difference between him and his Youngest Uncle no matter in which aspect. But at least this challenge happened once; no matter how impossible it was, it still made this issue less disappointing than before.


    He turned around and looked at the girl under the tree. "Do you know how to gauge the strength of cultivators who are at the Peak state of Martial Arts and the powerhouses from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine?"


    "The concept of Peak state of Martial Arts was originally used in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine."


    Ye Hongyu continued, "This state is at the same level of the Knowing destiny State, except that they are on two different paths. Knowing destiny State pursues understanding andmanding the world, while the powerhouses of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine only want to get infinite power; they only focus on themselves and refuse tomunicate with nature. They want to rece Haotian. This principle of cultivation is the most evil, but I have to admit that it is also the most powerful."


    Ning Que noticed that her expression suddenly became very cold. He asked, "The Taoists and the followers of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine have always been enemies. All the principles from Haotian Taoism, including you and Chen Pipi, hate the Devil¡¯s Doctrine the most. Although Chen Pipi and the girl from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine are in a rtionship, I still don¡¯t understand why the Divine Pce would allow Xia Hou, a survivor of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine to be not only alive but also enjoying a sessful life."


    Ye Hongyu looked at him. She understood why he would ask such a question and why his tone was so cold and mocking.


    "The West-Hill Pce guards the world on behalf of Haotian. It requires power, especially when there is such a powerful empire like the Tang empire. And Xia Hou has been one of the most powerful people over thest decade."


    Ye Hongyu said peacefully, "He is a giant sword; he could split a mountain and divide the sea. Both of the Divine Pce and the Tang empire are keen to control this sword, for which they have beenpeting for more than several decades. That is why the current situation is soplicated. For the West-Hill Pce, Xia Hou is very useful because he is at the highest position of the Military Ministry in the Tang empire. They will never be willing to give him up."


    The strong sunlight shone on Chang¡¯an City. Even while the wind was blowing from Yanming Mountain at the south shore of theke, theke was rippling and they were standing in the shadow, it was still hot.


    Near theke under the willow trees, everything was quiet.


    After some time.


    Ning Que said to Ye Hongyu in a serious voice, "I need power."


    Ye Hongyu was silent.


    He looked into her eyes and continued, "You need time, which is actually power as well."


    Ye Hongyu replied, "I don¡¯t deny that."


    "Can you help me?" Said Ning Que.


    Ye Hongyu looked at him and said, "But what will you give me in return? It can¡¯t be rental fees anymore."


    Ning Que asked, "What do you want?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "The Haoran Sword."


    ...


    ...


    She was the marvelous Taoist Addict of the West-Hill Divine Pce, and he was the new student of the Headmaster of the Academy. They could never be real friends based on their different standpoints and backgrounds. Even though they were cultivating together and learning together, they were still thinking about what they would do the day when they be enemies again.


    Under this circumstance, neither of them would expect to get anything really useful from the other. But when Ning Que asked, Ye Hongyu¡¯s answer was so quick and precise as if she had been thinking about this question for days and nights.


    Interestingly, Ning Que seemed to be prepared for the current situation. When hearing her requirement, he seemed unsurprised by it. "What will you give me?" He asked.


    Ye Hongyu said, "You have already seen what I can give you."


    Ning Que furrowed his brows and thought for a long time. "Can you make the decision by yourself?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "Since he gave it to me, it belongs to me."


    Ning Que said, "I am sorry that the thing I can give you belongs to the Academy. I can¡¯t make the decision by myself; I need to ask the Headmaster¡¯s opinion."


    Ye Hongyu said, "As you wish. I don¡¯t think I need to remind you to keep our deal secret though, right?"


    Ning Que nodded, then he left Yanming Lake.


    ...


    ...


    The hut at the back of the mountain in the Academy was wall-less. But the wind there was not as hot as that near theke, thanks to the lush vegetation of the mountain and the Cloud Gate array that stopped the heat, which made the temperature mild and stable no matter the season.


    The Headmaster was sitting on a futon with a book in his left hand. His right hand was copying something.


    Ning Que sat on the futon across the desk.


    He went to the back of the mountain of the Academy and entered the hut. He was ordered by the Headmaster to wait aside. He had been waiting on the futon for a long time; even the history book on the desk had been updated with records of two years.


    He had tried to say something, but the Headmaster didn¡¯t pay any attention to him. He was still absorbed in transcribing the book, as if the words of his young student were just like the wind.


    The Headmaster threw the old yellowish book onto the desk and put his brush pen on the ink stone. He rubbed his wrists and stretched himself.


    Ning Que stood up as quickly as he could. He took the towel from the water in the basin, wrung it out and passed it to the Headmaster. Then he changed the remaining tea with a new hot one.


    "Never be hurried, no matter what you do."


    The Headmaster threw the towel away and took the hot cup. He blew at the bubble on the surface and said, "Just like when you want to drink tea, you cannot do it when it is too hot."


    Ning Que was thinking about how he could get the thin paper sword hidden in Ye Hongyu¡¯s bosom. He ignored what his teacher said, rubbed his hands nervously and said, "But if you don¡¯t drink it when it is hot, it will soon be cold."


    The Headmaster turned around and smiled at him, "Then you could just drink it, why still ask for my advice? You are always the most strong-minded kid at the back of the mountain of the Academy."


    Ning Que could feel the criticism or even warning in his words, which he could not disobey. His body became stiff and he said bitterly, "I don¡¯t have enough money to buy the tea. The money belongs to the Academy and Master. But the most important thing is, although I am strong-minded, I am authorized to make a decision on such a big issue."


    "What is your mind?"


    The Headmaster continued to say, "It is what you are thinking when you are about to make a decision. It is about which road to choose when you are at a crossing. Change or not? What¡¯s your choice?"


    Ning Que answered honestly and cleverly, "What should I choose?"


    The Headmaster almost choked when hearing his answer. He reproached Ning Que and said angrily, "Why do you bother me with such an easy question? Are you an idiot? Of course you should choose whatever is the most beneficial to you."


    ...

 Chapter 453: Observing the Sword for A Whole Night and Drawing it

    Chapter 453: Observing the Sword for A Whole Night and Drawing it


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Wind blew into the hut, making the gauze curtains dancing randomly. Mist rose from the Headmaster¡¯s teacup and disappeared in the air. Maybe the wind would make the tea cool down quicker.


    Ning Que was not like Chen Pipi. His face didn¡¯t get wrinkles because of the heavy wind, but he looked very worried after being reproached by the Headmaster, "I just want you to analyze for me, do the pros outweigh the cons?"


    The Headmaster drank his tea and put the cup down. He shook his head and said, "I¡¯m old, so I don¡¯t waste time thinking about these trivial things. Do you think it is worth it or not?"


    Ning Que answered seriously, "I have been thinking after she gave her term. Haoran Sword is indeed the most famous cultivation skill of our Academy, but without the Great Spirit of Youngest Uncle, it cannot be counted as the real secret skill that the Academy couldn¡¯t leak out."


    The Headmaster didn¡¯t reveal his attitude, and he said, "Continue."


    Ning Que thought about the fight with Ye Hongyu in the side yard which ruined the plum blossom there and the paper sword she held between her fingers. He said with hesitation, "I don¡¯t understand her paper sword, but it is interesting, I even think ites from the South Jin Kingdom..."


    The Headmaster frowned unhappily and then looked at Ning Que and said, "Make it simple."


    Ning Que said honestly, "I think it is worth it."


    The Headmaster said casually, "Then, why you hesitate. Just exchange that with her."


    The Headmaster seemed not care about it at all. For him, giving away the secret cultivation skill of Academy, Haoran Sword, was like giving away an old yellowish cabbage.


    Ning Que was not used to such an atmosphere. He asked carefully after a while, "Master, do you not want to ask me any questions?"


    The Headmaster took the book up and was about to continue writing. He said casually, "Why should I ask?"


    Ning Que asked hopefully, "What if I die?"


    The Headmaster didn¡¯t even look at him. He stared at the book, waited for the ink to melt and said, "Everyone dies. If you die, there is no need for your reminding in advance, for I will not be too sad."


    His wish died out and his strong heart which was immersed by the body water and became immune to every kind of harm finally broke into two pieces after hearing his Master¡¯s irresponsible and cold reply. He thought that he would save a half of the heart for Sangsang, as for the other half, he wanted to turn it into a fire and burn the Headmaster¡¯s beard.


    ...


    Ning Que first went to the yard of Second Brother and said his requirement with apaniment of the roaring waterfall. Then he went to the cliff cave, where thousands of books were stored. Finally he went through the Cloud Gate array to the second floor of the old library, and found several books about the Sword Forms and Skills of Haoran Sword and went to Third Sister to register.


    The whole process was strangely easy.


    The Headmaster gave him a very irresponsible informal approval, and Second Brother, schrs and Third Sister irresponsiblely gave him what he wanted without asking for anything to prove that he did get the Headmaster¡¯s agreement. He was still in a daze when he was already sitting in the carriage while holding a thick pile of books.


    He thought that based on what happened today, it seemed that he could just steal any books from the Academy at any time, and then he would be very rich.


    When he was back to the mansion at Yanming Lake, Ning Que went directly to the backyard and threw all the books on the table. He said, "These are what you want."


    Ye Hongyu took a book and frowned. She didn¡¯t expect the Academy to agree to give such valuable cultivation books to Ning Que so easily. It even made her doubt whether these books were real or not. But as soon as she nced at the first page of the books, she knew they were real.


    Ning Que found that the book she was reading was the Introduction to Haoran Sword , the book he read after vomiting blood while entering the old library. He felt very emotional. After a while, he got rid of that emotion and reminded Ye Hongyu, who was absorbed in reading, "Where is my thing?"


    Ye Hongyu raised her hands to untie the buttons on her cor.


    Ning Que watched her fingers moving. He didn¡¯t know what he was expecting for, the paper sword that carried lots of secrets or the exciting view beneath her Taoist robe.


    Ye Hongyu took the thin paper sword out but didn¡¯t give it to him. She stared into Ning Que¡¯s eyes and said, "I have two requirements."


    Ning Que said, "Go on."


    Ye Hongyu said, "You only have one night to observe it."


    Ning Que said, shaking his head, "No way, unless you agree that you also have only one night to read these books about Haoran sword."


    Ye Hongyu smiled and was about to say something.


    It suddenly urred to Ning Que that the girl standing in front of him was a genius in cultivation. Maybe she had the same ability of never forgetting what she read like Sangsang. So he interrupted her immediately, "It is not right to make the time limit so short. Why don¡¯t you give me more time, and I will give you more time too."


    Ye Hongyu stared at him for a while, then smiled. She shook her head and said, "Luckily, you reacted in time."


    Ning Que said, "I can never be fooled."


    Ye Hongyu said, "Three nights."


    Ning Que thought about it for a moment before he answered, "Deal."


    Ning Que asked curiously, "What is your second requirement?"


    Ye Hongyu pointed to the paper sword and said, "You are not allowed to smell it."


    The paper sword had been hidden at her chest and got her smell as well. A normal girl would be very shy to give it to other people. Ye Hongyu was not as shy as them, but she still didn¡¯t want Ning Que to do any disgusting things.


    Ning Que stared at her and said in a serious tone, "Do I really look like a pervert?."


    Ye Hongyu said with a smile, "Junior Sister Sangsang grows up with you. And you make her your wife even before she turns into an adult. I think that is what a pervert does anyway."


    ...


    ...


    In the summer, in the yard you could hear the frogs all the time and sometimes you could hear the sound of cicadas.


    Under the dim light of an oilmp, Ning Que was staring at the paper sword.


    Sangsangpanied him staring at the paper sword before she went to bed because of being too sleepy.


    Ning Que rubbed his fingers against the paper to feel the paper subconsciously.


    His movement looked very obscene, but actually he wasn¡¯t thinking of anything nasty. It didn¡¯t cross his mind that this piece of paper was put against the Taoist Addict¡¯s chest before.


    He just wanted to make himself less nervous by rubbing it.


    It was very thin and felt like normal paper. It was only the size of two fingers and around rough edge, there were inky lines. Beyond the lines were some rough sides of the paper.


    In the beginning, it was a picture of a sword drawn on the paper, then someone tore the sword off the paper. It could be seen from the uneven lines that the person who had drawn it was not good at drawing, but his state was so high that those lines looked like real sharp des of a sword.


    The paper looked more dim and yellowish under the dim yellowish light.


    Ning Que stared at the paper sword and his face looked more and more serious and tense.


    At theke, the yard at night was not as hot as at daytime, but there were beads of sweat on his face, and gradually sweat flowed down along his cheeks.


    He became more and more sweaty. The sweat dripped from his back and legs and wet his clothes. And when his clothes were soaked in sweat, it flowed down the legs of the chair and to the ground.


    His body was like a puff of cotton soaked in water, and after being squeezed by the invisible sword style of the paper sword, it started to drip water continuously.


    His Psych Power already pushed through the edge of the paper sword which hurt his sense of perception badly and entered into the paper sword. That was why he could feel the real picture the sword style.


    A couple of days ago, when they fought and Ye Hongyu took the paper sword out, he felt the sword style of the sword, which made him feel like an endless waterfall was falling from the sky.


    Now the paper sword was lying in his fingers, he could feel the sword style slower and clearer. After thinking for half of the night, he finally got it. The sword style was not just imitating a waterfall which poured down from the sky, it was the great river itself.


    It proved Ning Que¡¯s guess before.


    He felt this sword paper, insignificant in weight before, suddenly be exceptionally heavy.


    He felt those huge waves of the river beating his body and hitting his sense of perception. It was so strong as if it could destroy the dams of his sense of perception and rush out to the wilderness.


    He felt like he was drowning in the depth of the river and was stuck between the great pressure of watering from all directions. In this summer night, he was like a real drowning man. He was pale and panting heavily. His sweat poured out like a waterfall.


    ...


    Ning Que woke up from his meditation in the morning.


    The armchair in which he was sitting was all soaked in water.


    The bricks around the chair were also drenched.


    The paper between his fingers was also drenched by his sweat and it even became transparent. But the sword drawn on it was still so clear as if the ink was magical and not influenced by any substances in the world.


    Sangsang was looking at him, and her face was full of worry.


    Ning Que looked at her and managed to squeeze a smile, "I am fine."


    He was scared by his own voice. It was so dry as if he had been in a desert without any water for a couple of days.


    He soon realized it was because he was dehydrated. He said to Sangsang, "Make some porridge and put the Sealwort stored in the study in the porridge, I need to eat something very nutritious."


    "I have already made you porrige with the Sealwort. I also added lots of salt in the porridge because you looked so sweaty."


    Sangsang got a bowl of porridge on the table, which was preserved in well water. She said carefully, "Do you still have the strength to eat it? Do you need me to feed you?"


    ...


    ...


    After getting his energy back, Ning Que went to the side yard and returned the paper sword to Ye Hongyu. After observing it for a whole night, he had made clear on many things. He knew that at his state in cultivation, this was already the most he could learn from the sword. He wouldn¡¯t make any more progress even if he spent two more nights watching it.


    Ye Hongyu saw his pale face and said, "You know very well where the utmost of your ability is. You are not too greedy and able to resist the tempt of the paper sword. I have to admit though you are not that talented, your self-discipline ability is among the first ss in the world."


    If it was in the past, Ning Que would be very proud after the Taoist Addict praised him like that. But there was something on his mind today so he didn¡¯t talk much with her. He was still thinking of the sword in his sense of perception and left quickly.


    He left the Yanming Lake by the carriage and went to the Academy as quickly as he could. He went through the Cloud Gate array to the back of the mountain and walked past the Mirror Lake to the cliff cave. He furrowed his brows and mumbled to himself all the way. His expression kept changing between confusion to determination. He was so absorbed in thinking that he forgot to greet his Senior Brothers and Sisters at theke.


    Seventh Sister stopped her stitchwork, and put the niddle down.She looked at Ning Que disappearing into the wood. She frowned and muttered, "Youngest Brother looked... a little odd today, he looks a little bit crazy."


    Sixth Brother was repairing the waterwheel near the stream while passing fish to the goose Wooden Fish to y with. He straightened his body and also looked at that direction. He shook his head and said, "Why does Youngest Brother look so much like Eleventh Brother today?"


    Ning Que didn¡¯t even notice their discussion. He was like a silly and crazy man, who staggered along the path down to the cliff cave and walked towards the table of the schr.


    The schr was still reading without looking up at him.


    Ning Que stopped talking to himself. He stood next to the schr in silence for a long time. His eyes lightened when the lines in his sense of perceptionbined into a certain shape, and then he walked behind the table and pushed the schr away from the stool. He took a piece of paper, and dipped a brush pen into the ink and started drawing.


    The schr was the most strange person at the back of the mountain. He was always good in temper, but if someone dared to annoy him when he was reading, he would be very angry. So even Eldest Brother and Second Brother didn¡¯t dare to interrupt him when he was busy at reading. Therefore, he became extremely angry when Ning Que pushed him away roughly when he was concentrated on reading a book about agriculture. He rolled up his sleeves and was going to beat Ning Que hard.


    But his fists dropped down slowly when he saw what Ning Que was drawing. He walked behind Ning Que and started watching him drawing carefully.


    After a while, Ning Que finished what he was doing. He put the brush pen on the ink stone and raised the paper against the sun rays to watch it. He knew he couldn¡¯t copy the same sword style, but this was the best he could do.


    He suddenly found the schr standing behind him and looking at the paper in a daze. "I know it is ugly, but it is not my fault," Ning Que exined and said.


    "It is not bad."


    The schr put his hands behind him and bent to see the small twisted sword on the paper. He said in amazement, "I haven¡¯t seen such a nice sword for many years."


    Ning Que was very shocked. He thought to himself, maybe the schr knew about swords too? So he asked subconsciously, "Have you seen anything like this before?"


    The schr pointed to the cliff cave behind him without turning his head around, "There are many books about Sword Forms and Skills. Some authors liked to use pictures as notes, so I have seen some swords."


    Ning Que understood how he had learned about swords now. He asked curiously, "What do you think of this sword?"


    "If you are asking about the sword you just duplicate, then it is not very goodpared with the thousands of swords stored in the cave, but your sword reveals some of the spirit of the original drawer, and that makes it wonderful."


    The schr continued to say, "I don¡¯t understand drawing or swords. But I can see the spirits of the sword."


    "In my view, this sword can rank the top five among all the swords stored in the Academy for the thousand years."


    ...

 Chapter 454: The Autumn Was Back

    Chapter 454: The Autumn Was Back


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In the hut, the wind was blowing gently and cheerfully as if it shared the mood of the Headmaster.


    Eldest Brother and Second Brother were sitting quietly around the table. One was grinding the ink and the other was making tea.


    The Headmaster waved his hands and smiled, "I am happy today. Let¡¯s skip writing."


    Second Brother opened his mouth slightly and was about to say something to show that he approved the Headmaster¡¯s decision.


    But he was, after all, a Gentleman. He couldn¡¯t lie in front of his Master. So he continued to grind the ink seriously without saying anything.


    Eldest Brother saw the expression of Jun Mo and couldn¡¯t help but smile and shake his head. Then he looked at the Master behind the desk and asked quietly, "What made you so happy?"


    The Masterughed and said, "We exchanged Liu Bai¡¯s Dahe Sword with Haoran Sword which doesn¡¯t have the Great Spirit. It is such a great deal. Of course, I should be happy."


    Eldest Brother said with a smile, "It seems so."


    The Headmaster stroked his beard and said, "That sword not only has a shape but also gained some of Liu Bai¡¯s spirit. Your Youngest Brother is a world-renowned calligrapher and he also learned how to dpose a character and remember it using the Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong. He is indeed the most suitable person for this task."


    The Headmaster and Eldest Brother were very happy, but Second Brother was not.


    Liu Bai was regarded as the strongest person and gained the name of the Sage of Sword. But in Second Brother¡¯s view, this powerhouse in the South Jin Kingdom was only one of his enemies who would lose to him one day. He was like one of the stairs he would step on during his cultivation. The sword style of Dahe Sword was no match for the Haoran Sword of his Youngest Uncle, even though it didn¡¯t have the Great Spirit.


    Second Brother never hid his emotion. His face always revealed all the thoughts on his mind. But because he couldn¡¯t argue with his Headmaster, so he vented his anger on the ink and kept on grinding it faster and faster.


    The ink in the inkstone was going to turn into a tinyke. The ink block was spinning fast in the inkke, whirling a vortex up, but not even a drop of ink spilled out.


    The Headmaster looked at the ink in the inkstone and heaved a sigh, "I have only heard of water making a hole in the stone, but never know that grinding ink could also make a hole in the inkstone."


    Second Brother suddenly realized what he was doing. He stopped and apologized to the Headmaster.


    The Headmaster said, "You can tell me whatever you want."


    Second Brother frowned and said, "Liu Bai¡¯s sword style was worth learning, but it is no way as good as Youngest Brother¡¯s Haoran Sword. And Youngest Brother isn¡¯t going to be fair."


    The Headmaster said, "We should get it if it is worth learning."


    Second Brother frowned even more as he thought that the Headmaster sounded like a bully. But then he regretted being so impolite to his master.


    "Liu Bai¡¯s Dahe Sword is not necessary to our Academy."


    The Headmaster smiled, "But have you thought about what would happen if he dies? What if the Sword Garret of South Jin Kongdom doesn¡¯t have a sessor? Then the Dahe Sword would disappear from the world. What a shame would that be! The reason that the Academy takes his sword is the same as we collect those ssics; we are doing it out of the goodwill to pass on our wisdom to our descendants so that it can reappear in the world one day."


    His words reminded Second Brother of the countless books in the cave. He felt so ashamed of his past arrogant thoughts that he kneeled down on the futon and bowed to the Master. He said in a deep voice, "I am wrong. I will visit all the parties and sects to invite their skills back to the Academy."


    The expression on the Headmaster and Eldest Brother¡¯s faces changed and they reached their hands for their tea at the same time. They thought to themselves, if the Academy really asked other parties and sects to give away their cultivation secrets in the name of preserving the wisdom of humankind, they would think we were either lunatics or robbers. Besides, whenever Second Brother thought something was right, he would do it no matter what other people thought of him. If the other parties and sects refused to give their skills to him, he would just force them to, without caring about what they would think of him and the Academy. Then the so-called invitation would turn into a robbery. By then, there would be a bloody war in the cultivation world.


    The Master shouted at him, "If I were so shameless, then I would have got Liu Bai back to the Academy as soon as he created the Dahe Sword. Why do I even bother to make your Youngest Brother to exchange with the girl and draw it down? I don¡¯t know what is in your mind."


    Eldest Brother shook his head and seriously said, "We have to get their approval first."


    Second Brother was a little unclear of what the Master really wanted to say. He argued, "But what the Youngest Brother did was not very different from robbery. He is stealing it from Liu Bai."


    The Headmaster felt a little awkward.


    Eldest Brother poured the Headmaster¡¯s teacup at an exceptionally quick speed and said respectfully, "Master, please drink tea."


    What he did, lightened the atmosphere immediately. The Headmaster took the teacup over and praised his dearest student, "You are worth teaching."


    Second Brother frowned, he didn¡¯t understand why he was not worth teaching.


    ...


    ...


    The geese who flew to the Xunyang Lake at Gushan Commandery went back to Chang¡¯an City. They restarted their journey to the warmer Great Lake in the south after circling around the old Buddhist tower for a few days. They wouldn¡¯te back until the next spring.


    The gate of the Old Brush Pen Shop on Lin 47th Street hadn¡¯t opened for a long time. The wild cat was lying under the sun on top of the wall. He looked at the well which had gained dust on it and wondered whether the guy who threw woods at him was long dead now.


    A new barbecue stand opened at the mouth of the alley. Mr. Wu, the owner of a shop had an old dog and he walked his dog every morning and evening to vent out the stress his wife had put on him. But as the temperature dropped in the morning and night, he reduced the number of walks to only once a day at noon.


    The casino in the western part of the city was still running well. Mr. Qi wore his long silky robe and yed the steel balls in his hands. He epted the aplishment of his neighbors with a modest attitude of a real millionaire and wondered when Second Brother Chao would be back.


    The Taoist who performed Martial Arts of Talisman in the Taoist temple on the Vermilion Bird Avenue was ill. But his Taoist temple had been renovated and attracted a lot more believers reciting the ssics and praying.


    No matter what season or time, the Tangs in Chang¡¯an always enjoyed their peaceful and happy life. Theughter in the streets and alleys never stopped.


    A new object was added to the collection in the back mountain of the Academy. It was a paper sword, which came from the South Jin Kingdom and went to the West-Hill before finally arriving in Tang. The smell of new paint in the mansion near the Yanming Lake had disappeared, and the young people living in the Mansion had furthered their study in cultivation; Sangsang had learned how to use Divine Skills during fights, with her practice of talisman and her discussion with the other two and Ye Hongyu had learned more about the sword style on paper by learning Haoran Sword.


    And with a strong opponent like the Taoist Addict as his goal, Ning Que¡¯s improvement was very impressive. He was exceptionally ambitious and he was bing increasingly powerful.


    His state stabilized at the upper side of Seethrough and he was still improving. He was nearer and nearer to the threshold and he even saw it once when he was practicing at theke under the willow trees. But it was a shame that the threshold was still too high for him to reach.


    The spring had gone and the summer was back. Then the summer had gone and the autumn arrived.


    When autumn was back to Chang¡¯an City, the Zhenjun General Xia Hou, who had been guarding the border of Tang for more than a decade, was about toe back as well.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 455: Retiring and Growing Old

    Chapter 455: Retiring and Growing Old


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    ording to thew of the Tang Empire, a general who returned to Chang¡¯an from battle had to enter through the Eastern City gates. That was why the Feat Posthouse located dozen of miles away from the Eastern Gates became a very important location. Since the beginning of the Tang Empire, many brave warriors had passed through the posthouse after returning victoriously from their battles. The stables in the posthouse and the tall straight trees by the road bore witness to such history.


    Xia Hou stared out at the majestic city in the west in silence. ording to the rules of the imperial court, he and his subordinates were to spend the night at the Feat Posthouse and enter the city tomorrow at dawn, heading straight to the pce to meet His Majesty.


    Chang¡¯an City looked extremely majestic in the twilight. The ck and green city walls reflected the light of the setting sun, shining purple and copper, looking impregnable and extraordinarily magnificent.


    As one of the four generals in the Tang Empire who were revered by the masses, Xia Hou had served in the military for many years. He had forged a strong connection with Chang¡¯an. However, not many knew that he did not spend much time in Chang¡¯an even though his General¡¯s Mansion was in the northern city and he often returned to the capital to work.


    Over the past decades, he had spent most of his time leading the cavalry and guarding the bitterly cold northern territories. He had conquerednds for the empire and inspired awe over the cavalry of the Yan Kingdom and Left King¡¯s Pce.


    He had finally left the biting cold of the northern territories. Tens and thousands of his cavalry were left at the Northeast Border Military camp in Tuyang City. The imperial court had already sent General Shu forth to take charge, and there shouldn¡¯t be any issues.


    Only a couple of soldiers who were close to him hade with him. The imperial court had allowed him to take more soldiers with him to Chang¡¯an, but he was very careful the night before he retired and did not make any moves that would arouse the suspicions of officials.


    In order to give the imperial court a peace of mind, Xia Hou¡¯s two sons were still in Chang¡¯an and had voluntarily imprisoned themselves in the General¡¯s Mansion. Meanwhile, his wife, rtives, and some loyal servants had moved to his hometown several months earlier. They had nted in the fields and retrieved pickles from the cer, preparing for his return.


    Of course, that wasn¡¯t truly his hometown. Xia Hou was from the Cold Region in the far north. It was one of thergest Deste Man settlement. With the Deste Man moving southwards, he could no longer return to that hometown. Perhaps he had been unable to return to that ce since he turned his back on the Enlightenment Doctrine.


    "Gu Xi is dead, so is Lin Ling. Many of those who followed me back then have died..."


    The sky grew darker as the sun set. The purple and bronze wall of Chang¡¯an was bathed in blood red. Xia Hou looked at that ce with narrowed eyes as he thought of how those he trusted had died to pay the price and couldn¡¯t help but feel sad.


    In spring, the news of Huang Xing and Yu Shuizhu¡¯s death reached the Military camp in Chang¡¯an. The news did not sadden him. He only grew vignt.


    Sorrow and vignce were not emotions powerhouses should have. Xia Hou suppressed these emotions forcefully and began to grow weary. He started coughing.


    The Tang military was a ce that revered powerhouses. An ordinary general would be unwilling to cough before his subordinates as it would show that he was weak. But Xia Hou did not care because he knew how powerful he was in the eyes of his subordinates. Not to say, he knew that he was powerful.


    Just like the Defender-general of the State, Xu Shi, who was still the most important person in the Tang military even though he had coughed for decades. No one could rece him as he was well-respected by others and was trusted by the Emperor.


    Xia Hou coughed again freely and unrestrainedly. Perhaps it was because he did not care anymore since he would be stripped of his armor after entering Chang¡¯an tomorrow.


    The captain standing outside the inn looked at the general¡¯s strong andrge stature. He listened to the coughing and worried shed on his face. The general was still powerful to him, but he had witnessed the fights between the general and the powerhouse from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine in the Wilderness and was thus worried.


    It was at this moment when the ground outside the walls of the inn began to tremble. Neither the respectful servant in the inn nor Xia Hou¡¯s soldiers noticed it.


    Xia Hou might be a powerhouse in the peak state of Martial Arts and was the strongest and most frightening man on earth, but he wasn¡¯t a god. His cough couldn¡¯t make the earth shake.


    He quietly watched Chang¡¯an City as the sun set, and then, turned to enter the inn.


    ...


    ...


    Someone was waiting for him in the room.


    It was a tallrge man who was at least half a head taller than Xia Hou. He looked respectful and stood tall and straight like an indestructible mountain.


    The man wore a cloth shirt. His armor could be seen beneath the thin cloth, and the aura from the Talisman inscription exuded from beneath the cloth.


    Xia Hou was evidently shorter than the hulking man, but it felt as if he was bulkier and stronger than him. He did not have to raise his head to look up at the man.


    "If someone saw that Luo Kedi, themander of the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s divine army had appeared at the closest inn to Chang¡¯an city, they would definitely think that this is a challenge against the Tang Empire."


    He looked at the man coldly and said, "I know that you are a prideful person, but do you really think that the Tang Imperial Center Administration doesn¡¯t have any aces? There are at least ten people who could kill you with ease in the Chang¡¯an City behind us. You are seeking death by appearing before me now."


    Luo Kedi said, "Since I dared toe, I am of course unafraid of death. To me, General Xia Hou¡¯s return to Chang¡¯an feels more like you¡¯re seeking death. Do you think you cane out of there alive?"


    Xia Hou¡¯s expression did not change. He said cidly, "Your position within the Divine Hall could garner respect from small countries like South Jin, Song and Yue Kingdom. However, outside of Chang¡¯an and to me, you are but just a dog raised by the hierarch. What right do you have to speak to me with that tone?"


    A sh of anger glinted in Luo Kedi¡¯s eyes which he forcibly repressed. He said with a coldugh, "I admit that I am the Hierarch Lord¡¯s dog. But you are just a lion reared by Haotian. You still intend to return to Chang¡¯an even though you have lost your spirit. Do you really want to make your enemies happy?"


    Xia Hou bellowed, "This is an agreement between the Academy and myself. Who would dare to interfere with it? Not even your master could!"


    "The Divine Hall would love to see General Xia Hou enjoying his peaceful golden years. However, are you really willing to do so?"


    Luo Kedi handed him a letter that had a fire Fu character on it and said, "This is a holograph from the Hierarch Lord. He wants to invite you to West-Hill... no, back to West-Hill."


    Xia Hou took the letter without a change in his expression.


    Luo Kedi said, "The Divine Hall needs your strength. Furthermore, the Hierarch Lord had said that retirement doesn¡¯t necessarily mean that you have to stay in the vige forever. There will be a moment when you return."


    Xia Hou looked at him and his steel-like brows raised slightly. He said, "What can you give me?"


    Luo Kedi said, "Since you are loyal to the Empress, then the West-Hill Divine Pce promises that the Divine Hall will do its utmost best to help the Empress¡¯ prince seed in getting the throne when the dayes."


    The West-Hill Divine Pce was very powerful. To Xia Hou, their offer that came way before the day arrived was very sincere.


    However, contrary to what Luo Kedi had expected, Xia Hou did not react in any sense in the face of the Hierarch Lord¡¯s sincerity. Instead, he said, "I shall not send you off."


    Luo Kedi bore down on his anger and said, "The Divine Hall needs an answer."


    Xia Hou said, "I am very grateful and will consider this seriously. This is my answer."


    ...


    ...


    The ground at the Feat Posthouse shook once more. Luo Kedi left without another word. The officials and civilians who were preparing for the weing celebrations in Chang¡¯an would probably never know that themander of the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s divine army had been to Chang¡¯an and attempted to steer General Xia Hou down another path.


    Xia Hou looked at the holograph written by the West-Hill hierarch and a cold mocking smile dawned on his face.


    He knew that this was indeed a holograph from the hierarch. He had received seven of such letters over the years and was familiar with the handwriting on the cover of the letter.


    He mocked the intentions of the West-Hill Divine Pce. Wanting to help the Empress¡¯ son take the throne? If the West-Hill Divine Pce knew that the Empress was his beloved sister, Xia Tian, they would know that the prince had Deste Man blood flowing in his veins and carried the aura of the Enlightenment Doctrine. Would the bigwigs in the Divine Hall still dare to do that?


    The mocking smile on Xia Hou¡¯s face turned into one of self-mocking. He pressed down with his fingers and was about to crumble the hierarch¡¯s holograph into powder. However, he hesitated and stopped for some reason.


    ...


    ...


    General Xia Hou who had guarded the northern frontiers for the Tang Empire for decades had agreed to disarm and retire without raising any conditions. Many in the imperial court thought that this was odd, but had all felt more rxed because of it. After finding out the Emperor¡¯s intentions, the imperial court had conferred upon the general the highest prestige.


    At dawn, at the lead of the passionate officials from the Ministry of Rites and under the respectful gazes of the Yulin Royal Guards, Xia Hou donned a new armor. He brought several soldiers with him and rode towards Chang¡¯an.


    The eastern gate of Chang¡¯an had long been washed and cleaned. Prince Li Peiyan brought some officials with him out of the city under the apaniment of music to wait for the general. There were also several notable figures from the city who hade to wait with anticipation.


    The imperial court had already prepared a decree to be awarded to Xia Hou when he entered the pce. The decree was currently in the pce and it held a dazzling reward as well as an induction to the royal ranks.


    Xia Hou ignored the officials from the Ministry of Rites and got off his horse when he saw the crowd weing him. He pulled his horse along towards them.


    The Prince smiled and shook his head when he saw this. He waved his hand, gesturing for the eunuch beside him to leave and walked towards the general.


    The two met at the pavilion outside the eastern gates.


    Xia Hou bowed calmly to the prince.


    Li Peiyan, however, found it difficult to remain calm. He looked at the general¡¯s face that was as hard as steel and said with emotion, "It¡¯s good now that you¡¯re back."


    ...


    ...


    The officials of the Tang Empire did not like general Xia Hou who was known to be proud and excessively violent.


    Over the past decades, there had been rumors that Xia Hou had killed prisoners and innocents just for war records. No one knew how manyws of the Tang Empire he had vited. However, there had been no evidence and everyone knew that the Empress supported him. This meant that the Emperor valued him as well.


    And this perhaps, was the reason why the people of Chang¡¯an did not truly love General Xia Hou like they did the other three generals of the army. Even though the people that Xia Hou had killed were not Tang citizens, the simple and direct Chang¡¯an citizens felt that violence wasn¡¯t really any worthy skill.


    However, Xia Hou had been stationed in the bitter cold north frontiers for decades. Now that he had disarmed and retired, he was warmly weed by Chang¡¯an. The streets were crowded with people who cheered and apuded.


    The shopkeepers and workers of the teahouse by the street had all abandoned their work and gone to wee the general. It was fortunate that there were only a few guests in the teahouse.


    Ning Que and Sangsang sat at a table beside the window.


    He listened to the cheering and apuse from the streets and Xia Hou¡¯s back as he rode by the teahouse on horseback. After a moment of silence, he said, "Aspared to when we were in Tuyang City, he has really aged a lot."


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 456: How to End the Old Grudge

    Chapter 456: How to End the Old Grudge


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que saw Xia Hou for the first time in Hn Seast year, andter they were face to face in Tuyang City. At that time, although Xia Hou had failed to possess the "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of the Arcane, and was forced to retire by the Academy, he was still calm, confident, and ambitious.


    However, Xia Hou looked much older today. He was wearing a brand new suit of armor, his face was as cold and calm as usual and his body was tall and straight, but Ning Que swore the general smelled like a wet and mildewy woodshed.


    Xia Hou suffered from continuous assassination attempts by the powerhouses in the Wilderness. Ning Que heard of this even though it was kept a secret by the Military Ministry.


    "It¡¯s more straight and tough than expected for the Devil¡¯s Doctrine to eliminate their renegades."


    Ning Que looked at Xia Hou¡¯s back and thought, "If Tang could have damaged the armor on Xia Hou, his little hope of killing him sessfully would grow."


    Xia Hou was the General of the Empire, unlike Zhang Yiqi and Huang Xing who could be murdered easily. The biggest problem was, although Xia Hou was getting older, he remained strong. It was impossible for Ning Que to assassinate him without leaving a trace.


    Even though both the imperial court and the Academy agreed on his retirement, and the West-Hill did not object to it, even if Ning Que seemed to have some backers, they would not help him. How was he able to eliminate Xia Hou in this case?


    In thete summer of the 15th year of the Tianqi era, a n gradually formed in Ning Que¡¯s heart. However, every time he thought of this n, he ridiculed himself since it had no possibilities to seed. If anyone knew of his n, like Li Yu, Ye Hongyu, or Chen Pipi, they would surely think he was out of his mind.


    In the whole world, only his Second Brother and Chao Xiaoshu would agree with him.


    Holding her jaw, Sangsang looked at the crowd under the tea house. Suddenly, she turned around and said to Ning Que worriedly, "Why do you rush?"


    Ning Que said, "I¡¯ve been waiting for 15 years. I think I¡¯m very patient."


    Sangsang said seriously, "If he gets older or we be stronger, or we wait for a few more years, we would be more confident to kill him at that time."


    Ning Que had been trying to keep Sangsang away from thinking about bloody and cruel matters, but it did not mean he had never taught her how to deal with them. No matter if it was in Min Mountain or in the grasnd outside the City of Wei, he kept instilling a concept in her¡ª No matter who your enemies were, the elder, the sick or even the youth, if you wanted to win, you had to use all the shameless methods and endure your sadness. You had to wait until you were strong enough so that you were able to kill them by using one move.


    Ning Que smiled and said, "If I don¡¯t kill him, he would be too old to fight."


    Sangsang felt puzzled and said, "It¡¯s better, isn¡¯t it?"


    "Although I¡¯ll be more confident to defeat him when he bes older, I¡¯m worried that by that time he would die of illness or old age, instead of being killed by me."


    Sangsang did not understand. "Is there a problem if he died that way?"


    Sangsang asked again, "It¡¯s better, isn¡¯t it?"


    Ning Que gestured with his head and said, "No, it isn¡¯t."


    "Why?"


    "Because he is not my opponent."


    Ning Que paused for a while and added, "He is my enemy."


    At this moment, the shopkeeper and the waiters all came back and they were excitedly talking about the troops and praising General Xia Hou.


    Ning Que listened quietly and shook his head.


    "People will feel happy if their opponent dies naturally, because he won¡¯t stand in their way forward or destroy their life anymore. It doesn¡¯t matter whether he chokes to death while eating or he is suffocated in the toilet."


    "However, when facing your enemy, it¡¯s totally different."


    "Taking revenge would be different if it takes us too long to finish it. Comparing with killing the enemy, the most important thing is how to forget the grudges and how to get free by doing this."


    He looked at Sangsang. "No matter if you make your enemy pay for what they did or you set yourself free, the key is to kill him. He must be killed by us, and he cannot die identally or naturally."


    Ning Que remembered Eastern City in Chang¡¯an that rainy day, the dead old cksmith with his open eyes, and his wet pale hair, and then he was perplexed.


    "He can¡¯t be old, sick, or weak, and he would better be at the peak of his life. We would only be satisfied by killing such an enemy. That¡¯s the key."


    "Xia Hou is getting older."


    Ning Que repeated it seriously.


    "If I don¡¯t kill him, he¡¯ll be too old to be my enemy."


    ...


    ...


    General Xia Hou first went to the pce to meet the Emperor after he returned to Chang¡¯an. He was awarded the royal rank in the meeting and received much respect and honor.


    After that, he turned down some ministers¡¯ invitations and went to the Military Ministry. It was said that he spent a whole afternoon in the tower beside the Vermilion Bird Street and had a long conversation with General Xu Shi.


    Xia Hou left the Military Ministry when it waste. He was protected by his private soldiers and went to the Prince¡¯s Mansion in the Northern City.


    The mansion was brightly lit at night. After having dinner in a friendly atmosphere, the Prince, Li Peiyan brought him to his study room.


    On the ck table were a few files with a lot of characters on them. Some of them were new and some were old. There were a lot of names on the files and each of them wasmented.


    Zhang Yiqi, Chen Zixian, Yan Suqing, Lin Ling, Gu Xi, Huang Xing, Yu Shuizhu...


    They were normal citizens, officers or soldiers. However, they had two things inmon, one was they were all used to be members of Tang¡¯s Military, and the other was that they had all died.


    Li Peiyan looked at the names and said, "Their deaths suggest that a man who should have died long ago is alive."


    Xia Hou pointed at a name and said with no expression, "This man wasn¡¯t involved in that case."


    "But he took part in the Yan territory event."


    Li Peiyan sighed and pushed the files away. He looked at Xia Hou and said worriedly, "Even if we have no evidence, these names and what they did are all connected. They tell us that what we were concerned about is happening. These indicate that someone rted to the Xuanwei General is alive."


    Thinking of Lin Guangyuan¡¯s name, Xia Hou frowned his eyebrows tightly.


    How was he able to forget who Lin Guangyuan was?


    A dozen years ago, there was a Xuanwei General in Tang, and his name was Lin Guangyuan. At that time, all people considered him as the second valiant general after Xia Hou.


    In the first year of Tianqi era, Xia Hou exterminated Lin Guangyuan¡¯s entire family.


    He did that not because of peopleparing them like that. Even he was famous for his obduracy and barbarity, he would not exterminate an entire family with such a little provocation.


    Xia Hou narrowed his eyes slightly and looked a littleplicated.


    Since he had killed so many people in his life and he also did something crueler than that, he did not feel sorry for the Xuanwei General even if he exterminated his family.


    However, the name of Lin Guangyuan indeed reminded him of many things in the past.


    A dozen years ago, the Empress had passed away because of illness, and someone in Qinghe County was not discontented. His Majesty was tired of this, so he went to the south to y and inspect along with a concubine named Xia Tian.


    Xia Hou was ordered to return Chang¡¯an from Tuyang City with thousands of cavalry soldiers in secrecy. He was told to defend Chang¡¯an and helped the Prince with national affairs.


    Then he received a letter from the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    Facing this, if he wanted to protect what he had in his life, he had to ept their requests.


    A rain of bloodshed had covered Chang¡¯an and the Xuanwei General¡¯s family was exterminated.


    Xia Hou knew that his actions would infuriate the Empire, but he also believed that the Empire would do nothing for there was no evidence pointing at him, and because of what he had done for the country no matter how angry he was.


    He did not want his sister to be the Empress of Tang because he knew how dangerous it would be. Unfortunately, His Majesty still made his sister the Empress anyway.


    Compared with this, he did not care how much blood was on the stone lions in front of the Xuanwei General¡¯s mansion at all.


    ...


    ...


    Inside Li Peiyan¡¯s study room.


    He looked at Xia Hou and said bitterly, "It¡¯s not a big deal that a son of Lin Guangyuan is alive. However, if the boy who is trying hard to avenge his father¡¯s death has be the core disciple of the Headmaster and Mr. Thirteen on the Second floor of the Academy, that is a big problem."


    Xia Hou thought for a while and said, "You mean, Ning Que is Lin Guangyuan¡¯s son?"


    Li Peiyan sighed. "Even though I don¡¯t want to admit, there is no other exnation except for this."


    "I supervised the case by myself and there were few people who could be exempt from punishment. Since they were all temporary workers without contracts, no one was able to escape."


    Xia Hou gazed at the candlelight on the table and said, "Lin Guangyuan only had two sons and all the characteristics were in the record. I checked them by myself, too."


    "They must have been tampered by someone."


    Xia Hou thought for a while and said, "Even if Ning Que is Lin Guangyuan¡¯s son, what can he do to us?"

 Chapter 457: The Families from Qinghe County

    Chapter 457: The Families from Qinghe County


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Xia Hou¡¯s expression was calm and cold. It was like the snow outside of Tuyang City that was present even deep into spring. His lips were thin and as hard as steel. There were calmness and strength in his voice.


    The Prince had mentioned Ning Que¡¯s usible identity, but it did not cause the general to grow more vignt. This was because he was confident in how to handle this matter.


    Li Peiyan¡¯s expression rxed, possibly because he was influenced by Xia Hou¡¯s current state. He thought that since there was no evidence and his brother, the Emperor, did not do anything back then, he would not do anything about it now. It was difficult for anyone to overturn the ruling in the case of Xuanwei General¡¯s betrayal.


    The two bigwigs in the study were not concerned about whether Ning Que would deal with Xia Hou like he had with the others involved in the case. They knew that Ning Que was not capable of it.


    Even though Ning Que was a core disciple of the Headmaster and was the Academy¡¯s Mr. Thirteen, he was still just Mr. Thirteen. He was not Mr. First or Mr. Second. And even if he were, they might not be able to defeat General Xia Hou, let alone Ning Que.


    Li Peiyan said calmly, "The imperial court and General Xu Shi have all checked up on Ning Que¡¯s background. I, of course, have done my checks too. Looking at all he had done, Ning Que is a cold and cruel person but is intelligent and knows when to stop. He is good at bidding his time and would not attack if he is not certain of the situation. With your agreement with the Academy in ce, he would continue to bide his time since he is not strong enough."


    He patted Xia Hou¡¯s shoulders and said consolingly, "As long as the true supermundane from the Academy do not attack, who could be your match in Chang¡¯an?"


    Xia Hou looked at the candlelight on the table and furrowed his brows slightly. He said, "The West-Hill came to me."


    Li Peiyan expression grew solemn as he looked into the general¡¯s eyes and said warmly, "You must understand that the imperial court has been granted a rare chance thanks to the stealing of the Tomes of Arcane ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll. The academy is willing to consent to your retirement. This opportunity is fleeting and it¡¯d be unwise to hesitate at this point."


    Xia Hou was silent for a long time before he said softly, "Everyone in the world knows that. However, there are many who would not be satisfied to see me leaving Chang¡¯an like that."


    Li Peiyan thought about the news he received and his brows ticked upwards before he could stop it. He sighed and said, "You are right. The Qinghe County had sent people here too. Those old fogeys seemed to have caught a whiff of something and are here to join in making chaos. We both have to bear with it for a while at this time."


    "Nobody in the imperial court likes those from the Qinghe County, including His Majesty."


    Xia Hou said, "If necessary, I can kill a couple of people for the imperial court before I leave. Of course, that would be done with the permission of His Majesty."


    Li Peiyan thought of his royal brother who waspletely different from the man written about his history books. He smiled bitterly and said, "How could His Majesty give permission so easily with thews of the Empire."


    Xia Hou said, "Then we shall let those people from Qinghe County live for a few more days. However, if they try to upset Her Majesty, then you¡¯d have to forgive me for ignoring thews of the Tang Empire."


    Li Peiyan said, "Of course. If those people don¡¯t know what¡¯s good for them and do not understand the rtionship between His and Her Majesties, they are seeking death."


    Xia Hou said, "Then I shall take my leave."


    Li Peiyan said, "Your two sons have locked themselves in the General¡¯s Mansion since they returned to the capitalst year. They do not interact with the court officials. I know that this must be at your direction, but since you have returned, why lock the children up? Come with me to watch the song and dance at the House of Red Sleeves and bring them along."


    Xia Hou said, "I have something tomorrow. I wille and drink with Your Highness after that."


    Li Peiyan¡¯s expression wavered. He wondered what Xia Hou had to do in Chang¡¯an since he had already gone to the pce today. Xia Hou¡¯s two sons had locked themselves in the General¡¯s Mansion, and Xia Hou should know to remain silent before His Majesty¡¯s edictes down. What business did he have that he was willing that he was willing tomit an offense for?


    Xia Hou walked to the entrance of the study and stopped. He said, "I will treat Ning Que to drinks tomorrow."


    Li Peiyan was startled. He looked at him and said, "What do you intend to do? Have you forgotten who he is? He can¡¯t do anything to you, but if you do anything to him, do you think the Academy will remain silent?"


    Xia Hou said, "A ss of wine will disclose the past. I dare to invite him, but I want to see if he dares toe."


    ...


    ...


    Xia Hou had offended the Academy when he tried to steal the "Ming" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane in the Wilderness. It had angered His Majesty as well. However, hemanded thousands of cavalry and had won newnds for the Tang Empire. He was both powerful and had done well on the battlefield, so it was hard for the imperial court to punish him.


    Mr. First of the Academy had gone to Tuyang City to meet with Xia Hou. General Xia Hou had calmly epted his suggestion of disarming and retiring without hesitating.


    This was an ending that the Tang Empire wanted to see. No matter those in the pce, the military or the court officials, they were all very satisfied, which was why they gave Xia Hou their utmost respect and treatment that his position afforded.


    However, there wasn¡¯t anything in the world that could satisfy everyone. The Devil¡¯s Doctrine existed even where Haotian¡¯s light shined and there were people who disrespected the Headmaster even before the mountains of the Academy.


    Xia Hou could not satisfy everyone as well.


    Neither Ning Que nor the West-Hill was satisfied with the conclusion to this matter. The king of Yan Kingdom and its people who have been bullied by Xia Hou¡¯s cavalry for decades had been waiting for the Tang Emperor and his officials to fall out and for Xia Hou to be a pathetic dog were dissatisfied too. There were even some powerful people within the Tang Empire who were disappointed.


    The powerful man mentioned by the Prince was the families from Qinghe County.


    Qinghe County was to the southeast of the Tang Empire. It was prosperous and was rich in culture. There were many bigwigs who came from the county. There were seven families that led the county, the Cuis, Chengs, Songs and a few others.


    The seven families of Qinghe County were seven Dominant Families with a long-spanning history. It was said that they have been around for longer than the Tang Empire. The Great Divine Priest of West-Hill Divine Pce was from one of these seven families.


    The Tang Empire had begun a thousand years ago because of its strong cavalry. The West-Hill Divine Pce had secretly gathered many other countries to form an allied army against the Tangs, but were not able to prevent a superpower from emerging. However, even with the current state of things then, Qinghe County had been outside the borders of Tang in the southeast. They did not bow down to the pressure asserted upon them by Chang¡¯an and began an independent government and economy due to the protection that the seven dominant family afforded.


    This continued for more than ten years.


    The Tang Empire¡¯s cavalry rode north to the Central ins and conquered the tribes andnds of the Deste Man. They even seeded in driving them out of the grasnd and towards the cold region in the Far North. Chang¡¯an¡¯s power rose to a rare unprecedented state. Everyone began to look up to them.


    It was then, when the seven dominant families of Qinghe County decided to surrender.


    There were plenty of things to be done in the founding of the Tang Empire. There were many counties that had to be brought into governance and the people needed to find their footing. The Zhu family of Qinghe County was world renowned and so Taizu, the founder of the Tang Empire who had done everything to exterminate a certain tribe in the grasnd because they had massacred a vige, chose a conciliatory approach towards the Qinghe County. This matter became one that involved the nation¡¯s policy and waster recorded in the Emperor¡¯sst testament.


    In the early years of the Tang Empire, the building of the Academy at the south of Chang¡¯an had just beenpleted. Their enrollment numbers were small and the imperial court chose its officers through imperial examinations. Aspared to several other counties who were just beginning to get enough food and learn literacy, Qinghe County that was rich in history was at an advantage in the examinations.


    In those years, noble students from Qinghe Couty continued to clear the examinations and enter Chang¡¯an. Almost half of those selected came from Qinghe County. Several key positions in the imperial court were helmed by the seven families of Qinghe County.


    And because of the policy written in Taizu¡¯s testament, the royal family of the Tang Empire was extremely courteous to Qinghe County. They intermarried often and there had been three consecutive Empresses who came from the seven families of Qinghe County.


    Many sages worried that as time went by, the Tang Empire would be ruled by the Qinghes instead of the Lis. They worried that the Lis would eventually be run over by those from Qinghe County.


    And it was proven, that the Tang Empire that had conquered the world on horseback and brandishing a knife would not be conquered by words. The Emperors of Tang from the very beginning all took up the ruling style of their ancestors. They ruled from the dragon throne while keeping an iron grip on the empire¡¯s strong military power.


    In the fourth year of Conghua nearly 900 years ago, the Emperor then was only 14. Under the pressure of his mother and the court officials, he stayed silent and studied for four whole years.


    Just two years before he came into power, the Empress dowager who was from the Song family of Qinghe County attempted to defy the deceased Emperor¡¯sst testament. She attempted to have her brother to hold a position as Grand Secretary while vesting in his military power. It was then, when the young Emperor stretched out his weak and thin hand from beneath his sleeves.


    That hand held the Tang military power. And the military power was a cruel de.


    That evening, riders rode out of the imperial city towards the Grand Secretary Mansion of Song Grand Secretary and blood was shed. Several officials shed blood and tears at court next morning, using the Emperor of being violent and cruel.


    The young Emperor sat on the dragon throne and listened coldly to the news that came from outside of the pce walls. Then, he waved his hand wearily. It wasn¡¯t a signal for retreat, because the young Emperor did not release an edict about the crimemitted, but had those people punished in court instead.


    On the same day, outside the Imperial Pce, 148 court officials died from the beatings. Their blood stained their official uniforms and the green floor tiles. The color of their blood seemed to be several shades darker than the pce walls.


    That night, the young Emperor came to the Academy, escorted by his bodyguards and the Yulin Royal Guards.


    No one knew what he spoke about or whom he spoke with in the Academy. The next day, an edict was issued. The Empress dowager from Qinghe County who thought that she had more ambition than any other Empress before was thrown into the Cold Pce. No one saw her again after that.


    In the days that followed, officials from counties all over the Tang Empire who hade from Qinghe County wrote in letters pleading for forgiveness or pledging their loyalty. Some were captured and imprisoned by the secret guard. Many lost their lives and arge gloomy cloud brewed over Chang¡¯an, causing deep unrest.


    The turmoil in court and the messy politics caused serious impact to the Tang¡¯s power. However, the young Emperor was like any other of his ancestors of the Li family. He demonstrated a strong will at that moment, and was willing to die for the nation. He did not hesitate to get rid of anyone who would go against him.


    After this incident, the power that the Qinghe County had gathered over decades waspletely destroyed. The strength of the seven families was severely impaired. What was even more crucial, was that the proud and confident dominant families finally understood a fact.


    No matter how great their family names were, no matter how long a history their family had, they were but just bunnies under the butcher¡¯s knife in the eyes of the Li royal family should they dare to cross the line.

 Chapter 458: The Fisherman and the Invitation

    Chapter 458: The Fisherman and the Invitation


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The blood and heads of their tribesman forced those from the Qinghe County to emerge from their daze. No matter how much they tried to sway the public opinion in this matter, they did not gain any sympathy but only ire. They were shocked by how odd that was.


    After some time, they discovered something even more shocking.


    Those who were selected to be sent to Chang¡¯an as Empresses were bound to be the most outstanding and intelligent women of Qinghe County¡¯s families. They had been educated for many years. However, other than the Empress dowager from the Song family who had been imprisoned during the era of Conghua, the Empresses were all known for their virtuous and demure nature. They did not speak about court matters or on behalf of the families from Qinghe County. That was when the families realized that the intelligent Empresses had long understood who held the power in this world.


    There wasn¡¯t a country that could escape thews of historical development, not even the invincible Tang Empire. With peace and stability and a war that could not be continued, the Empire eventually fell into disarray. However,pared with the once glorious empire written about in history books poured over by those from the Qinghe County, thews of historical development were evidently weaker in the Tang Empire. The rot was slow and whenever a major change was about to ur, a power would right it again. It would repair the Tang Empire like it was a broken horse carriage and lead it back to the right path.


    With the rise of Tang¡¯s national power, the royal family became increasingly powerful. After many years of suppression, the citizens of Qinghe County had long surrendered. The crux of the matter was that the Academy had reced the role of the imperial examinations. The families of Qinghe Couty did not have as much glory as they did a thousand years ago, and their strength and power weakened.


    However, these families from Qinghe County were after all families with history that spanned millennia. As they changed their attitudes and grew loyal to Chang¡¯an, and with permission from the royals, these families returned to the stage.


    These families from Qinghe County were still undeniably powerful in court. They sponsored several schrs as well. Even though their military power was just a fraction of what it once was, no one knew if there was a Grand Cultivator in the Knowing destiny State hidden within these families.


    That was why it was every man¡¯s dream to win marry a girl from Qinghe County even until today. The wife of the Imperial Library Grand Secretary, Zeng Jing, was from the Cui family of Qinghe.


    However, these families from Qinghe County once enjoyed glory and honor and upied more than half the seats in court. There were several Great Divine Priests of West-Hill who hade from Qinghe County. Would they be satisfied with the present situation?


    The dominant families were a cold and cruel. They strove for benefits instinctively, and thus would not stage a rebellion. They were so restrained they were almost forgotten by the world. However, deep in their bones, they yearned to upy a higher position in the Tang Empire. They wanted more power. Over the past centuries, there were nine Empresses who came from Qinghe County. This was the fruit of their efforts. And in the past decade, they had tried to make it ten.


    The Emperor had just ascended the throne then. Her Majesty had taken ill and passed on and several officials from Qinghe County felt that this was an opportunity. And like vultures eyeing carrion, they gathered all their power in and outside court, sending seven of the most outstanding and beautiful girls from the seven families into the pce. After some nning, gold exchanged hands and the Emperor had an idental encounter with the girl. This was the beginning of a heart-wrenching story.


    However, as the officials from Qinghe County tried their best to create a seemingly beautiful scenario, they did not know that a bigwig called Lotus had already hatched a simr ploy.


    Lotus had won. The Saintess of Diabolism became the current Empress.


    Lotus had lost, because the Empress fell into the trappings of love. She had long forgotten the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s mission.


    The various officials from Qinghe County were even worse off. Not only were they disappointed, they had also offended the Empress. This meant that they had offended the Prince and General Xia Hou.


    The Emperor was the only true victor.


    ...


    ...


    Even though the officials from Qinghe County had lost, their daring to hatch such a plot was proof of power and confidence that their families had. The impressive Zhong family of Yangguan City was but just the weakest branch family of the seven families of Qinghe County.


    For more than a decade, the Qinghe families went about quietly without attracting attention to themselves since they had offended the Empress as well as several bigwigs in Chang¡¯an. This was especially so for the elders who did not dare to enter the capital. It wasn¡¯t until the Imperial Astronomer had made a prophecy about night skies nketing stars when the situation changed.


    Everyone knew that the Emperor and Empress were close. Furthermore, the Empress looked as if she had not aged, and did not seem like she would die early. The Qinghe County would not have a chance to rece her again. Fortunately, there was still the princess who the Emperor doted on.


    The families of Qinghe County would never be well-treated by the Empress. That was why they did not hesitate to throw their support behind the princess. To be exact, they supported the princess who supported Prince Li Huiyuan.


    In a mansion in the Southern City of Chang¡¯an, was a study at the back courtyard. There was an old man sitting in it calmly. This man was from the Song n, and was sponsored by them. He even held a position in the imperial court.


    This man had been a visiting professor of the Imperial Center Administration 20 years ago. However, he knew that his identity as a visiting professor was a reward for the Song n of Qinghe County from the imperial court. That was why he had never bothered with matters in the Imperial Center Administration. In fact, he had never been to Chang¡¯an, but he had finallye today.


    General Xia Hou was about to retire. Her Majesty¡¯s power appeared to have weakened. However, to those from Qinghe County, Xia Hou¡¯s retirement had sessfully resolved the estrangement between both parties. They did not wish to see Xia Hou leaving Chang¡¯an with a smile.


    Censor Song Ke stood before the old man respectfully with a bitter expression. He said, "Third Master, the imperial court has long decided and everyone knows what His Majesty is thinking. There aren¡¯t many who are willing to submit a letter. Even though it is not a crime to report an official based on rumors, this involves the general. So we have to be very careful."


    The Minister of Offerings frowned and thought about his n in its heyday. He said in a slightly hoarse voice, "To think that the chief magistrate used to be from our n. Contacting a few censors and having them submit letters was just a simple task. It wasn¡¯t as difficult as it is now. Do not be troubled though, forget it if it doesn¡¯t work."


    The censor did not dare to say anything else, however, he was visibly more rxed.


    "It seems that we can only ce our hopes on Mr. Thirteen now."


    The old Minister of Offerings said expressionlessly, "If this incident were to really happen, the Academy would definitely be at odds with General Xia Hou. How would the Empress¡¯ son ascend the dragon throne then?"


    The censor was not a cultivator. Even though he knew that there were many officials in court who came from the Academy, he did not understand the old man¡¯s reasoning. He wondered what right the Academy had to decide on who would inherit the throne.


    The old Minister of Offerings sighed and said, "That Mr. Thirteen is not afraid of thews of the Tang Empire. He killed Huang Xing and Yu Shuizhu on the rainy streets because he was strong enough and was confident that nobody would get the goods on him. However, he is not as strong as Xia Hou. If I were him, I wouldn¡¯t know where to begin either. No matter how fast his state raised over the past two years, he is no match for Xia Hou. Xia Hou can kill him with just a finger."


    The censor was confused and asked subconsciously, "Are we going to help Mr. Thirteen secretly?"


    The old Minister of Offerings nced at him and his white brows furrowed. He lectured, "Xia Hou¡¯s retirement was engineered by the Academy. If Ning Que insists on breaking the rules, the Academy would neither help nor stop him. It is highly possible that they will just watch from the sidelines. However, he is the Headmaster¡¯s student and is from the Academy. If we interfere in the matter, do you think that the Academy would not dare do anything to Qinghe County?"


    The censor smiled awkwardly as he thought to himself, "If the n does not dare to interfere in the matter, wouldn¡¯t the old man be thought to be unreasonable foring to Chang¡¯an?"


    The old Minister of Offerings could guess what this distant nephew of his was thinking but did not exin. Instead, he slowly shut his eyes. He did not need to pretend to have already thought of a ploy because he was still thinking hard. He thought of how Mr. Thirteen of the Academy could defeat Xia Hou.


    If Ning Que did not understand how to defeat Xia Hou, the battle would never begin. If the old Minister of Offerings did not understand how to defeat Xia Hou, then the families of Qinghe and the princess would not benefit from this matter.


    ...


    ...


    The officials from Qinghe County were baffled like many in Chang¡¯an. As rumors about Ning Que¡¯s identity spread, the bigwigs in the pce began to think of what Ning Que would do without the support of the Academy.


    Those bigwigs who could vaguely guess between the lines, like the prince, had never been fooled by Ning Que¡¯s flippant and shameless pretense. They knew that he was a person who had strong self-control and was extremely rational. He was a man who was cold and cruel because of this.


    Ning Que would not take action at the moment that was seemingly hopeless. The bigwigs thought long and hard on behalf of Ning Que but could not find any semnce of hope. Thus, they began to rx and felt that Chang¡¯an would be peaceful this autumn and that there would not be any problems between the Academy and the military.


    It was then when news reached the pce, the princess and the court officials from the General¡¯s Mansion. The bigwigs thus grew restless and uneasy.


    General Xia Hou had invited Ning Que, Mr. Thirteen of the Academy to a banquet held at his mansion tonight.


    In the estate by the Yanming Lake.


    Ye Hongyu looked at Ning Que, who was shrouded in the shadow cast by the eucalyptus tree. She suddenly asked, "I only know now why you need strength."


    Ning Que said, "No wonder you were the Grand Master of the Divine Hall¡¯s Judicial Department. You have received such intelligence even after you¡¯ve escaped from the Peach Mountain and retreated into Chang¡¯an."


    Ye Hongyu said, "You¡¯d of course have to take revenge on those who killed your father. However, this might not be the best time for it. You can¡¯t even beat me now, how can you kill Xia Hou?"


    Ning Que said, "When did I say I was going to kill Xia Hou?"


    "Instincts."


    Ye Hongyu said calmly, "Thiske, the house by theke, Sangsang¡¯s cooking, your breathing, and the scent in this garden. They all tell me that you are preparing to kill someone."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "Killing someone is against thew of the Tang Empire. Teacher and Eldest Brother have forbidden me from doing so."


    Ye Hongyu said, "Then why are you going to the banquet?"


    Ning Que smiled and said, "There¡¯s free food, why not? I can¡¯t beat him now, neither can I kill him. So I can only eat all the delicacies at his mansion as a form of revenge."


    Naturally, Ye Hongyu did not believe him. She said, "If a dispute happens between you and Xia Hou, the Divine Hall would benefit from it. I will not stop you."


    Ning Que said, "I have asked Sangsang to prepare supper, so I wille back alive."


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 459: Yellow Leaves and the White Chess Piece

    Chapter 459: Yellow Leaves and the White Chess Piece


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The General¡¯s Mansion did not prepare delicacies for the banquet tonight. The long table set in the courtyard between the autumn trees was dark. And on it, were several normal dishes that held an awe-inspiring aura. There were not many servants by the table either. Instead, Xia Hou¡¯s two sons were the one arranging the dishes on the table. This was very different from the rumored extravagance that General Xia Hou enjoyed.


    The entire Chang¡¯an was watching the banquet. However, the atmosphere at the banquet was not as hostile as what some imagined. Xia Hou and Ning Que sat at opposite ends of the table and ate quietly. They would asionally talk about the Wilderness and what had happened in the Front Gate.


    The simple banquet ended simply. The maidservants streamed in one after another and removed the dishes silently. Then, they brought two azure teapots.


    Xia Hou¡¯s sons served Ning Que tea and then bade farewell politely. They walked out of the gardens and asked the maidservants and stewards to vacate the area before guarding outside themselves.


    The teapots and teacups were azure. They looked bold but mild. The tea within it was ck tea, a gentle tea. Even the temperature of the tea was just right.


    Ning Que looked at the teapot carefully. He reached out to touch the cup and then looked up at Xia Hou. He looked at him intensely just like how he looked at the teapot or how he had looked at Prince Li Peiyan when they met for the first time in the halls of the Academy. He looked at Xia Hou as if he wanted to imprint his image in his mind.


    Xia Hou looked at the tea leaves floating in the water. He knew that Ning Que was staring at him, and the corners of his lips twitched upward. He said, "Do you want to see clearly how your enemy looks like? You did not stare so openly in Tuyang City."


    Ning Que did not deny nor acknowledge what Xia Hou said. He turned the azure teacup in his hands and said, "The person I respected most in Tuyang City was my Eldest Brother, not you."


    Xia Hou slowly raised his head when he heard this.


    The floating tea leaves sank to the bottom of the cup as if they had been heavily impacted.


    Ning Que lowered his head.


    Xia Hou looked at him expressionlessly.


    The autumn breeze picked up in the courtyard, causing the trees to rustle. Numerous thin yellow leaves were blown off the branches andnded on the long table and ground before the two. The chill in the atmosphere grew.


    If it was anyone else, they would be frightened or even nervous in the face of General Xia Hou¡¯s power and the chill in the autumn breeze and yellow leaves. They would grow frightened and nervous thinking about the deep-seated hatred between the two. However, Ning Que did not. His face was devoid of any expression.


    Xia Hou looked at his eyes and suddenly said without any warning, "Are you Lin Guangyuan¡¯s son?"


    Ning Que looked at the darkening tea in his cup and shook his head.


    The autumn breeze with a chilling aura swirled in the courtyard, causing more leaves to fall. The breeze swept the leaves on the table to the ground and scattered the leaves on the ground in all directions.


    Xia Hou said, "I have killed many. I do not care."


    Ning Que finally raised his head. He looked at Xia Hou and said, "General, you are powerful."


    The yellow leaves on the ground were scattered in all directions by the wind and stopped at the wall. They looked likeyers of wavespping on the bank.


    Xia Hou said, "Somtimes, you have to get over with your hatred, if even you cannot."


    The fallen leaves piled higher and higher against the walls. The leaves on the top fell only to be swirled up by the wind once more. The chilling aura and the autumn breeze did not let any leaf escape.


    Just like their conversation. Xia Hou¡¯s three separate statements did not seem to have any links to each other, but they forced their way forward without giving Ning Que an opportunity to retreat.


    Ning Que looked at the struggling leaves at the corner of the walls and asked, "Please, teach me."


    Xia Hou looked at him, deadpanned, "You can¡¯t touch me."


    Ning Que turned and said, "But you dare not touch me."


    One cannot be touched and one dared not touch. The two did not sound any different, but the difference was huge. The first statement implied that Ning Que did not have the ability to touch and the second implied that Xia Hou was not brave enough to touch.


    Xia Hou said, "That is why we have to solve this hatred even if it cannot be solved. Or perhaps you can wait another 20 years for me to be truly old and weak."


    "Then you¡¯d definitely be dying, and you¡¯d have enjoyed 20 years of good life."


    Ning Que looked at him and smiled, "Of course, I¡¯m just pointing out the facts. Please do not misunderstand, general. Actually, I feel that since you are ready to retire, you shouldn¡¯t say such ominous things."


    Xia Hou¡¯s eyes narrowed slightly when he heard that and a faint emotion appeared on his tanned face. He said, "No matter the imperial court or West-Hill, they all think that I can retire safely. And I should be satisfied with that. However, I am not. The cavalry under my control can make a clean sweep of this country. Furthermore, I am a general with numerous des, but the imperial court and His Majesty treat me coldly just because of that little incident that happened then. Why else, if not for this, would I go to the Wilderness and steal the Tomes of Arcane? Would the situation have be what it is right now?"


    Ning Que asked "General, are you trying to exin yourself to me?"


    Xia Hou did not hide his contempt for him, and said mockingly, "If you were not lucky enough to have the Headmaster as your teacher, what right would you have to sit before me? Even so, what right do you have for me to exin to you? I just want you to know that I¡¯m not in a good mood right now."


    Ning Que said, "General, what you have said had turned the massacre in Chang¡¯an and Yan territory into a small incident. This doesn¡¯t put me in a good mood either."


    Someone had finally talked about what had happened back then at this point in the conversation.


    "I do not need to care how you¡¯re feeling."


    Xia Hou looked at him and coldly said, "I have already said, you can¡¯t touch me. And since I am not in a good mood, you have to care about that. That¡¯s because if you make me angry, I can crush you like an ant. I advise you to keep me in a good mood in the days before I leave Chang¡¯an."


    Ning Que shook his head, "I can¡¯t think how you¡¯re going to crush me."


    "I can do it anytime in this garden."


    Xia Hou said expressionlessly, "Mr. Thirteen of the Academy wanted to assassinate the general, but failed miserably and was crushed into bits by the general."


    Ning Que drank the tepid tea and smiled, "Crush me... General, if you do that, your mansion and your family whom you¡¯re sending back home would be crushed by teacher."


    There was only one person in the Tang Empire who could silence Xia Hou. It was never the Emperor, but the Headmaster of the Academy.


    Xia Hou looked at him and said, "Just as you have said previously, I do not dare to touch you. You cannot touch me, so I hold the upper hand. If you try anything before I leave Chang¡¯an and do something that I cannot bear, I will try to touch you."


    Ning Que asked seriously, "Is this a threat?"


    Xia Hou said, "I am teaching you, that having an influential background is useless before life and death. You can only trust your abilities."


    Ning Que looked at him and smiled. He said, "Back then, Youngest Uncle had destroyed the Devil¡¯s Doctrine with a sword. General, you discovered then, that your influential background had disappeared with that. Is that why you turned your back on your sect and joined the West-Hill? It is different for me. The Headmaster is not Lotus, and the Academy isn¡¯t the Devil¡¯s Doctrine either. General, you may rest assured."


    Ning Que¡¯s words had shed light on Xia Hou¡¯s deepest and darkest secrets. It was like pping him in the face. General Xia Hou¡¯s face flushed.


    It wasn¡¯t because he was drunk.


    He had drunk tea tonight.


    General Xia Hou¡¯s face was flushed with anger.


    Ning Que had dared to mock him because he knew that no matter how violent and blood-thirsty the general was, he would not dare to do anything to him because he came from the Academy.


    Indeed, Xia Hou looked at him silently like he was a fallen leaf on the table. The red flush on his face subsided and he calmed himself down. He said, "Please leave."


    Ning Que lightly shook off the leaves that had fallen onto his ck Academy uniform. He did not bow or bade his farewells to Xia Hou. Instead, he straightened and left the garden.


    The autumn breeze quietened and the leaves that had been pushed against the corner in a pile spread apart.


    Xia Hou¡¯s sons walked into the garden and looked at their father silently. They wanted to speak, but changed their minds.


    "It¡¯s nothing."


    Xia Hou said with an unreadable expression, "A person who dares not acknowledge his family before the man who killed his father might be intelligent, calm and rational. But all of these qualities are meaningless."


    "I sat across him, but he dared not take revenge for his family. It is the greatest shame of all, and he knew that. That is why he felt so ashamed and used his words to shame me."


    "He came today to make himself feel better. But he only knew how to use his mouth and not his hands. How can a boy whocks courage that is necessary to be a powerhouse be fit to be my enemy?"


    ...


    ...


    General Xia Hou¡¯s inviting Ning Que to a banquet was an important event in Chang¡¯an. Several bigwigs began to worry when Ning Que entered the General¡¯s Mansion. There were many spying on the event who then reported back to the pce and some other ces.


    No one knew what exactly happened at the banquet, but since Ning Que had left alive, nothing much must have happened. General Xia Hou did not attack, and nobody thought that it was possible for Ning Que to kill Xia Hou and walk out of the mansion without any trace of blood on him.


    In the imperial study, the Emperor thought hard. In a hall not far away, the empress and Grand Secretary Zeng Jing looked at each other. General Xu Shi who had been waiting at the Military Ministry listened to the report and nodded. The old Minister of Offerings of Qinghe County at the censor¡¯s mansion felt a little regretful.


    On the top floor of Wanyan Tower, Nation Master Li Qingshan stood by the stone windows and looked at the direction of the General¡¯s Mansion. He said, pleased, "I have always been worried about Ning Que¡¯s character. It seems that he is indeed more concerned about the bigger picture now after studying under the Headmaster for so long. Senior Brother Yan Se was right to pass his mantle and the array eye onto him."


    Master Huang Yang smiled at him and did not say anything.


    Li Qingshan walked away from the windows and to the desk. He pushed some Buddhist scriptures away and pulled out some ck and white chess pieces and tossed them down casually.


    He had not recovered from his injuries, but wanted to do something because of his good mood. His divination this time was casual, and he had no wish to peek into the secrets of heaven. He just wanted to see if he was lucky enough to sense something.


    A clean white chess piece began to spin. It spun faster and faster until it left the table and fell onto the hard ground.


    There was a loud tter, and the white chess piece broke into two.


    The break was clean as if it had been cleaved apart by a sharp sword.


    Li Qingshan stared at the white chess piece in a daze. His expression grew grave.


    Huang Yang frowned and said in surprise, "That is a scary sword... could it be that Liu Bai hase to Chang¡¯an?"

 Chapter 460: Look at the Other Charms of Changan

    Chapter 460: Look at the Other Charms of Chang¡¯an


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The autumn breeze entered the city. Chang¡¯an knew naught of any worry.


    The autumn harvest from each county was sent into the city. The harvest was bountiful this year, and the wrinkled faces of the farmers in the countryside rxed. Those from the city smiled more too. Leaves from the Ginkgo trees fell, carpeting the floor, bringing a refreshing look to the city.


    Like in other seasons, together with the grains came many tourists from other counties and countries. One of them was a man in a white shirt.


    There was some dust on the man¡¯s shirt. He had a long sword on his back and looked calm and gentle. Few could notice the carefully hidden pride and coldness in his eyes.


    He walked amongst the crowd on the streets of Chang¡¯an. Even though all he could see were the heads of other people, all he thought of was the old towers of Chang¡¯an that had existed for millennia.


    This was the bustling world-ss city of Chang¡¯an. This man in in clothes seemed not to sense the bustle. To be more exact, his body was in the bustling mortal world, but his mind was not.


    Over the years, he had only existed physically in and outside of the mortal world. His heart had always been in the supermundane world. That was why he did not see the bustle or the people.


    A few children waving popsicles and fruit sticks ran past the man. There was a crying girl, who almost wiped her tears on him. He frowned and looked at the girl¡¯s retreating back and shook his head slowly.


    He had looked at the streets without seeing the people in it while feeling the aura of the millennia-old city. However, he had lost all interest in it after being disturbed by the children.


    He stood before a stall and looked at the short owner who was threading fruit on sticks in a practiced move, and then put the sticks into a pot of syrup and turned them. He suddenly lost interest and turned to walk to the north of the city.


    ...


    ...


    At the top of Wanyan Tower.


    Li Qingshan touched the white chess piece that had broken into two. He looked at the clean, shiny break with a heavy expression. There was a sense of loss and emotion in his surprise as he asked, "You¡¯vee to Chang¡¯an? It seems like the situation is about to be even more troublesome."


    Huang Yang furrowed his brows and asked, "Is it really the Sage of Sword, Liu Bai?"


    Li Qingshan shook his head and sighed, "It¡¯s not Liu Bai, but someone even more troublesome."


    Huang Yang said in mild shock, "Is there someone whom you think is more troublesome than Liu Bai?"


    Li Qingshan said, "Indeed."


    Then, he turned to look at Huang Yang with a grave expression, "I have to go and wee that person. If that person doesn¡¯t leave Chang¡¯an in the next few days, you have to stay in the pce."


    Huang Yang listened to him and did not say anything. He prepared to enter the pce immediately.


    He understood what Li Qingshan¡¯s intentions. The powerhouse who hade to Chang¡¯an had the ability to threaten His Majesty. They needed to work together to keep His Majesty safe. That was why Huang Yang had to stay in the pce when Li Qingshan went to greet the powerhouse.


    How many people were there who could threaten the emperor within Chang¡¯an?


    There were a few.


    ...


    ...


    The Haotian Southern Gate Temple was located at the north of the city and was very close to the pce.


    Li Qingshan stood at the entrance of the temple. He looked at the red pce walls silently. No one could tell that he was extremely anxious.


    As the autumn breeze blew and the leaves fell, the man in a white shirt walked from the entrance of the street. His dressing was ordinary and only his bun indicated where he was from.


    Li Qingshan looked at him and bowed calmly. "Greetings, Mr. Ye Su."


    The man was the World Wayfarer of Haotian Taoism, Ye Su.


    Ye Su returned the greeting serenely, "Greetings, Immortal Li."


    His way of addressing Li Qingshan was very interesting. He did not call him the Nation Master or the Great Divine Priest, but Immortal instead. It was a way of addressing that was used by Haotian Taoism.


    Historically, the abbey dean of South School of Haotian Taoism usually served as the Tang Nation Master. It was a highly respected position that could bepared to the three Great Divine Priests on the Peach Mountain of the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    While Ye Su didn¡¯t have a position in the Divine Hall, his position was special in the Haotian Taoism sect since he was a World Wayfarer. He was equal to the three Great Divine Priests of West-Hill.


    Li Qingshan had visited the Zhishou Abbey for the first and only time in the year when he was named a Great Divine Priest. He knew that the simple and somewhat rundown Taoist temple was where the true spirit of Haotian Taoismy. That was why he couldn¡¯t help but be vignt when facing this person from the Zhishou Abbey.


    The man with a simple bun and a sword on his back before him was no ordinary person. He was the legendary Ye Su, the true powerhouse of the younger generation in the Haotian Taoism sect. His abilities rivaled that of the three Great Divine Priests of Divine Hall. There were rumors that his true state was equal to that of Liu Bai.


    As the Tang Nation Master, Li Qingshan was already at the highest peak of the secr world in Haotian Taoism. Ye Su¡¯s identity and abilities did not surprise him. However, what truly worried him was that the rumors had said that Ye Su would not step foot into the mortal world. So why had hee to Chang¡¯an and appeared before the eyes of everyone?


    It was fortunate that Ye Su had gone to the Southern Gate Temple right after he entered Chang¡¯an. Li Qingshan understood his intentions and rxed slightly.


    "I heard that the Tang Empire manages cultivators strictly. Foreign cultivators have to register themselves at the Imperial Center Administration when they enter Chang¡¯an. I do not wish to interact with the mortals, so I hope that Immortal, you, can help me with it."


    Ye Su calmly said.


    Li Qingshan was slightly startled when he heard that.


    Thews of the Tang Empire did indeed have such a regtion. Foreign cultivators had to register at the Imperial Center Administration when they entered Chang¡¯an, or they would be viewed as enemies of the imperial court. However, even the strictest rules could be enforced only on the right people. They could only restrict those who could be restricted. How would it be possible to affect a person like Ye Su?


    However, Ye Su did not seem to understand that. He hade to the South Gates for help in registering and it was his first thing after he entered Chang¡¯an. It sounded rather interesting, but there were slight undertones hidden beneath the request.


    Li Qingshan understood what Ye Su wanted. He smiled and said, "I would not dare to refuse."


    A Taoist from the Southern Gate Temple would settle the simple issue of registering at the Imperial Center Administration. Li Qingshan invited Ye Su into the temple for tea and tried to find out why he hade.


    Ye Su said, "I only came to travel and do not wish to startle too many people or cause any misunderstandings. I will just walk about over the next few days."


    After the words, he turned and left the Southern Gate Temple and walked towards the Vermilion Bird Avenue.


    On the streets, Ye Su¡¯s figure grew fainter and fainter as if he was immersed into the fallen leaves and autumn. Li Qingshan looked with furrowed brows, thinking about something.


    That man was from an Unknown ce.


    That man was the World Wayfarer of Haotian Taoism.


    Even though he had said that he did not wish to startle many, such a terrifying person walking about Chang¡¯an was bound to startle too many people.


    It would be hard to find peace in Chang¡¯an from today on.


    ...


    ...


    Ye Su followed the rolling leaves into a road leading south after leaving the Southern Gate Temple and walking on the Vermilion Bird Avenue. It didn¡¯t take him long to reach the famous Vermilion Bird stone painting.


    He looked at the lifelike painting and felt the hidden aura from within. He did not speak for a long time. Even with his high state, he could not help but feel in awe of those who had built Chang¡¯an and turned it into a God-stunning big tactical array.


    Then, he continued walking aimlessly, just like what he told Li Qingshan. He crossed through streets apanied by the yelling of vendors. He looked at kites and fetched some water from a well when he got thirsty. He did not stop walking.


    In a quiet street, he saw a simple Taoist temple. There was a priest preaching on West-Hill ssics at the entrance. There were a handful of people sitting on stools who listened to him intently. asionally, there would be someone who would raise their hand to ask a question.


    Ye Su stood in the crowd and listened to the preaching silently. He felt that the teachings were vastly different from the ones he had heard in other ces. He was especially unused to the questions and doubts raised by those listeners and even felt annoyance and hatred.


    A middle-aged man noticed him standing behind. He saw that Ye Su looked foreign and thought that he must be a tourist from other counties. He stood up and invited Ye Su to sit enthusiastically.


    Ye Su was unused to the enthusiasm that seemed to be inborn in those from Chang¡¯an. After pausing for a moment, he shook his head to refuse the offer. He looked at the taoist priest standing on the stone steps who stuttered slightly. His expression grew ugly as he watched the taoist priest stammer as he tried to answer the benign questions the masses had.


    Haotian Taoism was Ye Su¡¯s home and country. Even though the Southern Gate Temple was independent of the West-Hill Divine Pce, it was still a ce where he belonged to. That was why he went to meet Li Qingshan first thing after he entered Chang¡¯an. That was why he would often visit Taoist temples under covered when he traveled.


    In Taoist temples in other countries, some priests might be greedy or stupid, but at least they enjoyed utmost respect and glory. He had never seen believers who would dare question the preaching Taoist priest. And he could never imagine that believers would dare to doubt what was recorded in the ssics.


    Believers of Haotian should obey the ssics and not doubt it. No matter whether they had reasons to doubt it or not, it was sphemy the moment they began to doubt.


    This was Ye Su¡¯s way of looking at things.


    Someone beside him spoke.


    "What do you think?"


    The person who spoke was a schr in old robes. He looked extremely clean-cut, and there was a waterdle tied to his waist. He did not hold that old book in his hands today.


    Ye Su looked at the schr. After a long silence, he said, "This is Chang¡¯an, so my views are not as important as yours."


    The schr was Eldest Brother of the Academy.


    Eldest Brother smiled, "If I remember correctly, this is your first visit to Chang¡¯an. Since you¡¯re here, stay for a couple days more. You might think differently after you¡¯ve seen more."


    Ye Su said, "I hope so."

 Chapter 461: Discussing Taoism on the Streets

    Chapter 461: Discussing Taoism on the Streets


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In the end, the taoist priest on the stone steps managed to control the crowd and did not allow the questioning to continue. He waved his arm around vigorously and spat a lot, talking about the meanings of the ssics. His expression was sometimes solemn, passionate, benevolent and stern.


    The handful of people listened intently. They would lean forward at times, and backwards at times as they listened about miracles performed by Haotian at certain ces. They could not help but marvel as they listened to the deeds performed martyrs and felt sympathy and a desire to be like them.


    Eldest Brother and Ye Su went unnoticed. Even though they were both extremely impressive figures in the Academy and the Haotian Taoism, they did not look special outwardly.


    After a short conversation, the two greeted each other officially. Ye Su held up a hand and ced his fist against it. He said calmly with his head slightly lowered, "Greetings, Mr. First."


    Eldest Brother greeted him solemnly. "Greetings, Mr. Ye."


    Ye Su said, "I had thought that Mr. Second would appear first."


    Eldest Brother said with smile, "Teacher is worried that if Jun Moes, the two of you will fight and turn Chang¡¯an into ruins. Thus, Jun Mo is currently locked up at the back of the mountain."


    Hearing the word teacher, Ye Su thought of the Headmaster of the Academy who was respected by many people in the cultivation world. After a moment of silence, he said seriously, "Do you think I could meet the Headmaster?"


    Eldest Brother said, "I will ask my teacher about it."


    Ye Su said, "I have troubled you, Mr. First."


    Eldest Brother looked into his eyes and suddenly asked, "Have youe to visit Chang¡¯an or Xia Hou?"


    Ye Su said, "Xia Hou is still an Elder of the Divine Hall. Furthermore, my teacher was the one who led him to the Divine Hall. He served the Haotian Taoism well. Even though he behaved improperly in the Wilderness, it doesn¡¯t negate his previous aplishments. The Haotian Taoism expects that he will have a good ending. I believe that the officials of the Tang Empire do not wish to see him being discharged after he has served his purpose."


    Eldest Brother said warmly, "The Academy doesn¡¯t have such a saying that one¡¯s aplishments can negate any wrongs. Aplishments are aplishments, while wrongs are wrongs. People have to shoulder their own responsibilities. However, since General Xia Hou has agreed to retire peacefully, I don¡¯t think that anyone would stop him. Furthermore, the General is a powerhouse at the Peak state of Martial Arts. Who can stop him?"


    Ye Su said, "Xia Hou gets old, and he has been injured in the hands of the Tang. I know that very well, and I¡¯m sure that the Headmaster and you know this even better than I do. If he were still the Xia Hou before, would my teacher have to send me to Chang¡¯an? Or do you not wee me?"


    Eldest Brother said, "The Tang Empire is a liberal nation. Chang¡¯an wees everyone."


    Ye Su nced at the man who had offered his seat to him earlier. He said, "The Tang Empire is indeed different from other countries. The atmosphere is different."


    Eldest Brother smiled, "I hope that you have an enjoyable stay in Chang¡¯an."


    Ye Su said, "It isn¡¯t very enjoyable."


    An ordinary visitor would not have an enjoyable stay if they were cheated by a shopkeeper or had eaten an expensive vegetarian meal at the Wanyan Tower. However, it would not have any impact on the world. Ye Su had just arrived at Chang¡¯an and did not seem to have a reason for his dissatisfaction. However, he was the World Wayfarer of Haotian Taoism and his dissatisfaction might bring unhappiness to Chang¡¯an.


    Eldest Brother turned grave when he heard that. He asked seriously, "Why is it not enjoyable?"


    Ye Su looked at the taoist priest on the stone steps of the temple and said, "This is not enjoyable."


    Eldest Brother turned to look and listened to the priest preach. He basically understood where Ye Su¡¯s dissatisfaction came after hearing the questions that people raised on the streets.


    For thousands of years, the Zhishou Abbey had always been dissatisfied with the Haotian Taoism Sect preaching in the Tang Empire. However, the Southern Gate of Haotian Taoism was in charge of such matters. Since the Tang Empire had the backing of the Academy and a strong army, the West-Hill Divine Pce had no way to influence the matter any further. However, a proud son of Haotian like Ye Su would definitely be displeased to hear such controversial discussions on the streets of Chang¡¯an.


    Eldest Brother said, "Believing in Haotian doesn¡¯t mean believing in Haotian Taoism. It does not mean that they cannot raise their doubts about the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s ssics."


    Ye Su looked at the schr before him silently.


    They had once met by Hn Sea. However, they had not had the opportunity to chat peacefully for a long period like today on the streets of Chang¡¯an. That was why he looked at Eldest Brother carefully and seriously. He wanted to find out how he had managed to be so powerful. Ye Su thought that he himself seemed to have understood something.


    "What about you guys from the Academy?"


    Looking at Eldest Brother, Ye Su said calmly, "I understand you guys. I know that you all do not even believe in Haotian. So do you all think that Haotian can be questioned?"


    Eldest Brother smiled. He did not deny it nor give any exnations.


    Ye Su smiled as well, and his smile was cold and nd. He said, "There are definitely a bunch of scary non-believers in the Academy. All of you should not exist."


    Eldest Brother asked sincerely, "Why do you say so?"


    Looking into his eyes, Ye Su said coldly, "If you have no beliefs, you have no fear and respect. Those who do not know fear and respect would not care about consequences. Just like Mr. Ke. Would the next generation of the Academy be like that? Who shall be the next Mr. Ke? Would it be you, Mr. Second, or perhaps that fellow, Ning Que?"


    Eldest Brother said calmly, "The Academy only taught us the reason, not the beliefs. There are few devout believers of Haotian amongst my Junior Brothers and Sisters. However, we just believe more in that no Belief is actually a kind of faith."


    Not having a faith is also a faith.


    Ye Su frowned slightly and repeated these words in his heart, looking pensive.


    Eldest Brother said, "If one day in the future you can agree with or only respect our faith, then you have already own the same faith."


    Ye Su looked up at the sky.


    The streets in autumn were filled with trees with yellow leaves. Their branches partially hid the sky, but could not stop the sun from shining down on the earth.


    "Haotian Divine Light shines on earth. Flowers bloom when it shines on them, trees grow when it shines on them. Crops grow when it shines on fields. Flowers are pleasing to the eyes, trees provide shade, while crops make people live. And then, they will all wither and turn into dust and fertilize the earth, bringing forth life."


    Ye Su looked at the sunlight that filtered through the branches. Light shone in his eyes as he said firmly, "Everything in the world originates from Haotian."


    "Haotian has gifted humans with everything including life. And the dignity and freedom of civilization are attached to life. Therefore, the belief in Haotian is not a belief, but a way by which the world should operate."


    Eldest Brother followed Ye Su, looking up at the sky. His eyes fell on the clear autumn sky. He did not have such emotions as Ye Su did, only thinking that the sun was zing today. The air quality in Chang¡¯an recently had been quite poor, and he wondered if a certain metal workshop vited regtions and began working.


    Ye Su turned his eyes from the sky. When noticing the schr beside him, he was obviously displeased.


    Eldest Brother felt Ye Su¡¯s gaze on him. He rubbed his eyes awkwardly and said seriously, "The Academy has never denied that everything in the world was bestowed upon by Haotian. However, it does not mean that everything in the world belongs to Haotian."


    Ye Su said, "That¡¯s chop logic."


    Eldest Brother said, "Just like how our physical bodies and lives are given to us by our parents, it does not mean that every part of us belongs to our parents. We learn how to study from our teachers and how to get along with others from our peers. We learn about nature from the wild, and all these acquisitions belong to us."


    Ye Su asked, "What about the Headmaster?"


    To the disciples of the back of the mountain of the Academy, the Headmaster was their faith. Ye Su¡¯s question might seem simple, but it was a question that was difficult to answer.


    Eldest Brother contemted for a moment before saying, "The Headmaster said once that humans should respect their teachers, but they should respect reasons more. If the Headmaster is wrong, we as students should not point out his mistakes directly. This is what being a disciple is truly about, and this is also what I believe in."


    Ye Su mocked him, "Can I ask that since you studied by the Headmaster for years, have you seen him make any mistakes and have you ever pointed his mistakes out?"


    Eldest Brother was speechless. He thought of that only Junyan among all the disciples at the back of the mountain had offended the teacher with his forthrightness, and in the past six months his Youngest Brother had been brave enough to do so too. Only he himself had not pointed out any mistakes of their teacher.


    He did not feel ashamed of it, as the Headmaster was perfect in his heart. However, he knew that Ye Su would think him ludicrous.


    Ye Suughed coldly as he looked at Eldest Brother¡¯s awkward expression. He was extremely pleased and thought that even though Eldest Brother had surpassed him at certain points in life, there were still times when Eldest Brother was not equal to him.


    Eldest Brother seemed to have thought of something with his eyes suddenly brightening. pping his hands, he said happily, "Four years ago when the teacher cooked the braised meat with too much sauce, I pointed it out."


    Ye Su was startled and he asked coldly, "Does that count?"


    Eldest Brother answered seriously, "Of course it does."


    Ye Su¡¯s brows twitched slightly and it looked as if his emotion was on the verge of the outbreak.


    He had treated the schr beside him as a catch-up target, considering him as an admirable opponent, but after knowing him, he only realized that he was nothing like a sublime being, no different from those poor schrs.


    Noticing the brightening sword style in Ye Su¡¯s eyes, Eldest Brother couldn¡¯t help feeling helpless, as he thought that he was really not good at fighting.


    "The truth is unclear before discussion."


    Eldest Brother said, "Since our opinions differ, why don¡¯t we listen to the opinions of regr folks?"


    Looking at those Chang¡¯an people sprawling on the seats with dazed expressions, Ye Su frowned and said, "When do goshawks need to care about the opinions of ants?"


    Eldest Brother shook his head and said, "Actually, we aren¡¯t really flying that high up."


    Remaining silent for a moment, Ye Su walked towards the crowd.


    Eldest Brother smiled and followed him.

 Chapter 462: The Small Taoist Temple and Being Free

    Chapter 462: The Small Taoist Temple and Being Free


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Eldest Brother and Ye Su walked to the stone steps and whispered to the Taoist. The Taoist was a little surprised and somewhat unwilling especially when he realised that the two did not hand over any money even though he waited for a while with his hands clenched into a fist in his sleeves. However, when he saw the bun on Ye Su¡¯s head, he discovered that he had lost all courage to stop them and had no choice but to be silent.


    The handful of people who had turned up at the Taoist temple to hear the teachings were engrossed in the story that the Taoist told. They listened intently even though they had the asional doubts. However, they could not help but be surprised when they were suddenly interrupted by the two people standing before the Taoist.


    Ye Su¡¯s face was devoid of any expression. He wasn¡¯t interested in talking to these mere mortals and wouldn¡¯t have done so if not because he wanted to get a conclusion to the differing opinions between himself and Mr. First of the Academy.


    "Next, I will exin the essence of the three points of Haotian Taoism." Then he nced at Eldest Brother and said, "Mr. First, you¡¯re wee to raise your doubts anytime."


    Eldest Brother nodded calmly.


    Ye Su began to exin Haotian Taoism as he understood it.


    Eldest Brother asionally raised his doubts.


    Ye Su was the World Wayfarer of Haotian Taoism as well as the sessor of Zhishou Abbey. He began studying Haotian Taoism ssics as a child and traveled to many countries, exploring life and death. He had a deep understanding of Taoism and was the most extraordinary figure in the present world.


    Eldest Brother was Mr. First of the Academy. He was the first disciple of the Headmaster and was well-versed in the six arts. He was well-read and had begun touring the world with the Headmaster since childhood. His cultivation state was extremely high and while he was slow at speaking and acting, he was one of the most intelligent people.


    As they debated in front of the crowds, the two did not behave as calmly or directly as they did when they spoke in private. They each spoke about ancient ssics and sought evidence from annotations of famous schrs. They spoke concisely and uninhibitedly and sought a deeper understanding of the subject.


    From every perspective, the debate between Mr. First of the Academy and Zhishou Abbey¡¯s sessor, Ye Su, was a legendary event that was bound to be recorded in history.


    If those from the cultivation world found out about this, they would be beyond shock ande in droves to witness this event. They woulde even if they were on their sickbeds and would have someone carry them on a stretcher to listen to these two sublime beings in the clouds lecture.


    However, this debate did not happen in the Lanke Temple, the West-Hill Divine Pce, or the Academy. It happened on a street in Chang¡¯an at an inconspicuous Taoist temple.


    Those gathered at the doors of the temple were just ordinary folks who did not know that the two were Unworldly Sublime Beings who rarely appeared in the mortal world where they would share the same status with the emperor.


    These folks were literate, but had never studied the ssics hidden in the Academy and Zhishou Abbey. They did not understand the hidden depths in the debate between the two. These ordinary folks only thought about earning money, drinking and having fun. To them, the stories told by the Taoist earlier was much more interesting than the debate given by the two who began to argue out of blue.


    "What are those two talking about?"


    "Who knows? Anyway, I do not understand."


    "Why did the skinny Taoist allow them to speak?"


    "Who knows?"


    "These two are so boring. Let¡¯s go."


    "Didn¡¯t the skinny Taoist say that we can each get a bottle of alcohol after the lecture? Can we still get it if we leave now? If not, why are we wasting so much time here?"


    "I can¡¯t listen anymore. What are they talking about? I¡¯m going to fall asleep if we stay any longer. Don¡¯t mention the alcohol. I rather not drink it than to continue listening."


    "You¡¯re right. Let¡¯s go."


    The cultivation world would have gone nuts over this debate that happened before the tiny Taoist temple. However, it was in no way interesting to the ordinary folks. They began discussing it below the stone steps and grew annoyed before leaving eventually.


    The debate on the stone steps was at its climax. Eldest Brother and Ye Su frowned and thought hard. They were very careful with whatever they said and did not notice what was happening around them.


    After some time, when they finally emerged from the debate, they realized that the Taoist temple was quieter than before. The people listening had all left. The autumn breeze rustled fallen leaves, pressing them against the streets. Only an awkward silence apanied the two.


    The skinny Taoist looked at the two helplessly and sighed. He said, "I bought over 20 bottles of wine just to get those believers toe and listen to my teachings. In the end... they were all forced away by you. I really don¡¯t understand, why did you guyse? To create chaos?"


    Eldest Brother looked a little awkward.


    Ye Su was somewhat annoyed. After a long silence, he said, "If you have not earned enough money of incense, I will stay and help you earn that."


    The Taoist looked at Ye Su¡¯s bun and could not refuse. However, he wondered helplessly to himself if the man was going to ruin his little Taoist temple.


    Eldest Brother smiled bitterly at Ye Su. "It seems that an argument over ideas is meaningless. If we always float in the clouds, how can wend on the ground?"


    "I have nowhere to stay in Chang¡¯an. I shall stay in this Taoist temple for now."


    Ye Su looked into his eyes and said frankly, "I havee to Chang¡¯an to see Xia Hou and for that matter. I heard from my teacher that you have been sitting on the end of the ck line for 15 years. Since you have already done it, do you think whether your Youngest Brother could or not?"


    Eldest Brother smiled and did not answer the question. He turned and left the Taoist temple.


    ...


    ...


    Standing out of the General¡¯s Mansion, Ning Que noticed the spies who did not hide very inconspicuously. He knew that there were many bigwigs who were very concerned about what happened between him and Xia Hou. After a moment of silence, he walked down the stone steps and patted the Big ck Horse¡¯s head.


    He had many things to do and needed a more convenient form of transport. The steel horse carriage that Master Yan Se had left him was too heavy because his cultivation state was not high enough. An ordinary horse would not be able to pull it. That was why he had brought the Big ck Horse from the back of the mountain.


    The Big ck Horse was not pleased or touched after being entrusted with such a responsibility. The horse carriage behind him was too heavy, and he would rather continue being bullied by Wooden Fish back at the Academy.


    The all-ck horse carriage sped towards Yanming Lake. Ning Que sat in the carriage with his eyes shut, weary evident in his face.


    Sitting opposite Xia Hou in the garden and talking about the past and their grudges and enmities had tired his wits even though they hadn¡¯t had a real fight.


    The sweet scent of osmanthus could be smelt from outside the carriage.


    He was amazed that someone¡¯s mansion¡¯s osmanthus was still blooming even now in autumn.


    The object he kept his chest began warming up. The heat emanated in the air of the carriage through his ck academy uniform, thickening the scent of osmanthus.


    Ning Que opened his eyes and took out the array eye pestle that was tightly wrapped in a cloth. He felt the obvious heat passed to his palm and frowned with a grave expression.


    After the study in the pce and contemtion, Ning Que now had a deep understanding of the big tactical array that Chang¡¯an was. Even though he was still not anywhere near Master Yan Se¡¯s state, he had slowly established a link between his mental state and Chang¡¯an. He was able to perceive everything that the city wanted to tell him.


    Ning Que could sense that an extremely powerful person had entered Chang¡¯an.


    It was that very moment when Ye Su had followed the grains team into Chang¡¯an.


    Ning Que did not know that the powerhouse who had entered Chang¡¯an was Ye Su.


    He only knew that the person was very strong. He was so strong that even the array eye pestle began to heat up. A heavy awareness grew within him and he told the ck horse pulling the carriage, "Turn around, go to the Academy."


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que was headed to the Academy because he knew that his cultivation state and abilities were not good enough against the powerhouse who hade to Chang¡¯an. Also, he was about to use the issue as an excuse to ask his Senior Brothers some questions. They were questions that troubled him but had never been discussed in the Academy.


    After entering the back of the mountain, Ning Que walked to the straw cottage with the sounds of the waterfall behind him. Ning Que did not see the Headmaster, and it was evident that the Headmaster did not want to answer his question, and refused to see him.


    Then, he left the straw cottage, walked around the waterfall and came to the cliff. He walked by the cliff walls and climbed up a steep slope of stairs, returning to the cliff cave that he had stayed on for three months.


    The wisteria flowers on the porch had long since fallen, and borne fruit. They were not cooked with meat by Sangsang but became food for the ants on the ground.


    Standing on the edge of the cliff and looking over Chang¡¯an, Ning Que fell silent. He analyzed why the Headmaster did not want to see him and thought about what it meant.


    After some time.


    Senior Brother walked to his side and looked at the faraway Chang¡¯an City. He said, "The person who came is called Ye Su."


    Ning Que had already sensed that the person who had entered Chang¡¯an was one of the strongest powerhouses. He was not surprised when he heard Ye Su¡¯s name.


    Eldest Brother looked at him and suddenly said, "What happened in the past has passed."


    Ning Que knew that Eldest Brother was trying to convince him. He did not reply, but looked at Chang¡¯an that was shrouded in the autumn sunlight. He suddenly felt like saying something.


    "But unlike them, I did not die yesterday."


    The autumn breeze between cliffs swung the clouds around. The waterfall grew thinner than it had been in spring due to the reduced water volume.


    Eldest Brother looked at the waterfall and said, "If a person is blinded by hatred, he cannot see a bigger world and a more beautiful scenery."


    Ning Que said, "Hatred cannot blind a person, but it can make someone¡¯s eyes red. To me, hatred had long be my eyes. All these years, I had no eyes for anything else and hatred had be my world and the most beautiful scenery."


    Eldest Brother said, "This life is so ufortable, is it really worth it?"


    Ning Que turned around to look at him. He said, "Senior Brother, you are wrong. If a person wants to live freely, then he shouldn¡¯t consider too much. True freedom is doing whatever you want to do."


    ...

 Chapter 463: Stronger Feeling of Autumn

    Chapter 463: Stronger Feeling of Autumn


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Standing on the edge of the cliff and looking at the moving clouds, Ning Que spoke solemnly, which was rare for him. In the beginning, he had hesitated a little when he considered that he was speaking to Eldest Brother, however, the words just rolled off his tongue as he spoke.


    "People do not want me to do that. Thews of the Tang Empire prohibit me from doing that. Morality does not allow me to do that. However, what has it to do with me?"


    Eldest Brother shook his head and said, "But... there is no true freedom in the world. Everything, including your mind, has its limits. If your freedom interfere the freedom of someone else, or even the world, no one will allow you to stay free."


    Ning Que answered, "But we should have as much freedom as possible."


    Eldest Brother asked in confusion, "Why we need more?"


    Ning Que said, "These things are no different from taels of silver. They are all good things, and since it is good, it¡¯d be best to have more of it. I do not believe in saying that quality means much than quantity."


    Eldest Brother said, "However, you need the highest ability to do so. If you wish to have the world, you need the correspondent power. I have never seen such a person in my life."


    Ning Que said, "You¡¯re right, Senior Brother. That is why we cultivate and why we need to be strong."


    Eldest Brother said bitterly and helplessly, "This is not what I meant."


    Ning Que smiled, "Even if we cannot achieve it, we can still work towards it."


    Eldest Brother looked at him and said, "You want absolute freedom, but do not have correspondent power. Is that why you returned to the Academy today to see our teacher?"


    Ning Que looked at the clouds on the edge of the cliff and said, "I do not know what I will ask when I meet teacher. But since he does not want to see me, I have to figure these questions out by myself."


    Eldest Brother thought about the word Ye Su had said before the little Taoist temple that no belief, no fear. He also thought of the old story of the ck line that year. He couldn¡¯t help but sigh when he looked at Ning Que¡¯s contemtive expression. He felt that the mountain breeze became suddenly colder.


    "Different people have different freedom. Once their freedom is in conflict with another¡¯s, disputes would happen. Thews of the Tang Empire and the West-Hill ssics are the rules for resolving such disputes."


    He looked at Ning Que and said calmly, "The Academy puts thew of the Tang Empire before everything to prevent the world from falling into a state of chaos. No one can vite thosews, including myself. Furthermore, as a disciple of the Academy, I will protect the dignity of thew of the Tang Empire. I hope you can understand this."


    Ning Que was not surprised to hear Eldest Brother¡¯s warning. He nodded.


    Eldest Brother looked up at him and asked curiously, "What do you n to do next?"


    After a long silence, he said, "I do not know either."


    Eldest Brother asked, "Then, what you have told me earlier..."


    Ning Que turned around to look at him and said, "Senior Brother, I did not say that to ask for your approval or aid. I just wanted to tell you that you¡¯re wrong."


    Eldest Brother looked at him dazedly for a long and he said with emotion, "Youngest Brother, you can tell me in the face that I am wrong. You are much stronger than me or Jun Mo."


    A slender shadow appeared on the cliff.


    Second Brother had arrived. He stepped on the rotten Purple wisteria and walked to the two persons. He looked at Ning Que sternly and said, "Younger Brother is right. Victory is not the true meaning of life, but battle is. That is why you should fight if you wish to."


    Ning Que suddenly smiled. "Second Brother, you are wrong too."


    Eldest and Second Brother were both stunned. They thought to themselves that their Youngest Brother was indeed special, as he had dared to point out the mistakes of both his senior brothers. Nobody in the back of the mountain of the Academy had dared to do this in all these years.


    Ning Que calmly said, "The most important thing in life is not battle."


    Second Brother frowned and asked, "Then what is?"


    Ning Que said, "It is battle, and then... victory."


    ...


    ...


    The most powerful Mr. First and Mr. Second of the back of the mountain stood on the edge of the cliff silently. They watched the fading figure walking in the cliff path, and the fluttering ck academy uniform was blown up by the autumn breeze. It seemed that they were still considering the hidden undertones in Ning Que¡¯s words.


    Second Brother sighed and said, "Everyone thought that Youngest Brother¡¯s state was the lowest in the Academy, but his state is higher than ours."


    Of course, Second Brother wasn¡¯t referring to his cultivation state, but his mental state.


    The Headmaster walked from the cliff cave.


    Eldest and Second Brother stood aside and saluted respectfully.


    The Headmaster walked to the edge of the cliff and watched Ning Que walk down the stone path before disappearing at a turn. His white brows floated slightly as he smiled. It seemed that he was very satisfied with his youngest disciple.


    Eldest Brother said in annoyance, "Teacher, is hatred really that difficult to get rid of?"


    The Headmaster said, "Love and hate are both strong emotions. They are what differentiate humans and beasts and are the keys to prove why we are humans. If we can abandon these, what makes us different from beasts? The mortals often say that those who do not care hate are always the one who does not help others. This is the truth."


    "Stupid boy, this emotion cannot be eliminated. Hatred is endless, how is it possible to simply erase all trace of it? The crux of the issue is why should we get rid of it?"


    The words of the Headmaster did not help Eldest Brother in understanding. Eldest Brother had lived in the back of the mountain of the Academy since he left his town. He was always with the Headmaster when they traveled to different countries, and he always had a mission toplete when he traveled alone. It was true that he did not have much experience in the mortal world.


    Eldest Brother sighed, "If we take revenge, when will hatred end?"


    The Headmaster frowned and said unhappily, "I have said long ago, that you should not read those boring and shameless Buddhist Scriptures. It seems that you are really confused now."


    Eldest Brother smiled bitterly, as he thought to himself that those scriptures were indeed quite interesting.


    The Headmaster said, "Jun Mo, exin to your Senior Brother when hatred will end if revenge breeds revenge. Otherwise, he will seek out his books for exnation and spend another three to four years."


    Second Brother agreed and looked at Eldest Brother. "Senior Brother, if you want people to stop taking revenge and end hatred, you should kill all your enemies and remove the root of the hatred. In this way, there will only be souls who cannot take revenge and hatred will end."


    Eldest Brother was not visibly moved by the in words. He only smiled bitterly and thought that this method sounded rather viinous and did not sound like something that someone from the Academy should say.


    Second Brother did not dare to guess Senior Brother¡¯s feeling. He turned to look at the Headmaster and calmly said, "Teacher, since Youngest Brother cannot find evidence of Xia Hou viting thew, what would he do?"


    The autumn breeze swirled the robe of the Headmaster and made clear sound. He looked at the faraway Chang¡¯an and smiled. "I do not know either, but I suppose Ning Que would give us a surprise."


    ...


    ...


    Two years ago, the Tang censor, Zhang Yiqi mysteriously died at the House of Red Sleeves. Not so many people paid attention to this. When the censor¡¯s wife made a fuss about it, the incident had been suppressed by the prefectural magistrate of Chang¡¯an City, Shangguan Yangyu and the case was ended. The case had only been brought to light before the bigwigs when the Tang military Psyche Master, Lin Ling went to Chang¡¯an secretly and began to investigate it and found the nail in the censor¡¯s body.


    After that, Chen Zixian and Yan Suqing died, and then Gu Xi died in Tuyang City. Then, Huang Xing and Yu Shuizhu died on the rainy streets. The Tang military and several other force all suspected Ning Que. However, just like that the emperor could not punish Xia Hou many years ago, without evidence, they did not dare to use this student of the Second floor of the Academy, the Headmaster¡¯s core disciple.


    There was no evidence, but it did not mean that it wasn¡¯t true. The rumors about Ning Que¡¯s identity had already spread in the upper echelons of society. It even had already spread out of the nation borders. Many believed that Ning Que was the son of Xuanwei General, Lin Guangyuan, who was killed because of being used of betraying the country.


    Therefore, many wondered what the young man, who had waited many years and finally returned to Chang¡¯an to take revenge, would do when Xia Hou finally retired.


    The old Minister of Offerings from the dominant family of Qinghe County came to Chang¡¯an and hid in the censor¡¯s mansion. He narrowed his deep and old eyes and focused on what happenings in Chang¡¯an. He tried to specte about what would happen.


    The Tang military was also watching the Yanming Lake vigntly. General Xu Shi stood in the building and looked at Chang¡¯an City silently. He would not care the Academy, if anything out of the ordinary happened. He would send his strongest cavalry to capture or kill Ning Que because he was above thews of the Tang Empire.


    Those in the pce watched and spected.


    Even Ye Su, the Zhishou Abbey¡¯s sessor hade to Chang¡¯an.


    These bigwigs had great intelligence and astuteness which was rare in the world. They had frightening information that came from their subordinates. However, even they could not guess Ning Que¡¯s next move.


    While Ning Que¡¯s state had improved greatly and he was already at the peak of the Seethrough state, he was still very weak aspared to General Xia Hou, who was at the Peak state of Martial Arts. That was why he could not assassinate the general.


    No one had ever found any evidence of Xia Hou¡¯s crime. Those who have participated in the matter had all died in Ning Que¡¯s hands. There wasn¡¯t much hope for him to reverse the verdict of Xuanwei General and use thew of the Tang Empire to bring Xia Hou down.


    The crux of the matter was that no matter the emperor or the Academy, they all wanted to see Xia Hou retire peacefully. They would definitely not help Ning Que even if they did not stop him.


    The danger of the Jianghu world could not touch Xia Hou. The court could not touch Xia Hou. Ning Que did not have the ability to assassinate Xia Hou. What could he do?


    After countless calctions, including the reactions of the imperial court and those from West-Hill, the bigwigs in Chang¡¯an finally came up with a conclusion that made them feel at ease.


    Ning Que could not do anything.


    At least in this winter.


    It was still deep in autumn, and winter had not yet arrived.


    General Xia Hou would retire inte winter.


    Ning Que was cultivating silently at the Yanming Lake, waiting for winter to arrive.


    Yellow leaves fell like rain one day.


    Ning Que sat beneath the bare tree with withered leaves covering his knees.


    Ye Hongyu put down the book in her hands and looked at him. She said, "Even though you have hidden the fact that you have joined the Devil and use it as your trump-card, you can only frighten Xia Hou, not kill him."


    Ning Que looked at her and said, "I don¡¯t know what nonsense you¡¯re talking about."

 Chapter 464: Preaching

    Chapter 464: Preaching


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ye Hongyu was speaking nonsense, and that was the reason why Ning Que did not understand her.


    Although Ye Hongyu spoke with a southern ent, it was in the standard Central innguage. Ning Que said that she was speaking nonsense not because he did not understand, but because he had to pretend so at this point in time.


    He was very calm, and even a little bit confused. In fact, his body had stiffened like a block of wood when he heard the words ¡¯joined the Devil¡¯ and his heart had almost stopped beating.


    Ye Hongyu closed the book on the table, keeping the paper sword in the book safe from the autumn breeze. She looked at Ning Que who sat quietly under the tree and said, "You would be able to earn money if you pursue acting."


    Ning Que thought that she was beingme, so he waved his hands at her in denial, not wanting to respond to what she said.


    Ye Hongyu picked up her book and walked to the tree. She looked at him and said, "We have fought many times in the house by theke. Do you think I cannot differentiate the aura of Heaven and Earth from a Martial Arts powerhouse and the aura of those from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine? Do you really think I¡¯d believe that you were practicing both Martial Arts and talismans that spring in the cliff cave of the Academy? Or do you think I¡¯m an idiot?"


    The Tao Addict was of course not an idiot. There was no point in keeping up his pretense anymore.


    Ning Que thought of what the Headmaster had once said, that the Youngest Uncle had not let an enemy¡¯s weapon ever touch his clothes after joining the Devil. He couldn¡¯t help but mock his own low cultivation state.


    He raised his head and looked at Ye Hongyu. He said, "Even if you have guessed something, you should know that I won¡¯t admit anything. There is no need for you to continue insinuating."


    Ye Hongyu said, "I just don¡¯t understand. We were traveling together in the second half of our trip in the Wilderness. When did you cultivate in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s arts?"


    Standing upright, she looked down at him and continued, "The Devil¡¯s Doctrine aura in your body, I want to know wherees from. Master Lotus... or Mr. Ke?"


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re saying."


    Ye Hongyu frowned slightly and said, "What¡¯s the point of pretending now?"


    Ning Que said, "There are some things that we have to keep up the pretense of until the very end. Even though you have been chased out from the West-Hill Divine Pce, you¡¯ve said that you will serve Haotian all your life. Then why do you think that I¡¯d be dumb enough to confess anything in front of you and then be remembered by you?"


    Ye Hongyu looked at him and said mockingly, "Are you afraid?"


    Ning Que said, "Even though I have not seen how the West-Hill Divine Pce deals with those from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine or seen the cruel acts of the Judicial Department, I have heard about them."


    Ye Hongyu smiled, "So even a disciple of the Academy like you does know fear. As long as the Headmaster is still alive, who could do anything to you without evidence?"


    "Of course, I understand that it is always power that speaks in the world. When the Youngest Uncle traveled around the world, the West-Hill Divine Pce didn¡¯t dare to do anything."


    Ning Que said. "But I am much weaker than the Youngest Uncle. As long as the Haotian Taoism Sect doesn¡¯t gain control over the Academy and as long as the Headmaster is still alive, you can only pretend not to know something even if you do, just like what I have been doing. That is because nobody can bear the consequences of the truth being revealed."


    Then, he smiled and continued, "But don¡¯t you put too many hopes on the status quo in the world and don¡¯t think that you¡¯d be able to get me to admit anything. Since the Headmaster lives well in the world and the West-Hill Divine Pce can¡¯t do anything to me, I have no reason to get myself into trouble."


    Ye Hongyu said, "But I already know about this. When the Headmaster dies, I will prove to the world that you have joined the Devil and then kill you."


    "You have wanted to kill me since we first met in the Wilderness. But you haven¡¯t managed to do it yet, and you even need my help now. So don¡¯t say such things in the future and just do it."


    Ning Que looked at her and said, "Also, there is something that we have differing opinions about. I don¡¯t think that the Headmaster will die before me. That is why you will never be able to prove it."


    Ye Hongyu looked pensive when she heard that and she did not speak for a while.


    Ning Que stood up and flicked off the leaves that fell on him. He walked out of the garden and suddenly stopped at the stone doors to say, "Your brother is in Chang¡¯an."


    Ye Hongyu was speechless as she looked at his back. She said incredulously, "He has never entered the Tang territories all these years. Why did he suddenly visit Chang¡¯an?"


    "How am I supposed to know about that?" Ning Que said.


    Ye Hongyu raised her eyebrows and asked him in barely concealed anger, "Why are you telling me now?"


    Ning Que turned around and said to her, "I am now the master of Chang¡¯an. Mr. Ye Su is a guest, and so are you. I have no reason to tell a guest that there¡¯s a new guest in the city... Even though the two of you are siblings, I was just being friendly by telling you. However, I am not obliged to tell you. I am willing to tell you now because I wanted you to be happy. Consider this a form of bribery."


    Ye Hongyu mocked him and said, "Are you bribing me not to tell the West-Hill about you joining the Devil?"


    Ning Que said solemnly, "Why do you think in such an ugly way? Even if you have guessed it and told the West-Hill, what can they do to me without evidence?"


    Ye Hongyu was surprised to see his indifference. She said, "Then why are you bribing me?"


    Ning Que asked, "It isn¡¯t a vition of the rules if a Talisman master brings a martial cultivator as his escort servant to battle, is it?


    Ye Hongyu nodded and said, "This is the rule of the cultivation world."


    Ning Que looked at her and said seriously, "Then are you willing to be my escort servant and kill Xia Hou with me? As you know, that general is really hard to..."


    He did not say out the word ¡¯kill¡¯ yet.


    Ye Hongyu opened the book and touched the tiny paper sword with her finger.


    "We¡¯re just having a discussion. Why are you getting so worked up?"


    Ning Que said, pretending to be calm. Then, he rushed out of the gardens like a frightened dog with his tail between his legs.


    Chang¡¯an was a magnificent city. The rain and wind from the south would cease and clear up, and the bitter cold from the north would turn gentle when they reached here. The downtrodden would be confident, and the proud would turn subdued and peaceful here.


    The Great Divine Priest of Light had worked in a shop in this city for half a year after leaving the Peach Mountain. The sessor of Zhishou Abbey, Ye Su, became a preaching Taoist in a Taoist temple in this city.


    No one knew of Ye Su¡¯s identity in the little Taoist temple. The skinny Taoist who held the lecture the other day still remembered how the lecture had failed and did not wish to let him stay. However, Ye Su took out a letter from the West-Hill Divine Pce, and the skinny Taoist had no reason to keep him from seeking shelter in the temple.


    Ye Su did not have to pay to stay in the Taoist temple, but he did not wish to be a freeloader. He took over the preaching duties of the Taoist temple and begun to spread Taoist knowledge. He left the temple the next morning and began giving out leaflets in the surrounding street stalls, inviting the neighbors to listen to him preach about the truth of Haotian Taoism.


    Standing on the stone steps, Ye Su began his work. His exnation of the West-Hill ssics was very clear, but also boring, in which words like Haotian, equality, benevolence and blessings appeared from time to time.


    Not many people came, and if they did, they left quickly.


    The path before the little Taoist was deserted in the autumn afternoon. A few sparrows stopped at the stone steps looking for food to survive the winter they were doomed to die in. They did not notice the person standing on the steps and thus were not frightened.


    Ye Su looked at the sparrows at the stone steps and felt lost. He wondered why the people of Chang¡¯an were not interested in the teachings of Haotian. Then he scolded them in his heart and thought that it was really a nation without beliefs and they did not even understand the teachings that he taught.


    The skinny Taoist walked out with a bowl of noodles in his hands. Looking at Ye Su, he sighed and said, "Even though I do not really understand your teachings, I know that you have studied in the West-Hill. You might have even traveled to the Revtion Institute. After all, preaching is difficult. You do not need to feel guilty about it."


    Ye Su said without any expression, "You shouldn¡¯t y music to a bull. I am not guilty at all."


    The skinny Taoist had gotten to know Ye Su better and did not look at him in awe like he did in the beginning. He mocked him, saying, "You can¡¯t force the bull to drink. You have to think of other ways."


    Ye Su frowned and said, "What right do these people have to waste my efforts?"


    The skinny Taoist said solemnly, "All people in the world are subjects of Haotian. They should enjoy the warmth of Haotian. For tens and thousands of years, our ancestors in Haotian Taoism had been spreading the teachings of Haotian in the wilderness and the countryside, and they had experienced many difficulties. Do you think they check whether every single person that they are preaching to is qualified before they start preaching?"


    Ye Su looked at the ordinary-looking Taoist. He suddenly felt that the Taoist¡¯s expression was more determined than the officials from West-Hill. He was surprised and after a moment of silence, he said, "I have learned something."


    The skinny Taoist smiled and asked, "Do you want to learn how to preach?"


    The Haotian Taoism had spread their teachings to many countries. The Taoist temples did not have to put in too much effort in preaching. Everyone was born a believer of the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    Ye Su had traveled to many countries and this was exactly what he saw over the past decades. That was why he was annoyed and confused when he had encountered so many difficulties in teaching the masses about Taoism on the streets.


    He frowned and said, "Is there any other way to preach?"


    The skinny Taoist said, "ording to what we usually do, we would give out food or wine after our preachings. If there are festivals, we will organize a gathering. If we have enough funds, we will invite singers to sing Taoism songs, which will definitely have good results."


    Ye Su grew angry when he heard that. He bellowed, "That is ludicrous! Preaching is a sacred thing. How could it be a parade for exchanging interests? This is sphemy!"


    The skinny Taoist looked at him like he was looking at an idiot. He said, "Everything on earth was bestowed upon us by Haotian. This is our blessing. That is why we believe in Haotian. Isn¡¯t this an unalterable fact? Why are you so agitated? Who would believe in religion if there were no benefits at all?"

 Chapter 465: Teaching

    Chapter 465: Teaching


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ye Su had studied Taoism in Zhishou Abbey since he was a child. He had then traveled to other countries and saw that Haotian Taoism was highly respected there. He had always thought that this was natural and had never thought that one could exin beliefs in this way.


    He had wanted to kill the sphemous Taoist. However, he suddenly thought that while the skinny Taoist¡¯s words were sphemous, they weren¡¯t erroneous when he thought about it carefully.


    As such, he remained silent for a long while.


    The sparrows below the stone steps began chirping in the silence. They pped their wings and flew into the shade of the autumn trees.


    Ye Su emerged from his stupor. He looked at the skinny Taoist with an inscrutable expression, "Please, teach me."


    The skinny Taoist smiled at him and said, "Actually, more than 90 percent of the Tangs are believers of Haotian Taoism. It is just that they are different from the believers of South Jin Kingdom and the Kingdom of Song. They do not have the patience to participate in preachings. That is why preaching isn¡¯t the best way to get them to believe in Haotian."


    Ye Su said, "Then what should we do?"


    The skinny Taoist said, "Those in the Haotian Taoism believe in being virtuous. That is why we must do as we say. In spreading teachings about Taoism, words could neverpare to action. As the chief of the temple, if you can get close to the neighbors, help them when they need it, get water, or help in drying their grains, would be showing them the benevolence and love of Haotian. The best way to preach to the Tangs is through the way you speak and act."


    Ye Su looked pensive.


    The skinny Taoist patted Ye Su¡¯s shoulders lightly. He said, "Other than the God of West-Hill, there aren¡¯t many who can witness the miracles of Haotian in person. Us ordinary Taoists are the spokespeople of Haotian on earth. The ordinary folks out there can only experience Haotian through us."


    Ye Su was enlightened and he said, "This makes sense."


    The skinny Taoist sighed and said, "I have left the West-Hill for 23 years. Even though it isn¡¯t as glorious being in the Tang Empire aspared to being in other countries, I am happy in this little Taoist Temple. I heard that the Taoists in other countries would enforce tax and those sent out by the Divine Hall are proud and live extravagantly. How would people then truly respect Haotian? Those Taoists are not spokespeople of Haotian, they are the shame of Haotian."


    Ye Su did not wish to debate this matter as it involved the work of Haotian Taoism sect in the secr world. He looked at the bowl of noodles in his hands and said, "Your noodles will get cold if you do not eat them."


    The skinny Taoist only remembered his noodles then, and he quickly handed it to Ye Su. He said, "This is for you, how will you have the strength to preach if you do not have a full belly?"


    Ye Su looked at the bowl of noodles in his hands quietly. He suddenly said, "I will try your method."


    A drop of rainnded into the bowl of noodles.


    Ye Su and the skinny Taoist looked up into the sky to see raindrops falling.


    An autumn shower had started without any warning.


    The rain in deep autumn was unexpected, and the force of the rain was also different. Some of the house beside the Taoist temple had not fixed their roofing as they thought that the rainy season had ended. Their roofs began leaking due to the heavy rain.


    After eating, the rain gradually tapered off. The skinny Taoist brought Ye Su and two other servants to the streets and started to help the neighbors to fix their roofs.


    Ye Su had done many things. He hadughed at those from the Underworld, and witnessed the trivial matters of the mortal world from the clouds. But he had never fixed roofing that had been damaged by rain. His actions were a little unpracticed when he climbed up to the roof and reced the ck tiles.


    However, he was still the strongest person in the Haotian Taoism sect. His little sister, whom he did not pay attention to was Ye Hongyu. She was called the Tao Addict in the West-Hill Divine Pce. Ye Su was in no way worse than her.


    He became more practiced and began to speed up as he changed the roof tiles. The neighbors who stood beneath the stairs to help him increased from one person to four and yet, they could not keep up with his speed. Gradually, more and more people came forth to watch the tiles that flew over the streets. They watched as he painted on the mortar as if he was drawing rivers and mountains. They could not help but make loud exmations.


    Ye Su kept his face straight as he listened to the praise and exmations from the street. He did not grow self-satisfied because of this, as this act was not very difficult. Instead, he only removed the tiles calmly and spread mortar. He did it casually and looked well-practiced.


    The puddles on the streets evaporated into vapors that enveloped the houses and the leaves on the trees. Everyone was looking at the Taoist from the temple who was on the roof. They watched the scene intently and did not notice what was happening at the end of the street.


    There was a round figure who walked out from the mist formed by the evaporated rain.


    Chen Pipi walked along the street and trodded on the rainwater. He came to the crowd and looked up with narrowed eyes. He recognized the person in a short while. His eyes grew wide and red, and tears began to fall.


    He looked at Ye Su who was on the roof and said with a trembling voice, "Senior Brother!"


    Ye Su was using bamboo ropes to tie some of the wooden sticks on the roof that had parted slightly. He turned around slowly when he heard the sound ringing in the crowd.


    He looked at the fat young man in the crowd, and a sincere smile appeared on his usuallyposed face. He said happily, "You¡¯re here?"


    Chen Pipi looked at Ye Su and said tearfully, "Senior Brother... What are you doing? Have you also been chased out of the Haotian Taoism? Is that person really so heartless?"


    Ye Su¡¯s expression stiffened and he looked like a dried out lizard on the roof.


    Chen Pipi felt upset for him and looked at him tearfully.


    Then, he noticed that Ye Su¡¯s left foot was floating above the woodendder and that Ye Su¡¯s white shirt glowed slightly like jade under the sun.


    Chen Pipi only realized then, that his Senior Brother¡¯s cultivation state had risen again. What shocked him even more was that his Senior Brother was at a turning point in his life.


    ...


    ...


    The two stood under the shade of the roof. Ye Su looked at Chen Pipi¡¯s round face and sighed silently.


    Chen Pipi looked at the faint glow emanating from Ye Su and forcefully tempered his surprise and fear. He asked in a trembling voice, "Senior Brother, what medicine did you eat? Or have you encountered something? I kept the Heavenly Power Pill with me. If you really want to break the realm, you can let me know, you can¡¯t eat it anyhow."


    Cultivators would know that the path to cultivation gets more difficult as you progress. It was like mounting a mountain, thest few steps were the hardest. Ye Su was the sessor of Zhishou Abbey, and he had already walked into the deepest part of the cultivation path over the past decade. It wasn¡¯t easy for him to continue forward.


    That was why Chen Pipi was certain that Ye Su had taken a shortcut when he saw that Ye Su was glowing and floating on the stairs. He looked right as if he was at a turning point in his life.


    Of course, Ye Su had not taken any medication. He had never had the precious pills from Zhishou Abbey. He had believed firmly, since he began cultivating, that a cultivator would not have the opportunity to reach the true peak if they depended on external help.


    He only realized that something odd had happened when Chen Pipi asked him twice.


    He stood in the shade of the little Taoist temple and stared at the houses and city afar. He felt his own Taoist Heart and realized that his state, that had been frozen for the past ten years, had begun to move. There was a slight crack in it, and he was shocked speechless by his discovery.


    Chang¡¯an was not an ordinary city.


    It was then, when the inconspicuous Taoist temple weed another guest.


    It was a young girl in blue taoist robes.


    Ye Hongyu looked at her older brother who stood on the stone steps. She couldn¡¯t help but tremble. Then, her eyes reddened and two trails of tears ran down her beautiful face.


    Ye Su looked at his younger sister and frowned. He asked in annoyance, "Why are you crying?"


    Ye Hongyu could feel the tears in her eyes gathering like the autumnke, but she did not wipe them away. She said stubbornly and unhappily, "You were touched when he cried, but you only scold me when I cry."


    Ye Su¡¯s brows furrowed even deeper.


    The only thing that couldpare to Haotian Divine Light was the insight of man. One could focus on one point and see the world that they wanted to. Ye Hongyu looked at her elder brother. Her eyes shone with suffering and stubbornness. She looked like a little girl whose sweet potato was stolen by her ssmate but was scolded by her older brother for being useless. However, when she nced at Chen Pipi, her eyes were filled with hatred.


    Chen Pipi lowered his head.


    Ye Su looked at her coldly and said, "Who are you to stare at my Younger Brother so impolitely. If you do that again, I¡¯ll dig your eyes out."


    Ye Hongyu did not seem to have heard that. She stared at Chen Pipi venomously like she was looking at a dead person. However, her eyes were not dug out because Chen Pipi who was feeling especially guilty dispelled the awkwardness at the stone steps of the Taoist temple by speaking up.


    Ye Su looked at Chen Pipi and smiled, "I have not seen the teacher in a while, and thought that she should still be at Hainan. I have other reasons foring to Chang¡¯an."


    Chen Pipi asked curiously, "What other reasons, Senior Brother?"


    Ye Su said, "I havee to meet Xia Hou."


    After a pause, he looked at Chen Pipi calmly and said, "And to meet Ning Que since I¡¯m already here."


    He was the sessor of Zhishou Abbey, and was the World Wayfarer of Haotian Taoism. He had left cultivating in the supermundane world, and entered the mortal world and came to Chang¡¯an for such simple reasons.


    If the rumors turned out to be true.


    If Ning Que was really the son of Xuanwei General, Lin Guangyuan.


    Then, he might be the Son of Yama like what the Divine Priest of Light had said.


    The Haotian Taoism had rejected the Divine Priest of Light¡¯s opinion, and allowed the bloodbath that happened more than ten years ago to end without pursuing any further. However, Ye Su did not believe that they were right to have done that.


    That was because he was at the ck line that year when the heavens gave an abnormality sign.

 Chapter 466: Disabusing

    Chapter 466: Disabusing


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ye Su said to Chen Pipi, "I havee to Chang¡¯an City and it could be regarded as cultivation of entering the human realm. We¡¯d better not see each other often, but if you really want toe, thene."


    Chen Pipi asked, "Senior Brother, when will you go back to the Taoism temple?"


    Ye Su slightly frowned. It was not because there were problems with this issue. It was just this issue reminded him of the most troublesome problem of Haotian Taoism in the past dozen years.


    He looked at Chen Pipi and reproached him coldly, saying, "When are you going back?"


    Chen Pipi felt so shamed that he awkwardly said in a low voice, "I have to ask teacher."


    "Then go and ask."


    Ye Su said to him with no expression, "When there¡¯s an answer,e and tell me."


    Chen Pipi was driven away from the little Taoist temple. Ye Su tidied up his sleeves and walked towards the Taoist temple. Ye Hongyu followed him quietly. Although she was reprimanded just now, she still couldn¡¯t stop the joy and sarcasm that appeared on her face. The smile on her lips still didn¡¯t disappear until she entered the room.


    Ye Su walked to the window and sat down. He looked back at her, and frowned slightly. He seemed to be unhappy.


    Ye Hongyu stopped smiling and looked at his brother, stubbornly and calmly. She refused to leave.


    She was surprised that Ye Su did not reprimand her, but said indifferently, "You might have lost your tenacity after leaving the Peach Mountain, but it was still a good choice. It seems that Divine Priest of Judgment was polluted by the dirty water in You Prison and became stinky, so you can neverpromise even for one thing, and you can not give in to him either."


    Ye Hongyu calmly said, "I understand."


    Ye Su looked at the quiet aura shown by her eyes and said after a long silence, "I hope you will be better than me in the future, but you need to prove it on your own."


    Ye Hongyu pursed her lips and said, "I will prove it to you, older brother."


    Ye Su looked satisfied with her answer. He nodded and said, "Pipi will be the master of Haotian Taoism in the future, and he will need help from a truly strong heart. I believe you will not disappoint me."


    Listening to these words, Ye Hongyu¡¯s lips pursed even more tightly, and she lowered her head and refused to respond.


    Because of her silence, Ye Su¡¯s two eyebrows slowly raised like two Taoist Swords unfeelingly. He said with a voice that was gradually getting cold, "Don¡¯t think that I didn¡¯t know of your plot when you secretly provoked conflict and forced Younger Brother to leave the temple."


    Ye Hongyu lifted her head up and looked at him with no expression, "The Haotian Taoism should have been yours."


    Ye Su said with a voice that was cold like ice, "Say that again?"


    "So what if I say it 10,000 times? Brother, you are the World Wayfarer of Haotian Taoism. You will definitely be a saint, and Haotian will pass the Haotian Taoism to you for sure."


    Ye Hongyu said stubbornly, "And at that time I didn¡¯t say anything and I didn¡¯t do anything. I just told him that as long as he stayed at the Haotian Taoism, then the abbey dean would certainly pass the Haotian Taoism to him."


    Ye Su upbraided her shrilly and said, "Pipi was still a child at that time! How could you say that to him!"


    "This is a fact. Do you think that a child cannot ept facts?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "I was also a kid at the time and I knew this was a fact. I really can¡¯t ept the facts, so I wanted to change something. Chen Pipi also knew this was a fact, so he felt guilty and felt that he had done something wrong to you. That is why he will never defeat me, and also why he fled the Zhishou Abbey after hearing what I had to say."


    Her voice was very calm and her statement was also clear. Although the matter she mentioned was rted to the most important thing, the session of Haotian Taoism in the future, she did not show any fear.


    The look on Ye Su¡¯s face became more and more strange. It was not angry, but extremely calm, and even his voice was extremely calm, "Have you ever wondered why he felt guilty?"


    This sound was not the frozen surface of theke but the still water in the deep well that nobody disturbed.


    "Younger Brother was guilty because he was kind. He respected me and loved me, but he found the Master decided to pass the Haotian Taoism to him. So, he was sad and left."


    Ye Su looked nkly at his sister and said, "You knew what he would do if you said that, and you still said it. You were using his goodness and his love for me to manipte him."


    Ye Hongyu said with no expression, "So what?"


    "Nothing."


    Ye Su slowly raised his right hand slowly, his white blouse that was soaked in rainwater and mud slid down his arm.


    He patted Ye Hongyu¡¯s head.


    Ye Hongyu did not close her eyes. She stared at her brother stubbornly, and looked at the falling palm. There was no panic in her bright eyes, only calmness.


    Ye Su¡¯s heart became slightly soft. The pity that he had tempered away forcefully returned. His hand slowed and eventuallynded on the desk in front of the window.


    He sighed.


    The sigh was full of helplessness, regret, and guilt toward Haotian Taoism.


    Ye Su¡¯s palm fell on the desk, shaking slightly. It seemed to be powerless, but in fact, it contained the supreme power and state of this legendary cultivator of Haotian Taoism.


    With this upset sigh, countless cracks appeared on the table and they spread toward the table legs. Then, cracks also appeared on the bluestone floor and they spread to the corners. They went up along the wall. The bright window paper began to break. In the end, cracks came to the beams and pirs.


    The desktop broke into hundreds of small pieces of wood and fell to the ground. The legs of the table cracked into thinner wood pieces and also fell to the ground. The cracks in the bluestone floor gradually became deeper, like a ck abyss. The wall coverings were peeled off, and the window paper was broken. The beams and pirs were twisted and broke down.


    The table was broken and fell down.


    The floor cracked.


    The wall fell down.


    The beam was broken.


    With the sound of a crash, this remote house in the Taoist temple copsed like building blocks. Smoke and dust filled the air as those cracks continued to spread outwards, and all other buildings in the Taoist temple were broken into pieces.


    All the buildings in the Taoist temple copsed into smoke and dust. Fortunately, those cracks that destroyed the wall were extremely amazing. They cut the hard and heavy construction materials to pieces, and when the buildings fell down, they followed some pattern that could not be identified and didn¡¯t kill the people inside them.


    The air after a bout of rain was very fresh. At this time, the little Taoist temple was filled with dust and littered with ruins. The skinny Taoist and two child Taoists were covered in dust, and climbed up from the ruins. They covered their noses with their sleeve and coughed constantly. They looked extremely miserable.


    Ye Su stood silently between the broken bricks and wood, and he was surrounded by dust and gravel. However, his face and clothes were still clean and free from any dust.


    If he was willing, when he took thedder and repaired the roof, he could be covered with rain and mud.


    If he was unwilling, even it was full of mud and rain, none of it could even touch a small part of his clothes.


    "You are my sister, after all. Don¡¯t push me to kill you."


    Ye Su looked at the Ye Hongyu and calmly said, "If you still insist on standing in front of me with such a stubborn gesture, I really don¡¯t know what will happen next."


    Ye Hongyu wiped off the dirt and tears on her face and red at him. She said hatefully, "Brother, I will be more powerful than you one day. By then, you will never be able to kill me. I will stand in front of you again, and I will still insist on taking back what should belong to you."


    After saying this, she turned away and left the little Taoist temple.


    Ye Su looked at her back and watched her disappearing outside the little Taoist temple. He was silent.


    "What the hell happened?"


    The skinny Taoist stamped and hit his chest with his fists painfully. He looked at the ruins of the little Taoist temple and started to tremble, because he remembered his savings and effort for decades and his experience of raising funds like a beggar to build this temple. His voice was full of sorrow.


    Ye Su slightly frowned and looked back at him and said, "I¡¯ll give you some money to build a new Taoist temple for you."


    "Is this about money? Is this about money?"


    The skinny Taoist was full of grief and anger. He clutched his taoist robe tightly, trying to avoid death due to heartache. He yelled and said with a dry voice, "Every brick in this Taoist temple was bought and brought back by my own hands. I know their original position. And now, I have nothing. I forgot their original position. Is this about money? These were my life! How can they be brought back?"


    Ye Su looked at the bricks and blocks that were cut into extremely small pieces in front of him. After a brief silence, he said, "You are right. New bricks can only build a new Taoist temple. When the old one was destroyed, it will note back. There has never been something called rebirth in this world. There is only new life."


    After saying this, his face became slightly stiff and stood in the ruins, unmoving.


    Ye Su did not know why this ruined Taoist temple could give such a feeling and make him say what he had said subconsciously.


    He only knew that since he traveled to countries to find a way to pass the test of life and death, his own state had grown and be harmonious. His state, which had gradually be calmer like a mountain, after the previous tremors, showed the signs of bing loose again.


    How could the skinny Taoist know Ye Su¡¯s situation at this time? The skinny Taoist looked at Ye Su¡¯s silence and thought that Ye Su did not want to get into trouble, and grew angrier. He wiped away the tears and took the child Taoists to the ruins to rescue some useful things.


    The copse of the Taoist temple made a loud sound. The local residents rushed over and looked at the ruins. People whispered and returned to their homes to get tools to help.


    Many of the residents¡¯ houses had been damaged by rainstorms, but they felt that the skinny Taoist was old and weak, and the child Taoists were young and powerless. So, they postponed their own business and came to help the skinny Taoist.


    The previously tragic Taoist temple had suddenly be a lively construction site. Although there was no way to rebuild a Taoist temple in a short time, the working loud songs,ughter and the sound of work seemed to foretell that in the near future, the Taoist temple would be what it was.


    The skinny Taoist wiped his tears, bowed with hands folded in front to express his thanks, a sincere smile stretched on his face.


    It was already dawn.


    Ye Su woke up from his meditation. He watched as the ordinary folks busied themselves around him. He looked at the smile on their faces, and thought about those words that the skinny Taoist had said.


    The skinny Taoist walked over to Ye Su and took a look at his eyes and tried to curse at him, but did not dare to do it subconsciously. He thought about Ye Su¡¯s words after the Taoist temple copsed. He rubbed his hands nervously and asked, "You are really willing to pay?"


    Ye Su looked at him and said seriously, "If you want, I can build a Divine Hall for you."


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 467: Winter Solstice Festival

    Chapter 467: Winter Solstice Festival


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The back of the Academy¡¯s mountain.


    Second Brother stood in front of the waterfall and listened to the water flowing sound like thunder. He looked at the water mist caused by the water sshing. His face was devoid of expression. After a long silence, he said, "I heard that his building copsed."


    Eldest Brother stood beside him. He sighed and said, "He came to Chang¡¯an, and this was his Lucky Chance. About this kind of thing, you should not envy him."


    Second Brother slightly raised his eyebrows and said, "Senior Brother, why do I need to envy him?"


    Yanming Lake, Chang¡¯an City.


    There was arge urn on the table. Inside the urn was a milky white mutton giblets soup. The fresh and green caraway was smoked by the heat from the mutton giblets soup, and the fragrance spread throughout the whole room.


    Ning Que took a pair of chopsticks and used their tips to break up the fermented bean curd in the dish. Sangsang was peeling the garlics beside him and mincing them thoroughly. The big ck horse was in the garden and was looking inside the room through the door frame. Its eyes were opened widely and so were its nostrils, which were perfect circles. It wasn¡¯t clear whether it was curious or greedy for the mutton giblets in the pot.


    "I heard that the Taoist temple where Ye Su was staying copsed this afternoon."


    Ning Que became silent for a second, he couldn¡¯t help but smile. He said, "I heard... after Second Brother learned of that incident, he stood in front of the waterfall for half a day before he finally smashed his small courtyard."


    Sangsang looked up at him with a puzzled look. She went to the small courtyard in the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain. At the thought of the quiet courtyard bing ruins, she felt pity and asked, "Why?"


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "For a person who has the same state as Second Brother and Ye Su, who knows what they are thinking? I often think that if someone can cultivate to their states, that person is basically crazy. After the little Taoist temple had copsed, Ye Su seemed to understand something. As for Second Brother smashing his own small courtyard, perhaps he wanted to figure out something as well?"


    Although now, Sangsang officially began to cultivate, she was still totally unable to understand the thinking mode of the Grand Cultivators who were at the Knowing Destiny State. She thought that young master was right, and they were a group of lunatics.


    As the mutton giblets soup became cold, while the meat and the sauce on the te gradually disappeared, Ye Hongyu finally returned to the shore of Yanming Lake. Sangsang went to clean clothes and Ning Que was left in the house alone.


    Ning Que looked at her entering the door and said, "Why are you back sote? By the way, since you don¡¯t pay the rent, shouldn¡¯t you do more chores?"


    Ye Hongyu looked at the leftovers on the table and said, "You have a maid and a steward."


    Ning Que said with a smile, "How can it bepared with the joy of being served by a Dao Addict? The Divine Priest of Light has worked in my shop. You can learn about the glorious traditions of the West-Hill Divine Pce. In the future this fact will be spread everywhere, and this will definitely be a legend of my family."


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s eyebrows twisted more and more tightly, and she sat down without a word.


    Ning Que looked at her face, and guessed that she was in a bad mood at this time, but he did not have any intention to stop triggering her. He continued to say, "Well, I thought your brother would at least treat you to a meal."


    Ye Hongyu looked at him peacefully and said, "It seems that you are considering a long-time n for your life in Chang¡¯an City, but have you ever wondered that this world cannot allow you to live like this?"


    Ning Que smiled slightly and said, "I am one of the Tangs and a disciple of the Second floor of the Academy. I can¡¯t imagine who will stupidlye to disturb my life."


    "What if you are the Son of Yama?"


    Ye Hongyu looked at him. Her bright eyes, which were simr to that of the clearke in autumn, gave off a mocking and cold look.


    Ning Que was slightly stunned for a second.


    A few days ago, Ye Hongyu had directly exposed the fact that he had joined the Devil in a conversation. And now, she had calmly mentioned this possible fact again, as though it was nothing important.


    "I really don¡¯t know what you¡¯re talking about,"


    he said.


    Ye Hongyu said, "If you really are what the rumor said, that you are the son of the former Xuanwei General of the Tang Empire, then you are the shadow of Nightfall that the Divine Priest of Light saw that year. These days, only a few people remember that incident, but don¡¯t you think that I would forget."


    "Do you believe it?" Ning Que looked at her eyes and asked seriously.


    Ye Hongyu shook her head after meditating for a while.


    Ning Que felt somewhat at ease, and said, "Why don¡¯t you believe it?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "Instinct."


    Ning Que raised his right hand¡¯s thumb and sincerely praised her. He said, "Instinct is the most respectable. Come over, let me treat you to some mutton giblets soup. I still have some hidden in the kitchen, just to honor you."


    Ye Hongyu did notugh. She looked at him and said, "I don¡¯t believe it, but it doesn¡¯t mean the Divine Pce doesn¡¯t believe it... My brother is in Chang¡¯an City now. Hees to witness the retirement of General Xia Hou, but I believe that he is actuallying to see you, too."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "I have heard some things. Sangsang also learned some secrets from Wei Guangming. Since the West-Hill Divine Pce had forcibly stopped this matter and imprisoned Wei Guangming for more than ten years. This represented that Haotian Taoism also did not believe in the story about the Son of Yama."


    "Even if the Divine Hall does not believe it, it does not mean that Buddhism Sect does not believe it,"


    Ye Hongyu said.


    Ning Que remembered the two monks he met on the street of Chang¡¯an, in the early morning of spring, as well as Master Daoshi, who was from the Xuankong temple in the Unknown ce. He could remember his dialogue with the stone Buddha in front of a solitary graveyard in the spiritual world, especially the secret part in the dialogue. His eyebrows twisted and kept silent.


    "Don¡¯t talk about these boring things. Have some mutton giblets soup first."


    He looked at Ye Hongyu and smiled. He said, "The mutton giblets must be eaten while they¡¯re hot, so that you can enjoy the vor at its best."


    Ye Hongyu frowned and said, "Now it¡¯s not the Winter Solstice Festival. Why eat mutton giblets soup?"


    "Who said that mutton giblets soup has to be eaten only at Winter Solstice Festival? Who said you can¡¯t kill when your spear is blunt?"


    Ning Que¡¯s words seemed to be inexplicable, at least for Ye Hongyu. There were hidden meanings that only Ning Que himself could understand.


    After a moment of silence, he said, "Besides, I may not have time during the Winter Solstice Festival."


    Although Ye Hongyu was forced to leave Peach Mountain, as the Grand Master of the Judicial Department, she still had the intelligence sources in Chang¡¯an city. Therefore, when she heard Ning Que¡¯s words. Her eyebrows could not help but twist; her eyes were full of doubts and shock.


    The day of Winter Solstice Festival was also Xia Hou¡¯s honorable retiring day.


    As time went by, the aura of autumn faded.


    In Chang¡¯an, a little Taoist temple copsed and the warmhearted neighbors helped the people from the Taoist temple to rebuild the houses. Then, they knew that there was a new enthusiastic person who liked to wear in robes. No matter what happened to the neighborhood, they would get help from that person; the man did not seem to know what troublesome was.


    At the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain, a small yard also copsed. With the sound of the waterfall aspany, that man wore his ancient style hat and sat in the pool. He meditated for many days, nobody knows for how long. A fat man sighed and followed Sixth Brother, carrying stone, mud and wood. They were working on repairing the small courtyard.


    The sessor of the Zhishou Abbey, Ye Su, in the warm and secr world of Chang¡¯an City, walked calmly and silently on the path to sainthood. Mr. Second, Jun Mo, was receiving a wet mist baptism before a deserted waterfall. His face became increasingly indifferent, and his eyebrows became progressively straighter.


    General Xia Hou, who returned from the frontier fortress, was constantly epting the imperial court¡¯s rewards. He continued to have feasts at the various royal mansions. No one knew that he was still used to sit in the back garden of his General¡¯s Mansionte at night, silently staring at the bare branches and falling snowkes.


    Ning Que kepting and going to the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain and Yanming Lake. He cultivated quietly and sometimes he fought with Ye Hongyu through their consciousness. For most of the time, he just silently stayed at the gradually withering lotus field.


    Chang¡¯an City was very silent, so it appeared to be peaceful. People in the city were silent, so they were calm. For most people, this silence and calm would at least continue until the 15th year¡¯s winter of the Tianqi era. It seemed that no one could disturb this calmness.


    The cold wind and heavy snow brought the winter and drove away the autumn. The day of the Winter Solstice Festival came.


    On this day, General Xia Hou would submit his official retirement request to His Majesty in the Pce. His Majesty, the Emperor of the Tang Dynasty would reward him again for his meritorious service, and he would be given the honor of a royal feast. Then all the senior officials and officers would see him off from Chang¡¯an City.


    On this day, the little Taoist temple was finally rebuilt. Ye Su seriouslybed his Taoist bun and stood behind the skinny Taoist like a secr usher in a countryside wedding. He gave thanks to the neighbors who came to attend the ceremony, before he carried the chickens and ducks given by the neighbors to the back kitchen.


    On this day, in the old library at the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain, the Third Sister, Yu Lian smiled and said something to Tang Xiaotang who was next to the short table near the east window. The iron house beside the Mirror Lake was full of steam. Seventh Sister embroidered in the midke pavilion. Everything was calm as usual. However, under the waterfall, the high hat which was like aundry bar could not be seen. Eldest Brother was not at the back of the mountain, but went to Chang¡¯an City as a guest.


    The Eldest Brother walked up to the stone steps and looked at Ye Su. He smiled and said, "Congrattions."


    Ye Su looked at a new Taoist temple behind him and the roofs of the neighbors repaired by him. He revealed a sincere smile and said, "Thank you, Mr. First."


    The people in the Yanming Lake House had also woken up.


    Sangsang waited on Ning Que as he took a bath and changed into a new ck Academy uniform. He fastened his hair carefully and put on a t hat. These made him look more charming than before.


    Sangsang also took a bath and then cut her hair short with scissors. She carefully made a small braid and painted her face against the bronze mirror.


    "You look very good."


    Ning Que looked at the fresh and cool little girl in the mirror and said with a smile.


    Sangsang stood up from the stool and turned to tidy the Academy uniform for him. She took off the thread on his shoulders and said, "Today is our big day, so no matter what, we should take it seriously."


    Walking out of the bedroom, Ning Que made a snap to call up the dark horse, who had boringly spent the night eating the wintersweet in the corner of the garden. He gently beat the horse¡¯s butt and said, "Go back to the Academy on your own."


    The Big ck Horse slightly raised its head and felt confused. However, after all, he was not a human. Even if he had doubts, there was no way for him to express them. He had to run out of the house and go outside the city through the long street.


    Ye Hongyu was not the Big ck Horse.


    She stood under the tree in the garden gate, looking at Ning Que and Sangsang who wore new clothes. She suddenly pointed her fingers to the sky above the courtyard, and calmly said, "It will snow heavily today, and you are still going out?"


    In the dark sky, dim clouds were floating. The clouds were looming with dense coloring, like mountains; it seemed that it might snow at any time.


    Ning Que looked up at sky and said, "The rain can keep people, but not the snow."

 Chapter 468: Watching the Snow

    Chapter 468: Watching the Snow


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ye Hongyu asked, "Snow can¡¯t keep the people, but can you?"


    Ning Que said, "I don¡¯t understand what you mean."


    She continued, "Why did you dismiss all the stewards and maidsst night?"


    Ning Que answered with a smile, "Doesn¡¯t this mean that I have not kept anyone?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "You know what I mean."


    Ning Que said, "Today is the Winter Solstice Festival. I think they might be better with their families."


    Ye Hongyu said, "Then why do you want me to leave? Don¡¯t tell me you still want to kill Xia Hou and you¡¯re going to do it right now."


    Ning Que asked, "Do you care about me?"


    Ye Hongyu shook her head.


    Ning Que smiled and said, "It hurts but I know you really mean it. Since you don¡¯t care whether I could be killed, then why does it bother you?"


    "Xia Hou is a visiting professor of my sect and he is the reason why my brother came to Chang¡¯an City. My brother won¡¯t let you kill him, so I won¡¯t either. If you are going to kill him, I have to stop you."


    Ye Hongyu looked at him and said calmly. An invisible sword seemed to appear in her right hand outside her taoist robe.


    Ning Que looked at her right hand, and said after a long silence, "It seems that everybody in the world including my sect, does not want me to kill Xia Hou."


    He looked up to see her eyes and said, "You know what kind of person I am. I will not try if I can¡¯t kill him. I want you to leave because Ye Su¡¯s Taoist temple is reopening today; you should go there since it¡¯s the Winter Solstice Festival."


    Ye Hongyu said, "Then tell me whether you are going to kill Xia Hou or not."


    Ning Que said, "I swear on the Headmaster¡¯s personality that I never nned to kill him."


    Ye Hongyu said calmly, "I don¡¯t believe you."


    Ning Que said, "If I try to kill Xia Hou, then I would never be able to get together with Sangsang."


    Ye Hongyu was astonished as she did not expect that Ning Que would swear on Sangsang, she frowned and asked, "Why do you care so much about the festival?"


    Ning Que said, "We are going to the House of Red Sleeves and have mutton giblets soup."


    Ye Hongyu fell into silence. Her robe disappeared into the depths of the bleak plum trees which had been overrun by the Big ck Horse.


    The Big ck Horse left the Yanming Lake and ran towards the suburb while chewing the fragrant plum blossom. The soldiers guarding the south gate of Chang¡¯an City recognized it due to the Fish-dragon Gang¡¯s message. So nobody tried to stop the horse. Instead, they stared at the disappearing figure on the road with an amazing look.


    The horse arrived at the Academy after a while. It appeared at theke bank of the back of the mountain and panted heavily. Then it bent down to greedily drink the water, moistening its burning throat and lungs.


    He did not know what Ning Que nned to do, nor why he felt uneasy. He just thought he shoulde back to the Academy as soon as possible so that the people could know what would happen at Yanming Lake. He considered himself a messenger.


    Chen Pipi stood on the bank of theke, watching the dark horse on the opposite side. A look of heavy solemnness appeared on his round face. Tang Xiaotang looked up at him, and asked, "Will anything happen?"


    "If Ning Que knows he can¡¯t win, then he won¡¯t do it at all. So I suppose nothing serious will happen. But why did the horsee back?"


    Chen Pipi slightly frowned and said, "I just realized that maybe I never understood him. I used to think he was apathetic and realistic. So it is hard for me to imagine that he would do something brave and irrational."


    Tang Xiaotang said, "Ning Que is a shameless person. But my brother once said before he sent me to the Academy, that it takes great courage for a man to be extremely shameless."


    After a moment of silence, Chen Pipi said, "I will go to Chang¡¯an City."


    Tang Xiaotang said, "Me too."


    Chen Pipi shook his head and said, "Third Sister will not agree."


    "Teacher permitted my leave during the morning ss."


    Tang Xiaotang looked at Chen Pipi and said seriously, "Xia Hou is the worst traitor of the Enlightenment Doctrine for thousands of years. My brother always wanted to kill him. So do I. It¡¯s a pity that I can¡¯t. But at least I can watch him dying when Youngest Uncle kills him."


    The pce was very serene, full of music and dances.


    Pce maids and eunuchs walked in the hall with obedient smiles. No one looked at the legendary cruel and cold-blooded General Xia Hou, nor did anyone notice that the emperor¡¯s expression was a little bit strange.


    The emperor looked down at Xia Hou and said indifferently, "Since things have been resolved, I don¡¯t want to see any changes. I don¡¯t care about the rtionship between Ning Que and the past Xuanwei General as well as the recent years¡¯ murders in Chang¡¯an. After all, he is a student of the Headmaster. After you leave the city today, it is unlikely for you to meet him again. So do not set yourself against him."


    Xia Hou left his seat and knelt down to show his obedience.


    The emperor left the hall in silence with hands on his back, ending the short farewell banquet. The eunuchs and maids followed the emperor, leaving the silent empress and General Xia Hou alone.


    Leaving the empress and a general alone was very improper ording to the rules in Pce. But since it was the emperor¡¯s will, nobody dared to oppose.


    Looking at her brother, the empress gently sighed and asked, "Is everything okay?"


    Xia Hou looked at her. A rare but very warm smile appeared on his ck and cold face, and he said, "What can happen since I¡¯m going back to our hometown? I have never felt so rxed before. But you will be alone and you must be careful in Chang¡¯an City. If there¡¯s something you cannot manage, let me know as soon as possible."


    The empress said with a smile, "It seems nothing will happen judging by the stillness of the Academy."


    "It is the agreement between Mr. First and me. The Headmaster must have the same attitude... As for Ning Que, we all know what kind of person he is. Nothing will happen of course."


    Xia Hou slightly frowned to suppress the increasingly annoying cough in his chest, he did not want to let his sister worry about him after he left Chang¡¯an City.


    The empress looked at his face without saying a word. Her gaze seemed to prate into him, seeing his lungs and injuries. She said slowly, "In the Wilderness, Tang had greatly injured you. He must not have fared any better. Why didn¡¯t you kill him?"


    He coughed and said, "He could hurt me just as I could hurt him. More people would have died if I wanted to end him. Those loyal knights had followed me for many years. How could I let them die?"


    Hearing his words, the look on the empress¡¯s face grew more gentle, she consoled him and said, "You have changed a lot, brother."


    "Less cruel and cold-blooded?"


    Xia Hou mocked and recalled when they first left the Wilderness and came here. They had no one to rely on, the emperor had not yet reigned and her sister was not the empress. The only way for the two outsiders to feel safe was to make their enemies fear.


    It was in the winter. Snowkes fell from the sky, painting the red pce walls white. The snow on the square before side pce hall flew like endless catkins.


    Xia Hou silently watched the snow and recalled his experience in the northern Hn Sea. When he snatched the iron box from Ning Que, his hands were stained by snowy ashes. And then he heard a sound of sobbing deep in the snow. It was not the wind, but the winter cicadas.


    He knew it was a phonism, but still, he felt somewhat uneasy.


    Decades ago, when he left Tianqi Mountain and went southwards to the Tang nation, he was very proud and bold. But after he betrayed the Enlightenment Doctrine and killed Murong Linshuang, his pride had gone. All these years, it was just ruthlessness and cruelty.


    Because since that day, he had be a traitor of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    Since that day, there were two shades of cold dark clouds always lingering in his heart.


    One was his teacher, Master Lotus.


    The other was Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation, the current ruler of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    Xia Hou was strong and proud but he clearly knew that, if the two shades came to him, he would have no choice but death.


    When Ke Haoran destroyed the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine alone, Xia Hou did not see the death of his teacher himself. He could not believe that people like Master Lotus would die without leaving a trace.


    As for Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation, he was called the most mysterious man in the cultivation world. Although it was said that he had been dead for a long time, Xia Hou doubted that.


    So all these years, he had lived in fear.


    In the northern Hn Sea, when he found that the box that he snatched from Ning Que did not have the "Ming" Handscroll from the Tomes of the Arcane in it, but the ashes of his teacher Master Lotus, he felt disappointed, sad and then, relieved. Perhaps it was then that he wanted toy down his arms and retire, leaving the secr world behind.


    "I don¡¯t know what Ning Que had experienced after entering the Front Gate."


    Looking at the flying snowkes outside the hall, Xia Hou said with aplex expression on his face, "Since he had the ashes, he might have inherited something from my teacher, and we have no idea where the ruler of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine is right now. I dare say he mustn¡¯t be here, but actually he could be anywhere in this world."


    The empress knew her brother¡¯s biggest fear, so she walked to his side, trying to console him, "But we already know Master Lotus is dead. The Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation is the most dangerous man in the world, but the Academy and the sect haven¡¯t found him. He¡¯s probably dead. Besides, if he is alive, why did he note to you all these years?"


    "I really hope so."


    Xia Hou said, "Ye Su hade here and buddhists from the Buddhism Sect wille. Of the three sects, only Devil¡¯s Doctrine is declining. What a pity."

 Chapter 469: Another Insight

    Chapter 469: Another Insight


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que was telling the truth. He had indeed taken Sangsang to the House of Red Sleeves except he did not stay with Dewdrop, nor peek at those new girls, but went straight to the top floor and entered Mistress Jian¡¯s room. He rolled up his sleeves, starting to enjoy the mutton giblets soup.


    The soup was served in an earthen pot with delicate instruments. There were dozens of snacks matching the hot air, creating a pleasant atmosphere evoking the spirit of the Winter Solstice Festival.


    Ning Que took a piece ofmb tripe and dipped it into the garlic sauce, putting it into his mouth and chewed with a sip of Nine-river double-distilled wine. He frowned immediately like he was in a great trouble.


    Mistress Jian took the towel from Xiaocao, wiped the sweat and said, "So here are the words from the Empress, she wants you to do nothing today. For that, she would give you anything you want and of course, she apologized again for Xia Hou."


    Ning Que pointed at his frown and said, "But I can¡¯t get rid of the frown. I just can¡¯t."


    "It¡¯s the wine. You should not drink the spirits since you are not a good drinker like Sangsang."


    The meaning of her words was profound. After a long silence, she continued with a gentle voice, "Endurance is a form of wisdom."


    Ning Que nodded and said, "I understand."


    Mistress Jian smiled andmented, "Before you came here, I was really worried that you would make the same choice as that guy did."


    ording to his brothers at the Academy, Mistress Jian should be the sister-inw of the Youngest Uncle. That was why she might be the only person in the world who dared to call him like this.


    "I don¡¯t have his power", he smiled and said, "If I did, I wouldn¡¯t need to endure. Since I have entered the world, I will definitely challenge Xia Hou to show my teacher¡¯s power as well as the Youngest Uncle¡¯s reputation."


    Mistress Jian slightly frowned and said, "You entered the world for insight, not for killing."


    Ning Que said, "But killing can also be insightful."


    After finishing his words, Ning Que was totally drunk from the wine or from the fact that he could not break the woven by the powerhouses in Chang¡¯an. Maybe he wanted to escape from something deep in his mind.


    As usual, once he got drunk at the House of Red Sleeves, he slept in Dewdrop¡¯s room. Fortunately the bed did not smell like the foot of his teacher Yan Se. It wasfortable and aromatic.


    Sangsang sat on the bed beside him and put a wet towel on his forehead. She knew that Ning Que was not drunk and told Dewdrop he did not need any hangover remedies.


    Ning Que did not dream. He did not see the remote darkness, the three shades of the coldest ck dust nor the endless light of the sky. He just immersed his mind deep in the sense of perception, reaching the bottom and feeling those pieces of consciousness.


    These pieces were collected during his fight with Lotusst year at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Master Lotus put the consciousness in Ning Que¡¯s sense of perception by force. Since then, Ning Que had tried to understand them, but he still hadn¡¯te up with anything specific.


    But he knew these pieces of consciousness were very important to him at least. Because in the northern Hn Sea, they helped him escape from Xia Hou¡¯s fatal attack. The pieces seemed to know his enemy¡¯s every move.


    Lying on the bed, Ning Que sensed something hard on his belt. It was the Academy¡¯s ID token among others.


    These tokens seemed to give him some mentalfort, making the consciousness fragments clearer. He was unable to fully understand their in-depth meaning due to the state gap, but he knew they would help him in the fight with Xia Hou.


    At the bank of Yanming Lake, Ye Hongyu once said, "Once you enter the Knowing Destiny State, you be a Grand Cultivator. You can sense the slightest changes Heaven and Earth¡¯s Qi. Therefore, no matter what your enemy wants to do, it will always be within your experience and sense. That is the scariest thing about the Knowing Destiny State."


    Now Ning Que was at the upper state of Seethrough. The gap when confronting Knowing Destiny State cultivators in fighting consciousness was hopelessly huge.


    However, Lotus had left many pieces of consciousness in his sense of perception.


    The Great Divine Priest of West-Hill, the bigwig at the Front Gate of the Buddhism Sect. The man who had reached the Knowing Destiny State; if it wasn¡¯t for some enigmatic reasons that made him unwilling to take the step, he would have surpassed the Five States and be a legend.


    How powerful could the consciousness that Master Lotus left behind be?


    Ning Que had no idea. He could only know it in a fight.


    After waking up, Ning Que was refreshed. His body and mentality were at the best state of his life. He then left the House of Red Sleeves with Sangsang.


    The snow began to fall heavily, whitening the whole city. The two took the big ck umbre and walked in this white snow world like a drop of ink.


    The citizens were celebrating the festival with delicious mutton giblets soup. The snow on the roof looked like cooked mutton chops. And nobles also had their festival, but no noise was heard from their mansions.


    Ning Que knew those lords must have gathered at the gate and prepared to see the man off. They might even send General Xia Hou to the suburbs.


    The umbre was in his right hand. He held Sangsang with the other hand and walked in the wind and snow. The market, the mansions, all were quiet.


    Since the fifteenth summer of the Tianqi era, the city had been peaceful for a long time. The residents and people of the Academy all thought the peace would go on, for Ning Que had given up killing Xia Hou. After all, they did not know how he could do it.


    But Ning Que would never give up. It was just as he had told Sangsang that summer, he could not wait for Xia Hou to get old and kill him. Revenge itself did not matter at all. The point was that he wanted a full stop to make his lifeplete.


    He might die because Xia Hou was so powerful. Even his Eldest Brother could not guarantee to kill Xia Hou at the Wilderness. But he did not think he would die. The Headmaster, as well as himself, knew that he was powerful as well.


    Life was full of conundrums. In the past 15 years, he had solved many of them for today¡¯s fight. He firmly believed he would win.


    The flying snow covered the entire city.


    Red pce walls stood out in the white world.


    Outside the city, there were dozens of luxurious wagons waiting on the square. Walking thousands of feet ahead from the moat, there was the gate where many people had gathered.


    Prince Li Peiyan hade. The Defender-general of the State hade and there were Grand Secretaries and ministers. All the bigwigs hade except the prime minister sick in bed. They hade to see General Xia Hou off.


    Staring at the approaching tall figure from the gate, the looks on their faces were filled withplicated emotions. Some were reassuring smiles, some were filled with pity and sadness.


    He was the first retired general of the Tang empire in the Tianqi era, as well as being the only one in a century who relinquished military power for no reason.


    He looked at the colleagues with whom he worked for years while walking towards them. The look on his face was also troubled.


    After leaving the pce and returning to his hometown, he would not be General Xia Hou but a normal farmer. Indeed he was reluctant to leave his power, soldiers and the time.


    Thews of the Tang Empire and the enemy¡¯s army could not hurt him. Even the West-Hill Divine Pce had connived with him. But he was still forced to leave the grand stage.


    However, he was graced with the Emperor¡¯s farewell banquet, sent off by the lords and ministers, and received other prizes; he was one of the few who had such honor. Rising from a betrayer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine to a visiting professor of a Taoism sect and the general of the Tang Empire, he had killed many people and helped expand the nation. Now he could retire safely and enjoy peace. It was a perfect life.


    He was rather satisfied.


    As he walked towards the gate and those smiling bigwigs, he began to feel more rxed than ever.


    Walking through the gate, he stepped onto the snow ground. Suddenly he stopped. Without greeting the prince, he frowned and looked at the direction of the pce.


    The prince followed him and looked at the same direction.


    The rest of the people noticed their strangeness and turned to the pce.


    The old general Xu Shi suddenly began to cough. His white eyebrows were mixed with the snow, containing some anger and helplessness.


    In the wind and snow, a big ck umbre gradually appeared.


    There were two people under it.


    The umbre wasrge, with a thick surface keeping the snow at bay. The snowkes fell on the surface of the umbre and swiftly slid to the sides.


    Looking at the umbre slowlying towards him, Xia Hou somehow felt thoroughly rxed. It was at this moment when he realized that he had been expecting Ning Que.

 Chapter 470: The Only Choice

    Chapter 470: The Only Choice


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In the blizzard, the big ck umbre gradually came to the entrance of the pce and stopped in front of the hundreds of Tang officers, as it closed and revealed Ning Que¡¯s and Sangsang¡¯s statures under the umbre.


    It was dead silent in front of the pce. Only the howling sound of the blizzard, the pattering noise of the snow against the frozen moat, and their own breathing sound could be heard.


    These bigwigs stared at Ning Que and coincidentally frowned. They seemed puzzled about what Mr. Thirteen from the Academy wanted to do on this day when General Xiahou was leaving the city.


    Theplex and confused looks were actually cover-ups.


    They heard of that rumor and knew that the military had investigated on Ning Que and his connection with those murder cases. Hence, they knew his intention foring. It was only that Chang¡¯an had remained quiet for a very long time from summer to autumn and then to winter again. Just when the whole world thought that Ning Que had already given up, he appeared.


    In the silence, everyone was alert as they hid their insecurities and looked at Ning Que. Standing in the crowd was the Imperial Library Grand Secretary, Zeng Jing, who looked even more worried as she watched Sangsang who stood beside Ning Que.


    Prince Li Peiyan slowly took a step forward as he looked at Ning Que, concealed his anger and said, "What are you trying to do?"


    General Xu Shi stared at Ning Que nkly and said, "If you n to assassinate our Tang General in front of all the officers, I will be very impressed by courage and stupidity."


    The heavy snow continued to fall in the Imperial City.


    Ning Que swept off the few pieces of thick snow that fell onto his shoulders as he said, "Even if I had that kind of courage, I will not be stupid to that extent. Just that, since I am already here, there¡¯s something I should do."


    Xu Shi ridiculed him indifferently and said, "With thew of Tang before you, what else can you do?"


    Such a change in front of the imperial city gates alerted the Yulin Royal Guards and the imperial pce bodyguards. The eunuch lead who had sent Xia Hou to the exit previously had already rushed into the pce as fast as he could, in hope to inform the Emperor of this news.


    Many servants from the imperial court began to walk behind their ministers from around the square and opened the umbres to shelter them from the wind and snow. In front of the red wall, many flowers of different colors began to bloom.


    Ning Que¡¯s big ck umbre was already well-kept and held in Sangsang¡¯s hands. Both the master and the handmaiden stood quietly in the blizzard as they watched an increasingly number of umbres opening in front of them.


    The shadows cast by the umbres enveloped the faces of the ministers. They could no longer see the expressions on their faces, nor could they see their thoughts from their eyes.


    Ning Que looked at Xu Shi and said calmly, "Putting thew of Tang Empire as priority has always been the ironw of the Academy. As a disciple of the Academy and a student of the Headmaster, I will certainly abide by it. Hence, when the military had conducted an investigation on me to see if I am the suspect for those murders, it is extremely absurd to me."


    Xu Shi frowned slightly and said, "There are so many old ministers having conversations with you while standing in the midst of the blizzard, yet all you want them to hear is how you redress your own grievances?"


    Ning Que did not care about this military leader of the Tang. He turned towards Xia Hou and said, "Many have guessed what I would do and I believe you are one of them. In fact, from the day I have decided to kill you, I myself was also wondering what I would do."


    Indeed, these bigwigs of the Tang Empire before the imperial city had been guessing what Ning Que would do. Even now when they have seen his appearance, they still had no idea what he was preparing to do.


    With the chilly wind and the piercing snow, the red wall gradually became cold. Ning Que looked at Xia Hou seriously and said, "It was till autumn that I finally understood what I should do."


    "I want to challenge you."


    His voice was not as clear in the howling sound of the blizzard, yet the content of this speech had clearly cut through the blizzard and traveled into everyone¡¯s ears.


    The voice gradually disappeared on the wall of the red pce. A thin piece of paper flew out from Ning Que¡¯s sleeve, ignoring the heavy snow that was falling from the sky, as it slowly and evenly drifted before Xia Hou. No matter how rapidly the wind was blowing, and how heavy the snow was falling, it didn¡¯t seem to have any effect on this thin piece of paper.


    Xia Hou silently gazed at Ning Que, who was not far from him. He looked at that piece of white paper that seemed to be held by countless lines as it gradually drifted to him. The faces that were enveloped by the umbres¡¯ shadows were emotionless.


    He raised his right arm and grabbed that piece of thin paper that was floating in front of him.


    It was a piece of challenge deration.


    From the time Ning Que dered that he wanted to challenge Xia Hou, the imperial city became much quieter and was in dead silence. Even the sound of the blizzard seemed to disappear. His words were reverberating in everyone¡¯s ears and all eyes were on that piece of thin paper which was moving forward slowly and steadily.


    Ning Que wanted to challenge General Xiahou upfront? Everyone thought that they had heard wrongly, for to them, this was absolutely not going to happen.


    Of course, the people in the imperial court were clear that Ning Que was the core disciple of the Headmaster of Academy and had learnt Talisman Taoism skills from Master Yan Se. In less than two years¡¯ time, he was already a strong cultivator in the Seethrough Realm.


    Cultivators who achieved Seethrough state and above were considered as godly and first-raters by the mortals. Yet decades ago, the great general Xia Hou was already at the Peak state of Martial Arts and one of the most powerful men in the world. What did Ning Que have, and what qualifications he had to challenge against Xia Hou?


    It was like a flower challenging a forest, a grasshopper challenging a carriage, an egg challenging a rocky mountain, and a beggar challenging the mighty Emperor.


    General Xu Shi thought silently in his heart that Ning Que was probably driven crazy. If he was not crazy, why would he do such a crazy act?


    The expression on Prince Li Peiyan was slightly stiff and became warm again in the next instant. He felt that he had probably guessed what Ning Que was thinking.


    ¡ª¡ªOne could never reconcile with the murderer of one¡¯s father, neither could one vite the will of the Academy and thew of Tang Empire. As such, he thought of challenging against Xia Hou, so even if he lost, he had tried his best.


    The people in front of the imperial city had one by one came up with two different thinkings after recovering from the shock: If Ning Que wasn¡¯t crazy, then the only reason for him to challenge General Xia Hou was to seek spiritualfort.


    Looking at Ning Que who was standing in the blizzard and watching his calm expression, the bigwigs did not think that he had gone crazy, hence what was going to happenter should not be too bloody either.


    It was impossible for Ning Que to defeat General Xia Hou and even if General Xia Hou was to win the duel, with the Academy and the Headmaster of Academy, it was impossible for him to kill Mr. Thirteen.


    Yes, that was how things should be.


    However, what was going to happen next had directly destroyed all their imaginations and expectations.


    Ning Que took a small knife from Sangsang and cut his left palm with its de. He then began to move. The de was moving very slowly on the palm and the sharp de gradually slit a long hole in the palm. Fresh blood began to seep out from the hole and the white flesh was dyed red instantly.


    A loud exmation sounded in front of the imperial city, as well as the deep breathing sound was heard. As the people watched the de slowly cutting across his palm, they could felt as if the de was cutting their own bodies, causing them to feel the pain.


    Ning Que wasn¡¯t affected by thesemotions. His face remained very calm and focused, as if he wasn¡¯t cutting his own palm. He seemed to be carving a flower out of his palm.


    "Ning Que! Are you crazy?"


    Imperial Library Grand Secretary Zeng Jing could no longer remain silent as she walked out of the crowd with a worried looking face. She looked at Sangsang and rebuked, "Hurry and stop him!"


    Sangsang looked down and stared at her boots in the snow.


    The prince¡¯s face instantly turned exceptionally pale. General Xu Shi suddenly lowered his snowy brows, as though they were loaded with heavy burdens. Everyone in front of the imperial city was looking abnormally unsettled.


    Only Xia Hou remained expressionless and quiet. He was calmly and intently looking at Ning Que cutting his palm as he raised his brows gradually.


    What caused everyone to be taken aback, or even to the extent of feeling bizarre was not the amount of pain that Ning Que might be feeling from cutting his palm, but what this action actually represented.


    The Tangs were good in martial arts and they have a simple and straight-forward temperament. Once they disagreed in opinions, they would often throw their fists at one another. Hence, dueling became amon sight in Chang¡¯an. Two years ago, on an evening during spring, when Ning Que and Sangsang returned from City of Wei to Chang¡¯an, they saw a duel happening on the street that night.


    At that time, he exined to the little handmaiden beside him that cutting the sleeves in a duel battle in Chang¡¯an City would represent a challenge and that was what they called a live battle. However, if the challenger was to slit his own left palm, it meant that this duel was a battle to death.


    This time, Ning Que had gradually slit his left palm in front of the imperial city in a snowstorm. This meant that the challenge he proposed against Xia Hou was not for spiritualfort as what the people had previously thought, but it was a battle of life and death.


    Though the civil and military officials present at the scene were well-respected people who would never face with a challenge, they were, after all, living in the city of Chang¡¯an and it would be impossible for them to not know this well-known rule.


    Thus, they were shocked and their faces went pale.


    In their opinions, General Xiahou would inevitably win in today¡¯s challenge. However, if this was really a battle to death and if Ning Que died, as a core disciple of the Headmaster of Academy, his death would definitely bring a terrifying impact on the Tang Empire.


    Li Peiyan went pale as he stared at Ning Que and said, "Are you nning to use your life in exchange for the Headmaster¡¯s anger? Is that even worth it? Do you know what kind of person the Headmaster is? Do you think you can make use of him?"


    The de had already torn the nerves on his palm. Ning Que stopped his action and raised his head. His expression on the face remained calm and serene, as though the pain on his palm was not affecting him at all.


    He gazed at the Prince, his Highness, and said, "What has this matter got to do with your Highness? Perhaps you are worried that I will challenge you next?"


    Xu Shi looked at him nkly and said, "A battle of life and death requires official permission. I can tell you, for the whole of Tang imperial court, no one will dare to approve this battle."


    "Initially when Daoshi Monk came to challenge me, the Military Ministry approved. When Liu Yiqing came to challenge me, the Military Ministry approved. Today I am challenging General Xia Hou, is the Military Ministry not going to approve?"


    Ning Que looked back at him and asked sternly, "Does our Tang Military still want their reputation?"


    Xu Shi¡¯s brows knitted and did not speak a word.


    Ning Que stared at everyone in front of the imperial city and said, "All of you keep saying thew of Tang Empirees first. Great. Then I shall challenge you ording to thew of Tang Empire. May I know who can stop me?"


    He then nced at Xia Hou and said, "Unless you do not ept it."


    Xia Hou slowly rubbed his fingers along the thin piece of challenge slip. He gave a strange-looking expression before he looked at Ning Que and said, "Your choice is indeed beyond my expectation."


    Ning Que said, "I usually don¡¯t take themon route."


    Xia Hou gently flicked the thin paper and said, "When I first saw this piece of paper slowly traveling in the snow storm, I knew you have a high Psyche Power sensitivity. It is a pity that your acupoints for Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi were blocked. This resulted in poor control for your Qi of Heaven and Earth, even worse than what you should have as a Seethrough state cultivator. You are already in such a bad state, yet you dare to daydream about challenging me. I can only say you are digging your own grave."


    Ning Que looked at him and said, "I do not have other routes, so this is my own choice. Whether it is a route to death, I¡¯ll only know if I tried."


    Xiahou said, "To you, challenging me might be your worst choice."


    Ning Que said, "Since it is my only choice, it can only be my best choice."

 Chapter 471: Blood in the Palm; People on the Bridge

    Chapter 471: Blood in the Palm; People on the Bridge


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Xia Hou smiled and slowly walked out of his subordinate¡¯s umbre and into the blizzard. Suddenly, his smile disappeared and he stared indifferently at Ning Que. He asked, "Is this the choice of the Academy?"


    Ning Que smiled and said, "You don¡¯t have to be afraid. It¡¯s my own choice. It has nothing to do with the Academy."


    Xia Hou said indifferently, "If you want to die, then you will."


    Ning Que said, "I myself don¡¯t want to die, I just want you to die."


    Xia Hou looked at him. He remained silent for a long time, then said, "You are lunatic."


    Ning Que replied, "When I fled from Chang¡¯an 15 years ago, I managed to survive with determination and perseverance to die. All I wanted to do was to be lunatic. Wasn¡¯t that worth it?"


    Xia Hou was silent for a moment and said, "That was indeed worth it."


    It was unpopr in Tang to return good for evil. Those born and bred on thisnd were used to be straightforward--if you hit one, he would hit you back; if you wanted to kill one, then he would definitely try to kill you in return; if you killed one¡¯s father, then he would kill both you and your father. That was the reason why people took for granted that Ning Que had sent Xia Hou an invitation for a fight to the death.


    In order to prevent thoseplicated things in the past from affecting the development of the empire, the court promised to cut off rtions with Xia Hou with the help of the Academy and allowed Xia Hou to retire. They did not want the Xiling Temple¡¯s power to extend into Chang¡¯an city. No matter what Ning Que would do to Xia Hou, whether by conspiracies or justifiable means, he would inevitably affect the process of the old being superceded by the new. However, the simplest or the stupidest method that he chose today would not have any influence, since the fight must be fair when the environment was fair.


    Fairness did not mean everything. Everyone thought that it amounted to seeking death for Ning Que to challenge General Xia Hou across the border. No one wanted to see Ning Que die because he was one of the Academy Headmaster¡¯s disciples. However, they could not stop the duel now and all they could do was to wish that Xia Hou would not ept the challenge.


    It was a real humiliation for a martial arts leader to reject the challenge of a Seethrough Realm cultivator. Therefore, when gazing at Xia Hou, the Prince showed a look of appeal.


    Xia Hou did not seem to have sensed the Prince¡¯s gaze. He squinted slightly, looked at Ning Que and said, "Since you want me to kill you..."


    At this moment, there were sounds of multiple footsteps at the gate of the pce. Several high-ranking eunuchs were running desperately towards the gate, with messy uniforms and an untidy look. In such a snowy and windy weather, they were all sweating profusely, indicating that they had run all the way from the pce.


    Eunuch Lin, who was in front of the eunuch group, heard the voice of Xia Hou and appeared horrified. He shouted like a goose squeezing its throat. "His Majesty has ordered that no one here should move."


    Upon hearing the shout, the bigwigs outside the pce suddenly felt rxed. They thought that only the Emperor could stop this fight.


    Xia Hou seemed to have not heard the shrill voiceing from behind, nor did he hear the order of His Majesty. He said indifferently, "...I will follow your wish."


    After saying that, he took a knife in the hands of his bodyguard and swiftly used it to cut his left palm. Compared with Ning Que¡¯s slow cutting of his hand, his version of palm-cutting was extraordinarily powerful.


    Without any expression on his face, Xia Hou slowly clenched his left hand into a fist, and a stream of thick blood spilled from his hand.


    Eunuch Lin had never run so fast in his entire life. He ran to the ce breathlessly. Suddenly, he inadvertently sat down in the snow, his face turning pale when seeing Xia Hou¡¯s bleeding palm.


    Prince Li Peiyan¡¯s face was as pale as snow.


    Xu Shi¡¯s silver eyebrows were like the snow on the willow by thekeside. He looked at Xia Hou emotionlessly and said, "Cancel it."


    Xia Hou shook his head and indifferently replied, "He can cancel it but I cannot. I have my pride."


    Listening to these words, Ning Que started to apud.


    His left palm was still bleeding. The blood scattered towards the surroundings as he apuded, which fell on his ck uniform as well as the white snow on the ground, creating an extremely bloody picture.


    The apuse was bloody as well, with blood scattering around as if it was going to be condensed.


    Ning Que said, "You haven¡¯t disappointed me. You are still the arrogant and stupid general, and I hope you continue to be proud like this."


    Xia Hou ignored his sarcasm and asked with a poker face, "When shall we start to fight?"


    On the thin challenge document, the date column was nk.


    Ning Que said, "Before you leave Chang¡¯an City."


    Xia Hou said, "I am leaving today."


    Ning Que said, "Then we shall fight today."


    Xia Hou said, "Well, I wouldn¡¯t waste too much time killing you before I set off."


    Ning Que said, "You might not be able to set off any more."


    Xia Hou¡¯s expressions did not change and he said indifferently, "Since I have set the time, it¡¯s your turn to choose the location."


    "I have been preparing the location for a long time."


    Ning Que said, "I have bought many houses on the bank of Yanming Lake. So don¡¯t worry about hurting the innocent when we fight. Besides, I made some preparations there. After all, I am a Talisman Master, and I know something about tactical arrays. Since I have a lower state than you, I want to take some advantages in this field."


    When the two talked, no one interjected. All of them were shocked and listened reluctantly. Their faces did not change until they heard of the fighting location that Ning Que had chosen.


    In fact, many bigwigs in Chang¡¯an City knew that Ning Que had bought houses on the bank of Yanming Lake. Bigwigs with military background like General Xu Shi knew clearly what Ning Que had done, so they were not surprised at Ning Que¡¯s choice for the fighting location. What surprised them was that Ning Que had made it clear to Xia Hou.


    Looking at Xia Hou, Ning Que asked, "Would you mind that?"


    Xia Hou replied, "Since I am proud, I must continue to be so, even though it makes me seem like a fool."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "Pride can kill a person."


    Xia Hou said, "If a goshawk doesn¡¯t feel proud in front of an ant, it will suffer punishment from the heavens."


    "Enough! You two lunatics!"


    Prince Li Peiyan¡¯s face was pale, with gloomy fire burning in his eyes. He looked at Xia Hou and sharply said, "Have you ever thought about the consequeces of killing this man? How would you exin it to the Headmaster of the Academy? How would the imperial court exin it to the Headmaster of the Academy?"


    "I will exchange this crown for an hour."


    Having said this, the prince resolutely took off his crown and ced it on the snow field between Ning Que and Xia Hou. He looked back at the ministers and said coldly, "What are you doing? Get your business done!"


    The officials of the court were suddenly woken up, and they spread out as soon as possible with the help of their subordinates, in order to find ways to stop the duel. Zeng Jing, the Grand Secretary, wanted to walk to Ning Que and persuade him, but he just sighed and retreated to the rear when noticing Ning Que¡¯s bleeding palm.


    Xu Shi partially nted his eyes, as if he was either watching Xia Hou and Ning Que or watching the flying snow in the sky. He said, "You two have had a feud for more than ten years. You shouldn¡¯t mind waiting for one more hour, right?"


    After saying this, he turned away from the gate of the pce and left. No one knew where he went.


    In front of the Gate, where the snow was flying in the wind, only a few people including Grand Secretary Zeng Jing were still watching.


    After a long silence, Xia Hou suddenly said, "Give me the g."


    At the far end of the Yuqiao Bridge, the general¡¯s guard of honor was there. Hundreds of people had already waited for a long time. After listerning to these few words, a soldier galloped off and took a g from the guard of honor, then stood upright behind General Xia Hou. The cold wind whistled, with snow flying and the g waving in the sky.


    It was the g of the princes and generals of the Tang Empire. Its color was bloody red, as if it had been dyed by the blood of tens of thousands of enemies. With the g whistling in the blizzard, the atmosphere suddenly became imposing.


    Looking at the bloody g behind Xia Hou, and its red hue being reflected over his face, Ning Que said, "You must be scared, since you take the g to boost your power."


    Xia Hou nonchntly looked at the spilled blood, with no expression in his eyes.


    Ning Que said with a smile, "Give me the umbre."


    With a loud bang, Sangsang opened the big ck umbre once again, covering the heavy snow overhead.


    In the snowstorm, a bloody g and a ck umbre stood opposite each other at a distance.


    The news that Ning Que, Mr. Thirteen of the Academy, issued a challenge to General Xia Hou had spread to every house in Chang¡¯an City immediately.


    No one thought that Ning Que could win, so they didn¡¯t want to watch General Xia Hou kill him. Nor did they know how the Headmaster of the Academy would respond to Ning Que¡¯s death.


    The Headmaster of the Academy had not spoken in public for many years and had even been forgotten by many people in the world. But for the bigwigs in the court, it definitely did not mean that his voice did not have power any more; every word he said, for the Tang Empire, was the thunder above the clouds.


    It was a fair duel, initiated by Ning Que. Even if Ning Que died, the Headmaster might still adhere to thews of the Tang Empire and remain silent. However, no one dared to take the risk, even if it was a small risk. If the Headmaster became angry because of Ning Que¡¯s death, it was possible that the entire city of Chang¡¯an would be destroyed.


    When Li Qingshan, the Nation Master, appeared in front of the big tactical array at the Cloud Gate, he kept thinking about these things. When he heard the reply from Mr. First of the Academy, he did not react to it for a while.


    "This is the personal affair of our Youngest Brother. The Academy will not stop him, ording to its own rules."


    Li Qingshan frowned and said, "But for Ning Que, it¡¯s a self-inflicted death."


    The Eldest Brother said gently, "Since it is self-inflicted, who can stop it?"


    Li Qingshan was unable to suppress his shock and said, "If Mr. Thirteen was really killed by General Xia Hou, what would the Academy do?"


    The Eldest Brother said with a smile, "We will miss him."


    There were Yulin Royal Guards in Chang¡¯an City.


    This powerful army responsible for guarding the imperial city had unimaginable strength; it had strong practitioners in cultivation at the Imperial Center Administration and the Southern Gate Temple. Most critically, they had a strong will and determination.


    ording to the Tang Empirews, the Yulin Royal Guards now only listened to the orders of two people, the Emperor of Tang and General Xu Shi.


    In the cold wind and snow, the Yulin Royal Guards began to form their troops and then prepared to march out of the camps. However, they had to stop in front of the Yuqiao Bridge, for there was a man siting on its nks.


    The man wore a high crown and robes. He sat cross-legged in the snow on the bridge, with his head slightly lowered.


    Looking at the man on the bridge, Xu Shi could no longer suppress his anger. His shouting was so loud that it was like a thunder in spring sting off on the bridge and even the umted snow shook. He said, "Jun Mo, anyone who blocks the road is to be killed!"


    The man on the bridge was the Second Brother in the Academy, Jun Mo.


    "Whoever blocks the road will be killed? There is no such thing in thews of the Tang Empire, nor did the ancient Etiquette record this."


    The Second Brother raised his head, looked at the military leader of the Tang Empire under the bridge and calmly said, "In that case, if I must die, you should die first."


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 472: Those Forgotten Names

    Chapter 472: Those Forgotten Names


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Excepting Ke Haoran and Ning Que, those people in the back of the mountain of the Academy hadn¡¯t entered the human realm for a long time. Thus, the soldiers standing at one end of the bridge didn¡¯t know the man with a high hat who was cross-legged in the snow.


    Listening to his extremely disrespectful and arrogant attitude towards General Xu Shi, the Yulin Royal Guards felt wrathful immediately. Their hairs stood on end angrily, as if they were about to pierce the armors. The soldiers wanted to directly rush to the snow bridge with swords and then kill the man on the spot.


    Xu Shi raised his right hand expressionlessly, and then the turmoil and impulsion behind him were suddenly suppressed. Looking seriously at the man sitting in the snow, he said, "Does the Academy really want to break its promise?"


    Looking at Xu Shi below the bridge, Second Brother said, "The Academy neither opposes Xia Hou¡¯s retirement, nor the challenge Younger Brother issued to Xia Hou, because there¡¯s no way we can oppose them."


    Xu Shi said with a frown, "You know I disagree with it."


    Second Brother said, "I am opposed to your disagreement."


    Looking silently at the man on the snow bridge for a long time, Xu Shi said in a slightly hoarse voice, "Is it the Headmaster¡¯s order?"


    Second Brother said, "No, it¡¯s my own idea."


    With his eyes slightly squinting, Xu Shi said, "So you¡¯re stopping me on the snow bridge."


    Second Brother sat straight in the snow. His robe, like the stiff pine in the Snow-capped Peak, kept still in the wind. His behavior was extremely simr to that marvelous figure of the Academy that year.


    Staring at Xu Shi under the snow bridge and other cavalries of the Yulin Royal Guards, he said without any expression, "I won¡¯t step in because I respect my Younger Brother, but I hope he can have a fair battle."


    Inside the imperial study of the pce, rage, reproach and severe arguments could be heard. ¡¯Idiot¡¯ naming and all kinds of vulgarities began to spread around, as if they were floating and dancing snowkes.


    After leaving the Academy, the Nation Master Li Qingshan entered Chang¡¯an at the fastest speed and arrived at a small newly-renovated Taoist temple. Because of the heavy snow, the celebration for the new temple had already finished in haste. After listening to the matters that urred around the pce, Ye Suughed and then disappeared into the blizzard.


    In the streets and alleys outside the pce, there were many carriagesing. All forces from different parties sent representatives to collect information, including the envoys of other countries and the earthly representatives of the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    In the snow pavilion on the moat, Ye Hongyu, wearing a green taoist robe, was looking towards the direction of the pce. She just kept silent when looking at that floating bloody g and that striking big ck umbre.


    Chen Pipi came from the other side of the snow street with Tang Xiaotang. Due to Tang Xiaotang¡¯s identity, Chen Pipi didn¡¯t take her along to the pce. Instead, he turned around and then walked into a closed shop in the south street.


    After borrowing a chair in the shop, he, with his fat and round body, moved from the snow street to the front of the pce. He looked at Ning Que and said, "Save some strength before fighting."


    Ning Que said, "Thank you, Senior Brother."


    His followers had already carried a table and chair and even a bowl of hot tea for Xia Hou. In front of the blood g, he rxingly sipped the tea in the blizzard, appearing natural and peaceful.


    Catching sight of Chen Pipi, Xia Hou slightly frowned but soon ignored him.


    Ning Que sat on the chair, and Sangsang held the big ck umbre behind the chair. Chen Pipi wanted to bandage Ning Que¡¯s bleeding left palm, but Ning Que shook his head.


    In front of the pce gate, the blood g and the ck umbre were in the wind and snow. The general was sipping hot tea, and Ning Que was resting. The scene was very strange, and even a little absurd, but very terrifying.


    Many carriages hid in the streets and alleys in front of the pce. Besides, many people weren¡¯t on the spot, but they were also waiting for the final result with mixed feelings at their own mansions.


    "The appearance of Mr. Second on the snow bridge represents the attitude of the Academy, which means that the Academy agrees on Ning Que¡¯s challenge to Xia Hou. Thus, the military of Tang can¡¯t prevent the battle either."


    The third minister of Offerings from Qinghe County took back his attention from the floating snowkes in front of the Princess¡¯ mansion. Looking at the pair of noble royal siblings, he smilingly said, "Congrattions to your Highness."


    The expression on Li Yu¡¯s face was very peaceful, but anxiousness hid deep within her eyes.


    Xia Hou was the best assistant of Her Majesty, so his retirement was a piece of good news for the princess and Li Hunyuan. Ning Que¡¯s challenge to Xia Hou even meant a better situation for them. No matter who won the battle and even though the Academy kept silent on this matter, it would also give birth to some abhorrence toward Her Majesty¡¯s camp.


    However, Li Yu wasn¡¯t happy, because she, as other people in the world, though it impossible for Ning Que to fight against Xia Hou. In other words, Ning Que would definitely die today.


    Looking at He Mingchi, who sat and kept silence on the other side, Li Yu slightly frowned and asked, "What¡¯s Ye Su¡¯s opinion as the Nation Master met him in the small temple?"


    He Mingchi shook his head and said, "Even for the West-Hill Divine Pce, it¡¯s impossible to prevent the battle in Chang¡¯an, because the Academy has agreed with the challenge."


    The third Minister of Offerings coldly said, "If Your Highness is still worried about it, maybe I can, by using some measures, provoke another dissension between the West-Hill Divine Pce and the Academy on this matter."


    After listening to his words, Li Yu felt a little angry. With her eyes slightly squinting, she warned, "Don¡¯t try to provoke the Academy by any method, because neither you nor I have the ability to withstand it."


    The third Minister of Offerings was highly respected in Qinghe County, just like a venerable ancestor. Compared with Her Highness, he had to be lower in rank, but he still felt a little ufortable upon hearing the words.


    "Your Highness is right, and I¡¯m going to assess the situation." He said expressionlessly.


    After gently waving his sleeves and walking out of the terrace, he left the Princess¡¯ mansion and then walked towards the Yanming Lake against the wind and snow.


    The snow became heavier and heavier, falling on Chang¡¯an ceaselessly.


    No matter how light the snow was, it would fall on the ground eventually or would be swept into the gutters. Also, it might umte until next year and then be water after being shone by the sun in spring. Later, it wouldpletely disappear in dust and dead leaves.


    This was a principle of the world.


    Something had to be done and someone would definitely appear. Many people, apanied by the wind and snow, had arrived in Chang¡¯an. Among them was a monk.


    The monk wore a worn-out bamboo hat and a shabby cotton kasaya. The expression, which was exposed outside the shadow of the bamboo hat, looked verymon, but it was naturally full of determination and firmness.


    Through the west city gate, the monk entered Chang¡¯an and stood on the long street in wind and snow. Maybe he didn¡¯t know the way, so he just turned around and then walked to a porridge shop. After taking off his bamboo hat, he began asking for directions.


    With his bamboo hat taken off, his new ck-green sharp stubble could be seen, which was as resolute as his expression. However, the smile on his face looked so kind and gentle when he was asking for directions.


    The words ¡¯asking for directions¡¯ weren¡¯t urate, because the monk kept his mouth closed throughout his inquiry. When he grinned asionally, the remains his cut tongue could be seen. So, he was a mute.


    For Ning Que and Xia Hou who was sitting in the wind and snow, the two hours were very long, because their bodies had already be hot, no matter how cold the wind and snow were.


    For the emperor in the pce and Xu Shi on the other side of the snow bridge, the two hours were very short, because the Academy¡¯s attitude stopped them from intervening the battle in time.


    When the time was almost up, the imperial court finally came up with an idea. With the pce gate open, Li Qingshan, the Nation Master of Tang, and Zeng Jing, the Grand Secretary of the Imperial Library, escorted by dozens of eunuchs, arrived at the scene in a hurry and then began announcing the decree of His Majesty.


    Prince Li Peiyan walked behind the crowd in silence.


    Zeng Jing rankedst among all cab members of Tang, but he had a special identity being the biological father of Sangsang. The Nation Master Li Qingshan was a cultivator and he usually didn¡¯t deal with state affairs. However, there were some connections between Ning Que and him. Besides, Ning Que should call him uncle due to their rtions with Master Yan Se.


    His Majesty¡¯s ordering the two to deliver his decree was, of course, due to their rtionship with Ning Que.


    As expected, Ning Que had to stand up to salute at the sight of them.


    The Grand Secretary Zeng Jing coughed and then wiped away a snowke that fell on the imperial edict. After a while, he said, "Herees the edict of His Majesty."


    All people in front of the pce held their breath and kept silent.


    After having a look at the Prince Li Peiyan, Zeng Jing gently sighed and then raucously said, "Please Li Peiyan, the Prince of Tang, resign your rank as a result of the previous case in the first year of Tianqi era."


    Silence filled up the whole scene. The people in front of the pce couldn¡¯t suppress their shock and looked at the Prince.


    That noble crown of Li Peiyan¡¯s, which was still on the snowfield between Ning Que and Xia Hou, had gradually been covered by the snow. With his hair in slight disarray, he looked kind of dispirited, but the expression on his face was still of extreme indifference.


    Without paying attention to others¡¯ reaction, Zeng Jing held the decree and continued announcing in a slightly trembling voice, "Today, the treason case of Lin Guangyuan, the former Xuanwei General, is officially revoked due to theck of evidence..."


    Through the Grand Secretary¡¯s slightly trembling voice, those names on the decree were announced one by one. They floated in the wind and snow, and then struck against the vermilion wall.


    "Xuanwei General Lin Guangyuan..."


    "Mrs. Lin Guangyuan..."


    "Deputy General Sha Gang..."


    "Captain Cheng Xinzheng..."


    "Secretary Lin Hai..."


    "Officer Hu Hua..."


    Listening to these names, which had long disappeared in history, and the imperial orders, which recovered and improved their ranks, the people before the pce fell into absolute silence.


    The decree of His Majesty didn¡¯t mention rejudging the case. However, the Prince had to resign his rank, and all generals and soldiers involved were rehabilitated. Was...the result any different from reversing the verdict?


    People finally understood what the pce meant.


    His Majesty once wanted to reverse the treason verdict for the Xuanwei General. However, he failed because of the imperial situation, the West-Hill Divine Pce and theck of evidence.


    Today, the Academy acquiesced Ning Que¡¯s challenge to Xia Hou, which brought a tricky problem to the imperial court. However, His Majesty still couldn¡¯t reverse the verdict when there wasn¡¯t evidence. Thus, he chose such a way.


    It wasn¡¯t a reversal of the verdict, but, it actually equaled to reversing.


    At least, it could give an exnation to those who unjustly suffered and today¡¯s Ning Que.


    When the announcement began, Xia Hou stood up from his chair. The decree didn¡¯t mention him, but his brows gradually frowned and then slowly sat down.


    Those names were still floating in the wind and snow.


    Xia Hou knew those names and even met those people.


    Over a decade ago, he once witnessed their deaths. He saw those mountains of heads with closed eyes, open eyes, despairing eyes and angry eyes.


    Those names were mentioned again after more than ten years, and then went into his ears in front of the pce. He became more and more silent, with his expression more and more livid. Besides, he held the chair armrests tighter and tighter.


    He felt neither guilty nor dejected.


    He was just enraged.


    The armchairs were crumbled into powder, and then, through his fingers, fell on the snowfield with anger.


    No one paid attention to the current emotions of General Xia Hou.


    Because the decree of His Majesty didn¡¯t mention him.


    From a legal perspective, Xia Hou wasn¡¯t a General anymore.


    What he needed to do was to ept it peacefully and then leave Chang¡¯an in earnest.


    Everyone¡¯s eyes fell on Ning Que.


    They knew who the decree of His Majesty was for.


    If the pce wanted to stop the life-and-death battle, they could only hope Ning Que would withdraw the challenge invitation.


    His Majesty reversed the case for Lin Guangyuan and rewarded his generations today. All that he did was just for one aim.


    Looking at Ning Que under the ck umbre, the people before the pce thought this matter hade to an end.


    From the moment when he heard the three words ¡¯Lin Guang Yuan¡¯, Ning Que lowered his head and attentively looked at the thick snow under his feet. He intently listened to those names which appeared one by one.


    He had never heard those names, so he listened very carefully today. However, his facial expressions were veryplex, relieved, disappointed and self-mocking.


    Eventually, the names on the imperial edict were all announced.


    The Grand Secretary Zeng Jing and the Nation Master Li Qingshan walked toward him, and then solemnly passed the imperial edict to him.


    Ning Que took it and kept silent.


    With a serious expression, Li Qingshan said, "His Majesty said he can grant you amnesty as long as you admit to previous murder cases, because you indeed have a forgivable reason. Besides, if you think the resignation of the Prince isn¡¯t enough to appease your anger, His Majesty and Her Majesty will, on behalf of General Xia Hou, apologize to you andpensate for it."


    The Nation Master said in a very low voice and the sound was covered by the wind and snow. Except Ning Que and him, no one else could hear of it, but others also knew what he was talking about with Ning Que.


    However, Ning Que made an unexpected decision, when all people thought that things would end here and were gradually starting to feel relieved.


    After putting the imperial edict on the chair behind him, Ning Que raised his palms andughed as he looked at Li Qingshan, Zeng Jing and people in front of the pce.


    Ning Que started to apud.


    His movement was very gentle at the beginning, but then it became stronger and stronger. The strength was so powerful that it sounded as if it was pping against a wall. The wound on his palms split again, with blood gruesomely flowing.


    "p! p!"


    "p! p! p!"


    "p! p! p! p!"


    With the sound of pping bing louder and louder, the blood kepting out his palms. It fell on his body, then to his legs, andstly to the snow in the ground.


    Looking at this scene, the people before the pce sensed a feeling of cold and terror again. They gradually felt chilly along with the wind and snow.


    "His Majesty is very clement and thew of Tang Empire does work a little. I¡¯m relieved and satisfied as those names on the imperial edict can be heard in Chang¡¯an again."


    Ning Que said with emotion, "But eventually, it¡¯s a pity that some names have been forgotten. I feel very sorry."


    Zeng Jing nervously asked, "Who¡¯s been omitted? I¡¯ll tell His Majesty immediately."


    Ning Que smilingly said, "Many names in the General¡¯s Mansion have been omitted, such as grooms, cooks, maidservants and...my parents."


    Zeng Jing said with puzzlement, "The general and his wife are conferred first..."


    Looking at the snow by his feet and the blood spot on the snow, Ning Que said after long silence, "The general and his wife aren¡¯t my parents."


    The wind and snow suddenly stopped as the words were uttered.


    -

 Chapter 473: A Different Story

    Chapter 473: A Different Story


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The Military Ministry started looking into the connection between the weird homicide cases and Ning Que. Even if they found nothing, the rumor about his family had spread in Chang¡¯an for a long time.


    People all believed that Ning Que was Lin Guangyuan¡¯ son and the only survivor in the murder case. He had been hiding in a far distant mountain for a long time and once he got into the Academy, he would start his revenge. Even the Empire and Xia Hou believed it, as well as his Senior Brothers and Sisters in the back of the mountain.


    Therefore, when the people in front of the pce heard what Ning Que said, they were shocked and they hardly believed it. They all wondered why Ning Que did this if he was not Lin Guangyuan¡¯s son.


    Xia Hou looked at Ning Que under the ck umbre and frowned. Nobody knew what he was thinking about.


    Ning Que lowered his head to look at the blood drops on the snowfield and smiled a little. These blood drops reminded him the ones on the woodshed ground 15 years ago.


    The snow became stronger and fiercer.


    Ning Que raised his head and asked three questions to the people.


    "Why do you all believe that I¡¯m the son of the General?


    "Why do I have to be him?"


    "Why do you all wish for me to be him?"


    People were still in shock and no one was able to answer him.


    Ning Que said wryly, "I¡¯ m sorry. I¡¯m not him at all.


    "My father was not the Xuanwei General. Not a captain, not an officer or a clerk. He was only a gatekeeper of the General¡¯s Mansion who was not even at the front door and did not get paid much."


    "My mother was not the General¡¯s wife, either. She was a poor maidservant. Even though she had fed the master and freely went in and out the yard, she was still a maidservant."


    "I¡¯m certainly gratified that His Majesty decided to retry the case, because the Generals were all good people and they died for nothing. I just so regret that I did not hear my parents¡¯ names."


    He looked at the people and said, "That¡¯s reasonable since my parents were ordinary people and they had ordinary names."


    "My father was an orphan and he was given the name Lin Tao by the General."


    "My mother didn¡¯t even have a name. She came from Hebei County and was sold in Chang¡¯an. She was called Li Sanniang from birth to death because she faintly remembered she was the third child in her family."


    The blood flowed down along his hand to the ground and he said that calmly and peacefully, not wryly. He was really calm.


    However, the unusual peace froze everyone who was looking at him, from the feet up.


    This kind of peace was horrible.


    Sangsang did not feel afraid of him. At this moment, she was feeling the same feeling, sadness, and disappointment as him. She just wanted to hold his hands and warm him subconsciously.


    "I know, the story in the book tells us..."


    "The prince will alwayse back for revenge after his throne is taken away, and a young master survived from his framed family, reversing the verdict after he passed the exam and gets the emperor¡¯s favor."


    "Why does the protagonist in every revenge story has to be a prince? Doesn¡¯t a son of a gatekeeper and a maidservant qualify to seek revenge?"


    People all kept silent facing this harsh but peaceful question. Zeng Jing failed to say something since he could not open his mouth, and Li Qingshan only sighed slightly.


    "The book is written like this and you all believe it should be that way. I don¡¯t me anyone, and it¡¯s foolish to be contrite and reform myself, but I still hate this.


    "Just like many years ago."


    Ning Que looked at Xia Hou and said, "That day, I went out to y with my master like any day before, because he treated me like a friend. That was irrelevant. Anyway, the housekeeper needed to save the master, so he took me into the Official of Counsel¡¯s mansion across the street with my master as well."


    Upon hearing this, Zeng Jing was stunned because he remembered that day when he had a newborn daughter while the family across the street was exterminated.


    Ning Que continued. "When you came into the General¡¯s Mansion, my master, the housekeeper and I were hiding in the woodshed of the Official of Counsel."


    Xia Hou said somberly, "When my men went tracking and reached the woodshed, they found two dead bodies. That¡¯s why I was sure that Lin Guangyuan¡¯s son was dead for sure. I had been wondering who you were all the way until now. Although I¡¯m not confused, I¡¯m still curious about how you did that."


    Ning Que looked at the snow around him and tried to remember something. He said with a smile, "There is no surprise story under Haotian and neither was what I did."


    "If the general¡¯s son wanted to live, the gatekeeper¡¯s son had to die. Since we were both four years old and if we changed our clothes and were badly mutted, no one would be able to tell the difference between us.


    "The old man thought he did not have to be vignt against a four -year -old boy, thereby, he watched me with his sad, sorry, and sympathetic eyes and then I knew what he was going to do."


    "Wasn¡¯t the story in the book like this?"


    Then the smile on his face gradually disappeared. He looked at Xia Hou, Zeng Jing, Li Qingshan, and all the people in front of him and asked wryly, "But why?"


    "Why I should follow the book?"


    "Why the general¡¯s son can live and I have to die?"


    "Why I should be killed?"


    There wasplete silence in front of the pce.


    No one was able to answer his question, therefore, only Ning Que¡¯ voice could be heard in the snow, bing colder and higher.


    "I¡¯m only a gatekeeper¡¯ son."


    "But I want to live."


    "I have to live."


    Ning Que talked about his thought calmly and firmly, like talking about the truth of the sun rising every day and water moving down.


    "So when the housekeeper was persuading me to take off my clothes while moving to take a chopper, I grabbed it first and stabbed him in his stomach."


    "I seemed to stab him more than once."


    "Maybe five times."


    "Since I was not strong enough and stabbed him not deeply enough, I had to stab him over and over again until he was dead. He just looked at me rmedly as if I was a monster and did not make any noises. I kept wondering whether he was too shocked to say anything or he just did not want to be found."


    He paused for a while and said, "My master, the general¡¯s son, had no idea of what had happened. He found the old man lying in the pool of blood and then he rushed toward me. He tried to hit me and bite me like a crazy man."


    He shook his head and said, "I was panicked and waving the chopper to stop him until I scratched him with the chopper. Then he covered his neck with his hands and fell on the woodpile.


    "The blood came from his fingers so quickly even though I had tried to help him cover it. I failed and he died in front of me with his blood coagting in my hands."


    Ning Que raised his head to look at the people in the snow. He shook his head after a long time and said, "It was not a manughter."


    "Maybe I meant to kill him at that time."


    He looked at Xia Hou and smiled, "Only if he was dead, I, a son of a gatekeeper would be able to avoid catching your attention."


    The whole world was enveloped by snow and wind as if it were dead.


    The snowkes fell on Ning Que¡¯s face which made him look even grimmer.


    The smile on his face was seemingly warm but extremely grim.


    People saw his smile and were badly shocked. They felt an unprecedented cold.


    They seemed to have seen what happened in the woodshed decades ago.


    A four years old boy was standing beside two corpses, desperate and terrified, with a chopper in his trembling hands and on the verge of copsing at any moment.


    However, he did not.


    Today, the boy was standing in front of the pce, telling people about the story from long ago.


    The story in the book was always the same.


    However, his was not in the book.

 Chapter 474: Hoisting the Flag

    Chapter 474: Hoisting the g


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    On the cliff in the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain.


    The Headmaster of the Academy in ck overclothes sat by the edge of the cliff and looked in the direction of Chang¡¯an from a distance. The snow looked like salt flowers spread by Haotian.


    "Fifteen years ago, I was sitting here and watching the woodshed in the Official of Counsel¡¯s Mansion."


    "I watched him as he walked out of the woodshed, palefaced and holding a chopper. I watched him hiding in the well grasping a rope. I watched him climbing over the wall and walking into the crowd. I watched him leaving Chang¡¯an. He reminded me of your Youngest Uncle from a long time ago."


    The Eldest Brother stood beside him and asked, "What did my Younger Brother and Youngest Uncle have inmon?"


    The Headmaster shook his head and said, "I could not tell. Maybe they were both eager for freedom."


    "I agree with you on my Youngest Uncle¡¯s part, but were freedom and what had happened to Younger Brother relevant?"


    The Headmaster said, "The so-called freedom, is your right to choose. Choose to live, choose to die, or not to choose. Your Younger Brother chose to take the chopper to kill the housekeeper and his best friend. At that moment, he had taken his first step toward freedom."


    The Eldest Brother said honestly, "Teacher, I don¡¯t understand?"


    The Headmaster said, "You are like the clearest stream in the world and flowing among the hills freely. Maybe you have run into some shoals and reefs, but you never came across a real danger or faced the option your Younger Brother faced once."


    "No one was qualified to judge the choice Ning Que made at that time, but it was unusual for him to do that. Your Youngest Uncle made a simr decision in that year. No matter what happened to them, they both did what they wanted."


    The Eldest Brother said, "That¡¯s why teacher took him as a disciple."


    The Headmaster sighed and said, "In the spring, I met your Younger Brother in the Building of Pines and Cranes and had a talk with him in the hut. I was a little disappointed when I found he was different from your Youngest Uncle."


    "But that¡¯s how life is. How can two leaves be exactly the same?"


    He watched the snow and the city with relief. "However, today, his choice surprised me. I never expected he was brave enough to challenge Xia Hou face to face. I like the clumsy choice he made."


    He turned around looked at his eldest disciple and said with a smile, "You are the clumsiest one among your brothers, but I like you the most. However, you need to study from Jun Mo and your Younger Brother about some of their ways."


    The Eldest Brother agreed with his teacher. He watched the snow and could not help worrying about his Younger Brother. He hesitated a while and said, "If Younger Brother indeed loses to Xia Hou, what should I do?"


    This was an interesting question. It suggested that in the Eldest Brother¡¯s opinion, Ning Que was not qualified to have a fight against Xia Hou.


    "I don¡¯t believe in Heaven or fate. I only believe in myself."


    The Headmaster had a look at the grey sky and said, "Everyone believes in himself. This is your Younger Brother¡¯ s choice, and this is also his ridicule and contempt toward fate. Except for a fair chance, he asked for nothing."


    The dead silence in front of the pcested for a long time. The snowstorm crumbled the bloody g, swayed the big ck umbre and froze people¡¯s faces as well.


    The Nation Master, Li Qingshan looked at Ning Queplicatedly and said, "Is that all?"


    Ning Que kept quiet.


    Li Qingshan sighed and shook his head. He said, "His Majesty said that if you insisted on fighting against him, you had to hand over the thing first.


    "He said you know what he means."


    The tip of Ning Que¡¯s eyebrows slightly tilted up and he asked, "Why?"


    Li Qingshan said, "It¡¯s your personal grudge."


    Ning Que said, "Yes."


    Li Qingshan said, "Since it is your personal grudge, you are not allowed to use it."


    Then he seriously said, "If you are able to survive after the battle, you can get it back."


    Ning Que looked at the snow under his feet and did not say anything. After a while, he took out a thing enveloped by a piece of cloth, but he refused to hand it over to Li Qingshan.


    Li Qingshan frowned and said, "Can¡¯t you even trust me?"


    "Except for myself, I trust nobody. Sorry."


    Ning Que gave it to Chen Pipi beside him and exined.


    Li Qingshan smiled with a bitter expression and walked toward the pce.


    People in front of the pce were curious about what it was. Xia Hou could clearly feel the fluctuation from it, so he frowned and said to Ning Que, "You have the array eye. That¡¯s why you believe you are qualified to challenge me?"


    Ning Que said, "I said once, I still have many more powerful tools."


    Xia Hou slowly and gently stroked the arms of the chair, as if he did not notice that there was nothing there. He said, "Now that you don¡¯t have the array eye, do you still insist on killing me?"


    Ning Que answered, "You have killed many people, so have I. People like us should know that there are many ways to kill a man."


    Xia Hou said wryly, "Even though you will die because of this, you are still bent on killing me. For what? Only for revenge? How much could you remember at four years of age? Do you remember your parents¡¯ faces? I don¡¯t think so. I believe you are doing this just because you need to get rid of the psychological shadow."


    Upon hearing this, Ning Que said, "I must admit that it was notfortable to have my master¡¯s blood in my hands. I could not wash it away. Maybe it was my psychological shadow. Since I used a chopper to kill for the first time, it became my usual weapon."


    He looked at Xia Hou and said, "But then what? What are you going to say?"


    Xia Hou slightly lifted his eyebrows and said with a mocking and contemptuous tone, "At least, it proves that your revenge is not as great and just as you think."


    "Great and just?"


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "After I escaped from Chang¡¯an, I dreamed of this many times. If I could find some masters in the mountains and learn from them, what should I say to you after managing to break into your military camp?"


    "I would ask you why you were so cold and easy to kill. I would say that killing you today was for the people in the General¡¯s Mansion and the viges in the Yan territory. I would fight for justice and all the innocent people. The list was long and thest name on it was my best friend¡¯s."


    He paused for a while and looked at Xia Hou. "These words sounded just and powerful, but what did these words have to do with me?"


    A cold wind blew over him and he coughed with his hands covering his mouth. Then he spat on the snow. The dark yellow phlegm looked obvious on the white snow.


    "I have killed not fewer men than you have, and I have done a lot of evil things that you cannot imagine. My hands are never clean and I am not a so-called angel of justice."


    "I don¡¯t care how many innocent people you have killed, and as long as they had no rtionship with me, I can apud you, but since you have killed my entire family, I will naturally aim to kill you. It¡¯s an ethical intent and I don¡¯t need other reasons."


    Xia Hou kept silent for a long time and suddenly said, "Sounds interesting."


    Then he got up from the chair.


    He looked like an indestructible mountain which suddenly appeared in the snow.


    "Come and kill me."


    He finally said, "Or be killed by me and let me finish your miserable life."


    It waste in Chang¡¯an, as if this night was endless. The thick snow clouds covered thest glimmer of the sun and the stars in the sky. Yanming Lake was totally dark. There were only a few torches lighting the snow from a distance and turned them into starlight.


    Xia Hou looked at the closed door of the courtyard and reached out to get the army g from his soldiers. Then he walked to the door and held the g with his right hand.


    He did this randomly. The ground in front of the courtyard was made of hard rocks, so when the gpole fell, the rocks were fragmented. The gpole stuck deeply into the ground, sshing gravel profusely.


    Xia Hou slowly rxed his grip and the gpole seemed to be nted on the ground. The bloody g was fluttering on the snow and devoured the darkness.


    This bloody king g had apanied Xia Hou for many years.


    The g had been waved over the Northeast Border Military of Tang all the time, no matter if he fought against the Yan Kingdom or the cavalry of the Left King¡¯s pce.


    For decades, the bloody g had never fallen.


    Just like the powerful man under the g.


    The guards around Yanming Lake, the vignt officers, and the soldiers who were maintaining order, all looked at the g and they had a strong feeling.


    Tonight, the bloody g would not fall, either.


    Xia Hou walked up the stone steps.


    Then he pushed the door open.


    He entered the night.


    Ning Que was not in the house beside Yanming Lake.


    He and Sangsang were standing on Yanming mountain to the south of theke and overlooked the opposite bank.


    Sangsang was holding the big ck umbre to shelter them from the snow.


    In people¡¯s eyes, Ning Que¡¯s most powerful weapons were the talisman and the arrows. It was reasonable for him to keep a distance if he wanted to fight against Xia Hou, a Peak state of Martial Arts master.


    Although Xia Hou did not know where Ning Que was, he could figure it out. However, he was too arrogant to care about this.


    The snow and wind were so strong that the sky and stars were covered. Yanming Lake in winter was like a frozen inkstone. Even if Ning Que had an acute sense, he was not able to see the other side.


    How could he use the Primordial Thirteen Arrows to kill Xia Hou if he did not have a clear vision?

 Chapter 475: Snowing

    Chapter 475: Snowing


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "This night snow seems unfair to me, but it is actually unfair to Xia Hou."


    Looking at the snow on the other side of theke, Ning Que shook his head and continued, "The array eye pestle was taken away by His Majesty. It definitely makes me unhappy, but it is fair. It seems unfair because my cultivation is not nearly as good as his. However, I¡¯ve prepared for this battle for a total of fifteen years. He doesn¡¯t know that there exists a man like me quietly keeping an eye on him, thus it makes the battle even."


    "As long as the battle is only between him and me, I acknowledge the fairness of it."


    Sangsang shrank into herself and tightly held the handle of the big ck umbre to make sure it would not be blown away by the heavy wind and snow. She whispered, "Young Master, are you worried that someone will stick their nose in?"


    "After all, apart from being the general of the Empire, Xia Hou is a visiting professor of the Tao Sect. I always thought that someone woulde to disturb the battle, and I felt something when I held the pestle earlier."


    Thinking of his fellow brothers in the Academy, Ning Que spoke: "I¡¯m not worried, because we are in Chang¡¯an as opposed to somewhere else. As long as the Academy stands right there, south of the city, no one will be able to interfere."


    Maybe there were a few forces intending to interfere with this battle, but most people were at the bank of Yanming Lake, quietly waiting for it to begin, like Ye Su who had left the Taoist temple.


    The ideal ce to watch a battle was, of course, from above. At this moment, Ye Su was above the wall of Chang¡¯an, his white robe flowing with the night snow.


    Most people thought that the West-Hill Divine Pce did not want to see the battle between Xia Hou and Ning Que happen. This was supported by the fact that a special envoy from the pce had raised objections to His Majesty. However, Ye Suing to Chang¡¯an on behalf of Haotian Tao Sect could ignore the pce¡¯s attitude. Although he wanted to see Xia Hou safely retire from the court, he did not mind the battle happening.


    Because in all the possibilities Ye Su had thought of, there were none where Ning Que could win this battle.


    It would be nice if Xia Hou could win.


    And it would be better if he could kill Ning Que, thus offending the Academy.


    If so, he would have no chance of enjoying his old age in the Tang Empire after retirement, nor vaciting between the Tang Empire and Tao Sect. He would have no choice but to swear his allegiance to Haotian Taoism.


    "Haotian Taoism sect¡¯s idea sounds very nice, but you have to first make sure that Xia Hou will win."


    A voice came from the wall. He spoke at a very slow pace, but he could be heard clearly in the heavy snow, making people calm.


    Walking up to Ye Su, Eldest Brother looked at the dark Yanming Lake below the wall.


    Ye Su said, "We met this morning, and now you are here again."


    Eldest Brother said, "Yeah, I came to see."


    Ye Su asked, "To see what?"


    Looking at Ye Su and smiling, Eldest Brother said, "Your sword style is pretty good, and only Liu Bai¡¯s is equal to yours. No one can defeat you in Chang¡¯an, thus I came to see you."


    Coming to see you meanting to keep an eye on you.


    Watching the snow dancing in the night, Ye Su said emotionlessly, "No one can defeat me in Chang¡¯an, but the Academy is outside of Chang¡¯an."


    Although the snow was very heavy on this night, many people still remained within it.


    The Third Minister of Offerings from Qinghe County sat in the Winter Forest beside the eastern bank of Yanming Lake.


    The snow fell, yet he seemed numb to its chilliness.


    Considering the interests of the important ns and Her Highness of Qinghe County, he would not allow anyone to disturb this battle. However, he had felt a foreboding that something would go wrong, and that was why he came here.


    In the snow, a monk slowly approached.


    Although the forest was dark, the kapok kasaya and bamboo hat worn by the monk could be seen clearly, which made his showing-up very obvious.


    Seeing the monk approaching in the snow, the Third Minister of Offerings frowned.


    He had been a Grand Cultivator of Knowing Destiny State for many years, yet he could not figure out what kind of state the monk reached. It made him wary and hostile.


    The battle between the strong was characterized by speed, there was no need for any formalities between each other. Putting his arm behind him, the Third Minister of Offerings held the hilt to draw out his sword.


    When the sheath and the sword scraped each other, they made a sound simr to the pieces of snowke falling on to the bed of snow. However, the sword was forced to halt its way out.


    With his eyebrows raised and his hands shaking, the Third Minister of Offerings pulled out all the power inside his body.


    However, rather than being drawn out, the sword gradually returned to its sheath.


    The sound of the friction between the sword and the sheath was as quiet as the falling snow, making him uneasy.


    The monk wearing a bamboo hat slowly walked toward him in the snow, being only a few feet away from him.


    The Third Minister of Offerings tensed up, and his hands shook like dead branches bearing snow. Looking at the monk, his previously proud eyes only showed fear.


    No Qi of Heaven and Earth changed in the forest, the monk just slowly approached. With no movement, he showed a Grand Cultivator from the Knowing Destiny State that he could not draw out his own sword before him.


    Quietly amazed, the Third Minister of Offerings could not imagine which cultivator could possess such power. For a moment, he guessed the monk¡¯s origins, and his pupils shrank.


    Did hee from the Xuankong Temple?


    The monk was getting closer and closer, and the frozen Third Minister of Offerings could not help shaking from fear.


    He gave a choked cry, his face bing flushed. He spread his skinny five fingers to trace the sign of Qi of Heaven and Earth flowing in the forest, trying to escape the other¡¯s control.


    Raising his right palm in front of him with the index finger slightly bent, the monk drew out an Emblematic Gesture.


    It suddenly snowed more heavily in the Winter Forest.


    Tens of thousands of snowkes seemed to fall on the Third Minister of Offerings in an instant.


    Those snowkes endowed with the supreme Buddha power from the Emblematic Gesture managed to fall into the clothes of Third Minister of Offerings, bing countless invisible snow ropes which were bound to him.


    The monk took a look at him, his eyes filled with grace and pity, and then he continued to step forward in the thick snow, passing him and walking to theke outside the Winter Forest.


    The Third Minister of Offerings destely sitting cross-legged in the snow could not move at all, his cheeks bing pale and his eyes filled with shame and terror.


    He was an honored predecessor of Qinghe County, and he was arrogant to the extreme after reaching the Knowing Destiny State. He did not even show respect to the Academy, an Unknown ce.


    Only after this snowy night, meeting a monk who he doesn¡¯t know, he truly understood what someone legendary was. Even a Grand Cultivator in the Knowing Destiny State could not be arrogant in front of this monk.


    The Third Minister of Offerings recalled that he had once boasted in the Princess¡¯s Mansion that he would put the Academy and the Haotian Tao Sect against each other. Yet, he waspletely trapped by the monk¡¯s Emblematic Gesture now. He could not help feeling endlessly shameful, wishing to die.


    On the high wall, Ye Su waved his hands to dispel any snowkes within fifty feet, looking at the dark forest beside Yanming Lake. He said indifferently, "That idiot from Qinghe County was so stupid, he actually intended to step into this battle. How annoying."


    Eldest Brother smiled and did not say anything.


    Ye Su said, "I wanted to kill the idiot originally. But I see that¡¯s not necessary, since the mute taught him a lesson."


    Shaking his head, Eldest Brother said, "I can¡¯t watch you vite thew of Tang."


    Listening to the words ¡¯thew of Tang¡¯, Ye Suughed slightly.


    Looking at the bank of Yanming Lake and thinking of the monk walking through the winter forest to the bank, Eldest Brother said," The battle between my Youngest Brother and General Xia Hou is regarded as a big event to many people, it is also the reason you came to Chang¡¯an. But my only hope is that my Youngest Brother emerges safe and sound."


    Ye Su said, "You know that I came to Chang¡¯an because of Ning Que and not because of this battle. The mute came for Ning Que as well."


    Although Eldest Brother was aware of the meaning behind Ye Su¡¯s words, he kept silent.


    Looking at Yanming Lake, Ye Su said, "All of us who appeared around the ck line fifteen years ago are here, except Tang."


    Eldest Brother said, "Actually, Tang hase too. General Xia Hou¡¯s injuries were dealt by him. Although he himself didn¡¯te, his fists came."


    Ye Su said, "It makes sense, but I don¡¯t think that Ning Que has any chance of winning against Xia Hou even if he was injured before."


    "I know what you¡¯re trying to say and what you¡¯re worried about, but I won¡¯t interfere with this battle out of respect for my Youngest Brother."


    Eldest Brother smiled with emotion, "Of course I know better, that Youngest Brother will cry and ask me not to respect him if he knew the Academy¡¯s idea."


    Ye Su said, "Mr. Two stopped Xu Shi on the snow bridge, and what does that mean?"


    Eldest Brother said, "It means fairness."


    Ye Su said, "Xia Hou is much stronger than Ning Que. Does the Academy think that is fair?"


    Eldest Brother said, "My teacher once taught us that fairness is a matter of mind and it has nothing to do with strength. As long as both sides are willing to do so and ept the rules, then it is fair."


    Keeping silent for a long while, Ye Su thought of the words spoken by the Headmaster of Academy.


    Looking at the night forest beside Yanming Lake, Ye Su then said with a slight frown, "If the mute wants to speak, few people in this world can stop him."


    Turning and looking at him, Ye Su asked, "When Jun Mo stops Xu Shi and you look to me, who¡¯s going to stop him? I won¡¯t stop him, and I can¡¯t stop him once he speaks out. Do we need to bother the Headmaster of the Academy with such a small thing?"


    Staring at theke, Eldest Brother frowned and said nothing.


    While the snow was dancing, the monk was walking through the forest toward Yanming Lake.


    Fifteen years ago, the monk chewed his tongue with a smile before the ck line, swallowing it into his belly, and since then, he never spoke again.


    He once again set foot on to the mortal world this night, and no one knew if he would speak or what he would say. But people were sure that his voice would be as resonant as the thunder once he spoke.


    Even Ye Su, a powerful sessor of Zhishou Abbey was wary of hearing his first word if he spoke.


    Who would talk with the monk?


    Is there really a need for the Headmaster of the Academy to leave the mountain?


    At this moment, a very thin snowke fell from the sky over the night forest.


    The snow was very thin and bright like a cicada¡¯s wings.

 Chapter 476: The Wail of the Cicadas

    Chapter 476: The Wail of the Cicadas


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Suddenly the wind blew hard and the snow sheeted down in the night forest. However, the seemingly light and thin snowke was not blown away by the roaring wind, nor did it gradually disappear inside the dense snow. Instead, the arrogant and lonely snowke slowly fell from the sky, regardless of the strong wind and other snowkes, eventually staying over one of the Third Minister of Offerings¡¯ shoulders.


    Trapped by the monk¡¯s Emblematic Gesture, the Third Minister of Offerings who sat cross-legged in the snow, could not move at all. He watched the snowke falling on his shoulder, feeling confused.


    When the thin snowke fell, the monk stopped walking toward theke bank with his sandals deeply sunk in the thick snow, and he turned back, watching the snowke silently.


    Suddenly there was a sluggish noise in the forest, which sounded like pieces of ice abrading against each other. Apanied by the wind and snow, it obviously sounded deste like wailing cicadas.


    The cicada was a kind of a summer creature, and it was silent in the autumn wind.


    In context, the cold cicada represented silence.


    However, even though the cold wind and snow were strong tonight, it seemed that countless cicadas had appeared in the forest.


    Those cicadas hid behind branches, concealed themselves in tilted barks, hung between cobwebs and sat in the snow. They watched the falling snow, the monk, while chirping wantonly.


    Cicadas made noises constantly.


    Cicadas could be seen everywhere in the forest.


    The forest became crowded with the increasingly piercing sound of cicadas. The thick snow umting on the branches was shaken by it. However, there seemed to be two cicada wings over the forest, big and invisible, enveloping the entire sky without any trace of their buzzing extending outside the forest.


    The fierce calling was colder than snow and more elusive than the night wind. They rang, returned to silence and then revived in all directions, and finallynded in the ears of the monk.


    The buzzing in the forest seemed to say indifferently, "Repent and be saved."


    Hearing those increasingly piercing cries, the monk looked graver.


    He was called Qi Nian.


    Coming from the Xuankong Temple, he was a powerful World Wayfarer of the Buddhism Sect.


    Because of the records on the temple¡¯s scroll, he came to Chang¡¯an to see the legendary Son of Yama, and he even was ready to kill him even if he had to face the Academy.


    Since he practiced Silent Meditation, his heart had be more and more determined, and so had his mind. Not evenbining the countless strongmen in Chang¡¯an and the Academy in the south of the city could his mind be moved.


    Logically speaking, no sound could stop him from walking forward.


    But these buzzes were different.


    Because he was clearly aware that the buzzes represented a person.


    It was the most mysterious or even the most terrible person in the world.


    Not to mention him, even if the preach chief monk of the Xuankong Temple heard these buzzes, he would have to treat them seriously.


    Qi Nian¡¯s expression was grave even with a kind of respect for his predecessors, but he still looked determined. He pointed at the Yanming Lake behind him.


    He told the person behind those buzzes that his destination was over there.


    Although the Third Minister of Offerings was trapped by the snow and could not move at all, he could watch the thin snowke and hear the piercing sound. His face became increasingly pale and his eyes were filled with fear.


    He was a Grand Cultivator of the Knowing destiny State, who found lots of secrets about the world of cultivation in the Library of the Qinghe County. Although he was not sure, he vaguely guessed the identity of the man in the forest.


    The person who could trigger such buzzing sounds and make a Bhadanta of the Xuankong Temple be serious, it obviously turned out to be the most mysterious headmaster of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation.


    After the destruction of the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine years ago, the forces which once set off turmoil in the world had fallen, but no one dared to ignore the contemporary headmaster of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    In many years, no one had ever seen him or heard any news about him; he finally became the most mysterious legend in the cultivation world.


    There were rumors that the headmaster of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had turned into a pile of bones due to excessive practice of Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation, and also it was said that he hid himself somewhere but kept an eye on this world indifferently, ready to appear at any time to once again bid wind and rain toe.


    In any case, nobody in the cultivation world could forget him, including those who believed that he had died. People were scared even in their dreams, as they always thought that the suzerain would reappear in front of everyone at the least expected moment.


    And this was indeed a moment that no one could have imagined.


    At least it was a moment beyond the Third Minister of Offerings¡¯ imagination.


    Before the battle between Ning Que and General Xia Hou, World Wayfarers of Buddhism and Taoism came to Chang¡¯an, and Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation reappeared in the world unexpectedly.


    Third Minister of Offerings was terrified, but he turned his eyeballs subconsciously when he thought that he might find a chance to escape while the headmaster of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and the Bhadanta of Xuankong Temple were fighting.


    With his eyes moving slightly, he saw the thin snowke on his shoulder.


    And then he remembered that he had forgotten some of the stories of legend.


    It was said that the headmaster of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine did not kill many people as he disdained butchering ordinary people. He thought that only Grand Cultivators from the Knowing Destiny State were worth being killed by him.


    It was said that the reason why he was the most mysterious person in the world was that he would kill all the people who had heard the wail of the cicadas.


    The Third Minister of Offerings who was on the Knowing destiny State did hear it tonight.


    No sooner did the Third Minister of Offerings understand the reality that he died.


    That piece of thin snowke, as if spreading its wings, gently wedged into his old neck.


    The blood sttering out of his neck, mmed into the blizzard, hissing.


    Like the wail of the cicadas.


    The wail of the cicadas was the result of shaking their wings. They could shake hundreds of thousands of times to impact people¡¯s emotions with different sounds.


    The sound of the sttering blood was a result of the frictional vibration between the blood and the wound, which was simr to that of cicadas. Both sounds could be very simrly grieving.


    The monk turned back to look at the dead Third Minister of Offerings sitting in the thick snow. He frowned and knew that it was a warning from the man in the forest.


    He was a Buddhist disciple who could kill people but was unwilling to do so. Thus he just trapped the Minister of Offerings with an Emblematic Gesture. But it was beyond his expectation that he had be an aplice to the headmaster of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    The monk knew why the Twenty-Three-year Cicada reappeared and why he prevented him from walking toward Yanming Lake by the wail of cicadas.


    Because Xia Hou was a traitor to the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, bound to be killed by Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation.


    There would be nothing if the headmaster of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had died, but he would definitely kill Xia Hou or watch him die since he was still alive.


    For the sake of the Academy and the Tang court, he had been forbearing for many years. How could he let others touch this matter since the Academy was determined to kill Xia Hou.


    Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation might be afraid of the Headmaster of the Academy.


    But he would never fear the Xuankong Temple or the Zhishou Abbey.


    Although the mute monk understood the intention of the wail, it did not mean that he could ept it.


    The Buddhism Sect had always been regarded as an outer sect by Haotian Taoism, but it belonged to main sects after all. Although he knew that the headmaster of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was extremely strong, he would not stop for he was determined.


    He was Qi Nian, the sessor of the Xuankong Temple.


    He began to feel angry.


    Not arrogantly nor indignantly.


    The monk still closed his mouth tightly, with his eyes filled with determination and his hand moving quickly before his robe. Within a moment, the monk formed a piercing Emblematic Gesture.


    It was the most powerful and brightest Invariant Ming King Gesture among the Emblematic Gestures of the Buddhism Sect.


    Those two ordinary-looking hands before the old kasaya, with fingers separately pointing upwards, formed a strong aura spreading out to the forest in all directions.


    Silently, all the umted snow in the forest sharply flew to the sky, and suddenly the wind and snow in the sky were shaken and became stagnant.


    The wail that could be heard everywhere in the night forest suddenly stopped.


    However, after a short while, the buzzes resumed, bing more clear and piercing than before.


    It sounded like someone wasughing loudly.


    The wind blew harder and the snow fell more sharply in the forest. The ground was again filled with snow and the falling snow shot straight to Qi Nian.


    Qi Nian looked the same, standing slightly in the snow with his sandals. He hit his left knee with his right leg, naturally sitting in the snow on a half snow lotus te.


    Those piercing snowkes like thousands of cicadas hit Qi Nian cruelly.


    There seemed to be an invisible barrier on the surface of Qi Nian¡¯s body.


    Those snowkes could no longer move forward when they were half an inch away from him. They stopped in the sky and stuck to his outer body like cotton.


    In a sh, his kasaya was totally covered with snow only with his head and hands outside, and he looked like a snowman.


    Looking into the deep night forest and feeling the cold frost on his eyshes, Qi Nian hesitated to say something with his cheeks twitching slightly.


    After fifteen years¡¯ practice of Silent Meditation, would he finally start to speak tonight?


    Yet, at this moment.


    A voice suddenly rang in the deep forest.


    The sound was very quiet.


    Thus, there was a sharp contrast to the piercing wail in the forest.


    However, in such a quiet voice, the content was cold.


    "If you speak, I will make tens of thousands of people in the world be dumb."


    Hearing this remark, the monk became extremely furious, looking into the deep forest with his eyes wide open, and both the cold frost on his eyshes and the umted snow on his body were melted into warm water.


    He understood that even if he spoke tonight, he would still be unable to defeat that man. However, the man would definitely set off a bloody storm in the world, if he did so.


    If he faced Mr. First, Mr. Second, or even the Headmaster of the Academy, he could ignore the warning because he was clearly aware of their decency.


    But the man was Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation.


    He could do anything.


    Angry as he was, he could not speak.


    The man in the deep forest kept silent after saying those words, but Qi Nian knew that he was still there as the wail of the cicadas continued.


    The monk could not sigh as he could not speak. He could only silently sigh in his heart, dposing the Invariant Ming King Gesture and slowly closing his eyes with his palms put together.


    The snow continued to fall sharply like cicadas, covering the monk including his head, thus the sessor of the Xuankong Temple became a snowman overnight in the forest.


    The snow that had been falling for an entire day suddenly eased up.


    The wail of the cicadas became weaker but sadder.


    Cicadas cried mournfully.


    The heavy snow gradually stopped in theke that night.

 Chapter 477: Frost Fall

    Chapter 477: Frost Fall


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Whether it was on the peaks of the south bank or the snow forests on the east coast of Yanming Lake, it was silent. There was no noise at all, not even the sound of cicadas chirping.


    On the city wall, Eldest Brother¡¯s and Ye Su¡¯s gazes pierced through the countless piles of snow,nding on the forest. Their expressions were slightly different and they seemed to feel what was happening there.


    However, they did not have much energy to focus on what happened in the snow forest, which was because they saw the blood g swaying at the front of the house by Yanming Lake. Xia Hou pushed opened the door.


    ...


    The door was a little new and it seemed to have been rebuilt recently. Xia Hou pushed it open and entered the dark courtyard. Suddenly, the sound of cicadas arrived at his ears and his body shuddered slightly.


    During the day in the Imperial Pce, he had also vaguely heard the sound of cicadasing from the snowkes that were dancing in the air. He was sure they were only his hallucinations, but the sounds now were still there, almost as if they were real.


    The cold expression on Xia Hou¡¯s face was not shaken, his eyebrows were raised slightly and he appeared increasingly violent. As he stepped across the threshold of the door, he walked down the hallway to the main hall.


    The snow had stopped temporarily before it started to dance around increasingly more violent.


    Thick clouds covered the sky that was dotted with stars, and the snowstorm had dimmed the light in Chang¡¯an. Yanming Lake was a patch of darkness and no one could see anything. However, Xia Hou could see everything clearly.


    There were several plum trees nted under the stone steps, however, for some reason, the plum branches were scattered. There were freshly broken crops under the snow that seemed as if they had been eaten by some elegant animal.


    There was a pot with a green nt in the house, and even in the harsh winter, the nt was still growing lushly. The branches and leaves were plump and green, which made the soil in the pot seem dull.


    The ck beam at the top of the roof seemed a little deformed. It must have suffered some kind of impact and it had two incredibly small cracks. It did not affect the safety of the structure but it still left one a little worried.


    At the side of a uniquely shaped cab, there was an oilmp that was made of porcin. The rope of themp was white and when it was not lit, it was an incredibly beautiful piece of artwork.


    This house by Yanming Lake had cost Ning Que countless silver, consuming countless thoughts of Mr. Qi and making Her Majesty and Lee Yu spend a fortune. Naturally, it was extraordinary and wasparable to those famous gardens in Qinghe County. Even something that did not look like much was still worth appreciating.


    Xia Hou was a general and was not sentimental, so naturally, he was not interested in such things. However, with a fight approaching, his gaze on the plum trees, the ck beam, potted nts, and themp was incredibly focused.


    In actual fact, he was not looking at those plum trees, the ck beam, the potted nts, or themp.


    He was looking at the yellow paper peeking out from the snow on the plum branches, the yellow paper caught in between the seam of the ck beam, the yellow paper in the potted nts, and the yellow paper weighed down by the porcinmp.


    In this world, there was a type of paper that was often a dull yellow color¡ª Fu paper.


    There was Fu paper everywhere in that house on Yanming Lake.


    It was a house filled with Fu paper.


    ...


    "The reason that Ye Hongyu was able to cross the border and defeat Chen Pipi was because she knew him and his fears. I know Xia Hou too. From the day that he betrayed the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, he has always been living in fear. Perhaps he is afraid of that mysterious Devil¡¯s Doctrine or perhaps he is afraid that the West-Hill Divine Pce would expose his identity. Because he is afraid, he also feels empty, and killing people is numbing to him. He started bing cruel, cold, proud, and arrogant."


    Ning Que took the big ck umbre from Sangsang as he looked at the courtyard across the bank, which was covered in the night snow.


    "Only then can he get rid of his own psychological shadow. In the front of the pce, he was right. I also have a psychological shadow, hence, I understand that his pride is a fatal weakness that he can¡¯t get rid of. Because of his pride, he has stepped into a war that I have chosen. That was his first mistake."


    "And how to use this mistake that he has made? I¡¯m not sure. I only know that I must not hesitate to use up all 300 talismans that I have written out painstakingly over the past two years."


    Writing talismans was not as casual as it seemed. Besides Ning Que, not many people knew how many sleepless nights writing 300 talismans entailed, the weakness when one¡¯s Psyche Power was used up, and the pain after the vibrations of one¡¯s sense of perception.


    Sangsang knew this because, during those nights apanied by oilmps, she had been waiting by Ning Que¡¯s side, watching him sweat profusely with his face pale. Yet, he did not stop writing.


    During those nights, Ning Que was not tending to the fields nor to any articles, but rather, to the talismans.


    On the edge of the cliff in the snowy night, Sangsang looked up at Ning Que, looking at his face as pale as it was those nights. She was incredibly worried but she smiled and said, "Yes, young master, you will definitely win."


    Ning Que closed his eyes, holding the umbre handle as the tips of his brows and his right hand was trembling slightly. His face was pale and the Psyche Power in his sense of perception followed the ck umbre, scattering into the sky filled with snowkes.


    Psyche Power was the root of cultivators, however, they could only use their Psyche Power to control the Qi of Heaven and Earth. They would then disy various methods and, even though a Psyche Master could directly attack an enemy with his Psyche Power, that was limited by distance as the Psyche Power had an unchangeable characteristic.


    That special characteristic was that once the Psyche Power had left the sense of perception of a cultivator, it would degenerate exponentially as it got further away, dissipating into thend and the sky.


    Ning Que was standing on the cliff on the south bank of Yanming Lake and was miles away from the courtyard on the other bank. If he wanted to trigger the 300 hidden talismans in the courtyard, he would first need to send his Psyche Power to the other bank. However, how was his Psyche Power supposed to cross the winterke across the night storm?


    At that moment, something wonderful happened.


    Once his Psyche Power had passed through the big ck umbre¡¯s handle and the umbre itself, it went through an obvious change. It was not that the Psyche Power became more concentrated, but rather, it dissipated at a much slower rate through the snowy sky.


    Because of the fact that the Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow was narrow and also because of the aura around the snowke, not many people could understand the tune that his Psyche Power was singing, but at least the sound could travel even further.


    Ning Que¡¯s Psyche Power silently pierced through the snow storm,nding in the courtyard on the opposite bank far away.


    The yellow paper weighed down by the porcinmp turned into nothingness with a whirring noise.


    An aridness came from nowhere and the light rope, as white as jade, that had never been lit before suddenly tightened as the oil was released and a weak me was set alight.


    The oilmp was dim but it slightly lit up the room from the inside and outside.


    As the porcinmp was eerily ignited without any fire, countless changes happened inside the house.


    The cab that the oilmp was on suddenly burst into mes. Then, the entire space on the cab was set on mes as well, forming a raging fireball that shone toward the mountainous body of Xia Hou.


    The fire was ethereal and evoked fear. Wherever it went, everything turned to ashes.


    Only the potted nts were different. Those slightly droopy, fat green leaves were licked by the mes in the house, melting away instantly and forming a light green oil that dripped into the flower pot.


    The yellow Fu paper that had been stuck between the leaves had disappeared also.


    The oil that had formed from the green leavesnded in the soil and the pot cracked immediately. The soil within it exploded and permeated the space in the house. For some reason, that fine soil that was like micro-particles for some reason, incredibly heavy. Every grain of soil was like a stone, shooting toward Xia Hou¡¯s body.


    What followed that was the yellow Fu paper on the ck beam disappeared, and a loud sound could be heard as the heavy beam split in the center without any warning, crashing down onto Xia Hou¡¯s head.


    Xia Hou squinted, but his brows, which seemed to be made of iron, were not knitted together. They reflected the light and seemed almost as if they were on fire.


    He extended his fist.


    The terrifying fist pushed aside all the air in front of him overbearingly.


    The Fu paper, which was burning with a zing me, suddenly extinguished and was extremely bleak.


    He closed his eyes.


    He allowed the stone-like soil to attack his body.


    "Bim, Bam, Bim, Bam!" Intense noise erupted!


    Countless small, yet powerful, bouldersnded heavily on his body.


    It was almost as if countless hailstones had fallen from the sky and were hitting the roof of the pce.


    The outer robe that he was wearing instantly had thousands of holes appear on it.


    However, he was expressionless.


    He lowered his head.


    The ck beam had broken into two pieces andnded heavily on his back.


    It then broke into even more pieces.


    The heavy beam was enough to kill dozens of people.


    However, it did not even make his body slightly shake.


    In the face of Ning Que¡¯s three talismans, Xia Hou could only throw a punch.


    This was the Peak state of Martial Arts. And especially since he was a powerhouse of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, as long as he closed his eyes, he could ignore any attacks that were at a lower level than the Knowing Destiny State.


    The soil that had shot rapidly at him like stone gravel didn¡¯t leave any mark on his face, the beam that had broken into countless pieces rolled around under his feet powerlessly, he wasn¡¯t injured at all.


    Only an eysh left his eyelid.


    ording to the state of Xia Hou¡¯s cultivation, there was no need at all for him to face Ning Que¡¯s three talismans directly.


    He could have avoided them and used an even easier method to wave them away.


    The only reason that he had not done that was because he had been focusing on the clump of plums under the stone steps behind him.


    Ning Que believed that he knew him well.


    He believed that he also knew Ning Que well.


    He knew what a sinister character Ning Que was and he believed that Ning Que would definitely not waste three valuable Fu papers just to test his depth. He would definitely have a back up.


    There was another yellow Fu paper in the plum trees as well.


    Xia Hou believed that this was what Ning Que wasing after and, hence, ced his focus there.


    Sure enough, in the next moment, the yellow Fu paper in the remains of the plum trees had be a green smoke, and the remaining plum flowers broke away from their branches, flying toward the back of Xia Hou¡¯s head like butterflies.


    Xia Hou did not look back, but casually pointed behind himself.


    When his fingertips touched a plum flower petal, his iron eyebrows suddenly stood up.


    The plum flower petal became a drop of water.


    The Fu paper in the remains of the plum tree was actually a shabby piece of water talisman.


    Xia Hou frowned as he realized that his judgment was wrong.


    However, he did not care, as he looked up indifferently.


    The beam was already broken and there was a huge hole in the rooftop.


    Under the roof, one could easily look into the night sky full of stars.


    Tonight, there was a snowstorm and no stars could be seen.


    One could only see the countless snowkes falling through the hole along with the night breeze.


    There was also the talisman, which was gradually dissipating with the chill.


    The snowkes that hade in from the hole seemed to have grown many times bigger as they gently fluttered in the air.


    An incredibly cold talisman suddenly enveloped the entire building.


    Even the air within the building had frozen.


    As Xia Hou lifted his head to look at the falling snow, his eyebrows were cast with a thickyer of frost.

 Chapter 478: Inside and Outside the Well

    Chapter 478: Inside and Outside the Well


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    This was a very powerful talisman. In an instant, the temperature inside the house had dropped drastically.


    Xia Hou¡¯s eyebrows were dyed with frost. The surface of the armor inside his coat had also begun to freeze. For such a strong leader at the Peak state of Martial Arts, it was difficult to cause him direct harm in spite of the strong cold talisman.


    He frowned slightly, and the frost on his eyebrows broke. Then he took a step forward and the thin ice on his armor also broke and fell to the ground.


    At the very least, Xia Hou, in that instant, needed to condense the Psyche Power of the Qi of Heaven and Earth in his body. He could no longer rely on his powerful body and fists as he had before.


    The battle at thekeside house had not yete to an end. In the next moment, countless yellow Fu papers were sent out from themon corners of the house.


    Thick yellow fu papers were fluttering and dancing. They were as dense as snowkes falling from the roof opening, swirling around Xia Hou¡¯s body.


    As the fluctuating waves of Psyche Power came from somewhere unknown, the yellow Fu papers that fluttered like snowkes were triggered one by one, turning them into imaginary ones or talismanic streaks of smoke.


    Then, the very first symbol that had triggered the talismanic effects drove the unmarked Fu papers to flutter. The yellow paper streamed into thekeside house, sprinkling like a waterfall, as if every unrestrained spurt was illuminating the night sky.


    This picture was very beautiful and shocking. The Fu paper was so precious. Who had seen such arge number of Fu papers at the same time in the entire wartime history of cultivation?


    Immediately afterward, more Fu papers were stimted and countless talismanic paths were entangled together, tearing the Qi of Heaven and Earth around them and turning them into countless turbulence.


    The turbulent primordial Qi was terrible and the faint talisman that was mixed in the turbulence of the cutting space seemed to have some special power.


    Xia Hou stood in the midst of this talismanic ocean storm, standing in the swirling whirlpool of the Qi of Heaven and Earth. The emotions on his face wereplicated, both somewhat sad and angry.


    As he clearly remembered that this was the secret method of his most loyal subordinate, Guxi, he did not anticipate that Ning Que would use this skill in tonight¡¯s battle.


    The cold snowy wind, violent night wind, burning mes, suffocating wetness, and variouspletely different talismanic effects were kneaded into one ce by an invisible hand. There was no reason but, nevertheless, it was that terrible.


    Xia Hou defiantly clenched his fists, and the already ripped coat on his body shredded and flew away, exposing a new armor inside. It was followed by an extremely forceful Psyche Power that was willing to extract what he needed from the torrent of the Qi of Heaven and Earth and condense it into his body, forming an extremely sturdy invisible suit of armor.


    The invisible armor of the Qi of Heaven and Earth, together with his visible metal armor, protected him from the talismanic ocean windstorms and turbulent primordial Qi.


    Xia Hou took a step and walked between the yellow Fu papers that filled the sky. The violent talismanic power kept hitting his body, giving a squeaky muttering or a sharp cutting sound.


    Under the talismanic attack, the armor on his body was sometimes covered with a thickyer of cold ice, and sometimes it was dazzling as if it had been burning for seven days and seven nights.


    In order to resist this talismanic ocean, his Psyche Power was slowly and irreversibly consumed, but the expression on his face was still unchanged and his footsteps remained stable.


    Xia Hou was very clear that Ning Que was the sessor of Master Yan Se and was seen as the future Divine Talisman Master by themon people, so he was sure of what he would face in tonight¡¯s battle.


    But the number of Fu papers that Ning Que had prepared was far greater than what he had calcted beforehand. Even more unexpected was that he had used all of the Talisman Taoism tactics at the start of the battle. A Talisman Master needed to touch the Psyche Power and the distance that the Psyche Power couldmunicate was congenitally limited. At this time, thekeside house was filled with fluttering Fu paper, which could only mean that Ning Que was inside the house.


    Xia Hou thought that this sort of action by Ning Que was rather confident, very proud, arrogant, and idiotic. Any cultivator who engaged with a mighty leader at the Peak state of Martial Arts but did not try to pull away was an idiot.


    Since Ning Que was on thekeshore, he was not in a hurry to break away from these talismanic sea storms, and he allowed these storms to constantly consume his Psyche Power. He also wanted to find Ning Que and kill him in one fell swoop.


    He continued to walk forward and did not see any movement. An ash-colored wall copsed in front of him with a loud crash. He looked into the darkness of the night and at the faintly visibleke willows in the south and deridingly said, "It¡¯s not a Divine Talisman, so how did you hurt me? Since you are eager to die, you will die."


    ...


    ...


    Yanming Lake was irregr, and the west coast of theke was rtively narrow and far away. It was a shallowke and some people had built a wooden bridge over it to admire the waterweeds.


    When it was cold in winter, the wooden bridge was full of umted snow. The water under the bridge condensed into solid thick ice and the green, silk-like waterweeds were no longer visible. Only a few thickets of yellow and white reeds danced in the wind.


    In such cold weather, the imperial court sealed off the Yanming Lake area. So, naturally, there were few tourists. However, several people divided by the two ends of the bridge gazed at the west of theke with varying expressions.


    Some of cyan taoist robes were loose and made whizzing sounds in the blizzard. Ye Hongyu looked at the rich disy of light from thekeside house in the distance and was affected by the talismanic storms there. His eyes revealed a slightly different color.


    She had lived in the house for a long time, but it was only at that time she learned what devious tricks Ning Que had yed in the house and how many horrible Fu papers he had hidden there.


    Tao Addict was an extremely confident person, but she also had to admit at this time that if Ning Que used these talismanic sea storms to deal with her, she would inevitably be embarrassed to the utmost degree.


    At the end of the wooden bridge, Chen Pipi held an oilpaper umbre in one hand and Tang Xiaotang¡¯s little hand in the other. He looked at the distant light shining from the west, and the countless yellow papers that kept dancing like waterfalls. He was shaken as he said, "Everyone knows that Youngest Brother is stingy, so nobody could have thought that he would show such extravagantrgesse tonight."


    Tang Xiaotang¡¯s hand was a little cold. She was worried about the current situation of her friend Sangsang and was shocked at the impact of those Fu papers on theke shore. She murmured, "Formal talisman is such a terrifying thing."


    ...


    ...


    On the edge of the cliff of Yanming Lake¡¯s north shore, Ning Que opened his eyes and looked at the silver-colored Fire Fu paper storm on the house across theke, listening to the faint sounds of copsing walls and flying tiles.


    "I asked Seventh Sister to design the tactical array, adding a big ck umbre for Xia Hou to make an error in judgment and let him think that I am in the house. Xia Hou is actually very cautious, overanxious, and oversuspicious. On this basis, it is a lopsided self-confidence. Since he judges me to be there, he will definitely believe that I am there."


    He said sarcastically, "Perhaps he is still mocking me at this moment, telling me toe out and fight."


    Sangsang looked at the opposite shore and frowned, "But his strength is too formidable. The talisman ocean seems unable to deal with him."


    "I never expected this talismanic storm to directly defeat Xia Hou. After all, I am not a Divine Talisman Master. The Fu papers that I sprinkled on the flowerpots may only be like moths darting into a me and turn into useless smoke, but there may be a talismanic break in his eyshes."


    He went on to say, "A falling eysh does not count as something, and even he himself may not have noticed that if he umtes a greater amount, it can be deadly. Just like walking, as long as you go step by step, one day you will eventually arrive at where you wanted to go."


    "Xia Hou is an indestructible mountain peak, and my means are an insignificantdle. But if I keep knocking it down and endure to keep knocking it down forever, this peak will allow me to beat it loose, beat the flexible surface, and powder the rocks. After it falls down, the hill will eventually shake."


    After finishing that sentence, Ning Que gave the big ck umbre in his hand to Sangsang.


    Sangsang took the big ck umbre and looked at him, saying, "Yes, young master, you will certainly win."


    Across theke, Ning Que¡¯s Psyche Power was rapidly consumed by triggering hundreds of Fu papers at the same time. His face was pale, but his vision was still calm as he looked at the other side of theke and slowly lifted his right arm.


    His fingers trembled and it seemed as if the space between his fingers were using invisible lines to hang a heavy mountain peak.


    He slowly moved his right arm and drew two horizontal and two vertical lines in the snowstorm in front of him. The invisible and, yet imposing, lines pointed to the house on the other side of Yanming Lake.


    Inside the house.


    The yellow papers dancing all over the sky vanished into nothingness. Dazzling rays of light gradually converged and the horrible violent talisman continued to tear away the Qi of Heaven and Earth¡ª tranquil but containing dangerous.


    Elsewhere in Chang¡¯an City, on this rtively sparse snowy evening, four lines appeared faintly. And those lines were not colored. They should have been transparent and invisible as per naturalw, but these lines could be seen by others.


    The reason why the four lines could be seen was that the snowkes fluttering in the night sky abruptly fled in all directions and some of the snowkes that failed to escape silently vanished into nothingness.


    The four lines in the night sky were vestiges of the snowkes that fled.


    The four lines were two horizontal and two vertical lines, and together, they formed the shape of the "¾®" (well) character.


    The violent talismans in the night sky were all condensing into this shape.


    ...


    ...


    The shape with two vertical and horizontal lines exined the cutting.


    The Jing Fu was the most horrible state and the deeply wonderful talismanic meaning of Master Yan Se¡¯s life before his death. Before he perished together with the Great Divine Priest of Light on an unknown hilltop, the well character that was sent out could even be cut open. The Haotian Divine Light obtained by the Great Divine Priest of Light in Tianqi could be cut off in space!


    Ning Que inherited all of Master Yan Se¡¯s possessions. Studying the Jing Fu was naturally his most painstaking intention.


    Although at his state, he could not fully exploit the power of the Jing Fu, the Jing Fu that he wrote was already strong enough and it was the most powerful talisman that he could perform. It was unclear when he could actually start to use the infinitive talisman. This skill was already close to the level of the bookworm, Mo Shanshan, living in the Wilderness. In other words, this Jing Fu was his Half Divine Talisman!


    ...


    ...


    The well character had descended from the night sky, covering the whole courtyard on thekeside, as if concealing countless more fine wells within it. Nothing could escape from it.


    The plum blossom was chopped, the well was cut off, and the wall was cut open. The well character was falling, and everything was cut open.


    The Jing Fu, which was extremely swift and fierce,nded on Xia Hou¡¯s body.


    There were four distinctly clear traces on the surface of his body where the Qi of Heaven and Earth had condensed. They were slightly subsiding and the brand-new suit of armor had four rusty marks inside of it.


    Xia Hou¡¯s iron-like dark face suddenly turned white and then red, followed by snowy white. It was immediately followed by flushing, quickly resulting in a Psyche Power sickness!


    Theyer of Qi of Heaven and Earth that condensed on the surface of his body had been restlessly osciting. It had finally ckened off cutting the well character, but it had be much thinner, like a thin piece of paper.


    Immediately afterward, a quiet coughing sound came from him, and armor with four rusty lines smashed into countless metal pieces, like breaking copper or crappy iron underfoot.


    Xia Hou gazed at the opposite shore of Yanming Lake and looked at the pitch-ck night.


    He then understood that, actually, he himself had been waiting to be inside of the well.


    Ning Que had always been outside of the well.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 479: It Had Never Been a War of Only One Man

    Chapter 479: It Had Never Been a War of Only One Man


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    When the talisman rose from thekeside, Ye Su stood in the wind and snow and said, "Uncle Yan Se indeed knows people well, but who could imagine that Ning Que could master these not long after entering the Talisman Taoism?"


    In his opinion, the talismans that Ning Que wrote were not that powerful, some were obviously the products of a newbie in Talisman Taoism and they would generally be looked down upon andughed at by people. However, it really shocked him that Ning Que could write so many talismans in less than two years.


    Ye Su¡¯s utmost surprise was the way Ning Que used those talismans - the storm caused by talismans at thekeside looked chaotic but actually followed a secret order. Every talisman was matched perfectly, otherwise it would be impossible to create such a momentum and have such arge impact.


    Eldest Brother smiled and exined, "Youngest brother is a great calligrapher. He has learned a lot and he is good with using pens and ink so he has great skill in disassembling, exining and writing characters."


    Ye Su slightly frowned and said, "I still don¡¯t understand how he can write so many talismans."


    The talisman master needed to be talented. No matter whether it was him, the sessor of Zhishou Abbey, or the Sage of Sword, Liu Bai, none of them could get in touch with Talisman Taoism. However, this didn¡¯t mean he knew nothing about Talisman Taoism.


    Talisman masters could only use the talismans they wrote. Even though a Divine Talisman Master like Master Yan Se could leave Divine Talismans for his disciples to use, the number of them he could leave could not be too much.


    Writing a talisman needed to consume arge amount of psyche power and efforts, as well as a lot of materials. Ning Que had only written talismans for less than two years. How could he write so many talismans?


    "There are not many things in the Academy, but lots of materials for cultivation. If there is any gap or omission, the imperial court will also help to prepare. As for the necessary psyche power to write talismans..."


    Eldest Brother smiled and said, "Mr. Ye Su probably doesn¡¯t know that Youngest Brother¡¯s psyche power was so great that he can rank in the forefront even if you included the back of the mountain of the Academy."


    The disciples in the back of the mountain of the Academy were not known well in the world but Ye Su knew clearly that those people must be talented in different fields. Hearing that Ning Que had great psyche power which could squeeze into the forefront of the rank among those people, he was rather surprised.


    At this time, Jing Fu appeared over the house at thekeside.


    Ye Su felt the straight and awe-inspiring talisman from there, and slowly raised his brow. Looking at the direction of the Yanming Lake for a long time, he got more rxed and said, "The half divine talisman is not a divine talisman after all."


    Looking at theke in the darkness, Eldest Brother said with slight regret, "Although Youngest Brother has made great progress, he isn¡¯t able to be a talisman master since he just entered Talisman Taoism not long ago."


    Ye Su shook his head and said, "So what if he is a Divine Talisman Master? Unless he reaches the level of Uncle Yan Se, he can only dream of beating Xia Hou with just a fluttering Fu paper."


    "I never thought that I could kill Xia Hou with only Talisman Taoism, which my master might have managed to do in his prime. I don¡¯t have that ability, but I have my own ideas."


    Ning Que looked at the other side swallowed by the night once again and said, "People say that I can¡¯t challenge someone in other states. There is no one, including my Senior Brothers in the Academy, who believes that I can beat Xia Hou. But I insist on doing it because they have forgotten that I have never considered defeating him. I just want to kill him."


    How could one kill the enemy without defeating him?


    "Battle is only one instant but killing a person can be a long process in which there can be many battles. I may not be able to defeat him in countless battles, but I can make him bleed. Even if I still can¡¯t beat him down in the end, he would still bleed to death."


    "When he runs out of blood, he will die naturally."


    "Tonight, the loser of this battle will not depend on strength, not psyche power, or state, but on who will bleed to death first. He¡¯s a strong member of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, with super terrifying defense that makes him like a turtle. The thing I will do is continously bloodletting this turtle and keeping myself from being bitten by him."


    Ning Que said seriously, "Thanks to Tang, the shell on the outermostyer of Xia Hou¡¯s body is gone. So my job is rtively simple."


    Sangsang looked at him and said, "We will seed."


    Ning Que talked a lot today and gave many exnations.


    If the one next to him was not Sangsang but some other audience, such as Ye Hongyu, she would have been bored to death and wanted to kick him into the iceke under the cliff.


    In the beginning, Sangsang was a little surprised but soon she understood why.


    Facing Xia Hou, Ning Que had no confidence.


    Even if his face was peaceful and his tone was calm. Even if he looked as if he was full of confidence, and everything was under control. Even if he had prepared for this duel for 15 years.


    He still had no confidence.


    So he kept talking about his preparations, talking about his own reasons for victory, trying to convince himself that he could really ovee the challenge across the border and defeat this seemingly invincible enemy.


    Sangsang was very worried about Ning Que¡¯s current state of mind.


    So she kept using a tone more certain than Ning Que, saying, "We will win. We are going to be the winners."


    When the entire world did not believe in Ning Que, even when he lost confidence in himself, she was the only one left who could give him confidence.


    Because Ning Que was not fighting alone. These two people were always fighting together.


    Sangsang put the big ck umbre on her lean shoulder, stretched her right hand and clutched at Ning Que¡¯s shirt. She clutched it so hard that her thin fingers were digging into his body.


    Then she slowly closed her eyes and her eyshes did not tremble.


    Xia Hou walked out of thekeside courtyard and came to theke embankment, with many willows in front of him.


    The furious sea of Fu paper carried out tens of thousands of attacks on his powerful body. Although it was not able to leave any injuries on his body, it managed to cut his hair down and make it messy.


    Interspersed with several silver hairs and scattered on his stout back, his ck hair made him look like a devil on the scroll of the Buddhist scriptures. However, the tattered clothes and the broken armor tied on his waist made him a devil in an awkward predicament.


    Xia Hou emotionlessly reached out and tore off the pieces of armor around his waist, throwing it under the willows as if it were garbage, and then watched the darkness that fell on Yanming Lake and started coughing.


    On nights like these, the temperature was so low that the ice on theke was as solid as steel.


    However, it should not be felt by a man at the peak state of martial arts who was physically and mentally strong.


    To Xia Hou¡¯s surprise, there were so many talismans in thekeside courtyard that the snow was somewhat unbearable. It was surprising that the ability of Ning Que in using talismans was much stronger than what the rumors set. What surprised him most was that Ning Que could activate those talismans from such a long distance.


    This incident had made him vignt and he knew he had made a mistake. Since he realized his mistake, he could fix it. So he didn¡¯t mind it and still looked around at theke.


    Yanming Lake was covered by white snow, and the night was too dark, without starlight ormplight. The world that should have been clear was so dark, and even the snow seemed to have turned ck.


    Everything was dark, whether it was the cold willows near him, the reeds in the distance, the icedke or the hills around theke. No matter how sensitive the perception state was, one could not see anything with naked eyes here.


    Xia Hou did not know where Ning Que exactly was right now and he only knew that Ning Que must be on the shore of Yanming Lake. But he did not know whether he was on the wooden bridge on the West Bank, or in the snow forest on the East bank or on the cliff of the South bank.


    However, he was sure that once Ning Que moved, Ning Que would die.


    Ning Que stood on the cliff and held an iron bow in hand.


    He lifted the iron bow and slowly pulled the bowstring.


    The bowstrings vibrated and buzzed, and the sound was instantly concealed by the blizzard.


    The dark iron bow, covered by snow, appeared to be even colder.


    The iron arrow on the string was engraved withplex lines of a talisman, aiming at the darkness in the north shore of the Yanming Lake.


    The clouds covered the stars and the surroundings were dark.


    No stars, no shadows.


    Xia Hou could not see Ning Que, nor could Ning Que see Xia Hou.


    It was different from shooting Prince Long Qing at the wilderness on the snow cliffst year.


    At that time, Prince Long Qing was at the crucial moment of breaking out of his realm so his practice and state were so shiny that they were like a blossom golden flower in the sense of perception of Ning Que, which allowed Ning Que to see him clearly from a distance of several miles, and to shoot him without specifically aiming.


    However, Xia Hou was at the peak state of martial arts with a stable state. Whenever he moved his mental state, he could mix himself with the cold willows at thekeside. Even though Ning Que got into the Knowing Destiny State, he could not locate Xia Hou.


    If so, where was he going to shoot with the primordial thriteen arrow in his hands?


    Right at this moment.


    Sangsang under the big ck umbre, with her eyes closed tightly, frowned with her eyebrows like a little ck flower, and muttered some numbers.


    "Six three three three."


    "Two one seven seven two."


    More than two years ago in the spring, an arrow was shot from the depth of Min Mountain and toward the Northern Mountain Road.


    The handmaiden, nervously huddling and closing her eyes as the third assassin chopped towards Ning Que, eximed the two words with all her strength.


    More than two yearster, on the edge of the cliff, down on the north shore of theke, under the willows, strong enemies were fighting in silence.


    When the blizzard was dancing on the cliff, Sangsang shouted out the two numbers again.


    The numbers were the coordinate system that only Ning Que and Sangsang understood. In the past fifteen years, it had been their instinct to hunt in Min Mountain and fight for their life so they could not go wrong with it.


    The scene was almost identical with that of two years ago, but the number Sangsang shouted tonight was much moreplex and theplexity of the number often means it is more urate.


    The cold and dark arrow moved slowly in the falling snow at night to find its goal.


    Then it stopped.


    He rxed his tight bowstring.


    The iron arrow disappeared from the string and shot into the turbulent hollow in front of the bow, and flew straight into the blizzard.


    ...


    ...


    Xia Hou firmly believed that Ning Que would definitely die once he took his next move.


    Ning Que took his most powerful arrow, the Primordial Thirteen Arrow.


    In one moment, the dark iron arrow disappeared in front of the cliff.


    And in the next moment, it appeared in front of Xia Hou.


    The lines of talisman shined slightly on the arrow and the remaining snowkes had not been blown away by the wind yet.


    Right at this moment, the Primordial Thirteen Arrow seemed to have broken the limits of distance and time.


    Beyond that, it was not even affected by the surroundings.


    The cold arrowhead pierced the underclothes of Xia Hou.


    Theyer of Qi of Heaven and Earth in his body suddenly copsed.


    Xia Hou felt something.


    He reached his hand out and clenched his fist in the air.


    He only managed to hold the middle of the arrow.


    There were only a few people in the world who could seize Ning Que¡¯s Primordial Thirteen Arrows.


    The iron arrow made harsh noises in his iron palm.


    Sparks sshed and illuminated thekeside willows.


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 480: The Meeting of Iron Flowers and Iron Arrows

    Chapter 480: The Meeting of Iron Flowers and Iron Arrows


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Xia Hou caught the iron arrow in his hands which was heading towards him. The arrow was about to pierce him.


    Xia Hou¡¯s eyes were, all of a sudden, as bright as the glittering stars in the sky.


    There was a loud roar, and the sparks caused by the friction between the iron arrow and Xia Hou¡¯s palms extinguished. Turbulent winds rolled above theke bank, crushing the willow trees and dancing amongst the snow.


    With a frightful force, Xia Hou¡¯s body was tossed backwards.


    His feet were firmly entrenched in the bank like two iron pirs, and two ravines appeared. Had the Yanming Lake not been frozen, the water in it would have flowed into them.


    The arrow bunch of the iron arrow pierced through the surfaceyer of his Qi of Heaven and Earth and through his clothes. It pierced through his skin, leaving a shallow wound which began to bleed slowly.


    Xia Hou raised his head and looked towards the southern bank of Yanming Lake. There was a slight pale on his tanned face, and he began to cough, with blood flowing from the corner of his lips.


    There was an empty tunnel devoid of snow above the frozenke on that snowy night. Snow would fall but would be crushed to smithereens by the lingering aura of the arrow as it whizzed by.


    This was the path that the arrow traveled.


    The other end of the path was seated at the cliff at the southern banks of Yanming Lake.


    Xia Hou had finally confirmed Ning Que¡¯s position.


    He looked over expressionlessly. A strong aura emanated from within him. Snow and dust whirled up, dancing madly and forming a circle in the center of the waving willows.


    After that, the ground on which he was standing began to sink, forming a perfectly round circle measuring over ten feet in diameter. His body disappeared in the terrifying aftershock, leaving the fluttering winds behind.


    A few kes of snow fell.


    Xia Hou left the banks of theke and started running towards the southern banks of theke.


    His feetnded heavily on the surface of theke.


    The Yanming Lake was so frozen that it did not shatter despite bearing his weight and the heavy impact that came with him. However, several minuscule cracks would appear every time he stepped down.


    The water beneath the ice began to churn as if feeling the heavy weight on the surface of the ice. A low and odd sound started.


    It sounded like drumsticksnding heavily on war drums, with a low sound of drumbeating.


    This winterke was his war drum.


    He did not make drumbeats often, but every strike was filled with power.


    Xia Hou did not run fast, but it felt as if every step took him across mountains.


    In just a moment, his shadow appeared on the frozen surface of the Yanming Lake.


    If one could see through the shade that darkness provided, he might be able to see that shadow on theke.


    A powerhouse at the Peak state of Martial Arts had absolute power, so when he turned his power into speed, it would be terrible enough that it could not be described with words.


    Even the winds above theke and the falling snow could not move as fast as him. Even if Ning Que¡¯s Talisman Arrows were faster, he wouldn¡¯t be able to hit such a fast-moving target.


    This was a simple truth on the battlefield.


    Both Xia Hou and Ning Xia had experienced many battles, so they all knew this very well.


    Ever since Xia Hou discovered Ning Que¡¯s enmity against him, he had been waiting for the legendary Primordial Thirteen Arrows on the alert. He had deliberated over it for a long time beforeing to a conclusion: The Primordial Thirteen Arrows would not pose any threat to him as long as he ran fast.


    His tough military boots broke the ice on theke as he stepped on it.


    There were withered lotus flowers frozen in the water. It had died for a long time and was covered with snow. It looked extremely pathetic.


    Just as Xia Hou stepped down one of the withered lotuses, the others beside it trembled a little, as if they had gained new life. Then, there was a resounding boom.


    The frozenke surface split open. The withered lotus sprang up in a fiery explosion, causing the air to whirl.


    Xia Hou¡¯s mountainous build was tossed high up in the air by the shock.


    The fiery ze screeched and whistled, buzzing in the air.


    The withered lotuses which were not enveloped in the fiery explosion shattered into numerous pieces as if they had been cut by a sharp de.


    Xia Hounded on theke heavily, sshing a stter of snow.


    His knees were slightly bent, and his military boots were torn. However, his body kept bnce in a strong way and did not fall.


    Along with hisnding, countless pieces of extremely sharp and hard iron shards rained down as well.


    These iron shards fell at a high speed, whistling as they dropped down. They cut the lotus into pieces and thennded on the surface of the iceke as if it was raining.


    The sharp iron pieces also fell on Xia Hou.


    The surfaceyer of his Qi of Heaven and Earth managed to shield him from most of the explosion and the slicing of the sharp iron shards. However, he was still cut by dozens of the shards.


    Severalcerations appeared on Xia Hou¡¯s hardened skin and it began to bleed.


    It was then.


    When the second iron arrow appeared.


    Without warning.


    Xia Hou watched the snow raining down on theke, and shied away from it. He installed his aura into his right hand and waved his hand, expressionlessly.


    The seemingly simple wave of his hand caused the winds to blow wildly. Pebbles of ice were tossed about madly.


    There was a sharp sound.


    A wound appeared on his right arm.


    The iron arrow was shaken. It scraped by his body, and submerged in theke of snow.


    There was a loud boom as a deep dark hole appeared on the iceke which was frozen solid.


    Xia Hou raised his head suddenly and looked towards the southern banks. Then, he started running again.


    He had to admit that he had underestimated Ning Que.


    But he could not retreat any further. He had to make the distance between Ning Que and himself closer.


    That was why he had to rush over there no matter how many tricks were buried in theke, and how many other explosions like the previous one were hidden in the lotusnd.


    He continued running towards the lotusnd.


    And a second explosion urred.


    The Primordial Thirteen Arrows could hit any target regardless of the distance. However, it could not ignore the speed of the target. Ning Que understood this. Furthermore, both Xia Hou¡¯s Devil¡¯s Doctrine power and his physical condition were extremely strong, which prince Long Qing could neverpared with. So he had never pinned his hope on killing Xia Hou with the Primordial Thirteen Arrows only.


    It was fortunate that there was a lotus field in the middle of the Yanming Lake.


    Nearing the end of spring, Ning Que had bought all the houses by Yanming Lake. He imed theke for own and nted many lotus flowers in it.


    In the midsummer, he and Sangsang rowed a boat on theke and traversed through the lotusnd. They admired theke, the scenery and the stars. They picked up the flowers and seeds of lotuses, and tossed several iron kettles in the lotusnd.


    In winter, the Yanming Lake was frozen and the surface of ice was thick. The lotusnd had long been withered, but the little iron kettles which were buried deep in the mud of the lotusnd began to awake.


    With their awakening, came sts after sts of explosions that rang across theke.


    The fiery mes and hot waves tore through the surface of theke, causing the snow on it to scatter. Several shards of sharp iron were tossed around in the wind and snow.


    Several ck holes appeared on the frozen surface of theke.


    And in the whistling wind, snow and iron shards, Xia Hou had already bleeding.


    What was more frightening was that every time he stopped because of the explosion, Sangsang, held the big ck umbre and stood on the cliff of the southern banks, would speak out his position. Then, Ning Que would shoot his arrow.


    And a terrifying and cold iron arrow would reach Xia Hou at the next moment.


    The little iron kettles were flowers. Ning Que and Sangsang had nted as many kettles as the lotus seeds they had. There were as many iron kettles as the lotus flowers.


    The iron arrows were thorns. Ning Que had thirteen Primordial Thirteen Arrows in his arrow box. So he would shoot all of them as the fiery flowers on theke were blooming.

 Chapter 481: The Blood Flag Will Not Fall

    Chapter 481: The Blood g Will Not Fall


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The winterke in the snowing night should have been peaceful and dark. However, there were heavy winds tonight, coupled with the asional terrifying explosion and sh of mes.


    The iron lotus flowers in the frozen lotusnd bloomed. The thickyer of snow on theke surface was tossed into the dark night sky by invisible forces. The thick iceyer copsed and split open. Lake water that was as dark as ink spurted out of the hole, forming waves that smashed up into the air like snow before receding into the actual snow.


    Among the withered remnants of lotus flowers, Xia Hou was tossed up into the air again by the air streams. His sturdy body looked as if it was about to be tossed to the clouds together with the sharp iron shards.


    On the cliff at the southern shore of Yanming Lake, Sangsang held the big ck umbre tightly with one hand and clutched Ning Que¡¯s shirt tightly in another. She lowered her head and closed her eyes, unable to bring herself to watch the chaos happening on theke. However, she seemed to be able to locate the positions of every object on theke. She then reported two numbers softly.


    Ning Que did not hesitate and set up his arrow on the bow after hearing the two numbers. He shot the arrow to the horizons into the night sky. It waspletely dark and he could not see anything, but he knew that Xia Hou was there.


    The snow was storming down now and it waspletely dark. One could not see the arrow¡¯s trajectory, but could only hear the sharp whistling of the Primordial Thirteen Arrow. However, it was already toote when one could hear the arrow.


    The clouds in the night sky above the Yanming Lake suddenly shuddered. The Qi of Heaven and Earth was thrown into chaos. The clouds scattered into all directions as if a sudden roar of thunder had exploded from between them.


    The clouds scattered. Blood sprayed.


    Xia Hou fell from above. He could not keep his bnce this time and fell on the ice heavily. Several cracks appeared on the surface of the ice.


    A cold dark iron arrow had pierced into his left arm deeply.


    Xia Hou¡¯s eyes burned with anger and pain like an injured beast. He held the tail of the iron arrow and wrenched it from his arm before resuming his run towards the southern shore.


    He only managed to step forward thrice.


    A powerful explosion happened once again from the deep muddy lotusnd.


    Theyer of ice beneath his feet split open, and he almost fell into the dark coldke. Following the explosion came the whirl of mes and the terrifying sharp iron shards.


    As the water in theke rolled andpped through the ice surface and at his military boots, Xia Hou reacted promptly with the strength of a powerhouse at the Peak state of Martial Arts.


    He stepped down heavily with his military boots and leaped into the air. Then, he raised his fists up before him at a lightning speed.


    Xia Hou hummed, and flew backwards by about ten feet,nding outside of the lotusnd.


    His arms and many parts of his body that could not be shielded by his arms were torn by the iron shards. Blood seeped from the wound, looking like the grass on the Wilderness in autumn.


    Xia Hou might be a powerhouse at the Peak state of Martial Arts, but the continuous explosions and Ning Que¡¯s numerous Primordial Thirteen Arrows had tired him out both mentally and physically.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth that had been gathered on his body¡¯s surface had copsed and could no longer protect his body. Numerous cuts appeared on his skin which was as hard as rock due to the influence of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s arts. While he did not have any fatal injuries, he covered in blood looked extremely pathetic.


    Then, another of the Primordial Thirteen Arrows pierced through the zing lotus and snow. It appeared before Xia Hou silently, not giving him any opportunity to catch his breath.


    Xia Hou ced his palms together, capturing the iron arrow between them. He skidded back another ten feet, snow flying up from beneath his feet. His face was pale, and more blood streamed from the corners of his lips.


    Ning Que stood beneath the cliff at the southern banks of Yanming Lake and watched everything happening on theke silently. When Xia Hou was once again forced backwards by an explosion, he took the opportunity to confirm Xia Hou¡¯s position. He flicked his bowstring gently when he heard Sangsang report Xia Hou¡¯s position.


    Archery was the strongest skill of woodcutters of Shubike. However, ordinary bows and arrows were practically meaningless to martial cultivators. However, with a weapon like the Primordial Thirteen Arrows, Ning Que became a nightmare to every cultivator.


    Ning Que¡¯s shooting action was not fast but pulsed with an amazing rhythm. When Sangsang reported Xia Hou¡¯s position, the iron arrow left the bowstring rhythmically, like the flowing of water without any disruptions.


    With the help of Sangsang paired with Ning Que¡¯s amazing archery skills, Xia Hou could not avoid the powerful iron arrows which came without warning no matter how powerful he was.


    He could only resist, struggle bitterly and continue to bleed. It was a game of waiting. Would he bleed out before reaching Ning Que or would Ning Que use up all 13 of those iron arrows first?


    The speed of the Primordial Thirteen Arrows was startling. It was faster than the speed of sound. The whistling of the arrows could only be heard after it had hit its target.


    The reeds by the wooden bridge on the west of Yanming Lake began to shake suddenly. Ye Hongyu¡¯s blue taoist robes fluttered in the wind. Then, she heard the whistle of the arrows.


    "The Primordial Thirteen Arrows?"


    Ye Hongyu said with a stern expression.


    She had seen the Primordial Thirteen Arrows at the snow cliff in the Wilderness and by the Daming Lake. She knew how powerful this culmination of wits on the Second floor of the Academy was.


    However, she had only discovered in the wild winds, shaking reeds, whistling arrows and the fluttering of her blue taoist robes that Ning Que¡¯s Primordial Thirteen Arrows had be even more terrifyingpared to a year ago.


    Following that, the sound of explosions at the lotusnd in Yanming Lake could be heard on the bridge.


    She frowned and said, "What is this?"


    There were several explosions, one after another and the sky lightened with shes of mes. The sharp iron shards in the air and the terrifying arrow aura in the air caused her face to increasingly pale.


    She looked towards the east of theke and suddenly said something baffling, "I¡¯m dead."


    Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang were standing at the end of the bridge.


    They watched the battle above theke and worried for Ning Que and Sangsang silently.


    Ye Hongyu did not know what had caused the explosion. Chen Pipi had seen the iron kettle experiment, but he did not exin.


    Chen Pipi looked at the direction of the loud whistling from the arrows and the mes just as Ye Hongyu said those three words. He said, withplicated expression, "So am I."


    They were standing on the bridge and were of course, not dead.


    But they both said the same thing when they heard the explosions and sharp whistling from the arrows on Yanming Lake.


    "I¡¯m dead."


    Ye Hongyu was the Tao Addict from the West-Hill Divine Pce. Chen Pipi was the youngest Grand Cultivator in the world who had entered the Knowing Destiny State. They were both powerful geniouses from the Haotian Taoism Sect.


    They had said that they were dead while watching the battle. It was because that they knew that they would have died at that moment from Ning Que¡¯s careful nning over the past 15 years, and his battle preparations from summer to winter.


    On the city walls in the snow.


    Ye Su said, "I have never once thought that a cultivator from Seethrough realm could cause such big waves. It seems that I have underestimated Ning Que. But what is it with the explosion in the lotusnd?"


    Eldest Brother did not say anything.


    As the Eldest Brother in the Academy, he knew what had caused the explosion. But like Chen Pipi, he would not reveal his Youngest Brother¡¯s trump card to others.


    Ye Su looked at the direction of Yanming Lake and kept silent for a long while. Then, he shook his head and said, "Ning Que¡¯s methods is bound to kill other cultivators, but those talismans, arrows and weird explosions still aren¡¯t enough to kill Xia Hou."


    The snow over Yanming Lake had gradually tapered off while it continued snowing at the pce.


    The main hall was brightly lit. It waspletely silent.


    Everyone knew what was happening in Chang¡¯an City. That was why everyone in the hall all had weird expressions. The bodyguards held the hilt of their cold swords as they stood guard vigntly outside the hall. The eunuchs and pce maids lowered their heads as they walked slowly, ensuring that they would not make a sound when their soles touched the ground.


    The Tang Emperor was not wearing his regr clothing, but had donned bright yellow dragon robes instead. He leaned against the soft couch and held a book. However, no one could know if he had read something.


    The Empress sat on a seat beside the couch. Her gentle and elegant face was devoid of any expression, but one could vaguely see the worry and anger in her eyes.


    The Nation Master of the Tang Empire Li Qingshan and the younger brother of the Emperor, Master Huang Yang sat across the couch. Powerhouses have crowded into Chang¡¯an today, that was why the two most powerful and trustworthy sublime in the imperial court had to be in the pce.


    The Emperor slowly set down the book in his hands. He looked towards the fluttering snowkes outside the hall and towards the south in the direction of Yanming Lake. He frowned slightly, thinking about something.


    Even though Xia Hou was the Empress¡¯ brother, the Emperor hoped that Ning Que would emerge victorious from the battle, because the Emperor had always considered himself as a student of the Headmaster and Ning Que as his Younger Brother.


    "What a magnificent aura." Li Qingshan felt the fluctuation in the Qi of Heaven and Earth at Yanming Lake and said, "Ning Que¡¯s Talisman Arrows are indeed scary."


    The empress lifted her head and said to the emperor in a tremoring voice, "How is this fair when this is the Talisman arrows were produced by the collective intelligence of the back of the mountain of the Academy and efforts of the Tang empire?"


    The Emperor did not speak. He did not wish to upset his wife any further.


    Master Huang Yang who had remained silent all the time suddenly said calmly, "It is fair. It is just because Ning Que had prepared for this for a long time, 15 years in total."


    With that, he and Li Qing Shan left their seats and walked out of the hall, leaving the awkward silence in the hall to the Emperor and Empress.


    There was a pavilion behind the hall to the side. An ancient bell hung in it.


    There was a thickyer of snow on the roof of the pavilion and a light dusting of snow on the bell.


    Li Qingshan and Huang Yang walked to the pavilion and stood beside the bell.


    Li Qingshan looked to the south and said with a deep frown, "It¡¯s not enough."


    Monk Huang Yang said, "I didn¡¯t expect you to be rooting for Ning Que too."


    Li Qingshan said, "It is hard to control human emotions. Even though Xia Hou is an elder in our sect, Ning Que is the only sessor of Senior Brother."


    Then, he said with slight sorrow, "He had prepared it for 15 years, but it still won¡¯t work."


    Monk Huang Yang brushed the snow off the bell and said, "When Ning Que entered Talisman Taoism, he once came to the Wanyan Tower to consult me. I hope that he will seed too. But even so, things do not go the way as we want. If a longer preparation time guarantees victory, then what is the point of cultivation?"


    The snowstorm ended abruptly and the rolling heat waves generated by the explosion gradually calmed. The night breeze grew gentle and Yanming Lake fell silent. A gap appeared in the clouds above theke and a few stars appeared, watching the ground curiously trying to find out what was happening.


    Most of the night sky was covered by thick ck clouds and the stars that appeared disappeared almost immediately. However, they shone on the ground and one could see that theke surface had been ravaged and the frozen lotus flowers had been crushed into dust. One would shudder when they saw several ck holes that had appeared in the lotusnd.


    Arge man knelt on the ice before the ck holes. His shirt was torn into pieces and his body was embedded with hundreds of metal shards. Blood flowed from his body and onto the snow amassed on theke surface. The snow around his knees was stained with red.


    The snow on theke was red, but looked ck.


    The ce where therge man knelt was just a few hundred feet away from the southern bank of Yanming Lake.


    Ning Que stood on the cliff watching theke.


    He had donned the Academy uniform for the battle and for shooting arrows with sleeves and trousers tied by Sangsang with a cloth rope. His entire body, especially his right arm, trembled vigorously and his ck uniform pped loudly in the wind.


    He had expended a huge amount of strength and Psyche Power to use the Primordial Thirteen Arrows. Ning Que could only shoot a few arrows in the beginning. Now since he had sessfully cultivated in the Great Spirit, he could shoot all 13 of the arrows in the box. However, it was still very difficult for him. Furthermore, there were hundreds of Talismans in the houses by theke and countless of iron kettles buried in theke. He had activated all his tricks, so the Psyche Power in his sense of perception was close to being used uppletely.


    His eyes were exceptionally bright and his face exceptionally pale and haggard. His right arm was tired to the extreme and his right shoulders were hurt terribly as if it was about to split apart. He was so weak he could fall anytime.


    But he did not fall.


    He had to wait for Xia Hou to fall first.


    Xia Hou knelt on theke surface with a single knee. He had not managed to block Ning Que¡¯s final Primordial Thirteen Arrow. The cold dark iron arrow pierced through his calf.


    If the iron arrow had struck an ordinary cultivator, his leg would have been broken.


    But Xia Hou was not an ordinary cultivator. His leg did not break and the iron arrow did not pierce through his legpletely. However, it still caused him significant damage and pain.


    Xia Hou used his right hand to hold the arrow sticking out of his calf. He wanted to pull the arrow out. However, his hands were trembling too much and he did not seed.


    He added his left hand without any expression.


    With his two strong hands pulling, he broke the tough iron arrow apart!


    This would definitely cause much pain.


    Xia Hou¡¯s brows twitched up forcefully. A shrill whistle emerged from his lips, which looked as if they had been caked in rogue.


    The shrill and terrifying sound reverberated around the quietke, causing the snowkes to fly about madly. Even the willow trees by the shore of theke began to fly.


    Xia Hou straightened his knee and stood up.


    His body was soaked in blood, making him look rather pitiful. However, as he stood on theke, he looked strong and imprable like a mountain.


    He looked like the blood g hanging outside the estate door by the north bank of Yanming Lake.


    That blood g danced in the wind, but it seemed to never fall down.


    Xia Hou looked toward the cliff in the south.


    There was not any emotion on his pale face, but the pain was evident in his tremoring voice. Even so, an aura of strength and power emanated from him.


    "Ning Que, is that all?"

 Chapter 482: The Spear

    Chapter 482: The Spear


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "Are these all your tricks?"


    "Do you think you can kill me just like that?"


    "I haven¡¯t shown my trump card yet. Don¡¯t tell me you¡¯re done."


    The shrill yell echoed around theke. Xia Hou walked toward the southern bank of Yanming Lake. He walked slowly due to his leg injury, and his voice shook as he spoke. However, his steps were stable and his manner imposing.


    Ning Que who stood on the edge of the cliff looked at Xia Hou who was walking towards him slowly. Ning Que¡¯s face was devoid of any expression, while his emotions were all over the ce. He felt the chill brought by the wind and snow.


    He had used up all the Primordial Thirteen Arrows in the box. The hundreds of Fu papers that he had painstakingly umted over the past two years had turned into yellow waterfalls and turbulent storms. The little iron kettles buried in theke have been detonated, and it seemed as if he had used up his trump card. However, he had not managed to kill Xia Hou and could not stop him from advancing towards the southern banks.


    It was the power of a powerhouse in the Peak state of Martial Arts, wasn¡¯t it?


    The snow falling onto the city walls had thinned.


    Eldest Brother worriedly looked towards Yanming Lake. His old cotton robes trembled slightly, as if it was contemting whether to fly up or not.


    Ye Su looked on solemnly. He did not think that such a situation would ur at this battle on theke. He did not expect Xia Hou to be attacked, be stopped and even be heavily injured.


    "I have to admit that Ning Que has given me many surprises. The Headmaster¡¯s disciple is indeed extraordinary. But it is a pity that he will die tonight."


    He looked at Eldest Brother and said, "Unless you make a move."


    Eldest Brother understood what he meant by that.


    The powerhouses of the world gathered in Chang¡¯an tonight. Only Jun Mo and he hade to represent the Academy to make things fair for Ning Que. Jun Mo was responsible for watching the Tang Military while he was responsible for watching this genius from the Haotian Taoism sect. Conversely, Jun Mo and he were being watched as well.


    If he made a move, Ye Su was bound to follow.


    Eldest Brother¡¯s expression gradually softened, and he calmed down as he thought of something.


    "Teacher always told me to learn from Youngest Brother, and I always wondered what I should learn. As I think about it today, he wanted me to learn from his attitude in adversity."


    He looked in the direction of Yanming Lake and said, "The most admirable thing about Youngest Brother is him himself. He creates his own world and he is always willing to take challenges. When everyone in the world thinks that he can¡¯t make it, he would still step forward and climb another step. It was so when he entered the Academy, when he entered the old library, and when he ascended the mountain path to the Second floor. Would tonight be any different?"


    There were several torches lit outside the Yulin Royal guard camp, lighting up the surroundings. The bridge covered in snow outside the camp looked like a jade belt and the man with a tall crown on the bridge looked like a deity standing on the jade belt.


    Time passed as the snow drifted.


    The standoff on the bridge continued through the day and untilte into the night.


    Second Brother of the Academy, Jun Mo had been sitting on the snow-covered bridge.


    Defender-general of the State, Xu Shi, and the powerful Yulin Royal Guards stayed under the bridge.


    General Xu Shi leaned against the railing under the bridge and looked at Second Brother who sat cross-legged in the snow on the bridge. He coughed painfully and siad, "Ning Que¡¯s battle against Xia Hou is a challenge against the Tang Military to me. That is why I wish to stop this battle from happening."


    Second Brother looked up and towards the leader of the Tang military. The snow that hadnded on his brows fell off as he said, "Since the battle has started, you need say nothing."


    "Indeed, it is no longer necessary."


    Xu Shi¡¯s white brows floated in the air as he said, tamping down his anger, saying, "So you want Ning Que to die, don¡¯t you?"


    Second Brother said, "Since the battle has already started, someone will survive and someone will die. You are a soldier of the Tang military, don¡¯t you understand such simple reason?"


    After a moment, he said coldly, "Furthermore, that Xia Hou isn¡¯t anyone special. Who dare say that my Youngest Brother is bound to lose for sure?"


    To Second Brother of the Academy, general Xia Hou of the Tang Empire might not be a terrifying opponent. However, It was Ning Que that Xia Hou was battling against.


    Xu Shi thought so, and then, he said solemnly, "There aren¡¯t miracles in the world."


    Second Brother looked at him and said seriously, "The Academy is a ce where miracles will happen."


    "If he still cannot kill the person after 15 years of preparation, then what is left is up to fate. However, teacher has said, that there is no such thing as fate in the world."


    Ning Que stood on the cliff and thought so as well. He looked up at the sky and then down at the person walking towards him on theke. His brows lifted slightly as he asked, "Can we... really seed?"


    Sangsang opened her eyes once the arrow box was emptied. She held the big ck umbre and looked into Ning Que¡¯s eyes, nodding vigorously. She said, "We have to seed."


    Ning Que smiled as he agreed with Sangsang. No matter whether fate exists in the world, or whether he could seed, he had to seed. He should not think of anything else other than sess.


    He looked at the imposing figure on theke and said, "You are left with a pair of weak fists and a damaged body. I still have a fresh de, so why can¡¯t I kill you?"


    On the snowyke, Xia Hou slowed down.


    At that moment, Ning Que reached out his left hand and grasped the hilt in the cold wind. His fingers felt the familiar sensation of hemp, suddenly tightening.


    There was a scuffling sound as he pulled out his podao from the scabbard.


    Ning Que had been used to taking along three des with him to fight against Xia Hou¡¯s three-man assassin team. When he no longer had to fight those assassins, he had to fight Xia Hou. As such, he had asked Sixth Brother tobine those three des into one.


    This de was slender but heavy. Its lines were smooth but were not beautiful. The de was not bright but practical. It was a de that was used to kill people.


    Ning Que held it in one hand and rushed down the cliff.


    The cliff walls were steep and he ran faster and faster, turning into a ck blur.


    The trailing bit behind the ck blur was his sword.


    For an unknown reason, Ning Que had insisted on not carving talisman lines on the de. Instead, he kept it in its original condition. It was extremely smooth.


    Perhaps he wanted to use the simplest sword method.


    Because he believed that the simplest was also the most powerful.


    He rushed down the cliff walls and towards the man on theke, bringing down his sword.


    He was still more than hundred feet away from Xia Hou.


    But his de had already appeared.


    He charged forward and then across. He raised the de, and then brought it down.


    Ning Que had prepared for this.


    He knew that Xia Hou could see that he had prepared this.


    He wanted to know how Xia Hou would react.


    If Xia Hou really parried, then he believed that he his opportunity hade.


    Xia Hou did not prepare to parry Ning Que¡¯s shot. He did not react with his fists as usual, and he did not treat him like how he had treated assassins from the Yan Kingdom when he was in the military camp. Back then, he had let out a bellow that was as loud as thunder and had caused the two powerhouses in the Seethrough State to be shocked into idiots.


    Xia Hou had been injured by Tang, and his armor had been torn through by the Devil¡¯s Doctrine blood de. The power behind Tang¡¯s fists could still be felt on his body. He was not at his peak. Furthermore, he had also been severely injured by Ning Que¡¯s talisman storm, arrows and flowers.


    Xia Hou did not choose to avoid the de either. As a powerhouse in the Peak state of Martial Arts, he was most skillful with closebats. How would he be afraid of a simple de?


    He had said earlier that even the most powerful tricks were useless.


    He finally moved.


    He stood on theke and shut his eyes. His hands, which were still bleeding, were extended before him in the frigid cold air. His Psyche Power in his sense of perception burst forth through his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow. It swirled with the Qi of Heaven and Earth in the Yanming Lake, kneading together to form a thread across the distance andnding on the north bank.


    There was a blood-colored military g outside the estate on the northern bank of Yanming Lake.


    That was Xia Hou¡¯s general g.


    The g fluttered in the wind and suddenly stretched out as if it had heard an order. It waved madly at the door of the estate, leaning forward as if it was about to leap off the pole and towards the beast to kill it.


    When Xia Hou had entered the estates, he had wedged the g deeply into the stone ground. Several cracks had appeared on the pole. The crazy movements of the g caused the pole to tremor and shake. The cracks on the stone ground widened and spread in all directions, looking like a spider web.


    There were several creaking sounds as the ground beneath the gpole cracked. Pebbles flew in all directions as the blood-colored military g struggled to lift off the ground and flew towards Yanming Lake.


    There was a sudden gust of strong wind before the courtyard.


    The blood g was torn into pieces by the wind and fell to the ground.


    In the low-lying clouds above Yanming Lake, a terrifying buzz could be heard. A vague shadow could be seen.


    It was as if a sage was walking in the clouds standing on his sword.


    Ning Que did not know what had happened in his own yard. He did not know about the chilling scene, the sudden tearing of the blood-colored military g, leaving behind the gpole in the clouds.


    He was rushing down the cliff walls. He only had eyes for Xia Hou, who stood a few hundred feet away. However, he suddenly felt an ominous feeling. A patch in his sense of perception suddenly brightened up.


    He stepped heavily on a rock protruding from the cliff with his right foot, taking advantage of the force to turn his body in the air to face the clouds. The Great Spirit in his body flowed into his arms, and he spun the heavy and sturdy podao before him, causing the cliff rocks that came into contact with it to fly off.


    The clouds above theke were suddenly in chaos as arge rod-like shadow burst through the clouds, falling onto the edge of the cliff and smashing into his podao.


    There was a loud boom.


    Ning Que felt a powerful force transferring through the podao to him.


    His body was still in the air, and he took a blow backwards before falling downwards quickly. He mmed into the snowke beneath the cliff, stirring up waves of snow.


    Ning Que stood up from the pile of snow and wiped away the blood at the corner of his lips. He looked at the dark rod-shaped object in Xia Hou¡¯s hands warily.


    Xia Hou looked at him with narrowed eyes, as if he had discovered something odd.


    Ning Que asked, "What is this?"


    Xia Hou said, "A spear."


    The blood-colored g was only left with a pole.


    The gpole was the spear.

 Chapter 483: The Open Spear

    Chapter 483: The Open Spear


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The iron spear was the pole of the blood-colored g, which was why it was so long. Itnded on the ice surface and was even higher than Xia Hou. The body of the spear was dark and dull. It waspletely straight, devoid of any ornaments, and smooth beyondpare. The only difference it hadpared to a rod was that one end was very sharp and glinted in the bright light.


    Even though Ning Que had reacted at the most crucial moment and saved his own life, his arms hurt terribly from the shock. It felt like his bones were broken, and his chest felt ufortable, as if blood was gathering there.


    The g had torn and its pole had flown. An iron spear had flown all the way here from hundreds of miles away, tearing through the clouds. It could have smashed him to smithereens and he had almost lost his life. He found it difficult to imagine how much power was actually hidden in this spear.


    Then Ning Que came to know that this was Xia Hou¡¯s trump card. It was not the unyielding Devil¡¯s Doctrine spirit in his body, but this iron spear which could appear anytime to break through clouds.


    No one knew that Xia Hou was skilled with the spear. Ning Que had never heard of it.


    This ck iron spear was used by Xia Hou as a flying sword. How could a powerhouse from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine who was at the Peak state of Martial Arts use such an exquisite and powerful method?


    The iron spear stood erect on theke, giving off a powerful aura. It announced its existence and will to kill to its opponent and the surroundings of theke openly.


    Ning Que raised his right arm and wiped off the blood dripping from the corners of his mouth. He asked, "What¡¯s the name of this spear?"


    "The Open Spear." Xia Hou said. "You have your arrows shot in the dark, I have my spear used in the open."


    Ning Que coughed up a mouthful of blood. He panted, "The spear is good, so is its name."


    Xia Hou looked at the slender podao in Ning Que¡¯s right hand and narrowed his eyes slightly. He said, "You have a good de as well."


    That was indeed a good de, or it wouldn¡¯t have been able to block the spear that had torn through the clouds and descended from above. It would have shattered had it not been good.


    Xia Hou said without emotion, "But other than Liu Bai¡¯s sword, who else could go against my spear?"


    Ever since he had betrayed the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and sworn loyalty to the Taoist sect, Xia Hou had secretly prepared for the possibility that he might face Master Lotus who might still be alive. He also prepared to face Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation who would not die quietly.


    The iron spear in his hand was what he had prepared.


    He had made the spear himself.


    The spear style came from the abbey dean of the Zhishou Abbey.


    In all the years he had practiced cultivation, Xia Hou had gone against the rules of cultivation and forced himself to cultivate the arts of the Taoism sect. He had sessfully cultivated the iron spear into his natal item!


    From then on, the spear had an entirely new style. Xia Hou thought that it was light, or perhaps, he hoped that it would be thest ray of light. That was why he had named the iron spear the Open Spear.


    With the spear in hand, Xia Hou dared to stare directly at the Enlightenment Doctrine¡¯s spying in the dark.


    All the more so considering Ning Que¡¯s ordinary de.


    Senior Brother who was at the city walls had sensed when the blood-colored g was torn into shreds and the pole turned into a spear that flew in the night skies. He stepped forward subconsciously, touching the city walls with both hands. He did not feel the cold of the snow on the walls, but looked in the direction of Yanming Lake worriedly.


    One could imagine how powerful Xia Hou¡¯s spear was to have Eldest Brother look so worried. It dealt a blow to many who hade to observe the battle.


    Eldest Brother muttered to himself, "I didn¡¯t expect General Xia Hou to have a move like this at the very end."


    "This spear¡¯s velocity, power and vigor are all perfect."


    Ye Su said, "I remember teacher once said that he had once tried to get Xia Hou to shed the Devil¡¯s Doctrine arts and cultivate in Taoism when he brought him to the Taoism sect... However, I did not expect Xia Hou to really practice Taoism, even managing to cultivate this spear to such a high state. It¡¯s really impressive."


    The Eldest Brother twitched and said, "So it is the abbey dean who taught him, no wonder the spear is so overbearing."


    "It is not overbearing, it is open and aboveboard." Ye Su said, "If Xia Hou could cultivate his Open Spear into absolute light, he would definitely be a match for Liu Bai if he were at his peak."


    Eldest Brother shook his head and said, "Without taking General Xia Hou¡¯s injuries into ount and only looking at the Open Spear¡¯s current state, he is still some distance away from Mr. Liu Bai¡¯s sword style."


    Ye Su said, "The distance is against Liu Bai, but this is not something that Ning Que can handle with."


    Eldest Brother fell into silence.


    Ning Que suffered a terrifying blow after being hit by the unyielding Open Spear. His internal injuries were bing obvious and he needed some time to recover. That was why he wanted to say more.


    While Xia Hou was already injured, he should have opted to crush Ning Que into meat paste before he himself bled. However, for some reason, he allowed Ning Que time to say a few words.


    Because he began to have doubts and grew alert.


    Ning Que had prepared for 15 years for this battle on theke. Xia Hou did not have much time to prepare, but he had several decades of experience on the battlefield.


    He was one of the four great generals of the Tang Empire. Everyone was captivated by his viciousness and cold-bloodedness. They had forgotten his talent in military affairs. In fact, his abilities to lead and direct on the battlefield were equal to his power. What was more terrifying was that he was brilliant at using military tactics on battles with cultivators.


    Xia Hou had employed military tactics since he entered the estate by the Yanming Lake and ced his g. He had assumed the role of the Middle Military Camp and faced his enemy appearing weak. He had even sacrificed many of his soldiers and faced Ning Que¡¯s strongest moves. He had seen what all his enemies could do when they were finally exhausted. That was when he pulled out his trump card and attempted to kill his enemies.


    He had exhausted most of his powers and bled considerably, making a huge sacrifice for thest shot. Thest shot would have to be something major that would not give his enemies any other chance.


    The blood-colored g at the front was like thousands of armored cavalrymen he had hidden around the battlefield. It was so that they could suddenly appear when the enemy was under attack so as to concretize their victory.


    The elite ck armored cavalry of the Tang empire was the most powerful and fear inducing group. They had been trained over a long period of time, having traversed the wilderness and were undefeatable. The spear in the blood-colored g was Xia Hou¡¯s most powerful and terrifying move. It was definitely his trump card as he had only used it at the very end.


    The spear was imbued with the belief and vigor of a powerhouse in the Peak state of Martial Arts. Not even a cultivator who was more powerful than Ning Que could defeat it.


    However, Ning Que did not die after being struck by it when it flew out of the clouds. Even though he was still coughing blood and was evidently severely injured, he did not die. This confused Xia Hou.


    Xia Hou considered this as he conversed with Ning Que. He tried to find the source of his confusion and a solution.


    After a moment, he understood half of the answer. As such, his eyes grew brighter as he looked at Ning Que, and they grew colder, just like the snow on the surface of theke.


    It was sufficient, understanding half of it. At least, Xia Hou felt that it was sufficient to exin his doubts and wariness. He waved his right arm, and the remnants of cloth covering it turned into dust. The blood that was dripping from his wounds spurt into the air. The spear in his hand flew into the skies, disappearingpletely.


    Xia Hou¡¯s second shot with the spear was not aimed at Ning Que, but at Sangsang, who stood on the cliff.


    He had gained sufficient information, and knew that the girl on the cliff was definitely Ning Que¡¯s handmaiden. He knew that the handmaiden and Ning Que had an unusual rtionship. And he also knew that the handmaiden was Wei Guangming¡¯s sessor.


    Sangsang¡¯s identity had always felt strange to Xia Hou, and he grew vignt against her. So, he decided to kill her first. This decision was also a military tactic. Military tactics were not plots, but were open and overboard due to their simplicity. It was just like the aura of the iron spear. Xia Hou wanted to make it clear to Ning Que that he wanted to kill Sangsang. He wanted Ning Que to return to save her and then die.


    Sangsang was Ning Que¡¯s life. He would do anything to kill the person who would dare to use Sangsang to threaten him. It was why he had shot Prince Long Qing in the Wilderness.


    An ordinary person would definitely save the weak looking girl who was as precious as life itself, casting away his own life.


    However, Ning Que did not do that. He did not turn around when he sensed that the unyielding iron spear was heading straight for the cliff. Instead, he held the hilt tightly, stepped on the ice with his right foot and quickly moved ten feet forward. He flicked his wrist and raised the sharp podao, charging towards Xia Hou.


    His speed was astonishing. The wind on theke blew on his ck Academy uniform. His sleeves pped loudly in the wind as if it were a night sky that was about to be split apart.


    Xia Hou raised his brows in confusion. He grasped at the air with his steel-like right fist.


    The iron spear had torn through the air and gotten to the cliff on the southern banks of Yanming Lake towards Sangsang. Due to the air friction, the dark spear glowed with a sheen of light. Compared to Sangsang¡¯s slender, tiny body, it appeared massive and terrifying.


    Snow wrapped around the spear as it thrust forward, the wind scouring painfully on her cheeks. Her yellowish hair, which had been trimmed short, looked like grass in the stream, mmed backwards by the wind.


    She knew that Ning Que would not turn around to save her because he could not even save himself. Furthermore, Ning Que trusted her to save herself. She had to save herself right now.


    Sangsang was the sessor of the Divine Priest of Light and had studied Divine Skills with the old man. She had also practiced with the Tao Addict, Ye Hongyu over thest few days. However, she had never participated in a battle between cultivators.


    She did not know how to fight or save herself. And just like what she did when she was about to die on Min Mountain many years back, she followed her instincts and squatted down like an injured animal. She closely held the handle of the umbre and curled up as much as she could, allowing the big ck umbre to shield her bodypletely.


    An extremely odd sound rang on the cliff. It was like the sound of drumsticks hitting a broken drum, or it also could have been the sound of Xia Hou stepping forward, but falling through the broken ice surface and into the water.


    The iron spear dug into through the big ck umbre forcefully, the sharp spear pierced throughyers of oil and dirt.


    The spot where the spear met the umbre sunk in. There was the sound of ck cloth tearing, and it became a terrifying dark hole. However, at the depths of the ck hole... the spear had not managed to pierce through the umbre!


    The handle of the big ck umbre pressed into the rocks. There was a loud crack, and like a knife cutting tofu, the handle drove into the rocks. Pebbles flew into the air. Sangsang, who hid under the umbre with her eyes closed, suffered the brunt of the impact. Her face paled and with a gurgle, blood sprayed from her lips, the new clothes she had put on this morning stained red.

 Chapter 484: The Sword in the Dark

    Chapter 484: The Sword in the Dark


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    As a betrayer of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, Xia Hou¡¯s natal item was that horrifying Open spear thrust. He could clearly perceive all the details before the appearance of the metal spear, thus he knew that Sangsang was not dead.


    The first deadly thrust which he tolerated and sought for using his extreme perseverance failed to kill Ning Que. Even when he secretlybined it with the righteous art of war tounch the second thrust, which would certainly hit the bull eye, he still failed to kill the little handmaiden on the cliff. Two continuously and incredibly missing ruined Xia Hou¡¯s mood.


    At this point, Ning Que had already moved thousands of feet and arrived on the Snow Lake.


    Just then, Xia Hou slightly twisted his brows. He instantly clenched his right fist tightly in the snow storm. The metal spear on the cliff violently retreated as though it was being bounced back into the air by the big ck umbre.


    The darkish metal spear pierced through the snow residue left floating on theke as it pierced through the slightest freezing wind. Together with the sharp howling sound, the spear pierced Ning Que¡¯s back like a lightning.


    The sharp howling sound was produced due to the force traveling against the wind. It was a sound caused by the turbulence of the air around the razor-sharp de. The higher than a pitch of the sound meant the quicker the speed. Just by listening to the sound, one would know that the speed of this metal spear was notparable with Primordial Thirteen Arrows, but it was still extremely fearful.


    Based on logic, Ning Que¡¯s current ability of Seethrough Upper State was not possible for him to foresee Xiu Hou¡¯s Open spear thrust path of movement. It was certainly beyond possibility for him to deal with such horrifying speed.


    However, Ning Que was not a person who did things based on logic. His experiences and cultivation process, if one carefully looked back, were not logical at all.


    Just when the metal spear was thirty feet away from his back and before the piercing sound had traveled to his ears, he reacted by filling his body with the Great Spirit and forcefully twisted his body in the dark. He then focused all his mental energy and strength onto the de as he aggressively snapped it off from his back!


    A loud, vivid sound was heard, followed by the spilling of strong gush of air from the edge of the knife de and spear de in all directions, causing the snow umted on the snowke to shake without stop.


    Ning Que felt a sharp pain on his wrist that caused him to almost drop the podao in his hand. However, he used his determination to stabilize his form as he made a turn in the dark using the rebound force from his knife de and once again shouted as he pounced towards Xia Hou. His speed was, in fact, faster than a few minutes ago.


    That metal spear drew a curve in the dark night and arrived in front of Xia Hou before Ning Que did as it returned to Xia Hou¡¯s right hand in the freezing wind.


    The freezing wind gathered. Ning Que dashed against the wind with both his hands gripping tightly onto a podao as he shed it towards his opponent¡¯s head!


    Xia Hou¡¯s body was already covered with blood. His face was pale, but his expression remained the same calm. As he watched a ghostly figure pounced towards him, he simply moved his spear forwards.


    The des of the spear and knife collided, creating a bright spark.


    After a loud collision sound, Ning Que, like an injured big bird, pitifully moved backwards. He had once again fallen heavily onto the snowke.


    The darkish metal spear vibrated vigorously in momentum in Xia Hou¡¯s hand and for a long time, it could not quiet down as it gave out a disappointing low howling sound.


    Every time the metal spear and the podao collided, the collision was solid, unmorous and forceful. It seemed simple and uninteresting, yet in fact, there was a hidden ground-breaking meaning behind each collision.


    Ning Que got himself off the ground. He felt that his wrist had been broken and his face was as pale as snow. Though Xia Hou was severely injured by his Talisman Arrow, in terms of strength and the intensity of Qi, Ning Que was far less than his opponent. This gap between them was impossible for him to fill up or pull closer.


    A simple thrust from Xia Hou could destroy the sacrificing attack that Ning Que had nned for it for a long time. There was no reason for Xia Hou to be unpleased with such oue, yet he began to frown deeply.


    That was because that thrust had failed to stab into Ning Que¡¯s body.


    Prior to that, when the Open spear thrust was burning like sunlight and was all prepared to tear apart the darkness within Ning Que¡¯s body, the podao in Ning Que¡¯s hands had, strangely and without his knowing, flipped out. It had, without any error, shed the tip of the spear, causing Ning Que to fell down from the impact. Thus, his fall was not due to the power of the spear.


    Xia Hou squinted his eyes and looked at Ning Que as he said, "When you shut yourself off in the cliff cave at the back of the mountain in the Academy during Spring, you were indeed not cultivating both talisman and martial arts. In fact, you...had already join the Devil."


    Ning Que spitted his saliva with trace of blood on the snow-covered ground in front of him and kept quiet.


    Before that, Xia Hou had already realized the half of the answer. That answer was that Ning Que had joined the Devil. Other wise, as an average cultivator, it was impossible for him to tolerate the massive strength brought upon by the metal spear.


    But that was only the half of the answer.


    Xia Hou had thrust three times towards Ning Que tonight and every thrust was done wholeheartedly. He believed that even if his opponents were the strong warriors of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine that year, it was impossible for them to take such strike.


    Ning Que should be dead. Yet he was still alive.


    Every time at that critical moment, when the darkness of death from the spear was about to cover Ning Que¡¯s body, Ning Que was able to react in time and he could react in the best possible way.


    Xia Hou began to stay alert. Even if Ning Que had joined the Devil, it was still inadequate to exin how he could manage to act like this. This represented that he had a deep understanding of the Qi of Heaven and Earth surrounding him.


    In other words, Ning Que seemed to possess the ability to battle with Knowing Destiny State tonight.


    The snow on the city wall gradually stopped, yet the temperature seemed lower than before. The Eldest Brother and Ye Su gazed in the direction of the Yanming Lake. The auras that both of them released seemed like mist fogging the surrounding.


    Ye Su had never thought that Ning Que could actually be grabbed hold of Xia Hou¡¯s Open spear thrust. Though the oue was extremely bad, he did not die from it. This made him confused, or even stunned.


    Though Xia Hou¡¯s Open spear was ck and could move in the dark without leaving any trace of movements, it was a righteous force. Using the vibe from its speed and strength tounch at all-out attack, it could only cornered his opponent to a life and death battle.


    With Ning Que¡¯s current perception level, it was impossible to capture the trace of movement of the Open spear thrust, needless to say about predicting the enemy¡¯s intention. He could only force himself to take the strike. Moreover, his cultivation state was lower than the Seethrough state. He had no capability to use the Qi of Heaven and Earth. Hence, when Xia Houunched the first thrust, he should already be dead.


    "Xia Hou¡¯s Open spear thrust naturally couldn¡¯t hurt you, Mr. First."


    Ye Su took a nce at the Eldest Brother and continued to say, "If it¡¯s Liu Bai, he would definitely turn the situation around by attacking the opponent with the continuous pping of the yellow waves and take the opportunity to kill him. If the metal spear ising towards me, I will most probably chain it with me sword style and try to grab hold of this spear. However, I don¡¯t understand how Ning Que could dodge Xia Hou¡¯s spear thrust."


    The Eldest Brother thought for a long while before he shook his head and said, "I also have no idea how Younger Brother managed to do it."


    Ye Su closed his eyes and focused on listening to the faint de collision sound from the distant snowke. Then there was a sound of someone stepping on the snow like a ghost and glided through the air. He suddenly thought of one possibility.


    Momentster, he opened his eyes, frowned and said, "If that¡¯s the case, there¡¯s still no proper exnation."


    Eldest Brother asked, "What case?"


    Ye Su said emotionlessly, "You know what I am referring to."


    The Eldest Brother said, "The Academy will not admit it."


    Ye Su spoke softly, "Not admitting it doesn¡¯t mean it doesn¡¯t exist."


    The Eldest Brother said slowly, "If there¡¯s no evidence, your guess will only attract troubles."


    Ye Su took a deep breath. He then suddenly said a headless sentence, "The Headmaster will leave one day."


    The Eldest Brother did not think and said a sentence.


    This sentence was exactly the same sentence as what Ning Que had replied Ye Hongyu.


    "I don¡¯t think Teacher will leave before us."


    Ever since he inherited the Youngest Uncle¡¯s gift at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, the Great Spirit within Ning Que¡¯s body had been changing his body continuously. Now, his body was bing stronger and his strength was bing bigger. His movements and speed had also correspondingly became faster.


    However, Xia Hou was a strong warrior from the previous generation of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. His body had been cultivated with Qi for many years. His strength or speed were both higher than Ning Que¡¯s. Hence, the reason that Ning Que was able to block Xia Hou¡¯s Open spear thrust was not due to all these factors.


    Ning Que did not expect that Xia Hou¡¯s final move would be a martial art from Tao. Never did he thought that Xia Hou would have his own natal item. However, deep within his sense of perception contained numerous pieces of realization from Master Lotus¡¯ experiences.


    Those pieces of realizations were spiritual imprints.


    Xia Hou had the skills from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and all them were inherited from Lotus. Lotus understood this disciple more than anyone else. Though it was not possible for him to know Xia Hou¡¯s situation when practicing Open spear thrust, but he knew Xia Hou¡¯s interest and habit even his legs gesture. He knew everything about Xia Hou.


    If Master Lotus was an enormous web as broad as the ocean, then Xia Hou was the gigantic rock statue that strolled along this enormous web. He seemed powerful and indestructible, but in fact, every step he took was still within this web. This web would understand every intention he had with every vibration he caused.


    Ning Que possessed all of Master Lotus¡¯ spiritual imprints, which was equivalent to him owning this web. Though he was not able to control these spiritual imprints, but every time Xia Hou walked on this web, those pieces of realization located deep within these sense of perception would begin to glow, forecasting what Xia Hou was preparing to do and how he should counteract them.


    Last year during winter at Hn Sea, when Ning Que, who was not as strong as now, faced with Xia Hou¡¯s fist, which was much more powerful than the one tonight, he could still remain calm. That was due to these pieces of realization.


    Tonight, these pieces of realization remained effective.


    A cold g wind blew from the Winter Forest located at the east shore of theke, churning up the umted snow on top of theke and spreading them all over.


    Xia Hou looked at the snow as he instantly thought of the Hn Sea and the snow-like ashes in his hands. They were his teacher¡¯s ashes. His body suddenly became cold.


    "Teacher...what did he teach you?"


    Xia Hou looked at Ning Que as he asked. Both his eyes were burning with silent and cold mes.


    Ning Que¡¯s eyes were brightened as well. He pointed to his own head and said, "Master Lotus had not taught me anything, but he left me with some things. The consciousness he left with me told me that he wanted to kill you, his betraying discipline. He wanted to help to clean the Enlightenment Doctrine, hence what¡¯s inside here is the killing intent your Teacher has for you."


    Xia Hou remained quiet for a long time. Suddenly, he said coldly, "The Academy ims itself as righteous. Yet you, as a disciple of the Academy, became the student of the Devil Lord Lotus and cultivated Devil¡¯s Doctrine skills. What a traitor."


    Ning Que said, "You are the disciple of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Your teacher was Lotus. Yet you betrayed the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and depended on Taoism. You even changed to cultivate Taoist magic and abandoned your nature to cultivate natal item. You are more of a traitor than I am."


    Xia Hou suddenly began tough coldly and said, "I never thought that tonight is the battle of two traitors."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "The Devil¡¯s Doctrine reagards you as an enemy, but the Academy never reject my identity."


    Xia Hou said, "No matter what the teacher had taught you, you will still die tonight."


    Ning Que said, " I always thought that I am the only one on earth who is better in saying than doing."


    Xia Hou squinted his eyes and said, "Then we shall get started. Take another thrust from me."


    The further he went, the further the cold voice sounded, Xia Hou¡¯s burly figure seemed to be a real mountain and the iceke beneath his feet started to form a deep crack. Though that, One could faintly see theke water.


    The snowke finally began to form ripples. The distance between the two figures on theke started to shrink rapidly. Xia Hou¡¯s hands grabbed hold of the metal spear and pierced it straightly towards his opponent. Ning Que shook his wrist and shed his knife downwards.


    The spear and the podao met again.


    Sensing the intensive and tremendous formidable energy spreading from the tip of his de to the hilt, Ning Que knitted his brows tightly and without any hesitation, he released his Psyche Power. That droplet of crystal-like liquid began to rotate in his body at high speed. All the umted Great Spirit which he had cultivated for several months in the cliff cave at the back of the mountain in the Academy seemed to be spurting out presumptuously!


    The podao in his hands began to glow brightly. Numerous golden lights were spurting from the darkish knife like the golden lights that reflected on the city wall of Chang¡¯an in the evening, yet it also seemed like a sun which appeared suddenly and instantly shone the Yanmingke in darkness into bright daylight!


    The golden and holy lights left the podao, channeled through the freezing cold air, and formed into bits of gold-like substance as they aggressively struck onto Xia Hou¡¯s face!


    Since a thousand years ago, Taoism and Devil would never stand on the same side.


    The Divine Skill of the West-Hill Divine Pce was no doubt one of the jinxes for the Devil¡¯s Doctrine skills. It was deemed as a born-inheritor from the Judicial Department who was in charge of pursuing and killing the Devil¡¯s Doctrine after Ye Hongyu had understood the Divine Skill.


    The strong warriors of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine were most fearing the holy Haotian Divine Light. Even the Youngest Uncle of the Academy used the Divine Light as a Confinement tactical array to confine a great man such as Master Lotus.


    The Divine Skill was a gift from Haotian to Haotian Taoism and punishment to the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Those golden lights ignored the strong bodies and vigorous Qi of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine cultivators and directly influence the cirction of Qi within their bodies through the air. They were even strong enough to directly melt away the crystal walls surrounding their meridians in the bodies.


    Tonight¡¯s battle by theke in the winter, Xia Hou had left his most powerful skill till the end to use his spear tounch an attack in all four directions. Ning Que had also left his own Taoism Divine Skill till the end!


    In the zing Haotian Divine Light, Xia Hou¡¯s face seemed to turn pale till it was almost transparent. His eyes looked as though they were burning and his eyshes had fallen one by one in the Divine Light as they charred and burnt into ashes. In the end, they became nothing. First, a look of fear appeared in his eyes, yet the next moment, a mocking smile showed on this face.


    Watching Ning Que who was outside the Divine Light, Xia Houughed aloud. He then said like roar, "Don¡¯t think I don¡¯t know you have Divine Skill! However, your Divine Skill is fake! Yours is still Great Spirit! How can a candlelight be a sunlight!" "Fake one is fake one. It will never be genuine! You are not Ke Haoran. You can¡¯t kill me!"


    The extreme vigorous Qi spurted out from his burly figure, with the sound jetting. The surrounding umted snow began to tremble away from the surface of theke and floated in the middle of the dark night!


    Xia Hou stood in the midst of the floating snow as he held his spear in one hand and pushed it down. He was just like a celestial who was looking upon the earth from outside the cloud and was totally unstoppable.


    Ning Que slightly bent his knees. His face was pale. The ice beneath his feet began to produce cracking sound, as if it was going to break apart.


    Xia Hou flipped his right palm. A p with an impact simr to a small mountain hit towards Ning Que¡¯s head. He said in a cold expression, "Die!"


    Xia Hou was badly injured tonight, thus, his current strength was less than thirty percent of his power at peak. However, he was a strong warrior at the peak state of Martial Arts. Even with the residual strength, he was still extremely powerful.


    To be able to block off Xia Hou¡¯s Open spear thrust with Ning Que¡¯s current strength was already stunning. All his attention and Great Spirit were poured onto the podao and there was no remaining strength left for him to manage that p on his head which has the impact of a small mountain. Even if he had that strength, he would not be able to react in time.


    Yet, at this moment.


    Xia Hou made an extreme mournful howl as he retracted his palms.


    There was blood spilling from his small abdomen!


    He cracked the ice and shaken the snow along the way as he retreated 2,000 feet backwards.


    The blood he spilled out dragged all the way on the snowke to form a long bloodline.


    Just a moment before this.


    Ning Que was extremely unreasonable as he draws his knife back.


    At that time, Xia Hou¡¯s palm was only half an inch apart from his head.


    At that time, the spear in Xia Hou¡¯s hand was not blocked by podao, as it shed down freely.


    He stabbed deeply into Xia Hou¡¯s abdomen.


    The moment he pulled out his knife.


    Xia Hou¡¯s palm was still half an inch apart from his head.


    The spear in Xia Hou¡¯s hand did not move at all, as though it had stopped in the middle of the air.


    Ning Que draws his knife back and once again, ced it in front of the metal spear to block its way.


    Just then, Xia Hou reacted.


    Hence, he retracted his palms and retreated. The moment he retreated, he retreated the distance of half a snowke.


    The speed of lightning was not good enough to describe Ning Que¡¯s stabbing speed.


    That was a power beyond the sense of speed.


    Like continuous turbid waves falling from the sky, the actual speed might not be that fast. However, as what everyone had seen, that power made them feel that all these were unstoppable.


    Far away above the snowke, Xia Hou held his profusely bleeding abdomen. Feeling both shock and angry, he asked, "What kind of knife style is that!"


    Ning Que looked at him and said, "You knew that I know Divine Skill, but do you know that I know sword style too?"


    He wasn¡¯t using Knife Skill when he was using the knife previously. He was using sword style.


    This was the sword style of the world¡¯s most powerful cultivator, the Sage of Sword Liu Bai.


    On the freezing cold city wall, Ye Su gazed in the direction of the Yanming Lake and sensed that unfamiliar sharp sword style which he would never recognize wrongly. He subconsciously swept off the umted snow on the wall in front of him. He felt this was incredible and he said, "A turbid river falling from the sky! Why is there a Liu Bai¡¯s sword style!"


    He turned around abruptly and looked at the Eldest Brother as he said shockingly, "Ning Que has already know enough stuff. He even learned Liu Bai¡¯s sword! Who taught him this? The Academy?"


    The Eldest Brother honestly replied, "Though our Younger Brother had learned Haoran Sword, but Dahe Sword was not taught by the Academy."


    Ye Su frowned and asked, "Then who taught him?"


    The Eldest Brother hesitated a few moments and he said, "...Your sister."

 Chapter 485: The Generals Hair Turned White Overnight after the War

    Chapter 485: The General¡¯s Hair Turned White Overnight after the War


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The winter battle at theke started with the storm of talismans, followed by arrows shot in the snow beside theke. It then became the duel of overt and covert means; it was easy to escape the open spear thrust, but only Ning Que could escape from it; it was hard to avoid a covert sword, and Xia Hou failed to guard himself against it.


    Xia Hou covered his abdomen as blood continuously flowed from his fingers. He felt the pain in his abdomen and the horrible sword style that kept invading his body. His unsightly expression was of deep agony.


    Since it was not a knife nor a sword, he could easily guess that the sword style, like a river from the sky to the ground, seriously hurting him in an impossible way, naturally came from the Sage of the Sword, Liu Bai.


    Looking at Ning Que on theke in the distance, Xia Hou¡¯s expressions were strange - Ning Que did not have a high cultivation state indeed, but he had the Great Spirit inherited from Ke Haoran, learned to write talismans from Yan Se, controlled the arrows of the Academy, inherited the awareness of Lotus, and even owned the Liu Bai¡¯s sword style!


    It was a rather rare phenomenon in the world that a cultivator could take up so many different means, which regardless of whether they were righteous or evil, were at the highest level in the world.


    "The Academy... teachers...Ke Haoran...Yan Se...Nowes another one, Liu Bai. How many secrets are you still hiding in your body and how many great abilities do you have?"


    Xia Hou suddenlyughed as if he was mad and said, "Does everyone want me to die?"


    Ning Que looked at him in the distance and said, "Everyone wants you to die. Then you should die."


    "Only idiots think so!"


    Xia Hou stoppedughing and no emotions fluctuated on his face. He said indifferently, "No one is qualified to judge whether I should die. You can¡¯t, nor can those people. Even if everyone says I should die, I¡¯ll live forever if Haotian wants me to be alive."


    Ning Que frowned. He did not know that during the spring two years ago, before the bloody battle in Spring Breeze Pavilion, Chao Xiaoshu had said something simr to someone in the House of Red Sleeves. He only knew that Xia Hou had be somewhat different at this moment.


    Ning Que took a deep breath.


    An extremely cold breath was released from his body and it then quickly reconverged into the skin. The snow on theke seemed to sense the horrible breath and it all spread around out of fear.


    Several snow lines appeared on the surface of theke, just like frozen sprays.


    The long ck hair left his bleeding shoulders and floated in the breeze at night. Several grey hairs swayed in the wind and the ck hair was dyed white like frost.


    Immediately afterwards, Xia Hou¡¯s cheeks sunk slightly and he turned thin quickly, but the aura from his body did not diminish at all but became even stronger.


    With the sound of a hiss, the torn clothes on his body were shattered into pieces and sprayed around like snowkes. His strong naked torso was exposed and he stood on the snowke like a man made of iron.


    At this time, something strange happened.


    There were hundreds of wounds on his bronze body, which were healed quickly at a speed that was visible to the naked eye, as if there was an invisible force that suppressed all injuries on his body.


    An extremely lively breath of life filled Xia Hou¡¯s genuine Qi pond which was drying up, and it repaired the meridian channels that were in a disastrous state to how they used to be and made them even thicker than before. His meridians expanded and contracted as he breathed, as if they hade alive.


    It was said that ever since ancient times, famous generals were like beauties, whose white hair could not be seen by people in the world. Tonight, when Xia Hou¡¯s hair turned white between the moment of breathing in and breathing out, the snow and the ice on theke began to fear and be uneasy.


    The ck hair representing health and vitality, had instantly turned white and the vitality that had previously been attached to it had gone. Xia Hou¡¯s cheeks suddenly sunk; where did the flesh go?


    Ning Que looked at the distance fully alert, but he could only see Xia Hou¡¯s white hair vaguely in the dark. He could not see more details, nor could he know what happened to Xia Hou exactly.


    The pieces of consciousness in the depths of the sense of perception were shimmering and he knew somehow that it was a war tactic of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine by burning life. The flesh and health that Xia Hou lost momentarily were used by himself to transform into vitality and strong genuine Qi.


    The main reason why the Enlightenment Doctrine was called Devil¡¯s Doctrine and had an extremely cruel and bad image in the eyes of people in the world. Apart from their brutal selection of cultivators, there were numerous evil monasteries in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. For instance, the Practice of Taotie of Lotus needed to devour the cultivators. How cruel it was!


    Xia Hou was seriously injured at this time, especially the sword injuries in his abdomen. It was no surprise to Ning Que that Xia Hou would use the evil practice of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine at such a moment between life and death.


    This tactic of burning life would inevitably cause terrible damage to the cultivators themselves. Xia Hou fought with his hair all turning white tonight. Even if he could win, he would not be able to live for several years.


    Ning Que knew clearly how terrible the deadly attack of a strong cultivator from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine would be but he was not prepared to concede. He wanted Xia Hou to die tonight and did not want him to see the morning light of Yanming Lake.


    There was a sudden loud noise on the snowingke.


    The air broke out, and the falling snow was smashed into powder. Originally standing here, Xia Hou passed through the powdery snow on theke in an instant, and fled to the night sky in front of Ning Que. With a sharp shout that sounded like thunder, he held a spear in both hands like holding an iron bar, and hit the ground with all his strength.


    The cold wind whistled, the snowballs on theke rolled, and theke water in the cracked hole tumbled.


    Ning Que stamped heavily on the trembling ice surface, and when his body was suddenly shaken, he held the knife with both of his hands and jumped high in the darkness and chopped down on the god-like man!


    Without any expression on his face, Xia Hou stepped on the snow, then swung the iron spear and smashed down.


    The iron spear had the strong power that Xia Hou exchanged at the price of burning his life and Ning Que could not resist it. With a huge booming sound, he jumped high into the darkness and then fell at a faster speed toward theke.


    Instead of flying with the clouds and among the mountains, the iron spear was held tightly in the hands of Xia Hou. In the battle which might be thest one in his life, Xia Hou, the man with strong power who had betrayed the Devil¡¯s Doctrine many decades ago, eventually went back to the original world with his endless power and his real Devil¡¯s Doctrine powerhouse demeanor.


    Xia Hou at the moment was like a mountain falling from the sky.


    While Ning Que was like a gravel under the mountain, which could only be turned into powder.


    Xia Hou shouted with anger, kicked at the clouds, held the iron spear and struck with it again.


    Ning Queboriously held up his knife to resist it.


    The waves of Qi were sputtering around.


    The speed of Ning Que¡¯s fall was getting faster, and if he fell on the ice on the surface of theke at this speed, he would definitely die even if he could escape the Xia Hou¡¯s iron bar.


    It was unknown that whether it was out of fortune or because of his calction ahead of time before he jumped to the air, he fell on the lotusnd, where there were dozens of holes that had been blown out by the small iron kettle.


    In the dark hole, theke water swayed restlessly, with a thin and fresh ice mask floating on it.


    There was a ssh, and Ning Que smashed into the coldke water which sshed against the hole.


    A gust of wind blew and Xia Hou did not hesitate to plunge into the water with the iron spear.


    ...


    ...


    The flying snow slowly fell on the ground and peace was restored in Yanming Lake at night. There were no more thunderous sound of swords and spears or the two figures fighting with their lives at stake. The sound of the fluctuatingke water from the lotusnd seemed to be even colder than before.


    Sangsang, who was standing on the cliff at the southern shore of theke, climbed out from under the big ck umbreboriously. Looking at the secluded winterke, she was frightened and worried, with her pale face stained with blood.


    Standing beside the wooden bridge, Chen Pipi, Tang Xiaotang and Ye Hongyu looked at the quietke. No one spoke and their breath was like the reeds in winter beside the bridge, sometimes swaying and being silent for a long time.


    In the pce, the emperor embraced his wife without any expression. Li Qingshan and Huang Yang stood in the pavilion. Huang Yang lifted his hand from the ancient bell and it then remained silent in the snow.


    In front of the snow bridge, Xu Shi¡¯s silver eyebrows fluttered wildly in the breeze at night. Second Brother sat cross-legged on the bridge in the snow and kept his head down and the expression on his face could not be seen.


    In the Winter Forest, the mute monk covered by snow was silent but the chirping of cicadas in the forest had be much softer than before.


    On the city wall, Eldest Brother and Ye Su looked at the direction of Yanming Lake and remained silent until the snow on the wall in front of the two was so heavy that it had scattered into the houses under the wall.


    The entire city of Chang¡¯an was in silence.


    People in the city knew that Xia Hou and Ning Que were under the ice surface of Snow Lake, chasing or killing in the cold water, but no one knew exactly what was happening there.


    After a long time, a sound rose from the Snow Lake.


    The sound was like an old wooden door that was slowly opened or a heavy stone table being dragged on the ground. It was a soft sound but it broke the silence of the entire Chang¡¯an.


    A bulge appeared on the Snow Lake.


    Then the soft sound became a loud sound.


    The ice surface of Yanming Lake arched from time to time and then fell down. It seemed that there was an invisible giant who was hammering continuously from theke water down below, trying to break the ice surface.


    The extremely thickyer of ice was like a wound hit by a huge force and it curled up to the ice nearby. Theke water kept rolling and gave out a tsunami-like sound.


    The previously quiet and peaceful Snow Lake suddenly became terribly frightening and overwhelming, with fierce and endless storms.


    A dark shadow flew out of the crack on the ice surface but crashed heavily into the snow.


    It was Ning Que whose ck uniform was already soaked and was torn into pieces that could not conceal his body. His bare body was full of mottled blood that could not be washed off by theke water.


    He did not pause for a second and rushed towards the cliff.


    A momentter, the surface of the ck uniform began to freeze. Compared to the previous dark and cold world under theke, the world outside theke was like a garden for Haotian.


    When running like escaping from being killed, Ning Que thought of the friend who had returned to Haotian in advance and he thought that he could not fully believe in the intelligence of Darkie. Xia Hou was not afraid of water at all. It was fair to say that such a strong man at the peak state of martial arts would not be drowned even he could not swim.


    At this moment, a loud noise rang out behind him. The thick iceyer was lifted up and the coldke water brimmed over the surface; huge waves like snow seemed to flood over and drown the whole world.


    In the terrible snow waves, Xia Hou appeared, like a powerful monster in the sea. He stepped on the cold water and flew for more than ten feet and smashed the spear into Ning Que¡¯s back.

 Chapter 486: Lullaby

    Chapter 486: Luby


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que turned back in a sh with his right hand sping the hilt and the left hand holding the other side of the de. He firmly stood behind his sword, ready for Xia Hou¡¯s attack.


    A sound of cracking!


    His left wrist was fractured. The de heavily fell on his shoulder.


    He resisted with the shoulder.


    Xia Hou aggravated the attack with his iron spear.


    Another cracking!


    Ning Que felt a sharp pain in his left shoulder and could no longer resist the huge force. He knelt down on one knee, hitting the hard ice ground with cracks and suddenly grew pale.


    The paleness suggested that he was suffering from a huge pain. However, there was not a shadow of death in his eyes but great brightness.


    With a roar like a desperate beast, Ning Que seemed to turn the pain into an unexpected power at the moment. While reversing his right wrist, he clenched the injured left hand and heavily hit on the de!


    The two simple actions seemed to vitalize the heavy podao in his hand that crawled up along Xia Hou¡¯s iron spear like a vivid snake. With a series of movements, the spear was pressed under Ning Que¡¯s sword.


    The crystal dropletpressed by the Great Spirit in his stomach sted all of a sudden!


    And then it evaporated immediately in the air!


    The vapor moved along the meridians into every corner of his body!


    The Great Spirit inside him broke out of his body in the shortest time possible!


    The zing Haotian Divine Light again exploded from the de, reflecting a stronger and more aggressive figure of Ning Que than that of Xia Hou.


    The Divine Light shone on Xia Hou¡¯s lean and strange cheek, clearly lighting up his eyes and even the cold mocking expression inside.


    Xia Hou knew it was Ning Que¡¯sst shot.


    But he did not feel afraid. As he said earlier, that unlike Ke Haoran, Ning Que¡¯s Great Spirit could not bepared with the real one.


    He stared at Ning Que¡¯s pale face and cried coldly, "You only have Liu Bai¡¯s sword style, not his sword! No matter how many things you have learned, they are not yours!"


    His cry echoed over the cold icyke, shaking the Divine Light on Ning Que¡¯s sword like a swaying torch me in the wind. He suddenly lifted his spear and forced the podao to retreat several inches.


    "You cannot stab or hurt me again!"


    Staring at his opponent¡¯s eyes, Xia Hou said indifferently, "As a disciple of the Academy, how dare you abandon your Natal Item and join the Devil! You¡¯d better die since you don¡¯t understand what your heart wants."


    After the words, the Divine Light of the sword shook more violently and seemed that it would disappear at any time. Ning Que¡¯s face was very pale. He spat a mouthful of blood into the light. With the sizzling sound of something burning, the blood vaporized quickly, leaving a slight burnt smell. His eyes were full of calmness.


    He uttered two unexpected words.


    "Thank you."


    Ning Que knew clearly how mighty Xia Hou was and how hard it was for a Seethrough state cultivator to challenge an opponent with a higher cultivation level. So he made many preparations.


    These preparations took him fifteen years in total and until he left the House of Red Sleeves and smelled the mutton soup on the street of Chang¡¯an City. He was finally prepared.


    These preparations were made to spot any opportunity of killing Xia Hou ording to his power and hidden techniques. Some of them were very helpful in the fight tonight, such as the talisman storm and the coordination of iron arrow and kettle, while some were not.


    Earlier Ning Que powerlessly fell from the sky in order to induce Xia Hou to enter the dark and coldkebed and kill him there. ording to Zhuo Er¡¯s message, Xia Hou should be very afraid of water. But the fact was he became more mighty in the water.


    Some preparations had not been used in the fight. Some were half used. In the beginning, Ning Que wanted to fight Xia Hou face to face because he knew the threat of the Haotian Divine Light to the Devil¡¯s Doctrine cultivators ording to Ye Hongyu.


    He had two chances and was faced with two choices. The first chance, when Haotian Divine Light exploded from his podao, he chose to coordinate Liu Bai¡¯s sword style with the Great Spirit.


    Ning Que thought the Great Spirit inherited from the Youngest Uncle and the recently learned sword style of Liu Bai were his most powerful fighting assets. In fact, they indeed greatly hurt Xia Hou, but did not kill him.


    And then the second chance came to him. He could not make his decision until he heard Xia Hou¡¯s arrogant words.


    Using the arcane magic of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine greatly consumed Xia Hou. His eyes were sunken and his face seemed to be covered with only a thinyer of skin, making the bones beneath visible. He looked like his teacher Lotus in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. In the fierce light, he was like a god or a devil.


    At the sacrifice of his blood, flesh and even his life, Xia Houpletely dominated the fight on the icyke. Ning Que did not stand a chance in front of the mighty opponent. The Haotian Divine Light could help but could not change the situation.


    Ning Que was about to lose the fight. However, at this very moment, he thanked the man who was going to kill him.


    It came out of the blue.


    Xia Hou thought Ning Que was crazy. He could not understand the words and sensed some strangeness and uneasiness in them.


    Ning Que stared at his horrible cheek and said, "But I do have my own Natal Item. May I show you?"


    With his words, a streak of enriched Psyche Power was released from Ning Que¡¯s body. And then it left the blood and ethereally floated towards the sky.


    The ethereal Psyche Power did not move slowly. The impression of being ethereal was because the Psyche Power was extremely refined. But it did not move to a certain direction, instead it diffused in the Qi of Heaven and Earth over the icyke.


    Before the gate of Daytime Snow Pce, Xia Hou had evaluated Ning Que¡¯s refined and pure Psyche Power which was poorly operated.


    And this was exactly what he expected right now.


    However, his eyes suddenly became cold.


    He clearly sensed that Ning Que¡¯s Psyche Power had captured a strand of Qi of Heaven and Earth which immediately appeared on the cliff of the south bank. Once it fell on the cliff, the Qi of Heaven and Earth was stabilized in a sh and then expanded at a terrifying speed like being fueled by something.


    Holding the hilt with both hands, Ning Que¡¯s face grew pale, but his eyes were very bright.


    At the risk of destroying his cultivation, Ning Que dissipated the crystal droplet in his stomach and absorbed all the Great Spirit to suppress Xia Hou¡¯s spear for a while.


    He had to hurry up.


    His Psyche Power left the sense of perception, crossed through ten intangible Qi orifices and stagnant Ocean of Qi, finallyposing a low and clumsy song.


    He hoped the song could be heard and understood.


    Because he was calling his Natal Item with the song.


    Cultivators did not control objects directly through controlling the Qi of Heaven and Earth. They took it as a bridge and passed their Psyche Power to the object, triggering the resonance of Qi of Heaven and Earth inside the object. The Natal Item was the one that could resonate in the most harmonious and easiest way.


    This was what Chen Pipi had said. He thought it was very hard for cultivators to find their own Natal Items which were perfectly matched with the cultivators¡¯ aura. At the night in the old library, he talked a lot with Ning Que and gave the example of tonality. So Ning Que could know that a Natal Item was the one who could understand his song.


    A soulmate.


    Sword Masters took a sword as their Natal Item like Liu Bai¡¯s Dahe Sword. As the mightiest Sage of the Sword in the world, he could draw his Natal Sword on a paper.


    Talisman Masters took talisman as their Natal Item like Master Yan Se¡¯s Jing Fu. It was the master¡¯s closestpanion which fought with him until the end of his life.


    Ning Que was a rare cultivator who practiced sword and talisman at the same time. His Natal Item was no sword, talisman, calligraphy stationery or even his favorite taels of silver.


    His Natal Item was a little handmaiden.


    A handmaiden who had a little bit dark face and yellow hair.


    On the icyke, Ning Que¡¯s Psyche Power controlled the Qi of Heaven and Earth and came to the Yanming Mountain.


    The song was soundlessly yed at the edge of the cliff.


    Chen Pipi once said Ning Que¡¯s song was rather bad and elusive. Due to the distance, the sound was particrly obscure and incoherent.


    But Sangsang felt the Psyche Power.


    She heard the song and understood it.


    Although there was no real tonality at Yanming Mountain, she clearly heard a song which Ning Que used to hum when carrying her on his back and climbing in the deep Min Mountain many years ago.


    Ning Que knew nothing about music. The reason why he did not feel shame to hum the song was that Sangsang liked to hear it when she could not fall asleep.


    The song was her luby.


    Sangsang doubtfully stood at the cliff with the big ck umbre.


    Looking down at the light in the icyke, she did not quite understand what happened, but she understood the call in Ning Que¡¯s Psyche Power or perhaps one could say, an invitation.


    Ning Que was inviting her to the closest connection which meant aplete obedience that could not be parted by the shadow of death or the threat of Yama.


    Any conscious life would instinctively turn down this dominant connection. And even in eptance, they would go through a long time struggle.


    But Sangsang did not hesitate or struggle at all. She agreed to the invitation immediately.


    Because she was his little handmaiden.

 Chapter 487: They Were Each Others Life and Sangsang Sang to the Lake

    Chapter 487: They Were Each Other¡¯s Life and Sangsang Sang to the Lake


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Sangsang¡¯s right hand felt the chilly wind at night.


    A ray of light appeared on the tip of her forefinger. It gradually became brighter and turned into a dim me, the color of which was pure white. There was no trace of any impurities in the me and it looked holy.


    Then the same holy me also appeared on the tips of her other four fingers and illuminated her dark little hand to an extremely white color.


    The holy me was the Haotian Divine Light.


    The Haotian Divine Light between her fingers shed as the wind started blowing.


    More pure mes poured out from the seams of her new clothes, her dark face and the end of her yellowish hair. The light soon enveloped her skinny body in. The big ck umbre held in her hand seemed to have felt something, so it slowly closed itself even though there was no wind at all and leaned against her legs.


    The cliff next to the Yanming Lake was very bright.


    Sangsang was very bright.


    Countless infinite rays of Haotian Divine Light poured out from her thin body. It lit up the snowy cliff in front of her and the messyke below the cliff. It shone on the ruined walls across theke and the bridge hidden in the bushes on the west shore. It also shone on the monk in the Winter Forest at the east shore and illuminated the whole Chang¡¯an City.


    The pure and hot light shot from theke into the sky and spread to every corner in Chang¡¯an City. As if there was a majestic dawning, the quiet night became as bright as daytime.


    It was on the cliff next to the Yanming Lake.


    It seemed that the Haotian Divine Light was not hot at all, because neither Sangsang¡¯s hair nor her clothes were burned. But it was hard to believe that, because the mes were so tense and hot.


    The bloodstains on her clothes were cleaned up by the mes, so were the dirt and snow on her shoes. They were so clean that they even looked transparent.


    They were as transparent as her.


    On a normal day in the fourteenth year of Tianqi era, an old man who escaped from the West-Hill Divine Pce, arrived in Chang¡¯an City. He bought a bowl of hot and sour noodles, but half of it was spilled on him and dirtied his clothes. He met a dark and skinny girl in the Old Brush Pen Shop at Lin 47th Street and since then, he never wanted to leave her again.


    That old man looked at her and followed her. He told her that it was the right time and taught her everything he had learned in his lifetime. And he once eximed that he had never met anything cleaner and more transparent than her.


    Therefore, Sangsang was transparent.


    Therefore the Haotian Divine Light spread out from her body would not reflect or dissipate. It was just as holy and clean as the original Divine Light.


    There were other people who worked hard and learned the Divine Skills of Haotian such as Ye Hongyu, who excelled at it. But no one could spread Haotian Divine Light that was purer than that of Sangsang.


    Because she was the sessor of the light.


    She was the daughter of light.


    The reed on the western shore looked like white jade under the pure light.


    Ye Hongyu held on to the railing tightly. She was shocked by the dazzling brilliance on theke and became speechless. She knew Sangsang learned the Divine Skills and she had even discussed it with her. But she had never realized that her ability in the Divine Skills should be so powerful.


    It was midnight, which made it impossible to get the light of Haotian. So she didn¡¯t understand how she was able to spread so much light. Even if Sangsang was the only sessor of the God of Light and the West-Hill Pce really wanted her back to the Peach Mountain, Ye Hongyu still did not understand how she had done it.


    No one could understand the light on theke. Ye Su, who was standing on the city wall, could not understand it either, but unlike his sister, he did not even try to.


    Looking at the light in the sky and feeling the aura on theke, this sessor of Zhishou Abbey was full of shock and admiration. He murmured, "How pure the light is."


    Eldest Brother was standing next to him and looking at the direction of Yanming Lake. He was not impressed by the light and he did not smile either. He looked rather serious and it seemed that he was worried about something.


    Under the snowy bridge outside the military camp, soldiers from the Yulin Royal Guards and cultivators from the Imperial Center Administration were looking at the direction of Yanming Lake with shock. The shiny light revealed their expression.


    Xu Shi looked up slowly at the beautiful rays in the ck clouds. His wrinkly face was full of confusion.


    Second Brother was sitting on the bridge. He had lowered his head during the day and most of the night. But now he also looked up at the light on theke and a sincere smile shed across his face.


    He looked at Xu Shi and said, "This is a miracle."


    Although it was not created by the Academy, it was still a miracle. When Second Brother climbed to the top of Wuming Mountain after the death of Master Yan Se and the Great Divine Priest of Light, he saw the little handmaiden scooping the ash into the urns with her hands. And apart from pity, he also felt somehow that one day she would create a miracle.


    He even argued with Eldest Brother, who he respected the most, because of his feeling.


    After seeing that the miracle was really happening, he started smiling.


    In the Winter Forest on the western shore, Qi Nian was covered by thousands of snowkes, which were as thin as the wings of cicadas. He looked like a statue made of ice and no matter how intense the fight on theke became, he, the World Wayfarer of Buddhism Sect was still silent. He was fighting against the person behind the sound of the cicadas and waiting for the result of the fight peacefully.


    But he opened his eyes suddenly when the Haotian Divine Light appeared on the cliff, making the snowkes fall from his eyelids. His mild and determined eyes were full ofplicated expressions.


    Those expressions were kindness, peacefulness and hesitation. But in the end, they gave way to amazement.


    The faint sound of cicadas that was haunting the forest also changed. The rhythm sounded very cold and even full of disgust, but the tone was satisfying.


    It was under the pavilion out of the snowy pce in the Imperial Pce.


    Li Qingshan, the Nation Master of Tang, suddenly stopped stroking his beard and even pulled a few strands of his beard up out of shock. He looked so shocked when the light lightened the dark sky.


    Master Huang Yang, who was standing next the snowy bell, looked at the direction of theke and opened his mouth slightly. His exmation was intoned as a Buddhist word and his palms were patting the surface of the bell subconsciously.


    The thin snowfall on the surface was broken and fell to the ground.


    The selomn and melodious sound made by the bell drifted into the distance in the lighten night.


    The world in Sangsang¡¯s eyes was white.


    It was a pure and impable white.


    It was the color of light.


    But her eyes did not linger about in the world of pure light, they were watching the figure on theke and feeling the message that person¡¯s Psyche Power was sending.


    His Psyche Power was summoning something desperately. It was so greedy, so hungry and it was even panicking. It was like a demon who wanted to eat her blood and flesh.


    Sangsang felt it, but she was not horrified. In the me of Haotian Divine Light, she opened her mental world peacefully and showed it to Ning Que.


    Some thoughts already became her instincts. Everything she owned, her mind, her flesh, her Divine Light and her life all belonged to Ning Que. She could share it or even sacrifice it without any hesitation. If so, then why did she even need to panic?


    She was the Ning Que¡¯s life and Ning Que¡¯s life was hers. No matter how much he wanted, she would always give it to him, even if he wanted all of it and even if he wanted her life.


    If the rtions between a cultivator and his life were like bosom friends, then Ning Que and Sangsang were the best friends in the world. They did not enjoy music together, but they shared their daily life. They shared happiness and sorrow, they shared views and thoughts and they shared life and death. They never needed to try to understand each other, because they were naturally able to.


    If a cultivator and his life were close, then Ning Que and Sangsang were the closest people in the world. They had been living together since they were young. They had been sleeping on the same bed for all these years. If he raised an eyebrow, she would know that he was proud of his beautiful calligraphy written by a branch; if she gave a silly smile, he would know she had injured her finger when doing the washing up.


    If there should really be the Heaven¡¯s Way and Destiny, then the fact that they met fifteen years ago at Heibei county in the famine was what Destiny had set up. They started to share their lives with each other since then and would do it forever, this was their destiny.


    It had long been set up.


    It seemed that everything could be connected somehow.


    And Sangsang, who used her life as fuel to spread the Divine Light, was passing the light through an invisible passage to him.


    The aura was suddenly cleaned.


    Sangsang looked very pale in the light. Her brows frowned and she seemed to bear a great pain. But she was still smiling.


    The Divine Light that was burning on her suddenly turned into a bundle of light and shot down the cliff, connecting the Yanming Mountain and the Yanming Lake.


    Endless Haotian Divine Light was sent to Ning Que¡¯s body through the light bridge and the chilly wind. It made his podao shiny.


    The Haotian Divine Light on his face made Xia Hou¡¯s pupils tighten and burn. In the next moment, they were charred and he looked shocked and scared.


    He could feel that it was not the Haotian Divine Light disguised by the Great Spirit, it was the true Haotian Divine Light, the power he feared the most. Although he had betrayed Devil¡¯s Doctrine and joined the Taoism sect, the fear was still buried deep in his heart.


    Thousands of rays extended from the de of the podao and enveloped Xia Hou in them. Those rays should have been holy and kind, but they were not. They were cold and burning his body and mind mercilessly.


    These light mes belonged to Ning Que, so he was not affected by it. His de, together with the blinding light me, hacked forward at a fast speed.


    He used his most familiar sword skill. It was also the easiest skill. Without any fancy styles, it was just a hacking. But it was the most powerful hacking he could do. At Shubi Lake, he used it to cut countless heads of the Horse Gang and at the side gate of the Academy, he destroyed Liu Yiqing with only one hack.


    The long steel spear in Xia Hou¡¯s hand couldn¡¯t bear the Great Spirit on it and the burning of the Haotian Divine Light anymore. It snapped into two parts.


    The de did not stop.


    Xia Hou roared. His hands moved fast forward and caught Ning Que¡¯s podao.


    The horrifying power of his palms was pressed to the de and to Ning Que, which made him lower his head and press his lips together. But as if did not feel the pain, Ning Que continued hacking his podao forward.


    The Haotian Divine Light on Ning Que¡¯s de was burning Xia Hou¡¯s fists. It moved slowly and steadily down and drew nearer and nearer to his pale and thin face.


    Xia Hou roared again when he felt the threat of death. He spared no effort in raising his injured foot up and kicked towards Ning Que¡¯s waist.


    Even if he could hurt Ning Que, it would still be impossible to stop his de and the Divine Light on it. But he did it anyway, because he wanted Ning Que to die with him.


    But he could not make that happen either.


    When his foot was about to touch Ning Que¡¯s waist, an aura moved along his legs and entered his body. It went into his sense of perception and created a smell of blood in his mouth and nose.


    Xia Hou was very familiar with that aura, because he had felt it before.


    But it was also very strange to him, because he hadn¡¯t felt it for many years.


    That bloody aura was so cold and so far away from him. It was like the aura was standing up in the sky and looking down to him.


    Then Xia Hou heard the sound of cicadas.


    He had heard it during the daytime in the Pce, but he thought it was just his hallucination.


    He had also heard it in the afternoon when he walked past Yanming Lake, and he couldn¡¯t tell whether it was real.


    And now he had heard it again when he was about to die, and this time he was sure that it was real.


    Ning Que was kicked to the air and hended heavily in the snow. He tried really hard to pull himself up and hack Xia Hou again. But no matter how hard he tried, it was in vain. He had to sit in the snow and pant heavily.


    At this time, a cut appeared on Xia Hou¡¯s body. It started on his forehead and spread downwards to his nose, lips, chest and belly.


    Blood oozed out from the cut. He had lost too much blood in the fierce fight tonight and that was why the blood in his body could only ooze rather than flow. He looked rather miserable now.


    Xia Hou didn¡¯t lie down. He looked at the deep cut on his chest. It was not something serious for him if he was at the prime. But it was not something he could bear right now.


    The Haotian Divine Light around him didn¡¯t die out for some reason. Instead, it continued burning as if the coldke was the fuel for it and the ice was coal. The wholeke was burning and disseminating dazzling light. Everything looked rather clear.


    Under the light, Xiahou looked at the cut on his chest. He knew he was going to die soon and loosened his hands. His long spear which was already splitted into two parts fell to the snow and sshed into the snow.


    The sound of the bell in the Imperial Pce spread to theke.


    Xia Hou looked up when he heard the sound. Maybe he just thought of his sister.


    The bell was sounded again.


    A buzzing sound started from his body and then countless sand spewed out. It was as if he had been storing sand for decades.


    The melodious bell sound kept ringing in the city.


    Thump! Thump!


    His body made several muffled sound. Some part of it sank in, while other parts bulged out. His bones were broken and his skin was bruised, it looked like he was beaten hard by someone¡¯s fists.


    It was Tang.


    During the several assassinations in the Wilderness, Tang risked his life and resisted the great pain from his injuries to break into the Xia Hou¡¯s corselet and left a few fist marks on him.


    In the past days, with the help of his deep power and his terrifying state, Xia Hou had restrained the injuries caused by the marks. But now the Haotian Divine Light had melted the barriers between the meridians in his body and made it impossible for him to restrain it any longer. And the marks burst out.


    Those injuries restrained by the secret skills of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine also burst out, leaving thousands of new injuries on his skin. It looked really scary.


    It was very cruel to him that he had to experience all the injuries and the pain he had suffered before.


    His organs were allpletely broken and became a mash.


    The blood in one¡¯s muscle was not as much as that in his organs. So when his organs broke, Xia Hou started to cough blood out. ck and thick blood flowed along his gullet to his mouth and spilled out of his lips.


    Xia Hou was standing in the snow, coughing whileughing.


    Ning Que was sitting in the snow. He also startedughing after a long time of silence.


    Theirughter waspletely different.


    Sangsang was sitting in the snow on the cliff. She looked very pale. She saw theke and knew that Ning Que didn¡¯t want tough at all, he only wanted to cry.


    She felt sad when thinking about his feeling and started shedding tears.


    Cold tears flowed down her dark cheeks, but they didn¡¯t cover up her smile.


    But it was a happy thing, so she started singing softly.


    "Wee from the mountains to kill you."


    "Wee from the rivers to kill you."


    "Wee from the grasnds to kill you."


    "Wee from a deserted vige in Yan to kill you."


    "Wee from the deserted General¡¯s Mansion in Chang¡¯an to kill you."


    The lyrics of the song was the same as the little poem about revenge that she had written for Ning Que.


    And the melody was the cradlesong Ning Que used to sing to her when they were children.


    Sangsang¡¯s voice was soft and babylike. It was not very good.


    But the song she was singing was very moving. It echoed across theke for a long time.

 Chapter 488: After Your Death

    Chapter 488: After Your Death


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The daytime would not arrive soon and it was still very cold in the night. A person was about to die at this time.


    The snowyke was very bright. The Divine Light was still burning on the remnants of snow on the ice and under theke, emitting lots of vapor. The sound of water boiling could be heard, it looked like a misty hot spring in the morning.


    Xia Hou was covered in blood. His white hair draped over his shoulders and stuck together because of the blood. He looked at Ning Que, his dim eyes full of confusion, and asked hoarsely, "You were only four at that time. It is not easy for someone at that age to remember his enemy. You really hate me this much?"


    The chilly wind caressed Ning Que¡¯s face. The smile on his face disappeared and he started talking.


    "The four years I spent in Chang¡¯an when I was a child was the happiest time in myst and this life. I didn¡¯t have to think or learn about anything. I only needed to enjoy my the love from my parents, y with my friends and peep at the general¡¯s books. But you ruined it."


    "In others¡¯ eyes, I have been living a good life these years. But only I know how painful and unhappy it is to struggle for survival. Of course, I hate you."


    "No matter what I do, the chambein and the young master who were killed by me in the woodshed cannote back to life anymore, those dead people in the Mansion cannote back to life anymore and my parents cannote back to life anymore. And my happiest time cannote back either. That is why nothing and no one can stop me killing you. I want them to know that my hacking was worth it and I want you to know that I am taking revenge for my parents. I want you to remember that my father¡¯s name is Lin Tao and my mother¡¯s name is Li Sanniang."


    Xia Hou looked down at his chest wound and asked suddenly, "How does it feel to have taken your revenge?"


    "It feels not bad," Ning Que replied.


    Xia Hou looked up and asked in confusion, "What do you feel exactly?"


    "I can¡¯t really tell how I feel. Anyway, it is rxing and I feel like if you are dead, the whole world will be different and I am no longer the same me in thest fifteen years."


    Ning Que thought for a while and said, "I know why I feel so rxed now. It is because after your death, I will have more time to write calligraphy and make money. I don¡¯t have to write lots of boring talismans every night. And I can go to the House of Red Sleeves quite often to enjoy the music there, rather than staying at the back of the mountain and listening to Senior Brothers¡¯ music."


    "I will still cultivate after your death. But I don¡¯t have to do it just to make myself more powerful, I can do it out of my own interest or my love for Taoism. I don¡¯t have to stay in Chang¡¯an or City of Wei, staring at your back and waiting for the final fight between you and me. I can go to the South Jin Kingdom or the Divine Hall, to see the world and people."


    Looking at Xia Hou, he said seriously, "After your death, I don¡¯t have to think about how I can kill you anymore. Only in this way, can I gain true freedom and do the things I really want to do."


    Xia Houughed. Hisughter was sad and his expression was strange.


    "Freedom..."


    Xia Hou looked at Ning Que in pity and mocked him. "As a student of Taoism, you have joined the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and immersed in it deeply. You are like me when I betrayed the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. You have chosen the same path as me and you are destined to struggle in the seam of light and dark like I did. You have no freedom at all, let alone happiness."


    Ning Que used his podao as a walking stick to support his weak body. He stood up with difficulty and said to Xia Hou, "The Academy is not the Enlightenment Doctrine and I¡¯m not you."


    Without deep understanding of the Academy, one could never understand the Academy and the Headmaster¡¯s true attitude towards the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Ning Que had never worried that he would share the same destiny as those main characters in the stories.


    "Of course the Academy is not the Enlightenment Doctrine. And Headmaster won¡¯t care about what his student learns, because he is the most open-minded. And of course, you are not me, because you are not even a human."


    The light in Xia Hou¡¯s eyes was as dim as the dying fireflies in the chilly wind. But now his eyes lit up again. He eximed, "You are the Son of Yama!"


    Fifteen years ago, when the God of Light thought that the Son of Yama was born in Xuanwei General¡¯s Mansion, the West-Hill Devine Pce had sent Xia Hou to kill him. That gave rise to the following stories and tonight¡¯s fight.


    Xia Hou thought about the things that confused him in the fight. He thought about those dead people, who came here because of Ning Que. And it made him be more confident of his judgment.


    He looked at Ning Que and smiled strangely. He cursed, "I vow to Haotian, that one day, you, the Son of Yama, will end up like me and you will be burned to ash by the Divine Light."


    "It is probably easier for you to take in the fact that you are killed by me, if I am the Son of Yama. But unfortunately, I have nothing to do with Yama."


    Ning Que continued, "Everyone will die in the end and everyone will be burned to ash by the Haotian Divine Light. So, your curse does not really mean anything."


    "Are you really not the Son of Yama?"


    Xia Hou murmured, "How could you escape from Chang¡¯an if you are not? How could you defeat me by crossing the barrier of states if you are not? And if you didn¡¯t defeat me, how could I die today?"


    His face looked like a willow tree split by thunder. It was creased together and full of unwillingness and confusion. He was still wondering, if Ning Que was not the Son of Yama, how could he have the luck to sessfully cross the barrier between states of cultivation and to kill a powerhouse like him?


    The proud and stubborn General Xiahou looked like an old man living in the vige, who only cared about finding out the thief who had kicked out the door of a widow at the previous night.


    He looked up and said painfully, "I don¡¯t want to die."


    Ning Que said, "But I want you to die."


    No one wanted to die.


    Most people died unnaturally, because others wanted them to die.


    Xia Hou did not want to die, he still wanted to be alive and enjoy the honor and power he used to have.


    But Ning Que wanted him to die. He had been thinking about it for fifteen years, during which every day was as long as a year for him.


    And Xia Hou died.


    Xia Hou fell backwards, his body dispersing the vapor away. With a ssh, he dropped into theke.


    The surface of the chillyke was boiling because of Haotian Divine Light. It looked like the hot spring in the valley in Yan, or arge bowl of soup.


    Xia Hou¡¯s body was floating in the boilingke. His eyes were wide open, his bloody face was full of confusion and unwillingness and his thin sallow cheeks gradually turned to a red color.


    Many years ago, at the military camp at the foot of the Min Mountain, the former saintess Murong Linshuang shocked the world with her dance Tian Mo Qu. All the powerhouses from the West-Hill Divine Pce gathered there and the war in the valley was terrifying. Xia Hou did not hesitate to kill her by boiling her in the water, after that he had betrayed the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and joined Haotian Taoism.


    That was a turning point in Xia Hou¡¯s life, but he would never have thought that one day he would be boiled like that woman.


    If the Heaven¡¯s Way really existed, maybe this was what a cirction was like.


    Xia Hou¡¯s dead body was still moving in the boiling water. Ning Que said suddenly, "Who said that we can only eat mutton giblets soup at the Winter Solstice Festival? Who said that a spear without a spearhead can never kill someone?"


    This was what he said to Ye Hongyu when they were eatingmb soup in the autumn. Ye Hongyu could see what the first sentence meant, but she couldn¡¯t understand the second one.


    Today was the Winter Solstice Festival and it was the right time for mutton giblets soup. The damp vapor above theke made it look like arge bowl of soup or the bathing room in the yard of the House of Red Sleeves, where Ning Que first killed someone for the revenge. He was the censor Zhang Yiqi.


    Ning Que felt very warm, peaceful and rxed. He felt like he had just finished a bath and every pore on his skin was open. And after that, he had also eaten arge bowl of mutton giblets soup with tofu sauce and coriander.


    "Who said that the son of a guard cannot avenge? And who said a person at Seethrough State cannot cross the barrier of states to kill a person at Knowing Destiny State?"


    He turned around and walked towards the southern bank of Yanming Lake. He raised his arm to wipe his face, and his face especially his eyes became very red. No one knew whether he was wiping away his tears or the dust on his face.


    Sangsang already climbed down the cliff and went to the snowyke. Her skinny body was already very weak now, but she still needed to carry the big ck umbre and the heavy arrow box. It was very difficult for her.


    Seeing the figure in the front, both of them quickened their pace. Looking at the familiar face, they felt so manyplicated emotions and neither of them knew what to say.


    Without saying anything, Ning Que held Sangsang in his arms. He was hugging her so tight that their faces were pressed together and twisted a little. There was still the trace of tears on their face and it looked a little funny.


    Ning Que¡¯s face was a little red and hot. Sangsang¡¯s face was pale and cold. When they pressed their faces together, it wasfortable and peaceful for both of them.


    On the western bank of theke, Chen Pipi loosened his hold and patted on the railing where his hand had left some blood stain. He worried too much when watching Ning Que fighting that he had hurt himself.


    Tang Xiaotang peered at the green figure on the other end of the bridge and held Chen Pipi¡¯s hands. They walked down the bridge and towards the two who were hugging on theke.


    Ye Hongyu was standing on the wooden bridge. She looked at the direction of theke expressionlessly and closed her eyes. It seemed like she was thinking about something and her brows were furrowed slightly.


    In the snow pce in the Imperial Pce, The empress stood next to the door nkly.


    Her beautiful face was full of tears. The emperor hugged her from the back tofort her. But the tears in her eyes became more and more and she struggled to free herself from his hug.


    The emperor held her tightly, so no matter how hard she tried, she still could not escape from his hug, but of course it was not because she was too sad or too weak. She turned around to hug him back and cried in his arms silently. The clothes on his chest were soon wet.


    In the snow pavilion out of the pce, the Nation Master Li Qingshan looked at the direction of Yanming Lake in aplicated expression. Master Huang Yang removed his hand from the bell and the sound of the bell gradually stopped.


    The whole Chang¡¯an City was quiet.


    The whole world was quiet.


    In the Winter Forest on the eastern bank of the Yanming Lake, the sound of cicadas was sounded again. It was shrill but so joyful.

 Chapter 489: Friends from the Same Sect and Enemies in the Winter Forest

    Chapter 489: Friends from the Same Sect and Enemies in the Winter Forest


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    It became cold again after the fire died out on theke.


    Tang Xiaotang stopped behind Ning Que and let go of Chen Pipi¡¯s hand. She kneeled down in a flurry of snow. Then she kowtowed to Ning Que heavily.


    Chen Pipi was a little shocked.


    Tang Xiaotang said with a shivering voice, "Thank you, Youngest Uncle, for killing the betrayer of the Enlightenment Doctrine."


    Ning Que didn¡¯t try to stop her from doing it. Instead, he epted it peacefully. He knew very well that for the decaying Devil¡¯s Doctrine, his Youngest Uncle was someone to admire and feat. But Xia Hou was a traitor they hated to the bones. If he didn¡¯t let Tang Xiaotang do that, she probably couldn¡¯t find another way to release the myriad of emotions within her heart.


    And because he had the fragments of Lotus¡¯s memory, it was more like taking epting respect on behalf of Lotus. But he still looked at the dark night and said, "There are too many people around theke and your kneeling down probably would bring us some trouble."


    Tang Xiaotang stood up. Chen Pipi wiped the snow on her forehead away. Her red swollen forehead broke his heart. He replied to Ning Que, "You don¡¯t have to worry about any trouble in Chang¡¯an City."


    Ning Que knew that the Academy had always been protecting him all this time, because there was no interruption at all during the fight. After hearing Chen Pipi¡¯s words, he couldn¡¯t help but smile and feel proud, because he realized that as a student of the Academy, he would never encounter any trouble in Chang¡¯an.


    But what should he do next?


    All the hatred buried in his heart for fifteen years was out when Xia Hou¡¯s dead body sank into theke. It was like the vapor on the boilingke, suddenly disappearing in the air. A normal person would feel very empty inside after experiencing the extreme excitement and joy, and they probably would not know what to do at all.


    If Ning Que was still the same person in the City of Wei, he would be like that; after killing Xia Hou, he would feel like there was nothing to do and nowhere to go. But it was different for him now because his home was in Chang¡¯an City. Even though he couldn¡¯t go back to the Old Brush Pen Shop, he could go to the mansion next to the Yanming Lake. Even though the mansion was just a mess, people still could live there. And he could always go back to the Academy and find a hut for him and Sangsang at the back of the mountain.


    "Let¡¯s go home first."


    Ning Que and Sangsang supported each other when walking to the mansion on the northern bank of theke, where the fire had long died out. Although they were not seriously injured, the fight consumed lots of energy, so much that they were likemps without any fuel. At this time, if they didn¡¯t watch out every step, they would trip as long as they started walking.


    Chen Pipi moved quickly and held Ning Que¡¯s arms before he fell to the ground. He scolded him angrily, "Sangsang is also really tried, and you still want her to support you? Why can¡¯t you ask me to help you? Would that kill you?"


    Ning Que said, "Don¡¯t show your care for me. Xia Hou is a visiting professor in the Taoism parties, if the West-Hill Devine Pce or the Zhishou Abbey knows about it in the future, you will have some trouble."


    "I never wanted to be a Taoist priest anyway."


    Chen Pipi replied impatiently. Then he dragged Ning Que¡¯s arm, lifted him to his back and started walking towards the bank. Tang Xiaotang and Sangsang followed them.


    Only the sound of people walking on the fluffy snow could be heard on the quiet snowyke.


    The morning had arrived.


    Tonight, for the thousands of people who had watched the fight at theke, it was still hard for them to believe what they had seen was real. Looking at the two trails left on theke and the four people walking, they felt veryplicated.


    With his handmaiden¡¯s help, Ning Que, who was at the Seethrough State, had killed the powerhouse at the peak state of martial arts. To many, the whole thing was just impossible. Even though Ning Que was a student of the Headmaster, it was still impossible, because it was a fair fight.


    It was not rare for a cultivator to die in a fight with a cultivator whose state was lower that of his, because fights were never reasonable. Sometimes, assassination, poison or traps could change everything and even a Seethrough-state cultivator being killed by a normal person was not rare. But it had rarely happened in a fair fight, because that would be a fight of real power.


    To kill a Grand Cultivator was especially hard. After they entered the Knowing Destiny State, it would be the most impossible thing in the world for a cultivator at lower states to defeat him in a fair fight.


    Because the Knowing Destiny State was a big barrier on the road of cultivation, if one passed it, then, there would be a real distance between him and the mortal world.


    ording to the record in cultivation world, only when a powerful army had the help of cavalry and well-designed tactics, could it be possible for it to kill a Knowing destiny State Cultivator. There had never been such a case when someone crossed the barrier and killed a Grand Cultivator. It was said that Mr. Ke once did it, but no one had witnessed it. People only knew that after the fight, his enemy was dead and he rode his little ck donkey continued his journey in his Seethrough State.


    It meant that the fight between Xia Hou and Ning Que was the first time in thousands of years that could be used to prove one could cross the barrier between states and kill a Knowing Destiny State. So it would definitely be recorded in the scrolls in the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    During the fight, Ning Que had prepared lots of traps. But because he was a Talisman Master, no one had doubted his way of fighting, they were just impressed by the powerful skills the youngest student in the Academy had learned.


    No matter the storm caused by talismans, the Primordial Thirteen Arrows or the thunder at the lotusnd, all of them were something that others could not understand, therefore they looked very powerful. Although Ning Que was still in the Seethrough State, the skills he had used were as powerful as the skills of the Knowing Destiny State.


    The fact that Sangsang turned the night into daytime also made everyone silent.


    Many people who had watched the fight in Chang¡¯an were more powerful than Ning Que. But they were very much shocked, especially Ye Hongyu, who had watched the fight on the wooden bridge at the western bank.


    In today¡¯s world, of all the young people in the Taoism sect, the Buddhism sect and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and even the Academy, she was always the most powerful one. Even Prince Long Qing, Guan Hai Monk and Tang Xiaotang could notpare with her. But when seeing the performance of Ning Que and Sangsang, she suddenly realized something. So she closed her eyes and thought silently. Her eyshes fluttered in the wind and she seemed to have understood something.


    On the city wall, Ye Su looked at the direction of the Yanming Lake and said after a long time of silence, "The Academy is really powerful, so is this guy."


    After watching the fight for the whole night, Ye Su had witnessed powerful thunder, the dancing snow and the collision of all sorts of weapons, which made him change his opinions of Ning Que.


    In the beginning, Ning Que was just a normal person in his eyes, then he seemed not bad, and then he seemed very good. In the end, when he managed to kill Xia Hou, Ye Su realized that he still didn¡¯t see him clearly. He couldn¡¯t even hide his admiration and appreciation to Ning Que.


    Of course Ning Que was still no match for him, the sessor of Zhishou Abbey. But he was so young and could already kill Xia Hou, which was impossible for most people. After a few years¡¯ learning in the Academy, no one would know how powerful he could be at that time.


    Would he be another Mr. Ke?


    The death of Xia Hou didn¡¯t change Ye Su¡¯s mood at all, and even though Ning Que could be another Mr. Ke, he would be another admirable opponent and it would only make him happy. The important thing was that he didn¡¯t think Ning Que would be another Mr. Ke.


    He turned to Eldest Brother, "Are you still unsure?"


    Eldest Brother asked, "The West-Hill Pce had already called that a rash judgment. Why do you still insist on saying that?"


    "I have said that I believe the God of Light might make wrong decisions, but he would never make a rash judgment. At that time, maybe my teacher realized that the son of Lin Guangyuan couldn¡¯t be the Son of Yama, so he thought that the God of Light made a big mistake. And then the Divine Pce apologized to Tang. But what if the God of Light was right, the Son of Yama was in the General¡¯s Mansion, and if he is not the son of Lin Guangyuan, then who is he?"


    Xia Hou looked at him and said expressionlessly, "You know very well who he is."


    Eldest Brother said, "If there is no proof, then it is not true."


    Ye Su said, "Everyone apart from Ning Que was dead. This is proof."


    Eldest Brother did not say anything.


    Ye Su¡¯s words were simple. It seemed like his words didn¡¯t even make sense, but you couldn¡¯t argue with him.


    He could survive under any circumstances, even if there was no way that he could escape from death. If he was not the son of a God who was protected by Haotian, then he would be the main character in the story.


    The ck line hade to the world for fifteen years and the story had started and gone on for fifteen years. And the main character in the story was the Son of Yama.


    Ye Su thought that Ning Que was the Son of Yama.


    The city wall was quiet when sunshine appeared at the east.


    After a long time, Eldest Brother said, "Master once said that for any strange urrences, if we are not sure of its authenticity, then we should be rmed and frightened, but at the same time, just ignore it. This is the right way to deal with it."


    He looked at Ye Su and said, "I am not sure whether Ning Que is the Son of Yama, I believe he is not. But I am sure that he is my Youngest Brother in the Academy."


    Ye Su thought about the words of the Master.


    Then he looked at the Winter Forest at the Yanming Lake, and said, "Even if the Taoism sect doubts it, they couldn¡¯t do anything without having real proof and the message from the god. I think that mute needs to hear these words more than I do. But since he cannot talk, I doubt whether he could still hear it."


    The mute was not really a mute, so he would not be deaf as well. When they were talking about whether he can hear it, they actually meant whether he would like to hear it and to believe the Academy.


    Eldest Brother looked at the Winter Forest and thought about the World Wayfarer who was famous for his determination. His face looked a little worried when he remembered that that Buddhism World Wayfarer only came to Chang¡¯an because of the Son of Yama. Since he had revealed his trace, then he would not be afraid of the Academy and would definitely harm Ning Que.


    He didn¡¯t know how to deal with the mute monk, because he was not good at fighting, which was a truth that he had kept saying, but no one had believed.


    Ye Su looked at the quiet forest and he couldn¡¯t help think that there was something wrong about it. During the previous fight, he had felt that there was someone else in the forest, because the mute monk didn¡¯t do anything during the whole fight.


    But who could hide his trace from him and Mr. First?


    At this time, there was a gust of heavy wind in the Winter Forest. And along with the wind, there was the sad sound of cicadas, which seemed a little joyful at the same time.


    Listening to the sound, Ye Su¡¯s face turned pale.


    He was not scared, he was serious. His expression showed his respect to his strongest enemy.


    Then there was a clear roar.


    Along with the roar, the wooden sword on his back also rushed out from the sheath.


    His sword was like a ray of light. It ran out of the city wall and rushed to the Winder Forest in the dim light of the night.


    Then Ye Su jumped down from the city wall and chased his sword. His long robe was dancing in the morning wind and he moved as fast and elegant as a snowke. His speed was nearly as fast as that of the sword.

 Chapter 490: The Same World, the Different Thoughts

    Chapter 490: The Same World, the Different Thoughts


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    It was in the dawn. There was a sound in the Winter Forest. A flying sword went past the snowyke and flew fast among the trees. It was searching for the ce where the sound of the cicadas came from.


    After a while, Ye Su went into the forest. He waved his right hand and the flying sword flew back to him and returned to his hand. He put it back to the sheath on his back.


    The cicadas stopped chirping and that person also disappeared. Only the mute monk and the dead body of the Minister of Offerings of Qinghe County were still in the forest.


    Ye Su looked to the east and saw the sunrays in the mist, which were as transparent as the wings of the cicadas. He raised his eyebrows and looked very serious.


    Eldest Brother slowly went into the forest. He stood next to Ye Su and also looked in the same direction expressionlessly.


    The snow on the mute monk fell to the ground and made a noise, revealing the woolen kasaya he was wearing. Then he stood up and bowed to Eldest Brother and Ye Su with his palms held together.


    Looking at the snow between his eyebrows, Eldest Brother remembered the reason why this monk came here. He frowned and said, "Wee, Master Qi Nian, to publicize Buddhism Sect to Chang¡¯an."


    The reason why this Xuankong Temple went to Chang¡¯an was to observe Ning Que, who was said to be the Son of Yama. He didn¡¯t mean well and Eldest Brother could not wee him sincerely. His words ¡¯¡¯publicize the Buddhism Sect¡¯¡¯ had revealed his real attitude.


    Qi Nian looked very peaceful. The snow between his eyebrows was very peaceful too. He didn¡¯t do anything after hearing Eldest Brother¡¯s vague words.


    "Last night, you were silent in the Winter Forest and didn¡¯t help anyone. I thought that it was a professor from the Academy, but I didn¡¯t expect that it was him. You have been cultivating Silent Meditation for fifteen years, and you still cannot stop him from leaving?"


    Ye Su asked and his face was serious and cold.


    After the death of the Youngest Brother in the Academy, the biggest enemy of the Taoism sect in the world was that Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation. But he was so mysterious that even the most powerful and influential West-Hill Divine Pce couldn¡¯t find any information about him.


    No one thought that the most mysterious person in the world would show up again at such a time when the most important thing was happening in Chang¡¯an, until they heard the sound of cicadas at the Yanming Lake.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce would of course be very shocked by his appearance. They would use all their power to find where the person who had made cicada sound went. As the sessor of the Zhishou Abbey, Ye Su was also very rmed.


    Qi Nian had been cultivating the Silent Meditation for 15 years and was excellent in it. Whenever he started chanting, it would be heard throughout the world. Butst night, when facing the sad sound of cicadas and his silent and cold enemy, he didn¡¯t say anything, because he was not sure whether he could defeat that person.


    So he didn¡¯t answer Ye Su¡¯s question either.


    Ye Su knew what the mute monk was like. He knew that he couldn¡¯t get any information about the Twenty-Three-Year Cicada Cultivation if he didn¡¯t want to speak.


    He turned to Eldest Brother, "This is Chang¡¯an."


    His words were simple and the meaning of them was also very simple. This was not the West-Hill or the Xuankong Temple. It was Chang¡¯an City of Tang, it was where the Academy was. If a leader of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine came here and then left again silently, then he was challenging the Academy. So the Academy should do something.


    Eldest Brother said, "All these years, he has been undermining General Xia Hou, and by doing that, he had given enough respect to the Academy. I didn¡¯t expect him toe this time."


    Ye Su looked at the dead body of the Minister of Offerings of Qinghe County and pointed at the thin snowke on his neck, "If he kills you in Chang¡¯an, will Mr. First not want to enforce thew of Tang Empire on behalf of the Academy?"


    Eldest Brother sighed, "The Academy does attach great importance to thew of Tang Empire, but it still depends on the ability of the executor. It can only be used to restrain those who we Tangs are able to suppress. But neither the Imperial Court nor the Academy knew what to do with him, and we can¡¯t ask the Master to do it."


    Ye Su was very confused. In his view, even though the Headmaster of the Academy had not been dealing with the things in the world for many years. Surely the reappearance of the Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation was important enough to make him do something?


    No one said anything, and no one knew what to say. The reappearance of the mysterious Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation made the three most powerful people sink into silence.


    The sunrays became stronger and the snowkes were dancing in the rays. It still looked like a pair of big cicada wings, but the color of them became lighter.


    Looking at the snowy mist in the air and the cicada wings, Ye Su¡¯s expression suddenly changed.


    Last night, he and Eldest Brother were watching the Yanming Lake on the city wall, but they didn¡¯t notice anything happening in the forest. So how did the Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation do it? He was not faced by a normal person. His enemy was Qi Nian, the most powerful person of the Buddhist Sect.


    The reason why the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was not weed by other cultivation sects was that it wanted to rece Haotian and it wanted to absorb the Qi of Heaven and Earth to rebuild a new world.


    But maybe the Master of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had gone past this state? Perhaps he could already shelter the light of Haotian and set up his own world in nature by just waving his light cicada wings?


    That would exin why the sounds in the Winter Forest could escape the eyes of the Mr. First of the Academy and him and why the people around theke didn¡¯t notice him at all.


    The Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation should be so powerful!


    Thinking of that, Ye Su¡¯s face turned pale. But then he became very confused and felt there was something wrong about it. He tried to feel the aura left in the snowy forest and became silent again.


    While Ye Su was silent, Eldest Brother had a talk with Qi Nian. Qi Nian was mute, so the conversation was more like a peaceful but authoritarian announcement from Eldest Brother. No one knew what they had said, but it could be guessed that the talk was about Ning Que.


    Under the snowy bridge, the soldiers from the Yulin Royal Guards were extremely tired. It was not because they had to stay up all night, but because that they felt humiliated when Ning Que blocked them away from the fight and they could only hear the sound of the fight but couldn¡¯t get involved in it.


    Xu Shi walked to the bridge and turned around in front of Second Brother. He held on to the snowy railing and looked at the ice on the river. "Am I really that old?" He asked.


    Second Brother straightened his body and gently swept every snowke on him away. After making sure that there was no crease on his uniform, he said, "You are old."


    Xu Shi did not be angry, he said peacefully, "The Academy is a ce where miracles happen. Ning Que has done a thing no one could ever expect. But do you think it is fair?"


    Second Brother walked to him and looked at the river.


    The snow on the surface of theke was blown to the banks of the river by the heavy windst night. The ice on the surface of theke could roughly reflect everything. Second Brother examined the position of his crown in the reflection on the ice and made sure it was not perfectly straight. Then he nodded with satisfaction, "I am the fairest in the world."


    The wrinkles on Xu Shi¡¯s face were very deep. And when the wind blew, he looked much older. "Jun Mo is as righteous as an ancient gentleman, of course no one dared to doubt you. Butst night, Ning Que used his little handmaiden¡¯s ability to deal the final strike to Xia Hou. That was two people fighting against one. Is it fair?"


    Second Brother said, "My Youngest Brother is a Talisman Master. The rules in the cultivation world allow people to have escort servants when having a fight. So of course it is totally fine."


    Xu Shi thought about the brightness on the cliffst night and the sound of weapons colliding together. He said with his eyebrows frowned, "But Ning Que is not a simple Talisman Master. And Miss Sangsang is the only sessor of the Great Divine Priest of Light. She is not an escort servant either."


    Second Brother replied, "A Talisman Master is a Talisman Master. Even though Youngest Brother also cultivates talisman and martial arts together, if he calls himself a Talisman Master, then he is one. As for Sangsang, even though she will be the Great Divine Priest of Light of the West-Hill one day, she can still be an escort servant of Youngest Brother as long as she wants to."


    Xu Shi said with a serious looking, "I never knew that Jun Mo was so unreasonable."


    "I care about reasons and etiquette the most in the world. Of course I am good at using all means to make my behavior usible. So I can always be an unreasonable speaker and an unreasonable fighter."


    Second Brother continued coldly, "When Daoshi Monk challenged the Academy, he had an escort servant. Your Military Ministry offered him the challenge certificate and the ce to fight. Since you have never mentioned that fight was not fair, you shouldn¡¯t using this fight of being unfair. If you insist your opinion, the Academy does not mind to ask the Military Ministry to teach us what fairness really is."


    After these words, he walked to the other side of the bridge. In the morning light, his tall crown had a long shadow, so long that as if it could carve on the deep snow.


    Looking at him leaving, Xu Shi didn¡¯t say anything.


    When he left, the bridge waspletely different. For a whole day, Xu Shi didn¡¯t have the chance to enjoy the views from the bridge because he turned himself into a picture and no one dared to add more to it.


    An officer walked to Xu Shi and murmured something to him.


    Xu Shi said hoarsely, "General Xia Hou contributed to our country, of course we will bury him well. As for his funeral, the Imperial Pce will arrange it. The Military Ministry just needs to be prepared and that will be enough."


    The atmosphere in the Pce was very tense. There was no eunuch or pce maid around the snowy pce, so only a few people could hear the weeping of the empress. And apart from the Academy, these people were also the only people who knew that the empress was Xia Hou¡¯s sister.


    Not far away from the Imperial Pce, the atmosphere in the Princess Mansion was totally different. After the Taoist man left with his yellow oiled-paper umbre, an exceptionally joyful andplicated atmosphere started spreading around the passages.


    Li Yu stroked her chest and looked at the teacup in front of her. She tried really hard to calm herself down to believe that Ning Que really had defeated Xia Hou! Thinking about the great benefit this thing had brought, even though she was normally a calm person, it still made her dizzy. And the news that Ning Que was still alive made her loosen up suddenly.


    Li Huiyuan was sitting next to her. He looked a little confused. Of course he knew that it was good news that Xia Hou was dead and it was beneficial to him. But he couldn¡¯t understand why his sister and the officials were wild with joy. Would everything be fine after the empress lost her support in the military? But no matter what, he just wanted to go to sleep after staying up for the whole night.


    Li Yu waved her hand to make these officials leave, but she didn¡¯t allow him to leave.


    The room was quiet.


    Looking at her beloved brother, Li Yu¡¯s clear eyes became moist. She said with a shivering voice, "The throne of Tang will be yours, brother."

 Chapter 491: Discussing the Sword

    Chapter 491: Discussing the Sword


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Listening to Li Yu¡¯s words, Li Huiyuan was shocked. As a prince, he was not a man who was ignorant and ipetent. He naturally understood how much benefit Xia Hou¡¯s death would bring to himself, but he still could not understand why his sister would be so adamant at this time that the throne would be his.


    Li Yu looked at her brother¡¯s confused look and thought that since their mother¡¯s death, they had been depending on each other for survival, and the efforts and sacrifices she had made for her younger brother¡¯s throne during past years. There were many kinds of feelings mixing in her heart. She said, "Ning Que is a student of the Second floor of the Academy, and Xia Hou died in his hands. How can that woman still be close to the Academy? No matter how good she is at being hypocritical and tolerating, the Academy could never support her. Now an invisible gutter appears between the Academy and her. How can her son be the emperor?"


    Li Huiyuan finally understood. It was true that without the support from the Academy, no matter how the emperor loved that little bastard, he would not dare to hand over the empire to the empress so easily.


    Thinking about this, the young prince¡¯s breathing became a little heavier and he held his fist tightly. His eyes were filled with excitement and even a slightly dreadful look was added.


    Li Huiyuan also recalled another message from He Mingchi. He said with a bit of distress, "Qinghe County¡¯s Third Minister of Offerings died in Chang¡¯an. I don¡¯t know what kind of reaction the people there will have."


    Li Yu frowned and also felt that this was a bit troublesome. Over the years, the Qinghe County¡¯s great family gave her a substantial mary support. She was able to buy off the officials of the imperial court rtively easily. It was also due to the help from Qinghe County. Now their oldest senior died tragically in Chang¡¯an City. No one knew what kind of impact this would have.


    The house on the bank of the Yanming Lake suffered severe damage during the previous night¡¯s battles. The beams were broken and the walls were destroyed. There were ruins all over the floor, and the ce was a mess. Only the secluded yards of that house were rtively intact.


    Ning Que and Sangsang returned to side courtyard. They took a bath and bound up their wounds with the help of Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang. After eating some food, they began to rest and then fell asleep.


    The martialw on the street beside theke was lifted. There was no more control except that the local government runner of Chang¡¯an Local Government kept order and stopped the local citizens from going there.


    The Fish-dragon Gang arrived at the bank of Yanming Lake as soon as they could. They followed Mr. Qi ¡¯s order and began to clean up and renovate the house. However, the destruction of the house was too serious. It was obviously not something that could be done in two or three days.


    The maids and stewards, who were dismissed by Ning Que before the battle, returned to the house one after the other. They looked at the mess on the floor and felt afraid. Some of them even wanted to leave. But they signed the contract for ten years with the Grand Secretary¡¯s Mansion, so when Grand Secretary, Zeng Jing showed up, they became calm.


    Since there were servants taking care of them, Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang returned to the Academy. Today, Chang¡¯an City was not very peaceful. Especially, when the World Wayfarers of Haotian Taoism and Buddhism Sect were both in Chang¡¯an, they needed to be more cautious.


    In the evening, the other courtyard was quiet. The sound of cleaning rubble and ruins was heard from the outside of the courtyard. Ye Hongyu also returned to the house beside theke. She stood outside the threshold and looked for a long time at Ning Que and Sangsang who were sleeping. Then she returned to her bedroom, just as she did in the past few months.


    In the battle on the winterke, neither Ning Que nor Sangsang suffered bad injuries. Until the end, when Xia Hou used the iron spear, they began to bleed, but this seemingly overwhelming victory still did a great damage to their minds and bodies.


    Ning Que had cast a storm talisman in the house, and triggered the explosion in the lotuses on theke, then shot his Thirteen Talisman Arrows. After that, he ran out of the Psyche Power¡¯s sense of perception, and even all the Great Spirit in his body was exhausted.


    Sangsang finally shone greatly over the cliffs, which was almost a means to burn her life¡¯s essence. The light in the small building was exhausted and only the darkness was left. Her body was cold like ice.


    Ning Que was very worried about the recurring cold in her body. He held her tightly in his arms before going to bed. He used his own body temperature to warm her just as he used to do. Only his right arm was seriously injured due to the counterattack of the Talisman Arrow, and he was not used to using his left arm. So he just held her gently, but it was still warm.


    The next morning, Sangsang woke up. Maybe due to the cold or other reasons. She suffered from a severe headache and acratia, so she was unable to get up. Ning Que was also extremely weak. He dragged her back to bed, and asked the maids to deliver the food and water. He did not allow Sangsang to get up to do housework.


    They rested in bed for three days and nights. Ning Que felt a little better. He got up from bed, and entered the sunlit garden. He found his podao and began to practice with it. There were only the sound and light of de.


    Suddenly, he stopped for a reason that only he knew. He stood in the middle of the Winter Courtyard. His body looked a little bit stiff, and he looked at the podao in his hands for a long time.


    In the past few years, as long as there were no unexpected incidents, he would get up early every morning and start to cultivate after washing and eating with Sangsang¡¯s care. No matter if it was fencing, archery or meditation, he never waszy because he had always faced the threat of death and even the pressure of revenge.


    This morning seemed to be nothing more than a usual morning like in days past.


    But in fact, this morning was much different from the past. He was now a student of the Second floor of the Academy. There were not many people in the world who could threaten his life, and... Xia Hou was already dead.


    Xia Hou was dead, why should he still practice with his knife?


    Ning Que held the heavy podao, and stood silently for a long time. Then he continued to wave the de. Each strike was swift and powerful. Every movement was meticulous.


    Now that he could not understand why he still needed to practice the knife, then he stopped thinking about it. As he once said to his Eldest Brother, these things were all the world he once had, all the scenery. So, he couldn¡¯t be free from this strong power in such a short time, and he did not want to get rid of it.


    In the following winter days, the house on the bank of Yanming Lake was gradually repaired by the craftsmen recruited by the Fish-dragon Gang. Naturally, arge sum of money was spent. In order to pay this bill, Ning Que had to spend the bonus of his western city casino in advance, which was left by Chao Xiaoshu, drawing the bonuses designated for the next two years.


    Ning Que and Sangsang did not go anywhere, staying in the house all the time. Maybe they were notfortable with the quiet and untargeted life or they had not recovered from the injuries left by the battle at the winterke. The two people¡¯s mental states were not very good; they looked a little bit upset.


    This was not thement of a schr by theke in autumn, but was an extreme fatigue that came after extreme rxation. Of course, Ning Que remained vignt. Even though the battle by the winterke was fair, Xia Hou was still a general of the Tang Empire. He had many friends in the military and in court. Now that Ning Que had killed him, who knows what would happen in the bowels of Chang¡¯an?


    At the pce gate, he admitted that he was not the son of the Xuanwei General, Lin Guangyuan. Then, it meant that the special pardon of his Majesty would amount to nothing. Would the court continue to investigate those murders? Nearly ten Tang empire¡¯s officials and generals tragically died in his hands. Would an empire that valued thew more than anything remain silent?


    The development of this situation was totally unexpected for Ning Que.


    Xia Hou¡¯s funeral was held solemnly and silently. The Mansion of the Zhenjun Grand General was sealed. Everyone in the General¡¯s Mansion, including Xia Hou¡¯s two sons, also left Chang¡¯an and went back to their home.


    No one brought up those murders, including the military who was the toughest in the past. Now they became very calm. Except for the Grand Secretary, Zeng Jing who came twice, no one from imperial court actually entered their house on the shores of Yanming Lake. It looked like that there was no confrontation in front of the pce few days ago and there was no fierce fighting on the winterke. Just as if nothing had happened in Chang¡¯an.


    In a snowy morning, Ye Hongyu also left Yanming Lake. Ning Que and Sangsang held the big ck umbre and saw her off at the gate of the courtyard. He looked at the renovated courtyard gate and recalled the picture in the rainy day. He said with strong emotions, "I really didn¡¯t think that I would actually stay with you for half a year in the same house."


    Ye Hongyu said, "You¡¯d better not say this kind of shallow and boring y on words anymore."


    "I¡¯ll try to be able to say some elegant nonsense in the future."


    Ning Que said, "You offended the Great Divine Priest of Judgment and was forced to flee from the Divine Hall. After leaving the city of Chang¡¯an, where could you find another purend in the world? ording to your saying that day, Ye Su would not care about the affairs of the Divine Hall, nor about your life. Aren¡¯t you worried about being killed by the Divine Hall?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "Life and death are the most personal things and they arepletely beyond the control of the person himself. I cannot count on others about this, even my brother, but I want to control it by myself."


    "You are the Taoist, I will not join this enigmatic debate with you."


    Ning Que smiled and replied, and he reached out and flipped a drop of snow falling on his shoulders. With this movement, the very shallow little dimples on his face suddenly became clear.


    Ye Hongyu looked at the shallow dimples on his face and looked at his smile. She silently wondered about what kind of life would make such a shameless cold-blooded guy have such a beautiful smile.


    "I¡¯ve been thinking about something that I don¡¯t understand," she said suddenly.


    Ning Que was slightly stiffed and asked, "What is it?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "I am far better than you in the talent of cultivation. However, your understanding of the paper sword is far better than mine. I watched it from Chang¡¯an to West-Hill and paid great efforts, and finally was able to understand most of it, but it only took you a night to simte it very well."


    After thinking for a while, Ning Que said, "I don¡¯t really know why either. What answer do you have?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "On the snowyke, that day, you concentrated the Dahe Sword style on the knife and stabbed Xia Hou¡¯s body. I looked at that picture at that time and the sword style was like a turbid wave, and I connected it to your miserable life. I vaguely figured out a kind of possibility."


    Ning Que said, "What kind of possibility?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "The true meaning of the paper sword is not that it is so thin that it can go anywhere and kill anyone, nor its majestic power like the great sea. The true meaning is the simplest principle of water flow... All the water in the world would inevitably flow downwards, it cannot go backwards. It has absolutely no return, which means that whatever you think is right, you will do it. About this aspect, you are undoubtedly good at it."


    Ning Que said with a smile, "It turns out to be such a truth. I thought you would say that I was a rtively wicked person, so I could understand this kind of wicked swordsmanship."

 Chapter 492: Tomb Sweeping

    Chapter 492: Tomb Sweeping


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Looking at Ye Hongyu, Ning Que said, "Since you have got it, you are going to leave Chang¡¯an."


    "Yes," Ye Hongyu replied.


    "But you haven¡¯t thanked me yet," Ning Que said.


    "This is my sword," Ye Hongyu argued,"so you should thank me."


    "Call it even," Ning Que said.


    "Call it even," Ye Hongyu said.


    With that, she turned around and walked away, her blue coat floating in the swirling snow.


    Watching the figure of the maiden priest gradually receding in the blizzard, Ning Que remained in silence.


    The Tao Addict and him had fought against each other in the Wilderness, then again in the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, toter live together for half a year in the house by the Yanming Lake. They were far from being friends, but were already familiar with each other. Therefore, Ning Que could not help but heave a sigh when he pictured that they might be foes again if she could survive ande back, one remaining alive while the other died.


    "I admire this woman," he finally said to Sangsang.


    The fight between Ning Que and Xia Hou in the Winter Lake attracted many powerhouses to Chang¡¯an, creating a quite spectacr scene, despite the absence of those big shots such as the abbey dean of the Zhishou Abbey, the chief monk of the Xuankong Temple, the hierarch and the Great Divine Priest from the West-Hill Divine Pce, and the Bhadanta from the Buddhism Sect.


    Both the World Wayfarers from the Taoism and Buddism sects, and the Minister of Offerings from the Qinghe County appeared on the shore of Yanming Lake. Though the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom only dispatched an obscure messenger, everyone knew that he was Liu Bai¡¯s representative. Most surprisingly, Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation, the head of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine reappeared in the world.


    As so why many powerhouses gathered in the city of Chang¡¯an, what they were most concerned with was obviously what end the visiting Elder professor of the Taoism sector, Xia Hou, would meet; and the story about Ning Que being the Son of Yama. However, looking further, one would find that it seemed to be a prudent probe of the cultivation circle to gauge the Academy.


    Faced with this probe, the Academy did nothing special. Mr. Second just sat on the Snow Bridge for a whole night, while Mr. First chatted with Ye Su all night long before he talked to Qi Nian for a long while.


    Finally, Ning Que defeated Xia Hou, shocking the whole cultivation world. Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation mysteriously disappeared again and Qi Nian from the Xuankong Temple, after hearing some words from the Eldest Brother of the Academy. He meditated in the Wanyan Tower for ten days and then left Chang¡¯an city.


    All that demonstrated the almost infallible truth that the Academy was unshakeable.


    Chang¡¯an city saw the departure of the people from General Xia Hou¡¯s Mansion as well as Ye Hongyu. Several dayster, Ye Su was also ready to leave, so the Eldest Brother of the Academy came to see him off.


    Ye Su felt somewhat pleased when he looked at the rebuilt Taoist temple, thinking of the sweat that he could have spilled on the ck tiles and the thick beams. But his smile disappeared soon and said, "I¡¯m still very confused."


    Knowing what he meant, the Eldest Brother responded smilingly, "With Tang¡¯s fist, Liu Bai¡¯s sword, Yan Se¡¯s Fu paper, the back of the mountain¡¯s sword and arrow, and Sangsang, the sessor to the Divine Priest of Light, how could Xia Hou possibly win... Besides, as he is a member of my Academy, how could he possibly lose?"


    After a long time of silence, Ye Su suddenly burst intoughter, "A member of your Academy. How could he possibly lose... Nonsense, sheer nonsense."


    The snowing street reverberated with hisughter. The conceited sessor of the Zhishou Abbey seeded in reaching a higher level from the original amazing state after he had entered the human realm to cultivate in Chang¡¯an city and encountered the Lucky Chance by the woodendder under the run-down eaves and before the ruins of the Taoist temple. But after hearing those words from the Eldest Brother, he suddenly realized what the real reason was and then went away.


    Since he had made sure that Chang¡¯an city had regained its peace, with no one trying to probe into the Academy, there was no reason for Ning Que to remain in the house by theke, so he went to the House of Red Sleeves with Sangsang.


    "You¡¯ve be increasingly like him," Mistress Jian sighed.


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "There is nothing simr between my Youngest Uncle and me."


    "You have not met your Youngest Uncle," Mistress Jian said.


    "But I know we are different. Because he was wild and unrestrained, while I could never live his way," Ning Que smiled, "Of course, I can try to learn from him in the future."


    Then they left the House of Red Sleeves by the ck horse carriage. After going out of the Vermilion Bird Gate, they went along the straight state road covered with unmelted snow to the mountain at the south of the city and drove directly to the Academy.


    Ning Que did not know the details and truth of those things which transpired in Chang¡¯an city while he was in the decisive battle with Xiahou. It seemed that the Senior Brothers of the Academy did not help him, but he was clearly aware that they must have silently contributed a lot despite all the difficulties.


    Together with Sangsang, he bowed his thanks in the thatched cottage, to the Eldest Brother, the Second Brother, the Fourth Brother, the Sixth Brother, and the Seventh Sister, for the Talisman Arrow, the iron sword and the array on the bank of theke.


    His Senior Brothers and Sisters epted Ning Que¡¯s solemn etiquette, in a calm, reserved, and proud manner. Even Second Brother, who was the most different one in daily life, now looked quite benign. Perhaps because of the truth that Ning Que, his Younger Brother, had won and killed Xia Hou made him, as a Senior Brother, feel quite proud and honored.


    The third Senior Sister, Yu Lian, was not at the back of the mountain. As usual, she was by the window of the old library, writing Hairpin-style Small Regr Script, looking calm and attentive. Suddenly, she raised her head to take a look at the swirling snow outside the window. With a smile on her face, she gently blew on her hands and felt much warmer.


    Tang Xiaotang, her apprentice, was grinding the ink stick in the old library since she had no homework today. At the moment, the girl¡¯s face was full of sweet smiles despite the aching wrist.


    Third Senior Sister was puzzled, "What makes you so happy?"


    "My brother had always desired to kill the traitor. I heard that he was seriously injured in the Wilderness in order to kill him. Now he must be very happy to learn the news."


    Tang Xiaotang wiped away the tears of happiness with her arm. Then she nodded toward her teacher and said smilingly, "The suzerain would have also been very happy if he were alive."


    One day, the snow in the Chang¡¯an City suddenly became extraordinarily heavy, drifting profusely and disorderly down to the court. Ning Que happened to visit a grave on that day, so he had to go out of the city in the blizzard.


    He and Sangsang first went to the grave in the long grass near the Academy, where he chatted wildly with his master, Yan Se, and poured an urn of new wine before the grave. Then he took out from his bosom an undercloth with some remaining aroma and burned it while sheltering it from the blizzard.


    "Dewdrop will be angry, won¡¯t she?" Sangsang asked uneasily.


    "How can she know it if you don¡¯t tell her," Ning Que responded.


    After that, he and Sangsang headed for another grave by carriage. Following the address given by the Bodyguard office, they finally found Darkie¡¯s grave after rounding a lot of corners in the stele forest.


    Ning Que gently brushed off the snow on the gravestone. Staring at the name on it, he said with a sense of guilt, "We made a promise to each other in our childhood. If one of us died first, the other must bring the head of Xia Hou after killing him to worship the former. I¡¯m so sorry that I failed to do so."


    "Xia Hou¡¯s body was sealed into the coffin after being picked up by the military people from theke. I could not just break the coffin to cut off his head. But I heard that the body looked miserable, like rotten meat in a pot."


    Having said such disgusting words, Ning Queughed happily. Then he took the two halves of the heavy ck spear from Sangsang and stuck them into the frozen earth, like two sticks of incense.

 Chapter 493: New Life, Falling Rocks, and A Spring Outing

    Chapter 493: New Life, Falling Rocks, and A Spring Outing


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que had never paid his respects to Darkie in order not to raise suspicion. Now that he had gotten his revenge, he did not have to worry even if the imperial court were to find out about his rtionship with him.


    Now that vengeance was achieved, respects to his parents should be paid. However, his biological parents, Lin Hai and Third Mistress Li were both cremated and had their ashes scattered in the Wei River after a simple ceremony by the Haotian Taoism. They did not have graves.


    Then, Darkie¡¯s grave shall be the graves of those people.


    The snowstorm grew heavier. Sangsang opened the big ck umbre, shielding Ning Que¡¯s back with difficulty. Ning Que squatted down, took a piece of oilpaper out and burned it. There were many names written on the oilpaper. And the people, whose names were written on it, were all dead. They had turned into smoke and were blown away by the wind like this oilpaper.


    Sangsang asked softly, "What do you intend to do with the Prince?"


    Ning Que looked at the rolling ashes on the ground and said, "He was just talking then. It serves him right that he can¡¯t be a Prince. Let¡¯s see in another two years."


    Sangsang said, "Young master, didn¡¯t you say that you have to y thergest evil?"


    Ning Que replied, "Thergest evil is your teacher. But he is dead. I saw his grave beside Master¡¯s and wanted to dig it up. But it¡¯s better to let it go."


    Chang¡¯an was enveloped in wind and snow. Meanwhile, in the depths of the mountains of West-Hill Divine Kingdom, it was still as warm as spring. This was due to the warm currents from the eastern seas of the Kingdom of Song and even more so because this was and beloved by Haotian.


    There was a young man standing outside the simple Taoist temple in the depths of the mountain. The man was extremely handsome. Even though there were noticeable injuries on his forehead, they just enhanced his charms.


    The middle-aged Taoist standing on the stone steps looked at the young man. He said, "Prince Long Qing, do you really insist on practicing penance in the abbey? Do you know what that implies?"


    The young man was Prince Long Qing. His hands were scabbed and scarred. He had probably spent the past few days at sea.


    He said respectfully, "Since these are my teacher¡¯s instructions, I, as his disciple, cannot go against him. It doesn¡¯t matter how much I have to suffer as long as I can look at the Tomes of the Arcane."


    The middle-aged taoist priest said, "Since this is the will of the abbey dean, no one would dare to stop you. However, I have to remind you, you might die anytime if you wish to look at the Tomes of the Arcane at your current cultivation state."


    Prince Long Qing said calmly, "Uncle, I am already a dead person."


    The middle-aged taoist priest looked at the ck peach blossom on Long Qing¡¯s chest. He thought of the rumors saying that Ning Que had shot through Long Qing¡¯s chest with an arrow on the snow cliff, and understood what Long Qing had meant when he said that he was a dead person. He sighed softly and did not say anything else.


    He walked up the stone steps and entered the Zhishou Abbey, an Unknown ce of the Haotian Taoism. Even though Long Qing had acknowledged Zhishou Abbey¡¯s dean as his teacher, he was still somewhat nervous.


    There was ake in the Taoist temple, and by theke, were seven splendorous straw cottages scattered around. The straw of the cottages was cheap and shabby, and the houses by right should not look majestic or luxurious. However, the thatches of the cottages looked extremely alluring as they were gold and seemed unbothered by the dust and wind.


    The thatch was naturally infused with a rich Qi of Heaven and Earth. It could withstand the wind and rain and dark and chilly auras while purifying one¡¯s heart. This kind of grass had long gone extinct in the natural world and was said to be extremely precious.


    There were only two ces in this world that were so extravagant to use this kind of straw to build cottages. The first was the cottages in which the seven Tomes of the Arcane were kept in, and the other was the breezy cottage that the Headmaster stayed in at the back of the mountain of the Academy.


    Long Qing walked into the first straw cottage and looked at the ck book above the wooden desk. He could not remain calm any longer. His hands, which were visible outside his sleeves began to tremble slightly.


    This book was the first book of the tomes of the Arcane. It was the "Ri" Handscroll.


    This was the only book he could open in his current state.


    Long Qing slowly flipped open the ck cover page. The first page that he saw was a sheet of paper that waspletely white. Then, he flipped to the second page. Liu Bai, Jun Mo, Tang... the names of the cultivation powerhouses were written on this page. He was not surprised because he had already anticipated it. He thought to himself, if he wanted to climb to the highest peak of cultivation, then he would have all of these brilliant names under his feet.


    Long Qing continued flipping through the "Ri" Handscroll.


    At the top of the page, he saw the Calligraphy Addict, Mo Shanshan¡¯s name. Then, at the very top part of the page, he saw Ning Que and Ye Hongyu¡¯s names. The two names were at the same height, and there were strokes that had gone beyond the page, as if the name was inching towards the page in front.


    Long Qing¡¯s expression grew vicious when he saw the three names. His breathing grew heavy and then, after a moment, his emotions disappearedpletely and he calmed down. His eyes grew bright, as if they were luminous pearls that had been coated with a golden sheen and were bright beyondpare.


    Winter passed, and spring arrived. Time ticked by slowly.


    Everyone in the world thought that Prince Long Qing had died. No one knew that he was currently studying cultivation in the Zhishou Abbey, an Unknown ce. He woke up at dawn every morning and tidied up the front of the abbey. Then, he cooked and set up the meals before sending them to the abbey. He could only enter the seven straw cottages to read the Tomes of the Arcane after doing all that.


    Long Qing did not flip open the "Ri" Handscroll after the first day. Instead, he focused on reading the second book.


    One day in spring, the wild peach blossoms in the Zhishou Abbey bloomed.


    Long Qing emerged from the second straw cottage the next day, pale-faced. He clutched a blood-stained handkerchief in his hand. Just as he was about to meditate and rest by theke, he felt something and stopped in his tracks.


    He walked into the first straw cottage and opened the "Ri" Handscroll gravely.


    Ning Que¡¯s name grew darker and darker on the page. The strokes grew thicker as well and seeped into the paper like blood. Mo Shanshan¡¯s name left its original position and reached the highest spot on the paper. A sharp stone pir appeared between the two characters of Shanshan¡¯s name and looked like it would tear the paper anytime.


    Long Qing¡¯s face paled, and his pupils contracted like dark holes. What shocked and angered him even more was not what he saw, but what he did not see.


    He did not see Ye Hongyu¡¯s name.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s name had gone elsewhere.


    The Peach Mountain in spring was not as beautiful as rumored, even though it was lush with peach flowers. However, the trees grew thick and shrouded the Divine Hall above in green, making it seem extremely solemn.


    A young girl dressed in green taoist robes with a simple bunned hairstyle walked on the stone path with trees nted on both sides. The color of her robes was not eye-catching, but when the robes swung gently in the breeze, the green of the millennia-old trees on the side paled inparison.


    The young girl with a taoist bun calmly walked along the path. She soon arrived at a wide cliff tform. She smiled as she looked at the ck Divine Hall in the distance.


    There were several shouts of exmation on the cliff tform before the Divine Hall.


    "Ye Hongyu is back!"


    "How dare that woman return!"


    "The Tao Addict! Quick, inform Great Divine Priest!"


    "Priestess, long time no see!"


    The taoist girl walked slowly. Her beauty was exquisite and her aura was in and simple. However, to everyone else, this was the most terrifying scene they have ever seen.


    The officials and deacons around the Divine Hall scattered in all directions with shouts of fear. Those who did not manage to escape in time bowed fearfully, greeting the girl in trembling voices.


    Last spring, the Tao Addict Ye Hongyu had left the West-Hill Divine Pce and stayed in Chang¡¯an for a period of time before disappearingpletely. This spring, she returned to the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    The exmander of the Divine Hall¡¯s cavalrymen, Chen Bachi, had been blinded by a paper sword. Then, his tongue had been torn to shreds by the Great Divine Priest of Revtion. He was now crippled. However, he was a trusted subordinate ofmander Luo Kedi, which was why he could live blissfully in the very practical-minded Judicial Department.


    If one could consider basking in the sun every day while on the stone steps as being blissful.


    Ye Hongyu walked to the steps of the Judicial Hall. She looked at Chen Bachi whoid in the sun like a beggar even though he was dressed richly. She said calmly, "Did you ever think that I could return?"


    There were many officials and deacons who were watching this from afar. However, no one dared toy a hand on Ye Hongyu. This was not because they were afraid of the Tao Addict, but because the Great Divine Priest of Revtion had grown very angryst year, when he returned to the Peach Mountain and found that the Tao Addict had left. He had even fought the Great Divine Priest of Judgment though no one knew of it.


    Chen Bachi had already heard the exmations of others. When he heard Ye Hongyu¡¯s voice, he realized that what he had feared had finally happened. His face was filled with terror.


    He wanted to plead for forgiveness, but also wanted to warn Ye Hongyu that they were right in front of the Divine Hall. He wanted to protect himself by evoking the names of the Great Divine Priest of Justice and the Greatmander Luo Kedi, but he could not speak.


    Even if he could speak, Ye Hongyu was not prepared to listen. She had only wanted to enter the Temple of Justice and had to ascend those steps. She had only spoken to him because he happened to be taking the sun on the steps.


    With that, she stepped past Chen Bachi and continued walking forward.


    A spring breeze disturbed the ancient trees surrounding the Divine Hall. They wrinkled Ye Hongyu¡¯s sleeves, causing a subtle crease to appear. It was shaped like a sword.


    The Taoist Sword appeared.


    Chen Bachi¡¯s neck was broken and he died on the spot.


    Ye Hongyu did not turn but continue up the steps.


    Hundreds of officials and deacons walked to the stone steps at the bottom of the Divine Hall. They looked up at the turquoise robes ascending the steps with shocked expressions.


    The ck Divine Hall wasrge and majestic. Aspared to it, Ye Hongyu looked insignificant standing in front of it. However, she did not stop and walked in calmly.


    As if she were returning home.


    When she walked into the Temple of Justice.


    She was no longer insignificant.


    An infant¡¯s cry rang in a house in the Capital of the Great River Kingdom.


    The servants in the house busied about, their faces were full of joy. The owner of the house was a Tang citizen. This was a good thing for the people of the Great River Kingdom. Furthermore, the owner was a gentle person and loved his wife deeply. He was generous to his staff, and that made him the best employer ever. The servants were all happy because of the happy asion.


    The womanying on the bed was pale and a sheen of sweat covered her forehead. She looked extremely exhausted, but could not hide her agitation as she watched her husband cradling the baby. She muttered, "It¡¯s a pity that she is a girl. I will bear you a son next time."


    The middle-aged man cradled the baby by the bed andforted his wife. "Having a daughter is the best. We shall send her to the ck Ink Garden to learn calligraphy so that she will be calm and cultured. If we have a naughty and cheeky son, that would be difficult. He might learn to climb over the walls and join those people in the Jianghu world."


    The woman scolded, "How can you say that?"


    The middle-aged man looked at the baby girl in his arms and asked anxiously, "Why is she so small?"


    "How big could a newborn be..." The woman suddenly grew anxious and she asked in a trembling voice, "Husband, will we really return to Chang¡¯an in autumn?"


    The middle-aged man smiled and said, "My father is old, and now that we have children, we have to take her home so that my father will be happy. Do not worry about anything else. I will settle everything."


    The woman had always thought that her husband was someone she could trust. She rxed when she heard that and began to think about other things. She asked, "What shall we name the child?"


    "Let¡¯s have my father name her when we return to Chang¡¯an."


    The middle-aged man thought of their return to Chang¡¯an. If the emperor found out that he had a daughter, he would definitely fight to name her. He could not help but smile bitterly as he said, "Let¡¯s give her a nickname for now."


    "What shall we call her?"


    "The vige where we met was famous for their pumpkins. Shall we call her Little Pumpkin?"


    "...If that is what you want."


    The term ing into the world with a cry¡¯ was used when a baby was born. ¡¯A pebblending on the ground¡¯ was used to describe how a person would feel relieved after a decision was made. There was a quietke in the Mogan Mountain west of the Great River Kingdom. Thiske was the famous Ink Lake. Mo Shanshan sat at the side of the Ink Lake with a pebble in her hand. She looked as if she was about to toss it into theke, but also looked as if she was about to put it down beside her. However, she remained undecided.


    There were several pebbles beside her. Some were round, and some were squared. They all had unique shapes and were ced about haphazardly. However, it made one feel empty on the inside when they saw them. This emptiness was like one¡¯s stomach after starving for five days, or like an empty wineskin.


    The night breeze blew. Mo Shanshan¡¯s brows gathered tightly, and her thickshes fluttered. Her once round cheeks had slimmed, enhancing her beauty. However, there was no self-pity evident on her pale face. She looked extremely focused and even seemed to be in pain because of what she was thinking about.


    After some time, she ced the pebble in her hand onto the ground.


    The pebblended on the ground amongst the other pebbles scattered around. However, something extraordinary happened then. Just like how a person who had starved for days suddenly ate arge bowl of rice, or how a wineskin had been pricked by a knife, a sharp sensation enveloped the Ink Lake.


    Waves appeared on the calmke surface as if even the water had sensed the odd ambiguity that choked the human hearts and enveloped heaven and earth.


    Mo Shanshan looked at the messy pile of pebbles around her and knew that she had seeded in cing a portion of the Stone Array Tactics. Her deep eyes brightened, and she pursed her lips joyfully.


    It was then when she recalled the words that she had written in the letter.


    "After experiencing so many things, I have many new ideas. When we meet again, everything that I have written in this letter will be stronger and better. I hope that you will work harder and not disappoint me."


    The girl stood up and looked towards the distant north and thought of that infuriating man. She said sweetly and proudly, "I have entered the Knowing Destiny State. Have you disappointed me?"


    People like Ke Haoran, the Youngest Uncle of the Academy and Master Lotus have long left the world, leaving behind only a few scant traces. However, even those traces were very precious wealth.


    In the Tianqi Mountains deep in the Wilderness, Ning Que, Mo Shanshan and Ye Hongyu had fought. They entered the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s Front Gate one after another and in this process, they saw the Great Blockage Formation set by the Great Divine Priest of Light who had started the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. They saw the sword marks left behind by Mr. Ke when he broke the formation. There, they saw the calligraphy left behind by Ke Haoran. And the most important trace in that battle was meeting the living Master Lotus.


    That was a bloody meeting. The three powerhouses of the younger generation in the cultivation world had suffered both mentally and physically before the old monster. Through it all, they had also gained precious experience.


    These experience remained in their mental state before gradually escaping and bing of use. Ning Que killed Xia Hou while Mo Shanshan set down the pebble and entered the Knowing Destiny State. Ye Hongyu had walked into the Temple of Justice bravely. All of these happened because of what had happened to them in the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    In a sense, both the Youngest Uncle and Lotus did not really die. The three youngsters had inherited their mantles in a different manner.


    Standing between the cliffs at the back of the Academy and looking at the distant city of Chang¡¯an, Ning Que thought of what had happened in the past two years. He had made his way to the old library and the Second floor. He had learned Talisman Taoism, entered the Wilderness and inherited the Great Spirit. He had also participated in cultivation battles that he had never imagined that he could. All these made him sigh with emotion.


    Then, he thought of what Xia Hou had said before he died and frowned. He felt that there were dark clouds looming above Chang¡¯an City even though it was bathed in the warm spring sun.


    He thought that it was impossible for him to be the Son of Yama. Even though he had met Yama in a sense when he died before, that Yama was obviously different from the legendary Yama of this world.


    If he was not the Son of Yama, why did the Great Divine Priest of Light cause that massacre? Why did the Buddhism Sect send people to watch and kill him?


    He could not see the path going forward and did not know if the Buddhism Sect would stop harassing him. Ning Que clenched his fists slightly and made a decision. He would not attend the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival in autumn.


    At this time, the lively music and loud noises pulled him out of hisment and vignce and into the bustling scene of the spring tour.


    The back of the Academy¡¯s mountain was going on a spring outing today.


    The Headmaster had organized it and none of the disciples dared to skip it. Since the inhibition on the cliff cave had been lifted, the Senior Brother who loved to y chess yed in it. The Senior Brother who loved to y his instruments and sing did so in the cave. Those who loved to embroider embroidered, and those who loved to read continued to read. Those who loved writing calligraphy continued to write and those who loved to chat would chat while those who enjoyed pretending to like solidarity would continue pretending.


    These were all elegant hobbies. However, when all these hobbies urred at the same time in the cliff cave, they all became vulgar. It was simply too noisy and looked like the streets of Chang¡¯an where performing artists gathered.


    It was tough on Sangsang today because she had to prepare the food and drinks for their outing. Furthermore, Chen Pipi had strongly requested for three urns of chicken soup.


    "Young master, drink this, this one is the newest."


    Sangsang walked to the edge of the cliff with a bowl of chicken soup and handed it to him.


    Ning Que looked at her slightly messy hair and the grime on her face. His heart ached for her and he said annoyedly, "Chen Pipi was just spouting nonsense and you really listened to him. Are the Chicken Soup Calligraphy and chicken soup the same? Is this chicken soup really more precious since the Chicken Soup Calligraphy sold for a lot of money?"


    Sangsang smiled and did not say anything. She was very happy that those from the Academy liked her chicken soup.


    She instructed him, "This chicken is good and has a lot of oil. Because of the thickyer of oil, it looks like there isn¡¯t any steam, but is actually scalding. It won¡¯t cool for a while, so blow on it before you drink it."


    Sangsang went into the straw cottage to prepare cold dishes as well as steamed buns.


    Eldest Brother emerged from the cliff cave and stood beside Ning Que. He looked at Chang¡¯an in the distance.


    Ning Que gave him the bowl of soup and said, "Senior Brother, this is the newest bowl."


    Eldest Brother smiled and shook his head. After a moment of hesitation, he said, "Younger Brother, I actually have a question. I know that this question isn¡¯t right, but it makes me nervous if I don¡¯t ask it."


    "Please, do ask." Ning Que said.


    Eldest Brother looked at the city of Chang¡¯an in the distance and frowned slightly. He said, "15 years ago, when you picked up that de in the woodshed, did you consider that the General¡¯s son was also innocent?"


    Ning Que paused slightly. After a moment, he said, "It was really chaotic back then. I did not really know what I was thinking then, but I do understand what you are speaking of after the incident."


    Then, he asked sincerely, "Senior Brother, if you were in my situation, what would you have chosen to do?"


    Eldest Brother said, "I have not experienced it myself, so even the most touching decision would be fake... But, if it were me right now in the same situation, I would probably choose not to do anything."


    Ning Que knew that his Eldest Brother had spoken from his heart. He probably wouldn¡¯t be able to choose between sacrificing an innocent and his own survival.


    He said, "Senior Brother, you are a benevolent man."


    He continued, "Second Brother is a man of ideas and integrity. But it is difficult for me to be both benevolent and upright. I am a selfish person and only care about my own survival."


    Eldest Brother patted him on the shoulder lightly and said, "Teacher had once said that selfishness is the biggest motivation for humans to move forward. Even though I do not really understand this, I¡¯m sure that it has its own logic. Younger Brother, your choice was not wrong, at least, I do not have the right to say so."


    "It doesn¡¯t just have its own logic. It is very logical."


    The Headmaster walked to the edge of the cliff and said, "There are no goals in life. Only the process counts. So how can there be right or wrong?"


    Eldest Brother said, "Right and wrong are human thoughts."


    The Headmaster pointed at the blue skies and the wisps of clouds. He said, "The higher you fly, the smaller and more insignificant the people on earth are to you. They grow smaller and smaller until both of them and you are not humans anymore. Then what are human thoughts? If we don¡¯t have that, then would there be right or wrong?"


    Eldest Brother shook his head and said, "Teacher, you are wrong. In our travels, you often told me about how lonely it would be if we were to leave the human realm. That is why we have to stay here and be one among the humans. And since we have to be one of them, how can we not differentiate between right and wrong, evil and kindness?"


    Ning Que was astonished.


    The Headmaster had never thought that his honest eldest disciple would point out his mistakes before everyone. Furthermore, his disciple had also brought up what he had once said to refute his statement. He grew so angry that his beard began flying about wildly and he red at him, saying shrilly.


    "Li Manman! How dare you!"


    Eldest Brother said nervously, "Teacher, you often remind me to learn from Jun Mo and Youngest Brother. That is why I said what I did. If you do not like it, I¡¯ll retract my statement."


    Ning Que listened by the side and had a hard time trying to notugh. He could no longer hold it back any longer, and he burst outughing. He waved his hand, saying, "You guys continue, I shall go and see if the steamed buns are ready."


    The Headmaster red at him and said, "This is all your fault. How dare you think of escaping?"


    He stared at the bowl of chicken soup in Ning Que¡¯s hands and sighed, praising the soup, "The oil is glistening and you can see how good the soup is from its color. This is a bowl of good soup."


    Ning Que¡¯s expression stiffened.


    The Headmaster flicked his sleeves and snatched the bowl of soup from Ning Que¡¯s hands. He gulped it down with a straight face.


    Ning Que was shocked speechless and thought that his teacher was indeed powerful.


    Suddenly, the Headmaster¡¯s expression changed. There was a sudden st, and he spat out all the chicken soup in his mouth. He was a sorry sight with his shirt and beard drenched in soup.


    "Hot!" (Homophone for sugar)


    The Headmaster bellowed in pain, even his voice had changed.


    Sangsang, who was picking purple wisterias beneath the shelter asked in confusion, "Should I put sugar in the chicken soup?"


    Laughter burst out from all directions on the edge of the cliff.

 Chapter 494: The Story of Spring (I)

    Chapter 494: The Story of Spring (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    For a country, the title of emperor was just like one¡¯s name. It was not necessarily good, but it must be there. Therefore, all countries in the world had their own title of emperor, but the ones that could truly be remembered by the people and effectively used in daily life were rare. In a thousand years, there were only two such titles ever existing.


    As time passed by, now it was the 16th year of Tianqi era of Tang Empire, which was also the 3,447th year of West-Hill¡¯s reign. In the spring of this year, many stories happened.


    The Tao Addict, Ye Hongye, finally came back after leaving the West-Hill Divine Pce for a year. She killed Chen Bachi, then walked into the ck Divine Hall, under the frightened scrutiny of many.


    At the moment she stepped into the Divine Hall, an extremely majestic voice rang from the depths of the hall. The huge sound waves hit the ck boulder walls and scattered into several piercing sounds that were as harsh as steel needles. The sound came to her front in a second, and covered her body.


    "You are the first traitor to the Divine Hall who dares toe back. Have youe back to receive punishment?"


    As the needle-like majestic sound pierced her eardrum, Ye Hongyu frowned slightly, but she had no response. She just looked indifferently toward the depths of the Divine Hall.


    There was a dazzling bead curtain at the end of the Divine Hall. Behind the bead curtain, she could see the huge blood-colored ck jade throne, and she could see the majestic figure on the throne.


    As in the past years, the voice that came from the ck jade throne stirred up the cold divinity, showing contempt while overseeing the whole world, and even some mockery today.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s faith was very sincere, truly sincere, so she did not think that leaving the West-Hill Divine Pce meant treason. However, she did not want to give any exnation to the voice behind the curtain at this time. She just wanted to go to the front of the bead curtain and finish what she was prepared to do.


    She thought so, and she did so.


    She walked silently toward the verdict of the Divine Hall, and the blue-colored Taoist suit fluttered slowly on the smooth ck ground, which was just like a green leaf in the dark night, unattractive but very eye-catching.


    A priest of the Judicial Department stood beside the stone pir and looked at her. He shouted and said, "How dare you!"


    Another priest of the Judicial Department said furiously, "How dare you!"


    More priests came. The red Taoist robes swelled on the vast ck ground like blood. They gathered together and became a bloodke. The fury and cold reproach sounded without stop, "How dare you!"


    The thunderous sound of reproach did not cause the slightest change on Ye Hongyu¡¯s face. She was still so calm and apathetic. The distance of her steps was even exactly the same.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s belief in Haotian was impable, but she was not a stupid follower who saw the Divine Hall then cried. Except for Haotian, nothing else could gain her respect. Therefore, facing the pressure from the Hierarch and the Divine Priest of Judgment, she did not choose to give in, but left the West-Hill Divine Pce, and did not hesitate to bear the name of traitor of Haotian Taoism, so she returned to the West-Hill Divine Pce today and walked toward the curtain.


    She was originally an extremely impudent person. What she did was also extremely impudent. The red-robed priests in the ck Divine Hall denounced her for her impudent actions. Why would she even care?


    She walked towards the depths of the Divine Hall.


    The priests of the Judicial Department in blood red robes were so angry that they trembled and flushed. However, strangely enough, no one dared to stop her or fight with her.


    Ye Hongyu entered the crowd. The priests looked panicked and stepped back to leave a way for her. As if a green leaf fell into the bloody chillingke, the water separated to the shore and did not dare to touch the green leaf.


    Finally, she walked from the outside of the Divine Hall to the front of the bead curtain.


    She stopped and looked calmly at the throne. Behind the bead curtain, the Great Divine Priest of Judgment on the ck jade throne held his head in his hand. It seemed that he was thinking about somethingplicated.


    Ye Hongyu lowered her head in salute. She looked calm. It was like the time when she came to the Divine Hall and met the Divine Priest of Judgment behind the curtain, before she went to the Wilderness.


    Her salutation represented respect, and lowering her head represented obedience.


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgment looked up slightly. Cool and powerful gaze passed through the bead curtain and fell on her body. He said inly but unquestionably, "Kneel."


    His voice was not loud, but made the red-robed priests who were caught in the bleak moode to their senses and understand a lot of things. The anger and dissatisfaction that were provoked by being despised suddenly overwhelmed the majesty of the name of Tao Addict in previous years.


    Even if she had the opportunity to regain her strength, even if she were still that horrifying Tao Addict, here was the verdict of the Divine Hall, and behind the bead curtain was the unassable Divine Priest of Judgment, so what could she do except for kneeling?


    They raised their arms and pointed at the Ye Hongyu in front of the bead curtain who lowered her head. They said loudly in unison, "Kneel!"


    "Kneel!"


    "Kneel!"


    These voices were either angry or exciting, or cold or cruel, and gradually converged and became extremely neat, resonating like thunder in the secluded ck Divine Hall.


    When Ye Hongyu was still the Tao Addict, she never kneeled before the bead curtain, even if the Divine Priest of Judgment was behind the curtain. Later, when she was no longer the Tao Addict, she had once kneeled in front of the bead curtain. The Divine Priest of Judgment had pressured and shamed her then. From that day, she swore that unless she could once more gain the power to not kneel, she would never step into the Divine Hall.


    Today she walked into the temple of the Divine Hall. Of course, she wouldn¡¯t kneel again.


    "I only kneel to the ones who deserve it." Ye Hongyu said.


    Behind the curtain, the Great Divine Priest of Judgment slowly sat straight, and said indifferently, "For example?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "Such as Haotian, the abbey dean, the Hierarch, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion, the Divine Lord Lotus. But your name wasn¡¯t mentioned, Great Divine Priest."


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgment said coldly, "How dare you topare me with that devil, Lotus!"


    Ye Hongyu said, "It is not right topare you with Divine Lord Lotus when you are inferior to a dead lotus petal of his."


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgment suddenly burst intoughter. Theughter was full of violence and coldness. "Don¡¯t think that because the Divine Priest of Revtion is guarding you, or you have an elder brother to protect you, I really dare not to kill you! Don¡¯t forget that here is the temple of the Divine Hall. We have special rules that were given to us by Haotian!"


    Ye Hongyu raised her head and looked cold, saying indifferently, "The anger of judgment should be turned into the holy fire of Haotian. Now the anger of the Great Divine Priest can only be turned intoughter. It is really ridiculous."


    There was a soft sigh behind the curtain as the Great Divine Priest of Judgment discovered something unexpected and interesting when Ye Hongyu raised her head. He decided to let her live.


    "I didn¡¯t expect that you have not only regained your original cultivation state, but have even seeded in breaking through to the next realm. It really exceeded my expectations. You know the rules of the Divine Hall¡¯s temple clearly. Then,e back to be a Priest again."


    The temple of the Divine Hall judged the whole world on behalf of Haotian. They followed unusually realistic and ruthless rules. Power meant everything, and the weak should be bullied. The power and rank were only rted to strength. If you were no longer powerful, then you were no longer qualified to have any position, and you should not even live. If you be powerful again, then you could regain your ce.


    When Ye Hongyu forcibly lowered her state to save herself in the Wilderness. Her power was severely damaged. She no longer had the hope of recovery. So she was met with contemptuous treatment and suffered a lot of humiliation. Now she recovered, and was even more powerful; she couldn¡¯t be humiliated again. However, could the past be erased so easily by the Great Divine Priest of Judgment, as if it had never happened?


    For people outside the temple of the Divine Hall, this was an unimaginable thing, but for those who belonged to the temple, this was a matter of course. The priests in red robes listened to the orders of the Divine Priest of Judgment and quickly stopped their reproach to Ye Hongyu, calmly stepping back to the side.


    In the view of the Divine Hall¡¯s priests, what Ye Hongyu requested was just this word from the Great Divine Priest and nothing more.


    The Great Divine Priest of the West-Hill Divine Pce imed to be the one who was under Haotian, above the other Great Divine Priests. His status was extremely high. Even if the Hierarch Lord could not arbitrarily question him, how could he apologize to mortals? The Great Divine Priest of Judgment had agreed that Ye Hongyu should return to the Divine Hall and allowed her to continue to serve as the Grand Master of the Judicial Department, which was already merciful enough.


    The temple of the Divine Hall had never been a ce of tolerance.


    Ye Hongyu was not a tolerant person either.


    Hearing the words of the Great Divine Priest of Judgment, she slightly smiled.


    At the moment when she smiled beautifully, many pictures appeared before Ye Hongyu¡¯s eyes.


    On the windy and snowy Yanming Lake, Ning Que strangely drew out the podao, under the powerful iron spear. He used the knife as a sword. Naturally, it couldn¡¯t be stopped, stabbing into Xia Hou¡¯s stomach.


    In the stone house of the West-Hill Divine Pce, under the dim light, she tore the envelope apart, and took out the paper. The poor sword on the paper became a river which was full of turbid waves.


    In the bone hill, the Divine Lord Lotus who was skinny like a ghost, clutched her shoulders and lowered his head calmly and mercifully, tearing a piece of flesh from her shoulder.


    At the bottom of Daming Lake, countless angr stone blocked the journey. She lowered her body to erase the green marks on a stone and saw two sword marks left by Mr. Ke of the Academy.


    Countless pictures quickly shed in front of Ye Hongyu¡¯s eyes.


    The two sword marks eventually converged into one mark on the yellow paper and fell on the snowke, falling in her eyes, falling in her heart, and entered her sheath at her waist.


    Ye Hongyu drew the sword out of the sheath.


    This was the sword.


    Then she stabbed towards the bead curtain.


    And stabbed towards the Great Divine Priest of Judgment.


    The ck temple of the Divine Hall was surrounded by the clear light of the deep spring. It seemed particrly solemn. At this time, countless dust particles rushed out of the Divine Hall and ran toward the cliff tform along the stone steps.


    At the top of the white Divine Hall, a thunder resounded, as if God was also shocked and confused.


    In another Divine Hall, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion sighed.


    In the temple of the Divine Hall, the red-robed priests all fell to the ground.


    The bead curtain was already broken.


    Ye Hongyu stood in front of the bead curtain and Great Divine Priest.


    Her right hand, which was holding the sword, trembled slightly, and her pale face was extremely indifferent.


    She pulled the sword out of the Great Divine Priest of Judgment¡¯s chest.


    Blood sshed from the horrible wounds on the chest of the Great Divine Priest of Judgment, and instantly drenched his blood-red robe, dyeing the green robe of Ye Hongyu red.


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgment furrowed his eyebrows and looked at his chest. He said, "It doesn¡¯t make sense."


    Ye Hongyu looked at him and said, "You said that this is a rule that was given to us from Haotian. If I can kill you, then I will dare to kill you."


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgment raised his hand painfully and furiously and then he died.


    Ye Hongyu dragged him off the throne and then she sat on it.


    Before sitting on the throne, she needed to step on the body of the Great Divine Priest of Judgment.


    From now on, she was the Great Divine Priest of Judgment.


    The ck jade throne wasrge, like a sea of blood.


    Her green Taoist robe was dyed red. She sat on the throne. She was like a drop of blood in this bloody sea, but she was the most intense and coldest drop.

 Chapter 495: The Story of Spring (II)

    Chapter 495: The Story of Spring (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Zhishou Abbey was bing more and more silent under the starlight, as if no one had visited it for countless years. The golden thatch fell along the roof, as if the starlight had be material. Prince Long Qing sat at a desk in front of a window and read the scrolls in front of him. Hepletely ignored the heavenly views around the Taoist temple. There was only desire for knowledge in his eyes. He seemed to be calm and focused, like the quietke in front of the window.


    mysterious On that day, when he opened the "Ri" Handscroll of Tomes of Arcane, he saw three names of Calligraphy Addict, Tao Addict and Ning Que. He could not help but feel envy, dissatisfaction, hatred, and resentment, because he was originally the Divine Son of West-Hill. He should have at least been at the same level as those three people. However, on the Wilderness snow cliff, all the good things were destroyed by Ning Que¡¯s arrow. Although he encountered a Lucky Chance at the South China Sea, and he set foot on the road of cultivation again, he had to start over again. Now, he has only just entered the Seethrough Realm and seemed to be left farther and farther away by those three.


    However, it didn¡¯t take long for him to transform all the negativity in his mind into nothing because he was in the Zhishou Abbey. He could read all the Tomes of Arcane as long as he had the corresponding ability. This was an unimaginable big Lucky Chance. This was the highest thing in the world, but the negative emotions such as hatred were low-level things that only worldly mortals would be immersed in and suffered from. They could not be matched.


    This did not mean that Long Qing no longer hated Ning Que, Ye Hongyu and Mo Shanshan. He just knew that all the emotions of hate and feelings of pain were very pointless. What was more important was the result. As long as he could be powerful again, or even be more powerful, just like the news that came from the West-Hill Divine Pce the other day, he could also regain everything he had lost and gain even more, like Ye Hongyu.


    At this time, Long Qing was looking at the third scroll of the Tomes of Arcane: "Sha" Handscroll.


    The reason why this scroll of Tomes of Arcane was called the "Sha" Handscroll was that it contained countless cultivation magic like the sand in the desert. Some of them were subtle and unspeakable. Some of them were the introduction to the magic of private sects. Some of them were the holy magic of Haotian Taoism. Some of them were the stately magic of Buddhism Sect. Some of them were even evil magic of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. There was so much magic, that it was impossible to give it a value.


    This scroll of Tomes of Arcane recorded almost all the cultivation magic in the world. From the number of magic to the quality of cultivation magic, only the back of the mountain of the Academy couldpete with it. As for the famous Library of Qinghe County, it was simply not eligible topare with the two.


    The starlight fell on the pages of the book, and it showed human figures painted in deep ink. There were countless lines floating among the human figures. At the lower part of the book, it recorded the essence and matters needing attention to use this cultivation magic. This weird magic was called Gray Eye.


    Gray Eye was not a Haotian Taoism¡¯s magic, nor a Devil¡¯s Doctrine magic. It was created many years ago when a master of Zhishou Abbey killed a Devil¡¯s Doctrine Elder who cultivated the Practice of Taotie. He considered the danger in the battle. After three days and nights, through his knowledge and wisdom, he transformed the Practice of Taotie by holy Taoists Law into Gray Eye.


    The foundation of this magic was the Practice of Taotie. In essence, it was still to seize other cultivators¡¯ Psyche Power to strengthen the user. However, after the transformation of Taoist Law, it was no longer used to devour blood and flesh, but it could have direct seizure of conscious. It did not seem as bloody as it used to be, and it seemed peaceful and mild. In fact, it was still evil and cruel as it had been.


    If he was still that proud and choosy Prince Long Qing, he would certainly not cultivate such evil magic. Even if he would be tempted by the powerful force. However, today he had experienced so many things. He used to be so filthy, so weak and he had done a lot of ugly and evil things. He was no longer that Prince Long Qing. So he did not hesitate to start cultivating.


    Starlight was like water, shining brightly on the courtyard of the Taoist temple. In the hut, it was rtively dark. Long Qing was reading the "Sha" Handscroll of Tomes of Arcane. His awareness was moving with this magic, and his face became more and more pale.


    ...


    ...


    A few days ago, on the South China Sea, a small boat floated along the waves. The fish already dived into the deep sea, and the seagulls had naturally disappeared. Long Qing kneeled behind the Taoist in indigo and was exposed to the sun. His face did not turn dark but pale.


    This was the depths of the South China Sea. It was too far away fromnd. They could not see the coastline anywhere. The Taoist in indigo stood on the head of the boat and looked at the waves, as if he was watching the tide rising and falling along the coast.


    "Persistence is an obstacle, even if it is the persistence to light and darkness."


    The hot nks made Long Qing feel as if his knees were about to be scorched, but he dared not move. His voice trembled, "I once tried to give up persistence and headed north to the darkness in the Wilderness. Even then, I still saw no light in the darkness."


    The Taoist in indigo put his hands sped behind his back. He stood at the head of the ship. He looked at the sea and said, "You want to find something. Then you make a choice, and making a choice is a kind of persistence."


    Long Qing asked, "So, how can I not be persistent?"


    The Taoist in indigo said, "Buddhism Sect pays attention to meditation and peace of heart. They pursue being deste, and not being persistent is not thinking. If you think, one piece of mind is brightness, the other is darkness. How will you choose? So you don¡¯t choose. You only need to listen to Haotian¡¯s choice."


    Long Qing said, "But... I¡¯m not the Great Divine Priest of Rtion. I can¡¯t sense the will of Haotian. How can I know what Haotian¡¯s choice is? How can I know that I haven¡¯t misjudged?"


    The Taoist in indigo said, "What appears in your mind, then, is the will of Haotian."


    Long Qing was confused and said, "Then is it following my own heart?"


    The Taoist in indigo suddenlyughed and said indifferently, "Everything in the world is destined by Haotian. The operation of all things is also in the control of Haotian, including the hearts of the people. If so, where is the real free will of human? You follow your heart. Then you are walking with Haotian."


    Hearing this, Long Qing felt as if the blizzard on the Wilderness had been spilled on his head, which washed away the extremely hot from the sun. He felt refreshed, and instantly understood a lot of things.


    He fell forward, and pressed his forehead closely against the hot deck. His slightly trembling voice was filled with desire and courage. He said loudly, "I want to be powerful."


    The Taoist in indigo said, "The day before yesterday, I threw you into the fire spring, and used the endless warmth andpassionate mercy from Haotian to rebuild the Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi in your body. Now you can cultivate. If you want to be powerful as soon as possible, then after yound on the shore, go to that rundown Taoist temple in West-Hill."


    Long Qing now knew that the Taoist in indigo was iparably honorable. Naturally, he thought that the poor Taoist temple he mentioned was the legendary Zhishou Abbey. He could not suppress his joy. He kowtowed many times.


    The Taoist in indigo said. "There are still six books of Tomes of Arcane. When you finish all these, you may be powerful. However, reading books is a very painful thing... Ye Su needed to stab himself to move his eyes away from the pages of the book. You are absolutely not able to resist the temptation of Tomes of Arcane. When your Taoist Heart is broken and reborn, it will be extremely painful."


    Long Qing looked firm and he said, "I¡¯m not afraid of pain or suffering."


    The Taoist in indigo said, "There are thousands of disciples of Haotian Taoism. Only few have the Lucky Chance to enter Zhishou Abbey. You are not the Great Divine Priest of Divine Hall, or the former disciples who made great contributions to the Haotian Taoism. Thus you can only be a servant in Zhishou Abbey. Can you ept such a status?"


    If the cultivators in the world were to know that they had the opportunity to enter Zhishou Abbey to read the seven books of Tomes of Arcane, they would not only be willing to be a servant, but also be willing to clean the toilets. They would even feel like the toilet cleaning was enjoyable.


    Naturally, Long Qing was the same. He did not hesitate to say, "I¡¯m willing to do anything for the Haotian Taoism."


    Taoist in indigo said, "I can see your mind is set at this time, but there are some very old bad-tempered people living in the Zhishou Abbey. Even I do not want to have any contact with them. So, you should control yourself when you meet them."


    Long Qing was shocked. He thought that the abbey dean of Zhishou Abbey was already so powerful and except for the Headmaster of Academy was there any person that could make him feel troubled?


    ...


    ...


    There were a few sounds of bugs chirping in Zhishou Abbey at night.


    Long Qing¡¯s face grew paler, and the sweat rolled from his forehead like soybeans. His eyes became more and more listless and he looked abnormally weak. It could be imagined what kind of pain he was suffering now.


    Every time he opened the "Sha" Handscroll, he would endure endless pain. When he began to cultivate Gray Eye tonight, the pain became more and more terrible. On the seemingly ordinary pages, it seemed that there were innumerable swords constantly stabbing his heart, trying to pierce his Taoist Heart into a honeb.


    When he finished reading thest word of the Gray Eye magic, his Taoist Heart was broken into countless pieces. His fear and pain made him faint.


    After a long time, Long Qing woke up. It was already morning. He checked himself in horror, but found that he had no wounds, and his Taoist Heart was still as stable as yesterday. It seemed that the innumerable sword style from Tomes of Arcane was an illusion.


    He walked out of the hut in a muddleheaded state. He washed his face at theke, and became a little more sober. Then he went to his house to brush his teeth, and began to fetch water for cooking. After serving three uncles who managed the Tomes of Arcane breakfast, he took two buckets of clear water and a few boxes of things to the back of Zhishou Abbey.


    This spring, Long Qing was cleaning the courtyard, cooking, wiping the table, grinding ink and doing all kinds of chores every day. Only when it waste at night, he had the opportunity to read and cultivate the Tomes of Arcane. It was a hard life but his mind was very peaceful. He had noints. He was only working in silence, and used every spare minute to read.


    Interestingly, his biggest enemy, Ning Que had been living a hard but meaningful life for thest dozen years, especially after he entered the Academy. Maybe just as the Youngest Uncle of the Academy said, the one who was chosen by fate would have many things to do.


    Long Qing took the shoulder pole, carried the bags, and walked out of the Taoist temple to a cliff.


    In these days in Zhishou Abbey, he had noints. Even if it was an unbearable pain, he still epted it happily. However, looking at this cliff, his eyes were full of fear and he wanted to escape.


    Under this cliff was a dense green forest. On the precipice, there were green vines that were about the thickness of a finger. In the crevices among the vines, it could be seen that the body of the cliff was grayish-yellow, and many caves could also be seen. The caves were very deep, and mysterious.


    This cliff which was full of caves was very high and grand. Long Qing stood at the foot of the mountain like a small ant. If someone overlooked the earth from an extremely high point, he might think that this cliff was only an obscure mound, an ant hole covered by moss.

 Chapter 496: The Story of Spring(III)

    Chapter 496: The Story of Spring(III)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The forests under the cliffs were full of luxuriant foliage that blocked off the sunlight, making it exceptionally quiet and a little creepy. Fortunately, it did not take long for Long Qing to walk out of the forest.


    He shifted the load on his shoulders and prevented it from pressing against the wound that he had gotten a while back. Looking at the green cliff in front and the vines that covered the entire rock walls, he heaved a deep breath, dispelling the fear in his heart before lowering his head and following the narrow mountain path up.


    The cliff was steep and it was hard to climb while carrying such a heavy object. When he walked to the front of the cave entrance, he felt as if his waist was about to break. Luckily, there were three or four stone steps near the entrance for him to rest his feet. He clumsily ced the bucket down and remembered that there was a spring in the cave. Hence, he did not take any water and took out a box from his bag. Using his hands to push apart the vines, he entered the cave.


    The cave was incredibly low and a normal person would not be able to stand and walk. Long Qing bent forward and walked silently, almost like a true servant. Even though the cave was low and there were vines at the entrance, it wasn¡¯t dark at all but as bright as day.


    This was because every few steps, along the stone walls, there were luminous pearls iid within. These luminous peals were round and wless, and their brightness was attention-grabbing. They were as big as an egg and were probably one of the most precious treasures in the world. However, there were countless caves in this mountain behind the Zhishou Abbey and there were countless of these precious luminous pearls in this cave itself. Moreover, the creator actually used such a treasure as amp.


    Long Qing hade to this cave before, hence he could remain calm. When he entered this cave for the first time, he was awe-struck by what he saw before him. Even though he had lived in the Yan Kingdom Capital Cheng pce, there were only a few luminous pearls of such high quality.


    The cave looked simple and even miserable between the green cliffs but it was another world inside. There was jade iid on the walls, flowers and birds, and gold covered the floor while silver lined the walls. In the deeper ends of the cave, there were countless rare and unusual flowers with old calligraphy. This was rich to the extreme, even surpassing what the emperors of the world enjoyed and what humans could imagine. It was vulgar but no one would dare to say that about it.


    Because besides ruling the entire world, the Haotian Taoism that owned limitless wealth and resources no longer have the power to do something this vulgar in the deep forest where no one knew.


    There was an incrediblyrge soft couch in the hall and it was covered with dozens of Snowfield Direwolf skin, almost like a real snow in. At the center of the silver-white fur sat an old man, his face was incredibly wrinkled and the clothes on him seemed incredibly old, almost as if he had not changed for many years.


    The Snowfield Direwolf was incredibly powerful and it was hard to even hunt for one. There were so much of their fur here, one could only guess how powerful this man must be back then.


    Long Qing walked to the front of the couch and knelt as he brought up the box with both hands, not daring to look at the man. He looked very respectful and humble, silently waiting for his instructions.


    Lying among the wolf¡¯s skin and enjoying the most expensive thing in the world, it must be a dream for many. However, there was no expression on the man¡¯s wrinkled face. He seemed lifeless, almost like a dried corpse. The only thing that proved that he was alive was his eyelids that moved asionally. His eyes were filled with cruelty and endless blood and madness.


    Having been cut off from the world for decades, even a true pce would be a sinister cell, much less a cave. The horrifying emotions from the old man¡¯s eyes must havee from this.


    This old man had sat in this cave for decades not because someone else had imprisoned him. There were not many people in this world who can do so and the Taoist sect wouldn¡¯t treat a former important figure like that. Besides some concealed reason, most importantly, he could no longer walk due to his disability, or rather, even if he could walk, he wasn¡¯t willing to walk into the world in this state.


    His disability was serious; he did not have any feet or legs, not even a butt. It was almost as if the sharpest sword had cut him from the waist down, hence, he was left with half his body. Sitting on the snow-white wolf fur, he seemed as if he had sunken into it.


    Execution by cutting at the waist was one of the most brutal death sentences in the world and since it was an execution, one would lose many organs and all the blood in the body. Death was inevitable.


    This old man had survived instead and lived for many years.


    Of course he was living in pain. He was just living.


    The first time Long Qing entered the cave and saw the old man, he was incredibly shocked. He couldn¡¯t understand how this guy had survived. After that, he understood that the man had only drunk the spring water in the cave and had not eaten anything for the past few decades. Such ways had led him to leaving behind his entire lower half of his body. Of course, a human body would produce some waste and he was sure that this old man must have been able to forcefully discard these waste by evaporating it off the surface of his skin through some horrifying cultivation.


    This spection left him even more shocked. Humans needed food to survive and this was the rule that Haotian dictated for the world and couldn¡¯t be vited. Even if the Grand Cultivator from the Knowing Destiny State could avoid grains, he wouldn¡¯t be able tost for decades. ording to the records of the West-Hill religious code, only the legendary sage that has transcended the five states had been cleansed by the Tianqi and left behind their dirty bodies for an immortal one. They could then live for the Qi of Heaven and Earth and survive just by drinking!


    If that was the case, could this old man chopped at the waist be this horrifying because he had already crossed the threshold of the five states decades ago?


    Long Qing couldn¡¯t verify his guess but if it was right, this old man on this snow-like soft couch would be the first sage that he had ever met in this world. Although, he wasn¡¯t aware what state the abbey dean of the South Sea boat had cultivated to.


    Hence, he had knelt before the couch when he entered, looking extremely humble and was unable to hide his respect and fear. These emotions had turned into a desire; a desire to know the end of the spiritual path and fuelled his desire for power.


    He thought he had finally understood the reason as to why the abbey dean had let hime to Zhishou Abbey to be a servant. Only a servant coulde to this cave in the green mountains and to meet an elder like this that was the strongest person in the road to cultivation.


    However, how things had developed wasn¡¯t as perfect as what Long Qing expected. The elder that looked like a corpse stared expressionlessly at him kneeling in front, his lips moved slowly and his dry voice seemed to be like two hot stones that were in the desert under the hot afternoon sun, rubbing against each other. It was incredibly hard to hear.


    "You are too weak."


    Long Qing didn¡¯t quite understand this sentence as he subconsciously raised his head to look at the eyes of the elder that was filled with intense tyranny. Looking at that gaze, he could only feel his conscious being sucked into a horrifying sea of blood as he groaned in pain.


    "You are too weak! You are trash!"


    The old man spread out his trembling hands and grabbed his skinny throat, almost as if he wanted to strangle himself to death. The voice that was forced out from between his fingers were full of disappointment and even despair.


    "You trash! What do you have to enter the Zhishou Abbey! How dare you speak to me! You are trash, and so am I! Everything hidden in this mountain is trash!"


    The elder moved around angrily on the snow-white fur. He looked incrediblyical and tragic moving around half his body like this, almost like a worm squirming.


    His shrill voice resonated within the cave and an undescribable horrifying aura spread across the room, pushing down on everything it passed.


    The vines were in chaos as Long Qing flew out of the cave spewing blood,nding heavily at the stone edge. He looked at the dark cave entrance, thinking back to the horrifying aura that he had just experienced, his eyes filled with shock and terror.


    He knew the old man wasn¡¯t trying to kill him, however his aura naturally leaked out with his anger and even then, it possessed immense powers. If that old man really released his cultivation in full, no one in this world would be able to resist it.


    Long Qing breathed heavily for a while before calming down. He wiped away the fresh blood by the side of his lips, cing the shoulder pole on his shoulders, and then carried his luggage and continued walking up the cliff.


    There were many caves in this mountain and many seniors from the Haotian Taoism lived here. They were all of different realms but were all incredibly powerful figures. However, just like that old man, they were all severely injured and disabled and hence, had a bad temper.


    Who was it back then who could have injured so many seniors? One must understand that these seniors had already crossed the Five States decades ago and wouldn¡¯t that mean that that person was of a higher cultivation state, and not just by one or two grades?


    This answer vaguely appeared within Long Qing¡¯s heart, but he didn¡¯t want to continue pondering over it as both the heavenly Tomes of Arcane and the green mountain were the only hope he had right now.


    He walked silently between the mountain walls, entering and exiting the mysterious caves, almost like a busy ant walking in an ant nest, not having the time to care what spring looks like.


    Chang¡¯an City.


    Ning Que and Sangsang had their dinner at the schr¡¯s house. After the meal, Mrs. Zeng and Sangsang started talking while Grand Secretary Zeng Jing and Ning Que started talking in the study. Hence when it was time to leave the residence, it was a littlete and there weren¡¯t many people left on the street. Ning Que decided to stay at the Old Brush Pen Shop with Sangsang for the night.


    The Old Brush Pen Shop was just like before, with the utensils in the bedroom in the courtyard well-prepared. Sangsang heated up some hot water and after the two of them washed up, they prepared to sleep.


    It was in the midst of spring and the night breeze was no longer cooling and instead had a hint of dryness to it. A wild catid on the courtyard wall and as it looked at the stars in the night skies, it yowled.


    The voice was very unpleasant and Ning Que couldn¡¯t fall asleep. He looked at the ceiling above him as he suddenly said, "Did you know, Ye Hongyu killed the Great Divine Priest of Judgment."


    Sangsang said softly, "I didn¡¯t know."


    Ning Que realized she wasn¡¯t as shocked when he had first found out this news. He could not help butugh at himself, thinking that Sangsang was indeed not a mortal like him and said, "I heard after killing the Priest of Judgement, she then severely injured Luo Kedi. If the hierarch hadn¡¯t said anything, she would have killed everyone."


    Sangsang murmured in agreement.


    Ning Que said, "I thought I had already caught up with her, who would have thought that she would leave me behind so far... She is already a Great Divine Priest of West-Hill. If we were to fight in the future, I wouldn¡¯t be a match with her, and we can¡¯t use your identity as the Great Divine Priest of Light to suppress her. What should we do?"


    Sangsang said: "Then let¡¯s not fight."


    Ning Que kept silent for a while before saying, "If your dad made you follow me to Lanke Temple, the journey would be long. It also wouldn¡¯t be right for you to be my handmaiden so he wants us to get engaged first, what should we do?"


    Sangsang whispered: "...what do you want to do?"


    Ning Que said, "Then let¡¯s get engaged."


    Sangsang¡¯s voice emerged from underneath the thin nket, a little muffled, almost as if she had a cold, "Alright."


    Ning Que said, "Come here, I¡¯m a little hot."


    Sangsang moved over from the other end of the bed into his embrace.


    Every year as spring ended and it became hot, Ning Que liked to hug her to bed as her body was naturally cold and hugging her was like hugging a soft cold jade.


    It was the same tonight, Sangsang¡¯s body was still as cool as before.


    However, she felt hot.


    Ning Que was still a little hot and as he listened to the shrill noises of the cat as it was in heat, he got annoyed and scolded in a low voice, "Spring is ending, what are you calling for!"

 Chapter 497: Another Dream

    Chapter 497: Another Dream


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Not long ago in the schr¡¯s mansion study, Ning Que and Grand Secretary Zeng Jing had a conversation. Back then, Zeng Jing had drunk half a pot of tea and was silent for another half a pot before abruptly saying, "I heard Sangsang saying that you will be ready to leave in a few days time."


    Ning Que nodded and said, "Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival is in autumn and Lanke Temple is a little far. We need to make a move now if we want to get there in time."


    In the spring ofst year, Lanke Temple had sent invitations for the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival to Chang¡¯an City and Monk Guan Hai had personally handed them to Ning Que. However due to certain circumstances after that, Ning Que decided not to go, but his intentions weren¡¯t approved by the Academy.


    Grand Secretary Zeng Jing said, "The road is far and it would be right to go. However, Sangsang is my daughter after all and is the sessor of the West-Hill¡¯s Great Divine Priest of Light. She cannot follow you around like a handmaiden... have you considered this?"


    Ning Que hadn¡¯t really considered this and said, "What do you mean?"


    Zeng Jing stared at his eyes and asked, "How old is Sangsang this year?"


    Ning Que thought for a while and said, "16."


    Zeng Jing couldn¡¯t help but say, "Since she is already 16, what are you waiting for? Get the wedding in order and go on the journey as husband and wife, the schr mansion wouldn¡¯t be aughing stock then."


    Ning Que said helplessly, "Isn¡¯t that a bit rushed? There aren¡¯t many days to prepare."


    Zeng Jing looked at his eyes and said, "You two have lived together for 16 years, how is that hurried? However, marriage is indeed something that cannot leave any oversight. How about you both get engaged first?"


    With such simple words, in front of a loving father, Ning Que couldn¡¯t retort back as he agreed in a daze.


    Thanks to the starlight from outside the window, he could see Sangsang in his embrace, her eyebrows that gradually unknitted, the smile on her face. Ning Que couldn¡¯t help butugh. It was but an engagement, there wille a day when they will get married, so why fear an engagement? Who would have thought that the dying infant that he dug out from among the corpses 16 years ago would be a big girl and his wife one day?


    Thinking about all these things, Ning Que gradually fell asleep.


    For a normal person, falling asleep meant falling asleep but this wasn¡¯t suitable for Ning Que. Since he was young, he had been living life on the edge and his focus and time were incredibly precious, hence, he usually slept incredibly quickly and deeply. He didn¡¯t need much time to feel rejuvenated again.


    Such a situation persisted until he started cultivation. Back then, he brought Sangsang to the market and bought a Taishang Requiem. He then started following the method on the calligraphy to do his cultivation, trying to meditate. That night, he dreamt a warm dream, a dream of the sea.


    Since then, he started to dream, and it was usually a warm dream after his meditation. However, these dreams didn¡¯t have much content nor did they have any vivid images. Until the spring of 3 years ago, he followed Princess Li Yu¡¯s team towards Chang¡¯an City from the City of Wei. On the journey, he had a conversation with the elder Lyu Qingchen and he had an unusual dream that night while embracing Sangsang¡¯s feet.


    In that dream, he was standing in the cold dark wastnd, he saw the cavalries from the Tang Empire, the warriors from Yuelun Kingdom, the archers from the grasnd. He saw the entire Wilderness dyed red with countless bodies and three ck clouds of dust at the front of the Wilderness. He saw darkness enveloping the sky and people stared at it fearfully. A tall man beside him said the sky was turning ck...


    After killing the tea master Yan Suqing, Ning Que escaped on the Vermilion Bird Avenue and the blood and the big ck umbre on him had rmed the Divine Talisman. That morning, the Snow mountain that had been blocked was finally reconstructed and he stepped onto the formal path of cultivation. At that point, he had another dream.


    In that dream, he returned to the cold and dark Wilderness. The ck sky was still eating up the sky, so he lifted his head. Besides him, people weren¡¯t looking at the sky, only staring at him sadly. At this moment, there was a sudden thunder in the sky and a light gate slowly opened. As the light returned to the world, a giant golden dragon stuck its head out and stared at the crowd on the ground.


    During the entrance examination for the Second floor of the Academy, while climbing the cliff to the summit, Ning Que entered another dream that made reality and imagination indistinguishable from each other.


    The ck sky was still invading this side of the Wilderness and after the light hid behind theyers of clouds, it became brighter. The barbarians were still looking at him, including the chambein and young master that he had killed many years ago. The tall man asked what he would choose. He said he didn¡¯t want to choose. The tall man asked what if he needed to make a choice? At the end of the dream, Ning Que killed the chambein and young master again before walking towards the ck sky with his knife.


    Ning Que looked at the three clouds of dust. Feeling the cold emanating from it, his body turned stiff. He knew he was dreaming but he had no idea how to wake up from it.


    The ck sky became colder and the light got brighter, splitting the sky into two halves. The giant dragon head looked at the life on earth mercilessly and slowly opened its mouth. The soldiers in the Wilderness were still fighting but you couldn¡¯t tell who was fighting who, because fresh blood spilled and soaked the numerous corpses.


    He looked at the tall man beside him and at the white hair that draped over his shoulders and his heart beat faster. Almost as if the war drums that had been broken apart on the battlefield could explode at any moment. This time, he finally confirmed that the tall man in his dreams... was the Headmaster.


    The Headmaster didn¡¯t turn around, looking at the sky silently, at the battle between light and darkness. However, Ning Que knew clearly that the Headmaster was waiting for him to make a choice. He didn¡¯t want to make a choice, or rather, he could only make a choicest time because he unaware of the consequences. Now, he vaguely understood certain things and he wasn¡¯t that afraid. What left him most frustrated was why the Headmaster was making him choose?


    Ning Que wanted to escape from this dream, the Wilderness that was soaked with blood. Hence he turned around and started running towards the edge of the Wilderness. The faster he ran, the faster his heart beat, his breath bing shorter and his face paler. Eventually, he ran into a patch of pale sea, a sea full of white lotus flowers.


    The sea water was no longer warm but incredibly cold. The white lotus flowers had frozen into ice sculptures and shattered into pieces of jade, sinking into the sea. His body sunk to the depths of the sea too, into the seawater that was as thick as blood. The bloody water made it hard for him to breath. No, he was unable to breathe. He started struggling and wanting to swim away but realized he couldn¡¯t move his arms and legs, and that struggling only made him sink deeper.


    Ning Que opened his eyes as he woke up, his breath was hurried and he was covered with cold sweat. Horror filled his eyes, almost like a dead man. He looked at the paper on the roof and after a long time, finally confirmed that he had left his dream and returned to the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    These dreams were his biggest secrets. He didn¡¯t tell Chen Pipi before nor did he bring it up to the Headmaster or to his Senior Brothers and Sisters. Even though his dreams were filled with truths that he wanted to discover, he didn¡¯t dare speak of it to anyone else because he felt they were hiding something terrifying.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce from 16 years ago and the Buddhism Sect now were all specting if he was the Son of Yama.


    Ning Que used to think they werepletely nonsensical. However, whenever he thought back to when he returned to Chang¡¯an from the Wilderness, hearing the words that Sangsang had retold from Wei Guangming and thinking about his dreams, he would feel an unusual horror. The legendary Son of Yama was referring to a person that had crossed over from another world. Wasn¡¯t that him?


    The ck sky was approaching and the Underworld Invasion, even though they were only legends, they were legends that had left cultivators unsettled for tens of thousands of years. He didn¡¯t know the specific details but he understood that this must involve a big event like the destruction of the world. If he really was the Son of Yama, what would he face?


    No matter how tolerant the Headmaster was, even if he didn¡¯t care about Youngest Uncle joining the Devil, he would care about this. If not, why would he have such a tall figure in the dream?


    No matter how quiet the back of the mountain of the Academy was, he wouldn¡¯t be merciful in the face of such big problems. If he really was the Son of Yama, he had no idea what Eldest Brother would do. But he knew Second Brother would definitely smash him till he died and then jump off a cliff on ount that they were fellow disciples.


    If he fell into the hands of the West-Hill Divine Pce, he would be strapped onto the executioner board and burnt to crisps. If hended into the hands of the Buddhism Sect, would they shave his head and let him recite chants for the rest of his life in the Xuankong Temple?


    If that was the case, the best oue was to be a monk?


    Ning Que rested against the sideboard of his bed as he thought about all these, his shirt was drenched in his cold sweat and his face was getting increasingly pale. He couldn¡¯t imagine what the world would face, if he was really the Son of Yama. At that time, the entire world would abandon him and leave him to wander alone, living his life in hiding, like rats hiding from the Divine Light of Haotian.


    At this moment, Sangsang moved in his embrace, slightly knitting her brows, almost as if she was dreaming about something bad or she was feeling Ning Que¡¯s emotions now.


    Ning Que looked at her slightly tanned face as he calmed down. This was because whether he was a traitor or the Son of Yama, he had a handmaiden that would never leave him behind. Even if he was left to roam again, he wouldn¡¯t be alone, it would be the two of them. This was better.


    He lightly kissed her on her brows, wanting to ease them.


    However, she seemed to be even more ufortable as her brows became tighter.


    Ning Que felt that something was wrong.


    Sangsang¡¯s face got paler and peeking out from the darkness, her snow-white face left one worried. Her knitted eyebrows made her seem incredible in pain and her body got cooler.


    Ning Que was shocked as he hurriedly tried to wake her.


    Sangsang pried open her eyes with difficulty, looking especially weak. A bone-chilling chill escaped from her clothes and it left Ning Que shuddering.


    She shivered in pain as she grabbed onto his clothes, wanting to say something, but nothing came out.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t dare dy as he got up and whistled loudly. He grabbed the thick nket on the bed and wrapped it around her body, then he wrapped her up in his arms and rushed out.


    He kicked open the wooden door of the Old Brush Pen Shop and ran to Lin 47th Street.


    It was just before dawn.


    Ning Que shouted angrily while looking at the alley, "You pig! Why are you so slow?"


    The Big ck Horse was awakened abruptly by the whistle and was just about to show its disapproval when it saw Ning Que¡¯s green face and knew something big had happened. Ning Que felt horrible now and it knew he could kill it at any moment. It quickly kicked its four hooves and dragged the horse carriage in front of the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    Ning Que hopped onto the carriage and panted while saying, "To the Academy."

 Chapter 498: Sangsangs Illness

    Chapter 498: Sangsang¡¯s Illness


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    A ck carriage rushed in the eastern city and ran to the Vermilion Bird City Gate. Someone in the carriage made the gate open by showing the guards two ID tokens, and then the carriage continued to run along the straight state highway to the Academy in the south.


    In the carriage, Ning Que hugged Sangsang tightly, his right hand fumbling on the wall of the carriage. He couldn¡¯t stop panting. It was not because he was weary or tried. He was always very healthy and after he learned the Great Spirit, his breath became even longer and more peaceful. It was because he was terrified. He could feel that Sangsang¡¯s body was bing colder and colder, even though she was wrapped in a thick quilt.


    Finally, he found the little gon he had put in the carriage and without any hesitation, he opened the lid and passed the gon to Sangsang¡¯s mouth. A strong aroma of alcohol permeated the air.


    Sangsang¡¯s eyes were closed, her eyshes were ttering and her face was pale. Her grey lips were pressed together and her teeth were clenched, which made it impossible for the strong liquor to flow into her mouth. It flowed down at the corner of her mouth and wet the quilt.


    Ning Que was upied by an extreme dread when he saw the flowing liquor and her pale face. He felt weak on his legs and lowered his head in pain. He tightened his armed around her.


    It had been a while since Sangsang fell illst time. More urately speaking, she hadn¡¯t be ill since they left the City of Wei and came to Chang¡¯an. But today her illness was more severe than any time that Ning Que could remember. Therefore, he was scared. He decided immediately that instead of taking her to a clinic, he would take her to the carriage and go to the Academy with her.


    The Academy did not have doctors, but the Headmaster was there, his Senior Brothers were there. Ning Que believed that as long as Sangsang was still alive when they arrived at the Academy, she would be fine.


    Itter proved that Ning Que¡¯s choice was right.


    Carrying Sangsang in his arms, he ran through the mist, climbed to the cliff tform in the back of the mountain and bellowed at theke. His loud voice woke the Seniors Sisters and Brothers up and they walked out of their rooms to find out what had happened. Seventh Sister was the first one to go out. Last night she stayed upte to embroider a picture of a cat chasing butterflies and didn¡¯t go to sleep until midnight. And now with a needle pinned in her hair, she walked out with great anger and tiredness.


    But when she saw the terrified expression on Ning Que¡¯s face, she realized what had happened and the anger and tiredness on her face turned serious. Without saying anything to Ning Que, she observed Sangsang¡¯s face and drew out the needle in her hair and prodded it on Sangsang¡¯s neck for four times.


    Sangsang groaned when the needle pricked into her skin, but her brows still frowned and she didn¡¯t wake up. However, the pale color on her face faded and her face became the original dark color.


    "Seventh Sister, how is she?"


    Ning Que looked at Seventh Sister and asked shiveringly. He never knew that apart from the tactical array and embroider, Seventh Sister was also good at acupuncture. He became hopeful when seeing the change of the color on Sangsang¡¯s face.


    "Her heart suffered from coldness. It is dangerous and all I can do is to suppress the coldness with the needle," said Seventh Sister.


    Ning Que¡¯s arrival had wakened all people living near theke in the back of the mountain. Eldest Brother also appeared in the distance, but he was walking slowly as usual, it seemed that nothing could hurry or worry him.


    Noticing the arrival of Eldest Brother, Seventh Sister suddenly rxed. She yelled to him, "Eldest Brother, please get Eleventh Brother here, this is urgent."


    Eldest Brother was taken back for a while, and then he turned back to the woods behind him.


    Seventh Sister noticed the worried look on Ning Que¡¯s face andforted him, "This is not a serious problem. You should take her to the hut and find the Master. When Eleventh Brotheres, everything will be fine."


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t understand her words. If the Master helped, then Sangsang would definitely be fine. But why should they wait for Eleventh Brother?


    The morning arrived and sunrise shone on the back of the mountain. Rays shone on the grass on the roof of the hut and were reflected to the woods in the distance, making the meadow surrounded by the woods very bright.


    Ning Que and Chen Pipi were standing outside and waiting for the news. Sincest spring, Sangsang had beening here quite often. Everyone liked her because she was good at cooking and she was quiet and peaceful. Seeing that she was seriously ill, everyone was worried and Tang Xiaotang¡¯s eyes even became red. But Ning Que looked much calmer than before.


    It was because the Master was awakened now. He was in the hut right now. Ning Que believed that even if Sangsang was about to die, he could save her.


    At this time, Wang Chi walked out of the hut and Ning Que hurried to him immediately. Wang Chi said, "She has been weak since she was born and coldness has reigned in her lung for a long time. This kind of illness worsens every time it happens. And longer the illness stays quiet, more serious the next outbreak will be. I have checked her and found out the cause of this outbreak: she suffered from severe coldness recently and has been thinking a lot."


    Ning Que asked, "She will be ok, right?"


    Wang Chi replied, "The acupuncture from Seventh Sister was just in time and I have boiled her some medicine. It should be enough to suppress the coldness in her body and she will be fine. But you should always keep her warm, because she can¡¯t suffer from coldness for another time."


    His words made Ning Que rx and he found his legs very weak.


    Something suddenly urred to Wang Chi and he asked doubtfully, "Youngest Brother, Sangsang has got this illness since she was born and I guess she had outbreaks many times over the past years. But there are not any good doctors in City of Wei, let alone in Chang¡¯an. How did you help her?"


    When Sangsang was young, Ning Que always took her to see the doctors and spent almost all of their savings in medicine shops, but it still didn¡¯t work. Later, Ning Que found a good way to help Sangsang, and that was why Sangsang could survive. Hearing his question, Ning Que didn¡¯t try to lie, he answered honestly, "I always give her arge bottle of strong liquor whenever she is painful."


    Second Brother had been standing at the outside of the hut expressionlessly. He frowned when hearing what Ning Que said.


    Wang Chi thought for a while and nodded, "That was the right way. Although it is only a temporary relief to use strong liquor to warm her, it is better than taking wrong medicines."


    Thanks to hisments that Second Brother couldn¡¯t use Ning Que of giving her liquor.


    Watching Wang Chi disappearing in the woods, Ning Que finally realized that his Eleventh Brother, notable for being the Flower Addict, was actually an excellent doctor. But he felt worried again when he remembered how silly Eleventh Brother looked with his head covered with petals and asked, "Is Eleventh Brother reliable?"


    Seventh Sister replied, "Eleventh Brother spared no efforts in studying nts and flowers. Compared with him, the Flower Addict Lu Chenjia knows almost nothing about the nature of flowers and nts. Eleventh Brother knew all of them in the world and their medical effects. No doctor could be more reliable than him."


    Ning Que rxed when hearing her words. But he still worried a little because the most reliable person, the Master, hadn¡¯t said anything yet.


    The hut was drafty in all directions, with only several screens standing in the tform. On the tform there was arge mattress and this was where the Master slept. Sangsang was lying there right now.


    She had been awake for a while, but now she fell asleep again because of the effects of the medicine. Tang Xiaotang put the medicine bowl down, she wet a towel with hot water, dried it, and then she carefully put it on her cold forehead. It seemed that she was murmuring something to Sangsang while holding her hands.


    Ning Que was very grateful to her. He turned to the Headmaster and asked worriedly, "Master, is she fine?"


    The Headmaster got up a lot earlier than usual and he was not in a good mood. He could resist not shouting at Ning Que only because he knew that Ning Que was feeling even worse.


    He blew to the Lianzi porridge and said, "What can happen to her? She just needs to bask more in the sunshine."


    His irresponsible words made Ning Que rxpletely. He knew that if his Master thought Sangsang was fine, then she would definitely be fine. But would sunbath really help?


    He walked to the Master, took the bowl over and stirred it carefully with a spoon. And then he asked the Headmaster with an unprecedentedly respectful tone, "Master, you said Sangsang had recoveredst time, right?"


    The Master replied, "Her body has been weak since she was born and she never got proper treatment. And there is a great amount of coldness in her body, if not for meeting Wei Guangming and learning from him about how to use the Haotian Divine Light, the coldness in her body would not have been suppressed. She only needs more time to use the Divine Light to dissolve the coldnesspletely. I have told you she will be fine and it is definitely true. Are you doubting my ability?"


    Ning Que passed the porridge bowl to the Master respectfully after confirming that it had cooled down. He said humbly, "I am very ashamed for what I have said. But Master, I can¡¯t see what is happening."


    The Master looked at him and said mockingly, "You need to ask yourself that question. Sangsang was already very ill, but her master took her with him to fight with Xia Hou. Is it really fun to kill him? To help you, she lit the night up on the cliff and it used up all the Haotian Devine Light in her body at once. After that, the coldness in her body became free after being suppressed for a long time, it was looking for a chance to burst out. And then you bullied her and made her upset. That was when it happened."


    Ning Que was silent and thought to himself that it really turned out to be his fault. But what could make Sangsang , a quiet girl, nervous and upset? Was it...their engagement?


    "Master, if she was born to be afraid of coldness, then how can she be healedpletely?"


    The Master ate a spoonful of the porridge and nodded satisfiedly, "I have told you, it is easy. She just needs to take more sunbath and keep studying the Divine Skill. When her Divine Skill reaches the topmost, she would be healedpletely."


    Ning Que thought about his oing journey and asked uncertainly, "It is a long journey to Lanke Temple. She is so weak right now, can I...stay here?"


    The Headmaster became very angry and shouted at him, "Are you a pampered son of a wealthy family? She is ill, but you can go alone. The Buddhism Sect has its own skills and even I admire the leechcraft of the young monks there. You can decide whether you need to go."


    Ning Que replied helplessly, ¡¯¡¯No need to be so angry, Master. I will go."


    The conversation between the Master and Ning Que amused everyone in the hut. But no oneughed when hearing hisst words.


    Eldest Brother didn¡¯tugh. He looked at Sangsang, who was still sleeping on the mattress. His face was full of sympathy and worry.

 Chapter 499: We All Saw the Darkness at the End of the Road (I)

    Chapter 499: We All Saw the Darkness at the End of the Road (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    We All Saw the Darkness at the End of the Road (Part I)


    Ning Que¡¯s dormitory was at the back of the mountain, and he stayed in the Academy because Sangsang was very ill. She did not wake up for a long time, and when she did she was still weak. Ning Que lulled her to sleep by telling her jokes and singing songs like when they were children. Noticing that he was very tired, Tang Xiaotang decided to take over the responsibility of taking care of Sangsang so that he could have a break outside.


    It was near dusk and the rear of the mountain was enveloped in warm red light. Ning Que walked out of the yard and saw Chen Pipi standing near theke with his hands on his waist. "What happened?" Asked Ning Que.


    Chen Pipi looked at the rippling water and the algae in it, his face full of loneliness. He answered, "I feel strange seeing you and Sangsang have such a good rtionship."


    Ning Que thought that maybe he and Tang Xiaotang were bickering again, so he patted his shoulder andforted him. "Senior Brother, you don¡¯t have topare your rtionship with me."


    Chen Pipi exined seriously, "Tangtang and I are not what you think."


    Ning Que thought to himself that there was no need to hear Chen Pipi exin further, since he had called her such an affectionate nickname. He scoffed and said, "Don¡¯t you think the most shameful thing in the world is when a man doesn¡¯t want to admit his rtionship with a girl?"


    Chen Pipi turned to him and said sincerely, "We¡¯ve only held hands."


    "She is still a little girl and you want to do something to her, don¡¯t you?" Ning Que said mockingly.


    "She and Sangsang are almost the same age!" Chen Pipi replied.


    Ning Que felt a little embarrassed and stayed quiet upon hearing that.


    In the glow of sunset, the mud looked like diamond-shaped gold. Chen Pipi lowered his head and moved his feet slightly, making a few golden marks in the ground. After being silent for a long time, he said, "We are not like you and Sangsang. Although we neither share life-challenging experiences together, nor have the time to live together, our rtionship is going quite well. I felt heartbroken seeing her jump into the waterfall and I was happy showing her around in Chang¡¯an..."


    Ning Que didn¡¯t want to be seen as a rtionship expert, so he asked directly, "What on earth are you trying to say?"


    Looking up at Ning Que, Chen Pipi asked, "You were terrified when Sangsang fell seriously ill, weren¡¯t you?"


    After thinking for a while, Ning Que said, "Yes, I can¡¯t imagine my life without her."


    Chen Pipi said, "Me too. I can¡¯t imagine my life without Tangtang either, so I decided to go back to Zhishou Abbey."


    Ning Que didn¡¯t know what to say. Two years ago, when Chen Pipi denied that he was born an illegitimate child of the hierarch of West-Hill, he had guessed his real identity, and now it was confirmed. Based on what he had said, Ning Que thought that going back to Zhishou Abbey meant that he would tell people over there about Tang Xiaotang.


    Chen Pipi said, "There¡¯s a saying that says ¡¯an ugly daughter-inw is bound to meet her husband¡¯s parents eventually¡¯. My father is still alive and Tangtang is in no way ugly, but in his eyes people from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine are not beautiful. I have to go back to settle it."


    Ning Que slightly frowned and said, "But have you thought about the possibility that you will never be able toe back to Chang¡¯an once you return to Zhishou Abbey?"


    Chen Pipi looked at him dearly and replied, "Younger Brother, you are my best friend in Chang¡¯an. If I nevere back, please take care of Xiaotang for me."


    Ning Que turned him down without any hesitation. "Senior Brother, don¡¯t make me do that. Your wife is your responsibility and you should not count on me."


    This enraged Chen Pipi. "How can you be like that?" He started shouting. "Anyway, as long as the Headmaster talks to the Zhishou Abbey, won¡¯t I get toe back?"


    Rather than think about this any further, Ning Que said, "You have to wait for me to return back from Lanke Temple and then we can discuss it. But in my opinion, you should ask teacher to host your wedding, and in that case, you don¡¯t have to go back to Zhishou Abbey."


    Although the Headmaster seemed to be very unreliable, his words were urateÒ» or maybe it was Eleventh Brother¡¯s medicine that was excellent. Regardless, Sangsang¡¯s temperature dropped down to normal at night and she felt much better, lying on the bed and talking with Tang Xiaotang privately.


    Sitting by the table, Ning Que reread Primary Exploration on the Great Spirit by the light of the oilmp. He was distracted and couldn¡¯t help peering over at the bed. He saw Tang Xiaotang¡¯s beautiful face and recalled Chen Pipi¡¯s words, feeling a bit sorry.


    The oilmp shook when the breeze blowed in, making the light in the room change all the time. He remembered the strange dream he hadst night and the Master¡¯s words in the hut when Sangsang was ill. An idea suddenly crossed his mind, so he asked Tang Xiaotang to look after Sangsang and walked out into the yard.


    He left the Mirror Lake and journeyed through the woods, bypassing the waterfall, and walking out of the narrow valley. Eventually, he reached the rear of the mountain behind the Academy and stood on the cliff overlooking the sea of clouds. It was alreadyte at night and it was all very quiet. Only the sound of water sshing on the stones could be heard. He walked along the steep, stone path and soon arrived at the cliff cave, where he had been imprisoned for a whole spring.


    The awning built by his Senior Brothers was not as new as it used to be after standing against one year¡¯s wind and rain. The Purple wisteria that had grown beside it was dancing in the wind like bells. Ning Que walked towards them and saw the Headmaster.


    The Headmaster was sitting on the edge of the cliff with a delicate meal box to his left and a bottle to his right. In the meal box he had some beef and in the bottle there was clear liquor. He was staring at the light in Chang¡¯an City in the distance.


    Ning Que walked to him and bowed. He recalled the long talk with Headmaster thest time he was here. It had also been a dark night inte spring.


    The Headmaster knew it was him and it seemed that he even knew what he was thinking about. He motioned for Ning Que to sit down next to him and said, "You can tell me whenever you are ready."


    Ning Que wanted to ask the Headmaster many questions. Although, after hesitating for a long time, he failed to do so. Looking at the Headmaster reminded him of the person in his dream.


    It was very nice to live in the Tang Empire, and it was even nicer to live in its capital city, Chang¡¯an. Ning Que felt that he had so much happiness at the Academy, and he worried that he might lose everything by telling the Headmaster his secret.


    The Headmaster took a piece of beef and put it into his mouth. His face was full of giddiness as he chewed it slowly. He said approvingly, "I will never worry about anything as long as I have beef to eat and liquor to drink."


    Then he grabbed the bottle and took a sip.


    Ning Que sat next to the Headmaster and threw a piece of beef into his mouth. He frowned when he first tasted it, because it seemed vorless. But after a moment he knew he was wrong. The piece of beef turned out to be tastier and tastier the more he chewed it. It was very stringy and eventually his mouth was full of the taste.


    "That¡¯s good!" He said with surprise. "Master, your beef and liquor are very good."


    The Headmaster took out a steel bottle from the side of the meal box and threw it to him. He said with a smile, "I know you just want to try my liquor. But actually the liquor is average, and the beef is what¡¯s rare. It¡¯s great that the stoves in the building here can be used to cook beef, and what is better is that Old Huang cannot chase me here."


    Ning Que knew that "Old Huang" referred to the old yellow bull and it would be a little awkward to eat beef in front of it. He suddenly realized that the bottle looked very familiar. He saw the straight lines engraved on it and recognized that it was the iron kettle he had used to trick Xia Hou.


    "Don¡¯t look at me like that. I just think that it is suitable for liquor. Of course I have smeared something on it to prevent the steel from polluting the liquor inside."


    The Headmaster drank from it and said, "A knife can be used to kill people or to cut vegetables, and your mouth can be used to speak your mind or to eat. It is all up to you; there is no right or wrong."


    Ning Que didn¡¯t understand his words. After being silent for a while, he asked, "Master, I have been having a dream for the past few years. And the story in the dream keeps developing."


    The Headmaster asked, "Why are you telling me this?"


    Ning Que replied, "Because you are in my dream."


    The Headmaster smiled and said, "I am not Sangsang for you to be dreaming about me."


    "Master, I am serious. Don¡¯t make fun of me!" Ning Que replied embarrassedly.


    The Headmaster answered by saying, "Then continue telling me about your dream."


    Looking at his eyes which seemed to know everything in the world, Ning Que was a little nervous. He said hoarsely, "I think you know about my dream. Last year, when we were talking about the Underworld Invasion here, you asked me which direction the Underworld was in."


    Wonderingly looking at Ning Que, the Headmaster replied, "And I still want to ask you the same question."


    Ning Que said, "I saw the night...ing from the north."


    The Headmaster said with a smile, "That is in line with what the research I have done these past few years tells me."


    Ning Que asked, "What is the Underworld Invasion and theing of the night? You told me that they were in the tales, but you didn¡¯t give me any details."


    "Details? When the whole world is enveloped in the dark night, no one can see anything in detail. And when a civilization is cut down, nothing in detail can be recorded."


    The Headmaster looked at the sky and watched the stars. "It is said that the night and the day rotate control. Sometimes the day rules the world for thousands of years and sometimes it is the night that rules. And history is a recording of their war. When Haotian wins the fight, the world is what we see now. But, when Yama wins, the Underworld will arrive."


    "When the Underworld invades, there will be no sun in the daytime and no stars at night. The world will be extremely cold, and all the living things in the world can only get warmth from the heat below ground. The heat from volcanoes, hot springs and the South Sea will be the most precious resources in the world, which will cause numerous wars."


    "The wars won¡¯tst for long, and most of the poption will die of hunger, or the cold. It will be a world of unbelievable cruelty. And after only a couple of years, the whole world will fall asleep and never again awaken. Only the strongest can survive."


    "The Buddhism Sect calls this Dharma Ending Period and the Haotian Taoism calls it the arrival of Yama."


    He continued, "But I call it...the Evesting night."


    ...


    -

 Chapter 500: We Had Seen the Darkness at the End of the Road (II)

    Chapter 500: We Had Seen the Darkness at the End of the Road (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que looked down at the sheer cliff and its beautiful waterfall, illuminated under the starlight. He felt a chill, as he imagined countless nights bingpletely dark¡ª without any stars.


    He looked towards the Headmaster and said, "If the Underworld Invasion happened many times in history, and mankind still hasn¡¯t gone extinct because¡ª as you have said¡ª only the strongest have survived through those dark, long nights, then these people were supposed to be the most powerful cultivators. However I don¡¯t understand why neither the West-Hill ssics nor the Buddhist tales have recorded their stories."


    Headmaster said, "You should have seen those stone statues of the Venerated in the Wanyan Tower. The Venerated in Buddhism Sect enjoys a state as high as Sages in the ssics of the Haotian Taoism. It is said that they can live almost forever and their minds are unbendable. That is also why they could survive the Forever Night period and witness the victory of Haotian."


    Ning Que didn¡¯t know about these powerhouses until tonight. He was shocked by their experience and asked, "These cultivators must have been the most powerful human beings, but why did they not survive?"


    Headmaster went on to say, "Their life is long, but it can¡¯tst forever. Even though they could ovee the nights, they could not ovee time. Also, I think they are far from being the most powerful human beings."


    Ning Que didn¡¯tpletely agree with Headmaster¡¯s words. He thought that if they could survive such a cruel period, then they should have been the most powerful ones.


    At this moment, Headmaster suddenly looked at him and asked, "Do you consider cultivation as a gift, that Haotian has given to humanity?"


    This question was very strange, as it seemed to have no rtion to the present discussion at all. Ning Que was confused and didn¡¯t know what to say. But after he thought for a while, he remembered the story he heard at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine of how his Youngest Brother had joined the Devil and shook his head, "Not for all the cultivators."


    Headmaster looked into Ning Que¡¯s eyes and spoke slowly, "Real cultivators focus on their heart and their cultivation leads to a pure ego, which definitely worthy of pride. Like the Buddhism Sect¡¯s Venerated and the Sages of the Haotian Taoism, they could hide around volcanos, living on a tiny amount of moss and water. But they were too proud to ept the fact that they would have to live the life of a rat. The stronger they were, the more unwilling they were. So, when Forever Night fell upon them, instead of hiding, they chose to fight. They drew their swords and struck them out towards Yama, and then... they died."


    Ning Que knew that what Headmaster said was true. People like his Youngest Uncle would never choose to kneel down in front of Yama or hide in a rat¡¯s hole. If, in the future, Forever Night dide, Second Brother would be the first to stand up and fight against Yama, and his destiny would be the same as what Headmaster had described: he would die.


    It reminded Ning Que of the dark night in his dream. He felt chilled at the thought that he might be the Son of Yama. The wind on the cliff was so cold that he even wanted to jump off the cliff. But he still had Headmaster sitting next to him, the beef and liquor to taste and Sangsang was still ill. His life was so bright that he didn¡¯t want to die yet.


    He looked at the floating clouds and asked, "The Hot Sea is freezing and night time in the Far North is bing longer. Those are all signs of the Invasion of the Underworld... Master, what should we do?"


    Headmaster carried the bottle and sighed, "I have been searching for more than ten years, but still couldn¡¯t find the location of the Underworld. How could I know what to do? Cultivators need time. It is a shame that I was born toote to see thest Forever night."


    He drank a ss of liquor after saying those words. His white long brows were dancing in the wind and his casual expression changed to a worried look, which, for him, was very rare.


    "People of West-Hill Divine Pce are believers of Haotian. They should know more about this fight between light and dark. Are they not at all prepared?" Asked Ning Que.


    "Everyone can see the darkness at the end of the road, let alone the believers of Haotian."


    Headmaster said, "I don¡¯t know what happenedst time, but I would like to believe that the believers of Haotian will fight with Yama at the risk of their lives. And I will hide somewhere, waiting for the victory of Haotian and then start over."


    Ning Que eximed, "It sounds like you are a weak person."


    Headmaster replied, "We are weak."


    Ning Que suddenly remembered Liansheng 32¡¯sments on the West-Hill Divine Pce and Zhishou Abbey. He once said, "People in the Divine Hall are dogs raised by Zhishou Abbey. And people in Zhishou Abbey are dogs raised by Haotian. Ha... they are all dogs. "


    Headmaster mused, "The Devil¡¯s Doctrine appeared a thousand years ago, and the Great Divine Priest who founded it never witnessed Forever night, so there is no solution in their ssics either."


    "I heard that the Devil¡¯s Doctrine also believes in Yama." Said Ning Que.


    Headmaster corrected, "It is fear rather than belief. The Devil¡¯ Doctrine just needs an idol to stand against Haotian. It is just afort for them."


    Ning Que remembered anotherment made by Lotus and he decided to convey it to Headmaster after hesitating for a while.


    "Someone said that the Devil¡¯s Doctrine is like a stone that hides at night to avoid the Haotian Divine Light. They im that they don¡¯t respect Haotian, but actually they are very scared of him. That is why Haotian allows them to exist."


    This was only a part of what was spoken, but Ning Que stopped here.


    Lotus also said that if Ning Que picked up the sword left by his Youngest Uncle, then he would lose all of the respect and fear. Then he would be a real devil, and Haotian would not allow such people to exist.


    Headmaster asked, "Who said it?"


    "Liansheng 32." Answered Ning Que.


    Headmaster said, "Although he is willful and a bit mentally ill, he is also wise. It was very dangerous for you to meet him, but it was also a Lucky Chance."


    Although he is a bit mentally ill, he is wise.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t know what to say. He thought that maybe only people like Headmaster and his Youngest Uncle were qualified to talk about such an extraordinary person in that way.


    Headmaster asked, "What was hisment regarding the Buddhism Sect?"


    Ning Que said, "He said that the Buddhism Sect could only do some tricks and they were no different to those fake fortune tellers. And he hated the penance of the Buddhism Sect, thinking that whenever fate changed, they would always be waiting, and could never reach it. By fate changing, did he actually mean the Underworld Invasion?"


    "Yes. I think he is more than just a little wise, he is indeed very wise. But still, different sects have different principles. It was not right toment other sects like that."


    Headmaster said, "ording to the Buddhist ssics, once upon a time, when the Yuelun Kingdom was not yet called by that name, the first Buddha found out the principles of life and death. And he could also foresee the oing Underworld Invasion. It made him sad and confused, but he didn¡¯t know how to find a way out. So he traveled around the world and penanced. He sat under a tree and thought for a hundred days before he found the solution."


    Ning Que asked rather curiously, "What is the solution?"


    Headmaster looked at him and smiled, "The solution is to close your mouth."


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t believe what he had heard, he repeated the answer subconsciously, "Close my mouth?"


    Headmaster said, "Yes. The solution of Buddhism is to teach the masses to endure ¨C to think of everything as fake, to not care about wealth, familiarity, pain or sorrow. If they could do that, they would not think that life is happy, and then death would not be painful, and they would not consider light to be good, and then darkness would not be dreadful. That is why I call it ¡¯close one¡¯s mouth¡¯."


    Ning Que asked confusedly, "But what is the connection between the name and their solution?"


    Headmaster said, "How can one resist shouting out when he gets beaten up and suffers from great pain? The only way is to close his mouth."


    Ning Queughed and said, "Master, you are really good at summarizing."


    Suddenly he remembered the Daoshi Monk whom he killed and Qi Nian who came to Chang¡¯an City on that snowy night. He frowned and asked, "But if the Buddhism Sect really focuses on endurance, why are the monks in the Yuelun Kingdom so evil? And why do people from Xuankong Temple enter thend of the earth?"


    "That is the adverse result of the Buddhism Sect. When that original Buddha thought up of such a way, he passed it down, and all of his students believed him. And the result was that the more devout they were, the more determined they became. Who cares if the Underworld Invasion happens? Who cares if the long nightse? They don¡¯t even fear death, let alone darkness. And vice versa, they are not even scared of darkness, let alone death."


    Headmaster smiled, "Although the Buddhism Sect focuses on living a sequestered life, it doesn¡¯t mean that they cannot enter the human realm, and once they do, they could be even bigger trouble than the fanatics of West-Hill Divine Hall."


    Ning Que remembered what Headmaster had said before and he asked curiously, "If the first Buddha did predict theing of Underworld Invasion, why he didn¡¯t predict the end of the war?"


    Headmaster said, "If his prediction is useful, why are we still alive?"


    His words contained profound meaning, but Ning Que was thinking of the big secrets about the Underworld Invasion and he was not going to stop at such an answer. He continued asking, "Master, this is not the right attitude when you are telling someone a story."


    Headmaster retorted, "If you think I am not a good storyteller, I will learn from the Buddhism Sect."


    Ning Que asked puzzledly, "What does that mean?"


    Headmaster said, "Close my mouth."


    Ning Que said, "No..."


    Headmaster said, "Then beg me."


    Ning Que said without any hesitation, "Master, I beg you to tell me. I really want to know what his prediction was."


    Headmaster felt both very helpless and happy that he finally got a student who was almost as shameless as himself. He stroked his long beard and said slowly.


    "While the Buddha was traveling around the world, he once went to Zhishou Abbey. He read the Seven Tomes of Arcane under the invitation of the abbey dean, and he felt a message from Haotian and wrote it down on the ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll. Later, the Great Divine Priest of Light took the ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll to the Wilderness and founded the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and the Yuelun Kingdom became the name of the country. All this was rted to the prediction on the ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll."


    Ning Que asked surprisedly, "There is a message left by the Buddha on the ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll!?"


    Headmaster said, "Of all the seven Tomes of the Arcane, the most important one is the ¡¯Tian¡¯ Handscroll, but the most interesting one is the ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll. The others are not even worth reading."


    Ning Que suddenly realized something important, he asked, "Have you... read the seven Tomes of the Arcane?"


    Headmaster answered with certainty, "Of course."

 Chapter 501: Shall We Go to Worship Buddha?

    Chapter 501: Shall We Go to Worship Buddha?


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que did not ask about the Tomes of the Arcane¡ª since the "Ming" Handscroll was in the Academy all this time, the Headmaster could read it as he wished. He was talking about the other Handscrolls. Many years ago, Lotus was invited to the Zhishou Abbey and he was only allowed to read two of them. Ning Que doubted that there was anyone in the world who had a chance to read all seven of them.


    Therefore, upon hearing this, he was so shocked. He murmured in his heart. "Teacher, even if you are the greatest man in the world since the rtionship between the Academy and the Zhishou Abbey is so bad, how was it possible that the Taoist priests could lend you the seven Tomes of the Arcane?"


    The Headmaster knew what he was thinking about, so he said, "I like reading, of course, I was particrly eager to read the Tomes of the Arcane. I would never stop reading just because the taoist priests did not allow it."


    Ning Que was shocked by his hidden meaning in his words and he gasped. "Did you break into the Zhishou Abbey to read the books? What was the difference between you and a robber?"


    The Headmaster was a little embarrassed and said, "Books are the inheritance of knowledge which should not be hidden in the mountains. It¡¯s never wrong to read a book."


    The seven Tomes of the Arcane were so supreme in people¡¯s minds. However, they were the same as normal books for the Academy, especially for the Headmaster. As long as he wanted to read them, he was able to read them¡ª thinking of this, Ning Que was proud while shocked at the same time.


    It was pride to be a Tang man, so was to be a disciple in the Academy. The Youngest Uncle had left a great reputation in the world and his Senior Brothers were able to raise rain and wind when they asionally showed up. Especially the unfamiliar anecdotes of the Headmaster, all of these formed a special atmosphere, that no matter how restrained you were, you would be proud if you stayed in this atmosphere for a longer time.


    Besides, Ning Que was never a bashful person. He sighed and recalled his former question. "What was the message left by the Buddha on the ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll?"


    The Headmaster replied, "I¡¯ve told you, as long as youprehend this book, you would know."


    Ning Que remembered that he had read the "Ming" Handscroll. When he thought of the ambiguous words in the book, he faintly realized those were the messages of the Buddha. Although he was so curious, at his present realm, he had no way to figure them out.


    Whether in the back of the mountain or the forecourt of the Academy, the students were free to study. Ning Que did not feel ashamed to learn from his teacher, so he said, "Teacher, I don¡¯t understand."


    The Headmaster sighed and said, "In fact, I don¡¯t understand it either."


    Ning Que looked at his teacher¡¯s fluttering white brows and felt helpless. He thought, "As an unordinary man, there shouldn¡¯t be any character you are not able to read."


    "When the dharma period reaches the end, the night wille and the moon will surface."


    The Headmaster looked at the stars above the cliffs and said, "The first sentence naturally refers to ¡¯Dharma Ending Period¡¯ and the night means ¡¯the Underworld Invasion¡¯, but what is the moon? Since the Yuelun Kingdom was named after it, it must be round. You had talked about itst year, but who has seen it?"


    He turned around and asked Ning Que, "I don¡¯t understand because it¡¯s a prophecy. I said earlier that if a prophecy would alwayse true, then what do we live for? Since we can live by our own will, the prophecy may note true. If it¡¯s not fulfilled, it may never happen to our world. Then, how can we understand if it doesn¡¯t happen?"


    All these musings were quite a mouthful, but Ning Que heard him very clearly and he generally understood his teacher¡¯s attitude towards the Ming Handscroll. He thought for a moment and asked, "If the prophecy of the Buddhism Sect doesn¡¯t matter, why do I have to go to the Lanke Temple?"


    The Headmaster asked, "What is Lanke Temple famous for?"


    "It¡¯s supposed to be the monks."


    Ning Que said in his heart, but he knew that if he answered like this, he would be badly scolded. Then he thought of the rumors before Prince Long Qing entered Chang¡¯an and the key moments during Master Lotus¡¯s life, then he asked uncertainly, "Is it a debate?"


    He had answered him with enough seriousness and care, but his teacher was still dissatisfied with it.


    He said angrily, "You talk and then I talk. That is romance. A group of cultivators talk about everything on paper and can only fool the schrs and Taoist priests. It¡¯s all Lotus and the little monk at Lanke Temple¡¯s fault since they started this."


    Ning Que asked, "Then what is it?"


    The Headmaster said, "What was the invitation for? The Lanke Temple is best known for the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival."


    Ning Que said indignantly, "What does this have to do with me?"


    The Headmaster said, "The Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival is a Spirit Festival which had a long history. It came from the legend of the Underworld Invasion, so the most important thing was devil-worshiping. In the beginning, it was a ceremony where people begged for ater arrival of the Underworld. In other words, it was a message for the Underworld to keep away and nevere."


    He was surprised a lot to be aware that the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival was relevant to the legend of the Underworld.


    The Headmaster continued, "It was a festival of Taoism in the beginning, but somehow it turned to a Buddhist festival. Maybe the believers of Haotian were shamed about this. Anyway, as time goes by, most people have forgotten its source."


    Ning Que said, "If the Underworld is really going to invade, how can they be sent back so easily. What¡¯s more, I believe that if the Underworld exists for real, the people living there won¡¯t enjoy eating the joss sticks and candles either."


    The Headmaster pped his leg heavily and said, "That¡¯s right. If good words are enough, why do we have to cultivate? Therefore, I kept thinking that perhaps the Buddhism and Taoism held the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival to stop the Underworld by using the Light of Buddha."


    Everyone liked to p legs when getting excited, so did the Headmaster. At this time, he was so excited, but considering his greatest figure, it was not decent, so he pped Ning Que¡¯s leg heavily instead of his own.


    Feeling the hot pain from his legs, Ning Que changed his face. Just as he was going to cry out, he was stopped by his teacher¡¯s following sentences and forgot the pain at once.


    "Suppress... the Underworld... Are you saying that the entrance to the Underworld just happens to be in the Lanke Temple?"


    The Headmaster did not notice his expression at all and said, "Flowers could be found in countless temples, not only in Lanke Temple... Besides, I had visited it years ago and found nothing. You can go to have a try, and perhaps you can find your answers."


    The Headmaster said this casually but Ning Que felt thrilled. As soon as he heard the words of "suppress the Underworld", he was ufortable from head to foot and got an itch on his skin, as if there was some ck smokeing out from his pores. He knew clearly that the Buddhism Sect was skeptical about him being the Son of Yama. If he went to the festival, he might be suppressed by Buddha Light and trapped under the mountain for 500 years.


    The breeze blew softly between the cliffs and the Purple Wisteria was hanging under the rain gallery, dancing with it like bells without sounds. There were only some ps when ripe fruit fell to the ground and cracked with pulping out. The unique rich and fresh fragrance of the Purple Wisteria pervaded everywhere.


    Ning Que kept silent for a long time and suddenly asked, "Teacher, what is the Son of Yama?"


    The Headmaster looked at the night cloud in front of them and said, "ording to the records of the Sutra of Light in the Xuankong Temple and the ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll, Yama had 70,000 children. Every time the day and night alternated and the Underworld invaded, a Son of Yama would be sent to portend and guide the night."


    "To guide the night?" Ning Que repeated surprisedly.


    The Headmaster said, "The arrival of darkness certainly needs guidance, just like the light. I have been thinking for many years whether it is a guide or a projection."


    Ning Que lowered his head and did not say anything untilte at night. The stars were dim and the night clouds above the cliffs were as ck as ink. He could not help asking, "Teacher, if I were the Son of Yama, would you kill me?"


    The Headmaster looked at him andughed. Then he said for granted, "Of course I would."


    Ning Que looked up at him and his eyes were full of innocence and pity like a newborn kitten who was delicate because of the starvation and fear of the new world.


    "Everyone has a unique life. Even though there are so many people in the world, mine is as unique as theirs. Teacher, you can¡¯t be muddle-headed."


    The Headmaster stared at him and seriously said, "It will be heroic if you can exchange your life for the entire world. If the dayes, I hope you can kill yourself."


    Ning Que certainly did not agree with that, so he said indignantly, "Eldest Brother is a benevolent man and Second Brother is a man of ideals and integrity. But I¡¯m a selfish person and cannot be a Sage. Teacher you are so excessive by saying this."


    The Headmaster suddenlyughed happily.


    Listening hisugh, Ning Que was helpless.


    The Headmaster looked at him and said with approval, "You¡¯re very good. Since you are a normal man, you could be yourself. Why do you have to be a saint? Your reasoning is thorough. In my opinion, if you can think right, in the future, you will not do bad things. I¡¯m so gratified, Haha."


    The hearty, and even arrogantugh sounded in the night and then disappeared. Ning Que was still extremely helpless and did not know what he should say to his teacher.


    The Headmaster smiled. "The Son of Yama needs to be defined, but it cannot be defined by human beings. It can be only defined by you. For men are only human beings because we believe who we are and only we can definite who we are, not Haotian or other existences."


    Ning Que smiled wryly, "You sound reasonable... I¡¯m not ttering, I mean it. However, you are the only one who is qualified to say this."


    The Headmaster said, "I did not say this. Your Youngest Uncle did."

 Chapter 502: Who Would Protect Him If the Night Came?

    Chapter 502: Who Would Protect Him If the Night Came?


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    It turned out to be Youngest Uncle¡¯s words. Ning Que looked at the dim light in Chang¡¯an in the distance and didn¡¯t speak for a long time. Then he asked, "Master, do I have to go to Lanke Temple?"


    The Headmaster said, "It is up to you. But if you don¡¯t go, no one can clear the doubts in your mind. I cannot either. And I always thought that this journey to Lanke Temple would be your Lucky Chance."


    Ning Que asked, "What kind of Lucky Chance?"


    "I never believed in Lucky Chance in the past," said the Headmaster, "But after witnessing so many things, I gradually started to think that maybe I am too stubborn and have to change how i think. Lucky Chance like that are not meant to happen, they are influences exerted by some people in the world on the environment and people around them. And in the end, the effect of this influence will be really big to those around them."


    "When one gets to this moment, this opportunity, the thoughts on his mind turn into reality. One day, when he looks back, he will find that he had got exactly what he wanted in the past. I call these ¡¯Lucky Chance¡¯."


    The Headmaster continued, "Sangsang could heal herself, but it would be better if those young monks in Lanke Temple could help her. And you need to learn some Buddhism skills so that the rage in your body brought by the skill of your Youngest Uncle can be washed off. And if you want to find out whether you really are the Son of Yama, you have to go to the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival. For these reasons, this journey is your defining moment."


    Ning Que was quite bewildered and said, "Your words are as confusing as those of the monks."


    The Headmaster said, "You will understand the monks if you listen more carefully."


    "Will the journey be dangerous?"


    "You could be hit by a carriage just by walking on the street."


    "Master, I will take your words as a yes."


    "When did you hear me say that?"


    Ning Que turned his gaze from Chang¡¯an City to his knees and said, "If even you think it is dangerous, then how can Sangsang and I deal with it?"


    The Headmaster smiled, "Without being cooked for three days, the dish Fo Tiao Qiang could not be made. Without experiencing..."


    Ning Que raised his hands and said bitterly, "I have heard the Youngest Uncle¡¯s words many times. Please save it."


    The Headmasterughed and said, "Go and have a look. Without looking for yourself, you will never know who that is. "


    Ning Que sighed, "What a wonderful world."


    The Headmaster said surprisingly, "That sounds very catchy."


    "Why?"


    "You made it sound like a poem."


    "I was just bored."


    The wind on the cliff was so calming, but Ning Que didn¡¯t feel rxed at all. He asked sadly, "Master, you are so powerful, can you really not see the future?"


    The Headmaster said, "Cultivation needs time. Although I have lived longer than the ordinary person, I am not old enough to have experienced thest Underworld Invasion, or have witnessed the things that happened before the Forever Night. And maybe because of that, I can¡¯t understand the ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscrollpletely. I don¡¯t know how the story will unfold. You are already involved in the story. I can¡¯t see your future, but I hope it will be good."


    Ning Que asked, "Are there still people who have experienced thest Underworld Invasion?"


    He never believed that cultivators could live for thousands of years, but now that he had learned so much at the Academy, he started thinking that it may be possible.


    The Headmaster said, "I know two people who have experienced thest Evesting night."


    Ning Que didn¡¯t expect this to be his answer. He asked in surprise, "Who are they?"


    The Headmaster¡¯s expression became hard to read. He said, "An alcoholic and a butcher...but they don¡¯t care about the world anymore, and I am not even sure whether we can still call them human."


    Ning Que thought about his weird dreams again.


    An alcoholic and a butcher once appeared in one of his dreams. They stood next to him and stared at him. And in another dream, the Headmaster took the wine bottle from the alcoholic and drank from it, and he also took a cooked pig leg from the butcher and ate some. Maybe the Headmaster was talking about them?


    Ning Que asked, "Master, do you really not want to hear about my dream?"


    The Headmaster looked at him, smiled and said, "You still don¡¯t understand? That is your own dream."


    Ning Que finally understood his Master now.


    You could only know the plot of a story when it had actually happened, and you could only understand colors when you had seen them before. To know whether he was the Son of Yama and what would happen in the future, he needed to get involved in the story and make his own decisions; in other words, he was the writer of his own story.


    The Headmaster was gone.


    Ning Que was alone on the dark cliff. He remembered what Master Lotus had said to him when he was dying and frowned.


    "You have already joined the Devil. If you want to practice the Devil¡¯s skills, you¡¯ve got to practice Buddhism first. Only then can you walk into the darkness. Though you have little chance of sess, and perhaps you¡¯ll die shortly after you start on this journey, I still wish you luck. And I will curse you."


    He repeated these words to himself, and stood up to wave into the darkness. He said, "If you are really Yama, and I am really your son. Remember to protect me when my Master can¡¯t."


    The Peach Mountain on the West-Hill was very spring-like. But the darkness of the Divine Hall on it was cold and awful. The Pce was spacious, and inside there were hundreds of priests in red and deacons in ck kneeling down on the smooth ground. It looked as if a red flower which was blooming at night had been pinned on the ground.


    These priests and deacons had been kneeling down for a long time and their knees were in great pain. But no one dared to stand up or to look up. They had to look at their own reflections on the ground and could only see the humble expression on their faces. Even they themselves couldn¡¯t understand why they were so scared. A great fear rose from deep within them and stiffened their bodies. The red flower was shivering in the darkness; it didn¡¯t look beautiful at all, it was cold and bloody.


    For thousands of years, this was what the Judicial Department was like. People there dealt with horrible penalties and believed in power. No one was unfamiliar with the horrible feeling in the pce.


    The verdict of the Divine Hall didn¡¯t change much. It was still huge and cold. The ck jade throne was still there, dark like blood. But the bead curtain in front was crushed to powder in the previous fight and could never be repaired anymore. In the end, some servant put it into the trash pile and it disappeared.


    The bead curtain had been in the verdict of the Divine Hall for many years, adding lots of terrifying and mysterious aura to the man behind it. People had be ustomed to it, but now they had to get used to its disappearance, as the powerful man there was already dead.


    It was a young and beautiful girl sitting on the ck jade throne now. And in the subordinates¡¯ eyes, her body was too divine for them to look at. Because of that, they couldn¡¯t really see how beautiful she was; they only knew that she represented power and horror.


    Ye Hongyu had been sitting silently on the ck jade throne for a long time. Her face was expressionless and peaceful, so much so that she looked cold.


    Since she didn¡¯t say anything, all the people in the Pce didn¡¯t dare to say anything either. All the priests and deacons who were kneeling down did not dare to look up at her. The timid ones clenched their teeth and almost fainted when they found that their teeth had made a sound.


    Their humble expression and nervous, scared breath reminded Ye Hongyu of the things she had experienced and seen. Her beautiful face was mocking, and she felt tired and disgusted.


    A priest walked out from the side of the Divine Hall and bowed in front of the ck jade throne.


    Ye Hongyu waved her hand impatiently.


    The priest opened a thick document and read it out whilst looking at the people expressionlessly. "The kind and strict Haotian had guided people out of the dark Wilderness. His believers had their sharp swords in their hands and treaded on the broken ice in the river. They stood in front of the bonfire and announced to his people..."


    Simrly to the secr world, a shift in leadership here often led to bloody wars. Whilst the cold voice of the priest continued, 14 other priests in red and deacons in ck would be dragged out of the verdict of the Divine Hall. Outside the pce, as the axes swung, crying and yelling could be heard.


    These 14 people were the determined supporters of the former Divine Priest of Judgement, and so had to be punished. Some of them would be killed, but others could continue to contribute to the West-Hill Divine Pce. The dead were perhaps luckier, as they didn¡¯t have to spend the rest of their life regretting their actions to the Tao Addict when she was downtrodden.


    The voice of that priest drifted in the empty verdict of the Divine Hall. As the names were called one by one, the subordinates became more and more scared, until only themanders of the cavalrymen in the middle looked calm.


    The Judicial Department was in charge of themanders of the cavalryman of Divine Hall. But after the death of Prince Long Qing two years ago, the administration and penalty of the cavalryman had been transferred to the hands of Luo Kedi, themander of the guards. And although thesemanders were not respectful to the current God, they were not those priests who only knew to read the ssics and were not powerful at all; they were powerhouses in the Seethrough Realm.


    The Judicial Department was practical. As long as one was powerful enough, his past crime could be erasedpletely and he would qualify to survive. After all, they were the reason why the West-Hill Divine Pce could rule the world.


    But unexpectedly, the priest looked at the gorgeous gold and ck armor of themanders of the cavalry and he read their names slowly.


    "Zi Mo."


    "Yuan Jun."


    "Liu Xiao."Hearing their own names being read, themanders of the cavalryman of the Divine Hall couldn¡¯t help but raise their heads and look up at the ck jade throne. They were extremely surprised and afraid. But the girl sitting on the throne seemed to be asleep; her eyes were closed and her head was in her hands.


    Themander called Zi Mo was the most experienced and most powerful of all of them. He looked at his horrified peers and shook his head. He stood up and dusted his knees before asking the girl sitting on the throne, "Why?"

 Chapter 503: Just Because of One More Look at You

    Chapter 503: Just Because of One More Look at You


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The verdict of the Divine Hall had been without any dust for many years, except for the broken bead curtain and the fine sand deep in the crevices that could only be forced out by the horrible aura from the ck jade throne. So, kneeling on the floor would not get any dirt.


    Therefore, Commander Zimo did not really want to flick off dust but to express his contempt for the girl on the seat. Or he wanted to regain some confidence by the action so that he would not be overwhelmed again by the dignity of the ck jade throne.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce cavalries were divided into ten groups and each group had amander. Zi Mo had reached the upper state of Seethrough that could bepared with Chen Bachi. He clearly knew that he couldn¡¯t defeat Ye Hongyu, but at the moment, he had toe out for the sake of survival.


    Ye Hongyu slightly blinked and slowly opened her eyes. She looked at the man before her without any expression on her face. Before saying anything, she frowned and began to cough in pain.


    A handmaiden nervously came to the seat and handed a white silk scarf. Ye Hongyu gently wiped her lip, leaving some bloody plum blossoms on it.


    All the people of West-Hill Divine Pce, including those mightymanders, knew that Ye Hongyu had been greatly injured. Although the Judicial Department always advocated for thew of the jungle, nobody dared to take the chance and challenge her at present. They had no confidence.


    On the day when she broke the bead curtain and killed the former Great Divine Priest of Judgment, to seat on the ck jade throne, all of them thought she would be the next Great Divine Priest of Judgment.


    Nobody had thought that she would leave the seat, after closing her eyes for a short rest and walk towards the white Divine Hall on the top of Peach Mountain, where she woundedmander Luo Kedi with one movement under the witnessing eyes of shocked crowds. If not because of the Hierarch Lord, she might have killed the man.


    There were very few people in the world who could kill the Great Divine Priest of Judgment and the cavalrymander. For those who could, they might not have the courage. Even Ye Hongyu, who had broken through and reached the Knowing Destiny State, could not make it. However, she dared to do it and seeded in the end.


    All the people present on that day would never forget the turquoise robe on the Peach Mountain. The fight hadpletely established her status in the Divine Hall and since that day, no one of the Temple of Judgement dared to challenge her.


    Zi Mo dared not even think Ye Hongyu was coughing up blood and greatly injured. Her survival and killing of the Great Divine Priest of Judgment and defeating Luo Kedi were enough to prove her indescribable power.


    Holding her lower jaw, Ye Hongyu quietly looked at him and said, "Kneel."


    Hearing her order, deacons and officials kneeling on the floor stared at each other. They subconsciously recalled the asion when the Divine Priest entered the hall while they fanatically yelled, and a strange look appeared on their faces all of a sudden.


    Those priests and deacons understood the fears and thoughts in each other¡¯s eyes, raised their heads and stretched their fingers to Commander Zimo who was the only person standing. They angrily cried, "Kneel!"


    "Kneel!"


    "Kneel!"


    Hundreds of simultaneous voices echoed in the grand Divine Hall like thunder. They were so angry that they sputtered, their voices grew hoarse and their faces distorted, looking like a crowd of madmen.


    Ye Hongyu looked at him calmly. She felt a bit satisfied and tired.


    Hearing the yelling and watching the once gentle and hypocritical colleagues bing cruel and angry, Zi Mo grew paler. He stiffened and found it hard to keep his bnce, so he began shaking like a weak patient.


    "Why?"


    It was the second time that he asked the question, but this time his calmness and arrogance disappeared. His eyes were begging for mercy.


    The official closed the files, stared at Zi Mo along with severalmanders kneeling on the floor, begging, and he yelled coldly, "How dare you! As amander, how could you be so depraved? Her Majesty has shown her mercy in view of your service to the Judicial Department. You could live at the sacrifice of your posts and cultivation. Why are you so ungrateful?"


    Ye Hongyu did not kill them. But Zi Mo and othermanders had worked in the Judicial Department for many years. They searched and hunted for the remaining disciples of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and other heathens. Countless people wanted to kill them due to their misdeeds. If they really lost their power and left Peach Mountain without the protection of the West-Hill Divine Pce, what kind of miserable ending was waiting for them?


    Hearing the words, Zi Mo shook even more violently, almost falling to the ground. He looked at the girl on the seat and cried in fear, "Only Commander Luo has the authority to punish us... Don¡¯t you care about the Hierarch Lord¡¯s anger if you exceed your authority?"


    Ye Hongyu slowly straightened up and said with a nk expression, "Commander Luo is now confined to bed, so the Hierarch Lord has authorized me to take charge."


    Luo Kedi, the cavalrymander of the West-Hill Divine Pce, was a Grand Cultivator of the Knowing destiny State. How could this kind of person get sick? Everyone knew the real reason why Commander Luo could not take charge was because he had been seriously injured by Ye Hongyu, chilling the spirits of the Judicial Department¡¯s people.


    The yelling faded in the Divine Hall and Zi Mo grew paler. He stood up and shouted desperately, "My lord, please tell us what kind of sins have wemitted?"


    The officer¡¯s face became serious and he was preparing to reprimand him. And then Ye Hongyu raised her hand. The officer immediately closed his mouth and humbly retreated to the side of the ck jade throne.


    She quietly stared at Zi Mo and the cavalrymanders for a long time.


    There wasplete silence and stillness in the hall.


    Ye Hongyu suddenly smiled, and said in a calm but peremptory voice, "You know clearly that it¡¯s just an excuse to banish all of you. The real reason is quite simple. I don¡¯t want to see you any more for you once looked at me in that way."


    Zi Mo suddenly understood.


    Last spring, Ye Hongyu was very weak due to breaking the realm. There had been rumors that Commander Luo had obtained the approval of the Hierarch Lord and was ready to propose marriage to her. Being the case, the cavalrymanders headed by Chen Bachi looked at her differently. Some were greedy like Chen Bachi, some pitied her like she was a frail beauty and others mocked her for her future prospects.


    They were not hostile and not all of them were malicious. However, when they looked at the Great Divine Priest of Judgment in that way, it was a sin which should be punished.


    Zi Mo was desperate. Looking down at the smooth ground, he said ironically, "We have made so many meritorious services for the Divine Hall and you want us dead just because we looked at you in that way several times?"


    "One more look is enough."


    Ye Hongyu smiled and said, "What makes you think that I would let you leave Peach Mountain alive if not for the meritorious service?"


    Zi Mo looked at her and said tremblingly with hisst hope, "My lord, we can still serve the Divine Hall... serve you. We want to serve you. Please have mercy on us. We will make amends for our mistake."


    Ye Hongyu was a little tired. She held her jaw, leaned and said, "I said you are not guilty. So there is no need for you to make amends. I just don¡¯t want to see you again."


    The officer once again stepped forward. He watched themanders and said calmly, "Take your punishmentter. The lord has been merciful toward you. You will all get an old horse for plowing and some silvers for settling down."


    Hundreds of people bowed to the ground and shuddered in the hall. No one dared to oppose the decision. Zi Mo slowly clenched his fists. Othermanders could not help but lift their heads.


    Ye Hongyu did not look at them at all.


    The officer looked at them as if he had not sensed the changes in their emotions. He continued expressionless, "You shall not step into West-Hill Divine Kingdom again, shall not mention to anyone that you once served the hall, and you shall not bear a grudge and talk nonsense. Death wille to you if you vite any of these."


    Zi Mo looked around. Thosemanders avoided his stare after hearing the ruthless verdict. After a while, the struggle on his face turned into self-mockery. He sighed and then slowly fell to his knees, receiving the grim punishment in pain.


    Holy and indifferent light appeared in the Divine Hall. Zi Mo was screaming in pain like an angry beast. Othermanders shouted bitterly one after the other.


    They worked diligently for their entire lives and finally entered the Seethrough state. However, today their cultivation was destroyed, making thempletely ordinary.


    Gradually, calm was restored in the ck hall and became even more horrible.


    The empty hall was inhumanly lonesome.


    Ye Hongyu calmly sat in the bloody ck jade throne.


    The seat wasrge. Sitting in it seemed to be ufortable.


    But she felt ratherfortable.


    The devout officer knelt before her and said in a low voice, "My lord, Zi Mo and the othermanders are indeed very mighty and you can expect their loyalties. It is a pity that they will be expelled along with Commander Luo..."


    Ye Hongyu slightly bowed her head. She held her jaw like she had been sleeping.


    "There¡¯s no need to worry about a defeated opponent. Someday in the future, I will kill them. So why should I care about their feelings?"


    "No one has noticed that the world is changing and it will change into a new ce where Grand Cultivators of Knowing destiny State might be killed at any time, not to mention a Seethrough cultivator."


    In thete spring of the 16th year of the Tianqi era, 3447 of the West-Hill calendar, a total of seven cavalrymanders lost their cultivation and were expelled from West-Hill by Ye Hongyu, the new Great Divine Priest of Judgment, and were banned from returning to the West-Hill Divine Kingdom. Thosemanders who used to be cocky, now left Peach Mountain with an old horse, some silvers and their own squire like lost dogs.


    In the records of the West-Hill Divine Pce, they hadmitted obscure sins which were concluded into one word--depravity. They were called the Fallen Knights.


    But people who witnessed everything in the West-Hill hall knew clearly that the real reason of their ruthless punishment was because of one more look. A look at the girlst spring.

 Chapter 504: A Small Porcelain Bottle

    Chapter 504: A Small Porcin Bottle


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "Waste! Scum!"


    "Get out!"


    In the depth of West-Hill, in a cliff cave covered by vines, some resentful, acrimonious, and raucous swearing words resounded. Even though they were so brassy and unbearable, somehow they were sealed within the cave and did not leak out at all.


    The vines were stirred and a figure rushed out of the cave, falling heavily on the ground. It was a young man dressed in an old robe. After a long time, he finally woke up and struggled up, holding on to the wall and coughing painfully.


    The Taoist was Long Qing. He held on to the vines to rest, until he confirmed he was not seriously injured. Then he walked to the edge of the cliff, picked up the buckets and box, then walked toward the higher caves. There was no fear or hatred in his eyes and he did not even look back at the cave.


    Considering he had been taking care of these old, seriously injured Taoist priests for so many days, he had deeply experienced the horrible tempers of these abnormal people.


    Since he had been humiliated and injured so many times already, he was numb to it and very clear that they were way more powerful than him, so he could not hold any grudges.


    Although the Taoist priests in caves treated Long Qing badly, abusing and insulting him as they wanted, they knew well that if they wanted information to keep in touch with the outside world, they had to keep him alive. Therefore, they beat him to torture him but they never disabled him.


    There were many caves in the cliffs and many old Taoists in them. Even though they believed they were self-controlled and Long Qing was not badly injured in every cave, as time went by, he became weaker and weaker by the day.


    Because of the injuries, Long Qing moved very slowly. When he finished his work and went back to the Taoist temple, it was sunset. He stood in front of the hut beside theke and watched the warm setting sun shining over the austere Taoist temple on the mountain, expressionless.


    A middle-aged Taoist slowly walked toward him, looking at theke at dusk. He did not exin to him about those old Taoists¡¯ identities. Instead, he said, "The more beautiful it looked, the fewer people there will be."


    Long Qing saluted him and then said, "Uncle, are there only a few people all the time?"


    From the South Sea to Zhishou Abbey, except for his three uncles, Long Qing had not seen anyone else. The beautiful and austere Taoist temple was always quiet.


    "It was a little lively when Pipi and the little girl were still here ten years ago, but they all left. Only Ye Su woulde back asionally. It was inevitably lonely."


    The middle-aged Taoist said, "But I have heard that the little girl has inherited the position of Divine Priest of Judgment. As the positions of Divine Priests of Light and Revtion are going to be reced, it will be noisier here for a couple of days."


    The celebrities, like the Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce, the three Great Divine Priests, the Nation Master of Tang, and Master Yan Se needed to be baptized to award the position of Great Divine Priest. Long Qing had known that but when he realized that Ye Hongyu had stepped above him, he was somehow upset.


    "As the sacred ce in the hearts of Haotian Taoism disciples and the Unknown ce in the legends of cultivation, it is so simple, austere, and even boring. Is it different to what you imagined?"


    Long Qing shook his head and said, "Since it is unknown and unimaginable, if we want to know, we have to see it. No, even if we live here, we are unable to understand it."


    The middle-aged Taoist smiled and said, "It is not bad for you to understand this. As a supermundane ce, Zhishou Abbey can be simple, quiet, and even lonely, but if one thinks that what he has seen of Zhishou Abbey is the real Zhishou Abbey, he is truly stupid."


    "The Taoists living in this mountain are Zhishou Abbey. West-Hill Divine Pce is Zhishou Abbey. The abbey dean is Zhishou Abbey. You and I are Zhishou Abbey. The whole Haotian Taoism is Zhishou Abbey. Every ce shadowed in Haotian is Zhishou Abbey. You were in Zhishou Abbey even before you came here."


    What he said was hard to understand, but at least, Long Qing understood the first sentence.


    Considering the disabled old Taoist priests living in the caves that were all unknown in the world, but they all had extremely high cultivation realms, who even stepped beyond the Five States and became the Sages of legend¡ª What an unimaginably great ce Zhishou Abbey was.


    "I know clearly about the terrible temper they have. Although it¡¯s good for your heart training, you¡¯d better do something to treat your injuries, otherwise, they will be an obstacle in your cultivation. So, make some medicine for yourself."


    The middle-aged Taoist looked at him and said.


    Upon hearing this, Long Qing seemed to recall something and he asked, "Uncle, I saw a medicine tripod when I cleared up the medicine storehouse. Can I use it?"


    The middle-aged Taoist felt satisfied and he said, "You must have learned something from the ¡¯Sha¡¯ book and were not disturbed by these attractive skills. It¡¯s lucky for you to find a way to refine drugs. If you need the medicine tripod, you can use it. Just don¡¯t forget to clean it afterwards."


    Zhishou Abbey¡¯s medicine storehouse was not located at the shore of theke; instead, it was situated in the western cliff. It was a two-story building withplicated inscriptions and ornate patterns on the beam columns which looked dignified. Comparing to the huts worshiping the seven Tomes of the Arcane, it seemed to be the main hall of the Taoist temple.


    In front of the Hall of Medicine was arge meadow. Beneath the meadow was an abyssal cliff, which was even unclimbable for a monkey. The mightly masters would be killed by the tactical array under the meadow, even though they had climbed up the cliff.


    Long Qing watched the meadow, shadowed in the twilight, which seemed as if burning. He was feeling the power of the array. After a while, he turned around and walked toward the Hall of Medicine. He was holding a big old iron hoop with many normal keys. Without them, he would never step into the Hall of Medicine.


    The door of the Hall of Medicine slowly opened and a tremendously huge space showed up. Many rows of shelves extended to the depth of the hall, as if they were miles long and with no end.


    Numerous rare and precious drugs and materials were ced on the shelves and each kind of drug was provided with suitable venttion and temperature by certain arrays.


    These drugs and materials were so rare in the world that many of them were noted as missing in the scriptures of West-Hill. If they appeared in the world, they would be fought for by countless cultivators. But in this hall, they were just like normal drugs and materials as if no one had cared for them for a long time.


    It was hard to imagine but easy to understand. Whether the emperor of South Jin Kingdom or the monarch of the Kingdom of Song, being rich or being poor, they all showed their respects to West-Hill Divine Pce and consecrated their fortune to West-Hill Divine Pce as if the treasures and resources all meant to belong to it.


    In Master Lotus¡¯ words, the West-Hill Divine Pce was a dog raised by Zhishou Abbey. It plundered all the resources of the world to maintain control over the world. The most precious treasures would be sent to Zhishou Abbey. From this point of view, the middle-aged Taoist was right about saying that everything in the world belonged to Zhishou Abbey, except the kingdom called Tang.


    As Long Qing had been cleaning the entire Zhishou Abbey every day and picked up the drugs for the horrible Taoist priests in the caves, he became familiar with the ce. He walked into the deep hall with the keys and did not pay attention to the herbs on the sides of the hall.


    Anyone could do this if they had lived here for a long time. However, when Long Qing reached the depth of the hall, he became dignified.


    Behind the cutout-ebony door was the most important room of the Hall, where the rarest drugs and materials were kept. He had never been able to open the door before because he did not have the key.


    The medicine tripod Long Qing needed was outside the door. He happened to see it once through the door. He was surprised when his uncle allowed him to use it.


    He found the simplest key on the hoop and inserted it into the lock. The lock clicked and the door slowly opened.


    Long Qing entered and began to search for what he needed. Since only two materials of the drug he was going to make were carefully reserved in there, he was a little nervous.


    The drug he prepared was called Earth Pill in the "Sha" Handscroll. Aside from being able to cure the wounds made by the old Taoist priests, it could stabilize his Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi which was repaired by the abbey dean. In other words, it would help him with his cultivation.


    The pill was valuable since it was so helpful. In the scriptures of West-Hill, it was described as the mightly pills that would revive human beings. Long Qing would never have expected to have a chance at refining the drug by himself. It was understandable for him to be nervous.


    However, the next moment, he was shocked by what he saw.


    He did not find the materials he needed; instead, he discovered a small porcin bottle among so many bottles.


    A very light fragrance of medicine emerged from it.

 Chapter 505: Small Pills

    Chapter 505: Small Pills


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Long Qing approached it.


    Because of nervousness, it was a little difficult for him to grasp the small porcin bottle. He trembled so badly that he became clumsy. As he approached the porcin bottle, the light fragrance leaked out. He could not help closing his eyes, revealing an intoxicating expression on his face.


    After smelling the medicine, he felt his body be light like a white feather as if all the filth and grime in his body were purified in one minute, and he would fly with the wind toward the Firmament.


    After a long time, he opened his eyes. He looked at the bottle in his hand surprisedly and trembled¡ª just by smelling it, he produced an illusion of ascending to heaven and bing immortal. What if he took a pill?


    He became so excited and scared as he figured out what the pills were. The extreme excitement and painful hesitation went back and forth in his eyes.


    Many years ago, he graduated from the Revtion Institute and became the Second Priest of the Judicial Department. Probably because both he and Ye Hongyu were young, the Great Divine Priest of Judgment on the ck jade throne felt no threat from them; they held casual chats on asion.


    In a certain conversation between the Great Divine Priest and Ye Hongyu, standing aside, he happened to hear the name of this pill. It was called the Heavenly Power Pill.


    The Heavenly Power Pill was so precious that even the West-Hill Divine Pce stored none of it. Even though it could not make a man ascend to heaven and be immortal, it could prolong a man¡¯s life for ten years. Furthermore, it could help cultivator break through a realm.


    As long as cultivators took the pill, they could reach the Seethrough Realm immediately from the No Doubts State. Even the sess rate of reaching the Knowing destiny State could be raised over 50%.


    Considering such a strong efficacy, the Heavenly Power Pill was the supreme temptation to cultivators. However, there were few cultivators who knew about it.


    Long Qing knew of them and he was sure the pills in the small porcin bottle were just that.


    He used to be the Divine Son of West-Hill, but his Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi were ruined by Ning Que¡¯s arrow at the moment when he was going to break through. Then he turned into a loser who could not cultivate. He used to be self-degradating and became a beggar to scramble for bloody bread in an old temple in the Capital Cheng. Until he met the Taoist in indigo in the South Sea, he was able to cultivate again. Unfortunately, although his Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi were repaired, his cultivation was no longer the same. He had to re-do it from the beginning which was harder than before.


    Losing everything he ever had was more painful than being a poor man who had nothing since the very beginning. No one was more eager than Long Qing to regain his previously attained realm.


    Therefore, the small porcin bottle was more alluring to him than anything else in the world.


    Long Qing held the bottle in his hand and smelled it. His hands were trembling so badly that even his entire body began trembling next. The expression on his face was ceaselessly changing and he struggled and hesitated painfully. His sweat came out like a stream in the mountain and quickly soaked up his Taoist robe.


    Suddenly, he bit his lips and drank the blood to clear his mind and roared like a beast.


    With the painful roaring, he suppressed the greed and desire in his eyes and became calm and peaceful. He was no longer trembling. He looked at the bottle for thest time and took a deep breath. Then he put the bottle back in its original position.


    It was not because the temptation of the Heavenly Power Pill was not enough for him. If he could, he would open the bottle and swallow all of them without any hesitation. He was not a gentleman like the Eldest Brother of the Academy and he would never give up a chance to recover his cultivation.


    He put the bottle back just because of a simple reason¡ª it was not the best opportunity and Haotian did not allow him to take the pills.


    Although the abbey dean had told him that his will was Haotian¡¯s will, the world was not only about him and Haotian had multiple wills. His uncle told him that it was his fate to use the medicine tripod, so what he could do now was to take the medicine tripod. The Heavenly Power Pill was not in his destiny, at least, not now, because he knew his uncle was watching him somewhere.


    Long Qing found the medicine tripod and the two herbs he needed, then he locked the door to leave. He went to the Refining Room behind the Hall of Medicine. He took a bath and put on clean clothes. Then he began to refine the pills ording to the Tomes of the Arcane.


    The fire was ignited and the medicine tripod was being warmed up. The medicine began to melt and release the fragrance from the crevices of the tripod. A momentter, the fragrance filled up and then went out of the room.


    Long Qing sat cross-legged beside the tripod and fixed his eyes on it, controlling the temperature and timing of the materials. He looked so calm and peaceful as if he had never seen the pills and he had not bitten his lips.


    The extreme calm made him emit a dark aura, like a man who lost his soul. Only he knew that it was an illusion. His mind was clear and as cold as snow.


    He sat quietly beside the tripod and waited, but he did not know whether he was waiting for the moment when the pills were done or the day he would be able to have the Heavenly Power Pill.


    Zhishou Abbey was gradually enveloped in the night and the stars appeared.


    The middle-aged Taoist was standing by theke and watching his shadow on the water. He thought of Long Qing¡¯s behavior and sighed. "The abbey dean was right. Long Qing will have a great future."


    There was also a ssyke in the back of the mountain of the Academy.


    The summer hade and the weather became hotter and hotter as days passed. However, the back of the mountain was still cool, especially the woods around theke. Therefore, the Brothers and Sisters who used to stay in the mountain all came out and yed here.


    In the woods beside theke, it was very noisy as the sounds of the musical instruments and quarrels could be heard everywhere, including the rhythm of Brother Wang Chi¡¯s poems.


    The Seventh Sister Mu You enjoyed both the melon seeds and the lively mood, but her most favorite thing was to sit beside theke while doing embroidery. However, she finally could not stand the noise and hid in the small yard beneath the falls.


    Therefore the pavilion in the middle of ake was upied by Chen Pipi and Ning Que who had been tortured by the noise for a long enough time and didn¡¯t care about them anymore. Chen Pipi shook his head and said, "I don¡¯t understand. Second Brother¡¯s yard is so close to the falls and the sounds of the water are so loud. Is it more peaceful than here?"


    "Don¡¯t change the subject. I¡¯m not Aunt Wu and I¡¯m not interested in rumors," said Ning Que. "You should tell me the truth. That year when I was about die, what did you feed me?"


    In that spring, he was badly hurt by the Psyche Master Yan Suqing in Chang¡¯an and lost his consciousness in the Vermilion Bird Avenue. The Divine Talisman of the Vermilion Bird attacked his body. Thanks to the big ck umbre, he was able to return to the Academy, but he was dying. He thought he would die, but he did not. The more amazing thing was that his Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi inside him were rebuilt.


    Ning Que could never forget this. On that day, only Yu Lian and Chen Pipi showed up in the old library. The former only sent him some bread and a bowl of water, so the one who saved him had to be Chen Pipi.


    Chen Pipi was not the person who would do good things without seeking recognition. He admitted that he saved Ning Que with a precious pill, but he did not tell Ning Que what kind it was.


    "Why do you have to know?"


    Chen Pipi looked at him annoyedly and said, "You already had one. Don¡¯t dream to have more."


    Ning Que said honestly, "If you have more, why can¡¯t I eat another?"


    These days, Ning Que and Sangsang had been recovering in the back of the mountain. They listened to the music, watched the chess game, and chatted. Every day was joyful and leisurely. Except for the bad mood of the empress, nothing would affect them.


    The spring was gone and the summer hade. It was the time for them to go to the Lanke Temple. Having learned that the Elder of the Lanke Temple could cure Sangsang¡¯s disease, instead of thinking the matter that he could be the Son of Yama or that he could be suppressed by the Light of Buddha, he began to prepare for the trip. The most important thing was Sangsang¡¯s health.


    Having stayed in the back of the mountain for a long time, Sangsang was much better. However, he was still worried. Therefore, he asked for a lot of medicinal materials from his Eleventh Brother and this time, it was Chen Pipi¡¯s turn.


    Chen Pipi said, "There were only three of them. One for myself and one for you. There is nothing left."


    Ning Que counted for a long time with his fingers and said seriously, "Brother, you are really not good at Mathematics. Obviously, there is one more."


    "Is this a matter of Mathematics? Is it?"


    Chen Pipi furiously said, "Were you seriously doing the math with your fingers for such a long time? Are you kidding me?" "Thest one is supposed to be kept for life-saving! But you ate the one I prepared for Senior Brother Ye Su; I have to give him thest one. There¡¯s none left."


    "Mr. Ye Su is too great to need your pill."


    Ning Que said pitifully, "Brother, I know I don¡¯t deserve the pill, but can you give the pill to Sangsang, in case she falls ill during the trip."


    Listening to this, Chen Pipi did not say anything. Then he raised his head and said, "Okay."


    Ning Que had figured out that it must be very precious and he was going to give up. To his surprise, Chen Pipi agreed so easily.


    He suddenly recalled that Chen Pipi had to return to Zhishou Abbey. He realized that he asked too much. Then he stood up and walked toward theke. "I¡¯m kidding. Why do you take it so seriously?"

 Chapter 506: Disappointed before Parting

    Chapter 506: Disappointed before Parting


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The Lanke Temple was far away in the southeast. No one wanted an intense schedule. So although the time for the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival was in the fall, most of the tourists and diplomatic missions in the Tang nned to set off ahead of schedule and left around early summer.


    The Academy was the first one to receive the invitation to the Lanke Temple. Ning Que was sent as a representative and Sangsang who had already recovered was by his side. They departed that day.


    Except for the Eldest Brother who traveled with the Headmaster, the disciples in the back of the mountain were seldom seen in the human world. Those obsessive people would only feel blissful while stuck to their own world and for them, the back of the mountain was alreadyrge enough and they didn¡¯t have to go to the mortal world.


    It was based on the belief that they admired and sympathized with their Youngest Brother who needed to enter the human realm to cultivate. When Ning Que set out on the journey, like when he ventured into the Wilderness two years ago, all his Senior Brothers and Sisters came forward to send him off and presented him a small gift tofort him.


    Fourth Brother and Sixth Brother often designed and made good things for Ning Que, but that time, they gifted him an ordinary box. Ninth brother Beigong and Tenth brother Ximen were discreetly standing by thekeshore as they yed a parting tune¡ª their farewell gift to Ning Que.


    Listening to the deste sound of the vertical bamboo flute, Ning Que forcibly snatched a half Sealwort root from the Big ck Horse¡¯s mouth and looked at his Senior Brothers. He became irritated by the delight on their faces and asked, "Is this a send-off or a funeral? Can we not take this too far?"


    The Big ck Horse was also very annoyed at that time as no one minded it. The Big White Goose was swimming slowly in the mirrorke as if pretending to be in deep thought. Whitey the little wolf half-squatted beside Tang Xiaotang¡¯s leg and listened to her and Sangsang¡¯s reluctant parting. The wolf¡¯s head was slightly tilted as if he could understand what they were saying.


    As the deste tune stopped, Beigong Weiyang stepped forward, took out a stack of thin paper from his arms and reluctantly handed it over. Then he said, "Youngest Brother, the world believes that this musical score has been lost and is extremely precious. You cannot say that your Senior Brother isn¡¯t good to you anymore."


    What would Ning Que do with the musical score? The Saintess of Diabolism, Tang Xiaotang called him Youngest Uncle. Could he still meet another Saintess on his journey? However, he considered that if the musical score was really precious, it could be sold for a lot of silver taels, and he would not at all hesitate to do it.


    "This musical score is not just any music. Do you know how to rely on words? Rely on using the chess terminologies and speak single words just like in the chess manual."


    Fifth Brother proudly walked among the crowd giving off an incessantly sour smell. He did not know how many days he had passed without taking a shower. Seventh Sister could not help but frown and nagged at him but he did not care.


    "The Lanke Temple is not a dangerous ce, and it¡¯s not worth ying such a deste and solemn tune. However, the temple was named after the chess world and the monks¡¯ skills on the chessboard are equally good."


    Fifth Brother who had been ignoring the world affairs all along gave Ning Que an affirming look and said,"I have worked hard in cultivating with your Eighth Brother at the Academy while those monks got all the fame instead. Youngest Brother, your improper conduct on the chessboard cannot ruin the prestige of the Academy and embarrass your Senior Brother."


    Voices dropped. Eighth Brother carried a thick pile of chess manuals, looked at Ning Que with enthusiasm and said, "Youngest Brother, as you can see, we have yed dozens of chess games. Presumably, at this state, your skills are higher than those monks¡¯. It¡¯s just that you are toozy on weekdays, so you can¡¯t do basic cultivation. This is a chess manual carefullypiled by your two Senior Brothers. You may wish to practice these chess moves on the way..."


    Ning Que was stunned. He wondered where he was.


    At this time, the Fifth Brother snatched the chess manuals from Eighth Brother¡¯s grip and excoriatingly said, "Stupid! What use are these chess manuals to Youngest Brother?"


    Ning Que was overjoyed. He repeatedly nodded and said, "Yes, yes."


    However, he did not expect his Fifth Brother to give the thick stack of chess manuals to Sangsang.


    "Sangsang¡¯s understanding of chess far exceeds our Youngest Brother."


    Fifth Brother looked at Sangsang and happily said,"Sangsang, the most important task of defending the chess skills of the Academy... has been given to you."


    ...


    ...


    The Academy was located in the southern suburbs of Chang¡¯an City. There was no need to worry that the city gates would be closed. Therefore, in order to avoid the heat, Ning Que and Sangsang left before the sloping sun gave way to an approaching night.


    Looking at the ck horse carriage gradually disappearing into the misty hillside, Second Brother slightly frowned and felt that the atmosphere was a bit weird, hiding something that was not clearly visible.


    Eldest Brother looked on as the ck carriage left and remained silent for a moment. He then turned and left; the light shone on his old jacket making the faint dust on it more visible. It seemed that the cotton sleeves were slightly quivering.


    The Second Brother turned around to look at the Eldest Brother¡¯s figure on the mountain road. It slightly touched his heart and he chased up the road.


    The Eldest Brother walked slowly, but for some unknown reason, it was very difficult to follow him.


    When the Eldest Brother reached the thatched hut, the setting sun had just died out.


    The night shrouded the ravine, and the stars appeared one by one upon the canopy of the heavens.


    The Headmaster was standing outside the hut. He bent over and carefully examined a wide tube-shaped iron object. He did not know what was inside the iron tube.


    The Eldest Brother came up behind the Headmaster and asked, "Teacher, what are you looking at?"


    "I¡¯m looking at the stars... Well, we should say that we are stargazing. This way, it sounds more elegant."


    The Headmaster motioned for him toe and see and said, "This is what old Sixth and Thirteenth made in my honor. They called it the Stargazer Mirror. I have tried it before and the stars are still the same but the scenery in the distance is magnified and pulled closer. I think it would be better to view through the telescope."


    The Eldest Brother looked through the tube-like iron object and found that the view was indeed like what the Headmaster had described. The stars in the field of view of the iron tube did not berge, but when he looked at the mountain under the starlight in the distance, it appeared clear and erged.


    "What¡¯s really interesting is that there are so many things that the Youngest Brother knows."


    He smiled, but his expression seemed a little anxious.


    The Headmaster looked up at the stars above his head and said. "In this world, there may be people who were born wise, but there is no omniscient person. Your Youngest Brother knows more things. There will inevitably be quite a lot of things that he doesn¡¯t understand. I am also the same. Legend has it that, the seven volumes of Tomes of the Arcane show the sessful transformation of Haotian¡¯s will. When I was a turquoise robe schr just like you, I was able to read the remaining six volumes. Now that I have grown old, I still can¡¯t even read the words on the ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll."


    The Eldest Brother sincerely said, "I do not understand the Handscroll either."


    "These superfluous words are unclear to the teacher. How do you understand them?"


    The Headmaster looked at him, smiled and said,"Since you don¡¯t understand it, don¡¯t worry about it day and night."


    The Eldest Brother said, "In a work like this, we have no choice but to worry."


    The Headmaster looked at him sternly and said, "If this was a story, no one knows how it would develop. You do not know, I do not know, the world does not know, then what do you think must the oue of the story be?"


    Everyone in the back of the mountain of the Academy knew that no matter how adorable Chen Pipi was, or how fierce Ning Que was, the teacher¡¯s most beloved apprentice was still the Eldest Brother. The teacher seldom criticized the Eldest Brother. Stern reprimands, like the one that day, had almost never happened.


    After a long silence, the Eldest Brother said, "If I don¡¯t worry about tomorrow, I will have to live today in sorrow."


    The Headmaster said, "You should only worry about today and not tomorrow."


    The Eldest Brother said, "If you are not worried about future prospects of the world, why would you allow Youngest Brother to go to the Lanke Temple?"


    The Headmaster looked at the mountain forest shrouded in silver hues and listened to the faint sound of waterfalls in the distance. He said, "The night your Youngest Brother killed Xia Hou, I discovered that there was something wrong with Sangsang. It was more serious than I had thought. If we really use the West-Hill Divine Skill, perhaps it will cure the problem but might cause more problems. So, I allowed him to take her to the Lanke Temple and see if there was any Buddhism Sect method that could cure her."


    The Eldest Brother bluntly asked, "What if the disease cannot be cured?"


    The Headmaster turned around, looked at him and said, "If the disease is not cured, your Youngest Brother will be very sad. So, even if there is only a glimmer of hope, you must put in a hundred times the effort. Moreover, she should not have fallen sick in the first ce."


    "What about the Haotian Taoism?"


    The Eldest Brother said, "Sangsang is the inheritor to the Divine Priest of Light of the West-Hill Divine Pce. After knowing that she is seriously ill, the Haotian Taoism will certainly worry about it. They should have their own methods of curing the disease."


    The Headmaster looked at his dearest disciple, and suddenlyughed and said, "Curing the disease... If the Haotian Taoism could save lives, why would I be so worried? Sometimes I think that when we go to cure diseases, perhaps all we do is cure our own sickness and save ourselves."


    The Eldest Brother was deep in thought.


    The Headmaster said with a solemn expression, "You love all the people in the world, so you are incapable of loving only one person, unlike your Youngest Brother who does not love anyone in the world and only loves one person. Therefore, after killing Xia Hou, his mental state has surely been refreshed. No one knows where to go in the future, and you have to bear the pain of the struggle. If you can¡¯t see through the pain, then the gains will be limited."


    The field was quiet.


    After a long time had passed, a gentle smile appeared again on the Eldest Brother¡¯s face. He said, "I want to continue worrying like this because an untroubled me isn¡¯t me."


    The Headmaster watched him admiringly and said,"I was wrong. Your benevolence for the world does not involve any old conventions and arises from pure intentions. How can it limit your future?"


    "Instead of being a teacher who is always an unwavering weed on the wall, I always wanted to follow the wind. Now I don¡¯t know where the wind hase from. I don¡¯t know what your Youngest Brother will meet, but I believe that if you don¡¯t walk, then you will encounter nothing. As long as you walk, you will always meet the future. When we meet, that is, the day we encounter a real future, we will think about what to do with it."


    The Headmaster sighed with emotion and said, "It¡¯s a pity that the fellow I had to curse for three days and three nights over a bowl of braised pork... has already died. I desperately want to ask him what he would do."


    The Second Brother came to the thatched hut and quietly stood beside them, listening to the conversation between the teacher and his Eldest Brother. He did not open his mouth, until finally he could not help but say, "Teacher, although I do not understand what you and Eldest Brother are talking about, I think I can guess what Youngest Uncle would do."


    The Headmaster¡¯s expression changed slightly and he asked, "What would your Youngest Uncle do?"


    Second Brother naturally said, "Fight."


    The Headmaster found that his disciples were more and more like himself. They had taken everything for granted and assumed that he understood. He was frustrated and asked, "Fight who?"


    Second Brother was also frustrated. After a long pause, he solemnly said, "It doesn¡¯t matter who."


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 507: The Black Horse Carriage with A Sunroof

    Chapter 507: The ck Horse Carriage with A Sunroof


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The Headmaster grew annoyed when he heard that. He scolded Second Brother and said, "How did I end up teaching an unreasonable fellow like you?"


    Second Brother froze slightly, and thought to himself, that he had always adhered to etiquette and rules since studying from the Headmaster. "Everyone knew that he was the most reasonable person. So why did his teacher say that he was unreasonable?"


    Even though he did not like hearing about his faults, he reflected upon the criticism and bowed deeply. He asked, "Teacher, when we talked about the meaning of revenge at the cliff cave, you once told me to tell Eldest Brother that we should weed out all problems from the root. Have I misunderstood you?"


    The Headmaster said angrily, "Your Eldest Brother is gentle and too benevolent. That is why he has to learn to be more direct from you. However, you are too direct, which is why I have always taught you to be more prudent. But look at what happened! You make so much noise even before you understand what is happening. You are as brave as your Youngest Uncle, but you are not as... Alright. Perhaps he doesn¡¯t have any qualities that are worth looking up to. But other than bravery, what else does your Youngest Uncle and you have better than me?"


    Second Brother believed in being a respectful disciple. He should not defend himself against his teacher¡¯s stern criticism. Even if he wanted to prove that he was logical, he had to bring up the issue after his teacher calmed down. However, he became defensive when he heard his teacher mentioning Youngest Uncle, whom he respected the most.


    "Teacher, I remember that Youngest Uncle had told Senior Brother and me a word when we were children that if we are only left with bravery, then bravery is all that we have."


    The Headmaster became stiff when he heard that and suddenlyughed. He waved his sleeves around and said, "That¡¯s right. Actually, I have told your Youngest Brother of my intentions. If the dark night reallyes, all we have to do is to fight against it. Why do we have to think so much about it?"


    The Eldest Brother thought of the words left by Youngest Uncle when he rode on his ck donkey to leave the back of the mountain. Youngest Uncle had told him that then. Eldest Brother did notugh like his teacher and Younger Brother. Instead, he said worriedly, "Since we have to fight against it, then why are we not making preparations before the dark nightes?"


    The Headmaster¡¯s smile on his face disappeared. He said, "Because we do not know where the wind will blow from and where the dark night wille from. Everything that we prepare beforehand might be wrong. Of course, I hope that our predictions are wrong and that the dark night will note."


    The Eldest Brother looked up at the sky and sighed. "If the dark nightes, brightness should be the first priority. Why has Haotian not reacted? I don¡¯t understand what the heavens are thinking of."


    The Headmaster looked up at the dark sky and said, "Look, this is something I have said once. There is no one in the world who is all-knowing. I don¡¯t know what Haotian is thinking. And this has been proven several times over the years. At least we know that it cannot be known."


    The millions of people on earth had already forgotten the origins of the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival, while the Underworld still existed in their legends and stories told to children. However, they were just that. Nobody believed that the Underworld truly existed and no one would believe in nonsense such as the Underworld Invasion.


    To these people, the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival was a festival where they paid respects to their ancestors and fed ghosts. The orchid pots ced along the streets, girls dressed up in traditional costumes, tempting delicacies, people walking around withnterns made this festival less spooky and more charming.


    The Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival held by the Lanke Temple was a grand event in the cultivation world. The festival in itself was a grand event. Other than cultivators, there were also numerous other guests and official foreign emissaries who would travel from their countries andnds to the Lanke Temple for it.


    The Tang Empire had also sent an envoy to the event. The envoy sent was ranked highly, and contrary to all expectations, the ambassador who represented His Majesty was the Defender General of the West, Xian Zhng.


    The Defender General of the West was one of the four generals of the empire. He grew more important after the death of Xia Hou. General Xian Zhng was also a legendary figure. His Martial Arts cultivation state was average, but hismand over the army and his achievements on the battlefield were legendary.


    The Tang military held martial power in high regard. Three of the four generals of the Tang military were powerhouses who were at the Peak State of Martial Arts. Xian Zhng¡¯s state was weak, but could stand shoulder to shoulder with the other three. One could imagine what kind of wits or other strength this man had.


    A person like this would definitely be qualified to represent the Tang Emperor in visiting other states. However, the position as a diplomatic ambassador was usually helmed by officials. Had the emperor wanted to express his respect for the Buddhism Sect, it would have been sufficient to send an official from the royal ranks. Why would he send a general? This appointment caused great controversy in Chang¡¯an and also triggered the suspicions of the South Jin Kingdom. Would the general be enjoying the scenery along the way or would he be checking out the city¡¯s defense? Did the Tang Empire wish to go to war again?


    In the end, it was confirmed by certain rumors that the emperor had sent Xian Zhng because Xia Hou¡¯s position as the marshal of the Northeast Border Military was now vacant after his death. The Yuelun Kindom which was west to the Tang Empire was no longer a threat. Therefore, Xian Zhng wanted to be moved to Tuyang City. Everyone knew that the princess had been trying to win over the Defender General of the West in recent years. This news had angered the Empress. In order to cate his wife, the Emperor had to set aside the transfer order. And in order to cate his daughter and the general, the emperor decided to have General Xian visit the Lanke Temple as a sightseeing trip.


    The emperor¡¯s move was akin to fandangle. He dealt with the country¡¯s affairs as if he was dealing with his family affairs, and many watched on, not knowing whether tough or cry. However, many men who were troubled by family affairs felt sympathetic, and the girls who enjoyed romantic stories looked up to him.


    The House of Red Sleeves¡¯ dance troupe apanied the diplomatic entourage to the Lanke Temple.


    Thirteen years ago, the Tang Empire had summoned the House of Red Sleeves to Chang¡¯an from the South Jin Kingdom forcefully. The girls from the House of Red Sleeves had only visited the Lanke Temple the year after that and participated in the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival. They had never left Chang¡¯an after that. It had been more than two decades, and this trip attracted plenty of attention.


    Their gazes were all drawn to the horse carriages of the Tang Empire¡¯s official diplomaticittee. No one noticed that there was a ck horse carriage traveling alone on the state highway a few miles behind them.


    The walls of the ck carriage were engraved with intricate and brocade-like lines, reflecting light like metal. It looked extremely heavy. Strangely, the ck horse that was pulling the carriage looked rxed, and the horse carriage moved on the ground quietly as if it was as light as a feather.


    "Defender General of the Empire, the East, the West... Why do all the generals of the Tang Empire hold a title that starts with Defender? I wonder when Zhen Guanxi will appear. Oh, I remember that you don¡¯t know who Zhen Guanxi is."


    Ning Que leaned against the soft cushion in the carriage and said that in a self-satisfied look.


    The ck horse carriage was bequeathed to him by Master Yan Se. It looked cold and even tough, but it was spacious on the inside. The fittings were extremely luxurious as well.


    The carriage was cast of stainless steel and was extremely heavy. Before, when he could not yet activate the talisman lines on the carriage walls, the Big ck Horse had a hard time pulling the carriage. The ground would crack at the wheels of the carriage rolled over it. The steel wheels were not able to absorb any shock, making it ufortable to sit in, so he rarely used this horse carriage.


    As he cultivated and his Great Spirit grew, his cultivation state grew as well. With Seventh Sister¡¯s guidance, he finally understood that the lines on the carriage walls were not just talismans, but a talisman array. When he understood the array, a tiny amount of the breath of Heaven and Earth would swirl around the ck carriage, producing some floating power.


    The heavy ck carriage became reminiscent of a floating feather on water. No matter how hard the wheels were, those in the carriage would not feel any bumps, turning the miserable journey into an enjoyable one.


    While the talisman array on the walls was permanent and could evoke the aura of Heaven and Earth in nature, it needed the aura of Heaven and Earth to keep it moving. If Ning Que did not want to exhaust his Psyche Power and die, he had to ce a jewel stone in the carriage¡¯s array eye from time to time.


    The gem which had to contain high concentrations of Qi of Heaven and Earth was extremely precious. It was difficult to be found even in the jewelry shops of Chang¡¯an. The ck horse carriage could travel so easily because he had managed to swindle and rob a case of gems from the Imperial Center Administration and the Southern Gate Temple.


    The ck horse carriage was very luxurious, and the gems it used made it even more luxurious. If he weren¡¯t Mr. Thirteen of the Academy and he did not have the resources offered to him by the Tang Empire, he would not be able to afford this.


    Ning Que understood this. When he had represented the Academy to enter the human realm, his Senior Brother had told him that he had to concern himself with matters of the imperial court even though he did not want to.


    "Xian Zhng is an interesting person." He said.


    Sangsang shut her eyes and made a soft sound of agreement. She had recovered for the most part, but had shut her eyes and replied softly not because she was ill, but because she was sofortable that she did not want to open her eyes nor speak either.


    Ning Que and Sixth Brother had made arge sunroof on the top of the horse carriage. Bright sunlight streamed through the sunroof and shone on her body, warming her up.


    The ck horse carriage was made of stainless-steel. It absorbed heat due to its color and material. However, perhaps due to Sangsang¡¯s cold aura, the horse carriage was still cool and not stuffy at all even when it was heated by sunlight for a long time.


    Ning Que did not feel hot either. He hugged Sangsang¡¯s cool feet to his chest. They felt like little jade fish that cooled by ice for a few days. They made him feel extremelyfortable.


    He moved Sangsang¡¯s feet and reached out for an exquisite porcin pot from his side. He drank the pleasantly fragrant tea and turned to look out the window.


    There were farnds on both sides of the road and there were farmers painting their homes. There were willow trees waving in the wind and naked children ying in paddy fields.


    This scene made a person feel happy and blissful. However, Ning Que looked at those naked tanned children and felt as if he had seen that somewhere before. Then, he realized that this scene yed out often within the Tang Empire. Bliss was the same everywhere.


    He looked at Sangsang¡¯s slightly tanned face and smiled. He thought that the long journey was good even if there was no end to it. The Big ck Horse seemed to sense his happiness and began to neigh happily.

 Chapter 508: Meeting by the Road

    Chapter 508: Meeting by the Road


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The ck horse carriage followed behind the carriages of the diplomatic delegation. There were more buildings visible by the side of the road when they were reaching a city. Ning Que preferred the view of the countryside, so he had the Big ck Horse run off the main road and onto the side roads. He was confident that he would not lose the delegation he was following.


    The view by the country road was beautiful, simple and unspoiled. After some time, the ck horse carriage stopped under arge tree near a vige.


    Therge tree was of an unknown species and had a reallyrge top. The leaves were lush and looked like arge umbre, blocking out the intense sun, leaving behind a cool shade.


    Ning Que unhooked the carriage from the Big ck Horse and allowed it to roam free. He walked under the tree and touched the coarse trunk with a happy smile.


    His peers from the Academy did not like leaving the mountain as they were more focused on the spiritual aspect of life. Spiritual joy alone could satisfy them, but he was unlike them.


    He had lived in the Min Mountain since he was young. Forests were like family to him and he had been homeless since he was a child. That was why he did not like staying in one ce for too long.


    He had once stood in the forest gazing at the viges with smoke rising over them. He had also carried Sangsang on his back and left quietly several times out of fear. Perhaps that was why he loved the countryside so much. Before he returned to Chang¡¯an that year, he had chosen to traverse through the countryside with Sangsang¡¯s hand in his. And because of his love for the countryside, he had chosen to take the more out-of-the-way route and stopped outside a vige.


    Sangsang left the horse carriage and said to him shyly, "I fell asleep earlier."


    Ning Que said, "It is veryfortable. I wish I could sleep too."


    Sangsang was obviously still unused to her change in status. She still thought that she was a handmaiden, and felt that it was not right for her to sleep without permission. In order to make up for her mistake, she tried really hard to recall what shest heard before falling asleep. She asked, "How is he interesting?"


    Ning Que was stiff for a moment before he realized that she was replying to the statement he had made two hours ago. He could not help but smile as he looked at her serious expression. Not wanting to spoil her eagerness, he replied, "Before we left Chang¡¯an, Chen VII came to speak to me. He said that this General Xian had been in the Fish-dragon Gang some time back. He was pretty close to Chao Xiaoshu as well. This was before Qi IV¡¯s time. However, General Xian became the general for some reason, while Chao Xiaoshu stayed in the Spring Breeze Pavilion."


    "Do you mean that there is something off with this person?" Sangsang asked.


    Only Ning Que would understand what Sangsang meant. When she said that there was something off, she did not mean that the person was suspicious or that they had to be vignt against him. She meant that the general was a bad person.


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "Even if there was something off, it was arranged by the emperor. Even if he is really like what the rumors in Chang¡¯an says, and longed for the Northeast Border Military, we can only say that he is a proud, confident and ambitious military man. If the emperor is not worried, we shouldn¡¯t be either."


    Sangsang said, "I heard that the Empress is displeased."


    Ning Que said, "Do not forget, the emperor is also a student of the Headmaster. That means that he is my Senior Brother. He is wise, so how would he really treat the nation¡¯s matter as his family¡¯s affair? He is just using the empress¡¯ anger to warn some other people."


    Sangsang asked curiously, "Who are those other people?"


    She was not truly curious about this matter, so when she widened her eyes and deliberately attempted to look curious, it made her look childish and adorable instead.


    So Ning Queid a peck on her face.


    Sangsang was slightly abashed, but did not avoid him.


    She did not avoid him not because she was flustered and did not know what to do. It was because she felt that it was natural for Ning Que to kiss her.


    Instead, Ning Que looked at her bright eyes and grew flustered. He coughed twice before continuing, "It is of course to subdue General Xian... No, to be more exact, the emperor is warning his own daughter not to poke too deeply into the military."


    "Why? Is the emperor prepared to hand over the throne to the empress¡¯ son?"


    Sangsang asked curiously. She was truly curious this time because Li Yu was one of her few friends in Chang¡¯an. Furthermore, she knew that this matter involved Ning Que.


    Ning Que said, "I don¡¯t know. Anyway, it has nothing to do with us."


    Even though Ning Que said it had nothing to do with them, it was not true. If not, why would he think about these matters? Just like thedies from the House of Red Sleeves who were currently a few feet away from them, he had to consider these problems too.


    Mistress Jian did not ask him to take care of thosedies on the journey. However, based on his rtionship with the House of Red Sleeves, he would not be able to ignore them if something were to happen. Other than his personal friendship with Mistress Jian, what was more important was that the Academy was responsible for the care of the House of Red Sleeves. Xiaoxiao, his Youngest Uncle¡¯s fiance, the woman who had almost be their Youngest Aunt, was Mistress Jian¡¯s older sister.


    More than 20 years ago, thest performance the House of Red Sleeves had overseas was at the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival at the Lanke Temple. Their Youngest Aunt died there. The House of Red Sleeves would once again appear at the Lanke Temple after 20 years. How could Ning Que not be vignt?


    Ning Que suddenly felt someone approaching them. His eyebrows twitched upwards and he looked towards therge tree to see a sh of a shadow.


    He saw that it was the Big ck Horse. What made him grow alert was that something had spooked the Big ck Horse, causing it to appear frantic.


    Other than the natural disaster that had urred more than a decade ago, the security of the Tang Empire had always been good. Ning Que was not worried for his safety. Even if the rare robber appeared, he would not mind getting rid of him for the good of the nation and to spread the good name of the Academy. He wouldn¡¯t mind even if it was a cultivator.


    He won against Guan Hai and killed Dao Shi. He had blinded Liu Yiqing and had miraculously beaten Xia Hou. His prowess was proven. Even though Wang Jinglue might not be convinced, but the cultivation world hade to a consensus. Ning Que, Mr. Thirteen of the Academy, was the strongest person below the Knowing Destiny State.


    Furthermore, he had Sangsang, the inheritor of the Great Divine Priest of Light by his side. With Ning Que¡¯s natal item by his side, he dared to battle against a Grand Cultivator in the Knowing destiny State. Of course, Grand Cultivators in Knowing Destiny State would know of his and Sangsang¡¯s identity and would not want to provoke the ire of the Academy and the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    The Big ck Horse ran back to Ning Que and Sangsang, leaving a trail of smoke behind him. He panted heavily, looking terrified.


    Ning Que looked at the trail of smoke gravely.


    The smoke dissipated, leaving behind a bare-chested man holding a grass fork yelling loudly as he approached.


    "You thief horse! Don¡¯t run! See if I won¡¯t kill you!"


    The matter was quickly exined. The Big ck Horse had walked around and caught the scent of food at the vige. He couldn¡¯t control himself and followed the scent, pushing his head into a window and ate the food of that family. It was discovered by the owner who then chased after him, intent on killing him.


    Ning Que red at the Big ck Horse. He thought that the horse was really a chicken. Ning Que fed him nourishing fruits every day, but he went to steal food from others instead! What¡¯s more, he had been so terrified just from the farmer chasing after him and panted like he was dying!


    The Big ck Horse lowered his head shamefully. He thought to himself that it was indeed his fault for stealing food. It had better look more pathetic or Ning Que might punish him further.


    Ning Que looked at the farmer and smiled bitterly. He ced his hands together and apologized.


    The farmer held on to the straw fork with one hand and ced his other hand on his waist. He panted tiredly, saying, "This fellow runs really f**king quickly. It is a good horse indeed! No wonder he drank a portion of the porridge in one gulp!"


    Ning Que felt even more ashamed when he heard that the Big ck Horse had stolen a portion of porridge. He smiled bitterly, saying, "It eats too much and iszy. It¡¯s not really a good horse."


    The farmer shook his head in disagreement. He said, "I have never seen a better horse than this, even when I was in the military camp. Not even the general¡¯s horse was better than this."


    The Tang Empire had a three-year military recruitment system. In order to gain morend, the size of its military had to berge. Furthermore, since the citizens of the Tang Empire thought highly of martial arts, many men had been through the military system. Ning Que knew that the farmer had retired from the military when he heard that and was not surprised. He took some money and handed it to the man, saying, "Take this for the pot of porridge. The pot must be dirty too, so take this money for the entire pot of porridge."


    The farmer waved his hand and said, "I saw that the horse was handsome and guessed that it had an owner. That¡¯s why I chased after it. I don¡¯t really need this money."


    Ning Que smiled and said, "Why did you chase after him if not for the money?"


    The farmer said matter-of-factly, "That¡¯s because your attitude is good. If you had been snobby, then I would have charged you for the porridge and for my hard work in making the porridge."


    Such candor was often seen in the Academy and in the Tang citizens. Ning Que liked this a lot and he smiled, "Since this is so, I shall not indulge in social niceties with you then."


    The farmer looked at the ck horse carriage and Sangsang, who was in her handmaiden uniform. He guessed that they were resting there temporarily and invited them, saying, "It¡¯s not convenient to speak here. Come to my house."


    Ning Que was good at social interaction and liked the farmer¡¯s character. However, he was still that cold youth from many years back and wanted to reject the farmer¡¯s invitation.


    The farmer was unexpectedly persistent. He said, "Since you will have to travel far, you will need to get water. If you mind, you can just pay me for it."


    Ning Que still wanted to reject him.


    The farmer frowned and said, "You look like someone who¡¯s been in the army. Why are you so wishy-washy?"


    Ning Que looked at the determination in the farmer¡¯s eyes and thought of the City of Wei. He thought of the army men in the city and the words he left with General Ma before he left.


    "Then let¡¯s go." He smiled and said, "But I want some alcohol too."


    The farmerughed heartily and said, "We have home-brewed wine. It¡¯s not good, but you can have as much as you want."


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 509: Hearts Blood

    Chapter 509: Heart¡¯s Blood


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The vige was beautiful. There were several houses scattered on the slope covered in grass. There were several rows of grapevines on the grassy slope. There was a river not far away that had a house built from stone beside it.


    The farmer¡¯s home was at the entrance of the vige. The roof was covered with light gray grass. It looked heavy, perhaps due to the denseness of it. The walls of the house were a light earthy color while the door was painted red with juice and tree sap. The home looked especially weing with verdant grass before it and a blue fence surrounding it.


    The furnishings in the house were ordinary. Ning Que¡¯s eyes, that had feasted on the idyllic scenery could finally rest for a while. The farmer called enthusiastically for them to sit and exined that his wife and child had gone to the forest behind the mountain to pick wild fruit. Then, he took out some simple dishes made by his wife. He washed some fruit and fresh vegetables by the well and brought them to the table along with saucers and a wine jug.


    Ning Que made himself at home and began to drink with some garlic-sauced dishes and pig¡¯s trotters. He had always been fond of wine, but his alcohol tolerance was terrible. He drank two bowls of wine before giving the bowl to Sangsang since they still had to travel afterwards.


    Sangsang¡¯s eyes brightened as she drank. The farmer¡¯s homemade brew was not as strong or tasty as the Nine-river double-distilled wine. However, she was fond of all kinds of wine. The farmer watched as the girl in handmaiden costume drank and was transported back to his youth in the military camp. He began topete in drinking with her.


    There wasn¡¯t anyone who could be a match against Sangsang in the art of drinking. There never was and there never would be. Ning Que wasn¡¯t, Prince Long Qing wasn¡¯t, and the farmer naturally wasn¡¯t a match for her. Shortly after, the farmer¡¯s tanned face glowed red as his breath grew heavy with alcohol and he began to slur.


    Then, the sound of footsteps rang from the courtyard apanied by the sounds of frantic knocking and someone calling out for the farmer to hurry.


    Ning Que had heard them long before they arrived. He thought to himself, that only in stories, would officials meet simple-minded bandits during a simple meal. Could this happen to him today?


    He did not know that Chao Xiaoshu had experienced having his home being intruded in the vige of Great River Kingdom. He had notpletely wrapped his mind around the fact that his position as a visiting professor at the Imperial Center Administration, his status as honorary chief of the secret guards as well as his identity as a core disciple of the Headmaster would outrank the official in the story. He just felt that what was happening was rather unreasonable, so he did not move.


    He didn¡¯t need to move though. When the farmer heard the voiceing from the outside, he staggered as he stood up, indicating for Ning Que to sit. He pushed the door open and began yelling at the people who knocked on his door.


    "What do you mean I haven¡¯t worked? Everyone knows that I, Yang Erxi, contributed the mostst year in repairing the watershedst winter. I also helped in building the vige public school. You can¡¯t make me pay for the paint out of my own pocket."


    "Yang Erxi, who¡¯s asking you to pay? Who did?! You¡¯re just finding excuses to earn more money. I¡¯m telling you, this is the price fixed by the county government!"


    "Bullshit! Our vige¡¯s public school is twice the size of schools in other viges. How much do you think paint would cost? The price fixed by the county government is wrong. Do you want me to do it at a loss?"


    "You¡¯re being ludicrous! Don¡¯t think that I won¡¯t dare to hit you because you retired from the military! I¡¯ll sue you and have the county governer punish you!"


    "I went to thew teacher at the public school and asked about this. There is no such article in thew of the Tang Empire. As a retired military man, I only have to contribute half. You guys don¡¯t pay enough, so don¡¯t expect me to lift a finger!"


    "Screw your grandmother!"


    "Screw your great-grandmother!"


    "Screw your great-great-grandmother!" (Homonym for Taizu, Founder of the Tang Dynasty)


    "How dare you disrespect Taizu! I will go to Chang¡¯an andin to the imperial court about you!"


    ...


    ...


    The squabble interspersed with cussing ended uneventfully. Li Zheng, the man outside the fence, was incensed and cursed at Yang Erxi¡¯s ancestors, but did not enter his property.


    Yang Erxi entered the house blustering. He waved his hands as he spoke to Ning Que and Sangsang, "Don¡¯t concern yourselves with such petty things. Let us continue drinking. No, youngdy, you and I shall continue drinking."


    Ning Que could vaguely guess the cause of the loud argument, so he asked about it casually. Yang Erxi exined, "Since they are enlisting our help, they should at least pay us enough for it. Otherwise, I can¡¯t be bothered. I haven¡¯t even finished painting my own pig pen... But you don¡¯t have to worry for me. Thew teacher at the public school found me that article in thew of the Tang Empire. I am in the right. The county magistrate can¡¯t do anything to me, not to mention Li Zheng."


    Ning Que said, "Aren¡¯t you afraid Li Zheng would try to hurt you on the sly? If you offend the county government, they can just charge you with a false crime and hurt you."


    Yang Erxi was a little tipsy, and heughed when he heard that. He turned around and brought out a boxwood bow from the cab. He pounded on his hard chest and said proudly, "What¡¯s there to be afraid of? Who hasn¡¯t been to the military? If they force me, would I not retaliate?"


    Ning Que shook his head with a smile.


    There was no real injustice in what had happened, so Ning Que did not have to punish any corrupt officials. He did not have to bring in his supporters, start a storm and begin a political battle in the capital.


    After eating and drinking, Ning Que bade Yang Erxi farewell. Yang Erxi was a straightforward man. He did not ask the pair to stay after being satiated by the wine. He filled their water pouches and gave them some fruit before sending them off.


    The ck horse carriage continued down to the south. It traveled through the quiet paths apanied by the setting sun in the picturesque countryside. They saw many wildflowers and green fields on their journey.


    Ning Que sat by the window and looked out at the fertile countryside in the southern Tang. He thought about what he had seen and heard at the farmer¡¯s house, and about how he probably would never see the farmer again andmented. Then, he understood why the Academy and his Eldest Brother had always respected thews of the Tang Empire so much.


    "Everyone says that the West-Hill is and bestowed upon us by heaven. But the Tang Empire is truly a gift from heaven. Thends in the south are fertile, the weather is mild and natural disasters are rare. Further down south are mountain ranges that are natural shields in battle... Of course, these are not important. What¡¯s important here is the Academy and thews of the Tang Empire, as well as His Majesty and the officials who respect thews. And that farmer, and even Li Zheng, who lead their lives seriously."


    He said, "There are definitely corrupt officials and immoral people like me in the Tang Empire. But as long as most of the people here lead their lives seriously, this fertilend would always be watered by efforts and would continue to be fertile. This is something incredible."


    Sangsang asked, "What are you talking about?"


    Ning Que replied after a moment of contemtion. "What I want to say is... I have suddenly developed an urge to do my all for this country. You know, I have always feared this kind of passionate feelings that seem toe out of nowhere. This kind of passion leads people to their deaths quickly. That is why I really admire those people who have built this country."


    ...


    ...


    There was also arge meadow in the depths of the West-Hill and by the Zhishou Abbey. However, this meadow was different from the ones in the southern parts of the Tang Empire. There were no grape vines or colorful houses. There was just grass that was of a uniform height and a majestic Taoism Temple.


    It was a pill refinery at the back of the Taoist temple that emitted the light scent of medicine in the past few days. The old medicine tripod had been left on the fire for days. Long Qing served the curious old Taoist priests in the caves every day and spent the rest of his time refining pills.


    Long Qing¡¯s method of drug making came from the "Sha" Handscroll of the Tomes of the Arcane and would naturally be problem-free. Even though he had been trying for days, Long Qing still had not seeded in making any drugs even as the scent of medicine grew stronger as it emerged from the tripod.


    The "Sha" Handscroll recorded how one should cultivate and make pills. It was filled with everything one could imagine, but was only restricted to Haotian Taoism. The Earth Pill was not a sacred medicine of Haotian Taoism, but one from the Buddhism Sect.


    Long Qing knew why the Earth Pill was rare and precious. It wasn¡¯t because the masters from the Buddhism Sect were devoid of worldly desires and did not wish to cultivate. It was because the ingredients necessary to make the Earth Pill were practically extinct. Furthermore, this pill that required plenty of effort to make required the blood from one¡¯s heart.


    He had not taken the Earth Pill he had managed to refine out from the tripod because it was still waiting for heart¡¯s blood.


    This miracle pill of the Buddhism sect required the use of heart¡¯s blood. It did not refer to the heart of pigs, dogs or wolves. It referred to the blood that came from a sadhu¡¯s heart. The sadhu had to be calm, his aura pure, and he had to be willing to make the sacrifice.


    It was difficult to find the blood of such a heart. Furthermore, the Buddhism sect believed in benevolence and abstention from killing. Would they use the lives of their disciples to cultivate such a pill? Furthermore, a sadhu who was willing to be martyred would definitely be devoid of any worldly desires. He would not bloody his hands for a pill like this.


    And that was why this pill was very amazing even though it could not bepared to the Heavenly Power Pill. It had never appeared in the Buddhism sect, not even the legendary Xuankong Temple. However, in the heydays of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, two monks from the Yuelun Kingdom were captured to make two pots of the pill.


    As time passed, the Devil¡¯s Doctrine withered. The two pots of Earth Pills had long been depleted. If Long Qing managed to make it, it would shake up the cultivation world.


    However... where would he find a sadhu with a calm state of mind and a pure aura? Long Qing¡¯s current cultivation state was poor. How would he kill the monk and get the heart¡¯s blood even if he managed to find one?


    In the dark room, the medicine tripod began to emit medicinal scent and steam, and a few wisps floated into Long Qing¡¯s face. His face was shrouded in the steam and one could see a trace of a smile coupled with other emotions in his dark pupils. He seemed to be mocking himself, but also seemed to be mocking the unfortunate souls of the world.


    He reached out and plucked off the ck peach blossom on his chest. Then, he removed his old Taoist robe and folded it neatly before cing it on the ground beside the futon.


    His naked body was especially pale. It looked like a piece of dried jade. There was a fist-sized hole on his chest. The hole went through his entire body, and one could vaguely make out his crushed and petrified organ walls. It was mottled, disgusting and looked terrifying.


    This was a hole made by Ning Que with his Primordial Thirteen Arrows on the snow cliff of the Wilderness.


    No one knew how Long Qing had managed to survive such a grave injury.


    One could vaguely make out white bones and writhing organs through the hole. One could see a red heart beating on the left.


    Long Qing stopped in front of the medicine tripod and stabilized his hand with a strong will. Then, he held a small de in his hand and plunged it into the hole in his chest. He nicked the surface of his heart with the de.


    A drop of blood flowed out slowly.


    An unbearable pain grew in his heart and wormed into the depths of it.


    Long Qing¡¯s face paled beyondpare as if he had lost all his blood.


    He used all his strength to stop himself from howling in despair. However, his face twisted in pain, and he looked as terrifying as a ghost in the night.


    After a moment, the drop of blood left the de and fell into the steaming medicine tripod.


    Within moments, the contents of the medicine tripod sloshed and rolled around angrily. The scent of medicine dissipated, leaving behind the thick scent of blood.

 Chapter 510: The Fallen Knight

    Chapter 510: The Fallen Knight


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "Get them! Don¡¯t let them escape!"


    "Don¡¯t let them enter the mountain! This bunch of robbers are all bastards!"


    "Kill them all! We won¡¯t take any prisoners!"


    A fierce battle had taken ce in the mountainous border areas of the South Jin Kingdom. In the dim twilight, one would asionally hear the whistling of arrows and the sounds of swords crossing as well as the desperate roar one made before death.


    The two parties engaged in the battle numbered less than 500. However, the battle in the south, which had been peaceful for a long time, was intense enough as dozens of bodies littered the ground.


    One party was the cavalry of the South Jin Kingdom. They were trained and held the upper hand in the battle. They also had more men and quickly gained victory. They began to pursue after their enemies.


    Those being pursued scattered into the mountains in fear. An asional arrow would hit someone, and he would yell in pain before falling in the forest. Fortunately, it was dark and the mountain path was dangerous. Most of them escaped.


    The sky darkened, enveloping the mountain. Deep in the dense forest, crows cawed asionally. This mountain was part of the mountain ranges of the West-Hill Divine Kingdom but was within the territories of the South Jin Kingdom.


    Beside the bonfireid a few men. Some of them had been shot by arrows, and some had their arms taken off by axes. They groaned in pain intermittently.


    There were some men in steel armor. They sat close to the bonfire nearest to the warmest spot. It was evident that they were superior to others. Their armors were engraved with patterns and looked expensive. These were not objects that mountain thieves could possess.


    Their faces grew weary as they heard the painful groans of theirpanions and the cawing of the crows. They could not help but turn to look at their silent leader, wanting to receive somefort from him.


    Their leader was a middle-aged man dressed in the same ck armor except for the moreplicated gold patterns on it that emitted a vague talisman power.


    The middle-aged man was called Zi Mo. He was once the cavalrymander of the West-Hill Divine Pce Judicial Department. The men by the bonfire were like him. They were all formermanders of the Divine Hall¡¯s cavalry.


    When Ye Hongyu killed the former Great Divine Priest of Judgment and ascended to the ck jade throne, these powerhouses who had aplished great deeds in the name of West-Hill Divine Pce had had to rid themselves of their cultivation powers for a trumped-up reason. Then, they were banished from the Peach Mountain.


    In the past few years, they had led Papal Cavalrymen, the strongest military force of the Divine Hall¡¯s Judicial Department. They were the ones who had gone after followers of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and extremists. They were remembered most because of the bloodshed caused by the Judicial Department and their cruelty.


    In other words, thesemanders had too much blood on their hands and no homnd to return to. There was no one else who would dare take them in at the risk of provoking the ire of the Divine Priest of Judgment.


    This was the heaviest punishment Ye Hongyu had given them. She took away their rank and cultivation power. She had also taken away the wealth that they had hoarded, leaving them with only an old horse and two hundred taels of silver. Their retinues, the glory and power that their armor once represented could not even bring them back to their past and only brought them shame and fear.


    They did not dare to return to the West-Hill Divine Kingdom and had nowhere else to go. They could only mill about in the periphery countries of West-Hill. When they had spent almost all their money, thesemanders suddenly realized that they had to think about where to get their next meal and shelter just like the lowlymoners.


    These Divine Hallmanders were not unskilled. However, they were extremely proud. How could they work asborers?


    The most troublesome was that their experience in the West-Hill Divine Pce had made them used to giving orders. They ced themselves on pedestals and looked down uponmoners. This behavior could be called being dignified in the past. But now since they had be ordinary folks after leaving West-Hill, their behaviors became a hindrance to their lives.


    One day, the formermanders¡¯ team got into a tussle with a bully from the Kingdom of Song. One of themanders could not repress his anger and ordered his retinue to cut off the man¡¯s head. Then, they barged into the man¡¯s house and took all his gold.


    They stayed in one of the town¡¯s luxurious inns and enjoyed fine wine and women with the money. Suddenly, these downtrodden formermanders found that they could live without humbling themselves. The method was rather simple and direct, and they could get money quickly.


    Even though they had lost their cultivation power and were not as strong as ordinary men, they were oncemanders of the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s cavalry. They were good at plotting and givingmands. Their retinues were also good at fighting. At least the guards in the mortal realm were no match for them. Naturally, they began to plunder for a living. In a short time, they had consecutively robbed several ns in the countryside.


    Everyone, including Zi Mo had kept silent. They did not say anything, but they knew that they, who had once vowed to protect the light and righteousness, were falling into the deep dark abyss. They felt extreme shame and pain deep in their hearts.


    Fortunately, they now had plenty of gold and could buy strong alcohol and women to numb themselves. They would live each day as it came. Unfortunately, this numbing also sped up their fall from grace. They grew more violent when they stole and began to rape and kill.


    Zi Mo knew that problems would arise should they continue on like this and tried to end it. However, the Divine Hallmanders who had fallen into despair were like tigers released from cages. They had fallen from the lofty Peach Mountain and into the muddy dirt. This aggravated their madness and Zi Mo could not stop them.


    One day in summer, when they were plundering in the middle of the night, either one of themanders or someone from their retinue went mad. The head of a noble who had already surrendered was cut off. This atmosphere of madness spread and a massacre urred. Everyone in that noble family died amidst the desperate cries of the night.


    Death would naturallye with plundering. Rape wasn¡¯t rare either. However, they had gotten into deep trouble by massacring an entire family of nobles of the South Jin Kingdom, especially since their estate was not far from the capital.


    This tragedy that had robbed the lives of an entire family did not rm the powerhouses in the Sword Garret, but was enough to rm the imperial court of the South Jin Kingdom. During the investigation, the imperial court found that the attackers wore the armor of the Divine Hall¡¯s cavalrymenmanders. They were meticulous, and sent a letter to the West-Hill Divine Pce to ascertain that the men were criminals who had been exiled from the Divine Hall and were no longer protected by them. Then, the imperial court¡¯s prudence evolved into anger.


    The South Jin Kingdom began to send out arrest warrants, providing hefty rewards to those who provided information. And on these warrants, these criminals were given a new name¡ª The Fallen Knights.


    South Jin Kingdom was powerful and was second only to the Tang Empire. Even though the Fallen Knights were sharp-witted and goodmanders, the South Jin Kingdom¡¯s serious treatment of this incident meant that they had been plunged into turmoil and had to flee in all directions.


    While on the run, many died or were separated from the group. One of themanders had died and many were seriously injured. They had over a hundred men when they left the West-Hill, but now there were only dozens of them. They had almost beenpletely eliminated today, after being surrounded and attacked outside the forests.


    Groans continued to reverberate beside the bonfire. Everyone looked like they had lost all hope and were in despair.


    "Are we waiting for death here?"


    A robust follower stood up and walked to the bonfire. He looked at hispanions. Most of them were injured because they did not have any armor. He said loudly, "Why don¡¯t we leave?"


    These followers were like servants of the knights. They honored loyalty and no one would take them in if they betrayed their masters. So the man¡¯s intention to leave proved that the situation was extremely dangerous.


    A cavalrymander looked at the man gravely. He bellowed, "Guo Nu, I treated you well. If not for me, would you have be who you are today? How dare you betray me? Don¡¯t forget, all of you retinues are listed on the arrest warrant. Where would you go?"


    The follower called Guo Nu looked at his master and smiled coldly, "I have ved for you for so many years. And yet, at this moment, in our dire state, you say that you have treated me well. As for the arrest warrant... Other than the pictures of you generals, who would recognize unexceptional people like us? We have gotten many taels of silver these days. If we all go our own ways and hide, who would find us?"


    Themander said angrily, "Don¡¯t forget that the silver is with me."


    Guo Nu looked at him and said indifferently. "I know that you won¡¯t give us the silver. Masters like you would prefer us to die than to live well. But remember, your cultivation state has been destroyed by the Great Divine Priest. You are all invalids now. Do you think you are as strong as before?"


    He looked to the other retinue members around the bonfire and yelled, "Why are you all hesitating? We were the ones who worked hard to steal those taels of silver. These people are already useless. They can¡¯t even pick up their knives. Would any of them be a match for us?"


    The bonfire did not burn brightly. The forests around them werepletely dark, and the expressions on the retinue members¡¯ faces could not be made out clearly. However, one could see that they had lifted their heads.


    Themanders were once high and mighty. They were free to be kind to their retinues or treat them like beasts. Now that the retinues had incited a rebellion, they could not ept this shame. However, they had to admit that the situation they were in right now was especially precarious. They might die here if they were not careful.


    Then, Guo Nu¡¯s voice suddenly stopped.


    An extremely thin metal thread appeared around his neck and swiftly contracted!


    The metal thread dug into his skin and blood spurted out.


    Guo Nu¡¯s eyes widened in fear and his hands wed at his neck desperately, trying to dig the metal thread out. However, his efforts were in vain. The more he struggled, the deeper the metal thread dug in. It sliced through,yer byyer. It cut through his windpipe, his gullet and all his blood vessels.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 511: The Lonesome Mountain

    Chapter 511: The Lonesome Mountain


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "Oh!"


    The blood flowed out from Guo Yan¡¯s neck and sttered, finallynding on the bonfire where a slightly burnt smell arose. He copsed on the ground, stretched out his legs desperately, and kicked up a pile of mud time and again. Still, he could not prevent death¡¯s arrival nor prevent the crotch of his pants from getting soaked with urine.


    The retinue from the periphery of the bonfire stood up in shock, but with many years of umted majesty, no one dared to move.


    Zi Mo¡¯s face emerged from the darkness of night. He used his hand, which was no longer strong but still stable, to retrieve the wire around Guo Yan¡¯s neck and wipe away the blood and flesh that was left on it.


    He looked out at the bewildered retinue outside the bonfire and said with a poker face, "Even if he is disabled, he still deserves your respect. Never underestimate the methods that we have learned in the Judicial Department. So, if you want to live, then you¡¯d better stay calm."


    The retinue slowly sat back in their original ces with their heads lowered down, and no one knew what they were thinking about, nor did anyone know if they had really calmed down.


    The current crisis was solved for the time being, whereas the faces of themanders in front of the bonfire were all still extremely pale and ugly, just like their moods. Their hopeless future ounted for one of the reasons, however, the most crucial point was that even today they still could not ept the reality because they used to be respectable cavalryman of the Divine Hall. Even the military generals of the South Jin Kingdom would give them enough respect. Now, however, a random state army in the South Jin Kingdom dared to encircle them, and to such a miserable extent. Even their retinue dared to be disloyal to them!


    "General, what... what should we do?"


    one of themanders asked in desperation with his voice slightly trembling.


    Zi Mo was the most senior man with the strongest abilities among these fallen cavalrymen of the Divine Hallmanders. He was elected as the leader, so it was natural for people to count on him toe up with a solution.


    Zi Mo did not know what to do or where these disabled soldiers could go. In fact, if it was for not the punishment of the verdict of the Divine Hall, they could still be guests of all nations with their wisdom, strategies, and the ability of operation on the battlefield. However, the verdict of the Divine Hall had already cut off this possibility in advance. At the thought of this, his hatred for and fear of the Maiden God would grow stronger.


    The only person that one could rely upon was oneself. Only by restoring one¡¯s ability and regaining strength could one survive in this world.


    However, how could he regain his strength when his cultivation had been abandoned?


    The legendary panacea was only a legend.


    Zi Moughed at himself and then whispered, "Get cleaned up and go to sleep."


    How could anyone get hot water in the wild mountain forest? During their escape, they had no time to enjoy life but could only sleep directly. Someone extinguished the bonfire with dirt and the forest suddenly became dark. The thick clouds in the night sky covered all the stars, indicating that there might be a torrential rain tomorrow.


    Some of them could not stave off the exhaustion brought on by their escape and they fell asleep.


    While others were unable to sleep, thinking about their desperate future.


    Zi Mo looked at the gloomy night sky overhead, thinking about the heavy rain that woulde tomorrow with an increasingly heavy heart. He slowly clenched his hands, which had been trembling quietly, and was in great pain.


    He thought with desperation and unwillingness, "If I can regain my strength and be as powerful as before, then I would be willing to sacrifice my entire life and everything to Yama."


    There were still many people praying in desperation in the silent night forest.


    The sky was gloomy, but it did not rain, let alone rain heavily. However, it was cloudy, so the summer journey became much cooler. Since there was no sun, Sangsang did not need to bask in the sun through the skylight of the horse carriage, and Ning Que took that position for granted. He stepped onto the soft couch and leaned his upper body out of the skylight to meet the wind blowing on the state highway. He looked at the surrounding scenery and gave birth to such kind of pleasure as if he were a millionaire.


    It had been a few days since they left Chang¡¯an. The ck horse carriage was following the mission in front of them from a distance. Although they had taken a few trips to the county road as they went ahead, he never feared that they would get lost. Because there were government officials, especially the secret guards of all areas, to inform them with intelligence. It was still the same case as they left the wilderness and entered the southern mountains.


    A vast expanse of mountains emerged in the middle of the southern region of the Tang, dividing the territory into two regions. Maybe those mountains had a certain impact on the climate¡ªthe same fertile soil to the south of the mountains and the west of the mountains could produce quite different crops. But Ning Que and Sangsang had no special feelings as the ck horse carriage progressed among those mountains.


    Compared with the familiar Min Mountain, the mountains in the south of the Tang were not so lofty. However, due to the special water-soluble rocks, there were copses andndslides urring throughout the years, making these mountains strange and extremely steep. Therefore, they were difficult to climb. Fortunately, there was a canyon among these mountains that was densely nted, and at the bottom of the valley, there was a natural passageway. Otherwise, if you wanted to connect the north with the south, regrettably you would have to go more than a thousand miles away.


    Hundreds of years ago, the Tang used a lot ofbor and resources to widen the canyon again, and used a Talisman Master and Array Tactical Masters to reinforce the dangerous precipices on both sides of the valley, and nted numerous trees with prosperous root systems. Eventually, the natural road in the valley was turned into a very t state highway.


    The ck horse carriage progressed along the t state highway and the quiet canyon. Ning Que craned out of the skylight, squinting at the scenery on both sides of the state highway. He looked at the quiet green cliffs, imagining the great transformation of nature by the Tang people hundreds of years ago. At the thought of those Talisman Masters and Tactical Array Masters who had their hair turn grey because of the exhaustion of Psyche Power, as well as soldiers and craftsmen who fell down the cliff, he gave birth to a kind of heroic feeling involuntarily. This heroic feeling had nothing to do with the skylight of the ck carriage, nor with the millionaire, so it appeared to be more promising than his previous thoughts.


    The Tang Empire had spared no effort to get through this mountain, allowing the central and southern borders to be united. It was natural to imagine the strategic significance of this verdant, beautiful canyon.


    Ning Que could faintly see that there were extremely steep mountain paths in the distance of the valley foothills, and beside those mountain paths, there was a shabby sanctuary several miles away. From the scale of the sanctuary, one could guess that there were no more than 10 Tang soldiers. At the thought of the Tang army having been guarding there for so many years, even such an indifferent person as himself could not help giving birth to some admiration.


    People would get a little bit tired when they looked at the green valley time and again, and would calm down after they had had a heroic feeling for a long time. And the vicissitudes of history would be uninteresting when you experienced them too much. Ning Que sat back down in the carriage, picked up the herbal tea on a short wooden block, and drank it to the bottom. He picked up a pen and started to write after his mind had calmed down.


    This time, they were going to the Lanke Temple for treatment, as well as for greeting the Buddha, so there should not be any danger. But Ning Que still maintained his previous habit and was always ready to face a battle of life and death. Thus, what he was currently writing was definitely not a signature, but a talisman. What he wrote over the past two years had all been used up on Xia Hou in the battle of theke in winter, so he had to prepare more of them right now.


    Ning Que raised his head after a long time and paused to take a break. He rubbed his eyes and looked out of the window, only to find that he was still in the canyon. He could not help being amazed at the length of the canyon.


    When he was writing the talismans, Sangsang was packing up their baggage. Suddenly, she touched something, and it took her a long time to guess what it was. She frowned and asked, "How did it be like this?"


    She held a small iron kettle in her hand and saw the deep lines on the outside of the kettle. It should have been the same type as the small iron kettle that had exploded in the snowy fields of the snowke, but the volume was much smaller and the shape was quite different. The most obvious difference was that there was one more bay on the bottom of this small iron kettle.


    "That is the whimsical thought of Fourth Brother. No one had expected that Sixth Brother had really done it. Before we left the Academy, we had tried once, but that day you went to the back of the mountain with Xiaotang to pick purple wisteria for boiling the meat, so you didn¡¯t see it."


    Ning Que took the little iron kettle that looked quite delicate¡ªbut now it seemed more urate to call it a small metal pail. He took a talisman arrow from the iron box and inserted it into the bay on the bottom of the small metal pail.


    After a click, the arrow bunch and bay of the small iron pail were tightly locked. Actually, it was so tight that one could see no trace of cracks, and it appeared to be very stable.


    Sangsang used her hand to test it and said, "It won¡¯t fall."


    Since Sangsang had grown up a little bit, all of Ning Que¡¯s side arms were handled by her. She was very experienced, whether it was sharpening a knife or repairing a string. If she said that it would not fall, then for sure it would not.


    Ning Que picked out an iron bow and assembled it. He put the talisman arrow on the string, aiming at the Qingxia cliff trees smoothly, as he gradually quieted his breathing.


    The Primordial Thirteen Arrow had already been a terrifying weapon. Now the people of the Academy in the back of the mountain were forcibly adding such a thing to it. It was imagined that once it wasunched, it would certainly create a great deal of noise. This ce was not on the back mountain of the Academy, so Ning Que could not really shoot it outside. Otherwise, if he were to destroy the reinforced cliffs that had been strengthened by the previous generation of Talisman Masters and Tactical Array Masters, even the Headmaster would punish him, let alone His Majesty.


    After a moment, he put down his iron bow and spoke a few words. Sangsang shook her head, took the iron arrow from his hand, and said, "Although there are no big problems, the tail of the arrow had to be adjusted... The original talisman arrow could ignore the resistance of wind, and could even use the wind as a boost. However, now the weight of the talisman arrow has increased, and the most troublesome thing is that the arrow bunch have such arge windward area. If you want to ensure its uracy, the shooting distance should certainly be greatly shortened."


    Ning Que put the bow in her arms, grabbed a summer radish, and started to eat. Heyfortably and said in an irresponsible manner, "It¡¯s up to you."


    The ck horse carriage finally pulled out of the verdant valley and arrived at the southernmost in of the Tang. The scenery on both sides of the state highway widened suddenly, but the wind became more gentle because there was more water.


    Ning Que¡¯s attention was still on the vast mountains behind. When they were about to get out of the valley, he suddenly thought that there were innumerable tactical arrays of talismans set by predecessors in the canyon. If strong enemies came to invade from the south, what they needed was only a great divine talisman master like Yan Se who could clear up these tactical arrays of talismans so that the valley would be blocked. Then, even if over 10,000 cavalrymen came to invade, it would still be impossible for them to reach the hintend of the Tang in a short time.


    But soon after, he changed his mind.


    There were so many tactical arrays of talismans in this canyon that it was impossible for a single person to destroy them all, even if the master¡¯s rebirth was not good. Perhaps the empire had already done something with the tactical arrays when they opened up this canyon.


    And even if the cliffs were blocked, the mountains that blocked the enemy could also block the Tang¡¯s reinforcements to the south. In a war, what they needed was only a simple road. Those strong armies that had the guts to aggress into the Tang would certainly have had enough Tactical Array Masters and Talisman Masters, which could definitely force to create a path for the cavalry to drive. Then, however, the initiative on the battlefield might fall into the hands of these enemies.


    Therefore, in his deduction of the war, they still needed a peerless powerhouse to defend the exit of Qing Gorge.


    That powerhouse had to be strong enough to such a degree that he could kill the Buddha if the Buddha were toe, kill the devil if the devil appeared, and kill a Taoist priest no matter how many of them woulde. In addition, he could not have any rest, let alone sleep. He had no time to eat or drink, and maybe even needed to fight with strong opponents for three days and nights in a row.


    Thinking of this, Ning Que could not helpughing. He thought there were no such strong people in the world, and even if such kind of people did exist, why would they be so stupid as to put themselves into a mortal situation?


    ...

 Chapter 512: Arrived in Qinghe County

    Chapter 512: Arrived in Qinghe County


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Going out of Qing Gorge, Ning Que finally reached the real south of the Tang Empire. On the in there were paths crisscrossing the fields, trees with flowers in full blossom, and waters flowing south to the Great Lake.


    Because of the mountains in the north and Qing Gorge, the Tang Empire did not put massive forces on the south in, even though the military power of South Jin Kingdom was very strong, with its world renowned navy forces.


    Thus, this abundant in was less magnificent but more elegant whenpared to the north, so were the houses on both sides of the road. These high and low houses mostly decorated with white walls and ck eaves were partly hidden between trees and waterwheels, looking quite beautiful.


    The ck horse carriage kept going southward. The scenery along the way was getting quieter, and more and more rivers, clear pools, and stone bridges could been seen. While the farnds became less, the secluded manors became much more present.


    Gradually they arrived in Qinghe County.


    There was a big city in Qinghe County called Yangguan, famous as the first city of the Tang Empire on the south in. This city was not geographically dangerous, but was located in a very important line ofmunications. Although it was not strongly guarded by the court, its defense was under the direct administration of a certain department led by the Defender-general of the State Xu Shi.


    Currently, the governor of Yangguan City was surnamed Zhong, and thergest surname in the city was also Zhong. The Zhongs basically controlled all walks of life in the city, but they were the least noticeable among all the Dominant Families in Qinghe County.


    Those Dominant Families in the south of the Tang Empire were extremely rich, owning thousands of fertile farnds. However, what made themsting was that they attached great importance to education.


    As they put much emphasis on the inheritance of education, they had fostered countless schrs within thest thousand years. Apart from officials of the Tang Dynasty, previous Empresses, and many Great Divine Priests of West Hill, there were many descendants from Qinghe County serving as Divine Priests in West Hill or cordially recruited as instructors by the Revtion Institute.


    Official positions in Qinghe County at all levels were basically upied by people from Dominant Families. As thew of the Tang Empire was very strict and the imperial court secretly suppressed those families for hundreds of years, they were rtively low-key now. Besides, since they wanted to gain respect from those families in Chang¡¯an, the whole county was ruled with orderliness, so it was very prosperous and lively. With its unique literary as well as religious atmospheres that could be epted by the Tang people, it had always been one of the top three ces to visit for the Tang people.


    There were numerous shops in Yangguan City, attracting thousands of visitors. As there were a total of 132 big and smallkes in Yangguan, it was also called the City of a Hundred Lakes. Among all, Thin Lake in the south of the city was the most famous one; although very small, it was close to the government. More importantly, the best whorehouse and inn of the south stood by theke bank, and the most gorgeous flower boat was also on theke.


    The delegation heading to Lanke Temple rested in Yangguan for a few days and they lived in a rtively quiet mansion by the east of Thin Lake. That mansion belonged to the Songs, one of the seven Dominant Families in Qinghe County. They made room for the delegation without any hesitation when they heard that they woulde a month ago, showing absolute respect for them.


    About four blocks away from Thin Lake, there was a post office of the Tang Empire with a ck horse carriage parked outside.


    Ning Que appreciated the scenery through the window. When noticing those schrs bowing to one another, he could not help smiling, thinking of his previous ssmate in the Academy, Zhong Dajun from Yangguan.


    It was Zhong Dajun who had been vigorously fostered by the Zhongs in Yangguan, who had used to be hostile toward him, who had been beaten numerous times by him, who had been reced by him, who had been detained for a long time by him, and who had not been thought of by him for a long time.


    "It has all passed."


    Recalling the time spent in the Academy, Ning Que could not help but give birth to a feeling of istion. Since currently they lived totally different lives from each other, he could have such kind of feelings.


    Because of Zhong Dajun whom he disliked so much, he was ill disposed towards the Zhongs as well as toward Yangguan. Although he could not pick up the slightest problem in this city, while sitting in the carriage along the road, he stubbornly thought that it was worsepared with Chang¡¯an. As for what was worse, he would not bother to find out.


    At this time, Sangsang went into the carriage.


    Ning Que asked, "Have you sent the silver out?"


    Sangsang nodded.


    Ning Que asked, "Are you sure that you sent it by Court Document Joint Mail?"


    Sangsang said, "Yes, as it can save five taels of silver, I won¡¯t forget to do so."


    Ning Que said, "Well done."


    Since leaving the City of Wei, or more urately speaking, since Old Brush Pen Shop opened and started to earn lots of money, they two had been sending some silver to the people in the City of Wei on time. Although that wasn¡¯t much money, it was a token of their regard. Besides, ording to Ning Que, they would eventually spend the money in casinos or wine shops, as there were a few ces in the City of Wei where money needed to be spent. Why didn¡¯t they give loose rein to their bad habits?


    The decoration and repair of the mansion by Yanming Lake almost took all of Ning Que¡¯s money, including the casino¡¯s bonus of the next year. However, this visit to Lanke Temple could be regarded as a business trip, thus he faked amand from the Headmaster of the Academy¡¯s as a matter of of course, swindling three thousand taels of silver from Professor Huang He and another one thousand from Xu Chongshan, bing extremely rich as a result.


    Although he and Sangsang were used to saving money, they naturally began to enjoy the happiness brought by money as they were rich now. However, if they slept in the wonderful horse carriage left by Master Yan Se, it would be too strange, thus he chose an inn which seemed to be the best by Thin Lake, ordering a deluxe room.


    Bringing the Big ck Horse to the manservant, Ning Que told him not to feed it dry food like beans. The guy was quite shocked, thinking silently that he was really too rich to not feed the horse with cheap beans.


    Ning Que was not afraid that the horse would suffer from a bad stomach, but afraid that it would get angry because of bad food. Since it got used to eating fresh fruits and tonics like Sealwort and Ginseng, it would not eat beans any more, let alone grass.


    After all, it was a good eater, and this year it was taught by the old yellow bull to pay attention to diet like the Headmaster of the Academy, giving its priority to food. If it was angry at the meals, even Ning Que was not sure whether he could pacify it or not.


    After simply brushing up in the room, Ning Que took Sangsang to the dining hall of the inn, ordering a private room on the second floor to watch Thin Lake from the railing. They unsurprisingly ordered the most expensive food.


    The southern dishes were really distinctive. Greasy food like the smoked duck meat with sweat-bean sauce could be mild tasting, a green bud put on the te made the dishes elegant, and some light-taste food like tofu and green vegetables were cooked with thick sauce. Eating them with a few pots of fruit wine was really pleasing.


    When the two were enjoying the food, they heard a noise from theke bank downstairs. Someone was talking about something happening today, irritated and dissatisfied.


    After quietly listening for a while, Ning Que asked the manager to get news from the manservant, and then he knew the details very clearly as he gave the manager an ingot of silver.


    "The old Cui Taigong is celebrating his 100th birthday, which is a really big event; big enough that the Emperor also wrote a congrattory letter and asked the assistant minister of the Ministry of Rites to bring it to him. Besides, the West-Hill Divine Pce also sent people to congratte him. Even the Defender General of the West Xian Zhng, a great general of the Tang Empire, rushed to visit the old Taigong at the Orange Garden by Fuliang River after entering Yangguan without taking any rest. However, the House of Red Sleeves dared to ignore him."


    It could be clearly seen that the manager was really unhappy from his tone.


    Ning Que just knew that the day after the next day was the 100th birthday of Old Cui Taigong of Qinghe County. It was probably that the Cui thought that House of Red Sleeves seldom went out of Chang¡¯an and wanted to invite them to sing and dance at the birthday party, but failed to do so due to some problems.


    The Dominant Families of Qinghe County hadsted for thousands of years and even longer than the Tang Empire, gaining lots of respect from the people. Except for the Zhongs, they all lived in the Fuliang River manor rather than inside Yangguan City. Famous gardens along the sides of Fuliang River silently proved the heritage and influence of those families.


    It was universally acknowledged that those families were led by the Cui¡¯s.


    The Cui¡¯s began their history in Ruyang.


    A thousand years ago, at the beginning of the establishment of the Tang Empire, it was the Cui¡¯s who strongly supported Chang¡¯an to let Qinghe County be a part of the Tang Empire. Although the Cuis made the decision out of the pressure from Taizu (Founder of the Tang Dynasty), it was proven as a correct moveter. The Dominant Families of the Qinghe County all survived since then and gained the Emperor Taizu¡¯s goodwill, as well as lots of conveniences. The so-called big families who dared to ignore Taizu (Founder of the Tang Dynasty) eventually fell,ing to a grievous end.


    Subsequently, the Cuis contributed a total of five Empresses to the Tang Empire. In other words, the current Emperor in the Imperial Pce shared the bloodline of the Cuis. Besides, what made people appreciate them more was that they contributed two Great Divine Priests to the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    Today¡¯s Cuis were too powerful to be ttered. The old Cui Taigong was the first person under the deliberate suppression of the imperial family, as well as the civilian and military officials, to be the prime minister among civilian officials within three hundred years. From that, people could imagine how significant he was.


    Years ago, the Old Cui Taigong retired from the court, to enjoy his old age. His second son, who used to be an assistant minister of the Ministry of Personnel was also retired by then, spending his spare time in the Fuliang River manor. Another man out of the Cuis still serving the court in Chang¡¯an was the third generation grandchild of the Cui¡¯s, making the position of Dali Temple Shaoqing.


    Thus, such person could afford the congrattory letter from His Majesty and was worthy of the assistant minister of Ministry of Rites to paying him a personal visit. Even many officials in the court guessed that His Majesty would give him more awards if the implementation of the national policy was not considered.


    Now, the House of Red Sleeves could have annoyed such a super Dominant Family.

 Chapter 513: Dont Get Any Ideas

    Chapter 513: Don¡¯t Get Any Ideas


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In Qinghe County, there lived several dominant families that were extremely wealthy, powerful and had existed for thousands of years. These respectable families did not behave like upstarts and were well-educated.


    If Ning Que learned about their stories years ago, he would definitely yearn for their wealth and power. But now, he did not even lift his eyebrows at their stories. He did not feel excited at all.


    Although money was still attractive to him, wealth seemed to be no different from the flowing clouds in the back of the mountain of the Academy.


    The back of the mountain of the Academy was unknown to the outside world, which instead connected with the Academy¡¯s front. He had to enter the human realm on behalf of the Academy, but in fact, he was getting farther away from it. Even the greatest family was still stuck in the secr world. How could it be worthy of notice to the people beyond the world?


    It was just that he did not know how long it would take for him to be an Unworldly Sublime Being.


    He did not care about those families in Qinghe County. But he did care about the House of Red Sleeves. Looking at the sparkling Thin Lake, he fell into thought.


    Although Mistress Jian had a close rtionship with the Empress, the House of Red Sleeves was just an entertainment ce offering songs, dances and girls. The open-minded people of the Tang Empire did not despise the ce nor think highly of it. But how could it protect itself from those dominant families?


    More importantly, the House of Red Sleeves had no reason to offend those powerful families from the south. ording to the itinerary, even if it presented a dance at the birthday banquet of the Elderly Master Cui, there would be no problem with time.


    "It doesn¡¯t make sense," Ning Que said, "The House of Red Sleeves is just for entertainment, how could its girls have the guts to do that?"


    "You are right."


    The shopkeeper said with emotion, "Although Yangguan can¡¯t bepared with Chang¡¯an and Qinghe is only a county of the Tang Empire, it is not an ordinary countryside and not everyone can go to the banquet. How ignorant they are by refusing to perform the dance of Nichang."


    Ning Que smiled and waved his hand to dismiss the shopkeeper. After a while, the smile on his face gradually disappeared. He looked at theke outside the bar and said deadpanned, "So, it had been deliberately nned."


    Nichang, was the dance that House of Red Sleeves performed on the enthronement ceremony of South Jin Kingdom 30 years ago. It was said that during the dance, nobody blinked and no musicians dared to look at the dancers. And at the height of the dance, they could even see flowing flowers on the stage.


    No matter how many tales had been coined about the dance, Ning Que had his doubts. He had seen many dances at the House of Red Sleeves except Nichang¡¯s. It was not because the girls refused to dance the song, but because the dance required 36 dancers and the House was not spacious enough.


    All these years, the House of Red Sleeves had not performed the dance anywhere else other than a few times in Chang¡¯an. And almost nobody knew that the House could no longer perform it.


    The dance required a lead dancer of extremely high standards. In the recent five years, Lu Xue was the only qualified girl to lead the dance but she was happily married off. While the new girl trained by Mistress Jian could not bepared with Lu Xue though she could do most of the Huxuan Dance, she could not master the Nichang dance at all.


    Without Nichang, the House of Red Sleeves was still invited to the Lanke Temple to perform a delicate dance called the Heavenly Maids Scatter Blossoms. The terrible loss of Nichang remained a secret.


    The House of Red Sleeves had a close rtionship with the Academy and Ning Que. If necessary, he could even know when those girls had their periods. For him, the House held no secrets. So he was convinced that the dominant families in Qinghe County were deliberately making things difficult for the House of Red Sleeves because they knew the Nichang dance had been lost.


    But why?


    Ning Que could not figure it out. He quickly had his meal and left the inn with Sangsang. He went back to the post office and found the imprintings he needed. Then he followed them along the streets of Yangguan and arrived at an inconspicuous grocery store.


    The manager slightly bowed and asked, "What can I do for you, my guest?"


    Ning Que said inly, "This is a point of contact for the secret guard, isn¡¯t it?"


    Hearing the words, the manager immediately turned serious and subconsciously touched his knife at the waist. But after a second thought, he said cautiously, "Gale."


    "Thunderstorm? I don¡¯t know. Who can remember so many codes?"


    Ning Que answered and then took an ID token from his waist belt and threw it to the shopkeeper.


    After his fight with Xia Hou, Ning Que had returned the two secret guard and Imperial Center Administration visiting professor ID tokens. He just did not want to put the Emperor in a dilemma. However, the Emperor sent the two tokens back several days after Xia Hou¡¯s death.


    And the token of the secret guard had been changed for a secret guard¡¯s supervisor token.


    Of course, it was an honor.


    The manager took the token and confirmed its authenticity. He thought Ning Que must be a reckless newbie who asked if this was the contact point of the secret guard after barging into the shop. If they all did that, the secret guards would not be a secret anymore. It was lucky that he was careful...


    But the token seemed strange.


    The manager found the different patterns on the token and hastily turned to check the other side. His face suddenly grew weird after seeing the words on the token. He immediately led Ning Que to the back of the shop.


    Just after entering he knelt down in front of Ning Que without any dy and held up the token overhead with both hands, and said in a trembling voice, "My lord, please pardon my offense."


    The Tang Empire had no specific rules on kneeling. Except for certain formal asions, ministers could salute the Emperor in the pce with the hands folded instead of kneeling. But secret guards had different rules and the shopkeeper was stunned by the identity behind the token.


    Xu Chongshan, the current bodyguard supervisor, closely served the Emperor. The manager was very sure that the man in front of him was not Xu Chongshan but he knew the token was authentic, which meant the man should be his boss¡¯ boss¡¯ boss...


    "Stand up."


    Ning Que looked strange, he wondered why the manager told him the unspoken words in his heart. Shouldn¡¯t they all be tight-lipped?


    Shaking his head to get rid of the thought, he said, "I¡¯m here to ask about the issue between the Cuis and the House of Red Sleeves."


    The manager stood up submissively. He did not answer the question immediately but asked ording to the rules, "May I know your name?"


    "Ning Que."


    Hearing the name, the manager had an impulse to kneel again. He tried hard to stand straight and replied tremblingly, "The Fourth Steward of the Family Cui visited the House of Red Sleeves this morning and left in anger."


    The reply was brief and useful without any personal spection. Ning Que nodded with appreciation and said, "I don¡¯t know why the Family Cui wants to embarrass the House of Red Sleeves. It doesn¡¯t sound like their public impression and usual behavior."


    "If the House of Red Sleeves is a song-and-dance troupe without any status, the embarrassment doesn¡¯t make any sense, which could only harm the Family Cui¡¯s reputation. But if they know who¡¯s behind the House, then why? How dare they to do that at a risk of annoying the Emperor."


    The manager said, "The Family Cui must have known that the Empress supports the House. But Qinghe County has served the Emperor well all these years. In my personal view, it might be an attempt to suppress the Empress."


    Ning Que was slightly startled and said, "How dare they intervene in such matters and take sides in advance."


    He stared at the manager with a smile and said, "And how dare youment on the imperial family?"


    The manager sensed the smile in Ning Que¡¯s eyes. He finally rxed and said with ttery, "I dare not to conceal anything from Mr. Thirteen."


    Ning Que asked in surprise, "Do you know me?"


    The manager said seriously, "Who has not heard of you nowadays?"


    "You don¡¯t need to tter me. I am just an honorary supervisor. I am not in charge," Ning Que said, "I just don¡¯t understand why the Family Cui has the guts to do that. Don¡¯t they know my rtionship with the House of Red Sleeves?"


    The manager said, "I¡¯m afraid that¡¯s why they did that. They probably have guessed that you are here in the city."


    Ning Que asked puzzledly, "What does it have to do with me?"


    The manager looked at Ning Que adoringly and said, "My lord, it is you who killed General Xia Hou."


    Ning Que said, "So what?"


    The shopkeeper exined obediently, "Because you killed the Empress¡¯ strongest helper. As the representative of the Academy, you support the Princess. So Qinghe County wants to make their stance using this chance."


    Hearing the manager¡¯s words, Ning Que fell into silence. And then he shook his head and said, "The Headmaster has said that I am writing my own story and I don¡¯t like this boring plot. So I want to solve this as soon as possible. The question is when did the families start theseme things?"


    He asked for calligraphy stationery and wrote a short letter.


    "Send the letter to the Cui¡¯s Elderly Master. I really want to know whether those families are trying to help Li Yu by means of the Academy or they want to do something else by means of Li Yu¡¯s power."


    "I¡¯m not sure what I will do if they are really plotting something."


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 514: The Family Cuis Interesting Reaction

    Chapter 514: The Family Cui¡¯s Interesting Reaction


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The word "idea" was widely used, sometimes on the little thoughts between men and women. When Ning Que left the City of Wei for Chang¡¯an, he traveled with Li Yu, who pretended to be a maidservant. They went through difficult times together at the entrance of the Northern Mountain Road. They also told stories by the bonfire. If one delved deeply into their hearts, one could not say whether they had any budding interest in each other. But even if there was any, the interest had dispelled in the patch of sunlight when Li Yu left his shoulder slowly and stood up.


    There were no romantic feelings between the two, but they had friendship and they maintained it even over the years in Chang¡¯an. Since Ning Que knew that Li Yu had vested interest in Qinghe County, he did not make things difficult for them. He wrote a letter to the Family Cui by the Fuchun River and brought Sangsang to an inn. They sat down and admired the scenery while drinking wine as if they did not know what was going on in Yangguan City.


    The simple letter was to sound out their intent, with Ning Que¡¯s somewhat impure ideas mixed in. He wondered why the millennia-old family from Qinghe county was making things difficult for the House of Red Sleeves. Were they trying to butter up to Li Yu and the Academy or to prove their loyalty by disrespecting the Empress? Many thoughts ran through his mind...


    Just like what the manager had said, it was alright if it was the former. But if the Qinghe ns were nning somethingplex that Ning Que could not understand, he might start thinking towards the bad side. He represented the Academy by entering the human realm and his ideas were very important to the Tang Empire.


    Autumn had begun in the Song Mansion¡¯s courtyard by the slenderke. The gardens were verdant and it was the most beautiful season. However, the atmosphere in the courtyard was depressive. Thedies of the House of Red Sleeves leaned against the railings or sat quietly behind the table. Their beautiful faces were marred by worry and they were in no mood to admire the beautiful scenery at all.


    Thedies of the House of Red Sleeves were not all prostitutes. However, no matter whether they sang, danced or did other things, they all socialized aplenty; all were good judges of character and had good instincts. They knew that they had been well treated by the officials and nobles in Chang¡¯an because of Mistress Jian¡¯s close rtionship with those in the pce. Even court officials had to lower themselves in Qinghe County, so would they. Now that they had met these Dominant Families who were not afraid of Her Majesty, they ran into serious trouble.


    They were all aware of what the problem was, but could not find a solution to it. Even though the House of Red Sleeves were visiting the Lanke Temple on the imperial court¡¯s orders, they were not a diplomatic delegation. They would not expect the Dominant Families to help them. As for the Defender General of the West, Xian Zhng, he was currently in the Cui¡¯s gardens. Could they even depend on him?


    The girls grew more frightened as they thought of the Cui¡¯s steward¡¯s ice cold face when he left. Two or three of them looked at the girl sitting at the head of the table hatefully. They thought that the girl had offended the families of Qinghe County because she had treated the Cui¡¯s steward badly. Even though she was doted upon by Mistress Jian, they were not in Chang¡¯an now. What right did she have to be so arrogant?


    The girl was Mistress Jian¡¯s personal handmaiden, Xiaocao. She led the girls on their visit to the Lanke Temple and it was evident that Mistress Jian had begun training her sessor.


    Aspared to three years ago, Xiaocao had grown up, but still looked as beautiful as before. However, beneath the looming dark clouds of the situation, the girl¡¯s clear eyes were devoid of any traces of uneasiness. She seemed especially cold as she looked at the girls with slightly furrowed brows. She said, "Nothing has happened yet. What¡¯s wrong with you all?"


    In the brothel, Mistress Jian¡¯s status was akin to that of the Emperor¡¯s and Xiaocao was her sessor. Even though the girls could not help scolding her in their hearts and showing their dissatisfaction, they did not dare to speak of it directly. A gentledy looked at the expressions on herpanion¡¯s face and smiled. She walked toward Xiaocao and said gently in a coaxing manner, "The Cuis might have deliberately made things difficult for us, but your attitude was a little harsh this morning."


    Xiaocao sneered and said, "The House of Red Sleeves performs only for the Emperor and Empress. How could the old man Cuipare to His and Her Majesty? We have already shown our respects for the old man bying. How dare they try to make things difficult for us? The steward even tried to threaten us. Did they really think wee from an ordinary brothel?"


    The girls looked at each other when they heard that. They felt that Xiaocao did somewhat have the imposing manner that Mistress Jian had. However, in the face of the Dominant Families of Qinghe County, the House of Red Sleeves was no different from an ordinary brothel. Xiaocao¡¯s attitude would only cause her more shame when the Cui¡¯s exerted more pressure on them.


    Xiaocao knew what they were thinking and could not be bothered to exin. She took out a bag of sunflower seeds from her sleeves and began nibbling on them. She knew that even if the Defender General of the West didn¡¯t say anything in their defense, someone else would. Of course, the girl did not feel as calm as she looked because she was not sure whether the person was in Yangguan.


    The warm breeze came blowing from the slenderke and into the courtyard. All were silent and only the sound of eating seeds could be heard. Someone suddenly reported that the Cuis had sent someone forth again. When they heard that, the girls who had only just managed to sit down calmly stood up in shock again. They wondered why the Cuis hade so quickly and felt that they had really irritated them. What should they do?


    Xiaocao was surprised and she slowly put the sunflower seeds in her hand back into the bag.


    The fourth steward of the Cui n hade to theke once again. If they counted, this would be the third time he paid a visit here in an entire day. There were not many things that would make the fourth steward of the Cui n visit three times. Those who could "enjoy" such treatment were either elites, or trouble recipients.


    However, the House of Red Sleeves was destined not to encounter any trouble today.


    Because the fourth steward of the Family Cui was carried into the Song Garden on a stretcher.


    The girls from the House of Red Sleeves looked at the middle-aged man on the stretcher. He looked like he was on the brink of death. His clothes were spotted with blood. The girls covered their mouths in shock and they could not reconcile this man with the calm, gentle, yet forceful steward who had visitedst night and this morning.


    Xiaocao was also shocked. She stood up and looked at the white-haired old man beside the stretcher.


    The old man bowed to Xiaocao. He said, "I am the chief steward of the Family Cui. I heard that my subordinate had been impolite to youdies and have brought him here to apologize. This servant pointed at youdies, so my master broke all five of his fingers and gave him 12 strokes of the cane. I wonder if you are satisfied?"


    Xiaocao realized then, that person was indeed in Yangguan City. The anxiety that she had tried hard to tamper down earlier disappeared. She looked at the fourth steward who was covered in blood and forced herself not to fist up her hands but rested them naturally beside her skirt.


    The chief steward of the Family Cui apologized respectfully once more after he received a satisfactory reply from the House of Red Sleeves. Then, he left the Song Garden with his people.


    Other than the drops of blood left on the green-tiled ground, it seemed as if nothing had happened, and the shadow cast by the gate in the early morning and yesterday was just an illusion.


    The girls were finally released from all their fears after a long while. They looked at Xiaocao again, this time, with apletely different emotion. Xiaocao¡¯s calmness and coldness grew in depth to them, and they felt that she was truly an imposing figure.


    Xiaocao suddenly smiled, and then, she continued eating sunflower seeds.


    The girls waved away their servants and poured Xiaocao a cup of tea on their own. They stood by her side withrge smiles on their faces.


    After some time, Xiaocao cleaned the crumbs on her hands and took a sip of tea. She looked at them and said, "No one dared to make trouble for us in Chang¡¯an. Now that we have left Chang¡¯an, you don¡¯t need to fear anything. The House of Red Sleeves isn¡¯t an ordinary dance troupe."


    The fourth steward of the Family Cui had almost been beaten to death. He was carried out of the Song Garden and was showed around Yangguan City on the stretcher, which shocked many and roused the discussion and spections of many. The families of Yangguan City could all tell that this was deliberate, and they were stunned speechless. They wondered what kind of background the House of Red Sleeves who were staying at the Song Garden had, for the Family Cui to behave like this. The Family Cui was not an ordinary noble family. They were the Family Cui of Qinghe County who did not fear the Empress!


    Following that, something even more shocking happened in Yangguan City. A wood colored horse carriage entered the city, with its wheels stained with red river mud from the banks of the Fuchun River. This horse carriage looked cheap, but the bustle of Chang¡¯an ceased when it passed. There were many local government runners and stewards who stood on the streets to maintain order and several shopkeepers knelt before the horse carriage.


    Everyone in Yangguan City knew that only two people had the right to sit in this horse carriage in Yangguan City. They were the Family Cui¡¯s leader and the Cui¡¯s patriarch.


    The street in front of the best inn of the Thin Lake has been closed in advance. There were no pedestrians on the streets and it was very quiet. The horse carriage drove slowly to the inn. The inn¡¯s manager had been waiting by the streets for a long while. He knelt by the carriage and kowtowed respectfully several times. Then, he carefully helped the rich man from the carriage.


    The man was the manager of the inn, but he did not have the right to enter his own inn today.


    There was an ordinary hunchbacked steward who followed the n leader of the Family Cui into the inn.


    The Cui n was the most powerful n in Qinghe County. The Family Cui¡¯s leader was the most powerful man in the county. To many civilians of the Tang empire, the most powerful man of Qinghe County was the second most powerful man of the Tang Empire. Other than His Majesty who resided in Chang¡¯an, no one could surpass this man in status.


    Anyone would leave their room to greet such an important man. However, Ning Que did not do so. In fact, he did not even have a smile on his face.


    Because he felt that someone who was deemed the most powerful man of Qinghe County would not be any less intelligent than himself. Since they were both intelligent people, what was the point of doing fake and pointless things?


    The leader of the Family Cui looked like amon wealthy man. In fact, he looked even more ordinary than the old steward behind him. He wore a silk shirt that did not look extremely good, but was not at a bad make either.


    However, his words were extraordinary.


    "I was wrong."


    The Cui¡¯s n leader sighed, "Back then, in the imperial court, I wanted to make His Majesty happy, but I caused him unhappiness and was booted back to Qinghe as a result. I found that you were passing by Yangguan and I wanted to prove that I not only was able to manage schools, states and the country, I could also be a good host. So I tried to make you happy to regain my reputation. However, I have failed and it seems that I was really wrong. I am not talented in this area."

 Chapter 515: The Beginning of History Books

    Chapter 515: The Beginning of History Books


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Cui Shi was once a drafter in the secretariat. He worked in the pce and was once an assistant minister in the Ministry of Rites and the Ministry of Personnel. Many years after the new emperor took the throne, he was impeached and returned to Fuchun River to be a fisherman due to some reasons.


    From this simple introduction, this seemingly ordinary wealthy man was but just a senior official who had retired from the imperial court and was unimportant. However, Ning Que knew that Cui Shi had worked in the pce while Li Yu was learning to read and write. In other words, this man was the princess¡¯ first teacher. Of course, what was most important was that this man was the n leader of the Cui. He was a bigwig that was very important.


    Ning Que viewed Cui Shi with great importance. Even though he did not stand up to wee him, it was just a deliberate act. He did not understand Cui Shi¡¯s words because he did not understand why a bigwig like him would want to wee Ning Que and make him happy. He had evene to visit once a problem had urred.


    The Qinghe County¡¯s Dominant Family had a history that was longer than the Academy. Even if they wanted to show their respect for the Academy, they had no reason to choose such a blunt and even stupid way.


    Cui Shi did not resolve his doubts. In the following conversation, he calmly changed the subject and fully disyed the manners of a millennia-old dominant family. He did not talk about anything rted to the House of Red Sleeves but only reminisced about what had happened in Chang¡¯an in the past. asionally, he would ask questions about the princess, Li Yu, and the little prince.


    Since they did not know each other well, they made shallow small talk. Cui Shi did not probe deeply. After asking Ning Que to send the Headmaster his regards, he took out a thick letter from his sleeves and ced it on the table. He nced at Sangsang gently, bade his farewells, and left with the hunchbacked steward.


    Ning Que looked at the silent streets outside the window and said, "He did not need to suck up for me, but he did. And he did it in such an understated and careless way, without hiding his pride at all."


    Sangsang did not understand. She thought the bigwig who hade personally to visit had acted humbly enough. Did he look proud?


    "To those of the world, the most powerful man in Qinghe County did not have to wee a disciple of the Academy. But he is intelligent and knows what the Academy means to the Tang Empire. Since he knows this, and that you are about to be the Great Divine Priest of West-Hill, it would be fine if he didn¡¯te. But if he did, would hee so simply?"


    Ning Que turned to look at his untouched cup of tea. He said, "It is weird. I still feel like Cui Shi came by just to look at us. The crux of the matter is, what did he want to see? Also, I feel that he is very confident beneath that calm exterior."


    Sangsang said, "We have heard of the Dominant Families in the City of Wei. A bigwig like him would naturally be confident in speaking and doing things."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "There aren¡¯t any true old families. Those who could survive for a millennium are all powerful. The Dominant Families of Qinghe know this better than anyone else."


    "These Dominant Families have produced Great Divine Priests of West-Hill but not so recently. I also know that the Qinghe County had sponsored three Grand Cultivators in the Knowing Destiny State. However, one died in Chang¡¯an for some reason or another. These families should know that no matter how strong Qinghe County is, and even if they can stand shoulder to shoulder with the Great River, Song and Wei, they cannot be confident before the imperial court and the Academy."


    Sangsang suddenly said, "That... old steward is suspicious."


    This time, she did not mean that the old steward was a bad person, but that he was truly suspicious. Ning Que knew what she was thinking, and was startled. His brows rose up slightly.


    The hunchbacked steward was too ordinary. He was so ordinary that Ning Que did not even notice how he looked like. However, Sangsang said that the person was suspicious.


    Ning Que was already at the peak of the Seethrough State. He could already see the threshold of the Knowing Destiny State. An old steward that he found unsuspicious... could only be a Grand Cultivator in the Knowing Destiny State!


    "So, it is someone else who wanted to meet me."


    Ning Que said in surprise. There are only two Grand Cultivators in the Knowing Destiny State left in Qinghe County and one of them hade to check up on Ning Que. Why was Qinghe County so vignt against him, the sessor of the Academy?


    If not for Sangsang¡¯s sharp senses, he wouldn¡¯t even have known that he had been checked up by a Grand Cultivator until a long timeter!


    If the old steward had suddenly attacked, Ning Que believed that he would have already died. Even though he knew that this would not happen, he suddenly grew more alert.


    He had not understood Qinghe County¡¯s confidence earlier. But now, he could not understand Qinghe County¡¯s intent. However, his vignt emotions grew. They grew like the willow branches by theke and wrapped around his body. His breaths grew heavy and he found it difficult to breathe.


    So, he wrote two letters, sending one to the Academy and the other to the Nation Master, Li Qingshan. He mentioned what he had seen and heard on his journey, plus his thoughts by the Qing Gorge as well as what he had seen in Qinghe County.


    ...


    ...


    The solitary and shabby carriage drove out of Yangguan under the respectful and fanatical gazes of the Yangguan City¡¯s residents. The old steward sat on the shaft, hunchbacked. His eyelids were hooded. It was if he could not feel the gazes on him that came from both sides of the streets and had already fallen asleep.


    After some time, the horse carriage entered a manor near the Fuchun River. It drove deep into the manor where there was a small building. The walls made of rocks were not as high, but no one would dare to peep in. There were no other stewards or servants present.


    Cui Shi jumped out of the carriage quickly and walked to the shaft. He helped the old steward off respectfully and said, "It¡¯s been hard on you, Father."


    This hunchbacked steward was the true master of the Cui family. He was nearing a century of age and was the patriarch of Qinghe County.


    Old Master Cui waved his hand and said, "It was no hardship going to visit a person."


    Cui Shi helped the old man into the building. There was a simply decorated study inside. The four windows on each side of the room were covered with thick blinds, stopping the lights outside from streaming in. The room was especially dark. There were six seats along the wall that could be vaguely seen and six old men were seated on them.


    The six men stood up slowly and bowed when Old Master Cui entered. They moved slowly, not because they were unhappy to wait but because they were really old.


    Old Master Cui sat in the chair right before them and epted a hot towel that Cui Shi handed him. He ced it on his face and did not say anything while he waited for the heat from the towel to prate his tired pores.


    The six old men slowly sat down and waited silently, their faces devoid of any dissatisfaction.


    Old Master Cui began to wash his face after it was heated. He washed his wrinkled face meticulously with effort. The wrinkles on his face seemed to grow deeper as the hot towel scrubbed over them.


    Then, he leaned against the back of his chair and his face was shrouded in darkness.


    An old man said, "You went there personally. That¡¯s giving the Academy sufficient ¡¯face¡¯."


    Old Master Cui said, "We can afford to offend the Queen, but can we afford to offend the Academy? Furthermore, the core disciples of the Headmaster rarely visit the human realm. So we have to look at them carefully. It¡¯s not convenient for us to visit Chang¡¯an, and since he is here in Qinghe, why not go look at him personally?"


    An old man asked puzzledly, "Why not simply send him a letter stating your intentions and directly visit him?"


    "Sending a letter of intent doesn¡¯t mean we can see him. And even if we do, we won¡¯t be able to see his attitude."


    "What attitude?"


    "The attitude of the Academy."


    "The Academy had always been neutral. But since Ning Que killed Xia Hou, they would have to lean towards Princess Li Yu. They can¡¯t possibly support the Queen."


    Old Master Cui shook his head and said, "There are many kinds of attitudes. Who the throne will end up with is but just one of them."


    An old man asked worriedly, "The problem is whether Ning Que¡¯s attitude matches with the Academy¡¯s."


    The Old Master held his hands together and bowed to the skies in the north. He said, "Since the Headmaster allowed his youngest disciple to enter the human realm, it means that he has agreed."


    "What was Ning Que¡¯s attitude?"


    "He is a proud and cold young man."


    Old Master Cui suddenly thought of something. He descended into a long silence after saying that. When his aged voice rang in the dark study once more, it felt more tired than before, and was so cold that it made one shudder.


    "What I meant by saying to look at his attitude was actually to look at the person. Many strange changes have happened in thest few years. With Haotian watching over us, I do not believe in the invasion of the Underworld. But I believe that a major problem will happen on earth. These changes might be an omen to Qinghe County and our families that the biggest opportunity in a thousand years would soon appear."


    A thousand years ago, Qinghe County became part of the Tang Empire.


    What kind of opportunity would Qinghe County wee a thousand yearster?


    It was dead silent in the study. The six old men and Cui Shi who was standing beside the seat were all surprised by the hidden meaning in Old Master Cui¡¯s words.


    Old Master Cui continued, "We are loyal to the imperial court, but we have to consider what we can do if the world descends into chaos. It is regretful that there was no Queen from Qinghe County in thest century. There are no Great Divine Priests from our Qinghe County in the West-Hill Divine Pce. We cannot do much but only prepare and wait in silence. We have to look at the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s attitude towards us. I have to look at Ning Que for myself to ascertain the Academy¡¯s attitude towards us."


    "What is the Academy¡¯s attitude towards us?"


    "I have said earlier that Ning Que is proud and cold... No. He is cold-blooded. Being cold-blooded might be part of his personality, but pride is something that has existed in the Academy since its beginnings and has not changed. The Academy is supported by the Tang Empire and does not need to concern itself with us Dominant Families. We do not have any bargaining chips in our hands and have no right to be proud. We cannot bargain with the Academy."


    Old Master Cui said indifferently, "Our third sponsee died of unknown causes in Chang¡¯an. But the Academy did not care and neither did the imperial court say anything. That is because we, Qinghe, are not worthy of their respect."


    "We have to make the necessary preparations."


    Old Master Cui looked at one of the old men in the shadows and said, "Has the West-Hill replied?"


    The old man said, "It came in the morning. The Tao Addict... The Divine Priest of Judgment expressed her gratitude in the letter."


    Old Master Cui nodded and said, "It is good that we can help Ye Hongyu secure her position as the Divine Priest of Judgment."


    The old man suddenly said, "Perhaps we can suppress this Mr. Thirteen as a show of our abilities, to gain more respect from the West-Hill Divine Pce."


    "That would be pointless. It would be pointless to do anything more. I don¡¯t care what your descendants from the West-Hill Divine Pce had asked of you. I want to remind you, that Ning Que¡¯s little handmaiden will one day be the Great Divine Priest of Light. And his rtionship with the Divine Priest of Judgment is way moreplicated than we can imagine."


    Old Master Cui leaned forward, making his wrinkled face visible. He looked at the old man and said assertively, "The key is that if the Academy has not changes, no power in the world will have the right to change. So people can do nothing but wait."


    Those in the building understood what he meant by the Academy. He was actually referring to the Headmaster. So, they remained silent and then, someone suddenly raised a question.


    "I knew, when I was a child, that there was arge mountain in the Academy. I am now over eighty, and therge mountain is still standing in the south of Chang¡¯an. How long do we have to wait?"


    Old Master Cui raised his hand towards the north and bowed once more. He said, "The Headmaster is still in this world, so we can only continue waiting. If we can wait no longer, our sons and grandsons will see that day. Even the greatest person cannot defy thews of time. He will one day return to the Haotian Divine Light."


    All was silent in the study. Suddenly, someone asked in a trembling voice. "What if... the Headmaster lives forever?"


    Old Master Cui stiffened slightly.


    In the dark shadows, one could vaguely see a self-mocking smile crossing his wrinkled face. Then, he sighed softly and said, "If this is the case, then we can only wait forever. We have to wait gently and respectfully. We have to pretend to be tamed dogs."


    The topic ended here.


    There were plenty of conversations, plots and paths in this world. In the end, they will all end because there was a great mountain at the end. And that mountain was called the Headmaster.


    The six old men left the building and returned to their manors. They continued to be the heads of their ns and down-trodden dogs who had a millennia-old dream.


    Old Master Cui and Cui Shi did not leave.


    "If that day reallyes, my name would probably be carved on a pir of shame in history."


    Old Master Cui said.


    "But your name, might also be recorded at the very beginning of history books."


    Cui Shi said.

 Chapter 516: Prophecy of the Broken Beam

    Chapter 516: Prophecy of the Broken Beam


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    At the end of this conversation, Cui Shi had not managed to restrain himself. He asked his father a question which he had kept in his heart.


    "You said earlier that Ning Que was a proud and cold-blooded person. I think otherwise. There has been information from Chang¡¯an city, including words from the Princess Manor saying that he is an extremely shameless person who is seemingly clear and bright. He is good at talking and is thus doted upon by the Headmaster and His Majesty. How could a person like this be called proud?"


    Old Master Cui smiled and did not say anything.


    Cui Shiughed bitterly and continued. "Alright, even if he has learned to be proud from the Second floor of the Academy, how could he be cold-blooded? I always thought that what he had done when he was in the military did not count. He even managed to maintain a good rtionship with Ye Hongyu. From what I see, Ning Que is skilled and learned about matters of the world."


    Old Master Cui said, "If you look at his records and listen to his stories, you would not be able to see a person clearly. That is why I wanted to see him in person. Even if it¡¯s only a nce, it would be enough."


    Cui Shi paused.


    "Everyone knew that Ning Que was about to visit the Lanke Temple. However, he did not follow the diplomatic delegation. Even though he was staying in the best inn of Yangguan City, he did not have any servants. I only saw him and his notable handmaiden. I saw that he held his tea but did not drink it. I saw that he seemed to be carefree but was actually vignt when he spoke to you. But I did not see that he liked to be quiet and peaceful."


    Old Master Cui said, "These are habits that he had born with. It only proves that he is an extremely prudent young man and at the same time, he is a man who doesn¡¯t know what trust is. I feel that he does notpletely trust anyone other than his handmaiden, not even the Headmaster."


    Cui Shi stayed silent.


    Old Master Cui looked at the thick curtains and thought of the young man in the inn. He sighed, "He doesn¡¯t even trust someone like the Headmaster. This person is more than just cold. Should there be any major changes in the future, remember to have the West-Hill promise us before it urs. They have to promise to get rid of that young man, or we might have to pay an unimaginable price."


    Two secret letters from the Qinghe County reached Chang¡¯an city.


    A letter came through the Tang¡¯s secret guard system, and entered the South Gate Temple because the recipient of the letter was the Nation Master of the Tang Empire, Li Qingshan.


    After a moment, He Mingchi walked out of the Southern Gate Temple. He looked at the vast and distant sky and thought that it might rainter. He sped the yellow oiled-paper umbre under his arm tightly and boarded the horse carriage.


    Under the respectful lead of the steward, He Mingchi entered the depths of the Princess¡¯ Mansion. He arrived at the terrace that was quite famous in the social circles of Chang¡¯an City and greeted Li Yu, who was calmly sitting on a futon.


    Li Yu frowned and waved to have the pce nanny take little Wild, who was writing calligraphy, away. Then, she gestured for He Mingchi to sit down and asked, "There seems to be a problem."


    He Mingchi did not sit. This seemingly inconspicuous action implied that Li Yu¡¯s perceptions were not wrong. There was indeed a problem, and it was not a small one.


    He took out a letter from his sleeves and handed it over.


    Li Yu took the letter and opened it. She looked at the familiar handwriting and was startled. After reading the contents of the letter, her brows furrowed even deeper.


    The letter was from Ning Que to the Nation Master Li Qingshan. In the letter, he mentioned what he had seen and heard in Qinghe County. He especially mentioned how the Family Cui had used the House of Red Sleeves to probe him, as well the old steward¡¯s visit at the inn.


    The Dominant Families of Qinghe County were Li Yu and her brother¡¯s greatest supporters in court. If she wanted to help her younger brother ascend the throne, she would need the Academy¡¯s approval and the help of Qinghe County.


    Li Yu did not know the reason why Ning Que had written the letter, but she vaguely understood why the Nation Master had shown it to her. She frowned slightly and said, "Sometimes, I do not understand what those old men do. I can only say that those things have nothing to do with me."


    He Mingchi nodded and said, "I will bring your word to the Southern Gate Temple."


    Li Yu raised her head and looked at him quietly. Then, she asked, "You did not have to show the letter to me. You could have brought it to the pce and showed it to my father or the Empress."


    He Mingchi smiled and said, "This is my master¡¯s will. I am his disciple, but I do not understand. But I¡¯m sure that our master will be delighted to hear that what happened at Qinghe County had nothing to do with Your Highness."


    The meaning behind the words was so carefully concealed, even appearing as nothing special. However, Li Yu, who was involved in the matter, could vaguely catch the implications of his words. Her eyes brightened.


    "Thank you for your trust, Nation Master."


    The second letter from Qinghe County arrived at the Academy.


    Professor Huang He looked at the characters on the letter. He smiled, and then had someone take the letter to the back of the mountain without opening it.


    It was the Second Brother who read the letter.


    He read it while the Headmaster stood nearby.


    Second Brother bowed to his teacher respectfully and said, "Our Youngest Brother has spotted a problem."


    The Headmaster waspletely upied with the fish frying on the hot te. He asked casually, "Is it serious?"


    Second Brother thought about it and said, "There are only two in the Knowing destiny State in Qinghe County. It is not serious."


    The Headmaster said, "Then, why are you bothering me? Can¡¯t you see that I¡¯m busy?"


    Second Brother was startled and he asked, "What should we do?"


    The Headmaster said, "Your Youngest Brother was studying the truth of Tao enlightenment by the Daming Lake while he was cooking fish. However, he still cannot fully understand the truth of this world. Whether the fish is fried or cooked, it will end up being eaten."


    Second Brother learned from the statement and said, "Then we shall wait for them to start the trouble."


    The Headmaster suddenly thought of something and his expression turned grave. He had forgotten to remove the bamboodle from the pot and its sides were singed. The fish smelled like it was starting to burn.


    After some time, the Headmasterughed without restraint. He said, "Even if the fisherman dies, it doesn¡¯t mean that fish can¡¯t be caught. If the cook dies, it doesn¡¯t mean that fish can¡¯t be fried. The beam cannot hold the broken house all the time. Someone can only jump from the beam if it breaks. Even though these two things have nothing to do with each other, troublemakers will always be troublemakers."


    Ning Que did not know that the patriarchmented on him in such a serious and prudent tone. After Sangsang had confirmed that there was something wrong with the old steward, he had written two letters immediately and sent them to Chang¡¯an. After that, he did not think about the matter again.


    He rankedst in the back of the mountain. There were the Headmaster and his powerful Senior Brothers and Sisters who could settle the problems in Qinghe County. He did not need to worry. He boarded the ck horse carriage and left Yangguan City with Sangsang. Two dayster, they stopped at a port.


    There were no inconsequential robbers trying to rob them. Neither were there any stupid officials who wanted to collect bribes. What had stopped the horse carriage was a misty, endless water.


    Theke before the wild in the south of the Tang Empire had an ordinary name. It was called the Great Lake. Only those who had seen it could feel the power behind the simple name. Theke was extremely big. There was no other word that could describe it other than that.


    Just like that yellow river further south.


    The Great Lake was mighty and stretched across thend for miles. Even birds would find it difficult to cross. Even the most powerful cultivator could not cross it without a boat.


    This was thergestke in the world. It stretched between the two most powerful countries. When Haotian decided to make a buffer between the Tang Empire and the South Jin Kingdom, it would cause plenty of inconveniences for people in the world as well as bring forth peace to them. There would be different types of boats for goods and people to move freely between the north and south. When the mist dissipated, one could see numerous ships over the reeds, which would be majestic and beautiful.


    However, the ck horse carriage could only wait by the Great Lake. The path to South Jin Kingdom had been sealed and manyrge fleets of the Tang Empire were waiting for the diplomatic delegation to arrive.


    Ning Que had many ways to ignore the martialw. He could just leave quietly. However, it was better to wait for the delegation than to take out his token to reveal his identity and have the fleets open a path for him, whether it was for the sake of peace or, as the Old Master Cui said, he was born to be a cold and cautious person.


    Fortunately, the scenery at the Great Lake was mesmerizing enough and the delegation didn¡¯t spend too much time toe over. They arrived just as he was about to get bored with the autumn reeds, and sick of eating rawke fish.


    On the Tang Empire¡¯s fleet, Ning Que saw the main ambassador¡ª Xian Zhng, who was the Defender General of the West and was famous for his powerfulness and resourcefulness¡ª of the delegation for the first time.


    The head seat at the main hall of the battleship was empty. Ning Que and Xian Zhng sat across each other because it was hard to make out who was lower in status.


    The Defender General of the West was not simple.


    This was Ning Que¡¯s first impression on Xian Zhng.


    He thought that to himself as he looked at the man who looked feminine and had a disposition that was more akin to a schr¡¯s.


    "I¡¯m on the Princess¡¯ side. To be more exact, if the Emperor leaves, I will be loyal to Prince Li Huiyuan. Do not look at me like that. This cannot remain a secret forever."


    Xian Zhng looked at him and smiled, "This was not a secret anymore when the Princess attempted to have me rece Xia Hou. Furthermore, I believe that since the Empress tried her best to have His Majesty put me in this delegation, she must have known about my rtionship with the previous Empress."


    This was a very honest conversation. It made Ning Que think of Yangguan City and how the Master of the Family Cui had begun his speech. So heughed and asked in a direct manner, "I don¡¯t know anything about it."


    Xian Zhng said, "I was Empress Ren Xiao¡¯s manservant before she married into the pce."


    Ning Que said, "This rtionship is quite distant."


    Xian Zhng looked at Ning Que in the eye and said, "And I¡¯m on good terms with Chao Xiaoshu."


    Ning Que said, "What do you want to say?"


    Xian Zhng said, "I want to win your favor."


    Ning Que said, "The Academy prohibits us from interfering with court affairs. Furthermore, you are already a bigwig in the military. I don¡¯t think it is meaningful for you to win my favor."


    Xian Zhng smiled and replied, "The Academy prohibits students from interfering with court affairs. But that does not apply to those who have entered the human realm. If you aren¡¯t allowed to do anything, why did the Headmaster let you enter the human realm? Besides..."


    He suddenly leaned forward and whispered mysteriously, "...Xu Shi is old."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "It seems that I have underestimated your ambitions. And you have overestimated mine. Do not forget, I am now the most unpopr person in the military of Tang Empire right now."


    Xian Zhng smiled and said, "But I wee you."

 Chapter 517: In the Future and Ours

    Chapter 517: In the Future and Ours


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que did not reply because he did not know how to. However, since Xian Zhng had mentioned Chao Xiaoshu and Li Yu, he felt more at ease when he asked the man his question.


    "His Majesty wouldn¡¯t be unaware that you have once been Empress Ren Xiao¡¯s page boy. I don¡¯t believe the rumors in the imperial court either. I want to know why His Majesty sent you to the Lanke Temple."


    Xian Zhng¡¯s expression grew grave. He looked at Ning Que and said, "All countries have gathered at Lanke not just for the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival... They have also gathered to discuss the war with the Deste Man next year.


    Ning Que furrowed his brows slightly as he thought of the constant wars in the wilderness in thest two years. He asked confusedly, "The Left King¡¯s Pce had been plowed through by the Deste Man once, and then weakened by the Divine Hall coalition and Xia Hou. They do not have any power to take back the grasnd from the Deste Man... I can¡¯t think of any reason for the Tang Empire and the South Jin Kingdom to fight on behalf of the Left King¡¯s Pce. Why not allow the Deste Man to live peacefully in the Wilderness?"


    There would have been nothing wrong with his statement had he not brought up the distant past between West-Hill Divine Pce and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. After all, it was better to have someone else to lose their life than to lose your own. No matter how miserable the Left King¡¯s Pce is, as long as the Deste Man do not continue southwards and affect other countries in the central ins, who would be willing to face such a powerful enemy?


    "The West-Hill Divine Pce is unwilling to see the Deste Man tribe own such a beautiful piece ofnd. It implies that the Devil¡¯s Doctrine will rise again. Other countries in the Central ins are afraid that the Deste Man tribes will grow in size. Without the cold region in the Far North as a limitation, the Deste Man will have many children and their children will procreate. Then, they¡¯d need morend and will force the Left King¡¯s Pce¡¯s shepherds down south. Then, they might go to war with the Golden Pce. How will that end? Just like a thousand years ago, the Deste Man will be strong again and then, they will go to war with the Tang Empire."


    Xian Zhng looked at him and smiled. He said, "Since there will be a war sooner orter, why not whittle them down while they are still weak?"


    Looking at it from an emotional point of view, Ning Que had no reason to treat the Deste Man as his enemy. His only niece in the Academy was one of them. Furthermore, he had joined the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, so he was not as vignt against the Devil¡¯s Doctrine as those in the Haotian Taoism were.


    He said, "That might take decades, or even centuries, to ur."


    Xian Zhng said, "Even if it happens in a thousand years, it begins now."


    Ning Que had to admit that this statement was very convincing. However, it did not change how he viewed things. He had once been to the Wilderness and knew that it was a rich piece ofnd that could feed many people. Xian Zhng had mentioned the war between the Tangs and the Deste Man a thousand years ago. But that war had urred, not because both parties needed a ce to live, but because China needed to establish a new leader. In his opinion, unless there were any changes, the Deste Man would not continue southwards.


    As the word ¡¯changes¡¯ appeared in his mind, he suddenly remembered the dream he had and the conversations he had with Headmaster. He felt a chill run down his spine.


    Xian Zhng noticed that he was behaving oddly.


    All was silent in the room onboard. Only the sound of water sshing against the sides of the ship could be heard.


    Ning Que suddenly asked, "Do you believe in the Underworld Invasion?"


    Xian Zhng¡¯s expression stiffened slightly. And then, heughed self-mockingly and said, "Of course not."


    Ning Que looked into his eyes and said, "Chang¡¯an has be colder in thest two years."


    Xian Zhng said, "When I was little, I fed horses in even colder winters."


    Ning Que said, "You know that¡¯s not what I meant."


    Xian Zhng said, "I have been staying in the west all these years."


    Ning Que said, "Then why are the Deste Man moving south?"


    Xian Zhng did not speak. After a while, he suddenly smiled, and said, "Legends will always be legends. Even if they be fact, only legendary ces like the Second floor of the Academy have to worry about it. As a serviceman of the empire, we do not need to think as much. Should the underworld invade us, the cavalry will do what they have to do when His Majesty orders us."


    This was the standard answer of a Tang serviceman. Ning Que was not surprised. But he was one of the few people on earth who had heard Headmaster say that the darkness woulde from the north. That was why he had to think.


    This was especially so when he realized that this great meet at the Lanke Temple would involve sending military to the Deste Man. The wilderness in the north would flow with blood from now on. This was beginning to look more and more like that dream he had. The chill that had wrapped itself around his body grew more intense and he could not dispell it.


    Xian Zhng obviously wanted to have a long conversation with him. But Ning Que¡¯s emotional state was in a mess and he had grown wary without reason. Ning Que rejected the man forthrightly and walked towards the cabin.


    Xian Zhng walked to the window and watched Ning Que as he headed downstairs. He watched the figure on theke bank heading towards another battleship. His brows rose, and a myriad of emotions crossed his eyes.


    The House of Red Sleeves song-and-dance troupe traveled with the Tang diplomatic delegation. As a result, they received plenty of conveniences. With Ning Que having made his inclinations clear, the girls were all treated well and were given their own ship.


    Where there were women, there was noise. However, this ship was extremely quiet today. The beautiful women sat in their chairs and looked solemn. However, they could all barely repress their curiosity, ncing at the two girls speaking from the corner of their eyes.


    Xiaocao pulled on Sangsang¡¯s hand. She stuck her lips out so far that she looked like a duck in the reeds of the Great Lake looking for fish. She said in an aggrieved manner, "This is my first time toe out of Chang¡¯an. But you didn¡¯t evene to keep mepany. Are you my friend or not?"


    Sangsang only had three friends in Chang¡¯an. They were the Princess of Tang Li Yu, the girl from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine ¨C Tang Xiaotang, and the other was Xiaocao. The difference in status between the three girls was huge, but Sangsang had never thought about it. She treated everyone truly. She felt bad when she heard Xiaocao¡¯sint and exined helplessly, "Young master likes the quiet, there¡¯s nothing I can do about that."


    "You guys are already engaged, how is he still your young master?"


    Xiaocao looked at her and said heatedly, "You have to be aware of your current status. If you keep calling him young master, that fellow might keep treating you as his handmaiden."


    Sangsang thought to herself that even though they were engaged, the way they lived had not changed. She was used to calling Ning Que young master and found it difficult to call him by his name.


    The girls in the cabin had finally received confirmation of their spections. They finally ascertained who Sangsang was and had managed to guess which fellow Xiaocao was talking about. They were very shocked and could barely repress their excitement.


    As the saying goes, each rising generation excels thest and each generation had its own talent. Thedies of the House of Red Sleeves received a high ie and found it easy to leave the brothel. As such, the turnover rate was fast. Lu Xue¡¯s batch had already married or gone into business. The girls headed to the Lanke Temple were all very young.


    They had only heard of the legendary stories of the House of Red Sleeves, but never witnessed it for themselves. They were surprised to see that those rumors were real when they saw how close Xiaocao and the tanned girl were.


    Sangsang was no longer that unassuming handmaiden from the Old Brush Pen Shop. Even if the people in Chang¡¯an did not know that she was the sessor of the God of Light, they all knew that she was close to the princess. They also knew that she was the long-lost daughter of the Imperial Library Grand Secretary, Zeng Jing. Of course, Sangsang was most well known for her rtionship with Ning Que.


    The engagement between Ning Que and Sangsang was definitely the most sensational event in Chang¡¯an in the past six months. One of them was a student of the Second floor of the Academy, the core disciple of the Headmaster and a great calligrapher doted upon by the emperor. The other was the daughter of the Grand Secretary, Zeng Jing, a good friend of the princess and the sessor of a Great Divine Priest. Even though it was a simple engagement, it created a huge wave in theirmunity.


    The emperor himself gifted them with precious gold and jewelry. Several officials turned up in person on that day. To those who did not know of the finer details, what had truly surprised them was that the West-Hill Divine Pce had sent several high ranking priests to congratte them. They had also sent them several boxes of makeup just like Sangsang¡¯s family would.


    The Senior Brothers and Sisters from the back of the mountain had also prepared gifts. However, Ning Que thought that they might as well not have bothered since they all sent paltry, cheap gifts. However, he did not expect the Headmaster¡¯s gift to be the cheapest. He had not even bothered to even write anything, but had sent a box of pastries!


    "That fellow? Which fellow?"


    Ning Que walked into the cabin and said to Xiaocao, "Aunt Jian does treat you well. She even let you be the leader. However, don¡¯t think you can talk bad about me just because she has got your back."


    Xiaocao harrumphed and ignored him, clutching Sangsang¡¯s hand tightly.


    All the girls in the cabin guessed who he was. They stood up and bowed politely. The room was filled with flowing skirts and the scent of perfume. The girls thought of the young man¡¯s status and his fame as a great calligrapher. Their eyes danced as they tried to get close to him.


    Xiaocao looked at the chaotic scene and frowned slightly. "Don¡¯t even think about it. Go back to the brothel and ask the elder sisters. Who had managed to really get close to Ning Que? Everyone in Chang¡¯an knows that you girls are not allowed to receive him. This is Mistress Jian¡¯s rule."


    This rule had long be the joke of the House of Red Sleeves and other brothels in Chang¡¯an. The girls all knew about it. However, they thought that since they were out of Chang¡¯an and were going to spend many days with Ning Que on the same ship sailing over the Great Lake, they could not bear to miss the opportunity. Their gazes remained heated.


    Xiaocao looked at Ning Que and said helplessly, "You are already married, can¡¯t you keep a low profile?"


    "That¡¯s why I have to ask you to release my wife¡¯s hand."


    Ning Que smiled and went up to snatch Sangsang¡¯s hand away. He brought her out of the cabin.


    The sounds of the waves grew urgent and the lights in the cabin flickered before brightening again. The ink on the inkstone shook a little as the ship left the port, heading into the Great Lake slowly.


    Ning Que looked at the thin letter on the table, thinking about something.


    Sangsang looked at the letter in his hand and said seriously, "This is ours."


    The letter was left behind in the inn in Yangguan City by Cui Shi before he left them.


    The letter was thin, there were only two sheets of paper.


    There were only several sentences on one sheet of the paper. The other paper was a banknote worth 500,000 taels of silver.

 Chapter 518: Is This An Illness?

    Chapter 518: Is This An Illness?


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The first time they met, Family Cui sent 500,000 taels of silver. The Family Cui was really generous. The number was sorge that it was hard to imagine. Such arge amount of taels of silver was enough to do too many things in the world.


    Sangsang did not know why the Family Cui had sent so much money, but it was clear that if Ning Que took the money, it would cause great trouble. However, she did not even think about it and decided to ept the money.


    This note was worth 500,000 taels of silver. She had never seen so much money in her life.


    Refuse it? We would be punished by God to death like Mr. Ke.


    Ning Que read the letter and knew what Family Cui meant. He exined and said, "Your father¡¯s original wife was the cousin of Cui Shi. Now she is in Qinghe County. This is the woman who sent you out of the Zeng Family Mansion to get you killed when you were an infant. Family Cui gave these taels of silver to you. The aim is to make you forgive that woman, or at least not hate the Family Cui. So these taels of silver are not ours, but yours."


    Sangsang stiffened slightly, and said, "This is worth 500,000 taels of silver?"


    Ning Que said, "If you were just the daughter of the Grand Secretary, Zeng Jing, 500,000 taels of silver would naturally be a little too much, but now you are the inheritor of the Divine Priest of Light. If you remember these old things someday, even the Dominant families in Qinghe County will not want to risk incurring the anger of Great Divine Priest of West-Hill."


    Understanding the reason behind this thin silver tael note, Sangsang became a little hesitant. She looked at Ning Que, and asked seriously, "What is your opinion? Should I ept it?"


    Ning Que said, "It depends on whether you want to forgive them."


    Sangsang said, "Certainly, I won¡¯t forgive her, but I don¡¯t want to take revenge either."


    Ning Que was surprised and asked, "Why?"


    Sangsang said, "Because if it was not that woman, I would not have been found by you."


    Ning Queughed and said, "Since that is the reason, then take the banknote and let the Family Cui feel at ease."


    Sangsang felt worried and said, "Will it cause any trouble?"


    Ning Que said, "What trouble can there be?"


    Sangsang said, "Isn¡¯t it said that taking money from others means giving your weakness to others and being obedient to others?"


    Ning Que raised his right hand, and said, "I won¡¯t follow their order... These taels of silver are just to appease you. If these Dominant Families in Qinghe County really want to use this to buy me off and force me to do something, will I have to do it?"


    Sangsang said with concern, "It is not appropriate to take their money but not do things?"


    Ning Que looked at her and asked, "Which is more important? The taels of silver or credit?"


    After thinking about it, Sangsang said, "It depends on the amount of money."


    Ning Que gently waved the thin banknote in his hand.


    Sangsang looked at the banknote between his fingers and said without any hesitation, "This is more important."


    Then she sobered up, and asked awkwardly, "Is loving money this much an illness?"


    Ning Que said, "Loving money is not an illness, because ack of money is deadly."


    In fact, there was no need for any reason at all. It was impossible for him or Sangsang to send back the 500,000 note that had already been given to them. Even if he would be involved in something more troublesome than Qinghe County, or even if he would need to give up his credit or reputation. That was because they really suffered so much due to theck of money since they were children. The desire or greed for money had already be an inseparable instinct.


    If this was an illness, then they certainly did not want to cure it.


    The difficult childhood gave Ning Que and Sangsang some instinctive habits. Other than loving money, being sensitive to danger, foreseeing trouble in advance and fleeing like rabbits, and staying away from any trouble were also several very distinct ones.


    Therefore, in the following days, the warship slowly moved southward on the surface of Great Lake. Ning Que had never left the cabin. Xian Zhng invited him to his warship several times, and Ning Que gently but firmly rejected.


    Xian Zhng was a sophisticated person. Therefore, in the conversation that day, he told Ning Que his stance and idea so simply, which showed that he was even more sophisticated. Ning Que did not want to talk more with this person, because he did not want to participate in the major event of the session of Tang Empire.


    He was qualified to express his opinion on the session of the Tang Empire since he had entered the human realm on behalf of the Academy. However, he did not have any opinion. His only opinion was that now that His Majesty was wise, whoever His Majesty chose should be the one who would seed.


    As for whether the Academy should y a role in it, or whether it needed to obtain some benefits from it¡ª the Academy did not need it at all¡ª and whoever became the Emperor of Tang Empire in the future, he must maintain a respectful attitude towards the Academy.


    Besides, Ning Que really didn¡¯t care which Prince would sit on that dragon throne in the future.


    Headmaster¡¯s core disciples, who were on the Second floor, naturally had a higher position and better view than the people on the ground. They couldpletely ignore the matters of the world.


    The things that Ning Que was concerned now, were gradually exceeding the scope of the mortal world and inching into the field of supermundane. It was something that was not known to the world but would affect the entire world.


    Such as the Underworld Invasion.


    Such as the rumors that he was the Son of Yama.


    Such as Sangsang¡¯s illness.


    It was already autumn. The autumn wind, which should be clear and slightly dry, was wet due to the water of the Great Lake. When it came in through the window, it made people feel fresh.


    Ning Que looked at the line-like cursive writing on the Fu paper which came into shape. He used his urate eyesight to confirm that the ck gold powder mixed in talisman ink was distributed evenly throughout these lines. He put the pen on ink-b and turned around to look at theke outside the window. He was silent and thinking about something.


    The more he thought about unknown things, the more vignt he was. He always felt that something was happening and those things seemed to be rted to himself and the Academy.


    As the words "in the unseen world" were so ambiguous, he thought about Underworld Invasion once again.


    Headmaster did not find the passage of Light of Buddha suppressing the Underworld in Lanke Temple. Ning Que thought he was less likely to find it, but what if he really was the Son of Yama?


    Rumors about Ning Que¡¯s identity had spread around the world. He did not know what the Bhadantas of Buddhist who once wanted to kill him would do now. He did not know what was waiting for him in Lanke Temple. The ship was swaying on theke¡¯s surface and he was getting closer and closer to the Lanke Temple, and he became more and more silent.


    If he followed his instinct, because of the alerts and omens in his mind, Ning Que would not hesitate to take Sangsang with him and return to Chang¡¯an as quickly as possible and interrupt their journey.


    But he did not do so. Instead, he asked the fleet to speed up.


    Because of the sudden spike in Sangsang¡¯s illness.


    ...


    ...


    When they left Chang¡¯an City, the Sangsang¡¯s coldness seemed to have healed. They walked south with the sunlight, and she seemed to be entirely cured. When she got on the ship, Ning Que was surprised to feel that the little feet, which he held in his arms every night, became colder and colder.


    What disturbed him even more was that the sun-bathing and cultivation of Divine Skill seemed to be unable to suppress the chilly Qi in Sangsang¡¯s body.


    Sangsang did not feel the physical change of her body, or perhaps she felt it but was worried that Ning Que would worry, so she did not say anything and did the same things as usual.


    Ning Que worried that she would worry, so he did not say anything to her either. He began to pay attention to whether the alcohol bag was full or not. He quietly untied his clothes every night and put Sangsang¡¯s cold feet in the warmest ce on his body. Then he began to think about what Headmaster said before he left.


    He now understood why Headmaster wanted him to take Sangsang to Lanke Temple. It seemed that only the elders of the Buddhism Sect, who lived in seclusion, could cure Sangsang.


    Just as he understood, he also didn¡¯t understand... He couldn¡¯t understand why the West-Hill Divine Pce and even the Academy could not cure Sangsang¡¯s illness.


    Was an illness, that could not be cured by Headmaster, still an illness?


    Since he could not understand, Ning Que did not think about it any further. Anyway, no matter what the process of this matter was, the final result was already predestined¡ª he must cure Sangsang¡¯s illness. Then he must go to Lanke Temple to face the anger, or mercy, of Buddhism Sect, and to even face the moment when his identity of Son of Yama was confirmed.


    They traveled through the Great Lake, and faced theke wind. There were the white stars on the water, and gulls flew over asionally.


    Under the dual pressure of the vignce against unknown things and the worry of Sangsang¡¯s worsening health. Ning Que cultivated quietly. He kept writing talismans every day, meditating, and constantly cultivating the Great Spirit.


    On theke, the vague threshold of Haotian Taoism seemed to be getting closer and clearer.


    What people had to do in the world often meant gaining an opportunity for a breakthrough.


    For Ning Que, there were only a few things in the world that had to be done, such as the safety of Sangsang.


    At Daming Lake in the Wilderness, Long Qing used Sangsang to threaten him. He broke the realm into the Seethrough state, and then shot Long Qing, who was about to enter the Knowing Destiny State, and crippled him. Now, on the Great Lake in autumn, he once again encountered an opportunity to break the realm into the Knowing Destiny State, but this time, even Ning Que himself did not notice.


    As the saying goes that chaos of the country builds the loyal defender and sorrow builds the poet.


    Sangsang could make Ning Que improve his state.


    ...


    In the West-Hill Mountains, which were far away from Great Lake, the Prince Long Qing was also waiting for his own opportunity. He did not know whether the opportunity would arise or when the opportunity would arise, but he believed that the abbey dean saved him from being a living corpse at a town near the South Sea, and sent him to Zhishou Abbey, which was the holynd for all the cultivators in the world, to cultivate. This was already a great opportunity for him.


    Coming to Zhishou Abbey had let him see the possibility of bing a powerful man again, and let him vaguely find a chance for sess. It let him regain his desire like a fire. He thought this was an opportunity, because these were his ideas, and all of his thoughts were the will of Haotian.


    However, there was always a gap between reality and dreams, just as what he saw when he was collecting fish at the fishing port of the South Sea. There were wooden boards between the boats and the dock. It looked like he could get on the ship just by crossing the boards. However, the boards were covered with slippery fish scales and sticky organs. It was easy to slip, and fall into the sea.


    Long Qing wiped away the blood at the corners of his mouth, and knew that one more of his ribs had been broken. He looked at the screaming old Taoist who only had half his body left lying on the snow couch. It seemed as if he would be able to kill the terrifying old Taoist any second, and he felt bitter and confused.


    How long would his servant life continue, and where was the opportunity?

 Chapter 519: The Taoist Priest without Bottom

    Chapter 519: The Taoist Priest without Bottom


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Long Qing had been a servant in Zhishou Abbey for a long time. Every day he climbed up to the vine-covered Red Mountain and sent things to the old taoist priests who were in the strange caves. He was extremely exhausted, not only physically but also mentally. He was especially exhausted by the old taoist priest whose waist was cut, who treated him like a dog or a pig, constantly humiliating and torturing him until he gets seriously injured and spits out blood.


    Although he was tortured over and over again, his life was not threatened. Throughout all these days Long Qing had guessed that although the old taoist priests in these caves were deformed physically, they clearly knew about his origins and did not dare to really kill him. So he endured the harassment, and sometimes even took the initiative to talk to them.


    The taoist priests who were confined to these caves were almost certainly lonely. ording to the what he learned from stories in books, if he spoke to them more, he might foster a good rtionship with these taoist priests and would naturally gain benefits from them.


    This kind of expectation seemed to be childish. So far, apart from questions about things happening in the field of cultivation in recent decades, these taoist priests only mocked at his poor cultivation state or got angry that he still could enter the abbey while being so weak.


    Nevertheless, he got some information from these conversations at least. For instance, the surname of the disabled old taoist priest who made him spit out blood and broke one of his ribs for staring at him was Ho. This old taoist priest Ho called himself Halfman Taoist, which was obviously not his real name but self-mockery. In ordance with the generations, he should be the uncle of the hierarch of West-Hill Divine Pce. No wonder he had such an unfathomable state.


    With his old clothes floating in the windless air, both of Halfman Taoist¡¯s hands were caught in the fur of a Snowfield Direwolf. His face was as cold as a stone but his eyes were filled with misery and despair. Looking at Long Qing who wiped off the blood and stood upboriously, he said. "On the first day you came here I had already told you that you were a waste. What right do you have to talk to me? F*ck off."


    Long Qing did not leave the cave silently as he did before, because he heard something different from the words of his predecessor. The old taoist priest was in obvious despair; He knew the despair well so he walked to the wolf leather couch, kneeled down and said, "If I were a waste, the abbey dean wouldn¡¯t allow me toe here, nor would I have the opportunity to meet you."


    Hearing the name of the abbey dean, Halfman Taoist gradually calmed down and looked at Long Qing who was kneeling in front of him. Heughed and said, "But you are indeed a waste."


    "I am a waste now but it doesn¡¯t mean that I will always be."


    Long Qing replied calmly, with a slight bow. His eyes were covered with a pale gray gloss.


    "It is indeed unfair to say that you are a waste."


    Halfman Taoist stared at him without emotions and said, "Even though you are humiliated by me every day, you still insist oning into the cave. This shows that you have a firm will. I can tell from the recovery speed of your injuries that you have a strong body. You have been practicing Gray Eye, trying to find a chance to absorb my skills. Whether you do it by cheating me or by moving me, you are wicked and merciless."


    Hearing this, Long Qing¡¯s body quavered out of shock. He did not expect this old disable taoist priest who was seemingly insane could see through his intents so clearly from the very beginning. Suddenly he felt endless fear and wanted to run away from this splendid but extremely dark cave.


    However, without knowing why, he did not move. Maybe it was because his body was stiff, or he knew that he would not be able to run faster than the speed of the old taoist priest¡¯s eyes. Or maybe he just wanted to gamble on it.


    He was still kneeling in front of the old taoist priest, but bowing his head lower than before.


    "Gray Eye is truly a marvelous skill. After the transformation by predecessors in Haotian Taoism,pared with the original devil skill¡ª Tao Tie, Gray Eye can absorb the Psyche Power of cultivators without devouring their flesh and blood. It is indeed one of the best choices for sneak attacks."


    Looking up at the top of the cave as if looking at the sky, Halfman Taoist recalled many past events and he said slowly, "In fact, after such transformations, Gray Eye doesn¡¯t look bloody anymore but will have other losses instead. Compared with Tao Tie, the Psyche Power and even the spirit that Gray Eye suppresses cannot be blended with your original world easily, which will cause many problems. So Gray Eye is not as powerful as the real Tao Tie. Unfortunately, the Practice of Taotie in Devil¡¯s Doctrine has long been lost. Now Devil¡¯s Doctrine has gone into a decline, there might be no one in the world who knows the practice."


    This powerful old taoist priest whose cultivation state had almost broken Five States did not know that Master Lotus had long managed to restart the Practice of Taotie in secret.


    Long Qing got serious for he had already seen relevant records in "Sha" Handscroll of Tomes of Arcane but he did not pay too much attention to it. On hearing what Halfman Taoist said, he realized that it was an intractable problem. What confused him most now though, was that Halfman Taoist did not kill him or drive him away after seeing through all his intentions, but instead began to teach him as if he were his student.


    Halfman Taoist moved his eyes from the top of the cave down to Long Qing and said calmly, "You have a firm will, strong body, tactical ideas, sinister plots, great ambition and durable endurance. You seem to meet all the requirements of sess. Do you know why I still say you are a waste?"


    "I don¡¯t know."


    "I heard about your experience the other day that you were famous in the past but eventually ruined in the hands of a disciple of the Academy. Now let me ask you, in which aspect are you inferior to the disciple?"


    Hearing this question, Long Qing sank into silence for a long time. In fact, he had already asked himself many times and he did not understand why Ning Que was better than him - he was Divine Son of West-Hill who was almost perfect while Ning Que was just a pawn in City of Wei. The reality was that he was defeated by Ning Que in consecutive battles and each time he lost more miserably thanst. What on earth was the answer to this question?


    "You are not cheeky enough."


    Halfman Taoist looked at him and said in a faint voice, "In other words, you still try to preserve yourst pride and you simply don¡¯t understand that if you want to be the most powerful cultivator, you have to know exactly when you abandon your pride and sink yourself into some dirty mud."


    Long Qing raised his head and said with a frown, "I don¡¯t think I have any pride right now."


    Halfman Taoist lifted his hand, pointed at his knees, and said, "You are kneeling in front of me, but in your heart, you are still standing upright."


    Long Qing said, "Doesn¡¯t Ning Que have his own pride?"


    Halfman Taoist said, "I have never met the person called Ning Que and I don¡¯t know what he has done. But I¡¯m sure that he will definitely give up all his pride if it is needed to aplish his goal. If he is in Zhishou Abbey right now, he will never climb up the mountain silently and try to use emotional offensive or sinister means to take my power like you."


    Long Qing asked in confusion, "What would he do?"


    Halfman Taoist grinned with wrinkles on his haggard face trembling like raw noodles which were going to break down. He said, "On the first day he would enter the cave, kneel in front of me, and beg me to give him half of my power."


    "But... As far as I know, people in the Academy are all very proud."


    "The prides are all superficial things which only show up when the people get their power. They are proud of heaven, of earth or of people but never of themselves. As long as they can get stronger, they will betray Haotian and join in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. It is impossible for these shameless people to have pride!"


    Halfman Taoist growled angrily, with his face turning red and his trembling right hand waving in the air. It seemed as though he was grabbing an invisible enemy and tearing them into countless pieces.


    Everything in the cave seemed to have felt the anger. The white wolf fur became smooth out of restlessness and fear and the luminous pearl on the wall weakened its light secretly.


    Kneeling in front of the old taoist priest, Long Qing was torn by this powerful spiritual force and seemed to be burning. He exhausted all his strength to keep his trembling body from falling to the ground.


    The wind stopped and the cave returned to a dead silence.


    Halfman Taoist looked at Long Qing and asked him slowly, "Do you know who cut me in two at the waist?"


    His voice was calm, with little to no fluctuation, but held endless pain.


    With his fingers bending, Long Qing¡¯s hands which were on the ground were trembling slightly. He was about to catch a trace on the ground. He risked making the old taoist priest furious and said in a wobbly voice, "It¡¯s either the Headmaster or Ke Haoran."


    Struck by the answer, Halfman Taoist asked, "How did you know?"


    Long Qing answered, "Predecessor¡¯s cultivation state had already gone beyond Five States and you had be a saint at that time. There were only two people in the world who could hurt you so badly."


    After hearing his answer, Halfman Taoistughed out loud with hatred and said, "You are right. I was cut in half by a sword of Ke Haoran and all the old guys hidden in the caves in this mountain were all hurt either by Ke Haoran or the Headmaster."


    "I was seriously injured in the battle against Ke Haoran. If not for the secret practice that kept my life, I would have died on the spot in immense pain. Even though I survived the battle, I couldn¡¯t forget the pain I suffered: how my intestines flowed out of my body, and how the lower part of my body was cut off. I will never forget the pain."


    "Though Ke Haoran had already died, I couldn¡¯t let go of my pain. I am not reconciled to it. I want Ke Haoran in pain even though he¡¯s dead. So I have an un-ending desire to destroy the Academy."


    "However, for the rest of my life I could only rely on my distorted upper body to crawl like a bug in this cave. I am just a wreck without buttocks. How can I destroy the Academy?"


    Halfman Taoist looked at Long Qing kneeling in front of him,ughed like a madman, and said desperately, "The abbey dean sent you to me so I thought you had a chance to do it. It turned out that you were just a waste, not any better than me even though you have buttocks."


    Long Qing suddenly raised his head and asked, "How can I not be a waste?"


    The old taoist priest stoppedughing, stared into his eyes and said, "The so-called ¡¯strong people¡¯ are those who are able to pursue power at all costs."


    Kneeling on the ground in bewilderment, Long Qing said with a quivering voice, "The reason why I chose to practice Gray Eye is to attack you or any predecessor in the caves in this mountain. I thought I had already done it at all costs. I don¡¯t know how to go any further."


    The old taoist priest said with a grin, "If you want to do it at all costs, you are not supposed to have any emotion or position other than eager for power. No matter whether it¡¯s pride or belief, you need to throw it away. If it¡¯s one¡¯s bottom that decides one¡¯s position, you should be like me now, without bottom at all. "


    Long Qing whispered, "What about Haotian?"


    The old taoist priest snapped, "The reason why people in the Academy are so powerful is that they have no faith or rule. In their eyes, Haotian is not even the bottom but a fart! If you want to defeat the Academy, you need to be a person that thinks nothing of faith and rule and takes Haotian as a fart as well. Let go!"

 Chapter 520: Gray-eyed Cub

    Chapter 520: Gray-eyed Cub


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In the wilderness, Long Qing waspletely disheartened after his cultivation was crippled by Ning Que, to the extent that he even tried to abandon his faith and walk into the darkness. However, he did not die in the end and could not throw himself into Yama¡¯s arms. It was also this desperate experience that led him to realize that a simple statement or conduct was not a true betrayal. For a firm believer like him, erasing veneration and faith for Haotian from the bottom of his heart would be the most difficult thing in the world; just as dispersing light from the sky.


    Long Qing knelt in front of the Halfman Taoist and said, "Haotian¡¯s will is too formidable and it has already surpassed my will. I do not know how to get rid of it."


    The Halfman Taoist asked, "What is Haotian¡¯s will?"


    Long Qing thought about the conversation with the abbey dean on the boat in the southern sea and said, "Haotian is omnipresent and omniscient. All creations in the world are under his control. Therefore, our mental state is also controlled by Haotian¡¯s will."


    The Halfman Taoist did not think that he would have such a profound understanding of Haotian¡¯s will and nodded with a touch of appreciation. He said, "The mental state is a subjective appearance of Haotian¡¯s will. However, there must be two sides to everything, and Haotian¡¯s will has its own objective existence. Have you ever felt it?"


    Long Qing felt slightly disappointed, thinking about the objective side of Haotian¡¯s will. Didn¡¯t it signify Haotian¡¯s godly stature? How could it be perceived by mere mortals?


    "Haotian has an infinite stature. Just like the vast deep blue oceans break gravel into countless tiny pieces, Haotian has countless and shapeless forms. Sometimes it¡¯s a beast, sometimes people, sometimes trees, sometimes a mountain, sometimes a sea, sometimes a sun, sometimes the world."


    The Halfman Taoist slightly lowered his gaze. It was as if his dead tree-like face was covered with a sheen of holy Divine Light, with his voice devoid of emotion. It seemed as if the voice describing Haotian¡¯s appearance did not actuallye from his own mouth but from a cave predating the world itself.


    There were no descriptions of Haotian in the West-Hill ssics because, in the doctrines, any attempt to describe Haotian¡¯s behavior was considered an extremely disrespectful and sphemous act. This was the first time Long Qing had heard anyone openly describing Haotian. Although the descriptions seemed simple, it made his Taoist Heart tremble violently.


    His Taoist Heart shivered. Besides hearing about Haotian¡¯s godly image, he finally confirmed that only half of the Taoist priest¡¯s deformed body remained lying on the couch, and the fact that he had already broken through beyond the Five States!


    Only those practitioners who could break through the Five States and enter the Tianqi state were fortunate enough to see Haotian¡¯s godly image for themselves, and only those talents were allowed to openly describe Haotian¡¯s image!


    A Haotian Taoism predecessor of the Tianqi state was actually felled by a sword, his body split in two. Long Qing could not help but feel that the Headmaster of the Academy and Ke Haoran were extremely terrifying!


    The Halfman Taoist seemed to know what Long Qing was thinking at that moment. He slowly opened his eyes and said, "Haotian can appear in any shape in the world; anything grand, solemn, quiet or self-evidently mighty. We can¡¯t be great, we can only be powerful."


    "The powerful and humble non-believers in the Academy canpletely wipe out Haotian¡¯s will, because from the very beginning they never truly believed in Haotian, and it is difficult for a Haotian Taoism disciple to do this. So, this time I¡¯m going to tell you Haotian¡¯s real description."


    Long Qing¡¯s voice trembled and he asked, "Why are you telling me this?"


    "Since you cannot wipe out Haotian¡¯s will, you have to try to forget it. If you never know what Haotian is, how can you forget it?"


    The Halfman Taoist looked at him and said, "You have to know it before you forget it."


    Long Qing seemed lost in thought, then silently bowed for a long time.


    No one knew how long the luminous pearls on the cave¡¯s stone walls had been glowing. He sat on the spotlessly white couch and his hair waved carelessly with the wind. He finally raised his head and looked calm.


    The Halfman Taoist looked slightly anxious and asked, "Have you forgotten?"


    Long Qing asked, "Forgotten what?"


    "Hahahaha..."


    The Halfman Taoistughed and stretched out his hands in excitement. He wanted to pat his thighs to let out all the pain and despair he had suffered after waiting for so many years.


    With one hand patting the wolf¡¯s fur, the taoist priest recalled something that had not been forgotten for many years. He had already lost his legs, and he had no buttocks. He was only a pitiful distorted old taoist priest with only half of his body, and he cried in pain.


    The shrill sound, akin to the weeping of a ghost lingered in the quiet cave.


    Long Qing calmly watched the old taoist priest beat his chest like a madman and even asionally grip his own throat until his face turned red. After the miserable sounds of crying andughter had gradually died down, he said, "My Natal Item is a peach blossom."


    There was a peach blossom in thepel of his robes¡ª a ck peach blossom.


    The Taoist priest blinked, looked at him and asked in a hoarse voice, "Why is it a peach blossom?"


    Long Qing calmly said,"When I entered the No Doubts State, I did not settle on my Natal Item. Later when I was studying at the Revtion Institute, I heard the story of the Headmaster chopping peach blossoms in the West-Hill. From then on, I vowed to let the peach blossoms bloom allowing Haotian to illuminate the world. Thereupon, peach blossoms became the basis of my life."


    Listening to these words, the taoist priest saw the bizarre look in his eyes. Long Qing¡¯s expression was calmer. He smiled and said, "When I began walking on the cultivation path, my dream was to lead the Haotian Taoism to defeat the Academy. The urrence of so many things during these years, especially the emergence of Ning Que had made my thoughts more direct and firm. I will devote my life to destroy the Academy and the Tang Empire."


    The taoist priest looked into his eyes and saw a lot of things. He said, "Very good."


    With that, the taoist priest heavily struck Long Qing¡¯s left chest with his palm. A powerful force sprang forth from the palm and instantly prated through Long Qing¡¯s muscles and ribs, piercing his heart!


    Long Qing¡¯splexion suddenly turned pale, and his eyebrows tipped up like swords. It was extremely painful, but he did not think about avoiding it. At the moment, he did not try to escape the skinny yet horrible palm, because he clearly knew that the difference in states between him and the taoist priest was as vast as heaven and earth. Any attempt to escape the palm would be in vain, and he firmly believed that the taoist priest did not want to kill him. He just wanted him to forget Haotian just as he had instructed him.


    The skinny hand of the Halfman Taoist seemed like a Green Lake that was erected on one side but had shrunk many times. A very quiet and beautiful aura had condensed on the surface of his palm. It was like the viscouske water that would still give a clear impression. It was something a person couldn¡¯t and didn¡¯t want to tear apart.


    "Your eyes are too ck and white."


    The Halfman Taoist stared at Long Qing¡¯s eyes and said that he could not tell from the haggard look on his face whether he was crying orughing.


    Long Qing¡¯s body trembled slightly. He knew that his gamble had paid off when he heard what the taoist priest said. His hopes were about to turn into reality. He looked at the taoist priest¡¯s eyes with gratitude and shock.


    Instantly, his ck and white eyes gradually underwent extremely strange changes. The boundary between the ck pupil and the white sclera was gradually blurred; the ck pupil was getting lighter, and the white sclera was getting darker. They were getting closer to each other until his eyes turnedpletely gray.


    As Long Qing¡¯s eyes turned gray, a powerful attraction prated through his Ocean of Qi, pressing the Halfman Taoist¡¯s skinny palm tightly to his left chest.


    The Halfman Taoist had been expecting it and the look on his face did not change. In a moment, the tke that the palm had umted turned into a vast ocean, fiercely pouring into Long Qing¡¯s body.


    Long Qing shook violently, and the corner of his mouth started to ooze blood. His viscera had wounds that were invisible to the naked eye. His eyes were filled with traces of blood, but they were gradually washed and monotonously mixed with ck and white, turning into a terrifying gray color.


    He slowly closed his eyes.


    The Halfman Taoist was already a Tianqi powerhouse who had crossed the Five States. Even though he was badly injured, Long Qing could not ept even half of his Psyche Power with ease.


    At that very moment, Long Qing felt like his body was filled with wine which would explode the next moment. He felt that his chest had risen like a mountaintop which would crack open shortly after. He felt that his viscera was already destroyed by a powerful aura and had been smashed into mincemeat.


    Fortunately, he forcibly preserved a trace of rity in his Taoist Heart, which awakened the instant before the advent of disillusionment and he came to realize that the Perception State, consciousness, experiences, knowledge and Psyche Power he had endured at that time were intangible and invisible. Everything was an illusion, and no changes had urred in his body.


    He knew he had to endure the pain in order to gain a new life.


    A more powerful new life.


    ...


    ...


    The wrinkles on the taoist priest¡¯s face seemed to have be deeper and lighter at the same time. The remaining half of his body leaned slightly forward to the edge of the couch, and his face was tightly pressed against Long Qing¡¯s face. He looked at Long Qing, who gave the appearance of struggling persistently while keeping his eyes closed. He smiled and said with a trembling voice "Absorb more, absorb even more."


    Hisughter was unpleasant. His smile was very strange and filled with kindness and greed, which felt perverted. He was like an old demon in the dark mountain vige who was breastfeeding his child.


    By that time, there were several extremely powerful auras that prated the hard stone walls and quietly came inside the cave. Each powerful aura represented a Haotian Taoism practitioner from that cave on the peak. These Haotian Taoism practitioners did not interfere with the bizarre transmission, but silently paid attention to it. The priest became aware that these auras were very calm and were hiding extremelyplex emotions.


    Long Qing did not notice this.


    His pale face was suddenly filled with a strange excitement and turned red. A squeaking sound came out of his throat. He was exerting strength like a newly born cub, with closed eyes and furrowed brows, desperately sucking all the nourishment, until he felt extremely intoxicated.


    The taoist priest looked at Long Qing and his face revealed a satisfied smile, perhaps a little too excited or something else. The waist cavity that was cut open by the sword that year, began oozing blood and dampened the snowy white cotton-padded mattress.


    "Absorb a little more."


    "Do not worry."


    Suddenly, the smile on the taoist priest¡¯s face disappeared. He gazed at Long Qing and with a voice as cold as steel, he said,"You can only take what I give. You cannot steal what I won¡¯t give."


    Long Qing still kept his eyes closed, as if he could not hear him.


    He really looked like a hungry cub.

 Chapter 521: Heavens Orders and Darkness

    Chapter 521: Heaven¡¯s Orders and Darkness


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The Halfman Taoist appeared shocked and incredulous when he did not receive any response. He bellowed angrily, "How dare you!"


    Long Qing still did not reply.


    A newborn beast might be weak, but its yearning for milk and the vitality it had were at their peak.


    Long Qing was such a beast. He shut his eyes, intoxicated and serene. He greedily sucked in everything that he could, thirstily and innocently.


    The peach blossom on his shirt grew darker and darker as his chest seemed to grow so deep; one could not see its bottom. It was a dark abyss, absorbing the aura from the old taoist priest¡¯s palm.


    The old taoist priest withered. His body shrunk until it began to hunch over. He had pinned all his hopes and dreams on Long Qing, who stood before him, that he was even willing to give Long Qing half of his cultivation power. However, he then realized that something was wrong, and began to feel an immense fear.


    He was the Halfman Taoist. He could survive even if he lost half his cultivation. However, would the greedy Long Qing stop? If this situation continued, he would notst long even if he had once been a powerhouse in the Tianqi State who had crossed the Five States. He would die.


    Continuing with life after having one¡¯s waist cut was like living in a dark hole as a rat. It was a terrifying form of mental torture. However, standing before the doors of death, no one would truly believe that dying was better than being alive. The Halfman Taoist thought the same. He had managed to survive, through many difficulties, after Ke Haoran had cut his waist. Decadester, he would certainly be unwilling to die just like that.


    "You¡¯re too greedy!"


    The Halfman Taoist could feel his Psyche Power flowing out of his body in waves. His eyes were filled with an uncontroble fury as arge wave of aura left his body. His withered hand, which was spread across Long Qing¡¯s left chest became arge mountain and pressed down forcefully.


    There were several loud cracks as five of Long Qing¡¯s ribs broke. Blood spilled from his mouth in a spray, soaking the ck peach blossom on his chest. Then, he regained consciousness.


    Long Qing slowly raised his head and looked at the old Taoist in front of him. He said, "Since we¡¯ve gotten to this point, why did you stop it? I have already absorbed so much, why can¡¯t you give me more?"


    The Halfman Taoist knew that Long Qing had already emerged from his instinctual madness. However, he had not expected that he would say that and could not help but grow furious.


    However, his anger had no chance to erupt since it was quickly shadowed by fear and loss.


    He had cracked Long Qing¡¯s ribs with his hand. However, he found that he was not able to move his hand away from Long Qing¡¯s chest. It was slick with blood and was deeply entrenched in Long Qing¡¯s chest hole.


    There was a hole in Long Qing¡¯s chest.


    The Halfman Taoist¡¯s palm had entered the hole through Long Qing¡¯s taoist robes, sinking in until it reached his forearm.


    There was a ck peach blossom above it that was soaked in blood.


    The Halfman Taoist wanted to wrench his arm out but could not do so.


    He could clearly feel his palm and forearm touching slick, sticky soft organs. The writhing flesh seemed as if it were about toe alive and was terrifying.


    The hole in Long Qing¡¯s body was like a quagmire with boundless depths of peat. The peat was extremely thick, and at the very bottom of the quagmire, was a dark, endless abyss.


    The Halfman Taoist felt as if he were struggling in the quagmire. Miasma poured into his pores as icy cold, smelly, ck silt began to bury him under.


    After a moment, his body would bepletely swallowed by the dark quagmire. Although his weightless spirit could prate through the peat, it would enter the endless abyss, enduring millennia of solitude.


    That was death.


    ...


    ...


    The Halfman Taoist became so hunched that the naked eye could perceive that his body had shrunk significantly. His body began to tremble uncontrobly. He looked at Long Qing with eyes filled with panic, anger and sadness. He did not know what was happening and why he could not stop that useless person from taking everything he had from him.


    Then, he saw Long Qing¡¯s eyes.


    They were a pair of serene eyes that were devoid of greed or thirst. In fact, they were devoid of any emotion. They were like trees waving in the gentle wind orke water rolling in the wind. They were calm because it was natural and right for them to be so. And it was this calmness that easily evoked fear in others.


    These eyes were no longer clearly separated into ck and white. They were also no longerpletely grey. His ck pupils were dark and they grew darker and smaller, epassing the calmness in him. It looked as if a monster from the Underworld was climbing up from the abyss, quietly peering out at this world.


    The Halfman Taoist suddenly thought of how he had described his seeing the face of Haotian to Long Qing. Then, he understood something and grew more fearful.


    The old taoist priest had shrunk more as Long Qing absorbed more of his aura through his Gray Eye Method. As the Taoist¡¯s face shrunk, the distance between his eyes grew. He looked like an idiot spacing out beneath a tree.


    He looked at Long Qing¡¯s emotionless, unseeing eyes that were serene and terrifying. He mumbled in a trembling voice, "How did this happen? Why would Haotian allow you to cross the line?"


    Long Qing looked at him and said cidly, "You have said, that to erase the will of Haotian, we would need to be faithless and disregard rules. If so, why are there still lines? But you were wrong. There is no one in the world who could truly disregard rules. That is because the rules are governed by Haotian. That is why Ke Haoran was punished with death back then. To truly disregard rules, we should not erase the will of Haotian, but instill our will upon Haotian¡¯s will. We should be Haotian¡¯s will."


    The Halfman Taoist could not stop trembling as blood continued to flow out from his waist. He shrilly bellowed in fear, "Even so, why would Haotian choose someone as useless as you?!"


    "Can we mortals really specte about Haotian¡¯s will?"


    Long Qing looked at him, devoid of emotions, and said, "All we have to do is ept it and even give praise. A moment ago, I wanted more of you. In fact, I wanted all of you, and Haotian felt my desire. That is why you have to offer all of yourself to me."


    The Halfman Taoist said shrilly, "I don¡¯t want to."


    Long Qing said, "You cannot stop me, because I am acting on Haotian¡¯s orders."


    "But I will die."


    The Halfman Taoist yelled hysterically as he cried and pleaded.


    Long Qing said, "For decades, you have lived a life that was worse than death. Dying at my hands would mean freedom. You would die a worthy death, offering yourself to me."


    The Halfman Taoist had already shrunk significantly. He looked like a child. However, he did not be younger. The wrinkles on his face were even deeper than before.


    He knew that he was about to die.


    He knew that he could not escape this bog.


    He had even guessed that these were really Haotian¡¯s orders.


    However, he was still unresigned.


    He yelled painfully and wed at Long Qing with his free hand. He wanted to tear at Long Qing¡¯s mouth and dig into his eyes. However, the arm that had sunk in Long Qing¡¯s chest had remained normal, while his free hand had shortened. It was not long enough to reach Long Qing as it hung in the air, trembling uselessly. He looked like a child whose candy had been taken away, looking exceptionally pathetic and hopeless.


    "These are really Haotian¡¯s orders."


    Long Qingforted him, "You knew that I was a cruel, vicious person. You knew that I would trick you and steal all your power. Why else would you be so stupid to be willing to give me half of your power? So die in peace."


    Halfman Taoist¡¯s hand that was waving in the air stiffened. After a moment he dropped his hand, panting painfully and heavily with his head lowered. He said, "That¡¯s right... I knew... you were a bad person... why did I allow you to trick me... Perhaps... I have long wanted to die... I was just looking for a sessor to help me finish my desires."


    He lifted his head. His skull had shrunk a lot and his eyes were significantly bigger inparison. His eyes looked as if they were about to shift to the two sides of his face and looked exceptionally terrifying. However, the bitterness, anger and fear in his eyes had disappeared, leaving only brightness behind. This light was the freedom he had attained from gaining enlightenment.


    He looked at Long Qing and panted excitedly, "Help me to kill everyone in the Academy. And then, have the millions of believers in Haotian remember my name. I am He..."


    "I will kill everyone in the Academy, and I will destroy the Tang Empire."


    Long Qing said serenely, without waiting for the Taoist toplete his sentence. He said, "But who you are has nothing to do with me. You have piled too much shame and pain on me. This is your punishment."


    The Halfman Taoist became suddenly still and thenughed out loud. However, his cultivation power was mostly lost now, and hisughter was exceptionally hoarse. He said, "You are indeed a viciously cruel person. Alright. No matter where you will go in the future, it is my cultivation power that has given you a new life. It doesn¡¯t matter whether the world knows my name. When you traverse the world, you are radiating my light."


    Long Qing smiled and said, "Indeed."


    The Halfman Taoist did not say anything else and calmly waited for death. However, he suddenly widened his already half-closed eyes and looked at Long Qing. He said, "Death is approaching. I do not know if I will fall into the Underworld or return to Haotian¡¯s Divine Light. But I want to tell you that I am still afraid of death because one¡¯s end will always be sad."


    Long Qing listened quietly because he knew that the old taoist priest¡¯s parting words would definitely be meaningful.


    "I fear death. They will fear it too." The Halfman Taoist said.


    Long Qing knew that he was referring to the other old taoist priests in the cave.


    The Halfman Taoist raised his head with difficulty and looked around the dark cave. He looked at the rays of powerful aura and said sarcastically, "They are watching you suck me dry. They can feel my fear of death. So they will not give you their cultivation power like I did. However, just like I couldn¡¯t withstand your seduction, they can¡¯t either. If they want to live, they will not allow you to. They will definitely kill you unless you leave."


    After a moment of silence, Long Qing said, "Even though it¡¯s a pity, I understand."


    The Halfman Taoist looked at him quietly and benevolently said, "Then flee."


    With that, he shut his eyes and fell dead onto the snow white couch.


    The dozens of powerful aura rays suddenly rose. It was terrifying. In a moment, they shattered all the luminous pearls on the walls and rushed toward Long Qing¡¯s body.


    Long Qing yelled out loud and his face paled. He fell to his knees and trembled like a leaf. He rushed through the only exit through the aura rays and drifted out of the cave.


    He fled from the cave. He leapt off the cliff walls and ran toward the Zhishou Abbey in the distance without a second thought.


    The rays were filled with unknown fear, violence and angry mes. They brought with them unthinkable power and burst out from the numerous holes in the cave.


    The vines on the mountain¡¯s surface tore and shot toward the sky like arrows.


    The earth shook threateningly and the world seemed as if it was nearing destruction.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 522: I Can Fall

    Chapter 522: I Can Fall


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The vines on the cliffs were very strong but appeared fragile as they were ripped off and shredded into pieces by the terrifying gusts of aura. They jetted toward the dense mountain path.


    While the vines were strong, they were in fact lightweight. However, when theynded on the mountain path and in the forest, they fell like heavy rocks.


    The vines fell in a resounding boom, smashing holes into the ground. They crushed several trees and caused debris to fly wherever theynded. The sounds of objects being shattered and crushed rang. Some vines became wedged deeply in tree trunks and some left deep gouges on hard rocks. It was terrifying.


    A slender and soft vine fell from the cliff and hit Long Qing¡¯s back.


    He felt as if he had been struck by arge rock. His face was pale and he spat out a mouthful of blood. Fear threaded through his pupils but he bore the pain and continued running down the mountain.


    The old taoist priests in the cave felt many different emotions towards Long Qing. Long Qing represented the hope for the world as well as the shadow of death. The two had mixed together and be the darkest and sweetest seduction.


    They had silently watched the Halfman Taoist giving his powers to Long Qing earlier and have gained a faint understanding. They knew that even if Long Qing was no longer as vicious as before, he could not contain his greed and ambitions when using the Gray Eye. That cruelness, ambition, and greed would be the death of them all.


    The taoist priests had been maimed by the Headmaster and Ke Haoran. They had lived in this mountain for decades on the brink of death. However, they did not die, and they did not want to die. If they wanted to live, they had to resist the dark, sweet seduction that Long Qing brought for them. The simplest way to do that was to kill him.


    Long Qing had not understood this in the beginning. However, the Halfman Taoist had warned him before he died. Long Qing had reacted promptly and attempted to flee.


    However, no matter what terrifying powers these old taoist priests possessed, they did not expect that the simple rays of aura could have an earth-shattering reaction.


    Loose rocks flew around madly on the mountain path in an unceasing din. The trees in the dense forest fell, with their branches broken, giving rise to dust and smoke. It looked as if Haotian had been incensed and was pouring down rock-rain to punish sinners.


    With a pale face, Long Qing scurried in the dangerous explosion of smoke and dust. He tried his best to hide from the vines and falling trees that could easily kill him.


    Lucky for him, he had to climb up these cliffs every day to bring things for the old taoist priests since he left the southern seas for Zhishou Abbey. As such, he was very familiar with the cliffs and forests and it helped him to make the fastest and most urate decisions.


    The falling debris would asionally cut his skin. As the number of wounds on his body increased, more blood flowed. There was no change at the ck color of his taoist robe, but its edges were soaked with blood that started to drip.


    The explosions in the forest gradually slowed down and the number of falling vines decreased. Long Qing did not slow down even when he was far away from the mountain. He grew more and more serene. Beneath this sereneness was a lingering fear or ecstasy that no one could see.


    Not even Long Qing himself could see that.


    When Long Qing had finally got away from the mountain, he ran into Zhishou Abbey.


    When he arrived at theke, he squinted at the seven grass huts with roofs made of grass that looked like gold and jade. He suddenly growled like an injured beast.


    He rushed into the third hut and reached out for the "Sha" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane.


    The "Sha" Handscroll of the Tomes of Arcane recorded many secrets that were as vast as the seas. It was very thick, but when his blood-stained handsnded on it, the book turned thin significantly.


    Long Qing stuffed the "Sha" Handscroll into his shirt and walked out of the grass hut. He looked at the other huts, but just as he was about do something, he sensed a faint aura speeding towards theke. His face grew cold, and he ran towards the Taoism Temple, not daring to waste any time.


    That Taoism Temple was the Zhishou Abbey¡¯s Hall of Medicine.


    Long Qing had been making medicine and practicing cultivation in the Hall of Medicine and was very familiar with this ce. He ran into the pill-making room at the back and took out the Earth Pill in the pot.


    He had taken over the cultivation power of the Halfman Taoist, but the man was a powerhouse in the Tianqi state who had broken the Five States with a vast amount of Psyche Power. Long Qing¡¯s current cultivation state would not allow him topletely absorb it in a short time. He even had to use his extremely strong will to suppress the power moving in his body.


    He had even been severely injured while fleeing the cave.


    Logically speaking, he should not have hesitated to swallow the Earth Pill that he had cultivated painstakingly. He should have sat down and used the medicine¡¯s power to ensure that he survived. Strangely, he did not pay attention to the medicine but ran straight to the front hall.


    He pushed the sandalwood door and walked to a simple disy stand.


    There was a small, crystal-clear medicine bottle that was made from an unknown material on the disy shelf.


    In order to resist the temptation, he had not opened the sandalwood doors or even nced at the door in the past few days. However, he had fantasized many times how it would feel to hold this tiny medicine bottle, and he had imagined several times putting the medicine bottle into his pocket.


    So he remembered the position of the small medicine bottle clearly.


    He did not hesitate when reaching out and his movement was very precise.


    Long Qing was so ruthless and dark that the old taoist priests in the cave were afraid of him. When his fingers touched the small medicine bottle, they couldn¡¯t help but tremble.


    His fingers were stained and smelled strongly of blood.


    The small medicine bottle exuded a faint scent of medicine.


    When this very light medicine lingered around his fingers, all the smell of blood seemed to be instantly purified, and could no longer be smelled. Long Qing even felt that his serious internal injuries had disappeared instantly.


    He could hardly keep calm again and his eyes brightened suddenly.


    ...


    ...


    Long Qing walked out of the Hall of Medicine and prepared to find the way out of the Zhishou Abbey with the fastest speed. Then he saw the middle-aged Taoist in the meadow. Long Qing was surprised but his appearance was somehow predictable.


    Strangely, the meadow in the early autumn did not turn yellow and was still verdant. The middle-aged man wore a light green taoist robe. He looked inconspicuous standing in the meadow as if he was part of it.


    This scene sent a different message to Long Qing. He had never known which cultivation state his uncle was in but now when he saw the man bing one with the meadow, he finally realized that his uncle had entered the Knowing destiny State or even the peak of the Knowing Destiny State.


    A bitter smile crossed Long Qing¡¯s face. He thought to himself, that no matter how lonesome the Zhishou Abbey was, it was still a sacred ground of Haotian Taoism. It was still an Unknown ce that many cultivators considered as a holynd. How could a Taoist who was in charge of this abbey be someone ordinary?


    The middle-aged Taoist looked at him silently. Then, he asked, "Why did you do that?"


    Long Qing knew what he was asking. He answered, "Because I wanted to."


    On the boat in the southern sea, the Taoist in indigo and Long Qing had an important conversation. From then on, Long Qing understood that his thoughts were the will of Haotian.


    The middle-aged Taoist practiced Tao enlightenment in the Zhishou Abbey throughout the year. He was the Younger Brother of the Taoist in indigo on the boat in the southern sea so he naturally understood what Long Qing meant.


    He looked at Long Qing and said, "I do not understand my Senior Brother¡¯s viewpoint, but I cannot find any reason to disagree. Even if our thoughts were the will of Haotian, I still do not understand why you did that. If you stay and cultivate in the Zhishou Abbey, read the Tomes of Arcane and get along with the seniors of Haotian Taoism, you will be able to regain your powers even if you don¡¯t do anything else and continue cultivating calmly. You might even be able to attain a better state. Why risk doing this?"


    "Because I am not the only cultivator in the world."


    Long Qing answered. His statement was iplete. He knew that they had not stopped moving forward when he was cultivating in the Zhishou Abbey. The Tao Addict had already be the Great Divine Priest of Judgment and the Calligraphy Addict had entered the Knowing destiny State. The most important thing was that the person called Ning Que would not wait for him.


    He needed time.


    He could not stay in the temple and cultivate for decades.


    Even though his mental state and heart were calm, he could not achieve true serenity.


    He would never get true serenity until he beat the Tao Addict and killed Ning Que.


    ...


    ...


    The middle-aged Taoist suddenly caught a whiff of the faint medicinal scent. He grew stern and said, "It is already a great sin to murder our seniors in Haotian Taoism. And you still want to steal our most precious medicine?"


    Long Qing knew that his uncle had discovered his theft. He was about to say something when the middle-aged Taoist suddenly sensed the aura of the Tomes of Arcane on him. He grew incensed and scolded at him, "How dare you steal the Tomes of Arcane! Are you not afraid that you will end up in the Underworld?"


    "I have always been thinking why the abbey dean would save me when I was most desperate and had stopped wasting away, faltering between light and darkness. Why did he save me when I began to try to be an ordinary businessman and lived a boring mortal life."


    "When I came to the Zhishou Abbey and began practicing the Gray Eye and saw the Heavenly Power Pill, I couldn¡¯t suppress the temptation that was the aura of those seniors in Haotian Taoism. I only understood... when the Halfman Taoist told me about the rtionship between strength and pride before he died. If the abbey dean had found something about me that was unique, that is I care nothing in the world. That is why I can behave proudly in the face of everything else in the world and also why I can¡¯t be proud. I can abandon everything, which is why I have the best chance of bing the most powerful person."


    Long Qing looked at the middle-aged Taoist and said quietly with a strange and exceptionally determined smile on his pale face. He said, "As long as I can be strong again, so what if I fall to the Underworld forever? If I am not willing to pay the price of falling into the Underworld forever, how can I be strong again?"

 Chapter 523: Candy of Life

    Chapter 523: Candy of Life


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The middle-aged Taoist frowned slightly.


    He knew very well why his Senior Brother had sent Long Qing back to the Zhishou Abbey. Long Qing was right, but he knew that even his Senior Brother would never have imagined that Long Qing would be this vicious andmit so many heinous acts.


    "If this is a path that my Senior Brother had drawn for you, then you are already at the end of this path. You havee to this cliff. If this is the life that Senior Brother had nned for you, then you have already deviated from his ns and you have surpassed the limits that everyone can tolerate."


    The middle-aged Taoist said gently.


    The verdant meadow behind him reflected the skylight. There was a steep cliff behind the meadow. No one knew how deep the cliff was or how deep the abyss beneath the mist ran.


    "I was intoxicated when I was in the process of drawing the Halfman Taoist¡¯s consciousness in the cave. However, I was also afraid because as I said just then, I am no longer bounded by limits or rules. The abbey dean¡¯s arrangements might not be right, because where there are ns, there are rules.


    Long Qing looked at the light green Taoist robe that the middle-aged Taoist was wearing. He thought of the green Taoist robe that the abbey dean had worn on the boat at the Southern sea. A trace of fear crossed his face. However, a momentter, the fear turned into a rxed expression that came after one was freed.


    "The abbey dean probably had not imagined that so many things would happen to me. If we can¡¯t even know our own thoughts, then how can we understand Haotian¡¯s will?"


    The middle-aged Taoist sighed, "Not even Elder Brother and the Great Divine Priest of Revtion would dare to specte about Haotian¡¯s will. Is there anyone in the world who can truly understand what Firmament is thinking about? So who are you to say that you are acting on Haotian¡¯s orders? Who are you to me all your sins on Haotian?"


    Long Qing said, "What mortals think are sins do not exist in Haotian¡¯s psyche."


    "Perhaps you are right."


    The middle-aged Taoist looked at him and said, "However, I am standing before you right now. I want to know what you believe in that gives you the courage not to kneel and plead for your life in fear now. In fact, you can speak to me so calmly. Could it be that you truly believe that I will allow you to take the Tomes of Arcane and the sacred medicine just because of what you have said?"


    Long Qing said serenely, "If my will is Haotian¡¯s will, then Haotian¡¯s orders will be aplished through me. How would he let me die then? If I die by uncle¡¯s hands, it proves that my will is not Haotian¡¯s. Then, if so, I will lose thest of my hopes and there is no point in me living on. That is why I am unafraid of death. Or at least, I am not afraid of facing death for the moment."


    The middle-aged Taoist said, "What you have said makes sense, but words are to me as living is to you. They are both meaningless. Hand over the Tomes of Arcane and the sacred medicine and I will not kill you now."


    "You will not kill me because the abbey dean had once pinned hopes on me."


    Long Qing looked at his own Taoist robe and felt the Tomes of Arcane and the little medicine bottle at his chest. He said, "There are no rules or limits so there will be no transaction. I have lost much once, that is why I am like a greedy child now. I have got candy in my hands, how could I bear to hand it over?"


    Then, he raised his head and looked at the Taoist. He said, "Uncle, have you seen those poor children fighting over candy? I never had the opportunity to see something like that back when I was in the pce or in the West-Hill Divine Pce, but I did see that when I became a beggar. Children fighting over candy was way noisier than beggars fighting over leftovers, and it was also more heart-wrenching. It didn¡¯t matter whether the children were full or how cheap the candy was. It didn¡¯t matter that those candies were not beneficial to them in any way. They would still fight for it because if they didn¡¯t eat it, it would be eaten by other children."


    The middle-aged Taoist said urgently, "No!"


    With that, he flung his sleeves back to reveal a powerful, pure aura. Qi of Heaven and Earth rolled, forming invisible ropes that wrapped around Long Qing.


    However, Long Qing had long nned for this. He had already broken the little medicine bottle silently while they spoke. He stuffed the medicine together with the shards of the bottle into his mouth just before the middle-aged Taoist¡¯s aura attacked him. He chewed forcefully with a wicked smile.


    He looked like a poor child who was busy stuffing his mouth with candy.


    The shards of the small medicine bottle were very sharp; They cut at Long Qing¡¯s mouth and throat. Blood flowed from his lips and mixed with the Heavenly Power Pill and shards as they entered his stomach.


    The middle-aged Taoist flew towards Long Qing in mere seconds.


    However, Long Qing had already eaten the medicine. The Heavenly Power Pill would never be whole again even if they cut open his stomach.


    The middle-aged Taoist sharply looked at him in an unusually cold manner. Anger spewed forth from his eyes like fire, as if he wanted to incinerate Long Qing.


    The Heavenly Power Pill was one of the most precious sacred medicine in the world. Even the Zhishou Abbey only had a few of them. That was thest pill left after Chen Pipi left the Zhishou Abbey.


    Long Qing lifted his pale face and smiled at the middle-aged Taoist. He said, "Uncle, I have eaten the only Heavenly Power Pill. If you kill me, it¡¯d be akin to dropping this pill into the toilet. If you let me live, you can still hold on to hopes that this Heavenly Power Pill might change me. I think that this would the right choice for Haotian Taoism."


    The middle-aged man squinted at Long Qing. One could not guess what he was thinking.


    Stealing the sacred pills of Haotian Taoism was an unforgivable sin that was punishable by death. However, looking at it from a different perspective, the potent medicinal powers would have already been transferred to the person who had taken it once it was consumed. What was left, was the person who had consumed the sacred pill. It could be said that even though the person who held the jade was guilty, the jade had be part of the person. The person was not only free of guilt, he had also be precious.


    Long Qing had not expected to flee the Zhishou Abbey on his own strength since he saw the middle-aged man. Furthermore, he was severely injured. Even if he had absorbed the Halfman Taoist¡¯s cultivation power, he would not be able to beat his powerful uncle.


    He had settled on this ploy from that moment on. Those aggravating and cruel words and his talk about Haotian¡¯s will were all part of his cover. What he wanted to do from the beginning was to consume the Heavenly Power Pill while the middle-aged Taoist was distracted.


    Long Qing had seeded. He looked at the middle-aged Taoist who was immersed in his own thoughts and smiled. He did not look very pleased with himself but was satisfied with how his calctions of benefits and ploy worked out.


    The Heavenly Power Pill dissolved in his stomach, turning into a clear power that flowed through his body slowly. It repaired his injured organs and even began to nourish his Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi that had dried out after he had rebuilt it at the Southern Sea.


    Long Qing could clearly sense all of this. He even guessed that once the Heavenly Power Pill had dissolved into his body, his Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi would bepletely healed and would return to its previous state. Then, together with the Halman Taoist¡¯s power that he had absorbed, his cultivation state would return to its peak. He might even be able to cross that threshold and enter the Knowing destiny State!


    He had once lost everything, so he knew how hard it was to get it back. He had once been brilliant, and only found out how hard it was to climb back to the peak. He thought about that arrow on the snow cliff of the Wilderness and the bloody hole in his chest. He thought about his hopeless trek towards the darkness and the bun in the rundown temple in the capital of Yan Kingdom. Long Qing¡¯s eyes moistened, and then, he felt as if his body had suddenly lightened as if he was about to float up.


    Following that, he realized that he wasn¡¯t hallucinating. The medicinal power flowing through his body was cleansing all the filth in it. It washed away all the dust of the mortal world thoroughly to his bones. He became lighter, so light he was about to float up into the distance.


    It was a surreal feeling. It was the power of the Heavenly Power Pill and the effects that it exuded when it was about to transform into a cultivator¡¯s aura. The scent of the medicine seemed to have be a gas that poured out from his pores and enveloped his body.


    While intoxicated by the floating sensation, Long Qing did not forget all those regrets. It seemed simple, but it was certain that while he was in no danger of dying, he would probably be imprisoned in the Zhishou Abbey, awaiting judgment from the abbey¡¯s dean upon his return. He would not be able to keep the Tomes of Arcane that were in his arms.


    However, what happened next was unexpected. The middle-aged Taoist looked at him and said dispassionately, "I admire your reaction speed and your way of dealing with the situation. However, you seemed to have forgotten that while you may disregard rules, Haotian Taoism and this Taoist temple have their rules."


    Long Qing frowned, he wanted to speak up.


    However, the middle-aged Taoist did not speak again. Instead, he pped down on Long Qing¡¯s head in a casual manner. It seemed simple and did not have the posturing or power that belonged to a powerhouse in the Peak state of Martial Arts should have. However, there was a mysterious aura in it. It seemed to gather a certain power in the heavens and earth and waspletely unavoidable!


    Long Qing could not avoid this p.


    No matter what kind of amazing encounters he had had, he could not avoid this p by a powerhouse at the peak of the Knowing destiny State. Their differences in States was like the will of Haotian. It waspletely unavoidable.


    Long Qing looked at the approaching palm with a bitter expression.


    The middle-aged Taoist¡¯s palmnded heavily on Long Qing¡¯s forehead.


    Unexpectedly, Long Qing¡¯s skull did not fall like a ripe fruit or split like an overripe watermelon. It remained perfectly fine.


    The middle-aged Taoist raised his brows, feeling that the situation was very incredulous.


    The power in his palms held the energies of the heaven and earth. As it touched Long Qing¡¯s head, it encountered the aura that started to exude from the Heavenly Power Pill in his body.


    A dull hum rang in the meadow.


    ...


    --

 Chapter 524: Cant Leave the Green Hill

    Chapter 524: Can¡¯t Leave the Green Hill


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Long Qing felt that there hadn¡¯t been any problems with his decision or response. He hadpletely grasped the... unique traits in human nature. He had forgotten an important point, however, and it was that the trait wasmon throughout all of mankind. As such, this trait had been recorded in history books many times. In other words, his response might have seemed wise, but was just wisdom that he had picked up from earlier generations. He was just walking down the path of others.


    Long Qing still did not know the middle-aged Taoist¡¯s name up till now. After the Taoist in indigo had been sent to the Southern sea by the Headmaster with a wooden rod, he had vowed to watch over Long Qing who was in the Zhishou Abbey. This naturally meant that the Taoist was both wise and knowledgeable. To him, Long Qing¡¯s response was filled with the aura of stale wisdom that he hated and could not ept.


    It was uneptable, so he would try his best to repress it. He did not hesitate to p Long Qing¡¯s head, ignoring the precious Heavenly Power Pill that Long Qing had just consumed. He ignored what Long Qing meant to Haotian Taoism, but was determined to maintain thews of their sect.


    It was regrettable to the people, to the world, and especially to Ning Que in the future that the middle-aged man¡¯s p did not kill Long Qing. Instead, it was deflected by a faint aura surrounding Long Qing¡¯s body.


    Long Qing, who was close to insanity, was no longer bound by any moral rules. As such, he couldmit many things that were thought to be immoral. However, Haotian¡¯s world was still ruled byws. His ability to survive was thanks to thew of force and reaction.


    The middle-aged Taoist¡¯s understated pnded on Long Qing¡¯s head and shook the Taoist so much that his teeth rattled loose and his features paled. However, it did not break the thinyer of aura surrounding Long Qing. The immense force was deflected by the aura, causing the Taoist¡¯s hand to bounce up high in the air.


    There was a loud boom and arge hole appeared in the hard meadow grounds beneath Long Qing¡¯s feet. His trousers flew apart like butterflies. There was a sharp pain in his bones, it seemed his legs were broken.


    Dust filled the air. Long Qing, who had been hit, was like a rubber ball that had been bounced viciously on the ground. He hung in the air for a moment before springing into the air at a terrifying speed!


    The winds started to howl.


    Long Qing shot high up in the air. He was at a loss and did not know what to do. He felt the autumn wind grazing his face as he watched the clouds appeared closer and closer. He thought of the floating feeling he had after consuming the Heavenly Power Pill and could not help but think if he was really ascending to heaven and bing immortal at this moment. Was he about to leave the terrible mortal world?


    A single Heavenly Power Pill could not allow a mortal be immortal.


    As long as he was not an immortal, he would have to fall no matter how high he flew.


    Long Qing bounced off the ground and began flying. He did not know if he was tens or hundreds of feet above the ground. Just as he felt as if he could touch the passing clouds in the cerulean sky, he began to make his descent.


    Other than those who could return to Haotian¡¯s divinend, most people would end up returning to the ground. The ground held an immense power over humans.


    It was that power that made Long Qing fall, and it made his descent faster and faster.


    He left the clouds and fell through the autumn wind. He looked at the middle-aged Taoist and flew over the meadows. Hended on the cliff behind the meadow, plunging through the thick clouds and into the deep valley.


    Even a powerhouse in the Knowing destiny State would be crushed after falling from such a high ce. Furthermore, there were unknown dangers in the deep valley.


    Long Qing brought the Tomes of Arcane with him as he fell into the deep abyss.


    The middle-aged Taoist walked to the edge of the cliff and looked at the clouds that looked like a disturbedke after a rock was tossed into it. He stayed silent, no one could not guess what he was thinking of.


    No one knew whether Long Qing was dead or alive.


    He might still be alive, but he was most probably dead.


    Who would know?


    The middle-aged Taoist looked at the human-shaped hole in the clouds that was closing up. He thought to himself, that if Long Qing did not die even from this, then he was probably the legendary figure in the prophecy.


    Both dull and shrill voices would asionally be heard in the green hill behind the Zhishou Abbey. The vines that were scattered about on both the mountain path and in the dense forest would shake with these sounds as if they were especially terrified.


    The source of these voices were the terrifying Taoist priests who had hidden away in the cave for decades. These Taoist priests did not try to show off their powers intentionally. However, their emotions meant that even the simplest speech would cause the vines and red sand to tremble. Several caves seemed to be on the brink of copse from the shaking.


    "Why?"


    "Why did you let me see hope? Why did the hope turn out to be a cruel one?"


    "I will kill that young one"


    "How dare that useless thing! How dare he try to hurt us!"


    "Why did Taoist He not do anything before his death?"


    "What did he see?"


    "Was that Haotian¡¯s will or the shadow of Yama?"


    "Is this really Heaven¡¯s orders?"


    The cliffs that were tightly wrapped by the ruined vines suddenly became quiet. No one spoke for a long time. The old Taoist priests in the cave remembered the scene they had seen before, and they thought about what they saw. They understood the truth is what they had seen and they kept silent.


    A long timeter, an extremely loud sound rang between the cliffs. The birds who were trying to find nesting material in the foothills of the forest heard the sound and flew in all directions in horror.


    "It doesn¡¯t matter whether it is the will of Haotian or the shadow of Yama. It doesn¡¯t matter whether this is a sign from the Heavens or a sin of mankind. This young Taoist disciple had appeared before us and that itself is troublesome. Senior Brother, he was robbed of his cultivation powers by the young man but did not kill him before his death. It meant that he did not wish to resist this temptation."


    A voice of vicissitudes and old age was heard in a cave.


    "If it were me, as long as Long Qing could inherit my powers and then destroy the Academy and the Tang Empire, I might be willing to do so too. I have had enough of the quiet life in this cave over the decades. If I had not been injured by Ke Haoran then, I would be sitting on the ck jade throne now. Would Lotus be able to steal my position? Or would I still be here, where I cannot see the green hills and my people?"


    A cold voice could be heard from another spot in the cave.


    "If you are really willing to pass on your powers to that young man, why did you kill him before? At the end of the day, you can¡¯t bear to lose the opportunity to get out of here. Don¡¯t talk about the past and your regrets. We have all been trapped in this cave. Who doesn¡¯t have any regrets? When the Headmaster had gone to the Peach Mountain and chopped all those peach blossoms down, had I not tried to stop him and was injured just by his nce, would Wei Guangming dare to chase me out on false charges?"


    The old voice pregnant with vicissitudes of life said mockingly, "You are an Elder in the West-Hill and Great Divine Priest of Revtion¡¯s Senior Brother, yet you spend your days with the wife of an ordinary believer from the Song Kingdom. If not for Headmaster injuring you, do you think Wei Guangming would simply throw you out of the Peach Mountain without doing anything else?"


    "What are you implying?"


    "I am saying that you can just give your cultivation powers to that useless Long Qing."


    "Why don¡¯t you do it?"


    "Because I will get out of here one day."


    "You wouldn¡¯t be able to get out of here even if the world ended."


    "Stop arguing."


    The voice was deep and filled with infinite power. It rang in the cliff, causing the broken vines to rattle and the birds that were about to take off to fall to the ground, chirping mournfully.


    It was evident that the old Taoists were all afraid of this voice.


    "Senior Brother He had his waist chopped by Ke Haoran. He had lived a life worse than death for decades. Unlike us, he would never have the chance to get out of here again. It is not a bad thing to have a vicious sessor like Long Qing."


    "However, it is different for us. While we are heavily injured, we can still control our cultivation state. As long as we have the chance, we can leave this cave and the Zhishou Abbey. It doesn¡¯t matter whether the cruel and vicious young man who makes even my heart palpitate lives or dies as long as he is far away from us. What we have to do now is to practice cultivation with a still heart and wait. Memories of our glory days are all poisonous to our hearts. Even without that young disciple, you will all end up being possessed by the Devil anyway."


    All was silent in the cave and nobody dared to raise their objections. The old Taoist priests in the cave all knew that no one else was more qualified to talk about their past than that man. If they had not been injured by Ke Haoran, this old man would have been sitting at the top of the West-Hill Divine Pce and ruled the entire Haotian Taoism sect as the hierarch.


    Some time had passed.


    Once again, a sound rang in the cliffs. The vines did not move. The red soil on the ground that looked as if it was stained with blood began to roll due to the desperation and the viciousness in the sound.


    "Would the day when we leave the cave alive reallye?"


    "Can we really see the skies outside once more?"


    "How long do we have to wait?"


    "We have already waited for decades. Some people have already died. Can we really continue waiting?"


    These questions were filled with viciousness and bitterness. They were like the cold rain in autumn that washed the cliffs outside the cave, bringing pain to those inside it.


    After a long while, the deep voice rang out again. It was both upset and determined and filled with resentment and expectation towards someone. He said quietly, "Just wait. Wait forever and prepare. Be prepared at all times and wait. Be prepared for the moment when that old man finally dies. That is the only thing we can do."


    Decades ago, the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was at its peak. The Haotian Taoism sect had many powerhouses. If the West-Hill Divine Pce had fought, they would have been able to sweep the world.


    Then, the Youngest Uncle of the Academy appeared.


    That Youngest Uncle was called Ke Haoran. He rode a little ck donkey and carried an inconspicuous sword at his waist. He destroyed the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. And then perhaps because of this, or perhaps he didn¡¯t need a reason at all, he began a massacre of all the powerhouses in the Haotian Taoism sect because of differing opinions.


    Many cultivation talents in Haotian Taoism were either grievously injured or handicapped by Ke Haoran¡¯s sword. Some were forced to break the realm and were punished by the heavens and did not dare to appear in the world again.


    One day, the powerhouses of Haotian Taoism sect gathered and surrounded Ke Haoran.


    Ke Haoran won that battle.


    He was then punished by the heavens and died.


    After that, the Headmaster went to West-Hill and climbed the Peach Mountain. He chopped down all the peach blossoms and killed everyone who tried to stop him and injured the rest.


    The abbey dean of Zhishou Abbey and the Taoist in Indigo came forth.


    The Headmastershed out with his rod.


    The Taoist in Indigo lost and went away to the Southern sea. He would not step on the maind for the rest of his life.


    Decadester.


    There was a green hill behind the Zhishou Abbey. There was a sprawling tunnel of caves in the cliff. Staying in them, were several heavily injured powerhouses who had terrifyingly powerful cultivation states. Half of them were injured by Ke Haoran, the other half were injured by the Headmaster.


    If these powerhouses were to appear in the world again, they would possibly cause waves. However, they could not leave the cave because the world had long forgotten about their existence.


    Because the Headmaster would not allow them to remember.


    ...


    -

 Chapter 525: Haotians Shadow

    Chapter 525: Haotian¡¯s Shadow


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Long Qing awoke and was greeted by a thick fog, rotten leaves carpeting the ground and endless pain in his entire body.


    He could not find any reasonable answer for surviving a fall from the cliffs. Perhaps the trees above the mist had cushioned his fall, or maybe the thick yet soft carpet of rotten leaves and mud beneath him.


    Long Qing felt that his survival was because of the will of Haotian, just like what he had said in his conversation with the uncle in the Zhishou Abbey. If he was really the legendary person in the prophecy who carried the will of Haotian, Haotian would not allow him to die so easily.


    He had not died, and this fact gave him confidence, but at the same time it brought loss and fear. He did not know what to do with his life now.


    Long Qing had broken many bones despite the softness of the mud and rotten leaves. However, what truly pained him was not his physical injuries, but the two powerful auras in his body that were in constant conflict.


    The Halfman Taoist¡¯s aura in the Tianqi state was set free from its mental restraint when he fell unconscious. It roared and burst out from the senses in various parts of his body. It took the form of several sharp, steel knives and scraped on his flesh and bones, attempting to shake his Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi into rubble.


    The aura from the Heavenly Power Pill was constantly repairing the cracks in his bones and tears in his muscles. They invigorated his vitality and repaired his Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi from the rubble ording to thest remaining shadow.


    This process of continuous destruction and restoration was extremely painful.


    It didn¡¯t hurt when he was in aa, but after he regained consciousness, he felt the pain everywhere. Long Qing¡¯s face paled and a miserable groan emerged from his blood-soaked teeth, echoing into the quiet valley.


    Long Qing almost fainted again shortly afterwards due to the immense pain. However, he knew how important it was to stay awake right now. If he remained unconscious in the poisonous and dangerous forest, he would not stay alive for too long. He would be abandoned at that time, no matter how benevolent Haotian was.


    With a howl of pain again, he mmed into a rock beside him, breaking a rib. The fresh pain overwhelmed the other pain he felt. Just before he fell into unconsciousness, he fought for a moment of rity. He regained his wits, sat in a lotus position and began to meditate and heal himself.


    Time passed slowly.


    Long Qing¡¯s face was pale. The blood on his taoist robe had long congealed. He sat in the rotten leaves and did not move. His chest did not rise or fall, as if he were not breathing. He looked like a corpse that had been dead for quite some time. Meanwhile, the two auras within his body were still fighting.


    The power of the Heavenly Power Pill and the Tianqi state aura of the Halfman Taoist cleared out the original aura in his body. He became an empty bucket for the poisonous air around him to enter, changing every particle of his body.


    Even after what felt like a long time, the light in the dense forest beneath the valley was still as dim as it would be at twilight. Long Qing¡¯s body trembled slightly and he spat out a mouthful of blood.


    What was incredulous was that the blood was ck!


    It might be due to the poisonous mist in the area, or some other reason. The ck blood looked like ink or dirty water in the mud.


    Several days earlier, a ck peach blossom had grown on the boat on the southern sea. Long Qing had plucked the ck peach blossom and put it on his chest. He had not taken it off after that.


    The ck peach blossom on his chest was tinged with blood as he fled the cliff and Zhishou Abbey. It was tinged ck and red, making it look horrifyingly gorgeous. It was painted over with ck blood again and now it glistened. Then, the light faded as quickly as it came, leaving behind a pure ck, the color of cold darkness.


    Sitting amongst the rotten leaves, Long Qing seemed to have be a ck peach blossom himself. His body temperature was frigid and the cold spread to the air surrounding him. He seemed to be a part of the mist and the rotten leaves.


    A spotted, poisonous snake wandered amongst the leaves. It circled Long Qing, but did not seem to sense anything strange before leaving.


    A mountain monkey with a ghostly face also appeared. It chattered in the forest as it dangled back and forth. It squatted beside Long Qing and scratched its head, behaving cheekily. It called for its mates and then left, bored.


    Withered leaves fell.


    With a gust of wind, the withered leaves flew again.


    Long Qing remained seated, not knowing anything, not sensing anything. He had blended into the surroundings.


    Not even the sharp perceptive senses of a cultivator would be able to separate him from the nature around him.


    This was the most obvious sign that Long Qing had entered the Knowing destiny State.


    He remained like this for quite some time.


    Eventually, Long Qing opened his eyes and regained consciousness.


    His eyes no longer held gratefulness for having survived, and there was no sense of uncertainty about the future, no pain, but calm and indifference. He felt at peace with himself and the world.


    He stood up.


    The ck peach blossom on his chest grew darker, as if it was about to drip with darkness.


    Then, a peach blossom formed by pure aura bloomed behind Long Qing.


    It was his peach blossoms in the year of his birth.


    It was also ck.


    Just in the moment of the blooming of this ck peach blossom, the mist in the dense forest was shrouded in an atmosphere of silence.


    The colorful snake that was resting under rotten leaves stiffened and suddenly died. The monkey with a ghostly face screamed in horror and fled further away.


    In the pursuit of the army of South Jin Kingdom, especially with the joining in of the Divine Hall¡¯s Judicial Department, only a dozen or so remained from those who fled. Only five of the cavalrymanders were still alive.


    These people who were once honored in the West-Hill Divine Pce had now be sinners. They fled like dogs, living in the forests at the peripheries of the West-Hill Divine Kingdom.


    Someone died almost every day and several were abandoned because of their severe injuries. They did not know how long the exile wouldst. But what made them desperate was that they did not know what was waiting for them in the end. Even if it was only hopelessness, they at least wanted to know where the end was.


    They were sinners from the West-Hill Divine Pce. In Haotian¡¯s world, no other country dared to take them in. Only the Tang Empire had the power to, but the Empire would only be willing to chop their heads off.


    What would the end of their exile be?


    How will they die?


    Zi Mo was very thin and tired. There was only numbness in his eyes.


    He looked at the wilderness at the foot of the mountain in the twilight. He looked at thend that belonged to the Kingdom of Song. He knew that the Taoist temples there had received their paintings. They would not be able to hide in the civilian world.


    He thought about how the beginning of their journey and how he had made a wish to the dark skies silently. He was pained when he murmured, "I will give my life and spirit to Yama for as long as I live. I will not be afraid of the world¡¯s end. But... how arrogant I was. Would Yama care about you and me? Even if you wanted to sacrifice, could you get close enough to such a mighty existence?"


    "A guide is required for mortals who wish to approach greatness, and it is a long process."


    A cold voice suddenly rang on the edge of the cliff.


    Zi Mo¡¯s expression changed. Ten other fugitives behind him held up the weapons in their hands and looked at the edge of the cliff alertly, ready to attack.


    A young man stood on the edge of the cliff, looking in the direction of the setting sun.


    He wore a ck taoist robe and blocked the setting sun, so the figure looked extremely dark. The cool autumn wind from the wilderness crept along the cliff, flipping up the edges of his robe, which let rays of light pass through from time to time.


    The fugitives had all lived in the West-Hill Divine Pce for a long time. They looked at the man on the edge of the cliff and felt as if they were hallucinating. They seemed to be looking at the shadow of Haotian.


    Or the shadow of Yama.


    After fleeing for days, their nerves were strained to the point where they were about to break. The camping site they had chosen was secluded. However, they did not expect to be discovered by the man who approached them quietly.


    To them, someone who could creep up on them silently would definitely be very powerful. He could only be a powerhouse from the West-Hill Divine Pce, if not a master of Haotian Taoism in the Kingdom of Song.


    The fugitives had their power taken and could not hope to beat this powerhouse in Haotian Taoism. They were engulfed by hopelessness when they heard the voice.


    Despite their despair, they forced themselves to fight. Since they were going to die anyway, then this might be theirst battle. They would die valiantly.


    However, no one moved.


    Because the young man in the ck taoist robe standing on the edge of the cliff gave people the feeling that he was unchallengeable.


    Also, Zi Mo had suddenly knelt behind the young man, crying bitterly.


    Following that, more people recognized the young man, especially the four previousmanders of the cavalryman of Divine Hall. They ran towards the edge of the cliff, shaking, and knelt behind Zi Mo. They cried loudly to the young man¡¯s back like lost sheep who have found their owner.


    Commander Zimo looked at the man¡¯s back tearfully. He said in a trembling voice, "My Priest... Everyone said that you had died. But you¡¯re alive... That¡¯s great."


    Amander with a broken arm cried loudly, "My lord... My lord... I knew that you would not abandon us. You¡¯re finally back!"


    Long Qing turned around and looked at his former subordinates. He said, "Will you follow me again?"


    The cries on the edge of the cliff halted and everyone kowtowed.


    Zi Mo raised his head and looked at the scars on Long Qing¡¯s face. Then, he looked at the ck peach blossom on Long Qing¡¯s chest. He thought of the rumors and discovered to his shock that not only had the Priest not died, his cultivation state had grown far better than the original!


    Then, a gust of cold aura entered the hearts of Zi Mo and the others.


    It came from Long Qing.


    And from his words.


    "I have indeed died, but I do not know if I saw Haotian or Yama when I died. There was a light after I died, and I thought about many things. However, I only understood when I heard what you said, Zi Mo. Perhaps I am not the son of Heaven¡¯s orders."


    Long Qing looked at the skies and said thoughtfully, "Perhaps... I am son of Yama?"

 Chapter 526: Sitting on the Ground and Becoming Devils

    Chapter 526: Sitting on the Ground and Bing Devils


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    To cultivators, the Initial Awareness State and Knowing Destiny State were the two most important junctures amongst the five cultivation states. The initial Awareness State was the first glimpse of the cultivation world that ordinary folks would see when they started cultivating. What cultivators could see at that time would determine how far they would go in the cultivation career. The Knowing destiny State gave rise to the possibility of departing from the mortal world. It was the beginning of cultivators leaving the secr world. As such, when cultivators crossed the threshold in Haotian Taoism, they would often be able to see the future that they couldn¡¯t see before and also sense some mysterious signs.


    Long Qing was now a Grand Cultivator after having fallen off the cliff when fleeing the Zhishou Abbey. He had meditated in the valley¡¯s poisonous mist and received Tao enlightenment, breaking the realm and entering the Knowing Destiny State. His cultivation state had long surpassed that of the past, but unlike what was stated in the ssics of the West-Hill, he had not sensed the future or gained any premonitions when he entered the Knowing Destiny State like his predecessors. He had only vaguely sensed something when he heard the cries from Zi Mo and the others, as he stood on the edge of the cliff, watching the setting sun.


    The sun was about to set and the world was about to be plunged into darkness. His actions were a direct defiance of his teachers and sect. Long Qing¡¯s heart was cold. Could all the things that have happened be like what the abbey dean had said, that they happened because it was the will of Haotian? Or was he just deceiving himself? Had he already turned his back on the light and joined the darkness, bing a follower of Yama?


    Long Qing looked at the setting sun that was about to be swallowed by the mountain. He smiled, self-mockingly, for he was unable to ascertain any of his spections; they were still not something that he could yet reach.


    Zi Mo and other people felt extremely cold as they listened to Long Qing. However, the coldness did notst long because they had seen too many deaths as they fled. They had endured too much shame and they knew thatpared to the cold nces and the autumn wind of the world, the true darkness of night was much safer and warmer.


    They kowtowed to Long Qing again, showing their loyalty.


    Zi Mo knelt before Long Qing and said, "My lord, I do not dare to keep this from you... When we fled from the Peach Mountain, we lost all our cultivation powers. We only have more experience than ordinary folks do. I do not know why you have appeared in the world once more, but you muste back here to aplish great things. I am worried that we can¡¯t help, and we might even hold you back."


    Long Qing looked at him and said serenely, "What I need, is your absolute loyalty. As for your cultivation powers, orck thereof, it is not important. I heard that you are now called the fallen knights. Then I shall ask you all to get stronger and fall further with me, to the very end of the abyss."


    With that, he took out a medicine box.


    Zi Mo could sense the pure medicinal powers exuding from the medicine box. He could not help but tremble, as he could not believe his eyes. He said shakily, "My lord, this is..."


    He and the other fallen knights have had their cultivation powers taken away by the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s Judicial Department. However, they still had their Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi. Their Snow Mountain upoints were locked by Haotian Taoism. If they wanted to regain their powers, they would need three powerhouses who were on the same level as the Great Divine Priests to release the blockage. Otherwise, they would need to have many amazing encounters like Ning Que had years ago.


    The fallen knights had never hoped that they would regain their powers, because they knew that they wouldn¡¯t encounter three powerhouses at the peak of the Knowing Destiny State to help them. Furthermore, there weren¡¯t many chances for amazing encounters in the world.


    Until they met their direct superior on the edge of the cliff¡ªPrince Long Qing.


    The box in Prince Long Qing¡¯s hand contained Earth Pills.


    The Earth Pill was not a sacred medicine of Haotian Taoism, but from the Buddhism Sect. These pills could not revive the dead or extend life like the Heavenly Power Pill, but they could clear upoints and hearts. It was not hard for them to clear blocked upoints.


    The fallen knights received the pills from Long Qing with shaking hands. They took them, then shut their eyes and sat down with their knees crossed.


    The pills were called Earth Pills because Buddha had achieved enlightenment when he sat on the ground. The fallen knights sat on the ground. However, even if they recovered their cultivation powers, they would not be Buddhas, but devils.


    It was getting dark on the cliff, inching closer toplete darkness.


    Long Qing, who was dressed in a ck Taoist robe seemed to blend into the night.


    His expression was serene as he watched his subordinates sit on the ground and use the medicinal power to break the blocks on their Snow Mountain upoints. He did not think that it was a waste to use his painstakingly cultivated Earth Pills like this. And he did not worry about whether his subordinates would not bepletely loyal to him after they regained their powers.


    He had been the Priest of the Judicial Department of the West-Hill Divine Pce in the past years. He was the third most powerful figure in that ck Divine Hall. He was in charge of the Divine Hall¡¯s cavalry and the matters of the hall because Ye Hongyu was obsessed with cultivation. He trusted themanders of the cavalry.


    After Ye Hongyu became the Great Divine Priest of Judgment, she had severly punished the cavalrymanders because of ludicrous reasons. Other than trying to use this to demonstrate her power, she had also wanted to eliminate all of Long Qing¡¯s influence.


    Long Qing naturally trusted the fallen knights because of what had happened in the past. And the crux of the matter was, the Earth Pill contained the blood from his heart. When the fallen knights took the Earth Pill, they became Long Qing heart¡¯s blood, which meant they could not hide anything from him.


    ...


    ...


    As an important part of the Haotian Taoism sect, the Tianshi sect of the Mountain Dragon-Tiger was the most ardent follower of the West-Hill Divine Pce. They had quite a few believers in the rtively remote Kingdom of Qi. Master Zhang was as revered as the Nation Master there. The Taoist temple on the Mountain Dragon-Tiger was resplendent. There were green trees nted around it, whose colors were untouched by autumn. They waved gently in the breeze; all of it looked like a piece of heaven.


    However, Mountain Dragon Tiger did not look like heaven today. Instead, it seemed to have be the legendary Underworld. Numerous bodies of Taoists were scattered on the stone tiles. Broken limbs hung on treetops and the metallic scent of blood permeated the air. Blood flowed out between the cracks of the tightly closed temple doors and the blood then congealed like glue.


    Master Zhang, who dressed in yellow Taoist robes, stood inside the temple as he watched the Taoists in ck. His face was pale and he held hisst Fu paper in his fingers. All of the disciples in the Tianshi sect were dead. He was the only one left alive, but he did not know for how long he would remain so.


    Master Zhang had cultivated in talismans and was already at the peak of the Seethrough State. He was just a step away from the Knowing destiny State. The Hierarch Lord of the West-Hill Divine Pce felt that he would break through the realm within 30 years and be a precious Divine Talisman Master. That was why he was always highly respected when he went to the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    However, none of the ck-clothed Taoists respected him. They did not even treat him like an enemy. The ck-clothed Taoists looked at him indifferently, as if they were looking at a dead person.


    "You sinners... Didn¡¯t Great Divine Priest remove all your powers...? What happened?"


    Master Zhang said with a pale face, in a hoarse voice which was filled with terror. He could recognize many of the Taoists clothed in ck. He knew that they were the fallen knights expelled by the West-Hill Divine Pce. However, he had only heard a few days ago that these fallen knights had been killed by the South Jin Kingdom army and the Taoism sect. Why did they suddenlye to Mountain Dragon-Tiger? And how had they regained their powers and be even more powerful?


    The 16 Taoists dressed in ck had all entered the Seethrough realm. Five of them were once cavalrymanders of the Divine Hall. Their ring aura showed that they were already at the peak of the Seethrough state, especially Commander Zimo, who was about to break through to enter the Knowing Destiny State.


    Apart from powerful countries like the Tang Empire and the South Jin Kingdom, were there any other countries in the world who could gather so many powerhouses? The Mountain Dragon-Tiger¡¯s disciples were no match for the powerful ck-clothed Taoists. Furthermore, the ck-clothed Taoists were extremely bloodthirsty and cruel in the battle earlier, making them even more terrifying.


    Master Zhang was both afraid and perplexed. He did not know what had happened. The sinners of Haotian had not died but instead had grown extremely powerful.


    None of the Taoists in ck answered his questions. They stood silently in the temple and looked at him as if they were looking at a corpse. It seemed as if they were waiting for someone.


    Long Qing appeared in the temple. He wore a ck Taoist Robe with a golden belt sewn on the side. It was an image of the sun nestled in ck clouds.


    Master Zhang looked at Long Qing and said incredulously, "You... Prince Long Qing... You¡¯re alive!"


    Long Qing said cidly, "If you had experienced thest two years of my life, you would know that seeking death is also difficult."


    Master Zhang suddenly realized everything. He looked at the ck-clothed Taoists and bellowed, "You did this! You madman! Are you not afraid that you will be abandoned by Haotian?!"


    Long Qing said, "Perhaps you, Master, are the one who was abandoned by Haotian."


    Master Zhang said in despair, "If that is the case, do it now."


    Long Qing did not say anything, but just looked at the man silently.


    Master Zhang suddenly realized that Long Qing¡¯s eyes had changed. The lines between his ck pupils and the white of his eyes had blurred. A faint grey emerged.


    He did not know what would happen next.


    But he could guess that it must be terrible.


    With a loud roar, he crushed thest talisman in his hand.


    A wall of fire appeared, circling around him as if it was about to burn him to ashes.


    Master Zhang red at Long Qing and bellowed from behind the fire wall, "You devil! No way!"


    Long Qing¡¯s expression remained the same. After a moment, he appeared within the wall of fire.


    A ck peach blossom bloomed on his back.


    A frigid aura grew in the Taoist temple.


    The wall of fire was suddenly extinguished.


    Long Qing¡¯s eyes had turned grey and dark.


    Master Zhang felt as if his Psyche Power was being sucked out rapidly. Fear grew in his eyes as he looked at Long Qing¡¯s beautiful face. He cursed bitterly, "You will die worse than me."


    There was a resounding p as Master Zhang¡¯s withered body fell to the ground.


    Long Qing shut his eyes for a second. When he opened them again, everything had returned to normal.


    He walked out of the temple.


    Zi Mo led the 16 ck-clothed Taoists as they followed behind Long Qing. Their steps and aura were all secretly matching Long Qing¡¯s.


    Gradually they became one, and then faded in the darkness.


    The heavy temple doors slowly opened.


    The mountain breeze in autumn blew gently and fluttered Long Qing¡¯s robes.


    He felt that he had grown stronger.


    It was a great feeling.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 527: The Shabby Temple in Autumn

    Chapter 527: The Shabby Temple in Autumn


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In autumn, an extraordinarily mysterious power appeared on earth.


    That power cleansed the Mountain Dragon-Tiger, killed Master Zhang, and destroyed several altars of the Martial Art Sect. Afterwards it wreaked havoc in the Kingdom of Song, exterminating families continuously. The methods used were extremely inhumane and gory. The investigators who went to the sites could not even bear to see the aftermath.


    ording to legend, this mysterious power was formed by more than ten Seethrough realm experts. The leader wore a silver mask and these people each rode a ck warrior horse. Each of them wore ck Tao clothing. They moved like a gust of wind and their whereabouts were very secretive. They were fierce and merciless, to the extent that they were inhumane and distinctly cold-hearted.


    The entire southern region of the Maind was traumatized. The cavalry of the West-Hill Divine Pce and military troops from every nationunched an ongoing attack, in hopes of eliminating these ck riders. Yet they could not even grab hold of their whereabouts.


    People from the higher circles of the Divine Hall and the South Jin Kingdom royals had already connected these ck riders together with the fallen knights. However, they could not understand how these expelled knights could stand up and recover their strength. Moreover, they were stronger than before. What made them speechless and fearful was not knowing who exactly was the man behind that silver mask.


    A clear stream was running among the mountains. A red leaf was floating on the surface of the stream, like a decoration sticking onto a mirror. It looked unusually beautiful. The surroundings were peaceful and quiet.


    All of a sudden, a horse hoof trotted in the stream and crushed the red leaf, disrupting the serene flow of the water. Then, there were more horse hooves trotting in the stream. The birds beside the stream shrieked in fear as they quickly flew away from the area.


    More than ten ck riders crossed the stream, going along the mountain path and toward the south-west direction. No one in the troop spoke to anyone, even the breathing pace of the ck riders was consistent with the trotting of the horses. These consistent sounds were following a person, and that person was none other than the young man who was silently riding the horse at the front of the troop.


    The military troops from the West-Hill Divine Pce and every nation set up defense lines along the boundaries of the Kingdom of Song as they tried to stop and exterminate these ck riders. No one thought that these ck riders could actually pass through the several lines of defense easily. They had swiftly and secretly reached this forest located between the mountains and situated at the south-west of the South Jin Kingdom.


    By the mountain side near the rocky spring, more than ten ck riders were taking a short break. The fallen knights sat cross-legged and began to meditate. Now that they had regained their strength and might, they wished to leave behind their sorrowful escapees¡¯ lives forever. Thus, they refused to waste any time for replenishing their strength and cultivation.


    Not knowing how much time had passed, all the fallen knights began to peel their eyes open. They gazed at Prince Long Qing who had his eyes closed, as he meditated under the tree by the the edge of the cliff. Their eyes revealed a fanatic worshipping look.


    Before the drastic change on the snow cliff, Prince Long Qing was their direct superior, who had obtained many people¡¯s absolute loyalty within the Judicial Department. It was needless to mention the fallen knights, since the reason that they could continue to live was because of him. Moreover, taking into ount that they were able to live so arrogantly, including his efforts for providing them with pills, their loyalty was unquestionable.


    After escaping from the Zhishou Abbey and returning to the world, Prince Long Qing had only used a very short time to convince a group of loyal subordinates from every nation. The group mainly included the spies hidden in the Taoist temple and the Judicial Department. Now that all these spies were his informers, those defense lines set up by the West-Hill Divine Pce cavalry and the military troops from every nation were no longer secrets to him. These subordinates and him could continue to be very much at ease.


    Of course, this was also because the West-Hill Divine Pce did not know his identity for now and did not bother much about them. In the Divine Hall¡¯s perspective, these fallen knights were just rats blessed by Haotian to live for a few more days and it was impossible for them to live any longer. If the West-Hill Divine Pce were to know that themander of these knights was Long Qing, if it knew that he hadmitted unforgivable sins at the Zhishou Abbey, the urge of killing him would obviously be much scarier than now.


    The existence of the West-Hill Divine Pce was horrifying. If it decided to get serious, no matter how lucky Long Qing was and regardless of how powerful these fallen knights had be, they would be crushed into ashes.


    At the thought of this possibility, Zi Mo¡¯s face revealed signs of sorrow. He walked towards the edge of the cliff and saluted Long Qing who sat under the tree. He lowered his voice and said, "Priest, now that the cavalrymen of the Divine Hall were alerted, it is obvious that the Judicial Department is aware of this matter. If the Great Divine Priest Ye were tounch an attack..."


    Long Qing opened his eyes. He gazed at a far away green mountain that wasn¡¯t dangerously steep. He said, "What are you trying to say?"


    Zi Mo said, "Priest, my advice is that we better leave the Divine Hall boundary as soon as possible."


    The holy light of Haotian covered the whole world and the strength of the West-Hill Divine Pcepletely surrounded the Central ins. Even though Tang wasn¡¯t under their control, both of their hands were stained with the blood of fallen knights. They certainly wouldn¡¯t be that dumb to enter Tang. Hence, they were left with one route, which was to leave the Central ins.


    Long Qing kept quiet. Though he was very powerful now, he had be even stronger especially after he had absorbed Master Zhang¡¯s and numerous Martial Art Sect Elders¡¯ cultivations. Yet he did not have the confidence to defeat that woman.


    That was because that woman had already obtained the ck jade throne. Using blood as an evidence, she was proven, at least at a certain stage of her life, to be much more power than the previous Great Divine Priest of Judgment.


    Long Qing had never thought that he could be on the run for such a long time within the scope of the West-Hill Divine Pce. Before he became absolutely powerful, such as being the top of the world, he was increasingly in danger the longer he stayed under the holy light of Haotian.


    He gazed at the distant green mountain as he coldly spoke, "Leaving the Central ins was an inevitable choice. However, before we leave, there¡¯s something I wish to do."


    A few days ago, he received a piece of news from a Taoist temple when he was in the South Jin Kingdom. The news, was in fact meaningless. At least for his big career as amander of the fallen knights, it was meaningless. Yet this news, like a stone, was burdening his heart and speeding up his breathing.


    The intelligence stated that Ning Que had brought his little handmaiden, who was a good drinker, to participate in the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival at the Lanke Temple, together with a group of Tang ambassadors. For some unknown reason, Ning Que had left the group of ambassadors after they had passed the Great Lake, and went on a journey with his little handmaiden on a ck horse carriage.


    ording to the figures found in the news, that horse carriage shouldn¡¯t be far from Long Qing and the others. It should be travelling in the mountains by now, towards that green mountain facing them.


    Long Qing slightly raised his head and took a deep breath.


    He felt as though he could smell that horse carriage in the wind, the fragrance of wine on the little handmaiden¡¯s body, and the filthy odor on Ning Que¡¯s body.


    Regardless of what the scent was, he became engrossed by them. His handsome face was slightly flushed and that unnoticeable scar on his cheek was brightened. He didn¡¯t reveal any expressions, yet there seemed to be a me burning from deep within his pupils, where the ck and the white regions and the dark grey area were interchanging at rapid pace.


    Long Qing¡¯s chest rose slightly. He strained his eyes with his hands faintly trembling as he said, "Kill that person, so that my Taoist Heart can be clear and bright. Also, I want to swallow the cultivation from his entire body... that cultivation that is filled with the smell of the Academy. The Academy smell is very rare, very fragrant."


    His voice was very peaceful and calm.


    Yet Zi Mo felt as though he had seen the legendary monster, Tao Tie, under the tree. He felt fearful subconsciously. It was a type of cold fear that life gave you when facing a being with absolute greed.


    As the most loyal and useful subordinate, no matter how afraid he was, even if it would make the Priest unhappy, Zi Mo still wanted to give his own opinion. He lowered his voice and said as a reminder, "Priest, while you have shut yourself from the world to meditate, some things have happened... I heard that Ning Que murdered Xia Hou during a challenge. In addition, it was rumored that his little handmaiden is to be the Divine Priest of Light. She was not simple either."


    Long Qing did not say much. He gradually put on his silver mask, stood up, and walked towards the carriage by the spring.


    As he walked, the grey portion in his eyes began to clear away, but the dust beneath his feet slowly flew up. They were like bees pursuing the bottom of his boots and in the end, staying as the dust under his feet willingly.


    Watching this scene, Zi Mo felt even more fearful and respectful towards him. He dared not speak another word.


    More than ten ck riders roared as they rode down the mountain.


    Standing below the tree by the the edge of the cliff, one could see arge green mountain located far away, within the mountain range. There were many weeds growing in the mountains. There wasn¡¯t a single tree and the view was spacious. At the top of the mountain, there was a temple.


    Despite being very far apart, one could also feel the shabby and withering aura from that temple. Hence, it was definitely not the Lanke Temple. One could faintly see a few patches of red in the temple, yet no one knew what they were.


    After boarding on the Tang Empire¡¯s warship to cross the Great Lake and when the Moling Ferry reached the shore of the South Jin Kingdom, Ning Que proposed his separation from the group of ambassadors. He left early with Sangsang, and this instantly drew a voice of opposition.


    Xiaocao could not bear to leave Sangsang, while thedies from the House of Red Sleeves could not bear to lose any opportunities to get close the Mr. Thirteen. As for Xian Zhng, the Empire General, he felt that it might be too dangerous and the journey might not be peaceful for Ning Que and Sangsang once they left the group of ambassadors.


    Upon listening to Xian Zhng¡¯s reminder, or warning, Ning Que replied directly, "Don¡¯t forget that I am the core disciple of the Headmaster and that I snatched over the title from Wang Jinglue. Those who can defeat me know my identity and would not dare to mess with me. Those who are hot-headed and crazy enough to mess with me would not be able to defeat me."


    Xian Zhng realized that Ning Que¡¯s reasoning was sound. It was so right that he could not rebute him at all. Whoever was able to defeat Ning Que in this world had to be a Grand Cultivator in the Knowing Destiny State. These Grand Cultivators had their own sects to inherit. Who would dare to piss off the Academy and risk himself of losing an inheritance just for the purpose of messing with Ning Que?


    Thus, after purchasing arge amount of strong wine from the Moling Ferry, arranging the meet-up between the South Jin Kingdom government and the officer of the ambassador group, including the settling of the Zhou City entrance matters at the backend, Ning Que and Sangsang sat on the ck horse carriage and left the ambassador group.


    As for why he chose to leave the ambassador group and travel alone, it was because Ning Que was worried about Sangsang¡¯s illness. Though Sangsang¡¯s illness didn¡¯t seem to worsen, it didn¡¯t seem to improve either. Since the Headmaster said that the Lanke Temple could cure Sangsang¡¯s illness, Ning Que naturally would want to reach the Lanke Temple at the fastest speed.


    The ck carriage left the Moling Ferry and travelled towards the state highway of the South Jin Kingdom, along the roads between the Zhou City and straight towards a southeast direction. Upon reaching the deserted wildness, the carriage drove along the easy mountain path and travelled over the rivers and streams. It did not have any intention of hidding its whereabouts, nor did it stop to socialize with the world. It only focused on travelling toward its final destination silently.


    Time passed. Echoes from the rushing noises of the carriage wheels were heard. The sense of autumn was gradually getting stronger as the autumn leaves on the mountain started to be redder. The autumn breeze along the mountain path slowly became chillier and the winter feeling was slowly getting deeper. The carriage was also gradually getting nearer to the Lanke Temple.


    Perhaps it was because they were gradually getting nearer to the Lanke Temple, the sense of Buddhism seemed to steadily grow stronger. On the way, one could see several temples. Though their incense smell wasn¡¯t as strong as in the Taoist temple, these buddhist temples were not deserted either.


    One day, there was a heavy rain.


    The autumn feeling remained strong during the rain and the sky was getting darker.


    Yet the maple tree on the green mountain¡¯s shabby temple appeared to be redder and brighter.


    Ning Que ced down the curtain and nced at Sangsang who was lying on hisp. He saw her weary expression and said, "There¡¯s a temple in the mountain. The view is not bad."


    ...


    ...


    --

 Chapter 528: Frosted Red Maple Leaves, Riders in Black

    Chapter 528: Frosted Red Maple Leaves, Riders in ck


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    There was a board with the word "Red Lotus" on the door of the dpidated temple.


    Ning Que had not expected that even such a secluded mountain temple had an official name. It was not until he helped Sangsang into the temple, and saw several blood red autumn maples, that he realized the truth.


    The rain was dripping and the temple was filled with chilly wetness. Ning Que was looking for the monks in the temple, and took out a banknote, indicating that he was going to spend the night here. He expressed that his wife preferred peace and quiet, so they were unwilling to listen to other noises.


    At first, the two monks didn¡¯t understand what their intentions were and remained unwilling to walk out of the temple in the rain. However, when they saw the amount of money on the note, they became considerate immediately. The Red Lotus Temple was broken and there was nothing valuable. Even if there were several Lohans like those in the main hall, they were also painted with mud, and were not as important as the banknote even if added up together.


    The two monks boiled some hot water, and left them some daily necessities. They told Ning Que that there were a few acres of rice fields at the foot of the mountain where they lived, and then went out of the temple under a broken umbre.


    It was still early at this time, but they hadn¡¯t had any good meals on the journey. Ning Que felt hungry; he went to the temple¡¯s kitchen and tasted several tes of vegetarian dishes. He thought their vor was in, so he took out a big pack of dried meat from their package, and then he picked up two ginseng and threw it into the pot to simmer arge pot of broth.


    After the soup cooled down, he carefully fed Sansang a small bowl of broth. He used his broth to soak the rice. Then he tossed out the ginseng scented meat from the pot and threw it out the door.


    Smelling the scent of ginseng, the Big ck Horse came over curiously. It looked down at the meat and sniffed, only to find that it was not fresh meat, and was not simmered with whole ginseng but ginseng whiskers. So it left disappointedly, and went to the maple tree to take shelter from the rain in a daze.


    Ning Que became annoyed and shouted at it, "Almost all the ginseng given by Eleventh Brother has been eaten. If you keep being as choosy as the ox, you will starve to death on the road."


    The big ck horse ignored him and raised its head to sniff the fragrance on the maple tree. It thought proudly that although it was a fool, it was also a fool of the Academy. It did not say that he could only eat or drink otherworldly delicacies, but it must also pursue the realm of eating and drinking.


    Sangsang¡¯s illness was serious, and the chill in her body was very annoying. Not knowing whether it was the practice of Divine Skill or the zing spirits she consumed these days, even though she was sick, it was not as terrible as she was in Chang¡¯an. She was just sick, looking listless, and tiring easily.


    Ning Que picked up another piece of meat and finely chopped with chopsticks until it became velvety, and then mixed it into the rice. Sangsang tried her best to finish the meal, and after today¡¯s half-capsule liquor had been consumed she looked a lot better.


    "Bear with it a little more. It should be about four days more to reach the Lanke temple."


    Prepared to start a fire at night, Ning Que carried tworge crude blocks of wood. He sat on the threshold, and chopped them with his head lowered. He thought that although the ck carriage wasfortable, after all, it would inevitably be a little bumpy. So, if there were any better inns along the way for the next few days, he would let Sangsang have more rest.


    Sangsangid on the monks¡¯ bed, with the quilt covering the lower part of her body. She looked at Ning Que who was very busy, and suddenly thought of the days when it was her, not him, who was busy cooking and chopping at home many years ago.


    Feeling her gaze, Ning Que looked back into the room and looked at the exhausted look on her dark face. He said seriously, "I don¡¯t know why the Headmaster can¡¯t cure your illness, but I believe in his words that the Elders in Lanke Temple can do it, so don¡¯t worry."


    Sangsang murmured in agreement.


    After a moment of silence, Ning Que said in a solemn and serious way, "If something happens in the Lanke Temple, you don¡¯t need to bother about it. You, especially, can¡¯t use divine skills anymore. You only need to care about your health."


    Sangsang lowered her head and kept silence for a long time before murmuring in agreement.


    Ning Que knew that this requirement did not make any sense to her. If there really were any danger, she wouldn¡¯t be able to care for her own health. He couldn¡¯t help but shake his head.


    As it was for the past 16 years, he was never able to defeat his little handmaiden, no matter what aspect.


    After taking a rest, Sangsang felt better. She looked at the beautiful maple trees in the temple¡¯s courtyard through the door, and a happy look appeared in her eyes.


    Since her illness, Ning Que had been paying attention to the most subtle changes of her expression. He looked at her eyes and rxed. He helped her get up from the bed and walked down to the gallery to see the trees in the rain.


    The Red Lotus Temple was really dpidated with several walls that had already copsed. There was no way to tell when the stone steps at the main entrance had be t. Ning Que directly pulled over the carriage in the courtyard.


    At this time, the autumn rain was clear and the red maple was like a fire. The ck carriage was parked under the maple tree. Naturally, Ning Que thought of a poem, "Stopping in my sedan chair in the evening, I sit admiring the maple grove; The maple leaves are redder than the flowers of spring..."


    He was born early. Many of his memories had long been obscured or even disappeared, with only a few basic things that were hard to forget. He could remember few of the poems, but he still couldn¡¯t forget their context. At this moment, however, no one knew that he remembered the frost-covered leaves as maple leaves.


    He didn¡¯t finish reciting this poem.


    Because he felt that Sangsang¡¯s slender arms which he was holding had be a little stiff, so she looked at her worriedly. Instead of seeing her painful frown, he saw a shy and slightly red face.


    Sangsang lowered her head and murmured in a very subtle voice, "We aren¡¯t married yet."


    Ning Que knew that the girl misunderstood those two words in the poem; he could not help but smile. Then he thought of the day when a little boy used the words "sit admiring" (which have the same sound as "making love" in Chinese) in the poem to tease some little girls many years ago. He felt slightly shocked, feeling as if it had happened centuries ago. However, he never understood that they were truly connected even in different generations.


    After a moment, he woke up from this emotion which he rarely had in the past, and reached out his hand to touch Sangsang¡¯s face. He said, "Is there any difference if we are married or not? We won¡¯t be separated in this life."


    Sangsang lifted her head and said gently, "I¡¯m afraid there is."


    Ning Que was surprised and asked, "What¡¯s the difference?"


    Sangsang whispered, "Everyone says... if two people were really being together, they won¡¯t like each other anymore, at least not as much as before."


    Ning Que felt a little annoyed and said, "Who said that? It must have been that idler Xiaocao, instilling all these messy worldviews on you."


    Sangsang looked at him and said stubbornly, "But, won¡¯t they stop liking each other?"


    Ning Que¡¯s answer was natural, without thinking, "Of course not."


    Sangsang said, "But Xiaocao said... that a lot of girls in Chang¡¯an City were all spoiled by their men before marriage, but after a couple of years their husbands would be tired about that."


    Ning Que looked at her and said with a smile, "Think about it. You entered my home since you were born, which was 16 years ago. Have I ever feel tired of it? And you? Since we haven¡¯t been tired of each other for so many years, it would naturally not be the case for the rest of our lives. Even if we be tired of it, it will only be because we don¡¯t stay together long enough."


    Sangsang¡¯s face was slightly red and said, "Ning Que, your words sound more and more pleasant now."


    Ning Que asked with a smile, "Why are you not calling me young master?"


    Sangsang said, "You are not my young master when we are talking about love."


    Ning Que muttered, "That makes sense."


    Sangsang said suddenly, "But you also like other women."


    Ning Que felt startled, and said, "Who are they?"


    "Her Highness?"


    "That was a juvenile sentimentality and a sense of impulse without direction. If you looked deeper, you could probably see that it was all the poor children¡¯s fantasy to be with the princess."


    "What about Sister Dewdrop?"


    "She is the Headmaster¡¯s cup of tea, you must not be so disrespectful to her."


    "But you said you wanted to touch her and rub her."


    "That was about the feeling of touch, about desire."


    "...You mean I don¡¯t feel good to the touch?"


    "Next, next."


    "What about the Calligraphy Addict?"


    "Ah, it is a little bit windy. We might as well return to the room."


    The Big ck Horse, who was taking shelter and doing self-training under the maple trees, had awakened when Ning Que and Sangsang started to talk about certain topics. It listened keenly and stared at them with wide eyes for fear that it would miss one of their conversations, or some of Ning Que¡¯s embarrassments.


    Looking at Ning Que who was ready to help Sangsang get into the temple, the big ck horse felt bored and cursed Ning Que for his brazenness in its heart. Suddenly, it faintly smelled a slight smelling from the autumn rain and looked up curiously.


    Sangsang looked at the gate of the temple in the rain and said: "Someone ising."


    Ning Que stood still for a moment, and said suddenly, "Get on the carriage."


    Their important packages were all in the carriage, so they could be ready to leave quickly without a coachman.


    The Big ck Horse¡¯s mane was soaked by the autumn rain. It wasn¡¯t loose and sticky, but stalked like a sword.


    It was irritable at this time.


    Because it confirmed that the faint smell he caught earlier in the rain was the smell of blood.


    It had never smelled such a heavy yet extremely chilly smell of blood, even on the battlefield.


    A hurried sound of horseshoes came from the autumn rain, which should still be at the base of the hill. It was very far away, and it shouldn¡¯t be heard. Only Ning Que, Sangsang, and the Big ck Horse could listen to it clearly.


    The ck carriage pulled out of the Red Lotus Temple.


    Ning Que lifted the curtain, and looked down from the mountain.


    There were no trees among the blue mountains, but only the wild grass. Since it was in thete autumn, the grass turned yellow and was covered by frost. gued by the rain and wind in autumn, the des began to fall one after another, making the already excellent view clearer.


    The autumn rain was doleful but not dense enough to block people¡¯s sights.


    One could see more than a dozen ck riders riding at a high speed following three mountain paths.


    The riders on darkish horses were all wearing ck taoist robes. They were dressedpletely in ck, as if the night hade to the world in daytime, which gave it a taste of coldness and seriousness.


    These ck riders were lightning fast.


    The horses¡¯ hooves crushed the mud on the road, while the taoist robes collided with the fine rain.


    Ning Que looked through the window; he kept silent and knew it was toote to leave.


    The big ck horse was uneasy, kicking the rain on the ground with irritability. It seemed like it wanted to get out to have a fight at once.


    Sangsang lowered her head, coughing gently; the darkish iron bow in her small hands was already assembled.


    Ning Que suddenly asked, "What level?"


    Sangsang looked up, holding the big ck umbre in her right hand; she watched the ck riders across the window while frowning slightly. It seemed that she could not believe her own Perception State and said, "All of them are in the Seethrough Realm..."


    Then she added, "Five of them are in Peak of Seethrough Realm, and one of them has reached the peak level."


    Ning Que had a slightly heavy look in his eyes while remaining calm, but he felt somewhat puzzled.

 Chapter 529: Iron Arrow and Black Peach Blossoms Finally Met

    Chapter 529: Iron Arrow and ck Peach Blossoms Finally Met


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    "Who would hurt me, and who would dare to hurt me?" Ning Que frowned when thinking of the talk with Xian Zhng at Moling Ferry and especially when Sangsang told him the cultivation state of the ck cavalry.


    Although, in the Unknown ces like the back of the mountain of the Academy, Zhishou Abbey, and Xuankong Temple, the Seethrough realm turned out to be naturallymon; the cultivators that Ning Que knew were mostly from Knowing destiny State. In fact, it was very hard for ordinary cultivators to enter the Seethrough realm, and masters from the Seethrough realm amongmon sects were either chiefs of certain sects or very important figures, of which the number was very small.


    Now, the dozens of ck cavalrymen riding toward him on the mountain path all were cultivators from the Seethrough realm, and some of them were even masters from the peak of Seethrough State. This shocked Ning Que quite a bit, and he could not guess who except Lanke Temple could own such arge number of masters in this area.


    However, those ck cavalrymen could not be monks of the Lanke Temple, as they wore ck robes. More importantly, Ning Que felt a very familiar murderous aura from them, so he confirmed that they were soldiers, or at least they used to live in a military camp. "They are from the military of South Jin Kingdom, aren¡¯t they?"


    Through the window, Ning Que looked at those fast approaching cavalrymen. He suddenly raised eyebrows and said, "They¡¯re not from South Jin Kingdom. I sense a very disgusting smell."


    Sangsang asked, "What is the smell?"


    Ning Que said, "It is a specific rotten smell of the West-Hill Divine Pce. Even if there¡¯s much quiet in those people¡¯s aura, it can¡¯tpletely cover up this smell."


    Having confirmed where those enemies maye from, he, without any hesitation, took the iron bow and Talisman Arrows from Sangsang, pushed the skylight at the top of the horse carriage, and stood up.


    The autumn rain continued. Hardly did he stand up when the bitterly cold rainwater with the wind rushed to his face, but it could not change the expression on his face.


    Looking calm, he put arrows on the bow, and slowly pulled the bowstring.


    The iron bow gradually bent with joints between the bow and the bowstring squeaking, but the bow and the bowstring did not shake at all.


    Those darkish Talisman Arrows containing powerful strength silently rested on the bow, directed at those fast approaching cavalrymen. It seemed that they would shoot out the next second.


    The Primordial Thirteen Arrows containing the wisdom of the Academy and the resources of the Tang Empire were without any doubt the most powerful long-range weapons ever seen in the cultivation world in the past 100 years. To some extent, they had even surpassed the flying swords owned by Grand Cultivators of the Knowing destiny State.


    The legendary weapon had its own soul. The bow and those Talisman Arrows had once killed Long Qing, hurt Ye Hongyu, and had once been coated with the General Xia Hou¡¯s blood. At such moment, even the autumn rain around the horse carriage seemed to be afraid, abating a little.


    There was still a long distance between the temple and those ck cavalrymen on the mountain path, and Ning Que used Talisman Arrows to lock their aura in advance. As masters from the Seethrough realm, they should have felt the danger and be wary. However, it made Ning Que cold that they seemed to have no feelings at all. They, with aplete formation and chilling momentum, kept riding forward with high speed, and the mud on the mountain path was kicked away like flowers, preventing the rainwater from falling smoothly. Only absolutely cold and confident people could manage to do so.


    As the autumn rain became heavy, it fell like beans, beating Ning Que¡¯s face constantly and falling on those darkish and sharp arrows, only failing to make Ning Que and his bow shake a little.


    After the skylight was pushed open, the rain soaked into the carriage with its coldness.


    Before standing up, Ning Que had kicked a quilt to cover Sangsang. But after seeing him not shooting those Talisman Arrows, she knew that there was something wrong, and she stood up from the quilt.


    ncing at her pale and withered face, Ning Que frowned slightly and said, "Lie down, and I will tell you when I can¡¯t hold on any longer."


    He did not tell Sangsang not to help him, as he was aware to some extent that the battle might be quite challenging. And in a fight, even a white lie would bring them a catastrophe.


    Rather than following his words, Sangsang coughing softly picked herself up. Squeezing next to him, she stood looking out from the skylight, and then quickly opened the big ck umbre.


    If he could not hang on, they should open the big ck umbre.


    The umbre preventing the rain from falling inside, Sangsang wiped the rain from his face. It was not a show of warmth before the battle, but she would not let even a small factor affect his performance in the battle.


    Bean-like drops of water falling on the thick umbre made a buzzing sound. Ning Que¡¯s face shrouded in the umbre¡¯s shadow looked more grim and dignified.


    It was already some time before the ck cavalrymen passed the mountainside. After a short while, they would arrive at the temple. However, Ning Que did not shoot those arrows out, as he felt someplications.


    It seemed like that they were waiting for him to do so.


    Those cavalrymen were very strong, but it was even hard for a master in the Seethrough realm to avoid Primordial Thirteen Arrows at such a distance.


    Ning Que was very confident of his arrows, thus he did not fear at all even after Sangsang confirmed the cultivation state of those men. As a member of the Academy who had entered the human realm, no matter how humble he thought of himself, he should know that people would fully understand his fighting method and style before killing him.


    In other words, those cavalrymen on the mountain path were fully aware that they would die as long as he shot. However, they did not seem to be afraid. It could only show that they were courting death.


    "It is absolutely hard for them to reach Seethrough realm after endless practice, and what kind of things besides faith and love are worth killing themselves for?" Ning Que silently thought. He knew that as they were willing to pay such a terrible price, they were just covering up their real and more terrible intentions.


    Holding the big ck umbre with her small hands, Sangsang frowned slightly and said, "Someone ising."


    Looking at those approaching cavalrymen, Ning Que said, "Find him."


    With her hands shaking slightly, she frowned painfully and whispered, "I can¡¯t."


    Ning Que slightly squinted his eyes, a drop of rain on his cheek sliding down.


    Even though they were shielded by the autumn rain, they should not have been able to escape Sangsang¡¯s Perception State no matter how powerful they were. It could only imply one thing.


    The real enemy hiding in secret was, at the very least, a Grand Cultivator at the Knowing Destiny State.


    Those ck cavalrymen were approaching, and it was the first time that the stormy horseshoe sound was really heard by Ning Que and Sangsang. The Big ck Horse did not neigh any longer, coldly staring at those strong and vigorous figures of his same kind with its ck eyes filled with violence and destruction.


    Although Ning Que could indistinctly see those people¡¯s faces, he was not as restless as the Big ck Horse. Still maintaining a terrible calm, he did not shoot those arrows yet.


    The man with a Knowing Destiny State hiding in the autumn rain surely hoped that Ning Que could shoot all the arrows in the box out. Even if he did not hope so, he could find a chance to kill Ning Que as he concentrated on shooting all those cavalrymen. However, if Ning Que concentrated on dealing with the man, he could not manage to stop the cavalrymen from reaching the temple. At that time, the Primordial Thirteen Arrows full strength would not have a chance to be disyed.


    In the case of closebat, Ning Que was not confident at all to fight against masters from the Seethrough realm as well as a master from the Knowing Destiny State.


    The water was constantly hitting the big ck umbre with a groan; the sound was mixed with the thump of hooves at a short distance, bringing a strange and tense atmosphere to the shabby temple.


    Sangsang held the umbre heavily until she coughed painfully, trembling nonstop. Her tanned face became pale, a stream of blood sliding from her lips.


    Ning Que suddenly felt his heart tighten, but he did not say a thing, nor did he stop her.


    Sangsang¡¯s ss-like eyes suddenly shone a pure light like lightning.


    Then she closed her eyes tightly and said two veryplicated numbers.


    Ning Que quickly turned back.


    Those ck and sharp arrows were shot into the air like a rain line.


    The two fingers on the iron bow released.


    The whole movement of turning back to shoot arrows was very natural and smooth.


    The iron arrows were shot aiming directly at the deep Red Lotus Temple behind the carriage.


    There were several trees there, all maples.


    The direction of those arrows was one of them.


    Maple leaves were as red as blood.


    The Primordial Thirteen Arrows reappeared in the human world.


    However, this appearance brought no thunderstorm, but went with the wind into the autumn rain silently.


    There were several feet distance between the skylight of the carriage and the maple inside the shabby temple.


    Between them, there appeared a path absolutely excluding the Qi of Heaven and Earth, and it was an arrow path.


    There were a few drops of rainwater that fortunately or unfortunately fluttered by the Qi of Heaven and Earth brought by Talisman Arrows, and they stopped in the middle of the invisible arrow path like shaking orphans.


    However, those drops were not crushed, nor were passed through.


    Because the Talisman Arrow leaving the bow became invisible.


    But the iron arrow was still there.


    When arrows shot their targets.


    In a second which they felt undescribely slow, the iron arrow shot the maple tree that waved its leaves in the autumn rain.


    The maple tree was not broken. Its red leaves fell from it, but they were shaken not by arrows but by rain.


    The maple tree gave birth to a ck peachflower.


    The iron arrow shot just above the ck peachflower.


    The peach was so ck that it seemed to be shining ck, looking magnificent.


    And it seemed like a beautiful luster out of the human world that could only be luckily seen in the night of the Far North Wilderness.


    But if people looked at it for a long time, they would find that the ck color was just a simple ck.


    Being purely ck to the extreme.


    It was the dark night itself.


    It was the dark abyss shadowed by night.


    ck represented swallowing.


    The ck peachflower seemed to swallow everything in the world.


    The iron arrow containing terrible power just disappeared into the ck peachflower.


    It seemed like it fell into a bottomless ck mud.


    Even the slightest trace could not be found.


    Looking at the ck peachflower, and watching his most powerful attack utterly dispelled, Ning Que did not show the slightest fear, his eyes bing brighter.


    Hardly did his eyes brighten,


    when the second arrow left the bowstring.


    He shot the ck peachflower on the maple again.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 530: Seven Iron Arrows

    Chapter 530: Seven Iron Arrows


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    If you threw a stone in some water, even if the stone did not return, at least you could obtain the beautiful ripples on the water. If you threw meat buns to dogs, even if the buns could nevere back again, you could at least hear the dogs barking. However, when Ning Que shot the first iron arrow to the ck peach blossom, it did not respond at all.


    He had prepared this deadly kill for such a long time. It could even be called his strongest attack. Nevertheless, it was easily resolved to nothing by his enemy. If this scene was seen by an ordinary person, he might start to feel desperate.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t have such a feeling.


    The strong man who was in the Knowing destiny State was hidden in the dark, trying to distract him or to waste his iron arrow through the dark riders on the mountain path. That indicated that the man was worried or even feared the Primordial Thirteen Arrow, so that shot must have taken some effect.


    In addition to rational analysis, what had made him so confident was his distinctive characteristics of the Academy as well as his pride and self-confidence, which would grow the longer he stayed with the Headmaster.


    The Primordial Thirteen Arrows were the collective wisdom of the Academy. Ning Que believed that no one in this world could ignore its power, even if super strong men such as Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword, Great Divine Priest of West-Hill, or the Second Brother couldn¡¯t turn the iron arrow invisible quietly.


    It was during a spring two years ago when the Talisman Arrow was just made, Ning Que took the first shot. Second Brother avoided the iron arrow with his sleeve, only to find the sleeve was torn by it.


    Even if the strong man hiding behind the maple tree was in the Knowing destiny State, he was nothingpared to Second Brother. How could he avoid the iron arrow so easily?


    The ck peach blossoms on the maple tree seemed to have swallowed the iron arrow like an endless abyss without being affected itself. Ning Que was certain that his enemy must have paid the price and suffered a lot. He could not see the damage, but that did not mean that it did not exist.


    He continued to shoot the second iron arrow without any hesitation.


    The iron arrow broke the sky, dropped into the ck peach blossom, and disappeared again. Nothing had been changed except the trunk of the maple tree, which had been wetted by autumn rain, trembled slightly.


    Ning Que looked calm. Neither fear nor desperation could be seen in his eyes.


    He shot the third iron arrow.


    The iron arrow disappeared into the ck peach blossom once again. This time, the wetted maple tree shook violently, with red leaves falling from the top of the tree and toward the ground as the gentle autumn wind came.


    Ning Que shot another arrow.


    Finally, the ck peach blossom had been changed. The invisible ck petals, which condensed by the pure aura of heaven and earth, began to tremble. The petals on the edges of the peach blossom started to wither as if they were about to fall off with the red leaves.


    Ning Que shot the fifth iron arrow.


    The sharp arrowhead pierced one of the petals of the ck peach blossom heavily.


    Finally, the iron arrow had hit its body.


    An extremely deep rift appeared on one slice of the petals of the ck peach blossom.


    There was a loud boom.


    The ck peach blossom disappeared without a trace, and the hard maple tree bore the rest power of the iron arrow on the front, which it couldn¡¯t withstand at all. So it was bombed into a giant hole, and was separated into two parts with a loud noise.


    The dense red leaves of the maple tree were also torn into countless shreds by the aura of the arrow, scattering toward the courtyard of the temple. They then sprinkled to the ground by the pouring of the dense autumn rain.


    The shreds of maple leaves dyed the autumn rain blood, andnded on the ground, on the trunk of the broken maple tree, on the person behind the maple tree, and on the silver mask covering his face.


    The silver mask covered half of the young man¡¯s face, with the other half being exposed. Even with half of his face, one could see his handsomeness. However, he looked forlorn, covered with the bloody rain.


    Looked at the man behind the maple tree, Ning Que and Sangsang couldn¡¯t help but look shocked.


    In the courtyard of Yanming Lake, Ye Hongyu had once unintentionally mentioned that this person might still be alive. However, they did not pay attention to it because they believed that even if the man was still alive, he must be disabled.


    However, this person was actually still alive, and had be more powerful than before.


    "How could you be still alive?"


    Looking at the young man, dressed in a ck taoist suit in the autumn rain, and thinking about his fighting and feuding with this man for so many years; Ning Que seemed a little bit absent-minded.


    Half of Long Qing¡¯s face, exposed outside the silver mask, was extremely pale with almost no trace of blood. It seemed that he had not seen the sunlight for a long time and a tiny stream of blood was flowing from his lips slowly.


    Ning Que shot five Primordial Thirteen Arrows in a row without any hesitation or mercy. Eventually, an indelible trail was left on the peach blossom in the year of his birth. Naturally, he had suffered great injuries as well.


    Having experienced many adventures, entering the Knowing destiny State, and sessively defeated the heads of many spiritual sectarians in the world. His vision was even more pronounced with the skill of Gray Eye. At this time, Long Qing was undoubtedly at his best stage. So he had enough confidence to win over Ning Que, but he did not expect that he would be hurt when they first met.


    He did not expect that Ning Que could ignore the threat of the ck riders and fight with him for his life. In addition, there was a more important reason.


    After entering the Knowing destiny State, he was truly enlightened. He could understand the truews concerning the aura flow of the heavens and earth. If he wanted to avoid the Primordial Thirteenth Arrows, there should have been a better way like Ye Hongyu, who had entered the Knowing destiny State on the snowy cliff. He might have been hurt as well, but he would at least suffer fewer injuries.


    However, Long Qing did not want to dodge.


    The first half of his life was destroyed by an iron arrow.


    Now that he had regained his new life, he seemed to be extremely powerful. However, the thrilling power of the Primordial Thirteen Arrows was still a shadow in his Taoist Heart. If he does not have a positive victory over the Primordial Thirteen Arrows, he could not wipe out that shadow. He can¡¯t truly feel proud and powerful.


    This kind of emotion was so strong and the desire was so unstoppable that he could hardly stop his impulses. He wanted to have a try and find out if he could block the iron arrow.


    He tried, and he did block it.


    Long Qing felt that his chest and abdomen echoed with a very pungent atmosphere, which even made his eyes start to sour. He looked at Ning Que on the wagon and was ready to say something, when suddenly his expression changed.


    At the moment he saw Long Qing, Ning Que felt lost. If given time, he might have felt lots ofplicated emotions. However, he was a professional soldier, a standard fighter, and a woodman along the Shuzhu Lake, so he was never allowed to be emotional before making sure to kill or defeat his strong enemy. He believed that it amounted to suicide to be emotional at this moment.


    Did they need to salute each other? Ask about what happened since they parted? show great concerns for each other? Recall the past before they fight with each other? Both Ning Que and Ye Hongyu looked down upon such kind of idiots. In their eyes, Prince Long Qing and many other strong cultivators were all that type of idiot. Since they were such idiots, why should they live?


    When Prince Long Qing was being emotional, he felt touched and sorrowful. He was about to say something to Ning Que in order to show his pride and strength, he was started to sob. When his lips had just separated, he had no time to say a word, for Ning Que was pulling the bow and stretched it to the utmost again.


    It was so natural for him to pull the bow and control the string, as if he was born to do so. There was no time for one to get prepared or be vignt in advance in front of his skills, so it seemed inescapable.


    Long Qing¡¯s face became paler, with his ck taoist robe wetted by the autumn rain. It seemed as though he was about to melt in the autumnal scenery in the garden of the temple, as if he wouldn¡¯t be there when the iron arrow came.


    One should have a deep understanding of thews concerning the cirction of the aura of heaven and earth. They should integrate themselves with nature and fight with the help of natural forces. This is where the true meaning of the Knowing destiny State lied.


    The blood-colored shreds fluttered in the wind, seeming to hide all of Long Qing¡¯s body.


    Ning Que looked calm, with no trace of anxiety in his face.


    Sansang looked at the lingering figure of Prince Long Qing in the courtyard of the temple, and reported the position with the big ck umbre in her hand.


    Ning Que let loose the string, and the arrow was shot out.


    It was not too far of a distance from the temple to the outside. The maple tree had been ruined, the autumn rain started toe, and the ck peach blossom had been converged.


    This iron arrow had perfectly released all the power of the Primordial Thirteen Arrows.


    The air in the temple fluctuated for a while, and the Qi of Heaven and Earth was in chaos. Several invisible ck peach blossoms emerged from nothingness, and flowed in front of Long Qing in the blink of an eye.


    These ck peach blossoms were smaller, they were not the same peach blossoms of the year of his birth, but they did work as an amulet for him. It was these peach blossoms that helped him suffer less in front of Tang Xiaotang¡¯s unreasonable Blood Knife when he was in the Wilderness.


    Now that Long Qing had entered the Knowing destiny State, the defensive strength of these peach blossoms were even more striking. They had abundant Qi of Heaven and Earth and a fearful air of death.


    However, they were not the peach blossoms in the year of his birth.


    The peach trees were in full bloom.


    The arrow came.


    Then, the peach blossoms fell one after another.


    The ck petals were cracked and then turned into smoke, disappearing into the autumn rain.


    The iron arrow came straight towards Long Qing.


    Long Qing¡¯s face looked shocked, but afterwards immediately turned into coldness and cruelness.


    His faced showed coldness and cruelness to people as well as himself.


    He used his chest to meet the iron arrow.


    There was a puff.


    The iron arrow pierced his ck taoist robe.


    It shot through Long Qing¡¯s body.


    It then shot through the already broken back wall of the temple, causing it to copse.


    It then shot into the rain, and no one knew where it went.


    There was a hole in Long Qing¡¯s chest.


    Standing in front of him, one could see the scenery behind him through his chest.


    This was not a wonderful scene, but rather scary.


    Anyone who had a hole in their body, through which others could see sceneries, shouldn¡¯t be still alive.


    Long Qing was still alive because the hole in his chest was not the result of the arrows shot today, but by the ones shot by Ning Que on the snowy cliff a long time ago from miles away.


    Since then, the hole had always been there.


    Today, the iron arrow had passed through the hole that was there before.


    So he did not die.


    The strong aura attached to the iron arrow hadcerated the cross-section of the viscera in the hole.


    Long Qing stooped and coughed painfully.


    Blood came out with every cough.


    Ning Que had taken out the seventh iron arrow and was ready to shot.


    His fingers on the bowstring were no longer stable and even trembled slightly.


    He knew this was his best chance.


    He also knew it might be hisst chance.


    Long Qing raised his head suddenly.


    With coldness in his eyes.


    There was a wildfire of vengeance at the depth of this coldness.

 Chapter 531: Scattered Horses and People

    Chapter 531: Scattered Horses and People


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Surrounded by green mountains, the Red Lotus Temple suddenly became chill in the autumn rain.


    Long Qing waved his robe sleeves. A storm was raging.


    The wave of his sleeves was filled with his anger.


    The waves of anger came from the hole in his chest; the years of humiliation and pain, the despair he experienced, and the great difference between the beginning of today¡¯s battle and his expectation.


    In his expectation, as a man who had mastered unique skills, inherited the Halfman Taoist¡¯s astonishing cultivation, and entered an extraordinary Knowing destiny State with the help of the Heavenly Power Pill. He could gracefully return to the cultivation world and easily vanquish Ning Que, taking revenge and leaving his enemy in despair.


    However, he was at a disadvantage from the very beginning of the battle. To be precise, he was very passive and had no chance to fight back. He had not been able to unleash the mighty power of a Knowing destiny State cultivator before he was severely injured.


    He almost failed to resist the attack of six Primordial Thirteen Arrows and there was another one on the iron bowstring. After seven arrows, Long Qing suffered greatly and felt extreme humiliation and anger.


    The simple action of waving his sleeve contained his long-suppressed anger and lusted for a fight. Once they were released, the power generated would shock everybody. Over the broken stone stairs of the temple, the rain suddenly disappeared. Countless raindrops were all caught up in his sleeve and rushed toward the ck horse carriage.


    The strong and fierce Qi of Heaven and Earth moved in the rain almost as fast as the arrows. Every raindrop seemed to have be an arrow or a solid rock.


    What made Ning Que feel inexplicably frightened were the flying water drops rushing toward him. Under the rain-free daylight, they seemed to be a faint ck, reeking with a weird sense of danger.


    Ning Que held his breath, shot the seventh arrow and pushed Sangsang into the carriage as quickly as he could. At the same time, the ck raindrops arrived. He had barely managed to ce the big ck umbre in front of him to cover his body.


    The sky was full of ck raindrops. They hit on the surface of the big ck umbre like serried arrows.


    Many of them hit the carriage.


    The ck carriage shook violently as if it would roll over at any time. It seemed like a lonely boat on the ocean.


    The raindrops were too many and too spread out that not even the big umbre could fend off all of them. Ning Que did not notice that some raindrops had drifted into the carriage through cracks and fell on Sangsang¡¯s body.


    He held the umbre handle tightly, his right-hand joints were slightly white and blood flowed from his lips.


    It was not because of the ck rain, but his release of the seventh arrow. He shot too hastily and he was somewhat afraid of the ck raindrops, so the arrow did not hit Long Qing.


    The Primordial Thirteen Arrows consumed arge amount of Psyche Power. When they were first invented, Second Brother had told Ning Que that the shooting of several arrows could greatly weaken him.


    Now he was way more powerful so he could shoot all 13 arrows. But today, he shot seven of them in session without any breaks, like seven continuous shes of lightning in the sky. Such frequent shootings were very terrifying. He did not do this even when he fought against Xia Houst winter at Yanming Lake.


    Thanks to his improved cultivation of the Great Spirit, his body became stronger after joining the Devil. Otherwise, he would definitely be too weak to stand after shooting seven arrows in session. Now, the muscles on his arm were severely strained and he felt great pain in his right shoulder. He could not pull the iron bow for a short while.


    What chilled and shocked Long Qing the most was not the power of Ning Que¡¯s arrows, but his toughness and strong will in battle because he knew Ning Que very well. Although he still did not understand why the sixth arrow could hit him.


    If he did not shamelessly avoid the arrow using the hole in his chest, he might have been greatly injured or dead. Since he had reached the Knowing destiny State and could be integrated with the surroundings, he did not understand why Ning Que, a Seethrough Realm cultivator, could locate his position.


    Long Qing realized that Ning Que had many secrets and perhaps, they were not on him but around him. For instance, the little handmaiden who held the big ck umbre.


    Long Qing looked at Ning Que¡¯s wet but expressionless face, and said with a strange look, "You are a monster."


    Ning Que stared at Long Qing standing behind the stairs and the hole in his chest, and said, "You are the monster."


    Long Qing stepped down from the stairs and said expressionlessly, "Thank you for thement."


    Ning Que answered, "You are wee."


    Long Qing continued, "You are about to die."


    Ning Que said, "Why?"


    Looking at the iron bow in Ning Que¡¯s hand, Long Qing said with a smile, "Can you still shoot?"


    Ning Que¡¯s heart sank but his smile was more sincere than his opponent, and he said, "I¡¯ll have to show you."


    Long Qing said, "My knights havee. If you can, please show me."


    Ning Que¡¯s smile stiffened gradually.


    Long Qing looked more elegant.


    The sound of hooves became clearer in the autumn rain. A dozen ck knights finally arrived at the front of the temple.


    The seven continuous arrows were seven shes of lightning. It had been a very short time after Sangsang cried out Long Qing¡¯s position. So the knights must have moved at an astonishing speed.


    Ning Que was at the peak of the Seethrough Realm. Even if he was invincible below the Knowing destiny State, even if he had many powerful weapons other than the Primordial Thirteen Arrows and had the confidence to challenge general Knowing destiny State cultivators, he could not defeat Long Qing on his own. Since Sangsang was very sick, they could not even break the siege of the Seethrough Realm knights.


    At the time, Long Qing was not sure if Ning Que could shoot another arrow, so he did not attack immediately but vigntly waited for an opportunity. However, even if Ning Que could refresh himself and shoot again, he could would not easily decide the target between Long Qing and the ferocious fallen knights.


    It seemed the ending of the battle had been decided and they were desperately hopeless. However, Ning Que, at this moment, rxed his stiff smile as if a long drynd was suddenly moistened by a cool spring.


    Long Qing noticed the change and grew alert.


    The cold autumn rain which kept falling on the Big ck Horse could not extinguish the testiness and a lust for war in its eyes. But as Ning Que¡¯s smile changed, the testiness disappeared immediately. The horse looked at the knights rushing toward the carriage with contempt as if they were a group of idiots.


    As he approached the carriage, the front knight started activating his Psyche Power. His right hand left the reins and started to produce a Sword Form. The flying sword on his back wheezed. His ck horse panted feverishly. As it sped up, the horsehair around its neck flew in the rain, full of power and beauty.


    At this time, a strand of horsehair floated in the air.


    The insignificance of the fact did not attract any attention.


    But Long Qing¡¯s countenance suddenly changed. He uttered a shrill warning.


    But the knights could not stop their high-speed sprint even if they had understood his warning and wanted to obey the order with discipline.


    They could no longer leave the battlefield.


    A battlefield that Ning Que had prepared for them.


    The ck horse right at the front stepped heavily into the mud. It rushed onto the green hill first and found itself unable to move anymore because its hoof had been cut off.


    And then a thin red thread appeared on its thick neck.


    More red threads started to appear on its body.


    Because of the uneven forces in different parts, the red threads gradually be wider and then separated.


    The horse¡¯s entire body became a mass of meat pieces suspended in the air, with blood looming between the pieces.


    The head of the horse was quietly separated from the body and continued to move forward. One could even see the hot mist sprayed from the nose and hear the sound of breathing.


    A horse in a sprint had be countless pieces of flesh and blood.


    The scene was extremely weird.


    The fallen knight on horseback had almost the same experience.


    As his right hand left the reins and produced a Sword Form to call his flying sword, a red thread appeared, quietly cutting his hand in two.


    A red thread appeared on his fingers.


    The fingers fell like ripe fruit.


    And then, his arm was cut into numerous thin slices and thinner pieces.


    His neck was severed.


    His whole body was cut off from the middle and cut into thinner pieces.


    He fell from the sky with the horse that had been cut into pieces.


    They were like a copsing cier.


    A second ago, there were a Seethrough Realm knight and a valiant steed.


    Now, there were only two piles of flesh and blood on the green hill.


    As the most powerfulmander among the fallen knights, Zi Mo was the first to respond to Prince Long Qing¡¯s warning. He felt the weird and horrible aura in the rain and instinctively pulled the reins. He wanted to forcibly stop even if his horse was choked.


    The horse shrieked in pain, reared as if standing like a man and continued to rush forward uncontrobly. Zi Mo grunted and left the horseback, falling heavily on the muddy ground. He then quickly stepped back. Looking at the rain before him, a panicked look appeared on his pale face.

 Chapter 532: Autumn Rain Kills and Autumn Wind Laughs

    Chapter 532: Autumn Rain Kills and Autumn Wind Laughs


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The group of fallen knights finally showed their real abilities at the Seethrough Realm, verifying the importance of being cold and calm during a battle.


    Although the Fallen knights didn¡¯t realize how dangerous that ck horse carriage was, when rmed by Long Qing, all of them acted followed Zimo except for the headmost one¡ªThey jumped off their horses, rolled, crawled on the ground, and struggled with their hands and legs to move away from the horse carriage. As long as they could keep away, they would try everything.


    Even so, they were unable to avoid all the attacks. Some of the horses who ran too fast were cut into pieces by the invisible power in the rain. Some knights¡¯ shoes were cut up, someone¡¯s whole leg was removed with a clean cut. The cut-off section of their leg looked like an eye with a white iris and a red outer sclera, which was extremely disturbing looking.


    Miserable screams sounded in the autumn rain. The invisible lines in the air chased and cut everything as if it had spirituality.


    Zimo moved backward fast in the rain, grabbing two slightly injuredpanions and throwing them to the back. His armor was ruined with many nicks and cuts on it during his movements and was about to fall apart.


    He hummed and took out his sword containing the purest Qi of Heaven and Earth. He rushed forward and stroked the invisible power so many times that the bright flying sword seemed to be dark due to its speed.


    The damage of a natal flying sword was usually fatal for a cultivator, but Zimo had no time to bother about it. Taking the opportunity he gained with his sword, he was able to get out of the region covered by the power of the horse carriage, and then summoned his sword back.


    A fallen knightmander who was at the rear was not attacked by the invisible power. He could do nothing but watch the horses cutting in pieces and hispanions getting hurt. Listening to hispanions¡¯ screams, he revealed a very ugly expression on his face and became enraged.


    He roared and threw his sword. His sword turned into a sh of green light with a golden edge that rushed toward the ck horse carriage through the rain.


    However, as soon as it entered the autumn rain -or to be more urate- when it got close to the carriage, it slowly dimmed while losing its power and speed. Its surface was covered by rust as if it had been scouring in the rain for decades.


    Afterwards, a lot of tiny cracks appeared on its surface.


    With a bang, it fell on the ground 30 meters away from the carriage and could no longer move at all. It was like a dead bug that had no choice but to rot in the rain.


    That fallen knightmander suddenly became pale and started to vomit blood as his natal sword had been ruined.


    The cold rain flowed from Zimo¡¯s hair and over his eyes.


    His eyes remained calm even when he was expelled from the Divine Hall and had his cultivation destroyed by Ye Hongyu. This time though, he felt fear.


    The air started to be colder due to the autumn rain.


    It was just a regr autumn rain; quiet and peaceful. It dampened the yellow grass on the ground, washed the blood on the carriage and the ground. Yet, there seemed to be a that was weaved by steel wires, waiting for whatever entered the rain, and cutting it no matter if a horse, a man or a sword.


    It was not the rain but in fact the carriage that was causing this. Looking at the carriage and Ning Que who was in it, Zimo¡¯s face paled. He thought the man and the carriage must havee from the underworld instead of the human world.


    Seeing his most powerful and loyal subordinates being severely injured and killed by the rain, Long Qing straightened his face. He was unwilling to figure out whether Ning Que was able to shoot the Primordial Thirteen Arrows, and instead started his Psyche Power to transform the surrounding Qi of Heaven and Earth into his own and pushed it to the carriage.


    With the sense of extinction, the devastating power entered the rain, but it vanished instantly.


    At least, it had disappeared in Long Qing¡¯s spiritual world, which hurt his sense of perception badly. Thus, his body could not help but start shaking.


    The invisible power in the rain had actually cut through his purest aura.


    Long Qing suddenly remembered the legendary talisman which could cut space if it was well cultivated and changed his face.


    "A Jing Fu?"


    Long Qing looked at Ning Que and his cold eyes were full of astonishment and delusion. He was like a hungry beggar who had starved for dozen days and had found a piece of bread in a temple. He could not care whether the bread was bloody or not, and he just wanted to eat it up.


    "You have learned uncle Yan Se¡¯s Jing Fu. You have indeed made a good progress in these two years, haven¡¯t you?"


    Jing Fu was Ning Que¡¯s most powerful talisman, and was nearly even a Divine Talisman. It was a heavy burden for him to use it, so he looked paler than Long Qing. He reluctantlyughed and said, "I don¡¯t know where have you hidden these past two years, maybe you were imprisoned or you had encountered some luck. Anyways, you have left for a long time and you¡¯ve fallen behind. I can forgive you not knowing my legend."


    Long Qing said indifferently, "The war just began and you have already shown your most powerful card. I am curious as to why you are so unwise? Did I push you too much?"


    "I thought we, the disciples in the Academy, were the most narcissistic people in the world, but you changed me. Your question is beyond stupid. We should begin with our most powerful skill to fight as if a tiger tries its best to beat a rabbit. Even the girls who are only good at writing and meditation would know this."


    The girl Ning Que mentioned was Mo Shanshan who had taught him the fighting attitude during the trip in the Wilderness.


    Being mocked as an idiot, Long Qing didn¡¯t get enraged. He calmly looked at Ning Que and said, "What¡¯s next?"


    Ning Que answered, "If you are not going to fight, you can leave first. I won¡¯t bother."


    Long Qing smiled and said, "You must die today."


    Ning Que looked at the rain and said, "You can have a try."


    Long Qing looked at the rain and felt the sharp killing intent hiding inside it. He indifferently and ironicallyughed. Jing Fu was so powerful that even he was unable to break it, but the biggest feature and also biggest weakness of the Talisman Taoism was its continuity. As the time passed by, it would continually fade till it vanished in the end.


    Long Qing put his right hand behind his back and pointed at the autumn rain with his left hand, saying, "The second when the talisman disappears with the rain, is the second you die."


    Ning Que kept quiet.


    Long Qing felt unsatisfied, so he repeated, "You won¡¯t be able to escape today."


    Ning Que said, "Ever since I knew you were the one I was going to fight against, I never thought about running."


    Long Qing was a little surprised and asked, "Why? Do you believe it is destiny that we have to fight ?"


    Ning Que ironically said, "I¡¯m really wondering how you grew up in the pce of Yan Kingdom. How is everything destined? I don¡¯t run because I don¡¯t have to. Don¡¯t forget, to me you are my already defeated opponent. You are never going to beat me."


    "You really think so?"


    Long Qing sentimentally and painfullyughed after hearing this while saying, "Do you believe that you can beat me this time?"


    "I told you that I don¡¯t know what has happened to you these past two years, but I¡¯m not afraid of you. I shall never lose to you and you shall never be able to kill me."


    Ning Que looked at him and said, "Because this is my story, and in my story, a character like you is always a foil."


    In the carriage.


    Sangsang was installing something on the rest of the iron arrows when she heard Ning Que¡¯s words. Her fingers froze and said, "Do you really think so?"


    The sounds of the rain covered Ning Que¡¯s sigh.


    "I¡¯m not Youngest Uncle or Second Brother, so of course I don¡¯t think so. What¡¯s more, in my opinion, the one who is acting as a hero the most won¡¯t have a good end."


    "Then, why do you say that?"


    "Because I don¡¯t like him. Even though I cannot beat him, I would like to irritate him."


    Ning Que squinted Sangsang and said, "You know why I don¡¯t like him."


    Sangsang was ashamed and annoyed. She exined and said, "I don¡¯t like him anymore. I just thought he looked nice at that time."


    Ning Que coldly said, "But the truth that you have ever liked him is a fact."


    The atmosphere outside was still tense, but inside, Ning Que and Sangsang had the mood to discuss old ounts.


    Li Qingshan didn¡¯t say anything.


    The Jing Fu was covering the ck carriage, causing no one being able to enter the rain or allowing them to exit.


    However, even the most powerful talisman would disappear after some time.


    Long Qing understood that Ning Que was stalling to recover, so he sat down on the stone step and closed his eyes to meditate, healing his wounds.


    This was a moment of peace in the middle of the battle.


    Soon the rain was going to stop.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 533: Start with Debating

    Chapter 533: Start with Debating


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The fallen knights supported each other to patch their wounds. They all became alert and rancorous when they saw the ck carriage.


    They rushed down the mountain like a thunder, but in the end, they were even unable to touch the carriage. The worst part of it was that they had lost apanion¡¯s life and received multiple injuries. It was uneptable for them who were at the Seethrough Realm.


    The rain was still falling. Inside the Red Lotus Temple there was chaos and the carriage was drenched.


    Ning Que had gone back inside and closed the roof. He watched Long Qing through the window and suddenly remembered something. Then he asked, "Hey, how did you survive?"


    Long Qing opened his eyes and answered, "That¡¯s a long story."


    Ning Que raised his head to look at the sky and said, "In that case, maybe I won¡¯t be able to hear the whole story."


    Only during the time before the Jing Fu disappeared could Ning Que listen to the story. Once the Jing Fu disappeared, the man who told the story and the man who listened would have to return to their original identities¡ª bitter enemies. The Jing Fu in the rain was no longer horrible. Instead, it brought a temporary peace or bnce.


    "You can recognize me even if I am wearing a mask and you are so interested in my story. It is reasonable for people to say that we are a couple of fateful enemies.


    Prince Long Qing said, "Since this is so, I naturally could not allow for you to be Mr. Thirteen from the Academy, the only sessful person at the top, so I came back."


    Ning Que ironically said, "Don¡¯t think I would be in awe of you because you have reached the Knowing Destiny State. You know, back at my ce, there are so many students who are at the Knowing Destiny State, as many as cabbages."


    Long Qing said calmly, "I¡¯m not an ordinary man at the Knowing Destiny State. I think you¡¯ve already felt it."


    Ning Que indeed felt something odd on Long Qing, which was more powerful than ordinary the Knowing Destiny State, so heughed and said, "An unordinary cabbage is still a cabbage."


    Looking at the mask on Long Qing¡¯s face, he stopped smiling and said, "What the hell happened to you?"


    Long Qing began to tell the story of the things that happened in these years.


    This was a very long story, but he chose the simplestnguage to describe it. Only by a few keywords could Ning Que figure out how cruel and sad the story was.


    His tone was calm, without any emotional changes, as if he was telling someone else¡¯s story.


    In fact, he wasn¡¯t willing to tell anybody about this, but Ning Que meant something to him. So, he needed Ning Que to know what he had lost and regained before he died.


    This was a spiritual need.


    The fallen knights had known their Priest¡¯s story, but they didn¡¯t know the details, so they all listened carefully and were somehow touched.


    "A nice story but a little old fashioned."


    Ning Que coldly and uncharitablymented.


    However, Long Qing didn¡¯t care.


    "I don¡¯t believe in the so-called fateful enemies. Or you could say I don¡¯t believe you can sessfully im revenge for all the humiliations you have suffered, after you went through those difficulties and came back to the world."


    Ning Que said, "Your two humiliations came from me. If you are able to take revenge, how can I face myself?"


    Long Qing said, "Since you are going to die, why do you care about that?"


    Ning Que said, "But I won¡¯t die."


    Long Qing said, "I am the one Haotian chose and I own the Manifest Destiny. I shall not die, so you must die."


    Ning Que looked at him and suddenly felt a chill. Then he remembered what Second Brother had said to Liu Yiqing, so he asked, "Can you prove that?"


    "It¡¯s Haotian¡¯s will. I don¡¯t need to prove it to mortals."


    The answer was boring.


    Ning Que ironically looked at him.


    Long Qing said, "If I said I had a Heavenly Power Pill, could it serve as proof?"


    "Is the Heavenly Power Pill very rare?" Said Ning Que.


    Long Qing nodded honestly.


    Ning Que suddenly smiled and said, "I had one a few years ago."


    He shed an unkindly smile.


    His voice was cold.


    "I can also tell you that there are arge number of Heavenly Power Pills in Chen Pipi¡¯s hand. If we need to, we can eat them like fried beans. What does it prove? Can it prove that we are the illegitimate children of Haotian?"


    Although he knew that was not the truth, Long Qing could not help changing his face.


    He could be as calm as water and as cold as ice, or even crueler than anyone else in the world, but he became irritable under the Ning Que¡¯s mocking attacks.


    Ning Que continued, "You and your fallen knights have killed so many people that the West-Hill Divine Pce has to hunt down all of you. How dare you consider yourself as the chosen one. Don¡¯t you think that¡¯s funny? It¡¯s just your mental masturbation."


    After a long silence, Long Qing said, "Maybe you are right. Maybe I am not the chosen person. I think I am the Son of Yama, so I suffered a lot and still was able to see hope in the dark. But eventually I may sink to the bottom of the endless abyss."


    Hearing these words, Ning Que felt an increasing sense of ridicule. He said, "Your Highness, you have left this world for too long, so that you may not even know about the famous rumor."


    Long Qing frowned and said, "What is it?"


    Ning Que pointed at himself with a finger and said, "Everyone believes I am the Son of Yama."


    "It is said that Yama has thousands of children, and one of them wille to this world, representing disaster and destruction. It¡¯s not a glorious image."


    Ning Que looked at him and said, "Even for a name as bad as this, you want to fight and wrest it from me? Your Highness, you are too victorious and too proud. What¡¯s more, your pride is fake as you still care about what people say about you. Since you have lost and suffered a lot, you need to kill me to regain respect."


    "If you can¡¯t, you would like people to fear you rather than respect you. All of these emotions support you until today. In order to do that, you need a powerful background. Unfortunately, even if you can kill me, you still cannot step over me, because I¡¯m the Headmaster¡¯s student. Even after you became an abbey dean¡¯s student, you are still not as good as me, because your teacher cannot beat mine."


    "In order to restore your confidence and reputation, to regain the awe of the world, you have pushed yourself too hard and you constantly told yourself that you are the chosen one. But Haotian Taoism didn¡¯t treat you as you wanted, so you turned to the darkness."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "You are out of your mind."


    Long Qing said, "You are a dead man and you are not qualified to judge me."


    Ning Que said, "If I¡¯m not, how about the Headmaster?"


    Long Qing didn¡¯t answer him.


    Ning Que said, "When you and I climbed up the mountain to participate in the entrance exam for the Second floor of the Academy, what did you see on the stones?"


    Long Qing closed his eyes to think. He could remember the characters on the stone, but he would rather forget them.


    Ning Que said, "A decent man shall notpete. That¡¯s a warning for you. You always want to fight with people, even with Heaven. How can Heaven tolerate you?"


    Long Qing looked at his eyes and asked, "If Heaven cannot tolerate you, do you fight or not?"


    Ning Que said, "I will fight if I need to."


    Long Qing said, "Then why can¡¯t I fight?"


    Ning Que confidently said, "How dare you topare with me? You cannot keeppeting with me. It is never going to happen. The more you fight, the more you lose."


    Long Qing smiled, peacefully and indifferently.


    As soon as he was about to say something else, Ning Que suddenly opened the skylight and stood up. He nced at the rain to check the talisman, and said, "Don¡¯t say any more crap."


    Long Qing frowned and thought, "Who is the one talking nonsense?"


    In the carriage, Sangsang had installed the reconstructed iron cylinder onto the remaining five iron arrows and thought, "Young master is indeed the person who talks the most nonsense in the world."


    Long Qing raised his hand to point at the rain, and then said, "Your Jing Fu still works."


    Ning Que held the iron bow with his left hand and said, "Idiot, it¡¯s my Jing Fu. How can it hurt me?"


    Long Qing smiled and said, "Then why haven¡¯t you moved?"


    Ning Que said, "Because I need to rest; otherwise I can¡¯t pull my bow."


    Long Qing asked, "Do you feel better now?"


    Ning Que said, "Yes, strong enough to kill you."


    Long Qing said, "If you just need a rest or try to dy the time, you don¡¯t have to talk so much, and your words seemed real. Why?"


    "Of course, I said the truth."


    Ning Que took the iron arrows that Sangsang handed over and looked at Long Qing. "I am going to kill you, and I really hope that yourst moment in the world is very unhappy."


    Long Qing straightened his face.


    Ning Que put the arrows on the bow and shot at him straight, without saying any more words.


    Long Qing knew him very well and he was waiting for his actions.


    The arrow seemed unpredictable, but he had long expected it.


    He was more ready thanst the time when he was injured by Ning Que, so he slightly waved his sleeves and disturbed the Qi of Heaven and Earth in front of the temple. Some peach blossoms appeared.


    A ck peach blossom took the arrow easily.


    Long Qing jumped into the rain like a ghost.


    Then, it was his time to fight back.


    Right at this moment.


    The iron arrow stuck on the ck peach blossom exploded.


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 534: Fire in Red Lotus Temple

    Chapter 534: Fire in Red Lotus Temple


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    With the explosion of the iron arrows, the ck peach blossoms in the rain were split into pieces as they fell to the ground. The metal sheets on the small iron cylinders whistled fiercely as they rushed toward Long Qing.


    In the midst of the autumn rain, Long Qing uttered an angry cry and forced all his cultivation power out of his body. The rich Qi of Heaven and Earth was called to create countless transparent shields before him.


    The intangible shields were not made of metal, and Long Qing was not a master of Martial Arts; so even though the metal sheets power had been greatly weakened by the shields, they piercingly cut Long Qing¡¯s robe like des. Blood spilled out of the numerous tiny wounds on his body.


    Even more terrifying were the mes and st of heat generated in the explosion, which reflected brightly on the raindrops in front of Red Lotus Temple. After a moment the raindrops quickly evaporated into a white fog with a squeaky sound.


    At the very beginning of the explosion, Long Qing had changed the direction of his ghostlike movement. As he touched the wet ground with his toes, he swiftly moved backward from the temple gate into the deserted main hall and mmed onto the y statue of arhat with the help of the aura in the air and the force from the st.


    The statue broke into several pieces in a mist of dust. He spat up a mouthful of blood and his eyes were full ofplicated emotions because he could not understand a lot of the things that happened today.


    The revtion and Yama that Long Qing had talked with Ning Que were actually for the purpose of winning time. Even though the ck raindrops fell on Ning Que¡¯s body, he appeared normal without any sign of poisoning after a long time.


    It was hard to imagine that the Second floor of the Academy had invented such powerful Primordial Thirteen Arrows to help Ning Que challenge a cultivator of Knowing Destiny State. Furthermore, they incredibly improved the weapon by adding the explosive thing on the arrow!


    Long Qing leaned against the broken statue and struggled to stand up. He viciously looked at the looming ck carriage outside the temple and uttered an extremely shrill cry.


    However, his cry suddenly stopped.


    The second iron arrow hade.


    And there was another explosion.


    And then the third and fourth arrows arrived.


    Constant explosions destroyed the walls and beams of the temple. The statue had be dust and powder. The fire ignited dirty yellow curtains and dumped wooden beams in the temple. mes rose suddenly towards the sky.


    The entire Red Lotus Temple stood in the fire whose mes lit up the somewhat dark world in the autumn rain.


    A beast-like roar suddenly rose from the burning temple. It was a roar full of anger, violence, ressentiment and killing. Whoever heard it would hurriedly cover their ears.


    mes sputtered and were extinguished by the autumn rain.


    Long Qing came out, his body was dark everywhere, and he looked extremely wretched. The blood with the smell of stench flowing out of his wounds evaporated due to the hot air.


    The silver mask on his face had disappeared, revealing his half-covered face.


    The covered half of his face was swollen and ulcerated like a red peach.


    They were not old wounds, but new.


    At a most dangerous moment, an overbearing aura had burst out of Long Qing¡¯s natal ck peach blossom and isted the mes from his body. The aura could not iste the heat and temperature though.


    Silver was after all, one of the metals with the highest thermal conductivity.


    So half of his face under the silver mask was very severely burned.


    It was not the worst injury on his body right now.


    But it was the most terrifying one.


    Several years ago, when he was hit by Ning Que¡¯s arrow at the snow cliff of the Wilderness; he had lived like a walking dead who begged for food and acted in trashy soap operas, having gone through all kinds of tortures and malice in the world. But he was atleast still a good-looking man with a few scars that did not harm his beauty, but make him more charming.


    Now he had finally regained power but he hadn¡¯t expected such a heavy blow just when he returned to the cultivation world. He had been disfigured.


    ...


    ...


    It was an idea of the disciples at the back of the mountain of the Academy to add the explosive device to Primordial Thirteen Arrows. The new weapon had just beenpleted by Sixth Brother so Ning Que did not take many arrows at this time.


    He initially decided to use the five arrows at the most appropriate time. In the beginning, he thought that he could at least seriously injure Long Qing by means of his seven iron arrows. However, there was now only one arrow left on the string and Long Qing was still alive.


    Ning Que was more disappointed to find out that the disfigured Long Qing was not getting mad at all. Instead, when he walked out of the burning Red Lotus Temple, the calmness in his eyes remained the same as if he did not care about the horrible wounds on his face.


    The man had proved that he was by no means a normal cultivator of Knowing Destiny State. In fact, he could bepared with Xia Hou after being wounded by Tang, and from the perspective of the mind, he was terrifyingly stronger!


    Looking at Long Qing standing in the rain with blue smoke around his body and a cold face, Ning Que squeezed out a bitter smile. He wondered if Long Qing really was the Son of Yama.


    He indistinctly saw the shadow of Yama, though he was not sure if he saw it on Long Qing¡¯s body. He was very sure though, that the shadow hade down on the burning temple.


    It represented death.


    It also represented despair.


    Even then, Ning Que would never fall into despair until he was convinced that he was about to die.


    He looked at Long Qing and said, "You have had a tragic life and you look quite pathetic right now, but that matters little now. You are destined to lose and will lose in the future. If today you are lucky enough to survive, you will still be defeated by me sooner orter, because Haotian has decided everything. The more tragic your life is, the more ridiculous it will be in the tales of cultivation world."


    "You always like to talk nonsense when you are unsure or unprepared."


    Long Qing seemed very calm and he said in a calm voice, "But as you just said, tragic story and plots do not matter right now. Today I will kill you."


    With the constant autumn rain, Jing Fu faded and eventually vanished.


    The fallen knights outside had waited for a long time. Once Jing Fu vanished, they spontaneously walked toward the carriage without any order. Some of them rode uninjured horses, some walked in silence.


    They were once the mighty cavalries of West-Hill Divine Pce, those squires had even reached Seethrough Realm after taking Earth Pills.


    The five cavalrymanders had reached the Peak of Seethrough Realm which meant each of them could fight with Ning Que for a few rounds. As for the most powerful Commander Zimo, who had reached the top of Seethrough State, he was so close to Knowing Destiny State just as Ning Que.


    Such a group of powerhouses was enough to mop up those insignificant small countries. In fact, they had destroyed many Taoist Altars of Martial Art Sect and Tianshidao¡¯s headquarter altar at Mountain DargonTiger.


    On the other side of the ck carriage, in front of the burning Red Lotus Temple, Long Qing again called out his natal ck peach blossom, with a petal that was almost withered and would seem to fall at any time.


    In fact though, what he called was not peach blossom, but the sword in it.


    It was an all ck intangible Taoist Sword slowing rising from the ck peach blossom.


    Ning Que suddenly shook his head.


    He turned back and ignored the Prince Long Qing behind him.


    Instead, he aimed at those fallen knights with his iron arrow.


    When a cultivator reached a higher state, he would be more sensitive to danger.


    Zi Mo was the most powerful man among fallen knights, so he was the first to sense danger when Ning Que¡¯s arrow aimed at him. Without any hesitation, he jumped into the water-logged bushes.


    He used to be amander of West-Hill Divine Pce and a professional soldier. He knew clearly that if he wanted to survive on the battlefield, grace did not matter at all.


    But he was not who Ning Que was aiming at.


    Ning Que knew that one arrow might not be able to kill the mighty top Seethrough cultivator.


    Hisst arrow was aimed at anothermander on the horse.


    There was a loud boom.


    Without any chance to escape, themander at the Peak of Seethrough Realm was shot. His upper body was smashed into pieces which then fell to the ground with blood and flesh like rain.


    Some of the body parts fell in the water-logged grass with blood sshing. Some fell beside those fallen knights or even touched their faces.


    Although they had witnessed theirpanion¡¯s death, the fallen knights remained expressionless.


    They just intently stared at the ck horse carriage in silence.


    Ning Que looked at them and realized that the cultivators in ck clothes were really masters of killing who deserved respect and even awe.


    On the battlefield, the best way to show your respect for an opponent was to kill him. Ning Que rarely showed his respect but when he did, it indicated the beginning of the most bloody andplete battle.


    Like every battle in the past years.


    Sangsang habitually held the big ck umbre and was going to stand beside Ning Que. However, the chilly aura inside her body suddenly got weird. She coughed with pain.


    Ning Que pushed her back onto the soft couch in the carriage, jumped to the top of the carriage and closed the skylight with his feet. Then looking at the fallen knights not far away from them, he gently swung his sword.


    His first attack arrived at the shaft, cutting off the reins tied to the Big ck Horse.


    Ning Que knew clearly that the horse would not snap the reins on its own although it could. The horse appeared to be shameless, but on the contrary, it was very faithful. If Ning Que did not cut off the reins, it probably would stay with them and be killed in the end.


    So Ning Que cut off the reins and set it free, which also meant he did not expect to leave the ce alive.


    A flying sword shrilly split the air and appeared in front of Ning Que.


    Ning Que turned his wrist and fought back with podao.


    The attack seemed random, but was extremely precise in fact.


    The heavy and solid de directly threw the flying sword away. It was like a scavenger who found something useless and discarded it into the sewer.

 Chapter 535: Borrowing One Second from Brightness

    Chapter 535: Borrowing One Second from Brightness


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The buzzing sound caused by high-speed tremors kept ringing around the ck horse carriage. Each buzzing sound represented a fierce flying sword. When Ning Que used his de to hew away a flying sword, the fallen knights confirmed that Mr. Thirteen¡¯s Perception State of Qi of Heaven and Earth changes was very urate. No matter how they hid the traces of their flying swords, they could not escape Ning Que¡¯s eyes. In a second, they extremely changed their tactics. They no longer tried to disguise their sword traces, but instead desperately poured out their Psyche Power so that each flying sword could unleash the greatest power.


    However, for Ning Que, this tactic was meaningless. After he cultivated the Great Spirit, no matter the hardness or strength of his body, he was far beyond an ordinary cultivator. He moved fast around the ck horse carriage and asionally waved his knife, and the light of knife would shine in the autumn rain; then, a flying sword would bounce away.


    No one, nor any sword, could reach the zone in front of him which was around 30cm long. This was Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword¡¯s powerful tactic, which was mentioned by Master Yan Se.


    Ning Que did not just understand the knowledge of the 30cm long zone in front of him, but he also understood Liu Bai¡¯s Great River Sword Intent through Ye Hongyu¡¯s thin paper. Now his knife skill was more than simple and quick. It had a very strong and irresistible power. It also had the seemingly reasonable sword style which was actually very unusual.


    No one was able to approach him, but he could approach others. The Great Spirit in his body spun at a high speed, constantly releasing its power. His right foot stepped on the muddy grass, sshing plenty of muddy water. He left a lingering image in the air, and instantly came to the front of a fallen knight.


    With the sound of cutting flesh, his knife pierced deep into the fallen knight¡¯s thigh, and then he pulled it out like lightning. Then the Great Spirit turned again and he swept away 100 feet. Ning Que returned to the ck horse carriage again.


    At this time, a fallen knightmander nced at Ning Que.


    Ning Que looked pale and felt that his sense of perception was shaking, as if a storm would happen within it. Then, he realized that this fallen knightmander was actually a rare Psyche Master.


    There were few people in the world who a had stronger Psyche Power than Ning Que, especially when he had received the pieces of consciousness from Master Lotus before his death at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. After that, he became the Psyche Master¡¯s invincible opponent. Even Master Dao Shi of Xuankong Temple could not defeat him in the spiritual world, let alone this person.


    Ning Que nced at that fallen knightmander.


    The stronger Psyche Power in his sense of perception directly counteracted that person¡¯s psychic attack.


    The fallen knightmander suddenly became pale, and started to vomit. His vomit was a mixture of food in his stomach and blood. It spouted from his mouth and his nose. He looked extremely miserable.


    In the battle, Ning Que¡¯s unusual and indescribable bodily movement greatly shocked the people present. It was acknowledged by all cultivators that Psyche Masters had the absolute advantage when battling with cultivators of the same state. However, Ning Que¡¯s simple nce left that fallen knightmander badly injured, which was more shocking to the people present, as it was beyond their imagination.


    It was true that Ning Que was only at the peak of Seethrough Realm.


    But he had too many unbelievable skills; the Youngest Uncle¡¯s Great Spirit, Liu Bai¡¯s sword style, the powerful fighter¡¯s body of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, Lotus¡¯s sense and the skills of Master Yan Se¡¯s Talisman Taoism. Now, he was even beyond Invincible prior to Knowing Destiny; he almost had the Knowing destiny State¡¯s ability.


    In other words, even when Ning Que faced an ordinary grand cultivator of the Knowing Destiny State, he would not fear, and he had a 40% chance to kill that cultivator with his knife.


    However, these fallen knights did have considerable power, especially their great cooperation in battle. No matter their bodily movement or footwork, even their breath, all seemed to follow the same frequency.


    Fighting with these fallen knights was like fighting with one man.


    Whenever Ning Que was about to kill a person with his superhuman bodily movement, there were always flying swordsing from extremely dangerous and steep angles. Some people even directly blocked his attack with their arms to cover theirpanions. These fallen knights who were convicted by the West-Hill Divine Pce did not hesitate to die, as if they had a very noble character.


    It was for this reason that since the start of the battle, Ning Que had injured several people in brief moments. However, except for thatmander who was badly injured by Ning Que¡¯s Psyche Power, he could not make anyone else lose his fighting force.


    Even so, Ning Que believed that he could kill all these people, or exhaust them, including that fallen knight who was at the peak of the Seethrough Realm, as long as he had enough time. However, he was clear that he was actually confronting that person at this time, and that peak Seethrough person had never struck out so far.


    Long Qing struck out.


    In his hand, a ck peach flower grew.


    From the ck peach flower, a pure ck invisible Taoist Sword was born.


    The ck Taoist Sword floated like a ghost in front of the Red Lotus Temple.


    A sense of death gradually spread from the sword.


    Feeling the sense of death, those fallen knights¡¯ spirits seemed to be filled with vitality. The flying swords were as dense as a light belt, and immediately locked Ning Que into the tiny area in front of the ck horse carriage.


    Ning Que also perceived the sense of death. Somehow, he felt a chill in the depths of his heart. He kept sensing that something terrible was about to happen and his body was tired because of this feeling.


    In fact, long ago, Long Qing had already struck.


    When Ning Que shot the seventh iron arrow, he waved his taoist robe and turned numerous autumn raindrops into a stone waterfall. He threw it toward the ck horse carriage. Those ck raindrops evaded the big ck umbre and fell into the carriage.


    They fell onto Sangsang¡¯s body.


    At this time, Sangsang¡¯s pale cheeks became strangely red, and her body temperature seemed to be extremely high. She coughed more severely, and she seemed to cough some spotted blood stains on her clothes.


    Sangsang knew she was poisoned.


    But she did not know how.


    She knew that if she forcibly cast her Divine Skill at this time, then no one would know what would happen.


    However, being aware of the terrifying sense of death that entered the carriage through the walls, and looking through the window at Ning Que who was struggling under the siege of the crazy fallen knights, she knew she had no choice.


    Sangsang leaned on the side of the horse carriage and stood up with difficulty to open the skylight. Then she held the big ck umbre with both hands and opened it against the autumn rain that continued to fall from the sky.


    She opened up a brightness.


    The sacred Haotian Divine Light lightened the dark sky in the dark rain, and the grass in front of the Red Lotus Temple. It seemed that the rain stopped at this moment, and the sun appeared again.


    Sangsang was on the top of the carriage, holding the big ck umbre with both hands. Countless rays of milky Divine Light jumped out of her body and then rushed from the big ck umbre to everywhere around the mountain.


    Because of the closeness in their innermost heart, the fallen knights awakened from the aura of death. Looking at the familiar and fearful Divine Light, some of them recalled the identity of the girl dressed in a handmaiden costume and could not help but show fear and despair in their eyes.


    They served Haotian in the West-Hill Divine Pce for several decades. The fear and devotion to Haotian had already been deeply imnted in their bones. Facing the Great Divine Priest of Light of the Divine Hall, facing the purest and most solemn Haotian Divine Light, how could they not fear?


    When they began to fall and willingly dedicate their souls to Yama to seek survival and strength, they did not gain too much power to resist Haotian Divine Light. Instead, they were even more terrified!


    Their faces were illuminated by the holy light and the look on their faces was extremelyplicated. Some were confused, some were regretful, some were terrified, and some even cried in despair.


    Long Qing¡¯s situation was rtively better.


    He had deep faith in Haotian, but it was also easier for it to be temporarily erased on the spiritual level. However, the ck sword extracted from the peach flower of his own life had be the primary target of Sangsang¡¯s Haotian Divine Light, because it had a dark aura.


    That invisible pure ck Taoist Sword groaned in pain. A green smoky cloud appeared on the sword and made sounds. It seemed that it would melt in the next moment, under the bright world.


    Long Qing grunted. His burning face was pale, and his charred body began to emit smoke. The wounds that had been made by the iron arrow began to drip with blood again.


    He withdrew his ck sword, ignoring his flowing blood. He headed to the ck horse carriage, because he discovered that if he wanted to kill Ning Que, he must first kill that little handmaiden.


    Fortunately, for Long Qing and the fallen knights, the Haotian Divine Light before the ruined temple today was not as abundant as the one shed at the Yanming Lake.


    It seemed tost a long time, but actually, it was only a brief moment before Sangsang¡¯s Haotian Divine Light disappeared, and the cold autumn rain ruled the world again.


    She looked at the faint shadow on the grass under the carriage and lowered her head.


    She was seriously ill and had been poisoned; she could no longer do anything today. She transported Haotian Divine Light from her body into Ning Que¡¯s, and that was all she could do.


    She was pale and fainted, then fell into the horse carriage.


    The big ck umbre left her hand and floated into the small pool near the carriage, swaying gently.


    The sacred Haotian Divine Light was still bright, even though it only illuminated the world for a moment.


    In the absolute light at that moment, Ning Que became a very shallow shadow, gliding on the grass at a high speed. His de silently cut through those fallen knights who stood still like wooden idols.


    Immediately afterwards, he did not hesitate to squeeze out hisst bit of Psyche Power, and triggered all the Fu papers in his arms. They turned into countless walls of fire, wind and snow, and kept Long Qing out of the ck horse carriage.


    Sangsang had been together with the big ck umbre since childhood. Even in her sleep, she was not very willing to leave it, but now the big ck umbre had left her hand. This could only prove that Sangsang¡¯s situation was very critical.


    Autumn rain fell again, and those fallen knights also fell to the ground.


    Terrible wounds appeared either on their necks or chests and abdomens.


    At the moment before the brightness left, the twomanders and five fallen knights were killed by Ning Que. The rest of them also suffered serious injuries and could not stand up for a moment.


    The situation of the battle suddenly changed.


    The only two people that could still stand now were Ning Que and Long Qing.


    In sessive bloody battles, Ning Que ran out of Psyche Power, and his Great Spirit was exhausted. The talismans were consumed and the arrows were spent. He truly had nothing. He managed to move to the ck horse carriage and leaned against the wall. He lowered his head silently, and breathed wearily and heavily. Every time he breathed, it seemed to be very painful.


    Zi Mo was sitting in the grass. His body was covered with blood and water. He looked at Ning Que who was leaning on the horse carriage. His eyes could not help but show a look of reverence. He could not understand why a person who was only at the peak of Seethrough Realm could resist the Priest and himself as well as so many powerful fighters till now. How did he manage to do that?


    "Give it up."


    Zi Mo looked at him and said in trembling voice, "Let your strong soul follow His highness, and create a new word. This will also make you a legend and be remembered for thousands of years, Mr. Thirteen."


    Ning Que leaned tiredly against the horse carriage, and did not answer him.


    Long Qing looked up at the sky. Cold autumn rain fell into his eyes, and made them slightly wet.


    His hands trembled slightly, as he knew that he had finally won the most important victory in his life.


    "Now you can admit defeat."


    Long Qing calmly said when he stopped gazing at the sky and looked at Ning Que.


    Ning Que was still holding the hilt of his podao, staring at the rain sshing in the small pool in front of him. He said tiredly, "Teacher said that this is my story, and it can only be written by myself. Since it is me writing the story, you naturally cannot be the hero in it, so I don¡¯t understand why I would lose."


    Long Qing said, "This world is very big. Everyone has his own story. You have it. I also have it. But unfortunately, today, this story is mine and I am the hero."


    Ning Que was silent, and he knew that Long Qing was right... He had exhausted his means, but he still couldn¡¯t change the situation. The most important thing was that Sangsang was unconscious.


    Long Qing asked, "Do you have anyst words?"


    Ning Que looked up at the chilly autumn rain, and suddenly shouted, "Teacher! Eldest Brother! Sangsang and I are going to die! Come and save me!"


    The expression on Long Qing¡¯s face was very funny. He suddenly felt that Ning Que was a very interesting person.


    No one responded to Ning Que¡¯s cries, and the mountains were silent. Just as the Headmaster had repeated countless times, people in this world might be born with knowledge, but no one knew everything.


    "I was just giving it a try. Do you mind?"


    Ning Que looked at Long Qing and said with a smile.


    Long Qing said, "No."


    Ning Que threw away the podao in his hand, and looked at Long Qing. Suddenly, he said very seriously, "I have somest words."


    Long Qing said, "Speak."


    Ning Que looked at his eyes, and said, "Let my little handmaiden survive."


    After a long silence, Long Qing said, "I¡¯m sorry, but I can¡¯t do that."


    "Why?"


    "Because she will seek revenge for you."


    "Are you afraid of her?"


    "No one dares to despise a future Great Divine Priest of Light."


    Long Qing looked at him with a smile and said, "Besides, a future Great Divine Priest of Light will surely taste good and bring me unimaginable benefits, and may not be inferior to you."


    Ning Que slightly narrowed his eyes and said after a long while, "I don¡¯t understand what you said."


    Long Qing patiently exined, "From the Tomes of the Arcane, I learned a kind of magic that can assimte the cultivators¡¯ Psyche Power, Divine Power, experience, consciousness and all cultivation for my own use. It is said that this magic was derived from the notorious Practice of Taotie from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. But it is less bloody, and it does not need you to eat humans like a wild beast."


    The reason why the exnation was so clear was that he wanted to see the emotions of despair, anger, disgust, unwillingness, madness on Ning Que¡¯s face. Ning Que had brought him these emotions, so he always thought that if he could give them back to Ning Que, it would be a wonderful thing.

 Chapter 536: Who Could Foresee Destiny

    Chapter 536: Who Could Foresee Destiny


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    After hearing those words, Ning Que still maintained his impassive expression.


    Long Qing could not help but feel a little disappointed.


    However, at this moment, Ning Que suddenly left the horse carriage unexpectedly and stabbed Long Qing¡¯s belly like a viper with a sharp sword that he had drawn with his right hand without anyone noticing.


    The sword had always been hidden in the ck horse carriage.


    Saving hisst bit of power in respite, he eventually won that opportunity.


    And this opportunity could not be missed.


    Thus, it was the sword style of Liu Bai that he performed.


    It was Long Qing¡¯s belly, or more urately Long Qing¡¯s spleen that he stabbed.


    Because he knew that there was a hole in Long Qing¡¯s chest.


    However, a corpse of a fallen knight quickly toppling over on to Ning Que¡¯s sword finally fell on him, followed by heavy maple trunks, winds, and rainwaters. They all turned to be violent attacks against him.


    Ning Que had already been very exhausted, even seeming like amp that was running out of oil. He could not bear those attacks at all. Consequently, his sword style immediately disintegrated, and he was severely wounded. He fell to the ground, his bones broken and the blood spurting from his mouth.


    "I know exactly what kind of person you are. You are like a cockroach who is hard to kill. Even when dying, you intend to give onest bite."


    Walking toward him, Long Qing looked down at him calmly and said, "However, I meant to leave this chance for you as I want you to know how it feels when you realize that the hopes you have gained are but just shadows of bubbles."


    "In the past few years, I have suffered the endlessly painful cycle of feeling hopeful, disappointed, and hopeless because of you. Today I¡¯ll pay it back."


    Covered with blood all over, Ning Que wearily sat at the carriage wheel.


    "I watched your performance in the battle just now. Your strength is really amazing, so is your speed and your stamina. Thus, there is only one possibility; you¡¯ve joined the Devil."


    Long Qing¡¯s eyes filled with excitement, he said, "Ning Que, you really didn¡¯t disappoint me. You¡¯re so lucky that you¡¯ve gained lots of things in your life, including the aura of Talisman Taoism from the Academy, Devil¡¯s Doctrine, Liu Bai, and uncle Yan Se. Even though I swallowed Master Zhang¡¯s, it was much less delicious than Yan Se¡¯s, wasn¡¯t it?"


    Looking at him, Ning Que wearily said, "It is that happy to be a madman?"


    Rather than listening to what Ning said, Long Qing, with his eyes brightening, said excitedly and tremblingly, "If I swallow you and your little handmaiden full of Divine Light, can you guess how strong I will be? Or is there any possibility that I can directly enter the peak of Knowing Destiny State and even cross the line between heaven and man?"


    "Even though you don¡¯t look beautiful, you shouldn¡¯t have such beautiful daydreams."


    Although Ning Que was too exhausted to stretch out his fingers, he still remembered to mock him.


    After hearing those words, Long Qing naturally recalled the banquet in Chang¡¯an where he was humiliated by this person for the first time, his Taoist Heart trembled. Taking a deep breath before calming down, he said, "After you luckily learnt so much lost knowledge, have you ever thought that you would eventually give it all to me?"


    Before he even finished those words, his bright eyes became increasingly bleak.


    The distinct line between the white of his eyes and his pupils turned thick and grey like the overcast and rainy weather.


    Watching Long Qing¡¯s eyes changing weirdly, Ning Que knew that hisst moment wasing soon.


    He could not be reconciled to his defeat when he thought that he would only benefit this madman after he practiced hard for a lifetime. He could not be reconciled to his defeat when he thought that Sangsang had not sealed the deal even though they have slept in the same bed for a lifetime. He could not be reconciled to his defeat when he thought that he had suffered all kinds of misfortune for a lifetime, but he did not get to enjoy his hard-won fortune.


    Afterall, was there anyone who would die readily in the face of death?


    Especially such kind of terrible death.


    Looking at Long Qing¡¯s grey eyes, feeling his exanimate but greedy aura, and getting into the sense of perception from his eyes, Ning Que said, "Even if I be a ghost, I will certainly fuck Flower Addict."


    After finishing those words, he wearily leaned against the wheel and did not think about what would happen next any longer.


    At this moment, Sangsang was in the carriage,


    only a half step away from him.


    He hoped that if they could live another life, he would only be a half step away from her from birth.


    While exanimation was an illusion, greed was the essence. The aura from Gray Eye, entering the sense of perception of Ning Que, found that the originally storable and strong Psyche Power had already dried up, and he felt regretful.


    Immediately, It explored Ning¡¯s sense of perception from inside to outside, searching for the deep remnants of his Psyche Power, precious battle experience, consciousness fragment, as well as the wisdom inherited from predecessors, as all these were the essence of cultivation state.


    After learning the Gray Eye method from Sha book of Tomes of Arcane, Long Qing had performed it many times. Even Master Zhang from Mountain DargonTiger and masters from Martial Art Sect all became dry and dead bodies under Gray Eye. He had gotten very familiar with how to swallow other people¡¯s cultivation state.


    However, today¡¯s situation was somewhat weird.


    No sooner did the exanimate but greedy aura sink into Ning Que¡¯s deep sense of perception than it filled with fear wanted to escape, seeming like it had touched something.


    This caused it to fear because it was faintly aware that those things were not to be touched.


    However, it was toote.


    In Ning Que¡¯s deep spiritual sea, some pieces of fragments seeming to have felt the aura of Gray Eye or have been inspired started to shine increasingly bright, followed by more and more fragments.


    They looked like beautiful pearls.


    It was like a sea of pearls.


    Every pearl represented a piece of consciousness fragment.


    Some pieces of consciousness fragments originating from sword mark on the stone wall of Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s Front Gate belonged to Youngest Uncle of the Academy, brave, fearless, and strong to the extreme. How would they be swallowed by such evil tactic?


    What made the exanimate aura frightening was thergest number of consciousness fragments of the same kind among all. Although the aura could greedily swallow everything, those fragments seemed to be more greedy and thirsty than it did.


    Those fragments originated from Master Lotus.


    It was all the things including wisdom that was left by him in the world.


    The practice of Taotie was one of them.


    It was the real Practice of Taotie.


    Gray Eye was originally from Tao Tie, but it was less bloody than Tao Tie as it was modified by predecessors of Haotian Taoism, and it was less powerful too. In other words, the Practice of Taotie was the real ancestor of the Gray-eye Tactic.


    When Gray Eye met Tao Tie, It was like a shark encountering a killer whale. They all were very greedy and exanimate, and they could not coexist with each other. However, Tao Tie was very strange, as it would truly wake up only when capturing the same kind as food. Thus, it grew more greedy and bloody.


    In the bottom of Ning Que¡¯s ck spiritual sea, countless consciousness fragments lit up in turn, seeming like to respond to a certain mysterious rhythm, and it, like a certain breath, produced extremely frightening swallowing power.


    Hardly did the exanimate aura from Long Qing make a silent cry when it was captured by the consciousness fragments left by Master Lotus and was swallowed directly.


    Those consciousness fragments sleeping for years had woken up.


    The autumn rain continued. The fire in Red Lotus Temple had died out for a long time, the whole world was lost in dark.


    Dead silence struck around the ck carriage. Those fallen knights who were still alive struggled to sit up, unable to walk for a moment. They looked at Ning Que and Long Qing withplicated emotions.


    It was at that moment that Ning Que suddenly opened his eyes.


    However, the pair of eyes was totally different from his previous eyes.


    Behind the eyes were calmness andplex, and it also seemed that there were both mercy from Bhadanta and coldness from devils in them. People were unaware how much wisdom and life experience was hidden behind the eyes.


    When this pair of eyes looked at Long Qing, showing slight scorn.


    Long Qing had already sensed that something was amiss, as not only did he fail to swallow Ning Que¡¯s cultivation state but also his Gray-eye Tactic was severely damaged.


    And when he saw Ning Que¡¯s aged eyes, he became frightened and silent.


    It was the fear of the unknown, and it was the fear of things out of control.


    The scorn in Ning Que¡¯s eyes became increasingly heavy.


    Long Qing got increasingly cold.


    Suddenly Ning Que stretched out his hands and tightly held Long Qing¡¯s shoulders.


    Then he lowered his head to bite Long Qing¡¯s neck!


    Long Qing made an extremely mournful cry.


    On the grass by the carriage were terrified fallen knights, not knowing what had happened.


    Having no feelings at all, Ning Que kept biting Long Qing¡¯s neck.


    He tore Long Qing¡¯s skin and muscles apart with his teeth. No sooner did he taste the sweet blood than he began to suck hard. His jaws rose and fell as he sucked greedily.


    Ning Que was delirious, not knowing what he was doing at all.


    He just felt very thirsty and wanted to drink water.


    feeling the liquid, he kept sucking.


    All of sudden, he vaguely felt that the liquid he drank was not water, as the warm liquid contained lots ofplicated tastes, some of which were good and some were bad.


    Logically speaking, he shouldn¡¯t have known where these tastes came, but the information automatically appeared in his sense of perception.


    Some of those tastes belonged to Elder of Martial Art Sect and Master Zhang from Mountain DargonTiger, and among them there contained a very strong taste from a Taoist surnamed He. Besides, there was a freshest and mostfortable one which he knewing from Heavenly Power Pill, as he remembered its taste in his deep memory.


    Ning Que gradually woke up.


    Those consciousness fragments of Master Lotus left in his sense of perception started to show the details of The Practice of Taotie.


    Ning Que had naturally refused the aura released by Tao Tie, but his survival instinct that one should drink water when one was thirsty drove him to learn naturally.


    A very cold, strong, and greedy aura gradually enveloped his body.


    At the same time, Long Qing¡¯s body was also enveloped.


    Struggling to pick himself up, Zi Mo wanted to walk to the ck horse carriage, but when he felt the cold aura from it, he was too scared to step forward.


    Under the tree on the cliff, he had once thought that the Priest that he saw was the legendary Tao Tie.


    However, tonight in front of the shabby temple looking at Ning Que covered by cold and strong aura, he gradually became aware that the monster walking in the dark Underworld should be like that.


    As Ning Que woke uppletely, his eyes returned to normal.


    Slowly moving his teeth from Long Qing¡¯s bloody neck and looking at pale and frightened Long Qing, he smiled bitterly. As he still had Long¡¯s blood in his mouth and on his teeth, the smile was even more terrible than the devil in Long Qing¡¯s eyes.


    "Eating people ... needs no technical skills, thus it is not difficult to learn."


    Tightly holding Long Qing¡¯s shoulders, he recalled the desperation sprouting when he had been dying and the words that Long Qing would eat Sangsang, the bitterness in the smile turning into calmness. He said lightly, "After you luckily learnt so much lost knowledge, have you ever thought that you will eventually give it all to me?"


    It was the words that Long Qing previously said to him before he intended to swallow his cultivation state.


    Now Ning Que returned the original words to him.


    The wheel of fortune always came so steeply beyond everyone¡¯s imagination.


    Who could know what his true fate was?


    Long Qing had once thought that he knew, but now he found himself aware of nothing, his eyes filled with horror.


    He felt that the aura from Ning Que vaguely restrained him, It was the first time that he felt that Ning Que was so terrible that he desperately wanted to escape despite the reason.


    Letting out a bitter yell, Long Qing forced out his damaged natal peach blossom.


    Then he did not hesitate to destroy the peach with the powerful Psyche Power of Halfman Taoist inside his body.


    The ck peach broke into the finest powder.


    The impact brought by the terrible power directly catapulted both Ning Que and Long Qing apart.


    Ning Que cracked the horse carriage wheel.


    Long Qing was hurt more seriously, lying in blood on the ground.


    The autumn rain continued.


    The ck peach had caused ck rain.


    And the blood became blood mist.


    They all floated around the ruins of the shabby temple.


    Reluctantly and venomously looking at Ning Que, Long Qing snarled in a quavering voice, "Kill him!"


    With that, he fainted.


    The fallen knights were so loyal to Long Qing that they immediately climbed with their hands toward the ck carriage on hearing those words even though they were seriously injured.


    At this moment, Ning Que was digesting arge amount of aura that had been swallowed just now, unable to move.


    No matter the partial cultivation of Halfman Taoist or the medicinal power of Heavenly Power Pill, they both took time to be digested.


    Leaning against the broken wheel, he closed his eyes.


    It seemed that those fallen knights really had a chance to do so.


    However, at this moment, outside the quiet Red Lotus Temple there was a violent neigh!


    The Big ck Horse, like a ck lightning, rushed through the autumn rain and raised its forefoot, directly crushing the chest of the fallen knight who was nearest to Ning Que.


    Zi Mo, pale-faced, had never thought that even an animal from the Academy was so terrible!


    Bitterly making a choked cry, he suddenly lowered his chest and took the secret method of West-Hill Divine Pce to burn his life, regaining his full strength with the fastest speed.


    With a violent yell, he hit the horse¡¯s head with his fist as quickly as the strong wind.


    Neighing violently, the horse collided with him without any fear.


    The collision produced a huge thud.


    Bending its forefoot slightly, the horse wheezed painfully.


    After all, it was not like the old yellow bull, it was unable to defeat a master from the peak of Seethrough State.


    It was at this moment that Zi Mo noticed Ning¡¯s eyelids flicker. He could not help feeling cold, guessing that Ning was going to wake up. He shouted, "Get on the horse and leave with our lord first!"


    Opening his eyes, Ning Que saw a number of fallen knights riding toward the foot of the mountain.


    However, the strongest fallen knightmander was standing in front of him.


    Getting up from the ground, Ning Que asked, "You want to stop me, don¡¯t you?"


    Zi Mo said, "Even though I can only live for another three months, I can stop you now."


    Ning Que said, "You will fail to defeat me."


    Zi Mo said, "I want to have a try."


    Ning Que looked at those fading figures in the rain without any emotion on his face. He just easily waved his hands back to break a hole in the carriage, reaching for the iron bow.


    Zi Mo frowned slightly and said, "You don¡¯t have any more arrows."


    Through the hole, Ning Que looked at Sangsang who was in aa and the Big ck Horse who was injured.


    He drew the iron bow.


    As there were no arrows on the string, it was an empty pulling action.


    The string buzzed, seeming to crack the cloud.


    There appeared a very deep bloody line on Zi Mo¡¯s chest.


    He confusedly looked down at his chest.


    Ning Que again pulled the bow, and the string started to rise again.


    Every time the string buzzed, he became less fractious.


    Thus, he pulled the bow ten consecutive times.


    Ten feet away from Ning Que, Zi Mo had ten bloody lines on him. Like sand mountains copsing, blood and flesh flew everywhere.


    Ning Que ced the bow behind him.


    He stood in the cold autumn rain, thinking thoughtfully.


    From this moment, he had entered the Knowing Destiny State, and he was a real Taoist master.


    However, this promotion was a little bit different from the previous two times.


    He was only exhausted rather than joyful.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 537: Trekking in Twilight

    Chapter 537: Trekking in Twilight


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Color of the sky was very dark. The wind was wild and the rain was heavy. In the wind and rain, stood a ck horse carriage, dripping with water. Ning Que suddenly woke up, as he felt something. He got in the carriage and took the unconscious Sangsang into his arms. He held her wrist, trying to feel the pulse. He thenid her back onto the bedding. As he looked at her frowning brows and pale face, he frowned as well.


    Sealing tight the cover of the roof, he got out of the carriage and went to it¡¯s front. He tried to pull together the carriage, which had been cracked by his own hands, in order to keep the rain from falling on Sangsang¡¯s face.


    The big ck umbre was lying in a pond beside the carriage, trembling in the wind. Ning Que picked it up and walked to face the horse. He knelt down on one knee and covered the horse with the umbre. Then he lowered his body to hold its neck.


    Its head took a strong punch from Zimo. Even though the bones had not broken, it suffered a concussion and was painfully gasping for air. Being held in Ning Que¡¯s arms, it felt better and slowed down its breathing.


    Ning Que hummed, holding its neck tightly. He helped it stand up from the filthy water and stroked it gently. They slowly walked into the temple to take shelter from the rain, at least, he would be able to slow the decline of the horse¡¯s body temperature.


    Then he disappeared into the rain.


    A momentter, the rain stopped and the sky became clear before the dusk coulde.


    Ning Que¡¯s figure reappeared in front of the temple with more than 10 ck arrows in his right hand. The tips of the arrows were obviously bent out of shape and dripping with water.


    The Primordial Thirteen Arrows were his most powerful, reliable and precious weapon. Wherever and whenever he could not lose them, so he went to Qingling to find them.


    Looking at the obviously distorted iron arrows, he realized that if he could not carefully repair them, they were useless. Thinking that he had shot out every arrow in the quiver and was still unable to kill Prince Long Qing, he revealed an alert expression in his eyes.


    Although at the end of the battle Prince Long Qing failed and waspletely messed up. Ning Que knew clearly that it was not because of him. As his destined enemy, Prince Long Qing was unimaginably strong. If not for the pieces of Master Lotus¡¯s consciousness helping him, he may have already been killed, without a chance to fight back.


    Having discovered a few pieces of meat on the ground, Ning Que walked in front of the horse and persuaded it to have some. Then he covered it with a nket.


    Opening the door, he lowered his head to get inside the carriage. As he threw the arrows into a corner, he felt ufortable, as if there was something between his teeth. He frowned and took it out with his fingers. It was a piece of meat which looked fresh but without any toughness of cooked meat.


    It was raw.


    It was a piece of raw human flesh.


    It was a piece of raw human flesh from Long Qing¡¯s neck.


    Ning Que bit Long Qing¡¯s neck previously and drank a lot of his blood, so the piece of fresh meat must have been left from that moment.


    Staring at the reddish flesh in his hand, Ning Que frowned and tried to suppress his nausea. It was human flesh, moreover, it was Long Qing¡¯s flesh.


    This kind of nausea was mainly because of instinct. It was because of Ning Que¡¯s consciousness that he was unwilling to have it in his stomach.


    However, at this moment, he saw Sangsang, who was huddled like a child. After a long silence, he sessfully suppressed his nausea, though he still looked pale.


    He walked over to Sangsang, sat by her side and tucked in her nket. Then he took out a knife, cut open his wrist and put it near her mouth.


    Whether the pain of the deep wound on his wrist oratose Sangsang¡¯s unconscious suction, none of it could change his expression. He just sat there peacefully, gently looking at her.


    Having been poisoned, Sangsang was very weak and in aa. She was unable to suck strongly. Therefore, the wound on Ning Que¡¯s wrist soon congealed and he had to deepen it to continue feeding her.


    He had previously sucked Long Qing¡¯s blood which had been filled with strong medicinal power of the Heavenly Power Pill. Some of the medicinal power also entered his body. He had calcted that during the time he was looking for the arrows, the power of the Heavenly Power Pill had just entered his bloodstream and had not beenpletely absorbed.


    In other words, only his blood at this time could save a man¡¯s life.


    Making sure that Sangsang had enough blood, Ning Que moved his wrist away and got off the carriage. He walked toward the Big ck Horse. Thest few drops of rain fell on his pale face, making him look ssy.


    Looking at the Big ck Horse, he took out the most precious sealwort prepared by the Eleventh Brother, roughly wiped it on his wrist, and put it in front of its mouth.


    The sealwort was rich in efficacy, except for the old yellow bull, big white goose, and the Big ck Horse, no one could swallow it directly. Even Ning Que, who had joined the Devil, could not. The sealwort smelled even more repulsive, covered by blood containing the Heavenly Power Pill.


    The Big ck Horse wearily raised its head and looked at Ning Que. It sniffed the blood on the sealwort and thought that no one was willing to eat the bloody food ¨C it was not its style.


    It turned away in disgust.


    Ning Que subconsciously raised his hand towards it. However, he became softhearted when he found that even though it was very weak and pitiful, it still pretended to be strong.


    "Come on. Eat up. It¡¯s good for you."


    He said to the horse.


    The Big ck Horse looked at him in confusion and thought, "Why was he so different today?"


    The Big ck Horse had taken the bloody sealwort and Sangsang had drunk enough blood. Both of them were digesting the medicine.


    During this period, Ning Que had done some simplistic repairs to the carriage¡¯s wheels. Looking at the walls made of steel, he was silent. He still had no idea why he was able to punch through these walls. It was very hard to do even for a real master of Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    In the end, he had to consider it as an outburst of a cultivator who had just entered the Knowing Destiny State.


    The hole in the wall could be filled, but the magical array of talisman carved by his master Yan Se could not be repaired so easily, since the lines were cracked.


    Sangsang and the horse were both stable, but they could not get better in a short amount of time. At this moment, as his carriage needed to be repaired and his girl needed rest, they were unable to go to Lanke Temple right now.


    It was dusk. After the rain, Qingling looked gloomy. In the air, there floated a refreshing smell of life. It may havee from the juice in the grass or the blood hidden among the weeds.


    The steel wheels ran over the soil, still soft after the rain, and half of them were stuck into the mud. The horse carriage made of steel was unimaginably heavy without the arrays on the walls.


    At least eight fine horses were needed to pull the carriage. The Big ck Horse could do it when it waspletely healthy, but now it had no energy to do so, since it was badly injured.


    Ning Que held the halter in his right hand and dragged the carriage with his left hand, heading towards the meadow.


    Behind the halter was the injured Big ck Horse.


    In the ck carriage was Sangsang.


    ...


    ...


    - --

 Chapter 538: Looking for the Drugs

    Chapter 538: Looking for the Drugs


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The Kingdom of Qi was located in the southwest. It was one of the conventional countries in Central ins. Its capital could notpare with the city of Chang¡¯an, but it was clean and peaceful. People walked under the ginkgo trees and looked calm, even numb, as if the beautiful view and daily life could not affect them at all.


    For thousands of years, the Kingdom of Qi had been a dependency of West-Hill Divine Pce. Haotian Taoism had a very high position here. If people saw a carriage with the mark of Divine Hall passing by from distance, they would reverently kneel to it.


    There was a white Taoism Temple in the north of the capital which was iid with a variety of precious stones and covered with gold dust on the eaves. It clearly copied the style of West-Hill Divine Pce on the Peach Mountain but was smaller than it.


    This temple was higher than the pce of Qi in the center of the capital. Standing in front of the temple, one could look down at the pce.


    The difference was designed on purpose and it was also the true portrayal of these thousands of years.


    The royal session of this country must be approved by the Divine Hall. Neither the military nor diplomatic stuff could get over the Divine Hall¡¯s influence. Considering the awesome power of the Divine Hall, the priest in red, who lived in the temple, had a higher position than the emperor.


    Coming along with the power were endless wealth and resources. All the people in the Kingdom of Qi knew that the most dazzling jewelry and rarest of treasures were in the temple instead of the pce.


    Money is always attractive, but even the most audacious and the most powerful bandits would not enter this temple, let alone the stupid gangsters. Since this was the most heavily guarded ce in the Kingdom of Qi ¡ª no one, under Haotian, dared to offend it.


    Just a few days ago, something big happened in the Kingdom of Qi. The Celestial Taoism on the Mountain Dragon-Tiger was exterminated and the Nation Master Zhang was killed cruelly. Although the Divine Hall and Royals both had sent many people to investigate, the air in the capital was still getting gloomier and gloomier.


    The guards at the temple were bing more and more alert. Standing on both sides of the gates, the soldiers would coldly look at the pedestrians as if they were all murderers.


    In the silent street, sounded terrible, squeaky gratings which alerted the soldiers. They all looked in the direction of those sounds and their looks turned incredulous.


    A ck carriage was being slowly dragged along the street. Its ck wheels rolled over the road, leaving deep tracks and crushed stones.


    The soldiers were all shocked and they wondered how heavy the carriage would be to create such damage and what was it made of to keep its shape.


    The more unbelieved thing was the carriage was not being dragged by the big ck horse in front of it. The rope pulling the carriage was in a young man¡¯s hands.


    How strong would the young man have to be to drag such a heavy carriage?


    The news was immediately reported to the temple and a middle-aged priest came out. When he saw it, his face changed ¡ª the man who could drag the carriage with one hand was definitely not a normal man. Although he felt a little strange about it, he would not like to make trouble.


    The ck carriage slowly moved up and stopped in front of the temple. The horse was breathing heavily and exhausted. Some soldiers felt sorry for it since it was a very fine horse but belonged to a terrible owner.


    "What are you doing here?"


    The priest looked at the young man and asked. As a priest of West-Hill Divine Pce who represented Haotian, he had lived a superior life for a long time, so he was used to being arrogant and cruel. He did not realize how rude he was because he thought he was gentle enough to ask in such a way.


    The young man was Ning Que. If some priests spoke to him in such a hateful tone in the past, he would definitely not ept it. However, since his temperament had be quieter after the battle in Red Lotus Temple and he came here for an important thing, he tried to be calm.


    "My wife was seriously ill. I heard that someone in this temple can cure her, so..."


    Ning Que said.


    Now, the priest knew he was here to ask a favor. He frowned and was going to rebuke Ning Que when he recalled the view of the heavy carriage rolling over the road. He repressed his impatience and said, "It¡¯s not the time to provide drugs. Come three dayster."


    Since there were millions of people who believed in Haotian, West-Hill Divine Pce had to bestow favors if they wanted to maintain its rules.


    The will of Haotian could not be sensed by normal people and few priests were able to cultivate the Divine Skills. It was impossible for them to cure all of the diseases in the world. As there were too many herbs and rare pills in the temples of every country, they would like to give some to believers for free at a regr time.


    Of course, they would not do this for free. By controlling the timing of issuing the drugs, they gave the hope to the believers, yet, at the same time, held it in their hands.


    "We don¡¯t need to see the priest in the temple. I have heard that the drugs and herbs in the temples are more than in any other ce, so wee to have a look. Of course, we will pay for them."


    Ning Que answered and then gave him a piece of note.


    The mid-aged priest was dazed and thought angrily, "The drugs and pills are all made by the predecessors carefully and cannot bepared with the normal ones. It is humiliating for the temple to sell the drugs for money."


    Suddenly, he saw the numbers on the note and could not help being shocked. He said in his mind, "If it¡¯s an insult, even the priest in red will not mind being insulted more than once."


    The priest¡¯s good mood did notst for a long time. When he opened the door and allowed Ning Que to drag the horse and the carriage in the temple, he received the second paper from Ning Que. That was a list.


    The list was full of characters consisting of more than 30 kinds of drugs and pills. Most of them were secretly kept in the temple and forbidden to spread.


    He had no idea how this young man knew the drugs were in the temple. Even though he was shocked, when he saw the characters on the paper, he had to admit that it was good handwriting.


    He looked at the list, and then the note, saying with regret and alertness, "I can feel your sincerity to Haotian, but I¡¯m sorry. Most of the drugs are not for sale. No matter how sincere you are, you can¡¯t get them."


    While Ning Que was watching the dispensary not far away, he heard the Sangsang¡¯s cough from the carriage. He frowned and became more and more irritable.


    After leaving Red Lotus Templest night, he stopped traveling to Lanke Temple. Although he had repaired the carriage, he still had to walk more than 10 days to reach Lanke Temple with dragging the horse and the carriage. Sangsang was in thea and being tortured by the poison and disease which paled her very much. Under this situation, his only choice was to find the drugs he needed in the closest city he could find.


    Before he left Chang¡¯an, his brother Wang Chi gave him some prescriptions which looked normal but hard to find except in the back of the mountain of the Academy. Therefore, he decided to go to the capital of the Kingdom of Qi to find them.


    He had not eaten, slept, rested, and drunk any water since yesterday evening and he had been struggling his way to this capital no matter what he had to pay.


    The only thing which couldfort him was that Sangsang finally woke up in the early morning. Although she coughed badly and had no signs of getting better, he finally felt a little relieved.


    Although Ning Que looked fine at this moment, he was exhausted. He was too tired to remember things. He had forgotten that he was going to Lanke Temple for the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival. He had forgotten that he had a fight with both Prince Long Qing and fallen knights. He had forgotten that he had reached the Knowing Destiny State. The only thing he remembered was that he had to find drugs for Sangsang.


    However, at the moment when he was going to have them, troubles happened.


    Ning Que remained silent and his eyes became colder and colder with an extremely scary feeling hiding in them. He gradually grasped the hilt with his hand.


    Seeing this, the middle-aged priest changed his face. He was able to ept an insult with the note, but he could not ept being threatened with violence ¡ª he was the priest of Haotian and anyone who threatened him, in fact, threatened Haotian.


    Threatening Haotian was the sphemy.


    Inside the Taoism Temple, all of the silent soldiers drew out their swords and heightened their Psyche Power. In their eyes, even though the young man had formidable power, he had no chance to survive once he took his saber out.


    A cough sounded in the carriage once again, telling everyone that she was in pain.


    Ning Que trembled a little and woke up from his choleric mood. He turned his eyes to the carriage.


    A thin arm came out of the window and wiped the sweat from his forehead with a handkerchief. A weak and guilty voice sounded.


    "You are too tired. Get in."


    Even though Ning Que was extremely exhausted as if he closed his eye, he would fall asleep, he never forgot his purpose. "I need the drugs."


    Sangsang said weakly, "Have you forgotten my identity? If I need the drugs, they would dly provide them."

 Chapter 539: Finally, I Hear Your Voice

    Chapter 539: Finally, I Hear Your Voice


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Hearing Sangsang¡¯s weak voice woke Ning Que up; he released his grip on the podao and put his hand on his waist¡ªHe was a Tang man from the Academy and was supposed to have no positive feelings for these scoundrels. Ning Que was worried about Sangsang¡¯s condition. He definitely did not want to start a war between the Divine Hall and the Academy if he could find a peaceful resolution to the problem.


    As he moved his hand, a voice sounded from the depths of the temple. An old man said, "Mr. Thirteen doesn¡¯t have to draw the saber because this ce is not the Wilderness and I¡¯m not Cheng Lixue either."


    As the hoarse voice sounded, the expressions of the middle-aged priest and the soldiers became solemn. A momentter, an elderly priest in a crimson robe slowly entered.


    In the West-Hill Divine Pce, not every Taoist was qualified to wear a crimson robe. The priests who wore this garment were sent to every vassal state, and had a level of status that was unattainable for theirpanions in the temples.


    The old, crimson-robed priest had been stationed in the Kingdom of Qi for over 30 years. Although he was not from a powerful family, even the emperor of the kingdom had to show him respect.


    Looking at Ning Que standing next to the ck, horse-drawn carriage, the old priest held a vignt look in his eyes. He thought, "He should have departed from the group of Tang¡¯s ambassadors and headed to Lanke Temple. Why did hee here?"


    Hearing the name of Mr. Thirteen, the solemn soldiers finally figured out his identity and they could not help but feelplicated about him.


    The Tang Empire was the most powerful country in the world, and it was also the only one which the West-Hill Divine Pce could not control. The Academy and Haotian Taoism had been vaguely hostile for a long time; they waged countless wars to a capacity that mortals had never ever known, but neither side fellpletely.


    As a respectable, crimson-robed priest, when facing a maning from the Second floor of the Academy he was unable to assert his pride and equally unwilling to be afraid.


    Under the protection of the West-Hill Divine Pce, vassal countries like the Kingdom of Song and the Kingdom of Qi had never met Tang¡¯s cavalry, so they were not afraid and managed to remain calm.


    Looking at the old priest, Ning Que said, "Since you knew who I am and you are unwilling to follow Cheng Lixue in the Wilderness, I think we can negotiate. I only need some herbs from you and I will pay for them. I just need you to hurry up and give them to me now."


    The crimson-robed priest took the list over from the middle-aged priest and frowned whilst saying, "The Academy is worthy of respect but this Taoism Temple worships Haotian."


    Ning Que could already hear the uing refusal in the man¡¯s voice. His declining anxiety and impatience rose once more. He bent forward, stared into the old man¡¯s eyes and said, "I would ask for Ye Hongyu to meet me and humiliate you in front of her if I had the time. However, that is exactly what I don¡¯t have, so I request you to take a careful look at the ID token in my hand."


    Then he took an ID token out of his belt and showed it to the priest. He held it so close as if he may hit it into the priest¡¯s face.


    Although the name of Ye Hongyu sounded familiar to him, he didn¡¯t remember who she was immediately. He had lived in the temple his whole life and no one had called her by this name except in his first few years there.


    After a few moments, he finally realized who he was talking about and red at Ning Que. He thought, "Even if you are the Headmaster¡¯s core disciple, it is still uneptable and disrespectful to call the Great Divine Priest of Judgment by her name."


    However, he stopped ring as soon as he saw the ID token.


    Looking at this perfectly normal ID token, the priest turned to one of shock and he was reminded of the rumor about Ning Que¡¯s little handmaiden. His body could not help trembling and his face turned pale.


    He suddenly became aware of his old age and felt that he was often forgetting important details. Since Mr. Thirteen of the Academy was here, why was she not?


    He was both old and confused, which meant he most definitely had to be fatuous. A man like him was no longer qualified to be a crimson-robed priest. If Commander Luo would not let him go when he returned to the West-Hill to report his work this year, he would have to retire.


    However, even though he may be bing redundant, he finally saw the ID token again after 16 yearster. The Great Divine Priest¡¯s position had been vacant for 16 years and it was important once again. That was enough for him.


    The old priest had many thoughts upon seeing the ID token. Then he turned to the ck, horse-drawn carriage and slowly knelt.


    Witnessing, people in the temple cried out.


    Ning Que was not surprised though; he had many ID tokens on his waist. People could remember some of them but forgot the others.


    However, the things that happened next still surprised him.


    The crimson-robed priest knelt in front of the carriage and put both his hands on the rough stone ground. His gray hair shook whilst he murmured to himself. He looked sentimental and as opposed to frightened, and eventually even seemed to be reverently excited.


    People in the temple had no idea what had happened and they didn¡¯t know who was in the carriage. Even if the Great Divine Priest of West-Hill himself had personally arrived, the priest would not react like this.


    The only one who was able to guess the truth of the situation was the middle-aged priest.


    As the old priest¡¯s most trusted subordinate, he happened to see and hear the old priest drinking and celebrating during nights after he came back from the West-Hill Divine Pcest year. Thus, he knelt behind the old priest without any hesitation.


    He kowtowed to the carriage heavily with endless fear and reverence and tremblingly said, "Wee, the Lady of Light."


    His voice sounded inside the temple and did not echo, but everyone heard his words.


    With a lot of stridtions in the peaceful and white temple, all the people who were standing on the steps and reading the scriptures knelt down as soon as possible after hearing the middle-aged priest¡¯s words.


    They prostrated themselves in worship, too afraid to say anything.


    A long time passed.


    Sangsang¡¯s weak voice emerged from the carriage. "Rise, all of you."


    No one moved including the most respectable priest in the crimson robe.


    From the moment he heard her voice, tears began falling down his face and drenched his deep wrinkles, like a spring rain on a dry patch ofnd.


    He trembled and forgot to rise because he was so happy.

 Chapter 540: Medicine of Light (I)

    Chapter 540: Medicine of Light (I)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Last spring, in the north of Chang¡¯an City, under a pine tree at the peak of an unnamed mountain, the Great Divine Priest of Light and Master Yan Se gave their most precious belongings to Sangsang before their final battle. Yan Se had left behind the array eye pestle to the God-stunning Array for Sangsang to pass to Ning Que. Meanwhile, the Great Divine Priest of Light had given Sangsang an ID token.


    From then on, Sangsang was not only Ning Que¡¯s handmaiden or just the lost young mistress of the Grand Secretary Mansion. She now had a very special identity. It was due to this identity that the Great Divine Priest of Revtion hade to Chang¡¯an from the West-Hill to make an appointment with Ning Que, and that everyone in the Taoism Temple in the capital of the Kingdom of Qi had to kneel before the ck horse carriage.


    It was not until today that Ning Que knew that Sangsang was officially called the Lady of Light in the West-Hill Divine Pce. Even though he did not really like the title subconsciously, he could hear the extraordinary respect in it. Looking at the priests and knights kneeling before them and the tearful priest in red while feeling the solemn atmosphere, he suddenly realized that his little handmaiden was now a bigwig.


    ...


    ...


    In the evening, two figures appeared on the highest floor of the white Temple Taoism in the capital of the Kingdom of Qi. The golden rays of sunlight enveloped the ce, giving rise to beauty thatplemented the Ginkgo leaves on the streets.


    Ning Que looked at the autumn scenery in the foreignnd. Then, he suddenly turned to the priest in red who had a tired look on his wizened old face. He said, "Do you know what it means to have a Great Divine Priest of Light die in your temple? Even though she has not yet be the Great Divine Priest of Light right now, but everyone in Haotian Taoism knows that she will be in three years."


    The priest in red looked at him, his murky eyes full of conflicting emotions such as gratefulness and annoyance. He said, "I am sure that you, Mr. Thirteen know this. There is no other party who cares about the safety of the Lady of Light as the West-Hill Divine Pce. I will do my utmost best and will die for her."


    Ning Que did not know what to say in reply to this. Not even he could find fault with the old priest¡¯s actions.


    The red-clothed priest had managed to order the entire Temple Taoism and the imperial court of the Kingdom of Qi with the power vested in him by the West-Hill Divine Pce. He had, in a short time, managed to gather 17 of the most famous doctors in the capital in the temple to heal Sangsang. The herbs for the antidote on the list given to Ning Que by Eleventh Brother had long been gathered. Of which, two were forcibly taken from the pce of the Kingdom of Qi.


    The poison in Sangsang was mostly neutralized after consuming the antidote. She had taken a turn for the better. And while she spent most of the time in aa, her life was not in danger.


    "The poison within the Great Divine Priest is very special. Even though the prescription you have is brilliant, it is not sufficient to neutralize the poison. We have to think of other ways. As for the cold in the Great Divine Priest¡¯s body, we can¡¯t..."


    The red-garbed priest did not use the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s official title for Sangsang. He did not refer to her as the Lady of Light but had called her the Great Divine Priest. It felt as if he was certain that Sangsang would seed the Divine Priest of Light.


    At this point, the old priest looked at Ning Que coldly. He said angrily, "The health of the Great Divine Priest is so important. How have you guys in the Academy been taking care of her?"


    Most people in the Haotian Taoism sect had all thought that Sangsang stayed in the Chang¡¯an to be cared for and educated at the Academy. However, the truth was that Sangsang had to care for Ning Que and even had to cook for thezy people living in the Academy often.


    Ning Que could imagine how angry those from the West-Hill Divine Pce would be if they found out that their most esteemed Great Divine Priest led such a life.


    That was why he chose to remain calm and silent in the face of the priest¡¯s ire. However, when he thought of how he had wailed in front of the ck horse carriage and what had happened after that, he could not help but felt confused.


    He looked at the wizened eyes of the priest in red and asked, "Which department are you from?"


    The priest said serenely and proudly, "I am from the Divine Hall of Light."


    Ning Que seemed to understand something. Then he suddenly asked, "Do you know what my rtionship with her is like?"


    The priest said with an inscrutable expression, "The Great Divine Priest and Mr. Thirteen are master and servant in name, but are actually partners."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "You¡¯re wrong."


    The priest in red froze slightly and asked, "How?"


    Ning Que answered, "We have gotten engaged before leaving Chang¡¯an. We are now husband and wife."


    "Congrattions."


    The priest in red congratted them with a nk face. In fact, one could even see disappointment and pain in his eyes.


    There were records in history of Great Divine Priests of West-Hill marrying, but it was rarely heard of. This was especially so for the Divine Priest of Light who was deemed to be the closest to Haotian. They spend centuries devoted to serving Haotian. How could they get married? Much less to someone from beyond their sect!


    The future Divine Priest of Light of West-Hill had gotten married to a shameless disciple of the Academy before taking her ce in the West-Hill. It was difficult to ept for those from the West-Hill, especially for those from the Divine Hall of Light. However, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion had promised Ning Que in Chang¡¯an, so they could not object to it.


    Ning Que could see the old man¡¯s disappointment and his hatred towards him. However, he was not afraid and thought that the future might be a little troublesome. He said, "Sangsang is my wife. Nobody can change this fact. The Great Divine Priest of Revtion had promised me, and that means that we have gotten the permission of Haotian. Since this is so, you and yourpanions should know that at least half of the Divine Hall of Light of West-Hill would belong to me in the future. So do not treat me as your enemy."


    This was not a threat. Ning Que knew that the crafty priests in the West-Hill Divine Pce and the passionate believers of Haotian Taoism would not back down in the face of such threats. He had only said this to remind the priest and attempted to bond with the man.


    However, he did not expect the priest in red to seriously consider his words. He did notugh coldly or grow angry. The disappointment and pain in his eyes subsided.


    After some time, the priest in red looked at Ning Que and said cidly, "I agree. There will be a ce for you in the Divine Hall of Light. If the Great Divine Priest is willing to, she can even give you half of the Divine Hall of Light. What can anyone do about that?"


    It was thus Ning Que¡¯s turn to frown and consider. No matter what his rtionship with Sangsang was, the West-Hill Divine Pce would definitely not allow the Academy to openly interfere in the matters on the Peach Mountain. Furthermore, this affects the Divine Hall of Light, so why would the priest in red make such a statement?


    Without getting a conclusion to his thoughts, he looked at the priest and asked simply, "Why?"


    "The Great Divine Priest is still the Lady of Light now. She is young and pure while the West-Hill Divine Pce is aplicated and dangerous ce. Even if she appears on the Peach Mountain two yearster like what the Great Divine Priest of Revtion says, she might not be able to sit in that temple deep within the Divine Hall of Light... Fortunately, or unfortunately, you are her husband. If the Academy is willing to show their support for her through you, then I think that her taking her ce as Great Divine Priest would go easier."


    The priest in red lowered his head, showing respect to Ning Que for the first time in their conversation.


    Ning Que fell into silence. He suddenly realized that as Sangsang¡¯s status grew higher, the problems, or challenges, that they faced grew moreplicated and troublesome.


    However, these problems could only be faced in the future. While Sangsang wasatose and sick, his first consideration should be her health and not the future.


    As such, he did not continue to discuss this problem. He asked, "When will Ye Hongyu arrive?"


    The wizened priest in red had protested angrily many times against Mr. Thirteen¡¯s disrespect for the Divine Priest of Judgment. However, his protests had always been for naught as Ning Que insisted on calling Ye Hongyu by her name. The priest thought of the rtionship between Ning Que and the Divine Priest of Light and feared that he had already done many disrespectful things. As such, he decided to give up his pursuit in retaining the dignity of Haotian Taoism.


    "It will take the Divine Priest of Judgment 10 days if shees from West-Hill."


    Ning Que ate a little and washed up simply after Sangsang fell asleep once more. He felt slightly more refreshed and was not as tired as he was when he first arrived in the capital. Now his mind was very clear.


    "She can¡¯t be at the West-Hill right now because she should know how troublesome this matter is. She would have realized that Long Qing had reappeared even if the entire Haotian Taoism could not guess his appearance. From Mountain DragonTiger to the Martial Arts Sect and to the Red Lotus Temple yesterday, she should be on this way."


    Then, he looked at the weak priest in red and said, "On this asion, if I can make it here from Red Lotus Temple in a day, why can¡¯t she?"


    The priest in red sighed softly, "Why would the Great Divine Prieste here?"


    Ning Que said, "Because she has many questions for me."


    With that, he walked into the depths of the white Temple Taoism where, in one of the rooms, Sangsang was sleeping.


    He believed that Ye Hongyu would surelye at the fastest speed after receiving news that he was in the Kingdom of Qi. Just like what he had told the priest in red, Ye Hongyu would surely have many questions for him. With regards to Long Qing, Ye Hongyu was second only to Ning Que in wanting Long Qing to die, because the man in ck Taoist robe had always challenged her.


    However, Ning Que did not tell the priest in red why he wanted Ye Hongyu toe to see him.


    Other than exchanging information about what had happened after Prince Long Qing¡¯s resurrection, there was another, more important, reason.


    The cold aura in Sangsang¡¯s body was an urgent matter now. Not even the pure Haotian Divine Light in her could suppress it, so he had to try other methods.


    The elderly priest in red had used all Haotian Divine Light converted from the Divine Skill that he had practiced for decades in order to heal Sangsang. That was why he was so weak and tired.


    That was why the priest had won Ning Que¡¯s trust.


    But he was far from healing Sangsang.


    Ning Que needed other cultivators of West-Hill Divine Skill.


    Ye Hongyu was the best choice.


    To Ning Que, Ye Hongyu was not West-Hill¡¯s Great Divine Priest of Judgment, but the medicine that Sangsang needed most.


    ...


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 541: Medicine of Light (II)

    Chapter 541: Medicine of Light (II)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The sound of loud, solemn music could be heard in the capital of the Kingdom of Qi. 600 papal cavalrymen of West-Hill Divine Pce dressed in steel armor rode their horses on the streets, looking straight ahead. In the middle of this formation was a luxurious pnquin draped with heavy swaths of satin that fluttered in the wind. No one could see the face of the person sitting inside.


    However, even if they could see clearly, no one would dare to anyway. The papal cavalrymen rode on with solemn expressions, keeping their gazes straight in front of them. The people knelt piously on either side of the streets. Their faces were filled with excitement and passion even as they looked at the ground. Some people even fainted from happiness.


    The pnquin slowly stopped in front of the white Divine Hall. The priests and Taoists from the West-Hill Divine Pce who were stationed in the Kingdom of Qi silently knelt by the two sides of the steps. The red-garbed pries,t who was of the highest ranking in the temples of this kingdom, said respectfully: "Wee, Great Divine Priest, to thisnd on earth."


    The solemn music started again as the autumn breeze quietened. However, the swaths of satin surrounding the pnquin danced even though the wind had stopped. They lifted slowly, and an extremely beautiful girl descended from the pnquin. She wore a bejeweled crown, and the jewels glittered and reflected the setting autumn sun. The light shone on her beautiful, yet nk, face, and she exuded a noble aura that was not of this world.


    This was the first time Ye Hongyu left the West-Hill and visited the mortal world after seeding the position of the Great Divine Priest of Judgment. She was no longer the genius who was obsessed with cultivation. Instead, she wielded utmost power. She did not wear red dresses or green Taoist robes, but the robes of a Divine Priest.


    The robes of the Divine Priest of Judgment were red. It was not bright, but rather the darkest of reds to the point that it is almost ck. It seemed to be tinged with the blood of sinners and looked like a piece of ink that wouldbust in the setting sun.


    Unlike what was imagined, her robes were not heavy and thick. There weren¡¯t any gold threads on it. Instead, it was simply cut and was very thin.


    There was a red carpetid outside the temple and flowering trees were ced by the steps. Ye Hongyu walked between the trees with an indifferent expression and entered the temple. She brought the wind with her as she walked, causing her light robes to dance behind her, asionally revealing the silhouette through their seams.


    This painted a beautiful and seductive picture. However, no one dared to even look at the pnquin, much less at the body of the Divine Priest of Judgment.


    The elderly priest in red followed beside Ye Hongyu. Like the other priests from the Judicial Department, he kept his head lowered, even hoping that he could blind himself. The armored papal cavalrymen got off their horses and began guarding the temple. Simrly, none of them dared to look toward the trees.


    Beautiful objects and people were meant to be admired. Alluring seductions should be revered passionately. However, once the beauty and seduction were in regards to a Great Divine Priest of West-Hill, this became dangerous.


    The subordinates of the Judicial Department and the priests in the Qi Taoist temple all remembered that dozens of highly decoratedmanders of the cavalryman of Divine Hall had had their powers removed because they looked at the Divine Priest of Judgment from afar. Then, they were booted out from the West-Hill and became the infamous fallen knights.


    They did not want to end up like that, where it was a fate worse than death. As such, they did not dare to look.


    Only one person could look at Ye Hongyu¡¯s beautiful face and alluring figure beneath her robes. His expression was serene, but he could not hide the pleasure and desire in his eyes.


    Ye Hongyu looked at the young man in ck Academy uniform standing behind the temple doors. A trace of a smile appeared on her beautiful face, which had stayed inscrutable before her subordinates.


    Her smile wasplicated. It was filled with mocking,ment, disdain, and scorn. It wasn¡¯t just a simple smile, but her smile transported her from the solemn divinend of light to earth and from the high and mightly Divine Temple to the house by Yanming Lake in Chang¡¯an City.


    Ye Hongyu walked into the temple.


    The heavy temple doors slowly shut behind her.


    The subordinates and priests of the Kingdom of Qi looked at the tightly shut doors in surprise. They did not know why the Great Divine Priest had left them outside. Beside the pnquin, below the steps of the temple, stood arge man. He slowly raised his head and looked at the doors with a vicious expression on his face. Momentster, this turned into a look of fear and loss.


    "Even though the world acknowledges that you are the most beautiful girl in Haotian Taoism, you will be a statue if you keep acting like you¡¯re lonely and desperate. They would find you grim no matter how beautiful you are."


    Ning Que looked at Ye Hongyu and said seriously, "You are more beautiful when you smile. I like seeing you smile."


    Ye Hongyu took off the bejeweled crown from her head and passed it to him. Then, she rubbed her aching neck and said, "Are you flirting with me?"


    Ning Que took the crown and realized that it was indeed very heavy. He thought about how he was currently holding on to the Divine Priest of Judgment¡¯s crown and felt somewhat nervous. He said, "How could I dare to flirt with you?"


    Ye Hongyu walked into the hall while untying her exquisite braid. Her hair flowed behind her shoulders like a waterfall, making her look rxed.


    Ning Que followed behind her with her crown.


    Ye Hongyu took out a handkerchief from her robes and tied her ck hair up simply. She listened to the footsteps behind her and said, "You are the bravest person on earth. You hug the future Divine Priest of Light to your chest and flirt with her daily. How could you be afraid to flirt with me?"


    Ning Que listened to her words andmented, "To think of it, not even in my wildest childhood dreams had I imagined that I would marry a Great Divine Priest of West-Hill. I have never thought that I would hug a divine crown and talk about such intimate topics with another Great Divine Priest of West-Hill."


    Ye Hongyu turned to look at him impassively, "I have to warn you, never behave too intimately with Sangsang before the believers of Haotian Taoism. Just like before, if you had told me I looked better with a smile before the temple doors were shut, the believers and subordinates outside would think that you are spheming Haotian. They will chop you into pieces, even if you are a core disciple of the Headmaster."


    Ning Que said, "I am flirting with you because I have gotten used to it. As for Sangsang, she is my wife. Not even the Hierarch Lord can interfere with what I do with her. What can your subordinates do to me?"


    Ye Hongyu looked at him quietly and said, "Is that really what you think?"


    Ning Que thought about the hundreds of cavalrymen he saw earlier, especially the dozens of Judicial priests who were in the Seethrough realm. He could not help but stay silent, especially because of therge, muscr man beside the pnquin. Even though he was already in the Knowing destiny State, he could still sense how powerful the man was. He could even sense the distinct danger that the man represented.

 Chapter 542: Medicine of Light (III)

    Chapter 542: Medicine of Light (III)


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    A man who could make Ning Que feel threatened would, of course, be extraordinarily powerful. The man must at least have crossed the threshold to the Knowing destiny State. In fact, Ye Hongyu¡¯s bodyguard was one such powerful Grand Cultivator. Ning Que thought of the dozens of powerhouses in the Seethrough realm who surrounded the pnquin silently. Other than the shock due to the number of powerhouses hidden in the Haotian Taoism, Ning Que also finally realized how powerful Ye Hongyu actually was.


    There were a spiral corridor and staircase within the white temple. The red light of the setting sun shone through the stone windows, refracting on the stone steps and exuding a warm aura.


    Ye Hongyu lifted her blood-red robes, revealing a white pair of ankles. She did not care how udylike she looked at the moment. She walked up the steps lightly, with her casually tied ck hair swinging behind her. She looked like the country girls in the southern parts of the Tang Empire who lifted their skirts up as they stepped in baskets of grapes.


    Ning Que followed behind her. He was not intoxicated by the seduction of this picture, but he had to admit that it was very beautiful.


    Ye Hongyu would not allow her subordinates or believers see herself acting like a child no matter how she was the Tao Addict of the pastor that she was the Divine Priest of Judgment. She would not deliberately let off her aura of seduction. She would only show her true self before those she trusted and those she deemed as worthy opponents.


    The most beautiful girl in Haotian Taoism glowed with divine light, one could not look at her directly. However, when she took off that gleam and showed her true self, she seemed even more captivating.


    Ning Que knew that she was not seducing him deliberately. However, he knew that the seduction that had slipped through unknowingly were like robes raised by the passing wind, revealing the silhouette beneath. It was the most seductive sweet honey on earth.


    He did not wish to taste this honey though. He moved his gaze from Ye Hongyu¡¯s figure to the priests from the Judicial Department outside the temple. He asked, "Who is the muscr man beside the pnquin?"


    "Luo Kedi."


    Ye Hongyu stood on the stone steps and turned around. Her red robes swung open with her motion, turning into an oval flower that bloomed with the wind. Then, they closed and wrapped around her naked legs.


    Ning Que was stunned and speechless when he heard the name. He had heard, while in the Academy, that there themander of the divine guard was called Luo Kedi. Luo Kedi was very powerful and was the most trusted subordinate of the Hierarch Lord.


    Ye Hongyu could guess what he was thinking. She said indifferently, "He is a dog of the hierarch. The hierarch would not allow me to kill dogs, so he lent me the dog for a couple of days."


    "You¡¯ve got guts." Ning Que walked up the steps and looked at her. "I heard that you have injured him badly once. I did not imagine that you¡¯d dare to keep him by your side. He is after all a Grand Cultivator in the Knowing destiny State. If you really force him to his wits end, he might bite you."


    "Regardless of whether he is in the Knowing destiny State or is an ordinary person, once he bes a dog, he would have to stay a dog forever. Why would it matter whether he is my dog or the hierarch¡¯s? And how would a dog dare to disobey its owner?"


    Ye Hongyu looked at Ning Que and said, "As for guts, you are the gutsy one. You allowed Sangsang to appear in a Taoist Temple in the Kingdom of Qi while the Haotian Taoism was unprepared."


    Ning Que frowned slightly and said, "What do you mean?"


    Ye Hongyu turned down the quiet corridor and said, "The previous Divine Priest of Light was the most extraordinary figure in the West-Hill Divine Pce in a hundred years. He could hold his ground even against Divine Lord Lotus. However, he had always been low-key and did not show off."


    Ning Que thought silently, more than ten years ago, the Divine Priest of Light had caused a massacre in Chang¡¯an and the vige in the Yan territory. How could she say that the man was not a show-off?


    Ye Hongyu knew of his origins and did not pursue this further. She said, "Over the past decades the Divine Priest of Light had gained several exceptional subordinates in the West-Hill Divine Pce. They hold important positions in the Peach Mountain, or have been stationed in temples around the world just like the red-garbed priest you met earlier. The Divine Priest of Light has many who are loyal to him, and can evenpete with the Hierarch Lord."


    Ning Que asked, "What does this have to do with Sangsang?"


    Ye Hongyu slowed down and said, "The Divine Priest of Light had been imprisoned for decades. Those loyal to him had endured many difficulties in the Divine Hall. Many were killed or sent to the peripheries. However, it is admirable that their loyalty has not wavered."


    "The Divine Priest of Light was able to escape the You Prison to Chang¡¯an because of his loyal subordinates. It is a pity that he died in that fight together with Master Yan Se. His loyal subordinates did not manage to wee a new era even though they had waited for decades until the world found out that the Divine Priest of Light had a sessor."


    She turned to look at Ning Que and said, "There are many in Haotian Taoism waiting fervently for Sangsang to return to the West-Hill Divine Pce. And there are many who are vignt against and fear her return. The Hierarch Lord and I thought that since the Great Divine Priest of Revtion had said that it would only happen in three years..."


    Ning Que reminded her, "Two years have passed."


    Ye Hongyu continued, "... The Divine Hall would have time to prepare, making the path for Sangsang to take her ce as Divine Priest easier. However, no one expected you to allow Sangsang to appear in a temple in the Kingdom of Qi so much earlier. Therefore, many problems might appear earlier as well."


    Ning Que slightly frowned and asked, "Will her path to session be very troublesome?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "The session of the Divine Priest of Light has always been decided by the previous generation. Even a thousand years ago, when that Great Divine Priest of Light betrayed our sect and set up the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, he was the one who chose his sessor. That is because only the Great Divine Priest of Light is closest to the light."


    "Sangsang has been chosen by the previous Divine Priest of Light, so everyone in the West-Hill Divine Pce knows that only she will be the next Great Divine Priest of Light. However, some people will not be satisfied with this and even if they dare not do anything disrespectful, they might still try something."


    Ning Que asked, "What would they try?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "The West-Hill Divine Pce governs all believers of Haotian. It is the holiest and also the filthiest ce. Anything can happen here."


    Ning Que was silent for a long while after hearing that.


    Then, he said, "I don¡¯t care what internal problems the Haotian Taoism has and how filthy it is, but I have to remind you that once Sangsang goes to the West-Hill, you all have to make sure that she is safe. This applies to the Hierarch Lord, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion, and yourself."


    Ye Hongyu frowned slightly, displeased with his attitude.


    Ning Que looked at her and said, "Because she is my wife and I am a disciple of the Academy. If anything happens to her, or if she is displeased, I will be very unhappy."


    Ye Hongyu looked at him and said mockingly, "And who exactly are you?"


    Ning Que replied seriously, "My Second Brother likes Sangsang a lot."


    Ye Hongyu was silent.


    Ning Que patted his shoulders, not caring what kind of furor this would create if anyone outside the temple saw this. He said consolingly, "Of course, the Academy would not just create a fuss. As you know, we are not unreasonable."


    Ye Hongyu looked up at him and said quietly, "I can¡¯t imagine you¡¯re still so shameless. Do you really think that you can use Jun Mo and the Academy to scare this God?"


    "Calling yourself God is a little..."


    Ning Que suddenly stopped because he could see the powerful Divine Light glinting, burning like little fires in Ye Hongyu¡¯s beautiful eyes. The Divine Light seemed to havee from a faraway holynd and represented the will and existence of a magnificent being. It frightened him, physically and mentally.


    He groaned and forced his eyes to look elsewhere.


    After a moment, cold sweat soaked through his shirt. He knew that if he really looked into the light in Ye Hongyu¡¯s eyes, his psyche would be incinerated.


    He thought fearfully, could this be the legendary power granted to the Great Divine Priests of West-Hill?


    Ye Hongyu walked towards the room that was deep in the stone corridor.


    Ning Que rubbed his eyes and followed after her as heined angrily, "Did you really want to kill me just now?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "I did say at the Yanming Lake that I would kill you the next time we meet."


    Ning Que mocked her, "You also had said so in the Wilderness too. Then, you ran to Chang¡¯an to live under my roof and eat my food. I don¡¯t see you feeling embarrassed about that."


    Ye Hongyu said, "The day wille."


    Ning Que frowned, and asked suddenly, "Why do you insist on killing me?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "Because I hate you. I have never seen someone as shameless as you."


    Ning Que said, "There are many others who are more shameless than I am out there. This is not a reason."


    Ye Hongyu stopped, and after a moment of silence, she said, "There will eventually be a confrontation between the Haotian Taoism and the Academy. I have already told you that out of all of the Headmaster¡¯s core disciples, you are the only one who understands a true battle. That is why in the eventual war, you are the most dangerous enemy to Haotian Taoism. That is why I want to kill you."


    Ning Que said, "Should I be proud that the Great Divine Priest of Judgment is so vignt against me?"


    Ye Hongyu continued forward and said, "You could also be sad about it."


    Ning Que mocked her, "Would you be able to kill me?"


    Red robes swung in the gentle breeze. Ye Hongyu answered matter-of-factly, "Of course."


    Ning Que¡¯s smile looked awkward as he said determinedly, "You should be able to see that I am very powerful now."


    Ye Hongyu did not turn around, but said ndly, "I am even stronger now as well."


    Ning Que felt ashamed and irritated as he said, "Do you want to try and kill me now?"


    The two had arrived at a quiet room.


    Ye Hongyu turned around and looked at him, "I have said before at the Yanming Lake that I will spare you once if I have the chance to kill you. These are two promises I have made to you. We shall count today as the first."


    Ning Que shook his head firmly, "This doesn¡¯t count."


    Ye Hongyu said, "It counts if I say so."


    Ning Que said, "It doesn¡¯t count if I say it doesn¡¯t."


    Ye Hongyu said, "It counts if I say..."


    She suddenly realized how childish andme they were and did not continue.


    Ning Que pushed open the tightly shut doors and said, "Please enter."


    Ye Hongyu looked at Sangsang who was asleep on the bed. She looked at Sangsang¡¯s pale face and said suddenly, "Why should I help you?"


    Ning Que said, "She is the future Great Divine Priest of Light of West-Hill Divine Pce."


    Ye Hongyu said, "She is your wife, not mine."


    Ning Que grew angry.


    Ye Hongyu said to him with an inscrutable expression, "Don¡¯t pretend to be angry before me. You know that it is useless."


    The ring aura on Ning Que subsided and he asked helplessly, "What do you want?"


    Ye Hongyu extended a finger and looked at him, saying, "Count this as once."


    Ning Que understood that she meant that she would count this as one time where she would spare his life.


    He did not hesitate to extend his finger to hook it around hers. "Deal."


    Ye Hongyu tilted her head slightly and considered their linked fingers thoughtfully. She then shook her head and walked into the room.


    It was deep in autumn and the sun had set early, enveloping the entire capital of the Kingdom of Qi in a vibrant red.


    The priests and guards of the West-Hill Divine Pce guarded the four walls of the white temple. They looked at the tightly shut temple doors and thought nervously about what might be happening inside.


    Then, rays of light emerged from a room in the Taoism Temple. It was the pure and holy Haotian Divine Light that burned through the windows.


    The sun had set.


    And a new sun emerged in the capital of the Kingdom of Qi.


    Those outside the temple felt the solemn and benevolent aura in the Divine Light as they knelt down one after another. Those who saw the new sun just as thest of the twilight faded all knelt in that direction, praying in awe, it didn¡¯t matter whether they were the Qi empress in the pce or the devout believers living in the city.

 Chapter 543: Two Pearls on the Dark Walls

    Chapter 543: Two Pearls on the Dark Walls


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Thest of the evening light disappeared and the capital of the Kingdom of Qi was enshrouded in darkness. The light emitting from the white temple did not disperse. The pious believers who were kneeling and immersed in the events gradually emerged from their reverie. They stared at the window, each thinking about something or another. Lights lit up in each household.


    The doors to the room opened and Ye Hongyu walked out. Her beautiful face was just as cold as before, and devoid of any emotions. However, she could not hide the exhaustion between her brows.


    Ning Que noticed her exhaustion and haggardness. However, he did not say anything but entered the room. He sat beside the bed and held Sangsang¡¯s slender wrist, perceiving silently.


    After making sure that Sangsang¡¯s condition had taken a turn for the better, he finally heaved a sigh of relief. He tucked in the corners of her nkets and ced a fresh towel on her forehead before walking out of the room.


    He looked at Ye Hongyu who was leaning against the stone walls and said sincerely, "You have worked hard."


    Ye Hongyu noticed that he did not express his gratitude. Her eyebrows flicked upwards as she asked, "Are you not going to thank me?"


    Ning Que said, "I have exchanged my life for this."


    Ye Hongyu said, "Your prescription and the herbs from the temple seemed to have worked. The poison in her body has mostly been neutralized. However, I can only suppress the cold aura in her temporarily."


    After a moment, she frowned slightly and continued, "I realized that night by the Yanming Lake that the Divine Light in the Lady of Light is much purer and vigorous than mine. Naturally, I can¡¯t do anything to get rid of the cold aura that even she can¡¯t rid herself of. Speaking of which, where did that cold aurae from?"


    Ning Que recounted the events where he had picked up Sangsang from a pile of bodies.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s doubts were not cleared. Her frown grew even heavier as she said, "The rot in bodies are the darkest and filthiest of all things on earth, and the cold rains would damage the body of an infant. But how could this unnatural cold affect the Haotian Divine Light in the Lady of Light?"


    Ning Que gave her an expectant look and asked, "Do you have any ideas?"


    Ye Hongyu looked into his eyes and said, "Does the Headmaster have any ideas?"


    Ning Que shook his head.


    Ye Hongyu said with a serene expression, "The Headmaster has no idea how to get rid of the cold aura in her body, so you came to ask me. Even though you have spoken out of urgency, it still makes you look like an idiot."


    Ning Que¡¯s expression grew dark and he smiled bitterly, with difficulty.


    Watching his expression and recalling how Ning Que had not hesitated to hook his fingers in hers before she had used her Divine Skills to heal Sangsang, Ye Hongyu felt for the first time that this shameless disciple of the Academy was not entirely useless.


    With that fleeting thought, her expression softened as she looked at Ning Que. She said, "Since the Headmaster said that the Buddhism Sect can heal Sangsang, then you two would definitely gain something at Lanke Temple."


    Ning Que smiled and asked, "Are you consoling me?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "You may understand it this way."


    Ning Que said, "What I can¡¯t understand is why you are the one consoling me."


    Ning Que smiled sunnily, the dimples on his cheeks seemed extremely bright.


    Ye Hongyu looked at his face and said, "You are indeed quite adorable. However, your character is hateful."


    At the temple of the Kingdom of Qi, the Judicial Department, priests, and knights were all shut outside the tightly shut doors. The temple was very quiet and the torches on the walls of the stone corridors were not lit. The light of the stars streamed in through the stone windows. While they were not very bright, it was not dark either.


    Ning Que watched the Taoist maiden whose face was illuminated by the faint light. He saw the exhaustion and haggardness in her eyes. He looked at her clear brows, bright eyes and tender lips and felt that this was the most beautiful and captivating version of Ye Hongyu he had ever seen. His right fingers that hung by his thigh trembled.


    They trembled and his fingertips touched something hard. He raised the teacup in his hands and brought it before her.


    Ye Hongyu took the cup and drank the cold, strong tea.


    The corridor was very quiet. The disciple of the back of the mountain of the Academy and the Great Divine Priest of Judgment of the West-Hill Divine Pce leaned against the cool stone walls in silence. They looked at the faint light streaming through the windows and did not speak for a long while.


    After some time, Ning Que suddenly said, "Earlier today, you said that you¡¯ve said by the Yanming Lake and in the Wilderness that the Academy and Haotian Taoism are natural enemies. There would be a great war one day and that day is fast approaching. Have you ever thought about what we should do if we meet on the battlefield one day?"


    Ye Hongyu held on to the teacup as she looked up at him. Her eyes were filled with ridicule as she said, "We are all people without friends. So why do we have to reminisce about the past and talk about the future as if we were? You want to be closer to me just to save your own life. This is rather shameless."


    Ning Que did not try to defend himself. He said, "I just want to know what you would do if that dayes."


    Ye Hongyu did not hesitate to say, "I have said, that you are the most dangerous enemy to Haotian Taoism. Should the war really happen, I will do everything in my power to kill you regardless of the price I have to pay."


    Ning Que took the teacup from her and ced it on his lips as he said wonderingly, "That makes sense. I would do everything I can to kill someone as dangerous as you."


    With that, he drank thest drops of the tea and felt that it was bitter beyondparison.


    Ye Hongyu felt a little annoyed that Ning Que had drunk the remnants of her tea using her teacup. However, she suddenly didn¡¯t feel like being angry after seeing Ning Que frowning at the bitterness of the tea.


    "I won¡¯t go easy on you."


    Ye Hongyu looked at the night scenery outside the stone windows and said indifferently. However, it was unknown whether she was speaking to Ning Que or herself, or perhaps she was saying it for the loyal subjects outside the temple to hear.


    Ning Que thought of the scenery and people in Chang¡¯an and of thends he had seen in the south. He thought of the farmers and army men who toiled over the fertilends and said, "Me too."


    The dim corridor descended into silence once more.


    Ning Que broke the silence again.


    He looked at Ye Hongyu and said with a slight smile, "Speaking of this, I have yet to congratte you."


    Ye Hongyu froze slightly and asked, "Congratte me for what?"


    Ning Que saw that she did not seem to be pretending, and knew that she would never pretend to be mature about things of the world. He sighed softly and thought that she was indeed the Tao Addict with a Taoist Heart who was not bothered by matters of the world.


    "You have taken the ck jade throne and you are now the Great Divine Priest of Judgment. Isn¡¯t this something worthy of celebration? Chen Pipi once said that there hadn¡¯t been many Great Divine Priest your age in thest millennia."


    Ye Hongyu knew, only then, that this was what he was congratting her on. She said serenely, "I knew that I would be a Great Divine Priest of West-Hill since I started cultivation. I knew that I would sit in the ck jade throne one day ever since I entered the Judicial Department. Is something so natural worthy of celebration?"


    Ning Quemented, "It is fortunate that I understand you. If anyone else in the world hears this, they will think that you are more egotistical than my Second Brother. You¡¯re so egotistical, you¡¯re nuts."


    Ye Hongyu smiled slightly and was satisfied that Ning Que hadpared her to Jun Mo.


    Ning Que turned around to look at her and looked into the depths of her bright pupils. He thought about the Divine Light that he had seen in her eyes earlier in the day andmented, "In the younger generation of cultivators, those who are talented and egotistical have tried to catch up with you. However, they never could and you¡¯re always right there in front. The distance between you and them has grownrger andrger. I really admire you."


    Ye Hongyu looked into his eyes and could sense the brightness hidden in his ck pupils. She said, "You have only cultivated for a few years and have gone from an ordinary person who knew nothing to a Grand Cultivator. You are the only person in our generation that I admire and am vignt against."


    Ning Que smiled and said, "Praising someone and praising oneself are always happy things. However, we do not have an audience right now, so it¡¯s a pity that we cannot glorify ourselves before them."


    Ye Hongyu said, "It is just you congratting me and me returning the sentiments."


    Ning Que said, "Having entered the Knowing Destiny State isn¡¯t really something that makes one happy."


    There were many underlying sentiments hidden in his words. They included the fragments in the depths of his senses, Master Lotus¡¯ kind inheritance, the terrifying and bloody methods of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and that fire at the Red Lotus Temple.


    Not even Long Qing could understandpletely what had happened to him.


    Much less Ye Hongyu. She looked at him bewilderedly.


    Ning Que said casually, "You have long entered the Knowing Destiny State, so have Shanshan. Senior Brother Chen Pipi had long entered it. I have nothing to be proud of before you guys."


    Ye Hongyu said, "I have said many times that we are unlike normal cultivators. The Knowing Destiny State means more to us because cultivation states are means to battle."


    Ning Que said, "I feel that you have repeated this saying many times just to tell the world that we belong to the same species. Just like two pearls that are exactly simr in the bottom of the ocean. We are a match made in heaven, right?"


    "Of course. I challenged the previous Divine Priest of Judgment right after I entered the Knowing Destiny State, even though he had yet to fully recover from the injuries caused by the Divine Priest of Light. And you managed to kill Xia Hou even before you entered the Knowing Destiny State. Once you enter the Knowing Destiny State, not even Long Qing would be a match for you even if he had any miraculous encounters."


    She said pridefully, "There aren¡¯t many cultivators who are like us. Long Qing and the Calligraphy Addict aren¡¯t. So isn¡¯t Chen Pipi, even though he had been called a rare genius in cultivation by Haotian Taoism."


    Ning Que had not imagined that Ye Hongyu wouldpletely ignore his teasing and was speechless. Then, he heard her mentioning Chen Pipi and could not help the look of disagreement that appeared on his face.


    "There are many different kinds of genius. A cultivation genius¡¯s ingenuity should appear on cultivation and not like you and me in battle or in killing people. I have never seen someone so ingenious butpletely unaware of it like Twelfth Brother. If we talk about the purity of his Taoist Heart, he is stronger than both you and Long Qing."


    He looked at Ye Hongyu and warned her, "Senior Brother might look like he wouldn¡¯t do well in battle, but that¡¯s because he doesn¡¯t like it. If he was forced into it, you¡¯d understand how terrifying he is."


    Ye Hongyu frowned when he heard his appraisal of Chen Pipi. She thought of the pudgy boy in the temple when they were children. That boy had liked to peek at female Taoist priests bathing when he was bored and would cower and yell shrilly when she hit him. He did not seem very scary.


    Ning Que looked at her wondering expression and suddenly asked, "How did you be the Great Divine Priest of Judgment? I only heard rumors in Chang¡¯an that you killed the previous Great Divine Priest?"


    Ye Hongyu said in a very leveled tone, "Unlike the session of the Divine Priest of Light, the session of the Divine Priest of Judgment is never fixed. There isn¡¯t a clear sessor to the position, so there isn¡¯t a path to session either. In the past millennia, the ownership of the ck jade throne has constantly changed in bloodbaths. There is no other way to be the Great Divine Priest of Judgment. I have killed the previous Great Divine Priest, so I have naturally seeded him."


    Ning Que¡¯s expression froze as he asked, "If there are other powerhouses in the Peach-Mountain of West Hill who wants to be the Divine Priest of Judgment, they have to kill you?"


    Ye Hongyu answered indifferently, "Indeed, but it seems like no one would dare to kill me in the near future."


    Ning Que looked at her and said, "But I know someone who wants to kill you dearly. And he would dare to do so."


    Ye Hongyu knew who he was talking about and said, "He can¡¯t kill me."


    Ning Que said, "You have to admit that he had been in the Divine Hall of Judgment for many years and has many loyal subjects. He would not give up on the opportunity to sit on the ck jade throne."


    Ye Hongyu knew that they have entered the main point of their conversation. After a moment of silent consideration, she said, "Long Qing is a dog. Even though he is different from Luo Kedi and is not the hierarch¡¯s or my dog, and even though he has encountered man lucky chances that even I feel are incredulous, he is still a dog."


    Ning Que looked into her eyes and said, "You said that a dog would not defy its owner. But have you ever thought that a mad dog would not recognize its owner? And it would be crazy and dangerous?"


    Ye Hongyu watched him silently and said, "It seems that he had left an impression on you yesterday at the Red Lotus Temple."


    Ning Que thought about the cold autumn rain ofst night and the des of leaf that were coated with blood. He thought of the crackling fire in the rundown temple, the empty arrow box and the ck peach blossom. After a long silence, he said, "Long Qing made me terrified yesterday."


    Ye Hongyu said, "But you still defeated him."


    Ning Que said, "But he is not dead. I don¡¯t know if I would be able to defeat him the next time."


    Ye Hongyu said, "What exactly do you mean?"


    "Don¡¯t tell me that the West-Hill Divine Pce doesn¡¯t know what kind of horror he possesses right now. If we let him leave, he will grow stronger by the day and grow madder as well. We are the people he wants to kill most in this world. We should kill him while he is still not strong enough."


    Ning Que stared into her eyes and said, "I¡¯m asking you to kill him."

 Chapter 544: The Divine Palanquin Moves North

    Chapter 544: The Divine Pnquin Moves North


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ye Hongyu did not say anything but looked at him silently.


    Ning Que looked at her and continued, "Long Qing¡¯s continued survival is a threat to the West-Hill Divine Pce and the Tang Empire. I can¡¯t kill him, so you need to do it."


    Ye Hongyu said suddenly, "Since he had betrayed the Divine Hall, he would not be able to continue living in Haotian¡¯s world. He would definitely leave the Central ins and go to the Wilderness."


    Ning Que said, "That¡¯s exactly what I am worried about. The Wilderness has no boundaries. Who can find him and his fallen knights if they hide in the Tianqi Mountain?"


    "But to leave the Central ins for the Wilderness, he has to either cross the Tang Empire or the Yan Kingdom. I don¡¯t think that Long Qing or his subordinates can do that."


    Ye Hongyu said, "Because you have forgotten that there is someone that Long Qing wants to kill the most in the Yan Kingdom. Conversely, that person wants Long Qing dead the most."


    "Are you talking about Crown Prince Chongming?"


    Ning Que only realized now that the West-Hill Divine Pce had already made arrangements. However, he still felt uneasy and frowned, "Even if Crown Prince Chongming could control the cavalry of Yan Kingdom, they are just ordinary folks. I don¡¯t think they have the ability to kill Long Qing."


    Ye Hongyu said indifferently, "Even if they can¡¯t kill him, they can hold him back for some time."


    Ning Que had an epiphany and said, "We are holding him back to wait for someone."


    Ye Hongyu said, "Indeed."


    Ning Que looked at her in the eye and said, "You will go."


    Ye Hongyu looked at him serenely and said, "I will go."


    Ning Que heaved a sigh of relief and said, "Goodbye."


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s brows picked up. She said, "You seem like you don¡¯t want to see me."


    "If this was any other time, I would love to make some good tea and serve up tters of beef to have a long chat with you till the night falls and the candles flicker out, Great Divine Priest... But I am really worried now."


    "Not even the best tea can be paired with beef. You should pair it with alcohol. As a disciple of the Headmaster, how could you make such a mistake on food pairing? It seems that you are really worried."


    Ning Que looked down at his boots and thought of the blood that these boots have stepped in yesterday. He said, "Long Qing said that he might be the Son of Yama yesterday at the Red Lotus Temple."


    Ye Hongyu smiled when she heard that. It was a smile that contained many hidden meanings. She looked at Ning Que and said, "Everyone in the world is specting that you are the Son of Yama. However, the Haotian Taoism Sect and Buddhism Sect have not acted because they do not have evidence. And now you¡¯re saying that Long Qing is the Son of Yama?"


    Ning Que looked up and syed out his hands with a slight smile. "From what has yed out in thest few years, Long Qing seems more likely than me to be the Son of Yama. He is darker and more pathetic than I am."


    Ye Hongyu said, "This doesn¡¯t prove anything. Everyone is guessing that you are the Son of Yama because the previous Divine Priest of Light had found you in Chang¡¯an with his eyes."


    Ning Que said, "But what he saw might not necessarily be the truth. The West-Hill Divine Pce had denied his views and the abbey dean had personally sealed him in the You Prison."


    Ye Hongyu looked at him silently. After a long silence, she suddenly said, "But you have never considered why the Haotian Taoism sect would have such a strong reaction if the Divine Priest of Light had seen wrongly back then. Why did the abbey dean return to the world and seal the Divine Priest of Light in the prison himself? I don¡¯t know what happened then, but I feel that it can¡¯t be this simple."


    "There are many things in the world that are simple only if you think simply and areplicated if you think make it out so. The abbey dean might have personally sealed Wei Guangming up because Wei Guangming was obsessed and wanted to cause a massacre in Chang¡¯an and kill who he thought was the Son of Yama. The abbey dean might have been worried for the world and the Haotian Taoism sect and done that. Would he have allowed Wei Guangming to cause a battle between the Haotian Taoism sect and the Academy?"


    Ning Que said calmly, "I have thought about this, but perhaps you have not. Even if Wei Guangming was the most incredible Divine Priest of Light the West-Hill Divine Pce had seen in a hundred years, light and dark are still fields that are beyond the human realm. How could Wei Guangming see through Yama¡¯s plot?"


    "Perhaps Wei Guangming had seen the truth then, but just the truth in a mirror that he treated as reality. I am just a fake illusion Yama has ced on earth, a fake person in the mirror. Long Qing is not in the mirror because he is in reality."


    The doors of the temple slowly opened. The ming torches wavered due to the fluctuating wind. The lights by the stone steps flickered.


    The blood-colored Judicial priest robes fluttered in the wind as Ye Hongyu walked out indifferently. Everyone, including the priest in red, bowed in salute when they saw her.


    Ye Hongyu did not speak with other priests in the temple or go to the pce to ept the greetings of the Emperor of the Kingdom of Qi. She left with her 500 Divine Hall guards and dozens of subordinates from the Judicial Department.


    The divine pnquin came in the twilight and left shortly in the night. Ye Hongyu had left the West-Hill Divine Pce and came to the capital of this kingdom in the human realm seemingly just to meet Ning Que and heal Sangsang.


    The subordinates from the Judicial Department had stayed silent throughout. However, they could no longer suppress their shock and gazed at the dark windows in the temple bewilderedly. They imagined that the rtionship between the Academy and the Great Divine Priest must be really close to have the Divine Priest of Judgmente and go at his will.


    The hulking Luo Kedi walked silently behind the pnquin. He looked at the figure hidden behind the yards of satin indifferently. However, a wild passionate greed danced in his eyes.


    The Tao Addict was called the Tao Addict because she was addicted to Taoism. However, was she really the addict, like believers believed, who only had eyes for cultivation and nothing else and knew nothing of the world? He thought silently and wondered if this person who had used the Academy to solidify her position in the Divine Hall really cared naught for the world.


    The autumn winds on the continent grew stronger. Capital Cheng, the capital of Yan Kingdom located in the extreme north had already weed winter. Withered yellow leaves rolled on the ground of the quiet streets and were crushed to powder apanied by crisp sounds.


    A martialw had been put in ce on most streets of the capital since dawn. The streets were devoid of anyone else other than weapon bearing troops. Even so, the soldiers were exceptionally vignt as they stood with their backs against the streets. They stared at every moving object, including the leaves.


    All of this was because of the giant divine pnquin that moved slowly on the streets. The pnquin had just entered the capital through the Southern City gates. It passed the imperial pce without stopping and headed to the Nothern City gates.


    The pnquin was extremelyrge and luxurious, it looked like a moving temple. It should move extremely slowly due to the hundred papal cavalryman and dozens of powerhouses from the Judicial Department surrounding it. And it was indeed moving very slowly, but what was amazing was that the pnquin was still in the capital of the Kingdom of Qi in the south a few days ago and it was already at the capital of the northmost Yan Kingdom now. It was practically a miracle.


    The severalyers of satin surrounding the four sides of the pnquin were extremely thin. However, like the winter willows by theke enveloped in mist. they did not block out light nor the cold winds.


    It was cold within the pnquin and mist would appear if one breathed. Ye Hongyu still wore her thin blood-red Divine Priest robes. Her bare feet stepped lightly on the rug as if she could not feel the cold at all.


    Crown Prince Chongming wrapped his robes around him tightly. He tried his best to sit regally and respectfully, trying his utmost best not to look at the beautiful girl¡¯s naked feet. He knew that while the girl was beautiful, her body, beneath the blood-red robes, and her beauty belonged to Haotian. Mere mortals like him could not get close to her.


    Ye Hongyu looked at the weak man seated a few feet away from her. She said coldly, "You have disappointed me."


    Crown Prince Chongming smiled bitterly, saying, "Great Divine Priest, even though I really want to kill my younger brother, he is still my father¡¯s son. He has many loyal subordinates in Yan Kingdom. The crux of the matter is, he is already a Grand Cultivator in the Knowing Destiny State. The Yan Kingdom is weak and is powerless to stop him."


    Ye Hongyu said with a nk expression, "Even the weakest country cannot be defeated by a cultivator. I have said in my letter that you just have to hold him back for some time if you can¡¯t stop him."


    "It is my fault for disappointing you, Great Divine Priest."


    Crown Prince Chongming looked to the northern wilderness outside the city gates. An extremelyplicated emotion appeared on his face and he muttered, "Once he goes there, nobody can stop him."


    Ye Hongyu looked at his expression thoughtfully.


    Prince and Long Qing and his fallen knights have sessfully beaten several lines of defense ced by the West-Hill Divine Pce. After entering thends of Yan Kingdom, he seemed to have melted into thends and crossed the capital silently before entering the Wilderness.


    To many, the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s pursuit of the betrayer had to end here. That was because the Haotian Taoism sect had not tried to enter the Wilderness in pursuit of the Great Divine Priest of Light who had betrayed them a thousand years ago.


    Because the seemingly barren piece ofnd which was actually fertile did not belong to those from the Central ins.


    Haotian¡¯s Divine Light did not extend there.


    However, unexpectedly, the Great Divine Priest of Judgment¡¯s pnquin did not turn back south at Capital Cheng. Instead, it continued towards the Wilderness.


    The chilling autumn wind became stronger in the Wilderness. There was a moment when the heavy veil around the pnquin was lifted by the wind. It was only then that a priest discovered that the Divine Priest of Judgment was gone.


    In the Wilderness on the northwest border of Yan Kingdom was a mountain that did not seem too dangerous. There was a hot spring in the mountain. By the mountain, was a slender, blue, sea-likeke in the shape of a beautiful woman¡¯s waist.


    The autumn wind blew on the cliffs, Ye Hongyu¡¯s blood-red robes billowed, outlining her captivating silhouette. Just like the slender blueke below the cliff, many in the world would willingly drown themselves in it.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s expression did not falter as she looked at the bonfires by the blueke. Just like her ascension to take the ce as Divine Priest of Judgment, it seemed natural to her.


    Since she had promised Ning Que to kill the mad dog personally, she would do it no matter whether she had to chase him down to the corners of the earth or to the Central ins or Wilderness.

 Chapter 545: The Flaring Divine Robes

    Chapter 545: The ring Divine Robes


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The long narrowke was as blue as the sea and shaped like a waist, but it was just a slenderke in the north. Ning Que had once stopped here, so did Mo Shanshan and the girls from the ck Ink Garden. Many interesting stories had yed out here, and Ye Hongyu had once heard them while on a hanging basket in the clouds.


    It was a pity that what she faced was not the young, damp Calligraphy Addict in the hot spring, whose ck hair fell like a waterfall behind her. What she faced at this blueke was not the food of Chang¡¯an or the Great River Kingdom, but the bonfires and those surrounding them.


    Having had his attack countered by Ning Que at the Red Lotus Temple, Long Qing was in a halfatose and half-mad state. Fortunately, his loyal subordinates carried him away when they fled. When he regained consciousness, he did not have time toment or fall into depression. Instead, he brought his men on this journey to the north without hesitation.


    Long Qing had managed to transcend the numerous defense lines set by the Judicial Department over the long journey due to the years of influence he had umted in the Divine Hall. Furthermore, he also had many loyal subordinates whom he had given the precious Earth Pill to. The previously heavily injured fallen knights were strengthened and became more powerful.


    Since news of Long Qing had spread two years ago, only one prince remained in the Yan Kingdom. There were no longer any disputes as the Crown Prince Chongming firmly controlled the Yan imperial court and the military. The Divine Hall thought that Long Qing would be killed by his brother when he brought the fallen knights into the Yan Kingdom.


    However, contrary to all expectations, Long Qing and his subordinates had been able to pass through the Yan territory without hassle. Perhaps he had received aid from a bigwig in the Yan Kingdom; he was not met with any powerful resistance as he sped through the kingdom and entered the Wilderness.


    Long Qing¡¯s face was pale as he sat by the bonfire. He pressed a handkerchief to his mouth to muffle his cough. However, this did not stop the white handkerchief from being stained blood red.


    He had been severely injured in the fight with Ning Que, at the Red Lotus Temple in the rain and had not fully healed from it yet. He looked at the ceruleanke waters that resembled the sea and at the thin sheets of ice that were being blown about by the cold autumn winds. He thought about how his life had changed when he entered the Wilderness two years ago and was silent.


    Suddenly, there were several white ripples in the depths of the blue-green autumnke. There were several dark shadows in front of the waves which were evidently left by the fish. However, how big did the fish have to be to cause such huge ripples?


    Long Qing looked at the white handkerchief that was stained with blood and suddenlyughed self-mockingly. He tucked the handkerchief into his sleeve and slowly got up. He looked at the girl across theke in a dark red divine robe.


    The divine robe was extremely thin, but the red that colored it was deep. It was like the color of blood and it draped over the girl¡¯s body like a smooth red swan. It seemed solemn and majestic.


    Long Qing was very familiar with this blood-colored robe. He had seen it numerous times on the ck jade throne over the years. And he had, for many times, fantasized about the divine robe, seemingly stained with the blood of millions, draped on him. He had wondered how it would feel.


    It was a pity that he was not the new owner of the blood-colored robe.


    Long Qing was also very familiar with the new owner of these robes. Many years ago, just as he was about to make something of himself at the Revtion Institute, and just as he was about to shine brightly, a little girl in a green Taoist robe with a stubborn, proud and cold expression arrived. She was brought before the students of the Revtion Institute by a respectful priest.


    From then on, Ye Hongyu and Prince Long Qing were oftenpared to each other. One was the Tao Addict, the other was the Divine Son of West-Hill. They left the Revtion Institute and entered the Judicial Department at the same time. However, what shamed him was that he had never defeated her and never walked ahead of her.


    He had ced first in the Revtion Institute because she often did not participate in examinations. When he had entered the Seethrough realm, she had already seen the threshold of the Knowing Destiny State. He was the second priest in the Judicial Department while she was its Grand Master. Two years ago, in the Wilderness, he saw that she was about to enter the Knowing Destiny State, but had encountered a tragedy. Following that, he had discovered grimly and bitterly that she had been able to enter the Knowing Destiny State long ago.


    Long Qing knew that he and Ye Hongyu were destined to fight. If not, he would not be able to clear his Taoist Heart. It was just like how Ning Que was significant to his journey towards cultivation.


    It was just that he had never imagined that the battle would take ce in these conditions.


    Ye Hongyu walked towards the autumnke, her naked feet stepping onto theke waters gently and floated towards him. Her blood red robes danced in the wind, making her look like a fairy bathed in blood. She was both bewitching and holy, with a unique beauty.


    If one looked carefully, they would realize that every time her footnded, a thin sheet of ice would slide beneath it. The thin ice seemed to be able to perceive her desires. Or perhaps, one could say that she knew and could control every object on theke. This was even more incredulous than walking on theke.


    "Priestess, My Lady!"


    "Great Divine Priest!"


    The fallen knights in ck armor looked at the girl in blood-red robes. They stood up in surprise. In the cacophony of startled war horses and frightened shouts, many had forgotten to prepare for battle.


    Long Qing looked at Ye Hongyu silently as she stepped on theke ice. After a moment of silent contemtion, he took a deep breath and sent out his Psyche Power, calling for his peach blossom without hesitation.


    Facing such a terrifying opponent, he knew that battle tricks or a contest of wills were pointless. He could only depend on his own abilities.


    There were five petals on his ck peach blossom. One of them had been shot by Ning Que¡¯s Primordial Thirteen Arrows and had withered. Two other petals had fallen and been crushed in the rundown temple by him. The blossom looked a little odd and was disgusting and ugly in its feebleness. It looked like rotten fish on a ship that had been dead for six months.


    The fallen knights were shocked into action after sensing the darkness and death in Long Qing¡¯s peach blossom. They shed away the natural fear they had for Ye Hongyu and drew their swords in a discordance that broke through the air. Dozens of Taoist Swords were drawn and flew towards the girl in a shrill buzz.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s expression changed slightly when Prince Long Qing called for his ck peach blossom. She had sensed the deathly aura being emitted from it and thought of the massacre in the Zhishou Abbey; she then knew what had happened.


    As for the dozens of powerful looking Taoist Swords, Ye Hongyu ignored them. She did not even set her mind on them. She just waved her hands, and holy Haotian Divine Light spread across theke.


    The fallen knights had all entered the Seethrough realm thanks to the Earth Pill. Themanders of the cavalry who had managed to survive all had higher cultivation states. Their Taoist Swords had also followed Prince Long Qing¡¯s aura and had turned a gloomy ck after pledging their allegiance to Yama. Their power was terrifying and could tear apart the armor of an armored cavalry. Ordinary cultivators would not be able to stop them.


    The West-Hill Divine Skill was the nemesis of this Gloomy Taoist Sword.


    Of course, these ck Taoist Swords flew across theke¡¯s surface as if they could not be stopped. When they reached the ten feet of Haotian Divine Light surrounding Ye Hongyu, it was like ghosts meeting the intense sunlight. The swords trembled and released smoke. They emitted a terrible keening and did not seem as powerful as before.


    Some of the ck Taoist Swords sensed that something was not right and attempted to fly away from the boundaries of the Haotian Divine Light. However, they began to smoke as it seemed like there were several invisible ropes winding around them. No matter how they struggled, they could not leave the holy light, making them look like moths trapped in ampshade.


    The blood-red robe cascaded down Ye Hongyu¡¯s arm like a waterfall. She stepped towards the other shore of theke serenely, unstoppable.


    The Haotian Divine Light that radiated from her was like arge shroud. The ck Taoist Swords moved with her as she continued forth on theke.


    This scene was strange and shocking.


    Her naked soles stepped onto theke bank, leaving a faint print on the cold pebbles.


    The holy Haotian Divine Light slowly receded into Ye Hongyu¡¯s body.


    The dozens of ck Gloomy Taoist Swords flew away, as if excited that they had been freed.


    Ye Hongyu casually lifted her right hand and held on to one of the Gloomy Taoist Swords.


    The moment she held the Gloomy Taoist Sword, the ck sword started smoking like it was on fire. The Taoist Sword slowly returned to a pure white.


    The other Gloomy Taoist Swords sessfully returned to the fallen knights. Many of themnded in the frigidke waters, causing sshes and startling the fish.


    Ye Hongyu had casually picked up the sword and also seemed to use it nonchntly.


    She thrust the sword toward the ck peach blossom.


    Because it was done casually, one could not guess where the sword style was headed to, so how could one avoid it?


    Long Qing could not avoid this sword, which was an amalgamation of Ke Haoran¡¯s sword move and Liu Bai¡¯s sword style. He had never thought to avoid it, but weed it determinedly with a pale face.


    The tip of the sword nicked an intact petal of the ck peach blossom.


    There was a soft pop.


    The ck peach blossom that had been crafted with pure Qi of Heaven and Earth started to tremble and tear.


    There wasn¡¯t any hopelessness in Long Qing¡¯s eyes, and only determination and coldness. Next, the white and ck of his eyes began to mix and turn into a faint grey. A powerful and greedy aura shot out from his ck Taoist robe. The autumnke descended into chaos.


    Ye Hongyu frowned slightly as she looked at his strange eyes. Her expression was grave and filled with hatred before turning into contempt and ridicule.


    She flicked her robes, and holy Divine Light coupled with the heavy stench of blood rushed towards the greedy swirling aura. Holiness and blood were two auras that could not be mixed. They shot out from Ye Hongyu¡¯s robes and changed into the pebbles that had been soaked in blood for millennia, in the Divine Hall¡¯s You Prison. These pebbles that smelled like blood protected the light of Haotian.


    Pebbles like this could not be swallowed by any vortex.

 Chapter 546: Scenery

    Chapter 546: Scenery


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Looking at Ye Hongyu¡¯s fluttering robes, Long Qing¡¯s face suddenly became cold. His eyes grew darker and darker until they looked dead. The greedy and icy aura in the pebbles by theke grew all the more stronger.


    However, there was always a ray of light in this dark and cold ce that could not be erased.


    It was a light that came from the blood-colored divine robes, with a strong metallic scent of blood.


    The sleeves of the robes danced on the banks of theke. Every time the sleeves were lifted, a strong wind with a scent of blood and a sacred aura would rush towards the vortex that was formed by a deathly silent aura.


    The strong winds resembled the moss-covered rocks of the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s You Prison. The wind, swirling in the whirlpool, was just like theke water that fell from the empty sky, and it made its surrounding Qi of Heaven and Earth vibrate to all directions.


    Numerous roars rang across the quietke. Affected by Long Qing¡¯s grey eyes and Ye Hongyu¡¯s attack, the water in theke bubbled as if it was boiling. The fish hidden in the depths of theke were either dizzy or dead. They gradually floated to the top the water, piling up like patches of deathly white on the surface of the water.


    The wooded mountains far away had not escaped the terrifying collision of the aura. The branches, extending towards the surface of theke, had broken noisily. The trees rustled. The sparse yellow leaves on the trees floated in the air, not knowing whether they would fall into theke or be crushed to smithereens by the wind.


    The tail feathers of a few magpies cocked up because of horror. They pped their wings, trying their best to fly far away. However, they had eaten too much in order to survive the harsh winter of the Wilderness and had be too fat. They could not speed up and were not able to escape the aftershock of the battle between the two powerhouses. They wailed mournfully before falling to the ground and dying.


    ...


    ...


    Several small scratches appeared on Ye Hongyu¡¯s body. Tendrils of blood flowed from these wounds, permeating through her thin divine robes and flowing slowly to the ground.


    The divine robes which were soaked with blood was a vibrant red. It seemed like captivating red flowers that were washed by dew. She was beautiful and seductive with the damp robes stuck to her body.


    She looked pale, but was still as beautiful as ever. There wasn¡¯t a speck of dirt nor any trace of blood on her skin after a battle. Her eyes were especially bright but were serene. The divine robes soaked in blood became a starkparison with her seductive body.


    She was still serene and beautiful even with a bloody body, which had indicated how powerful she was.


    Over ten fallen knights were heavily injured on the pebbled ground by theke. Their blood flowed, dyeing the pebbles beneath them red.


    Long Qing knelt on the ground on one knee. His hair was damp with sweat and was stered on his forehead. The silver mask he wore was missing, so his severely burnt face was revealed.


    Ye Hongyu walked forward slowly.


    More blood would ooze out with every step she took. Her expression did not change at all, as if she could not feel any pain, and it seemed like she had more than enough blood to lose.


    She walked towards Long Qing and said, "You are indeed much stronger than before. I am surprised that you did not manage to kill Ning Que at the Red Lotus Temple. However, it is a pity that you are still not as strong as I am."


    Long Qing lifted his head with difficulty and looked at the approaching blood-red robes. He looked at her horrible appearance with a strange smile. For some reason, he did not tell Ye Hongyu about the strange incidents that happened to Ning Que during their battle at the Red Lotus Temple.


    "I¡¯m not interested in the ck jade throne at all. You really don¡¯t have to pay such a huge price, and take the risk of trying to kill me alone, without taking any of your subordinates."


    He said as he panted, still with a strange smile.


    Ye Hongyu walked forward and stopped several feet away from him. She said, "I would never believe that you have lost interest in all things and are going to roam around the Wilderness for real peace. I know that you are not interested in that, so I won¡¯t let you grow any stronger and be a threat to me."


    Long Qing ced a hand on his knees and said wearily, "You have never talked too much nonsense before killing someone. So I wonder why you have allowed me to say myst words?"


    "I heard that you told Ning Que that you think you are the Son of Yama?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "Of course, I am not killing you now because I need to have a rest. I do not want to die with some bum like you."


    Long Qing watched her and mocked, "Even the Tao Addict needs to have a rest? Has your spirit been depleted by the ck jade throne after bing the Great Divine Priest of Judgment?"


    Ye Hongyu did not grow angry because of his jibe. She said serenely, "It is said that even though we are half deities, below Haotian and above the divine throne, we are still not the true Gods. So as humans, we need to take a rest."


    "All humans need to rest. Indeed... Many people have always wanted to be a God, but they do not know that, as long as they don¡¯t be ghosts, it is really a blessing to be a human being."


    Long Qing said somewhat destely, "I don¡¯t know if I am Yama¡¯s son or the person in the prophecy. However, I don¡¯t think I am a human being anymore."


    The blood-red divine robes gradually dried. Ye Hongyu looked at him and said calmly, "Whether you¡¯re human or God, you¡¯ll be a ghost today. If you are really Yama¡¯s son, then I¡¯ll let you see your father."


    After saying that, she took another step forward.


    Suddenly, there was a flurry of footsteps in the wooded mountains by theke. Several powerful forces enveloped the pebbled grounds in an instant.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s gaze sharpened as she looked at the grasnd barbarians holding various kinds of weapons. There were over a thousand of them, wearing leather robes, yelling as they flowed out of the forest.


    Only subjects from the Left King¡¯s Pce, which was in a precarious position, would appear in the frontier fortress of the North of Yan Kingdom at this time. The powerful forces could onlye from the high priests from the pce.


    "So you had an agreement with these barbarians. They are having a hard time now, but they still could send high priests toe and get you. So what price have you paid for that?"


    Ye Hongyu asked.


    Long Qing stood up, blood and pus flowed through his ck Taoist shirt. The hole on his chest must have been severely wounded once more in the battle.


    "Those from the Left King¡¯s Pce are indeed living a hard life right now. They are attacked both by the Deste Man and the Central ins. Just like myself, attacked by the Divine Hall in the light and Ning Que in the dark. You asked what I had paid for their trust? In actuality, I paid for nothing."


    He looked at Ye Hongyu and said, "The Yans and the Left King¡¯s Pce have been neighbors for years. They are enemies as well as friends for years. Coincidentally, I have been the friend of their new Chanyu since years ago. What¡¯s even more important is that we are both in the same boat and havemon goals."


    Ye Hongyu asked, "What goals?"


    Long Qing said, "We want to get strong again. And then... take revenge."


    Ye Hongyu kept silent.


    Long Qing said, "Actually, I did not expect that you could catch me here. Fortunately, as you have said; no matter how powerful you are, you are but human. You are not a true God, and you need to have a rest. That gives me the opportunity to turn the tides. Of course, I also felt grateful that I could live until now in front of you."


    Ye Hongyu suddenly smiled.


    Her face was still pale, but her smile was radiant.


    Long Qing was not in the mood to admire her beauty, though he used to gasped with admiration at her attractiveness asionally when they were in the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    Because he had seen the derision and scorn in her smile.


    "I am indeed not a God, but just a human being. That is why I am curious about whether you are the Son of Yama, and why you had gone to the north and entered the Wilderness. I was waiting, because I want to see who would help you."


    Ye Hongyu looked at him and said serenely, "Ning Que had once said something ludicrous by the Yanmingke. He said that curiosity would kill the cat. I do not understand. But I know that curiosity would indeed be a hindrance. However, it is a pity that you pose no hindrance to me for killing you."


    An incredulous expression crossed Long Qing¡¯s face. He said coldly, "I have a thousand warriors from the grasnd and seven high priests on my side. How can you kill me?"


    Ye Hongyu looked at him as if she was looking at an idiot. She said, "You are just 30 feet away from me. Even the army led by the Chanyu from the Golden tent can stop me from killing you, let alone the defeated Left King¡¯s Pce."


    Long Qing said in shock, "But how will you escape after killing me?"


    Ye Hongyu said, "The West-Hill aims at killing you, rather than running away. As long as I can kill you, it is not important if I can escape or not."


    This sentence was simple, yet it would need a strong logic and an undaunted will to speak it out calmly. Long Qing¡¯s expression stiffened when he heard that.


    Ye Hongyu said, "Most importantly, once you be a meaningless corpse, there would be no reason for the Left King¡¯s Pce to detain me. Would the barbarians care for you so much that they would sacrifice their own lives for killing me, a Great Divine Priest of West-Hill? Long Qing, you¡¯re really stupid."


    Long Qing¡¯s face had be exceptionally pale. He knew that Ye Hongyu was right. If he died now, there would be no reason for the Left King¡¯s Pce to avenge him and fight with the Divine Priest of Judgment.


    With thest ray of hope, he said, "But they would not allow you to kill me because I am theirst hope to survive and be powerful in the Wilderness."


    As if it was going to prove that Long Qing was right, the branches in the forest by theke started to shake. The powerful auras that had descended upon the pebbled grounds grew more violent, flowing towards Ye Hongyu.


    There was a natural and wild power in the auras, there was a hidden scent of some wild beast in the Wilderness. It was the unique spiritual attack of the grasnd barbarians¡¯ high priests!


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s face looked pale. She looked towards the forest with an exceptionally frigid gaze.


    A proud and overbearing murmur emerged from her thin lips.


    Almost at the same time, a dull painful whimper rang in the forest in the distance.


    In the dark forest, a priest of the Left King¡¯s Pce, dressed in an expensive robe and bearing several bone-made religious instruments toppled onto the ground with a fearful expression. A fine bone instrument shattered, and two streams of ck colored blood flowed from his nose. It was evident that he had been seriously injured.


    Ye Hongyu looked towards the forest, feeling the auras. She said disdainfully, "How dare they use their spiritual Psyche Power to hurt me. They are very brave, yet very dumb."


    A priest from the Left King¡¯s Pce had had his sense of perception shattered, even without seeing his enemy. His internal organs started to bleed. A few of the other priests from the grasnd who were in the forest looked at each other. They saw shock and fear in each other¡¯s eyes.


    Ye Hongyu, the Tao Addict, had shocked the cultivation world with her all-rounded skills. She was a powerful Sword Master when fighting against a Sword Master. When she faced Tactical Array Masters, she was an outstanding Tactical Array Master. When she fought a Psyche Master, she became a terrifying Grand Psyche Master. She was now the Great Divine Priest of Judgment, so how could she fear the powers of the priests from the grasnd?


    Ye Hongyu looked at Long Qing.


    The Gloomy Taoist Sword that she had taken from him had long been abandoned casually. The sword she held now was her natal Taoist Sword that had been hidden in her blood-colored Taoist robe.


    The sword seemed to have no de. It swam out of her robes and wriggled like a fish. However, it cut a straight white line in the air.


    Long Qing despaired, and smiled bitterly.


    Just then, there was a loud boom!


    A bolt of lightning fell from the sky and struck the Taoist Sword exactly!


    The low rumbling thunder could only be heard momentster.


    It rumbled endlessly.


    It rarely rained in the cold autumns of the Wilderness. As usual, It did not rain today, but there was thunder.


    The rumbles of thunder roared through theke and the forest. It was a deafening sound that had caused theke water to shake violently, and the dust to swirl on the pebbled ground.


    After some time, the thunder finally stopped.


    The sky had darkened and the air was filled with dust that floated upwards and became thick ck clouds, shrouding theke and mountains.


    Ye Hongyu kept her Taoist Sword and looked up at the sky. She could see the thunder waiting behind the ck clouds.


    It was difficult to predict heaven¡¯s will and powers.


    She looked at the sky silently and ponderingly.


    Long Qing was shocked far away. He leaned against arge rock, with a look of excitement and wild passion on his burnt face. Heughed loudly while coughing up blood.


    He looked at Ye Hongyu, and his face twisted as he yelled madly, "I have said that I am not a human being, so I have carried the will of heaven! I am the prophecied one! Look! Haotian has not abandoned me!"


    "Ye Hongyu! As long as the heavens don¡¯t want me to die, what can you do to me?"


    ...


    ...


    Ye Hongyu ignored Long Qing¡¯s mad screams. She looked at the sky seriously, as if there would be something beautiful behind the clouds.


    She had seen that scenery.


    She looked lost, and then returned to indifferent gradually.


    Then, she looked to the cliff at a distance. There was someone there. The cliff was tall, and that person was standing so high that he seemed to be able to touch the clouds if he raised his hands.


    That person had a Taoist bun and wore light blue Taoist robes. He carried a wooden sword.


    After seeing that person on the cliff, Ye Hongyu did not look at the sky anymore, because she could see nothing but him. However, that person just remained silent and did not move at all.


    Ye Hongyu became more indifferent. There seemed to be ayer of frost on her eyebrow.


    Then, she was irritated uncontrobly.


    This was the first time in her life that she had been irritated by the man with a wooden sword.


    She suddenly turned back and looked at Long Qing once more, the desire of killing him arouse again.


    The man on the cliff seemed to have sensed that.


    The man on the cliff in the distance hummed softly.


    The thick dark clouds seemingly floated by slowly, but were actually rolling turbulently. There were suddenly dozens of light that transformed into dozens of strikes of thunder that fell towards theke.


    After hitting by the thunder, the rocks by theke cracked, the aura of heaven and earth was torn into shreds, turning into a terrifying hurricane which danced through the pebbles by theke madly.


    The figure, in red judicial priest robes, danced in the wind and did not fall, amidst the lightning and thunder.


    ...


    ...


    The grasnd barbarians who had rushed out of the forest but had not had time to get close to theke were shocked by the thunderous tremors. Their natural respect for the sky led them to kneel and pray for God to forgive their sins.


    The seven priests of the Left King¡¯s Pce looked calmerpared with the ordinary folks. However, this was because they could sense the majesty and power in the thunder. Therefore, they were actually more shocked than the ordinary folks.


    They were extremely shocked when they saw the blood-colored robe dance in the wind, and the figure who stood stubbornly before the thunderous roars was reluctant to express obedience. She was indeed the legendary Great Divine Priest of West-Hill who possessed such terrifying willpower and dared to fight with the heaven!


    ...


    ...


    The winds and thunder gradually stopped.


    Ye Hongyu stood on the pitted banks of theke, her figure seemingly deste.


    She did not look at Long Qing anymore.


    Nor did she look at the figure on the cliff in the distance.


    She did not look at the scenery on the clouds.


    Nor did she look at theke and mountains.


    She did not look at anything.


    She looked silently at herself and her shadow for a long while.


    She yelled out loud.


    It was a crisp, angry shout. In the silentke and mountains, the shout echoed and spread far and wide.


    The shout was full of resentment.


    Blood flowed from her lips.


    In the forest, the priests from the grasnd Left King¡¯s Pce were impacted by the terrifying spirit brought by the yell. They poured out blood from their mouth and fell directly. No one knew if they had lost consciousness or died.


    ...


    ...


    Ye Su, stood on the cliff, had heard the angry bellow.


    He knew that he was the subject of her anger.


    She was his sister. This was the first time that she showed anger towards him, even with a hint of challenge.


    Ye Su was not upset about that. Instead, he was very happy.


    He was so happy he wanted to dance and shout out loud.


    Because he knew that after seeing the roaring thunders, she would no longer be the little girl, who wants to get close to him but failed to say anything because of stubbornness or feeling inferior to him, just watching his figure silently.


    From today on, she would be Ye Hongyu.


    However, he could not allow her to kill Long Qing.


    Because the abbey dean did not want that betrayer to die.


    Ye Su looked up at the sky and the thick clouds that were so close, it seemed like he could touch them. He looked at the thunder gathering behind them and guessed that Haotian seemed to be of the same opinion.


    ...


    ...


    Bringing forth thunder with the sword was a legendary cultivation state in Sword Taoism.


    Ye Su had received enlightenment in a small abbey in Chang¡¯an. It seemed that he had made a great step forward on his road of cultivation.


    Before, Ye Hongyu would be very happy for her brother.


    However, her emotions were veryplicated today. She felt discontent and angry.


    The most important thing was that no one knew where the clouds came from.


    After sitting on the ck jade throne and bing the Great Divine Priest of Judgment, her connection with the heaven had grown. She had sensed Haotian¡¯s will when the seemingly terrifying ck thunderous clouds passed her by and when she saw the true scenery in the sky.


    However, at the same time, perhaps due to her discontent or anger, she had the impulse to have a fight.


    As the Great Divine Priest of Judgment, it was disrespectful and sinful to have these kinds of thoughts.


    Ye Hongyu felt slight uneasiness in her Taoist Heart, so she calmed down suddenly and forced her mind away from such dangerous thoughts.


    She slowly lowered her head, her ck hair dancing in the slight breeze.


    The thunder receded and the clouds dispersed. They disappearedpletely after a short while, revealing the clear, cold autumn sky.


    Ye Hongyu did not consider the fleeting sphemous thoughts she had earlier.


    However, since these thoughts had been generated, how could they bepletely erased?


    Even if it was fleeting, it would leave behind a trace in her heart.


    The clouds and thunder had disappeared.


    Her head remained lowered.


    In the depths of her hearts, somewhere where not even herself could see, a voice seemed to say dispassionately that it could be done.


    Some time passed by.


    Ye Hongyu raised her head slowly.


    "You¡¯re not allowed to return to the Central ins without my permission."


    She looked at Long Qing and said calmly, "Otherwise, I will not let you live even if the God allows."


    Blood-red robes floated.


    She turned and left theke.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que did not leave with Sangsang immediately after Ye Hongyu left the capital of the Kingdom of Qi. He had to fix the horse carriage that his master left him firstly. Otherwise, he would not be able to continue on the journey even though it was not long.


    He already knew that the wizened red-garbed priest from the Divine Hall of light was called Chen Cun. He had ascertained that the priest¡¯s loyalty to Sangsang far surpassed his own love for the Academy. Thus, Ning Que would certainly not miss the opportunity of making use of this man. Ning Que asked the priest to search some objects and materials to fix the horse carriage.


    With the help of such an important person, Ning Que had enjoyed the same treatment in the Kingdom of Qi as he had in the Tang Empire. He could use almost everything precious in the vassal states of West-Hill.


    The white Taoism temple was usually very quiet. However, now it was full of all sorts of terrifying sounds. The thunderous impact from a hammer hitting the walls of the steel carriage, the terrible screeching that came from hard tools engraving talisman lines, and the disgusting sounds of vomiting made by the melting of rare metals rang one after another. It seemed as if it would never stop.


    Even the most pious priest would not be able to continue reading his ssics. Even the most hardworking Papal Cavalryman could not continue practicing and cultivating. The wrinkles of the red-garbed priest, Chen Cun, grew more evident, which can be seen with naked eyes.


    It was fortunate that Ning Que¡¯s talents in the area were astonishing, even though he might not be as good as Sixth Brother. He managed to fix the ck horse carriage within a short time and it was ready for the journey.


    If one ignored the ugly scars on the walls of the horse carriage.


    The red-garbed priest, Chen Cun, sent a team of knights to guard them when they left the capital of the Kingdom of Qi. Ning Que believed that there wouldn¡¯t be anything insecure next, so finally, he was in the mood for admiring the scenery outside the window.


    What truly made him happy was that he was apanied by someone right now.


    With Ye Hongyu¡¯s help, Sangsang¡¯s illness was finally under control. She was not asleep all day. Even though she was still weak, she could at least look at the scenery or at Ning Que¡¯s face.

 Chapter 547: The Little Town on Wa Mountain

    Chapter 547: The Little Town on Wa Mountain


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que was most grateful to Ye Hongyu for stabilizing Sangsang¡¯s illness for the time being. He knew that the young Divine Priest of Judgment was on her way to capturing and killing Long Qing. Logically speaking, even if they were not friends, he should have shown a degree of worry for her out of gratitude. However, he did not.


    Ning Que had absolute confidence in Ye Hongyu. Long Qing was indeed very terrifying. In the battle under the autumn rain, Ning Que would have died had he not been fortunate. However, he still believed that Ye Hongyu was the most terrifying amongst the younger generation of cultivators. Since she had said that she would personally kill Long Qing, then Long Qing would find it hard to escape death.


    Looking out of the windows, Ning Que thought about that bloody battle in the autumn rain, the fallen riders outside the rundown temple and Long Qing, who wore a ck Taoist robe and his dark quiet figure. Images of other memories popped up momentster, and he recalled a dream he had where he saw three ck whirlwinds of smoke and dust in the Wilderness.


    The three vortexes were cold and dark as if they were part of the night. Now that he carefully thought about it, they were very simr to the aura that Long Qing and his fallen knights carried.


    Ning Que felt even more so that what Long Qing had said that day was true. The fellow who had learned to consume others and had fallen in love with consuming others was the Son of Yama.


    He was soothed by the thought, and the fear about rumors surrounding his birth and struggling against the Buddhism Sect lessened. He grew more anxious to reach the Lanke Temple.


    However, they would still need to travel slowly no matter how anxious Ning Que was. This was especially so since Sangsang was weak and could not travel without stopping to rest. The speed of the horse carriage did not pick up.


    The air in the south was more humid, and even though it waste in autumn, the trees by the sides of the road were still verdant. It was certainly more pleasing to the eye whenpared to the bleakness of the north.


    There would be the asional autumn showers and the days grew colder. Sangsang¡¯s body grew colder as well, especially her limbs which felt as if they were made of ice when touched.


    Strong alcohol could warm her up, but the effectsted less and less. As such, Ning Que stuck the failed Fu paper he had left over from two years ago, which had some warming effects on Sangsang. He also made a brazier in the horse carriage. Fire Fu which were extremely precious to cultivators burned in the copper bowl day and night, never extinguishing. They burned an unknown amount of Fu paper on their trip.


    They used up the Fire Fus that Ning Que had written in the past and he began to write new ones. However, no matter how powerful Ning Que¡¯s Psyche Power was, it could not withstand his extravagant usage. His face grew paler and paler.


    Sangsang did not stop him because she knew that it was meaningless and would not produce any results. If Ning Que were sick, she would do the same thing and Ning Que would not stop her either.


    Everyday she would look out at the autumn scenery from the window, or at Ning Que¡¯s face next to the window. She kept a small, serene smile on her face. To her, all the scenery she saw was beautiful, even the autumn¡¯s wind and rain, and the yellow withering leaves. And as long as it was Ning Que¡¯s face she was looking at, she would find it good-looking as well, even if his face was haggard as if he had not slept in days.


    Sangsang spent more and more time looking at the scenery and the smile on her face grew sweeter. However, she spoke less and less. Even though she did not speak much over the years, she was even quieter now.


    She did not know if the elder at the Lanke Temple could heal her odd sickness, and she did not know if she had a future. She did not know what the future would hold for her if she even had one. This fear that hade from not knowing was the source of her silence.


    Ning Que understood how she felt but did not say anything because he knew about Sangsang¡¯s personality.


    Sangsang might seem warm, but she was stubborn and had never liked being consoled. That was because she and Ning Que had managed to survive through their utmost efforts. She knew that she could not be weak no matter the situation. The weaker they were, the easier it was for them to die. And if she was consoled and became touched, it would be the beginning of her weakening.


    Ning Que did not console her but hugged her to his chest. They looked out at the crisp autumn scenery outside the window in a daze. This was pretty good as well, for they felt that they had traveled back to ten years ago.


    Other than hugging Sangsang and staring out at the scenery in the daze, Ning Que only did one thing during the rest of the time, especially while Sangsang was sleeping. He repaired the Primordial Thirteen Arrows.


    There were special tools made to fix the arrows in the box. His hands were stable and the talismans on the arrow shafts were carved by him, so the work of fixing the iron arrows was very sessful.


    Just as he was fixing thest iron arrow, they heard the sounds of people talking from outside the carriage.


    Sangsang lifted the curtain and looked out front. There were several strange peaks on the hills in the south. The tops of the peaks werepletely t and looked like ck roof tiles.


    They have arrived at Wa Mountain.


    ...


    ...


    In the world of Haotian, the Buddhism Sect had remained silent for a millennium. They had shut their doors in cultivation. asionally, there would be someone who would enter the human realm but they were just vassals of Haotian Taoism. They were well known for debates and meditation. With regards to Buddhist rituals and sacrifices to heaven, many high monks had always thought that the Buddhist wheel of life was just another way of expressing Haotian¡¯s will.


    This argument led to the Buddhism Sect being surreptitiously ssified under the Haotian Taoism system. It was so low-key that many predecessors had written in their notes that the Buddhism Sect was a school of thought and nothing else.


    Perhaps due to these reasons, Buddhism was not widespread in the world. Other than the sadhus in the countryside, it was difficult to find a Buddhist temple in South Jin and other Kingdoms.


    The only exception was the Yuelun Kingdom. It was close to the Xuankong Temple, the Unknown ce of the Buddhism Sect in the depths of the Wilderness. As such, the Yuelun Kingdom had been heavily influenced by the Buddhism Sect and cultivating in Buddhism was widespread. The country was described as one that had 72 temples in the misty rain.


    However, the 72 monasteries in the misty rain could not defeat an old temple renowned from east to west. This temple was the most famous temple in the Yuelun Kingdom, be it the importance it had to the Buddhism sect or its ce in the hearts of believers.


    This was the Lanke Temple.


    The Lanke Temple was on Wa Mountain.


    ...


    ...


    The history of the Lanke Temple was extremely long. ording to historical records, just after thepletion of the West-Hill Divine Pce, trees had fallen in the depths of the verdant Wa Mountains, inessible to people. Pavilions sprung up and a temple was built.


    In the rumors of the cultivationmunity, the Lanke Temple was a Front Gate left behind by the Xuankong Temple, an Unknown ce. The rtion was like that of the West-Hill Divine Pce and the Zhishou Abbey; being as such, it was highly respected. No one dared to vite the foreboding Front Gate without reason.


    History and legends had created the unique status of the Lanke Temple. Over the past few years, many tragic, solemn and legendary stories were staged in this ancient temple. And because of this temple, the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival became the most important festival in the world. And popr debates in thest decades had also happened here.


    It was not yet time for the actual Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival. The Tang diplomatic envoy had yet to arrive, but it was already very lively at the Wa Mountain. Various gs hung from the second floor of homes lining both sides of the bluestone streets. The colors of the gs were dull and were mostly in ck and white. but it was unknown whether they were a metaphor for the popr game of chess in the area, or due to the true reason behind the festival, which was a ritual to release souls in the Underworld.


    Not even the ordinary monks in the Lanke Temple or the residents of the little town who had lived here for over ten generations would remember the origins of this custom. To those alive in the world, the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival was a simple and pure festival. All they needed to do was to enjoy the atmosphere of these festivities.


    Many tourists had already arrived in the little town beneath the Wa Mountains. It was unknown where these tourists came from. They all had a blissful smile on their faces. The adults would smile and greet each other as they enjoyed and toured the legendary millennium-old houses. The children ran and chased each other on the streets. There was a little girl who panted as she chased after her older brother, her little face full of grievances. She suddenly saw hundreds of red fish in the stone pool at the side of the road, and immediately crouched down, looking at the swimming fish with wide eyes. She had forgotten about finding her brother and crying.


    A middle-aged man standing beside the stone pool smiled as he watched the girl. He handed her a thin wooden stick, which had a small the size of a teacup tied to its end. The girl looked at the people who were getting ready to pay and shook her head shyly. She knew that she had to pay to fish, but her mother had said that she was too young to keep money on her and had only given money to her brother. However, her brother had taken the money to buy candy and was nowhere to be found.


    The girl suddenly remembered that she was chasing after her brother. She stood up with a startled yelp; just as she was feeling frightened, her brother, who was about seven or eight, squeezed through the crowd. He gave her a satisfied smile and then stuffed two copper coins into her little hands.


    The fish in the pool were disturbed. Water sshed wildly onto the moss by the pool, causing them to fall. The asional disappointed sighs and yelps of surprise made by the siblings could be heard on the streets.


    The ck horse carriage stopped outside the town and did not enter.


    Ning Que chased away the cavalry from the Taoism Temple.


    He and Sangsang watched the peaceful and happy town behind the curtains. They looked at the siblings fishing by the pool and smiled, probably having recalled their own childhood when they went to the market.


    ...


    ...


    The Wa mountain was not an individual mountain, but a series of mountains linked together.


    It was stillte autumn on these mountain peaks, and faint greenery could be seen on it. They were simrly shaped; their peaks were all as t as a knife. From afar, they looked like numerous ck tiles piled haphazardly by yful children.


    The town was bustling, but the Wa Mountain remained quiet. A corner of an ancient temple peaked through the forest. As if affected by Buddhism Dharma, even thest chirps of the southern autumn cicadas did not seem helpless and desperate. Instead, it sounded free and indifferent.


    This was the back of the Wa Mountain. One would never be able to enter the main hall of the Lanke Temple if they took this mountain path.


    However, the ck horse carriage rolled slowly on the mountain path.


    Ning Que had brought Sangsang to the Wa Mountain, not for the Lanke Temple, but to find someone at the back of the mountain.


    In the quiet mountain behind the Lanke Temple, were Bhadantas of the Buddhism Sect who lived in seclusion.


    Ning Que wanted to look for one of them.


    It was the Lanke Temple¡¯s elder he had heard of many times.

 Chapter 548: Master Qishan

    Chapter 548: Master Qishan


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    There were many elders in the Lanke Temple. There were elders who were in charge ofws, and elders who were in charge of the meditation courtyards. Long Qing had once gained the admiration of an elder when he excelled in his debate here. However, the only true elder of this ancient temple required no other description for anyone to know his status.


    Master Qishan ranked the highest in the Xuankong Temple, and even in the entire cultivation world. He ranked higher than Quni Madi, and it was rumored that he ranked even higher than the Hierarch of West-Hill. Other than the Academy, which was a special ce, most others in the world had to bow when they came before him.


    Nobody knew how old this Bhadanta of the Buddhism Sect was. Someone had predicted that he was over a hundred through his conversation with the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s Hierarch. What was interesting was that the conversation between Master Qishan and the Hierarch Lord was about the Headmaster¡¯s age.


    It was rumored in the cultivation world that Master Qishan was the illegitimate son of the previous chief monk at the Xuankong Temple a century ago. Of course, no one dared to ask him for confirmation and no one dared to mention it. So the rumors remained as rumors.


    However, Master Qishan did not earn the respect of the cultivation world with merely his rank or his parentage. It was because of his virtue.


    Decades ago, a terrible flood hit the southern part of the maind, the rivers roared and turbid waves inundated numerous fertile fields. River banks in various countries copsed one after another. The flooding of the Great Lake was extremely dangerous.


    At the time, Master Qishan was still the abbot of the Lanke Temple. He led the monks in the temple and brought with them food and medicine that they had umted over the years. He brought over ten carriages full of these supplies out of the Wa Mountain and dispensed food and medicine along the way, saving countless of victims. Master Qishan fell ill from exhaustion and was infected when he dealt with the remains of the victims. He was so sick he almost could not get up.


    The Great River, burdened by the waters flowing from countless tributary rivers was about to copse. The embankment in the Kang County, especially, was failing and showed signs of breaking.


    Master Qishan was in Kang County then. When he saw what was happening, he shed his monk robes and entered theke even though he was ill. Through an unimaginable cultivation state and willpower, he stood before the embankment that was about to copse for the entire night.


    On the morning of the second day, the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom, and the Divine Talisman Masters of the West-Hill Divine Pce arrived in Kang County. The situation had grown less urgent and Master Qishan emerged from the turbid waves. He copsed on the banks and fell unconscious.


    That night was the most important night in the flood that year. Master Qishan had reced the embankment with his own body. The most important fields of Kang County and South Jin Kingdom behind it were saved. That meant that the entire South Jin Kingdom, as well as half of the maind, had been saved.


    After that night, Master Qishan was known through thend. His willpower and the powerful cultivation state that he had disyed were all looked upon in awe by all.


    However, he had also paid a heavy price for it. He had only gained such power through decades of penance in the Lanke Temple and had used it all. He had been severely injured and even if he continued cultivating anew, he would never be able to return to his peak state.


    In the legends of the cultivation world, before Liu Bai¡¯s appearance, it was said that Master Qishan was whom every one had thought would go beyond the five states. It was thought that he could even cross the human realm and be a Grand Cultivator. It was a pity that he would forever stay outside that particr threshold of Haotian Taoism and could no longer touch the world beyond that of the human realm.


    The cultivation world, and even the millions of people in the world, respected him for his deeds. Their respect did not diminish over the years, but grew even more sincere even decadester.


    Master Lotus of the Kingdom of Song had lost his wife and wrote an essay of bereavement that night in the rain. He began to travel the world and came to stay at the Lanke Temple. After meditating in the temple, he heard an old monk talking about stories of the Buddhism Sect and began to learn about Buddhism.


    That old monk was Master Qishan.


    Several yearster, Lotus returned from the Western Wilderness and was immersed in the Spirit of the Xuankong Temple. He declined the invitation from the West-Hill Divine Pce and shaved his hair before an old monk, thereby formally joining the Buddhism Sect.


    That old monk was also Master Qishan.


    After that, Lotus began living in seclusion at the Lanke Temple¡¯s back of the mountain for two years. His cultivation state then had long surpassed Master Qishan, but he remained extremely respectful to him. Lotus viewed him as both teacher and friend.


    Another year, at the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival, the Devil¡¯s Doctrine washed the Lanke Temple with blood. They killed every cultivator present at the festival who were of the light. However, they did not inflict much harm on the monks in the temple. Now that people thought of it, they could conclude that this was naturally because of Master Qishan.


    Ning Que had brought Sangsang to the Lanke Temple not to participate in the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival or to represent the Tang Empire in their discussion with other countries about the Deste Men moving south. It also had nothing to do with the rumors about the Underworld Invasion. He was here to cure an illness. He was here to find a person, and that person was Master Qishan.


    ...


    ...


    The ck horse carriage stopped before the mountain path. Ning Que looked at the temple that could be vaguely seen through the forest. He looked at the Buddha statue on the stone tform, behind the peaks of the Wa Mountain and thought of Master Qishan. He felt a little unsettled.


    Having inherited Lotus¡¯ fragments of consciousness, he could clearly sense that the elders residing in seclusion in the Lanke Temple were all awe-inspiring characters.


    The truly remarkable figure naturally has its own unique aspect. Ning Que did not know what special likes and dislikes Master Qishan had. A highly virtuous elder of the Buddhism Sect should be benevolent and mild, but he still reminded himself to show enough respect and be prepared.


    How could he keep a low profile? What preparations did he have to make?


    The ck horse carriage¡¯s appearance had been altered. It did not look as ck, but was dirtier. There was a sheen of oil on the horse carriage and it felt like the big ck umbre.


    The Big ck Horse was also covered in dirt. Ning Que had even smeared mud on him. He did not look as carefree as he did on the Wilderness, but looked extremely pathetic.


    This was what Ning Que had prepared. He wanted to arrive looking really pathetic. He had even prepared a handkerchief coated in ginger sap as well as a little leather pouch filled with blood. He intended to dab powder from Chenjinji Cosmetics Store on Sangsang¡¯s face to make her look even paler before meeting Master Qishan. After meeting the master, he would wipe his eyes with the handkerchief to redden his eyes and break the pouch open and pretend to cough up blood. He did not believe that the Bhadanta would be able to turn a blind eye.


    Who would dare to be as pathetic as me?


    If there was someone who dared to be more pathetic than him and Sangsang, he would perhaps rough up the person so badly that it would make him even more pathetic.


    It was then, when a young monk walked down the mountain path slowly.


    The monk had a slightly tanned face. His expression was calm andpossed.


    However, when he saw the rundown ck horse carriage and the Big ck Horse that lookedpletely different from what the rumors had said, hisposure shattered into that of surprise.


    He walked to the horse carriage and looked at Ning Que through the window. He said helplessly, "Do you think you can trick my teacher like this? Would someone like my master need Mr. Thirteen to put in such efforts?"

 Chapter 549: Green Marks on the Tomb

    Chapter 549: Green Marks on the Tomb


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The dark-skinned young monk, named Guan Hai, was thest disciple of Lanke Temple¡¯s elder, Master Qishan. While he did not have a job in the Lanke Temple, his position and status were extremely high, equivalent to that of the abbot.


    Last winter, Guan Hai went to Chang¡¯an City personally and handed the invitation to Ning Que to the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival. He had also issued a challenge at the same time. Ning Que had sat quietly on the shore of Yanming Lake for half a day, and he finally understood some things. Then, he returned to the South Gate Taoism Temple and narrowly won.


    Ning Que had a good impression of monk Guan Hai, because the young monk was extremely gentle and kind despite his persistence. Guan Hai¡¯s teacher had once consulted the Headmaster and thought highly of the Academy, offering his praises. As such, Guan Hai longed to visit the Academy and was extremely respectful to the disciples on the Second floor of the Academy.


    "Sure enough, it is Lanke Temple¡¯s territory. I was trying to keep a low profile and not bother you. I wanted to leave after meeting Master Qishan quietly and finish what I needed to do, but you still found me."


    Ning Que walked out of the horse carriage and said with a smile when he looked at Guan Hai.


    Monk Guan Hai looked at the dusty horse carriage, and said with a bitter smile, "How could you be described as low key. I received a letter from the Divine Hall a few days ago and knew that you were attacked on your way here... Oh, uncle, when did you break the realm!"


    Monk Guan Hai suddenly sensed that something had happened to Ning Que¡¯s body. It was extremely different from when they met in Chang¡¯an Cityst winter. He vaguely guessed the truth and could not help but yelled in shock.


    Ning Que said, "I¡¯ve told you to just call me Senior Brother in Chang¡¯an."


    Monk Guan Hai hesitated for a while and said, "Thirteenth Un... Senior Brother, when we metst year, you were still in the Seethrough realm. How could you break through in such a short period of time? What kind of adventure did you have?"


    As a Buddhism disciple, monk Guan Hai was peaceful and resolute. He had quite a deep state, but at this time, his voice trembled slightly.


    Ning Que said, "There weren¡¯t many adventures. If you can leave Wa Mountain often and walk out of the Lanke Temple to find some people to fight, it is not so difficult to raise your realm."


    Monk Guan Hai looked at him with admiration and awe in his eyes. The cultivationmunity knew that Ning Que had just entered the Academy a few short years ago, but he was now a Grand Cultivator of the Knowing Destiny State. It was really shocking.


    Although he enjoyed the look that the young master of Buddhism gave him, Ning Que did not have time or energy to enjoy at length. He said, "I wrote a letter in advance. Did you read it?"


    Monk Guan Hai looked at the ck horse carriage and said, "I have read it. How is your wife?"


    Ning Que praised, "The word, wife, is very reasonable."


    Then he said worriedly, "I asked Ye Hongyu to suppress the chilly aura in her body and she had barely managed to do so. It should not worsen in a short time, but the sooner such a problem is solved, the better. When can I meet Master Qishan?"


    Monk Guan Hai looked troubled. He said, "My teacher built a house and has been in quiet retirement in the back of the temple for a long time, refusing to meet any foreign guests."


    Ning Que¡¯s expression changed and asked, "Isn¡¯t the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival going to start soon?"


    Monk Guan Hai shook his head and exined, "In the previous year¡¯s Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival, my teachers refused to join. Even for me, when I practice Buddhist magic, I can¡¯t meet him and just listen to his teachings through the door."


    Listening to these words, Ning Que frowned slightly. He thought that it would be meaningless if Master Qishan refused to meet with outsiders. He made up his mind that if so, he had to barge into the mountain to meet him.


    At this time, monk Guan Hai said, "But my teacher will be out for one day this time."


    Ning Que stopped frowning. He looked at Guan Hai helplessly and said, "You are the monk of Wa Mountain, not a storytelling artist in Chang¡¯an¡¯s teahouse. Can you not pause for such a long time when you speak?"


    Monk Guan Hai smiled apologetically. He suggested, "My teacher will be out the day after tomorrow. Thirteen Senior Brother, you should stay at the temple for two days. Although it cannot bepared with the Academy, it is still quite scenic."


    Ning Que thought that Sangsang¡¯s illness was stable recently, and she was very greedy for sight viewing when she was traveling in the horse carriage. Then it took a long time to bring her to the Lanke Temple, and indeed he should take her to look around. She should at least take a good look at this ancient temple. Besides, as he was a disciple of the Academy, and he had a close rtionship with Mistress Jian, he should pay tribute to the tomb in the temple.


    "This sounds good."


    He thought of a problem and looked at monk Guan Hai. He asked, "Since Master Qishan has lived in seclusion for many years, why is he participating in this year¡¯s Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival? I know that the imperial courts of countries in the Central ins havee here to discuss the matter of Deste Men moving south, and other cultivation sects havee to discuss the legend of the Underworld Invasion."


    Monk Guan Hai thought of something, and his gaze became somewhatplicated. He said, "Perhaps it is."


    Ning Que understood what the young monk was thinking at this time. He smiled and asked, "Now in all rumors, I am the Son of Yama. You are standing in front of me now. Are you afraid or not?"


    Monk Guan Hai¡¯s eyes became peaceful. He smiled at him and said, "What¡¯s so scary?"


    Ning Que found that Guan Hai was not pretending, and he could not help but feel puzzled. He asked, "Why?"


    Monk Guan Hai put his palms together and bowed toward the West. Then he stood straight and looked at Ning Que. He said seriously, "Since the Headmaster has epted you as his core disciple, how could you be the Son of Yama?"


    ...


    ...


    In order to seek quiet amodations, Ning Que did not live in the main yard of the Lanke Temple. Monk Guan Hai took them to a side yard near the north woods and did not inform any other monks in the temple.


    After eating some simple vegetarian dishes and making small talk, monk Guan Hai got up and left. Ning Que knew that although Master Qishan had lived in seclusion for a long time, Guan Hai, as the future abbot of the Lanke Temple, had to wee other cultivation sects during the time like the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival. So, he did not ask monk Guan Hai to stay longer.


    Gradually, there were drumsing from a ce not far, and then night came. In the temple, servants boiled water, then Ning Que washed Sangsang¡¯s feet and made her sleep. He changed several pieces of Fu paper on her before heid down beside her.


    It was still early morning when he woke up. The sound of Lanke Temple¡¯s bell came again. He listened quietly to the sound that seemed rhythmic and boring but actually was very fresh. Ning Que felt peaceful.


    After having breakfast served by servants, Ning Que let the Big ck Horse y in the woods of other yards. He covered Sangsang with a heavy leather coat and took her through an iron gate to the backyard of the Lanke Temple.


    The monks in the temple should all be doing morning lessons. In the back yard, except for the early birds which got up early to survive and the early worms which got up early but were sadly eaten, there was no other sound.


    Faint fog filled the woods. In the distance, the main hall and several side halls of the Lanke Temple sometimes showed themselves. They looked very solemn and beautiful, as if the Buddha country had reallye to earth.


    Ning Que did not have too much interest in thendscape of these ancient temples. His eyes focused on the Tower Woods in the fog. Each tower contained a senior member¡¯s bone ash. This kind of environment should be ghastly, but the sound of the Buddhism ssics¡¯ prayers made it all peaceful.


    The Tower Woods was lonely and had confusing trails. It seemed that they were walking in a maze. If it was a visitor¡¯s first visit, it would be easy for them to get lost. However, he walked inside it with Sangsang without hesitating. He felt that the ce was very familiar, as if he had been here many times.


    Sangsang looked up at him. She was surprised and puzzled.


    Ning Que himself did not notice, but even if he had, he would think that this would be due to being overly familiar with the map painted by Eldest Brother before he left. He would not think that this was because of the fragments of Lotus¡¯ consciousness guided him from the depths of his spiritual sea.


    Walking to the northwest of Tower Woods, beside a moss-covered stone tower, he saw a tomb. The tomb was ordinary and unremarkable. However, in Tower Woods, where the ruins of the predecessor of the Buddhist sect were ced, there was an ordinary tomb, which was very attractive and vaguely unusual.


    Ning Que held Sangsang¡¯s hand and approached the grave. He noticed that there were some traces of green moss on the tomb, but it looked very clean. There must be someone who came to take care of it often. He felt more satisfied, and his impression of the monks in the temple improved.


    He bowed deeply to the tomb.


    This grave had no tombstone.


    But he knew who was buried in the tomb.


    There was a young woman buried in the tomb. At least when she died, she was still very young. The woman was once the best dancer in the world and she had a very simple name.


    Jian Xiaoxiao was buried in the tomb.


    She was the older sister of the House of Red Sleeves¡¯ Mistress Jian.


    She was the fianc¨¦e of the Academy¡¯s Youngest Uncle.


    ...


    ...


    "If she had not been killed by Lotus, she would be my Youngest Aunt. Perhaps Youngest Uncle might still be alive now and have a few children with her. The youngest of them would try to steal my ce as the youngest Brother, thenpete with Chen Pipi for the honor of being the most talented."


    Looking at the tomb, which was cleaned often, but surely no one had brought offerings for many years, Ning Que smiled withplex emotions. He whispered, "There would be more troublemakers in the Academy, but there are already many troublemakers in the Academy. I think Teacher would not mind."


    Sangsang squatted and reached for a piece of leaf that fell on the tombst night. She thought of something at the moment and felt a bit cold. She fastened her coat¡¯s cor subconsciously.


    Ning Que hugged her and looked at the grave in front of her. He thought of the tragic death of the beautiful woman in the tomb whose dance could move the Buddha¡¯s heart and was touched.


    "As a student of the Academy, I should hate Lotus. However, even though my nature is cold, I haven¡¯t been harmed by Lotus and even inherited benefits from him, so I can¡¯t hate him. Then, as the only survivor of the General¡¯s Mansion tragedy, why can¡¯t I even hate your teacher?"


    Sangsang¡¯s teacher was the former Great Divine Priest of Light, Wei Guangming. Ning Que¡¯s desperate and revenge-driven first half of life was due to this person. At the moment, he said that he did not hate that person.


    "Even Xia Hou, I don¡¯t even hate him that much anymore, or perhaps, I should say it¡¯s hard to think of this person." He frowned and kept thinking. He murmured, "Am I really cold-blooded?"


    "It¡¯s not because you are cold blooded but because they are all dead."


    Sangsang leaned into his embrace. She looked at the tomb and said, "All things will disappear with death. Hating a person or loving a person, no matter how strong the emotion was, it would be forgotten eventually."


    Ning Que knew what she wanted to say, but he did not want to hear it.

 Chapter 550: Real Buddha In Front

    Chapter 550: Real Buddha In Front


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    It was the first rain in the Hebei Province since the drought. The rainwater was cold and when Ning Que found the small girl underneath the pile of corpses, she was purple and was about to die of coldness and hunger. Since that rain, Ning Que had concealed many psychological shadows in his heart. As Sangsang almost died many times during her childhood years, that shadow only grew heavier and he concealed it even deeper.


    As time passed, Sangsang got sick less frequently and even though the doctor who followed the army couldn¡¯t dispell the cold aura inside of her, he had given her medicine for it. Besides ensuring that there was hard liquor by her side, she was made to do housework constantly to exercise her muscles and get the blood flowing. Ning Que almost forgot about this.


    Especially when Sangsang first started her cultivation of the Divine Skills of the West-Hill Tao Sect, the cold aura within her was like a thinyer of snow in spring. Ning Que thought this meant she was cured but who would have thought that she would rpse again and so seriously this time. It was even more dangerous than the few times when she was young.


    The shadow concealed within the depths of Ning Que¡¯s heart arose again; he thought hard during the journey and was constantly worried. The Headmaster couldn¡¯t treat her disease... could the Lanke Temple really treat it? Was Sangsang¡¯s illness really just an illness or were the two of them destined to have a cold future?


    Because of these shadows, since Sangsang was very young, Ning Que had never discussed with her such things. Now, Sangsang seemed to want to say something but he didn¡¯t want to listen.


    He didn¡¯t want to listen but Sangsang wanted to speak.


    "Young Master, do you know why I have been constantly staring at you?"


    For some reason, Sangsang had started calling him young master again.


    Ning Queughed and said, "Because I look good."


    Sangsang said, "You are not even the former Prince Long Qing, why would you be worth staring at?"


    Ning Que said somewhat angrily, "I have told you not to bring this up again."


    Sangsang knew he was pretending to be angry to cover up something and she said softly, "You know why."


    Ning Que knew but he didn¡¯t want to say it; he looked like a small rash boy now. Stubborn, innocent, immature, easily angered and easily brought to tears.


    At this moment, Sangsang looked like a sensible older sister. She stared at him quietly and gently said, "I am afraid that when I die, I won¡¯t be able to see you again."


    Finally hearing that word from her mouth, Ning Que shuddered slightly.


    Sangsang looked at the grave in front of them and asked curiously, "Where do people go after they die? Whether it¡¯s turning into ashes, rotting away or being sealed in stone. Is that still me?"


    Ning Que didn¡¯t want her to hold onto such emotions for a long time, as shouldering such emotions or thinking about such things wasn¡¯t healthy for a gravely sick person. Hence he wanted to change the topic but it was a little hard.


    "Some say that when deathes, one bes nothing. Others say that after dying, you go to the Underworld."


    "I¡¯d rather go to the Underworld."


    Sangsang looked at him seriously and said, "The Underworld sounds scary but I can wait for you there."


    Ning Que looked at her slightly pale face. He took off his coat to wrap it around her shoulders and said softly, "The people in the Underworld will forget what happens in this world. By that time you wouldn¡¯t remember me so you shouldn¡¯t go."


    "What does dying feel like?"


    Sangsang looked at him and asked. She wasn¡¯t sad or scared; she was only curious, like a child.


    She was skinny and having Ning Que¡¯s coat around her, she did look like a kid that had stolen adult clothes. She looked a little hrious yet a little cute at the same time.


    "Your face is a little pale from the cold, let¡¯s go back." Ning Que said.


    It was deep in the autumn season now but the surroundings of the Lanke Temple weren¡¯t very cold. Sangsang¡¯s face had turned a little pale but not from the cold but rather, from the cold aura within her.


    Sangsang knew this clearly as she extended both hands in front of Ning Que.


    Ning Que shuddered as he thought back to many years ago when Sangsang was still a small girl and when she would sometimes look at him in a spoiled manner. He felt a sharp pain in his heart as he blew a few breaths of warmth onto her palms.


    Sangsang took back her slightly warmer hands and ced them on her cheeks, saying a little regretfully, "Since young, you have called me a little brat. I know I am little dark colored; you have always said that being a little whiter would cover up my ugliness and you want me to be whiter. Sinceing to Chang¡¯an and spending so many silver taels on the powder at Chenjinji Cosmetics Store, it was all in vain. Now that I¡¯m really white, you aren¡¯t happy."


    Ning Que hugged her even tighter and said, "Whether you are dark Sangsang or white Sangsang, so long as you are as money-loving and fierce as before, you will make me happy."


    Listening to these words, Sangsangughed happily, showing off two pearly white teeth. She looked like some small animal in the forest of Min Mountain and was incredibly cute.


    Sangsang was incredibly cute now; she always was.


    That was because she didn¡¯t feel the need to act cute in front of Ning Que, much less act cute for anyone else. Now, she wanted to make Ning Que feel that she was more adorable.


    "You haven¡¯t answered my previous question."


    "What question?"


    "What does dying feel like?"


    "I have never died, how would I know? Should I dig Youngest Aunt out from her grave to answer you?"


    Ning Que made a tasteless joke before realizing it wasn¡¯t very funny. He lowered his head and looked at an autumn worm that had died in the grass under his foot. After a long moment of silence, he said, "Actually I do know... death, is something very ufortable, so don¡¯t die."


    Sangsang looked at him and said seriously, "Okay, I will try not to die."


    Ning Que rubbed her head and said, "Let¡¯s work hard together."


    A thin mist nketed the forest and suddenly, a droplet of water fell, then many droplets. They were very thin and small, and were almost powder-like as theynded on his face and eyes, lightly soaking them.


    Ning Que said, "Let¡¯s go back."


    Sangsang shook her head and said, "I would still like to wander around."


    Ning Que said, "You can¡¯t get wet now."


    Sangsang took down the big ck umbre from behind her back and said, "It will be hard even if I want to get drenched."


    Ning Que smiled, taking the big ck umbre and opening it. Holding her hand, they walked over to the front hall of the Lanke Temple.


    It had started to rain in the morning at the Lanke Temple and as the mist dissipated, the temple and pagodas that were in the mist had be visible again. The Buddha Country had returned to the mortal world.


    Ning Que looked at the ancient temple in the mild autumn rain and at the Buddha statue at the peak on the back of the mountain.


    The material used to build the Buddha statue was some form of precious white tough stone; the handiwork was rough yet smooth. At the moment, the rainwater was falling peacefully on the face of the statue, almost like tears and added some sadness to it.


    From this far, the face of the Buddha statue could still be seen clearly; one could only imagine how big the statue was. When a disciple looked at it from the bottom of the mountain, it was easy to have a feeling of worship and respect.


    He pointed at the giant Buddha on the top of the mountain and said, "Legend has it that this was the Buddha that started Buddhism."


    Sangsang looked at him and asked, "Should we pray? We can do so from here too."


    "Buddha is a person, so am I. Buddha has seen the ¡¯Ming¡¯ Handscroll, so have I. Why should I pray to him?"


    From the main hall, the sounds of people and carriages could be vaguely heard. It was dawn and the Lank Temple wasn¡¯t epting guests now, so it must be someone like Ning Que; an ambassador or a representative from a cultivation sect, residing in the temple temporarily.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t take special notice of these people and said, "Of course, if Buddha really can do his thing and get you treated, it wouldn¡¯t be a problem for me to worship him for 3 days and 3 nights."


    Suddenly, a voice came from the main hall.


    "To seek treatment, one needs to be devoted when praying to Buddha. Do you think Buddha is a doctor that you can find anywhere? If you are not sincere enough, even if Buddha can treat your wife¡¯s sickness, he wouldn¡¯t."


    Numerous luxurious horse carriages made a detour from the main hall of the Lanke Temple. This voice was filled with criticism and was cold at the same time. It was from one of the horse carriages.


    Ning Que had assumed that only those who believed in Buddhism from the Yuelun Kingdom would say such words but as his gazended on the few luxurious horse carriages, he realized that the other party was from the South Jin Kingdom.


    Even though the autumn rain was falling, riding a horse carriage in an ancient temple seemed a little obnoxious. Since they were residing temporarily in the temple, they were notmoners.


    Looking at those carriages, Ning Que thought in his heart that if these people weren¡¯t diplomats from the South Jin Kingdom, they must be disciples from the Sword Garret. Whatever the case was, they weren¡¯t people that he wanted to see now.


    The carriage which the voice came from stopped not far away from the two of them. The curtain was lifted and a slightly pale but young and handsome face peeked out.


    The young man looked over at Ning Que displeasingly and said, "In a Buddhist Temple, one should respect Buddha. If you don¡¯t even know such principles, I have no idea why the monks of this temple would let you stay here."


    Ning Que asked, "Do you know me?"


    The young man said with a tinge of sarcasm, "Do I need to know you?"


    Ning Que grunted and said, "I thought that you had recognized me, hence you said such words for me to hear and to apologize to me sincerely just to befriend me."


    Hearing these words, the young man was shocked for a moment before understanding what Ning Que was trying to say. He asked incredulously, "You mean you think that I approached you on purpose?"


    Ning Queughed and said, "Indeed recently there have been many people who have been using many unusual methods to approach me. I thought you were intentionally criticizing me with such thoughts too. Who knows if that isn¡¯t the case."


    There was a hint of sneering within these peaceful words.


    Since Sangsang had fallen ill, Ning Que wasn¡¯t very stable emotionally. After the battle at Red Lotus Temple, because of those unusual happenings, his emotions had sunk to the rock bottom. Even though breaking the realm into the Knowing Destiny State had brought about slight happiness, he still needed an avenue to release his emotions.


    At this moment, he saw these few carriages and the voice from that carriage.


    The young man was incredibly angry as he shouted at Ning Que across the window, "Who do you think you are!"


    Ning Que was overjoyed at these words. He cocked his head and sped the big ck umbre on his shoulders as he rolled up his sleeves.


    At this moment, a hand appeared from the carriage window and pulled the young man back inside.


    Ning Que was disappointed as he thought to himself, ¡¯Who was this boring and uninteresting person?¡¯

 Chapter 551: Whispers before the Hall

    Chapter 551: Whispers before the Hall


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The hand appeared from the carriage window for a very short time but it was enough for Ning Que to capture some of its features. He saw slender fingers, a broad palm, and thin calluses.


    It was a hand very suitable for holding a sword and the thin calluses seemed to prove that it was a hand of a swordsman. The ordinary sword masters of the cultivation world usually used flying swords and there was only one exception. Coincidentally, it was the Sword Garret founded by the Sword Sage in the South Jin Kingdom.


    Ning Que somewhat deduced the identity of the man in the carriage. He appeared quite sorry, but deep in mind, he got alert.


    A man¡¯s voice rose from the luxurious carriage. It must be the owner of the hand. With a calm and gentle voice, he apologized to Ning Que on the other young man¡¯s behalf.


    Hearing the apology and sensing the calmness in the voice, Ning Que did not show his shock. He had guessed that the man might havee from the Sword Garret, but he did not expect a powerhouse at the Knowing Destiny State, or that a Knowing Destiny State cultivator would be so humble.


    Ning Que had felt the kindness and sincerity in the apology. When he confirmed that the man was a Knowing Destiny State cultivator, the kindness and sincerity seemed to be multiplied in a very short time.


    Ning Que never wanted to make a scene since Sangsang needed the treatment from the monks in the Lanke Temple. So after receiving the sincere apology, he waved his hand as a signal of ending the conflict.


    After a quiet moment in the carriage, the sincere and kind voice rose again, "Our master was rude to you but since you havee here to pay your tribute to Buddha, more sincerity would do you good."


    The kind words inadvertently revealed some sort of lecturing. Considering the man¡¯s power, Ning Que was not surprised at the arrogance. He shook his head and said, "For you guys from the South Jin Kingdom, Haotian is your god. But now you are here to worship the Buddha. I don¡¯t know how the Buddha would feel about it. Actually, we are the same. I never worshiped the Buddha in the past because I had nothing to ask for. But now I do have something to ask for and no matter how devout I am, the Buddha may not respond. So, why does the attitude matter?"


    The man in the carriage sighed like he was sorry to hear Ning Que¡¯s reply and then he said his farewells. Horse carriages slowly moved toward the side hall in the east.


    The Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival was a major event in the world and many bigwigs woulde to the Lanke Temple this autumn to the celebration. Several dayster, they could be everywhere in the temple. So, Ning Que did not care too much about the encounter, even if he had already known the true identity of the young master.


    The autumn rain became heavier, falling on the surface of the big ck umbre. Although the rain did not touch the people under the umbre, they felt colder in the temple. Ning Que took Sangsang¡¯s hand and prepared to head back to rest on their yard.


    Before leaving, he took a nce at the top of the distant Wa Mountain.


    The stone statue of Buddha was silently watching the world under the mountain. His wet face seemed to be morepassionate, as if he was sympathetic to the mortals trapped in the worldly affairs.


    "If you are right about the causal circle in the world, then there might not be a good ending for me, since I have done a lot of evils in my life. But Sangsang is different. I have tried my best to keep her away from killing. So if there¡¯s really a retribution, it must be on me instead of her."


    Looking at the Buddha statue in the rain, Ning Que prayed in his heart.


    "If you punish her because of my evils, if you take her away from me, I will destroy yourrgest statue in the world. I will burn the Lanke Temple and the 72 temples of Yuelun, and I will kill all the monks in the world. I will make the Buddhism Sect disappear."


    ...


    ...


    Several luxurious carriages from the South Jin Kingdom stopped quietly in front of a side hall of the Lanke Temple. A dozen middle-aged men with sharp eyes watched around indifferently to protect their master inside the hall. And there were several attendants, who looked like officials seeking shelter from the rain in the porch but did not enter the hall.


    The side hall in the rain seemed darker than usual. A dozen statues were worshipped in the hall, reflecting slight cold light. Some of them were happy while some were sad. Some of them put their hands together and some opened them. Different gestures revealed a strange sense of beauty and solemnity.


    A middle-aged man dressed in cyan clothes stopped in front of the stone statues and watched them. His hands behind him were slender and stable. He was the powerhouse from the Sword Garret and the man who spoke in the carriage.


    Looking at the statues, hemented, "Lanke Temple, Yuelun¡¯s White Tower Temple and the Wanyan Tower in Chang¡¯an all have stone statues of the venerable. It is said that people born to be smart can get the real meaning of the Buddhist Emblematic Gesture from the statues. Unfortunately, I can only feel the existence of wisdom but cannot realize it."


    The side hall was very quiet. The young master from the South Jin Kingdom who scolded Ning Que earlier looked embarrassed. It was not proper for him to me the powerhouse from the Sword Garret, but he could not control his emotions. He was very unsatisfied with the apology which greatly humiliated him.


    The middle-aged man looked at the young master¡¯s gloomy face and sighed in his heart. He slowly consoled, "There are many hidden powerhouses in the cultivation world. Since this year¡¯s Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival will be held in the Lanke Temple, people who rarely appear in the world maye here as well. Although the South Jin Kingdom has nothing to fear, we don¡¯t want any trouble."


    There was a gray-haired old man apanying the young master to visit the Lanke Temple. From his bent figure, he was just an ordinary person except that he carried a chessboard under his armpit. He looked quite phlegmatic and arrogant.


    The old man was the national champion of the South Jin Kingdom and was called the Chess Master. In his entire life, he had almost never lost any game on the chessboard and had the privilege to enter the pce freely. That was why he was so arrogant. He knew that troubles never bothered his noble master and said unhappily, "How could Mr. Cheng, the Sword Sage¡¯s younger brother, care about small troubles? Besides, the ent of the young man with the ck umbre tells me he is from the Tang Empire. There¡¯s no reason topromise."


    The young master thought the same so he looked at the middle-aged man, waiting for his exnation.


    Cheng Ziqing was the name of the middle-aged man and he was one of the few powerhouses who had reached the Knowing Destiny State in the Sword Garret. Of course, he did not care about the old man¡¯s attitude and treated the young master lightly. He said calmly, "Mater Qishan was a benefactor for the South Jin Kingdom. I think my Senior Brother or His Majesty would not want to see any conflicts in the Lanke Temple."


    His Majesty was the Emperor of the South Jin Kingdom and his Senior Brother was Liu Bai, the Sword Sage. The two names that Cheng Ziqing mentioned immediately made the hall silent and nobody dared to say a word.


    Cheng Ziqing walked out of the side hall and found a young officer in the porch. With his eyes, he indicated the officer to follow him. When they came to a quiet ce, he looked at the pale face of the officer and asked, "Is it him?"


    The young officer was Xie Chengyun, the third young master of the Xie Family in the South Jin Kingdom. At the Academy, he was a little-known talent and after the exam of the Academy¡¯s Second Floor, he had to leave the Academy because Ning Que was the winner. He came back to the South Jin Kingdom and it didn¡¯t take long for him to get his own ce in the imperial court. This year, he was appointed by the Emperor as a close official of the Crown Prince.


    Hearing the question, he nodded with aplicated look on his face.


    Cheng Ziqing fell into silence.


    In fact, when he first saw the big ck umbre, the young man and the girl under it, he had guessed their identities. When the young man showed the same indifference to Buddha, he knew his deduction was right and he had made a good choice to apologize for the young master.


    The young master would not give up if he found out the identity of the man under the umbre. And the Lanke Temple would not have peace today. Even if he had reached the Knowing Destiny State, he did not want to be against the man. He was not afraid, but he did not want to offend the man and his invincible sect.


    After thinking for a while, Cheng Ziqing looked at the officer and said, "Tomorrow, Master Qishan will show up and Ning Que would definitely be there as well. You must pay close attention to him. Even if His Highness recognizes him, you must keep His Highness calm."


    Xie Chengyun understood what Cheng Ziqing was worried about, and after a little hesitation, he epted the mission.


    After serving the Crown Prince for half a year, he clearly knew the disposition of his lifetime master. And he knew how difficult it could be to keep His Highness calm.


    Something suddenly urred to him. He looked at Cheng Ziqing¡¯s face, and worked up the nerve to gently ask, "Is it true that the man had blinded the Sword Sage¡¯s younger brother?"


    Cheng Ziqing¡¯s eyes gradually became cold. He looked at Xie Chengyun and coldly said, "I know you once studied at the Academy with him, and I understand how miserable it could be for a proud man since childhood to watch his old ssmate climbing to the top of the world and being left far behind. But you have no other choice but to improve your own cultivation or just give up on makingparisons. Other ploys will only make you more miserable."


    "Never try to kill someone with a borrowed knife. Least of all, a knife from the Sword Garret."


    Cheng Zhiqing thought about the head in the ancientke of the Sword Garret and his blind peer who spent all day in the darkroom practicing the sword. He continued with a frigid voice, "What the Sword Garret hates most is to be used by others."


    What he meant by this was the dealings with the former Great Divine Priest of Judgment, who lent Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s sword to Liu Yiqing through some important person in Sword Garret, in order to start a war between the Sword Garret and the Academy.


    In the end, Liu Yiqing was blinded by Ning Que¡¯s sword and was sent back to the Sword Garret a few monthster. Then Liu Bai drew a paper sword and lent it to Ye Hongyu. The former Great Divine Priest of Judgement was killed on the ck jade throne.


    Xie Chengyun only knew about the astonishing battle between Liu Bai¡¯s younger brother and Ning Que at the side gate of the Academy in Chang¡¯an. He did not know the secret behind it.


    Suddenly, he felt as if Mr. Cheng¡¯s eyes had be the sharpest swords. He felt a sharp pain in his eyes and lowered his head with fear and pain. He dared not say anything more.

 Chapter 552: Meeting an Old Friend Under the Bamboos

    Chapter 552: Meeting an Old Friend Under the Bamboos


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    In the autumn rain, Ning Que seemed to be praying sincerely, but was in fact grimly threatening the Buddha stone statue on the top of the Wa Mountain. However, he was clearly aware that the Buddha had long been dead and it was the Master Qishan in the Wa Mountain that knew how to cure Sangsang. In the next day, therefore, he took Sangsang to the Wa Mountain along the mountain path in the ck carriage.


    The mountain path behind the temple was still quiet and the pagoda trees along the path remained wet. There were traces left behind by carriage wheels on the smooth road surface.


    Sitting by the window, Ning Que looked at the tracks left on the mountain road with knitted brows. He thought about how the Yn Convention was to be held a few dayster in the Lanke Temple, so the diplomatic corps from different countries or the world of cultivation should be in the Lanke Temple, if they wanted to discuss the southward movement of the Deste Men or the Underworld Invasion. But why were there so many carriages heading for the Wa Mountain?


    Naturally, he thought of the noble from the South Jin Kingdom, whom he had met yesterday morning in the Lanke Temple. He could easily guess who he was at that point. The person who could be apanied by a powerhouse at the Knowing Destiny State from the Sword Garret must be the Crown Prince, if not the Emperor of the South Jin Kingdom. But he wondered what these people from the South Jin Kingdom were doing there in the Wa Mountain.


    The monk, Guan Hai, appeared once again under the big pagoda tree. He saluted the carriage with one hand and said with a smile, "I thought Senior Brother Thirteen would arrive earlier."


    Ning Que got off the carriage to return the salute and asked in a seemingly casual manner, "Are there already a lot of people?"


    "Indeed," Guan Hai replied.


    "I don¡¯t understand what that means," Ning Que asked.


    Guan Hai was slightly taken aback, realizing that Ning Que did not know what his teachering out of retreat meant to the world. So he carefully exined that every time Master Qishan did so, he would choose a fated person to answer his questions or to indicate the direction of his life.


    It was not unfamiliar to hear about Buddhist masters enlightening believers since there were quite a lot of stories about it. However, Master Qishan was not an ordinary Buddhist master in the eyes of the world; what he had said to the chosen people whening out of retreat, several times over the past decades, all had be a reality.


    It seemed to prove that the Elder Qishan could predict the future, which was even more amazing than the Great Divine Priest of Revtion in the West-Hill Divine Pce, almost like the tale of Buddha who could always satisfy all demands. It was no wonder why the world became crazy about him.


    After the murder in the Lanke Temple, the Elder Qishan retired from public life for a number of years, probably because he was sad about the viciousness of his old friend Lotus, or was afraid of the blood in front of the Temple. The news that the Master was going toe out of seclusion naturally became a great matter even in the world of cultivation. All the cultivators, including the high officials and the noble lords from different countries who were attending the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival went to the Wa Mountain without hesitation, to see whether they could get the opportunity to be the next destined person for the Master.


    It was only then when Ning Que came to know that the name, the Elder of the Lanke Temple, had such meaning for the world. All of a sudden, a melodious bell was heard from the Lanke Temple in front of the mountain, when he was going to say something.


    It wasmon to hear the morning bell and the evening drum in the Buddhist temple. But he was surprised at the second bell after the first bell in the morning to convene the morning ss.


    As a monk in the temple, Guan Hai heard more messages from the bell and his expression changed slightly.


    "What is it?" Ning Que asked.


    "We have some guests from afar," Guan Hai said, "The abbot uses the bell to ask me to receive them."


    "Then you¡¯d better go now," Ning Que said.


    Guan Hai really appreciated it. He sincerely apologized to Ning Que and bowed to Sangsang through the window before he left hurriedly.


    Looking at the back of the young monk on the mountain path, Ning Que raised his brows slightly in silence. Then he sat on the cushion in the front of the carriage, lightly kicked the Big ck Horse¡¯s hip, and said, "Go."


    The Big ck Horse felt a bit sleepy for he was catching autumn grasshoppers tillte into the night in the Temple. After being kicked by Ning Que, he gathered his energy and pranced toward the Wa mountain.


    In the midst of the rumble made by the wheels, Sangsang said with some anxiety, "It must be a big shot."


    Ning Que had long known that the visitor who could arouse a solemn call of the Lanke Temple and the reception of Guan Hai must be of extraordinary origin. However, no matter how self-abased he was, with some narcissism and joy he had to admit an undeniable fact:


    There was no other person in the world whose sect could be more powerful than his. To put it simply, no matter where he came from, the visitor who aroused the bell could never have a more powerful background.


    That was why he was curious about who the guest was and why Guan Hai had chosen to leave him for the other. Hearing the anxiety in Sangsang¡¯s words, he felt funny and confused since Sangsang never cared about such things.


    Sangsang whispered,"When Master Qishanes out of seclusion, he will only choose one destined person to answer his questions. Today, the Wa mountain has seen so many peopleing, among them lots of bigwigs. I wonder whether the Master will choose me as the destined person and cure my disease."


    Ning Que said with a smile, "To be the destined person for a hundred-year-old monk? Forget it. It¡¯s enough to be my destined one. As for the others, you do not need to worry about them."


    Sangsang opened the front door of the carriage, looking at his profile, and said, "I worry that you have topete with many people like what you did in our childhood, or when you entered the Second Floor of the Academy."


    "Who would dare topete with us? Even if a madman who is not afraid of death really beats us, will the Old Monk dare not to heal you? Besides, he has built a friendship with the Academy when he learned from the Headmaster. Ie from the Academy with the Great Spirit while youe from the Divine Hall with the Haotian Divine Light. With the the personal letter written by my teacher, there is nothing in our way. He has to cure you regardless of his own ideas."


    The carriage drove along the peaceful mountain path; the sound of the wheels rolling on the slightly damp path was soft. Rather, Ning Que¡¯s disrespectful voice toward the Wa mountain drifted among the branches of the locust trees and other autumn trees, lingering for quite a long time.


    ...


    ...


    The mountains were gentle, so the carriage was easy to drive on the mountain roads. But the distance between the two ces became a little bit longer. When the morning fog cleared and the autumn sun emerged on the top of the trees, the ck carriage arrived at the Jumping Tiger Stream.


    The Jumping Tiger Stream had been a very famous scenic spot in the Wa mountain in those years. However, with more and more old monks choosing to live here in seclusion, the Lanke Temple monks made the Wa mountain¡¯s ess more strict. It would only be randomly opened for a while each year. Since it was closed in recent days, there were no tourists by the stream.


    But no tourists did not mean that there weren¡¯t any visitors.


    Across the stone bridge over the stream, there were dense autumn woods. On this side of the bridge, arge green tree was standing on the vast stone region, under which was a small stone table.


    Under the big green tree gathered a dozen people; some standing, some whispering, others keeping silent. Through the cracks among the crowd, an old monk in yellow monk¡¯s robes could be vaguely seen ying chess.


    The ck carriage stopped a distance away from the tree. Taking a nce from the distance, Ning Que sensed the aura, strong or light, in those people. So he was sure that they were cultivators from different sects.


    Most people around the stone table under the tree focused on the game, while some were talking respectfully to a young noble in expensive clothes.


    It was the noble from the South Jin Kingdom that Ning Que had met in the Lanke Temple yesterday morning. He was not surprised at the scene since he had guessed who he was. However, he just felt somewhat emotional when he thought that the ordinary cultivators in the world, who had no hope of achieving Taoism would have to end up devoting themselves to the imperial family, although they had cultivated for half their lives.


    However, when he caught the sight of the familiar figure under a row of emerald green bamboos, dozens of feet away from the big green tree, he could not help the regret that he felt for the cultivators directing unto himself.


    It was obvious that although many cultivators intended to approach the maiden under the bamboos, all they dared to do was to salute from afar out of reverence or other reasons.


    So the maiden was just standing alone under the green bamboos.


    She was as lonely and strong as a bamboo.


    However, to Ning Que, she was just as vulnerable.


    Having not met her for over a year, he found her much thinner than before.

 Chapter 553: The Two Strong Speeches

    Chapter 553: The Two Strong Speeches


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The cultivators under the great green tree had been paying attention to the young man and women by the stream. They knew that the Calligraphy Addict was gentle, but rarely cared about the opposite sex. However, she chatted with the young man and they seemed to get along very well. As such, the cultivators began to whisper among themselves, specting about the identity and origins of the young man.


    Those who had guessed Ning Que¡¯s identity were proven right by what they saw. Their shock grew into respect, and they did not know if they should salute the sublime being from the Academy or remain silent so that they would not annoy him.


    The nobleman from South Jin Kingdom sensed the change in the atmosphere and saw that the cultivators who had been trying to butter up to him were a little uneasy. He looked at the two figures by the stream from the corner of his eyes and his expression grew grave.


    He was of noble status and had personallye to the Lanke Temple to attend the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival. Other than representing the royals of South Jin Kingdom in showing their respect for Master Qishan, who had done them a huge favor, the most important reason for his visit was because he knew that the Calligraphy Addict woulde. He wanted to prove his sincerity through his actions and even secretly hoped that if he managed to get Master Qishan to solve his doubts, he would be able to get together with the girl in Wa Mountain.


    The royal family of South Jin Kingdom had privately probed about how the Calligraphy Addict felt about this but was rejected. The nobleman had written her several letters that went unanswered. He knew that Mo Shanshan was not an ordinary woman, and he had tried not to cause her displeasure by making her feel as if he was pestering her after entering the Wa Mountain. He had suppressed his desire to get close to her and pretended to be nonchnt so that he would leave a good impression on her.


    The nobleman shrugged and chatted warmly with the cultivators while wondering nervously whether Mo Shanshan was quietly looking at him in appreciation. Just as he thought he had seeded, he suddenly realized that the girl he admired had not noticed him, but had gone to the stream to chat andugh happily with a man who had appeared out of nowhere.


    ...


    ...


    The surprised nces and whispered spections of the cultivators beneath the tree caught Ning Que¡¯s attention and did not escape his sharp senses. The grave nobleman from the South Jin Kingdom he met yesterday morning at Lanke Temple did not escape his eyes either. He could not help but frown slightly.


    When he thought about that, he had to admit, that if he ignored the man¡¯s temperament and moral character, and simply judged the South Jin noble by his background; he would probably be the best match for the Calligraphy Addict in this world. And if he wanted to discuss temperament and moral character, Ning Que had none to speak of. However, he was somewhat unhappy when the thought urred to him.


    Ning Que looked at the South Jin noble beneath the tree and asked, "Did youe with that guy?"


    Mo Shanshan shook her head.


    For some reason, Ning Que¡¯s displeasure was dispelled when he ascertained that she did note to the Lanke Temple with the noble. He said smilingly, "But I¡¯m sure he followed you here."


    Mo Shanshan did not know why he would say that.


    A chilly autumn breeze rose from the stream and blew towards the stone chessboard. Therge green tree rustled. However, the leaves on the treetop were dense and did not allow any wind to pass. The wind lifted up the noble¡¯s robes, revealing his bright yellow belt.


    "I know that he is the Crown Prince of the South Jin Kingdom," said Ning Que.


    Mo Shanshan was slightly startled.


    Ning Que smiled and said, "I met him at the Lanke Temple yesterday and we had a slight dispute. But you know how much more gentle I am now. So I didn¡¯t tell him anything no matter what he asked me. In my eyes, he isn¡¯t even anything. Because we have already crossed paths earlier. He had once wanted to buy my Chicken Soup Calligraphy to please you. I have already defeated him soundly then, so there isn¡¯t much fun I can glean off him now."


    Mo Shanshan looked at the mountain stream beneath the cliff and smiled with her head down without saying anything.


    Ning Que thought that she did not know about what had happened at the auction of the goods stolen from the Old Brush Pen Shop, so he told her about it excitedly. "Mr. Thirteen won¡¯t give the South Jin Crown Prince face. He just wants to give him a resounding p."


    Mo Shanshan looked up and asked with a slight smile, "Are you pleased?"


    Ning Que thought about it and said, "I was very pleased then, and I¡¯m still quite pleased thinking about it now."


    "Then you must be really pleased."


    Mo Shanshan nodded and said, "Actually, I knew about this."


    Ning Que felt awkward, thinking about how he had talked about it excitedly even though she already knew.


    Mo Shanshan looked into his eyes and said with an ambiguous smile, "Should I thank you for chasing away one of my suitors? Or are you satisfied with having me pine for you all my life and die alone?"


    Ning Que stiffened, not knowing how to reply.


    "The most troublesome thing is, everyone in the world knows about this. Then, how do you think the world will view me, and how will they view you and the way you treat me?"


    Mo Shanshan said with some shame and anger, "Since we did not work out, then it is not right for you to behave like this."


    "I was wrong. I was really wrong. I shouldn¡¯t have..."


    Ning Que bowed deeply to her and apologized, "I have made mistakes since then, and up till today. I hope that you can forgive me."


    His apology was sincere and rare.


    However, Mo Shanshan was not appeased. Her eyes, which were like brightkes, shook in slight disappointment and bitterness. She smiled grudgingly, "The Tao Addict was right, you are the most shameless person in the world. You admit your mistakes faster than anyone, so sincerely that you always make others feel as if they were the one in the wrong and you were the innocent one."


    Ning Que stayed silent. He had only realized that even the most sophisticated woman was no different from other girls once they were troubled by certain things. They would always find countless reasons to get angry.


    Of course, he knew that he could only bear with it because he was indeed in the wrong. After a moment, he said seriously, "In order to make my apology more sincere, I have decided to do something."


    Mo Shanshan asked, "What is it?"


    Ning Que smiled and said, "Once Sangsang recovers, I will return to Chang¡¯an as fast as possible. Then, I will get the Chicken Soup Calligraphy back from Grand Secretary Wang¡¯s manor and send it to you."


    Mo Shanshan smiled slightly and said, "There are already many of your calligraphy works in the study by the Ink Lake."


    Ning Que said with a little resignation, "Then how can I make you happy?"


    Mo Shanshan looked into his eyes and said, "The study by the Ink Lake is still devoid of memos you have written."


    This was a request that had been repeated so many times, Mo Shanshan even looked down on herself for it. Her face grew red with shame, but she stared at his eyes bravely and determinedly.


    Ning Que did not dare to look into her gaze. He turned toward the mountain stream without saying anything.


    Mo Shanshan sighed silently to herself and did not say anything else. She looked at the mountain stream calmly.


    The mountain scenery was extremely beautiful in autumn. There were crisp sounds of water rushing in the mountain stream yet everything seemed quiet by the river.


    ...


    ...


    The spections of the cultivators beneath the tree all pointed to one person.


    The puzzle was simple. In all the stories that the Calligraphy Addict had left in the world in her years outside her sect, there was only one man who could stand beside her and admire the scenery in silence.


    The spections were confirmed as the person who had guessed Ning Que¡¯s identity spoke up. It was determined that the man standing beside the Calligraphy Addict was the legendary Mr. Thirteen of the Academy, Ning Que! Shouts of surprise rang in the crowd. No matter how hard they tried to control their reactions, they were not able to.


    The Crown Prince of the South Jin Kingdom glowered as he looked at the two figures by the stream. His hands, which were outside his sleeves shook with anger and jealousy. He could not control his emotions even though he wanted to keep cool.


    After a moment of silence, he could not stop himself any longer and walked towards the stream. Since someone had taken the lead, many people followed. The area beneath therge tree emptied out in a short time.


    The stone chessboard that had previously been crowded was suddenly silent. Thepetitor from the South Jin Kingdom sat on one side of the chessboard deep in thought and did not notice. Meanwhile, the yellow-clothed monk who was refereeing the match had sensed it. He raised his head in surprise and nced at the stream.


    Ning Que sensed when the cultivator beneath therge green tree took his first step. Ning Que turned around and watched as the dozens of cultivators walked towards him. He couldn¡¯t help but freeze, and calcted at the fastest speed what he and Mo Shanshan should do when they rushed over in order to not fall into the mountain stream. Then, he looked at the ck horse carriage and made sure that that the Big ck Horse was alert before he was put at ease.


    The cultivators did not really push Ning Que into the mountain stream. Instead, they all observed a sense of propriety and even treated him with respect. They all stopped in unison while they were still several feet away from the edge of the stream.


    "Greetings, Mr. Thirteen. I am Taoist Lee from the Kingdom of Song."


    "I am Lin Ruoyu. Greetings, senior from the Academy."


    "I am Hua Yun. I am here to greet Sir Ning on behalf of my teacher."


    Everyone bowed graciously to Ning Que and saluted him. Their expressions were a mix of restraint and excitement. Some of their voices trembled, and some of their voices changed pitches in their excitement. One could sense that they were all very excited.


    ...


    ...


    This was the world of Haotian. The Haotian Taoism sect was naturally highly regarded. Most of the cultivators who hade to the Wa Mountain behind the Lanke Temple were Taoist cultivators.


    The vague rivalry between the Haotian Taoism sect and the Academy happened in the shadow of history and between powerful cultivators. It had nothing to do with these ordinary cultivators.


    They only knew that the back of the mountain of the Academy was a legendary Unknown ce.


    The core disciples of the Headmaster at the back of the mountain were legendary Unworldly Sublime Beings.


    To the cultivators in the world, these Unworldly Sublime Beings walked on clouds and rarely appeared in the mortal world. Most cultivators would not have the chance to encounter them.


    Amongst all other Unknown ces, the Academy was the only one linked to the secr world. But cultivators outside the Tang Empire would basically not have the chance to meet the disciples of the back of the mountain of the Academy.


    They have finally encountered one up close. They weren¡¯t watching the Unworldly Sublime Being waving his sword as he flew past them, and could even speak with him. How could they not be excited?


    Whether or not this Lucky Chance would benefit them on their long path to cultivation, they would at least be able to tell their descendants and disciples about what had happened one year at the Lanke Temple on Wa Mountain before their bodies failed and they returned to Haotian¡¯s divine light. They would be able to talk about how approachable Mr. Thirteen of the Academy was with pride.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que had never possessed the self-awareness of an Unworldly Sublime Being. After he had sessfully entered the Second floor of the Academy, he continued drinking at the House of Red Sleeves and made conversations with his neighbors at the Lin 47th Street. He had interacted with many in the world when he brought the students from the Academy to the northern frontier fortress. However, he could clearly sense that the way he was treated had changed over the years. However, he did not care because he stayed in the mortal world and did not live in seclusion in the supermundane.


    This had something to do with his entering the human realm on behalf of the Academy, and also because of his experience. He could notpletely cut off his ties with the secr world before he had taken his revenge. And even though he had killed Xia Hou, this had not changed.


    That was why Ning Que froze when he saw the respectful expressions of the cultivators from other countries and the excitement in their eyes. Then, he smiled warmly and returned their salutations calmly.


    While his expression was serene, his heart wasn¡¯t.


    He had always known of the Academy¡¯s standing in the cultivation world. However, when he had previously entered the human realm, the people he had interacted with were either mad or terrifyingly powerful perverted seniors in cultivation. That was why this was the first time he had felt the power of his sect, as well as the respect and admiration other cultivators had for the Academy.


    Whether it was respect or admiration, they both felt really good.


    ...


    ...


    Even though this was Haotian¡¯s world and most cultivators cultivated in Taoism, the Tang Empire was still the strongest country in the world. Many were influenced by the Tang Empire and liked to think that they belonged to sects close to the Academy. A Sword Master from Great River Kingdom did not hesitate to kneel before Ning Que together with his Younger Brothers and bowed grandly to Ning Que. Then, he got up and stood at the spot closest to Mo Shanshan proudly.


    Such actions were ratherughable. However, most of the other cultivators did notugh and felt that it was natural. If they were cultivators from the Great River Kingdom, they would be the fastest to kneel. The Calligraphy Addict was more charming than anyone else. Who would refuse to get close to her? Furthermore, they could get close to the sublime being from the Academy through her connections.


    However, someone could not bear to watch any longer. Heughed out loud and ruined the atmosphere by the mountain stream. The cultivators who were bowing in a frenzy turned around and wondered who was so brave to do that.


    The person who dared tough mockingly did not fear the Academy, or course. The West-Hill Divine Pce did not send anyone forth and the monks from the Lanke Temple were still on the mountain for some reason. The only person who was qualified to go against the Academy, or perhaps one should say, the only person who thought he was qualified to go against the Academy, was a disciple of the Sword Garret of the South Jin Kingdom.


    Ever since the Sword Sage, Liu Bai, appeared and was recognized as the strongest powerhouse in the world, the South Jin Kingdom, who touted themselves as the second strongest country in the world grew proud. Sometimes, they even looked down on the Tang Empire. Liu Bai¡¯s disciples at the Sword Garret also traversed the cultivation world proudly.


    However, many misunderstood. Even disciples from the Sword Garret dared not disrespect someone from the Academy. Even if they hated the Academy because they had caused Liu Yiqing¡¯s blindness, their hate was respectful.


    The person who hadughed mockingly was indeed someone the from South Jin Kingdom.


    But it wasn¡¯t a disciple of the Sword Garret who hadughed. It was the Crown Prince of the South Jin Kingdom.


    ...


    ...


    The Crown Prince of the South Jin Kingdom had grown angry after ascertaining Ning Que¡¯s identity. He shot hateful res at them because of his jealousy. He knew what the Academy meant to the Tang Empire, and that he should not stir up trouble. Even so, he could not help himself after seeing the cultivators behave so spinelessly before Ning Que.


    The crowd split to reveal the South Jin Crown Prince.


    His expression softened when he saw Mo Shanshan. He said softly, "How can someone so heartless stand beside the Hill Master? The chess master I brought with me is a national rank yer in our pce. He would be able to solve the chessboard in seconds. You can head up the mountain with uster."


    All was silent by the mountain stream. The expressions on the cultivators¡¯ faces wereplex. Many wanted tough but dared not, and their faces twisted oddly, making the whole scene entertaining.


    Over the years, the most famous love story spread in the world was no longer about the childhood sweethearts, Yuelun Kingdom¡¯s Flower Addict and Prince Long Qing. Instead, it was the love triangle between the Academy¡¯s Ning Que, the Calligraphy Addict from the Great River Kingdom and the little handmaiden, Sangsang. This story had spread across several countries and gained poprity amongst the masses.


    In the beginning, the descriptions about Sangsang were rather nd. No one knew who the handmaiden was and could not understand why Ning Que insisted on choosing her and disappointing the Calligraphy Addict. That was why everyone supported the Calligraphy Addict and raged on her behalf.


    As time passed, several secrets were unearthed. The cultivation world finally knew that the handmaiden, Sangsang was the only sessor of the previous Great Divine Priest of Light. The situation changed, especially when the West-Hill Divine Pce officially granted her status as the Lady of Light several months ago.


    To many, the little handmaiden, Sangsang was finally equal to the Calligraphy Addict in this story. As such, the story became more interesting.


    The cultivators present all thought of the famous story when they heard the South Jin Crown Prince¡¯s admonishment. Then, they naturally thought of the rumors that the Lady of Light would always be by Ning Que¡¯s side.


    Then, they remembered that there was a ck horse carriage by the stone chessboard.


    Everyone turned to look at the ck horse carriage, the look in their eyes changed. They were even more reserved aspared to when they saw Ning Que. The respect and fear in their eyes grew stronger.


    One of them finally regained awareness, and hurried to kneel before the ck horse carriage.


    As mentioned earlier, all cultivators respected the West-Hill Divine Pce, and the same was true by the mountain stream. The cultivators hurried to the ck horse carriage and kneeled before it.


    They all said piously, "Wee, Lady of Light, to the world."


    Sangsang¡¯s calm voice emerged from the carriage. "Rise, all of you."


    Ning Que smiled. He didn¡¯t expect that the girl¡¯s voice could carry so much power.


    The cultivators all got up, as if relieved of their burdens. However, they remained in their respectful poses. No one dared to wipe off the dirt and grass on their knees.


    The South Jin Crown Prince¡¯s expression grew ugly when he saw that. He had only realized then, that even those around Ning Que were highly regarded as well. If the handmaiden on the horse carriage bes the Great Divine Priest of Light, then her status would be higher than his father, the King!


    He could not imagine that what happened next would make him cross and resigned.


    Sangsang¡¯s voice rang from the horse carriage once more. "Miss Calligraphy Addict, would you apany me up the mountain?"


    The expression of the South Jin Crown Prince changed drastically.


    The cultivators¡¯ expressions grew excited.


    Ning Que grew anxious.


    He understood Sangsang, and he knew that Sangsang¡¯s address of Mo Shanshan as the Hill Master earlier, and calling her Miss Calligraphy Addict now held different connotations. Even though it was not malicious, he did not know if it would cause the other girl displeasure.


    Mo Shanshan was not displeased, however, her smile looked a little forced.


    She could vaguely guess why Sangsang had invited her on the horse carriage and journey together.


    It was probably because of what the South Jin Crown Prince had said.


    The South Jin Crown Prince had said that Ning Que was heartless.


    Sangsang wanted to prove that it had nothing to do with Ning Que.


    This was between the two women.


    The South Jin Crown Prince had invited the Calligraphy Addict up the mountain.


    Sangsang could invite the Calligraphy Addict up as well.


    She would invite the Calligraphy Addict and use it to p the Crown Prince¡¯s face at the same time.


    Sangsang was willing to do many things in order to get revenge for her young master, and to allow him to maintain his image and mor before the other cultivators. That included this invitation that she did not really want to extend.


    Mo Shanshan sighed softly and thought about how Sangsang cared for Ning Que at all times. She would do anything to make Ning Que happy, which was something hard to imagine. Could she do the same if she was Sangsang?


    The consideration took a split second.


    Sangsang had already done so much for Ning Que¡¯s sake.


    Mo Shanshan thought, "How hard could it be to walk to the horse carriage?"


    ...


    ...


    The crowd watched as the Calligraphy Addict boarded the ck horse carriage. The nces they gave Ning Que had changed once more. Amongst the respectful nces, was also envy. Ning Que knew that the truth was otherwise. The two women in the horse carriage did not mean anything. However, he did not exin, but patted the Big ck Horse to signify that they should leave.


    The ck horse carriage began to move slowly.


    Ning Que sat on the soft cushion in front of the carriage. He looked at the South Jin Crown Prince¡¯s grave and twisted expression and was suddenly gleeful. However, this glee was not sufficient.


    That was because he hade to cure Sangsang¡¯s illness. He did not wish to stir up trouble. That was why he had not reacted during his meeting and verbal conflict at the Lanke Temple yesterday morning with the Crown Prince, or when he was ridiculed and rebuked by the man earlier. He remained muted and silent, unlike his usual self.


    However, he was still dissatisfied.


    The ck horse carriage suddenly stopped as it passed the South Jin Crown Prince.


    Ning Que looked Crown Prince¡¯s pained expression andmented, "You nosy parker."


    Laughter rang in the air when he said that.


    Even though cultivators who were wary of the South Jin Kingdom forced themselves not tough, their expressions twisted from the effort.


    After all, it was someone else¡¯s business. The Lady of Light had asked the Calligraphy Addict to board the horse carriage. Even if he was the Crown Prince of South Jin, what right did he have to interfere? He liked the Calligraphy Addict, but she didn¡¯t like him. How dare he pick at the rtionship between the Calligraphy Addict and Mr. Thirteen of the Academy, if even the Lady of Light didn¡¯t say anything?


    He was really being a nosy-parker, poking his nose into things that had nothing to do with him.


    The Crown Prince¡¯s servants and disciples of the Sword Garret did notugh. However, they did not grow angry. Instead, they looked down shamefully. To them, the Crown Prince deserved the humiliation.


    The ck horse carriage continued on and passed the Crown Prince slowly. Then, Ning Que continued, "It¡¯s none of your business."


    The South Jin Crown Prince trembled in anger. When he heard that, everything grew dark and he almost fainted.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que lifted the curtains and saw that Sangsang¡¯s color did look good, so he was not worried. However, he grew anxious when he saw that she and Shanshan were sitting across each other in silence.


    He consoled himself, thinking that he would worry about it after they found Master Qishan. He kicked the Big ck Horse lightly, signaling it to move faster. However, the horse carriage was stopped at the Jumping Tiger stream before it even crossed the bridge.


    It wasn¡¯t the South Jin Crown Prince who stopped the horse carriage, but a coldly spoken sentence.


    "Even though you are a disciple of the Academy, you can¡¯t disregard the rules. Is this how the Headmaster teaches his student?"


    The yellow-clothed old monk who was sitting by the chessboard under therge tree slowly lifted his head and said softly.


    The ck horse carriage stopped before the bridge.


    Ning Que was silent for a moment.


    He hated hearing such self-important words that were spoken by the elderly. This was especially so when the old monk used his teacher against him. However, he did not reveal his vexation because he wanted to ask the Lanke Temple to heal Sangsang.


    He looked at the old monk and asked, "What rules?"


    The yellow-garbed monk slowly stood up and said,"You can only cross the bridge after solving this game."


    Ning Que shook his head and said, "Rules are dead, and we are alive."


    He had said this to the Calligraphy Addict earlier.


    The yellow-garbed old monk said, "Man are only alive if we live by these rules."


    There was a certain philosophy in his words. However, Ning Que did not know if the old monk knew that he had brought Sangsang to the mountain to cure her illness and was using it to threaten him.


    He frowned slightly and said, "If my teacher came, would you ask him to solve the game before meeting Master Qishan?"


    The yellow-garbed old monk said unflinchingly, "If the Headmasteres personally, Senior Brother Qishan would havee to wee him. Only the Headmaster can ignore all rules in this world. As his disciple, you do not have the same rights."


    Ning Que looked into the old monk¡¯s eyes and suddenly said, "The Buddhism Sect values all lives as equal no matter whether they are pigs or dogs. Even if the difference between my teacher and I are that of a dumb pig or dog and a human, my teacher and I are equal. If my teacher does not have to observe the rules, then why should I?"


    The yellow-garbed old monk said indifferently, "The disciple from the Academy does have a glib tongue indeed. However, I shall not listen if I do not wish to."


    Ning Que said, "So ites down to whose fists are harder. Your temple rules are there to stop those who do not have the ability to break them."


    The yellow-garbed old monk frowned slightly and said, "Does Mr. Thirteen think that he has the ability to break the rules of the world?"


    Ning Que said, "I wish to try."


    With that, he stuck his hand into the horse carriage.


    Sangsang had long opened the arrow box and assembled his iron bow.


    Ning Que took the bow and stuck an arrow on it. He pulled the string back and pointed it at the yellow-garbed monk beside the chessboard.


    Then, he said, "Do you wish to try?"


    ...


    ...


    -

 Chapter 554: The Leaping Birds

    Chapter 554: The Leaping Birds


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que took the iron bow and pulled it naturally with a peaceful expression, like picking up chopsticks during mealtime. However, as he pulled the iron bow and aimed at the old man next to the stone table, under the green tree with the dark and cold arrow, the quiet mountain was suddenly enveloped by a strong killing intent.


    Looking at this, the yellow-clothed old monk turned pale. He was not afraid, but he was so angry and confused that his clothes started to tremble.


    The old monk certainly knew Ning Que¡¯s Primordial Thirteen Arrows which were famous in the cultivation realm. Once the powerful and perfect Prince Long Qing was ruined like a specter by one shot.


    As a reclusive monk at the Lanke Temple, he never expected that Ning Que would kill him when he just attempted to stop him to follow the rules of Tile Mountain.


    What made the old monk angrier and more confused was, given Ning Que¡¯s peaceful expression, if he tried to stop him, he would shoot him for real. How dared he!


    The cultivators saw all of these since they were respectfully seeing the ck horse carriages off. They were all shocked beyond words and could not understand why Ning Que had reacted like this.


    Everyone, who would like to see Master Qishan, had to follow the rules of Lanke Temple, including the Divine Lord Lotus. No exceptions. Even if he was the Headmaster¡¯s core disciple, who considered the tests as humiliations and would like to break through, Ning Que should not kill anybody.


    Some elderly cultivators suddenly were reminded of Mr. Ke and his wonderful days in the world. They realized that Ning Que was just like Mr. Ke, who came from the Academy. They were too scared to have a nce at the ck horse carriage.


    The sharp iron arrow reflected cold lights without any tremors, as if all the light was concentrated on the head of ??the arrow, which indicated this iron arrow did not move at all and the hand holding it was umonly steady. Everything was telling people that the man with the bow was extremely cold-blooded.


    The yellow-clothed old monk stared at the iron arrow and realized he was going to be killed, since he was too old and the arrow was too close to avoid it. Fear showed up on his face, then it turned into anger, and then pain. In the end, it turned into peace and determination.


    "He is indeed a man from the Academy."


    The yellow-clothed old monk looked at Ning Que and said indifferently, "You are as bossy as Ke Haoran. However, I will follow the rules anyway, because the world needs rules. Men like you and Ke Haoran, who don¡¯t want to behave, can kill me but never subdue me."


    "I don¡¯t know what painful memories Youngest Uncle had given to you in the old days. As a disciple of the Academy, I must tell you that the Youngest Uncle was never an overbearing and cold-blooded person."


    Ning Que looked at the yellow-clothed old monk and continued, "But when men like us meet men like you, either of us has to step back. Like now, I need you to back down, master."


    The monk said in a cold voice, "Why are we the ones who should step back?"


    Ning Que replied, "Before answering this question, I think we must figure out why you have to set these rules for people, and why others have to obey them. In fact, you must be aware that rules are made by the strong to restrict and exploit the weak. What I admire the most about Youngest Uncle is that he had be a strong man who could ignore all rules, but he never wanted to set rules for others."


    The yellow-clothed old monk suddenly burst intoughter. Looking at Ning Que, he shouted, "How can there be anyone in the world able to ignore all rules? Ke Haoran¡¯s death is a warning to you!"


    Upon hearing that, Ning Que just slowly frowned without changing his expression.


    The Academy¡¯s disciples at the back of the mountain were the ones who respected the Headmaster the most. However, the one they always admired the most was the Youngest Uncle who once traveled the world on a little ck donkey.


    If they heard someone say something bad about the Headmaster, they would smile and ignore him. In their minds, the Headmaster was a man who could be teased. Besides, he was alive. If he was really pissed off, he could destroy the one offending.


    However, if anyone dared to disrespect the Youngest Uncle, they might put up a desperate fight, because the ck donkey was dead, so was the Youngest Uncle who could never again speak for himself.


    Ning Que was the most professional killer. However, due to Sangsang¡¯s illness, after entering the Tile Mountain, he had been constraining himself to not kill.


    At this moment, he did not want to endure anymore. He tightened the bowstring with his fingers, buzzing and indicating that if the arrow was shot, someone must be killed.


    "I didn¡¯t feel as if anyone was trying to warn me."


    He looked at the yellow-clothed old monk and said, "But I am warning you this time. If you stop me when my carriage passes the bridge, I will kill you."


    If he said who was going to die, the person would die.


    Looking at his quiet and calm face, no one would doubt his determination and abilities.


    The expert of the Sword Garret, Cheng Ziqing sighed in his mind when he saw this. He stepped forward and was going to stop Ning Que.


    However, he stopped after only taking one step, because he found that even he could not break through Ning Que¡¯s arrow intent.


    The ck horse carriage slowly moved towards the bridge.


    The yellow-clothed old monk stood up, calm and decided. He was ready to sacrifice himself.


    Who could stop this?


    ...


    ...


    At this moment, a clear ringing suddenly sounded on the mountain road.


    The bell was loud and clear, with softness and mercy.


    Hearing the bell, several kingfishers flew out of the bamboo grove andnded on the mountain road, leaping towards the bell sounds, as if the devout followers worshipped the mountain.


    An old voice bitterly screamed. An elderly woman uncoordinatedly broke the peace on the mountain and froze the leaping birds.


    "Ning Que, you¡¯re still as cold-blooded and overbearing as usual. Do all the Tangs act in this way? Do you forget that this is the Lanke Temple? Do you really think no cultivator dares to challenge the authority of the Academy?"


    A momentter, another powerful voice sounded on the mountain path. It sounded like the bell of an ancient temple as well as the gentle singing of Buddha, which cheered the birds up once again.


    "Even if you are from the Academy, how dare you kill in the Buddhist Hearnd?"

 Chapter 555: The Leaping Birds

    Chapter 555: The Leaping Birds


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Ning Que took the iron bow and pulled it naturally with a peaceful expression, like picking up chopsticks during mealtime. However, as he pulled the iron bow and aimed at the old man next to the stone table, under the green tree with the dark and cold arrow, the quiet mountain was suddenly enveloped by a strong killing intent.


    Looking at this, the yellow-clothed old monk turned pale. He was not afraid, but he was so angry and confused that his clothes started to tremble.


    The old monk certainly knew Ning Que¡¯s Primordial Thirteen Arrows which were famous in the cultivation realm. Once the powerful and perfect Prince Long Qing was ruined like a specter by one shot.


    As a reclusive monk at the Lanke Temple, he never expected that Ning Que would kill him when he just attempted to stop him to follow the rules of Tile Mountain.


    What made the old monk angrier and more confused was, given Ning Que¡¯s peaceful expression, if he tried to stop him, he would shoot him for real. How dared he!


    The cultivators saw all of these since they were respectfully seeing the ck horse carriages off. They were all shocked beyond words and could not understand why Ning Que had reacted like this.


    Everyone, who would like to see Master Qishan, had to follow the rules of Lanke Temple, including the Divine Lord Lotus. No exceptions. Even if he was the Headmaster¡¯s core disciple, who considered the tests as humiliations and would like to break through, Ning Que should not kill anybody.


    Some elderly cultivators suddenly were reminded of Mr. Ke and his wonderful days in the world. They realized that Ning Que was just like Mr. Ke, who came from the Academy. They were too scared to have a nce at the ck horse carriage.


    The sharp iron arrow reflected cold lights without any tremors, as if all the light was concentrated on the head of ??the arrow, which indicated this iron arrow did not move at all and the hand holding it was umonly steady. Everything was telling people that the man with the bow was extremely cold-blooded.


    The yellow-clothed old monk stared at the iron arrow and realized he was going to be killed, since he was too old and the arrow was too close to avoid it. Fear showed up on his face, then it turned into anger, and then pain. In the end, it turned into peace and determination.


    "He is indeed a man from the Academy."


    The yellow-clothed old monk looked at Ning Que and said indifferently, "You are as bossy as Ke Haoran. However, I will follow the rules anyway, because the world needs rules. Men like you and Ke Haoran, who don¡¯t want to behave, can kill me but never subdue me."


    "I don¡¯t know what painful memories Youngest Uncle had given to you in the old days. As a disciple of the Academy, I must tell you that the Youngest Uncle was never an overbearing and cold-blooded person."


    Ning Que looked at the yellow-clothed old monk and continued, "But when men like us meet men like you, either of us has to step back. Like now, I need you to back down, master."


    The monk said in a cold voice, "Why are we the ones who should step back?"


    Ning Que replied, "Before answering this question, I think we must figure out why you have to set these rules for people, and why others have to obey them. In fact, you must be aware that rules are made by the strong to restrict and exploit the weak. What I admire the most about Youngest Uncle is that he had be a strong man who could ignore all rules, but he never wanted to set rules for others."


    The yellow-clothed old monk suddenly burst intoughter. Looking at Ning Que, he shouted, "How can there be anyone in the world able to ignore all rules? Ke Haoran¡¯s death is a warning to you!"


    Upon hearing that, Ning Que just slowly frowned without changing his expression.


    The Academy¡¯s disciples at the back of the mountain were the ones who respected the Headmaster the most. However, the one they always admired the most was the Youngest Uncle who once traveled the world on a little ck donkey.


    If they heard someone say something bad about the Headmaster, they would smile and ignore him. In their minds, the Headmaster was a man who could be teased. Besides, he was alive. If he was really pissed off, he could destroy the one offending.


    However, if anyone dared to disrespect the Youngest Uncle, they might put up a desperate fight, because the ck donkey was dead, so was the Youngest Uncle who could never again speak for himself.


    Ning Que was the most professional killer. However, due to Sangsang¡¯s illness, after entering the Tile Mountain, he had been constraining himself to not kill.


    At this moment, he did not want to endure anymore. He tightened the bowstring with his fingers, buzzing and indicating that if the arrow was shot, someone must be killed.


    "I didn¡¯t feel as if anyone was trying to warn me."


    He looked at the yellow-clothed old monk and said, "But I am warning you this time. If you stop me when my carriage passes the bridge, I will kill you."


    If he said who was going to die, the person would die.


    Looking at his quiet and calm face, no one would doubt his determination and abilities.


    The expert of the Sword Garret, Cheng Ziqing sighed in his mind when he saw this. He stepped forward and was going to stop Ning Que.


    However, he stopped after only taking one step, because he found that even he could not break through Ning Que¡¯s arrow intent.


    The ck horse carriage slowly moved towards the bridge.


    The yellow-clothed old monk stood up, calm and decided. He was ready to sacrifice himself.


    Who could stop this?


    ...


    ...


    At this moment, a clear ringing suddenly sounded on the mountain road.


    The bell was loud and clear, with softness and mercy.


    Hearing the bell, several kingfishers flew out of the bamboo grove andnded on the mountain road, leaping towards the bell sounds, as if the devout followers worshipped the mountain.


    An old voice bitterly screamed. An elderly woman uncoordinatedly broke the peace on the mountain and froze the leaping birds.


    "Ning Que, you¡¯re still as cold-blooded and overbearing as usual. Do all the Tangs act in this way? Do you forget that this is the Lanke Temple? Do you really think no cultivator dares to challenge the authority of the Academy?"


    A momentter, another powerful voice sounded on the mountain path. It sounded like the bell of an ancient temple as well as the gentle singing of Buddha, which cheered the birds up once again.


    "Even if you are from the Academy, how dare you kill in the Buddhist Hearnd?"

 Chapter 556: A Perfect Silence Prevailed

    Chapter 556: A Perfect Silence Prevailed


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The copper bell sounded crisp and was pleasing to the ear. The kingfishers jumped up and down on the road excitedly, weing the approaching people from Wa mountain. Among them, there were more than a dozen sadhus from Yuelun Kingdom wearing bamboo hats and holding iron scepters. The olddy with a wrinkled face and arrogant expression obviously turned out to be Aunt Quni Madi, a very influential figure in Buddhism Sect. Lu Chenjia, the Flower Addict, who was just as good looking as usual, but more haggard than ever, walked silently besides her.


    The most striking thing among the crowd was the man-drawn carriage. It was covered with curtains that were embroidered with Buddha¡¯s words and painted with beautiful images from Buddhist scriptures. It was unknown who was sitting inside it, but the abbot of Lanke Temple and Guan Hai and the core disciple of Master Qishan were respectfully apanying the person.


    After seeing the ck carriage next to Jumping Tiger Stream and Ning Que holding an iron bow inside it, Quni Madi held her scepter so tightly that her veins began popping out, although it was unknown why Ning Que¡¯s actions caused this reaction. She suddenly looked old and her eyes filled with increasingly heavy resentment. However, Lu Chenjia¡¯s expression was impassive, making it seem like she did not see Ning Que.


    Watching people walking up from the mountain path, Ning Que thought that Guan Hai did not need to wee them himself if it was only Quni Madi and Flower Addict visiting, in spite of Sangsang. Thus he looked at the man-drawn carriage, guessing the monk inside it might be a very important figure from Xuankong Temple.


    After realising that the approaching people were Aunt Quni Madi and the Flower Addict, all the cultivators saluted. They, like Ning Que, were guessing the identity of the person inside the carriage, as he dared to speak to the disciples from the Academy in the way a master did.


    Quni Madi nodded indifferently in response to their salute. As she was one of the venerable seniors in the cultivation world due to her age, she did not have to make small talk with the younger generation. She continued to pay attention to Ning Que. If the resentment in her eyes had be flying knives, Ning Que would have been cut up a thousand times.


    Flower Addict, Lu Chenjia, had always been indifferent and speechless, no matter how deferentially the cultivators saluted. She did not respond at all, seemingly ignorant to the things going on around her.


    The person inside the carriage noticed Ning Que aiming at the old monk in yellow with his bow. He spoke in a calm and majestic way, "Evil attacker, you¡¯d better put down your bow as soon as possible."


    Remaining silent for a moment, Ning Que loosened the bowstrings and moved the arrowhead slightly.


    No longer being targeted by the iron arrow, the old monk in yellow felt the threat to his life disappear slowly. He only then realized that his kasaya had been sweaty. When he realized why he was fearful, he could not help smiling bitterly.


    Witnessing this scene, the cultivators on alert felt relieved.


    Looking at Ning Que, Quni Madi mocked him with a cracking and unmusical voice, "It seems that he only knows how to bully the weak... "


    Her vulgar ridicule suddenly came to an abrupt end.


    Instead of lowing the arrowhead, Ning Que aimed at the Buddha carriage with the iron arrow.


    In Quni Madi¡¯s view, the monk in the Buddha man-drawn carriage could overpower the Academy. She wanted to take this chance to humiliate Ning Que, and yet she only found out how brave Ning Que really was.


    She scowled, "Ning Que, how dare you!"


    Since hearing the copper bells from the mountain path and his voice, Ning Que knew that the man within the carriage was a real sublime being from the Buddhism Sect, and even had a vague idea as to where he came from.


    However, that would not stop Ning Que.


    "Bullying the weak sounds interesting, and our Academy is very happy to do so. However, we like to smash those seemingly stronger things more, especially rules and poseurs."


    Aiming at the monk¡¯s shadow inside the carriage, Ning Que said, "Today, you are the best among the crowd in turns of state and cultivation. I wonder, can you catch my arrow?"


    The bowstrings tightened again, and the iron arrow was ready to be shot off. However, Ning Que was different from earlier when he shot at the old monk in yellow. A strong aura was emanating from his body.


    Everyone felt the strong but cold aura released by Ning Que, even the kingfishers who were only just before jumping around excitedly besides the carriage and seemed fascinated by the merciful aura of the monk. They flew away, disappearing in to the deep bamboo grove after a few frightened cries.


    As the wind became more powerful, the trees shook violently. Hundreds of shaking leaves fell around the ck carriage due to the auraing from the iron arrow.


    Seeing the strong aura released by Ning Que, the cultivators at a high state were shocked. Cheng Ziqing, a master from the Sword Garret and the Knowing Destiny State was the most shocked by it, as he wanted to pull out his sword in response to its power.


    Quni Madi looked ghastly, as she slowly connected certain things. But she could not believe that her greatest enemy got such a Lucky Chance.


    Guan Hai knew Ning Que very well, and he said in shock, "Senior Brother, please put down that arrow quickly. The chief monk is the president of the Commandment Yard of Xuankong Temple, and you can¡¯t behave like this."


    Hearing these words, the crowd was shocked and could not believe a word they heard. It was very difficult for ordinary cultivators to see people from the Unknown ce which was a legendary ce in the cultivation world. But today in the Wa mountain they, they had not only seen the disciple from the back of the mountain of the Academy but also a master from Xuankong Temple. It was beyond their imagination!


    As the Academy was a connected ce between thend of the earth and the cultivation world, and all the people knew about the south part of Chang¡¯an city, people could sometimes meet Unworldly Sublime Beings from the back of the mountain. However, Zhishou Abbey of Haotian Taoism and Xuankong Temple of Buddhism Sect only appeared in ssics and legends, and basically, nobody could meet them.


    Everyone looked toward the carriage, and they wondered in shock whether he was a real monk from Xuankong Temple or not. It was beyond their imagination that the Pgic club held by Lanke Temple could attract so much attention from Unworldly Sublime Beings.


    It was natural that they were excited, but nobody dared to approach the carriage to salute as they had saluted Ning Que because the carriage was being targeted by the iron arrow.


    After hearing Guan Hai¡¯s words, Ning Que¡¯s expression did not change at all. He held the iron bow firmly, like a mountain standing unchanged for a thousand years. He calmly waited for the answer from the monk inside the carriage.


    ...


    ...


    The Academy versus Xuankong Temple.


    Mr. Thirteen versus the president of Commandment Yard.


    These names along are enough to shock the cultivation world. The cultivators beside the stream subconsciously suppressed their urge to exim in surprise, and they held their breath, staring intently at the scene.


    The confrontation between these two Unknown ces would take ce in thend of the earth, and ordinary cultivators could watch this battle themselves. How could they not be excited?


    There was a sudden silence beside the stream. Only the cry of the kingfishers in the deep grove and the quiet noise of hooves made by the horses eating grass could be heard.


    They were waiting to hear that vigorous voice from the carriage again.


    They were wondering how the monk from Xuankong Temple would defend against the arrow from the Academy.


    Nothing could be heard from the carriage, even after a long time.


    The green leaves billowed, and the monk from Xuankong Temple remained silent.


    Ning Que had asked whether he dared to catch the arrow or not.


    The monk did not answer.


    It meant that He dared not.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que was not surprised by the monk¡¯s reaction.


    It wasmon for ordinary cultivators to naturally revere the legendary Xuankong Temple.


    However, he was from the Academy, and he had met monks from Xuankong Temple, so he was not afraid.


    Since hearing the copper bell, he had been trying to determine the cultivation state of the monk.


    He did not know where the Commandment Yard was nor who the president of Commandment Yard was. However, he was sure that he was by no means as powerful as the powerhouse, the legendary Chief Preaching Monk of Xuankong Temple.


    The Buddhism Sect did not require people to cultivate the Five States, but it required them to get the power of understanding.


    After hearing his words, he was sure that the monk was from Xuankong Temple and had a power of understanding which equated to the Knowing Destiny State.


    If Ning Que had still been in front of Red Lotus Temple, he would have escaped when faced with someone in the Knowing Destiny State.


    However, he had already reached the Knowing Destiny State in the autumn rain.


    The cultivation state of the monk is higher than that of Prince Long Qing, but he was far behind Long Qing in turns of evil methods.


    After Ning Que entered the Knowing Destiny State, it would be extremely difficult for ordinary cultivators from the same state to face his Primordial Thirteen Arrows without preparation. Furthermore, he had not shot his arrows out since arriving at the Wa mountain and thus this one would be extremely powerful.


    Even if Long Qing reappeared here, he would not be able to catch the arrow anymore.


    So he was convinced that the monk was unable to catch it, and he dared not try.


    After silently looking at the carriage for a long time, Ning Que smiled and spoke.


    "Since you dare not face it, please continue being quiet."


    ...


    ...


    "Since you dare not face it, please continue being quiet."


    Even the kingfishers in the deep bamboo grove understood Ning Que¡¯s words. And they were too afraid to sing, as were those horses. An absolute silence struck the ce.


    Looking desperate, Quni Madi could not believe what she saw. Flower Addict who seemed to hold no opinion about anything around her could not help staring at Ning Que, who remained standing at the horse carriage, with aplicated gaze.


    Nothing could be heard besides the stream. The crowd were too shocked to believe what they heard. Due to Ning Que¡¯s words and the power of the Academy, the monk was forced to remain silent; this shocked everyone.


    "One could unexpectedly enter the Knowing Destiny State after three years of cultivation... How could such unreasonable things happen in the world?"


    Cheng Ziqing, a master from the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom looked at Ning Que standing on the horse carriage and spoke bitterly, "Senior Brother, you once said that Headmaster was like the tallest building in the world. You said it is hard to find a building as tall as Headmaster. But what makes people frightened is that there are a few more tall buildings in the Academy that are very close to beingplete."

 Chapter 557: Warning Signs

    Chapter 557: Warning Signs


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The mountain stream was silent as the wind caressed the green trees. Everyone was shocked speechless. The cloth surrounding the Buddhist chariot fluttered, revealing a glimpse of the figure in monk robes.


    The high monk from Xuankong Temple remained silent. He had only realized that the arrow was much scarier than rumored today, as he faced the ice-cold iron arrow in person.


    The bowstring separated the world before Ning Que into two. He looked at the monk in the chariot who was, in his view, split by the bowstring and aimed at by the arrowhead. He said, "To those of the world, Xuankong Temple is a holy Unknown ce. You guys reside in the faraway Western Wilderness and rarely enter the human world, so you seem more mysterious. However, you seem to have forgotten that I am from the Academy. To me, you all from Xuankong Temple are not that mysterious."


    "I knew you were from Xuankong Temple since the beginning. But, so what? I have seen two monks from Xuankong Temple. I killed one of them, and the other is now blind and roaming somewhere in the world. I heard that the Wayfarer of the Buddhism Sect had once gone to Chang¡¯an. Is he your Senior Brother? He must be way stronger than you. But he was still chased away by my Eldest Brother, wasn¡¯t he?"


    The cultivators were all surprised when they heard that Ning Que had once killed a monk from Xuankong Temple. Their expressions were extremelyplicated when they realized that the Buddhism Sect was involved in that battle in front of the bun shop at dawn. Quni Madi¡¯s face was exceptionally pale. It looked like she was in pain and about to faint.


    Ning Que ignored the crowd¡¯s reactions. He looked at the hazy figure in the Buddhist chariot and continued, "So I do not understand. Even though you are president of the Commandment Yard of Xuankong Temple, what makes you brave enough to say such nonsense? What right do you have to criticize the way our Academy works?"


    He had shocked the crowd without shooting his arrow, and forced the high monk in the Buddhist chariot into silence by disying his iron bow. The Academy had already gained much glory in this confrontation. It seemed that the oue was clear. Ning Que¡¯s prideful questions had undoubtedly brought shame upon Xuankong Temple and even the whole Buddhism Sect.


    The Tangs would rather break than yield. They were not afraid of failure, and were not beyond enjoying the pride they gained from victory. These unique characteristics of the Tangs often made their opponents feel stifled both on the battlefield and in social settings. It made the Tangs look crude and boorish.


    Due to Youngest Uncle and Mr. Second¡¯s reputation, image of the back of the mountain of the Academy in the cultivation world was extremely proud.


    That was why the cultivators by the mountain stream were not surprised when they heard Ning Que¡¯s words. While they were shocked and even felt embarrassed and bad for Xuankong Temple¡¯s high monk in the Buddhist chariot, they also felt that this was the way the Academy should react.


    The truth was far from this. The two girls in the ck horse carriage, who understood Ning Que well, as well as the confused Big ck Horse before the carriage, all felt that Ning Que was very different today.


    Ning Que had never been the typical Tangs, as he grew up in darkness and bloodshed. He was also very different from his peers in the Academy. In Ye Hongyu¡¯s words, he was the shame of the Academy.


    Ning Que might seemzy on the surface, but he was extremely cold-blooded beneath. He would do anything to stay alive. However, he would not pursue the glory that came with victory. He would¡¯t do anything that could cause danger to his person after gaining victory in order to show off.


    In the past, even if he had been in the Wilderness, had his opponent been a high monk from Xuankong Temple, he would never have said these words to provoke his opponent after gaining victory and benefits.


    It showed that as he grew, Ning Que had been gradually changed by the ferocious Tang¡¯s attitude and the powerful Academy. Under the influence of Second Brother, he had begun to grow proud without even knowing it.


    Second Brother¡¯s attitude was simple. One¡¯s head may be cut off and blood may flow, but the high crown on his head must never be askew because that was an embarrassment. It embarrassed the Academy.


    Today, at Tile Mountain, Ning Que had shocked and awed the crowd without showing his hand. It could be said that he had brought utmost glory to the Academy and did not embarrass it. He had not damaged the reputation of Youngest Uncle.


    However, his words were not simply to show off the Academy¡¯s pride.


    He really wanted to anger the Xuankong Temple high monk in the Buddhist chariot.


    Because when he aimed at the chariot and shocked the crowd, forcing the high monk into silence, he felt a shiver down his spine. It was a warning sign.


    Cultivators who had entered the Knowing Destiny State would have a slight but urate sense of precognition. It was vague and hard to capture, but was sufficient to alert.


    Ning Que did not know what the warning was, but he could vaguely sense that he would encounter plenty of trouble today on his journey to the Tile Mountain. Then, he would not mind getting rid of his strongest opponent right from the start.


    The crux of the matter was, the sign had something to do with finding a cure for Sangsang. And it pointed vaguely to the Buddhist chariot. He did not even need to think before deciding to get rid of that warning.


    The iron arrow in his hands was infused with his spirit and thirst to kill. He knew that if he did not release the arrow, then it would be difficult to shoot an arrow with the same power today. This was his best chance.


    Even so, Ning Que would definitely be heavily injured if he were to kill the high monk from Xuankong Temple. He might even have to pay a high price for it, but he did not wish to regret itter.


    ...


    ...


    However, the monk in the Buddhist chariot did not react. It looked as if the high monk from Xuankong Temple, who sat behind the curtains cross-legged, did not hear what Ning Que had said at all. He did not seem angry.


    Ning Que¡¯s brows rose. He froze slightly when he recalled the Buddhism Sect¡¯s specialty and how Master Lotus had described them at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡ª Buddhism Sect¡¯s high monk was indeed tolerant like a turtle.


    Anything done to the extreme would make it strong. Ning Que had seen countless deaths and knew the importance of tolerance. He would, of course, know that the more the monk could bear, the scarier he was.


    It was extremely silent by the stream. Some cultivators looked at Ning Que, who was on the ck horse carriage, aiming at the Buddhist chariot. They were frightened, uneasy and nervous. No one dared to make any sounds, and even their breathing had slowed down, afraid anything would cause the bowstring to rx.


    The atmosphere was tense. Someone had to break the invisible battle of wills between the ck horse carriage and the Buddhist chariot if they did not want to see bloodshed between the Academy and Xuankong Temple.


    There wasn¡¯t anyone by the stream who could avoid Ning Que¡¯s iron arrow. But someone could stop it. He couldn¡¯t stop it with a flying sword or with prayer beads, but with his physical body.


    Monk Guan Hai positioned his chest before the dark iron arrow. The color in his face was even darker than the arrows. He said gloomily, "Thirteenth Brother... is this necessary?"


    Ning Que had admired the young monk when they first met in Chang¡¯an. The monk had a truly serene aura that belonged to the Buddhism Sect. However, he did not pretend to be profound and enigmatic like other Bhandantas of the sect. Furthermore, Monk Guan Hai¡¯s skin was tanned and he looked like how Sangsang had as a child.


    It if was any other thing, Ning Que would definitely hold back for Monk Guan Hai¡¯s sake. But not today.


    He aimed the iron arrow at the Buddhist chariot, not even looking at Guan Hai, he said, "My arrows do not have eyes."


    Monk Guan Hai said bitterly, "Arrows do not have eyes, but everyone present does. The president of Commandment Yard had already admitted defeat by staying silent. Do you still have to shoot your arrow?"


    Ning Que said, "I have not yet shot my arrow."


    Guan Hai sighed and asked, "Then what are you waiting for?"


    Ning Que replied, "I¡¯m waiting for the high monk in the Buddhist chariot to speak."


    Guan Hai asked, "If he remains silent, what would you do?"


    Ning Que did not know what he would do, so he stayed silent.


    Even though the monk in the chariot made him uneasy, and even though he was a core disciple of Headmaster, he could not kill the man without any reason before so many cultivators.


    While aggressiveness and pride did look simr at times, they werepletely different. In Second Brother¡¯s words, pride was reasonable aggressiveness, while aggressiveness was unreasonable pride.


    No matter what kind of reasoning it was, Second Brother had always been reasonable. That was why he thought he was proud but not aggressive. He hoped that Ning Que would be someone like that as well.


    The high monk in the Buddhist chariot of Xuankong Temple had criticized the ways of the Academy and lectured Ning Que with the tone of an elder. No matter how Ning Que shamed him, it would have been thought to be reasonable, and would at least pass Second Brother¡¯s examination. That was why it would not have been an issue of contention even if many were shocked by it.


    However, the situation right now was different. The high monk from Xuankong Temple had been shamed, but had borne it and remained silent. He did not grow angry or tried to attack. If Ning Que insisted on shooting, the Academy would seem aggressive and not prideful to others.


    Monk Guan Hai looked at Ning Que and said pleadingly, "Senior Brother, if you insist on battling the chief monk, then kill me. Do not say that killing me isn¡¯t a big deal. Washing Lanke with blood might not be a big deal to you either. But I assume you have brought the Lady of Light to Tile Mountain for an important reason. What would you do then?"


    This was not a threat, but sincere persuasion. Ning Que did not have the ability to kill everyone on Wa Mountain and charge to the cave with his ck horse carriage. Even if he were to possess such an ability like Younger Uncle, would Master Qishan still heal Sangsang if he killed everyone in Lanke Temple?


    It wasn¡¯t that Ning Que hadn¡¯t thought of this point. He just hadn¡¯t understood the freezing warning sign that he received when he aimed his iron arrow at the Buddhist chariot.


    The Xuankong Temple monk in the Buddhist chariot remained silent. He did not dare to fight Ning Que¡¯s arrows, so even if they fought in the future, the monk¡¯s Buddhist Heart would also be affected. The high monk from the Buddhist Sect was indeed powerful and terrifying, but he would not pose any hindrance to Ning Que¡¯s journey on the Tile Mountain any further.


    However, the warning signs remained, and even became stronger, causing Ning Que to feel very uneasy.

 Chapter 558

    <h4>Chapter 558: Sangsang¡¯s Chess y and the First Match Reminiscent of Bear Paws and Unclean Cuts</h4>


    <h4><strong>Trantor:</strong> Transn <strong>Editor:</strong> Transn</h4>


    The chilly autumn breeze dragged by the stream and across Ning Que¡¯s face. He came around and realized that his mental state was not at its peak. He had worried and feared about Sangsang¡¯s illness for days, so he had be anxious and even violent.


    In the autumn rain at the Red Lotus Temple, when he had bitten off a piece of flesh from Long Qing¡¯s neck, he had perceived that terrifying mental state. He knew that if he was really controlled by his emotions, then he would sink into an abyss and find it hard to recover.


    With that thought, he took a deep breath and allowed the cool and moist aura in the autumn breeze to moisten his dry lungs. The Great Spirit filled his body and supressed the dangerous and rash actions that appeared in his mind. He decided not to cause any more trouble before meeting Master Qishan and getting a cure for Sangsang.


    As for the warning signs he had received in his heart, Ning Que felt that he had just entered the Knowing Destiny State; perhaps he had perceived wrongly due to his anxiousness, or perhaps, he hoped that it was just a mistake.


    He lowered his arm and the sharp arrowhead. Then, he lifted the finger that was controlling the bowstring. This slight action was no longer as scary as an impending avnche.


    Countless sighs of relief near the stone chessboard beside the stream apanied this action. Many cultivators had held their breaths earlier and were extremely nervous.


    Ning Que looked at the damp ground in the direction of his iron arrow and said, ¡°As long as you don¡¯t stop me from heading up the hill to see Master Qishan, I can show sufficient respect to the Xuankong Temple or the Buddhism Sect. Even if it might be fake.¡±


    Monk Guan Hai smiled bitterly when he heard that. He thought to himself that the tense situation had finally been resolved, so why did Ning Que still have to say something like that? Heforted him, ¡°Even though my teacher rarely epts guests, since he hase out, there is no reason why he would not meet with Senior Brother Thirteen.¡±


    Then, the yellow-clothed monk sitting by the chessboard said shrilly, ¡°The reason would be the rules. Guan Hai, even though you are Senior Brother Qishan¡¯s sessor, you cannot disregard the rules of Wa Mountain.¡±


    Monk Guan Hai was speechless. Afterall, rules wereid by man. Mr Thirteen of the Academy and the Lady of Light in the horse carriage were not just anyone. Would they need to solve the three games as well?


    The yellow-garbed old monk looked at Ning Que and said coldly, ¡°The Academy might be powerful, but you cannot defeat the Bhadanta of the Buddhism Sect with just an iron arrow. I have said earlier, that Ke Haoran could breach the Wa Mountain with just a sword by his waist. I admit that he is powerful enough to break the rules of Wa Mountain. If you wish to break the rules, you have to show me. I want to see if the person who has entered the human realm on behalf of the Academy is just as cold-blooded as his senior. Would he kill senselessly?!¡±


    Ning Que could now ascertain that the old monk living in seclusion in the Lanke Temple had a grudge against his Youngest Uncle. Judging by the monk¡¯s cultivation state though, he was unimportant to Youngest Uncle. Ning Que shook his head and smiled painfully. He thought to himself that it wasn¡¯t a good thing that the seniors in his sect were too powerful. Their debts had to be paid by the younger disciples of their sect.


    He plucked the bowstring, which buzzed clearly. He thought silently, did he have to do what Youngest Uncle did?


    Just as Ning Que was pondering over this, Sangsang hesitated. Her uncertain voice rang from the horse carriage, ¡°Young master, why don¡¯t I try it?¡±


    Ning Que knew that she was worried for him, so he did not wish to enter into another conflict with the Buddhism Sect. He said with a smile, ¡°Do you know how to y chess? Furthermore, this would put a strain on your body.¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s voice pierced through the windows, ¡°Young master, I know how to y chess. Furthermore, I think that ying chess is very interesting. I don¡¯t think it would tire me out.¡±


    When Ning Que heard what Sangsang had to say, the image of the gambling den in the City of Wei appeared in his mind. He also recalled what the two Senior Brothers of the Academy had told them repeatedly before they left, and he was somewhat convinced.


    Then, he ridiculed himself for thinking too much.


    The Lanke Temple was well known for their chess y. The legendary three matches would, of course, be very difficult. The South Jin national yer had spent a long time thinking, but had not even ced down any chess pieces. While Sangsang might be proficient in ying chess, would she be able to solve the game?


    He shook his head and said, ¡°The autumn wind is cold. Don¡¯te out.¡±


    In the past, Sangsang would not rebut him before others. However, she was being rather stubborn today for some reason. She said, ¡°I will watch from the carriage and ask Miss Shanshan to move the chess pieces for me.¡±


    Ning Que did not know what had happened in the carriage earlier. When he heard Sangsang¡¯s address of Shanshan change from the Hill Master, to the Calligraphy Addict, to Shanshan, he began specting. However, since Sangsang had already said that, she must have gotten Mo Shanshan¡¯s agreement. As such, he did not know how to reject her. He said, ¡°Then let¡¯s try.¡±


    Then, he added, ¡°We don¡¯t have to do this if you feel tired. We can just barge through.¡±


    Monk Guan Hai¡¯s smile grew bitter when he heard that. The Lanke Temple abbot¡¯s face was filled with dissatisfaction, but he did not dare to rebuke Ning Que. The yellow-garbed old monk by the chess board returned to his seat on the stone bench with an indifferent expression.


    There was the soft clopping of horse hooves, and the steel carriage wheels pressed over the stone grounds. The ck horse carriage left the stream silently via the stone bridge and stopped a distance away from the stone table beneath therge green tree.


    There were several straight lines carved into the table both horizontally and vertically. It was a natural chess board. The lines were deeply gouged into the stone, but were extremely smooth. It looked as if it had been buffed by chess yers often.


    The branches of therge tree blocked the sun above the autumn skies of the Wa Mountain. There were over a hundred chess pieces on the chess board, but they did not move under the shade of the tree. They might look messy, but there was something hidden in the formation.


    The white-haired national yer from the South Jin Kingdom had already been frowning in contemtion by the stone table for a long while. He held a white chess piece in his hand, but had not yet ced it on the board. Looking at the formation on the board, he had yet to make his first move.


    In the deepest part of the game of chess, one¡¯s mind would wander between the lines of the board and forget about the world. The South Jin chess master pondered hard on how to crack the game, and waspletely unaware of what had happened by the stream. He had not even noticed the arrival of Ning Que and the Xuankong Temple¡¯s high monk.


    Since the ck horse carriage had arrived, the South Jin chess master could not seat by the chess board any longer. A South Jin official escorted him from his seat. The chess master was enraged. He had just caught a glimpse of the solution but was suddenly interrupted. He pointed his finger at the official and ranted at him, angry beyond reason.


    The autumn breeze lifted the curtains, and Mo Shanshan, who wore a white dress exited the horse carriage. She walked to the stone table and bowed to the yellow-garbed monk. Then, she sat on the stone bench and asked, ¡°Can I move the chess pieces on behalf of Miss Sangsang?¡±


    The yellow-garbed old monk stayed silent, indicating his approval.


    A corner of the curtain in the horse carriage was lifted, revealing Sangsang¡¯s little face. She looked at the messily scattered chess pieces on the board, and her eyes gradually brightened.


    The ck horse carriage stopped diagonally under therge green tree. The window Sangsang peered out of faced the mountain stream, so the cultivators on the sone tform could not see her, and only the yellow-garbed old monk could.


    The yellow-garbed old monk was very shocked when he saw Sangsang¡¯s tanned but pale and haggard face. He had never imagined that the legendary Lady of Light was such an ordinary lookingdy.


    The yellow-garbed old monk had spoken unkindly to Ning Que earlier, so Sangsang didn¡¯t like the man. Her gaze skipped the old monk¡¯s face andnded on the stone chess board.


    For some reason, Sangsang¡¯s eyes grew brighter. Then, she carefully and softly asked, ¡°What is the prize for this game?¡±


    Ning Que knew there would be a problem when Sangsang¡¯s eyes grew brighter. In the past, her eyes would only get this bright when she saw taels of silver. However, he did not expect Sangsang to ask such a question, and his expression grew interesting to watch.


    The Calligraphy Addict did not expect Sangsang to ask if there was a prize, and was stunned speechless.


    The yellow-garbed old monk was the most shocked. He had been overseeing the three games of chess on Wa Mountain since decades ago. He had also seen manypetitors with stunning chess abilities. However, this was the first time someone had asked what the prize was.


    This was a chess game that embodied the wisdom of the high monks and Bhadantas of the Lanke Temple. This was a necessary and dignified test for people who wished to meet Master Qishan. However, the girl had treated it no differently than a gamble in rundown gambling dens!


    The monk in yellow robes was shocked, and then, he grew furious. Even though the girl was the Lady of Light from the West-Hill Divine Pce, how could she shame the Lanke Temple? He ignored Sangsang¡¯s question with a cial look.


    Sangsang looked at Ning Que¡¯s and Mo Shanshan¡¯s expressions. She saw the yellow-garbed old monk, who looked as if he was grieving the death of his family and knew that her question was out of line. She couldn¡¯t help but feel ashamed.


    ...


    ...


    The cultivators had all returned to therge tree¡¯s canopy. They prepared to watch the chess match excitedly. While they did not dare to stand too close to the chess board, they were all skilled cultivators and could see what was happening on the chess board clearly.


    While they could not see the Lady of Light¡¯s face from their position, they were still very excited to be able to witness the Lady of Light¡¯s first game of chess in the world.


    Not everyone present was interested in the match. The high monk from the Xuankong Temple who was sitting on the pnquin would not watch Ning Que¡¯s handmaiden y chess after being shamed by him.


    The Buddhist pnquin moved. Quni Madi led the sadhus from the Yuelun Kingdom, under the direction of the Lanke Temple¡¯s abbot, past the stone table and toward the stone bridge on the Jumping Tiger stream.


    Ning Que turned around, and caught the eye of the Flower Addict, Lu Chenjia.


    Lu Chenjia¡¯s gaze was so calm, it was odd. It was like the remnants of snow on the meadows of the Wilderness. It was fading, and yet especially frigid.


    Even Ning Que, who was used to death, felt a chill run down his spine when he caught her eye.


    He looked away and at the Buddhist pnquin. He said, ¡°Stop.¡±


    The Buddhist pnquin stopped.


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Why can the master on the pnquin cross if I can¡¯t?¡±


    This question was directed at the yellow-garbed monk.


    The monk frowned and asked, ¡°These are our guests from the Buddhism Sect, so why can¡¯t they cross?¡±


    ¡°If disciples of the Buddhism Sect can cross, why can¡¯t I? Princess Chen Jia became a Buddhist as a child, but she entered the Revtion Institute to cultivate in Taoism, and prayed to Haotian. Can she still be considered as a Buddhist?¡±


    Ning Que turned around to look at the monk and said, ¡°Is this what you mean by rules are alive? I have never seen such unscrupulous rules like this in my entire life. The Academy will not ept such rules.¡±


    Then, he continued, ¡°If rules have to be abided, then it applies to everyone. I don¡¯t care about monks in the Lanke Temple, but people outside of the Lanke Temple, no matter whether they are from the White Tower Temple or the Xuankong Temple, cannot cross the bridge before us.¡±


    Everything was silent.


    Quni Madi looked at Ning Que viciously. Ning Que seemed as if he did not see that, and only looked at the Buddhist pnquin.


    Even though he had not attempted to risk killing the Xuankong Temple¡¯s high monk, he was still very vignt. Rather than letting the other party head up the mountain first, he might as well keep them in his sights so that he can deal with them.


    The monk behind the curtains waved his hand, and the Buddhist pnquin was put down.


    Ning Que frowned slightly.


    Then, the South Jin chess master suddenly shouted in surprise by the chessboard.


    The shout was filled with manyplicated emotions. There was shock, anger, and then pity.


    Just like how the Headmaster had visited a certain vige in the mountains north of the Yan Kingdom and spent just three hours to serve his guests a bear paw. Or like how Ning Que had watched hispanions take three strokes to cut off the head of a Horse Gang member by the Shubi Lake. The cut wasn¡¯t clean and could not be used to earn military credits or exchange for taels of silver.


    ¡°How can it be ced there! Do you even know how to y chess?!¡±


    ...

 Chapter 559

    559 The Interesting Gamey on the Chessboard


    Trantor:Transn<i>IOL | Editor: Transn</i>IOL /Transn


    There was a beautiful legend.


    It has nothing to do with stone. ording to the legend, thousands of years ago, when West-Hill Divine Pce was in the early years of Dazhi and Tile Mountain was still called Bun Mountain, a woodcutter called Wang Zhi identally entered the depths of the mountains. He saw a few old monks ying chess and went up to watch them curiously. He realized that the match was vicious, and was so enthralled that he did not leave.


    An old monk realised he was drunk and gave him a bun. After Wang Zhi ate the bun, he no longer felt hungry. He sat by the chess board from dawn till dusk.


    The match had still not ended even as the darkness of twilight enveloped the mountains. The old monk who had given Wang Zhi food looked up and told him, ¡°If you do not leave now, you will never be able to.¡±


    Wang Zhi reluctantly stood up and prepared to leave. However, just as he was about to pick up his ax, he realised that its wooden handle had disintegrated into dust. He left and returned to his vige, only to realize that all of his peers had died.


    He only understood then that a century had passed in the day he spent watching the chess game.


    The legend was spread throughout thend. Eventually, the Bun Mountain became Tile Mountain and the temple in the mountain was called the Lanke Temple by the secr world. It eventually became the official name of the temple.


    Because of this legend, chess was very popr around Tile Mountain. No matter whether they were gentlemen or farmers, every man would study chess as children. The ck and white gs Ning Que had seen in town likely had to do with this.


    Lanke Temple in particr was renowned for chess and so, naturally, the monks within were well-versed in it. The game on the stone chess board beneath the tree was how the temple chose the fated one. It was extremely difficult to win.


    This was why Ning Que had never thought that Sangsang would be able to solve it. However, he had not expected Sangsang to make such a blunder in her first move and cause the chess master from South Jin to yell in annoyance.


    The South Jin Kingdom¡¯s chess master¡¯s yell was loud, and his attitude was horrible. The cultivators who were watching the match looked at him irritatedly. They felt that the man was being very disrespectful towards the Lady of Light and deserved to be locked in the You Prison for a century.


    However, their stares did not affect the South Jin Kingdom chess master at all. He tugged free from his peers who were restraining him and charged to the stone table. He bellowed in pain and anger, ¡°Even though this puzzle can be solved, I have only found a clue after thinking for an hour. This girl child did not even think before putting a chess piece haphazardly. She¡¯s just fumbling around. Do you even know how to y chess? If not, what are you doing here?¡±


    Mo Shanshan looked up from the stone table and looked at the man. However, her eyesight was not that good, so she looked as if she was a little lost. She said, ¡°Indeed, I am not good at chess. What¡¯s the matter?¡±


    The chess master from South Jin Kingdom only then released his anger. He turned around to the ck carriage and pointed at the newly added white chess piece on the stone chessboard. He said heatedly, ¡°You Tangs are all military people, how would you know about the art of maneuvering on the chess board? Girl, you don¡¯t even understand what¡¯s happening, why are you putting chess pieces down randomly? You¡¯ll surely lose if you do that.¡±


    The crowd gathered under the tree couldn¡¯t be bothered to get angry as they watched the man yelling at the carriage. They knew that he was either unafraid of death or incredibly stupid. Since it was a chess piece directed by the Lady of Light, even if it was a wrong move, it would have a profoundly deep meaning. Was it something an ordinary person like him could understand?


    The South Jin Kingdom chess master had been obsessed with chess his entire life. He would only leave his chess room to visit the pce. And even when ying against the Emperor of South Jin Kingdom, he could not bring himself to lose. He loved chess and was obsessed with it, so how would he know how highly ranked the girl in the ck horse carriage was? The ignorant did not know to be fearful, and so, he continued lecturing Sangsang.


    Ning Que shook his head and signaled for the disciples of the Sword Garret to back down. After all, he had not expected Sangsang to solve the game. So he only warned the chess master, ¡°Speak softer, and don¡¯t swear.¡±


    The chess master from South Jin froze. He recognized Ning Que as the young man he had seen at Lanke Temple at dawn yesterday. His voice lowered unnaturally and he said in annoyance, ¡°Chess is a sophisticated art. I wouldn¡¯t swear.¡±


    Let¡¯s ignore the dispute on the chessboard for now.


    The yellow-garbed old monk sat before the chess board. His expression was indifferent.


    He had studied chess extensively throughout his life, especially this puzzle under the tree. He had pondered over it for years, and ced many chess pieces on the board. He looked at the white chess piece that had justnded on the board. Like the South Jin Kingdom¡¯s chess master, he was certain that the game was doomed thanks to this chess piece.


    This final phase of the game was called the ¡°messy phase¡± because it was as messy as a pile of firewood. Without any external pressure being exerted, the messy pile of firewood looked stable. In actuality, it was on the brink of copse. To solve the game, one had to ensure that it would not copse. They had to reorder the firewood and rebuild the pile, and this was very difficult.


    Sangsang had whispered the coordinates by the carriage window earlier, and the Calligraphy Addict had ced the chess piece. The white chess piecended in the empty middle part of the board amongst the messy chess formation. It was an unreasonable move, pulling the thickest, bottom-most piece of firewood from the pile,pletely damaging the stability of the pile.


    The pile of firewood had copsed on the ground.


    The yellow-garbed old monk said, ¡°This game has ended.¡±


    The audience under the tree were all either confident in their own chess skills, or had broughtpanions who were skilled, since they were here to meet Master Qishan. When they heard that, they studied the board seriously and were surprised to see that the South Jin Kingdom chess master was right. The match had no chance of continuing.


    To think that the Lady of Light had made the first move so haphazardly. Their nces towards the carriage grewplicated. However, they did not dare to show any of their doubts or disrespect.


    All was silent by the mountain stream, and the atmosphere became somewhat awkward.


    However, just then, Sangsang¡¯s voice rang out from the ck carriage once more.


    ¡°This game... is indeed interesting.¡±


    ...


    ...


    The curtains lifted slightly, and Sangsang whispered two numbers.


    Just like when she would say two numbers before Ning Que shot an arrow, she did not even seem to have to think about them.


    Mo Shanshan, who was sitting in front of the board froze slightly. She retrieved another white chess piece from the urn and ced it on the board.


    The yellow-garbed old monk furrowed his brows. He had not expected the Lady of Light to be so persistent, even when she had already lost. He felt that this was not proper for a game of chess, as one should know when to concede.


    The South Jin Kingdom chess master seemed to have discovered something strange. He moved closer to the board and scrutinized the ordinary looking white chess piece.


    He said with an odd expression, ¡°Oh, this seems interesting.¡±


    The yellow-garbed old monk had also discovered that the position of the white chess piece was weird. He could not help but think of the past, and his indifferent expression warmed up. He said with a slight smile, ¡°This is interesting.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang was a very intelligent girl. In Ning Que¡¯s words, she was just toocent to think of things herself and was used to relying on Ning Que. That was why she seemed a little slow. She was always in a daze, even when chopping firewood. She had always been toozy to think, so when did she begin to think that ying chess was interesting?


    The story started two years ago. Ning Que had been far away in the Wilderness. He had instructed Chen Pipi to visit the Old Brush Pen Shop on Lin 47th Street often to take care of Sangsang. Chen Pipi had once heard Ning Que say that Sangsang was the true genius. He could not take that lying down, and so, began several rounds ofpetition.


    In the beginning, Chen Pipi and Sangsangpeted in memory skills. Chen Pipi lost badly. Then, he yed chess against Sangsang, but they were interrupted by the appearance of Wei Guangming in the Old Brush Pen Shop, and then, the appearance of Master Yan Se.


    What followed was something that made others sigh andment.


    That was the first time Sangsang learned the rules of chess and officially yed. Chen Pipi had never won against her after she learned the rules.


    Sangsang and Chen Pipi would bet whenever they yed chess.


    Sangsang would gain some benefits every time she won a match.


    That was when she began to feel that ying chess was interesting.


    This was also why she had carefully asked the yellow-garbed old monk if there was a prize.


    It was a habit.


    After that, Sangsang cooked for Ning Que, the Headmaster and Ning Que¡¯s Senior Brothers and Sisters at the back of the mountain. Sometimes, she would be dragged into a few games by Fifth Brother and Eighth Brother, who were both obsessed with chess.


    On their journey to Lanke Temple, she would read the chess manual given to her by the two Senior Brothers to pass the time whilst she was ill.


    Fifth Brother had once said that Sangsang¡¯s talents in chess even surpassed Ning Que¡¯s. Not even she knew where her talents stretched to and how her skilled she was.


    But she felt that ying chess was getting more and more interesting as time went by.


    Even though she regretted a little that there was no bet, it was still enjoyable.


    ...


    ...


    They stood under therge, green tree.


    The chess master from South Jin Kingdom shook his head regretfully. He said, ¡°Even though it is interesting, this game cannot proceed any further.¡±


    Thest phase was called the ¡°messy phase¡± for a reason.


    Sangsang had put down the second chess piece. It corresponded to her first move. She no longer picked the thickest piece of firewood from the pile. Instead, she used the hard firewood to pick apart all the firewood on top of the pile.


    This was not removing a piece of firewood from beneath a cooking pot to allow the water to boil faster; it was even better than that.


    It messed up the chess formationpletely, and then turned into another strategy. This method ofplete destruction and reconstruction brought together the theory of profit and loss in Haotian Taoism. It was also filled with bravery in searching for a way to live even in the face of death. It seemed to be working.


    However, in this game of chess, the ck pieces had a great advantage. They couldpletely annihte the white pieces. How could the white pieces defend against the ck, even if there wasplete chaos? The crux of the matter was, even if the white pieces could hold up against the attack, how could they rebuild their formation?


    The yellow-garbed old monk did not say anything. While he thought that the move was interesting, he knew that there was no way the White would emerge victorious once he understood the formation.


    The white pieces hadnded on the board like how firewood scattered on the ground messily. It was chaotic, and if one wanted to reorganize the pile, they would need to do in-depth calctions. This kind of calction was not something that could be aplished by humans. Even the Great Divine Priest of Revtion from West-Hill Divine Pce who was world-renowned for his math skills could not do it.


    It had nothing to do with intelligence or one¡¯s talent in chess. This was nature¡¯sw.


    Thisw stated that there was a limit to one¡¯s ability.


    Even the most intelligent person had a limit to his brain¡¯s capacity.


    Decades ago, the yellow-garbed old monk had tried this method. He did not sleep or rest and thought for three whole months. However, he had not managed the calctions and had not evene close to seeding.


    He had only understood then, that while this solution looked reasonable, in actuality it was not.


    It was a solution that could not bepleted by man.


    Unless the person ying chess could ignore thisw of the world.


    ...


    ...


    All were silent under tree; only the crisp sounds of chess piecesnding on the stone chessboard could be heard.


    In the ck horse carriage, Sangsang would speak softly, and then, another white chess piece would enter the battle.


    There were already seven or eight white pieces on the board by now.


    The yellow-garbed old monkpared the board to the one he remembered and was shocked to discover that the girl in the carriage hade up with an extremely simr solution to the one he had thought of only after months of thinking.


    Even though there were differences in the positioning of two of the pieces, it was indeed on the right path. However, it was a pity that this seemingly correct path was blocked.


    The yellow-garbed old monk slowly nodded as he thought of how the girl had managed to aplish this in such a short time. The expression on his face grew warmer and he thought that she must indeed be the Lady of Light from West-Hill Divine Pce. She was extremely intelligent.


    Those that Lanke Temple selected to meet Master Qishan did not necessarily have to solve all three chess game. The three games on the mountain path were very difficult, and not even a national yer could solve them, much fewer cultivators who were not skilled in chess.


    They were meant to test what kind of intelligence and courage a cultivator could disy, as well as their characteristics. Only those who were impressive may proceed.


    The yellow-garbed old monk knew that White was walking to a dead end, but the girl in the horse carriage had disyed courage when solving the game. Her mental calctions were out of the world, and that represented her intelligence. She was outstanding enough, and it could be said that she was a genius.


    Since Sangsang was a bigwig from the West-Hill Divine Pce and of noble status, the old monk would not allow her to continue walking on the wrong path that led to darkness and hopelessness. He could not let the Lady of Light lose too badly, lest the Haotian Taoism show her disrespect.


    The yellow-garbed old monk stood up and looked toward the carriage with an affable expression and said, ¡°You are indeed the Lady of Light. And your intelligence is beyondpare. Even though your solution did not work, you have passed this round of the three rounds.¡±


    Then, he looked at Ning Que and said, ¡°Mr. Thirteen, you were wrong on one point earlier. Rules of Lanke Temple are not dead. And I think that there are some rules that have to be respected.¡±


    While Ning Que did not agree with the old monk, he only nodded since the old man had agreed to let them pass. He had even praised Sangsang, so Ning Que was satisfied.


    The South Jin Kingdom chess master who had been watching the game on the sidelines ran his hand through his beard and said, ¡°You are right, master. Even though the girl¡¯s solution did not work against this enigmatic puzzle, her calction skills put me to shame.¡±


    The cultivators were satisfied with the results and all nodded and expressed their approval. It was not known whether they had really seen the intelligence of the Lady of Light through the game.


    Naturally, while some were satisfied, there were those who were not.


    Aunt Quni Madi was very dissatisfied; she harrumphed disappointedly.


    There was also another dissatisfied person present.


    Sangsang¡¯s confused voice floated out of the carriage.


    ¡°I was about to win. Why did we stop?¡± .. .

 Chapter 560 - Heavens Will

    560 Heaven¡¯s Will


    Trantor:Transn<i>IOL | Editor: Transn</i>IOL /Transn


    An uproar rose among the cultivators who were looking at the chess board with bewilderment.


    They had figured out the White¡¯s strategy and thought it would definitely lose the game. The old monk in yellow robes had decided to end the game and let the ck horse-drawn carriage go up the mountain. But Sangsang seemed to decline his kindness as if she, the Lady of Light, knew how to solve the conundrum.


    The monk was shocked. He looked at the carriage and frowned. Although he appreciated the girl¡¯s courage and wit, he did not expect that she could win this match. He thought even if she was the dignified Lady of Light at West-Hill Divine Pce, it was very rude of her to decline his offer.


    As a reclusive Elder at Lanke Temple, he felt offended at Sangsang¡¯s declination. He then coldly sat at the stone table, took a ck chess piece from the urn, and ced it on the chessboard.


    The chessyer from South Jin Kingdom did not expect Sangsang¡¯s declination as well. He sighed while shaking his head, ¡°Do you think you can win?¡±


    Sangsang lifted the green curtain of the carriage to see the ck chess piece¡¯s position. She found it was very beautiful under the reflection of daylight and then she said a position.


    Mo Shanshan picked up a white chess piece and put it gently on the chessboard. It appeared brighter, as if it were going to dissolve the adjacent ck chess piece.


    The monk was slightly irritated at this.


    However, when he saw the white chess piece¡¯s position, he became solemn as he found its movement to bepletely different from what he had studied for years. The white chess pieces on the board were aimed in another direction, as carefully as an arrow.


    The White¡¯s movement was beyond his expectations, and so he was silent for some time before his next move.


    Just as the monk¡¯s old fingers left the ck chess piece, Sangsang¡¯s slight voice rose again. She did not hesitate but guided the next move of another white chess piece.


    The monk¡¯s long silver-white eyebrows slowly rose as the autumn wind blew.


    He looked at the mixed ck and white chess piecespeting on the chessboard. Suddenly, a very strong sense of vignce ignited within him.


    The chessyer from South Jin Kingdom uttered another cry. He bent down to closely observe the board.


    Sangsang¡¯s voice continued to rise from the ck carriage.


    White chess pieces were continuously taken out of the urn by Mo Shanshan and calmly ced on the stone chessboard.


    The monk¡¯s eyebrows were now being raised more frequently. A look of urprise appeared on his old face as if he were witnessing something impossible.


    The South Jin Kingdom chessyer¡¯s exmations also became more frequent. He bent forward to be closer to the board and widened his eyes. He seemed to see the white chess piecese to life.


    Sangsang¡¯s voice continued to sound beneath the green tree.


    Four or five chess pieces were ced on the stone board.


    The monk looked unprecedentedly serious. The slightly trembling robe revealed his nervousness and there were beads of sweat on his forehead.


    ¡°It seems that the White is going to win. How could it be possible?¡±


    The monk murmured to himself in a low voice as he stared at the chessboard. His body seemed to stiffen, taking ages for him to take a ck chess piece from the urn.


    ¡°How could it be possible? The White¡¯s every step was very risky. One error will lead to failure. And as the game goes on, every step bes riskier and the calction bes harder. I have gone through many games all my life and I know no man can defy the heaven¡¯s will. Even if the girl was a math genius, can she defy the heaven¡¯s will?¡±


    The South Jin Kingdom chessyer red at the chessboard. He waved his right hand and murmured in a hoarse voice as if he wanted to help the monk calm down or release his own shock and anxiety.


    He took several smooth chess pieces from the urn and yed with them in his trembling right hand, trying to calm himself. He said in a trembling voice, ¡°It¡¯s impossible.¡±


    The Messy Phase Game was profound. Only now were spectators starting to discover the great changes happening on the chessboard. Whilst some were still confused, they saw the old monk¡¯s sweat on his forehead and the chessyer¡¯s reaction and guessed the situation had changed greatly.


    Sangsang was still giving instructions, though she seemed a little bit tired. Her instructions were clear and urate without pause. It seemed that she did not need any time to think about her next move.


    The monk yed more slowly. He carefully ced his ck chess pieces after thinking for a great time. His yellow robe had be drenched with sweat.


    There were more and more chess pieces on the board. The ck and the White were silently fighting against each other, just as darkness and daylight did during dawn and dusk.


    It was very quiet. One could only hear the clear and crisp sound of the chess pieces falling on the board, the rustle of the green trees in the autumn wind, and the sound of waters flowing through deep mountain streams.


    As time went by, the morning light had left Wa mountain. Before noon, the game was about to end.


    The monk¡¯s right hand slightly trembled in the autumn wind; between his fingers there was a ck chess piece. He looked at the serried chessboard and hesitated for he did not know how to make his next move.


    The South Jin Kingdom chessyer stared at the board for a long time. His eyes were extremely dry and bloodshot and he kept rubbing the chess piece in his right hand. He did not realize that the sharp debris had scratched his palm and he had blood dripping along his clenched fist and falling on a green leaf on the ground.


    He suddenly woke up and looked up at the silent ck carriage with awe and horror. His voice trembled, ¡°It¡¯s heaven¡¯s will! It¡¯s heaven¡¯s will!¡±


    ...


    ...


    The monk struggled to stand up and bowed to the ck carriage.


    At that moment, the spectators finally confirmed that Sangsang was the winner and eximed. The cultivators versed in Go looked at the chess pieces with silent amazement. A feeling of admiration grew inside their hearts.


    People looked up at the ck carriage with a look of awe in their eyes.


    Earlier, they bowed to the carriage in awe to show their respect for the authority of Lady of Light and the power of West-Hill Divine Pce. But now, it was her wit on the chessboard that won their respect.


    Since they were cultivators, they knew what the pure wit stood for.


    In the past two years, cultivators had vaguely learned that the inheritor of the former Divine Priest of Light was in Chang¡¯an City. However, because of West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s obscure attitude, they did not know what kind of person the Lady of Light was.


    Later, when they knew she was the daughter of one of the officials in Tang Dynasty and the handmaiden of Mr. Thirteen from the Academy, they started to wonder what potential or ability she had to impress the Divine Pce and be selected as an inheritor. Now they finally understood.


    ...


    ...


    Even Ning Que found it hard to believe that Sangsang had solved the conundrum. He was happy of course, especially when he recalled the scene when Sangsang¡¯s crisp voice echoed in the silent Wa mountain. He felt somewhat sentimental, as if the little girl he knew had grown up.


    When the old monk bowed and conceded, Ning Que suddenly noticed that the monk from Xuankong Temple under the bridge leaned forward behind curtains as if he was very interested in Sangsang. Ning Que grew alert again.


    He looked away from the monk and asked, ¡°Can we go up the mountain now?¡±


    Monk Guan Hai witnessed the entire procedure and sincerely praised, ¡°The legendary Lady of Light is indeed able to defy the heaven¡¯s will. Senior Brother, please.¡±


    The Big ck Horse saw their respect for Sangsang and thought to himself that, although she was in looking, she was indeed able-minded; he could not help but cheerily snort. The horses who were grazing on the ground beside streams heard the snorting and became afraid subconsciously. They ran up toward the grass slope in a hurry.


    The carriage slowly drove onto the stone bridge and crossed Jumping Tiger Stream.


    The cultivators looked at the carriage disappearing into the depths of Wa mountain in awe.


    The South Jin Kingdom chessyer suddenly thought about something. He rushed onto the stone bridge and ran toward the carriage.


    The man sessfully crossed the bridge even though he did not solve the conundrum. The old monk in yellow clothes should have stopped the somewhat crazy chessyer, but he was just staring at the chessboard in silence.


    He had studied the Luanke conundrum for decades and was confident to know everything about it. But now, he suddenly realized he did not understand it at all.


    If he did not y the game today, the ck must have been defeated before Sangsang showed her awesome will. However, it was because he understood the conundrum more than anyone else in the world, he persisted for a longer time and his mind was greatly damaged.


    There was a strong autumn breeze.


    The monk¡¯s body suddenly shook and blood spilled over his lips.


    ¡°Luanke conundrum features its uniqueness andplexity. But its creators must not have expected that one girl could solve it merely by calction.¡±


    He wiped the blood with his sleeve and looked at the ck and white chess pieces on the board. He said, ¡°The conundrum is meaningless now since it has been solved by someone who can defy the heaven¡¯s will. I¡¯ll leave it here.¡±


    And then he waved his sleeve and took a leaf away from the chessboard.


    Cheng Ziqing frowned and asked, ¡°Master, what will you do with the conundrum?¡±


    ¡°The conundrum has been solved. You can cross the stream as you wish.¡±


    After finishing his words, the monk left gracefully.


    Hearing his words, the cultivators under the big tree were overjoyed and all walked toward the stone bridge. A Taoist from the Kingdom of Song, known as an addict of chess, was left behind and he came to the stone table. He looked at the board and tried to pick up a white chess piece but found he couldn¡¯t.


    The old monk had somehow embedded the ck and white chess pieces in the board. From this day, the Luanke conundrum was left forever under the green tree beside Jumping Tiger Stream in Wa mountain and it would never change. There were only two of the legendary Three Conundrums left in Wa mountain.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 561 - The Inconspicuous Yet Colorful Leaf

    561 The Inconspicuous Yet Colorful Leaf


    Trantor:Transn<i>IOL | Editor: Transn</i>IOL /Transn


    A ck, horse-drawn carriage drove steadily deep within Mountain Wa.


    The mountain path imbedded with green rocks was at first very smooth and gentle, but due to the erosion of the mud between the rocks by the rain and the wind, several gaps that were as wide as a finger gradually formed. Though the carriage was light as a feather, the passengers still experienced a rocky ride as the stainless-steel made carriage wheels rode across these gaps. Naturally, it was difficult for everyone in the carriage to fall asleep.


    Sangsang leaned onto the carriage windows as she sat on the cotton-padded mattress. Her eyshes gently covering her eyes. Though she was sick and weak, there was still a slight flush on her pale-looking cheeks. The drops of perspiration on the peak of her nose made her seem somewhat excited.


    Mo Shanshan sat on the soft cushion opposite her and stared silently at her. Her sparse but long eyshes sat atop bright eyes which blinked slightly. She appeared somewhat curious, with a hint of admiration.


    Sangsang got anxious from her staring and said softly, ¡°Could you not stare at me like that?¡±


    Mo Shanshan snapped back to reality and calmly said, ¡°Now that the match is done, many people are waiting beside the Wu Yue stream just to get a glimpse at you. Their stares will be much more intense than mine. If not for the thick carriage walls their stares could have burnt holes through it. Moreover, you have got to get used to such stares.¡±


    Sangsang opened her eyes and looked at her as she curiously asked, ¡°Did many people...stare at me just now?¡±


    Mo Shanshan nodded.


    ¡°Very few people have looked at me with such intensive stares. In fact, no one ever has.¡±


    Sangsang began with a soft voice but it was not clear what struck her mind at that time as she gazed outside the window. The autumn breeze raised the green curtains, revealing the scenery of Wa Mountain to the passengers in the carriage. This brought with it some feeling of rity and helplessness.


    ¡°I have never been beautiful. Ning Que said that in the two years after he found me, I could not get any taller no matter what I ate, be it meat soup or rice soup. I was like a small mouse in his embrace.¡±


    She gazed at the scenery outside the carriage as she continued: ¡°Thoughter I managed to survive due to his care, I still could not get any prettier. I am skinny, small and stuck with a darkplexion. Even my hair is messy. It¡¯s shapeless, and it¡¯s slightly bronze in color, like an autumn cabbage left to rot in the mud. I don¡¯t even look any better wearing new clothes during the new year season.¡±


    ¡°Ning Que has made fun of me before. He said no one would ever discover me even if he discards me into the vegetable fields or into the coal mines. And he is right. I am always that unimpressive little handmaiden no one ever notices.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Once, when I was young, I had to drag 17 catty of mutton thigh home from the butcher store in the City of Wei. No one thought of helping me. It wasn¡¯t because the people in the City of Wei weren¡¯t helpful, but it was because no one even noticed me. It was the same after we arrived in Chang¡¯an. During our stay at the Old Brush Pen Shop for two years, the uncle who was selling the hot and sour sliced noodle soup at the entrance of Lin 47th Street would sometimes forget who I was even though I purchased noodle soup from him almost every single morning.¡±


    She turned around, looked at Mo Shanshan and smiled. Her smile was very genuine. Her two dazzling white front teeth seemed to have brightened the dark carriage. She said, ¡°Ning Que is born to be better looking than me. His mouth is also sweeter than mine. Thus, it¡¯s easy for him to win over others¡¯ favor. Regardless of whether the person is General Ma from City of Wei, Aunt Jian, or even the Headmaster.¡±


    She then added, ¡°When I was with him, everyone only looked at him; but that¡¯s fine. I am used to standing behind him, and I don¡¯t really like being stared at anyway.¡±


    Mo Shanshan looked at the littledy, who was peacefully and naturally recounting her past experiences, and realized that she could not calm herself down. Not knowing what should be said, she remained silent.


    She recalled the time when she left Chang¡¯an as she gazed at the faraway Old Brush Pen Shop when her carriage drove past the entrance of Lin 47th Street. At that time, Ning Que was sitting opposite Sangsang while they had their meal. They did not speak much. Yet every movement or stare had hidden a natural and harmonious agreement between both the master and the handmaiden.


    With mixed feelings, Mo Shanshan thought: even if you are the most inconspicuous little handmaiden in the world, and even if no one will ever notice your presence, Ning Que and you will only have eyes for each other. At least Ning Que will always look at you.


    ¡°At least in Ning Que¡¯s heart, you are the prettiest.¡±


    She said.


    ¡°I understand what you mean, but I really wanted to be truly beautiful. So when we reached Chang¡¯an, I began to shop at Chenjinji Cosmetics Store for cosmetics even though we were earning very little.¡±


    Sangsang smiled out of embarrassement and turned to look out of the window.


    At that point in time, Mountain Wa was painted with multiple colors. Due to the humidity of the wind at the bottom of the mountain, the trees were still covered with fresh green leaves although it was already autumn. With the higher altitude and lower temperature, the color of the leaves changed. The trees were covered in mild yellow leaves that were simr to fresh chrysanthemum. Like rouge, there wereyers uponyers, giving beauty to the mountain.


    ¡°When I was young and staying at Min Mountain, I loved seeing the autumn trees, just like the ones outside the window now. I find them very pretty, but Ning Que dislikes them. He always said that when the leaves turn yellow, it means autumn ising. The wild beasts in the mountain are either hibernating or dead, so hunting will be tougher. He also said that no matter how pretty these yellow and red leaves are, their beautysts only for a fleeting moment. Then they will fall off from the trees and be as useless as the mud.¡±


    Finishing the sentence, Sangsang looked at the scenery outside the window and was quiet for a long time. It was only when the mountain breeze started to cause a prickling pain in her face that she slightly narrowed her brows and sat up. She said with determination, ¡°You like the young master, don¡¯t you?¡±


    She was addressing him as ¡°Ning Que¡± all these while, yet she had switched to addressing him as ¡°young master¡± now.


    ¡°Eh?¡±


    Mo Shanshan was certain that she did not mishear the words. She startled and looked at her. She did not know what to say.


    She knew that Ning Que and Sangsang were engaged. Yet suddenly hearing the question Sangsang asked, she could not help but panic. She subconsciously lowered her head and stared at white cotton skirt and the tip of her shoe that was not covered.


    s, the shoe was just a normal shoe. No matter how long she stared at it, it would not change.


    Her hair gently shivered in front of her eyes. Her eyes seemed unengaged. Her thin and red lips seemed to tighten further. She felt unreasonably anxious, then again, she was a cultured, quiet and honest Calligraphy Addict. She did not want to hide anything, especially from Sangsang. She figured that it would be useless for her to hide it anyway, so she replied with a soft ¡°yes¡±.


    Sangsang heard the replying from behind her.


    Yet she did not turn her head. Instead, she merely smiled at the mountain, once again revealing her two dazzling white front teeth.


    For the past few years, Sangsang always believed herself to be ugly. Though she had a straight set of teeth, her front teeth were unusually conspicuous. Thus, she was unwilling to smile casually like the other girls in Tang.


    Even if she wanted to smile, she would normally lower her head and smile shyly, or smile secretly when she cheated Chen Pipi out of his bank notes, or even smile that silly smile of hers when her feet were warmed by Ning Que. However recently, though she does not know why, she began to extend her smile to reveal her two dazzling white front teeth like a cute little rabbit.


    She gazed at the trees by the side of the road. They were covered in red leaves and looked like trees burning in mes. She then said, ¡°But now you can¡¯t.¡±


    Mo Shanshan quietly looked at her skinny and frail outline. After a few moments, she smiled and said, ¡°Yeah.¡±


    The carriage continued driving along the path on Mountain Wa. A red leaf fell from a branch onto the roof, which then rolled onto the grass patch along the path. Even though it was not crushed into the ground now, it would eventually dpose into the mud.


    The autumn breeze caressed Sangsang¡¯s face as the smile on her face gradually faded.


    Thinking of that red leaf, she said sternly, ¡°Wait till I am dead then.¡±


    ...


    ¨C

 Chapter 562 - Sangsangs Saying

    562 Sangsang¡¯s Saying


    Trantor:Transn<i>IOL | Editor: Transn</i>IOL /Transn


    During the conversation in the carriage, Mo Shanshan had been responding to Sangsang gently with ¡°um-hum¡±. When she heard Sangsang¡¯sst sentence, without hesitation she responded as usual, but then noticed something off. She raised the tone to express doubts and astonishment and some otherplex emotions that were difficult to convey only through pitch fluctuation.


    If it was a conversation between any other two women in the world, the conversation would be considered to be filled with tension and harsh irony, like they were confronting each other with daggers. But Mo Shanshan knew Sangsang so well that she knew Sangsang was just telling the facts and had no intent to show off.


    She learned it from Ning Que that Sangsang had a serious illness and she hade to Lanke Temple to cure it. Although it was said that Master Qishan might have a way to cure her, the possibility was so small that even the Headmaster failed to do it. Thinking about thest two sentences Sangsang said, she was a bit sad.


    Noon was approaching and the ck horse carriage stopped beside a temple by the mountainside to have a rest for a while. Monk Guanhai caught up from behind and prepared lunch for the monks and led Ning Que and the others into a quiet courtyard.


    Sangsang had spent so much energy on the chess game, and her body was still weak. She felt sleepy after eating a few mouthfuls of vegetables. Ning Que carried her into the inner room and spread the clean bedding over her. He tucked the quilt carefully to confirm that there was no room for the autumn wind to get inside. After that, he felt relieved.


    ¡°I have told you not to care about the chess. You just didn¡¯t listen to me.¡±


    Ning Que looked at her sullen face and said anxiously.


    Sangsang whispered, ¡°But I really think it¡¯s fun ying chess. I heard that many people admired me after I won. Aren¡¯t you happy about it?¡±


    Ning Que thought it over, and replied, ¡°I¡¯m happy indeed, and proud of you.¡±


    Sangsang smiled with satisfaction.


    Ning Que reached out his hand to cover her eyes and asked her to sleep.


    Sangsang did not want to close her eyes. Instead, she blinked, and her eyshes made Ning Que¡¯s hand itchy.


    ¡°Ning Que.¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s voice came from between his fingers.


    Ning Que said with a little surprise, ¡°I¡¯m here.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°You are mine.¡±


    Ning Queughed and said, ¡°I¡¯m yours. Yours, yours, all yours.¡±


    After a moment of silence, Sangsang asked, ¡°I am not a good person, am I?¡±


    ¡°If the Lady of Light is not a good person, who else could be?¡±


    ¡°Am I really the Lady of Light? I had killed people when I was young.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°When did you kill anyone?¡±


    ¡°I killed grandpa.¡±


    ¡°You just poured a bucket of boiling water. I murdered him with a knife.¡±


    ¡°Then I am your aplice.¡±


    ¡°What the hell are you thinking?¡±


    Ning Que said angrily, ¡°Ever since you were young, I had tried so hard to keep you away from killing or anything that could make your hands bloody. Now you try to prove that you already got blood in your hands. Are you proud of it?¡±


    Sangsang turned around with her back facing him, and said, ¡°I¡¯m not proud. I just don¡¯t think that I am the sort of good person many people think I am.¡±


    Previously on the way up to the mountain, Ning Que had heard all the conversation between Sangsang and Shanshan even though they spoke in low voices. He had guessed what Sangsang wanted to say right now but he did not want to hear it.


    However, as in the past, even though he did not want to do something, as long as Sangsang wanted to, she would do it. Sangsang still said whatever she wanted to him even if he did not want to hear it.


    ¡°We spent all our money buying the house beside Yanming Lake and still owe Mr. Qi more than seven hundred taels of silver. If we can withdraw some dividends from the casino in winter, we can pay him back next year. I always feel that it¡¯s not good to owe people money. So I¡¯m thinking whether to rent out Old Brush Pen Shop.¡±


    ¡°Those gifts given by Emperor and Empress are all collected in a booklet and I stored it at the bottom of the winter clothes box in the west room. The Princess sent a total of 160 trees, which were favored by rich people on the west side of the mountain, ording to my inquiry. If we sold them, one tree should be worth over five hundred taels of silver.¡±


    ¡°Aunt Wu had borrowed 14 taels of silverst time but had not returned it yet. I know that Mr. Wu had borrowed a loan from youst time. Only you know how much it was. I won¡¯t count those cheap things like oil, salt, and vinegar lest you say I¡¯m stingy. Do remember that I hid a gold brick in the wall behind the well and firewood in Old Brush Pen Shop...¡±


    Sangsang stared at the wall and was too shy to turn around. She said, ¡°When I was young, I was worried that you wouldn¡¯t want to marry me and your wife wouldn¡¯t allow me to stay at home. So I have been... saving money secretly. I figured that I wouldn¡¯t need to panic if I had some money for my dowry so I keep saving even after we are moved to Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Ning Que was surprised after hearing her words. He thought that she was amazing for she was able to save up even though they led a very frugal life. He admired her for her frugality so he smiled and said, ¡°I think His Majesty really should hire you to be Minister of Revenue.¡±


    Sangsang did not respond to his joke and said seriously, ¡°The money I have saved so far totals up to more than two thousand and one hundred taels of silver. I¡¯ve left it with Aunt Jian. I know you have never liked to sell calligraphy and you did it when we entered Chang¡¯an only because I forced you to sell them. If you really don¡¯t have enough money, take my savings.¡±


    These words sounded like thest words of a head of a family. Ning Que wanted tough and get angry at the same time but he did not care about whether it was lucky to speak of death or not. He asked, ¡°What about the gold brick?¡±


    Sangsang turned around and looked at him seriously, and said, ¡°The gold brick is for my parents.¡±


    Ning Que thought about her confession, and asked, ¡°You have nothing left for me except money?¡±


    ¡°I had made enough shoes and socks for you to wear for many years. I¡¯m not good at needlework. You will just have to put up with them.¡±


    Sangsang suddenly recalled one thing and she whispered, ¡°There is a small ck box under the bed of Old Brush Shop. Don¡¯t forget it.¡±


    Ning Que did not know she had a small ck box untilst year.


    There were many things thrown away by him for some reason, but they were all valuable to him, such as the calligraphy he wrote after the death of Darkie.


    He nodded and said, ¡°I knew.¡±


    Sangsang shook her head and said, ¡°You don¡¯t know. You threw away all those letters sent by Miss Calligraphy Addict after reading them. But I collected them and now there is more than ten of them.¡±


    Ning Que was silent for a while and said, ¡°It is enough to read letters once. Who will want to take them out and read them in the future?¡±


    Sangsang suddenly smiled and said, ¡°I was thinking that I would take out the box when we got old andy on the bamboo chairs of Old Brush Pen Shop and waited to die. By that time, in my opinion, if you read them again, you may be happy. Unfortunately, it seems that I may not be able to grow old with you.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know from whom you learn all these sentimental things.¡±


    Ning Que put his hands into the bedding and held her little cold hands, and said, ¡°That is the scene in the imagination of stupid women. You are still young and shouldn¡¯t be so sentimental like them. They¡¯re so old, they¡¯re sour and smell bad.¡±


    ¡°I haven¡¯t had a bath for a few days. Am I sour and stinky?.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Young Master, I am really going to die. Then I won¡¯t be able to tell you this when I¡¯m old. I am anxious to tell you all this time so please don¡¯t think I¡¯m annoying.¡±


    Ning Queughed and said, ¡°I¡¯m not bothered. I just wonder are you done with yourst words?¡±


    Sangsang said happily, ¡°Almost.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You are still energetic to y chess and speak nonsense. You don¡¯t look like you are going to die. Besides, we are meeting Master Qishan today. The Headmaster says he can cure you so he must be able to. There is no need for you to leave yourst words at all.¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s eyes widened and she insisted, ¡°What if I don¡¯t have time to say them?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Okay, okay, okay. If you want to say it, you will say it. Say it every year in the future.¡±


    Sangsang was amused by him and then she began to cough. Her thin body trembled slightly and her brows were tightly knitted. Her face was pale and she looked as if she was in terrible pain.


    Ning Que used his left index finger to shoot a piece of Fu paper into the Zen room and it silently began to burn and then turned into a warm fire, floating in the air, like a small sun.


    Then he hugged Sangsang into his arms and gently patted her back.


    Sangsang coughed painfully and it took a while to ease it.


    She closed her eyes and said in a weak voice, ¡°I¡¯m not a good person. I am not good looking, and can¡¯t do anything except housework, yet I married you. Many people think that you have suffered a loss.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°It sounds like I do suffer some losses.¡±


    Sangsang smiled and said, ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter now. It¡¯s you who picked me up at that time.¡±


    Ning Que smiled as well and he said, ¡°It¡¯s all my good ears¡¯ fault.¡±


    Sangsang slowly opened her eyes, looked at him and said, ¡°Ning Que, you are the first person I saw when I opened my eyes. So I must watch you die when I close my eyes.¡±


    Ning Que tried to confirm what he had heard. He said, ¡°Are you saying that you want to look at me when you are dying or you want to watch me die? The former is kind of sad. Thetter one is cruel. Do you just want me to die before you?¡±


    Sangsangughed and said, ¡°You know what I mean. You can marry her after I¡¯m dead. Or marry anyone else if you want.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°If you die, I really don¡¯t want to live anymore.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°You just said I was too sentimental earlier. Look at yourself now. That¡¯s something only women can say.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Then I am a woman.¡±


    Sangsang said with a smile, ¡°Then I shall be a man.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang fell asleep.


    Ning Que walked out of the Zen room and stood in the courtyard against the autumn tree outside the wall, lost in a daze for a long time.


    He recalled many things in his mind, in the past and present. Then he thought of the chess game.


    He had known since many years ago that Sangsang had an incredible counting ability. It could be regarded as God¡¯s counting and it was not an exaggeration. Sangsang helped him a lot with this ability when he was hunting in Min Mountain and cutting firewood in the City of Wei. But he seemed to forget her talent unless when they were in battles of life and death.


    He had gotten used to standing in front of Sangsang, protecting her from any danger. This time, would he be able to her shelter from the storm again?


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 563

    <h4>Chapter 563: Flicking Red Leaves and Pinching Yellow Flowers</h4>


    <h4><strong>Trantor:</strong> Transn <strong>Editor:</strong> Transn</h4>


    Over the decade, through wind, rain, and the daily setting of the sun, Ning Que had never worried. This was because he had be used to it so it came naturally to him. It was his greatest strength. However, he had not expected that this trip to Lanke Temple in Tile Mountain would change habits he had for so long.


    Beside the Jumping Tiger Stream, Sangsang had said that she wanted to solve the chess puzzle. This surprised him greatly. He knew that while she might be vain at times, she was never one forpetition. Most importantly, in the past she would just sit quietly by his side and wait for him to solve the problem when they were in such situations.


    He thought of many reasons for this change. For example... the other girl outside the carriage. However, he had heard Sangsang say many things in the meditation room earlier. That was when he understood that Sangsang had done this just to prove herself.


    She wanted to prove to herself that she could do it. It had nothing to do with the world.


    She wanted to make it clear she was no longer just the quiet handmaiden by Ning Que¡¯s side. She was now his wife who could shoulder burdens for him. She could even try to shield him from wind and rain.


    Sangsang wanted to feel needed by Ning Que. She needed Ning Que to be proud of her.


    Ning Que looked at the autumn tree with furrowed brows.


    Then, he softly touched the red leaves falling into the yard. He said, ¡°You¡¯re such an idiot. <i>I</i> raised you. Do I need you to be considerate towards me and protect me?¡±


    He had felt the urge to cry many times in the meditation room where they had spoken; he only managed to hide it due to his cold temperament and his expertise in performing. He was the only one in the courtyard right now, and he could bear it no longer. He wiped his eyes.


    Ning Que felt really embarrassed. He looked at the leaves still on the tree and scolded angrily, ¡°Even if you die, I¡¯ll fetch you from the Underworld and give you a sound thrashing.¡±


    There were light footsteps approaching.


    Shanshan, who wore a white cotton dress, approached him and stood by his side. She did not look at him.


    All was silent in the meditation courtyard. Sangsang¡¯s painful coughs could be heard asionally as she slept.


    The two watched the leaves in silence.


    Ning Que suddenly said, ¡°Aiyayaya.¡±


    Mo Shanshan said, ¡°Em em ah ah.¡±


    Some things can only be shared in silence.


    ...


    ...


    A loud noise was suddenly heard outside. It seemed as if someone wanted to enter, but was stopped by the monks in the temple. The two parties were embroiled in a fierce argument, disrupting the peace in the courtyard.


    Ning Que could hear that it was the voice of the chess master from South Jin Kingdom. He frowned slightly and looked toward the door.


    ¡°Why do I want to see her? I want to be her teacher, of course!¡±


    ¡°You are all monks from Lanke Temple. Do you not understand what her calction skills mean?¡±


    ¡°There hasn¡¯t been someone like her in thest millennia. How can she cultivate in Taoism? She has to y chess!¡±


    ¡°The girl might be someone with great calction skills. But the art of chess is as deep as the sea. It is not something so simple. If she is willing to learn from me, I will teach her everything I know.¡±


    ¡°The girl has such talent. If she has a teacher like me, and focuses solely on chess, she will sweep the chess world within 10 years. She will be stronger than Master Dongming of Lanke Temple. She might even surpass the greatest chess master of South Jin Kingdom, Master Song Qian. She will be a legendary Sage of Chess!¡±


    ¡°Why would she be the Lady of Light if she could be the Sage of Chess?¡±


    ¡°Quick, let me pass. What would we do if she gets away?¡±


    The South Jin Kingdom chess master yelled all of this angrily outside the courtyard. It was evident that no matter how much he scolded and raged, the monks of Lanke Temple would not allow him to bother Ning Que and hispanions.


    Ning Que thought that the man was indeed obsessed with chess. He was very simr to his peers at the back of the mountain at the Academy. At first, he was annoyed that Sangsang might be woken up by the man, but he could not bring himself to get truly angry.


    Mo Shanshan suddenly said, ¡°Actually, I am very jealous of you and her.¡±


    This shocked Ning Que.


    ¡°I know that you and Sangsang used to have a hard time in the past. I am sorry for the bitterness that you have experienced together.¡± Mo Shanshan smiled and said, ¡°I will get that man to pipe down. Don¡¯t worry.¡±


    ...


    ...


    It is not clear what Mo Shanshan told him, but the South Jin Kingdom chess master did not insist on seeing Sangsang again. All was silent in the meditation courtyard once more. However, she did not return to watch the red leaves with Ning Que again.


    Ning Que knew what this meant, and he felt slightly agitated. Then, he calmed down and looked at the branch that extended into the meditation courtyard. He looked at the leaves on the tip of the branch while he kept an eye out for any movement from Sangsang within the room.


    There was a stone window in the shape of a fan on the white walls of the meditation courtyard. It was used for venttion and one could also see the scenery outside the courtyard from it.


    The face of a girl appeared at the window.


    The face was emotionless; devoid of any happiness, anger, sadness, or joy. However, it was simply too beautiful, like a flower bathed in dew. It appeared in the stone window, looking like an exquisite scenery.


    She was the Princess of the Yuelun Kingdom. She was Lu Chenjia, the Flower Addict.


    Ning Que looked at Lu Chenjia and raised his eyebrows. He did not say anything.


    Lu Chenjia looked at Ning Que through the window. She had an inconspicuous little yellow flower in her fingers. She said dispassionately, ¡°I did not expect your handmaiden to be the inheritor of the Divine Priest of Light.¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°We have gotten engaged.¡±


    Lu Chenjia¡¯s voice was frigid and monotonous. She said, ¡°How old is your wife?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°16.¡±


    Lu Chenjia shook her head and said, ¡°She looks about 13 or 14.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°She experienced a terrible illness as a child and was malnourished. She has never been fully healed, so she looks a little weak. She¡¯ll be better once we treat her for a few years.¡±


    He had only met the Flower Addict a few times, and they were not close. They had even had an intense fight in the Wilderness. The two will never be friends because of Prince Long Qing. Ning Que could have just ignored her, but for some reason, he exined Sangsang¡¯s illness to her honestly.


    Lu Chenjia asked softly, ¡°Is she ill again?¡±


    Ning Que did not want to hide anything and said, ¡°Indeed.¡±


    Lu Chenjia looked into his eyes and asked, ¡°Have youe to Lanke Temple to ask Master Qishan to heal her?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± Ning Que replied.


    Lu Chenjia¡¯s expression finally changed, and she asked confusedly, ¡°Not even the Headmaster can heal her?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Unfortunately not.¡±


    Lu Chenjia rubbed the tender stem of the yellow flower and said softly, ¡°Aunt is having her afternoon nap. I was bored, so I walked around and spoke to you since I saw you standing here. I did not expect you to be willing to converse with me.¡±


    Ning Que looked at her and said, ¡°They say that you are obsessed with flowers. I have a Senior Brother who loves flowers and grass in the Academy. He is well-versed in medicine, so I would like to know if you have any ways to cure Sangsang.¡±


    Sangsang had been taking medication given by Eleventh Brother, Wang Chi while they traveled. Ning Que thought that since his Senior Brother was well-versed in herbs, the Flower Addict might be good at medicine. Even though a deduction like this was not very rational, since he was desperate he was happy to go for any kind of doctor.


    Lu Chenjia smiled ndly and said, ¡°We are not on good terms. In fact, we bear a grudge against each other. However, you are still willing to ask me for help. It seems that she is very important to you.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Everyone has someone who is important to them.¡±


    ¡°That is true. Long Qing is important to me.¡±


    Lu Chenjia looked at Ning Que in the eye as her smile faded away. She said indifferently, ¡°Do you think Master Qishan can heal her if the Headmaster can¡¯t? It is wonderful, when I think that you will watch as your loved one dies before you.¡±


    Ning Que did not grow angry because of her words. He looked at her and said calmly, ¡°Because you have said this, I will kill Quni Madi if Sangsang¡¯s illness cannot be cured. I will also kill your father, the King of the Yuelun Kingdom, as well as everyone else that you care about. Then, I will kill you and bury you with Sangsang.¡±


    Lu Chenjia¡¯s expression was frigid, but she was not scared. She said ndly, ¡°First, you have to get out of Tile Mountain alive.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°There isn¡¯t any ce in the world that can hold me back.¡±


    Lu Chenjia looked at him questioningly and asked, ¡°Are you really not afraid?¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°What do I have to be afraid of?¡±


    Lu Chenjia said, ¡°You have killed Master Dao Shi. Are you not afraid that the high monks of Xuankong Temple will imprison you for 1,000 years?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°If the Xuankong Temple had such guts, the Academy would have ceased to exist long ago.¡±


    Lu Chenjia suddenly smiled. She said, ¡°If you are indeed the Son of Yama like the rumors say, then I believe that both the Buddhism Sect and Haotian Taoism will do everything they can to kill you.¡±


    ¡°So this is what you want to threaten me with. It is a pity that I am not. There is no proof even if you all say that I am.¡±


    Ning Que looked at her and said, ¡°And I want to tell you that Long Qing told me that he was the Son of Yama just before he lost to me at the Red Lotus Temple.¡±


    With that, he turned around and walked back into the meditation courtyard.


    Lu Chenjia¡¯s expression was odd when she heard Long Qing¡¯s name. She looked at Ning Que¡¯s retreating back without any emotions in her eyes. She pinched her fingers together tightly, and broke the flower stem.


    The poor yellow flowernded at her feet.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que helped Sangsang off the bed and fed her medicine. Then, he sensed for her condition using the Great Spirit and ascertained that the poison from Red Lotus Temple had been neutralized. The cold aura in her body had been temporarily suppressed by Ye Hongyu¡¯s Divine Light. It was currently dormant and would not act up anytime soon.


    He knew that this was not something good because the longer the cold aura stays dormant, the more terrifying it would be when it acts up. If they temper it down forcefully, it would be more difficult to temper it down the next time. Ye Hongyu was the Great Divine Priest of Judgment, and they had already had to use her power this time. Would they need to visit the Zhishou Abbey next time?


    That was why he could only pin all his hopes on Lanke Temple, and on Master Qishan, who was regarded to be like Buddha and would fulfill all requests. Ning Que only felt afraid now, when he thought back to how he had behaved at the Jumping Tiger Stream due to his anxiousness. How could he have yelled and threatened the doctor before a consultation?


    ¡°What is this?¡± Sangsang looked at the tiny pouch in her hands curiously.


    Ning Que answered, ¡°This is something Master left me; I used one in the Front Gates of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. There¡¯s still one left. Keep it with you, and if anything happenster, tell me in your heart.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 564 - Which Color Do You Choose?

    <h4>Chapter 564: Which Color Do You Choose?</h4>


    <h4><strong>Trantor:</strong> Transn <strong>Editor:</strong> Transn</h4>


    Leaving the yard, they got on the carriage and headed to the top of the mountain. After a short while, they saw a pavilion between the cliffs.


    The pavilion didn¡¯t look deste in Autumn, because it was overly huge; it was a three-story-high building, decorated with cornices. Its appearance was majestic in the middle of red and yellow leaves.


    The second game would be yed in this pavilion.


    Guan Hai led people into the pavilion and stopped. Since the Messy Phase Game by Jumping Tiger Stream had been canceled, most of the cultivators at present didn¡¯t dare to speak aloud.


    The Buddhist Carriage stopped 100 meters away from the pavilion. The president of Xuankong Temple¡¯s Commandment Yard behind the curtain was still silent. In fact, most people outside the pavilion were observing him in the dark.


    Ning Que said that if Sangsang and he were unable to pass the test, no one else could. The eminent monk seemed to agree with him and was going to do as he wished.


    Maybe because of it, Quni Madi uncharitably stared at the ck carriage, while the Flower Addict Lu Chenjia was very numb and indifferent.


    There was an old monk in the pavilion who would preside over the second game.


    He was in a in robe, with a face full of deep wrinkles, drooping like fruit branches. He looked much older than the monk in yellow by the Jumping Tiger Stream.


    He bowed to the Buddhist Carriage from a far distance.


    The figure in the carriage seemed to return the salute.


    Then he turned to the ck carriage and said, ¡°I¡¯m honored to have the Lady of Light and Mr. Thirteen here.¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t know who he was, but he saluted him anyway.


    The old monk continued, ¡°Yuelun¡¯s Aunt Qu, Sword Garret¡¯s Mr. Chen, Flower Addict, Calligraphy Addict and South Jin¡¯s Crown Prince, wee all of you. It¡¯s our honor.¡±


    However, his voice said a different story as it sounded so mechanical. He named every bigwig at present just for being polite, without any other feelings.


    After that, he went straight to the point.


    He sat at a corner of the pavilion.


    In front of him was a huge wooden Go board.


    There was a wooden fork on the opposite and a curtain hanging from the ceiling to the ground.


    The second game had always been a Go game. The fork was used to put the stones, but what was the thick curtain for?


    The old monk was ready to y and invited his opponent with a gesture.


    People outside the pavilion were in silence and no one stepped forward.


    Everyone wanted a chance to y the game and get to the top of the Wa Mountain.


    They all knew that Master Qishan was very likely to y thest game. Even though none of them could be the chosen one, it would be still a great fortune to y with him once.


    The reason why no one stepped forward was not that they didn¡¯t want to; it was because the people in the ck carriage hadn¡¯t spoken.


    Even if they all wanted to y with the old monk, they could not get ahead of the girl in the carriage.


    The ck carriage slowly moved forward and stopped in front of the stone steps of the pavilion.


    The old monk looked at it and his eyes twinkled. He tly said, ¡°I heard that the Lady of Light beat my brother with admirable mathematical ability. I think you must be a master of Go as well.¡±


    Upon hearing this, Ning Que was more inclined to believe that ying chess must be a fashion in the Lanke Temple, even a Cryptozoic elder enjoyedpeting in the game. He was worried that it would be difficult to beat him.


    However, to his surprise, the old monk paused for a while and slowly said, ¡°Since you can see through the will of heaven, why do you bother to y? Mr. Thirteen, you can take the Lady of Light to go up the mountain.¡±


    Ning Que was stunned, and then he turned around to discuss with Sangsang.


    Hearing Sangsang¡¯s words, he shook his head and said to the monk, ¡°I came here for a medical treatment, so we have to follow the rules. We would like to y Go with you.¡±


    Upon hearing this, the cultivators beside the pavilion were all shocked. They thought, <i>¡°When you were in the Jumping Tiger Stream and tried to break into the mountain, there were no rules in your eyes. Why do you want to follow the rules now?¡±</i>


    Guan Hai was confused too, so he looked at Ning Que in a daze. The Lanke Temple¡¯s abbot became angry as well, and thought in his mind, ¡°It¡¯s so rude to say something like this. What do you take our sect for?¡±


    Ning Que knew their thoughts very well, but he could do nothing. Sangsang told him that she wanted to y this game very much and she even wanted to y the third game with Qishan after she got to the top of the mountainter.


    Ning Que was not going to allow her to y the game. They would have driven the carriage straight to the top of the mountain if not under this condition. However, at present, things were different. As long as she could handle it, he would not go against her will. If this could make her happy, it didn¡¯t matter if she lost or won.


    The mountain was high and the wind was cold. He took out his winter robe to cover Sangsang with it, and then he carried her into the pavilion. Looking at the old monk, he said, ¡°She is a little weak, no offense intended.¡±


    The old monk said, ¡°As a patient, why does she insist on ying the game?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°A patient also has her right to demand two more candies. I cannot stop her.¡±


    The old manughed and his wrinkles rippled as water. He said, ¡°I have tried everything to prevent myself frompeting, but I failed. In fact, I want to y this game as well.¡±


    Upon hearing this, Ning Que could not helpughing. He thought this monk was more interesting than the previous one.


    The old monk looked at Sangsang who was in the ck robe. He pointed at the thick curtain and said, ¡°Since you are a patient, you can sit inside to avoid the wind.¡±


    Ning Que carried Sangsang through the curtain and found that it was made of cotton, hanging from the ceiling to the ground. It sealed the pavilion to prevent wind. There was a nket in the middle of the ground. They could see the entire Go board through a seam in front of it.


    He didn¡¯t expect the Lanke Temple to be so thoughtful. In this situation, he would no longer worry about Sangsang. He was quite satisfied until he remembered a thing which made him nervous.


    A cultivator¡¯s weakness was the body. Hundreds of arrows shot by normal people could kill an expert at the Seethrough Realm. However, cultivators could sense the heaven and earth and were unlikely to fall ill like the people outside the pavilion.


    Then who was the curtain prepared for?


    Of course it was for Sangsang.


    Until now, Ning Que realized that the Lanke Temple had prepared this for a long time, and they had been sure that Sangsang would be able to pass the first test instead of him. Maybe the Academy had sent a letter to inform Master Qishan that they wereing, but how did he know Sangsang would be his opponent? Was he a prophet?


    While he was thinking about this, the Go Master from South Jin said outside the curtain, ¡°Can I get closer to watch the game? I have a bad vision and I can be a judge for you.¡±


    The old monk looked at the man who came in without permission and asked, ¡°Do you y Go?¡±


    The Go Master smiled and said, ¡°Only a little.¡±


    The old monk seemed satisfied with his answer and asked, ¡°Who is your teacher?¡±


    The Go Master answered respectfully, ¡°Xu Chu is my teacher.¡±


    The old monk said, ¡°Xu Chu? Can you beat him?¡±


    The Go Master answered, ¡°If I try.¡±


    The old monk nodded and said, ¡°That¡¯s good for you.¡±


    The Go Master was upset to hear this. He was trying to be modest by saying this, but he didn¡¯t expect that the old monk would take it seriously.


    He only admired three men in Go: A royal Go Master in the Yuelun Kingdom who has been missing, Master Dongming in the Lanke Temple who was dered dead long ago and Song Qian, his most respected predecessor, who had been a legend in South Jin. Except these three, he despised all. He only wanted to take Sangsang as a student regardless of her being very capable with arithmetics.


    He was not pleased and was going to argue with the old monk, and then saw the monk¡¯s face. He suddenly froze and forgot what he was doing.


    He had definitely not seen him before.


    However, he was somehow familiar with his face, as if he had seen him once somewhere.


    He tried to remember but failed.


    At this time, the second game began.


    The old monk looked toward the curtain and said, ¡°Lady of Light, which color would you like?¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s voice sounded inside the curtain without any hesitation.


    ¡°ck.¡±


    Hearing her answer, the old monk sighed. His face became became filled with regret.


    Behind the curtain, Sangsang heard his sigh.


    She had a sense of familiarity when seeing the old man as she entered the pavilion. She could feel his regret and could not help asking, ¡°Can¡¯t I choose ck?¡±


    The old monk slowly shook his head and said with unwillingness, ¡°People are only allowed to use white stones in the first game, so they believed that only by choosing white could they win the second game. You, however, choose ck which I find surprising.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I chose ck because I want to make the first move.¡±


    The old monk did not expect to hear that.


    At this point, the Go Master from South Jin finally recalled something and cried out as if he was looking at a ghost, ¡°I saw a portrait of you when I was a kid.¡±


    ¡°You, you... are Master Dongming, aren¡¯t you? Weren¡¯t you dead?¡±


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 565 - Lucky to Have Sangsang

    <h4>Chapter 565: Lucky to Have Sangsang</h4>


    <strong>Trantor:</strong> Transn <strong>Editor:</strong> Transn


    The Go Master from South Jin screamed and created a disturbance outside the pavilion.


    Everyone, including novice Go yers, knew of Master Dongming. Over the century, he was recognized as the best yer of Wa Mountain, a ce near the Lanke Temple, where there were many outstanding Go masters. In all the world, he was seen as the smartest person.


    Master Dongming had shown his talent in Go since he was young, and he had been watching over the third game on Wa Mountain for more than 10 years. He was middle-aged when he disappeared for no apparent reason, and it was said that he had passed away. However, in the Go yers¡¯ hearts, he had always been a legend.


    The Go Master looked at the old monk in the pavilion, who had been regarded as a venerable master by many Go yers. He could not help trembling and quaveringly said, ¡°You are still alive?¡±


    The old monk surprisedly looked at him and said, ¡°I didn¡¯t expect that somebody would recognize me.¡±


    The Go Master finally calmed down. He then knelt on the futon and kowtowed to Master Dongming. He respectfully said, ¡°I had been watching your image since I am a kid, so I can recognize you.¡±


    The old monk sighed and said, ¡°When I traveled to South Jin, I yed with Xu Chu. I¡¯m surprised that he still remembers me.¡±


    After hearing his teacher¡¯s name, the Go Master didn¡¯t dare to interpose, but he couldn¡¯t suppress his doubt. He asked, ¡°Master, why did you disappear for so many years?¡±


    The old monk thought for a moment and said, ¡°Many years ago, a young man came to the Lanke Temple and beat most of the monks in our temple. So I left Wa Mountain to y with him. We were well-matched until the third one because we had different opinions on some algorithms.¡±


    ¡°The young man was too proud and said something bad, so I could not help punching him. He spat a lot of blood and left with a grudge. After that, I reflected on what had happened that day, and I found that his algorithm was right. I was very truly remorseful about that. Inspired by Master Qishan, I decided to cultivate and resolve my regrets.¡±


    The Go Master was shocked.


    He was very proud of his skill in Go ying and he believed the Messy Phase Game by the Jumping Tiger Stream would not baffle him, but he never thought he would be able to beat Master Dongming even if he had not yed Go for many years. It was unbelievable that someone could y the game as good as him when he was younger.


    Who was the young man exactly?


    The Go Master thought in his mind and a name sprang to his mind.


    However, he could not say the name out in front of Master Dongming, so he asked, ¡°Then why did youe to preside over the Wa Mountain¡¯s Go game?¡±


    The old monk quietly looked at the curtain and did not say anything, but his answer was clear.


    The one who could bring him back was Sangsang.


    ...


    ...


    The Go board was very big, so were the Go pieces. They needed tond the Go pieces with the customized wooden fork. Ning Que ned to help Sangsang, but she refused.


    Looking at her engrossed face, Ning Que discovered she didn¡¯t cough anymore and looked better, so he was at ease to watch the game through the curtain even though he was not good at it.


    The Go Master was able to understand the game, but he was quieter than when he was at Jumping Tiger Stream. He just sat on the futon and watched the Go board quietly.


    He didn¡¯t expect Sangsang to beat Master Dongming. It was impossible. He believed the game today would be as boring as the one he yed with the Empress.


    Go ying was more than calction. As the participants yed on, they needed wisdom, experience, and surprise moves. The rules were dead, but the people were alive. Even if Sangsang was good at mathematics and had solved the Messy Phase Game, she would be unable to work out what Master Dongming was thinking.


    However, the game went against his wishes.


    The Go pieces on the board increased, but they were still in a tie.


    The Go Master was sure that Master Dongming hadn¡¯t be weaker because of old age. He seemed to be more skillful and meticulous than before, and no one could find a w.


    Under this situation, a draw indicated one thing: Sangsang who was ying ck was as good as Master Dongming.


    In the Go Master¡¯s eyes, the way she yed was different from Master Dongming¡¯s. She just relied on her careful calction, which had no loopholes in it and gradually showed the greatest charm of the Go game.


    She put one piece down while taking subsequent steps into ount and hid the clues in ways that no one was able to imagine. What was more surprising, the way she ced the ck pieces was as aggressive as a god descended into the world.


    The Go Master felt as warm as in spring when he watched Master Dongming ying, while he felt as cold as in winter when he observed Sangsang ying; both of styles were attractive and would not let him go.


    Sometimes it was warm, and sometimes cold, which uplifted him as if a cultivator had taken a Heavenly Power Pill. His body lightened and was about to fly up into the sky.


    Between the movements of white and ck pieces, the Go Master woke up asionally. Then he felt familiar with the way of ying ck as if he had seen it somewhere.


    He thought that he must be so shocked by Master Dongming¡¯s appearance that he felt familiar with everything else he saw, butter he decided to ignore the thought.


    ...


    ...


    In the pavilion, the Go pieces on the board became dense.


    The two colors on the Go board integrated and created a perfect and harmonious pattern. The Go Master stared at the Goboard and had forgotten where he was.


    He was not a cultivator, but he seemed to understand something.


    The people outside the pavilion felt the same as him. The Go board was big enough for them to watch, but at the moment, no one could notice the details on it.


    They all saw the alternation of day and night, morning and dusk switching in the world, and then they heard the sounds of the bell in the morning and the drum in the evening.


    With the sounds of morning bells and evening drums, a fragment of peace and warmth burst in their hearts and diluted theirpetition drive.


    The wind became wilder and the birds in the woods began singing.


    The Go Master¡¯s eyes began to weep.


    ...


    ...


    Some time passed.


    ¡°My only regret in life was not seeing a game yed by Master Dongming and Song Qian. The game yed today makes up for that. I am satisfied.¡±


    He sincerely saluted the old monk and said, ¡°Thank you very much.¡±


    Then he turned to the curtain, bowed and said, ¡°Thank you, too,dy. You are the Great Wisdom in the world indeed. I am not qualified to be your teacher. On the contrary, you should be mine.¡±


    Sangsang sheepishly said, ¡°I could barely win in the mountain, so I am not qualified to take a disciple either.¡±


    Upon hearing this, the Go Master¡¯s body trembled. He previously felt familiar with her way of ying Go and could not helping up with an incredible idea. He quaveringly asked, ¡°Would it be daring to know if you learned from Master Song Qian?¡±


    Sangsang shook her head nkly.


    Ning Que frowned. The name sounded familiar to him. He must have heard of it somewhere.


    The old monk looked at the curtain and said, ¡°How does Mr. Song do in the Academy?¡±


    Hearing that, Ning Que finally remembered something. When the Academy issued the winter uniforms, Second Brother¡¯s little servant mentioned the name of Song Qian. Was he...


    ¡°Do you mean my Fifth Brother?¡±


    Ning Que¡¯s voice spread outside the pavilion and shocked everyone. They didn¡¯t know the Master of Go from South Jin had been living on the Second Floor of the Academy and they couldn¡¯t help holding the Academy in awe.


    The Go Master was paralyzed by the news and he took a long time to recover. He cried out and said, ¡°I need to go to the Academy right now. I want to see Master Song Qian.¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t expect that his neurotic Fifth Brother, who often forgot to eat because of Go, was so famous in the world. He was stunned.


    ...


    ...


    The game in the pavilion was over in a tie. The stones of two colors held such harmony that no one had the heart to break it. Even counting the pieces was thought to be a sphemy. Therefore, the game ended with no winner.


    Master Dongming looked less regretful and seemed to have thought something through. He looked at the curtain and said with a smile, ¡°You chose ck because you want it. Life is the same as Go ying. Just do what your heart tells you to.¡±


    He stood up, turned to face both the Lanke Temple¡¯s abbot and monk Guan Hai, then slowly said, ¡°Since you had sealed the Messy Phase Game, I will seal this game as well. If someone wants to go up the mountain, you don¡¯t have to stop them.¡±


    Monk Guan Hai was surprised and asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    Master Dongming answered, ¡°It¡¯s a perfect ending that I could y Go with such an opponent as thest game in my life, isn¡¯t it?¡±


    The people outside the pavilion were shocked, too. They knew the Messy Phase Game had been sealed. Now the second game was going to be sealed as well. Didn¡¯t it mean that the Three Games in the Wa Mountian were going to vanish?


    ...


    ...


    The ck horse carriage slowly inched toward the top of the mountain.


    Ning Que thought of the game in the pavilion and could not help asking, ¡°Who won?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I should have won a few pieces, but ck is a dominant stance anyway.¡±


    Ning Que was stunned, and then he burst intoughter.


    Then he sighed and said, ¡°No wonder Fifth Brother said the Lanke Temple monks were good at Go ying. Since you have learned from him and you beat the old monk, you somehow made up for him.¡±


    Dozens of days ago.


    At the back of the mountain, fellow apprentices were sending them out.


    At that time, Fifth Brother looked at Sangsang and happily said, ¡°Sangsang, the most important responsibility of defending the glory of the Academy... is given to you.¡±


    The Academy was the best in the world, in Go, music, and calligraphy.


    It was not easy to maintain these.


    However, it was as Fifth Brother expected.


    Today, Sangsang made it.


    ...

 Chapter 566 - A Green Pear

    <h4>Chapter 566: A Green Pear</h4>


    <strong>Trantor:</strong> Transn <strong>Editor:</strong> Transn


    As cultivators approached Tile Mountain, they saw that the Buddha statue on the top of the mountain was getting bigger and higher as if its head had touched the actual sky. The cultivators were shocked by this scene.


    The chess master from South Jin Kingdom did not care about the Buddha statue at all. He followed the ck horse carriage like the most honest of students, with eyes full of adoration and worship.


    Looking at his subordinate¡¯s behavior, His Highness, the Crown Prince of South Jin Kingdom was in a very bad mood. He became even more upset, as the mountain breeze would asionally lift up the curtains of his carriage, revealing the beautiful face of Mo Shanshan.


    The monk in the Buddhist chariot was undoubtedly the noblest person in the field so he remained quiet all the time. No one dared to approach him except the sadhus from Yuelun Kingdom. There must be a great event for people from the Unknown ce to show up in the world but no one knew why he came here.


    The terrain at the top of Tile Mountain was open and gentle, as if the whole mountain was cut from the middle and became a huge stone teau. However, the Buddha statue in the middle of the stone teau was so tall and sorge that, inparison, the stone teau looked small, just like a tile that Buddha stepped on.


    The statue behind Lanke Temple is said to be thergest Buddha statue in the world. However, only when onees to the statue in person can they truly understand the inexpressible feeling of shock.


    Ning Que raised his head and looked at the wisps of autumn clouds drifting slowly from the chest of the statue, recalling that a few years ago when he brought Sangsang back to Chang¡¯an, he saw the picturesque view of the wall of Chang¡¯an reaching all the way to the clouds. Then he realized that the Buddha statue seemed higher than the wall of Chang¡¯an and felt as though he was smaller than before.


    The hermitage of Master Qishan was not at the top of the mountain. The ck horse carriage bypassed the Buddha statue and went down the mountain path. After a while, a cave with a broken door became visible underneath the giant statue¡¯s left heel.


    By the time the autumn sun was already setting, shadows of the statue on Wa Mountain had covered almost the entire foothills at the back of this mountain. The cave was right at the foot of the Buddha statue and was even more obscure in the shadow. The vines between the cliffs seemed to have be thick ck lines.


    There was a cave behind the vines on the cliff and in front of the cave was a stone tform. Beside the mountain path was a door built casually with firewood, grass and branches. It was the broken door seen previously. It could be seen from the rustytch that this door was rarely opened.


    But the door had been opened today.


    The ck horse carriage stopped in front of the door and Ning Que helped Sangsang out of the carriage. It was the hottest time of day. Although there was a shadow over the mountain, it was not cold so he did not put a coat over her.


    It was the first time that many cultivators in the field saw Sangsang clearly.


    People looked at the weary little girl with an ordinary face and yellowish hair and felt surprised, wondering if such a humble girl could really be the legendary Lady of Light?


    Monk Guan Hai walked towards the cave with Ning Que and Sangsang.


    An old monk stood outside the cave, waiting for a long time.


    Those who lived in Tile Mountain were all predecessors of Lanke Temple so they were naturally old.


    But this old monk was somewhat different.


    It was still autumn, but he had already put on a thick cotton coat. He appeared to be afraid of the cold. Wearing such thick clothes, he was not plump at all so one could imagine how thin the body was underneath those clothes. In addition, he looked like he was ill or had always been ill, for his long eyebrows were yellow and he always appeared exhausted.


    Sangsang opened her eyes and curiously looked at the old monk. She thought he looked familiar. After a moment, she recognized him and could not help smiling.


    The old monk smiled as well and said, ¡°Is it because all people who are sick all look simr? I feel so close to you, young girl, and you may feel the same. But I have been sick for such a long time, yet I couldn¡¯t cure myself. You may be disappointedter but don¡¯t me me then.¡±


    The old monk was Master Qishan.


    During the flood, Master spent most of his cultivation and energy to save the whole world. He was seriously ill at that time but he still fought against the turbid waves for a whole night, which nearly destroyed all of his cultivation. He had been sick for several decades since the flood.


    Ning Que looked at Master Qishan and said respectfully, ¡°Master has been sick for a long time and has gained the qualification to be called a good doctor. It is only natural that you can cure people.¡±


    Master Qishan looked at Ning Que and said with a smile, ¡°Mr. Thirteen is indeed an interesting person. I heard that you were extremely tough at the foot of the mountain today. I didn¡¯t expect you to be so gentle here.¡±


    Ning Que was cheeky and said with confidence, ¡°I, this junior, was so anxious to meet you when I was at the foot of the mountain, that I failed to behave myself. The so-called toughness is nothing more than a loss of grace. Now that I have finally met Master, I am regretful for what I have done. How can I behave like that again?¡±


    ¡°70 years ago, I studied under Headmaster. How could I be your elder?¡±


    Master Qishan waved his hand and said, ¡°Let¡¯s call each other Senior Brother and Younger Brother.¡±


    Hearing his words, Ning Que and other cultivators felt nothing wrong but Monk Guan Hai who was required by Ning Que to call each other Senior and Younger Brother felt awkward. He thought that now the generation was a total mess.


    Master Qishan looked at Sangsang and asked with a smile, ¡°Do youe as a third party?¡±


    Sangsang leaned forward slightly and replied, ¡°Exactly.¡±


    If it could be said that she had felt close to Master Dongming previously in Autumn Pavilion, then not only did she feel close to this old monk but also she trusted him like trusting her teacher, which was why she behaved politely in front of him.


    Sangsang was clever¡ª she had never backed the wrong horse. The kindness or malice from others were like light and dark which could directly show the truth in her mind.


    Seeing the confidence she revealed in her subtle movements, Ning Que gradually settled down.


    Master Qishan asked again, ¡°Do you represent West-Hill Divine Pce or...¡±


    Sangsang was the next Great Divine Priest of Light and she had a close rtionship with the Academy so Master Qishan asked such a question.


    Sangsang replied, ¡°I... I represent my young master?¡±


    These years, she had been used to calling Ning Que young master.


    However, other people did not know her habit and those cultivators heard such title for the first time on Tile Mountain, so they were all shocked and thought, ¡°How could the Lady of Light call others young master?¡±


    Many people looked at Ning Que withplex feelings, not knowing whether they were envious or jealous. As for those cultivators who served the West-Hill Divine Pce for thousands of years, their anger showed vaguely on their faces.


    Hearing her reply, Master Qishan nodded and said, ¡°Then you represent the Academy.¡±


    Sangsang thought for a moment and said, ¡°It seems so.¡±


    Master Qishan looked at Ning Que and said with a smile, ¡°You are the young master of Lady of Light from West-Hill Divine Pce. Hasn¡¯t Mr. Second said that it is not in line with etiquette? Didn¡¯t he punish you?¡±


    Ning Que said with a smile, ¡°My wife is used to calling me like that. As for Second Brother... Headmaster and Eldest Brother have bothe back so I am not afraid of Second Brother anymore.¡±


    Master Qishan burst outughing, but he was affected by his disease and started coughing continuously.


    Monk Guan Hai quickly took out pills and helped him to swallow them.


    Master Qishan walked to the perg beside the stone tform and sat next to a chessboard. He said, ¡°Although you came here to cure the disease, you still need to y chess ording to the boring rule.¡±


    After this conversation, Ning Que was sure that the master had a close rtionship with the Academy so he was rxed and got bolder. He asked, ¡°If we lose the game, can you still cure her?¡±


    The master said, ¡°Buddha is merciful... the three games of chess are to choose those who are predestined friends. Since this girl is ill and I have some superficial medical skills¡ª this is fate. How could I not check on her condition?¡±


    Ning Que was pleased and he said, ¡°This is Master¡¯s mercy, not Buddha¡¯s. There¡¯re Buddhism and Taoism, but there are many more Taoist temples than Buddhist temples in the world. Who will still remember Buddha?¡±


    Master Qishan sighed and said, ¡°If one gets too close to the light, they can see nothing else. If one is too far away from Buddha, then they can¡¯t see Buddha. Buddha¡¯s statue on top of Tile Mountain is so big that it took an incredible amount of wealth to create. However, when you reallye to the statue, you can¡¯t see its entirety, instead, at most, only its little finger.¡±


    The remark was of great significance. Monk Guan Hai and monks from Lanke Temple remained quiet and listened carefully, as did the monks from Yuelun Kingdom¡¯s White Tower Temple. Only Quni Madi showed slight sarcasm and felt that the old monk was mystifying.


    Master Qishan was a great person, so he ignored the old woman.


    He looked up, above the cave, at the huge statue of Buddha, which was about to break the sky with its head, and said, ¡°Before Buddha¡¯s Nirvana, he had left a decree that Buddhism should build no statues and have no worship. However, millions of years have passed. How many Buddhist disciples can remember those words? Which Buddhist temple is without a golden statue of Buddha? Monks in Lanke Temple insisted on building a Buddha statue, with such a height. I couldn¡¯t stop them so I moved my cave to the foot of the Buddha statue, thinking that one day if Buddha was upset he could step on my cave to relieve his anger.¡±


    Guan Hai seemed to learn something from his saying. The monks from Lanke Temple looked awkward and the abbot was scared.


    At this moment, a rich voice sounded again in the Buddhist chariot which had been quiet for a whole day. The president of Commandment Yard of Xuankong Temple praised, ¡°We have been apart for fifty years. Uncle¡¯s Buddhism skill has be more and more exquisite. Congrattions!¡±


    Master Qishan shook his head and said, ¡°I went out of the temple and into the mortal world when I was young. I have never signed my religious name in any room for preaching. How can I be the uncle of a chief monk?¡±


    The monks in the Buddhist chariot did not say anything but insisted on bowing to Master Qishan.


    Master Qishan acted like he did not see any of it and he looked at Sangsang and asked, ¡°Are you hungry, little girl?¡±


    Sangsang only had some vegetables and yed chess in the autumn pavilion at noon. Instead of getting tired, she was getting more energetic and started to feel hungry, so she nodded.


    Master Qishan took out a green pear and rubbed it with his cotton sleeves. He gave it to Sangsang and said lovingly, ¡°Eat a pear so that you will not be so hungry.¡±


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 567 - Ill Wait for You on the Mountain

    Chapter 567: I¡¯ll Wait for You on the Mountain


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Sangsang took the green pear and ate it with her head lowered. The pear was very sweet and mellow, with an odd texture to it. She was delighted as it felt like the pear had melted in her mouth.


    Raising her head, she passed the remaining half to Ning Que. ¡°Try this. It¡¯s very sweet.¡±


    The two were used to sharing good food since they were children. Ning Que didn¡¯t care about the taboo behind sharing pears, which implied separation. He took the portion of pear Sangsang offered and gulped it down.


    Master Qishan didn¡¯t expect that the two would share an ordinary pear. He was surprised, but shook the feeling off and said, ¡°Let¡¯s begin.¡±


    Sangsang chose the ck chess pieces again.


    The chessboard under the front canopy was made from an interesting material. It felt like cold iron and also looked like it. Yet, the chess pieces¡¯ made no sound whennding on it.


    As Sangsang¡¯s hand let go of the chess piece, something odd happened.


    A sh of confusion crossed her eyes, and then, her eyes slowly shut.


    Hershes did not move. She had fallen asleep!


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que¡¯s pupils constricted, and his hair stood up.


    The cool breeze wafted through his hair, calming his mind before the storm.


    He stared into Master Qishan¡¯s eyes. His right hand clenched shut slowly, forming an empty hole that was just the right size for a hilt. His hands vibrated at a fast speed, almost invisibly. He was prepared to whip out the podao behind him.


    ¡°Do not worry,¡± Master Qishan said. ¡°She is just tired, so she is taking a break in her dreams.¡±


    Ning Que observed the state of Sangsang and confirmed her breathing was calm. In fact, it was calmer than usual. Besides that, there was nothing unusual about her. It seemed that she was really sleeping.


    ¡°What are you doing?¡± He asked coldly.


    Master Qishan said with a slight smile, ¡°This is good for her health.¡±


    Sangsang, who had fallen asleep mysteriously, seemed to be reallyfortable. Her brows, which were usually scrunched up in pain, were rxed. She was also not coughing at all. Ning Que ced a hand on her wrist and discovered that the cold aura in her body had be exceptionally calm, and was not rolling around wildly like normal. Seeing this, he rxed slightly.


    However, he could not rxpletely.


    He stared into Master Qishan¡¯s eyes and asked once more, ¡°What¡¯s happening?¡±


    Master Qishan looked at the chessboard before him and said, ¡°You should have heard of the legend of Lanke Temple. The chessboard you are looking at right now is the chessboard used by those old monks in the legend.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°This chessboard... who left it behind?¡±


    Master Qishan answered, ¡°Buddha.¡±


    Ning Que thought about the legend and grew anxious.


    ¡°Why does Sangsang have to use this chessboard to y chess? I only just found out that thest game of chess on Wa Mountain was adjudicated by Master Dongming. This is definitely not the chessboard they used.¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°Just treat it as a test for her from Buddha.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°We are here to cure an illness, not pray to Buddha. Why do we have to be tested by Buddha?¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°If her illness can only be cured by Buddha, will you pray or not?¡±


    Ning Que was silent for a long while before asking, ¡°Is she in any danger?¡±


    Master Qishan answered, ¡°She is not in any danger.¡±


    Ning Que thought about it for a while, and then, in a slightly hoarse voice, he said, ¡°But she will be in terrible pain.¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°If she was in pain, you would feel it.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°So what happens next? Are we still going to y chess?¡±


    Master Qishan looked at the lone ck piece on the chessboard. Then, he took out a white piece from the urn beside him and ced it across the ck piece. ¡°This game has already begun.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Time slowly passed, and the sun slowly moved towards the west. There was a heavy atmosphere surrounding the cave at Tile Mountain. Nobody knew what was going on with the chessboard and why Sangsang had fallen asleep after cing a single chess piece on it.


    Ning Que had almost lost his patience many times. However, he tempered down his uneasiness forcefully when he thought of how much respect and trust Sangsang had shown Master Qishan before she ced the chess piece. He continued waiting silently.


    There were still two chess pieces on the board.


    Ning Que did not look at the chessboard but at Sangsang¡¯s face. He noticed that she did not seem to be in difort, and her breathing patterns had not changed. There was nothing different about her body.


    He examined her scrupulously and seriously without blinking. He did not miss the movement of even a single strand of her eysh, even though they were caused by the breeze.


    Mo Shanshan stood outside the cottage and watched Ning Que¡¯s expression silently. She watched him closely and carefully. On the stone bench beside the mountain path, the Crown Prince of South Jin Kingdom stared at Mo Shanshan¡¯s beautiful side profile, stunned. He was very focused on her, and asionally, an expression of infatuation and lust crossed his face.


    If the world was a giant chessboard and everyone was a chess piece on it, then nobody would be able to escape. Everyone had to have someone they wanted to look at unless they had already be detached from the world.


    The Flower Addict, Lu Chenjia, stared at the people outside the cottage silently. A mocking smile shed through her beautiful, expressionless face. Then, she left the cave and returned to the Buddha statue at the peak of the mountain.


    The stone statue was very tall, and even a single toe was wayrger than she was.


    Lu Chenjia stood on the pinky toe of the Buddha statue. She tucked her flowing hair behind her ears and looked up into the distance. She was blinded by the setting sun, and scrunched up her eyes.


    The face of Buddha appeared hazily between the clouds as he looked down at the mountains. He was not looking at a specific individual, but at everyone struggling to stay afloat in the mortal world. He looked exceptionally benevolent.


    Lu Chenjia watched him for a long time before turning away. There was a white flower in the small crack on the toenail of the Buddha statue. She bent down to pick it up.


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang stood in a daze on the mountain.


    There was a small town at the foot of the mountain. She could see the waterwheel at the steam outside the town, and vaguely hear the bustleing from it. At noon, she could smell the scent of food from the town.


    She knew that this was not reality. Because in this world, Ning Que was not by her side. But she could not ascertain if this world was the world on the chessboard because she only saw the world and not the chessboard.


    It waste at night when she appeared on the mountain. At dawn, when smoke started rising, she descended the mountain and walked around town. Then, she returned to the mountain once more and found a tree before continuing to stare out, as if in a trance.


    She was not allowed to leave because if she walked too far out, she did not know if she would be able to find her way back. If Ning Que were toe to this world to find her, she should stay at this spot and wait for him.


    This was something that Ning Que would always tell her before he went out to hunt or do something else when she was very small. He would repeat over and over again that she was not to leave her spot no matter what happened because he would not be able to find her should she move.


    Sangsang would always seek confirmation then. She would ask, ¡°Will you definitelye to find me?¡± ¡°Of course.¡± Ning Que would say. Then, Sangsang would rest assured and do as he requested. She would stand in the same spot and wait for him without moving.


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang stood there for a long time. She stood for so long she had lost track of time. She only remembered that the sun had risen and set many times, and that snow, wind and gale hade and gone. She heard many rounds of festivities and firecrackers from the town.


    Sangsang thought that these people seemed to have a lot to celebrate. Ning Que had still not found her after so long, so she could not bring herself to be happy even if she heard the firecrackers. Time continued to pass and Sangsang continued waiting. She was tired of standing, so she sat down to rest. She dozed off against the tree when she was tired.


    There were two ants nests under the tree. Sangsang was bored waiting for Ning Que, so she began to watch the ants moving nests or fighting. She watched them many times, and watched as hundreds of generations of ants lived and died. She finally realized that there was something very interesting about these ants, or when they moved.


    The two different nests of ants moved at simr speed and were of a simr distance away from the tree. The honey from the tree appeared at different spots every time. Sometimes, ants from one nest can just walk to it in a straight line while the other nest had to circle around puddles to reach it. The ants walking in a straight line would be the first to get the honey.


    The straight line was the shortest.


    Sangsang thought silently, that this was the rule the world wanted to tell her.


    The world she was in had a town. In the town there were people and mountains. There were beasts and trees in the mountains. On the trees, were birds. There was water, wind and clouds, day and night. And naturally, there were rules.


    Sangsang did not leave the mountain. However, because she had too much time to think, she eventually grasped many of this world¡¯s rules. For example, light was warm and night was cold. Rules like these were boring.


    Some rules were even more heart-wrenching.


    The town would set off firecrackers for festivities and during mourning. Sangsang stood on the mountain and watched as the children in the town grew old and sick before dying. They disappeared without a trace, apanied by the lighting of firecrackers.


    The ashes from the firecrackers were swirled up by the wind and floated from the graves of the town. They swirled around the mountain and eventually disappeared. Sangsang noticed that the wind always came from one ce, and that the ashes and smoke would always travel in the same direction. It felt as if was directed by an arrow toward the same direction forever.


    She understood that this was the rule of time.


    Time only moved forward. Nobody could stop it.


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang was still on the mountain.


    Woodcutters woulde to the mountain for firewood, children would bring their sheep to graze there. In the years, many have walked by the tree, but nobody saw her. Three generations of cows have been tied to the tree, but nothing could touch her.


    She existed in the world, but could not affect the world, and neither could the world affect her. Although she was still restrained by the rules of this world, so she felt tired and felt both cold and warmth.


    Of course, there were rules that could not stop her. She had never eaten, and never hungered.


    She thought of how Ning Que had once told her of the legend of Lanke Temple. The woodcutter called Wang Zhi had eaten a bun and spent a century by the chessboard under the tree and had never hungered once.


    Sangsang had not eaten any buns, but she had a green pear.


    Then, she seemed to have understood something. She walked to the cliff and jumped down.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 568 - Black and White Between the Chessboard

    Chapter 568: ck and White Between the Chessboard


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    There wasn¡¯t any Nanke Dream in this world, but only a century in Lanke.


    Sangsang recalled the legend, and understood that she had an encounter simr to that of the woodcutter. However, whilst the woodcutter had spent a century in reality, she seemed to have left reality and came here.


    She did not know if this world was real, or a dream, or some sort of hallucination created by a powerful person. But since she knew the truth, it was enough for her to deduce more information.


    Just like what Ning Que had said, she was an intelligent girl who was used to standing behind Ning Que and was toocent to use her brains. She had Ning Que to consider everything on her behalf. She had beenzy here until she ascertained that Ning Que would note for her, or perhaps, one could say that Ning Que could not find her. That was when she began to truly think for herself.


    Her conclusion was that she was still in the Go game. However, her opponent was not Master Qishan, but rather the rules of the world. What she needed to do was defeat these rules.


    Rules made up the basis of this world. The world only existed, and people could live, because of these rules. Defeating the rules whilst following them seemed impossible.


    However, Sangsang believed that she did not belong to this world. Even if she could not defeat the rules, she could still find simrities between her world and this one. That was, rules that conflicted against one another in the two worlds. Then, she would use these contradictions to solve the rules of this world, or find a way to return to her own.


    Many in the town have died, and firecrackers for mourning have been lit several times. She was still alive, and she had not even grown. It was evident that time passed more quickly here. It was the opposite of the legend of Lanke Temple. At the same time, it proved that her body was still moving in ordance with the rule of time in the world outside the chessboard.


    The biological rules of the world in the chessboard and the rule of time in reality were enforced on her at the same time. She linked the two worlds together, and she was the contradiction.


    If she died in this world, then she would be able to free herself from whatever was binding her to the rules here. She would be able to return to the world outside the chessboard, at least ording to the rule of time in reality. Then, she would wake up.


    As such, she walked to the edge of the cliff and jumped off.


    Shended heavily at the foot of the cliff. Her bones werepletely shattered and she was in immense pain. The world darkened...


    ..But she simply reappeared on the cliff, standing beneath the tree as if nothing had happened.


    Sangsang was confused about this; she felt that something was not right.


    If this game of chess was happening as she had deduced, then her choice should have been right. But why was she unable to die? Why couldn¡¯t she disappear from this world?


    She stood in a daze underneath the tree for a while. Then, she took off her belt and tied it to the tree.


    Her neck hurt.


    A momentter, she stood beneath the tree and looked at her belt which had reappeared around her waist. She thought that she should choose another method.


    There was ake not far away from the tree.


    The water could drown someone.


    But it could not drown her.


    ...


    ...


    In the next few days, Sangsang tried various methods of suicide to no avail. She continued standing on the mountain, and other than the terrifying memories and pain, there were no other signs that she had died.


    Where was the problem? Death was always a singr path and always the greatest rule that surpassed time. Since she could not break the rule of time, how could she break the greatest rule?


    She thought silently for a moment. She had forgotten something.


    Should the highest rule of death be broken, it meant that all the rules of the world would loosen up, and then they would move toward the verge of copse. Gradually, light would begin to turn cold and the dark night would warm up. Two nests of ants fighting for honey would reach it before their enemy if they crawled around a stone furtively.


    Time began to slow down. The speed at which the people in town were aging slowed. She had not heard the firecrackers of mourning for several years, but no one had been happy about this. In fact, they grew frightened, and the firecrackers of festivities also decreased until there were none at all. The water wheel on the stream had long ago stopped turning, and the fields became barren.


    The whole world was in chaos and moving toward the end of days.


    This was why whether this was reality or the world in the chessboard, other than eternity itself, no other eternal concept or being was allowed to exist. Because this would cause the world to end.


    The rules of the world had finally noticed Sangsang, who still stood on the mountain.


    The world shook in unrest. Fields turned and rolled, the sea bubbled and great mountains toppled.


    The cliffside below Sangsang shook violently and disintegrated, sending her careening into the air.


    Several rules of the world seemed to physically disintegrate. They flew into the sky in bursts of light.


    These balls of light were white and devoid of any warmth. They looked like cold white chess pieces.


    Sangsang was suspended in mid-air, and she peered at the bright chess pieces in confusion.


    She was like a lonely ck chess piece facing an armada of whites.


    She was about to be swallowed by the light.


    ...


    ...


    Twilight approached the Tile Mountain.


    The warm red light illuminated the face of the stone Buddha statue, making it seem especially solemn.


    Buddha watched all suffering in the world, and seemed to also be in pain himself.


    He wanted to frown.


    However, his brows were lines carved into the stone by artisans. They were as hard as steel.


    As such, a thin crack appeared between his brows.


    ...


    ...


    In the shade of the Buddha statue inside the cave stood Ning Que.


    Sangsang, who was sitting beside the chessboard suddenly frowned as if she were in pain.


    Ning Que grew worried, and his right hand trembled slightly.


    Momentster, pain on Sangsang¡¯s face disappeared and she became calm once more.


    Ning Que heaved a sigh of relief.


    Then, she frowned again.


    Only to calm down, once again.


    This happened many times.


    Suddenly, Sangsang¡¯s face became extremely pale, and her eyebrows scrunched up tightly. Her slender figure began to tremble violently as if she was in terrible pain. Anyone would be able to sense the extent of horror she felt in her dream.


    Ning Que had been extremely tense throughout and had long ago reached the upper limit of his patience. When he saw the state Sangsang was in, he did not even think before whipping out the podao behind his back and mming it down viciously on the chessboard.


    Master Qishan had said that Buddha had left behind this chessboard, which meant it must be very precious.


    However, at a moment like this, it mattered naught that Buddha had left it behind. Even if Buddha himself had appeared, Ning Que would still m his sword at him. If Buddha blocked him, he would kill Buddha. He was serious.


    Of course, Ning Que knew that the chessboard that Buddha left behind could not be destroyed so simply. While he worried earlier, he had already made preparations. Together with Haotian Divine Light and in the Dahe Sword style that Liu Bai used, he gathered all the Great Spirit in his body and channeled it through the podao into the board.


    This was the strongest stroke he could use.


    Dust and smoke billowed, and light scattered.


    The podao was rebounded by the chessboard.


    The chessboard was perfectly fine.


    Sangsang did not wake up.


    Ning Que actually fell asleep himself whilst still gripping the de.


    Master Qishan looked even more haggard. He sighed and said, ¡°What a pair of lovesick fools.¡±


    ...


    ...


    The world before it ended was in chaos. Those who have managed to survive finally felt the terror of death. They drove their carriages, or stole one from others, and began to flee.


    They did not know where they should go in order to avoid the flood descending from above, and from the peaks rising fromkes. They did not know where to go to flee from the burning nights and the cold days. They only fled blindly and in pandemonium.


    At a certain intersection, those fleeing were forced to stop.


    There was a ck horse carriage at the intersection. It had knocked over several other carriages, adding on to the chaos at the intersection. It blocked it so that no one could move.


    The ck horse carriage blocked the intersection so that no one could flee to the south. And those who wanted to flee west could not do so either. Men who wanted to take advantage of the situation could not reach the scantily-clothed girls on the other side of the street. A young man crawled out of a pile of bodies. He saw his first love, but could not hug her.


    People yelled in anger and they scolded bitterly. Some scooped up mud and threw it at the ck carriage. However, the young man in the carriage did not seem to even notice them. He allowed himself to be pelted with mud, and continued looking up at the sky in a daze.


    There were many white balls of light in the sky. He did not know what they represented, but he could sense the terrifying abilities in them and could guess what they could do.


    The young man in the ck horse carriage was Ning Que.


    He did not know how he had arrived in this world, and he did not know how he could bring the Big ck Horse and his carriage with him. However, he felt very lucky to be able toe to this world to find Sangsang.


    It was an extremely difficult thing to find someone in the chaotic world that was about to end. Ning Que had already searched for Sangsang for an extremely long time to no avail, until he raised his head and saw the skies today.


    He shouted at the Big ck Horse.


    The Big ck Horse neighed and lifted his hooves. He pulled the steel carriage behind him, ttening the horse carriages and people before him. A path filled with blood and gore opened before him in the crowd trying to flee.


    The ck horse carriage raced toward the balls of light.


    A few dayster, the carriage arrived at the spot below Sangsang.


    Ning Que looked up at Sangsang.


    Countless rays of light shone through her.


    The light rays were devoid of heat. However, they were so dense that friction between the rays could not be avoided.


    The speed of light was very fast, and the friction between them was frightful and able to produce high levels of heat.


    Sangsang¡¯s body had begun to burn and was extremely bright.


    Ning Que shouted, ¡°Sangsang!¡±


    Sangsang seemed not to have heard him. She did not look toward the ground.


    Ning Que shouted once more, ¡°Sangsang!¡±


    Sangsang heard him this time. She looked down and cried, ¡°I don¡¯t know what has happened.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid. Come to me.¡±


    Sangsang shook her head. She looked at the light surrounding her and said, ¡°You will die.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I have said before, that if you die, I will die too. So why don¡¯t we die together.¡±


    Sangsang knew that this was true, so she jumped down.


    The pure white light followed her and descended upon thend.


    Ning Que took out the big ck umbre and gave it to Sangsang.


    Sangsang opened the big ck umbre as if she was holding up a piece of the night sky.


    The night shrouded Ning Que, her, and the ck horse carriage.


    The rules of the world could not find them any longer.


    They disappeared from this world.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que and Sangsang woke up at the same time.


    They found that they were still at Tile Mountain.


    Outside the cave, by the chessboard.


    There were two chess pieces on the chessboard.


    One was ck and the other, white.


    ...


    ¨C

 Chapter 569 - Ask and It Shall Be Given

    Chapter 569: Ask and It Shall Be Given


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    All were silent by the chessboard. Master Qishan looked at Sangsang quietly, aplicated expression crossing his thin face. There was shock from seeing the truth, and a hint of fear. In the end, all these emotions turned into one of confusion.


    Ning Que observed Sangsang¡¯s condition anxiously and did not see Master Qishan¡¯s odd expression. Otherwise, he might have noticed something. Then, he heard the Master sigh.


    He looked up nervously. By then, Master Qishan¡¯s expression had already returned to normal. He had a gentle and benevolent smile as if he had escaped from a terrifying situation. He was satisfied and calm.


    ¡°The three games of chess on Tile Mountain have a long history. However, only five have experienced the final game like you two. And you, youngdy, are the second person to solve the three rounds of chess consecutively.¡±


    Said Master Qishan as he looked at Sangsang tenderly.


    After ascertaining that Sangsang was fine and that the world in the chessboard was but an illusion, Ning Que could finally rest assured. Hearing the master¡¯s praise for Sangsang, he asked, ¡°Who was the other person who solved the three rounds first?¡±


    Master Qishan said a name that had disappeared from this world for many years. However, it was a name that Ning Que was very familiar with. He looked into Ning Que¡¯s eyes and said with a slight smile, ¡°It was Younger Brother Lotus.¡±


    The Master¡¯s gaze was calm and seemingly powerless. However, Ning Que felt as if he could see through all his disguises and the fragments of consciousness deep in his sense of perception. He felt a little uneasy.


    He lowered his head subconsciously, unwilling to meet the Master¡¯s gaze in order to hide his unease. He continued, ¡°Who were the three who yed chess on this chessboard?¡±


    Master Qishan answered, ¡°The Headmaster, Mr. Ke, and the abbey dean.¡±


    Ning Que forgot his unease for a moment when he heard the three names. He raised his head in shock.


    To him, his teacher, Youngest Uncle and the abbey dean of the Zhishou Abbey were the most powerful figures in this world. No matter how powerful Lotus or Sangsang was, they could not surpass the three.


    ¡°How is it possible that the Headmaster couldn¡¯t solve this game of chess?¡±


    Master Qishan answered, ¡°This game of chess is unable to trap them. Why would they need to solve it?¡±


    Ning Que¡¯s question was to move the topic away from Lotus, to prevent the Master from finding out what he had hidden. Since it worked, he did not continue the questioning.


    He looked at the Master and asked, ¡°Sangsang has already solved the game. Can you heal her?¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°I would treat her even if she could not solve the game. Since she has solved the game, then there¡¯s no reason not to treat her.¡±


    Ning Que¡¯s voice was a little dry due to his nerves. He asked, ¡°Can she be cured?¡±


    It was unknown whether he had used up too much energy refereeing thest game of chess or because he was already weak. Master Qishan seemed to be even more haggard. When he listened to Ning Que¡¯s concern, he coughed bitterly before tiredly lowering his head. He was silent for a long while.


    Ning Que grew even more anxious when he did not get an answer.


    After some time, Master Qishan tenderly looked up at Sangsang and said, ¡°There is no illness in the world that cannot be cured. However, it will be difficult and painful to cure it.¡±


    Sangsang nced at Ning Que and said serenely and with determination, ¡°I¡¯m not afraid of pain.¡±


    She was not afraid of death, but she did not want to die. That was because she knew that Ning Que would be very sad if she died. He might even die with her. That was why she wanted to live. She would continue living no matter how much pain she had to endure. That was why her answer was so firm.


    Master Qishan looked at her with the beginnings of a smile. He answered just as firmly, ¡°Then I will definitely be able to cure you.¡±


    When he heard that, Ning Que suddenly felt a buzz in his mind, and he could not hear anything further. His body seemed to have suddenly turned into floating clouds on the cliff. He stumbled onto the futon and could not speak.


    Almost at the same time, all the tightly closed pores on his skin began to sweat. His Academy uniform was drenched in seconds, looking as if he had been in the rain.


    This year, while he had seemed as calm as usual and did not seem any different when conversing with others and fulfilling matters. In reality, he had been anxious and fearful in the extreme because of Sangsang¡¯s illness.


    When he heard the Master¡¯s affirmative, the negative emotions he had kept within him for a long time were quicky released in one go, along with the cold sweat. His body and heart were taken over by the extreme joy he felt, and he felt as if he was about to float up into the sky. However, this sudden release of emotions had caused an intense blow to his body. He suddenly became very weak and was like a severely ill patient who had just started to recover.


    Master Qishan looked at him and guessed that he must have endured unimaginable torment and pain. Heforted him kindly, ¡°This is a cause for celebration.¡±


    Sangsang took out a handkerchief and wiped the sweat that flowed like rain from Ning Que¡¯s face.


    Ning Que smiled with difficulty, saying, ¡°This is indeed something to celebrate.¡±


    Master Qishan looked at the cultivators outside the cottage, who hade to pray to the mountains. He said, ¡°Since this calls for celebration, then we should celebrate. I will answer a question from everyone.¡±


    When he heard that, Ning Que found the strength to sit upright and stare into the Master¡¯s eyes. He reminded him very seriously, ¡°We came first, Master, so you should treat her first.¡±


    Master Qishanughed and said, ¡°Curing an illness isn¡¯t so simple. Otherwise, why would you leave the Academy to look for an old monk like me? You have to let me make some preparations.¡±


    Ning Que did not agree and said, ¡°The longer we drag this, the more dangerous it is.¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°It is not yet a time for it to be dangerous... rest assured.¡±


    The first part of his statement seemed to have a deeper meaning. What time was he referring to? However, Ning Que only heard thest part of the statement. He did not notice anything else.


    When they heard that Master Qishan would answer the questions of everyone present, the cultivators outside the cottage were overjoyed. Only Monk Guan Hai appeared surprised. He was worried about his teacher¡¯s health.


    The Flower Addict had returned from the Buddha statue at the peak of the mountain to the cottage. She heard thest part of the conversation and knew that Sangsang¡¯s illness could be cured. She remained indifferent, but her fingers were pinched together, breaking the little flower in her hand.


    ...


    ...


    The hour waste. The back of Tile Mountain was so dark it looked as if it was deep in the night. Cultivators silently lined up outside the cottage, waiting to enter. The Lanke Temple¡¯s monks had lit torches outside the cottage, and the mes flickered in the mountain breeze. They shone on the faces of the people lined up and moved chaotically, just like their feelings while in wait.


    ording to legends spread through the world, Master Qishan¡¯s ability to prophesize was even better than that of the Great Divine Priest of Revtion of the West-Hill Divine Pce. Furthermore, he could solve all doubts, and was able to fulfill demands just like Buddha.


    It was every cultivator¡¯s dream to have Master Qishan solve their doubts. They were all very excited to have Master Qishan answer them; no matter whether it was an obstacle in their path to cultivation, a question that had long bothered them, or a person or incident that troubled them.


    The cultivators would, of course, use this opportunity to solve their greatest doubts or pain. However, those were often their greatest secrets. This meant that they had to reveal them to Master Qishan, so they felt somewhat afraid.


    From time to time, Master Qishan would cough painfully in the ivy-covered cliff cave.


    It was unknown when the ck horse carriage entered the cottage. Sangsang, who was in the carriage, had a fur coat and was snuggled in the nkets. She was no longer cold. However, when she heard the master cough, she could not help but cough painfully as well. Her face paled.


    Ning Que, who was sitting by the carriage window lifted up the curtains to look around the cliff cave. Heined somewhat annoyedly, ¡°The old man knows that his cough is contagious, why didn¡¯t he try to control himself.¡±


    This was a deliberate joke on Ning Que¡¯s part, but Sangsang did notugh like she did for his sake in the past. She said worriedly, ¡°Master¡¯s illness seems to have gotten worse.¡±


    Ning Que was speechless. Even though Master Qishan had been ill for long, weakened and haggard, yet he wasn¡¯t as weak as he was now when they first met. What had aggravated his illness?


    It was naturally caused by the Go game.


    ...


    ...


    The Buddhism Sect stresses on equality of all beings, but it was impossible to achieve absolute equality. For example, during the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival, ordinary people would not even have the opportunity to enter the Wa mountain, so how would they meet Master Qishan? As such, how would they even have the opportunity topete with cultivators on an equal footing and gain the chance to be the fated one?


    Not even those who havee to the mountain today were equal. Master Qishan did not arrange the order in which the cultivators were to enter. As such, this was decided by the abbot of the Lanke Temple.


    Other than the West-Hill Divine Pce and the Academy, most cultivators in the world did not dare go against royalty. The South Jin Kindom was second only to the Tang Empire. As such, the Crown Prince of South Jin Kingdom was the first to enter.


    The South Jin Kingdom Crown Prince did not stay in the cave for long before leaving. Nobody knew what question he had asked, or whether it had anything to do with his fate with the Calligraphy Addict or the future of South Jin Kingdom. But he seemed a little lost, and they guessed that while the answer he had received was not pleasant, it wasn¡¯t unfavorable either. He might not be able to understand it just yet.


    Quni Madi¡¯s status in the cultivation world was extremely high. She was also the royal aunt of the Yuelun Kingdom. As such, she was the second to enter.


    The cliff cave was very clean and simply furnished. There was a futon, a straw mat, two nkets and some necessities. Master Qishan sat on the futon.


    Quni Madi looked at the Master. Unlike other cultivators who were respectful, she did not bother to hide the hatred and ridicule in her expression.


    He looked at her quietly and said, ¡°That year, you insisted oning to see me on Tile Mountain. I have lived in seclusion for many years, but was forced to write you a letter. It seems as if I was really wrong.¡±


    ¡°You were wrong.¡±


    Quni Madi said hatefully, ¡°You are my only elder in the Buddhism Sect. I came to you that year for you to clear my doubts. I asked if I should give birth to the child in my womb, and you said I should. I did so, and then, my child and I were separated for decades, and I had to grieve his death. Of course you were wrong.¡±


    Master Qishan sighed and said, ¡°Even though the child was still in your womb, he was already a life. Buddhism ispassionate, so how could we kill? Furthermore, the child was highly fated for Buddhism.¡±


    Quni Madi said shrilly, ¡°If you could see that the child was fated for Buddhism, then why couldn¡¯t you tell that he would be killed by those in Chang¡¯an? If you couldn¡¯t see that, then you shouldn¡¯t have left me that letter!¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°These have all passed and there is no use speaking of them now. I don¡¯t understand... why visit if you bear such a grudge toward me?¡±


    Quni Madi panted in pain before calming down. She stared at the master and said hatefully, ¡°You were wrong once, so I want you to prophesy for me again.¡±


    Master Qishan said with an odd expression, ¡°What else do you want to know?¡±


    Quni Madi said viciously, ¡°I want to know when Ning Que will die!¡±


    Master Qishan shook his head, ¡°Not even Buddha can foretell life and death, much less an ordinary person like myself.¡±


    Quni Madi said heatedly, ¡°Then you have to tell me how I can get revenge for my son!¡±


    Master Qishan suddenly looked up and out of the cave. He thought of the Buddhist chariot from the faraway Xuankong Temple. After a long moment of silence, he said, ¡°Since you¡¯ve already made ns, whye and ask me?¡±


    Then, he looked at Quni Madi quietly and said, ¡°But I have to remind you. You have been a Buddhist for decades, but you cannot shed your anger and hatred. You cannot me others for this. You cannot me the person on the Buddhist chariot, nor those in the Yuelun pce and least of all that child you bore. You have to ask yourself.¡±


    ¡°The thing you hate most¡ª if not for what happened in the Wilderness, Ning Que wouldn¡¯t shame you before the pce. Dao Shi wouldn¡¯t have returned to Yuelun or go to Chang¡¯an to be killed by Ning Que. You want revenge. Who should you serve it to? Ning Que or yourself?¡±


    Said Master Qishan as he looked at her sympathetically.


    Quni Madi was incensed when she heard this, and her entire body trembled. Green veins appeared in her right hand as she clutched her wooden cane tightly. She yelled, ¡°It is fine if you do not wish to answer my question. Why make up mystical things again? Uncle Qishan, you are not Buddha, but you dare to give what was requested like Buddha. You wille to a violent death!¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°I am in the mortal world but I desire to reach the Buddhist Kingdom. I just want to lift the burdens of those in the world. I knew that I would suffer karma, and will ept death. What is the difference between a violent death and dying from old age?¡±


    ...


    ...


    The Flower Addict, Lu Chenjia did not enter the cave. She looked at the cultivators quietly and indifferently. She was already detached from this world and no longer had any doubts. As such, she did not need to enter the cave to ask the master to solve any.


    The cultivators all had their own doubts, so they entered the cave one after another. None of them stayed for long, but all had a satisfied look on their faces when they came out. However, no one mentioned what they had asked about.


    Mo Shanshan should have been one of the first to enter the cave, but she did not fight with the cultivators. Perhaps she was thinking of what to ask, so she only entered the cave at the very end.


    She sat on the futon silently, not knowing what to ask. After a long while, she said somewhat shamefacedly, ¡°I really don¡¯t know what to ask.¡±


    As the Calligraphy Addict who had entered the Knowing Destiny State at a young age, she had be a Divine Talisman Master. She was doted upon by the Master of Calligrapher and was respected by her peers. It seemed as if there wouldn¡¯t be anythingcking in Mo Shanshan¡¯s life.


    Master Qishan looked at her and said tenderly, ¡°Since you havee to Tile Mountain, you must have had a problem at the beginning. And all problems require an answer.¡±


    Mo Shanshan thought of the ck horse carriage. She smiled and said, ¡°I did have a problem that I wanted to ask you to solve, however, I have already received an answer.¡±


    Master Qishan answered, ¡°That is good.¡±


    Mo Shanshan stood up and bowed to him politely before leaving the cottage.


    She suddenly stopped at the entrance. She turned and asked, ¡°Master, there is a concept called reincarnation in Buddhism. Is there... really an afterlife?¡±


    She suddenly smiled and said, ¡°I was just asking, you don¡¯t have to answer.¡±


    Master Qishan did not answer, but he also smiled.

 Chapter 570 - A Thousand-World Flower

    <h4>Chapter 570: A Thousand-World Flower</h4>


    <strong>Trantor:</strong> Transn <strong>Editor:</strong> Transn


    Everything was silent at the peak of Tile Mountain.


    Silver light from the stars scattered between the mountains, almost as if it were coating the huge rocks under a thinyer of merciful light. A few night clouds passed across the statue¡¯s front and faint songs of night birds were heard.


    The Buddhist chariot was parked outside the cave. It was bathed in starlight, the mantras embroidered on its curtains seemed to be shining and swaying in the night wind. These mantras seemed toe alive and were looking progressively more dignified and beautiful.


    Quni Madi walked up to the chariot and said something in a low voice. The monk in the Buddhist chariot could vaguely be seen shaking his head. Quni Madi brought the sadhu from the White Tower Temple down the hill. Flower Addict was among them.


    The cultivators that hade out of the cave were either confused or excited. They took a long time to resolve Master Qishan¡¯s words. After waking up, people went deep into the cave. Afterwards, they paid homage to the Buddhist chariot, saluted the ck horse carriage and walked downhill.


    The cultivators gradually left, their shadows disappearing into the night sky of Tile Mountain, almost like the end of a chess match. Whether it was the ck or white pieces, they were all lifted, leaving behind a clean chessboard.


    Mo Shanshan walked to the front of the ck horse carriage and said, ¡°Bring Sangsang in. I¡¯m staying in Lanke Temple and need to go downhill. I won¡¯t wait for you.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Would you like to wait a bit so we could go down together?¡±


    Mo Shanshan said, ¡°Going up together was enough. Why must we go down together too? There¡¯s no need.¡±


    With that said, she drifted away.


    Ning Que was silent for a while. He didn¡¯t want to think much as he helped Sangsang out of the ck horse carriage. He looked at the seemingly lonely Buddhist chariot outside the hut, furrowed his brows and entered the cave.


    ...


    ...


    Master Qishan extended two fingers and ced them on Sangsang¡¯s wrist.


    Master had been ill for a long time and had a weak body. His fingers were as skinny as dry braches.


    Sangsang had been ill for a long time and she was weak, her wrists were as thin as reeds.


    The asional night wind entered the cave, themp shook and the master felt a hint of cold. He couldn¡¯t help but shiver and cough intensely. His trembling followed across his fingers and over to Sangsang¡¯s wrist, and she couldn¡¯t help but cough as well.


    Looking at this scene, Ning Que wanted tough but, at the same time, felt the bitterness welling up.


    Master Qishan and Sangsang felt better than him, as they looked at each other andughed.


    ¡°Such a chilly auraing from the deep cave.¡±


    Master Qishan¡¯s finger slowly rose from Sangsang¡¯s wrist as he sighed while saying.


    Ning Que looked at the master but couldn¡¯t see any difference. Only from his clenched fist could one tell how nervous he was.


    Master Qishan didn¡¯t care about him. He looked at Sangsang and said affectionately, ¡°When the chilly auraes, it gets incredibly painful. I do not know how you managed to endure for so many years, especially when you were young.¡±


    Sangsang nced at Ning Que.


    Ning Que thought back to how Sangsang¡¯s illness was in the past. Even though more than ten years had passed, he still felt a chill as he shook his head and chased the images out of his mind.


    ¡°Master, what methods are there to get rid of this chilly aura?¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t ask what this chilly aura was, as it would be meaningless¡ª it was already in her body for so many years. He didn¡¯t ask Master if he could get rid of this chilly aura, but asked for a method instead. This was because, to treat Sangsang¡¯s illness, the chilly aura had to be gotten rid of. Since Master Qishan had said earlier that he could treat her illness, he must have a method.


    Master Qishan shook his head slowly as he spoke, ¡°I have no idea where this chilly aura is from. It is deep and has been afflicting Sangsang for 16 years. It had long since seeped into her flesh and blood¡ª it is hard to separate. If it wasn¡¯t for the fact that the medicine from the Academy was incredibly good, she had cultivated the divine skills of the Great Divine Priest of Light and, a while back, you had asked the Divine Priest of Judgment to use the Divine Light to forcefully suppress it, she wouldn¡¯t have held out until today. How could it be easy to remove?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Even the most toxic thing in the world has an antidote. I do not understand, since it is a chilly aura, why not use a warm aura to bnce it out?¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°I understand what you mean. Thinking back on the past few years, this chilly aura had been suppressed by the Haotian Divine Light before. However, when the Haotian Divine Light entered Sangsang¡¯s body, the chilly aura hid even deeper¡ª into the marrow of her bones. If we want to remove it from the depths of her bones, we need to remove all of her marrow.¡±


    Ning Que thought to himself: This wasn¡¯t a mythical world after all, how could one strip away another¡¯s flesh and blood, and use lotus flowers and roots to reconstruct a body. Hence he furrowed his brows and said, ¡°Haotian Divine Light is the purest fire in the world. Even if the chilly aura can hide, there is no reason for which it could escape.¡±


    Master Qishan looked at Sangsang and sighed before saying, ¡°We need to discuss starting from Sangsang¡¯s body.¡±


    Ning Que said with a little surprise, ¡°Master, please.¡±


    Master Qishan raised his arm and pointed at Sangsang with his finger before saying, ¡°She is transparent.¡±


    Sangsang was shocked, she remembered that, when teacher first entered the Old Brush Pen Shop, he had said something simr.


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t understand what that meant.


    Master Qishan said, ¡°Why did the Great Divine Priest of Light choose Sangsang as his sessor? It is because of her unique physique. She is transparent¡ª without any impurities. And hence, the Haotian Divine Light can pass through her body without any obstructions. It wouldn¡¯t sustain any damage either, and hence, she can amodate infinite Divine Light, even if it¡¯s the purest one.¡±


    Ning Que looked slightly nervous as he asked, ¡°Isn¡¯t that good?¡±


    ¡°It can be both good and bad... If she didn¡¯t have any chilly aura in her, only light.¡±


    Master Qishan looked quietly at Sangsang and said, ¡°Buddhism Sect had always mentioned one flower, one world. You are transparent and hence¡ª limitless. Someone like you can take in all the darkness.¡±


    Ning Que vaguely understood the Master¡¯s words.


    Cultivators always talked about innate talent. For example, what one saw at the beginning of enlightenment¡ª was it ake or a stream or a pond. Some people like Liu Bai saw a huge river but Sangsang didn¡¯t even need to see. She was an entire world.


    That world was huge and almost limitless, hence, no matter how much Haotian Divine Light was in her body, it wouldn¡¯t be able to fill every corner. That chilly aura would still be able to find its abyss and wait for the day it could emerge again.


    ¡°Then what shall we do now?¡±


    Ning Que¡¯s voice quivered. He finally understood why even his teacher could do nothing for Sangsang. He felt a little despaired and couldn¡¯t think of any other methods.


    Master Qishan looked at him and asked calmly, ¡°Would you let her join me in Buddhism?¡±


    Ning Que was slightly shocked. He could not understand why the master would suddenly bring this up.


    Sangsang couldn¡¯t understand either. In addition, she was worried about Ning Que¡¯s reaction.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 571 - You Can Be White If You Want To Be

    <h4>Chapter 571: You Can Be White If You Want To Be</h4>


    <strong>Trantor:</strong> Transn <strong>Editor:</strong> Transn


    Besides being a little shocked when hearing Master Qishan asking Sangsang to join him in Buddhism, Ning Que didn¡¯t have much of a reaction. However, in his heart, he was disturbed.


    Let Sangsang cultivate in Buddhism? When she recovered, she would need to stay in the temple for the rest of her life to recite mantras and be a vegetarian? Even though Sangsang¡¯s hair was yellow, drooping, and wasn¡¯t much to rave about, it wouldn¡¯t suit her to shave it all off, would it?


    Ning Que naturally had these thoughts. Then he thought of what Second Brother once said about Buddhism. The more he thought, the more he found problems with this proposition made by Master Qishan.


    Taoism and Buddhism loved to suppress one¡¯s rationality with fear. They then promised a beautiful future to lure one¡¯s stupidity and make people follow their words without any suspicion.


    Master Qishan had described the chilly aura in Sangsang¡¯s body in a horrifying way, and just as he was on the brink of despair, he suddenly asked Sangsang to practice Buddhism. It really was like those Taoist priests in the Taoist temple, asking olddies to donate some money.


    Was the Master poaching people from the Academy and the Divine Hall? Ning Que¡¯s expression was solemn but he didn¡¯t want to think too much. The Master didn¡¯t seem like such a person and moreover, Sangsang¡¯s body was more important. Master Qishan represented herst hope and they had no choice but to respect him. Hence he took a deep breath and asked as calmly as he could, ¡°Why does Sangsang need to cultivate in Buddhism?¡±


    Master Qishan hadn¡¯t expected that a simple suggestion from him could make Ning Que think so much in such a short time span. He said kindly, ¡°Buddhism focuses on their disciples but that is actually a lie; even in front of Parinirvana, it would be impossible. Any Buddhist that wants to be a disciple is a fake Buddhist. This is a wild idea and when one practices Buddhism, one is, in fact, practicing oneself, finding the release of one¡¯s mind from one¡¯s body.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I have read 2 books on Buddhist mantra at the back of the mountain in the Academy and I know some Buddhism sayings. Master does not need to recount this in detail. I only want to know how this has anything to do with Sangsang¡¯s sickness.¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°Sangsang is a big world and naturally, light cannot expel or destroy the chilly aura in her body. But Buddhism is different; Buddhism seeks release instead of suppression. It wouldn¡¯t incite any hostility from the chilly aura and can even let it be awake and release itself.¡±


    Listening to these seemingly whimsical but truthful words, Ning Que thought for a long time but asked a little confusedly, ¡°Then, to what state must she practice Buddhism until she can expel that chilly aura?¡±


    Master Qishan untied a string of prayer beads made from mahogany and ced them on the floor in front of the futon. He looked at Sangsang calmly and said, ¡°If she can be Buddha one day, she would be able to gain release.¡±


    Ning Que asked with slight bitterness, ¡°Master, you must be kidding. After so many years, only Buddha has managed to attain this. Even if Sangsang really has an affinity with it, how can she practice to such a state?¡±


    Master Qishanughed and said, ¡°When she was a dying baby, did you once think that she could be the Lady of Light of the West-Hill Divine Pce? How then can you be so sure that she cannot be Buddha?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Even if Sangsang was the best cultivator in tens of thousands of years, bing Buddha isn¡¯t something that even masters can attain in a short period of time. There is no time.¡±


    Master Qishan asked, ¡°Can you think of a better way?¡±


    Ning Que was startled and said, ¡°No.¡±


    Master Qishan replied,¡± Then, practicing Buddhism is the only way to treat her illness.¡±


    The only way is the best way.


    This was something that all the disciples in the Academy understood very well. Ning Que naturally understood too, thinking that Sangsang¡¯s illness could rpse at any moment and time was precious; he didn¡¯t consider for very long before making a decision.


    Before making his decision, he certainly did not forget that important thing.


    He looked at Master Qishan seriously and asked, ¡°Does Sangsang need to shave her head and be a nun? Of course, there isn¡¯t a problem if she needs to be a nun for a few years to cure her illness, but if she does be well, will the Buddhism Sect stop her from returning to a secr life and force her to sit on the lotus seat to be worshipped by the monks?¡±


    Master Qishan looked at him dumbfounded; he was surprised that he was most concerned about this as he said with a sigh, ¡°Of course she can practice Buddhism at home too. She wouldn¡¯t need to shave her head and be a nun.¡±


    So long as Sangsang doesn¡¯t be an old nun with an evil face like Quni Madi, to cure her illness, Ning Que was willing to ept any other price. He was relieved with those words as he said without hesitation, ¡°Master, please.¡±


    Please what? Naturally, it wasn¡¯t for him to sit down but to ask Master Qishan to impart Buddhism to Sangsang.


    Even though there were many mantras in the back of the of the Academy¡¯s mountain, Ning Que understood that since Master had allowed him to bring Sangsang to the Lanke Temple, only Master Qishan could be Sangsang¡¯s master.


    Sangsang and he had much chemistry and upon hearing this, she knelt on the futon and bowed to Master Qishan.


    Master Qishanughed heartily and said, ¡°At my dying age, I still have a chance to ept such an extraordinary disciple... Buddhism banished greed, but thinking of the fact that my name might be recorded in mantras due to this disciple and spread for generations, my calm heart that hasn¡¯t been tainted by any external things for a long time is a little agitated.¡±


    Ning Que said in an extremely good mood, ¡°Guan Hai had his final disciple position stolen from him. He might be even more annoyed.¡±


    Master Qishanughed and said, ¡°I really have no idea why the Headmaster epted such a mischievous student like you.¡±


    Ning Queughed and said, ¡°He is always angry at me for messing up his beard; he can¡¯t do anything about it.¡±


    Theughter subsided as the cave grew quiet again.


    Master Qishan looked at Sangsang and said, ¡°Countless years ago, The Great Zen Master¡¯s gifted wife rose and epted the intelligence of Buddha. The idea of not creating was frowned upon and one had to learn the chanting method. That is the easy method of the chants in the Buddhism Sect today.¡±


    He continued, ¡°This method of reciting is simple; if one has an evil thought, ce a ck stone behind you. If one has a kind thought, ce a white stone in front. Slowly one will cultivate till the number of white and ck chess pieces are the same, as one¡¯s heart turns pure and the ck stones stop, leaving only white stones.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Master, please impart your skills.¡±


    Master Qishan shook his head andughed, ¡°The ck and white belong to the chessboard, the method is a matter of ying chess. The Wa Mountain cultivates the art of ck and white. However, you have passed 3 rounds and your insights are akin to what the Divine Priest of Light has said. Your heart is transparent to begin with, what is there left for you to practice? You need to practice how to turn the ck stones to white stones.¡±


    Sangsang was a little confused and asked, ¡°ck is ck, white is white, how does one change them?¡±


    Master Qishan took out a ck chess piece and ced it among the mahogany prayer beads.


    He then looked at Sangsang and said, ¡°If you want it to be white, it will be white.¡±


    Sangsang looked at the ck chess piece and suddenly felt it familiar-looking.


    There were many ck pieces on the chessboard; they looked incredibly simr and almost the same.


    However, she could even see the minute differences between the chess pieces.


    She remembered. This ck piece was the one that had fallen off the board in the afternoon.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 572 - The Cause and Effect of Xuankong Temple

    <h4>Chapter 572: The Cause and Effect of Xuankong Temple</h4>


    <strong>Trantor:</strong> Transn <strong>Editor:</strong> Transn


    Sangsang¡¯s greatest wish in her whole life was to be white.


    Not to turn the ck chess into white pieces, but to whiten her skin.


    Looking at the ck chess pieces, she thought about Master Qishan¡¯s words andughed at it with embarrassment. She thought that it would be great to be white whenever she wanted, without using the cosmetics in Chenjinji Cosmetics Store. That would be convenient as well. No wonder the master said it was called the convenient method in Buddhism.


    Master Qishan felt surprised at this, and he did not understand why she wasughing. Was there anything wrong with the convenient method he had said, which was just discovered by this little girl?


    The only person in the world who could guess the true reason of why Sangsang wasughing was Ning Que, who couldn¡¯t helpughing along as he saw Sangsang¡¯s slightly shy smile.


    The dark and cold cave was filled with sounds ofughter, which gradually calmed. Master Qishan¡¯s voice was heard from time to time, along with some of Sangsang¡¯s questions.


    Without knowing how long it had been, the lesson for today hade to an end. Looking at Ning Que, Master Qishan said, ¡°It is always a long process to cure the disease. It is damp and chilly here, and therefore not good for her recovery. You¡¯d better take her down the hill and have a rest in the temple. If given time, before going to bed, let her think about what has happened today.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°It is inconvenient to go downhill and thene back. We might as well stay here.¡±


    Master Qishan replied, ¡°I will also go downhill at night, so let¡¯s meet at the temple tomorrow morning.¡±


    Ning Que felt shocked because everyone knew that Master Qishan had lived in seclusion in the Wa mountain for several years and he wouldn¡¯t go downhill for even the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival. Why did he say that he was going to leave here tonight?


    Master Qishan said, ¡°This is probably thest time that I will leave the cave. I have to go to the temple so that I can feel at ease.¡±


    After saying this, the Master picked up the ck chess piece on the ground in front of the futon, and put it into Sangsang¡¯s palm.


    Listening to the master¡¯s words, Ning Que had guessed something vaguely. While being shocked, he felt gratitude towards the master all the more. Not knowing what to say, he saluted to him solemnly and then helped Sangsang walk outside the cave.


    At the entrance of the cave, he said to Master Qishan, ¡°You wille to the temple tomorrow, right?¡±


    Master Qishan sighed and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I wille.¡±


    Ning Que left reluctantly, and said, ¡°Sangsang¡¯s illness is still in treatment, so you cannot die before her.¡±


    Master Qishanughed in anger and said, ¡°Where have you developed such a bad temperament? Now I can understand why the Headmaster always gets irritated, but can¡¯t find a way to punish you.¡±


    Ning Que smiled and said, ¡°The Headmaster just likes my honesty, and I know he loves me, so he never punishes me.¡±


    They left the cave.


    Ning Que entered the horse carriage with Sangsang in his arms.


    Sangsang leaned against the bedding and sped her fist for fear of losing the ck chess. She looked at Ning Que and asked, ¡°The master... is going to die, right?¡±


    After a moment of silence, Ning Que nodded and said, ¡°Don¡¯t think too much about it. It has nothing to do with you. All Buddhist monks know their destiny, let alone such masters as him who can predict the future.¡±


    The night breeze came gradually, lifting a corner of the curtain.


    Looking at the solitary shrine next to the mountain path, Ning Que frowned slightly. He did not know why the chief monk of the Xuankong Temple was waiting outside the cave all the time. Why was no one guarding beside the shrine?


    ...


    ...


    Quni Madi had brought all the sadhus of White Tower Temple in the Yuelun Kingdom to the foot of the mountain. Monks of the Lanke Temple had left earlier, and monk Guan Hai had sent the ck horse carriage downhill. There was no one around the cave.


    The night wind blew through the autumn forest, making a rustling sound, but it did not disturb the birds. A subtle ringing of bells sounded, but it seemed to be unreal and disappeared in an instant.


    The Buddha chariot outside the cave was still quiet. Suddenly, one hand stretched out from the yellow curtain and opened a gap. A monk in a dark brown coat stepped down from the Buddha chariot.


    The monk¡¯s eyebrows were straight as a horizontal ruler, and his eyes were like precious stones. The vicissitudes of life could slightly be seen from his eyebrows and eyes, with wrinkles in his forehead. However, one could not tell his age. It would make sense if either one said he was over sixty or said around thirty.


    This monk was the president of Commandment Yard of the Xuankong Temple.


    The monk stepped down from the Buddha chariot and slowly walked into the cave. Through the dim light, he looked at the string of tiger mahogany bracelets on the ground and he made a Buddhist gesture with one hand. He asked, ¡°Uncle, what on earth have you seen?¡±


    ¡°Baoshu, why do you ask about that?¡± Master Qishan replied calmly.


    Master Baoshu, the president of Commandment Yard, looked at Master Qishan quietly and said, ¡± We monks never tell lies. Today, you have yed the three games of chess on Wa Mountain, and called out the chessboard left by Buddha especially. Certainly, you do not want to make things difficult for the poor and sick girl, to make sure if she is that person.¡±


    Master Qishan smiled and said, ¡°The Great Divine Priest of Revtion cannot see it. The Great Divine Priest of Light thought he had seen it, only to find that he was wrong. How could I see it then?¡±


    ¡°Did Wei Guangming really misjudge it?¡±


    Master Baoshu looked indifferently and said, ¡°What if he didn¡¯t get it wrong? What if the Son of Yama was really born in the General¡¯s Mansion? What if Ning Que really was the Son of Yama?¡±


    Master Qishan shook his head and said, ¡°If Ning Que is the Son of Yama, how could the Headmaster ept him as his disciple?¡±


    Master Baoshu shook his head and said, ¡°The Headmaster is not an ordinary person, so he can do some extraordinary things. Even if he epts the Son of Yama as his disciple, it is still eptable.¡±


    Master Qishan looked at him and said, ¡°If things are as simple as what you have imagined, it is meaningless for the Xuankong Temple and Zhishou Abbey to do anything.¡±


    Baoshu understood what he said. If the Headmaster knew that Ning Que was the Son of Yama and still epted him as his disciple, then he would be on Ning Que¡¯s side, even if the whole world wanted to kill him.


    But it seemed like the Headmaster did not know.


    Because Buddha had said that there were no omniscient people in this world.


    Baoshu said, ¡°I want to know what you have seen on Buddha¡¯s chessboard. What did he do?¡±


    After a moment of silence, Master Qishan said, ¡°I saw a ck horse carriage stopping between the criss-crossed streets.¡±


    Baoshu asked again, ¡°Where was the Lady of Light?¡±


    ¡°She was waiting on the mountain.¡±


    Master Qishan answered. But he didn¡¯t tell Baoshu all what Sangsang had experienced in the world of the chessboard.


    Baoshu went forward and sat on the futon. He remained silent for a long time.


    The oilmp on the wall of the cliff cave was slightly disturbed by the night wind.


    Baoshu suddenly said, ¡°When Ning Que wanted to shoot the arrow at the foot of the mountain this morning, my heart had felt great signs of warning. The bell began to vibrate but it did not ring. Something odd is in his body.¡±


    Master Qishan said calmly, ¡°He has something like our younger brother Lotus.¡±


    Hearing the name of Lotus, Baoshu¡¯s meditative mind suddenly came into disorder, with his eyebrows slightly raised like an iron ruler that was going to attack. He said with a cold voice, ¡°He is a disciple of the Academy. How could he have something like uncle Lotus?¡±


    Although he came from the Unknown ce, as the president of Commandment Yard of the Xuankong Temple, he still felt shocked when he heard the name of Lotus. As everyone knows, Lotus had learned the skills of Buddhism, Taoism, and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He had led a legendary life, and was decorated with high honor and status in the preaching halls of the Xuankong Temple. Thus, who could think lightly of him?


    Master Qishan shook his head and said, ¡°Maybe it has something to do with Mr. Ke.¡±


    Baoshu calmed down gradually and looked with determination, ¡°I increasingly believe that Ning Que is the Son of Yama.¡±


    Master Qishan shook his head and said, ¡°He is not the Son of Yama, even though there is no way to prove it.¡±


    Baoshu said, ¡°The Son of Yama is about to wake up. Only then will I be the only person who can prove it.¡±


    Suddenly, Master Qishan¡¯s eyes became extremely sharp. Although he had been ill for many years, with his real cultivation and state became very low, his eyes still had the power of the thunder.


    ¡°Why does the Xuankong Temple never connect the two worlds like the Academy? Because Xuankong Temple was originally a ce where Buddha used to preserve its Buddhahood in the Dhamma Ending Period, so it was required to be isted from the world. The unknown ce should be unknown.¡±


    Master Qishan looked at Master Baoshu and said with a low voice, ¡°You are the president of Commandment Yard, not a World Wayfarer who has to obey the Buddha and not enter the human realm. Why did youe to the Wa mountain? You should leave immediately!¡±


    For other monks in the world, even the master of the Yuelun Kingdom or the Monk Huang Yang of the Tang Empire, they would show great respect for bigwigs like the president of Commandment Yard, let alone reprimand him like this.


    However, Master Qishan had a special identity. As the rumors said, he was the illegitimate son of the previous Chief Preaching Monk in Xuankong Temple. He had be a monk since childhood, so he ranked extremely high in the n. Besides, he knew what kind of ce Xuankong Temple was, so he need not care about his attitude while in Xuankong Temple.


    Baoshu did not feel angry, but remained calm and said, ¡°There must have been a reason foring here.¡±


    ¡°It should have been Qi Nian, not you, who came here. If it were not for your deep connection with Buddha, which gives you an induction with the bell, how could you be the president of Commandment Yard with the middle cultivation of Knowing Destiny State? In this way, you should be more cautious, and should not shake the bell, let alone allow yourself to be persuaded by Quni Madi,ing to the world from the Wilderness.¡±


    Master Qishan looked at him seriously and said, ¡°You are a Buddhist. You should understand the cause and effect, you cannot be blinded by hatred. Dao Shi died in the hands of Ning Que, because he deserved it.¡±


    Baoshu slightly frowned, and gradually calmed down.


    He said, ¡°Originally, I was the cause of Dao Shi, and he was affected by me. Since the cause and effect of Dao Shi were ended by Ning Que, then this is the cause and effect between us.¡±


    ¡°I was born and bred in the Pure Land, and I carry the bell wherever I go so that I¡¯m able to scare all the evils in the world. If Ning Que were the Son of Yama, he would wake up by listening to the bell. This is also the cause and effect between us.¡±


    ¡°The reason why I came to the Wa mountain this time was to understand this cause and effect, and bring it to an end.¡±


    Master Qishan shook his head slowly and said, ¡°Since you are so obsessed with this, I have to abolish your duty in the temple, and punish you to think about it by facing the wall for ten years.¡±


    Baoshu said calmly, ¡°I want you to know, I havee after receiving an edict.¡±


    Master Qishan felt a little bit shocked. After frowning for a long time, he said, ¡°Even so, the Buddhism Sect still believes in Qi Nian. All earthly matters will be based on his mental state.¡±


    ¡°I will persuade my younger brother.¡±


    Baoshu stood up, saluted single-handedly, and then left the cave.


    ...


    ...


    The cliff cave was extremely silent.


    Today, Master Qishan, who was over a hundred years old, felt the most profound unease in his life.


    This kind of feeling was even more profound than it was a few decades ago when the Devil¡¯s Doctrine massacred those in front of Lanke Temple.


    The door creaked, monk Guan Hai had returned.


    ¡°Master, Mr. Thirteen and the Lady of Light have taken a rest in the front temple.¡±


    Master Qishan looked at his disciple and asked suddenly, ¡°The Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival will begin soon, and the Underworld Invasion will still be discussed. What are your thoughts about this?¡±


    Looked at the Master¡¯s face, monk Guan Hai wanted him to have an early rest. He said, ¡°No one knows where the Underworld is, it¡¯s just a legend.¡±


    Master Qishan smiled and said, ¡°Don¡¯t act as a fool! When the legend turns into reality, it won¡¯t be called a legend anymore.¡±


    Monk Guan Hai smiled patiently and said, ¡°Then, let¡¯s wait until it turns into reality.¡±


    Master Qishan added, ¡°What do you think of the Xuankong Temple?¡±


    Monk Guan Hai felt a little bit shocked, and he found that the master seemed a little bit strange today. He said, ¡°You never allow me to ask about the Xuankong Temple and other Unknown ces before.¡±


    ¡°You have been the abbot of Lanke Temple for 20 years. In other words, you have been isted from the outside world for many years. Since you are going to the Xuankong Temple someday, it¡¯s just as well to know something in advance.¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°The origin of the Xuankong Temple is closely rted to the legend of the Underworld Invasion.¡±


    ¡°The Underworld Invasion is the Evesting night, and it is called Dhamma Ending Period in Buddhism. By then, everything in the world would be destroyed. Buddha had seen the tragic picture that would happen many yearster. He thought of many ways to solve this problem, but still failed.¡±


    ¡°Buddha had perceived theing of his Parinirvana, so he found a purend in the Western Wilderness, and worked hard to build a temple and brought the Evesting night as a barrier. Buddha taught Buddhism and Zen meditation there, and the great disciples of thete Buddha can enter the temple to listen to the preaching and improve their cultivation. This was what weter call the Xuankong Temple.¡±


    ¡°The reason why this is so is that after many years of thinking, Buddha still did not think of the method of preventing the arrival of the Dhamma Ending Period, because it is the original cause and effect of the world. Everyone in the world must die, even after thousands of painful reincarnation. Hence, he hoped that the disciples of the Buddha could survive the devastation of the Dharma Ending Period by the shelter of the Xuankong Temple. And help the monks in the temple to survive the long night that is as long as eternity, with the spirit of perseverance and silence, until a brand new worldes.¡±


    After a long time of silence, Master Qishan sighed, ¡°But today, the Buddhism Sect seems to have forgotten the teachings of Buddha and no longer have this kind of thought. Both Qi Nian¡¯s entrance into Chang¡¯an City and Baoshu¡¯sing to the Wa mountain all prove that they want to find the Son of Yama and kill him.¡±


    ¡°Master, I think... The Bhadantas of the Xuankong Temple are doing just fine.¡±


    Although monk Guan Hai had practiced Buddhism for many years, he was still young. Thinking about the frightful scenes of the invaders, he said in a low voice, ¡°All human beings have suffered a lot, we should show mercy to everyone, not to be isted from the rest of the world.¡±


    Master Qishanughed and said, ¡°You... You are really simple-minded.¡±


    Monk Guan Hai smiled somewhat embarrassedly. Suddenly, he thought of something and said shockingly, ¡°Master Baoshu came for the Son of Yama... Is he on the Wa mountain?¡±


    Master Qishan patted his shoulder with a smile and said nothing about it. He thought that there were many ways to make the Son of Yama disappear from this world, you did not necessarily have to kill him.


    Since the Headmaster said this was feasible in his letter, then it should be so. He would give it a try, no matter for the whole world or his cause and effect with the Xuankong Temple.


    ...

 Chapter 573 - Unpredictable Future

    <h4>Chapter 573: Unpredictable Future</h4>


    <strong>Trantor:</strong> Transn <strong>Editor:</strong> Transn


    Ning Que woke up before dawn.


    He opened his eyes and fell into a long silence while looking at a few spiders weaving webs on the beams. Knowing Sangsang could be cured indeed cheered him up, but he always felt that something would happen. It might be the three games of chess on Wa Mountain, especially what they saw in the illusion of the chessboard.


    What rmed him most was the Buddhist carriage. He didn¡¯t understand why the bigwig from the Xuankong Temple came to the Wa mountain. After all, it was an Unknown ce to the outside world.


    The cultivators who came to the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival didn¡¯t leavest night. Quni Madi and the president of Commandment Yard at the Xuankong Temple stayed at the Lanke Temple.


    Ning Que had decided they must keep away from the cultivators, especially the bigwig from the Xuankong Temple before Sangsang was cured. His dangerous chilhood hunting experiences at Min Mountain had brought him an instinctive habit. If you could not locate the danger in the forest, you¡¯d better stay away from it.


    There were footsteps outside the Buddhist room.


    Ning Que nced at the sleeping Sangsang, then quietly got up, dressed, and walked out of the room.


    The morning light was shining. The old temple was exceptionally beautiful in the autumn fog.


    Master Qishan stood beside the stone balusters in a thick cotton coat. He was still shaking because of the coldness. Looking at the temples and towers, he said, ¡°Nothing has changed for decades.¡±


    He had lived in seclusion at Wa mountain for half his life. He did not leave the mountain since the Lotus¡¯ bloody conspiracy decades ago. Now, looking at the familiar yet strange temple, he sighed with emotion.


    Ning Que stood beside the master and said while looking at the looming front hall, ¡°Yesterday, Sangsang spent at least decades in the chessboard. She told me nothing, but I know it must be very painful.¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°She is not a normal girl, so she wasn¡¯t in as much pain as you think.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Did Buddha really leave the chessboard in the world? What does our experience in the chessboard mean?¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°It was indeed the Buddha¡¯s relic. As for the world in the chessboard, you can see it as an illusion created by the Buddha¡¯s supreme power, or a possible future.¡±


    Hearing the master¡¯s reply, Ning Que fell into a long silence, and then asked, ¡°Is that the future of me and Sangsang?¡±


    Master Qishan looked into the distance in the fog and said, ¡°The future one can see is no longer the future.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Is it possible to change the future?¡±


    Master Qishan looked at Ning Que¡¯s eyes and said kindly, ¡°Since it is a possible future, it¡¯s not settled. Why can¡¯t we change it?¡±


    Ning Que seemed to realize something and continued, ¡°They say you can see the future. Is that because of the chessboard which gives you the power to help people avoid misfortune and answer their doubts?¡±


    Master Qishanughed and said, ¡°The Buddha may be able to see the future. How can I, a mortal, see it? And even if you could, when you see the future, the future will be influenced by your gazing. How can it be the same future as before?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°It soundsplicated.¡±


    Master Qishan did not make any further exnations and continued, ¡°So, if someone wants to see the future like what Li Qingshan, the Nation Master of Tang Empire, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion and I have done, he can only secretly take a look at the chaotic future from a distance in fear.¡±


    ¡°Because it is only then that we mortals won¡¯t influence the world of chaos, but be swallowed up by the chaotic future.¡±


    Master Qishan said with emotion, ¡°But if we try to see the future more carefully and clearly, the future we see may be false and we will bear a more severe punishment from the heaven. It is said that the Great Divine Priest of Revtion went to Chang¡¯an Cityst spring and foresaw that Sangsang in the Old Brush Pen Shop woulde back to the West-Hill Divine Pce three yearster. The Priest almost went blind from looking.¡±


    Ning Que became serious. He had only learned what the Priest had to pay to see Sangsang¡¯s future today.


    ¡°No wonder the Priest agreed to my three-year promise.¡±


    He suddenly thought of something and frowned, then he said, ¡°The future might not be true, but since the Priest had paid a big price for seeing Sangsang¡¯s future, he must have some confidence about it.¡±


    Master Qishan sighed and said, ¡°For some reason, I have some doubts about the future he saw, but as you said, I have to believe what he saw. That¡¯s why I¡¯m so confused.¡±


    What kind of future could it be that even the Priest and Master Qishan could not see? Where was Sangsang¡¯s future? What would happen to her?


    Looking at the heavy fog, Ning Que patted the baluster and said, ¡°I still don¡¯t understand.¡±


    Seeing the future was like peeking at the secret of the heavens. Even bigwigs such as the Great Divine Priest of Revtion, Master Qishan or Li Qingshan could not confirm that they really understood what they had seen, let alone Ning Que.


    But Ning Que did not care. Since the Priest had foreseen that Sangsang woulde back to West-Hill three yearster, she should have been cured then.


    As long as Sangsang could live, any future was eptable to him.


    ...


    ...


    The temple bell rang.


    After a simple breakfast, the monks at the Lanke Temple started their morning ss. Sangsang was a little bit sleepy because her illness. Ning Que took her out of bed and started the ss.


    Sangsang studied in the back hall of the temple.


    It was a bit too much for such a magnificent golden hall to be used as one person¡¯s ssroom.


    They had the privilege partly because of their special identities. More importantly, their dharma lessons¡¯ teacher was Master Qishan, the ancestor of the Lanke Temple.


    If necessary, one word from Master Qishan could empty the back hall, even the whole temple, and nobody at Lanke Temple would dare to say anything.


    All the monks had been banned from entering the back hall except for some senior monks waiting outside as servants. The hall was very quiet.


    asionally, one could hear Master Qishan¡¯s calm and wisdom-filled voice from outside.


    Sangsang did not speak. She listened carefully and studied.


    Under the porch outside the hall, Ning Que was listening to the essence of Buddhism while looking at the scattered autumn fog. He felt very calm.


    Master Qishan did not stop him from attending the ss, but Ning Que thought, that he was a disciple from the Academy after all. It was an exceptionst night inside the cave, but today it was an exclusive Buddhist ss for Sangsang; he should not attend it. Besides, he was not interested in the dharma because of Second Brother.


    As time passed slowly, the dharma lesson in the main hall came to an end. Sangsang sat on the futon and tried to meditate with closed eyes. She was thinking about the earlier lessons.


    Master Qishan walked out of the hall.


    It was near noon. Autumn clouds covered the sky and asionally a few cold spots of rain fell to the ground. It was cold outside the hall. The master was chilled and coughed a few times.


    Ning Que sent the master a cup of hot tea to warm him up.


    Master Qishan took a sip of the tea and put the teacup on the step in front of him. He looked at Ning Que and smiled, ¡°You treat me better than you treat others. And you¡¯re nicer to me thanst night.¡±


    Ning Queughed and said, ¡°I¡¯m a realist and even a snob. I hope you don¡¯t mind.¡±


    The master shook his head with a smile and said, ¡°Frankness sometimes does not necessarily change people¡¯s impression on you, but I believe that before bing the Headmaster¡¯s disciple, you were already a realist but more cautiously.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°It wasn¡¯t until I entered the Wilderness and found that the token of the Academy¡¯s Second floor could frighten so many people, did I realize I could be less cautious.¡±


    Master Qishan nodded and said, ¡°Since you can now rely on the Headmaster, nobody in the world could make you live as gingerly as before.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Sometimes I ask myself if I am really a snob.¡±


    The master said, ¡°Sometimes a snob is the one who is free and easy. How you seed won¡¯t affect their opinions on you. Yesterday you took a tough stance, butpared with Mr. Ke, you were as submissive as a rabbit.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I don¡¯t want to be the second Youngest Uncle, so I think being a snob is more interesting than fighting against the world alone.¡±


    Master Qishan looked at him and said with a touch of pity, ¡°I know you have suffered so much and even endured the most unbearable things in your childhood; that¡¯s how you became the man I know today. But, since you have entered the Academy, became the Headmaster¡¯s disciple and made friends with other disciples, you should change a little bit.¡±


    After a short silence, Ning Que answered, ¡°The Academy has changed me a lot and I like it. That¡¯s why I¡¯m grateful to the Academy. But the change can be very time-consuming.¡±


    Master Qishan said kindly, ¡°I¡¯m looking forward to what you will be eventually, though I may not be able to see it.¡±


    Ning Que was slightly surprised and asked, ¡°Then what is thest thing you want to see in me?¡±


    The master did not directly answer the question. He sadly looked across the continuous rain to the distant square in front of the Lanke Temple.


    ¡°Decades ago, my younger brother Lotus ughtered many at Lanke Temple, where he ate people for the first time.¡±


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 574 - Studying Buddhism

    Chapter 574: Studying Buddhism


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    ¡°That day, a bloody aura shot into the skies. I was on the Tile Mountain and was terrified. The bell in the 17th temple of the Lanke Temple gave a warning sign. It rang at the same time the aura appeared for three days and three nights.¡±


    Master Qishan turned around and looked at Ning Que. He said, ¡°And just a few days ago, the Buddhist bell in the 17th temple rang again. The ringing of the bell could be heard in Tile Mountain. That was when I realized that the bloody aura had appeared once more.¡±


    Ning Que¡¯s expression did not change when he heard that. However his body, hidden in his ck Academy uniform, tensed up involuntarily. His mind was in a mess and his awareness grew.


    The Buddhist bell in the Lanke Temple had rung due to Lotus¡¯ Practice of Taotie. It must have rung a few days ago because it had sensed that he had done something to Long Qing in the Red Lotus Temple under the autumn rain.


    Maser Qishan had obviously guessed the truth behind the incident, but he did not choose to unveil it. He said benevolently, ¡°I am old and dying. While I cannot say that I have seen through both good and evil, I have understood some things. However, not many in the world can do the same, for example, the Xuankong Temple and the Haotian Taoism.¡±


    ¡°To the Haotian Taoism, the Buddhism Sect is not part of them, much less the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Ning Que, you have to understand that the heavens cannot be beaten by a man. No matter how strong Mr. Ke was, he could not be stronger than the heavens. And no matter how tall the Headmaster is, he cannot be taller than the skies. There are some things that shouldn¡¯t be touched, and if you have touched them, forget them.¡±


    Ning Que knew that the master meant well and that he was trying to persuade Ning Que to not delve any deeper into joining the Devil. No matter what kind of situation he was to face, he shouldn¡¯t use the evil and bloody Practice of Taotie.


    After that autumn rain, he had often felt the strong lingering sweet taste of blood in his mouth. It was as if Long Qing¡¯s blood and flesh were still stuck in the gaps in his teeth and he was absolutely disgusted.


    Because of the emotional trauma he had since he was a child, he believed that he could control himself and not use the Practice of Taotie. However, he could not stop cultivating his Youngest Uncle¡¯s Great Spirit. Then would he eventually take the path that Youngest Uncle had?


    Master Qishan said, ¡°Tell me about Lotus.¡±


    Ning Que lowered his head in silence. Even if the master had guessed the truth, he did not intend to acknowledge it because he did not want to take any risks.


    Master Qishan sighed, ¡°I was the one who had brought Younger Brother Lotus to the Buddhism Sect decades ago. How could I not sense then, that he had passed his legacy to you? I just want to know what happened to him afterwards.¡±


    Perhaps the regret in the Master¡¯s voice had touched Ning Que, or maybe it was because Ning Que respected the rtionship between the Master and Lotus. After some hesitation, he began to tell him about the bizarre story in the depths of the Wilderness.


    ¡°The side hall was filled with bones and dried corpses. Master Lotus sat in the middle of the pile of bones...¡±


    ...


    ...


    The Lanke Temple was quiet in the autumn rain. A certain temple had lit incense and the scent stubbornly wafted through the rain to the corridor at the back temple. The cold atmosphere turned into a solemn one.


    After listening to Ning Que¡¯s tale, Master Qishan stayed silent for a long time.


    He inhaled the faint incense scent and lifted his thin arm. His fingers danced across the air, trembling as if he wanted to grasp something. However, the scent of sandalwood could only be smelled and not touched. Just like a memory, it could not be gripped.


    ¡°Even in such desperate circumstances, he could stille up with such a good idea. It is truly Younger Brother¡¯s character to use you all to escape. Even though he still died in the end, he did manage to get himself out of the Confinement and he should be d about that.¡±


    Aplicated smile appeared on the Master¡¯s wizened face.


    Ning Que thought of everything that had happened to him at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine then, and Lotus¡¯ fragments of consciousness deep in his sense of perception. His emotions fluctuated wildly.


    He looked toward Sangsang who was lying on a futon in the depths of the Buddhist temple. He said, ¡°Before Lotus died, he said that both Taoism and the arts of the Devil both lead to joining the Gods. Now that Sangsang is cultivating in both Taoism and Buddhism, and her body seems to possess a natural celestial characteristic, would she be like Lotus and be mad if she continues cultivating?¡±


    Master Qishan looked into the temple and said calmly, ¡°To make ck chess white with just a thought is what the Buddhism Sect call ¡®will¡¯. It is powered by itself. If she does not wish to be Lotus, she won¡¯t.¡±


    Then, he turned to look at Ning Que and asked, ¡°But you... what do you wish for?¡±


    Ning Que thought about it and then said, ¡°I do not know either, but it¡¯s definitely simpler.¡±


    ¡°The more simple and pure it is, the more powerful it is. Sometimes, it is also scarier.¡±


    Master Qishan looked at him and said warmly, ¡°Why didn¡¯t youe with Sangsang to listen to my preaching? If you think that I do not preach well, there are many Buddhist scriptures hidden in the Lanke Temple; you can try to read them on your own. Buddhism can rid you of heart demons and remove blockages. They are very beneficial to you right now.¡±


    ¡°Master Lotus once said that Buddhist scriptures are as wide as the sea. But if you look deeply into the surface of the paper, you¡¯ll discover that all dharmas are just made up of one word: tolerance. Second Brother had also said that there were 3000 dharmas, but they were just teaching people how to lie to themselves.¡±


    ¡°Tolerance and self-deception are the same thing,¡± Ning Que said. ¡°I am good at tolerating, so I do not need to learn that. As for self-deception... I am worried that if I deceive myself for too long, I will forget my original intentions and not be able to wake up from thinking that those are all real.¡±


    ¡°Mr. Second has cultivated in Etiquette, so he would naturally not understand the ways of the Buddhism Sect where both fathers and rulers are disregarded.¡±


    Master Qishan asked, ¡°If life is but a mere dream, why wake up from it?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Even if it is a dream, we still have to be serious about it so that we can live freely. Even if life is but just a dream, we have to pretend that it isn¡¯t.¡±


    Master Qishan asked again, ¡°Then how would you know if the world in the Buddhist scriptures is a false dream and not reality?¡±


    After his statement, Ning Que had thought of how he had boasted to Chen Pipi at the back of the mountain of Academy, that he was someone who would asionally sprout wisdom even if he did not read books. He was just feeling rather self-satisfied with what he had said.


    However, he found himself unable to answer the Master¡¯s next question. That was when he ascertained that the asional wisdom from someone who did not study was indeed asional. He had no right to participate in any talks about Zen.


    He said helplessly, ¡°Master, why do you wish for me to study Buddhism and participate in Zen conversations? Sangsang is ill, she cannot be cured unless she studies Buddhism. This is the fate she has with the Buddhism Sect. I do not think that I am fated to study Buddhism.¡±


    Master Qishan smiled and said, ¡°Would the fate that the Buddhism Sect speaks of be so simple to understand? It seems that you have not studied Buddhist scriptures. I can teach you this on behalf of the Headmaster.¡±


    Ning Que felt that something was wrong.


    ¡°Master, you seem to think highly of me, but I really don¡¯t think there is anything special about me.¡±


    He turned around to look at Sangsang who was in the temple and said, ¡°Aspared to her, sometimes, I think I am as dumb as a pig. No matter how much I cultivate in Buddhism, I cannot be a master in the Buddhism Sect.¡±


    ¡°She is the most special one, and you, are also a special one.¡±


    Master Qishan followed Ning Que¡¯s gaze and looked at Sangsang. He praised, ¡°The Lady of Light is pure in both body and heart. Her will itself, is a Divine Skill. If she wills it, she will understand Buddhism and reach the Knowing Destiny State in three years.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head without waiting for the Master to finish his statement.


    ¡°I know of someone who has done this faster than me, so I don¡¯t think I am special.¡±


    Master Qishan answered, ¡°But it is rare to find someone like that.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°No matter how rare they are, they still exist. So I am not special.¡±


    Master Qishan looked into his eyes and asked in confusion, ¡°You seem to worry that you¡¯d turn to be the special one.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Others would always be jealous of those who are outstanding. It¡¯s really annoying and I have no wish to be someone like that.¡±


    Master Qishanughed and said, ¡°This is because you were in the Academy.¡±


    Ning Que smiled and said, ¡°That¡¯s right. For example, my Eldest Brother reached the Seethrough State and Knowing Destiny State within a short time. Talent like this would be considered special. Even if I p the Big ck Horse silly, I would still be unable to catch up.¡±


    ¡°Mr. First is of such extraordinary talent, so we can¡¯t use him to makeparisons.¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°But you are very different from ordinary cultivators in the world. Other than your talent in Talisman Taoism which was discovered by Master Yan Se, your talent in other aspects of cultivation is just ordinary...¡±


    Ning Que added, ¡°It is not just ordinary, it is so ordinary it is considered terrible.¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°However, you have managed to enter the Knowing Destiny State in just three years with such terrible talent. It proves that your ability has long surpassed your ordinary talents...¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know how you have cultivated, but I heard of your performance at the three most crucial moments in cultivation. You began your path in Talisman Taoism during the summer rain. When you entered the Seethrough, it was thanks to the fish the Calligraphy Addict fried. And you entered the Knowing Destiny State while in battle a few days ago. Each time, they happened with no telltale signs.¡±


    The Master continued, ¡°Cultivators ce emphasis on order. They study the rules of the Qi of Heaven and Earth. But disciples of the Buddhism Sect rely on years of penance before they see the end of the path. This is what we callprehension.¡±


    Ning Que recalled the teachings of Master Huang Yang in the Wanyan Tower.


    Master Qishan looked into his eyes and said seriously, ¡°Your performance when you broke through the realm had nothing to do with those opportunities. It was more like what the Buddhism Sect calledprehension. That is why yourprehension is good, and it¡¯d be a waste not to study Buddhism.¡±


    Ning Que had to admit that Second Brother did make sense. No matter if it was Taoism or Buddhism, they would speak nonsense when they wanted new blood...


    ¡°I am afraid I will fall asleep when I read Buddhist scriptures.¡±


    He pleaded.


    Master Qishan removed a thin scripture book from his sleeves and handed it to Ning Que. He said, ¡°I have especially picked an interesting scripture that is short. You shouldn¡¯t fall asleep reading this.¡±


    With that, he walked into the temple to see how much Sangsang hadprehended today.


    Ning Que flipped open the scripture in his hands and saw the simple illustrations. He couldn¡¯t help but be ashamed and annoyed. He shouted at the master¡¯s back, ¡°This is for children, can I have another book?¡±


    ...


    ...


    After lunch and a short break, Sangsang continued to study Buddhism. Ning Que stood in the corridor outside the temple, teasing the Big ck Horse with a snow white lotus flower. He yed until he was bored and thought of the scripture.


    The illustrations in the scripture were simple and flowed well, and the stories were also very interesting. They cleverly hid the teachings behind the scripture. He grew more interested as he read, and had a monk bring him a bamboo chair.


    Heid in the chair and flipped through the scripture. He would take an asional sip of hot tea, and when he didn¡¯t feel like reading, he would look up at the autumn drizzle outside the temple to rest his eyes. He felt rather pleased.


    Master Qishan walked out of the temple.


    Ning Que stood up and handed him hot tea. He asked in confusion, ¡°Master, why have youe out?¡±


    Master Qishan epted the tea without hesitation and sat on the bamboo chairfortably. He said, ¡°Miss Sangsang is meditating again. I have nothing to do inside, so I came to speak with you.¡±


    Ning Que said in shock, ¡°She has entered meditation again so quickly? Are you sure that girl isn¡¯t sleeping?¡±


    Meditation was a terminology used by the Buddhism Sect. It referred to the calmness of thoughts that came before enlightenment. It was a state where one wouldpletely forget oneself. If using cultivation in Haotian Taoism as a metaphor, it would be like the empty state before one found an opportunity.


    Sangsang entered meditation before noon and again after that. This meant that she had understood whatever Buddhism Dharma Master Qishan had taught her effortlessly. This was unbelievable.


    Even though Ning Que knew that she had managed to produce the Haotian Divine Light at the blink of an eye when she was studying the West-Hill Divine Skill with Wei Guangming, he still found it hard to believe. That was why he wondered if she had fallen asleep.


    Master Qishan said, ¡°I can still tell the difference between falling asleep and entering meditation.¡±


    Ning Que saw that the master was calm and asked curiously, ¡°Master, you do not seem surprised.¡±


    Master Qishan took a sip of tea and smiled. He said, ¡°I won¡¯t be shocked no matter what incredulous things happen to her.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I now believe what you saidst night.¡±


    ¡°What did I say?¡±


    ¡°You mentioned that Sangsang could be a Buddha.¡±


    ¡°Everyone can.¡±


    ¡°Master, I am not good at saying things like that, even though Zen does sound charming.¡±


    ¡°Then I can make it clearer.¡±


    Master Qishanid in the chair and adjusted his shirt. He said, ¡°Buddha was a man, so why can¡¯t man be a Buddha?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I used to think that Buddha was like Haotian, and that it was only a symbol until teacher said that he existed. Then, I saw the chessboard yesterday and that was when I realized that Buddha truly existed.¡±


    Master Qishan looked up at the sky and said, ¡°Buddha had once lived under the skies.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the dark skies and drizzling rain. He asked, ¡°Since this is Haotian¡¯s world, then why does Buddha exist? Where did Buddha go?¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°Since there is a beginning, there would be an end. Where there is life, there is death. Since Buddha is a man, then he would enter Parinirvana. This was recorded in history.¡±


    Ning Que thought of his own curious encounters, and thought to himself that death did note hand in hand with life.


    With that thought, the autumn rain suddenly felt like one in the spring. He could not help but feel tired. He thought to himself, that since they were speaking of nothing important, then they should at least speak of something meaningful. He leaned against the railings and asked.


    ¡°If Buddha was a cultivator... then what state did he get to in the end?¡±


    ¡°As a disciple of the Buddhism Sect, how can we dream of undermining Buddha?¡±


    ¡°Buddha is benevolent, it¡¯s not much of a sin to talk about it.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the master and asked tentatively, ¡°Buddha must have crossed beyond the Five States right?¡±


    The master smiled and said, ¡°The Buddhism Sect does not have Five States.¡±


    ¡°I was talking about it rtively.¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡±


    Ning Que understood.


    He suddenly thought of a rumor, and asked Master Qishan seriously, ¡°It was said that before you got ill, you were thought by the cultivation world to be someone who was most likely to cross the Five States.¡±

 Chapter 575 - Above All States

    Chapter 575: Above All States


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Maser Qishan said with a slight smile, ¡°Likelihood and reality are two different things. Even if I had broken through beyond the Five States, it wouldn¡¯t have been something to be proud of. Just like what you said, it is difficult to think that you are the special one.¡±


    Ning Queughed and said, ¡°You sound a little arrogant.¡±


    Master Qishan was stunned and asked, ¡°How is it arrogant?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The Five States separate man and heaven. Those who can break the Five States would attain the legendary Sage state. No Sages havee forward in the cultivation world for years. But you said that it isn¡¯t anything to be proud of, is that not arrogance?¡±


    Master Qishan shook his head and said, ¡°Breaking the Five States might be difficult, but there aren¡¯t many in the cultivation world who have the opportunity. Furthermore, even if one broke the Five States, how can one be called a Sage?¡±


    Ning Que did not understand. He said, ¡°Why have I never heard of anyone who could break the Five States?¡±


    Master Qishan looked at him and asked, ¡°What is the current state of Mr. Second of the Academy?¡±


    Ning Que considered his question and said, ¡°Second Brother should be at the Peak of the Knowing Destiny State. But... you know how he is, he might break through into the next state if he really got mad.¡±


    With that, he couldn¡¯t help but startughing.


    Master Qishan did notugh because he did not understand.


    Ning Que¡¯sughter tapered off awkwardly.


    Master Qishan said, ¡°Since Mr. Second is already at the Peak of the Knowing Destiny State, then...¡±


    With that, the Master extended a finger and pointed up.


    Ning Que came to a sudden realization. Second Brother was already at the peak of Knowing Destiny State. Eldest Brother must be close to breaking the Five States or he might have already done so. As for teacher... well, they were talking about regr humans; it had nothing to do with his teacher.


    ¡°Alright, I admit that there might be people who have already broken the Five States.¡±


    ¡°Back then, Liu Bai had once fought with Master Yan Se. Strong wind sted at the Eastern Seas then. Everyone thought that he was most likely to break the Five States. I think that he could have long broken through the Five States, but he just hasn¡¯t taken the step yet.¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°Younger Brother Lotus was extraordinary then. He studied both Taoism and Buddism and had a grounding in diabolism. If he wanted to, breaking the Five States wouldn¡¯t have been anything difficult. He just didn¡¯t want to.¡±


    Ning Que had heard Lotus say the same thing at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Back then, he hadn¡¯t really believed Lotus because he felt that he was just a bigwig boasting before his death.


    ¡°Why?¡±


    Ning Que asked in confusion, ¡°Why have these people chosen not to take thest step?¡±


    ¡°Breaking the Five states would mean that the cultivator would leave the secr world. They would not only be able to grasp the inherent rules of the Heaven and Earth¡¯s aura, and understand the rules of the world, they could even create new rules. However, this is Haotian¡¯s world; the rules of therger world cannot be challenged. Battle would still be done in ordance to the rules of therger world.¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°That is the reason why, to the small number of true powerhouses, thergest difference between staying at the peak of Knowing Destiny State and breaking the Five States is their understanding of the source of the world. It does not do much in respect of boosting their powers.¡±


    Ning Que could not understand. He said, ¡°Being able to scale up would still be good. Who could resist such temptation?¡±


    Master Qishan sighed, and he looked at the grey skies. He said, ¡°You are very right, this temptation is too great. And because of this great temptation, these people do not dare to take that step.¡±


    ¡°Do you know of any other states above the Five States?¡±


    ¡°Tianqi, Limitless State... I have only heard of these two.¡±


    Ning Que answered. This was what he had heard from Lyu Qingchen on his journey to Chang¡¯an from the City of Wei. Back then, he had yet been unable to cultivate. Now, he was already a Grand Cultivator in the Knowing Destiny State. However, his understanding of the states above the five remained at the same standard.


    He had once asked about it at the back of the mountain of Academy. His Senior Brothers thought that his question was too boring and did not bother answering him. Now that it seemed that the master was able to solve his doubts, so he could not help but feel excited.


    ¡°In the ssics, is stated that there are many states above that of the mortal realm. You talked about Tianqi, the West-Hill teachings mentioned it a lot. Limitless State, means knowing in Buddhism. Other than that, the ssics also mention the Buddhist Boundlessness and Nirvana. There is also the Divine Demon Realm of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, the Tranquility of Haotian Taoism... These states are all above the Five States, and are all interesting in their own right. There is no one state that is stronger or better than the other.¡±


    There was a long pause.


    ¡°Legend says that there are other states above all these states. It is not recorded even in the oldest ssics. It is passed down by word of mouth in a Buddhist Temple, a Taoist Temple, and the Second floor of a sect. That is...¡±


    ¡°The Immortal State of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.¡±


    ¡°Nirvana of the Buddhism Sect.¡±


    ¡°Ascension to heaven and bing immortal of Haotian Taoism.¡±


    ¡°The Academy¡¯s Transcending the Worldly.¡±


    The autumn rain grew heavier, and the front of the temple grew colder.


    Master Qishan tightly pulled his cotton shirt around him.


    ¡°The Devil¡¯s Doctrine only started a millennia ago, I have never heard of anyone cultivating to the Immortal State. When Buddha entered Parinirvana, the skies gave a sign, that should be Nirvana. Ascension to Heaven is moremon, those are the legends of deities in the secr world.¡±


    Ning Que seemed to understand something.


    Master Qishanmented, ¡°In the past millennium, there might have been one person who could slowly walk to the end of the cultivation path. There might have been one person who could reach the shore astride, and one who could achieve living forever. Then, they would return to Haotian¡¯s embrace.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the stone steps that were wet by the rain. He asked, stunned, ¡°Would that be death or eternal life?¡±


    ¡°No one knows.¡±


    Master Qishan seemed a bit lost. He said, ¡°Buddha cannote back and tell us. Our Taoist seniors who have ascended into heaven and be immortals cannot tell us either. This is the greatest temptation and fear.¡±


    Ning Que looked up at the master and asked, ¡°Is that why both Liu Bai and Lotus did not dare to take that step?¡±


    Master Qishan answered, ¡°This should be the case.¡±


    ¡°There is still arge distance between the point where one breaks the Five States and reaching those states. However, once you get a taste of it, you¡¯d want to do it again. After experiencing creating their own rules, cultivators would find it hard to control their desire to continue forth. That is why unless they truly believe that their talent can only bring them just past the threshold of Haotian Taoism, they would not dare to take another step.¡±


    The master shook his head slowly and said, ¡°However, those who can break the Five States are impressive characters like Liu Bai and Younger Brother Lotus. They are very confident in their own talents.¡±


    Ning Que suddenly said, ¡°The Headmaster...¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°Don¡¯t ask me. Decades ago, the Headmaster himself said that he was not a Sage. If you want me to guess, I would guess that he has cultivated to the State of Peace.¡±


    Ning Que smiled and said, ¡°He is so noisy, how could he be peaceful?¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°The peace is in his heart and that is enough.¡±


    Ning Que reached out and caught hold of the rain outside the temple. He rubbed it between his fingers, and after a long pause, he asked, ¡°Is there no one who is capable of ascending to the heavens?¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°Is there anyone who can escape the cycle of nature?¡±


    Ning Que retracted his hand and wiped it on his Academy uniform. He said, ¡°Teacher never told me about this.¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°That¡¯s because the Headmaster believed that you would definitely reach the Peak of Knowing Destiny State. When you see the separation between man and heaven, you would know then, the fear and temptations on Earth.¡±


    Above the Earth was the Firmament.


    Ning Que looked up at the skies in the autumn rain and realized that it was bleak.


    He felt a little cold.


    Heaven¡¯s Way was indeed ruthless.

 Chapter 576 - Buddhas Notes

    Chapter 576: Buddha¡¯s Notes


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The Buddhist temple was cold in the autumn rain. Ning Que stood outside the temple and looked at the sky high up above and said, ¡°At the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, Master Lotus once said that the Devil¡¯s Doctrine cultivates in themselves and that they are the world. That is why they were not epted by Heaven¡¯s Way.¡±


    ¡°But you said earlier, that once cultivators break through the Five States, they would have a chance to create their own rules. This would mean that they would have their own world, and this is no different from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s ways. This would also be uneptable by Heaven¡¯s Way.¡±


    Master Qishan stood up and walked to his side. He looked up at the sky and said calmly, ¡°The ssics from Haotian Taoism said that cultivation was a gift from Haotian. However, if we look toward the end, no matter the Haotian Taoism¡¯s desire to live a prolonged life, or the Buddhism Sect¡¯s desire to reach the other side of the shore, or the mad craving of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine for immortality, they are all attempts to break free of the restraints that Haotian has ced on Mankind.¡±


    Ning Que thought of how Youngest Uncle had died from Heaven¡¯s punishments. Then, the thought of many notable characters in the cultivation history who disappeared, silently sumbing to Heaven¡¯s Way. He grew cold, and said bitterly, ¡°Haotian doesn¡¯t care about the Underworld Invasion, but keeps a keen watch on the mortal realm. It is very annoying.¡±


    Master Qishan smiled and said, ¡°Such speech and thoughts are considered sphemous. If you were not a disciple of the Academy, and if you had not spoken inside a Buddhist temple, the West-Hill Divine Pce would not spare you.¡±


    Ning Que suddenly recalled something. He turned around and asked the Master, ¡°I heard that Buddha had read the ¡®Ming¡¯ Handscroll from the Tomes of the Arcane?¡±


    Master Qishan nodded and said, ¡°Many thoughts of Buddha might have been created by himself, but they originate from his reading of that tome. I heard that Buddha once wrote a scroll to exin it. Unfortunately, it is now lost.¡±


    Ning Que had heard this from the Headmaster. He could not understand the ¡°Ming¡± Handscroll, so he wanted to know what Buddha had seen from it, so he felt a little regret when he heard that.


    ¡°But Buddha must have mentioned the Underworld Invasion.¡±


    ¡°In Buddhism, the Underworld Invasion is called the Dharma Ending Period. On some old scriptures, it is also called Nirvana. The Xuankong Temple and the Lanke Temple exist because of this.¡±


    ¡°Are you talking about ritualsmemorating the Underworld during the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival? Or the legendary Light of Buddha?¡±


    ¡°In fact, the most important mission of the Lanke Temple is to find the Son of Yama.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Master, you know that I am very sensitive to the term ¡®Son of Yama¡¯ now. Furthermore... The Buddhism Sect is focused on tolerance and leaving the mortal realm. Even if they found him, would they use the Light of Buddha against him?¡±


    The masterughed and said, ¡°Even if they tolerated, they¡¯d want to know what they¡¯re tolerating, no? The Buddha had not experienced the previous Dharma Ending Period. I guess he must have been curious about what Yama would do when he entered Nirvana.¡±


    ¡°There is something that I don¡¯t understand.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Even if the rumors be reality, with theing of darkness and the Underworld Invasion really happening, why would Yama send his son to our world? It is ludicrous to think of the Son of Yama as his vanguard. If it was meant as preparation for him to inherit the throne, that¡¯d be even funnier.¡±


    ¡°Rumors say that Yama was born before the beginning of time and would die at the end of time. He is the opposite of Haotian¡¯s light and is almighty. He doesn¡¯t move and doesn¡¯t die, and is called Invariant Yama. There are also rumors that Yama stays outside of space and holds the infinite world in his hands that is wide and endless. So he is known as the Lord Guang Ming. However, what he wants to do most, is to turn the mortal world into the Underworld.¡±


    Master Qishan said.


    Ning Que suddenly said, ¡°Teacher doesn¡¯t believe in the Underworld Invasion.¡±


    Master Qishan said with an odd expression, ¡°Did the Headmaster tell you that?¡±


    Ning Que nodded and said, ¡°Because teacher has not found where the Underworld is located.¡±


    Master Qishan said with a slight smile, ¡°Then just treat it as me telling you a story.¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Thank you, Master.¡±


    The master smiled and continued, ¡°To counter the Underworld Invasion, Haotian recreated 69,999 false worlds in the Infinite Space after a previous attack. Then, he mixed the real world into it. No matter how powerful Yama is, he cannot differentiate which world is the real one in Haotian¡¯s light.¡±


    ¡°So at the cost of sleeping for a thousand years, Yama divided 70,000 auras and sent them into the 70,000 worlds. They are the legendary 70,000 children of Yama. The 70,000 children who grew up in their own world will eventually wake up one day, and once they wake up, the Underworld will be able to sense the rules of the child¡¯s world, confirming whether it is a real or a false world.¡±


    At this point, Master Qishan remained silent for a long time. He whispered a few names of Buddha, forced himself to suppress his fatigue, and went on to say, ¡°If the Son of Yama wakes up, Yama will know the exact position of our world in the light of Haotian. Then he wille to earth ording to his son¡¯s coordinates.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the cooling pot of tea and suddenly said, ¡°Since the dark night hase, there is no point in finding the Son of Yama now.¡±


    ¡°The dark night has yet toe. What we can sense now are all warning signs of the danger that wille to pass. Even if the Underworld is aware of our location, without the body of Son of Yama as a conduit, it would be impossible for it toe.¡±


    ¡°So... we have to kill the Son of Yama to save the world?¡±


    ¡°There are other ways aside from killing him.¡±


    ¡°What are they?¡±


    ¡°For example, having him cultivate in the Buddhist heart of peace, and then cleansing him with light?¡±


    ¡°Master... why do I feel like you¡¯re talking about me.¡±


    ¡°Ning Que, you really are an interesting child.¡±


    ¡°How am I interesting?¡±


    ¡°You are interesting because you can control your mental state perfectly.¡±


    ¡°I do not understand.¡±


    ¡°You can do whatever you desire. And if you do not wish to do it, you can stop yourself from doing it. This is a good thing.¡±


    ¡°Master, I have said that I am not good at meditation.¡±


    ¡°Then what are you good at?¡±


    ¡°Fighting?¡±


    ¡°...¡±


    Before the quiet and cold Buddhist temple, Ning Que¡¯s and Master Qishan¡¯s voices droned on.


    There wasn¡¯t anyone around the temple, so there was no need to worry about anyone overhearing them.


    Deep inside the Buddhist temple, Sangsang had awoken from her meditation. She was reading a Buddhist scripture seriously.


    Scriptures were scattered all around her.


    Some of the scriptures were old and yellowing at the sides, while some were newly printed and still smelled of ink.


    The light from outside the temple entered through the window and shone upon her.


    A ck cotton robe was wrapped around her slender body.


    Her slightly dark long hair flowed down her shoulders.


    She read the Buddhist scripture in earnest. She looked at ease and did not hear the voices outside the temple.


    At the end of the next day.


    Ning Que entered the meditation room. There was a copper te by the window and in it, burned a stick of incense.


    Sangsang lowered the Buddhist scripture and looked up at him with a happy smile, revealing two clean teeth.


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Is it interesting?¡±


    Sangsang nodded and answered, ¡°It¡¯s interesting.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The thing is, whether it¡¯s useful or not.¡±


    Sangsang thought for a moment and said, ¡°Erm... it seems to be useful.¡±


    Then, she exined softly, ¡°It¡¯s like, I don¡¯t have to think of it, and then my illness is forgotten and won¡¯t re up again.¡±


    ¡°To forget it is not enough. You have to keep thinking about how to get rid of the cold aura.¡±


    Ning Que sat beside her and reached for her wrist. After a quiet moment of perceiving, he confirmed that the cold aura deep in her body had be much calmer than the previous days.


    He suddenly noticed the calmness in Sangsang¡¯s eyes. Her entire disposition seemed to have changed. He was surprised, and thought to himself wondering whether studying Buddhism really came with so many benefits.


    Sangsang continued reading the Buddhist scriptures. Perhaps she was anxious to cure her illness for Ning Que to stop worrying about it, so she worked really hard. ording to themon concept of Buddhism, this kind of meticulous idealism was not necessarily beneficial to the study of Buddhism; it might even be a great obstacle. But the amazing thing was that it didn¡¯t seem to affect her at all.


    Ning Que sat by the window and began to read scriptures illuminated by the twilight.


    Heforted himself in the knowledge that it was natural to read the scriptures in a temple. This was also a silent exnation to his Second Brother who insisted on ndering Buddhism.


    He began to study Buddhism yesterday. While he did not possess a connection to Buddhism like Sangsang, his understanding was stronger than most. He read the scriptures quickly and when he encountered any difficulties, he went to consult Master Qishan...


    p!


    Ning Que suddenly closed the scripture he was reading.


    The sound startled Sangsang, who looked up at him.


    Ning Que shook his head indicating that nothing was wrong.


    Sangsang continued reading scriptures.


    Ning Que stared at the scripture in his hands, stupefied.


    The scripture was very old, but the pages did not curl up because of this. It looked as if it few people ever read it.


    The cover page of the scripture was empty; there wasn¡¯t a title on it.


    Ning Que only recalled then, theplex expression on Master Qishan¡¯s face when he handed him the book. Master Qishan had lookedforted, freed, and extremely grave.


    After some time, he slowly opened the scripture in his hands again.


    The scripture was not profound, it was written by a monk describing the method to break the Knowledge barrier.


    However, in the warm red glow of the setting sun, other words appeared on the yellowing pages.


    There was a secondyer in this scripture.


    Ning Que carefully studied the binding of the scripture and confirmed that the page on Knowledge barriers was imposed on the original page in order to hide it.


    With stable hands, he carefully pried the page open.


    10 yellowed pages appeared before him.


    These pages were made from an unknown material and written with unidentifiable ink. The colors made it look as if it had existed for tens and millions of years. They were extremely yellow but were not damaged at all. When he held them in his hands, they did not give any signs of king into dust.


    The writing on the page did not look exceptional to Ning Que.


    But when he saw the words, he did not blink even once.


    The first paragraph was:


    ¡°Wise men, so were the Sun and Moon.¡±


    Ning Que had seen this sentence... on the ¡°Ming¡± Handscroll of the Tomes of the Arcane.


    So he knew that these pages were the notes written by Buddha after he read the ¡°Ming¡± Handscroll.

 Chapter 577 - Thoughts on the Stone Statues at Night

    Chapter 577: Thoughts on the Stone Statues at Night Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    ¡°Since the sun and the moon correspond, there should be a moon if there is a sun.¡±


    ¡°As the sun and the moon rise and set, their light blends. The moon should appear at night.¡±


    ¡°But innumerable ages have seen the long night without the moon.¡±


    ¡°That vites the endless natural process.¡±


    ¡°As night falls, the moon rises. The word ¡®night¡¯ refers to the Evesting night, but not themon one.¡±


    ¡°It is not until the Dharma Ending Period of the Evesting night that the moon will reappear and naturees back to life.¡±


    ¡°The world still has a way out if there is no extinction.¡±


    ¡°In this case, the only thing required is to quietly wait for the long night. Why bother acting against the current?¡±


    ¡°Is Heaven also waiting for the arrival of the night?¡±


    ¡°Or is it dreading its arrival?¡±


    ¡°Does it fear the night itself, or the moon that arrives at night?¡±


    Buddha¡¯s handwriting had nothing special, whenpared with that of rural school teachers from the Gushan Commandery. The words on the note were verymon, clear and easy to understand.


    Ning Que was reading the note carefully. The twilight fell on his face, dyeing his eyebrows with golden light, just like the golden statues of the venerable people in the temple.


    The ¡°Ming¡± Handscroll of the Tomes of the Arcane was in the Academy all the time. It was in the waist of the Eldest Brother. Ning Que had seen it twice before, but failed to understand it. When he saw the notes left by the Buddha today, he was finally sure of something.


    The Buddha believed that this evesting night had nothing inmon with the innumerable ones the world had experienced before. Then he recalled that although his teacher did not believe the Underworld Invasion, he had never denied theing of the evesting night, and even mentioned that a butcher and a drunkard had once lived in thest evesting night.


    The biggest difference between this evesting night and others perhapsid in the ¡°moon¡± character in the word ¡°Ming¡±, which was something the world had never seen, not even the Headmaster.


    But why was there a record about the moon in the ¡°Ming¡± Handscroll? Did it mean that innumerable years ago the world used to have a moon before it suddenly disappeared? Would it reappear in this evesting night as the Buddha predicted?


    As the light faded and the night approached, Ning Que left the meditation abode and went to a cottage outside the pagoda forest, in the backyard of the Lanke Temple. Listening to the gurgling of the stream behind the cottage, he opened the door and went in.


    Master Qishan was not surprised at his visit. ¡°Any gains?¡± He asked smilingly.


    Instead of answering his question, Ning Que asked, ¡°Weren¡¯t the Buddha¡¯s notes lost?¡±


    ¡°Notes that nobody can understand is the same as being lost,¡± Master Qishan said. ¡°I failed to understand even after reading them for almost a hundred years. I hope you can understand the notes.¡±


    Ning Que fell silent for a moment before asking seriously, ¡°Master, why do you think I can?¡±


    Staring at him with a profound look, Master Qishan said,¡±Because the Headmaster said in the letter that if anyone could read Buddha¡¯s notes, that person would be you.¡±


    Ning Que felt conflicting emotions, half shocked, half confused.


    Whether it was the Buddha who had left his impressions after reading the ¡°Ming¡± Handscroll years ago, the Great Divine Priest of Light who had taken it away from the Zhishou Abbey, or the venerable Headmaster, no one was truly able to understand the ¡°Ming¡± Handscroll.


    Because no matter how intelligent they were, they would not be able to analyze and could only guess when faced with events that had never appeared in their world. Ning Que, however, was an exception.


    Ning Que knew that the Headmaster wrote a letter to Master Qishan, as did his Eldest Brother. He had thought that they had just mentioned Sangsang¡¯s illness and asked the Master to take care of her, but never expected that there was another intention.


    Did the teacher guess where he came from?


    Master Qishan left the cottage with Ning Que and went into the wood.


    The mountain stream flowed slowly among the pine trees. After the continuous autumn rain, the night sky cleared up and the starlight was beautiful, making the water surface glitter like myriads of silver fragments.


    Looking at the night scene, Ning Que subconsciously recalled a poem from ancient China.


    ¡°Clear and bright moon cast its light on the pine woods, while creeks flow above the stones.¡±


    He turned to the master and asked, ¡°Master, why do you preach Buddha¡¯s dharma to me?¡±


    Master Qishan looked at him and sighed, ¡°Because you have killed too many people and there is too much hostility in you. It is not good for yourself and others. So I want to neutralize your hostility through Buddha¡¯s dharma.¡±


    ¡°When I returned to Chang¡¯an from the City of Wei,¡± Ning Que said with a slightly lower voice. ¡°Iughed, joked and yed rogue. I thought that no one could see through this, to realize how horrible and heartless I truly am. But you still weren¡¯t fooled.¡±


    Master Qishan looked at him with some sympathy, ¡°As I said in the mountainst night, I know that the first half of your life was miserable, so I don¡¯t think you are to me. However, since you have entered the human realm on behalf of the Academy, I have to take the world in consideration. To prevent you from bringing disaster to the world in the future, I have to preach Buddha dharma to you. Please do not me me.¡±


    Ning Que felt calm and said, ¡°No one but a lunatic loves killing. I¡¯m not a lunatic, so I don¡¯t like it either. I killed people to save my own life. It would be perfect if I could still be alive without killing others. I would love that. How can I me you?¡±


    Ning Que did not tell Sangsang about Buddha¡¯s notes since he did not want her to be distracted from the Buddhist sutras, let alone worry about him. He went into the back hall of the Lanke Temple, lit a bronzemp and continued reading carefully.


    More than a dozen pages of Buddha¡¯s notes, in addition to his predictions of the future, contained some of his knowledge of the world. More importantly, it included his methods of understanding the world, such as his vision of darkness and light.


    There was a rich wisdom in these words. It was a pity that Buddha had not meant to write an essay when he wrote his notes, so the content was short and casual, without a system. Otherwise, Ning Que would benefit a lot from it.


    In addition, there were also some asional words left by the Buddha on a whim, from which Ning Que came to know that the Buddhism Sect was not created by the Buddha.


    Before the Buddha, there were more ancient Buddhas who even went through the Evesting night. It was the Buddha that seeded in realizing the fundamental ideas of the Buddhism Sect. Therefore, he was now regarded as the earliest Buddha by Buddhist disciples.


    Ning Que could not helpughing when he recalled that the Headmaster referred to the way of the Buddha as ¡°shut up¡±.


    Both the Headmaster and the Second Brother sneered at the Buddhism Sect. But they only represented the views of the Academy and did not mean that the Buddhism Sect should be ignored.


    It was really a lucky chance for him to read the Buddha¡¯s notes. Ning Que was unwilling to give up when he felt grateful for the chance. Perhaps due to the deep memory of his reading in the old library, he subconsciously used his knowledge about the Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong when he was reading themon notes made by the Buddha.


    In the beginning, out of the desire to read the words left by the predecessors of the Academy when he was still unable to do the cultivation, he forced himself to understand the words by separating them, causing him to spit blood and faint. It turned out that the method had not much use although it was not entirely useless.


    After he was able to cultivate, especially after entering the Seethrough Realm, the Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong could not help him in cultivation at all. So the method had disappeared for quite a long time in his life.


    At the moment, he used the method as an attempt to understand the Buddha¡¯s notes, not expecting anything fruitful. It was just a vain attempt when he was unwilling to give up, to leave empty-handed before a mountain of treasures.


    However, in the next moment, Ning Que came to realize that the method seemed to work.


    With a light buzzing sound, his sense of perception suddenly opened.


    The ink words on the Buddha¡¯s notes gradually floated before his eyes and scattered to myriads of strokes, among which some were vertical like a Buddhist pestle, some were darker like a Buddhist bell, some were like the copper bowls held by a sadhu, and others were like the Buddhist bell in the pavilion.


    These strokes floated from the pages to his eyes and then entered into his sense of perception, flying into his spiritual world to reconstruct the scenes hardly understood by him.


    Ning Queid down the note and looked at one side of the hall.


    Some stone statues were consecrated in the Lanke Temple, a dozen of which were in the side chamber of the front hall, and four in the deep back hall. What Ning Que was looking at were these four stone statues.


    Simr stone statues could also be found in the Wanyan Tower Temple in Chang¡¯an and the White Tower Temple in the Yuelun Kingdom. It was said that only a man of wisdom could understand the true meaning behind the Emblematic Gestures of Buddhism.


    A few days ago, the powerhouse from the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom, Mr. Cheng, who was already at the middle stage of the Knowing Destiny State, had sighed before the stone statues in the side chamber of the front temple. Hemented the fact that he had failed to understand, though he realized there was a rich wisdom in them.


    On the far right side of the back hall, there was a hideous stone statue with ring eyes. His hands were exposed and they were so close, they almost touched, forming aplicated gesture. A majestic and chilling aura spurted forth from his fingers.


    Staring at the statue quietly for a long while, Ning Que raised his hands to imitate its hand gestures.


    The statue¡¯s hands remained still while Ning Que, seemingly imitating the motionless gesture, kept his hands moving slowly in front of him.


    At the moment, a piece of consciousness in the depths of his sense of perception seemed to perceive something. It shimmered and released a faint psyche before it finally went out.


    Ning Que came to understand the true meaning of the statue¡¯s gesture before he gradually stopped moving his hands.


    With one hand erect and the other horizontal behind it, his right index finger bent slightly in the air and left index finger touched the dorsal part of the right hand, which looked rather strange and awkward.


    His gesture was different and even had nothing inmon with that of the statue. However, at the moment his left index finger touched the back of his right hand, a sense of chill, almost as same as that from the statue, suddenly emerged.


    The drop of dew condensed by the Great Spirit in his abdomen began to rotate, releasing streams of pure Great Spirit and delivered them to different parts of the body through the illusory passages.


    He was very familiar with the rotation of the Great Spirit since he cultivated it day and night diligently, but now he found that it greatly differed from his previous practice.


    The biggest difference was that it was not violent any more, but became so submissive that even the most subtle airstream could be controlled by his psyche.


    After rotating the Great Spirit in his body for three times, Ning Que felt so refreshed and happy that he could not help uttering a sigh of satisfaction, drifting in the quiet hall.


    Then he turned to the next stone statue.

 Chapter 578

    <h4>Chapter 578: The Handprint in Autumn Rain and the Dance in Front of Temple</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The stone statue in the hall was initially painted with goldcquer which had ked off over several years, revealing the stone inside. Under the dim light, it seemed merciful but horrible at the same time.


    Ning Que looked at one stone statue, then another. He was so into them that he forgot himself and he felt no hunger nor tiredness, with his hands constantly moving in front of him.


    He did not stop moving his hands until he finished observing all the four stone statues. He picked up the futon and sat down in front of the railings on the hall, facing the night of the temple, then closed his eyes and began to meditate.


    Unwittingly, a night passed. Autumn rain fell in the old temple again, clearing the thin fog so that sunlight at dawn could shine on the cornice of the Buddha hall.


    The clear and long bell from the main hall of the front temple spread to the distant rear hall.


    Ning Que opened his eyes, and for a moment they were like crystals, but gradually they were back to normal.


    Watching the autumn rain outside the railings, he raised his right arm and reached out at will.


    In front of the hall, the autumn wind whistled, with rain fluttering. Suddenly, in the heavy rain appeared arge nk space; there was not a single drop of rain within it. It looked quite dry.


    If one looked at the nk space carefully, it was exactly the shape of a palm.


    After a long time, the aura around the temple gradually faded away and those flying autumn rain drops finally fell on the range taken by the invisible palm. Everything went back to normal.


    Ning Que did not know what he had learned throughout the night until now. Looking at the heavy autumn rain out of the temple, he was inevitably excited.


    ¡°Fearlessness, meditation, beating demons and dispelling ideas... I really didn¡¯t expect that you could have amand of the four true Emblematic Gestures in Buddhism.¡±


    The faint voice of Master Qishan came from outside the temple. He was surprised.


    Ning Que turned around and bowed to Master Qishan.


    He had many things to thank Master Qishan for. Last night, when he was meditating all night, Master Qishan stayed outside the temple to keep him safe. He must thank Master¡¯s protection with kindness.


    Master Qishan looked at Ning Que, feelingplex emotions.


    No matter how magical one¡¯s fate with Buddhism was or how good one¡¯s understanding of Buddhism was, it was impossible for one to master the Four True Emblematic Gestures of Buddhism overnight, because the Buddha¡¯s Emblematic Gestures were not a skill of the Buddhism Sect and people who practiced Buddhism could not get rid of the Knowledge Barrier.


    However, it seemed to have no effect on Ning Que.


    Master Qishan felt the aura of his Younger Brother, Master Lotus, but it was fainter than yesterday. He understood the real reason why Ning Que could ovee the Knowledge Barrier.


    Because Lotus had gone through the Knowledge Barrier a long time ago.


    Master Qishan looked at Ning Que and sank in his sad thoughts, ¡°Younger Brother, you¡¯re leaving this world. Is it your own way to continue your existence in this world?¡±


    ...


    ...


    Delegations from many countries had already arrived at the Wa mountain and these days, in the meetings, they had been talking about the invasion of the Deste to the South. Cultivators were sharing what they had learned in Wa mountain the days ago, with awe and excitement. At the same time, they guessed what kind of bigwigs would show up in the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival in a few days.


    Ning Que and Sangsang were invited to celebrate the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival but they did not care about these things. They read the sutras, observed the Buddha statue, and followed Master Qishan to watch the Buddhist skills on the walls of the temples. Their lives here were peaceful and their mood became quieter as a result.


    Ning Que was curious about the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival so he asked Master Qishan about it. It was the grandest festival in the world and had peculiar origins, with legends about the suppression of the Underworld by the Light of Buddha.


    ¡°The Buddhism Sect did not have the power to suppress the Underworld. In the earliest time, people just prayed that the night would never arrive and then strong cultivators discussed how to deal with it. However, many years have passed and the night has never arrived. The legend of the Underworld Invasion has be a hearsay. Is there any cultivator who cares about it?¡±


    Master Qishan smiled and said, ¡°The Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival is held annually, but the time when cultivators gather together is not fixed. Although the meaning of this festival has changed, Buddhism doesn¡¯t want to give up this opportunity to show itself.¡±


    ¡°The Yuelun Kingdom ims that there are 72 Temples of Smoke and Rain in its territory and they are all famous temples. If we count those ordinary temples, I¡¯m afraid that there will be more than a thousand temples. In addition, it is located in the Wilderness of the West, closer to the Xuankong Temple. Why didn¡¯t the Buddhism Sect choose to hold the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival in the temples of the Yuelun Kingdom, such as the White Tower Temple?¡±


    Ning Que was confused and he asked.


    Master Qishan asked him, ¡°Do you know where the first great temple in the world built by the Xuankong Temple is?¡±


    Ning Que shook his head.


    Qishan Master pointed to the eaves of the temples under the hurdles and said, ¡°It is here.¡±


    Ning Que was shocked and he thought, ¡°How can it be?¡±


    Master Qishan knew what he was thinking and exined, ¡°Because it is the nearest temple to the Xuankong Temple.¡±


    Ning Que thought that the Xuankong Temple was located in the depths of the Western Wilderness while the Lanke Temple was in the Southeast, and the coastline could be seen from the top of the Wa mountain. It was clearly the longest distance in the world between the two ces. Why did Master call it the nearest?


    Master Qishan smiled and asked, ¡°It was said that Buddha visited the Southeast and he sensed something when his disciples were ying chess in the mountain, so he deciden for the Lanke Temple to be built on the top of the mountain. It is because of a hidden connection between the Lanke Temple and the Xuankong Temple.¡±


    ¡°A hidden connection¡± seemed to have profound meanings behind but Ning Que still did not understand.


    Master Qishan turned around and pointed at the rear hall, saying, ¡°It is said that many years ago, Buddha realized the foremost skill in Buddhism to travel through spaces without obstacles, so he built a simple stone pagoda there which could help monks reach the purend of the West.¡±


    Ning Que was shocked and he said, ¡°I only heard that the Tang Empire military and the West-Hill Divine Pce had some special and powerful tactical array made of talismans that could convey simple information. But never did I hear of any tactical array that could transfer people to distant ces. Was it the Limitless State from legends?¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°There is no Tianqi in Buddhism, nor is the saying of Limitless State. But it¡¯s imaginable that Buddha with so great power did such a thing.¡±


    Ning Que recalled the day when Sangsang and he were on Buddha¡¯s chessboard and thought of the notes about Buddha that he had been carrying these days. He was then convinced so he asked, ¡°What about the tactical array now?¡±


    Master Qishan smiled bitterly and said, ¡°No matter how powerful the Buddha was, his power had already disappeared. After thousands of years, battered by wind and rain, the simple stone pagoda had be ashes. It was said that monks built a hall on the ce where the stone pagoda was, which was the rear hall of the temple. There wasn¡¯t a single trace of the Buddha.¡±


    Ning Que felt regret after listening to his words.


    In the face of time, it was only death that couldst forever.


    ...


    ...


    The Lanke Temple owned the entire Wa mountain. The temple was huge even though it did not include the mountain. Its scale was sorge that it took at least the time of burning a stick of incense to walk from the square in front of the temple to the rear hall.


    The ancient temple consisted of three parts: the front, the middle, and the rear. In the front part, there were a majestic and solemn front door and a square as well as two magnificent Buddhist halls. About ten halls were scattered in the middle part which covered an areaparatively small. As for the rear part, it was the smallest and the most secluded, with only one hall.


    The autumn rain continued. The monks in the monastery were busy preparing for the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival. The delegations of various countries were still engaged in heated discussions. Cultivators were practicing with each other. The front part of the temple was full of tension, while the shadow of the sword danced jauntily in the middle part.


    The rear part was still in tranquility. During the spare time after studying Buddhism, Ning Que sometimes went for a walk to the halls in the middle part of the temple. They held a big ck umbre walking in the pattering autumn rain, listening to the sound of each hall, smiling without making any sound. Nobody noticed them as long as he did not want people to notice them.


    They went to the front part of the temple, stood in the Autumn Tree Pavilion, and watched girls from the House of Red Sleeves perform their dances. It was pleasing to see those energetic and beautiful girls dancing even when they were sweating.


    Watching Xiaocao directing girls with her crisp voice on stage, in the simr manner as Mistress Jian, Sangsang could not helpughing.


    The dance of the House of Red Sleeves prepared for the ceremony was not as morous as Nichang, but it was a bit more auspicious like the daughter of the Buddhism Sect. It might be very sessful.


    Ning Que and Sangsang stood in the pavilion and watched them from afar, not meaning to meet with the House of Red Sleeves. He did not go to meet with the Tang Empire¡¯s delegations¡ªXian Zhng, Defender General of the West expressed his desire to meet through a monk in the temple, but he really enjoyed the tranquility here and did not want to be disturbed by the secr affairs.


    When Master Qishan exined the Buddha scriptures, he once said that Buddhism was a way of seeing the world, a method of learning; most importantly, an attitude towards life.


    This kind of life attitude wasughed at by the Headmaster as shutting one¡¯s mouth,ridiculed by Lotus as pretending to be a turtle, and was derided by Second Brother as ying dead. But the unique silence of the Buddha was self-sustaining and had its own charm.


    Now that Sangsang was recovering from her sickness and Ning Que learned quite a lot from Buddhism, he naturally lived a peaceful and calm life here. Yearster, he fondly recalled this period of time in the autumn of the 16th year of Tianqi in the Lanke Temple as the most peaceful time in his whole life; he would realize that the calmness and joy were only a soothingfort.


    ...


    ...


    The Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival was on that very day.


    Tourists from all over the world hade to Wa mountain. The town located in front of Wa mountain was so bustling and the square in front of the Lanke Temple was so crowded that many shoes were stamped off, and it would be hard to hold the ceremony or perform in the square without the help of monks and sergeants maintaining order.


    Countries from the Central ins all sent delegations to watch and perform in the ceremony, and those carriages in the parade sparked waves of cheers. Among those carriages, the House of Red Sleeves from Chang¡¯an easily won the warmest apuse and cheers.


    Following the parade was the ceremony where the abbot of the Lanke Temple led monks to pray for the whole world. Then a priest of the Divine Hall offered a sacrifice to Heaven and numerous believers kneeled on the ground, which was a extremely solemn scene.


    Ning Que and Sangsang did not go to take part in the ceremony. They stood on a high ce at the rear part of the temple and looked at the excitement at the bottom of the mountain. He could not helpughing when seeing the ceremony and said, ¡°Can these different things mix and match?¡±


    After the ceremony was over, the girls of the House of Red Sleeves began to dance.


    Apuse and cheers from the audience in front of the temple suddenly broke through the sky.


    A few high-ranking old monks in the Lanke Temple looked at the beautiful girls dancing on the stage and their eyes turned wet, possibly caused by recalling their own stories from long ago.


    Ning Que looked at the temple and said, ¡°After decades of separation, the old temple finally sees the dance of flying flowers. It is lucky that Lotus has died so that the Lanke Temple may pass this period of time in peace.¡±

 Chapter 579 - A Grand Celebration

    <h4>Chapter 579: A Grand Celebration</h4>


    <strong>Trantor:</strong> Transn <strong>Editor:</strong> Transn


    For the ordinary locals and tourists, the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival was undoubtedly a grand celebration as well as the principal theme of this autumn. Though for the bigwigs, the festival was simply a good excuse for them to meet. They just needed to use this opportunity to gather together and discuss about affairs that actually mattered.


    Prior to the Yue Laan Festival, the meetings among emissaries from the different countries had already reached their ultimate objectives, and all that was left was approval from their respective governments before being sealed by their kings or emperors to take effect.


    All countries in the Central ins agreed to continue to wage war against the Wilderness next year, and they would greatly increase their army force as well as logistic support. The Tang Empire was even demanded to show their real power instead of remaining as a bystander like it did in the past two years.


    The reason for this was that, the situation of the Wilderness had be ever more chaotic, and once the Deste stabilized their position, it took them only a year of rest and rehabilitation to fiercely rise up again. On the other hand, the Left King¡¯s Pce of the barbarians, that was ridiculed by the Central ins countries during the war finally woke up after paying a bloody price; they began slipping through the Central ins and the Deste, while attempting to get some revenge.


    The Deste had left this world for way too long, and the barbarians became masters of the Wilderness in the past millennium. Even though the Left King¡¯s Pce endured great losses, their familiarity with the Wilderness meant that they could simply y hide and seek around the Min Mountain whenever they couldn¡¯t win against the countries in Central ins, and thetter wouldn¡¯t find a better way to retaliate.


    What the countries in Central ins feared the most was that, under severe losses, the cavalry of the Left King¡¯s Pce could really give up the dignity of their pce and turn to the Golden Pce.


    The Golden Pce remained very quiet for decades, so much so that most people of the Central ins forgot about the existence of the fierce beast. Nevertheless, the nobles and officials from these countries knew very well that, despite South Jin Kingdom being generally considered to rank second in the world, the actual second strongest power in this world continued to be the Golden Pce.


    The Golden Pce was endowed with the strongest cavalry, thergest number of horses, and thergest number of High Priests. If it wasn¡¯t thanks to the resistance of the Min Mountain, the several generations of courageous and powerful Chanyu of the Golden Pce would have conquered and seized the entire Wilderness long ago.


    Had the Tang Empire not provided such strong resistance for centuries without ever giving in an inch of their territory, the cavalry of the Golden Pce would have long swept the Central ins by now, and they might even have reached the Peach-Mountain of West Hill.


    In the face of anger and cries of the delegations, the Tang delegation eventually agreed to sign this n. It was on one hand due to the pressure exerted by the West-Hill Divine Pce, and on the other hand, it was also out of strategic considerations by the Tang Empire.


    The Tianqi Mountains and the Min Mountain were actually part of the same mountains, stretching tens of thousands of miles across the north of the continent. It divided the wilderness in two with a really narrow valley in the center, referred to as South Min Mountain and North Min Mountain respectively by the people of the Central ins, whereas the grasnd barbarians were more ustomed to referring the northern region as the Tianqi Mountain.


    Should the Left King¡¯s Pce wish to make contact with the Golden Pce or even fight alongside each other, their cavalry would need to cross that valley. However, to the west of that valley was a city built by the Tang Empire that cost countless human and material resources.


    This was the most distant, yet the most important city for the Tang Empire.


    Chang¡¯an would never allow that town to be threatened by anything.


    The delegates of the front temple had nowpleted their mission, and they had either joined the town to enjoy their remaining time with the local folk or chosen to return to their respective cities to report on the oue of their discussions.


    The cultivators from the different sects still remained in the middle temple. Normally, masters of these cultivation sects would have left alongside the bigwigs of their respective countries; considering the presence of the West Hill Divine Pce, they must also obey the orders of the royals of their respective countries. However, it was a different scenario this year, since they must wait for the orders of the bigwigs at the back temple.


    Those who were now at the back temple were the true bigwigs. For instance, neither Mr. Cheng of the Sword Garret who had reached the Knowing Destiny State, nor Quni Madi and Lu Chejia need to care about the affairs of their respective countries. Moreover, this year even saw the presence of the President of Commandment Yard of the Xuankong temple as well as representatives of both the Academy and the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    The representative of the Academy was obviously Ning Que, and although Sangsang was qualified to represent the Divine Pce, she had only been endowed the title of the Divine Pce without any particr position. And most importantly, the Divine Pce knew very well that the Lady of Light could not be bothered to take care of such matters, so they sent a priest to assist her.


    That priest was an acquaintance of Ning Que, the Divine Pce Priest, Cheng Lixue, with silver hair and beard.


    Ning Que looked at Cheng Lixue and said, ¡°How did the Divine Pce think of the term ¡®assist¡¯? If Sangsang really demanded something, would you actually listen to her? Who would believe that anyway?¡±


    Cheng Lixue smiled and said, ¡°Should the Lady of Light really raise her opinion, I would definitely respect her. Moreover, I also trust that there is no one from the Divine Pce who would oppose to her opinion.¡±


    ¡°No need to express such formalities anymore, since it is meaningless.¡±


    Ning Que looked at him and said, ¡°You must have heard rumors about my family background.¡±


    Cheng Lixue remained calm and said, ¡°I have.¡±


    Ning Que then asked, ¡°Do you believe them?¡±


    He smiled and said, ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    Ning Que went on to ask, ¡°Does the Great Divine Priest of Revtion know about it?¡±


    Cheng Lixue shook his head and said, ¡°He said he didn¡¯t know either.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Then forgive my rudeness if anyone from Haotian Taoism ever talks about me being the Son of Yama ever again.¡±


    Cheng Lixue said, ¡°Unless you choose to raise the matter, who would dare mention that rumor in front of you?¡±


    Ning Que smiled and said, ¡°I just want to remind you of the deadly consequences of spreading rumors.¡±


    Cheng Lixue wasn¡¯t keen to engage in this kind of meaningless conversation with him again. He simply took out a letter from his sleeve and handed it over to Ning Que, while saying, ¡°This is a letter that the Divine Priest of Judgment wrote back, and I was asked to pass it to you personally.¡±


    Ning Que was slightly startled and as he opened the letter, he saw that it was Ye Hongyu¡¯s handwriting indeed.


    In the letter, Ye Hongyu briefly exined the process of hunting down Prince Long Qing outside the borders of North of Yan Kingdom. It didn¡¯t exin in detail about the thunder by the Shubi Lake, but it did say that Long Qing did not die, and how he took a few dozens of his fallen knights and reunited with the army of the Left King¡¯s Pce, running away to the depths of the Wilderness.


    The fact that Long Qing was able to survive Ye Hongyu¡¯s sword was highly unexpected for Ning Que. He deduced that something interesting must have happened, only that there was nothing he could do if Ye Hongyu refused to tell.


    As he remembered the ck peach blossom, the silent and gloomy aura, Ning Que could almost foresee the uing danger.


    He knew too well how strong and terrifying Long Qing was, especially with the mystic devouring technique he was endowed with, as it would make him stronger at a fascinating speed.


    Back in the day in front of the Red Lotus Temple, had Long Qing not been startled by his Practice of Taotie and escaped, he would have already been killed.


    Even though there were no Taoist cultivators in the Wilderness, there were many Priests and Necromancers. Without forewarning and preparation, they would end up being the best meal option for Long Qing.


    As someone who should have died long ago, but kept surviving and continued to be stronger and ever more terrifying, Ning Que found Long Qing rather admirable. He raised his eyebrow slowly, and remembered about the rumor that lingered since years ago, about them being each other¡¯s nemeses. He wondered, would this actually be reality?


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s letter consisted of two pages.


    On the second sheet, she drew a sword.


    Ning Que stared at the sword on the paper, experiencing the awe-inspiring sword style it conveyed, faintly sensing the undefeated power she expressed while she drew that sword. He couldn¡¯t help but shiver, and he muttered to himself, ¡°I cannot believe you were inspired so soon. Do you mind not being so strong? It makes me feel rather weak.¡±


    While he said that, he was actually rather grateful to Ye Hongyu, as she decided to draw the sword to let him know as soon as she became further inspired by the Dahe Sword. This was obviously out of concern that his progress was too slow to defeat Long Qing in the future.


    Surely Ning Que also knew that, adding this previous notion and the Tao addict¡¯s personality, an even more important factor was her fear that their future fight wouldn¡¯t be interesting enough, because of hisgging too far behind.


    Cheng Lixue heard him talking to himself, and he couldn¡¯t help feeling bitter, saying, ¡°When I saw you in the Wilderness, you hadn¡¯t reached Seethrough state yet. Today I see that you have already entered the Knowing Destiny State. If you consider yourself to be weak, I should probably dig a hole and bury myself in front of you and the Divine Priest of Judgment.¡±


    Ning Que patted him on the shoulder in constion, ¡°Happiness lies in contentment.¡±


    In shock, Cheng Lixue almost spewed blood to taint his snow white eyebrows.


    After a while, he said feebly, ¡°I finally understand why Prince Long Qing was so infuriated after losing to you in Chang¡¯an years ago. Anyone would be infuriated upon losing the opportunity to be the Headmaster¡¯s disciple. Furthermore, he lost to someone like you. That would definitely lead to sleepless nights.¡±


    Ning Que smile and said, ¡°I didn¡¯t do anything at the time, except for asking him whether he wanted to have some cake.¡±


    The meeting taking ce at the back hall of the Lanke Temple was certainly not apt for the ordinary cultivators to take part in. They could only remain waiting at the Middle Temple while discussing actively. Nevertheless, they didn¡¯t seem to be too tense or nervous looking at their facial expressions.


    Those who were unable to raise their heads and look at the sky certainly wouldn¡¯t understand how high the sky could be, and they could never touch the real secrets; therefore, they obviously could not foresee the danger ahead. As a result of that, they would be more likely to remain in theirfort zone, thinking that the Underworld Invasion was simply a myth that wasn¡¯t worth their concern.


    The four stone statues sat quietly by the side of the hall, and things continued to be nice and quiet, because only very few people were entitled to sit in this ce.


    Master Qishan sat in the very center, his emaciated face showingpassion.


    The Monk Guan Hai stood by his side.


    Ning Que and Sangsang sat by the left hand side of the Master.


    Master Boshu, President of Commandment Yard of the Xuankong Temple sat by his right.


    Regardless of how prestigious and highly regarded anyone else in this hall could be in this world, they all ought to show their due respect in front of the representatives of the two major Unknown ces.


    Cheng Lixue represented the West-Hill Divine Pce and sat next to Sangsang, followed by Quni Madi, Cheng Ziqing of the Sword Garet, Mo Shanshan and Lu Chenjia, the Flower Addict.


    Also present in the hall was Master Dongming, who hosted the second round of the three games of chess on Wa Mountain, though he chose to sit by the side wall instead of being among the crowd. He nced at Sangsang and gave her a very calm and rxed smile.


    Only ten people were present at the hall, though they were ten people who could represent the entire cultivation world.

 Chapter 580 - A Cup of Flower Tea

    <h4>Chapter 580: A Cup of Flower Tea</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Master Qishan was the first to talk.


    Looking at the people in the temple, he said wearily, ¡°Naturally, all of you must not think that the legend is only a legend. There were many signs that pointed to the approaching Evesting night and the year before, Mr. First from the Academy went to the Far North Cold Region; he realised that the nights there were longer, the temperature was dropping rapidly and the Hot Sea had signs of ice.¡±


    Cheng Lixue leaned forward slightly and acknowledge the crowd before saying, ¡°Hierarch Lord also saw in the screen of light that the deepest regions in the stormy sea had an unusualyer of ice, too.¡±


    Master Qishan sighed and said, ¡°Mr. First also mentioned in his letter that the year before andst year, the end of the freezing date in Chang¡¯an City was brought forward two and three days respectively.¡±


    Cheng Ziqing frowned slightly and said, ¡°But autumn came in Chang¡¯an Cityter thanst year. I always thought that it was normal for the weather to change from year to year.¡±


    At this moment, the president of the Commandment Yard of Xuankong Temple, Master Boshu, said softly, ¡°There is no need for further argument on this matter, the Deste Men have headed south and this has proven that Mr. First was right. We shouldn¡¯t waste our time on such meaningless arguments. First, we need to consider how we should deal with the Underworld Invasion.¡±


    Since Master Boshu had entered the Lanke temple, he had kept the door shut and when in the mountains, he would sit quietly at the Buddhist chariot. It was the first time Ning Que and many others saw how he looked like.


    This monk had eyebrows resembling rulers, there was a pure glow in his eyes and a slight frost on his brows. There were many wrinkles on his forehead yet, one couldn¡¯t guess his real age.


    He came from the Unknown ce and was the president of the Commandment Yard of Xuankong Temple. He was undeniably the highest ranked in this ce and hence, a word from him made Cheng Ziqing quiet, signaling his approval.


    After the Xuankong Temple confirmed that the Underworld Invasion wasn¡¯t just a legend, the temple got even quieter. Legends bing reality was a hard pill to swallow. Both Cheng Ziqing and Quni Madi were deep in thoughts. Could it be that countless generations of cultivators before them had never met the end of the world but it was upon them now?


    Master Boshu looked at everyone and sternly said, ¡°The Underworld Invasion will definitely be a long process and our generation might not be able to see it. But as they say, future generations reap the benefits of this generation. For humanity to survive, we need to start preparing now.¡±


    Everyone knew they had to prepare, but for what?


    The temple became quiet again.


    Monk Guan Hai walked out of the temple and brought some hot water. He started serving the guests some clear tea.


    In the past, Master Qishan doted on his disciple and was not willing to share with him too many gloomy stories. Hence, this was the first time he had attended such an event and in reality, if it wasn¡¯t for the fact thatmon monks weren¡¯t allowed to hear this discussion, he wouldn¡¯t be able to do this job either.


    As such, he was a little excited and nervous. Carrying the teacup in his shaking hands, he didn¡¯t notice how much tea leaves he had ced inside the cup and what tea leaves they were.


    Ning Que wasn¡¯t interested in such discussions. From how he saw it, if there really was an invasion from the Underworld, the people in the temple wouldn¡¯t be able toe up with a real solution. Where will they be cing the abbey dean of the Zhishou Abbey, the Chief Preaching Monk in the Xuankong Temple, or even the Headmaster?


    However, those at the back of the mountain of Academy were a bunch ofzy people who couldn¡¯t care less about worldly affairs. He had been forcibly assigned as the person to enter the human realm and in such a situation, he had no choice but to represent the Academy.


    However, he hadn¡¯t expected the discussion to involve him this quickly.


    ¡°The Underworld Invasion requires Yama to reflect his world onto ours. It requires the body of the Son of Yama as a channel. But 16 years ago, a vision fell from the sky andnded in the Wilderness; many World Wayfarers from the different sects gathered there. Regardless it was the Xuankong Temple or the Zhishou Abbey, they all felt the Son of Yama descending upon our world.¡±


    Master Boshu said slowly as he nced at Ning Que.


    Ning Que understood what that nce meant, he shuddered but his expression remained unchanged.


    Quni Madi stared at him venomously and said in a hoarse voice, ¡°Then what we should do now is to find the Son of Yama and... kill him.¡±


    Master Qishan took the cup of tea from Monk Guan Hai; he blew at it gently, not saying a word.


    The people in the temple all knew who Quni Madi was hinting at. After all, after the battle between Ning Que and Xia Hou, the judgment from the Great Divine Priest of Light back then had spread and the Buddhism Sect seemed to hold the same view.


    However, without any evidence, who would dare say that the core disciple of the Headmaster was the Son of Yama? Within this year, no one had dared to mention this in front of Ning Que. Even the rumors started dying down. After all, no one had seen Yama but all the cultivators knew that they shouldn¡¯t provoke the Academy.


    Hence, when Quni Madi said those words, no one in the hall followed up. No one was ignorant enough to ask who the Son of Yama was. Everyone was silent.


    Quni Madi seemed to not have expected this, as her brows furrowed increasingly and the expression in her eyes got more venomous. She stared at Ning Que and said, ¡°Mr. Thirteen, do you not have anything to say?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°I want to ask if you can stop beating around the bush.¡±


    Quni Madi was furious at those words as her chest started heaving and she said sternly, ¡°I am talking about you!¡±


    ¡°You are the Son of Yama!¡±


    Ning Que had long expected someone to give him trouble but he wasn¡¯t sure if it would be Quni Madi or Master Boshu. He could finally confirm that the old nun was indeed the most annoying creature.


    However, this was the first time the rumor wasid on the table and everyone in the hall reflectedplicated emotions in their faces. Mo Shanshan quietly looked at Ning Que, a little worried.


    Ning Que looked at her calmly and asked, ¡°If there is no evidence, do not speak without thinking.¡±


    Quni Madiughed coldly and said, ¡°Back then, the Great Divine Priest of Light determined that the Son of Yama had descended upon the residence of the Xuanwei General in Chang¡¯an. Now, you are the only living person from that General¡¯s Mansion. If you are not the Son of Yama, then who is?¡±


    ¡°So it seems like you are talking about my wife¡¯s teacher.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°But he is already dead, hence he cannot be a witness. Moreover, even if what you have said were hisst words, this piece of evidence doesn¡¯t have any effect... Even a person with the best sight could make blunders. Do not forget that because of this, he was defeated by the abbey dean and was imprisoned in the West-Hill Divine Pce for more than ten years. If you insist that he is right, are you saying that the abbey dean and the West-Hill Divine Pce are wrong?¡±


    Quni Madi was at a loss of words. Even if she had a high rank and was greatly respected among the Buddhism Sect and the secr world, she didn¡¯t dare to criticize an unworldly sublime being like the abbey dean of the Zhishou Abbey in front of everyone.


    Ning Que looked at her and shook his head and said, ¡°I really don¡¯t know what to say.¡±


    He then looked toward Cheng Lixue and asked, ¡°I am not here to stir anything. I do not think that she has the guts to disrespect the entire Haotian Taoism either, but what have we said earlier? What about the entire family dying?¡±


    Cheng Lixue smiled bitterly without saying anything. He thought to himself that even if Ning Que wasn¡¯t afraid of offending anyone, he didn¡¯t want to form a deep grudge with the olddy.


    Even though Quni Madi didn¡¯t know about the conversation between Ning Que and Chen Lixue, upon hearing about the whole family dying, she knew it wasn¡¯t something good. Moreover, these words had hurt her the deepest; a sadness and anger rose up her heart and her wrinkles were filled with venomous intentions.


    Ning Que looked at her peacefully and said, ¡°If you do not wish to cause trouble for the Yuelun Kingdom, then please say something meaningful. Even though your position is low, you are not young. Do not cause a mess like you did in the Wilderness.¡±


    His voice was calm and he didn¡¯t appear bitter. However, between those words, there was a taste of the younger generation reprimanding the older generation which couldn¡¯t be concealed.


    Quni Madi grew even angrier as her whole body trembled.


    Master Boshu furrowed his brows slightly, almost as if he was dissatisfied with Ning Que.


    There was a heated dispute in the hall but it was meaningless. Sangsang knew that Ning Que wasn¡¯t willing to lose out when it came to a fight or a war of words. That is why she wasn¡¯t too worried, and was even a little oblivious.


    She epted a cup of tea from Guan Hai.


    The tea wasn¡¯t the clear tea that Master Qishan was used to but rather, it was flower tea.


    Sangsang lowered her head, smelling the sweet and pure tea smell from the tea leaves that were mixed but could still be clearly seen. She felt that she rather liked it when she looked at the little jasmine flowers that had slowly floated to the top.


    Ning Que suddenly felt restless.


    Sangsang brought up the cup of tea and ced it to her lips, just as she was about to take a sip, she felt uneasy. Her brows raised slightly and with a light wrist motion, she set the cup of tea down.


    The Flower Addict Lu Chenjia was exceptionally quiet in the hall today, not saying a word.


    Even though she was the Princess of the Yuelun Kingdom and was a key nurtured figure in the West-Hill Divine Pce, in a situation like this, whether it was her position or her power she could only rank at the bottom. Hence, it was only right for her to keep quiet.


    Moreover, sinceing to Tile Mountain, she had always been quiet. Even her emotions were indifferent and hence, no one in the hall noticed anything unusual.


    However, just as Sangsang raised the cup of tea, she lifted her head.


    Liu Chenjia still had a cold indifferent look in her eyes, just like the cold look she gave Ning Que at the Tile Mountain. However, if one looked at her closely, one could see that her flower-like lips were trembling.


    It was nervousness and excitement.


    She looked at Sangsang raising her brows, almost as if she was preparing for her to ce the cup down.


    Lu Chenjia pursed her quivering lips into a cold smile; she squeezed a small flower with her fingers and broke it from the stem as the petals scattered.


    A faint aura was instantly released from her sleeves.


    The teacup in Sangsang¡¯s hands underwent a shocking change.


    The jasmine flower that was slowly rising in the clear tea seemed to have some vitality injected into it as it started blooming. Several petals left the stem and fought their way out of the tea, mming into Sangsang¡¯s face with a powerful aura!


    The teacup had just left Sangsang¡¯s lips and was very near her face; it was too close for her to react.


    Whether it was the West-Hill Divine Skill or the newly learned Dharma, it was toote to react.


    Sangsang opened her eyes and saw the jasmine flower petals that were left in the tea flying towards her.


    At this moment, she only had time to think about it slightly.

 Chapter 581 - A Flower Addict

    <h4>Chapter 581: A Flower Addict</h4>


    <strong>Trantor:</strong> Transn <strong>Editor:</strong> Transn


    A few days ago in the monastery at Tile Mountain, Ning Que and the Flower Addict had exchanged a few words across the wall. When he returned to the room to help Sangsang change, he handed her an embroidered purse and asked her to tell him with her heart if she had any problems.


    Telling him with her heart was a moment of thought and with respect to such a sudden attack, before she could even do anything, she didn¡¯t forget to tell him.


    The moment she thought, Ning Que knew right away.


    Hence Ning Que also thought for a moment.


    With a thought, he triggered the embroidered purse that was hidden up in Sangsang¡¯s sleeve.


    The light in the dark hall was suddenly deformed, especially the space in front of Sangsang, which was twisted to numerous mirrors that ovepped each other by a powerful talisman power transmitted from the purse.


    The jasmine flower petals that had sputtered from the teanded on the mirrors and the two auras shed into each other, causing a huge wind in the hall. The dust between the bricks was scraped out and billowed about.


    The petals on the mirror quivered their way into it. However, they were only able to pierce through two to threeyers before losing their power. They twisted around powerlessly, then were turned into dirt and dispersed.


    The Flower Addict, Lu Chenjia who was seated in a corner was incredibly shocked. Her flower-like face showed a bitter pain as she spat out blood all over her shirt with a shriek.


    After a moment, the Fu Character aura that swirled around the hall gradually dissipated.


    Numerous mirrors that had protected Sangsang at the front also converged and disappeared without a trace. The jasmine flower petals mixed with the tea that had been torn into the finest drops gentlynded on her face, which was a little damp.


    Ning Que stood up slowly as he looked at Lu Chenjia without any expression on his face.


    With this trip to the Lanke Temple, before meeting the Buddhist chariot, he was never worried about his and Sangsang¡¯s safety. Just like what Xian Zhng had once said: In this world, people stronger than him wouldn¡¯t dare offend him due to the background of his sect. Those that do not have the experience and dared to offend him couldn¡¯t afford to do so.


    However, this wasn¡¯t an absolutely rational world and there was still madmen like Long Qing and many people who would be crazy for various reasons, like those who had suffered bereavement.


    Ning Que was incredibly grateful to Long Qing for giving him an almost fatal blow in the autumn rain at the Red Lotus Temple¡¯s front. That allowed him to regain the caution and calmness he had when he was in the Min Mountain. After speaking a few words with Lu Chenjia at the monastery in Wa Mountain, especially after seeing the expression in her eyes, he was wary of her bing crazy like Long Qing and hence gave the embroidered purse to Sangsang.


    There was a Divine Talisman from Master Yan Se in the purse.


    ¡°Even though I cannot ept it, I can barely understand it. Because of your fiance¡¯s misfortune, you have always wanted to kill me. But this has nothing to do with Sangsang, why do you do this?¡±


    Ning Que looked at Lu Chenjia and asked.


    Lu Chenjia raised her arm and wiped away the bloodied water at the corner of her lips. She showed a crazy smile on her pale yet beautiful face and said, ¡°I am certain that only by killing myself now I can attain salvation and make myself suffer less. Since I want you to be in pain, why should I kill you?¡±


    She stared at Ning Que with hatred and said in a quivering voice, ¡°You once killed the most important person in my life. Do you know how that feels? It feels like your world is being destroyed in front of your very eyes. The more precious the memories used to be, the more pain you will suffer. You killed Long Qing, which is the same as destroying my world. You have made me a walking corpse. I live in pain every day, struggling on the verge of copsing.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°This pain is something that many have experienced.¡±


    ¡°No! You do not know! You will never know what kind of pain it is.¡±


    Lu Chenjia shed tears as she said wretchedly, ¡°If you have never lost someone before, how could you understand that pain that rips your very being into shreds. So when I know that Sangsang is about to die from her illness, I am really happy.¡±


    Ning Que looked at her and said, ¡°When you realized that her illness might be cured by Master Qishan, you could no longer endure it and decided to kill her yourself?¡±


    Lu Chenjia looked at him and said in a daze, ¡°That is right. I want you to watch your most important person dying before you. I want you to feel such pain.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°I am sorry but I will probably never experience the pain you have gone through. Although I am curious... since Long Qing is not dead yet, where is your paining from?¡±


    Upon hearing this, Lu Chenjia smiled bitterly and said with extreme pain. ¡°Yes, he has not died, but he has be half-alive. He is like a dog chased by the West-Hill Divine Pce, hiding in the Wilderness. He even betrayed the faith he had believed in for more than half of his life and became a demon. Isn¡¯t this even more terrifying than dying? Compared to now, I would rather him be killed by you back then in the Wilderness!¡±


    ¡°In my opinion, no matter how one lives, it is better than dying.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°What I don¡¯t know is whether you really like Long Qing or just his position as the Prince of Yan Kingdom; the symbol hidden under the shiny exterior of the beautiful son of God in the West-Hill.¡±


    ¡°If he really is the most important person to you, no matter how his position changes or how his stance changes, whether he is glorious or dim, godly or a monster, a Sage or a demon, he would always be the most important person in your heart. That is, unless you only like him for his shiny exterior. But if that is the only thing you like and it makes you feel so pained, it is still something that cannot be understood.¡±


    His voice was calm and he didn¡¯t mean to ridicule or to be mean but every word hit home.


    Lu Chenjia¡¯s face turned even paler and she said, ¡°I didn¡¯t expect you to patiently speak this much with me.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°I just want to expose you and make you feel more pain.¡±


    Such honest and simple words sounded incredibly cold to the people in the hall.


    Who would have expected that just as they were discussing the Underworld Invasion, the Flower Addict Lu Chenjia would attempt to murder Sangsang. Nobody had any idea what to do now. Besides the fact that Sangsang had a valuable position in the West-Hill Divine Pce, Ning Que himself wouldn¡¯t ignore the attack, what would he do?


    Not everyone in the temple had past dealings with Ning Que and was as familiar with his personality as Cheng Lixue. However, all of them knew how the Academy dealt with people entering the human realm. Thinking back to Mr. Ke, some people¡¯s faces changed.


    Master Qishan sighed and looked pitifully at Lu Chenjia before saying, ¡°The world is mostly suffering from love.¡±


    Master Boshan looked at Ning Que, his lips quivering, preparing to plead for the Flower Addict.


    After all, Lu Chenjia was the Princess of Yuelun Kingdom¡¯ and Yuelun was the only and most important secr country within the Buddhism Sect. Those from the Buddhism Sect could not watch as she got into trouble.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t give Master Boshu a chance to plead.


    With a nging sound, he unsheathed his podao.


    He stood in front of the futon, shing in mid air.


    With the shing motion, the podao in his hand became immediately brighter.


    Countless golden light emanated from the dark body of the de.


    Just like the sun peeking out from the clouds, it brightened up the dark hall and shot towards the Flower Addict Lu Chenjia.


    ¡°Divine Light!¡±


    Cheng Ziqing from the Sword Garret looked at the golden light that emanated from Ning Que¡¯s de as his expression changed.


    Back then when Liu Yiqing lost under Ning Que¡¯s de at the Academy, there were rumors that Ning Que had learned the West-Hill Divine Skill. However, the Sword Garret didn¡¯t really believe it and felt that there was something wrong with the telling. Until today, seeing first hand how the podao in Ning Que¡¯s hands was shining with the Haotian Divine Light, Cheng Ziqing knew that the rumors were true.


    The Priest of the West-Hill Divine Pce, Cheng Lixue, had a conflict-filled expression. He had seen Ning Que¡¯s sword burning with divine light at the side door of the Academy. However, he didn¡¯t expect the Divine Light on his podao now to be even stronger.


    Watching the de, the powerhouses in the hall changed their faces.


    They were watching from the side, so they didnt have to close their eyes.


    However, the Flower Addict Lu Chenjia was facing the Divine Light from the podao head on and had no choice but to close her eyes.


    In fact, before Ning Que even waved his de, she had already closed her eyes.


    She had wanted to die a long time ago, so she was waiting for death.


    But someone couldn¡¯t watch her dying like this.


    Quni Madi shouted as she sprang up from the futon to the front of Lu Chenjia. She held her walking stick horizontally with one hand, forming a thick veteran Buddhist aura.


    Ning Que¡¯s de travelled across the hall andnded heavily on the walking stick.


    The Haotian Divine Light shed with the thick Buddhist aura from the walking stick as it sttered all around like burning mes.


    Quni Madi closed her eyes firmly. The wrinkles on her face were lighted up clearly by the Divine Light, almost as if they had countless golden threads or like magma that was burned, ready to copse at any moment.


    In an instant, the old woman¡¯s hands holding the walking stick started trembling. She seemed to feel incredible pain as she moaned before falling against a wall, spurting out blood from her mouth.


    Ning Que was done with his de skills as he lifted his right foot and walked over.


    Quni Madi sat leaning against the wall. Her body was full of blood and as she saw Ning Que walking over; her pale face was filled with horror and pain as she shouted angrily, ¡°Why haven¡¯t you taken your shot!¡±


    The people in the hall had no idea whom this old woman was seeking help from.


    Master Boshu sighed softly as he created an Emblematic Gesture with both hands in front of him.


    This gesture was weird, the index finger of the right hand was slightly bent, like a mischievous kid shooting out a rock.


    Apassionate yet stifling Buddhism Sect aura attacked Ning Que.


    Master Boshu was still the president of Commandment Yard of the Xuankong Temple and if one were to judge him based on the state of his cultivation, his shocking cultivation was at least in the Knowing Destiny State. Among the people in the hall, only Cheng Ziqing could fight him.


    Ning Que¡¯s actual cultivation state was still some distance from this monk. He was only able to intimidate him at Tile Mountain as he had the Primordial Thirteen Arrows in his hands back then. His arrows had been in full force for a long time and had incredible power.


    In the temple today, Ning Que was holding a de but not a bow. However, he didn¡¯t show any fear on his face as he rushed forward, ignoring the power of the Emblematic Gesture of the Buddhism Sect.


    Quni Madi shouted angrily as she tried to raise her walking stick again.


    Ning Que swung his de down.


    The walking stick broke as Quni Madi spat blood again.


    The Buddhism Sect Emblematic Gesture was already behind Ning Que.


    Ning Que lifted his brows slightly as the point of the de tipped slightly, going past Lu Chenjia¡¯s face.


    Then, his left hand twisted into a figure of a bird¡¯s beak at his side.


    The aura of the Buddhism Sect Emblematic Gesture was slightly stopped.


    Ning Que went back leisurely and stood in front of Sangsang.


    After that, the power of the Emblematic Gesture fell on the floor.


    With a soft thud, the tough stone tiles of the hall were slightly dented.


    A wisp of ck hair fell off Lu Chenjia¡¯s face.


    A bloody wound appeared on her face.

 Chapter 582 - A Pebble

    <h4>Chapter 582: A Pebble</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Lu Chenjia felt that her face was a little damp and cold.


    She reached out to wipe her face and felt blood on her hand.


    Looking at her bloodied hand, she felt a little lost. A smile touched her pale face as she slowly reached out to cup her face in her hands. Then, she started crying.


    Her tears and blood dripped through the gaps between her fingers.


    She cried in anguish, not because of the wounds on her face and the possibility that she might be disfigured. She cried because she realized that it was difficult for her to seek revenge for Long Qing against Ning Que.


    Those in the Buddhist temple watched the Flower Addict as she covered her face and cried tears of blood. They looked in shock at the sunken ground caused by Master Boshu¡¯s Emblematic Gesture and at Ning Que who held his de silently.


    The Academy was greatly respected in the cultivation world because of the powerful Headmaster. It was also because of the legendary Mr. First and Mr. Second. However, not many thought that Ning Que was very powerful.


    From the Tao Addict and the Calligraphy Addict, they heard that Ning Que was the weakest World Wayfarer from an Unknown ce in history. Everyone agreed.


    Even though he had battled and killed Xia Houst winter, the powerhouses in the cultivation world thought that it was mainly due to the fact that General Xia Hou had been previously injured by Tang, the wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Furthermore, the Lady of Light¡¯s performance in the battle was simply too astonishing.


    This had nothing to do with understanding or talent.


    To others, Ning Que had only been in the Academy for a few short years. Even if he had encountered several Lucky Chances and entered the Knowing Destiny State, it had just happened a short time ago. They thought he was no match for a high monk from the Xuankong Temple, who possessed strong Buddhist powers. Furthermore, before he retreated, he had already injured Quni Madi heavily and shed the Flower Addict¡¯s face.


    The Flower Addict was most renowned for her beauty amongst the three addicts, but Ning Que had done such a vicious thing. Everyone in the temple was shocked by the power that Ning Que had revealed and also grew afraid because of his cruelty.


    Ning Que did not care what others thought.


    The rules in the Academy were simple. Other than the hardness of one¡¯s fist, what mattered the most was equality. If you wished to kill me, then I have to kill you. If someone wished to kill Sangsang, Ning Que would kill. If not for Master Boshu¡¯s strong Buddhist Emblematic Gesture, his de would have sliced Lu Chenjia¡¯s head off instead of just scratching her.


    ¡°Why is the Xuankong Temple interfering in the Academy¡¯s matters?¡±


    Ning Que looked at Master Boshu. He had grown leery from the moment he saw the Buddhist pnquin at the Wa mountain. He knew of the rtionship the Buddhism Sect had with the Yuelun Kingdom. However, he just did not know how far the other party would take things.


    Master Boshu looked at him silently, his gazending on Ning Que¡¯s left hand which was at his waist.


    When he had used the Emblematic Gesture earlier, Ning Que¡¯s left hand had been shaped like a bird¡¯s beak.


    It was the bird¡¯s beak gesture that had reduced the pressure of the Emblematic Gesture.


    Master Boshu did not know where Ning Que had learned that gesture and guessed that it was a powerful move taught by the Academy. However, he did not understand why Ning Que seemed to have a great understanding of the Emblematic Gestures of the Buddhism Sect.


    Master Boshu¡¯s silence, however, implied something else to the others in the temple.


    Quni Madi cradled Lu Chenjia in her arms and looked at the blood flowing on her face. She thought of her son who had died miserably in Chang¡¯an, and her expression turned vicious.


    She stared hatefully at Ning Que and screamed hoarsely, ¡°You beast! You killed Master Dao Shi from the Xuankong Temple, and hurt Chen Jia. The Yuelun Kingdom will punish you! Buddha will not let you off either!¡±


    Everyone in the temple remained silent. They all knew that the battle between Master Daoshi of the Xuankong temple and Ning Que, in the morning streets of Chang¡¯an, also represented the battle between the Buddhism Sect and the person representing the Academy in entering the human realm. No matter what, Ning Que was not to me for it. However, they all knew why Quni Madi was in such pain.


    ¡°I will kill you if you try to kill me.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Long Qing had turned his back against Haotian and everyone knows that the West-Hill Divine Pce had issued an edict. However, Princess Chenjia had attempted to murder the Lady of Light, so I have punished her on behalf of the Divine Hall. Is there any problem with that?¡±


    Everyone in the temple turned toward Priest Cheng Lixue who was here on behalf of the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    Cheng Lixue looked calm and was silent. Disregarding the fact that the Flower Addict hadmitted a taboo, Ning Que was the future husband of the Lady of Light. The Divine Hall would not say anything.


    Ning Que looked at Quni Madi and said, ¡°As for Dao Shi dying in my hands, you just have to act if you want to take revenge for your illegitimate son. Why do you have to drag the Buddhism Sect and Yuelun into it? I would want to find out if Buddha will punish me, or you, an old nun with no religious discipline.¡±


    Master Boshu¡¯s expression froze when he heard that.


    Ning Que looked at him and repeated his question, ¡°Is the Xuankong Temple really going to interfere with this matter?¡±


    ¡°Buddha is benevolent, and the Xuankong Temple honors this. For decades, we have not partaken in matters of the secr world. I should not interfere with the grudge between Princess Chenjia and you.¡±


    Master Boshu¡¯s expression grew solemn and his voice rang like a bell. He said, ¡°However, Mr. Thirteen has dabbled in diabolism, so the Xuankong Temple cannot disregard this. I have seen it with my own eyes, so how can I disregard this?¡±


    Everyone in the temple looked at Ning Que¡¯s feet with an odd look on their faces when they heard that.


    Ning Que had only noticed then, that there were several broken pebbles at his feet. There were grey spots at the waist area of his ck Academy uniform, and judging by their color, were left behind by the rocks on impact.


    He had only recalled then, that Master Boshu¡¯s Buddhist Emblematic Gesture was a little special. His right hand was outstretched t, with his index finger slightly curled as if he was flicking at pebbles. He was actually flicking pebbles then.


    A cultivator¡¯s physical body was as fragile as any ordinary person. Even powerhouses in the Knowing Destiny State could be sliced open at the stomach easily by a hunter. Of course, that was only if the powerhouse did not retaliate first.


    There were only two kinds of cultivators who could shatter a hard rock with their own bodies. In the earlier battle, no one had sensed that Ning Que had used his Psyche Power to call on the Qi of Heaven and Earth to protect his body. This naturally meant that rumors of him studying Talisman and martial arts together were not true. At the same time, it also proved that he had cultivated in the methods of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine which were uneptable in this world!


    It was dead silent in the Buddhist temple. No one spoke, and no one knew what to say at this time.


    Cheng Lixue looked at Ning Que in shock. It was said that Taoism and Diabolism could not exist at the same time and space. As the Grand Master of the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s Revtion Department, he should stand up in anger and slice down at Ning Que with a Taoist Sword upon discovering that he had joined the Devil...


    However, Ning Que was not an ordinary person. He was Mr. Thirteen of the Academy, and was a core disciple of the Headmaster.


    Not to mention Cheng Lixue, even if the Hierarch Lord were present, he would find this situation difficult to deal with.


    Cheng Lixue¡¯s mind was in a jumble. He wanted to stand up, but did not want to at the same time. He did not know what to do at all. It was then, when he suddenly saw Sangsang and calmed down, feeling extremely lucky.


    The Lady of Light was there, so it wouldn¡¯t be up to him to represent the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s interest in the matter. The Lady of Light had an intimate rtionship with Ning Que, and would not punish him on behalf of the Divine Hall. So what did it have to do with him?


    After ascertaining that Ning Que had joined the Devil, the Buddhist Temple descended into silence for a long while. However, someone would eventually speak up about how they felt about the situation. And that person¡¯s attitude was determined and strong.


    Aunt Quni Madiughed out loud while coughing up blood. Herughter was lively and maniacal. She looked at Ning Que and yelled shrilly, ¡°I would like to see if Buddha can ept you!¡±


    Ning Que looked at Master Boshu in silence. He thought that the Xuankong Temple was indeed a legendary Unknown ce. The chief monk was indeed powerful, being able to surreptitiously flick that stone onto his uniform.


    Following that, he understood that what had happened today was a plot set by the high monk from the Xuankong Temple. Otherwise, no one would do what he did in such an intense battle.


    Recalling what his teacher had advised repeatedly, he shook his head. The Headmaster had once told him that after Youngest Uncle had cultivated in the Great Spirit, he had not allowed his enemies to touch him again. That was why even if every cultivator in the world had guessed that his Youngest Uncle had joined the Devil, no one dared to point it out.


    Ning Que had hunted and chopped firewood since he was a child and had a habit of using short distancebat techniques. That was why it was easy to forget his teacher¡¯s advise. Furthermore, after entering the Knowing Destiny State, he had gotten a little over-confident and did not expect to be caught by the monk from the Xuankong temple.


    However, so what?


    Youngest Uncle had joined the Devil, and the world knew but dared not mention it. While he was not as powerful as his Youngest Uncle then, he had areas in which he was even stronger than his Youngest Uncle. Would he be afraid of these people?


    ¡°I am not a Buddhist, so I do not need to worry about whether Buddha will ept me.¡±


    Ning Que looked at Quni Madi and said, ¡°Furthermore, have I joined the Devil just because you said so? Is there such logic in the world?¡±


    Quni Madi froze slightly as if she had not anticipated that Ning Que would talk about logic in such situation, without even batting an eyelid. She yelled angrily, ¡°Everyone in the temple saw it!¡±


    ¡°Is it true just because you¡¯ve seen it?¡±


    ¡°The Great Divine Priest of Light had such great eyesight, but he still saw wrongly.¡±


    ¡°Furthermore, even if it was true... No, there¡¯s no further. Anyway, I will not admit it.¡±


    He stared into Quni Madi¡¯s eyes and said mockingly, ¡°How can you prove it?¡±


    Then, he turned to look at everyone else in the temple and asked, ¡°How can you all prove it?¡±


    He shook his head and said, ¡°If you want to prove it,e and fight me. Who is to say that my leg might not be pierced by your swords? Who would foot my medical bills then?¡±


    Master Boshu said after a pause, ¡°Is this a threat?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You may choose to understand it this way.¡±


    Quni Madi yelled, ¡°How could the Academy teach a shameless person like you?!¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I am indeed good at being shameless, in fact, I hold first ce in shamelessness in all the Academy. Not even Youngest Uncle back in those days can beat me. That is why you should not do such meaningless things.¡±


    ¡°The Academy is still as arrogant as before.¡±


    Master Boshu suddenlyughed. He looked at Ning Que and said, ¡°However, I do not know what is considered meaningful to the Headmaster and to the Academy.¡±


    Master Qishan who had been sitting on the futon silently all this while suddenly grew wary. He looked up at Boshu, his eyes shing with a warning.


    ¡°Does the Underworld Invasion count?¡±


    However, Boshu ignored Master Qishan¡¯s gaze, but turned to Ning Que, his smile fading, shouted to him with solemity: ¡°You are the Son of Yama, aren¡¯t you?¡±

 Chapter 583 - The Chime of a Bell

    <h4>Chapter 583: The Chime of a Bell</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    ¡°There are many in the world who have joined the Devil. Do you think that this would bring me, the president of Commandment Yard out of the Xuankong temple? There is only one reason that could make this happen.¡±


    Master Boshu sternly looked at Ning Que as he shouted, ¡°I want to see if you are really the Son of Yama! You are bloody, cruel and have joined the Devil. If you are indeed the Son of Yama, not even the Headmaster can protect you!¡±


    Staring into the eyes of the high monk which were as bright as precious stones, Ning Que remained in silence for a long time.


    He had announced his parentage to the worldst autumn in front of the Chang¡¯an pce. Even before that, a rumored had surfaced when the Tang military checked on his rtionship with the General¡¯s Mansion.


    ording to the rumors, the Great Divine Priest of Light had seen that Ning Que was the legendary Son of Yama. Quni Madi had mentioned this earlier as well.


    Ning Que had once been anxious and at a loss regarding these rumors. After some counseling by the Headmaster, he had grown to ept it. Furthermore, with the Academy behind him, no one dared to bring up the rumor to his face.


    Quni Madi had mentioned it earlier, but Ning Que did not care about that because he knew that the old nun was trying to attack him as she was ashamed and angry. It did not affect him whatsoever. However, Master Boshu¡¯s statement made him freeze.


    Master Boshu was from the Xuankong Temple and was not dumb. He would not openly use a disciple from the Academy of being the Son of Yama just based on rumors. This was one of the most serious usations in this world.


    What worried Ning Que was something else; it was the warning sign he had felt when he saw the Buddhist pnquin on Tile Mountain a few days ago. He had not managed to pinpoint what the sign pointed to until now. Could it be this usation?


    ¡°Is this the typical process when sects seek revenge for personal grudges in the name of the greater good?¡±


    Ning Que looked at Boshu and said sarcastically, ¡°I am d that the Academy is also a major sect in the world. If I were just an ordinary cultivator, wouldn¡¯t I have been framed and killed by you all and disappeared without a trace?¡±


    Master Boshu said, ¡°I said that you are the Son of Yama because I have proof.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I am curious about what proof you have.¡±


    Of course, Ning Que was not really curious. That was because he was the number one suspect for the position as Son of Yama until today while the second suspect, Prince Long Qing, had disappeared into the Wilderness.


    However, at such asion, he could not show any sign of nervousness.


    Master Boshu looked at him silently. He got out a copper bell from his sleeves.


    The copper bell has an ordinary copper color. However, its design was unique. It was round and wide, looking more like a tower bell.


    Master Qishan looked at the bell, and his expression changed dramatically. He yelled angrily, ¡°Boshu! Put the bell down!¡±


    Boshu obviously held no respect for his own uncle today. He looked at Ning Que indifferently and held the bell in his right hand, saying, ¡°This is called Yuean. It is also called the cleansing bell.¡±


    Looking at the copper bell, Cheng Ziqing recalled his Senior Brother mentioning a certain Buddhist instrument. His pupils contracted and he said incredulously, ¡°Could this be the legendary Yuean Bell?¡±


    Master Dongming had already guessed what it was when he saw the copper bell. When he heard the name of the bell, he was shocked speechless. Meanwhile, an expression of shock and delight appeared on Quni Madi¡¯s face.


    The autumn breeze entered the temple, jiggling the bronze bell hanging between Boshu¡¯s fingers. It emitted a crisp sound that was not cold, but gentle andpassionate.


    The moment the bell sounded, Ning Que recalled that he had heard the bell before he had seen the Buddhist pnquin that day on the mountain path of Tile Mountain. Then, the birds had danced to the sound of the bells, and it was an incredulous sight.


    He frowned slightly, feeling as if trouble was approaching.


    Master Boshu held the bell in his fingers and said with pity, ¡°The Yue Laan flower grows in purend in the extreme west. It is well aware of the devil and the dark. The copper that was used to make this bell hasid in the flower fields for tens and thousands of years and is extremely pure. After it was cast as a bell, it apanied Buddha as he practiced penance in the world for decades and eventually grew to have a Buddhist spirit.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the copper bell between the master¡¯s fingers and suddenly said, ¡°Judging by your introduction and by the reactions of everyone here, I can guess that you are about to say that only this bell can find where the Son of Yama is.¡±


    Master Boshu said solemnly, ¡°Indeed.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°If this bell was really as good as you say, why would the West-Hill Divine Pce killed so many people to find the Son of Yama and why would the Great Divine Priest of Light be imprisoned for decades?¡±


    Master Boshu said, ¡°That is because the Son of Yama had just arrived then, and had not awakened.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Then how do you know that the Son of Yama has already awakened?¡±


    Master Boshu said, ¡°The skies have warned us that the Son of Yama has awakened. Otherwise, why would the Divine Priest of Light escape from the Peach Mountain to seek you in Chang¡¯an?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You are the one talking. Who knows if that bell in your hand is really the legendary Yuean Bell? You might have gotten it from one of the meditation rooms in the temple. You¡¯d better return it quickly, or the old monk in the meditation room might wake up at night and be scared to death when he finds the bell attached to his pants gone.¡±


    This was a joke and was extremely disrespectful to the Buddhism Sect. It was a joke that was sphemous to the Lanke Temple, so no one in the templeughed. Their expressions grew moreplex.


    Master Boshu looked at him and said, ¡°If it is just an ordinary copper bell, why don¡¯t you listen to it?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Why should I listen to it? Don¡¯t you think it looks dumb?¡±


    Master Boshu said calmly, ¡°If the cleansing bell doesn¡¯t affect you, then you are naturally not the Son of Yama. The Xuankong Temple will make amends to you then, naturally.¡±


    Ning Que smiled and shook his head. He took out a handkerchief from his sleeve and looked at Master Boshu seriously, ¡°This is the Academy¡¯s precious Escape-proof Net. It can capture all evils on earth. And now, I highly suspect that Buddha is the Son of Yama. Do you want to dig his ashes up and let me fan him with this handkerchief?¡±


    Despite Ning Que¡¯s ridicule, Master Boshu was not affected. He said calmly, ¡°I can let you try.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°I did not suspect that you are the Son of Yama. I suspect Buddha is.¡±


    Master Boshu suddenly smiled and said, ¡°Mr. Thirteen, you are afraid.¡±


    He was not afraid but vignt. He had grown leery of the Buddhist pnquin after hearing the bell chime on the mountain path.


    Ning Que thought to himself that, and then he had to admit that he was indeed afraid. Because his biggest fear was the rumor that he was the Son of Yama.


    He nced at Sangsang.


    Master Boshu said softly, ¡°Do you wish to leave?¡±


    Ning Que was about to reply when he suddenly heard a tired and soft voice.


    ¡°Don¡¯t let that copper bell ring.¡±


    He heard that it was Master Qishan, and he could not help but stiffen.


    Master Qishan sat on the futon and was hunched over. His dry lips murmured, saying something only Ning Que could hear. He said, ¡°Even if you have to kill Boshu, don¡¯t let that copper bell ring.¡±


    Ning Que felt a shiver run down his back. The cleansing bell must be something extraordinary to make Master Qishan so anxious about it. The crux was that he remembered the conversation between them that night by the stream.


    ¡°So... we have to kill the Son of Yama to save the world?¡±


    ¡°There is another way apart from killing him.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°For example, having him cultivate in the Buddhist heart of peace, and then cleansing him with light?¡±


    ¡°Master... why do I feel like you¡¯re talking about me.¡±


    Could he really be the Son of Yama? Even though Ning Que bickered with Boshu with a smile on his face, deep down, he did not feel like smiling at all. He was cold beyondpare and was somewhat distracted.


    He looked at Master Boshu and asked, ¡°Since shaking the bell can determine who the Son of Yama is, then why didn¡¯t you shake it all these days until this moment?¡±


    Master Boshu said, ¡°The cleansing bell is a Buddhist instrument and there are many strict conditions for its use. One has to be within a short distance of the person listening to the bell and one has to read scriptures to cleanse his heart.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Then I just need to move a little further away from the bell and you won¡¯t be able to do anything to me.¡±


    Master Boshu said, ¡°If you do not dare to listen to it, it is also a kind of proof. Would you be able to leave the Lanke Temple today?¡±


    Ning Que suddenly smiled and said, ¡°Is that so? I would like to see who would dare to stop me.¡±


    With that, he ced his hands behind his back casually.


    In actuality, he was prepared to catch something.


    Sangsang, who was blocked by him, removed the quiver from her back and prepared to assemble the bow.


    ¡°Of course, to remove suspicion from the Academy, I agree to listen to the bell.¡±


    Ning Que looked at Boshu and said with a smile, ¡°Master, please recite the scriptures and cleanse your heart. I would like to find out what¡¯s so special about the bell.¡±


    He was prepared.


    When Sangsang ce the iron bow in his hand, he would shoot at Boshu. Perhaps an arrow or two wouldn¡¯t kill him, but he would use up all thirteen of his iron arrows and flee with Sangsang, never to return.


    Then, Master Boshu seemed to have guessed what he was thinking. He smiled and said, ¡°Even though I have not cultivated in Silent Meditation with Qi Nian, I do know some ways to read scriptures silently.¡±


    Ning Que grew worried when he heard that.


    Silent ways of reading scriptures meant that the master did not need to read scriptures aloud for them to work. Master Boshu could have already been silently reading the scripture to activate the bell while he was distracted.


    Ning Que knew that he had to act.


    The iron bow had yet to reach him, so he could only grab hold of the hilt of his de.


    His wrist turned, and the heavy podao carried Haotian Divine Light and cut toward Master Boshu.


    He extended his left index finger at the same time and drew a line before him in the air.


    Master Boshu¡¯s expression did not change. He ced his left hand in a prayer position and a strong Buddhist aura appeared, transforming into a hazy gesture which caught hold of the terrifying de.


    The gesture disappeared without a trace once the de was stopped.


    The little bronze bell in Master Boshu¡¯s right hand had already begun to shake.


    A crisp ringing sounded in the Buddhist Temple.


    It was different from the bell sound he heard on the mountain path.


    It was also benevolent but not as gentle. Instead, it was solemn and felt as if it was about to wash off all the filth in the world.


    The chiming of the bell spread out of the Buddhist temple and throughout the Lanke Temple.


    There were 17 ancient bells in the Lanke Temple spread across pavillions; behind the temple, in some corridors, and beside plum trees.


    The 17 bells started to chime almost simultaneously.


    The heavy bright sound of the bells reverberated through the cornices of the temple.


    But they could not hide the crisp sound of the single bell.


    The single bell sounded in reply.


    The sound of the bell flew to the peak of Tile Mountain.


    The Buddha stone statue quietly emitted a solemn light among the clouds.


    ...

 Chapter 584 - Walking under the Light of Buddha

    <h4>Chapter 584: Walking under the Light of Buddha</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Tourists who participated in the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival went to the town with the floats. Only a few street vendors selling sugar sticks were left. The delegations of various countries and the girls from the House of Red Sleeves were brought to the Wa mountain to enjoy the scenery by monks. The front temple had gradually returned to peace, as it was before.


    The ordinary cultivation sects were still waiting in various temples for news of what was happening at the back temple. However, since they did not really care about it, they certainly would not sit still in the temple. Instead, they walked between temples and worshipped before Buddha when they saw a statue.


    Outside of a slightly more inconspicuous temple, the South Jin Crown Prince got up from the ground with difficulty. He looked at the damaged temple doors with fear in his eyes. He even moved away subconsciously from Xie Chengyun who was holding him at his side.


    Xie Chengyun did not know what happened in the temple. He reached out to help His Highness up and looked at the temple. He said angrily, ¡°Your Highness, who dares to do that? I shall send someone to capture him.¡±


    The South Jin Kingdom was a strong country, and its Crown Prince was arrogant. He did not want to be looked down even in face of Ning Que, such a disciple of the Academy, at Wa Mountain. However, when he heard Xie Chengyun¡¯s words, his face paled immediately, and he said repeatedly, ¡°No, no! Let¡¯s leave this temple quickly!¡±


    The light in temples was rtively gloomy. There was no exception for the side temple. If not for the light entering through the broken door, one would not be able to see what was happening inside clearly.


    There were two stone Buddha statues in the temple.


    Two people were looking at the statues.


    One of them was dressed in a in shirt and had a simple Taoist bun. He carried a wooden sword behind his back. He was Haotian Taoism¡¯s World Wayfarer, Ye Su. The other man had a broad stature and wore a leather shirt rarely seen in the Central ins. This was the Wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, Tang.


    The South Jin Kingdom¡¯s Crown Prince must have been thrown out of the temple by one of them. Having to face two such powerful World Wayfarers, it was no wonder why the Crown Prince was so frightened.


    Ye Su said, ¡°You have not killed the South Jin Crown Prince. Then, I shall not fight you today in this temple.¡±


    Tang¡¯s voice was lower, and it buzzed, ¡°I have no interest in killing people. However, the royals of Central ins are all just dogs reared by West- Hill Divine Pce. Would you care whether a dog lives or dies?¡±


    Ye Su smiled and said, ¡°Haotian Taoism and the secr world are deeply interconnected. You don¡¯t know how many people the Zhishou Abbey has to feed. And those people are really picky, that¡¯s why we need these royals to help us earn cash.¡±


    Tang looked at him and said, ¡°You are able to acknowledge the corruption in Haotian Taoism. You are more direct than before and seem more pleasing to the eye. However, when did you get a sheath for that wooden sword behind your back?¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°I used to think that there was nowhere I couldn¡¯t reach and there was no enemy I couldn¡¯t beat when I was younger. I was extremely proud, so I was unwilling to sheath my Taoist Sword. Now, as I grow older, I understand more. A sheathed sword is still a sword, it doesn¡¯t make the sword any less sharp.¡±


    Tang said, ¡°It seems that you have indeed gained much from your trip to Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Ye Su replied, ¡°You should stay in Chang¡¯an for a while, too.¡±


    Tang answered, ¡°I will, if given the chance.¡±


    Ye Su turned around to look at him and said, ¡°You even dare not to go to Chang¡¯an, so why did you have the guts toe to Lanke Temple?¡±


    Tang answered, ¡°You always wanted to kill me whenever you saw me in the past. Why don¡¯t you today?¡±


    Ye Su replied, ¡°Because I have finally understood, aftering to Lanke Temple, that the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had been destroyed decades ago when Lotus massacred the temple. Nothing will change even if you are alive.¡±


    Tang said, ¡°Do you think today would be the same as it was decades ago?¡±


    Ye Su shook his head. ¡°Back then, the Divine Lord Lotus and Mr. Ke were unparalleled. However, these two people, who are in the temple today, might have unlimited potential, especially one of them, but they are not there yet.¡±


    Tang said, ¡°Are you sure the Academy won¡¯t attack?¡±


    Ye Su answered, ¡°This is a Buddhist Temple. Only the mute have to worry about this, not us.¡±


    Tang said, ¡°So you are not going to the back temple. Instead, you are staring dazedly at the Buddha state.¡±


    Ye Su replied, ¡°It¡¯s the same for you.¡±


    Tang answered, ¡°I am not going to stain my hands with blood because I respect the Academy.¡±


    After a short moment of silence, Ye Su said, ¡°For me, it is because I haven¡¯t understood it yet.¡±


    Tang said, ¡°Even the Haotian Taoism Sect has something they don¡¯t understand?¡±


    ¡°Even the Divine Priest of Light was wrong then, let alone me,¡± Said Ye Su.


    Tang said, ¡°I would like to know how far Ning Que will take it.¡±


    Ye Su replied, ¡°He is an extremely practical and selfish person. He does not dare to fight the entire world.¡±


    Tang shook his head and said, ¡°You seem more human now, but that is because you have lived with the people in Chang¡¯an. In actuality, after breaking through the barrier of death, you can no longer understand the thoughts of normal people.¡±


    Ye Su thought about it for a moment and nodded, ¡°That makes sense.¡±


    Then, the bells in Lanke Temple started to chime. They rang endlessly and could be heard from everywhere.


    Ye Su slowly shut his eyes and tried to find where the bell was chiming from.


    ¡°It has begun.¡±


    He walked out of the side temple and towards the back temple.


    Tang looked at the stone Buddha statue in front of him. After a moment of silence, he left the temple as well.


    The cultivators in the various temples were shocked by the chimes of the bell. They walked out and leaned against the railings, looking toward the mountain.


    Ye Su and Tang walked amongst the crowd.


    No cultivators had noticed them.


    No one would have thought that these two men were the legendary World Wayfarers.


    They continued walking, and the bell continued to chime.


    The Light of Buddha in Lanke Temple grew brighter and rays of aura of Heaven and Earth descended, forming an invisible barrier in the skies that could only be perceived. Within it was an incredible power.


    The wooden sword on Ye Su¡¯s back seemed to sense something, and started buzzing softly.


    Tang¡¯s right foot broke a brick.


    Ye Su looked up at the skies and frowned slightly. He said, ¡°The Buddhism Sect has remained silent for ten thousand years. I had not expected them to hide such a powerful skill. My sword can cross, but I can¡¯t.¡±


    Tang looked down at the shattered brick beneath his feet. He said softly, ¡°I¡¯ll try to cross from the underground.¡±


    The two arrived at the back of Lanke Temple.


    Looking at the tightly shut ck temple door in front of him and feeling the changes in that temple, Ye Su suddenly became extremely shocked. He said emotionally, ¡°My teacher had sensed something at the Southern Sea, so he had me return from the north toe and see. However, I don¡¯t think he expected this to be what I¡¯d find.¡±


    At the back of Lanke Temple.


    Ning Que¡¯s finger had not managed to draw theplete line in the air when the bell started chiming. So he did not continue. Instead, he steeled his sense of perception and stood there, prepared to face the onught of Buddha¡¯s power.


    The Yuean Bell was indeed an instrument Buddha which was kept close to him. A benevolent Buddhist aura entered his ears together with the chiming of the bell and into his sense of perception.


    In an instant, innumerable hallucinations appearred in Ning Que¡¯s mind. Those filthy and ugly devils that could not be described in words, and equally indescribable charming fairies continue to shuttle to and fro. They were both seductive and terrifying, and they led him toward the holynd or the Underworld.


    Ning Que¡¯s sense of perception was tugged on strongly and he was in unbearable pain. However, his sense of perception contained fragments of Master Lotus¡¯ consciousness. And in a short time, he awoke from the hallucinations.


    Having ascertained that Buddha¡¯s Yuean Bell was not as powerful as it was supposed to be, and that he would be able to survive even if he had not yet entered the Knowing Destiny State, he decided to resolve this matter as quickly as possible.


    The Yuean Bell had not affected him.


    He looked at Master Boshu who stood in front of him and prepared for a bloody battle.


    However, Master Boshu¡¯s expression was very odd.


    Boshu stared at him in surprise and apparent confusion.


    The expressions of other people in the hall were also very odd.


    They looked at him as if they had seen a ghost. They were shocked and frightened, as well as confused.


    Ning Que looked down at his body and found that there wasn¡¯t anything weird about it. He had not suddenly gained an empty hole in his chest like Long Qing, so he began to think that something odd was happening.


    He looked up at Boshu and everyone else in the hall.


    Suddenly, he felt extremely frightened.


    Because he finally realized that they were not looking at him, but behind him.


    Ning Que turned around.


    Sangsang sat on the futon.


    Her face was very pale. There were flecks of blood on the ground in front of her. The blood was not from her coughing, but from vomiting.


    The chiming of the bell continued to reverberate in Lanke Temple.


    There was a puff.


    Another mouthful of blood spurted from her lips. It drenched the ck cotton robes she wore and the green-tiled floor.


    A ray of the Light of Buddha appeared and prated through the temple,nding on her body.


    The Light of Buddha seemed so merciful yet cruel.


    In the Light of Buddha, Sangsang¡¯s face became paler and her frail body seemed much smaller.


    She looked at Ning Que outside the Light of Buddha as tears flowed from her eyes silently.


    Master Boshu looked at Sangsang in shock, as did Quni Madi, Cheng Ziqing and Cheng Lixue.


    Everyone in the temple looked at Sangsang in extreme shock.


    As if they had seen a ghost.


    Master Qishan sighed bitterly.


    Master Boshu nattered with aplex expression, ¡°Buddha is benevolent, so that¡¯s it.¡±


    Master Qishan looked at Ning Que and said painfully, ¡°The truth is what you have seen. You are not Yama¡¯s son, while she is Yama¡¯s daughter.¡±


    Ning Que felt as if he had been abandoned by the world as he looked at Sangsang who was in extreme pain within the Light of Buddha. This was how he had felt in that woodshed many years ago.


    If he had to choose what he wanted, then he would choose to be abandoned by the world.


    The reason why he felt abandoned by the world was that he knew that he would choose what he wanted to choose. Just like many years ago, he still chose to pick up that chopper.


    Since he had made the decision, then it wasn¡¯t the world that had abandoned him.


    He was the one abandoning the world.


    He walked into the Light of Buddha and opened the big ck umbre, shielding Sangsang.


    ...

 Chapter 585 - Yamas Daughter (1)

    <h4>Chapter 585: Yama¡¯s Daughter (1)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ning Que walked into the Light of Buddha and opened the big ck umbre, as usual, to protect Sangsang from wind and rain without hesitation.


    That was his habit, which was stronger than the Light of Buddha.


    The people in the temple were still in shock at this time, so they didn¡¯t respond to Ning Que¡¯s action and had no time to think over its meaning.


    Looking at pale-faced Sangsang in the Light of Buddha, Master Boshu was too shocked to say anything.


    As the man who carried the Yuean Bell, he didn¡¯t expect the truth exposed by the bell to be like this. He left the Xuankong Temple to Wa mountain and prepared all of these just because he firmly believed that Ning Que was the Son of Yama. He never thought of Sangsang.


    Quni Madi and the others were still in shock, but Cheng Lixue was the one who was most shocked. As the Priest of the Revtion Department in the West-Hill Divine Pce, he was unable to reconcile the fact that Sangsang, who was considered as the Daughter of Light, would turn to be the Daughter of Yama? While thinking of this, he could not help straightening his now nching face.


    The Daughter of Yama. what did that mean?


    Compared with this, Ning Que¡¯s joining the Devil would be no longer the most troublesome thing. Although the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had disappeared for so many years, there were still many cultivators following it. The most important thing for him now, was that Sangsang had be the root cause of the end of the world.


    ...


    ...


    The lighting from the Buddha figure in the Wa mountain ignored all physical barriers and marvelously prated the roof of the Lanke Temple. It looked solemn and beautiful as if it mixed the gold and pearl powders together, ignited by the sunshine.


    The big ck umbre unfolded over Sangsang¡¯s head.


    The Light of Buddha shined over the oiled umbre and was reflected around. The view was beautiful and astonishing.


    Somehow, the Light of Buddha spurted like rain instead of getting through the umbre.


    The Light of Buddha was more magnificent and infinite than a normal rain as if it were a waterfall condensed with countless beams of light, ceaselessly falling on the umbre.


    The big ck umbre was like a ck stone at the base of a waterfall, ceaselessly being washed and struck. No matter how tough and strong it was, it gradually started trembling.


    Ning Que¡¯s right hand holding the handle slightly shook. He didn¡¯t feel much power from it, but he did feel the pressure by the Light of Buddha outside the umbre. His every bone started creaking.


    What terrified him most was that theyer of dust and oil covering the umbre fabric for years was bing thinner and thinner under the light, and seemed as if it would evaporate at anytime.


    Master Boshu stopped ying the Yuean Bell because he was too shocked, so even though the bell of the Lanke Temple was still ringing, its clear sound had gradually died away.


    Ning Que took Sangsang up to his back.


    Sangsang put her head on his shoulder, pale and weak as a baby when she was taken up on his back in the cold rain many years ago. She habitually stretched her hand to hold the umbre for him.


    Ning Que knew she was in bad state, so he didn¡¯t want her to hold the umbre.


    Sangsang still took the big ck umbre over. It was amazing that after it was in her hands, it became more stable and able to withstand more of the Light of Buddha.


    Then, Ning Que started moving out of the Light of Buddha.


    Holding the podao across his chest and putting the arrow box on his back, he looked at the people in the temple like a mother tiger guarding her child, coldly and fiercely.


    Even though the people in the temple were all experts, when they saw his eyes, they subconsciously avoided making contact.


    Then, they found something amazing that calmed them down.


    Ning Que was walking out of the Light, but he didn¡¯t get out of the Light.


    The Light of Buddhaing from the Wa mountain followed his footsteps as if it could locate him. More precisely, it could locate Sangsang¡¯s position.


    Ning Que looked at the fragments dropping from the edge of the umbre and disappearing into the air without saying anything.


    ¡°Hahahaha...¡±


    Lu Chenjia who was in shock suddenly burst intoughter in the next moment. Her body trembled as a flower in the wind. She gasped for breath until her face was full of tears.


    ¡°Your most important person has be the daughter of Yama. Ning Que, what are you going to do? I wish you are as miserable as me.¡±


    Ning Que contemptuously looked at her with a little pity.


    Seeing that, Lu Chenjia stoppedughing and became nk.


    Her face was pale and the wound was bleeding, however, she understood what he meant and could not help being confused. He did what he had said, but why didn¡¯t he think a little more?


    She was the Daughter of Yama!


    ...


    ...


    ¡°Mr. Thirteen, please put her down.¡±


    Master Boshupassionately chanted the name of Buddha and said to Ning Que.


    Cheng Ziqing lowered his head and sat in front of the temple. He drew his sword and put it across his knees.


    Ning Que red at the little brass bell in Master Boshu¡¯s hand.


    Then he turned to the sword on Cheng Ziqing¡¯s knees.


    Atst, he looked at the big ck umbre.


    Master Boshu was the chief monk of the Xuankong Temple who was the wisest man in the world. He was at the middle-stage of the Knowing Destiny State or even higher. The bell in his hand was the Buddha¡¯s relics which was of the purest Buddha power which was exactly Sangsang¡¯s deadly foe.


    Cheng Ziqing was the Sword Sage, Liu Bai¡¯s Younger Brother, also a middle-stage expert at the Knowing Destiny State. Even though he had been unobtrusive these days, his sword was still powerful.


    The big ck umbre had shown its best in Sangsang¡¯s hands just like the past ten years. However, its oil and dust were washing up under the Light of Buddha so that the tiny gaps barely bore the Light.


    Facing the two strongest masters from the Xuankong Temple and the Sword Garret, even if he didn¡¯t carry Sangsang, Ning Que wasn¡¯t confident to get away, not mention Sangsang who was on his back and the light that was tracking them.


    ¡°Since we have found Yama¡¯s daughter, we can¡¯t let her go. No matter if you can hide in the depth of the Wilderness or the ocean, you can¡¯t get away from the Light of Buddha.¡±


    Master Boshu tightened his fingers holding the bell and said to Ning Que, ¡°Put her down.¡±


    At this time, Master Qishan sadly said, ¡°As they can¡¯t go, please stop the bell.¡±


    Ning Que looked at him for a while. Then he moved his hand away from his hilt and pated the scabbard in his waist.


    People believed that his silence represented his psychological struggle, and revealed different expressions. Cheng Ziqing sighed in his heart and thought,<i>¡°You have no choice even if Yama¡¯s daughter is your parent.¡±</i>


    Only Master Qishan vaguely knew what he was thinking.


    Ning Que looked at Master Qishan and discovered he was more sad than shocked. Then he confirmed that the master had already known Sangsang was Yama¡¯s daughter for a long time.


    He had felt something was going to happen before they left Chang¡¯an. Now he knew the significance of the recent events; Sangsang¡¯s disease, the three games in Wa mountain, and the cultivation in the temple, all indicated the truth of the fact: the Lanke Temple was the inexorable doom of both him and Sangsang.


    Then, he thought of something farther away and he could not help chilling¡ªIt was the Headmaster¡¯s idea toe to the Lanke Temple to heal Sangsang. In other words, it was arranged by Eldest Brother.


    ¡°I don¡¯t believe it.¡±


    Ning Que said to himself and he wanted to push this idea out of his mind. However, he needed the realistic answer, even if the answer would make him suffer tremendously.


    For that reason, he looked at the master silently.


    Master Qishan knew what he was looking forward to, so he said, ¡°Do you believe she is Yama¡¯s daughter now?¡±


    Ning Que said without any emotion, ¡°You told me she was the daughter of Light, now you tell me she is the daughter of Yama. I don¡¯t know which one I should believe. I only know I picked and raised her up. If you need to consider her as someone¡¯s daughter, it should be me.¡±


    ... Master Qishan said, ¡°But this is the truth of the fact. When you asked me to treat her in the cave days ago, I felt her chilly aura on her wrist. That was the moment I knew it was the imprint left by Yama. Since the Headmaster and the West-Hill Divine Skill could not disperse the chilly aura in her body, did you ever think about how it could not be a normal disease?¡±


    He had been doubting it for a long time, but he was unwilling to think or talk about it. He wanted to forget it until the master brought it out. He said after a silence, ¡°It¡¯s only your spection and you cannot prove it. My teacher told me that there was no omniscient man in the world.¡±


    ¡°Yes, so the Headmaster sent you here. First, we need to figure out what her disease was. By this, we can know the truth and find a cure for her.¡±


    Master Qishan sighed and said, ¡°The three chess games on the Wa Mountain this year were prepared for Sangsang. In the Jumping Tiger Stream, I intended to let her y the game anyway no matter how tough you were.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± Ning Que asked.


    ¡°To prove who she is.¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°The way she broke the Messy Phase Game was using the Heaven¡¯s power. It was not at the level a man would be able to reach. The first game urately proved she was not a human.¡±


    Ning Que kept silent.


    Master Qishan added, ¡°In the pavilion, she yed the second game with Dongming and she chose the ck stone. Dongming¡¯s best ability was to see the Heaven¡¯s will on the chessboard. It was hard to tell if the ck stones or the white stones would win, just like the day and night of the world. That was another sign pointing at Yama¡¯s daughter.¡± Ning Que said, ¡°Master Dongming told me that chess should follow the heart.¡±


    Master Qishan looked at Sangsang and lovingly said, ¡°The God¡¯s will depends on her heart.¡±

 Chapter 586 - Yamas Daughter (II)

    <h4>Chapter 586: Yama¡¯s Daughter (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Master Dongming had been sitting in a corner of the temple since the very beginning. Upon hearing his name, he chanted the name of Buddha and fell silent. It seemed that he had already known who Sangsang was.


    Master Qishan removed his eyes form Sangsang¡¯s face to Ning Que. He said, ¡°You should have known what had happened during the third game even though you didn¡¯t see from the beginning.¡±


    ¡°Although the rules on or outside the chessboard are different, they were all established by Haotian. Sangsang broke the eternal rule of the time¡ªdeath. You should know that, in the world of Haotian, only Haotian himself is able to establish or surpass these eternal rules. ¡±


    ¡°A person who can break the eternal rules besides Haotian, must be the one who doesn¡¯t belong this world. She muste from the miserable Underworld.¡±


    ¡°The real three games of chess on Wa Mountain was one of the most important treasures of the Buddha before he left the world for looking for the Son of Yama¡¯s trace like the Yuean Bell.¡±


    ¡°Brother Lotus broke the games as well, but he was different from Sangsang, who chose a different method. The arithmetic capability, mental state, and disregard of the rules Sangsang showed indicates the astonishing truth step by step.¡±


    Master Qishan sighed and said, ¡°She is the Daughter of Yama.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°They are all your people, the monks¡¯ opinions, no matter the Buddha, Xuankong Temple, Lanke Temple, or White Tower Temple in Yuelun.¡±


    ¡°If Sangsang is Yama¡¯s daughter, in the world of Haotian, why didn¡¯t Haotian Taoism find anything? They even considered her the Daughter of Light? I cannot believe this, so you have to convince me.¡±


    The Master said, ¡°Since Yama had to send his child to the world of Haotian, he would prepare for her. The Haotian Taoism bears the brunt of this rather than Buddhism and the Academy.¡±


    Ning Que understood his words. He had even epted Sangsang¡¯s identity, but he wouldn¡¯t admit it. He knew that if he admitted officially, he would be in trouble when he took actions.


    ¡°I need more evidence,¡± he said.


    Master Qishan sighed and said, ¡°I told you that the most interesting thing about you is that you can aplish anything you want to. On the other hand, if you don¡¯t, you can be blinded. This is how I feel. You have been staying with Sangsang for your entire life. How can¡¯t you believe that if you really think about it.¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t say anything.


    Master Qishan pointed at the big ck umbre in the light and said, ¡°It can iste and conduct everything including the light. It doesn¡¯t belong in this world. Many years ago, when you found it, did you feel anything strange? Did you suspect it at all?¡±


    The process of Ning Que finding the big ck umbre was very ordinary. He would have thrown it away if Sangsang had not cried for it. As the time passed by, the big ck umbre gradually showed a lot of incredible qualities.


    It looked normal, but it was invulnerable and as pure as Sangsang. It also could conduct or erge the owner¡¯s Psyche Power including the Haotian Divine Light. There was no such a weapon in the ssics or legends of cultivation which was more miraculous than the Yuean Bell in Baoshu¡¯s hand.


    When in the Northern Mountain Road, when he killed Yan Suqing, when he fought against Xia Hou at theke, and when he was in the Shubi Lake, the big ck umbre had saved him so many times. Without it, he would have died long before.


    Now, Ning Que understood that the big ck umbre was a weapon Yama must have given Sangsang. It somehow saw Ning Que as Sangsang¡¯s protector, and so it protected him as well.


    A few years ago in spring, when he was a normal student of the Academy, he met a schr who had a wooden dipper on his waist and a book in his hand.


    He wanted to exchange the wooden dipper with Ning Que¡¯s big ck umbre.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t want to make a deal with him.


    The schr did not push it. He walked out of the Academy, got on an ox cart, and left.


    Later, he knew he was the Eldest Brother of the Academy and the man in the carriage was the Headmaster. That meeting was thest thing the Headmaster did before he left to travel through all the states.


    Only now, in Lanke Temple, he finally realized what he had missed when he turned the deal down, but it was toote.


    ¡°What on earth is the big ck umbre?¡±


    ¡°It is a piece of night.¡±


    Master Qishan¡¯s answer seemed enigmatic, but Ning Que got it.


    ...


    ...


    Master Qishan looked at Ning Que and said, ¡°Sixteen years ago, the three World Wayfarers of Buddha, Taoism and Devil¡¯s Doctrine gathered in the Wilderness for the apocalyptic of the Son of Yama, including Mr. First. On that very day, Sangsang was born in the Official of Counsel.¡±


    On that very day, Ning Que escaped to hide in the woodshed of the Official of Counsel. At that time, he didn¡¯t know what the newborn baby girl meant to him.


    Ning Que remembered he had twice told Cheng Lixue and Quni Madi that the Great Divine Priest of Light could see the wrong person. Now he realized that he really saw the wrong person...


    When the Official of Counsel¡¯s concubine, who was his wife now, was pregnant with Sangsang, the formidable Great Divine Priest of Light had seen the shadow of Nightfall earlier than any others in the world.


    Then, his eyes fell on an alley in Chang¡¯an.


    The Great Divine Priest of Light did not see Sangsang, because she could not be seen.


    He saw a little boy in General¡¯s Mansion.


    He saw a person born to know everything.


    Therefore, he believed he had seen the son of Yama.


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang leaned on Ning Que¡¯s shoulder. When she heard the conversation, her face became paler and paler while her expression became gloomier and gloomier as she had remembered many things and figured out many more.


    She remembered that day, an old man in a dirty cotton robe walked into the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    He said to her, ¡°Do you believe in a Lucky Chance?¡±


    She remembered when he was dying, he looked at her under the tree, hesitating and struggling and then finally relieved at thest moment. He smiled and said to her, ¡°You are my Lucky Chance.¡±


    ...


    ...


    ¡°She is Yama¡¯s daughter and she is waking up. Yama¡¯s eyes are following her, so you can feel she is dying. That is because you and she belong to two different worlds.¡±


    ¡°The three games of chess on Wa Mountain were yed by her, but they were actually for you. During the Messy Phase Game, the white stones abandoned. The second game let you understand the opposition of the light and the shadow. The third game showed you the image of the world¡¯s destruction. All of these wanted to teach you how to give up.¡±


    ¡°Unfortunately, the first two games meant nothing to you. The third game could not change your mind either. How about the real world?¡±


    Master Qishan stared at Ning Que¡¯s eyes, sighed and said, ¡°If this world will be destroyed by the little girl on your back, what will you choose?¡±

 Chapter 587 - We Were All Resisting

    <h4>Chapter 587: We Were All Resisting</h4>


    <strong>Trantor:</strong> Transn <strong>Editor:</strong> Transn


    Ning Que always knew that Sangsang was special.


    But he also knew that he himself was special too. Being a person from another world in this world was undoubtfully special. So he always felt that the Sangsang¡¯s uniqueness came from his own, as she was his destiny.


    However, he had never expected that Sangsang was the more special one.


    ¡°When did the Eldest Brother find this out? Was it a long time ago, or more recently?¡±


    Ning Que looked at Master Qishan and asked him. He had already guessed the answer, but he wanted to confirm it again, because this was very important to him, second only to the danger brought by Sangsang¡¯s story.


    ¡°I have no idea, ¡± Master Qishan said. ¡°But Mr. First has made it very clear in the letter that the Headmaster wants you toe to the Lanke Temple for the disease. He wants to see if the Buddhism Sect can remove the cold aura in her. Because the Academy knows that the Buddhism Sect has a method to deal with Yama sear.¡±


    ¡°So, my teacher... also knows it already.¡±


    Ning Que joked. Many confusing matters now had clear answers. When he came back from the Wilderness, the Eldest Brother expressed his firm opposition to his rtionship with Sangsang, which was quite contrary to his usual kindness. Perhaps he had vaguely guessed the real identity of Sangsang.


    ¡°But the teacher agreed to let Sangsang and I get married.¡±


    With that, he suddenly realized something. Then the most precious emotion came back to him, which was the trust he now felt.


    Then he looked up, with his eyes turning bright and sharp. He looked at the people in the prayer hall and began to pat his scabbard slowly and rhythmically, full of a confidence that seemed toe from nowhere.


    Because the sheath of podao was hard and thick, the sound was so dull that it could hardly attract anyone¡¯s attention, even though the temple was so quiet.


    However, this world always has certain people- or rather, horses, with particrly good hearing.


    The Big ck Horse chewing the grass and smashing plums in the backyard of the Lanke Temple had long be vignt after the bell rang and the Light of Buddha appeared and kept staring in the direction of the temple.


    It had already heard the ringing bell when Ning Que made the first pat.


    It was an agreement between Ning Que and him. But he hesitated for a long time because he sensed the power in the Light of Buddha and knew that there were many powerful humans in the temple.


    As the second dull pat came to him, the Big ck Horse opened his mouth, revealing the white tooth. It was determined as it lowered its head and left the prayer hall quietly for the mediation chamber.


    It ran into the mediation chamber and came to the ck carriage. It lowered his body expertly to bridle itself and then bit the leather strap and tried to leap forward by pushing off with its hind hooves.


    With twice as much strength and power usually needed to pull the carriage, the Big ck Horse thought the carriage would begin to move quickly. It did not expect for it to remain motionless. Then it realized that the talisman on the carriage could not work without Ning Que. The carriage that was made of stainless-steel would be extraordinary heavy.


    Fortunately or unfortunately, in the Chang¡¯an City, the Big ck Horse had managed to pull the carriage several times though the talisman did not work. It was forced to puff and blow. Its muscles were tensed and its four hooves slightly trembled, dragging the heavy ck carriage out of the monastery and heading towards the temple.


    The steel wheel left nicks on the stone floor of the backyard of the Lanke Temple. Fortunately, it did not make a loud noise. As the Big ck Horse made no spare effort to drag the carriage, it felt a little bit worried that it did not seem very prudent to go to the temple right now. Since the in hostess was such a bigwig, could it get some benefits in the Underworld if he was killed together with the idiot Ning Que?


    Master Boshu looked at Ning Que and said, ¡°If you can leave the daughter of Yama to the Xuankong Temple, you will be free to go and the Academy will receive the sincerest thanks and respect from the Buddhism Sect.¡±


    Ning Que did not reply.


    After a moment of silence, Master Boshu said, ¡°Although Dao Shi is my son, I can ignore the hostility if you care for the entire world.¡±


    Hearing his words, Quni Madi was slightly shocked. She looked at Baoshu with resent but dared not to speak.


    At the entrance of the temple, Cheng Ziqing looked at Ning Que and said, ¡°Mr. Thirteen, no one dares to not show the Academy respect. But since it has been determined that she is the daughter of Yama, we, as Sword Garret or warriors from any other cultivation sects, will not allow you to take her away. Please understand this.¡±


    Apart from a question for the Master Qishan, Ning Que remained silent. People in the temple thought that he must not be able to ept the fact that Sangsang was the daughter of Yama. So they were waiting for him toe to his senses.


    At the moment, his expression revealed that he seemed to have epted the fact and must be experiencing the painful struggles in his heart. As they felt sorry for him, people in the temple seemed to see the hope of amicable settlement and began to persuade him.


    They thought that it must be a long and hard process for Ning Que whatever his decision would be. However, things did not go in this way.


    ¡°You see, as I have said many times on the journey, you will not die.¡±


    Turning to Sangsang¡¯s small face, Ning Que said, ¡°If you are the daughter of Yama, how could you die? Death means nothing but a return to home. There is no need to say all thosest words. Come to think of it, we were really funny at that time. It¡¯s fine as long as you have ensured that you will not die of the cold aura.¡±


    He didn¡¯t know it before because he didn¡¯t want to know. Now that he knew that his former handmaiden, who was his current wife, had the power to destroy the whole world, it was nothing but an acknowledgement of old knowledge for him.


    ¡°I told you that the Buddha will not tolerate you! He will not allow the daughter of Yama to live in this world! How long do you think you can sustain in the Light of Buddha?¡±


    Quni Madi looked at him and shouted angrily, ¡°Ning Que, don¡¯t think I don¡¯t know that you are attempting to buy time so that the Academy cane to save you. No matter how arrogant the Academy is, it will not protect the daughter of Yama. Just give it up. Think about the reason why the Academy wants you toe to the Lanke Temple.¡±


    ¡°What does this have to do with the Academy?¡±


    Ning Que held the hilt of the podao again and said, ¡°In those years when I was not a student of the Academy, I, carrying her on my back, climbed so many mountains and killed both humans and beasts who tried to kill us. Now that she has grown up and I have be so strong, are we weaker than the past?¡±


    Listening to what he said, the crowd suddenly became vignt and cold.


    In the prayer room at the rear part of the temple, a person remained in silence for the entire time. No one paid any attention to her silence, too distracted by the ups and downs of the situation today. At the moment, however, she raised her head and looked at Ning Que.


    Mo Shanshan had not uttered a single word for the entire day but her expression had changed several times. Initially, she smiled because Ning Que had defeated Quni Madi and Flower Addict, yet had a win-win situation with Master Boshu. Later, she appeared shocked and was at a loss when Sangsang¡¯s identity was revealed.


    Although he did not look at her, Ning Que knew that she was looking at him. So he shook his head firmly.


    He was sure that Mo Shanshan could understand him. There was an unspoken agreement between them, since they had fought side by side for so many times in the Wilderness two years ago. But he did not want her to take sides, even if it could benefit him.


    Underworld Invasion was such a huge issue that even the Academy could not handle it, not to mention her, a Calligraphy Addict who had just entered the Knowing destiny State. Ning Que hoped that she had the freedom of not taking any sides.


    ¡°For the sake of the world, I beg you in a humble manner to leave the daughter of Yama to the Xuankong Temple. I can promise you anything except this one.¡±


    Master Boshu looked at Ning Que and said to him.


    Ning Que looked at him and said coldly, ¡°I want you to die. Will you?¡±


    ¡°If the world can be saved, I will.¡±


    Ning Que did not know how to respond to his answer.


    Looking at Ning Que¡¯s expression, Quni Madi realized that the greater the price people in the temple would pay, the more painful he would be. ¡°If you can leave the daughter of Yama, ¡± she said in a coarse voice, ¡°I am also willing to die.¡±


    ¡°Your life is worthless, ¡± Ning Que said calmly.


    Quni Madi became furious.


    Then Ning Que looked at Master Boshu and said, ¡°You said it¡¯s for the sake of the world, but what does the world have anything to do with me? I am not a buddhist. If it¡¯s for the sake of a righteousness, what does righteousness have to do with me? I am not a taoist priest. I am only an ordinary student in the Academy, and I just want to leave with my wife.¡±


    ¡°Nobody can ever resist the rules of Haotian, ¡± Master Boshu said.


    ¡°Just because you feel you can¡¯t resist doesn¡¯t mean you don¡¯t want to resist it. In fact, in this world filled with rules, you, I, and everyone else are constantly resisting something.¡±


    Looking at the crowd, Ning Que said, ¡°We take medicine to resist disease when we are ill. We eat ginseng to resist aging and maintain health. We do the cultivation to resist death. Some evenmit suicide to resist life.¡±


    ¡°As the president of Commandment Yard, you have a bastard. The priest also has a bastard named Wu Dao. It is said that Master Qishan is the bastard of thest chief priest. I do not want to gossip, but in fact you are all trying to resist Buddha¡¯s precepts or moral constraints.¡±


    Master Boshu and Quni Madi looked ugly with anger, while Master Qishan shook his head with a smile, seemingly being fond of such derogatory words to Xuankong Temple.


    ¡°Obviously, your attempt to kill Sangsang is also a kind of resistance.¡± Ning Que took a look at Sangsang and continued, ¡°But I do not want her die. So you must allow me to resist your resistance.¡±


    ¡°Do you really want to protect the daughter of Yama?¡±


    Master Boshu became grim and solemn. ¡°You should know that she cannot live in this world. The Academy asked you to bring her to the Lanke Temple, not for healing.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°The teacher and the Eldest Brother asked ustoe to cure her.¡±


    Master Boshu said seriously, ¡°The illness will naturally disappear if the patient dies.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°If it were someone else, I would really doubt that he might cooperate with the Buddha¡¯s conspiracy when he asked me to bring Sangsang to the Lanke Temple. But I trust my Eldest Brother.¡±


    Quni Madi could not understand his confidence at this time. ¡°Why?¡± She asked in a sharp and angry voice.


    ¡°Because he is my Eldest Brother,¡± Ning Que said.


    ...

 Chapter 588 - To Save or to Kill, by the Compassion of Buddha

    <h4>Chapter 588: To Save or to Kill, by the Compassion of Buddha</h4>


    <strong>Trantor:</strong> Transn <strong>Editor:</strong> Transn


    This is trust.


    Ning Que believed in the Academy, and his Senior Brothers. Faced with such a grim and desperate situation, he had been waiting for his Eldest Brother to discover what was wrong with the Lanke Temple, and to rescue both himself and Sangsang. He knew that once Eldest Brother found out that the situation had changed, he would immediately rush over. Naturally, the earlier conversation was just aimed at stalling for time.


    If Eldest Brother could not make it in time, then to resolve everything he had to get to the root of it all; he had to do whatever it took to kill Master Boshu, who held the Yue Laan Bell. Only after that he could escape from the Lanke Temple.


    He nced at the big ck umbre overhead, made sure that the umbre could withstand the Light of Buddha for a while longer and he said, ¡°By thepassion of Buddha, the cure surely isn¡¯t limited to the sole method of killing.¡±


    Master Qishan spoke, ¡°Indeed, I will impart her with Dharma, not only to diminish her essence of hostility, but instead I hope it will bnce out the Yin and Yang within her body so that it can reach a peaceful and stable state. Afterwards, ording to the wishes of the Headmaster and the oue of my discussion with Mr. First, we shall find a way to hide Sangsang once her mastery of the Dharma deepens.¡±


    Ning Que asked: ¡°Hide her?¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°This is the only way to avoid detection of the mark of the Underworld within her when Yama¡¯s gaze sweeps through our world.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Isn¡¯t that the same as keeping her prisoner for life? What is the difference between that and taking her life then?¡±


    ¡°There is no need to imprison her for life.¡±


    Master Qishan said, ¡°Since Haotian consists in 70,000 worlds, even if Yama¡¯s power could rival the heavens, as long as his avatars in each of those worlds do not actively signal to him, manually searching each and every one of those worlds would take a very long time. When Yama¡¯s gaze lingers in another world, Sangsang would then naturally be able toe out.¡±


    Cheng Ziqing was not convinced, ¡°The Heaven¡¯s Way is unfathomable. Mere mortals such as ourselves cannot hope to grasp the consciousness of Haotian and Yama. So how are we going to know when Yama averts his gaze?¡±


    Master Qishan exined, ¡°The Great Priest of Revtion that visited Chang¡¯anst year foresaw that in three years Sangsang would appear in the West-Hill Divine Pce. Sangsang¡¯s forting awakening is proof that within theing two years, Yama would gaze upon our world.¡±


    Ning Que remained silent. He originally meant to stall by asking these questions, not expecting Master Qishan to actuallye up with a n to deal with Yama. However, what Master Qishan said made a lot of sense, and now he could not help but feel conflicted about the whole situation.


    ¡°Nevertheless, there is nowhere in the human realm that escapes Yama¡¯s gaze¡±, said Master Boshu in a serious manner.


    Master Qishan¡¯s hand slowly rested upon the chess board in front of him. He responded calmly, ¡°Such a ce exists.¡±


    Ning Que stared at the peculiar chessboard that was neither chess nor a stone game. Thinking back about the time spent in the world within the chessboard, his mood changed again.


    Master Boshu responded after a moment of silence, ¡°Although this is a mystical artifact left behind by Buddha, I still remain doubtful that it can get past Yama¡¯s gaze. Uncle, you truly underestimate these beings from a higher ne of existence.¡±


    ¡°To underestimate Yama... how foolish.¡±


    Master Qishan flipped over the chessboard before him and calmly said, ¡°It is not Yama¡¯s gaze that I want Sangsang to hide from, instead, it is... time.¡±


    ¡°Time?¡± Ning Que asked.


    ¡°Correct, it is indeed time.¡±


    Master Qishan spoke to the crowd before him, ¡°I believe you have all heard of the legend of the Lanke Temple, only that no one took it seriously enough. Even someone like Ning Que would have subconciously forgotten about it.¡±


    ¡°This chessboard that was left behind by Buddha is able to manipte the flow of time. The front dys time, the back elerates it. If you essed the chessboard from the back, an instant inside would havepsed years of time outside.¡±


    Master Qishan continued, ¡°The idea is to turn two years into an instant and within these two years Sangsang would effectively vanish from this world. As such, there would be way for Yama to find her.¡±


    Upon hearing this, everyone went quietly with shock. Never did they imagine that someone could havee up with such a n. But what astonished them even further was how he showed no fear to the arrival of Yama¡¯s Daughter, and even dared to engage Yama in a battle of wits! Such confidence was incredible.


    The master added, ¡°While the method seems to make sense, it has never been attempted before hence ites with many risks. However, as we are dealing with Yama¡¯s Daughter, it is a risk we are bound to take.¡±


    ¡°The only way is the best way...¡±


    Ning Que recalled this famous Academy¡¯s motto and understood who was the person who was capable ofing up with such an extraordinary method; a person who was also willing to go against the almighty Yama in order to help Sangsang. At this point he could almost feel tears rolling down.


    Master Qishan turned to Ning Que and said, ¡°The Headmaster came up with this n, and we decided to give it a try. However, due to the severe consequences, we mentioned it to no one. We even kept it a secret from you and Sangsang before you both entered the chessboard, in order to ensure your safety.


    Ning Que understood, ¡°If people knew that Sangsang was the Daughter of Yama, there was no way they would resolve the situation the way you and the Headmaster came up with. The only thing they would be thinking about would be how to end her.¡±


    ¡°Indeed.¡± Looking at Master Boshu, Master Qishan let out a long sigh. ¡°But who could have known that someone would leave the Xuankong Temple with the peace bell, and cause this mess we are in.¡±


    Master Baoshu knew what he meant and said, ¡°Uncle, I followed the doctrine of the Xuankong Temple.¡±


    With his reply, Master Qishan¡¯s wrinkles grew even more pronounced. Looking out of the hall and staring at the walls of the temple that seemed to flow with the contours of the mountain, he started to look worried.


    Quni Madi suddenlyshed out, ¡°How can you be sure that this method that no one has ever tried will work out? The Headmaster is ying a dangerous game with Yama. He might have the confidence but the fate of the world is at y! Why should the rest of the world be a part of his gamble?¡±


    Master Qishan remained silent. Before he set his mind to treat Sangsang¡¯s illness, he already knew of the bacsh that would take ce if people knew of his ns. It was obvious that the path ahead was not easy and would be full of doubt and reproach from others.


    Master Boshu chanted the name of Buddha, and said harshly, ¡°All living things are equal, the Headmaster is but one of them. What right does he have to force everyone to take this risk with him? The Daughter of Yama must die!¡±


    Master Qishan replied, ¡°By the words of Buddha, all living things are equal. Sangsang is also a part of it so why must she die if she has neither sinned nor wronged?¡±


    Master Boshu said, ¡°Being Yama¡¯s Daughter is already an original sin. Even if she were to pay penance, practice Dharma an adopt a life of kindness, once she awakens to her lineage, it would be a crime against the entire world!¡±


    Ning Que looked up at the big ck umbre once again.


    The grease and dirt on the surface of the umbre were cleansed and eroded away by the Light of Buddha, revealing the pure ck fabric beneath. A tiny ray of light slipped through the seams on the umbre and fell upon Sangsang¡¯s shoulders.


    Sangsang felt as though a knife was plunged into her body. Despite turning pale from the pain, she clenched her teeth and did not let out a single sound. Ning Que could only imagine the pain as he felt her body stiffen while carrying her.


    The big ck umbre became thinner and thinner, almost reaching its limit.


    Ning Que still needed it tost a while longer, Eldest Brother had yet to arrive.


    He looked at Master Qishan and said, ¡°It would appear that we no longer have the opportunity to learn the ways of Dharma from you. This disease also has no cure in sight. It was as you expected, the worldcks truepassion.¡±


    He turned to Sangsang and asked, ¡°Are you hanging in there?¡±


    Are you still able to hold the umbre, still able to carry on?


    Sangsang weakly murmured an affirmation.


    Master Qishan sighed, ¡°The world is vast, yet you are weed nowhere. Where do you n to go from here?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Back to the Academy.¡±


    The master said, ¡°The Academy will surely ept you, but what about her? Before her lineage was revealed, the Academy could protect both of you and treat her illness in secret. But now?¡±


    Ning Que went quiet, unsure of what to do. There was no way he could bring harm to the Academy.


    Master Boshu spoke, ¡°The issue now though, is that neither of you are leaving.¡±


    As soon as he finished, a flurry of footsteps could be heard outside of the temple. The back doors to the Lanke Temple were thrust open. The cultivators who realized something was wrong were blocked out of the temple by temple monks while 68 monks d in yellow robes made their way in. The monks split themselves into teams of four and sat upon the stone pedestals before the temple sanctum.


    The sound of chanting reverberated through the temple and an aura of solemn Buddhistpassion enveloped the entire Lanke Temple. As the great bells of the 17 halls tolled once again, the tactical array of Buddha¡¯s Light grew stronger and stronger.


    Master Qishan looked at the Lanke Temple¡¯s abbot who knelt outside the temple doors and seemed to have grasped what was going on. Despite wanting to reprimand his unfilial disciples, all he did was to let out a long and painful sigh.


    After all, Master Boshu was the president of the Commandment Yard of the Xuankong Temple and all of the Buddhist disciples held him in the highest regard. These few days of seemingly locking himself in his meditation room were actually just a cover for him to easily take over the Lanke Temple.


    Monk Guan Hai knelt behind Master Qishan, to support his teacher who was on the verge of copse. The grief and anguish on his face was evident, as he looked at the disciples of Buddha sitting on the stone pedestals outside of the temple sanctum.


    Master Boshu spoke with indifference, ¡°Uncle, if you choose not to betray the way of Buddhism, to beden with the great sin of the destruction of the world, then today you shall not interfere.¡±


    Upon saying this, this great monk of the Xuankong Temple frowned as though he felt some form of pain. At the same time, his luminous eyes lost some of its luster, as though some Dharma had left them.


    Ning Que was not prepared in theirst encounter and allowed Boshu to shake his copper bell. However, this time around, there was no way he would even give his opponent the chance to do so. He also deduced that using such a mystical Buddhist artifact would take a heavy toll on Master Boshu, which meant that Boshu¡¯s actualbat strength would decrease. Hence, Ning Que observed and waited, waiting for the moment when Master Boshu would use the bell¡¯s powers once again, for that would be the time to strike.


    Just as he caught a glimpse of Boshu¡¯s furrowed brow, Ning Que stuck his de into the ground before him and drew his metal bow instantly. The arrow fired at Boshu flew at an unimaginable speed.


    The silent iron arrow pierced through the air and arrived before Boshu in the blink of an eye.


    Standing in front of the Primordial Arrow, strong enough to disregard space itself, it was impossible for anyone to evade unless it was someone like Long Qing who had plenty of experience with it, or a talented fighter with great instincts such as Ye Hongyu.


    Master Boshu thought himself prepared enough for the legendary Primordial Thirteen Arrows of the Academy. However, never could he have imagined the deadliness and terror that the arrows possessed.


    The Xuankong Temple¡¯s great sage had no time to change his facial expression, constrict his pupils, to be afraid or even react in any possible way.


    The bell in his hand was the only thing that was able to react.


    The copper bell went beyond the concept of time as it sensed the danger from the approaching arrow, disappearing from Master Boshu¡¯s fingers and instantly reappeared before the arrow.


    The Yuean Bell left behind by Buddha had miraculous properties that truly exceeded the level of cultivation achievable in the current realm.


    The iron arrow struck the copper bell with grim uracy.


    s, it did not even leave a scratch on the bell.


    No matter how powerful the Primordial Arrow may be, it was still just the cumtive wisdom of the disciples from the Academy. At least for now, it couldn¡¯t match the mystical artifact left behind by Buddha.


    Another important reason why the iron arrow couldn¡¯t leave but a scratch on the copper bell was that the arrowhead wasn¡¯t sharp, but instead consisted of a small round metal canister.


    The canister was intenselypressed and exploded because of the massive impact.


    A loud boom!


    Countless sharp fragments shot out with a terrifying whoosh, straight at Master Boshu.


    When the copper bell blocked the iron arrow, Boshu¡¯s inner zen was greatly shaken. Although in pain, in this time of danger, he demonstrated his strength as the great sage of the Xuankong Temple. In such a short span of time, he recited the nine Jingang scriptures in his heart and ced nineyers of protective Buddhist aura in front of him.


    Most of the shrapnel was blocked, but there were still some that managed to reach Boshu before the protective aura was thrown up. His entire body was instantly covered in blood.


    Ning Que¡¯s speed inbat was second to none. Almost simultaneously as his arrow was shot, he realized that it would be difficult for the Primordial Thirteen Arrow to prate through the copper bell¡¯s defenses in so little time. Slinging back his bow and grabbing hold of his de, he shot forward along with the arrow without a second thought.


    The Great Spirit enveloped every inch of his body. Every fiber of his muscles became hard as stone, every step he took sprayed gravel and left a hole in its wake.


    This was the first time Ning Que released his full strength without reservation while in his demonic trance, pushing his body to the absolute limit. With it, he gained a terrifying speed that was unimaginable.


    As he thrust himself toward Master Boshu, he could still feel the residues from the iron arrow¡¯s explosion.


    With a strike as ferocious as a wild beast, his de went straight for Boshu¡¯s face, the light gleaming off the edge of the de as bright as the zing sun.


    Master Boshu shut his eyes tight and with outstretched hands attempted to recall his copper bell.


    The sound of shing metal reverberated.


    The razor sharp de cut through the aura surrounding Master Boshu like paper. In an instant 6yers of the protective aura were cleaved away.


    Boshu spewed blood as he fell to the ground. However, he pushed against the floor with his palm and jolted back up straight as he shook his copper bell.


    As the crisp and clear sound of the bell sounded, the 17 ancient bells of Lanke Temple rang out once more. The statue of Buddha that sat atop of the Tile Mountain radiated light that prated through the forest, into the temple sanctum at the foot of the mountain. The Light of Buddha that fell onto the big ck umbre was further intensified!


    Under the umbre, Sangsang grew paler still and coughed up more blood. All of her strength had left her as she leaned weakly on Ning Que¡¯s back, as though she could faint at any time. However, despite such adverse conditions, she still held onto the umbre¡¯s handle tightly.


    Master Boshu attained a very advanced state of cultivation, with a deep understanding of the ways of Dharma. Against Ning Que¡¯s attacks driven with recklessness, he could have used his copper bell as a weapon and put up a good brawl. In that case, even if he lost the opportunity to strike first he could still recover from it, rather than being thrown into such a dangerous situation like he was right now.


    However, only one thought dominated him at this moment; he shall not give Ning Que any opportunity to take Sangsang away from here. Sangsang absolutely must die right here, right now.


    For this very purpose, he would not hesitate to sacrifice himself.


    ...

 Chapter 589 - A New Generation of Powerhouse

    Chapter 589: A New Generation of Powerhouse


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Tensions were running high. Ning Que had to break Master Boshu¡¯s nineyer Buddhist defense first, or his opponent Master Boshu would kill Sangsang with his copper bell. At that moment, only Knowing Destiny cultivators could make a difference in the battle. Quni Madi wanted to crush Ning Que and Sangsang with her broken staff, though she knew she couldn¡¯t. Instead she looked anxiously at Cheng Ziqing.


    Cheng Ziqing sat in the Buddha¡¯s temple with a sword on his knees. He had been thinking a lot in only a short amount of time but only realized that, if the world was destroyed, rtions between Sword Garret and the Academy and the conflict between Tang Empire and South Jin Kingdom would be meaningless. As a cultivator, the most important thing he could do was keep the world intact.


    Before Quni Madi¡¯s anxious gaze could wander to him, he had already prepared a Sword Form, and a sharp sword style burst out of his sword.


    Sword Garret had a very different style of swordsmanship than others in the world. Most of the time, sword masters would tightly hold a sword and follow its movement. So Cheng Ziqing immediately grasped the hilt and let the sword lead the way.


    His body moved extremely swiftly, as if he had be a sword himself that was on its way to Ning Que¡¯s back.


    He was a Knowing Destiny cultivator, second only to Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword, in Sword Garret. At this very moment, he hadunched his most fatal attack.


    Faced with Cheng Ziqing¡¯s most powerful attack, Ning Que could defend only himself with his strong body after joining with the Devil, and even still he barely survived. If Sangsang were to be hit, she would die at once.


    However, Cheng Ziqing¡¯s sword did not hit Sangsang.


    Neither did it hit Ning Que¡¯s back through Sangsang¡¯s thin body.


    Instead, it hit hard stone.


    Cheng Ziqing looked the same. His sword continued to move forward, breaking the stone into pieces.


    Another stone appeared at the tip of his sword.


    His expression turned fierce. An aura of the world burst out of his sword which vibrated continuously in a very short period time with numerous shadows, trying to avoid the stone.


    But he couldn¡¯t.


    In the quiet hall, countless stones appeared in the ten-feet space between Cheng Ziqing and Ning Que¡¯s back. The stones were of different shapes and sizes, and were all densely packed in the small space.


    Faced with the stones, Cheng Ziqing could hardly move forward, though his sword was quite powerful.


    Mr. Ke had once broken these stones with Haoran Sword.


    But Cheng Ziqing failed to do so, even though his swordsmanship was uniquely skilful.


    Suddenly, he felt as if his mouth was stuffed with stones, and then his throat, and chest, before finally his entire body was full of them. He felt slightly tingly and cool. What made him even more pained were the hard stones with sharp edges, which were cutting his consciousness constantly.


    A feeling of hopelessness rose within his chest as his insides throbbed. With a shrill cry, he waved his cyan-steel sword for 120 times without a pause, finally breaking the encirclement of stones and leaving behind their bleak and desperate world. He breathed fresh air again.


    Turning to look at Mo Shanshan who was keeping silent at the corner, Cheng Ziqing was pale and shocked.


    There were countless notches on his sword, which was greatly damaged as if it had collided with hundreds of thousands of hard stones in only a second.


    When Cheng Ziqing tried to stab Ning Que¡¯s back, Mo Shanshan moved immediately.


    She took out a paper ball and tossed it on the ground in front of the futon.


    It was a piece of talisman paper, which was shaped like a small stone.


    The paper stored the talisman power which she hadprehended from the pile of rocks at the bottom of Daming Lake. It had helped her reach the Knowing Destiny State this spring, when she had be one of the youngest Divine Talisman Masters in history.


    This was why she named the talisman ¡°Stone Array Tactics¡±.


    The greatest taboo in a fight was hesitation. That was what Ning Que had told Mo Shanshan at the Wilderness. He certainly would not make this mistake now, so when he sensed that Cheng Ziqing was trying to stab his back, he did not stop attacking Master Boshu.


    He could deal with a Sword Garret¡¯s attack with the big ck umbre, which would at least buy some time. But he could not stop Sangsang from spitting blood because of Master Boshu¡¯s ringing bell. So he had to kill Boshu as soon as possible.


    Sixyers of Baoshu¡¯s nineyer Buddhist defense had been breached by Ning Que¡¯s podao. However, as the bell rang and the Buddhist aura was recovered, the nineyer Buddhist defense became intact in a sh.


    Ning Que appeared indifferent without a hint of disappointment. Before his podao de reached the ground, he bent his knees and chopped at Master Boshu with his clenched left fist.


    For ordinary people, a fist was usually theirst and most primitive attack during a battle, even if it was a strong one. But for cultivators, whether it was a fist or foot, as long as it was a part of human body, it must be the weakest, if not mostughable attack.


    Ning Que¡¯s fist was notughable, however, because it was the first time that he showed his Dark Methods. More importantly, his had stored unparalleled Great Spirit in this very fist.


    There was a loud boom.


    The nineyer bodyguard aura around Master Boshu was destroyed by Ning Que¡¯s fist.


    Looked at the approaching fist, Master Boshu was shocked, and then he reached out two fingers with the bell between them.


    Ning¡¯s fist hit on the copper bell.


    The Great Spirit he inherited from his Youngest Uncle, Ke Haoran, had finally met with the relic left behind by Buddha.


    Another loud boom!


    Master Boshu was pale and his lips were covered in streams of blood. The bell between his fingers rang loudly as if it was in a storm and would fall at any time.


    However, it did not fall.


    Ning Que¡¯s attack was over, but nobody had expected his consecutive attacks to be as fast as lightning. He immediately turned and nted upwards the moment hended on the ground, with his podao in his right hand.


    There was a swooshing sound.


    Master Boshu screamed in agony and fell to the ground.


    His right arm had been severed from his body, flying toward the top of the hall with bloody water.


    The bell was still held tightly in the hand that was cut off.


    Ning Que remained expressionless. He grasped the arm and reached for the bell.


    Since Sangsang¡¯s power would be suppressed by the bell, it must be cared for properly if it could not be destroyed.


    But just as his finger touched the bell, a majestic Buddhist aura suddenly rushed out from his finger to his heart.


    Ning Que felt intolerable pain in his finger. Since the aura was too strong, he couldn¡¯t help but grunt, realizing that the Buddha¡¯s relic was beyond reach for both Sangsang and himself.


    He released his finger and let the bell fall on the ground.


    And then he took out the second iron arrow and shot at Cheng Ziqing who was at the pce gate.


    At this moment, Cheng Ziqing had just gotten rid of Mo Shanshan¡¯s Stone Array Tactics and was staring at her in shock. He did not expect that an even worse attack wasing.


    Nobody had expected that after a narrow win over Master Boshu and cutting off his arm, Ning Que would continue to attack the swordmaster from Sword Garret.


    In the hall, only Sangsang, behind him, and Mo Shanshan, sat in the corner, had expected this.


    This was Ning Que¡¯s style of fighting. Once the fight began, he would not stop until he could confirm that all of his opponents were dead or could not fight back.


    Cheng Ziqing was a strong cultivator at Knowing Destiny state as well as a threat to Ning Que. Since Mo Shanshan has used her Fu paper to disturb his opponent, how could Ning Que miss this perfect opportunity to attack?


    The darkish iron arrow disappeared on leaving the bowstring. Then, it suddenly appeared in front of Cheng Ziqing with a slightly white turbulence.


    Just like Master Boshu, Cheng Ziqing was unable to resist Primordial Thirteen Arrows, which had exceeded the time limit. However, he was, after all, a strong swordmaster from Sword Garret and he had be alert after seeing Boshu¡¯s experience. So when he saw Ning Que turning around and bending the bow, he did not hesitate to get prepared in advance.


    With a shrill piercing sound, the damaged sword suddenly exploded in Cheng Ziqing¡¯s hand.


    At that very moment between life and death, the swordmaster chose to sacrifice his natal sword in exchange for a sword light that looked like a curtain of rain.


    The iron arrow appeared in the curtain of rain.


    There were countless sounds of shing. des of the sword stuck into the pirs and windows in the hall with a humming sound.


    Cheng Ziqing flew backward and was mmed onto a stone statue.


    With a whizzing sound, the iron arrow shot into the ground of gstone in front of him.


    ( )


    It was deeply embedded in the ground without a trace, leaving only a ck hole. And because of the friction between arrow and stone, there were threads of smoke around the edge of the hole.


    Looked at the hole, a look of fear appeared on Cheng Ziqing¡¯s face, and then he spat out a mouthful of blood.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 590 - The Buddha Among Men

    <h4>Chapter 590: The Buddha Among Men</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    There was a broken arm on the ground. The bronze bell that was left behind by the Buddha slowly rolled on the ground, into the pool of blood and stopped. The colors of the red fresh blood and the yellow bronze bell came together, giving an eerie effect.


    With two thunder-like shots, Ning Que used up quite a lot of cultivation as he looked a little pale. His bow aimed precisely at Cheng Ziqing who was sitting under the stone statue. He confirmed that this Sword Garret professional wasn¡¯t a threat to him and hence, didn¡¯t shoot out another arrow. At this moment, every iron arrow was incredibly precious to him.


    A simple shot had caused significant injuries to the second most important figure in the Sword Garret. He was satisfied with the results but he wouldn¡¯t show any contempt for the Sword garret. He clearly knew that if it wasn¡¯t for Mo Shanshan¡¯s help, he wouldn¡¯t be able to do it.


    No matter how precious the Natal Sword was, it wasn¡¯t a real life object at the end of the day. Ning Que could understand this and he made a decision during battle without hesitation. However, not many cultivators could understand a thing in such a short period of time. Hence, Cheng Ziqing¡¯s previous battle performance had left him impressed and even shocked. It seemed like the legendary Sword Sage wasn¡¯t just a person with a name.


    All was silent within the hall.


    Ning Que was surprised by Cheng Ziqing¡¯s performance during the battle but he wasn¡¯t aware that his and Mo Shanshan¡¯s performance had left everyone speechless: both him and the Calligraphy Addict were already in the Knowing Destiny State, but even so, they were a new generation of cultivators and had only entered the Knowing Destiny state a few months or even a few days ago. How could they easily defeat a famous swordsman from the Sword Garret and even severely injure a monk from the Xuankong Temple?


    It was because the Calligraphy Addict was already a Divine Talisman Master. A Divine Talisman Master could basically squash all the professionals that were at the Knowing Destiny State and Ning Que also had his Primordial Thirteen Arrows that could cross states. Moreover, the two of them had formed a wordless chemistry in the Wilderness, thus an impossible ending had long been fated.


    Not everyone understood the links in this battle but everyone saw the Calligraphy Addict attacking. Quni Madi looked at Mo Shanshan and cursed, ¡°You will let the great river be destroyed with the whole world!¡±


    Mo Shanshan attacked with her most powerful divine talisman; the psyche power used was tremendous and upon hearing Quni Madi¡¯s words and thinking about the world being destroyed, her body started trembling and her face turned paler.


    However, looking at Sangsang on Ning Que¡¯s back, carrying the ck umbre and bathed in a weak Light of Buddha, her expression returned to normal. She knew that in the end, she wouldn¡¯t regret it.


    Outside the quiet hall, a heavy breathing noise sounded and everyone turned to look. The big ck horse was soaked and he was carrying a heavy carriage. Behind the wheels were two wheel tracks etched in the stone.


    Ning Que carried Sangsang towards the ck carriage.


    The Light of Buddha, of golden hue and resemnce to jade immediately enveloped the entire ck carriage.


    The big ck horse was incredibly afraid and thought that he must be suffering retribution for not being a vegetarian for the past few days.


    How would Ning Que know what this foolish fellow was thinking as he pressed his right arm against the ice-cold carriage walls and activated the talisman array. He then kicked the big ck horse on his ass and shouted, ¡°Are you still not leaving?¡±


    The big ck horse suppressed his fear of the Buddha¡¯s Light as he let out a long fierce groan and dragged the carriage, charging towards the dozens of monks in yellow shirts that were reading Buddhist mantras at the stone square in front of the hall!


    Just before leaving, a small box flew out of the ck carriage andnded in the arms of Mo Shanshan. She looked at the box, thinking to herself wondering what it could be.


    ...


    ...


    The big ck horse continued groaning as he bared his white teeth and charged violently towards the monks at the front of the hall. He was ready to kill anything standing in his way and was determined to form a trail of blood.


    There were not a lot of monks in the stone square between the hall and the gates of the back temple. There weren¡¯t many monks but arge part of them were sitting in groups of 4 on the two sides of the road. The sound of them reciting mantras and the ringing sounds of the bell enveloped the big tactical array of the Light of Buddha.


    Seeing the ck carriage charging over with incredible force, the monks on the road let out a horrified expression as they all stood up and avoided it on the two sides. However, they still kept to some formation and the reciting of mantra didn¡¯t stop.


    It was chaos as the monks parted, revealing thest monk at the back.


    That monk was still sitting cross-legged on the floor, showing no intention of avoiding.


    The monk was dressed in a tattered kapok kasaya and he had a thinyer of dark hair on his head. In between thoseyers were wisps of white hair. His stubble of hair wasn¡¯t sharp but it gave off a sense of determination, a sense that even if the world were to copse, it would be held up by him.


    The monk was calm as he watched the ck carriage rushing towards him and he slowly stood up.


    When he was sitting, he was a normal monk.


    When he stood up, he was Buddha.


    ...


    ...


    Buddha was ahead.


    Buddha was indeed blocking the road ahead.


    The big ck horse was flustered but in the end, his violent emotions suppressed this as he neighed loudly and stood up with its 2 hind legs. He then stomped on the monk¡¯s chest with his two metal-like front hooves.


    The monk did not speak as he silently watched the Big ck Horse, thinking about something.


    Instantly, 17 old bells in the Lanke Temple started sounding from afar; the aura of heaven and earth started converging in the stone in at the back of the temple.


    A strong gust appeared from the monk¡¯s tattered kapok kasaya and started spewing stone bits from the Western Wilderness.


    The big ck horse neighed in fright as the gust swept him back!


    The ck carriage was swept along with it for more than a hundred feet and itnded heavily at the bottom of the hall¡¯s front stone steps.


    There was a huge boom!


    The ck carriage returned to where it hade from.


    With the monk standing in its way, it wasn¡¯t able to leave.


    There was a saying that Budhha blocked the killing of Buddha, but can a Buddha really kill?


    The monk was known as Qi Nian and was the first disciple of the Chief Preaching Monk of the Xuankong Temple. He was a World Wayfarer of the Buddhism Sect and was seen as the closest person in the world to bing Buddha. When he appeared in front of the world, he was Buddha.


    ...


    ...


    The ck carriagended heavily on the floor and smashed the stone steps into smithereens. The scene was chaotic while the Light of Buddha descending from the Tile mountain calmly shone; the atmosphere was sad and cold.


    The big ck horse that fell down was moaning, he spat out some blood tinged saliva as he struck hard against the stone floor with his back hooves and stood up in the Light of Buddha!


    Looking at this, Qi Nian had an amused expression. He didn¡¯t expect the ck horse to have such a strong determination; it was able and dared to stand under such circumstances.


    The ck carriage was made of steel and was the most precious thing that Master Yan Se left behind. Even though the stone steps in front of the hall were in ruins, the carriage wasn¡¯t deformed and only the doors were smashed.


    Inside the overturned carriage, Ning Que stood up as he steadied Sangsang who was spitting out blood. He carried her on his back, tying her tightly with rope. Taking down the iron bow off his shoulders, he looked at the monk that was over a hundred feet away outside the carriage.


    At the stone square facing the hall, the dozens of monks in yellow attire from the Lanke Temple continued reciting their mantras. Even though the light that had descended from the Tile mountain wasn¡¯t guided by the Yuean bell, the light pir thatnded on the ck carriage was slightly weaker, but the Light of Buddha¡¯s big tactical array that enveloped the entire Lanke Temple became stronger.


    The cultivators within the Lanke Temple had somehow heard the news that the Lady of Light, Sangsang, was the Daughter of Yama as they rushed into the back temple. They looked at the ck carriage in shock and apprehension, but no matter how they felt right then, if the ck carriage wanted to escape they would definitely take action.


    Ning Que guessed the identity of that monk.


    Faced by the powerful World Wayfarer of the Buddhism Sect, the Lanke Temple¡¯s Light of Buddha big tactical array and the cultivators of the world, many would turn desperate and even choose to give up.


    But Ning Que wouldn¡¯t.


    ...


    ...


    If one didn¡¯t die, there was no need for despair.


    If one was dead, there would be no need for despair either.


    ...


    ...


    In the face of survival, giving up was not an option. To Ning Que, this was a simple truth and hence he wasn¡¯t in despair. What he needed to do next was simple, just like what he had been doing for thest few years: do whatever it takes to survive until death really came.


    So he took his bow and loaded an arrow, shooting it towards Qi Nian.


    His actions were more stable, faster and smoother than before.


    It could be because he was in an old temple, or he had heard too many bell sounds, or the Light of Buddha was above and the one blocking the horse carriage was a Buddha. But whatever it was, his action of shooting the arrow had a trace of calmness from Buddhism in it.


    The same thing and the same way of doing it. It was like Buddha picking up flowers; natural without a hint of violence.


    Qi Nian looked at the arrow that Ning Que shot, silently praising before using his psyche powers again.


    With that, the 17 ancient bells from the 17 halls of the Lanke Temple started moving. The bell sounds from afar became thunderous and solemn with the might of the Buddha, as they echoed throughout the temple.


    The Buddhist bell of the ancient temple had sound but didn¡¯t have a body; the noises were endless, just like waves hitting against one another. In a moment, they filled all the space in the Lanke Temple.


    The Primordial Thirteen Arrows were powerful enough to ignore time but not space.


    The iron arrow could suddenly appear at the other end of space due to its unimaginable speed. In actual fact, the arrow still had to pass through space.


    The noises of the bells were like waves as they changed the shape of the space within the ancient temple. Hence, even after the iron arrow passed through space, naturally it wouldn¡¯t be able to hit its target urately like in real space.


    With a woosh, the white turbulence at the tail end of the iron arrow slowly disappeared.


    The iron arrow also disappeared without a trace.


    The monk Qi Nian was still standing calmly in front of the horse carriage.


    Only after a moment, the sound of a cliff copsing from afar was transmitted.


    The Buddhist scriptures have spoken.


    Buddha is in one¡¯s heart and incredibly close to people. Even if one didn¡¯t follow rules, drank alcohol and made folly, as long as one¡¯s thoughts are with Buddhism, one could still be Buddha.


    However, that was far away. Even if one followed all the rules and didn¡¯t stop reciting, so long as one made mistakes asionally and unknowingly did things that didn¡¯t follow Buddhism, one would still not be a Buddha.


    Buddha was near, yet also far away.


    Just like Ning Que¡¯s arrow, it was already like Buddha.


    However, it wanted to shoot the Buddha in the world.


    Hence, it could only go to the skies.

 Chapter 591 - Battle, Victory over Buddha

    Chapter 591: Battle, Victory over Buddha


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Besides a certain concealed object, Primordial Thirteen Arrows were Ning Que¡¯s most powerful means. They even surpassed the valiant Great Spirit in his body. It was because of the Primordial Thirteen Arrows that he was able to find a glimmer of hope among despair whenever he came across a powerful enemy that was of a higher state than him. They even left his enemy in despair.


    By using Primordial Thirteen Arrows in the depth of the Wilderness, he managed to destroy Long Qing with one arrow even though he was in the Seethrough Realm. He also began a long entanglement with Ye Hongyu, who was in the Knowing Destiny State. If he could not use the Primordial Thirteen Arrows facing off against Master Boshu and Cheng Ziqing ¨C two Knowing Destiny State professionals, he would¡¯ve had to admit defeat.


    In the past, enemies had different ways of dealing with Primordial Thirteen Arrows: Ye Hongyu made use of her intricate and horrifying ns in battle, Long Qing counted on his unique experience to anticipate the enemy¡¯s actions, Master Boshu counted on his Buddhist relic ¨C Yuean Bell and Cheng Ziqing broke his Natal Sword, though he could only do so once.


    However, Qi Nian had managed to forcefully distort space with bell sounds from the ancient temple. This was a powerful method that nobody could have imagined. Was this the highest standard in the cultivation world?


    No matter how powerful one¡¯s will was they would despair now. However, Ning Que didn¡¯t. Once again, he pulled back his bow, like a full moon that couldn¡¯t exist in this world, as he keenly analyzed the resounding echoes of the ancient temple¡¯s bell. In an indistinguishable moment, he released the bowstring, firing another arrow.


    This time, the Primordial Thirteen Arrow found a gap in the bell¡¯s tempo. It was like finding real space among the twisted space in front of the temple.


    Facing this arrow, Qi Nian seemed unusually calm and resolute. His body was still ¨C as though he were meditating.


    Two profound Buddhist auras invoking endless auras of heaven and earth, appeared from the space on either side of him. Just like the heavy gates of the ancient temple, they closed in front of him.


    The metal arrow shot into the air, which was as viscous as water, appearing like a ck bolt of lightning.


    The metal arrow¡¯s speed decreased rapidly, rubbing against the air at a high speed, sending out a palpitating wail. The arrow¡¯s body was set ame, releasing a pungent smell, before stopping.


    The metal arrow was suspended in air quietly, three feet from Qi Nian¡¯s face.


    Qi Nian furrowed his brows slightly.


    The iron arrow fell from the air.


    Without waiting for the metal arrow to fall, Ning Que released the third arrow.


    Qi Nian could no longer defend with just meditation. He brought his hands, that were in the kapok kasaya, together as two residual shadows followed. He ced them together in front of his chest.


    The invisible gate, which was formed and brought about by the Qi of Heaven and Earth from the Buddhist aura, closed even more tightly.


    The iron arrow shot into the invisible aura gate.


    A visible ripple appeared in the air in front of the hall. It then dispersed to all sides in a circr fashion.


    The metal arrow was at the center of those ripples.


    Every ripple was another impact.


    Qi Nian¡¯s face, which was as tough as stone, changed color: it turned pale, then slighty red and pale again. It changed 4 times in an instant, which was exactly the same number of times as there were ripples in the space in front of him.


    Ning Que released the fourth arrow.


    This metal arrow was so urate that it shot into the tail end of the third arrow.


    The two arrows collided and produced a clear metallic nging noise.


    This metal arrow was just like the incredibly heavy metal hammer in Sixth Brother¡¯s hands. Itnded heavily on the nock, forcefully pushing the third arrow further through the air in front of Qi Nian.


    Qi Nian¡¯s heart trembled.


    He raised his heel as the old kapok kasaya drifted in the wind, surging back at least thirty feet.


    His straw sandals rubbed hard against the bluestone floor, braking apart and leaving behind thirty feet long straw shred streaks.


    At this moment, Ning Que¡¯s second arrownded on the ground, producing a nging sound.


    Together with the noise, Qi Nian¡¯s calm heart was disrupted. Fresh blood spurted out from the corner of his mouth.


    Even the Buddhism Sect World Wayfarer was hurt by the Primordial Thirteen Arrows!


    Witnessing this scene, people in the temple were stunned and speechless.


    Qi Nian looked quietly at Ning Que with a heavy expression. His eyes becameplicated.


    A little pity, a little regret, a little sadness.


    Ning Que had no idea what this monk was thinking.


    He only wanted to kill this monk.


    So he continued shooting without any hesitation. He prepared the fifth arrow.


    Just as he strung his arrow.


    Qi Nian began his meditation again.


    This time, however, he wasn¡¯t defending but rather ¨C attacking.


    A merciful attack was still an attack.


    This was the first time Qi Nian really did something today.


    The figure of Buddha appeared before Ning Que.


    He knew this was his own spiritual world.


    Qi Nian¡¯s meditation hade into his sea of knowledge.


    Ning Que knew how mighty his psyche powers were and hence, even though he knew that this Buddha was created by Qi Nian¡¯s incredible natural meditation, he wasn¡¯t afraid.


    He intended to use his own psyche powers to crush this meditation, which the other party had sent over, dealing a heavy blow to him and even prepared to retaliate with his own psyche.


    However, the next moment, he suddenly realized he had lost all desire to battle.


    It¡¯s not that he lost the will to battle, but rather ¨C the desire to battle.


    Under that golden light and the Buddha that was filled with calm,passionate aura ¨C not only his desire to battle ¨C all negative emotions like violence andpetition seemed to have disappeared.


    Looking at the Buddha that was sitting between heaven and earth in front of him, Ning Que was calm ¨C he didn¡¯t have any desire to fight.


    There was a vague sound by his ears.


    ¡°Set aside the cleaver and embrace Buddhism.¡±


    Ning Que had told Master Boshu previously in the hall that he didn¡¯t believe in Buddha.


    There were people who had read Buddhist scriptures in the Academy and even Senior Brothers who had practiced Buddhism. However, if one were to really look closely, there wasn¡¯t a single person at the back of the mountain who believed in Buddhism. In fact, no one respected the Buddhism Sect.


    Such ingrained thoughts started from Youngest Uncle and were spread by Second Brother.


    Ning Que followed Youngest Uncle¡¯s example, looked up to Second Brother and inherited the legacy of Master Lotus, who saw the Buddhism Sect as a tortoise. Hence, even though he studied Buddhism in the Lanke Temple, practiced the true Emblematic Gesture and was moved by Master Qishan, he still didn¡¯t believe in Buddhism and had a contemptuous attitude towards it.


    Even if a real Buddha were to appear before him, he would shoot and sh at it. What¡¯s more, this Buddha in front of him was just an image ¨C a fake.


    In this world, everything was founded on faith.


    Not believing is breaking this foundation.


    Ning Que turned back and looked at Sangsang who was lying weakly against his shoulders.


    If there was a true Buddha, this is the true Buddha.


    He then looked at his hands.


    He wasn¡¯t holding a cleaver but a metal bow instead.


    Hence he stood straight and drew his bow again.


    In the depths of the world.


    Master Lotus could be vaguely heardughing.


    In front of the metal arrow, the majestic figure of Buddha disappeared.


    Only a moment had passed in Lanke Temple.


    Though Ning Que had paused slightly, he still loosed the fifth arrow.


    Qi Nian had a slightly unusual expression. He remembered that all the disciples in the Academy were crazy and had no faith, and couldn¡¯t help but sigh.


    Ning Que¡¯s fifth arrowcked a sharp arrowhead. Instead it had a little iron pot.


    In the autumn rain at the front of Red Lotus Temple, the little iron pots were overused.


    Previously, in the hall, to deal with Master Boshu, he had used one of them.


    This was thest one.


    The air whirled and thundered.


    Monks on the stone terrace at the back of the temple were struck by the waves but still maintained a perfect posture, as they kept reading the scriptures.


    The front beam of the temple was struck again and with a sizzling sound, and showed signs of copsing.


    The thick invisible gate in the air was finally destroyed.


    Countless sharp metal tes whistled as they swept past Qi Nian¡¯s body.


    The worn kapok kasaya became increasingly worn out.


    Countless wounds appeared on Qi Nian¡¯s body and fresh blood spewed out.


    However, he still looked just as calm and resolute.


    Ning Que pulled back the bowstring again. His hands started trembling, but his voice was steady as he said, ¡°I do not believe in evil and, naturally, I do not believe in Buddhism. If you do not want to show your true prowess, then I want to try shooting you till you die.¡±


    At this moment, a bell sound was heard from the back of the horse carriage.


    Master Boshu, who had lost an arm, knelt with much difficulty in a pool of his own blood. His fingers had touched the Yuean Bell.


    The bell sound rang throughout Lanke Temple.


    Light of Buddha that came from the peak of Wa Mountain became increasingly thick as itnded on the ck horse carriage.


    Inside the horse carriage, the Big ck Umbre became thinner as the ribs of the umbre started shaking, giving out a ttering noise.


    Under the might of supreme Buddha, it was the first time the big ck umbre showed fear.


    Sangsang spat blood out again.


    Ning Que¡¯s face turned pale as he suddenly turned around and shot an arrow into the hall.


    However, this arrownded on Qi Nian!


    Qi Nian had entered the temple unknowingly.


    He sat on his knees in front of Master Boshu. His gaze was droopy and his expression merciful.


    The darkish iron arrow had pierced deeply into his chest.


    The arrow¡¯s shaft was still vibrating, giving off a humming sound.


    Qi Nian¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change, almost as if he couldn¡¯t feel the pain.


    What was more puzzling was that the powerful Primordial Thirteen Arrow couldn¡¯t shoot through the monk¡¯s body!


    ¡°Ac power!¡±


    Master Qishan leaned in monk Guan Hai¡¯s embrace as he looked at the iron arrow in Qi Nian¡¯s chest, looking incredibly weak, his gaze was incredibly shocked as he said, ¡°Ning Que, he has the powers of Ac... give up.¡±


    Qi Nian raised his head and looked quietly at Ning Que, shaking his head.


    He hadn¡¯t said a word but Ning Que understood him.


    ¡°You are much stronger than the rumors, but you can¡¯t kill me.¡±


    Master Boshu sat in the pool of blood, his face was pale but determined as he used his remaining arm to continuously ring the bronze bell.


    The Light of Buddha erupted, Ning Que carried Sangsang on his back as she continued puking blood, she had almost puked out all the fresh blood in her. The blood that came out now was ck and as thick as ink.


    Ning Que strung his bow and aimed at Boshu. His face was pale, his fingers were trembling and his tight lips quivered along with the bowstring that was touching them. It drew a thin cut on his lip.


    Between him and Boshu, there was a monk named Qi Nian who sat with his legs crossed.


    Having just entered the Knowing Destiny State, he was able to force the World Wayfarer of the Buddhism Sect into such a state ¨C force him to use his powers at the expense of damaging the Buddha¡¯s heart. It was something to be proud of. From a certain perspective, today¡¯s battle had finally proved that the Academy had won the battle ¨C he didn¡¯t bring shame to the Academy.


    But if the results cannot change, then what was the point of everything?

 Chapter 592 - Tendrils

    <h4>Chapter 592: Tendrils</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    As Buddha¡¯s spirit continued to stream into the Yuean Bell, Master Boshu¡¯s pupils grew darker and darker. He spat out a mouthful of blood and could no longer shake the bell. He ced the bell in a pool of blood beside his severed arm.


    The crisp ringing of the bell disappeared, but Buddha¡¯s power remained. The 17 bells scattered around the Lanke Temple continued to ring and the Light of Buddha continued to shine on the ck horse carriage.


    Sangsang¡¯s face grew paler, and her brows were tightly knit. It was evident that she was in great pain as a stream of ck-colored blood flowed from her lips and sttered on her chest.


    Ning Que was certain that even if Sangsang weren¡¯t ill and could fight together with him and Mo Shanshan, they would still be unable to defeat Qi Nian. That was why he could not understand why Qi Nian had attempted to kill them.


    ¡°You can kill us now, allowing us to die quickly.¡±


    He looked at Qi Nian and said.


    Qi Nian shook his head slowly and looked at the Light of Buddha shining upon the ck horse carriage.


    Ning Que understood his intent. It was not him who wanted to kill Sangsang, but Buddha.


    ¡°Doesn¡¯t Buddha think that this is cruel?¡±


    Ning Que looked toward the distant peak of Tile Mountain where the stone statue of Buddha sat in the clouds.


    Master Boshu who was sitting in a pool of blood chanted a Buddhist chant. He said, pale-facedly, ¡°Cruelty is also benevolence.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The benevolence of others is an act of cruelty to us?¡±


    ¡°Hypocrites.¡±


    On the back temple of Lanke, two voices suddenly rang. They said the exact same word. And when the two voices rose, the bells responded, as if they were shocked.


    Ye Su was wearing a thin shirt and carrying a sword; Tang wore a leather robe and an indifferent expression as he calmly walked out from a pile of stones in front of the temple. Not a single monk dared to stop them.


    Ye Su reached the stone steps before the temple and looked at Master Boshu. He said, ¡°Killing is killing. If Buddha kills someone, it is also killing. Where does the benevolencee from? The Buddhism Sect is indeed not Taoist. It has lost the true heart of it.¡±


    Qi Nian did not seem to be surprised at the appearance of Tang and Ye Su. He was just as calm as before.


    Cheng Lixue emerged from the corridor and knelt before Ye Su.


    Ye Su did not even look at him; he stared at the ck horse carriage instead. He looked at the girl Ning Que carried on his back and his expression turned odd, ¡°It is indeed transparent.¡±


    Master Boshu knew who he was, so he smiled with difficulty and said, ¡°Since Buddha is a hypocrite, Mr. Ye can do the killing.¡±


    Ye Su shook his head and said, ¡°You monks do not dare to act and only hope that the Light of Buddha will descend upon earth to kill Yama¡¯s Daughter. You are all concerned that if you killed Ning Que, you cannot ount for it when facing the Academy.¡±


    Master Boshu pressed his left hand to his right shoulder where his arm had been cut. A smile appeared on his pale face as he said, ¡°The Buddhism Sect has always remained silent and tolerant. Indeed, we do not wish to offend the Academy. Could the Haotian Taoism Sect be afraid of the Academy as well?¡±


    Ye Su answered, ¡°This is Haotian¡¯s world, and the Haotian Taoism rules the world. What is there to be afraid of? It is just... if the Buddhism Sect can use benevolence as a shameless excuse, then I can have my own reasons not to act.¡±


    Master Boshu asked, ¡°May I ask for the reason, Mr. Ye?¡±


    Ye Su nced at Ning Que and said, ¡°My younger sister is close to him.¡±


    Master Boshu had not expected the proud and cold World Wayfarer of Haotian Taoism would learn such methods from him. He paused and said, ¡°It is indeed a good reason.¡±


    Then, the master looked at the strong man in leather clothes and said, ¡°Why has the Devil Doctrine¡¯s Wayfarere?¡±


    Tang said expressionlessly, ¡°I¡¯vee to watch.¡±


    Master Boshu asked, ¡°Watch what?¡±


    Tang answered, ¡°I¡¯vee to watch how you people of the Central ins kill.¡±


    Master Boshu said with a smile, ¡°Even though the Devil¡¯s Doctrine has been shunned, it is still a part of this world. You were still willing toe before the world is destroyed, so I¡¯m sure you wanted to y a part. So why don¡¯t you do it? If you kill the Daughter of Yama, I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll be a Buddha immediately.¡±


    Tang nced at Ning Que and said, ¡°I have to kill Ning Que if I want to kill Yama¡¯s Daughter. But my younger sister is close to him, too. Furthermore, I have heard that my younger sister has an even better rtionship with the Daughter of Yama.¡±


    Master Boshu sighed and said, ¡°Then why have youe?¡±


    ¡°Because they are all hypocrites. Even though they want to kill Sangsang, they do not wish to kill me and offend the Academy. Even though they are the World Wayfarers of Taoism and Diabolism, they are still afraid of the Academy,¡±


    Ning Que said from the ck horse carriage. He looked at Ye Su and asked, ¡°How does Haotian Taoism view this matter?¡±


    Ye Su shook his head and said, ¡°I do not know.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Do you believe in it?¡±


    Ye Su looked at the bright Light of Buddha above the ck horse carriage and answered, ¡°I have to believe in it.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think that this is really weird?¡±


    Ning Que looked into his eyes and asked, ¡°The Buddhism Sect discovered the daughter of Yama, but Haotian Taoism seemed not to know anything about it. Even if the West-Hill Divine Pce was not powerful enough to know, what about Zhishou Abbey? Furthermore, don¡¯t forget, Sangsang is the Lady of Light of Haotian Taoism. How did she suddenly be the Daughter of Yama?¡±


    He said these very quickly and clearly, without extreme fluctuations in his emotions. However, those who heard him all understood his intentions and had to consider the intent behind his words.


    Ye Su thought about it and shook his head, saying, ¡°I don¡¯t understand.¡±


    Ning Que did not give up. He looked at Tang and asked, ¡°How has the Academy treated you guys?¡±


    Tang replied, ¡°If we discount the fact that Mr. Ke tried to vanquish the Enlightenment Doctrine, the Academy has treated us rather well.¡±


    Ning Que smiled helplessly and then continued, ¡°The Enlightenment Doctrine worships Yama.¡±


    Tang looked at Sangsang who was behind him. After a slight pause, he said, ¡°Worshiping does not mean believing. Often times, it¡¯s fear.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°So none of you will help me.¡±


    Tang said, ¡°I won¡¯t help them either.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°If the mute cannot stop you, I will still act on it.¡±


    Ning Que rxed when he heard Ye Su and Tang¡¯s replies. He loosened the hold on his iron bow and untied the string. He cradled Sangsang to his chest and held up the big ck umbre, sitting under the Light of Buddha.


    An abbey, a temple, a sect, the Second floor.


    There were four Unknown ces in this world, and four World Wayfarers. They were gathered in the Lanke Temple today, and Ning Que was, undoubtedly, the weakest amongst them.


    In this situation, even if he gained the battle intent of his Youngest Uncle, he would not be able to escape with Sangsang. That was why he rxed and hugged Sangsang, holding the big ck umbre... Even though he knew that the big ck umbre might notst for too long, he could only wait silently for a change to ur.


    It was then, when Elder Qishan slowly stood up and walked to the front of the temple with the help of monk Guan Hai.


    The Elder¡¯s position in the cultivation world was very high. He was of equal status as the abbey dean of Zhishou Abbey and they considered each other friends. That was why both Ye Su and Tang had to turn slightly as a show of respect.


    Master Qishan ignored the two powerful World Wayfarers. He stared at Qi Nian with several contrasting feelings, and said, ¡°So this was all nned by you.¡±


    Qi Nian did not speak, his expression was serene.


    Master Qishan swayed, and he seemed to grow even older. He said sadly, ¡°You made an agreement with Mr. First to heal the Daughter of Yama. That is why things were unfolding favorably. But who would have thought that a disciple of Buddha would break his promise!¡±


    ¡°No wonder Boshu could take the cleansing bell with him from the Xuankong Temple, and no wonder there were so many people here at Lanke Temple today. No wonder everyone knew the girl was the Daughter of Yama within seconds.¡±


    ¡°I could have healed her,¡± Master Qishan sadly said, as he looked at Qi Nian. ¡°And you promised Mr. First to allow me to treat her. But in the end, you could not give up your obsessions and had to kill her. But have you considered that you could trick everyone before you started lying? When you began your lies, how did you manage to lie to Mr. First?¡±


    Ye Su listened to the bells in the Lanke Temple and he looked at the Buddhist big tactical array above the temple, deep in thought.


    He turned around to look at Qi Nian, saying, ¡°How could this be exined with a mere obsession? All of this started during that conversation you had with Mr. First in Chang¡¯an,st winter in the forest by theke, right?¡±


    Qi Nian did not speak.


    ¡°While Mr. First appears to be slow, he is extremely intelligent and can predict what will happen. Therefore, you plotted but did not act sincest winter, until Ning Que and the girl came to the Lanke temple. What you wanted was the Light of Buddha and this big tactical array, because you knew that even if Mr. First discovers any changes now, he wouldn¡¯t be able to enter the temple to stop you.¡±


    Ye Su looked at Qi Nian and slowly shook his head. It was unclear whether he was praising him or pitying him. He said, ¡°I did not expect that another great schemer would appear in the Buddhism Sect after Lotus. It is such a pity, indeed worthy of respect as well.¡±


    In the south of Chang¡¯an, at the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain.


    Clouds floated before the precipice and the frigid autumn winds soared up the cliff. Before the precipice, the stream of clouds shattered, and the autumn winds moved by the cliffs. The dried wisteria fruit that had not yet fallen shook in the winds, looking like the copper bell suspended from the roof of the Buddhist temple.


    The Headmaster who was dressed in ck from head to toe sat at the edge of the cliff. He looked in the southeast direction and said, ¡°Something is happening there.¡±


    Eldest Brother had apanied his teacher to the back cliff to brew wine today. He was making preparations when he heard these words and could not help but shiver. Today was the exact day of the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival; his Youngest Brother and Miss Sangsang were at the Lanke Temple.


    The autumn breeze caressed his shirt, and the Headmaster stood up.


    Eldest Brother knelt behind the Headmaster and muttered something anxiously. Then, he said, ¡°All that has happened was due to my ignorance and stupidity. I will bring Youngest Brother back.¡±


    With that, the winds on the cliff started again.


    The Headmaster looked into the distance and said softly, ¡°I have always been a coward. I wavered between two sides because I did not understand some things. Because of the unrest, I did not wish to be entangled in the fate of that girl. Slowly, it was because of a girl that you vited nature, and now, you are forcing me to not act. I assume you have seen the shadow?¡±


    Eldest Brother had already disappeared from the cliff tform. The Headmaster felt a little lonely.


    He turned around to look at the purple wisteria hanging in the corridor with the tangled tendrils and suddenly smiled. He said, ¡°However, have they not been tangled together long ago?¡±

 Chapter 593 - The Wind in Lanke Temple

    <h4>Chapter 593: The Wind in Lanke Temple</h4>


    <strong>Trantor:</strong> Transn <strong>Editor:</strong> Transn


    There was no wind in Chang¡¯an today.


    On the towering wall, a g fluttered listlessly. Suddenly, the g perked up and danced, telling the people of the country that something was about to happen.


    In the hawk¡¯s nest between the bluestone and the city walls, an eagle was feeding its young. It suddenly felt a terrifying aura and fluffed up, looking at the skies in fear. However, it did not see anything other than the autumn clouds.


    In the verdant valley south of the Tang Empire, a lone horse carriage traveled on the state highway. Suddenly, dozens of circr pieces of gravel on the path started rolling around, startling the horse.


    Passing through the canyon and across the bridge at Qinghe County, a gale started at the wide and boundless Great Lake. The white autumn reeds in the water fell, as if surrendering to certain forces.


    The priest in the Taoist temple at the Kingdom of Qi¡¯s capital stood by the stone window and looked at the white line across the blue autumn sky. His wrinkles were filled with horror and he prayed silently.


    In the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom, at the bottom of the dark hollow belly of the mountain, just beside a small quietke was an ordinary straw cottage. The most powerful man in the world stood before it. He raised his head slowly and looked at the sky. The sword inside the straw cottage started to buzz and vibrate.


    In the distant southern sea, on the edge of a volcanic ind tumbling with magma, the waves kept sshing against the ck rocks on the shore. The hazy figure of a Taoist in indigo appeared between the waves and the rocks. He looked at thend in the distance and shook his head.


    There weren¡¯t any winds in the world, but the wind started in Chang¡¯an. It drew a straight line between the heavens and the earth, with the line crossing the Tile mountain in the southeast and across several scenic spots in the Kingdom of Qi.


    In the remote mountain path, two horses trudged forth slowly. A man with a high crown sat on the horse in front, and a little child attendant carrying a sword sat on the horse behind.


    ...


    ...


    The wind arrived at Lanke Temple.


    The looming Light of Buddha¡¯s tactical array sensed the approaching winds and immediately reacted. The pale golden Light of Buddha formed a semicircr dome, covering the entire ancient temple.


    The yellow-garbed monks in the temple sat with their knees crossed and meditated with their eyes closed. They chanted scriptures as the 17 ancient bells chimed in the distance.


    The wind approached the Lanke Temple but was stopped by the Light of Buddha¡¯s tactical array. The first collision urred.


    There was a loud boom! It was like Haotian waving a divine hammer dancing through the lightning and dark clouds, hammering on the golden dome of light covering the Temple!


    The terrifying force reverberated in the Lanke Temple. Several yellow-d monks protecting and supporting the tactical array made up by the Light of Buddha spat out blood with the sound. The courtyard was filled with blood stters.


    The sound of this collision was too loud, and even the sounds of the distant bells were buried under. The collision caused the cultivators in the temple to cover their ears and scream. They fell to the ground and could not get back up.


    This was the Lanke Temple¡¯s Light of Buddha tactical array. The stone Buddha statue on Tile mountain was the basis of this array, and the spirit of Buddha in the ancient temple supported it. It was guarded by dozens of yellow-d monks who had high cultivation states and was presided by the World Wayfarer of the Buddhism Sect, Qi Nian. However, under the collision of the aura, it showed signs of failing. How strong was that aura? It even made one feel as if it should not exist in this world!


    What frightened those in the temple even more was that after the person was stopped by the Light of Buddha¡¯s tactical array, the person did not give any signs of stopping. He continued to rush toward the temple!


    The dozens of collisions caused a whirling cesspool of aura to appear almost simultaneously above the Light. The Light of Buddha¡¯s tactical array was attacked multiple times in a short period like iron pieces that were constantly struck by an iron hammer, deformed and twisted. It was at risk of breaking down!


    The cultivators in the temple knelt on the ground and covered their ears in pain. Some of them who had lower cultivations could not withstand the attack and began to vomit.


    The yellow-garbed monks were directly hurt by the impact. Some of them began to bleed from their eyes. However, they continued to chant the scriptures. Their voices grew hoarse as if they were crying and yelling.


    Ye Su¡¯s expression remained serene. He looked up at the struggling aura above the dome of Buddha¡¯s Light. He thought to himself silently about how highly he regarded that person, but the person was stronger than he had imagined.


    Tang looked up at the sky as well. He looked at the white falling fragments caused by the impact on the dome of Light and was brought back to the first time he saw the man in the Wilderness. He could not reconcile the image of the slow man beside the ox cart who had a gentle and respectful expression with what he was seeing.


    Qi Nian¡¯s expression had turned grave. However, he was the only person in the temple who had retained hisposure. He had known long ago that he could not hide this from that person and he woulde sooner orter.


    Everyone knew of the World Wayfarers. But they did not know that to him, Ye Su and Tang, there existed only one man who was important to them. It was just that they had never seen the man strike out over the years and did not know what state he had reached. Today, Qi Nian could finally see it for himself, and while he was respectful and frightened, he remained extremely confident.


    The Buddhism Sect had prepared a long time for this. They were well prepared for various situations. No matter how strong that person was, he was but just one person. And he was a good man.


    Qi Nian lifted his arm and flicked his finger with a serene expression. A pure Buddha¡¯s auraunched into the air andnded on an ancient bell beside a plum tree at an inconspicuous corner of the temple. The bell rang once more.


    The 17 bells rang again and the stone Buddha statue at the peak of Tile mountain emitted even more Buddha¡¯s Light.


    The Light of Buddha shone on the yellow-clothed monks on the stone floors. They regained consciousness again. Then, without wiping the blood off their faces, they sat down firmly and closed their eyes once more. No matter how much the ground shook, how much they bled from their orifices or how much pain their physical body was in, they remained in meditation and continued chanting the Ac scripture.


    ¡°The chant goes, ¡®Like Man holding oil bowls. If one does not move, one does not abandon.¡¯¡±


    ¡°The chant goes, ¡®Wisdom like the sea, concentrating on moving forth.¡¯¡±


    ¡°The chant goes, ¡®Have will and do not give up. You are in charge of your own destiny.¡¯¡±


    The monks¡¯ robes fluttered in the air as they chanted.


    The yellow-garbed monks chanted without stopping and their voices merged, seemingly getting louder and brighter. A sense of devout martyrdom was gradually spreading in the monastery.


    Under the constant attack, the Light of Buddha¡¯s tactical array looked as if it was about to copse. However, with the chanting and infusion of Buddha¡¯s Light, the tactical array stabilized.


    Under the big ck umbre, Ning Que looked up at the dome epassing the Lanke Temple. He looked at the turbulence above the dome expressionlessly. However, his eyes suddenly grew bright.


    He looked at Sangsang, who was on the brink of death, lying in his arms. He reached out to wipe off the ck blood at the corner of her lips with his sleeve and said, ¡°Senior Brother is here. Hang on for a while longer and we will be able to get out.¡±


    Sangsang opened her eyes with difficulty and asked feebly, ¡°Which Senior Brother is it?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°It¡¯s Eldest Brother.¡±


    Ning Que had never doubted the Academy and firmly believed that his Senior Brother woulde to save them since Sangsang was revealed to be the Daughter of Yama. However, he just wasn¡¯t sure whether it would be Eldest Brother or Second Brother who woulde.


    Since the person outside Lanke Temple hade so quickly, it must be Eldest Brother.


    Having heard that it was Eldest Brother, Sangsang smiled happily with some difficulty. She would feel grateful if it had been Second Brother because he had always doted on her. But she knew that Eldest Brother had never really liked her.


    Ning Que looked at the stone-paved circle outside the horse carriage before the temple. He looked at the determined yellow-garbed monks and knew that they would not be able to stop Eldest Brother even if they paid with their lives.


    ¡°My Senior Brother is here. What do you n to do?¡± He asked Qi Nian.


    Qi Nian looked at the Light of Buddha¡¯s tactical array above his head and did not answer Ning Que.


    ¡°If Buddha wanted to exorcise those who do not belong in this world, then not even the Headmaster can stop it. Furthermore, the Buddhism Sect intends to exorcise Yama¡¯s Daughter, not Mr. Thirteen. Even if Mr. First breaks through the array, what can he do to us other than getting you out of here?¡±


    Master Boshu smiled with difficulty.


    Qi Nian suddenly nced at Ye Su.


    Ye Su said, ¡°Indeed, he isn¡¯t the strongest in our generation. But just like what the chief monk has said, he is gentle and has never killed anyone. That is why he is not dangerous and is easy to cheat. Even if you lie to him, he would be the only one to bear the pain and would not do anything to the other person.¡±


    He looked at Qi Nian and said, ¡°16 years ago, you ate your own tongue. After that, no one in the world knew what you were thinking about, including the Headmaster. From what we see today, you have been thinking about a lot of things, and you have predicted his disposition and state very urately.¡±


    ¡°It is said that before he entered the Academy, he lived in a small town. There was a stone pool before his house where he kept fishes. Then, those fishes were eaten by his neighbors. When he went to ask them, his neighbors told him that the fishes swam away by themselves and he believed them. He looked at the pool of water andmented, ¡°Fish, oh fish, how did you disappear after swimming away?¡±


    Ye Su looked at Qi Nian and said, ¡°You are the fish-stealing neighbor. Perhaps this is what cheating a gentleman means. However, have you ever heard of the Academy¡¯s Eldest Brother ever being so angry?¡±


    With that, he sighed. His sleeves slid down as he raised his palm up toward the sky. An exquisite Haotian Taoism aura entered the Light of Buddha¡¯s tactical array above the temple.


    Several monks were sprawled out in front of the Lanke Temple. They stared at the schr below the stone steps.


    The schr wore a tattered robe and had a book jammed at his waist. He carried a wooden dipper at his waist and was covered in dust. However, he seemed extremely clean, inside and out.


    The schr lowered his head slightly, and one could vaguely make out the paleness of his face. Traces of blood appeared on his body as several cuts appeared on his tattered robes. Cotton fell out from its seams.


    The schr had not moved since he appeared in front of the Lanke Temple. He stood quietly under the stone steps in the same position. Only when the autumn breeze asionally whipped around his clothes, lifting them up, could one see that he was moving on the spot. However, he was moving so quickly that nobody noticed.


    Several swirling white flowers appeared around the Light of Buddha¡¯s tactical array. Each flower was the result of a collision between the schr and the entire Buddhist Sect. With the numerous impacts against the light, the temple became more and more disturbed and seemed to be on the brink of copse. However, the dust on the schr also decreased and he seemed to be cleaner.

 Chapter 594 - Tearing Through the Array!

    <h4>Chapter 594: Tearing Through the Array!</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Sixteen years ago, in the manor of the Official of Counsel in Chang¡¯an, the beloved concubine gave birth to a tanned baby girl. The mistress of the manor determined that the child was of the devil. Not far away in a woodshed, Ning Que picked up a cleaver and began to kill.


    In the faraway northern Wilderness, a ck ditch appeared. Haotian Taoism youth Ye Su, young man Tang of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, as well as the young monk ¨C Qi Nian ¨C all watched the ants move their home under a tree beyond the ck line. They watched warily, for a long while, not daring to move forward. And, on the other side of that ck line, a schr was reading by the pond. He would rest when he was tired, and, during his break, he would take off the wooden dipper hung at his waist to get drinking water. His body was filthy, but he was peaceful and happy.


    Sixteen yearster, Ning Que no longer used a chopper to kill people ¨C he had gotten used to using his iron bow and arrows. Sangsang was still tan, but her face had be extraordinarily pale. She weaklyid in Ning Que¡¯s embrace and watched the Big ck Umbre growing thinner under the Light of Buddha, waiting for the final moment toe.


    The once-youths have all grown up to be the most powerful existences in the cultivation world. Ye Su grew less arrogant and indifferent. Tang did not seem to have changed. Qi Nian changed the most of them all. He had not spoken for many years. It was as if he had really be mute. And the schr stood beneath the steps outside Lanke Temple, his robes fluttering. The wooden dipper tied to his waist, swaying. Dust seemed to float away from him, and his expression was serene.


    They had once gotten together because of Son of Yama¡¯sing. And, sixteen yearster, those who had gotten together, without being aware, were once again gathered because of Daughter of Yama¡¯s awakening. The passage of time and changes in the world were oftenmentable.


    Orderly chanting reverberated throughout the courtyards of Lanke Temple. Yellow-garbed monks on the stone tform were covered in blood, but still seemed benevolent beyondpare. Their voices were long-since hoarse, and sounded more like crying, however, still ¨C very solemn.


    The Light of Buddha tactical array managed to miraculously withstand the intense attack from Academy¡¯s Eldest Brother. The tactical array grew even more stable after Ye Su raised his right hand and infused Haotian Taoism aura into it.


    Qi Nian looked down towards the direction of the temple gate at the foot of the mountain with a firm and determined gaze. His expression grew more and more serene, as he knew that his n was about to seed. The world could finally get rid of the terrifying prospect of destruction.


    Even though he could not see what was happening outside Lanke Temple, Ning Que knew that Eldest Brother had tried his best. However, as he watched more and more Light of Buddha streaming through the thinning Big ck Umbre and looked at Sangsang in his arms, who looked ever closer to death, he could not help but feel anxious and even desperate.


    If Eldest Brother could not break through Lanke Temple¡¯s Light of Buddha tactical array before the Big ck Umbre was destroyed, then Sangsang would be cleansed by the light and turned into smoke.


    Ning Que had never felt hopelessness. If he were the only one facing danger, then he would tell himself, ¡®What¡¯s the point of feeling hopeless if you¡¯re about to die?¡¯ However, if it was Sangsang who was in danger of dying, he could not stop himself from feeling hopelessness. Because if Sangsang were to die ¨C and he were to live ¨C that would be true agony.


    Then, the tired, old voice rang in his ears once more. He had heard this voice earlier in the temple before Master Boshu rang the Yuean Bell.


    ¡°If Mr. First cannot break through the array and Big ck Umbre can¡¯t withstand, take Sangsang and rush toward me. If Mr. First breaks through the array, no matter how much Qi Nian and Ye Su fears the Academy, they will still choose to kill you and Sangsang. That is why you have to rush toward me when the timees.¡±


    Master Qishan was being helped up by Guan Hai. He leaned against the shattered stone steps. His head was lowered and he panted painfully. No one noticed his lips moving.


    Ning Que guessed that it was master¡¯s secret method, which allowed only him to hear. He was a bit touched but did not turn around to look. He merely nced from the corner of his eye to see Master¡¯s withered handnding on the chessboard.


    That was the chessboard left by Buddha.


    Master Qishan¡¯s voice rang again.


    ¡°Find a way to lessen the Light of Buddhaing from the peak of Tile Mountain, then, I will activate the chessboard and allow you two to hide inside. As long as you can sessfully enter, not even abbey dean or Chief Preaching Monk can destroy the chessboard left by Buddha. When Mr. First enters the temple, I will have Guan Hai give it to him and take the board back to the Academy. I trust that Headmaster would be able to find a way to release you.¡±


    Lanke Temple was facing the strongest opponent in its history ¨C Mr. First of the Academy. His cultivation state was even higher than that of Lotus. While Ning Que was the wayfarer of the Academy, had risen through the states extremely quickly and had even injured Qi Nain ¨C he was not as strong as these truly powerful World Wayfarers. Meanwhile, Sangsang was still unconscious. She had been subdued by the Light of Buddha and was currently at her weakest. That was why the monks in the temple, Qi Nian and everyone else had ced their energies at the temple gates and did not notice his change in expression.


    Ning Que was so nervous that he did not notice the details in Master¡¯s words. The master said that he would have Guan Hai give the chessboard to Eldest Brother and count on the Headmaster to solve it.


    ¡°Ning Que, I only hope that no matter what you encounter in the future, you will not be a second Lotus. You can be Mr. Ke or anyone else, but do not be like Younger Brother Lotus, because that is too painful.¡±


    Master Qishan¡¯s sorrowful, regretful voice reverberated in Ning Que¡¯s mind.


    After a moment of silence, Ning Que lowered his head slightly.


    Suddenly,


    the three halls ¨C front, middle and back ¨C of Lanke Temple shook violently. Several plum trees suddenly shattered and countless walls were reduced to pieces. The seventeen ancient bells stopped and the Light of Buddha tactical array was broken!


    Someone had barged through the temple doors. Wherever the person passed, monks were tossed into the air. Several cultivators puked blood and flew up at least a hundred feet into the air. Several Buddha statues were thrown into the air as well.


    Neither those in front nor behind the temple could see what was happening beneath the mountain. They only saw approaching billowing smoke. Everything the smoke could reach got tossed into the air.


    A trace of shock crossed Qi Nian¡¯s eyes.


    Ye Su¡¯s expression was unusually grave.


    Tang, who had remained silent all this time, suddenly looked up. His eyes were burning with fighting spirit.


    The Light of Buddha tactical array could not be broken even by Mr. First of the Academy. So who was it?


    Earlier, at an unspecified time and location in the Kingdom of Qi.


    This was the most famous scenic spot in the area, but this section of the mountain path was very remote and people rarely came here. The sounds the extraordinarily white horses made while walking were especially clear.


    Second Brother Jun Mo sat on the white horse, poised and elegant. However, he seemed a little stiff, as he kept his upper body straight no matter how the horse rocked.


    The little servant rode on the white horse at the back. He looked extremely adorable riding the tall horse. He looked up towards the front and curiously asked in a childish voice, ¡°Young master, why have we suddenlye down from the mountain?¡±


    Second Brother said, ¡°Teacher told me a few days ago that Senior Brother wanted to lie to Youngest Brother and Sangsang, and have them seek treatment at Lanke Temple. But I think that Senior Brother and Qi Shan are both too honest and do not know how to lie. So I¡¯m worried that Youngest Brother might see through them and run away with Sangsang. That is why I have to guard at the foot of the mountain and be prepared to capture them.¡±


    The little servant thought to himself that while Mr. First and Master Qishan were too honest and did not know how to lie, his young master was not any better off. What right did he have to say that of the other two people?


    ¡°Then how long do we have to stay here for?¡±


    Second Brother said, ¡°If the old monk Qi Shan isn¡¯t as talktive or boastful as the other bald guys, then we¡¯d have to stay around for three months. Sangsang should be healed by then.¡±


    After a momentary pause, he continued, ¡°If they were really going to enter the chessboard, Youngest Brother would definitely follow. Then, we¡¯d have to wait for two years or bring the chessboard back to the Academy. However, even if the old monk Qishan were better than the other bald guys, I suppose he must still be greedy. I¡¯m afraid he won¡¯t let us take the chessboard away.¡±


    The little servant asked bewilderedly, ¡°Then do we really have to guard here for two years?¡±


    Second Brother said sternly, ¡°Jia Lun, reading ten thousand books is much better than traveling ten thousand miles. This mountain is the neighboring mountain to Tile Mountain. Even though it cannot bepared to Tile Mountain, the scenery here is good. Admiring this scenery and cleansing your heart as you travel with me for these two years will aid in your cultivation. You might even be able to travel a thousand miles then.¡±


    The little servant sighed helplessly and thought that it was alright if they had to travel ten thousand miles. But circling the same mountain every day and looking at the same scenery was unbearable for anyone other than his young master.


    Then, there was a sudden gust of wind.


    Second Brother looked up with his brows slightly furrowed. He suddenly felt something and paled before angrily yelling, ¡°Damn it!¡±


    He waved his hand to beckon the servant.


    The box containing his sword flew towards him from the little servant¡¯s cradle.


    Second Brother stepped on the horse¡¯s back lightly, his wide sleeves fluttering, andnded in the forest by the mountain path.


    The little servant yelled urgently, ¡°Master, that¡¯s not the main path to Lanke Temple!¡±


    ¡°The straightest road is the closest, and the closest road is the main road...¡±


    Second Brother¡¯s voice could be heard from the forest as it grew fainter and fainter.


    When the words ¡®main road¡¯ reached the little servant, Second Brother was already nowhere to be found.


    Eldest Brother looked at Lanke Temple before him.


    Countlesscerations had already been visible through his cotton robe. The cut up cotton was tinged with blood.


    He had, in a short period of time, collided with the Light of Buddha tactical array of Lanke Temple thousands of times. The tactical array flickered, but he was also greatly injured.


    He still had not managed to enter Lanke Temple.


    Eldest Brother followed the Light of Buddha with his eyes and looked at the stone statue of Buddha sitting at the peak of Tile Mountain. He made a decision.


    Right at that moment a cloud of green smoke rushed over, kicking up a storm of pebbles.


    It had been a long weary journey.


    Jun Mo had arrived at Lanke Temple.


    He was covered with dust and was even dustier than Eldest Brother. However, his high crown was still straight and did not move an inch.


    The two brothers nced at each other and did not speak.


    Jun Mo coughed lightly.


    The autumn trees outside Lanke Temple trembled, their green leaves fell.


    On Tile Mountain ¨C red leaves fell.


    Jun Mo used his finger as a sword and piercing it into the Light of Buddha.


    He yelled madly.


    His ck hair, underneath his high crown, was blown about, dancing wildly.


    His fingers came down on the dome of Light of Buddha with difficulty, but without stopping. He tore a tiny hole through it.


    Eldest Brother¡¯s cotton robe suddenly trembled, leaving a streak of shadow in the sky.


    Eldest Brother had disappeared from the front steps of Lanke Temple.


    As fast as lightning, he had entered the temple and arrived at the seventeen halls of the temple.


    He seemed to have appeared at all of the seventeen halls simultaneously.


    Under the roof, in the building, before the corridor, by the plum tree...


    Eldest Brother broke the seventeen ancient bells.


    The Light of Buddha tactical array had been broken!

 Chapter 595 - Second of the Academy

    <h4>Chapter 595: Second of the Academy</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Jun Mo stepped on the stone steps and walked toward the interior of the Lanke Temple.


    His right footnded on a stone step and it cracked. His long shadownded on the gate of the temple, and the gate split. When his sightnded on the stone wall behind the doors, the stone wall shattered.


    Just like how he had crossed the mountains to arrive at this ancient temple, he continued to choose the straightest and most direct path. That was because it was the shortest path, so he barged through the temple.


    After entering the ancient temple, Jun Mo did not take the level but crooked stone stairs. He did not take the round-about corridors, but instead, he walked straight toward the back temple. Whether it was a temple door, a stone wall, or a solemn Buddhist temple before him, nothing could stop him. Everywhere he went, walls copsed and tiles burst apart, forming a path before him.


    The autumn wind did not even move the ancient crown on his head in the slightest. His ck hair danced behind him like arrows. Everything before him, including the Buddha statues, were all tossed up into the air by the wind, let alone human beings.


    Jun Mo walked extremely quickly. The cultivators who tried to stop him were all tossed into the air. Some of them were dangling over branches of the autumn tree while some fell heavily onto the green-tiled ground and did not make another sound. Tiles, wooden beams and pebbles flew in the air with those he had tossed around, forming a terrifying cloud of dust behind him.


    Qi Nian froze when he saw the rapidly nearing cloud of dust. He could vaguely make out who it was from the auraing through the cloud of dust. The Light of Buddha¡¯s big tactical array had been broken and no one in the front temple could stop the person or at least slow his steps. The person he was most wary of should arrive before the cloud of dust.


    He could not hesitate anymore at this moment. He had to kill Ning Que if he wanted to kill the Daughter of Yama. He would do it even if that would give birth to an unreconcble grudge between the Buddhism Sect and the Academy.


    Through Master Qishan¡¯s analysis, Ning Que knew that if Eldest Brother could note to his side when the array broke, then he would have to face Qi Nian¡¯s and even Ye Su¡¯s destructive assault.


    He desired that Eldest Brother would appear before the ck horse carriage. He badly wanted to see the old robe and his Senior Brother¡¯s gentle appearance. Since the Light of Buddha¡¯s tactical array had been broken, Eldest Brother should havee to save him immediately after destroying the 17 bells. Why was he not here yet?


    Ning Que watched as the murderous cloud of dust was approaching the back temple. He knew that he would see his Second Brother any moment now. However, he also knew that he could not hesitate any longer because Qi Nian and Ye Su would not hesitate. They would not allow him and his Second Brother to truly meet.


    That was why heshed out first.


    The iron bow in his hand suddenly curved. An iron arrow was nocked on the bowstring and shot out with a whoosh.


    Qi Nain knew clearly that the Academy¡¯s students were all odd ducks. He knew that Ning Que would struggle fiercely until the end; that was why he was prepared to use his Ac skills once more.


    However, Ning Que¡¯s arrow did not head toward Qi Nian or Ye Su.


    He shot the arrow at the peak of Tile mountain, toward the Buddha stone statue in the swirling clouds!


    The dark iron arrow traversed through the skylight of the horse carriage, following the path of the Light of Buddha descending from the heavens. It defied gravity and shot upwards, emitting bits of Light of Buddha from the arrowhead, and flew toward the peak of Tile mountain that was several miles away.


    The stone statue of Budda stood at the peak of Tile mountain; shrouded by the clouds up to the statue¡¯s chest, it was unbelievably tall. It had silently withstood the winds and rain for decades, looking extraordinarily solemn and benevolent.


    The Buddha statue was gigantic. Its left hand was ced in a praying position before its chest. Its fingertips could easily allow eagles tond.


    The right hand of the stone statue faced the world below the mountain. Its index finger and thumb closed in on each other, barely touching, as if it was holding a flower. If it could really hold a single flower, it would have to be the world¡¯srgest flower.


    The Light of Buddha, that shone over Sangsang and suppressed her since the Yuean Bell rang, came from the statue¡¯s right palm.


    Primordial Thirteen Arrows followed the Light of Buddha¡¯s path and appeared at the peak of Tile Mountain in seconds.


    On the statue¡¯s right palm, a circr hole appeared because of the arrow. Web-like cracks could be seen at the edge of the palm, and tiny stone shards flew out through the clouds. It would take some time before theynded on the peak again.


    The Light of Buddha continued to shine. However, due to the hole in the palm, it wasn¡¯t as concentrated as before. It slightly spread out, causing the power behind it to fall.


    At the back temple of Lanke.


    Tang¡¯s iron-like brows rose slightly as he watched Ning Que who shot the arrow. His fists tightened, but he did notsh out. Ye Su¡¯s expression changed slightly; his right hand emerged from his thin sleeves, and he pointed a finger at Ning Que¡¯s chest.


    His finger was a powerful Taoist Sword, and it pierced Ning Que¡¯s chest instead of his forehead. That was because Ye Su did not wish to kill a student of the Academy. He only wanted to badly injure Ning Que so that he could not continue protecting the Daughter of Yama.


    Ning Que¡¯s right hand emerged from his ck Academy uniform, and he tossed a small paper ball up into the air.


    Ye Su thought that it was a talisman, so his expression remained the same.


    However, when the little paper ball made contact with his sword style, it turned into a green puff of smoke. Then, a cold sword style emerged from within.


    The small paper ball was not a talisman written by Ning Que, but a letter that Ye Hongyu wrote and sent him. She had drawn a sword on the paper.


    Ye Su noticed the resentment in the sword style, and his expression changed once again.


    The two different sword styles shed in the air and turned into nothingness.


    Then, Master Qishan turned over the chessboard in front of him!


    A ray of peaceful Light of Buddha burst forth from the chessboard¡¯s surface, which was neither gold nor stone. On the broken remnants of the back hall¡¯s stone steps, a hole about twenty feet high appeared. A deep tunnel was faintly visible within.


    The Big ck Horse was prepared for this. It whinnied and pulled the horse carriage toward the peaceful Light of Buddha. It knew that they would gain momentary safety once they could enter the tunnel.


    The ck horse carriage was close to the chessboard. It wouldn¡¯t take long to enter. However, it wouldn¡¯t take long for powerful cultivators like Qi Nian and Ye Su to kill Ning Que, either.


    Then, it would depend on whether Ning Que could withstand their strongest attack.


    In any case, it seemed like an impossible task.


    Qi Nian¡¯s monk robes floated up in the wind. Light surrounded him and took shape ording to his figure.


    This light was the spitting image of Qi Nian, onlyrger. The only difference was in the facial expression. The light¡¯s face was not as calm and determined as Qi Nian¡¯s, but was filled with anger. Its brows were raised like swords and its eyes were thunderous. It was the image of Ac, and no evil dared to look at it directly!


    While immersed in the Light of Buddha, Qi Nian ced his palms together and began to chant.


    It seemed as if an entire Buddha statue of Ac was summoned by his mantra. He raised his right palm and smashed it like a mountain against the ck horse carriage, and the ruins of the hall shook!


    It was the perfectbination of a Buddhist mantra and an emblematic gesture. This was the Buddhist Sect¡¯s true mantra emblematic gesture.


    Ning Que did not have the chance to shoot a second arrow, given that he was facing the strongest forces of the Buddhism Sect. He knew that shooting another Primordial Arrow would be useless, because Qi Nian could not die at this point.


    Then, Master Qishan shouted, ¡°Fearless!¡±


    The master¡¯s exmation roused Ning Que, and he recalled the mantra emblematic gesture he learned during the long nights in the Buddhist temple. He instinctively ced two hands together in front of him, then bent his fingers to form a Fearless Mantra Emblematic Gesture. He lifted it toward the sky!


    The True Mantra Emblematic Gestures of the Buddhism Sect should be like the one that Qi Nian was using. It was the perfectbination of Buddhist Mantras and Emblematic Gestures. While Ning Que had learned the Emblematic Gestures, he had not cultivated in Buddhism for long. How would he then, be able to understand the truth behind the mantras?


    In principle, his Mantra Emblematic Gesture was no match for Qi Nian, and should have been ttened, and then, the ck horse carriage would have been destroyed. However, unexpectedly, when Ning Que¡¯s and Qi Nian¡¯s Mantra Emblematic Gestures met, neither fell immediately.


    There was a thunderous boom!


    ( )


    Blood flowed from Ning Que¡¯s lips while Qi Nian shook slightly.


    In the ruins of the temple corridor, Master Qishan¡¯s aged voice rang again.


    ¡°Quell the demon!¡±


    Ning Que bent his right hand¡¯s fingers, and reached forward.


    A breeze spewed out from the ck horse carriage. On the stone floor in front of the temple, a solemn, Mantra Emblematic Gesture appeared, refracting Qi Nian¡¯s second Mantra Emblematic Gesture.


    How did this happen?


    While Master Qishan had been ill for many years and his cultivation state was weak, he was still a strong Buddhist disciple. He had cultivated for many years, and his talents in Buddhist skills were stronger than Qi Nian¡¯s!


    How could the master¡¯s mantra be weaker than Qi Nian¡¯s!


    After Ning Que had joined the Devil, his body had been honed by the Great Spirit and had be extremely strong. Even though it was not as powerful as the Skills of Ac, it was very strong whenbined with Master Qishan¡¯s mantra.


    Master Qishan vomited blood, and yelled, ¡°Dispell all thoughts!¡±


    Ning Que set his hands to make another Emblematic Gesture.


    The big tactical array had already been broken, and the skies, which had been held down for a long time finally returned to their original state. The autumn rain fell slowly from the clouds,nding in the ruins of the old temple courtyard.


    In the autumn rain, the library across the temple copsed with a resounding boom.


    Qi Nian looked determined. He ignored Ning Que¡¯s powerful Mantra Emblematic Gesture. And with the skills of Ac, he rushed toward the ck horse carriage, wanting to crush it.


    There was a soft sound. Ye Su had finally withdrawn his wooden sword from the scabbard. The sword turned into a ray of light that was undiscerning and neutral. It pierced toward the ck horse carriage, its target being Sangsang who was inside it.


    By now, the carriage was very close to the chessboard in front of Master Qishan. The Big ck Horse¡¯s front hooves had already trodden on the peaceful Light of Buddha world.


    ¡°Natural Stream Magical Finger!¡± Ning Que extended his right index finger in the autumn rain. With that, his face paled, and looked much more haggard than before.


    Qi Nian¡¯s expression changed when he heard the words ¡®Natural Stream Magical Finger¡¯. This was a secret skill of the Zhishou Abbey, so how did Ning Que learn it? He thought, in the short timeframe he had, that Chen Pipi must have secretly taught it to Ning Que. Even after being surprised, he was determined and charged at the ck horse carriage.


    Ye Su knew that Chen Pipi would never teach Ning Que the Natural Stream Magical Finger. As such, his expression did not change and he charged at Sangsang with his Sword Intent!


    Indeed, Ning Que did not know how to cast the Natural Stream Magical Finger.


    But his fingers remained pointing at the autumn rain. And he drew, from left to right, two seemingly simple and ordinary lines.


    His ck Academy uniform suddenly fell, torn into shreds.


    He had used a talisman, but it was too strong. It was so strong he could not control it.


    He had used an Infinitive Talisman.


    He had used a Divine Talisman.


    He had be a Divine Talisman Master in the autumn rain, in front of Red Lotus Temple. The first Infinitive Talisman that he had learned was from Master Yan Se. It was just as sharp cutting as his master¡¯s.


    This Divine Talisman was Ning Que¡¯s strongest and most hidden skill. Previously in the temple, before Master Boshu had shaken the Peace bell, he had wanted to use the Divine Talisman. However, he did not have the time to do so.


    When Qi Nian and other truly powerful cultivators had appeared, he knew that there was no point in using the Divine Talisman. He had to leave it until the most crucial point. While the Divine Talisman could not defeat Qi Nian or Ye Su, it could buy him and Sangsang time.


    His talisman had only half of Master Yan Se¡¯s intent. It would not be able to cut everything in the world, not even the air. However, because it wasparatively more simple, it was also sharper.


    His finger drew across the autumn rain.


    A vicious and strong talisman intent crossed the air before the ck horse carriage.


    Two invisible des vaguely appeared in the rain.


    Just like the chains hanging above the great river.


    Or an infinitely long, sharp sword.


    The autumn rain was sliced into two before the ck horse carriage.


    The Skills of Ac seemed imprable, but two deep, ck lines appeared on its chest.


    Two straight wounds appeared on Qi Nian¡¯s chest, and blood flowed from them.


    Two deep, white gouges appeared on the wooden sword that was piercing toward the ck horse carriage.


    Those who encountered the two des that had emerged from the Divine Talisman would be torn in two and doubly injured.


    Master Yan Se¡¯s strongest talisman was the Jing Fu.


    Ning Que had only learned half of it. That was why his talisman was called the Two-Horizontal Talisman.


    It shared the same character for the ¡®second¡¯ in the Second floor of the Academy.


    Looking at the ck horse carriage that was about to enter the peaceful Light of Buddha, Tang froze slightly. Ye Su¡¯s pupils shrank by a fraction. The both of them had seen Ning Que in the Wilderness. Back then, he was still trying to break through the Seethrough Realm. Who would have thought that he would be so strong in less than two years?


    Qi Nian¡¯s expression was grave. No matter how powerful Ning Que¡¯s Divine Talismans were, he could not defeat them. However, he could keep them away for a moment. In the corridor, Master Boshu reached out for the Peace Bell. However, he had lost too much blood to grab it.


    The tides changed rapidly on the battleground. Just as everyone was worried about Mr. First and Second from the Academy barging into the temple, Ning Que, who had been ignored all this while, suddenly acted. And he was very strong indeed!


    A long time seemed to have passed. However, it had just been barely seconds since the Light of Buddha¡¯s tactical array had been broken. The first autumn rains had not even reached the grounds.


    The ck horse carriage was about to disappear into the peaceful Light of Buddha.


    Then, a sword came flying from the skies.

 Chapter 596

    <h4>Chapter 596: The Fastest Sword and the Slowest Person</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    A sword came flying from the skies toward the Lanke Temple.


    There were clouds above Tile mountain. The sword tore through the clouds, bringing with it trailing wisps of clouds and plunged into the ground.


    The sword was very fast. It was so fast one could barely make it out, only catching a glimpse of a passing glimmer of light. However, it could not hide its innate power, so everyone knew that it was a sword.


    The Lanke Temple was enshrouded by rain. The sword traversed through the rain while ignoring everyone in the courtyard, not even Qi Nian. It did not pause because of the quickly approaching cloud of dust. It flew toward the ck horse carriage.


    The terrifying intent of the Two-Horizontal Talisman lingered before the ck horse carriage. The sword ignored it as well, as if it were extremely familiar with Yan Se¡¯s Talisman Taoism. It crossed the lines easily, piercing Sangsang who sat inside the horse carriage.


    There was a sharp pain in Ning Que¡¯s sense of perception. Sangsang opened her eyes, face pale. More than half of the ck horse carriage had entered the peaceful Light of Buddha. However, it seemed like it would have to stop here.


    The domineering sword that came from the skies was just like its owner. Its master was powerful, because he was be able to aplish anything he wanted to. He could do so because it was logical, and that was the logic of the sword.


    It was logical, so the sword that came from the skies passed the rivers and mountains in the south as it traveled through the clouds. Naturally, it made sense for it to tear through the clouds and the autumn rain. It ignored tthe surprised gazes of those in the Lanke Temple to kill Sangsang.


    Ning Que once saw a sword on a piece of paper. He had seen and learned about this logically strong sword and knew who the owner of the sword was.


    He knew that it was pointless to do anything to the flying sowrd. So he hugged Sangsang close to him, and then watched silently as the Light of Buddha grew brighter and brighter in the carriage.


    Everyone in the Lanke Temple stared in shock at the sword that came from the sky. Qi Nian silently chanted while Ye Su¡¯s raised brows and Tang regarded with a grave expression. They had all guessed where the flying sword hade from. Not even the most powerful man in the world could remain silent before theing of the Daughter of Yama.


    At the time when the Academy, the Buddhism Sect and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine were at their most tense, someone had intervened with overwhelming power. There was only one person who could do this. He was the strongest powerhouse, who cultivated in the South Jin Kingdom¡¯s Sword Garret¨CLiu Bai.


    Sword Sage Liu Bai¡¯s sword was the strongest in the world. Since it had the intent to kill, the Daughter of Yama would not be able to survive. Qi Nian silently chanted and slowly lowered his head.


    Yet, what happened next was beyond anyone¡¯s expectations.


    Just as the flying sword was about to break through the ck horse carriage and stab both Sangsang and Ning Que to death, it suddenly started shaking violently. The tip of the sword rose sharply, then it stuck near the end of the ck horse carriage to fly upwards right after. There were loud crashes as the sword brushed by the yellow tiles of the Buddhist temple, causing them to fall. It flew up into the autumn rain and disappeared into the clouds.


    The ck carriage entered the Light of Buddha¡¯s quiet world and drifted further away into the deep road. Then, the Light of Buddha converged into the chessboard and everything returned to how it was before.


    It waspletely silent in the back temple of Lanke.


    Everyone was shocked silent. They did not understand what had happened. Why did Liu Bai¡¯s sword suddenly fly away, just as it was about to kill the Daughter of Yama in the ck horse carriage?


    The sword came and went so quickly.


    Moments ago, the Eldest Brother had stood beside a plum tree near a side hall of the Lanke Temple. His palmnded on an ancient bell. The chiming had stopped, and this was thest bell he destroyed.


    Just as Ning Que had hoped and predicted, Eldest Brother would appear before the temple hall and the ck horse carriage in the shortest time possible after he destroyed the Light of Buddha¡¯s tactical array.


    However, he did not move.


    While the Lanke Temple was under an autumn rain, the Eldest Brother¡¯s cultivation state was the highest. That was why he had perceived the Taoist Sword way before anyone else in the temple. He had already sensed it the moment the sword left its cottage.


    The Eldest Brother looked toward the northwest. He looked at the skies beyond the autumn clouds and his expression turned grave. Dust spewed out from his old cotton robe, and his figure shook slightly before disappearing from the side of the plum blossom.


    In the northwest, a few thousand miles away from the Lanke Temple, there was a lonely mountain. Three sides of the mountain were covered by smooth stone; when the autumn light reflected off them, it looked like a sword carved from a stone pir.


    There was a ck and white ancient pavilion in front of the mountain. This was the sect of the strongest powerhouse in the world, the Sword Sage, Liu Bai. This was the holynd many Sword Masters in the cultivation world looked up to. It was the Sword Garret.


    Liu Bai was not in the Sword Garret, but in the middle of the mountain behind the Sword Garret.


    He sat next to a quiet pond, in front of a hut, quietly looking at the schr before him.


    The Eldest Brother stood in front of Liu Bai. His face was pale white, and his cotton robe was stained with blood. The cotton that had erupted from the seams were congealed with blood.


    The Eldest Brother¡¯s position was well-thought out. It was not far from Liu Bai, and just a step away. If one measured with a ruler, then it would be just a foot away.


    Liu Bai looked at the schr in front of him and suddenly smiled. He said, ¡°Li Manman (¡®Manman¡¯ means slow), you are obviously the fastest person. Why do they call you Manman then?¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°I am slow, that¡¯s why I can be quick.¡±


    ¡°I love this kind of logic.¡±


    Liu Bai reached out to scoop up some cold water from the pond and sprinkled it on the floor in front of him. He said slowly, ¡°The foot before me is my world. Not even the abbey dean nor the chief preaching monk would dare to stand here. It is pointless no matter how fast you are.¡±


    ¡°Master Yan Se once said this to Youngest Brother, and I have also heard this before.¡± Eldest Brother looked at his feet and said, ¡°That is why I am standing a foot away and have not taken a step forward.¡±


    Liu Bai¡¯s brows raised slightly and he asked with nted eyes, ¡°You want to take one step forward?¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°I would like to have a try.¡±


    Liu Bai replied, ¡°Even if this foot ofnd belongs to me?¡±


    Eldest Brother answered, ¡°The foot is your domain only if you¡¯re holding your sword. But the sword is not here.¡±


    Liu Bai sighed with regret, and he reached out into the air facing him.


    The light that streamed through the hole at the top of the mountain suddenly dimmed.


    The straw grass hanging from the roof started moving even though there wasn¡¯t any wind.


    The quiet water in the stream rippled even though there was no wind.


    The sword flew in the skies and turned into a stream of lighting from the hole at the mountain top. It fell into Liu Bai¡¯s hands.


    Eldest Brother bowed to him in thanks.


    Liu Bai quietly looked at him and asked, ¡°You all want to protect the Daughter of Yama, but have you thought about how to deal with the Underworld Invasion?¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°If the Academy cannot treat her, then, the disciples of the Academy will stand at humanity¡¯s forefront, to fight when the wares. We might defeat the Underworld, or all of us will die, then we won¡¯t need to worry about what to do.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ve got a point.¡±


    Liu Bai said, ¡°But there is still something I don¡¯t understand. If the Headmaster had acted to protect the Daughter of Yama, would any of this ever happen? Or is the Headmaster unbothered by the Underworld Invasion? Would the Headmaster not act even if the whole world moves to kill?¡±


    The Eldest Brother did not know how to lie, so he did not answer the question directly. He said, ¡°My teacher has other matters to work on, so his disciples will toil on his behalf. We will trouble our teacher when we students cannot deal with things.¡±


    Liu Bai asked, ¡°Can you still handle it?¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°If the Sword Sage doesn¡¯t act, I might be able to.¡±


    Liu Bai looked at his pale face and guessed that he had used up all his cultivation skills today. He had also suffered many severe injuries. Liu Bai frowned slightly and asked, ¡°I would very much like to know how many broken bones you have.¡±


    Eldest Brother answered honestly, ¡°Two hundred and six.¡±


    Liu Bai was shocked. He sighed and said, ¡°You will die if you continue this.¡±


    Eldest Brother shook his head and said, ¡°At least I¡¯m not dead right now.¡±


    Liu Baimented, ¡°I used to think that Jun Mo was the only crazy person in the Academy, after Mr. Ke. But it seems like everyone in the Academy is nuts.¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°Sword Sage, you think highly of us.¡±


    Liu Bai slowly slid his sword into the scabbard and said, ¡°I shall fight you to my heart¡¯s content in the future.¡±


    The strongest powerhouse in the world had already sensed the Daughter of Yama¡¯s aura disappearing from the world. He knew that the Academy had allowed her to escape into the heavens. As such, he would not need to use his sword again.


    Liu Bai wanted to fight with the schr in front of him. However, the schr had travelled thousands of miles in a short period of time, and was severely injured today. It would not be an honorable victory even if he could win.


    Furthermore, he was not confident of being able to detain the schr here.


    Eldest Brother thanked him sincerely, ¡°Thank you, Sword Sage. However, I really don¡¯t know how to fight.¡±


    It was silent in the back temple of Lanke.


    Master Qishan¡¯s withered palmnded on the back of the chessboard. No one would have imagined that the unassuming chessboard could send a horse carriage into another world.


    Qi Nian walked toward Master Qishan.


    Master Qishan looked at him and said feebly, ¡°No one can destroy Buddha¡¯s chessboard.¡±


    Qi Nian shook his head with determination. His pale lips parted slightly.


    Ever since the Son of Yama descended 16 years ago, Qi Nian had chewed off his own tongue and begun to cultivate the Silent Meditation. He never opened his mouth again other than when he smiled. ( )


    Of course, he was not in the mood to smile at this moment.


    This meant that he was about to speak.


    Master Qishan guessed what he was about to do, and his expression dramatically changed. Buddha¡¯s chessboard could not be destroyed, but Bhadantas well versed in the Buddhism Sect skills could sacrifice their own Buddhist spirit, to forcefully change the way time passed in the world within the chessboard.


    Only the Chief Preaching Monk in the Xuankong Temple had this power.


    Master Qishan did not think that Qi Nian had such an ability.


    Qi Nian had cultivated in Silent Meditation for 16 years, and when his lips moved for the first time in 16 years, Master Qishan came to the startling realization of how powerful Qi Nian was.


    The back temple¡¯s door suddenly exploded with a boom.


    A tall crown appeared in the dust.


    ...

 Chapter 597 - The Iron Sword and the Wooden Sword

    Chapter 597: The Iron Sword and the Wooden Sword


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    When Jun Mo walked into the back of the Lanke temple, the yellow-garbed monks on the stone path gathered around him as they chanted with Buddhist words. They threw the metal pestle and copper bowls in their hands at him. Some cultivators who were more powerful pulled out their flying swords.


    A fast response was not necessarily a good thing at moments like this.


    Jun Mo waved his sleeves, and the aura of Heaven and Earth in the courtyard turned chaotic. Several pestles and copper bowls flew back to where they came from; the monks were hit by their own Natal Items and began to bleed. Many of them looked as if they were about to die.


    Then, he looked at those who had a high cultivation state and reacted quickly. The cultivators felt a pressure entering their bodies and dozens of flying swords fell in the autumn rain. Some cultivators even died, because their sense of perception was shattered.


    Miserable howls rang on the stoneid grounds, with broken limbs flying all around and blood flowing like a river. Even if the autumn rain started to pour, it would be unable to wash the blood away at once. A strong stench of blood tore through the peaceful aura in the ancient temple.


    Ye Su looked at the wooden sword in silence. Rainwaternded on the surface of his sword, washing away the two white lines left behind by Ning Que¡¯s Two-Horizontal Talisman. Then, he looked up at the man who was wearing a high crown.


    Jun Mo saw that the ck horse carriage had disappeared from the stone steps in front of the temple. He looked at the chessboard in front of Master Qi Shan serenely. He sensed a ray of light and turned to look at it, meeting Ye Su¡¯s gaze.


    The two men did not speak, and they both looked indifferent.


    There was a sliding sound, and Ye Su¡¯s wooden sword was removed from its scabbard. It traversed through the rain and pierced towards Jun Mo.


    It was just then, when Jun Mo finally drew his sword.


    Jun Mo had not drawn his sword as he tore all the way, from breaking the Light of Buddha¡¯s big tactical array to entering the temple, where everything that stood before him was tossed up into the air. He had not used his sword because he had not met anyone worthy of it. Ye Su was the Haotian Taoism¡¯s World Wayfarer. He was a cultivation genius who had broken through the Life and Death Realm more than ten years ago. He was worthy of Jun Mo¡¯s sword.


    Jun Mo wore his high crown. His robes were lose, so one could not guess where he kept his scabbard.


    But when his sword appeared, everyone in the temple could see it.


    Because his sword was different from the ones owned by all Sword Masters in the world. His sword was broad. It was so broad that it was beyond imagination. It did not look like a sword at all, but rather a square piece of metal.


    The square metal sheet was eye-catching; it was difficult not to see it.


    Jun Mo¡¯s sword was meant to be seen by everyone.


    Mr. Second of the Academy had finally met the sword of the Taoism Sect¡¯s World Wayfarer in the autumn rain at the Lanke Temple.


    Ye Su¡¯s sword was unblemished and silent. It was devoid of emotion and discernment; when it traveled through the autumn rain, it seemed to have be the rain, and could moisturize things in silence. Whereas it did not have the mercy as the rain had for life.


    Jun Mo¡¯s sword wasrge and it traveled straight through the rain, drawing squares. When it reached the end of a line, it would vite the rules of Swordsmanship and turn backward while still going in a straight line.


    Ye Su¡¯s sword was the slightest cold breeze and the autumn drizzle, which was able to slide into every crack in the world.


    Jun Mo¡¯s iron sword was straight and square, blocking all rain and wind.


    In an extremely short time, the wooden and iron swords shed multiple times in the rain. However, it also felt as if they had not collided even once. The autumn rain was forced to divert and fall around the two powerful forces.


    Suddenly, Jun Mo¡¯s expression cooled down. He turned around and ran to the Buddhist temple without hesitation.


    Ye Su¡¯s wooden sword was waving in the autumn rain and just came thirty feet away from his back.


    Jun Mo looked at Qi Nian who was inside the temple. His face was pale, and he waved his wide sleeves behind him.


    Therge broad iron sword flew toward the western walls with a buzz. It did not draw squares anymore, but simple straight lines instead. Therefore, it seemed more sturdy and powerful.


    Ye Su watched Jun Mo who was walking around in the temple. Then, he turned around indifferently, not looking at Jun Mo anymore, but at a wall of the courtyard belonging to the back temple. He looked at the roofs of the temples at the foot of the hill with lightning in his eyes.


    Jun Mo walked towards the ruins of the Buddhist Temple. Ye Su looked at the cornices of the courtyard walls. They were both powerful people in the younger generation, and were both proud. If they wanted to look at each other, they would look straight in the eye; if they did not, they would turn around.


    Light appeared through the rainclouds above the Lanke Temple. Lightning fell and thunder roared. The wooden sword that had traversed through the autumn rain seemed to have been struck by lightning, and glowed with a sheen. It continued towards Jun Mo with the power of lightning!


    The iron sword and wooden sword finally shed, which could be seen by naked eyes.


    The autumn rain dispersed, and thunder roared!


    Ye Su¡¯s sword had understood the logic of the world and had almost stepped into the Tianqi State.


    Jun Mo still did not turn around and continued running toward the Buddhist Temple.


    He did not have his own rules, nor did he possess the ability of borrowing power from Haotian like cultivators. But he and his iron sword had an indestructible belief in rules. In a sense, that rule even had be his own rule, which was order.


    His iron sword¡¯s protection was absolute order.


    Qi Nian¡¯s lips were slightly pale and were soaked in the rain. However, they still appeared dry. When they moved slightly, they were like withered white leaves, lightly trembling in the rain.


    Those who were surrounding the stone steps in front of the temple were shocked. Their expressions were altered because they knew that they were about to see the legendary Silent Meditation being broken.


    The Buddhism Sect¡¯s World Wayfarer, Qi Nian had cultivated in Silent Meditation for 16 years and had never stopped. He had not stopped even in the snowy forest by theke of Chang¡¯an when faced with the secretive Devil¡¯s Doctrine leader, the Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation.


    It was thus evident what breaking his 16 years of Silent Meditation meant.


    Qi Nian¡¯s lips parted by a fraction, and one could vaguely see the torn shreds of his tongue. His expression was serene and he uttered a single word. It was garbled because he had not spoken for a long time.


    ¡°Disease.¡±


    He said it casually, and one could not sense that it was the first word of someone who had not spoken for 16 years. It was very different from what they had expected.


    It was silent in the back temple of Lanke.


    The stone statue of Buddha on the peak of Tile mountain seemed to have heard what he said. The stone carved face suddenly became lively, and seemed extremely sympathetic.


    The right palm of the stone statue which faced the foot of the mountain had a hole in it, caused by Ning Que¡¯s Primordial Arrow. There was no change to the hole; instead, the Light of Buddha that shot out of the palm seemed to taper off.


    The Light of Buddha appeared on Qi Nian.


    His gazended on the chessboard.


    The grounds of the ancient temple began to shake violently. The monks and cultivators who had fallen into the bloody pool were tossed up into the air. Cracks appeared on the walls of the middle and front hall of the temple.


    Somewhere outside the temple beside a plum tree, was a swaying bell. It suddenly stopped, hovering in the air. Several dense cracks appeared on the surface of the bell, and suddenly, it burst apart like a flower!


    The bell cracked like tiles!


    The plum tree was pummelled into snow!


    In the autumn rain, Second Brother¡¯s ck hair was dancing behind him and his belt flew wildly, as if it was angry to the extreme.


    Then, he did something no one could have imagined. It was something even Ye Su, who was equally proud, could not imagine.


    He reached out and recalled his broad iron sword, ignoring the Taoist Sword behind him which was carrying the power of wind and thunder. He threw the iron sword toward Qi Nian, angry roars behind him.


    Jun Mo¡¯s act was like leaving his back to Ye Su.


    He was the proud and mighty Mr. Second of the Academy. But he had given his back to Ye Su who had already taken a step toward the Tianqi State. This was no different frommitting suicide!


    Ye Su looked at the courtyard walls of the temple, as they were drenched by the rain. He sensed the changes happening behind him, and he froze. He thought in shock, ¡°This man¡¯s will is so powerful!¡±


    Jun Mo had recalled his sword, which was inviting Ye Su to kill him. He was betting on Ye Su not daring to kill him.


    Ye Su sighed and withdrew his sword.


    Jun Mo had won, or perhaps, one could say that he had won the bet.


    However, other than Second Brother of the Academy, who else would dare to bet on things like this?


    Or perhaps, Jun Mo had predicted that Ye Su would definitely recall his sword. So was this still a bet?


    The wide straight iron sword left Jun Mo¡¯s hand, rubbing against the air at a high speed, bringing with it a ray of bright light. The stone steps became distorted and cracked under the force of the de; no one could stop it.


    This toss of the sword was slightly simr to Liu Bai¡¯s sword that hade from the skies.


    The iron sword arrived just as Qi Nian¡¯s gaze was about to reach the chessboard.


    The iron sword interrupted his gaze andnded on the chessboard.


    After 16 years, the word ¡°disease¡±, which Qi Nian had uttered, was still waving in the autumn rain inconspicuously.


    The autumn rain was silent, but the temple¡¯s copsing was not.


    The Buddhist Temple copsed under several loud roars, turning into a pile of rubble.


    Clouds of smoke and dust rose into the air and were quelled by the rain.


    Jun Mo walked into the ruins of the former Buddhist Temple. His face was pale, and his robe slightly dirty. His usually ordered eyebrows, which had exactly the same strands of hair in both of them, were slightly messy. ( )


    He did not see the chessboard.


    After a moment of silence, he picked up some iron swords that had been deformed due to the bricks and gravel hitting on them. He straightened the iron swords with his bare hands. While they were not that straight, they were straight enough to cut someone.


    Then, he looked at Qi Nian.


    The president of the Commandment Yard from the Xuankong Temple panted, and regained a little of his cultivation powers. His left hand shook and he picked up the Yuean Bell left by Buddha, which was ced in the bloody pool in front of him. Then, he tossed it toward the stairs.


    Jun Mo did not even nce at it. He reached out with his left hand and caught the bronze bell as it flew in the air.


    The Yuean Bell held the spirit of Buddha. It sensed the disrespect in the hand that caught it, and began to shake angrily.


    Jun Mo¡¯s left hand was very stable. His finger joints were long and the Light of Buddha emitted by the bronze bell shone through the cracks.


    His finger joints were turning slightly white, and he pressed down.


    There was a cracking sound, and the Yuean Bell turned into a piece of useless metal in his palms.


    Ning Que could not touch the Yuean Bell because Buddha had decided that he was evil. Second Brother could touch the Yuean Bell because, while the aura left behind by Buddha could sense his disrespect, it could not determine that he was evil.


    Jun Mo was confident because he was on the path of righteousness. He would not be seduced by anything of the secr world. Furthermore, he hated Buddha all his life, and he thought that if he was evil, then what was Buddha like?


    Being a holder of the bell, Master Boshu was heartbroken by the destruction of a sacred object from the Buddhism Sect. His Buddhist Heart had also been greatly impacted, so his face turned extremely pale as he yelled in anger, ¡°Jun Mo, how dare you!¡±


    Jun Mo nced at the president of the Commandment Yard from the Xuankong Temple. He tightened his right hand which was gripping the iron sword.


    There was a shing sound; the rest of Master Boshu¡¯s left arm was cut off and fell in the autumn rain.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 598

    <h4>Chapter 598: The Academy is rational, the Gentleman knows the way</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    A bitter howl instantly prated the gradual autumn rain, as it echoed throughout the ruined old temple.


    Master Boshu looked at his severed arm in the rain. His face was pale and there were two bloody holes in his body. He looked like he was about to fall down. As president of the Commandment Yard of Xuankong Temple, his Buddhism was deep and his will was strong. Earlier, he had been unable to make a sound, even though his arm was cut off by Ning Que¡¯s podao. However, his cultivation was severely damaged now and, as Jun Mo had severed his other arm, it was the same as destroying everything he had ¨C he could hold it back no more.


    Quni Madi looked at the scene ahead in shock as she suddenly screamed and rushed beside the broken stairs. She embraced the bloodied Master Boshu in her arms as she tried to stop the bleeding.


    Qi Nian looked bitter while chanting the name of Buddha, as he watched Jun Mo walking over to him. Because he hadn¡¯t spoken in many years, his voice was dry and incredibly rough.


    ¡°Second Mister, this is indeed...¡±


    He couldn¡¯t finish his sentence, because Jun Mo didn¡¯t want to hear it. Holding the straight, yet unusual, iron sword in his right hand, he swung it down over his head.


    Qi Nian¡¯s face was pale, having broken his silent meditation of sixteen years had caused the shocking scene in front of him and had greatly disturbed his Buddhist heart. Moreover, the arrow talisman injury, that Ning Que had left on him, had greatly damaged his abilities ¨C he was far from how he was at his peak.


    But, after all, he was a Buddha that walked the world. Against the iron sword, that was as high as a mountain, pressing down on him, he didn¡¯t show any terror on his face. Instead, he extended his right thumb and drew a circle in front of himself.


    Qi Nian¡¯s fingers shook slightly as he drew in air, filled with cold autumn rain. Circles after circles appeared with the bigger ones around smaller ones. They were filled with life, just like apertures of Buddha¡¯s immortal life.


    Jun Mo¡¯s iron sword cut across horizontally, he was still walking the righteous way. Just like himself, the iron sword drew countless squares in the autumn rain, every single sword trace were simr in length and width.


    The circles drawn with fingers were extremely round and enclosed every square that the iron sword had drawn. The rainwater that fell into the circles had only touched the aura before it was deflected away.


    Qi Nian looked at Jun Mo as he said in a hoarse voice, ¡°The skies are round and the earth is square. How could you break out from the circle?¡±


    Jun Mo said indifferently, ¡°Since you are human, you must be clear that you stand on earth.¡±


    Just as he said so, there were a few clear buzzing sounds as the iron sword struck horizontally and shed the Buddha aura in the rainy skies into many pieces, the squarish sword style broke out fiercely from the circles!


    Qi Nian was stunned. He chanted the name of Buddha and ced twenty-sevenyers of Buddhist aura in front of himself as protection.


    ¡°Can a Gentleman be fooled?¡±


    Jun Mo asked softly as the iron sword broke through all twenty-sevenyers of Buddhist aura.


    Fresh blood seeped out from the corner of Qi Nian¡¯s lips. He opened his hands like lotus flowers in front of himself and made a powerful mantra Emblematic Gesture.


    ¡°Can a Gentleman be fooled?¡±


    Jun Mo shouted as his iron sword pierced through the mantra Emblematic Gesture.


    Qi Nian spat out blood but was still determined to keep fighting. He invoked the atha spell to meet that iron sword.


    ¡°This Gentleman will fool you!¡±


    Jun Mo screamed in anger as the iron sword broke through the rain and cut Qi Nian¡¯s outer body into two halves!


    Seeing the Buddhist suffering severe injuries and his life in danger, monks at the back of Lanke Temple that could still crawl up shouted and walked towards the front of the stone stairs, attempting to use their physical bodies to save Qi Nian¡¯s life.


    Jun Mo¡¯s iron sword left his hands with a swooshing sound and ten over monks fell to the floor dead.


    The iron sword drew four straight lines on the stone square in the autumn rain before returning to its original location towards Qi Nian.


    A straight wound suddenly appeared on Qi Nian¡¯s body.


    His face was incredibly pale. There was a lotus print on the lotus seat as he closed his eyes and began meditating.


    He was thinking about life, about death, about bones and flesh, about immortality.


    Jun Mo didn¡¯t care what he was doing, he simply shed with the iron sword again.


    In an instant, he had shed with it seventy-seven times.


    Qi Nian had gone through eleven cycles of meditation.


    The shirt that was on his body had been cut to shreds. His skin suffered multiple wounds, which had even reached his bones.


    Those wounds were healing at a clearly visible pace, but before they could healpletely, they were be cut open again by that iron sword.


    No matter how fast Qi Nian was at meditating, no matter how fast his Buddha body could heal, he would never be able to reach the speed of the iron sword!


    In time, he was struggling more and more.


    And as he was struggling, he had to bear more and more pain.


    Such pain was almost as if he were being dismembered.


    No matter how firm his Buddhist heart was, his brow couldn¡¯t help but show a pained expression.


    The iron sword struck again.


    Qi Nian¡¯s body suffered a severe hit ¨C he flew backwards, crashing into the statue of Buddha that had copsed in the hall earlier. He spat out blood.


    Jun Mo continued walking towards him.


    At this moment, Ye Su finally came to the front of the ruined hall and stood before Qi Nian.


    He looked at Jun Mo and said, ¡°The mute had been hurt before. Victory was due to underhanded means.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°If what you said were reasonable, how could you all have had the face to surround and attack my younger brother?¡±


    Ye Su kept silent for a moment, before saying, ¡°Ning Que and the Daughter of Yama are already dead, this cannot change. Lanke Temple has already been destroyed and the monks have suffered severe casualties. Does the Academy want to destroy Buddha as well?¡±


    Jun Mo said expressionlessly, ¡°The Buddhism Sect deceived the Academy and this bald donkey deceived my Senior Brother. The hypocrisy is at an extreme ¨C it is only right for this tattered sect to be erased from the world.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°No one wanted to kill Ning Que today. Otherwise, Qi Nian wouldn¡¯t have waited for the Light of Buddha to descend and destroy the Daughter of Yama. I think both the Taoism and Buddhism Sects have shown enough respect for the Academy and the Buddhism Sect paid enough for it.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°Do you think there isn¡¯t a price to pay for killing Sangsang? I will ignore the role Haotian Taoism ys in this matter for now. You would best not force the Academy to start such a war now.¡±


    Qi Niany at the feet of the shattered Buddha, he was injured all over and looked horrible. However, his face was still calm and his voice still firm, ¡°The Daughter of Yama... must die.¡±


    Jun Mo looked at him and said, ¡°She had never made any mistake, why must she pay the price now for something that might happen in the future? If the Daughter of Yama was an original sin, shouldn¡¯t the many descendants of obscene monks also be killed?¡±


    ¡°There has never been such a case in thew of the Tang Empire and old etiquette didn¡¯t have such a controversy. Hence, your visit today is unreasonable.¡±


    The autumn rain was quiet, everyone present knew the temperament of Mister Second of the Academy and wasn¡¯t surprised to hear such words. However, none of them felt he was speaking reason as this reason was unreasonable. However, as they noted him holding a straight iron sword in his hands, no one was willing to argue with him.


    No one expected that the one to stand up against Mister Second of the Academy would be Lu Chenjia.


    Even though this princess from Yuelun Kingdom was known throughout as Flower Addict, in front of Jun Mo of the Academy and World Wayfarers from different sects, her identity or strength wasn¡¯t even worth mentioning. However, as one says: those ignorant are fearless, while the fearless are not afraid of anything. She had long lost heart, hence she was willing to attack Sangsang earlier and to speak now.


    Lu Chenjia slowly stood up, wiped the rainwater off her face before looking at Jun Mo and saying, ¡°If I could ask Mister Second ¨C if everything was ording to the old rituals of thew of the Tang Empire, why has your iron sword killed so many today?¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°Thew of the Tang Empire says that any murderer must die.¡±


    Lu Chenjia replied, ¡°However, no one is sure whether Ning Que and the Daughter of Yama are dead yet. Since this cannot be confirmed, Lanke Temple hasn¡¯t killed anyone.¡±


    Jun Mo kept quiet for a moment before saying, ¡°This makes sense.¡±


    Quni Madi, with tears streaking down, held onto Master Boshu and looked at his pale face. Suddenly she raised her head, looked at Jun Mo and scolded, ¡°The Academy always thinks they are right, in fact, ever since the day Ke Haoran killed the madman, when have any of you talked reason? Look at how much pain the chief monk is in right now!¡±


    Listening to this old hag being rude to Youngest Uncle, Jun Mo raised both eyebrows, looking at Ye Su, who was blocking Qi Nian. His right hand gripped the iron sword even tighter!


    Ye Su looked shocked.


    Master Boshu, who was in the arms of Quni Madi, suddenly opened his eyes, almost as if he had seen something horrifying. A straight line shot out of from his eyes and he died just like that.


    Quni Madi didn¡¯t even have the time to react. She stared at the old monk in her arms in shock.


    President of the Commandment Yard at Xuankong Temple had died just like that.


    Qi Nian was shocked. Suddenly he raised his head and stared angrily at Jun Mo.


    Lu Chenjia thought that she had managed to control the Academy¡¯s temperamental Mister Second with her words but she hadn¡¯t expected such a tragedy to ur. Her face turned pale as she whispered, ¡°This... why?¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°Sangsang isn¡¯t guilty, the bald donkey is to me, the old rituals had said that he needs to die.¡±


    In the autumn rain, Quni Madi¡¯s desperate cries rang.


    Lanke Temple, the oldest temple in the world, had suffered never before seen destruction today. The stone stairs were destroyed, the walls had fallen, the hall was destroyed, the back hall was a pile of rubble.


    In the stone square between the halls, there were many dead bodies and the bloody water mixed with rainwater as it silently flowed over the stone floor, appearing incredibly tragic. There were countless casualties among the monks of Lanke Temple. Generations of the essence of Buddhism were destroyed in this battle with a single iron sword.


    Decades ago, it was Great Divine Priest of Judgment of West-Hill Divine Pce ¨C Lotus ¨C who secretlymanded the powers of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. It destroyed various cultivation sects in front of Lanke Temple but there were no such attacks within Lanke Temple.


    Decadester, another tragedy urred within Lanke Temple, only this time, the one that suffered the disastrous result was Lanke Temple itself. From today onwards, it wouldn¡¯t be able to maintain its position in the cultivation world.


    ¡°Today... too many people have died.¡±


    Master Qishan looked at the bodies of monks that were lying in the autumn rain. As he was looking at the traces of blood, one couldn¡¯t tell from his expression if he were happy or sad. There wasn¡¯t any emotion in his voice either.


    He looked at Jun Mo and forced a smile before saying, ¡°Even though the chessboard is destroyed, I cannot confirm whether Ning Que and the Daughter of Yama are alive or dead. Jun Mo, this should be enough for now.¡±


    Jun Mo kept quiet. /


    He wanted to kill Qi Nian. Whether it was Ye Su or Tang, they couldn¡¯t stop him from attacking as this was reason of the Academy.


    But the one speaking was Master Qishan ¨C he had to be careful.


    This was because he knew Master wasn¡¯t one of the hypocritical monks in the Buddhism Sect.


    ...

 Chapter 599 - Deserted Ruins

    <h4>Chapter 599: Deserted Ruins</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The hall was in ruins. No one saw the chessboard and when they heard Master Qishan saying that it had been destroyed, they were speechless. They were thinking that, even with Qi Nian having broken his 16 years of silent meditation and the steel sword of the Academy¡¯s Mister Second, the chessboard left behind by Buddha shouldn¡¯t have been destroyed. Even more shocking was that Master Qishan said he could not be sure whether Ning Que or the Daughter of Yama were dead or alive.


    The Lanke Temple¡¯s abbot had his left leg chopped off by the steel sword and he was lying in the autumn rain covered in blood. His face was pale as he looked at the remains of Master Boshu in the arms of Quni Madi. He froze for a long time before suddenly bursting into tears.


    Thinking back to the countless casualties today, the abbott¡¯s body started shaking uncontrobly. He then crawled up the stone stairs on all fours and cried saying to Master Qishan, ¡°Why must you do this? Do you want the whole world to be destroyed? Lanke has been destroyed, can this not stop the destruction of the world?¡±


    Master Qishan looked at his disciple in pity and took another look at Qi Nian before saying slowly, ¡°A hundred years ago, I left the Xuankong Temple and came to the world, I have stayed here the longest and my love for this ce has only gotten deeper. However, when ites to protecting the world, we have chosen different paths.¡±


    Qi Nian said, ¡°Uncle, have you ever considered that this path that you have chosen for humanity is very different from most people¡¯s? It might be a terrible mistake.¡±


    A smile appeared on Master Qishan¡¯s weary face as he said, ¡°I am Qishan, not a divergent mountain. Hence, this road that I have chosen will always be different in other¡¯s eyes.¡±


    With that, he slowly closed his eyes and leaned into Guan Hai¡¯s embrace.


    Monk Guan Hai¡¯s body was chilled by the autumn rain. At this moment, his heart was simrly wet and cold. He reached out with a trembling finger and ced it in front of the master¡¯s nose. His tears couldn¡¯t stop flowing.


    The master had attained Parinirvana.


    Decades ago, Master Qishan saved countless of lives from precarious situations. He was infected with a serious illness and his cultivation state was almost destroyed. Fighting with the illness for many years, he was mentally and physically worn out. Now he was old and tired but he still helped Ning Que fend off Qi Nian, forcefully opening the chessboard world.


    Jun Mo looked at the master¡¯s fragile body in the arms of Monk Guan Hai, then slowly bowed.


    The Lanke Temple¡¯s abbot, who was denouncing the master suddenly stopped in shock, to cry andugh madly before falling to his knees.


    In front of the stone steps of the hall, all those who could still stand saluted the master¡¯s remains.


    Such respect wasn¡¯t because Master Qishan was the true elder of the Lanke Temple or that he was the Bhadanta of the Buddhism Sect. It was because he used centuries in his lifetime to prove his kindness andpassion. Even if most people would oppose the decision that he made before he died, no one dared to question his virtue.


    The autumn rain dispersed slightly.


    A schr appeared before the hall ruins. The intense rain had drenched the cotton cloth on his body; the cotton flowers that were bloodied and covered the cotton looked like they had frost on them.


    Hearing the crying noises from the stone stairs, he walked over and everyone opened a path for him.


    Eldest Brother walked to the body of Master Qishan, thinking back to the letters the two had exchanged these few years. Thinking about the various hopes that Master had written of in those letters, he had a sorrowful expression; as he held the Master¡¯s gradually colder right hand, he softly said a few words.


    Jun Mo looked at his back and said, ¡°Master said that our Younger Brother and Sangsang might still be alive.¡±


    Eldest Brother stood up and looked at the raining skies. He squinted his eyes at the fast raindrops and his face was pale and weary. He suddenly turned around and walked up the stone steps.


    The hall was already a pile of rubble; Eldest Brother slightly swayed his cotton sleeves and cotton flowers were released from them, floating away. The rubble around him was quickly cleared away at a visible speed.


    Jun Mo knew that his Senior Brother had already forcefully broken the realm too many times today, and if he were to continue, his cultivation state would be irreparably damaged. He said, ¡°Senior Brother, let me do this.¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°I am very anxious.¡±


    He was usually a patient person and was slow-tempered, sometimes even too slow that it could test one¡¯s temper. However today, he was the most anxious person in the world and naturally he was most worried about Ning Que.


    Jun Mo didn¡¯t say anything else as he thrust the steel sword into the ground and started helping his Senior Brother.


    In a short amount of time, the rubble in the hall had been cleared away. Even the foundation of the hall was dug out by Jun Mo but they still couldn¡¯t find the chessboard.


    Could the chessboard left behind by Buddha have been destroyed, just as Master Qishan had said?


    However, even if it was, there should be some traces left behind.


    The autumn rain became more intense as there was silence all around the debris. Besides the sound of the rain, nothing could be heard. The rainwater slowly seeped into the foundation that had just been dug and started forming pools of water everywhere.


    Eldest Brother looked at the pools of water, when his expression suddenly changed.


    In the deepest part of the hall¡¯s foundation, it was still surrounded by the earthen walls, with traces of the shes of steel swords on it. One could vaguely make out a tower with a base that was over ten square feet in size. The tower had been buried under the hall for many years and was long in ruins. At the center of the tower was an old well that was stuffed full of dirt. The well head was broken long ago.


    Jun Mo came beside the tower and pierced at it with the steel sword in his hands before shaking his head.


    There were no gaps in the dirt covering the dried up well and was inessible to the ground level, so there was no way. Even if Ning Que and Sangsang had abandoned the ck carriage, they couldn¡¯t escape from here.


    Where could one find an opening in such ruins?


    Ye Su and the rest started rummaging through the rubble, digging up the foundation of the hall. They were silent as they were clear that Mr. First and Mr. Second were quiet at this moment but their emotions were on the brink of exploding. At such a moment, even the abbey dean of the Zhishou Abbey and the Chief Preaching Monk weren¡¯t willing to offend them.


    Eldest Brother walked out of the rubble toward Qi Nian, then looked at him quietly for a long time before saying with a guilty emotion, ¡°In Chang¡¯an, I shouldn¡¯t have discussed this with you. I always believed that since you professed Buddhism, you should have somepassion.¡±


    Qi Nian was covered in blood and had a calm expression as he said, ¡°Using Mr. First¡¯s trust in the Buddhism Sect was wrong of me. However, I did it due to thepassion that the Buddhism Sect has for this world.¡±


    Eldest Brother shook his head, sighed and said, ¡°Having nopassion, not even for a weak girl... where is this greatpassion? Even if there is, what is it good for?¡±


    Hearing this, there was silence in front of the temple ruins. Everyone, especially Monk Guan Hai and the Lanke Temple¡¯s abbot were deep in thought. Qi Nian¡¯s expression turned slightly.


    ¡°Teacher had once said that I am a bright and clear mountain stream. I have not once met with a real crossroad or swamp, having been much more fortunate than Younger Brother. Only today, after being cheated and used by you is when Ie to understand what Teacher¡¯s words meant. This is my first time feeling such pain and anger.¡±


    Eldest Brother looked at Qi Nian and continued, ¡°I cannot fight; otherwise I would battle it out with you here. When I have learned to fight, I will find you at the Xuankong Temple.¡± / update by


    Jun Mo looked at the indifferent expression on Qi Nian¡¯s face and said, ¡°Because of Master Qishan¡¯sst wish, I will not kill you today. When I find Younger Brother at the Academy, he will naturally go to the Xuankong Temple to kill you. If I can¡¯t find him at the Academy, I will follow Senior Brother to the Xuankong Temple to find you. Please let the Chief Preaching Monk know.¡±


    Different words but they were talking about the same thing. Everyone in the autumn rain felt cold as they silently thought: Could the Academy be dering war on the Xuankong Temple?


    Cheng Ziqing of the Sword Garret leaned against the stone steps, looking at Qi Nian without a word. He couldn¡¯t help but think that if he were a monk from the Xuankong Temple, he would need to pray for Ning Que to still be alive.


    If he was dead, can the Xuankong Temple withstand the intense revenge of the Academy?


    Qi Nian¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change. Looking at the two people from the Academy, he calmly said, ¡°This is the will of Buddha, how can mortals change that? Ning Que and the Daughter of Yama must be dead. If the Academy wants to get rid of Buddha, we shall see.¡±


    ¡°Buddha was also a mortal back then.¡±


    Jun Mo raised his head in the rainy skies towards the Buddha stone statue on the peak of Tile Mountain far away. Looking at the solemn expression of the stone Buddha and the Light of Buddha that was still slowly descending from its palm, he grew incredibly angry.


    ¡°From today onwards, bald donkeys aren¡¯t allowed into the Tang jurisdiction.¡±


    With that, he became slightly pale as his oversized shirt swayed in the rain. The broad steel sword flew towards the skies and pierced through the rain, impaling itself into the Buddha statue.


    The stone statue of Buddha at the peak of Tile mountain was incredibly big, almost as if the real Buddha was overseeing the world.


    Compared statue, the steel sword was an insignificant piece of metal.


    However, the steel sword was filled with the most explosive emotions from Jun Mo; the deepest contempt, the absolute order. How could a senseless stone Buddha be able topete against that?


    The right hand of the stone Buddha fell off its wrist andnded from incredibly high up. It upset the goshawks and the autumn rain; it fell to the ground after a very long time, giving off a muffled thud.


    The face of the stone statue had a few more horizontal lines on it. From afar, they were like ck lines drawn with ink by a mischievous kid; his solemn expression instantly became ridiculous.


    Those lines were drawn by the steel swords and went deep into the back of the statue¡¯s head. After a moment, the entire face of the stone statue copsed as rocks continued to tumble.


    Giant rocks started falling off from the stone statue, as the speed of its copse became quicker and quicker.


    There was a continuous thundering sound from the Tile mountain peak. Countless dust clouds rushed towards the sky and even the rain showers couldn¡¯t extinguish them in a short amount of time. The peak started shaking and reached the Lanke Temple at the foot of the mountain.


    Hundreds of huge rocks came tumbling down the mountain; they sounded like tens of thousands of horses running and it left one horrified. Following down the slope, they were heading toward the Lanke Temple that was already in ruins.


    The people at the back temple were shocked and scared as they held onto their injuredpanions or carried the bodies of the dead and started rushing into the middle temple.


    Countless sounds of impact could be heard as the giant rocks that came from the stone statue had easily crushed the ancient temple¡¯s walls. They shattered the temple ruins even further, crushing the stone floors and the broken bell, adding to the trmendous horror.


    After a long time, it was finally silent. The dust settled and everyone that had escaped to the front square of the temple turned their backs slowly in shock. A big part of the Lanke Temple had been crushed t by the giant rocks.


    ...

 Chapter 600 - Where Are They?

    <h4><b>Chapter 600: Where Are They?</b></h4>


    Trantor: Transn | Editor: Transn


    Looking at the ruined Lanke Temple in shock, people couldn¡¯t help but stay silent. The surviving monks cried out, and as they stared at the straight high crown all they felt was despair.


    Quni Madi, who was carrying Baoshu¡¯s body in her arms, had already lost her only son. Now she suffered the loss of the other most important man in her life, and everything seemedpletely hopeless. Looking at Jun Mo¡¯s back, she cried out, ¡°You crazy people! Do you think the Academy is really invincible?¡±


    Jun Mo did not turn around. He took a white, clean handkerchief out of his sleeves, wiped the blood from his lips, and said, ¡°Our Academy is invincible.¡±


    Quni Madi froze, as she had not expected this as an answer. She burst intoughter before saying, ¡°Even if you think you¡¯re invincible, you cannot remain that way for long. Someday the heavens will punish you, just like they punished the madman, Ke Haoran.¡±


    Usually, if Jun Mo heard someone calling his Youngest Uncle a madman, he would go slightly mad with rage. This time, however, he just stood beside Eldest Brother and kept silent.


    Qi Nian was silent as he stared at the pile of boulders that had once been the great temple. Suddenly, he remembered the bleeding wounds on his chest caused by the two Divine Talismans and the iron sword. He thought of these arbitrary people in the Academy and bitterly said, ¡°You really are just a group of crazy people in the Academy. I wonder if you¡¯ll ever be able to find true peace.¡±


    Quni Madi thought she was going to be killed, but Jun Mo just ignored her. She could not help falling into a pit of despair and grief.


    Then she suddenly saw the Calligraphy Addict, Mo Shanshan who was standing in the crowd, so she bitterly said, ¡°Mo Shanshan! Everyone saw you helping Yama¡¯s daughter to escape from this. I will see how the Great River Kingdom and the Master of Calligrapher will protect you now.¡±


    Upon hearing this, Mo Shanshan changed her face. When she found that Ning Que and Sangsang were in danger, she instinctively helped them without considering any consequences. However, knowing that Sangsang could be Yama¡¯s daughter and was going to ruin the world, she felt ashamed of herself.


    ¡°Come here, Shanshan.¡±


    At this time, Eldest Brother¡¯s voice sounded out.


    Mo Shanshan looked at the schr who was not familiar with her and hesitated a little before she remembered the trip from the Wilderness to Chang¡¯an two years ago. She feltforted and walked toward him.


    Eldest Brother looked around and said, ¡°Shanshan is my sworn sister.¡±


    He said it simply but meaningfully. In front of all these people, he dered the Calligraphy Addict as his sworn sister. That was both a promise and a threat.


    After today, harming Mo Shanshan or the ck Ink Garden would be considered a provocation to the Academy. Given the damage of Lanke Temple and the heavy blow of the Buddhism Sect today, who would dare challenge the Academy?


    Jun Mo suddenly asked Tang, ¡°Why did youe here?¡±


    Tang said, ¡°I came to see.¡±


    Jun Mo asked, ¡°To see what?¡±


    Earlier today, Ye Su once asked him the same question and Tang had said, ¡°I came to see you people of Central in kill.¡±


    Now he changed his answer, and said, ¡°I came to see you kill.¡±


    Jun Mo nodded and said, ¡°We, the Academy, are not fond of killing. We only kill when we need to. You don¡¯t have to worry about it.¡±


    Tang knew he was talking about his sister¡¯s education in the Academy, so he nodded in thanks.


    Jun Mo added, ¡°If my Younger Brother shows up in the Wilderness, please send him back.¡±


    Tang said, ¡°If Yama¡¯s daughter apanies him, I cannot promise I won¡¯t kill him.¡±


    Jun Mo frowned and didn¡¯t say anything.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    Eldest Brother said to him and went down the mountain with Mo Shanshan.


    Jun Mo followed him as well.


    Looking at the three figures gradually disappearing in the rain, Ye Su suddenly asked, ¡°Will you sacrifice five years¡¯ worth of cultivation just to ruin the figure of Buddha and protect you?¡±


    Thinking about the scene of Jun Mo wiping his blood, Tang said, ¡°Only a crazy man would do things like this.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°Everyone on the Second floor of the Academy barely goes out into world after Mr. Ke, so these ignorant people all forget the stories of the Academy. From today, no one will be able to forget.¡±


    Tang said, ¡°We, the Enlightenment Doctrine, have been considered as the evil in the world in your eyes. Given how the Academy has acted, it is understandable that they didn¡¯t treat us like monsters.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°The Buddhism Sect have been doing what they believe is right, and we, the Haotian Taoism, have been doing what we think is right. You, the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, just want to go against us. Only the Academy acts however they wish.¡±


    Walking on the green stone steps on Tile mountain and feeling the warm breath behind her, Mo Shanshan gradually calmed down.


    Only then did she realize that she was holding a box in her hands that had been thrown out of the carriage when Ning Que and Sangsang were breaking out of the encirclement.


    She opened the box and found a strange object: two connected round frames with two legs, with transparent slices in the middle. She could not tell what the object was made of.


    ¡°These are called myopia sses.¡±


    Eldest Brother looked at her and gently exined, ¡°The slices are made of good crystals. Younger Brother said it was helpful for a person with bad vision. He begged Sixth Brother to make them; it took quite a lot of effort.¡±


    Upon hearing this, Mo Shanshan felt warmer in her heart. She took them out to try them on but had no idea how to wear them.


    Jun Mo walked by her side and said, ¡°Put them on your nose. Ning Que customized them for you. He warned us not to tell Sangsang, but I think she already knew.¡±


    Mo Shanshan smiled and said, ¡°In a crisis like that, Ning Que would hardly remember this. It must be Sangsang who threw them to me.¡±


    She ced the sses on the bridge of her nose.


    Then she turned around to looked at the mountain behind her. She found that the once blurry view was nowpletely clear.


    However, it looked unreal and warped, with a sort of nihility to it.


    In the distance she saw the ruined temple, but her old friends were not there.

 Chapter 601 - Autumn Is Coming

    <h4>Chapter 601: Autumn Is Coming</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    In the sixteenth year of the Tianqi era, an autumnal rain fell on the Tile mountain, bringing a mudslide with it and andslide afterwards. Thergest Buddha statue in the world copsed. Half of the Lanke Temple was buried. The ancient temples of the millennium were turned into ruins in the blink of an eye. The monks in the temple were either dead or injured. Those who participated in the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival survived thanks to being absent from the temple at the time.


    On the same day, Master Qishan, deeply admired in all the world, experienced his Parinirvana. After much misfortune, the abbot of the Lanke Temple was so disheartened that he retreated to the Tile mountain. Monk Guan Hai, Master Qishan¡¯sst disciple, seeded the abbot, and was responsible for the mountain temporarily.


    That was the official statement. If human beings could continue to exist, maybe the historical records would describe it this way as well. Maybe the truth only could be found in the West-Hill¡¯s Scripture and the secret writings of the Buddhism Sect. Only a handful of people knew that this disaster, which had almost caused the destruction of the Lanke Temple, had nothing to do with nature, but was only a scheme of the Buddhism Sect as an attempt to suppress the Daughter of Yama. Unfortunately, the Academy did not want to help them.


    In this battle, Master Qishan experienced his Parinirvana, the president of the Commandment Yard of the Xuankong Temple died, Qi Nian of the Buddhism Sect was heavily injured, the Sword Garret¨CCheng Ziqing¡¯s Natal Sword was destroyed; monks in the Lanke Temple and representatives of all cultivation sects suffered a lot. Besides, those who had survived also received a severe admonishment, forbidding them to say anything about this ident; perhaps they didn¡¯t want to cause panic in the human world. Both the Haotian Taoism and the Buddhism Sect had blocked the news heralding the arrival of the Daughter of Yama, so even people in the West-Hill Divine Pce did not know that the Lady of Light had be their biggest enemy.


    Since Ke Haoran, the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain, which hadn¡¯t show up in the cultivation world for years, had finally appeared in this battle. Mr. First and Mr. Second of the Academy had shown powerful strength and unimaginable states, which astonished all sects of the cultivation world. They had recalled certain incidents that happened years ago, and further confirmed that the Academy was indeed unparalleled.


    The Academy had also suffered a lot in this battle. Ning Que, whose state had improved rapidly and had gradually been regarded as the Academy¡¯s disciple who would Enter the human realm, had disappeared without a trace with the Daughter of Yama and the ck horse carriage.


    Since the strange disappearance of the Buddha¡¯s chessboard, no one had ever seen the ck carriage in the human world. No one knew if Ning Que and Sangsang had died or if they were still alive somewhere.


    Because of the exhortation made by Master Huang Yang¨CEmperor Li Zhongyi¡¯s younger brother¨Cthe Emperor of the Tang Dynasty did not n to destroy the Buddha. The previous Chang¡¯an entry ban issued to Dao Shi was extended to the whole world. All Buddhist monks were forbidden to step into Tang¡¯s territory, except for the Guan Hai bloodline of the Lanke Temple.


    Another year hade in the blink of an eye. The autumn leaves had turned yellow and the Wilderness had frosted over.


    Ning Que and Sangsang had been missing for a year, without any news about them. But as the old saying went, even if the emperor died, those who had to marry would still be obliged. So the world still went forward slowly, following the repeating rules of thousands of years. Though, people¡¯s footsteps seemed a lot heavier during this year.


    At the very beginning of the year, the situation in the Central ins was actually very tense, especially in the eyes of those bigwigs who knew the truth about the turn of events at the Lanke Temple.


    The unexpected happenings at the Lanke Temple could be seen as the Academy¡¯s protection of the Daughter of Yama from any perspective. Then, the Academy should be the enemy of the entire world. But anyone who wanted to destroy the Academy had to destroy the Tang Empire first. The West-Hill Divine Pce could take this as an excuse to wage a war on the Tang Empire at any time, calling upon hundreds of millions of Haotian believers.


    That was also why the original agreements reached by all the Central ins countries in the Lanke Temple had be a waste of paper. When the West-Hill Divine Pce ordered the coalition to go northward, the northeast cavalries of the Tang Empire, which were supposed to be the main vanguard force, had been excluded by the coalition and even became the enemies they were most vignt against.


    When the coalition forces of the West-Hill Divine Pce and The Deste were fighting each other and summer was about to pass by, the situation on the Wilderness changed drastically all of a sudden. The Left King¡¯s Pce had led a miserable life in the past two years and had taken a rest in the Min Mountain for half a year. They suddenly entered the Wilderness again andunched an attack on both The Deste and the coalition forces.


    The behavior of the Left King¡¯s Pce was seen as killing itself. However, no one thought that those daredevil yet unorganized grasnd cavalries, who could madly wave swords around at most in the past, would turn into a highly organized and equiped army. The grasnd cavalry was excellent at riding and shooting, coupled with organization and discipline; its strength was greatly improved.


    What was even more frightening was that the grasnd cavalry of the Left King¡¯s Pce seemed to attack both sides at the same time. In fact, its insidious motive was to disturb the already stable situation, leaving The Deste and the Central ins to fight each other constantly.


    The Allied Forces of the Central ins were shocked by the changes of the cavalries in the Left King¡¯s Pce. Through unremitting efforts, they finally found out that there was a military counselor, whose advice was always followed by Chanyu of the pce. Thus, the training of the cavalry and the sinister strategies were all put forward by him.


    The military counselor wore a silver mask.


    The battle on the Wilderness became more and more chaotic, and all parties were paying a greater price. Cavalries in the Left King¡¯s Pce were trying to drag the coalition forces of The Deste and Central ins unwaveringly, even if they had lots of deaths and injuries. Finally, the countries in the Central ins couldn¡¯t bear it anymore, so they sent a strong man, intending to assassinate the military counselor.


    However, though they could approach the Left King¡¯s Pce, the swordsmen in the South Jin Kingdom, the cultivators of the Yan Kindom and the Kingdom of Song all failed to assassinate the military counselor. It was not until all the assassins had died when the Central ins countries had suddenly discovered that there were actually dozens of strong men in the Seethrough Realm by the military counselor¡¯s side.


    Faced with such a situation, if the West-Hill Divine Pce did not take any action, no one could kill that person, and the situation on the Wilderness would be more and moreplicated. At this time, the Northeast Border Military of the Tang Empire had finally entered the Wilderness, and managed to stabilize the situation there after two tragic wars.


    The grass in the depths of the Wilderness had already turned white, and there came the sound of horses. Dozens of riders rode up a meadow on the banks of the Yanglin River. From the horses ridden, one could tell that these knights were from the Left King¡¯s Pce. However, the strange thing was that these people did not dress like the grasnd barbarians, but wore ck robes instead.


    In front of the dozens of riders was the military counselor who wore a silver mask.


    The military counselor walked the horse up to the tomb and took off his silver mask, revealing his face which was severely burnt by mes. However, one could still see his original cheek, looking at the south quietly.


    This person was Prince Long Qing who had fled to the Wilderness.


    Prince Long Qing¡¯s rtives in the Yan Kingdom had kept in close contact with the Left King¡¯s Pce. Therefore, the Left King¡¯s Pce was willing to send someone to the frontier fortress at the North of Yan Kingdom to pick him up in the Wilderness.


    After entering the Left King¡¯s Pce, Long Qing assassinated the high priest of the pce and captured the rest of the priests within an extremely short period of time, showing the extent of his power to the savage grasnd barbarians.


    During this year, he had absorbed the powerful strength of the pce¡¯s High Priest, two strong men in the Central ins who were in the upper Seethrough State, and a senior statesman¡¯s cultivation using the Gray Eye. Hence, he had certainly broken through the Knowing Destiny State, and was even about to reach its peak. However, the essence and blood of the priests and senior statesman were notpatible with his Haotian Taoism. Therefore, his aura was a little bit messy and his state was still not stable enough.


    Standing on the meadow and watching the distant mountains in the south, Long Qing kept silent for a long time. He remembered many things over the past few years. He couldn¡¯t help bing emotional, and said to himself, ¡°The rivers and mountains are so good, and all are left for me to take. It is a pity that you are dead, or I will kill you again. How wonderful would this be!¡±


    The grass in the Wilderness had been frosted, while the West-Hill was still looking green everywhere.


    Ye Hongyu appeared in the depths of the mountains, in front of the simple and ordinary Taoist temple.


    She wore a red-colored ruling gown and a divine crown. She looked calm and entered the temple without mming the door, as if she was returning to her own home. She said, ¡°Uncle, I haven¡¯t seen you in a long time.¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist priest, dressed in a light green robe, was washing brushes by theke and after listening to the voice, he looked up at her. He shook his head and said, ¡°You are veryte.¡±


    ording to the rules of the Haotian Taoism, the three Great Divine Priests of the West-Hill Divine Pce, the abbey dean of the Southern Gate Temple of the Tang Empire, and people such as the Master Yan Se who had earned the title of Great Divine Priest with his own strength muste to the Zhishou Abbey after being granted the title. The title would onlye into effect with the consent of the Zhishou Abbey.


    Ye Hongyu had killed the former Great Divine Priest of Judgmentst spring, and had ascended the ck jade throne. She should havee to the Zhishou Abbey earlier, but she didn¡¯t. What was strange was that both the Hierarch and the Great Divine Priest of Revtion all epted her practice, and no one in the entire West-Hill Divine Pce dared to say anything about it.


    ¡°It was just a formality. I cane at any time.¡±


    Ye Hongyu went to theke and looked at the Taoist temple which seemed lonely and even a little bit lifeless. She said, ¡°The temple has be less and less humane.¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist dried the wet brush and took her to the room. He said, ¡°The abbey dean has been in the South China Sea. My younger brother went to the Kingdom of Song to get married and was not willing toe back. Now it¡¯s only me in the temple, so it seems lonely here.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°When I was a child, there weren¡¯t many people here as well, but it was quite lively.¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist thought about the days when children ran and yed in the Taoist temple over ten years ago. He smiled and said, ¡°After Pippi left, you were sent to the Revtion Institute. From then on, the temple wasn¡¯t lively anymore.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said nothing.


    The middle-aged Taoist looked at her and said, ¡°If someone else does note to see me after bing the Great Divine Priest of Judgment, I will definitely issue a punishment. Certainly, you are not afraid that I will punish you, so you must have been toozy toe to see me. But why did youe today?¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°I would like to ask you about two things, and then read a volume of the scriptures.¡±


    It was a rule of Haotian Taoism that the Great Divine Priest of West-Hill should go to the temple. In fact, it was also a great advantage. Because in ordance with the rule, the Great Divine Priest could choose a volume from the seven Tomes of the Arcane to study.


    ¡°Which volume do you want to read?¡±


    ¡°The ¡®Ri¡¯ Handscroll.¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist asked in doubt, ¡°You have lived in the temple for a while when you were little. Although you didn¡¯t have ess to read the seven volumes, you must have guessed something. The ¡°Ri¡± Handscroll wouldn¡¯t be of any help to your cultivation.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°I want to see if that person¡¯s name is on the ¡®Ri¡¯ Handscroll.¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist asked after a moment of silence, ¡°Whose name?¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Ning Que.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 602 - Eternal Life and Death

    <h4>Chapter 602: Eternal Life and Death</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Liu Bai¡¯s name was still at the top of the second page, followed by the names of Jun Mo, Ye Su, Tang, and Qi Nian. Each of the names represented one of the most powerful cultivators in the world.


    Ye Hongyu looked at the ¡°Ri¡± Handscroll without any emotion. She had lived in the Zhishou Abbey for a period of time, but she didn¡¯t have any ess to the seven scrolls. So, she was still nervous right now, especially because of the presentation of the ¡°Ri¡± Handscroll had made her perceive the greatness and omniscience of Haotian.


    She flipped the pages slowly, and saw more familiar and unfamiliar names of cultivators appearing in front of her eyes. One of the names, which had made her frown slightly, was the name of Long Qing.


    The ink that was used to write Long Qing¡¯s name seemed to have been mixed with a lot of water, so the handwriting that fell on the ¡°Ri¡± Handscroll was very light, and even looked somewhat grayish. Furthermore, the word structure of Long Qing¡¯s name was obviously unstable. It seemed as if these two words mighte out of the paper or disappear at any time.


    Looking at Long Qing¡¯s name, Ye Hongyu shook her head and continued to flip to the back. But she did not find Ning Que¡¯s name even at the end of the scroll. She frowned and said, ¡°Is he really dead?¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist was hanging the brush on the brushes holder after washing it, and then adjusting the holder¡¯s position to ensure that it could get enough but not too much of the zing sunlight. After a while, he nodded with satisfaction.


    ¡°Uncle, I¡¯ve read all of it,¡± said Ye Hongyu.


    The middle-aged Taoist stepped forward and closed the heavy pages of the ¡°Ri¡± Handscroll. He looked at her, shook his head and said, ¡°It is a pity that you used such a precious opportunity to confirm whether Ning Que is still alive.¡±


    Ye Hongyu shook her head and said, ¡°I think Ning Que is the only one who could really threaten Haotian Taoism in the Academy. Therefore, it is extremely important for me to know if he is still alive.¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist frowned and said, ¡°Why do you think so?¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Everyone said that the Academy believes in nothing, but people inside are still subjected to certain rules, such as morality, thew of Tang Empire, etiquette, and demeanor; Mr. First and Mr. Second are certainly great people. However, confined by thesews and regtions, their destructiveness can be predicted.¡±


    ¡°Ning Que is a person who can¡¯t be confined by any restrictions. If he wants to do something, then morality or legalities mean nothing to him. He does not know what demeanor is. If Ning Que was in Mr. First or Mr. Second¡¯s position, he would not have only destroyed the stone statues of Buddha and the Lanke Temple during that fateful battle. He would have certainly killed Qi Nian, and then find ways to level the Xuankong Temple.¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist said, ¡°Why are you so sure about what he¡¯ll do?¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Because we are the same kind of people.¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist said, ¡°Maybe you are right. Fortunately, Ning Que has died. No matter how terrible he may have be, it would be impossible right now.¡±


    Ye Hongyu added, ¡°Besides attaching importance to Ning Que, the reason why I¡¯m willing to choose the ¡°Ri¡± Handscroll is that I don¡¯t care what I can learn from the Tomes of the Arcane. Two of their seven volumes have been lost. Ye Su saw six volumes in the past. So, it is meaningless for me to read these five volumes all at once, let alone one of them.¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist said emotionally, ¡°So many years have passed, yet you still take your elder brother as your goal.¡±


    Ye Hongyu thought about the thunder by the Bi Lakest autumn and said indifferently, ¡°He used to be my only goal. But afterst fall, he is but just a temporary goal on my path to cultivation.¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist said: ¡°Ye Su must be happy about your change.¡±


    Ye Hongyu looked at the middle-aged Taoist¡¯s eyes and said, ¡°But I¡¯m not happy... Long Qing stole the Tomes of the Arcane, and I really wanted to kill him. However, I don¡¯t know why all of you want to stop me.¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist kept silence.


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°I really doubted whether Long Qing was the Son of Yama before. Now, since we know that he is not, why did the Divine Hall prevent the Judicial Department from entering the Wilderness to kill him? Do you n to bring trouble to the temple?¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist smiled and he still did not say anything.


    Ye Hongyu stared at his eyes and said, ¡°In fact, what still disturbs me the most is what happened at Lanke Temple. Why were we so slow to act when even the Buddhism Sect knew that the Daughter of Yama hade to the human world? Since the Divine Priest of Light had chosen Sangsang as his sessor, I don¡¯t think he knew the truth even before he died.¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist looked at her and said with a sigh, ¡°I know that you came with doubts. However, the only person who can answer these questions for you is your Senior Brother, and he is still traveling in the South China Sea. So, I am as bewildered as you are.¡±


    Ye Hongyu walked out of the cottage and went to theke.


    She silently looked at the green hill far behind the Taoist temple, with hands behind her back and the divine robes waving slightly.


    When she lived in the temple, she and Chen Pipi were strictly prohibited from approaching the green hill. They did not know what was in the mountain, but when she was young, she clearly felt that the green hill was very dangerous.


    Now, she was the West-Hill¡¯s Great Divine Priest of Judgment, with a deep and powerful state. Therefore, she did not feel as frightened as before, and she even had a strong impulse to find out what was there.


    ¡°You want to know what¡¯s in the mountain, right?¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist came to her and also looked at the green hill.


    Ye Hongyu did not hide her ideas and nodded.


    The middle-aged Taoist said, ¡°That Mountain stands for the once strong power of Haotian Taoism and will be the glorious future on our road ahead.¡±


    Ye Hongyu felt something. She frowned slightly and asked, ¡°When will the futuree?¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist said, ¡°Maybe until the person, who made Haotian Taoism no longer strong, leaves.¡±


    Ye Hongyu kept silent for a long time and then said, ¡°No one knows how far the future is.¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist said, ¡°Everyone will be old and die, and even the most powerful one won¡¯t be able to shake off the shackles of this rule. It is only ¡°forever¡± that is really far away from us, so ¡®future¡¯ won¡¯t be too far away.¡±


    We are all mortal, so it always seems that death is far away from us. In fact, it is very close to us, and its arrival often seemed to be understated, without any signs.


    Many events,rge and small, had happened in Chang¡¯an city during the whole year after the autumn of the Tianqi era¡¯s sixteen year. However, what really caught everyone¡¯s attention were the funerals held one after another.


    In winter, the aged Grand Secretary Wang, an extremely important person to the bnce of the imperial court over the past three generations, had died. It was said that before he died, he looked at the Chicken Soup Calligraphy for the whole night. Eventually, in hisst words he retracted from been buried with the Chicken Soup Calligraphy, and then quietly closed his eyes forever.


    The Old Chancellor who argued with the Grand Secretary Wang for a lifetime also closed his eyes forever before the winter snow had thawed. Jin Wucai, whose eyes had swollen because of crying, conveyed the Old Chancellor¡¯sst words to the official students who were waiting in the house. He said that since it was too cumbersome to relocate the tomb, the Old Chancellor would be buried next to Grand Secretary Wang. In this way, they wouldn¡¯t be lonely.


    Chu Xiongtu, the great General of the Tang Empire¡¯s 16th dynasty, also died of illness in the spring of the next year. After that, several more ministers left the world. There wasn¡¯t even a chance to take down the white gs, which were hung on the streets of Chang¡¯an.


    These deceased ministers and generals were all very old, so it was normal for them to have died of illness or natural causes. However, what had made people feel uneasy was that they all died in the same period of time, when half of the main pirs of the court in the two generations of the Tianqi era had passed away.


    What was even more upsetting was that the lung disease of Xu Shi, the Defender-general of the State, had be more serious. Even if he was forcibly driven back to the southern front, the moist air could not alleviate his disease like the previous years. News from the pce said that the emperor¡¯s cough grew more and more grave and his temper was getting worse and worse. He said the word ¡°idiot¡± far more than the average times of that year.


    After students from the front yard of the Academy had graduated, most of the foreign students had returned to their countries, with one-third of them staying in Chang¡¯an. Students of the Tang Empire had either entered the imperial court or joined the army.


    eding to his grandfather¡¯sst words, Chu Zhongtian had joined the military of the Yulin Royal Guards at the grass-roots level. Zhong Da Jun returned to Yangguan City and immediately took office as an important but low-ranking official. The Zhong¡¯s family was a big family in Qinghe County. So, if he worked hard and did not make any big mistakes, he would get promoted again soon.


    Among the students in the Academy, Situ Yn, the daughter of General Yunhui and a friend of the Princess, shocked people the most. She got a position from the military department, and went to Hua Shanyue at the Gushan Commandery in the north to be a female Commandant, taking a firm step toward her goal of bing the first female general of the Tang Empire.


    Situ Yn¡¯s decision had shocked the whole city of Chang¡¯an. From the very beginning, people didn¡¯t understand her and were cynical about it. Butter on, they kept silent and even paid tribute to her. The mindset of those in Chang¡¯an had changed, or in other words, they had learned something from it.


    Today, Hua Shanyue was no longer a Senior Captain, but had be the head of the military forces of the Three States. In the northeastern hilly region of the Tang Empire, Hua Shanyue was the most powerful one except for the Northeast Border Military in Tuyang City.


    After returning from the Lanke Temple with his delegation, Xian Zhng was not affected by the change in the Battle of the Lanke Temple. He took over Xia Hou¡¯s position, and became the great general who guarded the north.


    General Shu Cheng, who had contributed to defeating the Northeast Border Military by cooperating with the Academy, disguising himself as a Horse Gang in the Wastnd for the past few years, took over the position of Xian Zhng. He became the great general who guarded the west, confronting the Yuelun Kingdom directly.


    Birth, aging, illness, and death were natural.


    During the Year of the Tianqi era, people in the old generation were as many as stars, but they gradually left the world. Therefore, it was natural that the new generation would take over their positions. The most powerful thing in the Tang Empire was that thisnd was suitable for the growth of towering trees. But many people have noticed that as time passed by, the new generation had gradually taken over the old one, so Princess Li Yu¡¯s influence had be increasingly powerful.


    The only thing that could make the Queen gratified was that Ning Que had gone missing after killing General Xia Hou. If he was still alive, the Academy would certainly choose to support Li Yu, regardless of Ning Que¡¯s close rtionship with Li Yu or Li Yu¡¯s feud with the queen.

 Chapter 603 - The Same People and Things

    Chapter 603: The Same People and Things


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The autumn breeze made the yellowish fallen leaves swirl in the courtyard. Li Qingshan averted his eyes from the rolling leaves and looked at the pce walls at a distance. As he squinted, he took out a white handkerchief to cover his mouth and made several slight coughs. Then he folded the handkerchief carefully and put it into his sleeve.


    As the Nation Master of the Tang Empire, he was highly privileged but known for his banter. With the increase of wrinkles, however, he was obviously older and more silent.


    Thinking about the old people who died this year, a trace of worry emerged in his eyes. Although such matters as birth, death, illness and old age were all natural matters, he could not help sighing for the death of so many old friends in such a short time. As the abbey dean of the South School of Haotian Taoism, he worriedly pondered whether this represented Heaven¡¯s will.


    His Majesty seemed still healthy, but actually became increasingly weaker in recent years. Xu Shi aged more quickly in those years. If this generation was not dead but kept aging, how could he not feel worried about the future of the Tang Empire?


    If the Headmaster could live forever, the Tang Empire would have no problems. Even if there were some, it would be nothing but ripples in the pond. But the Headmaster would pass away one day.


    A yellow oiled-paper umbre rested quietly on the jet-ck wooden floor.


    He Mingchi knelt behind Li Qingshan, not seeing the worries on his teacher¡¯s face. He whispered, ¡°The God-stunning Array is linked to the security of the Tang Empire and the array eye has always been kept by us from the Southern Gate Temple. Master Yan Se passed it to Ning Que, who has been missing for a long time. So in principle, it should be returned to us or His Majesty to avoid arousing suspicion. It seems improper to leave it at the Academy now.¡±


    Li Qingshan shook his head and said, ¡°Since Senior Brother gave it to Ning Que, it is fine to allow the Academy to keep it temporarily. You must remember that although we belong to the Haotian Taoism, we should know the true meaning of the Academy to the Tang Empire.¡±


    He Mingchi agreed.


    Li Qingshan turned around. Looking at the chess board in front of him, he reached over to take away the ck chess piece at the center of the chess board. He said, ¡°Compared with the Lanke Temple, my skill in chess is quite ordinary, even extremely terrible. However, when ites to seeing Heaven¡¯s Way on the chess board, I am confident topete with the monks in the Lanke Temple. One night years ago, I saw a carriage blocking the street but did not understand it. Now I realize something since I know that it was from that night when Ning Que began his journey of Tao enlightenment. It will be fine if he is dead. Otherwise, he will be a real trouble for our country.¡±


    He Mingchi understood him. If Ning Que and the Daughter of Yama died, the world would keep going forward peacefully. If they were alive, what attitude would the Academy take? What should the Tang Empire do? Would it be the enemy of the entire world?


    Li Qingshan looked at the chessboard and kept silent for a long time.


    The fallen leaves in the courtyard were still rolling on the ground, making continuous rustles.


    ¡°If I am still alive when His Majesty dies, I will stand by the Princess and support Prince Li Yuanyuan¡¯s session. If I die, I hope you can lead the Southern Gate Temple to do this.¡±


    Li Qingshan suddenly said.


    He Mingchi was shocked and suddenly looked up at his teacher.


    Nobody dared to openly talk about the session of the throne in the previous years. However, with the coughs at the imperial study bing deeper and more painful, such discussion finally emerged in Chang¡¯an today.


    However, this had apletely different meaning when the words came from Li Qingshan,paring with discussions among ordinary people. Because it meant that in his opinion, His Majesty¡¯s time was running out even if he could still stay alive now.


    What increased He Mingchi¡¯s shock was the choice of his teacher. The Tang Empire¡¯s imperial court and even the vigers knew the close rtionship between the Queen and the Nation Master. But why would he choose to support Li Yu and her brother?


    He Mingchi immediately recalled the letter sent back to Chang¡¯an City from Qinghe County by Ning Quest summer. At that time, Li Qingshan asked him to send the letter directly to the Princess, which made him more confused.


    ¡°Teacher... why?¡± He asked Li Qingshan nkly.


    Looking at the ck chess piece he moved to one corner of the chessboard, Li Qingshan fell into silence for a long while. When the rustle in the courtyard gradually disappeared in the autumn wind, he said in a low voice, ¡°Because the Queen is the Saintess of Diabolism.¡±


    The Queen of the Tang Empire was the Saintess of Diabolism? He Mingchi was so shocked by the news that he sank to the futon, looking at Li Qingshan in disbelief.


    With a sadugh, Li Qingshan said, ¡°I promised His Majesty years ago that I would keep the secret till death. But this is unfair to our people who know nothing about it.¡±


    He looked at his most loyal disciple and said, ¡°Don¡¯t doubt the truth of it. His Majesty¡¯s old illness which cannot even be cured by the Headmaster was the Queen¡¯s conspiracy then.¡±


    He Mingchi shivered with shock and dared not to reply.


    ¡°This was of course the thing in the past before they fell in love with each other. So I always felt pity for the high price they had to pay before they could understand each other.¡±


    Li Qingshan said slowly, ¡°I believe that the Queen would not betray His Majesty, nor would the Academy. That is why she can be the Queen. But what if His Majesty dies? Li Yu and her brother are not kids of her own. Her own son is still young. Can we allow the Saintess of Diabolism to rule the Tang Empire?¡±


    Besides life and death, there were also aging and illness. And to imperial court officials, aging or illness was the best reason to retire, even though it was not always the real one.


    In the early spring of the 17th year of Tianqi Era, Zeng Jing, a Grand Secretary in the Imperial Library, suddenly resigned due to illness. It was less than one month since he seeded Wang Shichen, an old schr who died of an illness. Thus the Queen was further weakened.


    From then on, Grand Secretary Zeng Jing and his wife kept close at home. It was said that the Grand Secretary lived a leisurely life after retirement, enjoying life with his wife by growing flowers and weeding in the back garden.


    Zeng Jing put down the hoe in his hand. He felt a little bit hot and annoyed. He opened his clothes slightly, but could not help coughing immediately due to the chilly autumn wind.


    Mrs. Zeng hurriedly helped him to sit down in the pavilion and brought him a cup of warm tea. Looking at the gaunt face of his wife, Zeng Jing could not help heaving a sigh. He wanted to mollify her but did not know how.


    Few people could be seen in the Jing Park¡¯s autumn pavilion. The couple sat quietly in the pavilion, drinking tea. Mrs. Zeng suddenly burst into tears and said in a trembling voice, ¡°How could the child I gave birth to be the Daughter of Yama?¡±


    Listening to her words, Zeng Jing fell into silence. The wrinkles on his face seemed to be deeper.


    They were Sangsang¡¯s birth parents. So the Academy did not conceal the truth about the Lanke Temple¡¯s destruction.


    In fact, rumors about Sangsang being the Daughter of Yama had long been popr in the countries outside the Tang empire. Today, people began to discuss it secretly in Chang¡¯an. Zeng Jing¡¯s resignation as a Grand Secretary in the Imperial Library was naturally rted to it, although nobody dared to speak up about it.


    Mrs. Zeng wiped away the tears from her eyes and calmed herself. She looked at his husband and asked, ¡°The man is still in the lobby. Do you really refuse to see him?¡±


    After a moment of silence, Zeng Jing said, ¡°Since he came to Chang¡¯an from the Qinghe County, I guess he won¡¯t leave until we meet. Alright, let¡¯s go to meet him. I will see what bad ideas they have now.¡±


    The middle-aged scribe who was drinking tea while waiting in the lobby was Cui Xiu, a well-known figure in the Cui family from Qinghe County. In addition, the man had anotherplicated rtionship with Zeng Jing.


    Looking at the man, Zeng Jing thought of the incident from years ago and could not help frowning slightly. He said, ¡°The Cui family has always refused toe to Chang¡¯an. For what have youe from afar?¡±


    Cui Xiu slightly raised his eyebrows and said unpleasantly, ¡°After so many years since ourst meeting, aren¡¯t you willing to call me brother?¡±


    Zeng Jing said, ¡°I divorced your sister 16 years ago. I don¡¯t know why I should still call you brother.¡±


    Cui Xiu choked down his anger and said indifferently, ¡°Since you asked why I am here, I will tell you frankly. My sister misses you so much after she went back to Qinghe that she has not remarried. My father wants to know what you think.¡±


    Zeng Jing frowned and asked, ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    Cui Xiu said, ¡°We, the Cui family, are willing to let bygones be bygones and send my sister back here to resume her rtionship with you.¡±


    Zeng Jing said with a slight anger, ¡°When I came first in the pce examination, the Cui family instigated me to marry your sister. I admit that I coveted the Cui family¡¯s fame in Qinghe and I really wanted to live together with your sister till we were old and grey. But I did not know how cruel she was. Although I had some fault in taking a concubine, how could I forgive her intention to kill my poor daughter? Our rtionship is ridden with hatred, how would it be possible to resume it?¡±


    As an important figure among famous families in Qinghe County, Cui Xiu was still a bigwig when he came to Chang¡¯an. He had never been so humiliated before. Thus he rebuked angrily, ¡°My sister wanted to execute your daughter along with that worthless maid because she knew that the child was evil. You did not appreciate her but dared to say those words. Don¡¯t think you can hide the truth forever. Yes, the news that your daughter is actually the the Daughter of Yama is still blocked. But it is said by the West-Hill that the Divine Hall is going to remove her title. Do you know what that means?¡±


    Zeng Jing¡¯s face became as cold as frost. Just as he was about to smack down on the table, his wife rushed out from behind the curtain and cried in tears, ¡°The Cui family is made up of evil monsters.¡±


    Cui Xiu did not want to argue with this woman, so he stood up to make a casual bow and said coldly, ¡°ording to the situation in the court, the Prince must be the one to seed to the throne. You are not indispensable. This is thest chance offered by my father. Since you do not value it, don¡¯t me our cruelty in the future.¡±


    Zeng Jinghan said in a cold voice, ¡°I was a Grand Secretary in the Imperial Library, second only to the prime minister in the court. Considering the disposition of your father, if I have nothing helpful for him, how could it be possible for him to lower his standards to send back your sister. Don¡¯t the Qinghe County Families think that I can see through this?¡±


    Cui Xiu sneered, ¡°All right, I just want to remind you that when the West-Hill Divine Pce announces the news to the world, hundreds of millions Haotian believers will know that your daughter is the Daughter of Yama. We will see whether your house will still be free from disturbances at that time. Let¡¯s see how many people in Chang¡¯an wille to burn your house!¡±


    Zeng Jing squinted and asked, ¡°Are you threatening me now?¡±


    Cui Xiu said, ¡°Yes. So what?¡±


    Zeng Jing rebuked angrily, ¡°The Qinghe County Families are reallypletelywless, to think you would dare threaten an imperial official in Chang¡¯an. Do you really think thew of the Tang Empire does not exist?¡±


    Cui Xiu sneered, ¡°Thew of the Tang Empire? There are some things in the world that are beyond the jurisdiction of thew.¡±


    At this time, a voice came from outside the lobby.


    ¡°The things beyond the jurisdiction of thew, can they be handled by the Academy?¡±

 Chapter 604 - The Three Who Tried A Case

    Chapter 604: The Three Who Tried A Case


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    Chen Pipi entered as the voice trailed off. He looked thinner than usual. However, no matter how thinner he had gotten, he was still fat. This was made evident whenparing to Tang Xiaotang, who was beside him.


    Cui Xiu heard and could not help but freeze. Just as he was prepared to quickly greet Chen Pipi before leaving, Chen Pipi cut him off and grabbed his cor, yelling ¡°Leave!¡±


    Cui Xiu was very surprised, then realized something very odd. There wasn¡¯t much pressure exerted on his neck, yet the fatty was struggling with difficulty and his face waspletely red. It was obvious that he had used all his strength.


    Was he just a schr with limp arms? If so, he was definitely not from the legendary Second floor, but an ordinary student of the Academy. Cui Xiu was a bigwig from the Cui Family of Qinghe County. How would he be afraid of an ordinary student of the Academy? He grew ashamed thinking of how he had lost his color in shock earlier and bellowed, ¡°How dare you! You dare to attack me? Come in!¡±


    Chen Pipi and Tang Xiao had entered through the front doors of the schr¡¯s mansion. The doors had yet to close behind them when the stewards and servants of the Cui Family who were waiting on the streets outside rushed in, hearing the yells of their master.


    Chen Pipi realized that he could not even make the other man budge and could not help but feel ashamed. He let go awkwardly and turned around to say to Tang Xiaotang, ¡°I do not wish to stoop down to the level of these people.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang sighed and turned around to rush at the steward and servants fiercely. She rolled up her sleeves while saying, ¡°You mustn¡¯t be expecting me to do all the physical chores in the future, are you?¡±


    There was a series of crisp sounds. The Cui steward and servants who had rushed into the schr¡¯s mansion had no time to react before they were all mmed to the ground, wheezing in pain.


    The Devil¡¯s Doctrine girl¡¯s aim was to be the most powerful woman in the world. It didn¡¯t take much effort for her to tackle the steward and servants. It was as easy as pie for her.


    Cui Xiu looked at his servants who had their legs broken and were bleeding and groaning in pain. His expression changed as he realized what situation he was in. He was about to announce who he was, but had not expected Tang Xiaotang to be even quicker than Chen Pipi, and that she¡¯d be more proactive. She caught him by his throat and threw him out of the mansion¡¯s walls like a chick.


    Cui Xiu¡¯s body flew above and beyond the mansion¡¯s wall beforending. There was a loud crash. One of his legs had been broken and he almost passed out from the pain.


    Following that, Tang Xiaotang tossed those who had rushed into the schr¡¯s mansion out. However, the steward and servants did not garner the same treatment as Cui Xiu. She did not throw them out, but kicked them over the walls like stones. There were several loud cracks and groans.


    Chen Pipi watched on enviously as Tang Xiaotang kicked those people like she was kicking rocks. He wanted to cultivate in the arts of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine too. He began to fear for his future as conflicting thoughts streaked across his mind.


    Mr. and Mrs. Zeng watched on and could not help but shake their heads and smile bitterly. They knew that their daughter and Ning Que had extraordinary friends. However, they had not expected the slender and adorable girl to be so strong and that she would be so straightforward.


    ¡°Mr. Twelve, thank you for your care in the past year.¡±


    Zeng Jing said to Chen Pipi gratefully.


    Chen Pipi was still feeling rather ashamed. When he heard Zeng Jing¡¯s words, he did not dare to answer him as brashly as he usually would. He waved and said, ¡°I took care of Sangsang when Ning Que was in the Wilderness. Now that they have gone somewhere to have fun, I should naturally take care of you too. However, I have to leave Chang¡¯an for some time. So I brought... my niece. She¡¯ll help you if you encounter any trouble in the future. As you have seen, she is much more capable than I am, and she is a close friend of Sangsang, so don¡¯t stand on ceremony.¡±


    Zeng Jing was rather surprised. The sublime beings of the Second floor of the Academy rarely left the mountain. Why was Mr. Twelve leaving? Zeng Jing asked Chen Pipi, who only answered perfunctorily without borations.


    Those from the Cui Family of Qinghe County had been kicked out of the schr¡¯s mansion by Tang Xiaotang. Logically speaking, they should have helped each other onto a carriage and rush home to seek treatment. However, how could Tang Xiaotang be that simple? The usually brave guards tried many times, but were unable to get up. Their faces were unusually pale from the pain.


    The schr¡¯s mansion was in an expensive area in the north of the city. Those living on both sides of the mansions were either senior officials or nobility. They were usually quiet and solemn. Many were surprised when several groaning wounded people suddenly appeared on the streets. Someone sent word to the Chang¡¯an Local Government to send someone to see what had happened.


    Had this been an ordinary street fight, the Chang¡¯an Local Government would have just sent a manager. However, when they heard that the incident involved the home of the Grand Secretary, Shangguan Yangyu¡¯s triangr eyes squinted.


    As the prefectural magistrate of Chang¡¯an City, he knew which bigwig lived there. The Imperial Library Grand Secretary might have retired more than six months ago, but he was not someone to take lightly. As such, he had to visit personally.


    At the gates of the schr¡¯s mansion, Shangguan Yangyu felt very regretful when he found out that the wounded were from the Cui Family of Qinghe County. Had he found out earlier, he would have made up excuses such as he was gravely ill, or his mother had died. He would not have turned up and be stuck between the Families of Qinghe and Grand Secretary Zeng Jing.


    The position as prefectural magistrate of Chang¡¯an City was an important and difficult one. Shangguan Yangyu had managed to sit on the position securely for years and saved up plenty of taels of silver. He was extraordinarily sly and slippery. Just when it looked as if he could not extricate himself out of the situation, he began to quickly think of how to resolve the situation. First, he got his subordinates to help Cui Xiu into a horse carriage to seek treatment. Then, he went to ask the Grand Secretary some questions.


    Just then, Zeng Jing happened to be sending Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang out. The two met outside the mansion. Shangguan Yangyu looked at the clean-shaven fatty, feeling a shiver going up his spine. He thought of how he had dealt with the handmaiden from Old Brush Pen Shop two years ago when she was charged with harboring a fugitive.


    He used his illness as an excuse and knocked himself out with a rod before he could extricate himself from the situation. He had only discovered a long time after that that the handmaiden of Mr. Thirteen from the Academy was Grand Secretary Zeng Jing¡¯s long-lost daughter. It was the same fatty who had brought the handmaiden away before Zhuge Wuren and Wang Jinglue from the Imperial Center Administration that day in the Chang¡¯an Local Government. The fatty was from the Academy...


    Shangguan Yangyu felt extremely cold, and thought that he was very lucky to havee before he was involved in the situation. He first bowed to Grand Secretary Zeng Jing, and then turned to yell at his subordinate sharply, ¡°What are you all waiting for? Bring those viins back!¡±


    The local government runner and constables were all stunned. When had their subordinate been so righteous? Even if the Grand Secretary was not to be offended, but the other party was the Cui Family of Qinghe county. Shangguan Yangyu had been so gentle to them earlier.


    While they might despise Shanggan Yangyu secretly, there was no reason for them not to follow him. A local government runner went up to drag Cui Xiu off the horse carriage and prepared to cuff the man.


    Cui Xiu was shocked speechless. The prefectural magistrate had been extremely kind earlier when he told him who he was. Why had he suddenly make such aplete turnaround?


    Chen Pipi might seem simple, but he was intelligent and could read between the lines. He understood Shangguan Yangyu¡¯s intentions and nodded with satisfaction. He said, ¡± Lock them up. They¡¯re not allowed to be released until I return to Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang nced at him. She thought to herself that Chen Pipi might not return until two or three yearster. Was the Chang¡¯an Local Government going to lock them up for two or three years then?


    Cui Xiu realized then that he had encountered a true bigwig. He might be looking at a certain disciple of the Second floor of the Academy. However, he did not wish to be at a disadvantage, and he muttered, ¡°It¡¯s a misunderstanding, misunderstanding. I think Sir, you do not know that I am...¡±


    Cui Xiu had thought that even if the person was from the Second floor of the Academy, he would not dare to shame the Families of Qinghe County, who had an illustrious history, when Cui Xiu told him who he was in front of so many people.


    However, Chen Pipi did not even bother to hear what he had to say. Chen Pipi waved his hand and said, ¡°Youngest Brother once told me in a letter that Qinghe County is full of idiots. Do you think I¡¯m interested in knowing who you are?¡±


    Cui Xiu felt as if he had been struck in the chest. The pain in his leg multiplied and he paled.


    Shangguan Yangyu stood beside Chen Pipi, touching his short mustache. He said awkwardly, ¡°Thews of the Tang Empire cannot be vited, how can the Academy be an exception? The Chang¡¯an Local Government cannot lock up anyone as it pleases.¡±


    Chen Pipi knew that the man was a smart one, but did not have time for games like this. He said, ¡°They have barged into private property and attempted to hurt an official of the imperial court. You can just find aw to lock them up. Don¡¯t tell me you don¡¯t know how.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu almost tugged his own mustache off. He smiled bitterly and said, ¡°If we continue down this path, we might find ten different crimes to charge them with. But which should we use?¡±


    Chen Pipi asked, ¡°How severe are they?¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu was a scoundrel and vulgar, but he did have a few talents. He said casually, ¡°Even a failed attempt at trying to murder a court official would result in beheading or exilement of at least 3000 miles. If we charge them with trespassing, the heaviest punishment would be imprisonment in the mines for 3 years. If we charge them with framing others...¡±


    Chen Pipi¡¯s eyes brightened when he heard that they could be imprisoned in the mines for three years. He said, ¡°This is good.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu said resignedly, ¡°However, the Grand Secretary¡¯s mansion is not private property.¡±


    Grand Secretary Zeng Jing who had been listening quietly looked at the pale Cui Xiu who was sitting beside the horse carriage. While he felt satisfied, he did not show it on his face. He suddenly asked, ¡°I have already resigned from my position in court. So this is definitely private property.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu¡¯s expression did not change, but his heart beat frantically. He thought to himself that the Grand Secretary was known for his simple living and warm character. However, who would have expected him to get a man into trouble with just a sentence. The man was indeed impressive. Shangguan Yangyu felt that he was not mean enough, and that he was too stereotypical and stiff in his own acts. If he wanted to climb into a higher position, he had a lot to learn a lot from these old officials.


    Disregarding the prefectural magistrate¡¯sck of impartiality, Cui Xiu knew when he heard them that anything the three said even casually would be sufficient to pin him with the nastiest of crimes. He could not help but turn even more pale. He knew that they would not really send him to the mines because of who he was, but his subordinates might not be able to escape this fate.

 Chapter 605 - Come and Go

    Chapter 605:


    Come and Go


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The wind was blowing wildly and there were few people in the south of Chang¡¯an. The sunlight shone through the clouds but the weather was still very cold. Two people were saying goodbye in the pavilion. They were Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang.


    ¡°No one can represent the Academy in the world since Ning Que went missing or died. In this tense situation, we need to build prestige. The idiots from Qinghe County just came at the right time. Besides you, I am the youngest one in the Academy who is the perfect one to do this.¡±


    ¡°You also said the situation was tense. The Academy isn¡¯t afraid any of them, but we don¡¯t want to mess it up. Why do you insist on leaving at this time?¡±


    Chen Pipi looked at her beautiful face and said, ¡°Our marriage still needs the parents¡¯ approval and I want to know my father¡¯s attitude toward this.¡±


    Since she knew Chen Pipi¡¯s father was the legendary person, Tang Xiaotang had a veryplex feeling. As the time passed by, she became calmer, so she said, ¡°What if your father disallows?¡±


    The Love Story between the son of the Zhishou Abbey Dean and a girl of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, in any case, seemed like it would end as Liang Shanbo and Zhu Yingtai¡¯s.


    Chen Pipi said, ¡°As his son, I need his permission. Since Teacher allowed, his opinion is not important at all. If he doesn¡¯t agree with me, I wille back. If he doesn¡¯t want to be beaten by Teacher again, I think he won¡¯t dare to ground me.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang smiled and said, ¡°How dare youugh at your own father like that?¡±


    Chen Pipi grinned and said, ¡°I¡¯m telling the truth.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang asked, ¡°Are you heading to the South Sea, or going to Zhishou Abbey first?¡±


    Chen Pipi straightened his face and answered, ¡°Zhishou Abbey. Then I will go to the West-Hill Divine Pce to figure out what happenedst year in the Lanke Temple. The West-Hill Divine Pce is going to disclose Sangsang¡¯s identity and if they do so when Ning Que and Sangsange back, they will be hunted down forever. I would like to try and stall it a little.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang nodded and said, ¡°When can youe back?¡±


    The sky suddenly became dark and the wind and rain came after that. Chen Pipi looked at the rain and said, ¡°I will return before the first spring rain next year.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang said, ¡°Take care.¡±


    Chen Pipi said, ¡°Remember to inform me when Ning Que is back.¡±


    ¡°How?¡± asked Tang Xiaotang.


    Chen Pipi said, ¡°You can tell the Southern Gate Temple. They can deliver the message fast.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang said, ¡°Then, take care.¡±


    Chen Pipi turned around and walked out of the pavilion, but he turned back before going into the rain.


    Tang Xiaotang looked at him, smiling and said, ¡°Can this little rain make you sick?¡±


    Chen Pipi looked at her and seriously said, ¡°It can¡¯t, but you can.¡±


    Upon hearing this, Tang Xiaotang blushed and began to roll up her sleeves as a reflex.


    Chen Pipi was terrified and said, ¡°You told me to take care twice. It seems that you really want me to leave.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang bit her lip and refused to talk.


    Chen Pipi was about to go, but he felt reluctant, so he took courage and stepped forward to hold her in his arms.


    Although he held the girl in his arms, he didn¡¯t lose his attention. He kept an eye on her hands until he found, though, they were slightly shaking but without any signs of taking action. He was a little relieved and slowly lowered his head.


    A long time passed, and they gradually separated.


    Chen Pipi vigorously entered the rain and waved his hand without looking back.


    Tang Xiaotang looked at his back and waved her hand as well.


    She felt upset, but she didn¡¯t know if it came from the bleak wind or the man who just left.


    Some people left while some people returned.


    No long after that, a couple walked into the pavilion with a blue umbre in the rain.


    The wife was a pretty young girl, with contentment in her eyes. She overlooked the city of Chang¡¯an from a distance and said, ¡°It¡¯s so tall.¡±


    Hearing this, her husband, a middle-aged man, smiled.


    He was wearing a turquoise robe and looked gentle, revealing his elegance with his every movement. If he wasn¡¯t carrying a little girl on his back, he would attract a lot of young girls in Chang¡¯an.


    The little girl was about two years old who was tightly grasping her father¡¯s clothes and trying to look at the walls from a long distance. Her eyes were so bright that they were twinkling.


    The rain was about to stop. The man left the pavilion with his wife and daughter and headed to Chang¡¯an City¡¯s south gate. His steps became lighter as he got close to the city.


    The south gate was quiet, but there were a lot of people waiting outside the gate.


    They were armored officers, uniformed officers, many men in blue robes who looked murderous, and even a eunuch.


    When seeing this, the middle-aged man did not stop his feet but nodded. His wife, even though she had lived in the Capital of the Great River Kingdom for two years and had widened her experience, was still a country girl and could not help being nervous.


    Looking at the family of threeing toward the gate, the crowd gradually became turbulent. Some blue-robed men¡¯s eyes even got wet. A man wearing the Valiant Cavalry Battalion¡¯s uniform took the lead to bow to the middle-aged man, so did the rest of them.


    ¡°Wee back, Leader.¡±


    ¡°Wee, Elder Brother.¡±


    ¡°Brother Chao, wee.¡±


    ¡°Mr. Chao, pleasee into the pce with me. His Majesty is desperate to see you.¡±


    The family entering Chang¡¯an in the rain was Chao Xiaoshu with his wife and daughter. He was supposed to returnst autumn, but because of his daughter¡¯s serious illness, he had to dy it until this autumn.


    Chao Xiaoshu didn¡¯t go to the pce with Eunuch Lin. After seeing his brothers, he went straight home to see his parents. Eunuch Lin could not do anything about that but felt sorry for His Majesty.


    After they entered the Chao family¡¯s old mansion, his father, old master Chao, paid no attention to his son. He happily carried his granddaughter to pick fruit from his back yard and left his daughter-inw to his wife.


    Looking at his brothers in the hall and finding out that they were doing very well during these years, Chao Xiaoshu felt relieved. Since they had not seen each other for a long time, they had to celebrate the gathering. However, he discovered that his counselor, Chen VII remained silent since they had met.


    Chao Xiaoshu knew that his silence meant something troublesome, but he didn¡¯t want to talk about it tonight; he didn¡¯t even n to discuss it at all.


    He quietly looked at the wine ss in his hand and suddenly asked, ¡°Is the Old Brush Pen Shop still there?¡±


    Upon hearing this, the people in the room all fell silent. They all turned to Chen VII, except Mr. Qi who nodded to show his different opinion.


    Chen VII knew he was asking him, so he answered while rotating the wine cup in his hand, ¡°All the leases in Lin 47th Street have expired, so I took them back to prevent being noticed.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu calmly said, ¡°I don¡¯t care about the others. I rented the Old Brush Pen Shop to him; if he doesn¡¯te back, I want to keep it for him. No one can take it back.¡±


    Mr. Qi finally found a chance to interpose and said, ¡°The profit of the casino is still being counted up and kept for him. The house by Yanming Lake is maintained as well.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu nodded.


    Looking at Chao Xiaoshu, Chen VII put down the ss and said, ¡°If the rumor is true... In fact, it is 90% true. We should make a clean break with Ning Que before anyone notices. We don¡¯t owe him, so we should not be involved.¡±


    ¡°Brother, you are always the smartest one among us. Thanks to you, we were able to survive thewsuits against the Ministry of Revenue and the Military Ministry. Even His Majesty admired you. If not because of the criminal record, you should have already entered the Military Ministry. You are right. It will be never wrong to be cautious.


    Chao Xiaoshu raised the ss to toast and then slowly drank up the wine.


    Chen VII slightly sighed. He knew his brother very well. If he said it like this, he had made up his mind. He could do nothing but drink up his wine.


    Unsurprisingly, Chao Xiaoshu added, ¡°Since the Lin 47th Street is my private property, I want to keep it that way.¡±


    Chen VII reluctantly looked at him and anxiously said, ¡°It is overly serious for us; even the court and the Academy are unable to handle it.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu put down the ss and said, ¡°Not everything is about can or cannot. It is about should or should not. I invited Ning Que to kill people in the Spring Breeze Pavilion that year, and he didn¡¯t ask who I am. So this time, I don¡¯t want to know who he is, either.¡±


    Ning Que and Sangsang had been missing for a year. They just vanished and no one knew where they went. Generally speaking, they should be dead. Even the prefectural magistrate of Chang¡¯an City issued their death certificates. However, many people believed they were not dead.


    Some didn¡¯t believe it because they had not found Ning Que and Sangsang¡¯s bodies while others didn¡¯t want them to die. Either of which, They still could not find them or figure out where they had gone to.


    Even the Headmaster did not know if Ning Que and Sangsang died or where they were.


    In the cliff at the Academy mountain¡¯s back, the Headmaster was eatting crabs, drinking yellow wine, and enjoying chrysanthemums. Even though the chrysanthemums were in somewhere far away from Chang¡¯an, he was still able to see them clearly.


    If in the chessboard, there was another world or space, Ning Que and Sangsang would have died as the board was destroyed. If Qi Nian had elerated the flow of time, one year outside meant three lifetimes to the two poor little guys in the board.


    The Headmaster picked up the little kettle and sipped, slurping. He said, ¡°Either way, it doesn¡¯t end well. The good news is, as a life-saving weapon the Buddha left to the Xuankong Temple monks, it would not be easily destroyed. I don¡¯t believe Qi Nian was able to elerate time to turn over the board. So they should be alive and not remain there for long. I just don¡¯t know when they can get out.¡±


    Upon hearing this, Jun Mo, who was sitting on his heels and peeled crab by his teacher¡¯s side, said, ¡°Master Qishan told the Calligraphy Addict that you were the only one able to open the board. However, we still don¡¯t know where it is now.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°The board is inside the board.¡±


    Jun Mo immediately understood his meaning and he could not help asking, ¡°Isn¡¯t this a death loop?¡±


    The Headmaster shook his head and said, ¡°The loop should be infinite, how can it be dead? The board itself can assimte doom. I just need to know how Qishan set the time.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°The West-Hill Divine Pce is going to dere to the world that Sangsang is Yama¡¯s Daughter in three days and the edicts are ready. They¡¯ll call on all believers of Haotian to hunt her down. They will even publish her sketch. But they won¡¯t mention the Academy nor Younger Brother.¡±


    He paused after a while and added, ¡°Eldest Brother has been looking for them for a year. Can he find them or can he find them before the Buddhists and Taoists do?¡±


    The Headmaster looked at the rainy sky and said, ¡°It has to be God¡¯s will if they find them first.¡±


    Jun Mo just finished peeling a crab and put it on a te in front of his teacher.


    The Headmaster looked at theplete crab which was in fact already peeled and said, ¡°The joy to have a crab is to peel it by myself. How can I experience the joy if you do this for me?¡±


    A schr left the Lanke Templest autumn and showed up in the western depth of the Wilderness. In front of him were hundreds of powerful monks. They were terrified to look at the gentle but dusty schr.


    A majestic voice sounded in the wilderness which chanted loudly. He asked, ¡°Wee Mr. First. What can we do for you?¡±


    Eldest Brother replied, ¡°I¡¯m d to see you, Chief Preacher. I want to know if you have seen my Younger Brother?¡±


    During the next three days, loud bells sounded, the Light of Buddha shone, and the wind blew wildly in the temple. The schr found nothing and left.


    He then visited the 72 temples in Yuelun in this spring with a sketch in hand. He asked every monk in every temple, ¡°Have you seen our Younger Brother and this little girl?¡±


    Then, in the summer, he visited the Taoist temple in Song and found nothing.


    In the fall, he returned to the Lanke Temple. He requested Guan Hai, the Lanke Temple¡¯s abbot, to mobilize thousands of ruralbourers to clear the ruins. He looked at the debris in the ruins and fell silent for a long time.


    He always considered his Younger Brother¡¯s life as his own responsibility.


    After a while, he came to a dpidated temple and politely knocked. After entering the temple, he showed the sketch to an old Taoist priest in a hoarse voice, ¡°If you came from the town under Tile mountain, have you seen these two people?¡±


    The old Taoist priest had no idea what he was talking about or why he knew he came from Tile mountain, so he confusedly shook his head. The schr didn¡¯t reveal any disappointment on his face. He thanked the old Taoist and left for the next destination.


    There were more than 300 days fromst fall to this fall. He had visited 400 Buddhist temples, 2,100 Taoist temples, and 47 cities. He had traveled a million miles. Even though he was exhausted and haggard, he never stopped.


    It was raining in Chang¡¯an tonight.


    A cat squatted on a wall of the Old Brush Pen Shop, drenching. Then it screamed to the sky, jumped into the yard, deftly entered the bedroom and fell on the bed after rubbing his body with the bedding.


    The yard had been deserted for a long time. Considering the young man who liked to smash it with rocks had been away, it felt happy for its life now.


    It tried all kinds of postures to sleep in the bed; lying, upturning, pointing up, and putting its tail between its legs, and it finally felt a little bored.


    The cat bent its forelegs and propped its head on them, staring at the door. It felt a little lonely that it began to expect for someone to push the door in the next moment.


    The servants in the house by Yanming Lake had been dismissed and returned to the Grand Secretary Manor. The whole house was quite deserted without a light. The lotus leaves in theke withered and swayed in the rain. Nobody knew if the leaves could remember the explosions in that day or the things happened in that year.


    There was a cold sun over the Wilderness.


    The yellow grass frosted. There were two little fish stuck in a pond which were about to be frozen. All of sudden, the shallow pond was suddenly deepened.


    Wheels roared past.


    A ck carriage came from nowhere with furious power and heavily fell on the rough ground. It kept rushing so fast that it seemed to be chasing the sun.

 Chapter 606

    <h4>Chapter 606: Leaving the Carriage in the Wilderness and Heading to the Mounds</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    There were flowers blooming in any season on earth. Even in winter, one could still admire the Chimonanthus. Naturally, there would be flowers in autumn as well. Lanke Temple was renowned for its osmanthus in autumn. Ning Que hugged Sangsang, who was drenched in blood. For some reason, he thought of the osmanthus trees near the temple and beside solitary graves in the face of death.


    Just then, the sword that hade from the skies was already very close to the ck horse carriage. It would probably strike Sangsang and him in the next moment. He had not really seen the flying sword, but he had sensed it and knew that it was from the Sage of Sword, Liu Bai. That was why he knew that he and Sangsang would die soon. As such, he did not do anything but hug Sangsang closer to him and waited quietly.


    However, what happened next waspletely beyond Ning Que¡¯s imagination The sword that was about to kill them matter-of-factly, tore through clouds and swept up against the ck horse carriage and flew upwards!


    The quiet Light of Buddha tapered off behind the horse carriage. The remnants of the ruins that was the back hall of Lanke Temple was like the autumn rain, isted from the outside and then disappeared without a trace. All was silent.


    Ning Que knew that the horse carriage had entered the world inside the chessboardpletely. His nerves which were stretched to the extreme became rxed suddenly. Sweat poured out from his pores like a torrential rain, drenching his entire body.


    The Big ck Horse had also sensed the changes in its surrounding. It neighed happily and galloped on the quiet path. However, he had not run a few miles when the endless road suddenly seemed to break!


    The road that was on a mountain in the world of the chessboard suddenly copsed, turning into a cliff!


    They had just escaped from a disastrous situation, so who could expect that they would encounter such a danger just after a while? The Big ck Horse could not stop in time, and its temper erupted in desperation, charging down the cliff while yelling.


    There was a loud booming sound of collision. The ck horse carriagended on the ground heavily. The wheels broke through the ice of a puddle that was about to freeze over. Then, it crushed the hard icy ground and rushed toward the cial sun.


    The fierce collision caused Ning Que, who was sitting in the carriage to bounce up. He knocked his head heavily against the carriage panels. The pain caused him to awakenpletely from the confusion that he faced earlier with the sudden change in the situation. He looked out of the window subconsciously, only saw a chunk of emptiness. The wilderness was dark and silent with an odd scattering of withered trees. U.pdated b.y


    This was not Lanke Temple or the world in the chessboard. The white grass covered in frost had long died, and the fish in the puddle had long been frozen. It was still autumn, and the scene before him was somewhat familiar. However, he had never been here, so where were they?


    Could this be the Wilderness? But the ck horse carriage was still in front of the back temple of Lanke Temple just moments ago. How did it appear in the Wilderness the next second? Lanke Temple was in the southeast edge near the sea and was thousands of miles away from the Wilderness. What had happened to cause them to appear there?


    Ning Que looked at sights of the Wilderness through the window and was shocked beyond words. When he recovered his wits, he looked at Sangsang, who was in his embrace, anxiously. He found that the girl was still very weak, but her life was not in danger. He could not help but heave a sigh of relief and waved his fist vigorously.


    As long as Sangsang was still alive, as long as this wasn¡¯t Lanke Temple, and as long as there wasn¡¯t any Light of Buddha shining over the horse carriage, he did not care. He did not care even if they were in the Underworld, let alone if they had miraculously traveled thousands of miles to reach the Wilderness.


    After galloping wildly for some distance, the Big ck Horse regained the wits it had lost after a close brush with death. It slowly stopped and looked around, panic-stricken, making sure that they weren¡¯t at Lanke Temple and that it had not fallen off the damn cliff. Then, it began to pant with a lingering fear.


    Sangsang woke up and opened her eyes with difficulty. She looked at the sky outside the window and realized that she had not died, and Ning Que had not died either. She felt a little bewildered and asked, ¡°Where is this?¡±


    Ning Que carried her closer to the window. He looked out of the window and thought in silence for a moment. He recalled an anecdote that Master Qishan had told him a few days ago, and could vaguely guess the truth in it. However, he still found it hard to believe everything that he had encountered even if he had seen it with his own eyes.


    ¡°If I have not guessed wrongly, we are now in the Western Wilderness.¡± He said.


    Sangsang almost cried when she heard that. She said sadly, ¡°There is arge piece ofnd separating the Western Wilderness and Tile mountain. How could we get there in such a short time? Are we dead? Is this the Underworld? We are already dead. Ning Que, why do you still like to lie to me?¡±


    Ning Que wiped the tears from her pale face and coaxed her. ¡°If you¡¯re really dead, it wouldn¡¯t matter if I lied to you. When have I lied to you when you were alive? This is really the Western Wilderness.¡±


    Sangsang felt a little better, and she got up from his embrace and sat down. She looked out of the window and realized that this was indeed the Wilderness that was familiar to them. She was shocked.


    ¡°Master Qishan told me an anecdote about Lanke Temple a few days ago.¡±


    Ning Que said thoughtfully, ¡°It is said that when Buddha was cultivating in Tile mountain, he once sensed that there was somewhere that was vaguely linked to Xuankong Temple at the foot of the mountain. Therefore, he ordered his disciples to build Lanke Temple. After that, when he learned how to manipte space, he built a simple Stone Tower to let monks reach the western holynd. I asked Master Qishan if the Array was still there, but he said that the powers that Buddha left behind had long expired after millennia. The Stone Tower had already turned into dust. In the legend, the monks in the temple built a Buddhist temple on the Stone Tower. It was the same temple as where we stayed earlier.¡±


    Sangsang could not believe this exnation. She opened her eyes widely and asked, ¡°Do you mean that the reason why we were sent here is because the master also activated the Stone Tower Array Buddha left behind as he activated the world in the chessboard?¡±


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°Since the master thought that the space array left by Buddha had already expired, it certainly wasn¡¯t activated by him. Something must have happened in Lanke Temple after the horse carriage entered the chessboard. However, we can¡¯t find out what happened now, but it must have been something serious.¡±


    The Stone Tower Array deep in the back temple of Lanke had been buried for many years. The powers left behind by Buddha had indeed beenpletely lost. However, the monks in the temple have constantly chanted and prayed, and it still retained thest vestiges of its power after being influenced by this spirit of Buddha for years.


    Ning Que did not know what happened in Lanke Temple after the ck horse carriage entered the chessboard. However, his guess was spot on. Whatever that had caused the array Buddha left behind to be activated again had to be serious.


    At that moment, Qi Nian, the Buddhism Sect Wayfarer, broke his 16-year Silent Meditation, attempting to reverse the rules of the chessboard world forcibly, while Second Brother Jun Mo had thrown his iron sword with all his might.


    The Buddhism Sect Silent Meditation and iron sword of the Academy were two of the strongest skills in the cultivation world today. Just one of the skills alone would not be sufficient to activate the array. However, when the two were used together, a magical change urred.


    The Buddha¡¯s power hidden in the broken well had been touched and the Stone Tower Array was activated once more. Or perhaps, it was because the chessboard was one of Buddha¡¯s belongings, thus causing the array to send to chessboard to the Western Wilderness.


    Which was why when the ck horse carriage rushed into the world in the chessboard, they naturallynded in the Wilderness.


    ¡°There is still another thing that I can¡¯t figure out. Why were we able to rush out of the world in the chessboard?¡±


    Ning Que was very confused.


    Sangsang had already believed in their miraculous encounter and thought of another thing. Her face was slightly pale as she said, ¡°If the array linked the Lanke Temple with Xuankong Temple, then, we must be...¡±


    Ning Que looked at the grey bark and lush leaves of the Bodhi tree in the distance. He said with a grave expression, ¡°Indeed, we should be near Xuankong Temple.¡±


    The Big ck Horse was just feeling exhrated having escaped death. It kicked its front hooves lightly against the ck soil, wanting to see if it could find anything tasty like the yellow fruit to reward itself. It suddenly heard the voices carried from the carriage. His ears pricked up in fear and his body stiffened.


    Because of their previous encounter in Lanke Temple, the monk in kasaya had made an indelible impression on him. To be more exact, he was extremely terrifying. That monk was from Xuankong Temple. To the Big ck Horse, any monk from Xuankong Temple was scary. Now that it hade to Xuankong Temple, it was just as seeking death!


    The Big ck Horse forcibly suppressed the fear in its heart. It did not dare to whine, but turned around sneakily, preparing to run in the other direction. However, when it had turned around, it suddenly discovered that the scenery in all directions was almost identical. It did not know where Xuankong Temple was and which direction it should escape?


    Ning Que ced Sangsang on the nkets carefully and walked out of the carriage. He shaded his eyes with his hands and looked up into the sky. He looked up seriously for a long while without saying anything.


    The Big ck Horse was extremely anxious. How could Ning Que still be in the mood to admire the star-filled skies at a time like this? Looking at the cier-like sun, it was obviously daytime. How could there be stars?


    ¡°Why have we not seen it?¡± Ning Que said in confusion, ¡°Could it be that the array doesn¡¯t lead to Xuankong Temple? But there was obviously something strange with that Bodhi tree.¡±


    The Big ck Horse¡¯s eyes brightened as it was filled with pride for its owner. Ning Que had thought that Xuankong Temple would be on the legendary Xuankong Ind. So they would not have to worry if they mapped their journey by looking up at the sky.


    Ning Que looked at the tiny mound in the distance. There was a smattering of green on it. He kicked the Big ck Horse¡¯s butt lightly, signaling it to walk in that direction to check it out.


    The Big ck Horse wriggled its butt in annoyance. It was not unhappy that Ning Que had kicked his butt, for it was used to it already. However, it felt that Ning Que¡¯s decision was a little rash. In a ce like the Wilderness, anything green was dangerous. Ning Que was someone who had killed the Horse Gang in the Wilderness in the past, how could it not know this?


    Ning Que knew what the horse was thinking about, and he said in an irritated manner, ¡°Do you think Xuankong Temple is on top of that mound? It¡¯s such a small mud mound, and you can¡¯t even put an incense burner on it. I want to see how a temple could appear on it.¡±


    The Big ck Horse thought that Ning Que did make sense, and perhaps its mind had been muddled by fear. Ning Que was indeed his master, for he could still remain so calm after a brush with death.


    The wheels rolled, and the ck horse carriage drove towards the green mound in the distance.


    Ning Que was still calm at the beginning. However, his expression turned solemn gradually as he discovered something odd.


    At the Big ck Horse¡¯s speed, the little mound seemed extremely far. However, it wouldn¡¯t take them too long to reach it. However, they have traveled some distance, but the little mound still seemed far away.


    Ning Que grew wary. He lifted the curtains and prepared to get the Big ck Horse to stop.


    The Big ck Horse had already stopped. Its eyes were filled with terror, and its thick lips were tightly locked. It did not dare to reveal its great white teeth that it was very proud of because it did not even dare to breath.


    Ning Que saw whatid before the horse carriage and stiffened. He was so shocked that he couldn¡¯t breathe.


    The Wilderness was about a few dozen feet before the ck horse carriage. It suddenly fell steeply, forming a steep cliff. The terrain in the Wilderness was extremely t, so one would not be able to see the sudden drop until they reach the cliff.


    The sudden appearance of a cliff in the wild was indeed weird. However, what made Ning Que and the Big ck Horse so surprised that they did not even dare to breathe was not the cliff.


    This cliff was extremely wide and spread across in four directions in front of the Wilderness. It seemed to be endless and extended into the sky beforeing together again. It formed a pit that was extremelyrge and deep beyond imagination.


    Ning Que stared at the shocking image before him and felt an intense feeling. Even if he ced the whole of Chang¡¯an into the pit, he would not be able to fill it!


    He once visited the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and was shocked by the grand buildings that were built by the Deste Man thousands of years ago. However,pared with this pit, the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was but just a hut!


    Right in the middle of the pit, stood an extremely majestic mountain peak. The peak seemed to be as tall as the highest peak of Min Mountain. However, the extreme depth of the pit made the peak look like a small protrusion from the ground!


    The majestic mountain peak in the pit was at least a dozen miles away from the ck horse carriage, which was at the side of the pit. The lush greenery on the peak was the green mound that Ning Que had seen earlier!


    If someone could look down from high above the vast Western Wilderness, the peak in the pit would probably like a delicately designed bonsai. However, thisrge-scaled bonsai that had appeared in the mortal realm would definitely shock anyone who saw it for the first time.


    Ning Que and the Big ck Horse were stunned, but they were not in the mood to admire or worship it. This was because several yellow temples were nestled in the magnificent peak inside the pit.


    The temples in the peak was probably Xuankong Temple.


    It could only be Xuankong Temple.


    ...

 Chapter 607 - Beneath the Cloud, over the Ground

    <h4>Chapter 607: Beneath the Cloud, over the Ground</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    A momentter, Ning Que and the horse recovered from the shock. The horse could not resist its instinctive fear and was about to run away while Ning Que was stunned and stared at the bottom of the cliff.


    The Xuankong Temple was an Unknown ce that cultivators were barely aware of. It was located in the depth of Western Wilderness and was hard to reach. People spected that it must be built on the legendary Xuankong Ind since it was called the Xuankong Temple.


    To his surprise, the Xuankong Temple was beneath the ground instead of suspended in the air. Ning Que watched the huge mountain which hid beneath the ground and became confused.


    At this moment, a vast white fog fell down from the southwestern cliffs. The fog was heavier than the air and was slowly falling down to the bottom of the sinkhole as a white waterfall.


    The sinkhole was humid and misty. When the fog fell down, it turned into endless whiteness. The majestic mountain was fog-wreathed and the lower half was seemingly disappearing. Seen from the ck carriage, it became a floating ind among the clouds on which, a yellow temple was barely seen as a fairnd.


    Ning Que looked at the astonishing view and sighed. He said, ¡°That is why it was named Xuankong Temple.¡±


    The ck horse lowered its head and kicked the ground without any sound. It was extremely anxious and nervous. It thought the Holy Land of Buddhism was too sacred to describe and taking such a risk was not worth it.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t think so. From here, he was only able to see the general shape of the temples on the mountain. Seen from the peak, the ck carriage was like a ck grain of sand, which could not attract attention from the monks in the temples.


    He returned to the carriage and took out an iron drum from his baggage. He extended it a little, put it in front of his right eye and watched the distal peak.


    The iron drum was called Star-watching, which was made by his Fourth and Sixth brothers ording to his design. One was given to his teacher and the other was with him.


    The Headmaster changed its name to ¡°telescope¡± when he first used it to observe stars. Ning Que had not known about this, but he knew it was supposed to be used to observe a distant ce.


    The mist in the sinkhole flew very fast. Ning Que asionally saw the yellow temple and the view of the lower half. Seeing the erged view and the monks on the stone ground in the round vision, he fell silent.


    A wind blew through the sinkhole and blew away the thick cloud in the mountainside. Ning Que discovered countlessyers of terraced fields in the sinkhole. Judging from the color, they were of rice which was difficult to grow in the Wilderness. He also found rivers and houses at the bottom.


    As he was observing the Xuankong Temple with the telescope, Ning Que became more and more serious, his hands bing numb.


    He could calcte there were more than 1,000 monks in the temple, as well as over 100,000 people living in the wild in ording to the view he saw. These swarthy and shabbily dressed farmers provided the necessary living supplies to the temple and suffered due to the heavybor.


    Since the temple was built, the farmers had been living and working at the bottom of the sinkhole. They worked hard in the damp and dark underground day by day to support the temple. Ning Que believed that even the most religious believers could not stand an endless torment like this. The monks in the temple must have a special ability to enve them like animals. In this sense, the farmers were more like serfs, a practice long abolished in the Central ins.


    Many images emerged in his head at this moment: the ves who were pierced on the scap after they tried to escape, the atheists who were massacred in the field, innumerable poor mortals knelt in front of the mountain, and the monks¡¯ extravagant life... He put the telescope down, frowned his brow and watched the temple in the cloud.


    Sangsang lifted the curtain and became shocked when she saw the view.


    Ning Que passed her the telescope and said, ¡°Take a look. It¡¯s the legendary Xuankong Temple.


    If he was the savior, Ning Que would climb down the cliffs and secretly revolt with the farmers to overthrow the malformed Xuankong Temple, or he would dive into the temple to search for the treasures they umted for so many years.


    However, he was not. After observing the Xuankong Temple for a while, he drove the carriage toward the opposite direction without any hesitation.


    The treasure was good but he might not survive this. If he was the old Mr. Thirteen before he went to the Lanke Temple, he would seize the opportunity to travel around the temple because even if they seized him, they would not dare to kill him. However, he was with Sangsang at present and they hardly found a ce to rest in the whole world, let alone the Buddhism Holy Land, a ce that badly wanted her dead.


    The ck carriage quietly sneaked away. After a while, they deviated a little from the spot they showed up, by the bodhi tree.


    Ning Que watched it through the window and said, ¡°It should be the ce where the Buddha died.¡±


    Looking at the tree whose trunk was gray and leaves were futon-like, Sangsang thought it was amazing that a lonely tree could be alive in the Wilderness during such a winter. She became more surprised when she knew it was the tree where the Buddha died.


    Ning Que smiled and said, ¡°You are as good as the Buddha now, so you don¡¯t have to be awed of it.¡±


    They had no time to discuss that, or they didn¡¯t want to after they left the Lanke Temple, but they could not keep silent about it forever.


    Sangsang whispered after a long silence, ¡°Am I really going to ruin the world?¡±


    Ning Que thought of the Xuankong Temple and the cruel truth that he was suspecting. Then he said, ¡°I don¡¯t know and I don¡¯t care. But if the world is like that, it doesn¡¯t matter if it¡¯s ruined.¡±

 Chapter 608 - We Were Here and Those Who Stop Us Shall Die

    <h4><b>Chapter 608: We Were Here and Those Who Stop Us Shall Die</b></h4>


    Trantor: Transn | Editor: Transn


    Great terrorid between life and death. When one was tied to the life and death of this world, then the degree of terror was much more difficult to imagine. Sangsang heard Ning Que¡¯s words but remained silent, thinking about something.


    Ning Que reached out to touch her forehead. It was a little cool but not as serious as when she was ill. After a moment of contemtion, he helped her put on a robe and carried her off the ck horse carriage.


    The two stepped on the almost frozen ground of the Wilderness and walked to the Bodhi tree.


    Looking around, the deste ins stretched across in all directions. There were the asional winter willows which had long dried. The sharp trill of birds traveled from a distance. The verdant Bodhi tree was especially eye-catching in the Wilderness.


    Ning Que and Sangsang had read many Buddhist scriptures in Lanke temple for days and had already entered the meditative state. They could sense that there were remnants of Buddha beneath the Bodhi tree. While it was minimal, it gave one the sense that it had been there, deste for a long while.


    There were some slight bumps around the ground beneath the Bodhi tree. The area within it was as smooth as a mirror. What was even more interesting was that there were no signs of fallen leaves or dust within it.


    Ning Que looked at the markings and when hepared it with the imageries in his mind, he discovered that the markings fit the imprints one would make when theyid on the ground. The small dent in front must be made by the buttocks, which supported one¡¯s weight. The rtivelyrger dents below were marks made by one¡¯s body.


    He said to Sangsang, ¡°Legend says that when Buddha entered Nirvana, he did so lying on his side with his eyes closed. It seems that it is true.¡±


    Sangsang did not understand why Ning Que had brought her to look at the Bodhi tree. It seemed to be a trace Buddha had left behind.


    ¡°Those who cultivate in Buddhism would all want toe and worship before this Bodhi tree. But we have never thought of it and yet still came here. If there were really such things as Lucky Chances, then this is ours.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Learning about Buddhism is good for your body. Even if it can only treat the symptoms, you should still continue with it. The Buddha spirit left behind beneath this Bodhi tree should be helpful to your practice.¡±


    Sangsang leaned against his chest weakly and said, ¡°Where will we go in the future?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°We¡¯re going back to the Academy, of course.¡±


    Sangsang curled up slightly, evidently a little uneasy. She said, ¡°But I¡¯m very worried.¡±


    Ning Que frowned slightly and asked, ¡°What are you worried about?¡±


    ¡°The Academy does want to treat my illness. But if my illness is really a mark left behind by Yama, then how would they be able to treat it? I can sense that the remnants of Buddha left beneath this tree will not be of much help.¡±


    Sangsang said somewhat sadly, ¡°Have you ever thought what you should do if even the Academy cannot heal me and the world is facing impending doom because of me?¡±


    Ning Que said after a short moment of silence, ¡°I have said that I don¡¯t care.¡±


    Sangsang said softly, ¡°But would the Headmaster and Senior Brothers feel the same?¡±


    Ning Que did not say anything, he did not know how to answer her question. He knew that his teacher and two Senior Brothers did truly want to heal Sangsang. But if they cannot do it, would they watch on as the Underworld Invasion came?


    Sangsang looked up at him and said seriously, ¡°Ning Que, have you once considered, that we should just kill ourselves?¡±


    Ning Que patted her back and said, ¡°This might be a possible ending if this was a tragic story in books. However, I have already said that this is not a story. I don¡¯t like reading books. I don¡¯t want to die, and I don¡¯t want you to die even more.¡±


    Sangsang said sadly, ¡°But we don¡¯t have a future anymore.¡±


    The Underworld Invasion meant that the Evesting night wasing. It meant that the world was about to end. The Daughter of Yama was naturally the enemy of the world. Not even the Academy or the Tang Empire could stand against the entire world. This also meant that no matter how big the world was, there was nowhere left for them to stay.


    Ning Que said after a long silence, ¡°I have seen the ¡®Ming¡¯ Handscroll of the Tomes of the Arcane. I have also read the notes left behind by Buddha. I know that Buddha had already seen the future of the world, which was why he wanted to build Xuankong Temple and left behind the chessboard and Yuean Bell. He wanted to respond to the Underworld Invasion.¡±


    Sangsang did not understand why he was saying this.


    Ning Que looked at her and said, ¡°Master Qishan once said that if we attempt to look into the future, no matter whether it is just a nce or not, the future would change. Buddha had made so many preparations for the future that he saw, then there must naturally be a great difference between the future that he saw and the true future.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°You said that the future is not predestined, so does that mean we don¡¯t need to worry?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°The future and death are actually very simr. If it is already predestined, then there is no point in worrying. If it could be changed, then there is no need to worry. We just have to work hard at changing it.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I understand. This makes a lot of sense.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Even though I do say things that make a lot of sense asionally, these words did note from me. Teacher once said this to me, so I believe in it staunchly.¡±


    Then, he looked into Sangsang¡¯s eyes and said, ¡°The entire world might not allow us to live, but we still have to return to the Academy. Because if this is thest time we trust, we have to leave it to teacher.¡±


    A smile appeared on Sangsang¡¯s pale face. She nodded.


    Ning Que smiled and said, ¡°We might die anytime. Tomorrow might be ourst day, and it might not necessarily be a bad thing. At least it will rush us into doing many things that we used to think of doing but did not dare to do.¡±


    Sangsang looked at him quietly and plucked up her courage. She said, ¡°I want to have a child with you.¡±


    Ning Que froze and then smiled bitterly. He said, ¡°We need a lot of time to have a child. Is there anything else that you want to do now?¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°What do you want to do now?¡±


    Ning Que held her hand and they walked to the Bodhi tree. He took out a sharp arrowhead and carved a line of words on the tree that Buddhist believers thought of as the ultimate sacred symbolism that should not be vited.


    ¡°In the 16th year of Tianqi, Ning Que of the Academy and his wife, the Daughter of Yama, Sangsang had been here.¡±


    The ck horse carriage traveled solidarily on the cold Wilderness. As there were no waterbodies in the Wilderness, the horse carriage that traveled speedily looked as if it was moving slowly on a sheet of ck and grey paper.


    Ning Que and Sangsang had once lived in the Wilderness and were familiar with this inness and destion. They were extremely familiar and used to it. They knew that even in the Wilderness in the north of the Central ins, they might not meet a single person in two weeks if they were unlucky. Furthermore, this was even deeper in the Western Wilderness which was even more deste.


    However, Ning Que did not expect a man to appear in the wild ins just after they had traveled a few miles from the Bodhi tree. The man was also one that Ning Que did not want to meet right now.


    He was a tanned and old monk in tattered clothes who was covered in dust.


    When traveling the world, there were three kinds of people that one needed to be wary about. They were monks, Taoist priests, and women. This patch of wilderness was not far from Xuankong Temple and the old monk would definitely have links to it. Ning Que¡¯s expression grew cold.


    Looking at the ck horse carriage that had slowly stopped a few feet in front of him, the wrinkles on the old monk¡¯s face gradually stretched out. The gravel that was stuck between his tannedplexion fell and sadness could be seen in his quiet eyes.


    The old monk chanted the name of Buddha and said, ¡°Who would have thought that the Daughter of Yama and Mr. Thirteen of the Academy woulde to Xuankong Temple? No wonder how hard the world searched, they could not find any traces of the two of you.¡±


    The old monk¡¯s voice floated through the green curtains that hung in front of the ck horse carriage. Ning Que listened quietly, lowering his head in preparation. He paused slightly.


    This was because he had heard from the old monk¡¯s words that the world had been searching for him and Sangsang for a long time. However, didn¡¯t he and Sangsang just escape from Lanke Temple? Why would it startle the entire world?


    The old monk slowly raised his right palm and made a Buddhist gesture before his chest. He thought of a possibility, and thepassion in his eyes grew even stronger. He sighed and said, ¡°It seems that Senior Brother Qishan had sent you here. Where is the chessboard?¡±


    ¡°If we give you Buddha¡¯s chessboard, will you let us go?¡±


    Ning Que looked at the green curtain in front of him. His voice was devoid of emotions but his face had suddenly paled. He began to tremble violently. The threads on his already torn ck Academy uniform grew even tighter.


    Sangsang knew that he was injured and was very worried. However, she pursed her lips tightly and did not make a sound. She curled up in a corner of the carriage and used a nket to cover herself.


    The old monk sighed and said, ¡°Mr. Thirteen of the Academy is indeed like what the rumors say. You are the best atbat in the world. You know that the Underworld and mortals belong on different paths, but you did not forget to disorientate me. However...¡±


    The words came to an abrupt end. The old monk focused and sensed the two extremely powerful talisman intent that had reached him silently without his knowledge and had begun to cut through the cold autumn winds!


    Inside the ck horse carriage, several thin cuts appeared on Sangsang¡¯s nket. If one looked carefully, they would see that every cut was actually made of two close slender openings. Cotton bloomed from the cuts.


    Ning Que¡¯s face was pale and his entire body trembled. He drew his fingers slowly and painfully before him in the air, as if there was a heavy mountain hanging from the tip of his finger. The talisman intent that came from his ck Academy uniform cut the cloth into several strips. The green curtain hanging in front of the horse carriage was also torn into three pieces, falling slowly onto the ground.


    The old monk looked solemn. He sat cross-legged and ced his palms together in front of his chest. He rolled his palms slightly and a pure and exquisite Buddhist aura erupted from it, shrouding him in a dome of light.


    In the ck horse carriage several feet away.


    Ning Que retracted his finger and held his bow and arrow. His middle and index finger clutched the bowstring tightly and twisted before letting it go. There was a light poof, and a white puff of current emerged from the end of the iron arrow before disappearing!


    There was a deep imprint on the falling green curtain. The green cloth that had been imprinted slowly fell apart like pollen scattered into the air, revealing a round hole made by the arrow.


    The green curtain was still falling, the hole on the cloth was still forming. Then, momentster, there was a shrill whistling. Ning Que emerged from behind the torn curtains and leaped off the horse carriage like lightning. He rushed toward the old monk who was a dozen feet away.


    The two powerful talisman intent hanging in the air of the Wilderness were Ning Que¡¯s Two-Horizontal Talisman. This was his most powerful Divine Talisman. In Lanke Temple, not even Qi Nian or Ye Su could get rid of it within a short amount of time. However, the tanned old monk, who was extremely powerful, had managed to block it temporarily with his Buddhist aura.


    But even so, under the terrifying cutting abilities of the Two-Horizontal Talisman, the old monk who was covered in dust and gravel was as good as being trapped by the Two-Horizontal Talisman. He exercised his power while sitting cross-legged and battled the talisman with his Buddhist aura.


    How could the old monk avoid the powerful Primordial Thirteen Arrow in such a situation then?


    The old monk knew that he could not avoid Ning Que¡¯s iron arrow. Just as he vaguely sensed the oddity in the area within the ck horse carriage, he had already made measures to deflect the arrow.


    The old monk whose left palm had been ced on his knees suddenly glowed with a golden light. It looked as if it had be a Buddha palm that was crafted from pure gold!


    In an extremely short period of time, the old monk crushed the autumn wind and lifted his golden left palm. It seemed to be slow, but he quickly covered his chest. At this time, the iron arrow had arrived!


    The sharp arrowhead carried an extremely powerful power and shot into the golden palm of the old monk!


    There was a soft sound from the two objects colliding. The old monk¡¯s golden left palm shattered into pieces. There was no blood or flesh where it broke but it shone with only a golden light that scattered across the Wilderness like golden sand.


    The iron arrow did not stop after shattering the old monk¡¯s golden palm. It flew upward and mmed into the monk¡¯s left shoulder. Blood streamed behind the arrow as it turned into a ray of light before disappearing into the distance.


    The old monk was seriously injured. His face was pale but he did not show any fear. He was extremely calm and his chest and abdomen were slightly concaved. He breathed in all the air in front of him, and his withered lips began to open.


    Just then, Ning Que appeared like lightning before him.


    His right foot stepped heavily on the ground, shaking up dust and ice sheets. With strength from his waist and abdomen, he plunged the podao in his hands into the old monk¡¯s abdomen. The Great Spirit exploded as the de mmed down!


    Stter! Like rain falling from the gloomy clouds, the old monk¡¯s body turned into several pieces of flesh which flew in all directions under the force of the podao and the powerful Great Spirit.


    Momentster, the pieces of flesh and blood fell from the air andnded on the hard surface of the Wilderness. They pped heavily on the ground, just like how it sounded when heavy rain falling from clouds would when it finally reached the ground.


    Ning Que kept his knife in his scabbard and retrieved a Fire Fu from his sleeves. He threw it onto the ground and swooped back onto the ck horse carriage. He did not turn to see if the pieces of flesh and the growing talisman fire.


    The ck horse carriage started again towards the distant Wilderness.


    On the Wilderness, the mes grew and the bloody bits and pieces of the old monk was scorched and then burned into ashes. Several ck crows came, following the smell of what was in the fire and crowed shrilly and mulishly.


    In the ck horse carriage.


    Sangsang asked with a pale face, ¡°Who was it?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know, I only know that this Ascetic Monk was very powerful. He isn¡¯t an ordinary monk from Xuankong Temple, and must be at least on the same level as Master Boshu. Otherwise, the Two-Horizontal Talisman would have killed him.¡±


    Ning Que pointed in the southeast direction that the Big ck Horse was walking in. He took the towel Sangsang handed him and wiped off the blood on his face. After a moment of silence, he said, ¡°If I allowed him to prepare, it would have been difficult to kill him.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°You didn¡¯t know who he was and he was so powerful. You just killed him like that?¡±


    Ning Que wiped the blood on his podao carefully and said calmly, ¡°Everyone on earth wants to kill us. So from now on, I will kill anyone who stands before us.¡±

 Chapter 609 - The Chiming of Bells in Xuankong Temple

    Chapter 609: The Chiming of Bells in Xuankong Temple


    Trantor: Transn Editor: Transn


    The podao, that was sttered with blood, had been wiped down, now it was gleaming. Because of its dark color, it did not shine like snow, but was more like smooth stone. Ning Que sheathed the de and looked out through the window into the deste Wilderness.


    Based on the ck horse carriage¡¯s terrifying speed, he could have simply escaped. The old monk could not have stopped him. However, the monk could have alerted Xuankong Temple, which was why he chose tosh out.


    Just like what he had told Sangsang, the old monk who practiced penance was definitely not an ordinary person from Xuankong Temple. His palms emitted gold light, which made it evident that he was well-versed in the skills of the Buddhism Sect. His true powers were definitely stronger than what he had shown in battle.


    However, the old monk had cultivated in Buddhism in Xuankong Temple for many years. He was well-versed in Buddhism and his cultivation state was exquisite, but he seemed not have experienced true battle. He had not expected Ning Que tosh out while they were speaking and that Ning Que would use his three most powerful skills. As such, he had been caught off guard and died.


    Recalling the violent battle that had ended in mere seconds, Ning Que felt that Ye Hongyu had been right back then: cultivators of this world only know how to cultivate, but not how to fight.


    A breeze entered the carriage through cracks in the window, whistling as it swirled around. The Big ck Horse pulled the carriage through the Wilderness quickly and quietly. It headed southeast in the direction Ning Que pointed at.


    Looking at the deste wilds outside the carriage, calcting the distance and the results of his previous calctions, Ning Que knocked against the panels of the carriage, signaling the Big ck Horse to stop. Then, he jumped out of the horse carriage and headed towards the depths of the Wilderness.


    After some time, he returned with a ck iron arrow in his hands. Congealed blood still covered the arrowhead. It was the arrow he had used to injure the old monk.


    Much of the quiver, containing 13 iron arrows, had been emptied at Lanke Temple. Now he was in the Wilderness and might encounter danger at any time ¨C each iron arrow was extremely important.


    Hidden in a huge crater in the ground, as clouds continued to float by, huge yellow temples, looming between the peaks, were silent and peaceful. Suddenly, a faint chanting sounded from one of the temples.


    After some time, several ascetic monks dressed in red monk robes walked the steep stone path down the cliff. These monks were expressionless, their faces akin to rocks.


    The monk at the front wore robes that were obviously different. He was the chief monk from Xuankong Temple¡¯s Hall of Respect ¨C Qi Mei. He looked at the deste ins before him, squinting and frowning slightly.


    The chanting from Xuankong Temple hade from the Chief Preaching Monk, who ranked the highest in the temple. Chief Preaching Monk¡¯s meditation heart had been uneasy, and he had ordered the monks from the Hall of Respect to search the Wilderness. Qi Mei might be the chief monk of Hall of Respect, but he had to turn up personally for the search as well. Furthermore, he knew very well why the chief monk would feel uneasy.


    A preaching monk from Xuankong Temple had vitedws of Buddhism Sect, and had been burdened by the useless illegitimate son. As such, three years ago he had been banished to practice penance in the Wilderness. He had already fulfilled his sentence and should have returned to Xuankong Temple. However, they still had not seen him.


    Chief monk Qi Mei brought the sadhus with him and went to the depths of the Wilderness as the Chief Preaching Monk had sensed. They continued walking until evening and when twilight came upon them, painting the world the color of blood, they finally saw a pile of ash.


    The winds were strong in the Wilderness, but the pile of ash remained. That was because the pile of ash contained several shards of bone that could not be incinerated by any kind of fire.


    Looking at the colorful bones in his hands, Qi Mei was silent. The sadhus in red robes were solemn as they surrounded the pile of ash. They sat down cross-legged and began to chant from the scriptures respectfully.


    Qi Mei gave the shards of bone to a monk for safekeeping. Then, he knelt before the ashes and reached into them. He began searching silently. His stone-like fingers moved through the preaching monk¡¯s ashes. They were like a sieve ¨C didn¡¯t miss a spot.


    The preaching monk¡¯s corpse had been burned thoroughly by talisman fire. Other than a few shards of bone, the rest of his body had been burnt into white ash. Qi Mei should not have been able to find anything, however, with the movement of his fingers, his expression grew heavy because his fingertips had found the remnants of the Great Spirit, which were difficult to dissipate.


    Qi Mei stood up and walked toward the path they had taken earlier. Then, he recalled that when he had passed the Bodhi tree earlier, he had felt that the tree looked a little different from how it had been for the past decades.


    He walked to the Bodhi tree and looked at the line of words engraved on its grey bark. His expression grew cold and the me of anger in his eyes grew brighter and brighter.


    ¡°In the 16th year of Tianqi, Ning Que of the Academy and his wife ¨C the Daughter of Yama ¨C Sangsang had been here.¡±


    Why was it the 16th year? Qi Mei did not understand. He waved his sleeves at the ground, the pebbles, scattered around the Wilderness, rolled wildly, revealing faint tracks left behind by a carriage.


    Qi Mei followed the tracks for several feet. Then the faint tracks disappearedpletely from the Wilderness. He looked up into the distance, trying to guess where the ck horse carriage was heading.


    Night was approaching, the world in the crater had already been shrouded by the long dark night. At the yellow temples, at the apex between the giant peaks, one could still see thest of the setting sun. A chime rang from that temple, spreading down the peak. Several chimes rang back in several yellow temples at the same time.


    The chiming of the bell in Xuankong Temple left the quiet world beneath, reached the deste surface and spread in all directions. In a few days, everyone in the world would know that Yama¡¯s daughter was still alive and that she was with Ning Que of the Academy, fleeing in the Western Wilderness.


    In the depths of the Wilderness, by a well that had been abandoned for millennia, was a ck horse carriage. Momentster, Ning Que emerged from the abandoned well with a filled water pouch in his hands. Through some unknown means, he had managed to find clean water in the well that had been abandoned for many years.


    The nights were always cold, however, in order not to reveal himself, Ning Que would not make a fire, but ce a few fire talismans into a copper basin in the carriage for warmth. This method was too luxurious ¨C even Ning Que, who had plenty of Psyche Power, had to carefully calcte the usage of talisman paper to ensure that he and Sangsang could leave the Wilderness.


    After having cold water and some dried food, Ning Que would begin cooking porridge for Sangsang, using the boiled water. Since the road ahead was tough, he had to take stock of his equipment ¨C the most important things.


    He was someone who wasn¡¯t daunted by difficulties and had a store of talismans. However, his cultivation state was low in the beginning, so the talismans that he had written could not be used in the battles he fought in now. He only had about 20 talismans that he could use in battle, and there were not many iron arrows left in his quiver.

 Chapter 610 - It Is Boring in the Wilderness

    <h4>Chapter 610: It Is Boring in the Wilderness</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    While cleaning up, Ning Que saw the chessboard. He tossed it into a corner and then reached out for the Big ck Umbre. He couldn¡¯t help but shake his head.


    Aspared to how it had looked like in the past decade, the Big ck Umbre had undergone great changes. The oily grey sheen on the surface of the umbre had disappearedpletely, revealing a pure ck cloth. There were several tears on the edges and it looked rather pathetic.


    The Big ck Umbre had been strong and undefeatable ¨C able to withstand all attacks in the world. However, it had be what it was now. So one could imagine how powerful the Light of Buddha at Lanke Temple was.


    Ning Que continued to clean up. He categorized the iron arrows, talismans and his recement arrowheads, cing them where he could easily reach. Then, he pried up the base of the carriage, and arranged the dried goods and stones that helped to propel the horse carriage talisman. He also counted the yellow fruit that the Big ck Horse ate as well as some other misceneous items.


    ording to the amounts they had now, they would be able to return to the Academy from the Wilderness. Even if they did not have enough dried goods, he was not worried that they would be unable to find food in the Wilderness. Searching for water wasn¡¯t something difficult either. If he really couldn¡¯t find any, he could just expend a little of his Psyche Power to write a few water talismans.


    The talisman paper in the copper basin had already disappeared, turning into warm amber me.


    These were fire talismans that Ning Que had written a long time ago. They looked impressive, but were ordinary in terms of temperature and the amount of time they wouldst. The water in the pot on the copper basin had just boiled. Rice turned in the water, but the amount of water wascking. It was unclear how long it would take for the rice to be cooked.


    Ning Que took a bit of ginseng and got off the horse carriage. He called the Big ck Horse, who had been keeping guard a few hundred feet away. He patted the horse¡¯s neck and thought of how they had gone through life and death together in Lanke Temple. He felt slightly emotional and said, ¡°From today on, if I have meat to eat, you¡¯ll have soup to drink.¡±


    With that, he stuffed the ginseng into Big ck Horse¡¯s mouth and patted its head.


    Big ck Horse chewed slightly and swallowed the ginseng. It looked up pathetically at Ning Que while still chewing.


    It was clear what Big ck Horse wanted. Its owner was shameless, only willing to give it soup when he had meat to eat. But he had only given the horse a thin slice of ginseng, how could that be filling? The horse had been scared to death by the weird crater and the terrifying temple, and it had pulled their horse carriage for miles ¨C how could Ning Que starve it?


    Ning Que felt a little ashamed and said, ¡°I will definitely get you meat tomorrow. Just eat this for today.¡±


    The Big ck Horse shook its head around in annoyance, though mostly ¨C resignation.


    Porridge in the pot was ready and emitting slight fragrance. Ning Que helped Sangsang up and fed her some. He said, ¡°I¡¯ve put medicine in the porridge. I stole it from the stupid idiot, don¡¯t let it know.¡±


    Sangsang looked out of the carriage somewhat embarassedly, then, she swallowed herughter and continued eating. After having half a bowl of porridge she felt slightly better. Thinking of Ning Que¡¯s injuries, she said, ¡°You eat some too.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I have already eaten.¡±


    Sangsang replied, ¡°You had cold water and dried goods, how could it be good.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°We only lived a little better after we got to the City of Wei. To think that when we lived in the Min Mountain, being able to eat dried goods was already luxurious. Don¡¯t worry, I am used to it.¡±


    Sangsang thought to herself that they had gone from scrimping to living luxuriously, and then, from living luxuriously back to scrimping. The dried goods definitely did not taste as good as they did when they were younger. However, knowing how Ning Que was, she did not try to persuade him, but instead, told herself to get better quickly.


    The porridge in the pot was still boiling, popping asionally. It was still steaming and it was warm in the carriage. Only the Big ck Umbre and the chessboard in the corner were emitting a slight frost.


    The seemingly ordinary chessboard was one that Buddha had left behind. Ning Que could not understand: The horse carriage was supposed to enter the board, but how did the board end up inside the horse carriage instead?


    ¡°We know that we are in the extreme Western Wilderness. We have already determined our location, but we don¡¯t know how many days have passed since the incident at Lanke Temple.¡±


    He said, ¡°The old monk said that the world had been searching for us for a long time. It seems the chessboard was useful. We only traveled on the mountain path for seconds, but plenty of time must have passed in the outside world. Even though it is stillte winter, I suppose more than ten days must have passed.¡±


    Sangsang felt that his extraption was logical. She still felt frightened when she thought of the Light of Buddha in Lanke Temple, and then, she thought of what had happened before they entered the chessboard when the temple had been broken into. She said, ¡°You guessed that it was Mr. First and Second who had broken into the temple. What happened to them? I wonder if they got into any trouble.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, there are, at most, two people who can hurt my two Senior Brothers simultaneously. But those two are afraid of angering Teacher, so they would definitely not dare to act.¡±


    The two he spoke about were abbey dean of Zhishou Abbey and Chief Preaching Monk of Xuankong Temple.


    ¡°I am more worried for Master Qishan.¡±


    Ning Que thought of the benevolent Buddhist high monk and how he had activated the chessboard to send the two away. He frowned and said, ¡°The master had always been ill, and he used the mantras to aid me in my battle with Qi Nian. After that, he forcefully turned the chessboard. I wonder if he can still hold on.¡±


    Sangsang was very worried after hearing that. She took out a ck chess piece from her waist and stared at it dazedly.


    Ning Que knew that this was the chess piece that Sangsang had used in thest of the three games of chess on Tile Mountain. He said softly, ¡°I have a bad feeling. Keep this chess piece as a momento.¡±


    Sangsang nodded and clenched her hand, clutching the ck chess piece tightly. She looked at the chessboard and asked, ¡°The aura of Buddha has left the chessboard. Is it ruined?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°This is after all, something left behind by Buddha. Even if we can¡¯t enter the world in the chessboard again, we can still keep it to sell. It¡¯s still better than finding somewhere to bury it.¡±


    The night had gotten deeper, and Big ck Horse had already fallen asleep.


    Its skin was thick ¨C it was not bothered by the piercing winds in the Wilderness. It did not sleep like normal horses, as it did not support its full weight with its four legs. It did not lie on the ground like weak old horses either. Instead, it leaned against the carriage haphazardly like a drunk. Its nostrils red slightly as it smelled the scent of porridge floating from the window seams, sleeping soundly.


    Steam from the porridge swirled around the carriage. Together with the talisman paper that was emitting warmth in the copper basin, it was slightly stifling. Ning Que reached out and opened a crack in the skylight above the carriage.


    Silver starlight entered through the crack, shining on him and Sangsang. Itnded on everything, turning the carriage into their favorite color of silver taels.


    Sangsang shrunk into his embrace and clutched at his shirt with her right hand. She looked at the night sky through the crack and realized that the night sky in the wilderness was still as bright as before. However, she felt that there was someone watching her from among the stars and began to feel frightened. She clutched at Ning Que¡¯s shirt even tighter.


    Ning Que did not know what she was thinking. He lowered his head to kiss her and found that her forehead was a little cold, but it was much betterpared to when she was ill.


    He looked up at the starry skies and suddenly felt emotional. He reached a finger out towards the night sky he saw through the crack. He slowly moved his finger and grew solemn.


    Sangsang watched as he traced his finger around and realized that he was not drawing the Two-Horizontal Talisman. She asked anxiously, ¡°Is this a new talisman?¡±


    Ning Que said with satisfaction, ¡°This isn¡¯t a talisman. I was just writing a few words, its a quick calligraphy section. It could at least be ranked in my top ten works. How much do you think it would be worth?¡±


    Everything in the carriage shone silver, but it was all in vain. The calligraphy section that Ning Que wrote with his finger was also false. It could not be kept and was worthless.


    Sangsang shook her head with slight regret. She said, ¡°If we really want to return to the Academy, we will encounter plenty of danger along the way. We cannot sell this calligraphy, so you had better invent some new talismans.¡±


    ¡°Even though I have already entered the Knowing Destiny State, but our masters have already entered the heavens. There is no one to help me. I can only be considered half a Divine Talisman Master at most. I am already considered a genius at Talisman Taoism now that I can write an Infinitive Talisman. It isn¡¯t so easy to invent a new talisman.¡±


    Ning Que thought of what Sangsang had said earlier and recalled an extremely important matter. He looked at her and said, ¡°No matter how dangerous our path is, you¡¯re not allowed to use Divine Skill or to hold the Big ck Umbre.¡±


    Sangsang understood what he meant and nodded softly.


    If she used the West-Hill Divine Skill, she might rpse, die, or attract the attention of Yama. If she opened the Big ck Umbre, other things might happen. She might attract the attention of Yama, the Buddhism and Taoism sect. All of the situations above were extremely dangerous.


    Sangsang was still asleep at dawn while Ning Que had already woken up. He looked at the skies, checked the direction of the wind and determined that it was a good day to travel. He roused the Big ck Horse with his fist and got it to move.


    However, the ck horse carriage had not traveled far before encountering a foe. This was the depths of the Wilderness, where the poption was scarce. It was difficult to even encounter a single person, much less an enemy.


    The only possible exnation for this was that Haotian had already discovered the existence of the Daughter of Yama. Heaven¡¯s Way, which invisible and untouchable, but always active, had begun to try to exterminate her.


    This was a meadow with rolling hills. The yellow grass on the meadow had already been felled by the winds. They might have died, or perhaps, are waiting for the next spring to grow again.


    Dozens of grasnd cavalry dressed in leather armor were silently standing atop the meadow. They would ocassionally reach out to appease their tired horses. It seemed as if they had traveled a long distance before getting here.


    Ning Que nced at the grasnd cavalry, but did not observe the details on their armor. He had already guessed where they came from. In the Western Wilderness, only the Right King¡¯s Pce had the right to own such elite cavalry.


    The ck horse carriage was still about two hundred feet away from the Right King¡¯s Pce¡¯s grasnd cavalry. It was still out of the shooting range of their arrows. He could have gotten the Big ck Horse to unleash its speed advantage and charge towards the thicket. No matter how good the cavalry were, they would not be able to catch up.


    However, the grasnd cavalry was spread out across the meadow ¨C their front line was extremely long. They looked sparse and weak, but were there to prevent the ck horse carriage from escaping. If Ning Que wished to leave without a battle, then he had to make a detour around the long line of troops before he could leave the meadow. However, that would be a waste of time.


    The crux of the matter was: Ning Que, Horse Gang and cavalry of the Wilderness have had many years of interactions. He was certain that the cavalry, who were there to stop him, woulde in a flood. If he encountered these people blocking him and turned back, the opposition¡¯s riders and hunters would only need to repeat what they had done several times and use arge number of cavalry to surround the ck horse carriage in the depths of the Wilderness. That was extremely dangerous.


    That was why Ning Que did not turn away. The ck horse carriage continued up the meadow. At first, it was moving slowly, but soon got faster and faster. Steel wheels of the carriage rolled, ttening the frosted grass and causing mud to fly in all directions.


    A cavalry leader on the meadow realized that the ck horse carriage was rushing towards them. He did not look happy or dumb, but his expression turned extremely solemn. Then, he slowly pulled out his sword from his waist.


    No matter Left-Tent, Right-Tent or the Golden Pce, the grasnd cavalry and Horse Gang¡¯s swords were all curved. Several years ago, when Ning Que was a professional wood-cutter in the City of Wei, he used this type of curved sword as well.


    Because this kind of sword could easily cut off a human¡¯s head.


    Several grasnd cavalry pulled out curved swords from their scabbards simneously. The sound of shing metals pierced everyone¡¯s ears.


    The ck horse carriage headed to the bottom of the meadow at high speeds. Just as it was no longer able to turn, several cavalrymen appeared silently from behind the leader, took out their bows and aimed at the horse carriage!


    The Wilderness was boring for Ning Que.


    He was more familiar with the warfare tactics of the grasnd cavalry and Horse Gang than the third book and 14th chapter of the Tang Empire¡¯s military. Thus, he was not surprised when he saw that those who had hidden under the meadow earlier had just taken out their bows then. Instead, he felt a little bored ¨C it was too familiar.


    The bowstrings buzzed and arrows tore through the air. Dozens of arrows drew a curve in the skies as they flew from the meadows a few hundred feet away towards the ck horse carriage.


    ¡°They dare to y at long distance, shooting just with a few Huang Yang bows? The horse carriage might be arge target, but they can¡¯t do that.¡±


    Ning Que turned around. Sangsang was still sleeping deeply, her hands clutching tightly onto the corners of the nket. Her brows were tightly knitted, as if she was dreaming of something.


    He jumped out of the carriage andnded onto the Big ck Horse¡¯s back, draping his legs over the horse¡¯s belly.


    The Big ck Horse whinnied and charged forward!


    Moments earlier, Ning Que had undone the tie linking the shaft to the carriage. The Big ck Horse charged forward, separating from the carriage. The carriage continued moving forward due to inertia, just progressively slower.


    In the process of slowing down, there was a buzzing noise in the ck carriage. The skylight at the ceiling and the two windows on the sides as well as the carriage doors were locked by a spring.


    The arrows that the grasnd cavalry shot finally fell, whistling sharply.


    There were five or six arrows that had aimed true at the slowing carriage. However, to the carriage, made of pure fine steel, being shot at by the seemingly terrifying arrows was but a scratch.


    The arrowheads hit the horse carriage and broke in the middle,nding on the ground like bits of straw that had tried to pierce through stone, looking ridiculous and pathethic.


    The ck horse carriage was very thick. Once it was fully sealed, it was difficult to hear what was happening outside. The arrows that had hit the carriage sounded weak and soft, like pecking birds.


    Inside the carriage, Sangsang still slept soundly. She must have heard the sounds of arrows falling, because she waved her arm unhappily, as if wanting to chase away the sound by her ear. Then, she turned around and continued sleeping.

 Chapter 611

    <h4>Chapter 611: The End of My Enemies, the Time to Reim Those Old Shoes</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Arrows rained down from above. Somended on the carriage and turned into broken dry straw, while others shot towards the Big ck Horse. Although once the ck horse sped up it was unaffected by the meadow, leaving behind those arrows in a cloud of ck dust.


    The cavalry lying in wait on the meadow was shocked speechless at the sight before them. A quick cry from their captain snapped them back into action. Shouting and waving their sharp machetes, the cavalry rushed forward. However, the group split up suddenly after moving just 10 feet. A small portion went after the ck horse while most charged towards the ck carriage that was left behind.


    It must be said that the decision made by the captain of the cavalry in such a short period of time was, in fact, correct; the carriage was stationary on the meadow, a target just waiting to be destroyed. If Ning Que did not care for the lives on that carriage, the grasnd cavalry would make quick work of them. However, if Ning Que did care and returned for the carriage, it would mean losing his greatest advantage ¨C speed. The only oue would be for the situation to deteriorate into a messy brawl. A brawl in the wilderness, mobilebat using archery is a method of battle that the grasnd cavalry was well-versed in.


    Contrary to the cavalry captain¡¯s expectations, Ning Que did not return to the carriage for Sangsang. In fact, there was absolutely no hesitation and he continued on his trajectory on the meadow. The Big ck Horse charged across the pure white meadow with terrifying speed, dragging an afterimage behind it.


    The cavalry captain was struck with a moment of panic. Shouting to his 10 or so subordinates, hemanded them to stop the iing ck horse no matter the sacrifice.


    The captain figured that even if they were unable to take out the rider of the ck horse, they would at the very least buy some time for the group that went after the carriage. If that group seeded, then their arduous task that day would be still bepleted.


    Ning Que watched as the dozen or so cavalry closed in, with the frigid air ripping away the heat from his cheeks. As he reached inner peace his right hand tightly gripped the hilt of his saber that peeked out behind his shoulders.


    Both sides sprinted towards each other at blinding speeds, with their confrontation approaching fast. Leading the charge on the side of the grasnd cavalry was a warrior brandishing his de, face contorted by a lust for battle, swinging towards Ning Que like a maniac.


    The sound of the cut was crisp and clear. The head of the cavalryman was cleanly separated from his body.


    The horse, still carrying the headless body of the cavalry, continued forward. Blood sprayed forth from the neck, seemingly dying the sky red.


    The headless cavalryman sped past Ning Que for several feet before the body finally tumbled off and hit the ground. At that exact moment, the head that went flyingnded right beside the body.


    The crisp cutting sound before was actuallyprised of two sounds merging into one; the first was from the sound of unsheathing the de, the second was the sound made from metal cutting through bones. The resultant single sound was not only unique but also suggested the incredible speed in which Ning Que executed both moves, which seemingly happened at the same time.


    The Big ck Horse charged into more than a dozen cavalrymen in assault formation like a ck lightning. Ning Que¡¯s de was like the countless branches of that ck lightning, shing by among the cavalry, decimating them.


    In mere seconds, the Big ck Horse crossed des with more than a dozen grasnd cavalry soldiers. Cries of despair rang out as some cavalrymen tried to cover the gaping wounds on their necks while others tried to stop their chests from bleeding profusely. They dropped from their horsebacks like flies,nding with heavy thuds onto the solid ground below.


    Ning Que paid no heed to the fallen cavalry and charged on towards the meadow¡¯s high ground.


    The ck horse was too fast. Ning Que¡¯s de was too fast. In the blink of an eye, he felled the remaining dozen of the cavalrymen. The meadow was painted red with fresh blood while not a drop of blood was visible on Ning Que and his horse.


    The cavalry captain¡¯s face was drained of color.


    Last night, he was informed that the enemy this time around would be a cultivator. He fought with cultivators from the Yuelun Kingdom before, and even in a highly skilled fighter from the Seethrough Realm. He thought himself ready for the subsequent battle, but, the enemy before him was someone that those flying sword wielding, just-for-show cultivators could never hold a candle to. The enemy before him was frighteningly strong.


    By themand of a mighty shout, 10 or so cavalry soldiers shot out arrows. s, the Big ck Horse remained far too fast; almost all of the arrows missed their mark. The arrows that managed to predict the path of the horse, purely by luck, were easily deflected by Ning Que.


    In but a moment, Ning Que rode his horse up the meadow and in the midst of the cavalrymen. As the sound of his Podao shing through air rang out, the sound of blood gushing out apanied it. The Archers had no time to fend for themselves before they became victims of the de.


    The cavalry captain raised his machete to attack, only to discover a greyish-ck de plunged through his chest. At that instant, the captain could feel the icy coldness from the Tang podao.


    As he fell to the ground he stared at his enemy, the enemy that did not even consider himself a threat. In his eyes that were turning ssy, a look of terror could be seen. However, this terror soon turned into delight as the chief thought to himself: no matter how strong you may be, the passenger in the carriage must be dead by now and you cannot resurrect the dead.


    The right foot of the captain was still stuck in his horse¡¯s saddle when he fell. The warhorse was shocked by the events that unfolded and took off, dragging the captain several feet forward while he bled profusely from his chest. The sight of cavalry surrounding the carriage entered his eyes. As he grew ever paler, he let out an unwilling shout before he finally died.


    Ning Que rode his horse up the meadow and decimated both the cavalry captain and his men in a ridiculously short amount of time. Instead of immediately rushing to the aid of Sangsang, he rode among the corpses and took two bows and several quivers of arrows before heading toward the carriage.


    At the meadow¡¯s low grounds, more than 30 cavalry soldiers were circling and attacking the ck carriage.


    The horse carriage was stuck there in all its lonesome. Unable to move, it looked like amb ripe for ughter. However, when the cavalry tried to break open the carriage, they discovered that, to their shock, not only was it not possible to pry open the doors but attacks from their machetes did not even leave a scratch on the carriage.


    It was then that the cavalry understood that the carriage was not amb, but a reinforced ck carriage from the country of Tang. d in thick armor, even if it just stood there and allowed you to hack at it, you would never be able to cut through.


    As time passed, the cavalry assaulting the carriage grew restless and even appeared a little hopeless. Several cavalrymen dismounted while shouting battle cries and walked toward the carriage to hack it with rabid fury.


    In their minds, even if the carriage was made of solid steel, the wheels would at most just be wood wrapped in a metal coat. With their courage and sharp machetes, they should be able to destroy the wheels no matter what.


    Once the wheels were destroyed, even if the passenger could survive the ordeal they would be stuck in the Wilderness without means of transport. Eventually, they would be terminated by the pce warriors and masters of the divine temple.


    However, the cavalrymen sank into despair once again when they realized, after a round of mad hacking, that the carriage wheels were made of steel both inside and out!


    In their moment of desperation, they could not help but feel a strong sense of unwillingness to give up as well as being angered by the confounding facts before them. A carriage made out of solid steel should be heavier than the gold statue of Buddha at the Minister of Offerings¡¯ pce. If so, how was it possible that such a heavy horse carriage could move with such incredible speed, and in the wilderness no less.


    It was then that the cavalry noticed what happened at the high grounds of the meadow. Looking at the ck streak of lightning zipping down towards them, they could not help but let out terrified screams and rise turmoiled amongst themselves.


    An elder among the cavalrymen let out a shout. Knowing that they stood no chance against the overwhelming power of their enemy, he instantly made the decision tomand two of their best riders to leave the meadow, as an attempt to reach the pce at all costs. Once arriving they could inform the main cavalry force of what happened here. Then the elder grouped up the rest of the cavalry and charged straight at their enemy.


    Ning Que saw the two cavalrymen speeding away from the carriage and guessed their intent. Taking out one of the bows he picked up earlier, he drew its string and took somber aim.


    It was a boxwood bow, a standard issue weapon for both the grasnds¡¯ cavalry as well as the horse hangs¡¯. It was the same kind of bow that Ning Que always used to kill horse hangs in the past. Prior to the Primordial Thirteen Arrows, he had always been using this kind of bow.


    Familiar bow, familiar environment, familiar battlefield and an even stronger Shubi Lake wood-chopper. The oue of this sudden battle could not be any different.


    Two twangs of his bowstring sounded out, followed by a clear snap as his bowstring snapped in two.


    The two cavalrymen speeding away shook from the impact and fell off their horseback, arrows protruding out of their chests. The warhorses dragged their dead bodies for a fair distance before finallying to a rest.


    Staring at the broken boxwood bow in his hands, a lightly furrowed brow formed on Ning Que¡¯s forehead.


    After cultivating the Great Spirit, his body and strength were vastly superior to that of before. The body he had now was used to using metal bows and firing iron arrows. It has been a long time since he used ordinary weapons, and it would appear that he was not used to it anymore.


    Though he frowned only for an instant. He took out the second boxwood bow and took aim on the cavalrymen charging at him from the meadow low grounds. Swoosh went his arrows as they shot through the air. Every pull of his bowstring meant a felled enemy cavalryman.


    He unsheathed his de once more.


    The meadow was filled with bodies. The hot fresh blood poured onto theyer of frost covering the wilted grass below caused it to melt and mix together to form a thickeryer of blood-soaked snow, which pressed down on the vegetation once more.


    Treading between the corpses of the cavalrymen, Ning Que did what he always did; with great familiarity, he collected the spoils of war. Though, since he could no longer exchange the heads of the enemy for military achievements nor money, he wasted no effort on those. He collected the bows that were still in good condition as well as two pairs of boots from two dead cavalrymen.


    A soft knock sounded from within the ck carriage before Sangsang emerged from behind the doors. She rubbed her sleepy eyes while she walked down and asked Ning Que, ¡°What happened? It was so noisy earlier on.¡±


    Ning Que went over to her and said, ¡°I killed some guys.¡±


    Sangsang suddenly noticed the corpses that surrounded them and shuddered slightly.


    Ning Que lifted the two pair of boots and eximed, ¡°Got two pairs of boots, give them a try and see if they fit you.¡±


    Sangsang shook her head and said, ¡°All those pairs of shoes you brought back for me over the years, and not a single one fits. This time around I¡¯ll probably just adjust them myself.¡±

 Chapter 612 - Nothing Can Stop Us, Not Even Buddha

    <h4>Chapter 612: Nothing Can Stop Us, Not Even Buddha</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    In the following days, the ck horse-drawn carriage continued to encounter groups of grasnd cavalries several more times while traveling across the wildness. Ning Que murdered two groups that had lesser people in cold blood. When using his binocrs, if he discovered that the enemy had more than 300 cavalries, he would not hesitate to slip away quietly, taking a detour around them.


    In the Wilderness, the only possible exnation for an organized group of over 300 cavalries would be that they were either a squad of cavalry from the pce, or that they were the main cavalry force of arge tribe.


    Even if Ning Que was confident in his abilities, he would rather not meet with the enemy head-on. One of the reasons being that his Big ck Horse was not armored. The bigger reason was that even if he became tremendously powerful after entering Knowing Destiny State, even if his body was ridiculously tough, even if he wielded his Psyche Power masterfully, he knew that he could not withstand endless waves of enemies that woulde crashing against in.


    Eventually, his Psyche Power would run out and he would be fatigued. If forced into that physical state after countless draining shes with the enemy, there was nothing Ning Que could do after that point but die.


    Thousands of years ago, the Deste lost the war against the Tangs. Hence, ording to the agreement they had, gave up the Wilderness and migrated to the Far North where the Cold Regions and Hot Seas are found. While people from the Central ins could not adapt to life in the Wilderness so there was no migration en masse to the Wilderness left behind by the Destes, the barbarians from the west came and filled that void. Over time, they became what was known now as the Barbarians of the Grasnd.


    Like stars in the sky, grasnd tribes dot the vastnds north of the maind. Due to the Min Mountain as well as natural geographical divides, they were split into three major pce factions. Among the three, the Golden Pce was the strongest while the Right King¡¯s Pce was the weakest due to having a small poption and the fact that its herdsmen were believers of the Buddhism Sect.


    The cavalries encountered by Ning Que on the Wilderness ins were either from the Right King¡¯s Pce or from tribes under the pce¡¯s control. He already guessed that these Buddhism respecting barbarians received orders from Xuankong Temple.


    The cavalry from the Right King¡¯s Pce posed no real threat to the horse carriage, however, as they caught up, the several thousands of cavalry searching restlessly for them in the Wilderness would eventually slow down the carriage¡¯s pace.


    One day, when the ck horse carriage passed by arge and baren rock that was crimson red in color which was cropping out of the ground, the normally cool Wilderness suddenly snowed. The kes of snow drifted down like torn cotton. As they slowly and gently floated down, due to the low surface temperature, the red rock was rapidly painted white.


    Out of nowhere, Sangsang took out arge white cloth and covered the exterior of the horse carriage with it. The leftover white cloth was cut into the shape of the Big ck Horse and the horse was dressed in white as well.


    Looking at the carriage and horse wrapped in white, staring at its eyes that peer out from the slits in the cloth, Ning Que felt a moment of uneasiness. This scene before him that naturally looked evil somehow seemed familiar to him, as though he had seen it somewhere before, but he could not recall at the moment.


    As the snow and wind gradually decreased visibility, the journey in the Wilderness became tougher. Ning Que steered the horse carriage around therge rock to somewhere that was slightly elevated but still very concealed for them to rest at. He took out his binocrs and stared out into the wilderness.


    The wilderness became a monotonous world of ck and white. As the snowkeszily drifted down to the ground, all was silent. Not a sound could be heard and not a figure in sight.


    Ning Que held onto the icy cold exterior of his binocrs as he silently stared out into the wilderness. Even after being on the lookout for a long period of time, he did not lose his patience to the barren and deste ins of the Wilderness. Though at longst, he saw what he wanted, or rather, did not want to see.


    Ten monks appeared within the field of view of his binocrs.


    The monks wore thick monk robes that were snow white and shoes weaved by dried grass. Beneath their feet were skies made up of thin long wooden nks that were slightly curved upwards at the ends. In their hands held two thin but strong metal staff. They skied through the snow as fast as sprinting horses.


    Ning Que figured that these monks came from Xuankong Temple and could not help but frown a little. Xuankong Temple was situated far away from civilization where terrible weather conditions like heavy snow and rain were bothmonce. The monks that live within the temple appeared to have adapted to the environment of the Wilderness well. The fact that heavy snow did nothing to slow down their pace was proving to be troublesome.


    What surprised him though was that those monks did not wear any woolen hats nor boots. The frigid cold seemed to have lost its powers against them. In terms of cultivating and practice, those monks had already achieved Seethrough Realm.


    Although cautious and uneasy about it, he did not leave immediately. Instead, he continued to sit at the carriage window and monitor the Xuankong Temple monks that are passing by. He estimated the area of the surrounding wilderness and calcted the speed of those monks as well as their search efficiency. Afterward, he quietly told Sangsang.


    Sangsang wrote down those numbers on a piece of paper. After thinking to herself for a while, she raised her head and said, ¡°It would take at least 200 men for their search on this part of the Wilderness to be meaningful.¡±


    Naturally, the disciples of Buddha would not partake in pointless undertakings. Herment revealed one fact; in this part of the wilderness where the horse carriage was at, there were at least 200 or so monks from Xuankong Temple.


    200 individuals that achieved Seethrough Realm. What kind of concept was this?


    Even for the Tang Empire, it was difficult to gather 200 Seethrough Realm cultivators. Ning Que was silent. He originally thought that the only ce in this realm that could send out so many masters so easily was the West-Hill Divine Pce. However, it would appear that Xuankong Temple was able to do so as well.


    He did not have the confidence to im victory over 200 Xuankong Temple monks, or even an idea of how to go about fighting them. Given enough time for him to roam around and kill at his leisure, in two or three years he might just be able to kill all of these Ascetic Monks. s, both Haotian and the Buddha would not give Sangsang and him enough time to do so.


    He was puzzled. In the past few days, how did the grasnd cavalry and Xuankong Temple monks always manage to track the ck horse carriage in the seemingly boundless Wilderness?


    Ning Que¡¯s queries and vignce were tested once again in the moments toe.


    The camouge of the horse carriage was properly done. Tracks on the snow were swept away while the wind and snow reduced visibility. However, the two groups of Ascetic Monk that met up in the Wilderness seems to have detected something. Their staffs plunging into the snow, they went straight for the rock without hesitation.


    Ning Que knew that hiding was no longer an option and so he struck the walls of the carriage with a heavy blow.


    Hearing the loud and deep knock from behind, the Big ck Horse¡¯s breathing quickened. Moisture that escaped from its nose and mouth passed through the white cloth, turning into a cloud of white mist in the frigid snow. Through the eyeholes were eyes that disyed both excitement and agitation. With a mighty kick from its hind legs, the carriage shot out from behind the rock.


    The 20 Xuankong Temple Ascetic Monks saw a white silhouette within the snow and immediately tensed up. Their metal staffs moved so fast the action turned into a blur. The wooden nk beneath their feet sped across the soft snow and gave chase after that white shadow, attempting to intercept it.


    Ning Que did not sit within the carriage, rather, he stood right behind the Big ck Horse and looked at the Ascetic Monks that sped along the snow. The wind and snow freely assaulted his face but he remained stoically in wait.


    In the quiver beside himid 50 arrows and two boxwood bows, with a boxwood bow strung across his back as well. If those monks from Xuankong Temple closed in enough, the bowstring would sound out in rapid session.


    As for the Ascetic Monks speeding across the snow, their expressions remained stern and determined, with a couple of gruff shouts escaping their mouths. In their eyes, the sudden snowstorm that urred was due to Buddha¡¯s frustration towards the Daughter of Yama. Within this snowy environment, no matter how fast the horse carriage traveled, it would notpare to their speed.


    However, what the monks did not know was that Ning Que¡¯s horse carriage was no ordinary horse carriage. The contact between the carriage wheels and the ground was incredibly light and gentle so no matter how soft the snow-covered ground was, it would not affect the carriage at all.


    The Big ck Horse neighed with excitement. Hooves as fast as lightning sprayed countless kes of snow and the snowstorm billowed past the white cloth covering the horse as it dragged the heavy looking carriage along the snow at high speeds.


    After a dozen breaths, the horse carriage gradually left the skiing monks far behind them, carriage wheels leaving only a faint streak in the snow.


    Although getting rid of those Ascetic Monks appeared to provide temporary safety, the truth was far from it. Ever since that encounter in the snow, in a very short time frame, the ck horse carriage encountered a string of Ascetic Monks from Xuankong Temple in the wilderness. Even though they manage to escape sessfully each time, the direction they were heading had to be adjusted.


    Countless encounters with the enemy increased the pace of the escape and this caused tension to rise within the confines of the carriage. For the first time, the Big ck Horse¡¯s eyes showed more agitation than excitement, maybe even some uneasiness.


    Ning Que knew that the grasnd cavalry they encountered earlier on were mere appetizers. The main course only started when the Xuankong Temple monks joined the chase in the Wilderness. Only then did the true escape began.


    At that moment, he once again wondered about the question that both puzzled and troubled him. The whereabouts of Sangsang and himself had already been revealed, Eldest Brother, who has ascended into the Limitless State had yet to appear. If Eldest Brother did not know where he was, how was it that the monks from Xuankong Temple were able to urately pinpoint his location every single time?


    His gazended on the chessboard at a corner of the carriage.


    After thinking for a moment, he ced the chessboard on his knees and took out the Big ck Umbre. He then tore a piece of fabric from the damaged edges of the umbre and wrapped it over the chessboard.


    During a break in their escape, the ck horse carriage stopped by a dead tree that glimmered like jade from the ice that coated it.


    Ning Que grabbed the chessboard that was wrapped by the ck umbre¡¯s fabric. He jumped off the carriage, took out his podao and dug a deep hole beside the tree. He tossed the chessboard into the hole without hesitation and filled up the hole.


    The ck horse carriage moved once again.


    The wind howled and snow blew. In mere seconds, the ground below the frozen tree wasyered with a thickyer of ice and snow. Even if someone were to stand right in front of the tree, he wouldn¡¯t be able to tell that someone dug at that location before.


    Sangsang said, ¡°It¡¯s kind of a pity.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°If we auctioned off Buddha¡¯s chessboard back at Chang¡¯an city, we would definitely make a pretty penny. Or perhapsnd a vicious strike on Yuelun Kingdom. It does seem like a real pity to just toss it away like this.¡±


    Sangsang whispered, ¡°I don¡¯t mean that.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Oh I remembered, you loved to y chess. I¡¯ll make a great set for you next time, how about one made of white jade?¡±


    Sangsang replied, ¡°I meant that it was a pity a piece of the big ck umbre was torn for this.¡±


    Ning Que was stunned for a moment, but then he burst intoughter.


    Half a dayter, several dozens of Xuankong Temple Ascetic Monks skied to the icy valley that the ck horse carriage once stopped before. Their robes danced in the howling snow.


    Chief monk Qi Mei from the Hall of Respect of Xuankong Temple stepped forward solemnly. He stared at thepass looking Buddhist relic in his hands with its Fuo Zhi Sheli that sat on top and frowned ever so slightly.


    The Buddha¡¯s finger bone Sheli can lead his believers to the relics that were left behind, and this was precisely the reason why the ck horse carriage was unable to escape their pursuit. At this moment, however, the Sheli was uncharacteristically calm and no movement could be seen from it. It was as though it was unable to detect the chessboard.


    Qi Mei¡¯s was distraught, for he knew that the Buddhism Sect just lost their best chance at killing the Daughter of Yama. He quietly chanted the name of Buddha, silently praying that this would not be thest chance they will have.


    A few miles away, a frozen dead tree that looked like a jade sculpture swayed gently in the wind, as though it was nodding along.

 Chapter 613 - The Cloud

    <h4>Chapter 613: The Cloud</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    In the depth of the Western Wilderness, a dusty schr showed up at the edge of the crater. He looked at the yellow temple between the giant peaks and asked, ¡°Where is my Younger Brother?¡±


    He was the Eldest Brother of the Academy who came here as soon as he received the message that Ning Que had shown up in Xuankong Temple. He was exhausted and his cultivation had be unstable.


    His voice was very gentle and vanished soon in the snowy Wilderness, but some people in the temple clearly heard it.


    A peaceful and dignified voice sounded in front of Eldest Brother.


    This was the voice of Chief Preaching Monk of Xuankong Temple.


    ¡°Where Yama¡¯s daughter is¡ªNing Que is.¡±


    Eldest Brother looked at the temple in the fog and fell silent. He knew what the monk was talking about, but he didn¡¯t know how to respond, so he had to keep quiet.


    The voice sounded again like the morning bell.


    ¡°This world belongs to the people. Even though it is arduous, it is also joyful. Everyone in the world has his responsibility and obligation to maintain it. That¡¯s why Yama¡¯s daughter can not exist.¡±


    ¡°To kill Yama¡¯s daughter is not only the duty of Buddhism and Taoism but also will of the people. If Ning Que wants to protect her and the Academy wants to protect Ning Que, you should prepare to be against the whole world.¡±


    ¡°The Academy is the foundation of Tang, however, many people start to oppose you. How can you ovee the whole world? Why doesn¡¯t Headmaster understand this?¡±


    Hearing this, Eldest Brother covered his mouth and coughed badly. His face became pallid.


    Ten days ago, West-Hill Divine Pce dered the real identity of Yama¡¯s daughter to the world. Given the rtionship between Ning Que and Sangsang, the whole court of Tang came to a deadlock. Since the Academy hadn¡¯t made itself clear, most of the officials andmon people began questioning them.


    His voice rose with the wind and snow around the crater, full of sympathy and regret. He said, ¡°Even if you figure out where Ning Que is, even if you find the ck carriage¡ªWhat can you do? Can you kill us all? Can you bring the carriage back to the Academy? No, you can¡¯t. You can¡¯t stop us. Facing the eyes and hatred of everyone in the world, even you ¨C the fastest man in the world¡ªcan do nothing, and neither can the Headmaster.¡±


    Hauling off the ck umbre and burying the Go board, they could hide from Xuankong Temple¡¯s monks, scattered in the Wilderness, who used to locate them easily. Without the guiding light, the cavalry of Right King¡¯s Pce could not intercept them in an organized way anymore.


    In the following days, the ck carriage hid sessfully and wlessly, as if it was on a trip across the Wilderness.


    For ordinary people, the autumn in the Wilderness was cold and arid. They could barely find prey, easily get lost and be exhausted when they acted alone.


    However, for Ning Que and Sangsang, this was their most familiar and favorite environment ¨C simr to Min Mountain. They would rather stay in the mountain, hunting animals than talk to the hunters, who were more cunning than their looks, in the vige.


    Boxwood bow was buzzing. Arrows pierced the wind and snow, and urately shot prey, which would be their delicious soup or amazing barbecue.


    No matter if a snow rabbit ¨C that was difficult to find for the best hunters¡ªor a strong snow yak¡ªthat could not be killed by a whole vige¡ªNing Que was able to get them as food easily.


    Traveling in the Wilderness, they were like fish in a stream. They hunted, hid and boiled the snow as they had done a long time ago.


    An irrepressibly excited neighing sounded in the snow.


    The horse ran back without making noise. Ning Que jumped down carrying a skinned snow wolf in his hand. The ck horse touched the bag with its head and wore a slobbery look on its face.


    After a short time, snow wolf soup was ready and its fragrance was sealed within the carriage. Outside the carriage, the horse was chewing the meat with its head happily shaking.


    Ning Que took a bowl of soup, added some meat, and passed it to Sangsang.


    Sangsang drank a little of the soup and ate a piece of meat. She said, ¡°I told you the wolf¡¯s meat is too coarse to eat.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I couldn¡¯t find anything else.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°If Tangtang¡¯s little wolf knew you ate wolfmeat, it would hate you.¡±


    Ning Que said with a smile, ¡°Even the horse isn¡¯t afraid of it, let alone me. On the other hand, although they are both wolves¡ªthey are not siblings. Her wolf is a Snowfield Direwolf which differs from the one we ate.¡±


    They drank up half of the soup and froze the rest outside the carriage. When Ning Que got in the carriage, he found Sangsang staring at the ck chesspiece, so he asked, ¡°What are you thinking?¡±


    Sangsang looked up him and answered, ¡°I¡¯m thinking about the words you said on Tile Mountain.¡±


    Ning Que said with a little surprise, ¡°Before we left?¡±


    Sangsang nodded.


    Ning Que said, ¡°Don¡¯t bother that. We now know that you are not sick and you are not going to die. It is just the sign left by Yama.¡±


    Sangsang looked down at the ck chesspiece in her hand and asked, ¡°If it is a sign, does it mean the revival of Yama¡¯s daughter?¡±


    Ning Que thought it over and replied, ¡°Maybe.¡±


    Sangsang tightly held the piece in her palm. After a long silence, she asked, ¡°What should I do if I rpse? Am I going to die?¡±


    Ning Que held her in his arms and patted her back. He said, ¡°You are Yama¡¯s daughter. How will you die?¡±


    Sangsang put her head on his chest and quaveringly spoke, ¡°I am worried... when Yama¡¯s daughter wakes up, I would be gone¡ªSangsang would not exist.¡±


    Ning Que understood her words and held her tighter. He said, ¡°I don¡¯t know, but I think the Headmaster must have other ways to cure you.¡±


    Sangsang looked up at him and asked, ¡°Do you really trust the Academy?¡±


    Since he killed the first man in the woodshed of the Official of Counsel, for more than ten years, Ning Que never trusted anyone but Sangsang including when they were in the City of Wei. He was more suspicious than he looked ¨C benign outside but cruel inside. Sangsang knew him very well, so she was confused as to why he trusted the Academy without faltering.¡±


    ¡°I have told you that thest of my trust I will set aside for my teacher. We are reasonable to trust no one, including my teacher, but after these years, I found that to be an overly-reasonable man was too tiring, too hard and too meaningless.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the snow outside the window and said, ¡°Especially now¡ªthe entire world has already abandoned us. If we can not trust the Headmaster and senior brothers, we will be even more lonely.¡±


    Inte autumn, the wind and snow became less wild. More and more farmers, even a trade caravan, showed up on the roads. The further they went southeast of the Wilderness, the more people they saw. Since everyone was an eye of Xuankong Temple, Ning Que was having difficulties burying his whereabouts.


    During the daytime, there were smoke signals, while at night¡ªfireworks could be seen. The shortest way from the Western Wilderness to the Tang Empire was from the northeast of Golden Pce¡¯s territory to the south of Tang. However, the monks and cavalry of the Right King¡¯s Pce were all deployed in the northeast of the Wilderness.


    Ning Que spected that, in a further ce, the army of Yuelun was waiting for them. Besides, considering the powerful cavalry of the Golden Pce, the northeastern route was too dangerous. The biggest trouble was, between the Pce and the Western Wilderness, a non-freezing marsh¡ªtoo risky to go through.


    These were not tough tests for Ning Que since he had changed his n ording to his spection in Eldest Brother¡¯s realm. His recent journey towards the northeast was just to confuse the enemy.


    He did not know that Eldest Brother had gone to Xuankong Temple, for a second time, to look for him. He did not know they were not alone, but he was clear that the best way to get off the current predicament was to be found by Eldest Brother.


    He had no idea about the realm of Limitless and how to travel as an immortal who could fly with the wind. However, he trusted the Academy and his brothers, so he coulde to a conclusion.


    The people in Chang¡¯an must have known they were in the Western Wilderness. Eldest Brother hadn¡¯t shown up just because he had not located their position yet. That meant the Limitless State was not free movement. It needed an urate location in the sense of a map.


    Therefore, his destination was the capital of Yuelun.


    One beautiful day, what Ning Que had been worried about finally happened.


    Sangsang¡¯s face became pale and she began coughing out cold air instead of blood or phlegm. Like melting ice, her body became more and more chilly.


    A dark cloud came from no where and suspended itself in the sky above the ck carriage.

 Chapter 614 - The Trailing Shadow

    <h4>Chapter 614: The Trailing Shadow</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Oddly shaped clouds often appeared above the Wilderness. Ning Que did not see the cloud above the horse carriage, and even if he had seen it ¨C he wouldn¡¯t have paid attention to it. It was because such an image was toomon, and also ¨C because he waspletely focused on Sangsang.


    He would grow more anxious every time she coughed. He thought about what Master Qishan had said in Lanke Temple and asked Sangsang to continue reciting Buddhist scriptures ¨C cultivate Buddhism in hopes that it would quell the cold aura in her body temporarily. However, he had a bad feeling about it.


    In the next couple of days, there were no sightings of cavalry from the Pce or sadhus from Xuankong Temple. Their journey was peaceful and Ning Que had finally noticed the cloud above the horse carriage. The sky was clear for miles and was the color of green tiles. There weren¡¯t any other clouds, other than the single bud hanging above them, making it hard to go unnoticed.


    The sun was hanging in the middle of the sky and was blocked by the cloud. From the ground of the Wilderness, the edges of the clouds seemed as if they had a gold border, and the cloud within the border was extremely white. It was made by many tendrils of clouds and looked like giant cotton candy, which made one want to reach out to touch it.


    The solitary cloud in the sky cast a round shadow that was several feet in diameter, cing the ck horse carriage in the middle of the shadow. Ning Que thought that it was rather interesting, but did not think too much before putting down the curtains, signaling the Big ck Horse to continue forth.


    He had not noticed that the solitary cloud followed the horse carriage as it traveled through the Wilderness. The shadow moved across the Wilderness as well, casting shade on the ck horse carriage.


    The Big ck Horse believed in living in the moment. Its gaze would perpetually stay on food and the road before it, as well as between the legs of female horses. It was toozy to look further out, so it did not notice that it was perpetually walking in the shade. It only felt that it was rather cool andfortable.


    The Wilderness was bitterly cold inte autumn. Other than the ck horse, no one else thought that the coldness was enjoyable. Ning Que and Sangsang, who were inside the carriage, did not wish to hear of anything rted with cold.


    It was cold inside the carriage. One could see the stainless-steel boards on the edges of the windows, which were not covered with cloth, frosted over ¨C evidence of how cold the carriage was.


    Sangsang had on another pair of down pants and wrapped herself with a ck coat tightly. She was buried in nkets, yet even so ¨C did not feel any trace of warmth. Her face was pale, and her lips were blue. A thinyer of frost clung on to her eyshes.


    Ning Que tossed another two pieces of talisman paper into the copper basin and handed her a leather pouch. Inside the pouch, was strong alcohol he had gotten when he robbed a small tribe ten days ago. Sangsang shook her head, indicating that she would help herself. She took the leather pouch and poured the alcohol into her mouth. After a while, the pouch began to tten.


    Perhaps she had drunk too quickly, or because she was sick, Sangsang frowned and coughed when she put down the alcohol pouch. The talisman fire in the copper basin dimmed and struggled to reignite.


    Like before, she did not cough up phlegm or blood. Every time she coughed, a cold aura would emerge. The cold aura met the warm humid air in the carriage and turned into mist.


    Sangsang¡¯s chilly aura was getting more serious. She would expel some every time she coughed. This aura seemed not to be of this world and was piercingly cold. Sometimes, even the talisman fire could not withstand it, which was why the temperature in the carriage had dropped gradually. This was also why the windows had frosted over.


    She coughed softly, the temperature in the carriage fell. Ning Que tossed another talisman into the copper basin, barely managing to keep the fire up. They had used too many fire talismans recently. The talismans, especially the fire talismans, that he had prepared earlier had long been used up. The ones they were using now were written on their journey and used up a lot of his Psyche Power, causing him to turn a little haggard.


    External influences could temper the cold, but could not get rid of the cold aura that came from within Sangsang. It only cured the symptoms. Master Qishan had said, when he was treating Sangsang in Lanke Temple, that even cultivating in Buddhism and using the spirit of Buddha to temper the cold illness could only do that. It did not get rid of the root of the illness.


    Ning Que knew that if he wanted to get rid of the cold aura in Sangsang¡¯s bodypletely, and to shield her from Yama, he could only do so in the world inside Buddha¡¯s chessboard. He had to hide away these two years.


    Sangsang¡¯s coughing grew more frequent and her illness had taken a turn for the worse. He grew more and more worried. He had worked very hard to suppress the thoughts of turning back to the depths of the Wilderness and digging up the chessboard he had buried. The Buddha aura in the chessboard had been removed and now it waspletely useless.


    Barely hanging on to his rationality, Ning Que grew more and more determined to head to the capital of Yuelun Kingdom. There were many Buddhist temples in the Buddhist country. Even if he couldn¡¯t meet up with Eldest Brother immediately, he could get Sangsang to read more Buddhist scriptures in search of more Buddhist spirit. It would keep the chilly aura in her body calm for the moment and at the very least ¨C it wouldn¡¯t be as dangerous as it is now.


    The bitter autumn winds in the Wilderness tapered off. After thatst snowfall, it did not snow again. Sometimes, snow clouds would gather in the skies but be blown apart by the winds. Only a single cloud stayed hanging in the sky, unaffected.


    The solitary cloud moved towards the northeast direction, casting a faint shadow on the ground in the Wilderness. The ck horse carriage sped under the shadow silently, towards the distance.


    The ck horse carriage finally left the Wilderness, arriving at the north border of Yuelun Kingdom. The Wilderness behind the horse carriage was filled with the screams of the winter winds and flying snow, heralding the arrival of winter. The world in front of the horse carriage was still in autumn, the trees by the border glowed red, as if they were burning.


    Even though Ning Que did not know what was happening in Yuelun Kingdom, he could still make a few guesses. He parked the ck horse carriage in the hollow of a mountain and went off in seek of news.


    Momentster, he returned to the hollow and entered the carriage. Sangsang looked at his expression and seemed to have understood something. She smiled lightly and asked, ¡°How did my portrait look?¡±


    Ning Que took out a sheet of paper and spread it out in front of her. He said, ¡°Look for yourself.¡±


    He had entered the border earlier and quickly verified what had happenedtely. Sangsang¡¯s warrant and portrait were hung everywhere in the little city¡¯s streets. Sangsang¡¯s identity was written on it as well.


    The paper was fresh ¨C must have been stuck on less than five days ago. Sangsang looked at the frail little handmaiden in the portrait and realized that it is indeed very uncanny. She praised, ¡°Yuelun Kingdom¡¯s artist is indeed amazing.¡±


    The portrait had even managed to make Sangsang¡¯s withered hair lifelike. Ning Que pointed to the words written beside the little handmaiden¡¯s cotton skirt in the portrait and said, ¡°It is an artist from West-Hill Divine Pce. Of course he is amazing.


    Sangsang said in resignation, ¡°So the Divine Hall wants to capture me as well.¡±


    Ning Que smiled and said, ¡°We both know people in the West-Hill Divine Pce. If they really want to capture you, they might as well ask Ye Hongyu to do it. She would make it quick on the ount that we are friends and might not torture us with fire.¡±


    Sangsang said softly, ¡°It¡¯s not funny.¡±


    Ning Que did not say anything else. He drove the Big ck Horse out of the hollow and around the city at the edge toward the eastern hills of Yuelun Kingdom. Sangsang thought to herself, <i>¡°Isn¡¯t the capital of Yuelun City in the south? Why are we heading east?¡± </i>Even though she was bewildered, she believed in Ning Que. She was also very tired, so she did not ask.


    A few dayster, the ck horse carriage having traveled so quickly, it almost flew, arrived at the eastern side of Yuelun Kingdom. Ning Que got the Big ck Horse to stop when he saw the mountains and cliffs in the distance. They were still quite a distance away from the border.


    They would see the Tang Empire after crossing the mountains and cliffs. Ning Que had seen on the map that the Zhenxi General¡¯s Mansion was about 400 miles away in Zhezhou City. At the Big ck Horse¡¯s speed, they would need less than a day before he could see the Tang military g, provided no one tried to stop them.


    He knew very well that there would be many cultivation powerhouses hidden in the route from Yuelun Kingdom to the Tang Empire. That was why he had never considered this route since the very beginning. However, knowing was simply knowing. He could see his own country just a short distance away, how could he feel content before he saw it with his own eyes?


    ¡°Don¡¯t force yourself. Let go if you feel that it is too much.¡±


    In the horse carriage, Ning Que looked at Sangsang gravely. Sangsang nodded lightly, taking the torn and tattered big ck umbre from his hands. She held it tightly with her right hand and slowly shut her eyes. She did not open the umbre.


    Momentster, her face grew paler and hershes fluttered like leaves blown about by wind among the snow. Her right hand, which was holding the handle of the umbre, began to tremble, causing her frail body to do the same.


    Sangsang suddenly coughed, and Ning Que did not hesitate to reach out to grab the big ck umbre from her. Then, he hugged her to his chest and rubbed her back. Her breathing calmed again after some time.


    Sangsang lowered her head onto his chest and shut her eyes. Her body trembled slightly, either from the cold or from fear. With a tired, weak voice she said, ¡°There are many people. Powerful people.¡±


    Ning Que remained silent and continued hugging her.


    After some time, Sangsang opened her eyes and said softly, ¡°I don¡¯t dare to open the big ck umbre. My health isn¡¯t good now, so I can¡¯t see clearly. Let me try againter.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°It is enough to know that there are people ahead of us.¡±


    Sangsang replied, ¡°But we don¡¯t know where they are from.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The West-Hill Divine Pce... no, I should say, they are from Haotian Taoism.¡±


    He sat by the window and took out his spyss. He looked at the cliffs and mountains in the distance. He watched silently for a long while until the skies turned dark, but he finally saw several glints that came from swords.


    Ning Que thought of that story from many years ago as he watched the glinting light from the swords in the dark mountains and cliffs. Saintess of Diabolism, Murong Linshuang, had danced in Tuyang city and sword light glinted in Min Mountain. Several powerhouses of Haotian Taoism ignored the wrath of the Tang Emperor and forced Xia Hou to cook his lover alive.


    That was just a war between Haotian Taoism and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Now that Sangsang was the Daughter of Yama, this was a war between Haotian and Yama. Ning Que knew that what he was facing was much more dangerous than what Xia Hou had. Ye Hongyu was definitely here, did the Great Divine Priest of Revtione? What about the Hierarch Lord?

 Chapter 615 - Chaoyang City Does Not Face the Sun

    <h4>Chapter 615: Chaoyang City Does Not Face the Sun</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    This was Haotian¡¯s world, in which Haotian Taoism was the most powerful sect. Disregarding West-Hill Divine Pce, that had many powerhouses, and only talking about the hundreds and thousands of Taoist Temples in the world ¨C who knew how much hidden power Haotian Taoism had?


    In the Wilderness, Xuankong Temple had used over two hundred sadhus and several masters who were in the equivalent of Knowing Destiny State to pursue the ck horse carriage. There were a lot of them, but West-Hill Divine Pce was like a terrifying ocean.


    From the moment Divine Hall had announced to the world that Sangsang was the Daughter of Yama, the ocean began to toss and roll. The waves gradually broke through the calm surface of the sea. It would not stop until the ck horse carriage was smashed to smithereens.


    The mountains, covered by night, separated Yuelun Kingdom and the Tang Empire. Ye Hongyu stood at the highest peak, her divine robes dancing in the wind. Her robes rustled, but her face remained expressionless.


    The Divine Priest of Judgement¡¯s robes was red. It was more brilliant than the color of fresh blood and deeper than the night sky.


    No matter how sharp her eyes were, she would be unable to see the ck horse carriage in the distant mountain hollow. However, she continued looking in that direction, as if she had seen something interesting and refused to look away.


    Dozens of Divine Hall priests and knights knelt on the peak before her. A deacon from the Judicial Department dressed in ck reported information from Yuelun Kingdom. Her expression was indifferent, as if she did not care, as if chasing after the Daughter of Yama was unimportant and did not make her nervous.


    After some time, Ye Hongyu looked away. She looked at the mountains around her and at the cliffs hiding 400 riders from West-Hill Divine Pce, three Knowing Destiny State Grand Cultivators and more than a dozen powerful cultivators from Haotian Taoism who hade obeying the edict. They were all hidden under hermand.


    This powerful group could ¨C before Buddhism Sect had time to react ¨C take over the capital of Yuelun Kingdom, Chaoyang, were they to head west. It was more than sufficient to take down Ning Que and Sangsang, who was ill.


    The Judicial Department deacon in ck remained kneeling on the ground after making his report. He was waiting for orders from the Great Divine Priest, but did not hear anything for a long time. He could not help but look up at the figure at the peak and ask respectfully, ¡°Great Divine Priest, My Lady?¡±


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s mind had wandered as she was thinking about one thing or another. She only regained awareness when she heard that. She looked toward the west again and her lips curled up. She said, ¡°That fellow is smarter than a thief, he would have already guessed what ns Haotian Taoism had. I¡¯m afraid he would have left a long time ago. If this is so, should I still wait here like an idiot?¡±


    The deacons in ck were all surprised when they heard the words of the Divine Priest of Judgment. She seemed about to leave. However, the ambush by Haotian Taoism was ordered personally by the Hierarch Lord. Who would dare to disobey him?


    Ye Hongyu walked down the mountain.


    A Deputy Commander of the Divine Troops stood up in shock. He looked at the figure with billowing divine robes in the night sky behind her and asked, ¡°Great Divine Priest, this is an order by the hierarch. Where are you going?¡±


    In these mountains and in this world, there weren¡¯t many people who Ye Hongyu had to answer to. That was why she did not reply. However, when she walked by the deacon in ck, she said, ¡°I¡¯m going to the quagmire.¡±


    The deacon in ck was her direct subordinate. She had told him where she was going so that he could arrange matters in the Judicial Department. This did not mean that she had to report her whereabouts to anyone, not even the Hierarch Lord.


    Those at the cliff froze when they heard this. Even the deacon in ck showed his surprise as he tried to dissuade her. ¡°The quagmire? The thousand miles of marsnd between Yuelun Kingdom and the Golden Pce? Great Divine Priest, that is too dangerous. It¡¯s been so many years, yet there hasn¡¯t been anyone who had chosen that path...¡±


    ¡°Nobody had taken that path. That¡¯d be the path Ning Que takes.¡±


    With that, Ye Hongyu turned away, her red priestess robes flying along the mountain path like a bloodied g. And, when it would flow downwards, it was like the descending night. Everyone from the West-Hill Divine Pce knelt respectfully and sent her off.


    The capital of Yuelun Kingdom was called Chaoyang City. The name had been so for many years. No one remembered whether it was pronunced ¡®Zhao¡¯ or ¡®Chao¡¯, because they both seemed to mean the same thing.


    There was a green mountain north of Chaoyang city. It was a broad, gentle, sloping mountain. The nts on the mountain were dense and, even though there were frequent visitors, there were many inessible and deep spots.


    Southeast of Yuelun Kingdom was a primary forest and a great river. It was connected to South Jin Kingdom. The mists from the Great Lake and the southern oceans were often blown into the country. The mists were blocked by the high ins in the west, the Wilderness in the north and the cliffs in the east, so the area was humid and warm.


    It waste in autumn and it had long begun to snow in the Wilderness. However, the cold had not yet approached Chaoyang City. The leaves in the mountain forests were dense and green. The scene was simr to spring in Chang¡¯an.


    At noon, the sun hovered high above in the sky and spread its heat to the ground. Chaoyang City and the green mountains in the north of the city became increasingly hot and humid, causing everyone much frustration.


    Tourists and those living in the mountains rested in the forests, hiding from the dry autumn sun. Some children were ying by the Linzhong stream. Beside the mountain path, which was rtively less shaded, were cross-legged, tanned ascetic monks.


    Some ascetic monks wore the robes of White Tower Temple while others came from somewhere else. Their robes were long reduced to tatters. And no matter whether they were local or not, the copper bowl in front of them was filled with fruits and food. These were offerings from the Buddhist believers of Yuelun Kingdom.


    In the depths of the green mountains, were hundreds of eucalyptus trees. There were dense grass and shrubs under the tree, so no matter whether it were man or beast, they would find it hard to walk in. It was very quiet and, judging by the pile of rotting leaves on the ground, it had been decades since someone had passed by.


    Ning Que picked up thest handful of dead leaves and carefully sprinkled them on the ground, making sure that no traces of their passing could be seen. He rxed after making sure that his cover-up was perfect. He stepped on a rather spiky shrub and jumped onto the t ground several feet away. He began to lecture Big ck Horse.


    ording to the Big ck Horse¡¯s disposition, it would have be annoyed long ago, watching Ning Que lecture it like he was lecturing a child. However, it listened seriously today and its eyes were focused ¨C not missing a single character.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know how long we are going to stay in Chaoyang city. If we find Eldest Brother, I will take Sangsang and return with him first. Then, I will ask Eldest Brother toe and pick you up. If we can¡¯t find him, we will probably wait in the city. You will have to live in the forest for a while. Don¡¯t worry, I won¡¯t abandon you. Thank you for your hard work.¡±


    Ning Que hugged the Big ck Horse¡¯s neck and patted it lightly as he said regretfully. Then, he picked up a blue cloth bag and tied it on the Big ck Horse¡¯s neck. There were several fruits and ginsengs that were what remained of the provisions in the carriage.


    The Big ck Horse nudged Ning Que¡¯s face and whinnied at Sangsang who was sitting under the tree. It turned around and walked into the deep forest at afortable pace, the blue bag swaying to and fro.


    Ning Que watched as the Big ck Horse disappeared into the distance. He then walked to the eucalyptus tree and piggy-backed Sangsang. He tied her firmly to his back with strong rope, picked up their heavy luggage and walked towards the city.


    Everyone, from the king to the hawkers on the streets of Yuelun Kingdom were Buddhists. They all strived for peace and were known to be low-key. Even though Great River Kingdom, who bore a grudge against Yuelun Kingdom, might not think so. However, it was true that rebellions and shocking murder cases rarely happened in the kingdom.


    Because of such a unique way of thinking, or perhaps one might say ¨C pursuit ¨C there were no city walls around many cities in Yuelun Kingdom, other than at the borders of the Tang Empire and Right King¡¯s Pce. The capital, Chaoyang, did not have any city walls either. There was only a simple fence to protect against beasts from the green mountains.


    Those who have traveled to Chaoyang City and Chang¡¯an liked topare the two capitals. They did not im that Chaoyang was as majestic as Chang¡¯an, but they made theparison because Chaoyang City was the pr opposite.


    There were no city walls in Chaoyang, so there were naturally no gates as well. The guards who were in charge of collecting tax for the royal family had ced some tables and umbres on the state highway as a toll booth.


    Because of the year-round warm temperatures the officials all lookedzy. Some of them have undone their shirts andid on the trees by the road for a nap. It lookedzy and unorderly, but what made the imperial court of Yuelun Kingdom proud was that Chaoyan collected more tax than Chang¡¯an every year.


    This was not because Chaoyang City was more developed in trade than Chang¡¯an or because the toll officers were more hardworking. It wasn¡¯t because the citizens of Yuelun Kingdom were all self-aware enough to volunteer paying tax. It wasn¡¯t any secret, but it was so because taxation in Yuelun was ten times of than in the Tang Empire.


    It was azy and peaceful country that had an inefficient and corrupt imperial court. It was a radical and messy capital that could not defend itself against the asional wild elephant, that hade out to scrounge for food. How would they be able to defend themselves against enemies?


    If not for the Buddhism Sect ¨C Yuelun Kingdom would have long been taken over by the cavalry of the Right King¡¯s Pce. If not for the help of the West-Hill Divine Pce ¨C they might have lost to the weaker Great River Kingdom.


    Chaoyang City was an unprotected capital. Wind and rain could both descend into the city. It was lucky that its geographical location was superior and there had not been any natural disasters over the years. People could enter and leave at random. However, its citizens cultivate in Buddhism and were fearful ¨C not many dared to slip into the city to escape the heavy imperial tax.


    On a certain day inte autumn, a white cloud floated into Chaoyang City. Everything happening on the ground was a mess, so naturally, no one could be bothered to notice what was happening above. Only a tax collecting soldier whoid on the ground suntanning saw the cloud. The cloud had two sharp ends and its middle was extremely thick. It was like a spindle. The guardughed dazedly.


    Right under the white cloud, Ning Que carried Sangsang on his back, holding up an umbre he had found somewhere. He walked into Chaoyang City sessfully, a shade cast above him.


    The scent of spice permeated the air of Chaoyang City. Buddhist temples could be seen everywhere. Beautiful white pagodas and tiny shrines on temple walls were iid with precious gems. Beggars, holding on to their broken bowls, walked around leisurely. However, no one looked at the precious gems and no one tried to pick one.


    Sangsangid her head on Ning Que¡¯s shoulder. She watched the scene before her in shock, and muttered, ¡°This is indeed the legendary Buddhist country. Even beggars are so moral.¡±


    Ning Que looked at an old beggar at the street corner whose hand had been cut off by a sharp weapon. He said, ¡°This means that there are two possibilities. If a beggar lives sozily and epts his fate, then he is destined to stay a beggar forever. Or perhaps, they know that they cannot sell the gems, even if they were to steal them, and might be dealt horrible punishment.¡±

 Chapter 616 - Two Autumns

    <h4>Chapter 616: Two Autumns</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    There was only Sangsang in the portrait pasted everywhere in the city. But both the Buddhist Sect and the Taoist Sect knew that Sangsang was apanied by Ning Que and the conspicuous ck carriage which was impossible to be disguised.


    Since the ck carriage was the legacy given by Yan Se, the Buddhist Sect and the Taoist Sect believed that Ning Que would never be willing to leave it. Taking advantage of this thought, Ning Que left the ck horse and the carriage outside of the city and went into the city with Sangsang.


    He chose to hide temporarily in Chaoyang City in order to wait for the Eldest Brother. In addition, Sangsang¡¯s condition was not stable, so he was worried that she would notst if they kept fleeing for thousands of miles.


    Even if he could not meet Eldest Brother, he would still have to go to Chaoyang City. He believed in the theory that one was safer while closer to danger, and was confident about his talent for hiding. Besides, he hoped that Buddhist temples here could help Sangsang¡¯s illness.


    Carrying Sangsang in Chaoyang City, Ning Que found his goal very soon. It was a shabby courtyard near the Imperial Pce of Yuelun Kingdom, from where one could see the famous White Tower Temple. But it was located in a noisy and messy rundown area where one could easily hide.


    The most important and decisive reason for picking up this small courtyard was because it was so shabby that its door was covered with dust, which disyed that it had not been inhabited for a long time. In addition, it was as quiet as a haunted house.


    Ning Que did not inquire about the story of the courtyard. Because any rtionship with someone else would lead to an unpredicted result. He snuck into the state office of the Chaoyang City to investigate the record. Just as expected, there was a bloody massacre in the courtyardst year.


    After the death of the owner in the massacre, his sessor who was obsessed with Buddhism refused to take the courtyard ridden with sin and grievance. So the courtyard became state-owned, although no one would like to buy or rent it, even monks and mercenary officials had no interest in it at all.


    Of course, Ning Que would not rent it. When the night fell, he, carrying Sangsang on his back, climbed over the wall in the alley without much effort and went through the main building to the front of the bedroom in the backyard.


    It was dim and quiet on his way to the room. The ck blood was still on the old bricks on the ground and the walls, which was scalp tingling even for a butcher who was not unfamiliar with blood, not to say an ordinary people. No wonder everyone shrank away from the courtyard and would rather abandon it than ept it.


    Having seen so many dead people and much more horrifying scenes since childhood, Ning Que and Sangsang were not afraid of it at all, without even a slight change in their expression.


    There was no blood in the bedroom, only a bed and a table covered with dust. After thinking for a moment, Ning Que went out of the courtyard again. When he came back, there were beddings and mattresses in his arms and ster required by the woodworking in his hand.


    After a brief sweep, Ning Queid the thick and soft cotton bedding on the floor and put the new pillow on it. Then he went to the abandoned well in the courtyard, from which he fetched some water to make ster. He sealed up the windows with ster without leaving any cracks and hung a thick ck cloth on the window and the door.


    When it waspletely dark, he dropped the two cloths, then went out of the room and said ¡°Ok.¡± As a tiny sound of striking fire came from the room, he observed carefully, found no light leaking out from the room and nodded.


    This was the ability he had developed when he was ambushing the boar in the snow at night in the Min Mountain with Sangsang. The boar was very sensitive to light and the smell of humans, so he learned how to build a temporary spot in the snow from which no light or smell could leak out. Therefore, it was quite easy for him to do this presently.


    The night was dark and the yard was still gloomy. No one dared to approach. Even if someone did, he would see no trace of people but amon shabby scene.


    The Buddhism Sect was looking for the ck carriage everywhere, trying to find Ning Que and Sangsang. Countless powerhouses of Haotian Taoism were lurking in the woods on the way to the Tang Empire. However, no one would expect that the Daughter of Yama was in a courtyard near the White Tower Temple.


    A ck crownded on the tree in the yard and looked up at the star.


    Sangsang¡¯s portrait could be seen everywhere in Chaoyang City. People gathered in front of every temple, listening to the stories told by monks about the Underworld, thest words of Buddha and the appearance of the Daughter of Yama. The people of Yuelun had varied expressions, some terrified and others indignant. The instruction of Buddha, to not be angry, waspletely left behind by them. Gradually, the crowd became increasingly agitated. They waved their fists and said that they were going to find the Daughter of Yama and burn her to death.


    As Ning Que went through the street, he was not influenced by the angry discussion and the vicious curses of the crowds. Soon he arrived at the concierge.


    The Tang Empire¡¯s diplomatic envoys to Yuelun Kingdom were all in the concierge. He did not go inside but stood in a quiet alley, listening intently to what happened inside the walls, and made decisionster.


    ¡°This is not a matter of self-preservation, nor surrender, but right or wrong. As the leader of the world, the Tang Empire has no need to care about the pressure of the Yuelun Kingdom. Even the West-Hill Divine Pce could not force us to give in. I will never stand by to watch the world going to death. This is the duty we Tang Empire should shoulder.¡±


    Standing outside the wall quietly for a long while, Ning Que heard the most valuable words, which were said by the Tang Empire¡¯s envoy to Yuelun. He slowly lowered his head, and then turned away.


    The look on Ning Que¡¯s face told Sangsang that the situation was not good. As she held his hand, Ning Que managed a smile, ¡°It¡¯s ok. I¡¯m just a little surprised at something I heard.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°Guess how long has it been since we left the Lanke Temple?¡± Ning Que asked.


    Sangsang thought for a moment and said, ¡°More than one month at least.¡±


    ¡°No. It¡¯s been a year.¡±


    Ning Que caressed her little cool face and said, ¡°One year has passed before we¡¯ve known it. So I am patient enough to get through another half year. I¡¯m going to take you to read Buddhist sutras in the White Tower Temple tomorrow.¡±


    For the first half of their lives, they led a vagrant life, full of hardships and misery. However, it was due to those hard days that they could be who they were today, with courage, persistence, indifference, and patience unimaginable for ordinary people.


    In the depths of the snow-covered Min Mountain ten years ago, when Ning Que was ambushing the boar in a snow cer with Sangsang, a winter bear which woke up with alert appeared unexpectedly. After a dainty repast of a boar, the winter bear seemed to find that there was other food around, thus it refused to leave the snow cer and stayed there for several days by eating the remaining flesh of the boar.


    At the time, Ning Que was not strong enough and Sangsang was still a six-year-old little girl, so it was impossible for them to beat a greedy bear. They could do nothing but hide in the snow cer, waiting and praying.


    The prayer to Haotian would never be answered, but the unusual endurance of waiting eventually seeded. In the end, the bear left sulkily, unable to endure hunger anymore. Ning Que climbed out of the snow cer with Sangsang who was on the brink of death on his back. They had stayed in the snow cer for four days and nights.


    Since Sangsang and he could survive in that case, how could they fail to live now? Ning Que thought to himself while looking at the increasingly thicker clouds in the clear autumn sky outside the window.


    A ck crow cawed on the tree in the small courtyard. It was extremely unpleasant to hear.


    Ning Que and Sangsang disappeared again from the world. They had disappeared once for a whole year. At the time, the two sects guessed that they might either be dead or were in the chessboard world left by Buddha. No one felt shocked by their disappearance, nor would they think it was incredible.


    However, they had disappeared again after they leaving the Chessboard world of Buddha and returning to man¡¯s world. The powerhouses from the Buddhist Sect and the Taoist Sect and countless people in the world failed to find them despite all their efforts, which made them extremely shocked and vignt. It was known that even the Academy was being watched by many now.


    An old monk walked slowly out of the basin in the depth of the Western Wilderness and went forward.


    The old monk wore a bamboo hat, covering his face. With a monk¡¯s staff in his hand, he walked very slowly. It was not the deliberate slowness to show calm and indifference, but a natural one as if his foot were so tightly connected with the deste vastnd that every step was extremely hard.


    The cane in his hand kept beating the ground, as if the monk was looking for something or somebody. Who could he find at such a slow speed?


    However, at the moment when he stepped out of the basin, he seemed to find something and said, ¡°The Pce.¡±


    A distant bell came from the yellow temple among the huge mountains at the center of the basin.


    In the Right King¡¯s Pce tens of thousands of miles away, a dusty schr looked at Chanyu and a dozen or so pce priests who looked like confronting a powerful enemy and bowed to them. ¡°Could you please tell me whether you have seen my Younger Brother?¡±


    More than a dozen miles away, the deputy of the Hall of Respect of Xuankong Temple rushed to the pce, followed by thirty ascetic monks.


    The old monk continued his slow walk and stopped again after walking for half a day. ¡°Liuguan,¡± He said.


    Again, a distant bell came from the yellow temple among the huge mountains at the center of the basin.


    The schr appeared in Liuguan, a famous trade center on the edge of the Wildness.


    A thousand of grasnd cavalries and cavalries from Yuelun Kingdom rushed to Liuguan under the military¡¯s order.


    The old monk went on walking and stopped again after one day. Then he said another ce.


    The chief monk of the Hall of Respect of Xuankong Temple quietly looked at the schr under a por that was not far away.


    Looking at the coarse bark of the por, Eldest Brother came to realize what happened.


    He kept looking for his Younger Brother everywhere by virtue of Limitless State regardless of the danger of falling into a lower state. But the two sects kept tailing after him. So even if he found Ning Que, he could not take him away without others¡¯ knowing. He would definitely face the continuous deadly attack from the two sects.


    No cultivator could keep pace with the Limitless State. In order to find where he was urately, two conditions must be met. Firstly, his opponent must have enough number of powerhouses and armies to be prepared around every ce he could possibly arrive. Secondly, the opponent had to know his location as soon as possible.


    In principle, it was utterly impossible to meet these two conditions at the same time. However, if all the people in the world were looking for Sangsang and the if Buddhist sect and the Taoist sect worked together, they could really dispatch enough powerhouses and armies and the second condition could also be met by someone.


    Although Eldest Brother looked gentle and dull, he was actually a wise man. It did not take him long to understand all things and confirm his own guess: the chief preaching monk from Xuankong Temple had finallye to the world.


    He looked at Qi Mei and smiled. Then he sat down with his back against the por and took out the old book from his waist and started reading. There was no pond beside him to drink with a scoop, but he still looked calm and unhurried.


    Since the two sects tried to find Ning Que and Sangsang though him, he decided to do nothing except for reading, eating, and sleeping from this moment.


    Doing nothing was the best method of hiding. On the contrary, the more you did to conceal, the easier you would expose. Though he did not know this truth, he made the right choice by following his heart.


    Being experienced in hiding and fleeing, Ning Que knew the truth and did follow it. Except taking Sangsang to read and heal in different temples, Ning Que never went out of the courtyard and did not even go to find Eldest Brother.


    Sangsang¡¯s illness improved slightly, and at least did not worsen anymore for now. She was still weak and weary and sank into a deep sleep just after noon.


    Ning Que sat by the bed and started reading.


    The book was the handwritten copy of Buddha¡¯s notes written by himself in the Lanke Temple. He made the words in the ¡°Ming¡± Handscroll of Tomes of the Arcane correspond to the sidenotes of Buddha in order to get a more clear insight. But he failed to find more things in it.


    Ning Que came to have a vague idea of the book after taking Sangsang to different temples in these days. When he read it again, he talked to himself with a slight frown, ¡°The night falls for the moon... Doesn¡¯t this reverse the cause and effect? The shadow of nightfall will never be washed away once it falls on the moon. What does it mean?¡±


    Then he turned to Sangsang who was in deep sleep. Looking at her little pale face, he reached out his hand and touched it, thinking that ¡°the dark shadow¡± in the ¡°Ming¡± Handscroll was naturally the Daughter of Yama, Sangsang.


    ¡°The shadow of nightfall will never be washed away once it falls on the moon... ¡± As to the literal meaning and the current situation, ¡°the moon¡± referred to himself for he was the only one in the world who had seen the moon.


    Ning Que looked thoughtful and inspired, but was still confused.


    Several terrible caws came from outside the window. After making sure that no one was in the courtyard, he opened the door and went outside. Looking at the several ck crows in the tree, he knitted his brows.


    A crow came here at the first night when they came. In the following days, one more crow came every day. The number of crows gradually increased that the branches now could hardly bear their weight.


    It was weird no matter what.


    He looked up at the sky and found that the clouds above Chaoyang City increased. They kept moving and merging at a low speed, gradually forming a thick cloud that could cover the sky.


    With the clouds getting thicker, people in the city felt a little chilly. The autumn was going to end atst.


    For Ning Que and Sangsang,st fall was rted to this fall. In these two falls, they had gone through too many things. Howmenting it was!

 Chapter 617 - The Clouds Gathered Above Chaoyang City (I)

    <h4>Chapter 617: The Clouds Gathered Above Chaoyang City (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The winds and snow were not piqued, and the roads were not blocked. An old monk wearing a bamboo hat walked out of the Wilderness slowly, holding a monk¡¯s staff in his hand. He entered the Yuelun Kingdom and walked up to the peak of a rtively low mountain.


    The old monk walked extremely slowly. He was slower than the falling snowkes, and seemed to be even slower than the snow melting. The grass slippers on his feet seemed to be stuck to the ground, and whenever he raised his feet it was as if he would raise the entire ground with it. That was why every step he took seemed arduous.


    When he walked on the snow, he would raise the snow off the ground. When he walked on the mud, the ck mud would be lifted off the ground. When he walked on the mountain path that was lined with pebbles, the surface of the path would be lifted. The mountain path that was covered in a light dusting of snow did not seem to have undergone any changes, but deep within the depths of the ground, a tugging ensued. A faint grumbling resounded; one that could not be heard by humans. The entire mountain groaned as the old monk continued forth.


    Animals hibernating in the depths of the mountains were able to hear this sound. The wolf licking its matted fur raised its head up alertly. The magpie hidden in its nest looked to the distance in fear. The wildcat attempting to gnaw on a frozen deer yowled shrilly.


    The old monk walked to the mountain¡¯s peak, looking toward the south.


    The snow stopped a few dozen miles south from the mountain¡¯s peak. Most of the skies in the Yuelun Kingdom were devoid of any snow clouds. Meanwhile in Yuelun¡¯s capital, Chaoyang City which was a few thousand miles away, was covered by a thickyer of clouds. From a few thousand miles away, the thick clouds looked like a lonely stemless flower that bloomed from loneliness in the Buddhist country.


    The old monk looked at the clouds a few thousand miles away. The shadow of his bamboo hat did nothing to hide the expression of distress that slowly appeared on his aged face. Then, he tightly clutched the staff in his hand, poking it into the stones beside him. He said to the far off distance, ¡°Man below clouds.¡±


    The staff made contact with the stones on the peak like a hot knife slicking into a pile of snow. It was wedged deeply into the rock without any sound. The top of the monk¡¯s staff made a soft clear sound as the old monk spoke, and the sound drifted out in all directions.


    The old monk looked at the distant Chaoyang City and said, ¡°Buddha left behind his chessboard, the peace bell, and other Dharma weapons before entering Nirvana. They were to point Buddhist disciples to the right path during the cmity that the world would face and the Dharma Ending Period that is about toe. However, Senior Brother, you have refused to walk on the path Buddha left behind and insist on walking your own path. Why is this so?¡±


    After standing in silence on the peak for a long time, the old monk sighed and said, ¡°Senior Brother, you were called Qishan then. I did not understand why. I only knew that it means taking the other path after Qi Nian told me about it. However, the other path is difficult. Buddha ispassionate, how could he bear to watch the people take the risks of the alternate path?¡±


    With that, the old monk pulled his staff from the snow covered rocks and slowly walked down the peak. He seemed to be walking in the direction of Chaoyang City. However, he walked slowly and with much difficulty. It had taken him over a hundred days to reach the edges of the Wilderness,ing from the Xuankong Temple. Then, how long would it take for him to get to the city below the clouds?


    ¡°Since you chose the alternate path, then I can only take the shortcut.¡±


    As the old man walked out of the periphery of the peak, he stopped on the rough and muddy mountain path and stretched out his staff. It looked as if he was calling for a carriage, but where would a carriagee from while in such a remote ce?


    This winter, the capital city of Yuelun Kingdom, Chaoyang City, experienced a constant gloom. Even though there were two light snowfalls, the thick clouds above the city had not dispersed.


    Good and bad weather weremon in this world. It wasn¡¯t hard to imagine a hundred days of gloom, so in the beginning, the cloud did not attract anyone¡¯s attention.


    It was not until deep into the winter when the second snowfall fell, as Chaoyang City remained gloomy while the countryside was enshrouded in sunlight, that people in the city grew confused.


    Exnations would be sought for, should one encounter doubts. When purposeful observations first began, the imperial court of the Yuelun Kingdom and the ordinary citizens finally noticed that there was something weird about the thick clouds in the sky. Someone recalled that the cloud above them had not dispersed sincete autumn. More people noticed that clouds in the clear skies outside the city kept floating and merging into the clouds above the city.


    The clouds hung above Chaoyang City, unbudging and growing thicker andrger by the day. It was too strange. At the beginning of autumn, the Yuelun Kingdom had announced that the Daughter of Yama hade. The imperial court had also acknowledged that she was in the country by issuing an arrest warrant. These incidents, together with the thick clouds above Chaoyang City made the citizens uneasy and fearful.


    Those in Chaoyang City made plenty of conjectures and were very uneasy. The cloud became everyone¡¯s focus and even the main topic of all conversations between the citizens of the Yuelun Kingdom.


    ¡°Did you see the cloud yesterday?¡±


    ¡°I can see it every day if I look up. Is there a need to look at it specifically?¡±


    ¡°I was talking about the new cloud that floated over yesterday. Haven¡¯t you realized that the cloud is much thicker today?¡±


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t look so. I went to rent a horse carriage yesterday. Was yesterday¡¯s new cloudrge?¡±


    ¡°Extremelyrge. It was already very close when I saw it. It was a little bigger than the pce.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s rather big. But I saw the new cloud that came from the east a few days ago. It looks so imposing, just like thousands of soldiers and horses of the Tang military.¡±


    ¡°Your analogy is great. Isn¡¯t the Daughter of Yama a Tang?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t talk to me about the Daughter of Yama. I¡¯m afraid.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re not afraid, you¡¯re just being careful. Did you rent a horse carriage to leave the city?¡±


    ¡°We have to leave. The cloud is too weird. What if it turns into a rock and falls on us? I can¡¯t stand it.¡±


    The snow cloud shadowed the city.


    People in the city looked up every day for a long time and neck pain incidents became less and less. Many people began to pray. The streets were filled with the smell of incense. The temples collected more and more incense money. Some people were prepared to leave Chaoyang City to seek shelter with their rtives in the countryside. Businesses of those selling horse carriages bloomed.


    The tense and uneasy atmosphere grew with the density of incense smoke. People began to fret and believed that the only thing that was effective was prayer. The masters in temples were naturally their best choice. In a matter of days, manydies were hurt by such incidents.


    There were countless Buddhist temples in the Yuelun Kingdom, of which the most famous were the 72 temples of Yanyu. The White Tower Temple in Chaoyang City enjoyed the undoubted recognition among the 72 temples. In the currently frightening atmosphere, the incense in the White Tower Temple burned the brightest. There were many believers who came forth to pray, and the temple was filled to the brim.


    There were many believers crowding inside the White Tower Temple, and many more knelt outside. There were a dozen of believers who respectfully knelt on the stone steps outside the temple. They kept kowtowing, looking extremely pious.


    Many Buddhist believers knelt at the stone steps because the abbot of the White Tower Temple had erected a statue of a baby boy who had a deep affinity with Buddha. The baby boy grew up to be the renowned Master Daoshi. That was why all believers had the notion that there were remnants of the spirit of Buddha, left behind by Master Daoshi on the stone steps and that it would bring them luck.


    Ning Que shook his head as he looked at the scene. He held Sangsang¡¯s slightly cold hand and squeezed through the crowd toward the White Tower Temple. He thought of how Quni Madi had a rtionship with Baoshu and gave birth to her illegitimate son Daoshi. Where else would they send him other than to the White Tower Temple? What did it have to do with the spirit of Buddha?


    Sangsang wore a light colored robe and had on a thick scarf that covered half of her face. Her hair had been cut extremely short, and her bangs fell to one side. She looked very refreshing, like a naughty little boy. Even those who had met Sangsang before would not be able to recognize her, much less those who had only seen her pictures.


    ¡°Perhaps those stone steps can really bring luck.¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s voice emerged from underneath the scarf, a little muffled, almost as if she had a blocked nose after a bout of flu.


    Ning Que smiled slightly and softly said, ¡°Even if it brings luck, it would not fall upon us. Don¡¯t forget that I cut off Daoshi¡¯s head in front of that bun stall in Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I wonder if it¡¯s because we have done too many bad things and this is retribution. If we had known we were going to study Buddhism, we wouldn¡¯t have been so disrespectful to the masters of the Buddhism Sect.¡±


    Ning Que smiled and said, ¡°I was feeling awful the day before I met Daoshi because it was the first time you ran away. I was angry and stayed by the Yanmingke for an entire night, and he still provoked me. Of course he was seeking death. It¡¯s your fault.¡±


    Sangsang said softly, ¡°So it is I, who should experience retribution.¡±


    ¡°If there really is such a thing as retribution, would I need to kill Xia Hou? He would long have been dealt with by Buddha. No matter if it was Haotian Taoism or the Buddhism Sect, they would always call those from the Academy non-believers. To them, life is empty without beliefs, respect or fear. They think that it¡¯d be hard for us to find true peace. However, to the Academy, belief and adoration are two different things. They really should reconsider the fear part of the equation.¡±


    Ning Que thought of the kowtowing believers outside the temple. He thought of the families beside the courtyard burning incense and praying to a tree every day. He said, ¡°The Yuelun Kingdom is a country with religious beliefs. But they believe in too many things, and they have too much fear of the unknown. What kind of belief is that then?¡±


    The two had already walked deep into the main hall of the White Tower Temple as they chatted. It was crowded within the hall. Hundreds of believers knelt on futons, listening to the high monk in front preaching.


    Ning Que brought Sangsang into the hall and found an empty futon. The believer who had his futon stolen was shocked to find himself standing behind a pir when he had been carefully listening to the scripture just moments ago. However, he did not dare to make a din, afraid that the high monk would deem him not pious enough to have encountered such a situation.


    Sangsang knelt on the futon and ced her palms together and vertically before her. She closed her eyes and began to listen to the scriptures and study Buddhism. Her expression was serene and pious, and her hair, which was ck because it had been cut short began to rustle on her forehead.


    She did not listen to the preaching of the White Tower Temple¡¯s monk but only silently recited a part of the scripture. She studied not the solemn gold Buddha in front of the hall, but the Buddha in her heart.

 Chapter 618 - The Clouds Gathered Above Chaoyang City (II)

    <h4>Chapter 618: The Clouds Gathered Above Chaoyang City (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Finding the Daughter of Yama, saving the world, and saving oneself. These were the thoughts of everyone in the world. After ascertaining that the Daughter of Yama was hiding in the Yuelun Kingdom, the Buddhism Sect would naturally want to kill her quickly.


    And it was in this situation in which Ning Que hid Sangsang in Chaoyang City, visiting many of its Buddhist temples. They studied Buddhism and read scriptures, which waspletely unexpected by the Taoism and Buddhism sects. It also proved the saying that the most dangerous ce is also the safest.


    There were things that were even more interestingpared to this.


    The ¡°Ming¡± Handscroll from the Tomes of the Arcane, that was read by Buddha years ago, could foresee the future of the world yearster. Having seen theing of the Evesting night of the Dharma Ending Period, Buddha left behind many instruments and prepared many methods to suppress the Son of Yama. This would allow the world to escape from Yama¡¯s 70,000 eyes. However, not even Buddha had expected that the Dharma he left behind would be able to help Sangsang to temporarily suppress the cold aura in her body.


    There were whispers in the temple. A benevolent aura spread throughout with the devout chanting of believers. Sangsang shut her eyes, palms together with a pious and serene expression, cultivating her own Buddha and reading her own scripture. She felt the benevolent aura around her, and her pale face gradually returned to normal.


    The high monk from the White Tower Temple ended his preaching, and believers ended their chanting. The hundreds of people on futons inside the temple chanted the name of Buddha, but did not leave. The high monk began to lead the believers into prayer.


    The content of the prayer wasplicated. But if one listened carefully, there were only two things. The first was to pray for Buddha to appear and help the countries in the Central ins to chase away the blood-thirsty Deste Man¡¯s Tribe from the Wilderness. The second was to pray for Buddha to appear and quickly find the Daughter of Yama to trap her, so that she would not appear ever again.


    After the prayer, Ning Que entered the temple and helped Sangsang up. The terrifying prayers and evil curses could be heard from the temple and all the streets in Chaoyang City. Ning Que had long grown used to it, which was why he was calm. However, he could not help feeling upset because Sangsang was the one being cursed.


    Ning Que suddenly heard the chiming of bells behind him on the temple eaves, as he brought Sangsang out of the White Tower Temple. The bells chimed without stopping andsted a long time, sounding extremely solemn.


    ¡°Which bigwig hase?¡±


    Ning Que looked toward the depths of the White Tower Temple. He thought to himself that the person who could make the temple sound so many bells mustn¡¯t be an ordinary person. It would have to be a powerhouse from the West-Hill Divine Pce, if it wasn¡¯t someone from the Xuankong Temple.


    There could only be one reason for the appearance of a high monk from the Xuankong Temple, or a powerhouse from the West-Hill Divine Pce. He frowned slightly and grew warier.


    If Ning Que had known the true meaning behind those bells, he would definitely be even more vignt. If he had heard the voice behind the chiming of those bells, he would definitely get Sangsang out of Chaoyang city immediately.


    Deep inside the Buddhist temple, the chiming tapered off. In an inconspicuous corner of the temple, the White Tower Temple¡¯s abbot and a few esteemed Elders knelt respectfully as a wizened old voice rang within the hall.


    ¡°Man below clouds.¡±


    As winter ended, many countries like the Great River Kingdom and the South Jin Kingdom grew verdant in spring. At the Lanke Temple on Tile Mountain, which was in the midst of being repaired, wild flowers bloomed.


    However, there were many more ces waiting for the arrival of spring. For example, the capital of the Yuelun Kingdom would have already entered spring in the previous years. However, because of the clouds, temperatures were still low, and they were still experiencing thest part of winter. Further out in the northeastern regions, deep in the Wilderness, the Deste Man¡¯s tribe were hurt by the vicious cold and betrayal.


    The Wilderness which was embroiled in wars and bloodshed for the past year entered yet another war after a few days of peace. Several lives were taken by the cold once more.


    Duringte autumn, the Deste Man¡¯s tribe came to an agreement and allied with the Left King¡¯s Pce where both parties swore on the names of their ancestors. The senior statesman of the Deste Man¡¯s tribe rxed slightly. And just as they were preparing to attack the Central ins together with the Left King¡¯s Pcee spring, they were betrayed by them. The Left King¡¯s Pce had gone against their ancestors, something unexpected by the Deste Men.


    In the middle of winter, the Left King¡¯s Pce brazenly tore up the alliance agreement that had not even dried. They joined hands with the West-Hill Divine Pce and epted arge amount of grain from the Central ins. They then brought the allied troops of the Central ins to ambush the secondrgest settlement of the Deste Man¡¯s tribe in the bitter cold, about 800 miles from the north.


    Although the Deste Men were courageous and strong, where every adult was born a warrior, their numbers were simply too small. After an entire year of war, their winter grain storage had been drastically reduced. It meant that they were fighting with empty stomachs. In the face of the ambush of the Left King¡¯s Pce cavalry and the allied troops of the West-Hill Divine Pce, no matter how brave they were, they could onlyst for three days. It was the first time so many cultivation powerhouses entered the battleground, and their methods were vicious. The Deste Man¡¯s tribe was forced to leave, leaving behind the bodies of thousands of warriors.


    The allied troops of the Left King¡¯s Pce and the West-Hill Divine Pce did not stop just because of that. They knew how strong the Deste Men were, and how determined they were in battle. Even though they had sessfully caused severe damage to the Deste Man¡¯s tribe in this ambush, if they did not destroy thempletely, the tribe might recover its strength and grow again in the future.


    Under the fierce demands, or perhaps one could say cold threats, of the military adviser wearing a silver mask, the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army followed the Left King¡¯s Pce cavalry up north.


    Several generals from the Yan Kingdom and the South Jin Kingdom were shocked to find that the West-Hill Divine Pce seemed to have long discovered the identity of the military adviser and followed his strategies, just like the useless Chanyu of the Left King¡¯s Pce.


    This bitter winter pursuit was too cruel for both sides. Itsted for five days and the snowy Wilderness ground was littered with the bodies of warriors from the Central ins, the barbarians and the Deste Men. The bodies were frozen to a degree that not even vultures were willing to take the pains to eat them. It was in death, when these men couldy side by side peacefully.


    On the fifth night of the cruel battle, Tang, the World Wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, finally escaped the eyes of the dozens of Tactical Array Masters that the West-Hill Divine Pce ced outside the military camp. Tang sessfully infiltrated the tent.


    Tang did not see the panic-stricken generals from various countries, nor did he see officials screaming in fear. What he saw, were dozens of cultivation powerhouses from various countries who were long prepared. And behind them, sat the military adviser behind a desk.


    The military adviser wore a silver mask and there were two bowls of clear wine on the desk. His expression was serene and natural, as if he was someone who had been waiting for his guest for a long time, but was not anxious.


    Tang knew who the military adviser was. He looked at the powerhouses inside the tent and said, ¡°It seems like you are in charge of the Left King¡¯s Pce. No wonder the barbarians dared to betray their ancestors. However, It seems like no matter what happened to you, you are still a useless coward. That is why you can never match up to Ning Que.¡±


    Long Qing did not reply. He pointed at the bowls of wine on the table and said, ¡°I didn¡¯t drink again after leaving Chang¡¯an. It wasn¡¯t because I was worried that it could hinder my ns, but because I couldn¡¯t find anything worth drinking in celebration. At least, that was so until I discovered that you mighte to kill me.¡±


    Tang asked, ¡°Is being killed by me something worth celebrating?¡±


    Long Qing shook his head and replied serenely, ¡°I had already guessed that you would try to kill me like you did with Xia Hou. Since you are still as stupid, I won¡¯t be as idiotic as Xiao Hou to take the lives of others. Then, you would definitely be killed by me. The Wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and the strongest Deste Man being killed by me is indeed a matter worth celebrating.¡±


    ¡°After your death, I will get them to prop your head on a spear and parade it around the battlegrounds. This might not shake the Deste Men¡¯s desire to battle, but it would affect them. They would not attempt to flee up north anymore. Then, this battle would be theirst.¡±


    He looked at Tang and smiled. Then, he continued, ¡°After your death, the Devil¡¯s Doctrine would be no more. The Deste Men would be no more. If I were you, I would not allow myself to enter dangerous waters no matter what. But I still have to thank you for allowing me to be the person who ended the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and the Deste Men. In the history books of the future, I would be better known than Ke Haoran who broke into the Devil¡¯s Doctrine with a single sword of the Tang Empire¡¯s cavalry from a thousand years ago.¡±


    Tang looked at Long Qing who was behind the desk. He said, ¡°I admit that yourmanding abilities on the battlefield were strong. I also admit that you have moreplex ideas than I do. However, your level is still too low, that is why there are many things that you¡¯ll never be able to understand. Don¡¯t even mention the Tang cavalry from a thousand years ago or Mr. Ke. You can¡¯t even bepared with Xia Hou.¡±


    Long Qing¡¯s eyes brightened and he said, ¡°Please exin.¡±


    Tang slowly raised his right hand and clenched it into a fist. The leather that covered his iron fists creaked. He said, ¡°If it is an assassination, then you¡¯d have to kill me. If you can¡¯t, then it can only be called an ambush. There had been many ambushes over the years, and those that can be recorded in history are all a joke.¡±


    Long Qing¡¯s eyes grew even brighter. He said, ¡°I know that you are powerful. That¡¯s why I have prepared for a long time. I can¡¯t think of any reason why I can¡¯t kill you with thebat capabilities I have on my side right now.¡±


    That night, a snowstorm was raging. The tent was torn into countless shreds, and the howling of the wind sounded like thunder. Bright shes of light from the sword struck the sky like lightning. ck peach blossoms bloomed and disappeared.


    The leather on Tang¡¯s iron fist fell apart. Several wounds caused by flying swords appeared on his iron-like body. He was covered in blood and was injured beyond normal people¡¯s imagination. However, he eventually broke out of the camp that was ten-mile across and escaped into the snowstorm.


    In this battle, two hundred elite cavalry soldiers from the Left King¡¯s Pce died. Eleven cultivators at the peak of the Seethrough Realm from the Central ins countries were torn into bloody shreds. Two priests from the Left King¡¯s Pce were turned into a bloody mince. A Haotian Taoism Knowing destiny State powerhouse, who had lived in seclusion in a Taoist Temple for many years, had a bloody hole the size of a bowl blown through his chest. He died without peace.


    Long Qing¡¯s peach blossoms were shattered into bits by a simple iron fist. He flew into the air and vomited blood. His silver mask and the ck divine robes he wore were dyed red.


    Before the battle, Long Qing did not understand how Tang could be so confident in surviving, with thebat conditions he faced. After the battle, he dragged his weak and injured body back to the nning board and thought for a long time. He still did not understand why he could not kill Tang.


    As Tang said, even though Long Qing¡¯s state was at the peak of the Knowing Destiny State, his ns were good and his predictions urate, he could not match up to the Tang cavalry from a thousand years ago, nor Xia Hou. He could not even have the right bepared against Mr. Ke.


    Because of his low levels, he did not understand people like Tang. Once Tang fell into a situation which made him crazy, he would make his enemies feel crazy as well. Sometimes, there was no reason to speak at all.


    After this battle, the cultivators in the allied troops were mostly injured or dead and their drive was blunted. They had to stop their pursuit of the Deste Man¡¯s tribe and returned south. The Central ins countries and the Left King¡¯s Pce began to grow anxious. The Deste Man¡¯s tribe had suffered heavy losses this time. There were many women and children who were killed. However, some still lived. And ording to the character of the Deste Men, once they regained their strength, they would seek revenge from the allied troops of the Left King¡¯s Pce and the Central ins.


    No matter how they looked at it, the person who benefited the most from this solemn winter battle was Long Qing.


    Through the pre-war agreement with the West-Hill Divine Pce, the Left King¡¯s Pce gained many benefits and even obtained several important resources from the Yan Kingdom. Their strength grew tremendously and Long Qing¡¯s control over the Left King¡¯s Pce strengthened as well.


    Most importantly, through interactions with the West-Hill Divine Pce, Long Qing sensed that the Divine Hall did not care about his betrayal at all. The Hierarch Lord even sent him important information discreetly.


    Long Qing had killed the Halfman Taoist at Zhishou Abbey and took his powers. He had betrayed Haotian Taoism. Long Qing came from the West-Hill Divine Pce and knew what terrifying powers the sect possessed. That was why his greatest fear was that the Divine Hall would pursue and kill him. Now that this fear had finally been eliminated, his spirits received a boost.


    However, as old fears gradually faded away, new fears were born. In that assassination attempt during the snowstorm, Tang¡¯s image had left an impression on Long Qing, growing an irrepressible fear of him. The onlyfort he could indulge in was that of all those who survived that night, Tang was the most seriously injured. Logically speaking, he would definitely die. And even if he lived, he would have to recuperate for the time being and was not a threat to Long Qing.


    The Deste Men would definitely seek revenge. In preparation for the true war, the Central ins countries began to prepare supplies and gathered troops. The royal cavalry of the South Jin Kingdom, which had not participated in the war in these years, and the Papal Cavalrymen of the Divine Hall were all preparing to enter the Wilderness. Even the two border troops of the Tang Empire began to prepare for war.


    But even so, the world¡¯s attention on the Yuelun Kingdom did not weaken but grew even more so. This was especially so for the cultivators who stayed there and did not even nce at the Wilderness.


    The war between the Central ins allied troops and the Deste Men determined the oue between civilizations. The affairs in the Yuelun Kingdom decided the survival of the entire world. It was obvious which one was more important.


    Several days passed, but there hadn¡¯t been any trace of the ck horse carriage. The ascetic monks that the Xuankong Temple sent to the northeastern Wilderness gradually moved towards the Yuelun Kingdom. In a Buddhist temple more than 100 miles north of Chaoyang City, the Xuankong Temple Hall of Respect¡¯s chief monk, Master Qi Mei was listening to the voice quietly in front of Buddha.


    ¡°Man below clouds.¡±


    The undispersed clouds above Chaoyang City had long attracted the attention of many practitioners. Many Buddhist and Taoist powerhouses entered the city quietly. Qi Mei heard the message of the Chief Preaching Monk and hesitated no longer. That night, he rushed to Chaoyang City and entered the White Tower Temple.


    The next morning, Luo Kedi, themander of the West-Hill Divine Pce divine guards, brought 18 divine guards with him to Chaoyang City. At the time, a cloud in the skies outside the city was moving to join the thick clouds looming above the city.


    The clouds above Chaoyang City grew thicker, and it was hard for sunlight to pass through. As such, it was rather gloomy, and it felt as if there were dark clouds pressing on the city. However, it was unknown when it would actually rain or snow.


    Inside the White Tower Temple.


    Qi Mei looked at the burly man and raised his hand in a Buddhist gesture. He bowed and said softly, ¡°Greetings, Commander Luo.¡±


    Luo Kedi silently looked at the seemingly ordinary young monk in front of him. His eyesnded on the monk¡¯s two-fingered left hand, resting beside his leg. He nodded slightly as a greeting.


    He was the most trusted subordinate of the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s Hierarch. Even though he had been tortured by the Great Divine Priest of Judgment¡ªYe Hongyu, for what happened in the past two years, he was still a very important bigwig in the Divine Hall. He had entered the Knowing Destiny State for many years, and he was very powerful. That was why he was unwilling to show too much respect to the high monk from the Unknown ce, Xuankong Temple and even acted aloof.


    Qi Mei¡¯s expression was serene and did not change. He had long seeded in his Buddhism cultivation and was not affected by things of the world. He said, ¡°I heard that the Divine Priest of Judgment left Peach Mountain a hundred days ago. I wonder where she is now.¡±


    Luo Kedi frowned and said, ¡°The Great Divine Priest has gone to the northeast.¡±


    Qi Mei sighed softly and replied, ¡°That¡¯s not good.¡±


    Luo Kedi said, ¡°If Ning Que and the Daughter of Yama are really in Chaoyang City, we can just find them and kill them. What¡¯s not good about that?¡±


    Qi Mei said, ¡°There are too few people from Haotian Taoism this time. I wonder if it¡¯s because the abbey dean is out traveling or other reasons. The way you have dealt with the appearance of the Daughter of Yama isn¡¯t right.¡±


    Luo Kedi frowned slightly and said softly, ¡°We don¡¯t need too many people to kill Ning Que... What¡¯s more, does master think that my power along with that of 18 divine guard is too weak?¡±


    Qi Mei said, ¡°In the battle at the Lanke Temple, not even Senior Brother Qi Nian and Mr. Ye could subdue Ning Que and the Daughter of Yama. Commander, sir, why do you think that we can hold him down?¡±


    Luo Kedi thought of what Mr. First and Second of the Academy had done at the Lanke Temple. He froze slightly and asked, ¡°Can Master Qi Niane?¡±


    Qi Mei said, ¡°Senior Brother Qi Nian was seriously injured while in the Lanke Temple and is still recuperating.¡±


    Luo Kedi replied, ¡°If this is so, what shall we do when the Academyes?¡±


    Qi Mei answered, ¡°If the people from the Academye, the Xuankong Temple will deal with them. Let¡¯s continue talking about Ning Que.¡±


    Luo Kedi said coldly, ¡°Even though not many from Haotian Taoism hade, there are many people in Chaoyang City. If this is a war, why do we have to save lives? The Hierarch sent me to ask, if the deaths of a thousand in Chaoyang City can kill the Daughter of Yama, would the Buddhism Sect still do it?¡±


    Qi Mei was silent for a long while. Then, he said, ¡°The world is our home. In order to stop this cmity, I don¡¯t think anyone would be unwilling to be a sacrifice. There is nothing we can do but to ask everyone to act.¡±

 Chapter 619 - Spoon, When Will the Spoon Be Seen

    <h4>Chapter 619: Spoon, When Will the Spoon Be Seen</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Luo Kedi recalled what the middle-aged monk had said: if the Academy sent people here ¨C the Xuankong Temple would have its own way to address it. Suddenly, he thought of a possibility and asked in surprise, ¡°Will the Chief Preaching Monk join in?¡±


    ¡°My teacher will not get involved,¡± Qi Mei said calmly.


    Although involvement of Xuankong Temple¡¯s Chief Preaching Monk would be enough to shock the entire cultivation world, Luo Kedi wouldn¡¯t be shocked by it. What he dreaded was its potential aftershock.


    In the Buddhist Sect and the Taoist Sect, Abbey Dean of Zhishou Abbey and Chief Preaching Monk of Xuankong Temple had almost be characters of myth. No one dared to challenge them, even in terms of speech.


    It is said that, over the years, only Headmaster had fought with them. Conclusions of those two fights were obvious. From then on, Abbey Dean no longer stayed at Zhishou Abbey ¨C he went far into the South Sea. Over the past decades, he had never returned to thisnd. Simrly, no one had heard of any fights involving Chief Preaching Monk.


    ording to the man who told Luo Kedi the story, after Headmaster defeated the two bigwigs, they hade to an agreement. No matter what happened in this world, the three of them had to stand by.


    The story was known only by a few. Besides core disciples of the three bigwigs, only the hierarch of West-Hill Divine Pce and Sword Sage Liu Bai had vaguely heard of it.


    Despite being a favored confidant of West-Hill¡¯s hierarch, Luo Kedi had no right to know the story. However, two years ago, he had knelt before Hierarch Lord¡¯s pce for a whole night with the desire to marry Ye Hongyu and the fear of offending Ye Su or infuriating Zhishou Abbey. At the time, Hierarch Lord mentioned the story, whether intentionally or not.


    Hierarch Lord of West-Hill Divine Pce was the leader of a Taoist Sect in the secr world. His behavior, including every word that he spoke, had profound meaning ¨C it was impossible for it to be a simple slip of tongue. ording to Luo Kedi¡¯s analysis, Hierarch Lord might have spoken to put himself at ease, to improve the position of West-Hill Divine Pce in the Taoist Sect and even topete head-to-head with Zhishou Abbey.


    Luo Kedi was worried that, if Hierarch Lord were to make the first move, it would be seen as breaking the agreement and provoke the headmaster. If Headmaster became involved personally, all the preparations made by the two sects would be a joke.


    Now, having heard Qi Mei¡¯s denial, he felt slightly relieved. Worried that the other person would see something wrong with him, Luo Kedi turned away from the temple. He left White Tower Temple with eighteen divine guards following him and headed to the imperial pce of Yuelun Kingdom.


    As Qi Mei looked at Luo Kedi¡¯s burly figure disappearing among the halls, he frowned slightly.


    Despite only having met for a few minutes, he learned that West-Hill Divine Guardmander¡¯s state was probably at the middle of Knowing Destiny State. In addition, it was very stable and powerful ¨C probably above Ning Que¡¯s level. West-Hill Divine Pce sent him here. The Divine Priest of Judgment also went downhill. Generally speaking, sending these people should be enough attention, but he still felt something wrong.


    A few days ago, a message came from the remote eastern wilderness. Tang ¨C Wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine ¨C was badly injured and fled after killing many powerhouses in the central ins. West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s most tragic loss in the battle was the death of a powerhouse at the Knowing Destiny State, who had lived in seclusion in the Kingdom of Song for many years.


    Powerhouses at the Knowing Destiny State were rare in the cultivation world. However, West-Hill Divine Pce could hide one in Song Kingdom¡¯s Taoist temple. Knowing that, how powerful would Haotian Taoism be if its were topletely surface?


    Furthermore, such an honorable Knowing Destiny State powerhouse risked ambushing Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s Wayfarer in cooperation with allied forces. West-Hill Divine Pce put so much effort into the Wilderness, while, facing the great world-destroying cmity, it appearedparatively stingy, even though it poured no small effort into Yuelun Kingdom. It made it easy to arouse suspicion.


    ¡°Was it so painful being beaten by Headmaster that you still don¡¯t dare face the Academy? In your eyes, if the Daughter of Yama were a bowl of porridge, we of the Xuankong Temple would be the spoon. You do not want to do it yourself, but let the spoon take the porridge from the bowl... How smart you are, Abbey Dean.¡±


    As he strolled out of the temple, Qi Mei looked up at the thick ck clouds in the sky and thought to himself.


    With thebined power of Xuankong Temple and West-Hill Divine Pce, the masses in every street and other allies, Ning Que ¨C no matter how strong he was ¨C could do nothing other than die. However...


    Only the death of Yama¡¯s daughter could save the world. No matter how outrageous people of the Academy might be, they definitely could not use it as an excuse to take revenge against the two Sects. However, the story in the autumn rain at Lanke Temple had long proved that the death of Ning Que was prerequisite to that of Yama¡¯s daughter.


    If a close disciple of Headmaster were to be killed, whether it made sense or not and regardless of the situation at that time, people from the second floor of the Academy would definitely create an excuse to fly into a rage.


    Qi Mei believed that after this incident, the cultivation world would definitely be turbulent. The person who killed Ning Que would be killed in the end, even if he were to flee to the South Sea like Abbey Dean.


    Listening to the chantinging from the front of the temple while looking at the dark clouds overhead, he remained silent for a long time. Gradually, his expression turned from worry and anxiety to determination and calmness. He murmured, ¡°If it is not me to enter theherworld, who will it be?¡±


    As winter gave way to spring, everything was as usual: the thick clouds still suspended motionlessly in the sky above Chaoyang City, the smell of incense in the streets was still as strong, the businesses of the carriage dealers were still thriving, chanting could still be heard from the back gardens of officials and rich merchants, where news of the sudden death of a daughter would asionally originate.


    Ning Que looked calm but was actually very anxious. He had been under great pressure. The thick clouds in the sky seemed to be pressing down on him, making his breathing somewhat difficult. Though he did not know what the increasingly thicker and darker clouds symbolized, he had vaguely guessed that it was rted to Sangsang.


    The uing chase after exposure of their whereabouts worried him a lot. It was fine if they were only chased by powerhouses from the two Sects, but what made him wary was the possibility of ordinary beings joining in.


    It referred not to the arrest warrant or the manhunt of the army, but to the ordinary people ¨C the tens of thousands of individuals in the world.


    There had always been an unwritten rule in the cultivation world:bat among cultivators should avoid affecting life in the secr world as much as possible and even more so ¨C involving the ordinary people. However, Sangsang¡¯s life was rted to the danger of world destruction. Ning Que believed that the two Sects would not care about rules.


    What was terrible was not to be the enemy of the world, but to be the enemy of everyone in the world. Wherever you were and whatever you were doing, you would face endless attacks. That was the most terrifying thing.


    You would be hit by a spoon at all times, endlessly. The spoon would not break and wherever you hid, it would find you and strike your head.


    You would be tortured to death even if you did not die from those strikes. The only way you could find sce would be to kill whomever held the spoon. However, if everyone in the world were to have a spoon in hand...


    Could you kill everyone in the world?

 Chapter 620 - My Sangsang Could Not Be So Cute

    <h4>Chapter 620: My Sangsang Could Not Be So Cute</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    ¡°I will go when I want to ¨C even if there are thousands and millions of people before me.¡±


    Ning Que said to himself.


    This was a sentence reported by the Second Brother ¨C what the Youngest Uncle had once said. When he heard it at the time, he could not help feeling emotional and feverish. But when he seemed to be faced with the same condition, he realized how difficult it was.


    Sangsang was bathing her feet in hot water when she heard the sentence. She was slightly taken aback. ¡°It is so heroic,¡± she said.


    Sitting on a stool in front of the basin, Ning Que lowered himself to rub her feet. He said with a smile, ¡°When foreign enemies invade and evil is furious, you are a hero if you take up a sword to rush against thousands of people ¨C no matter how many you kill. Only a person who is a hero can be heroic. But we are viins ¨C we are the legendary devil waving a sword at thousands of people. It is indiscriminate ughter of countless innocent victims. It is cruel and evil ¨C nothing to do with heroes.¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s little feet were still white, like a pure lotus in the wooden basin. Looking at Ning Que who kept rubbing her feet, she asked, ¡°Does it matter whether we are heroes or not?¡±


    Ning Que took the towel from his shoulder, raised her feet from the basin and dried them. Then he rubbed her feet to warm them up and helped her put on thick cotton socks. He said, ¡°You know, I don¡¯t mind killing ¨C as long as we can survive. But it would be better if I can be cooler when I kill.¡±


    After she tightened the tie of her socks, Sangsang turned around and climbed onto the bed. She lifted the quilt and climbed in, with only her little face outside. ¡°What is cool?¡± she asked, with her eyes wide open.


    Ning Que took off his shoes and put his feet into the water since it was still warm. ¡°Cool is being handsome without facial expression.¡± he answered casually.


    ¡°How can one be handsome when he has no facial expression?¡± Sangsang was confused.


    ¡°Have you seen Second Brother¡¯s annoying face?¡± Ning Que asked.


    Sangsang seemed to realize something. She said, ¡°Mr. Second really is handsome... but I still do not know why it is called ¡®cool¡¯. If you¡¯re busy killing, why would you pay attention to being handsome?¡±


    ¡°You have not heard of words like ¡®grim¡¯, ¡®overbearing¡¯ and ¡®arrogant¡¯, so you do not know its meaning. Besides killing, even in situations such as taking a shower or going to the toilet, you can be extremely handsome if you want.¡±


    Ning Que said with a smile. Then he got up and went outside to pour out the water. When he got back into the room, something suddenly crossed his mind. He groped around in the luggage for quite a long while before he took out a wooden box. There were two pairs of sses partially made of ink crystal.


    He took a pair out and wore it. Then he walked over to the bed and looked at Sangsang without any expression on his face ¨C just like the Second Brother. ¡°Am I cool?¡± he asked.


    Looking at Ning Que, Sangsang could not helpughing. Then, something urred to her. She looked at her hair in front of her eyes with knitted brows. Last autumn, Ning Que had cut her hair short. Though it looked refreshing, after being cut short, it was hard to tie down. She tried to tie it with a hairpin several times but failed to prevent hair from waving in front of her eyes.


    She pouted her small mouth and blew upwards, trying to part the hair in front of her eyes. Suddenly, she asked thoughtlessly, ¡°Is the thing on your face made by Mr. Six?¡±


    She pouted, perhaps trying to blow on her hair or to express a kind of dissatisfaction, grievance or just ying coy. Ning Que was slightly taken aback. He took off his ink crystal sses and asked, ¡°How would I still remember?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°You always hide the sses in your luggage. How could you forget?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°When we were ready to leave Lanke Temple, you took the sses out of the luggage and gave them to her.¡±


    Sangsang pulled the quilt higher to cover her chin that was bing increasingly slim due to her illness, so as to make herself looked less acerbic. But she deliberately tried to look as if she had been wronged and said, ¡°You ced the sses in the luggage because you thought that we might meet Miss Shanshan. You prepared them for when you meet her again.¡±


    Sangsang was asionally jealous and angry in recent days. ording to his previous disposition, Ning Que could not endure it for long. But now he did nothing but smile, no matter how angry Sangsang pretended to be.


    Because he thought that it was very cute.


    Sangsang looked very fresh and endearing with short hair. Her two white front teeth looked simple and cute, and she was charming and adorable when she pretended to be angry. She was lovely when she frowned in her sleep and when she held two long chopsticks when eating. She was always so lovely whether she was doing something or not.


    Ning Que was very happy and reached out his hand to rub her hair into a mess. He asked, ¡°My Sangsang could not possibly be so lovely. Tell me now, which siren from which cave are you?¡±


    ¡°I am the Daughter of Yama, so I am indeed a siren.¡±


    Sangsang looked at him and said seriously, her hands grabbing the edge of the quilt and her eyes wide open. However, she could not help giggling atst, appearing extremely cute.


    An awful crow¡¯s cry came from outside the window.


    Ning Que patted her cool little face and said softly, ¡°I¡¯ll go out to take a look. You can sleep first.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Be careful.¡±


    Ning Que nodded, opened the door and went out into the courtyard. As dusk fell, the setting sun slowly sank in the west. Red light shone between Chaoyang City and thick clouds in the sky, paintng the world bright red.


    He looked up at the thick clouds above his head, looking like they were made of mes, shook his head and left.


    Sangsang put on a fur coat and climbed out of the quilt. She walked over to the window and prepared to cover the lighting through it, when she suddenly caught sight of the ming clouds. The little hand pulling on the curtain stopped.


    Ning Que did not know what the clouds represented, but he knew that the phenomenon was rted to Sangsang. Sangsang did not know what the clouds meant either, but she knew that they might mean her leaving, or even death.


    Just like the previous joke ¨C Sangsang could not be so cute.


    Sangsang just wanted to show her loveliest side in the days before her death. She hoped that she could leave behind some beautiful memories rather than sad ones for Ning Que.


    The whole world was an enemy.


    Ning Que was very clear that if they hid in Chang¡¯an, they would have long been found and killed by the court of the Tang Empire. Fortunately, they had hid in Chaoyang City.


    Yuelun Kingdom¡¯s government was extremely inefficient. Themon people believed in Buddhism sincerely, and though they dreaded and hated the Daughter of Yama, no one could ovee theirzy nature and help their government, and the Buddhist Sect, to search everywhere.


    This was why they could manage to hide in the city for an entire winter. However, since a warning sign had emerged, perhaps now was really the time for them to leave.


    Though Ning Que desired to confirm whether Big ck Horse and the carriage were safe, he did not go out of the city.


    He went directly to a garden behind the pce. Walking along the wall of the White Tower Temple, he went to the side door of the pce. Hiding in the dimness of night, he observed and listened in silence for a long time, making the final supplement to his n.


    Then he walked around in the streets of Chaoyang, holding the shabby Big ck Umbre, wrapped tightly by a piece of old cloth. In this way, he could sense the orientation of the powerhouses¡¯ auras.

 Chapter 621 - The Strong Intent to Kill

    <h4>Chapter 621: The Strong Intent to Kill</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Night fell and it was time for dinner. The citizens of Yuelun Kingdom who used to squat by the streets to eat and chat with their neighbors have all sought refuge in their homes. Perhaps they were afraid of the cloud above them or it could be due to the rumors surrounding the Daughter of Yama. As such, the streets were empty and cheerless.


    There were only government officials patrolling the area.


    The guards in Chaoyang City were much more stringent than before, but Ning Que believed that it would not be too big of a problem to sneak in with Sangsang. However, previously, when he had spread out his sense of perception while holding the Big ck Umbre, he discovered that the number of powerhouses in the city had increased. What made him even warier was that the imperial court of the Yuelun Kingdom had obviously increased their search within the city. There were guards everywhere on the streets. Could it be that the Buddhism and Taoism sects have both ascertained that they were in the city?


    It seemed like they really had to leave. But where should they go?


    If Ning Que was alone, he would have left Chaoyang City long ago. He believed that it didn¡¯t matter if he returned to the Academy or wandered around, both sects would not be able to find him. But he now had Sangsang with him, who had yet to fully recover from her illness and he dared not act rashly.


    They had stayed in Chaoyang City for hundreds of days but had not seen any signs nor heard of Eldest Brother. Eldest Brother did not seem to have visited the area. As such, Ning Que guessed that the Taoism and Buddhism sects might have something to do with it. Furthermore, Eldest Brother could not search thoroughly as well, because the most important part about traveling discreetly was to cut off all contact with the world.


    Worried about Sangsang who was in the courtyard alone, Ning Que quickly ended his investigation. He added on to the map he had drawn in his mind as he walked towards the courtyard.


    Several dozens of feet away from the courtyard was a tiny stream with green trees growing by it. He walked up to one of the trees and stood beneath it, looking in the direction of the courtyard. After making sure that Sangsang was fine, he sat down by the tree and lowered his head wearily.


    They had spent an autumn in the Lanke Temple and the Wilderness beforeing to Chaoyang City. He had spent hundreds of days in extreme tension and worry. Even though his body had received sufficient rest, his mind did not have the opportunity to rx for even a second.


    He had struggled on the fine line between life and death since he left Chang¡¯an as a child. Whether it was in the Min Mountain or the Wilderness, his mind had always been tensed up. However, even then, he had the opportunity to rx through drinking or singing by the bonfire. Now, there was only Sangsang and him against the world and the pressure of it. He could not find any way to vent at all.


    Ning Que thought that Sangsang had sensed his odd emotional state, which was why she tried her best to make him rx through acting cute, making casual conversation and bickering. He yed along fully as well, but it did not help improve his mental state. The tension of his mind was so strong that it could break at any moment.


    He picked up a rock by the stream and held it tightly. Then, he pressed down slowly and only released the tight hold slowly after some time. The rock in his palm had been crushed into several bits of gravel.


    Then, he stood up and punched the tree heavily. He wanted to learn how to relieve the heavy pressure like how it was written in a certain passage he remembered so that he could face the sick Sangsang with his calmest expression and gentlest attitude when he returned to the little courtyard.


    There would always be a gap between reality and expectations.


    Ning Que looked at the tree in front of him. He looked at his fist that had prated the strong trunk of the tree silently. His eyebrows slightly flicked up and his lips parted faintly. One would not be able to judge whether he was crying orughing.


    He had regained hisposure by the time he returned to the small courtyard. He slid into the bed covers in the dark and hugged Sangsang¡¯s cool body, pressing his face into her neck. He breathed in deeply and said, ¡°Quick, go to sleep.¡±


    Sangsang felt a dampness behind her neck and turned around to look into his eyes. She did not see anything else other than calmness and warmth and said softly, ¡°Did you cry?¡±


    Ning Que smiled slightly and said, ¡°Have you ever seen me cry after so many years?¡±


    Sangsang buried her head in his chest and said, ¡°Did I remind you of certain things when I mentioned Ms. Shanshan earlier? Did that make you feel regretful and sad?¡±


    This was something the two did often these days. However, Ning Que was not in the mood, so he remained silent and hugged Sangsang and caressed her back, transmitting warmth from his palm to her.


    Sangsang suddenly said after a long silence, ¡°I¡¯m very stupid, aren¡¯t I?¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°How are you stupid?¡±


    Sangsang looked up at him and said, ¡°I¡¯m not cute but I try to pretend to be so to make you happy. But I¡¯m bad at it and sometimes, making it look as if I was throwing a tantrum.¡±


    Ning Que looked at her and said, ¡°But you¡¯re cute.¡±


    Sangsang asked softly, ¡°How am I cute then?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°You¡¯re the only girl I can love, that¡¯s why you¡¯re loveable.¡±


    Sangsang smiled and said, ¡°That¡¯s so mushy and gross.¡±


    Ning Que smiled as well and he said, ¡°Pipi taught me this.¡±


    Sangsang was still smiling, but tears had spilled down on her cheeks without her knowing.


    Ning Que reached out to flick the tears from her face and said, ¡°I haven¡¯t seen you cry much since you were five.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I cried once a few years back. It was that night when I left Old Brush Pen Shop.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Don¡¯t cry anymore in the future.¡±


    Sangsang lowered her head and murmured in agreement.


    Ning Que¡¯s lipsnded on her smooth forehead and then trailed downwards to her lips.


    Sangsang opened her eyes slightly and her lips parted.


    Ning Que hugged her tightly and kissed her with quiet determination as if he was going to crush her slender body into his own. Only if he did that, would she not be seen by others and be taken away.


    Sangsang was 16 years old, and while she was thin and weak, she was an alluring young woman. Ning Que reached into her shirt and caressed her.


    Sangsang said softly, ¡°Let¡¯s have a baby.¡±


    ¡°When you get better,¡± said Ning Que as he looked into her seemingly transparent eyes.


    ¡°What if I never get better?¡±


    ¡°We are going to leave Chaoyang City in two days. Let¡¯s talk about this once we find a safe ce.¡±


    ¡°But where will we truly be safe? The Academy?¡±


    ¡°If we cannot return to the Academy, then the safest ce would be where there isn¡¯t anyone.¡±


    The cloud in the sky grewrger and thicker.


    The shadow cast by the cloud swallowed more than half of Chaoyang City. When the sun rose, an extremely short period of light would fall upon the city. Then, as the sun rose above the cloud, the city descended into gloominess once more.


    Sincest night, thousands of Yuelun Kingdom soldiers led by Ascetic Monks from the Buddhism Sect searched the streets and alleys of the city currently enshrouded by the cloud. The search was thorough as no one dared to be careless about it. They knocked on every door and searched water vats and grain cers. They would only stick a piece of red paper on the door to signal that the house was clear after the Vige Head and three neighbors confirm that there were no outsiders staying in the house.


    While arge area of Chaoyang City was covered by the cloud, the suspects were slowly eliminated as each house was searched. They would eventually find the two who were hidden under the cloud.


    The time came earlier than how it was expected by everyone. Not even Master Qi Mei of the Xuankong Temple, Luo Kedi, or his 18 West-Hill Divine Guards had expected it.


    An Ascetic Monk from the Xuankong Temple led dozens of soldiers on a search, following a stream. Suddenly, a ck crow appeared on a withered tree in front of him.


    The Ascetic Monk frowned at the crow. He waved his hand lightly to shoo it away. But the ck crow did not seem afraid of humans. Instead, it rushed at the monk and squawked shrilly.


    After several caws, the ck crow flew around the Ascetic Monk¡¯s head thrice and towards the stream. Itnded on another tree after flying hundred feet ahead and cawed twice.


    Cultivators, in general, were believers of Haotian. While the disciples of the Buddhism Sect believed in Buddha, they also deeply believed in fate. When he saw the odd behavior of the ck crow, the Ascetic Monk expression turned grave. He indicated for the dozens of soldiers to continue their search and then walked alone towards the ck crow which was north of the stream.


    After several miles, the monk had crossed the distance of about five or six streets. The Ascetic Monk watched as the ck crow flew into a little courtyard hundreds feet away by the stream. The monk¡¯s expression changed.


    Following that, the ascetic monk¡¯s gazended on a green tree. He saw a clear hole made by a fist on the trunk of the tree and his pupils shrank, his demeanor changed drastically.


    He suddenly thought, that if the legendary twosome were really in the courtyard, then they might sense him should his meditative heart be thrown into chaos from his fear. With that thought, heposed his meditative heart and calmed down. He forced everything that he had seen and spected out of his mind.


    The Ascetic Monk ced his palms together. He was expressionless and bore no thoughts, looking like a murky unpainted y idol. Then, he walked away from the stream slowly, crossed through a narrow alley and walked to a certain location instinctually.


    He walked through several streets in such a state. Not even the calls of his fellow disciples, nor the strange nces that the soldiers gave him could stop him as he continued his slow walk to the White Tower Temple.


    The bells of the White Tower Temple roused the Ascetic Monk into a state of consciousness. He looked at his fellow disciples who gathered around him, and a lost expression appeared in his eyes. Then, he suddenly awakened and looked extremely frightened. With a light puff, he vomited blood and said weakly, ¡°I found them.¡±


    Luo Kedi looked at the small courtyard in the distance. His mountainous body did not tremble the slightest and his face, which looked as if it was carved with granite, was expressionless. The burning fire in his eyes that signaled his intent to battle seemed to burn everything he looked at into a smoldering pile of ash.


    18 West-Hill Divine Guards dressed in red cloaks stood on both sides of him respectfully. They carried with them broad Divine des which looked heavy.


    Master Qi Mei stood beside Luo Kedi, looking at the courtyard quietly. After a long moment of silence, he said, ¡°Who would have thought that the Daughter of Yama would hide in Chaoyang City?¡±


    The two powerhouses stood two streets away from the courtyard. They maintained this distance because their intent to kill was so strong that not even their states could obscure it.

 Chapter 622

    <h4>Chapter 622: Fallen Mountain and Chaotic Waterfall, Ruined Embankment and Overflowing River</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Luo Kedi asked without any expression, ¡°What¡¯s the point of us standing here in this manner? Are we waiting for Ning Que toe out or waiting for him to leave? If we can only watch him, why did I have toe all the way to Yuelun Kingdom to see him? If we are here for a fight, then why don¡¯t we attack? Why are we waiting here?¡±


    Master Qi Mei said calmly, ¡°Though Buddha is merciful, it has its moments of anger too. Judging from the situation, naturally, we are not here to see them leave, but to witness the death of the Daughter of Yama. As for the wait...The entire human realm has been waiting for more than a year. What¡¯s waiting a little while longer?¡±


    Luo Kedi asked, ¡°Who are we waiting for?¡±


    Qi Mei said, ¡°Waiting for Chief Preaching Monk to enter the city. Based on the distance, he should be almost here.¡±


    Luo Kedi¡¯s expression turned slightly cold. He thought, ¡®just yesterday you mentioned that Chief Preaching Monk would not attack, then why are you now saying that the chief monk is entering the city?¡¯ He could not help but say with his somewhat cold voice, ¡°It is impossible for Ning Que to leave Chaoyang City with us around.¡±


    Qi Mei raised his head and looked into Luo Kedi¡¯s eyes. He smiled faintly and asked, ¡°Have you realized that we have beenmunicating more with each other ¨C at the White Tower Temple ¨C ever since we found out that Ning Que was hiding in this small courtyard?¡±


    Luo Kedi raised his eyebrows and replied with a deep voice, ¡°So what?¡±


    Qi Mei sighed and said, ¡°This means we are feeling nervous.¡±


    Luo Kedi retorted, ¡°You¡¯re the chief monk of Xuankong Temple¡¯s Hall of Respect. I¡¯m themander of West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s divine guard. Be it strength or state ¨C we are superior to Ning Que. Moreover, Hierarch Lord and Chief Preaching Monk have picked me and you to ughter the Daughter of Yama. We both understand the logic behind this: even if he is one of Headmaster¡¯s core disciples, how could Ning Que ever escape alive?¡±


    ¡°The more you exin, the more it shows how nervous you are. I am willing to admit to it, because I don¡¯t think of it as embarrassing. Calcting based on time of the human realm, Ning Que entered Knowing Destiny State less than half a year ago. Logically, he can¡¯t beat us. But you should know: from how he defeated Prince Long Qing and entered the Second floor of the Academy, to the many incidents that happened after that ¨C you should be aware of how difficult it is to find any logic in this young man.¡±


    Master Qi Mei said casually, ¡°The key is ¨C though Daughter of Yama is gravely ill, frail and has yet to recover ¨C how certain are you that, at the veryst moment, she will not release that light which she had released back at Chang¡¯an Snow Lake?¡±


    Luo Kedi kept silent. He felt that he was somewhat annoyed, so he took a deep breath. This breath was extremely demanding, causing his originally t chest to rise up like a mountain.


    Just then, his expression changed drastically. The small courtyard remained quiet. He did not see any one, nor did he see any movement, but he could feel an extremely intense sense of danger!


    Luo Kedi gave a loud, sharp roar. He stomped his right foot with a thud, cracking the ground into a broken web. With the huge seismic wave, he flew backwards without a shred of hesitation.


    As he flew backwards, he once again roared ¨C just as loudly and sharply as before. This was not only to warn the people around him, but it was also because his chest had been filled with numerous gases when he took the deep breath. Had he not released these gases within the shortest time, he would not be able to act at his fastest speed, and this would mean that he might get badly injured if these gases were to be released while he was being hit by an unexpected attack!


    Just as Luo Kedi let out the second roar, in the distant small courtyard, an extremely round hole suddenly appeared in the wooden door. The hole was less than 3 fingers wide and there weren¡¯t even any flying splinters ¨C its silent appearance was oddly mysterious!


    A dark and sharp iron arrow rapidly flew across the hundreds of feet in front of Luo Kedi. Ning Que knew that Luo Kedi was going to take a deep breath, so he shot his arrow at that exact moment, preventing him from having any chance of dodging it.


    The dark iron arrow hit Luo Kedi¡¯s left shoulder!


    Though it was just an arrow, the impact it resulted in was like a gigantic hammer falling from the sky, crashing into a tall, magnificent mountain, creating a thunderous st!


    Suddenly, an extremely strong talisman appeared from the armor beneath Luo Kedi¡¯s coat. Incredibly thin golden threads on the surface of the armor twinkled as they tried to shield against this iron arrow¡¯s stab!


    His body was covered with a set of handmade Divine Talisman armor, jointly created by the Divine Talisman Master of West-Hill Divine Pce and workers from South Jin Kingdom. Even in the entire West-Hill Divine Pce, there were only 3 suits of armor of this rank and were only slightly weaker than the armor worn by Xia Hou in the past. If not for Hierarch Lord¡¯s favor, he would not be qualified to wear this armor.


    The reason why Luo Kedi looked down on Ning Que was because he believed that Ning Que¡¯s strongest weapon ¨C Primordial Thirteen Arrows ¨C were unable to threaten him at all.


    Yet, just before that tiny arrow hole mysteriously appeared in the small courtyard¡¯s door, he had sensed the dangerous atmosphere and knew ¨C he was wrong.


    Ning Que was only at the peak of Seethrough Realm during the winter when he was by theke. At that time, iron arrows in his hands could already throw Xia Hou into a miserable state. Later, he continuously shot his arrows at Long Qing, which resulted in thetter being heavily injured in front of the Red Lotus Temple. Now that he had already entered Knowing Destiny State, fighters like Qi Nian and Ye Su were cautious of his presence. Could Luo Kedipare?


    The iron arrow pierced deeply into the armor. The arrow¡¯s tail vibrated due to the rapid speed and the sharp arrowhead rotated continuously. A hole was formed in the Divine Talisman Armor, which was shimmering with golden light, as it continued to mince the protectiveyer of Qi covering Luo Kedi violently!


    Luo Kedi fell heavily on the ground, like a copsing mountain, causing thick clouds of dust to rise into the air.


    Arge and horrendous hole was created in his armor. Badly mutted bloody flesh could be seen inside the hole. It was to the extent that white bones became visible as fresh blood gushed out from the hole like a waterfall!


    As themander of West-Hill Divine Pce, he had been through countless battles over numerous years and had attained much experience. That was why he could sense a dangerous omen before Ning Que shot that arrow. As he fell like a copsing mountain, had forcefully expelled the gases in his body to prevent that frightening iron arrow from piercing his heart.


    Even so, this arrogant bigwig from West-Hill Divine Pce still could not prevent himself getting injured. If it wasn¡¯t for his martial strongth and if he had not been wearing Divine Talisman Armor granted by the Hierarch Lord, his left arm would¡¯ve been torn off when his left shoulder was hit ¨C he would not have been able to fight today.


    Luo Kediid on the ground. The fall of hisrge body caused the stones and mud beneath him to fly outwards. From a bird eye view, he looked like a copsed mountain. Fresh blood was gushing out from his left shoulder, like waterfalls and streams within a mountain range.


    He stared at the thick, dark cloud in the sky. His face turned extremely pale. His eyes revealed anger and a tremendous surge of fighting spirit. He mmed his right hand against the ground, while giving out a loud cry. He sprang himself up and dashed straight for the small courtyard.


    The strength of Primordial Thirteen Arrows was beyond his expectations. However, since it did not kill him, he believed that as long as he began moving, the person in that small courtyard would not be able to aim for his face and other weak points. As such, as long as he was able to ovee this distance of hundreds of feet and drew himself nearer to the small courtyard ¨C he would be able to kill that annoyance!


    Eighteen West-Hill Divine Guards held onto the hilts of their weapons, as they followed Luo Kedi, dashing towards the small courtyard. Under the dark clouds, one could only see the red coats fluttering in the wind. The scene was shockingly grand and magnificent, as though there were thousands of soldiers and horses attacking the enemy!


    Like a mountain range crashing into the little courtyard, Luo Kedi and his eighteen West-Hill Divine Guards following closely behind him. However, they did not experience the frightening barrage of iron arrows that they had expected.


    That was because someone within the field had reacted much faster than them, and his speed was quicker than theirs. As soon as Luo Kedi roared ¨C the instant the arrow hole appeared in the wooden door of the little courtyard, Master Qi Mei began to act.


    The straw sandals on his feet split into numerous particles of dust in an instant. A long shadow stretched out from his body and, in a few breaths, it reached in front of the small courtyard. The movement was overwhelmingly swift, like the fierce winds of the Wilderness!


    Even though Qi Mei could not confirm that the target of the first iron arrow was Luo Kedi, the moment he heard his roar, he did not dodge. Instead, at his fastest speed, he rushed towards the small courtyard.


    This was indeed the riskiest bet, but so long as he got nearer to the small courtyard ¨C so long as the distance was drawn closer ¨C it could cause the strongest Primordial Thirteen Arrows to lose the majority of their power. In order to kill the Daughter of Yama, Qi Mei had sacrificed himself and fell into the spectral world. Facing such great opportunity, why would he fear gambling?


    Qi Mei reached the entrance to the small courtyard. His naked feet stomped onto the rocky steps in front of the gate, causing the ground to crack. His body stopped and, without wasting any time, he whisked the long sleeves of his tunic,unching an attack towards the gate.


    In the eyes of amoner, the strongest skill of a cultivator was to control a sword so that one could attack from a distance. Yet most of the cultivators that had seriously cultivated themselves to higher states would return to their true selves. This was the same for the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom and the Ascetic Monks from Xuankong Temple.


    Qi Mei¡¯s sleeves seemed normal, but, in fact, endless Qi of Heaven and Earth was hidden in them. Once they were whisked, the power formed was as strong as crashing boulders. A loud cracking noise was heard. The wooden gate of the courtyard had been broken into numerous wooden pieces in a split second and they were shot straight into the courtyard.


    This attack from the tunic¡¯s sleeves was very powerful. Even if Ning Que was ready to shoot an arrow from the back of the courtyard, he could only dodge at that moment in face of the numerous flying wooden pieces. Yet in that short moment, Qi Mei could take the opportunity to draw himself closer to his opponent.


    Just then, a wall on the right wing of courtyard copsed! Several bricks flew like hail. The dust that had collected over the ages in the cracks of these bricks had instantly formed a dust cloud from the heavy impact!


    Ning Que¡¯s silhouette appeared from the dust cloud and among raining bricks. He tightly held his padaos in both hands as he struck towards the back of Qi Mei with the speed of light!


    At that moment, Qi Mei had just pulled back his sleeves. The courtyard gate had turned into multiple flying wooden pieces. However, not only did Qi Mei, who was already on the battlefield, not expect it ¨C even Luo Kedi and the eighteen West-Hill Divine Guards, who were rushing towards him like ferocious tigers, did not expect that Ning Que was not at the back of the courtyard. Instead, he had surprisingly appeared through the broken wall!


    The heavy podao cut the air at high speed and, due to their swiftness, sharp screeching sounds were heard as the des rubbed against the air. Yet these noises seemed drowned out by the movements of the des, making them seem quiet and lonely. In addition, the bodies of the podaos were covered by shadows of theirrge des. This caused one to feel that these weapons were not from this world but from theherworld.


    Sharp des of the podaosnded on the back of Qi Mei, creating a weird decaying sound! Qi Mei¡¯s back began to shiver misteriously and violently. The muscles on his back seemed to have gained lives of their own. Some parts began to rx, while others began to tighten. When thebined strength of these muscles was gathered together, it became a strongly-built embankment that could block off even heavy floods. They were created to mp down on or block off the podao that attacked them like waves of water!


    Ning Que could feel the weird strength that could be felt from the hilts, but he could not care less ¨C he let out a loud roar. The Great Spirit flowed out as the podao sliced through that weird strength, cutting monk from his neck to his waist!


    Psssst! Qi Mei¡¯s tunic was ripped apart. An extremely deep wound appeared from beneath the tunic as fresh blood flowed out from the frightening wound like water overflowing from an embankment!

 Chapter 623

    <h4>Chapter 623: The Flute Was yed With No Sound, Who¡¯s the One Under the Umbre</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The de slid down Master Qi Mei¡¯s back. At that moment, a light sound of de carving bone could be heard. One could imagine what kind of pain Qi Mei was suffering.


    However, there was no expression on his face ¨C he was extremely calm. It seemed that what Ning Que¡¯s podao was cutting was not his body, but tree bark on the banks of a stream. At the moment Ning Que¡¯s podao was about to loosen, he turned around, fanning blood out into the air. He stretched out his hands and struck them out towards Ning Que¡¯s face.


    Ning Que did not know who this middle-aged monk was, so his first iron arrow was shot at Luo Kedi, whom he knew and was always cautious of. But since this middle-aged monk was standing by Luo Kedi ¨C he must be a bigwig of Buddhism Sect or even ¨C a man of strength simr to Master Boshu in Xuankong Temple.


    Therefore, he fought him without holding back. Even when he had cut the middle-aged monk¡¯s back with his podao, he did not rx his vigil. He had noticed that ¨C although the podao had left a very cruel wound on the monk¡¯s back ¨C its power was eventually countered by the monk¡¯s strange trembling defense. The de had just cut his skin and flesh, but could not cut through the bone, nor did it hurt his internal organs.


    As such, the middle-aged monk¡¯s counterattack was within Ning Que¡¯s expectations. He had already taken action when the two slender, branch-like palms were aimed at his face. The podao in his hands was lifted and cut horizontally from the left, shing again towards the monk¡¯s body along with the majestic Great Spirit.


    The de emitted a shrill whistle as it cut through the air. Although this time it had made a clear sound, the power was not weaker than the first cuting through the wall. The expression on Qi Mei¡¯s face was more and more solemn, both of his palms, which were headed towards Ning Que¡¯s face, suddenly spread out in the air and reached towards the side like a shepherd boy ying a flute. He was going to ward off the de cutting towards his eyes.


    Ning Que trembled slightly. He did not believe that this powerful middle-aged monk was an idiot. However, since he dared to grab his podao with bare hands, his hands were certainly not normal.


    Looking through the gaps, his eyes caught the edge of the middle-aged monk¡¯s hands, which were shining with golden luster. He instantly thought of the old monk he met in the depths of the Wilderness. At that time, the old monk¡¯s left hand had caught the first Primordial Thirteen Arrow Ning Que shot. That hand had been glowing with golden light and managed to crack the arrow.


    Although Ning Que had recalled that scene, he did not believe this middle-aged monk could use one hand to catch his full-strength sh, infused with Great Spirit. The podao¡¯s power did not diminish, but became even more fierce and cut straight towards the monk.


    The pinkie of Master Qi Mei¡¯s right-hand had collided with the de, creating a slight sound. Ning Que only felt a strong force passing through the body of his podao to the hilt and then into his palm.


    With several slight sounds, Master Qi Mei¡¯s fingers fell on the de one after another as though he were ying the flute, which seemed elegant, but, in fact, was as fast as a sh of lightning.


    When Master Qi Mei¡¯s five right hand fingers all fell on the de, the golden color covering his palm suddenly increased and ¨C after a moment ¨C disappeared, as though nothing had happened.


    Five powerful forces poured into the strong, heavy de of the podao, one with each finger, and attacked Ning Que¡¯s body. The de was buzzing and his body was trembling slightly.


    Translucent water droplets, condensed from the Great Spirit, in Ning Que¡¯s body seemed as if they had felt some kind of threat. Instead of waiting for the recall of Psyche Power, they spun sharply and transported endless power into his arms. That power turned his arms iron-like and continued along the hilt. Podao¡¯s power had reached the extreme.


    By now, the sharp de was only a few inches away from Master Qi Mei¡¯s cheeks, and it was also just then that his left hand had finally touched Ning Que¡¯s podao.


    Master Qi Mei¡¯s left hand only had two fingers ¨C thumb and forefinger. He only had seven fingers altogether. Once spread out, they were like seven green peaches, which was why he took Qi Mei as his Buddhist monastic name.


    Although he only had two fingers, they were more useful and had more power than both hands of most people in the world. This had nothing to do with how many times one used them, but only with the firmness of his Zen mind and his past stories.


    Master Qi Mei¡¯s left thumb fell on the de, without sustaining any wounds. He gently carried the de like a bamboo flute ¨C carefully and cautiously. His right hand ¨C as if covering the tonal holes.


    Just at the moment his thumb gently raised the de, Ning Que felt a strong force, which was like a tide, several feet high, crashing towards him along the podao¡¯s body.


    His body trembled violently: just like moss on rocks in the tide, without knowing when he would be washed away.


    Master Qi Mei¡¯sst finger also fell on the de, on the opposite side of the thumb, and raised the other side of the de. It still looked as if he was carrying a flute ¨C gentle and calm.


    At this moment, the de was an inch away from his face, but it was hard to push it any further. The senior monk of Xuankong Temple pressed down on the podao with seven fingers, just like he was preparing to y a bamboo flute ¨C gently, with his head lowered.


    The scene was seemingly elegant, but, in fact, it was very dangerous.


    A fiercer tide followed the first towards the ck reef on the shore. The moss on the reef shivered and began to peel off.


    Ning Que felt a sharp pain in his chest. The Ocean of Qi had signs of turbulence and he spat out a mouthful of blood.


    The blood turned into mist, followed by his loud grunt.


    Ning Que forced out all of the Great Spirit in his body. Gorgeous golden glow appeared around the podao, wiping out the blood mist instantly and striking towards Qi Mei¡¯s face.


    Qi Mei closed his eyes and a light breath of Buddha fell in front of him.


    The Haotian Divine Light that had surrounded the podao in Ning Que¡¯s hand had cleared off Buddha¡¯s breath in a very short amount of time.


    Qi Mei took a step back, but his hands were still holding the podao softly and refused to let it go. Therefore, he was no longer in the posture of holding and ying a flute. Instead, he seemed like a naughty shepherd boy, who wanted to grab the flute from hispanions.


    Of course, he would not let this powerful monk take away his podao. His left pinkie popped out quietly. He cast his fastest Fire Fu and it started burning inbetween the two people.


    It usually took a while for Talisman Masters to activate their talismans, unless it was the Infinitive Talisman. Qi Mei had not expected that Ning Que could activate the Fire Fu in such a short period of time. He was forced to loosen his fingers and take a step back.


    From Chang¡¯an city to Chaoyang city, the talisman that Ning Que had written in his life the most was Fire Talisman. He used it the most, because Sangsang was afraid of the cold. As it is said: practice makes perfect. When it came to the speed of casting Fire Fu ¨C to say nothing of Mo Shanshan ¨C even if Master Yan Se were to be resurrected, no one couldpare with Ning Que.


    The Fire Fu turned into a fierce fireball, burning violently between him and Qi Mei like a, seemingly horrible, spherical bolt of lightning. But what was even more horrible was that he made it do this when the talisman had just activated.


    He crouched down.


    When Qi Mei had loosened his fingers and retreated, the podao in his hand was freed. As Ning Que crouched down, he leapt heavily, whipping the waist of Qi Mei and cutting down sharply between his thigh and abdomen.


    Qi Mei¡¯s Buddhist monk¡¯s robes suddenly tore with a hissing sound and a deep long wound appeared on his groin. He had removed most of the podao¡¯s power by that magic method when the de was near the body. However, there was a reason why Ning Que chose that ce to cut: because there were innumerable blood vessels in the groin ¨C once it was injured, blood would gush out.


    The lower half of Master Qi Mei was instantly drenched with blood. He looked extremely pathetic, as the blood gushed out from his groin and began to drip down his naked thigh, coupled with the eyebrows scorched by the Fire Fu.


    Looking pathetic did not mean losing his ability to fight. If it were ordinary cultivators that had been struck with these two attacks ¨C especially the second one ¨C they would definitely have died from the bleeding. After the first cut, the middle-aged monk might still have had means, so Ning Que held the hilt with both hands and cut his lower abdomen mercilessly ¨C without any hesitation.


    With such ruthless swordsmanship, especially this strike, he used Great River Sword Intent of the Sword Sage Liu Bai. Even though he was the chief monk of Xuankong Temple¡¯s Hall of Respect, Qi Mei still could not avoid this. So, one could only to see if he could survive.


    Unfortunately for Ning Que, today, Buddhism sect and Taoism sect both tried to kill him and Sangsang. Thus, the middle-aged monk would not havee here alone. There were also Luo Kedi and the 18 West-Hill Divine Guards in the field. What made him feel more reprehensive was that Luo Kedi looked big but possessed speed that exceeded his calctions.


    Just as his podao cut the abdomen of the middle-aged monk, Luo Kedi¡¯s sword came.


    Luo Kedi¡¯s sword was quite special whenpared with ordinary ones. It was much thicker and would have looked like an iron rod, if it were not for its glistening golden color, as well as the shing runes.


    When the sword cut toward Ning Que¡¯s back, the small yard, which was darkened and bloody due to the mess created earlier, suddenly became bright. The golden sword seemed to send out an aura of luxury.


    Ning Que was in half-squat at this time, sensing the strong winding from behind. He had no time to dodge, so he pulled back his sword and sat down on the ground. Then, he raised his podao to meet that strong force, with his back protected.


    His podao was designed by Fourth Brother of the academy and meticulously built by Sixth Brother. It was made up of three des and was quite heavy and strong. However, it looked no heavier than Luo Kedi¡¯s sword and its dark, smooth, ordinary appearance looked like garbagepared with Luo Kedi¡¯s dazzling sword.


    The in podao met with the gorgeous golden sword.


    There was a loud boom and lots of smoke.


    At the end of the street, sergeants of Yuelun Kingdom only felt a buzz in their brain and their legs gave way due to weakness.


    Ning Que¡¯s face was slightly white and his hands trembled violently while holding the hilt. As for the ground where he was sitting ¨C it had already cracked like a spider web, with bricks, stones, sand and mud flying in all directions.


    Luo Kedi bellowed, adjusted the grip on his sword and cut down again.


    Ning Que raised his podao to meet him again. He could only feel a force pressing down on him, along the path of the podao. It seemed that it would not cease before pressing him into the broken ground.


    At this moment, Ning Que sat on the ground and was in extremely passive state. Even though he could make full use of his podao, he could only endure continious strikes from Luo Kedi¡¯s magnificent golden sword. If this were to continue, he would lose: even if he could hold on for a while longer, it did not make any sense to do so, because the middle-aged monk was still in the field.


    Ning Que¡¯s face shed a trace of malice. Taking advantage of the extremely brief moment when Luo Kedi¡¯s golden sword swung back to store up his strength, he forced his right foot into the lower part of his left leg, and then suddenly stood up.


    It was at that moment that Luo Kediunched his third cut. Ning Que was not yet stable, especially with the drooping podao, which made it impossible to ward off his attack. However, he held the back of the podao¡¯s tip and pushed it forward. That was to say ¨C he had blocked the third cut by the power of his two hands.


    With a snort of scorn, Ning Que pped the podao with the left hand and twisted his right wrist. The heavy podao seemed to be a clever viper, in an instant, it stabbed Luo Kedi ¨C into his bleeding left shoulder, and immediately after ¨C shed back.


    Luo Kedi did not expect that under the condition of absolute superiority, he would allow Ning Que to stand up and even was stabbed by him. Although his injury did not worsen, the sense of humiliation and anger made him forget everything, including his pierced chest and abdomen. He readjusted his grip and violently cut towards Ning Que.


    Golden sword¡¯s glowing golden light filled the air, appearing quite enchanting. Its imperial aura appeared rich and prosperous, which represented Luo Kedi¡¯s strongest attack.


    If Ning Que were fine with bing a dead man, he could ignore this cut and directly sh his podao through Luo Kedi¡¯s throat. Even if Luo Kedi¡¯s armor was strong, he would have to die. But almost at the same time, Ning Que¡¯s own head would definitely be cut in half by this powerful golden sword.


    Luo Kedi had been driven crazy enough to ignore his own life and death ¨C giving everything he had tounch such a powerful cut. Ning Que did not want to die ¨C he had to protect his own back, so he could only choose to evade it.


    There was another thunderous noise. The already damaged wall of the small courtyard was shaken by the strong wind and copsed with a rustling sound. Luo Kedi didn¡¯t wait, dishing out another cut.


    Luo Kedi was a strong Martial Arts cultivator of West-Hill Divine Pce. The golden sword in his hand was a magic tool of the Divine Hall. Merging with the sword, he entered a state of selflessness. His strength was amazing and his fighting spirit was crazy.


    Ning Que had cultivated the Great Spirit for a few years, so his body was not ordinary anymore ¨C it was extremely strong. However, he could neither die at this time nor fight with his bodily movement. He was extremely passive and suppressed, so he could only fight back the hard way.


    The brilliant golden sword and the unadorned iron sword were cutting each other, striking each other and then cutting again. They repeated this chain countless times in a very short amount of time.


    The sounds of dozens of shes exploded like thunder on the street.


    There weren¡¯t any soldiers around the streets andnes of Yuelun Kingdom who remained standing. Those that were still around were screaming with fear from on top of their horses and fleeing to the surrounding areas. They just wanted to be as far away from this horrible ce as possible.


    This battle did not seem like a fight between cultivators at all. It was more like a fight between two extremely powerful generals, carried on with heavy weapons, meant for the battlefield.


    Ning Que¡¯s legs began to tremble. He found that strength of the divine guardmander of West-Hill Divine Pce was so terrible that it had exceeded himself and was not much weaker than Xia Hou at his peak.


    A trail of blood trickled down from the corner of his lips. His internal organs must have been seriously injured. However, his eyes were still calm, even ¨C indifferent. With such internal injuries, he was like a young male tiger fighting on the wastnd: even if it was injured ¨C even though doing so was dangerous ¨C it would never give up the idea of killing the enemy until the veryst minute.


    Luo Kedi raised the golden sword again.


    This time, his arm trembled slightly. Although Ning Que was unstable after more than a dozen cuts by his golden sword, he did not feel well either. Great Spirit from the podao would also make him extremely pained every time his sword collided with the podao.


    The most important thing was that before the war, his left shoulder had already been shot by a Primordial Thirteen Arrow. He could ignore any kind of serious wounds with such a crazy state of mind, but he had no way of avoiding their influence.


    Ning Que noticed that Luo Kedi¡¯s right arm was trembling. His eyes lit up and he shouted, ¡°Open the umbre.¡±


    Big ck Umbre spread out in front of him. Now it was very clean, but it was also broken. Many holes could be seen on its surface, just like clothes of beggars attending weddings ¨C quite sad.


    In a sh, Ning Que reached out his left hand and held the Big ck Umbre.


    At this time, Luo Kedi¡¯s golden sword swung down again.


    The crazy divine guardmander wanted to cut Ning Que to death like the previous ten times he tried. He knew he could kill him. So even if he suddenly saw the Big ck Umbre in front of him, he still struck towards Ning Que.


    The golden sword heavily struck the Big ck Umbre.


    Suddenly, the surface of the Big ck Umbre sagged, but it had not been cut.


    Although the Big ck Umbre was broken, it could still withstand any sword. Even if the sword was dazzlingly bright, it was, after all, not the Light of Buddha.


    Big ck Umbre was still the best defensive object in the world.


    It was like a shield in Ning Que¡¯s hands.


    Before, faced with Luo Kedi¡¯s golden sword, Ning Que had to swing his podao. Only in this way could hepete with Luo Kedi in strength. Now, the golden sword was blocked by the Big ck Umbre.


    Therefore, this time Ning Que was free to stab Luo Kedi, rather than cut.


    The grey, in podao stabbed out through a hole in the Big ck Umbre.


    With a soft sound, the de pierced Luo Kedi¡¯s throat.


    This seemingly random stab had pierced through several protective auras and hurt a vital organ.


    Luo Kedi abandoned his sword, covered his bleeding throat and stepped back without any remaining breath or sanity.


    He howled as he retreated.


    His neck¡¯s bones were shattered. Because of that, his howl was especially weird and horrid ¨C like a mournful roar of wild animals that died out of pride in the Wilderness.

 Chapter 624 - Bound to You, Before the Broken Wall

    <h4>Chapter 624: Bound to You, Before the Broken Wall</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The courtyard¡¯s wooden gate was shattered. Smoke rose from the broken wall. Sword had sliced the monk¡¯s robes. A long time seemed to have passed, but, in fact, it was very short. Luo Kedi was retreating, with a hand covering his bloody throat. Those eighteen West-Hill Divine Guards, who had just arrived at the broken wall, raised their des to strike at Ning Que, while shouting angrily.


    West-Hill Divine Guards were guards directly under the hierarch. Their states were much higher than the ordinary cavalrymen of Divine Hall. If they were in somemon cultivation sect, they would be regarded as extremely powerful men. Swords in their hands were long and straight with runes carved densely on their bodies. The power of those swords would grow with every sh, because of it, it was known as the Divine de.


    Those eighteen Divine des fell upon Ning Que from all directions ¨C like a furious storm. With Big ck Umbre in hand, Ning Que could ward off these swords but not all of them.


    Fortunately, besides the Big ck Umbre, he still had a podao in hand. Therefore, he drew the podao back out of the hole in the Big ck Umbre and swung it through the winds and storms of swords.


    The Big ck Umbre, podao and eighteen Divine des were hitting each other with pitter-patter sounds. Extremely loud andplicated sounds soon followed. Some were from cracking metals or sharp des shing in the sky, while others were flesh being stabbed by des or snorting due to having to endure lots of pain.


    Four of the Divine des were broken and three West-Hill Divine Guards had blood slits on their chests and abdomen. They were retreating quickly among the chaos. Ning Que¡¯s hand, which was holding the ck umbre, had been hurt slightly and there were two long wounds on his left leg. The Divine de, engraved with talismans, was extremely sharp. Thus, even if he was very strong, he still could not block it thoroughly.


    A broken tip of Divine de¡¯s long de suddenly flew into sky and fell towards one of the streets and alleys around the small courtyard. An Ascetic Monk of Xuankong Temple was struck by that tip on his shoulder. He turned pale and then fell to the ground.


    There was also a broken de zooming towards the middle-aged monk. He reached out two of his fingers and calmly grabbed the de like picking flowers from the air. Then, he walked towards Ning Que. His robes had already been broken and his body was stained with blood. He appeared extremely miserable, but his face looked very calm.


    What was shocking was that the two deep wounds on his back and groin were no longer bleeding. Although there were still slits, muscles on both sides of the wounds were squeezed together and twisted slowly ¨C as if the wounds were healing. If not for his slightly pale face, no one could not tell he was injured at all.


    Ning Que had thought that this monk would have some way to handle it, but he never thought that he could heal his wounds by squeezing his muscles. This was quite shocking but not impossible. However, several blood vessels in his groin were broken. How could he make those blood vessels re-grow?


    What made him even more rmed was that, as the middle-aged monk approached him, more than a hundred archers from the Yuelun Kingdom¡¯s national army also entered these streets. He could clearly hear sounds of bowstrings being streched.


    Ning Que¡¯s pupils slightly narrowed. Since he cultivated the Great Spirit, he never felt afraid of any ordinary archers, let alone right now with Big ck Umbre in his hand. However, he was worried about the person he was carrying on his back.


    More than a dozen West-Hill Divine Guards assembled again. As the middle-aged monk walked over, archers around the streets gradually entered their shooting positions. The atmosphere suddenly became tense.


    Ning Que had retreated several steps and stood in front of the half-broken wall. Aftering out of the wall, he had been fighting at a high speed. In the eyes of others, he was just a ck figure ¨C dressed in a ck uniform of the Academy. It was not until he stood in front of the broken wall without any motion that they saw him clearly.


    There was a thin little girl on his back. They were tied tightly around their waists and thighs by ropes. In this manner, they would never be seperated, no matter how fast they run, and also guaranteed that his reactions and speed during battle wouldn¡¯t be hindered.


    Seeing this scene, Master Qi Mei, West-Hill Divine Guards, Ascetic Monks in the distance, and archers of Yuelun Kingdom had all guessed the true identity of the thin, weak girl. They could not help feeling extremelyplicated. Some were sighing with emotion, some were scared, while others were shocked.


    Ning Que was holding Big ck Umbre in his left hand and podao in his right hand, he looked at the middle-aged monk and West-Hill Divine Guards. He maintained silence and so did Sangsang, who was carrying a ck iron bow along with the other luggage tied around her waist. She rested her head on his shoulder. Although they were besieged on all sides, no one could not see any emotion on their faces.


    The field was quiet.


    Ning Que¡¯s and Sansang¡¯s calmness represented greatness, which was quite horrifying. They were looking at the picture in front of them: Master Qi Mei and West-Hill Divine Guards had all stopped their steps subconsciously ¨C no one dared to shoot arrows.


    The ck uniform was slightly trembling and his chest under it kept undting. Ning Que did not give out sounds of panting. But, in fact, he was extremely exhausted. It was a very short battle, but to him it seemed to havested the whole day. Especially his previous fight with Luo Kedi, which dragged on for more than ten huge blows had made him feelcking in strength.


    Luo Kedi¡¯sst strike with the golden sword had heavily struck against the Big ck Umbre. The umbre¡¯s handle had moved sharply and poked his chest. He felt pulsing pain in his chest. What was even more troublesome was that after being hit by the middle-aged monk with seven fingers and more than a dozen golden sword strikes, he had suffered internal injuries and his hand, which was holding the hilt, kept trembling slightly.


    He rxed the right hand that was holding the hilt and then clenched it tightly again. In a very short period of time, he repeated this action seven times so as to calm down and relieve his fatigued wrist. His movement was too fast for the hilt to leave his hand, so no one on the field of battle had noticed.


    While repeating this movement, his thoughts raced. How could he solve the current predicament and the things that would happenter? How could he get rid of this middle-aged monk?


    Luo Kedi was undoubtedly a horrible enemy, whose strength was even above his own. Fortunately, he had already suffered severe injuries. Even if he could survive, he certainly could no longer fight today.


    But Ning Que was clear that it did not mean that his strength had surpassed Luo Kedi¡¯s. He just made use of the hole in the Big ck Umbre ¨C a way no one could imagine ¨C to defeat him. If one thought this fight over calmly, he would understand that this was just a tactical victory and did not represent an aptparison of their strategic strength.


    However, this middle-aged monk was more powerful and terrifying than Luo Kedi. Ning Que¡¯s bodily movement was very quick after cultivating the Great Spirit. However, his previous attack had failed to cause anysting damage. His quick movements did not help much either. What should he do if the middle-aged monk kept following him?

 Chapter 625 - Invincible Among People With The Same State

    <h4>Chapter 625: Invincible Among People With The Same State</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ning Que was vignt and uneasy, but he did not realize that Qi Mei, who was looking at him in front of the broken wall, felt even moreplicated. The Buddhist sect and Taoist sect were determined to ignore the Academy and kill the Daughter of Yama. So they had made sufficient investigations and preparations in advance, and their absolute focus was on Ning Que¡¯s state. Finally, they had drawn a conclusion that made many people felt so shocked that they could not speak a word.


    ¡ª¡ªthis man was invincible in a battle among people with the same state.


    There was always a legend in the field of cultivation that a Talisman Master could basically outstrip the cultivator with the same state, especially when their state was even higher. However, the thought of both sects of Buddhism and Taoism¨C that Ning Que was invincible when fighting with someone with the same state¨C was not based on this kind of cognition. After all, it was just a legend. Generally, a Talisman Master was not very good at fighting.


    However, Ning Que was really good at fighting and had numerous powerful fighting methods. If they kept a long distance while battling those of the same state, then the Primordial Thirteen Arrows would be the world¡¯s scariest weapon. It would have a longer killing distance than the flying sword. Unless faced with an extremely strong man such as Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword, he would remain unparalleled.


    If the cultivator chose to fight at a close distance with Ning Que, who had joined the Devil because of cultivating the Great Spirit and had an extremely strong and powerful body, Sangsang was good at it. If they chose to fight with Ning Que through manipting the Qi of Heaven and Earth, Ning Que was already a Divine Talisman Master, so he could stop all things around him.


    If they wanted topete with Ning Que in terms of Psyche Power, it would be even more meaningless, which could be proved by the death of Master Dao Shi in Chang¡¯an City and Qi Nian¡¯s futile fighting in Lanke Temple. If they nned topete with Ning Que in terms of willpower or divine methods, no one dared to say they were more powerful or unpredictable than Ning Que, except for the Divine Priest of Judgment¨C Ye Hongyu.


    These were things that Ning Que had already proved in the past battles. Even Cheng Ziqing, who was in the middle of the Knowing Destiny State in the Sword Garret, and Master Boshu in Xuankong Temple were all defeated by him. Although Mo Shanshan, the Calligraphy Addict, had helped him then. Therefore, they could not choose someone to defeat Ning Que ording to the level of his state.


    The two sects of Buddhism and Taoism finally decided to have the Divine Priest of Judgment¨C Ye Hongyu, Luo Kedi and Master Qi Mei to plot the killing of the Daughter of Yama. Just based on the previous analysis and forgetting about their habit of being alone; Ye Hongyu, Master Qi Mei, and Luo Kedi who were either in the Wilderness or in the swamp were all the best candidates to fight with Ning Que.


    Luo Kedi was a strong cultivator in Martial Arts, and Master Qi Mei had the strongest power in the Xuankong Temple when fighting in a close distance. Although Ning Que¡¯s closebat ability was very strong, he had only cultivated the Great Spirit for a shorter period of time. Thus, it was impossible for him to outrun these two bigwigs from this perspective .


    Master Qi Mei had been chasing Ning Que and Sangsang from the depths of the wilderness to Chaoyang City. Before they met today, he had been silent and calm because he thought that as long as they met, everything woulde to an end.


    However, he had not expected that just after finding Ning Que and the Daughter of Yama, he would only have a moment with them. The Daughter of Yama had not even started a fight, yet Luo Kedi had already suffered a serious injury and he had suffered as well.


    For other strong cultivators, they would certainly feel doubt and even want to retreat when faced with the current situation. But Qi Mei was extremely calm, because he believed that he would definitely defeat Ning Que, or at least hold on to him until the horse carriage entered Chaoyang City.


    ¡°Mr. Thirteen¡¯s sword is so fast.¡±


    Qi Mei nced at the wound at his lower abdomen that was healing gradually yet was still terrible. He Looked up at Ning Que who was standing in front of the broken wall, and said, ¡°You can¡¯t kill me¡±.


    Ning Que held the hilt on his right hand and slightly tightened his grasp. He looked at this middle-aged monk and said, ¡°As long as it is a human being, it can be cut to death. The difference only lies in how many times I should cut. I just want to know who I am going to cut?¡±


    ¡°The poor monk Qi Mei.¡±


    ¡°Oh, the high-ranking monk of the Xuankong Temple, so you must be the Younger Brother of Qi Nian.¡±


    Looking at Sangsang behind Ning Que, Master Qi Mei said, ¡°Mr. Thirteen, you really do not have any pity for the lives of the world and must protect the Daughter of Yama? Even the Headmaster would not ept your action.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°The Headmaster did not say what I was doing was wrong.¡±


    Master Qi Mei said, ¡°But he didn¡¯t say that you are doing right, either.¡±


    ¡°If it is not forbidden, then you can do it. This is the rule of the Academy.¡± After a pause, Ning Que added, ¡°And even if the Headmaster says that I was wrong, I still won¡¯t change my mind.¡±


    Qi Mei said with a sigh, ¡°You really have an extremely firm mental state. Unfortunately, neither I nor the people of Chaoyang City will let you leave with the Daughter of Yama.¡±


    Ning Que looked at a tree in the distance which Luo Kedi was leaning against with a bloody body. He was gripping his own throat with his right hand, surrounded by some people who seemed as if they were treating him.


    ¡°At first, you two could have kept me here. But unfortunately, Luo Kedi was already wounded severely and you can never defeat me alone.¡±


    Master Qi Mei said calmly, ¡°Then, why have you not left yet, Mr. Thirteen?¡±


    Ning Que turned away from the tree and looked at this powerful middle-aged monk in front of him. He said calmly and naturally, ¡°I¡¯m thinking about leaving right now, or leaving after killing you.¡±


    Master Qi Mei folded his hands and said with a poker face, ¡°As I said before, you cannot kill me.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°But I have also said, as long as it is a human being, it can be killed. The only thing we don¡¯t know is how many cuts it will take.¡±


    Master Qi Mei put down his right hand, and looked at his left hand which only had two fingers left. He said calmly, ¡°When I was young, I also asked myself the same question¨C how many cuts will it take to cut myself into countless pieces? Then I¡¯d like to be burnt so that I can gain eternal peace.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d cut my little finger first, followed by my ring finger and my middle finger. But when it was time to cut my index finger, I can not cut it regardless of how hard I¡¯ve tried.¡±


    He looked up at Ning Que and smiled, ¡°How many cuts will it take to kill yourself?¡±


    Ning Que had seen Qi Nian¡¯s motionless body once in the Lanke Temple, and he had seen that old monk¡¯s left palm with a golden sh before his death in the Wilderness. He knew that the Buddhist Sect¡¯s secret techniques were very strong, so he said after a moment of silence, ¡°I¡¯ve killed an old monk not far from the banyan tree.¡±


    ¡°It was the preaching monk who died in your hands.¡±


    Master Qi Mei said, ¡°Mah¨¡sattva has been seeking wisdom in numerous Buddhist scrolls in his lifetime, and he could not bear to expend his time and energy on the outside world. Thus, his body has practiced into a golden Buddha.¡±


    ¡°That sounds very powerful.¡± Ning Que looked at the palm of Qi Mei, thinking of the golden sh that had once appeared, he asked, ¡°Could it be that there was anything stronger than the Golden Buddha?¡±


    Master Qi Mei said, ¡°There are thousands of Buddhism practices in the world, but they all have the same principle. That is, to be trained as the Buddha, who cannot be defeated both mentally and physically. However, I only trained myself as the Buddha physically.¡±


    ¡°You are really a Buddhist sublime being. You can tell the truth even in the face of your enemy, which is really admirable.¡±


    However, one could not see any admirable gaze on Ning Que¡¯s face. He showed a slightly ironic smile and said, ¡°Being enlightened after one¡¯s fingers have been cut was really an excellent story. You should have made it longer and in a more detailed way.¡±


    Master Qi Mei gave a slightly severe look and he knew that Ning Que had already seen past his intentions.


    ¡°Ever since you discovered that you may not be able to keep me here. You¡¯ve been dying time. It seems that there is a bigwig, who is even more powerful than you that wille to Chaoyang City soon.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I know my own strength and state clear. If I¡¯m fighting empty-handed, I can¡¯t even defeat you, let alone the bigwig. so I can¡¯t allow you to postpone my time anymore.¡± ¡°The reason why I¡¯m willing to talk with you and listen to the finger cutting story is that I too need to take a rest and make some preparations. I have decided to leave after killing you.¡±


    After saying this, the sharp and gloomy podao turned into a gray thunder, crashing into the air and cutting towards Qi Mei¡¯s throat.


    His seven fingers spread out in the air to catch the de that seemed faster than lightning. Qi Mei was ready to catch the sword even if Ning Que would cut into his chest.


    However, no one had thought that Ning Que altered his podao abruptly, and it disappeared in front of Qi Mei like the flowing water. Then, he withdrew it, and suddenly turned it into a hammer and mmed on the ground.


    Through the anti-earthquake force from the de, Ning Que¡¯s knees were slightly bent, his body was lowered, and he jumped up to the broken wall with Sangsang on his back. Then, they swept away to the heavily popted houses after stepping on half a brick.


    The confrontation started on the broken wall. Qi Mei¡¯s n was to dy time, but Ning Que¡¯s n was to flee. He did not have the thought of killing this high venerable monk of the Xuankong Temple at all, regardless of whether he could do it or not. Even if he could do it, he would certainly pay a high price for it. Then, how could he escape with Sangsang?


    He was creating an atmosphere where he could smash everything in one cut, whether through his talk or his momentum. But all of that was fake, all he wanted to do was to prepare for their escape.


    Looking at the shadow that had swept above the broken wall, Qi Mei made a low sound. His body seemed to have been lengthened suddenly¨C after he stretched his right arm forward¨C especially his arms, which were hitting on Ning Que¡¯s back heavily.


    Sangsang was carried by Ning Que on his back and the palm was just hitting towards her body.


    At the moment when Qi Mei was about tond his palm, he felt a little bit of shame. Even though she was the Daughter of Yama, she was still a thin and sick little girl. Using her to threaten Ning Que was definitely not a glorious action, and it wasn¡¯t matching with his reputation as a Xuankong Temple monk. But beside this, he could not think of another way to kept Ning Que here.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t shout at Qi Mei for his shameless and fake action, because he had no time to say it. He knew that these words were meanless, after all, what the two sects of Buddhism and Taoism wanted to kill was Sangsang all the time. But he didn¡¯t act the way Qi Mei had excepted, forced to turn around to protect Sangsang and being besieged by more than ten West-Hill Divine Guards, because he had already made preparations.


    During their previous conversation, Ning Que spoke the truth until the end. He had made some preparations under the broken wall during the intervals of their fight. He believed that those preparations would help him and Sangsang escape.


    It was not known when the big ck umbre hade into Sangsang¡¯s hand. She opened it to cover her back.


    There was a piece of Fu paper between the bricks of the broken wall, which had turned into a plume of green smoke quietly.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth around the small courtyard suddenly condensed and fell with the palm of his hand which was as powerful as the mountain. However, that Qi of Heaven and Earth copsed instantly whening close to the big ck umbre.


    Countless extremely fine and invisible lines appeared before the broken wall. They were extremely sharp, almost as if they could cut everything in the world. It was Ning Que¡¯s Jing Fu, which he inherited from his master¨C Yan Se.


    A West-Hill Divine Guard was cutting towards Sangsang¡¯s legs which were exposed outside the umbre. A string of broken sound rang on his de, and the rune shing on seemed as if being scared. Then, the guard¡¯s sword suddenly broken into three pieces with fear and gloom.


    The rest of the West Hill Divine Guards who had been chasing after Ning Que were alert to the sharp cutting in the air in front of them. They stopped to move forward with difficulty and rolled around in a mess after being forced to lower their bodies.


    Master Qi Mei also discovered the stern and powerful talisman and thought it must be Jing Fu instantly. However he did not feel scared or withdrew like the West-Hill Divine Guards, instead, he continued to sweep over the broken wall with a look of perseverance.


    After countless light sounds, more than 20 lines of blood appeared instantaneously on the bodies and cheeks of Master Qi Mei. His already broken robes were cut into hundreds of squares and flew around.


    After the fight in Lanke Temple, the two sects of Buddhism and Taoism both knew that Ning Que had be a Divine Talisman Master and had learned a very powerful Divine Talisman. Inparison, his Jing Fu was also very powerful, but it was still at Seethrough Realm. Thus, his power was still far from Master Yan Se, who could cut the sky andnd with his Jing Fu.


    Master Qi Mei had already be a Buddha physically, so even if Jing Fu could make him seriously injured, he could always revive as long as he did not die on the spot. That¡¯s the reason why he did not hesitate to rush to Ning Que.


    If he knew that Ning Que was using the Divine Talisman that no one in the cultivation world knew, he would not have dared to rush to him even if he was trained as a Buddha physically. However, he was certain that Ning Que would not use the Divine talisman as it would exhaust his great psyche power until the end. If he had done so then he would think that it was worth it even if he died.


    Master Qi Mei rushed to the severe talisman in front of the broken wall, with the determination of martyrdom as well as the mercy of protecting allmon people, In an instant, his blood was spurting again. As what he had thought, Ning Que did not hide that Divine Talisman in Jing Fu. His feet had finally stepped on the broken wall.


    At this time, Ning Que had swept to the top of a house that was ten feet away with Sangsang on his back and was jumping to a small temple across the street. However, when he jumped into the air, he turned around suddenly.


    He had already held the iron arrow in his hands and was about to shoot.


    Master Qi Mei expression changed all of a sudden and jumped down from the broken wall.


    There was a slight sound as the string of the iron arrow rang around the courtyard. The iron arrow, which was used for killing Gods and destroying the Buddha had alreadye to the broken wall before the string rang, shotting through the ear of Master Qi Mei.


    The earlobe of Master Qi Mei was broken into bright red flesh powder and scattered into the air.


    The iron arrow continued to shoot through the chest and abdomen of two West-Hill Divine Guards before shooting deeply into the ground, leaving only a dark hole.


    Then, these two West-Hill Divine Guards fell to the ground and died, without any sound.


    Master Qi Mei looked at the figure in the distance which was sweeping quickly between the tiles of the houses. His bloody face showed a veryplicated look as he knew that he could no longer catch up with that man.

 Chapter 626 - Fight Against the Entire World

    <h4>Chapter 626: Fight Against the Entire World</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    It was really shocking that two famous mature experts at the Knowing Destiny State could not kill a young cultivator who just entered the Knowing Destiny State. They were unable to even stall him for short time.


    Leaning against a tree, Luo Kedi sat on the ground. He looked pale, bloody and weak. An imperial physician and a priest who came from the West-Hill Divine Pce were nervously treating him.


    At this time, his throat bone was fractured and he unable to see clearly as he had lost too much blood. He seemed to see another person when he saw Ning Que escaping over the slumping wall.


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgment, Ye Hongyu.


    Luo Kedi had been stronger than Ye Hongyu beforest spring. During those years, he never dared to do anything to her, even to fight against her face to face, even though he wanted her so badly that he even wanted to insult and torture her. That was because he knew that if they fought to the death, the one killed would be him in the end.


    Luo Kedi always believed that Ye Hongyu was the only one who could be so powerful regardless of realms, and never figured out how she was so terrifying. Until today, after he fought against Ning Que, he finally knew that they were the same kind of people. The Hierarch Lord thought Ning Que was invincible in the same realm, and he was right.


    Looking at the empty house, Luo Kedi painfully coughed which tore the wound on his neck and revealed some white bones. As the imperial physician and the priest saw this, they were terrified and sped up the treatments.


    Luo Kedi bitterly thought, <i>¡°Even if Ning Que can be invincible at the same realm, as long as he meets an expert at the Peak of the Knowing destiny State, he will be killed. Since the Divine Priest of Judgment is in the Wilderness, where can you hide the Daughter of Yama?¡±</i>


    Standing on the roof of the small temple opposite the street, Master Qi Mei looked around and found Chaoyang City was so peaceful. There was no trace of Ning Que and the Daughter of Yama.


    His face was cut by the Jing Fu and his skin was torn. The flesh gaped open which was extremely ferocious but somehowpassionate.


    Looking at the sky and confirming the clouds didn¡¯t move at all, Master Qi Mei realized Ning Que and the Daughter of Yama were still inside the city.


    ¡°I can¡¯t keep you by myself, but what about the thousands of people in the city?¡±


    The bell of White Tower Temple rang and spread over Chaoyang City which was more hurried than before as if it urged something.


    As the sounds spread, all the temples in the city began to ring their bells. Little monks in robes pushed the hammers with difficulty while old monks tolled out of breath with the hammer in their hands. Then, all the bells and drums in the Yuelun Kingdom began to ring as well as the drums of the night¡¯s watchmen.


    All kinds of sounds rang in the city. People got out of their house and discussed in the street. When they were aware of the reason from the Vige Head and the monks, they could not help be shocked at first, and then they were confused about what they should do.


    Ning Que was moving fast in the remote alleys with Sangsang on his back. He had no time to wipe out the sweat on his forehead and the blood on his lips. The clear or heavy bells were like the summons to Death, drilling into his head from his ears, weighing his steps but never stopping him.


    Running with Sangsang on his back was too conspicuous. He was unable to find a ce to hide without been seen since too many eyes were on the streets. Besides, it was not a good idea to run inside the city since a powerhouse wasing soon.


    The most important thing was that he had to take the opportunity to escape out of the city before the people noticed them and began to stop them.


    He had been hiding in the city for the entire winter and already made a perfect n to escape.


    The monk called Qi Mei from the Xuankong Temple would not chase him if he didn¡¯t want to be the target of the Primordial Thirteen Arrows, even though he was powerful and fast enough. If he could get rid of the monk and run out of the city, when he found the Big ck Horse, few men would be able to catch up to them.


    He tried to run so hard that his feet stepped on the stone ground with heavy sounds. His speed was so fast that his ck robe flew like a g in the wind, dripping with his sweat.


    The Big ck Horse and the carriage were hidden in the northern mountain. However, in his n, he was going to take the western gates of the city instead of the northern ones. When he was able to see the gates, he felt a little relieved.


    However, at this moment, he suddenly felt a formidable aura outside the western gates which was too dangerous for them.


    He heavily stamped his right foot, cracking his leather boot and the stone ground and then he forced to stop his body, shocking Sangsang on his back.


    Ning Que felt frustrated like anyone else when they faced a new and tough situation as they were about to get out of Chaoyang City.


    While the others may take a second to rethink whether they should change to another way, Ning Que didn¡¯t. He turned around without thought or hesitation and ran toward the northern gates.


    Chaoyang City was a city without walls or real gates. Instead, there were only some non-temporary official buildings which were considered as the gates.


    Today, all the bells and drums in the city rang and the buildings were locked. The people and beggars outside the city were driven like sheep into the city by the soldiers with weapons.


    By this time, there were only dozens of ascetic monks in the field outside Chaoyang City. If someone was going out, everyone would notice him.


    The ascetic monks came from the Xuankong Temple and had been waiting here for a long time. They didn¡¯t find Ning Que and the Daughter of Yama, but they found a carriage.


    The carriage looked very strange. It was not big, but same as Ning Que¡¯s, the body and wheels were all made of steel, decorated with many real words of Buddha. There were 16 tired horses in front of the carriage. Considering the depth the wheels stuck into the ground, the carriage was very heavy.


    Looking at the carriageing slowly from a distance, the ascetic monksing from the other three directions all gathered together and knelt down. They kowtowed with their forehead on the ground and looked extremely respectful and devout.


    An old monk wearing a bamboo hat totteringly got off the carriage,nding his monk¡¯s staff on the ground with a crisp metallic crash.


    The monk¡¯s staff seemed very light when it touched the ground, while the 16 horses in front of the carriage felt an invisible quake so that one of them tumbled.


    When the old monk¡¯s rear foot left the carriage, the deeply stuck wheels into the ground bounced up. Most of the carriage¡¯s weight came from the old monk!


    Some hoofbeats sounded in the direction of Chaoyang City. A general of the Yuelun Kingdom drove forward with dozens of fine horses. Looking at the old monk, he got down from the horse and knelt down in a hurry, kissing the ground which messed up his face with mud.


    A military officer, who came following the general, loosened the halters and tied down the fresh horses that they brought as fast as he could. Then he knelt to the old monk as well and moved backward, his hands quivering because of excitement or fear.


    The old monk didn¡¯t say anything to the general or to the officer. Instead, he raised his head and looked at the dark cloud above Chaoyang City.


    His bamboo hat was lifted. The sun shined on his face and disappeared in his deep wrinkles as if clear streaming water was absorbed by parchednd.


    Looking at the cloud, the old monk calmly said, ¡°137 horses ran to death and countless believers were drafted to repair the roads. I am sinful.¡±


    Then he lifted up his staff and got on the carriage. When his right footnded on the carriage, the wheels stuck into the ground once again, and the 16 horses subconsciously hissed.


    No matter how sinful he was, none of the Buddhists was able to punish him since the Buddha passed away. He was the Buddha in the human world because he was the Chief Preaching Monk of the Xuankong Temple.


    The old monk always believed that, as the Buddhist disciples, they should stand in awe of both the Buddha¡¯s wisdom and the shifts of Haotian¡¯s fortune. Even if it would cost so many lives, break so many rules, and incurr in so many sins, he still insisted oning to the world, to Chaoyang City.


    That was all because of the Daughter of Yama.


    Sangsang was indeed in the city. She was on Ning Que¡¯s back.


    As Ning Que was running so fast, Sangsang felt badly bumped. Even though her waist and legs were fastened on Ning Que¡¯s body without any gap, she still felt ufortable.


    She didn¡¯t hold on to Ning Que¡¯s neck for stabilization. Instead, she tightly grasped Ning Que¡¯s shoulders which would not affect his running and fighting.


    Many years ago, Ning Que used to carry her on his back, hunting and running in Min Mountain just like this. They were so familiar with the process and knew what was the right thing to do.


    Even though Sangsang was 16 years old and no longer the little girl, the old ways still worked. They only had to adjust some details.


    The bells and drums still sounded and more and more people came out. They were told about the situation and began to search for the Daughter of Yama under the officers¡¯ organization.


    All of sudden, Ning Que and Sangsang were stuck in the biggest trouble that they had ever had.


    Wherever they went, they could be seen. Ady saw them and began to scream when she was drying clothes. An idle beggar found them and began to shout when they were flying over the eaves. As long as they were found, they would be shot.


    When they broke into a house, trying to hide for a little while, they nearly terrified an old woman, who was praying in front of the Buddha figure, to death. Maybe it was better if thedy died, so she would not throw the censer to Sangsang like a crazy woman.


    Since the West-Hill Divine Pce promulgated the decree, they no longer covered the news of the Daughter of Yama. Instead, they informed everyone in the world. People had been afraid and hated Sangsang for a long time and what they wanted to do most was to burn her alive.


    When Ning Que returned to the street, the ck crows who rested in the yard began to hover over their heads, cawing.


    No long after that, the cultivators and people in Chaoyang City heard the crows. Listening to them, they began to chase Ning Que and Sangsang.


    Ning Que could not hide from people in the city even for a short time, so he had to keep running in the streets among the crowd.


    Countless shouts of horror sounded in the street. Some of them gradually gathered courage and tried to stop them. They threw stones, vegetables, eggs and even rolling pins which by their hands. In a trice, the street was covered with all kinds of things.


    Ning Que could avoid the hard objects that were thrown to Sangsang, but he could not avoid the vegetables and eggs. He was hit with an egg on his eye; it didn¡¯t make him bleed but it hurt.


    Sangsang lowered her head on his shoulder and tightly closed her eyes. Her pale face and thin body were covered with eggs; not bleeding either, but felt just as ufortable.

 Chapter 627 - The Trapped Beasts

    <h4>Chapter 627: The Trapped Beasts</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Cold and unpeaceful clouds shadowed Chaoyang City. Bells and drums, as well as screams and curses, sounded everywhere. People were running and throwing garbage in the streets while Ning Que was running with Sangsang on his back.


    ¡°So, fighting against the entire world is like this.¡± He thought, with the hilt in his hand. Looking at the people getting together, he breathlessly asked, ¡°Do you feel sad?¡±


    He had tried his best to hide. He was out of breath and his voice was quivering which was not loud nor clear enough.


    Sangsang heard him very clearly. She opened her eyes to look at the terrified people around them, and could not help bing upset with a hum.


    Ning Que wore a smile on his face and said, ¡°The good guys will feel sorry because of others¡¯ attitude, while we are the bad guys, so don¡¯t be grieved.¡±


    Seeing the vegetables and eggs, even the stones could not stop them, the people in Chaoyang City became angrier so that some of them dared to intercept them.


    A half-naked hunk with ck hair on his chest ran out of a tea shop, roaring and trying to sp Ning Que under the cheers of his neighbors.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t stop. He just rushed toward him. With a slight boom, the hunk was hit to the ground like a kite, breaking many bones.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t slow down by the impact or change his face. He continued running toward the northern city, creating a line of smoke under his feet.


    The neighbors surrounded the hunk who used to bully them but was able to stand out today, and found that he barely breathed. They could not help crying out and began to curse Ning Que.


    The man carrying the Daughter of Yama was so cruel and cold-blooded!


    Just after he turned a street corner, Ning Que saw several men walking following a Vige Head, holding thick straw ropes, shouting to boost their courage.


    Moderate fear easily inspired human¡¯s anger and courage. In order to capture Sangsang, many sluggards in Chaoyang City would take the risk of being hurt to be the hero of the city.


    Ning Que understood them.


    He had seen lions being besieged by cattle in the wilderness, so he knew he should be crueler and stronger instead of being soft-hearted. That was the only way to shock the unusually crazy people who used to be docile.


    Therefore, he rushed to the crowd without any hesitation. Many men crashed down and broke some bones. They spit out blood as they fell down on the ground that looked so sanguine.


    Seeing this, the people who were cursing Ning Que and Sangsang subconsciously covered their mouths. When they were reminded of the Daughter of Yama¡¯s legend, no one dared to throw things anymore.


    However, Ning Que¡¯s speed was too fast so that the people in front of the street had no idea what had happened, so more and more people would stand out to stop them.


    More and more people came into the street, holding farm tools in their hands. As they were dangerous, Ning Que had to dodge. When he finally rushed out of the block, he saw a more dangerous picture.


    A few rows of archers were aiming him behind piles of grain bags in front of a building, as well as on both sides of the street.


    ¡°Shoot!¡±


    As a very harsh voice sounded nowhere, countless arrows, like a rainstorm, shot toward them in the middle of the street.


    Ning Que could jump up to the roof or some other ce, but if he did so, he would be stalled, and be surrounded by the strong cultivators of Buddhism and Taoism, so, he just shouted, ¡°Open it.¡±


    Sangsang opened the big ck umbre at once, which was broken with a lot of holes. The big ck umbre created a great resistance when it was open and almost blew her off Ning Que¡¯ s body if she was not tied with ropes.


    As the soldiers already knew the weakness of the Daughter of Yama from the Buddhism Sect, so most of the arrows were aimed at Sangsang. They wanted her to be killed as soon as possible.


    The torrential arrows pierced the air and deeply stuck into the walls and the ground, leaving clear marks.


    However, when they found the dense arrows could not prate the big ck umbre, they became panicked and could not help thinking if the umbre was made of iron?


    The big ck umbre could cover Sangsang¡¯s body, but it could notpletely cover Ning Que, especially when dozens of arrows were shooting at the same time. However, considering his body strength, if marksmen who used the heavy bows could not hurt him, no one could. Except for several arrows which flew over his face, he did not dodge at all.


    An arrow shot at his chest and fell down on the ground, breaking. One shot at his throat, leaving a tiny crevasse which was even not bleeding.


    The archers, who were still in the shock of the big ck umbre, felt so astonishing when they saw it. They were wondering if he was made of iron. Especially the dozens of archers behind the grain bags, looking at Ning Que who ran as fast as the wind, they even could not tightly hold their bows.


    Under the clouds, a dozen ck crows were quacking above the street. Under them, Ning Que was running with Sangsang on his back. No one could stop them for a second, but he was unable to get rid of the people¡¯s hunting, either.


    The crows flying in the sky were like the Guiding Lights for the people in Chaoyang City. Wherever he went, people were waiting for them. They were ambushed by Buddhist Ascetic Monks for twice.


    The angry people and cultivators narrowed Ning Que and Sangsang into a corner while the ck crows quacked and flew toward the pce in the northern city.


    The people ran following the ck crows in the sky to the pce. The strong cultivators converged and waited there as well. They both wanted to end the noisy and tense story.

 Chapter 628 - Break into the Monastery

    <h4>Chapter 628: Break into the Monastery</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Countless people rushed around the pce. They Looked at the solemn buildings and the armored soldiers and the awe that deeply rooted in their bones calmed them down and stopped them from going forward.


    However, there were too many people. Seen from the pce, half of the city was nearly filled with vegetables. Senses of tension and violence pervaded the air.


    Thousands of soldiers and archers formed lines of defense to maintain order, while hundreds of ascetic monks and dozens of West-Hill Divine Guards were vigntly watching the sky, three old priests in red came out of the pce, solemnly.


    They followed the ck crows here but they lost them. They all raised their heads to look for the ck spots as many hungry geese.


    Some of them found the crows when they looked at the White Tower Temple to the southwest of the pce and began to shout.


    ¡°They are over there.¡±


    Wasn¡¯t the Daughter of Yama afraid to die by entering the White Tower Temple? People began rushing into the temple and waved their fists while talking about and cursing the girl who dared to offend the Buddha, willy-nilly. The soldiers and cultivators didn¡¯t stop them. Instead, they pushed people toward the temple.


    A momentter.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t slow down when he ran to the walls of the temple. He stepped on a salient of the wall and soared in the air. Supporting with his hand, he jumped up in a direct gesture of defiance and flew over the wall.


    Even though the walls were nearly 20 meters high and weren¡¯t easily climbable for a normal man, they were not hard for him. Standing on the wall, he found no ascetic monks nor angry people which came as a relief. Until he found the flying crows above their heads, he straightened his face.


    The ck crows seemed to feel his anxiety, anger and killing intent. They quacked and pped their wings rise higher in the sky, refusing to leave.


    Ning Que jumped down from the wall and bent his body to discharge most of the vibration. Then he turned around to Sangsang and asked, ¡°Are you Ok?¡±


    Sangsang was bumped badly but she shook her head.


    Ning Que came here so many times, and he even brought Sangsang to the temple to worship the Buddha for three times during the whole winter. He was very familiar with the terrain and the buildings. He ran through the garden and the side hall, entered the back yard where it was more peaceful, and rushed toward the nearby White Pagoda.


    The bell in the temple was still ringing, echoing with the ones in the city. No one would expect that Ning Que dared to bring Sangsang to the temple, so all the monks in the temple ran out to look for them. The ck crows were also flying beyond people¡¯s vision, so no one found them at this moment.


    Yuelun Kingdom was a Buddhist country which was famous for its 300 temples. There was another saying that there were 72 temples in the country. In both two sayings, the White Tower Temple in Chaoyang City was the first temple in the country.


    It was the Front Gate of the Xuankong Temple, as the Lanke Temple, even though it had a long history and brought up many big monks.


    The White Pagoda enjoyed a high requtation in cultivation. Quni Madi was tonsured here. It was rumored that the abbot of the White Tower Temple was an eminent monk who was at the Knowing Destiny State.


    Same as the Go games on Tile Mountain, the most famous building in the temple was the White Pagoda.


    Looking at the white pagoda in theke, Ning Que felt a little anxious. He had been here three times in the past, but he never got close to it.


    However, the ce he nned to go to was under the White Pagoda. Considering he was so tired since he had been running for too long a time, he needed to have some rest.


    There was a small ind in theke behind the White Tower Temple where the White Pagoda stood.


    There was an unimpressive temple on the ind which was connected to thend with a narrow bridge. Theke didn¡¯t freeze in early spring. A few lotuses were strenching on the bridge and looked beautiful.


    As the unpleasant cries of the crows sounded in the sky, Ning Que quickly ran out of the back of an ancient clock, along with the narrow bridge to the eyot at the other end of the bridge.


    While a dozen monks were walking out of a hall and discussing, pointing at the ck crows, they saw Ning Que on the bridge and eximed in shock.


    All of sudden, hasty steps reverberated in the temple. As the monks shouted, more and more people cried out and ran toward thekeside.


    As Ning Que realized they were found by the monks in the temple, he sped up, breaking the dead lotus while holding the hilt with his right hand.


    Reaching the other end of the bridge, he tightened his hand and drew the podao out. A chill light shed and two iron staffs were sted away.


    Two ascetic monks had been hiding at the bridgehead, trying to sneak attack on Ning Que since they heard the noises. Unexpectedly, Ning Que had already figured out their positions and struck first.


    Two deep wounds appeared on their bodies, from face to waist, bleeding. They looked miserable and died quickly.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t stop to look at them. He rushed into the quiet monastery, smashing a wooden door.


    The windows of the monastery were covered with thick gauze. It was very dark inside.


    Suddenly, an iron staff with Qi of Heaven and Earth ripped the air with a harsh sound and smashed toward Ning Que¡¯s head, freezing the air in the monastery.


    Powerfully harnessing the Qi of Heaven and Earth like this, the man must be very strong. Considering the timing he attacked, Ning Que could not get rid of him easily.


    However, Ning Que already knew who was inside and that was why he broke into this room, so how could he be unprepared for the attacks? He waved his podao and heavily countered the iron staff.

 Chapter 629 - Black Crows and the Priest in Red

    <h4>Chapter 629: ck Crows and the Priest in Red</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Earlier on the bridge, Ning Que¡¯s podao had met the iron staff in the ascetic monks¡¯ hands. There was a loud crash before the staff was thrown into the air. Then, Ning Que killed the man with his de.


    In the monastery, Ning Que¡¯s podao and the staff that had torn through air met. However, there was only a light click that sounded like the burning of a calligraphy brush by the mes of an oilmp.


    This was because the person who wielded the staff had a higher cultivation state than the ascetic monk at the end of the bridge. The metal staff was infused with the Qi of Heaven and Earth and was extremely fast and stable. Compared to that, Ning Que¡¯s way of waving his de was also sharper. When the two met, the metal staff was not thrown into the air but was cut right in the middle!


    There was a light poof and the iron staff was cut into two! The upper half of the staff brushed across Ning Que¡¯s shoulder as it flew by, breaking arge hole through the colored roof of the monastery. The lower half, which was slightly sharp, was wielded by the person who aimed it at Ning Que¡¯s abdomen. There was an angry bellow as the person rushed toward Ning Que!


    Ning Que could clearly sense the thick Buddhist aura in the man¡¯s left hand. He had also sensed that the upper half of the iron staff that had broken through the roof was flying back at a high speed. Right now, there was a sharp iron staff heading toward his abdomen and there was a part of the iron staff that was rushing at his back. He was in a very dangerous situation as he was being attacked on all three sides, including the withered old palm.


    However, he did not panic at all. Master Yan Se had once described what Sage of Sword, Liu Bai had said, ¡°The sword may fly a dozen miles, but it is not as important as the foot of distance before you.¡± Ning Que, who had started cultivationte in life was like Ye Hongyu. He knew how to win in a battle against the seemingly powerful cultivators. He knew the meaning of a true battle.


    The podao¡¯s stroke had yet to end and could not return to Ning Que¡¯s front. Ning Que did not hesitate to release the hilt from his right hand as the two parts of the staff attacked him from back and front and the withered hand neared. His left hand reached out like a strike of lightning and batted away the staff that was approaching his abdomen. Then, he trampled forward and punched the person in the face.


    There were two resounding ps and Ning Que retreated. His right hand swung in the air and took hold of the podao that had not had the time to descend yet. Closely following that were another two resounding ps. The two parts of the metal staff had fallen on the ground. The person panted miserably, retreating with hands covering her face. Her hand had long been retracted.


    No matter how mysterious cultivation was, it still depended on humans to control it. Once his opponent had been attacked, how would they be able to use their cultivation powers?


    However, the battle was not over yet.


    The thick clothes outside the monastery windows suddenly floated up and fell in pieces. They were torn into several in flowers. Due to the thickness of the cloth, the petals of these flowers seemed rather thick. However, they felt suffocating and imposing. If these flowers covered one¡¯s face, it would be hard to breathe.


    The podao in Ning Que¡¯s right hand vibrated intensely in the air around him like several strikes of lightning. It cut the flowers into tatters without difficulty. Then, he turned and disappeared into the depths of the monastery.


    There was a Buddha statue deep inside the monastery. There was an incense pot, a bell, and two futons in front of it. A girl sat on one of the futons, her back facing the monastery doors. On the other futon, sat an old woman who was vomiting blood. She was the person who had tried to stealthily attack Ning Que with an iron staff but was punched by him instead.


    The de rushed through the air andnded softly on the neck of the girl. Ning Que looked at the girl¡¯s back emotionlessly and said, ¡°Ladies, long time no see.¡±


    The old woman pushed herself up from the ground and sat on the futon. She red at Ning Que venomously and said, ¡°If we had to meet again, why was it not in the underworld?¡±


    The old woman¡¯s face was full of wrinkles and her expression was menacing. Even though her re was venomous, deep in her eyes, one could vaguely see the desire for death. She was Aunt Quni Madi.


    The girl on the futon turned around. Her pale face was just as beautiful as it once was. However, her expression was indifferent and numb. Her hair was covered by a cap and she looked like a nun who was intent on cultivation. She was the Flower Addict, Lu Chenjia.


    In thete winter of the 16th year of Tianqi era, there was arge battle at Lanke Temple. The president of Commandment Yard of Xuankong Temple, Master Boshu died. Quni Madi was very upset and she was even more jaded by Daoshi¡¯s death. When she returned to Yuelun Kingdom, she asked to cultivate in the monastery at White Tower Temple and eventually grew indifferent.


    The Flower Addict, Lu Chenjia had experienced many things and felt hopeless. She gradually fell out of love and followed Aunt into this monastery and they lived in seclusion, practicing vegetarianism and reciting scripture in front of the Buddha statue.


    So, the two most famous and highly regarded women of Yuelun Kingdom left the mortal world. They cared naught of the secr world, and only sought for peace in the monastery. They lived peacefully for a year and did not interact with the world.


    They did not know that Ning Que and Sangsang were still alive, and did not know that the two had arrived at Chaoyang City. The two, who were indifferent to the world did not react at all to the ringing of the bells across the city. They only reacted when Ning Que came to the White Tower Temple and crossed the narrow bridge, killing the two Ascetic Monks.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t expect you to still be alive and toe to Yuelun.¡±


    Quni Madi wiped the blood off her lips and red at Ning Que venomously. She suddenly realized what was happening andughed madly. ¡°It seems like you and the Daughter of Yama have been constantly pursued. What a happy thing it is.¡±


    The Aunt who was highly regarded in the Buddhism Sect had lived cidly over the past year. She had not made any moves. However, hatred was the strongest force in the world. When she saw Ning Que, whom she hated the most, appearing before her, her face livened up, an intense hatred spreading across her features.


    Lu Chenjia had not expected Ning Que and Sangsang to still be alive either. She looked at Sangsang, who Ning Que was carrying on his back, and her expression, which was like petals in ice, flickered. The emotions in her eyes grewplicated, and she looked lost.


    Ning Que looked at the two and did not speak because there was no need for him to.


    The terrifying aura outside the Western city gates had made him turn back. He had nowhere to run since there were cultivation powerhouses from both the Buddhist and Taoist sect as well as residents of Chaoyang city actively pursuing them. That was why he had gone to the monastery to rest and wait for the change he had been waiting for. Quni Madi and Lu Chenjia were just his hostages.


    He had secretly studied the surroundings of the temple when they came to study Buddhism in winter. He had noticed some issues with the eyot in the back hall. While he could not get close to it, he noticed an ascetic monk with an iron staff frequenting the eyot. He had also seen the same monk back in the Wilderness and knew that he was Quni Madi and Lu Chenjia¡¯s guard. He observed them several times and was certain that both Quni Madi and Lu Chenjia were in the monastery.


    The ugly sounds of crows croaking rang outside the monastery. Ning Que took out two stiff leather ropes and bounded Quni Madi and Lu Chenjia. Then, he walked to the curtains and looked through the petal-shaped holes and saw the ck crows circling the air.


    At the end ofst autumn, when Ning Que and Sangsang moved into the courtyard, a ck crow had flown in. Itnded on a branch. Following that, a ck crow would fly in every day for the next ten days. It was very creepy and made one uneasy. However, nothing happened to the crows or to them, so he eventually forgot about it.


    However, who would have guessed that these ck crows would be his and Sangsang¡¯s greatest enemies? Back in Chaoyang City, if not for these ck crows, he might have been able to hide with Sangsang or even flee the city.


    Ning Que did not understand why the ck crows would appear in the courtyard and why they were still following him. It was highly possible that it was due to the aura of Yama on Sangsang. But if crows were a symbol of misfortune, then shouldn¡¯t they be helping Sangsang? Why would they use this way to reveal where Sangsang was?


    No matter the reason, Ning Que had to kill the ck crows. Otherwise, no matter how strong he was, he and Sangsang would die even if they could wait for the change to finallye. He had already wanted to kill the crows while they were fleeing but did not have the time or resources to do so.


    His right handnded on the window as he pried a piece of wood from it without exerting much strength. Then, he crumbled them into dozens of bits and used the Great Spirit to toss them at the ck crows in the sky.


    The light wood shards were imbued with the Great Spirit, bing strong pebbles. They flew across the air in an imposing matter. The ck crows did not have time to dodge and were struck. They crowed painfully as ck feathers fell and the crows fell toward the ground.


    Ning Que felt slightly more settled. However, what made him shocked and unease was that momentster, the ugly crowing of crows resonated around the monastery. The ck crows appeared in the skies under the clouds once more!


    Could the ck crows be unkible?


    More and more people gathered in the White Tower Temple. A crowd gathered on the edge of theke, and some people were even pushed in as more gathered. Several archers appeared on the narrow bridge with their bowstrings stretched. Hundreds of Buddhist disciples and dozens of divine guards watched the monastery on the eyot warily.


    Ning Que could see that there were hundreds of people on the shore from the monastery window. He knew that there were more people and that there were thousands, or even ten-thousand people behind. These people wanted to rush into the monastery and bite the flesh and blood off him and Sangsang. Then, they would burn them without even batting an eyelid.


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand, why would you be so stupid to hide here.¡± Quni Madi looked at his back with a menacing and sarcastic expression. She continued, with an ugly hoarse voice, ¡°Could it be that you were thinking of using us as hostages so that they would let the Daughter of Yama leave? You¡¯re too naive.¡±


    Ning Que did not turn around, but said, ¡°Your voice is so ugly, it sounds like the crows in the sky. If you wish to see how Sangsang and I will be torn into shreds by those people, then I suggest you keep your mouth shut now.¡±


    Quni Madi smiled happily. She wanted to see how Ning Que and Sangsang would die, so she chose to shut up.


    In the pce not far away from White Tower Temple.


    The king of Yuelun Kingdom looked at the man covered in blood before him who was lying on a stretcher. He waved his arm and said shrilly, ¡°Commander, do you understand what your decision means? My two closest rtives are in the monastery. If you want to attack them by force, they might die from it!¡±


    Commander Luo Kedi of the West-Hill Divine Pce divine guardsid on the stretcher weakly. His throat was covered by a thickyer of gauze and he could not speak at all. However, his eyes were still steeled and cold.


    Master Qi Mei stood beside the stretcher. He ced his hands together and bowed at the king and said, ¡°Your Majesty, please understand the current situation and why the Buddhist and Taoist sect would pay such a huge price for it. Since Ning Que had brought the Daughter of Yama into the deathtrap, we should make use of this opportunity.¡±


    Luo Kedi could not say anything, so he grunted from his nose.


    Qi Mei said softly, ¡°I don¡¯t think that anyone would refuse to sacrifice their life to save the world. The residents of Chaoyang City are all so brave, why would Aunt and Princess Chen Jia be afraid of death?¡±


    The king of Yuelun Kingdom¡¯s face dulled and he clenched his fists tightly. However, his eyes glowed with unease, and he seemed as if he was in an extreme struggle and hesitant. Yuelun Kingdom was a Buddhist country and was affected and even controlled by the Buddhism Sect. The West-Hill Divine Pce was no doubt the scariest existence there was. Both the Taoist and Buddhist Sect had both made their stance clear. No matter how insistent he was, he did not have the power to stop the terrifying incident from happening.


    The king of Yuelun Kingdom breathed in deeply and said softly, ¡°Since that is the case...¡±


    ¡°Why don¡¯t we wait a while more?¡±


    All was silent in the pce. Suddenly, someone said something.


    Nobody would have thought that this person would suddenly speak up to prevent the king from making a decision immediately. It wasn¡¯t the prime minister of Yuelun Kingdom, or the Queen who loved her daughter. It was the old priest in red. This man was one of the three priests in red who had left the pce earlier but had returned without anyone noticing.


    The priest in red said serenely, ¡°The Heavens love all life. Ning Que and... the Daughter of Yama have already entered the deathtrap, so why do we need to hurry?¡±


    Luo Kedi, who was lying on the stretcher, was enraged when he heard that. He pointed at the priest in red and trembled in anger. However, he could not say anything.


    The other two priests in red from West-Hill walked up and ignored Luo Kedi¡¯s suspicious gaze. They looked at the crowd and said expressionlessly, ¡°We agree. The Heavens love all lives.¡±


    Qi Mei¡¯s expression changed wildly. He did not understand why the priests from West-Hill Divine Pce would say that. The Heavens love all life? When had Haotian Taoism be so gentle andpassionate?


    The priests in red from West-Hill Divine Pce had rushed to the Peach Mountain several days earlier with the notice from the Hierarch Lord and Great Divine Priest of Revtion. As such, no one suspected them. It was said that the three priests in red were all versed in Divine Skill, and the West-Hill Divine Pce had sent them specially because they were worried that many civilians in Chaoyang City would be injured and die.


    Luo Kedi¡¯s pupils suddenly shrunk as he thought of a certain possibility. Qi Mei thought of it almost at the same time and he frowned slightly. He looked at the three priests in red and asked, ¡°Which Divine Hall are you from?¡±


    The leading priest in red said serenely, ¡°The Divine Hall of Light.¡±

 Chapter 630 - Relationships and Gossip

    <h4>Chapter 630: Rtionships and Gossip</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Inside the quiet pce, Master Qi Mei looked at the three elder priests in red silently. After a long while, he suddenly said, ¡°The Daughter of Yama is not the Daughter of Light.¡±


    The leading priest in red said softly, ¡°I wonder what the master means by saying that. We just feel that the Heavens love all life. Haotian would be willing to give her some time to reflect, even if she is the Daughter of Yama.¡±


    Master Qi Mei was the chief monk of the Xuankong Temple¡¯s Hall of Respect. He was from an Unknown ce, and in the mortal realm, he was considered the highest figure in the Buddhism Sect. He was of equal rank with the three Great Divine Priests of the West-Hill Divine Pce. However, this was still Haotian¡¯s world, and Haotian Taoism had a way higher status than the Buddism Sect. The three priests in red cultivated in the West-Hill Divine Skill, and were important people in the Divine Hall. Even Master Qi Mei would find it hard to keep them down.


    ¡°Can your words represent the stance of the West-Hill Divine Pce?¡± asked Master Qi Mei.


    The elder priest in red said ndly, ¡°Why not?¡±


    Ye Hongyu, the Divine Priest of Judgment, was not in Chaoyang City. Those from the Judicial Department were still on their way to Chaoyang City. Several honored visiting professors of Haotian Taoism were setting up defenses in the distant mountains. Right now, within the Yuelun Kingdom pce, the three priests in red held the highest position in Haotian Taoism. What they said could certainly represent the Divine Hall.


    The only person who held a higher position than the priest in red was Luo Kedi. He was lying on a stretcher, heavily injured. The confusion that had previously colored his eyes were long reced with coldness. However, he could not speak nor stop the three priests in red.


    Other than the Tang Empire, the other countries were all controlled by the Buddhist and Taoist sects. While the Yuelun Kingdom was powerful by itself, when pressured by both the Buddhist and the Taoist Sects earlier, it didn¡¯t have a choice at all. When the king saw that the attitude of Haotian Taoism seemed to have changed, he felt slightly more at ease and said, ¡°Then let¡¯s wait for a while.¡±


    Master Qi Mei gave a deep look at the three priests in red, and then turned to walk out of the pce. He had already vaguely guessed that the matter involved an internal dissent within the West-Hill Divine Pce. As a master of the Buddhism Sect, he did not wish to involve himself in the strife. Since the chief monk would arrive soon, he believed that the three priests in red could not affect the overall situation.


    ...


    ...


    On a certain balcony in the pce, a priest in red looked at the crowd gathered at the White Tower Temple in the distance, and said mournfully, ¡°The Divine Hall of Light had been declining since the Great Divine Priest was imprisoned. We can¡¯t even find a Grand Cultivator in the Knowing Destiny State. What can we change, faced with the current circumstances?¡±


    Another priest in red said dejectedly, ¡°What we said earlier had already gone against the Hierarch¡¯s edit, even if we don¡¯t do anythingter. We would be locked up in You Prison when we return to Peach Mountain, never to see Haotian again.¡±


    The leading priest in red said coldly, ¡°The Divine Priest of Light was ambushed back then, and was locked up in the You Prison without cause. The Divine Hall of Light suffered for ten years until the Great Divine Priest found his sessor in Chang¡¯an. The Lady of Light finally appeared again, but the Hierarch and the other two Divine Halls are colluding with the Buddhism Sect and framed her as the Daughter of Yama. In face of this situation, how can we do nothing?¡±


    ¡°Senior Brother. What are we going to do... if ourdy is really the Daughter of Yama?¡±


    ¡°The light can never be wrong because it represents Haotian. The path ourdy has to take to get back to her throne is paved with bloodshed and plots. It would be difficult for the Divine Hall of Light to shine with light again. I suppose this is Haotian¡¯s test for us.¡±


    The leading priest in red looked at the masses at the White Tower Temple in the distance. Excitement and passion spread on his aged face as he said, ¡°I gave away all the wealth I umted over decades in the Kingdom of Qi to get this chance toe to Yuelun Kingdom. Thus, I will save the Lady of Light even if I have to die here today!¡±


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que¡¯sst resort was to enter the White Tower Temple, barge into the monastery and hold Quni Madi and Lu Chenjia as hostages. However, it was also the n he did not wish to use most among all his backup ns. Just as how Quni Madi and the bigwigs at the pce had seen, this act was like putting himself into a deathtrap.


    However, he needed to buy some time to rest and wait. He was exhausted, and his right hand trembled as it held on to his hilt. He was injured, both externally and internally. The truly serious injuries were caused when he fought outside the courtyard with Luo Kedi and Master Qi Mei. While he was hurting from the injuries he sustained on the streets while on the run, they were not serious. However, Ning Que was extremely terrified when he thought of what had happened on the streets.


    All was silent in the monastery. One could hear the shouts, yelling, and even crying from across theke. Quni Madi did not speak. Lu Chenjia suddenly asked, ¡°Have you kept her by your side over the past year?¡±


    Ning Que nodded.


    Lu Chenjia shook her head as if she had found his reply hard to believe. She looked at the white paper flower between her fingers and said dazedly, ¡°Is there really anyone in the world who is not afraid of death?¡±


    ¡°Those who are unafraid of death haven¡¯t been born yet.¡±


    Ning Que walked over from the window, picked up a futon and sat down to take a rest.


    Those who were on the shore across theke had not rushed across the narrow bridge. It meant that the two hostages he had taken were useful. He had to make use of this time to recover his Psyche Power and regain his strength.


    Sangsang stretched out her legs and ced them on his knees. Then, she hugged him from behind, cing her face against his neck. She shut her eyes tiredly and began to rest.


    Ning Que had not put Sangsang down from his back whether they were running, standing, or sitting. Even though he needed a rest badly right now, he did not let her go because he did not know what would happen the next moment and whether they needed to start running again.


    Lu Chenjia looked at the scene before her and shook her head. She said softly, ¡°Most people are indeed foolish when they fall in love.¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Even though you are the Flower Addict, it doesn¡¯t mean that you know what it means to be in love. You do not even know what love is.¡±


    Lu Chenjia looked at him and asked seriously, ¡°What is love?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°If it could be exined clearly, then it wouldn¡¯t be love.¡±


    Lu Chenjia frowned slightly, unwilling to believe that someone so shameless like Ning Que would do so much for Sangsang. She said, ¡°I don¡¯t think the reason why you have fled with the Daughter of Yama was to get some benefits from it.¡±


    Ning Que nced at her and asked, ¡°Why do you like flowers? Do they look good, or do they bring you any benefits?¡±


    Lu Chenjia understood what he meant and shook her head. She said, ¡°Plum blossom shoots are ugly, but they have spirits. That is why I like them. I understand what you mean. But she...is an evil flower.¡±


    ¡°Is Long Qing an evil flower?¡±


    Ning Que said mockingly, ¡°When I barged into the monastery, you didn¡¯t attack me. You must have thought of those novels, in which the female protagonist would cultivate in a monastery and maybe be a nun anytime after shaving her hair. Then, the male protagonist would barge in regardless of any trials and tribtions he experienced...You thought that Long Qing would save you. I¡¯m sorry to have disappointed you.¡±


    Lu Chenjia lowered her head to look at the paper flower between her fingers. She said calmly, ¡°Long Qing used to be the only bloomed flower in my heart. But he¡¯s dead now, so the flower also became withered.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve heard that he lives well in the Wilderness.¡±


    ¡°As you said before, he has already be an evil flower. So he is dead in my heart.¡±


    ¡°Even though I don¡¯t know what happened exactly, I¡¯ve seen the result of that battle on the Wilderness in winter. Maybe Long Qing hase to an agreement with the West-Hill Divine Pce. He is no longer a traitor of Haotian, so do you still think that he is an evil flower?¡±


    Lu Chenjia looked up with shock. Her eyes shone brightly before dimming.


    Ning Que looked at her and smiled, ¡°He is still that evil flower, but he might have regained his honor and reputation. So you feel delighted and will even have a crush on him again?¡±


    Lu Chenjia looked at his annoying smiling face. Then, she said with a slightly trembling voice, ¡°You¡¯re saying these just to mock me.¡±


    ¡°What I hate most in my entire life are those who want to die or be monks and nuns once they lose their lovers. These people are full of regret and self-loathing, truly beyond disgusting...¡±


    The string of words made Ning Que¡¯s throat feel parched. He reached out for the teapot and drank something in it, only to discover that there was clear water in it. He couldn¡¯t help but frown, and increasingly believed that he was right.


    ¡°And I want to tell you that my love is different from yours. Mine might not seem as sad or difficult as yours, but it is calmer and stronger because my love has nothing to do with good and evil.¡±


    Lu Chenjia paused for a moment and asked, ¡°How can one¡¯s love have nothing to do with good and evil?¡±


    ¡°Because love is subjective, just like good and evil, beauty and ugliness. In fact, the world is subjective. Why should my views be affected by that of the world?¡±


    Ning Que turned to look at Sangsang who was resting against his shoulders. He looked at her tiny face and said softly, ¡°I don¡¯t like Haotian or Yama. But no matter whether she is the Lady of Light or the Daughter of Yama, it would not affect my affection for her. Just like how she continued to like me even when everyone said that I was the Son of Yama.¡±


    Quni Madi could not hold back any longer. She scolded shrilly, ¡°Shameless! Nauseating! Filth!¡±


    Lu Chenjia looked at Sangsang and muttered, ¡°I¡¯m... really jealous of her right now.¡±


    Quni Madi red at her, but there was no reaction from Lu Chenjia who was in a daze. Knowing that she was lost in thought, Quni Madi could only sigh helplessly and looked at Ning Que with a cold smile. ¡°You and the Daughter of Yama are about to die, but you are still in the mood to talk about such boring and despicable things.¡±


    ¡°Why do you say that love is despicable? You¡¯ve even had a son.¡± Ning Que said, and then looked out into the garden. ¡°The scenery here is decent. No one would dare toe in now. What else could we do except for chatting?¡±


    Quni Madi was furious.


    Ning Que ignored her and thought about other things silently.


    He knew that Quni Madi was right. The monastery was located on an eyot and they were surrounded. This was the equivalent to a deathtrap. Quni Madi and Lu Chenjia might be of high status, but the residents and the king of the Yuelun Kingdom would not agree to exchange their lives for Sangsang¡¯s, let alone powerhouses of the Buddhism and Taoism Sects.


    His choice to enter the monastery to buy time was simr to his decision at the Lanke Temple. At a time when he was at death¡¯s doorstep, he had subconsciously pinned all his hopes on the Academy.


    He was waiting for Eldest Brother to appear.


    What happened had caused a furor in Chaoyang City and would likely startle his Eldest Brother. Eldest Brother would be able to guess his location. Since the White Tower Temple was so famous, Eldest Brother would definitely know it.


    ...


    ...


    Time gradually passed, but the noises on the bank across theke had not stilled. ck crows flew over the monastery, cawing uglily at times. The atmosphere grew even more tense.


    Eldest Brother had not appeared. When they were outside the Western city gates, Ning Que had sensed an aura that was replete withpassion, but was suffocatingly powerful, which had appeared in the distance.


    Ning Que¡¯s expression turned grave. He knew that he could not hold on any longer. If the owner of the aura reached him, there was no way for him to turn the situation around, even if Eldest Brother appeared.


    He walked to Quni Madi and Lu Chenjia. Using two talisman paper infused with the Great Spirit, he locked their Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi temporarily. Then, he tied up their hands and led them out of the monastery like goats.


    Quni Madi felt very humiliated. She red venomously at Sangsang, who Ning Que was carrying. It seemed that Lu Chenjia was still immersed in what Ning Que had said earlier and did not react to it at all, with a disoriented expression.


    The shore across the narrow bridge was surrounded with people. The crowd wasrgely made up of jobless men from Chaoyang City, old and young, who were all yelling angrily at the eyot.


    They were angry because they were frightened. The news of Ning Que having knocked down and killed someone while escaping had spread amongst people. They were even more frightened and enraged. They were almost crazy with their emotions spreading and affecting each other.


    If not for the orders that came from the imperial pce, to send several soldiers and cultivators to block the narrow bridge, these people would have already rushed across it and barged into the monastery.


    ¡°Bring the demoness!¡±


    ¡°Burn her!¡±


    Several people yelled from across the bridge. Some men even foundrge rocks by theke and wanted to stone Sangsang to death, just like how the barbarians in the Wilderness punished adulteresses.


    Then, Ning Que appeared on the other end of the narrow bridge with Sangsang on his back.


    Many of those in the crowd across theke had followed the ck crows. They had never seen what the Daughter of Yama looked like. And even those who had seen Ning Que and Sangsang had not seen them clearly. They finally saw what the two looked like when Ning Que carried Sangsang on his back and stood on the end of the bridge.


    Theke fell into silence immediately, and the man who had been yelling the most ferociously was so scared that he retreated several steps, pressing against the people behind him. The scene became chaotic.


    Whispers gradually began to sound in the crowd. Perhaps it was to alleviate fear, and people gathered close to each other, whether knowing each other or not, and began to discuss the two across the bridge.


    ¡°So that¡¯s the Daughter of Yama.¡±


    ¡°Her face is a little tanned, and she looks like a demon.¡±


    ¡°But I think she looks quite pale.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s because it¡¯s powdered. My eyesight is good, she is very tanned and ugly.¡±


    ¡°Who is it they are dragging along? Why does she look like the princess?¡±


    ¡°Who is the man carrying the demoness? He looks scary.¡±


    ¡°I heard that he is a guard from the Underworld. He is very very strong. Previously at Huayan alley, he knocked down over 70 people to death.¡±


    ¡°He knocked them all down?¡±


    ¡°Yeah.¡±


    ¡°Over 70?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, I heard that he even trampled over 100 people to death at the Jingang Workshop.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s so scary! We¡¯d better leave quickly.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re so useless! There are over 10,000 of us. No matter how powerful he is, could he kill us all? How can we leave at a moment like this? We have to seek revenge for our neighbors. Furthermore, don¡¯t forget, we are saving the world!¡±

 Chapter 631 - Across the Lake is a World of Bloodshed

    <h4>Chapter 631: Across the Lake is a World of Bloodshed</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Debates across theke grew steadily louder. Ning Que and Sangsang could hear them clearly. After a moment of silence, he took a step onto the Narrow Bridge and walked to the opposite shore. Quni Madi and Lu Chenjia were forced to follow him.


    As he walked on the Narrow Bridge, the conversations of those on the shore stopped once more, and all was silent again. Those who were standing at the end of the bridge became flustered and backed away. Some of them even fell down and were almost being trampled.


    Someone in the crowd yelled loudly, and the scolding and cursing rang in the air once more. Those who had retreated earlier rushed to the end of the bridge once more. Furthermore, probably due to their embarrassment of silence and retreating earlier, they cursed even more uncouthly, speaking all kinds of cruel methods they¡¯d use to kill the two. Those who have rushed to the bridge again were even more agitated and flushed. They almost broke through the barrier formed by the soldiers and cultivators of the Yuelun Kingdom.


    The foulnguage and intimidation continued to enter Ning Que¡¯s ears, but he ignored them and looked into the distance to the southwest of the White Tower Temple. He felt how the powerful aura that terrified him was approaching. The aura did not move fast from the western gates to the temple. But as long as it moved, it would eventually reach them.


    Sangsang clutched the handle of the big ck umbre tightly, her face was growing paler. After a silent moment of perceiving, she received the location and the speed of the aura.


    Ning Que¡¯s expression froze as he knew that he did not have much time left. He looked at the crowd that grew nearer and thought that the passionate residents had all gathered at White Tower Temple. Then as long as he could get past these people, he and Sangsang would have a chance to escape Chaoyang City. However, looking at the crowd, he could not even count how many people there were. Would it be easy to barge through the crowd?


    Master Qi Mei appeared in front of the Narrow Bridge.


    ¡°Have the crowd disperse. I will fight with you.¡±


    Ning Que looked into the eyes of the high monk from the Xuankong Temple, ignoring the ire of the surrounding crowd. He said calmly, ¡°If you think that I¡¯m asking too much, you can get the cultivators from both Buddhism and Taoism sects to attack me.¡±


    Master Qi Mei said, ¡°You know that the crowd cannot disperse now. If you insist on fighting with the Buddhism and Taoism sects here, then many people will die.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°If you do not want to see people¡¯s blood flowing like a river in Chaoyang city today, then let us leave. The crowd might not listen to your orders, but the cultivators and soldiers will.¡±


    Ning Que was not even trying to probe, but had just said that casually. He had never thought that if Master Qi Mei would agree with it. However, unexpectedly, Master Qi Mei agreed without hesitation. He waved his hand, signaling to the archers on the end of the bridge to back off. The West-Hill Divine Guards and dozens of monks made way for him.


    Only the crowd made up of ordinary people were stopping Ning Que. They were regr folks who were looking at him with different expressions. They were fearful and uneasy, angry and hostile.


    ¡°Even if we make way for you, can you leave?¡± Master Qi Mei asked calmly.


    Ning Que was silent, and he understood the intentions of the Buddhism Sect. Then, he noticed acutely that a monk had entered the crowd silently. Then, there was a sudden fuss and agitation with angry cries.


    The energy of the crowd earlier was like the sea¡¯s surface, rocking softly, with the asional waves appearing from the sea pping across reefs. However, the sea was in the midst of a storm, culminating in a disaster right now.


    ¡°Kill the Daughter of Yama!¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t let them go!¡±


    The yells of the crowd grew louder and more organized, which was increasingly powerful. The atmosphere grew more and more chaotic, like a house that had its beams cut down, and could copse at any moment.


    Master Qi Mei chanted the name of Buddha. He calmly said, ¡°Look, it is not us who won¡¯t let you go. It¡¯s the crowd.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the middle-aged monk and said, ¡°Indeed, the Second Brother¡¯s assessment of the Buddhism Sect was right.¡±


    Master Qi Mei extremely wanted to know how the proud Jun Mo of the Academy thought of the Buddhism Sect. He asked, ¡°What did Mr. Second say?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Second Brother said that all monks should die.¡±


    Master Qi Mei was enraged. Then, he heard the yelling of those around him. He looked at the passionate crowd shame-facedly. Then, he ced his palms together and did not speak again.


    Ning Que carried Sangsang across the Narrow Bridge. They finally arrived at thend across theke.


    There was a mass of people in front of him, and he could not see the end of the sea of humans. Everyone red at them with enmity and they yelled angrily, with shovels or rocks in their hands.


    Ning Que saw several faces. There were old men with faces full of wrinkles, children who looked extremely young, women with powdered faces and men with meaty features. They were all human faces.


    These people were terrified, or angry, or using anger to hide their fear, or using the anger to vent their dissatisfaction with the world. No matter what kind of emotions they had, they were all human, because these people were ordinary human beings.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que said, ¡°You are the princess of the Yuelun Kingdom. Get them to make way.¡±


    Lu Chenjia did not speak. Quni Madi remained silent as well.


    Ning Que said, ¡°You guys are not ordinary folks and would not be like mad men just based on a few words from the Buddhism and Taoism Sects. I do not believe that you would die for the world.¡±


    Lu Chenjia said, ¡°My heart is already dead. I have enjoyed the offerings of the world for many years, but have never repaid them. If the world can continue to exist only through Sangsang¡¯s death, then at least I shouldn¡¯t hurt them.¡±


    Quni Madi said coldly, ¡°I don¡¯t care what happens to the world. I don¡¯t care about death as long as you die.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head after hearing this. Then, he took a few steps forward.


    The crowd backed up frantically.


    The chanting of a monk sounded from the crowd. The people looked around and discovered that it was the Reincarnation Scriptures they have studied since they were children. They picked up the chant subconsciously.


    Their soft voices reverberated in the White Tower Temple. The voices grew more and more tidy and strong. The chiming of a bell suddenly joined, and all was calm yet with majesty.


    Dozens of monks chanted the name of Buddha, showingpassionate and majestic looks.


    Ning Que knew that he must stop this. The residents of Chaoyang City were all believers of the Buddhism Sect. Once they were riled up, or perhaps hypnotized by the chanting, it would be troublesome for him.


    He looked up at the dark cloud above Chaoyang City and at the annoying circling ck crows. He looked down at the ground his feet were nted on and saw a few ants crawling through the cracks in the mud. Then, he looked up at the approaching crowd and slowly grasped his hilt with his right hand.


    With a nging sound, he unsheathed his podao.


    A man suddenly jumped on him, and then fell to the ground with his arm waving in the air and his blood gushing wildly, groaning miserably. A pious old woman wed at Ning Que¡¯s face, and her arms suddenly broke.


    An agitated student tried to hit Sangsang who was on Ning Que¡¯s back with a wooden rod. The wooden rod broke mysteriously, then the student was tearing into two parts from the waist and abdomen.


    Ning Que carried Sangsang and walked into the crowd. He was stained with dark red blood, but his expression had not changed. He was just as calm as before, and his steps were just as steady.


    He walked past the man who was howling in a puddle of blood, clutching at his broken arm. He walked past the pious old woman who was kneeling in a puddle of blood, pale-faced, looking at her broken arms. He walked past the student who was writhing in pain in a pool of blood...


    He was walking on the shore across theke, a world filled with blood.

 Chapter 632 - The Killing Stone

    <h4>Chapter 632: The Killing Stone</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The crowd screamed in horror and retreated back. Angry shouts were hurled forward. Ning Que waved the sword in his hands. So long as anybody dared to stand in front of him and Sangsang, he would hack at them.


    The blood that had spurted over the floor of theke grew. Miserable and painful screams sounded everywhere as limbs were chopped and guts were syed. The image was incredibly brutal and cruel.


    The Buddhism Sect had attempted to turn amoner¡¯s life into a heavy iron chain, locking Ning Que directly within the White Tower Temple to die. However, they didn¡¯t know that Ning Que wasn¡¯t the disciple of the Academy that they had imagined. He wasn¡¯t the Eldest Brother nor was he the Second Brother. When needed, he wasn¡¯t afraid to kill anybody.


    Looking at this horrifying scene, the ascetic monk could no longer hold it back as he charged towards Ning Que with his staff. Ning Que weed it with his sword as his left leg silently kicked out from his garment, hitting squarely on the monk¡¯s chest. He was kicked deep into the crowd as Ning Que shouted and chopped down.


    Under the sharp des were the hands of Master Qi Mei.


    A golden light emerged from the 7 fingers before suddenly disappearing. The intense power from the mortal Buddha and the boundless Great Spirit within Ning Que¡¯s body met again. A strong wind surged at thekeside as the aura of the heaven and earth was disturbed. Everyone around was knocked off their feet like grass.


    A line was traced on the dirt at the bottom of their shoes. Ning Que was shaken several feet behind, returning to where he had started brandishing his sword. Master Qi Mei¡¯s body swayed slightly as he retreated half a step, his face pale.


    It seemed like the monks of the Buddhism Sect would indeed fall into a hypocritical world at the end of the day. Ning Que wiped away the blood at his lips as he looked quietly at Qi Mei from a distance. He thought in his heart, ¡°Since you have pushed me into the shura realm, you all shouldn¡¯t be attacking now.¡±


    At this moment, he noticed from his peripheral vision that the West-Hill Divine Guard had retreated into the surroundings of the crowd. They weren¡¯t like the monks who were angrily staring at him from within the crowd.


    The chanting of the name of Buddha sounded as Master Qi Mei looked at Ning Que who was drenched in blood. Looking at the podao in his hands that have killed dozens of people, he said, ¡®I didn¡¯t expect you to really use the knife.¡±


    Ning Que pointed at the corpse with his knife and said, ¡°You should know clearly that you killed these people. From the moment you asked them to disperse, everyone here who is dead was killed by you.¡±


    He had been thrown back to where he first brandished his knife. The student that had been cut into half by him was still alive as heid in the pool of blood moaning. Writhing half of his body, he was in a miserable rotting state.


    Quni Madi and Lu Chenjia had both their hands tied with the ropes. They stood behind Ning Que and took in the bloody sight, their faces exceptionally pale. Lu Chenjia¡¯s face, in particr, was as white as snow, looking at the body of the student that was only left with the upper half, her legs felt weak as she said, ¡°Show him mercy.¡±


    Ning Que stared silently at Master Qi Mei. His hands held the podao steadily as if he didn¡¯t hear her words, or rather, he pretended not to have heard them.


    Lu Chenjia stared at his back angrily and shouted, ¡°He is going to die anyway. Why are you still making him suffer before he dies?¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t give the student that was suffering another strike as he knew clearly that to control the frenzied crowd, killing was no longer enough. This was because death was sometimes akin to taking a deep sleep. Before a corpse could rot, it couldn¡¯t bring about the greatest terror to humans. At this moment, only extreme pain and blood was able to bring about an intense enough effect and lesser people will die today.


    Quni Madi looked at his side profile and scolded, ¡°You are indeed a beast!¡±


    Thekeside gradually quietened down. The moaning of the student was still as clear and as people stared at the broken limbs and blood on the floor, they started vomiting. Another woman¡¯s cries rang out.


    Ning Que¡¯s bloody and cruel actions had achieved the effect he wanted. The crowd was subdued, especially the hundreds of people at the front. Their faces were pale and they wanted to retreat back subconsciously.


    ¡°I understand why you all are willing to die and why you want to kill us. To you all, we are the murderer¡¯s who let the world be destroyed. And if you all want to live, we have to die.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the crowd and said, ¡°But you all must be clear that if we are stopped from leaving today, your world will be destroyed today, you all will die today.¡±


    He then looked at Qi Mei and said, ¡°Earlier on, we fought and killed four people. You should be clearer than me that if we were to fight a huge battle, how many people would die. Hence, like I have said earlier, if you try and stop meter, the thousands of lives lost are your sins, not mine.¡±


    With that, he carried Sangsang and pushed forward with his knife.


    Seeing him walking over, the people at the front of the crowd screamed and retreated. Their faces were filled with terror and there was no longer any streak of courage within them. The crowd in the rear was immediately thrown into chaos.


    Ning Que was covered in blood and was like a heavy rock that had fallen into a pond with a ssh that had parted the water. A space of around several square feet was formed.


    However, there were at least tens of thousands of people in the White Tower Temple. The crowd wasn¡¯t a pond but rather, a sea. Besides the people at the front, most of them didn¡¯t see what happened on the Narrow Bridge, they didn¡¯t see the bloody images. The people at the back were still charging forward furiously. The waves of people that were retreating from the front of the Narrow Bridge were immediately pushed forward again, forming a higher wave.


    Humans were strange creatures. They grew afraid because they could see, and they were unafraid if they had not seen. No matter how weak one was, with enough power, they will feel strong. The weak will be courageous and finally be a terrifying flood.


    The crowd rushed to the front of Ning Que and blocked the road ahead.


    Ning Que waved his knife again as fresh blood continued to spray.


    Crying, shouting and swearing rang off thekeside.


    Ning Que killed the people in front of him while the rest wanted to retreat but were pushed to the front by the people at the back. When someone formed a path, countless brave souls from the crowd at the back would fill it.


    Teacher was right. Once a crowd congregated, it possessed the most terrifying power. As there were too many, he couldn¡¯t kill all of them. His knifended and hacked an honest looking middle-aged man.


    He then swept his de across and shed open the chest of another monk. He then took another step forward and thought to himself that even if he used the talismans and arrows, he wouldn¡¯t be able to kill all of them.


    Even if he could, Teacher and Eldest Brother wouldn¡¯t agree.


    This thought suddenly shed across his mind but was instantly wiped away by him forcibly. If he were to die with Sangsang, Teacher and Eldest brother would need to kill even if they didn¡¯t agree. As he thought about it, his wrists vibrated slightly as he swiped his de up and knock away an old woman who couldn¡¯t even walk.


    Along the way, he didn¡¯t know how many times he shed his knife and how many people he killed. Sangsang and his body were long drenched in blood but there was still arge crowd in front of him. He couldn¡¯t see the exit.


    He took a deep breath and continued waving his arms, shing at anything that stood in his way. Whether it was human or reason, at the end of it, he became somewhat automated and numb.


    Looking at the incredulous expressions and the bloodied faces, he understood something that many have said: No matter how strong a cultivator was, it was hard for a single person to take on the entire world.


    Because humans¡¯ emotions could not be connected, their fear could not be connected. One couldn¡¯t use one¡¯s powers to subdue everyone. Hence, if one wanted to take on the world, one would need to kill enough people.


    Ning Que had been killing people since young. Especially after going to the City of Wei, he had killed many horse gang from the Shubi Lake. Just by looking at his experience of killing people, there weren¡¯t many others in the world who couldpete against him. Even Ye Hongyu didn¡¯t have the right to bepared with him. Hence, he was very clear that killing was a very tiring thing.


    Even if one had a heart that was as immovable as a rock, as bone-chilling as the ck jade from the South Sea and wouldn¡¯t be moved by the bloodiness and death, one¡¯s body would turn weary at the end of the day.


    One¡¯s psyche powers will be used up. The talisman paper will be used up, the arrows will be used up. The knife will turn blunt and even if it doesn¡¯t, it takes strength with every swing of it. Most importantly, even though the recoil is small when the dends on human¡¯s skin and bones, there wille a time when it hurts as it umtes.


    At this moment, the sharp de of the podao had cut open many bones and the friction had caused heat to be exuded. The bloodied water on it was giving off a faint mist. Ning Que kept it into the sheath and started swinging with the sheath on.


    Turning the sheath into an iron rod, he swept aside anyone blocking his way. Even though it was slower than hacking, it had unexpected results. Some of the people were hit into the air by it and fell back into the crowd. The crowd at the back became more chaotic and some of them even begin to trample each other.


    A kid was squeezed out by the crowd andnded in the empty space in front of Ning Que. He sat in the pool of blood and cried. He was about 7,8 years old and from the way he sat, it seemed like his legs were trampled by the crowd.


    The sheath that Ning Que held in his hands fell from the sky andnded on the boy¡¯s head. Everything was quiet.


    The crowd at the back was still noisy and chaotic and shouting continued. However, those nearby had quietened down subconsciously, staring at this image anxiously. They were waiting in shock for the bloody thing to appear.


    Ning Que looked at the boy, he was expressionless as he waved the sheath gently and pushed him aside.


    Sangsang rested on his shoulders, she was pale and weak. Looking at the boy crying on the floor in pain, she squeezed out a smile and said, ¡°Quick, let¡¯s go home.¡±


    The boy sobbed and used his palms to help himself up before limping to the corner to hide. At this moment, he saw Sangsang¡¯s face and remembered that she was the daughter of Yama. The whole winter, his grandmother had threatened him with this devil. He couldn¡¯t help it as he screamed and subconsciously threw a stone in his hand towards that face.


    At this moment, Ning Que was shoving aside a monk with the sheath and hadn¡¯t noticed.


    Sangsang was strapped to his back and even if she saw it, she couldn¡¯t escape.


    With a smack, the rock struck her forehead and fresh blood flowed down slowly.

 Chapter 633 - Dont Kill

    <h4>Chapter 633: Don¡¯t Kill</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    A wound appeared on Sangsang¡¯s forehead as fresh blood slowly flowed. Perhaps it was because her face was too pale but the blood didn¡¯t seem pure red but rather, ck.


    She looked at the little boy with a confused look. She couldn¡¯t understand why he would use a rock to hit her. When she understood, her expression turned dark. She was a little sad but kept silent.


    Lu Chenjia saw this clearly and for some reason, she felt a sense ofpassion in her heart. On the other hand, Quni Madi gave a coldugh and didn¡¯t hide the joy in herughter.


    Sangsang was in pain and was sad but she didn¡¯t say anything. She onlyid silently on Ning Que¡¯s shoulders as she didn¡¯t want him to be affected by this. She knew he wasn¡¯t having an easy time either.


    However, how could Ning Que not know that she was hit by a rock? He turned sideways to look at the little boy. Holding the sheath in his left hand, he started taking the podao out from it.


    Quni Madi gave a cold smile and said gruffly, ¡°Ning Que, you are extremely cold-blooded!¡±


    Lu Chenjia¡¯s expression changed as she pleaded for the little boy, ¡°He is only a child...¡±


    Ning Que seemed as though he didn¡¯t hear their words. The podao was already half out of its sheath. He looked at the little boy whose bloodied face didn¡¯t show any expression. This made him looked scarier.


    The little boy gave another wail as he cried again.


    Among the crowd, Master Qimei looked at Ning Que with a little regret as he said in a low voice, ¡°Mr Thirteen, whatever happened around the White Tower Temple today is the Buddhism Sect¡¯s fault. I will take responsibility for everything, please be merciful.¡±


    At this moment, the little boy was beside Ning Que. So long as he swiped with his knife, the little boy would certainly die. Although Qi Mei was a powerful monk in Xuankong temple, he would not be able to stop it.


    Ning Que was forced into desperation today. after escaping to here and killing countless people, he was filled with blood and his heart was numb to everything. Even Headmaster and Eldest Brother couldn¡¯t stop him from hacking the little boy, much less themon people.


    In this entire world, under such circumstances, there was only one person who could stop him.


    Sangsang rested against his shoulders and shook her head before saying wearily, ¡°Don¡¯t¡±


    The hand that Ning Que used to hold the hilt of the knife trembled slightly.


    Many years ago when they were deep in Min Mountain, they killed grandpa together. Just as they were about to leave the hunting house, Sangsang who was still a small girl then, released two blue sheep that were precious food to them back then.


    The story then seemed to be happening again today.


    Ning Que kept his knife back into the sheath and use the tip of it to pick the little boy who was still crying to the back of the crowd.


    There were many bodies lying by thekeside and many more severely injured people who were groaning miserably in the pool of blood.


    Ning Que looked at the temple wall from afar and realized he had killed so many people. He had only walked ten over feet and there was still a long way before he could leave. He needed to kill many more people.


    He suddenly realized he was a little tired as he lowered his head.


    Sangsang used her fingers to grab his cuffs and used his sleeve to gently wipe the blood off his face.


    Ning Que raised his head and released the rope that was tied to his hand before continuing forward.


    Quni Madi and Lu Chenjia allowed him to go for some reason as they stayed where they were.


    Something strange happened at this moment.


    As Ning Que walked forward, the people blocking him started splitting and became quiet. Their quietness spread even faster than fear as the bawling at the back slowly stopped.


    Even the monks from the Buddhism Sect turned quiet and stopped chanting the name of Buddha and reciting scriptures.


    The violent crowd in the White Tower Temple slowly quietened down.


    No one could understand what was causing the quietness. Ning Que couldn¡¯t, Master Qi Mei couldn¡¯t, Quni Madi couldn¡¯t too. If Haotian was looking over the human world, he probably would not understand either.


    Because of fear, there was anger. Ning Que was tired now and the people¡¯s fear seemed to have reduced. Hence they weren¡¯t as angry as before? Or perhaps he had killed enough people to subdue the crowd?


    Or perhaps because he was always killing, hence the people wanted to kill him. Now that he stopped killing, the people weren¡¯t willing to risk their lives to charge at him and kill him?


    Ning Que walked over from the pool of blood and use his peripheral vision to see the faces of the dead and wounded. He then lifted his head and looked at the countless faces in the crowd.


    These faces were very normal and if they were someone in the streets of Chaoyang City, they couldn¡¯t be recognized. However, there were joy and sorrow on those many faces, they all had stories and for many of them, it ended here today.


    The crowd slowly separated in front of him, like the parting of the sea.


    Ning Que carried Sangsang and walked wearily through the crowd. The bloodied water didn¡¯t stop dripping down from his hair. The blood had long clotted and were sticking to part of his hair, making him look incredibly sloppy.


    Looking at him and the daughter of Yama on his back, the people had aplicated expression on their faces. Most of them were of horror, half of them were d and some still had anger in them. But whatever different emotions they had, they all looked at Ning Que the same way.


    It was a look one had when they saw a different species. In their eyes, Ning Que who was covered in blood, was a devil. He was the protector of the Underworld and a cold beast. In other words, he wasn¡¯t human.


    It was silent throughout the entire White Tower Temple and only Ning Que¡¯s footsteps could be heard. Countless people stared silently at him, their hands were holding onto iron shovels and bricks. Their eyes were filled with hatred and anger and their bodies that slightly bent backward showed their extreme fear. With all of thesebined, they formed an absolute indifference.


    The crowd split like the sea and it wasn¡¯t one of most weing as it was to send him far away. Just like the herd of sheep in the Wilderness, they were sending off a sheep that would hurt other sheep and eventually turn into an evil wolf away from their herd.


    This was probably how it felt to be abandoned by the entire world. Ning Que wiped his hands that were full of blood on his clothes before stretching it to his shoulder and lightly patted Sangsang¡¯s face.


    That powerful aura was nearing.


    Ning Que fastened his pace. ording to Sangsang¡¯s earlier calctions, he could still make it on time so long as the people ahead no longer attacked him. Moreover, Master Qi Mei already showed no intentions of attacking.


    Quni Madi looked at the figure in front going further and further away as her body trembled intensely all of a sudden. The expression of hatred on her face got stronger, even a little crazy.


    She was different from Master Qi Mei and the people here. She had never cared that Sangsang was the daughter of Yama. She only wanted Ning Que to die and to revenge for her man and her son.


    The talisman that Ning Que had pped onto her body at the monastery had slowly dissipated and her Psyche Power and cultivation had returned to her body. She gave a loud shout as she swept forward all of a sudden, pping Sangsang who was on Ning Que¡¯s back!

 Chapter 634 - The Chief Preaching Monk

    <h4>Chapter 634: The Chief Preaching Monk</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Quni Madi, a master from the peak of Seethrough Realm had many years¡¯ of profound cultivation and very practical skills. She enjoyed a solid reputation in the cultivation world. However, whenpared with Ning Que, she was nobody. Besides, as her natal scepter was cut apart by Ning Que in the monastery, could she do anything except use her bare hands?


    Sensing the suddenly changing aura behind him, Ning Que quickly lifted his right hand to draw the sword out from its sheath, and then he thrust it into Quni Madi¡¯s stomach under his armpit like a streak of lightning.


    Looking pale, Quni Madi slowly sat down to the ground with her hands tightly holding the podao. She wore a wild smile, seeming like that she cared nothing about the de which was cutting her fingers.


    In Ning Que¡¯s mind, this very influential Aunt in Buddhism Sect acted viciously and timidly. He was confused about why she would sneak attack against him after he had given her a break, so he asked her, ¡°Why?¡±


    While coughing up blood, Quni Madi smiled. ¡°Because I want you to die.¡±


    After thinking for a moment, Ning Que knew this old woman¡¯s intention, so he thrust the podao in his right hand forward. The de cut off her fingers and prated her body making blood sprout like a flower.


    He had killed too many people today, making himself insensitive, exhausted, and even a bit disgusted. He did not want to kill people anymore, but it did not mean that he was afraid to do so or dared not do so.


    Quni Madi cried out painfully and slowly closed her eyes. She died with the de still inside her body.


    The first time Ning Que met this old woman in the pce of the Wilderness years ago. And that was when the story of resentment between them had begun. Although he had nevergged behind her in terms of status in the cultivation world or the rapidly rising strength, he had never thought that he could kill her so easily only with a sword one day.


    Over the years, he had asionally wished that he could humiliate Quni Madi using her name and curse at her if he met and quarreled with her. However, after today, he would never have the chance to do so whether he regretted it or not.


    Drawing out his podao, Ning Que looked at her dead body. After recalling that he had killed every member of her family, he silently wished that they could reunite either in the Underworld or in the purend created by Buddha.


    Qi Mei walked out from the crowd and looked at Quni Madi lying in a pool of blood. Putting his palms together, he said in a trembling voice, ¡°Merciful Buddha.¡±


    Lu Chenjia slowly came there, sat on her knees beside Quni Madi, and hugged her in her arms. She slightly lowered her head, looking very disconste. Overwhelmed by sadness, she failed to say a word or shed tears.


    Turning around and looking at the rear of the crowd, Ning Que sensed the approaching aura. Knowing that he would not be able to leave, he started to make some preparations. He put his trembling right hand behind him.


    A horse carriage was slowly driven into White Tower Temple and came to the rear of the crowd. The sixteen fine horses dragging the carriage were so tired they were foaming at the mouth and were about to die from exhaustion.


    An old monk wearing a bamboo hat and holding a monk¡¯s cane walked out of the carriage. No sooner did he step on the ground with his right foot when the carriage made of stainless steels rebounded off the ground about a half foot.


    Apanied by dozens of Ascetic Monks, the old monk walked slowly towards White Pagoda Temple.


    There were many people in the temple, and they curiously watched the scene, guessing the identity of the old monk. Gradually, a piece of news spread among the crowd.


    Yuelun Kingdom was a Buddha country, and all the people in Chaoyang City were believers of Buddhism Sect. They were too shocked to speak when they suddenly found that the Chief Preaching Monk of Xuankong Temple, a real Buddha of the present age was visiting the human realm. They all knelt on both sides of the path and kowtowed to salute the man with ecstasy and excitement. The ground was covered with bloodstains after a short while.


    No matter where the old monk walked, the crowd gradually separated and walked to either side of the road, which was like the waves revealing the sandy surface at the bottom of the sea. A winding up from theke made the old monk¡¯s kasaya dance in the air, making it look as if the monk was walking in the middle of the sea.


    At the other end of the crowd, Ning Que held his sword and killed, making a bloody road for himself. Those two roads withpletely different meanings stretching toward each other where they would finally meet.


    As the crowd were divided into two sides, those two roads that finally met were well connected. There was no obstacle for the monk and Ning Que to look at each other.


    The old monk saw a young man covered in blood with the Daughter of Yama on his back, and saw him holding his bow.


    Ning Que saw an old monk with his kasaya gently dancing in the wind and a monk¡¯s staff in his hand.


    Looking at Ning Que, the old monk smiled, and slowly put down his staff.


    Ning Que slightly loosened his fingers from which the bowstring bounced back.


    After killing Quni Madi, Ning Que knew that he would not be able to avoid this strong aura. So when he put his hand behind his back; rather thanforting Sangsang, he intended to take the iron bow from her.


    When the crowd was gradually divided into two sides, he had already stretched the bow to its full extent, aiming at the other end of the road.


    Ning Que¡¯s hands were very steady, as was his mind.


    He knew that he was facing the strongest enemy he had ever met in his life, and he never expected to make use of any tactics. Thus, hardly did he meet the monk when he used his strongest weapon against him without any hesitation.


    The bowstring shook heavily, and the arrow tail suddenly disappeared like the rushing water.


    And the next moment, the iron arrow appeared before the old monk about dozens of feet away from Ning Que.


    Without saying a word, without any change of his facial expression, without asking who he was and why he came, without any angry shouting, and without mentioning the Academy or Buddhism Sect, Ning Que just shot one arrow first.


    Including tens of thousands of people in White Tower Temple, Ascetic Monks from Xuankong Temple, people from West-Hill Divine Pce in the distance, and officials from Yuelun Kingdom, no one would have expected the battle to begin so suddenly.


    It made people really frightened.


    Ning Que was keenly aware that when he loosened the bowstring, the old monk wearing a bamboo hat did not respond at all. He could not help feeling somewhat confused.


    No matter how strong the cultivator was, he would not dare to ignore Primordial Thirteen Arrows containing the wisdom of the Academy and the materials of Tang Empire in such way. In previous battles, those strong men who took the iron arrows from Ning Que always responded in advance as soon as they vaguely sensed the danger before Ning Que shot out.


    Including Ye Hongyu, Long Qing, or Luo Kedi, they all did so to defeat Primordial Thirteen Arrows which represented the absolute speed.


    However, the old monk did nothing.


    Ning Que felt a bit excited, as he believed that not even Liu Bai, Sage of Sword could stand still in the face of his arrow. Even Eldest Brother must move in advance if he intended to take on his arrow.


    Meanwhile, he felt a bit alert, as he believed that the old monk was definitely the strongest enemy that he had ever met, and it was impossible that the old monk would do nothing and just let himself be shot dead.


    Excitement, vignce and diposure struck him, and he finally felt confused. However, no matter what kind of feelings he had, it was just a matter of a moment which was countless times shorter than the Ksana told by Buddhism Sect.


    What happened within such short moment made Ning Que felt nothing but extremely shocked.


    The iron arrow was hitting the heart of the old monk.


    But the sharp arrowhead failed to prate the old monk¡¯s body.


    The hard iron arrow suddenly bent, as if it had hit a steel te.


    A dull noise against the old monk¡¯s body could be heard, and a strong wind could be felt. The old monk¡¯s kasaya danced in the wind.


    The iron arrow shooting the old monk was as weak as the straw intending to pierce ice. It fell in front of the old monk¡¯s feet, making a crunching noise.


    The wind stopped, and the kasaya on the old monk no longer danced.


    A piece of cloth fell from the old monk¡¯s chest like a dead leaf.


    That was the only damage made by Primordial Thirteen Arrows.


    Primordial Thirteen Arrows were so powerful that they could even prate stones and mountains, and even if they really had shot a steel te, they could pierce it easily. But now, they could not even prate the old monk¡¯s body.


    Having seen such an incredible scene, Ning Que could no longer control his slightly shaking left hand which was holding the iron bow.


    Earlier on, when he carried Sangsang on his back and was fleeing towards the west gate, he had sensed a very strong aura. He had already vaguely guessed who the neer was, but he didn¡¯t want the guess to shake his determination to fight. As such, he had shot his Primordial Thirteen Arrow when the crowd parted and he first saw the old monk.


    However, the final result proved that no matter how strong his determination to fight was, how resolute he was, and even how hard he tried not to think who the neer was, they would make no sense in the face of the absolute power.


    Everyone in White Tower Temple had dropped to their knees and kowtowed to the old monk constantly, as in their minds, he was a Buddha. And the scene in which the old monk bore the arrow using his flesh made them excited and in awe of him.


    Looking at the old monk and remaining silent for a while, Ning Que said with a cracked voice, ¡°Xuankong Temple is the Unknown ce, and Chief Preaching Monk is the Buddha of the present age. It is really beyond my expectation that you would step into the mortal world.¡±


    The Chief Preaching Monk of Xuankong Temple obviously turned out to be the strongest man of the Buddhism Sect, enjoying an equal position with the abbey dean of Zhishou Abbey and the Headmaster of the Academy in the cultivation world, thus it would be impossible for Ning Que to defeat him.


    Having seen Sangsang on Ning Que¡¯s back, Chief Preaching Monk said slowly, ¡°As the Daughter of Yama has visited the mortal world, how can I not do so? The question should be why you are still here.¡±


    After a brief silence, Ning Que smiled and said, ¡°Why should I leave?¡±


    Looking at those dead bodies and endless blood on the ground behind Ning Que, Chief Preaching Monk asked two questions with a merciful expression.


    ¡°As people are so innocent, why should they suffer so much pain?¡±


    ¡°As your action woulde to nothing, why should you be so evil?¡±


    Looking at this powerful old monk, Ning Que defeated his dread by his strong will and said, ¡°Master, you are wrong. Should I be evil enough, I can find my own cause and effect. And when I killed people earlier, I hesitated to kill children after killing the old and women, which took me some time, or I would not be here now.¡±


    Chief Preaching Monk signed, ¡°It is said that you have joined the Devil. From what you have done today, not only has your cultivation joined the Devil, but your mind has too. In that case, I¡¯d like end your life.¡±

 Chapter 635

    <h4>Chapter 635: As the Strings Broke and Sound Arose, Here I Am</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    From several simple sentences, Ning Que confirmed two important facts: the monk with an enigmatic state was the Chief Preaching Monk of the Xuankong Temple, and the monk was going to kill both Sangsang and him.


    Faced with such a serious situation, he had no time to think about the strength gap between himself and the Chief Preaching Monk. He even had not thought at all before he acted with what was left of his courage and determination.


    As the Great Spirit in him spurted out, his right foot made a stone pit on the hard ground. In a sh, he appeared before the chief monk like a ghost. He raised the podao high above his head, with the zing Haotian Divine Light, and cut at the top of the monk¡¯s head, as if he was going to burn all the clouds in the sky above his head.


    The podao, hard and heavy, mercilessly cut down to the bamboo hat on the chief monk¡¯s head, causing a loud clunking noise. It was like cutting down an ancient bell which echoed melodiously!


    The bamboo hat instantly shattered into dust, sshing everywhere. The chief monk¡¯s bare head with scars left by the burning incense was faintly visible. However, his expression did not change at all and even his silver eyebrows did not tremble a little.


    Ning Que¡¯s hands holding the hilt trembled again but had no sign of stopping. With a loud shout, his podao cut down again with Haotian Divine Light. The attack was so quick and violent that the Chief Preaching Monk was cut seventeen times within a split second. Every cutnded on different ces, but were equally fierce and strong.


    The first cut when he burnt the sky and broke the mountain was the most powerful cut he had made. It was so many times stronger than the one he made then to blind Liu Yiqing at the side door of the Academy.


    The seventeen cuts he made at the time were the best he could do. He could not even make it if he had not been forced by the strong fear.


    However, every cut, whether it was the most powerful or exquisite one, turned out to be meaningless to the silent and serene old monk.


    He could not even cut off a single eyebrow of the monk, let alone hurt him.


    As the power of podao died down, the bamboo hat worn by the Chief Preaching Monk was still sshing around. His kasaya was cut into numerous pieces by the de, but they had not yet fallen.


    Ning Que retreated dozens of feet like a ghost to where he had originally been, his face pale.


    As a breeze from theke wafted over, the kasaya worn by the Chief Preaching Monk slowly floated away like butterflies, revealing his naked body. Then a disciple changed his clothes for him.


    Tens of thousands of devotees in the temple knelt on the ground and kowtowed reverently at this moment. None of them noticed the scene.


    But Ning Que saw clearly that there was no any trace of his attack, nor cuts on the chief monk¡¯s old body. That sent a chill through his spine. Then he recalled what Qi Mei had said in front of the small courtyard.


    ¡°The Buddhadharma is eternal, the person trained to be the Zen Buddha, and the physical body will be that of the Buddha. The mind is also trained until it is that of the Buddha. Now my physical body is like that of Buddha.¡±


    After the battle in the small courtyard, Ning Que knew clearly how strong Qi Mei was and how terrifying his healing capabilities were. But he was only a disciple of the Chief Preaching Monk and only his body had be like that of the Buddha.


    The Chief Preaching Monk of the Xuankong Temple could not be pierced through by the Primordial Thirteen Arrows, nor injured by podao with the Haotian Divine Light. He had obviously attained the highest state of Buddhism, which meant that both his body and mind were indestructible.


    Why were they indestructible?


    Because they could never be injured no matter how hard the attack was.


    Then how could this fight go on?


    Ning Que had never known how to spell the word ¡°desperation¡±. But today he came to know how to write it.


    After changing into a new kasaya, the Chief Preaching Monk raised his head and quietly looked at Ning Que who was standing dozens of feet away. He slowly put down the monk staff in hand.


    His staff had kept falling. But because Ning Que was much too quick while he was too slow, the staff had not yet fallen to the ground after Ning Que had finished eighteen cuts.


    Until then, the tip of the staff finally came into contact with the ground.


    The staff head rang a sound as clear as a bell.


    The tip pierced into the ground easily and soundlessly.


    There was no deafening sound, nor was there any vigor that could shake the heaven or earth.


    Tens of thousands of people in the Yuelun Kingdom bowing to the ground felt nothing at all.


    The sound was too fierce to be heard.


    The shaking was too drastic to be sensed.


    Only Ning Que felt the shake.


    The shake of the earth.


    Ning Que¡¯s feet trembled and his shabby boots fell to pieces.


    The tremor spread to his legs and his trousers were torn up in an instant.


    Then his body trembled, and Sangsang, who was on his back also began to tremble.


    There were two puffs.


    Ning Que spat out blood onto the ground in front.


    Sangsang spat out blood on his shoulder.


    The Chief Preaching Monk lifted his staff again and walked slowly to Ning Que.


    Ning Que became desperately hopeless. His only hope was to jump into theke in the back temple with Sangsang. But now he felt that all the bones in his body had been broken, so how could he still have any strength to escape?


    The Chief Preaching Monk walked in a very slow manner. He needed to take a short rest with the support of the staff with every step he took.


    Each time the staffnded on the ground, a clear ringing would sound from the staff head. Ning Que standing dozens of feet away would suffer a drastic impact. The staff seemed tond on his heart.


    The Chief Preaching Monk went step by step toward Ning Que.


    Ning Que and Sangsang kept vomiting blood while watching the old monk getting closer. Now he hoped that the Chief Preaching Monk could walk faster. Because the slower he was, the more pain Ning Que and Sangsang felt.


    More than 100 Buddhist monks upied the Buddhist temple. Hundreds of army archers of Yuelun roused from the previous shock and craze and began to take bows and arrows, aiming at Ning Que and Sangsang among the crowd.


    No one knew why Master Qi Mei still stood on the periphery of the crowd.


    Ning Que tried to draw the iron bow apart, only to find that he could do nothing before the Buddhist power of the Chief Preaching Monk and within the scope of the staff¡¯s sound.


    The Chief Preaching Monk walked slowly towards them. He looked at Ning Que and asked calmly,¡±Where is the chessboard left by Buddha?¡±


    Ning Que smiled painfully, revealing his teeth covered with blood. He said,¡±It is in the depth of my mind. You can just kill me and see in which part it hides.¡±


    The Chief Preaching Monk heaved a sigh. He looked at the little pale face of Sangsang and said with a pity,¡±Poor girl, you lived a life for nothing. You have suffered a lot over these years. Today you can be free.¡±


    Ning Que coughed up blood and managed a sarcastic expression with difficulty. He said, ¡°The Buddha said to deliver all living creatures from torment. It turns out that this is deliverance. Why not deliver yourself first?¡±


    The condition then was critical and desperate, but he was still in the mood of mocking others. He thought that his death would be worthwhile if he couldugh at such a bigwig as the Chief Preaching Monk before he died. In addition, he was not despaired yet.


    Because he still had onest hope.


    The hope did not lie on himself.


    Itid on the person he was waiting for.


    When he was in the Lanke Temple, he waited for the person for a long time.


    After leaving the Lanke Temple, he waited for the person in Chaoyang for a whole winter.


    He kept waiting for he had always firmly believed that that person woulde.


    On the day when he was in the Lanke Temple, that person came for him. So he should alsoe to the White Tower Temple today.


    However, would he reallye?


    ¡°ng!¡±


    What answered Ning Que¡¯s question was a sound from a Qin.


    The Qin was a musical instrument with strings. Usually made with seven strings, its sound was mild and elegant.


    They were at the White Tower Temple, with corpses and blood everywhere. It was exactly the ce called ¡°the Xiuluo State¡± by the Buddhism Sect.


    The sound of the Qin was not in harmony with the ce.


    Moreover, there was no Qin in the White Tower Temple and no one here had one.


    However, there was a string in the temple. Even though there was only one string, when it was tightened and someone yed it with fingers, the string could also make a melodious sound.


    Those strings were on the bows, the bows held by hundreds of archers of the Yuelun Kingdom.


    And the sound came from a bow.


    However, the yer was obviously somewhat in a hurry. He used so much strength that the tightened bowstring suddenly broke into two and turned grey.


    Then, there was another sound of the Qin.


    Hundreds of archers had hundreds of bows; hundreds of bows had hundreds of tightened strings. Every time when the yer touched a bowstring, a sound urred and the string broke.


    The clear sound rang densely and continuously, like pearls falling on a jade te or a shower falling into an iron urn. There was no pause and it seemed that all the sounds rang at the same time.


    ¡°ng! ...ng! ...ng,ng,ng!¡±


    It seemed like a long time had passed but in fact, it only urred for a very short moment. The dense and clear sounds rang and disappeared at the same time. Only the lingering sounds reverberated in the White Tower Temple.


    A schr in an old cotton-padded jacket appeared and stood quietly in front of Ning Que. No one knew when he arrived. He looked at the Chief Preaching Monk not far away, the wooden dipper tied to his belt swinging gently.


    As the sound stopped, hundreds of strings broke.


    The staff held by the Chief Preaching Monk stopped making sounds.


    After the appearance of the schr, the field became quiet.


    As another gust of wind came, the new kasaya worn by the Chief Preaching Monk fluttered slowly.


    But no one knew whether the wind came from theke or the schr.


    It was not until then that the archers discovered that the bow in their hands had be rubbish. The arrows waiting to be shot on the bows had long been shot into the air and gone nowhere.


    They stared at the schr in shock. Though they guessed vaguely it had something to do with him, no one could figure out how it happened and who the person was.


    Ning Que, of course, knew who he was because he was the person Ning Que had been waiting for. He had thought that he would not be able to wait for the person to appear, but he came for him after all.


    Looking at the schr, he suddenly rxed after being extremely nervous for countless days and nights. He felt an endless sense of exhaustion pouring into his body. He had been fleeing without anyone¡¯s help from autumn in the Lanke Temple to autumn in the Wilderness and to winter in Chaoyang. Now he finally had someone to rely on.


    It was a great feeling.


    The Eldest Brother turned around and looked at Ning Que covered all over with blood. He could not help feeling some guilt, shame and relief at the same time. He said in a slightly trembling voice, ¡°Younger Brother, here I am.¡±


    Looking at his Eldest Brother who was dusty and fatigued, Ning Que knew the reason and felt extremely touched. He said in a simrly shaken voice, ¡°Senior Brother, here you are.¡±


    These two sentences were spoken almost at the same time.


    They looked at each other and were stunned. Then they smiled and started coughing at the same time.

 Chapter 636 - My Teacher Asked Me to Send You Some Words

    <h4>Chapter 636: My Teacher Asked Me to Send You Some Words</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ning Que coughed for he was injured. But he did not know why his Eldest Brother coughed too. Looking at his haggard face, Ning Que worried that he was also injured.


    However, the situation then was still full of tension. Even though the Eldest Brother was here, he was not necessarily able to defeat the Chief Preaching Monk who had attained the state of indestructibility.


    He asked directly, ¡°Eldest Brother, can you take us away, like how you came here?¡±


    The Eldest Brother shook his head.


    ¡°At least one.¡± Ning Que did not give up and looked back at Sangsang.


    The Eldest Brother said with some embarrassment, ¡°My state is not high enough. I can only use it for limited times. So I do not have the ability to take you away. And my state is somewhat unstable recently.¡±


    ¡°Modesty is pride. Whose state is high if your state is not high?¡±


    Ning Que said. Then when he thought that Eldest Brother kept coughing and had an unstable state, he was somewhat worried and asked, ¡°Eldest Brother, what¡¯s wrong with your state?¡±


    The Eldest Brother answered honestly, ¡°One reason is theck of time to cultivate to strengthen my mind, since I have traveled all over the world this year. But most importantly, I am a little bit tired now.¡±


    A little bit tired... It was such a simple answer. However, what kind of fatigue could unsteady the state of a powerhouse who was over the Five States?


    Ning Que looked at the haggard face of his Eldest Brother in a daze. He was so deeply touched that he did not know what to say.


    At this moment, the Chief Preaching Monk finally began to speak.


    ¡°Does Mr. First really want to save the Daughter of Yama? The catastrophe has gradually kicked off. Do you have the heart to watch all the people in the world die a tragic death like those today?¡±


    The Eldest Brother looked at the corpses lying in a pool of blood. When he looked at the broken limbs and remains of people and felt the soles of his shoes slightly sticky with thick blood, his face turned pale and his eyes showed a dim expression.


    Just like himself, his eyes remained clean no matter how bloody or filthy the world was reflected in them. That was why his dim eyes were so disconste.


    Ning Que knew how kind and gentle his eldest brother was. When he saw his dim expression, he felt somehow flustered and dreaded to meet his eyes.


    The Eldest Brother did not hide his emotions and nor did he know how to do so. After indulging in distress for quite a while, he gradually calmed down.


    Then he looked at the chief monk and said slowly, ¡°My teacher asked me to send you some words.¡±


    The Chief Preaching Monk felt into silence for a moment. As he flicked his sleeve, a faint Buddhist aura emitted out from his fingers and enveloped the passage in the crowd, isting the inside and outside.


    ¡°In autumn of the 16th year of the Tianqi era, I went to the Xuankong Temple, but you refused to meet me. This autumn, I went there again and you still refused to meet. Since we met today, I can finally tell you those words.¡±


    The Eldest Brother looked at the Chief Preaching Monk and said calmly, ¡°The future that we want is neither an evesting night or Dharma Ending Period said by the Buddhism Sect. The Academy will definitely not ignore the Underworld Invasion. But my teacher thinks that the Daughter of Yama does not necessarily have to be killed in order to avoid the Underworld Invasion.¡±


    The Chief Preaching Monk said with no facial expression, ¡°Thest words of the Buddha havee true in thest two years. The cold aura in the Daughter of Yama is an imprint left by Yama. Once she wakes up, Yama will make the world the Underworld. How can we let her live?¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°My teacher has never believed in the existence of the Underworld because he did not find it. Even if Yama really existed, my teacher does not believe that he will keep searching in 70,000 worlds.¡±


    The Chief Preaching Monk frowned slightly and asked, ¡°Why did the Headmaster say that?¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°Because he thinks that the evolution of life always tends to improve wisdom and understanding. Correspondingly, it is a gradual process of giving up the body. As what he said, the more advanced life tends to bezier. Theziness here certainly does not refer to the ordinaryziness. It means that a person as wise as Yama would never look for the world in such a difficult way.¡±


    As his silver eyebrow slowly fluttered, the Chief Preaching Monk said softly, ¡°But it is the future that the Buddha saw.¡±


    The Eldest Brother looked at his face and said calmly, ¡°My teacher said that what the Buddha said is not necessarily right.¡±


    Devoid of expression, the Chief Preaching Monk said, ¡°The Buddha once said something, while the Headmaster said nothing.¡±


    There were tens of thousands of people in the White Tower Temple. However, the passage in the crowd was isted by the Buddhist aura, so no one but some people in the passage could hear the conversation.


    Master Qi Mei behind the Chief Preaching Monk heard it, so did Ning Que and Sangsang behind the Eldest Brother. Though they heard it, it did not mean anything as their current state would not enable them to understand this dialogue in such a short period of time.


    But the next sentence reported by the Eldest Brother was simple, explicit, and easy to be understood. Master Qi Mei became more serious as if thinking of something. Ning Que still looked calm but there were raging waves in his heart.


    ¡°My teacher said, if the cold aura in Sangsang was an imprint left by Yama, Yama would know where the world is once it is liberated. Logically, there is no reason for Yama to allow Sangsang to live in this world for so many years before waking up.¡±


    The Eldest Brother looked at chief monk¡¯s eyes and said, ¡°A spection which is closer to the truth is: Sangsang is not expected to hide her identity forever and find the opportunity to grow up and wake up in Haotian¡¯s world. On the contrary, from the very beginning, Yama knew that Sangsang would die and he is even waiting for her death. Why? Because only if Sangsang died, the imprint sealed in her would be liberated automatically, thus revealing the position of the world. So what we should do is not to kill her, but to protect her.¡±


    It was quiet in the temple, with theke in front of the white tower rippling. Standing in the crowd, the five people were in a different world. They felt into silence for a long time at the same time.


    After Sangsang¡¯s identity as the Daughter of Yama was revealed, she had suffered from the chase of the Buddhist and Taoist Sects and even the whole world. Everyone believed that the imprint left by Yama would disappear and then the world could avoid the eyes of Yama if they killed her. However, no one had ever thought that though Yama had as many as 70,000 children, how could he not be aware of the death of any one of them?


    It did not mean that the bigwigs of the two Sects were foolish. It was due to the deep-rooted thought inertia that they could not think of other possibilities. The Buddhist monks believed in thest words of the Buddha while the disciples of the Taoist Sect absolutely believed in the oracle of Haotian and dreaded the Underworld Invasion.


    As for the Headmaster, the Buddha was his peer and Haotian, as something supermundane, had no influence on him. Besides, he had no thought inertia. Therefore, he could think of this possibility.

 Chapter 637 - The Eldest Brother And The Younger Brother

    <h4>Chapter 637: The Eldest Brother And The Younger Brother</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Time passed slowly, but because it was so quiet, it seemed as if it had not passed at all. The clear light on the white tower was slowly changing, the willow branches on theke seemed to have pulled out new buds, and there was still no one talking in the fields.


    Looking at Chief Preaching Monk, Ning Que¡¯s right hand which was holding the hilt, trembled slightly. It was not because of fear, nor umtingbative atmosphere, but he was waiting for his answer anxiously. If the Chief Preaching Monk agreed with the Headmaster, the Buddhism Sect would stop to kill Sangsang, and even would be responsible for protecting Sangsang¡¯s safety.


    After countless days and nights of escape, he finally saw a gleam of light. His mood was somewhat restless but full of confidence because he believed that the Headmaster¡¯s inference was correct. In his heart, the Headmaster was always right and had never made mistakes.


    However, it was a pity that Ning Que had forgotten that in the hearts of the disciples of the Academy, the Headmaster had a higher status than Haotian and Buddha. Whereas in the eyes of the disciples of Buddhism, especially such bigwigs as the Chief Preaching Monk, although the Headmaster¡¯s status was very high, it could never be higher than the Buddha and Haotian.


    After pondering for a long time, the Chief Preaching Monk shook his monk staff lightly, and the head of his staff was ringing clearly. He looked at the Eldest Brother and said, ¡°The Buddha is not necessarily right, nor is the Headmaster. This thing is different from that one. As a disciple of Buddhism, you must learn to listen to the voice of the Buddha. When there is right and wrong, you should not decide right or wrong from it.¡±


    The Eldest Brother understood what the Chief Preaching Monk had said and looked somewhat somber. He said with a sigh, ¡°The Headmaster was right. The most difficult thing to do is to change others¡¯ minds.¡±


    The Chief Preaching Monk frowned slightly and suddenly said, ¡°But ...¡±


    The Eldest Brother looked slightly dazed, then his face lit up with delight. Ning Que was feeling disappointed. However, his dim eyes suddenly lit up when he heard ¡°But¡±, and asked, ¡°But what?¡±


    Chief Preaching Monk raised his left arm and pointed to the white tower in the center of theke. He said softly, ¡°This white tower is also a relic of the Buddha. It can subdue all evils and iste itself from the world. We have countless generations of disciples who have painstakingly studied Buddhist scriptures and did not let such divine instruments as the chessboard and peace bell go missing. But we still did not know what the Buddha meant by leaving this tower. On hearing what the Headmaster said, it suddenly urred to Chief Preaching Monk that maybe it was because Buddha had already foreseen today¡¯s event.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°Do you mean to let Sangsang live in the White pagoda?¡±


    Chief Preaching Monk said, ¡°Exactly.¡±


    The Eldest Brother frowned slightly and said, ¡°I think there is more to the reason why the Buddha had left the White Pagoda.¡±


    Chief Preaching Monk looked at him calmly and said, ¡± The White Pagoda is to take demons into custody. It can only be opened once in ten thousand years.¡±


    The Eldest Brother looked back at Sangsang on Ning Que¡¯s back. He looked at the little girl¡¯s pale and gaunt face. After a long time of silence, he said softly, ¡°That will be no different from killing her.¡±


    Looked at Sangsang, his eyes were veryplex. On one hand, he pitied her. On the other hand, he seemed very alert and uneasy. Ning Que saw this and felt slightly bitter, thinking that even the Headmaster could hardly ept the fact that Sangsang had be the Daughter of Yama. So, he was already very satisfied that the Academy would treat him like this.


    Eldest Brother looked at Ning Que again, seeing the blood on his face, the shade in his eyes, and his exhaustion. After a moment of silence, he said to the Chief Preaching Monk, ¡°The Headmaster wants to bring her back to the Academy.¡±


    Chief Preaching Monk shook his head calmly.


    The Eldest Brother coughed again, his body slightly hunched and trembled, which seemed very painful. It took a long time before he gradually calmed down and said, ¡°If that is the case, let¡¯s see if we can leave.¡±


    On hearing this, Master Qi Mei was shocked, Ning Que felt dazed, and Sangsang showed a look of sadness. She really didn¡¯t want to let these things happen for her own sake.


    Talks between the Academy and Buddhism Sect broke down.


    Eldest Brother looked back at Ning Que, patted him on the shoulder and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry about anything. I¡¯ll take you away. let¡¯s go back to the Academy together.¡±


    Ning Que was in a strange mood at this moment. He lowered his head, remained silent for a long time, and said, ¡°I understand that if I ask for your help, you will definitely help me and Sangsang to kill out of here. Even if you know that in the end we may fail and die here. You may also die in front of me.¡±


    ¡°I am convinced of this, even if sometimes I can¡¯t understand it. Because you have always been very alert to Sangsang. You may even be the first to find out that Sangsang is the Daughter of Yama. However, now that Sangsang¡¯s identity has been exposed, why would you do this?¡±


    Eldest Brother smiled and said for sure, ¡°Because I am your Senior Brother.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the crowds in the White Tower Temple and said, ¡°But these people will not let us leave.¡±


    The Eldest Brother understood what he meant and said after a moment of silence, ¡°If we are forced to do something evil, I, as your Senior Brother, should do it.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°Even if we kill thousands of people today, what can we do when we return to the Academy? What can we do when all the countries start to attack the Tang Empire? What if people in Chang¡¯an are just like the people in Chaoyang City who flooded into the Academy and forced the Headmaster to bring Sangsang to them? Can we kill all of them?¡±


    The Eldest Brother looked dazed. He didn¡¯t think about these problems, or perhaps, he didn¡¯t want to think about these problems.


    Looking at all kinds of expressions on the faces of the crowds and thinking about those who had fallen down in front of his de, Ning Que saw the boy, who had thrown stones on Sangsang, was still crying amongst the crowd.


    ¡°Senior Brother, have you ever fought with anyone before?¡± He asked suddenly.


    The Eldest Brother shook his head.


    Ning Que looked at him with a smile, he asked, ¡°Then, have you ever killed anyone?¡±


    The Eldest Brother continued to shake his head.


    Ning Que continued to smile and felt rxed because he had finally made a hard decision today. So his smile was all the more clear and bright.


    ¡°I have asked these two questions to Pipi, and at least he has fought before, which is better than you at this point. By the way, how is Pipi doing now?¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°Pipi hase back to the temple.¡±


    Ning Que sighed emotionally and said, ¡°He has finally grown up. It seems that love really needs courage.¡±


    The Eldest Brother didn¡¯t understand why he was saying this. But he felt somewhat uneasy.


    Ning Que looked at him and said, ¡°Senior Brother, I also have courage.¡±


    He continued, ¡°I did not know how to trust anyone from my childhood until I entered the Academy. I believed that the Academy could protect me and Sangsang, so whether it was in the Lanke Temple, the Wilderness, or just now, I have been waiting for you to appear. However, I¡¯m not sure whether that is my trust for you or taking advantage of you.¡±


    ¡°I believe you wille to save me, so I¡¯ve been waiting for you to help me out of trouble. It was seemingly trust to you, but in fact, it was just taking advantage of you. Because I never thought about and even don¡¯t care what the Academy and you will pay for it. And I clearly know that even if you know that I don¡¯t care about you and the Academy, you still don¡¯t mind. So I always believe that you wille.¡±


    Ning Que did not look at the Eldest Brother anymore. He epted the straw rope from Sangsang, crossing the hilt and the hand that was holding it, and said, ¡°I didn¡¯t feel regret until I saw your eyes just now.¡±


    The straw ropes tightened the hilt and his right hand more and more tightly. Looking at the bloody marks in the palm of his hand, he said, ¡°Senior Brother, it must be painful for you to see me kill so many innocent people?¡±


    When the straw rope crossed for thest time, Ning Que raised his right hand. He handed it to Sangsang and asked her to tie it into a dead knot. He then looked at the Eldest Brother and said, ¡°If it was in the past few years, I would probably continue to take advantage of you with ease, just like what Qi Nian did before. As the saying goes, ¡®You can deceive a gentleman with reasonable methods.¡¯ But I don¡¯t want to do it now.¡±


    The Eldest Brother looked into his eyes and asked, ¡°Why don¡¯t you want to do that anymore?¡±


    ¡°Of course it is not because of enlightenment after being hit on the head by someone, nor some kind of sublimation of human nature. I still think that you are too gentle and kind to do things, and not as straightforward as Second Brother.¡±


    Ning Que gradually stopped smiling and said, ¡°It is hard to have someone as clean as you in this world, so I don¡¯t want you to be tainted with blood. However, if you take me back to the Academy, you will definitely be daubed with blood. Once this happens, you will definitely not feel at ease in the rest of your life.¡±


    ¡°Senior Brother, I am different from you. I can feel at ease no matter how many people I have killed. If someone wants to kill my wife, I will kill him. That¡¯s for sure, and it is the principle of the Academy. But if you cannot feel at ease, neither will I.¡±


    The heavy podao was hanging on his wrist and kept swinging, sending out a smell of blood.


    Looking at the Eldest Brother, he said, ¡°I have been killing people and doing evil things since I was a child. My hands are covered with the blood of innocent people. How can I then taint your hands with blood. Since I have already been tainted with blood, it doesn¡¯t matter to have more of it.¡±


    He had been talking all the time, and the Eldest Brother remained silent. His face was dusty and he looked slightly dazed. It turned to unease and he said, ¡°Younger Brother, what do you want to say?¡±


    ¡°Eldest Brother, we might as well go separately.¡± Ning Que said.


    The Eldest Brother was somewhat puzzled. He frowned slightly and said, ¡°Since you have been waiting for me, and I have been looking for you. Now that we have met, why do you want to separate with me again?¡±


    Ning Que said after a moment of silence, ¡°Because I suddenly realized that you¡¯ve been looking for me to take me back to the Academy, while I¡¯ve been waiting for you for no reason.¡±


    ¡°Senior Brother, thanks for your appearance, because it matters a lot for me.¡±


    After saying this, he knelt down in front of the Eldest Brother to pay his respects to his Sinor Brother.


    ¡°We can be separated because we have already met each other. Meeting turns out to be the reason for separating.¡±


    The Eldest Brother had finally understood what he meant and also knelt down to him, with his hands folded in the front. He said emotionally, ¡°Younger Brother, thank you for taking me as your real Senior Brother from now on.¡±


    Ning Que worshiped again and said, ¡°Eldest Brother, thanks for your hard work over the past year.¡±


    Eldest Brother also bowed and said, ¡°I am so ipetent that I can not take you away. Forgive me.¡±


    Ning Que worshiped again without saying a word.


    Eldest Brother bowed again and said, ¡°Even if we are going to separate, I should still see you off the main road.¡±

 Chapter 638 - Buddhas Words

    <h4>Chapter 638: Buddha¡¯s Words</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    One had to be able to get on a path in order to diverge from it. However, the people at White Tower Temple would not allow Ning Que to take Sangsang away. The crowd that had previously been frightened by his viciousness had parted earlier. However, they received courage and strength when the Chief Preaching Monk arrived. The Chief Preaching Monk was thergest obstacle to Ning Que and Sangsang leaving.


    Eldest Brother helped Ning Que up. He took out several iron arrows and gave them to Ning Que, saying, ¡°These are the iron arrows you lost on Wa Mountain. Sixth Brother fixed them. If you can escape, fix the runes. Sixth Brother made these metal cylinders as well and asked me to bring them to you.¡±


    Ning Que epted the heavy iron arrows and ced them in the quiver. He wound one of the small metal cylinders on the arrowhead of an iron arrow and said, ¡°Sangsang and I will leave by ourselves. You don¡¯t have to send us off, Senior Brother.¡±


    Eldest Brother looked at the crowd in the temple by theke and the Chief Preaching Monk not far away. He said, ¡°If you guys can go off by yourselves, would you have had to wait for me toe?¡±


    Ning Que saw the exhaustion in his Senior Brother¡¯s eyes and felt uneasy. In his opinion, even if Eldest Brother had broken through the Five States and reached the Limitless State, he was unlikely to win against the Chief Preaching Monk who was in the Diamond Undefeatable State.


    Eldest Brother knew what he was worried about and said to him gently, ¡°Indeed there are not many people who can beat the Chief Preaching Monk. But I can at least stop him.¡±


    He continued, ¡°The master steps on the thick ground. In the Diamond Undefeatable State, his only weakness is that he is too slow. ording to his promise back then, he cannot attack. I am confident in getting you out.¡±


    The two did not lower their voices when they spoke. That was because no matter how much they tried to lower their volume, they would not be able to stop the Chief Preaching Monk from listening in.


    The Chief Preaching Monk sat on the ground with his knees crossed. He held the middle of his staff in his right hand, silent and at ease as if he had not heard them, or perhaps, he did not care even if he had.


    Ning Que looked at the expression of the monk who was a powerhouse in the Buddhism Sect. His uneasiness grew. He felt that they would encounter trouble if Eldest Brother acted. He reached out to catch Eldest Brother¡¯s sleeves.


    However, he only managed to grasp a handful of wind.


    A slight breeze started, and Eldest Brother¡¯s cotton shirt fluttered slightly before it shimmered and disappeared into thin air, leaving behind a word that reverberated in his ears.


    ¡°Leave.¡±


    Ning Que knew that this wasn¡¯t the time to talk about anything else. Since Eldest Brother had already acted, he had to make use of this opportunity to escape and not mess with Eldest Brother¡¯s ns.


    Even if Eldest Brother could only hold the Chief Preaching Monk back for a period of time, the crowd in White Tower Temple, especially Master Qi Mei, the Buddhist powerhouses, and Taoist powerhouses from West-Hill Divine Pce, would try to make him and Sangsang stay. As such, he carried Sangsang on his back and rushed toward the quietke below the White Pagoda without hesitation.


    However, his steps grew heavy andnded on the ground with a thud. He found it difficult to raise his legs again.


    They had only just begun to flee but suddenly stopped.


    It wasn¡¯t because the powerhouses from the Buddhism and Taoism sect had stopped him. It also wasn¡¯t because the crowd had rushed at them madly. It was because he sensed an odd change in his surroundings. He saw the terrified expressions of some people and guessed that something shocking had happened behind him.


    Ning Que turned around and looked at the Chief Preaching Monk who sat on the ground with his legs crossed.


    Eldest Brother had disappeared, entering the Limitless State. His target was naturally the Chief Preaching Monk.


    The Limitless State was the most incredible cultivation style in the world. It was above the five states and was like traveling on wind and clouds. One could leap over mountains and pass through countries with it.


    There was no other power faster than the Limitless State. Not even the Sage of Sword, Liu Bai¡¯s Thousand Mile Sword was faster.


    ording to Ning Que¡¯s calction, Eldest Brother should have reappeared in front of the Chief Preaching Monk after he disappeared. He might have even have traveled a thousand miles away to retrieve a powerful weapon before returning to the White Tower Temple, crushing the Chief Preaching Monk.


    Eldest Brother had reappeared.


    But not in front of the Chief Preaching Monk.


    He had reappeared some distance away from the Chief Preaching Monk. It was as if he had only taken one step before he was forced to reappear!


    Looking at the Chief Preaching Monk who was sitting dozen of feet away with his knees crossed, Eldest Brother¡¯s cotton robes fluttered. Dust slowly rose from the ground. Eldest Brother¡¯s expression was unusually grave and his body seemed unusually heavy. He could not take another step.


    If one looked closely, one would see that his straw slippers were not on the actual surface of the ground. He was levitating about half an inch above it. However, he could not move at all!


    Then, the chanting of scripture slowly picked up.


    The Chief Preaching Monk sat with his knees crossed, hand holding his staff. With a solemn and majestic expression, he chanted with a voice of Buddha.


    ¡°I heard: The three worlds are all fleeting. There is nothing and there is joy. There are rules, and everything is meaningless. Without wind, there would be no dew. Without fog, there would be no lightning. We can see from here that eviles from within.¡±


    The scripture was from the Great Compassion Scroll.


    It referred to Eldest Brother.


    As the chanting started, their surroundings suddenly changed. Theke waters stilled and the willows on the shore slumped. Even the lights on the White Pagoda froze in the moment. The wind stilled.


    All was silent in the White Tower Temple. Those in the pagoda were silent and all things in the world returned to their original state that they were a thousand years ago. Their hearts stilled as they felt the peace around them.


    In the absolutely peaceful world, how could one travel on the winds when there was no wind? How could one step on dew and fly if there wasn¡¯t any dew? How could they pass through fog if there wasn¡¯t any fog? How could they move like lightning if there was no lightning?¡±


    Eldest Brother was forced to stop in the peaceful world. His feet slowlynded on the ground and his robe stilled. His face grew paler.


    It was said that of all skills in the world, only speed could not be beaten. And the fastest Limitless State had been defeated today!


    Ning Que only had time to turn around and stepped forward before he sensed the weirdness. He stopped and turned his head around. He heard the soft chanting and saw that Eldest Brother was in danger.


    He was extremely shocked; he had no time to consider why Eldest Brother¡¯s Limitless State could be neutralized. He whipped out his bow and arrow and shot an arrow at the Chief Preaching Monk.


    Before Eldest Brother had appeared, he had already used the Primordial Thirteen Arrows against the Chief Preaching Monk. Against the Chief Preaching Monk whose body and heart was as hard as diamond, the powerful iron arrow was like a withered branch and was ineffective. However, he still used a second iron arrow because there was a small metal cylinder on the arrowhead of this arrow.


    He did not believe that there was an existence in this world that cannot be extinguished. Even if the Chief Preaching Monk was undefeatable, and could not be physically harmed, he believed that the explosion caused by the metal cylinder would at least bother him, even if it did not kill him. This would allow Eldest Brother to extricate himself from the odd situation.


    However, he saw something even weirder next.


    The iron arrow left the bowstring and a white trail blossomed from the tail of the arrow like a dandelion being blown apart by mad winds. Then, the arrow fell. Ning Que was familiar with the process of shooting Primordial Thirteen Arrows and knew that the white trail was due to the talisman intent being integrated into the air. However, this was the first time he had witnessed such a situation!


    The iron arrow was supposed to ignore the distance in space and travel quietly. However, it did not disappear after leaving the bowstring, but retained its physical appearance and slowly flew a dozen feet before falling onto the ground!


    The iron arrow could not get close to the Chief Preaching Monk at all. The cylinder on the arrowhead groaned. However, there wasn¡¯t even a small ember of me, much less a powerful explosion.


    Ning Que paled significantly, and it looked like his cheeks sunk in mere seconds. He began to tremble violently. Then, he used his right index finger and drew a line in the air, aiming for the Chief Preaching Monk in the distance.


    This was the only temporary Divine Talisman that he knew. The Two-Horizontal Talisman!


    Ning Que had stopped himself from using it previously even as they were on the brink of death at the courtyard as he was worried that he might expend too much of his Psyche Power while on the run with Sangsang. However, he did not hesitate as Eldest Brother was in a very dangerous situation!


    However, he discovered something weird once more.


    No matter how much Psych Power he put into it, and no matter how stable and powerful his fingers drew in the air, he could not ce any power in the rune he drew in the air. Furthermore, he also had a nagging feeling that the Divine Talisman he drew would not be able to change the aura of heaven and earth!


    As the Chief Preaching Monk chanted, the Qi of Heaven and Earth in White Tower Temple stilled and could not be moved, just like theke, pagoda, temple, people, wind, rain, snow and all other things of nature.


    Ning Que listened to the scriptures, and his sense of perception began to still. He did not wish to use his Psyche Power at all, and his body rxed. He only wished to sit down and listen to the scripture. Even the Great Spirit in his body calmed. Even the crystal-like liquid in his stomach that had been spinning slowed!


    Ning Que looked at the Chief Preaching Monk who sat with his knees crossed in shock. He wondered what kind of skill he was using that could affect Ning Que¡¯s insides. It was so powerful!


    Eldest Brother looked at the Chief Preaching Monk and uttered in shock, ¡°The Power of Words!¡±


    ¡°I heard: The three worlds are all fleeting. There is nothing and there is joy. There are rules, and everything is meaningless. Without wind, there would be no dew. Without fog, there would be no lightning. We can see from here that eviles from within.¡±


    The scripture that the Chief Preaching Monk chanted rang within White Tower Temple. It chimed in the distance like bells, was calm like the wooden fish, subtle like the scent of incense, and it prated deeply into one¡¯s heart like the voice of Buddha.¡±


    Nothing existed. And as such, there was no wind, dew, fog, lightning, rain or snow. And at the very beginning of the world, there wasn¡¯t any Qi of Heaven and Earth, so how would they be able to control it?


    The Chief Preaching Monk was Xuankong Temple¡¯s highest being. His disciples were of higher status than other bigwigs like the chief monk. This was because Xuankong Temple was a ce where preaching was done.


    The Chief Preaching Monk was above the Five States and had his own Buddhist world. He was a Buddha on earth, so the scriptures that he preached on earth were Buddhist scriptures, and the words that he spoke were in the voice of Buddha.


    The voice of Buddha, was the rule in his world.

 Chapter 639 - Confucius Says

    <h4>Chapter 639: Confucius Says</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    There was no wind, but Eldest Brother¡¯s old cotton robe was fluttering. Eldest Brother looked at the Chief Preaching Monk who sat on the ground with his knees crossed. He was pale, as he looked at the monk in confusion, ¡°Teacher said that you can¡¯t attack.¡±


    The Chief Preaching Monk said serenely, ¡°I did promise the Headmaster many years ago, that unless it was a situation that concerned the end of the world, I would not act. However, the appearance of the Daughter of Yama on Earth would bring the end of the world. Besides, after that, I read scriptures every night, practicing in the voice of Buddha. I did not act, I only spoke.¡±


    Eldest Brother paused when he heard that and shook his head, saying, ¡°Jun Mo was right.¡±


    The Chief Preaching Monk did not understand the Eldest Brother. He ced his hands together and continued reciting the scripture.


    Only Ning Que and Qi Mei knew what Eldest Brother meant¡ªall monks should die. Qi Mei¡¯s expression did change, although he did not show that he was angry. He remained silent.


    Other than anger, Ning Que felt extremely fearful.


    The Chief Preaching Monk could affect the Qi of Heaven and Earth of arge area surrounding White Tower Temple, after reciting several lines of the scripture. Using the voice of Buddha, he made a new world on Earth. The power that he revealed was beyond terrifying.


    Ning Que had to admit that the old monk sitting with his knees crossed and holding his staff, was the most powerful cultivator he had ever seen. He was even more powerful than the sword that Liu Bai had sent from the sky toward Lanke Temple.


    ...


    ...


    The sounds of Buddhist scriptures being chanted rang. Theke waters were stilled. The pagoda light froze.


    White Tower Temple seemed to have be a Buddhist country that came from the beginning of time. The Qi of Heaven and Earth grew extremely calm, seemingly having connected with a state above that of the Five States of Haotian Taoism. However, it had arge quelling intent. In a world like that, cultivators could not control the Qi of Heaven and Earth and were not any different from ordinary humans.


    Tens and thousands of Yuelun Kingdom citizens did not know what was happening. They could not hear nor see. And even if they had heard, they would not be able to understand. They could only feel that something solemn and marvelous was happening. As such, they all prostrated before the Chief Preaching Monk in awe, not daring to rise.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth gradually calmed. Cultivators could not use their flying swords and the ascetic monks of the Buddhism Sect could not use their skills. However, they could still walk. This was especially so for the ascetic monks who had spent days in the Wilderness, sharpening their spirit and bodies, and for the martial cultivators in the West-Hill Divine Guard. They all retained their skills.


    Master Qi Mei led dozens of ascetic monks into the crowd. Two priests in red brought dozens of West-Hill Divine Guards into the crowd and judging by their speed, they would reach Ning Que quickly.


    Ning Que slightly twisted his wrist, tightly clutching the hilt of his podao. He frowned slightly as he looked at the crowd surrounding them. Even though the Great Spirit in his body had been suppressed by the Chief Preaching Monk¡¯s voice of Buddha, his physical body was still extremely strong after joining the Devil. He was not afraid of anyone should he have to fight with his physical body.


    However, Master Qi Mei had already be Buddha and was a very strong martial warrior. He was not confident of winning in this situation. What made him even more uneasy, was his Eldest Brother and Sangsang¡¯s condition. They were as weak as regr humans. How could he protect them so they would not get hurt?


    In thend of Buddhas on Earth, the voice of Buddha rang like distant bells. No matter how powerful Ning Que was, he would not be able to leave the Buddhist country. And no matter how tough he was, he could not help but feel despair.


    At this time, Eldest Brother¡¯s voice sounded again.


    He had been forced out of the Limitless State by the voice of Buddha. His face was as white as paper, and his slender body was suspended in the air like the willow branches by theke. However, his face and body were still just as clean, and did not have a speck of dust on them.


    He looked at the Chief Preaching Monk, with a steel-like expression clouding his clear eyes. He said softly, ¡°Headmaster once said that if one misses the easy life, one would never be a great person. If Buddha misses the world, he cannot be called Buddha.¡±


    The Eldest Brother spoke slowly and seemed distinguished. His voice was gentle and warm but also was steel-like and determined.


    These words were imparted to him many years ago by his teacher. Just like all the other students at the Academy mountain¡¯s back, he had never once questioned them because he felt that what Teacher said definitely made sense.


    It made sense, that¡¯s why it worked. This was the matter of course that the Academy sought!


    Ning Que did not understand why Eldest Brother would suddenly say these words at this point in time. Master Qi Mei did not either. The ascetic monks and the divine guards who were closing in stopped subconsciously.


    Only the Chief Preaching Monk who was wise and experienced enough understood the Eldest Brother¡¯s intentions. He grew stern and looked at Eldest Brother in surprise, releasing the hold on his staff.


    If one misses the easy life, one would never be a great person. If Buddha misses the world, he cannot be called Buddha!


    A slight change happened in the silent world when Eldest Brother said that. One could vaguely hear the sound of something cracking and breaking.


    The White Tower Temple was still the same. Everything seemed ordinary, but something seemed to have broken.


    A slight breeze stirred on theke¡¯s surface. The waters that had seemed frozen began to swirl. The willow branches by theke looked as if they were lifted by invisible strings. They waved around and began to move for the first time.


    The Buddhist world had been broken.


    The Chief Preaching Monk¡¯s expression grewplicated. He had not expected Mr. First¡¯s casual words to break the power of his words, and was about to destroy his Buddhist world.


    Even though Mr. First of the Academy was a leader in the cultivation world, he was but just the Headmaster¡¯s disciple. How did he manage that? And when had he learned such incredible skills?


    As theke breeze picked up and the willow branches waved, the swirls on theke waters grewrger. The Chief Preaching Monk¡¯s manner grew more and more solemn. He pointed his right finger at the Eldest Brother and said, stricken, ¡°I heard: There¡¯s a mountain called Praja. It is 18000 times the size of Tianqi Mountain. It stops the wind and shields one from the wind. It can subdue all demons.¡±


    The silent Qi of Heaven and Earth in the White Tower Temple grew violent in seconds. The ordinary person would not be able to see it, but cultivators would be able to sense its rolling that was like that of thick rain clouds. They could sense the terrifying power within, making them grow very frightened and wish to leave.


    The violent Qi of Heaven and Earth was suppressed at an unbelievable speed. Then, it changed into a tangible peak that rose up from nowhere. It rushed toward Eldest Brother, almost breaking free from the bindings of the Buddhist¡¯s voice.


    The temple remained silent. Yet, Eldest Brother heard the sounds of numerousrge rocks crushing his body, and felt as if the weight of arge mountain was on his shoulders.


    His body was ordinary. Aspared to Jun Mo and Ning Que, his shoulders seemed as if they could not bear much weight. He swayed, and his knees buckled. However, he refused to fall.


    There was a puff.


    Eldest Brother spat out a mouthful of blood. He stared into the Chief Preaching Monk¡¯s eyes and said in a level voice, ¡°Confucius said that, when people mounted the same carriage, he should not care only for himself. He should not speak hastily and should not point!¡±


    Even when he was saying this in a scolding tone, his voice was still as gentle and drew one to it. It was strongly persuasive and extremely powerful.


    When he said the words ¡°care for himself¡±, the Chief Preaching Monk felt a slight pain in his eyes.


    And when Eldest Brother said ¡°not speak hastily¡±, the monk stopped chanting.


    When Eldest Brother said ¡°and should not point¡±, the Chief Preaching Monk felt as if arge mountain hadnded on his fingers. His arms fell, and he could not point at Eldest Brother anymore!


    The Chief Preaching Monk grew more and more solemn. His silver eyebrows floated in the air and his lips were slightly pursed. He recited yet another scripture. This time, he chanted very slowly. Each word was like thunder and was extremely harsh.


    ¡°I heard, that through samadhi, all the mountains, trees, vegetation andnd in Sandilya were turned into seven treasures, the public saw, and listened to the wonderful teachings in front of Buddha.¡±


    ¡°Depending on what you think, you can see yourself as blue, yellow, white, purple, red, ck, or as wind, or fire, or emptiness, or heat, water, foam, as mountains, or an emperor, or China, or Garuda, or stars, or elephants, or wild foxes!¡±


    The voice of Buddha thundered in the temple, reverberating in the air. Theke waters rolled uneasily and the willow branches by the shore broke and fell. The White Pagoda began to shine in seven colors.


    The tens of thousands of believers who knelt on the floor finally heard the sound. They heard the thunderous sound of Buddha and looked up subconsciously into the sky. However, they did not see any signs of lightning.


    Countless streams of Qi of Heaven and Earth came all the way from thends of the Yuelun Kingdom. They brought dust along with them, breaking branches and startling beasts. It came all the way to Chaoyang City and to the White Tower Temple.


    The cloudyer in the sky had shrouded Chaoyang City for the entire winter. This winter, other than the gathering and thickening of the cloud, nothing changed. However, even the strange cloudyer seemed to have sensed the horror behind the Chief Preaching Monk¡¯s voice of Buddha and began to stir uneasily.


    The dark clouds rolled and twisted violently. It seemed like thousands of ck snakes were twisting and tearing inside. asionally, the clouds would be torn apart, exposing gaps for a very short time, allowing sunlight to fall from them. The sunlight would then be scattered by the clouds into numerous colors and distorted into countless shapes.


    The colors of light fell into the White Tower Temple. They were green, white, or ck. When the people looked at the colors that fell on themselves, they were at a loss. To the cultivators, the light distorting into various shapes was even more terrifying. In their sense of perception, the light had be venerable Buddhists holding Vajras. They had be terrifying Buddhist beasts and water, and fire that rushed towards them!


    Ning Que knew that it wasn¡¯t a hallucination, nor the Chief Preaching Monk¡¯s spiritual world. It was the real aura of Heaven and Earth. The Chief Preaching Monk had drawn on his power, forging the aura of Heaven and Earth into the shapes of Buddha!


    Blood flowed from the corners of his lips. Ning Que did not have any power to retaliate against the powerful Buddhist power and the sky full of Buddhas. He could only kneel, his face pale and twisted in pain. His Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi seemed as if they would be destroyed the next moment!


    Sangsang, whom he was carrying, was in an even more dire situation. When the light rays pierced through the cloudyer and shone on her, her body becameyered in ck. While her face was pale, it could not hide the inauspicious ck color. She began to throw up blood, and like previously at Lanke, she threw up something that was the color of ink!


    At that moment inside the White Tower Temple, only the Eldest Brother of the Academy could stand against the Chief Preaching Monk¡¯s voice of Buddha. He naturally became the focus of attack for the Buddha power.


    Eldest Brother did not see the myriad of colors, wild foxes, enormous elephants or the cruel floods and fires. He only saw the sky full of Buddhas and stars rushing towards him.


    Every ancient mythological king had supreme power. Every Buddha in Buddhism legends had supreme power. Every star is the power of Heaven and Earth with unshakable might.


    Eldest Brother¡¯s bones started to crack. Blood began to ooze from the corners of his eyes and his face grew paler and paler. Even his cultivation state was on the verge of copse.


    However, his expression remained calm and firm.


    Eldest Brother looked up at the violently rolling dark clouds. He looked at the seven-colored lights falling from the sky, the ancient Buddhas as well as the stars that were pouring like rain. He yelled, ¡°He doesn¡¯t speak. Strange Powers Interfere Deities.¡±


    He doesn¡¯t speak.


    The Chief Preaching Monk¡¯s eyebrows lowered. A streak of red suddenly appeared on his wizened face, and the voice of Buddha stopped!


    ¡°Strange!¡±


    ¡°Powers!¡±


    ¡°Interfere!¡±


    ¡°Deities!¡±


    Eldest Brother would vomit a mouthful of blood every time he said a word. He vomited blood four times since he said four words!


    His face paled dramatically; so much that his face looked like clean snowy grounds no one had ever seen.


    After he said that, the cloudyer above Chaoyang City suddenly quietened. The tearing clusters of clouds huddled together in fear. The scattered gaps immediately closed.


    There wasn¡¯t a single ray of light that could pass through theyer of clouds to fall onto the ground. The seven-colored rays of light disappeared and the White Tower Temple returned to its original appearance. The enormous elephants and wild foxes forged by Buddha¡¯s power howled and exuded several rays of light before disappearing into the sky. The legendary venerable Buddhists holding Vajras and the kings from mythologies as well as the stars that fell like rain suddenly vanished!


    ¡°He doesn¡¯t speak. Strange Powers Interfere Deities.¡±


    The Buddhas all retreated!


    The aura of Heaven and Earth that hade from all corners of the Yuelun Kingdom eventually stopped, bringing a strong gust of wind to Chaoyang City. The White Tower Temple had just returned to its original appearance but was darkened beyondparison in a split second.


    The Chief Preaching Monk looked at the figure within the swirling sand who could fall at any second. He looked at the figure¡¯s robes which were soaked in blood. His silver eyebrows floated slightly as he pondered something.


    The crowd inside the White Tower Temple looked at the skies in shock. They did not understand what had happened and many rubbed their eyes, wondering if they were hallucinating.


    Master Qi Mei and the cultivation powerhouses from the Buddhist and Taoist sects looked at the schr. They looked surprised; from Qi Mei¡¯s eyes, one could see the respect he had for the schr.


    Everyone knew that the schr had been heavily injured in order to fight the Chief Monk¡¯s voice of Buddha. However, when he spoke, the sky full of Buddhas disappeared. This was sufficient to shock the world.


    Mr. First of the Academy was indeed Mr. First of the Academy.


    The Eldest Brother lifted his right arm to wipe the blood off the corners of his lips. He looked at the Chief Preaching Monk but spoke to Ning Que who was behind him, ¡°Teacher said that a gentleman wouldn¡¯t stay on dangerous grounds. If we don¡¯t leave now, when else should we?¡±


    Ning Que looked at his Senior Brother¡¯s back and whipped around, rushing off away from the crowd.


    Eldest Brother painfully coughed twice before disappearing once more.


    A gust of wind started next to the Chief Preaching Monk.

 Chapter 640 - Immolation

    <h4>Chapter 640: Immtion</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    It was the aura of Heaven and Earth rather than wind which was invisible for normal people. It rotated around the monk and pushed the air.


    The Limitless State which was higher than the Five States was difficult to understand, but it was real.


    In the paths or countless gates of the Heaven and Earth¡¯s aura, Eldest Brother moved at an unimaginable speed or in some way beyond speed, stirring the aura into the turbulence, and isted the monk from the real world.


    At this moment, the world the monk could see was only countless monotonous lines without sound. His voice could not spread to the real world either. He was temporarily separated from the real world.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t miss the opportunity and he ran away with Sangsang at once.


    The whole sky of Buddhas was smashed by one Eldest Brother¡¯s word and turned into innumerable ray fragments. When Ning Que ran, the fragments fell on him and were stuck by the blood, making it seem like countless diamonds.


    The Buddhism and Taoism experts had already surrounded them from all directions. Ning Que repeatedly diverted to look for a weak point to break through, when he found that Qi Mei was standing nearby.


    Except for the Chief Preaching Monk who was stalled by Eldest Brother, Master Qi Mei was the most powerful man here. He also was Ning Que¡¯s real source of dread, a person who would not leave him any chances.


    Facing Qi Mei and the huge crowd in the temple, Ning Que was not sure if he could take Sangsang out of Chaoyang City.


    The crowd had already rounded them, blocking off the bridge and the galleries in the temple. The ascetic monks began gathering and two priests in red came forward with a dozen of West-Hill Divine Guards.


    Ning Que felt desperate until he found a strange thing¡ªthe two priests had strange looks on their faces.


    Looking at Ning Que who was rushing toward them, the two priests in red didn¡¯t be alert, afraid or angry. They just peacefully stood there, looking respectful and determined.


    Ning Que was sure he had never met them before, but he noticed that they showed their respects to Sangsang when they looked at her.


    The two priests stood by Qi Mei and formed a thick wall to stop Ning Que with a dozen West-Hill Divine Guards and ascetic monks who were gathering around them.


    Two white mes slowly burned on the priests¡¯ palms and illuminated the temple covered by clouds. That was Haotian¡¯s Divine Light.


    The West-Hill Divine Guards¡¯ eyes were brightened by Haotian¡¯s Divine Light. The previous precautions turned into self-confidence and pride, as well as the zeal of martyrs.


    Staring at the Haotian Divine Light on their hands, Ning Que frowned and was quickly set on guard against them¡ªThanks to Sangsang who used to be the Lady of Light and owned the purest Haotian Divine Light in the world, he was familiar with the West-Hill Divine Skills. Since there were only a few priests who could practice the Divine Skills in West-Hill Divine Pce and they sent two of them, the West-Hill Divine Pce must be serious about this.


    Looking at the approaching Ning Que, the two priests became more and more strong-willed and sacred, exacerbating the light in their hands.


    Four beams of white mes rose up from their hands, illuminating the whole ce. Master Qi Mei looked at Ning Que and sighed, slowly moving sideways.


    Ning Que knew his meaning¡ªFacing Master Qi Mei and the two priests, he would never be able to rush out. Considering he didn¡¯t kill the little boy, Qi Mei was giving him a chance to fight against the priests first.


    However, neither Ning Que nor Master Qi Mei would ever think that their Divine Skills weren¡¯t aimed at Ning Que. They aimed at themselves.


    The Haotian Divine Light gushed out from their hands, mouths, noses, eyes, ears, and every hair and pore, prating the gaps of their clothes, and turned their bodies into two brightmps.


    Master Qi Mei felt extreme danger when he saw this, but he failed to avoid it. He hummed and sat down, immediately crossing his legs and covering his eyes, making a lotus posture.


    The two priests in red gently looked at Sangsang, smiling. Their smiles looked very gratified. Their bodies began to shine and burn... then they exploded.


    Boom! Boom!


    The air in the temple was suddenly disturbed, stirring theke water and breaking down many trees. Blood and broken arms and legs were everywhere. Countless people were killed in an instant.


    The West-Hill Divine Skill was the best way to save people¡¯s lives. However, who would think that, once the light decided to burn itself, it would be so powerful and kill so many people.


    The explosions created a huge nk area in the middle of the crowd where no one survived.


    As for the two priests¡¯ bodies, they had already been burst into ash. Only the pieces of the red robes were flying in the air like condensed blood.


    A piece of the red robe fell on Ning Que¡¯s shoulder. Sangsang stretched out a trembling finger and picked up it, looking a little sad.


    She didn¡¯t know why they blew themselves up, but she knew they did this for her when she remembered their eyes before they died.


    The smoke and dust gradually dissipated. The White Tower Temple was in a mess, echoing the pained screams and groanings. It was disastrous and filled with blood and flesh.


    Master Qi Mei was riddled with wounds and burns on his body. Facing the two priests¡¯ explosions, even though he had be a Buddha, he was badly injured. If he didn¡¯t step away for Ning Que, he would be more seriously injured.


    Putting down his hand and looking at his surroundings, he changed his expression. Ning Que and the Daughter of Yama were no longer here and the ck crows had flown away.

 Chapter 641 - The Burning Horse Carriage

    <h4>Chapter 641: The Burning Horse Carriage</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    An arrow pierced into Ning Que¡¯s shoulder forcefully. The sharp arrowhead tore through his shirt, but did not wedge itself deeply into his flesh. It only left behind a shallow wound. Sangsang, who was carrying the ck umbre was slightly startled.


    Several arrows rained down, and the big ck umbre that covered the two shook like a tiny ck boat on a vast body of water. It felt as if their boat would sink into the bottom of the sea at any moment.


    Leaving the White Tower Temple did not mean that they would be able to leave Chaoyang City. The Yuelun Kingdom had sent many troops from various counties who were in control of the entire capital. There were shooters in every street corner.


    Ning Que¡¯s body was sturdy, but he was still slightly injured by the rain of arrows. The big ck umbre blocked most of the arrows for Sangsang. However, the holes on the umbre were terribly dangerous.


    In order to avoid the densely gathered shooters, Ning Que did not choose to ambush them on the streets. Instead, he began to circle the alleys. The ck crows flew above them, cawing unpleasantly. However, the truly brave Chaoyang City citizens were still in the White Tower Temple, so there were not many people who dared to stop them.


    Taking the winding alleys took up some time and they were still a long distance from the city gates. What made Ning Que uneasy and nervous was that he finally heard the thundering sound of horse hooves in the distance.


    The armored cavalry of the Yuelun Kingdom had finally arrived.


    The armored cavalry was a country¡¯s strongest defense against cultivators. Even though the armored cavalry of the Yuelun Kingdom was much weaker than the armored cavalry of the Tang Empire and the Papal Cavalrymen of West-Hill Divine Pce, they could still kill Ning Que and Sangsang as long as there were enough knights.


    Then, a horse carriage with the Divine Hall¡¯s logo appeared before the two at the entrance of the alley.


    Ning Que stopped in his tracks.


    The curtains lifted, revealing a wizened face and a red divine robe.


    Sangsang clenched her fist subconsciously when she saw the priest in the horse carriage. There was a piece of red cloth in her hand, but she did not know which of the two priests in red who had previously self-destructed it belonged to.


    Ning Que sped up and rushed into the horse carriage.


    The horse carriage started moving slowly, and then sped up, rushing out of the alley.


    The elderly priest in red asked, ¡°Which direction?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°North.¡±


    Earlier, at the White Tower Temple, two of the West-Hill priests in red had self-destructed using their Divine Skills, opening a path for Sangsang and him. That was how he had had the chance to avoid Master Qi Mei and entered Chaoyang City sessfully.


    The Haotian Taoism¡¯s Divine Skill was apassionate one. It was deemed as the greatest gift Haotian had bestowed upon his believers. In the teachings of West-Hill, using the Divine Skills to self-destruct was considered a betrayal against Haotian and was prohibited. It was said that the people who died after doing this would never be able to enter Haotian¡¯s Kingdom. Their spirits would linger in the Underworld forever.


    An ordinary Haotian believer would not be able to ept not being able to enter Haotian¡¯s Kingdom. It was the cruelest punishment for them, even more for the priests in red who could cultivate in Divine Skills. Their belief in Haotian must have been firm beyondparison. Then what was the reason that had led the two priests in red to save Ning Que, regardless of their imminent descent into the Underworld?


    Sangsang had caught some sense of it, but Ning Que did not have the time to think and had been confused until he saw the old priest in the horse carriage.


    Both he and Sangsang had met this priest, in a Taoism Temple in the Kingdom of Qi.


    The old priest was called Chen Cun. He was the resident red robed priest from the West-Hill Divine Pce in the Kingdom of Qi. He was highly respected in the Kingdom of Qi, and most importantly, he was from the Divine Hall of Light.


    Sangsang leaned on Ning Que¡¯s shoulders. Hershes fluttered slightly as she said mournfully, ¡°Why did all of you do this?¡±


    Chen Cun said humbly, ¡°This is our choice. We will not feel any regrets, even if we cannot enter Haotian¡¯s Kingdom. Great Divine Priest, you need not feel sad about it.¡±


    Ning Que was driving the horse carriage, but he heard the conversation clearly and sensed that the old priest didn¡¯t address Sangsang as the Lady of Light like how they had done in the Kingdom of Qi. Instead, he had addressed her as the Great Divine Priest. He was now certain that he had not guessed wrongly, and asked, ¡°The two other priests...¡±


    Chen Cun looked solemn, and he said indifferently, ¡°Hua Yin is the pce priest from the Kingdom of Song while Song Xixi was from the Great River Kingdom. They wouldn¡¯t havee to Yuelun with me if they missed the luxuries of the world.¡±


    The priests in red held an extremely high position in Haotian Taoism, but were only ordinary on the Peach Mountain of the West-Hill Divine Pce. However, those who were dispatched to other countries were mostly like Chen Cun in the Kingdom of Qi. They all held power and respect which were akin to an emperor¡¯s. Ning Que grew even quieter after hearing where the two priests in red were from.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s horse carriage rushed through Chaoyang City. The ck crows flew over once again, circling the horse carriage. Ning Que was very familiar with the streets of Chaoyang City, and perhaps thanks to the Divine Hall seal on the carriage, the cavalry of the Yuelun Kingdom hesitated and he managed to barge through several barriers without much incident.


    The dense clopping of horse hooves rang once again in Chaoyang City. Loud sounds of bamboo pipes could also be heard. The Yuelun Kingdom¡¯s cavalry had finallye around and began chasing. The ascetic monks of the Buddhism Sect also gathered in the direction of the ck crows.


    Ning Que turned around to look at the White Pagoda in the distance to his right. He was very worried as he thought of how Eldest Brother was still in there and he wondered how the battle with the Chief Preaching Monk would end.


    He suddenly saw that Sangsang¡¯s pants had torn at an area on her calves. There was a deep wound that must have been caused by the shooters earlier which the big ck umbre had not managed to block. The arrowhead had torn away a piece of flesh, and it must have hurt terribly. However, she had not made a sound.


    They were getting closer to the north city gates. However, the horse carriage ducked into some roads to avoid the shooters and cavalry. The ascetic monks from the Buddhism Sect had already arrived in the area and Ning Que could even sense Master Qi Mei¡¯s aura.


    Chen Cun looked in the direction of the north city gates, his wrinkles growing deeper, but his eyes remained calm. It was a true serenity that did not care even about death. It was a calmness that was resolute.


    He looked at Sangsang and at the wound on her leg.


    Perhaps because Sangsang had bled too much in recent days, the wound on her calves did not bleed much. However, on the outer edge, it could still be vaguely seen that the blood was ck.


    Chen Cun said hoarsely, ¡°Great Divine Priest, please tell me that we were not wrong.¡±


    Sangsang looked at the loyal subordinate and her heart twinged. She was prepared to speak the truth.


    Ning Que waved the horse whip and whipped down loudly.


    Sangsang felt as if theshing hadnded right on her heart.


    Sangsang held the shred of red cloth in her palms tightly. Her nails dug deeply into her flesh. After a silent moment, she looked at the wrinkles on Chen Cun¡¯s face and said calmly, ¡°The light can never be wrong.¡±


    After hearing her reply, the deep wrinkles on Chen Cun¡¯s face ttened out, and he seemed to grow younger by decades. He knelt before her, full of vigor, and kissed her feet.


    Outside the north city gates, there wasn¡¯t anyone else waiting but dozens of ascetic monks from the Buddhism Sect.


    Master Qi Mei stood in front of all these monks, pale but serene. He was still bleeding from the wounds on his body. He had been gravely injured when the two priests in red had self-ignited using their Divine Skills. There were still remnants of Divine Light in his wounds. These did not bring him any healing properties; instead they continued to cut deep into his flesh.


    Logically speaking, these ascetic monks would be more likely to stop Ning Que within the city. However, he chose to battle outside the city because Ning Que had not taken his podao out of his scabbard against the little boy in White Tower Temple. Then, as the eminent monk of the Buddhism Sect, how could he not do the same and not harm the innocent?


    A horse carriage rushed out from the seemingly useless gates of Chaoyang city, dust trailing behind it.


    Master Qi Mei chanted the name of Buddha silently, and slowly lifted his right hand. He pointed his thumb and index finger at the carriage, using what was left of his hand to form theplete Emblematic Gesture of the Buddhism Sect.


    The horse carriage did not stop. Instead it broke through the strong Buddhist aura and rushed toward Master Qi Mei and the dozens of ascetic monks. This was because the horse carriage had suddenly caught fire.


    It wasn¡¯t an ordinary fire; it was burning with Haotian Divine Light. The Haotian Divine Light that could cleanse everything on Earth burst out of the horse carriage, breaking the hold of the Emblematic Gesture.


    Master Qi Mei was stunned.


    After the two priests in red had self-ignited using their Divine Skills in the White Tower Temple, he knew that those from the West-Hill Divine Pce did not want the Daughter of Yama to die. Therefore, he had grown quite wary.


    However, he had not anticipated that another priest willing to descend into the Underworld would appear again. Furthermore, judging by the Haotian Divine Light that was bursting out from the horse carriage, the priest in red was even more powerful!


    The ming horse carriage continued to move forward.


    Master Qi Mei hurriedly ordered the monks to step back, and he grew more and more solemn.


    What was up with the West-Hill Divine Pce and Haotian Taoism? There shouldn¡¯t be more than ten priests in red who could cultivate the Divine Skills. However, three hade to Chaoyang City today. And these three priests in red had all betrayed the West-Hill Divine Pce, aiding the Daughter of Yama in escaping.


    The glowing ball of light appeared in the wild outskirts of Chaoyang City.


    The ming horse carriage disintegrated into nothingness, turning into numerous rays of powerful Divine Light. They scattered in all directions as the wind blew wildly and pebbles madly rolled on the ground.


    Several Buddhist cultivators were thrown into the air. Master Qi Mei, who was at the front of the party was severely injured once more!


    When Chen Cun, the priest in red, began to burn up thest of his life force, Ning Que had already carried Sangsang on his back and leapt off the horse carriage. Then, using the light as his cover, he rushed forth.


    The burning horse carriage was the most fearless vanguard and the most powerful way-clearer.


    The old priest had exchanged his life for light, causing a shockwave through the wild outside the city. Through the mad wind and flying rocks, Ning Que carried Sangsang and passed by the Buddhist powerhouses who had fallen because of it.


    Sangsang buried her head in his shoulders. She did not look at the remnants of Divine Light that scattered through the wild. Her fists were tightly clenched.


    Ning Que ran, and when he saw that the green hill was not far away in the north, he whistled.


    His whistling was not loud or shrill, and it sounded like a casual one.


    The ck crows in the sky heard it clearly though, and they cawed in reply.


    In the distant green hill, a powerful neigh could be heard.

 Chapter 642

    <h4>Chapter 642: One Can Go on the Path When There Is a Path</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The Big ck Horse lived in the Daqing Mountain this winter.


    Without Ning Que¡¯spanionship, he did not feel upset or encounter any problems in his life. Instead, he enjoyed his freedom by chewing flowers, eating meat, seeking quietness, sleepingte, and basking in the sunshine. How happy life was! Even the dark cloud that enveloped Chaoyang city did not annoy him for over a half day.


    However, countless powerhouses gathered in Chaoyang city recently like the clouds in the sky. Especially since this morning, the aura in the city became chaotic. The big ck horse realized that his happy time was about to end. He had to find the thicket, endure the sharp thorns and break up the ground covered with thick fallen leaves.


    His forehooves were very strong. With full strength, they were much more powerful than the hoe used by ordinarybors. It did not take long before he kicked off all the fallen leaves and dug a hole.


    The ck carriage wasying in the hole quietly. There was no damage on it except for some dust. Theriat and shafts in front were erected slightly. Everything had long been ready for this moment.


    After heaving a sigh, the Big ck Horse bowed his head and positioned himself into the noose with resignation. Then, with utmost strength and lightning speed, he pounded on the slope with four hooves. Finally, he managed to drag the heavy carriage to the ground.


    As he dragged the carriage out of the thorns and through the jungle, there was not a single soul on his way, so he felt less worried. However, on figuring out the reason for so few tourists, he became worried again. After arriving at the grassy slope at the south foot, he gasped slightly and waited there nervously, looking toward the direction of Chaoyang City.


    He did not know how long he had waited there before hearing the familiar whistle.


    Soft as the whistle was, the Big ck Horse could hear it clearly. As to him, the whistle was a summon to death. To his annoyance, he had thought that he hated it, only to find himself involuntarily excited when hearing it now. Thus he could not help but feel ashamed.


    With suchplicated emotions, the Big ck Horse bellowed and began to drag the heavy ck carriage along the grassy slope of the south of the Daqing Mountain, rushing furiously toward the open country outside the Chaoyang City.


    When he rushed to the open country, the scene of at least hundreds of cavalries dashing out of Chaoyang City to chase that figure filled him with even more rage. He panted heavily and speeded up again.


    On the vast open country in the north of the city, hundreds of cavalries from the Yuelun Kingdom came with dust swirling in the air, forming a huge fan shape. The hoofbeat was as loud and vigorous as the pitter-patter of a heavy shower.


    More than a thousand feet away in front of the sector, Ning Que kept running with Sangsang on his back. He was extremely nervous when he looked at the approaching ck carriage while hearing the clear and thundering hoofbeat.


    Looking at the dangerous scene, the Big ck Horse neighed violently and speeded up again. With the heavy carriage behind him, he turned into a cloud of ck smoke, reaching the figure before it was devoured by the Yuelun Kingdom cavalry.


    Ning Que lowered his body and jumped into the carriage with lightening speed.


    At this time, hundreds of cavalries of the Yuelun Kingdom also arrived. They were heading towards the ck carriage, which was going to be surrounded by them if it could not stop at once.


    The Big ck Horse neighed again, its thick lips trembling violently in the air. Its big white teeth had some shredded rabbit meat stuck in it fromst night looked ghoulish. Suddenly, he leaped to the left.


    The war-horses at the front felt somehow chilly when they saw the Big ck Horse and heard his neighing. They suddenly felt cold and fell to the ground with a thump, sshing up arge cloud of dust.


    When the Big ck Horse forced a turn, inertia caused the heavy carriage to move ahead. With the powerful force brought by the inertia, the rope sling was tightened, leaving a blood-red mark on his strong and smooth neck and even pulling out some hair on his mane.


    With another furious neigh, the Big ck Horse spared no effort and managed to stop the forward movement of the carriage. The carriage toppled and almost fell to the ground. The Stainless-steel wheels prated deeply into the earth, sshing up dirt.


    The dirt fell like stones squarely onto the face of those horses at the front who fortunately did not fall. At the time, the startled neighs rang continuously.


    The sector shaped by hundreds of cavalries was gradually disrupted.


    The carriage tilted when Ning Que ran into it carrying Sangsang on his back. He tumbled twice before he could finally stabilize himself. Then he tapped on the wall of the carriage.


    The crystal in his palm was embedded into the array on the wall. Then a talisman paper between his fingers turned into a plume of smoke, which started the array on the wall at high speed. As a sound that was as slight as a feather floating in the air rang, the heavy carriage suddenly became much lighter.


    The wheels made by stainless-steel floated out of the ground. The Big ck Horse was the first to discover the change and gave a joyous neigh. He pushed off the ground quickly, dragging the carriage toward the north like a streak of dust.


    The speed of the Big ck Horse was uparably fast. Once the array on the carriage wall was initiated, no one or horse in the world but cultivators at the Limitless State could catch up with him. The hundreds of cavalries of the Yuelun Kingdom werepletely stunned by the ck smoke, let alone run after him.


    As he sprinted wildly, the Big ck Horse looked back at those silly horses and cavalries left far behind and neighedcently. He thought to himself that how foolish they were topete with him on speed.


    When passing by the Daqing Mountain, hiscency turned to reluctance and exmation. He thought to himself that it would be impossible for him to enjoy such happiness again after leaving here, whether he would go into exile with Ning Que or return to the back mountain of the Academy.


    At the thought of it, he could not help sighing and let out a long neigh.


    The birds and animals in the Daqing Mountain had been humiliated and harmed for a whole winter. On hearing the neigh, they could not help but tremble with joy. They prayed that this big boss would nevere back after he finally left.


    When the ck horse carriage left the Chaoyang City, the dark cloud that hung over the city through the winter also left gradually, floating toward the north high in the sky.


    The cloud was very high, so the seemingly slow move was in fact astonishingly fast. Master Qi Mei averted his eyes from the sky and then took over the bridle beside him. He rushed toward the north with dozens of ascetic monks, but he was very clear about the speed of the ck carriage. He knew that they would probably not be able to catch up.


    As the dark cloud had already left, bountiful sunlight that was absent for many days finally floated down the Chaoyang City. However, people in the city who hardly saw the blue sky did not look happy at all.


    Under the clear blue sky, the white tower was extraordinarily beautiful in the light. Theke reflected the image of the trees. The ground was still spattered with blood after the corpses had been removed.


    On the open space beside theke, the Eldest Brother appeared. He was coughing so desperately and painfully that he bent down as if coughing up his lungs.


    Lungs could not be coughed up, but blood could. Within moments, the snow-white handkerchief in his hand covering his lips became red, looking as if it was red right from the start.


    The Eldest Brother from the Academy was a legend in the cultivation world.


    Few people have seen him fight, but Ye Su and Tang, the two world wayfarers, regarded him as their goal of cultivation. So one could imagine how profound his state was. However, his opponent today was Chief Preaching Monk of the Xuankong Temple, the Buddha of the world and a legendary figure.


    Legends, after all, were not myths.


    It was incredible that the Eldest Brother could break the Chief Preaching Monk¡¯s words and force him to remain where he was so as to create a chance for Ning Que to escape.


    However, he did not rest much this year. He was exhausted from looking for Ning Que and Sangsang in different Buddhist temples, Taoist temples, and cities through Limitless State. So his state was unstable now. In addition, he was seriously injured in today¡¯s fight, which might even affect his cultivation in the future.


    Even so, he still looked gentle and cool. His eyes were so clear that everyone wanted to get close to them. There were no extra emotions on his face except a slight frown caused by coughing.


    Thebat today between the leader of the Buddhism Sect and Mr. First of the Academy was indescribably amazing. It was fully qualified to be recorded in the annals of cultivation or the Buddhist myths.


    As a Buddha indestructible both physically and mentally, the Chief Preaching Monk was not injured at all though he was defeated again and again. He was still a myth as well as a winner. But since Ning Que managed to escape with the daughter of Yama, he was also a loser.


    An ordinary person would probably be angry and fight again. But the Chief Preaching Monk looked as calm and gentle as the Eldest Brother, without any sign of sulking.


    He looked at the Eldest Brother and praised, ¡°Being resolute and dull is benevolence.¡±


    The Eldest Brother made a bow to return the favor, ¡°You tter me.¡±


    Thinking of the several crucial scenes during thebat, the Chief Preaching Monk said with a smile, ¡°I should have thought that the Headmaster would know such old means as the Power Follows Words.¡±


    He looked at the Eldest Brother and asked, ¡°But I do not know when he taught you that.¡±


    The Eldest Brother rubbed the blood away from his lips and said slowly, ¡°My teacher never taught me that.¡±


    The Chief Preaching Monk looked at him quietly and asked suddenly, ¡°Did you learn it by yourself?¡±


    Eldest Brother nodded.


    As his silver eyebrows fluttered slightly, the Chief Preaching Monk asked, ¡°Buddha¡¯s words have not been heard for a long time. When did you learn it?¡±


    Eldest Brother answered honestly, ¡°When you spoke them.¡±


    After hearing the answer, the Chief Preaching Monk fell into a long silence. As his silver eyebrows slowly pped down, he looked at the schr and sighed, ¡°Hearing the truth at dawn, knowing the destiny at dusk. Now I believe it is true.¡±


    Chief Preaching Monk got up with one hand on his staff and plodded toward the carriage.


    When he went to the front of the carriage, he turned back to look at Eldest Brother and said, ¡°Ning Que and the daughter of Yama went toward the north, with ck crows to guide and dark clouds to shield. You cannot help him anymore. Go back to the Academy to have a rest.¡±


    After a moment of silence, the Eldest Brother said, ¡°There¡¯s still my teacher.¡±


    The Chief Preaching Monk said slowly, ¡°It is said that you, Li Manman, are so benevolent and good that you do not even know how to lie. I did not expect you to lie today for the sake of your Younger Brother.¡±


    Then he sighed, ¡°What you said on behalf of the Headmaster is not his ideas, but only your own conjecture. So I did not agree with you.¡±


    The Eldest Brother told him what the Headmaster¡¯s idea was: only if Sangsang died, would the imprint on her be released, thus exposing the position of the world to Yama. Therefore, she could not die.


    Now the Chief Preaching Monk said that that was not the Headmaster¡¯s idea, but only his own conjecture.


    The Eldest Brother froze slightly. He did not know how the monk had seen through him.

 Chapter 643

    <h4>Chapter 643: The Beginning of the Blood-Filled Journey to the Throne</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°I don¡¯t understand why master would say that.¡±


    The Chief Preaching Monk looked at him and gently said, ¡°You are the Headmaster¡¯s student. You should know how he is like. If he really thought that killing Sangsang would cause Yama to invade us, he would have brought Ning Que and Sangsang back to the Academy. Would everything that had happened since autumn happen then?¡±


    Eldest Brother fell into silence.


    ¡°I heard Ye Su once said in Lanke Temple that Haotian Taoism is doing the right thing while the Buddhism Sect is doing what we think we should do. Only you all at the Academy have been doing what makes you happy all along.¡±


    The Chief Preaching Monk looked at him and said, ¡°You people at the Academy do not have beliefs, respect nor fear. You might be infinitely powerful. But in the end, you might discover that you don¡¯t understand what would make you happy.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know if the Headmaster is happy or not. But I know that he is hesitating. He does not know what is the right thing to do and what he should do to make himself happy. When you return to the Academy, please give him my regards and tell him that to arge extent, the future of the world lies in his hesitation today.¡±


    With that, the Chief Preaching Monk held his monk¡¯s staff and climbed up the horse carriage with difficulty. The sixteen horses neighed painfully and pulled the carriage out of the temple.


    Eldest Brother remained silent as he watched the slow retreating horse carriage. He thought to himself, ¡°Could teacher be hesitating? If he wasn¡¯t hesitating, he would have long acted.¡±


    Winter had ended, but spring had not yet fully arrived. Among the hills in the north of the Yuelun Kingdom, vegetation was turning green, but it was still vaguely hidden between the withered and frosted leaves.


    Both sides of the path were rather bare, and when the horse carriage sped past, it looked like a single block of color moving. It was no better off than the inness in the Wilderness.


    In the carriage, Sangsang was dressed in fur clothing and was huddled under thick bedding. Her face was pale and she held a leather pouch filled with strong liquor. She would take a few gulps whenever she felt cold. It could slightly warm her chest and abdomen, but it could not stop her cough.


    Ning Que stared at the small medicine bottle above the copper basin. He¡¯d count the time carefully and cough softly every now and then. The injury he had suffered in Chaoyang City was basically healed, but he still had some small problems with his lungs.


    Sangsang was injured by the arrow but had recovered under his care. What made him uneasy now was that he did not know if it was due to the continuous escape that the cold aura in her body seemed to show signs of acting up again.


    The slightly pungent smell of medicine gradually spread through the carriage. He took down the medicine bottle and ced it on the floor to cool. Then, he took the liquor pouch from Sangsang and stuffed a Buddhist scripture into her hands.


    ¡°I can memorize it,¡± said Sangsang, looking at him pathetically.


    Ning Que¡¯s heart was like steel and he was unmoved. He said, ¡°Master Qishan said you have to continue reading scriptures and studying Buddhism. It¡¯s pointless even if you can memorize it. You have to understand Buddhism through reading the scriptures.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I¡¯ve read so many scriptures, but I don¡¯t know if they¡¯re useful.¡±


    ¡°Didn¡¯t we confirm that it is useful in Chaoyang City?¡±


    Ning Que walked to the windows and said, ¡°Think about it. The Chief Preaching Monk spoke in the voice of Buddha, and look at how impressive that was. If you can learn that trick, maybe with just amand, the cold aura would be so frightened it would disappear.¡±


    Sangsangughed, and continued reading the scripture.


    Ning Que lifted the curtains and looked toward the back of the mountain path.


    It was a scene of destion with the asional green. However, there were plenty of coniferous forests that had not yet produced new leaves. His eyes did not stay on this scene but strayed towards the more distant south.


    He wondered how his Eldest Brother was.


    This was what Ning Que was most worried about other than Sangsang¡¯s health after leaving Chaoyang City. However, he thought that since he had left with Sangsang, the Chief Preaching Monk would have no reason to cause trouble for Eldest Brother, risking the wrath of their teacher. Then, Eldest Brother should be safe.


    They were already several hundred miles away from Chaoyang City. They had long lost the tail of Master Qi Mei and the Yuelun Kingdom¡¯s cavalry. Ning Que made the Big ck Horse stop at the side of the path for them to rest for a while.


    Ning Que got off the horse carriage and saw a stream on the side of the path, which made him feel very satisfied. He patted the Big ck Horse¡¯s back and filled his water pouch. Then, he began to stew dried meat and fed the horse an old ginseng.


    The Big ck Horse chewed frantically and swallowed the ginseng in seconds. It was a little bitter, but it knew that it was very nourishing and did not dare to show Ning Que his displeasure.


    Ning Que had stolen the old ginseng and other cooking herbs in the medicinal vat inside the carriage from a rich manor in Chaoyang City back in winter. They were all extremely precious goods.


    The dried meat gradually bloated up in the boiling water and a rancid smell emerged from the pot. The Big ck Horse turned his head with disdain and went searching for flowers by the road to chew on. It wanted to get rid of the bitter taste of the ginseng in its mouth. However, there was but a few stalks of grass on the ground, much less flowers. It grew annoyed.


    ¡°Passing winter in the green hills really turned you wild. Only my Eleventh Senior Brother would do something like eating flowers. Why would you want to chew something like that?¡±


    Ning Que scolded him and looked up at the sky.


    The dark cloud continued following Sangsang. It was significantly thicker aspared to when they were in Chaoyang city and was also gloomier. It was like a wet old nket and felt very heavy.


    Ning Que¡¯s mood was solemn. The cloud was a weight on his shoulders and was depressing. When he heard the sounds of cawing and saw several ck crows circling the skies, he felt even more agitated.


    He wanted to chase the ck crows away and even kill them. However, he had tried to use his boxwood bow to shoot them down to no avail. He even wanted to try using the Primordial Thirteen Arrows but eventually gave up on this line of thought. He was worried that these ck crows could not be killed and he would waste his precious iron arrows.


    No matter the clouds or the ck crows in the sky, they continued to follow the horse carriage. It was eerie as they followed closely without straying. It was annoying and terrifying.


    Ning Que could guess where the cloud and ck crows came from. The clouds might have gathered because of the cold aura leaking out from Sangsang, causing the aura of Heaven and Earth to change. The intelligent and seemingly unkible ck crows could be a physical manifestation of the cold aura inside Sangsang.


    The cold aura was an imprint left behind in Sangsang by Yama. The clouds and ck crows were Yama¡¯s methods. Even the most bizarre and wondrous incidents could be exined by an existence that was greater than that of the human realm.


    The ck clouds and crows continued following the ck horse carriage. It was a very obvious sign. Ning Que did not know if Yama could see it, but he knew that many people had seen it, since he kept meeting little troops of the Yuelun Kingdom¡¯s cavalry.


    The ck carriage was no longer able to hide its tracks. This meant that many were watching Ning Que and Sangsang¡¯s journey and they were forced out into the light.


    Since this was so, Ning Que decided not to think too much about it. He ordered the Big ck Horse to speed up, hoping that he would be able to reach the Wilderness. Judging by the Big ck Horse¡¯s speed, once they entered the limitless Wilderness, the cultivators of both Buddhism and Taoism sects as well as the cavalry of the Yuelun Kingdom would find it hard to catch up with them unless they also had an Eldest Brother.


    They rushed madly toward the north, and within days, the ck horse carriage sessfully traversed through the northernnds of the Yuelun Kingdom. It exited the kingdom and reached the sparsely popted Wilderness.


    It might seem simple, but the ck horse carriage had encountered several attempts at blocking them on their journey. They also encountered several dangerous situations.


    The powerhouses of both the Buddhism and Taoism sects, as well as the Yuelun Kingdom¡¯s military, had set up four blockages in the north. One of the most dangerous encounters they¡¯ve had urred when the ck horse carriage changed its path and attempted to travel through the northeast.


    The people that the West-Hill Divine Pce had ced in the ridge had been heading north at that time. They happened to meet the ck horse carriage which was at the northeast border of the Yuelun Kingdom. The West-Hill Divine Pce team had over ten deacons from the Judicial Department amongst them and hundreds of Papal Cavalrymen. What was even more terrifying was that they had two Haotian Taoism visiting professors who were at the Knowing Destiny State.


    Ning Que¡¯s first thought when he saw the powerhouses from the West-Hill Divine Pce was to wonder: when had cultivators in the Knowing Destiny State be somon? And secondly, how many powerful people did Haotian Taoism actually have hidden?


    The third thought, of course, was to escape.


    If Sangsang was the enemy of the world, then no matter how powerful Ning Que was, he could not just simply escape when he wanted to. The ck horse carriage could traverse through many blockades and escape even though they met many powerhouses from the Buddhism and Taoism sects. They had crossed through the borders and entered the Wilderness sessfully. Other than the fast speed of the Big ck Horse and Ning Que¡¯s rich experience in fleeing, the most important reason for their sess was that someone had been secretly helping them.


    Ning Que did not know who was helping them but he could vaguely guess. His conjecture was confirmed when those people were forced to appear as he met the powerhouses from the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    Those who had been helping them escape were from the West-Hill Divine Pce. They were the deacon from the Judicial Department, ordinary priests and two highly ranked priests in red.


    Many people hand died tragically to protect Sangsang in the sudden battle by the northeast border of the Yuelun Kingdom. One of the priests in red had used his Divine Skills to self-ignite, seriously injuring the Haotian Taoism visiting professors in the Knowing Destiny State. That was how Ning Que and Sangsang had managed to escape.


    The wind in the Wilderness was still just as cold.


    Sangsang grew more and more silent as the priests from the West-Hill Divine Pce exposed themselves or died in order to cover the whereabouts of the ck horse carriage as they fled.


    Ning Que lifted the curtains and looked at the scenery of the Wilderness that he had never seen, but looked familiar. He thought of the tragedies that had urred as they fled and said, ¡°They are all from the Divine Hall of Light.¡±


    Sangsang murmured in agreement.


    The deacons in ck from the Judicial Department, the Taoists from some Taoist temple, ordinary priests, priests in red. These people all came from different ces, and were not all subordinates of the Divine Hall of Light in the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    However, these people had something inmon. They had all met one person and studied under him or served him. Some might had only spoken a few words with the person.


    And after having these experiences, no matter what kind of person these people would be in the future¡ªthe ruthless deacons in ck of the Judicial Department, the Haotian Taoism visiting professors, the honorable priests in red, or the ordinary cavalry of West-Hill Divine Pce¡ªthey would be determined to follow the light and thought of themselves to belong to the Divine Hall of Light.


    Because the person they all met was called Wei Guangming.


    Wei Guangming was the most impressive Great Divine Priest of Light from the West-Hill Divine Pce in over a hundred years. He was also the greatest traitor of the West-Hill Divine Pce in over a hundred years. To those of the world, he was also the person who had once been the closest to Haotian.


    His only sessor in the world was Sangsang.

 Chapter 644 - Inside the Quagmire

    <h4>Chapter 644: Inside the Quagmire</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    On the Peach-Mountain of West Hill, the Divine Hall of Light seemed special.


    It had been more than ten years since the Divine Hall of Light did not have a master. However, it still possessed strong hidden power. Those in the hall possessed a belief so firm that the world and priests from other Divine Halls could not imagine.


    This was rted to the nature of the Divine Hall of Light and the history of Haotian Taoism. For countless years, the Great Divine Priest of Light seemed to be the most special one in Haotian Taoism. This was especially so when it came to Wei Guangming.


    The Divine Hall of Light believed that the Light was always right. That was why their belief was so firm. The Great Divine Priest gradually grew to hold more power than Haotian.


    Wei Guangming¡¯s imprisonment in the You Prison was an unbearable humiliation for the people in the Divine Hall of Light. Furthermore, the West-Hill Hierarch and the other two Divine Halls had spared no effort to suppress and weaken the Divine Hall of Light, which had further infuriated them to the extreme. Why would they believe that the sessor chosen by the Divine Priest of Light was the Daughter of Yama?


    They firmly believed that Sangsang was the Lady of Light and that the affairs after the incident at Lanke Temple were just a plot by the West-Hill Hierarch and a collusion between Haotian Taoism and the Buddhism Sect to suppress the Divine Hall of Light. They thought that it was an extremely filthy thing.


    As such, how could they allow the Lady of Light to be imprisoned or killed? However, they were rtively weak and could only endure it. Then, they would suddenly exert their strength ande from all over the world with the sea, rain, skies and wind. They would sacrifice and bravely go their tragical deaths, using their lives and souls to escort the ck horse carriage through the blockades set up by the Buddhism and Taoism sects to the Wilderness sessfully.


    Ning Que did not have any beliefs, so he found it hard to understand. The belief the Divine Hall of Light had in Wei Guangming and Sangsang was strangely strong. He could not understand this and was extremely shocked by it.


    The ck horse carriage traveled through the Wilderness.


    He looked out of the window at the ck mud and melting ice, then said, ¡°My family and all the vigers in Darkie have all died at your teacher¡¯s hands. But I have to admit that your teacher is an impressive person.¡±


    ¡°A thousand years ago, that Great Divine Priest of Light started the Enlightenment Doctrine. A thousand yearster, the Lady of Light became the Daughter of Yama. For the thousand years in between, your teacher was the greatest oddity, or perhaps one could say, traitor, of the West-Hill Divine Pce. Long Qing is nothingpared to him.¡±


    Ning Que looked at Sangsang and said, ¡°It is just that I don¡¯t understand. Wei Guangming searched for the Son of Yama his entire life. He didn¡¯t hesitate to kill and ughter through any means. But when he died with my master on the nameless mountain, he seemed to have seen through your true identity. Then why didn¡¯t he say anything?¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s identity had been revealed at the Lanke Temple. There were many pieces of evidence then. After that, when he mentioned it to Sangsang, she told him what had happened on the mountain on the outskirts of Chang¡¯an back then. When theypared them, they could see that Wei Guangming had known that Sangsang was the Daughter of Yama before he died.


    Sangsang shook her head, and said with a lost expression, ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    Ning Que did not think about it further. He thought of the four priests in red who had self-ignited and the Divine Hall of Light subordinates who had died tragically. He said, with a cold expression, ¡°The Divine Hall of Light will definitely be ruined this time. I even suspect that this was a plot of the Haotian Taoism. Those bigwigs want to take the opportunity of killing you to force out all the hidden powers of the Divine Hall of Light and then get rid of them.¡±


    If they could not return to their homnd, where should they go?


    Sangsang had once asked Ning Que this question. Back then, Ning Que had said that aside from the Academy mountain¡¯s back, the safest ce for them was where there was nobody.


    The most sparsely popted ce on earth was the Wilderness.


    Through the space tunnel that Buddha had left behind at the Lanke Temple, the two arrived at the Western Wilderness. Then, they went to Yuelun. Ning Que had considered taking the eastern ridges and the path they had eventually chosen to take. But he had never considered heading southward.


    Because the south of the Yuelun Kingdom had seemed too quiet.


    The powerhouses of the Taoism and Buddhism sects had remained at the eastern and northern borders of Yuelun. However, they did not nt anyone at the southern borders where there was a patch of virgin forest separating the Yuelun Kingdom from the Great River Kingdom and the South Jin Kingdom.


    The stillness was odd and frightening to Ning Que.


    That was why he was determined to choose heading east and north, but never south. That was because, while there might be countless powerhouses from the two sects in the northeast direction, he could imagine how powerful they were. But in the quiet south, he did not know if it would be the Sword Sage, Liu Bai, or the West-Hill Hierarch Lord waiting for him. What if the abbey dean appeared?


    The ck horse carriage continued into the depths of the Wilderness.


    A few dayster, a swamp shrouded by fog appeared before the horse carriage. The sky had darkened, so the foggy swamp seemed extremely quiet and creepy. Ning Que knew that if the view was better, they would see that the swamp extended north and south and one could not see where it ended.


    This was the Quagmire.


    With such a simple name, it was thergest swamp in the world.


    The region in the Wilderness where the Xuankong Temple and the Right King¡¯s Pce were was called the Western Wilderness. The Golden Pce was on the east and this swamp was in between. It was just like the Min Mountain, separating the Wilderness in two. If one wanted to head to the Golden Pce, then he would have to cross the swamp.


    The ck crows circled above the horse carriage and cawed asionally. They¡¯ve hung around for so many days, so Ning Que had already gotten used to their presence and was numb to it. Since he could do nothing to them, he only pretended that he could not see them. The crows grew braver and braver, even one or twonded on top of the carriage.


    The swamp was very dangerous and foggy throughout the year. It was very easy to get lost in it. And in the ground covered by a thinyer of water, grass, and mud, were deep waters that would swallow people up whole. Not even Ning Que was confident of getting out of the swamp.


    The ck horse carriage temporarily stopped beside the swamp for them to rest and reorganize. Ning Que made some simple food that was high in calories. After eating with Sangsang and the Big ck Horse and making medicine for Sangsang, he stood on top of the carriage to find a path.


    The two ck crows standing beside his feet looked up and saw the metal cylinder in his hands. They cawed, as if they were asking him what it was.


    Ning Que was annoyed by their chatter and kicked them away. Then, he lept off the carriage and walked to the window. He passed the binocrs to Sangsang for safekeeping, seeming ill at ease.


    ¡°You can¡¯t find a path?¡± asked Sangsang.


    Ning Que nodded and said, ¡°The fog over the swamp is too thick. I don¡¯t see the pebbled path the herdsman said they saw. The carriage has a talisman array over it. So I¡¯m not too worried. I¡¯m just worried that the horse would sink in.¡±


    When he heard Ning Que talking about himself, the Big ck Horse neighed softly.


    Sangsang took the big ck umbre with her and got off the carriage. Ning Que could guess what she was about to do and shook his head in disagreement. He said, ¡°I¡¯ve said that we should try our best not to use the ck umbre. What¡¯s more, you¡¯re so weak now.¡±


    ¡°I used it in Chaoyang City and nothing happened. If Yama is really using the umbre to find me, then why hasn¡¯t he appeared after so many years?¡±


    Sangsang smiled and said. She saw that Ning Que still did not approve, and so, she led the Big ck Horse, stepped on the stirrups and mbered up the saddle. Then, she climbed to the top of the horse carriage and opened the big ck umbre.


    A ck flower bloomed on top of the carriage by the swamp.


    After some time, Sangsang signaled for Ning Que to carry her down.


    Ning Que noted that she had grown paler, but her temperature was still normal. Being as such, he felt more assured.


    ¡°The swamp is too deep, I can¡¯t look far. But there is indeed a pebbled path, but it¡¯s been covered by mud and grass so it is hard to find. Also, Master Qi Mei and the others are just about 60 miles away from us.¡±


    Sangsang rubbed her throbbing head after saying that. She felt a pain in her chest and began to cough. What made it worse was that she did not cough up blood, but ck froth.


    Ning Que took out a handkerchief and helped her to wipe the ck foam from the corner of her lips. He discovered that the foam was very clean. It was not rancid, and even smelled faintly sweet. He smiled and said, ¡°It¡¯s like ck sesame paste.¡±


    Sangsang frowned slightly and said, ¡°That¡¯s too disgusting.¡±


    Logically speaking, swamps and wends should only appear in hot and humid areas in the south. They were in the depths of the Wilderness where it was cold and dry, so there should not be any swamps at all.


    However, the Quagmire was really odd. There were several hotspots beneath the Wilderness and in the tens and thousands of years, they emitted hot steam and spring waters onto the surface of the Wilderness. It did not freeze year round, and eventually became thisrge swamp.


    It would not freeze even in the coldest of winters. The surface of the swamp would only frost over lightly. Since they were about to enter autumn, the hot spring flowed quietly, all the frost above it had melted. The swamp thus became muddy.


    The front hooves of the Big ck Horse had submergedpletely in the mud of the swamp. There was a thump, and the horses¡¯ chest sunk close to the ground. It looked extremely dangerous, but it had just ced its head onto the ground because it was bored and was resting.


    Ning Que stepped on tworge pieces of iron sheets and walked to the horse¡¯s side. He held the horse¡¯s reins and activated his Great Spirit. With a mighty pull of his right arm, he lifted the horse from the mud.


    The Big ck Horse turned to the side hurriedly and finally walked to the slightly firmer ground. It shook its head from time to time, however, he could not shake the mud on his head off, so he looked very embarrassed.


    Sangsang was feeling better. The mist in the swamp was heated and so the temperatures were not low. She was able to sit on the carriage shaft and feel the breeze. When she saw what happened to the horse, she could not helpughing.


    They had already reached the depths of the swamp named Quagmire. There wasn¡¯t anyone chasing after them. So what they needed to go against now, was nature and not the human realm.


    The swamp was soft and filled with minerals and other things. Vegetation found it hard to grow here, and only algae could be found. It was easy to slip here, and even easier to be swallowed by the ground.


    To the ordinary person, the swamp was a dangerous ce that would eat them alive. While Ning Que was not worried about being swallowed by the swamp, it was still difficult for him to journey through it. He could not find the pebbled path the Herdsman spoke about beneath the ground covered in algae. He waded through the mud at an extremely low speed.


    Fortunately, the talisman array made the carriage light as a feather. Otherwise, they would not be able to even walk two miles into the swamp. Several times, they encountered arge body of water and could not find any path across it. Ning Que had to expend a great amount of Psyche Power and stick several Wind Talismans on the Big ck Horse for them to cross it.

 Chapter 645 - The Fog Dissipates, Revealing Red Robes

    <h4>Chapter 645: The Fog Dissipates, Revealing Red Robes</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    ces like quagmires, which are difficult and dangerous, were rarely visited. This also meant that they were safer. Ning Que thought so, as did many animals. The waters exuded a faint scent of sulfur and could not support the growth of big nts. However, they could eat moss and escape the winter here because of its warmth. That was why many animals stayed in this patch of swamp throughout the year.


    The staple food was moss or nkton in the water. There were no lions or tigers in the swamp, but there was a fierce beast that looked like a snake and was covered with a light dusting of fine greasy hair.


    This ferocious beast was called the Capybara by herdsmen in the Golden Pce. They swam quickly and had venomous saliva. They were carnivorous, and the horses and sheep of herdsmen who got lost and entered the swamp would mostly be killed by the beast.


    Ning Que was not afraid of such capybaras. The capybaras seemed to be able to sense his dangerous aura and they would avoid him whenever they met. However, a few days ago, a capybara could not bear the temptation of the Big ck Horse and wanted to take a bite of it. It swam stealthily under the aquatic nts and ambushed the horse.


    The Big ck Horse bit and killed the Capybara. It crushed the beast with its front hooves and bit into it. However, the capybara tasted horrible, so the horse did not eat it.


    The fog in the Quagmire grew thicker.


    They could no longer see the thick ck clouds. Even though they knew that the cloud still hung above the horse carriage, both Sangsang and Ning Que felt much better.


    They continued walking into the swamp. It would be about two to three days before they could cross it. The ck horse carriage came to a pool, and a ray of light appeared before Ning Que.


    The terrain here was rtively low. The water in the pool would reach the waist of a person andpared to the rest of the areas in the swamp, the water was much clearer. Perhaps because of the water source, the water here was drinkable. There were plenty of aquatic nts in the pool and tiny silverfish swimming amongst them. There were also dozens of white waterbirds drinking at the edge of the pond.


    ¡°Eldest Brother would be extremely happy to see this ce.¡±


    Ning Que walked to the edge of the pool. He felt momentarily refreshed by the colors of the pool after having seen nothing but the deste Wilderness and mud. He reached out into the water and discovered that the temperature was just right, so he allowed Sangsang to bathe in it.


    The Big ck Horse was chased to another part of the pool. It neighed happily and rushed into the pool, shaking its head uncontrobly. It washed away the mud stains and then salivated as it stared at the swimming silverfish.


    Sangsang removed her heavy fur clothes and the thin vest underneath. She walked into the pool and shivered slightly at the light breeze brushing across the surface of the pool. She wrapped her arms around herself, feeling cold.


    ¡°Sit in the water and you¡¯ll warm up.¡±


    Ning Que brought a towel and walked up behind her, prepared to rub her back.


    Sangsang did as he said. She sank down slowly until her head was submerged in the warm water before standing up again. Her short wet hair seemed very smooth and water dripped from its ends onto her slender shoulders.


    When they were little, Ning Que often bathed Sangsang. When they grew up, Sangsang insisted on washing herself, but also insisted on him rubbing her back. After that, when Sangsang was ill, Ning Que helped her to bathe again.


    They¡¯ve lived together for many years, and they had no secrets between them, whether physically or spiriturally. Furthermore, they were engaged, so neither Sangsang nor Ning Que were embarrassed.


    The girl¡¯s body was still immature, but soft. Sangsang had grown up after all. Ning Que¡¯s hands gently rubbed on her back, then reached out to the front and held on.


    Sangsang said softly, ¡°Too small?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Not anymore.¡±


    No one knew if the two were talking about the same thing.


    Sangsang suddenly started coughing. Ning Que grew solemn and began to rub her back seriously. They were done within a short time. Then, he carried her back to the carriage, where he dried and dressed her.


    He washed up hurriedly and put on new clothing. Then, he sat on the grass by the pool and hugged Sangsang closely, while looking out at the scenery. He noted her damp hair and thought of the past, smiling softly.


    Sangsang always knew what he was thinking about. And even if she did not know, she¡¯d know that he was thinking. She wriggled in between his arms and asked, ¡°What are you thinking about?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m thinking about Shanshan.¡±


    Ning Que answered honestly, ¡°When I first met her at the northern frontier fortress of the Yan Kingdom, it was also during a hot spring. She was standing on a tree and her hair was also damp.¡±


    Sangsang leaned against himzily and thought of something. She said worriedly, ¡°Miss Shanshan helped us at the Lanke Temple. It wouldn¡¯t get her into trouble, would it?¡±


    Ning Que shook his head, saying, ¡°Her teacher, the Master of Calligraphy, is a visiting professor of Haotian Taoism. She is also a Divine Talisman Master, so the Buddhism and Taoism Sects have to take that into ount. Furthermore, Eldest Brother took her in as his sworn sister, so she must be fine.¡±


    The Big ck Horse was done with washing up as well and ran back happily. It ran up to the two and wanted to y with them. However, when he opened his mouth, Ning Que smelled a strong fishy odor. He couldn¡¯t help but said angrily, ¡°Are you stupid or a foodie? You haven¡¯t forgotten to eat even while taking a bath. Go away quickly.¡±


    The Big ck Horse walked away angrily, crouching down at the pool and basking in the nonexistent sun. It gradually rxed as the warm wind blew on it, and it snorted joyfully from time to time.


    The fog was like smoke, and the clear pond was a faint emerald. The edge of the pond was green with grass, and the fish in the pool jumped around. Ning Que hugged Sangsang and watched the beautiful scenery, and felt tired as he rxed and fell asleep.


    After some time.


    The fog dispersed even though there was no wind. A figure loomed across the quiet pool.


    Ning Que opened his eyes and looked across, only to discover that the area of the pool wasrger than he had imagined. The shore across was at least hundreds of feet away.


    He was not very surprised when he saw the figure because if it was a person or a beast, it would not have been able to avoid his or Sangsang¡¯s sense of perception. As such, he thought it was a tree.


    The fog around the swamp grew fainter, and the fog around the pool had gradually dispersed. One could see the thick ck cloud above and what was on the opposite shore.


    It was not a tree across the shore, but a person.


    It was a person both Ning Que and Sangsang had not sensed.


    It was a beautiful woman.


    They could sense the charm rolling off her even through such a long distance. However, the charm turned into death and horror due to her blood red clothes.


    There was no blood on her blood red robe. The robe of the Divine Priest was red, but the robe, which was usually spotless was covered with mud. However, the woman wearing the robe was ethereal.


    The woman wore a divine crown.


    The crown was made of gold, and threaded with silver. It was iid with 13 bright precious stones. It seemed as if there was a curtain of light hanging down from the crown, shrouding her face. It was so luxurious, solemn and beautiful that it could not be overlooked.


    Ning Que knew that the divine crown was very expensive. He had handled it in the Taoism Temple in the Kingdom of Qi. However, he did not know that he would see it again as well as the red divine robe on his escape route.


    But when he saw her, he understood that this was but just a matter of fact.


    The death of the Daughter of Yama was a great event. The Buddhism Sect had even managed to invite the Chief Preaching Monk of the Xuankong Temple. As servants of Haotian, the Haotian Taoism would not have stayed idle.


    The powerhouses of Haotian Taoism lurking at the ridge seemed strong, but were not strong enough. Even though the abbey dean of the Zhishou Abbey was far away at the southern seas, the West-Hill Divine Pce should still have sent a Great Divine Priest.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce had sent her as the Great Divine Priest. Ning Que felt lucky, and unfortunate at the same time. That was why he could only remain silent as he looked at the girl across the shore, not knowing what else to do.


    The long period of absolute silence had caused the atmosphere by the pool to be rather grave and depressing. A school of slender silverfish dove deep into the aquatic nts. The dozens of white waterbirds flew away, terrified. The fog had also dissipated, as if knowing what was about to happen.


    Ning Que suddenlyughed and waved to the figure across the shore, ¡°What a coincidence to have met here.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°I¡¯ve been waiting for days in the Quagmire to meet you guys. How is this a coincidence?¡±


    Ning Que smiled, saying, ¡°Why do you have to make the atmosphere so tense right when we meet. It¡¯s been months since we met in the Kingdom of Qi, didn¡¯t we have a good chat then?¡±


    Ye Hongyu answered, ¡°Firstly, she wasn¡¯t yet the Daughter of Yama then. Secondly, it¡¯s been a year since west met, not just a few months.¡±


    She continued after a pause, ¡°It seems that the Buddha¡¯s chessboard saved you.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You waited for days just to hear about how we got out of the Lanke Temple?¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°I waited to kill you guys.¡±


    After saying that, she walked toward the other end of the shore, her blood red robe floating behind her.


    Ning Que yelled, ¡°If you don¡¯t want to hear about how we escaped, I can tell you about what happened at the Xuankong Temple. That was interesting.¡±


    It seemed as if Ye Hongyu had not heard him at all. She continued going forth slowly yet firmly.


    Ning Que said angrily, ¡°What I hate most about you is that you always talk about killing people so casually.¡±


    Ye Hongyu furrowed her brows and stopped. She said, ¡°I don¡¯t need you to like me.¡±


    Ning Que said furiously, ¡°I¡¯m such an outstanding man. What¡¯s bad about me?¡±


    Ye Hongyu answered, ¡°You even dare to marry the Daughter of Yama. You¡¯re too brave. You¡¯re so brave that it has shocked me. So I¡¯d better kill you rather than like you.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°This means that you might like me.¡±


    Ye Hongyu knew what kind of person he was. She ignored him and continued moving forward.


    Ning Que¡¯s expression was calm. However, his body grew cold and he said, ¡°You waited for us in this quagmire for so many days. That¡¯s so nice of you, I cannot reciprocate your goodwill. I¡¯m going to treat you to a bath.¡±


    Ye Hongyu did not stop. She said, ¡°Killing you is not an easy task. I will definitely be covered with mud and your bloodter. So I shall batheter.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°I don¡¯t fight with women who are covered with mud. No matter what kind of fight it is. When touching the mud and smelling its odor, I wouldn¡¯t be happy about it.¡±


    Ye Hongyu froze slightly and said, ¡°You¡¯re such a pervert, to like killing clean women.¡±


    Ning Que stood up and looked at her calmly. He said, ¡°You should know very well that we are all perverts.¡±

 Chapter 646 - The Most Exciting Time

    <h4>Chapter 646: The Most Exciting Time</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Feelings are deep and nothing can be used to repay them. Please shower.


    This sentence would sound especially weird if anyone were to say it to someone else. Moreover, it was to a pretty woman decked in a ruling robe.


    However, what happened next wasn¡¯t something anyone expected, including Ning Que.


    ¡°Being perverted is an abnormal state, this should be apliment.¡±


    The cold frost on Ye Hongyu¡¯s face slowly dissipated and turned into a faint smile. She extended her hand to her cor and started unrobing herself, her fingers twisted slightly as the thin red robe went away with the wind, showing off her jade white body.


    Across the pond, Ning Que and Sangsang were shocked.


    Ye Hongyu didn¡¯t take notice of their gaze and she didn¡¯t hide anything. Under the clouds and in the swamp, she walked naked into the clear pondwater and started washing her ck hair.


    Ning Que and Sangsang looked at the perfect body in the pond. Looking at the charming curves, they had a stunned expression and didn¡¯t know what to say at all. They didn¡¯t know if they should stop her.


    After a moment, Sangsang looked at the woman in the water and sighed, ¡°She is beautiful.¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t blink as he nodded and said, ¡°She is really beautiful.¡±


    Ye Hongyu appearing before the ck horse carriage wasn¡¯t the chance encounter that Ning Que had mentioned. The dark cloud and dozens of ck crows were always following them. However, not many people dared to enter the quagmire to search. Ye Hongyu had waited in the swamp alone for more than 10 days, of course she could find them.


    She didn¡¯t mind Sangsang and especially Ning Que looking at her body, naturally, she had no intentions of seducing them. Ning Que recalled back on the stone steps of the Taoism temple in the Kingdom of Qi. Looking at the divine light in her eyes, he could vaguely understand the meaning within.


    Those who sit on the great divine priest seat are more focused on the mental cultivation, chasing after the state where their Taoist heart is unimpeded. As Ye Hongyu sees it now, no matter how alluring her body is now, it was but an annoying shell. She couldn¡¯t wait to throw it in the trash hence, why would she mind if others see it?


    Ning Que suddenly asked, ¡°How did you know I would walk this way?¡±


    Ye Hongyu took out ab from somewhere and startedbing her hair lightly in the water. The pond water was up to her waist, her hair was wet and hanging in front of her naked breasts. The sight was one to behold.


    ¡°You said earlier that we are all perverts. I know you very well, with your character, whether you return to Tang or go to the Wilderness like that idiot Long Qing, you will choose to cross the quagmire.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The quagmire isn¡¯t a real pond. This swamp is so huge, were you not afraid of missing us?¡±


    Ye Hongyu continuedbing her hair as she looked at the ck crows on the roof of the horse carriage and said calmly, ¡°Haotian¡¯s will would not let me miss you.¡±


    Ning Que kept silent for a moment before saying with a serious expression, ¡°Must we?¡±


    ¡°We must.¡±


    Ye Hongyu used theb tob her wet hair to the top of her head and tied a simple bun. There were water droplets falling from her hair and theynded in the pool, giving off a monotonous sound that was exactly like her voice then.


    ¡°As the judge, my mission is to judge the sins and evil of the world on behalf of Haotian.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°But we aren¡¯t guilty.¡±


    Ye Hongyu replied, ¡°You had exceeded my expectations by escaping from Chaoyang City. It isn¡¯t hard to imagine that you have killed many people in this process.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°If anybody wants to kill me, I will kill them.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°If you ignore her, who would dare kill you?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Idiot, she is my wife.¡±


    Ye Hongyu furrowed her brows and asked, ¡°Even if your wife is the Daughter of Yama?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Even if she is the Daughter of Yama, she has not done anything evil.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°I heard that Mr. First said the same thing at Lanke Temple. It seems like everyone from the second floor of the Academy is the same, do you not think you all are incredibly hypocritical?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Alright, I am not Eldest Brother and I¡¯m not very persuasive when saying such things. However, she is still my wife and no matter how evil she is, can I not care about her?¡±


    ¡°That makes sense, but that is your reason as a man, not the reason of the world.¡±


    ¡°Sacrificing one person to save the world, is that the reason of this world? I believe no matter it is the Chief Preaching Monk or Master Qi Mei, they are all willing to apany Sangsang to die. But you are not someone like that.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Indeed, my existence is the most important thing. Whether your wife dies or not isn¡¯t enough for me to die together with her. If the Underworld really invades in the future, I will battle Yama for one round before dying. This cannot count as me wasting my life but it will not affect my attempt to kill her.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°She is the Daughter of Yama, that is an original sin.¡±


    ¡°What original sin? This is only about interest, involving the interest of most people, the interest of the whole world. Hence you all think it is an unforgivable sin.¡±


    ¡°Do you only understand what is kind and evil, what is merit and sin now? This has nothing to do with virtues from the start, only interest. Those that are good for the world will be kind, those that have no use will be evil. The more people it benefits, the greater good it is, the more useless it is, the greater the evil it is. If it is good for no one, it is an unforgivable sin.


    ¡°But you have already be the Great Divine Priest of West-Hill, naturally you do not need to obey this rule.¡±


    ¡°Not bad, we are the ones who create the rules, we are the shepherds. However, when someone threatens the herd of sheep or even the entire grasnd, we will follow the rules.¡±


    ¡°If that is the case, how does the Haotian Taoism have the right to say the Academy is hypocritical?¡±


    Ye Hongyu looked at him peacefully and said, ¡°The Haotian Taoism is hypocritical, I have never denied that. However, the Academy always thinks that you are not, this is why I say you all are hypocritical.¡±


    Ning Que looked at her and said all of a sudden, ¡°After shepherding for 10,000 years and eating mutton in various ways, one will still get sick of it in the end. Have you tried living in another way? Like hunting in the mountains.¡±


    Ye Hongyu looked at him quietly and kept silent.


    Ning Que said again, ¡°The Underworld Invasion will definitely be a sight to behold. Countless years have passed and only our generation will have the chance to witness it. Evesting night will befall the world, do you not want to see that?¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°I want to see it but I cannot go against Haotian¡¯s will.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Please, you have never even heard Haotian speak before. For all you know, he might be lonely for tens of thousands of years in heaven and have always waited for Yama toe here and to have a good fight. If you kill me and Sangsang, Yama will never find the world and Haotian will die lonely, suffering bitterly.


    He knew the woman in the pond was very scary.


    The scariest part was that he was the same kind of person as her. However, Ye Hongyu¡¯s cultivation state had always suppressed his. In other words, Ning Que could only struggle with her but had no way of beating her.


    He would rather fight 3 rounds with Master Qi Mei or even another time with the Chief Preaching Monk than to fight against her. Hence, he had been trying to convince her to let him and Sangsang go.¡±


    The two of them ended their discussion quickly, almost as if they didn¡¯t think it through. In actual fact, he had used a lot of effort and it was one of the mostplex and exciting persuasions in his life. Twice, Ye Hongyu¡¯s expression had changed obviously and was nearly persuaded by him.


    However, it didn¡¯t seed in the end.


    Ye Hongyu walked towards the bank as the water droplets rolled down from her body.


    ¡°Since you are sure to not let Yama find the world, all the more reason you can¡¯t kill Sangsang.¡±


    Ning Que stared at her naked figure. His eyes were bright and there were no signs of frustrations as he continued saying, ¡°Teacher said if anything happened to Sangsang, the imprint in her body will be released and Yama will know where the world is.¡±


    Ye Hongyu gently wiped her body, she didn¡¯t turn around and said directly, ¡°Headmaster wouldn¡¯t say that.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°These are the words that Teacher had asked Eldest Brother to pass on to the Chief Preaching Monk.¡±


    Ye Hongyu started wearing her clothes. Usually, beautifuldies looked shabby while putting on their clothes but when it came to her, it still seemed incredibly pleasing. ¡°If that is what the Headmaster thinks, he would have taken you and Sangsang back to the Academy or even to the edge of the skies a long time ago. Why would he still need Mr. First to run around tiringly?¡±


    Ning Que had no idea that after leaving Chaoyang City, Eldest Brother and the Chief Preaching Monk from Xuankong Temple had a simr conversation in White Tower Temple. The Chief Preaching Monk¡¯s view was exactly the same as Ye Hongyu.


    Hearing Ye Hongyu¡¯s deduction now, his body trembled involuntarily. He had always assumed this was teacher¡¯s view and Sangsang¡¯sst hope.


    The blood-red robes that were spotted with mud returned on Ye Hongyu¡¯s body. The heavy divine crown slowlynded and the beautiful teenage girl ying around in the pond immediately became the terrifying Great Divine Priest of Justice.


    The ck crows at the top of the horse carriage started cawing, it was sounded bad and unlucky.


    Ning Que¡¯s face turned ugly as he shouted, ¡°Shut up.¡±


    The ck crows quietened immediately but continued again.


    Ning Queughed to himself and shook his head. He ignored them as he hugged Sangsang tighter. Looking at the thick dark clouds in the skies, a tinge of sadness showed on his face.


    This sadness was faint but very real. It definitely wasn¡¯t faked.


    Ye Hongyu looked silently at the opposite bank, feeling his true fatigue, sadness, and frustration. She could subconsciously sympathize with him as she looks up at the dark clouds.


    However, just as she lifted her head, she suddenly felt something was amiss.


    It wasn¡¯t a warning.


    Her Taoist Heart didn¡¯t give out any warnings, that meant everything was as usual.


    However, there still was something wrong.


    She suddenly remembered that Ning Que was someone who would get sad but not before a battle. This was because any extra emotions weren¡¯t helpful to a battle and he should understand that.


    The most important thing was that self-depreciating smile.


    Even if he had gone through too much the past two years and could feel for and was hard to suppress his feelings, he shouldn¡¯tugh at himself. This was because a mockingugh and sadness together meant that he was going to give up.


    Ye Hongyu believed that she wouldn¡¯t be depressed no matter what happened. No matter how strong the enemy was, she wouldn¡¯t give up before the battle ended. That meant that he wouldn¡¯t too.


    This was where things felt wrong.


    Ye Hongyu looked back.


    Her gazended on the opposite bank.


    There was an extra metal bow in his hands that were empty previously.


    The bowstring was already tight and was rapidly loosening.


    The darkish iron arrow had just left the bow and the white rapids at the tail end were forming.


    Behind the metal bow, Ning Que¡¯s calm expression seemed exceptionally cold.


    Ye Hongyu knew that death was approaching and perhaps, even destined.


    Now, she truly understood that everything that Ning Que was doing wasn¡¯t his mostplex persuasion or the one who put in the most effort in...


    It was the mostplicated, mind-consuming and exciting arrow in his life.

 Chapter 647 - Be Skillful in Battle

    <h4>Chapter 647: Be Skillful in Battle</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Facing death, Ye Hongyu didn¡¯t narrow her eyes or cry out. Either of them would need energy and time which she didn¡¯t have.


    She knelt down facing the opposite bank of the pool. As soon as she bent her legs, the iron arrow arrived. Even though she knew a lot of skills, she could not find a single one faster than the iron arrow.


    At this moment, she suddenly opened her eyes. In the depth of her eyes, the Divine Starlight that Ning Que had ever seen before began to burn her soul as wood.


    The burning starlight shot out of her eyes and turned into two extremely bright mirrors.


    As the dark iron arrow struck them, the two mirrors were broken and turned into countless floating sequins.


    The gorgeous divine crown was broken and the 13 brilliant stones were smashed into ash. The golden crown was like a chrysanthemum blossoming in autumn, bing luxuriant petals and then falling apart.


    Ye Hongyu knelt on the shore of the wend, dripping with blood from her face. She looked very bad, even a little pitiful.


    Although the injury looked terrible, the internal damage was the fatal one. In order to survive under the attack of the iron arrow, she depleted all the starlight in her eyes¡ªthat was given to her by Haotian when she became the Great Divine Priest. She had paid a terrible price and her Taoist Heart was badly hurt.


    Ning Que should be proud to inflict heavy losses on the Great Divine Priest of Judgment from the West-Hill Divine Pce. Even Jun Mo, the Second Brother would be satisfied with it.


    However, he wasn¡¯t. Looking at Ye Hongyu who was covered with blood, he felt very disappointed, because he knew he was unable to repeat an attack like that.


    Appreciative and understanding were not only used to describe lovers; they could also describe two simr opponents, such as Ye Hongyu and Ning Que.


    Ning Que knew very clearly that his adept skills and psychological attacks, such as showing weakness or closeness, would not work for Ye Hongyu.


    Therefore, he did not show his weakness or ask for mercy at all. He just persuaded her in an equal way that Ye Hongyu was used to, peacefully and shamelessly.


    Those words could be or not be the usible psychological attacks. He needed Ye Hongyu to consider him as the same kind of person who was qualified to discuss with her and make her sympathize. When he was sincerely and ruefully looking at the sky with Sangsang in his arms, he hoped these words could rx her vignce for a short time.


    Even if she rxed, it was hard for him to grasp the moment. In Chaoyang City, Luo Kedi was awakened even though he was outside the yard, let alone Ye Hongyu.


    Therefore, when Ye Hongyu looked up to the dark cloud, Ning Que calmly drew his bow, using the Buddhism mantra Emblematic Gesture that he received inspiration for in the Lanke Temple. He did it so smoothly that no killing intent could be felt, as if he was washing Sangsang¡¯s feet or writing with his pen.


    As for the bow and arrow, Sangsang had already prepared it for him.


    Spending so much time and energy to prepare, Ning Que shot a wonderful arrow that would kill everyone.


    Everyone but Ye Hongyu who was just badly injured. She didn¡¯t die.


    He was regretful, and then he drew the bow once again.


    Some slightly dark blood flowed from Ye Hongyu¡¯s lips.


    She stood up and turned to Ning Que on the other side of the pool. Although the divine starlight in her eyes had been extinguished, her eyes were still bright, looking nk without any anger.


    The bloody hair and robe were flying without wind.


    Ning Que drew his bow to aim at her, but he failed. He didn¡¯t know which shadow was the real one because her waving hair and robe created countless shadows.


    Ye Hongyu stepped on the water and leaped toward him. She moved so fast that her hair and robe drew many shadows behind her, like an immortal.


    The fog on the surface had dissipated and the view was clear. However, when she showed up on the water, she absorbed all the essences and dimmed the entire world.


    Maybe because Ning Que¡¯s bow was too terrifying, she did not choose to attack directly. Instead, she kept running on the water and tried to avoid the arrows.


    Looking at the arrowhead, Ning Que stabilized his arms and ceaselessly adjusted his aiming. He stared at the figure that was quickly moving on the water and didn¡¯t dare to blink.


    It came to a deadlock. When he was unable to lock her in, he knew he was in trouble. As the time went by, he felt his sense of perception was swayed as Ye Hongyu¡¯s shadow. His chest was suffering a lot and his face turned pale.


    Only by entering the Knowing Destiny State, he could truly understand the rules of the Heaven and Earth¡¯s Qi cirction.


    He clearly sensed that Ye Hongyu¡¯s body had been reconciled with the aura on the water, like a free fish swimming in the water which could not be located. That was why he could not shoot.


    ¡°Breaking down my Primordial Thirteen Arrows with nothing, Ye Hongyu, you are really good.¡±


    Aiming at the figure on the surface, Ning Que thought.


    It was very clear now. He stopped wasting his time and dropped his bow without any hesitation. Then he drew his podao out.


    Ye Hongyu was waiting for this. As the ghostly shadow suddenly appeared, some ripples waved on the water. Numerous tiny water swords came out of the pool and shot to Ning Que like rain.


    Sangsang opened the big ck umbre.


    However, Ning Que was not behind it. He was waiting for Ye Hongyu to take action as well. Although his face was pale and his body was trembling, he still drew two lines in front of his body with his left hand.


    Then he dragged his podao and rushed to the pool, sshing water like a lightning.The thickly dotted water swords shot at Ning Que and turned into waterdrops, moistening his robe. A dozen of them asionally stabbed into his body, leaving several bloodstains that were immediately washed away by the water.


    As long as they were thin enough, they would create enough prating force. Obviously, Ye Hongyu was ready for Ning Que¡¯s strong body that was refined by the Great Spirit. Ning Que could clearly feel the pain and hurt in his muscles, but he didn¡¯t change his expression and speeded up.


    There were sshes in the pool. The mixture of the white waves and ck mud looked like a variegated python. Ning Que was the most dangerous part in front of its head and directly crashed into Ye Hongyu.


    In front of him were two sharp and unstoppable intangible talisman intents which locked Ye Hongyu in a small area. That was his most powerful weapon: the Two-Horizontal Talisman.

 Chapter 648 - Good at Battle

    <h4>Chapter 648: Good at Battle</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Standing on the ground and looking over, the two vague runes were absolute straight lines. However, if one were to look from the dark clouds above, they could see that the runes were already curved. They were slowly bing two ovepping circles and encircling the bloodied Ye Hongyu within.


    A Two-Horizontal Talisman was a divine talisman and was Ning Que¡¯s strongest means besides his Primordial Thirteen arrows. When it first appeared in Lanke Temple, even Ye Su and Qi Nian didn¡¯t dare to despise it. No matter how strong Ye Hongyu was, she had to be alert.


    At this moment, the sky was above her while the lower half of her body was pond water and mud. Between the sky and earth were the two horrifying talismans. It seemed like there was no way to escape and no way to avoid Ning Que¡¯s lightning-like knife skills.


    Ye Hongyu dived into the pond water without hesitation, just like how she chose earlier to kneel down opposite of the bank of the pond earlier. During a battle, she didn¡¯t care about any manners.


    She would forget that she was the Great Divine Priest of West-Hill and that she was a woman. She would even forget who she was, not caring about any difiture or humiliation. All that matters was that she won in the end.


    Actually diving into the pond was risky too. The pond water was already murky and the water was stagnant, this would affect the battle greatly. However, she was still as flexible while swimming in the water. Her blood-red robes stuck tightly to her alluring figure when in contact with water. She seemed like she had turned into a real red fish, about to pass through the two runes in an instant.


    Looking at the red fish in the water, Ning Que didn¡¯t look shocked as he had long guessed what Ye Hongyu would do. With a slight step, he raised his hand in preparation to sh down.


    Even before that could happen, there was suddenly a lot of blood-red turbulence in the water. The Two-Horizontal Talisman had seeped into the water¡¯s talisman and there were dozens of tiny cuts on her body.


    The water in the pond swayed and the talisman was fierce. Ye Hongyu couldn¡¯t proceed further and the water foams sshed everywhere, as white as a peony. Her figure peeked out from within the waves as she took out her sword and pierced it straight between Ning Que¡¯s eyebrows.


    What a fierce Taoist Sword aura! Ning Que raised both his hands as if he was lighting up the skies. Just as he shed down towards the wave, the knife skills were heavy and unblockable. He suddenly felt the aura of the Taoist Sword but that didn¡¯t stop him.


    Ye Hongyu looked at the podao that had chopped down towards her. She was expressionless as the Taoist Sword that was formed from the two fingers on her right hand still pierced forward steadily. It was as if she didn¡¯t care about her life.


    At this moment if the two of them didn¡¯t change their tactic and held back, Ning Que¡¯s knife would cut Ye Hongyu into two halves while Ye Hongyu¡¯s finger sword would pierce right through Ning Que¡¯s Ocean of Qi. He would either die or be retarded.


    The knife stillnded and the finger continued forwards. Bringing with it the awe-inspiring energy of destroying everything in its path, it had the malicious intention of ending everything together.


    Ning Que and Ye Hongyu were both gambling.


    They were gambling with their life and the other person¡¯s life.


    They were gambling to see if the other person treasured his or her life.


    The two of them looked incredibly indifferent.


    Using Ye Hongyu¡¯s words from the past, only two people in the cultivation world understood what a true battle was. One of them was her while the other was Ning Que.


    The two of them were too good at battling. Their life was a continuous battle for survival and hence, they had almost the same psychological quality and strong will to fight.


    They had finally reached the most critical moment of life and death in this battle. However, they had no idea who was more vicious, who was more vicious to oneself and more indifferent and familiar with life and death.


    If Ning Que was alone, he really wouldn¡¯t retreat.


    His state wasn¡¯t as high as Ye Hongyu and the fact that he could use his iron arrow to plot against her and to push her into such a mess, forcing her to gamble on her life, it was already a sess. In the face of such a rare opportunity, he was very willing to use his life to gamble with Ye Hongyu¡¯s. Even if at the end of the day, both of them would be hurt.


    However, Sangsang was just standing by the bank behind him. She was very sick and the whole world was after her. If he died, she would die too. Hence, he cannot die.


    Looking at Ye Hongyu¡¯s calm eyes under the de, Ning Que was sure that even though she was the Great Divine Priest of Justice, she could still die any moment as she was alone. He had to back down.


    Ning Que quickly moved his knife and blocked it at the front of his lower abdomen. Ye Hongyu¡¯s finger sword was clearly aiming between his eyes but for some reason, he thought that she was going after his lower abdomen.


    This was purely an instinct that he had nurtured from countless battles and a conclusion drawn by intuition.


    Ye Hongyu pierced out from the waves. She was smaller and her sword was indeed aiming at Ning Que¡¯s lower abdomen. Itnded heavily against the thick surface of the knife and gave off a muffled sound.


    A faint light appeared on the surface of the podao. That was the image of the aura of heaven and earth condensing to an extreme.


    Ning Que¡¯s wrist was severely injured as he felt an annoyance at his chest.


    Just as Ye Hongyu¡¯s finger sword pierced on the surface of the knife, a transparent Taoist Sword that was condensed from the water in the pond silently floated up from behind her. With a swish, it pierced into Ning Que¡¯s left chest!


    Ning Que gave a muffled snort as the Great Spirit in his body rushed out of his body and covered his chest and abdomen. The Taoist Sword that was condensed from the pond water caused it to rain. His body swept back in a rush as he spat out a few mouthful of blood in mid-air.


    Hended heavily on the ground as a deep hole was left in his chest. If the Great Spirit in his body wasn¡¯t unusually tough, his heart would have been pierced cleanly by this sword.


    Ye Hongyu stood on a de of water grass. She had multiple wounds on her body as blood seeped out continuously. They instantly soaked her already wet divine robes and dripped into the pond water below her feet.


    The clear light shone obliquely from behind her as they passed through the damp divine robes. There weren¡¯t any captivating feelings as the scene seemed especially fierce. She was already the Divine Priest of Judgement and no longer the Tao Addict that she was back then by the Yanming Lake.


    Ning Que used his hand to press against the bloody hole by his chest. Looking at the girl on the water, his body felt exceptionally cold.


    He had been in the Knowing Destiny State for less than half a year and his state was unstable. If it was a head to head battle, he wouldn¡¯t be a match for Master Qi Mei of Xuankong Temple. He might not even be able to defeat Luo Kedi. However, he had his Primordial Thirteen Arrows as well as his divine talisman. These two items are strong tools when ites to killing someone above his state. Moreover, he was good at fighting and was used to being ambushed. Hence, he could fight so well at the front.


    Today, facing off against Ye Hongyu who was another equally good atbat and not ashamed of sneak attacks, more unscrupulous and stronger than him, all his fighting means were useless.


    Looking at Ye Hongyu who was walking over to the bank, he suddenly shouted, ¡°Stop!¡±


    Ye Hongyu held her hands behind her back as told but didn¡¯t stop walking in the water.


    Ning Que asked, ¡°What did you promise me at Yanming Lake?¡±


    Ye Hongyu stopped.


    Ning Que said, ¡°You said that if we meet in the battlefield in the future, you would spare me twice.¡±


    Ye Hongyu shook her head and said, ¡°I used it once at the Taoism Temple in the Kingdon of Qi. You only have one chance left.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Once is better than none, I will use it now.¡±


    ¡°Okay.¡± Ye Hongyu said cleanly before looking at Sangsang behind his back and said, ¡°Then I shall kill her.¡±


    Ning Que¡¯s expression changed slightly as he looked at her and said seriously, ¡°What is the difference between killing her and me?¡±


    Ye Hongyu thought for a while and said, ¡°That does make sense.¡±


    She didn¡¯t attack as she started meditating, restoring the Psyche Power that she had used.


    Ning Que felt slightly rxed.


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°You are indeed much stronger than before, but I still do not understand how you escaped from Chaoyang City. Even from the beginning, you could use the Primordial Thirteen Arrow to ambush the monks in Xuankong Temple. But when they started to notice, you wouldn¡¯t be able to defeat Qi Mei.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°That is a very long story and has something to do with a little boy. I believe you wouldn¡¯t be interested.¡±


    ¡°Indeed I am not.¡±


    Ye Hongyu extended her right hand, her palm was aligned with the gradually calming pond water.


    In a moment, a Taoist Sword that was condensed from the pond water had slowly risen from within the pond. She grabbed hold of it.


    She looked at Ning Que and said, ¡°I am still more interested in killing you.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Didn¡¯t you agree to let me off for once?¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Earlier I have already let you off, this is a new battle.¡±


    Ning Que¡¯s face turned color as he said, ¡°Since when did you be this shameless?¡±


    Ye Hongyu replied, ¡°I thought I had no weakness in battle until I met you. Only then did I realize that I still have my weaknesses, hence I have always been learning from you.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Did you learn my shamelessness? Why did you not learn my kindness andpassion? Perhaps even my calligraphy.¡±


    Ye Hongyu didn¡¯t bother about him as she took a look at Sangsang before continuing, ¡°Later when you all go on the road, it will save you from being lonely.¡±


    Ning Que thought back to how he killed Quni Madi and her family. Thinking silently, such a dismal ending was never in his n. Hence he had to continue fighting.


    His right hand was covering his left chest that was continuously bleeding. He had no idea from when but there was many more Fu paper between his finger. The Fu paper was already wet from the bloodied water and was almost like a piece of evidence from a murder scene.


    Among the swooshing sounds, Ning Que threw all the Fu Paper into the water pond. He released the powerful Psyche power from his sense of perception andmunicated with all the Fu paper incredibly urately. He then released all of them at the same time!


    Those who are good at battle are good at learning about their opponents in battle. It was the case for Ye Hongyu and for Ning Que too. Ye Hongyu learned how to be shameless from Ning Que while Ning Que had learned about many things from all the enemies that he was up against during his cultivation career. Such as the countless Fu paper dancing above the pond of water right now.


    This was something that he had learned when he had assassinated Xiahou¡¯s topmander Gu Xi back in Tuyang City. After that at the house in Yanming Lake, he had used the same method to deal with Xia Hou.


    Within an incredibly short amount of time, countless talismans were released. Although it seemed to have happened at the same time, every talisman¡¯s order of release had been meticulously calcted. This is to let thosepletely different or even entirely opposite talismans to not disappear as it was released in an incredibly small area. Instead, they were released more gorgeously and violently until they became a sea of flowers, a storm in the sea.


    The aura of heaven and earth around the swamp had been attracted over by the Fu paper to the sky above the pond. Countless turbulent flows rushed against each other and didn¡¯t stop tangling and squeezing each other. They directly cut the connection that Ye Hongyu had with the aura of heaven and earth.


    This is an incredibly unusual Talisman Taoism technique but for Ye Hongyu who had a high cultivation state, it could only hold her for a while. It couldn¡¯t defeat her and hence even though she was alert, she wasn¡¯t scared.


    At this moment, Sangsang who was standing by the side quietly watching both Ning Que and Ye Hongyu talk and fight, almost as if she was an outsider, finally moved.


    The big ck umbre was already opened. She held the handle and pointed the umbre towards Ye Hongyu.


    Then, she shone brightly.

 Chapter 649 - This is Battle

    <h4>Chapter 649: This is Battle</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Pure Haotian Divine Light burst forth from Sangsang and shot toward the skies above the pool, reflecting off the big ck umbre¡¯s surface. The dark world was engulfed in light instantly.


    Ye Hongyu was stunned speechless. She had never imagined that Sangsang would still have such pure Haotian Divine Light in her body even though she was already the Daughter of Yama. What was happening?


    She was the Great Divine Priest of Judgment and was well-skilled in West-Hill Divine Skill. ordingly, Haotian Divine Light should not have such a strong impact on her. However, the Haotian Divine Light that burst forth from the big ck umbre did notnd directly on her. Instead, it entered the sky above the pool and into the talisman storm before reflecting everywhere.


    There seemed to be several mirrors in the dark pool. Each mirror was a talisman, reflecting the countless rays of light. The light grew stronger and stronger, and when it finally reached Ye Hongyu¡¯s eyes, its power had grown tremendously powerful.


    If Ye Hongyu still had the Light of Haotian deep in her eyes, she could have easily used the same power to bear Sangsang¡¯s Haotian Divine Light. However, the Light of Haotian in her eyes had already been consumed when she fought against the Primordial Thirteen Arrows. She could only watch helplessly as the Divine Light assaulted her body.


    A clear sound emitted from her lips. mes licked out from beneath her divine robe. The mes were ck and not hot. It was the legendary ze of Judgment!


    The sh between Haotian Divine Light and ze of Judgment resulted in a thunderous ng. The two forces shed in the air above the pool. Ye Hongyu was thrown into the air toward the opposite shore. The blood red color of her Divine Robe hung in the air like a g. As it crossed the talisman, numerous tears appeared on them, causing blood to flow.


    Beside the pool, Sangsang held the handle of the big ck umbre, her eyes tightly shut and her face extremely pale. When she was certain that Ye Hongyu had been sted back, she rxed. There was a light puff, and she spat out a mouthful of thick ck blood.


    Ning Que was too preupied to worry about her. He did not even have time to pick up his bow from the shore. He stepped heavily on the mud at the bottom of the pool and was sttered by water, leaping towards Ye Hongyu who was falling from above.


    Ye Hongyu fell into the swamp behind the pool, making arge ssh in the dirty waters. She slid down the wet moss for a few feet before stopping, blood staining the ground red.


    Ning Quended after her, not waiting for her to stand. Like a hunting tiger, he was calm andposed and he pressed her down violently, not giving her any chance to react.


    Ning Que hugged her back and swept his legs through the muddied grounds of the swamp, hooking his legs into her knees. He hugged her tightly in an intimate gesture, and then, he pressed down forcefully.


    He was not Ye Hongyu¡¯s match in both Taoists Law or in cultivation states. He was only physically stronger. That was why he chose to use his strength to pulverize her bones.


    This was a gory method that was often seen in the cultivation world. For example, when a martial cultivator went against a Sword Master, he would use this method when on the brink of death. Back when the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was flourishing, many powerhouses in Haotian Taoism had died in the embrace of powerhouses from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine through this terrifying method.


    There were no problems with the method Ning Que chose. However, his opponent today was Ye Hongyu.


    Ye Hongyu studied in the Revtion Institute for a short period of time after leaving Zhishou Abbey. She then entered the Judicial Department of West-Hill Divine Pce where she spent most of her life.


    The Judicial Department judged on the sins of the world. They went after the remnants of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. She had once been the Grand Master of the Judicial Department and was now the Great Divine Priest of Judgment. She was very familiar with the methods of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and would naturally have a way to counter it.


    Ning Que suddenly felt as if the girl in his embrace had be a smooth, scaleless fish. And no matter where he ced his limbs, they would slide off. Furthermore, her body suddenly became extremely bouncy and tight. No matter how much pressure he exerted, it would just bounce or slide off.


    Knowing that the method would not work, Ning Que changed his ns. He held on tightly to the cor of her robe with his left hand and lifted his left knee, kneeing her viciously in her groin. However, Ye Hongyu¡¯s reaction was like lightning. She rolled in the swamp, and her robe loosened, sliding out of Ning Que¡¯s control and avoiding his knee. She prodded with her fingers, and two sharp sword styles emerged from the air, piercing into Ning Que¡¯s weakest spot- his eyes.


    Ning Que lowered his head, using his forehead to bear the piercing swords. He wedged his feet deep into the mud in the swamp and pushed forward. The podao, which had been hanging off a string on his right wrist swung, cut into Ye Hongyu¡¯s throat mercilessly.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s wedged her hand into the mud and pushed off with her left hand. She rolled, causing her divine robe to spread open. She wrapped the de into her robe at the speed of lightning. Then, she pulled out a handful of mud with her right hand, imbuing it with aura and smashing it into Ning Que¡¯s face.


    Ning Que avoided the fistful of mud and pressed forward with the de.


    Ye Hongyu called forth her Taoist Sword, piercing it into the back of his head.


    In the swamp, the two grappled with each other and exchanged numerous blows within seconds.


    The swamp was full of soft mud, which affected the two seriously. Ning Que attacked, relying on his physical strength while Ye Hongyu disyed her battle prowess perfectly. She did not miss out on any opportunities and used all kinds of Haotian Taoism skills to try to kill him.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s divine robe fell off, having long been torn into shreds. Ning Que¡¯s shirt had been torn into pieces by the Taoist Sword. The two naked bodies writhed and twisted, separating anding closer together again, looking rather erotic. However, they were both bleeding and covered in filthy pungent mud. Anyone of them could die at any moment as they crossed swords and it was not sensual at all.


    ¡°You have Sangsang with you and you would not dare to die with me. You¡¯re bound to die today!¡±


    ¡°You didn¡¯t even wear underwear but you remembered to bring yourb! You still care about your physical shell, so you¡¯re not strong enough. At least you¡¯re not strong enough to make me lose hope!¡±


    Deep in the swamp, the fog came quietly, then panicked and scattered. In the mosses submerged in shallow water, the two mud-covered people continued fighting and shouting, like two Capybaras fighting a bloody battle.


    A water mirror suddenly appeared in front of Ning Que. The material of the water mirror came from the ground. The filthy water mixed with crushed moss sshed on his face, obstructing his five senses for a moment.


    Ye Hongyu used the moment to insert two slender fingers coldly into Ning Que¡¯s left chest. They pierced right through the hole caused by her Taoist Sword earlier and activated the sword style!


    Ning Que felt a sharp pain in his chest. He felt as if his heart would split open the next moment. Howling in pain, he broke the water mirror on his face and smashed his right fist imbued with the Great Spirit toward the front.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s left hand seemed to wave casually but it held the secrets of the Cloud Hand which originated from the Cloud Taoist Temple of the Kingdom of Song.


    Having experienced a long battle which was dangerous and difficult, Ye Hongyu finally had the opportunity to kill Ning Que. How would she be unprepared against Ning Que¡¯s dying blow?


    However, she had forgotten an important matter at this crucial moment. The strongest power of the Cloud Hand Taoists Law from Cloud Taoist Temple of the Kingdom of Song should be hidden in one¡¯s sleeves. It was called Cloud Sleeves.


    She waspletely naked, so where would she find sleeves?


    In principle, Ye Hongyu¡¯s richbat experience meant that she should not make such low-level mistakes. However, she had never had the experience of fighting like a child in a quagmire without any clothes on.


    Without the wind hidden in her sleeves, the powers of Cloud Hands of the Cloud Taoist Temple were weakened by half.


    Ning Que¡¯s right fist, which was imbued with the Great Spirit broke through her left Cloud Hand pose. While it was slightly weaker, it stillnded squarely on the left side of her chest.


    His fist fell on her chest, and mud went flying, revealing her pale skin and tender and full chest. It was crushed like paper, and blood started to ooze from the sides, the sounds of cracking ribs rang in the air!


    Ye Hongyu moaned angrily and painfully. The sword style in her fingers which were wedged in Ning Que¡¯s wounded chest grew and tunneled deeper. Fresh blood oozed from the corners where her fingers were wedged.


    Ning Que felt as if his heart had been struck by lightning. His face paled suddenly and he felt his strength draining. He clutched Ye Hongyu¡¯s right wrist tightly in his left hand and curled up his right hand tightly, swiping angrily at her chest. He held her tightly in her chest and lowered his head, biting down into her mud covered neck.


    After the slightly fishy taste of the swamp water was the metallic but sweet taste of blood.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s left hand fell with the wind, almostnding on the top of his head.


    He would die once that happens.


    Ye Hongyu felt the clear tearing at her neck. She could even feel her blood being drained. She thought of their meeting many years ago at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Her face suddenly paled considerably, and her fear, which had been repressed for many years, bloomed once more before her eyes and quickly took over her entire being.


    Apanying the pain at her neck was her weakening sense of perception and body. She finally believed that Ning Que was not using this method to frighten her, but that he would really use the evil Devil¡¯s Doctrine skill.


    However, the fear in her eyes suddenly switched into absolute calmness. They were as bright as jewels.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s fingers on her right hand were wedged into Ning Que¡¯s chest. They were merely half an inch away from his heart. Her right handnded on his head as if caressing him. Ning Que¡¯s right hand held onto her left bosom tightly and erotically. His head was pressed against her neck as if he was kissing it. The entire scene was intimate. It was an intimate act with Yama.


    Ning Que could sense the change in her aura. He thought that the terrifying woman would forcefully lower her state without hesitation, just like she had many years ago, to obtain a chance for herself and for her opponent to die.


    That was why he stopped sucking the blood. He said in a muffled voice, ¡°I¡¯m not Lotus. There¡¯s no need for you to lower your state just to kill me. Shall we stop fighting?¡±


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s face was devoid of any emotions. She said indifferently, ¡°You have learned the Practice of Tao Tie. There is no reason for me to let you live.¡±


    Ning Que thought about what happened in autumn before the Red Lotus Temple and of how he had learned Tao Tie. He smiled bitterly and mumbled, ¡°But I have never used it.¡±


    Then, his lips left her neck slowly and he straightened up.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s fingers drifted away from his heart slowly.


    Ning Que fell backward into the swamp tiredly and scooted back about half a feet. He looked at her and said, ¡°I admit that I am indeed no match for you. Let¡¯s fight again after I rest a little.¡±


    There was mud, blood, and a thin golden thread between his lips.


    Ye Hongyu looked at him and said, ¡°If you had continued to bite down, you¡¯d have been dead.¡±


    Her fingers flicked lightly, and the golden thread on Ning Que¡¯s lips fell to the ground and disappeared into the ground with a poof.


    Ning Que only noticed then, that there were many almost invisible golden threads on her wounds. He was extremely surprised, and asked, ¡°What are they?¡±


    Ye Hongyu answered, ¡°After returning from the Wilderness, I buried 72 golden threads in my body. Each golden thread is a sword. If anyone tries to take a bite of my flesh, he would definitely regret it.¡±

 Chapter 650 - The Caw Through the Swamp

    <h4>Chapter 650: The Caw Through the Swamp</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The golden threads were very thin and very tough. The only way to bury them under the skin was to sew them in with a needle. It was an extremely painful process. Who would do something like that to themselves if it were not necessary?


    Ning Que looked at Ye Hongyu and said, ¡°It seems like the West-Hill Divine Pce has epted Long Qing once more.¡±


    Ye Hongyu asked, ¡°What does Long Qing have to do with this matter?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Only Long Qing knows that I know Tao Tie. That is why you buried the golden threads in yourself.¡±


    ¡°Long Qing knows that you know Tao Tie? He didn¡¯t tell the Divine Hall.¡±


    Ye Hongyu frowned slightly as she said, ¡°As I¡¯ve said before ¨C the golden threads were buried many years ago, when we returned from the Wilderness.¡±


    Ning Que, a bit surprised, said, ¡°Lotus had already died back then. Why did you go through the pain of burying golden threads in your body?¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Because I have to be prepared at all times for someone to eat me.¡±


    After a moment of silence, Ning Que said, ¡°You really are a lunatic.¡±


    He scooted back a little and made sure that the blood on his chest had clotted before releasing his palm. He held the hilt once more. Ye Hongyu used mud to seal the wound on her neck and looked up calmly.


    Their gazes met once more in the dark swamp and they both understood what the other meant.


    Even the strongest, most fearless warriors would feel immense fear and attachment to life when faced with imminent death like the two of them. The thought of avoiding each other ¨C avoiding death ¨C would naturally ur to them. They would need to rest for a long while before they could work up the nerve to fight once more.


    However, this was not so for Ning Que and Ye Hongyu. He knew that Ye Hongyu would not allow him and Sangsang to leave alive. Ye Hongyu knew that they would not give in easily. That was why furious bloody battle was imminent.


    Ye Hongyu suddenly looked at herself.


    Her bare feet were submerged in the muddy swamp. Nails of her pale feet had been painted red, but were fading after being submerged in the swamp. The muddied waterspped at her feet, washing away the paint.


    She was standing on a piece of shaky wet moss. Her palms were itchy and felt weak, almost as if she were being gently tickled with feathers.


    Ning Que also felt the ground faintly tremoring. Rather confused, he looked towards the west side of the swamp. It was still enshrouded in mist and he could not see a thing.


    The tremor grew and shallow waters of the swamp began to swirl and dance. The murky waters seemed to have be dancers draped in grey as they rose and fell.


    An arch shot up from beneath the moss and across the surface of the swamp. It stretched from the western edge shrouded in mist to just before them. There were dancing shadows and, along with them, a smooth capybara appeared from the arch of fog.


    Following the first, dozens of arches appeared from beneath the wet moss. Several capybaras shot across the swamp, fleeing in horror towards the east. It was as if something terrifying had appeared behind them. However, what was odd was that not a single capybara tried to dive deep into the muddy bottom of the swamp.


    Anything would look terrifying if there was a crowd of it. What¡¯s more ¨C a bunch of ugly fellows covered in greasy hair and mud? It made one¡¯s hair stand. Ning Que and Ye Hongyu might not be afraid of the poisonous capybaras, but they backed away subconsciously, leaving an open path for them.


    Tremors on the swamp¡¯s surface grew stronger. Moss swirled in the water and mud flew all over the ce. Mud in the swamp was like rainwater on a drum ¨C it did noty still at all.


    After hundreds of capybaras passed through in horror, more wild animals ran out of the fog in the west and fled to the east. The most frightening part was when tens of thousands of mud rats ran by, squeaking. Ning Que saw that there were two Snowfield Direwolfs in the fleeing herd.


    Snowfield Direwolves lived in the Cold Region of the Far North. They reigned in the cold regions. As the Hot Sea froze over and Deste Man headed south, they too moved southwards. They had be the most terrifying beast in the Wilderness over thest two years and word of their strength had spread to the Central ins.


    However, the snow-colored wolves were covered in mud and had several terrifying bite marks on their backs. They looked exhausted, fearful and did not seem as terrifying as they were rumored to be.


    The number of fleeing beasts grew, covering the part of the swamp that was not covered by fog.


    Ye Hongyu is the Great Divine Priest of Judgment and Ning Que is a powerhouse. However, when faced with arge number of fleeing beasts and the wrath of nature, they did not dare move lightly.


    In the beginning, when hundreds of capybaras appeared, the two of them took several steps backwards. As waves of beasts grew, they were forced to keep retreating and, as a result, the distance between the two grew farther and farther.


    They simultaneously looked towards the western side of the swamp, which was covered in fog. Their expressions grew grave as they wondered why so many beasts would appear in the swamp. What was it that could terrorize so many beasts and cause them all to flee? What dangersy waiting in the deep fog? Could it be the legendary wild beast?


    Earth shook and sounds of clopping hooves crackled like thunder. There was amotion in the western part of the swamp. A grey shadow leapt out from the fog and fell heavily on the ground, mud smeared all over its hooves.


    To the surprise of Ning Que and Ye Hongyu, appearing from the fog was neither an ancient wild beast, nor was it a hermit master cultivator. It was a gray horse.


    The grey horse was graceful and unusually good looking. Long hair on its neck fluttered. When it ran on the soft muddy ground of the swamp, it was like a grey shadow ¨C wild and unrestrained ¨C obviously feral.


    However, not even the most handsome of feral horses could scare several hundreds of capybaras, mud rats and beasts into fleeing.


    At that moment, a white shadow leapt out of the fog again. It was an equally good looking white mare. Following that, hundreds and thousands of wild horses rushed out from the fog!


    Their hooves clopped like thunder and the entire swamp seemed to shake as the horses trampled upon it. The horses neighed, sounding like they were roaring. Moss on the swamp¡¯s surface sank to the bottom, as if blown apart by a great gust of wind, and did not rise again. The horses gathered as densely as a sandstorm in the Wilderness. They tore through the thick fog in the west within seconds and seemed to even roll the fog up as they rushed towards Ning Que and Ye Hongyu!


    Tang Empire was well known for the cavalry it groomed. However, Ning Que had never seen as many horses as he had right now, much less Ye Hongyu. Pounding of the horses¡¯ hooves frightened them, and they finally understood why those beasts had fled so pathetically. They backed away in a hurry, allowing the horses to pass.


    Ning Que backed away, turned around and run away desperately. He leaped into the pool and ran towards the shore. He helped Sangsang into the horse carriage and pped down heavily on the stunned Big ck Horse¡¯s back. Ning Que pressed the horse to hurry ¨C pull the carriage behind it and follow the fleeing herd. It was a great opportunity for them to leave, how could he miss it?


    ...


    ...


    Wild horses swarmed, causing fog to swirl and earth to shake. Ye Hongyu found a dead tree by the marsh and stood on it, watching the flickering shadows of horses passing by through the fog.


    The fog was brought here by the wild horses and obstructed her sight. She could only see a strip before the tree, watching as wild horses of various colors sped by before her eyes in a steady stream, neighing incessantly.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s face was a little pale. There were more than ten thousand wild horses in this group. Not even all the cavalries in the world could beat the number of horses here.


    How did so many wild horses survive in the swamp? Where did they find food? How did they run across the dangerous swamp without worrying about sinking?


    There are many inexplicable problems. Fog in the swamp, likeyers of clothing over the problem, made it impossible for her to figure out the truth. It weighed on her mood.


    After a long while, the fog gradually calmed. Sounds of hooves gradually faded. Deep from within the fog, came messy sounds of horse hooves, which might very well be a single horse. There were several ugly squawks which seemed toe from ck crows.


    Emerging from her stupor, Ye Hongyu looked up fiercely. She jumped off the dead tree and ran in the direction of the pool. However, when she passed through the pool and reached the shore, the ck horse carriage was long gone.


    There was a dress left by the pool.


    Ye Hongyu looked at the dress. She did not say anything, knowing that Ning Que and Sangsang had left it behind for her.


    ...


    ...


    ck horse carriage blended in with the herd of wild horses, charging into the thick fog, rushing towards the east.


    Neighing of horses outside the carriage and dense clopping of hooves caused piercing pain in one¡¯s ears.


    Even though Ning Que had hidden amongst the herd of wild horses and gotten away from Ye Hongyu, he still felt extremely nervous. Perhaps even more nervous, because he knew that the wild horses were violent. Herds of this size would dominate the Wilderness. The herd had scared off the wolves and capybaras earlier, and if they refused to ept the Big ck Horse or the carriage, the situation would be extremely dangerous.


    Fortunately, the wild horses recognized that Big ck Horse was one of them and was qualified to charge with them. The herd did not attack them, but the horses near them would look at the horse carriage as they ran alongside it. Some of the younger stallions went up to the windows curiously. It seemed as if they had never seen a horse carriage before.


    When the wild herd appeared, Big ck Horse appeared very uneasy. It had never seen any of his kind that were so powerful before, especially in an environment like the swamp. That was why it kept a low profile after joining the herd. However, when it realized that it ran even faster than the horses, its confidence and pride were restored. It held its head high and snorted even louder. When a young stallion tried to nudge its head into the windows, it neighed with great displeasure.


    The young stallion neighed back unhappily. Ning Que¡¯s heart skipped a beat. He wanted to give the Big ck Horse a flying kick. It was fortunate that the young stallion did not do anything other than neighing.


    The ck carriage sped towards the eastern parts of the swamp, nestled amongst the herd. They had run for an entire day and night, and through it all, the horses had only rested twice. Ning Que had wanted to leave, but the horse carriage was surrounded by horses and he could not squeeze its way out. Furthermore, he had also discovered something odd. The wild horses were able to find the legendary solid path as they ran through the swamp, so they would not encounter any danger.


    Since the herd of wild horses did not have any ill intentions and were able to find a path through the swamp, Ning Que was willing to travel with them.


    On the second dawn, the wild herd finally managed to leave the swamp and reached the Wilderness.


    Green grass had sprouted under the sunlight.


    The ck horse carriage emerged from the fog and came into view of the beautiful scenery.


    Ning Que rxed instantly. He suddenly heard cawing behind the fog and thought that the ck crows were haunting them. He yelled angrily, ¡°Shut up!¡±


    The cawing continued in the fog, seemingly very dissatisfied.


    Ning Que turned around.


    The fog dissipated and eight extremely handsome horses stepped out.


    The eight horses dragged a chariot.


    There was a ck donkey sitting on the chariot.


    It was not the crows that had been calling out, but the ck donkey.

 Chapter 651 - Nobody Dares Ride on the Black Donkey

    <h4>Chapter 651: Nobody Dares Ride on the ck Donkey</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The eight horses were all very handsome. Any one of them wasparable to the white horse Chanyu of Left King¡¯s Pce had gifted to Flower Addict back then. One could imagine how luxurious the chariot was just by the eight horses pulling it.


    But actually, the chariot was very shabby. Holes on both sides were covered with a few withered wooden nks and embroidered pads on the chariot had long rotted away. The chariot appeared as if it had been picked out of the garbage.


    However, that wasn¡¯t the main point. The main point was a donkey on the chariot. The donkey was notrge and was entirely ck except for a white patch around its mouth. Itidzily on the chariot, four hooves pointing up at the sky like wooden sticks.


    There was a basket of unidentifiable orange fruit on the chariot. The ck donkey was chewing on one and judging by the crunching ¨C the fruit was probably really juicy.


    It was already very shocking that there were thousands ¨C or even more ¨C wild horses in the deste swamp. However, the fact that a donkey was leading the team was even more so. Anyone having seen it would think that the donkey, sitting like a human on the chariot andzily eating fruits, was a monster.


    Ning Que knew that the ck donkey was not a monster because he was used to such behaviours at the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain. Whether the old yellow bull, the white goose or his own Big ck Horse ¨C they were all like that. If that ck donkey on the chariot were a monster, then it could be said that he had lived with such monsters for many years.


    He had already guessed where the ck donkey was from at first nce.


    At the back of the mountain of the Academy, at the top floor of the House of Red Sleeves, at the bottom of Daming Lake ¨C from Second Brother, Aunt Jian and many other people ¨C he would hear stories about Youngest Uncle. And a ck donkey would always be mentioned in those stories.


    Having heard those stories, Ning Que was familiar with it. Even though he had never seen the ck donkey, it had always held a ce in his heart. He did not feel any fear towards it, only agitation. He leapt off the horse carriage and rushed towards the rundown chariot.


    When he reached the chariot, Ning Que noticed that the ck donkey¡¯s fur was not smooth and was even balding in some areas. He could not help but feel sad.


    A few decades ago, Youngest Uncle had left the Academy on a little ck donkey. He entered Chang¡¯an and then traveled the world on that donkey. He had been to Lanke Temple and Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine in the Wilderness. The ck donkey had been present and witnessed as legends of the cultivation world yed out. Decades since then, the donkey had miraculously survived, but it had be old.


    It was no longer a little ck donkey but an old ck donkey.


    Several strong wild horses circled around from behind the chariot and stopped in front of Ning Que, blocking his view.


    Ning Que jumped up and waved his hand at the chariot, shouting, ¡°I¡¯m from the Academy! I¡¯m from the Academy!¡±


    The old ck donkey was leaning against the chariot¡¯s back and chewing on a delicious fruit. It lookedzy and unbothered.


    Ning Que thought to himself, that even if the donkey did understand him, it wouldn¡¯t believe that he was from the Academy just because he said so. He felt a little dumb.


    Convinced what he had to do, the crystal-like liquid suspended deep in his body began to churn. Extremely pure Great Spirit flowed into his arm and then dispersed into the air along his fingers.


    A strong aura appeared by the rundown chariot.


    The ck donkey continued chewing on fruit, not concerned with Ning Que. It thought to itself sarcastically, that had it not discovered that Ning Que was a disciple of the Academy, would it expend effort on saving him? Ning Que was behaving like an idiot ¨C using the Great Spirit to perform. It was such an embarrassment ¨C it seemed like the Academy was going downhill.


    Ning Que did not understand why the ck donkey did not react. But he understood the ridicule in its expression. Hemented that it was indeed Youngest Uncle¡¯s donkey, for it was extremely prideful.


    Big ck Horse stared at the broken chariot with wide eyes.


    It knew about the ck donkey after spending a long time at the mountains behind the Academy with the old yellow bull and others. Judging by Ning Que¡¯s expression, it guessed that the donkey before them was the one. As such, it was very shocked. It felt uneasy and afraid. After much consideration, it mustered the courage to walk over.


    The eight wild horses watched as Big ck Horse approached with a bowed head and felt that it looked too sneaky. They neighed solemnly, issuing a warning.


    Big ck Horse was frightened by the solemn neigh and its legs turned into jelly. It almost keeled over.


    The ck donkey didn¡¯t care for Ning Que but was evidently interested in Big ck Horse. It called out twice, signaling to the eight horses that Big ck Horse was its nephew and to allow it to pass.


    Big ck Horse trembled and moved with great difficulty towards the donkey. It popped its head into the chariot respectfully and carefully rubbed its head against the ck donkey¡¯s round belly before licking it.


    It had been bullied by the goose called Wooden Fish at the back mountain of the Academy. It thought to itself that the goose was only its Senior Brother, while the donkey was its Uncle, who might try to keep it in line. It had better get into the donkey¡¯s good books.


    The ck donkey snorted twice, seemingly satisfied andfortable. Then, it patted the basket beside it with its front hooves, somewhat clumsily, signaling for Big ck Horse to help itself, just like how an elder would dispense snacks to children.


    Big ck Horse understood and was extremely happy. However, it didn¡¯t dare to take too much and only picked one up with its mouth. Then, it bowed its head several times in a show of respect and gratitude, and shook its butt at the eight horses as a gesture of goodwill. Then, it strutted away and returned to the carriage to partake in the delicious snack.


    The ck donkey could not help but shake its head as it watched the dumb and shameless behavior. It snorted lightly, as if it was sighing. Then, it looked at Ning Que and thought of how he had fought stupidly and shamelessly with the girl in the swamp, and shook its head once more. It snorted lightly as if it was disappointed.


    Ning Que felt rather awkward, thinking that he and Big ck Horse were well-matched partners. However, whenpared to Youngest Uncle and the little ck donkey, they were rathercking in both disposition and power ¨C it was quite embarrassing.


    The ck donkey squawked twice and the eight horses in front of the chariot looked up, ready to leave.


    Just as Ning Que was about to speak, ck crows stopped on the horse carriage could bear no longer and began squawking happily.


    The ck donkey grew furious. It thought to itself ¨C it did not matter whether they were crows formed by Yama or Haotian ¨C they were too disrespectful to squawk like it! It squawked angrily in response.


    The ck crows did not truly exist. Ning Que could kill them neither with arrows nor talismans. But when they heard the ck donkey squawk, they immediately felt dizzy, fearful and did not dare make another sound.


    Ning Que followed beside the chariot as it began to move. He yelled, ¡°It¡¯s not easy for us to meet! At least say something. I could be considered Youngest Uncle¡¯s disciple and I¡¯m the only one who knows about the Great Spirit. ordingly, his legacy belongs to me. If you continue like this, I won¡¯t show you any politeness.¡±


    The ck donkey bared its belly and looked at the sky, looking bored and ignoring Ning Quepletely.


    Being ignored was one of the greatest humiliations one could endure.


    Ning Que grew more and more embarrassed and asked, ¡°How can I find you in the future?¡±


    The ck donkey did not react.


    Ning Que continued, ¡°Don¡¯t you want to return to the Academy? Headmaster and the old yellow bull are still alive. Eldest Brother and Second Brother are no longer kids. I¡¯m sure they miss you.¡±


    The ck donkey looked hesitant. It turned to Ning Que and after a moment of silence, its lips parted to reveal a mouthful of white teeth as though it were grinning. Then, it bellowed once, moved its front left hoof back and pointed its right towards the north.


    The wild herd resting on the meadow looked up without hesitation when they heard the donkey¡¯s call. They abandoned the first mouthful of tender grass they had encountered in more than ten days, gathered into groups and started running.


    Smoke and dust rose. The hooves of horses were as loud as thunder. Wild horses dominated the Wilderness as they began to move at high speed. Surprisingly, there was no confusion, only a great deal of discipline ¨C just like an army.


    Earlier, Ning Que had found ck donkey¡¯s action of folding a hoof and extending the other rather funny. However, when he witnessed the shocking scene of thousands of horses running, he suddenly felt that the ck donkey was like a powerful general, extending its right arm and directing its army towards their conquest.


    Wild horses rushed off and dust gradually settled. Ning Que stood on the meadow silently, looking at the ck dots in the distance and at that broken chariot.


    After a long while, he muttered to himself, ¡°I¡¯m never going to eat barbequed donkey meat again.¡±


    Ning Que vaguely understood that the ck donkey was the team leader of those wild horses. It had led tens of thousands of wild horses through the swamp and the northern Wilderness, to chase after water and grass.


    ces that herdsmen and cavalry cannot reach belonged to them. The true path of legend that herdsmen spoke of might have been made by the wild horses over the past decades, as they stepped through the quagmire.


    As for the battle between Ye Hongyu and himself, just as they were about to decide the victor and just as he was likely about to die, the ck donkey had led its team by... There were no coincidences in this world. The ck donkey had the intention of saving him and had brought him away from the swamp.


    <i>¡°But why was it a chariot pulled by eight horses? Why was it so specific?¡±</i>


    He looked at the herd, moving like a shadow and asked subconsciously.


    Sangsang peered out of the window and looked at the herd in the distance, and at the dust billowing behind them. She asked, ¡°Could it be that Youngest Uncle and Headmaster liked to use the ¡®Eight Horses¡¯ in their drinking games?¡±


    ¡°Perhaps?¡±


    Ning Que got in the horse carriage and turned to look at the wild herd, moving farther and farther away. He thought to himself that Youngest Uncle had spent his life pursuing freedom. The life that the ck donkey was leading was dreaming true, so why would he have to feel sad for it?


    Under the boundless sky, on the vast in, when wind blows and grass bends, cows and sheep could be seen.


    It was spring and the grass had not yet grown tall. As the breeze would go by, the green grass would bend slightly and spring back up again. Even when the grass stood tall, it could not hide the sheep which were scattered in the meadow like clouds.


    The ck horse carriage left Yuelun and crossed the swamp before reaching the Wilderness where Golden Pce was based.


    Golden Pce was a nation, almost forgotten by the countries in Central ins ¨C except for the Tangs.


    Ning Que was in the army of the City of Wei. He was part of the northern border army of the Tang Empire. Having gathered firewood at Shubi Lake for many years, he was very familiar with Golden Pce and this part of the Wilderness.


    ck horse carriage traveled through the unpopted meadows silently.


    Like a ck cloud.

 Chapter 652 - Nearing Shubi Lake

    <h4>Chapter 652: Nearing Shubi Lake</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The part of the Wilderness where Golden Pce was located had a rtively good climate, enough water and fertilends. There were many cattle and sheep, which had lived and grown in poption over thousands of years. The area had be densely popted, forming more than 20 major tribes. The Pce was a strong nation and had elite cavalryposed of nearly 100,000 men.


    Apart from the Tang Empire, there was no other country that was a match for Golden Pce. And because the Tang Empire had forced Golden Pce to stay in the Wilderness for centuries, countries in the Central ins gradually forgot about it. That was why South Jin Kingdom dared to say that it was the second most powerful country in the world.


    Not even Tang Empire was willing to go to war against the Golden Pce. Tang princess, Li Yu had married off to the Wilderness to avoid the chaos caused by Imperial Astronomer¡¯s oracle and also to prove the importance of Golden Pce to the Tangs.


    Ning Que had encountered Golden Pce¡¯s cavalry many times as well as the Horse Gang members that they masqueraded as. He knew very well of the power the barbarians had in the Wilderness. Other than their viciousness and amazing skills in equitation that the cavalry possessed, the pce was also supported by ten High Priests, who were all close to or had reached Knowing Destiny State.


    Therefore, even though he knew that the Golden Pce did not pray to Haotian and didn¡¯t have the legend of Underworld Invasion, he remained highly vignt as the ck horse carriage traveled through the Wilderness.


    Ning Que had been seriously injured in his battle with Ye Hongyu at the swamp and was still recuperating. Sangsang had used the Divine Skill and had used up a lot of Haotian Divine Light. The cold aura in her body stirred and was almost bursting out from the hold that Buddhism had on it. She coughed terribly and her body turned colder and colder.


    He was worried about Sangsang¡¯s health and those who wanted to kill her. He examined the carriage trails and determined that many cultivators from Buddhism and Taoism sects hade to the Wilderness.


    Fortunately, in the days following their departure from the swamp, the Wilderness was overcast with dark clouds. It was difficult to distinguish them from the ones that had been following Sangsang. Furthermore, in the early spring in the Wilderness, birds would fly from Min Mountain and northern Tang Empire, so the ck crows no longer stood out.


    Ning Que made a cover from straw and hung it around the horse carriage as a disguise. He dissolved ash in water and smeared it over Big ck Horse. They continued their journey eastward in disguise through the blessings of heaven.


    One day, Sangsang sensed that there were some cultivators pursuing them more than ten miles away.


    Ning Que looked at the vast deste ins in front of them and realized that there was nowhere to hide. Instead, he steered the carriage into a pile of rubble in the south and hid. If they were discovered ¨C this would be a good ce to set an ambush.


    The first to arrive at the ins were not cultivators who came to kill Sangsang, but over a hundred grasnd cavalry. The cavalry were in soft armor and behind the troops ¨C a light chariot. Ning Que¡¯s expression turned cold as he deduced that the troops were made up of elite warriors from the pce. The man on the chariot was likely a Priest.


    A momentter, three cultivators rode up north of the pile of rubble, meeting up with the elite cavalry of Golden Pce. The three cultivators carrying Taoist Swords were likely from Haotian Taoism. However, it was unknown whether they were priests from West-Hill Divine Pce or visiting professors from random Taoist temples.


    Ning Que could not hear what they were talking about, but judging by expressions of the three cultivators and posture of the grasnd cavalry, the cultivators had behaved how they would when they met ordinary folks. That was to say ¨C prideful, cold and contemptuous. Ning Que could not help but fall silent, knowing that a battle was imminent.


    There were three pces formed by barbarians of the Wilderness. Right King¡¯s Pce believed in Buddhism and were not aggressive. Left King¡¯s Pce faced the threat of Deste Man moving southwards, so they were forced to fight side by side with the allied forces of countries in the Central ins. Golden Pce was the strongest and had never shied from showing their hostility towards those from the Central ins.


    Ordinary folks had natural reverence towards cultivators. Cavalry from Golden Pce obviously did not. There was a sharp whistle and several cavalries spurred their horses on, leaving the main camp and rushing towards the three cultivators with lightning speed. Boxwood bows in their hands had long been taut and were waiting to be released.


    The three Haotian Taoism cultivators had been cultivating at Taoist temples in the Central ins year-round. They were deeply respected and feared by the ordinary and never would have thought that they would dare attack them. They grew furious and, with a quick wave of Sword Form, the Taoist Swords behind them floated up and flew across the Wilderness with the wind, slicing down a rider within seconds.


    Ning Que looked at the glinting swords and realized that the three cultivators were all masters of Seethrough Realm. One of them was already at the peak of Seethrough Realm. It was no wonder they took such a tough stance on the Wilderness.


    Looking at the light chariot behind the cavalry, Ning Que still did not think that the three Haotian Taoism powerhouses could beat the hundred-men-strong elite team. They were from the Golden Pce and not the Central ins where cultivators could never be challenged.


    Dozens of cavalrymen, who remained in their original positions, shot arrows at the cultivators like rain. One of the cultivators recalled his Taoist Sword and set up a Taoist Sword screen in front of him, blocking most of the arrows. However, cavalry pulled out short spears from their saddles and, with a grunt of effort, threw them at the cultivators.


    Short spears weighed much more than arrows. Dozens of short spears tore through the sky, creating a startling sight.


    The cultivator quickly used the Sword Form, and his Taoist Sword continuously waved in mid-air. However, unlike before, when it could bat away the arrows easily, it was difficult for the sword to sh against the short spears. In fact, every strike the Taoist Sword made seemed shaky and uneasy.


    There were several plunks as the stiff short spears punctured and wedged into the ground.


    One of the spears pierced through the belly of a horse one of the cultivators was riding. The horse neighed miserably and jumped around painfully, causing the cultivator to fall off.


    The cavalrymander issued an order, and the dozens of cavalrymen staying in reserve joined the charging troops. The first few soldiers charging forth did so at an extremely fast speed as they reached the cultivators.


    The three Haotian Taoism powerhouses red at them coldly. With a push of their Psyche Power, glints of swords danced in the air. Sounds of riders falling off horses and painful cries of war horses pierced the air. However, power of the Taoist Sword was still limited. It could only tear a small opening in leather armor. Furthermore, there were many soldiers hidden behind the horses where the flying swords could not hit easily.


    Dozens of feet seemed extremely long, but were very short to the cavalry of Golden Pce. In the matter of breaths, hundreds of soldiers rushed forth like a wave, drowning the three cultivators.


    Several des swishing could be heard and blood sttered all over the ce. The pce cavalry spread out, leaving behind corpses of the three cultivators in the middle.


    The powerhouse at the peak of Seethroughid on the grass, covered in blood. He was holding an item in each of his hands. In his right hand was his weapon, and in his left ¨C a firework signal. ording to the agreement he was to activate the signal if he saw Ning Que and Daughter of Yama so as to inform the main troop.


    However, he had no time to use either item in his hand before he was killed by the pce cavalry. One could imagine how fast it had all happened.


    Pce cavalry cleaned up the field and left quickly. Judging by the number of corpses on horses, only about ten had died from the three cultivators¡¯ flying swords.


    ...


    ...


    An encounter in the Wilderness had turned into a sudden battle. The three cultivators at Seethrough Realm did not have any way of defending themselves against hundreds of pce soldiers, evidently, and were all killed.


    The ck horse carriage left the ruins and headed southwards. Ning Que thought of the bloody battle that had started and ended so suddenly. After a moment of consideration, he was once more convinced of a point.


    He believed that non-martial cultivators would not be able to defeat an army if they had not joined the Devil or entered Knowing Destiny State.


    The conclusion waspletely different from the impression most ordinary people in the world had. However, it was a fact, because cultivators all have an inevitable weakness ¨C their bodies.


    The body of a cultivator was as weak as that of an ordinary person. It was the same even if he had entered Knowing Destiny State. Arrows and cusses can all kill them, much less the tens and thousands of arrows that would fly when two armies fought, or the catapults and crossbows used when a city was attacked.


    More importantly, cultivators use the Qi of Heaven and Earth to control their flying swords. A flying sword¡¯s range was limited by one¡¯s Psyche Power. Most flying swords were unable to exceed the range of an arrow.


    Furthermore, should the flying sword wish to break open all kinds of armor, it would need to be extremely sharp. However, it shouldn¡¯t be too thin ¨C it might be damaged after striking armor. That was why it was so difficult to cast.


    This was precisely why ordinary cultivators did not dare confront a country, and also why they had to serve the imperial courts of various countries. This was also why, traditionally, cultivators would always be closely apanied by a martial warrior who served as their escort servant.


    Ning Que had never met any cultivators when he was serving in the army of the City of Wei, much less battled with them. He only remembered General Ma¡¯s expression when he talked about stories on the battlefield after getting drunk.


    General Ma was very contemptuous towards them. He thought that cultivators, alone, were strong but not of much use on the battlefield. That was why Ning Que was not surprised by the oue of battle between the cultivators and the army today.


    However, the course of the battle surprised him ¨C the pce Priest in the light chariot had not made a move throughout. The cavalry had ended the battle cleanly, killing all three cultivators.


    Indeed, the elite cavalry of Golden Pce was still as powerful, and might have even grown more powerful than before. He looked out of the window, at the scenery which was gradually growing familiar, with a gloomy expression.


    The brave and powerful Chanyu of Golden Pce was Li Yu¡¯s husband and little Wild¡¯s father. His early death was indeed a sad thing. His brother had taken over his position as Chanyu, but it seemed that he did not have the wisdom nor talents of his brother. And it was rumored that he was way more ambitious.


    Ning Que was a Tang, and was also a Tang soldier who had stood guard at the borders for years. Even though he was fleeing for his life with Sangsang, it was still difficult for him to not worry about the situation at the Tang Northern Frontier.


    Sangsang looked out at the scenery of the Wilderness. Her face was rosy because of the wind. She asked, ¡°This ce looks familiar, have we been here?¡±


    Ning Que looked out of the window and said, ¡°I¡¯ve brought you here once. We¡¯ll reach Shubi Lake if we continue south.¡±

 Chapter 653 - The Woodcutter, who Returned to Shubi Lake

    <h4>Chapter 653: The Woodcutter, who Returned to Shubi Lake</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    If Shubi Lake was near, would the City of Wei be far?


    It was very quiet in the carriage. Sangsang took a look at Ning Que but received no response. He had made a decision at the White Tower Temple. He would not go back to the Academy, let alone the City of Wei.


    Located between Seven Stockaded Viges at the border of Tang Empire and Golden Pce, Shubi Lake was a rare freshwaterke in the Wilderness. Owing to countless years¡¯ erosion, several slits appeared and extended westward on the rockykebed. Those slits connected with theke¡¯s long body, making theke look like ab. That was why it was called ¡°Shubi Lake¡± ¨C a greenke that looks like ab.


    Trade caravans used to often stop by theke, because of that, horse gangs also appeared there. The battle between blood and moneysted many years. Since a time that no one is certain of, trade caravans were gradually forced to choose more remote and difficult routes, while Shubi Lake became a gathering and hiding ce for horse gangs.


    At dusk, the ck carriage arrived at the periphery of theke. Clouds in the sky blocked out most of the sunlight, so it was already as dark as night. One could see from afar the bonfires by theke, hear the faint singing, even smell the aroma of barbecue and liquor.


    Wheels creaked as they rolled through the simple soil road amid the jungle by theke. The carriage sessfully evaded the hidden sentries left by horse gangs and came to thekeside. For Ning Que, who had been there hundreds of times, Shubi Lake was a ce as familiar as his own home.


    A dozen bonfires by theke were divided into three groups ording to the distance between them. Hundreds of horse thieves, who should belong to the three parties, were eating and drinking around them.


    Horse thieves of the Wilderness were the most cold-blooded and deceitful creatures. They were extremely greedy and never trusted other people, especially their peers. If they encountered each other in the Wilderness, they would have long been involved in a fight. But it would never happen by theke, because it was a rule.


    Very thick firewood was put at the bottom of every bonfire, crackling slightly. The me was like a giant¡¯s tongue licking the rolling roast sheep. The grease dripping from the roast sheep was like saliva of the invisible giant.


    Singing, men¡¯s shouting and sultry voices of women reverberated around theke. The horse thieves looked so lively, drinking and fooling around with women. But their knives and arrows were close at hand, so they could pick up them at any time.


    Their cusses were usually not inserted in their sheaths. Under the light of mes, blood on the cusses was clear to see. Some blood was still fresh. It should be a trade caravan or a solitary patrol guard dying a terrible death under the cuss.


    The horse gangs lived a happy life in these years. Golden Pce and the Tang Empire had been at a stalemate for a long time. Both parties were very careful, so few troops were sent to suppress horse gangs in the Wilderness. Therefore, pressure faced by horse thieves suddenly decreased a lot. Especially after the departure of that person, they felt that life was so nice and happy, and looked forward to living this kind of life forever.


    The happier life was, the more one would cherish it. Horse gangs knew this truth well. So they seldom fought against each other. But that did not mean they were not vignt anymore. When a ck carriage appeared by theke, it attracted everyone¡¯s attention.


    A lone carriage appeared at Shubi Lake ¨C right before the eyes of three hundred cruel horse thieves. It was just like a little white rabbit walking into a pack of wolves, who had starved for countless days.


    However, the horse thieves did not rush up with strange shouts, but rather looked somewhat wary. The three leaders of the horse gangs looked at each other through the fire and saw the uneasiness in each other¡¯s eyes.


    Shubi Lake had long been famous, so neither caravans nor travelers would choose to stay here. It was very weird that the carriage dared to travel alone through the Wilderness and evene here.


    One of the leaders looked at the ck carriage and croaked,¡±My distinguished guest, I did not expect that you woulde to our poor people¡¯s shabby home. Who are you? Pleasee out and meet us.¡±


    But what answered him was an arrow. An arrow whistled and struck right between his eyebrows, leaving a small bloody hole. The leader fell dead, his eyes wide open.


    It caused an uproar among all the horse gangs at once. They pushed the women in their arms away and stood up with their knives in hand. Dozens of horse thieves, that were led by that leader shouted and rushed at the carriage.


    With ceaseless swishing of arrows, each of the seven or eight horse thieves rushing at the forefront was shot by an arrow right between their eyebrows. They fell on the ground with a big noise like trees being cut down one after another.


    Ning Que got off the carriage with an arrow box behind his back and a boxwood bow in his hand. Looking at those frightened horse thieves, he asked, ¡°When did Shubi Lake be your home?¡±


    In the dim light of night, bonfires swayed in the wind. The dim light fell on his ck uniform as well as his expressionless face, making his eyes exceptionally clear.


    Shubi Lake was a haunt of the Wilderness horse gangs. Even the military of Tang Empire would not daree here, except in big groups. But that person said that theke was his home?


    A leader gazed at his face, with his eyebrows gradually frowned, as if recalling something from the past. All of a sudden, his face turned pale, as he remembered those dark, turbulent and miserable bygone days several years ago. He turned around and rushed toward his horse.


    As he was running back, he kicked those subordinates who were still in a daze like crazy. ¡°Are you fucking blind?¡± he shouted in a trembling voice, ¡°Get up and follow me, now!¡±


    Horse thieves around the bonfires did not understand why their leader would suddenly behave this way. Though he was skillful in archery, they doubted that the neer could kill over three hundred horse thieves by himself. In daily life, their leader was the bravest and most ruthless one. How could he be as cowardly as a woman today?


    Another leader also recalled who the neer was. He looked at the young man beside the ck carriage with a pale face. ¡°Run!¡± he shouted, ¡°The woodcutter¡¯s back.¡±


    Dead silence reigned over Shubi Lake. Expressions on horse thieves¡¯ faces became extremely strange. The world seemed to freeze. The very next moment, with a shrilling sound, they came to, scattered and fled.


    ¡°The woodcutter! The woodcutter from Wei!¡±


    ¡°The woodcutter!¡±


    ...


    ...


    In the unrecorded history of Shubi Lake, the most famous figure was not the former leader of horse gangs, who hid twelve thousand taels of gold at the bottom of theke in legend, but a young man from the City of Wei.


    Tang army called the activity of suppressing horse gangs ¨C or those people pretending to be horse gangs ¨C wood cutting. Those who carried out this mission were definitely the best of the cavalries, called ¨C woodcutters.


    Since the young man from the City of Wei joined it, ¡®woodcutter¡¯ in the horse thieves¡¯ mouths referred to him in particr. The young man was the woodcutter, famous among horse gangs.


    He was not the person who grabbed the most silver, nor someone who killed the most horse thieves, but definitely the one who made all horse gangs in Shubi Lake the most afraid. Those horrible days of the past were still their most painful memories.


    It was not until the young man left the City of Wei for the City of Chang¡¯an that they regained their courage, the pleasure of swinging knives in wind and the happiness of life.


    Woodcutter of Shubi Lake was a nightmare for all horse thieves. There was no horse thief who was unafraid of him.


    When the news from Chang¡¯an came to the Wilderness, horse thieves knew that the man had be a student of the second floor of the Academy, as well as the most trusted subordinate of the Tang Empire¡¯s Emperor. Fear, or perhaps ¨C a kind of abnormal admiration, peaked in their hearts. At the same time, they thought that he had be a man of another world and would nevere back to Shubi Lake to deal with lowly horse thieves. So they felt even more relieved.


    Tonight, however, the woodcutter was back at Shubi Lake.


    ...


    ...


    Countless screams rang out from Shubi Lake, both from women and horse thieves, who were heartless and cruel in daily life. In a scene of chaos surrounding the bonfires, hundreds of horse thieves ran away with their women in a sh ¨C like a gust of wind. It became extremely quiet beside theke.


    In the whole process, no one had the courage to try attacking Ning Que. No one even dared to look at him. They looked so frightened that the whole situation seemed ludicrous.


    Ning Que put the boxwood bow back over his shoulders and held the reins to lead the carriage to a bonfire by theke. Then he helped Sangsang get off the carriage and sit on the wool felt left by the horse thieves.


    The roast sheep on the bonfire was still dripping with grease, spreading attractive fragrance.


    Ning Que made himself at home. He took out a sharp knife and cut three big tes of meat from the best part of the sheep. Then he took two bags of unopened liquor from another bonfire and handed one of them to Sangsang.


    Sangsang ate meat in small bits and drank a lot, while Ning Que did the opposite. Soon they finished all the meat and liquor.


    Ning Que turned to look at the Shubi Lake he had not seen in years.


    Sangsang looked at his profile and asked, ¡°Aren¡¯t you afraid the horse thieves will leak our whereabouts?¡±


    ¡°The south of the Shubi Lake is under Tang¡¯s sphere of influence. Neither Golden Pce, nor the two Sects would dare enter. If someone wants to kill us ¨C it should only be the Tangs.¡±


    Ning Que suddenly noticed that there was a pile of charred wood by theke. There was a gigot on it and a circle of stones around it, making it look like a sacrificial altar. But he did not know which god it was made for.


    In his memory, neither the barbarians nor the horse gangs from Golden Pce had such a ceremony of worship.


    Near a bonfire in the distance, was a drunk horse thief, who had been abandoned mercilessly by hispanions. He did not know what had happened at all. Ning Que walked over and threw him into the coldke.


    ...


    ...


    The horse thief regained consciousness immediately in the cold water. Ning Que found out what he wanted to know with no effort, such as the recent situation in the City of Wei and Golden Pce. What¡¯s more, he also learnt that the simple altar by theke was an emerging religion in the Wilderness in recent years.


    The god of the religion was called Tengri.


    Ning Que had not heard of the name before, nor this religion. After pondering for a moment, he decided not to think about it again. He took out his podao and beheaded the horse thief.


    His action was fluent ¨C as if it had been repeated countless times. In fact, he had done it so many times that it had be kind of a habit.


    After cutting off the horse thief¡¯s head, Ning Que realized that he was no longer a serviceman of the Tang Empire, nor a woodcutter ¨C he had no need to kill the horse thief.


    However, he had killed him anyway and he would not feel guilty.


    Every horse thief had a pair of hands stained with the blood of innocent people, so every one of them should die. He had allowed those three hundred horse thieves to escape because he was tired and not in the mood for killing. In addition, it was indeed difficult for him to kill all of them.


    Since the horse thief dared to drink himself unconscious by Shubi Lake, he had no choice but to die.


    It could just be regarded as woodcutters¡¯ worship ormemoration to Shubi Lake.

 Chapter 654 - The City of Wei Got Drunk

    <h4>Chapter 654: The City of Wei Got Drunk</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    It was still dark on thekeshore when Ning Que woke up, as he did so before daybreak. He threw the remaining mutton into the ashes of a bonfire in front of him and walked to the carriage with Sangsang in his arms. Then he drove the carriage southwards.


    The ck carriage no longer moved as fast as it did in the days past. It started before dawn and arrived at the periphery of the city south of Shubi Lake only at high noon.


    Sangsang had already woken up long ago and was leaning against the window. She looked at the increasingly familiar scenery outside without saying anything. Her facial expression remained unchanged until she caught the sight of the loess city wall in the distance.


    Ning Que looked at the city in the distance and said, ¡°Take a good look at it. We may never see it again in the future.¡±


    Their childhood in Min Mountain had been filled with blood and betrayal. It was not until they came to the City of Wei to join the army that they finally had a rtively peaceful life. Living in this city, they felt warmth of the human world for the first time. They lived there for many years, owned a home and had a lot of debts.


    City of Wei was their real hometown.


    Though Ma Shixiang served as subordinate general in the City of Wei for many years, he had never been promoted, for he had no noble origin and theck of big wars between Tang Empire and Golden Pce made it hard for him to umte martial exploits.


    In another year, he would retire from the military with honor and return his home in Langya County. He was very satisfied with this, because he had saved up a lot of money over the years. The only pity was the decrease in money from firewood cutting in recent years.


    Since that guy left with his handmaiden, the City of Wei seemed to have run out of luck. The pressure on the border of the Tang Empire from Golden Pce in the Wilderness had been increasing. Although Golden Pce still dreaded to cross the border, cavalries of the big tribes often attacked the logistics caravan heading for Hn City under the guise of horse thieves. That annoyed the Seven Stockaded Viges, including the City of Wei, and even the entire northern border troops.


    What worried Ma Shixiang now was another thing. He looked at the ck cloud floating gradually towards the City of Wei, with his gray hair shivering slightly. He was wondering how to deal with those bigwigs in the city.


    Many bigwigs came to the City of Wei recently together with hundreds of experienced cavalrymen. Two generals from the Military Ministry of the Tang Empire with dozens of crossbowmen, a dozen officials from Imperial Center Administration and three Lords from the Imperial Astronomers came to this humble border town for some reason.


    It was said that situation of the other six frontier fortresses was simr. But it was obvious that the City of Wei was the focus of those bigwigs in Chang¡¯an. There were several powerhouses from Southern Gate Temple among those Imperial Center Administration officials.


    It seemed that the yamen of Chang¡¯an transferred all its power over here and took over the right of jurisdiction over the border in a quite direct way. Surprisingly, the Northern Military Camp had no drastic response to this at all.


    There was no absolute secret in the world. The reason why these people came to the City of Wei had pervaded over the days. People in the city were shocked, but they could do nothing but to ept it. Because they had seen the edict issued by West-Hill Divine Pce and realized that it was true.


    As the dark cloud approached the city, Ma Shixiang¡¯s mind was getting proportionately weighed down. He did not know what he should or could do. He was so frustrated that he did not even hear the military order, when a high-ranking official from the Military Ministry announced it.


    ¡°General Ma, did you hear me? Go out of town with the cavalry now, rush to the cloud, stop the ck carriage outside at all costs!¡±


    The official shouted gravelly.


    Ma Shixiang was a little relieved at his words and asked, ¡°We just need to drive it away?¡±


    A Taoist from the Southern Gate Temple said in a gloomy mood, ¡°If there is a chance to kill the daughter of Yama, we will certainly not miss it. Tell your subordinates to act ording to circumstances and cooperate with us.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Hundreds of border cavalrymen went out of the City of Wei, among them ¨C some horse carriages. Ma Shixiang, at the forefront, rode a horse silently, so did the cavalrymen of the City of Wei. In such a depressingly silent ambience, the troop came to a rtively higher meadow.


    The ck cloud had already crossed the meadow. It was so huge that its front end was about to enter the City of Wei, while the other end was still around Shubi Lake. No one knew how many miles it stretched in the sky.


    The cavalry looked up into the sky silently, withplicated expressions on their faces. When they lowered their heads and caught sight of the ck carriage moving slowly under the cloud, they could not help crying out in rm.


    All the adjutants and hundreds of cavalrymen looked towards their general at the same time. Ma Shixiang held the reins, blue veins clearly visible on his hands, with no expression on his face ¨C issuing nomand.


    An official of the Imperial Center Administration got off the carriage, saw the ck carriage in the distance and suddenly became serious. Then he shouted angrily when he found that no cavalryman around took any action, ¡°What are you waiting for?¡±


    Ma Shixiang said, ¡°The order I received was not to allow the ck carriage to enter the country. Now it is still outside of town, so we only need to wait.¡±


    The Taoist from Southern Gate Temple shouted in a harsh voice, ¡°This is such a great opportunity to kill the daughter of Yama. What are you waiting for? Do you want to let that carriage go?¡±


    There was still no expression on his face. ¡°As a soldier of the Tang Empire, I only execute military orders,¡± he said.


    The official of the Imperial Center Administration hurried to a carriage at the back and shouted to the high-ranking official of the Military Ministry as he waved his arms angrily, ¡°The military must cooperate with us ¨C you must immediately order the cavalry to attack!¡±


    The Military Ministry official was silent.


    The Imperial Astronomer, whose position was lowest among those people, persuaded him carefully, ¡°The imperial court had issued a document, requesting us to monitor and drive them away, but not to take initiative to attack.¡±


    Ning Que and Sangsang reappeared in the world and were fleeing, which caused a stir in Chang¡¯an. However, views differed on this matter among different powers within the empire.


    Zhuge Wuren, Chief of the Imperial Center Administration, was a trusted follower of the Empress. He was bent on gathering all the of the power within the empire to destroy the ck carriage and kill Ning Que, thus relieving the Empress¡¯s concern. Although Taoist cultivators of Southern Gate Temple did not worry about Ning Que, they put their whole heart into killing Sangsang.


    Princess Li Yu was on friendly terms with Ning Que and Sangsang. However, faced with the possible cmity of the world, she knew that she should keep her silence. However, no one expected that the most significant and powerful piece ¨C the military ¨C was not very active in this matter either, to the point that the high-ranking official of the Military Ministry keeping silent all this time.


    The military enjoyed high status in the Tang Empire, only obeying orders of His Majesty and their superiors. Therefore, so long as the high-ranking official did not give his order, officials of Imperial Center Administration and Taoists of Southern Gate Temple could not order Ma Shixiang and his cavalry to attack, no matter how anxious and angry they were. Without the cooperation and protection of the military, how would they dare approach the ck carriage?


    The cavalry stood at the meadow, looking at the ck carriage, while people inside the town stood on the city wall, also looking at the ck carriage. People inside and outside town held the sameplex emotions.


    People in the City of Wei watched Ning Que and Sangsang grow up. They had never expected that Ning Que would make such a big stir after leaving the city, and that his little handmaiden would be the Lady of Light.


    Today, Ning Que and Sangsang were well-known in the whole world. They were the most famous people in the history of the City of Wei ¨C its pride, and whom people always took delight in talking about.


    The owner of a gambling shop looked at the ck carriage in the distance, with his hand holding the mud arrow mound, and sighed, ¡°He still owes me a dozen gambling debts. It looks like I can never get them back.¡±


    A woman whose face was sunburned looked at him and said sarcastically, ¡°The taels of silver sent by Ning Que and Sangsang from Chang¡¯an every month was shared by all the people in the city. Were yours fed to dogs?¡±


    The owner smiled awkwardly. He said nervously, ¡°I¡¯m just joking... By the way, when I recall how tired the little girl was when she came to buy wine with a gon every day, I could never imagine that she would be Lady of Light and finally ¨C Daughter of Yama.¡±


    People on the cob wall, who originally held mixed feelings, became frightened at the sight of the ck carriage in the distance. Their face turned pale when they heard the title ¨C Daughter of Yama.


    The woman looked at the crowd and spat at the wall, ¡°Phew! Everyone in the city knows that Ning Que is always up to no good, but Sangsang is kind and has a good heart. How can she be the daughter of Yama?¡±


    ¡°Edict of West-Hill Divine Pce reads so.¡±


    ¡°West-Hill Divine Pce said we ¨C the Tang people ¨C are guilty. Why don¡¯t youmit suicide by jumping down the wall to atone for your crime?¡±


    The argument or even abuse inside the town had no influence on the hundreds of cavalrymen on the meadow, who were still silent. A military officer, who had just taken office this year, could not stand the oppressive atmosphere as well as the pressure from the official of Imperial Center Administration. So he whispered to Ma Shixiang, ¡°General, killing the daughter of Yama is an outstanding merit. It is worth some risks.¡±


    Ma Shixiang nced at him and did not speak. Then he looked towards the ck carriage and gradually knitted his brows. All of a sudden, he took up the reins and wielded the whip, retraced his path and prepared to return to the city.


    Hundreds of cavalrymen thus followed him to rush down the meadow.


    A Taoist of Southern Gate Temple hurried to the front of Ma Shixiang. He shouted angrily with a sullen face, ¡°Ma Shixiang, what are you doing? If you want to flee, I will kill you.¡±


    Ma Shixiang shouted, ¡°I will send out troops ording to His Majesty¡¯s order. If there is no order, you can blow it out of your ass.¡±


    Official of the Imperial Center Administration came to rebuke him, ¡°How can you stop the carriage outside the town if you scatter the lineup?¡±


    Ma Shixiang said, ¡°It will not go into town.¡±


    The official shouted angrily, ¡°Ning Que is going to the Academy, how can he make it if not via the town?¡±


    ¡°What the hell do you know of it?¡±


    Ma Shixiang looked at the official and said contemptuously. Then he kicked the stomach of his horse and forced the official away, leaving with hundreds of cavalrymen. Soon they went into the City of Wei.


    That night, Ma Shixiang, together with several adjutants and all the cavalrymen who had been involved in wood-cutting at Shubi Lake gathered in the only restaurant in town, making it tightly packed.


    They recounted stories about Shubi Lake, the shabby courtyard, the little handmaiden who fetched water every day. They indulged in memories of past events while drinking, and soon finished all the wine stored by the restaurant owner.


    Since Ma Shixiang was the general of City of Wei, no one dared to battle with him, so he drank the most. As he was getting gradually drunk, he looked at the people in the restaurant and said, ¡°Ning Que told me three sentences when he left town. For the sake of those three sentences, I will never turn against him.¡±


    An adjutant burped and said, ¡°I asked you at that time what was it he told you, but you refused to tell me. Can you speak now?¡±


    Ma Shixiang stroked his beard and said, ¡°I cannot say. I cannot say.¡±


    That night, Ma Shixiang got drunk, and so did the City of Wei.

 Chapter 655 - The Helan Gorge

    <h4>Chapter 655: The Hn Gorge</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The City of Wei was his hometown. The closer he was to it, the more nostalgic he became.


    Looking at the remote earth city and thinking about the time he spent there, Ning Que could not help but feel touched even though he was an indifferent man. Looking further south, he knew there were Min Mountain, Hebei county, City of Chang¡¯an, Tang Empire, and the Academy.


    That was their homnd where they could not go or did not want to go. Because they did not want to bring the thick ck cloud and disaster into the Tang Empire.


    The ck carriage stopped for a while outside the City of Wei before it set off again. It detoured around the Seven Stockaded Viges by heading east and kept away from the cavalries of the Northern Military Camp.


    The northern military garrisoned the frontier all year round. It was responsible for monitoring and deterring the powerful and ambitious Golden Pce. It was well trained and won countless battles. Whether in terms of armament or fighting capabilities, it was the strongest one among four militaries of the Tang Empire, even stronger than the thousands of cavalries under themand of Xia Hou in those years.


    Being a former member, Ning Que was very clear about what would be in store for him if he was found by the cavalry. He had no confidence to escape from the cavalry of the Northern Military Camp in the mountains and ins.


    Moreover, he didn¡¯t want to turn against his fellow soldiers at all. Therefore, he became extremely cautious in the following journey. He mapped out a route in urate ordance with the military map and kept moving forward in the buffer zone between the Golden Pce and the Tang Empire. Thanks to his familiarity with the Wilderness and the Northern Military, he narrowly passed through the area.


    As they continued to escape, spring approached, but they felt increasingly colder in the ck carriage. The carriage wall was once again covered with a thinyer of frost. It had nothing to do with the freezing of the Hot Sea or the approaching of the night, but was mainly due to the fact that Sangsang¡¯s body was getting colder and colder. Her breath was as cold as ice.


    In addition, the carriage was heading north.


    ...


    ...


    The Min Mountain, which ran across the whole northern maind, was divided into north and south sections by a narrow gorge. People of the Central ins usually called them the North and South Piedmonts, while people from the Wilderness and Haotian Taoism often called the south piedmont Min Mountain, and the north one Tianqi Mountains, which meant the mountains abandoned by Haotian.


    At the west entrance of the narrow gorge by which the Min Mountain was cut off, there was a magnificent city with a height of over a thousand feet, which was called Hn. Therefore, the narrow gorge was also called Hn Gorge.


    The City of Hn was deep in the Wilderness, very close to the Golden Pce. However, it still belonged to the Tang Empire as its farthestnd. To be precise, it was an enve.


    The distance between this ce and Chang¡¯an City was more than 1,000 miles. Therefore, it would cost a lot to transport supplies from the maind Tang Empire. In addition, many cavalries were required to keep supplies away from the horse gangs and fake horse gangs. In this asion, thousands of Golden Pce cavalries still had the ability to cut off this grain route at any time.


    At the cost of so many resources and so much risk, the Tang Empire still sustained the existence and normal operations of Hn City with difficulty and persistence. It was not due to its craving for greatness and sess, but because Hn was really very important to it.


    This magnificent city tucked away in the Wilderness symbolized the power and spirit of the Tang Empire, which gave confidence to its caravans when passing the Wilderness. The key was that the city, being the only ess to the Eastern Wilderness, was crucial to the Tang Empire¡¯smerce and trade. In addition, it was like a sharp and thick knife inserted between the Tianqi Mountain and the Min Mountain, separating the Golden Pce and the Left King¡¯s Pce. So it was also of strategic importance.


    Looking at the towering wall between the cliffs in the distance, Sangsang thought of Chang¡¯an. However, Hn City was built between the cliffs and steep peaks, making the visual impact even more shocking.


    As the cold wind entered the window, she gave a quiet cough and asked Ning Que, ¡°North or east?¡±


    If they went north from here along the Tianqi Mountain, they would go deeper into the Wilderness, a cold ce that was sparsely popted. Then they would reach the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, and then a snowfield, a deserted ce where few people have been.


    If an empty ce was a safe ce, Ning Que should choose going north to the snowfield with Sangsang. In that case, no one except the Great Divine Priest of the West-Hill Divine Pce or the eminent monks of the Xuankong Temple would be able to find them.


    However, no one knew why Ning Que chose to continue eastward.


    The farther they went east, the closer they were to Hn City and the mountains. The white color over the peaks gradually became clear snow in their view, and the steep cliffs gradually revealed themselves.


    The dark cloud hung high above the towering wall, where hundreds of Tang¡¯s soldiers appeared. One could even hear the sound of nooses pulling and crossbows preparing.


    There were thirty or forty heavy carriages waiting by the city wall. However, no one knew why the gate was closed, refusing them entry. Tensions were high both on and by the wall.


    Ning Que took a look at the ck cloud overhead and was very clear why the gate was closed. He thought to himself that it seemed impossible to pass through by sneaking into the caravan.


    As the wheels rumbled, the ground was still frozen. Under the city, the deacons of the caravan shrank in their carriages to fend off the cold, thinking about how to connect with the general in the city and enter the city as soon as possible. As the rumble of wheels approached, they could not help but look at the rear with curiosity. Their face suddenly changed at the sight of the ck carriage.


    The ck carriage became well-known due to the edict of the West-Hill Divine Pce and the portraits of different imperial courts. Everyone knew that the legendary Daughter of Yama was in that carriage.


    Panic reigned over the city.


    The shouts of businessmen and guards rang incessantly, and the tired horses neighed repeatedly out of shock. Some people rushed to the gate and beat it desperately.


    The gate of Hn City was wedged in the mountain and made of iron and wood, so it was extremely heavy and thick. The pping of the businessmen was so faint as the pping of a mosquito¡¯s wings on a stone.


    Even if the officers and soldiers in the city heard the sound, it would not be possible to open the door at this time.


    When the cloud approached the city, they shut the gate and strictly forbade any ess. They were on a look out for the ck horse carriage, so why would they give it the opportunity to enter the city?


    As the ck carriage went past the caravan, the wagoners were so scared that they hurriedly grabbed the reins and moved the carriages away, making room for the ck carriage. What followed the chaos was absolute quietness, even deathly stillness.


    Ning Que ignored those businessmen and guards who were on edge, ready for all possible dangers. Instead, he drove to the front of the mountain and then went off the carriage. He went to the gate, looking up at the two mountain-like gates.


    On the wall, as the sound of the arching crossbows died away, several big crossbows struggled to adjust the angle, aiming at Ning Que down by the wall. Hundreds of archers aimed at the ck carriage farther away, ready to shoot at any time. One could even hear the sound of the burning oil heating the stone. The Tang military regarded him as a siege force!


    In the face of so many well-trained Tang soldiers, even all cavalries and priests of the Golden Pce could not conquer the city in a short time. Therefore, Ning Que knew that he could not confront the tough with toughness.


    ¡°I¡¯m Ning Que. I want to pass through the city,¡± he looked up to say.


    Though his voice was not loud, it was clearly heard by everyone on the wall. Then he continued, ¡°I was one of you. I achieved countless military merits, which can be found in the archives of the military. I don¡¯t want to fight with you. All I want is to swap all my military merits for a chance to pass.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Hn City was extremely important to the Tang Empire. Its armymander was usually known as General Hn in the military, second only to the Four Imperial Generals and the few senior generals.


    The current General Hn was Han Qing, who had been stationed in the bitterly cold city for more than a decade. With a half barbarian¡¯s descent, he was still trusted by the Emperor and was granted such an important post.


    Under the guard of more than a dozen shields, General Han Qing came to the wall. He looked at Ning Que down by the gate, ¡°A Tang soldier should be ashamed of seeking reward for his contributions. If you want to enter the city with the Daughter of Yama, you can whistle for it.¡±


    ¡°I want to pass through the city, not enter it.¡±


    ¡°The road is blocked.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°As a general of Tang, how can I let you bring the Daughter of Yama to the city?¡±


    ¡°Because of the public opinion, my wife may bring cmity to the world, so you refuse us?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°After the carriage passes through the city, we will be in another country. Even if there is a cmity, it will be other¡¯s problem. So why can¡¯t we pass? After we go to the Eastern Wilderness, whether we live or die, we will resign to fate. But I don¡¯t want to be killed in my own country.¡±


    General Han Qing seemed to be touched by thest sentence of Ning Que and fell into silence.


    A vice-general beside him said anxiously, ¡°General, what are you waiting for? The stupid madman dares to shout under the city. Release the arrows and drop the stones, seize the opportunity to kill him!¡±


    Another vice-general frowned slightly, ¡°How could Ning Que be killed so easily?¡±


    ¡°No matter how strong a cultivator is, it is not impossible to kill him.¡±


    ¡°I did not mean that. I mean that no one is willing to do it in our country. Don¡¯t forget that he is Mr. Thirteen from the Academy. With the approach of the ck cloud, both the Military Ministry and the Northern Military Camp are so quiet these days. Why don¡¯t they try to find the ck carriage? Because they don¡¯t want to take this responsibility! Do you want us to take it?¡±


    ¡°So, are you willing to let him enter the city with the Daughter of Yama?¡±


    ¡°Of course not. But this is cultivators¡¯ business. If we want to kill him, we have to wait for people from the Imperial Center Administration and the Southern Gate Temple.¡±


    ¡°The Daughter of Yama can destroy the whole world. This is not only the cultivators¡¯ business, it¡¯s also our responsibility! As Tang soldiers, how can we be so coward?¡±


    ¡°Enough.¡±


    General Han Qing berated, ¡°Whether to kill him or not, or to stop him outside the city until the arrival of those cultivators, it is not up to us.¡±


    General, what are you going to do?¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re going to ask for instructions from His Majesty, of course.¡±

 Chapter 656 - Let Him Go

    <h4>Chapter 656: Let Him Go</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    ¡°His Majesty is far away in Chang¡¯an City. It would take a long time to go there and back to ask for instructions and the ck horse carriage is already at our gates.¡± These words from General Han Qing seemed incredibly irresponsible, however, the people in the room didn¡¯t show such an expression but only shock.


    The Tang Empire¡¯s army had three Fu character transmission arrays along the border that could transmit extremely short fragments of information. One of them was in Hn City and could reach the pce of Chang¡¯an City directly.


    The information that could be passed by a transmission array was incredibly little. Activating it once would use up an unimaginable amount of energy. Especially the one in Hn City, as the transmitting distance was too far, the price to pay was much higher. ording to the calctions of the designer, using it once would cost as much as 10 years of Hn City¡¯s supplies.


    ording to the Tang Empire¡¯s military regtions, unless it was an invasion by the Golden or a dangerous event where the Left King¡¯s Pce tried to threaten the Tang Empire from the Eastern Wilderness, the transmission array couldn¡¯t be activated.


    Since a sage from the Academy hadid down this transmission array, for hundreds of years, it had only been activated twice. However, today, it was activated again because of a lone carriage.


    There was silence in the towers. Besides the small buzzing sounds of Heaven and Earth¡¯s Qi condensing on the Fu array, there were no other sounds. General Han Qing and the other high-ranking officers stared silently at the pristine surface of the Fu array. They had no idea what reply they would see and were incredibly nervous.


    After a long time.


    A faint yellow light shed past, revealing an extremely small piece of paper on the floor. The pce must have considered the amount of resources used up by the transmission array when replying and had reduced the weight as much as they could.


    General Han Qing walked towards it and picked up the paper. He gave a solemn military salute and showed it to the crowd.


    There was no seal on the paper, only three clear words. The handwriting wasn¡¯t scrawled and was serious but it wasn¡¯t outstanding. The various officers took a look and it was indeed His Majesty¡¯s writing.


    ¡°Let him go.¡±


    After a moment of silence, the officer who previously had strongly suggested starting an attack said, ¡°There is no imperial seal nor is there the seal of the Military Ministry. This paper is useless.¡±


    Han Qing looked at this man and said in a slightly cold voice, ¡°ording to the military rule of Hn City, the paper transmitted by the pce through the Fu array is the calligraphy of His Majesty himself. It is the same as an imperial edict.


    The lieutenant was a little nervous but insisted on his opinion. He said in a low voice, ¡°Ning Que is a Grand Cultivator of the Knowing Destiny State. He can still be dealt with outside of the city but once he is in, how many people will it take to suppress him if he brings trouble? By then, if something were to happen in Hn City, who will take responsibility?¡±


    General Han Qing rebuked coldly, ¡°As a militant of the Tang Empire, military orders are sacred. The imperial edict of His Majesty is the highest order. If His Majesty says yes, then it means yes. As for responsibility, it is the responsibility of the entire country¡¯s military!¡±


    The array was activated and the giant wooden te started rotating. The twisted rope rubbed and squeezed at the tung oil and gave off a slight sound. The heavy castle gates started opening slowly.


    The ck horse carriage drove into Hn City. Following the narrow mountain path at the bottom of the cliff, it headed east. Both sides of the path were steep cliffs and at the top of it were dozens of strong mountain forts. There was a small camp in each fort with countless numbers of arms and weapons stored inside. It made one afraid.


    There were numerous bows that were already strung between Hn City and the cliff. Dozens of crossbows were slowly adjusting their angle and started aiming towards the ck horse carriage. Over ten trebuchets were wound even tighter under themand of the officer. This was to ensure that once fired, the giant rocks would be thrown out at the first moment and bury the horse carriage.


    ¡°Whoever dares to ignore the military order and moves first shall have his head cut off!¡±


    General Han Qing said sternly as hemanded the lieutenant to bring his personal army to watch over the most powerful crossbows and trebuchets. Then, under the protection of the soldiers with shields, he came to the wall on the Eastern City and looked at the ck horse carriage. His eyes were slightly narrowed.


    After a moment, the lieutenant came rushing back. He said something in a low voice beside his ear. Han Qing¡¯s face turned ugly in an instant, as he didn¡¯t expect someone to really do anything.


    ¡°Where is he?¡± General Han Qing asked coldly.


    The lieutenant replied in a low voice, ¡°Adjutant Xiao and his soldiers have been disarmed and locked up.¡±


    ¡°Execute him.¡± General Han Qing said with a deadpan expression.


    The lieutenant¡¯s expression changed slightly. Even though a military order was too important not to follow, it was understandable that Adjutant Xiao wanted to kill the Daughter of Yama. Moreover, he was a close confidant of Her Majesty.


    General Han Qing knew what he was thinking about as he said with a cold expression, ¡°I do not care if he is Her majesty¡¯s person or the Princess¡¯. Anyone who dares to question or go against the orders of His Majesty does not have the right to continue living. Moreover, he was very clear that if the horse carriage was attacked, how many people in Hn City would have to die today.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Thousands of Tang Army troops stood on the walls of Hn City, in the fortifications of the cliff and behind the barracks between the slopes. They stared quietly withplex emotions at the ck horse carriage below them, almost as if they were sending it away.


    The lieutenant returned to General Han Qing¡¯s side. There was a faint blood smell from the sword beside his waist. He followed the gaze of the general to the ck carriage. His feelings wereplex too.


    ¡°From a soldier in the City of Wei to where he is today, how many of us are there since the Tang Empire started? All these years, who isn¡¯t proud of him in the Northern Army? Who in the Nothern Military Camp does not take him as a fighting symbol and a role model?¡±


    General Han Qing looked at the ck carriage as he reminisced.


    The lieutenant sighed and said, ¡°It is a pity that pretty women are the cause of all problems; a hero cannot get over lust. Ning Que is here today because of His Majesty and the Academy¡¯s nurturing. However, he doesn¡¯t care about the safety of the Tang Empire and the world. He insists on his own ways, beingpletely heartless and outrageous.¡±


    At this moment, a gust of wind blew in Hn Mountain. The horse carriage¡¯s windows started billowing as the curtain danced, revealing a young girl¡¯s face. She looked incredibly normal with her short hair in a mess from the wind, just like a ball of wild grass.


    General Han Qing looked at her and said, ¡°How is she a pretty woman, how is that a beauty?¡±


    The lieutenant also saw the girl¡¯s face and was a little shocked. He kept silent for a moment before saying, ¡°It seems like Ning Que is a righteous person after all. Even though he chose the wrong person, he is deserving of admiration.¡±


    General Han Qing said, ¡°Whoever can impress His Majesty is naturally something.¡±


    Just as they left the defense perimeter of Hn City, Ning Que let the big ck horse elerate. They stepped on the cold floor and followed the narrow mountain range of Hn and traveled towards the east.


    The snow-capped peaks of the mountain range didn¡¯t pass by quickly through their vision. The cliffs near them had already be a grey line that swept past them. One can only imagine how fast the ck horse carriage was moving.


    Sangsang was a little shocked and had no idea why they were suddenly elerating. Ning Que saw her expression but didn¡¯t reply. He concentrated on steering the horse carriage in silence, pushing its speed to the limit.


    Ning Que needed speed now.


    From the start of Shubi Lake, the ck horse carriage had entered the range of the Tang Empire¡¯s traditional sphere of influence. The cultivators from the Buddhism and Taoism Sect were not able to chase and kill like they did at the start due to various fears.


    But no one would give up. There were countless forces that were watching them, guessing the route of the ck horse carriage. The patch of dark clouds in the sky and the dozen or so ck crows were reporting their locations at every moment. When the ck horse carriage had arrived in Hn City, many people would have already guessed where they were heading.


    After the mountain range of Hn City, they would enter the Eastern Wilderness and away from the Tang¡¯s sphere of influence. There were countless forces in the Wilderness. Left King¡¯s Pce, the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army, the Deste Man¡¯s tribe. They were all gathered together.


    Ning Que had no idea who would be waiting for them in the Wilderness after they cross this mountain range. Hence, no matter how quickly the ck horse carriage traveled, it seemed pointless. So, why did he choose this way?


    The dark cloudsnded on the silver mask, making it seemed even darker.


    Long Qing looked at the dark heavy cloud in the sky that wasing from the west. The mask left his mouth exposed; its corners were slowly lifted and said, ¡°The ending of your story should of course be written by me.¡±


    After that, he lowered his head and continued writing his letter. The soft pen tip didn¡¯t stop moving on the paper. He drew a map, almost like an attacking blueprint for the city gates of some big city. He then wrote a few simple lines.


    Usingcquer to seal the letter, he handed it over to a cavalrymander of the West-Hill Divine Pce and said calmly, ¡°When you reach the capital city of Cheng, hand him this letter personally and tell him if the chance presents itself, we need to grasp it.¡±


    The fallen knightmander epted the orders. He turned and mounted his horse to speed towards the south.


    As the henchman of Prince Long Qing, he had only found out this secret a few days ago. Thinking back to the discussions in the world back then, he couldn¡¯t help but think it was a little cold and his admiration for Prince Long Qing increased.


    Prince Long Qing looked at the horse riding away and kept silent for a long time. He realized he had a strange distant feeling for his birth country and couldn¡¯t help but shake his head.


    His journey was the field of light and darkness, as it was in the mortal world.


    He walked slowly to the edge of the cliff. Looking at the exit of the mountain that was around 10 feet wide, his expression slowly calmed down.


    Behind him were over ten cultivators that were at the peak of the Seethrough state. There were 2 other old men that were dressed in ordinary clothes and looked ordinary. On the Wilderness not far away, there were also over 3,000 cavalry troops from the Left King¡¯s Pce.


    Moving so many people to write the ck horse carriage¡¯s ending. Prince Long Qing felt he was showing enough respect to the two people in the horse carriage.


    The dark clouds in the skies were already higher than the snow-capped peaks. They prated deep into the center of the Wilderness.


    The hoofbeats were hurried as the ck horse carriage under the clouds finally made it out of the mountain ranges of Hn. It reached the Wilderness, right into Long Qing¡¯s view, beforeing slowly to a stop.


    Long Qing sat atop his horse and looked at the ck horse carriage at the foot of the slope. He extended his hand and took down the silver mask, showing off his burned cheek. He smiled slightly, looking extremely ferocious.

 Chapter 657 - The Dark Clouds Landed on the Silver Mask

    <h4>Chapter 657: The Dark Clouds Landed on the Silver Mask</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    There was a ck horse carriage, thousands of elite cavalry troops from the Left King¡¯s Pce as well as Long Qing¡¯s dozens of fallen knightmanders that were at the pinnacle of the Seethrough state. The two sides had enormous powers and it couldn¡¯t be called a confrontation.


    Ning Que¡¯s voice came from the ck horse carriage, ¡°I didn¡¯t expect that you would be the first.¡±


    Long Qing replied, ¡°I am now the owner of this Wilderness, you should have been able to puzzle it out.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Do not tell me that until now, you still don¡¯t understand that the Divine Hall is using you as a dog?¡±


    ¡°To be the dog of Haotian is better than being a ghost in the Underworld.¡±


    Long Qing paused for a while before continuing, ¡°Of course if I was forced, I would be able to ept being Yama¡¯s dog.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You are indeed ambitious. It seems like your appearance here isn¡¯t necessarily to kill us. Then why do you need to put on such a big show?¡±


    ¡°When I believed in Haotian and was willing to give my life and soul to the light, she was the Daughter of Light. However, when I went through the toughest part of my life and decided to sacrifice to Yama, giving my life and soul to the darkness, she became the Daughter of Yama. Don¡¯t you find this interesting?¡±


    Long Qing hid between the cliffs as he looked down and said, ¡°Back when I was drinking away in Chang¡¯an City, I lost to Miss Sangsang. This might be a confirmation from the other beings, and of course I wouldn¡¯t kill her.¡±


    He then started to smile brightly and said, ¡°However, I will kill you. Because I want to try bing the Daughter of Yama¡¯s protector. If darkness really were toe, I might be able to get some benefits from it. If that doesn¡¯t work, I will naturally hand her over to Haotian.¡±


    Ning Que lifted the carriage window curtains and looked somewhere towards the cliff. He heard theughter but couldn¡¯t see Long Qing. He couldn¡¯t help butugh a little at it, thinking to himself that this guy was bing more and more cautious.


    He said while facing towards the cliff, ¡°Not everyone has the qualifications and strength to swing between light and darkness. Not many people can sit on the fence. If you continue like this, you will die miserably.¡±


    Long Qing¡¯s calm and confident voice came from between the cliffs, ¡°Grey is between ck and white. This color is the most moderate and the safest.¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t want to discuss such philosophical questions with this person, not even the simplest of discussion. He said directly, ¡°If you want to kill me, why aren¡¯t you out yet? What are you afraid of?¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°You are about to die, why should Ie out?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°When I die, she cannot survive either.¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°I know you are cold-blooded but I didn¡¯t expect you to be so heartless to her.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I only know that if I die, she wouldn¡¯t want to keep on living.¡±


    Long Qing¡¯s voice disappeared for a moment before sounding again with mixed feelings, ¡°When did you be so narcissistic? Is this the temperament of the Academy?¡±


    ¡°I am not you. I was never narcissistic, only confident.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the cliff and said, ¡°If you aren¡¯t narcissistic, you shouldn¡¯t be saying so much trash. On the other hand, I am confident that so long as you stand in front of me, I can shoot you to death.¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°I am already in the Knowing Destiny state, my cultivation state is way above yours. Let¡¯s not talk about how hard it is to find an enemy, but how I can easily kill you. Where do you have the confidence to shoot me to death?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°When I was in the Seethrough Realm, I could already shoot you to death at the Red Lotus Temple. Now, I am already in the Knowing Destiny State. Even the bald donkeys at the Xuankong Temple do not dare face my arrows. Do you want to try?¡±


    Long Qing¡¯s calm voice echoed between the cliffs, ¡°No matter how sharp your words are, they are pointless. I am telling you this not because I want you to have a good time before you die. I only want the thousands of arrows to confirm your location. Now that you know this truth, do you regret having this conversation with me?¡±


    Just as he said this, there was a dense humming noise from the Wilderness at the east exit of the Hn mountain range. They sounded like countless locusts pping their wings and flying, looking extremely horrifying.


    The thousands of arrows shot towards the grey cloudyer andnded in an arc. They scattered all around the ck horse carriage in the valley. The shrill sounds of the arrows sounded like thunders from the cloud.


    People like Ning Que and Long Qing wouldn¡¯t speak meaningless words before a battle. If they did say anything, it was definitely part of the battle. It might also be a psychological battle to wear down the other party¡¯s morale or to dy time in preparation for something.


    Prince Long Qing had made use of this time to inform the thousands of cavalry troops in the Wilderness outside the valley about the general location of the ck horse carriage. This had formed the first wave of arrows attacking. Ning Que had not only dyed time, he had untied the bridle of the big ck horse.


    The volley of arrows broke apart the skies like a torrential rain. Ning Que opened the front door of the carriage and the big ck horse turned around rapidly. Its front hooves stepped onto the air while it kicked back its back hooves as it scurried into the carriage.


    Tuk, Tuk, Tuk, Tuk!


    Countless arrowsnded on the ck horse carriage as they plunged violently into the carriage¡¯s roof and the side walls. The clear ringing sound of the impacting arrows sounded continuously outside, almost as if it would never end.


    However, these arrows didn¡¯t do any damage to the horse carriage. The powerful arrowsnded heavily on the horse carriage before breaking in two halves from the center. Theynded down like rain but the sharp arrowhead couldn¡¯t pierce into the horse carriage at all. They didn¡¯t even leave a mark on the surface.


    However, the rain of arrows didn¡¯t stop and the sound of arrows falling continued. The sound of the arrows colliding against the walls of the horse carriage didn¡¯t stop echoing within. The tter of arrows breaking could also be clearly heard.


    Within a short time, thousands of Left King¡¯s Pce cavalry troops in the Wilderness had shot out three waves of arrows. The range of the grasnd cavalry¡¯s wooden bow was incredibly far and their shooting skills were even more incredible. From such a far distance, the area where the thousands of arrowsnded were all controlled within a 20 square feet radius.


    That area ofnd was already filled with arrows. They were incredibly dense and were like weeds that were growing from a fertile patch ofnd. Some of them had evennded above the firstyer of arrows, producing a ludicrous sight.


    The arrows beside the horse carriage were even denser. However, most of the arrows that hadnded on the horse carriage had broken in half. Hence, it wasn¡¯t grass growing here but rather, it was like a pile of straw that was slowly flooding the horse carriage.


    The ck horse carriage was fashioned out of steel and no matter how many arrows hit it, it wouldn¡¯t be able to destroy it. However, under such a dense torrent of arrows, one would still feel uneasy. Ning Que hugged Sangsang tightly in his embrace.


    The horse carriage was very wide and that was how the big ck horse could go in. However, its body was incredibly big and it could only bend its hooves and bury its head like a dog. It leaned on Ning Que¡¯s knee, a little humiliated, almost like a pet.


    Sangsang was already a little confused when they chose to enter Hn City from the east. At this moment, she couldn¡¯t help but ask softly, ¡°Why are we here? What do you want to do?¡±


    The big ck horse rested its head against the carriage board, looking a little uninterested and bored.


    Ning Que extended his hand and patted its mane before saying, ¡°I am taking a gamble.¡±


    Sangsang raised her eyebrows slightly and asked, ¡°What are you betting on?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Betting that someone wille to save us.¡±


    Sangsang said directly, ¡°No one wille to save us.¡±


    Ning Que kept silent for a moment before saying, ¡°Indeed no one wille to save us, but I think some people will not be willing to miss this opportunity. We have spent so many arrows, those people should be more confident now.¡±


    Sangsang could vaguely guess what he was thinking and said, ¡°I¡¯m not sure if they wille.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I don¡¯t know, perhaps... they are already here.¡±


    Long Qing knew that the ck horse carriage was very sturdy but he still wanted to give it a try. By now, he had basically taken over control of the Left King¡¯s Pce and no one dared to question any of his decisions. Moreover, under the covert operations of the West-Hill Divine Pce, the Left King¡¯s pce had received arge number of weapons from the Central ins. He had the power and could afford such wastage.


    Confirming that the rain of arrows couldn¡¯t cause any damage to the ck horse carriage, he wasn¡¯t disappointed. This was because the thousands of cavalry soldiers hade to the front of the Hn mountain range under the cover of the rain of arrows. They started to charge.


    ¡°Go.¡± He put on the silver mask again.


    More than a dozen fallen knightmanders acknowledged that before getting on their horses and charging down the cliff. Bringing with them thousands of grasnd cavalry soldiers, they charged towards the ck horse carriage in the valley.


    The hooves were like thunder and smoke was billowing; thousands of cavalry troops rushed into the Hn mountain range. There wasn¡¯t any congestion but rather, they rushed in like a ck tide. Flowing back again, they easily flooded the ck horse carriage.


    Long Qing was very clear that so long as the Tang Army from Hn City didn¡¯t help, Ning Que would die today. No matter how strong a cultivator was, he couldn¡¯t escape such an environment. Moreover, Hn City was more than 200 miles from here and the key was that the Tang Army from that city wouldn¡¯t be able to help Ning Que.


    He no longer looked at the battle at the isthmus, the result of the battle was determined and it couldn¡¯t interest him. Ning Que, who was about to die, would be a past enemy of his life in the eyes of the world.


    Long Qing looked towards the dark clouds in the skies and started thinking about how he could get the greatest benefit and avoid this patch of dark clouds after catching Sangsang. After much thought, he realized his mind was somewhat restless. He couldn¡¯t help butugh at himself; he realized he still cared a lot about Ning Que¡¯s death.


    The dark clouds in the skiesnded on his face and his snowy-white silver mask. The silver mask became a little dark, just like his eyes now. The next moment, the silver mask turned even darker.


    Long Qing¡¯s smile suddenly froze. With a loud shrill, he bounced off his horse and pounced towards the back of the cliff as quickly as lightning.


    The rumbling impact sounds were apanied by the shrill cries of a horse. Countless rocks rolled down from between the cliffs and smashed into his horse which was sent flying into a ball of blood and flesh. The sight was unbearable.


    If his reaction wasn¡¯t quick, he would have be a wisp of spirit under the pile of rocks.


    Prince Long Qing suddenly turned around and looked between the cliffs that still had snow remaining there. However, he couldn¡¯t find any trace of the enemy.


    The silver mask on his face turned even darker. It wasn¡¯t because of the dark cloudsnding on it or because of the rocks. It was because countless sharp and heavy axes flew past his head and aimed towards the cavalry troops in the valley.

 Chapter 658 - Drink Ones Fill

    <h4>Chapter 658: Drink One¡¯s Fill</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Countless rocks fell from the peak of the mountain. These rocks had some residual snow on them and had the wet marks of melted snow. Theynded between the mountains, on the cliffs, and broke into countless fragments. They then violently bounced into the air and continued falling,nding on the ck heads of the cavalry troops in the valley.


    From the peak of the mountain to the valley, it was a long distance. The rocks¡¯ speed had be incredibly fast and were much more terrifying than the short spears thrown by the grasnd cavalry.


    The grasnd cavalry squeezed together and it was hard for them to dodge. The countless rocksnded on them and there was dust flying everywhere. Some of them had holes smashed in their bodies while some of their heads exploded like ripe melons and fruits.


    The exit of the valley was instantly dyed with different colors from the fresh blood and meat pulp. There were screams and cries everywhere. The procession was chaotic, there were horse hooves everywhere and smoke and dust filled the air.


    Many cavalries had blood on their faces, underneath the blood was despair. What happened next, however, left them truly in despair. After the falling rocks, it was a rain of axes.


    Zeng, Zeng, Zeng, Zeng! The sound of swishing air could be heard as at least a thousand heavy axes were thrown down from the mountain tops, towards the grasnd cavalry troops that were already in chaos.


    The rocks that had fallen from the peak of the mountain were heavy, the axes were heavy too. To throw them for such a long distance, one would need an immense amount of power. ording to logic, only a martial cultivator would have such powers. However, it was impossible to find so many martial cultivators in the world and to group them into an incredibly organized ambush team.


    What followed the axes were earth-shattering screams. 2000 over young men in animal hide started jumping between the mountain rocks. They ran and screamed as they charged below. They weren¡¯t martial cultivators but they had powers that matched those of martial cultivators. This was because they were Deste Men and they were natural-born warriors.


    This was a unteral massacre.


    Dozens of heavy rocksnded on the horse carriage. It started rocking violently and what followed was a lightning-like crashing noise. The arrows beside the ck horse carriage that were piled up like heaps of grains were smashed by the rocks. The crushed fragments were dyed red and sticky with the flesh and blood of the cavalry troops, looking unusually bright.


    The big ck horse stared outside the horse carriage, it couldn¡¯t see what was happening outside but it knew the situation was changing. It couldn¡¯t help but be nervous but a little curious too.


    Ning Que said in a low voice, ¡°It¡¯s here.¡±


    The sound of falling rocks, axes and screaming didn¡¯t stop. After a very long time did everything quietened down. What followed was a volley of cheers before it went back to absolute silence.


    Ning Que embraced Sangsang and got off the carriage.


    Last winter, the Left King¡¯s Pce went against the contract that they had with the Deste Man¡¯s tribe. They secretly joined up with the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army to ambush the main force of the Deste Man. They hunted them down for hundreds of miles, causing mass destruction to the Deste Man.


    This spring, the Deste Man¡¯s tribe stalked the Tianqi Mountains for countless nights under the leadership of the Wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine Tang until they were at the peak of the Hn mountain range. They ambushed the cavalry of the Left King¡¯s Pce.


    Out of the 3000 over cavalry troops from the Left King¡¯s Pce, only a few hundred of them managed to escape. Only 3 fallen knightmanders out of the dozen of them survived. Prince Long Qing was severely injured and only managed to escape from the hands of the Tang with the help of his two hidden Haotian Taoism cultivators.


    There were the corpses of the grasnd cavalry troops all around the valley. asionally, there were a few warhorses that were standing disconstely beside their masters. The 2000 over powerful Deste Man warriors were holding the iron axes in their hands up high and cheered excitedly.


    This was a perfect revenge from the Deste Man to the people who betrayed them.


    However, the cheers from the Deste Man warriors stopped quicker than expected. They looked at the ck horse carriage that was surrounded by all the corpse in the valley as they got quieter, a shocked expression on their faces.


    The mood of the Deste Man warriors wasn¡¯tplicated. Compared to the people in the world who saw this ck horse carriage, they were only afraid. Very innocently afraid.


    Especially when the door of the ck horse carriage was opened and Ning Que held on to Sangsang while they walked out. The Deste Man warriors looked at the thin little girl, almost as if they saw the most terrifying night.


    ¡°Many people are easily intoxicated with the pleasures of revenge, I, however, do not find any meaning in that. Even though I have been doing this for the most part of my life, revenge requires animosity first and that means losing first.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the powerful person in leather who was several feet away and said, ¡°Deste Man are natural-born warriors, you havemand over this many Deste Man yet lost so badlyst winter. This is unbelievable.¡±


    Tang thought back to the bloody battle in the Middle Army Tent in the winter nightst year. No matter how tough he was, he still kept silent before saying, ¡°You have no idea how much power the West-Hill Divine Pce hides.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I do not need to know these, I only know that the Deste Man are miserable now.¡±


    Tang said, ¡°No matter how miserable we are, without us, you would have died today.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I knew you all woulde. This has nothing to do with me or Sangsang, hence I do not have to express my gratitude to you all. I have created a perfect ambush opportunity for you all. If you did not grasp this opportunity, the Deste Man has no right to venture south, much less get back your country.¡±


    Wherever Sangsang was, the dark clouds and crows would follow. The ck horse carriage had followed the Tang Empire¡¯s northern Wilderness towards the east and had attracted many people¡¯s gazes along the way. Outside Hn City, Ning Que didn¡¯t choose to go north but rather, to venture east. Creating such a bigmotion and revealing his tracks, it was to attract the enemy of the Eastern Deste Man.


    The Eastern Wilderness was always under the powers of the Left King¡¯s Pce and Long Qing was already the master of this patch of Wilderness. Ning Que knew that Long Qing would definitely appear first. Hence, he wanted to use him and the cavalry troops of the Left King¡¯s Pce to attract Tang and the Deste Man warriors.


    The tracks of the ck horse carriage had entered the Easter Wilderness and the West-Hill Divine Pce and the Buddhism Sect didn¡¯t have time to respond. However, Long Qing and the Deste Man had time to. Tang had no idea of Ning Que¡¯s intentions and even if he could guess it, he wasn¡¯t sure. However, hearing what Ning Que said, the Deste Man couldn¡¯t possibly give up this chance of taking revenge.


    Hence, Tang and the Deste Man warriors would appear here.


    Tang said, ¡°We are here and we have taken our revenge. We will leave now.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Take us with you.¡±


    Tang raised his eyebrows slightly and said, ¡°You know that is impossible.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Why? Even if you do not thank me, I want to know if there is any reason.¡±


    Tang looked at Sangsang beside him and said, ¡°Because she is the Daughter of Yama.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I remember that the Deste Man worships Yama.¡±


    Tang said, ¡°Worshipping doesn¡¯t equate to liking. It is more of fear. Since the Deste Man believed in the Enlightenment Doctrine, they have been worshipping Yama, praying to him to not hurt them.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Sangsang is the Daughter of Yama. If the Deste Man do not protect her now when the Underworld Invasiones, how do you think Yama will punish you and your people?¡±


    Tang said, ¡°if she dies, Yama might never find the mortal world. Naturally, there will not be such a thing as an Underworld Invasion. if that is the case, why should my people be worried about something that will never happen?¡±


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°You all believe in Yama. No one dares to kill her and hence, the Underworld Invasion might take ce. Why can¡¯t you all prepare for something that might happen in the future in advance?¡±


    Tang replied, ¡°If I take in you both, I do not need to wait for Yama to appear. The Deste Man will be surrounded and exterminated by the other tribes.¡±


    Ning Que sneered and said, ¡°For a good thousand years, who in this world had shown the Deste Man any good intentions? Do not forget that you all are still in battle. Even without Sangsang and me, the countries in Central ins would still want to exterminate you all.¡±


    Tang kept silent.


    Ning Que added, ¡°Whether you all take us in, the Deste Man will always be the enemies of the entire world. We are the enemies of the entire world. Do you not think we should stay together naturally?¡±


    Tang said, ¡°What benefits are there to the Deste Man for taking you both in?¡±


    Ning Que said emotionally, ¡°Whatever the case is, Sangsang and I have been decent to your sister. Can you stop being so realistic?¡±


    Tang repeated expressionlessly, ¡°What are the benefits?¡±


    Ning Que looked a little helpless before saying with a strict expression, ¡°If there is an Underworld Invasion, the. Deste Man will have the most fertilend and the most sheep.¡±


    To the Deste Man, fertilend was their life, it was what they were chasing for their whole life. Especially thousands of years after being chased till the Cold Region in the Far North, it has be an even greater temptation to them that they couldn¡¯t resist.


    Tang¡¯s face was still emotionless as he stared at Ning Que¡¯s eyes and said, ¡°If the Underworld Invasion reallye, the Evesting Night will descend. And the entire world will be incredibly cold. No matter how fertile thend is, without sunlight, how would any grass grow? Without grass, where do the sheepe from? Without sheep, what do the Deste Man survive on? We will all die and when that happens, does how big the ce we stay in matter?¡±


    ¡°Is it not important? I have seen many nobles who contemte for a good half of their life on where to stay when they die. I have always thought that it is important how big one¡¯s grave is and that the Deste Man would care... Alright, even if it isn¡¯t important, I will still promise that after the Underworld Invasion, I will let the Deste Man be the most powerful ghost.¡±


    Ning Que said decisively, ¡°I promise that when the timees, I will make you all feel happy even being ghosts!¡±


    Tang kept silent for a moment before saying, ¡°I know you are the most shameless of the Academy, but I have never expected you to be this shameless.¡±


    Ning Que asked in confusion, ¡°What does that mean?¡±


    Tang said, ¡°Your actions now are shameless.¡±


    Ning Queughed.


    Tang said, ¡°What happens in the future is too empty. It is of no help to the choice I am making now. Hence, the Daughter of Yama and your promise is meaningless.¡±


    Ning Que said calmly, ¡°If you take us in, the Deste Man will have another decent warrior. More importantly, with me, the Academy will not join in the battle against the Deste Man.¡±


    Hearing this, Tang kept silent for a long while before saying, ¡°That is indeed not bad. I admit I am a little swayed but the Elder might not be willing to take you two in.¡±


    Ning Que. said, ¡°Bring us there first, I have an idea on how to convince them. If you have been in contact with Xiao Tang recently, you should know that I am the best at hoodwinking the elders.¡±


    Tang handed over the wine bag and said, ¡°That is decided then.¡±


    ¡°Is this celebratory wine?¡±


    Ning Que took over the wine bag and took a huge swig.

 Chapter 659 - War Began With An ID Token

    <h4>Chapter 659: War Began With An ID Token</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    More than 2,000 young and middle-aged soldiers led by Tang had been wandering in the Wilderness during the period after winter. They had evaded the chasing of the Left King¡¯s Pce and the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army with their familiarity with the Tianqi Mountains, and finally ambushed them at the canyon.


    Revenge would never end. Therefore, the Left King¡¯s Pce and the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army would annihte the Deste in a more profound way. Tang began to retreat to the north with the Deste, and an extra ck horse carriage appeared in the army.


    It had already been the middle of spring in the Central ins, while there was still snow floating deep in the northern Wilderness.


    In the past few years, the Deste that came to the south had fought continuously with the Left King¡¯s Pce and the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army, but failed to withstand their attacks and were forced to recede thousands of miles to the north, reaching this poor and cold region.


    Compared with the Hot Sea that had frozen over and the Cold Region in the extreme northern area, the climate here was eptable and was even a little bit warm for the Deste. However, for Ning Que, especially Sangsang who was seriously ill, it was quite harsh.


    Tang arranged the two to live in a rtively remote fur tent. Looking at the camp of the Deste Man¡¯s tribe from over ten miles away, Ning Que asked, ¡°When will we pay a visit to those senior statesmen?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll handle it, and you two wait here for a night.¡±


    Tang handed the wine bag tied around his waist to Ning Que.


    In more than ten days since returning to the north, they had got used to drinking this bitter wine made by the Deste every day. Thus, Ning Que took the wine carelessly, drank some of it, and felt slightly warmer. Sangsang also took the wine and sipped it without any intervals. The wine bag deted after a while.


    At that moment, there was a sudden rumbling sound beside her, and Ning Que suddenly fell to the ground, smacking his lips. He did not seem to havee to harm and apparently just fell asleep.


    Sangsang felt a little strange. Compared to her, Ning Que couldn¡¯t drink too much alcohol, but he never became drunk after drinking so many times on their journey. Suddenly, she thought of something and looked up at Tang.


    Her eyes were very bright and her thin eyebrows were very serious.


    Somehow, Tang saw coldness in her look, and said with self-deprecation, ¡°I just put some herbal powder in the wine, to help the mind rx and let him have a sound sleep. It does no harm to his body.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°He¡¯s well now and should not be poisoned.¡±


    Tang said, ¡°I have cultivated the Enlightenment Doctrine since I was little, and I know his physical condition quite well. By the way, it was not poison, but medicinal powder in the wine. So, it¡¯s normal for him to fall asleep.¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t expect that this wine would have no impact on you.¡±


    He looked at Sangsang and asked after a moment of silence, ¡°Are you really the Daughter of Yama?¡±


    Sangsang nodded.


    Tang said, ¡°I don¡¯t know what attitude the elders will hold towards your arrival, but I do know that Ning Que is dangerous. Thus, I don¡¯t want him to interfere in the discussion among our deste men.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I know.¡±


    Tang added, ¡°If the Elders don¡¯t agree to take you in, you two will die.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°It was already a gamble for us toe here.¡±


    Tang said, ¡°But this is his gamble.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I can ept any result.¡±


    Tang did not say anything else.


    Snowkes kept falling into the camps of the Deste. Countless of tents filled withughter and singing became quiet. It was not because of sadness or the hardships of life, for the Deste had already learned to calmly look at the deaths of their people after a thousand years of hard life, but due to quarreling inside the tent in the middle of the camp as well as the ck horse carriage parked outside the camp.


    The tent in the middle of the camp seemed no different from tents elsewhere; only dozens of slender ribbons were attached to it, which added a feeling of warmth and mystery.


    The supreme authority of the Deste Man¡¯s tribe was the senior statesmen¡¯s parliament. Since what they were going to discuss today was so important, there were still more than 20 head soldiers from the Deste sitting in the room.


    ¡°Anyway, we are going to fight with the Central ins. So, it¡¯s no big deal to take the Daughter of Yama in.¡±


    ¡°In recent years, the West-Hill Divine Pce has not really shown all of its power and Prince Long Qing is only a dog kept by the Haotian Taoism. If they know that we have taken in the Daughter of Yama, we won¡¯t continue to fight like this, and the enemies we¡¯ll face would be ten times stronger than they are now!¡±


    ¡°There is no difference between waiting for countries in the Central ins to send more troops and the West-Hill Divine Pce to send more strong men into the Wilderness. If we had to have a bloody fight, it doesn¡¯t matter whether they are stronger or not.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s about time. Time is the most the important thing. If the Daughter of Yama is not here, both the countries in the Central ins and the West-Hill Divine Pce would save their strength, allowing others to die in our hands. Therefore, women would have more time to give birth to more children, who can be real soldiers. If time is limited, we cannot withstand it.¡±


    ¡°But don¡¯t forget that Ning Que has promised that the Academy will not join the war as long as we take in the Daughter of Yama. If strong men on the Second floor of the Academye to the Wilderness, it would be even more terrible than the West-Hill Divine Pce.¡±


    ¡°Ning Que has escaped with the Daughter of Yama, which means he has betrayed the human world. Why would the Academy remain neutral because of him? I thought what he said had no credibility at all.¡±


    ¡°The most crucial question is, what was the point of us the Deste to have worshipped Yama for thousands of years? Now his daughter is lost in the human world, but we do not take her in and protect her.¡±


    ¡°Although we have worshipped Yama for thousands of years, we still lead a miserable life. And the Underworld Invasion does no good to us. So, do we really want to go forward to the Underworld? I really don¡¯t want to be a damn ghost soldier.¡±


    The Deste Men in the tent heldpletely opposite opinions towards whether they should take Ning Que and the Daughter of Yama in. The dispute had been going on without a conclusion, while the First Elder and Tang, the strongest man, kept silent throughout.


    The two sides were locked in a stalemate and even began to influence each other. Senior statesmen became excited gradually, while the passionate leaders of the soldiers got worried. But there was still no result, with more and more people gradually agreeing to kill Ning Que and Sangsang for the safety of the Deste Man¡¯s tribe.


    The First Elder stood up with difficulty and walked to the front of the case in the middle of the tent. His lean body, which had weathered the years and bad environment, seemed like it would fall apart if swung around casually.


    The wooden case was littered with many things, including golden leaves, a thick stack of notes, and several ID tokens, which were all found on Ning Que by Tang.


    The First Elder¡¯s skinny palm moved slowly on the case and said, ¡°Return these things to the Daughter of Yama. Whether we choose to take them in or not, we should respect them all the same.¡±


    Tang agreed calmly and then walked to the front of the case, ready to pack up the items.


    The fingers of the First Elder suddenly trembled, just like old bamboo in the wind.


    Tang looked towards the old man¡¯s finger. His pupils shrunk and his body became somewhat stiff. He understood all things after a long time of silence. He knew that all of these things were destined to happen.


    The First Elder looked at him and sighed, ¡°In that case, let them stay.¡±


    Tang nodded and said, ¡°That¡¯s what I think.¡±


    The senior statesmen and soldier leaders in the tent were very surprised, and even those who were willing to take in Ning Que and Sangsang still felt somewhat shocked. They did not understand why the First Elder and the powerful Tang remained silent all the time but suddenly showed their attitudes, which were so clear and determined.


    The First Elder picked up one object on the case, letting everyone see it in person.


    It was an ID token. No one knew what material it was made from, not gold, wood, nor stone. It was pure white, with a ck pattern carved on it. One could tell from the fresh marks on its edges that it was recently made.


    The ck pattern was a statue which looked like a human, yet it looked like a god as well. The pure white edges shone with boundless radiance. Because it was facing the sun on its back, its expression and body were immersed within the darkness of its shadow, thus one would not be able to see the features clearly.


    It was quiet in the tent, so the sound of snowkes falling on the top of the tent became extremely clear.


    The First Elder said slowly, ¡°Thousands of years ago, the Great Divine Priest of Light preached in the Wilderness with the ¡°Ming¡± Handscroll from the Tomes of the Arcane. We, Deste Men, always believed in the Enlightenment Doctrine and worshiped Yama. Thousands of yearster, we returned to the south and met the Daughter of Yama and the sessor of the Great Divine Priest of Light. This is probably the so-called destiny. Therefore, we have to aplish this mission even if our whole n will be exterminated.


    Looking at the leaders of the soldiers, Tang said seriously, ¡°When I epted disciples on behalf of our teacher, I have taught you the skill of the Enlightenment Doctrine and made sure that it would be passed down continuously. Now it has reappeared, you should know how to do it.¡±


    The leaders of the soldiers knelt on one knee and bowed respectfully. They replied in unison, ¡°We will serve you to our deaths.¡±


    Ning Que felt a little headache when he woke up. At first, he thought it was because of the wine and felt slightly ashamed. Afterwards, he became angry when he found out that he had been poisoned by Tang. However, when he heard the final decision of the senior statesmen of the Deste, his joy and excitement reced all the negative emotions immediately.


    But there was still something he could not understand.


    A few years ago he heard from Mo Shanshan in the Wilderness that both the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and the Deste believed in Yama, but they were extremely afraid that Yama woulde to the world. Because in their teachings, Yama¡¯sing meant darkness. The Deste also didn¡¯t like darkness.


    Therefore, he could understand the reason why the Deste felt scared about Sangsang but refused to take her in. Then, what made them suddenly change their attitudes and be so positive?


    In the Eighteenth year of the Tianqi era, there were abnormalities in the sky, with thick clouds and unpleasant sounds of crows, starting from the Yuelun Kingdom, going through marshes, crossing the border of the Tang kingdom, passing by the Hn mountain,ing to the Eastern Wilderness, and then continuing northward.


    The whole world knew that Ning Que entered Deste Man¡¯s tribe with the Daughter of Yama¡ªSangsang. The West-Hill Divine Pce sent letters to the parliament of senior statesmen, ordering them to kill or hand over the Daughter of Yama. And in return, they would stop attacking the Deste and hew out arge pasture in the Eastern Wilderness to help them restore their homnd.


    The senior statesmen of the Deste refused the request of the West-Hill Divine Pce calmly and determinedly.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce had ordered the whole world that all cultivators should enter the Wilderness, adding more of the already endless shipments of hay and supplies to the Wilderness. All countries began to recruit soldiers.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce said in the letters that it was no longer just a war against the Deste but a holy war of salvation. The real war was about to begin.

 Chapter 660 - Im Foretelling the Future On the Tower

    <h4>Chapter 660: I¡¯m Foretelling the Future On the Tower</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The war between the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army and the Deste broke out in the eighteenth year of the Tianqi era. More than hundreds of thousands of troops on both sides began to fight with each other without any signs nor negotiations attempts. People died with every passing moment. Those proud and lofty cultivators were all fighting crazily, just like ordinary soldiers on the stormy battlefield, and even strong men in the Seethrough Realm could be a corpse in the grass whose name was unknown.


    In the past thousands of years, the West-Hill Divine Pce had always kept a low profile. Now they finally showed its image and solemnity as amander of the world. The Hierarch Lord of the West-Hill Divine Pce came to the Wilderness with the Great Divine Priests of Revtion and Judgement, as well as the strong cavalrymen of the Divine Hall. The Emperor of the South Jin Kingdom, the Crown Prince Chong Ming of the Yan Kingdom, and leaders of countries in the Central ins all woke up from shock, and summoned their troops as quickly as possible, personally leading their armies to fight in the Wilderness.


    Several dayster, another shocking news came from Chang¡¯an City that Li Zhongyi, the Emperor of the Tang Empire had gone to the Wilderness in the north more than ten days ago, leading cavalries of the Tang Empire. And they were about to arrive at Hn City.


    It was not until then that hundreds of millions of Haotian believers finally realized that the invasion of the underworld was not just a legend. Otherwise, the strong powers of the world would not be so nervous about the appearance of the Daughter of Yama, and assembled such terrifying troops to fight in the Wilderness.


    More than ten thousand troops from the Tang Empire had entered the Wilderness. Under the leadership of general Xian Zhng, the Northeast Border Military all came to Tuyang City. They marched directly to the north along the Yan territory and traveled to the main battlefield deep in the Wilderness, joining with the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army.


    Although the most powerful northern army in the Tang Empire had to be responsible for monitoring and deterring the Golden Pce, it still sent more than half of its troops to Hn City, following the Emperor.


    ¡°The number of people who can return to the Tang Empire after this war is still unknown.¡±


    His majesty Li Zhongyi, Emperor of the Tang Empire, looked calm yet extremely emotional as he stood on the east wall of Hn city, looking at the northern army cavalries marching eastward in sequence, on the riding road at the bottom of the gorge.


    Master Huang Yang stood by his majesty¡¯s side, praying silently with his hands put together.


    General Han Qing of Hn city, stood behind his majesty, considering himself as his most loyal servant. Therefore, he could say some things that other officials and generals dared not say.


    ¡°Your majesty, youing to the battlefield in person would definitely boost the army¡¯s morale, but it is too dangerous to fight thousands of miles away from the country; especially when the Nation Master could note with you and the Academy sent no one to protect you.¡±


    The Emperor waved his hand to stop Han Qing and said, ¡°When I was about toe out of Chang¡¯an city, memorials were thrown to the throne like snowkes, and the four generals headed by Xu Shi even nned to write a blood book to stop me. But for my setting out ahead of schedule, I¡¯m afraid that some ministers would really hit the pce wall to prevent me from leaving. Now, I have listened to your advice and stayed at Hn City without going eastward. Why are you still not satisfied with that?¡±


    Han Qing was half barbarian. If not for His Majesty¡¯s trust, it would be hard for him to achieve such a high position in the army of the Tang Empire. So, he always hated being called a barbarian, except for when the Emperor did it. It was only his habit to call Han Qing like that, and Han Qing thought it strengthened their closeness, of which he felt proud of.


    But today, at the thought of the horrible battlefield hundreds of miles away from the east of the canyon and those cultivators who had horrific strength were so close to His Majesty, he had no mood to be proud. He said with a trembling voice, ¡°We still insist that even if Your Majesty wants to lead the army, you should retreat to the Northern Military Camp.¡±


    The Emperor was a little bit annoyed and said, ¡°I have sent you to guard the Hn city for so many years. Do you still think this ce cannot be guarded?¡±


    Han Qing looked dazed on hearing this, and said with a low voice, ¡°Hn city is as solid as gold soup... But your majesty, there are so many strong men in the Wilderness now.¡±


    The Emperor said, ¡°Strong men of the Deste were busy fighting with bigwigs of the West-Hill Divine Pce. It¡¯s difficult for them to spare some power to assassinate me.¡±


    There was no one else on the wall at this moment. Han Qing nced at Master Huang Yang, and said with a low voice after a moment of struggling, ¡°His Majesty, what I am worried about... are those bigwigs in the Divine Hall.¡±


    At this time, the Hierarch Lord of the West-Hill Divine Pce came to the Eastern Wilderness in person, with the Great Divine Priests of Revtion and Judgement, as well as powerful men hidden in all countries by Haotian Taoism. This lineup was beyond powerful. It was the most magnificent one in the past hundreds of years, and it could happen nowhere else, except for the Academy.


    His Majesty felt dazed upon hearing this, but began tough immediately, ¡°Haotian Taoism has never liked our country. Now that I finally have the chance to leave Chang¡¯an city, maybe they really want to do something to me. So, your worry is reasonable. However, I don¡¯t think those bigwigs of the Divine Hall would dare to hurt me.¡±


    Hearing the heroic spirit in His Majesty¡¯s words, Han Qing felt slightly bitter in his heart. He knew that it was hard to persuade the Tangs to back off when it came to bravery. But he was still unwilling to reconcile and said, ¡°We have dispatched half of the northern army to the Eastern Wilderness, what if something happens with the Golden Pce? Your Majesty, you should still go to the Northern Military Camp.¡±


    His Majesty frowned slightly and said, ¡°Xu Chi is guarding the Northern Military Camp. I have nothing to worry about.¡±


    Xu Chi, one of the four great generals of the Tang Empire, was always calm and kept a low profile. So, he was not as well-known as Xu Shi¡ªthe Defender-general of the State, and general Xia Hou. However, his defensive ability was unparalleled. The Tang Empire wanted to keep a stable rtionship with the Golden Pce, and that¡¯s why he was in charge of the northern army all the time.


    Han Qing dared not to discredit general Xu Chi¡¯s ability, so he was so anxious that his head was full of sweat.


    Looking at his dejected expression, the Emperor couldn¡¯t helpughing and waved for him to step down.


    The sun sank in the west and shone on Hn city, while the east wall turned dark. Cavalries of the Tang Empire had alle to the Eastern Wilderness through the canyon, with the Emperor still standing on the wall. He touched the railing with his hand and looked into the distance, as if he was thinking of something. His sideburns had turned gray, but his face still looked young, only a lot thinner than before.


    The Wilderness was much colder than Chang¡¯an. At this time, there was no sunshine, with the winding through the gorge. His Majesty frowned slightly, raised his hand and clenched his fist against his lips. He forcibly suppressed his coughing and took out a bottle of medicine from a pocket in his bosom.


    ¡°The cough preventing medicine can only cure the symptoms but not the root cause. Taking too much of it would be harmful to your body.¡±


    Master Huang Yang looked at him and said with concern. He had met His Majesty years ago, and they had even be sworn brothers sinceing back from learning Buddhism at the Xuankong Temple. Therefore, their speech and manner were quite direct, which was different from ordinary ministers.


    His Majesty smiled and said, ¡°It couldn¡¯t cure the root cause through all these years, so why not make myself morefortable?¡±


    Huang Yang asked, ¡°Your Majesty, are you really not worried about it?¡±


    His Majesty frowned slightly after hearing this, and said, ¡°What should I be worried about? Chanyu in the Golden Pce or those divine sticks of the West-Hill Divine Pce? I don¡¯t think that the Golden Pce dares toe since I took more than a hundred thousand cavalries with me.¡±


    Looking at His Majesty¡¯s cool and confident expression as he spoke, Huang Yang smiled. He had forgot that His Majesty was once a famous general of the Northern Frontier when he was the Crown Prince, and the Golden Pce had suffered a lot in his hands. Thus, they dared not to provoke the Tang Empire, but...


    The Emperor knew that his worries were the same as Han Qing¡¯s, so he shook his head and said, ¡°If the West-Hill Divine Pce wants to kill me, it has to send out all its power. But now what they are focused on are the Deste and the Daughter of Yama.¡±


    ¡°Moreover, would they dare to assassinate me?¡±


    After a moment of silence, Huang Yang said, ¡°In fact, what I¡¯m worried about is Chang¡¯an City.¡±


    His majesty frowned slightly and asked, ¡°You think it is inappropriate to let the princess supervise the country, right?¡±


    Huang Yang thought that not only him but also countless of ministers of Tang Empire, even people in the streets, all thought that it was extremely inappropriate to let the princess guard the country. His Majesty went far to the Wilderness and brought Han Qing and Huang Yang with him. Therefore, if some idents happened, Chang¡¯an City would be in turmoil.


    His Majesty said calmly before he replied, ¡°I know what you are worried about. However, your worries are meaningless. If something might happen to me, who dares not to follow my edict?¡±


    Master Huang Yang said calmly, ¡°The Edict can be effective when it¡¯s seen by people.¡±


    His Majesty said, ¡°If I die first, there is still the Headmaster and the Academy. Who would dare to do anything that goes against thew? Han Qing is worried about my safety and you are concerned about the country¡¯s because you two do not understand one thing.¡±


    ¡°If someone wants to destroy our Tang Empire, he must kill the Headmaster first, and then destroy the Academypletely after killing me. However, no one in this world can do this.¡±


    Huang Yang shook his head slowly and said, ¡°But the Headmaster is old after all.¡±


    ¡°The Headmaster would never be old... ¡±


    It was obvious that there was still half of His Majesty¡¯s sentence which remained unspoken, and no one knew the reason. Maybe he had been touched by himself. He said slowly after a moment of silence, ¡°In fact, I am really old.¡±


    Huang Yang knew that His Majesty was always in ill health. What he meant by saying he was old was actually his illness. Huang Yang felt depressed at the thought of this, but he thought that life and death weremon things and there was no need to be sad about them.


    Knowing that Huang Yang had straightened out his thinking, His Majesty smiled and stretched out his hand to touch his bald head.


    This was what the Emperor used to do many years ago, but Master Huang Yang could not get ustomed to that since he hadn¡¯t been touched on the head so disrespectfully for many years. His image as a Bhadanta disappeared just like that, and so he red at the Emperor angrily.


    The Emperor gradually stopped smiling, looked at him calmly and said, ¡°It is always a vain effort to worry about life and death, but one should arrange the following things after his passing away. Well, I have already thought it over and decided to pass the throne to the sixth prince.¡±


    The exasperation on Huang Yang¡¯s face suddenly stopped, and it took a long time before he woke up. He was shocked and said, ¡°How could you decide such an important thing so casually. In addition, Your Majesty, why did you let me know first?¡±


    The Emperor said, ¡°Didn¡¯t you worry about the validity of the Edict before? You are the executor of it.¡±


    Huang Yang felt slightly bitter, and said, ¡°How can I have such ability? This should be a matter of the Academy.¡±


    The Emperor shook his head and said, ¡°The Academy would never interfere with the government, which is an ironw set by the Headmaster. Previously, I wanted him to execute the Edict. But this guy is fighting with the whole world, including me, to protect his wife. Thus, how can I choose him?¡±


    Huang Yang thought of the rumor, he frowned all the more, and nced towards the balcony behind.


    Knowing what he was thinking, the Emperor said calmly, ¡°I heard professor Yu Lian in the Academy had epted a female disciple the year beforest.¡±


    Huang Yang said, ¡°Yes, it is said that she is the younger sister of Tang¡ªthe Wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.¡±


    The Emperor looked at him and said, ¡°Both the Academy and myself don¡¯t mind about that, so the Tang Empire doesn¡¯t mind either. As for your worries and Qingshan¡¯s... I will let the sixth prince take Mr. First as his teacher after returning to Chang¡¯an.¡±


    The monk Huang Yang sped his hands together as he sincerely praised, ¡°Then, there¡¯s nothing wrong.¡±

 Chapter 661 - Summer Is Coming

    <h4>Chapter 661: Summer Is Coming</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Huang Yang asked, ¡°But I still don¡¯t understand why Your Majesty wanted to personally lead the military operation?¡±


    ¡°In people¡¯s eyes, in yours and Qingshan¡¯s eyes, I must be purposeful. They are all wondering, but in fact, it is very simple.¡±


    The Emperorughed and said, ¡°I have been an emperor and lived in Chang¡¯an for more than ten years. I have missed so many beautiful views of the world. If the Underworld is reallying and the Evesting Night will start in the north, that will be the most spectacr view in thousands of years that I don¡¯t want to miss it.¡±


    Hearing this, Huang Yang smiled. Then he sighed and thought, His Majesty really was this kind of person. When he was going to ask about other things, he heard steps behind him.


    Holding a little boy, the Empress was walking down from the back building and gently saying something. Her eyes rested on the little boy, fondly and contentedly.


    The Emperor walked toward them.


    The little boy was in bright yellow clothes. Inheriting his parents¡¯ traits, he looked clean and handsome with a little shyness which was influenced by his parents¡¯ temperaments. Judging from his smiles, he seemed to enjoy being together with his parents.


    Looking at the happy family, Huang Yang smiled and turned to look outside. The setting sun was falling on the Wilderness and the mountains looked so dark. The wind was no longer cold and the summer wasing.


    In a side hall of the imperial pce, Chang¡¯an.


    Looking at the young man who was writing by the table, she looked gentle and satisfied.


    The boy prince, Li Huiyuan had grown into a young man. Compared with the previous years, he became thinner and more handsome with perseverance in his eyes.


    Li Huiyuan had be more silent over the past two years. He seemed to have many different opinions on things which Li Yu thought were good for him. She felt that this fact wouldfort her dead mother a lot.


    At this moment, she was a sister instead of the most powerful princess of Tang.


    Since the Emperor had gone to the Wilderness, she had to govern the country. Every day she dealt with the court memorials in the main hall. She should be busy but she wasn¡¯t. The national affairs were handled ording to its own rules and most of them could be decided by the prime minister and officers. She was more like a supervisor or a judge.


    Li Yu knew very well that she should be calmer than at any other time. Therefore she peacefully performed her duty and won a lot of praise from many ministers, while she spent all the rest of her time talking with her officers on some other subjects.


    ¡°Elder sister, look at my handwriting. What do you think?¡±


    Li Huiyuan put a new piece of paper in front of Li Yu and said proudly, ¡°My teacher praised me and our father will like it.¡±


    Li Yu praised him and then she said, ¡°Even if our father likes calligraphy, you still cannot order the post to deliver your handwritings. We should be careful with the post route as the war is about to start.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s just a piece of paper.¡± Li Huiyuan dismissively said, ¡°If I need to open the transmission array to send a message to our father, no one will agree.¡±


    ¡°Our father likes calligraphy, but he cares more for the future of Tang. The transmission array is too important and the cost to be opened is very high. It¡¯s not a toy for you.¡±


    Then she seemed to recall something and became sad. She gently said, ¡°Do you remember Ning Que? Our father liked him very much, but he still became an outcast of our country.¡±


    Li Huiyuan said, ¡°We are family. How could Ning Quepare with us?¡±


    Li Yu didn¡¯t answer him. Looking at him, she sternly said, ¡°As Ning Que cannot be counted upon and the Academy will not stand by us, we should be more careful in this situation.¡±


    Looking at her serious expression, Li Huiyuan had to nod while his disagreement was clearly in his eyes. His smiles showed Li Yu a confidence she didn¡¯t have.


    ¡°I¡¯m going to see the Nation Master in the Southern Gate Temple,¡± said he.


    Li Yu frowned as she never figured out why the Nation Master, who used to be close with the queen, had turned to support them since Ning Que passed through Qinghe County on his trip to the Lanke Temple a year ago.


    The Nation Master of Tang, Li Qingshan could control half of the Southern Gate Temple and the Imperial Center Administration. In any case, his changed attitude would be a piece of good news for them.


    She said, ¡°Since the Nation Master is seriously ill and I am not avable to see him, you should go and have a look.¡±


    In the 17th year of the Tang¡¯s Tianqi era, many funerals happened in Chang¡¯an. All the streets were covered with white banners. Many ministers who had served three emperors as well as high-ranking officials were unable to resist the invasion of time and passed away one after another. The Defender-general of the State, Xu Shi, and the Nation Master, Li Qingshan were both seriously ill, which bothered a lot of people.


    ¡°I¡¯m nothing special but a hard-working cultivator. Thanks to the Emperor, I am able to be the Nation Master of the Tang Empire. My only unique skill is board foretelling.¡±


    Lying on the bed in the Southern Gate Temple, Li Qingshan looked at the spring view outside the window and said to He Mingchi by his side.


    ¡°I had always thought the Great Divine Priest of Revtion and Master Qishan were just so-so. Until now, I finally understand that fate is unpredictable. The two are wiser than me and have a better vision on this. I have forcibly deduced the future for so many years and I am getting weaker and weaker. As Haotian¡¯s influence gradually fades from me, I will die sooner orter.¡±


    He Mingchi showed a sad expression and didn¡¯t know how to respond.


    As the Nation Master, Li Qingshan should have entered the Wilderness with the Emperor. However, he was so seriously ill that he had to stay in bed. Therefore, Huang Yang reced him.


    ¡°I¡¯m not concerned about my life. Since Huang Yang is apanying the Emperor and they have many powerhouses in the army, I don¡¯t worry about them, either. I am thinking about something else.¡±


    His smile gradually disappeared. He said, ¡°His Majesty took Her Majesty and the Sixth Prince to Hn City, but left the Princess to manage the country. Many officers in Chang¡¯an believe that the Emperor was going to abdicate to Li Huiyuan by doing this.¡±


    He paused and continued, ¡°However, no one understands His Majesty better than me. He is not a scheming emperor. He is a real hero and if he has decided to abdicate, he will announce it to the world. He despises this kind of petty means, so he won¡¯t use them.¡±


    Hearing this, He Mingchi was stunned and asked, ¡°Teacher, then what are you worrying about?¡±


    Looking at the thick green leaves and thinking of theing summer, Li Qingshan slowly said, ¡°I am worried that this is an empty joy. If it is, we will be in trouble.¡±


    At this moment, someone knocked on the door. He Mingchi stood up to answer it. A few momentster, he came back with Li Huiyuan following and said, ¡°Teacher, the Princees to see you.¡±


    Looking at Li Huiyuan¡¯s face which became more and more like the Emperor¡¯s, he felt warm inside.


    When Li Huiyuan went back to the pce, He Mingchi was told to do something for his master, so they left together. The way from the Southern Gate Temple to the pce was short, so they didn¡¯t have much time.


    The inside of the carriage was so dark that Li Huiyuan looked blurred. Looking at He Mingchi, he said after a moment, ¡°I have looked into the thing you told me the year beforest year, but I didn¡¯t find any evidence.¡±


    He Mingchi didn¡¯t answer him, smiling and looking into his eyes. He was not unwilling to talk about this, he just needed more details.


    Li Huiyuan felt a little angry. He asked, ¡°Is the Empress really the Saintess of Diabolism?¡±


    This was what He Mingchi was waiting for. He nodded and said, ¡°Although we don¡¯t have the evidence, my master knew it. The Academy should know it as well. We will find the evidence sooner orter. I know what you are thinking about. The Southern Gate Temple has been worshiping Haotian for generations and it won¡¯t ept the Saintess of Diabolism¡¯s son as the Emperor of the Tang Empire.¡±


    Upon hearing this, Li Huiyuan was a little relieved and became happy. Rubbing his hands together, he helplessly said, ¡°Why hasn¡¯t the Nation Master ever exposed her identity?¡±


    ¡°Because His Majesty won¡¯t agree.¡±


    Looking at him, He Mingchi calmly said, ¡°Your Highness, please remember, powerful weapons should be used at the perfect moment. You cannot tell anyone, including the Princess, as if you didn¡¯t know this.¡±


    Li Huiyuan slightly frowned and tried to say something while they arrived at the pce.


    He Mingchi followed him into the pce and went to visit Li Yu. No one knew what they had talked about. Then he went to somece in the pce. Since he had usually entered the pce with the Nation Master, the eunuchs and maids would not stop the respected priest.


    A few momentster, he reached a small building in the depths of the imperial garden. Pushing aside the bushy branches and stepping over the grass and flowers, he entered the small building.


    Walking along the dark path beneath the building, He Mingchi entered an empty hall where was illuminated by luminous pearls.


    He knew where he was and what he needed to start it. He guessed Ning Que had given the array eye pestle to the Academy. No matter the Nation Master or him, they could do nothing.


    Standing on the boundless ground and thinking of how to activate the array, he closed his eyes and opened his arms, as if he was standing under the night sky, embracing the whole world.

 Chapter 662 - Winter Wont Leave

    <h4>Chapter 662: Winter Won¡¯t Leave</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Under He Mingchi¡¯s feet, was the array eye of the God-stunning Array. That meant he was standing on the core of the God-stunning Array which made him believe he could embrace the whole world if he opened his arms.


    However, it took him only a short time to recover from this feeling.


    He should have been killed by the Talisman inscriptions on the wall when he went through the dark tunnel because no one could enter here except the Emperor with the Great Seal and the owner of the array eye pestle.


    He Mingchi had his secret way to enter here.


    He once told the prince, Li Huiyuan, that only if he could use powerful weapons at the right time, could he beat his enemy. Now, he was standing on the most powerful God-stunning Array. He could not help thinking that the powerful weapon could only be significant if it belonged to the right owner.


    The unique True God in this world was Haotian. The big tactical array in Chang¡¯an was called God-stunning Array, which was a sphemy. He Mingchi believed the array should be destroyed.


    It was mid-spring and the Far North of the Wilderness became warmer and warmer. Trees and grass had turned green, but they could only be exuberant in the summer.


    Ning Que and Sangsang had been living in the Deste Man¡¯s tribe for a long time. During these days, besides looking after Sangsang, he mainly focused on practicing with talismans, the Great Spirit, and his podao skills.


    While they were in the depths of the Deste Man¡¯s tribe, tens of thousands of Deste soldiers were fighting in the south. Even the experts of Buddhism and Taoism could not get here to threaten them.


    However, Ning Que knew they could not win the battle. Moreover, he was not used to putting his life in the hands of others, so he had to work harder.


    The withered branch was drawn on the mud and left a deep mark which looked the same as a brush pen writing on a paper. That was a ¡°¶þ¡± character.


    Ning Que quietly looked at the character for a moment and began to rewrite another one. In a very short time, he wrote at least 30 simr characters. They all looked different with their own meanings.


    His writing became more and more scrawled until the twost horizontal lines were going to be connected, but he was still unsatisfied. He felt that the connection between the two horizontal lines was wrong, but he could not tell why.


    He silently looked at those strokes on the ground, frowning slightly and looking very serious.


    ¡°Time for lunch.¡±


    A Deste woman wearing a hat and fur-cotton clothes said behind him.


    Ning Que recovered and returned to the tent with her.


    Coincidentally, the Deste woman who was sent by the senior statesman to serve him and Sangsang was the one they met when they entered the Wilderness. Her son had be a soldier and was no longer in the tribe.


    The Deste Man was afraid of Yama but at the same time they worshiped him. Therefore they were in awe of Sangsang, but 90% of the awe was from fear, including the Deste woman.


    The dark cloud and the crows in the skying with Sangsang frightened the people quite badly. They often kowtowed to the sky and the crows on the tents. In the beginning, the Deste woman didn¡¯t dare to go back to their tent until she got used to it.


    Today¡¯s lunch was broth and pancakes. Ning Que and Sangsang had more meat in the broth than any other in the tribe and the pancakes was a special treatment for them.


    The mutton soup was cooked to milk-white with natural fragrance. Ning Que took a bowl of the soup as well as two pancakes. Then he told the woman to take the rest. He went into the tent, helped Sangsang sit up and fed her with the soaked pancakes.


    Sangsang¡¯s face was less pale than when they were traveling and recovered her original color. However, she became worse instead of getting better. She had no appetite, so she shook her head and said, ¡°I¡¯m full.¡±


    ¡°Take a little more.¡±


    Ning Que put the bowl to her mouth and carefully fed her.


    Sangsang suddenly coughed. She had suffered a lot from coughing these days.


    The sounds echoed in the tent for a long time and she looked in pain. The soup she spat out was all over Ning Que¡¯s clothes and turned ck after mixing with her blood.


    Ning Que held her in his arms and stroked her back. He kissed on her forehead and whispered like singing a song until Sangsang calmed down and fell to sleep.


    A Fire Fu was lit in the y pot, warming the tent. Then it was suddenly pressed down by a cold air and became dim and cold like the pits of hell.


    Looking at the frost on the pot, Ning Que took his fingers back and fell silent for a long time. Then he stretched his hands under the woollen nket to hold Sangsang¡¯s cold feet, continuously rubbing them.


    Until her little feet were warmed up, he changed his dirty clothes and wet underwear, and then went out of the tent.


    He looked up at the dark clouds. Facing the sunshine, the frost on his eyshes gradually melted into water.


    Sangsang had be weaker and weaker. No matter the Haotian Divine Light or the Buddism Breath, they could no longer suppress or calm the frosty aura down.


    More and more cold seeped throughout her thin body. Neither the hot wine nor talisman fire could warm her up. Her bed and clothes were all cold like ice, and the tent was like an icehouse.


    Thedy had moved to another tent days ago. Although the grass had be green, the ground under their tent was still frozen like in another world.


    At this moment, the most worrisome, the most scary, the most disconste and the most helpless thing for him was Sangsang¡¯s disease.


    If Sangsang could not be cured, even if the Deste could beat the coalition of the West-Hill Divine Pce, even if he was invincible in the world, all would be meaningless.


    It was one reason why he worked so hard to be stronger. More importantly, he wanted to find Sangsang a cure by reading Buddha¡¯s notes. Since the Deste Man had the tradition of worshipping Yama, he did a lot of research.


    At the sacrificial ceremony, the Deste Men called Yama as Lord Guang Ming. It sounded so familiar for him that he must had read about it on some Buddha¡¯s note or ssics of Haotian Taoism. However, he had turned the note over and over again, and still could not find the reference.


    As time passed by, summer was approaching. Sangsang¡¯s illness and Ning Que¡¯s emotions all went to the chill winter and were covered with ice and snow.

 Chapter 663 - Towards Death

    <h4>Chapter 663: Towards Death</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    There were no good news from the south, only bad news. A list of names was sent back to the tribe from the battlefield at intervals; each name representing a dead Deste Man warrior.


    The Deste were simple and yet determined, simr in the ways of the Tangs. They could stay silent, but would not be despondent, no matter the difficulties they faced. Even if the situation was harsh, the women would still hum songs while washing and hunting.


    As time passed, the situation in the south grew more and more desperate. The intervals between each list, and the length of those lists grew longer and longer. The old, the weak and the women left behind in the tribe did not have the mood to sing anymore. The entire ins grew quieter and the atmosphere grew more and more repressive with every passing night. One could hear the vague sounds of people crying. Even the strongest Deste woman could not help but feel sorrowful when she saw the name of her son on the list.


    One day, the Deste woman in charge of caring for Ning Que and Sangsang finally saw her son¡¯s name on the list. She began to cry, and the women around her gathered around tofort her.


    Ning Que let the heavy door blinds of the tent down and walked back to the bed to continue giving medicine to Sangsang. Sangsang drank two mouthfuls and stopped. She looked up at him and said, ¡°What¡¯s the point of us hiding here? I¡¯m going to die anyway.¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s no need to feel guilty. The Deste are like us; no one would stand for their existence. Even if they had not taken us in, the West-Hill Divine Pce and the countries in the Central ins would not allow them to live.¡± Ning Que said.


    Sangsang shook her head lightly and said, ¡°But if we hadn¡¯te, they would not die so quickly.¡±


    With that, she spread out her palm and stared at the ck chess piece in a daze. The chess piece was thest one she had left from that match at the Lanke Temple.


    The number of deaths in the tribe increased and her sickness worsened. The tent grew colder and ayer of frost spread over everything. Only the ck chess piece in her hand remained warm and moist as before.


    Ning Que hugged her against himself and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Even if the Deste cannot hold on any longer, we can still head to the north. We can visit the Hot Sea and look at the sights. Eldest Brother said that even if the sea froze over, we could still catch a few variable tyfish if we break through the ice. The old yellow bull likes them a lot, so they must taste pretty good.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°You know I¡¯m not worried about that.¡±


    Ning Que kept silent.


    Sangsang said softly, ¡°We escaped from Lanke Temple to the Xuankong Temple, and then from the Wilderness to Chaoyang City and then back to the Wilderness again. Then, we made it here. I¡¯m tired of running...¡±


    Ning Que was about to say something but was stopped by Sangsang.


    Sangsang said, ¡°In Chaoyang City, you told me this. The future and death are actually very simr. If it is already predestined, then there is no point in worrying. If it could be changed, then there is no need to worry. We just have to work hard at changing it.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°That¡¯s what Teacher said.¡±


    Sangsang replied, ¡°The world is very big, but if there is really nowhere for us to live in, then we both know that the situation cannot be altered anymore. Then why should we worry? Death means that there is no future. Shouldn¡¯t we learn to ept things if we can¡¯t change anything?¡±


    Ning Que smiled and said, ¡°Well said.¡±


    Sangsang lowered her head bashfully.


    Ning Que told her, ¡°I never thought that my Sangsang would be sodylike now.¡±


    Sangsang replied, ¡°I am but just a little handmaiden.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Let¡¯s not mention that Grand Secretary Zeng Jing is your biological father. You are ady of Yama¡¯s family. There is no one else more noble than you on Earth.¡±


    Sangsang did not reply to that because she knew that he wanted to change the topic. She said, ¡°I do not wish to hide anymore.¡±


    After a long silence, Ning Que asked, ¡°Why? Do you feel uneasy? Or do you think that we are like rats on the street? I told you when we were little, that no matter whether we lived like gutter rats that everyone hates, or poisonous snakes that everyone is afraid of, we should still be that to live on.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I know that I cannot live for a long time. Since this is so, then why should we live as rats or snakes? If you think that this is called being uneasy, then let it be so.¡±


    ¡°Perhaps we are destined to live in such difficulty.¡±


    ¡°What is destiny?¡±


    ¡°A Lucky Chance?¡±


    ¡°Teacher once said that I was his Lucky Chance. Then what is mine?¡±


    ¡°Your Lucky Chance is me, of course.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t joke around. I don¡¯t know why, but I feel like I should head south now.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ll die if you head south.¡±


    ¡°I will die if I don¡¯t anyway.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ve got a point.¡±


    Ning Que actually knew that if Sangsang appeared on the battleground in the south of the Wilderness, death would not be the most likely thing to happen, but something even more terrifying than that.


    He said, ¡°Everyone says that we should live noisily and die alone. If you were to die, then we should have a lively and noisy ceremony. Furthermore, we might find a way to live on the way to death.¡±


    Sangsang saw that he was agreeing with her and smiled happily.


    Even though they did not know entirely what was happening on the battlefield in the south, it was evident from the atmosphere in the Deste Man¡¯s tribe that the situation was getting tense. Even the women in the tribe were prepared to don leather armor and weapons, as they prepared for the possibility of joining the battle front line at any time.


    Ning Que¡¯s earliest n was to make use of the Deste Man¡¯s tribe to hold off the Central ins allied troops. Then, he would see if Sangsang¡¯s condition would improve before taking her to the Cold Region of the Far North. They must not be caught by the powerhouses of the two sects, even if they had to live like savages by the Hot Sea. However, Sangsang¡¯s condition did not improve, but took a turn for the worse instead. Furthermore, Sangsang did not wish to be on the run anymore. As such, the n was scrapped.


    After making the decision, and perhaps because she could finally feel at ease, Sangsang began to feel better. She was no longer as lethargic as before; although the cold aura in her body grew even stronger, she began to gain an appetite, able to eat almost a full bowl serving of meat porridge.


    Ning Que boiled a pot of water and bathed her. Sangsang sat in therge pot, the cold aura in her body spreading out. The crackling firewood beneath the pot only continued burning through the use of Fire Fu talismans.


    ¡°If others saw this, they¡¯d definitely think that I¡¯m stewing you for dinner.¡±


    Ning Que rubbed her hair and saidughingly.


    Sangsangughed heartily and said, ¡°Being smelly is not tasty.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°My Sangsang is the most delicious.¡±


    Sangsang replied, ¡°Then why haven¡¯t you eaten me up yet?¡±


    Ning Queughed and said, ¡°Well, you¡¯re always sick.¡±


    Sangsang looked up, and said to him in all seriousness with wide eyes, ¡°If you don¡¯t eat me, then soon, you won¡¯t have a chance to do so anymore.¡±


    Ning Que pressed her head down and said, ¡°You know that I don¡¯t like eating meat.¡±


    Sangsang said mournfully, ¡°I let you have all the meat when we lived in the City of Wei as children. In Chang¡¯an, you stuck by sister Dewdrop. How can you say you don¡¯t like meat?¡±


    Ning Que had no retort for her and did not reply. He took out a towel and wrapped her tightly before carrying her to bed. Then, he carefully wiped away the beads of water that had already frozen over and took out cosmetic powder from the Chenjinji Cosmetics Store, dabbing it evenly on her face.


    Sangsang looked into the mirror at her gradually whitened face. She sighed and said, ¡°I used to think that I was tanned. Then, I turned paler and paler after I became ill. I¡¯m tanned again now. This tanning and paling is so inconsistent and so troublesome.¡±


    Ning Que helped her to draw her brows after dabbing on the powder. He replied without thinking, ¡°My Sangsang can be pale or tanned as she chooses. She¡¯s beautiful with or without thick make-up.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Ning Que, you¡¯re getting more and more shameless. You don¡¯t even bat an eyelid while saying such a huge lie.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the clean little face in front of him and at her eyebrows which were as dark as ink, and her short hair that was like grass des. He leaned down and kissed her forehead and then again on her cold lips. He said, ¡°You are always beautiful.¡±


    Sangsang was a little abashed, but still looked at him bravely and kissed him back.


    Ning Que smiled and helped her into her undergarments. He stuck on a few Fire Fus before dressing her in thick cotton clothing. He then whistled towards the outside of the tent and looked at her silently. Then, he asked, ¡°Shall we leave?¡±


    Sangsang nodded and answered, ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Then let¡¯s leave.¡±


    They left after that. They did not need any reasons and left only because they did not want to stay anymore. Ning Que and Sangsang rejected the Deste Man¡¯s tribe earnest request for them to stay and their attempts at stopping them. They left on the horse carriage and headed south.


    ¡ªThey had arrived after many difficulties but left suddenly. It was just like how they had waited an entire winter for Eldest Brother in Chaoyang City and then parted right after meeting him.


    This might seem absurd and almost like a child¡¯s game. However, it was a choice made when faced with an absolute dilemma. The carefreeness was all an act and they actually felt a cold despair. No matter how big the world was, they had nowhere to go. They fled without a destination, which made it meaningless.


    Sangsang, who was gravely ill, no longer wished to flee. As such, Ning Que did not flee anymore. They and the cold aura surrounding them headed to the battlefield in the south. It was at the moment they decided not to flee when they regained their freedom, in the time they had left on Earth.


    They had been forced to flee for their lives and were forced to leave. Everything they had done in the battle between light and darkness was forced onto them. Calmly headed towards death; only at this moment did they make a voluntary choice. That was because death was the only true representation of eternity, and that was a being higher than both light and darkness.


    Sangsang had already seen her own ending and knew that she could not escape it. That was why she was very calm. Ning Que had understood this and the reasons behind it. Or perhaps, one could say that he had lost all hopes with regards to Sangsang¡¯s illness. That was why he was no longer fearful nor sad, and could start to calm down.


    The Big ck Horse could not calm down. It stepped on green grass and smelled the wildflowers. It carried several thick pieces of leather on its back, but could not prevent the assault of cold airing from the carriage. Its legs had long lost any sensation from the cold; it felt frightened and uneasy.


    The ck horse carriage left the Deste Man¡¯s tribe. The thick ck cloud in the sky began to move, enshrouding the Wilderness which was enteringte spring, causing the green grass on the ins to darken.


    There were over ten ck crows flying behind the horse carriage. They were much more silent than before, perhaps because of the lowered temperatures caused by the growing cold aura emanating from Sangsang.

 Chapter 664

    <h4>Chapter 664: Corpses and Swords Falling from Above and the Massive Chariot at the Wilderness</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The ck carriage traveled through the Wilderness, through the darkness over the grass and under the flying crows.


    There were asional shes of swords in the distant Wilderness, and clouds were being torn to pieces.


    Ning Que sensed the shes of aura moving about. He brought the fruit in his hand to Sangsang¡¯s lips and said, ¡°I have never seen such an intense movement Heaven and Earth¡¯s Qi. I wonder how many powerhouses are out there fighting.¡±


    He had once witnessed the battle between Eldest Brother and the Chief Preaching Monk of Xuankong Temple, at the White Tower Temple of Chaoyang City in the Yuelun Kingdom.


    His Eldest Brother had used the words of Confucius against the Chief Preaching Monk¡¯s words of Buddha. Both parties had disyed an almost miraculous cultivation state, which was not any weaker than the Heaven and Earth¡¯s aura fluctuationsing from the distance in the Wilderness.


    However, neither Eldest Brother nor the Chief Preaching Monk were in a life and death fight that day. Ning Que could sense that the aura of Heaven and earth in the distance was like a thunderstorm, gradually bing more frightening and shocking.


    ¡°I¡¯ve seen this before.¡±


    Sangsang took a bite of the fruit. The color of the fruit changed where it met her teeth and lips. It froze almost immediately, and when she chewed, there were cracking sounds as if she was chewing on ice.


    Ning Que asked curiously, ¡°Where have you seen something so magnificent?¡±


    Sangsang answered, ¡°When my teacher and Master Yan Se fought on the North mountain of Chang¡¯an, the change in the aura of Heaven and Earth was also terrifying. However, they blocked themselves in back then.¡±


    Ning Que took a bite from the frozen fruit. His teeth did not fall but he shivered from the cold. He smiled and said, ¡°If we were still in Chang¡¯an, our neighbors on Lin 47th Street wouldn¡¯t have to buy ice or ssh themselves with well water in the summer. They¡¯d stay in the Old Brush Pen Shop and refuse to leave.¡±


    Sangsang smiled and coughed twice.


    The frequency of her coughs had lessened a lot since they left the Deste Man¡¯s tribe. Also, perhaps she had coughed too much over the past two years, she now only coughed a purely cool aura with no phlegm or any traces of blood.


    Sangsang was now very clean, without any filthy blood, sweat or spit. She was pure inside and out, just like a transparent ss. In other words, she was bing less and less human.


    Ning Que embraced and kissed her. Then, he put his hand into her ck fur coat, to stroke and rub her. Although very cold, she was still very soft, and it warmed his heart.


    ¡°I never imagined that I would marry a deity,¡± he said.


    Sangsang looked up at him and reached out to flick the frost from hisshes. She corrected him seriously, ¡°I am not a deity. I am a monster.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Deity? Monster? You¡¯re Sangsang.¡±


    Through their journey to the south, the two had chatted about random and trivial things. Sometimes, they would reminisce about their lives in Min Mountain, the City of Wei and Chang¡¯an. They did not talk about life, death or the future, nor did they leave anyst words. Sangsang had already left herst words in the meditation courtyard of Tile Mountain. Ning Que did not intend to continue living, and even if he wanted to leave anyst words, there was no one to hear them.


    A heavy object suddenly fell from the dark clouds, roaring through the air andnding heavily on the wild ins a few dozen feet in front of the ck horse carriage. The object plunged down heavily, sshing mud upon contact.


    When the horse carriage arrived at the spot, Ning Que looked over to discover a shallow hole on the ins. It was half a human corpse. Judging by the skin color and muscle on the corpse, it must have been a powerful Deste Man soldier. He could not help but freeze for a moment.


    He knew how strong the bodies of The Deste were. And the stronger The Deste warrior was, the stronger their ability to fend off a de. However, this powerful soldier had his body torn apart by a sword, and half of his body had been thrown all the way to their location. One could imagine how fast that sword had to be and how powerful the owner of the sword was.


    ¡°It is a Grand Cultivator in the Knowing Destiny State... It seems like the West-Hill Divine Pce has quite a few powerhouses.¡±


    Ning Que said to Sangsang.


    Momentster, the sound of an object flying in the sky over the Wilderness could be heard once more. Only this time, the sound was not like the whoosh before, but shriller and sharper.


    Ning Que looked up vigntly and saw a gleam of a sword speeding down against the ck clouds. It did not pierce down at the horse carriage, but at a slightly raised meadow on their left at an angle.


    The flying sword was very powerful as it pierced through the entire meadow. The tip of the sword emerged from the other end of the raised ground, smeared with ck mud and grass. It then fell to the ground; the bright sword suddenly darkenened, seeming as if it was weakening.


    The power behind the flying sword was so strong, it could only have been thrown by a powerhouse in the Knowing Destiny State.


    Ning Que looked at the flying sword behind the meadow and discovered that the sword had a hilt. He suddenly understood that the owner of the sword was a powerhouse from the Sword Garret of the South Jin Kingdom, and was most likely the person who had cut the Deste warrior in half.


    A Sword Garret powerhouse in the Knowing Destiny State was felled, just like that.


    Ning Que looked towards the battlefield in the south and watched as the changes in the Heaven and Earth¡¯s Qi grew stronger and stronger. He looked on as the sword and talisman shes grew increasingly frequent, and his expression grew increasingly solemn.


    The ck horse carriage was still quite a distance from the battlefield, but they had already seen the demise of two powerhouses. How many people were dying in the Wilderness at this moment?


    A thin bright line shed through Ning Que¡¯s eyes, which were followed by several more shes.


    He was watching the battlefield in the south, and the light in his eyes was what he saw over there.


    shes of thunder and lightning were raging on the distant battlefield. The shes of lightning were not as powerful as real lightning but were closer to the ground. They shed without stopping and moved around as if they were chasing after someone.


    How powerful was the cultivator who could call forth thunder and lightning?


    Ning Que thought about what he would do if he were the one pursued by those shes of lightning. He had no way to deal with them and could only be struck dead. There must also be more than one or two powerhouses of that caliber battling at the moment. What difference could he make if he brought Sangsang over there? Should they face death calmly or did he really expect something else to happen?


    Hundreds of thousands of people, along with countless horses and carriages appeared in one ce at the same time. That was truly terrifying. Neither Chang¡¯an nor the West-Hill Divine Pce would be able toplete a review of their troops. But in the vast Wilderness, there was enough room for a grand parade or even a battle like this.


    The new grass that had just emerged on the Wilderness was drenched in blood and trampled by horses. They had no choice but to die before their time. The grass roots were still there, but all evidence of green had been decimated. The sand that covered the ins had be a light dusting of ash that flew in all directions.


    The war between the Deste and the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army had already gone on for many days.


    Even though they were called natural-born warriors and had many powerhouses, the Deste Man¡¯s tribe had no way of defeating the entire world. They were already at a disadvantage at the beginning, and they lost the subsequent battles. They then retreated, and only held on because of their spirits, that had been polished by the millennia in the Cold Region of the Far North. However, everyone knew that the Deste would not be able to hold on for too long.


    The battle took ce on the 18th year of the Tang Empire¡¯s Tianqi era, the 3449th year of Dazhi in the West-Hill. It was very different from the numerous battles waged over the past years.


    In previous wars, cultivators always yed a supporting role. Regardless if they were Array Tactical Masters, Talisman Masters or Sword Masters who carried out assassinations, they were not the deciding factor in the oue of the war. However, in this war, cultivators were very important.


    The reason being that it was a holy warunched by the West-Hill Divine Pce. Cultivators from the countries in the Central ins had all gathered in the Wilderness. Their numbers had led to a great change in the scale of the war.


    Priests from the West-Hill Divine Pce, Haotian Taoism cultivation powerhouses from Taoist temples all over the world, cultivators from the South Jin Kingdom¡¯s Sword Garret, Haotian Taoism visiting professors from the Great River¡¯s ck Ink Garden, the rare Talisman Masters and Array Tactical Masters from the armies of all countries were participating in this war. On the battlefield in the Wilderness, the Qi of Heaven and Earth was controlled by several different threads of Psyche Power, pieces of Fu paper and tactical arrays. The rapid changes caused uneasiness and dramatic changes in nature.


    During thete spring in the Wilderness, torrential rain, snow, dew and wind urred from time to time before disappearing. Chaos and danger reigned on the battlefield and if not for the innately strong bodies the Deste had, and for the fact that theirmander had learned the skills of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine on the sly, they would have been defeated during the first attackunched by the Central ins cultivators and cavalry.


    Even though the Deste had managed to survive, many soldiers had died or were severely injured in the battles. Of course, there were even more soldiers from the Central ins who had died under their axes and many cultivators who had been killed by ordinary Deste soldiers.


    In short, today¡¯s Wilderness was like a waterwheel that pumped water continuously from streams formed by men to the wild. However, the water was made of blood and flesh.


    The invisible flesh and blood waterwheel on the Wilderness battlefield came to a slow stop as the two warring sides withdrew their troops temporarily. The West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army and the cultivators wearily returned to camp while the warriors from the Deste Man¡¯s tribe supported their even more exhausted bodies through the wild ins, searching for the bodies of theirpanions and noting down their names.


    There was a massive chariot in the middle of the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army.


    The chariot was three stories tall, and its base was made from a whole piece of bronze. The railings on the chariot were made of pure gold that glistened with holy light under the sun; it felt as if it would take away all the brilliance in the world. There was a balcony on the chariot, tucked behind curtains and gauze. No one could see what was inside, but they could make out a tall andrge figure.


    The chariot¡¯s terrace towered over the Wilderness. It was taller than the meadow stretching out in the distance. It also gave off a sense that it reached even higher than the goshawk flying in the sky.


    The tallest chariot was of course, for the tallest person.


    The tall figure on the chariot was the Hierarch Lord of the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    The most mysterious figure in the cultivation world had always been the Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation, the leader of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. However, there was another saying that the truly most mysterious person was the Hierarch of West-Hill Divine Pce.


    However, there wasn¡¯t a single person who would dare to use the word mysterious to describe him.


    Even the mysterious legends about the Hierarch Lord had an aura of awe and divinity.


    The Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce controlled all Haotian Taoism and had the power to overrule emperors in the secural realm. He was the most powerful person in the world and was worshiped by believers of all territories. He also surpassed the Tang Empire¡¯s emperor in terms of power.


    He was a bigwig standing on the top of the world, but not many have seen his face. The Hierarch Lord had never left Peach Mountain until he appeared in the Wilderness.

 Chapter 665 - The Northern Goshawk

    <h4>Chapter 665: The Northern Goshawk</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ten miles away from the east and west of the massive chariot where the Hierarch from the West-Hill Divine Pce was located were two other godly chariots. The one that was facing east, dark red in color and appearing deadly was the godly chariot of the Great Divine Priest of Judgment, Ye Hongyu. The one that was facing west with an elderly man sitting on it, whose face was filled with deep lines and wrinkles, it belonged to the Great Divine Priest of Revtion.


    Just as that ck horse carriage dashed out from the Deste Man¡¯s tribe and down south, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion, who had kept quiet since the start of the battle till now and had lowered his head to silently read the scriptures, he suddenly lifted his head and nced towards the northern Wilderness. He saw that row of dark clouds forming into a line and said gently, ¡°Pitch ck.¡±


    After a few moments, the tall and huge silhouette in top chamber of the massive chariot trembled and raised his head to nce at that dark cloud in the north. He said in a heavy voice, ¡°The dark night is falling. What are all of you waiting for?¡±


    The tone of the Hierarch Lord was not that heavy, yet his voice was extremely loud like thunder. As the loud voice echoed all around the massive chariots, the faces of the priests and the powerful men by the chariots turned pale immediately. After listening to the content and realized the hidden warning of the Hierarch Lord¡¯s words, their faces became paler.


    It was only a handful of people who could see that ck horse carriage like the Great Divine Priest of Revtion and the Hierarch Lord during the Wilderness battle; however, it was extremely eye-catching for that dark heavy cloud in the north to move south as the ck horse carriage moved. There was no need for a long time before everyone¡¯s attention was on that cloud in the sky.


    Dead silence fell onto the battle site where the camps of the two parties were located. Then a loud cheer sounded at the Deste¡¯s side, while the atmosphere at the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army became slightly tense. Some had even revealed a look of fear.


    Due to that battle, themander of the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s divine guard, Luo Kedi, left Ye Hongyu and returned to the Hierarch Lord¡¯s side. He was badly injured by Ning Que till he almost died at Chaoyang City, yet after a short period, his wounds seemed to heal. This might be because the Hierarch Lord had used the Divine Skill to heal him.


    Upon listening to the deafening order from the Hierarch Lord, Luo Kedi responded in a low tone. He then waved the g in his hand andmanded his Divine Hall coalition camps, which were stretched over 20 miles, to attack.


    The battle that was paused for a short moment was resumed. Under themand of the leader from the exhausted Divine Hall and the Divine Skill blessing from the priest in red, the battle seemed to regain its power and courage as it called upon the Deste towards the frontline. Numerous horses stomped across thend. The smoke and dust danced wildly in the sky. The entirend trembled restlessly.


    The Deste warriors were also extremely tired, but regardless if they were middle-aged men with slightly silver hairs, or even juvenile youngsters, they were all ready for battle. They did not cheer like the coalition forces from the Central ins, neither did they look excited. They just quietly and peacefully held on to the axes in their hands.


    Both parties met on the Wilderness atst. The axes met the knives. The fists met the horses¡¯ heads. The swords met the bodies. The talismans met the flying axes. Numerous heavy sounds shed with each other and sounded from the Wilderness. Countless war horses shrieked and fell onto the ground. Dozens of riders fell from the horses and onto the ground. Just as the Deste Men fell, countless sharp weapons decapitated them.


    Luo Kedi, who was on standby and stood beside the massive chariots, gazed at the tall and big silhouette in the top chamber. He knew that the Hierarch Lord was very displeased with the progress of the coalition forces. He bit his teeth tightly and roared as he lead his subodinate divine guard and a thousand of uparably powerful Papal Cavalrymen from the West-Hill Divine Pce toward the north.


    The two thousand Deste warriors, who remained behind the Deste Man¡¯s tribe and did not participate in the countless battles previously, stayed still as they watched the movement of the massive chariot. As they noticed that the West-Hill Divine Pce had finally made use of the legendary Papal Cavalrymen, these Deste warriors began to act as well, as they dashed their way to the frontline.


    Just then, a collection of hooves¡¯ sounds was heard from the west of the Wilderness. The sound of the hooves was very heavy, and this probably meant that the weight of the cavalry and war horses was simr. The sound was concentrated yet rhythmic. They were unlike torrential rain, but more simr to thousands of people beating the drums at the same time. One could imagine the discipline and superiority of these cavalries.


    More than 10 thousand of superior cavalries from the Tang Empire attacked again and within a very brief moment, the Deste who were battling on the right side could no longer contain the pressure. They began to have signs of breaking down.


    The leaders of the forces from the Tang and the Deste Man¡¯s tribe guessed the reason for the Divine Hall coalition armies to attack them crazily again¡ªthat ck horse carriage was the variable. For this might either be meaningless or it could directly modify the oue of the battle, they attacked without any hesitation or retreat.


    They had the confidence to withstand the attack of the Divine Hall coalition forces till the arrival of that ck horse carriage. Though many may die under this situation, when over ten thousand of the Tang cavalries dashed towards them, they sensed danger.


    Yet at this point, the battle field on the Wilderness was in a mess. The strongest warriors from the Tang and the tribe had no way to assist the Deste on the right. Moreover, even if they were to get there in time, they have no way of defeating these Tang riders who were already in the frontline.


    Hence, they continued to kill the people in the middle silently and violently, hoping that this would damage the vibe in the Divine Hall coalition armies, or even better, to destroy those legendary Papal Cavalrymen. If they could aplish that, this would probably not be a definite defeat for them. They could perhaps have a chance of winning, or at least, dying the moment when all Deste Men were destroyed.


    In the middle of the Divine Hall coalition armies were the South Jin Kingdom troops. The South Jin Kingdom always thought of themselves as the world¡¯s second strongest nation and the South Jin Kingdom cavalries boasted themselves as the world¡¯s second strongest troop as well, until they arrived at the Wilderness. After battling with the Deste Men, they finally understood how embarrassing such boasting was. Moreover, at this point, they were faced with the powerful attack from over two thousand of the strongest warriors from the Deste Men. Their formation was in a mess, and there were a few cultivators who were stomped to death by the horses.


    The powerful man from the Sword Garret of the South Jin Kingdom, Cheng Ziqing, wore an ordinary South Jin Kingdom cavalry uniform and rode on horseback. Though he was waving the sword in his hand left and right to kill the opponents, his eyes were fixed on that powerful leader of the Deste Men, who was located several hundred feet away.


    That powerful Deste Men leader was extremely strong. There were already three disciples from the Sword Garret who were shocked to death by him and at least more than ten South Jin Kingdom cavalries had been mmed by his metal rod looking weapon.


    At this moment, the situation of the South Jin Kingdom cavalries was terrible. If that leader was to dash towards them, they would definitely be panicking and the troops in the middle would be destroyed. As such, the Deste Men coulde face-to-face with the Papal Cavalrymen from the West-Hill Divine Pce. From the look of the Deste Men¡¯s vibe, they seemed to have the objective of swallowing the one thousand Papal Cavalrymen alive.


    Cheng Ziqing¡¯s face was instantly pale. A clean sword style seemed to seep out from the ordinary military uniform on his body. His sword left his hand and turned into a rainbow, as it aimed straight for that Deste Man¡¯s leader.


    A sharp stabbing sound was heard. That flying sword, which was filled with his lifetime¡¯s cultivation, had directly sliced across the abdomen of that Deste Men¡¯s leader. Fresh blood burst out like rain, yet the sword style was not done yet. Its hilt dragged that Deste Man¡¯s leader lower body, flung it across the sky and far back to the Wilderness.


    Numerous Deste Men appeared to be stricken by grief as they pounced onto Cheng Ziqing.


    Cheng Ziqing¡¯s expression did not change. He used his finger as a sword and fought that handful of Deste Men to the ground easily. As a powerful man from the Sword Garret of the South Jin Kingdom, who has cultivated to a state just below the Sword Sage, Liu Bai, he was still considered as a Grand Cultivator among the Knowing Destiny State cultivators. How could the average Deste Men defeat him? After all, he had kept low-profile on the previous battles just to aplish this stunning attack.


    Now that he had aplished his objective, he would not be keen to fight further. No matter how powerful a cultivator was, his body was still weak. In this battle which was replete with flying axes, arrows and the tremor of Qi of Heaven and Earth, he could just be killed at any time due to some unknown reasons. Moreover, after using the strongest attack he had everunched in his entire life, he was in need for some rest through meditation.


    Cheng Ziqing raised his finger in the air and was preparing to recall his flying sword. Just then, he heard drum-like footsteps in the battle from a distance. His facial expression changed dramatically.


    Every footstep sounded like drum beats. That person was moving at a rapid speed, but what¡¯s faster was the fist. That horrifying and burning fist style, which was a hundred feet away, was aiming towards Cheng Ziqing¡¯s face!


    Cheng Ziqing¡¯s Psyche Power was already drained by then. His body was exhausted and he was unsure how far his Natal Sword had flown. How else could he defend himself against this horrifying fist style? He could just wait for his death.


    ¡°Ka Cha!¡± A crisp noise was heard. A thunder force sted in front of his body.


    That fist style and thunder sound shed, producing an extremely strong wave in the Heaven and Earth¡¯s aura. Cheng Ziqing¡¯s horse beneath him was instantly killed by the tremor. His body was also thrown back by the tremor as he fell heavily onto the ground.


    A retching sound was heard. Cheng Ziqing¡¯s face became as white as a sheet. He could not stop puking blood. With the help of that thunder force, he was fortunate to dodge that horrifying fist style, though he was still badly injured by the waves produced in the Qi of Heaven and Earth when the two forces collided.


    What was serious was that he had lost the connection he had with his own Natal Sword. After that incident in the autumn beforest year in the Lanke Temple, this powerful man from the Sword Garret of the South Jin Kingdom had lost his Natal Sword after Ning Que destroyed it with an arrow. With the help of his senior brother, Liu Bai, he had finally cultivated his second Natal Sword. Its power was better than before. Now that it had been destroyed again, the damage suffered by him was unimaginably scary.


    The first thunder sound roared, followed by the second.


    The thunder roar continuously sounded on the Wilderness and an unusually thin lightning shone onto the smoke and dust. That lightning was not from the sky, but from a space that was a hundred feet away from the Wilderness. It had suddenly appeared before it suddenlynded.


    The force of these lightnings was not as terrifying as the natural urring ones, but if they were tond on any human being, they would still produce a horrifying killing force. No matter how strong Deste warriors were, upon contact, they would definitely be turned into flying ashes.


    However, the weird thing was that these empty looking lightnings had not attacked any Deste warriors which were scattered all over the battle field. Instead, they suddenly disappeared and appeared, as though they were pursuing someone. They were like swords that possessed spirituality.


    There was a type of northen goshawk in the Wilderness. Its nest had long been stomped upon by numerous horses¡¯ hooves into ruin. That northen goshawk was in fear as it flew around in the sky. It did not bear to leave the ce, but it was not able to get its nest back.


    As the thunder roared, it could no longer suppress the fear in it as it shrieked twice and flew far away into the sky, abandoning its babies in the nest.


    The goshawk did not dare to fly north since there was a dark cloud in the north. It could only fly higher towards the south. The higher it flew, the smaller the humans on the Wilderness looked, and gradually, they looked like closelypacted ants.


    If the Firmament had eyes, these humans who had forgotten about death and killing one another on the Wilderness would probably look like small ck dots that were tinier than ants. It would, perhaps, wonder orugh at everything that was happening.

 Chapter 666 - Cries of The Desolate

    <h4>Chapter 666: Cries of The Deste</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    No one knew if Haotian would smile when humans thought. And no one knows it Haotian smiled when humans waged war. However, in the end, both thinking and going to war were matters rted to mankind. No matter whether Haotian smiled or not, men would still continue to do both. They would think and ponder or shed blood.


    The goshawk flew away, and the dark cloud approached. The war in the Wilderness continued, and at every moment, someone fell. Swords were broken and blood flowed. The dust gradually settled; perhaps because the cavalry was not able to rush at high speeds or because thends were dampened by blood and littered with bodies.


    In the middle of the battlefield, the powerful Deste Man soldiers continued to rush forward, tearing out a huge portion of the cavalry from the South Jin Kingdom. The legendary powerful Papal Cavalrymen of the West-Hill Divine Pce were destabilized by them. Of course, they also paid a heavy price for this. Many Deste Man warriors were felled on the path they charged on.


    Leather coats and sleeves fluttered in the wind, tinged with a heavy scent of blood... and from there, emerged a shadow. Tang, who was bathed in blood, tore through the battlefield like a burning rock, causing more than ten warhorses to be thrown into the air. He tore apart several priests from the West-Hill Divine Pce with his bare hands before reaching Luo Kedi.


    Blood flowed from Tang¡¯s body like a waterfall. It wasn¡¯t his; it all belonged to his enemies. An organ of a priest hung above his shoulder, looking extremely gory.


    Luo Kedi knew who he was and his face paled suddenly as fear overtook him. He instinctively wanted to hide or run but knew that Tang would pulverize him if he did so. Even if he were to survive by sheer luck, the Hierarch Lord would definitely bestow onto him a more miserable fate.


    There was a sharp bellow as Luo Kedi waved his divine de and brought it down on Tang¡¯s head. The de whistled sharply in the air as the gold runes on the de suddenly lit up. The power of the de grew instantly.


    Tang looked at the falling de with a deadpanned expression. He punched out with his mountainous fist, whichnded squarely on Luo Kedi¡¯s de. The de cracked and its hilt shuddered. The hilt which Luo Kedi was holding split open, and then, a terrifyingly immense power traveled up along his arm and assaulted him.


    There was a loud crack, and his shoulder de broke. Blood gushed out madly from Luo Kedi¡¯s severed appendage. His left arm had be a de and shed down viciously onto his shoulder. He was fortunate to survive the assault by breaking the assaulting force through forced resistance.


    Tang leaped into the air just as Luo Kedi fell to the ground. Tang smashed his foot toward Luo Kedi¡¯s head. As he watched the nearing sole caked in blood and mud, a look of despair crossed Luo Kedi¡¯s eyes.


    What he was feeling right now, was exactly like how Cheng Ziqing had felt earlier when he sensed the terrifying zing fist. However, like Cheng Ziqing, the lightning strike had saved his life, just mere moments before being at death¡¯s door.


    The thunder and lightning just above the Wilderness had been pursuing Tang for a long time, but had not managed to catch up. However, they managed to catch him, just as he seriously injured Luo Kedi.


    Tang smashed his foot down onto the ground, forcing the lightning strike into it. The ground of the Wilderness, which had been moistened by blood, shook and blood squeezed out from between the torn up grass and branches.


    There was a roar of lightning and a Taoist Sword appeared, stabbing through Tang¡¯s abdomen.


    Tang was a Wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He might even be thest of its wayfarers. He was very powerful and not even the Sword Garret powerhouse, Cheng Ziqing was his match, much less Luo Kedi.


    There were barely any swords in this world that could pierce through his body. But he had been stabbed by one.


    Even so, with the hardness of Tang¡¯s body, it would be difficult to find a sword that could pierce straight through him. However, this sword had managed to pierce his skin, going deep into his body. Blood oozed from the edge of the sword.


    It was not a sharp and unparalleled precious sword, nor was it the undefeatable sword by the quiet pool of the Sword Garret. It was a thin wooden sword that looked exactly the same as it did ten years ago, except that it now had a hilt.


    The person holding the hilt was naturally Ye Su.


    Tang was the World Wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine while Ye Su was Haotian Taoism¡¯s World Wayfarer. The two were like the two surfaces of Earth, that would eventually collide and then meet in a deadly battle.


    They were both standing at the very peak of the world, and each had their own pride. Ye Su had faced the Academy¡¯s jun Mo at the Lanke Temple. Jun Mo had turned away, and so had he. Evaluating the current battle in the Wilderness, he had disdainfully dismissed the thought of killing ordinary Deste Man warriors. Instead, he focused his energy on Tang alone.


    Of course, there was no such thing as absolute fairness. Other than having to avoid Ye Su¡¯s sword, Tang also had to protect his tribesman and fight the powerhouses of Haotian Taoism. Most importantly, he had led the Deste Man¡¯s tribe to battle against the Central ins on the Wilderness for many days. To be more precise, he had already been fighting for several years.


    Ye Su, who had been mentally prepared for this, was at his very peak. Against the weary Tang, the result of the battle was not difficult to imagine. The wooden sword pierced deeply into Tang¡¯s abdomen before roaring thunderously.


    A bright red wound appeared on Tang¡¯s abdomen. Blood flowed from his eyes, mouth and nose. This was no longer the blood of his enemy, but his own.


    Tang was seriously injured just as the two met. However, he did not reveal anything on his face and did not look as if he was fearful.


    His legs suddenly burst into mes. The brilliant red me was likeva from a volcano; zingly hot and weighing down. His right leg left the ground at an odd angle, and then, he kicked downwards!


    He was clearly standing on the ground and his right leg was only raised up mid-waist. However, when his right leg fell, his leather boots seemed to be stomping right down from the sky!


    There was a sharp clink. Tang¡¯s right foot stepped on the wooden sword viciously and broke it in two.


    The wooden sword was stuck deep in his belly. Tang¡¯s right foot stepping on the wooden sword meant that he had stomped on his abdomen, stirring up his insides. However, he remained expressionless.


    Ye Su¡¯s face was slightly pale. He released the hilt in his right hand and abandoned the sword without hesitating. His thin taoist robe danced lightly in the Wilderness¡¯ wind. An ethereal Qi of Heaven and Earth struck him, causing him to fly about a hundred feet backwards with the wind.


    Tang¡¯s right fist that was like a mountain was tightly clenched and hung by his waist. He was about to strike out but had not because Ye Su had already disappeared from his side and he would only strike at empty air if he were to do so.


    Blood poured out unceasingly. A look of exhaustion finally appeared on Tang¡¯s face. He reached to pull out the remaining half of the wooden sword that was buried in his abdomen. Then, he slowly knelt on one knee and panted heavily.


    The most powerful of The Deste, Tang, had been seriously injured by Ye Su, the World Wayfarer of Haotian Taoism. It seemed as if the result of the war was evident at this height of the battle in the Wilderness.


    The sounds of fighting on the battlefield gradually sank. The Deste swift advance had eventually been blocked by the South Jin Kingdom cavalry and West-Hill Divine Pce Papal Cavalrymen. The presence of the Tang riders in the west, numbered in the ten thousands was also overwhelming.


    Just before the Deste Man¡¯s tribe faced extinction, a low and neat chanting rose. The injured Deste warriors who could no longer fight began to sing a passage in the scripture, along several senior statesmen.


    That passage was not long, but its sybles were veryplicated. They were obviously not charactersmonly used in the Central ins. The Deste used Central ins writing, but it was more simr to the primitive characters used in the western parts of the Yuelun Kingdom in ancient times. Not even the Deste warriors and senior statesmen who led the singing knew that the passage originated from the legendary ¡°Ming¡± Handscroll from the Tomes of the Arcane.


    As the sound of the scriptures reverberated in the Wilderness, a breath of aura began to emerge on the battlefield. The aura was extremely benevolent and oddly silent. It was as if it came from the blood and the twisted or mutted bodies on the battlefield, fully exhibiting the meaning of death and reincarnation.


    With the help of a young man, the First Elder of the Deste Man¡¯s tribe stood up with great difficulty. He looked at Tang, who went down on one knee in the middle of the battlefield, and a decisive look appeared between the deep wrinkles on his face.


    The First Elder began to recite the scripture as well. It was the same passage. His voice was hoarse but grand and bright. Like the wind, it scraped the Wilderness like a cry.


    The tall figure standing on the huge chariot¡¯s tform, in the middle of the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army, froze slightly. The Hierarch Lord listened to the sound of scriptures being chanted on the Wilderness. He listened to the cry of the Deste Man senior statesman. He thought silently, that if not for the monks of the Xuankong Temple who had disobeyed orders and refused to aid in the war in the Wilderness, the man would not even have this opportunity to fight for his life.


    In the absence of the Buddhism Sect¡¯s Bhadanta from the Xuankong Temple, someone had to fight The Deste First Elder. Otherwise, allowing the old man¡¯s chanting was like a cry to continue on the battlefield; both the allied forces of the countries in the Central ins and the West-Hill Divine Pce Papal Cavalrymen would have to pay a very bitter price.


    The tall figure on the massive chariot could only protect himself in the face of the chanting of The Deste First Elder. If so, then who was qualified to fight him? Within the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army, only an old man was qualified.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion¡¯s wrinkles grew deeper as he listened to the chanting that came from the far north. He listened to the old man¡¯s cry and said calmly, ¡°It was prophesized that light is in darkness.¡±


    And then, he said, ¡°It was prophesized, that kindness is found in sacrifice.¡±


    Finally, he said, ¡°It was prophesized, that the beginning of man is in the light.¡±


    With these three statements, the wrinkles on the Great Divine Priest of Revtion¡¯s face seemed to be so deep, they looked as if they were carved into his flesh, blood and even the bones of his cheeks. Two thick trails of blood flowed from the corner of his eye.


    Around the divine chariot on which the Great Divine Priest of Revtion sat, there were seven priests in red. Their faces were withered, and their ck hair suddenly turned snow white. They suddenly aged decades, and had long stopped breathing.


    The Deste First Elder slowly closed his eyes and fell back.


    The young soldier who was helping him stand hugged the body, speechless with sorrow. The wounded Deste around him struggled to stand and then knelt.


    The First Elder¡¯s spirit was strong. Compared to the Great Divine Priest of Revtion, however, who was the strongest of all the West-Hill Divine Pces, there was still a minute difference. That was why he had died.


    This was a seemingly simple but actually extremely dangerous war. The Great Divine Priest of Revtion had consumed the lives of the seven priests in red before securing victory. Meanwhile, The Deste First Elder had not used a single Deste Man until his death.


    In this sense, it was unknown who was stronger.

 Chapter 667 - Sending Arrows with a Song

    <h4>Chapter 667: Sending Arrows with a Song</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    As for the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army, the Emperor of the South Jin Kingdom had stayed in Capital Cheng while the Crown Prince personally led the troops into the Wilderness. The troop had suffered great losses in the previous battle. Several powerhouses from the Sword Garret had either been injured or killed while the Great Divine Priest of Revtion had been severely injured. However, the true strength of the forces was not greatly affected.


    There were also many Haotian Taoism visiting professors like those from the ck Ink Garden of the Great River Kingdom who chose to wait silently.


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgment, Ye Hongyu who was waiting in the blood-colored chariot had not yet made any moves today. In a battle several days earlier, she had killed three leading Deste warriors and exhibited her terrifying true cultivation state. It was important to note that the leaders of the Deste warriors were close to the Peak state of Martial Arts.


    The tall figure of the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s Hierarch remained in the massive chariot. The Tang cavalry did not demonstrate all their strength in their multiple assaults.


    The senior statesmen of the Deste Man¡¯s tribe were being killed and wounded. The First Elder had died on the spot while their most powerful fighter Tang, was seriously injured. There were more than tenmanding warriors who were either injured or dead. The West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army was still just as powerful and had many cards in their hands. How could The Deste not feel despondent?


    The battlefield gradually rested for a little while. Then, the Divine Pce coalition army sounded their drums once more and the troops regrouped, prepared tounch their final attack against the Deste Man¡¯s tribe in the north.


    Tens of thousands of Deste warriors were severely injured or dead. Despite to their strong bodies and will, the majority of them were gravely injured and could no longer fight. Their tribesmen watched Tang, who was kneeling on a single knee in the middle of the battlefield. They knew that the time for their extinction had finallye; their struggles over the millennium and their dreams were all about to vanish.


    All was silent in the Wilderness. Then, someone led the masses through a song. The mournful tune floated in the air while rough voices echoed throughout the Wilderness.


    ¡°The sky turns cold; the earth bes cold too. Goshawks daren¡¯t look northward.¡±


    ¡°The Hot Sea ebbs; the Hot Sea rises. Snow wolves are being hunted by the Hot Sea.¡±


    ¡°Snow wolves are being chased; Snow wolves are dead. All day busy searching for deer.¡±


    ¡°Where to live; where to die. Where to bury white bones.¡±


    ¡°Min Mountain was grand; Min Mountain was majestic. Min Mountain was the real hometown.¡±


    ¡°Walk through the vast snow; step on the thick frost. All day looking southward.¡±


    ¡°Walk through the vast snow; step on the thick frost. No longer looking southward.¡±


    ¡°I go first, and youe after me.¡±


    ¡°I fight first, and youe after me.¡±


    ¡°I die first, and youe after me.¡±


    ¡°The homeward journey is near; the homeward journey is far. It¡¯s on my way.¡±


    ¡°I have gone, and you ought toe soon.¡±


    ¡°I have fought, and you ought toe soon.¡±


    ¡°I have died, and you ought toe soon.¡±


    ¡°I have died, and you ought toe soon.¡±


    ...


    ...


    This was a song about their homnd passed down for millennia in the Deste Man¡¯s tribe. After thousands of years of snowstorms, they had finally left the Cold Region of the Far North, the Hot Sea and the snow ins to return to their homnd. However, they were not greeted by flowers or passionate wees. Instead, they faced indifferent gazes and bloody battles, resulting in their extinction and the tragedy they faced.


    In the past, The Deste would sing the song solemnly and stirringly. Sometimes, it would be majestic and calm. However, the tens of thousands of Deste warriors who were dead or injured sat on the blood sttered ins pooled with blood; their voices were hoarse and their singing messy. When their voices rose and fell, it seemed especially mournful, rushing straight into the sky.


    Suddenly there was the sound of horse hooves and wheels. The rumbling sound of movement made its way into the Deste¡¯s mournful song. However, their rhythm was not disrupted as their song no longer had a joint rhythm. Instead, it gave the song some sort of stable rhythm that was calm, steady and indifferent.


    Clouds covered the sky in the northern Wilderness as a ck horse carriage headed towards the clouds.


    The Deste looked at the carriage and helped each other up with difficulty. The old veterans with white hair, young soldiers, strong men with broken legs and serious injuries and women covered in blood all looked at the ck horse carriage with awe and fear. Then, hope emerged in their expressions.


    Proud knees fell on the blood-soaked grounds. Where the ck horse carriage passed, the Deste knelt and kowtowed. Some of the seriously wounded Deste soldiers could not get up anymore once they knelt, and passed away.


    Tang knelt on one knee on the middle of the battlefield in Wilderness. His left knee had sunk deeply into the mud, squeezing out numerous streams of ck liquid. It might be the milk of the Wilderness or the blood of his tribesmen. He stared at the massive chariot in silence and at the barely discernable tall figure on the tform as he adjusted his breath.


    The Deste were facing extinction. As the World Wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and the leader of their fight, he could not ept this fact. He had to make the West-Hill Divine Pce pay a terrible price before he died.


    At this moment, in the Wilderness, the most important and noble person to the countries in the Central ins was naturally the Hierarch Lord of the West-Hill Divine Pce who was on the massive chariot. He was Tang¡¯s ultimate goal in life.


    Then, he heard the singing of his tribesmen wavering behind him. He heard the clopping of hooves and the rumbling of wheels. He turned around and saw the ck horse carriage.


    There was a thinyer of frost on the ck horse carriage while the insides of the carriage were covered with a thickyer of ice. The Fire Fu in the brass basin froze in the cold and looked like a ghost fire that could extinguish at any moment.


    The cold aura within Sangsang had long been aroused and had finally erupted. However, both she and Ning Que did not know what the Yama¡¯s imprint in her would evolve to.


    Frost clung on to Ning Que¡¯sshes. The faint light streaming through the windows were refracted by it, turning into seven rays of colored light. He listened to the song of The Desteing through the windows and said, ¡°I go first, and youe after me.¡±


    Sangsang hummed in agreement andid her head on his chest. She said, ¡°I die first, and youe after me.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°I die first, and youe after me. Or maybe, we will die together.¡±


    The West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army descended into silence when they saw the ck horse carriage appearing in the Wilderness. The allied forces which were gathering grew somewhat chaotic while the powerhouses with terrifying cultivation states were silent.


    The entire world started to go after the ck horse carriage since the Light of Buddha erupted in the Lanke Temple two years ago. The war on the Wilderness had started because of the ck horse carriage. However, they were at a loss about what to do when the ck horse carriage finally appeared before them today.


    No one gave any orders, and the tall figure on therge chariot looked up in silence. The West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army stopped in their tracks, waiting for the final military order.


    The ck horse carriage stopped in front of The Deste.


    There was a creak as the snow and ice on the carriage shook and peeled off.


    The door opened and Sangsang, who was dressed in ck fur, stepped out.


    She looked at the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army in the south and took a few steps forward. With every step she took, the ground in contact with her soles froze, forming into a mass of ice and snow.


    It was as if she was walking on pure lotus flowers made of snow.


    Dark clouds covered the vast skies above the Wilderness. There were more than ten ck crows circling the skies above Sangsang, making the whole situation seem strange.


    Everyone in the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army in the south watched on and began to feel an odd emotion. It was a negative emotion that was thebination of horror, awe, aversion and destruction.


    In the blood-red divine chariot, Ye Hongyu propped up her jaw with her hand and looked quietly at the north. She looked tired. Unlike the ordinary soldiers, she was not shocked by the ck horse carriage and the Daughter of Yama. She felt many warring emotions, and also confusion. Where was Ning Que?


    Suddenly, her eyes brightened, and like a waterfall, her ck hair floated up sharply. She bent back without hesitation, following the lead of her wildly dancing ck hair and fell heavily like a tree that had been cut.


    Ning Que was not by Sangsang¡¯s side or inside the ck horse carriage.


    He had already left the horse carriage discreetly, using the song of The Deste as a cover to appear at the frontlines of the Deste Men. He stood in the middle of the kneeling crowd of pious and respectful Deste.


    When everyone was looking at Sangsang, he knelt on the ground with a knee and pulled on the string of his bow with his right hand. His iron bow bent sharply as he aimed at the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army several miles away in the south. Then, his bowstring sagged.


    The Primordial Thirteen Arrows were made with the collective intelligence of the Academy resources of the Tang Empire. In terms of power, it wasparable to legendary weapons of the previous generation.


    The Primordial Thirteen Arrows could ignore space and would not lose any power no matter the distance they had to cross. That was why the further the enemy was from him in a battle, the better it was for Ning Que.


    That was because it would be difficult for his enemies to make predictions based on his movement and his eyes.


    Because of these characteristics, the Primordial Thirteen Arrows were best suited for ambushes on the battlefield. It could be said that it was invincible and had no disadvantages. However, its only limitation was whether Ning Que could see his target and aim at them.


    At this time, the two armies were separated by several miles and were so far away that ordinary arrows and flying swords could not be of use. However, Ning Que could see all the details of the opposition¡¯s frontline that stretched more than 20 miles and could aim better than anyone.


    Whoosh Whoosh Whoosh Whoosh Whoosh!


    Ning Que knelt on one knee, hidden amongst The Deste. He moved quickly, shooting five arrows in a sh.


    He knew that there were not many opportunities left for him today. He had to seize and make full use of this opportunity, which meant that he had to achieve sufficient goals in his first wave of attack.


    The first arrow was the most sudden and most difficult to defend against. It had the greatest chance of sess. The target he chose was, of course, the most important person and the person who could cause the greatest change in the direction of the war.


    It was an easy choice to make. Just like how Tang had chosen to kill that person using hisst breath, Ning Que had unhesitatingly chosen to shoot the first arrow at the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s Hierarch.


    It all happened ording to Ning Que¡¯s expectations. The battlefields were far apart. It was different from the confrontations where he used the Primordial Thirteen Arrows in the Lanke Temple and in Chaoyang City. No one could predict his actions.


    At least, no one would know that an iron arrow had left the bowstring when the first smack of string reverberated in the Wilderness. Logically speaking, no one could avoid the arrow as the Primordial Thirteen Arrows traveled forth, disregarding time and space.


    Not even the Hierarch of West-Hill Divine Pce could.


    A visible white current sprang behind the string, not yetpletely formed. The darkish iron arrow had already disappeared. It appeared the next moment on the massive chariot in the south, in the top chamber behindyers of gauze curtains, striking the tall figure in the head.


    Theyers of gauze blocked the light.


    The iron had pierced the figure¡¯s skull but seemed to have hit its shadow. The arrow passed silently, and then, the arrow appeared, tearing through countlessyers of heavy curtains and disappearing into the distant sky of the south.


    The tall figure leaned forward slightly and looked toward the north of the Wilderness. He seemed uninjured and interested, wanting to see how the person who sent the arrow looked like.

 Chapter 668 - Between Shooting and Not Shooting

    <h4>Chapter 668: Between Shooting and Not Shooting</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The first arrow, which looked like it would seed, failed in the end. Ning Que didn¡¯t show any frustration and his calm expression seemed to show that he had expected it. The white turbulence gathered as the following four arrows that were shot traveled as fast as lightning.


    The Hierarch Lord of the West-Hill Divine Pce could not be killed so easily. If he could be shot with a single arrow on the battlefield, all the legends in the West-Hill ssics would be a joke.


    ording to the rules on the battlefield, since Ning Que wasn¡¯t confident, he shouldn¡¯t have used the precious chance of the first arrow on the Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce. However, today¡¯s battlefield was different from a normal one. If Ning Que could not kill him, no matter how many people he killed, he wouldn¡¯t be able to change the current situation. Moreover, nobody else could hold back the temptation of bringing down the Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce. He wasn¡¯t willing to give up without a try.


    Ning Que¡¯s target sequence was normal. The stronger person or the one that was most threatening would be at the front of the list. The first person to be shot was the Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce while the next in line would naturally be Ye Hongyu.


    In the blood-red chariot, Ye Hongyu¡¯s ck hair strands were like arrows. Her body was shaped like a broken arrow as she bent backward and fell. At that moment, the iron arrow was there and with a swish, the chariot was blown into countless pieces.


    Several strands of ck hair fell as a stream of blood flowed down her forehead. Ye Hongyunded on the floor of the chariot; her blood red robe was spread out like the sunset clouds. It was supposed to be a beautiful scene but it looked extremely embarrassing.


    However, no matter how embarrassed she was, she managed to survive. However, the thought of that iron arrow that was incredibly close to her eyebrows and the thought of being so close to death had left her with a pale face.


    Ning Que¡¯s third arrow was aimed at the Great Divine Priest of Revtion.


    Earlier on, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion had battled against the First Elder of the Deste Man with their psyche. Even though he had won, he had paid an incredibly huge price. At the moment, he was meditating in the chariot, attempting to recover as soon as possible.


    At this moment, the Hierarch of West-Hill Divine Pce was able to react on time. Therge figure in the chariot¡¯s top chamber immediately straightened up, as a thunderous scream sounded throughout the Wilderness.


    A bolt of lightning exploded in front of the chariot of the Great Divine Priest of Revtion. Countless streaks of white lightning didn¡¯t stop churning, almost as if it was going to suck everything that entered the ball of lightning.


    The iron arrow was shot into the lightning ball as it was slowly stripped, bing thinner. However, it wasn¡¯tpletely swallowed up. It became a thin shadow as it shot past the lightning and entered the chariot.


    The iron arrow had been weakened by the lightning ball from the Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce. Its powers were greatly weakened.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion extended his right hand and lightly picked up the iron arrow that was right next to his face. His actions were smooth, almost like using a chopstick to pick food; but then again, it was like holding up a picture.


    However, his expression was anything but rxed. The wrinkles on his face got even deeper; the edge of his eyes started bleeding and at the end, blood even started flowing from his wrinkles. Only then did the iron arrow between his fingers calmed down.


    The meditation of the Great Divine Priest of Revtion was interrupted by the Primordial Thirteen Arrows. Suffering another one after a major injury would leave him unable to battle in the short term. He wouldn¡¯t be able to join in the final battle today.


    Ning Que¡¯s third arrow had perfectly shown the intention of a fight. However, no one would have thought that his third arrow had another even more important motive; it was to provide cover for the fourth arrow.


    His fourth arrow was shot into the middle of the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army again. The arrow cluster wasn¡¯t directed at the chariot where the Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce was standing but rather, at Luo Kedi who was beside it.


    Back in Chaoyang City, Luo Kedi had been seriously injured by his arrow. His throat was pierced and Ning Que had no idea how he survived, and even restored his cultivation. The West-Hill Divine Pce most probably had a secret Divine Skill, but he was determined to not give the West-Hill Divine Pce any chance to heal anyone today.


    The Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce had blocked an arrow for the Great Divine Priest of Revtion and hence, had no time to bother about the arrow that was shooting towards Luo Kedi. This was because no matter how strong he was, he was only human and there were some things he couldn¡¯t do.


    The iron arrow urately pierced through Luo Kedi¡¯s throat, almost like the thread in a maiden¡¯s hand passing through the eye of a needle. It was rxed and casual yet had a pleasing feeling to it.


    Blood sttered slightly as the iron arrow disappeared into the Wilderness.


    The neck bone became powder while the blood and flesh turned into foam.


    Luo Kedi¡¯s eyes were somewhat lost; he had no idea what had just happened.


    He wanted to look at his aching throat, worried that he wouldn¡¯t be able to speak again.


    Once he lowered his head, it fell.


    His body was huge like a mountain.


    His head falling was almost like a rock falling from the mountain peak.


    Landing on the ground, it gave off a dull thud.


    The divine guards of the West-Hill Divine Pce surrounded the body of Luo Kedi. Looking at theirmander being beheaded like this, an intense fear rose from within their eyes followed by grief.


    At this moment, a deafening scream and wailing sounded from nearby. They looked back in astonishment as they saw chaos in the military camp of the South Jin Kingdom. They had no idea what was happening.


    On the floor of the Military camp of the South Jin Kingdom was a huge pool of blood with pieces of flesh in it. There was a body torn in half that had golden-rimmed cloud boots on its feet. The person was probably from the royal family.


    A few eunuchs and some professionals from the Sword Garret of the South Jin Kingdom turned pale, looking at the pool of blood and flesh. They trembled in fear and one even fainted in tears.


    ¡°Your Highness... your Highness...¡±


    A general from the South Jin Kingdom knelt beside the bloody pool. With a pale face, terror filled his eyes and he seemed to have been scared out of his mind. He couldn¡¯t stop shouting, almost as if he wanted to revive the person from the ghastly remains.


    If he couldn¡¯t be revived, the general would definitely die. Countless people from the South Jin Kingdom¡¯s military and eunuchs in the Wilderness would be turn into simr pools of blood and flesh in the near future.


    This was Ning Que¡¯s fifth arrow.


    The crown prince of the South Jin Kingdom that was supposed to rece themander of the king¡¯s army also died very cleanly.


    All were silent in the Wilderness.


    Whether it was the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army or the Deste Man¡¯s tribe, in this short period of time, no one spoke. Everyone was shocked beyond words and some had even lost their spirit.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army was on the verge of victory. They just had to ride forward and they could cut off all the heads of the Deste Men topletely exterminate them. At this moment, 5 steel arrows flew from the Wilderness.


    The 5 arrows were for 5 people.


    The Hierach of the West-Hill Divine Pce, the 2 Great Divine Priests of West-Hill, the divine guards of the Divine Hall¡¯smander, Luo Kedi as well as the crown prince of the South Jin Kingdom. Anyone of them was extremely important. Especially the 4 of them besides Luo Kedi, they were looking at gaining power or were already in power. They were existences as lofty and precious as a king. The Hierarch Lord of the West-Hill Divine Pce and the 2 Great Divine Priests of West-Hill were existences that could even count as almost godly.


    For the past years, who would dareunch such an attack at the 5 of them at once? If someone heard of such a situation, one would think that the person was not in his right mind.


    However, the result of these five arrows was that the Great Divine Priest of Revtion was severely injured, so he could no longer fight and was forced to stay away from today¡¯s battle; the Great Divine Priest of Judgment was in a mess to escape from any sufferings; Luo Kedi and the crown prince of the South Jin Kingdom died.


    The targets that Ning Que had chosen weren¡¯t only considering their powers and prestige; it was mostly evaluated from a battle angle. The key was that he had the ability to carry out such strategy.


    Luo Kedi was the most trusted subordinate of the Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce. They represented the direct powers of those who were loyal to the Hierarch Lord. Having such a terrible death, these powers would definitely be uneasy and some might even have other ideas.


    The South Jin Kingdom¡¯s army was one of the main forces of the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army and had always stayed beside the Hierarch¡¯s chariot. The death of the South Jin Crown Prince would definitely bring about chaos to the South Jin Kingdom Army, because of the enormous psychological impact on the generals and cavalries. The South Jin Kingdom Army¡¯sbat prowess would decrease sharply.


    If his first arrow could really kill the Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce, even if it was a serious injury, today¡¯s situation would most possibly have a decisive change because of the five arrows.


    From a strategic standpoint, the general of the Tang Empire¡¯s cavalry, as well as the Great River Kingdom¡¯s Master of Calligraphy who were of the highest state cultivators in the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army would appear as being better qualified as targets for the iron arrows than Luo Kedi and the Crown Prince of South Jin Kingdom.


    However for some reason, Ning Que didn¡¯t choose them.


    To the east of the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army, the disciples of the ck Ink Garden of the Great River Kingdom showedplicated emotions on their faces. Zhuo Zhihua looked at her teacher¡¯s wide back and wanted to say something but didn¡¯t in the end.


    The Master of Calligraphy Wang looked at the north in silence, his brows slightly furrowed.


    The disciples of the ck Ink Garden and him had seen the 5 arrows. They saw the horrifying destruction they had caused and even though he had been in the Knowing Destiny State for so many years, he wasn¡¯t sure what would happen if those arrows were for him.


    Moreover, despite how humble he was, he clearly knew that within the coalition army today, he was supposed to get one of the arrows. There was only one reason why Ning Que hadn¡¯t shot him.


    The left shoulder of Cat Girl was hurt. There was a bandage wrapped around it and her lovely little face was extremely pale. She said with a tearful voice, ¡°Do we really have to fight with Brother Ning?¡±


    At the west of the Wilderness, the Tang Army was at the front.


    General Xian Zhng who had reced Xia Hou for more than 2 years already, looked at the Deste Man¡¯s tribe that had suffered many casualties. He wanted to find Ning Que but failed.


    He kept silent for a long time before giving augh and raised his right hand,manding the tens of thousands of cavalry soldiers to wait for his orders.


    One of the generals frowned and asked, ¡°Retreat?¡±


    Xian Zhng shook his head and said with a smile, ¡°In front of the whole world, how can the Tang Empire, retreat alone? However, the others are tired and they need to rest.¡±


    Shooting arrows was a way of fighting, but deciding not to shoot was also a tactic. Moreover, it required smarter people and those who could urately predict the situation. The Great River Kingdom¡¯s reaction and the Tang Army¡¯s regrouping had proven that Ning Que¡¯s judgment was correct.


    The Wilderness was silent. The West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army looked at the north nervously, wanting to find Ning Que. Under the threat of the iron bow, pushing forward had be something incredibly frightening.


    However, north of the Wilderness was full of Deste Men that were injured or dead. It was hard to spot Ning Que between them. Hence, the problem for the coalition army now was, how many arrows did he still have?


    Or how could they find him.


    Or how could they force him out.


    At this moment, a stern and loud voice sounded from within the chariot, lifting the curtains with its pressure and making the golden railing shine, reaching the front of the Deste Men like lightning.

 Chapter 669 - The Light of the Southern Sky

    <h4>Chapter 669: The Light of the Southern Sky</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Many things seemplicated and areplicated to do. Only a few people could see the simple core inplex matters and do the simple and correct things.


    Naturally, the Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce had this ability. He knew that it wasn¡¯t a simple thing to find Ning Que on the vast Wilderness, as humans were not able to look at the world from above like eagles. They could not follow the clouds, floating along peacefully and lovingly to see all the details of the mortal world like Haotian.


    Since it wasn¡¯t easy to find Ning Que, the easiest way was to let Ning Que show himself. Hence, he said a sentence to the lonely ck chariot to the north.


    ¡°Daughter of Yama, you have finally appeared.¡±


    The voice of the Hierarch Lord was very loud and bright, almost as if it was thered in gold, as vast as Heaven and Earth. Bellowing out from the top chamber of the chariot before condensing, it did sound like thunder.


    As the sound passed, the curtains danced in the air. The golden railings of the chariot shone bright and several priests fell on the ground and died. A straight invisible column of air appeared on the Wilderness that brought up the smell of blood, mud and countless grass shavings. They swept forward towards the ck chariot to the north.


    A shadow swept across the group of Deste Men and appeared before Sangsang in record speed. It was Ning Que. He took out the big ck umbre from behind his back and wanted to open it to block the thunderous wave of sound for her.


    The sound wave was too strong, as the winds started bellowing and the thundering sound continued. Before the big ck umbre was opened, Ning Que was swept to more than ten feet backward. The ck clothes that he was wearing had countless tears on them as his tough skin had wounds opened up all over. Some of them started bleeding.


    The Big ck Horse saw the oing wave of thunderous sound and started kicking its hooves in fear. It was about to turn and leave but it couldn¡¯t bear to escape. It stuck its front hooves in the ground and buried its head in the earth, pretending that nothing would happen.


    The sound wave came before Sangsang.


    Her face was pale but her eyes were unusually bright. She had no idea how she could survive the horrifying sound but she vaguely knew that she shouldn¡¯t be afraid of it.


    In the skies on top of her, there were dozens of ck crows dancing around in the air. They suddenly swooped down and gave off a horrible sounding cawing toward the sound wave that was throwing about debris.


    The ck crows didn¡¯t stop pping their wings. With each p, they gave off two gusts of wind that would push the cold aura from Sangsang¡¯s body towards the south.


    Unending gusts of cold wind were produced from the wings of the ck crows. Just like countless thin ropes, they were knotted together and finally became an incredibly tough and thick rope.


    The sound wave and the cold wind met several feet in front of Sangsang¡¯s body.


    The cawing of the ck crows became even shriller and at times, ck feathers would drop from them and float down. They stuck on the icy surface of Sangsang¡¯s body, looking like ink drops on a white piece of paper.


    The cold wind gradually stopped.


    The thunderous sound wave was slowly dispersed.


    The smoke and dust was slowly gathering.


    Dozens of ck crows flew back to the top of Sangsang¡¯s head. They danced around in the air but were much slower than before, almost as if they were a little tired.


    The thunderous sound from the Hierarch Lord had scattered the dozens of ck crows like this.


    Ning Que climbed up from the ground and stood beside Sangsang. He had a anxious expression. It was not because his trail was exposed but because the meeting between the ck crows and the thunderous sounds had proven a conjecture of his.


    Since Sangsang was the Daughter of Yama, how could Yama watch as his daughter died?


    The crowd feared Sangsang as she had a cold aura within her body that could destroy the world. Then why must the West-Hill Divine Pce deploy such a formidable array? Because they were scared? Why were they scared?


    The experts from the two sects should clearly know that Sangsang¡¯s own power was very ordinary. Especially since she fell sick, she had be even weaker and would easily be killed. Their fear could only mean that Sangsang had terrifying abilities after she had awoken. Hence, the Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce would personally go to the Wilderness!


    It wasn¡¯t an unimaginable thing for the Daughter of Yama to possess horrifying powers. However, in the past, she wasn¡¯t able to showcase them as she hadn¡¯t yet awakened. As her illness worsened, the cold aura within became thicker; as she woke up day by day, the unknown power started returning to her body.


    Back in the Yuelun Kingdom, Ning Que was already conscious of this. However, he didn¡¯t make use of it. Rather, he tried all sorts of ways to heal her illness. He wanted to exterminate or suppress the cold aura within her body. No matter how dangerous it was, he didn¡¯t want her to show any of her unknown powers.


    Just like what Sangsang had once said, once she really woke up, she would be the Daughter of Yama. By that time, would she still be who she was now? Would she still be Sangsang?


    ¡°Indeed it is the Daughter of Yama.¡±


    The Hierarch¡¯s voice sounded again from within the chariot, resonating throughout the Wilderness. However, his voice now sounded a little tired. It seemed like the thunderous sound from earlier had consumed quite a lot of his Psyche Power.


    The soundnded as the giant figure within the curtains grew even bigger. Suddenly, a scepter that was taller than this figure appeared within its hand.


    Looking at the changes behind the giant chariot, Ning Que¡¯s heart became colder and colder. He had no idea what was about to happen but he felt that it would be something terrible.


    The curtains of the chariot started burning all of a sudden. They weren¡¯t really in mes, but countless streaks of light and heat flowed down between the curtains like running water.


    The huge figure behind the curtains also started burning in mes. Countless streaks of light and heat followed the edge of the figure and scattered all around. The grass that was surviving beside the chariot all turned yellow instantly before crumbling into ck ashes.


    The dozens of divine guards and priests in red that were beside the chariot were dragging the bodies of several priests and Luo Kedi. They left as quickly as they could to avoid the horrifying light and heat. They then knelt facing the chariot.


    The light was the holy light while the heat was absolute heat.


    Countless streaks of light and heat were given off from the Hierarch Lord; his figure seemed to have turned into an oilmp.


    The long scepter in his hand was like the wick of an oilmp.


    Light and heat meant burning and the burning of the oilmp was transferred over to the burning wick, bing a me of a specific shape.


    The me was a column of light.


    A holy column of light emerged from the tip of the scepter and pierced through the top of the chariot, lighting the skies above.


    The southern sky wasn¡¯t covered by the ck clouds. It was unbelievably blue with a few dots of white clouds floating. When the column of light reached the skies, the azure blue skies brightened up immediately.


    The few clouds that dotted the sky had blocked off the light. Its edge seemed to have been ted with gold and was suppressed. They fell from the skies andnded on the Wilderness.


    There was only one color left in the once blue and white sky. Or rather, there was no more color, only light.


    Absolute light was a simple visual sensation. The Wilderness now had hundreds of thousands of humans. They all lifted their heads to look at the bright sky but felt as if they were looking at a infinitely rich world.


    That world wasn¡¯t the true heaven; it was only a spiritual induction. The limitless riches that they saw weren¡¯t physical objects but rather, it was the projection of countless human emotions under the powers of Haotian.


    The image now had already surpassed what the mortal world had imagined of the cultivation world. It had surpassed even the highest state of cultivation. This was no longer a Divine Skill but instead, a divine miracle!


    The hundreds of thousands of people from the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army knelt on the cold ground of the Wilderness, kowtowing to the bright skies. This was something that only appeared in mythological ssics.


    The expressions on their faces were of shock, respect, excitement, and fear. Then they turned into absolute piousness and passion. Earlier on, the appearance of the Daughter of Yama as well as Ning Que¡¯s 5 arrows had caused panic and fear within them, but now, they had reaffirmed their beliefs and gained a vast amount of courage.


    In contrast, after the azure sky had been lit up, the Deste Man¡¯s tribe was at its lowest. The injured warriors that were about to die looked at the skies in the south. They had an expression of despair; no one was singing and even Tang¡¯s face was somewhat bleak.


    ¡°Is this the legendary Tianqi?¡±


    Ning Que asked as he looked at the chariot that was under the column of light and the huge figure in it.


    ¡°No, Teacher¡¯s Tianqi back then wasn¡¯t like this.¡±


    Sangsang said before coughing in pain.


    The light from the southern skies in the Wildernessnded near the Deste Man¡¯s tribe. Naturally, it alsonded on her.


    A few wisps of white smoke appeared from her ck fur coat. She looked as if her body was burning but there wasn¡¯t any burning smell.


    She looked at the light in the southern skies; a timid look shone in her eyes.


    Ning Que felt a wave of sourness going past his heart as he looked at her furrowing brows. He extended his hands to embrace her.


    Just as his finger touched her, ayer of ice appeared on his fingernails.


    The intense pain spread from his fingertips to his sense of perception. Ning Que gave off a muffled sound as his entire right hand was frozen solid. The ice was crawling up to his shoulders.


    The cold aura within Sangsang¡¯s body had already awoken fully and was spreading outwards.


    Ning Que should release his hands now but he didn¡¯t want to. The Great Spirit within him revolved quickly and became the Haotian Divine Light. It instantly melted theyer of ice on his shoulders as he swept Sangsang into his embrace.


    Sangsang¡¯s hair swept across his face and more streaks of ice appeared.


    His lips were covered with frost as his voice trembled and was unclear, ¡°If it is too painful, do not do it.¡±


    The light of the southern skynded on Sangsang¡¯s body, burning her body and heart as well as her soul. The cold aura within her body didn¡¯t stop freezing her body, heart and soul.


    This was a painful process.


    Ning Que embraced her tightly, theyer of frost over his body was slowly melted by the Great Spirit in his body. It then condensed and pierced right to the bone again. He was in pain too but he knew it was even more painful for her.


    Sangsang¡¯s body trembled intensely as she seemed to be in much pain. She squirmed even harder in Ning Que¡¯s arms just like when she wanted to find safety and warmth in him years ago.


    However, the light was everywhere and she had nowhere to hide. The cold aura within her was something that she couldn¡¯t hide from. She could only continue to suffer between the extremes of heat and cold.

 Chapter 670 - The Darkness in the Northen Sky

    <h4>Chapter 670: The Darkness in the Northen Sky</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Sangsang cried out, her tears slipping down her tanned face. Some of her tears fell on Ning Que, suddenly making his ck clothes hard; some of her tears fell on the ground and turned into ice beads, each one was crystal clear and of the same size.


    An extremely fuzzy sound arose from her body, which sounded like bones being crushed into thousands of chippings or like flesh and blood disintegrating, or much more like hard ice beingpressed incessantly.


    The gloomy and cold aura inside her body finally emergedpletely.


    A dark ball, centered on her body, spread in all directions. Ning Que, who was holding her, was instantly struck by the ball and thrown hundreds of feet away. Wherever the aura went, the ground froze; the grass was covered with frost, and all creatures ceased to live!


    Ning Que fell on the ground heavily and spat out a mouthful of blood which froze immediately. He kept spitting blood and finally the blood began to heat up in the air.


    He was shocked by that gloomy and cold aura, leaving the Big ck Umbre right beside Sangsang¡¯s feet.


    Sangsang squatted down, picked up the Big ck Umbre, and opened it.


    The cold aura came out from her body and kept spreading into the Wilderness. After meeting the real nature, this shapeless and invisible aura became a cold ck cyclone and rolled up dust and grit from the ground. Roaring and tossing around Sangsang, the cyclone looked like a cloud of ck smoke.


    Having been following Sangsang since she was in a small yard at Chaoyang City in the Yuelun State, the ck crows were hovering above her in the sky. At this moment, when this change happened to Sangsang, it seemed that the ck crows perceived something. They kept flying up to the dim cloudyer, screaming and fluttering their ck wings, trying to get as far away from her as possible.


    Thatyer of cloud had been following Sangsang even longer since she was in the southern Wilderness. That cloud became thicker and thicker, which made it harder and harder for sunlight to go through. Finally, the cloud became darker and darker.


    After flying into the cloudyer, the dozen ck crows looked like ck dots, just as if someone had put several drops of ink into the urn filled with water. The cloudyer grew darker and darker.


    On the ground, the ck smoke was still rolling and squirming around Sangsang, while that gloomy and cold aura went up to the vault of the heavens along with the Big ck Umbre.


    If the Hierarch¡¯s rod in the West-Hill Divine Pce was the wick and the light and heat which was released by the Divine Skill was the real ming fire that had lit up the southern sky; then, the Big ck Umbre in Sangsang¡¯s hand was like a writing brush, dipped in her cold aura and dyeing the northern cloudyer ck.


    The dozen ck crows were only ink drops of the writing brush, while the real darkness came from Sangsang herself.


    The dim cloudyer began to roll drastically and suddenly stopped, calmly receiving the gloomy and cold aura from the ground through the Big ck Umbre. It quickly became darker and darker, looking more and more like a piece of paper filled with ink, until it turned into solid ink. Nothing but pure ck.


    What was ck? ck meant there was no light. At this moment, the sky above the northern Wilderness was ck, without a single ray of light. There were no stars, either, so it looked like night.


    Night would not appear during the day time, and there would be stars on the sky at night. Therefore, the starless night which appeared during the day was obviously not the regr night, or it might have another name.


    ¡°What is happening?¡±


    ¡°Why is it getting dark over there?¡±


    ¡°Is this the Evesting Night?¡±


    People in the Wilderness, looking at the sky separated by light and darkness, did not cry out and scream. Instead, they muttered to themselves, for they were so astonished that they forgot their shock and fear. Everyone seemed numb and confused, as if they had lost their souls.


    Standing under the bright southern sky, the West-Hill Divine coalition army was also looking at the northern dark sky.


    After a long time, people finally regained consciousness and began to scream and cry bitterly. Some people tried to escape but all the war-horses were all paralyzed by fear, causing a scene of chaos.


    The Deste Men, standing beneath the dark northern sky, looked at the bright southern sky. Everyone kneeled again, eyes closed, holding their fists in front of their chests, praying peacefully and devoutly, and waiting for the appearance of Yama.


    Ning Que got up with difficulty and walked towards Sangsang again.


    He knew what would happen to Sangsang before he decided to leave the Deste Man¡¯s tribe and go south. Something horrible, and even more terrifying than death would happen to her, for she would awake and be seen by Yama.


    He did not mind the Underworld Invasion and the Evesting Night. He only cared about Sangsang at that time.


    Sangsang was fine.


    The light from the southern sky could not fall on her ever again. Those rays of baking-hot light would be strangled by the gloomy and cold aura before they got close to her. Besides, the cold aura inside her would never hurt her anymore.


    Sangsang was not fine.


    She was looking at the south. Though the south was very far from here, she could clearly see every detail of the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army, including their facial expressions.


    From people¡¯s faces, she saw fear, nervousness, cowardice, hatred, sadness and every other negative expression. She saw everything except affection.


    At present, no one in the human realm liked her anymore.


    Sangsang looked down at the tips of her toes beneath her dress and the two blooming ice lotus flowers beneath her feet, and said, ¡°Teacher kept looking at the north before he died. I finally understand now. It turned out that what he was looking at was what I am now. It turned out that he already knew I was the shadow of the Nightfall.¡±


    Ning Que walked up behind her and held her hands.


    Sangsang stepped on the ice lotus flowers, not really touching the ground. At this moment, her body was a clear and massless existence.


    Ning Que asked, ¡°How do you feel right now?¡±


    Sangsang said in a low voice, ¡°I feel... I kind of feel powerful.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Do you like it?¡±


    Sangsang shook her head, and said, ¡°No.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Endure it.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I can¡¯t.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Why don¡¯t you like it?¡±


    Sangsang looked up to the south and said, ¡°Because people don¡¯t like me anymore.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Pull yourself together. At least try to keep a clear head.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°What is a clear head like?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You look so ugly, and you have a bad temper. No one liked you from the beginning, except me. Right now, even if no one likes you, as long as I like you, there is absolutely no difference between the present and the past.¡±


    Sangsang thought for a moment and said, ¡°That seems to be the case.¡±

 Chapter 671 - Dark Dreams (Part I)

    <h4>Chapter 671: Dark Dreams (Part I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Endless darkness and coldness poured into the sky from the Big ck Umbre, painting the skies in the northern Wilderness ck as if the night hade. Endless light and heat poured into the sky from the top of the Divine Scepter, causing the skies in the southern Wilderness to glow brightly as if the Kingdom of God had descended into the world.


    Inside the blood-colored divine chariot, Ye Hongyu looked at the sky that had been separated into two halves. Her beautiful face was expressionless as she wiped off the blood dripping from her forehead. Then, she looked towards Sangsang who was in the north.


    Sangsang was the Daughter of Yama. Anything could happen to her, no matter how incredulous. Ye Hongyu was shocked, but she did not pay much attention. Instead, her gazended on the Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce several miles away in the east.


    Her brows furrowed slightly because she could not see clearly whether the holy light was gushing from the Hierarch Lord¡¯s body into the sky, or if the light was gushing from the sky onto him.


    On a meadow several miles away from the southern Wilderness, dozens of knights were gazing at the northern sky.


    The silver mask reflected the creepy and terrifying sky. Light and darkness met in his eyes, and as Long Qing¡¯s eyes grew grayer and grayer, he felt a myriad of different emotions. No one knew what he was thinking.


    Long Qing no longer cared what light or darkness was. He was just jealous of the little girl who was under the Big ck Umbre because she had captured everyone¡¯s attention, and thus, also brought Ning Que into the center of the world.


    Long Qing thought that he should be the one standing there. Then, he recalled how he thought he was the Son of Yama after fleeing from the Zhishou Abbey two years ago and felt even more jealous.


    In Hn City, the Emperor of Tang Empire stared at the sky silently. Although the approaching darkness indicated theing of the Underworld Invasion, he did not fear. On the contrary; his eyes grew brighter as he looked at the light and darkness in the sky, seeming a little excited.


    Master Huang Yang stood beside the Emperor, bowing to the light and darkness in the sky with his palms pressed together. His lips moved slightly, but no one could hear his mutterings.


    On the back of the mountain of the Academy, the Purple wisteria on the corridor was in bloom, the walls of the hut were covered by its green ivy. But there was no one in the cliff cave as everyone was gathered at the edge of the cliff.


    Standing on the edge of the cliff with Younger Brothers and Sisters, the Eldest Brother looked to the north silently where the sky was divided into two parts. The great Chang¡¯an was enveloped in the golden light.


    ¡°We should be there right now.¡± The Second Brother said.


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°We can¡¯t do anything even if we were there.¡±


    The Second Brother said, ¡°But at least we would be present.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°Teacher didn¡¯t agree for us to be there, so we can only watch from here.¡±


    In the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom, all was silent in the dark cave in the middle of the mountain. Spring had turned the forest behind the mountain green, but it had no effect inside the cliff cave. The small pool in front of the thatched cottage was still very cold.


    Liu Bai, the Sword Sage, sat cross-legged beside the small pool with his head bowed. He didn¡¯t look up into the sky as the opening above the cave was too small, and the only thing visible through the hole was light.


    An ancient giant sword slowly rose from the bottom of the pool. Compared with this sword, the frequently-used swords which were ced on the shelves of the thatched cottage were as shabby as straws.


    No one knew of the other reason Liu Bai had hidden himself in the middle of the Sword Garret¡¯s mountain, aside from receiving Tao enlightenment by the pond. Other than his fear of appearing in the world, he had been crafting a true sword.


    That would have to be the sharpest sword in the world.


    The sky stretched above the earth and could be seen by everyone. As such, everyone in the world had seen the sky being separated into light and darkness. However, due to perspective, the further south people were, the more light they would see. And in the extreme south, the dark skies above the Wilderness looked like a touch of darkness as seen from the ground, seeming as if it was a crushed dark tunnel.


    If that dark channel connected the Underworld with the world, then what would emerge from it? Would it be the Underworld army or Yama himself?


    In the depths of the South Sea, the waves rose and crashed on the reefs. Magma spouted from the volcanoes at the bottom of the sea, evaporating seawater and producing white mist that covered a small ind.


    On the ck reefs surrounding the ind stood a Taoist in indigo. He looked at the dark skies in the distant north that looked like a dark tunnel. Then, his eyebrows twitched upward slightly and he said, ¡°Does the sunset make reflections of the skies brighter in the water?¡±


    After saying that, he paused for a moment before shaking his head, saying, ¡°That¡¯s still not right.¡±


    The Buddhism Sect was not involved in this holy war on the Wilderness.


    Just as Master Lotus had said to Ning Que and what the Headmaster had told many people, the Buddhism Sect chose to deal with it by closing their eyes to the matter and not speaking about it.


    Because of Buddha¡¯sst words, the monks of the Buddhism Sect tried to kill Sangsang, the Daughter of Yama. Only then would they be able to save the world from the catastrophe. But it was also because of the essence of the dharma that Buddha had passed down, if the Daughter of Yama was not killed, the Underworld Invasion and the Evesting Night were inevitable. When the world was about to enter the Dharma Ending Period, the monks from the Buddhism Sect dared not try anything else. Instead, they chose to do nothing and began hiding and fleeing.


    In the heart of the Western Wilderness, the sinkhole was surrounded by mists and clouds. Neither the holy light nor the dark night could pass through the clouds onto the people there.


    Countless tanned believers and ves knelt at the bottom of the sinkhole, kowtowing and praying to the majestic mountain in the center of the sinkhole. Their faces were filled with awe and fear.


    All the monks of the Xuankong Temple had hidden in the yellow temples on the mountain. The soft chanting of scriptures floated from these temples, and then flowed down like water as if it was attempting to cover the whole mountain.


    Master Qi Mei, the chief monk in the Hall of Respect, stood in front of an ancient bell outside the temple. The remaining two fingers on his left handnded on the bell, and its chiming helped to spread the scripture chantings further out in thends.


    He looked a little anxious as he watched the confrontation between light and darkness on the distant sky in the east. The calm and firm expressions that usually graced his face had long disappeared.


    The Buddha¡¯s prophecy of the Dharma Ending Period was finallying. But many instruments that the Buddha had left behind had been broken like the peace bell, or lost, like the chessboard. Then could the Xuankong Temple sessfully hide under Yama¡¯s nose?


    There came a calm and indifferent voice; it rang out in front of Qi Mei.


    ¡°It is a catastrophe that the Evesting Night and the Dharma Ending Period areing, but Haotian is watching over the world and will never let that happen. As the light hase, the dark night would surely not prevail. We believers of Buddha should pray earnestly and sincerely.¡±


    Understanding this, Qi Mei stopped ringing the bell and sat cross-legged in front of the temple. Looking at the east with his hands put together, he prayed sincerely, ¡°Buddha is benevolent, and may he bless everyone on earth.¡±


    The sounds of prayer slowly spread from the countless temples on the mountain peak.


    ¡°May Buddha bless us all.¡±


    ¡°May atha bless us.¡±


    ¡°The light...¡±


    The Chief Preaching Monk of the Xuankong Temple did not chant or pray. Holding his monk¡¯s staff, he stood on the peak of the mountain; he looked wearily at the surface of the Wilderness and the confrontation of light and darkness in the distance.


    The dark sky grew more and more extensive, spreading to the south. Many tiny cracks appeared on the edge of the lighted sky like a spider web. Then, the darkness flowed into these cracks and turned them ck.


    It was silent when the darkness and light met. However, everyone on the Wilderness felt their hearts pumping faster, and then, felt a terrible pain.


    The pain in their hearts intensified as they watched the darkness slowly invading the bright sky. They clutched at their chests, not knowing if the pain was from their physical bodies or their souls.


    The ck cracks at the edge of the lighted sky grew wider and wider until they formed a line and then fused together, forming a new dark region.


    If this situation was allowed to continue, the dark night would be stronger while the light would be weaker. Nobody knew it but someday in the future, the world would bepletely enshrouded in darkness. The people and beasts living on thisnd would never be able to see the light again.


    The hearts of the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army¡¯s soldiers were upied by an immense fear. Even the people in the Deste Man¡¯s tribe were frightened when they saw this shocking scene.


    In the attic of the divine chariot, the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s Hierarch suddenly knelt down, holding his Devine Scepter tightly with his right hand. Then his prayer which was calm but also resounding echoed throughout the Wilderness.


    Hundreds of thousands of soldiers from the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army knelt down and began to pray together with the Hierarch. Even the soldiers of Tang Army did the same because they were also believers of Haotian and they were also afraid of the approaching Evesting Night.


    With so many people praying together, the prayer was messy and chaotic in the beginning. But then, it became stronger and more shocking as it grew more and more orderly.


    People prayed for the miracles of Haotian to appear. They prayed for the light to grow stronger and for the dark night to retreat.


    The sky in the southern part of the Wilderness suddenly became brighter, as if countless rays of light were poured into the sky, and the dark sky that had slowly spread to the south was gradually stopped.


    Wretched cries of crows echoed throughout the dark night, and then the inky ck night began to roll and fly into a rage as if it had felt that it was being defiled.


    The snow lotus beneath Sangsang¡¯s feet had bloomed.


    Sangsang held the Big ck Umbre tightly, her eyes closed. The cold aura gushed out from her body without stopping, rolling and merging into the aura of Heaven and Earth in the Wilderness, turning it into darkness, and funneling it into the dark skies.


    Ning Que stood a little distance away from her, looking at her silently.


    Light and darkness were battling in the sky. The struggle between light and darkness was actually a battle against the heavens and was beyond the understanding and influence of man.


    The chilly aura in Sangsang¡¯s body hadpletely awakened, and even if a snowke was to fall on her, it would be shattered into the smallest particle. As such, Ning Que could not hold her hand.


    His hands were bleeding, and as the droplets of blood fell on the ground, they made a crisp shattering sound.


    He could not do anything at this moment because it was pointless no matter what he did. So he could only watch her silently.


    Suddenly, he felt that everything he saw at this moment was familiar.


    He looked toward the south, only to find bodies littered on the Wilderness. Then he looked up at the sky. There were patches of light in the sky, and there seemed to be a sun over it, with the dark night quickly approaching it.


    Ning Que was certain that he had seen this before.

 Chapter 672 - Dark Dreams (Part 2)

    <h4>Chapter 672: Dark Dreams (Part 2)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Where, where have I seen you before? Ning Que looked at the sky and the Wilderness; he looked at where the light and darkness met and at the corpses that littered the ground. He recalled, that he had seen this in a dream.


    Several years ago, when they traveled from the City of Wei to Chang¡¯an, he had a discussion and studied about cultivation from Lyu Qingchen on his journey. That night, he had a dream.


    That night when he slept, he hugged Sangsang¡¯s cool feet. Perhaps because of this reason, the beginning of the dream he had was very odd.


    He dreamt of a sea covered with white flowers. Perhaps they were lotus flowers. When the white flowers dispersed, the green of the sea waters could be seen. However, deep in the sea was a world made of thick blood.


    The world of blood was filled with featureless faces. They were sorrowful and filled with fear. He was terrified in his dream. Then, he returned to reality which was on the Wilderness.


    He was surrounded by countless corpses. The cavalry of the Tang Empire, warriors from the Yuelun Kingdom, archers from the South Jin Kingdom and many skillful grasnd barbarians¡¯ horse-riders. Arge amount of blood flowed out from these corpses and dyed the whole wilderness blood red.


    Then three columns of dark smoke appeared in the distance, as though they were alive and were coldly staring at the bloody scene that was happening on this side.


    In the wilderness, many looked up to the sky in astonishment, as did Ning Que. He realized that while the sun zed, its rays were dim as if the night was approaching. A patch of darkness loomed.


    Sangsang stood on the snow lotus, holding a ck chess piece in her palms. She looked at the terrifying West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army across her, as the cold aura in her body gushed forth to the world unceasingly.


    The night flourished and the light in the south gradually dimmed. Darkness grew, and the Wilderness in spring grew colder and colder. The corpses lying in pools of blood gradually froze.


    Ning Que felt a chill when he saw the image before him growing familiar. He was even more certain that what he had seen in that dream was what was happening today. However, there were some minute changes, such as, not seeing corpses of The Deste in his dream, and that there was a zing sun in it.


    Then, Ning Que recalled that when he had ascended the mountain as a test to enter the Second floor of the Academy several years earlier; he had yet another dream just before thest rock.


    He came to the Wilderness in that dream. There were numerous people who were looking up at the sky where the endless darkness was slowly pervading. Their faces were filled with desperation and fear.


    In that dream, he spoke to someone.


    The imagery of the dream had been seared in Ning Que¡¯s memory and it frightened him. He had never told Sangsang about it, bing his greatest secret, one that he subconsciously tried to forget.


    Until today, when the dark dreams became reality.


    Ning Que looked at Sangsang and at the swirling ck aura around her. He trembled lightly. He only understood then, that the omen in the dreams were not about anything else but Sangsang.


    He had stayed with Sangsang throughout this life, so the dreams stayed with him.


    The first time he had dreamt this dark dream was in the horse carriage where he hugged Sangsang¡¯s feet to sleep. Now that he thought about it, that was probably the night Sangsang awakened.


    In that dark dream, he had seen three columns of ck smoke. Sangsang should be one of them, then where are the other two terrifying ck columns?


    Ning Que looked around him but did not see any. He thought about it for a long while until the darkness in the sky gradually defeated the light in the south. However, he still did note to any conclusion.


    Suddenly, he turned around to see the Big ck Horse raising its front hooves and crouching in front of the ck horse carriage like a dog. It looked up at the light and darkness in the sky pitting against each other and looked petrified.


    Sangsang was standing right in front of the Deste Man¡¯s tribe, facing the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army. She was looking very alone, and by her side, stood only Ning Que and the Big ck Horse. The cold aura spewing forth from her body stirred up the gravel and grass bits on the ground, enveloping him and the horse into it.


    Ning Que froze up slightly, understanding that the other two ck columns of smoke were him and the ck horse carriage.


    In that dream, he stood in front of the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army and looked to the north. There, he saw three columns of ck smoke. In reality, he stood in the north today and was part of the three columns of ck smoke.


    He turned out to be part of the three columns that brought fear and despair to the whole world.


    However, he was standing in the south in that dream, so why was he standing here now? When had he switched camps, turning his back against the light and heading to the dark? When had he made the choice?


    Had he made his choice as a child, at that moment when he waved his cleaver at the chambein in the woodshed? Or had he made the decision when he ascended the mountain to the Second floor of the Academy, when he killed the young master and chambein in the mirage and absconded into the darkness?


    Was it when he got to know that Sangsang was the Daughter of Yama in Lanke Temple, or when he did not hesitate to walk into the Light of Buddha and opened the Big ck Umbre. Could it be when he was running for his life in the Wilderness, or was it when he butchered the innocent masses in Chaoyang City...


    He made a decision in his dream.


    And in reality, he made the same choice.


    Ning Que remembered that the dark dream had urred again.


    It urred in Chang¡¯an when he first started to cultivate and was able to sense the Qi of Heaven and Earth. He was so moved that he teared up and then hugged Sangsang until he fell asleep.


    He would dream whenever a big change in his life urred. There was also a dark dream in the peaceful sleep he had. In that dream, darkness eventually upied the skies above the Wilderness. A pure night covered the sky and he watched as the Evesting night approached. When the cold defeated light and heat, thunder cracked above the skies.


    The thunderous crack spread throughout the world as many on the Wilderness were hit by it. They groaned in pain, while those who were still standing were like statues, staring up at the sky in confusion.


    Just at where the thunder sounded, pure holy light shone and encapsted the night sky. Above the distant firmament, in the brightest and centermost position was a massive golden door. And when it slowly opened, a huge golden dragon which was poking its head out could be faintly seen.


    Indeed, if the dreams were about things that were about to happen in reality and symbolized the war between light and darkness, then the night that Sangsang brought into the world would not be able to win so easily.


    The sky in the south was already dim and the massive and terrifying Golden Dragon¡¯s head had yet to appear.


    Panic upied Ning Que¡¯s body and mind as he looked up at the sky in astonishment. He stared at the gloomy southern sky and wondered if he would really see thatter.


    The night came from the north and the light in the oppressed south grew dimmer and dimmer, eroding the country of light inch by inch. The white clouds that had previously been swallowed up by the light showed up again.


    The edges of the white cloud suddenly brightened up and were even brighter than when the Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce used his divine staff to send out a pir of light. The edges did not seem as if they were iid with gold, but looked as if they were burning up!


    It was as if a burning sun was hiding close behind the white cloud.


    A thunderous roar of lightning sounded from high above the sky!


    There was a thunderous boom!


    The thunderbolt hit the Wilderness, and the muddied ground coated with congealed blood sshed up, spraying up to knee-height before descending as if the heavens were raining down blood.


    The bodies of the Deste Men and the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army soldiers also leapt up as if they had been resurrected. Then, they fell heavily to the ground again with horrifying cracks as their bones broke and flesh was squashed.


    Hundreds of thousands of people in the Wilderness felt an intense pain in their eardrums due to the thunderous roar. They knelt on the ground in pain while those who were closest to the center of the battlefield were killed by the earthquake!


    This was true thunder. The sound of heaven¡¯s thunder.


    Compared with the thunder that came from above the sky, the sound of swords, arrows, impacts, and shrieks that sounded from time to time in the bloody war on the Wilderness before seemed so weak.


    The thunder that Ye Su had summoned with his wooden sword as he tried to kill Tang was like firecrackers that children yed with,pared to this thunder. It was not even worth mentioning and seemed ridiculous byparison.


    To heaven, everything that happened in the world was ridiculous.


    The thunder rang in the sky from behind the clouds. The white cloud grew brighter and brighter, and even the thick center looked as if it was about to burn up, spreading light and heat to the ground.


    People knelt on the ground of the Wilderness and looped up in astonishment. They could not see what was happening behind the cloud and did not know what had happened or what was about to happen.


    Only Ning Que seemed to vaguely understand what was happening behind the white cloud.


    He had seen these things happen in his dark dreams.


    The thunder was the exact sound of that door opening.


    A heavy golden door was slowly opening behind the cloud right now.


    Behind the golden doors, was Haotian¡¯s holy world of light.


    Ning Que felt cold all over and began to tremble. He was like an ice statue and pieces of ice kept falling off him. His body and soul were overtaken by fear.


    He was the only person on the Wilderness who knew what was about to happen. And only he knew the truth, which was why he was lonely and fearful, resulting in his descent into despair.


    He looked at Sangsang and screamed at her with all his might. However, his voice would not travel due to the brightening rays and Sangsang did not hear him.


    He ran at his fastest speed to the ck horse carriage and pulled the Big ck Horse up. He drove towards Sangsang, wanting to escape with her. However, just then, the white cloud in the south suddenly dimmed.


    It wasn¡¯t the cloud that had dimmed, but something had appeared before it, temporarily overshadowing the light in the Wilderness because it was brighter than everything else.


    Arge Golden Dragon¡¯s head emerged from the cloud. It looked indifferent as it stared down at the Wilderness.

 Chapter 673 - Shooting the Golden Dragons Head

    <h4>Chapter 673: Shooting the Golden Dragon¡¯s Head</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The Golden Dragon¡¯s head was massive and hung far above in the skies. However, it seemed to be so close to everyone¡¯s eyes as its every detail could be clearly seen. Its scales were like mirrors and its horns like volcanos. Its specific shape was difficult to describe, but it was the color of pure gold, yet transparent. It emitted endless light and heat that radiated over the Wilderness.


    As the Golden Dragon¡¯s head appeared, the sky in the south suddenly brightened dramatically, returning to its original appearance. Then, mere momentster, it exceeded the light and heat that the West-Hill Divine Pce Hierarch had released with his divine staff by tens and thousands of times.


    The dark night in the northern sky seemed to have felt the strengthening light and slowed in its approach.


    The Golden Dragon¡¯s head turned slowly, its two eyes that were like mirrors swept across the men on the Wilderness silently. Its expression was solemn, terrifying and suppressive.


    There were records about dragons in the teachings of the West-Hill Divine Pce, Buddhist scriptures and legends in the world. However, no one had ever personally witnessed the existence of dragons, much less a Giant Golden Dragon. A mythical creature like that had appeared...


    The humans on the Wilderness all went mad.


    Especially the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army, who watched as the darkness gradually defeated the light and as Yama approached the world. They suddenly saw the Giant Golden Dragon that represented the light and were filled with excitement. They knelt, pressing their tearstained faces to the ground and kowtowed repeatedly.


    There were even more people who stared at the sky dazedly as if they were dimwitted.


    The Golden Dragon¡¯s head emitted limitless light that represented warmth and love. However, light sometimes also brought with it punishment when it was disrespected.


    Momentster, the people on the Wilderness clutched at their eyes and knelt on the ground in pain. They dared not take another look at the sky. However, the light that the Golden Dragon¡¯s head spread was so enticing that some pious Haotian disciples continued staring with tears rolling down their faces despite the threat of death.


    As the endless light fell, the tears on believers¡¯ faces were instantly evaporated, and the liquid in their eyes was also instantly evaporated, turning into two columns of smoke that disappeared without a trace, blinding them.


    Ning Que knew that the Golden Dragon¡¯s head would appear because of his dream. He did not look up at all. Instead, he tore off his belt and wrapped it around the Big ck Horse¡¯s eyes, pulling the ck horse carriage to stand beside Sangsang.


    Sangsang¡¯s eyes were tightly shut and her face was deathly pale. The ck dust that swirled around her cleared up at a speed visible to the naked eye as the light emitted by the Golden Dragon¡¯s head shone on. Her body trembled as the cold aura gradually dampened and she looked as if she was in extreme pain.


    The Deste fell into despair and fear once more. In the face of Haotian¡¯s divine punishment, how could these ordinary people resist? They knelt and lowered their heads, not daring to look directly into the sky.


    Tang did not look directly at the sky either. The light and coercion that the Golden Dragon¡¯s head emitted were simply not forces that the world could resist. However, he did not kneel either because he was thest World Wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He represented the spirit of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, and the doctrine rejected Haotian¡¯s rule of the world.


    There were also several leaders of The Deste warriors who cultivated in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine arts. They stood up despite their injuries and stared into the Wilderness covered in light. They tottered but refused to kneel.


    The light falling from the sky grew brighter and brighter. The bodies of Tang and the few Deste warrior leaders made a slight noise. It was the sound of hard Deste Man bones fighting against the suppression of Haotian.


    Sensing that there were insignificant humans on the Wilderness who dared to resist his majesty, the Golden Dragon¡¯s head in the sky turned slowly, looked in their direction and roared.


    The dragon¡¯s roar was low and fell onto the Wilderness like a hurricane. It was as if there were countless priests praying and cavalry howling in the wind. Countless rays of light appeared.


    The grass on the Wilderness that had been dampened by blood turned ck. Blood evaporated into fetid vapor. The leaders of the Deste warriors fell to the ground groaning in pain.


    There was a loud smack as Tang¡¯s left thigh bone broke. He howled in anger and resentment before falling to the ground heavily. Even as his blood flowed like a spring, he did not kneel.


    The Giant Golden Dragon came from Haotian¡¯s divinend and represented the power of Haotian. It showed the people the will of Haotian and was a show of divinity and divine punishment. Its roar was power and it could not be withstood by the world.


    The tens and thousands of humans on the Wilderness all knelt, showing their respect, awe and submission.


    In the West-Hill Divine Pce camp.


    Through countlessyers of gauze curtains, one could see that the tall figure in the massive chariot had long knelt down. The divine scepter the Hierarch Lord held in his hands trembled, perhaps from fear, or perhaps from something else.


    In the other divine chariot, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion had also fallen on his knees, looking very serene. His blood-covered wrinkles reflected the light entering through the curtains as if they were smeared with gold powder.


    In the blood-colored chariot, Great Divine Priest of Judgment, Ye Hongyu knelt as well, submitting to the Golden Dragon¡¯s head in the sky. She had remained in this position since the moment the Golden Dragon¡¯s head entered the world.


    She was the only who knew that her knees had not touched the ground. Then, the Giant Golden Dragon had roared and Haotian¡¯s power swept through the Wilderness. Her knees had only been forced to make contact with the ground then, when Tang and the leaders of The Deste warriors fell, spewing up blood. Her face suddenly paled as she bled from her knees and the corner of her lips.


    The infinite light that the Golden Dragon¡¯s head spread on the Wilderness quickly cleaned up the dark aura surrounding Sangsang. Then, light that was absolute light and heatnded on Sangsang and several tendrils of green smoke emerged from her body.


    Sangsang seemed to be in great pain as the light shone upon her. She clutched at her chest and coughed unceasingly. What she coughed up, was not blood or cold aura, but were ck transparent ice cube-like objects.


    The ck transparent ice cubes emerged from her lips and fell onto the ground. There was a sound of heavy impact as deep craters were formed. Then, they disappeared.


    It was then, when the Golden Dragon¡¯s head roared and arrived before her. The ck ice cubes shattered into the tiniest pebbles. Her body twisted as if it was about to break.


    Ning Que was already running at his fastest speed. However, he could never beat the speed of light or be faster than the roar of the dragon. His fingers had just barely touched Sangsang¡¯s body when the power of Haotian fell unto him.


    There was a smack, and he knelt on the ground beside Sangsang. His knees impacted the ground with great force and seemed to have shattered.


    He felt an immense pain, causing his face to pale and he was very terrified.


    The Giant Golden Dragon roared, and no one in the world could fight against that. Before Haotian, he was weak. So what was the point of all the choices he made in the past?


    A winner was about to emerge from this battle between the light and darkness. Sangsang was about to die, and what could he do? What could he change? If he could not change anything, then why did he have those dreams? Why was he able to see the future in those dreams and see what was happening now?


    Ning Que supported himself with both hands and used all his strength to squat. Then, he smashed down heavily with his sole and changed his position from kneeling into sitting. He then stood, despite the suppression of the light, an expression of pain on his face.


    The simple move had used up all his courage and strength. He reached out with his trembling hand and pulled out a pair of sses made from ck crystal and ced them on his nose bridge.


    Hisplexion was extremely pale but seemed even paler once he put on the sunsses. The sunsses seemed even darker by contrast and the world, in his eyes, grew very dark.


    The blood and bodies on the Wilderness upied most of the light and heat in the sky. In his eyes, everything became much darker and colder and more simr to what he had seen in his dark dreams.


    Ning Que looked up directly at the Golden Dragon¡¯s head which almost upied his entire field of vision. As such, it was easy to aim at. Even though he was behind the sunsses, the light still shone through it piercingly, making it painful and ufortable for him. He teared up unknowingly.


    The iron bow was slowly pulled and creaked; the darkish iron arrow trembled slightly on the string. The sharp arrowhead met the light falling from the sky, making it seem dark and terrifying.


    Ning Que did not look frightened, but instead only looked determined. He looked at the Golden Dragon¡¯s head through his sunsses and with a roar, he released the arrow on his bow, shooting into the dragon¡¯s right eye!


    Mythical creatures represented Haotian¡¯s appearance on earth. Those living on earth either knelt in a show of respect or submission, or they would remain silent like statues. But no one would think of killing the creature.


    Because it was impossible.


    Yet, Ning Que did it.


    The white turbulence bloomed behind the bowstring and was purified into nothingness by the infinite light falling from the sky. However, the iron arrow had left the string, and in a few moments, it reached the faraway sky.


    At this moment, everyone on the Wilderness was kneeling, and no one dared to look directly at the sky and the Golden Dragon¡¯s head in it. Therefore, no one witnessed this incredibly rare scene.


    The Golden Dragon¡¯s head was extremely high up in the sky. It was likely that other than Liu Bai¡¯s sword, only Ning Que¡¯s Primordial Thirteen Arrows could reach where it was located.


    The darkish iron arrow turned into a slender shadow amongst the light. It pierced the dragon¡¯s left eye and then was dissolved by the light in mere moments.


    If the eyes of the golden dragon were like calmkes, then the Primordial Thirteen Arrow that instilled fear in the cultivation world was like a thin shard of ice thrown into theke. It disappeared within seconds and did not cause any ripples at all.


    Ning Que was not surprised at all by what happened. However, the word despair did not exist in his dictionary. He would not give up until the veryst moment. And since he had to die, he would not be satisfied until he shot the arrow.


    The Giant Golden Dragon looked down at the Wilderness and at Ning Que who was holding his bow. Scorn and contempt appeared in its massiveke-like eyes. Then, indifference swept across its face as it breathed out.


    As the dragon¡¯s head breathed out, golden light condensed into billions of grains that fell onto the Wilderness like a flooding river. However, each grain of sand was transparent and every grain held absolute power!

 Chapter 674 - The Hand Reaching out to the Sky

    <h4>Chapter 674: The Hand Reaching out to the Sky</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    As the dragon¡¯s breath approached, a holy and pure majestic aura reverberated in the Wilderness.


    Ning Que¡¯s bow broke and as the sound rang gently, his perception was thrown into chaos. His Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow also seemed to show signs of copse.


    What was even more frightening was that the liquid bead that was condensed Great Spirit in his lower abdomen seemed to feel the call of the dragon¡¯s breath. It started to whirl violently, releasing threads of gas that poured into his body.


    It would not have been an issue if that was just it. However, the problem was that the Great Spirit that poured into all parts of his body seemed to show signs of escaping through his skin!


    The Golden Dragon¡¯s head moved forward slowly in the sky. Its slender body emerging from behind the burning white cloud. Its scales were fine, bright and mirror-like. They rubbed against the wisps of clouds and the air, causing golden mes to burst forth.


    As the Giant Golden Dragon gradually appeared fully, the pressure that enveloped the whole Wilderness grew heavier and more terrifying. It began to feel as if the space in the Wilderness was growing unstable.


    The dragon¡¯s breath that descended unto the Wilderness was made up of countless tiny pieces of gold-colored gravel. What was strange was that these pieces of gold-colored gravel contained infinite pressure, but when they fell to the ground, instead of burning up with divine light; it was like sand and was scattered in the wind.


    However, the absence of burning does not mean that there was no power. The golden sand-like dragon¡¯s breathnded on the Wilderness and on the bodies of the Deste warriors. Fissures suddenly appeared on their bodies.


    Dozens of dragon¡¯s breath sand grains fell on Tang¡¯s body. His fur clothes tore open instantly and several fine bloody holes appeared on his body which was as hard as stone.


    Ning Que was not any better off. He waved his hand, trying to disperse the dragon¡¯s breath sand floating in front of him. However, not only did he not manage to get rid of them, they stuck to the edge of his palms.


    A very thin hole appeared on the side of his palm and the majestic and awe-inspiring Great Spirit flowed out of his body through the bloody hole, dissipating into the air instantly.


    Ning Que understood what was happening.


    He cultivated in the Great Spirit and had long joined the Devil. Tang and the Deste warriors also cultivated in the arts of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. They each had a world in their bodies where they stored plenty of Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    ording to Haotian Taoism, the Devil¡¯s Doctrine is of the devil because those who cultivated in it created their own world. This was disrespectful to Haotian. And the root of it was that cultivators in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine would continue to take in the Qi of Heaven and Earth in nature. If this situation was allowed to continue, the Qi of Heaven and Earth would dry up eventually.


    The Giant Golden Dragon represented Haotian¡¯s will. To it, Ning Que and The Deste were shameless thieves who had been stealing Haotian¡¯s wealth. It would of course want to retrieve the wealth that they had stolen.


    The dragon¡¯s breath, which was like gold sand, fluttered across the Wilderness andnded on Ning Que and the others. It wanted to take away the Qi of Heaven and Earth in their bodies and purify the world, returning it to its original light state.


    This process was Haotian¡¯s divine punishment.


    And it was also salvation.


    In Hn City in the distance, His Majesty looked at the shimmering sky of Divine Light and at the Golden Dragon¡¯s head. He was silent and grave.


    The Golden Dragon¡¯s head spat dragon¡¯s breath onto the Wilderness. It was like golden sand and a rainstorm. Somehow, when the Emperor saw this, he suddenly paled and appeared to be in pain.


    Master Huang Yang¡¯s expression was very serious. His right wrist emerged from his monk robe¡¯s sleeves and he held the Emperor¡¯s left hand. There was a string of sandalwood prayer beads winded around his wrists. The beads slid down like running water and onto the emperor¡¯s wrist.


    Apassionate Buddhist aura sprang forth as the beads were slipped on. The Emperor felt the aura within his body that had been tormenting him for years calm slightly, and hisplexion partially improved.


    Master Huang Yang, however, was still worried. No longer willing to allow the Emperor to watch the battle on the tower, he forcibly helped the Emperor in.


    In the deepest room of the rock-built tower, the Empress was holding the young prince. She was very pale and traces of blood coated her lips.


    The young prince cried at the Emperor, ¡°Father, quick, take a look at mother. What¡¯s wrong with her?¡±


    The Empress smiled at the Emperor wanly and shook her head, signaling that she was fine.


    The Emperor stopped in front of her and took the prayer beads off his right wrist, slipping them on hers without hesitating.


    Master Huang Yang watched the scene and sighed heavily to himself.


    Deep in the extreme Western Wilderness.


    All the monks of the Xuankong Temple had already sequestered themselves into various yellow temples,rge and small. Mists swirled around, enveloping the entire mountain peak. Only the faint sounds of scripture chanting could be heard, but nothing could be seen.


    At the highest point of the peak, above the mists and the earth¡¯s surface, one could see a distant image and see that the skies of the east were growing increasingly bright.


    The Chief Preaching Monk of the Xuankong Temple looked to the east, holding his monk¡¯s staff. His eyes had long been dried up by the light, unable to find any vapor to moisten them. However, he did not suffer any harm.


    The light in the east grew and the dark night was eclipsed by it. However, it did not disappear but waspletely covered. The chief monk did not look joyful, only weary and grave.


    Haotian¡¯s Giant Golden Dragon had appeared and light shone throughout the world.


    Except for a few people, no one in the world could look up to heaven.


    Light was not only warm but also dignified. What it needed was not closeness but reverence. That was why light allowed humans to know about its existence but never allowed them to see its directly.


    In the chariot on the Wilderness, Ye Hongyu had once attempted to look up at the Giant Golden Dragon. She had instantly felt a stabbing pain and teared up, and the divine light in her eyes melted away. She could only look down expressionlessly once more.


    Being unable to look up at the sky did not mean that one couldn¡¯t know of the divine battle in the sky.


    Countless cities, countless viges and towns, mountains and rivers, and people knelt beneath the light. They saw the reflections on the ground and watched nervously as the war between the light and darkness progressed.


    Countless believers of Haotian gathered in the nearest Taoist temple and chanted scriptures and prayed incessantly. They prayed for blessings to be bestowed upon the allied troops on the Wilderness and showed their piousness to Haotian. They expressed great joy and sorrow and were hysterical.


    As the light gradually overwhelmed the darkness, the happy cries of people rushed up into the skies. There were many who fainted from the delirium and some who woke up from it, heading straight into the divine world of Haotian.


    In the deep mountains of West-Hill, was a simple Taoist temple. The temple was probably one of the least well-known amongst believers of Haotian Taoism. However, it was also the most important Taoist temple in Haotian Taoism.


    Behind the Taoist temple was a red y mountain covered with green vines. There were countless deep caves in the mountain, and in these caves, resided many powerful and terrifying Haotian Taoism powerhouses.


    Those powerful auras seeped out from the green hills. They watched the changes in the sky, enjoying the light that streamed down from the Giant Golden Dragon and were gradually moved. asionally, deep and happyughter could be heard.


    Dragon¡¯s breath was the actual breath of the dragon. Inhalinges after exhaling.


    The Golden Dragon¡¯s head in the sky opened its mouth and the dragon¡¯s body suddenly thickened. On the Wilderness, there was a sudden gust of wind, ripping and whirling through thends, sweeping up the golden grains of sand scattered on the ground.


    From a distance, it seemed as if there was a whirlwind between heaven and earth. The thinner end was where the golden dragon¡¯s head was while the thicker portion was on the ground. The wind swept by and where it passed, sand and stone would fly up.


    As those golden grains of sand left the ground, the aura of Heaven and Earth in the bodies of The Deste soldiers on the Wilderness was sucked away by that tornado.


    While the naked eye could not make out the process, Ning Que could sense it because the Giant Golden Dragon had sucked up plenty of Great Spirit from him. When he looked up again, the Golden Dragon¡¯s head in his sunsses was not as dignified or bright but looked bloody, terrifying and greedy.


    The night in the north had slowly retreated, the Big ck Umbre no longer had to spew out aura. The connection between Sangsang and the night had been broken and the aura surrounding her had been purified. Dust and gravel danced in the wind.


    Sangsang¡¯s feet had left the surface of the ground, away from the ice and snow that were like white lotuses as she floated up to the sky.


    The Giant Golden Dragon looked at her nonchntly.


    Sangsang¡¯s clothes rustled in the whirlwind.


    Sangsang flew towards the sky, towards the mouth of the Giant Golden Dragon.


    Sangsang turned around and looked at Ning Que. Her eyes were filled with fear and her expression was of helplessness.


    Ning Que jumped up and hugged her legs, wanting to pull her back onto earth.


    But he could not do so.


    Sangsang continued to fly towards the sky, bringing him along with her.


    Haotian wanted Sangsang.


    Haotian did not want him.


    That was why while Sangsang¡¯s body became very light, his body suddenly grew as heavy as a mountain.


    There were two cracks, and his arms which were holding onto Sangsang shattered.


    But he did not let go.


    Since he had caught her, he would never ever let go.


    He would not let her go even if his arms broke.


    He would not let her go even if he died.


    A faint glimmer shed across hisshes and the earth seemed to no longer hold any attraction. Ning Que hugged on to Sangsang and with the dragon¡¯s breath, they both flew into the sky and towards the mouth of the Giant Golden Dragon.


    Their hair and clothes danced in the air, looking like two ck flowers. Ning Que began to bleed due to the pressure of light, and blood flowed from the ck petal, falling onto the Wilderness.


    On the Wilderness, the Big ck Horse ran frantically, pulling the carriage behind it. It seemed to have forgotten its fear as it ran after the two in the sky, neighing in anger and sadness from time to time.


    Ning Que looked at it and said hoarsely, ¡°It¡¯s so stupid.¡±


    Then he looked up and saw a patch of light in the sky above his head. There was nothing but light and it seemed so pure, just like death. So, he knew that death was approaching.


    He had made many choices in his life. Now, it seemed as if those choices were really meaningless. Just like how he had, at thest moment, chosen to jump into the sky to embrace Sangsang.


    However, sometimes, choices were fraught with meaning.


    He looked at Sangsang and smiled.


    Sangsang looked at him and smiled.


    Then, their bodies suddenly stopped, no longer flying towards the light and the sky.


    Because a hand had reached up into the sky and caught hold of Ning Que¡¯s leg.

 Chapter 675 - Sword of the World (Part 1)

    <h4>Chapter 675: Sword of the World (Part 1)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ning Que flew towards the light, hugging Sangsang. They had already flown for a long time; the people on the Wilderness were looking like little ck spots and he could barely make out the Big ck Horse.


    They were already very far off the ground, and logically speaking, nothing else, other than flying swords or arrows would be able to reach where they were. Unless the person was very tall, he would not be able to reach out all the way into the sky and grab hold of his leg.


    Ning Que and Sangsang crossed the cloud of golden dragon¡¯s breath andnded softly on the surface of the Wilderness. He hugged Sangsang closely and looked up, realizing that the figure in front of him was very tall indeed.


    The person looked at Ning Que and Sangsang, his back against the sky and the Giant Golden Dragon. His face was shrouded by darkness, and could not be made out clearly. The edges of his body seemed to be ted with golden light as if he were on fire.


    The person stood on the Wilderness, his tall figure seeming as if it were about to touch the sky.


    The person smiled and said, ¡°Choices might seem meaningless, but sometimes, our choices might affect those of others. This will make things interesting.¡±


    In the mirage he faced during the entrance test to the Second floor of the Academy, Ning Que had had a conversation with the tall man. He had not seen the face of the man clearly then.


    ¡°Which side would you choose between light and darkness?¡±


    ¡°Why do I have to make a choice?¡±


    ¡°How did you make a choice in the past?¡±


    ¡°I am in the dark, but my heart yearns for the light.¡±


    ¡°I never thought that I would still be able to see any strand of wild grass that would bend with the wind after so many years.¡±


    ¡°Look, I¡¯ve told you that making a choice wasn¡¯t necessary.¡±


    ¡°But what if the sky copses?¡±


    ¡°Why would the sky fall?¡±


    ¡°What if?¡±


    ¡°Then there will be someone tall to support it... someone like you.¡±


    Ning Que found out who the tall man was some time after he had ascended the Academy¡¯s mountain. The dream became a reality many yearster in the Wilderness. He realized that what he had said was just as urate. So what if the sky fell? There would always be a tall person like his teacher who would hold it up.


    Ning Que knelt before the tall figure and said respectfully, ¡°Teacher, you¡¯re here.¡±


    ¡°Yes, I thought about it and still could not understand. So I came.¡±


    The Headmaster looked up at the bright light and the fading night in the sky, using his body to create a shade in the Wilderness for Ning Que and Sangsang. His ck coat swung in the air as if it was going to burst into mes.


    ¡°I thought for more than a millennium on which side I should stand on in the battle between light and darkness. However, the problem is that I have never seen Yama and have never crossed paths with him. I don¡¯t like the cold, but I don¡¯t like the quiet boring world Buddha saw. I don¡¯t like Haotian either, I even hate it.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°So I have always wanted to be a grass on the wall, leaning on whichever side the wind blows. Over the past years, I asked you which side you would walk on, but in fact, I was also asking myself the same question. When I asked you in your dream then, you said you wanted to be a grass on the wall, and itforted me a lot. It is more important not to choose. Unfortunately, being a grass on the wall isn¡¯t that easy. The wind might be able to find out which grass is the strongest in the gale, and tear it off.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the Headmaster worriedly and said, ¡°But you still made a choice.¡±


    The Headmaster nced at Sangsang and said calmly, ¡°Perhaps my choice might prove to be wrong. But at least, right now, I want to make this choice, so I choose this.¡±


    Ning Que did not know what to say, but he was very touched and a little sad. He was fortunate because he had his teacher and that he and Sangsang were both alive. However, he worried for his teacher and how he would face Haotian¡¯s wrath.


    The Headmaster looked at him and smiled. He continued, ¡°Not making a choice is indeed a form of freedom. However, if you do not make a choice out of fear, then that isn¡¯t considered freedom. Making a choice doesn¡¯t have to have any meaning, but it might have some. We live on Earth, not for any meaning, but to be meaningful.¡±


    The statement was simple but profound.


    Ning Que did not have to think much to understand what his teacher was saying. That was because he was a student of the Academy. Meaning was the goal while being meaningful emphasized the process. The Academy did not care about the goal but the process.


    When Youngest Uncle had wanted to wage war against the sky with a sword, he must have considered that it was something very meaningful.


    The light bore down on the world and many knelt on the ground, not daring to look directly at the sky as they prayed silently, filled with respect and fear. Those who dared to stand died, or were about to die. However, on one spot of the Wilderness where the light shone the brightest stood a tall man who shielded the Daughter of Yama with his body.


    This was a provocation against the majesty of Haotian and was an unforgivable act of sphemy.


    The Giant Golden Dragon¡¯ske-like silent eyes burned with the divine fire of wrath. Its solemn roar reverberated through the Earth once more, followed by a powerful dragon¡¯s breath.


    Countless rays of burning Divine Light mixed with clear golden gravel sprang forth from the dragon¡¯s head in the sky to the Wilderness. The power behind the dragon¡¯s breath this time was much stronger than before, burning up the air where it passed. A golden-white projection appeared on the surface of the Wilderness.


    Ning Que looked over the Headmaster¡¯s shoulders and saw the shocking image in the sky. He saw the smoldering dragon¡¯s breath heading towards them and paled, yelling, ¡°Teacher, watch out!¡±


    The Headmaster did not turn around, showing his back to the sky.


    The golden gravel descended from the sky and disappeared without a trace when it arrived near the Headmaster¡¯s back. The heat and light in the golden sand disappeared as well as if nothing had happened.


    It was as if there was ake behind the Headmaster. When the volcano was about to erupt, there was a sea. It was the Hot Sea before the Cold Region in the Far North froze over. The dragon¡¯s breath was like countless pieces of ice that fell into the Hot Sea, melting without leaving a trace behind.


    The golden dragon¡¯s breath that attacked the Headmaster was turned into the smallest atoms of the world by an invisible force. These atoms dissolved into the world and were cleansed.


    It looked simple but was very strange. No one could understand it because it was the purest form of Haotian Divine Light. It was the dragon¡¯s breath that could cleanse everything in this world and was being cleansed by the man.


    Even though cultivators beyond the Five States could create his own rules in Haotian¡¯s world and have a world of their own, they cannot ignore the rules of Haotian in this world.


    How did the Headmaster do it?


    The people on the Wilderness were all kneeling, not daring to look up at the bright sky. However, they could see what was happening. They saw the arrival of the Headmaster and the Giant Golden Dragon breathing fire at the Headmaster. They saw the powerful, suppressive power that no one on earth could defeat disappearing.


    Everyone was extremely shocked when they saw this. They could not believe their eyes. And those who believed that they had not seen wrongly began to doubt the world.


    The Divine Hall Hierarch knelt on the ground holding his scepter. He was still tall, but he began to tremble violently. Compared with the tall figure in the Wilderness, he seemed short, weak and despicable.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion looked on at what was happening in the Wilderness. His deep wrinkles were distorted by shock and the blood and gold powder between them ked off. He muttered, ¡°What state is that?¡±


    The dragon¡¯s breath was futile and was even purified. Complex emotions appeared in the Giant Golden Dragon¡¯s eyes. It suddenly tightened its body and roared fiercely. This was not the majestic roar as before, but was one filled with anger and violence!


    A strong hurricane descended upon the Wilderness. ck dirt and grass clippings were swept up; dust and smoke flew, gradually obscuring one¡¯s vision. It was darker than the previous night in the north.


    The Giant Golden Dragon roared, struggling to push through the cloud angrily. There were several feet of golden ropes tightly binding the dragon¡¯s body, and behind it, dragged a heavy object.


    Momentster, a war chariot made of pure gold appeared in the sky, pulled out of the clouds by the Giant Golden Dragon.


    The golden chariot was enormous. If it were to descend on earth, not even the entirety of Chang¡¯an could amodate it, and the gold was not from this world. It was pure and seemed transparent and bright!


    The sky shone brightly and the dust on the Wilderness settled. As the light shone on it, the Wilderness grew snow white, looking as if it was covered in days of snow. The area began to shake uneasily and the earth shook.


    There was a divine guard standing on the golden chariot.


    The divine guard was wearing armor condensed by Haotian Divine Light. He was towering andrge like a mountain. In contrast, the stone statue of the Buddha that once stood on the mountain was like a small stone man.


    The divine guard looked perfect and wless. In contrast, Prince Long Qing who used to be known as the most handsome man in West-Hill looked like a beggar.


    The divine guard looked indifferent while his eyes zed with Divine Light. He watched the world emotionlessly from the war chariot, and where his gazended, things crumbled into nothingness.


    Other than the Xuankong Temple¡¯s Chief Preaching Monk, the Taoist in indigo on the south seas, and a few people in the ant caves behind Zhishou Abbey, there were not many people who could see the golden chariot and the divine guard riding on it.


    Ning Que hugged Sangsang as they sat in the shadow that the Headmaster cast. He was wearing his makeshift sunsses, so he could still see the image in the sky even though his eyes stung. He was shocked speechless.


    He knew that his teacher was very tall, but in the face of Haotian¡¯s wrath and the divine general who was tall and whose eyes zed with Haotian Divine Light, what could his teacher do?


    The Headmaster turned to look at the golden chariot that the Giant Golden Dragon pulled. He looked at the perfect Divine Guard of Light on the chariot and at his perfect face. Then, he suddenly shook his head.


    ¡°There is nothing perfect in the world. There are only things that we think are perfect.¡±


    The Headmaster sped his hands together and looked at the Divine Guard of Light in the sky. He said, ¡°Your perfectiones from thousands of people. So you are not human; you are made up of those people.¡±


    The Divine Guard of Light was indifferent and had the Giant Golden Dragon pull the golden chariot down onto earth. Suddenly, a sword of light that spanned over ten miles appeared in his hand and he brought it down onto the Wilderness.


    ¡°Youe from Haotian¡¯s holynd and use the divine sword of light. It is simply light, so it is not real, just like your existence. I¡¯m going to show you the sword of the world today.¡±


    The Headmaster said. Then, he reached his right hand into the sky and spread his palm open toward the south.


    The clouds tore through, and the dark sky showed up once more. A sword flew over tens of thousands of miles from the south.


    The sword was ancient and burning hot. It tore through the clouds andnded in the Headmaster¡¯s meaty palm. It whistled slightly, showing its awe, submission and pride for it had been called upon by the Headmaster.

 Chapter 676 - Sword of the World (Part 2)

    <h4>Chapter 676: Sword of the World (Part 2)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    In the past decades, the Headmaster had never once attacked. This meant that he was gradually forgotten by the people of the world and even those in the cultivation world would sometimes forget his existence.


    There were few who knew the legends. The Headmaster¡¯s weapon was a rod. Ning Que had experienced the pain it caused personally. The Headmaster¡¯s weapon was indeed a rod.


    The Headmaster did not use a sword. However, since he wanted to show the Divine Guard of Light in the sky a sword of the world, then he had to borrow one. He reached out to the south and a sword flew from the south.


    The ancient sword was from the Sword Garret of the South Jin Kingdom.


    The Sword Sage Liu Bai, sat beside the pool. He looked at the dried pool in front of him and thought of the sword that had burst forth from it and flown away. He did not speak, but his face was crowded with emotions.


    Liu Bai was very weak and tired. He sat by the pool meditating for many years to forge a true sword. The sword had in it all his sword style and spirit.


    In other words, he was the sword, that was why it was the strongest sword in the world. Now that the ancient sword had left the pool, his sword style and spirit had left with it as well, which naturally weakened him.


    However, Liu Bai did not seem angry. Instead, he looked a little lost.


    He was the most powerful person in the world, and his cultivation in sword Taoism was unparalleled. However, there was someone who could just casually take his sword away from thousands of miles away. He could not even stop the person. He did not even have the right to object to it.


    Momentster, Liu Bai¡¯s lost expression turned into one of excitement.


    He had sensed whose hand the sword hadnded in.


    So like the sword, he felt honored and proud.


    The ancient sword tore through the clouds and came,nding in the Headmaster¡¯s hand.


    The Headmaster¡¯s feet left the surface of the Wilderness and he rose to the sky.


    His ck coat rustled in the wind and reflected the light in the sky. It tore the holy and zing Haotian Divine Light into countless golden shreds.


    Ning Que hugged Sangsang and looked up at the sky, shock written all over his face.


    His teacher had finally attacked, and his first move was to fight in the skies.


    To him, this was a battle that would definitely be recorded in the annals. It would be a mythical battle; astonishing, dangerous, possiblysting for days and nights or even longer.


    He only hoped that his teacher would emerge victorious and unharmed.


    However, he did not expect that the battle would bepletely different from what he had imagined.


    It started quickly, and also ended quickly. It was very simple.


    The Headmaster¡¯s ck coat danced in the wind as he flew into the sky. He was already above the blue skies. He looked at the light and darkness in the sky and casually waved the ancient sword that was the sword of the world in his hand.


    A sword mark suddenly appeared between the bright light and the fading night. The sword mark was extremely deep, and it seemed to pierce the sky like a deep wedge, separating the light from the dark.


    The Headmaster¡¯s first stroke had cleaved the skies.


    The Divine Guard of Light stood on the golden carriage, with a heartless expression on his face. The sword of light that was more than ten miles long cut down on the Wilderness. The de was also more than ten miles wide, and it pressed down on the Headmaster¡¯s body like a mountain.


    Compared with thergeness of the Giant Golden Dragon, the golden chariot and the Divine Guard of Light, the Headmaster who was especially tall in the mortal realm looked like a speck of dust suspended in the air.


    Compared with the enormous sword of light, the sword of the world in his hands seemed like a strand of hair.


    The Headmaster lifted the sword of the world in his hands and plunged it at the sword of light.


    The two swords met, and it was like a strand of hair gently brushing on the Tianqi Mountain.


    It seemed like there was no effect, but the mountain copsed.


    The sword of light suddenly broke into pieces and like an avnche, it scattered in all directions of the Wilderness.


    The sword style in the Headmaster¡¯s hand did not rest and seemed as if it never would. It traversed through the tens of thousands of falling shards from the broken sword towards the golden chariot. Then, itnded on the Divine Guard of Light¡¯s face.


    Several thin sword marks appeared on the Divine Guard of Light¡¯s perfect face. Then, it became imperfect. His ruthless and unseeing face seemed amusing because of its imperfection.


    Crack, crack, crack, crack. There were several creaking sounds and tens and thousands of cracks appeared on the Divine Guard of Light¡¯s face. The cracks spread to his body and his armor, which were formed by Haotian Divine Light, and began to crack as well.


    The Divine Guard of Light was like an ice sculpture. He broke into countless transparent crystals that rained down on the Wilderness like hail. However, the sound of it was like a thunderstorm hitting the roof.


    There was still the terrifying power of Divine Light and energy in the fine crystal shards. However, it could no longer be brought back together again or pose any danger to the Headmaster who was holding the sword of the world.


    The Divine Guard of Light and the sword of light shattered, falling onto the surface of the Wilderness incessantly like a dense meteor shower. The shards fell, with a tail of fire trailing behind it, causing dust and smoke to ssh up and igniting zing mes.


    Many rolled around in pain in the fire that was the Divine Light. Then, they died, turning into spiraling smoke.


    The Divine Guard of Light who had been looking at the world indifferently had also died and turned into smoke.


    The Headmaster¡¯s second stroke had split apart a god.


    The Headmaster flew up with the wind and into the brightest spot in the sky. He stood on the Giant Golden Dragon¡¯s head.


    The Giant Golden Dragon gave a furious roar and thrashed his tail around. The clouds dispersed and thunder roared. It was absolutely terrifying.


    The Headmaster stood on its head, his ck coat whipping loudly in the wind.


    The Giant Golden Dragon turned its head to bite him, and the Headmaster brought his sword down upon it.


    It was unknown whether it was the Headmaster who had grown extremely tall, or if the Giant Golden Dragon had turned small beneath his feet. The sword of the world in his hands pierced into the Giant Golden Dragon¡¯s neck, making an extremely deep cut.


    The Giant Golden Dragon screamed and struggled desperately.


    The Headmaster¡¯s sword ripped through the dragon¡¯s neck and pieces of scales peeled off.


    The Giant Golden Dragon was increasingly in pain and its struggle grew even more vigorous. It flew and spun in the air, splitting the clouds and bringing surges of electricity out of them. However, it could not free itself from the sword of the world.


    Dragon scales fell off. They were like mirrors, floating in the sky over the Wilderness and falling toward the ground. They reflected the light in the sky and shone upon the world, making it look like a turbulent river in the twilight.


    Every time a scale fell, a fire would be ignited in the Wilderness.


    Many rolled around and moaned in pain in the fire that was the Divine Light. Then, they died, turning into spiraling smoke.


    The sword of the world carved a circle around the dragon¡¯s neck.


    The Giant Golden Dragon¡¯s body was separated from its head. The dragon¡¯s body writhed in the sky for a long time before it stilled. Then, both the body and head copsed like a golden sand river and spilled into the world.


    The Headmaster¡¯s third stroke had killed a dragon.


    The Headmaster waved his sleeves and his ck coat billowed in the wind.


    His left sleeve waved the dragon¡¯s body into the north where the night was. The golden sand which was breaking apart danced in the night sky before sting away.


    Every grain of golden sand contained the purest and most terrifying Haotian Divine Light. Now that they had burned uppletely, an undeterminable amount of heat and light was generated, cleansing the darkness in the north.


    His right sleevepressed the dragon¡¯s head into a pure ball of light and pushed it into Sangsang¡¯s head. The remnants of the cold aura in Sangsang suddenly disappeared, like ice encountering the raging sun.


    Deep in the Southern Sea, white steam spewed toward the sky in the sea water before the ck reef. The boiling magma churned, seeming especially uneasy, reflecting the mood of the Taoist in indigo.


    He looked to the north of the world and at the shes of lightning and roaring thunder. After a long moment of silence, he sighed and shook his head.


    In the depths of the Western Wilderness, the sounds in the clouds were slightly chaotic due to the vision. The usually quiet yellow temples seemed not to know what to express, just like how the Chief Preaching Monk was feeling right now.


    He looked at the lightning above the eastern Wilderness exhaustedly. He kept wiping the sweat off his forehead, but as the lightning gradually ceased, the sweat on his forehead increased.


    All was silent on the green mountain behind the Zhishou Abbey. It was filled with silence and despair. An old and shrill voice cried, ¡°We can¡¯t even kill him with that. What can we do?¡±


    The Divine Guard of Light and Giant Golden Dragon scales fell from the sky, turning into burning Haotian divine fire. It swept away all the humans on the surface of the Wilderness, burning many to death within a short period.


    In a battle of such intensity, all forces on Earth could only stand by and watch. However, there was no one qualified to watch today. They could only be lead by the waves and die regardless of which side they stood on.


    No matter whether they were the Deste, from the Central ins, the West-Hill Divine Pce or the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, they all became burnt corpses when they were touched by the divine fire. Then, they were cleansed and turned into smoke, disappearing into nothingness.


    The Headmasternded on the surface of the Wilderness. He waved his arm and the clouds gathered. His sleeves fluttered and there was wind. Momentster, a thunderstorm urred on the Wilderness, extinguishing the fire and dispelling the smoke.


    The rain and wind stopped, and the sky separated by light and darkness returned to normal, revealing a bluish hue. White clouds floated on the cerulean sky; in the distance, a flock of sheep that looked like clouds appeared.


    ¡°The sun is setting, and thend is looking wonderful. That¡¯s not right.¡±


    The Headmaster looked at the white clouds and shook his head. He casually threw the sword in his hand to the south, then ced his hand behind his back, leading Ning Que, Sangsang and the ck horse carriage away.


    The blinding light had been suppressed and the cold, terrifying night had disappeared. The hundreds of thousands of people on the Wilderness gradually regained consciousness. They looked at the tall figure and the slowly disappearing horse carriage.


    They had all vaguely guessed what had happened but did not believe it because not even the most secretive scriptures and the most sphemous of dark history books had ever recorded that such things would happen.


    The battle between the divine world and humans was won by mankind.


    The ancient sword of the world flew back to the Sword Garret of the South Jin Kingdom. It descended to the hole in the belly of the mountain and silently pressed down into the bottom of the dried pool. Momentster, the water appeared, filling the pool and submerging the sword.


    Liu Bai looked at the pool in front of him and knew that he could no longer use this sword ever again, even though he had forged the sword and refined it with his spirit for many years.


    The sword had already seen the sea and would no longer be impressed by normal waters. The sword had been used by the Headmaster to battle the will of Haotian. Would it still be willing to be wielded by an ordinary person or battle in the human realm?


    Liu Bai did not seem disappointed nor defeated. Calm and fill with awe, he smoothed out his clothes and washed his face in the pool water before bowing to the northern Wilderness.


    He was the most powerful person in the world. He was the prideful Sword Sage, Liu Bai. He had never respected nor feared anyone.


    He would only bow to the Headmaster alone.


    The Headmaster of the Tang Empire¡¯s Academy was a legendary character.


    Even though his name had been gradually forgotten by the world and many cultivators, in the hearts of truly powerful cultivators, he was still the most powerful.


    Many were guessing how tall the Headmaster was.


    The Zhishou Abbey¡¯s dean and the Chief Preaching Monk of the Xuankong Temple had once been beaten by the Headmaster. They once thought that they could guess how tall he was, but then, they discovered they were wrong.


    Liu Bai detached himself from the world for many years because of the Headmaster. He guessed that the Headmaster must be in the legendary Peaceful Non-Action State. But he was shocked to discover that he was wrong.


    In Hn City.


    Master Huang Yang looked at the blue skies and white clouds in the distance andmented, ¡°In the spring of the 13th year of the Tianqi era, the Academy started a new term. The Headmaster presided the ceremony at the Academy while the Nation Master and I yed chess at a pavilion by the path. I once asked him how tall the Headmaster was.¡±


    The Emperor asked, ¡°What did Qing Shan say?¡±


    ¡°The Nation Master said that the Headmaster was several stories tall. I said then, that the Second floor was already very high. If the Headmaster was several stories tall, then that would be really tall... However, it seems like we were both wrong.¡±


    ¡°How tall is the Headmaster?¡±


    Master Huang Yang praised sincerely, ¡°The Headmaster is as tall as the sky.¡±

 Chapter 677 - Something Truly Interesting

    <h4>Chapter 677: Something Truly Interesting</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The Emperor smiled when he heard this, and then he turned and walked down the gate tower. While themander of the Yulin Royal Guards and the bodyguards captain followed quickly, an escort servant handed over the armor and official sword. It seemed that he was going out to battle.


    Master Huang Yang was a little startled. Then he followed His Majesty through the stone path and down the gate tower. ¡°Where are you going, Your Majesty?¡± he asked.


    With the help of the escort servant, the Emperor wore the heavy armor. Then he said without turning around, ¡°There will be turmoil in the Eastern Wilderness. I¡¯m going to lead troops to suppress it.¡±


    Master Huang Yang had studied Buddha dharma for years but knew little about strategy in the secr world. Therefore, he still did not understand what His Majesty meant. He wondered why there would be another war after one had just recently ended.


    A Yulin Royal Guard brought a horse and handed the reins to Master Huang Yang.


    While sitting on horseback, the Emperor looked at him and said, ¡°If you are worried about my safety, you cane with me.¡±


    Master Huang Yang took over the reins, but still did not understand what the Emperor meant.


    The Emperor reached his right hand to his face and confirmed that the armor was in ce. ¡°From this moment on,¡± he said, ¡°the Tang Empire is faced with the threat of the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army. So my decision is to attack first.¡±


    Master Huang Yang was shocked upon hearing his words, ¡°Your Majesty, do you want to dere war on Haotian?¡±


    It had been one thousand years since the establishment of the Tang Empire; it had engaged in countless wars against many other countries. However, even during that period ridden with wars, it had not engaged in any confrontation with the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    Both of them knew where the limit was.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce did not want to confront the most powerful country in the world, while the Tang Empire refused to oppose the whole world, since the vast majority of Tang people were believers of Haotian.


    The Emperor said calmly, ¡°The Headmaster has dered war on Haotian.¡±


    At this moment, General Han Qing rushed out from the gate tower. He gripped the Emperor¡¯s reins and said with a trembling voice, ¡°Your Majesty, let me go...There has been some change in the Golden Pce. Please stay andmand Hn City.¡±


    The Emperor said, ¡°Though Chanyu from the Golden Pce has ambitions, he dares not to face me. The so-called change is something that will happen in the future. His cavalries cannot reach Hn City in ten days. At that time, my troops will certainly have returned.¡±


    Deathly stillness reigned the Wilderness. For a long time after the disappearance of the ck carriage, no one dared to speak, and one could only hear the breathing of hundreds of thousands people and the low neighing of the horses.


    Light and night, Golden dragon and god¡¯s soldiers, were finally ended by a sword on earth and turned into a sky full of sparks, falling on the Wilderness. Then as the cloud gathered, the wind rose, the rain fell, and the smoke was dispersed, the blue sky reappeared.


    These scenes were beyond the wildest imagination and all the experience of mankind. The sense of shock, terror and awe lingered in the heart of hundreds of thousands of people for a long time.


    The more powerful the person was, the easier he roused. In the imperial carriage, in the camp of the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army, a tall figure slowly stood up behindyers of gauze curtains. He averted his eyes from the Deste Man¡¯s tribe in the north to the military of Tang in the west.


    The Hierarch Lord of the West-Hill Divine Pce held his scepter and quietly looked at those cavalries of the Tang Empire. They looked as shocked as the allied forces, but also prideful.


    The Heavens were divided by the sword, god¡¯s soldiers were killed, and the golden dragon was finally ughtered. The Headmaster showed a supreme, almost miraculous power today. He was the head of the Academy, as well as the spiritual pir of the Tang Empire, so there was no wonder why the Tang people would be so proud.


    However, in the eyes of the West-Hill Divine Pce and hundreds of millions of Haotian¡¯s believers, what the Headmaster had done was an unforgivable sphemy to the will of Haotian.


    Light was supposed to defeat darkness. But the Headmaster headed to the light and rescued the Daughter of Yama. As a result, all the sacrifices made by various countries in the world became useless.


    The Tang Empire was proud of the Headmaster. As such, they had to bear the cost of such pride.


    The low and stern voice of the Hierarch Lord of the Divine Hall reverberated throughout the Wilderness.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army gradually awakened. Their gazes at the Tang military in the west became increasingly conflicted, filled with alertness, aversion, and anger. In the end, all of those emotions became hatred which filled their eyes.


    Then the smoke and dust started to rise, with hooves of horses thundering. The coalition army gradually changed the battle formation to a new one, obviously against the Tang military in the west.


    The Wilderness boasted half of the Northeast Cavalries and one third of the Northern Military, thergest number of soldiers sent by the Tang Empire over recent years. Added to their recognized highbat effectiveness, these Tang soldiers were enough to sweep across small countries like Song and Qi.


    However, this was a holy warunched by the West-Hill Divine Pce. The countries from the Central ins dispatched the best troops, cultivators and martial warriors, four times as many as the ones in the Tang military. So it was really possible for them to win the war.


    After the dust gradually fell, the Wilderness under the clear blue sky was covered by the dark cavalries. The West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army was thus divided into two camps, making the atmosphere extremely tense.


    The coalition army¡¯s original rival, the Deste Man¡¯s tribe, was of little importance at the time.


    As a shrill whistle suddenly rang, the war began.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army, which assumed absolute superiority, routed the right defense of the Northeast Border Military of the Tang Empire and besieged Tang cavalries on the Wilderness, at the cost of more than 30,000 lives.


    However, the Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce and the royal families and generals of countries like Yan, Jin, Song, and Qi all knew that the coalition army had to pay a heavy price of casualties befalling more than half of their numbers in order to destroy the whole Tang military.


    But they still had to do so.


    Because the Tang Empire had already betrayed Haotian and the Headmaster scared all of them. In order to dispel this fear, they must firmly stand on the side of Haotian and seize the opportunity.


    Just at that moment, the hooves of horses thundered.


    Countless cavalries in ck armor came from the east with frightful presence. They rushed to the Wilderness like a ck torrent, smashing the formation of the coalition army.


    Here was the world-renowned Armored Cavalry of the Tang Empire.


    Under the fluttering army g, was the Emperor.


    The ck horse carriage sped through the Wilderness.


    The Wilderness was not deste inte spring. The ground was covered with dense grass. The color of green stretched out to the horizon like a green nket dotted with tiny white flowers.


    Those tiny white flowers were flocks of sheep; but among the grass, there were the real white flowers partly hidden and partly visible.


    The spring wind blew. The Big ck Horse kept running excitedly with its head shaking constantly, trampling on the grass and kicking up ck mud and petals. When some petals floated to its big nostrils, it was so happy it neighed wildly.


    Thinking about the sublime being in the carriage, it was of course afraid of doing so. It suppressed the excitement of its close shave with death and panted heavily, looking as if it wasughing goofily.


    Ning Que took a cup of tea and handed it to the Headmaster. ¡°Teacher, have a cup of tea, please,¡± said he.


    At the moment, he was extremely happy. If he could reveal all his happiness, clear dimples would appear on his smiling face like flowers. However, he thought that it would be a disrespect to his teacher, so he suppressed the emotion until his lips trembled, making himself look very silly.


    Sangsang sat by the window, clutching her sleeves nervously. She looked at the Headmaster who upied the soft couch rudely after getting on the carriage, and smiled a silly smile.


    The Headmaster held up the hot tea cup and took a sip. Then he looked at them and asked, ¡°Why are you smiling so goofily?¡±


    Ning Que giggled and said frankly, ¡°I really don¡¯t know what to do at this time except for smiling goofily.¡±


    Sangsang nodded and giggled.


    The Headmaster poured the light condensed by the head of the Giant Golden Dragon into her. As a result, the cold aura in her body suddenly disappeared, leaving only a few threads, which no longer posed a threat to her.


    What was more amazing was that she could clearly feel a new life aura in her body. It was alive and a little bitplicated, not that pure like the Haotian Divine Light or Yama¡¯s Imprint.


    That aura was all-epassing. There were flowers, grass, fish, birds, wind, frost, dew, and rain. In it, she felt the beauty of saussurea in the Liuhu Lake, the heat from the steamed bun restaurant, and the grease of the booth which sold the hot and sour sliced noodle soup.


    The aura included everything in the world, so it naturally had many impurities, even filthy things. However, it was due to them that the aura could be so alive.


    Because this was reality.


    Though Sangsang did not know what the Headmaster had done to her, she vaguely knew that the key was not the Divine Light that had been poured into her body. It was the lively life aura that could heal her.


    The illness that no one could heal was healed by the Headmaster without difficulty. During their endless escape for hundreds of thousands of miles, they had experienced countless difficulties and hardships and encountered the punishment of Haotian in despair. However, everything was better as soon as the Headmaster appeared.


    Over the past two years and on this day, Ning Que and Sangsang experienced violent ups and downs on their emotions and endless bouts of shock. At this moment, as Ning Que had said, they did not know what to do except forughing goofily.


    After a period of time, he gradually calmed down and became more sober. Thinking about what had happened before, he frowned slightly and said with worries, ¡°Teacher, the West-Hill Divine Pce will not let this go.¡±


    The Headmaster handed the cup to him and said, ¡°What does that have to do with me? Pour me another cup of tea.¡±


    Ning Que poured the hot tea into the cup with a wry smile and passed it over. He thought to himself that to his teacher, the anger of the West-Hill Divine Pce was naturally of less importance than a cup of tea, but the Tang Empire would definitely be affected.


    ¡°Teacher, aren¡¯t you worried about Haotian bringing his wrath upon Chang¡¯an?¡±


    ¡°Will Haotian be some?¡±


    ¡°What about the West-Hill Divine Pce?¡±


    ¡°If His Majesty were not His Majesty and is still studying at the Academy mountain¡¯s back, he would have been your Sixth Brother. Since he is now in the Wilderness, what do you think I need to worry about?¡±


    ¡°But it is dangerous after all. Teacher... why don¡¯t you take action?¡±


    ¡°Would I be some?¡±


    Hearing the extremely random and irresponsible answer, Ning Que opened his mouth in astonishment and did not know how to reply. Previously, if someone dared to mention himself in the same breath with Haotian, he would think that the person was definitely mad... However, after witnessing today¡¯s godly war, he knew that his teacher was not out of his mind.


    He said after thinking for a moment, ¡°Heaven is heartless, but you are different.¡±


    ¡°Are those on the Wilderness human beings?¡± asked the Headmaster.


    Ning Que nodded.


    The Headmaster pointed at himself and asked, ¡°Am I also a human being?¡±


    Thinking about the tall figure that wielded a sword to kill the dragon high above the sky, Ning Que hesitated for a long time before he finally answered, ¡°You should be... maybe... still regarded as a human?¡±


    The Headmaster was furious at his words. He rebuked as his beard fluttered wildly, ¡°Maybe? I am a human! Am I a thing if I¡¯m not a human?¡±


    Ning Que said with a forced smile, ¡°You are right. But what does it have to do with what we are talking about?¡±


    ¡°Since I am a human,¡± the Headmaster said, ¡°how could I kill all humans in the world? This is really quite meaningless. I will never waste my time on it.¡±


    Ning Que asked earnestly, ¡°Then what do you think is interesting?¡±


    The Headmaster said leisurely, ¡°It is a great joy to fight against Haotian. This is something truly interesting.¡±

 Chapter 678 - Sangsangs Smile

    <h4>Chapter 678: Sangsang¡¯s Smile</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ning Que said, ¡°Actually, fighting with people... is an interesting thing.¡±


    Looking at him, the Headmaster said, ¡°Useless!¡±


    Ning Queughed. In his mind, he was not the Headmaster who was qualified to fight against Heaven. He had been familiar with the joy and anger during the battles for survival.


    Traveling in spring, peaceful and happy, they finally got rid of death and separation. When they rxed, they began toin: the studentsined about their teacher.


    ¡°Why had you done nothing all these years? Were things too boring? If you had helped Eldest Brother, he should not have been exhausted and many people would still be alive.¡±


    The Headmaster took up the teacup, smelling the fragrance. Looking at Sangsang, he said, ¡°I don¡¯t care how many people have died. I just don¡¯t know how to choose what is the best for the world.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Since you don¡¯t care for people, why do you care for the world?¡±


    His teacher answered, ¡°If a tael of silver falls in front of you, would you pick it up?¡±


    Ning Que looked at Sangsang and found the same answer in her eyes. He said, ¡°Of course I would.¡±


    Hearing this, the Headmaster almost sprayed the tea out of his mouth. Facing Ning Que, his designed courses were useless because Ning Que wasn¡¯t an ordinary man. He got pissed off and said, ¡°Say you won¡¯t.¡±


    Ning Que could tell he was a little unhappy and said at once, ¡°It¡¯s up to you.¡±


    The Headmaster added, ¡°If a note of 10 thousand taels of silver falls, I would definitely pick it up.¡±


    Ning Que understood his meaning, but he thought that an attitude of clearly calcting life and interests was really cold. He sighed and said, ¡°I know I am extremely cold-blooded, but I didn¡¯t expect you were the same kind of person as me.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°I¡¯m not cold-blooded. I just feel numb. Anything, if you have experienced it so many times, it would numb you. I have been alive for such a long time and have lost so many people, so I take life lightly. It is just the end of nature, so sooner orter doesn¡¯t make a difference.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Then why have you hesitated for so long and still decided to fight against Haotian?¡±


    Leaning on the couch, the Headmaster looked at the sky and clouds through the windows and said, ¡°Because... in the end, I found I didn¡¯t like Haotian at all.¡±


    Ning Que thought inwardly, <i>¡°In this world, only you are qualified to not like Haotian.¡±</i>


    The Headmaster turned to Ning Que and said, ¡°Of course, you were one reason that I decided to take action as well.¡±


    Ning Que was touched, even though he still didn¡¯t say anything.


    How could the Headmaster not see his real feelings? He said discontentedly, ¡°I am seldom brave like this. Can¡¯t you feel touched? Do you have to hold it in?¡±


    Ning Que looked at him and sincerely said, ¡°Thank you very much.¡±


    Thinking of his words, Ning Que asked, ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you enjoyed fighting against Heaven? Was it your first time to fight back?¡±


    ¡°If you mean real fighting... Yes, it was the first time.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°You can battle in many ways, and beating him was only one of them. I have been trying every possible way to fight against Haotian for a thousand years. Only you and your Youngest Uncle were always thinking to fight with force. He never ever thought of what would happen if he failed.¡±


    He said it with emotion, sounding sad and regretful.


    Ning Que filled his cup with hot tea and took a towel, trying to wipe the tea from his beard. He smiled and said, ¡°You won today, didn¡¯t you?¡±


    The Headmaster waved his hand away and said loudly, ¡°I just beat a few incarnations, not Haotian. If I can beat Haotian so easily, how could your Youngest Uncle die? If he heard you, he would jump out of his coffin.¡±


    Ning Que shamelessly answered, ¡°I¡¯m stupid. That is why you are my teacher.¡±


    ¡°The Giant Golden Dragon and the General of Light on the Golden Chariot were all the eidolons of the Haotian Divine Light. They just looked scary, but they were not strong enough.¡±


    The Headmaster dipped his finger into the tea and flicked it to the air.


    The tea drop floated in the air, reflecting the sunshine, and forming a tiny golden dragon.


    Looking at the scene and feeling the power of the golden dragon, Ning Que was shocked.


    Then he confirmed that his teacher was right. The Giant Golden Dragon and the general were able to kill most cultivators in the world. However, Eldest Brother, who was the fastest man in the world, or the invincible Chief Preaching Monk could beat them as well, or not lose too fast.


    The carriage was traveling in the Wilderness, crushing the grass and flowers. As the breeze blew through the window, Sangsang slightly coughed. Ning Que worriedly asked, ¡°Teacher, what shall we do next? How about Sangsang¡¯s illness?¡±


    The Headmaster flicked his finger once again and the vivid dragon disappeared in an instant. It returned to the tea drop and fell on the floor, like a morning dew.


    ¡°The light is the existence while the darkness is the non-existence. Using the existence to dissolve the non-existence is like asking directions to a blind man. You can¡¯t expect the Haotian Divine Light to suppress her Yama Imprint. The Buddha dharma pursues self-enlightenment which is still a self-deception and can¡¯t cure her, either.¡±


    Looking at Sangsang, he said, ¡°I have thought it over. I will try to remove the Yama Imprint out of your body and keep it in the light which can¡¯t be noticed by Yama.¡±


    ¡°The human world is the hottest, messiest, and the truest ce. It can dirty the pureness, warm the coldness, as well as turn the fire into smoke. It is a process of creating.¡±


    Ning Que thought of it for a long time until he felt he was unable toprehend these words with his attainments and understanding, so he sincerely asked, ¡°Teacher, what is the power of human beings? What should we do?¡±


    ¡°What to do? I have already done it.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°I killed the dragon and suppressed the Yama Imprint with the Haotian Divine Light, filling it with the power of human beings. What else would you like me to do?¡±


    Ning Que opened his eyes and asked, ¡°What is the power of humanity?¡±


    ¡°I am. My strength is the power of humanity.¡±


    The Headmaster looked at Sangsang, happily smiling.


    Ning Queughed as well and looked a little silly.


    Looking at them who were happilyughing, Sangsang burst intoughter as well, but hers was somehow weird.


    The smile on her face was very silly and cute.


    While her eyes were indifferent.


    She was one person with two kinds of smiles.


    She was sitting by the window, but seemed as if she were sitting in the sky, overseeing the world.

 Chapter 679 - The Headmasters Wrath

    <h4>Chapter 679: The Headmaster¡¯s Wrath</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The smile in Sangsang¡¯s eyes was indifferent¡ªThere were many definitions for the word in the dictionary. For example, it could be someone who did not seek fame and wealth or it could be an unconcerned or apathetic behavior¡ªAll these definitions, especially thest one suited her; a person who was naturally oblivious.


    Right now she was sitting by the window, looking at the Headmaster and Ning Que. She looked like the golden dragon, as it appeared from behind the burning cloud in the sky above the Wastend, or the Divine Guard of Light looking down the Earth in the chariot. However, her position seemed to be even higher. As such, the indifference in her eyes fell into another field.


    The word still had another meaning: keeping away from happiness, life, and all those things rted to the happiness of the secr world. It represented holiness and solemnity that transcended the secr world.


    The smile with the sense of indifference emerged in Sangsang¡¯s eyes and disappeared in a sh. It was so fast that even Sangsang herself did not feel its existence. Ning Que naturally missed it, but the Headmaster did not.


    He stared at Sangsang silently for a long time until Ning Que felt that he was being a little weird; due to this, Sangsang looked confused and overwhelmed. Then he smiled and looked away.


    The Headmaster¡¯s gazended on Sangsang¡¯s hand.


    Her left hand clenched into a fist. Her hand had frequently made into a fist since their stay at the Lanke Temple, to their escape from the Chaoyang City in the Yuelun Kingdom and when they were taken in by the Deste Man¡¯s tribe.


    At the ce where the Headmaster¡¯s gazended, Sangsang¡¯s left hand was opened, revealing what was in her palm.


    It was a white chess piece.


    The Headmaster looked serene, like an old pine tree that had gone through countless years.


    But it was not calm in his eyes. Hundreds of millions of stars seemed to emerge from his ck pupils and then began to move at random, drawing up numerous dense lines, which were finally merged into a bright spot of light.


    It happened in a sh so no one could find what had happened in the Headmaster¡¯s eyes. Ning Que could not, nor could Sangsang. Even if everyone in the world stood in front of him, they would not be able to see it.


    All of a sudden, the bright spot deep in his eyes suddenly exploded.


    His eyes were closed and back to normal when they were reopened. The Headmaster¡¯s ck coat remained motionless, his expression still serene, and his wrinkles contained rich wisdom.


    Nothing seemed to have happened.


    But everything seemed to have already happened.


    The walls of the ck horse carriage were carved with extremelyplicated talisman arrays. They came from the South School of Haotian Taoism, made by Master Yan Se who had dedicated more than half of his life to it, and were difficult to break.


    At the moment when the Headmaster opened his eyes again, the still arrays on the walls of the carraige suddenly became chaotic, as if being overly filled with a vast aura. The runes were shining with golden light and then died down.


    The carriage was made of fine steel so it was horribly heavy. With the sudden failure of the arrays, the wheels immediately sank deeply into the soft springnd of the Wilderness, and the reins cut into the flesh of the Big ck Horse.


    The Big ck Horse did not expect that the carriage would suddenly be so heavy. It rose its forehooves high into the air and knelt down with a rush, and then fell heavily onto the ground!


    As mud scattered everywhere and dust flew, the Big ck Horse neighed in pain. The grass underneath was crushed into clusters and the wild flowers in the grass were scattered, floating up to the clouds along with the flying dust.


    In the clear blue skies of the Wilderness, a few white clouds floated leisurely.


    In the skies right above the ck carriage, there was a rain cloud. When the flower petals floated up, rain fell down like a thin waterspout right on the carriage, as if someone were crying.


    Looking up from the Wastnd, the sun just moved to the back of the cloud. Sunshine prated through from three cracks of the cloud, two on the top and one below, like a pair of eyes and a mouth. So the cloud was just like a pure face with a lovely smile.


    The Headmaster was vexed and waved his hand, making the cloud disappear and the rain stopped. ¡°Laughing and crying at the same time, are you sick?¡±


    Ning Que did not know what had happened. ¡°Teacher, it is Sangsang who is sick,¡± he said.


    The Headmaster looked at him and shouted, ¡°Do you have medicine?¡±


    Ning Que did not know whether to cry or tough. ¡°Don¡¯t you have medicine?¡± he asked.


    The Headmaster said more angrily, ¡°She finished all the medicine. Why do you mention this?¡±


    Ning Que had nothing to say. He thought that all his peers in the Academy knew that their teacher was not an otherworldly sublime being and had a temper, but his temper was quite unwieldy today.


    ¡°Teacher, what¡¯s wrong?¡± he asked anxiously.


    After a short silence, the Headmaster suddenly said, ¡°I¡¯m a little hungry, what would you like to eat?¡±


    Ning Que looked at the moist Wilderness outside the window, wondering what they could eat other than dry food in such a deste ce.


    The Headmaster took a look at Sangsang and said, ¡°Live well since you are alive. We should have some requirements for the quality of life. How can you eat casually? Let me take you to eat something good.¡±


    After getting rid of the dizziness caused by the tumble, the Big ck Horse confirmed that the carriage became light again and sped toward the north of the Wilderness under the guidance of the Headmaster. Nothing was heard along the way except for the whistling of the wind. The grass sparkled in the sunlight.


    It didn¡¯t take long before the ck carriage came to a meadow. Dozens of sheep were scattered around the meadow and several tents were found at the back. It looked like a Herdsmen¡¯s tribe, only it was much too small.


    Ning Que got off the carriage. When he observed the sunshine¡¯s tilt angle; he was amazed to find the remaining snowy hills in the distance.


    He looked at the length of the grass again and confirmed that the ce was already in the far north of the Wilderness. But he was perplexed by how the carriage could run so far in such a short time.


    From the tent, several herdsmen with darkplexion walked out. A hint of hurry was mixed with their alert expression. It seemed that these herdsmen seldom met visitors.


    Ning Que did not know what the Headmaster would take them to eat. As an old saying went, a disciple should shoulder his own responsibility. Therefore, Ning Que walked to those herdsmen to see what food he could buy from them.


    He could speak the Deste Man¡¯snguage on the Wilderness, and was even good at thenguages of some remote tribes. However, he suddenly found today that he was unable tomunicate with the herdsmen on the Wilderness.


    ¡°Stop showing off your insignificant skill.¡±


    The Headmaster walked out of the carriage and scolded him rudely.


    The response of the herdsmen when they saw the Headmaster was very strange. They seemed to be touched and excited, and even more reverent. Two of them knelt down directly in front of the Headmaster to kiss his feet, while others ran to their tents to bring their family members to salute the Headmaster.


    Then Ning Que came to know that those herdsmen had met the Headmaster before. He was curious about their nationality since they could not understand him. In addition, what made him more curious was how the Headmaster was going tomunicate with them.


    He had never thought that the Headmaster could notmunicate with these herdsmen.


    Because now he was more sure that the Headmaster was omnipotent.


    Then the Headmaster began tomunicate with them.


    He pointed to the sheep on the meadow far away, and then spread out his hands to describe the size of a sheep. After that, he shook his finger in the air to simte a me, while muttering to himself.


    ¡°The sheep can¡¯t be too big, just about this size.¡±


    ¡°The way to roast it... should be your famous style.¡±


    Ning Que was speechless again. How could he expect that the Headmaster shouldmunicate in this way.


    The Headmaster knew what he was thinking about. ¡°As what I always say,¡± he said, ¡°there is no omnipotent person in the world. Even I could not master all thenguages in the world. So what? Knowing anguage is an insignificant skill. As long as you know bodynguage, you will never starve and can always find something delicious wherever you go.¡±


    Ning Que was clear that it would be sheer self-abuse to reason with his teacher. Therefore, he was determined to give it up and asked his question, ¡°Which pce does the tribe belong to?¡±


    ¡°None,¡± the Headmaster answered, ¡°These herdsmen have been nomadic for millennia in this bitter coldnd, isted from the outside. Their life is hard but quiet.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°In principle, only these people would have it hard to multiply.¡±


    The Headmaster exined, ¡°The Butcher once hid here for a period of time in those years. He must have used a secret method of theirs.¡±


    Ning Que was slightly shocked for he had heard the Headmaster mention the Butcher and the Drunkard.


    The Headmaster said, ¡°The roastedmb leg made by the Butcher is the best. He has refused to see me for years and no one knows where he is hiding now. So the best roastedmb leg is right here.¡±


    Ning Que said smilingly, ¡°The secret you mentioned, is it about procreation or roastedmb leg?¡±


    The Headmasterughed while patting his thigh, ¡°Both, both.¡±


    Sangsang poured two bowls of milk wine and offered them to the Headmaster and Ning Que.


    The Headmaster took a sip and gave hispliments. Then he said to Sangsang, ¡°Have a taste. It¡¯s good.¡±


    At this moment, the roastedmb leg was done. A herdsman presented it with respect and then withdrew.


    Ning Que did not how if he could describe the so-called best roastedmb leg in the world. As he smelled its scent while looking at the enchanting grease over it; he could not help moving his fingers.


    But at this time, he would never make a mistake. ording to what he had been told by Chen Pipi and his Eldest Brother, he used a sharp knife to cut two pieces of mutton at the best part of themb leg and sent them to his teacher¡¯s mouth.


    The Headmaster chewed the mutton, eyes closed. He held a bowl of milk wine with an intoxicated expression, ready to take a sip to neutralize the taste of mutton in his mouth.


    ¡°Something¡¯s wrong,¡± the Headmaster suddenly opened his eyes.


    Then he smacked his lips slightly like an old farmer who had just finished eating noodles by the roadside. He savored the taste in his mouth and his expression suddenly changed. He said, ¡°The taste is not right.¡±


    Ning Que was startled. He cut another piece and had a taste, only to find it extremely delicious and pleasant. He almost chewed his own tongue and did not know what problem the mutton had.


    He asked, ¡°Teacher, what¡¯s wrong?¡±


    The teacher said angrily, ¡°Can it still be called mutton when it does not taste like mutton?¡±


    Ning Que waspletely confused and did not know how it couldn¡¯t taste like mutton.


    The Headmaster fell into silence suddenly and looked at the roastedmb leg with a sigh.


    Then he looked at Ning Que and shook his head with another sigh.


    Sangsang did not know what was going on, so she asked in a low voice, ¡°Would you like a bowl of mutton soup?¡±


    The Headmaster was vexed, ¡°How can I drink the soup if I cannot even eat the mutton?¡±

 Chapter 680 - Traveling for Miles Just to Eat

    <h4>Chapter 680: Traveling for Miles Just to Eat</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The mutton might taste far different from its original vor, but above all, it had the texture of meat. And since meat could bring people happiness, all the Headmaster could do after expressing his annoyance and anger was to continue eating the meat. Yet he kept sighing while eating. He sighed at the mutton in his hand, at Sangsang, and even to the heaven above.


    Sangsang felt confused, so did Ning Que. Ning Que patted on Sangsang¡¯s shoulder and tried tofort her, and then he slowly moved next to Headmaster and asked in a soft voice, ¡°Are you sighing because it¡¯s troublesome?¡±


    And by ¡°it¡±, Ning Que meant the whole incident in which the Headmaster fought Haotian to save Sangsang.


    The Headmaster looked downcast and answered, ¡°Of course it is.¡±


    Ning Que was nervous when hearing the answer, and his voice shook. ¡°But Sangsang should be just fine, right?¡± Asked Ning Que.


    Hearing Ning Que¡¯s words, the Headmaster turned furious and asked usingly, ¡°Don¡¯t you care about anyone other than your wife? How about caring a little about me, your teacher? Do you have any idea what filial piety is? Why would she be ¡®not fine¡¯ after eating medicine? Are you afraid that she¡¯s going to die or what? She would definitely outlive me if lucky! Now all I care about is meat! I am now not even in the mood to eat meat!¡±


    Ning Que wiped the using spittle and grease off his face with one sleeve. He was wondering why the Headmaster turned so grumpy. Was it because of the exhausting fight with the Divine Guard of Light?


    And when that idea came to his mind, he was no longer displeased. Sangsang and he had to serve the Headmaster with nice food and wine.


    And when Sangsang was filling the bowl with soup, she tried tofort Ning Que and whispered, ¡°It is said that people behave more like kids as they grow older, and all we need to do is to make them feel happy.¡±


    Ning Que looked back at the Headmaster. The grumpy Headmaster was sitting on the grass, cursing heaven and hell. Ning Que felt worried still and he tried to exin, ¡°I know he has every reason to be grumpy, but I just have the feeling that something¡¯s wrong.¡±


    They could not finish the roasted gigot even though this could be the best gigot Ning Que and Sangsang had ever tasted. And the Headmaster seemed not to care for the gigot at all.


    Having been the cook in the Acadamy for a long time, Ning Que and Sangsang knew just how much the Headmaster could eat. Sometimes Ning Que joked that the Academy¡¯s rank had nothing to do with strength, and instead, those names were ranked by their appetites. For example, their Eldest Brother, who was seemingly kind and quiet, had an appetite that their Second Brother couldn¡¯t even imagine.


    Sangsang then asked the Headmaster, ¡°How about the leftover gigot? Shall we send it back?¡±


    ¡°Those people have had more than enough nice gigots during their daily life, let alone these leftovers. Sending it back would be no better than a waste.¡±


    The Headmaster signaled for Sangsang to put down the gigot. Then he whistled to the snowy hills in the north. The whistle wasn¡¯t loud, but it had reached far enough to alert all sheep in the meadow.


    It didn¡¯t take long before the ground started to shake. The herd in the meadow felt so fearful of what wasing that they escaped in all directions. Some of the sheep even faked their deaths.


    The Big ck Horse was feeding off the gigot when it suddenly raised its head and watched toward the north on alert. The hairs on its back danced in the breeze, as if they would stand straight soon.


    A giant snowfield direwolf, with another skinny wolf which seemed quite ordinary, was approaching from the meadow in the north. They didn¡¯t care for the sheep pretending to be dead in the meadow at all.


    The two wolves were approaching. The Big ck Horse showed its big shiny teeth and neighed sharply. The Horse clearly knew how sanguinary the wolves could be, and the seemingly skinny wolf was the most dangerous.


    But the Horse now felt itself unbeatable because the Headmaster had its back.


    ...


    ...


    The female snowfield direwolf sat down. It was like a snow hill on the meadow.


    Sangsang streched her curious hands to feel its fur. It felt so soft.


    The female wolf didn¡¯t reject Sangsang. It looked even more gentle and peaceful when it smelled the faint scent Sangsang was wearing. The she-wolf looked as if it was missing something, and the smellforted it.


    The skinny wolf was sitting in front of the Headmaster, both forepaws on its chest, like a saluting student. Ning Que, who was standing behind the Headmaster watched it with interest.


    The Headmaster let Ning Que feed the wolf with the leftover gigot.


    The skinny wolf didn¡¯t jump over the gigot immediately. Instead, it respectfully saluted the Headmaster and gave its wife a dignified nce.


    The giant snowfield direwolf hesitated for a short moment, and then it left Sangsang to approach the Headmaster and give its salute.


    The Headmaster was petting the wolf¡¯s messy hair. And judging by the hair, he knew that the wolf and its pack didn¡¯t have it easy since they came to the south. He gently stroked the wolf¡¯s head.


    The skinny wolf allowed the Headmaster to pet it. It was slightly shaking in excitement. The Headmaster looked at it and said, ¡°I don¡¯t know if we will have a chance to meet again in the future, so I invited you here.¡±


    Sangsang was passing by and upon hearing the Headmaster¡¯s words, she couldn¡¯t help feeling grieved.


    The Headmaster turned to Sangsang and exined, ¡°They¡¯re the parents of Tangtang¡¯s Whitey.¡±


    Sangsang finally understood why the she-wolf would look like it was missing something just now. She felt even more sorrowful because she knew the she-wolf was missing its kid that was far away from here, in the mountain behind the Academy.


    Following the two wolves, the ck horse carriage also left the ellusive shepherd tribe. The Big ck Horse¡¯s hooves stomped the ground, leaving deep hoofprints with the aroma of sheep grease which attracted many ants.


    In the carriage, Sangsang was dutifully massaging the Headmaster¡¯s back. She seemed to have recovered. Sangsang was good at serving people, and the Headmaster liked being served by her. Now the Headmaster¡¯s eyes were closing. He was falling asleep.


    Ning Que looked at Sangsang with a smile and gave a silent ¡°thank you¡± with his mouth. Sangsang nodded and smiled. Surely she felt a little bit tired but the happiness she gained from serving the Headmasterpensated for it.


    As vast as the Wilderness might be, there were still barbarians living here. It wasn¡¯t a no-man¡¯snd, even though it was sparsely poptedpared to the Central ins. The carriage had been running for days and they hadn¡¯t run into any vige so far, not a single one.


    Inside the carriage, the other two were so quiet that Ning Que almost fell asleep. Yet all of a sudden, the silence was broken by the ruckus outside the carriage. It sounded like people peddling, talking, and horses stomping the ground.


    Ning Que was wondering why the Wilderness would be so crowded. <i>¡°Did the horse run into a bustling tribe?¡± </i>He pulled the curtain aside and looked outside, to be immediately stunned.


    Sangsang came to the window. She looked outside and almost screamed out loud in shock due to what she saw.


    The carriage was on an endless and bustling street.


    On both sides of the street were dense buildings, many of which were shops. On the streets were people walking, and vendors peddling. Sedan carriers yelled at people on the way when young men riding horses overtook them with pride.


    Ning Que had no idea where they were now, but he was sure that they were no longer in the Wilderness.


    The Headmaster woke up from his nap. He looked at the couple near the window and asked, ¡°Have we reached our destination?¡±


    Sangsang nodded but she soon felt that something was off. She turned to the Headmaster and answered, ¡°We¡¯ve reached some ce, but I¡¯m not sure where it is.¡±


    The Headmaster took a quick nce outside the window and said, ¡°That¡¯s right, this is the capital city of the Kingdom of Song.¡±


    Both Ning Que and Sangsang were shocked. They were wondering what had happened. Not long ago they were chewing gigot in the far northern Wilderness but now they were in the capital city of Song. How did that happen?


    The Kingdom of Song was built on the shore of the East Sea, which made it more than 10000 miles away from the Wilderness in the north.


    The Big ck Horse was the most shocked of them all. It had been pulling the carriage along the whole way, so it had seen it more clearly than anyone else.


    At first, all the horse could see was the meadow. Yet after a short ¡°clip-clop¡±, when its hoofnded on the ground again, the meadow turned into streets covered with carved stones. The sudden and mysterious change terrified the poor horse so bad its hooves turned into jelly.


    The Headmaster might be almighty in the eyes ofmon people. He could cure Sangsang¡¯s disease. He could heal Ning Que¡¯s deadly wounds. Nothing was impossible if the Headmaster was there.


    There were things that Sangsang and Ning Que could not understand. But when it came to the Headmaster, everything unnatural became understandable because the Headmaster was not an ordinary person, or like what Ning Que had in mind: that the Headmaster wasn¡¯t a member of mankind.


    The ck horse carriage was rolling along one of the bustling streets in the prosperous capital of the Kingdom Song. Around the Taoist temple, people were gathering, praying for the war in the Wilderness. They didn¡¯t know how the war had ended, neither did they know that the most important people in that war hade to Song, and had just passed by them.


    When the darkness faded, the light came back. Under the long-gone blue sky and white clouds, Song people were struggling to stand. Everything came back to life at an unbelievable speed. Most people still kept an ear out for what was happening in the Wilderness, but a few turned to care more about their small business or their careers.


    The carriage stopped at the gate of a normal restaurant.


    The restaurant was crowded with people ying drinking games. The three strode over the steps and entered the restaurant. They passed by the people dining and the drunkards, heading right into the third floor which was rtively quiet.


    ¡°Days ago they were on their knees, shaking because of fear, but now they¡¯re all back to having meat and wine. The restaurant is full of people now, because people need food to get over the fear, and of course, because everyone needs food.¡± Said the Headmaster, staring at the people downstairs.


    ¡°Food alwayses first for people, because people live off it. And living is more important than the war in the Wilderness. It is more important than thew, morality, or even faith. It is more important than anything in the world.¡±


    ¡°To live is the one and only important thing during one¡¯s entire life. Emotions or knowledge, they are no more than ornaments. You have to bear the priority in mind.¡±


    Ning Que thought about it for a moment and said, ¡°But you have to find something else to do besides living, or life would be meaningless.¡±


    The Headmaster argued, ¡°Of course you should have things to chase after, but you first have to live before you can search for meaning.¡±


    ¡°You mean true egotism? Or are you against sacrificing oneself for other things?¡±


    ¡°By ¡®living¡¯ I mean that many people are living not as an absolute individual.¡±


    ¡°Soundsplicated... what does that mean exactly?¡±


    ¡°I am saying that if to live is the most important thing, then eating should be the top priority for all.¡±


    Ning Que put his hand on his belly, wondering what woulde after the gigot they had eaten not long ago.


    And before Ning Que had figured it out, the Headmaster had picked up the menu and ordered more than 18 dishes.

 Chapter 681 - Peering into the Heavens through Plates

    <h4>Chapter 681: Peering into the Heavens through tes</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The Headmaster loved eating and ate well. As long as he was present, no one else would be in charge of ordering food. As the saying went, hot and cold dishes, meat and vegetarian dishes, they each have their own uses. When put together, the meal was refreshing and looking at the menu alone would make one salivate.


    The dishes looked simple, but much attention had been paid to the ingredients used. The dishes had to be cooked on the spot and there was some time before they could be served. The Headmaster had long made preparations for this. He ced a basin of iced mashed taro on the table.


    ¡°Desserts are supposed to be sweet. I despise gourmets who want light deserts the most. If they want it to be light, then they might as well drink clean water. Why eat sweet food?¡±


    The Headmaster doled out a bowl of iced mashed taro for Sangsang and indicated for her to enjoy herself before serving himself. He looked at Ning Que and said, ¡°It is a great joy to fight with Heaven, but why should we do that?¡±


    Ning Que was serving himself mashed taro. When he heard that, he paused and thought that the Headmaster changed the subject really suddenly. He had been talking about the art of choosing dishes and drinks and had switched to an expansive topic like battling with Heaven the next moment.


    The Headmaster said, ¡°Did the little monk Qishan tell you about this, back in the Lanke Temple?¡±


    Ning Que thought about the scene before the Buddhist temple in the rain and what Master Qishan had said to him then.


    Master Qishan mentioned the legends of what was above the Five States in that conversation. He mentioned the few uppermost states in the human realm like the never dying Devil¡¯s Doctrine State, Nirvana of the Buddhism Sect, the ascension to heaven and immortality of Haotian Taoism and the Beyond Mortality State of the Academy.


    Master Qishan had said then, that there might be one person in the past millennium who could slowly walk to the end of the cultivation path. There might have been one person who could reach the shore astride, and one who could achieve living forever. Then, they would return to Haotian¡¯s embrace.


    Ning Que was most concerned about Haotian¡¯s embrace and whether it meant death or immortality. Master Qishan could not answer the question. In the past, the Buddhas who had gotten to this step and Taoists who had managed to ascend to heaven and be immortals could not answer the question either. This was the greatest temptation and fear one would have in cultivation.


    At the end of the conversation, Ning Que asked if there were any cultivators who did not ascend to the Heaven even if they got to that stage. Master Qishan¡¯s answer was that no one could escape the rules of Heaven.


    The Buddhist temple in the autumn rain was cool and cheerless, and the sky in the autumn rain was very deste. Ning Que felt really cold because he had once again discovered that Heaven¡¯s Way was ruthless.


    Master Qishan had already entered Parinirvana, and even if he had any thoughts now, he would not be able to tell Ning Que. Ning Que recalled the conversation and vaguely guessed what the Headmaster wanted to say. His body stiffened.


    It was noisy below the restaurant while they were discussing matters beyond the mortal realm upstairs. The starkparison made him feel odd and absurd and he felt helplessly lost.


    The Headmaster said, ¡°Why do we fight with Heaven? First, we have to understand what Heaven is.¡±


    Ning Que thought of the conversation he had with his teacher under the starry night sky after he had read the ¡°Ming¡± Handscroll of the Tomes of the Arcane at the back of the mountain of the Academy. At the end of that conversation, the Headmaster had pointed at the sky and made four statements.


    ¡°We do not know whether Haotian is alive or not, whether it is tangible or not and where it could be. But we do know it is conscious. Younger Brother proved it, at the expense of his life.¡±


    ¡°If the Heaven¡¯s Way really exists, when it oversees the world, those mortals striving for life on earth or the cultivators capable of controlling wind or rain, are all ants in its eyes.¡±


    ¡°If the Heaven¡¯s Way really exists, it would never pity or care about ants. But if there are some ants beginning to notice its existence, approaching it in the sky and even trying to challenge it, how could its consciousness and will ignore that?¡±


    ¡°If the Heaven¡¯s Way really exists, it would be intangible and ruthless.¡±


    These four statements were what made up Ning Que¡¯s initial understanding of Haotian or the so-called Heaven¡¯s Way.


    After spending a long time fleeing with Sangsang, he had seen the gathering dark clouds and crows, and the sky bright on one side and enshrouded in darkness on the other; he had seen the peering Giant Golden Dragon and the arrival of the Divine Guard of Light. Matching it with the four statements, his understanding of Heaven¡¯s Way naturally deepened, and the fear in his heart grew as well.


    Ning Que looked at the cloudless blue sky outside the restaurant and was silent.


    The Headmaster held a spoon, scooping mashed taro into his mouth. He leaned against the railing, looking rxed. Suddenly, he pointed thedle to the sky outside the window and said, ¡°Haotian is not Heaven.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Then what is it?¡±


    ...


    ...


    Heaven is a very special word that appears in the humannguage many times and often represents extremely intense emotions of either fear, awe or anger.


    For example, in old Chinese sayings, ¡°heaven has eyes and tears¡±, or ¡°should heaven have feelings, it would age¡±. There are also terms like ¡°damned heavens¡±, ¡°dratted heavens¡± and ¡°good heavens etcetera¡±. Even the mostmonly used Chinese exmation has the word in it¡ª ¡°heavens¡±!


    Heaven represents supremacy, omnipresence, endurance,passion and love, indifference and ruthlessness. It represented everything.


    ¡°Heaven¡¯s Way is a rule. A straight line would always be the shortest between two points. Three-sides would definitely be more stable than four. Light is the fastest, water always flows downwards, you need air for a fire to burn. These are the rules of the world and is called Heaven¡¯s Way.¡±


    The Headmaster ate his mashed taro and said casually. Then, he threw the spoon in his hand out of the window. There was a shout of pain below as the spoon seemed to have hit a pedestrian.


    ¡°Like water, everything has to fall downwards. This is also a rule.¡±


    There were sounds of bickeringing from below. The person who had been hit must being into the restaurant to find the culprit. The Headmaster disregarded it. He looked at Ning Que and continued, ¡°When water gathers at the lowest spot in the sea, it will not continue to flow downwards. When the spoonnds on the ground... or on a pedestrian¡¯s head, then it will not continue to fall. This does not mean that the rule was broken, but just that another rule ising into y.¡±


    ¡°If there was no external force or other rules functioning, then what kind of situation would it be? Thedle would continue to fall until it fell into the abyss. Maybe it would appear on Yama¡¯s dining table. Of course, I¡¯m now more certain than ever that there is no Underworld. So naturally, there is no Yama.¡±


    The Headmaster ced the empty bowl on the table and pushed it to Sangsang. Sangsang picked up the bowl and spooned mashed taro into it.


    The Headmaster pointed to the bowl in Sangsang¡¯s hands. He said, ¡°If this table wasrge and smooth enough, and if the bottom of the bowl was smooth enough, and if there wasn¡¯t a girl called Sangsang who picked up the bowl, then what would happen? Like thedle that kept falling, the bowl would keep moving forward without stopping.¡±


    Ning Que scratched his head and asked, ¡°Isn¡¯t this called inertia?¡±


    ¡°Inertia? This is a good word for it, but I¡¯d like to call it the conservation of rules for everything.¡±


    The Headmaster continued, ¡°This is what life is as well.¡±


    ¡°Life?¡± Ning Que did not understand at all. He asked in confusion once more, ¡°Inertia is life?¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°When humans are alive, they can walk, jump, think, eat, blink and shit. When they die, their bodies be rotting corpses and white bones that cannot do any of the above. Their shape, structure and characteristics have all changed.¡±


    ¡°We have to walk, jump, think, eat, blink and shit when we are alive to conserve our looks as human beings, and to conserve our shape, structure and characteristics.¡±


    ¡°This conservation is life.¡±


    Ning Que was baffled. He asked, ¡°But animals can walk, jump, eat, blink and shit.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°But they cannot think.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°The yellow bull and Youngest Uncle¡¯s donkey can definitely think.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°But they are not shaped like humans.¡±


    Ning Que responded, ¡°What if we can make them resemble humans?¡±


    The Headmaster answered, ¡°If you can do something like that, then they would be considered humans.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head saying, ¡°How can this be?¡±


    The Headmaster asked, ¡°Why can¡¯t it be so?¡±


    Ning Que paused and finally figured it out. Wouldn¡¯t a life that looks human and can walk, jump, eat, blink, shit and think be considered human?


    ¡°Everyone wants to stay alive. They want to retain their shape and inner existence. This is life. In broader terms, human society wants to maintain its shape and development. For example, the writing system, calligraphy and painting, and organizations. In this way, society is also a manifestation of life.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°A stone is alive as well. It wants to retain its shape. It is tough, so one has to ovee its toughness to snuff out its life. Water has life as well. It could be clear or turbid, or it could be a wide ocean or a little stream. To change its characteristics and to destroy its life, you have to boil it or expose it to the sun.¡±


    ¡°Life is a continuation of its own form. Since Heaven¡¯s Way is the rule itself, if it also has life; its life is to ensure that these rules are always effective and not destroyed.¡±


    Ning Que did not know what to say at all at this point. It was fortunate that the dishes were served just then.


    The three ate a scrumptious meal of 18 dishes.


    The Headmaster kept refilling Sangsang¡¯s bowl and said, ¡°You have to try this dish, you poor child. You have never led a good life with Ning Que all these years and you don¡¯t know how many delicacies there are in the world, and how much fun there is out there. Just enjoy yourself with me these days.¡±


    Ning Que and Sangsang were beyond full after having barbequed gigot and dishes from the Kingdom of Song. Luckily, the Headmaster was known to be a good eater. He cleared all 18 dishes like a hurricane.


    The Headmaster drank a cup of pickled vegetable to aid in digestion, looking like he was enjoying himself very much.


    Ning Que burped. He thought of what the Headmaster had said earlier, and his heart felt as burdened as his stomach. He rubbed his slightly numb face and was prepared to ask questions.


    The Headmaster put down his teacup and said, ¡°There are two sides to Haotian. One is the one made of rules and objectivity while the second has to maintain rules and objectivity. Then, it will appear to be as alive as any living thing.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°So?¡±


    The Headmaster pointed to the table littered with cups and tes and said, ¡°Humans have to eat to stay alive and it has to do the same.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the tes filled with sauce and suddenly felt terrified and disgusted.

 Chapter 682 - This Is A Question

    <h4>Chapter 682: This Is A Question</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Haotian wanted to eat, but what to eat was a problem. But no matter what Haotian consumed, there was no need to pay. However, when humans ate, they had to.


    The Headmaster had Ning Que settle the bill before bringing him and Sangsang downstairs. They walked around the capital of the Kingdom of Song and went to a Chenjinji Cosmetics Store branch to buy Sangsang some cosmetic powder.


    Ning Que felt that his teacher was too good to Sangsang and was unlike the teacher he knew. However, he was entirely upied with the question and did not think too much about it.


    The ck horse carriage left the capital of the Kingdom of Song. Momentster, it returned to the verdant Wilderness.


    Ning Que looked at the wild grass and sheep on the Wilderness. After thinking for a moment, he said, ¡°Teacher, can you make it simpler?¡±


    The Headmaster got off the horse carriage and looked at the endless meadow. He said, ¡°Grass grows in the wild and is nourished by the sun, rain and dew. They take in the essence of the earth so they can grow. This is what they consume.


    The Headmaster looked at the sheep in the distance and said, ¡°Sheep eat grass.¡±


    Then, he pointed at a spot a few dozen miles away and said, ¡°Look, the wolves there are eating sheep.¡±


    ¡°Then what does Haotian eat?¡±


    Ning Que suddenly thought of Master Lotus¡¯ angry tirade at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He thought of Master Qishan¡¯sment in the autumn rain at the Buddhist temple and of the confusion of many elders and asked with a trembling voice, ¡°People?¡±


    ¡°Sheep cannot eat mud and sunlight directly, so they have to eat grass. Wolves cannot eat grass directly, so they eat sheep. Humans are rtively more capable. We eat almost everything. But in general, when you look at food inyers, eachyer has a higher energy and the utilization efficacy of energy increases. So theyer above can only eat theyer of life below it.¡±


    The Headmaster shook his head and said, ¡°I reckon Haotian replenishes its vitality through the Qi of Heaven and Earth. It cannot consume Qi directly, just like how sheep cannot consume mud and sunlight directly and how wolves cannot eat grass. That is why it needs an intermediary, and that is man.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°That¡¯s what I said earlier.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°Ordinary people don¡¯t even know what the Qi of Heaven and Earth is, so how can they change it? That is why we need cultivators to cultivate and raise the Qi of Heaven and Earth to be what nourishes Haotian.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Do you mean that the Qi of Heaven and Earth is grass and cultivators are like sheep that eat grass who turn the nutrients into something the wolf that is Haotian can absorb?¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°Yes, that¡¯s about it.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The Haotian Taoism ssics say that cultivation is a gift to mankind from Haotian. ording to your exnation, this gift is a little dark and scary.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°Of course, Haotian is more picky about food than wolves in the wilderness. After all, it is the highest set of rules in our world. In its eyes, ordinary practitioners are sheep that are tasteless. Those cultivators who have crossed the Five States begin to have their own world and create their own rules. They purify the Qi of Heaven and Earth in nature into their unique essence. By this time, they have be a delicacy in Haotian¡¯s eyes.¡±


    Ning Que looked into the Headmaster¡¯s eyes and asked, ¡°What about you?¡±


    ¡°At my stage, I¡¯m of course a delicious sheep.¡± The Headmaster said smilingly. He continued, ¡°But just like the rtionship between lions and wild cattle, when some bison are too strong, or the herd of bison is too strong, lions would also feel threatened.¡±


    Ning Que had remained calm and had looked at the grass below his feet and the sheep that looked like clouds leisurely while talking with the Headmaster. However, his mood was actually osciting from one extreme to another. He felt like the boiling mutton hot pot one moment, and then like frozen mutton in the next. He was close to break down and had to keep telling himself that they were having an academic discussion that did not reach into reality before he could continue the conversation.


    Academic discussions would eventually lead to reality. After a long silence, he asked the most important question of their discussion so far. ¡°Teacher, do you have any evidence?¡±


    If there was no evidence, then this was just an academic discussion. He could spread his thoughts to the deepest, most incredible and most eerie ces without any psychological burdens. If there was evidence, then this was a cruel and sad story that one cannot bear to listen to, let alone to discuss.


    The Headmaster knew how he felt, so he said with a smile, ¡°This is not a sad story, and it is neither eerie or scary. Over thest thousands of years, the number of the cultivators who could cross the Five States is not as many as the number of sheep humans eat in one day. Humans are scarier than Haotian if we were to discuss eerie or terrifying things.¡±


    Ning Que found it hard to findfort in his words because he was a human and not a sheep. He opened his eyes wide and looked at his teacher innocently and pitifully, trying to hear the answer from him.


    ¡°There is of course no evidence for this kind of things.¡±


    The Headmaster said. Then, he continued without waiting for Ning Que to have a sigh of relief. ¡°But your Youngest Uncle and I have already proved that Haotian is conscious. It is a form of life simr to and superior to human beings. Therefore, it needs to eat and it is hard for you to deny this conjecture.¡±


    Ning Que looked revolted, simr to a pig to being ughtered during the new year.


    ¡°Cultivation is indeed very difficult, but it is not too difficult considering how many people there are in the world. There would always be some who could cultivate and some who could cross the Five States.¡±


    The Headmaster looked at him and said, ¡°No matter how rare cultivators who can cross the Five States are; there must be plenty of them over the past millennium. Then, can you tell me where they have gone?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Birth, aging, illness and death aremon. It¡¯s not surprising that they might have died of old age.¡±


    The Headmaster smiled and said, ¡°I have lived for more than a thousand years. And if I am willing, I can continue to live on. Birth, aging, illness and death are unusual for those of us above the Five States.¡±


    Ning Que felt his mouth dry out and bitterness filled his mouth. After a moment, he asked, ¡°In the Buddhism Sect, there is Nirvana. In Haotian Taoism, there is the ascension to heaven and bing immortal. In these stories, have all the people be deities in heaven?¡±


    The Headmaster smiled and said, ¡°Heaven? Where is that? Where is the divine kingdom of Haotian? Are you still yourself after returning to that world? If you can¡¯t be yourself, are you still alive?¡±


    This was a problem Ning Que and Master Qi Shan had discussed before in the Lanke Temple. He knew that there was no solution to the problem. If one thought about it deeply, the answer they would receive would probably point only at the negative aspect.


    ¡°Nobody has been to Haotian¡¯s divine kingdom and returned. Your Youngest Uncle might have caught a glimpse of it back then, but forgot to leave any message behind. That is why I had no answer to this problem in the past.¡±


    The Headmaster looked at the blue sky and white clouds of the Wilderness, then and said slowly, ¡°I only saw the answer when I saw the Divine Guard of Light on the golden chariot.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Where was the answer?¡±


    ¡°The answer was on his face.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°His face was too perfect and there is nothing perfect in this world. That is why he is not real. His perfectiones from tens and thousands of people I used to know. So he is not them.¡±


    The Headmaster seemed a little depressed and regretful. He seemed to be thinking of many things in the past.


    Then he looked back at Ning Que and said, ¡°I saw the unified consciousness of Haotian in his face but not one of a human. I saw eternity and as such, also death.¡±


    This was a simple world and these were simple truths. However, before the Headmaster had spoken, Ning Que would not have been able to think of these issues even though he had lived two lives and seen the most bizarre things in the world.


    After a long silence, he said, ¡°Have other cultivators not thought of these problems?¡±


    ¡°Back then when we were at the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain, you once told me that Haotian wouldugh once humans started thinking. However, there were many before me who did not mind beingughed at by Haotian and there will be many after me who won¡¯t mind. Many cultivators would continue to think ande up with suspicions simr to mine.¡±


    The Headmaster walked down the meadow and said, ¡°Why did that kid Liu Bai not dare to make that step after so many years? Why had he been hiding in the Sword Garret all these years and not dare to step out? Why did the Great Divine Priest of Light of a thousand years ago betray the West-Hill Divine Pce and set up the Devil¡¯s Doctrine in the Wilderness? These were all linked to these suspicions.¡±


    Ning Que could not help but think of the West-Hill Divine Pce when he heard of the Great Divine Priest of Light who started the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He asked, ¡°Haotian Taoism is the closest to Haotian. The sublime beings in the sect should have a deep understanding of this. Is there no one other than that Great Divine Priest of Light who have suspected Haotian in all these tens and thousands of years?¡±


    ¡°Haotian Taoism pursues the ascension to heaven and bing immortal. Being led to the kingdom of Haotian and returning to the original world is their greatest happiness and their ultimate goal of their survival and struggles. This is their aspiration, so why should they doubt it?¡±


    The Headmaster looked at him and said, ¡°However, to other cultivators, to live eternally with Haotian or to die alone, that is a question.¡±


    To be or not to be, that is a question. To stay with Haotian forever or to die alone was also a question. However, was it possible to find answers to all questions?


    Ning Que thought of what Master Lotus had said at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine once more.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you see many pigheaded people living in this dirty world? Don¡¯t you think the air you¡¯re breathing is also so pungent? Don¡¯t you feel it ufortable to breathe under a dirty silent sky for years? It¡¯s natural for people living between heaven and earth to eat meat, including pigs, dogs, chicken and others. They have every reason to do so!


    ¡°In my opinion, the way in which you and I exist in this world is a collection of our own methods of knowing the world. After the rainy night beside the grave, I¡¯ve been struggling to find the true essence of the real world and eventually I changed the way I exist in the world. I expected to change the world and searched for the world that was already impossible to return to.


    ¡°I only sought for strength and ways to change the world. I didn¡¯t care about whether it was Taoism or Diabolism and who won or lost. The reason why I was willing toe to the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was that I wanted to have a look at the lost Tomes of the Arcane.¡±


    ¡°I went to the Grand River in the South Jin Kingdom and the Yuelun Kingdom. Finally, I went westward to the distant Unknown ce. In that Xuankong Temple, I finally heard the preaching of the chief monk; I saw the brilliant Buddism lights and heard the Buddismnguage under the lights. After a few years, however, I found that the monks in the Xuankong Temple were nothing but somemon people. The so-called Buddha¡¯snguage was deliberately mystifying and the monks were no different from the fortune tellers in the street of the Kingdom of Song. What was more abominable was that the Buddhism Sect proposed penance and introspection. They could only humbly wait for the rotation of life, so how could they reach the ideal world?¡±


    ¡°I thought I had finally found a right ce and a good opportunity to understand the real world. But after I had spent some time in the Peach Mountain, I found that all the people in West-Hill Divine Pce were a group of cowardly idiots. That damn temple is full ofp dogs raised by Haotian! Haha...They¡¯re all subservientp dogs!¡±


    In the past, Ning Que had thought that these were the mad ramblings of Master Lotus. It was only at this very moment that he finally understood how amazing the Devil¡¯s Doctrine sublime being who studied both Buddhism and Taoism was.


    Master Lotus had always stood on the highest spot in the cultivation world. His goal to survive was to destroy the old world and to create a new one. he was not much different from the Headmaster and Youngest Uncle except that the methods that he chose were more bloody and bleak.


    Ning Que knew that he would never be qualified to make a decision like that because he would never be able to reach Master Lotus¡¯ cultivation state. But when he thought about it carefully, he thought that he might choose the same solution as Master Lotus should he really encounter such a problem.


    Master Lotus was amazing, and his teacher was even more so. He already knew what Lotus would choose and guessed what his teacher would. But he did not know what his teacher would actually do.


    ¡°Teacher, what would you do?¡± He asked.


    The Headmaster asked, ¡°What did Lotus intend to do back then?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°He intended to destroy the old world and to create a new one, then to go against Heaven¡¯s Way.¡±


    The Headmaster shook his head and said, ¡°In the end, it is a rtionship between eating and being eaten. Since Heaven¡¯s Way does not eat people, why should hundreds of millions of ordinary people get dragged into the war?¡±


    By this time, the Headmaster and Ning Que had reached the bottom of the meadow. The clear water in the pot had boiled, and the chopping board was filled with freshly cut fresh mutton. Sangsang looked up and wiped the sweat off her forehead. She said happily, ¡°We can eat now.¡±


    The three started to eat mutton hotpot.


    ¡°Mutton cooked in the hotpot has to be fresh; frozen meat is much worse.¡±


    The Headmaster found some sweet garlics and munched. He then rubbed his stomach in satisfaction and looked at Ning Que. ¡°I am a person who likes to eat,¡± he said.


    Ning Que thought that if he were to describe that in simpler terms, the Headmaster was a glutton.


    The Headmaster swirled his chopsticks in the pot of clear water. He felt a little regretful to find that there was not anymb in it left. Then, he pointed the chopsticks at the sky and said, ¡°Since I like to eat, I don¡¯t like being eaten by others.¡±


    ¡°Why do I fight with the Heavens? Because it wants to eat me. So, I have to think of ways not to be eaten.¡±


    ¡°How can we prevent ourselves from being eaten?¡±


    The Headmaster delivered a piece of frozen tofu into Sangsang¡¯s bowl with his chopsticks. He watched the little girl who was eating meat with her head lowered and sighed. Then, he said, ¡°This is indeed a bothersome problem.¡±


    Ning Que pushed the Big ck Horse who had squeezed up to him to steal meat. Then, he suddenly thought of a possibility and looked up at the rounded sun above them. He said, ¡°If Haotian needs to eat, then he can just eat sunlight. Why does he have to consume the Qi of Heaven and Earth?¡±


    It was cold in the north of the Wilderness. Even though it was already spring, the sunlight was not scorching but was faint like a fake one in a painting.


    The Headmaster pointed at the sky with his chopsticks once more and pointed them to the sun. He said, ¡°What if this is fake?¡±

 Chapter 683 - Picking Fish and Remains in the Sea of Snow

    <h4>Chapter 683: Picking Fish and Remains in the Sea of Snow</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ning Que had been extremely tense and anxious since the Light of Buddha shone upon the Lanke Temple. He only managed to rx and feel safe when the Headmaster appeared on the Wilderness. However, he had not expected that his teacher would lead him into a discussion on an enigmatic topic that was suppressive and made him uneasy.


    He grew anxious once more. He had finally thought of a possibility that would turn the dark world bright again, but the answer his teacher gave was cold and seemed to be leading into an even more terrifying territory. He could not bear it anymore and broke down on the spot.


    He jumped up and waved his arms, yelling angrily, ¡°How can it be fake? The sun rises every day from the east and sets in the west. Summers in Chang¡¯an are sweltering hot. How can it be fake!¡±


    The Headmaster was shocked by his reaction and said, ¡°We are only having a discussion, you don¡¯t have to be so worked up.¡±


    Ning Que was still riled up and he said, ¡°How can I not be worked up? Forget about Haotian eating people. Now you want me to believe that the sun is fake. Then is this world fake as well? Don¡¯t tell me that even though I¡¯ve lived in this world for so many years, it¡¯s just a dream! I won¡¯t believe your ludicrous ims! How can it be fake? I¡¯ve been taking care of her for so many years, has it all been for nothing?¡±


    The Headmaster thought of how unfilial Ning Que was, for all he was concerned about was whether he had been wasting his time raising Sangsang when he was so worked up and was on the brink of a mental copse. He said annoyedly, ¡°The sun is fake, but that doesn¡¯t mean that we are.¡±


    Ning Que pointed at the faint sun hanging above the Wilderness. He said, ¡°That can¡¯t be fake! What is the sun? It¡¯s Haotian Divine Light! Why can¡¯t Haotian eat that instead of eating the Qi of Heaven and Earth?¡±


    ¡°Have you ever considered that the Haotian Divine Light the sun gives out is not Haotian¡¯s food but the outward form of Haotian? It is just like how our outer form appears to be flesh. Are we going to eat human flesh?¡±


    ¡°Is there anything we won¡¯t do if we are starving? Who are we to stop it if Haotian likes to eat itself?¡±


    ¡°The question is, it has other things to eat. So why does it have to eat itself?¡±


    ¡°Does it have exquisite tastes?¡±


    ¡°Even if Haotian could eat Divine Light, the Divine Light stilles from it. Could Haotian eat it forever? This is a simple calction problem.¡±


    ¡°I have never said that the sun is Haotian. You said that. To me, the sun can produce heat and is the source of all nutrients. Why won¡¯t Haotian eat it?¡±


    The argument between the Headmaster and Ning Que grew fiercer and they spoke faster and faster. Their spit flew all over the meadow. Sangsang did not know how to appease them, so she only looked down, cleared the dishes and extinguished the bonfire.


    ¡°Can the sun continue to emit heat and light?¡±


    ¡°It should not be a problem for a few billion years.¡±


    ¡°Then how is it able to emit heat and light continuously?¡±


    ¡°This involves a more profound reasoning that I can¡¯t exin to you within a short time.¡±


    ¡°Alright, alright. Even if what you said is reasonable, the sun can emit heat and light for billions of years. What happens after that?¡±


    ¡°You can consume a meal over billions of years. What¡¯s there for Haotian to be dissatisfied with?¡±


    ¡°Then can you exin clearly why there is no sun during the Evesting Night?¡±


    Ning Que did not speak anymore because he recalled then, that this was Haotian¡¯s world. He was not in the world that he had once been familiar with. That world had already slowly faded away in his memory.


    Seeing that Ning Que had no retort, the Headmaster stroke his beard and said in a self-satisfied manner, ¡°There are ws to your conjecture and it is not as reasonable as mine. When I started thinking about these things, you were still in Third Mistress Li¡¯s tummy. That¡¯s why you should just listen to me. What¡¯s the point of arguing and wasting time?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Don¡¯t talk about my mother. Even though you¡¯re my teacher, I¡¯d still turn against you if you mention her.¡±


    The Headmaster asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°When my parents were killed, you just watched from the Academy and did not save them.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°There are so many people who die on earth every day. Do I have to save every one of them?¡±


    ¡°You knew that I would be your student in the future, so why did you not save them? Did you think that if you saved them I might not be your student? Isn¡¯t that too vicious?¡±


    ¡°Everyone will die. Your parent¡¯s death was Heaven¡¯s will. I couldn¡¯t interfere.¡±


    ¡°Teacher, what have you been doing your entire life? You have been going against Heaven! Why didn¡¯t you dare to interfere in Heaven¡¯s will?¡±


    ¡°Because I can¡¯t see clearly what true Heaven¡¯s will is. That¡¯s why I have to be careful. If I interfere in it and heaven¡¯s willnds on me just like it has now, what am I to do?¡±


    ¡°So you think that your life is more important than the lives of others.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a fact.¡±


    ¡°Are you so openly selfish?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m too important to the world. My selfishness is justified.¡±


    ¡°I suddenly understood something.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s it?¡±


    ¡°I understand where Youngest Uncle and Second Brother got their arrogance and narcissistic tendencies.¡±


    ¡°Enough.¡±


    Sangsang could not stand the pair anymore. She looked at them and said seriously, ¡°I don¡¯t understand what you two are talking about. But I want to know where we are headed to next.¡±


    The ck horse carriage arrived at a very cold ce.


    The cold wind blew angrily and the dark night was like a curtain. The stars shone dimly. They were at the Cold Region of the Far North by the Hot Sea.


    However, the surface of the Hot Sea had long frozen over and was covered by a thickyer of snow. It looked more like a sea of snow.


    Even the Big ck Horse, which was no ordinary creature, was affected by the cold. It hid by the carriage, shivering, trying to avoid the storm and snow cutting across the Hot Sea¡¯s surface.


    The Headmaster took Ning Que and Sangsang to the Hot Sea. The snowyer that was as tall as a man fell apart where they stepped. The wind then swept it away to two sides, revealing a passage.


    After walking a long distance and reaching where the sea was the deepest, the Headmaster stopped.


    He stretched out his hand and pointed to the sea¡¯s surface. A hole about the size of a bucket appeared in the hardyer of ice. It was several hundreds feet deep, reaching all the way down to the bottom of the sea that had yet to freezepletely.


    Sangsang wrapped her clothes around her tightly. She ran to the side of the hole, waiting with a wooden basin in her hand. She yawned, and the mist turning into frost.


    Before long, a few fat and tender fish jumped from the ice hole and fell into the wooden basin. It was unknown what the Headmaster did to make the fish jump out of the ice hole which was over ten feet deep.


    The Headmaster froze slightly and yelled, ¡°Move!¡±


    Ning Que¡¯s heart constricted. Then, his right forefinger flicked and a Fire Fu raised in the storm and snow,nding into the wooden basin urately. A zing warmth rose, separating the fish from the cold air.


    The Headmaster nodded contentedly when he saw that. He said, ¡°The variable tyfish can be frozen. It tastes best when it is defrosted medium well. However, the temperature of the sea¡¯s surface today is too low. It might overly freeze them if we¡¯re not careful. Your Talisman Taoism abilities are almost at Yan Se¡¯s calibre, I suppose you¡¯re qualified to eat this fish.¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s cooking skills were ordinary, but her knife skills were extremely urate, just like her extraordinary calction abilities. In a short moment, the cutting board was filled with thin pieces of fish that were like snowkes. As they piled up on the board, it looked as if several white peonies had grown on the wooden board.


    They were in a tent abandoned by the Deste. Ning Que supported the Fire Fu with some thick logs he had picked up, and the temperature in the tent became quite pleasant.


    ¡°Sangsang¡¯s knife skills are much better than Manman¡¯s.¡±


    The Headmaster praised.


    Ning Queid out the bowls and chopsticks and they prepared to eat.


    He felt that they had eaten too much that day. Even though they ate the best things on earth with his teacher, but should one carry too much money on his person, he would feel the weight of it too.


    The Headmaster mixed the soy sauce, ginger juice and a green seasoning. He took a slice of fish and dipped it lightly into the bowl like a willow branch caressing theke¡¯s surface. Then, he sent the meat into his mouth and chewed slowly.


    Momentster, he opened his eyes andmented, ¡°This fish is not as fleshy and tender as that ofst year. We can only just make do. Speaking of which, the Hot Sea is about to freeze all the way to the bottom. I wonder how many variable tyfish are left.¡±


    Ning Que could not bear to pick up his chopsticks upon hearing this. Or perhaps he had just eaten too much. He said, ¡°Teacher, since there¡¯s few tyfish in the Hot Sea, then isn¡¯t it a pity to eat them all?¡±


    The Headmaster lectured, ¡°You stupid boy, we have to quickly eat them precisely because there aren¡¯t many of them left. When the variable tyfish goes extinct, where are we going to find them?¡±


    Ning Que smiled and said, ¡°Being frozen to death is still better than being eaten raw by us.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°Such a delicious fish; being eaten by us is their best fate.¡±


    Ning Que scolded the Headmaster in his mind. <i>¡°I don¡¯t see you thinking it¡¯s your best fate to be eaten by Haotian.¡±</i>


    The variable tyfish was very delicious, but there was not a lot of it. It was quickly eaten up by the three. Most of the fish went into the Headmaster¡¯s stomach, and perhaps because he felt bad about that, the Headmaster kindly used his power to make two hot springs in the frozen sea of snow for them to enjoy.


    The water was hot and steaming and there were gravel and remnants of snow by the pool. The scene looked captivating under the starlight. Ning Que felt veryfortable soaking in the hot water.


    Sangsang sat beside him and said softly, ¡°You argue with the Headmaster too often.¡±


    Ning Que fell silent for a moment before saying, ¡°Argument livens up the atmosphere... I keep thinking that something is wrong.¡±


    Sangsang looked at him with wide eyes and asked in confusion, ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Don¡¯t you think that teacher is acting very weird? He took us to eat such delicacies and said so much. Why did he not say all that back when we were at the Academy?¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°What¡¯s your point?¡±


    Ning Que looked at her and said, ¡°I think that teacher is trying to tell us hisst words, just like how you told me what to do once you¡¯ve passed away at Tile Mountain.¡±


    Sangsang froze slightly when he heard that. Then, she said softly, ¡°What nonsense are you thinking?¡±


    Ning Que frowned slightly and said, ¡°I hope that I¡¯m just thinking nonsense... As disciples of the Academy, we believe that our teacher is the strongest. Especially after this time, I believe in that even more firmly. Other than Haotian, there is no other existence that can threaten him. However, for some reason, I feel that something is wrong.¡±

 Chapter 684 - Water Gushing out to the Ship at Night

    <h4>Chapter 684: Water Gushing out to the Ship at Night</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The hot spring in the snow was gurgling. Since it was unlikely that there would be fish in the slightly hot water, it was the air hole that was vomiting bubbles. Thinking of the Headmaster, Ning Que did not expect that his teacher even remembered such details. And thinking about his alertness and uneasiness before, he felt all the more at unease and kept silent for a long time.


    Sangsang felt his emotional changes, holding his arm and leaning on his shoulder like before. She said nothing but wanted to let Ning Que feel her existence when he was sad.


    After getting a haircut, her hair was not as yellow and frail as before, but became darker. And it even added some beauty to her now that it was wet and stuck to her cheeks.


    Ning Que felt his chest quite empty and wanted a hug, because of the silence in the hot spring and the strange emotions he was feeling, as well as the fear of separation which arose unconsciously. Therefore, he tightly took Sangsang into his arms.


    They embraced in the hot spring, and then began to kiss and touch each other.


    ¡°You two haven¡¯t married yet, right?¡±


    At this moment, the Headmaster¡¯s voice was heard from the hot spring next to them.


    Sangsang was startled and left his arms quickly. She dragged up the towel that had slipped down unconsciously. She was flushed, but it was unknown whether it was because she was shy or feeling hot.


    Ning Que turned back, looked at the snow, and shouted, ¡°You have approved of our engagement.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°Engagement and marriage are two different concepts.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°We just don¡¯t have a wedding ceremony. I¡¯ll bow to Heaven and Earth with her on this snowy night.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°I¡¯m here. Is there any need to bow to Heaven and Earth? Besides, Haotian in heaven would not be happy about your marriage.¡±


    Ning Queughed, thinking that Sangsang was the Daughter of Yama. It was indeed not appropriate to get Haotian¡¯s blessing and approval.


    Then he suddenly thought of the worries he mentioned to Sangsang earlier. He thought silently and wondered if his teacher had already confirmed his feeling of unease which was why he wanted to see Ning Que marry before he left.


    The starlight in the night sky became brighter. In the sea bay, the white mist was evaporating. There were no red candles nor pedestrians, only the Headmaster standing and a pair of kids kneeling in the snow.


    This scene seemed like a part of a fairytale. However, it was rather regrettable that the three people where dressed untidily and did not look anything like legendary immortals.


    The Headmaster was wrapped in arge towel. Though in such a cold weather, his body was still warm, steaming like boiled fish. Water from the edge of the towel became ice the moment it dripped down to the ground.


    Ning Que and Sangsang knelt on the snow and bowed three times to the Headmaster, which was seen as having bowed to the elder, as well as Heaven and Earth.


    Then, they straightened up with snowkes on their foreheads, only to find that the Headmaster was not on the snow pile anymore. There was only a wet towel that was going to be frozen into ice.


    The voice of the Headmaster,bined with the clip-clop of the horses¡¯ hooves came from far off in the snowy terrain.


    ¡°Have a good time in your nuptial chamber! No one is going to disturb you. I¡¯ll ride the horse out for a bit.¡±


    Not a word was spoken this night.


    When Ning Que woke up, it was still dark outside. It took him some time before he realized that the Evesting Night was soon approaching the Hot Sea, so it was extremely hard to see the sun.


    Sangsang was still asleep. She seemed to be dreaming about something, making some moves in Ning Que¡¯s arms and grinning with her teeth exposed like a cute gray rabbit.


    There was an extremely delicious smelling from the outside of the tent.


    Ning Que knew that the Headmaster had returned, so he quickly shook Sangsang awake and began to wash and dress.


    The Headmaster had cooked a pot of fish porridge from the variable tyfish¡¯s bones left yesterday.


    Sangsang uncovered the heavy felt and walked out of the tent. She couldn¡¯t help shivering as the cold wind blew. Then, she went to the pot and took over the cooking from the Headmaster, her slightly shy face calmed down gradually.


    Compared with Sangsang¡¯s calmness, Ning Que had a goofy smile on his face for a long time. He was still smiling when they had finished the porridge and Sangsang went to the hot spring to clean their utensils.


    The Headmaster was picking his teeth with a tailbone of the variable tyfish, and said, ¡°You are only in your early twenties this year. Why do you look like an old house that caught on fire?¡±


    Ning Que coughed a little and said, ¡°We have lived together for over ten years. Don¡¯t exaggerate.¡±


    The Headmaster suddenly lowered his voice and asked curiously, ¡°How do you feel?¡±


    Looking at the tailbone in his hand, Ning Que said helplessly, ¡°Look at you. You are not like the Headmaster of the Academy at all. How could you be so disrespecting at your old age?¡±


    The Headmaster threw the fishbone into the snow and said, ¡°I¡¯m not a voyeur, but this matter of yours is so rare. Don¡¯t forget that what happened in your bridal chamber must be written on the historical records. So, you have to remember all the details.¡±


    Ning Que did not understand what the Headmaster had said and he felt a little tired, so he went to sleep again.


    The Big ck Horse was also sleeping in his tent. It had run hundreds of miles on the snowst night, so it was also listless. Besides, it felt very ashamed for it had been ridden by a naked old man for an entire night even though the Headmaster was not an ordinary person.


    At noon, the Hot Sea was still dark, and one could not see the sun. They left the ce where the Deste Man¡¯s tribe lived and went forward to the north.


    As far as Ning Que knew, the northernmost part of the world where mankind could arrive was the Cold Region in the Far North, which was the north edge of the Hot Sea. Therefore, he was very curious about the northern world and he wondered why many strong people in history had never explored the northern part of the Hot Sea.


    It was not until he saw the Snow-capped Peak when he knew.


    He had watched the north when he was at the Hot Sea yesterday, but he saw nothing. However, after traveling some distance away from the Hot Sea, he saw the Snow-capped Peak not far away as if it had suddenly appeared. It was extremely weird.


    That Snow-capped Peak was steep and towering, shining under the starlight. No one knew how high it was, but it seemed as if it was going to pierce the night sky looking from the snow in.


    Ning Que had been to many famous mountains and rivers, among which the most famous and dangerous one was the Min Mountain¡¯s north region or the Tianqi Mountains. Butpared with this Snow-capped Peak, they were much lower.


    ¡°Walking from anywhere in the south to the north without stopping, one would definitely reach the Snow-capped Peak.¡±


    The Headmaster looked up towards the Snow-capped Peak under the starlight, and said, ¡°In the past, when the Hot Sea was in full sunshine, this Snow-capped Peak was even more spectacr. No one could climb it with sheer power alone, so this was the northernmost part.¡±


    Ning Que noticed two key points in this sentence. First, one could walk to the foot of this Snow-capped Peak from any ce when heading north. Second, no one could climb it with strength alone.


    Then, could one be regarded as a person if he could climb it?


    Ning Que was thinking about this question when the ck horse carriage appeared on the other side of the Snow-capped Peak. He looked at the tall figure of the Headmaster.


    It was a vast sea.


    The reason why the color of the sea was ck was because there was no blue sky or any sunlight here. Although the stars seemed clearer, there were not as many of them here.


    Ning Que knew that what he saw was a ce that was not recorded in any ssics, so he was shocked. But what shocked him even more was that there was a ship in the ck sea.


    This ship was veryrge; the Big ck Horse could gallop freely on the deck.


    Ning Que stood by the ship¡¯s rail and looked at the Snow-capped Peak under the sky at night. He felt so shocked that he could not speak a word.


    The Headmaster went to him, looked up at the dark night sky, and said, ¡°The night starts here and then gradually spreads southward.¡±


    Ning Que looked towards him and asked, ¡°Teacher, this ship...¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°Many years ago, I was worried about being found and eaten by Haotian. So I kept thinking about how to escape or hide. I thought that since this was the beginning of the night, it was probably close to the Underworld where Yama is strongest, so Haotian¡¯s strength could hardly reach here. Thus, I made arge ship, so that I could flee here and board the ship on the dark and never return if Haotian wants to eat me.¡±


    Ning Que was shocked. Through these words, he could infer how anxious and uneasy the Headmaster had been over the past thousands of years, living in Haotian¡¯s world.


    ¡°Afterwards, I became stronger and stopped worrying about being eaten by Haotian. Therefore, this ship became useless. But then I suddenly found that the night here was very clean and was very suitable for watching stars, so I came here again. I really took a trip to the depths of the sea by boat, and I found something interesting during that trip.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°The world is not t.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t get you, teacher.¡±


    ¡°I brought you here to help you understand.¡±


    ¡°Understand what?¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°Why would I fight with Haotian? Of course, because it wants to eat me. However, since such old cowards as Drunkard and Butcher could hide for so many years, I could too. Besides, I could pray for it like Buddha. The reason why I would fight with Haotian was for a reason that is very important to me.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s the reason?¡±


    ¡°In the past, I¡¯ve said in the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain that I had seen plenty of sunsets and sunrises in many parts of the world, including here in the sea where it still had sunsets then. The sea was transparent under the sunshine, like an endless abyss, and the sun sets in this sea.¡±


    ¡°At that time, you said that the moon was a reflection of the sun. I said that the sun does not really rise and fall. If the world is a ball, all would be connected. Now, at least it proves that what I said was right. Our sun is a fake one.¡±


    ¡°Other than watching the skies, I also watched the stars. I watched the stars in the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain, as well as on thisrge ship. As I said before, there are not as many stars here but they are way clearer, so they will stay at their original positions without any change no matter how many years have passed.¡±


    ¡°Later, you made a star-gazing telescope, from which you observed that the stars still did not change. They could not be erged like figures and sceneries, which indicated that these stars¡¯ positions were fixed. The distance between them and the ground was infinitely close yet extremely remote, and it could not be measured with distance.¡±


    ¡°Teacher, can you say it in a simpler way?¡±


    ¡°In brief, this is a closed world.¡±


    ¡°Even simpler?¡±


    ¡°This is a boundless world.¡±


    ¡°But you just said it was a closed one.¡±


    ¡°It is a closed one just because it is boundless and is always connected.¡±


    ¡°Is the night sky where the stars are located not its border?¡±


    ¡°It is not the real border because no one can reach it. The border is in your eyes and your heart.¡±


    ¡°Teacher, I¡¯m even more confused.¡±


    ¡°Haotian doesn¡¯t want people to see its border because it does not want it to be broken.¡±


    ¡°So?¡±


    ¡°So, it proves that this is a closed world.¡±


    ¡°You are returning to our original topic.¡±


    ¡°Yes, it is just like this world.¡±

 Chapter 685 - It Must Be Beautiful

    <h4>Chapter 685: It Must Be Beautiful</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The Academy was indeed the first in the world. It was first in every aspect. Even when it came to prattling, Headmaster could still do it calmly and elegantly. He could constantly make the person he was talking to want to vomit blood yet cannot do so.


    Ning Que could feel this deeply and hence, he had wisely stopped trying to wrestle with his teacher with words and to make aparison with reason. Instead, he pointed to the star that was in the dark night sky and said.


    ¡°If the star is located far enough, it would be small enough that even if we were to use a telescope to erge it, it would still be hard to capture with one¡¯s eyes. hence, your deduction isn¡¯t as tenable.¡±


    ¡°if it is far enough and small enough, then why can we see it from the earth?¡±


    Headmaster slowly stroked the cold side of the boat as he looked up at the few lonely stars in the sky. he seemed to have thought of something from the past as he smiled slightly and said, ¡°Many years ago, I once flew across the sky.¡±


    This was the first time Ning Que knew that his teacher had done such a fearless act. He tried to imagine his teacher riding the winds in the skies and was extremely shocked as he asked, ¡°Why did you want to fly?¡±


    The Headmaster turned to look at him and said, ¡°When you see a mountain, do you not want to know what¡¯s behind it? If you see a tall wall, do you not want to know what is behind the wall?¡±


    Ning Que thought for a while before saying, ¡°There will always be curiosity.¡±


    The Headmasterughed and said, ¡°I am curious too. I want to know how high is the sky exactly. Whether there is a limit to this world. I want to know how far those stars are.¡±


    Ning Que felt nervous all of a sudden as he asked with a rough voice, ¡°And then?¡±


    Headmaster said, ¡°I flew for a long time but the sky was still as high and there were no changes to the stars. What I couldn¡¯t understand was the ground below my feet seemed to be at its original ce.¡±


    ¡°How long did you fly? What happened in the end?¡±


    ¡°There were day and night in the sky too but back then, I had no mood to calcte the years. There were eagles in the azure blue skies first with white clouds appearing. After that, there was nothing, only me.¡±


    Headmaster said, ¡°It was lonely and my heart was getting more and more tired. I then turned and flew back. When Inded on the ground of the mortal world, I realized that more than 30 years had passed.¡±


    Besides shock and yearning, there were no other emotions in Ning Que¡¯s heart now.


    In the rules of the world that he was familiar with, the atmosphere covered the ground. Headmaster flew for such a long time then, he should have flown out of the atmosphere and perhaps, even out of the sr system. However, the Headmaster¡¯s experiences wasn¡¯t that. This seemed to show that the Headmaster¡¯s guess was correct.


    This was an enclosed and borderless world. However, what was this world made of?


    ¡°Mobius strip?¡± He said to himself.


    Headmaster hadn¡¯t heard of this before and asked, ¡°What strip?¡±


    Sangsang had kept quiet beside them, listening to them speak. At this moment, she recalled this strip that Ning Que had told her when she was young and she said, ¡°There is only one side to a piece of paper and it is impossible to walk out of it.¡±


    Headmaster furrowed his brows slightly and said, ¡°How can a piece of paper only have one side?¡±


    Ning Que regained his senses and said, ¡°Her exnation isn¡¯t urate but the idea is there.¡±


    Headmaster¡¯s eyes lit up as he said, ¡°Teach me.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Alright.¡±


    The big ship left the harbor and entered the dark ocean as it continued north. This snowy peak was said to be the northernmost peak in the mortal world and it slowly disappeared from their field of vision. Or perhaps more urately, it got shorter in their field of vision.


    Other things appeared within sight. A bright and red sun leaped from the surface of the sea. Just like what Headmaster had once said, the sun appeared suddenly without any warning.


    Ning Que hadn¡¯t expected that the sun would rise even further north of the dark oceans. He was shocked speechless by the scene in front of him and he couldn¡¯t understand it.


    The ship continued north and the number of times they saw the sun only got more frequent. The sun stayed in the sky for a longer time and the dark ocean water slowly turned a beautiful dark blue.


    As time passed, it wasn¡¯t only sea water beside therge ship. Inds that were covered with snows, swimming fishes all appeared. They even saw a coastline one day.


    Headmaster brought him and Sangsang up the coast to take a look at the scenery. They then boarded the ship and continued north. along the way, they went to the cold teaus and they sawrge masses ofnd that were uninhabited and covered with moss. They saw animals of various shapes and even saw a huge saltke that was like a mirror.


    This was a strange world that was unrecorded. Headmaster brought them to travel and they visited many beautiful ces and ate many things they hadn¡¯t tried before. Of course, these food were delicious.


    One day, Ning Que asked, ¡°Teacher, have you been to all these ces before?¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°Over the years, to find the Underworld and the edge of the world, I have been to many ces. Sometimes, I would bring your Eldest brother while at other times, I would travel alone.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Why must you find the edge of the world?¡±


    The Headmaster looked at the azure blue sky and said, ¡°To find the edge of the world, I have even been to the skies. Do you think I wouldn¡¯t want to know the real appearance of the world beneath my feet?¡±


    Only then did Ning Que realized he had asked a very stupid question. He said, ¡°Where is the edge of the world?¡±


    Headmaster said, ¡°There is no edge of this world.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The universe is limitless, this is normal.¡±


    Headmaster looked at him and smiled, ¡°But you know this world isn¡¯t limitless.¡±


    Ning Que could only keep silent.


    Therge ship continued sailing in the sea. They didn¡¯t meet with any storm. They would fish, feed the seagulls, sunbathe and drink the wine that was stored in the cabin. Such days were happy but Ning Que couldn¡¯t help but feel uneasy.


    Headmaster didn¡¯t have much reaction. Besides enjoying life, he would only do two things.


    He taught Sangsang to make the most delicious food in the world and to enjoy the finer things in life. He then ordered Ning Que to teach him things that weren¡¯t found in this world.


    They were knowledge. Knowledge that didn¡¯t belong to this world.


    Ning Que cut the paper tape and talked about the Mobius Strip. Drawing a 3D diagram on the paper with a pen, he described the different variations and talked about many things rted to physics. However, when he came to this world, he was still young and no matter how good his results were, the things that he could talk about were very shallow.


    The Headmaster didn¡¯t ask him where he got all his knowledge from. Ning Que didn¡¯t say either. The two of them seemed to have formed a certain chemistry between them, or perhaps, they both already knew well.


    After traveling in the ocean for dozens of days, ships finally appeared on the sea surface.


    The ships quickly got denser. The big ck horse that was bored for a long time extended its head out of the side of the ship. Looking at these familiar humans, it hissed merrily, scaring the people on board those ships.


    A thousand sails traveling between the green waves. It was a beautiful image. As Ning Que looked at it, he got increasingly silent. Even though he was mentally prepared, he still found it hard to ept.


    After talking with the people on those boats, he knew that after traveling north for ten over miles, they would reach the southernmost port of the Great River Kingdom. In other words, they had returned to the mortal world.


    Since leaving Far North cold region of the Wilderness, the ship was always traveling north. How could it have reached the south? Headmaster didn¡¯t use his great powers, how did all these happen?


    Ning Que looked at the shadows of the sails in the distance and murmured, ¡°It is not the case of seeing the tip of the sail first then the ship¡¯s body. This means the world is indeed t. How then did wee back?¡±


    Headmaster brought over a ss of wine and walked over to him before saying, ¡°Back when we were at the mountain behind the Academy, we have discussed something simr. I said that if it was a ball, it would describe many phenomena. But since the world we are in isn¡¯t a ball and it isn¡¯t t, it can only mean that it is twisted.¡±


    ¡°Just like the strip you mentioned.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I have never seen such a strange world.¡±


    Headmaster took a sip of the wine and said, ¡°What is the world that you have seen before?¡±


    Ning Que looked at the meaning in his teacher¡¯s eyes, not knowing what to say.


    The Headmaster said, ¡°The world that you said you have seen in your dreams, can you describe that world?¡±


    Ning Que was silent for a long time before saying, ¡°The world that I had dreamt... it has a sun too.¡±


    ¡°What did that sun looked like?¡±


    ¡°Almost the same as this one... but I am sure that the sun in my dream is real. It is a big fireball that can burn for many years. All the energy and nutrients basicallye from it. As to how it can burn for such a long time, theye from the form that I talked to you about a few days ago.¡±


    ¡°Oh, that was a simple and beautiful yet infinite form.¡±


    ¡°Yes... the humans in the dream also live on a ball.¡±


    ¡°And they wouldn¡¯t fall because there is an attractive force between everything?¡±


    ¡°Yes, teacher.¡±


    Time slowly passed as the teacher and disciple discussed. This was the first time the Headmaster had any interactions with another world. It was the first time that Ning Que had discussed that world to anyone else. The one listening sighed with emotions while the one saying was filled with emotions too.


    As night descended on the surface of the sea, stars filled the night skies.


    Ning Que looked at the night sky and said, ¡°The world that I dreamed of has stars in the night sky too. However, they are moving. They move in our vision because of the ground under the people¡¯s feet. In actual fact, in the seemingly limitless and far space of the universe, they are moving too.¡±


    Headmaster sighed and said, ¡°A world that is constantly changing, what kind of vitality must it have.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Thergest difference isn¡¯t the stars, it is the moon.¡±


    He pointed to the night sky and said, ¡°If there are no clouds in the night sky, people would be able to see the moon Sometimes it is as round as a biscuit but at times, it is as thin and curved as a slice of melon.¡±


    He didn¡¯t exin why the moon would change but he knew that his teacher would definitely understand.


    The Headmaster lifted his head to the skies. It was as if he saw a bright moon appearing as he smiled and said, ¡°The bright moon is born in the long night, that must be a pretty image.¡±

 Chapter 686 - Seedling Picking, Divorcing Ones Wife for a New Day

    <h4>Chapter 686: Seedling Picking, Divorcing One¡¯s Wife for a New Day</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    When Sangsang was very young, she would hear something about a moon, a Miss Jie Geng and a dog from Ning Que. She would hear things about a ring and a bottle but she wasn¡¯t interested in them.


    After a while, Ning Que stopped mentioning them and she had slowly forgotten about them. However, Ning Que would still mention the word moon from time to time. She thought they were nonsense until tonight. As she stood beside the Headmaster and kept silent while hearing about all these, she realized they weren¡¯t nonsense but rather, dream talk.


    She raised her head as she tucked her hair, which had been blown into a mess by the wind, behind her temples. She followed the Headmaster¡¯s and Ning Que¡¯s gaze to the night sky. She thought to herself that if there was a bright thing there, it would be very pretty.


    The Southern sea that was under the stars was incredibly quiet and calm. The sea breeze was warm as the waves rose gently. It seemed to be shaking the ship like a baby in a cradle. It was a sea of quiet by the side of the ship.


    From the north of the Wilderness, they had traveled further north to the south of the world. They had seen too much and eaten too much over the ten over days. They have heard teacher talking too much and Ning Que couldn¡¯t help but feel something was amiss.


    His eyes suddenly turned bright and said, ¡°I feel like I have seen this somewhere... It is called what world?¡±


    The Headmaster was slightly shocked as he asked, ¡®What world?¡±


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°I have forgotten where I have seen it and I have forgotten the name too. I only remember that that world is fake and the hero of the story was trying his best to steer the boat to the side...¡±


    Many of the memories from that world has be vague. He tried everything he could to recall it and to recount all the details to the Headmaster.


    After the Headmaster finished listening, he thought in silence for a while before taking out a short wooden rod from his sleeve and banged it heavily on Ning Que¡¯s head before chiding, ¡°Fool, do you think we are acting for others?¡±


    Ning Que first saw the Headmaster on the Building of Pines and Cranes in Chang¡¯an City. Back then, he was knocked unconsciousness with this rod. He was hit in the head with this rod again and he couldn¡¯t help but lose his temper.


    He couldn¡¯t understand where teacher usually hid this rod but he couldn¡¯t be bothered to find out now. He pointed to the night skies above his head and said, ¡°Perhaps Haotian is watching a show from above. This could be possible.¡±


    ¡°Of course not.¡±


    Headmaster said, ¡°We are in a world that doesn¡¯t have the physical boundaries that you speak of. The internal structure of the world is definitely incredibly bnced. Just like the entropy that you speak of and thews of thermodynamics. They seem to be ineffective here. Hence ording to your logic, our world must be an independent world and doesn¡¯tmunicate with anything outside.¡±


    Ning Que nodded.


    The Headmaster said, ¡®Such deduction is based on the idea that the Haotian world is the only world. If there is another sky outside of our skies, will there still be a real world outside the world?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°It is possible. The Haotian world would then be an independent world that is floating in the orbit of time.¡±


    The Headmaster shook his head and said, ¡°Impossible.¡±


    Ning Que asked perplexedly, ¡°Why is it impossible?¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°Because that would be too boring.¡±


    Ning Que was speechless. He thought to himself that such a righteous tone was indeed the temperament of those from the Academy.


    ¡°If there is a sky above the skies and a world besides the Haotian world, or perhaps that the Haotian world is in another bigger world, why would it not be able tomunicate with the outside world?¡±


    Headmaster continued saying as he extended a finger and pointed at the night sky. Some starlightnded on his long fingernails before condensing slowly and forming a dim light bubble.


    ¡°Based on the theories that you have mentioned the past few days, I guess the person of great wisdom in your dream would think that we are living in a bubble if he knew the real situation of the Haotian world.¡±


    ¡°A bubble?¡±


    ¡°Or perhaps fragments of space? No, a bubble is more appropriate.¡±


    ¡°A bubble that is floating in the outside world?¡±


    ¡°The phrase ¡®floating¡¯ isn¡¯t urate. it is within the space of the outside world but not in it too.¡±


    ¡°Teacher, anyway I do not understand. Please continue.¡±


    ¡°For some reason, this bubble isn¡¯t connected to the outside world. it is stable, self-sustainable and independent. It can even be described as perfect and can survive like this forever.¡±


    ¡°And then?¡±


    ¡°I only want to prove to you that your earlier guess is wrong. There are no observers in the Haotian world. This is because Haotian is also a participant. If we are acting, he must be one of the actors too.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°If any intelligent lifeform were to observe this bubble from the outside world, there would be a link between the inside of the bubble and the outside world. Every observation will affect the state of the thing being observed. Wasn¡¯t this the logic that you have been talking about the past few days? If that is the case, our world will no longer be perfect and stable. Since something like that hasn¡¯t happened, this must mean that there are no observers.¡±


    Ning Que had no idea what else to say. He had told the Headmaster whatever remaining knowledge that he could remember. How would he have expected the Headmaster to remember this much and to easily deduce so many things? Even though he still had no idea if these deductions were correct or not, they seem to be correct.


    The light bubble that was ted with silver on the fingertips of the Headmaster disappeared into thin air. He tapped Ning Que¡¯s shoulders and said, ¡°I know what you are afraid of. You are afraid that all these is just a dream or a game. Such a situation would indeed leave one frustrated. However, you do not need to worry about such a situation.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Because of your deduction?¡±


    ¡°Not only that.¡± The Headmaster said, ¡°No matter what kind of world we are in, so long as we are real, that world will be real.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the Headmaster andplimented sincerely, ¡°Teacher, if you were to live in the world of my dreams, you would be the best philosopher, scientist, connoisseur and revolutionist.¡±


    The Headmaster stoked his beard lightly and said with pride, ¡°It turns out no matter where I live in, it isn¡¯t that bad?¡±


    Ning Que smiled and said, ¡°It is not only not bad, it is strong.¡±


    The Headmaster brows trembled lightly as he couldn¡¯t suppress his joy and said, ¡°The rest might be hard to say but I definitely am qualified to be a connoisseur.¡±


    In the early morning, the fishes in the sea were woken up by the red morning sun. After eating the oyster porridge prepared by Sangsang, Headmaster brought Ning Que to the front of the ship to enjoy the sea breeze and return to sleep.


    Ning Que leaned against the soft chair and pulled the nket. He cocked his head and took a sip of the coconut juice. He felt such a life was blissful to the maximum and if they could continue like this without going on shore, it would be better.


    However, they were bound to go ashore at the end of the day. As the ship continued going north, they could see the ck coastline vaguely in the distance. There was even the illusion of the smell of the harbor.


    They would return to the mortal world when they go ashore and they could face many things. Especially when he kept thinking of the uneasiness that was hanging over him, Ning Que¡¯s emotions became a little strange.


    Listening to the sound of waves hitting against the front of the ship and looking at the floating clouds in the blue skies, he kept silent for a long time. Thinking back to the battle in the Wilderness and the image of the Giant Golden Dragon sucking that Qi of Heaven and Earth from the corpses of the Deste Man, the image of Haotian in his heart became increasingly greedy.


    Ning Que furrowed his brows and thought, ¡°Because it is a closed world, the energy can only flow continuously within it and would eventually tend to destruction. Haotian wouldn¡¯t understand this. Why then did he not break this world and find new sources of energy from the wider world?¡±


    ¡°Firstly, Haotian is the rule of this world. If this world is shattered or if it connects with the outside world, it could be directly destroyed. Secondly, I think it is afraid.¡±


    The Headmasterid on his chair, ying with the colorful shells in his hand.


    Ning Que passed the coconut over and squatted on the chair while he asked in confusion, ¡°If it is so afraid, what is it scared of?¡±


    The Headmaster took over the coconut and peeled a small piece of coconut meat from the hard shell and put it into his mouth. He slowly chewed as he sighed and said, ¡°When one chews the coconut longer, it tastes better than peanuts.¡±


    Ning Que was waiting patiently for his teacher¡¯s answer and he didn¡¯t expect to hear something like this. He gave a bitterugh and said, ¡°However, no one has said this before and no one has taken coconut flesh as peanuts.¡±


    Headmaster put down the coconut and said, ¡°You asked what Haotian was afraid of? It is afraid of the unknown.¡±


    ¡°Unknown?¡±


    ¡°Humans are afraid of the unknown too. Just like how many people hadn¡¯t eaten the flesh of coconut before and throw them away like trash. Many people hadn¡¯t eaten chili before and think it is the devil. However, humans also yearn for the unknown and hence, there will be the first person to eat the crab. there would be someone like me who loves eating the flesh of coconuts and there are those who see chili as their life.¡±


    ¡°There will never be ack of those who are courageous enough to try when ites to facing the unknown. Because humans are fearful, they are curious too. Unknown and curiosity are 2 concepts that are linked. They are the most defining characteristic of humans.¡±


    ¡°Just like what I told you that night. When one sees a mountain, one would want to know what is on the other side of the mountain. When one sees the ocean, one would want to know what is underneath it. When one sees the skies, one would want to know what is above it. Because of curiosity, humans will continuously forge ahead and be stronger.¡±


    ¡°The world is constantly spinning and the beginning is the end. This is really meaningless. Humans¡¯ curiosity towards the unknown has been decided by nature. We cannot live peacefully in an enclosed world forever. Since the world is enclosed, we will want to open it and see the outside.¡±


    ¡°But Haotian isn¡¯t human. Even though it is living, at the end of the day, it is a boring, monotonous and uninteresting objective rule. It is afraid of change and doesn¡¯t have the courage to face the unknown. This is the biggest difference between us and Haotian. It is precisely because of this that we can never live in harmony with it forever.¡±


    ¡°A melon that was forcefully plucked will never be sweet. How can one marry with different outlooks? If one¡¯s world is covered at the top, how can one breathe freely? Hence, we pluck the seedlings, divorce the wife and open the world.¡±


    ¡°This is the thinking of Lotus and your Youngest Uncle. I too believe in this. In actual fact, there have been countless people who think simrly throughout history. Of course, we are clear that even if there is a sky outside of ours, that sky might just be anotherrger prison. At least we can see more sceneries and experience more things.¡±


    ¡°These things might be very important or not important at all but I believe they are worth fighting for.¡±

 Chapter 687 - The Headmasters Story (Part 1)

    <h4>Chapter 687: The Headmaster¡¯s Story (Part 1)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Therge ship docked at a harbor south of the Great River Kingdom. The ck horse carriage sped across thend silently. It had been more than 70 days since they left the Wilderness. The Great River Kingdom, which was in the south had already heard news of the war in the Wilderness.


    After the ck horse carriage left the Wilderness, the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army suddenly attacked the Tang army. However, the Tang army had long been prepared for this. The Northern Military Camp cavalry left Hn City, ambushing the coalition army.


    The mes of war continued on the Wilderness. However, the war this time had nothing to do with The Deste. The war continued for dozens of days until the Tang army, which was at an obvious disadvantage considering their numbers, finally gained victory under themand of His Majesty, Li Zhongyi.


    Because the logistics supply line was too long and the West-Hill Divine Pce had several powerful Grand Cultivators, the Tang army did not move forward after their victory. The army split into two groups, returning to Hn City and Tuyang City respectively. The cavalry of the Northeast Border Military was approaching the Wilderness¡¯ border.


    What was puzzling was that after the Tang emperor, Li Zhongyi led the Northern Military Camp cavalry back to Hn City, he did not immediately return to Chang¡¯an but stayed there instead.


    Some spected that there was something going on in the Golden Pce, given their silence for too many years. Others thought that the Emperor only wanted to take the empress with him and enjoy some time away from Chang¡¯an.


    Although this war in the Wilderness ended with the victory of the Tang army, it cost a lot for a country to fight against the world no matter how powerful it was. As for the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army, they suffered heavy losses and seemed unable to start a fight at least for a short period of time.


    The Headmaster¡¯s war against the Heavens should have shocked the world, but because the West-Hill Divine Pce had stopped the news from spreading and the fact that everyone present had been kneeling and did not dare to look at the bright sky, they had not truly seen what happened. As such, the news did not spread widely, at least not outside of the Tang Empire.


    During the journey as the ck horse carriage traveled through the Great River Kingdom, the Headmaster once asked Ning Que if he wanted to visit Mogan Mountain. The Master of Calligraphy had brought disciples of the ck Ink Garden to the war in the Wilderness and had yet to return. As such, only Mo Shanshan was on the mountain and it was a good opportunity for Ning Que ording to the Headmaster.


    Ning Que understood what the Headmaster meant by a good opportunity. However, he did not understand why the Headmaster grew more and more naughty while aging. He chose to tease Ning Que with those words even though Sangsang was in the carriage. So Ning Que rejected him firmly.


    The ck carriage sped out of the Great River Kingdom and headed northeast. It passed through the hilly area in the southeast of South Jin Kingdom and came to a beautiful verdant country, the West-Hill Divine Kingdom.


    There was a stall selling roasted sweet potatoes across the Taoist Temple in town. Summer had yet to pass, so even the West-Hill Divine Kingdom favored by Haotian was unbearably hot. The sweet potato stall¡¯s business should have been bad, but for some reason, it remained open and would receive the asional patronage.


    ¡°We should eat meat around a furnace on cold snow days and eat iced food in the hot summer. This is the best enjoyment that is appropriate for the weather. But sometimes, people just like to make things difficult for themselves. They eat hotpot in the hot summer and sweat buckets just for fun. Then, they chew on sweet ice in winter for the same reason.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°They want to experience this exhration and have fun. Or one should say, there are many who enjoy torturing themselves. That¡¯s why this stall remains open and has been running for more than a thousand years. You guys should give it a try.¡±


    Ning Que bought three roasted sweet potatoes and began peeling one of them with his fingertips. He said, ¡°Is there really a sweet potato stall that can run for a thousand years? Wouldn¡¯t that be an ancient business? Teacher, don¡¯t try to fool us.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°I¡¯vee down from the mountain to eat roasted sweet potatoes here since a thousand years ago.¡±


    The town was deep within West-Hill Divine Kingdom and was close to the Peach Mountain. If you looked from the stone bridge outside the town in the direction of the river flow, you¡¯d be able to see the magnificent West-Hill Divine Pce in the green hills.


    <i>Could the mountain that the Headmaster mentioned be the Peach Mountain?</i>


    Ning Que was a little surprised and forgot to continue peeling his potato.


    The Headmaster took the sweet potato from his hands and quickly peeled it, revealing soft, yellow flesh that was steaming. He handed it to Sangsang and said, ¡°I have never seen Haotian before, nor have I ever interacted with it. So I can only guess. However, now that I look at it, my spections are getting closer and closer to the fact. That is why I feel that I am qualified to tell you Haotian¡¯s story. Now that its story is over, I¡¯d like to tell you mine. I don¡¯t know if the two of you would be interested to hear it.¡±


    Ning Que and Sangsang were of course interested.


    The world only knew that the Tang Empire had an Academy and that there was a Headmaster in the Academy. They knew that the Headmaster was the most important one in the Academy, but rarely did they know the Headmaster¡¯s story. Master Qishan had guessed that the Headmaster was over two centuries old, but Ning Que now knew that the Headmaster had lived for over a thousand years. How interesting would his tale be?


    The ck horse carriage left the town and drove across the stone bridge towards the flow of the river. The Peach Mountain that the West-Hill Divine Pce was located on had a curvy path which appeared before them at the moment.


    The Headmaster finished his roasted sweet potatoes and took the wet towel Sangsang handed him. He wiped the remnants of the potato from the corners of his lips and mustache, and then he wiped his sticky fingers clean. He pointed out of his window at the east and said, ¡°Many years ago, in the east of the West-Hill Divine Kingdom, there was a country called the State of Lu.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Why have I never heard of it?¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°That was a country established a thousand years ago. And it¡¯s been long gone.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°It seems like it was only a small, unknown country.¡±


    The Headmaster said unhappily, ¡°That¡¯s because you¡¯re ignorant and have never read a single history book. If you ask your Senior Brothers and Sisters at the back of the mountain, would they not know of the State of Lu?¡±


    Ning Que, who had always been great at ttery, found that he had made two consecutive mistakes today.


    The first was that he had forgotten to wipe his teacher¡¯s beard clean, and the second was that he had not understood that his teacher must have something to do with the State of Lu since he mentioned it. His casual words were like pping his teacher in the face. As such, he hurriedly apologized.


    The Headmaster ignored him and looked at the non-existent country of his past. He said, ¡°I was born in the State of Lu...¡±


    Ning Que thought that one¡¯s love for his country could not be insulted indeed.


    The Headmaster said again, ¡°I am a very ordinary person...¡±


    Ning Que thought to himself that this statement was a p to everyone¡¯s face.


    The Headmaster did not know that Ning Que was adding lines to his statements in his heart and he continued, ¡°I was an ordinary person, so I behaved like one. I studied since I was young, and I had learned how to tell right from wrong. Then, I took the exam and after much difficulty, became an official. However, after just one case, I was forced to resign because I offended nobility.¡±


    Ning Que asked curiously, ¡°What case was it?¡±


    The Headmaster said a few sentences, and judging from his expression, he still felt resentful about what had happened then.


    ¡°They just chopped off his head like that? Did you have evidence?¡± Ning Que asked carefully.


    The Headmaster said, ¡°I didn¡¯t have evidence, but everyone knew that he was an evil man.¡±


    Ning Que said sarcastically, ¡°You trialed a case without evidence. I wonder how thew of the Tang Empirees first became a rule of the Academy. Teacher, why did you kill that man? Did he offend you?¡±


    The Headmaster said angrily, ¡°Say, Haotian has no evidence either, why did I have to go against it?¡±


    Ning Que said somewhat anxiously, ¡°That¡¯s because you don¡¯t like Haotian, either.¡±


    The Headmaster paused. After a long silence, he suddenlyughed, saying, ¡°Perhaps you were wrong. I was still young then, and my temper was rather bad.¡±


    Ning Que was chuffed, and did not forget to reciprocate. Heughed loudly and said, ¡°Teacher, you are now over a thousand years old, but your temper doesn¡¯t seem to have gotten any better.¡±


    Theughter then halted as Ning Que rubbed the bump on his head caused by a rod. He felt like an idiot, for he knew that his teacher had a bad temper. Why did he say all that nonsense?


    ...


    ...


    The ck carriage arrived at the bottom of the Peach Mountain.


    Ning Que grew anxious, excited and was filled with anticipation. However, what disappointed him was that the priests and deacons who hurried by them did not notice the ck horse carriage. The Headmaster also did not seem like he was there to cut down peach blossoms again. He ordered the horse carriage to stop under a tree for shade.


    ¡°I was stripped of my position and had nothing else to do. I managed the family affairs but it did not feel right. Furthermore, the world was in chaos then, so I decided to live in seclusion.¡±


    ¡°I remember that I was already more than 30 years old then. But for some reason, I suddenly developed an interest in the ssics of Haotian Taoism. I started to read and cultivate and sessfully reached the Initial Awareness State and then the Perception State.¡±


    ¡°Just as I said earlier, I was an ordinary person. My understanding and potential were all ordinary, just like ordinary cultivators. I broke the realms step-by-step and reached the No Doubts State. I got stuck there.¡±


    ¡°To ordinary people, even the ordinary cultivators look impressive. That was why I was satisfied with my cultivation progress. And even though I was stuck and could not move forward, I thought that was usual.¡±


    ¡°My family had been against the stripping of my post. But after I could cultivate, their attitudes toward me changed significantly. They sent me to the Peach Mountain to be a deacon.¡±


    The Headmaster pointed at the Divine Hall outside the window and said, ¡°Aftering to the Divine Hall, the leading priest asked me what I wanted to do. I thought then, that my family must have spent a lot of money. They should have just bought me another government post with that money.¡±


    Sangsang nodded frantically as she thought that the money would have been better off spent on cosmetic powder.


    Ning Que felt that the Headmaster was right, so he grew even more curious about his teacher¡¯s choice. He asked, ¡°What did you choose?¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°I thought that since I enjoyed reading Haotian Taoism ssics, I wanted to manage the library.¡±


    Ning Que pped his thighs heavily and said, ¡°That¡¯s a great choice!¡±


    The Headmaster nced at him curiously.


    Ning Que praised, ¡°The strongest and most powerful people who go against the Heavens would definitely have been librarians. Teacher, I bet you were fated to go against Haotian since then.¡±

 Chapter 688 - The Headmasters Story (Part 2)

    <h4>Chapter 688: The Headmaster¡¯s Story (Part 2)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The Headmaster had told his First Disciple and many other people that he was not all knowing and all powerful. To many, this was normal. To the Eldest Brother and other disciples of the Academy who believed in their teacher unconditionally, the Headmaster was too humble, which led to him seeming proud.


    In fact, the Headmaster knew that, for example right then, he could not understand Ning Que¡¯s joke and could not understand the praise in Ning Que¡¯s statement. He thought about it but did not understand, and so, he decided not to waste time to think about it and continued telling his tale.


    ¡°From then on, I became the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s library Taoist. I entered the library to read, so I would naturally not miss such a great opportunity. I read voraciously. The more I read, the more I understood, and I broke through the No Doubts and Seethrough States and continued forth. My cultivation state was improved. That was when I found that every time I read, there was a Taoist who also read in the library. You have to understand that the Divine Hall back then was different from how it is today. Taoists liked to go to the mortal realm to enjoy themselves and were unabashed about it. There was no one to control them. That¡¯s why the Taoists back then did not like reading, so the Taoist in the library seemed special.¡±


    Many years had passed since then, and the Headmaster¡¯s memory was fuzzy. He thought in silence for a moment to make sure that he remembered correctly and continued, ¡°The Taoist and I read in the library for many years. After that, we grew bored after we had read all the ssics and books in the library.¡±


    ¡°The world was in chaos then. Dominant Families in all states might like to keep books, but they were not any good. After some discussion, the Taoist and I thought that there were still the seven Tomes of the Arcane in the Zhishou Abbey that we had not read. So we...¡±


    ¡°Hang on.¡± Ning Que said in surprise, ¡°You¡¯re saying that you and the Taoist went to Zhishou Abbey to read the Tomes of the Arcane because you guys were so bored you wanted to find a book to read?¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°I was still not very interested in cultivation back then. If not for the seven Tomes of the Arcane being the only remaining tomes in the world, why would I think of traveling through mountains and forests to look for the Zhishou Abbey?¡±


    Ning Que was speechless and realized that he could not understand the thought processes of people from a thousand years ago.


    ¡°And then?¡±


    ¡°The people in West-Hill Divine Pce all knew of the Zhishou Abbey but did not know where it was. The Taoist and I thought that it would be difficult to find, but we found it easily.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s because you and that Taoist... were not ordinary people. What happened after that?¡±


    ¡°After that? We stayed in the Zhishou Abbey to read, of course. The Taoist in the abbey would definitely not let us read them, so we did it in secret. It was fine as long as we were not discovered.¡±


    ¡°You read all seven scrolls from the Tomes of the Arcane?¡±


    ¡°If there were more scrolls, I would naturally be able to read more of them.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯d better continue with your story.¡±


    ¡°The seven scrolls of the Tomes of the Arcane were very interesting. But the more we read, the more doubts we had. The Taoist and I began to develop certain questions, especially after reading the ¡®Ming¡¯ Handscroll.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°But these were not my main considerations at that point in time. That¡¯s why I waited for the Taoist to finish the seven scrolls, and then, we returned to the West-Hill Divine Pce.¡±


    ¡°Who was that Taoist?¡±


    ¡°After some years, the Taoist entered the Divine Hall of Light and became the Great Divine Priest of Light.¡±


    The Headmaster looked at Sangsang and said, ¡°Just like her teacher, they both were rather awe-worthy but not at the same time. He was a person who could make someoneugh and cry at the same time.¡±


    Ning Que thought of a certain possibility. He counted on his fingers and asked, ¡°Which Divine Priest of Light was it?¡±


    ¡°Who else could it be?¡±


    The Headmaster shook his head and said, ¡°The Divine Hall asked him to preach in the Wilderness, so there he went. If he wanted to betray the sect and set up his own, then so be it. However, he ran to the Zhishou Abbey and stole the ¡®Ming¡¯ Handscroll. It was so annoying.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I remember that it was Haotian Taoism who asked the Divine Priest of Light to bring the ¡®Ming¡¯ Handscroll to the Wilderness.¡±


    The Headmaster said sarcastically, ¡°Haotian Taoism is the best at saying whatever that will save them from embarrassment. Actually, the Zhishou Abbey discovered the theft of the Tomes of the Arcane and made a fuss. They even discovered that that fellow and I went to read them. I had no choice but to leave the Peach Mountain. It was fortunate that the Divine Hall didn¡¯t take notice of a small fry like me.¡±


    ¡°After leaving the Peach Mountain, I traveled the world. I said earlier, that the world was in chaos back then, and there were endless wars. The world was at a dark time and was worse than it is now. Haotian Taoism united, and the Divine Hall became thergest faction. Yet, they did not bother with worldly affairs. Cultivators bullied and humiliated ordinary folks, the power of the royals in the secr world was weak, and the world was a mess.¡±


    ¡°The only exception was the kingdom of the Deste in the Wilderness. The Deste were physically strong by nature, so cultivators did not dare to act as they wished. That fellow stole the ¡°Ming¡± Handscroll of the Tomes of the Arcane because he had developed doubts about Haotian. That¡¯s why I was not surprised when he chose the Wilderness.¡±


    ¡°You should know what happened to that fellow after that. He betrayed the West-Hill Divine Pce and started the Enlightenment Doctrine with a scroll from the Tomes of the Arcane. Thatter became the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.¡±


    Ning Que was very shocked when he heard this millennia-old tale. He had finally understood why the Academy had never made any differentiation between the path of the righteous and the devil. No matter whether it was him or his Youngest Uncle who had joined the Devil, the Headmaster did not care. He even had Third Sister ept Tang Xiaotang as her disciple. It was because he knew the person who started the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    They were friends.


    ¡°Even though I still think that he was fooling around, making the shady Devil¡¯s Doctrine that is so warped and boring, I have to admit that his actions then caused a great shock to the world. It also indirectly led to some good end results.¡±


    ¡°What results?¡±


    ¡°Haotian Taoism was wary of his preaching in the Deste¡¯s kingdom, so they had to bring peace to the Central ins. The Divine Hall cleared up, and the people in the secr world led better lives. Of course, this just meant that they lived longer and their bodies became stronger. If there were any wars in the future, they¡¯d be able to fight. In actuality, the lives of the people were just as bad and they lived no better than dogs. People died every day, everywhere.¡±


    The Headmaster said, after a moment of silence, ¡°Those who had not lived through the chaos then can hardly understand how great the world is now. Sometimes, I don¡¯t understand how people managed to survive through the chaos and pain and still prosper. I guess we can only say that the vitality of humans is scary.¡±


    ¡°But I feel that men should not live like that. They should not live like beasts or worse than dogs. We should eat dogs, and not be eaten by them.¡±


    The Headmaster¡¯s expression turned grave and he looked at Ning Que, saying, ¡°I wanted to end the chaos on Earth. I felt that the first thing to do was to set rules and then preach about benevolence. The results would be better If we could ignite intelligence and emphasize faith. So I started teaching in the countryside to tell the world these truths.¡±


    Ning Que remained silent and listened quietly and intently.


    ¡°What troubled me was that no one was willing to listen to my lessons. Some ces were too poor that they were worried only about food. They did not have the mood to listen to me. In other ces, the Taoist temple did not like to allow me to hold lessons. At some other ces, the people did not like my lessons because I charge for them.¡±


    ¡°You can choose not to charge them.¡±


    ¡°What will I eat if I don¡¯t charge them? I¡¯ve got to eat.¡±


    ¡°Teacher, you are really a realistic idealist.¡±


    ¡°I like this praise very much. Back then, I kept encountering walls in reality, but I did not give up on this dream. I just sobered up and realized that to influence the world, it didn¡¯t matter how strong I was. I had to have the help of a worldly political power or a religious sect like Haotian Taoism.¡±


    ¡°At that time, I was lecturing in Xianyang vige, west of the Wei River. A young man came to look for me in the middle of the night after hearing my lecture. I thought he wanted to be my disciple, so I asked him to return after getting three pounds of meat from the east of the vige. I didn¡¯t expect that he was not here to be my disciple, but was there to recruit men.¡±


    ¡°To put it simply, that night, the young man talked about his dreams. I found that his dream was also to end the troubled times. I liked it and continued listening to him.¡±


    ¡°So you became his subordinate just like that?¡±


    ¡°How can I be someone¡¯s subordinate? I just agreed to help him.¡±


    ¡°Teacher, that young man... was his surname Li?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡±


    The ck horse carriage left the Peach Mountain and arrived at Chang¡¯an.


    ¡°The Deste were powerful and the West-Hill Divine Pce could not fight them just with cultivators alone. That¡¯s how the order of the world began. As the armies of various countries flourished and imperial power grew, the Tang Empire used the opportunity to umte power and strength. It encountered several smooth sailing years, and the country grew stronger and they built Chang¡¯an city.


    The Headmaster looked out of the window at the millennium-old city, thinking of how it looked like when it was being built. With a nostalgic expression, he said, ¡°When the city was being built, I spent the happiest days of my life.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the moss on the huge bricks of the city walls. He was speechless as he thought of the feelings he once had for the city and thought of how he had once been awed by the sages who had built it.


    He was frequently at a loss for words since the Headmaster started his tale.


    When you find out that the most legendary part of history, the greatest years and the glory that could not be erased by time was beside you, you could only express your shock through silence.


    Ning Que regained consciousness after a long time, and he muttered, ¡°You built Chang¡¯an, so you must have built the God-stunning Array.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°Yan Se gave the array eye pestle to you, yet some Taoists in the Southern Gate Temple did not like that...The array is mine, so it is naturally right to pass it to you.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Of course, it is naturally right.¡±


    ¡°What happened after that?¡±


    ¡°After that, the Tang Empire began to attack other countries, trying to unify thends.¡±


    ¡°Why did it fail?¡±


    ¡°It defeated all othernds, but there was still the West-Hill Divine Pce.¡±


    ¡°Teacher, why did you not attack with them?¡±


    ¡°How can someone like me attack casually. My inaction was the greatest shock... Alright, I admit that although I was very strong back then, I was not strong enough. At least, I wasn¡¯t certain that I could defeat the West-Hill Divine Pce and suppress all its disciples without rming Haotian.¡±


    ¡°Teacher, so that means you¡¯re strong enough for it now.¡±


    ¡°Back then, the ones who were truly powerful were the Deste. That fellow preached in the Wilderness for many years and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was so powerful they were prepared to head south. The Tang Empire is situated in the north and was the first to bear the brunt of their attack. There was no way to avoid the sharp des of the Deste and the empire was forced to send troops into the depths of the Wilderness. I fought with that fellow too.¡±


    ¡°Who won?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t like fighting as much as your Youngest Uncle. I seldom fight, but I have never lost a fight.¡±

 Chapter 689 - Story of the Headmaster (II)

    <h4>Chapter 689: Story of the Headmaster (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    It had been quite a while since Ning Que and Sangsang left Chang¡¯an. As the carriage rolled down the Vermilion Bird Avenue, Ning Que and Sangsang peered at the street through the window. The familiar view definitely roused their emotions.


    And just like those at the West-Hill Divine Pce, the people here in Chang¡¯an did not notice the ck horse carriage and could not be bothered to take even one more look at it.


    In the east Vermilion Bird Avenue, buildings were shorter. The area was named the Eastern City.


    A carriage rolled into the long-missed Lin 47th Street, and it stopped at the gate of the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    You could still hear the Wus, who sold counterfeit antiques next door, quarreling. You could also see the oil stain left by the peddler selling hot and sour sliced noodle soup at the alley¡¯s entrance.


    The gates to the Old Brush Pen Shop creaked open. Ning Que and Sangsang weed the Headmaster into the backyard for a rest. A shadow shed and disappeared after a ¡°meow¡± at the top of the yard wall.


    Ning Que looked to the wall and smiled. He fetched water from the well and cleaned up with Sangsang. Then he was going to cook and treat the Headmaster with a nice meal as a weing gesture.


    The ingredients were simple vegetables andmon meat. The dishes were quickly cooked and put on the table. It was until the Headmaster had taken a few bites and appeared to be satisfied that the nervous Sangsang could heave a sigh of relief.


    Right after the meal, Sangsang massaged the Headmaster¡¯s shoulders. The atmosphere was peaceful and rxed. However, Chang¡¯an¡¯s hot summer was always vexing, so Ning Que had to stand in front the Headmaster with a folding fan.


    He asked while fanning the Headmaster, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you bring the ¡®Ming¡¯ Handscroll back?¡±


    The Headmaster then answered, ¡°I would have taken it when I was in the Zhishou Abbey if I wanted it. I was going to leave it for that fellow¡¯s disciples. But then your Youngest Uncle wiped out the Devil¡¯s Doctrine; I fetched it because I didn¡¯t want the Haotian Taoism to have it.¡±


    The Headmaster didn¡¯t spend a long time in the shop before he finished his tea and left with the other two. They traveled leisurely in the horse carriage, reaching the northern part of Chang¡¯an where a hazy view of the imperial city could be seen.


    It was such a hot summer that most people in Chang¡¯an couldn¡¯t take the heat. On the streets, trees overnumbered pedestrians. The trees were green and lush, revealing parts of the beautiful wall of the pce just behind.


    ¡°When the Tang Empire overthrew the Kingdom of the Deste, even the West-Hill Divine Pce had to ept Tang¡¯s conquest as well as Tang¡¯s particrity. Lots of states began to revise theirws under the influence of Tang. As for Haotian Taoism and other cultivating organizations, they began to restore the ruling power to ordinary people.¡±


    The Headmaster was watching the imperial pce outside the window. After a short silence, he said, ¡°That was a good thing. Ordinary people can find more ways to bnce conflicting interests, because they¡¯re not cultivators, and they have less awe of those who are. Their short and limited lives might be the only disadvantage of being ordinary.¡±


    ¡°Emperor Li was surely a good strategist and militarymander, but he was also no more than an ordinary man. He would age, and when he grew old, it would be easy for him to be muddle-headed. Sometimes we might have opposing opinions that can never be bridged. To avoid furious confrontations, I built the Academy in the southern part of the city, spending years reading there.¡±


    The story between the founding emperor of Tang and the Headmaster was a real appetizer for Ning Que, and he couldn¡¯t help asking, ¡°What happened next?¡±


    The Headmaster answered, ¡°In the end, he was so muddle-headed that he wanted to eat me to gain longevity. I didn¡¯t know where he had learned that, but he was indeed going after me then.¡±


    Ning Que looked as if he was worried, and then he asked, ¡°What did you do?¡±


    The Headmaster answered, ¡°I wouldn¡¯t let Haotian eat me, neither would I let Emperor Li do it. When he wantede for me, I entered the pce and killed him.¡±


    Ning Que was shocked. ¡°You killed him just like that?¡±


    ¡°Like I had a choice! What? Oh! Should I get his majesty in a trial first, and then sentence him to a body-dismembering death?¡±


    ¡°Master... you know that¡¯s not what I meant.¡±


    ¡°Yes, that was how I killed the founding emperor of Tang. I may have cried no tears about it, but somehow I feel it was such a pity. So I came up with a new idea¡ª I¡¯ll teach the Emperor¡¯s sessor so that the new one will not be muddled enough to eat me.¡±


    Ning Que was finally knew clearly why the Academy was so well respected by the whole Tang Empire.


    ¡°The new Emperor was quite obedient and nice.¡± Said the Headmaster. He was stroking his beard and seemed quite satisfied.


    Ning Que thought to himself, <i>¡°Like the new Emperor had a choice! You killed his father, of course you can kill him any time you want a new emperor! His poor Majesty! What else could he do other than to be filial to you?¡±</i>


    ¡°And the sessorster were up to my standard. The Li family, they all had something worthy to be proud of in their blood. When all the affairs had been settled, someone sozy like me would, of course, be unwilling to interfere in politics. So I left the Imperial Pce and I¡¯ve never gone back ever since.¡±


    The Headmaster was speaking as he looked outside the window. He was ncing over the lively trees and the foggy Golden River. Atst his eyes settled on the red-painted wall of the pce. He looked peaceful as usual, but deep inside his eyes, there was a touch of sadness.


    Slowly, the ck horse carriage left imperial city, away from the pce, leaving all the bustle and crowds behind. People in the shops on both sides of the street watched the carriage till it stopped in front of Chenjinji Cosmetics Store.


    The Headmaster walked into the store and bought Sangsang a big pack of cosmetic powder.


    ¡°Master... she¡¯s going to be so spoiled. Why?¡±


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t helpughing as he saw Sangsang¡¯s face with proper make up. Then he said, ¡°I hate to say it but my wife¡¯s getting fairer than before.¡±


    Sangsang felt a little bit shy upon hearing Ning Que¡¯s praise. She lowered her head and thanked the Headmaster.


    The Headmaster waved his hand, showing that he did not mind.


    The carriage then left the shop for the south. On the straight and broad Vermilion Bird Avenue, it passed by the well-known Vermilion Bird Carving.


    The carriage rolled along the floor tiles which had the embossing of the Vermilion Bird on them. Visitors from all other states and counties of Tang were enjoying the embossed art, sunshades in hand. There was a sudden gust of wind, causing them to squint.


    In the breeze, the eyes of the carved Vermilion Bird moved vividly as if they wereing alive. When the breeze stopped, the movement suddenly stopped, looking like the bird had lost its soul.


    In the dark carriage, a little red bird suddenly appeared.


    The bird was moving slowing on the floor. As clumsy as it might appear, it looked quite adorable. However, its feathers, which were vermilion red, seemed to hide an awesome power that would make people shudder.


    ¡°Chirp!¡±


    The little Vermillion Bird walked to the Headmaster and made a sound.


    The Headmaster petted its head with his finger.


    The bird then rubbed its head on the fingertip, seemingly enjoying it.


    ¡°Is it what we know as ¡®the Vermilion Bird¡¯?¡±


    Ning Que had run into too many shocking things so far. He now knew that both Chang¡¯an and the God-stunning Array were made by the Headmaster. Therefore, he wasn¡¯t that surprised when seeing the Vermilion Bird appear in the ck carriage.


    Ning Que then tried to pet the legendary bird, just like how the Headmaster did.


    Suddenly the little bird turned to Ning Que and looked him in the eye. It looked quite stern, and its eyes showed caution, resentment, contempt, and scorn.


    Ning Que looked back to the days when Sangsang and him were looking at the Vermilion Bird Embossing. Then he remembered he was seriously injured andid on the embossing. When that came to his mind, he quickly sat on the Big ck Umbre.


    And when the little bird turned to Sangsang, it became quite confused.


    The ck Carriage was finally out of the Southern Gate of Chang¡¯an, heading to the Academy.


    Ning Que nced at the view outside the window, and then he stopped looking. This path used to be the one he walked on to the Academy every morning, and he had grown too familiar with it.


    He was going to ask the Headmaster about the changes the Academy had witnessed in the past 1,000 years, but then he gave it up when realizing that the question was unnecessary. The Academy had gone through numerous deans, but the Headmaster was the one and only.


    ¡°You¡¯re the first and the present dean of the Academy. What were you doing during the break? You said you were tired of worldly affairs. Why would you return to power once more?¡±


    ¡°I had been busy for hundreds of years. I was a librarian in the West-Hill Pce, and I was a reader myself. Now that I got the Academy, I had to go around the world and collect books, which, obviously, cost me years and years.¡±


    The Headmaster said. ¡°And don¡¯t forget I¡¯ve spent many years flying to heaven. It also took me even more years to make the decision. Throughout my journey, I¡¯ve been looking for the legendary Underworld, the world¡¯s edge, delicious dishes, and mostly, looking for people of my kind.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Your kind?¡±


    The Headmaster then answered, ¡°Yes, people like me.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Did you seed?¡±


    The Headmaster answered, ¡°I¡¯ve found the Drunkard and the Butcher, from whom I¡¯ve known more about Haotian as well as the Evesting Night. Then I asked them to team up with me.¡±


    ¡°And they refused?¡± Asked Ning Que.


    ¡°Yes.¡± The Headmaster nodded and answered.


    ¡°Then what did you do?¡±


    ¡°I fought with them.¡±


    ¡°Who was the winner?¡± Ning Que then waved his hand, ¡°Sorry, that was a dumb question.¡±


    The Headmaster sighed, ¡°Of course they were nopetition for me. But it annoyed me even more that they wouldn¡¯t listen to me even when they had been defeated.¡±


    ¡°What was your n exactly?¡± Asked Ning Que.


    The Headmaster looked to Ning Que and said, ¡°You asked what I¡¯ve been doing those years, right?¡±


    Ning Que nodded.


    The Headmaster then said, ¡°I¡¯ve been spending most of the years trying to figure out just one question.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°What was it?¡±


    The Headmaster then answered, ¡°How to defeat Haotian.¡±


    Quietness was growing in the ck carriage, and it was like the final answer was still echoing. When the Headmaster¡¯s voice finally settled, the three could hear the little Vermilion Bird gently stepping on the floor.


    The answer didn¡¯te as a surprise because they had already known it and they had even talked about more details. Yet it was, indeed, still breathtaking when it came down to such a simple and short answer.


    Ning Que was silent for a long while. Then, he looked up and asked, ¡°Teacher, have you thought of a way?¡±


    The Headmaster was annoyed and answered, ¡°Would I still be in this horse carriage if I had already thought of a way?¡±

 Chapter 690 - Turning the World Upside Down (I)

    <h4>Chapter 690: Turning the World Upside Down (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The carriage was running on the ground, and on the ground was the world of humankind. If the Headmaster had figured out ¡°how¡±, he would¡¯ve left for battling with Haotian early instead of sitting in the carriage.


    ¡°I thought about it for a long time but did not have any idea how.¡± The Headmaster said, ¡°Hundreds of years passed by, and one day I met the guy named Ke Haoran, your Youngest Uncle.¡±


    Ning Que was depressed at the moment, but his face lighted up at the mention of ¡°Ke Haoran¡±. He was excited and he could feel the Great Spirit of his Youngest Uncle flowing in his body.


    The Headmaster then said, ¡°Your Youngest Uncle was talented, or a genius as others called. He learned things quickly. He never knew what a Knowlege barrier was, but it was a pity that he had such an odd temper, and there were many things he refused to learn.¡±


    Ning Que then said, ¡°Lotus told me that the Haoran Sword was the one and only method Youngest Uncle knew. And he also told me that through the ¡®one¡¯ the Youngest Uncle learned the way to ¡®all¡¯.¡±


    ¡°No matter what it was, I would say it was quite limited since he finally killed himself.¡±


    The Headmaster then said, ¡°Back to our topic. I was totally impressed by your Youngest Uncle because he was more talented than me. And I hoped he could live up to my dream if I cultivated him with great effort. By that I mean the dream to defeat Haotian.¡±


    ¡°And then?¡±


    ¡°I told you he had such an odd temper.¡±


    ¡°Was it pride?¡±


    ¡°That is odd enough.¡±


    ¡°Well... you¡¯re also pretty proud, teacher.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m always impersonal and objective.¡±


    ¡°I think we¡¯re straying from the topic.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s your fault... well, your Youngest Uncle was a proud one. Actually, he was so proud that he even refused to be a student of mine. So I asked him, ¡®If I am not qualified to be your teacher, then who on earth is?¡¯¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°His answer was ¡®no one¡¯, and that he could teach himself. I was irritated by him at first till I saw myself in him¡ª I used to be the one who was self taught! But still, I wanted to teach him some shortcuts in cultivation. Therefore, I lied to him that ¡®someone¡¯ wanted him to be his student, and when he asked who the ¡®someone¡¯ was, I said it was ¡®no one¡¯. That was when he agreed.¡±


    The Headmaster halted for a second and continued, ¡°I was hoping I could teach him some shortcuts in cultivation but in the end, I found myself erringpletely.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    The Headmaster answered, ¡°He was walking so fast on those shortcuts that he was almost flying in the end.¡±


    The metaphor was a little bitplicated, but Ning Que had the gist of it.


    ¡°He was making progress too fast, and that made me nervous. So I picked up my travels around the world, and during the journey, I met your Eldest Brother in a small town, then Jun Mo afterwards.¡±


    ¡°Your Youngest Uncle left the Academy on the back of a donkey. He traveled to Chang¡¯an, and around the world. He wiped out the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Then he was back in the Academy and continued to make progress at an unbelievably fast speed. It was believed that he was at his peak when wiping out the Devil¡¯s Doctrine with just one sword, but he was even more powerful when he was back in the Academy.¡±


    ¡°He finally experienced the same problem as I did. He questioned the heavens and decided to fight Haotian. I objected to it firmly. I told him there was no way that he could defeat Haotian. Yet he said to me, ¡®Senior Brother, you¡¯ll never know if you can do it till you¡¯ve actually done it. So do it before you draw conclusions.¡¯¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t say a word. In his mind, he was picturing his Second Brother from whom he could see part of the Youngest Uncle. Then he raised up his chin and asked, ¡°And then?¡±


    After a moment of silence, the Headmaster answered, ¡°Then he left for the fight.¡±


    ¡°Then he lost it.¡±


    ¡°Then he died.¡±


    The Headmasterughed out loud after he finished the story, in loneliness and bitterness.


    Ning Que might feel distant from the world in the Headmaster¡¯s story, but he could share the Headmaster¡¯s feelings now.


    Powerful people are lonely. The Drunkard and the Butcher were not of the Headmaster¡¯s kind. It had cost the Headmaster so much to finally find a man who had amon ground with him, but sadly, they were separated before they had the chance to fight side by side.


    The Headmaster finally calmed down, and he said, ¡°I¡¯ve been concentrated on teaching your Eldest Brother and your Second Brother since then. I taught them through my experiences gained from my 1,000-year lifetime. I taught Manman kindness and righteousness and taught Jun Mo propriety. And they¡¯ve lived up to my expectations.¡±


    ¡°It is a pity that they¡¯ve been following my ways too closely, and no matter how well they do, they¡¯ll only be the second and the third ¡®me¡¯ or Ke Haoran. That is not a good sign if they want to defeat Haotian. As for your Third Sister, her cultivation is one of a kind, however; she¡¯s also trapped in the world of Haotian.¡±


    ¡°So I wanted to find other possible ways. I traveled around the world and tried to find talented people in all fields. I brought them back to the Academy, including your Fifth Brother, Song Qian, and Wang Chi. Instead of teaching them how to cultivate, I let them study what they were interested in. We tried to find a way to defeat Haotian by studying mathematics and geometry.¡±


    ¡°I told you that West-Hill¡¯s Haotian Taoism was the starting point, where I began cultivating. So, in the end, I went back to the beginning. Your Twelfth Brother, Chen Pipi, was the most outstanding genius among all in Haotian Taoism. He had the best qualities of Haotian Taoism but was not hindered by backward ideas. That¡¯s why I chose him.¡±


    ¡°But my time was limited. And now I know that there may be a chance that those efforts would also fail. Even if the n was to seed, I would not be alive to see it. It¡¯s lucky that I have you now.¡±


    Ning Que was listening without saying a word until he heard his own name. He looked up in surprise, and asked, ¡°I am not as talented as Chen Pipi. And I could barely win against my Senior Brothers or Sisters in Talisman or in Go games. Why am I the one?¡±


    ¡°Firstly, you are a selfish man.¡±


    ¡°Should I take that as apliment?¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°Thousands of years ago, I taught people kindness, righteousness and propriety so that they could be well-behaved and moral. And I brought themws to maintain social stability. Now the Tang Empire and your two Senior Brothers have all made this a reality. People are living peacefully and quietly, but they¡¯re not aggressive enough. Only the selfish can push society forward.¡±


    Ning Que argued, ¡°I know that love can save the world. I never heard that selfishness could do the same thing.¡±


    The Headmaster then said, ¡°Sometimes a new world has to rise up from the old one¡¯s ashes.¡±


    Ning Que sighed, ¡°That is a lot of pressure on me.¡±


    The Headmasterughed, and then halted. He looked at Ning Que and said, ¡°The most important reason why I chose you as myst student was that I could never get you.¡±


    ¡°On Peach Mountain, Wei Guangming saw a boy in Chang¡¯an born with knowledge. I¡¯ve seen it, too. He thought you were the Son of Yama, but I didn¡¯t agree. I did feel confused and wonder why there would be a man born with knowledge, especially when it was you¡ª a boy who seemed no more than ordinary.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°And my question had its answer recently after I knew that you were not a man of Haotian¡¯s world. You¡¯re from another world. That¡¯s the answer.¡±


    They hadn¡¯t talked about how to defeat Haotian, neither had they discussed the world Ning Que belonged to. The two had already ascertained the two facts without conversing.


    Ning Que was looking down at the footprints the little Vermilion Bird burnt on the floor. After a long silence, he looked up and then at Sangsang. The Headmaster was wise enough to ept his identity as a man from another world, but what about Sangsang?


    What would she think of him?


    There was nothing like terror or resentment in her. She was surprised and looked at Ning Que curiously. When she found Ning Que looking at her, sheughed out loud.


    Ning Que was touched by Sangsang. He didn¡¯t care if Sangsang was the Daughter of Yama or not. All he cared about was Sangsang being herself. And Sangsang didn¡¯t care where Ning Que was from. All she cared about was Ning Que being himself.


    ¡°So far I haven¡¯t found a way to defeat Haotian, neither did your Youngest Uncle. Actually, nobody in this world has seeded, because the world we¡¯re now in is Haotian¡¯s territory.¡±


    The Headmaster smiled at Ning Que and said. ¡°But you¡¯re an outsider of this world. At least your soul and your mind do not belong here. If the world we¡¯re in now is an endless circle of living and death, and you are not of this world, then you will be the person who will break the cycle. This is good.¡±


    That put even more pressure on Ning Que. He looked out of the window. The blue sky and white clouds there suddenly became so heavy. Ning Que felt like his mind and heart were being crushed into pieces by the pressure.


    <i>¡°Am I going against Heaven?¡±</i>


    There had been a well told cliche about how a rookie screamed and vowed to go against Heaven . For thousands of years, the Headmaster had been considering and practicing to break the chain of the world and let folks breathe fresh air. When a man like the Headmaster said ¡°going against Heaven¡±, he literally meant it. It was going to be a really brave and great fight.


    Ning Que used to be a selfish man. His reasons for fighting were quite limited. Now, he knew he was going to fight for the freedom of humankind.


    <i>¡°Why do I have to do that?¡±</i>


    Ning Que felt confused but he was afraid to ask.


    The Headmaster once mentioned that he was not a man of this world. But in this world, he had gone through pain and sorrow,ughter and joy, partings and reunions. How did that happen?


    Everything happens for a reason, and everyone has his reason for living.


    But Ning Que¡¯s reason to live now seemed too burdening.


    He looked up to the Headmaster and for a long time, he said nothing.


    Just as the Headmaster and Sangsang though Ning Que was about to refuse or avoid the burden.


    He asked, ¡°Then how can I be as powerful as you are?¡±

 Chapter 691 - Turning the World Upside Down (II)

    <h4>Chapter 691: Turning the World Upside Down (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    <i>¡°How to beat Haotian and how to be a strong person like you seem irrelevant.¡±</i>


    For Ning Que, only the powerful cultivators like the Headmaster were qualified to go against Haotian and work out the abstruse questions.


    How did the Headmaster cultivate? It was hard to be simply copied, but he could study and consult as his Youngest Uncle did and save himself some twists and turns.


    ¡°Some people cultivate by talking and living. It stinks but it¡¯s real; as long as you can live longer, you can cultivate better. I am average but I am living a long life.


    ¡°How to be strong like me? First, you should learn how topete with time¡ªone of the two powerful rules of Haotian. You should try to stay alive longer. The longer you live, the better you cultivate, and then the longer you can live. It is a cycle.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Teacher, you¡¯re just spouting rubbish.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°But that is what I am doing.¡±


    ¨C Looking at his teacher¡¯s wrinkles, Ning Que said, ¡°Teacher, you are the most powerful man in the world. You can fly to the sky and live forever. Strictly speaking, you are not an ordinary person and you have been beyond all human beings. You can live a happy and peaceful life like Drunkard and Butcher. Why do you have to go against Haotian? For the sake of the world?¡±


    ¡°First of all, we should be clear. If the world is simply repetitive, limited, and boring, the longer you live, the more bored you will be. Only a boundless world can bring infinite joy. I have seen many beautiful views and tasted all the delicious food in the world. I am bored living in Haotian¡¯s world. It is time for me to break the heavens and go out to see other views. I have told you that before.¡±


    He added, ¡°Second, you said I was beyond human beings and should not have the mood to look for a new world for humans, satisfying their curiosities... Many years ago, I have also wondered if I am a human being. In order to confirm it, I did one thing.¡±


    ¡°What?¡± asked Ning Que.


    The Headmaster said, ¡°I ate a piece of human flesh. But I found it tasted bad. More urately, it was disgusting. I kept spitting until my stomach was empty.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Indeed, but how did it solve your problems?¡±


    The Headmaster answered, ¡°The old yellow bull likes eating variable tyfish and it never has beef while the Big ck Horse enjoys mutton and I believe it never wants horseflesh, either. Since the old yellow bull is a bull and the Big ck Horse is a horse, I would like to try all kinds of meat in the world except for the human flesh because I am a human.¡±


    The simple but unreasonable answer was straight and unquestionable.


    The Headmaster said, ¡°Since I am still a person and live in the world, I have to do something for humanity. We are different from the people in the Haotian Taoism, who believe they are the people of Haotian and they will eventually return to the arms of Haotian. Therefore they are doing Heaven¡¯s Way.¡±


    At this time, the ck carriage had arrived at the Academy. The thermostable flowers full bloomed on the green meadow and looked beautiful. The back of the mountain could be faintly seen behind the fog.


    The Headmaster didn¡¯t return to the back of the mountain and the carriage kept moving forward.


    Ning Que took a deep breath and happily smiled.


    Looking at him, the Headmaster said, ¡°Why are you so happy?¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t exin, repeatedly waving his hand.


    He was happy because the Headmaster did not return to the Academy, so he didn¡¯t have to say goodbye to his brothers and sisters, which meant his most worrisome concern would not happen.


    The carriage ran heading to the north.


    The dialogue between them continued.


    ¡°Why can¡¯t you ovee Haotian since you are already strong enough?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve already told you. This world is Haotian¡¯s world and Haotian is its rules. Though the cultivators who can go beyond the Five States can make their own rules, they are still within Haotian¡¯s rules.


    ¡°Every flower, grass, tree, wood, smile, and thought are all in its eyes. Even the Karma can¡¯t get out. Lotus thought he could get out of the Three Realms, but in fact, he was still in them.¡±


    Speaking of this, he looked at Ning Que¡¯s waist and turned to Sangsang. He said, ¡°As for me, I can ignore the rules, being limitless, but I can¡¯t get rid of the so-called Karma that Buddha mentioned. It is the sequence of the things happening and the sequence is the time. Time is everything.¡±


    ¡°In this world, Haotian knows everything and is capable of everything. It can calcte and arrange everything that we can¡¯t predict it in advance and avoid it. This is called the unpredictable fate and the invible fate.


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Since Haotian is omnipotent, why hasn¡¯t it killed you yet.¡±


    ¡°It tried. The thunder, rainstorm, and seaquake. I have seen all kinds of heaven¡¯s anger which are probably more than all the cultivatorsbined.¡±


    He added, ¡°But I ran faster.¡±


    Then he slightly waved his sleeve and the Qi of Heaven and Earth around the carriage was changed.


    Ning Que had sharp sense. After he entered the Knowing Destiny State, he could tell the most subtle changes. At this time, he felt the Qi had been divided into manyyers, between which was an ethereal and smooth space.


    ¡°This world is covered with the Qi of Heaven and Earth and it is divided. Maybe because the world is crooked, there are many crooked passages, through which people can reach a ce thousands of miles away,¡± said the Headmaster.


    ...


    Ning Que said, ¡°Is that the Limitlessness?¡±


    The Headmaster answered, ¡°Yes, it is. If you can enter the Limitless State, it would be harder for Haotian to kill you. The problem is, you are unable to run all the time because you will be dead tired. So you need to find some other ways.¡±


    ¡°I told you that my only advantage was having lived for a long time. Because of this, my state is so high that I can¡¯t find a predecessor to learn from. I have to grope by myself. Fortunately, I did find something to stop it from finding me.¡±


    ¡°I have given up this body and did not to jump out of the Three Realms, staying in the human world. I integrated myself into the world. If Haotian wants to kill me, it has to destroy the whole world. As the rule of the world, if the world is destroyed, Haotian will be devastated as well. Therefore, it has been trying everything to find me, so it can invite me to fight with it in heaven.¡±


    ¡°It is a dangerous way: if it can find a piece of me, it can trace back to me. However, it is the safest way because I am everywhere. If my person doesn¡¯t show up, it will never find me.¡±


    Ning Que thought about it for a long time and said, ¡°I still don¡¯t understand, but it sounds pretty good.¡±


    The ck horse carriage arrived at the Sishui River.


    The willows were green and the houses on the other side looked brand new.


    Ning Que and Sangsang sat beside the Headmaster, looking at the view and taking a rest.


    The story about Haotian and the Headmaster was over, but there was an important role that had never been mentioned.


    Ning Que asked, ¡°What is Yama?¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°There is no Yama.¡±


    Ning Que was stunned. He turned to his teacher and asked, ¡°No Yama?¡±


    The Headmaster answered, ¡°I have been to many ces and seen many sceneries. There is no such a ce called Underworld. If there is no Underworld, there is no Yama.¡±


    Ning Que was confused. He said, ¡°How could that happen? Isn¡¯t the Underworld about to invade the world? Aren¡¯t the Buddha Light Array in the Lanke Temple and the magical weapons that the Buddha left prepared for countering Yama?¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°The Buddha wanted to suppress the one who he considered as Yama. In this sense, his preparations were reasonable, but he never figured out who Yama was.¡±


    Ning Que became more confused. Pointing at Sangsang who was ying with a weaved toy, he asked, ¡°She is Yama¡¯s daughter. If there is no Yama, where did shee from?¡±


    The Headmaster turned around and said with a smile, ¡°Idiot. Is it that you really don¡¯t understand or you just don¡¯t want to believe it?¡±


    His smile was gentle and his eyes were calm. Ning Que¡¯s heart chilled and his eyelids began to tremble. His legs became weak like willow branches and were about to fall.


    Countless sweat drops poured out from every part of his body and drenched his ck robe. The Great Spirit inside him was going to copse because of his mood.


    Ning Que felt so bitter in his mouth that he could not say anything.


    Looking at Sangsang, the Headmaster rubbed her head and said, ¡°Don¡¯t forget, she was the Daughter of Light before she became Yama¡¯s.¡±


    Upon hearing this, Sangsang looked up at him, not knowing what he was talking about.


    ¡°In fact, she has been the Daughter of Light all the time.¡±


    The Headmaster patted him on the shoulder and calmly said, ¡°In other words, she is the Daughter of Haotian. She is the doppelganger of Haotian which means she is Haotian itself.¡±


    Sangsang heard this sentence but she failed to understand it. She was upset and her face turned paler than the cosmetic powder of the Chenjinji Cosmetics Store on her face.


    Ning Que¡¯s face was paler than hers. He said with a hoarse voice, trembling, ¡°But they all said she was Yama¡¯s daughter.¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°I told you many times. There is no Underworld nor Yama. If you have to find a Yama, it should be Haotian. Haotian is Yama.¡±


    Ning Que put his head between his legs and said, ¡°It... makes no sense.¡±


    ¡°This is the most simple fact, even a little kid can understand it. In fact, I should have understood it long before, but the reason is just too simple.¡±


    ¡°Absolute brightness, is equivalent to absolute darkness.¡±


    His eyes rested on the azure sky through the willow branches. He praised, ¡°The great Way makes everything the most simple.¡±

 Chapter 692 - Body in Light, Feet in Darkness

    <h4>Chapter 692: Body in Light, Feet in Darkness</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Absolute brightness was absolute darkness. That was a simple fact many people understood. Prince Long Qing was inspired by this in the Headmaster¡¯s illusion test when hepeted with Ning Que. As the owner of the illusion, how could the Headmaster not understand? Just like he felt: the great Way makes everything the most simple.


    Ning Que had read the ¡°Ming¡± Handscroll and Buddha¡¯s notes. He and Sangsang had been considered as the Son and Daughter of Yama when they were in the Deste Man¡¯s tribe. He had a deep understanding of the rted knowledge of Yama. Hearing his teacher and recalling the books he had read, he worked out the problems that had bothered him for a long time.


    The Deste Man¡¯s tribe called Yama Lord Guang Ming in the ceremony, who was the Lord of Light. There were many records about the Unmovable King also in the notes of the Buddhism Sect and that should be the Invariant Yama.


    ¡°Ming¡± was the Light.


    The Lord of Light was Yama.


    However, he still couldn¡¯t believe it, or he didn¡¯t want to believe it. Looking at the Headmaster and Sangsang, he was in pain and said, ¡°It doesn¡¯t make sense. Why did Haotian do such things? Was it too boring or did it make fun of the world?¡±


    ¡°It never cracks jokes. It did everything for a reason.¡±


    The Headmaster looked at him and said, ¡°Haotian did so many things: it lied to the world and yed a huge trick. Besides the preparation of the Evesting Night, the main target is me.¡±


    ¡°At the moment when we were in the Wilderness, it sessfully made me believe that Sangsang was the Daughter of Yama and allowed me to put human power into her body.¡±


    ¡°I told you the way I fought against Haotian was hiding in the human world which was safe. It is dangerous again.¡±


    ¡°But Haotian didn¡¯t find you anyway.¡±


    ¡°I am the human world and the human power was a part of me. Now, the part of me is inside Sangsang. From that moment, it found me.¡±


    The Headmaster looked at Sangsang and said with a smile, ¡°During these days, it is watching me and I am watching it. That was why I could not taste meat and I have to look for meat all over the world with you.¡±


    Looking at the willow¡¯s shadow in the river, Sangsang became sad like the time when she found the Headmaster was angry in the Wilderness, trembling and confused.


    ¡°Actually, I had realized that my fate was connected with yours for a long time. I am involved in human affairs and unable to see through it all. On the contrary, your Eldest Brother had a stronger perception than me.


    ¡°When he came back from the Wilderness that year, he tried to keep Sangsang away from me. At that time, he considered Sangsang as the Daughter of Yama, but he never expected the truth to be like this.


    ¡°I don¡¯t believe in fate. I even don¡¯t believe my fate will be intertwined with hers. In fact, under the will of Heaven, everything is doomed.¡±


    Looking at Ning Que, he added, ¡°I saw youing out of the woodshed; I saw her birth; I saw the blood in the woodshed and the little darkish baby girl in Mrs. Zeng¡¯s room eighteen years ago. I just didn¡¯t know what those meant to me at that time.¡±


    ¡°Since she became the Daughter of Yama in the Lanke Temple, and you both were hunted by the world, I had many chances to do something, but I didn¡¯t. I believed at that time, I had felt something, so I just wanted to hold off.¡±


    Ning Que sadly said, ¡°Then what changed you?¡±


    The Headmaster bitterly smiled after a while and said, ¡°I don¡¯t know... probably because I was really tired of being alive and eager to see my ending, so I decided to break the barrier in my heart and have a fight against that fellow in heaven.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t rush to criticize me.¡±


    He smiled and said, ¡°You should me your Youngest Uncle. Over thousands of years of cultivation, even if I had calmed down enough, he insisted on fighting against the heavens with a poor sword which pissed me off decades ago. Cutting the peaches in the Peach Mountain could only vent my anger it a little. I will break out after all.¡±


    Ning Que quaveringly said, ¡°Is it inevitable?¡±


    Pointing at Sangsang, the Headmaster said, ¡°As I said earlier, a part of me is in her body. It is watching me and so am I. It knows where I am and so do I. I can¡¯t turn down its invitation anymore. It is imperative.¡±


    Ning Que was thinking, painfully. He tried his best with all his experience to think until he came up with something in his mind. His eyes suddenly brightened and he said, ¡°No... if Yama is Haotian, why does it allow the Evesting Night to fall?¡±


    ¡°I was thinking about this problem these days as well. If this world is and, Haotian is a hard farmer who harvests year after year. After so many years, even the bestnd will need a rest. The Evesting Night should be the time to rest.¡±


    ¡°There is another possibility: as this world develops, human beings constantly multiply; the world is developed; the cultivators, as well as the powerhouses who are beyond the Five States, be more and more. Even if Haotian has enough food, it begins to fear. When we were boiling mutton in the Wilderness, I told you that although a lion is strong enough, when facing enough buffalos it would die in the end.¡±


    ¡°The ants are small, but if plenty of ants can fly into the sky, they will cover the whole sky. Now I remember that when the Buddha said everyone could be Buddha, he was telling the fact.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You are saying Haotian is afraid of human beings thriving, so it drops a catastrophe to destroy the world when it is on the edge?¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°It should be the truth. Of course, this is only a deduction from you and me. As for the truth, it will be known when I face Haotian.¡±


    Ning Que suddenly said, ¡°I understand.¡±


    After a moment of silence, the Headmaster said, ¡°I also understand.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Teacher, you are wrong; Youngest Uncle was wrong; Lotus was right.¡±


    The Headmaster said with a sigh, ¡°Yes, it seems that he was right.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Is it toote?¡±


    ¡°I am on the way and can¡¯t turn around. But this is my story and I will try it in my own way. As for the story in the future, it is your story.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I am worried that I am unable to write this story.¡±


    ¡°There is no Yama, but we can also say that there are many Yamas: Haotian is Yama because it will punish the world with the Evesting Night; I am Yama because I want to overthrow it; She is Yama because she is Haotian; You are Yama because you came from another world where there was extreme cold in most of the world. If I can¡¯t, then you have to do it.¡±


    He looked at him and said, ¡°In fact, from the day you began to cultivate, you had the power to change the world. From now on, it is your turn.¡±


    Ning Que was looking at Sangsang.


    His feeling was veryplicated. No subtle words could describe it: strange, familiar, sad, sorrow, fear, or hesitation.


    He seemed to want to say something but in the end, he didn¡¯t.


    He looked up at the sky above his head, which was divided into many areas by willow branches, and asked, ¡°Teacher, are you confident?¡±


    The Headmaster sighed and said, looking at the sky, ¡°It is the first time for me. How can I be confident?¡±


    For countless years, the Headmaster had been thinking about how to defeat Haotian. He hade up with many methods: he kept avoiding it; he kept thinking on the academic and spiritual levels, but he never practiced them.


    All at once, Sangsang raised her head up to the sky, peacefully.


    Then she looked back at the Headmaster.


    She said, ¡°In fact, I don¡¯t have the confidence to beat you, either.¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s feet left the riverside meadow.


    She drifted over Sishui River. Her short yellow hair suddenly became dark and long in the next moment, covering her shoulder like a waterfall, seemingly like countless rays of light.


    Her ck eye pupils turned fast into white and permeated with the rest of her eyes. Then they became transparent with a faint holy light around her.


    Twopletely different emotions appeared on Sangsang¡¯s face: the human Sangsang was anxious and in pain; the other Sangsang was totally indifferent as the girl once appeared on the carriage when they were in the Wilderness.


    Absolute indifference: divine indifference which repelled lives and joy.


    Looking at her, Ning Que felt that his heart was torn into pieces like willow branches, painfully and bleeding from his mouth. He reached out to grab her feet.


    The Headmaster sighed and slightly waved his sleeve, freezing him on the riverside.


    Sangsang¡¯s body kept changing over the river: her thin body gradually became fit, breaking open her ck clothes and turning into countless threads, revealing the naked skin.


    Her expression became more and more pained as her ck long hair fluttered with the wind, twisting and struggling as if she was trapped in a. Then she gradually calmed, leaving only indifference.


    The fragmented clothes slipped off smoothly like water and her bright skin showed up.


    The thin, ordinary and sick Sangsang was gone and a beautiful and naked Sangsang showed up in the world, who was perfect in both body and face.


    The perfect body and appearance matched with the holy and indifferent divinity look, just as the Goddess¡¯ Statue of Haotian enshrined in many temples of Haotian Taoism. The only difference between Sangsang and the Goddess was her skin color which was still as dark as usual.


    Both Sangsang of the City of Wei and the one of Old Brush Pen Shop had a dark body.


    However, her feet were magically white as jade, like two snow lotuses.


    Looking at her, the Headmaster sighed and said, ¡°Her body is in the darkness while her feet are stepping the light. I see now.¡±

 Chapter 693 - Ascension (Part 1)

    <h4>Chapter 693: Ascension (Part 1)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Sangsang¡¯s body was as ck as coal.


    But her feet were as white as jade.


    Ning Que had taken a bath for her and he liked to sleep with her feet in his arms. He was familiar with her body, her feet, and everything about her. However, he felt so strange now when he looked at her perfect ck and white body.


    When he found the baby girl in his childhood among the corpses in Hebei Province, he also felt it strange like others in the Official of Counsel¡¯s mansion. After that, however, he got used to it after living with her for years. But it was not until now that he understood the truth when he saw the scene and heard the Headmaster¡¯s words.


    Sangsang was ck as well as white. She was just like the ck chess piece she had held in thest game of chess at the Lanke Temple. As time went by, it had be white in the carriage on the Wilderness.


    So far, there was no hope of any luck for Ning Que.


    There was no Yama in this world. Haotian was Yama.


    There was no Underworld in this world. The world bes the Underworld when Haotian brings the doomsday.


    Countless lights gushed out from Sangsang¡¯s body. The water of the Sishui River was as calm as a mirror, condensing those lights into a light beam and then reflecting them onto the high blue sky.


    The riverside also began to shine brightly. Countless rays of light emerged from the Headmaster¡¯s body and were tied to those from Sangsang¡¯s body. He could not leave for part of him was in Sangsang body.


    The Headmaster looked at the beams emerged from himself and found them very interesting. He even reached out his hand to touch them like ying a Qin. Then he asked, ¡°Is it time now?¡±


    There was no emotion on Sangsang¡¯s face, nor in her voice. You could not tell whether the voice came from a man or a woman. It contained no mood and was transparent and empty, but not mechanical. Moreover, the voice which rang from her body had countless sybles, which were tooplicated to understand at all. It was more like the voice of nature.


    However, the Headmaster understood it. So he smiled.


    Though Ning Que did not understand it, he knew that it was time to leave.


    One was his most beloved teacher, the other was a woman with whom he had shared his life. There was no doubt that this was the most painful decision point one could imagine. Fortunately or unfortunately, he could not be able to make a choice now, or perhaps he did not need to make a choice.


    Ning Que could not move; he could only sit on the meadow by the Sishui River. As he was watching those two people who were linked together by countless rays of light, his sight toward Sangsang became increasingly calm and indifferent.


    Nobody could understand what Haotian said. It resounded through the world like the whistling wind or thunder.


    Therefore, the world knew what had happened by the Sishui River.


    Thus the whole world began to reverberate with a sentence.


    ¡°We respectfully celebrate the Headmaster¡¯s ascension!¡±


    At the top of the Peach Mountain of the West-Hill Divine Kingdom, a dark crowd knelt on the stone ground outside the solemn Divine Hall. The overbearing priests in red and deacons of the Divine Hall touched the ground with their foreheads, like the most devout believers.


    The Hierarch Lord of the West-Hill Divine Pce also kelt behind the gauze curtain in the depths of the white Divine Hall. Outside the curtain knelt the Great Divine Priest of Revtion and the Great Divine Priest of Judgment.


    ¡°We respectfully celebrate the Headmaster¡¯s ascension!¡±


    Deep in the Western Wilderness, on the top of the giant peak in the center of the sinkhole, the Chief Preaching Monk of the Xuankong Temple prayed respectfully with hands folded, without holding his monk¡¯s staff.


    Endless chanting and the same sentence reverberated through countless yellow temples partly hidden and partly visible in the mist among the peaks. People were waiting for the Headmaster¡¯s ascension.


    ¡°We respectfully celebrate the Headmaster¡¯s ascension!¡±


    This sentence was repeated again and again by countless respected bigwigs from Taoist temples, Buddhist temples and pces, who were kneeling on the ground respectfully.


    ...


    ...


    Somewhere in the far South Sea.


    The Taoist in indigo looked toward thend silently, with an extremely serious expression.


    He did not say that sentence because he was nervous.


    He saw a big curtain falling slowly.


    He had waited for too long for this moment and could not be at ease until thest minute.


    There were many people who did not look forward to the Headmaster¡¯s ascension.


    The ordinay poeple did not know what had happened, let alone the knowledge about how the thing happening by the Sishui River would influnce their lives.


    As usual, they bought vegetables, cooked, drank, chattered, yed cards, stole incense, fought, and farmed.


    ¡°I¡¯m a little tired and annoyed after being in charge of human affairs for too many years. So I don¡¯t want to continue. Look, in fact, people in the world don¡¯t want me to take care of them.¡±


    The Headmaster said to Ning Que as he drove away a ray of light floating before his eyes.


    Ning Que could not move but watch and cry, so he bursted out crying, his face covered with tears. Then he began tough, inexplicably and neurotically.


    The Headmaster was puzzled and asked, ¡°When we were on the Wilderness, Haotianughed and cried for he was happy to find me. What¡¯s wrong with you now?¡±


    Ning Que suddenly realized that his hands could move. ¡°I hate it.¡± he said.


    ¡°You hate what? Your wife?¡± The Headmasterughed.


    Ning Que looked at him and said, ¡°I hate you being irresponsible.¡±


    The Headmaster was startled and asked, ¡°How?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°If you ascend to Heaven in this way, what would Tang Empire do? What would the Academy do?¡±


    The Headmaster said, ¡°Even I am not interested in such trifle matters, let alone Haotian.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Even if Haotian were not interested in it, how could we deal with Haotian Taoism?¡±


    ¡°If you cannot even deal with an enemy in the world, how could you fight Haotian?¡±


    The Headmaster said smilingly, ¡°What¡¯s more, I¡¯m not necessarily going to lose.¡±


    The smile gradually disappeared from the Headmaster¡¯s face. He looked at Sangsang glowing above the Sishui River and suddenly said, ¡°I knew it was you in the carriage when we were in the Wilderness. I found you when you found me. Have you ever thought what I was doing over these days?¡±


    Sangsang kept a poker face, as if she did not hear the question. Rays of light became increasingly dense that they were gradually forming a stream.


    ¡°I brought you the best roastmb leg in the world, the most exquisite eighteen dishes in the Kingdom of Song, and the most delicious instant-boiled mutton on the grasnds. I also took you to eat variable tyfish and drink oyster soup. I took you to see the Snow-capped Peak and boated on the sea. I also agreed on your marriage with Ning Que.¡±


    ¡°I took you to eat all kinds of fine food and to see all the good sceneries in the world. I let you enjoy the greatest happiness as a human being. I even helped you experience a deeper feeling.¡±


    The Headmaster looked at Sangsang and said, ¡°Human beings are nobodies in your eyes. But now you are married with a nobody and feel his happiness. Have you ever thought of staying in this world since you have fully enjoyed the happiness of this world? You spared no effort to find me over these years and desired to invite me to fight in Heaven. However, have you ever thought that I really wanted to invite you to visit me in this world?¡±


    In the infinite light, Sangsang, who was with an ice-like expression, could be faintly seen slightly frowning with her finely arched eyebrows. It seemed that the Headmaster¡¯s words did pose some kind of threat to her.


    The Headmaster smiled lightly.


    However, the frown disappeared in a moment and her eyebrows became t as a mirror. The light from her grew stronger, which was entwined with the Headmaster, reflected in the calm water of the Sishui River, and then became a light beam casting into the sky by the refraction.


    A light door gradually appeared at the ce where the light beam ended in the sky.


    The door was opening and the bright Heaven was faintly visible behind the door.


    ¡°The moon in your dream... should be the one in the ¡®Ming¡¯ handscroll from the Tomes of the Arcane. It¡¯s really beautiful.¡±


    The Headmaster turned to look at Ning Que and said. Then he lifted Ning Que from the meadow and threw him to the north with a wave of his arm.


    The Headmaster flew up and left the Sishui River for the light door in the sky.


    He had returned to some ces before the sentence ¡°We respectfully celebrate the Headmaster¡¯s ascension¡± resounded throughout the world.


    He went back to the State of Lu and fell silent in a hilly region.


    He returned to Tang and walked a few steps in the pce.


    Then he went back to the Academy in the south of Chang¡¯an.


    The meadow was green, the flowers in bloom, and the trees lush. It was extremely beautiful before the Academy.


    He walked along the stone path to the Academy with hands sped behind back. Students in the foreyard he met along the way did not know him, but still bowed to show their etiquette. This was because the Academy asked all students to respect the elderly.


    The Headmaster was satisfied.


    The Headmaster went into a room in the front courtyard and chatted with Huang He for a while. Then he questioned the female professor about how she could get married in the future when she wore the blue cloth gown for such a long time.


    Then he left the front yard, walked through the alley and across the wend, passed by the old library and took a look at the Sword Forest in the distance.


    Yu Lian, as usual, was writing regr script in small characters by the window of the old library.


    Suddenly, a drop of ink fell from the tip of the writing brush, thus staining the golden flower paper.


    She rested the brush on the ink-b gently after a short silence and then knelt before the window.


    The Headmaster walked into the Academy mountain¡¯s back.


    Mu You was embroidering in theke pavilion when she saw the Headmaster in pleased surprise. ¡°You are finally back,¡± she said, ¡°did you bring Sangsang back with you? The food these days has been awful.¡±


    Beigong Weiyang came out of the jungle with a flute in hand. Heined, ¡°You haven¡¯t listened to my music for six years. How could you be partial as a teacher?¡±


    The waterwheel by the stream was still running. The ngs of forging iron came continuously from the cksmith¡¯s room. It could asionally be heard from the jungle at the back of the mountain that one could not retract a false move in a chess game. A wild flower was cut and sent to a mouth to chew it. The little white wolf suffered from the peck of the big white goose. It ran away with its tail between its legs to look for Tang Xiaotang.


    Eldest Brother and Second Brother went out of their small yards and followed the Headmaster in silence to the back of the mountain. They walked to the steep stone path and came to the precipice.


    The Headmaster stood by the cliff.


    Eldest Brother and Second Brother knelt behind him.


    He looked at Chang¡¯an in the distance and smiled.


    By the Sishui River.


    The Headmaster took to the skies as his ck garments danced in the air.


    Sangsang followed him to leave as countless bright golden flowers emerged from her body and fell to the world.


    The clouds in the sky were radiant with extraordinary splendour.


    We respectfully celebrate the Headmaster¡¯s ascension.


    This voice was reverberated throught the world.


    The Headmaster¡¯s tall figure gradually disappeared in the light.

 Chapter 694 - Ascension to Heaven (II)

    <h4>Chapter 694: Ascension to Heaven (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    A bazaar in some small town of the world was bustling and noisy. The air was filled with the smell of rotten vegetables and chicken droppings. A man walked into the Butcher¡¯s shop with a pot of wine. The Butcher closed the door and took the man to the roof on the second floor. They sat down at a table and began to eat and drink.


    The Drunkard looked up somewhere in the sky and sneered, ¡°He always questioned about what was so good for Haotian to fly that high. Then what good was being that strong for him? He will leave the world and fly to the sky in the end.¡±


    The Butcher said, ¡°Just for the sake of some strange ideas, he decided to give up immortality and fought with the invincible god. It may be a great thing for some people but is in fact in stupid.¡±


    In the deep mountain forests of the West-Hill Divine Kingdom.


    Chen Pipi knelt at thekeside of the Zhishou Abbey, with his body trembling and tears running down continuously. His shoulders were both shrunken. His eyes were red and swollen that made him look like a rabbit lost in the snow.


    The middle-aged Taoist stood behind him, sighing andforting, ¡°Since the Headmaster has already ascended to heaven, your father wille back. At least, this is a good thing.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Chen Pipi¡¯s father was the Abbey Dean of Zhishou Abbey.


    He was Chen Mou, and he was also called the Taoist in indigo for he always wore ck Taoist robe over countless years.


    Many years ago, when Ke Haoran from the Academy was felled by divine punishment, the Headmaster went to the West-Hill Divine Pce in Peach Mountain and forced the Abby Dean to fight with all his might. Numerous powerhouses in the Haotian Taoism died or were badly injured in this fight. Even though the Taoist in indigo persuaded the Chief Preaching Monk of the Xuankong Temple into joining him, he was unable to bear the Headmaster¡¯s stave even for a short moment.


    After that, he had to drift in the South Sea and dared not to set foot onnd for the rest of his life.


    The Taoist in indigo wandered about numerous inds in the South Sea. He kept cultivating when he lived in the fishing boat. He also gave birth to a child with a fishery woman in the South Sea and sent the child to be a disciple of the Headmaster.


    Nevertheless, he still could not set foot onnd.


    Because the Headmaster did not allow him toe ashore.


    When the Headmaster ascended to heaven today, he was, in principle, finally allowed to return.


    However, numerous inds in the South Sea still saw the ck clothes go back and forth.


    His figure suddenly appeared on a lush ind.


    The next moment, he disappeared.


    Thousands of miles away, hended on the beach of another ind.


    Then he disappeared again.


    On every ind, he could only stay for a minute or could not even stop before he ran away again.


    The ck Taoist robe was stained with blood and the bun was already messy. He was in a difficult position.


    Because there was a short wooden rod chasing him all the time.


    Whenever he teleported to an ind, the stick would soon appear.


    He had been hit once on his right shoulder.


    If he were not familiar with those inds in the South Sea, he would not have avoided the stick.


    He was the most powerful man in the Haotian Taoism who was at the legendary Limitless State.


    But the Headmaster¡¯s wooden rod was at the same level.


    He could do nothing but escape until the Headmaster truly left the world.


    Until then, the wooden rod would not fall into the sea.


    There was a mountain behind the Zhishou Abbey.


    The rocks and mud were red like old blood, yet the lush vines covering the cliff made it a green mountain.


    The dense vines covered the sky and also ant nest-like caves in the mountain. Most importantly, they covered the aura of those powerhouses in the caves.


    Raucous bouts of shrillughter counting in the dozens wereing from the caves, prating through the vines and dispersing into the world.


    Theughter was filled with sadness and anger; seeming so vicious and violent at the same time.


    In the green mountain caves lived many Taoist powerhouses, most of which were already at the supreme level of Knowing Destiny State. A few of them even surpassed the Five States and became legendary beings.


    They were all seriously injured or disabled, partly due to Ke Haoran¡¯ sword in the Academy and partly due to the Headmaster when he went to fight in the Peach Mountain.


    The two words, ¡°the Academy¡±, were the nightmare of Taoist powerhouses.


    Ke Haoran was struck down by divine punishment years ago. Today the Headmaster finally ascended to heaven.


    There was no other power in the world that could frighten them.


    Now the moment of being delivered from oppression finally ushered in.


    So they wailed andughed. They danced with joy, although most of them werecking a hand or a foot. They were free to release their auras and dere their strengths to the world.


    They were much too presumptuous.


    Their strong auras were not only spread to the world, but also sent upwards, almost reaching the sky.


    They were not worried about being punished by Haotian for they were its most devout believers and the most loyal subordinates. Haotian would not let them return now.


    But they forgot that someone was still in the sky.


    The tall figure gradually disappeared into the infinite light, but it did not leave the world.


    ¡°I did not want to be in charge of human affairs. But since you are willing to show up, now die a good death.¡±


    The Headmaster¡¯s voice sounded.


    A foot fell from the sky and stepped on the green mountain.


    Theughter in the mountain suddenly turned into screams of horror and fearful cries.


    Dozens of streaks, radiating extremely strong auras spewed out to flee the mountain.


    However, it was toote.


    The foot had already fallen on the green mountain.


    The mountain thus became t.


    All the hidden Taoist powerhouses died.


    High above the sky and in the light.


    The Headmaster shook the dust and debris off his sole.


    He took a look at the world and then asked Sangsang. ¡°You want to go back? Now you can¡¯t.¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s perfect face was initially devoid of expression and then it suddenly showed great fear.


    The light was zing and then dispersed.


    The door of Haotian thus copsed.


    The sky began to shake. Some fine cracks even appeared in some ces.


    The extremely narrow cracks in the sky were actually quite wide to the world.


    Countless white stones, neither gold nor jade, fell from the sky. Due to the friction with the air, they became thousands of ming meteorites, falling into the vast ocean.


    Countlessrge waves rose from the sea.


    They gave birth to a scorching mist.


    In the mist were numerous dead fish and birds.


    But the world was still safe.


    Among tens of thousands of meteorites, there was a stone that was as transparent as a crystal.


    When the mes sank into the sea, the crystal-like stone, reflected with the light of sky, drew a bright arc in the air toward the northern part of the world; no one knew where it fell.


    At the back of the mountain of the Academy.


    The old yellow bully listlessly on the meadow.


    The Eldest Brother put a basket of the freshest grass in front of it.


    Second Brother put a te of delicious fish in front of it.


    The old yellow bull ate no grass, nor fish. It looked lonely and tired.


    It slowly closed its eyes; a drop of water trickled down from the corner of its eye.


    Another drop of water fell on its cheek.


    Then there were more and more water drops.


    Eldest Brother and Second Brother looked up at the sky and found that it was raining.


    The world began to rain after the Headmaster ascended to heaven.


    It was a heavy rain thatsted for a very long time. It was pouring down for hours; heavily for the most part, then turning into a drizzle at times, but never stopping.


    It was a rain that was bound to go down in history.


    It was doomed to change many things in the world.


    The Headmaster once said that the destination would always be a Snow-capped Peak if one kept going northward no matter where you started. The Peak was the coldest and northernmost ce in the world.


    It only snowed but never rained in the Cold Region of Far North. When the night was prolonged, the Deste Man¡¯s tribe moved southward. After that, the snow seldom fell in this deserted ce.


    But even in this ce, it began to rain.


    The snow cover on the surface of the Hot Sea was riddled with holes due to the hit of the rainstorm.


    The Snow-capped Peak, the highest peak in the world, had seen severalndslides and avnches because of the heavy rain.


    The biggest breach looked as if it had been hit by a rock from outer space.


    Ning Que woke up.


    He found himself in the Wilderness. The rain had stopped. However, judging by the dew on the grass and the muddynd, he could tell there had been a heavy rain.


    He did not know how many days had passed, but thought that it must have been a long time.


    Without having anything to drink or eat for many days, he was weak although his body had always been strong. His stomach, which had been fed to the fullest by the Headmaster, became empty for a long time. But he did not want to eat anything.


    He held his legs, sitting on the wet meadow in the muddy wilderness, shivering all over. He looked at the sky after the rain, his thin cheeks looking pale under the daylight.


    The sky was still the same.


    There was no difference.


    His teacher might lose the fight against Haotian.


    Teacher was dead.


    Sangsang was Haotian, so she went back, which meant that she died.


    He was in pain.


    What made him feel most pained were other things.


    It was not until then that he came to understand what the teacher had said to him before the ascension.


    He could have changed everything.


    But for many reasons, he did not think of any methods, or he didn¡¯t want to think of any. So he did nothing.


    He helplessly watched Haotian finding the Headmaster.


    He watched his teacher ascend to heaven to fight and lose.


    Ning Que held his legs and looked at the sky.


    He just sat there.


    He did not want to say, do, or to think about anything.


    He did not know what he should do.


    He just sat there in this way, from daytime to the sunset, until the night fell.


    Looking at the sky getting darker and darker, Ning Que suddenly froze.


    He got up and tottered.


    He burst outughing and theughter became increasingly louder. It sounded like crying for his voice was hoarse.


    Hey on the wet grass,ughing and crying to his heart¡¯s content, and rolled about like a child.


    A moon appeared in the night sky.


    It was of course not the real Moon, or not the Moon Ning Que was familiar with.


    With a good sight, he saw no craters but only warm light.


    Several wolf howls came from the depths of the Wilderness. They had never seen Moon before so they did not know what it was.


    Ning Que knew what the Moon was.


    The Headmaster was still alive. He kept fighting in the sky, but in another way.


    The Headmaster once said that it must be very beautiful.


    The scene was really beautiful.


    He shouted at the bright moon in the night sky, ¡°You must win!¡±


    The ¡°Ming¡± Handscroll states that ¡°the cycle of the Sun and Moon, the light and the darkness, is an endless natural process. Natural process is Taoism, which develops rules. At the end, the night falls and the moon appears.¡±


    The Buddha wrote in his notes after reading the ¡°Ming¡± Handscroll, ¡°The cycle of the sun and moon, the light and the darkness. The moon should appear at night. However, after numerous eons, all those long nights through the ages saw no moon.¡±


    The Headmaster was the moon.


    The Headmaster was not from the sky, and all ages were just like a long night.

 Chapter 695 - No Regrets Though We Part Without a Fight

    <h4>Chapter 695: No Regrets Though We Part Without a Fight</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    This was the longest and most extensive rain recorded in the history of mankind. Itsted from midsummer all the way untilte autumn and was beyond everyone¡¯s imagination. Rain fell from above incessantly, falling on the mountains, rivers andkes. After being washed and soaked by rain, cliffs began to copse, state highways were destroyed, riverbanks copsed and floods became rampant.


    Such a serious natural disaster was enough to make the whole world feel despondent. Fortunately, the West-Hill Divine Pce and the royal families of various countries quicklyunched disaster relief measures. Mankind once again showed off their vitality and endurance in the face of a serious natural disaster. Instead of being defeated, they showed calm eptance and fought hard.


    Heavy rain also fell on the Wilderness. Thends were muddy and soft, so much that it was extremely difficult to walk. Herdsmen were unable to let their herd graze and could only hide in their tents. Even the Horse Gang had all retreated into the forests by the Shubi Lake, sighing at the incessant rain.


    After the end of the war on the Wilderness, the Tang Army withdrew in two groups. The Northeast Border Military reached Tuyang City in the south before the rain started. The Northern Military Camp cavalry following the imperial procession stopped in Hn City for a period of time, and then, was forced to stay due to the heavy rain that would not end.


    Although the empire did not hesitate to invest in human and material resources for centuries, Hn city was still far away and deep in the Wilderness. As such, construction was limited. Tens of thousands soldiers of the Northern Military Camp cavalry filled their camps and residences in the cities, and still, arge portion of them was forced to stay in the city tower.


    The tower rose high into the cliff wall, and when night fell, the cold wind would pass through it. The temperature during the transition from summer to autumn should have been well-suited for camping, but the long rain caused autumn to arrive early in the Wilderness. The temperatures fell suddenly, and Hn¡¯s general, Han Qing, worried as he tried to keep the Northern Military Camp cavalry warm.


    What was most worrying, continued to be their food supply.


    Hn city had plenty of grain in its reserves, but there were tens of thousands from the Tang Army and countless war horses. The sudden increase in pressure could have been borne over a short period of time. But if the rain continued and grains could not be transported from the south, and they could not leave, then Hn City would face the danger of a food shortage.


    The various problems and troubles came together to form various dangers. However, themander of the Northern Military Camp cavalry and General Han Qing did not dare to consult the Emperor, as they should, and did not dare to alert the Empress nor Master Huang Yang.


    Because the Emperor was ill. He was gravely ill.


    The Tang Emperor, Li Zhongyi, was a man who valued loyalty and rtionships. However, this did not mean that he was corrupt. He was the most powerful general in the world when he was the prince of Tang. Though he had kept a low profile in the twenty years after ascending the dragon throne, there was no one who would dare to underestimate him.


    To the Emperors and leaders of the South Jin Kingdom, the Yuelun Kingdom, the Kingdoms of Yan, Qi, Song and Chen, the Tang Emperor was definitely the one they hoped would die the most. There were many who secretly prayed for an incurable disease to befall him or spouted hopes that he would die of a serious illness.


    In fact, not many people knew that Li Zhongyi had contracted an illness many years ago. The illness was serious and had hounded him, prating his organs and bones and could not be cured.


    The Headmaster had treated the Emperor. Perhaps the illness was too troublesome, or perhaps the Headmaster had seen the fate that awaited the Emperor past the illness; he had only written a prescription and did not make use of his powers to treat him.


    The illness dragged on until the 18th autumn of the Tianqi era. With the arrival of the Giant Golden Dragon in the human realm, the incessant rain, and a flying arrow, the illness red.


    The Emperor leaned against the couch, his face deathly pale. He held a handkerchief spotted with blood in his hands.


    The Queen¡¯s head was hung low and she did not speak. She rubbed his chest gently, trying to make him morefortable.


    ¡°Many have died in Chang¡¯an these years and many who had apanied my father, or even my grandfather, have left before me. Even the abbey dean has left us.¡±


    ¡°And now, I can¡¯t hold on anymore.¡±


    The Emperor held her hand and said, ¡°The Heavens want to end the Tang Empire. We have sinned by not fighting... Even so, I do not fear because I firmly believe that the Tang Empire will have thest victory.¡±


    Hot tears streamed from the Empress¡¯s eyes. The Emperor was holding her hands tightly, so her tears sshed onto the two hands that held on tightly.


    ¡°I am the most powerful man on earth, and I married the woman I love most. In the end, I will die on this journey where war is waged against the countries around us. I truly have no regrets in my life, so don¡¯t be sad,¡±


    Said the Emperor.


    The Empress looked up and said with a tear-stained face, ¡°But I have many regrets. I have not yet seen how you¡¯d look like in your old age. You have not seen little Six grow up. I regret listening to the sect orders toe to Chang¡¯an and seduce, lie, and hurt you so that you¡¯d end up in this situation.¡±


    The Emperor smiled wanly, ¡°You seduced me, lied to me, and hurt me, but you still fell in love with me.¡±


    The Empress finally smiled through her tears when she heard that. She asked, ¡°Have you ever med me?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d be lying if I said that I have never med you. After all, who wouldn¡¯t want to live longer?¡±


    The Emperor reached out to wipe the tears from her cheeks. He said, ¡°But when I think about it, the war between us ended with my victory. These injuries are a testament to my glory.¡±


    The Empress hugged him softly and muttered, ¡°I had lost from the moment I saw you.¡±


    The Emperorughed in satisfaction. He had fought many battles,rge and small, but this was the only one he remembered best and its ending the one he deemed most important.


    ¡°If I were not the Emperor, I would have been a student of the Academy. Now that I think of it, that life would have been more interesting. But I¡¯ll still treat the Headmaster as my teacher.¡±


    The Emperor smiled tiredly and looked at her. He said, ¡°Now that teacher is working in the Heavens, we still have work to do in the mortal realm. Do you know what to do after I leave?¡±


    The Empress said, ¡°Rest assured, Your Majesty. I know what to do.¡±


    The Emperor replied, ¡°I had little Six study under Mr. First so that he¡¯d learnpassion and love. If those two don¡¯t mess things up, then... let them live.¡±


    The Empress no longer shed tears and said calmly, ¡°I will do this well.¡±


    ¡°Then I can rest assured.¡±


    The Emperor said before slowly closing his eyes.


    Master Huang Yang entered the room.


    The Empress looked at the Emperor who looked as if he were sleeping soundly. After a long time, she took the prayer beads on her wrists off and wrapped them around his wrist, then ced a light kiss on his forehead.


    Master Huang Yang ced his hands together.


    Momentster, a chant started in the room.


    It was from the Reincarnation Scriptures.


    It was also raining in Chang¡¯an.


    The rain was heavy and interspersed with ps of thunder. Lightning struck, lighting up the quiet, empty pce pure white. mes fluttered, even though they were covered.


    If there were no covers, perhaps those candle lights might have already been extinguished.


    Li Yu sat behind a desk, looking at the beautiful candlestand that was like a coral beside the pir. She seemed distracted.


    Her ck hair was damp, as was her pce skirt. She must have gone out in the rain earlier.


    Her face was slightly pale, but it wasn¡¯t because she was afraid of the lightning and thunderstorm. She did not fear because she felt that what she had done was right, and even in the dark room in the pce, she did not feel guilty.


    Watching the rain outside the pce, two tracks of tears fell from the corners of her eyes, sliding along her pale face andnding on the memorial to the throne which was on the desk, wetting a line of words on the memorial.


    Li Yu came back to her senses and ordered a eunuch to bring rough paper to clean the traces of water from the memorial to the throne. Then, she wiped the tears off her face and focused intently on the memorial.


    The memorial to the throne was very important. It detailed the flood situation in various counties.


    She took up a brush and began to read the memorial to the throne.


    Guarding the embankments, storing water, disaster relief, epidemic prevention, mobilizing military forces, and keeping an eye on those riders from the Eastern Wilderness.


    The Tang Empire was veryrge and there were many things to do. She was long used to it and handled them in good order. As she continued to examine the memorials and approved them, her expression grew calmer and calmer and seemed extremely determined.


    Late at night, after a busy day of dealing with government affairs, Li Yu put on arge coat and left without bringing any eunuchs or pce maids with her. She left the pce under the heavy protection of the Yulin Royal Guards and her bodyguards.


    She was not headed somewhere far, but just to the Southern Gate Temple across the pce square.


    The Southern Gate Temple was enveloped in rain and seemed especially quiet.


    Li Yu entered the Taoist temple. Deep inside the temple, on the dark wooden floors was a mattress. On the mattress, was a lightedmp that illuminated the gaunt haggard face of the Tang Nation Master, Li Qingshan.


    She walked up to Li Qingshan and slowly knelt. She said with a slightly trembling voice, ¡°My father, has departed.¡±


    Li Qingshan slowly closed his eyes and then opened them again. There was no shock in his eyes, but only sorrow.


    In the past century and for the second time in months, Hn City used up two talisman arrays consecutively to send messages over thousands of miles.


    The first time was because of the ck horse carriage.


    The second time was to send news of the Emperor¡¯s passing back to Chang¡¯an.


    Only a few people in Chang¡¯an knew of this news. Li Yu, with the help of the Southern Gate Temple, had managed to keep this a secret. When she saw Li Qingshan, the Nation Master¡¯s expression, she knew that he had already found out. Since she had only managed to keep this a secret with the help of the temple, she could not hide it from the temple¡¯s abbey dean.


    Li Qingshan looked at the kneeling princess and asked weakly, ¡°What are you going to do?¡±


    Li Yu said, ¡°I want to look at the edict.¡±


    The edict that announced the session of the Tang royal throne was not in the pce, but in the Southern Gate Temple!


    Li Qingshan said, ¡°ording to thews of the Tang Empire, the edict should be announced before all officials.¡±


    Li Yu lowered her head and looked at her soaked skirts. She said, ¡°The officials still do not know.¡±


    Li Qingshan said, ¡°They¡¯ll eventually find out.¡±


    Li Yu said, ¡°I do not intend to hide the fact of my father¡¯s passing for a long time. I will inform the various sectorster.¡±


    Li Qingshan asked, ¡°Then why did Your Highnesse here earlier than expected?¡±


    After a long silence, Li Yu said, ¡°Because... I¡¯m worried.¡±


    Li Qingshan fell into a long silence.


    Li Yu¡¯s head hung even lower. Drops of water dripped from her ck hair.


    Her figure fell along with the droplet, and her forehead met the dark ck floors.

 Chapter 696 - A New Story (Part 1)

    <h4>Chapter 696: A New Story (Part 1)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    ¡°Please help me.¡±


    ¡°Why should I help Your Highness?¡±


    ¡°Because I¡¯m one of the Tangs.¡±


    ¡°The Sixth Prince is also a citizen of Tang.¡±


    ¡°But his mother isn¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°The Tang Empire is always open and inclusive. It never cared about things like this.¡±


    ¡°Please trust me.¡±


    ¡°Why should I trust Your Highness?¡±


    ¡°Because you don¡¯t trust the Empress.¡±


    Li Yu looked at the familiar handwriting on the edict and felt sad all of a sudden.


    It was her father¡¯s handwriting. Just like how the rumors went, no matter how enamored he was with calligraphy and no matter how hard he practiced, he could not improve his handwriting.


    However, in the meticulous handwriting, one could see that her father was very calm andposed when writing it. There was no hesitation nor struggle.


    Li Yu held the edict with trembling hands. Her fingers pressed down, looking as if they were about to sink into the yellow cloth. The tremor passed from her arm to her shoulders, and she trembled all over.


    She felt extremely disappointed and sad, and then, she grew angry. It was not just because of the contents in the edict, but more so because of theposure in her father¡¯s handwriting.


    ¡°How could this be?¡±


    She said softly.


    Then, she repeated the question, her voice filled with frustration and discontent.


    ¡°How could this be?!¡±


    Her voice was louder than before, but it did not ring outside the Taoist temple or through the rainy night outside. No one else heard it, and it was no louder than the sound of her teeth cking.


    Li Qingshan said, ¡°This was written right before His Majesty passed. Since he left an edict, it proves that he had felt the will of Heaven. But you should be able to see that he had decided on this since a long time ago.¡±


    Li Yu was silent for a long time. Then, she suddenly lifted her head and wiped away the tears on her face with her sleeve. She looked at Li Qingshan, whoid on the couch and asked in a trembling voice, ¡°Can the edict be edited?¡±


    Li Qingshan massaged his eyelids and said, ¡°Not usually.¡±


    A glimmer of light appeared in Li Yu¡¯s eyes and she asked, ¡°Why not usually?¡±


    Li Qingshan nced at her and said, ¡°It can be edited when the country is in turmoil.¡±


    Li Yu asked, ¡°Who can edit it?¡±


    Li Qingshan answered, ¡°I can.¡±


    Naturally, the Tang Emperor¡¯s edict could not be easily forged. There were the imperial seal andplicated emblems on it. The crux of the matter was that the edict bore a unique stamp that was the aura of Heaven and Earth.


    Part of that stamp came from the royal blood and part from the witnesses of the edict.


    Before His Majesty had left Chang¡¯an, he had written the edict in the Southern Gate Temple in the presence of his most trusted Nation Master Li Qingshan and his younger brother, Master Huang Yang.


    The imperial seal was in the imperial pce, on the couch of Li Yu, who helmed the country ording to orders given to her.


    Li Yu looked at Li Qingshan¡¯s old and haggard face and asked with a trembling voice, ¡°What do you want?¡±


    Li Qingshan looked at the beautiful woman in front of him who was wearing a damp dress. She looked like the little girl who fussed beside her mother many years ago. A nostalgic smile appeared on his face.


    Then he said calmly, ¡°I want the Tang Empire to continue for many more generations. I want the South School of Haotian Taoism to flourish. I want the Tangs to live a carefree life. Your Highness, can you promise me this?¡±


    Li Yu left the Southern Gate Temple.


    Before long, the shocking news would spread through the torrential rain and enter the mansions of officials in Chang¡¯an. A grand assembly was not supposed to be held tomorrow, but there was bound to be one.


    The South Gate Temple was still silent in the rain as if nothing had happened. The oilmps could only illuminate the corners of the Taoist Temple.


    He Mingchi knelt before an oilmp, most of his body hidden in the shadows.


    Li Qingshan knelt on his sickbed and looked above him silently as if he could see the rain falling on the temple. He frowned slightly andmented, ¡°I edited the edict today and went against thews of the Tang Empire and His Majesty¡¯s wishes. I wonder how the history books would be written when I die and how His Majesty would view me.¡±


    He Mingchi did not speak. It was inappropriate no matter what he said at this time.


    ¡°But I do not regret it because Her Highness was right. Rather than saying that I trust in her and Prince Huiyuan, I would say that I can¡¯t trust the Empress. How can I allow the Saintess of Diabolism to rule the Tang Empire?¡±


    Li Qingshan said indifferently, ¡°If it wasn¡¯t for her, would His Majesty die young?¡±


    He Mingchi looked up at him and thought of the officials and citizens in the imperial court and the streets. They all thought that Her Majesty and the Nation Master were close. Who would have expected that the truth differed so greatly?


    ¡°Chang¡¯an City has had too many funerals in the past years. The senior statesmen and old generals have all left us one by one. Now, the Emperor is dead, and so is the Headmaster. What else could this be other than Heaven¡¯s will?¡±


    Li Qingshan turned to say to He Mingchi, ¡°If I recall correctly, you are from Qinghe County?¡±


    He Mingchi answered with his head hung low, ¡°I am from a branch family of the He n in Qinghe County.¡±


    Li Qingshan said, his eyes slightly closed, ¡°Is it the He n that had once produced a Great Divine Priest of West-Hill?¡±


    He Mingchi answered after a brief moment of silence, ¡°That¡¯s right.¡±


    Li Qingshan looked at his most beloved disciple and sighed. He said, ¡°It seems like I was right. You belong to the Hierarch Lord. No wonder you were so interested in the God-stunning Array.¡±


    He Mingchi suddenly felt cold. He leaned forward and ced his hand on the ck wooden floors and trembled, not knowing what to say.


    ¡°The Hierarch Lord¡¯s greatest wish is to lead the Papal Cavalrymen into Chang¡¯an, bringing the Tang Empire back into the light of the West-Hill Divine Pce. That is why he wants to get rid of the God-stunning Array more than anyone else.¡±


    Li Qingshan said, ¡°You have cultivated and served in the Southern Gate Temple for so many years, just to find the Array Eye Pestle. However, it is a pity that you are not talented in Talisman Taoism, so Senior Brother Yan Se would not ept you as his disciple and the pestle was given to Ning Que. Now that the pestle is in the Academy, you have no way to get it. That¡¯s why you visit the building in the pce oftentely to see if there is any other way to break through the array.¡±


    He Mingchi only knew then that he had not managed to hide what he had been doing all these years from his teacher. It was true that the Tang Nation Master was not one who was easily hoodwinked.


    He asked in a trembling voice, ¡°Teacher, since you know this, why did you not expose me?¡±


    Li Qingshan answered, ¡°Because you are my most beloved disciple. Because I am struggling as well.¡±


    ¡°Struggling?¡±


    ¡°Xia Hou was from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, but he became a visiting professor of Haotian Taoism. He was also a chief general of the Tang Empire. He spent his entire life stuck between two ces and suffered greatly. I serve Haotian and am loyal to the Tang Empire. How can I not feel the pain?¡±


    ¡°I was not in pain and did not struggle in the past because I did not have to choose. I know that the Tang Empire will be stable if it continues down the same path. But there have been many changes to the situation and I want to make a decision for the Tang Empire that would lead it to greater stability. That is why I chose the Princess and did not expose you...¡±


    Li Qingshan said, ¡°The people of the world say that Chang¡¯an City cannot be infiltrated. The cultivation world is in awe of the power behind the God-stunning Array, but few know that it is the Headmaster who cannot be defeated.¡±


    ¡°You would be dead if the Headmaster weren¡¯t dead.¡±


    He looked at He Mingchi and said, ¡°But the Headmaster is dead, and he proved once more that Haotian cannot be defeated. Haotian Taoism will not let the Academy or the Tang Empire off. And this time, without the Headmaster¡¯s Academy, we cannot fight against the world through our own efforts like how we have in the past millennia. That is why the Tang Empire is bound to fail.¡±


    ¡°To ensure the survival of the Tang Empire, we have to return to Haotian¡¯s embrace.¡±


    ¡°I know of the agreement between you and Prince Huiyuan. But don¡¯t forget the Tangs are also believers of Haotian and you are also a Tang. That is why I hope that you will limit the bloodshed in this process.¡±


    He Mingchi remained silent for a long while. Then, he kowtowed once and said, ¡°I will fight for this with my life.¡±


    It¡¯s still raining, but it seemed as if it snowed in Chang¡¯an.


    The millennia-old city turned white overnight. Streamers fluttered in the streets, and the people who stood under eaves for shelter wore somber faces and many wore hemp in respect.


    Only a small portion of this white colored sentiment of grief was for the Headmaster. It was because the Headmaster¡¯s presence was not obvious and not many ordinary people knew that the protector of the world had died.


    The citizens of Chang¡¯an were grieving for the protector of the Tang Empire, their benevolent and wise Emperor. The beloved Emperor had passed away, leaving behind cries ringing from countless homes. It was worth it.


    The officials knelt before the pce in the rain, their robes long soaked. The armor the generals wore shone as they were washed clean by the rain.


    An eunuch stood on the steps, reading the edict.


    Several Grand Secretaries and Governors, Ministers and Generals stood behind the eunuch. Their expressions were varied, some were shocked and some were surprised, but they were all sorrowful.


    A new ruler was weed, before the Tang Empire managed to wake up from the somberness.


    Li Huiyuan walked to the seat in the middle of the pce. Then, he turned to sit.


    From that moment on, he was no longer the prince, but the Emperor.


    His face was still tinged with an unhealthy pallor, but it was no longer innocent and tender nor was it unnaturally noble anymore. The coldness in his eyes had be one of sternness, but his expression was naturally gentle.


    It was only then when the officials of the Tang Empire realized that the Prince had grown up.


    They looked at the new Emperor who gradually exuded a heroic aura. Some of the older officials looked at the face that bore a strong resemnce to his father and sad tears streamed down their faces.


    The officials and generals who belonged to the Empress¡¯ party knelt and paid their respects like their colleagues. They were silent and respectful, but their hearts were heavy, and some even doubted the edict.


    However, there was no way to fake the edict and they did not have proof.


    They could only wait for the Empress to bring another prince back to Chang¡¯ an with the coffin of the previous Emperor.


    Before that, they could only pin their hopes on two ces that everything could be changed.


    Some went to the Academy, but the Academy had shut its doors, refusing visitors.


    The official recalled that the Headmaster had passed away.


    Another official visited the Southern Gate Temple. Those at the imperial court only realizedter that the Emperor¡¯s edict was kept there, so they wanted to consult the Nation Master, Li Qingshan.


    The doors of the Southern Gate Temple opened. He Mingchi exited with a white belt tied around his waist.


    The Nation Master, Li Qingshan had passed away from illness.


    From now on, he was the new abbey dean of the Southern Gate Temple. He was also the leader of the South School of Haotian Taoism.

 Chapter 697 - A New Story (Part 2)

    <h4>Chapter 697: A New Story (Part 2)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The rain stopped suddenly. Just when everyone in the world thought that the rain would never stop, the incessant heavy rain came to an abrupt end on a nd autumn day.


    No one believed it at first. People walked out of the pce, and from farmhouses. They stopped under roofs and walked into their courtyards, looking up at the sky in confusion. It wasn¡¯t until they realized that there was no more water falling from the clouds when the situation dawned on them. Cheers filled every corner of the fields and cities.


    However, the world had been soaked in this heavy rain for too long. Both clothes and moods seemed to have grown moldy. After the excitement and surprise passed, exhaustion took over speedily. Relief efforts continued, and those who watched the world dazedly continued so, and those who slept did so. Everything seemed so numb.


    The clouds dissipated after the rain stopped. Everyone gathered around their dining tables to discuss the rain. After they finished their chores, they returned to their rooms and slept, entering their first peaceful dream since the rain ended.


    The clouds that had covered the sky for many days gradually dispersed.


    A dog howled in the street, seeming extremely frightened and uneasy. Another dog howled in the farnds. The skinny yellow dog seemed confused and afraid.


    That was followed by more and more dogs barking. All the dogs in the world seemed to have received some kind of instruction and all howled at the same time. Their barking echoed throughout the countryside of the city, rousing countless people from their dreams.


    They rubbed their sleepy eyes and went outside their doors. Some took out wooden sticks meant for fending off thieves and someined that their daughters-inw had forgotten to feed the dog again today, taking a food bowl to find their own dogs.


    Then, they discovered that it wasn¡¯t just their respective dogs that were barking. Every single dog was.


    Every dog was howling crazily at the night sky.


    They all followed the gazes of the dogs and looked at the night sky. The wooden sticks in their hands slipped to the ground and the food bowls fell from their hands, smashing their feet. However, they seemed not to feel the pain at all.


    Everyone was stunned. Their attention was fully on the object in the night sky. It didn¡¯t matter that their feet got smashed. They would find it hard to be distracted even if their homes caught fire.


    The clouds had finally dispersed after many days, revealing the night skies. However, they did not see the stars in the sky today, but only saw a white rounded object.


    What was that?


    Something had changed in the skies. There was a moon in the night sky.


    This strange and shocking picture shocked everyone, and they all felt fearful and uneasy. Many were so shocked they fainted, and there were even more who knelt in their courtyards or in front of their windows worshipping.


    The royal families of various countries burned incense and prayed to Haotian, asking for forgiveness for the disrespect humans have shown it. Various Taoist and Buddhist temples burned arge amount of incense. Rumors began to spread that this was a foreshadowing of the Underworld Invasion, triggering a catastrophe more serious than the torrential rain and floods. Many foolish people even chose tomit suicide.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce quickly announced that the object in the night sky was called the moon. It was the divine light that Haotian had bestowed upon the people because it pitied mankind who had suffered long nights.


    With the spread of the Divine Hall¡¯s edict and the strong suppression by the royal families of various countries, themotion caused by the object called the moon calmed down slightly. As time passed, themon people on earth began to get used to its existence.


    People discovered that the moon was different from the stars in the night sky in the past years. it was not absolutely quiet and solemn, but it moved and changed ording to a certain order. It waxed and waned, and changed in shape. The changes urred in an order and were suitable to calcte time and arrange agricultural works around it.


    Some people began to use the moon¡¯s wax and wane to calcte time and referred to it as a month.


    Of course, that all happened in the future.


    There was a Purple Gold Mountain in the southeast of Chang¡¯an city of the Tang Empire. The terrain here was rtively high and instances of rain and cloudy days were limited. It was the perfect ce to watch the skies and was where the Imperial Observatory was located.


    Even though the year had been Tianqi for the past decades, the Tangs were famous for not believing in the Heavens and in fate. Therefore, the Imperial Observatory became one of the least important sectors in the imperial court and also became the most silent. There were rarely any visitors on weekdays other than the young couples who came to the Purple Gold Mountain to enjoy the scenery.


    However, it was very noisy outside the Imperial Observatory today. There were dozens of Yulin Royal Guards who guarded several officials. They stood below the stone steps, forming a barrier. The asional passerby was not shocked by this scene and did not think that it was odd either. A moon had appeared in the night skies, so the imperial court naturally had to consult the Imperial Observatory.


    The officials from the Ministry of Rites and the Yulin Royal Guards did not enter the Imperial Observatory. A chief eunuch and a few strong servant eunuchs entered. However, it was odd that no one went up to wee them.


    The chief eunuch leader glowered at the closed main hall. He said frostily, ¡°His Majesty awaits your reply, and the imperial court awaits your annotations. You have to provide a reply today.¡±


    The atmosphere in the Imperial Observatory seemed particrly depressing and tense.


    There were many instruments used for stargazing in the main hall of the Imperial Observatory. Should you walk through the side door and up to the terrace, you would see an enormous telescope that the Academy had sent overst year.


    There was a small table in the hall and on it were a few tes of verymon dishes and several cans of weak wine. There were two despondent people sitting at the table who were drinking in low spirits. One of the men was supervisor Miao Kechi and the other was his deputy, Xu Liangshou. They were the two most important officials in the Imperial Observatory.


    The eunuch¡¯s cold voice sounded from outside, ¡°The Imperial Observatory has always thought that you could understand the Heavens. Back then, you disregarded the previous Emperor¡¯s wrath and insisted on making the judgment. Now that a vision has appeared, why do you all have nothing to say?¡±


    Miao Kechi looked at the tightly shut doors with a faint smile. He gulped down the wine in his cup and looked at Xu Liangshou and said, ¡°Did you hear that? In the end, it¡¯s all because of what happened back then.¡±


    Xu Liangshou did not speak. He filled the other official¡¯s cup with wine.


    ¡°That night, I watched the astronomical phenomena and received an epiphany, so I wrote these words in the almanac. ¡®Should night shroud the stars, the country falls.¡¯ His Majesty ordered me to erase these words to keep the peace, but I refused.¡±


    Miao Kechi sighed and said, ¡°Who would have thought that these eight words would cause such a great turbulence? So many in the pce and court have died. The Princess was forced to marry into the Wilderness and the Empress did not interfere in government affairs anymore. I wonder how many wanted me dead. It is only because of His Majesty¡¯s care that I could live until today.¡±


    He lifted his wine cup and fell into a daze. Then, he lifted the cup to his lips and drank slowly. He said dazedly, ¡°Now that His Majesty has passed away, who can protect me?¡±


    Xu Liangshou knew that the official was ready to die when he saw his expression. He felt slightly nervous and urged sincerely, ¡°Now that the new Emperor has taken his ce on the throne, the Princess will still govern the country. But the Empress and the Sixth Prince have not yet returned. Both His Majesty or Her Highness would not wish for gossip to arise. It might lead to opposition or even shake the nation if it gets serious. They will not force your honor. If Her Highness is looking for revenge, why would she send the imperial court to question you?¡±


    Miao Kechi looked at him calmly and said, ¡°The Princess is honorable and will not force me to die because of matters of the past. But you should know what she wants to hear regarding the matter involving this moon.¡±


    Xu Liangshou was silent. He was the adjutant to the Imperial Astronomer and knew of the Princess¡¯ intentions. Since the Imperial Astronomer had decided that the Princess was the recipient of those eight words for that starry night, then why can¡¯t the Imperial Astronomer decide that the Empress, who had yet to return to the capital, was the one involved in the prophecy rted to the moon in the sky?


    ¡°I have been watching the stars for so many years. Other than that night when the stars darkened, I have not seen any other changes in the stars. That is why the stargazing position in the Imperial Observatory is meaningless.¡±


    For some reason, Miao Kechi¡¯s mood suddenly improved. He raised his cup and toasted, saying tipsily, ¡°But this moon is different. Look at the moon in the night sky. It waxes and wanes and the changes are orderly and subtle. No matter whether we write the calendar or watch the skies, they are both important. Unfortunately, I won¡¯t have the chance to do this anymore.¡±


    Xu Liangshou heard this and could not help but feel anxious. He chided, ¡°The Princess is benevolent and kind, why don¡¯t you take that into consideration and take advantage of it?¡±


    Miao Kechi red at him when he heard that. He stared into the man¡¯s eyes and said gravely, ¡°I was appointed Imperial Astronomer by the Imperial Commissioner of History precisely because we cannot cheat Heaven¡¯s will and history! Why should I go against my will and make that annotation?¡±


    ¡°ording to the old regtions handed over by the Tang dynastyw and the official department, you will be the supervisor of the Imperial Observatory once I leave. I have been forced to leave and have nowhere to go because of that useless son whom the two siblings in the pce have dirt on. But you are different. You are righteous and have nothing to do with it. After I leave, you must not bring shame upon the Imperial Observatory!¡±


    Xu Liangshou stayed silent for a long time and nodded gently.


    Seeing his response, Miao Kechi heaved a sigh of relief and said slowly, ¡°Not many know the true reason for why the previous Emperor¡¯s reign was called Tianqi. I do not know either. Now, it seems like the death of the Headmaster, His Majesty and all the older ministers was the original intention of it.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s impossible to go against Heaven¡¯s will...¡±


    Miao Kechi¡¯s tone suddenly sharpened as he said, ¡°But it is even more important not to go against one¡¯s will. Even if we cannot defeat the Heavens, we can choose not to obey it. What can it do to me?¡±


    The door to the main hall of the Imperial Observatory was finally opened.


    Looking at the body of the Imperial Astronomer, Miao Kechi, who hadmitted suicide by drinking poisonous wine, the chief eunuch¡¯s face took on a ghastly expression. His voice grew shrill and trembling, sounding horrible.


    ¡°How dare he...how dare he! How dare he kill himself to escape punishment!¡±


    Xu Liangshou stood to one side to watch the scene with an unreadable expression. He thought of what the man had said before he killed himself and looked at the incensed eunuch and could not help sneering.


    A man who could give up his life was of course brave. If he was unafraid of death, then why would he be afraid of punishment? If he could give up his life, then not even Haotian could do anything to him. What could the pair of siblings in the pce do!

 Chapter 698 - The Cold Autumn Palace

    <h4>Chapter 698: The Cold Autumn Pce</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Upon learning of the death of Imperial Astronomer, Mr. Miao, the officials from the Ministry of Rites left in a hurry with unreadable expressions.


    The chief eunuch motioned for Xu Liangshou to follow him into the room. He sat down and said with a dark expression, ¡°Do you know what to do next?¡±


    Xu Liangshou said respectfully, ¡°Please give me some pointers, sir.¡±


    The chief eunuch tapped the table lightly and said, ¡°We don¡¯t know how to read the stars. We will listen to you.¡±


    Xu Liangshou said after a brief moment of silence, ¡°Sir, do you really want me to write it?¡±


    The chief eunuch was already very impatient, and he shouted, ¡°What are you waiting for? Get this done quickly!¡±


    Xu Liangshou stopped his prevarication and went to the desk and wrote down eight words.


    ¡°The dark moon invades, unrest befalls the country!¡±


    Many years ago, the Tang Imperial Astronomer noticed that the starry night had darkened and wrote eight words. Many yearster, the moon appeared in the night sky. The officials in the Imperial Observatory did not even look at it before writing another set of eight words.


    The chief eunuch¡¯s expression darkened so much that it felt as if it was about to rain. His eyes med angrily as he gritted his teeth and said, ¡°Lord Xu, what do you mean by this?¡±


    Xu Liangshou said calmly, ¡°I am just the deputy of the Imperial Observatory. After His Honor passed, I have taken his position ording to thews of the Tang Empire. We do not need to discuss this with the court. Since you want me to write, I have done so. How is this inappropriate?¡±


    The chief eunuchughed in anger. Heughed dryly, pointing at Xu Liangshou, ¡°You¡¯re good, Lord Xu.¡±


    Xu Liangshou looked up sternly and knocked the eunuch¡¯s thin fingers away. He yelled, ¡°I called you sir and asked for pointers. I spoke to you humbly to show my respect to the nobles in the pce! I am a fourth-grade official, and you are just a eunuch. How dare you be so disrespectful!¡±


    ¡°How dare you! Such impudence!¡± The chief eunuch shook in anger. ¡°Do you want to die?¡±


    Xu Liangshou¡¯s expression was cold as he yelled, ¡°Die? Do you really think thews of the Tang Empire are for show? Tell the noble backing you that I am not Mr. Miao. I don¡¯t have naughty disciples who have identally killed someone in a street brawl and neither do I have corrupt rtives! I am all alone! It¡¯s not that easy to kill me! Get out of here!¡±


    With that, he pped the eunuch forcefully. The p rang in the air.


    The Tang Empire Imperial Center Administration managed cultivators on behalf of the imperial court. To the ordinary folk or ordinary officials, this center was very mysterious.


    However, the yamen in the Imperial Center Administration was not mysterious, but rather remote. It was located in a small building four miles east of the Vermilion Bird Avenue across the garden of the military department.


    Judging by the skies, it did not look like it was going to rain again in a short period of time after the incessant rain stopped. However, there was a yellow paper umbre on the desk found on the third floor of the Imperial Center Administration. The surface of the umbre was slightly wet.


    He Mingchi took a piece of white silk cloth and carefully and slowly wiped the water off the umbre¡¯s surface. It was as if he did not see the sweat on Zhuge Wuren¡¯s forehead opposite him.


    Zhuge Wuren was the chief official of the Tang Empire Imperial Center Administration. Everyone knew he was loyal to the Empress. When the new Emperor ascended to the throne, his position naturally became precarious.


    ¡°As the saying goes, with every Emperor,es a change in his officials. Lord Zhuge should already know about the change in the situation. Why have you still made so much effort? Unless you wish to overthrow the edict? That would be most unwise.¡±


    He Mingchi put the silk handkerchief into his sleeve, looked up, as he calmly spoke.


    Zhuge Wuren looked at the young man across him who was dressed in Taoist uniform. The sweat on his forehead grew. He had never imagined that the other man would know about where he had gone over thest few days.


    He and He Mingchi were actually very familiar with each other. In thest few years, He Mingchi had been responsible for cooperating with him as the Southern Gate Temple provided the most backing to the Imperial Center Administration. He had always respected He Mingchi, but that respect was mostly for his sect and his teacher, who was the Nation Master. He only discovered that he was wrong today.


    He Mingchi himself, was most worthy of respect.


    ¡°What exactly does the Abbey Dean He wish to say? I just visited some old friends and had tea and chatted with them. I cannot ept that you would want to frame me for overthrowing the edict of the deceased Emperor.¡±


    Zhuge Wuren¡¯s voice was rather hoarse.


    His voice had already be hoarse when He Mingchi strode into the Imperial Center Administration and he had not been notified. He knew that no matter what he said, there would be no one to hear it.


    ¡°The deceased Emperor had agreed with the Empress¡¯ suggestion to make you the director of the Imperial Center Administration because you are a regr person. You will not side with the cultivators and do not feel awe for cultivators like others. This was an advantage and also a fatal w.¡±


    He Mingchi said, ¡°Over the years, there are no cultivators in the Imperial Center Administration who are truly in your control. Once you lose your authority, you will not be able tomand them.¡±


    Zhuge Wuren felt that he was sitting in front of a poisonous asp. He said, ¡°I have never thought that the Southern Gate Temple had prated so deeply into the Imperial Center Administration. But do not forget, that I am still the director and while those people did not dare to stop you froming to see me, they do not dare to help you to kill me either.¡±


    He Mingchi looked at him with pity and said, ¡°I am a cultivator. While I might not be as powerful as Ning Que and Chen Pipi, do you think I would need help to kill an ordinary person?¡±


    Zhuge Wuren shouted, ¡°I don¡¯t believe that you¡¯d dare to kill an officer of the imperial court!¡±


    He Mingchi said, ¡°I do not dare to do so, but Lord Zhuge, do remember that the new Emperor has taken the throne. He can take your office away from you with just a simple edict. What will you be left with then?¡±


    Sweat beaded on Zhuge Wuren¡¯s forehead as he said, ¡°In that case, what are you all waiting for?¡±


    ¡°It would not look good to the officials in the imperial court if the Emperor starts getting rid of the Empress¡¯ loyal dogs right after he starts his reign. You have been in charge of the Imperial Center Administration for many years, and I trust that you hold many secrets in your hands and possess unknown power. His Majesty does not wish for unnecessary losses just because of warring loyalties amongst his subjects.¡±


    He Mingchi looked at him with a smile and said, ¡°So His Majesty wants you to resign.¡±


    Zhuge Wuren stared at him mockingly and said, ¡°Do you think I would be so stupid to do that?¡±


    ¡°This has nothing to do with stupidity, only with the current situation. Even if you still have trump cards not under our control, we have gathered control of the general situation. You cannot change anything now.¡±


    He Mingchi straightened his expression and said, ¡°Lord Zhuge suffered from a serious illness because of his great grief for the Emperor¡¯s death. He has sincerely asked to resign. His Majesty and the Princess would take into ount your hard work and allow you to remain in Chang¡¯an. If you want His Majesty to take your office forcefully, then you will be sent to serve in the counties.¡±


    Zhuge Wuren¡¯s hands trembled when he heard that.


    ¡°It seems that Lord Zhuge knows the difference between the two. Indeed, you have followed the Empress all your life and have done many shameful deeds. You ordered cultivators around like they were pigs and dogs and have offended many sects. Without the imperial court¡¯s backing, you will die once you leave Chang¡¯an.¡±


    With that, He Mingchi picked up his yellow oil-paper umbre and stuffed it under his arm and walked out of the Imperial Center Administration.


    There was no sound of wind and rain outside the temple tonight, but Li Yu was unused to it and felt a little restless. She still could not settle down after reading a few memorials to the throne; she did not even read the words on the memorials clearly.


    Now that her brother had ascended the throne as Emperor, in principle, her position as governor should have been invalidated. However, both the new Emperor and the officials of the two sects in court have all asked her to continue her governance.


    The Emperor had asked her to continue correcting the memorials to the throne because he believed in his royal sister¡¯s administrative abilities. It was his way of expressing gratitude and to show that they were close. The officials who supported the Princess insisted on this because they did not really trust in the Emperor¡¯s abilities. And who knew what the Empress¡¯ supporters were plotting?


    Li Yu flipped through the thick memorial to the throne. Suddenly, her fingers froze slightly, and her facial expression became grave because she had seen Zhuge Wuren¡¯s resignation letter at the bottom of the memorials¡¯ pile.


    Candlelight shone on the desk and screen as well as on her face tinted with uncertainty. Looking at the resignation of the Queen¡¯s loyal dog, she recalled many things that had happened in the court recently.


    Since the new Emperor took over the throne, Chang¡¯an city seemed to be stable. However, undercurrents flowed beneath the surface. Ministers and generals who remained loyal to the Queen oftenmunicated privately about matters that one could easily guess even without asking.


    There was also a big dispute during court. The pce was determined to change the year as soon as possible to confirm the ascension of the new Emperor. The Empress¡¯ faction used the excuse that the deceased Emperor¡¯s remains had yet to return and the fact that the Empress was still in the Wilderness to request for the change to be postponed until the deceased Emperor was buried.


    Filial piety was sufficient reason, and neither Li Yu nor the Emperor could stop it. They could only agree with the suggestions of the court officials and send a team toward Hn City to wee the coffin when the rain ceased.


    Li Yu knew very well the importance of the change of the year to the throne. This was the firstrge event since the new Emperor¡¯s reign. However, they were forced to stop before anything was done. She guessed that her younger brother would be very angry, but did not expect that he would act without her knowing.


    She carefully examined Zhuge Wuren¡¯s resignation by the candlelight. She wanted to see if she could see more details through the wording in the letter, but did not find anything.


    Since the coffin of the deceased Emperor had not yet returned, the newly throned Emperor did not move into the main hall, but lived in the side hall as he had in previous years. However, the side hall was much more lively andvish than before.


    The pce was suddenly silent tonight. Other than the two most trusted eunuchs who guarded the doors, there was no one else but the two siblings in the quiet hall.


    ¡°I heard father talk about what the dean had said then, ¡®Governing arge country is like frying small fish. Don¡¯t turn it over casually, let things happen naturally, act cautiously, and never be impatient.¡¯¡±


    Li Yu looked at her younger brother and said softly, ¡°You are now the Emperor of the Tang Empire. You have to act as the situation calls. Those small fries cannot touch you. Why did you rush to act?¡±


    Li Huiyuan said with a smile, ¡± I thought it was something else that had made my royal sister so nervous and cautious. So it was only a letter of resignation. Yes, I sent someone to make Zhuge Wuren resign. Everyone in the Tang Empire knows that that sinister viin is a loyal dog of that woman. I don¡¯t want to see that hateful face again in the pce.¡±


    Li Yu looked at his expression and knew that he had not taken her words to heart. She said gravely, ¡°You need to know that Chang¡¯an city cannot be breached from the outside. The only danger is from the inside. Your Majesty, you are now equal to Chang¡¯an city. As long as you don¡¯t mess with yourself, you can live forever.¡±


    Li Huiyuan bowed his head and remained silent for a long while when he heard this.


    Then he looked up at Li Yu and said, ¡°I understand this, but just as my royal sister had said, the danger to Chang¡¯an is within it. Within two days of the reading of the edict, the Minister of Rites went to the Southern Gate Temple. Zhuge Wuren went to the Academy. Do you not know what they want to do?¡±


    Li Yu was silent. She was not worried about the Southern Gate Temple. No one would know what happened that night, especially with the passing of Nation Master Li Qingshan. However, the Academy had not made its stand, which was what made her truly uneasy.


    The Academy had shut its doors. The loyal subjects of the Empress could not enter, and even the messengers she sent only saw the regr staff of the Academy. They did not even manage to meet with a single professor.


    If it was because of the death of the Headmaster, the closure of the Academy was understandable. But what were those professors doing? What were those people on the second floor of the Academy who were qualified to influence the court doing?


    ¡°Royal Sister, those people would not just let the matter rest. They would never acknowledge that father chose me to seed him. If we treat them benevolently, these heartless people would only think that we are weak!¡±


    Li Huiyuan looked at his sister and said viciously.


    Li Yu¡¯s heart trembled when she heard that. In fact, until this moment, Li Huiyuan had really thought that it was his name on the edict. He did not know what she had done.


    Li Huiyuan¡¯s self-righteousness was like a form of mocking to her. It mocked her. She suddenly felt weary and did not wish to continue the topic. She suddenly thought of the news she heard when walking around the pce and said with a slight frown, ¡°What happened at the Imperial Observatory?¡±


    Li Huiyuan froze slightly at the question and did not know how to answer.


    Li Yu knew that what she had heard was true when she saw that. She scolded sternly, ¡°Lord Miao Kechi had always been righteous and maintained a good reputation in court. How can you coerce an official to force him to death? Do you wish for the officials to turn against you?¡±


    Li Huiyuan bowed his head and remained silent for a long time, saying, ¡°I was indeed wrong in this.¡±


    Li Yu knew that her younger brother was stubborn, and did not expect him to admit to his mistakes so quickly. She could not help but be shocked. However, before she could reply, Li Huiyuan looked up.


    He said calmly and firmly, ¡°But I will not regret it, because I wanted him to die.¡±


    Li Yu looked at him stupefied and asked, ¡°Why? This...why?¡±


    ¡°Miao Kechi had written those damned words back then and forced you to marry far away! I will never forget that night when you knelt before father¡¯s pce. And I will never forget the tears you shed the night before you got married.¡±


    Li Huiyuan looked at his sister and said coldly, ¡°...That¡¯s why he had to die.¡±

 Chapter 699 - The Quiet and Dark Palace

    <h4>Chapter 699: The Quiet and Dark Pce</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Li Yu didn¡¯t forget that night when she knelt in front of her father, asking for the marriage to the Wilderness. She didn¡¯t forget the crying night before the wedding. She just buried it in the depth of her heart and pretended she had forgotten it as the time passed by.


    She didn¡¯t expect that her little brother, who was very young at that time, had kept those things in his heart for so many years until he ascended the throne. Upon knowing this, she was nothing but touched and a little sad, and she could not me him at all.


    ¡°Besides Miao Kechi, I want to kill that woman. If not for her, who had been instigating beside our father, and her officers who pushed it, the Imperial Astronomer¡¯s prophecy could not cause so big of a turmoil and you would not have to be forcefully married to the barbarian in the Wilderness.¡±


    Holding Li Yu¡¯s hands, Li Huiyuan grimly said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, elder sister. I am the emperor of Tang now. No one can oppress us anymore. Miao Kechi¡¯s death is just a beginning and I will keep the woman in Hn City. She would never dream toe back.¡±


    Listening to this, Li Yu suddenly woke up. She tightly held his hands, staring at his eyes, and dignifiedly said, ¡°I have a n for Hn City, so you can stop. The woman is our nominal mother and the Queen mother anyway. If you want to do something to her, we should wait for the perfect moment. What we need to do now is to stall her a little longer before shees back to Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Li Huiyuan was still going to say something.


    Li Yu shook her head while looking at him, and said, ¡°I know the rumors about the fake Edict in Chang¡¯an bothers you a lot, but you should know the rumors are only rumors. Minister Xu wrote the eight characters because he was angry. You should not embarrass him. Your Majesty, you should remember, neither the Edict nor the woman are important, as well as the Imperial Astronomer¡¯s prophecy. The key lies in who the ministers and people support.¡±


    Li Yu¡¯s words were reasonable. As an emperor, he should have a broad chest and tolerance and should avoid resorting to petty means.


    However, she didn¡¯t tell her brother¡ªthe Edict and the Imperial Astronomer were not important, but the Empress in Hn City was a key person to Li Huiyuan¡¯s throne. Besides her, the military and the Academy¡¯s attitudes were also important.


    Li Yu¡¯s biggest troubles were the Academy and the woman in Hn City. At this moment, she suddenly began to miss Ning Que, who could smooth everything if he was in Chang¡¯an, but...


    Since her father liked Ning Que very much, Ning Que must support him back. If Ning Que knew she forged her father¡¯s Edict, would he change his attitude toward her?


    The pnquin quietly moved in the night and stopped in front of a peaceful pce. Li Yu got off the pnquin, gesturing her maids not to follow her, and entered the pce.


    This pce was a special ce in the imperial pce as it was the queen¡¯s Bedchamber.


    Li Yu came here because she felt a little soft at this time¡ªevery time she came here, she would get angry. At this moment, anger would make her strong.


    As the owner of this pce was still in Hn City, there were few lights in the pce. Even though, the ornate furnishings could be seen clearly in the dark.


    As the maids and eunuchs were all driven away, Li Yu was alone here.


    She stood in front of the embroidered jade bed, revealing a sarcastic expression in silence.


    Her mother was supposed to be the real and only queen who died many years ago because of an illness. She never had a chance to sleep on the bed that belonged to her.


    The woman, who slept on the bed after she died, was beautiful and gentle. Everyone, including her father, her uncles, and Uncle Chao told her to call her Mother when she was young.


    However, she never did.


    Until she grew older, she began to call her Mother.


    Every time she called her, her heart bled.


    For more than ten years, her heart had hurt so many times and never had a chance to recover.


    She had to admit that her father and the woman were not bad to her. However, she was unable to forgive them because of the day her mother died.


    On that day, after she happily greeted her mother, she climbed into the bed to y with her little brother when her mother began to cough badly, and then closed her eyes.


    The doctors came and went, but she never opened her eyes.


    Her father was not there.


    He was with the woman.


    Li Yu quietly stood beside the bed. It was uncertain if she pictured her mother or the woman, and she tightly clenched her fists, trembling.


    This was the feeling of anger.


    As her body trembled with anger, the familiar force returned to her and calmed her down. She turned around and walked out of the pce.


    Even if the woman could return to Chang¡¯an, she could not sleep on this bed anymore.


    Back to her own pce, Li Yu began to review the memorials. Even if she was skillful, the memorials were too many to finish in a short time.


    She rubbed her eyebrows and asked for a new cup of tea. After cleaning her face with a warm towel, she felt refreshed.


    When she finished reading all the memorials, it was early morning. She rubbed her sore wrists and called in two ministers, ignoring the eunuch¡¯s persuading.


    What happened in the imperial court in the past few days was within her expectation except for the impatient emperor. Although she didn¡¯t agree with the emperor¡¯s tough means, she would not reduce the vignce against the Queen¡¯s ministers. At this moment, she had to firmly control Chang¡¯an.


    In order to do this, she had to control the army: first, the Yulin Royal Guards. Second, the Valiant Cavalry Battalion. The Bodyguard office which guarded the pce was the most important one.


    If something happened, besides the army, there was another ce important for her: the Chang¡¯an Local Government. It had enough local government runners and constables who were familiar with the terrain in the city.


    Therefore, one of the two people she wanted to meet was the prefectural magistrate of Chang¡¯an City, Shangguan Yangyu.


    The other was Chao Xiaoshu.

 Chapter 700 - The Key to Changan City

    <h4>Chapter 700: The Key to Chang¡¯an City</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Shangguan Yangyu was one of the ugliest prefectural magistrates of Chang¡¯an City since the founding of the Tang Empire thousands of years ago. He had an obscene feeling from the inside out.


    Since he was famous for his ugly appearance, naturally, he couldn¡¯t make people happy. However, whether it was his wife or him, they both couldn¡¯t deny this. Hence, while standing in the solemn and mian hall, he felt more and more ashamed and more sweat started appearing on his forehead. His triangr eyes didn¡¯t stop shing.


    Li Yu had seen Shangguan Yangyu many times and he knew that he was extremely ugly. However, every time she saw him, she felt there was newer ugliness added on the pile; a sense of disgust couldn¡¯t help but arise.


    However, she controlled her own expressions and showed great respect through her words, just like the warmth of the spring wind. She was like this as she was very clear that this prefectural magistrate had an incredibly rare prowess under these ugly looks. If not, he wouldn¡¯t be able to hold such a thorny position for this long.


    Li Yu was very practical. So long as he was talented, even though his looks were incredibly ugly and he looked crafty and corrupt, she would ept him wholeheartedly.


    Moreover, no matter how many faults Shangguan Yangyu had, he had a beautiful strength: even though he gained fame after attaining his position, he didn¡¯t leave his wife who had ordinary looks. Till today, he still had deep feelings for his wife.


    This impressed Li Yu considerably. In addition, due to the importance of the position of the prefectural magistrate of Chang¡¯an City, this was the first minister that she met since the new emperor started his reign.


    ording to logic, for Shangguan Yangyu, this was a godsend. For someone like him who had no idea what morals were, he had no psychological issues to be under the Princess and the new Emperor. As for the soliciting intentions between Her Highness¡¯ words, he immediately worshipped them.


    However, to the surprise of Li Yu and the few people in the hall, Shangguan Yangyu was still as respectful and ingratiating. He looked as if he wanted to kiss the soles of Li Yu¡¯s instep. But whenever the topic went deeper, he stared like a fool with his round eyes as if he had no idea how to answer.


    Li Yu furrowed her brows slightly. She knew of course that Shangguan Yangyu wouldn¡¯t be as dumb to not be able to understand her words. Hence, him pretending to be dumb could only mean that his and some of the courtiers¡¯ attitudes weren¡¯t firm.


    What left her more troubled was that the second person that she wanted to see today refused to enter the pce!


    The eunuch leader and the pce nanny didn¡¯t stop denouncing the man¡¯s disrespect. They looked resentful, almost as if they wanted to send for the Yulin Royal Guards to arrest the man and sent to the pce for punishment.


    ¡°Everyone keep quiet.¡±


    Li Yu shouted as she waved her hand and chased out all the eunuchs, pce maids and the pce nanny nearest to her.


    Chao Xiaoshu wasn¡¯t a normal person. Even though she had the position and power she had today, she didn¡¯t dare be disrespectful to him, much less attack this person.


    He was the underground leader of Chang¡¯an City. Even though it had been years since he asked about the Jianghu world, and when he returned to Chang¡¯an Cityst year, he had ignored the Fish-dragon Gang¡¯s assistance, everyone clearly understood that the Chang¡¯an City¡¯s underground was still under his rule.


    However, if Chao Xiaoshu was only an elder in the Jianghu world, any of the ministers in the hall wouldn¡¯t pay her any attention. Naturally, it would not make Li Yu this troubled.


    The key was that Chao Xiaoshu was a Grand Cultivator of the Knowing Destiny State. He had a brotherhood with her father and when she saw him, she had to address him as Second Uncle Chao. Luckily, he had many brothers who would sacrifice their lives for him and in some ways, they were involved in the safety of Chang¡¯an City.


    After the eunuch and the pce maids were chased out, Li Yu wasn¡¯t the only person left in the hall. There was another middle-aged minister. He was Grand Schr Mo Han who had joined the ranks four years ago.


    ¡°Your Highness, you do not have to worry for now. Just because Chao Xiaoshu isn¡¯t willing to enter the pce doesn¡¯t mean that he has any opinion of you. Back then when he rejected the position conferred by His Majesty and left the pce, he had already stated his position. Today is just a continuation of that day; to let Your Highness understand his determination for not participating in the government.¡±


    Mo Han smiled and said.


    Li Yu furrowed his brows and said, ¡°Chang III and Fei VI have been popr with the Yulin Royal Guards. Liu V is already themander of the Valiant Cavalry Battalion and when Chen VII returns to the bodyguard office, he would be the right-hand man of Xu Chongshan. These people follow the orders of Chao Xiaoshu. If father was still alive, they would naturally not dare to do anything. But now that he is dead, what if Chao Xiaoshu has any ideas, what dangers would Chang¡¯an City be in? I do not want to give up my life for anyone.¡±


    Mo Han smile gradually faded as he asked, ¡°Then what does Your Highness think we should do with Chao Xiaoshu?¡±


    Li Yu remained silent for a long time. She understood what the Grand Secretary meant and said, ¡°These were the old matters that were arranged by father, only time can change them. Neither I nor Her Majesty, can handle it.¡±


    Mo Han said praisingly, ¡°It is precisely because of this that His Majesty created the Fish-dragon Gang back then. It seemed insignificant and was even denounced by the censor as nonsense. But who would have thought that those people from the Fish-dragon gang back then would be such important figures now? These people were only loyal to the previous emperor and hence, they will definitely only listen to the instructions from the designated heir of the previous Emperor. His Majesty and Your Highness do not need to do anything. Your Highness would just need to follow what she used to do to maintain order and Chao Xiaoshu will understand Your Highness¡¯ wishes.¡±


    Li Yu said, ¡°Grand Secretary¡¯s words make sense. I will make some arrangementster.¡±


    ¡°The Yulin Royal Guards, the Valiant Cavalry Battalion as well as the Bodyguard office, they all cannot extend a hand inwards. This includes Her Majesty and the Prince. Back then, many had been killed that rainy night at the Spring Breeze Pavillion. This was a deration from the previous minister and from how I see it, there is no problem with the safety of Chang¡¯an City.¡±


    Mo Han¡¯s expression became increasingly grave as he said, ¡°I am worried instead about matters outside the border. There have been rumors that on the Wilderness, the Headmaster had drawn his sword and battled with Haotian. This has led to the West-Hill army turning against each other. The previous Emperor might have led the cavalry to defeat the enemy but the Headmaster has passed away and so has the previous Emperor. The West-Hill Divine Pce will not squander this opportunity.¡±


    ¡°Even though the Tang Empire is strong, it has be the public enemy of the world. There are powerful enemies surrounding us and if we are not careful, we will fall into a precarious state. ording to sources, Prince Long Qing has already led the cavalry from the Left King¡¯s Pce to attack the Tang Empire. They are prepared to go by the Yan Road to move south; Your Highness should advise His Majesty to think about the military horses and not to ce his thoughts on these small things of the court. With an enemy approaching, a civil strife must not break out.¡±


    Li Yu knew the Grand Secretary was referring to the Imperial Astronomer and the Imperial Center Administration. With her expression calm, she was grateful that the Grand Secretary could point out His Majesty¡¯s mistakes and said, ¡°Grand Secretary do not worry, I will speak with him.¡±


    Mo Han nodded and said, ¡°That will be good.¡±


    Li Yu then said, ¡°About the Left King¡¯s Pce attacking Tang, Grand Secretary you do not have to worry too much. Everyone knows that Long Qing is gunning for the Yan Kingdom¡¯s emperor position when he says he is going south. Crown Prince Chong Ming and I have a deep bond and I have anticipated this a long time ago. General Xian Zhiliang is resourceful and naturally, he will know how to handle this.¡±


    As a civil servant by the Princess¡¯ side for all these years, Mo Han naturally was her most trusted confidant. Of course he knew that Xian Zhng was Her Highness¡¯ person and he was somewhat relieved upon hearing that.


    ¡°We can ignore the trouble by the border of Yan territory but I am most worried about the north.¡±


    Mo Han said worryingly, ¡°Because Her Majesty is still in Hn City, the position of the Nothern Military Camp seems more special. It cannot be disorderly yet it cannot be oblivious. I wonder what Her Highness has arranged?¡±


    The Northern Military Camp guarded the countless miles of border area to the north of the Tang Empire. It had the most elite cavalry with the most dangerous mission and was fighting against the powerful Golden Pce for many years.


    The main general of the Northern Military Camp now was General Xu Chi, one of the Four Greatest Generals of Tang. He was always stable and didn¡¯t draw attention to himself.


    However, whether it was Li Huiyuan sitting firmly on the throne or the Tang Empire pitting against the whole world, Xu Chi and the rest couldn¡¯t ignore and bypass an important figure.


    In the past among the four generals, General Xia Hou was the close confidant of the Queen. Now that the general in the north was Xian Zhng, he was Li Yu¡¯s man. Only General Xu Shi and Xu Chi were impartial.


    They were loyal and only loyal to Tang Empire¡¯s emperor Li Zhongyi.


    What worried Grand Secretary Mo Han the most was whether the loyalty of General Xu Chi to the previous emperor could be sessfully passed on to the current emperor. Or would it perhaps move to another prince...


    Li Yu said, ¡°General Xu Chi will definitely not be involved in the session of the throne. This was something father had told me from a long time ago and hence, I believe that he will remain neutral.¡±


    Mo Han shook his head and said, ¡°Since His Majesty has already ascended the throne, it isn¡¯t right for the general to remain neutral.¡±


    Li Yu said, ¡°Grand Secretary words make sense, I have already decided to send Hua Shanyue.¡±


    Mo Han furrowed his brows slightly and said, ¡°General Hua Shanyue¡¯s loyalty towards Her Highness isn¡¯t doubtful. He has an affinity with General Xu Chi¡¯s family. However all these... are meaningless.¡±


    Li Yu said calmly, ¡°Since I have handed Hua Shanyue the most important mission, I believe that he is able to aplish my requests. Please rest assured.¡±


    Shangguang Yangyu remained behind closed doors after returning from the pce.


    His wife sat beside the bed and fed him some herbal medicine. She asked worryingly, ¡°Are you going to hit yourself with a stick again?¡±


    Shangguang Yangyu sighed and said, ¡°This time, I am only afraid that I will strangle myself with white silk.¡±


    His wife was shocked as she said, ¡°The new emperor has started his reign and Her Highness has be so powerful. Since she values you, you should just let it be. Why seek death?¡±


    Shangguang Yangyu stared at her with his two triangr eyes as he chided, ¡°What does an ignorant woman like you know? Even though she values me, how long will that be for? If I worship Her Highness, naturally I can get a load of silver and rise up the ranks. However, when the Empress bring the Prince back to Chang¡¯an, what will I do?¡±


    The wife listened andughed. She said, ¡°You have always talked about thew of the Tang Empire, why have you forgotten about it now? The Emperor ascended the throne with the Edict, who would dare oppose him? Who can oppose him?¡±


    ¡°When I say you do not understand, you really don¡¯t. The edict might not be able to be faked but Her Highness asked to see me first. Why is that so? This means she is also afraid that chaos would happen in Chang¡¯an City.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu said, ¡°What circumstances will cause chaos in Chang¡¯an City? Naturally there will be those who are unhappy.¡±


    His wife got increasingly puzzled as she pushed the herbal soup to the side and asked seriously, ¡°Who else can cause trouble?¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu burst intoughter as he said, ¡°Now, all the ministers in the imperial court, whether they are with the Queen or Her Highness, they do not understand a rule. From how I see it, even if His Majesty and the Princess do not understand. The edict isn¡¯t the key, Chang¡¯an City isn¡¯t the key. Even those generals aren¡¯t the key.¡±


    His wife asked curiously, ¡°Then what is the key?¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu said, ¡°The attitude of the Academy. That is the key.¡±

 Chapter 701 - Someone Is Waiting, Someone Is Blocking

    <h4>Chapter 701: Someone Is Waiting, Someone Is Blocking</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    At a moment like this, there weren¡¯t many people who could be as calm as Shangguan Yangyu, to urately find the critical points in thisplicated world. However, there were still others who could.


    Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s house was on the second street of Eastern City¡¯s Spring Breeze Pavillion.


    He held the child in his arms and sat beside his father. He talked softly and dipped the tip of his chopstick into the alcohol and ced it to the mouth of the child. Before the child could lick at it curiously, Linzi grabbed it hurriedly and red at him.


    Today was the Old Lord Chao¡¯s birthday. There was no huge banquet at the Chao Mansion and only a few close friends were invited. All the brothers from the Fish-dragon Gang then had taken leave from their posts and brought their gifts over early.


    Thinking about the enthronement of the new Emperor and the undercurrents surging in Chang¡¯an City, the elders must have something to talk about during the banquet. After kowtowing to the Old Lord Chao, they quietly waited for instructions. However, Chao Xiaoshu didn¡¯t say much at the banquet and it was a joyous scene.


    At this moment, the steward from the Chao Mansion entered and said a few words. The guests at the banquet were slightly shocked but Chao Xiaoshu had no reaction as he asked nonchntly, ¡°What did Her Highness send?¡±


    The steward took out the gift list as he reported it again, not daring to leave anything out.


    Among the gifts that Li Yu had sent to the Chao Mansion, arge portion of them was for the Old Lord Chao. There was the boxwood cane, a Shoushan Rock, ake crab from the Great Lake, Nine-river double-distilled wine from the county of Hebei, cosmetics from Chenjinji Cosmetics Store for Mrs Chao and finally, countless toys for the child.


    Hearing the steward¡¯s voice, Chao Xiaoshu raised his eyebrows slightly. He didn¡¯t expect Her Highness to send these household gifts to them and after keeping silence for a while, he said, ¡°Let¡¯s continue eating.¡±


    Hence, everyone continued to eat and drink.


    When the banquet was over, Old Lord Chao when to the backyard to enjoy some opera. Mrs Chao carried the child to rest while all those working for the steward were asked to leave the drawing room. Only the brothers from the Fish-dragon Gang remained.


    Chao Xiaoshu carried the teacups shakily and said, ¡°You guys are no longer the men from the Jianghu world like in the past. You all should keep a lower profile, especially Chen VII. For the next few days, ignore the arrangements of the Bodyguard office. Even if Xu Chongshan suspects you, do not bother. Qi IV, cate our brothers from the gang.¡±


    It had been a long while since he had bothered with the things in the Fish-dragon Gang. However, his words were like the imperial edict to them. Chang Siwei and the rest seemed to have left the Fish-dragon Gang on the surface and were working in the imperial court. However, they would not reject his arrangements and they didn¡¯t even question him.


    The only one who would question him was Chen VII. This was because he was the brains of the Fish-dragon Gang.


    ¡°What should I do about Fifth brother?¡± Chen VII looked at the middle-aged man who was silent and said, ¡°Her Highness¡¯ response is very appropriate and we can only ept it. But Fifth Brother controls the Valiant Cavalry Battalion now, and the pce would definitely not allow him to continue being silent. They would need him to take a clear stance.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu put down the teacup and said, ¡°Many of our brothers are working in the imperial court now. Since that is the case, they would need to share worries with the imperial court and follow what thew of our Tang Empire says.¡±


    The drawing room was silent. Even though everyone admitted that Chao Xiaoshu was right, things were no longer like in the past and when it came to many things, everyone was still clueless.


    Chen VII looked at the elders and said with his brows furrowed, ¡°I understand what everyone is worried about but I do not think that there is any cause for worry. There can¡¯t be anything wrong with the Edict as it would be too easily exposed. One must know that when His Majesty passed away, at least tens of thousands of people from Hn City could vouch for it.¡±


    Liu V kept silent all this while. He had the highest ranking now and his position was the most crucial. Only now did he look at Chao Xiaoshu with a solemn expression and asked, ¡°Big brother, did His Majesty tell you who he would hand over the throne to?¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu shook his head and thought about the true big brother of the Fish-dragon Gang. Thinking back to how that friend of his would be someone he would never see again, he could not help but had a smear of fatigue between his brows.


    ¡°Everyone, do not do anything during this period.¡± He said.


    Qi IV had a headache as he asked, ¡°Are we supposed to wait like this?¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°What we need to do is wait.¡±


    ¡°Wait for what?¡±


    ¡°Wait for Her Majesty and Master Huang Yang to return to Chang¡¯an.¡±


    ¡°What if they do not return?¡±


    ¡°That means there is a problem.¡±


    The horse hooves flew as the grass that was soaked in water was kicked up in patches.


    Over ten Tang cavalry soldiers rode into the Northern Military Camp. Whether it was the riders or the war-horses, they seemed especially tired with rainwater and mud on them. They looked extremely disheveled.


    The Commandant of the Northern Military Camppared the documents and weed riding arrivals into the Military camp as quickly as he could. He then asked some soldiers to arrange for hot water, food and drinks for the guests.


    The leader of the arriving soldiers said to the general, ¡°I want to meet the head general, we can talk about the restter.¡±


    The Commandant was shocked upon hearing this. He thought to himself that they had rushed over from the Gushan Commandery to the Northern Military Camp and must be incredibly tired. However, he wanted to meet the head general before even resting. What on earth happened?


    The young general from the Gushan Commandery was Hua Shanyue.


    This man had a strong backing and had the full support of the princess. He was young but was already the army chief in three states. The army under hismand was stationed in the Gushan Commandery and whether it was position or power, he was one to watch out for. Since he asked to see the head general as soon as possible, the Northern Military Camp had no reason to stop him.


    In the General¡¯s Mansion, head general Xu Chi looked at the gloomy skies outside the window. He kept silent for a long time before turning around. He looked at Hua Shanyue and said, ¡°You left before the rain stopped?¡±


    Hua Shanyue replied respectfully, ¡°Yes, uncle.¡±


    Xu Chi said, ¡°Young people are always this impatient. You know military things are important and must be handled cautiously. As themander of the army from three states, you left your camp alone and it is already a breach of militaryw. If you had met with any idents along the way, besides the grief your parents would suffer, how would you exin it to the imperial court?¡±


    Hua Shanyue suppressed his exhaustion and said, ¡°This is an urgent matter, so I rushed over.¡±


    Head General Xu Chi was always low-key andposed. Hence when he heard that this was an urgent matter, his expression remained unchanged and he kept silent for a long time again before saying slowly, ¡°Did you know that I had no intentions to meet you?¡±


    Hua Shanyue knew the head general must have guessed why he was here as heughed and said, ¡°But uncle still chose to meet me in the end. This means that you are willing to hear what I have to say.¡±


    Xu Chi said, ¡°I know what you are about to say or should I say, it is what Her Highness... or what His Majesty is about to say to me. However, I still advise you not to say it.¡±


    Hua Shanyue was slightly shocked as he asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    Xu Chi said, ¡°Because those words are bound to be disrespectful. I... do not want to bind you with my own hands.¡±


    Hua Shanyue said, ¡°If uncle will hear my words and still think that I am disrespectful. Then forget about binding me, even if you chop my head off, I will have noints.¡±


    Xu Chi quietly looked him in the eye and said, ¡°The supply of hay from the Northern Military Camp to Hn City had left the city the moment the heavy rain stopped. Do you think what you are about to say still has meaning?¡±


    Hua Shanyue said sincerely, ¡°Head general has some misunderstanding with His Majesty and Her Highness. No one had the intention to cut the supply of hay to Hn City. Even more so, no one would be shameless to y any cheap tricks on the soldiers of the Tang Army. Her Highness¡¯ request to you is simple, she only hopes that you slow down when taking any action in the future.¡±


    Xu Chi brows slowly stirred as his voice got cold. He asked, ¡°Why slower?¡±


    Hua Shanyue didn¡¯t retreat from the gaze as he said, ¡°Uncle, you have always been known for beingposed. This was why the previous emperor had entrusted the Northern Military Camp to you. Now that the new emperor has been enthroned, it is not stable. Theter Her Majesty returns to Chang¡¯an, the more stable the Tang Empire will be. Since that is the case, why not go slower?¡±


    Xu Chi said with a heavy voice, ¡°His Majesty is still in Hn City, do you want me to ignore everything?¡±


    Hua Shanyue said, ¡°There wille a day when His Majesty returns to Chang¡¯an. Chang¡¯an City cannot afford another turmoil.¡±


    ¡°What a childish remark.¡± Xu Chi said expressionlessly, ¡°If that is the case, it is hard for Her Highness to convince me. On the contrary, I will start doubting her intentions.¡±


    Hua Shanyue said, ¡°The Edict was revealed in front of so many civil and military officials. If there was a problem, I believe someone from Chang¡¯an City would have informed uncle secretly. But since up till now, no one, including anyone from Her Majesty has informed you, your suspicions are meaningless.¡±


    There was a sudden disturbance outside the General¡¯s Mansion. An urgent military incident had happened. Hua Shanyue said, ¡°Uncle, go handle it first, we will continue this discussionter.¡±


    After a while, Xu Chi had handled the military affair and returned to the mansion. Looking at Hua Shanyue who was reading a book by the bookshelf and was lost in his own world, he said, ¡°There has been some movement in the Golden Pce.¡±


    Hua Shanyue didn¡¯t expect that the head general would inform him of the emergency military incident. He furrowed his brows and said, ¡°I rushed over from Gushan Commandery and changed four batches of horses along the way. I know better than anyone else that the road after a rain is incredibly tough. It is even tougher in the Wilderness. The convoy can barely make it past but how would arge number of cavalry do so? The grasnd cavalry is slightly lighter and under such weather conditions, it is more favorable for the Tang cavalry. If that is the case, uncle should be more careful.¡±


    ¡°In any case, you just want to persuade me to reach Hn City at a slower pace.¡±


    Head general Xu Chi looked at him and said, ¡°Do not use a possible ambush by the Golden Pce to influence my judgment. My cavalry will never be ambushed by others. Her Highness is a smart person; she knows I will only listen to His Majesty and follow thew of the Tang Empire. To convince me, you must have other means.¡±


    Hua Shanyue took out several files that were wrapped tightly in some oilcloth and ced them lightly on the table.


    ¡°ording to Her Highness¡¯ intentions, these things wouldn¡¯t be necessary to convince uncle. That would be the best result. Because once these leak out, they will leave a huge smudge on the reputation of the Tang Empire and the previous Emperor.¡±


    Hearing his serious words, Xu Chi¡¯s expression turned solemn as well. He walked behind the table and slowly opened up these files. As he read on, his gaze turned colder and colder.

 Chapter 702 - Beginning of the Show

    <h4>Chapter 702: Beginning of the Show</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Xu Chi felt even more disbelief after he finished reading the files on the desk. He looked up at Hua Shanyue coldly, and said, ¡°This is ridiculous! It¡¯s a tant witch hunt!¡±


    Hua Shanyue was not surprised by Xu Chi¡¯s reaction, because he himself couldn¡¯t believe the mystery, either, even though he was the most trusted general of the Princess.


    After all, the secret that the Empress of Tang was the Saintess of Diabolism was unbelievable enough by itself. Hua Shanyue reacted just like Xu Chi, thinking it might be a witch hunt the Princess had set up.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t believe when I heard it at first, either, but the evidence was too convincing.¡±


    He looked depressed and continued, ¡°Now that we¡¯ve got Li Qingshan, the Nation Master¡¯sst words as evidence, all we have to do is to prove the rtionship between the Empress and Xia Hou. Thus all the other things would be revealed.¡±


    Xu Chi recalled what he saw in the files, and in the secret files brought by the Southern Gate Temple from the West-Hill Divine Pce. When he connected that information with what he had learned from the secret files in the pce, his hands suddenly began trembling.


    <i>¡°When was thest time that the Empress was injured or fell ill? The Qingcheng Pce was once on fire, and Her Majesty rushed into it with her servants to save lives. She was highly praised then for her bravery and kindness. However, few people had noticed that all her servants had been burnt, but Her Majesty was barely injured except for some singed hair.¡±</i>


    Hua Shanyue turned serious and said, ¡°Uncle, we Tang people are all believers of Haotian. Our empire might be a tolerant one, but it hasn¡¯t grown that tolerant to harbor viins from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. The Devil¡¯s Doctrine had been wiped out by Ke Haoran, and since then its dregs had been working on their evil avenging n. The Empress and Xia Hou were the most important nners. We cannot watch them while doing nothing.¡±


    Xu Chi turned earnest and suddenly answered, ¡°The West-Hill Divine Pce wants to take advantage of His Majesty¡¯s death to attack our kingdom. All the choices we make now can be of vital importance, and I don¡¯t mind if results are evil as long as it can keep the Tang Empire standing strong.¡±


    Hua Shanyue was slightly surprised. He was after all a young man. However, Xu Chi had lived long enough to have killed and fought in all kingdoms, to have dealt with tough Haotian Taoism powerhouses in the darkness. It was hard for Hua Shanyue to understand Xu Chi¡¯s crazy idea to team up with the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    He asked sternly, ¡°Will you let a she-devil from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine be the Empress?¡±


    Xu Chi rattled, ¡°I think His Majesty was wise enough to figure out who the Empress was during their 20-year marriage. And I¡¯m OK with it if His Majesty had lived with it.¡±


    Hua Shanyue suddenly felt tired because the book he had brought here didn¡¯t work as he expected. He asked in frustration, ¡°What if her son bes the ruler of the Tang Empire?¡±


    Xu Chi was silenced.


    The words of His Highness in the secret letter suddenly came into Hua Shanyue¡¯s mind. He walked towards the desk and questioned in anger, ¡°His Majesty died young because the Empress poisoned him, how about that?¡±


    Xu Chi looked up all of a sudden.


    Hua Shanyue stared at him in the eyes and said, ¡°All of these will be clear one day. And what His Highness asked was to do it in a slower way. The long ruling and stability of the empire, they all depend on your choice now.¡±


    In the Imperial Pce of Chang¡¯an.


    The present emperor of Tang, Li Huiyuan, was looking up at the sky. Unlike the sky which was grey, his face looked quite lit up. With a smile he said, ¡°My Royal Sister used to tell me never to mind the rumors. No matter how those rebels and traitors suspected the Edict, or no matter who supported me. The only thing that matters is the military leadership and the stability of Chang¡¯an.¡±


    He Mingchi was listening to him silently, the yellow oiled-paper umbre in his arms. Then he said, ¡°Your Majesty surely has reliable judging ability on those things, considering how many years you¡¯ve been engaged in political affairs.¡±


    <i>¡°To be reliable in one aspect didn¡¯t mean being reliable in everything. And furthermore, what¡¯s the point of you being here if you rely on me to do all things?¡±</i>


    Li Huiyuan was smart enough to read between the lines. He turned acrimonious and said in a cold voice, ¡°Don¡¯t you ever try to make mischief between me and my sister! I¡¯ll forgive you this time since you¡¯ve made such a generous contribution. I will pretend that I didn¡¯t hear anything today. You know very well what will happen if you do it again.¡±


    He Mingchi frowned and answered, ¡°Yes, I know.¡±


    ¡°The year beforest, my sister sent Xian Langzhi to Tuyang City, and now I¡¯m almost in control of the Northeast Border Military. Shucheng was too young, and the West Military of Tang was too weak. Shu Cheng wouldn¡¯t speak a word before the whole situation is cleared out if he was smart enough.¡±


    Li Huiyuan then said calmly, ¡°Hua Shanyue must be talking to Xu Chi about that thing now. And if it works, the Northern Military Camp will no longer support that woman.¡±


    He Mingchi was clear about ¡°the thing¡± that His Majesty meant. Actually, He Mingchi was the one who had told Li Yu and her brother about the Empress¡¯ secret.


    ¡°The only problem now is Xu Shi. He¡¯s enjoying his old age in the south.¡± Said Li Huiyuan, and he frowned again.


    He Mingchi agreed, ¡°He may be the most difficult one to deal with.¡±


    Li Huiyuan showed his agreement through his silence.


    He Mingchi then said, ¡°Xu Shi was the Defender-general of the State. He was experienced and well connected. Even the Yulin Royal Guards must obey his transfer order. And he is so highly respected that nobody would dare to touch him.¡±


    Li Huiyuan looked at the grey clouds above the pce. With his face turning gloomy, he said, ¡°The old man has been convalescing for years, but refuses to truly retire. With him in court, would the Tang army be mine, or his?¡±


    He Mingchi halted for a moment and asked, ¡°How would Your Majesty persuade Xu Shi? I would like to share your concerns.¡±


    Li Hui answered in a slightly sarcastic manner, ¡°In the early years, even Uncle Qingshan had to avoid confrontation with Xu Shi. There won¡¯t be any difference even if I bestowed on you the title of Nation Master. If you can really make a difference, the Southern Gate Temple would¡¯ve never fallen to be inferior to the West-Hill Divine Pce.¡±


    He Mingchi then said, ¡°So it is. But with Your Majesty¡¯s ruling, I believe someday in the future the Southern Gate Temple would definitely surpass the West-Hill Divine Pce, which would bring back the honor of Tang.¡±


    ¡°We still have a long way to go.¡±


    Li Huiyuan squinted and suddenly said, ¡°You and the West-Hill Temple had the same origin. You must be close to each other. Is it possible that you can find a way to negotiate with someone in the West-Hill Divine Pce?¡±


    He Mingchi was surprised and against the idea. He argued, ¡°Your Majesty, that...¡±


    ¡°I know it¡¯s like negotiating with a tiger to get its skin. I know what those old bastards in the West-Hill Divine Pce want, and I can afford that. I know what I want to, and I clearly know that I cannot afford to lose it.¡±


    Li Huiyuan then waved his hand and continued with his gloomy face, ¡°To resist a foreign invasion, the country must keep itself stable first. When the Tang Empire was established, the Taizu had signed a series of unfair and humiliating agreements with the Deste. But in the end, we evicted them out of the grasnd. They had to migrate to the Cold Region in the Far North like cattle and sheep, suffering from extreme coldness. And I swear I¡¯ll deal with the Peach Mountain like that one day!¡±


    The Headmaster and the Emperor of Tang died in session. The whole nation seemed to have epted their deaths calmly because folks had witnessed too much living and death, and had be tougher and tougher. However, deep inside them, especially inside the hearts of those Tang bigwigs, changes had taken ce.


    And even those bigwigs themselves hadn¡¯t noticed that they had changed. They were no longer as confident and direct as they were before the Headmaster¡¯s and the Emperor¡¯s deaths. They became calcting, and they even asked for help from external forces.


    And as for the thousands of Tang soldiers in Hn City, their change was on an emotional level. When the military food supply was cut shorter and shorter, the whole army was getting more and more depressed.


    ¡°We had already sent three Cavalry Messenger Teams before the rain stopped, and also sent a few more after. ording to our estimates, the food sent by the Northern Military Camp will arrive by the day after tomorrow. You don¡¯t need to worry too much, Your Majesty.¡±


    General Han Qing reported in a low voice.


    The Empress was expressionless. ¡°What if all the Messengers were killed halfway?¡±


    Han Qing turned grim. He was trying to swallow the cursing words he was about to speak out. But of course, he had no reason to get angry with Her Majesty, and it was someone else in Chang¡¯an that had angered him.


    People in Hn city had tried again that night to send messages to Chang¡¯an, only to find that the talisman in the pce of Chang¡¯an had been shut off. That was when the people in Hn city got to know what had happened.


    Han Qing then said softly, ¡°We¡¯ll head back to the south tomorrow. Please worry no more, Your Majesty. Nobody would dare to obstruct our way home.¡±


    The Empress then said, ¡°Nobody dares to obstruct our military food transportation. Xu Chi wouldn¡¯t dare, and neither would Li Yu. Our food didn¡¯t arrive on time. Maybe there¡¯s something wrong in the Wilderness, not in the Northern Military Camp.¡±


    Master Huang Yang, who had kept silent, then said, ¡°I¡¯ll take a detour from the Eastern Wilderness to return to Chang¡¯an first.¡±


    The Empress said tiredly, ¡°The royal court was strongly shocked because both the Headmaster and His Majesty died. And when the royal court is shocked, so would be the whole nation. I guess the Eastern Wilderness isn¡¯t having its most peaceful time, either. And Li Yu is ady smart enough to have guessed what¡¯s happening. She was sure that she could deal with the situation, but I¡¯m afraid that she has underestimated the capacity of the enemy she¡¯s facing.¡±


    Han Qing frowned and asked, ¡°Your Majesty, do you think... that the Princess obstructed our food transportation because she has colluded with the Golden Pce?¡±


    The Empress shook her head and said, ¡°As shortsighted as Li Yu might be, she is well aware of her own Tang identity, and she would never do that. I guess the Golden Pce odd move was due to the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s maniptions. I believe Li Yu will be d if she knew in any case.¡±


    Thousands of grasnd cavalry soldiers appeared on the border of Yan territory.


    Days of pouring rain had moisturized the grasnd quite well. The wild wind was howling, while no dust was getting blown around. However, the Wilderness was getting dusty. The dust rose into the sky when the cavalries approached. One could only imagine how many people there were on horseback.


    Long Qing was feeling the silver mask on his face while looking toward his homnd, the Yan Kingdom in the south. In his eyes there was no homing excitement; no nostalgia, no ming of resentment, nothing but indifference.

 Chapter 703 - Battle in Capital Cheng (I)

    <h4>Chapter 703: Battle in Capital Cheng (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The battle was firstly triggered by the Left King¡¯s Pce and the Deste, when they fought over a piece ofnd. Then the war spread, finally involving all other countries in the world.


    It was hard to imagine that the Left King¡¯s Pce was the first one to exit the war. It had the least amount of losses during the war and with the support of the West-Hill Divine Pce, it had retained most of its strength.


    With the dust behind them, thousands of cavalries marched into Yan territory. They imed that they were going to overthrow the Tang Empire in the name of Heaven, which in most people¡¯s eyes was quite a poor excuse.


    Most people believed it was because Long Qing had taken full control of the Left King¡¯s Pce, and he was back in Yan Kingdom to seize what was supposed to be his, including the throne.


    But knowing that wouldn¡¯t make any difference. The Yan Kingdom was too weak and poor under the pressure of the Tang Empire to fight against the cavalries invading in like tigers and wolves. Moreover, Prince Long Qing had enough supporters in Yan Kingdom, and most of the counties barely resisted because they wanted to protect their own military power. The cavalries kept marching south, barely running into any real battles before they reached Chengjing City.


    The army of Yan was no match for the grasnd cavalries. The Yan Army failed and failed. And with the connections Long Qing had with his n and his old subordinates, more than ten cities surrendered without any resistance. And after the whole north of the capital city surrendered, nobody was able to stop Long Qing from returning to the capital city which he had missed for long.


    In the dark night, thousands of torches glowed with mes on the gate tower. The tower was lit up, making the wall shine as if it were daytime. The city was in its tightest security, but no one had noticed that the gate of Southern City, which was supposed to be closed, was quietly opened.


    Dozens of soldiers guarding the city waved at the darknds.


    There was the sound of horse clopping, and the moon shone amid the clouds. Then the grasnd was upied by grasnd cavalries. What a shocking scene!


    Chengjing City had fallen.


    The cavalries covered the hooves with cotton, but when they entered the city and marched on the narrow streets, the clopping sound was still too dense to fool the residents¡¯ ears.


    The doors on both sides of the street were tightly closed. Some of the braver Yan residents watched the foreign cavalries on the streets secretly through the door crack. The whole marching line was too long for the residents to see its end.


    The citizens of Yan were shocked and frightened. That was when they finally realized that the rumor was true. Their Prince, Long Qing, did be the ruler of the Left King¡¯s Pce. <i>¡°How many barbarians have entered the city today? Will they restrain their sanguinary nature? Will they obey the Prince and refrain from killing or robbing?¡±</i>


    The reflection of the ming torch made the silver mask shine like gold.


    Long Qing was looking far into the Imperial Pce. There was no expression on the part of his face not covered by the mask. Then he took out a map and looked at the marks and ns on the map in silence.


    The grasnd cavalry swept all before it like nothing when heading to the north, and in the end, it captured the capital city with true ease. The sess should be attributed to Long Qing¡¯s supportive n in Yan Kingdom as well as his old subordinates who had persuaded almost the whole imperial court of Yan¡¯s. However, the map he was looking at right now was not the strategic map of Capital Cheng his old subordinates smuggled for him.


    This one was drawn by himself. He had made it and had it sent to Capital Cheng before he led the cavalry of the Left King¡¯s Pce to lurk and attack the ck horse carriage in spring. This one was a copy of that one he madeter.


    Long Qing frowned as he thought of the day when they tried to ambush the ck horse carriage but were attacked by the Deste instead. He could¡¯ve made tonight even easier if he hadn¡¯t lost that many cavalries in the ambush.


    Now victory was assured if he led his army after Tang when Yan had been conquered. He would definitely be happy seeing Ning Que¡¯s kingdom burning in the fire he set.


    Long Qing watched Capital Cheng in the dark night. The streets under the moonlight reminded him of their equivalent marks he had made on the map. His lips curled to make aplicated smile as if he was waiting for someone to show up, or something to happen.


    In the northwest of Capital Cheng, there was a normal restaurant. However, around the restaurant, hundreds of Tang soldiers were lurking with podaos on their backs. There were dozens of messengers of Tang and Yan waiting there.


    Upstairs in the building, Xian Zhng rubbed his sore eyes. He checked his strategy again to make sure it was perfect. Then he said to one of the generals of Yan¡¯s, ¡°I hope we can work it out together.¡±


    The general of Yan said reverently, ¡°His Highness is so grateful that Her Highness can help us. His Highness wants you to take good care because Long Qing¡¯s betrayal was nearly overwhelming.¡±


    ¡°Long Qing has the ambition and the guts. And he is quite capable of taking advantage of the current political situation. He had found a new way to rise up after he was listed as a wanted man by the West-Hill Divine Pce.¡± Said Xian Zhng.


    ¡°Now that he¡¯s back in the West-Hill Divine Pce, and is supported by Haotian Taoism, he¡¯s getting more arrogant than ever. But there¡¯s one thing he doesn¡¯t understand¡ª one could never be invincible even if he had the Divine Hall behind him, or our Tang Empire wouldn¡¯t have survived andsted this long.¡±


    The general of Yan then said, ¡°His Highness would be more joyful if he could be here to share your confidence.¡±


    Xian Zhng was the General of the North of Tang Empire, and he was supposed to be in Tuyang City now, ordering the Northeast Border Military which was famous for its devastating power. No one had expected that he would now be in the capital of Yan Kingdom.


    And since he was here, so was his army.


    After the battle on the Wilderness, the Tang Army split into two and withdrew. The Northeast Border Military pretended to have gone back to Tuyang City, and nobody knew that they had actually lurked into the Yan territory, setting up an ambush around Chengjing City.


    The reason why Yan¡¯s Army surrendered so easily, and why they let the grasnd cavalry go into Capital Cheng was that they were preparing for the killing tonight!


    The killing was a weing gift Crown Prince Chong Ming had prepared for his younger brother. And this was why Li Yu was confident even when she knew the situation in the Eastern Wilderness had changed.


    Xian Zhng leaned against the handrail on the restaurant¡¯s balcony. He looked far into the south, where the sky was shimmering, and he could even hear the clopping of horse hooves.


    Long Qing led the army south and was determined to take the throne of the Yan Kingdom. While Chang¡¯an City preferred Crown Prince Chong Ming to seed the throne of Yan Kingdom. Even if the old friendship between the Princess and Crown Prince Chong Ming was disregarded, the interests of the Tang Empire itself meant that it was impossible for them to allow Long Qing to change the situation of their Yan Kingdom so easily.


    Xian Zhng turned gloomy when he heard the news from Chang¡¯an and Gushan Commandery.


    He had not deployed all his army to Capital Cheng, so he had got only 4,000 armored cavalries tonight. However, the 4,000 was powerful enough to be the dominating and decisive power of Tuyang City tonight.


    Those grasnd cavalries, who knew no more than archery or horse riding, were no match for the unrivaled armored cavalry of Tang in Xian Zhng¡¯s eyes, but still, he felt a little anxious.


    It had nothing to do with Yan Kingdom, it was all about Chang¡¯an.


    Chang¡¯an had been growing unstable since the new Emperor seeded the throne. The Empire was endangered in every way. The war tonight had to happen for the stability of both the imperial court and the Empire.


    The war had to happen, for the settlement of the new era of Tang.


    He had to win, perfectly andpletely.


    In the northeast of Chengjing City was a prince residence. It used to be Prince Long Qing¡¯s. It had been abandoned for years, but through its ruin people could still see how beautiful and luxurious it was in those years.


    Everyone knew what Prince Long Qing was heading for. The Imperial Pce, which was once the safest, now became the most dangerous ce that Crown Prince Chong Ming had to leave.


    He left for the prince residence with several of his most trusted servants and subordinates. Then he locked himself in the study, spending days and nights in there.


    He looked at the dusty books on the bookshelves, which reminded him of the scene when he carried young Long Qing in his arms and taught him how to read. A nostalgic smile emerged on his face.


    Atst, he calmed down and walked out of the study.


    ¡°The Intelligence Agency is still calcting the number of invaders. They cannot be sure but the number differs a lot from the one they estimated when the invaders first crossed the border.¡±


    An official reported.


    Crown Prince Chong Ming then asked, ¡°How is it going at the restaurant?¡±


    One of his subordinates answered, ¡°The Tang Army is staying still, waiting for the firework signal.¡±


    ¡°Then it has to be started with sacrifice.¡±


    Crown Prince Chong Ming then ordered, ¡°Now, release the firework signal to inform all the people in the city.¡±


    Soon after his words, a beautiful firework disy rushed out of the government office and into the Night Dome. It reached so high that it seemed to have touched the moon. Most people in town had seen the signal.


    Prince Chongming watched the firework fading in the moonlight. After a long silence, he asked, ¡°The armored cavalry of Tang called themselves ¡®the unrivaled one¡¯, so have they ever been defeated?¡±


    The armored cavalries were the most devastating forces on all battlefields. Even powerful cultivators were no match for them. However, just as nothing in the world is wless, the heavy armour cavalry surely had its weakness.


    For the heavy armored cavalries, their armors were too heavy. Thus they were not as flexible as the light armored cavalries when it came to wars in narrow ces. That was the most obvious disadvantage.


    What was worse, the maintainance of the heavy armored cavalries really cost a fortune. An armored cavalry required lots of assistants which usually cost much. That was the reason why Tang and the West-Hill Divine Pce were the only two powers that had heavy armored cavalries.


    There was a reason why the heavy armored cavalry was called the ¡°game changer¡± on battle fields. It was born to charge. And it was the nightmare of all other countries.


    The streets of the capital of Yan Kingdom were long, straight andplicated. It was not the best ce for the heavy armor cavalry to line up or to charge ordingly. Given that all Long Qing had with him were light armored cavalries, the heavy armor cavalries of Tang should make full use of its impact power with the assistance of the local army of Yan Kingdom.


    Xian Zhiliang had totally honored his name as the ¡°Wise General¡±. If everything happened ording to his strategy and deployment, Prince Long Qing, who wasing to overthrow Tang in name of the heaven, and his light armored cavalries, would be no more than aughingstock in historyter after tonight.


    Fireworks were lighting up the sky.


    Soldiers of Tang around the restaurant all looked up to the sky, proudly and calmly, with podao swords on their backs.


    Xian Zhng saw the firework signal and then gave his order, ¡°Attack.¡±


    Long Qing saw the fireworks, too.


    The corners of his mouth raised even more, showing that he was more than pleased.


    ¡°Among the Four Greatest Generals of Tang, Xian Zhng is the one distinguished for his intelligence. He calctes people based on their conflicts of interests. What he doesn¡¯t know is that there are plenty of interests in the world, and the one that matters most is called ¡®righteousness¡¯.¡±


    Long Qing looked down to his subordinates of the pce and said, ¡°Now the show is on. This is the world¡¯s first fight with Tang and Haotian is watching us. Let¡¯s kill all the arrogant Tangs in the nation.¡±


    After that, he jerked his reins and rode the horse into a quiet alley with ten more generals behind him. He was going to do the most crucial task¡ª he was going to obstruct the Tangs¡¯ escape route.


    The Imperial Pce of Yan Kingdom looked extremely grand in the dark night. Under its cornices were endless autumn leaves. The leaves were reflecting the cold moonlight, making the ce look like a fairnd.


    The grasnd cavalries¡¯ eyes turned red when they imagined themselves in the Imperial Pce taking advantage of the pce maids. When they heard themand, they couldn¡¯t wait to rush into the pce with noisy whistles.


    They pulled out their cusses and rushed forward on their horses.


    Hundreds of cavalries rushed across the streets and then they fell on the ground in session. Ten more chevaux de frise had torn the horses¡¯ legs. At the same time, the Yan Army lurking around started to shoot arrows like a shower. Those cavalries screamed in pain and died swiftly.


    The war would never stop until it had to. The whole Chengjing City was screaming and howling. The dark night turned bloody, with broken limbs flying all around in the moonlight.


    ¡°There shouldn¡¯t be a problem.¡±


    On the straight and broad path beside the Imperial Pce of Yan, there was no torch ming, and there was no sound. Through the tree leaves, moonlight fell on the heavy armor of the cavalries of Tang. The armors on men and on horses shone in the cold light.


    This was the armored cavalry¡¯s Forward Camp of the Tang¡¯s Northeast Border Military.


    The general of the Forward Camp pulled down his iron mask. Then he pulled out his long sword, pointing to the night sky before them. In time, the whole street began roaring and screaming, ¡°Run over them!¡±


    The hooves were clipping. Armored cavalries stepped heavily on the hard floor. They began to charge like they had been doing in years, shaking the whole city and even the ground it was built on.


    The whole city started to shake.


    This deadly ambush against Long Qing and his cavalries had been designed and arranged with no efforts spared. The army of Yan and Tang had practiced the maneuvers several times until they were totally familiar with every detail.


    When the Tang Empire¡¯s armored cavalry rushed out of the straight path, the side of the Imperial Pce seemed like flooded with iron. The Yan¡¯s army that had been struggling earlier stepped out of the way as fast as possible.


    The grasnd cavalry waved their cusses, trying to find Yan survivors. Suddenly they felt the earth shaking and the horses under them getting restless. They looked to the north subconsciously, only to see Tang cavalries and their horses in ck armors.


    ¡°The Tangs!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s the Tangs!¡±


    ¡°Retreat!¡±


    The rming cry of the grasnd cavalries carried little weight on the heavy armored cavalries of Tang. The Tangs were rushing at an unbelievable speed and charged with a devastating impact, leaving dead bodies of men and horses behind.


    However, it was at this moment that something unexpected had happened.

 Chapter 704 - Battle in Capital Cheng (II)

    <h4>Chapter 704: Battle in Capital Cheng (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The archway at the corner of the street suddenly copsed.


    Then, the buildings next to it sessively copsed, stirring dust and smoke. Countless bricks and woods piled up like a small mountain, blocking Long Street.


    The grasnd cavalry head¡¯s anxious and panicked expression turned ferocious. Staring at the approaching army, he held his cuss in his hand and stopped retreating.


    The countless grasnd cavalry stopped retreating.


    All of a sudden, more heel ropes were set up on the chaotic street, entangling the horseshoes of Tang¡¯s armored cavalry.


    The horses heavily fell down on the hard ground, making a dull sound. Many soldiers were hurt.


    More soldiers of Yan showed up on the buildings on both sides of the street and began shooting at the Tang army. The arrows raged like a rainstorm and caused massive destruction.


    From time to time, buildings copsed and blocked the street, which was difficult for the Tang Army to ovee. Some of them were buried under the buildings and were unable to stand up.


    This was indeed an ambush.


    However, it was not for the grasnd cavalry.


    It was for the Tang Army.


    The ck armored cavalry of Tang was invincible.


    Could it still be invincible today?


    Looking at his falling subordinates, the Tang general turned to the Yan Army and the grasnd cavalry and said, ¡°Kill them all. Kill them all and we can get out of here.¡±


    The ambushes happened everywhere in the city.


    The Tang Army had suffered a heavy blow, but they still kept charging. With the anger of betrayal and the sadness for theirrades¡¯ deaths, they waved podaos and spears, rushing toward their enemies.


    The Northeast Border Army faced the hardest situation and the most numerous enemies on Long Street. The waves of enemies and the skillful grasnd cavalry seemed unable to be eliminated, ever.


    Even so, there was no enemy that could not be eliminated.


    Every cavalryman of Tang had a belief: as the general said, as long as they could kill all the enemies, they could get out.


    All kinds of noises sounded in Long Street. The waves of enemies were shocked by the Tang Army and left an opening in a wide crossroads.


    The general passed the broken padao to his left hand and shouted in a deep voice, ¡°Continue to charge!¡±


    As long as they could rush out of Long Street, the Yan Army could no longer organize an effective interception. Then, ording to the Great General¡¯s n, he could lead his soldiers to the Eastern City gate and return.


    Though he didn¡¯t look back, he knew he had lost half of his army.


    This was the biggest loss of the Tang armored cavalry for decades, but he wasn¡¯t sad. He knew that every soldier would have killed many more enemies before dying.


    It was enough.


    They could stand up and proudly go back.


    The general tied down his halter and ran forward, hewed a grasnd soldier¡¯s head in the blood rain.


    Suddenly, he felt numb on his injured right hand.


    His tired horse stopped.


    The hundreds of cavalrymen fell silent as well.


    The grasnd cavalry had already been scattered and the formation was in a mess.


    However, the previous gap, where they could leave through, was refilled once again.


    The cavalrymen wore ck armor as well. Compared to the Tang cavalrymen, they were covered with golden talisman lines, shining with light in the night.


    There were only two groups of cavalry qualified topete with the Tang¡¯s in the world.


    One was from the Golden Pce.


    The other was from the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    In the rumor, the Divine Hall¡¯s Papal Cavalrymen was too powerful and a thousand of them would be invincible.


    For years, in order to appease the countries in the world, the number of the Papal Cavalrymen was controlled within a thousand riders.


    However, it became a lie when they showed up.


    The number of the Papal Cavalrymen had already been over a thousand.


    The general narrowed his eyes and took off his mask, looking at the other side of the street.


    He wiped off his blood from his face and burst intoughter after a while.


    ¡°I have been trying to verify one thing in my life. You, the West-Hill¡¯s cavalry are pure bullshit. I didn¡¯t expect that I can have a chance to prove that before I die.¡±


    The general stoppedughing, lifting his podao, and said, ¡°Who would like to go with me?¡±


    Hundreds of Tang soldiers answered him in the same breath. They were fearless and had decided to fight with their lives on the line.


    On the restaurant.


    Looking at the city in the night, Xian Zhng tightened his hands holding the handrail.


    He narrowed his eyes, and then loosened his right hand after a short time, knocking on the handrail.


    When he knocked with his ring finger, he stopped and issued three military orders.


    ¡°Forward Camp, disperse with permission to kill at will in the city. We need to stall until dawn.¡±


    ¡°The rest of the army will arrive at the Eastern Gate in an hour, taking the opposite routes.¡±


    ¡°The guard battalion will go to the prince¡¯s residence with me.¡±


    The officers and signallers in the restaurant were stunned and then began to act.


    They should not be stunned, but the three orders were too shocking to digest.


    To disperse the Forward Camp was equivalent to win some time for the rest of the cavalry¡¯s retreat with their lives.


    ¡°We have lost.¡±


    Looking at his soldiers, Xian Zhng said, ¡°We should make it pretty. If any of lives after this, remember to tell the Princess¡ªwe lost because we trusted the wrong person. Now we are fighting against the whole world. We should trust no one but the Tangs.¡±


    After saying this, he looked at the Yan¡¯s general.


    The man was one of the most important generals in Yan who was qualified to be here.


    Looking at Xian Zhng, he made a sad smile and then killed himself with his saber.


    Xian Zhng walked down the restaurant.


    Dozens of soldiers, who were carrying their podaos, walked out of the dark. They looked around with vignce and realized they were ambushed. That meant the Great General was the first one their enemies wanted to kill.


    However, Xian Zhng didn¡¯t wait to be killed.


    His third order had indicated his choice.


    He went to the prince¡¯s residence with his guard battalion.


    He was going to meet Crown Prince Chong Ming.


    He needed to kill him, or be killed by him.

 Chapter 705 - Temporary Defeat

    <h4>Chapter 705: Temporary Defeat</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Li Yu trusted in Crown Prince Chong Ming whom she had known for many years. That was the reason why the betrayal and ughter raging in the Capital of Yan Kingdom tonight would happen. Xian Zhng trusted Li Yu, but he was an able general of the empire who was known for his resourcefulness; besides acting in concert with Yan Kingdom¡¯s move ording to Li Yu¡¯s demand out of his confidence in Li Yu, he did not forget to make his own arrangements.


    For the sake of safety, he arranged a way out for thousands of Tang Empire ck-armored cavalries to sneak into Chengjing City. The way out lied in the rtively least eye-catching Eastern City Gate.


    The military orders were spread from restaurants to everywhere in Chengjing City via fireworks and the loyal cavalries. The cavalries of Tang Empire fought their enemies bravely and made their killing towards Eastern City Gate desperately, gradually gathering.


    If Chong Ming and Long Qing were to allow the Tang Cavalries to converge their military strength together into one spot and to burst out of the city gate, finally making their way into wilderness, with the then deadly position transitioning into a position of origin, it would be extremely difficult for them to annihte thousands of armored cavalries.


    It was through years of patience and disguise that Chong Ming and Long Qing, the two brothers, finally obtained such a good opportunity. How would they allow this kind of situation to happen? At the time when the battle initiated, they had ordered the city gates in all the directions to be closed off.


    The measures the Yans adopted were extremely cruel and relentless. The city gates were not closed as usual; instead, they were directly sealed with 10 thousand tons of stones and bulky iron gates. Thus, after the war ended, many civilian workers and forcedbor would be employed to reopen the city gate. Even though the Tang Army would have made their way to the city gate, they would not be able to leave the city at all.


    The only variable would be in the Eastern City Gate where the way out Xian Zhng had arranged for the Tang Army lied and where he had naturally made some arrangements. A few strong militants in the Tang Army had taken control of the Eastern City Gate via leading hundreds of valiant fighters of the Tang Army.


    The bulky iron gate hung in the air. The 10 thousand tons of stones were only a few feet away from the tunnel. Blood ran all over the floor of the city gate while the bodies of Yan Kingdom¡¯s city defendersy amid pools of blood.


    One could imagine how staggering and bloody the previous fight had been.


    Gazing far into the city enveloped by the cover of night, hearing the sound of screaming and fighting drifting from afar and the sounds of buildings copsing, the Tang Army soldiers stood at the waist of the city wall, with anxiety written all over their faces.


    Meanwhile, the part of the Yan Army inside the city was caught up by the strong Tang Cavalries right now. Even though some of them noticed the on-goings in the Eastern City Gate, they would not be able to transfer a powerful enough army.


    But all in all, it was impossible for them to fight on to the end.


    All they hoped was to see the figures of theirrades as soon as possible.


    Sounds of hoofbeats gradually rang out.


    Looks of surprise were revealed on the Tang Army¡¯s faces.


    But a short whileter, the surprise on their faces all turned into anger and disappointment.


    A lot of people dressed in ck-priest clothing and cavalries showed up at the Eastern City Gate.


    The one at the forefront wore a silvery mask.


    It was Prince Long Qing and his fallen knightmanders that wereing.


    A ck peach blossom was in full bloom.


    A powerhouse in the Tang Army quickly threw a punch, hitting that ck peach blossom brutally.


    Petals of the ck peach blossom quivered slightly.


    Another powerhouse in the Tang Army swept down from the city wall.


    Several strong powerhouses in the Tang Armyunched a synchronized attack at Long Qing.


    The Tang Army did not concern itself with the fallen knightmander and focused only on the man wearing a silver mask.


    All of a sudden, the aura and breath of the world became turbulent.


    The thick city wall peeled off rustlingly.


    Even the ancient city tiles began to shudder.


    As for how long it had been going on, nobody could tell.


    There was a sudden boom.


    The 10 thousand tons of stones rolled down.


    The iron gate mmed into the ground heavily.


    ¡°The Eastern City Gate has fallen.¡±


    A subordinate was staring at the firework warning rising from the east with a ghastly pallor.


    Xian Zhng stopped walking, looking just as calm as before.


    After a few moments¡¯ silence, he said, ¡°Since we can¡¯t leave, then we shall stay.¡±


    ¡°Give mymand to all the camp generals that the Forward Camp is now in direct conflict with the Papal Cavalrymen of the West-Hill Divine Pce. Tell them that if they do not want to miss out something that fun, they all should go to the Archway Square and then to the Imperial Pce after all that is set.¡±


    ¡°Tell them that the goal of the battle has now changed. We currently have only two goals. The first one is to annihte the cavalries of the West-Hill Divine Pcepletely and the second one is to burn the Imperial Pce of the Yan Kingdom down and to kill the Yan Emperor.¡±


    After a moment¡¯s silence, Xian Zhng said then, ¡°If we can achieve both these two goals, then even though we may die here in such an idiotic way, we will have done our part for all the fellows in our Tang Empire.¡±


    For the whole night, Chengjing City had been shuddering.


    The iron gate falling in the Eastern City Gate was shaking continuously as well. Crashes, sounds of beating, kicking and hacking went off from time to time. It was until a long timeter before everything went quiet.


    Dawn broke.


    Chengjing City in daytime finally became much quieter. It is only from some ces that sound of chasing and fighting was still heard. The local authority started to get the civilian workers and local government runners organized to clean up the streets and alleys.


    The iron gate at the Eastern City Gate was eventually pulled up at noon.


    Corpses were seen everywhere in front of the iron gate, with remains of the Tangs and the Yans included, among which there were some others dressed in peculiar ck-priest clothing. As the gate was lifted up, the blood which was notpletely frozen flooded out like streams.


    Seeing such a horrifying sight, the Yan Kingdom¡¯s civilian forces and soldiers all wore extremely pale looks on their faces. Especially when they saw those deep-cut palm prints and scars from the knife wounds embedded on the iron gates, they felt more terrified. They wondered inwardly, <i>¡®Is the Tang Army human or not? How can they be still filled with such frightening resolution even in such a desperate a situation?¡¯</i>


    Having been hostile to Tang for many years, the Yan Kingdom had never won a victory in the battlefield. And it had always been in a position of being humiliated and bullied. The battlest night was no doubt the biggest victory that the Yan Kingdom had gained over all the anti-Tang battles in history. And it deserved to be recorded in the books and sent to all to appease the resentment the Yans had suffered for years.


    Faced with such a great victory, normally all the people in the Yan Kingdom would have held a national celebration. But actually, there was no such atmosphere in Chengjing City at that time. The ones who had gained a victory felt no happiness at all.


    People cleaned up the dpidated corpses on the street with fear and revulsion. And they swept the scattered guts with brooms. For how many Yan Soldiers and grasnd cavalries had been stampeded into muddy flesh, nobody could tell.


    There was still sporadic fighting going on in some street alleys which none of the Yans dared to be close to. Only the Yan Army and barbariansing from the grasnd took their weapons and searched around with terror in their hearts. A young Yan Soldier found a Tang Empire cavalryman who was barely alive in a street corner; he hacked at him continuously in an extremely mechanic and numb way.


    The Tang Soldier had long since been on the brink of death. He did not feel any pain at all with so many cuts across his body. Instead, he looked up at the young Yan Soldier with indifference and ridicule in his eyes.


    He spat on the Yan Soldier. But there had been numerous holes pierced through his chest and lung, consequently, his breath was on the point of dying out and his spittle was bloody. The saliva he spat out could not be thrown out far away in the end and ended upnding on his own chest. He died then.


    However, the young Yan Soldier was taken aback. Throwing away his knife, he escaped while screaming and shouting.


    In the north-eastern direction of Chengjing City.


    Outside the residence previously owned by Prince Long Qing.


    Hundreds of Yan Soldiers and grasnd cavalries besieged the princely residence to a watertight extent.


    There were many corpses of the Tang Army lying dead in front of its gate, with most of them strewn fully with feather arrows all over their bodies. A few Tang Soldiers attacked forward to the upper stone stairway, however not being able to move any further.


    There were also a few other Tang Soldiers standing on the street, engulfed inyers of tight encirclement.


    They ced Xian Zhng amid their protection.


    With blood all over his body, Xian Zhng¡¯s face was devoid of any expression.


    Momentster, there were a few other Tang Soldiers falling to the ground out of exhaustion.


    Now there only remained Xian Zhng and two generals from the guards camp.


    Looking at the enemies pressing on from their surroundings, the generalmander asked all of a sudden, ¡°Great General, if we die at this time, would we fail to live up to the domineering reputation of the Tang Empire?¡±


    Xian Zhng said, ¡°All of the mistakes were made by Her Highness and me, and have nothing to do with you.¡±


    That general said, ¡°Then all is good. Kindly see me off, Great General.¡±


    Xian Zhngughed till he coughed and said, ¡°Is it not you who will see me off?¡±


    With a grave expression, the general said, ¡°ording to the military rules set up by the Tang Empirews, I must die before you, Great General.¡±


    Restraining his smiles, Xian Zhng drew out his sword and said, ¡°You know how terrible my swordsmanship is, kindly forgive me.¡±


    The general then said, ¡°After the Great General came to Tuyang City, we held too much disrespect toward you. Kindly forgive us.¡±


    Giving the general a nod, Xian Zhng hacked off his head with one sword sh.


    Then he looked towards the direction of The Royal Pce of the Yan Kingdom, with a somewhat regretful expression written on his face.


    With the main gate of the Prince¡¯s residence opening up, Crown Prince Chong Ming walked out shorly after.


    Prince Long Qing walked over from the outer-ring as the military groups were dividing up gradually.


    They both looked at Xian Zhng who stood with a sword in his hands. It was exactly them who had sesfully schemed against this grand general of the Tang Empire, who was known for his resourcefulness. It was also them who had eventually won. But they just could not feel any sense of joy at all.


    Staring at the frail-looking general, Long Qing felt even somewhat cold.


    His shoulder suffered from a grievous knife wound from the battlest night.


    The strength of the Tang Cavalries was so horrifying. Their final irrational and fitful counterattack had almost ruined all of his ns, to his surprise.


    Even fighting to the end, when the situation for the Tang Army had all gone awry, Xian Zhng still sessfully organized a head-hacking activity in such an extremely short time. If there had not been two powerful Martial Arts masters sent out by the West-Hill Divine Pce who had been by their side and who had protected him with their own lives, he could have died during the assassination. The whole battle situation would have definitely changed again then.


    Looking at Crown Prince Chong Ming, Xian Zhng asked, ¡°How do you feel about being a traitor?¡±


    Of a graceful bearing as before, Crown Prince Chong Ming said, ¡°Anyone is qualified to say I am a traitor except for you the Tangs. For years, the Yan Kingdom has been bullied and beaten. Till the time of Xia Hou, the Yan Kingdom was at an even more miserable status that no words could describe. For how many innocent civilians had died under the cruel oppression of Tang Cavalries, nobody can tell. It would be an authentic betrayal if I had teamed up with you.¡±


    Walking toward Crown Prince Chong Ming, Long Qing looked at Xian Zhng and said, ¡°Your Tang Army¡¯s bravery and strength are indeed extraordinary. But what I do not understand is why you haven¡¯tmited suicide yet. What are you waiting for?¡±


    Xian Zhng said, ¡°I just want to ask a few questions.¡±


    ¡°What questions?¡±


    ¡°The same ones as those in the beginning. I cannot understand why Crown Prince Chong Ming would team up with you to set up such a trap. I believe that Her Royal Highness in Chang¡¯an City will feel the same as I do once she knows the truth.¡±


    ¡°You the Tangs always like to unt great harmony all across the world. You believe that by epting people from other countries to take official positions in your dynasty, and do some teaching in your Academy, you can disregard the countries differences genuinely. Actually, it is just due to the fact that you have been powerful enough in these passing years that you can hold such an attitude. You have no idea as to what other people are thinking about in their hearts at all.¡±


    Crown Prince Chong Ming said, ¡°After so many years of being a hostage in Chang¡¯an City, I had been well acquainted with sister Li Yu. There were even some Tang Officials who had persuaded me to stay in Chang¡¯an to take a government position. But have you ever thought about all the time spent in Chang¡¯an City mean to me on earth? Have you never thought that I am a Yan person at the core?¡±


    Xian Zhng said after being silenced for a while, ¡°The reason why I would believe the Her Highness¡¯ n was that I was willing to trust you, because I clearly knew that you could not co-exist with Prince Long Qing. Whether for the throne position of the Yan Kingdom or for survival, you should have liked him dead.¡±


    Crown Prince Chong Ming said, ¡°All of these were just fake illusions. As brothers, we had been on good terms ever since our childhood; even when the families on our mother¡¯s sides were hostileter, it was none of our concern. We both had known exactly what we wanted for each other from our early childhood. What I wanted was the throne position from the worldly perspective, but what he wanted was something far beyond the world and the earth. There was one thing we, as two brothers, both had been yearning for, that was to root out the Tang Empire.¡±


    Shaking his head, Xian Zhng said, ¡°There is no limit to lust and desire. The fact that Crown Prince Long Qing sees beyond the world does not necessarily mean that he is willing to give up all prosperity in the earthy world. Otherwise, why does the West-Hill Divine Pce have to meddle around on earth? Moreover, your nsmen have been in too bloody a feud to forgive each other at all. One day, you will regret your own decision today.¡±


    It was not until this time that Long Qing spoke up, after being in silence all the time. He said, ¡°You are indeed worthy to be the smart general in the Tang Empire, who is famous for his wisdom and cleverness. You won¡¯t leave a chance to nt one prick between us brothers¡¯ hearts, even while on the brink of death.¡±


    Crown Prince Chong Ming said, ¡°Even though there will be someday when we meet each other with swords, I won¡¯t regret over the current decision I have made. For thousands of years, you the Tangs have never been defeated and you have no idea as to how this kind of humiliation will drive people crazy. The humiliations you have been imposing on us for hundreds of years will now turn into power that will destroy you. To make this goale true, we both are willing to give out all we have, whoever it is Long Qing or me.¡±


    ¡°Exterminating the Tang Empire?¡±


    Xian Zhng began to smile. He looked at this pair of Yan Kingdom Brothers with signs of emotion and said, ¡°After all, you have overestimated yourselves too much. The Papal Cavalrymen who came from the West-Hill Divine Pce and backed you up all have died. I believe that all of the strength you have been collecting over the years has been gambled on this battle as well. What you can do finally is to perish together with us.¡±


    The face of Crown Prince Chong Ming became somewhat dull. He knew that there was no mistake in Xian Zhng¡¯s judgment. To annihte all of the cavalries of the Tang Empire¡¯s Northeast Border Army, the Yan Kingdom had paid an extremely heavy price.


    Afterst night¡¯s battle, though the possibility that thousands of dreadful Tang Empire¡¯s ck-Armored cavalries would show up again on the earth was small, the death toll on the Yan Army and the grasnd cavalries was actually almost ten timesrger than that of their enemies.


    What was more shocking was the fact that, in the final decisive battle, the thousands of Papal Cavalrymen from the West-Hill Divine Pce whom Long Qing and he both had regarded as the determinining factor for victory or defeat were allpletely wiped out by the relentless Tang Cavalries who had been going through the long-timed war!


    Could a victory that bitter be really counted as a victory?


    ¡°I know what you want to say. What you want to say is that there still remain a lot of soldiers of the Northeast Border Army who have not entered Chengjing City, but I have to tell you in regret that I did not bring all the grasnd cavalries into Chengjing either. Now the grasnd cavalries are teaming up with the United Armiesing from the Song Empire and the Chen Empire to root out your armies.¡±


    ¡°Moreover, you now should have calcted that the number of Papal Cavalrymen from the West-Hill Divine Pce is far much more than a thousand. That¡¯s right, the total number of Papal Cavalrymen exceeded 10 thousand as early as five years ago.¡±


    ¡°Now with the people and the armies in the Yan Kingdom being of one mind, moreover with the additional help of such strong back-up, how can¡¯t we root Tang out?¡±


    Looking at Xian Zhng, Prince Long Qing said, ¡°For thousands of years, with powerful armies and strong horses, you the Tangs have been bullying the weak around and fully enjoying all the glory. Did it evere to your mind that there would be day when you would beaten this badly?¡±


    ¡°People will all die in the end. Even the most powerful empire will be doomed one day. I do not know on which exact date the Tang Empire will end, but it will never be now, and it is impossible that it will be you the Yans who will put an end to the Tang Empire.¡±


    Xian Zhng said, ¡°People all refer to the Tang Army as the Invincible Army... As a matter of fact, that is wrong. Tang Army will also go through some failure; there will also be some taste of defeat while battling with you Yan Kingdom. Unlike what the hearsay has been gossiping, we have never been that invincible. However... it will always be us who will gain the victory in the end.¡±

 Chapter 706 - The Tangs Belief

    <h4>Chapter 706: The Tang¡¯s Belief</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    There were many people like Xian Zhng, who strongly believed the Tang would win the battle in the end.


    Some of them diedst night.


    Some of them were still battling.


    A Tang general waved his podao and cut a Yan soldier in two.


    He was themander of the Northeast Border Military Forward Camp, Sheng Yongli.


    He had a good name, especially for a general. Both the dead Emperor and General Xia Hou would like to see his name on the Battle Reports. As his name appeared more and more times, he became amander of the most powerful armored cavalry of the Northeast Border Military.


    Of course, even if the Emperor¡¯s illegitimate son could not live on a name, and took such an important position in the army, Sheng Yongli was brave and skillful in battle, which was the key point.


    He had killed a lot of enemies in his life, including the men from Yan, Song, the barbarians of the Left King¡¯s Pce, and the Deste Men. However, they were not as many as the ones he killed tonight.


    The buildings copsed and the Forward Camp was ambushed. He rushed to the front with his spear. As the spear was broken, he changed to a podao. As his right shoulder was smashed and deformed, he shifted the podao to his left hand.


    The podao had collided with so many grasnd men and the Yan soldiers, now broken with many gaps. Then at that moment, he saw the Papal Cavalrymen of the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    Followed by his subordinates, he rushed to his enemies and continued killing.


    He could not remember how many enemies he had killed.


    He only remembered the fear and despair on the Papal Cavalrymen¡¯s faces.


    He only remembered all the enemies in front of them had turned to corpses.


    He killed and killed until dawn came.


    He killed from Long Street to the pce.


    The memory was very bloody, but he felt joyful.


    Blood dripped from the wound on his head, over his eyes and coloring his vision red. The pce no longer showed not the slightest beauty, only a bloody scene.


    He was exhausted. While he remembered he had not yetpleted the general¡¯s order, he dragged his injured right leg and supported his heavy body with the broken podao, heading to the depths of the pce.


    Even though he didn¡¯t look back, he knew he had lost all of his subordinates who entered the pce following him.


    Because he did not hear their footsteps.


    Sheng Yongli didn¡¯t care. He kept moving forward.


    A few shes jumped into his sights which should be the fire the other Tang soldiers set when they entered the pce. Unfortunately, they barely survived and the fire was soon put out by the guards and eunuchs.


    Sheng Yongli shook his head with regret.


    Then he saw a red pce gate.


    He did not know where it was.


    He put the broken podao under his arm, pushing the heavy door open.


    Behind the door was a side pce, where many panicked maids and eunuchs were running and screaming.


    Looking at the bloody Tang soldier, they screamed louder. The eunuchs screamed even more piercingly than the maids.


    Sheng Yongli was stunned and held the podao in his hand. When he found an old man in bright yellow behind the eunuchs and maids, he thought he must have blurred vision and rubbed his eyes.


    As his fingers left his eyes, they were covered with blood.


    Some brave eunuchs began to scream and club him.


    Sheng Yongli was about to counter when he found all his strength was used off when he pushed the pce gate open.


    Boom! A stick heavily hit him on his head.


    Even though the stick could not hurt him more seriously since two deep wounds were already on his head, he still felt dizzy and barely stood still.


    Staring at the old man in bright yellow, Sheng Yongli was tottering and refused to fall down.


    He fixed his eyes on him.


    Only the emperor of Yan was allowed to wear the bright yellow clothes in the pce.


    He had been fighting and searching for the emperor for a whole long night. However, when he was about toplete the order from the general, he was exhausted and was going to die immediately.


    Sheng Yongli was unwilling to die.


    He was adamantly unwilling to die.


    The emperor of Yan had been seriously ill for many years. He would be dead any time. He was alive just because of the doctors and drugs from Chang¡¯an. Since his emperor was dead, why was he still alive?


    Sheng Yongli yelled angrily.


    Then he used all his strength to throw the broken podao toward the old man in the distance.


    Considering his injuries, he should be dead. He held on, just because he had a faith in his heart and he actually had little strength left.


    The podao fell down on the ground before touching the old man, bouncing a few times and nearly hitting the old man¡¯s toes.


    The emperor of Yan had been sick for so many years and he had been delirious when the Tang Army sieged the pce. Seeing the podao flying toward him, he was so frightened that he copsed into a eunuch¡¯s arms, pale. He even didn¡¯t figure out if the podao had hit him.


    ¡°I am frightened to death.¡±


    Screaming and kicking, he closed his eyes and gave hisst breath.


    Screams and cries sounded in the side pce. The eunuchs and maids fled to all directions and no one attended to his body. In a panic, a maid knocked over an oilmp and set the curtain on fire.


    Looking at this picture, Sheng Yongli took a long time to figure out what had happened. He muttered to himself, ¡°So he was scared to death? Was he truly an emperor?¡±


    Knowing his mission waspleted, he felt so much pain and exhaustion. He slowly sat down on the ground and closed his eyes with a satisfied smile on his face.


    Sheng Yongli, themander of Tang¡¯s Northeast Border Military Forward Camp, won thest battle in his military career.


    The news of the Emperor¡¯s death was quickly spread to the prince¡¯s residence.


    Looking at the smoking pce, Xian Zhng burst outughing after a long time, presumptuously and happily.


    ¡°Even if you ambushed us, even if the Princess and I were deceived, you have to exchange your Emperor¡¯s life and pce with our Northeast Border Military.¡±


    Crown Prince Chong Ming changed his face while Long Qing fell silent.


    Looking at them, Xian Zhng coldly said, ¡°It is not enough. I am telling you, someday the Tang Army will exterminate Chengjing City.¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°There will be no Tang in the world, and naturally there will no longer be a Tang Army.¡±


    ¡°Her Highness and I are indeed the sinners of Tang. But do you really think the battle in Capital Cheng can shape the destiny of Tang? To eliminate Tang? With just you?¡±


    Looking at the crowd, Xian Zhng sarcastically said. Then hemitted suicide with his own sword.

 Chapter 707 - The Subsequence

    <h4>Chapter 707: The Subsequence</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Looking at the half-ruined pce, Crown Prince Chong Ming failed to say anything, pale and trembling.


    The ambush was in full ordance with their n. They had prepared for the desperate counterattack of the Tang Army. However, they didn¡¯t expect that it would be so horrible, costing them a heavy price.


    Their father had been gone and the pce had been ruined. They almost lost all their main force to eliminate Tang¡¯s Northeast Border Military, which was one-sixth of their enemy. Was it really worth it?


    ¡°I didn¡¯t lie to Xian Zhng that half of the cavalry of the Left King¡¯s Pce was hunting the remnants of Tang in the east, and the Papal Cavalrymen of the West-Hill Divine Pce was over ten thousand.¡±


    Long Qing said after a long silence, ¡°I admit that I have underestimated the Tang Army. If Xia Hou was themander, we would be the prisoners. But I still believe that Tang will be eliminated and what we have done is worth it.¡±


    Crown Prince Chong Ming looked at him and said, ¡°Why are you so confident?¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°Because this is not a matter that only concerns Yan. It is a matter of the world. The whole world is suppressing Tang. Who can stop it if Haotian wants to subjugate it.¡±


    Xian Zhng left most of the army, on the road to the east, except for the armored cavalry.


    Correspondingly, Prince Long Qing moved most of the troops in this area as well. Besides his grasnd cavalry, there were the united armies of Song and Qi and the Garrison Troops of Yan. More importantly, more than a thousand Papal Cavalrymen of the West-Hill Divine Pce had joined the war.


    The Papal Cavalrymen of the West-Hill Divine Pce and the grasnd cavalry jointly broke up the Northeast Border Military. Without the protection of the armored cavalry, the Tang Army decided to break up into parts and return to their country through the blockade.


    It would be a wise decision if it was an ordinary battle, but it wasn¡¯t as they were in thend of the Yan Kingdom.


    They had a deep old grudge since the three counties in the northeast of Tang were forcibly taken from Yan and there were many small wars between them.


    Over the past few years, as the chiefmander of the Northeast Border Military, General Xia Hou had carried out bloody suppressions in Tuyang City. In the Yans¡¯ eyes, the Tangs were all evil invaders and should be driven into the underworld.


    As a result, the chasing turned into a bloody civil war.


    All the people in Yan were mobilized. Even though they knew they could die if they met with the Tang Army, there were still many young and strong men going to the mountains, looking for traces of the Tangs and reporting to the government as soon as they could. Then the message would be sent to the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    Tens of thousands from the Tang Army were surrounded and divided into countless small groups, making their way through the mountains to Tang¡¯s territory.


    Some soldiers fell into the traps set by the hunters and were remorselessly left behind. Some were beaten to death by hundreds of people with sticks when they were looking for food.


    Somewhere on a peak in Kun Mountain County.


    Looking at the approaching Yan people toward the peak, several Tang soldiers became quiet instead of being angry and confused. Then they began to pack up.


    A Yan man shouted at them from a not so long distance, ¡°Did you ever think the day of being hunted like miserable dogs when you killed our people in the past years?¡±


    An arrow urately shot him on the throat.


    A soldier of Tang wryly put down his bow and said, ¡°If I didn¡¯t kill people, I would be killed. I have killed 17 people of Yan and what can you do?¡±


    Hearing this, the people of Yan became angrier and more rancorous. An old man rapped out, ¡°People, don¡¯t be afraid. They only have a few arrows left. The Song Vige has killed three Tang soldiers. Can¡¯t we take down these men who have lost their horses?¡±


    The soldier who shot the arrow was the leader of this group. Besides those four, the rest of the group were all killed on the way home.


    Looking at the excited crowd with weapons, he slightly frowned. They began to shoot and drew out their podaos after they had used all their arrows.


    Until he was exhausted, he looked at the people surrounding him and said, ¡°Idiots.¡±


    Then he rushed off the cliff with his subordinates.


    ...


    ...


    The best-armored cavalry of Tang¡¯s Northeast Border Military was eliminated in the battle of Capital Cheng.


    It was the first time that the Tang Empire had suffered a major setback, and it was also the first time the invincible armored cavalry waspletely annihted.


    The whole world was shocked.


    The news of the dead emperor and the ruined pce which should be more shocking waspletely forgotten. In people¡¯s minds, it was worthwhile to pay a big price to destroy the armored cavalry of Tang.


    The news was delivered to the West-Hill Divine Pce as soon as possible.


    The priests in red and the deacons in ck from the Judicial Department knelt on the ground and did not dare to breathe in the dark Divine Hall where it was eerie and depressing.


    It should be good news for the West-Hill Divine Pce. Prince Long Qing who returned to Haotian Taoism made such a huge contribution and cheered up most people in the Judicial Department.


    However, the owner of the verdict of the Divine Hall was Ye Hongyu.


    The people in the temple didn¡¯t know how she felt about this, especially about the magnificent exploits of Prince Long Qing.


    Sitting on the ck jade throne, Ye Hongyu was like a pearl on the ink stone. Her crimson robe was as a red cloth wrapping around the pearl.


    She did not expect Long Qing to be able to aplish such a big thing.


    More unexpectedly, she had received no news from the war from the beginning to the end. That meant there were still loopholes in the Judicial Department and the Hierarch Lord still didn¡¯t trust her.


    At this point, she recalled that, two years ago, she was asked by Ning Que to hunt down Long Qing heading north. At that time, Crown Prince Chong Ming was controlling Yan¡¯s Army and didn¡¯t respond in time, which annoyed her very much. Now she could tell that it was a show that the two brothers yed in front of the world.


    Looking at the priests in red and deacons in ck, Ye Hongyu smiled. She knew what they were thinking. They were afraid of her being angry.


    However, why did she be angry?


    Standing up from the ck jade throne, Ye Hongyu looked at them and said, ¡°Go and prepare. The cavalry of the Divine Hall will enter Tang soon.¡±

 Chapter 708 - Wei, Im Worried

    <h4>Chapter 708: Wei, I¡¯m Worried</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The war at Capital Cheng shocked the world.


    The Tang Empire was shaken up the most.


    The atmosphere on the royal court was tense. The officials loyal to the Empress who hadid low earlier on now stood straight, staring at the throne behind the bead curtain.


    The Tang Empire governor, Her Highness, Princess Li Yu was behind the bead curtain.


    The officials did not bother to hide the anger in their eyes. The deaths of almost all soldiers in the elite Tang Northeast Border Military was a rare incident that had never happened. How could the prideful Tangs ept this?


    Everyone on the streets of Chang¡¯an was talking about this, berating the new Emperor and the Princess for it. Xian Zhng was elevated as General of the North under the direction of His Majesty. And His Majesty was also the one who had nned for the alliance between the Tangs and the Yans. Now that they have lost so miserably, who else but the Emperor was to take responsibility for it?


    Li Huiyuan, the Emperor of the Tang Empire, looked at the expressions and eyes of the officials. He was so angry that he almost broke the handle of the throne that he was gripping. He wanted to have the Yulin Royal Guards throw them out so badly. However, he could only forcefully temper his anger when he thought of how his Royal Sister had instructed him before he went to court. Then, he looked at the Grand Secretary of Hua Hall, Mo Han.


    ¡°The Yan imperial pce was burned down and the Yan emperor was put to death... I don¡¯t want to defend General Xian Zhng and the Northeast Border Military, I just want to say that they did not embarrass the Tang Empire.¡±


    Mo Han said with a gloomy expression. ¡°If there are any ministers who want to make usations against the heroic soldiers who died for the country, please forgive me for insulting them and their families.¡±


    The words were crass but straight to the point.


    On private asions, the officials in the Queen¡¯s faction might scold and put down Xian Zhng and the Northeast Border Military, thinking they were no better than beasts, but they did not dare to say anything in the Royal Court.


    No one would dare to tarnish the reputations of those who died for noble causes.


    Those soldiers had died for their country. However, there were still people who were alive and had to bear responsibility.


    The Minister of Rites came out from his spot and bowed with his hands together at the bead curtain. He said calmly and straightforwardly, ¡°I think that Your Majesty is responsible for the war in Capital Cheng. What does Your Majesty think?¡±


    All was silent in the court hall.


    Everyone knew that the Queen¡¯s faction would not miss this opportunity. However, there were not many, including the officials in the Queen¡¯s faction who would think that the Minister of Rites would speak so directly and not give the Emperor nor the Princess any chance to defend themselves.


    A momentter, Li Yu¡¯s voice emerged from behind the bead curtain.


    ¡°I am responsible for everything.¡±


    ¡°I will pay for this war with my life.¡±


    ¡°But before that, I ask of all ministers to think of what is the most pressing matter in the Tang Empire right now.¡±


    Due to the defeat, especially since there were many Tangs who had never witnessed such a disastrous defeat, the atmosphere in Chang¡¯an city was very depressing. People might not be that gloomy, but were angry instead, when speaking about the subject. All in all, most people were not in the mood to drink and make merry.


    However, the Building of Pines and Cranes was brightly lit because a rich guest had booked the entire building a few days ago. After the court meeting ended, the guests would gradually arrive and the bustle would pick up.


    ¡°After the painful defeat at Chengjing City, the soldiers of the Northeast Border Military are currently fighting hard at a foreign country. But we are meeting in a wine house. Even though we don¡¯t need to fear gossip because we have done nothing wrong, we can drink in remembrance of those who have fought valiantly and died. But we cannot touch thedies.¡±


    ¡°Is Lord Zeng Jing still refusing toe? This is such a crucial moment, how could he still feel rxed enough to tend to his garden at home?¡±


    ¡°Everyone has different goals in life. Do not force him.¡±


    The Queen¡¯s faction was having a meeting at the Building of Pines and Cranes tonight. They thought that they were not doing anything wrong and had nothing that they were unwilling to share, so the meeting was held openly.


    The Minister of Rites looked at everyone present and frowned slightly, saying, ¡°The meeting today is for us to discuss the matters on the Eastern Border. I wonder what your opinions are of what Her Highness had said during the court meeting earlier.¡±


    An officialughed coldly and said, ¡°Pay with her life? How are her words any different from the women swearing on their lives in the markets? Her Highness stayed in the Wilderness with barbarians for so long. Where did she learn that?¡±


    The Minister of Rites scolded, ¡°What nonsense are you saying? Shut up.¡±


    The official apologized but refused to let the matter rest. He continued, ¡°I would like to ask everyone here, in the history of the Tang Empire, were there any Emperors or Governors who paid with their lives due to a defeat at war? Since there weren¡¯t any, then what did her Highness mean? Did she say that just to shut everyone up? When the war is over, will we really force her to acknowledge her crimes and condemn her to death? This is so absurd!¡±


    Taichang Temple¡¯s secretary stroked his beard and said after a moment of reflection, ¡°But by doing so, Her Highness can dispel the resentment of the soldiers...The country is in critical condition right now. The measures taken by His Majesty and Her Highness are appropriate. It is alright to move the troops of the Gushan Commandery and the Northern Military Camp to the east.¡±


    The official who had spoken earlier sneered, ¡°This is simply trying to cure the problems without curing the root of it. Is there anyone who doesn¡¯t know how to do this? I say that the Eastern Border is uninhabited right now. We can deploy the Southern troops. We all know that Her Highness is determined to use the Gushan Commandery because she hopes that Hua Shanyue can defeat the Yan army and earn her some respect.¡±


    The Minister of Rites frowned even harder when he heard that. He said, ¡°The Southern troops are still at the forest borders and are separated from the Qinghe County by mountains. They can only travel via the southern mountain path. The journey is long. By the time the Southern troops head to the Eastern Border to take up the posts left behind by the Northeast Border Military, the Yan army would have already attacked Chang¡¯an.¡±


    The official was stunned when he heard that and did not say anything else.


    ¡°Lord Li said something earlier that I think is the main point. Our nation is in a critical situation and all disputes should be settled within the court sessions. We are the ministers of the Tang Empire and should face the issue with a united front.¡±


    The Minister of Rites looked at everyone and said that earnestly.


    Someone said worriedly, ¡°But when will the Empress and the Sixth Prince return to Chang¡¯an?¡±


    The meeting at the Building of Pines and Cranes ended quickly. The officials from the Queen¡¯s faction finally decided to stay calm for the time being. They would discuss all other things after the danger passed.


    However, it was evident that everyone, from the Emperor to the officials, to the citizens all felt that the Tang Empire would not fail even though they were sad and angry at the defeat at Capital Cheng. This could be seen from the attitudes of the officials, arrangements made by the imperial court to fill the gaps in the Eastern Border defense, as well as the anger of the citizens in Chang¡¯an.


    Zhuge Wuren had resigned from his position as director of the Imperial Center Administration. He had also attended the gathering at the Building of Pines and Cranes. However, he was usually sinister and cruel in his dealings, so many were unwilling to deal with him. Now that he had resigned from his position, he had only been invited because of his rtionship with the Empress. Who else would say anything more to him?


    Zhuge Wuren knew clearly how the other officials thought of him. He did not show any anger but was more silent than usual.


    To him, the other officials only knew how to boast, and they did not know what was truly important.


    Why did the Tang Army fail? How did the nation fall into such a dangerous state?


    It was because of the stupid pair of siblings in the pce who had ascended the throne through deplorable means. If they could wee the Queen and the Sixth Prince back to the Tang Empire, the empire would enjoy peace once more and every problem would be solved.


    Zhuge Wuren did not return home after leaving the Building of Pines and Cranes. Instead, he went towards the royal city. He knew that the cultivators from the Southern Gate Temple were still following him after he had resigned. That was why he had not deliberately tried to hide his tracks. Furthermore, not everyone could enter where he was going anyway.


    He was going to the pce¡¯s Bodyguard Office.


    Xu Chongshan was now the head of the Tang Empire¡¯s Bodyguard office. The calm old man who had crossed paths many times with Ning Que was just as affable as before until he saw Zhuge Wuren¡¯s face which was like that of a poisonous snake.


    ¡°Zhuge, isn¡¯t it inappropriate for you to appear here now?¡±


    Xu Chongshan said to Zhuge Wuren, his expression heavily guarded.


    Zhuge Wuren replied, ¡°I thought, that no matter how inappropriate it is, it wouldn¡¯t be as inappropriate as your presence here.¡±


    Xu Chongshan frowned and said, ¡°I don¡¯t know what nonsense you¡¯re babbling about.¡±


    Zhuge Wuren smiled and replied, ¡°I¡¯m saying, there¡¯s nothing weirder than a Devil¡¯s Doctrine powerhouse being the director of the Bodyguard Office in the Tang pce.¡±


    Xu Chongshan squinted slightly as a trace of coldness shed in them.


    Zhuge Wuren walked to a chair and sat down as if he had not seen the other man¡¯s reaction. He swept the dust off the front of his robe and said calmly, ¡°Sometimes, when I think about it, I can¡¯t help but admire you guys. You have inly cultivated in the powers of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, how have you all managed to hide it from so many and be a powerhouse in Martial Arts cultivation? General Xia Hou seemed to have gained a certain power from the West-Hill Divine Pce back then. Have you learned that too?¡±


    Xu Chongshan had calmed down by then. He poured a cup of tea and drank it slowly, ignoring the other man.


    Zhuge Wuren looked at him and continued his exaltation, ¡°The Devil¡¯s Doctrine is really impressive. They¡¯ve been trashed by Mr. Ke, and then hunted down by the West-Hill Divine Pce around the world. Yet, so many of them have managed to survive...The person who had crafted this n must have been the legendary Divine Lord Lotus. Gee, if this bigwig could have lived until now, or if General Xia Hou hadn¡¯t been killed by Ning Que, then wouldn¡¯t the Tang pce bepletely controlled by you guys?¡±


    Xu Chongshan smiled lightly and said, ¡°You know that no one in Chang¡¯an would believe you no matter what you say now. So you can just tell me why you came.¡±


    Zhuge Wuren slowly gathered his smile, stood up, stared into Xu Chongshan¡¯s eyes and said, ¡°I don¡¯t know what the Empress has to do with the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, but I am sure that both you and Xiahou are loyal to her. And I am also loyal to her, so we should work together to do something.¡±


    Xu Chongshan said, after a moment of silence, ¡°What is it that you want to do?¡±


    Zhuge Wuren replied, ¡°Since you are loyal to the Empress, then...you should know what to do.¡±


    Xu Chongshan said softly, ¡°You want me to die?¡±


    Zhuge Wuren replied, ¡°The Deste are about to go extinct. If the Tang Empire goes down, then there will be nowhere else in the world that will harbor those from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Since you have to die anyway, why not go down meaningfully?¡±


    Ma Shixiang stood on the wall and watched the skies.


    The sky in the wilderness was very gloomy. It had been like this for many days, as if it was about to rain. However, it never did.


    The reports of the Northeast Border Military¡¯s downfall at the Yan border had long spread to the City of Wei. The coffin of the deceased emperor was still in Hn city while it was unknown when the Empress and the little prince would return to Chang¡¯an. The entire Tang Empire was enshrouded in dark clouds, and like the City of Wei, it was unknown when the storm would arrive.


    Ma Shixiang looked grave, but it was not because of the difficult situation that the Tang Empire was facing. He was no one but just one of the most ordinary and lowest-ranking generals at the frontier fortress. He was not qualified and had no reason to worry about the empire.


    He was ordered to stay in the City of Wei, so all he needed to worry about was the City of Wei.

 Chapter 709 - The Destruction of the City of Wei

    <h4>Chapter 709: The Destruction of the City of Wei</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    At this time, the City of Wei seemed to as peaceful as the past few years, but something always bothered Ma Shixiang.


    Because of the continuous rain and the rough road, there were few trade caravans passing through the city, but he still had an odd feeling.


    What worried him most was, ording to the reports, the Horse Gangs who settled in Shubi Lake all year round disappeared without a trace. No one knew where they went.


    When Ning Que was in the City of Wei, the Seven Stockaded Viges often cleaned up the Shubi Lake for thefortable ie. Nevertheless, the Horse Gangs would not leave the Shubi Lake.


    Thest time they all left the Shubi Lake was because Ning Que and Sangsang looked at this city from a far distance. Then why did they disappear this time?


    Because of the rainstorm? Although the forest beside the Shubi Lake was subject to such a downpour, there were no signs of a possiblendslide. The bold Horse Gangs had no reason to abandon theirir.


    Ma Shixiang walked down from the low earth wall, waving his hand to the soldiers and street peddlers, heading to his rough military camp. Looking at the military brief report, he fell silent for a long time.


    As time passed, a dustymandant opened the curtain and came in.


    Ma Shixiang asked, widening his eyes, ¡°How is it going?¡±


    Themandant shook his head and said, ¡°The people in Kaiping told me that they had sent the message to the Northern Military Camp and the other six Stockaded Viges also found something weird, but they haven¡¯t heard from the Northern Military Camp.¡±


    ¡°Part of the Northern Army has gone to the Eastern Wilderness with His Majesty and they are still stationed in Hn City. The imperial court was sending an army to Tuyang City...¡±


    Looking at the report, Ma Shixiang deeply frowned and said, ¡°The Great General is putting all the force in the east, and he may neglect the other reports.¡±


    Themandant asked, ¡± What should we do?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not worrying about this.¡±


    He added, ¡°As long as the main force of the Northern Army is transferred to the east, if the Golden Pce sends the army to the south, even if the Great General can react, he will have no force to stop it.¡±


    Themandant¡¯s face became extremely tense. He asked quivering, ¡°Over these years, they only harassed us in the frontier. How dare they to go south with all their power?¡±


    Ma Shixiang answered, ¡°Since the Headmaster and the Emperor passed away, the court has been in trouble. Now, the Northeast Border Military suffered a heavy loss. The cavalry of the Golden Pce is like a ravenous wolf. When we were stronger than them, they would not take action; but when we be weaker, they will show their fangs.¡±


    Themandant asked, ¡°General, what should we do next?¡±


    ¡°We do nothing. Tell the cook to make me some endives. I am getting inmed these days.¡±


    Walking out of the camp, Ma Shixiang said, ¡°Raise the alert level. There are a dozen firelocks in the warehouse. Take them out and watch out for open mes.¡±


    At the dark moment before wind and rain, the supreme military officer of the City of Wei did his duties as usual, ordinarily and meticulously.


    He would retire next year and return to his hometown to live with his family. He didn¡¯t want a war toe as much as any other person, but he clearly knew that when war came, no one could escape.


    Fortunately, he had experienced many wars and many deaths. Even though he had known this one would be different from the past, he still slept calmly and soundly.


    In the early morning, Ma Shixiang was awake by the emergency alert. He washed his face, put on the armor, held his podao and bow, and went to the top of the wall under his soldiers¡¯ guard.


    The sun had left the ground and warmed the Wilderness. The dark clouds above the city finally dissipated. However, people in the City of Wei could not feel warm when they looked at what was in front of them.


    Countless cavalry soldiers of the Golden Pce were standing outside the city walls like many dark wolves in the sunshine. They couldn¡¯t even count their numbers.


    Narrowing his eyes, Ma Shixiang looked at the king¡¯s g in the depth of the formation and burst intoughter. He said, ¡°We are perfect on Chanyu¡¯s route. Now, Old Wei must envy me.¡±


    They all knew who Old Wei was. He was the chief military officer of Kaiping who had been the general¡¯s lifelong opponent. The general often made fun of him in normal days.


    If it were a normal day, they would banter with him, while no one was able tough today. They all looked terrible and their hands holding the podaos became colder and colder.


    Ma Shixiang stoppedughing and said with awe, ¡°Are the horses I asked you to prepare ready?¡±


    An adjutant answered behind him, ¡°Yes, they are ready.¡±


    Ma Shixiang added, ¡°Are they the best?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°With the best riders?¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡±


    ¡°One to Kaiping... Old Wei should be prepared. That will be enough.¡±


    Ma Shixiang sternly said, ¡°Four to the Northern Military Camp and the other four to Chang¡¯an. Remember to change the horse and never stop. The whole nation of Tang needs your speed.¡±


    The nine soldiers who were picked in advance answered him at the same time.


    Looking at the people outside the City of Wei, Ma Shixiang wrily said, ¡°Tell the people in Chang¡¯an not to worry about Prince Long Qing and the enemy in the east. Our real enemy ising.¡±


    The nine soldiers left from the back of the City of Wei, with dozens of fine horses, and ran toward different directions.


    Looking at the terrible-looking restaurant owner, theundry aunt, and the small group of residents, Ma Shixiang said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I should protect you, but today I¡¯m afraid I can¡¯t. You can leave or hide in the cers. Please trust me, Tang¡¯s Army wille back one day.¡±


    The adjutant asked, ¡°General, the enemy is overly powerful. What should we do next?¡±


    All the soldiers turned to Ma Shixiang.


    His grizzled hair was blown gently by the morning breeze.


    ¡°Here is the gateway of Tang. We have to protect it.¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡±


    The cavalry outside the City of Wei began to move.


    The whole Wilderness started to shake.


    The cob walls of the City of Wei ceaselessly vibrated, shaking dust off.


    The dark grasnd cavalry quickly submerged the City of Wei like tides.


    In the autumn of the 18th year of Tianqi¡¯s era, the Northeast Border Military of Tang was eliminated.


    People in Chang¡¯an were about to send the first part of the Northern Army to resist the Yan Army in Tuyang City, when the Golden Pce who had been peaceful for decades mustered all forces to the south. They invaded Tang territory.


    The Seven Stockaded Viges fought back bravely, but the enemy was too strong to ovee. They were defeated one after another.


    The grasnd cavalry continued to move to the south and turned their swords to Chang¡¯an.

 Chapter 710 - The Tang War

    <h4>Chapter 710: The Tang War</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The news of Golden Pce¡¯s invasion was like a mountain fire that burned the entire world and shocked the Central ins.


    Li Yu responded very fast. She forcibly suppressed the ministers who supported the Queen with great courage. Risking being mocked, she ordered the Northern Army to withdraw immediately, converging with the Northern Military Camp and forming two lines of defense outside Hebei county.


    At the same time, she ordered the Southern Army immediately to stop fighting with the savage tribes in the primeval forest and move to the Northern Frontier as soon as possible. Then she ordered a part of the Western Army to the north to fight as a guerri against the cavalry of the Golden Pce.


    To the ministers¡¯ surprise, Li Yu sent her Yulin Royal Guards to the Northern Frontier as well, regardless of her control of Chang¡¯an.


    At the emergency meeting, all the ministers had to acknowledge that her arrangements were extremely timely and devoid of self-interest, but they still were opposed by some people.


    In those people¡¯s eyes, the Northern Army could not support Tuyang City. Since she had sent the Yulin Royal Guards to the north, what if the cavalry of the Golden Pce rode straight to Chang¡¯an? The Northern Army was exhausted and damaged, and they should be reced with the other armies; still, they went to Tuyang City.


    Li Yu ended the argument with two sentences.


    ¡°Chang¡¯an cannot be ovee.¡±


    ¡°If I am not afraid to die, why are you afraid?¡±


    Since Li Hunyuan became the new Emperor, Li Yu had been kind and gentle. The reason she acted so opposite to the past, showing her utmost toughness at this time was because she knew better than anyone else how strong the Golden Pce was.


    She once married the wise Chanyu of the Golden Pce and lived in the Wilderness for a long time. She knew the grasnd cavalry was the real threat for Tang.


    Until now, her guards were still the savages from the Wilderness.


    She clearly knew that the Golden Pce was like a monster that had been suppressed by Tang for hundreds of years. As soon as they broke away, they would be unimaginably destructive.


    Compared with the cavalry of the Golden Pce, the Left King¡¯s Pce was a child and Yan¡¯s Army was a crying girl.


    Under the terrible pressure of the Golden Pce, Li Yu was not interested in Prince Long Qing¡¯s army. She knew very well, only the local army could limit them and they were unable to affect the overall situation at all.


    Therefore, even if the Queen¡¯s ministers didn¡¯t support her, and her loyal ministers carefully and privately expressed their doubts, she still insisted on mobilizing the power of the entire country to the north.


    The results would prove she had made the right decision.


    However, few people stood by her back then. After the meeting, she felt so tired and scared in her mind.


    Was this the retribution for tampering with her father¡¯s edict?


    At this moment, noises sounded outside the hall. Several officials came in a hurry, following a eunuch before she could say something, as well as Li Huiyuan and He Mingchi who all looked terrible.


    Li Yu straightened her body and calmly said, ¡°What happened?¡±


    He Mingchi turned to the Emperor.


    Li Huiyuan came forward and handed Li Yu a letter in his hand.


    The minister who came from outside said quaveringly, ¡°The West-Hill Divine Pce has just issued a rescript.¡±


    The rescript from the West-Hill Divine Pce, with a personal letter from the Hierarch Lord, was sent to Chang¡¯an at the same time.


    In the rescript, the West-Hill Divine Pce exposed the Empress that the Emperor of Tang had protected for decades, as being the Saintess of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. It was a sphemy. Two leaders of the Academy were eliminated just because they didn¡¯t respect Haotian. Therefore, the Divine Hall started a war against Tang. It also said the Golden Pce went south under Haotian¡¯s order and the Tangs should not revolt. They should overthrow the dark royal family with the people of the world.


    Finishing the rescript, Li Yu began to read the letter.


    Compared with the splendid rescript, the letter was simpler. There was only one sentence: The darkness covers the stars and Tang is in trouble. You should drop it.¡±


    Holding the letter, she fell silent and began to tremble.


    Li Huiyuan nervously looked at his elder sister and He Mingchi lowered his head. The eunuchs and maids¡¯ faces turned pale and the ministers widely opened their eyes. The whole hall was in silence.


    The Golden Pce was the strongest enemy Tang had ever encountered in decades, while the rescript and the letter were the most frightening things for the Tangs.


    In fact, there was no country in the world able to destroy the Tang Empire, including the Golden Pce. As long as Tang could make it past the rough beginning, they would win.


    However, if the whole world was going to attack Tang, could they make it? When it happened many years ago, Tang had the Headmaster, but not anymore, as he had already ascended to heaven.


    Facing the attack from the entire world, any country would directly crash under the horrible pressure and the prospect of despair.


    However, the Tang Empire would not. With the strong confidence and faith that were built for a thousand years, the Tangs felt anxiety, but they didn¡¯t give up.


    All the institutions of the imperial court quickly acted and all kinds of military orders were sent from Chang¡¯an to all directions.


    In contrast, as the political and military power center, the imperial pce was calm and peaceful.


    Everything they should do had been done; what else they could do but wait?


    Standing by the stone balustrades and looking at the sky, Li Yu was in silence.


    Thinking of the letter from the West-Hill Divine Pce and the prediction of the Imperial Astronomer, she put her hands behind her back, clenching tightly. Her nails cut through her palm, drawing blood.


    She took a deep breath to suppress the fear and hesitation in her heart, and then turned to the imperial study over the smallke.


    Since she tampered with the Edict and made Li Huiyuan the Emperor, she never entered the imperial study again. The room was not big but she felt depressed because it was filled with her father¡¯s smell.


    However, she came in today. She needed the spiritualfort and support from her father at this moment.


    A military general entered. Although the enemy didn¡¯t get close to Chang¡¯an, it was wartime in the whole country.


    ¡°When can General Xu Shi reach Chang¡¯an?¡± she asked.

 Chapter 711 - End of the War

    <h4>Chapter 711: End of the War</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The general was not loyal to Li Yu or the Queen, but to Xu Shi.


    He did not know why the Princess would ask such a question. After a moment of silence, he replied, ¡°Since there is no edict, the general has to return to the south.¡±


    ¡°It is better to be honest at such a time. If I have not anticipated wrongly, General Xu Shi started on his return journey after the news of father¡¯s passing away spread to the south.¡±


    Li Yu said, ¡°This is not the time to investigate these matters. I want you to tell the old general that Chang¡¯an and the Empire of Tang need him now. The imperial edicts issued by the West-Hill Divine Pce to attack the Tang Empire will surely do him no good. Please ask him to be careful.¡±


    The general thought that the Princess would me the military for taking actions without permission, and he didn¡¯t expect such an instruction from her. He said, ¡°Your Highness, please rest assured that the general would definitely return to Chang¡¯an safely.¡±


    Li Yu could finally rx a little when she heard that.


    The next person who was brought into the imperial study by the eunuch was Supervisor Song.


    The censor was not rted to any military or political affairs. However, Li Yu had summoned him because Supervisor Song was her contact to the warlords of Qinghe County.


    ¡°The imperial court has already transferred the Northern Army back and the Western army and the Southern Army have also received military orders; they will soon go north to resist the cavalry of the Golden Pce. The West-Hill Divine Pce has been nning for many years. The South Jin Kingdom¡¯s emperor has yet to get over the death of his son, so there would definitely be arge armying from the south to stop our troops. We can only rely on the navy on the Great Lake and the warlords of Qinghe County.¡±


    All these things mentioned by Li Yu were open arrangements made in the Court, so she didn¡¯t need to worry about leaks. She looked at Supervisor Song silently and then said, ¡°I will not forget what I have promised the warlords of Qinghe County. I hope that they will also show this in their actions. I anticipate the arrangements made by them in the West-Hill Divine Pce.¡±


    Supervisor Song knelt without hesitation and bowed deeply to the princess. He said respectfully, ¡°Please rest assured, Your Highness, the 100,000 state troops in Qinghe county and the 30,000 Zhuang troops of the warlords would definitely cooperate with the various navy departments. They will stop the enemies from the Divine Hall and hold the South Jin Kingdom troops in the north of the Great Lake with their lives. Even if they do not seed, they will definitely buy time for the empire.¡±


    ¡°Very good,¡± Li Yu said, looking at him quietly.


    After Supervisor Song left, the Grand Secretary of Huaying Hall, Mo Han, emerged from behind the bookshelves. He looked at the tightly shut doors of the imperial study and said worriedly, ¡°If there is a Defender-general of the State in Chang¡¯an, the morale of the army and people would be further stabilized. I¡¯m worried about Qinghe County even though the warlords have pledged loyalty for many years...¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. The warlords have used so many resources to get Huiyuan and me to this position. Even if they had other ideas, they cannot change too much in such a short period of time. Otherwise, the difference would cause a huge problem within the ranks of the warlords.¡±


    Li Yu did not wait for him toplete his statement. She said coldly, ¡°Furthermore, the descendants of the warlords, including Old Master Cui¡¯s second son and a few grandsons are all in Chang¡¯an. Would they have such thoughts?¡±


    Mo Han thought about it for a moment and felt that Her Highness¡¯ ns were indeed fool-proof. However, the worry on his face did not disappearpletely. He said, ¡°Is the Academy still inactive?¡±


    Li Yu fell silent. Then, she suddenly picked up a paperweight from the desk and threw it on the floor.


    There was a crash and the paperweight shattered into countless pieces.


    She could not hide the ire she felt. Her body stiffened as she said, ¡°The Academy has locked up their doors and is still refusing to ept guests...The Tang Empire has fed the Academy for millennia. Now that the empire is in danger, they refuse to lend a hand.¡±


    At this moment, a eunuch softly said something outside the imperial study.


    Li Yu¡¯s ire had not dissipated. She yelled for the eunuch to leave.


    The eunuch¡¯s voice trembled, but he did not leave. He continued to say that someone was here to visit the Princess.


    Li Yu froze slightly when she heard the person¡¯s name.


    Mo Han frowned slightly and said, ¡°Your Majesty, just meet with him. I will take my leave now.¡±


    It was Chao Xiaoshu who had entered the pce in the middle of the night and forcefully requested for a meeting with the Princess. It was no wonder why the bodyguards and the chief eunuch did not dare to leave nor announce his arrival.


    Li Yu looked at the middle-aged man in a turquoise robe standing under the autumn tree. After a moment of silence, she said, ¡°I have requested for second uncle Chao to enter the pce a few days ago, but you ignored it. Why have youe to see me today?¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu replied, ¡°A few days ago, you requested for my visit for matters rting to the court. I have told His Majesty back then that I will not interfere with court matters of the Tang Empire. That was why I refused to enter the pce to see you.¡±


    Li Yu furrowed her brows slightly and asked, ¡°Then why are you willing toe and see me tonight?¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°Because this is no longer just a matter of the court. It concerns the safety of the Tang Empire.¡±


    Li Yu said, ¡°Second Uncle Chao, what is it? Please just speak inly.¡±


    ¡°I would like to request for two imperial edicts.¡± Chao Xiaoshu said.


    Li Yu was rather surprised. ¡°Imperial edicts? What are you going to do?¡± She asked.


    Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°One of the imperial edicts should be for the Fish-dragon Gang. If Chang¡¯an were to be thrown into chaos by the Taoists of West-Hill Divine Pce, they will help His Majesty to suppress it.¡±


    Li Yu watched him silently, as if wanting to see if there were any hidden meanings in his words. She said, ¡°Chang¡¯an will not be thrown into chaos, so I don¡¯t think that this edict would be necessary.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu looked at her and said, ¡°Your Highness, do you really have faith that Chang¡¯an will not be thrown into chaos?¡±


    Li Yu answered, ¡°In Chang¡¯an, there¡¯s the Chang¡¯an Local Government, the Bodyguard office, the Valiant Cavalry Battalion and...¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu interrupted her, ¡°The second imperial edict that I¡¯m requesting for has something to do with the Valiant Cavalry Battalion. I would like His Majesty or Your Highness to give me temporary control over the Valiant Cavalry Battalion.¡±


    Li Yu¡¯s eyebrows knotted even more. She could not understand the request. She said, ¡°I have already promised that Chang¡¯an will not be thrown into chaos. No matter how annoying those officials loyal to the Empress are, I will not act against them before we solve the attack against us. What do you want the Valiant Cavalry Battalion for?¡±


    ¡°I want to take them away.¡±


    ¡°Are you leaving Chang¡¯an?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu looked at her and said, ¡°We both know that all of the Tang¡¯s military power right now is used up against the Golden Pce and the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s northern expeditionary troops. We still have to leave some troops to guard against the Yuelun Kingdom. Now that the Northeast Border Military has gone down, the imperial court cannot find any other troops to defend against thoseing from the Yan Kingdom.¡±


    Li Yu shook her head and said, ¡°There are still Garrison Troops from the Gushan Commandery and various states.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°The Garrison Troops move slowly and cannot keep up with the speed of the grasnd cavalry.¡±


    Li Yu said, ¡°The grasnd cavalry in the Eastern Wilderness do not pose much danger. Even if they enter the empire borders, they cannot affect the war overall.¡±


    ¡°But the citizens in the eastern Tang will be killed, looted or burned to death.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu looked at her and said, ¡°I know what you are thinking about.¡± ¡°If we allow the grasnd cavalry to invade, and as long as they continue to rob, kill and grow corrupt, then the slower they will move. Just like greedy bears, they will get too tired to even have the desire to eat in the end. As such, they would not be able to threaten the prosperity of Chang¡¯an and the Tang Empire.¡±


    Li Yu retorted coldly, ¡°Isn¡¯t that what we expect?¡±


    ¡°The loss of some elderly, women and children, ordinary people, the burning of viges in the fields and the destruction of small towns can save an army and might bring a millennium of peace to the Tang Empire...You are right if we look at it this way. In fact, it might even be a wise decision and a calm response.¡±


    After a moment of silence, Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°But there is not only just Chang¡¯an City in the Tang Empire. Those old, weak, women and children, ordinary farmers are also Tangs; those viges in the fields and the run down small towns are also part of the Tang Empire.¡±


    Li Yu said, ¡°So... you want to take the Valiant Cavalry Battalion to the east?¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu replied, ¡°Yes. If thete Emperor were still alive, he would have done so long ago.¡±


    Li Yu said, ¡°You would do this even though you know that the Valiant Cavalry Battalion cannot change the situation in the east at all?¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°We must at least let the people on thatnd know that the Tang Empire has not forgotten them.¡±


    After a long silence, Li Yu said, ¡°I will not give you the first edict.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu replied, ¡°Thank you, Your Highness.¡±


    When Li Yu was meeting everyone in the imperial study, her younger brother, Li Huiyuan was talking to those in his own pce. However, the conversation was not pleasant.


    He Mingchi nced at the dark night outside the pce and turned around to look at Li Huiyuan who was livid. He said, ¡°Chao Xiaoshu is in the imperial study, but I don¡¯t know what he and Her Highness are talking about.¡±


    Li Huiyuan waved his arm around anxiously, screaming, ¡°Royal Sister will deal with those things. Why would you care about that? I¡¯m asking you if there¡¯s anyway to contact those from the West-Hill Divine Pce.¡±


    He Mingchi bowed slightly and replied, ¡°Your Majesty, even if we can contact the West-Hill Divine Pce, we cannot make them change their minds. You have to know that the Divine Hall has already issued the rescript and both parties have already fallen out.¡±


    Li Huiyuan paused when he heard that, his expression turning ugly and his right hand trembled incessantly. He wanted to pick up the teacup on the table and drink from it, but almost knocked it to the ground instead.


    ¡°Quickly think of a way.¡±


    He said, ¡°If we cannot contact the West-Hill Divine Pce, then quickly think of a way to contact General Xu Shi. Tell him that the West-Hill Divine Pce is on the way to attack him.¡±


    He Mingchi was slightly startled when he heard that. ¡°Your Majesty...do you wish for everyone to find out about this matter?¡±


    Li Huiyuan looked up slowly and red at him viciously. He said coldly, ¡°Even if the military finds out that I have once tried to ally with our enemies and tried to kill the Defender-general of the State, I have to change the tides of this situation!¡±


    ¡°I had thought it was just Long Qing with the grasnd cavalry harassing the borders. But I had not expected it to turn out into a war! I have to protect the Tang Empire and the general. Go do it immediately!¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu left the Imperial Pce.


    He did not take an imperial edict with him. Instead, he received a letter written by Li Yu.


    Li Yu was now governing the country. With the letter, and coupled with the fact that he was friends with themander of the Valiant Cavalry Battalion, he was confident that he could take the battalion out of Chang¡¯an.


    After his return to the second street of Spring Breeze Pavilion, the Chao Mansion set up a banquet and invited actors to perform.


    At a time when the Tang Empire was on the verge of copse, such an action was rather infuriating.


    However, no matter the guests who attended the banquet, Linzi who hugged the crying child silently, or the old master Chao who held his crutch calmly, not one raised any objections.


    This was a farewell banquet, a banquet to send off someone.


    Supervisor Song left the pce.


    ording to Li Yu¡¯s wishes, he first went to the Qinghe Guild Hall and met with the disciples of the Qinghe County warlords and had a long talk with Old Master Cui¡¯s second son.


    Then, he brought Second Young Master Cui back to his manor, held a banquet and invited more than ten singers to add on to the festivities.


    After the banquet ended, Supervisor Song drank himself unconscious.


    The censor¡¯s wife looked at him in distress. She said, ¡°It¡¯s bad to drink too much. Furthermore, you are the censor and you shouldn¡¯t do something like this at this time. You might be attacked for this.¡±


    Supervisor Song opened his eyes and looked at the curtains on the top of the bed. After a long silence, he suddenly smiled and said, ¡°There are many types of banquets. There are banquets for farewell and sending people off. The banquet tonight was for the pce to see. I want the pce to think that we are drinking in remembrance of our old friends in our hometown.¡±


    ¡°Would the imperial court trust us from Qinghe Countypletely? There are secret guards following me, the Second Young Master Cui and all the other disciples of warlords from the Qinghe Guild Hall all year round.¡±


    ¡°So we will all die in the end.¡±


    ¡°The wine tonight was to allow us to boost our courage.¡±


    ¡°But for the sake of a thousand generations, even the wine of death must be consumed.¡±


    Darkness enshrouded the Xiao Mountain.


    There was a military camp at the foot of Xiao Mountain made up of more than ten military tents. There were not many people there.


    Painful coughs came out of one of the tents.


    Xu Shi was already very old. The wrinkles on his face and his worsening lung ailment proved this. However, he would not allow himself to copse, especially at a time like this.


    He was the Tang Empire Defender-general of the State and led the Tang military. He was trusted and loved by the Emperor. He had been stationed in the Southern Army for the past few years as the humid air in the south was better for his health.


    The Xiaoshan mountain was a few hundred miles from the Southern Army. However, it was closer to the north and his lung ailment acted up again. The old general¡¯s chest was like a broken drum, and everyone in the camp could feel his pain.


    In the battle for the throne, the most powerful general Xu Shi had remained silent. Because of their wariness against the Academy, many people, including the Li siblings were all suspicious that he secretly supported the Empress. However, the facts had proven that he did not support anyone else but thete Emperor.


    When the Emperor died, he supported His Majesty¡¯s edict, so he now supported Li Yu and her brother. However, when the imperial edict calling him back to the capital did not reach the Southern Army, he began to feel that something was wrong with the matter.


    He brought more than a hundred soldiers and left the Southern Army, entering the forests and headed for Chang¡¯an.


    In the night, beneath the Xiao Mountain.


    Wang Jinglue once again questioned the general¡¯s decision. Xu Shi red at him and rapped out, ¡°When the general is away, he can choose to follow the Emperor¡¯s order selectively. What¡¯s more, the Emperor has gone missing!¡±


    Later on, when Wang Jinglue thought back to this, he sighed with regret. When one grew old, they would tend to be like children and act rashly. General Xu Shi was in a hurry to return to Chang¡¯an because he was worried about the country. But when he thought about it deeper, perhaps he was just eager to see His Majesty for onest time.

 Chapter 712

    <h4>Chapter 712: The Rainy Night at Xiao Mountain, Red Waters in the Clear River</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Wang Jinglue poured the feet-washing water outside the tent, took a towel to wipe Xu Shi¡¯s feet and rubbed the calluses on the general¡¯s soles.


    ¡°ording to my predictions, I fear that the imperial edict has reached the Southern Army by now. We snuck away and went against thews of the Tang Empire. What if an ident happens?¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t leave with the whole army. These more than a hundred guards are private guards that His Majesty gifted to me back then. I only came to the mountains to recuperate from my illness. How is this viting the Tang militaryws? Even if I have done so, is there anyone who would dare punish me?¡±


    ¡°Alright, alright. Just forget what I¡¯ve said. Why is your temper getting worse?¡±


    Wang Jinglue said slightly testily.


    Xu Shi was really like a child now. Seeing that Wang Jinglue was angry, he smiled happily and consoled him, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, I am the Defender-general of the State. What danger can befall us in the borders of the Tang Empire?¡±


    It was then when an urgent military report arrived outside the tent.


    The army of the Golden Pce had moved south!


    The West-Hill Divine Pce had announced to the world that they¡¯d punish the Tang Empire!


    There was a dead silence in the tent. Wang Jinglue was very pale and Xu Shi had long lost his smile, returning to theposure and sternness that a Tang Empire military leaders should have.


    ¡°You will return to the Southern Army immediately.¡±


    Xu Shi looked at the Xiao Mountain which was enshrouded in darkness and said, ¡°If the new Emperor and Her Highness have not turned muddle-headed, the edict to move the Southern Army north should have arrived.¡±


    Wang Jinglue paused slightly and asked, ¡°What about you?¡±


    Xu Shi answered, ¡°Since they want to destroy the Tang Empire, I have to return to Chang¡¯an to defend it. Do not worry, His Majesty will definitely send an edict for me to return north as soon as possible.¡±


    Wang Jinglue nodded, but felt that something was not right. He suddenly thought of something and said with furrowed brows, ¡°Since the West-Hill Divine Pce has issued a rescript, then they definitely would try to harm you.¡±


    Xu Shi smiled and patted his shoulders, saying, ¡°I have said earlier that we are within the borders of the Tang Empire. Who would dare to kill me, the Defender-general of the Empire?¡±


    Wang Jinglue said, ¡°Is there anything the West-Hill Divine Pce dares not do?¡±


    ¡°I have been in the army for decades, would I not know as much as you? We are under the Xiao Mountain right now. If someone wishes to harm me, they¡¯d have to cross the mountains from Qinghe County to reach here. The people at Qinghe County are not blind.¡±


    Xu Shi smiled and said, ¡°Furthermore, you have to be clear about this. Even though I am old, I¡¯m not that easy to kill. There are few people in the world who are able to kill me.¡±


    Wang Jinglue thought that this was true and counted on his fingers. There really were not many who was a threat to the old man. While he was very old, he was still very powerful.


    The military matter was urgent. Wang Jinglue had to take General Xu Shi¡¯stest orders back with him and also coordinate with the Southern Army troops to organize their defence against the Golden Pce. As such, he left the Xiao Mountain in the middle of the night.


    Shortly after he left Xiao Mountain, Xu Shi put on his military boots, and carefully donned his armor. Then, he walked out of the tent and looked at the forests in the night, narrowing his eyes slowly.


    The guards in the camp heard the faint sounds of armor and the scabbard nging. They came out of the tent alertly and stood beside the general, asking what had happened in a low voice.


    Xu Shi did not answer but only looked at the mountain silently.


    He wanted very much to make the guards go away just like he had with Wang Jinglue.


    But just like what he had told Wang Jinglue, these guards were a private army gifted to him by thete Emperor. They were loyal to him only and would never leave his side no matter what.


    ¡°There are indeed few who are qualified to kill me.¡±


    Xu Shi looked at the quiet forest in the night and said slowly, ¡°The Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce, Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, Sword Sage Liu Bai and the few young World Wayfarers...I always thought that these people would not attempt to kill me at the risk of their precious lives, but I never expected that you would act.¡±


    A thunderously loud voice suddenly rang in the mountains.


    ¡°After the deaths of the Headmaster and the Tang Emperor, general, you are the spiritual stronghold of the Tang Empire. If I did not act personally, wouldn¡¯t that be too disrespectful to you?¡±


    With that, the Xiao Mountain shook and rocks fell from the top.


    A giant chariot arrived, crushing the forests and rocks.


    While the curtain on the chariot was heavy, the tall figure emanating light could be seen in the dark.


    It was the Hierarch Lord of the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    There were 64 divine guards beside the chariot.


    ¡°The Hierarch Lord had not left the Peach Mountain for many years until the battle in the Wilderness started. You have taken great risk to enter the Tang borders just for me, an old man who is about to die. I am beside myself.¡±


    Xu Shi¡¯s voice was as cold as steel and traveled through the dark forest word by word and exploding before the giant chariot. ¡°But I would still like to know who would emerge alive from this tonight.¡±


    With that, he suddenly coughed twice.


    Wang Jinglue scurried through the forest in the night.


    He suddenly stopped and looked up.


    There were clouds tonight and the skies were entirely ck.


    It suddenly began to rain, the raindropsnding on his face, with their pitter-patter.


    The rainwater entered his mouth. It was slightly salty and acrid.


    Wang Jinglue turned around suddenly and ran back to where he came from.


    When he rushed out of the forest and came to a cliff, he saw the mountain in the distance copsing. Sand and stones flew everywhere, and not even the violent rain could hide the terrifying collision of Heaven and Earth¡¯s Qi.


    Wang Jinglue could clearly sense General Xu Shi¡¯s aura.


    He could sense the general¡¯s aura growing fainter.


    He knelt in the rain and screamed hysterically, ¡°No!¡±


    He only realized then that the general had already sensed his own fate. That was why he had made him return to the Southern Army. It was so that he could avoid the shocking battle.


    After the rainy night at the Spring Breeze Pavilion, Wang Jinglue joined the army and had always been under themand of General Xu Shi. Over the years, he served the general like his son or nephew. He had been used to being alone since he was a child, but he grew to like the bustle in the military camp and even felt that General Xu Shi was like his own father.


    His slightly chubby face had gradually thinned and his heart that had longed to travel gradually calmed. He gradually grew to understand that there were many other beautiful things to be cherished besides freedom.


    However, in the rain tonight.


    All those beautiful things were shattered.


    Wang Jinglue knelt in the storm and cried silently.


    It was unknown how much time had passed. He stood up once more, wiped the rain and tears off his face and his expression grew increasingly determined. He turned and ran to the north.


    He was not returning to the Southern Army.


    He was going to return to Chang¡¯an as quickly as he could.


    He was going to tell the people in Chang¡¯an.


    He was going to tell them that General Xu Shi had died.


    The terrifying powerhouse who had killed the general was heading to Chang¡¯an.


    Qinghe County had betrayed them...


    The scenery of Qinghe county was elegant. The houses, tall or low, had white walls and ck eaves. The clear streams and stone bridges were very different from the magnificent sceneries in other parts of the Tang Empire.


    However, the best scenery was at Fuchun River.


    The manors of the Qinghe County warlords were all located on the banks of Fuchun River. The Cui Family manor was, of course, located on the most beautiful winding section of the stone bank and by the best looking part of the forest.


    However, it was located in the wilderness in the south. So while the forests were beautiful, they were far from steep.


    It was still as dark as before in a small building deep inside the Cuiyuan Garden.


    Old master Cui handed the hot towel to his son behind him and looked at the six silver-haired old men sitting in chairs. He sighed and said, ¡°Haotian is merciful. There is finally an unprecedented change in the situation that we can witness before our deaths.¡±


    One of the old men said calmly, ¡°Intentions have been set since years ago. The ancestral teachings of all ns have never forgotten how our country was defeated. We just have to carefully consider the details.¡±


    Old master Cui said calmly, ¡°As for the specifics, the descendants of the n can carry them out. The families of Qinghe have existed for many years, there will not be any problems.¡±


    ¡°Senior Brother is right. However, there are various descendants of our ns in Chang¡¯an working as officials or studying. The Li family would not allow us the opportunity to extradite them out of the city. What are we to do?¡±


    ¡°Other than thinking that we cannot bear the sudden change in situation, Princess Li Yu trusts us old men because she believes that we will not harm those of our flesh and blood.¡±


    Old master Cui said dryly, ¡°However, what she doesn¡¯t know is that the families of Qinghe have nned to restore our nation since hundreds of years ago. This is not a sudden change to us. She has also never imagined that we would be willing to sacrifice even more people, much less a few hundred noble descendants for this cause.¡±


    Looking at the myriad of expressions on the faces of the old men, old master Cui smiled and said, ¡°You do not have to feel sad right now. As long as the war progresses smoothly and the Li family ns for the future, they might not even dare to kill our descendants. They might even provide for them.¡±


    ¡°However, can the war really progress smoothly?¡±


    ¡°Haotian Taoism had nned this for many years. The Tangs have lived in luxury and extravagance. Now that the Northeast Border Military has been felled, the Golden Pce is moving southwards. The Hierarch Lord has personallye out, so Xu Shi would definitely die. As long as Qinghe County opens a convenient door, the West-Hill Divine Pce army and the Jin army will march north. It would be unsure whether the Tang Empire will fall, but it can be sure that Chang¡¯an would never be able to lord over us ever again.¡±


    ¡°Speaking of which, I would also like to thank that Mr. Thirteen of the Academy. If it weren¡¯t for his protecting the Daughter of Yama, the Headmaster wouldn¡¯t have been punished to death by Heaven. If he hadn¡¯t killed the Yan Crown Prince with an arrow on the Wilderness, the Yan Emperor wouldn¡¯t be be so mad to activate the entire nation.¡±


    Old master Cui said with a smile, ¡°Qinghe County will seed in its nation restoration. When we build a stele beside Fuchun river to record this great event, you must not forget to add the name of Ning Que on it.¡±


    The sound of old men chortling rang in the small building.


    The history of Qinghe county¡¯s families was longer than that of most countries. A thousand years ago, this was originally a rxed country where warlords took turns to rule.


    ording to n etiquette, The Cui and Song warlords maintained a strong cohesive force while Qinghe County was like an iron te operated by them. No matter how Chang¡¯an tried to split them up or to alienate them, they could only touch the outermostyer but were unable to reach into the core of Qinghe county.


    Now in Qinghe County and Yangguan City, the city guards, the state army generals, and even the over 1,000 middle-and low-ranking officials, they were either the descendants of the warlords, or people who shared vital interests with he warlords.


    Even the Tang navy, which was heavily guarded by the imperial court had also been infiltrated by the families of Qinghe County. It was not that Chang¡¯an was not vignt enough. When the navy recruited, there were many from Qinghe County who had applied. But the citizens of Qinghe County were not really Tang citizens, but were more under the control of the warlords.


    As time passed, the previously unassuming officers and soldiers of the navy, toiled and umted meritorious military service, eventually gaining rtively important positions. Although the senior generals of the navy were appointed by Chang¡¯an city and transferred from other ces, the middle and lower levels of the navy were firmly under the control of Qinghe County.


    One day in the autumn of Tianqi¡¯s 18th year.


    There was a storm at the western foot of Xiao Mountain. However, it was sunny in Qinghe County, which was on the eastern side, and the autumn wind brought cold relief.


    Yangguan City¡¯s government gathered officials to discuss the important matter of gathering troops to cooperate with the navy to resist the enemy invading from the south.


    All the officials arrived as they were ordered.


    After a few cups of tea, Yangguan City government department chief Zhong Da Jun entered with a smile.


    The doors to the government building closed slowly.


    The officials looked at each other and wondered what was happening.


    Zhong Da Jun waved his hand.


    Furious rebukes and painful cries rang in the building.


    Fresh blood stained the green-tiled floors.


    Almost at the same time.


    The families of Qinghe County invited the generals of the Tang navy to an area on the bank of Fuchun river to discuss the war.


    Fresh blood stained the Fuchun River red.


    No matter how powerful the warlords of Qinghe County were, they would not be able topletely defeat officials and generals loyal to the imperial court. Therefore, in the sunny autumn day, several battles broke out in Qinghe County and Yangguan City.


    ording to the statistics afterward, more than 300 Tang Empire officials were beheaded, more than 1,000 Tang navy officers ranging from theirmanding general to auxiliary soldiers died and more than 1,000 people were transported to the mountains downstream from Fuchun River to do forcedbor.


    If one party had nned for a rebellion for millennia while the other party was not aware of it, then the oue of the rebellion had already been decided. The only thing that could affect the oue of this was the feelings of the people.


    The feelings of the people in Qinghe County wereplex.


    They were ustomed to the fact that the warlords ruled them and they have made no secret regarding their superiority and contempt for the Tangs from other counties. They did not have any affection for Chang¡¯an.


    However, they had lived under the rule of the Tang Empire for so many years after all and had lived as Tangs for many years. They had felt the glory of the Tang Empire countless times and were proud of it.


    But... they were going to betray the Tang Empire now?


    The young people of Qinghe county especially, including warlords¡¯ descendants, werepletely unable to ept this matter and could not believe what was happening at the moment.


    However, just as they were preparing to voice their opinions, their elderly grandfathers and stern fathers showed up and dragged them back to their n temples. They were ordered to kneel before their ancestors¡¯ memorial tablets as they listened to their grandfathers and fathers recounting the sad history of Qinghe county¡¯s defeat, and watched as they reminisced the glory of the old days with tearfull eyes.


    The young people of Qinghe County had not forgotten that period in history, but they loved the Tang Empire more and they loved being proud citizens of the Empire. That was why the words of their forefathers carried little weight on them.


    However... could they raise their swords and ughter their families?


    In the autumn of Tianqi¡¯s 18th year.


    The Headmaster ascended to Heaven.


    The Emperor passed away.


    The Academy closed its doors.


    The Northeast Border Military was wiped out in Capital Cheng.


    The army of the Golden Pce moved south.


    Qinghe County betrayed the Tang Empire.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce and tens of thousands of troops from the South Jin Kingdom stormed the empire.


    Defender-general of the State Xu Shi died in battle.


    Following that, the Yuelun Kingdom military marched into the Pamir Mountains.


    To vanquish the Tang Empire.


    It seemed inevitable that the Tang Empire would fall.


    Right at this moment.


    A young man in ck was traveling through the depths of the Wilderness.


    He had awoken not long ago.


    He talked to the moon every night since his awakening.


    He missed his teacher and wife.


    He did not know what had happened in the human realm.


    But could he change anything if he knew about it?

 Chapter 713 - Back to the South

    <h4>Chapter 713: Back to the South</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Tears streamed down Ning Que¡¯s face as he looked at the Moon. He could barely stop crying until he found his crying more terrifying than the wolves¡¯ howling far away.


    Ning Que had felt nothing but hunger since he woke up. His empty belly had been torturing and haunting him like the Heaven and Earth¡¯s Qi did, in the cliff cave in the back of the mountain of the Academy.


    Judging by the hunger, he knew he must have been in an unconscious for days, leading him to the extremely weakened state he was in. He searched for edible grass in the meadow. He put the grass with dew in his mouth and chewed it until it was soft. He managed swallowing it, and then he felt much better.


    He looked at the water droplets on the grass and took them for granted since he didn¡¯t know that they were remained from the heavy rain that had arrived after the Headmaster¡¯s passing.


    When the Moon disappeared at dawn, Ning Que started to head south under the guidance of the morning sun rays.


    He was depressed and confused, and didn¡¯t know where exactly he was going.


    Then, head back to Chang¡¯an.


    His home was there, and the Academy was there, too. However, the Old Brush Pen Shop and the house by the Yanming Lake were empty now, and the Headmaster would never again return to the Academy.


    It didn¡¯t take him long before he walked to where he could see mountains coated by snow. Then he walked towards the mountains till the night came, and the Moon shone in the sky.


    For days he walked south through the mountains. At night when he looked up to the Moon, his temper would suddenly turn sour, making him spill curses at it, arms on his hips.


    He knew the Headmaster was still alive, but in a different way. He was still fighting against Haotian in the sky now, and the effects of their ongoing struggle produced the shape of the Moon, bright or dim, wax or wane.


    But still he felt sad and frustrated.


    Because he could see nothing resembling the Headmaster in that Moon.


    ¡°Bright like a full moon is what people used to praise a handsome young man, and you¡¯re nothing like that.¡±


    He mocked as he pulled out his podao, to cut the snow hare he had just hunted. Since he had left the Primordial Thirteen Arrows and all other weapons in the carriage by the Sishui River, the podao was all he had. Sometimes he would worry if anything had happened to the Big ck Horse.


    Having cleaned the hare nicely, he passed it to the empty air next to him, saying, ¡°Don¡¯t over-toast it.¡±


    He was asking Sangsang to cook the hare.


    Yet Sangsang wasn¡¯t there anymore.


    Ning Que lowered down his head and was silent for quite a long period. Then he cried out.


    ¡°Sangsang!¡±


    ...


    ...


    After getting up in the morning, he continued his journey to the south and walked to the foot of the mountains.


    The mountain capped by snow was the Tianqi Mountain. Along its was the way to Min Mountain, then to Chang¡¯an, and to the Academy.


    On his way, he ran into a small Herdsmen¡¯s tribe.


    The tribe was ruled by the Golden Pce. They knew Ning Que was one of the Tangs by his clothes and ent. Instead of treating him to a meal, they tried to kill Ning Que for the nice podao on his back.


    So Ning Que killed them all.


    After that, he had a filling meal includingmb and kumiss. He found a tent free from blood stter and there he slept away all his exhaustion and frustration.


    He left the dead tribe with a boxwood bow on his shoulder. He rode one of their horses and led another with a rope that carried four gigots on its back.


    Several days passed.


    Ning Que had finally seen the famous gap of Tianqi Mountain. However, his face turned gloomy before he could even scream with joy.


    Before the city gate of Hn City were numerous elite cavalries of the Golden Pce.


    And judging by the scene, there must be at least thousands of them.


    What had actually shocked Ning Que was the four carriages behind the cavalries.


    Ning Que¡¯s eyesight was good enough to see the golden and silver decorations on the carriage. He could even see the steel disks inside the carriage, and the lines crossing on the surface.


    Each carriage had a fully armored powerhouse from the grasnd standing on it. Ning Que was able to recognize them because their armors were made of rare metals instead of leather!


    Yet they were not the protagonists of this war.


    They were no more than the submissive protectors of the disks and their users.


    On each carriage sat a skinny and old man. Three of them were garbed in shining royal clothes and wore human-bone nes around their necks. Only the old man at the very end wore the mostmon grasnd attire, without any special essories.


    <i>¡°The High Priest!¡±</i>


    Ning Que frowned when he saw him. He had never run into the High Priests of the grasnd pce in battles before, but he had heard descriptions of him from General Ma and the other military officials.


    These Necromancers manipted the Qi of Heaven and Earth through the disks, and they were the grasnd pce equivalent to the Array Tactical Masters or the Talisman Master of Tang. The Golden Pces titled them respectfully as ¡°Priests¡±. The strongest amongst them who couldmune directly with the grasnd were called ¡°High Priests¡± and were given the precious golden disks.


    Ning Que was trying to figure out why the Golden Pce had summoned three High Priests together at one go. And looking at the old man riding the carriage at the very back, Ning Que was afraid that he ranked even higher than the other three.


    <i>¡°Maybe a bigwig they want is in Hn City now.¡±</i>


    Ning Que didn¡¯t believe that the cavalries and the Priests were here to capture Hn City. As powerful as the High Priests might be, they would find it difficult to capture the city that had been built with talisman adaptations. The city was supposed to withstand the attack of thousands of cavalries, not to mention there were only hundreds of them now.


    After the rain stopped, and before the people in Hn City hade to a decision, the four weird carriages of the Golden Pce cavalry had reached the gate of the city before Hn City.


    Having been in siege for days, the whole city was depressed.


    Others might wonder why the city was sieged by only tens of hundreds of grasnd cavalries, for there were thousands of Tang cavalries, Master Huang Yang, and many powerful generals inside the city.


    But that was the truth.


    The Northern Army tried to breakout when the cavalries of the Golden Pce first arrived. That was their best shot and they almost seeded. Theirter attempts failed horribly.


    That was probably because their first shot was when the four High Priests on the carriage weren¡¯t fully prepared.


    The grasnd was soaked by the heavy rain that hadsted for days. The four High Priests had turned the grasnd before Hn City into a muddy and boggy marsh with some spell.


    Thend Hn city sat on had been adapted by Array Tactical Masters. The adaption could prevent thend area from being influenced by the High Priests. However, thend around the city area had been turned into a swamp.


    The cavalries of Tang, as strategic or brave as they might be, had no way to rush into the camp of their enemy with the hooves of their horses stuck in the mud. They were shot by arrows and died helplessly.


    ¡°The Priests of the Left King¡¯s Pce have yed this card when the Deste first came south. The Military Ministry asked generals what to do. The generals believed that our Tang cavalries were too flexible to be trapped by a stretch of marsh...¡±


    Said Han Qing, who looked quite severe as he was standing on the city wall, looking down to the dense grasnd cavalries and the four carriages behind. Then he continued, ¡°But we forgot one thing¡ª this is the perfect way to siege Hn City. And the four Priests from the Golden Pce are much more powerful than those from the Left King¡¯s Pce back then.¡±


    In the old days, Hn City would never fear the siege of the Golden Pce because it had enough food stored away. Now that the Northern Army was also stuck in the city, the food supply was running out. The city now was too weak to take any attacks from the enemy.


    ¡°As far as I am concerned, we should make a quick decision and march to the Eastern Wilderness through the mountain gap. Then we should make a detour around the North of Yan Kingdom, then return to Tang. That¡¯s the only way we can avoid ending up dying here.¡±


    Han Qing suggested as he looked at the Empress who was standing on the city walls.


    The Empress then shook her head and said, ¡°Now that the Golden Pce is attacking me with its Nation Masters who have been long missed, I believe it has let the main force of its cavalries march south to attack Tang.¡±


    ¡°I am now worried about Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Yet, the Empress still looked calm, and she said softly, ¡°The Chanyu of the Golden Pce wouldn¡¯t dare to go south alone. The situation Tang is facing now must be tougher than that we¡¯ve seen. I¡¯m afraid other countries have joined together to go after Tang.¡±


    Han Qing then argued, ¡°Then that¡¯s one more reason why we should attack Yan Kingdom.¡±


    ¡°Detouring around the North of Yan Kingdom will cost too much time. And attacking Yan carries little weight to other attackers of Tang. We can¡¯t afford to waste that much time. The Northern Army should be brought back to Tang as soon as possible, for the Empire needs the cavalries now more than ever.¡±


    The Empress turned over and looked at Han Qing and the other two generals of the Nothern Army. Then she smiled and said, ¡°I know what¡¯s on your mind now. The Northern Army is running out of food supplies, so it won¡¯t make any difference even if we can go back to Tang in time.¡±


    ¡°But you¡¯re wrong. Without food supply in Hn City, the Northern Army might be the biggest burden of the Empire. But if we go back to the south and find food, we will be the most fearsome force of the Empire.¡±


    She then continued slowly, ¡°I¡¯m not sure if Chang¡¯an has the same idea as me. And I don¡¯t know if the food supply from the Northern Military Camp has been burned by the pce or not. But obviously, the Golden Pce knows that we¡¯ve run out of food, and that¡¯s why they are trying their hardest to besiege us here.¡±


    Han Qing asked after a moment of silence, ¡°Then what should we do, Your Majesty?¡±


    The Empress then said, ¡°While we still have food, we should break out of the city as soon as we can.¡±


    Han Qing frowned, and the other two generals became frustrated. The Empress was right, and they agreed with her. The problem was that the idea was too hard to realize, considering how many dead Tang cavalries were now lying outside the city wall.


    ¡°Only if we could kill the three Priests.¡±


    The Empress squinted, and looked down to the four luxurious carriages behind the grasnd cavalries. Her tone turned colder than ever.


    Master Huang Yang, who had kept silent for long, smiled and said, ¡°I should try it.¡±


    The Empress shook her head and disagreed, ¡°The grasnd cavalries¡¯ arrows are too sharp. You can¡¯t take the risk.¡±


    One of the two generals of the Nothern Army gritted his teeth and said, ¡°Your Majesty, I¡¯ve got several Martial Arts powerhouses. I¡¯ll let them try again if the weird and shining thing in the sky could be clouded tonight.¡±


    The Empress shook her head and disagreed again, ¡°We have already failed twice, so we shouldn¡¯t try again. The lives of these generals should be saved for something greater in the future, instead of dying for nothing here.¡±


    The people standing on the city wall of Hn were all silent.


    What should they do? Her Majesty was the most respected person in the city. His Majesty¡¯sst edict was to let the Sixth Prince be the new Emperor, so all the generals had to listen to her. However, in the eyes of everyone, how is it possible that a woman cane up with any great strategies?


    The Empress then smiled as if she had recalled something.


    Then she said softly, ¡°Let me have a try.¡±


    Both Han Qing and the other two generals thought they had heard it wrong.


    And before they could react, they heard a breeze. A skirt was dancing on the city wall. In mere moments, the Empress had jumped off the city wall!


    Han Qing wailed and tried to grab the corner of the skirt, but it was toote. The other two were totally stunned and they only rushed to the edge of the wall to look down momentster.


    All of them were too terrified to see the miserable scene of the Empress¡¯ death.


    Han Qing wailed and said, ¡°I knew it! His Majesty¡¯s sudden death was too shocking for Her Majesty to take! Her Majesty must have been nning to go with His Majesty for a long time! But Her Majesty...¡±


    The wailing suddenly stopped. He rubbed his eyes until they were red. Still he couldn¡¯t believe what he was seeing.


    The other two generals were staring at the scene with their eyes wide open. Their hands, which were on the brick wall looked as if they were about to crumble the rocks beneath them. Master Huang Yan was the only one who was calm.


    ...


    ...


    The Empress had jumped off the very high city wall, but she didn¡¯t die.


    And she was still floating in the air.


    She reached out her hands to press on the hard wall at intervals, and every time she pressed, she fell slower. Her skirt hem was lifted up, looking like a floating flower dancing in the air.


    The Empress has been wearing white after His Majesty died, so she looked like a white flower now.


    Finally, her feet settled on the ground, as did her skirt.


    Thend outside Hn City was like a swamp.


    Her shoes were slowly sinking.


    The grass roots around her shoes were sinking as well.


    She kept walking towards the cavalries of the Golden Pce, calmly and peacefully, as if she were inspecting a military parade of Tang.

 Chapter 714 - Long Live Her Majesty

    <h4>Chapter 714: Long Live Her Majesty</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The further the Empress walked into the grasnd, she noticed how thend became mushier, and herself sinking deeper in the mud.


    She was taking quicker steps, going faster and faster. Her feet were going up and down on the soft mud so quickly that people could barely see her clearly. All they could see was the shadow she had left behind.


    The cool breeze of autumn was blowing on her face, whistling and making her hair ruffle. The hem of her dress now became as hard as iron.


    That was the time when the cavalries of the Golden Pce emerged from the astonishment of seeing the Empress jumping off the wall. They tried their best to pull their bowstrings, shooting sharp arrows away.


    The arrows arrived like a shower. With urate prediction, all the arrows were aimed at the spot the Empress would step on.


    The Empress¡¯s lips curled, and with a smile, she kept moving forward.


    Sharp arrowsnded on her heavily.


    There were many short cracking sounds; the arrows were all broken right in the middle.


    Other arrows arrived like a storm. They cut through her skirt and hair. Then they bounced and shot deep into the ground. Not a single arrow had hurt the Empress.


    The weird scene terrified the cavalries of the Golden Pce to no end. Their hands grew numb, and their shooting slowed down.


    The Empress was the mother of the Tang Empire in most people¡¯s eyes. She had impressed Chang¡¯an with her gentleness and wisdom, and she was the love of His Majesty for more than 10 years.


    No matter how impressive she might have been, she was after all a woman who wasbeled as ¡°weak¡±. However, now she was outside the gates of Hn City, charging into to the enemy¡¯s camp like a courageous general.


    Han Qing and the other two generals emerged from their astonishment and looked at Master Huang Yang withplicated expressions on their faces.


    They were the senior generals of the Tang Army, and they were martial cultivators by themselves. So now they could clearly see that Her Majesty was a member of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine!


    Master Huang Yang looked at them and sighed, ¡°What are you still doing here?¡±


    The other three then emerged from their stupor and walked down to the foot of the city wall.


    The Tang Army on the city wall didn¡¯t connect things with the long kept secret, and they wouldn¡¯t care much even if they had known it.


    They were only aware that the Empress was charging towards the cavalries of the Golden Pce, and they were greatly inspired. The soldiers of Tang waved the podaos in their hands and roared to cheer Her Majesty on.


    ¡°Long live the Empress!¡±


    ¡°Long live Her Majesty!¡±


    Backed by the overwhelming cheers, the thick and heavy gate of Hn City was opened. At the city wall archway, armored cavalries of Tang waited for themand to charge.


    The Empress moved very fast, like a ghost.


    When she entered the camp of the Golden Pce cavalries, those sharp cusses and arrows could barely touch her dress. And she was barely slowed down by the attacks.


    She charged toward the Golden cavalry like a long sword, easily breaking through the defensive lines made up by hundreds of cavalries and finally, she reached the luxurious carriages.


    Her seemingly frail shoulder shook once, and then all the full armored grasnd powerhouses flew backwards and fell on the ground as if they had been hammered heavily.


    The old Priest sitting in the carriage appeared expressionless. He was looking at the Empress, with his bloody lips rattling and fingers clicking on the metal disk.


    The Empress knew clearly that the Priest was cursing thend with all his spiritual power through the disk. And she surely wouldn¡¯t let him do that.


    She stretched out her slender and fair right hand and clenched it.


    Her right hand looked small and soft, even smaller when clenched into a fist. It resembled a ripe and tender fruit, appealing and harmless.


    Then the fist smashed on the metal disk.


    The disk didn¡¯t break.


    It bounced back, and hit the High Priest¡¯s jaw heavily.


    The High Priest¡¯s neck and jaw were crushed, and he died instantly.


    Blood dripped on the disk, dyeing itsplicated lines red.


    The Empress was surrounded by crowds after killing the High Priest.


    The grasnd powerhouses who were flung by her had rushed back, bringing more cavalries.


    Master Huang Yang was standing on the city wall and looking far into the camp. He was frowning. While he was not worried about the Empress¡¯ safety thus far, time was quite limited.


    Because the Golden Nation Master in the veryst carriage hadn¡¯t made his move yet.


    Huang Yang took out his Buddha Beads which he had kept with him since he was a kid. Then he bit his tongue tip and spit blood on the beads. He lifted his wrist and threw the bloody beads off the city wall.


    The Buddha Beads with essential blood swirled and fell on the ground, ten feet away from the city wall.


    Thend outside Hn City had be less mushy after the death of the High Priest. Although, it was not solid enough. However, when the Master Huang Yang¡¯s Buddha Beads fell on the ground, a merciful and fierce aura spread over.


    Master Huang Yang had once traveled with a group of merchants deep in the Western Wilderness. On the way, they ran into a Horse Gang. Except for him, all hispanions were ughtered. The blood sshed on him, and he felt it burning him like fire.


    That was his moment of enlightenment.


    His approach to enlightenment was the Fire of Blood and Fury.


    The blood of dead Tang soldiers had soaked the muddy grasnd before Hn City. Master Huang Yang quit easing his fire of fury with buddha dharma, and the fury had turned into Buddhist Fire.


    Wherever the fire passed by, the water evaporated. Thus the mushy mud turned as tough as bricks.


    The grasnd was dried up in unbelievable speed, and atst, it became solid.


    General Han Qing roared when he saw the changes taking ce. He held his podao high up and pressed the horse¡¯s belly with his leg. With hundreds of Tang cavalry soldiers following, he rushed out of Hn City, and into the camp of the Golden Pce. There were still thousands of armored cavalries of Tang waiting in the mountain gap for themand to charge.


    The Northern Army had been trapped in Hn City by the heavy rain at first, and then they were sieged by grasnd barbarians. However, when they picked their podaos and mounted their horses again, their military spirit had instantly returned.


    The hooves were thundering. The Tang cavalry was charging overwhelmingly.


    Han Qing divided the cavalries into three groups, each of them charging at a carriage protected by grasnd cavalries. Han Qing himself rushed towards the south with his subordinates.


    The carriage in the south had been captured by the Empress. It might seem meaningless to charge over there. But the carriage meant a lot to Han Qing now.


    Because the Empress was still there, and she was being attacked by the grasnd cavalries.


    He no longer cared about whether the Empress was from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He simply had in his mind that he had vowed to serve the Emperor, and Her Majesty was the love of His Majesty, and he would never let Her Majesty get hurt on his watch.


    The Empress¡¯ escape route had been blocked by grasnd cavalriesing forward.


    She had not cultivated the scriptures of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine since she married the Emperor. As the former Saintess of Diabolism, the Qi stored inside her could bail her out temporarily, but not for long.


    Her two small and fair fists were waving like two mountains, punching all cavalry soldiers off their horses. They kept falling with horses neighing, some of them died of bone-breaking, and others flew far backwards.


    Only the real grasnd powerhouses could resist for a while.


    Yet the Empress wasn¡¯t satisfied. She looked toward the luxurious carriage deep in the camp. There, an old man who was frowning at the cold breath of the Wilderness.


    All their efforts would end up in vain if she failed to kill the Nation Master of the Golden Pce, or to force the army to draw back.


    The Empress waved her right hand. A cavalry soldier with a cuss in hand was hit, being thrown into the air. Then the Empress walked towards the carriage quickly. She looked calm, with a slight smile on her face.


    The old man dressed in ordinary clothes was the Nation Master of the Golder Pce, who had lived in seclusion for many years.


    The old man had already known that the Empress wasing for him. He wasn¡¯t in panic but instead, he curled his lips and smiled mysteriously just like she did.


    Then he reached out for the curtain hat on his back. He put the curtain hat on, which covered his face.


    And when the curtain hat was lifted, his face turned dark and withered.


    Nobody noticed that the Nation Master was bing older, more than ever, his body thinning down at an unbelievable speed.


    Yet his eyes remained shimmering, peaceful and quiet as ever.


    He watched as the Empress approached.


    When they looked into each other¡¯s eyes, the queen suddenly felt as if she were falling into an abyss. She immediately paled and moaned, trying to suppress the waves in her sense of perception and moved forward.


    But at this point, she was feeling too weak to continue approaching.


    The Nation Master finally took off his red curtain hat. He smiled as he saw how the Empress was once more trapped in the crowd. He then worried no more about what was happening in the south. He nodded to the two High Priests near the city wall, telling them to go on.


    The two High Priests sped their enchantments. Their skinny fingers kept clicking on the metal disks faster and faster like beating drums. The bone nes around their necks were shining brighter and brighter.


    The blood on the Buddha Beads on the ground was fading.


    Master Huang Yang, who was standing on the city wall, suddenly spit out blood and paled.


    His Buddha Fire had been extinguished by the two High Priests and the Nation Master, and he suffered from internal injuries.


    When the essential blood on the Buddha Beads finally disappeared, the grasnd quickly changed again from solid ground into mushy marsnd.


    The Tang cavalries had noticed the change, but they had no other choice except to charge forward, because they would be crushed by those behind them if they stopped abruptly; that would be much more fatal than sinking in the mud.


    They had no other choice but to charge. Hopefully, they could reach the enemy¡¯s camp before the terrain became impassable. But they also knew that this was barely possible.


    It looked as if the breakthrough was going to fail again, at the cost of the Empress and the elite cavalries¡¯ lives. However, something unexpected was happening outside the battlefield.


    Ten more grasnd cavalries rolled off their war-horses in session with their hands covering their throats.


    And in their hands, they clutched on tightly to arrows dripping with blood.

 Chapter 715 - Fists as Heavy as Mountains and a Belt of Steel

    <h4>Chapter 715: Fists as Heavy as Mountains and a Belt of Steel</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The howling of arrows fell upon the Golden cavalry incessantly.


    As the cavalry leader was waving his cuss trying to find the hidden Tang archer, a trail of smoke emerged from the north, winding its way through the cavalry at the speed of lightning.


    The man turned his wrists immediately and drew out his podao from his sheath. He fell from the air and killed several Golden cavalry riders. Then, he stepped on the saddle and stood up.


    His movements could not be clearly seen, but the podao in his hand became an ordinary boxwood bow. He pulled forcefully and the bow bent. An arrow shot toward the high priest on the northernmost carriage.


    There were thousands of cavalry troops in front of him, but no one tried to stop the man. What was even more shocking was that the man¡¯s arrow did not deviate at all even as he stood on the horse and shot the arrow.


    There was a thud as the arrow pierced into a shield!


    The high priest heard the sound from the shield in front of him and he paled slightly. He thought to himself that if not for the protection of the pce soldiers, the arrow would have made arge hole in his chest.


    The arrow was stopped by the shield, but this did not stop the man. He exhaled slowly and then gathered all the strength in his body and sent that to his legs. He stomped down heavily!


    The saddle broke!


    And the reins were torn!


    The great strength in the man¡¯s body spread to the horse. There was a loud moan, and the horse¡¯s hooves shattered as it fell heavily onto the ground of the wilderness, shaking up a cloud of smoke!


    Gathering the countering forces, the man sprung up from the horse¡¯s back and rushed to the horse carriage in the north. He sted through the air, causing the wind to howl. His speed was only slightly slower than that of the arrow!


    The arrow¡¯s shaft was quivering at a high speed and humming.


    The shield-wielding Golden Pce warriors had not had time to withdraw their arms.


    The high priest behind the shield was still pale, frightened by the power behind the arrow.


    The person who had shot the arrow had already reached them.


    He clenched his right fist tightly and struck heavily at the shield that was at waist level.


    Several extremely deep cracks appeared on the shield.


    The warrior holding the shield had been slow to move. His arms snapped and twisted oddly.


    The shield fell backward, crashing heavily onto the high priest.


    The high priest¡¯s sternum copsed and his lungs were crushed under the pressure. He had neither the time to curse nor the time to crush the bone breaking chain to save his life before he died.


    The Empress heard the pitiful cries and painful moans from the north and turned to look over.


    She saw the young man standing on the carriage.


    ck hair swept over her gentle cheeks, covering her surprised expression.


    She did not expect to see Ning Que here at all.


    Ning Que saw the Empress turning around.


    For some reason, he suddenly felt lost. Then, he turned to look at the carriage at the very end and at the ordinarily-dressed old man on it.


    He did not know that the old man was the legendary Golden Pce Nation Master at that time. But his intuition told him that the man was the most important figure on the battlefield.


    That was why he had to kill the man first.


    The Nation Master did not know who the person who had suddenly appeared from the north and killed a high priest in an instant was. He looked at the person who was changing the tides of the war and knew that the young Tang citizen was very powerful.


    That was why he decided to kill him first.


    Ning Que charged toward the carriage.


    The Nation Master reached behind him to pull on his red hood.


    Ning Que was still more than a hundred feet away from the carriage.


    The eyes of the Nation Master which were barely hidden by the hoodnded on him.


    Their gazes met.


    Large waves appeared in Ning Que¡¯s sense of perception.


    He only knew then, that the old man was a terrifying Psyche Master.


    Ning Que had meditated since he was a child, so his Psyche Power was strong. This was very rare in itself. Since his journey to the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, he had gained Master Lotus¡¯ consciousness in his sense of perception. As such, he did not fear this battle of Psyche Power at all.


    Ning Que had never lost a battle of Psyche Power before.


    Whether it was Dao Shi standing in the steaming from the Chang¡¯an bun stall or Bao Shu on the mountain path, or Qi Nian from the Lanke Temple. These Buddhist Sect powerhouses who were known for their Psyche Power could not defeat him.


    He did not believe that a Psyche Master from the Tribe of Savages on the Wilderness could defeat him on this point.


    Ning Que did not hesitate to use his Psyche Power, turning it into a hail of rocks and tossing them madly with his sense of perception.


    Two extremely powerful spiritual forces that could not be seen by the naked eye met in the air above the grasnd.


    Ning Que hummed lightly and then fell from the air heavily, blood trickling from his mouth and nose.


    The Nation Master shook slightly and then recovered.


    Ning Que looked up and stared at the seemingly ordinary old man with an expression of horror in his eyes.


    There was someone in the world who could seriously injure him just through spiritual strength!


    The other party could even suppress the fragments of consciousness that were Lotus¡¯ in his sense of perception!


    Ning Que had lost in the spiritual battle and was gravely injured. However, his Psyche Power was still very powerful. Adding on the help given by Lotus¡¯ consciousness in his sense of perception, the Golden Nation Master was also dealt with a heavy blow.


    The Empress was most aware of this feeling. The spiritual power that had reverberated in her sense of perception suddenly disappeared without a trace.


    She no longer felt weak and her heavy footsteps became light again. She raised her eyebrows slightly, calling up the power in her body. Then, she swept forward, pulling out her belt and whipped it in front of her.


    Power had been infused into the soft belt and it immediately became stiff. It flew into the air and lengthened until it pierced into a high priest in another carriage!


    The pce warriors on the carriage yelled out loud, blocking the belt with arge shield.


    Seeing that the belt was about to hit the shield, the Empress twitched her fingers and the belt softened once more. It bent like a willow stick, bypassed the edge of the shield, and tapped the throat of the high priest lightly.


    The high priest wrapped his hand around his bleeding throat and fell back.


    Three high priests had already died. Things gradually returned to normal on the grasnd before Hn City. The cavalry of the Golden Pce was in a mess as they watched the Tang cavalry who had mobilized through the mud.


    There was a low growl followed by a sharp whistle. The Golden cavalry quickly regrouped and stopped fighting against Ning Que and the Empress. They covered thest carriage and entered deep into the Wilderness.


    The Golden Pce Nation Master looked at Ning Que and the Empress and said a few words before leaving.


    Ning Que and the Queen were both very mindful of the old man¡¯s terrifying state, so they did not give chase.


    The Tang Empire cavalry roared past the two, chasing after the retreating Golden Pce cavalry. It was not a good time for them to give chase, but they had to ensure that they would gain a safe area outside of Hn City once more.


    ¡°What did he say before he left?¡±


    The Queen asked. She had seen Ning Que¡¯s information for many times and knew that he was proficient in manynguages of the Wilderness.


    After a moment of silence, Ning Que said, ¡°The old man said that the grasnd was a ce where everything lived and died. The Pce priests are not afraid of anything but those who cultivated in the Devil. He had gone into seclusion for many years and heard that the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had died off. He had not expected to see two Devil¡¯s Doctrine powerhouses in Hn City today.¡±


    They were naturally the two Devil¡¯s Doctrine powerhouses that the old man was referring to.


    The Queen and Ning Que looked at each other.


    Could they both be pursuing the same goal?

 Chapter 716 - I Have Been to the City of Wei

    <h4>Chapter 716: I Have Been to the City of Wei</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The goal was not the only simrity between them. They also cultivated the same Taoism.


    The Queen had read many files on Ning Que multiple times in order to find his weakness because he killed her only elder brother, Xia Hou. The rtionship between them was veryplicated and subtle.


    Returning to Hn City, they were still stuck in this state of mind until he entered the quiet room of the attic and saw the gray coffin.


    The coffin was veryrge and was made of dozens of pine trees from the Tianqi Mountain cliff.


    Compared with the high status of the person lying in the coffin, it looked primitive and crude, as the bark of the pine trees had not been peeled off.


    After a long silence, Ning Que walked over to the pine coffin, knelt down, and kowtowed.


    The Queen calmly said, ¡°Ever since you first met each other, you never got used to kowtowing to him. Now he is dead and will never see it.¡±


    Ning Que stood up, gently stroking the rough bark of the pine trees in silence.


    The Queen thought he would smile and give her a speech about the deading first. If he did, she would bring up her brother¡¯s death and discuss more serious topics with him.


    Standing by the pine coffin for a moment, Ning Que turned to Master Huang Yang and the generals and said, ¡°What happened? Why are you staying in Hn City?¡±


    Master Huang Yang slowly said, ¡°After the Headmaster and His Majesty died, it rained heavily. The Northern Army was stalled in Hn City and lost their connections to the south. We didn¡¯t know what was happening, but we guess...¡±


    Then he told Ning Que what had happened in recent days.


    ¡°Since the Golden Pce dared to besiege Hn City, Chanyu must have gone south.¡±


    Ning Que squat to the ground, drawing a very simple map with a branch taken from the pine coffin. He drew a horizontal line at the lower part of the map and said, ¡°The Seven Stockaded Viges...¡±


    Suddenly, he fell silent and stopped moving his fingers.


    Everyone in this room knew that Ning Que was from the City of Wei, a frontier fortress of the Seven Stockaded Viges.


    Ning Que¡¯s expression remained unchanged as he calmly continued, ¡°The Seven Stockaded Viges must have been upied and the cavalry of the Golden Pce might have passed through the Pingling Pass in Hebei County.¡±


    Dropping the branch, he looked up at the crowd and said, ¡°One-third of the Northern Army Cavalry is stationed in Hn City. Is the Northern Military Camp strong enough to stop them? If the court deploys troops from Gushan Commandery or Tuyang City, what will happen in the east? Long Qing will definitely not miss this opportunity.¡±


    His spection was basically consistent with the reality, there was no essential difference, and it waspletely in line with the view of the Queen.


    ¡°We must leave immediately.¡±


    The Queen said, ¡°Withdraw southward as soon as possible.¡±


    Han Qing said, ¡°It¡¯s a long journey. What about the army provisions?¡±


    ¡°We can grab the Golden tribes,¡± a Northern Army general said.


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°The Golden Pce definitely already made ns: their elite went south, leaving the empty interior behind. They won¡¯t give us a chance to take advantage, so those tribes must have withdrawn to the north once the rain stopped. If we pursue them, we¡¯ll have to go into the depths of the wilderness without any supplies. It is too risky.¡±


    The Queen asked, ¡°So what¡¯s your n?¡±


    ¡°There isn¡¯t a good n.¡±


    Ning Que stood up and continued, ¡°First of all, we must take away all the food in Hn City and make calctions. People will not die if they are starving for a few days, but horses will. Moreover, we can ride horses to move around even if we are exhausted and we can even kill the horses if in the worst situation.¡±


    The generals all remained silent and then nodded in agreement.


    Han Qing frowned and said, ¡°If we take away all the food in the city, what will the garrison in the city do?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°They wille with us.¡±


    Han Qing surprisedly said, ¡°Are you abandoning Hn City?¡±


    The Queen answered for Ning Que, ¡°As long as the Tang Empire hasn¡¯t been subjugated, we will take it back.¡±


    The situation was urgent. After the discussion, the generals hurried away to prepare. Master Huang Yang went to get treatment while the Queen went to see the Sixth Prince, who was frightened.


    At that moment, aside from the gray pine coffin in the quiet room, only Ning Que and Han Qing remained.


    ¡°I saw you and the Daughter of Yama crossing the border in a ck horse carriage.¡±


    Han Qing looked at him and said.


    Ning Que said, ¡°There is no time to be sentimental. Just tell me what you want to say directly.¡±


    Looking at the gray pine coffin, Han Qing said, ¡°His Majesty liked you so much when he was alive, and now you already know about his will. So, what do you think?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Continue.¡±


    Han Qing said, ¡°Everyone knows that you are close to the Princess and hold a grudge against the Queen, but His Majesty has passed his throne on to the Sixth Prince... I don¡¯t really care who you support, but I hope you can make your attitude known at this time. The journey to the south is difficult, and if something happens...¡±


    He paused when he heard some footsteps.


    Han Qing remained silence.


    The Queen walked in, followed by a young man.


    The young man in the bright yellow clothes of the Prince curiously looked at Ning Que. He seemed a little shy as if he was not used to meeting strangers.


    Ning Que kept silent for a long time by the pine coffin.


    Then he looked at the Prince and asked, ¡°Do you want to be the emperor of the Tang Empire?¡±


    The Prince turned to his mother in confusion.


    The Queen gently touched his head, looking like she loved to spoil him.


    Looking at Ning Que, the Prince thought carefully for a long time, then said, ¡°If my father asked me to be the emperor, then I will be.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Very good, then it¡¯s yours, and nobody can take it away from you.¡±


    The Queen looked at him quietly, then asked, ¡°Is that the promise of the Academy?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°It¡¯s my promise, but it is equally as effective.¡±


    The Queen said, ¡°I have no doubt about that.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    The Queen replied, ¡°Because you finally married Sangsang.¡±


    Looking at her gentle and beautiful face, Ning Que remembered when she had turned to look at him on the grasnd and her ck hair was brushing against her face. It was so beautiful.


    He realized that the Queen knew him very well.


    Therefore, he suddenly understood why His Majesty had insisted on marrying her.


    All the food that had been stored in Hn City for many years was transported out. The horses that were killed on the battlefield in front of the city were cut into parts and piled in the trailers as food.


    It did not take long before tens of thousands of the Tang Army withdrew out of Hn City. A general asked whether to burn down the defensive crossbows and buildings in the city so they would not fall into the hands of the barbarians, but both the Queen and Ning Que rejected it. They believed that the Tang Empire would return one day, and these Tang treasures should be preserved.


    The Tang Army, who had been besieged by torrential rain and the enemies in the depths of the wilderness, finally began to go back to the south. When they had arrived here, their country was the most powerful one in the world, while by the time of their departure, it had fallen into a precarious state, which was like a broken boat in a vast ocean that was going to be destroyed at any moment.


    Therefore, the return journey was silent, depressing, and tense.


    Ning Que¡¯s face was indifferent but his hands holding the horse¡¯s reins trembled and his knuckles turned white, all of which indicated that he was more nervous and depressed than anyone else.


    The Tang Army finally arrived at the middle foothill of Min Mountain after a difficult journey. They were able to see that the mountain was getting more and more green while the autumn trees on the mountain were more and more red.


    There was still a long way to go to get to the Northern Military Camp. They were already very hungry and tired with little food left. However, as long as they did not encounter a big problem, they would be able to return to the south smoothly.


    Ning Que finally could take a rest. The fear and tension inside his heart suddenly erupted all at once. He could no longer control his emotions and he had to see the City of Wei for once by himself.


    Several generals of the Tang Army expressed their strong opposition. Under the background of the Golden Pce¡¯s invasion, no matter how powerful he was, once he was surrounded alone, he could do nothing but die.


    Everyone knew why Ning Que wanted to go there, but it had been a long time. What could be changed even if he did go there?


    Eventually, the Queen agreed to let him go and left a group of cavalry to escort him.


    ¡°Seven City Fortress could not have held out.¡±


    Seeing the dozens of riders rushing toward the western wilderness, Han Qing frowned and said, ¡°It¡¯s pointless. Why does he insist on seeing what has happened?¡±


    The Queen said, ¡°There are many things that people won¡¯t give up unless they see it with their own eyes. Although Ning Que isn¡¯t an ordinary person, there is no difference between him and ordinary people in this regard.¡±


    The City of Wei was just around the corner.


    The quiet city was located in the deserted wilderness. When the wind blew, the ashes on the wall would fall down onto the chopping boards of meat stalls and into the wine urns that had been left uncovered.


    The City of Wei was still primitive and crude. The gate was broken, as usual, which when locked from the inside, would be very difficult to break through even with siege vehicles.


    The City of Wei was extraordinarily quiet on this day. ck traces could be faintly seen inside of the old ash that had umted under the wall. They did not know whether it was from blood coagtion or something else.


    Ning Que waved to the cavalry to stop.


    He jumped off his horse, walked over to the gate, and pushed it open. The nted gate fell down, raising clouds of dust. He stood at the gate in silence for a long time and then walked inside.


    The cavalrymen on horses watched him enter the City of Wei withplicated emotions.


    Ning Que walked out of the City of Wei after a long time.


    The expression on his face was still calm, his back was still straight, and his right hand resting on the hilt was still stable. No change could be seen, as if he had seen nothing in the City of Wei.


    ¡°How is the situation inside?¡± asked a cavalry officer.


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°Nothing¡¯s left.¡±


    The officer frowned slightly and asked several cavalrymen to go inside.


    Ning Que said in a low voice, ¡°Don¡¯t go in.¡±


    The cavalrymen turned to the officer and received no more orders. They lifted the reins, heading into the City of Wei.


    Ning Que did not turn around as he shouted, ¡°Don¡¯t!¡±


    His voice was very loud and violent, like thunder, exploding in the wilderness outside the City of Wei. The horses under the cavalrymen were frightened by the sound and everyone stood up.


    A broken wine banner swayed gently in the City of Wei.


    Hearing Ning Que¡¯s angry roar, they finally understood what had happened in the City of Wei.


    Nobody insisted on going to see.


    Ning Que walked toward his horse.


    With each step, his head lowered and his body became heavier.


    ¡°When I left, I told you... don¡¯t get old, don¡¯t die, wait for my filial obedience... What about now? You, old fox, always lied to me,¡± Ning Que muttered to himself.


    Then heughed sadly.


    Although the army did not pass through the City of Wei, they finally entered the war zone. Appearing in front of everyone, the horrific destruction caused by the Golden Pce cavalry at the frontier fortress and the towns which the Tang lived in had be ruins.


    This was a tired army, but the blood, fire, ruins, broken walls, and dead people seen along the way stirred up their crazy fighting spirit. Only after a period of time of recuperation and replenishment would it be a formidable military force. Even at this moment, many soldiers were eager to fight with the Golden Cavalry.


    Fortunately, or perhaps unfortunately, the Tang Army that returned to the south along Min Mountain never met the main forces of the Golden Pce. After wiping out dozens of prairie riders along the way, they approached the Northern Military Camp.


    The Tang Army regained contact with the General¡¯s Mansion. Due to theirrge number of troops, it was not convenient to enter the General¡¯s Mansion at the same time. The General¡¯s Mansion sent out an elite cavalry to give them supplies and receive the Queen, the Prince, and the most important coffin of His Majesty to the Northern Military Camp first.


    After some hasty discussions, the Tang Army did not raise any doubts about the order of the General¡¯s Mansion. They stood by outside the city as the Queen and the Sixth Prince, as well as the coffin, entered the mansion.


    His Majesty¡¯s coffin was simple but very heavy. The weight of dozens of whole pine trees required several horses to pull it. This was the biggest difficulty encountered by the Tang Army during their return to the south.


    Today, the Northern Military Camp, who was defending the Golden Pce, was in chaos. Even though they were anxious, when they saw the pine coffin entering the city, everyone felt sad and knelt down.


    Few people noticed that Ning Que was sitting in the carriage next to the coffin.


    Several horses pulled the heavy coffin, slowly moving along the street. The wheels crushed the hard stone ground, creating monotonous and horrible sounds.


    Suddenly, several cries resounded from the side of the street.


    ¡°Kill the evil Queen!¡±


    ¡°Wash away shame for His Majesty!¡±


    Hearing those shouts, a general rushed forward followed by hundreds of cavalrymen from the end of the street, lifting up their podaos.


    The Queen calmly held the Sixth Prince in her arms. Ning Que sat next to the pine coffin with his head lowered peacefully, as if he had heard nothing.

 Chapter 717 - The Attitude of the Northern Army

    <h4>Chapter 717: The Attitude of the Northern Army</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ning Que and the Empress didn¡¯t react much when encountering the sudden ambush.


    They were bold, but that was not because they were powerful. It was because they trusted the general in the Northern Military Camp since they had chosen to be here instead of going back to Tang with another group of the Tang Army.


    The podao swords shed, and the flying arrows screeched. The cavalries escorting the Empress had already prepared their defenses and striking-back as soon as they heard the crowd panic.


    Archers had been long ambushing on both sides of the street, so the Tang army was captured as soon as they were about to ambush the convoy of the Empress.


    During the conflict, the Empress remained expressionless. She was cuddling the Sixth Prince, lowering her head to look into the Prince¡¯s eyes when talking to him.


    Ning Que kept his head down till the conflict was over. Two generals of Tang were shot by arrows and they refused to surrender. Ning Que raised his head and looked out of the window when the two generals pulled out their swords and killed themselves.


    Finally the carriage arrived at the gate of the General¡¯s mansion.


    The Defender-General of the Wilderness of Tang Empire Xu Chi was weing the Empress with his subordinates, and all of them were on their knees waiting beside the stairs at the gate of the Mansion.


    Before General Xu Chi had the time to apologize, the Empress hade out of the carriage with her hands holding the Sixth Prince¡¯s. She said calmly, ¡°The General¡¯s mansion is really a ce hard to reach.¡±


    Xu Chi didn¡¯t exin, and neither had he tried to apologize. He respectfully settled the coffin of His Majesty in his mansion, and then invited the Empress and the Prince to have a rest in the residence at the back.


    Ning Que was no longer around the pine coffin. He was in the study, drinking tea.


    Momentster, Xu Chi opened the door and came in.


    Ning Que had met three of the Four Great Generals of Tang, and Xu Chi was the one he hadn¡¯t met so far. Judging by the descriptions of the Empress and Han Qing, Ning Que had basically pictured Xu Chi¡¯s temperament.


    ¡°The two rebelling generals, they have nothing to do with Gushan Commandery. They were once my subordinates in the Northern Military Camp.¡±


    Xu Chi admitted it straightforwardly.


    Ning Que said, ¡°It had nothing to do with Gushan Commandery, but that doesn¡¯t mean it had nothing to do with Hua Shanyue or the Pricess, unless you insist that it was all about you.¡±


    Xu Chi kept silent for a moment and then he said, ¡°I was told that the Her Highness and Mr. Thirteen were closely rted.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°And I heard that General Xu Chi was the most loyal subordinate of thete Emperor.¡±


    ¡°The rescript of the West-Hill Devine Pce has spread over the world, and Mr. Thirteen must¡¯ve seen it. The morale of the army was thus influenced, and that was why the conflicting and killing happened today.¡±


    Xu Chi said, ¡°I knew you were trying to make a point, but since Her Majesty was a believer of the Devil¡¯s Dorctrine, then the Sixth Prince could no longer seed the throne, or even go back to Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    Xu Chi said, ¡°Because the West-Hill Divine Pce won¡¯t allow a descendant of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine to rule the Tang Empire.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You idiot, the West-Hill Devine Pce has already been prepared to overthrow Tang.¡±


    Xu Chi was silenced. Then he suddenly asked, ¡°There¡¯s one thing I¡¯m trying to figure out.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡± Asked Ning Que.


    Xu Chi said, ¡°It¡¯s said that His Majesty¡¯s death has something to do with Her Majesty.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°What kind of idiotic rumor is this? His Majesty had been suffering from a chronic disease for many years, and I¡¯m sure you knew that because you were his most trusted general. Should it have anything to do with Her Majesty, that must¡¯ve happened many years ago. Since His Majesty didn¡¯t mind it, how dare you resent Her Majesty in his stead?¡±


    Xu Chi might have frowned lightly but he looked more rxed.


    He thought about it for long and then spoke to Ning Que seriously, ¡°You should suggest Her Majesty and the Six Prince to stay in the Northern Military Camp. I swear I¡¯ll protect them with my life.¡±


    Ning Que looked him in the eyes and remained silent.


    Xu Chi responded to this with calm eyes and expressionless face.


    Then Ning Que suddenly said, ¡°I¡¯m going to ask you one more time, and I want to make sure if it is true¡ªare you really loyal to His Majesty?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯d like to prove it with my life.¡± Answered Xu Chi.


    Ning Que said, ¡°I don¡¯t need your life. Swords and spears are enough. I¡¯m sure you know clearly that the Edict in Chang¡¯an is a fake one because thete Emperor had passed the throne to the Sixth Prince.¡±


    ¡°And what are we going to do now, Mr. Thirteen?¡±


    Xu Chi answered coldly, ¡°To bring Her Majesty and the Six Prince back to Chang¡¯an for the fight over the throne with the new Emperor? Or to divide the military forces of Tang and let them fight each other?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll follow the Edict without hesitation, even at the cost of a civil war in the Empire, but not now. And I¡¯ll help the Sixth Prince to get on the throne, regardless of Her Majesty being a believer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, but not now.¡±


    Xu Chi looked extremely severe and continued, ¡°Now all other countries areing after Tang. The cavalries of the Golden Pce areing south. The West-Hill Divine Pce ising north. Qinghe County is rebelling. The Northeast Border Army has been extinguished. Enemies are storming Tang from all directions, and the thousand-year foundation of the empire is shaking in theing storm. The empire can¡¯t afford any civil war at this very moment.¡±


    Ning Que said after a short moment of silence, ¡°So what¡¯s your n?¡±


    ¡°We have to be united when facing enemies. I won¡¯t allow you and Her Majesty to take thousands of soldiers of the Northern Army to go south to Chang¡¯an. They are supposed to fight bloody battles on the Northern Frontier instead of wasting their lives on civil wars. So I want you to persuade Her Majesty to stay in the Northern Camp with the Sixth Prince.¡±


    Xu Chi stared Ning Que in the eyes and said, ¡°If you still insist that this was a betrayal of His Majesty, then I can promise that the Northern Army will support the Sixth Prince after Tang has ovee these difficulties.¡±


    Ning Que frowned lightly. He had to admit that Xu Chi had made a point. The Empire of Tang did need the thousands of soldiers to go back south to fight the invasion, but...


    The door of the study was squeaking, and someone had just opened it.


    The Empress came in and looked at the other two. She said peacefully, ¡°I am going back to Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Without any hesitation Xu Chi knelt before her, and he kowtowed again and again, till his forehead became bloody.


    He said with his pained and shaking voice, ¡°Your Majesty! I¡¯ve been loyal to His Majesty throughout my entire life. Now I have to reject the Edict, I am so guilty and I¡¯m afraid I¡¯ll be regretful for the rest of my life, but the empire can¡¯t afford a civil war now. Your Majesty! Please think twice!¡±


    The Empress smiled and said, ¡°You overestimated the influence of me and the Prince. The turmoils in Chang¡¯an or in Tang won¡¯t start or cease just because of us.¡±


    Ning Que was dumbfounded, and he couldn¡¯t understand what that meant.


    ¡°The thousands of soldiers going back south originally belong to the Northern Army. They were led temporarily by the Emperor himself to carry out the mission. There¡¯s no way I would take them back to Chang¡¯an.¡±


    The Empress said, ¡°I¡¯ll leave you these cavalries I brought back here. Me and the Sixth Prince, we¡¯ll go back to Chang¡¯an by ourselves. I¡¯m sure that will ay your worries.¡±


    Xu Chi was shocked and speechless. He thought to himself that since the new Emperor had seeded to the throne and the Princess Her Highness was in charge of national affairs, Her Majesty¡¯s taking the Sixth Prince back to Chang¡¯an would definitely cost their lives for nothing.


    Ning Que looked at the Empress and said, ¡°I¡¯ll go with you.¡±

 Chapter 718 - All into Ashes

    <h4>Chapter 718: All into Ashes</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    However strongly Xu Chi, Han Qing and other generals in the Northern Army Camp were against the idea, but the Empress took the objections peacefully, and she insisted on her idea to take the Sixth Prince back to Chang¡¯an.


    The Golden Pce wasing south and the Northern Borderline of Tang was at risk. The generals had no other choice, and there was no way that they could send arge troop to escort the Empress. The final decision was to send 500 elite riders to escort the Empress.


    In the morning of the day when Ning Que was leaving, he went to Xu Chi and said, ¡°Her Majesty and I brought thousands of calvarymen to you, so I think we are qualified to ask you for a few people.¡±


    Xu Chi thought to himself and then he said, ¡°500 cavalry soldiers is indeed not enough.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s not what I meant.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I don¡¯t need them alive, dead bodies will do.¡±


    Xu Chi understood what Ning Que meant. He frowned and said, ¡°The two generals killed themselves after the assassination attempt failed. How could their dead bodies be helpful to you?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The two generals died, but the hundreds of cavalries involved in the assassination haven¡¯t been punished yet. I know they¡¯ve been disarmed and locked in the barracks by you.¡±


    Xu Chi frowned even more and asked, ¡°Mr. Thirteen, are you going to punish them all?¡±


    ¡°They disturbed His Majesty¡¯s remains and tried to kill both Her Majesty and the crown prince. That was a capital crime, and I know what you¡¯re saving them for.¡±


    Ning Que continued, ¡°So I¡¯m not goin to kill all the cavalry. But I need you to promise me that all of them will be sent to the battlefront, the most dangerous one.¡±


    ¡°And, should any of them survive the war after several years, I won¡¯t punish them anymore. If they die on the battlefield, death would be their atonement.¡±


    After saying that, Ning Que turned back to leave.


    And he got into trouble as he was leaving.


    The heavy pine coffin.


    Everyone knew that if Ning Que wanted to bring the Empress and the Sixth Prince back to Chang¡¯an, time and secrecy would be what mattered most. The heavy pine coffin would bring much inconvenience if they brought it along.


    Xu Chi suggested that His Majesty¡¯s coffin should be kept in the Northern Military Camp temporarily which would also help inspire the generals and soldiers.


    The Empress shook her head and answered gently, ¡°His Majesty wanted to go back to Chang¡¯an, so I have to take him back.¡±


    ¡°So burn it.¡±


    The Empress ordered as she was looking at the heavy grey coffin.


    All men in the court were astonished.


    The Empress said with a smile, ¡°His Majesty was a very spontaneous man, and he wouldn¡¯t care much about this.¡±


    That reminded Ning Que of His Majesty¡¯s cursing those stupid guys day after day in the pce. Then Ning Que smiled and said, ¡°I¡¯m sure His Majesty wouldn¡¯t mind.¡±


    The pine coffin waster burnt on a pile of wood.


    Bark was cracking, with sparks flying everywhere.


    In the end all turned into a box of ashes.


    ¡°A leaking house on a rainy night¡± was far too weak to describe the sessive set backs the Empire of Tang was going through. The situation was more precarious than a shabby house shaking in a storm. Terrifying waves, which were rising higher than the ones before, roaring and attacking.


    As shocking as the war in Capital Cheng might be for the Tangs, their confidence was seldom influenced by the war. It was when the Golden Pce came south that the Tangs were actually getting alert and uneasy.


    In the rescript, the West-Hill Pce called upon the whole world to attack the Empire of Tang. That was the first time when the Tangs had felt the fear of death of their Empire. And the most shocking strike for the Tangs recently was the news about the betrayal and independence of Qinghe County.


    The Tangs were felt anger born of anxiety, and anger because of fear. They were angered because they were angry. The whole city of Chang¡¯an was angered. The ministers who used to stand on the Empress¡¯ side couldn¡¯t bear the situation any more. They started to criticize the new Emperor and the Princess in the royal court and in public.


    Officials questioned why the Empress and the Sixth Prince had not returned to Chang¡¯an, and why there was still no news about Hn City. They wondered why the Prince¡¯s loyal ally, Qinghe City, betrayed the royal court shamelessly in its hardest times. They asked how the Emperor and the Prince would live with the shame of failing to live up to thete Emperor¡¯s expectations.


    After the Academy closed its doors, the freshmen of the year were dismissed. Some of the students went back home, with others to be volunteers in departments of the imperial court. Along with the young students in the Imperial College, these students became the most warm-blooded and vibrant group in Chang¡¯an. When dark clouds gathered above the Empire of Tang, finally they paraded on the streets and gathered before the Imperial Pce to present a petition.


    The students had no idea as to what the petition was exactly about, but they wanted to change the current situation, and they wanted to see the changes take ce.


    The rumor was spread among the petitioners that the Defender-general of the Empire, Xu Shi, who was supposed to be back in a few days, had been assassinated by the West-Hill Pce in the southern Xiao Mountain area.


    And it was some bigwig in the pce who sold the whereabouts of Xu Shi to the West-Hill Pce!


    The reason for the bigwig to do so was obviously because he attained his current position unfairly, and he was afraid General Xu Shi, who was famous for being righteous, would kick him off the throne as soon as he was back in Chang¡¯an.


    And when the news was spread from the petitioners to other people in Chang¡¯an, more and more people were parading on the streets to express their anger and suspicion. The streets of Chang¡¯an turned into numerous angry rivers.


    Angry rivers were usually muddy. Therefore some people began to make profits in this troubled situation, while others tried to sneak away from the chaos. For hundreds of years the West-Hill Pce had been setting invisible sentries in Chang¡¯an and sending spies there; now those spies couldn¡¯t wait to make a bigger mess in the city.


    Following the order of the Emperor, Chao Xiaoshu led the Valiant Cavalry Battalion to the east to resist the invaders. And the Yulin Royal Guards went north to join the resistance against the cavalries of the Golden Pce. Chang¡¯an might look tough from the outside, but inside it had only about 800 Yulin Royal Guards, hundreds of Imperial Pce bodyguards and runners of Chang¡¯an¡¯s local government to keep the peace and suppress the riot in the city. Chang¡¯an was truly at risk.


    The Qinghe County Guild was located on a crowded street in Chang¡¯an. It had been an important watch point of the royal court before the warlords had betrayed the Empire. Now it was heavily guarded. Those warlords¡¯ children trapped in the County Guild wore pale looks, waiting for their unknown destiny. However, some of them hade up with other ideas when seeing the situation getting messy.


    Li Huiyuan was angry too, even angrier than those petitioners before the Imperial Pce.


    He saw himself as innocent. And feelings of being not understood were biting his heart like a viper. It was true that he let He Mingchi make the effort to trace General Xu Shi, and he was the one letting He Mingchi get in touch with the bigwigs in West-Hill Pce.


    The situation was quite different back then. Chang¡¯an only lost the Northeast Border Military at that time, and the Empire was still unshakable. When he heard that the Golden Pce wasing south to invade, he told He Mingchi to cease the n immediately. And he took the risk of revealing his vicious n to inform Xu Shi.


    However, the bigwigs in the West-Hill Pce didn¡¯t listen to him. He Mingchi and the Military Ministry failed to contact Xu Shi. <i>¡°And just like that Xu Shi died. How can that be my fault? If he epted me as the new Emperor, then why would he leave the Southern Army without my permission? And he wouldn¡¯t die if he chose to stay in the Southern Army. Why is everybody ming me now? Why?¡±</i>


    The hall in the Imperial Pce looked quiet and chilly. Li Huiyuan was sitting in the chair, staring nkly at the night view outside the hall. Ideas were flowing in his mind, they flew away and then shed back.


    The eunuchs and maids were very afraid of him, because he was very angry. And their avoiding him infuriated him even more because through the eyes of those eunuchs and maids, he could clearly see the coldness, estrangement, and contempt.


    <i>¡°I am the Emperor. You stood close to me and looked up to me in awe when I was the crown prince. Why are you leaving me now in such a disrespectful way?¡±</i>


    Li Huiyuan couldn¡¯t bear it anymore. He had already had several eunuchs and maids killed since yesterday. Yet still, he couldn¡¯t find what he expected to see in those people¡¯s eyes.


    He became angrier.


    Suddenly, he felt the cold and isted pce no longer a perfect residence for him. He stood up abruptly and shoved the eunuch who was begging him to stay. Then he took Xu Chongshan, who had been guarding outside the hall, and they walked deep into the imperial garden.


    It was deep in autumn and the imperial garden looked bleak. There were a few flowers, not many. They were blooming and revealing their beauty in the darkness. Li Huiyuan finally calmed down after seeing those beautiful flowers.


    ¡°How can they not understand me?¡± Li Huiyuan said as he frowned.


    Xu Chongshan looked at the animal carvings on the eaves and said after a moment¡¯s silence, ¡°Because you are not a man easy to read.¡±


    Li Huiyuan didn¡¯t notice Xu Chongshan¡¯s disrespectful address of him. He asked in confusion, ¡°What does that mean?¡±


    Xu Chongshan said, ¡°No matter how you got the throne, you are the Emperor of the Empire of Tang now. Anyone with a full-functioning brain wouldn¡¯t try to do what you¡¯re doing. But it¡¯s strange that you can always find excuses for what you did, so I guess your brain is actually healthy. A healthy person is always doing abnormal things, that confused everyone.¡±


    Li Huiyuan was awoken by the first sentence Xu Chongshan spoke out, but he didn¡¯t react much. He kept listening, and the longer he listened, the more displeased he looked.


    ¡°It seems you¡¯re going to betray me, too.¡± He looked at Xu Chongshan and said coldly.


    Xu Chongshan bent forward slightly to salute, and then he arose like a mountain.


    ¡°I owed much to His Majesty, so it¡¯s been hard for me to kill you. But you¡¯ve made it easier for me these days because your living in the world is the biggest humiliation to His Majesty.¡±


    Li Huiyuan Looked nervous but he didn¡¯t turn and run away. He said in sharp voice, ¡°I thought you had lived in the pce long enough to know that there¡¯s no way you can kill me here.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s why I kept waiting until I brought you to the Imperial Garden to take a walk today.¡±


    Xu Chongshan then continued, ¡°Or you have no idea that this is the ce that¡¯s the furthest away from all other halls. Those animal-carvings on the eaves, they can no longer protect you.¡±

 Chapter 719 - One Night in Changan

    <h4>Chapter 719: One Night in Chang¡¯an</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    ¡°Don¡¯t try to fool me! My father went out of the pce with the National Master or Master Huang Yang. And he never worried about the safety when he was in the pce because of the God-stunning Array. Nobody could kill the Li¡¯s in the pce!¡±


    Li Huiyuan shouted harshly, ¡°I want to see how you can kill me!¡±


    He might have looked calm and confident, but atst, his voice was trembling.


    Xu Chongshan lifted up his right fist, and said expressionlessly, ¡°A punch would be enough to kill you.¡±


    Xu Chongshan waved his fist. The fist broke the wind and punched heavily on a yellow oil-paper umbre.


    After a rumbling sound, the surface of the umbre caved in a little, but it wasn¡¯t torn apart.


    He Mingchi, with the umbre in one hand and Li Huiyuan in another, backed up to a hundred feet away.


    Behind him was the unimpressive little building.


    On eaves of the far-away halls and walls, there were lots of animal carvings. After Xu Chongshan waved out his first strike, a slight aura was slowly given out by these divine carvings.


    Xu Chongshan paled after he sensed the aura, but he didn¡¯t care.


    He had been a bodyguard in the pce for more than ten years. He started as a normal bodyguard and finally became the marshal of all bodyguards. There was no one who knew the Imperial Pce¡¯s tactical array more than him.


    Even Ning Que, who had followed Master Yan Se¡¯sst wish to maintain the God-stunning Array, was inferior to Xu Chongshan when talking about the Array.


    What made him cautious was He Mingchi who was standing before the small building.


    ¡°Why are you here?¡±


    He Mingchi didn¡¯t answer. Instead, he looked at him and frowned; then he said, ¡°Another leftover of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine? You¡¯ve been hilding in the pce for so many years.¡±


    Upon hearing those words, Li Huiyuan opened his eyes widely and said resentfully, ¡°I should¡¯ve known that you were a subordinate of the she-devil!¡±


    Xu Chongshan ignored him and talked to He Mingchi calmly, ¡°I know you¡¯ve been hiding your cultivation level for all these years. It¡¯s a pity that you¡¯re no match for me even in your real level.¡±


    ¡°And you can no longer be my match even if you be the National Master of the Empire in the future.¡±


    He Mingchi looked at him and said, ¡°You¡¯re a powerhouse of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and of course I am no match for you. But you¡¯ve made a little mistake on your judgment today, and that will cost your life.¡±


    Xu Chongshan felt that the aura of the animal-carvings on the eaves grew overwhelmingly in mere moments.


    Xu Chongshan realized that the guy appeared before the small building at midnight, and then some crazy idea came to his mind. He watched He Mingchi with astonishment and said, ¡°How dare you get in the building! There¡¯s no way that you can open the array eye!¡±


    He Mingchi nced at Li Huiyuan and said with a smile, ¡°This is a privilege His Majesty gave me. As for the array eye... I can still open the Killer Matrix without the array pestle.¡±


    Xu Chongshan moaned and paled suddenly. He felt his chest getting stuffier and his heart beating faster and faster, which nearly cracked all his bones, and his blood felt like bursting out.


    He took a deep breath and forced himself to resist the suppression the God-stunning Array brought on him. Then roaring came out of his two lips. His body, which was strong like a mountain, moved forward with a rumbling sound, and his first headed directly to Li Huiyuan standing beside He Mingchi.


    He Mingchi was surprised that this powerhouse of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine could remain so vigorous under the suppression of the Killer Matrix. He turned serious and opened the umbre before him, then he pulled Li Huiyuan behind him.


    His right fist, or even his whole body shed heavily on the yellow oil-paper umbre.


    The umbre cracked and its ribs had broken into pieces.


    He Mingchi spit out blood and fell backwards, knocking into Li Huiyuan¡¯s body.


    Li Huiyuan screamed in pain, not knowing how many of his bones were broken.


    Xu Chongshan was standing like a mountain. He clenched his fist and was going to strike again.


    In the dark Imperial Garden, a light sound rang out.


    His face paled like snow. He had his hand on his chest, and then he fell down.


    His heart was shattered.


    On the pce grounds under the dim night lights, broken porcin pieces were everywhere. All the eunuchs and maids, with the palm prints and scars on their faces, were terrified and restless.


    After being treated by an imperial physician, Li Huiyuan¡¯s injury was finally stabilized. He looked at the bandages on his naked body and at He Mingchi, who was pale and coughing incessantly. All his remaining fears turned to anger.


    He Mingchi coughed and said, ¡°Your Majesty, we should inform Her Highness of this immediately.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t bother her.¡±


    Li Huiyuan didn¡¯t know why but he didn¡¯t want to see his sister now, or why he was afraid to see her. He subconsciously asked to prevent the news from spreading, no matter what dangerous situation he was faced with.


    He looked at the eunuchs and maids in the hall, and warned in a cold voice, ¡°Anyone who lets out the secret will be clubbed to death.¡±


    The eunuchs and maids fell on their knees immediately.


    Li Huiyuan got angrier when he thought about the danger he had encountered. His eyes turned red, and his right hand, which hadn¡¯t been hurt, was shaking. He pped heavily on the desk and said coldly, ¡°I know that the subordinates of the she-devil didn¡¯t give up. And they will try to steal my throne while the Empire is in danger.¡±


    He Mingchi said in a gentle voice, ¡°Your Majesty, please don¡¯t get angry. We need to be careful about this.¡±


    Li Huiyuan was infuriated and shouted, ¡°Careful about what? You¡¯re always telling me and my sister to be patient! You¡¯re always telling me to mind the overall situation! Now see what those people have done! They¡¯re trying to kill me! How can I be patient with that!¡±


    Cruelty and coldness emerged on the new Emperor¡¯s face. He stared at He Mingchi in the eyes and said, ¡°I don¡¯t have the patience anymore. I want to kill all of them.¡±


    Zhuge Wuren was waiting for the good news from the pce in his home, and he was quite patient.


    Xu Chongshan, who had lurked in the pce for so many years, was quite a reliable person in Zhuge Wuren¡¯s eyes. And as long as Xu Chongshan struck, the new Emperor Li Huiyuan had a poor chance to survive.


    However, the news of the Emperor¡¯s death didn¡¯te to him. Several men in ck showed up and before Zhuge Wuren could open his mouth to beg, he was killed by those men in ck who were very likely to be his old subordinates.


    At the same time, assassins showed up in the house of the Minister of Rites and the house of the Taichang Temple¡¯s Director.


    Chang¡¯an City on that night was full of spreading rumors and screams of killings. Some residents panicked, others set fire to create chaos. People fought and died in abrupt shes, and the chaos spread, growing fiercer and fiercer.


    Those officials supporting the Empress were brutally struck and many of them died or were hurt. These officials might have had strong servants guarding their houses, but these servants were no match for cultivators.


    The former house of the Grand Secretary, and the House of the Zeng¡¯s which had been long deserted, grew crowded again tonight. Thenterns hung on the wall by the stewards were knocked off and burning on the stone edge. People gathered here from all directions and screamed, trying to break into the house.


    There was a loud boom, and the Zeng¡¯s house gate was pulled down. Numerous people flowed into the house. They attacked whoever they ran into, and broke whatever they saw. The servants and steward of the house had weapons in their hands, but there were just a few of them. They failed and drew back. Several men in ck cloth came to help, but they were killed by a silver ray in the darkness before they started to move.


    The formation made by the steward and the servants was dispersed after they were hurt. The crowd flowed to the rooms at the back of the yard. They shouted with excitement, ¡°Find the parents of the she-devil, and stone them to death!¡±


    In the garden behind the house, Zeng Jing and his wife were listening to the killing and fighting sounds in the front of the house. They looked at the vegetable plot with no fruit in it. Then they kept silent and held each other¡¯s hands.


    ¡°I¡¯ve been retired since the ident happened to our daughter, and I cared no more about political affairs. I didn¡¯t go back to the royal court when the new Emperor ascended the throne. And I never attended Her Majesty¡¯s appointment. I thought I was honest and inconspicuous enough, but the sister and brother pair in the Imperial Pce, they still remember me.¡±


    Zeng Jing looked at his wife and said, ¡°So sorry to have dragged you into this.¡±


    His wife continued with tears on her face, ¡°I have nothing to fear if we¡¯re dying together. The only one I¡¯m worried about is our daughter. How sad she would be if she won¡¯t be able to see us anymore.¡±


    ¡°Without her, we wouldn¡¯t end up so... ¡± Zeng Jing pause and sighed, ¡°It¡¯s over now. I guess this is our destiny.¡±


    Those crazy mobsters had rushed into the back of the house. Zeng Jing looked at the bloody table legs and stones in their hands and held his wife in his arms silently.


    At the same time, He Mingchi showed up by the vegetable plot with the yellow oil-paper umbre under his arm.


    He looked at the leader of the mobsters and frowned.


    The angry and crazy crowd slowly dispersed.


    The house of the Zeng¡¯s went back to peace.


    Zeng Jing and his wife had no time to check on the injured servants and stewards. They looked at He Mingchi, and they had a lot to ask.


    They could¡¯ve been killed if he hadn¡¯t shown up.


    But obviously, the guy was the prime culprit of the riot in Chang¡¯an tonight because those mobsters and their leader retreated after their first nce at him.


    ¡°I heard that you will be the National Master of the Empire.¡±


    He Mingchi smiled and said, ¡°I missed the chance.¡±


    Zeng Jing said coldly, ¡°Of course you did, especially after all these bloody things you¡¯ve done.¡±


    He Mingchi was talking about the opportunity, and Zeng Jing was talking about the qualifications. They were not talking about the same thing.


    ¡°I¡¯ve never said I was a nice person.¡±


    He Mingchi looked at him and said, ¡°So Your Excellency, you don¡¯t get to judge me. You don¡¯t need to ask why I would let you and your house off today, because I don¡¯t know the answer, either.¡±


    <i>¡°You¡¯re the birth parents of Yama¡¯s Daughter, why can¡¯t I kill you?¡±</i>


    He Mingchi was thinking it to himself, and he looked quite confused. But he couldn¡¯t figure out the reason, so he shook his head and left the house of the Zeng¡¯s.


    The crowd left, and the gate of the house had been broken. A broken door could be dangerous on the chaotic night. What was worse, someone had set fire at the front of the yard, and it was expanding.


    Zeng Jing, his wife, and other injured people left the house in order, with one supporting another. They set the carriage and left for the Yanming Lake where they could get away from the chaos in the house of their son-inw.


    At the same time, ten men in ck cloth ran closely with short knives in their hands. The leader looked relieved when he saw that Zeng Jing and his wife didn¡¯t get hurt.


    ¡°Your Excellency, Mr. Qi asked us to bring you to the Spring Breeze Pavilion.¡±

 Chapter 720 - Shangguan Yangyu

    <h4>Chapter 720: Shangguan Yangyu</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    It was deep in the night. Many shadows flew, jumped, and climbed over the wall, sneaking into the garden.


    He Mingchi had met plenty of loyal subordinates in the South School of Haotian and the Imperial Center Administration in these years. These cultivators, who hated to be neglected or overlooked, were small in number but fearsome in power.


    Li Huiyuan became so angry after the assassination that he gave his ID token of the Imperial Center Administration to He Mingchi, and told him to do it boldly. Ten more officials fell over a pool of their own blood that night, and even more innocentmon people died from the rioting.


    Those officials and soldiers sent to watch the Qing He County Guild by the government also were confounded by the riot. They didn¡¯t even notice that some of the Qinghe County warlords¡¯ children had taken the advantage of this and sneaked out of the Guild.


    After leaving the Guild, they quickly met up with the officials supported by Qinghe County. ording to the investigation der, these people were partly the cause of the riot in Chang¡¯an on that night.


    The Zeng¡¯s were brought to the Chao Mansion on the Spring Breeze Pavilion Street No. 2. The servants were well arranged. The injured were treated by the doctor of the Fish-dragon Gang. Zeng Jing and his wife left to visit the Old Master Chao.


    The central hall of the house was aze with lights.


    The Old Lord Chao waved his hand to stop Zeng Jing before he could express his sincere appreciation.


    The Old Lord¡¯s only two hobbies were enjoying opera and ying with his grandchild. He looked at Linzi, who seemed worried, and he said impatiently, ¡°My daughter-inw, you don¡¯t need to worry too much. Nobody would dare to mess with us as long as your man is living. Those who have the guts to break into our house must have broken into the pce by now.¡±


    Zeng Jing felt awe-inspired after he heard what the Old Lord said. He was sure that the Old Lord was a veteran. And it was not until someone else saluted that Zeng Jing realized there were other people in the room.


    The Old Lord Chao looked at Chang Siwei and denounced, ¡°The sister and brother in the imperial pce are idiots. Are you an idiot, too? You didn¡¯t follow the Yulin Royal Guards to the north to resist the barbarians, now you have to keep Chang¡¯an City in peace! What are you waiting for! Just kill all the wanderers on the streets now! And converge your arrows to kill all cultivators that show up!¡±


    Chang Siwei epted the order and left in a hurry.


    Mr. Qi was in the hall, too.


    The Fish-dragon Gang was the dominant local viin. And they could deal with all messed-up situations. They did not suffer many losses except for a few members killed by cultivators at the Zeng¡¯s gates.


    Mr. Qi was irritated, but he wouldn¡¯t dare to show it to Old Lord Qi. He asked, ¡°Uncle, what should our brothers in the Gang do? They should at least do something.¡±


    The Old Lord Chao stroke his beard and before he could give his opinion, he heard the stewarding in to report. His eyes lit up upon hearing that the prefectural magistrate Shangguan wasing to visit.


    ¡°Here¡¯s your job.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu entered the hall in a hurry, and he kowtowed to the Old Lord Chao because he was a nephew of his. When he found that Zeng Jing was also in the hall, he turned serious.


    ¡°You¡¯re much foxier than me, and I suppose you have nothing special to ask. You can go and talk to Mr. Qi if you want. I¡¯ll leave with Lord Zeng and show him the garden in the back.¡±


    The Old Lord Chao left the central hall with Zengjing after finishing the talk.


    Shangguan Yangyu stared at the back of the Old Lord Chao, and a foxy light shed in his narrow eyes. He saluted respectfully and said, ¡°You¡¯re too kind, Your Excellency.¡±


    The Old Lord Chao didn¡¯t turn back, and he said, ¡°You¡¯re the kind one.¡±


    ...


    ...


    When the Old Lord Chao and Zeng Jing were totally out of the hall, Shangguan Yangyu stood straight and looked to Mr. Qi. After a short silent moment, he asked, ¡°I guess you¡¯re going to stand on the Empress¡¯ side, aren¡¯t you?¡±


    Mr. Qi smiled and said, ¡°Where did thate from, Your Excellency? We¡¯re no more than mobsters struggling to live in the Jianghu World. We don¡¯t have the right to make a choice on such a big event. We do what the royal court wants us to do.¡±


    Shangguan Qingyu sneered. He thought it to himself that these people were far better than mobsters, but he didn¡¯t say it out. He knew the time was limited, so he said, ¡°Mr. Qi, I¡¯m here to ask you for more people.¡±


    Mr. Qi paused because he wasn¡¯t sure what Shangguan Yangyu meant. He asked with uneasiness, ¡°You¡¯re joking, Your Excellency. You¡¯re the magistrate of Chang¡¯an...¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not going to beat around the bush for this very situation.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu looked serious and said, ¡°The Yulin Royal Guards are suppressing the riot, and the bodyguards are securing the pce. My government runners are dealing with the follow-up work of the homicide cases and keeping the peace. My hands are tied now, so I am asking you for reinforcement, are you going to help me or not?¡±


    Mr. Qi had made contact with Shangguan Yangyu several times but never had he saw him being so serious. His foxy face now turned somehow righteous, which made Mr. Qi feel serious, too.


    ¡°To serve the royal court is my duty, but firstly I have to know what are you going to do with my reinforcement.¡±


    ¡°Many people have escaped from the Qinghe County Guild.¡±


    Two cold rays shed in the narrow eyes of Shangguan Yangyu, and he said, ¡°Those monks with hair, their temples are in the south. We¡¯ll lose everything if they go back to the south. Now that the city gate of Chang¡¯an is closed because of the enemy, they are temporarily trapped in the city. We have three hours before the city gate opens.¡±


    Mr. Qi understood what Shangguan Yangyu was saying. He thought it for a moment and said, ¡°No problem, the Gang will provide you as many people as you want. And we¡¯ll send our servants if necessary.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s better if they¡¯re all living, and the dead will be okay if it doesn¡¯t work.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu said, ¡°You should send more servants for the mission, and as for those subordinates of yours who are armed and who dare to kill, I have a bigger mission for them.¡±


    Mr. Qi then asked, ¡°What is it?¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu answered after a moment of silence, ¡°The riot in Chang¡¯an tonight was mainly caused by cultivators. The Yulin Royal Guards may be able to suppress the riot on streets, but they can¡¯t find the cultivators who initiated the riot.¡±


    Mr. Qi was surprised after hearing those words, and he said, ¡°My brothers in the Gang are no match for those cultivators, either.¡±


    Shangguan Qingyu said, ¡°I don¡¯t expect your men to kill or capture those cultivators, I just need them to stop the cultivators from attackingmon people.¡±


    Mr. Qi frowned and said, ¡°The cultivators are either in the Imperial Center Administration or in the Southern Gate Temple. With your governmental permission, your runners can go there, but they can¡¯t do anything to those cultivators, let alone my brothers in the Gang.¡±


    ¡°There are lots of things that your Gang can do while the Chang¡¯an government cannot.¡±


    ¡°These are papers I stole out from the Military Ministryst year. These are the family addresses of the officials and deacons of the Imperial Administration, including those married Taoists in the Southern Gate Temple. Their elderly parents, their wife and young children must be at home.¡±


    His Excellency Shangguan took out the pile of paper graciously, and he said, ¡°The Fish-dragon Gang is the local viin of Chang¡¯an. And it should be easy to locate these ces. Also, to invite the old and young, women and children there to some secret ces.¡±


    Mr. Qi took over those papers and for a moment he was dazed. The he felt a chill and looked at the gracious face of His Excellency, and said in shaking voice, ¡°This... It¡¯s too ruthless.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu then sighed, ¡°I don¡¯t want to do it, either. But you know that to live is to be ruthless.¡±


    Finally Mr. Qi understood the talk between the Old Lord Chao and Shangguan Yangyu. He admired the two but at the same time, he felt worried.


    ¡°The Qinghe County Guild, the Imperial Administration and the Southern Gate Temple, they are not in your charge.¡±


    Mr.Qi asked with confusion, ¡°Why would you take such a high risk to do that?¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu stroked his beard and was about to talk.


    Mr.Qi had read his mind as soon as he saw the face. Then Mr.Qi said, ¡°No one on the royal court would believe Your Excellency is a selfless man, so you can drop this excuse.¡±


    ¡°I was timid, and I may have perverted justice for a bribe. And that won¡¯t make any sense if I im how much I love the country. But without the Empire of Tang, how could an ugly man like me be an official, and even get promoted to the position of the prefectural magistrate of the capital city?¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu then sighed, ¡°Where can I get bribed if the Empire dies? The reason is simple enough for me to understand, but it¡¯s strange that there¡¯s a lot of people who do get it.¡±


    Li Yu walked slowly into the hall.


    She was tired, so were her feet. The news of Qinghe County¡¯s betrayal, like hailstone hitting after more than ten days worth of pouring rain.


    Just afterwards, what she just heard was like a thunder in the hailstone sky.


    She walked to the couch and watched his pale panicked brother. Her heart ached, butter sheughed as if she was mocking at herself. Then she asked in a gentle voice, ¡°Did you do it?¡±


    Li Huiyuan felt such a relief when heard her voice which was as gentle and soft as it used to. He smiled and said, ¡°Yes, those traitors were trying to kill me, so I killed them all.¡±


    Li Yu sat by the couch, and after a moment of silence she said, ¡°Was General Xu Shi trying to kill you, too?¡±


    The smile on Li Huiyuan¡¯s face was frozen, and he asked, ¡°What are you talking about, sister?¡±


    Li Yu then said in low voice, ¡°Wang Jinglue arrived in Chang¡¯an yesterday, and he came to see me in the pce tonight after examing the information in the Military Ministry. So I am here to ask you.¡±


    Li Huiyuan¡¯s voice was shaking. He forced a smile and said, ¡°What are you asking me for?¡±


    Li Yu still looked calm, and she simply said, ¡°Qinghe County betrayed us, and the Hierarch Lord of the Divine Hall made a detour from Xiao Mountain to enter our Tang realm. The secret guards of the Imperial Center Administration and informers of the Military Ministry didn¡¯t find it, which was understandable, but how did the Hierarch Lord know that the general was encamping at the foot of Xiao Mountian?¡±


    ¡°Even I didn¡¯t know the general was in the Xiao Mountain on that night. How was the Divine Hall informed?¡±


    Li Yu looked at him in the eyes and kept asking, ¡°General Xu Shi was a confident and proud man, but he could be quite careful and cautious when getting on the battlefield. So I want to know, how did you find out?¡±


    Li Huiyuan¡¯s smile was getting stiffer and stiffer, no better than crying.


    Then a cold voice came from the quiet hall gate.


    ¡°Many cultivators of the South School of Haotian Taoism joined the army these years. Now that I am the master of the South School, those people would be honest with me. The Imperial Center Administration and the Military Ministry was tightly rted, and I obeyed thete Emperor¡¯s order to take charge of the Administration, so I was lucky enough to be informed of the route of his return.¡±


    The door opened and He Mingchi walked into the hall.


    With a distorted yellow oiled-paper umbre under his arm, he bent slightly to salute to the brother and his sister sitting by the couch.

 Chapter 721 - He Mingchi

    <h4>Chapter 721: He Mingchi</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Li Yu had been standing still for a very long time before she turned around. Her action was slow because of exhaustion. Looking at He Mingchi, she said, ¡°It looks like the chaos in Chang¡¯an was all your fault.¡±


    ¡°Yes, it was.¡±


    He Mingchi said, ¡°Now Chang¡¯an is like a weak patient and the frightening Chao Xiaoshu has left. As long as the chaos starts, no one can stop it.¡±


    Li Yu continued, ¡°The Divine Hall knows little about our ways. We don¡¯t like chaos, so however the chaos is going to be ended, it will end soon.¡±


    ¡°Your Highness, it is not the right time for arguing.¡±


    He Mingchi said to her with a smile, ¡°Like the Hierarch Lord said in the letter he gave you, the punishment should fall on you because of your selfishness and greed. You¡¯d better give up since you can¡¯t run away from it.¡±


    Li Yu answered, ¡°Even though you have pretended to be a Tang man for so many years, you still don¡¯t know us... In our world, no one will give up.¡±


    He Mingchi pped his hands, clearly and melodiously. Then he said, ¡°Inspiring but useless. ¡°Haotian is invincible and Haotian Taoism will exist forever. The Headmaster and your father are gone. What can you do? I promised my teacher that I would try my best to save your people, so I hope you will lose soon.¡±


    Until hearing this, Li Huiyuan finally realized the magnitude of the mistake he had made. He became anxious and murmured, ¡°You are from the Divine Hall... How can you be from the West-Hill Divine Pce? Then, why did you save me in the imperial garden? Why did you save the Emperor of Tang?¡±


    He Mingchi sympathetically looked at him and said, ¡°An Emperor like you is the best friend Haotian Taoism can have. You being alive are more worthy than being dead.¡±


    ¡°But you really surprised me recently as you are still capable to do something. If possible, I will try to kill you. However, it is hard to kill the Royals in the pce. Xu Chongshan has tried for me, hasn¡¯t he?¡±


    Looking at Li Yu, he said, ¡°I think you are unable to keep me here.¡±


    Then he turned to the outside of the pce at a low speed and wasn¡¯t bothered being killed by Li Yu, which was a huge humiliation to the sister and brother sitting on the couch.


    In the darkest night, he walked out of the pce and entered the imperial garden. Stopping in front of the small building, he looked up at the sky and opened the yellow oil-paper umbre.


    The umbre was broken by Xu Chongshan and looked funny when it was open. However, its aura was still sacred.


    As the umbre was open, many lines appeared on the vast stone ground under the small building which represented the God-stunning Array and the City of Chang¡¯an.


    The sacred aura seeped into the lines and lighted them up. A few minutester, the light was gone. Only a Divine Talisman Master or an array master could tell the differences.


    Some of the lines were blocked as if carriages blocked the Vermilion Bird Avenue of Chang¡¯an.


    He Mingchi stood among the trees in the imperial garden, feeling the changing underground until he confirmed what had happened was as good as expected and then he nodded with satisfaction.


    At this time, as long as they could find the array¡¯s eye pestle, they could break through the God-stunning Array, Chang¡¯an, and even the Tang Empire.


    Now the array¡¯s eye pestle was in the Academy. Even if he could freely wander in the pce, he was not confident enough to steal it from the Academy.


    However, it didn¡¯t mean nobody could.


    A clear p sounded in the quiet pce.


    Li Huiyuan covered his red cheeks, a blood dripping from his mouth.


    Looking at his sister in terror, he cried out, ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I know I am wrong, but I have done it and what can I do? How could I know he was from the Haotian Taoism. Li Qingshan lied to us!¡±


    Li Yu was pissed off and began to tremble. She felt dizzy and was about to fall down.


    ¡°Sister! Sister!¡±


    Getting up from the couch, Li Huiyuan held his sister¡¯s hand with the good hand and quaveringly said, ¡°There is no option. We have to surrender to the Divine Hall.¡±


    Staring at him, Li Yu suddenly discovered that she didn¡¯t know her brother at all, someone who was brought up by herself. Then she pped him heavily once again with a nk look.


    Li Huiyuan seemed to feel no pain at all. Widening his eyes, he grasped her hand and would not let her go, screaming, ¡°The Headmaster died. He is dead!¡±


    ¡°Even he is dead, who can fight against Haotian? The Academy can¡¯t save our kingdom. Haven¡¯t you noticed there is no movement inside the Academy? We can only rely on ourselves and the Haotian Taoism. What else can we do?¡±


    ¡°What can we do?¡±


    A lock of hair hung on her forehead. She wearily shook her head and said, ¡°If the Academy can¡¯t support Tang, I will. I will support it until I can¡¯t.¡±


    ¡°No, you can¡¯t.¡± Because of fear and tension, Li Huiyuan¡¯s voice was hoarse like the torn linen. He said, ¡°Even if the Southern Army didn¡¯t go north, they have to bypass Xiao Mountain to reach the Verdant Canyon. By that time, the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s army will have already arrived at the Great Lake, then head to Qinghe and approach Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Li Yu listlessly lowered her head and said, ¡°Chang¡¯an won¡¯t be broken through.¡±


    Li Huiyuan quaveringly added, ¡°They don¡¯t have to break through Chang¡¯an. As long as they besiege us, we will starve.¡±


    Li Yu stretched out her hand tob his hair and said with a bitter smile, ¡°You¡¯re quite smart by saying this. Why were you so muddled?¡±


    Even though she had been praised as a virtuous and wise person and trusted by her father in both governing the country and strategy, at this time, she was a helpless woman.


    The Headmaster was gone and the whole world was invading her country. It was a millennial crisis. It would be difficult for her father to handle such an arduous situation, let lone her.


    ¡°We are the Tangs and we don¡¯t surrender.¡±


    Li Yu gently stroked her brother¡¯s cheek and earnestly said, ¡°We will fight to thest moment and we¡¯ll never surrender. Even if you die, you have to die in the pce. Do you hear me?¡±


    At this moment, a eunuch hurried into the pce with the fresh report of the Military Ministry.


    General Xu Chi had escorted the Empress and the Sixth Prince to Wuzhou.


    Li Yu kept silent while Li Huiyuan widened his eyes in shock.

 Chapter 722 - Welcome

    <h4>Chapter 722: Wee</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The appearance and departure of He Mingchi was a great shock to Li Huiyuan. When he heard the news, his face paled even more and a fearful expression appeared in his eyes.


    ¡°How did you return so quickly?¡± He asked in a trembling voice.


    Li Yu sat down slowly, dispassionate.


    She would not have responded in the same manner should she have heard the news a few days ago. With the return of the Tang Army of Hn City, the news of tampering with the edict would have been made known. She had made many preparations for this. However, with the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s call for the world to punish the Tang Empire, those ns had lost their effectiveness.


    The eunuch said softly, ¡°Eunuch Chen of the Ministry of Rites in the south of Wuzhou. He should have received the news in advance and should be rushing there right this moment. He should be able to stop it.¡±


    After a long silence, Li Yu asked tiredly, ¡°How many people are there in the Northern Army?¡±


    The eunuch reported back softly, ¡°It was reported that there are 500 elite riders.¡±


    The number of people traveling with Xu Chi was neither big nor small, making it impossible for Li Yu to judge the general¡¯s intentions. She suddenly thought of a possibility and asked, ¡°...Who else is there?¡±


    The eunuch hesitated slightly before answering, ¡°I heard that Mr. Thirteen of the Academy is also in the battalion.¡±


    Li Yu¡¯s eyebrows knitted slightly when she heard the name while the panic in Li Huiyuan¡¯s eyes grew. He had said earlier that the Academy was useless after the Headmaster¡¯s death. But as a Tang and also as a Prince, how would he not know what the Academy meant to the Tang Empire? How would he not fear?


    ¡°Royal sister, we have to do something.¡±


    He looked at Li Yu and said anxiously, ¡°Ning Que has already made his stand clear. The Academy would definitely support that woman. Other than doing what He Mingchi says, we have no other way out.¡±


    Who could stand against the Academy? It seemed that only Haotian Taoism could do it.


    Li Yu shook her head slowly and answered, ¡°I do not wish to hear you say something like that.¡±


    Li Huiyuan swallowed, insistent on convincing her. He said anxiously, ¡°Surrendering does not mean that the Tang Empire would fall. Haotian Taoism needs someone to rule the secr world for them and to gather resources. It is not beneficial to them if they were to destroy the Tang Empire. Compared to the barbarians of the Golden Pce, aren¡¯t we more suited for it?¡±


    The more he spoke, the more he felt justified. He stood up excitedly and waved his arms, saying, ¡°Those who oppose us have been killed by He Mingchi. At the meeting tomorrow, you just have to push the me to the Southern Gate Temple and get the ministers loyal to you to support us in forming an agreement with the West-Hill Divine Pce. The matter will be resolved then.¡±


    ¡°How can we reach an agreement? Should we give them ournd and money? Or dissolve the South School of Haotian Taoism and close down the Academy? Or should the both of us kowtow on the Peach Mountain and pray for Haotian¡¯s forgiveness?¡±


    Li Yu smiled at him and said, ¡°You said that the Tang Empire was more suited than the barbarians of the Golden Pce... More suited for what? Are we more suited to be the dogs of Haotian Taoism?¡±


    She felt jaded and numb. Her right hand trembled slightly. However, it did not p Li Huiyuan¡¯s face as before because she now found that it was meaningless.


    ¡°All these years, I pitied you because of what happened to mother. That was why I spoiled, loved and pitied you. But I never thought that it would make you the person you are now.¡±


    Li Yu stood up and prepared to leave the pce.


    Li Huiyuan who had been holding onto her hands fell off the couch.


    He looked at Li Yu¡¯s back and yelled fearfully, ¡°Royal sister, are you going to kill me?¡±


    Li Yu smiled sadly, ¡°You are my brother. I promised my mother that I would take good care of you, so how could I kill you? I now understand what He Mingchi meant...Your Majesty, no matter how shameless you are, I¡¯ll protect you for as long as you¡¯re alive and will not let that woman harm you. The Tang Empire, which is in danger will descend into chaos because of my selfishness. Would the West-Hill Divine Pce be unhappy to see all this?¡±


    There was chaos in the world and the Tang Empire was in danger because of the deaths of the Headmaster and the Emperor. There was not a single person who thought that the empire would be as strong as before. However, the performance of the empire in the war was even more disappointing than expected, especially to the Academy in the south of Chang¡¯an.


    The Academy was the foundation of the Tang Empire and its guardian. Even though the Headmaster had passed away, there were still many powerhouses and bigwigs who were skilled in strategy at the Academy. What perplexed, disappointed and angered many people was that the Academy had not made any moves since the war started.


    The Academy¡¯s doors remained closed since the edict of the West-Hill Divine Pce calling on the world to destroy the Tang Empire spread throughout thends. To be more precise, the gates of the Academy had never reopened since the moment the Headmaster passed away.


    The Academy did not have any main gates, it only had a side gate.


    The side gate of the Academy led to the mountain behind the Academy. That was the true front gate.


    The newly admitted students of the front yard were disbanded on the spot. They took letters from the Academy professors and left with their luggage for Chang¡¯an, entering the services of the imperial court.


    As for the instructors, they received a letter from the mountain behind the Academy which calmly stated that those who were willing to stay in the college should stay and those who wanted to leave should do so.


    Cao Zhifeng, associate professor of Etiquette was a Yan. He chose to leave. However, the two Mathematics instructors from the South Jin Kingdom insisted on staying. ording to statistics, about 70% of foreign instructors chose to stay in the end.


    In their words, they were from the South Jin Kingdom, Yuelun Kingdom, Kingdom of Song, the West-Hill. ¡®Although we are not Tangs, we belong to the Academy¡¯.


    After that, the Academy did not make any other moves and the mountain behind the Academy did not issue any more letters. It was unknown where some instructors went, while the other instructors studied behind the closed doors of the front yard.


    Even if the world was going to be destroyed tomorrow, what should be done should still be done.


    One day inte autumn, the chaos in Chang¡¯an gradually calmed to an extent. The Yulin Royal Guards rode on their war horses and watched the streets vigntly. The Chang¡¯an Local Government runner was busy running around. The Fish-dragon Gang searched for people in the alleyways and brothels.


    The gatekeeper was ordered to close the city gates to anyone other than the grain delivery team from nearby states. It was forbidden for soldiers or civilians to enter or leave, and so, Chang¡¯an became an isted city and nobody cared for what happened outside.


    The Academy was in the south of Chang¡¯an and was naturally located outside the city.


    After Chang¡¯an became a closed off city, the Academy grew isted as well.


    A giant chariot appeared in the meadow outside the Academy.


    Manyyers of satin on the heavy curtains had been torn apart and there were many gaps on the railing carved of gold and jade. There were many old and dark bloodstains on the chariot, but it still looked majestic.


    There used to be sixty-four powerful West-Hill Divine Guards by the chariot, but there were only a dozen left. The others had all died in the battle at Xiao Mountain that rainy night.


    Behind the heavy curtains, was a tall figure.


    The tall figure¡¯s left hand was broken, but he still shone brilliantly.


    He shone so brightly he could even suppress the splendor of the Academy.


    TheWest-Hill Divine Pce Hierarch Lord had arrived at the Academy.


    He had killed the Tang Defender-general of the State, Xu Shi, at Xiao Mountain that rainy night. He had sacrificed dozens of West-Hill Divine Guards to aplish the deed and also paid for it with his left hand.


    But he was still as strong as before, and might even be stronger than before.


    Xu Shi had died in his hands for this very reason.


    More than ten West-Hill Divine Guards carried the giant chariot to the top of the meadow.


    Because their numbers had been reduced, the movements of the West-Hill Divine Guard seemedborious and slow.


    However, the more slowly they moved, the greater the pressure at the stone square of the Academy.


    The autumn wind seemed to moan as it was squeezed by the pressure.


    There was no entrance to the Academy, so the chariot did not enter.


    There was a stone square at the Academy. It was broken into numerous sections.


    Hearing the loud noise, the instructors of the front yard put down their pens and paper and hurried out of the room.


    Then, they saw the giant chariot.


    Although they were instructors of the front yard, they were all knowledgeable schrs who have read many books. Someone immediately recognized the tall figure in the giant chariot!


    There was a loudmotion at the front of the Academy.


    All the instructors looked terrified.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce Hierarch Lord hade to the south of Chang¡¯an, to the Academy!


    Had the Tang Empire fallen?


    The Hierarch Lord looked through the heavy gauze curtains. His gaze, which was like thunder, passed over the faces of the instructors slowly, his face expressionless. He asked, ¡°Where¡¯s Huang He?¡±


    No one answered him because Professor Huang He had disappeared without a trace many days ago.


    The Hierarch Lord¡¯s voice rang out on the tform in front of the Academy once more.


    ¡°Where¡¯s Mu Chu?¡±


    No one replied.


    The Hierarch Lord called out the names of other professors.


    But those people were not in the Academy.


    The Hierarch Lord saw that there weren¡¯t any Tang Army troops present. He said, ¡°The Academy has shielded the Tang Empire from troubles for millennia. However, it has now been forgotten by Chang¡¯an. How pitiable.¡±


    The massive chariot was lifted up once more and was carried toward the back of the Academy.


    The ordinary Academy instructors were not important enough to Haotian Taoism.


    The Hierarch Lord knew very well where the real Academy was.


    ...


    ...


    The massive chariot passed through a narrow alley, crushing the sides of the alley.


    It traveled by a pond, the fish in the aquatic nts hid away in fear.


    When he passed by the old library, the Hierarch Lord looked up at a certain window on the second floor.


    Then, the giant chariot continued forth. It entered the mists that covered the back of the mountain all year round.


    All of a sudden, the aura and breath of the world rolled violently.


    Without the Headmaster to control the cloud big tactical array, it was forcefully broken through by the massive chariot.


    There did not seem to be a path.


    And when the mist parted, a cliff tform could be seen.


    A warm breeze unlike that of the autumn wind blew against the chariot curtains, causing it to flutter.


    The Hierarch looked at the scene before him,menting his loss for words.


    He had nned for a lifetime, and the thing he wanted to do most, was to destroy the Academy.


    He had finallye to the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain today.


    There was a pine in front of the cliff. There weren¡¯t any children under it, but two people ying chess.


    The Hierarch looked through the gauze curtains at the chessboard. He said, ¡°I did not expect Mr. Song Qian to really be cultivating in the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain.¡±


    Fifth Brother ced down a ck chesspiece before standing up. He bowed at the massive chariot that hade through the mist and said, ¡°Greetings, Hierarch Lord, from Song Qian and his Younger Brother.¡±


    Eighth Brother objected irritatedly, ¡°It¡¯s not like I don¡¯t have a name, why are you greeting on behalf of me?¡±


    Fifth Brother said, ¡°The Hierarch Lord knows me but not you. This proves that my chess skills are better than yours.¡±


    Eighth Brother red in annoyance when he heard that. He threw the white chesspiece in his hand heavily onto the chessboard. There was a clear tter and the ck and white chess pieces on the board rolled on the board uneasily.


    The scenery at the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain changed.


    The waterfall in the distance seemed to be still, while the mirrorke on the cliff side rippled. The pine trees in the mountain seemed to have be countless soldiers, while the grass and the flowering trees seemed to have be indifferent audiences.


    The back of the Academy¡¯s mountain seemed to have be a chessboard, and the atmosphere thickened with death.


    The Hierarch Lord looked at the two under the pine tree and said, ¡°Two sirs, you were using the chessboard to understand Heaven¡¯s will. You have evidently already surpassed the Lanke Temple, but it is a pity you do not understand what an intention to kill is.¡±


    His voice was gentle. However, when his voice passed through the curtains, it became several cracks of thunder.


    Thunder roared in the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain. The silver waterfall quivered, and the mirrorke rippled slightly. High winds swept through the mountain and the pine swayed and grass and trees bent sideways. The Go game showed signs of copse.


    More than ten West-Hill Divine Guards carried the giant chariot up the back of the mountain.


    Suddenly, a piercing howl echoed through the peaks.


    There was the sound of water sshing behind the iron-making room. The waterwheel rolled. A big white goose stood on the waterwheel, slowly rising out of the eaves of the room. It lifted its neck at the skies and sang loudly and clearly.


    Further away on the meadow, an old yellow bull looked up at the pine forest.


    With the appearance of the old yellow bull, the white goose and the little white wolf, more chesspieces seemed to have fallen on the ck-and-white chessboard on the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain. It suddenly stabilized and the intent to kill thickened.


    Those chess pieces were not ck and white, but had distinctive features.


    Pawn, the brave pawn.


    Knight, standing proud.


    Rook, for the ten thousand calvalries.


    The pine continued to wave, and the aura of heaven and earth at the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain turned into countless signs of death that headed wildly for the giant chariot and the dozens of West-Hill Divine Guards beside it. They suddenly paled and vomited blood.


    Behind the heavy gauze curtains, a tall figure leaned slightly forward, turning grave.


    ¡°Abandon the appearance of the chess game and merging the meaning of the two things. Gentlemen, these are indeed good moves indeed.¡±


    ¡°It is a pity that there are missing yers in this game.¡±


    ¡°You are missing a horse, a marshal and a general.¡±


    ¡°The world is now against the Tang Empire, would the West-Hill Divine Pce really believe that the Academy would not interfere? I have even guessed where Mr. First and the others have gone. But they will never return again.¡±


    ¡°All of my ns were to empty out Chang¡¯an and have the disciples of the Academy run for their lives. Only then, will I be able toe to the back of the mountain with my guards and take what I want.¡±


    ¡°I havee to the Academy today to take the God-stunning Array¡¯s eye pestle!¡±


    ¡°With the pestle, Chang¡¯an is mine. I will destroy the Tang Empire!¡±


    The Hierarch yelled, and thenughed in satisfaction.


    Hisughter echoed around the quiet mountain behind the Academy.


    ¡°The Academy is empty now! There are no marshals or generals, only you two idiots who are obsessed with chess and those animals. How can you stop me!¡±


    The Hierarch Lord looked at the two under the pine tree and yelled sharply, ¡°Even if you can trap me in this game of chess, how long can you trap me for? Beasts will be beasts! You can¡¯t go against Heaven and be a human being. And how can man go against God?¡±


    ¡°The Academy will perish, and the Tang Empire will fall together with it! For thousands of years, what countless sages of Haotian Taoism had failed to do will be a reality in my hands!¡±


    ¡°I will be the best deity in the kingdom of Haotian!¡±


    Fifth Brother and Eighth Brother paled.


    The howling of the wolf in the mountains grew weaker. The white goose standing on the waterwheel no longer sang to the sky as blood dripped from its beak. The weariness in the old yellow bull¡¯s eyes grew.


    Behind the curtains, the Hierarch¡¯s figure seemed to berger and he radiated light for a thousand miles.

 Chapter 723 - Education in the Academy

    <h4>Chapter 723: Education in the Academy</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The high ins west of the Tang Empire faced the towering green ridge.


    Defender General of the West, Shu Cheng, directed the western army in several battles against the Yuelun Kingdom.


    Even though the western army was the least valued and weakest in the Tang Empire Army, it still seemed powerful against the cavalry from the Yuelun Kingdom. It defeated its enemies sessfully over the days.


    Until a group of ascetic monks came down the green ridge.


    The western army of the Tang Empire had surrounded the Chaoyang cavalry brigade of the Yuelun Kingdom, and it seemed as if they were about to wipe out their enemy. However, the group of ascetic monks seemed not to have seen the intense battle as they walked through the battlefield silently.


    They were ascetic monks from the Xuankong Temple.


    The leading ascetic monk only had seven fingers. He was Master Qi Mei, the chief monk of the Xuankong Temple¡¯s Hall of Respect.


    Master Qi Mei walked toward the marshal camp of the Tang Army. His pace wasfortable and stable.


    Countless arrowsnded on his body. However, they did not pierce his skin but broke and fell to the ground instead.


    Several podaosnded on his body but they did not manage to make him tremble at all.


    Master Qi Mei did not react but continued walking silently toward the Tang Army¡¯s marshal camp.


    He walked toward the Defender General of the West, Shu Cheng.


    Shu Cheng felt a bitter taste in his mouth and he smiled helplessly.


    As the main general, he knew he could not retreat.


    Then, he would die battling.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce army rode the battleships of the South Jin Kingdom navy and finally arrived at the shores of the Great Lake.


    The Tang navy¡¯s warships were moored near the shore and did not move. Traces of fire could vaguely be seen on several ships. Thergest ship had sunk to the bottom of theke.


    The citizens of Qinghe County weed these invaders with varying expressions.


    In the words of the warlords, the West-Hill Divine Pce army was their the sacred liberator.


    The military discipline of the West-Hill Divine Pce was much better than how the citizens of Qinghe County had imagined. Even the South Jin Kingdom soldiers who had long-standing grudges with Qinghe County looked stern while walking on the streets.


    There were two divine chariots and several luxurious carriages behind the Divine Hall army.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion hade personally to the Cui garden on the banks of Fuchun River to meet with the head warlord of Qinghe County to give his best wishes.


    The Great Divine Priest of Judgment did not bother with things like this. She hoped to meet with the powerhouses from Tang.


    The luxurious horse carriages were silent.


    Even though nobody had seen it, everyone had already guessed that the most powerful man in the world, Sword Sage Liu Bai was in the horse carriage. Which other bigwig was sitting in the other horse carriage?


    The army of the West-Hill Divine Pce did not stay long at Qinghe County.


    The cavalry¡¯s horses stepped on the quiet bluestone roads, crossing the exquisite stone bridge, and passed the houses with white walls and ck roofs. They went toward the north and finally arrived at the famous Verdant Canyon.


    Countless powerhouses from all around the world went to the Tang Empire.


    The Tang Empire seemed like it would fall at any moment.


    Nothing seemed to be able to stop this from happening.


    Ning Que was apanying the Empress and the Sixth Prince as they left the state of Wu toward Chang¡¯an.


    He did not know of the dangerous situation in the south, but he could guess what the Tang Empire was facing. However, he did not have the ability to change anything before the surging tide.


    What he could do was to return to Chang¡¯an as soon as possible.


    The Headmaster had built Chang¡¯an City and set the God-stunning Array.


    Master Yan Se had passed the array eye pestle of the God-stunning Array to him.


    Since he had received the inheritance from the two masters, he had to guard it well. As long as he could return to Chang¡¯an and retrieve the array eye pestle, he could at least ensure that Chang¡¯an would not fall.


    The Queen and her entourage were stopped on a bridge near Liang Vige, two hundred miles from Wu state after they had traveled for a day and a night. They were stopped by a group of Garrison Troops from Liang Mountain State led by a eunuch.


    Mo Han, the Grand Secretary of the Yinghua Hall was from the Liang Mountain State.


    The eunuch was called Chen Jinxian and was the chief eunuch of the judicial department and was ordered to work at Liang Mountain State before the war. Upon hearing the news of the Queen returning south, he led the Garrison Troops from Liang Mountain State to stop them, not having any time to ask for instructions from Chang¡¯an.


    Eunuch Chen stood in the middle of the stone bridge, looked at the carriage, then bowed down and said proudly, ¡°His Majesty has issued a decree. Chang¡¯an is in danger. Please stop here, Your Majesty, and choose a ce to seek shelter.¡±


    Ning Que, who was riding a horse, did not say anything.


    The voice of the Empress emerged from the horse carriage. She said calmly, ¡°Eunuch Chen, where is the decree? Let me see it.¡±


    Eunuch Chen froze, and his voice hardened, ¡°The decree was spoken.¡±


    ¡°So it is.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°What I mean is, that the pair of siblings inside the pce are not so dumb.¡±


    When he heard that, Eunuch Chen¡¯s expression became thunderous and he bellowed, ¡°How dare you! How dare you disrespect the Emperor and Governing Princess!¡±


    Then, he turned to look at the horse carriage and said coldly, ¡°Does the Empress Dowager wish to go against the edict?¡±


    The Queen said, ¡°I am still their mother in name. Isn¡¯t this spoken edict too disrespectful? It goes against thews of the Tang Empire as well, how can you ask me to follow the edict?¡±


    Eunuch Chen frowned slightly and said, ¡°ording to thews of the Tang Empire, during wartime...¡±


    Without waiting for him toplete his sentence, Ning Que frowned and looked at the horse carriage. He said, ¡°We have already wasted some time. I don¡¯t wish to waste our time on this useless matter.¡±


    The Queen said softly, ¡°We have to obey thews of the Tang Empire.¡±


    Shaking his head, Ning Que said, ¡°Your Majesty, you can obey them. I don¡¯t have to.¡±


    The Queen asked, ¡°Then, what do you n to do?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°If I kill the man who informs us of the edict, Your Majesty can naturally cross the bridge.¡±


    After a moment of silence, the Queen said, ¡°That makes sense.¡±


    Eunuch Chen was enraged when he heard that. He took up his whip and pped it down on the bridge heavily. He yelled, ¡°Who are you?! How dare you insinuate that you are going to kill a messenger of the pce!¡±


    The eunuch had be famous in the pce for having skills with the whip. The deceased Emperor had taken a fancy to that and had given him the opportunity to climb thedder. The sound of the eunuch¡¯s whipping was crisp and clear.


    Ning Que nced to the side.


    A northern army cavalry officer rode forward, reached out and pped the eunuch forcefully on the face. The p was unusually clear and loud, far exceeding the sound of the eunuch¡¯s whip.


    Eunuch Chen was stunned.


    The cavalrymander took the whip from his hand and threw it into the river under the stone bridge. Then, he pulled out the knife in his scabbard and pointed it at the Garrison Troops that numbered in the hundreds opposite the stone bridge. He said with a deadpanned expression, ¡°Charge.¡±


    The sound of hooves clopping burst out, and five hundred Tang riders rode through the smoke and dust toward the other end of the bridge.


    The Liang state garrison troops could not defend against the ferocious cavalry. There were startled shouts as gs fell and horses escaped. The troops were scattered in mere moments.


    The eunuch on the stone bridge was already covered in blood when he was trampled on by disorderly hooves. He had fallen unconscious and it was unknown whether he was dead or alive.


    Ning Que pulled on the reins lightly, and stopped by the carriage windows. He looked at the chaotic scene and said, ¡°At the Academy, I read a couple of history books when I had spare time. I always found it interesting when I read that those Lords and Generals who were humiliated by eunuchs or officials just because of the Emperor¡¯s edict and were cowed.¡±


    The Queen pulled the curtains back and said, ¡°This is what the Headmaster cared most about. Without rule and order, the world would be a chaotic ce, leading us to forever be in dark times where the strong will prey on the weak.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The first ss I had in the Academy was etiquette. Professor Cao Zhifeng told us then, that the rules of the Academy were simple. Whoever was the strongest would have the final say. That, is etiquette.¡±

 Chapter 724 - Tearing the Old Papers and Returning to the Capital

    <h4>Chapter 724: Tearing the Old Papers and Returning to the Capital</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The road home always seemed long, and often, encounters with obstacles would ur.


    When the Queen and her entourage arrived at the inn 14 miles north of Chang¡¯an, they were stopped again. This time, they were not stopped by eunuchs or troops but were stopped by more than ten white-haired ministers.


    The elderly ministers knelt in front of the Empress¡¯ carriage and handed up a decree on behalf of His Majesty, and the Governor asking the Empress not to enter the city for the time being and to live in the other pce in the western hills.


    Watching the scene before them, Ning Que could not help but admire Li Yu. In recent years, many senior officials had died of illness, and he had no idea where she found so many elderly ministers, who while highly respected, were so old; they were practically rotting wood. Among the ministers kneeling on the ground, he even saw the former teachers of the Sixth Prince.


    The elderly ministers had tears streaming down their faces as the wind whipped their hair around. It made them seem pitiful, and those who heard of it would shed tears. The ministers said that the world was in danger and they knew that their nation was suffering through difficult times. They said that they spoke from the bottom of their hearts and conveyed their true intent.


    The Northern Army cavalrymander responsible for escorting the Queen¡¯s entourage was troubled. The old ministers did not do anything, and neither did they speak of the Emperor¡¯s edict. They only knelt before the horse carriage. So he could not really pull out his sword on them.


    Ning Que did not care about that. He walked toward the elderly ministers.


    The people in Chang¡¯an all knew that it was not just the Northern Army cavalry who was escorting the Empress and the Sixth Prince back to the south. They were apanied by Mr. Thirteen of the Academy, Ning Que.


    The tragic fate that had befallen eunuch Chen on the stone bridge in Liang Vige proved that Ning Que had a heart of stone and was cold-blooded and cruel. He would not be restricted by the red tape set by the imperial court. Therefore, when they saw his approach, the ministers who were crying and trying to convince the Empress were all frightened; they even stopped crying.


    The minister leading the entourage of ministers was called Wei Jiechen. He was the oldest and also the most experienced out of everyone. Last year, he had been invited several times by the Emperor to return to Chang¡¯an to take up a ministerial position left empty after the death of Chancellor Jin.


    Old Chancellor Wei Jiechen stood up and looked at Ning Que. He admonished, ¡°What are you going to do?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Minister, do you really not know what I have done in Liang Vige?¡±


    The old chancellor took out a piece of paper from his sleeve, spread it out carefully like it was the most precious treasure on earth. He held it before Ning Que and said solemnly, ¡°Can you look at what is written on this?¡±


    The paper was already yellowed, and evidently had been around for many years.


    There was a line of words on the paper.


    ¡°Disciples of the Academy are strictly disallowed from interfering with court affairs.¡±


    Ning Que realized that it was written by his teacher and he could not help but be stunned.


    The old chancellor yelled, ¡°You¡¯ve seen the Headmaster¡¯s iron-d rules. Disciple of the Academy, kneel!¡±


    Ning Que looked at him as if he was an idiot.


    The old chancellor saw that he was not reacting, and his expression turned ugly. He said, ¡°Are you going to defy your teacher¡¯s orders!¡±


    Ning Que reached out and grabbed the piece of yellowed paper. There were two tearing sounds, and the paper was torn into four parts. Then, he rolled it into a ball and threw it into the water fields by the state highway.


    Everyone present was stunned.


    Even the Empress, who was in the horse carriage, was so shocked she could not say anything.


    ¡°I am a disciple of the Academy, and what we are best at, is defying the orders of our teacher.¡±


    Ning Que said, looking at the old chancellor.


    The old chancellor had never seen someone who was so brash and wild. He trembled with anger and pointed at Ning Que¡¯s face, saying sorrowfully, ¡°How can the Tang Empire have someone so disrespectful to his teacher! You make me so mad!¡±


    ¡°I only just tore up a memo written by my teacher. The one in the pce even changed her father¡¯s edict, so I don¡¯t see why you¡¯re so angry. Or are you angry that you no longer have a piece of my teacher¡¯s handwritting? If you want another one, I¡¯ll bring you another from the Academy in a couple of days, or I can write you one myself. My calligraphy is better than my teacher¡¯s.¡±


    Ning Que said calmly without any sense of ridicule.


    However, it made his remarks seem even more acerbic.


    The old chancellor retracted his finger and grabbed his chest, panting in pain. He said, ¡°You bastard! Even though the Headmaster has passed on, he will not forgive you, you insolent disciple.¡±


    Ning Que yelled, ¡°That old man abandoned us and died. Do you think he can really take care of us? If you can do it, why don¡¯t you get him down? I¡¯ll be grateful to you forever.¡±


    ¡°Enough.¡±


    The Empress said from the horse carriage, ¡°Don¡¯t make things difficult for the old minister. Can¡¯t you see that he is not feeling well?¡±


    Ning Que said calmly, ¡°Then he better die of anger quickly, that way he won¡¯t feel bad anymore.¡±


    There was amotion.


    The officials were furious and stood up, holding the old chancellor who looked as if he was about to fall. They yelled angrily and refused to let the Queen¡¯s carriage pass.


    Ning Que¡¯s handnded on his hilt.


    The Empress suddenly said, ¡°I will rest in the inn for a day.¡±


    Ning Que understood and said, ¡°Then I will enter Chang¡¯an first.¡±


    He got on the horse and prepared to leave.


    The court may use any method to stop the return of the Empress. But no one, and no means would be able to stop him.


    The old ministers saw that they could do nothing else. They stood by the path and yelled at Ning Que for being heartless and cruel, and that he was not looking at the big picture.


    Ning Que pulled on the reins and stopped his horse. Then, he turned around to look at the old ministers and said, ¡°The world has yet to see my cruelty. Take care of yourselves, you¡¯ll see for it yourself in the future.¡±


    The West-Hill Divine Pce army had already reached the Verdant Canyon.


    Master Qi Mei had already arrived at the western army¡¯s marshal camp.


    The Golden Pce cavalry continued southwards.


    The Tang Empire¡¯s eastern border was about to be razed to the ground.


    Just as the wind and rain brewed.


    Ning Que carried his podao on his back and held a wooden box in his hand.


    He entered Chang¡¯an, which was enveloped in the sunset.


    The imperial study of the pce was a ce that Ning Que was most familiar with.


    He looked at the paperweight on the desk and realized that several scratches had appeared on them. When he ced the wooden box on the desk, he tapped on it and said, ¡°Your Majesty, we are back.¡±


    In this room, he saw the ¡°The Flower Blooms on the Shore Astride¡± calligraphy written by His Majesty and so he had written, ¡°The Fish That Jumped Across The Sea¡±. From that moment on, he entered a close rtionship with the pce.


    Chang¡¯an was the God-stunning Array.


    This big tactical array was handed over to him by Master Yan Se, but was actually also His Majesty¡¯s intention. It was of vital importance to the safety of the country, so of course, it was up to the monarch of a country to make the final decision.


    In other words, His Majesty had already entrusted Chang¡¯an, and the Tang Empire to him a long time ago.


    Ning Que had been growing all these years, but he was still a distance away from being able to bear such a responsibility.


    He thought that he still had time but had never expected the Headmaster to die and His Majesty to suddenly leave the world. As such, the responsibility hadnded on his shoulders before time.


    The door of the study was pushed open.


    Li Yu entered, looking a little haggard.


    She looked at the wooden box on the desk and slowly knelt.


    Ning Que stood at a side and watched her silently.


    After some time, Li Yu stood up with slightly red eyes, and seemed even more haggard and tired.


    Ning Que said, ¡°If His Majesty were still alive, he would be very disappointed in you.¡±


    Li Yu smiled mournfully, and said, ¡°What about you? Are you also very disappointed?¡±

 Chapter 725 - Sharing the Emperors Burdens and Working Together

    <h4>Chapter 725: Sharing the Emperor¡¯s Burdens and Working Together</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    All was silent in the imperial study. After a long moment of silence, Ning Que suddenly said softly, ¡°Disappointment is inevitable, but I do not feel despair.¡±


    Li Yu smiled.


    Aspared to the mournful smile earlier, the self-ridicule in this smile was stronger.


    She said, ¡°This is really unexpected. I thought you¡¯d have lost all hope in me.¡±


    ¡°You did not dispatch any great army troops from Wu State to Chang¡¯an, and even when I entered Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the walls and said, ¡°I admire this. Or perhaps, you no longer have any troops to dispatch. If that is so, I have misunderstood you.¡±


    Li Yu said, ¡°No matter how tough the situation is, at the point between life and death, I will manage to get as many troops as I can. You know how I am, I will always keep some cards till the end.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Actually, I hope that you can use those trump cards.¡±


    Li Yu asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Then, I can reshuffle your cards. And then, I can kill you when I first see you and will not have any psychological barriers.¡±


    Li Yu said softly, ¡°Why do you want to kill me as soon as we meet? Is it because I altered my father¡¯s edict? Or is it because you found out that I was not the kind of person you imagined me to be and feel angry because you were disappointed?¡±


    ¡°Even though you listened quietly to my fairytale that night by the campfire, I never thought of you as a princess in fairytales. A woman who married far away to the Wilderness but could still return safely is not a simple person. I am not disappointed, so there is no reason to get angry.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°As for changing the edict, it might seem immoral to others, but I don¡¯t really care. My cruelty and practicality far exceed your imagination.¡±


    ¡°If you can really make the Tang Empire prosper after helping Li Huiyuan gain the throne, and allow the citizens to live blissfully, then I might even support you two. But the fact is, this is not the case.¡±


    Li Yu¡¯s eyes gradually brightened again when she heard that. She looked at him and said seriously, ¡°You once promised that you¡¯d support me... on this matter.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Wrong. I only promised you to not support the Queen.¡±


    Li Yu said, ¡°Then what are you doing now? Why have you brought that woman and her son back to Chang¡¯an? What reason are you helping her fight for?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You are wrong again, I support His Majesty¡¯s dying wish.¡±


    Li Yu¡¯s expression was somewhat disconste. After a few moments, a resolute expression resurfaced on her face again and she said, ¡°This is a matter of the Li family. It is not up to you and the Academy.¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°This is the third time today that you¡¯ve said something wrong.¡±


    ¡°Firstly, the Tang Empire does not belong to the Li family. The Tang Empire belongs to the citizens of Tang. Secondly, a thousand years ago, the Headmaster created the Tang Empire single-handedly. So even if the Empire had to belong somewhere, it should also belong to the Academy.¡±


    Li Yu furrowed her brows slightly.


    ¡°For thousands of years, Chang¡¯an city had never been breached. If it was breached, it was done so with the assent of the people in the city. You and Li Huiyuan want the throne. I can understand that. However, the timing you chose was wrong, and the method you chose was very bad. As mentioned earlier, this was what disappointed me most.¡±


    Ning Que said.


    Li Yu stared at his eyes and said with a trembling voice, ¡°Who do you think can do better than me in such a situation? You... or that woman?¡±


    ¡°I know what you mean. To you, the world ising for the Tang Empire, hoping to destroy it. The Empire doesn¡¯t have any chances of winning.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°But that is normal when we do not have the wits of our enemy and our strength cannot beat the world. But there were some mistakes that should not have been made. For example, Xu Shi should not have died, and many soldiers did not deserve to die.¡±


    Thinking of the tragic images he saw on his way back to the south and of the now silent City of Wei, Ning Que fell silent for a moment before continuing.


    ¡°After I killed in the woodshed as a child, I became selfish and cold. I didn¡¯t care about anyone except for Sangsang. It was not until I went to City of Wei that I changed, and then I entered the Academy. Some changes had been quietly happening in my heart, but I had not noticed.¡±


    ¡°On my way to the Lanke Temple the year beforest, I saw the wilnds south of the Tang Empire. The scenery was beautiful and the people there were very nice. The Tang Empire is really a great ce and I like it a lot. I do not wish for any harm toe to it, but it has been badly hurt and is dying.¡±


    Ning Que looked at her and said, ¡°I believe there are many stupid mistakes not made by you but by him, so I want to know how he is going to take up this responsibility.¡±


    Li Yu clenched her hands tightly and her body trembled slightly. She did not say anything.


    Ning Que looked into her eyes and asked, ¡°Where is the Prince?¡±


    Li Yu said hoarsely, ¡°His Majesty is resting.¡±


    The two addressed Li Huiyuan differently, and they also represented two different attitudes.


    The imperial study was plunged into silence once more.


    Ning Que suddenly said, ¡°Have him abdicate the throne. Let¡¯s talk about the other thingster.¡±


    Li Yu shook her head and said, ¡°I cannot let His Majesty abdicate, because this would mean death.¡±


    Ning Que said ¡°There are many people who now know who the Emperor had passed the throne to. The two of you cannot continue with your deception.¡±


    Li Yu said in a cold voice, ¡°You don¡¯t have the edict, and the rescript from the West-Hill Divine Pce clearly states that the woman is a disciple of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. How many people do you think in court and the military will support her?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You know me, I don¡¯t care how many people will support me, I only care how many people oppose me.¡±


    ¡°Then you will kill all those who oppose you? You don¡¯t care at all that the entire Tang Empire will fall into division because of your actions, and will no longer be able to defend against foreign enemies?¡±


    Li Yu sneered, ¡°You said you did not feel despair because I did not use the army to deal with you. Then you should know why I did not do this! I am my father¡¯s daughter. No matter how much I wish to kill that woman, I do not want the Tang Empire to fall into civil strife in the current situation! What about you?¡±


    Ning Que kept quiet.


    Li Yu looked into his eyes and said with a pleading tone, ¡°The Tang Empire cannot be divided now. There cannot be any internal strife; otherwise, no one can bear the terrible consequences. The only way now is for you to stand out and support us. As long as the Tang Empire can be reunited and with the support of the Academy, perhaps we can really turn the tide.¡±


    Ning Que frowned slightly and said, ¡°Have you ever considered that the both of you could show your loyalty to the Empress and the Sixth Prince with your loyal ministers and army?¡±


    ¡°Then what will we do in the future? That woman will definitely kill us! And don¡¯t forget, she is from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Even if I speak up for her, there will be many ministers and generals who won¡¯t support her!¡±


    Li Yu said, ¡°I know that you feel resentful and angry, but I have already punished His Majesty heavily. Tomorrow, I will announce his crimes in court.¡±


    ¡°Punished heavily? Did you p him?¡± Ning Que looked at her and said sarcastically.


    Li Yu was aggravated by his expression and cried, ¡°I only have this brother, and I brought him up myself. How can I just watch him die? I allowed you to enter Chang¡¯an and risked letting you into the pce so we could speak. I just want you to let him off, is that too difficult to do?¡±


    Ning Que looked at the tears on her face and suddenly thought of the past.


    If not for Li Yu, he would return to Chang¡¯an too, but he might not have been able to enter the Academy. Without her help, it would not have been so easy to get that letter with the imperial seal.


    Looking at it from a certain angle, the beautiful, crying woman before him had changed his and Sangsang¡¯s life.


    Li Yu said, tears streaming down her face, ¡°Think of Sangsang, you brought her up yourself. Would you bear to see here to harm even if shemitted thergest of sins? I am his sister, and am in the same situation.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s why you¡¯ve always doted on Sangsang.¡± Ning Que said thoughtfully.


    The long night passed, and dawn arrived. The chaos in Chang¡¯an had gradually calmed. The scent of incense could be faintly smelled in the mist and the figures of several ministers could be seen.


    It wasn¡¯t the day for a court of meeting, but a meeting had been called. Everyone knew why this was so. It was because the Empress and the Sixth Prince had returned and were outside Chang¡¯an.


    Some of the ministers even knew that Mr. Thirteen of the Academy, Ning Que, was in the pce. They also knew that he had spoken with the Princess for an entire night. However, they did not know what they spoke about.


    The Tang Empire was facing an extremely dangerous situation. And byparison, whether the edict was real or not, and to whom the throne belonged had be unimportant.


    Just as how Li Yu had anticipated, everyone in Chang¡¯an, from the prime minister, the ministers, to the ordinary folk of Chang¡¯an all wished that both parties woulde to an agreement quickly so that the Tang Empire would not descend into internal strife.


    After ascertaining that Ning Que and the Princess had talked for an entire night, the ministers¡¯ worries were assuaged. Since not any bloodshed had urred, then this meant that the matter could be discussed.


    Even those who supported the Queen who had managed to survive the chaos caused by He Mingchi stood straighter than usual. Their faces were more stern and solemn; they wisely kept silent.


    They believed that even if the Academy could not let the Sixth Prince ascend the throne that was rightfully his, then at least the Empress and the Sixth Prince could receive sufficientpensation so that the matter could be settled.


    The court meeting began.


    Li Huiyuan walked out of his heavily guarded pce after ascertaining that his sister had convinced Ning Que. He sat on the cold throne, his face somewhat pale.


    Behind the throne was a bead curtain. Li Yu sat behind that.


    The ministers in the hall looked at the spot between the bead curtain and the throne.


    Ning Que, who was wearing his ck Academy uniform stood on the golden tiled floor, silent.


    A eunuch announced the start of the meeting.


    The Emperor began to read out his own crimes.


    Then, something unexpected happened.


    The Emperor left his throne, knelt before the ministers and kowtowed.


    The ministers were all stunned speechless, they scrambled to kneel and return the bow.


    The Emperor kowtowed toward the outside of the hall, asking for forgiveness for his sins from the Tang Army and civilians.


    Finally, he knelt before Ning Que who stood beside the throne. He acknowledged his wrongs gravely and begged for the forgiveness of the Academy.


    Had there ever been a Tang Emperor in the past thousand years who knelt during court meetings and acknowledged his wrongs?


    The officials loyal to Li Yu¡¯s sister and brother were moved to tears, and even those officials of the queen¡¯s faction felt the sincerity of His Majesty and their expressions softened.


    The bead curtain sounded and Li Yu walked out from behind it.


    She bowed at the officials present and said, ¡°I only have one brother. As his sister, I should take responsibility for his mistakes. After the war, I will answer to the army and people of the Tang Empire. His Majesty will make the Sixth Prince Crown Prince. Mr. Thirteen will leave Chang¡¯an to inform the Empresster.¡±


    Under the current situation, it was undoubtedly the most appropriate arrangement in order to avoid dividing the Tang Empire and to prevent the ministers, army and people of Tang from making a choice between the two factions.


    The approval of the ministers rang out in the hall.


    Then, someone spoke.


    The hall became deadly silent.


    Because the person who had spoken was Ning Que.


    ¡°You said that you only have one brother.¡± He looked at Li Yu, ¡°...but you¡¯re wrong.¡±


    Li Yu felt a little lost, now knowing why he would suddenly say that.


    ¡°You have two brothers.¡±


    Ning Que said. Then, he pulled out his podao and hurled it at Li Huiyuan.


    There was a clear splitting sound, and Li Huiyuan¡¯s head was separated from his body.


    Blood sprayed wildly from the cut, andnding on the floor at an angle.


    The golden-tiled floor of the hall was filled with blood.


    Ning Que looked at Li Yu and said, ¡°Now, you only have one brother.¡±


    All was silent within the hall.


    Nobody could believe what they had just seen.


    After a long time, some of the ministers howled in grief.


    Many old ministers fainted.


    The Tang Empire had existed for a thousand years.


    Li Huiyuan was the shortest reigning Emperor.


    He was the only Emperor killed in the pce.


    Of course, only Ning Que knew that Taizu was also killed by the Headmaster in the pce.


    The Emperor¡¯s head was cut off during the court meeting.


    The gory scene was unbelievable, and many were stunned.


    Li Yu was as pale as snow.


    She looked at her brother whoid in a puddle of blood, and she fell to the ground.


    Ning Que took out a white handkerchief from somewhere and started wiping the blood off his podao.


    Then, he looked at the officials who were still in a state of shock and said, ¡°I heard many ministers talking about several issues like making choices and how to reunite the country. You were all so worried, so I have helped all of you to solve your worries.¡±


    ¡°The Emperor is already dead, so the only remaining son of the deceased Emperor can ascend the throne. Unless the His Highness the Prince is interested in taking this seat.¡±


    Ning Que looked at Prince Li Peiyan who stood amongst the ranks.


    Li Peiyan was extremely pale and didn¡¯t hear what he was saying.


    ¡°Fear of division, fear of internal strife, fear of making a choice will make the current situation even more serious. So now you don¡¯t have to make a choice, and the Tang Empire won¡¯t have to choose.¡±


    Ning Que sheated his cleaned podao back into his scabbard. He looked at the officials and said, ¡°You don¡¯t have to make a choice because I think that what the Tang Empire needs most right now is unification. I hope that everyone can work with me.¡±

 Chapter 726 - Cruelty Starts from Today

    <h4>Chapter 726: Cruelty Starts from Today</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Everyone was silent in the hall and nobody answered Ning Que.


    This does not mean that his words had no power. In fact, his words were like thunder exploding in the minds of the ministers, leaving everyone in a disconste state.


    A minister stepped out and pointed his trembling finger at him, wanting to denounce his cold-blooded and shameless behavior.


    Ning Que looked at the man quietly without a trace of emotion on his face. The minister¡¯s fingers dropped down weakly. His lips trembled with anger, but he still did not say a word.


    Since the tampering of the edict came to light, the Tang Empire¡¯s court was divided into two factions. The Empire was about to copse, so the separation and hostility were then forcibly suppressed.


    Many ministers convinced themselves to ignore the edict for the time being, using the excuse that they should look at the big picture and prevent the Tang Empire from officially entering internal strife. However, who would have thought that Ning Que would...kill the Emperor after talking to him! Everyone thought that the situation was under control.


    They were extremely frightened and angry. Then, these experienced ministers calmed down with unimaginable speed. They were shocked to find that what Ning Que had said would bring the best possible oue.


    After His Majesty was killed, the only bloodline left of the deceased Emperor was the Six Prince. What other options did the officials have besides helping him reign? These officials, soldiers and people who fought hard at the front line will eventually find out about the edict being tampered. They will no longer have to choose a faction, and the Tang Empire would not be split up.


    Not having any choice was the best choice. In fact, everyone knew that, but not everyone can make this decision for the Tang Empire. Only Ning Que could do it because only he dared to do so.


    Tampering with the edict of the deceased emperor was considered treason and everyone, even the new Emperor and Her Highness, cannot escape the judgment of the Tangws. However, now that this had happened in reality, who would really dare to carry out the punishment?


    Only Ning Que did not give Li Huiyuan any chance to plead for his life, nor did he give anyone time to think. He had cut off the head with his knife to punish the man.


    This simple gesture of wielding his sword shows his extremely calm and even cold rational thinking. It represented the Academy¡¯s extreme disregard for the Tang¡¯s imperial power and it made people shudder.


    What else could the ministers and generals do now? Ning Que¡¯s behavior might seem immoral, but it was written in thews of the Tang Empire. Would anyone dare to say that he had assassinated the Emperor? The crux of the matter was that even if anyone thought so, who would dare to annoy the Academy, the back bone of the Tang Empire, in the current situation?


    The officials looked at Ning Que, who stood beside the royal throne, and at the body of His Majesty in the pool of blood. The expressions on their faces were extremelyplicated. There were anger, sadness, wariness and fear.


    Still, no one replied to Ning Que and the silence continued. This was due to the wide swing in emotions and also because they found it very difficult to ept that the Tang Empire was suppressed by a cold-blooded bully like this.


    The Academy was not allowed to interfere in the matters of the court. This was an iron-d rule left by the Headmaster. So what is this now?


    At this moment, the Empress led the Sixth Prince into the hall.


    The officials in the hall were shocked once more. They all knew that the Empress and the Six Prince were stopped outside Chang¡¯ an by the Princess. When did she enter the city and the pce? Why were they not alerted to it?


    The Empress was not dressed up and was still in in clothes. She looked calm ¨C She was the queen of this pce for almost 20 years, how could the city stop her? Why could she not enter the pce?


    The Sixth Prince was also dressed in in clothes, but he wore a bright yellow belt around his waist. He followed behind his mother. When he saw the gory image in the hall, his face grew extremely pale.


    His legs grew weak and his hands began to tremble. However, his hand was held tightly in the queen¡¯s, and he didn¡¯t dare to slow his pace or show his intentions of retreating.


    The queen brought the Sixth Prince into the hall toward the throne.


    The officials in the hall only reacted then. Those loyal to the queen quickly knelt, their faces red with agitation.


    Li Yu¡¯s faction gradually knelt with traces of anger on their faces.


    The queen brought the Sixth Prince around the puddle of blood and the corpse in front of the throne.


    Ning Que bowed slightly and moved to the side.


    The queen nced at Li Yu.


    Li Yu was distracted by extreme grief and anger so she did not respond at all.


    The queen then lifted the Sixth Prince onto the throne where he sat down.


    Then, she looked to the ministers in the hall and said calmly, ¡°What are you waiting for? Or is the Tang Empire now the scene of a drama? Military Ministry,e up here and report the newest information on the war.¡±


    Dozens of guards looked warily at the movements around them.


    The mansion behind them was quiet and nothing could be heard. It waspletely different from the liveliness when Princess Li Yu hosted dignitaries in it in the past years.


    The most loyal grasnd bodyguard around Li Yu had joined the Yulin Royal Guards for many years. When they heard of the changes in the pce, they tried to attack but were suppressed by the Yulin Royal Guards. Many people died and Peng Yutao, Deputy Commander of the guards who did not leave Chang¡¯an with the Valiant Cavalry Battalion, did not have time to react before he was subdued and sent into the Military Ministry prison.


    Ning Que knew all these people. Many years ago, on his journey from the City of Wei to Chang¡¯an, he and those grasnd warriors and Peng Yutao had fought hand in hand. However, many years have passed, and upon hearing the news, he only fell silent for a moment before discarding the thought.


    All metallic and sharp objects in the bedroom, even the bronze mirror, were moved out. Soft bedding wasid out everywhere. It was difficult even if they wanted to smash their heads against the wall tomit suicide.


    However, less than half a dayter, Li Yu¡¯s face was emaciated and extremely pale. She looked very weak and seemed likely to fall over any time.


    Her usual bright eyes seemed to be covered with frost. They were very dull and piercingly cold. She looked at Ning Que and said, ¡°I didn¡¯t expect that you would lie to me.¡±


    ¡°If you are referring to ourst conversation in the imperial study... I didn¡¯t lie to you. I only remained silent then. You said that no matter what kind of mistake Sangsangmitted, I wouldn¡¯t have the heart to hurt her. This statement is right. I can understand that you cannot bear to hurt Li Huiyuan, but understanding and agreement are two different concepts.¡±


    Ning Que looked at her and said, ¡°Your love and grief for him has nothing to do with me. Just like how my love for Sangsang will never be acknowledged and agreed with by the world. What¡¯s more, I don¡¯t like your brother.¡±


    Li Yu stared at him and said with hatred, ¡°But have you ever thought that you killed my father¡¯s son? Would my father really agree with you?¡±


    ¡°Then, have you ever wondered why no one has ever been able to kill the royal family members of Li in the imperial pce for thousands of years? Yes, it is because of the God-stunning Array that has been protecting the imperial pce.¡±


    ¡°Earlier in the hall, when I cut off his head with a stroke, several eaves beasts on the eaves of the hall in the pce responded, but their aura was forced back after recognizing me.¡±


    Ning Que looked at her and said calmly, ¡°Why? Because His Majesty gave me Chang¡¯ an city, the God-stunning Array. That means that he gave me the lives of the Li¡¯s for me to deal with.¡±


    Li Yu trembled all over, and her face grew paler.


    ¡°So, my father would rather believe in the Academy than his own children. To him, the Academy is the real protector of the Tang Empire...¡±


    She looked at Ning Que and said sarcastically, ¡± The Tang Empire is about to fall, but the Academy remained unmoved, hiding in the mountains like frightened mice. I wonder if my father would regret his choice.¡±


    Ning Que¡¯s expression did not change at all. He said, ¡°This is why you are not as good as the queen. She will never doubt His Majesty¡¯s decision. Moreover, she had personally gotten to know the Headmaster and the Academy back then. That is why even if my hatred with her is extremely deep, I did not hesitate or hold any reservations when she chose to trust me.¡±


    ¡°Only those whose eyes are covered by leaves will not be able to see the back of the mountain of the Academy. They will think that the Academy had chosen to avoid the war because we are afraid. Even though I do not know exactly what happened, but I can let you know that my Senior Brothers and Sisters are definitely preparing for war right now. They will fight for the Tang Empire and the Academy.¡±


    Li Yu bowed her head and remained silent. It was unknown whether she would believe what Ning Que had said.


    Ning Que did not care. He looked at her and continued, ¡°The purpose of my return to Chang¡¯ an is to fight. I want to quell the chaos in Chang¡¯ an as soon as possible and to ensure that there is no problem with the God-stunning Array. Only then can I retrieve the array eye pestle. A long as I can do this, then no matter how powerful the West-Hill Divine Pce is, they will not be able to make their way in.¡±


    He talked about his n seriously, as if he were exining it. However, there was no need to exin to Li Yu, so it seemed rather strange.


    ¡°I am saying all this because I want to tell you that the Tang Empire will not fall.¡±


    Ning Que looked into her eyes. Looking at the grey frost in her eyes, he continued his attempt at trying to dispel her intent to die. He said coldly,¡± If you wish to seek revenge against me or the Academy, then you first have to live.¡±


    Li Yu¡¯s eyes finally gained some luster.


    She had already guessed his intentions, and she asked, ¡°Why do you want me to live?¡±


    ¡°If you are alive, ministers and armies loyal to you and Li Huiyuan will feel more stable. The military orders and political affairs of the imperial court will also be carried out more efficiently. At this critical juncture, I will not let go of any favorable factors, so I need you to live and continue to contribute your strength to the Tang Empire.¡±


    Ning Que said.


    Li Yu stared into his eyes and said coldly, ¡°You can also speak about it in an entirely different way.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The Tang Empire needs you alive now? I don¡¯t think this kind of verbal modification would mean anything at the present. Your Highness is intelligent. I¡¯m sure you understand what I mean.¡±


    Li Yu trembled slightly and looked at Ning Que as if she was looking at a stranger. She said, ¡°You¡¯re too cold.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I said it before, to those old men you sent outside of Chang¡¯ an, that you do not know what it would be like if I were truly cold. But as long as you live on, you¡¯ll have a chance to see it.¡±

 Chapter 727 - To Fight in a War

    <h4>Chapter 727: To Fight in a War</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Many yearster, in the world¡¯s ount of that magnificent war, the first counterattack of the Tang Empire began from the moment Ning Que escorted the queen and the Six Prince back to Chang¡¯ an and killed Li Huiyuan.


    However, in fact, the initial counterattack of the Tang Empire did note from Ning Que. It was not from the Northern Army fighting against the Golden Pce. It was also not from Chao Xiaoshu, who brought the Valiant Cavalry Battalion out of Chang¡¯an to fight the invasion at the Eastern Border. It was not done by the navy officers and soldiers who turned the Qing River red and pledged never to surrender. Instead, the first counterattack came from a farmer.


    There was a vige in the fertile wilnds south of the Tang Empire.


    There was a stream near the vige, and there was a stone mill by the stream. Across from the mill was a raised meadow with numerous grape racks. The grapes on the racks have long been picked away, leaving only some stunted grapes forgotten by the people. It looked rather unassuming after being covered with autumn frost and dust.


    This was a beautiful vige, but it was not much different from the other viges of Tang. It looked just as unassuming as the grapes hanging under the trellis on the grassy slope.


    There was a farmer named Yang Erxi in the vige. Although he insisted that he was a painter, he was skilled at using a pitch-fork and his pigs were fat and healthy; so to the other vigers, he was a farmer. In fact, he was considered as a skilled farmer. Yang Erxi could not refuse such praise, so he could only ept it silently.


    Just like many men in the Tang rural areas, Yang Erxi had been in the military before and fought with the Yans at the frontier fortress. He had cut down many grasnd cavalries, and even his good painting skills were acquired when he was in the army.


    In the years after his retirement, he married and had children. He earned money to support his family and lived a very quiet and happy life. Apart from somemon quarrels among families, he had nothing to worry about.


    The interesting and intense life all remained at the frontier fortress, where he had spent time at many years ago. Apart from meeting a big ck horse that liked drinking grain porridge, his life was rather boring and unexciting.


    Sometimes, Yang Erxi missed those days when he was in the frontier fortress.


    One day, he carried a paint bucket and painted the wall of a public school. Suddenly a local government runner entered the public school, posted a nk sheet of paper on the wall and hurried away.


    Afterining for two years, the yamen still refused to pay for the paint. He was given a thrashing by his father and his daughter cried for half a day before he agreed to paint the school. He was already in a bad mood, so when he saw the paper, he felt even more annoyed. Did the man not see that he was painting? How could he paint if there was a piece of paper stuck on the wall?


    Of course, he would not admit that what annoyed him most was that he could not understand the words on that piece of paper.


    The literacy rate of the Tang people was extremely high. However, he had been a naughty child, and that did not change even after he joined the army. He would rather be beaten than to join the literacy sses. As such, he was one of the few illiterate in the vige. He was oftenughed at by the neighboring children, and it became something that he regretted the most.


    Fortunately, momentster, the bell rang in the public school. The vigers heard the bell and came up, waiting to hear thew teacher to exin whatw the imperial court was promulgating.


    Thew teachers of the public school had yet toe out, but those who could read had already understood the contents on the paper. It was not a neww, but a war report.


    Everyone was silent and their expression turned grave.


    Yang Erxi, however, did not know what was written on it. He grew anxious as he looked at everyone¡¯s expression. He grabbed a child who wanted to go home to inform his parents. He waved his fist at him before getting an answer.


    ¡°The Northeast Border Military was defeated in an ambush by the Yan Kingdom.¡±


    There was still many more content in that imperial court document, especially for the people in the counties and viges in the Eastern Border, requiring them to evacuate as quickly as possible. State Garrison Troops were to organize to provide on-site defense and to recruit males who have military experience...


    No one paid attention to these contents, because there was still a distance between them and the Yan Kingdom. Those words were not meant for them. The people were shocked and angry at the failure of the Empire and there was a flurry of discussion.


    Some people asked worriedly whether the Yan¡¯s troops would attack where they were and were instantly ridiculed. Some people did not believe that at all. They believed that as long as the imperial court sent out an army, the Easter Border would be fine.


    Yang Erxi remained silent. After the crowd dispersed, he stopped thew teacher of the public school and asked him to read the content in the imperial court documents to him.


    He was no longer in the mood to paint. Furthermore, the county government did not pay him much anyway.


    When he returned home, he ate pig trotters and vegetables with wine. The more he drank, the gloomier he felt.


    His wife squatted near the door, scooped out grape skin from the bucket in preparation to make wine. She suddenly realized that the man had not spoken for a long while and asked, ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±


    Yang Erxi said, ¡°Nothing.¡±


    His wife said, ¡°Eat some rice as well; it¡¯s not good to drink on an empty stomach.¡±


    Yang Erxi grunted and continued drinking. The more he drank, the more silent he fell. Then, his eyes suddenly brightened.


    He suddenly said to his wife, ¡°I¡¯m going to take a long trip.¡±


    His wife looked up and asked in confusion, ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Something¡¯s happened in the east.¡±


    Yang Erxi told his wife what was written on the document and said, ¡°I want to go there and take a look.¡±


    The wife paused for a long time, then sheughed. The grape juice on her hand flew everywhere, and she ridiculed, ¡°Something happened in the east...is it to the east of your pigsty or to the east of the grape rack? You¡¯re saying it like the Tang Empire is your home. Are you the Emperor or the Empress? You are just a farmer.¡±


    Yang Erxi said in annoyance, ¡°I am a painter, not a farmer!¡±


    His wife ignored him, thinking that he was drunk. She bowed her head and continued to work, all the while muttering, ¡°He likes speaking nonsense every time he drinks a little.¡±


    After a moment of silence, Yang Erxi said, ¡± I am not drunk. It is written on the imperial court documents that males who have military experience will be called if they are not over 40.¡±


    Only then did his wife realized that he was not speaking drunkenly. She took her hands out of the wooden barrel and wiped them on the clothes. Then, she asked nervously, ¡°The imperial court order was issued to the Eastern Border region. What does it have to do with us?¡±


    ¡°We are near Chang¡¯ an and far away from the Eastern Border. It will take several days for the imperial court documents to arrive. Perhaps by that time, the Yans and barbarians would have already broken in, what¡¯s the use of the documents then?¡±


    ¡°Even if the court wants to call the men up... it has to wait for the county government to organize it. Nothing has happened yet, has it?¡±


    Yang Erxi said softly, ¡°It¡¯ll be toote by the time the county government organizes anything.¡±


    His wife said with a shaky voice, ¡°But...what¡¯s the use of just you going?¡±


    Yang Erxi said, ¡°Even if the Eastern Border falls, the imperial court will definitely set up a wartime yamen there. When I get there, I will naturally serve with them.¡±


    The more she listened, the more uneasy his wife became. She screamed to the next room, ¡°Dad,e quickly! ¡±


    Yang Erxi hit the table forcefully. His vegetable dish and the leftover pig¡¯s feet all fell to the ground.


    He said angrily, ¡°Why are you shouting! I don¡¯t hear you shouting this loudly when I ask you to get dad over for dinner!¡±


    The gate was pushed open with a creak, and a hunched back old man entered.


    Yang Erxi stood up and asked, ¡°Dad, have you eaten yet?¡±


    The old man looked at the mess on the ground and smacked his lips. ¡°No,¡± he said.


    Yang Erxi said, ¡°Then let your daughter-inw chop up some barbequed thigh for you.¡±


    His wife looked at her father-inw with tears in her eyes, thinking that she always gave the old man food. And he shouldn¡¯t be angry just because she didn¡¯t give him barbequed pork legsst time. Then again, if he could manage to keep the drunken man in the house, she would even give him her legs, much less pork legs.


    The old man did not speak.


    Yang Erxi grew anxious.


    ¡°You two were so loud. There¡¯s only one wall between us. How can I not hear?¡±


    The old man said.


    Yang Erxi was very strong and tall, but now he bowed his head just like when he made a mistake when he was a child. He mumbled, ¡°I am a retired member of the frontier army, and if I don¡¯t go now, what...¡±


    The old man red at him and rapped out, ¡°Is it that great to be a soldier? I was a soldier, too, and so was your father! I was even a field officer! What are you trying to show off here?¡±


    When his wife heard this, she stopped crying and looked at her father-inw hopefully.


    The old man fell silent and suddenly said, ¡°Go if you wish. If I were not 60 and still 40, I would go with you.¡±


    Yang Erxi retrieved a wooden bow from the cab that was in pristine condition.


    Then he carried a sharp reflective straw fork on his shoulder. His wife tied a heavy leg of barbequed pork to one end of the straw fork and asked, ¡°Do you want another pot of wine?¡±


    The daughters-inw in the Tang rural areas were usually of this temperament. Seeing that the situation cannot be changed, she would ept it in silence and take care of her own man carefully.


    Yang Erxi said, ¡°This is a war. Drinking is against military discipline.¡±


    His wife put down the newly brewed wine and thought to herself that he was not a serious soldier, so why would he care about military discipline?


    Their two children ran home at this time. The younger brother panted and flushed. He wanted to say something but could not say it. The older sister looked at Yang Erxi and said angrily, ¡°Father, the painting for the public school is not done yet. The lecturer is very angry. Do you want us to fail school and be like you?¡±


    Yang Erxi would normally be very angry if he had heard his daughter speak like that. Then, he would finish the rest of his chores at the school with his paint bucket. However, he smiled today.


    ¡°Tell the teacher that I will finish painting it when I return.¡±


    Yang Erxi looked at his father and said, ¡°Dad, I am leaving.¡±


    The old man nodded and said, ¡°Be careful.¡±


    Yang Erxi kissed his wife hard and loud.


    The two children were not shocked, having seen this many times. However, they were very curious.


    His son looked at him with wide eyes and asked, ¡°Father, where are you going?¡±


    Yang Erxi said, ¡°To the east.¡±


    His daughter asked, ¡°Father, why are you going there?¡±


    Yang Erxi answered, ¡°To fight in the war.¡±


    His daughter said excitedly, ¡°Father, you must win!¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡±


    Yang Erxiughed and walked out the door, carrying his bow, arrows, and pitch-fork.

 Chapter 728 - Farmers Counterattack

    <h4>Chapter 728: Farmers¡¯ Counterattack</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Under the leadership of Prince Long Qing, cavalries from the Left King¡¯s Pce and the Coalition Army of countries such as Yan, Song and Qi, crossed Tang¡¯s border and drove straight in. They did not encounter any resistance for the first few days.


    The Northeast Border Military of the Tang Empire had been destroyed. Although many Tang soldiers were still alive, they strived hard every day under the pursuit of the Yan army and people. Even if they escaped back to Tang, they would not have any military capability.


    The Coalition Army invading Tang, especially the grasnd cavalries from the Wilderness, went rampant andmitted all sorts of crimes. With gold and silver in their arms and excited expressions on their faces, they urged their mounts to run back and forth on the state highway.


    Looking at the scene down the hill, Long Qing frowned slightly. Coldly, he said, ¡°Get the army in order. Don¡¯t waste time in this hintend. We have to arrive in Chang¡¯an as soon as possible.¡±


    While his subordinate left with his order, some of the generals held different views.


    Tang¡¯s reputation as a nation undefeated in thest millennium left eternal fear in the hearts of these generals. Although the war was going well at present, they, including the grasnd cavalries, had never expected to really break through Chang¡¯an. They thought it would be better to withdraw after plundering to their hearts¡¯ content on Tang¡¯snd, in case the Tang people retaliated.


    ¡°Tang is not what it was before. The sister and brother in Chang¡¯an keep making mistakes. Of course, even if they didn¡¯t make mistakes they would not persevere because it¡¯s god¡¯s will to destroy Tang.¡±


    ¡°Tang is under attack from all directions now.¡± Long Qing said. ¡°There is no army in our way and the city is unprotected. This is a golden chance given by Haotian. We will be cursed if we miss this opportunity.¡±


    A general said, ¡°Even if we manage to reach the gate of Chang¡¯an... it will be useless. We all know Chang¡¯an is impossible to break through. What other option do we have?¡±


    ¡°There is no unbreakable city in this world.¡±


    Long Qing did not make further exnation. Only a few people in the world besides him knew the real n of the West-Hill Divine Pce. The Golden Pce¡¯s southward move and the invasion of Tang were deceptive tricks, means to weigh down the Tang Army. What the West-Hill Divine Pce really wanted was for Chang¡¯an to be unprotected.


    Everything was for the Array Eye Pestle.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce had the confidence to get it.


    The Tang Army and inhabitants all thought that their city was unbreakable, so the army was sent to other ces. The West-Hill Divine Pce got the Array Eye Pestle and broke the God-stunning Array, causing an approaching massacre in Chang¡¯an.


    Long Qing lifted the reins lightly and headed down the hill.


    The ears of wheat in the farnd hung heavily and vast as a golden ocean in the autumn wind.


    It was a beautiful scene.


    The farmhouses adjacent were aze. As the ck smoke gradually rose, faint screams could be heard.


    Long Qing thought of the day years ago when he had left Chang¡¯an in silence after failing to make it to the Second floor of the Academy.


    On that day, he had seen the beautiful pastoral scenery of Tang. He had seen farmhouses painted in various colors and people living in peace and happiness. He had vowed toe back and one day burn everything to the ground.


    He asked the generals to put the army in order only for the sake of the following march, not to show sympathy for the Tangs. In fact, he thought that this image of being burned and ughtered was truly beautiful.


    Long Qing removed his silver mask to show a pleasant smile.


    Thousands of Coalition soldiers went rampant on the eastern wilderness of Tang. It was impossible to execute every single order without fail even if the military discipline was the most stringent. Moreover, most of those soldiers were undisciplined grasnd cavalries.


    When Prince Long Qing¡¯s military order was executed, most of the grasnd cavalries assembled and headed west to Chang¡¯an under the guidance of the army g. But over a thousand cavalries were left behind.


    These grasnd cavalries had great confidence in their horsemanship and believed that they would catch up quickly with the main troop. So they were not in a hurry to leave; they were anxious to plunder.


    They had long known that the Central ins boasted wealth and the Tangs lived well. However, it was not until they entered Tang that they realized how ridiculous their fantasy about the Central ins was. The wealth umted in an ordinary Tang vige actually surpassed that of a medium-sized tribe on the grasnd.


    The exquisite silks, gold, silver and precious things made them unwilling to leave. Beautiful women with fair skin made them run at the mouth. Several people decided to clean them out.


    Dozens of grasnd cavalries from the Left King¡¯s Pce rushed into a small vige in the mountains, waving the cusses in their hands. They gave harsh whistles andughed madly.


    Far away from the state highway, the vige was free from the attack of the Coalition Army. Many nearby refugees took the path to hide here. Now the vige was crowded with more than a hundred people.


    It wasprised mostly of women, children and the elderly. The men had already died in the battle with the grasnd cavalries when their vige was invaded.


    The grasnd cavalries gathered all the people and began to loot their property. Given that the vige was remote and rtively poor, they did not find much.


    They cursed loudly out of dissatisfaction.


    The women, children and elderly at the center of the vige did not know why they were cursing and just kept their heads down in silence. Only one little girl in the arms of an old woman dared to stare at the grasnd cavalries.


    The girl was too young to know what exactly was going on, but she knew her home had been burned down and that her daddy had been killed by the smelly bad guys in ragged furs. Her eyes were filled with hatred.


    One of the men, who was angry at today¡¯s miniscule harvest, was ovee with anger when he suddenly caught site of the girl¡¯s hateful gaze. He went towards her with a cuss in hand.


    He raised his cuss.


    Several old people from the crowd stood up angrily to stop him.


    But the cuss had fallen.


    The girl survived.


    Because the cuss fell on the ground, making a clear crash.


    He fell down stiffly with an arrow in one of his eyes.


    The arrow¡¯s feather was somewhat messy, unlike the standard arm of the Tang Army.


    The grasnd cavalries were taken aback. They shouted in theirnguage while quickly mounting their horses. Then they took down the short wooden bows from their shoulders and warily watched the woods behind the vige.


    An arrow whistled through the air.


    It shot out of the forest and hit one of them in the shoulder, blood sttering.


    Instead of being startled, they became excited. They shouted and urged their horses to encircle the forest.


    Judging from the arrow, they were sure that the archers in the forest were not Tang soldiers, but more probably hunters. Many of their brothers in the tribe had been killed by Tang hunters.


    Hunters usually appeared in pairs of two or three people, hardly a match against these fine cavalries.


    Yang Erxi hid himself behind a tree, clutching his boxwood bow. His shoulder was against the trunk and his right foot stepped gently on the ground. He looked nervous.


    Compared to how he had looked when he left home, he was thinner and darker. He had a mess of a beard and chapped, bloody dry lips.


    The hoofbeat gradually came forward and the grasnd cavalry besieged the forest. He appeared nimbly from behind a tree and drew a bow. The arrow was suddenly released, hitting a cavalryman in the waist.


    Confirming that there was only one archer hiding in the forest, the three grasnd cavalries held their bows and released several arrows. Yang Erxi was forced to hide behind the tree. Other cavalries drew nearer from the rear.


    Drumming came from the trunk, pieces of bark spattered. The arrows just barely missed him.


    The grasnd cavalries were experienced at dealing with Tang hunters. Yang Erxi could not make a counterattack at all. The only thing he could do was watch the enemy circling the forest.


    On the brink of death, he showed no fear, except for his rapid breath.


    At this moment, as the whistle of arrows sounded densely, a torrential rain of arrows fell from the mountains.


    More than twenty grasnd cavalries rushing at the forefront were immediately shot down. They fell from their mounts and died in a bloody mess.


    The sound of stepping on grass and rubbing trees rang out. Several people rushed out from the depths of the mountains towards the grasnd cavalries like cruel beasts of prey.


    The grasnd cavalries who were still alive cried in shock and anger. They were terrified. They pulled the reins desperately, trying to run away.


    If one could understand theirnguage, he would know the word they cried out was ¡°ambush¡±.


    They thought they had been ambushed by the Tang Army.


    More than a hundred people rushed out from the forest, some in ordinary cotton jackets, others in silk shirts. Most of them were in farmer¡¯s attire, not the uniforms of the Tang Army.


    They were mostly elderly people, with various weapons in hand, such as the pitch-fork Yang Erxi held. Some were armed with hammers, while the majority of them held straight knives.


    The sharp straight knife was the Tang Army¡¯s weapon.


    Were these people Tang soldiers?


    They were not.


    But they had been.


    They had retired and be businessmen, caravan guards or farmers.


    When Tang needed them, they became soldiers of Tang again.


    ...


    ...


    Yang Erxi smashed a cavalryman to the ground. He stepped forward with his hands turned. His heavy pitch-fork pierced into the cavalryman¡¯s chest after making an arc in the air.


    He walked over, kicked the cavalryman¡¯s body, and pulled his pitch-fork up with force. With a poof, several wounds appeared in the cavalryman¡¯s chest.


    This set of actions was fluent and skilled. He might have repeated it many times.


    He held the pitch-fork and ran to a grasnd cavalryman surrounded by hispanions. With anger, he vowed to himself to get a cuss today.


    ¡°Leave it to me!¡± he shouted.


    The cavalryman had been cut numerous times. He was covered with blood and had totally lost his wits. He leaned against a tree, waving his cuss automatically with no ability to resist.


    The Tangs understood Yang Erxi when he shouted anxiously. They made way and left the enemy to him.


    Yang Erxi ran over to the dying cavalryman. He spat in his palm and smashed with his pitch-fork, as naturally as if doing farm work at home.

 Chapter 729 - Yang Erxi and His Companions (Fourth)

    <h4>Chapter 729: Yang Erxi and His Companions (Fourth)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The attack on the grasnd cavalryies was a perfect victory. When cleaning up the battlefield, Yang Erxi, who killed three people and injured two, was qualified to be the first to select loot from the dead enemies.


    The wealth plundered by these cavalries would naturally be handed over to the court for a unified handling. The so-called booty was nothing but armors and weapons.


    However, for those former Tang soldiers, the leather armour of the grasnd cavalry was like shabby fig leaves, arousing no interest in them. So their target could only be those des and arrows.


    Yang Erxi wanted a cuss.


    His pitch-fork was sharp enough to kill and he had already got used to it after so many battles. But as a farm tool used for weeding, it was still inconvenient.


    Before they left the military camp, Tang soldiers were able to exchange years of service and their daily record of merits for the honor of bringing home their carry-on weapons. No one would have the heart to abandon their weapons which apanied them for years. So the majority would choose exchange them, till it became a tradition in Tang Army.


    Yang Erxi was known for his shooting in the army, so he chose to take his boxwood bow and leave his saber in the army. However, he felt unhappy now when he found hispanions were all armed with sabers taken from the camp.


    So he wanted one too.


    The two grasnd cavalries who were shot at first lost their weapons, so Yang Erxi asked hispanions to leave thest cavalry soldier to him.


    He joined his hands together in salute and thank to those consideratepanions. Then he picked up the cuss beside the dead cavalryman and practiced it. It was much better than the pitch-fork though he was not ustomed to it.


    With a sharp and good cuss, he felt the pitch-fork was ugly and clumsy. However, after reflecting for a time, he still could not bear to throw it away. He then continued to carry it on the shoulder and walked into the forest.


    After a while, he came out of the woods, with a ck object swinging on the pitch-fork. A closer look revealed that it was a trotter left from the roast pork leg taken from home.


    After looking at it for so many days, hispanions finally could not help but joke about him. ¡°Erxi, you either stew the trotter or throw it away. Why on earth do you always hang it on the pitch-fork?¡±


    Yang Erxi did not listen to them. ¡°My wife cooked it for me.¡± he said, ¡°I have to eat it slowly. She added a lot of salt when she prepared it and smoked it with pine and cypress branches. So it will not go bad.¡±


    Hispanionsughed loudly. Nobody was interested in that poor trotter.


    Yang Erxi felt that there was noise behind him. He turned around to see a little hand gently pulling his clothes. It was the little girl who had nearly been hacked to death by the grasnd cavalry.


    Looking at her dirty face, he recalled her daughter andforted her, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Let¡¯s drive away all those bad guys tomorrow.¡±


    The little girl didn¡¯te to talk to him. There was no fear but some light in her eyes and a bright streak of saliva was at the corner of her mouth.


    Yang Erxi looked down at her eyes only to find that she had been staring at the trotter hanging on the pitch-fork.


    The little girl¡¯s longing eyes kept moving with the swing of the trotter, which were so lovely and pitiful.


    He thought carefully, then took off the trotter and gave it to the girl.


    The girl smiled happily. She wiped the saliva off her mouth and bowed her thanks. Then she ran to her grandma while shouting something.


    Apanion came over and said, ¡°Her family was killed. Only she and her grandma survived by hiding in the cer.¡±


    Looking at the little girl¡¯s back, Yang Erxi said nothing.


    They left half of their food to the refugees in the vige. Besides, they drew a simple map to let them know that there was a temporary yamen of the Imperial Court 5 miles away in the southwest which was responsible for gathering the refugees to withdraw.


    After that, they left the vige with over twenty uninjured horses.


    The next morning, these retired Tang soldiers joined the main forces.


    ¡°Nice going, Yang Erxi. You got a cuss so quickly.¡±


    The cavalry officer looked at him and said.


    Yang Erxi said smugly, ¡°It¡¯s nothing. But it was indeed not easy to kill the three barbarians. By the way, if it was not me unwilling to take credit, the two badly injured cavalry soldiers should also be added on my ount.¡±


    The cavalryughed and said, ¡°Well, well. I will report to themander to record a merit.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t forget that I was a border soldier in the second year of the Tianqi era. Watch your tone!¡±


    Yang Erxi taunted. Then he shouldered his pitch-fork and went into the forest with hispanions.


    The cavalry lightly kicked the horse and headed to a hillside along another road. He went to themander¡¯s mount and whispered about the military intelligence he had just received.


    Liu Si,mander of the Valiant Cavalry Battalion, nodded seriously and gave the cavalry a sign to leave. Then he looked at the middle-aged man beside him and said, ¡°Long Qing has speeded up, so he just missed us.¡±


    The middle-aged man in ck clothes looked serene. He was extremely eye-catching among hundreds of stern cavalries of the Valiant Cavalry Battalion. He was Chao Xiaoshu.


    Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°Long Qing is too anxious and the defense of the county too weak.¡±


    Liu Si said, ¡°The garrison troops of the county could fight on foot. However, faced with those field-tested grasnd cavalries, they could do nothing at all. They¡¯ve done their best.¡±


    ¡°I did not mean to me them.¡± Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°Among all local forces of these counties, the Gushan Commandery has real military capability. As the military manager of three states, Hua Shanyue did a good job. But most of his troops have been moved to the Northern Military Camp to prevent the Golden Pce from moving southward. So we can¡¯t count on him either.¡±


    Liu Si was a little depressed. He, with Chao Xiaoshu, led eight hundred picked cavalries from the Valiant Cavalry Battalion to leave Chang¡¯an for the Eastern Border. They had experienced all hardships and dangers on the way and fought several times with grasnd cavalry, but failed to change the situation fundamentally.


    They did not even dare to confront Long Qing¡¯s main force for theck of enough soldiers.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry too much. Although we could do nothing but harass and chase to attack, we can make those barbarians less presumptuous and the people at the Eastern Border would be less harmed.¡±


    With that, he looked at the volunteer soldiers disappearing in the forest and said with respect, ¡°It would really be beyond control without them.¡±


    There were many people like Yang Erxi.


    Many farmers left their farnds and homes to be here. They came to the remote Eastern Border with some travelling expenses, luggage and knives or bows and arrows taken from the military years ago.


    At that time, they set out before the court¡¯s conscription order came to their hometown. It was technically unwise of them to do so since they were not organized and did not even know where the battlefield was.


    However, this time it was different. It was about Tang¡¯s future. So the news of the invasion of foreign enemies was equal to the military order and the conscription order. As long as they encountered someone who was armed with an old knife or bow, they could be sure that the person was theirpanion. In this way, a powerful force was gradually formed.


    Where was the battlefield? Where the enemy was, there was a battlefield.


    This was Yang Erxi¡¯s idea as well as that of hispanions.


    ording to post-war statistics, in the central states of the Tang Empire, over twenty thousand retired Tang soldiers volunteered to join the war at the Eastern Border against the aggression before the arrival of the conscription order.


    Among these earliest and most lovely counterattacks, less than half of them had made their way back home in the end.

 Chapter 730 - One Step, One Kill

    <h4>Chapter 730: One Step, One Kill</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Only the Tangs could save Tang.


    The Tangs, like Yang Erxi, or General Xu Chi who had directed the Northern Army at the battle against Golden Pce for three days, or the farmers from Hebei County who braved the cold to transport supplies and gear of the army to the front-line.


    However, courage and will were not enough to turn the situation. Because this battle against Tang was almost above the human level, though it was between human beings.


    Cultivators who had seldom concerned themselves about mortal affairs before all engaged in this battle, in response to the rescript of the Divine Hall. Even the reclusive Xuankong Temple sent its own monk soldiers.


    On the teau beside Pamir Mountains in the western frontier.


    Master Qi Mei walked towards the camp of the Tang Army.


    This chief monk from the Hall of Respect in the Xuankong Temple had reached the supreme level of bing a Buddha. Ordinary weapons in the mortal world could not injure him at all, nor could the Martial Arts powerhouses in the Tang Army stop him.


    In front of such an Unworldly Sublime Being, one might need true power besides courage and will.


    In the past, the military of Tang had powerhouses at the Peak state of Martial Arts as Xu Shi and Xia Hou. However, now there was only Xu Chi himself. General Shu Cheng in the martial camp was well-known for his strategy and wisdom, not because of martial arts.


    So, who could stop Qi Mei?


    No one knew when a schr in an old cotton jacket appeared on scene.


    Dirty his clothes may be, yet he looked so clean in both mind and body.


    There was still a wooden dipper tied at his waist, but the old book volume was nowhere to be found.


    At this time, the scene was in utter confusion. But the presence of this schr was like a spring breeze gently touching everyone¡¯s minds, thus suddenly calming the chaotic Military camp.


    No one in the Tang Army knew who he was, but his figure somehow brought him a sense of peace and trust.


    Sure enough, Qi Mei stopped.


    Who could stop him?


    Naturally, the Academy could.


    The real powerful force of the Tang Empire was the Academy.


    Although the schr looked gentle or even weak, Qi Mei dared not go any further as long as he was in front of the Tang Army¡¯s camp. That was real power.


    ¡°Buddha left numerous weapons and wisdom before entering the realm of Nirvana. All he did was to prevent the Underworld Invasion and to suppress the Daughter of Yama. Now the mortal world doesn¡¯t understand, but the Xuankong Temple must understand. Why did he do that?¡±


    The Eldest Brother looked at Master Qi Mei and asked. With a sincere look on his face, he was only consulting him earnestly.


    Master Qi Mei felt into a long silence. Then he chanted the name of Buddha softly and said, ¡°Buddha entered the realm of Nirvana, the Headmaster ascended to heaven, and atha¡¯s light fell into the world. All that proved that god¡¯s will was hard to disobey.¡±


    Eldest Brother was a little surprised as well as regretful. He sighed and said, ¡°I see. I did not expect that my teacher¡¯s leaving would impact Buddhism Sect so much. I think that he did not expect it either.¡±


    Master Qi Mei said, ¡°That is also an evident proof.¡±


    Eldest Brother looked at an ant struggling constantly in the thick sticky blood before his straw sandals. After reflecting, he raised his head and said calmly, ¡°We Academy people want to have a try.¡±


    Master Qi Mei said simply, ¡°Admirable. Please.¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°You are no match for me.¡±


    If this sentence came from the mouth of Second Brother, it would be regarded as being arrogant even if he was saying it emotionlessly. If it came from Ning Que, he would deliberately calm his voice and let his opponent recognize his taunt and disdain so as to irritate them.


    However, when he said these words slowly, he was really calm and simply saying the truth. Listeners hardly had any displeasure.


    ¡°My state is naturally lower than yours.¡± Master Qi Mei looked at Eldest Brother and said, ¡°But no matter how high your state is, it¡¯s not easy to stop me.¡±


    This eminent monk of Xuankong Temple was also calm and confident. The Limitless State was a horrifying and unique fatal skill for any ordinary cultivator in the world. As for him who had reached the state of Buddha, it was not an insurmountable means.


    Eldest Brother was absorbed in thought to himself, ¡°I don¡¯t know how to fight.¡± He said, ¡°This is indeed a problem.¡±


    Master Qi Mei said, ¡°Mr. First has surpassed Five States and is extraordinarily refined. You could¡¯ve been solving problems for Tang in the south, east or north, but here you are, in the west, confronting we Buddist disciples. This is probably also due to the unpredictability of God¡¯s will.¡±


    Eldest Brother said seriously, ¡°Although I don¡¯t know how to fight and you being at the state of Buddha, I think there must be some effect if I fight more often.¡±


    Master Qi Mei kept silent for a moment. Then he looked at the martial camp of Tang behind Eldest Brother and said, ¡°Mr. First is right. But I can kill everyone in the camp before you kill me.¡±


    With that, he took a step forward with determination.


    At this time, he was only 17 steps away from Tang¡¯s camp.


    Standing at where the 17th step ended, Eldest Brother¡¯s expression gradually became deste while looking at Qi Mei¡¯s determined face. He asked, ¡°The Buddhist Sect advocates mercy. Are you forcing me to kill?¡±


    Master Qi Mei did not answer him and took another step forward.


    Eldest Brother¡¯s cotton jacket trembled slightly. Besides that, the wooden dipper attached to the belt had some subtle changes in position.


    In the far west of the battlefield, a general fell and died in the Military camp of the Yuelun Kingdom.


    With expressions of rm, people went to check.


    There weren¡¯t any scars on him and he looked calm, like he had fallen asleep.


    Master Qi Mei realized the opponent had already done something, so he slightly raised his left eyebrow.


    He took another step forward.


    Eldest Brother looked at him quietly, the end of his hair stirring in the breeze.


    In the Military camp of Yuelun Kingdom, an ordinary soldier fell and died.


    One step, one kill.


    Qi Mei took a step forward.


    One person died in the Military camp of Yuelun Kingdom.


    The killing was too fast for them to feel any pain. There wasn¡¯t any scar or blood on their bodies.


    No one saw that their napes became t as if they had been hit by something blunt.


    Eldest Brother remained motionless there.


    Only his slightly trembling cotton jacket and the cracks that gradually appeared on the wooden dipper indicated what he had done.


    He did not deliberately choose to kill someone.


    So the dead included generals and ordinary soldiers.


    In his opinion, all men were equal. So why bother making a selection before death?


    But obviously, not everyone agreed with him.


    Qi Mei was still moving forward.


    At this time, he was only nine steps away from Tang¡¯s camp.


    It also meant that the Yuelun Kingdom would have to sacrifice nine more lives.


    Eldest Brother looked gradually serious.


    At the eighth step from the end.


    Themander in chief of the Yuelun Kingdom died.


    The seventh step from the end.


    The iing chief monk of the Commandment Yard at the Xuankong Temple died.


    Master Qi Mei¡¯s footstep grew heavier and heavier.


    Every step took more and more time.


    Before he took the sixth step from the end, Eldest Brother suddenly said something.


    ¡°The Emperor of Yuelun Kingdom died.¡±


    This was the first time since the fight started for Eldest Brother to kill someone by the use of Limitless State before Qi Mei had the chance to take a step. What did that mean? It meant that more than six people would die though there were only six steps left.


    It could be sixty.


    Six hundred.


    Six thousand.


    Or even more.


    No matter how benevolent a person was, he wouldn¡¯t care to kill more once things had started.


    Master Qi Mei¡¯s foot could no longer fall onto the ground.


    It was at this time that a pair of shoes fell on the ground.


    It was a pair ofmon indigo cloth shoes.


    When the shoes appeared, they killed the ant who had been struggling for a long time in the thick blood.


    The person who wore the shoes was a Taoist in an indigo Taoist robe.


    Silence reigned.


    Eldest Brother gave a salute and said, ¡°You arete, Abbey Dean.¡±


    The Taoist in indigo was Chen Mou, Abbey Dean of the Zhishou Abbey. After the Headmaster left the world, the Chief Preaching Monk of Xuankong Temple and he became the supreme in the world.


    If he had appeared earlier, Eldest Brother wouldn¡¯t have killed so many people.


    Eldest Brother did not mean to kill, so he said he waste.


    The Taoist looked at him and said indifferently, ¡°I wanted to see how many people the Headmaster¡¯s student, taught by way ofpassion and benevolence, could kill. So I¡¯mte.¡±


    Eldest Brother understood what he meant.


    Haotian Taoism did not care whether the Emperor of the Yuelun Kingdom was alive or dead, or how many people from the Buddhism Sect would die today. The Taoist in indigo wouldn¡¯t care at all even if the Buddhism Sect was destroyed together with Yuelun Kingdom.


    Eldest Brother sighed. ¡°You all want me to kill.¡±


    Then he looked at Master Qi Mei and said with a touch of sympathy, ¡°Do you still think that God¡¯s will cannot be vited?¡±


    Master Qi Mei fell into silence.


    Eldest Brother looked at the wooden dipper at his waist, staring at the cracks on it.


    ¡°Jun Mo was right. Fighting is to use something strong to attack the weak point of the enemy, with full effort and determination. And you did just that, Abbey Dean.¡±


    He looked up at the Taoist in indigo and said smilingly, ¡°Then I finally learned how to fight.¡±


    The Taoist in indigo slightly raised his eyebrows, his clothes floating in the wind.


    A thunderous roar sounded at the field.


    The wooden dipper at the Eldest Brother¡¯s waist seemed to have gone who knows where.


    Countless pieces of wood scattered behind Master Qi Mei.


    The wooden dipper was broken, and Master Qi Mei¡¯s head was severely deformed as if having been crused over by a mountain. Even though his body had nearly be Buddha¡¯s, he was now nothing but a crumbling y statue.


    Master Qi Mei fell to the ground, being too badly injured to stand on his feet.


    Blood slowly seeped out of Eldest Brother¡¯s cotton jacket, reddening his shoulder.


    On the previous instant, he applied his first attack to Master Qi Mei after learning how to fight. At the same time, he was almost seriously injured by the Taoist in indigo.


    The Taoist in indigo looked at him quietly and said, ¡°Your state is lower than mine. How can you walk even more steadily than me on the Limitless State path?¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°You¡¯ve been walking too fast over the years. Surely that makes you unsteady.¡±


    The Taoist in indigo suddenly asked, ¡°It is said that you went into the Seethrough at dawn and ended being to the Knowing Destiny State at dusk. When did you surpass the Five States?¡±


    Eldest Brother replied, ¡°That time I spent a rtively longer time. Three days.¡±


    The Taoist in indigo fell into a long silence. He put his hands sped behind his back and shook his head with a smile.


    His smile was natural and unrestrained.


    Although his hands were put behind his back, he had the whole world before him.


    Eldest Brother did not speak and left.


    The Taoist in indigo also left.


    The first fight at the Limitless State in the mortal world had just begun.

 Chapter 731 - The Academy Is Still Young

    <h4>Chapter 731: The Academy Is Still Young</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    A child was cracking stones outside the town of Tile Mountain.


    Since the stone Buddha copsed and the Lanke Temple was destroyed that year, the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival had never convened again. There were naturally few touristsing to the town of Tile Mountain and the stone pond on the street had already dried up.


    Nowadays, people made a living mainly by repairing the Lanke Temple. They lived a good life thanks to the generous monks. Stones found everywhere in the mountains and valleys became the most handy toys for children. They were also the best source of finance because the stone¡¯s material was good and could be carved into a variety of small Buddha statues to sell for money.


    ording to what his mother had asked, the child wanted to break the two stones along the grain. However, since it was his first time doing this, he did not know how to do it well and failed to do so even though he tried long and hard.


    He wiped his nose constantly while he kept on crushing the stones until his nails started to bleed.


    A schr in a cotton jacket appeared beside him with a blood stain on his left shoulder.


    The schr looked at the boy and went over to give him a hand. He had such an extraordinary strength that each stone was divided in half after they collided in the air.


    The child was very happy. He thanked the schr and wanted to be his student.


    The schr smiled and disappeared.


    Momentster, a Taoist in indigo appeared outside the town.


    He also smiled and disappeared after greeting the boy.


    The boy looked at the four stones in his arms and felt confused. Then he turned and walked to the town.


    The sound of the bell reverberated through Chaoyang City.


    The sound came from the Imperial Pce, not the White Tower Temple; the death knell signified the death of His Majesty.


    There was an old woman sitting on a stool by the roadside, making shoe soles. On hearing the bell, she rubbed her milky eyes and mumbled, ¡°What¡¯s wrong again? What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    A schr appeared in front of the old woman and politely asked, ¡°Can you mend my torn cotton jacket?¡±


    The old woman looked at the hole in the left shoulder of his cotton-padded jacket and the blood on it, and said angrily, ¡°Where did you fight? You¡¯re young and should learn to behave.¡±


    After the cotton jacket was mended, the schr left.


    Momentster, a Taoist in indigo appeared before the old woman.


    The old woman looked at the tear in the lower hem of his ck clothes, and refused him by waving her hand, ¡°The material is too good for me to mend.¡±


    The Taoist in indigo took his leave once more.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s army had already gone north.


    The Peach Mountain was quiet and lonesome today, with only two or three priests strolling in it.


    The schr appeared before the Divine Hall and then left.


    The Taoist in indigo soon appeared and left again.


    On thiste autumn day, the schr and the Taoist in indigo had trodden the mortal world on foot.


    One person followed the other.


    Moving ten thousand miles in a moment; this was the Limitless State.


    Every time he appeared, the wound on the schr¡¯s shoulder would be more serious.


    But the Taoist in indigo remained well.


    It was on a nameless ind deep in the South Sea.


    On the white beach there was a short wooden stick, half of which had been buried in the sand.


    It was actually unusual though it looked like a verymon wooden stick.


    It was left here, in andmon, because its master had left the mortal world.


    The schr appeared on the beach and bent down to pick up the stick.


    Soon after, the Taoist in indigo showed up as well. He reached his hand towards the blue sea.


    A sword flew from the sea andnded on his hand.


    ¡°After walking for so long, are you tired?¡± The Taoist asked.


    ¡°I¡¯m still youngpared with you.¡± Eldest Brother responded.


    Then he asked, ¡°Aren¡¯t you tired?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m fast,¡± the Taoist in indigo answered.


    ¡°You are really fast.¡± Eldest Brother said, ¡°I wouldn¡¯t know what to do if I had not found the stick.¡±


    The Taoist said, ¡°Even though you¡¯ve found the Headmaster¡¯s stick, you can hold on for no more than seven days.¡±


    Eldest Brother looked at him and said, ¡°Even one day is better.¡±


    The Taoist in indigo said, ¡°Since it¡¯s destined, why bother to struggle?¡±


    Eldest Brother replied, ¡°Nothing is destined in the world. No one knows what will happen in seven days.¡±


    Seven days would be enough for the Tang¡¯s military to defeat the invading enemy of the Yuelun Kingdom, for Ning Que to master the God-stunning Array of Chang¡¯an, and for the Academy to do many things.


    The Taoist in indigo said, ¡°In seven days, the Academy would no longer exist.¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°While our teacher is fighting in the sky, we will not let this happen.¡±


    The Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce had gone to the Academy in person. ording to Haotian Taoism¡¯s prediction, the Academy did not have the ability to change the tide. However, the calm expression of Eldest Brother seemed to indicate something unexpected.


    The Taoist in indigo said after a short moment of hesitation, ¡°You should know what is the real target of Haotian Taoism.¡±


    The army of the West-Hill Divine Pce was in the south of Tang Empire, in Qinghe County outside the Verdant Canyon.


    Eldest Brother said calmly, ¡°I¡¯m not as good as Jun Mo, so I¡¯m here.¡±


    It was clear that Jun Mo was there.


    The Taoist in indigo said, ¡°You are too modest. Jun Mo has unlimited potential. I can¡¯t even predict what he could achieve on the battlefield. But you are still the most powerful Eldest Brother in the Academy with the highest state. You remain the biggest threat to Haotian Taoism, so I¡¯m here to watch you.¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°You are also the greatest threat to the Tang Empire, so I have been waiting for you toe. Moreover, your state is far above mine. So I can say the Academy has the advantage.¡±


    Surpassing the Five States did not mean being invincible. For instance, cultivators of Haotian Initiation could have almost matchless power after being infused with Haotian Divine Light. However, they were not necessarily able to endure the siege of the world.


    Only the Limitless State was inscrutable. A general thousands of kilometers away could be beheaded. On the battlefield, it was the most horrifying and unpredictable means.


    The Taoist in indigo said, ¡°I can ignore you.¡±


    A rare expression of confidence emerged on Eldest Brother¡¯s face. He said, ¡°You cannot.¡±


    The Taoist asked, ¡°Why do you say this?¡±


    Eldest Brother looked at him and said earnestly, ¡°I¡¯ve learned how to fight. If you didn¡¯te to watch me, I could kill a lot of people, such as the Divine Priest of Judgment, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion, and Ye Su. Except for Liu Bai and the Hierarch, I have the confidence to kill all the others.¡±


    The Taoist in indigo said, ¡°I can also kill many.¡±


    Eldest Brother shook his head and said, ¡°You know very well that you can¡¯t kill the people in Chang¡¯an City or in the Academy. Then the war will mean nothing.¡±


    The Taoist in indigo said, ¡°I told you that you could hang on for no more than seven days. I can kill at will by then.¡±


    Eldest Brother replied, ¡°I also told you that nothing is destined in the world and no one knows what will happen in seven days.¡±


    The scenery at the back of the mountain of the Academy turned into a fake picture. Everything in it seemed to be moving, but was actually motionless, like the lines on the chessboard that were changing all the time but in fact remained regr and still.


    In the ck-and-white Weiqi world, the camp of two sides gradually melted and solidified. Then arge nk appeared in the middle. On the edge of the nk, a fierce and brave soldier copsed to one side.


    The proud man in the middle of the chessboard was covered in dust all over. The chariot behind him had been too badly damaged to move forward, leaving only a deep rut.


    The scenery gradually came back to life. The silver stream falling between the cliffs in the distance roared when it collided with the pool water. Trees all over the mountains and ins straightened again.


    The dozens of West-Hill Divine Guards beside the chariot had long been dead, their body covered in countless dense lines. However, the figure on the chariot was still tall. He broke through the game without any damage.


    In a forest at the back of the mountain, a little white wolf curled up in a cave, licking its injured forelimbs, looking distressed and pitiful. The silk quilt in the cave had be bloody.


    By the stream behind the smithy, the big white goose was still sitting on the top of the waterwheel, with its neck curved skyward. However, it did not sing as usual, but looked rather angry and unwilling. Gradually, the white feathers on its abdomen were dyed red with blood.


    The old yellow bull on the distant meadow looked increasingly tired and old.


    The chessboard under the pine tree on the cliff side had broken into numerous pieces. Fifth Brother and Eighth Brother looked at those pieces and fell into a long silence. Blood dripped from their lips, evidence of their heavy internal injuries.


    They looked at each other silently and saw the faint regret in each other¡¯s eyes.


    They should not have dedicated half of their life to the chessboard for the sake of interest. If they had learned some fighting skills from their teacher, would the old Taoist behave so rampantly?


    The Hierarch Lord burst outughing.


    As theyers of gauze curtain in the chariot quivered, a gust of wind suddenly rose from the mountains, whistling through the pine forest. The drifting clouds in the sky crashed into a waterfall in the distance, breaking into threads.


    Hisughter was extremely heroic and arrogant.


    Kill Xu Shi first, then destroy the Academy, and finally break into Chang¡¯an. The Tang Empire would no longer exist!


    There was no doubt that this would be the peak of his life.


    But at this time, someone appeared in the mist of the mountainside.


    It was Yu Lian, the Academy Third Sister.


    She walked slowly along the mountain path.


    Yu Lian looked petite andely, but gentle and inwardly mature.


    She looked like a young girl who knew nothing about world affairs.


    However, you would find her sophisticated if you looked into her eyes.


    Looking at her strolling on the mountain path, the Hierarch Lord gradually stoppedughing.


    ¡°Mr. Third, I know you are something. Seethrough Realm was only a means to deceive the world. You can ascend to the Knowing Destiny State whenever you want. So don¡¯t try to cast a mist before my eyes.¡±


    Yu Lian did not speak but kept going. With the ups and downs of her steps, something extraordinary happened.


    Her ck long hair gradually fell below her waist.


    But it was not the hair that was growing, but her bing shorter!


    She walked on the mountain path and became shorter with each step. Her young face became even more childish until she finally looked like a girl of 12 or 13.


    At the same time, her aura was also improving. As the Hierarch had said, she surpassed Seethrough Realm easily and then ascended to the Knowing Destiny State.


    Looking at Yu Lian¡¯s change through the gauze curtains, the Hierarch said calmly, ¡°I said...¡±


    His voice suddenly stopped.


    Then he furrowed his brows.


    Because after reaching the Knowing Destiny State, Yu Lian¡¯s aura did not stop rising.


    As she roamed on the mountain path, she soon reached the Peak of the Knowing Destiny State from the Seethrough Realm.

 Chapter 732 - Listening to the Chirping of Cicadas for 23 Years

    <h4>Chapter 732: Listening to the Chirping of Cicadas for 23 Years</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The back of the mountain of the Academy had always been a mysterious existence in the Cultivation Field. While Third Senior Sister, Yu Lian, kept a lower-profile that few people were conscious of her existence. Even in the West-Hill Divine Pce, people only knew that she was a powerful master in the Seethrough Realm.


    The ¡°Ri¡± Handscroll in the Tomes of the Arcane also recorded in the same way.


    However, the Hierarch Lord and the authentic bigwigs had never believed that.


    The Academy was such a mysterious ce. Eldest Brother heard of Taoism in the morning and mastered Taoism in the sunset. He had leaped from the No Doubts State into the Knowing Destiny State over two consecutive levels within only one day. While Second Brother elevated into the No Doubts State only right after 14 days of the initialprehension.


    As the Third Senior Sister of Academy, Yu Lian was only inferior to Eldest Brother and Second Brother.


    The Second Floor of the Academy was sorted by the entry time. However, considering Eldest Brother and Second Brother who were both extraordinary people: one of them was a World Wayfarer and had defeated the World Wayfarer of both the Buddhism and Taoism with absolute advantage amid the autumn rain in Lanke Temple; the other one had stopped the Sage of Sword, Liu Bai, the first powerful master in the world drawing his sword out. How could she possibly be a weak one?


    There were also many geniuses in Haotian Taoism. Ye Su had seen through life and death since he was young. Ye Hongyu, who had been too proud to fight with Chen Pipi for the reputation of being the youngest to enter into the Knowing Destiny State, patiently cultivated and forcibly suppressed her cultivation state under the Seethrough Realm for years. Only till Harmony that did she cross the threshold easily on the snow cliff which was pretty much the same as that at the moment.


    Therefore the Hierarch Lord felt no sense of astonishment when he saw Yu Lian breaking out of the Seethrough Realm instantly and elevating into Knowing Destiny State while walking slowly along the mountain path until she finally entered the climax of Knowing Destiny State!


    The Hierarch Lord finally started to wear imposing looks on his face, but he sounded august and confident as usual.


    ¡°Haotian had granted me the divine power to protect the world and even your two senior brothers would not be able to contend with me. Even if you are able to show out your real strength today, you are only destined to be sacrificial offerings!¡±


    Looking at the innocent and beautiful maiden standing out there, the Hierarch Lord said, ¡°Haotian Taoism respects the Headmaster and for his sake, I will spare all you three from death as long as you hand me the array eye pestle.¡±


    Yu Lian took out an object wrapped up with cloth and then ced it on the wooden bench beside the mountain path. Staring at the gigantic chariot, she said peacefully, ¡°Poke your eyes and I will spare you from death for the sake of being so stupid.¡±


    Being startled slightly for a moment, the Hierarch Lord thenughed out loud immediately.


    Hisughter quaked theyers of the satins and veils, echoing through the quiet mountain behind the Academy.


    ¡°You are as short as a little girl in appearance, but you talk with a tone boasting yourself too much actually.¡±


    Slowly stoppingughing, the Hierarch Lord acimed, ¡°How ridiculous andughable it is! You really think that you are capable of defeating me?¡±


    His voice was cold and loud, sounding exactly like the thunder roaring inte winter.


    Having already walked to the front of the gigantic carriage at the moment, Yu Lian looked at the tall figure looming in the satins and said with a faint smile, ¡°You are much shorter than me. How can you be eligible tough at me?¡±


    Even though the figure in the carriage looked so tall and stalwart, she still said that he was actually much too shorter than her.


    The Hierarch Lord fell silent all of a sudden.


    Staring at the young girl outside the veils, he said in a slow tone, ¡°Who are you?¡±


    His voice sounded so heavy, even with some nervousness.


    Yu Lian said distantly, ¡°I have always known who you are, while you still don¡¯t know who I am. It is said that you and I are the most mysterious people in the Cultivation Field. Now it sounds ridiculous.¡±


    A Cicadas¡¯ chirping suddenly rang out in the quiet mountain behind the Academy.


    It was four spring-like and no true autumn at all for this ce. As the chirping of Cicadas was ringing on, the autumn wasing. The autumn winds began to blow and the yellow leaves started to fall down. This cicada was one that belonged in the autumn season.


    Fifth Brother and Eighth Brother who were standing beneath the pine tree seemed somewhat astounded at first. Then they seemed to recall something and smiled into each other, leaving the cliff tform quietly after bowing to Yu Lian.


    The Hierarch Lord became more and more nervous and said in a cold tone, ¡°Who... who the hell are you?¡±


    When he heard the chirpings, he vaguely figured out something, but to no end would he believe that.


    The aura of Yu Lian suddenly changed, cold and detached. Her face seemed to be covered by a thinyer of frost, which made her look so mysterious and proud.


    She looked up at that tall figure in the carriage as if she was looking at an ant.


    She coldly said, ¡°Xiong Chumo, you stupid dwarf! In no way are you qualified to stand taller than me!¡±


    As soon as her voice died away, numerous of chirpings of Cicadas rang out in the mountain behind the Academy.


    The cicadas seemed to know something.


    The chirpings of Cicadas echoed all over the wilderness, sounding mournful and frightening.


    The autumn winds were growing strong and the yellow leaves were falling down.


    Many yellow leaves fell down on the gigantic carriage.


    The thousands ofyers of veils covering the carriage had not been destroyedpletely during the fight with Xu Shi and had been pulled together at all while breaking off the Academy¡¯s Go game. However, in front of the falling yellow leaves, they appeared to be so fragile that they were torn down into numerous pieces!


    With the tattered satins fluttering away, there were no other things on the carriage.


    Few people in the world had seen the physical body of the Hierarch Lord of the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    That was the exact reason why he was considered one of the two most mysterious people in the world.


    At this moment, his physical body finally revealed in the broad daylight as well as in front of the countless chirpings.


    An old Taoist Priest with pretty ordinary look showed up on the carriage.


    He had pretty distinctive facial features.


    He was very short, who was much shorter than an eight or nine-year-old boy.


    He was much too thin, thinner than the poor in the famine age.


    He looked pretty much like a puppet made up of multiple dead nks of wood.


    Not only did he appear that miserable but also that ridiculous.


    This was what the Hierarch Lord of West-Hill Divine Pce really looked like.


    The Hierarch Lord was not ustomed to the skylight.


    A look of panic was revealed on his face.


    It was due to the fact that hisy-man name nobody had known about was revealed by Yu Lian. It also due to the fact that he found that without theyers of satins and veils concealing his body, his tall and stalwart figure had disappeared into the void. He became so panic as if he was a naked woman who had been strippedpletely off her clothing, without knowing where toy her hands at all.


    Looking at this scene, the big white goose which wasnding on top of the water wheel behind the iron forge mill began to quack out shamelessly.


    While in the midst of the chirping of Cicadas echoing all over the whole mountain, Yu Lian¡¯s aura continued elevating up, transcending over the lofty threshold hanging above the Five States in an instant, finally ending up as andscape of nkness and rity!


    The Hierarch Lord finally recovered. Staring at the young girl standing outside the carriage, he shouted sharply and angrily with his withered lips.


    ¡°Lin Wu!¡±


    ¡°The Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation!¡±


    ¡°You are actually hiding in the Academy!¡±


    ¡°How have you be a woman?¡±


    There were a total of 13 disciples in the mountain behind the Academy, among which the Third Sister, Yu Lian, was the least eye-catching one.


    Herpanions were all peerless geniuses in their respective fields except her, who seemed nothing special. Not only rarely did she talk with people, but she also rarely stayed in the back of the mountain.


    Sitting beside the eastern window of the Second floor of the old library day by day, she traced over the Hairpin-style Small Regr Script quietly. It seemed that nothing in the world could arouse her interest and naturally, it was difficult for her to get other people¡¯s attention.


    Leaving the people in Cultivation Field alone, even other disciples and Ning Que would sometimes forget that they had such a Senior Sister. She was too quiet to be remembered.


    At this critical moment of life and death, the Eldest Brother had sent the rest disciples to the position where they were needed and only she was left in the Academy.


    It was not because he was not concerned about that the Academy would be sneakily raided nor he possesed the same psychology as the Queen and Ning Que that to give up Hn City. He just believed that as long as the Third Sister stayed in the Academy, it would stay safe and sound.


    It was because she had a former name, and that was Lin Wu.


    She was the Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation.


    The Headmaster once had such a conversation with his disciples.


    There was a kind of cicada in the aridnd of the far west. The cicadas hid amid the mud for the whole 23 years and didn¡¯t wake up until the Snow Mountain began to melt as the flood arrived. While showering in the muddy water and drying wings in chilly winds, they would flutter to fly out of the void.


    Chen Pipi was intoxicated at that time when he heard it.


    While Eldest Brother and Second Brother smiled without uttering anything.


    Yu Lian was also on the scene at that time. She cooked a bowl of vegetable noodle for the Headmaster that night.


    For hundreds of years, he was the best genius of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    Master Lotus always wanted him to inherit his legacy with his whole heart.


    However, he calmly rejected the opportunity since his father was killed by Lotus.


    He chose a way which no other people had ever taken.


    He wanted to practice was a unique skill that no one in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had ever sessfully practiced.


    He was the youngest Grandmaster of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine history, and also thest one.


    He had ever recruited a few disciples who were all older than him.


    He continued on his cultivation.


    Till the time when he seeded finally, he disappeared then.


    He had been the most mysterious figure in the Cultivation Field from that day on.


    The Headmaster came across a little girl the same year.


    The little girl who wore delicate makeup looked extremely cute. However, she had a pair of peaceful and tranquil eyes.


    Only the Headmaster could see through the frustration and fear crouching deep inside them.


    ¡°What exactly are you afraid of?¡±


    Headmaster said to the little girl, ¡°All are in external forms. Does the shell mean that much to you?¡±


    The little girl got him and saluted with her hands to him, elegantly.


    The Headmaster shook his head.


    The little girl put both her hands at the sides of her waist in somewhat awkward posture and saluted while crouching slightly, which looked pretty shy.


    The Headmaster nodded with satisfaction.


    At the time the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was doomed to destruction and West-Hill Divine Pce was hunting down the evil remnants of Devil¡¯s Doctrine around the world. The little girl was just a little girl who did not possess the ability to defend herself and she had no idea as for how she was gonna spend the next 23 years.


    But she did not beg the Headmaster.


    She had her own pride.


    The Headmaster spoke up before her and said, ¡°Come along with me to the Academy.¡±


    The Headmaster casually spoke as if she was already a member of the Academy.


    The Headmaster gained a female disciple that day.


    As more and more disciples enrolled in, she began to be called as Third Sister.


    A few yearster, she made a female professor in the Academy.


    She sat quietly beside the eastern window peacefully while tracing over Hairpin-style Small Regr Script and she had been sitting there for many years.


    Fits of chirping of cicadas rang out outside the window.


    She was humble and never got involved with the matters of the world. The world also left her alone.


    She was exactly the legendary Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation, Lin Wu!


    A heavy fog (the name means fog in forest).


    The Hierarch Lord¡¯s shocking and furious roaring still reverberated in the mountain behind the Academy.


    Even though the roar sounded like thunder in winter, it still could not suppress down the chirping of Autumn Cicadas vibrating throughout the whole mountain.


    Staring at the innocent and beautiful girl, he said incredulously, ¡°How have you be a woman?¡±


    Yu Lian said with slight sarcasm, ¡°Even Haotian could transform into a woman, why couldn¡¯t I? If I can not even see through the external forms, how can I be able to practice the Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation? If Ye Su stood in front of me right now, he would not have asked that stupid question. Since he has apprehended life and death, he won¡¯t care about these details naturally.¡±


    The Hierarch still unable to hold down his expressions of astonishment and said then, ¡°Even though you are an evil remnant, you are a grandmaster after all. With such a grandeur identity, how dare you to acknowledge an outsider as your master. Shame on you!¡±


    Looking up at the sky, Yu Lian said, ¡°The Headmaster is worthy to be the master of anyone, let alone me.¡±

 Chapter 733 - The Academy Still Triumphed

    <h4>Chapter 733: The Academy Still Triumphed</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Staring at Yu Lian intently, the Hierarch said in a chilly voice, ¡°You actually ordered your own Younger Brother and the beasts to start it first. Was this the manner the Headmaster taught you?¡±


    Yu Lian said with indifference, ¡°Though you are inferior to me, It will take me a while to kill you. In order to kill you, I will do whatever needed.¡±


    The Hierarch was angry, but he smiled and said, ¡°Your two Younger Brothers are nearly dead because you¡¯ve done nothing but go after me. How sinister, ruthless and cold-blooded you are! If the Headmaster finds out what you¡¯ve done, he will regret having recruiting you as his disciple.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°As a grandmaster of Enlightenment Doctrine, it is natural for me to be sinister and murderous. The Headmaster was willing to acknowledge me as his disciple, how could he have not known what kind of person I am?¡±


    The Hierarch screamed and shouted, ¡°Let me clear you away today, you evil remnant of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine!¡±


    Even though she was contending with a powerful master with supremely high status, Yu Lian looked quite peaceful. The peacefulness she held was an obvious humiliation to her opponent.


    ¡°Xiong Chumo, since you were not able to contend with me several decades ago, there¡¯s no way you will be able to defeat me now.¡±


    Looking at the Hierarch¡¯s withered arms and the broken wrist, Yu Lian said with an apathetic expression, ¡°As I¡¯ve told you, if you poke your eyes out, I will allow you to leave the Academy.¡±


    The Hierarch Lord¡¯s left hand had been hacked off by Great General Xu Shi at the foot hill of Xiao Mountain.


    From Xiao Mountain to the mountain behind the Academy, he had had two consecutive difficult fights. And now he was facing the unfathomable Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivator who had been cultivating under the guidance of the Headmaster for years...


    But he was still confident!


    With a sudden grave expression, the Hierarch exalted his right fist, lowered his waist and took a breath. He punched with one fist.


    He was short and thin. The fists he threw out were small and looked somewhat ridiculous.


    Yet these same fists had beaten Xu Shi to death and suppressed the West-Hill Divine Pce for years. Even though they looked ridiculous, they were not at all.


    The fist was fearsome enough.


    It was an innocuous fist that seemed to have converged all the Qi of Heaven and Earth in the mountain behind the Academy together. With pure white radiance spilling over the gaps between his fingers, the fist seemed to be holding a sun!


    Yu Lian suddenly lowered her head.


    The chirping of cicadas in the mountain behind the Academy grew louder and louder, filled with mournfulness.


    The two powerful masters, the most mysterious ones in the cultivation field had finally met.


    The fist had an aura of fury.


    It was as heavy as the mountain.


    Its power was as vast as the sea.


    The green b stones along the mountain path were pulled up like pieces of paper. They had flown far away. The trees fell on their backs one after another. The ancient trees of strong tenacity had twisted trunks, while most of therge trees had their branches broken off. Sounds of cracking and bursting rang out.


    Instead of being struck down, Yu Lian wandered around the forest with the wind and drifted in the air, looking like the wings of cicadas. It seemed that she truly blended into a whole with the aura of heaven and earth. There was no way to find her.


    The chirping of autumn cicadas rang on continuously. Thousands of yellow leaves fell to the ground, rustling.


    All of a sudden, thousands of tears appeared on his robes. A thinyer of fluorescence began to float over the surface of his body. The yellow leaves shattered into silk.


    He calmed himself. He gazed about the valley of broken trees and shattered stone amid the mountain forest, and hollered, ¡°Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivator! Do you actually think that you are invincible just because you have transcended beyond the Five States?¡±


    ¡°You are at the Divine Demon Realm at most. You are not even able to be immortal, how could you fight with the light?¡±


    He raised both of his hands slowly and turned the palm of his broken right hand towards the sky. He wore a firm and dedicated expression. His voice was like thunder in spring, blooming out and spreading towards a vast expanse of open ground and skies.


    ¡®May Haotian grant me the power!¡±


    The loud clear voice wandered amid the heaven and the earth, the sky reacted. The setting sun hanging in the west became bright. What it radiated was no longer meltingly red and warm, it appeared most supreme instead, holding people in awe and veneration.


    With little regard to the cloud-converging tactical array surrounding the mountain behind the Academy, a majestic force was traversing through the night clouds. Itnded on the Hierarch along with the torrid sunlight.


    All of a sudden, his short thin body became extremelyrge.


    His body appeared to possess a horrifying force, simr to that of Heaven¡¯s Way.


    The yellow leaves were blown high into the sky and dared not to fall any longer. Even the chirpings cicadas seemed to quiet in that exact moment.


    The Hierarch had finally put the Haotian Initiation to use.


    Yu Lian appeared outside the mountain forest.


    There was a trace of a dignified expression on her clean innocent face.


    Though she had been confident in the fight beyond the Five States, she had no experience at all.


    As a matter of fact, all the supremely powerful powerhouses who had been through fights beyond the Five States all these years, aside from the ones at the Limitless State, went back to the Haotian Divine Kingdom. It meant death.


    Looking at the gleam of the light falling from the West, she smiled faintly.


    She stretched her right hand out, as if to pick up a pen.


    She wrote a few Hairpin-style Small Regr Scripts in the air with this non-existent pen.


    Calmness and concentration. Disregard the affairs of human life and never worry about Heaven¡¯s Way. Indulge in your own world.


    It was your own world.


    That was what the Headmaster had told her.


    It seemed that there was an additional transparent protective screen hanging in the sky over the mountain behind the Academy. It looked like cicada wings.


    The beam of light falling from the Westnded on the protective screen. Most of it refracted away and was scattered across the world.


    This was Yu Lian¡¯s world. And she refused to ept the intrusion of Haotian Divine Light.


    ¡°You stupid presumptuous fool! You think you can create another world on your own to obstruct the Haotian Divine Light? Don¡¯t forget that this world belongs to Haotian. Your world will always be subject to that of Haotian!¡±


    The Hierarch roared with fury and continued to greet the Divine Light of Haotian.


    Yu Lian red at him. ¡°You fool. Now the sneaky Divine God is fighting with the Headmaster. It is defending itself, how could it pay attention to whether you are alive or dead? Don¡¯t ever forget that to the Divine Light you are lower than a dog.¡±


    She spread her right palm which held the pen. Her five fingers stretched out like an autumn chrysanthemum.


    A ray of extreme light and vague aura passed from her fingertips and spread across the whole mountain behind the Academy.


    All the trees began to tremble; the leaves seemed toe back to life.


    Each leaf was a cicada.


    The Hierarch did not believe what she had said at all. However, he noticed that it was true, the setting sun in the west had actually be dim, no longer rosy and gentle. His expression turned stern.


    He let out an unwilling scream. He was ready to leave.


    It was impossible; how could she do this?


    The Hierarch was stuck in the back of the mountain, surrounded by hundreds and thousands of cicadas.


    He could not go faster than a flying cicada.


    He couldn¡¯t leave Yu Lian¡¯s world.


    The buzzing of hundreds and thousands of cicadas was deafening. Theypletely covered his body; his face was a dense mass of darkness. It was quite terrifying to witness.


    One of the autumn cicadas shook its wings slightly.


    Then Hierarch could no longer see with his right eye.


    Ten autumn Cicadas began to dance.


    Then Hierarch¡¯s right hand was broken.


    A forlorn and bitter growl rang out from the hundreds and thousands of Autumn Cicadas.


    The Hierarch Lord¡¯s left hand had been hacked off by Great General Xu Shi.


    And now his right hand was destroyed on the mountain behind the Academy.


    There were only bare wrists remaining.


    He hugged himself with both arms.


    The brightness he had been holding in his palm and the light Haotian shined upon him were both imbued into this self-embrace. There was a vast expanse of brightness in front of him. It looked like a new sun.


    The sun exploded!


    Hundreds and thousands of cicadas danced and flew away with mournful chirping.


    One of the Cicadas came back and began dancing in the wind.


    The Hierarch had blood all over his body. He took advantage of this opportunity and rolled on the ground to escape, like a stray dog.


    Yu Lian appeared again, with blood dripping from the corner of her lip and a strong smile on her face.


    This was a fight between the powers of Haotian Taoism and Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    The Hierarch Lord from the West-Hill Divine Pce had broken his arm; he was blind; and his Snow Mountain waspletely destroyed. However extraordinary the Divine Skill of Haotian Taoism was, it was impossible that the severe wounds he suffered would heal. He would be a wreck from now on.


    The Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivator, the grandmaster of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, imed the grand victory.


    She was the first female disciple the Headmaster had ever enrolled.


    The Academy was still invincible all over the world as usual.

 Chapter 734 - Discussion on the City Wall (Part I)

    <h4>Chapter 734: Discussion on the City Wall (Part I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Little white wolf wormed out from the cave with cloth stripped around his wounded legs. Big white goose walked over from the stream unsteadily. Old yellow bull opened his eyes. Fifth Brother and Eighth Brother came back to the cliff tform.


    Yu Lian took a woodenb out from her sleeve andbed her untidy hair carefully. She then sorted out her dressing and wearing. It was only when she confirmed there was nothing wrong that she put theb back into her sleeve.


    Old yellow bull lowered his head slightly. Big white goose and little white wolf both leaned their bodies forward. Fifth Brother and Eighth Brother greeted a bow with hands folded in front; Yu Lian returned their salutes with a tidy and grave look. The autumn wind ceased and the autumn cicadas were quiet. The Academy was still how it used to be.


    ¡°Take good care of yourself on the way, Senior Sister,¡± said Song Qian.


    ¡°Thanks for taking care of the Academy for me, Fifth Brother.¡±


    Yu Lian picked up the things wrapped in cloth from the side of the mountain path and walked towards the outside of the Academy.


    After leaving the Princess mansion, Ning Que came out to the street, ready to go to the Academy. Though he needed to deal with many things in Chang¡¯an City, he was still going to the Academy to fetch the array eye pestle. Moreover, he was very concerned about the safety of the Academy.


    ¡°You don¡¯t have to go.¡±


    A young girl showed up in front of him and handed him something wrapped in cloth.


    Ning Que was quite taken aback. He recognized the cloth immediately. It was one Sangsang had purchased for a bargain in the market of the eastern gate. Later he had used it to wrap the array eye pestle of God-stunning Array. The thing wrapped inside the cloth must be the array eye pestle.


    Staring at the young girl before him, he took the array eye pestle with a wary look in his eyes. He was confused. He was pretty sure he had never met her, but he always had a strange feeling that he had met her somewhere before.


    With a pair of pitch-ck pigtails and innocent, beautiful facial features, this 12 or 13-year-old girl could be either a maiden or a little girl. She was right on the dividing line of these two states.


    Looking deep into her eyes and seeing her indifferent and calm state of mind, he finally figured out who she really was. He was shocked speechless and nearly dropped the array eye pestle.


    In precise words, Yu Lian described what had happened in the Academy, especially the fight with the Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce. She spent a considerable amount of time telling him about the fact that the opponent was very short.


    It then urred to Ning Que that the glorious and radiant figure in the eyes of hundreds of millions of Haotian Taoism believers was actually no more than an illusion. The Hierarch Lord was actually a dwarf.


    Back in the old days he had shot five people sessively with Primordial Thirteen Arrows. Everyone, including the Great Divine Priest of Revtion and Ye Hongyu, had a hard time handling the power of his arrows. However, the Hierarch had hidden and was indifferent.


    The scene at that time had put great pressure on Ning Que. He thought that the Hierarch was indeed such a supreme powerhouse of Haotian Taoism. He had faced the Primordial Thirteen Arrows in such an easy and rxed manner. He was too profound to be understood.


    Now he realized that the reason was due to the fact that the Hierarch Lord was short. What he had targeted at the time was the figure form. Since the iron arrow had shot over the Hierarch¡¯s head, it was quite natural that he did not need to hide.


    ¡°Why spare him?¡± Ning Que asked, recovering from the shock bit by bit.


    ¡°Some people are better living than dead.¡±


    Yu Lian continued, ¡°Many years ago, when Xiong Chumo was very young, he went to the Wilderness to go through trials with the elders of Haotian Taoism. I was also young then. It was natural that a war urred between us when we met each other. I disabled the Snow Mountain in his lower abdomen and left him in an unconscious state. It waspletely unexpected that he got good out of misfortune and practiced Taoism devotionally without stopping to reach his current state. However, people with disabilities have problems in their psychology after all. Since he has already been discarded, it is not you who should be concerned but people from the West-Hill Divine Pce who should consider him a headache.¡±


    Holding the same thoughts as the Hierarch and many other bigwigs of Haotian Taoism, it had never urred to Ning Que that the Third Sister would be no more than a cultivator of the Seethrough Realm. Once he knew that the Academy was safe and sound as usual under her protection, Ning Que was not surprised at all. It was at this exact moment that he started to realize that it was not an ordinary powerhouse but the Hierarch Lord of the West-Hill Divine Pce that had been defeatedly badly by the Third Senior Sister. He started to ponder the Third Sister with astonishment.


    In today¡¯s world, who had the ability to defeat the Hierarch Lord?


    Ning Que was shocked.


    To his surprise, the Third Sister before him was the Grandmaster of Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡ªthe Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation!


    Among the disciples of the Second floor of the Academy, it was the Third Sister Yu Lian whom Ning Que had known first. Even before he startedmunicating with Chen Pipi by letter, he and the Third Sister had met each other when he was ascending to the old library.


    They had not talked much over the years. But at times of importance, she would speak up and give him direction. Moreover, this situation had already taken ce before he entered the back of the mountain of the Academy, and she had been just an ordinary student then.


    That was why Ning Que had always been respectful towards her. He was much more respectful towards the Third Sister than he was towards the Eldest and Second Brother.


    There was wind blowing from outside the wall. Walking along the long narrow stairs of the city wall, Ning Que could not help glimpsing at Yu Lian every few steps. Looking at the pigtails dangling behind her head, Ning Que had difficulty getting ustomed to what he had seen.


    ¡°Anything wrong with my face?¡± Yu Lian asked.


    Ning Que smiled. ¡°I just want to keep looking at you. Senior Sister, you are a big celebrity now.¡±


    Yu Lian smiled faintly.


    Ning Que said, ¡°No wonder Headmaster was not willing to acknowledge Tang Xiaotang as his disciple, it turns out it was an issue of seniority in the n... So wasn¡¯t it that I was superior to Tang?¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°If starting from the Enlightenment Doctrine, the founder initiating the sect, you have already been his senior for several generations.¡±


    Ning Que said with admiration, ¡°The Third Sister of the Second floor is actually the Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation.¡±


    Yu Lian raised her brow slightly and said, ¡°It was just a coincidence. There was no way that the Headmaster would be concerned about these little tactics.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Maybe the Headmaster likes to y around with these exact things.¡±


    The two people, Senior Sister and Brother, had climbed to the city head of Chang¡¯an while they talked.


    A thought crossed Ning Que¡¯s mind. He took out an ID token from his belt.


    The ID token was made of neither gold, nor wood, nor stone. It was pure white in color. There was a ck-colored relief sculpture carved into the top. From the fresh imprint of the ridge, it was obvious that the ID token had been freshly carved.


    The ck pattern was a sculpture with a white outeryer that looked like endless brightness. The contrast of sculpture against the illumination seemed dark and gloomy; its facial feature and body were both infused in dark shadow.


    Ning Que asked, ¡°What was carved upon the ID token when you gave it to me the time I rushed to the Wilderness?¡±


    Looking down at the Chang¡¯an City, Yu Lian walked towards the sides of the city wall. ¡°Yama or Haotian.¡±


    Walking beside her, Ning Que looked down towards the direction where her sight had guided. ¡°What kind of ID token is this?¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°It is the Enlightenment Doctrine master¡¯s namete.¡±


    ¡°I could not figure out why Deste Man would ce Sangsang and I under their protection at the risks of extermination of their entire n. As far as I am concerned, it was for the sake of this ID token. In retrospect, Lotus¡¯s onest hit in the Front Gate of the Enlightenment Doctrine, failed because of this ID token. This ID token saved me many times. It was so foolish of me not to have realized it until now.¡±


    Ning Que put the ID token back into his belt again in a natural manner, without any intention of giving it back to Yu Lian. He took a serious deep bow down to the ground towards her and gave a grave salute to show his appreciation and gratitude.


    What he did not understand was how when he was leading disciples of the front yard of the Academy to practice in the Wilderness, why had the Third Sister handed him the master¡¯s namete of Enlightenment Doctrine, which was of so much importance, in such a casual way.


    ¡°Remember what I told you when you were prepared to take part in the Floor-Opening test?¡± Yu Lian asked.


    Ning Que had been an ordinary student in the front yard of the Academy. He had been under a great deal of spiritual pressure when he was ready to take part in the opening test of Second floor of the Academy. He had a conversation with Yu Lian in Sword Forest.


    ¡°Yeah, I remember it. You told me that you were going to introduce me to a powerhouse who was no weaker than Liu Bai and would be my teacher.¡±


    ¡°Exactly.¡±


    ¡°Who were you going to introduce me to?¡±


    ¡°Of course, it was me.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°At the time your Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi were in a mess. They still are. Moreover, your gift on the Talisman Taoism was not yet revealed. In no way were you fit for cultivation. But your extraordinary bone structure and your appalling willpower were the exact quality and condition to cultivate the technique of Enlightenment Doctrine. I had intended to make you my inheritor.¡±


    Ning Que was beginning to understand exactly what he had missed before.


    Yu Lian said, ¡°Though you refused me, I had always had a certain feeling that you would still tread upon this path sometime in the future. So before you went to the Wilderness, I gave you this ID token. As I had expected, you came across the Lotus in the Front Gate and then mastered the Great Spirit of the Youngest Uncle. You were still infatuated.¡±


    Yu Lian stared at him and said, ¡°When Lotus wanted to name me as his sessor, I said no to him. When I wanted to pass on my legacy to you, you also refused me. You inherited his legacy in the end. If seen from this way, there is not much difference.¡±


    Thinking in retrospect, Ning Que could not help being filled with a thousand regrets. He smiled. ¡°It is better as so. Or I would have had to be inferior to you for a generation.¡±


    He retrieved his smile bit by bit. ¡°Could it be that destiny made its own arrangement?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve told you that as long as you stick to your original intention, you can reach it with ease. It refers not only to the gateways along the path which you are climbing, but also things like destiny.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°On the first day when I met the Headmaster, he told me the exact same words. He then said that I would be better looking if I was a girl and that was what I should have epted. So I put this sentence into practice on the spot and stomped on the hem of his ck robe with one kick.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Then?¡±


    Yu Lian said expressionlessly, ¡°I did not pass, but the Headmaster tripped badly.¡±


    Ning Que thought this was exciting. ¡°How did it feel?¡±


    She thought for a moment and smiled. ¡°Pretty good.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°The Headmaster wasn¡¯t angry?¡±


    ¡°Now that I am a girl, I am privileged to enjoy the right to act cutely and lose my little temper.¡±


    With still no expression on her face, Yu Lian was silent for a few moments before she continued, ¡°Later on, it urred to me that the Headmaster tripped on purpose to make me happy. At the time I was in a pretty down and gloomy mood.¡±


    On the city wall, they were silent for a long time.


    Looking down on the Chang¡¯an City down below, Yu Lian asked, ¡°Do you detect anything wrong?¡±


    In this tense situation, even the most shocking and memorable things could not be discussed at length. They were here to see the view.


    Yu Lian was leading him around Chang¡¯an City.


    The city was much quieter than it usually was. Staring at the wide, quiet streets, Ning Que said something strange, ¡°Chang¡¯an City is in a jam.¡±


    Yu Lian agreed, ¡°Exactly. The problem you need to resolve is this jam.¡±


    Ning Que said then, ¡°It could be difficult to resolve.¡±


    The streets of Chang¡¯an City were wide and there were not too many people on the street. There were barely any carriages. The traffic of Chang¡¯an was extremely convenient and loose. There were no collisions or idents. The disciple group who had been preaching over the past few days was also not seen.


    But Yu Lian and Ning Que, the Senior Sister and Brother, both had seen the jam that Chang¡¯an City was in.


    Their expressions were solemn.

 Chapter 735 - Seven Days

    <h4>Chapter 735: Seven Days</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Yu Lian said, ¡°Even though the people in Haotian Taoism are all idiots, they have their secret methods and they have been prepared for a thousand years. They can¡¯t destroy the array, while you can¡¯t underestimate them, either.


    ¡°The Hierarch came for the array eye pestle. He Mingchi should have done something in the city, but the array eye pestle is still in our hands...¡±


    Ning Que asked with a bewildered look, ¡± Why haven¡¯t you killed him?¡±


    ¡°I needed to protect the Academy. Since Yan Se and our teacher are gone and the God-stunning Array has been initiated, if I take action before him, I will be killed or badly injured by the Vermilion Bird.¡±


    Thinking of the stone figure on the Vermilion Bird Avenue, he finally realized that so many powerhouses could enter Chang¡¯an when he fought against Xia Hou on the snowke, just because they were allowed to.


    Looking at the array eye pestle in Ning Que¡¯s hand, Yu Lian added, ¡°Since you have received the array eye pestle, you should restart the array and recover Chang¡¯an as soon as possible.¡±


    Realizing she was going to leave, Ning Que felt a little scared. He needed a real expert like his Senior Sister to protect Chang¡¯an at present unless she was going to...


    ¡°Senior Sister, are you going south?¡±


    Yu Lian answered, ¡°Why would I go there since Jun Mo already is?¡±


    Thinking of the horrible West-Hill Divine Pce from Qinghe County and his proud and righteous Second Brother, he became more worried.


    Yu Lian said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I have to stay in Chang¡¯an because I have something important to do. As for you, you have toplete your mission in seven days.¡±


    His mission was to repair the God-stunning Array, but what was her important task?


    Feeling heavy load on his shoulders, he asked, ¡°Why in seven days?¡±


    Yu Lian answered, ¡°Because Eldest Brother can only stall the Abbey Dean for seven days.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Then, what is your n for these seven days?¡±


    She said, ¡°I¡¯m going shopping. I haven¡¯t gone shopping for many years.¡±


    Looking at the lively girl with two ck ponytails swinging behind her, walking down the stone steps toward the wall, Ning Que was speechless.


    When he learned that his Third Sister was the Twenty-three-year Cicada Cultivator, he had held a question in his mind: was it a she or a he?


    At this time he finally figured out¡ªshe was a she.


    Not because of her beautiful looks or her bouncy steps with the two ck ponytails; it was just because, at this moment, she was thinking about going shopping.


    Yu Lian was really shopping.


    The chaos in Chang¡¯an had just been stifled. There were still traces of blood on the ground that hadn¡¯t yet been washed off. The ruins of the burned-out houses were even more conspicuous.


    However, with the Empress¡¯ rough tactics and the full cooperation of court officials, the rules in Chang¡¯an had been recovered and the history would not be reyed. People in the city were all waiting for the end of the war in silence.


    Yu Lian was very satisfied with the quiet street and the open shops. In other words, she was satisfied with the woman who recovered the city.


    She bought a box of cosmetic powder from the Chenjinji Cosmetics Store as well as some sweet and sour snacks. With these bags, she entered the pce as if she was stopping by to meet some friends.


    Since the guards of the pce were unable to see her and the God-stunning Array failed, the animal-carvings on the eave could only watch the little girl passing through the imperial garden and entering the pces with many bags.


    The Empress was not in the imperial study nor in the main hall. She was working in her own pce, tiredly but toughly.


    Only by being like this, she was able to steer the whole country back on track in a half day under hostilities from most officers¡¯.


    The curtains of the room slightly moved.


    The Empress put down her pen, looking at the window and said, ¡°Who is there?¡±


    The maids and eunuchs looked at each other and thought, <i>¡°They heard no noises in the room. Is the Empress too tired and hallucinating?¡±</i>


    At this time, a childish but majestic voice sounded from the outside.


    Generally speaking, a childish voice could hardly be majestic, but this voice was.


    ¡°You seem to live a happy life after marrying that man, but it dyed your cultivation. If you could work harder, you would have discovered me when I entered the imperial garden, not until now.¡±


    The curtain moved again and Yu Lian, with her bags, entered.


    Compared with the pile of bags, she looked tinier.


    The Empress slightly frowned and said, ¡°Who are you?¡±


    Throwing all the bags on the ground, Yu Lian didn¡¯t answer her. She entered the room, with her hands behind her back.


    These two simple actions changed her aura and turned her into a great respectable master.


    The tough Empress became puzzled, then suddenly weak, as if she were still the timid girl many years ago.


    Trembling, she said, ¡°Teacher, is that you?¡±


    The Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivator took a few disciples, who were older than him when he was in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. One of them was thest Saintess of Diabolism, Xia Tian.


    She had be the Empress of Tang.


    The Empress was very surprised since she didn¡¯t know her teacher had been living in the Academy for so many years until now.


    ¡°His Majesty was very close with the Academy, but he told me nothing about this.¡±


    ¡°No one knows my real identity but the Headmaster, Eldest Brother, and Jun Mo. Your man didn¡¯t know, either... Speaking of whom, he was a good man and it was good for you to marry him.¡±


    ¡°Teacher, what if he was not a good man?¡±


    ¡°If he wasn¡¯t, even if I could do nothing, I would ask the Headmaster to do something.¡±


    ¡°When I married to the Emperor, did you speak for me to get the consent of the Academy?¡±


    ¡°The Academy never cares about this and I didn¡¯t need to speak for you. I would not oppose your marriage.¡±


    They had not seen each other for a long time, so the Empress stood by Yu Lian¡¯s side and served her tea and fruit, which looked very weird because Yu Lian looked like a young girl at this moment.


    Therefore, when Tang Xiaotang came into the pce with the Sixth Prince, they were shocked.


    Yu Lian looked at her and said, ¡°Believe it. It¡¯s me.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang eximed, ¡°What happened to you, teacher?¡±


    The Empress smiled and said, ¡°No wonder Xiaotang has been staying with us, since Ning Que entered Chang¡¯an. Thank you for doing this.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°This is the first time for you to see each other as sisters, so greet each other properly.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang came forward to salute and the Queen saluted back.


    The Empress kept silent for a long time until she could not help asking. ¡°Teacher, why...¡±


    ¡°I thought you would never ask.¡±


    ¡°This is nothing special. I have to go.¡±


    The Empress was speechless and thought, ¡°How could I not ask since you have changed your gender.¡±


    She stood up to see Yu Lian off.


    With many bags in hand, Yu Lian said, ¡°Stop here. It¡¯s not convenient for you to leave the pce.¡±


    The Empress thought, <i>¡°I indeed can¡¯t send you off since the pce is different from a normal family.¡±</i>


    She smiled and asked with concern, ¡°Teacher, how have you been these years?¡±


    ¡°I was in peace, which was good. Nothing too special, but I still remember, once the Headmaster exined the Twenty-three-year Cicada Cultivation to the students with praise and appreciation, I was enjoying it.¡±


    Yu Lian paused for a while and added with a smile, ¡°I made a bowl of noodles with vegetables for him that night.¡±


    Ning Que was heading to the Chao¡¯s Mansion in the Spring Breeze Pavilion Street.


    Since he had killed Li Huiyuan, it was not appropriate for him to go to court or sit behind the bead curtain like the Empress. Therefore, he had to contact the court in the Chao Mansion.


    He had received a message from a guy of the Fish-dragon Gang that the court had ordered the Southern Army, who was heading north, to turn southeast passing by the Xiao Mountain to Qinghe County. As for thest part of the Yulin Royal Guards, they were prepared to go south overnight.


    ording to this, he could confirm that the Empress already knew that the Academy had taken actions and the court began to make relevant cooperations, which he thought was appropriate.


    The greatest dangers the Tang Empire faced at present came from three ces.


    The Golden Pce from the Wilderness; the Divine Hall Coalition Army of the West-Hill and the South Jin Kingdom; the Abbey Dean of the Zhishou Abbey who was considered as the strongest man in the world after the Headmaster left.


    Although the Golden Pce was strong, the Northern Army had been supplemented by people who came back with Ning Que and the Empress from Hn City. The situation looked difficult and the recent wars seemed bloody and cruel, but this was in Tang territory. Under the Great General Xu Chi¡¯s control, as long as they could get through the tough beginning, they could make it to the end. When the tension declined, they might counterattack.


    Ning Que was worrying about the Abbey Dean of the Zhishou Abbey and the situation in the south.


    What a strong man the Abbey Dean of the Zhishou Abbey was! The West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army was overly powerful, with more than a thousand cultivators while the Tang Empire had no army in the south.


    In the past few years, he had blind faith in his Eldest Brother and his Second Brother. However, in this situation, he had lost it.


    Especially for the south.


    Facing the mighty army of the West-Hill Divine Pce, Second Brother had to stall for seven days.


    As the Southern Army and the Yulin Royal Guards needed seven days to reach the south.


    Eldest Brother could only stall for seven days, so he must finish repairing the big tactical array of Chang¡¯an in seven days.


    The end woulde in seven days.

 Chapter 736 - Verdant Canyon Attacks

    <h4>Chapter 736: Verdant Canyon Attacks</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    There were four key points to vanquish the Tang Empire: two were clear and two were hidden. The hidden two were the Haotian Taoism¡¯s secrets while the clear two were in the north and south on the map.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce had badly failed to attack the Academy. The Abbey Dean of the Zhishou Abbey and the Eldest Brother were fighting all over the world, but they would be back at any time.


    Since the Golden Pce and the Tang Empire were fiercely fighting in the northern wilderness, the pivotal battle that could break the deadlock and determine the war would be in the south.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army was the real main force in the war. Since the Tang Navy had been annihted, eight thousand Papal Cavalrymen of the Divine Hall who had trained for many years, as well as the hundred thousand troops of the South Jin Army, traveling across the Great Lake, entering Qinghe County.


    After that, they epted many cultivators and personal forces, as well as the armies from remote countries and hidden sects in the mountains.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army became so strong that when they passed the field, all the paddies were crushed and the wet field was stepped dry. More and more carriages joined them, but the quietest one was the most noticeable.


    This army was probably the most powerful one after the Tang attacked the Deste. Compared with it, the coalition that fought against the Deste in the Wildernessst spring was much weaker.


    At that time, the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army was controled by the Hierarch Lord. While at present, as long as anyone that could figure out who was in the carriage now, would believe that he was more reliable than the Hierarch Lord.


    One day inte autumn, the mighty West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army, crossing Qinghe County, arrived at the front of a series of mountains.


    They sent more than ten riders to probe the Verdant Canyon. A few momentster, sharp flute sounds came out, indicating it was safe, but the coalition kept still in terrifying silence.


    As the sounds went from the depths of the Verdant Canyon and could hardly be heard, the coalition finally confirmed that there was no ambush of the Tangs in the gorge. The mainmander, the Great General of the South Jin Kingdom, Bai Haixin wryly waved his hand, and messenger soldiers beside him quickly waved the gs in their hands, handing down the order to move forward.


    ording to the information from the Tang, the Divine Hall coalition had confirmed that today¡¯s Tang could not transfer any troops to defend the south. Even though the Southern Army, who was guarding outside the huge forest, could stop the invasion of the Golden Pce, they had to run around Xiao Mountain to get here.


    Unless the Southern Army could fly, they were unable to show up in the Verdant Canyon at this moment.


    Even so, Bai Haixin and the leaders of the Divine Hall were still alert and careful. Since the crushing trend of the coalition had been formed, as long as they could safely reach the north of Tang, they could tten it without any risks.


    The cavalry of the South Jin took the lead entering the gorge, keeping a perfect distance from every camp and followed by the mixed infantry. They spent a very long time entering the gorge because they were strictly controlled.


    They lengthened the formation to avoid being cut off by the Tang Army, which would be good for the cavalry¡¯s reaction. If there was Tang Army in the gorge, they would need at least a hundred thousand soldiers to kill them all in the gorge.


    The coalition was sure that the Tang could not have such an army.


    Facing the mighty coalition, neither the only Tang soldiers in the gorge nor the garrison troops from the north or the military who used to be the headache of the grasnd cavalry in the east were unable to do a thing.


    Even the speed entering the gorge was so slow that some people had be worried and cultivators were pissed off, someone still thought it was too fast.


    ¡°They move too fast. Tell them to slow down,¡± said Ye Hongyu.


    Today was a sunny day without any clouds in the sky. Differing from autumn, the zing sun shone through the heavy veils of the carriage and fell on her face, making her look more beautiful.


    A deacon in ck standing beside the carriage received her order and ran to the front. A few momentter, he came back and said in a low vioce, ¡°Bai Haixin said the martial cultivators were going inside. ording to their investigations, it should be safe.¡±


    Ye Hongyu slightly frowned.


    She knew Bai Haixin was right and his n was impable. Even if they could gather all the Divine Talisman Masters in the world, they could not turn the Verdant Canyon into the coalition¡¯s grave. Only Haotian could aplish this.


    However, she kept having the feeling that something was wrong.


    Everything went too smoothly and peacefully. She had lived in Chang¡¯an for a long time with many Tangs. She knew that the Tang Empire would never surrender. This kind of peace seemed so eerie.


    At this time, something happened in the gorge which verified her presentiment. A vast aura of the Heaven and Earth gathered on the top of the mountain from all directions.


    Ye Hongyu suddenly straightened her face.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion deeply frowned.


    A soft ¡°Ay¡± sounded in the carriage.


    The three most powerful people in the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army first felt the danger, but it was toote for them to do anything or change anything.


    The air over the gorge fluctuated so violently that had gone beyond all the cultivators¡¯ imaginings. It was on par with the mighty sword the Headmaster swung toward Heaven in the Wilderness!


    The aura became so abundant that the streams in Qinghe County became turbid, the ck tiles on the houses started condensing drops of water, and a cloud suddenly formed in the sky above the mountain.


    The cloud violently twisted and umted until it suddenly turned into countless beams of light, dissipating in the sky. A power beyond humanity crushed down to the ground.


    ¡°Boom!¡±


    The earth badly shook and the horses began to panic and howl.


    The whole Verdant Canyon copsed.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army had been guarding against the Tang Army or the Tang cultivators in the Verdant Canyon. However, they never expected that the one who strarted to attack was not a man.


    The one who attacked them was the Verdant Canyon itself.


    The green and beautiful gorge turned into the most terrible ce in the world.


    Smoke caused by the copse rose to the sky from the gorge. Judging from the height, the situation inside must be terrible.


    Countless heavy rocks rolled down over the cavalry of the South Jin Kingdom, creating thundering sounds and rolling forward with bloody bodies.


    The dull thuds constantly sounded andsted for a long time. As the smoke became thicker and thicker, it turned into a vast dust cloud and covered the whole gorge.


    The soldiers¡¯ screams came out of the gorge and were covered by the dull thuds until they could no longer be heard. The people outside barely heard anything until it became deadly silent inside.


    By this time, it had been a long while since the Verdant Canyon copsed. The huge rocks which were bigger than carriages finally stopped rolling and the shaking wilderness calmed down as well.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army in the Qinghe County was in silence.


    Everyone was shocked and scared.


    Bai Haixin¡¯s face was extremely pale and his hand holding the reins kept shaking.


    The copse had killed over 20,000 people by now.


    Even though this loss could not change the overall strategic situation and fundamentally weakened the strength of the coalition, he still felt extremely sad and uneptable.


    As themander-in-chief of the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army as well as the military leader of the South Jin, he could not stand to witness his 20,000 soldiers just being killed like this before they met their enemies.


    Inside a carriage, Ye Hongyu was trembling, looking very serious. She was a little scared, but she tried to calm dowm, smoothing her robe which was wrinkled when she was nervous.


    She was firm and fearless, so this kind of emotion was foreign to her, even if her opponent was formidable.


    However, as she expected, to destroy the Verdant Canyon was countless times more difficult than Jun Mo chopping the Buddha statue in the Lanke Temple. Only Haotian could do this.


    How did the Tangs copse the gorge?


    Who was in that verdant gorge?


    What on earth happened in that gorge?


    Compared with the famous Min Mountain, the verdant mountains across the southern wilderness in Tang were not too high and dangerous. However, since the surface of the mountains was covered with hard and heavy granite while the interior was limestone, which would be easily soluble in rain;ndslides and rock reductions usually ocurred.


    Given that, the mountains looked bizarre: the cliffs were steep in odd shapes and difficult to climb even for a martial cultivator.


    Fortunately, there was a gorge crossing the mountains, connecting the central hintend of Tang and Qinghe County. Otherwise, it would be a long trip to go around the mountains.


    Hundreds of years ago, the Tang used a lot ofbor and resources to widen the gorge, reinforcing both sides of the valley by Talisman Masters and Array Tactical Masters, and nted numerous trees with prosperous root systems to strengthen the control of Qinghe County. Eventually, the natural road in the valley was turned into a smooth road.


    Since that day, the road from the north to the south became unobstructed. This great road of great strategic significance made the Tang and Qinghe one family, never to be separated.


    However, nowadays, the warlords in Qinghe County rebelled and surrendered to the West-Hill Divine Pce, joining the coalition on its way to attack Chang¡¯an. The Tang Empire had been divided.


    Then, what¡¯s the point of this verdant gorge?


    Let it copse.


    Let it bury the past.

 Chapter 737 - A Bright Moon Rises from the Mountains

    <h4>Chapter 737: A Bright Moon Rises from the Mountains</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ning Que and Sangsang once passed through this verdant gorge on their way to Lanke Temple two years ago.


    At that time, he found there were innumerable tactical arrays of talismans set by predecessors in the canyon, which could be triggered once strong enemies came to invade from the south. The copsed gorge would stall the enemies, preventing them from reaching the hintend of the Tang in a short time.


    Then he immediately rejected the idea because even if his master, Yan Se, was resurrected, he could not mobilize so much Qi of Heaven and Earth and trigger the array at the same time on his own. This is just like what Ye Hongyu thought outside the Verdant Canyon two yearster, that it was beyond human power¡ªunless it was already prepared when it was built.


    After a long while, the instantly copsed Verdant Canyon finally stopped shaking. The 20,000 soldiers that were buried under the countless huge rocks had proved Ning Que¡¯s original judgment.


    Hundreds of years ago, when the Tang broke through this path, they did something¡ªsomething big: they turned this path into a deathtrap and a grave.


    Since the Tang Empire was founded, they had been guarding against their strong enemies in the south, not the warlords in Qinghe County nor the South Jin Kingdom. They had been guarding against the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    Costing them countless resources and effort, designed by the Academy¡¯s predecessors and built by more than 10 Divine Talisman Masters, this important strategic path had be an excellent killing array. Now, the array was initiated after hundreds of years and turned into thest barrier in the south of the Tang Empire.


    If not for the number of the soldiers from the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army being beyond the Academy¡¯s expectations, with the length of the Verdant Canyon, it should have buried all the Papal Cavalrymen of West-Hill, as well as the cultivators who stayed behind.


    The Verdant Canyon had copsed, no one could survive but the Martial Arts powerhouses.


    Outside the Verdant Canyon, the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army was demoralized and deadly silent.


    Looking at the smoky mountains, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion straightened his face.


    Ye Hongyu bitterly trembled.


    Both of the two respectable Great Divine Priests of West-Hill could not help thinking that if they had entered the Verdant Canyon with the cavalry of South Jin, could they have survived?


    Even if they were lucky enough to survive, they would have been badly hurt and forced to leave the battle.


    The methods of the Tang were so cruel.


    A voice resounded in the quiet carriage in the coalition.


    ¡°Huang He and Mu Chu... They must be in the mountains. This is how significant a Divine Talisman Master is for a war. If Yan Se was alive, the Tang would have better odds to win this war.¡±


    There were six disciples of the Sword Garret standing beside the carriage, and one of them had his eyes covered with a white cloth who must have had poor vision. Thinking of the horrible images he had seen before, he agreed with hismander.


    Then he suddenly said, ¡°Both the Master of Calligraphy and Calligraphy Addict are Divine Talisman Masters.¡±


    Hismander answered, ¡°Every country in the world is invading the Tang except for the Great River Kingdom. The Divine Hall didn¡¯t punish them just for Haotian¡¯s sake. Even if they joined forces, they could not be superior to Yan Se.¡±


    The smoke and dust from the Verdant Canyon gradually covered the sky. Some light fell on the man¡¯s hidden scar on his eyebrow.


    The scar looked like handwriting.


    It was given to him by Master Yan Se.


    Only one person was able to stay alive after Master Yan Se had written a Divine Talisman on his face.


    And his name was Liu Bai.


    In the violent battle that happened in the East Sea of the Kingdom of Song, Yan Se erased one eyebrow from Liu Bai¡¯s face while Liu Bai pierced one of Yan Se¡¯s arms. It looked like they were equals, but in fact, Liu Bai was stronger.


    The Adviser of the Divine Hall, the strongest Sword Sage, Liu Bai, after being hidden for many years, had finallye.


    He indeed hade.


    ¡°Huang He and Mu Chu should be in the mountains. Kill them,¡± said Ye Hongyu.


    Since Liu Bai was able to figure it out, the West-Hill Divine Pce could as well.


    The deacon of the Judicial Department said in a low voice, ¡°Maybe it is Ning Que.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°No, he doesn¡¯t have that capability.¡±


    The deacon epted the order and left.


    Followed by over a dozen Papal Cavalrymen, several Martial Arts powerhouses ran toward the gorge.


    The Verdant Canyon was a killing array that the Tang had used a lot of manpower on. The Divine Talisman Masters had to use up all the Psyche Power inside of them to initiate it, and that was the moment that they were the weakest.


    In the depths of the mountains, Professor Huang He and Mu Chu were going downhill unsteadily with the help of several technical officials of the Ministry of Works.


    Since the ghat was rugged, they had to temporarily hide in some fortification that was built under a peak.


    The Martial Arts masters of the West-Hill Divine Pce were chasing after them over the mountains, while the Papal Cavalrymen were going to clean the blocked gorge for their Divine Talisman Masters, who would reopen the path.


    Divine Talisman Masters were so rare and precious in the world that manyrge countries, like South Jin and Yuelun, did not have a Divine Talisman Master. In fact, most of them were living in the Academy and Haotian Taoism.


    Both the Academy and the West-Hill Divine Pce had Divine Talisman Masters.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion¡¯s peaceful sounds came out of the carriage. He said, ¡°Thanks to the four of you, Senior Brothers.¡±


    Then, a hoarse voice rang out of a luxurious carriage.


    ¡°The Academy and the Divine Hall were once equals in Talisman Taoism. But since Senior Brother Yan Se died, we¡¯ve be weaker than them. Moreover, because building is harder than destroying, we need time to make it through the gorge.¡±


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion said, ¡°We only need a narrow path.¡±


    The Divine Talisman Master asked, ¡°Why not go around the mountains?¡±


    The Great Divine Priest answered, ¡°We don¡¯t have time.¡±


    Everyone fell silent.


    Then the Talisman Master said, ¡°Well, let¡¯s die here.¡±


    The Great Divine Priest said after a while, ¡°Haotian will remember you. We will meet in Heaven soon.¡±


    While they were thinking of how to get through the Verdant Canyon, the Papal Cavalrymen who were cleaning it had entered a sandstorm near the mouth of the gorge.


    A momentter, there was a sharp roaring sound and a man was sted away out of the sand-filled air, fell down to the ground, and died.


    Next, several explosions densely rang out and the Papal Cavalrymen were sted away, falling to the ground one by one.


    The Martial Arts masters who were hunting down the Divine Talisman Masters of the Academy were also sted away and died.


    The ground outside the Verdant Canyon was covered with blood and corpses.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army was shocked when they saw the corpses and they all turned to the mouth of the gorge.


    It was still dark and covered with smoke and dust, which like a heavy fog in winter or a thick stormcloud in summer, enveloping the wilderness like night.


    A melodious tweedle came out from inside the smoke and dust.


    A few momentster, a low sound of flute joined in.


    Someone was singing a song along with the music.


    ¡°The bright moon rises over the Green Mountains, amidst a boundless sea of clouds it waxes and wanes.


    ¡°The wind gusts through and continues for thousands of miles, all the way past the Gate of Nanyang.


    ¡°Heaven blocked the human¡¯s way when the enemy coveted the shores of the Sishui River.


    ¡°For so long it had been a war zone, that had not allowed anyone to return safely.¡±


    The singing was not graceful at all, and it was just mechanically repeating the sentences.


    ¡°The bright moon rises over the Green Mountains...


    ¡°For so long it had been a war zone, that had not allowed anyone to return safely.¡±


    For so long it had been a war zone, that had not allowed anyone to return safely.


    The song echoed through the wilderness. Its simple words told of how magnificent the moon shone on the battlefield.


    It was mellifluous but sounded heroic.


    A high crown emerged in the dark smoke and dust and carried off the night¡¯s color.


    A man wearing a high hat came out of the sandstorm.


    He naturally put his hands behind his back, his sleeves waving like clouds.


    He looked serious and honest with a perfect posture.


    He concentrated on every step he took, each having the same distance between them.


    A beautiful woman wearing a pomegranate-red skirt followed him, carrying an embroidery frame in her hands and a bag on her shoulder, curiously staring at the mighty army opposite her.


    She was the Seventh Sister of the Academy, Mu You.


    Beigong Weiyang came next, holding his qin and plucking the strings with his fingers.


    Ximen Buhuo appeared with his vertical bamboo flute, deeply frowning.


    The Fourth Brother came after him with a Sandtable. He was annoyed by the music, which disturbed his deduction.


    Thest one was the Sixth Brother, who had a carrying pole on his shoulder.


    On one end of the pole, a burning furnace was hanging, and on the other end, there was a heavy box that could contain many things.


    The maning out of the mountains like a shining moon illuminated the dark wilderness.


    He had to be the Second Brother of the Academy.

 Chapter 738 - Come and Fight

    <h4>Chapter 738: Come and Fight</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ning Que had deduced that even though the Verdant Canyon had copsed and blocked the enemy, all they needed was a narrow road to enter the Tang Empire. Those strong enemies that had the guts to attack the Tang had to have enough Tactical Array Masters and Talisman Masters, who could forcibly open a path for the cavalry to drive through.


    In order to protect the Verdant Canyon, one had to be strong enough to such a degree that he could kill the Buddha if the Buddha were toe, kill the devil if the devil appeared, and kill a Taoist priest no matter how many of them woulde. Additionally, he could not have any rest, let alone sleep. He had no time to eat or drink, and would maybe even need to fight with strong opponents for three days and nights in a row.


    Thinking of this, Ning Que could not helpughing. He believed that there were no such strong people in the world, and even if such kind of people did exist, why would they be so stupid as to put themselves into a mortal situation?


    However, no one could see the future and the world was vtile. Two years had passed and the third autumn wasing. The Tang Empire, which was once the strongest country in the world, had turned into a broken ship struggling in the vast ocean. The Verdant Canyon had be a ce where they had to persevere.


    Jun Mo came to be that stupid man. He and his Junior Brothers and Sisters all came here...


    At this moment, he was standing at the entrance, but suddenly, he slightly frowned and turned around.


    The music immediately stopped.


    ¡°Where is Wang Chi?¡±


    Beigong Weiyang and Ximen Buhuo looked at each other and said, ¡°He was here just now.¡±


    Then, they saw a man stumbling and running out of the smoke and dust, carrying some grass in his hands, some fruits in his arms, and an unknown flower in his mouth. He was the Eleventh Brother, Wang Chi.


    ¡°Where have you been?¡±


    The Seventh Sister took the nts from his hands and angrily said, ¡°You almost ruined the important opening.¡±


    Wang Chi was profusely sweating as he said, ¡°Many herbs have been buried, some of which are unique. What if they die out?¡±


    ...


    ...


    The smoke gradually dissipated. The autumn sun was hot and there was not a cloud in the blue sky.


    Everything was clear in the wilderness.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion¡¯s voice rang out from a distance.


    ¡°Even the Headmaster failed to oppose Haotian, let alone his disciples.¡±


    The Second Brother said, ¡°Since we are not as capable as our teacher, who dared to fight against Haotian, we will fight in the human world. We don¡¯t know if Heaven can be overturned, but as for the battle between us, its result will soon be seen.¡±


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion said, ¡°How can you stop the Divine Hall Army?¡±


    The Second Brother answered him with only one sentence:


    ¡°Tangs, fight!¡±


    Ye Hongyu slightly raised her eyebrows while she stretched out a finger to strike a de that had pierced through the carriage. With a booming sound, the de burst into pieces and the Papal Cavalryman who held it was shocked to death.


    Holding a poisonous dagger, a deacon from the Judicial Department sneaked into the carriage from the back. If the dagger were to touch her skin a little, she would die.


    Without turning around or moving at all, Ye Hongyu coldly blinked and her long ck hair whipped the deacon¡¯s face.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion had encountered assassination attempts before. Even Cheng Lixue, who served inside the carriage, was nearly injured. However, facing the Great Divine Priest, these assassins could do nothing more than be killed one after another.


    Several Papal Cavalrymen standing beside the carriage took out their spears to stab into it. However, before they could touch the wall of the carriage, they were all killed by five flying swords.


    After the Second Brother issued the order, dozens of assassinations urred in the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army. Hundreds of priests, deacons, and officers began attacking those next to them who had important roles.


    A Yan general was cruelly killed by one of his personal bodyguards.


    Many of them were not the real targets¡ªthe hundreds of Tang people, who had been lurking in foreign countries for many years, revealed their identities without any hesitation in order to cover up the several important actions.


    Talisman Masters had the weakest bodies in cultivation and Divine Talisman Masters were even worse. Professor Huang He had to recuperate in the south every year and Professor Mu Chu had been taking medicine all year round. People like Master Yan Se were too talented to be considered normal people.


    As the most frightening people in the battlefield, the Divine Talisman Masters were the best targets to assassinate, but correspondingly, they were also those most strictly protected.


    The four Divine Talisman Masters were perfectly protected by the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army¡ªthey were close to the Great Divine Priest¡¯s carriage with many guards. However, even though they were so careful, they still had not expected for something like this to happen.


    Had anyone before seen hundreds of assassins taking action at the same time? Who would have thought that the most loyal guards would suddenly be the coldest assassins?


    The scene was really icy.


    So harsh!


    Even more spectacr than tens of thousands horses running.


    A carriage was set on fire.


    Another carriage was shot like a scarecrow.


    A carriage had countless holes poked through it by spears, spouting out ck blood.


    No one could have predicted this kind of situation, including Ye Hongyu. Before she was even able to react, the three Divine Talisman Masters had been killed by the Tangs in a short time.


    Only one Divine Talisman Master was saved by the strongest sword in the world.


    The assassinations, or more precisely, the rebellion, was stifled before long.


    Blood had dyed the wilderness red and most of the bodies belonged to the Tang.


    Ye Hongyu looked so angry.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion wore aplicated expression. Looking at the people at the entrance of the gorge, he said, ¡°What a surprise!¡±


    Even though hundreds of Tang people were killed, the Second Brother remained peaceful and said without any hesitation, ¡°For thousands of years, you have sent countless spies to the Tang and so have we.¡±


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion said, ¡°These people belonged to the Imperial Center Administration, Secret Guard Agency, and Southern Gate Temple and they didn¡¯t know each other. How did you contact them in advance and arrange this attack?¡±


    The Second Brother said, ¡°I didn¡¯t need to contact them and organize it. They all knew who they were and what they should do. They knew this war would be a key to the Tang Empire.


    ¡°I said ¡®fight¡¯.


    ¡°And they fought.


    ¡°They, like this Verdant Canyon, were the umtion of over a thousand years.


    ¡°Their deaths were exchanged for 20,000 cavalrymen as well as three Divine Talisman Masters. That¡¯s worthy.


    ¡°They did die, but their deaths are worth it.¡±


    His words were just like the assassinations¡ªtough, cold, and spectacr.


    ¡°Now, the situation is simple. If you want to pass through the Verdant Canyon, you must beat me,¡± he said while he opened his arms.


    The Seventh Sister walked behind him and took off his outer coat, revealing his close-fitting clothes.


    Beigong Weiyang, carrying his qin, and Ximen Buhuo, holding his vertical bamboo flute, went to the side of the Second Brother and helped him put on some heavy armor.


    Looking at theplicated lines in the Sandtable, the Fourth Brother said, ¡°Senior Brother, you might die.¡±


    The Second Brother did not change his expression as he said, ¡°Everyone inevitably dies.¡±


    Then, the lines changed and the Fourth Brother said, ¡°Maybe not.¡±


    Carrying the Second Brother¡¯s coat, the Seventh Sister stared at him and said, ¡°Senior Brother is wearing the best armor that you¡¯ve ever made. How can he die?¡±


    The Fourth Brother became sad and said, ¡°Xu Shi had worn the armor made by Sixth Brother and me...¡±


    The Seventh Sister became angry. ¡°Can¡¯t you say something good?¡±


    The Fourth Brother calmly replied, ¡°Heaven told me so.¡± To which the Seventh Sister asked, ¡°You still believe in heaven?¡±


    The Fourth Brother paused and then smiled, wiping the lines from the Sandtable.


    The Sixth Brother ensured that the details of the Second Brother¡¯s armor were in order.


    Looking at Beigong Weiyang, Ximen Buhuo said, ¡°Senior Brother, why do we have to exchange our musical instruments, seeing as how I usually y the qin while you y the vertical bamboo flute?¡±


    Beigong Weiyang said, ¡°The qin is sacred and I am your elder, so I should y it.¡±


    Ximen Buhuo sighed and began to y the flute. Sad music began to ring out.


    The Seventh Sister really became angry this time. She yelled, ¡°Who is the funeral music for?¡±


    Ximen Buhuo suddenly changed his expression and then quickly changed the song.


    Sitting on the ground, Beigong Weiyang began to y the qin.


    Melodious music emanated, sounding calm and peaceful.


    While this music yed, the armored Second Brother walked forward with great courage.


    Holding an iron sword in his hand, he pointed at the hundreds of thousands of enemies to the south and shouted, ¡°Come and fight!¡±

 Chapter 739 - Killing Silence

    <h4>Chapter 739: Killing Silence</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    ¡°Come and fight!¡±


    Those words echoed through the wilderness.


    They spread to the mountains, to the fields, and to everyone in the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition.


    The coalition waspletely silent.


    Looking at the people at the entrance of the gorge, Bai Haixin raised his eyebrows and coldly shouted, ¡°If you want to fight, let¡¯s fight! Papal Cavalrymen, are you ready?¡±


    The Academy had a high reputation. But the old general of the Yan Kingdom felt no pressure because countless wars in human history had proved that facing the charge of an armored cavalry and arrow shower, even the strongest cultivator in the Knowing Destiny State could not survive. No one was able to survive an arrow shower unless he had entered the Limitless State.


    Everyone knew that the Second Brother was powerful, but no one knew just how powerful he was. During the fight in Lanke Templest autumn, even though he sessively fought against Ye Su and Qi Nian, he had not tried his best. However, everyone knew that because he had not gone beyond the Five States, he was not invincible and looked ridiculous wanting to stop the mighty army on his own.


    Sounds of hoofbeats and neighs gradually arose.


    400 armored cavalrymen charged toward the Verdant Canyon.


    These powerful cavalrymen and horses were so heavily armored that their every step left a deep hole, kicking up dust and smoke.


    The entire wilderness began to shake.


    The friction and impactbined together, sounding like a frightening tsunami.


    The heavily armored cavalry was the strongest weapon for the cultivators on the battlefield.


    Their armor was covered with magical lines carved by the Talisman Masters, which were difficult for a flying sword or other Natal Items to break through.


    Once the strong armored cavalry crashed into the weak cultivators at a high speed, they could kill them by smashing their bones.


    In the past battles, every country had killed many cultivators in this way and they never failed. Even facing the Academy¡¯s disciples, they were still confident.


    Anyway, they believed that the disciples were unable to resolve the situation. Facing their simple, crude, and direct charge, even if he was very powerful, Jun Mo was only a man after all.


    Looking at the Verdant Canyon through the carriage, Ye Hongyu looked very calm, but in fact, she was contemting and confused.


    She had another thought that was different from the others of the coalition. She believed that the disciples would not give up so easily, so she expected nothing from the hundreds of riders.


    However, she still had not figured out what else Jun Mo could do aside from stop them with his wonderful Sword Taoism. And once he really started doing that, she could be sure that he would lose today.


    Even if he was so powerful that he could kill all the armored cavalrymen with his sword in the wilderness, he would be exhausted. And even if he was not exhausted, he was going to face the 200,000 soldiers of the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    It was impossible to stop the mighty army outside of the gorge on his own. Even Mr. Ke could not, let alone him.


    After they crossed over the wilderness and approached the Verdant Canyon, they began to speed up, sounding like a storm with thunder and raising dust.


    The situation became more serious as the dust was raised.


    To their surprise, the disciples at the entrance of the gorge did not look at the terrifying armored cavalry, but ignored them.


    The Sixth Brother was building a stove while the Fourth Brother was driving a nail into the ground, preparing something. Beigong Weiyang and Ximen Buhuo were sitting face to face, plucking the strings and covering the holes of their musical instruments.


    Only the Seventh Sister was worrying. She was trying to calm down by doing embroidery, but kept focusing on the Second Brother instead of the frame.


    The sunshine fell on the Second Brother and was reflected by his armor, shining and looking beautiful and magnificent.


    The 400 riders seemed not too many, but visually, they did create great pressure.


    Especially the armored cavalry.


    How wide a charge would be was not decided by the one doing the charging. The disciples were guarding at the entrance, and the war zone only allowed 10 riders abreast, even though thousands of cavalrymen were charging at the same time.


    The armored cavalry of the Divine Hall had an excellent tactical understanding. As the charge began, they gradually stood in a charging formation without being ordered to.


    However, they suddenly changed the formation once again when they were 2,000 feet away from the entrance. The front 200 riders turned to the east and detoured, rushing toward the Verdant Canyon and making way for the 200 riders behind them.


    This kind of charging tactic could effectively keep up the pressure and avoid the influence and interference of the impact in a small battlefield.


    The change strengthened the charge instead of weakening it.


    The sound of their hoofs was like thunder.


    Smoke and dust were billowing. They were now so close that the disciples could see the gorgeous details of the soldiers¡¯ armor.


    Looking at the charging riders, the Second Brother remained calm, stably holding the sword in his hand.


    The Seventh Sister¡¯s face turned pale. Squeezing an embroidery needle, she became worried.


    ¡°Ding!¡±


    Beigong Weiyang slightly raised his eyebrows. Moving his wrist and elegantly waving his sleeves, he took his fingers off the strings.


    Ignoring the battlefield, the mighty army, and the Second Brother, he just focused on ying the qin.


    As he removed his fingers from the strings, they began to vibrate and create a sound.


    He lifted up his left hand, which had been resting peacefully on his knee, and then put it on the trembling strings and exquisitely began to y.


    Ever since he began learning the qin, he had repeated this many times, so it looked so natural and skillful.


    Aside from Ximen Buhuo, no one was able to see the rich details and meaning within his simple movements.


    The strings trembled intensely, but the extent of their fluctuation was forcibly confined to a small area, which created louder and sharper notes.


    ¡°Ding!¡±


    The small boulders on the ground began to shake and rustle.


    The music spread around and disappeared.


    Then the boulders stopped shaking.


    Thus, a circle was created centered on the qin with a diameter of more than 100 feet.


    When he heard that sound, Ximen Buhuo covered his painful ears because his hearing was the best.


    Wang Chi frowned ufortably.


    The Seventh Sister¡¯s fingers trembled a little.


    Meanwhile, the Second Brother had not moved a muscle.


    The sound within the area became sharp and painful.


    The sound outside the area vanished, making everyone wonder.


    However, the sound still existed.


    Not being able to hear it did not mean that there was no sound.


    There are so many kinds of sounds that people cannot perceive, but other creatures can.


    Horses, for example.


    The headmost cavalryman suddenly disappeared, creating a dull sound of impact and raising up dust.


    That was because the forelegs of the horse under the cavalryman had suddenly gone limp, which was fatal in this situation.


    Then, another cavalryman disappeared, whose horse fell heavily to the ground, followed by more cavalrymen falling down.


    As these falls happened in session, their aggressive charge was quickly developing into a tragic crash. Dozens of horses fell down heavily, neighing, breaking bones, and spattering blood.


    In a short time, the charging cavalrymen piled up into a horrible hill of flesh and armor in front of the entrance.


    Inside the carriage in the south, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion opened his eyes and looked toward the Verdant Canyon.


    His wise, experienced eyes revealed aplicated expression of vignce.


    ¡°If a beautiful sound can¡¯t be heard... why pluck the strings?¡±


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion¡¯s lips moved, making no sound.


    The beautiful sound could not be heard.


    Beigong Weiyang¡¯s music was the beautiful sounds, so the horses were frightened.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion¡¯s words were the beautiful sounds as well, so it spread toward the Verdant Canyon.


    It became truly silent when the inaudible music met the inaudible words.


    The charging cavalrymen suddenly rxed. Urging their horses, they bypassed thepanions¡¯ corpses and started theirst charge.


    Beigong Weiyang¡¯s fingers were sted away from the qin, bleeding.


    He turned toward Ximen Buhuo.


    Ximen Buhuo put the vertical bamboo flute near his mouth. The wind blew through the flute, creating no sound.


    Beigong Weiyang happily smiled and continued ying.


    Outside the Verdant Canyon.


    The hoofbeats resounded.


    The horses neighed.


    The soldiers shouted.


    They kept falling down.


    They kept dying.


    The two disciples were engrossed in their ying, but no sound was heard.


    At that moment, the silence was their best weapon.

 Chapter 740 - An Arrow Shower, Red Lines, and a Sword

    <h4>Chapter 740: An Arrow Shower, Red Lines, and a Sword</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The Verdant Canyon had copsed, but its entrance was t and wide while the inside of the canyon was blocked by huge rocks like a horrible iron wall.


    Hundreds of armored cavalrymen had raided from the south and nned to push the disciples to their deaths by impacting them. However, in such terrain, even if they could seed, they also would not survive.


    Therefore, they were already prepared for death. Even still, when seeing theirpanions fall, they could not help being afraid. But they had to grit their teeth and continue rushing forward.


    In a short time, countless cavalrymen and their horses had fallen injured to the ground. The wounded men struggled to stand up to no avail and the scene looked extremely bloody and miserable. And when thest dozen riders confirmed that they had failed, they had to turn around and withdraw.


    The autumn wind blew over the carriages in the coalition. The Great Divine Priest of Revtion stopped reading the decretals. Looking at the gorge, he revealed aplicated expression and said with a sigh, ¡°Tonality isn¡¯t orthodox. Even if the two of you could enter the Knowing Destiny State, you will not see the end of Heaven¡¯s Way. What¡¯s the point?¡±


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion¡¯s voice resounded at the entrance.


    Beigong Weiyang knew what he was talking about. Looking toward the south, he said, ¡°Everything in the world is the Tao and practicing tonality is also cultivation. However, it doesn¡¯t serve wars, but is used for realization. What¡¯s the difference between a Knowing Destiny State cultivator and an ordinary person ying the qin? I thought you were different, but you still don¡¯t understand it.¡±


    No one was listening to them at the entrance because everyone was busy with their own matters. The Seventh Sister was dividing the threads while the Fourth Brother, holding the Sandtable, was asking the Sixth Brother to insert something into the ground.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army would not give them any chance to rest. When they saw they were going to fail, many archers were prepared and were about to shoot.


    Upon hearing themand, countless shooters buzzed their bowstrings and shot up into the sky as if they would shoot through it.


    When the arrows reached their apex, they began to fall like a dark storm, creating sharp and frightening sounds, and rained down on the Verdant Canyon.


    Looking at the iing arrows, the Second Brother did not intend to avoid them. The mask clicked as he put it over his face and then the armor covered his entire body.


    Then a series of crisp or muffled sounds of impacting arrows rang out continuously.


    At least 20 arrows hit him with uracy.


    With great power and speed, the arrows drilled his armor. At this moment, beneath his armor, a faint light shone and activated the dense andplicated runes, summoning the Qi of Heaven and Earth in the Verdant Canyon, which turned into an armor of qi and covered the metal armor.


    Then, everyone heard friction noises that pained their ears.


    Because those sharp arrowheads were unable to puncture the qi armor, they all rebounded when they hit against it, breaking or bending like useless straws, and fell on the Second Brother.


    And like a mountain, the Second Brother did not move at all.


    But the long-range arrow attack was spread out wide. Compared to the Second Brother, the disciples had to endure more dense and horrible arrows.


    However, before the arrows left the bowstrings and became little ck spots in the sky, the Academy¡¯s disciples had moved in advance.


    Commanded by the Fourth Brother, the Sixth Brother had inserted more than 10 metal rods within a 100-foot radius, each end of which was connected by a red line.


    These red lines were casually lying on the ground, with many knots in the middle. They were tied to the disciples¡¯ ankles, leaving two terminals: one was attached to the Seventh Sister¡¯s embroidery needle and the other was tied onto the Second Brother¡¯s waist.


    As the rain of arrows approached, the Sixth Brother looked up into the sky. Then he stretched out his sturdy right hand, and swinging it, a spool opened from his hand that spread to the tops of the rods from east to west.


    The spool appeared to be metal and was very thin and tough, and could be rolled up like a quilt. The mechanism under its edge connected with the metal rods and then buckled.


    With multiple clicking sounds, a metal tent appeared outside the Verdant Canyon, covering all the Academy¡¯s disciples except for the Second Brother.


    That is when the rain of arrows arrived.


    The dense and muffled sounds rang on their heads, as if a hundred of the best drummers had impudently beaten on tight drums.


    No arrow was able to pierce the tent, even though it looked as thin and soft as paper.


    Beigong Weiyang and Ximen Buhuo were adjusting their instruments while Wang Chi was boiling medicine. The Fourth Brother was creating something new while the Sixth Brother was lighting the stove. They all acted normally as if the arrows did not exist.


    It seemed like they were at the back of the mountain of the Academy, where they could focus on what they were interested in.


    Only the Seventh Sister slightly frowned. Looking at the embroidered cloth, she fell silent because one end of the lines was attached to her embroidery needle.


    The surface of the metal tent was covered with thin but condensed Qi of Heaven and Earth like the best defensive armor, sting away all the arrows.


    This was an array.


    The red lines, which were attached to the metal rods and their ankles, slowly rose up and became tighter.


    The disciples sat under the tent as the arrows rained.


    The Second Brother stood like a silent mountain.


    Looking at them, the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition soldiers could not help feeling desperate.


    In fact, most of them had anticipated this¡ªif the Academy could not deal with the rain of arrows and the armored cavalry, then why would they even fight against the mighty Divine Hall Army?


    When everyone was attracted by the arrow rain, six swordsmen wearing simple clothes left the quiet carriage in the coalition and walked toward the Verdant Canyon.


    The swordsman in the middle had to be led because his vision was poor and his eyes were covered by a piece of cloth.


    The six men had crossed the formation and stopped at the front of the Verdant Canyon after the arrow rain. The blind swordsman was told the direction where the Second Brother was and bowed to him.


    The Second Brother took off his mask, looked at him, and said indifferently, ¡°For your brother¡¯s sake, we only blinded you and sent you home, so you don¡¯t need to thank me.¡±


    The blind swordsman was Liu Yiqing, the master of the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom, who was blinded by Ning Que after getting out of the Back Cliff. He was also Liu Bai¡¯s younger brother, who used to be a proud swordmaster. After being sent back to the Sword Garret, he had introspected about his failure. Instead of bing decadent, he had made great progress in his mental cultivation and entered the Knowing Destiny Statest spring.


    Having lost his eyes, he had to listen to discern the Second Brother¡¯s direction. He said, ¡°I thanked Mr. Second, but not because of the past. We just appreciate you for giving us an opportunity to fight with you.¡±


    He sincerely said it because it was the truth.


    If the Second Brother had not allowed them, they would have been killed by his flying sword before they approached him.


    Even though they were strong, they would have no chance to fight back.


    Looking at the quiet carriage in the coalition, Second Brother slowly said, ¡°I¡¯m just curious why Mr. Liu Bai sent you to lead the attack.¡±


    Liu Yiqing answered, ¡°My brother felt honored when the Headmaster borrowed the sword from the Sword Garret, but he felt sorry as well because since then, no one can use the sword ever. In order tomemorate the Headmaster, he taught us a sword array. This time, he sent us to expressly ask for some advice from Mr. Second.¡±


    Upon hearing that, the Second Brother blinked his eyes and said, ¡°Fine.¡±


    Liu Yiqing said, ¡°We appreciate it.¡±


    After that, they drew their swords.


    The disciples of the Sword Garret all followed Liu Bai¡¯s Dahe Swordskill and preferred swords over flying swords, which was different from any other sect.


    In the past, Jun Mo appreciated his excellent Sword Taoism, which was why he was not surprised when he saw them draw their swords.


    But to his surprise, the six of them did not approach him after drawing their swords.


    After they made Sword Forms, six swords flew into the sky over the Verdant Canyon, waving and creating countless shadows. Then the shadows condensed into one, rushing out of the sky.


    In the spring, the Headmaster borrowed the sword from the ancient pool of the Sword Garett in the south 10,000 miles away in order to chop down the Divine General and behead the Giant Golden Dragon.


    Since then, the sword was no longer an ordinary sword but turned into a real human sword.


    Even Liu Bai could not use it anymore.


    After thinking it over for days, he had to admit, after the Headmaster, no one in this world was able to use this sword again, so he worked out a different way.


    He collected the six best disciples of the Sword Garret and created a sword array, gathering their strength together to practice one sword.


    Liu Bai clearly knew that even if he couldbine all of the strength of his disciples, he could not duplicate the sword.


    However, he did not want that much. He would be satisfied if he could see just a little of the sword style.


    One-thousandth of a human sword would be enough to sweep away the world.


    And that was just like the sword outside the Verdant Canyon.


    Looking at the sky-breaking sword, the Second Brother offered praise. ¡°Nice sword!¡±


    He inserted his iron sword into the ground.


    Facing such a powerful sword, it looked as if he was giving up his sword.


    What was he going to do?

 Chapter 741 - Building Fences and Forging Iron

    <h4>Chapter 741: Building Fences and Forging Iron</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    A hand stretched out into the air.


    The hand was stable and its thumb was strong. Its four fingers were long and slender, well suited to wield swords.


    However, the hand was empty now. It pointed at the giant sword that was tearing through the air.


    A faint aura was instantly released from her fingers.


    The giant sword seemed to have sensed something and it began to tremble. It swung up, down, left and right, each swing growing wilder and wilder as it struggled like a person bound by ropes.


    The Second Brother looked at the sword silently and calmly, without any other trace of emotion.


    The giant sword grew more and more restless. The people watching the battle in the wilderness even felt the vague sense of fear that the struggling sword emitted.


    The shaking of the sword grew even stronger and cracks began to appear on it. Then, it split apart.


    There were a few poofs as sword shadows appeared in the sky hundred feet above them. The shadows turned into rays of light and flew in a circle before flying toward the Second Brother.


    The swords moved swiftly, but while the sword points were sharp, they had no intention of killing the Second Brother.


    When a flying sword reached him, it slowed down and finally hovered in front of him. It trembled slightly like an obedient child waiting to be punished after doing something wrong.


    The Second Brother reached for the hilt, plucked the sword from the air and plunged it into the ground in front of him.


    The word ¡°plucked¡± was very urate; he did not take, snatch or steal it. He had just reached out casually and held the sword before plucking it from the air.


    His actions were ordinary and natural, as if he was plucking fruit from a tree.


    The second flying sword arrived.


    The Second Brother reached out and plucked it from the air before plunging it into the ground in front of him.


    The third flying sword.


    The fourth.


    The fifth.


    The Second Brother stood outside the Verdant Canyon.


    There was arge iron sword stuck in the ground beside him.


    Beside the iron sword, were five other swords.


    It looked like a fence made of swords.


    The five swords had once been one giant sword from the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom made by Liu Bai, the Sword Sage. He emted the Headmaster¡¯s elegance and the strength of predecessors. The power of the sword was extraordinary.


    However, when the sword met the Second Brother, it could only split apart and be plucked from the air.


    To be a fence.


    The disciples of the Sword Garret were so shocked they were at a loss of what to do as they watched what was happening in the distant Verdant Canyon. Later, they discovered that they had lost control of the Natal Sword and that their sense of perception had been badly damaged, and they coughed up blood.


    All was silent at the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army Camp.


    The bigwigs with high cultivation looked extremely worried. They were the only ones who knew what it meant for the Second Brother to pluck the sword from the air and form a fence in a seemingly simple move.


    It was already difficult to imagine the giant sword from the Sword Garret being forcefully split apart. What shocked them even more, however, was when Second Brother took down the swords.


    Control was emphasized in cultivation, and the control cultivators had over their Natal Items began innately. Furthermore, every cultivator spent most of their time and energy strengthening the connection they had with their Natal Items throughout their life. As such, control was the strongest rtionship in the world of cultivation.


    Even if their cultivation states differed greatly, high level cultivators found it difficult to break the connection between low-level cultivators and their Natal Items. Even if there really was an extremely strong Grand Cultivator who could do it, it was unheard of that anyone could turn another¡¯s Natal Item into his own so easily.


    The Second Brother had reached out and the giant sword had broken apart. The five swords heeded his call and surrendered to him. He had not destroyed them, rather, the swords had been subdued... How did he do that?


    In the divine chariot, Ye Hongyu¡¯s expression turned rather odd. Two unnatural red spots appeared on her beautiful face and her eyes shone brightly. She looked both excited and weary.


    ¡°There is someone on earth who can actually see through the minute changes in the flow of Qi of Heaven and Earth! There is someone in the world who was born to fight before Ning Que and I came along!¡±


    The Second Brother did not choose to use a sword against the sword belonging to the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom.


    He chose to use his hand.


    He had chosen to use only one hand.


    One hand was enough.


    However, the battle at the Verdant Canyon did not end there.


    The giant sword of the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom was made up of six swords.


    There were five swords plunged into the ground in front of Second Brother. There was still one more sword.


    Liu Yiqing called out as he sat in the wilderness with his knees crossed.


    Blood oozed from the white cloth that covered his eyes as his Psyche Power emerged.


    A shadow of sword appeared in the blue sky and disappeared instantly. It arrived mere momentster at the metal tent in front of the verdant canyon, having passed the Second Brother¡¯s location.


    The Sword Garret had not wanted them to defeat Second Brother with the giant sword.


    Their aim, from the very beginning, was to hide thest shadow of sword with this sword.


    After Liu Yiqing was blinded by Ning Que, his sword heart had be extremely pure andposed. His inability to see caused his perception of the Qi of Heaven and Earth to grow extremely acute. His sword skills were mystical now.


    The mystical shadow of sword was going for Beigong Weiyang!


    The charge of the cavalryman of the Divine Hall earlier had proved that the musician Beigong Weiyang was the key figure in this battle. Liu Yiqing¡¯s target had always been the instrument on his knees!


    Sensing that sess was just around the corner, the Natal Sword seemed to almost touch the tightly strung strings. Liu Yiqing howled sharply, unable to control his excitement.


    His eyes had been wounded by Ning Que at the side door of the Academy, but he did not hate the Academy; it had been a fair fight. He only wanted to defeat the Academy, no matter who it was, even if it was only once.


    However, his howling suddenly stopped.


    A myriad of emotions crossed his face.


    He had sensed that his Natal Sword had touched several threads that were like instrument strings.


    However, they were not instrument strings.


    There were too many of them.


    There were so many threads, it seemed like a web.


    It was a web, waiting for him to plunge into it.


    Beigong Weiyang had been focused on his instrument strings, not caring about what was happening on the battlefield. The Second Brother was standing there like a mountain, so he assumed he was safe.


    That¡¯s why he was shocked when Liu Yiqing¡¯s mystical shadow of sword flew down from the sky and appeared inside the metal tent before him, almost plunging right into his chest.


    Just like the Great Divine Priest of Revtion had said, he and Ximen Buhuo cultivated through tonality; they would not know how to fight even if they reached the Knowing Destiny State. As such, he had no way to deal with the flying sword.


    Beigong Weiyang thought that he was going to die.


    Then, he recalled that there were many people around, so he knew that he would not.


    He did not die indeed.


    The Seventh Sister, Mu You lifted her wrist slightly. She held an embroidery needle in her fingers and pierced it through the cloth.


    The red thread on the embroidery needle had been hanging down on the ground, tied around everyone¡¯s ankles and metal rods. With her move, the seemingly messy red lines began to move.


    The moment the red thread moved, an aura, made up of countless subtle threads the hardness of gold, emerged.


    The mystical sword shadow, bound by countless streams of auras, suddenly appeared as an insect thrown into a spider web or a beast mired in mud. No matter how hard it struggled, it could not move an inch forward.


    Sitting cross-legged in the field in the distance, Liu Yiqing did not hesitate to try and recall his Natal Sword. Due to the rtionship between his Natal Sword, he was more aware of the situation than anyone else right now.


    Then the mystical sword shadow, because of its sudden stillness, finally showed its true self. It was dark and delicate as it prepared to retreat silently.


    The Fourth Brother was drawing something on the Sandbox.


    Sensing the intent of the flying sword, he raised his head and flicked his finger. A light yellow talisman paper flew up, andnded on the sword, wrapping around it.


    Liu Yiqing¡¯s mystic sword was extremely sharp. Under the control of his Psyche Power, the sword was made to retreat. There was a tearing sound, and cuts appeared on the slightly yellow talisman paper. However, the Talisman Intent did not fully dissipate.


    As the two struggled against each other, there came a period of temporary calmness.


    Then, an iron mp reached out from the air nearby.


    The iron mp opened and closed. It mped at the flying sword and ced it on the burning stove.


    The deep blue me that burned hot instantly incinerated the talisman paper.


    A heavy hammer swung high and then mmed down heavily.


    There was a clear cracking sound.


    The dark and delicate mystic sword, which was extremely hard, jumped up when it was smashed as if it was in pain.


    The Sixth Brother was forging iron.


    He was forging a sword.


    It was an action he had repeated many times over his lifetime.


    Even the most hardworking Sword Master did not possess movements as skillful and natural as him.


    That was why the mystic sword did not have an opportunity to object.


    Before it was smashed into scrap metal.


    ...


    ...


    There was a puff.


    Liu Yiqing paled. His front was soaked with blood that he had just coughed out.


    He swayed and almost fell.


    He realized now why he had managed to hide his mystic sword from the Second Brother.


    It was because the disciples of the Academy didn¡¯t care.


    ...


    ...


    ¡°This mystic sword of yours is rather good. You are rather good too, having entered the Knowing Destiny State in such a short time. But the giant sword from earlier is still the best.¡±


    The Second Brother said, ¡°Liu Bai¡¯s idea was very good. Teacher¡¯s sword only needed a little sword style to sweep through the world. It¡¯s a pity that you guys have such weak cultivations. It would have been more difficult for me if there were six Sword Masters in the Knowing Destiny State.¡±


    With the help of those from his sect, Liu Yiqing stood up with difficulty and wiped the blood off his lips. He listened to where the voice came from and bowed in the direction sincerely. ¡°Thank you for your pointers, Mr. Second.¡±


    ¡°Return and tell Liu Bai that since he has to show his hand anyway, he might as well do it now. Why would he send you all to your deaths? We should battle while I am still at my peak state.¡±


    The Second Brother said expressionlessly as he looked toward the south.


    In the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army Camp in the south.


    The silent horse carriage was still very quiet.


    Momentster, a rather forlorn voice sounded.


    ¡°He gets stronger with every fight. That¡¯s how Jun Mo is. Since we have to fight, I have to wait for you to really get into it. Otherwise, it would be a pity for us to fight just like that.¡±

 Chapter 742 - Heavy Sound

    <h4>Chapter 742: Heavy Sound</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Countless arrows were sprawled on the metal canopy in a thickyer. They looked like dark dry straw, covering the canopy like a thatched roof.


    The cool autumn wind blew on the edge of the thin metal canopy, making a rattling sound.


    The disciples of the Academy were not worried that the canopy over their heads would be torn apart by the autumn wind. They trusted the skills the Sixth Brother had in material science, so they all did their own things silently.


    Liu Yiqing¡¯s mystic sword was burnt into a ck, deless rod in the fire. The Sixth Brother continued to hammer at it. It was unknown what he intended to forge it into.


    Beigong Weiyang tuned his zither and ced ayer of cotton cloth on his fingers. The tape Ximen Buhuo stuck to his fingers had already dried, forming a protectiveyer. He pressed his fingers onto the keys of his flute, testing them out.


    The Fourth Brother frowned tightly as he stared at the changing lines on the Sandbox. Wisdom shed through his calm eyes asionally. It was unknown what he was calcting, whether it was their life and death or the oue of the battle.


    Only the Seventh Sister looked odd.


    She was the only woman at the exit of the Verdant Canyon. She held an embroidery frame and needle with lifted wrists. She lowered her head and looked down at the mandarine ducks on the embroidery cloth. In actuality, she was looking into the distantnd out of the corner of her eye.


    The Second Brother stood there like a verdant mountain.


    There was a worried look on her face. What worried her was not the current situation, nor the safety of her sect under the canopy, but the safety of her Second Brother. Earlier, when Liu Yiqing¡¯s mystic sword had been bound by the tactical array, she was the only one who had noticed the pale white turbulence on his armor.


    It was the result of contact between the sword style and Talisman Intent.


    The shelter at the exit of the Verdant Canyon was an array designed by her and the Fourth Brother and then set up by her and the Sixth Brother. It disyed the highest level of studies that the three had partaken in at the Academy over the years.


    This seemingly inconspicuous shelter array could shelter them from the autumn rain; the fierce sun; and could not be torn by the autumn wind.


    Most importantly, the shelter array could shelter everyone under it and transfer the impact of the attacks that the shelter could not bear and the attacks against the disciples. All went to the Second Brother.


    When Verdant Canyon copsed, the assassins kept by the Tang Empire for thousands of years had struck and killed three West-Hill Divine Pce Divine Talisman Masters. The Second Brother had once said that if the Divine Hall allied troops wanted to cross the Verdant Canyon, they would first have to defeat him.


    It was not that he thought his fellow disciples were not strong enough. He was being honest.


    The Second Brother would bear the brunt of the attacks by the West-Hill Divine Pce on behalf of his Younger Brothers and Sisters. That was why the disciples of the Academy had to hold Verdant Canyon before he fell.


    However, this meant that he had to suffer more.


    Not many had pinned their hopes on the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom¡¯s attack. After all, it would not be easy for the second generation disciples of the Sword Garret to defeat the people of the Academy. However, their rather pathetic ending did shock many.


    All were silent in the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army Camp.


    ¡°They are only in the Seethrough Realm... we all know that the disciples of the Academy are all in the Seethrough Realm... how did they set up such an amazing tactical array?¡±


    An aplished Array Tactical Master from the West-Hill Divine Pce looked at the shabby canopy array at the exit of the Verdant Canyon. He found it hard to disguise his admiration.


    The voice of the Array Tactical Master traveled to the divine chariot.


    Ye Hongyu frowned slightly; the red color on her Divine Robe of Judgement turned even darker.


    She had lived in Chang¡¯an City for a period of time and had many dealings with the Academy. However, it was only at this moment that she realized that the Academy¡¯s potential was actually much higher than everyone had imagined.


    The Academy had always kept a low profile in the decades between Ke Haoran and Ning Que, the two disciples of the Academy who had entered the human realm. Not many in the cultivation world knew what kind of people those in the back of the mountain of the Academy were.


    Naturally, the West-Hill Divine Pce and Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom knew more about it, but their focus had always been on Mr. First, Mr. Second, and thest two disciples who had entered the Academy, Chen Pipi and Ning Que. It was because these were the only four people who had for sure entered the Knowing Destiny State. The others had remained in the Seethrough Realm for many years.


    The meeting at the exit of the Verdant Canyon today proved this spection. The disciples at the back mountain of the Academy were indeed only at the Seethrough Realm. They were very powerful in the cultivation world, but in the current battle, with many powerhouses at all levels of the Knowing Destiny State, they did not seem powerful at all.


    Even though they were the most talented people in certain fields over the past few years, who could remember their names after all these years? Furthermore, how did their intelligence aid in cultivation?


    That was why nobody took notice of them.


    The attention of the West-Hill Divine Pce remained on the Second Brother.


    It was not until the armored cavalry began to charge, until Liu Yiqing¡¯s mystic sword was smashed into scrap metal, that they realized they were wrong.


    They were both second generation disciples, but the Academy was unlike the Sword Garret.


    The Academy was unlike any other ce.


    There was not a single ce that could hold a candle to the Academy.


    The Seethrough Realm in the Academy was not the ordinary Seethrough Realm.


    The disciples of the back of the mountain of the Academy could hold back a thousand men with just a Chinese zither and a vertical bamboo flute.


    What was even more shocking to the bigwigs in the Coalition forces was that everyone in the back of the mountain of the Academy had his or her own field of expertise. And thebination of these people produced incredible results.


    This was what happened when everything was taught without discrimination.


    This was why the Academy epted people from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and geniuses from Haotian Taoism. This was why people like Ke Haoran and Ning Que came from the Academy.


    It was called individualized teaching.


    No matter if it was those who yed chess or chewed on flowers. Once they studied at the Academy, they would be able to forge their own world.


    <i>¡°Did the Headmaster ept those disciples knowing what would happen today?¡±</i>


    Ye Hongyu thought to herself. Her respect for the Headmaster raised another notch.


    ¡°We cannot be blocked outside the Verdant Canyon.¡±


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion looked up, his eyes resting on the cloudless blue sky through the top curtain of the divine chariot. He said, ¡°The oue of the battle between Haotian and the Headmaster, remains unknown. As such, the battle on the human realm seems extremely important. And Chang¡¯an is the key to this battle.¡±


    Cheng Lixue knelt beside him, handing him a cup of tea.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion took a sip of tea to moisten his dry throat. He continued, ¡°Now that the God-stunning Array has been temporarily destroyed under the Hierarch¡¯s orders, the key to Chang¡¯an is to watch the oue of the battle between the Abbey Dean and Mr. First. As long as Mr. First is unable to hold the Abbey Dean back, he will be able to open Chang¡¯an¡¯s gates.¡±


    Cheng Lixue¡¯s fingers trembled slightly. He had only just found out the entire n, and realized what kind of crisis Chang¡¯an was in.


    ¡°Chang¡¯an City will be opened after the 6th month, but even the Abbey Dean cannot break through the God-stunning Arraypletely. No one knows when therge city will be able to repair itself. The army needs to hurry to catch up.¡±


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion looked at the green hills that stretched through the northern wilderness. He looked at the Verdant Canyon¡¯s narrow exit and said with a deadpanned expression, ¡°Let¡¯s continue. As long as they are human, they will get tired.¡±


    The allied troops main camp had put up their g.


    Several military orders had passed from the Marshal Bai Haixin to Military camps.


    Momentster, dense and thunderous hoofbeats rang in the air once more.


    More than 2,000 armored cavalries marched out to the beat of battle drums. They got into formation and then divided into dozens of cavalry groups, keeping their distance from each other, like countless dark clouds. Then, they rushed toward the Verdant Canyon.


    There were 300 seriously wounded war-horses lying at the exit of the Verdant Canyon. Some of the cavalries were helping each other return to their camps. This all proved that charging towards the Verdant Canyon was useless.


    But the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army had no other way.


    If they abandoned their horses and battled on foot, or used their armored foot soldiers, they would likely be corpses under the Second Brother¡¯s sword. The only thing they could do against the broad and straight sword was to charge forth forcefully.


    This was the best and only way to break the Academy¡¯s defense.


    Just as the Great Divine Priest of Revtion had said, there would be a time when they tired, as long as they were human.


    There were more than 200,000 soldiers in the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army. If they charged forth in rotations, they would not tire.


    Dense hoofbeats sounded and did not stop.


    More than 2,000 cavalry troops maintained the most efficient position and charged towards the Verdant Canyon in batches. There were not many of them in each batch, but they ensured that the full efforts of the Academy¡¯s disciples were needed to deal with it.


    Most importantly, under the strict orders of the military, the cavalry had to ensure that their attack was incessant with no breaks between them. This was so that the disciples of the Academy would not have any chance to rest.


    The dark waves formed by the cavalry kept beating against the exit of the Verdant Canyon. There seemed to be an invisible barrier and an invisible reef.


    A dark cloud drifted past and crashed into the Verdant Canyon. The cloud shattered into pieces and dispersed. A dark wave crashed onto the Verdant Canyon. It dispelled into foam and fell silently.


    The miserable screams of warhorses and the sounds of bone breaking rang clearly in everyone¡¯s ears. They sounded even more clearly and denser than the thunderous hoofbeats.


    But no matter how dire the situation in front was, the rear cavalry still charged forward with straight faces. Their mission today was to die, and their aim was to make the disciples of the Academy feel tired with their deaths.


    Beigong Weiyang did not feel tired, or perhaps, one should say that he did not know what tiredness felt like at this point.


    All his focus was directed on the Chinese zither before him. He looked down, focused on the slightest movements on his instrument, his scattered ck hair waving wildly.


    His clothes had long been drenched in sweat, and even his hair was damp. As he yed his instrument, beads of sweat dripped from his hair.


    There was a puff. As the sweat fell onto his zither, it instantly turned into a puff of green smoke.


    He did not notice this at all as he continued ying the instrument.


    His fingertips plucked and pressed on the strings without stopping. They moved at the speed of lighting, forming a soundless tune. The cotton wrapped around his fingers had long torn apart, and one could see traces of blood on his fingers.


    Ximen Buhuo did not feel tired either, he only felt a slight throbbing pain.


    His hands hurt a lot.


    The tape stuck on his fingers earlier had long torn apart as he moved his fingers along the keys of the flute. It had ked away, shredded into a powder-like substance that flew in the air beside the flute like tendrils of smoke.


    Flecks of blood had appeared on the smooth shiny flute.


    It blended beautifully with the hints of vermillion on the instrument.


    These two were the most adept at tonality in the Academy. They were the happiest, most energetic pair at the back of the mountain of the Academy and they loved to joke. But once they were immersed in the world of tonality, they gained an elegant demeanor like that of flowing mountains and rivers.


    However, there was no demeanor to speak of at this point, neither were they in the mood to joke around. Their faces were pale, and their lips were dry. Their hair was messy, and they looked haggard. They looked like music teachers who yed on the streets.


    Their expressions were grave, very grave and very solemn.


    So grave that their auras grew heart-wrenching.

 Chapter 743 - The First Day

    <h4>Chapter 743: The First Day</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    On the first day of the battle of Verdant Canyon.


    The skies were clear.


    It was a day for mourning and nothing else.


    In contrast to the miserable howls and the cries of the fallen that rang from time to time in the wilnds, the exit of the Verdant Canyon had remained very quiet. Usually instrument strings quavered and flutes sung, but they never made a sound.


    Then, a muffled sound rang out in the quiet tent.


    It was the sound of the vertical bamboo flute.


    Fourth Brother suddenly looked up at Ximen Buhuo¡¯s pale face and his beaded sweat. His right hand, which was holding a brush, trembled, and his expressions gradually turned solemn.


    There was a ng.


    Another instrument sounded.


    Seventh Sister looked up, and her fingers, which were holding on to an embroidery needle, began to tremble. She looked at Beigong Weiyang and the string instrument in front of him that was stained with blood. A worried expression appeared on her face.


    The instruments rang asionally.


    This meant that Beigong and Ximen were really tired. There was no way they could perform tunes that were full of spirit and energy as before. Their control was no longer precise and as such, they required even more Psyche Power and energy to go against the charging army and war-horses.


    Those under the canopy all looked up at Beigong and Ximen, their faces filled with worry.


    Second Brother who stood beyond the canopy in the wilderness did not turn around. Instead, he reached his right hand out for the hilt of his iron sword.


    Beigong and Ximen were not aware of the eyes that were on them. Their energy, focus and soul were directedpletely at their instruments.


    They had discovered the problem the earliest.


    They were not willing to retreat from this battle.


    The disciples of the Academy under the canopy all knew that the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army did not care how many of their troops would die. They would continue to attack, even if it was considered suicide. All they wanted to do was to defeat the Academy, and to be more precise, they wanted to defeat Second Brother.


    Because Second Brother was the final line of defense for the Verdant Canyon.


    That was why all his Younger Brothers and Sisters had to buy him time so he could rest and fight against the true attack that could happen at any time.


    Beigong and Ximen were indeed tired. Their bodies and fingers were tired, and they were bleeding from their fingers, staining their instruments red. Even the soundsing from the instruments were beginning to sound hoarse.


    But their hearts were not tired.


    At least at this very moment, they were still determined.


    Beigong Weiyang¡¯s finger that was plucking at the strings suddenly stopped.


    He looked up toward the wilderness and the cavalry that came in floods and suddenly smiled.


    Then, he called out, flicking his wrist.


    His bleeding fingers strummed the instrument from the back to the front, looking extremely elegant.


    A crisp sound emerged from his instrument, like that of water flowing from a stream.


    Ximen Buhuo heard the true sound of the instrument, and a resolute smile appeared on his face. A sharp clear sound that sounded like a shepherd blowing leaves burst out of the flute.


    The instruments no longer yed a soundless music, but yed true sounds instead.


    The bubbling of a spring became a forceful attack!


    The shepherd blowing at the leaves became a mournful howl!


    The sounds carried with them a powerful aura that spread throughout the wilnds.


    They were a dagger-axe and fence!


    The fierce music of the Qin and flute stirred up the charging cavalry and war-horses. To the cavalry of the Divine Hall and South Jin Kingdom, the music was like several sharp des that pierced through their brains!


    Several charging cavalries fell off their horses, shouting in pain as they were trapped by the stirrups and dragged through the wilnds. They became covered in blood and broke many bones.


    Their hands were empty, but they had made no attempts to release their feet because they were covering their ears. To them, the music brought pain that was several more times painful than the wounds and broken bones from being dragged by warhorses.


    Even more cavalries paled when they heard the music. They instinctively threw away their weapons and covered their ears.


    Even so, they could not stop the music from drilling into their ears and minds, shattering their consciousness into a blight of pain.


    Painful groans, moans and cries rang out in the wilnds. The usually orderly cavalry had all be mad as they covered their ears and writhed painfully on the ground.


    The cavalry could not charge in such a situation, and the war-horses, having lost directions leaped up and down, running up and down on the wilnds, looking especially lost.


    The zither and flute were soundless earlier because they were attacking the horses.


    Beigong Weiyang and Ximen Buhuo were truly incensed now, and their instruments finally sounded against humans.


    The moment the instruments sounded, the expression of the Academy disciples all suddenly changed.


    It was because they knew what price the two had to pay for ying such music.


    Fourth Brother reached out, wanting to stop Beigong from ying. However, when he saw Beigong¡¯s dancing ck hair and his maniacal and pleased expression, he could not bear to stop him.


    There was a semi-circle about a hundred feet wide outside the Verdant Canyon.


    Second Brother stood inside it.


    Outside of the semicircle,id countless cavalry soldiers of the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army. They were a crowded ck mess, looking like the famous levee of the Kingdom of Song. However, this ck levee moaned and howled in pain.


    Several war-horses fell to the ground and died; cavalries were crushed to death by heavy war-horses. There were many other cavalry and war-horses that lived on, but were so broken they were better off dead.


    Some horses and cavalries had stuffed cotton balls in their ears, but obviously, these cotton balls did not have the desired effect. They were stained with blood, their eardrums had probably been shattered.


    This was really a tragic scene.


    Many tragic wars had taken ce in the world over the past decades, but scenes like this rarely urred. And this, was because of a Chinse zither and a vertical bamboo flute.


    Even the Academy¡¯s disciples under the canopy felt bad when they saw that.


    Second Brother, who stood at the forefront and was closest to the remains of the armored cavalry, remained expressionless and calm. His eyebrows were just as straight as before.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army cavalry was still attempting to charge forward to the Verdant Canyon. However, the terrain was littered with bodies of their fellow soldiers and it was difficult to find space to maneuver.


    Then, there was a shout that emerged from the pile of moaning bodies!


    A burly military general from the South Jin Kingdom yelled violently and pushed the bodies crushing him away. He held an iron spear in his hand and charged toward Second Brother.


    In the rear, were several Martial Arts powerhouses who had not been impacted by the music. When they heard the angry yell, they stepped on their saddles and flew into the air, attacking Second Brother like a hailstorm of rocks.


    Themander of the South Jin Kingdom was the strongest and reached the earliest. He thrust the iron spear in his hand forcefully, forming a straight line in the air, and forcing the air away. A thunderous roar emerged from the head of the spear!


    Second Brother reached out expressionlessly and held on to the hilt of his iron sword.


    Then, he struck at themander of the South Jin Kingdom troops.


    He did not cut, cleave or even swipe at the man.


    He smashed down on him.


    The iron sword was square and straight and looked like a very thick piece of iron. Second Brother took it in his hands and smashed down, causing a strong wind that blew the gravel on the ground around wildly.


    The iron sword hit the head of the iron spear.


    The head of the iron spear was smashed.


    The iron sword continued downwards.


    The iron spear bent.


    The trajectory of the iron sword continued forth, as if it would never stop.


    And it smashed upon themander of the South Jin Kingdom troops.


    His armor was shattered into pieces.


    Second Brother ignored him and looked at the Martial Arts powerhouses leaping towards him in the air.


    His right hand shook, and the sword cut from left to right.


    This time, however, he did not smash down but did a smacking action.


    Just like how one would smack a housefly.


    The Martial Arts powerhouses that flew through the air like rocks encountered the wind caused by the sword. They turned into real rocks and were tossed in all directions through the wilnds before falling heavily to the ground.


    Momentster.


    The Martial Arts powerhouses stood up with some difficulty, propping themselves up with their swords.


    The South Jin Kingdommander regained hold of his bent spear.


    Second Brother nced at him expressionlessly.


    A trace of despair and incredulity appeared in themander¡¯s eyes.


    There was a sudden puff as he coughed out all the blood in his chest.


    Then, like aid water pouch, he toppled over limply.


    Heid out on the ground and spread out like a puddle.


    All his bones had been shattered by the iron sword.


    Then, the Martial Arts powerhouses in the distance fell one by one. Their bones had all been shattered as well.


    Second Brother was covered in blood.


    It all belonged to the enemy.


    The blood trickled down the edge of his armor and gradually merged into a single flow, flowing to the five swords inserted in the ground of the wilnds. Then, the flow slowly seeped down the ground where the swords were plunged into.


    Those swords were his booty.


    So was the blood.


    It was unknown how many swords he would nt before him and how much blood he would use to water them in this battle of the Verdant Canyon.


    He ignored the blood on his body. Instead, he just quietly looked at the wilnds ahead.


    Because the attack of the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army was still ongoing.


    It was such a boring battle.


    Killing people, and killing even more people.


    The hoofbeats of the war-horses were so monotonous, the miserable shouting of the allied cavalry was so monotonous, and the sound of flute and zither that was no longer beautiful was so monotonous. It was monotonous because it was on repeat.


    The sun in the sky gradually moved westward and gradually grew red.


    The sun rays that shone upon the wilnds grew redder and warmer as well. On the wilnds of the Verdant Canyon, there were piles of corpses. The miserable crying in the pile gradually quietened, and all was silent.


    Wilnd in twilight looked as if it were painted blood red.


    In fact, it was covered in blood.


    From noon to dusk, the West-Hill Divine Pce coalition army had put in at least 1,000 cavalries.


    The sounds of the zither and flute had never been cut off.


    Because Beigong and Ximen knew that Second Brother did not have to move as long as the sound of instruments continued.


    Second Brother did not move indeed.


    He remained still.


    Standing in his spot.


    He did not take a single step back.


    Because the Verdant Canyon was behind him.


    And behind the Verdant Canyon, was the Tang Empire.


    The sound of metal nging suddenly sounded in the south of the wilnds.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army had finally called for its cavalry to stop charging.


    It was not that they could not take the loss.


    But the generals of West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army had grown tired.


    The disciples of the Academy were tired out physically.


    The Divine Pce Coalition Army was mentally tired.


    It was a tiredness called fear.


    But there were people who never knew what fear was.


    Ning Que had always thought that she was well suited to enter the Academy.


    A figure clothed in red appeared in the wilnds drenched in the twilight.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s voice called out in the wilnds.


    ¡°Jun Mo, fight me.¡±


    Second Brother looked at the blood red robe in the south. It looked as if it were about to catch fire.


    ¡°You are no match for me.¡±


    With that, he picked up his iron sword and walked into the exit of the Verdant Canyon.


    The shelter at the exit of the Verdant Canyon was littered with arrows.


    Under the shelter, on the hob, was a boiling pot.


    The water was boiling.


    It was almost time for dinner.

 Chapter 744 - The Source of Calmness (Part I)

    <h4>Chapter 744: The Source of Calmness (Part I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ye Hongyu stood on the ins and looked at the figure under the shelter. After a long silent moment, a series ofplicated emotions appeared in her eyes. Then, she turned around and walked back to her divine chariot.


    The cavalry returned to camp as the sun set, and the sound of the zither and flute in the Verdant Canyon gradually died away.


    Beigong Weiyang and Ximen Buhuo had stopped ying, but they were still immersed in the exciting atmosphere, pleasure and exhaustion until they received a heavy p.


    Fourth Brother nced at Wang Chi, signaling him to prepare himself. Then, he reached out and pped Beigong and Ximen heavily on their backs.


    Beigong and Ximen felt a sharp pain and a shock on their chests. There was a puff, and they vomited blood. They still had not fully regained consciousness and had not even had the time to react in anger before their Senior Brother¡¯s pping and before Wang Chi stuffed two pills into their mouths.


    The medication spread through their chests slowly, eliminating the tense and wild sensation inside. The two felt better and only realized then why their Senior Brother had hit them.


    ¡°You guys won¡¯tst if you go all out like that.¡±


    Fourth Brother said, ¡°Rest well tonight.¡±


    Beigong Weiyang answered, ¡°Thank you for your help, Senior Brother.¡±


    Fourth Brother replied, ¡°That p of mine was not critical. Eleven¡¯s medication is the true treasure here.¡±


    Wang Chi loved thinking, nts, and healing people since he was a child. While he did not dare to say that his medical skills were unparalleled in the world, the medicine he developed was definitely the most precious and rarest in the world.


    He shook his head in embarrassment as he listened to the praise from his Senior Brother.


    Then, Second Brother entered the shelter.


    Everyone rushed forward to help Sixth Brother remove Second Brother¡¯s heavy armor.


    They all thought of Ye Hongyu¡¯s invitation to battle and their Senior Brother¡¯s nd reply that she was no match for him. Ye Hongyu had backed off just like that, and they could not help but be in awe at their Senior Brother¡¯s chess.


    Second Brother said calmly, ¡°That girl is powerful and it¡¯d take up some energy to beat her. If we can just speak and not fight, then that¡¯d be the best choice.¡±


    Everyone was speechless when they understood then that while Senior Brother had seemed to have turned around uncaringly, he had been thinking these thoughts.


    Seventh Sister thought wryly that her Senior Brother was not as stupid as he seemed.


    The pills dispersed rapidly in his body. Beigong Weiyang felt that his energy and Psyche Power had recovered a lot. His lofty ambitions revived, he said, ¡°Have a good night¡¯s rest and fight with them again tomorrow.¡±


    Ximen Buhuo¡¯s excitement from the earlier battle had yet to wane and he said, ¡°That¡¯s right.¡±


    All was silent in the hall and nobody answered him.


    Beigong Weiyang looked gaunt and haggard; plus, his fingers were all injured. Ximen Buhuo danced in front of him, waving his hands around while still retaining his flute-ying posture. He looked as if he was waving chicken ws around and looked both pitiful and funny.


    Everyone could see that if they battled again with their lives on the line, they might really die.


    ¡°You both have worked hard today. Let me do it tomorrow.¡±


    Second Brother reached out and patted Beigong and Ximen on their shoulders.


    Beigong suddenly stiffened.


    Ximen¡¯s mouth opened and the corners of his eyes moistened.


    Second Brother frowned slightly and asked, ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±


    Beigong sighed and did not say anything. Ximen Buhuo wiped his tears away and said, touched, ¡°Senior Brother, this is the first time you¡¯ve praised me since I entered the sect.¡±


    Second Brother fell silent for a moment before saying seriously, ¡°I will praise you more in the future.¡±


    Seventh Sister looked at Ximen Buhuo¡¯s w-like hands and teased, ¡°I shall stew some chicken feet for your dinner.¡±


    Ximen Buhuo asked perplexedly, ¡°Why do we have to eat stewed chicken feet?¡±


    Seventh Sister bit back a smile and said seriously, ¡°You are what you eat.¡±


    Ximen Buhuo smiled bitterly and asked, ¡°Then wouldn¡¯t that make my condition worse?¡±


    Joyousughter could be heard at the exit of the Verdant Canyon.


    The water had boiled, the rice had been cleaned. Seventh Sister started cooking dinner.


    Everyone from the back of the mountain of the Academy had made preparations for their trip to the Verdant Canyon. They had brought sufficient grains and pickles. There was also a ready-made stove, so it was not hard for Seventh Sister and Wang Chi to cook.


    In the southern ins, the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army also started to cook. It seemed that the battle for the day had ended. Smoke rose from the stoves and the situation calmed slightly.


    However, the atmosphere at the Verdant Canyon¡¯s grew grave. Second Brother stood in front as the other disciples gathered behind him. Together, they looked at the endless supply of grain wagons in the south with disconste expressions.


    The Qinghe County warlords¡¯ had farmers send the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army grains. Those grains were likely to be the County¡¯s grain reserves that had belonged to the Tang Empire not long ago.


    Beigong Weiyang said shrilly, ¡°One day, we will kill all these traitors and thieves!¡±


    Ximen Buhuo said softly, ¡°The descendants of the warlords have to die.¡±


    The two came from the extreme southern inds and had not grown up in the Tang Empire. However, they had lived in the Academy for many years and considered themselves Tangs. In fact, they seemed even angrier than Fourth Brother and the others.


    Fourth Brother lifted the Sandbox and calcted for a moment. Then, he said, ¡°If we want to recapture Qinghe County, we¡¯ll have to kill at least 200,000 people to extinguish the warlords. Then, we can get our revenge.¡±


    Beigong and Ximen¡¯s expression stiffened when they heard that they had to kill 200,000 people.


    They had dedicated their lives to music and had never killed a single chicken, let alone a human being. Even though many armored cavalries had died thanks to their music today, they had never thought that they would have to ughter.


    All was silent under the shelter.


    The disciples of the Academy were guarding the Verdant Canyon for Chang¡¯an and the Tang Empire. They did not care how many they had to kill. However, should there be a day when they would need to raise their des...


    Beigong suddenly smiled and said, ¡°There¡¯s still Youngest Brother.¡±


    Ximen Buhuo perked up and said, ¡°Indeed, indeed, our Youngest Brother is the best at this kind of things.¡±


    Fourth Brother and Sixth Brother nodded profusely. <i>Who else but their Youngest Brother would be the best for the job if the Academy wanted to kill many people?</i>


    Second Brother did not say anything.


    Wang Chi, who was standing beside the chopping board said, ¡°The cold dish is ready, did we bring sesame?¡±


    Second Brother said, ¡°Let¡¯s eat.¡±


    There was a faint burning smell.


    Seventh Sister yelled and hurried to the stove, only to find that the rice had been burnt.


    Beigong Weiyang looked at the smoking white rice and sighed, ¡°The food at the back of the mountain tasted bad whenever teacher brought Eldest Brother out traveling with him.¡±


    Ximen Buhuo said, with an air of yearning, ¡°The food was best when Sangsang was in the Academy.¡±


    Nobody med Seventh Sister, but she still felt uneasy.


    The tactical array at the Verdant Canyon exit had been established. Compared with Second Brother and the other disciples who had different jobs, her main job was to be responsible for the logistics, which should be very easy. However, she still did it badly.


    Momentster, the uneasiness turned to anger and she said angrily, ¡°Sixth Brother¡¯s stove is made of iron and the temperature gets too high, how can it be used to cook rice?¡±


    Second Brother¡¯s eyebrows flicked up and he berated her unhappily, ¡°This is ridiculous, you¡¯re being rude.¡±


    Seventh Sister paused slightly and said angrily, ¡°If you think it¡¯s bad, then don¡¯t eat it!¡±


    After a simple meal, those who had to rest rested and those who had to make preparations for tomorrow did so.


    Fourth Brother said, ¡°Youzi is under a lot of pressure which was why she got so angry. That¡¯s why she felt even more wronged when you berated her. Don¡¯t me her for yelling at you.¡±


    Second Brother frowned slightly and asked, ¡°Why would she feel wronged?¡±


    Fourth Brother said, ¡°She only behaved like that because she is worried about you, but you reprimanded her. That¡¯s why she felt wronged.¡±


    Second Brother was slightly shocked when he heard that. After a long silence, he said, ¡°That¡¯s not necessary.¡±


    Fourth Brother did not bring up the matter again because the disciples of the back of the mountain of the Academy had already been discussing the matter privately for several years but had never drawn a conclusion.


    He turned and looked at the entrance of the Verdant Canyon behind the shelter, and at the hidden stones inside. Then, he said, ¡°If the Divine Hall is unprepared, then we should stay and guard the canyon. This is more energy efficient.¡±


    Second Brother said, ¡°If we act safely, then that¡¯s the greatest mistake. The direction of the battle today was clear. The Divine Hall kept sending troops trying to force us into the canyon... I don¡¯t know what we will do once we enter the canyon, but I do not wish to retreat until the very end.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Because once we retreat, we might have to take even more steps back.¡±


    Fourth Brother turned around and looked at the dark Military camps of the Coalition Army in the southern ins. He said, ¡°I am more worried about whether the other party willunch a night attack now.¡±


    Second Brother looked up at the moon in the Night Dome and said, ¡°They wouldn¡¯t dare with teacher looking down from the sky.¡±


    Their fellow disciples had joined them, standing behind both of them.


    They looked up at the moon in the sky longingly.


    ¡°Is that really teacher?¡± Wang Chi asked.


    Second Brother said, ¡°Perhaps.¡±


    Unlike his other fellow disciples, Sixth Brother was not as sensitive and he considered more realistic and simple problems. He said, ¡°Firewood is a problem. We have to enter the canyon to pick firewood and it¡¯d be easy for them to sneak an attack at us then.¡±


    Second Brother pointed at the ins beyond the shelter. He pointed at the dense collection of arrows and said, ¡°There is firewood everywhere.¡±


    Unlike the mouth of the Verdant Canyon which was sometimes lively, asionally sad, but basically calm and joyful, the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army camp was covered in a frustrated and depressive atmosphere. It was very quiet there.


    Bai Haixin drank a ss of wine and ate two bowls of rice. Then, he signaled his subordinates to remove the dinner desk and walked out of the tent. He looked at the green hills under the moonlight and frowned in silence for a long time.


    He was themander-in-chief of the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army, but he could not even enter the top five in the coalition forces. How would he dare give orders to the two Great Divine Priests of West-Hill and the Sword Sage, Liu Bai?


    This was the source of his distress, because he did not know what the bigwigs at the Divine Hall thought. He did not understand why they had to sacrifice so many cavalry soldiers just to force those from the Academy into the Verdant Canyon.


    Since they had to guard the main roads, it was naturally more appropriate for them to stand guard inside the canyon.


    What puzzled him was why those from the Academy were willing to fight on the ins with the army rather than retreating into the Verdant Canyon.


    A priest in red walked over and handed him a sheet of paper.


    Bai Haixin read through it, his frown growing deeper as he wondered if they had to continue to march to their deaths tomorrow.


    ¡°Get all the martial cultivators from each sect and the army to gather in the great tent.¡±

 Chapter 745 - The Source of Calmness (Part II)

    <h4>Chapter 745: The Source of Calmness (Part II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The Coalition Army¡¯s great tent was really big. Hundreds of people were sitting inside, but it did not seem cramped at all. The people inside were all very silent, so therge empty tent felt even quieter.


    ¡°This is an order from the Great Divine Priest.¡±


    Bai Haixin looked at the people protesting with silence. He said indifferently, ¡°Don¡¯t think about the glory and respect that you normally enjoy in your own sects. You should know that we are now in the army and that we are fighting against Tang, acting under orders of Heaven. We are carrying out the will of Haotian.¡±


    A powerhouse in the Seethrough Realm stared at him and said sternly, ¡°There is no way for the armored cavalry to rush over. What can we do? Who can fight against the sounds of the zither and flute?¡±


    Bai Haixin said, ¡°Since you want to abandon your horses and fight, then you need not worry about the cavalry. As for the sounds of the zither and flute... The Divine Hall of Revtion is making a talisman now and will distribute them to youter.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to hear more questions. What you need to do now is to ept.¡±


    Without waiting for the prideful cultivators to speak, he continued with a straight face, ¡°Of course, it is up to you to carry out what ordinary soldiers cannot do. Otherwise, why would the Haotian Taoism keep you around for?¡±


    There was an angry voice behind the crowd, ¡°Aren¡¯t you sending us to our deaths?¡±


    Bai Haixin¡¯s expression turned cold and looked toward the direction where the voice came from and said, ¡°Who¡¯s talking?¡±


    Nobody answered as they did not dare to. And no one dared to speak again.


    There were hundreds of powerhouses from the military and cultivators from various sects of various countries in the great tent. Even though Bai Haixin was a general of the South Jin Kingdom, he would not have cowed them into silence. However, in the Coalition Army of the Divine Hall, everyone knew that he represented the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    However, not daring to speak did not mean they weren¡¯t thinking. The cultivators all shared a disgusted look. They all knew that the man who spoke up was right. The West-Hill Divine Pce wanted to have its smaller vassal sects head to their deaths. They would, through their deaths, whittle down the Academy¡¯s disciples¡¯ Psyche Power, energy and physical strength...


    ¡°Think about your sects, whether they want to live and prosper or disappear like fireworks. Think about your rtives and fellow disciples in your hometown, and think about the great one existing in the Firmament.¡±


    With that, Bai Haixin turned and left the great tent.


    All were silent in the great tent; the silence represented eptance as they were forced to do so.


    Compared with the warm atmosphere in the Verdant Canyon, it was very cold here.


    With green hills blocking the warm mist in the southern Great Lake, Qinghe County had always been famous for its spring-like seasons. However, it waste autumn after all, so after nightfall, the temperature of the ins gradually fell.


    Campfires were lit in the Military camp.


    The stars in the Night Dome were dim and hard to see by the bright moon¡¯s silver glow. The reflection of the countless bonfires between the ins caused them to dim even more. If one did not look carefully, they might even think that it was a starless night.


    There were more than 20 people sitting around a bonfire.


    They were all disciples of the Sword Garret of the South Jin Kingdom.


    The disciples respectfully sat around a man.


    The man was dressed in linen and wore a simple bun. His face was ordinary and the only special part about him was his eyebrows which were so thick they seemed to be drawn with ink.


    There was an old golden crown on the ground beside him.


    Only Emperors could wear golden crowns.


    But this man was not the Emperor of any country.


    He was the Emperor of Sword Taoism. He was the sage of Sword Taoism.


    He was Liu Bai, which was why he had a golden crown.


    ¡°The Divine Hall¡¯s idea will not be effective.¡±


    Liu Bai looked at the moon in the Night Dome and remained silent for a long time.


    His disciples did not dare ask and waited for their teacher to continue.


    ¡°There are but a few people in the Academy, but yet, they havee to stop troops of tens and thousands. It might seem foolish, but they are no fools. That¡¯s why the Divine Hall¡¯s idea of sending troops there to waste Jun Mo¡¯s energy will not be effective.¡±


    Liu Yiqing coughed painfully and said, ¡°Although Mr. Second is mighty, he will grow weak. Furthermore, his arrogant and domineering tactics will not hold for too long.¡±


    He was defeated again in the hands of the Academy¡¯s disciples and was severely injured. However, he was not as angry or sad as before and was able to analyze the situation calmly.


    ¡°The Divine Hall thinks like that too, which is why they will make the same mistake.¡±


    Liu Bai said, ¡°You all think that Jun Mo is prideful and that his tactics are arrogant. That is why he has to use more Psyche Power and energy with every strike of his sword, which cannotst for long. However, this is a ridiculous thought.¡±


    ¡°It might seem moreborious for Jun Mo to smash down or hit with his swordpared to just a swift cut. However, this is because you do not understand that cuts are made with strength and will damage des. But his smashing and tapping use the Qi of Heaven and Earth. That thick iron sword of his will never be damaged until the end of the world.¡±


    Having said that, the world¡¯s most powerful man in Sword Taoism pulled out an unlit twig from the bonfire. He slowly lifted it up until it was a foot away from his eyes and then waved it downward casually.


    The aura of heaven and earth near the bonfire moved with the swing of the twig. Several light and ethereal aura adhered to the twig and thickened, gathering into a ball as the twig waved.


    Liu Bai¡¯s twignded in the bonfire.


    The gathered ball of aura dispersed in the fire.


    There was a sudden explosion of mes as the me rocketed into the night sky, lighting up the Military camp.


    Shouts rang in all directions before tapering down.


    Liu Yiqing looked down and considered silently for a long while.


    He could not see, but his Psyche Power could clearly sense what the twig had done.


    ¡°Mr. Second does not need energy to wave his sword around, he is using the aura of Heaven and Earth to move the sword and uses it to help power it. This is not a Martial Arts cultivation or Dark Methods. But...their origins are the same.¡±


    He suddenly looked up at the Verdant Canyon that he could not see. His voice trembled slightly as he said, ¡°This kind of Sword Taoism consumes the least amount of Psyche Power and physical strength. He can continue to kill!¡±


    ¡°You are both right and wrong.¡±


    Liu Bai threw the broken half of the twig in his hand into the bonfire and said, ¡°You are right about what kind of method Jun Mo is using. But you are wrong because you still have not understood that he is not using heaven and earth to move the sword...¡±


    ¡°He is using heaven and earth to attack.¡±


    All was silent beside the bonfire.


    The Sword Garret disciples were silent and each had his own thoughts. They studied under the world¡¯s most powerful cultivator and practiced the art of the sword diligently. They had pride in their work, which is why they refused to bow to the Academy and were unimpressed by Mr. Second¡¯s pride. However, they had finally realized that Mr. Second had his own reasons to be proud.


    Liu Bai asked, ¡°Where has the iron sword of Jun Mo been?¡±


    A disciple thought and said uncertainly, ¡°The sword is in front of him when he does not hold it.¡±


    Liu Bai asked, ¡°How far away is it from him?¡±


    Nobody had noticed this detail.


    Liu Bai said, ¡°I was the only one who noticed this because this was what Jun Mo showed to me. The sword had always been... one and a half feet in front of him.¡±


    Everyone was shocked.


    Because everyone knew that the Sword Sage, Liu Bai¡¯s, most famous concept was that the sword should be no more than one foot in front of a person.


    One and a half feet was further than one foot.


    Then was it more powerful?


    Liu Bai knew how his disciples were feeling and he smiled and said, ¡°The cultivator must be confident, so pride is the mostmon outward manifestation of it. I have seen many proud people in my life. For example, Ye Su, or the old Priest of Judgement. But I have never seen a man prouder than Jun Mo.¡±


    All his disciples remained silent.


    ¡°And pride will kill him.¡± Liu Bai stopped smiling and said nonchntly, ¡°Because pride is an emotion, and a true swordsman cannot have any extra emotions.¡±


    Finally, a disciple could not bear it any longer, he asked, ¡°When are you going to attack?¡±


    ¡°While the Divine Hall might be worrying, I am not. The destruction of the Tang Empire is not something that can be done in just a single battle.¡±


    Liu Bai said, ¡°This battle of the Verdant Canyon is a great opportunity for you to learn from the Academy. Jun Mo is also my favorite opponent. Just as I have said earlier in the day, I will definitely wait until he is at his strongest before I strike.¡±


    The disciples thought to themselves that Mr. Second had already caused blood to flow through the ins with his sword, and he had not retreated a single step. It was evident that he was very strong and seemed almost invincible. Could he be even stronger?


    Liu Yiqing asked, ¡°When will he reach his strongest?¡±


    ¡°Jun Mo is an ordinary person, so he would act like an ordinary person. That is why he let you all live today. But when he holds his sword, he will no longer be ordinary. When he starts getting injured and tired, and when he discovers that his pride is being challenged and bes truly angry... and when everyone thinks he is about to fail¡ª that is when he will be strongest.¡±


    Liu Bai stood up and looked at the quiet Verdant Canyon on the other side of the ins. He felt the warm auraing from there, and slowly ced his hands behind his back, not speaking for a long time.


    All the disciples of the Sword Garret stood up and looked at the ce, not knowing what he was looking at.


    ¡°The army is mighty and the powerhouses have gathered. Yet they are still in the mood to cook carefully even faced with danger. Well, some of the rice is burnt, but the pickled vegetables smell really good.¡±


    Liu Bai inhaled the scents brought by the night breeze andmented, ¡°This is life. It is a process that cannot be affected by war or deaths.¡±


    ¡°Why can the disciples of the Academy be so calm? It is not because they are confident, but because they are doing what they want to do and doing what makes them happy, so that is why they have done it so confidently.¡±


    ¡°My sword can be like them too, but I cannot.¡±


    Liu Bai looked at the Verdant Canyon with a smile and said, ¡°The Academy is really magical. It is a pity that the teacher is no longer there, otherwise I would really want to live in it for a few years.¡±


    On the second day of the battle of Verdant Canyon.


    It was gloomy and looked as if it was about to rain.


    The stench of blood on the ins thickened.


    The scent of millet porridge in the pot grew thicker too.


    Everyone praised the pickles that Sangsang made back then at the back of the mountain, and began to slurp up their porridge.


    They drank it loudly and well.


    After finishing their porridge, they helped Second Brother into his armor.


    Second Brother held his iron sword and walked out into the ins.


    Seventh Sister did not sleep wellst night. She rubbed her slightly sore eyes and said, ¡°Be careful.¡±


    He was well fed and well rested today.


    Everyting was going on well.

 Chapter 746 - The Iron Sword Wants You to Cry

    <h4>Chapter 746: The Iron Sword Wants You to Cry</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    It was early and the morning light was faint. There was ayer of mist on the ins, dimming the light. The dew on the grass reflected the light around like ck pearls.


    There were five swords on the ins. They were swords that Second Brother had taken from the disciples of the Sword Garret. However, unlike yesterday when he stood in front of the swords, he took a path beside them instead.


    The battle of Verdant Canyon hadsted all day. Instead of taking a step back, he took a step forward.


    There was a sudden shout in the mist.


    ¡°Liang Xiang of Sanqing Mountain is here for a challenge!¡±


    Sanqing Mountain was a famous scenic spot in southeastern China and was arge sect in Haotian Taoism. However, the Lanke Temple had grown too well known these years, so it seemed less unknown by contrast. In actuality, there were many powerhouses in the sect.


    Liang Xiang was the most talented disciple with the highest cultivation state in Sanqing Mountain. He was deeply loved by the elders of the sect and had garnered plenty of attention from the West-Hill Divine Pce. As such, he was very confident in his own Sword Taoism.


    After receiving the military order from the West-Hill Divine Pcest night, he did not look dejected like other cultivators. Instead, he was very excited. He wanted to see if Mr. Second of the Academy would fight with him.


    That was why he sounded so confident and proud.


    A gleaming flying sword apanied his speech. The sharp and narrow body of the sword, like an arrow, easily pierced the air and mist and arrived with a whistling.


    Second Brother looked deep into the mist emotionlessly. He did not even nce at the flying sword before he extended his right hand.


    There was a tearing sound in the mist.


    It sounded like countless sheets of paper being torn to pieces by powerful fingers.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth in front of the Verdant Canyon was torn apart by the sound.


    The wisp of Qi of Heaven and Earth dragged by the flying sword broke naturally as well.


    A painful groan sounded in the mist.


    The flying sword that had surged at Second Brother with a roar suddenly lost control and fell down slowly.


    Into Second Brother¡¯s hand.


    Second Brother held the flying sword and tossed it behind him.


    There was a ng as the sharp sword plunged deeply into the damp ins.


    Together with the five swords from yesterday.


    The morning light glowed even stronger as the mist dissipated.


    The scene on the ins grew clearer.


    A young taoist priest stood on the ins with empty hands and his chest soaked with blood. He seemed to have been scared silly.


    This was the proud Liang Xiang of Sanqing Mountain.


    Two of hispanions from Sanqing Mountain came forward to hold him by his arms so that he would not fall.


    Liang Xiang regained consciousness and uttered a guttural scream of fear.


    He had mocked the South Jin Kingdom yesterday when he watched the Sword Garret disciples have their swords taken away. However, he only understood what that had felt like when he saw his Natal Sword being taken away.


    How could something like this happen?


    How did the man across him manage it?


    Why didn¡¯t his Elders in the sect teach him that before?


    His fellow disciples dragged him back to the southern ins as he stared at the gloomy sky in a stunned manner. He would asionally moan strangely as his Taoist Heart had beenpletely destroyed.


    Second Brother did not notice such details.


    He had already forgotten where the proud young Haotian Taoism cultivator hade from and what his name was.


    Several more cultivators appeared on the ins. There were also several more Martial Arts cultivators who had served in the army for many years. They all did not ride horses and were covered in talisman paper.


    Was this the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s response?


    Second Brother raised his broad and straight iron sword and pointed it at the dense group of cultivators, his left hand tucked behind his back.


    Those from the Academy gathered under the shelter and watched their Senior Brother¡¯s movement, knowing that he was ordering them not to move unlessmanded.


    Since the West-Hill Divine Pce was prepared, then the zither and flute wouldn¡¯t be needed for the moment.


    The second cultivator to attack the Verdant Canyon was someone from the Little Eastern Hills.


    He was a Martial Arts cultivator who cultivated in unique arts. Unlike others, he had fought tigers and lions in the wild over the years to improve his cultivation state, which was high. If he were willing to join the army, he would be able to be a general no matter whether he went to the South Jin Kingdom, the Kingdom of Song, the Kingdom of Qi or any othernds. However, his goal in life was to be amander of the West-Hill Divine Pce divine guards, which was why he had never left the mountains until the Divine Hall¡¯s edict came. That was when he finally weed the opportunity of his life.


    As long as he could show off his prowess during the battle, then the Divine Hall would notice him.


    That was what the cultivator thought and did.


    He raised therge heavy knife he used to kill the lions and tigers in the Little Eastern Hills and bellowed loudly. He rushed forward to the Verdant Canyon with a trail of dust behind him.


    The cultivator was so fast that even the air started to hum.


    The vision of the cultivators on the ins grew blurry and the cultivator arrived before Second Brother. He cleaved down forcefully.


    Second Brother¡¯s face was nk.


    He raised his broad and straight iron sword and waved.


    On the edge of his armor was a piece of his shirt sleeve.


    The sleeve did not flutter at all when he waved his sword.


    Just like what Liu Bai had told his disciples yesterday, Second Brother did not wave the sword through his own strength, but through the power of Heaven and Earth. That was why his actions were so natural.


    His movement was nature.


    Just like the wave of a sleeve.


    It did not cause any fluttering breeze, but it caused the aura of heaven and earth in front of the Verdant Canyon to roll up.


    His arm and the iron sword waved between the aura. He focused his will on it, but not his energy.


    The iron sword met the cultivator¡¯srge de in the air.


    The de that had once killed lions and tigers was shredded by the aura like the thinnest tissue.


    There was a nging sound and therge heavy de shattered into numerous pieces.


    The iron sword continued forth, tapping on the cultivator¡¯s chest lightly.


    There was a loud boom.


    The beefy cultivator flew into the sky and was tossed several dozen feet away before hended heavily on the ground, causing arge crater to appear.


    Momentster, an angry growl sounded in the crater.


    The cultivator threw away the hilt in his hands and climbed out of the crater angrily.


    Then, he fell back into the crater once more.


    He shouted angrily and climbed up again.


    And fell back again.


    He did this five times.


    The cultivator could not climb anymore and he sat at the bottom of the crater, lost.


    He coughed.


    And started vomiting blood. The blood was ck, and there were bits of his internal organs inside.


    The force of the iron sword had prated the man¡¯s body and shattered his organs.


    And the cultivator had not realized until he tried to stand for the fifth time, that his shaken organs had cracked and split apart.


    Just like his seemingly powerful de.


    The following attack at the Verdant Canyon was not done by a single person.


    Or by a single sword.


    It was carried out by more than 20 swords.


    The 20 swords were flying swords of cultivators from varying sects and countries.


    The gloomy skies enveloped the ins, and with the shrill nging of swords and them shining like rainbows, the skies brightened again.


    They were all Great Sword Masters in the Seethrough Realm!


    There were not many cultivators in the world, and the number of cultivators in the Seethrough Realm was even lower. Only the Tang Empire and the West-Hill Divine Pce could organize so many of them together on a single battlefield.


    More than 20 flying swords soaring about at once were extremely rare.


    Even the most powerful powerhouses at the peak of the Knowing Destiny State would find it troublesome when faced with such a challenge.


    However, Second Brother did not feel so. He only thought that it was a hassle since he only had two hands.


    Looking at the 20 or so flying swords heading toward him, he stuck his iron sword into the ground in front of him. Then, he reached out and made casual catching movements. However, his actions were done so quickly that it seemed like a chaotic mess.


    There were several nging sounds.


    He had caught all the flying swords.


    His palms were notrge.


    So it was a wonder how he had managed to hold so many swords.


    Those flying swords in his hands were like too proud andzy peacocks that would not be bothered to dress up before spreading their tails, looking like a mess.


    Then, he tossed the flying swords behind him.


    And they all plunged into the soft and wet ins.


    In a world where Haotian Taoism reigned, even the Sword Sage, Liu Bai and the Master of Calligraphy, Lord Wang, were all considered visiting professors. There were many cultivators who served them. The battle of Verdant Canyon was undoubtedly the battle in which there was thergest number of cultivators fighting.


    Countless cultivator and allied forces surged through the ins, attacking the Verdant Canyon like waves. They mmed against the silent man standing in front of the Verdant Canyon, and no matter how many of theirpatriots in front fell, the people behind continued to charge forth.


    The session continued.


    However, those at the back did not manage to move forward at all, they could only fill the gaps at the front.


    Several arms coated in blood flew into the air.


    Several bodies were tossed into the distance.


    Countless flying swords burst through the air and then were turned into scrap metal in the man¡¯s hands.


    The ins in front of the Verdant Canyon yesterday were littered with tens of thousands of arrows, turning into a forest of arrows.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth was roused by today¡¯s battle, shattering those arrows into fragments. Today, more than a hundred flying swords reced them, deeply inserted into the ins.


    The flying swords were all different. Their auras were different. Some were broad and others were narrow; some were sharp while others were blunt.


    But once they were all inserted into the ground, they bore no differences.


    They were all dead.


    It was a forest of swords, and also a graveyard of swords.


    Second Brother stood before the swords¡¯ burial mound, waving his own iron weapon.


    He stood where he had started, not moving a single inch.


    His brows were still as t and they did not raise up, not even for a moment.


    He did not show off any amazing power, only standing there, waving his sword calmly. No matter his posture or the strength with which he wielded the sword, they had not changed at all.


    He seemed not to know what exhaustion was as every stroke of his sword was just as focused as it had been from dawn to noon. That was why it seemed casual and it felt as if there would not be any changes even if he were to continue until dusk.


    His body was covered with blood. He had not moved when the blood flowed down his armor and when it dripped off him. As such, several pits filled with blood appeared in front of him as the blood trickled down.


    Just like in the previous years, neither his posture nor expression had changed. He seemed just as consistent.


    And he killed just as consistently.


    And the more consistent he was, the more frightened he made others.


    The sword style on the ins tapered off.


    Fear overtook the hearts of many cultivators and they stopped their attacks subconsciously.


    A sudden cry emerged from the crowds.


    There was a cultivator from a certain sect who had been so frightened he had started crying.


    Nobody thought ofughing at the man.


    Because when they looked at the iron sword that still had blood dripping off it...


    Everyone felt like crying as well.

 Chapter 747 - This Has Nothing to Do with Kindness or Generosity

    <h4>Chapter 747: This Has Nothing to Do with Kindness or Generosity</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Swords flew in front of the Verdant Canyon.


    All was silent in the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army Camp in the southern ins.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion lowered his voile and said softly, ¡°I have never seen someone kill like this in my entire life. Mr. Ke must have been like that when he joined the Devil.¡±


    Cheng Lixue knelt at a corner of the divine chariot, not knowing what to say.


    There was a moment of silence within the chariot.


    After some time, there was a startled shout outside the chariot. And then, there was the overwhelming sound crashing as the soldiers yelled jubntly.


    Cheng Lixue suddenly looked up and out of the chariot and asked hurriedly, ¡°Did we win?¡±


    His voice trembled slightly due to his nervousness.


    A priest in red came to the side of the chariot and panted, ¡°Not yet.¡±


    Cheng Lixue¡¯s expression changed slightly as he asked, ¡°Then why did they cheer?¡±


    The priest in red said excitedly, ¡°He changed hands! He¡¯s using his left hand to wield the sword now!¡±


    Cheng Lixue furrowed his brows slightly and asked in confusion, ¡°So what?¡±


    The priest in red said joyfully, ¡°It means that that person will tire too. He won¡¯t be able to hold on for long.¡±


    Cheng Lixue felt himself stiffen slightly and wanted to say something. However, he did not say anything in the end and only waved the priest away with a bitter smile on his face.


    All men would tire, and Mr. Second was only human.


    But their army had grown excited even when that man had only moved his sword to his left hand. One could imagine how much stress and fear he gave to the Coalition Army when he stood before the Verdant Canyon.


    The other divine chariot remained silent.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s lids were hooded, and her jade-like hands rested on her blood-red Divine Robe of Judgement. She was silent.


    The jubnt cheers outside did not cause her expression to change at all, and neither did her subordinatese to bother her with ludicrous matters.


    Momentster, the Divine Hall Coalition Army shouted wildly with joyous calls once more.


    The subordinates of the Divine Hall Judicial Department could not bear it any longer. A deacon dressed in ck walked up to the divine chariot and knelt outside the voile. He reported respectfully, ¡°Taoist Cui of the Kingdom of Song pierced the enemy with his flying sword.¡±


    There was finally a change in Ye Hongyu¡¯s expression when she heard that. That was because she knew who Taoist Cui was, and even she had pinned a certain measure of hope on him.


    She looked up at the deacon in ck and asked, ¡°And what happened?¡±


    The deacon dressed in ck paused, as if he had not expected the Great Divine Priest to continue asking. He answered somewhat nervously, ¡°Then... Priest Cui¡¯s Taoist Sword broke. He seems fine.¡±


    Ye Hongyu furrowed her brows slightly and asked, ¡°Then what are you trying to tell me?¡±


    The deacon seemed to grow even more nervous and he said with a trembling voice, ¡°...This is the first time anyone managed to pierce that person with a sword. That means that the person can be injured.¡±


    ¡°Although the statement sounds stupid, it somehow carries truth.¡±


    Ye Hongyu looked through the gauze voile and toward the Verdant Canyon. Her beautiful face was devoid of any expression as she said, ¡°It seems like it is almost time.¡±


    Almost at the same time.


    In the other divine chariot, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion reached out to touch the scripture in front of him with a finger. Determination shed across his withered features as he said, ¡°It is almost time.¡±


    A sharp and magnificent Taoist Sword had now be a few pieces of broken sword lying on the ins. However, this sword should still be proud because it was the only flying sword that had not been taken away by the enemy since the war began.


    In the southern ins, a Taoist in a in Taoist robe was looking down at his chest and abdomen.


    His surname was Cui and his name was Rong. He was born in the Cui Family of the Qinghe County. He left his family since childhood and traveled around the world to cultivate. He had been baptized by the West-Hill Divine Pce and officially entered Haotian Taoism at a Taoist temple in the Kingdom of Song.


    There were many powerhouses in Haotian Taoism hidden all over in the world, inmon or rundown Taoist temples. They did not like the environment in the Divine Hall and desired to be ordinary Taoists.


    They would not appear until Haotian called upon them to contribute their power.


    Taoist Cui was such amon but extraordinary Taoist.


    He was not famous in the world of cultivation, but his cultivation state was high. He had already entered the Knowing Destiny State ten years ago and could hold his own position in a gathering of powerhouses of Haotian Taoism.


    However, he had not made any other moves other than the single strike of his sword. He looked down at his chest and abdomen silently. It was because his sword had already been broken and there was a deep wound on his chest.


    It was arge, bloody and terrifying wound.


    Damp and soft intestines and other organs were squeezing out from the wound. It started off somewhat slow, but their escape quickened as time passed and they started to flow like a stream, sttering near the end.


    Taoist Cui quietly watched his internal organs flow out of his body. He did not raise his head until he saw the whole process. He looked at the other side and asked, ¡°Mr. Second¡¯s Sword Taoism is the most rigorous art in the world. Previously, this sword entered four inches into my body, not an inch deeper or shallower. It must be deliberately done.¡±


    Second Brother said, ¡°Indeed.¡±


    Taoist Cui said, ¡°The Academy preaches kindness and forgiveness. Why do you want me to suffer so much before I die?¡±


    Second Brother said calmly, ¡°Because I know that your surname is Cui.¡±


    Taoist Cui understood and he said, ¡°Mr. Second should know that I rarely contact those from my n.¡±


    Second Brother answered, ¡°I want to use your death and pain to proim the Academy¡¯s attitude.¡±


    Taoist Cui asked, ¡°What attitude?¡±


    Second Brother answered, ¡°The seven families of Qinghe County must suffer if they have to die.¡±


    Taoist Cui sighed and said, ¡°I see.¡±


    Having said that, he slowly sat down on the ground and began to pant because his lungs and trachea had been broken by the iron swords. No matter how much he panted, he could not take in any air, so he seemed to be in extreme pain.


    After some time, he lowered his head tiredly and passed away in pain.


    It was gloomy as dark clouds blocked out the sunlight.


    Second Brother was bathed in blood as he stood on the ins in front of the forest made up of hundreds of swords, and in front of countless of bodies of cultivators. He looked at the cultivators in the south.


    He raised the iron sword in his hand again.


    He did not utter a single word.


    The cultivators on the ins, however, seemed to have heard him asking if there was anyone else.


    The cultivators¡¯ gazes were all attracted to the iron sword that seemed to contain a mysterious power.


    The iron sword was very unusual. It was broad, straight and its color was dull. It looked rather ridiculous.


    However, everyone felt like crying when they saw the sword.


    Some people could not even cry even if they wanted to. They were too afraid.


    The cultivators standing in front of the sword could no longer dredge up the courage to fight. They retreated.


    The Verdant Canyon became quiet once more.


    The blood on the ground has umted into puddle, reflecting the dark sky and appearing dark.


    Everyone from the Academy rushed out from the shelter.


    Holding a stool in his left hand, Wang Chi held a medicine bag tightly in his right hand. He rushed to Second Brother and asked him to sit, putting the medicine bag to his mouth and pouring its contents in.


    Seventh Sister carried a kettle and a water bowl. Seeing that she might not have time, she simply threw the bowl away and put the spout directly into Second Brother¡¯s mouth, pouring water into his mouth desperately.


    Second Brother was not an ordinary person and was unusual in all aspects. Surrounded by his busy Younger Brothers and Sisters, he was still calm and he quickly swallowed the medicine and water.


    Fourth Brother and Sixth Brother had also run up at this time. They squatted in front of Second Brother, examining the chest piece of his armor with grave expressions.


    Taoist Cui¡¯s Natal Taoist Sword had pierced that spot.


    When the Taoist Sword in the Knowing Destiny State had stabbed the armor, the rune in the armor automatically activated and condensed a thin and toughyer of Qi of Heaven and Earth. Therefore, the sword had made no impact on Second Brother.


    However, the rune hidden in the armor was slightly distorted by Taoist Cui¡¯s sword.


    Sixth Brother took off the box behind him and took out a set of special tools that were like crab-eating tools and began to repair them.


    Fourth Brother stood at a side and did the calction and gave guidance regarding the imaging. Then, he looked at Second Brother and asked, ¡°Is there any problem with the sword?¡±


    Sixth Brother looked at Second Brother with a worried expression.


    The iron sword was the most important equipment. If it was damaged, even though the Academy had brought iron ovens so they could repair it, the West-Hill Divine Pce would definitely not give them much time to do so.


    Second Brother looked at the broad straight sword in his hand and answered, ¡°It can stillst a long time.¡±


    Beigong Weiyang and Ximen Buhuo were still under the shelter. Their zither and flute were the supreme weapons used to deal with the charging cavalry. As such, they had to stay within the tactical array.


    However, the two felt lonely and somewhat ashamed as they watched their fellow disciples helping Second Brother. Beigong spoke, looking at them, ¡°Do you want to listen to a tune right now?¡±


    Nobody answered him.


    Fourth Brother and Sixth Brother were carrying out the final examination of the armor, while Wang Chi was determining Second Brother¡¯s pulse so he could prepare medicine for him. Seventh Sister looked slightly more freely as she wiped Second Brother¡¯s face with a handkerchief. They were all busy.


    Beigong shouted, ¡°Senior Brother, this tune is vigorous and rousing. It¡¯s best for killing people.¡±


    Second Brother stood up and looked at the crowd of enemies on the ins. He said, ¡°Killing has never been about kindness or generosity. So why do we need music?¡±


    ¡°Do not be bold, do not be generous, do not be unrestrained, just be cold, indifferent and cruel. Only those who truly follow the creed would be able to kill all his enemies. Jun Mo is undoubtedly such a person. I might have underestimated him with myments yesterday.¡±


    ¡°He is still the proudest man. I just didn¡¯t think that he could throw away all his pride or hide it in the deepest part of his armor on the battlefield.¡±


    Liu Bai raised his eyebrows slightly and said, ¡°He has been using all means to save energy, pursuing to kill the enemy more simply, being stingy to the extreme, being calm and focused, and refusing to let go of the subtle changes in the battle. The calction is clear to the extreme. He seems more like a shrewd businessman like this.¡±


    The Sword Garret disciples listened to their teacher¡¯s teachings in silence.


    They had been shocked by the man in front of the Verdant Canyon. Even if they were in the enemy camp, they could not help but admire and look up to him. Even though their teacher would always be the most powerful man to them, they felt a little ufortable listening to their teacher describe the man in this way.


    However, no one dared to question him.


    Liu Bai¡¯s voice rang again.


    The disciples of the Sword Garret were shocked speechless by what the statement implied.


    ¡°I respect an opponent who fights with this attitude very much.¡±


    Liu Bai looked towards the Verdant Canyon and said seriously, ¡°I even regret. I shouldn¡¯t have let him kill so many people in a day and a night, or maybe I should have acted yesterday.¡±

 Chapter 748 - Cage of Ten Thousand Swords

    <h4>Chapter 748: Cage of Ten Thousand Swords</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Liu Bai stood up.


    The disciples of the Sword Garret turned serious when recalling the words their teacher had said previously. They knew that he had decided not to wait anymore, which meant that the fiercest battle in the cultivation field was about to happen.


    It was at this moment that the voile on the divine chariot were pulled open. Out of the veil came Ye Hongyu, and she walked into the field.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army which was once depressed turned silent for a moment, and then they burst into cheers.


    Ye Hongyu was the real genius in Haotian Taoism. She was Prince Long Qing¡¯s greatestpetition, and thest opponent Ning Que would like to face. Cheng Pipi was the record holder of being the youngest person to reach the Knowing Destiny State, but if Ye Hongyu had wanted to, she could have broken Cheng Pipi¡¯s record.


    That might not sound persuasive enough, but it had been proved that Ye Hongyu could achieve whatever she wanted. For example, she wanted to be the Great Divine Priest of Judgment.


    Seeing Ye Hongyu show up on the field, Liu Bai stopped moving forward, folding his hands at his back.


    Liu Bai didn¡¯t like those bigwigs in the West-Hill Pce, including the Hierarch Lord. Ye Hongyu might be the only one in there that he liked, or admired.


    He was closely connected with Ye Hongyu not because he was the one who had drawn the paper sword in the letter whichter helped Ye Hongyu to get on the ck jade throne in the verdict of the Divine Pce. It was because he knew that Ye Hongyu was never limited within the realm of the sword, and she had already seeded in the Divine Skills of Haotian Taoism.


    Liu Bai still thought that Jun Mo was more powerful than Ye Hongyu. But he also thought that after Jun Mo said ¡°you¡¯re no match for me¡± yesterday, it was possible that Ye Hongyu could win if she chose to fight at the moment.


    He wondered what Ye Hongyu would do.


    And he was eager to know the result of the fight between Ye Hongyu and Jun Mo.


    So again, he chose to witness the battle.


    The morale of the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army had been cut seriously by the iron sword outside the Verdant Canyon. But the soldiers cheered up again when Ye Hongyu came into their sights.


    Ye Hongyu walked towards the canyon, and she didn¡¯t stop until she reached the center of the field.


    Overwhelming cheers came from behind her, getting louder and louder, but then the cheers stopped.


    Numerous eyes filled with tremendous excitement and expectation looked at the scarlet Divine Robe of Judgement she was wearing.


    She could make such arge impact on the Coalition Army¡¯s morale just by standing out there because she was the Great Divine Priest of West-Hill Pce. This was so even though she was the youngest Great Divine Priest of Judgement in the history of West-Hill Pce.


    The Great Divine Priest of West-Hill Pce was the position that countless cultivators of Haotian Taoism looked up to, and Haotian believers took the Great Divine Priest as their god. They couldn¡¯t possibly think that their god would lose the fight to a mortal.


    There were unobservable deployments in the Military camp of the Coalition Army. Tens of thousands of people flowed out of the camp and into the most forefront part of the battlefield. They watched what was happening in the field with excitement, with spears and pikes in their hands.


    The cheers and noisy chatter ceased.


    The whole world was quiet.


    Then a knocking sound rang.


    That was the sound of the end of spears hitting the ground.


    A growing number of people were hitting the ground with the weapons in their hands, and it was bing louder and louder.


    Tens of thousands of spears and pikes hit the ground, and the ground started to shake.


    The impacting sounds were disordered at first, but they eventually grew in-order, and the beat became faster. Atst, it ended with the loudest and heaviest sound.


    Boom!


    The sound which was once like beating war drums finally rumbled like thunder.


    And just at the thundering moment.


    Ye Hongyu pulled out her sword.


    Faced with a horrible opponent like Jun Mo, Ye Hongyu had to make sure that she had waved the sword at her best.


    While she was waving, her ck hair banded by the Golden Divine Crown was blown backwards and danced in the wind.


    Her eyes lit up, and deep inside her eyes, two sparks of the Divine Light started ming. In the golden mes it could be seen that the purest soul was dancing.


    She had waved out the sword, but the Taoist Sword was still in her hand.


    The thin Taoist Sword didn¡¯t turn into a long rainbow and fly to the Verdant Canyon, neither did it vanish in the wind. It was held in her hand, pointing at the man in the far-away Verdant Canyon.


    The Taoist Sword wasn¡¯t drawn out.


    But the swords were.


    The sky was gloomy.


    And the field before the green mountains looked bleak.


    Suddenly, thousands of turbulence arose between the heaven and earth, heading straight to the Verdant Canyon.


    A white turbulence was a sword mark.


    Ye Hongyu figured out the boundaries of Heaven and Earth with the Divine Light, and she waved out sword marks with Haotian Divine Skills.


    Hundreds of sword marks flew over the field, crossing the corpses littering the ground and blood stains, and flew directly towards the Verdant Canyon.


    More sword marks soared directly into heaven. When they were reaching the dark cloudyers, they fell in perfect arches like arrows, heading directly towards the Verdant Canyon.


    These sword marks were closer to heaven. They took in the daylight in the cloudyers and reflected it into colorful rays which looked like real light swords.


    It was as beautiful as a dream.


    Countless solemn and pure sword marks were given out by the point of the Taoism Sword held by Ye Hongyu. Some of the marks were slow, and some were swift. Some of them soared into heaven and some leaned on the Earth. All of them were heading directly to Jun Mo.


    Watching the incredible scene, cheers burst out from the Military camp of the West-Hill Pce Coalition Army.


    However, Liu Bai frowned with confusion.


    Jun Mo¡¯s armor was the best in the world.


    The bloody and dusty armor needed no more than a flutter of a breeze to shine as if it were new.


    The shining armor reflected the scene of the world around like a mirror.


    The dismal sky above the green mountains.


    The field soaked in red blood.


    And hundreds of solemn and pure sword marks.


    Those bright sword marks looked extremely gorgeous with the dismal sky as the background.


    It was like a festival¡¯s firework disy.


    The reflection on the armor grew brighter and brighter, indicating that those sword marks were approaching.


    Second Brother looked up at the sky and did nothing.


    This might be a mere moment in many people¡¯s eyes, but he had been waiting for long.


    He was waiting for the moment when tens of thousands of sword marks converged and became one.


    Yet the moment never came.


    When he was sure that the tens of thousands of sword marks wouldn¡¯t converge, he raised his eyebrows.


    And that was the first time that his expression had changed since the fight began.


    Because he still wondered why Ye Hongyu had so many swords.


    People in the same realm as he and Ye Hongyu knew what real power was.


    Beauty, like the fireworks reflected on the armor, was not real power.


    Purity, like the Divine Light in her eyes, was not real power.


    Magnificence, like the tens of thousands of astonishing sword marks flying in heaven and over the earth, was not real power.


    The real power was concentration.


    The fireworks made of thousands of Taoism Swords were based on Ye Hongyu¡¯s high-level West-Hill Divine Skill. It was too magnificent, and too broad to concentrate.


    Like the storm in the summer of Chang¡¯an. The rain poured heavily and frighteningly, but it went off fast. And it barely left a mark on the old city wall.


    Like the water dripping off the eaves of the Academy, they were silent but continuous, and after thousands of years, the stone under the eaves would be perforated by these droplets.


    The Second Brother had never fought with Ye Hongyu before.


    And with the help of Ning Que, he saw the sword Liu Bai had drawn for Ye Hongyu. And he also knew it from Ning Que what Ye Hongyu was like.


    The girl had dared to go straight into the verdict of the Divine Hall for the throne as soon as she hadprehended Liu Bai¡¯s sword style. As such, he thought that she was definitely the most powerful amongst the younger generation.


    She was more powerful than Pipi.


    She was more powerful than Ning Que.


    Or she wouldn¡¯t have understood what real power was.


    Her most powerful strike had to be a single sword.


    And it couldn¡¯t be so many swords.


    Second Brother was waiting for the tens of thousands of sword marks to converge into one.


    He decided to defeat her when she waved out her most powerful sword.


    Only by that could he feel the pleasure.


    Yet Ye Hongyu didn¡¯t move as he expected.


    And he still wondered why.


    Second Brother was sure that he could beat her even if she executed her most powerful strike. But now Ye Hongyu¡¯s swords appeared in the tens of thousands, and that was to say that the girl had lost it because there was no chance that she could win.


    Suddenly, Second Brother understood.


    Ye Hongyu wasn¡¯t fighting to win today in the first ce.


    <i>¡°She dropped her pride so calmly just for the final victory. Isn¡¯t that a kind of pride too?¡±</i>


    Second Brother thought to himself, and he looked at the tens of thousands of sword marks approaching the Verdant Canyon, saying, ¡°Is this the Cage?¡±


    He raised the iron sword in his hand and waved it at the Cage Array made up of tens of thousands of sword marks, and he looked serious.


    It was not because of the Cage.


    It was because of the mental state Ye Hongyu had hidden behind the Cage Array.


    The Cage was one of the mostplicated and powerful tactical arrays of the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    Ke Haoran had simted his Cage Array with the Haoran Sword, and it trapped Master Lotus for more than ten years. The former Great Divine Priest of Judgement also used the Cage Array to trap Wei Guangming in the Peach Mountain for more than ten years.


    Ye Hongyu built the Cage Array with tens of thousands of sword marks, and her inspiration was the Haoran Sword marks she saw at the front gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. While she had reached the peak of the Knowing Destiny State now, she still had a long way to go before she grew as powerful as Ke Haoran, and she was even no match for the former Great Divine Priest of Judgement now.


    She killed the old Great Divine Priest of Judgement and became the new one because she had taken the advantage of the serious injuries the former Great Divine Priest had gained from Wei Guangming¡¯s breaking out of his Cage Array.


    In her present state, she could trap countless powerhouses to death in her Cage Array, but she was still not powerful enough to trap Second Brother of the Academy, which was to say she would definitely lose the fight.


    But she was not afraid of losing.


    And just like what Second Brother had perceived in the end, she had not thought of winning the fight in the first ce.


    It would be a shame for a Great Divine Priest of West-Hill to lose the fight while being watched by tens of thousands of believers.


    But she didn¡¯t care.


    It was impossible for her Cage Array to trap Second Brother forever, but at least she could trap him for a moment.


    And a moment was all she wanted.


    The precious moment was enough for the West-Hill Pce Coalition Army to do many things.


    Like thousands of cavalries charging.


    When the sound of Chinese zither and bamboo flute rang somewhere in the Verdant Canyon...


    In the divine chariot, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion reached out his fingers and turned the West-Hill Scripture before him to some page.

 Chapter 749 - Confidence Making One Not Alone

    <h4>Chapter 749: Confidence Making One Not Alone</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Etiquette literally meant to figure out the order.


    Second Brother valued Etiquette, so he knew the order. He followed rules strictly, but that wouldn¡¯t influence him on learning new things. Tens of thousands of sword marks fell from the sky and into the earth around him. The sword marks weaved an airtight cage. His eyes were looking out of the Cage and his sight fell on Ye Hongyu and the Divine Robe of Judgement she was in. He had read her hidden intentions.


    All of this was ording to the West-Hill Pce¡¯s ns.


    And to be specific, all of this was in the calction of Ye Hongyu, because no matter whether Jun Mo was prideful or calm, he would always want to pull out his sword and defeat Ye Hongyu, the most powerful one here.


    So she seeded in dying the time before Jun Mo pulled out his sword.


    Momentster tens of thousands of sword marks had turned into the Cage Array, and it was toote for Jun Mo to change the way he moved.


    Her first strike was already the tens of thousands of swords marks, and she never had the intention to converge them in one. She deliberately met the mental state of her opponent, and she realized her own n. Her start of the fight was nearly perfect.


    She dropped her pride and dignity as the Great Divine Priest of West-Hill, and she traded the advantage at a risk of failure. It would cost the powerful Second Brother some time to get out of the Cage Array.


    The ground started to shake, and the clopping sound was thundering from outside the sword shield. It could be vaguely seen that numerous cavalries were rushing out of the Coalition Army camp and they were overwhelming.


    The cavalries of the Coalition Army flowed to the mouth of the Verdant Canyon like a tidal wave.


    That was the fiercest strike from the West-Hill Coalition Army since the war of the Verdant Canyon started. Since Second Brother was now trapped in the Cage, could the sound of the zither and flute be as powerful still?


    Under the shelter at the mouth of the Verdant Canyon, Beigong Weiyang and Ximen Buhuo were ying the Chinese zither and blowing the vertical bamboo flute peacefully. Their hands pressed the strings and held the flute gently even though they could hear the clop of hooves getting closer and closer.


    Beigong Weiyang¡¯s fingertips flickered, and then a faint note left the string and shot away like an arrow.


    Ximen Buhuo inclined his body and a dim note came out of the flute like water.


    At this moment, a hoarse voice rang out on the field.


    The voice came to the field all of a sudden. It crossed the field and reached the mouth of the Verdant Canyon as if it had been ordered.


    In the Military camp in the south of the field, the voile on the divine chariot swayed.


    A hoarse voice came out of the divine chariot. The voice was full of the aura of solemnity and sacredness, making people feel awe-stricken.


    ¡°If you¡¯re going to start a journey in the wilderness, you¡¯ll deal with all things you have to get over with...¡±


    More than ten powerful priests in red sat cross-legged around the chariot, concentrating on the voice in the divine chariot, and they prayed again and again. Their voices echoed.


    In the chariot, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion looked at the scripture before him expressionlessly. Then he continued, ¡°The seeds on the field are food Haotian gifted us; the echoes in the canyon is the instruction Haotian sent us by wind; now you shall march into the depravednd; and you, the believers of Haotian, shall do as Haotian orders.¡±


    Ten more priests in red repeated the verse again and again.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion then said, ¡°For all those who try to perturb you with the sound and all those who try to instruct you for Haotian, they are all sinners, and they shall be punished by the fury of Haotian along with the other sinners.¡±


    The chanting of the priests in red outside the chariot grew more and more unified and cold.


    ¡°...shall be punished by Haotian¡¯s fury.¡±


    A few notes just came out of the zither, and a short piece of melody just flowed out of the flute before they were interrupted by the hoarse voice ringing in the Verdant Canyon magically.


    All the disciples of the Academy were well-read. And it took just a few words for them to figure out that this were the Verses of Punishing the Sinners from the Old Oath of Alliance from the West-Hill Scripture. The expression on Fourth Brother¡¯s face changed dramatically. Then he raised the Sandbox in his hand, and prepared to blow sand to interrupt the chanting.


    However, the revtion of Haotian didn¡¯te tangibly, nor did the sound of the preaching of the West-Hill Pce. It came as nothing but the hoarse voice which no one was able to interrupt.


    Beigong Weiyang suddenly paled, and fear emerged in his eyes. Both of his arms trembled uncontrobly, and the strings on the Chinese zither broke from the middle.


    Ximen Buhuo was not as powerful as Beigong, so he felt even more pain. He moaned and blood came out of his lips. The blood flowed into the bamboo flute and dripped down from an end. Ximen Buhuo then fell onto the ground.


    The Coalition Army, which was running on the field and charged towards the Verdant Canyon, had also heard the solemn revtion, but they were rarely influenced, and instead, they became even more violent and fearless.


    The cavalry formed a tide that seemed to have encountered a hurricane. The tide elerated, heading straight for the Verdant Canyon!


    The revtion echoed over the field, and that was when the Second Brother was sure that this was a trick of the Great Divine Priest of Revtion.


    The battle for the Verdant Canyon had been going for long, but the two bigwigs of the West-Hill Pce had not made their move yet. Now all of a sudden, they attacked together!


    Second Brother looked even more serious.


    While he was prideful and powerful enough, he didn¡¯t have the confidence to face the two Great Divine Priests alone. Furthermore, the battle here at the Verdant Canyon today was more than a fight among the bigwigs; it was a battle between armies.


    He raised the iron sword in his hand and waved it at the Cage Array weaved by tens of thousands of sword marks.


    Every time the iron sword cut down, tens or even hundreds of sword lights would break and disappear. Given some time, he could easily break out of the Cage, and defeat Ye Hongyu.


    But now the cavalries had arrived and the sound of the zither and flute had ceased. If he kept concentrating on the Cage, those younger sisters and brothers of his would definitely be crushed by the cavalries.


    He couldn¡¯t allow that to happen.


    He couldn¡¯t afford to waste more time in the Cage, not even a short moment, he had to break out of the array immediately.


    However, as powerful as he was, it was impossible for him to break out of the Cage in an instant. It was impossible for the iron sword in his hand to cut through the sword shield immediately, no matter how tough the sword was.


    So he withdrew the iron sword.


    And he stopped trying to cut through the Cage Array with the iron sword.


    He looked at Ye Hongyu outside the sword shield silently. Then he retracted all his aura back into his body!


    Now he was no longer the Jun Mo whose sword style was second to none.


    He was an ordinary person now.


    Ye Hongyu guessed what he was going to do immediately, and she turned serious, too.


    The Cage Array that had fallen from heaven was weaved by tens of thousands of sword lights. It was aplicated and powerful array; the sword lights themselves carried their own sword style.


    When the Second Brother held back all his aura and drew back the iron sword, he gave up confronting the Cage. Then, the sword shield weaved by tens of thousands of sword lights suddenly copsed toward the center; tens of thousands of swords stabbing towards his body.


    He was going to resist the tens of thousands of light swords with his body.


    Only in this way could he break out of the Cage Array in the shortest moment.


    However, he would end up miserable if he resisted the tens of thousands of light swords of Ye Hongyu even if he had been as powerful as Tang or Xia Hou in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Second Brother¡¯s body was no different from the ordinary person, how could he resist that?


    The reflection of fireworks shone on the bright armor. While the Cage Array was copsing, the light swords suddenly became dense. They looked so bright that they might burn any time soon.


    In a short period of time, the armor Second Brother wore gave out endless Talisman Intent. It collided with countless light swords in heaven, bringing out numerous turbulences of Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!


    Tens of thousands of light swords fell on the surface of the armor, giving out dense grating and cutting sounds and some buzzing sound like tiny thunders. That sounded quite terrifying.


    The ground on which the Second Brother stood suddenly copsed. Ten more pieces of crushed stone were shattered. And the grass soaked in blood had already turned into ashes and flown away.


    With the armor on him radiating numerous feverish rays, it looked like the Second Brother was burning in fire, and no one could see what was happening in the fire.


    Later on, the broad and straight iron sword came back into the sight of people.


    That iron sword had cut through the mes caused by the collision of the armor and the countless light swords. It had cut through the cold air on the field, and had cut through the howling wind, heading right at the face of Ye Hongyu.


    As the iron sword swung out, Second Brother¡¯s figure showed up in the mes.


    He did not go forward.


    On the contrary, he took a step back.


    He had not taken one single step backwards since the battle started, no matter how many enemies he had been faced with.


    He had finally taken a step back now.


    He did not take a step back because there was no way behind.


    He had taken the step back now because his Younger Brothers and Sisters at the mouth of the Verdant Canyon needed his protection.


    The cavalry of West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army had reached him.


    He looked up, raised his sword and started the killing again.


    There was still no excessive expression on his face.


    He waved his sword carefully, without a single slight mistake.


    But his armor had be charred and looked ragged.


    The Divine Robe of Judgement was fluttering on the field and gathered like a red lotus.


    The sword styleing from the distance carried the unique killing aura of the iron sword. It flew around the red lotus and killed it, and then disappeared.


    Ye Hongyu paled slightly, and blood emerged at the corner of her lips.


    She used tens of thousands of light swords to make the Cage Array, but it had been broken by Jun Mo so easily.


    This was what she had never expected, but there was no shock or disappointment on her face. Instead, she smiled peacefully.


    She stopped watching the fight in the Verdant Canyon and turned around to go back to her own divine chariot.


    She had gotten what she wanted.


    As the main force of the Academy, Jun Mo was, of course, a tough opponent for the cavalries to deal with, but what bugged the cavalries most was the sound of the Chinese zither and the bamboo flute. The n of the West-Hill Pce today was to let Ye Hongyu fight Jun Mo, and then to let the cavalries charge to lure the zither and flute, and atst, to break the zither and flute with the revtion chanted by the priest in red led by the Great Divine Priest of Revtion.


    The whole n had been executed perfectly.


    Although Jun Mo broke out of the Cage Array earlier than she expected, she did not care because the strings had already been broken and the flute was dripping blood. And the two disciples of the Academy had no power to fight anymore.


    Furthermore, she believed that although Jun Mo looked just fine, he must have suffered a heavy injury.


    Because that was her sword.


    And her Cage.


    Jun Mo must¡¯ve paid a great price for this unexpected way to get out of the Cage no matter how powerful he was. Ye Hongyu was quite sure about that.


    Because she was most confident in her fighting abilities.

 Chapter 750 - The Best of the Best (Part I)

    <h4>Chapter 750: The Best of the Best (Part I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The oue of the fight in the Verdant Canyon had already been doomed. The sound of Chinese zithers and bamboo flutes had vanished. And no one was able to resist the charge of tens of thousands of cavalries; not Jun Mo, even if he hadn¡¯t been injured; not Liu Bai, even if he would be willing to change his g now.


    The Academy could only draw back into the Verdant Canyon for temporary shelter, but the West-Hill Pce had already prepared for this.


    Since the result had already been settled, Ye Hongyu cared no more about what was happening in the Verdant Canyon. She walked to the divine chariot slowly and peacefully, and her steps were firm though she was injured.


    She still had a long way to go before she could catch up with the cultivation state of Jun Mo¡¯s, but she was good at fighting. And the key point was that she was calm, and she did not restrict the fight to just between the both of them out of pride.


    This was also the fight between the West-Hill Pce and the Academy.


    She wasn¡¯t fighting for herself.


    So the fight had to be ended with the victory of the West-Hill Pce.


    Numerous cavalries arrived, bringing dust and shaking the Verdant Canyon.


    Second Brother was standing at the front of the Verdant Canyon. His iron sword had long left his hand, turning into a dark sword light, shuttling back and forth on the broad open field.


    As heavy as the iron sword was, it shuttled so fast that its edge which seemed blunt tore those armors like paper as soon as it touched them, and blood incessantly seeped out of the torn armors.


    The sword barely touched those enemies, but wherever it passed, those cavalries fell onto the ground like small hills, with their chest bones copsing. And those war-horses hit by the iron sword kept falling down.


    The sound of heavy objects falling onto the ground came from the Verdant Canyon from time to time, with more dust and moans of people. The iron sword shuttled, and no one knew how many cavalries had fallen off the horses and died, or how many war-horses had neighed miserably and fallen onto the ground.


    Yet the power of a human being was after all limited.


    The speed and angle of Second Brother¡¯s flying sword showed no signs of slowing down, but other people knew that the Psyche Power in his sense of perception was being consumed at an unbelievable speed, and if he kept doing this, his Psyche Power would drain up no matter how vigorous he was.


    What was more fearful was that the cavalries of the Divine Pce had charged at the fearful iron sword regardless of their own lives. That was probably because of their vision of victory or because of the inspiration drawn from the revtion made by the Great Divine Priest of Relevation. The number of the cavalries flowing to the Verdant Canyon had exceeded the rate of Second Brother¡¯s killing.


    Several cavalries had gotten rid of the iron sword. They passed by Second Brother, and charged violently toward the Verdant Canyon.


    Second Brother waved his right hand. He did not call back the iron sword, but instead, the iron sword was operated to cut horizontally, cutting more than ten cavalries into halves like harvesting straw.


    Then he looked to those cavalries for a moment.


    Long ago, Ning Que asked his teacher Yan Se how powerful Second Brother was as a man at the peak of the Knowing Destiny State. Master Yan Se considered it for a while before answering, ¡°You¡¯re dead once heys his eyes on you.¡±


    Then Second Brother took a nce at the cavalries.


    The Psyche Power from his sense of perception flew to the cavalries and went right into their brains. Those cavalries were not cultivators, but they had brains, so they died.


    This was just one scene of the whole battle, like a corner of a stormy ocean which had little influence on the overall situation. When countless cavalries charged regardless of their own lives, nothing could survive from it.


    As Xu Shi and Chen Pipi once said, no cultivator in the world could resist the charging cavalries unless the cultivator was over the Five States and was in the Beyond Mortality State.


    Xu Shi was the most powerful man in the military force of the Empire of Tang, and nobody knew the power of the cavalries better than he did. Chen Pipi was the youngest genius of Haotian Taoism, and he knew the rules of cultivation better than anyone else.


    The conclusion drawn by the two men could stand the test.


    Second Brother was powerful. He had reached the highest point of the Five States and had stood at the peak of Knowing Destiny State for many years. He would be qualified to challenge the Sword Sage, Liu Bai, but he had not crossed the threshold.


    He was waving the iron sword before tens of thousands of cavalries; his armor had turned ck and torn. He was slowly bing pale, like a ck rock in roaring waves that could be crushed at anytime.


    Nobody knew if the Headmaster did this deliberately or not, but the disciples on the Second floor of the Academy, who had reached the peak in their own field for many years, could make the perfect and most powerfulbination when united.


    With mere changes, thebination of the disciples on the Second floor of the Academy could deal with powerhouses like the Abbey Dean of the Zhishou Abbey or the Chief Preaching Monk; they could also keep soldiers numbering tens of thousands from marching one step closer just like what they were doing before the Verdant Canyon.


    It was a pity that thebination, which could defeat every enemy, had been split because they were too busy saving the Tang Empire from attacks from all other countries in the world.


    Several of them fought with the Hierarch of the West-Hill Pce in the back of the mountain of the Academy.


    Eldest Brother fought the most powerful opponent of the Academy.


    The disciples who showed up before the Verdant Canyon might be powerful, but they were not the perfectbination. They were not wless, and the w had been caught by Ye Hongyu today.


    The roles Beigong Weiyang and Ximen Buhuo yed on the battlefield in the Verdant Canyon were crucial. While their cultivation states weremon, they yed very important roles.


    Because they were the only two living in the world who hadprehended Haotian Taoism through tonality.


    And they were the w.


    Because they were irreceable.


    And Ye Hongyu had bet her personal failure and life on getting rid of them.


    Beigong Weiyang and Ximen Buhuo sat under the shelter. They looked pale and there was blood all over the ce before them.


    Beigong looked in pain and resentful. He reached out his trembling fingers and tried to rearrange the strings on the Chinese zither, only to find that his power had been used up.


    One single string couldn¡¯t possibly make a melody.


    Wang Chi held pills in his both hands. He fed his Senior Brothers with the pills nervously, saying in a shaking voice, ¡°It¡¯s OK.¡±


    Sixth Brother held a hammer and was standing in the front of the shelter. He silently looked at the battlefield not far away. When seeing the charging cavalries getting rid of the iron sword approaching, his hands clenched.


    Mu You was staring at the vague figure of her Second Brother who was going to leave at any moment. Worry and tension were all over her beautiful face. Her finger which was pulling the red string was shaking.


    If those cavalries kept approaching, the tactical array she was holding would be thest defense of the Academy disciples.


    And she knew clearly that the cavalries were too many and their impact too powerful. It was impossible for the array to resist the enemies alone.


    Fourth Brother was a designer of the array and he knew the situation very well. So instead of looking at the battlefield or the red string in Mu You¡¯s hand, he kept doing calctions on the Sandbox, eyebrows tightly knitted.


    As Ye Hongyu had nned, he found himself unable to work out any way to solve the current crisis.


    The Chinese zither¡¯s strings had been broken, and the bamboo flute was dripping blood. No one in the world could make the zither and the flute ring again.


    But at the bottom of every desperate pit there was always a silver lining.


    Sometimes a dead well would give out fresh water that would change the whole story.


    And when the cavalries were about to reach the Verdant Canyon.


    And when everyone thought that the Chinese zither and bamboo flute would never sound again.


    Out of the depths of the Verdant Canyon came the sound of the zither.


    The sound was clear and peaceful.


    But everyone there felt astonished or fearful when they heard it.


    Here came the gentle autumn breeze.


    A schr walked into the Verdant Canyon.


    He was in a dusty cotton jacket.


    He had walked over mountains and rivers on his straw sandals.


    His waterdle had broken into pieces after knocking down Master Qi Mei who had grown almost as powerful as Buddhas.


    He had only a wooden rod on his waist.


    He walked towards Beigong and picked up the Chinese zither. Then he held it in his arms and yed it with his right hand.


    There was just one string left on the zither.


    And that was what his finger was ying with.


    The string vibrated and buzzed.


    Then his finger pressed, and the string vibrated again.


    There was just one string left on the zither.


    But he had made a melody out of it.


    The melody was moderate, peaceful, and of extreme elegance.


    On the field in the south.


    In the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army camp the Chinese zither rang.


    The harmony of the melody was like the lofty mountain and flowing water.


    Nobody would guess that the sound was made out of one string.


    The ten priests in red around the chariot looked fearful upon hearing the sound of the zither, and they stopped their hymns immediately.


    The grand divine chariot suddenly looked shabby due to the elegant melody.


    Deep behind the voile of the chariot, the wrinkles on the Great Divine Priest of Revtion¡¯s face were deepening at an unbelievable speed as the melody went on.


    There was a cracking sound. Then the floor of the chariot broke, and it fell heavily on the ground.


    In the front of the Verdant Canyon.


    With the booming sound, countless cavalries were hitting the ground heavily.


    The peaceful and elegant sound of the zither carried no killing aura at all, but it had killed numerous people.


    The field was as silent as death.


    Only the sound of the zither echoed.


    All the soldiers in the Coalition Army were too shocked to say anything.


    Ye Hongyu was standing on the field, she suddenly turned back and looked at the Verdant Canyon, with disbelief all over her face.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion who seemed much older than before looked out of the voile and into the Verdant Canyon, mumbling, ¡°Why is he here? Where¡¯s the Abbey Dean?¡±


    Beside the quiet horse carriage.


    Liu Bai looked at the Verdant Canyon and sighed, ¡°You¡¯re so lucky to have seen Mr. First striking, and to my surprise, he learned how to kill.¡±


    The sound of the zither became fainter and fainter, like the swans gliding away.


    It was at that moment when the cavalries on the field started screaming. Numerous cavalries, lying beside their war-horses, were struggling.


    Eldest Brother grew silent when seeing the scene.


    Ye Hongyu was right. Beigong Weiyang and Ximen Buhuo were the ws before the Verdant Canyon, because they were the only two living in the world who hadprehended Haotian Taoism through tonality, and they were irreceable.


    But she did not know one thing.


    When the disciples of the Academy cultivated at the back of the mountain, they did not do it all by themselves. All the disciples had be the most powerful in their own fields before the Headmaster took them in as his core disciples. Now that they were willing to enter the Academy and study, that meant they were sure that they could learn better knowledge in the Academy.


    And that meant that someone in the Academy was qualified to instruct them.


    And that was to say, that man was better than them in all fields that they used to dominate.


    That man wasn¡¯t the Headmaster.


    The Headmaster was surely knowledgeable, but he was azy and irresponsible teacher.


    He had taught the Eldest and Second Brother by himself, and he started to loaf on the job when he met the Third Sister, Yu Lian. And as for the core disciples he had taken after that, he basically taught them nothing.


    It was someone else that had been teaching those disciples.


    The man was named Li Manman.


    He was the Eldest Brother of the Academy.


    Over the years, he had been teaching the disciples on behalf of the Headmaster.


    He was good at almost everything that the disciples at the back of the mountain were good at, except for Talisman Taoism and fighting.


    No matter whether it was the zither, Go, calligraphy, painting, cooking, or making tea.


    He was good at all of them.


    And he was the best among all.


    He was the best in the world.

 Chapter 751 - A Head-On Blow

    <h4>Chapter 751: A Head-On Blow</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Eldest Brother put down the Chinese zither. He pped his hands and transferred his aura into the body of Beigong and Ximen. And then he bowed his head in silence and started to repair the zither and the flute.


    Jun Mo had blood all over his body. He returned from the field and saluted his Eldest Brother.


    That was when everyone else from the Academy gathered their wits and they all saluted Eldest Brother.


    Eldest Brother saluted back, saying, ¡°Thanks for all the efforts you¡¯ve made.¡±


    Judging by the blood stains on Eldest Brother¡¯s cotton jacket, the people knew that he must have had a risky and hard fight with the Abbey Dean. The fight might have been more dangerous and harder than the battle they faced, so everyone was worried.


    Eldest Brother didn¡¯t want other people to worry about him. He looked up at the roof of the shelter, saying, ¡°This looks like a sunshade we use at the back of the mountain, but you all are using this to block arrows. It¡¯s not bad, but you have to watch out for the flying swords.¡±


    Then he rearranged the tactical array before the Verdant Canyon.


    The autumn breeze came again, and cotton was leaking out of the sword cuts on his jacket. The cotton shivered in the wind, and melted in the air like shadows.


    Eldest Brother disappeared from under the shelter.


    On the field before the mountains, the red divine robe fluttered. Ye Hongyu had summoned the Taoism Sword to guard her Taoist Heart. She looked quite serious because she knew that man would show up before her any time soon.


    South of the field, in the camp of the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army, the disciples of the Sword Garret were looking up to the sky warily. Liu Bai was sitting peacefully beside yesterday¡¯s ashes. He looked calm, with the sheathed sword resting on his legs.


    Nobody knew where Mr. First of the Academy had gone to.


    But everybody could guess that Mr. First would definitelye here.


    The next moment.


    Eldest Brother¡¯s figure showed up in the south of the field. In the camp of the Coalition Army, out of the heavy voile, his eyes locked on the old Great Divine Priest of Revtion in the depths of the divine chariot. Then he pulled out the short wooden rod on his waist.


    The Great Divine Priest looked out of the voile and at the schr. The wrinkles on his face were deepening.


    More than ten priests in red yelled and screamed as they jumped towards the divine chariot.


    Eldest Brother didn¡¯t react. He was holding the rod in his hand, looking at the Great Divine Priest of Revtion through the voile.


    The priests in red flew backwards like stones that were thrown out, and then they fell heavily onto the ground, causing dirt and dust to fly. All of them went faint with a clear red print of a rod on their foreheads.


    The star light deep inside the eyes of the Great Divine Priest of Revtion suddenly started to burn, and wherever his sight reached, everything including the voile started to burn in Haotian Divine Fire, blocking Eldest Brother outside.


    Eldest Brother raised the wooden rod in his hand.


    His cotton jacket was shaking, leaving a shadow on the spot he stood.


    It might seem that he was still standing outside of the chariot, and standing out of the burning voile.


    But on the other side of the shadow, another ¡°Eldest Brother¡± had walked across the fire and showed up before the Great Divine Priest of Revtion.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion looked at him, and chanted expressionlessly, ¡°He who believes in Haotian...¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°Confucius never spoke of...¡±


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion said nothing more.


    Eldest Brother raised the wooden rod and attacked.


    Looking at the approaching wooden rod, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion came up with 4,892 possibilities at the moment.


    The scripture before him was radiating endless brightness.


    So he hid himself in the brightness.


    It cost him damage to his Taoist Heart to see into the future, so he tried to avoid the 4,892 possibilities.


    Eldest Brother stood before him with the rod raised in his hand, and then he simply knocked down.


    The strike might look simple, but actually, it was beyondplicated.


    In a mere moment, the short rod had been waved 4,893 times.


    And then all in one strike.


    A dull shing sound came out of the divine chariot.


    Countless turbulences of the Qi of Heaven and Earth burst out like tornados. The burnt veil flew on the field like charred butterflies.


    The scripture which had been radiating endless brightness was torn into pieces, and flew in the autumn wind.


    The body of the Great Divine Priest of Revtion reappeared in the divine chariot. He sat with his legs crossed, his body soaked in blood.


    Eldest Brother¡¯s rod had hit on his forehead, and his Taoist Heart.


    One single rod had caused incurable injuries on the Great Divine Priest of Revtion.


    The blood wasn¡¯t very thick, and it might even seem a little thin. The blood flowed in the wrinkles on his face as if pouring rain had suddenly befallen a piece of dry witherednd.


    But he looked as peaceful as usual because he had seen the end when he first heard the zither.


    Long ago, when the Buddhism Sect and the Haotian Taoism ambushed Ning Que and Sangsang at the Yuelun Kingdom and the White Tower Temple, they almost seeded until the zither rang. And it was because of this sound that the whole story changed.


    Most stories in the world would be reyed again and again.


    ¡°Mr. First was indeed true to the name. The Academy was ambushed in the Verdant Canyon; of course you¡¯ve already set the coordinates. The Divine Pce ignored that, and of course we¡¯re going to lose because of ignorance.¡±


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion looked at the Eldest Brother and said.


    Eldest Brother wondered why the Great Divine Priest insisted on talking to him at this very moment, but he felt it rude if he didn¡¯t reply. So he replied, ¡°And the Abbey Dean is arrivingter on; I have to take the time to do something.¡±


    The quiet carriage was not far away from the divine chariot.


    Seeing the chariot burn and fall in ashes like autumn leaves, the Coalition Army burst into astonished exmations, and the disciples of the Sword Garret paled.


    Finally, the expression of Liu Bai changed, and he seemed not as peaceful as before.


    Like his emotion at this moment, the sword resting on his legs also felt the threat. It had be alerted and excited. Half of the sword had unsheathed, vibrating and buzzing.


    He had met Mr. First at the Sword Garret, in the autumn of two years ago.


    He stood beside the pool and Mr. First was standing before him.


    Mr. First could move across ten thousand miles freely, so could his sword.


    So although he had summoned back the flying sword, he was still in peace.


    Because he was sure that no matter how powerful Mr. First was, he couldn¡¯t be a threat to him.


    And he was surprised at the progress that the schr had made when meeting him again on the field before the green mountains. It was not until the divine chariot fell into ruins that he could make sure that...


    The gentle and cultivated guy had learned how to fight!


    A man who was good at everything, and could be the best in all fields except fighting had now learned how to fight. Could he be the best in the field of fighting, too?


    Who was going to be his match?


    Liu Bai reached out slowly to hold the vibrating hilt with joy and happiness on his face.


    He had such a greatpetitor in the world, and that was something worth celebrating.


    However, to his dismay, the fight didn¡¯t happen.


    Eldest Brother had left. He yed the killing melody with one single string and injured a Great Divine Priest with a wooden rod,ter leaving quietly.


    He came and left in a hurry.


    And as for the reason of the hustle.


    That was because of the Taoist who had shown up on the field before the Verdant Canyon.


    The Taoist was dressed in ck clothes.

 Chapter 752 - A Vastness of Yellow Sand, a Game Round

    <h4>Chapter 752: A Vastness of Yellow Sand, a Game Round</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    For these two days, there were always two people who showed up one after another on the sea inds, down at the foothill of Tile Mountain, in the small towns, in the cities and amid the green curtains of tall crops. All in all, they showed up in many ces around the world.


    The former one was dressed in a cotton jacket and while thetter wore an indigo Taoist robe.


    This was a fight far above the Five States, it was a chase between Limitless State cultivators.


    Though both being of the Limitless State, they still held some difference within this realm.


    Due to the fact that the Academy had already made some arrangements in advance, Eldest Brother had consequently strived for some time sessfully while being in front of Verdant Canyon today. But he knew that the time which he had won would certainly be extremely transient. That was the exact reason why he had to get off in a hurry.


    Right after the moment when Eldest Brother vanished, the Taoist in indigo then came to the front of the Verdant Canyon.


    Numerous gazes from all over the wilderness fell on that Taoist in indigo.


    This was the Abbey Dean of Zhishou Abbey, who hade to the public for the first time.


    Kneeling towards the Taoist in indigo located far away, Ye Hongyu lowered her head with reverence.


    Sounds of the friction between armors rustled and rattled like rippling wheat. Many people knelt down.


    The disciples of the Academy in front of the Verdant Canyon neither knelt down nor professed worship.


    Looking at this supreme powerhouse of Haotian Taoism silently, they wore pretty firm expressions on their faces, with theirplexion being slightly white.


    The Second Brother kept his eyes on the Taoist in indigo and walked out of the shelter, with the iron sword raised up in his hands.


    Taoist in indigo cast him a nce, without revealing any expression at all on his face.


    Then he turned around and looked towards the open field in the south. While looking at the divine carriage which was burning bright, he perceived the delicate and subtle change taking ce amid the aura of heaven and earth with a furrowed brow. All of a sudden, his Taoist Heart seemed to be somewhat restless.


    It was not due to the fact that the divine carriage had been destroyed nor the fact that the Great Divine Priest of Revtion had been severely wounded.


    For a Zhishou Abbey that hid from the world and maintained an observer¡¯s stance, it was only the belief of Haotian that genuinely mattered. It would never be counted as some big deal even if the West-Hill Divine Pce had been devastated.


    What made the Taoist in indigo feel restless was the end of Eldest Brother¡¯s next journey.


    With the slight disturbance to his Taoist Heart, the Taoist in indigo knew that he must leave at once. It meant that the time gap which the Academy side had calcted was so clear that there was no time left for him to make his moves.


    This was a goal which the Academy must achieve.


    Upon making his appearance in front of the Verdant Canyon, Eldest Brother immediately turned the tide destroying the most importantbat capability of the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    If the Taoist in indigo would have had time to make his moves, how many other disciples of the Academy in front of Verdant Canyon could still survive?


    The time gap was the final result which Eldest Brother and Fourth Brother had got after spending multiple nights¡¯ time on calctions, which both of them had deemed as free of issues.


    However, they still underestimated the state and strength of the Taoist in indigo.


    As the most supreme powerhouse of Haotian Taoism and one of the sovereigns who were only inferior to Haotian, he held a state that was too profound to be measured.


    In the previous n, the Academy was sure that while chasing after Eldest Brother, the Taoist in indigo must take his leave without any time left to make his move. To the Academy¡¯s surprise, the opponent actually could make his move and depart at the same time.


    Turning around and walking towards the south wilderness, he randomly waved back with his right hand.


    With his footstep treading on the spongy soil, the chilly autumn wind suddenly became cold. The autumn wind howling in front of him was frozen into thin snow all of a sudden, which softly fell down, amid which a door was looming up.


    That was exactly the passageway hiding within the turbulent flows of the Heaven and Earth¡¯s aura.


    That was exactly the passageway which could only be seen by those of Limitless State.


    As soon as the right foot of the Taoist in indigo stepped into the door, all had be empty in an instant.


    It seemed that he had stepped into the void from the numerous perspectives of the people in front of the Verdant Canyon.


    Looking at this scene which looked pretty much like a divine miracle, tens of thousands of people in the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army were shocked speechless.


    And at that exact moment, one more sword appeared in his right hand, which he swung back randomly.


    That was a sword formed by air freezing.


    The sword had already slipped out of his hand and to the shelter covered with arrows like the thatched cottage right in front of the Verdant Canyon.


    Deathly silence befell on the Verdant Canyon after the Taoist in indigo had shown up.


    Second Brother was the quietest one.


    Lowering his head in silence, he was staring at the stone lying on one and a half feet away from him.


    He did not look at the Taoist in indigo, because he wanted to keep his war intent and confidence to their fullest.


    Nor did he keep his eyes on the iron sword in his hand, because swords were not for watching.


    Second Brother moved after the Taoist in indigo had randomly thrown that flying sword.


    Raising his head all of a sudden, he kept his eyes on that flying sword which was formed by frozen air, with his iron sword trembling slightly.


    Would the iron sword which had exterminated hundreds of armies and thousands of horses be able to block the simple-looking Virtual Sword?


    No one knew the answer.


    Because the Virtual Sword which the Taoist in indigo had drawn out became a genuine void all of a sudden, right in front of Jun Mo¡¯s body. It pierced right through the location where he had been without any sound and was back to its essence right behind him, only to continue and stab under the awning!


    How incredibly inconceivable it was that this measure could actually make the Taoist Sword appear to have stepped into the Limitless State!


    When faced with such a flying sword which was too deeply profound to be understood, Second Brother did not wear a shocked expression on his face, let alone an expression of fear. Instead, with a slight frown, he seemed to look down upon his opponent.


    This Virtual Sword was indeed ingenious and this choice was indeed urate. Since it was a hasty and careless sword drawn before the Taoist in indigo¡¯s departure, he had to make sure that it should be a sword which could produce the greatest damage.


    The Taoist in indigo let Second Brother go because of this somewhat hasty and careless sword.


    In a sense, this was his respect for Second Brother.


    But from Second Brother¡¯s perspective, this was ridiculous. Based on his identity and state as being the Taoist in indigo, how extremely foolish and ridiculous of him was to go as far as to ponder on how to deal with them, who were merely disciples of the Academy.


    That was the reason why he had looked down on the man.


    <i>¡°Even if your state is far above mine, even if you are the Abbey Dean of Zhishou Abbey, even if you are the highest mountain in the cultivation world since the Headmaster has ascended to heaven, I just despise you.¡±</i>


    Regardless of how powerful, as long as they are stained with the aura of vulgarity, they will be treated like dirt by Second Brother.


    Of course, it doesn¡¯t mean much else.


    Knowing how horrifying the power of the Virtual Sword was, Second Brother raised his dashing eyebrows slightly.


    It was also due to the fact that the opponent had not been able to see through the tactical array in the iron shelter, that he consequently looked down on the Taoist in indigo.


    Though with this Virtual Sword having bypassed him, once the Sword was under the shelter, it would still be him who should bear the sword attack in the end.


    Because there was a red line tied to his feet all the time.


    While on the red line¡¯s other end, passing under the awning, it was corrted with all the Younger Brothers and Sisters.


    He had already made the preparation to bear that Virtual Sword.


    He was ready to be hurt.


    To be severely wounded.


    But he was not ready to die.


    Because if he died, there was no way that the Verdant Canyon could be kept safe.


    While disturbed by the Qi of Heaven and Earth carried over by the Virtual Sword, the broken arrows on the iron shelter streamed down from its edges as if they were falling sands, ending up as a waterfall of arrows.


    While inside the waterfall, Seventh Sister Mu You wore a pale look on her face with her hands holding tightly onto the red thread and pulling the line hard. With her fingers shaking badly, she kept her eyes firmly on the figure of the man who had been standing outside the shelter.


    All the physical assault which had been imposed on the awning, on her and her fellow disciples, with this iron shelter included, all would befall on Second Brother in the end. However, the person who Second Brother fought with this time was not a Sword Garret¡¯s discipleing from the South Jin Kingdom, but the Abbey Dean of the Zhishou Abbey who was a godlike guardian. Would Second Brother be able to endure his attack? How badly would he be wounded? Would he be fine or not?


    All of a sudden, she glimpsed an extremely shocking scene.


    The red thread hiding in the sand and mud had been secretly cut off by someone, and nobody knew when it happened!


    Fourth Brother¡¯s fingers just left his ankle.


    There was another red thread tied to his ankle.


    That red thread originally tied to Second Brother was fastened to Fourth Brother¡¯s ankle instead, which also meant that it would be Fourth Brother who was going to bear the Virtual Sword of the Taoist in indigo!


    Originally, the tactical array was designed by Fourth Brother along with his senior brothers and it took its final form in the end after revisions made by Eldest Brother. Mu You knew that all the changes Fourth Brother was making right now would not cause any problems at all.


    However, merely being in the Seethrough Realm, how would he be capable of warding off the blowing from Abbey Dean of the Zhishou Abbey?


    Before Mu You¡¯s exmation coulde out of her lips, the Virtual Sword had shown up.


    The dim and ghostly shadow of sword seemed to have gone far beyond the scope of speed.


    At the time when it entered the iron shelter in front of the Verdant Canyon, it suddenly slowed down its speed, transforming itself into a scene visible to the naked eye.


    The tactical array beneath the iron sail was triggered under stimtion. The red thread tied to the feet of all the Academy disciples began to tremble violently, producing numerous rays of aura as delicate as wadding and as tenacious as gold.


    Tied up by numerous rays of aura, the Virtual Sword suddenly slowed down.


    It looked exactly like that mystic sword drawn out by Liu Yiqing who was a Knowing Destiny State powerhouse from the Sword Garret.


    However, the states of the Zhishou Abbey¡¯s Dean and that of Liu Yiqing were as vastly different as heaven and earth. That Virtual Sword which seemed to be thrown out randomly was definitely thousands of times stronger than Liu Yiqing¡¯s mystic sword.


    Only then a hissing sound was heard!


    The Virtual Sword overwhelmingly tore down all the silk-threaded aura!


    Then... it deeply stabbed into a vastness of yellow sand.


    This vastness of yellow sand had considerably small grains, whiter than the fine sand by the sea and finer than the sand on the riverside.


    Though there existed sandy mud in the wilderness facing the Verdant Canyon, in no way could such kind of yellow sand be found.


    Such yellow sand could only be found in one ce.


    In the Sandbox which never left Fourth Brother¡¯s side.


    The Virtual Sword stabbed into the Sandbox.


    The expression on Fourth Brother¡¯s face suddenly became pale.


    Both hands shook violently, as he held the Sandbox high in front of his body.


    The seemingly ordinary Sandbox could really hamper the Virtual Sword of the Taoist in indigo!


    The body of the Virtual Sword disappeared in the Sandbox, vanishing into a vastness of yellow sand.


    The sand danced and flowed in the air like great rivers.


    And it fell on the ground, bing sheer cliffs and mountains.


    A grain of sand could be a world. The Sandbox had a world of its own.


    It was an extremely magnificent scene of rivers and mountains.


    The Virtual Sword then seemed to be dancing and flying amid the mountains and rivers which held no exact boundaries.


    It was extremely difficult for that Virtual Sword to be actuallying into contact with any other things because of the vastness and grandeur.


    That was the reason why the horrifying power of that Virtual Sword had not been able to be released.


    The sword was flying in the sandbox, flying over the high mountains and great rivers, flying across the wilderness and the blue sky.


    The sword carried on in its lonesome flight.


    The figure of the Taoist in indigo had almost disappeared into the void.


    He would then walk from the front of Verdant Canyon to the next ce.


    He was not concerned about how the Virtual Sword would end.


    Because he was pretty sure that even if Jun Mo bore that sword hit, he was definitely going to be badly hurt.


    The various disciples of the Academy would no longer be able to hold the Verdant Canyon by then.


    All of a sudden, he gave a slight cry.


    That whispering cry seemed to be of a little astonishment.


    With the thin snow gradually falling off, the entrance to the aura of heaven and earth was closed off.


    The Taoist in indigo disappeared from the wilderness.


    The sentence which he had said before leaving still echoed in the air.


    ¡°To my surprise, it was the River and Mountain Sandbox.¡±


    The River and Mountain Sandbox was an item from the Calcting Masters¡¯ ancient legends.


    During the Kai Yuan Years of the Tang Empire, the River and Mountain Sandbox was lost without a trace. Consequently, the River and Mountain Sandbox calction had cut off its legacy.


    Few people knew that in less than 40 yearster, people from Ying Mountain, the seventh founder of the ck Ink Garden of the Great River Kingdom and Nun Xiaofeng who was the famous professor of multiple subjects in the Academy had been analyzing together for six years to recreate the calction of the River and Mountain Sandbox. Later these two sages had devoted their lives to recreate the River and Mountain Sandbox.


    Ever since that time, the River and Mountain Sandbox had been staying in the mountain behind the Academy. With the passing of time, it was gradually forgotten by the whole cultivation world. Even the temporary Master of Calligrapher, whose name was Wang and who came from the ck Ink Garden did not know about this secret either.


    Back to many years ago when Headmaster was traveling around various countries, searching for the entrance of the Underworld or looking for delicious food, he came across a young apprentice in a pawnshop, which was outside the wend of the small town of Yin Lun. The Headmaster had actually been watching the juvenile apprentice calcting with the abacus for half a day¡¯s time. All because he felt that the young man was using the abacus beautifully. The sound produced by his use of the abacus was indeed lovely.


    The young apprentice was called Fan Yue, whoter became the Headmaster¡¯s fourth core disciple.


    It was natural that the Headmaster had handed the River and Mountain Sandbox over to him.


    Until then, except for the people in the back of the mountain, only Mo Shanshan knew about it.


    The Taoist in indigo had taken his leave.


    While his Virtual Sword remained.


    The Virtual Sword was still dancing and flying in the River and Mountain Sandbox.


    While holding the Sandbox, Fourth Brother wore paler and paler looks on his face, with blood gradually dripping from his lips.


    Second Brother was back in the shelter.


    Mu You kept her eyes on him and asked with her voice trembling, ¡°What should we do?¡±


    After having been silent for a very long time, Second Brother spoke out, ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    While Sixth Brother said, ¡°I will smash this Sandbox with my hammer.¡±


    Due to the fact that all of Fourth Brother¡¯s Psyche Power had been used on trapping and locking that Virtual Sword, especially the Spirit which was connected to the River and Mountain Sandbox, Fourth Brother who had been too weak to utter a word was enraged instead by hearing this sentence.


    ¡°How about you smash me to death first!¡±


    Staring at the Sixth Brother with fury, he coughed out blood while speaking.


    Sixth Brother reluctantly put his hammer down.


    Looking at Fourth Brother who was holding the Sandbox high, Wang Chi spoke out with concern and worry, ¡°Could it be that for Fourth Brother has to hold it all the time? Fourth Brother, if you are tired from lifting, I will lift the Sandbox on your behalf. I¡¯ve already prepared enough medicine for two days.¡±


    Hearing the naive words spoken out by his Younger Brother, Fourth Brother said with relief, ¡°It¡¯s unnecessary, since I can no longer put it down.¡±


    After this sentence was out, there was a deathly stillness hanging beneath the iron shelter.


    In such a short time, Fourth Brother had lost so much blood. How much time longer could he hang on? Even if he can hang on, will he be able to hang on forever?


    Eldest Brother looked at him and asked, ¡°Would the sword stop on its own?¡±


    Shaking his head, Fourth Brother said, ¡°There is a virtual state within the River and Mountain Sandbox, with the sword being the Virtual Sword and neither air nor influence of external aura existing. Even if the sword would stop, it would take hundreds of years.¡±


    Second Brother asked then again, ¡°What would happen if we put the Sandbox down?¡±


    After a moment¡¯s silence, Fourth Brother said, ¡°It would explode.¡±


    Second Brother said, ¡°Then let it explode.¡±


    Shaking his head, Fourth Brother smiled with a somewhat pained expression and said, ¡°The reason why I did not allow Sixth Brother to smash the Sandbox was not that I was reluctant to part with it, even though I have been attached to it after all these years... It was due to the fact that if I let it go, the Sandbox will immediately explode. So even if we are going to let it explode, you¡¯d better let me walk further away.¡±


    Everyone was silent.


    ¡°Of course I know that you are unwilling to let me to walk away to die alone.¡±


    Keeping his eyes on all of them, Fourth Brother smiled slightly and said, ¡°So I will try to hold the Sandbox for as long as I can.¡±


    Second Brother turned around to look towards the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army in the south and said, ¡°No worry. There are still other ways out.¡±


    ¡°What is it? Senior Brother, please say it quickly.¡± Mu You asked anxiously.


    ¡°If Eldest Brother can get rid of the Abbey Dean, then your issue will be taken care of.¡±


    ¡°What if he can¡¯t? Moreover, Eldest Brother does not know about the things that happened here.¡±


    ¡°Then he should kill the Abbey Dean. As long as Abbey Dean is dead, then consequently his sword would be something useless.¡±


    ¡°Without The Headmaster being here, who else is able to kill Abbey Dean now?¡±


    ¡°To put an end to this war, the Abby Dean must be killed off. So it is not a question of who is able to get him killed. Whether it was for this war Of Verdant Canyon or for anything else, they were all preparations made to get the Abby Dean killed.¡±


    Second Brother said, ¡°Chang¡¯an City has always been waiting for him.¡±

 Chapter 753 - A Sleepless Night (Part I)

    <h4>Chapter 753: A Sleepless Night (Part I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    There was a simple and unadorned Taoist temple in the depths of the quiet mountain forest. Behind the Taoist temple lied a reflectingke, and beside theke lied seven thatched cottages covered with straw tops which looked like gold and jade.


    A turquoise robe shed above theke water, toter reveal the figure of the Abbey Dean beside theke.


    One thatched cottage lying beside theke had already copsed halfway, with the golden straw all around the ce. A scarlet-ink ssic could be seen underneath, along with some calligraphy stationery.


    The Abbey Dean wore a slight cold look on his face while looking at this scene.


    A middle-aged Taoist was standing beneath a green stone beside theke, with a fly whisk resting on his arms and a pale-grave look. It was not until he had seen the Abbey Dean show up that he began to be somewhat relieved. He said wearily, ¡°I pay my respects, Senior Brother.¡±


    Without paying him any mind, the Abbey Dean remained without uttering a word while looking at the half-copsed thatched cottage.


    There were rustling sounds.


    Eldest Brother wormed out from the straw, with grass sticks adhering to his hair, his cotton jacket and stains of blood remaining on his lip and a flustered look. He must have been wounded while fighting with the middle-aged Taoist.


    There were few people in the cultivation world who knew about the middle-aged Taoist. However, this fact did not mean that he was not powerful.


    The Headmaster used a wooden rod to drive Chen Mou far away from solidnd, many years ago, which made him only dare to drift in the South Sea. From that day on, everything rted to the Zhishou Abbey was handled by the middle-aged Taoist.


    As the second most powerful master in Zhishou Abbey, the middle-aged Taoist had concealed himself from the world and remained reclusive. The day he made a move, it would be earth-shattering.


    That was why Eldest Brother had been hurt.


    Keeping his eyes on Eldest Brother in the thatched straw mound, the Abbey Dean said, ¡°Having known that my Younger Brother was left to guard the Taoist temple, you still insisted toe here. It was an unwise move, from my perspective.¡±


    Eldest Brother replied then, ¡°Since you have been following me all the way here, it means that my choice was correct.¡±


    The Abbey Dean asked all of a sudden, ¡°Have you previously visited the Abbey?¡±


    Eldest Brother shook his head calmly.


    Frowning his brow slightly, the Abbey Dean asked, ¡°Then how did you pinpoint the location of Zhishou Abbey with your sense of perception?¡±


    ¡°The Headmaster knew where Zhishou Abbey was.¡±


    Raising up his right hand, Eldest Brother pointed towards his forehead with his index finger and said with a smile, ¡°Then he told me.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°You never came here, during the two days that you were traveling around the world. I guess you were waiting for the exact moment.¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°Exactly. Because only by doing so, I would be able to fight for some time to make my move in the Verdant Canyon, and instead force you to leave Verdant Canyon with me right away.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°I left a sword in front of the Verdant Canyon.¡±


    After hearing out his words, Eldest Brother was silent at first and then spoke out a momentter, ¡°I trust them.¡±


    Then Abbey Dean asked, ¡°Then what would make you so sure that I would definitely leave the Verdant Canyon with you?¡±


    ¡°Due to the fact that I wasing to the Zhishou Abbey, you had to follow me here, not a moment slower.¡±


    Eldest Brother said with calmness then, ¡°My Younger Brothers and I have been deliberating beforehand, for you, the Abbey Dean, about what would be much more important than getting rid of Tang and the Academy, to even make you give up the opportunity to strike out in the Verdant Canyon ande to the rescue with all your might. We had been pondering on that for a long time, without finding a suitable answer.¡±


    The Abbey Dean and the middle-aged Taoist were both silent.


    Staring at the Scarlet Ink ssics which were buried by the thatched straw mound in front of him, Eldest Brother spoke out smilingly, ¡°In the end, it finally urred to us that for you, there were no other things in the world that would be as important as your belief or your reverence towards Haotian.¡±


    ¡°As a Halidom granted to Haotian Taoism by Haotian, two volumes from the Tomes of the Arcane have been lost for thousands of years. It¡¯s natural that Haotian would feel displeased. If the remaining five volumes of the Tomes of the Arcane were taken away by me, either to be destroyed or hidden away, just the thought of it would make it such an interesting thing. That is the reason why had to follow me here.¡±


    After a few moments¡¯ silence, the Abbey Dean said, ¡°Since you havee, there¡¯s no need for you to leave.¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°Being an unwee guest, it¡¯s better for me to leave as early as possible.¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked at him and said calmly, ¡°I have to keep you here. You have to know that this is not the back of the mountain of the Academy but Zhishou Abbey. You¡¯re no better than a sparrow flying right into a trap.¡±


    His point was pretty clear. It was not a threat but a calm and simple exnation. No one would doubt that, while being the simplest Unknown ce, Zhishou Abbey could definitely be extremely powerful, to a point beyond imagination. All due to the fact that it existed as an entity far above the clouds of Haotian Taoism whichmanded the whole world.


    Knowing this point clearly, Eldest Brother still wore a calm expression.


    Since he dared toe here, it was natural that he had made some preparations in advance.


    With the Abbey Dean slightly waving his robe sleeve, clouds started to emerge, while the aura of Heaven and Earth amid the green mountain and the clearke was locked up all of a sudden.


    The fairly pretty autumn sunshine could note down.


    The autumn wind could only traverse the mountain and forest which had already been in a ruin behind the Taoist temple. However, it could not go beyond the wall of the Taoist temple.


    The big tactical array of the Zhishou Abbey was triggered.


    Then, the Taoist temple became a small world which was an existence independent of Haotian¡¯s world yet closely rted to it at the same time.


    No one could leave this small world.


    Not even those in the Limitless State.


    Because the aura of Heaven and Earth inside the Zhishou Abbey at that time was abruptly separated from the surrounding environment.


    If Eldest Brother tried to leave with Limitless State means, he would then run into the dense dividing field.


    But he was still able to leave, in a casual and rxing way.


    With his cotton jacket trembling slightly, Eldest Brother¡¯s figure became formless all of a sudden. Then he disappeared into the autumn wind whispering beside theke.


    A piece of deathly stillness hung beside theke.


    The Abbey Dean wore a slight cold look on his face while looking towards the middle-aged Taoist.


    For these years, the Zhishou Abbey had been under the care of the middle-aged Taoist. The reason why Long Qing was able to flee from the Taoist temple was that he had tagged an undisciplined status unto himself, in ordance with the mental state of Abbey Dean. Then what was going on this time?


    With the expression on his face bing somewhat darkened, the middle-aged Taoist sighed, ¡°He came back once.¡±


    Slightly waving his robe sleeve, the Abbey Dean broke out of the void and vanished, only to leave two extremely cold words.


    ¡°How ungrateful!¡±


    No one knew what had been going on in the Zhishou Abbey.


    There was silence in the open field in front of the Verdant Canyon. The West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army had already beaten the gongs and withdrawn their armies.


    For today, it was within only an instant before Divine Hall had almost taken the decisive victory into their pocket. However, it had never crossed anyone¡¯s mind that Eldest Brother from the Academy would actually show up on the battlefield and turn the whole situation around with just a string and a rod.


    Though the appearance of the Abbey Dean had injected confidence and fanatical emotion into the hearts of the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army once again, to everyone¡¯s surprise, the Abbey Dean disappeared. It seemed that no change had taken ce in front of the Verdant Canyon.


    Having gone through the two consecutive major set backs, what mattered to the Coalition Army was not the consumption of their strength on their side, but the burning divine chariot and the corpses of cavalries lying across the floor. Moreover, the pathway through Verdant Canyon which in no way could be broken into; when all these werebined together, the morale of the soldiers and the generals became abnormally low.


    Though having not been in a desperate state yet, they began to feel exhausted.


    Due to the fact that the Great Divine Priest of Revtion had been badly injured and the divine chariot which had been burned down was blown into numerous flying ashes by the autumn wind, with the morale of the troops gradually bing unstable, Ye Hongyu decided to withdraw her armies in advance, even though things were not yet decided.


    With the cover of night falling down step by step, from the porridge pot located beneath the iron tent in the Verdant Canyon¡¯s entryway, only the pot bottom remained. The aroma of the porridge had already diffused among the open field, without any grains left over.


    The people from the Academy were all quiet, which was pretty different from the scenest night when they went on their killing while talking andughing with vigorous spirits. This was because they were tremendously tired already, after only two days gone by.


    Holding the River and Mountain Sandbox high, Fourth Brother coughed from time to time, with mottled stains of blood running all over the front of his academy uniform. Wang Chi crouched beside him while holding a drug bowl in his hands, thinking of ways to feed medicines to Fourth Brother.


    Beigong Weiyang and Ximen Buhuo were both wounded by divine doctrine. Due to the fact that they had taken the medicines in time and they had been treated by Eldest Brother, they had already stabilized and their spirits were bing much more vigorous.


    It would still be Second Brother who would be the weariest one of all. Though he still wore that calm expression on his face and held that straight posture while sitting, everyone could imagine how tired he was at the moment.


    ¡°Take an early rest, everyone.¡±


    Looking towards the tents of the Coalition Army located on the southern open field and staring at the intensive lights which were brighter than all the star clusters over the sky, Second Brother spoke out after a moment¡¯s silence, ¡°Tomorrow should be a hard day.¡±


    His Younger Brothers and Sisters agreed upon hearing Second Brother¡¯s words. However, no one went to bed. They were all sitting around Fourth Brother.


    At the time, the Virtual Sword which was left by the Abbey Dean was still dancing and flying in River and Mountain Sandbox. Fourth Brother had to maintain activated the River and Mountain Sandbox with his own Psyche Power to trap the Virtual Sword in the yellow sand.


    Neither could he put the Sandbox down nor could he rest. He could only hang on in such a painful way to the end.


    No one knew how long he could hold on, nor whether he could hang on till the end.


    Second Brother went behind him and there he sat.


    He had never taken off his armor ever since he arrived at the Verdant Canyon.


    So the sound of armor pieces nking against each other as he sat down was extremely clear, constant and cold.


    It was just the same as what he had saidter on.


    ¡°Let¡¯s sit back-to-back, it will be easier after all.¡±


    Fourth Brother smiled faintly and leaned back wearily, then slowly closing his eyes.


    Second Brother moved the iron sword from his shoulder to the back and rested it under his forearm.


    The bright moon was hanging in the night sky.


    The moon tonight was pretty dark, so the star clusters in the Night Dome could be seen clearly.


    Keeping her eyes on the night sky, Ye Hongyu wore no expressions on her face.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion had already been sent back to the West-Hill Divine Pce. However, it was still in doubt whether he could preserve his life.


    If the baton of Mr. First had been aimed towards her, how should she be able to deal with it?


    After pondering on it for a pretty long time, she concluded that she was not able to handle it.


    However, she wasn¡¯t discouraged nor frustrated.


    She had never been that kind of person.


    She had never been the strongest.


    But in the end, she was always able to beat enemies who were stronger than her.


    At this time, she was thinking more about other things.


    The more she thought about them, the more tightly her brows frowned.


    She had already been reflecting all night.


    Right until daybreak.


    With the morning light breaking out little by little, the open field was covered fully with thin mist. No one knew whether if it was sunny or cloudy today.


    For the people in the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army, they were all waiting for one person to strike.


    Because that guy was temporarily the only hope to ovee the iron sword in front of the Verdant Canyon.


    Moreover, all of them strongly believed that as long as that person made his move, it was a definite thing that he would im victory.


    But Liu Bai did not make his move after all.


    Even the disciples of the Sword Garret all began to feel doubtful and werepletely puzzled.


    Ye Hongyu stared toward the quiet horse carriage, with her brow filled with sarcasm.


    Due to the paper sword sent in the letter and the fact that Liu Bai had been actually a half-master even to her, she was very respectful towards Sword Sage Liu Bai. But she still felt that Liu Bai was being utterly foolish at the moment.


    From her perspective, all pride and self-satisfaction were pure folly.


    No matter how qualified to be proud was the person, it would be always the same.


    Whether the person was the Abbey Dean or Liu Bai.


    While for this battle in the Verdant Canyon, if she would have been able tomand all the authentic powerhouses in Haotian Taoism, she would have multiple ways to directly crush all the people of the Academy in front of the Verdant Canyon.


    If Liu Bai had been willing to throw away his pride of Sword Taoism and cooperated with the siege, who in this world could be able to resist?


    If the Abbey Dean had been willing to tread upon the mortal world authentically and to kill instead of just observing, how could the Academy be a rival to Haotian Taoism?


    The problem lied in that, though being the Great Divine Priest of West-Hill currently and holding divine-like positions in the believers¡¯ hearts, there were always a few people in the world that she still could neither affect nor control.


    The Abbey Dean and Liu Bai were exactly part of those few people.


    She suddenly thought of Ning Que while she was meditating quietlyst night, after being sleepless while watching the moon.


    Ning Que and she were actually the people engaged in the same cause.


    Only the two of them knew that the best way to handle things was by hook or by crook.


    There came a Buddhist chant from the thin frost at the right moment.

 Chapter 754 - A Sleepless Night (Part II)

    <h4>Chapter 754: A Sleepless Night (Part II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    ¡°The mute wouldn¡¯t speak until some salt was sprinkled over his pancakes.¡±


    A Buddhism chant rang out from the thin mist.


    A figure walked out from the mist slowly.


    It was a man dressed in ordinary simple-colored clothing with a Taoism bun.


    A thin wooden sword hanging above his head pierced through the mist and moved forward without making any noise.


    It was exactly the World Wayfarer of Haotian Taoism, Ye Su, with his apanying sword.


    Second Brother stood up slowly.


    He had been sitting back-to-back with Fourth Brother for the whole night.


    Without sleeping at all for a whole night, he could not conceal the expression of exhaustion between his eyes and brows.


    While hearing the Buddhism chant ringing out from the mist, everyone in the Academy showed a wary expression on their faces, even with a touch of anxiety.


    ¡°Sprinkle more salt on the pancake.¡±


    Second Brother was talking to Mu You who was baking pancakes by the stove, ¡°Seems his taste is pretty much heavier.¡±


    This was a joke which was not funny at all.


    But due to the fact that he had never joked, he looked quite funny when telling the joke, so everybodyughed out.


    Then silence befell.


    All felt somewhat uneasy when Second Brother started to tell jokes.


    Ye Su asked, ¡°What¡¯s so funny?¡±


    Second Brother replied, ¡°Only you have shown up, of course, you were that funny.¡±


    Ye Su went on and said, ¡°It seems that you were not surprised by my showing up.¡±


    Second Brother spoke out, ¡°The Abbey Dean had dropped by yesterday. Since groups of flies have been dancing and flying, it does not matter if one more fly exists.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°I wanted to fight with you back at Chang¡¯an City.¡±


    Second Brother answered, ¡°If it had not been because of the prohibition from my Senior Brother, I would have searched for you and gotten out of the mountain with a sword in my hand, at the time when you were watching over the small Taoist temple.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°To kill people, you have to use a sword.¡±


    With iron sword raised up in his hands, Second Brother said then, ¡°I won¡¯t say such crappy things like the sword having already been in my hand.¡±


    Ye Su asked smilingly, ¡°Then what are you going to say?¡±


    Second Brother replied, ¡°What I want to say is that you are showing up at a pretty bad time which is bad for you.¡±


    ¡°How so?¡± Taking his smile back, Ye Su asked calmly.


    Second Brother said, ¡°I have been killing hundreds of people for these two days. My sword momentum is going strong.¡±


    ¡°Liu Bai has been waiting for the time when you kill people to a frantic state. But I do not want to wait any longer.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°Because by then, it would perhaps be the worst time.¡±


    Then with his brows suddenly creased over, he said, ¡°Jun Mo, you are now in a somewhat bad state.¡±


    Second Brother replied with a peaceful and conscientious way.


    ¡°It is natural of my spirits to be in a somewhat absent state after a sleepless night.¡±


    Ye Su asked, ¡°Do you need to sleep for a while first?¡±


    Second Brother replied, ¡°No, it is unnecessary.¡±


    With his eyebrows tilted up slightly, he asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    Second Brother said, ¡°Because you are still not Liu Bai after all.¡±


    <i>¡°You are not Liu Bai. You may be Liu Bai, but at this moment you are still not Liu Bai.¡±</i>


    <i>¡°Then, even after a sleepless night, I am still confident in beating you down.¡±</i>


    That was what Second Brother was trying to say.


    The ordinary soldiers and generals in the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army had no idea as to who that person was.


    While for some priests who held extremely profound qualifications in the Divine Hall, they had figured out the identity of that person. The joyous expression on their faces was too obvious to be concealed.


    However, Ye Hongyu slightly frowned.


    She once regarded the person as her idol and the object of her cultivation.


    However, currently, in her eyes, that person was also a fool.


    The same as the Abbey Dean and Liu Bai.


    Due to the fact that they had been cultivating for a very long time and they were so proud, transcendent and pure, they were consequently cleansing their hearts and limiting their desires.


    They were all sublime beings.


    Even Sages.


    But they were not the people who would im the final victory.


    In the battlefield where life and death were settled in just an instant, there was no room for pride and a good presence was an unnecessary thing.


    At this very moment, she thought of Ning Que once again.


    If they both were still alive after many years, no one would know who would be victorious, no one knew.


    Ning Que had no idea as to how highly this contemporary Great Divine Priest of Judgment regarded him and expected of him. He was currently focusing all of his attention and energy on the floor in front of him.


    There were numerous stereoscopic shapes made up of haze and line lying across the wide granite floor. While in the city wall whose surrounding was of thick light, there lied Wanyan Tower whose height less than knee-high and square cities which looked like scales.


    This microminiature Chang¡¯an City was the God-stunning Array.


    Crossing his legs and sitting outside this Chang¡¯an City, Ning Que made his inspection with a silent yet attentive manner.


    He had already been looking at the array for the whole day and the whole night.


    He had already noticed where the problems lied in long since.


    Chang¡¯an City was blocked.


    It was neither Vermilion Bird Avenue that had been jammed by the horse carriages nor the streets and valleys of Eastern City that had been jammed by vendors. Not to mention that it was not the groundwater artery that had been jammed by sludge. It was not a physical blockage.


    The obstruction ¡°jammed¡± referred to the functioning and operation of aura in heaven and earth inside this grand city had be somewhat not smooth.


    With his naked eyes, even Ning Que was able to see that in over ten ces of Chang¡¯an right in front of him, the haze flow and functioning were obviously affected by some disturbance, which had made them converge into one turmoil.


    Chang¡¯an City itself was actually a big array.


    A big tactical array that could stun the gods.


    The power of this big tactical array came right from the Qi of Heaven and Earth flowing in Chang¡¯an City.


    Back to thousands of years ago when Chang¡¯an City was initially built, with his own unprecedented wisdom, the Headmaster had taken advantage of the topography inside the city to build up the pces and the architecture. While directing the aura of Heaven and Earth into this city, he had arranged this big tactical array which could be healed on its own and which was of limitless growing cycle.


    While over the years toe, the Qi of Heaven and Earth which was originally supposed to flow at their own free will blew into Chang¡¯an City like the fresh breeze. It was as free as before, however, it started to have its own rules.


    Those rules were where the original source of God-stunning Array lied.


    Time was a weapon that was both the cruelest and the most powerful. Though God-stunning Array was able to heal on its own, for it to stay in the best state as always, the maintenance from people inside the city was still needed.


    The imperial court of the Tang Empire had a specialized refund of the mantainance. While the most important work of Clean Water Department of the Ministry of Workers was to be in charge of dredging all the natural water channels andkes inside Chang¡¯an City.


    The cleaning of Yanming Lake was a civil engineering project superficially. In fact, it was a routine maintenance for God-stunning Array.


    However, it was impossible for the big God-Stunning Array to lose its power because of some architectural modification or some typographical change. As a matter of fact, even if the imperial court had never held maintenance towards this array, in no way should this situation happen either.


    Getting himself up and walking into the Chang¡¯an City frozen by haze, Ning Que climbed over the Yanming Mountain and came to the front of the imperial city whose height was no more than that of knees. He bent himself to grab the array eye pestle which had already been half plugged in the ground and pulled it out.


    With this motion going on, Chang¡¯an City lying on the granite floor gradually transformed itself into a dense haze and then it was frozen downwards into the watery liquid light, dripping itself down slowly along those carving scars on the floor.


    The array eye pestle in his hands also became dark bit by bit, with its ownplicated pattern blending together with its pestle body.


    After leaving the Imperial Pce, Ning Que came over to the top of the city wall.


    Looking down upon the Chang¡¯an City located at the foot of the city wall, he had been silent for a pretty long time.


    With the turmoil inside Chang¡¯an City being subsided, life went gradually back to normal.


    There were more and more horse carriages running across the street. The passers-by wore calm looks on their faces, most of them being in a hurry.


    At this time, with Tang Empire having all been mobilized, the Tangs were all dedicated to their own things in a conscientious way.


    It was pretty clear to them that only via doing so could they best show out their support towards the soldiers and generals who fought dauntlessly in the front line.


    Without sleeping for a really long time, Ning Que was so wearisome. His eyes felt somewhat itched.


    With his eyes closed, he began to sense this city.


    He appeared to have seen through the inner sides of the Tangs who were peaceful and strong.


    While at the same time, he saw the aura of heaven and earth from over ten ces had been blocked.


    At the time when all the Tangs recovered to im their confidence and courage.


    He saw that Chang¡¯an City was at risk.


    He was anxious and ill at ease.


    He had been sleepless all through the night.

 Chapter 755 - Autumn Breeze and Fallen Leaves

    <h4>Chapter 755: Autumn Breeze and Fallen Leaves</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Chang¡¯an City imed that it would never fall and has indeed never fallen. To be more exact, it had never experienced a single test since the Tang Empire was founded.


    No one ever doubted this, because Chang¡¯an city was thest and most powerful source of confidence for the Tangs. As long as it stood on the southern ins of the Sishui River, the Tangs would be able to keep a smile on their faces.


    A siege was also not considered a threat. As long as Chang¡¯an was there, the counties of the Tang Empire, especially those close to the capital would strongly resist against it. The resistance of the Tang and their determination to fight to the end would persist to thest moment.


    The Tangs were groomed to think that Chang¡¯an would never fall. They thought that this was a fact that did not require any reasoning. Not many knew that it was because of the God-stunning Array.


    Only those who were the most important figures in the cultivation world knew of this fact.


    Now that the God-stunning Array had problems, Chang¡¯an City was not as imprable and infallible as it had been in the past millennium. Should an armye, or a powerful cultivator entered the city, what would they do?


    For the time being, there were few who knew of this issue, including Ning Que.


    He looked at the streets that were densely built, worry and exhaustion written over his face.


    He kept painting over the drawings with a charcoal pencil as he looked at the aura blockages in the city. He thought of methods to fix or unblock them, but the more he thought, the uglier his expression grew.


    Third Sister had given him seven days, and two days had already passed. He had not thought of a solution, but had noticed that the situation with the big tactical array had worsened.


    Starting from the Daming Pce outside the Northern City, the dark waters hidden in the autumn forest came out of the curved mountain, gathering in theke, passing through the underground of the Imperial Pce, the Southern Gate Temple, the Wanyan Tower, entering the Vermilion Bird Avenue and then exiting from the Southern City Gates...


    All the blockages urred on this hidden line which yed an important role in the God-stunning Array. It was called breath, and was the channel for the circle of life and death.


    Haotian Taoism had done something at the building under the Imperial Pce, and that had long been discovered and cleared by him. However, the interference caused to the God-stunning Array could not be reversed. In fact, as time passed, it grew even worse.


    He pondered about it for a long time but did not manage to find a solution.


    If the blockage was a real naturalndscape or a street, then it did not mean much. With the Tang Empire¡¯s powerful administration and mobilization capabilities, even a small hill could be hollowed out within a week.


    The problem was that Haotian Taoism had worked their ways on the array center underground, disturbing the Qi of Heaven and Earth in the tactical array. Many areas were blocked, directly affecting the entire array.


    The Southern City Gates at his feet were the ones most affected this time around.


    Ning Que did not understand, how did He Mingchi enter the building underground if he did not have the array eye pestle? He also did not understand what Haotian Taoism had done to calcte the God-stunning Array so clearly.


    Now that he thought about it, he could only say that Haotian Taoism was very well prepared.


    Haotian Taoism had prepared for a thousand years, gathering several of the wisest and most capable. Even though they were no match for the Headmaster and could not destroy the God-stunning Array, they had sessfully managed to interfere with the operation of the God-stunning Array. The interference seemed solid and irreversible.


    Ning Que had already eliminated all sources of interference in Chang¡¯an, but he couldn¡¯t fix the blockage in the tactical array because it required an unimaginable amount of aura of Heaven and Earth.


    Actually, this level of damage or interference could be repaired by the God-stunning Array itself, but it would take a long time; about two or three years to return to normal. This would not be a problem in peacetime. However, the problem was that the enemy would not give the Tangs such a long time during the ongoing war.


    If his teacher had not ascended to heaven, then this would be a simple fix. He would only need to wave his sleeves to gather an insurmountable amount of aura around Chang¡¯an.


    But he had left the world.


    No one else in the world could do that now.


    Then... was there really no way to fix the big tactical array?


    Did that mean that Chang¡¯an was open to attacks now?


    The array eye pestle was cradled in Ning Que¡¯s arms and was as hard as a rock, which confused him.


    The Headmaster had left him in charge of the city, and the array eye pestle was left behind by Master Yan Se and the Emperor for him. This meant that he could not escape the responsibility of protecting Chang¡¯an and the Tang Empire.


    This was the ultimate glory, but also the heaviest burden in the world.


    However, the most ludicrous thing in this entire matter was that... Ning Que was not an Array Tactical Master.


    Master Yan Se once said that the array was arge talisman and a talisman was a small array. The cultivation world had this saying, that Array Tactical Masters cannot be Talisman Masters, but Talisman Masters were all exceptional Array Tactical Masters.


    Ning Que was a gifted Talisman Master, but he was not gifted in tactical arrays. When he had first entered the back of the mountain of the Academy, he had helped Seventh Sister to arrange tactical arrays for days. However, he had not improved at all. He worked hard at learning to control the God-stunning Array over the years, but had not made any progress.


    Now that both Fourth Brother and Seventh Sister were not in the Academy, there was no one he could consult with. That was why he became increasingly worried, feeling almost crushed by his burdens.


    The autumn wind seemed to grow colder. After a moment of silence, he walked down toward the city walls.


    The Southern City Gates of Chang¡¯an were across the Vermilion Bird Avenue. It had been heavily guarded since the beginning of the war.


    The imperial court had heeded his request and transferred all the remaining Yulin Royal Guards to that very ce. More than a hundred Yulin Royal Guards in shiny armor were standing solemnly on the streets, waiting for their orders. The atmosphere was very tense.


    Dozens of Fish-dragon Gang members in ck clothes stood under the awnings on the street. They looked at everyone entering and leaving the city carefully. The troops around Chang¡¯an had all been deployed to the Northern Frontier and the defense around the city was weak. As such, the imperial court was forced to usemon folk as troops.


    The nonmissioned officers of the city defense department carefully checked the teams entering and leaving the city. They also carried out a three-person round inspection system for each document to ensure that there were no spies or contraband crossing the border.


    This kind of inspection was veryplicated and troublesome. Fortunately, there were very few people entering and leaving Chang¡¯an City at the time. There was only an endless supply of grain transportation teams that filled up the state highway outside the city.


    These were all grains shipped from various states and counties.


    The Tang Empire was ready for a siege on Chang¡¯an City.


    But no one began preparations for Chang¡¯an City to be breached. They were not even mentally prepared for it.


    Looking at this scene, Ning Que¡¯s mood took a downward turn.


    Just then, a woman entered through the city gate.


    The woman had brows like ink and eyes like dots of paint. She looked like a painting.


    Her lips were slightly thin, and they were pursed calmly. They looked like wax plums on her paleplexion.


    Her long straight ck hair cascaded over her shoulders, unlike the waterfall that it had been years ago. It was straight and beautiful.


    Ning Que looked at her quietly and then suddenly looked up at the sky.


    It waste autumn, the skies looked high and far away, calm and cid.


    He suddenly felt that Haotian... No, his teacher in heaven must have sensed his worry and uneasiness. That was why he had sent her to Chang¡¯an, to him.


    Then, he withdrew his gaze from the sky to look at the beautiful girl and smile.


    ¡°Why have youe to Chang¡¯an?¡±


    ¡°I wanted to, so I did.¡±


    Mo Shanshan answered with a smile, with her white cotton dress fluttering in the wind.


    Ning Que thought of a problem. He asked, ¡°The ck Ink Garden...¡±


    Mo Shanshan knew what he wanted to ask. She answered calmly without waiting for him toplete his question, ¡°I have already left them.¡±


    Ning Que did not expect to hear this, but he knew that this was the only answer.


    Mo Shanshan did not wish to implicate the ck Ink Garden, her teachers or her fellow disciples, and even the Great River Kingdom. That was why she could only leave her sect ande to Chang¡¯an to stand against the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    After a moment of silence, he extended his right hand and invited her into the city.


    Ning Que and Mo Shanshan walked through Chang¡¯an City.


    They walked side by side, just like so many years ago. However, it was unlike before.


    The two arrived at the Imperial Pce and at the bridge from back then. It was the same vermilion red pce walls, but they did not see the spiraling snowkes falling from the sky. Instead, the ground was thickly covered with yellow ginkgo leaves.


    ¡°I don¡¯t have time. Otherwise, we could travel again together.¡±


    Ning Que reached his hands above the water and caught a falling leaf. He said, ¡°This is the fourth blockage. Try to sense the aura below the building.¡±


    Mo Shanshan closed her eyes, her longshes fluttering against her porcin skin.


    She opened her eyes momentster, a myriad of emotions swirling in them. She felt shocked and extremely uneasy.


    ¡°What a... powerful tactical array.¡±


    Ning Que let go of the leaf and allowed it to continue falling into the moat below the bridge. The flow of the river was very slow and it was covered in beautiful yellow leaves. The addition of another leaf did not change its appearance.


    He looked at the yellow leaves on the moat and said, ¡°It is troublesome because it is powerful. After Haotian Taoism tried to block it, we¡¯d need even more Qi of Heaven and Earth to unblock it.¡±


    Mo Shanshan considered it for a moment and shook her head, saying, ¡°Nobody can call up so much Qi of Heaven and Earth, and there is nobody who can setup a tactical array that could fix this.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Can we use a talisman?¡±


    Mo Shanshan answered, ¡°If an array is a talisman, then this big tactical array is the most powerful talisman I have ever seen in my life. In fact, one can even say that it is the true Divine Talisman.¡±


    Ning Que understood what she meant.


    Chang¡¯an was veryrge, and the Headmaster¡¯s wisdom was a peak that was hard to climb.


    Haotian Taoism¡¯s methods might seem simple, but they understood that.


    He said, ¡°I hope that you can solve this problem.¡±


    Mo Shanshan replied, ¡°I don¡¯t have such abilities.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°But you¡¯re stronger than me.¡±


    Mo Shanshan answered, ¡°Then you can hand over the array eye pestle to me.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head.


    Mo Shanshan smiled and said, ¡°I thought that you¡¯d have learned to trust after experiencing so many things.¡±


    Ning Que thought of the tanned girl with a pair of lotus white feet on the Sishui River.


    He thought of Sangsang, whose body was in the dark while her feet stepped in the light.


    He said, ¡°I apologize. Even if Miss Li Sanes back to life, I cannot trust anyonepletely other than the Academy.¡±


    Mo Shanshan asked, ¡°Who is Miss Li San?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°My mother.¡±


    After a short moment of silence, Mo Shanshan said, ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±

 Chapter 756 - Looking at Changan (Part I)

    <h4>Chapter 756: Looking at Chang¡¯an (Part I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ginkgo leaves were scattered all over the ground just like those words.


    The two stood on the bridge silently.


    Ning Que said, ¡°You are Eldest Brother¡¯s sworn sister and my friend. The Master of Calligraphy allowed you to leave Mogan Mountain because he knew that your helping the Tang Empire would mean helping the Great River. No matter what, thank you for your efforts.¡±


    Mo Shanshan looked a little lost. She asked, ¡°What do you n to do?¡±


    ¡°I am going to take a good nap.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I am neither Eldest Brother nor Second Brother. I will die if I don¡¯t sleep. I am so sick of looking at this city for the past two days that I need to rx a little.¡±


    Mo Shanshan said, ¡°Then go and rest... but please don¡¯t start feeling defeated or try to escape. Think about why you sat by theke for half a day when Monk Guan Hai challenged you.¡±


    Ning Que thought of that moment and smiled.


    After that, he made a detailed drawing for Mo Shanshan and exined the God-stunning Array to her. Then, in an irresponsible manner, he left her behind and headed to the Spring Breeze Pavilion in the Eastern City.


    He didn¡¯t really go to take a nap, neither did he go to the Yanming Lake to stare into nothingness.


    The court had just calmed down and Li Yu was still locked up in the Princess¡¯ residences. Many ministers were still in conflict with Ning Que and even strongly disliked him. Therefore, it was inconvenient for him to be in close contact with the pce.


    Whenever he needed to find out about the court arrangements andmunicate with the Empress, he had to do it through the Chao Mansion at the Spring Breeze Pavilion.


    In the Chao Mansion, he received thetest military orders and military intelligence sent by various states and counties. Looking at the various war matters recorded in the military intelligence briefing, his face grew solemn.


    The Southern Army was still on its way. There was still no news of the battle between the Western Army and the Yuelun Kingdom in the Pamir Mountains. The Northern Army, which was carrying out the most arduous mission, was struggling to withstand the attack of the Golden cavalry. Although the number of Northern Army troops in the town was close to what it had originally been, it was not simple to revert the situation.


    The most troublesome thing now was the war situation in the east and south, especially in the south.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce led hundreds of thousands of troops from Qinghe County to the north. Ning Que, who was in Chang¡¯an seemed to be able to see the image of their war banners waving in the sky. He found it hard to imagine what they would do if they entered Chang¡¯an.


    His Senior Brothers and Sisters in the back of the mountain the back of the mountain of the Academy should be in the Verdant Canyon now. Were they well?


    Could they still hold on? And for how many days?


    Then, the prefectural magistrate of Chang¡¯an City, Shangguan Yangyu and Qi IV arrived at the Chao Mansion.


    Ning Que wanted to see them.


    ¡°The battle of Chang¡¯an could be quelled so quickly because of Your Excellency. Your efforts will be recorded.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the dodgy looking prefectural magistrate and said sincerely.


    Old Lord Chao passed by the door with a cat in his arms. When he heard that, he looked at Shangguan Yangyu who was bending forward and said, ¡°This lord is too modest.¡±


    Ning Que smiled and said, ¡°That is so.¡±


    Old Lord Chao waved his hands, rubbed the cat on its tummy, and left.


    Shangguan Yangyu said coyly, ¡°Oh no, it is all thanks to the directions of Her Majesty and Mr. Thirteen.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Her Majesty and I were still outside the city, when did we give you directions?¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu said seriously, ¡°You might not be here, but your aura was. I sensed...¡±


    Ning Que motioned with his hand and said, ¡°Forget it, I am not the Grand Secretary and am unused to hearing things like that. There are not many ministers in the court who would speak like you. Let¡¯s save some time and dive straight into business.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu cleared his throat and said, ¡°He Mingchi must have escaped from the Dongyang Gate. The department is conducting an internal investigation and has already arrested more than a dozen suspects. The Imperial Center Administration and the Southern Gate Temple have be much more honest. All the people who escaped from Qinghe County have been captured and are now temporarily detained.¡±


    Ning Que knew that the Imperial Center Administration and the Southern Gate Temple¡¯s recent good behavior had nothing to do with He Mingchi¡¯s identity being exposed. It was because the parents of those cultivators were all guarded under house arrest by the Chang¡¯an Local Government and the Fish-dragon Gang. Other than the truly cold-blooded, who would dare act rashly?


    ¡°The descendants of Qinghe County cannot escape the treason charges. Even though we have not tried them, why should we let them stayfortably in their quarters? We should transfer them all to the prison.¡±


    Ning Que said.


    Shangguan Yangyu looked as if he was put in an awkward position. He said, ¡°The government does not have the capacity to watch over so many people.¡±


    Ning Que looked at Qi IV and said, ¡°The Fish-dragon Gang must have plenty of prisons.¡±


    Mr. Qi shrugged and said, ¡°A few hundred people wouldn¡¯t be a problem.¡±


    Ning Que looked at Shangguan Yangyu¡¯s expression and said, ¡°Is there a problem?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t have no problem with this, but there are many officials in court who might... have problems.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu said, ¡°There are two opinions on how to deal with the families of Qinghe County. One is to trial their crimes as soon as possible and give an exnation to the government officials and themon people. Another opinion is that the children of those families who stayed in Chang¡¯ an city should be allowed to live, so that we can use them as a bargaining chips in any future negotiations with the West-Hill Divine Pce.¡±


    After a moment of silence, Ning Que said, ¡°Those people have to die.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu asked worriedly, ¡°What if those officials in court object to it?¡±


    ¡°Even if we have any future negotiations, there are some things that we will not negotiate.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The problem at Qinghe County is something that we will not negotiate. Of course, it¡¯d be a pity for those people to die now, so we should make them suffer.¡±


    Qi IV said, ¡°I¡¯m rather skilled at that.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu said, ¡°The government is somewhat more professional.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°You guys can discuss and settle these small matters by yourselves. I asked you two over today because the Queen has made a decision to hand over the city gates and temporaryw over to Your Excellency. The Fish-dragon Gang will be under your direction for the moment. Mr. Qi, please work together with His Excellency on this matter.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu knew that if he survived the battle, he would definitely get promotions upon promotions after the battle. However, he had not expected to suddenly wield so much power and was both excited and terrified.


    Mr. Qi also felt that something was odd about this arrangement.


    ¡°Chang¡¯an City is empty. If the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army... no matter which the enemy enters it through the gates, we will not be able to stop them. That is why you two have to make preparations in case the city falls.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu and Mr. Qi were both stunned when they heard Ning Que.


    Just like all the other Tangs, they had never once thought that Chang¡¯an might one day fall.


    ¡°Do not spread this information.¡±


    Ning Que did not look at Qi IV, but only stared into Shangguan Yangyu¡¯s eyes.


    An odd light danced in his crafty triangr eyes.


    Ning Que looked at him and calmly said, ¡°If anything goes wrong, there won¡¯t be a family named Shangguan in this world.¡±


    While Ning Que might have said that he was going to rest, how could he when he was carrying such heavy burdens? Ning Que walked down the Vermilion Bird Avenue toward the southern gates. He sensed the slight changes in the Qi of Heaven and Earth and the blockages in the area. He grew more and more tired, and his footsteps grew even heavier.


    When he arrived at the city walls, he looked up.


    The city wall of Chang¡¯an was as high as a cliff. It was difficult to see what was at the top when one stood on the ground.


    His eyes were sharper than the ordinary person, so he could see the woman in a white dress.


    Mo Shanshan was looking at Chang¡¯an thoughtfully.


    Just like how he had done so earlier.


    Ning Que gave his thanks silently.


    ¡°The girl can recognize the Stone Array Tactics. Her talent in tactical arrays is indeed far superior to yours, but since our teacher handed Chang¡¯an city into your hands, then I think you will eventually need to understand it by yourself.¡±


    A young girl walked to his side and looked up at the wall.


    It was rather odd to see a young girl of about 12 or 13 with ck pigtails swinging at her waist speaking calmly and maturely, calling Mo Shanshan a girl.


    She was the Grandmaster of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, and thus, she was qualified to call the Calligraphy Addict a girl.


    ¡°Senior Sister, I really can¡¯t think of a solution.¡±


    Ning Que said.


    Yu Lian looked at him and said, ¡°So you have already made ns for when the city is breached.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I am used to worrying about failures before sess.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°Such considerations would not be an issue if everything is working fine. But the Tang Empire is about to definitely fall, so we have to only consider sess and not failure.¡±


    Ning Que did not understand.


    Yu Lian said, ¡°We can only consider how to attain sess, not how to face failure.¡±


    ¡°But... if it is destined that we will fail, then how can we seed?¡±


    ¡°Then we have to seed before we fail.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°The final ending of a war is decided by many factors. Perhaps Second Brother cannot hold down the Verdant Canyon, or perhaps the Northern Army will be defeated by the Golden. Or perhaps Chang¡¯an might be breached. But as long as we gain victory over a single factor before all these failures, then we can stop all these failures from happening.¡±


    Ning Que understood and said, ¡°The deciding victory.¡±


    ¡°Indeed,¡± said Yu Lian. ¡°How do you think the battle will end?¡±


    Ning Que knew very well that the Tang Empire had suffered a severe setback right at the beginning and the gap between the two sides¡¯ strength has been widened. Even if the Verdant Canyon can be held down and the God-stunning Array could be fixed, it was difficult to change the final oue.


    ¡°We will probably still lose.¡± He said, ¡°But I believe that there will not be many other countries still around when the Tang Empire falls.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right. That is something that everyone knows. The royals and generals of other countries might be stupid, but they know this as well.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°The Tang Empire and the Academy have already started to show their power. People are dying everywhere. I believe that things are bad in Chaoyang City of the Yuelun Kingdom. The internal strife in Yan Kingdom has crippled them. Who else is willing to die together with the Tang Empire?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°I heard that the South Jin Kingdom Emperor has gone mad from the sorrow of losing his son.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°If that Emperor wants to drag the entire South Jin Kingdom into his own cesspool of madness, there are still generals in the royal family. They will stop him because there are still more sane people.¡±


    ¡°Only the West-Hill Divine Pce is willing to pay any price to destroy the Tang Empire.¡± She continued, ¡°Xiong Chumo is gone, both the Divine Priests of Revtion and Judgement may be severely injured or even die after the battle of Verdant Canyon. What else is left in the Divine Hall?¡±


    Ning Que was deep in thought.


    ¡°Days ago, Eldest Brother and I were considering a problem. How should we seed in failure even if it was a temporary sess and temporary calm? Then, we thought of this.¡±


    Yu Lian looked at him and said, ¡°The battle will end if we kill the Abbey Dean.¡±


    Ning Que did not know what to say.


    This was a correct inference. If it was known that the Zhishou Abbey Dean had been killed by the Academy, and the West-Hill Divine Pce had been weakened, their influence on the secr world countries would weaken. Then which other countries would be willing to be destroyed along with the Tang Empire?


    Most importantly, if the Abbey Dean died, then Haotian Taoism would no longer be able to stop Liu Bai and the Sword Garret.


    The problem was... the Abbey Dean had the most powerful cultivation state in the world after the Headmaster ascended to heaven. It was just as difficult to kill him as it was for the Tang Empire to win this battle.


    Ning Que looked at her and said, ¡°Did you stay in Chang¡¯an and not go to the Verdant Canyon because of this?¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°I am not confident about defeating him because he is much more powerful than you and anyone in the world could imagine. He is unimaginably powerful.¡±


    Ning Que knew that Eldest Brother¡¯s Limitless State was close to that of the Abbey Dean¡¯s. To him, no matter how powerful the Abbey Dean was, it was not as how his Senior Sister had described. As such, he felt a little puzzled.


    Yu Lian said, ¡°You¡¯ll find out when he fights.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°What can I do?¡±


    Yu Lian answered, ¡°Fix the city.¡±


    Ning Que finally understood what Eldest Brother and Third Sister meant.


    If Chang¡¯an was breached, then they would be defeated.


    If the Academy killed the Zhishou Abbey Dean before Chang¡¯an fell, then they would be taking a step towards victory.


    And when Eldest Brother brought the Abbey Dean into Chang¡¯an, he would at least need to have fixed a part of the city.


    ¡ª The part where they would kill that man.


    If he couldn¡¯t do that, then he would no longer need to fix the city in the future.


    This was thest night before dawn and it may also be thest step before the abyss.


    Ning Que felt more and more stressed; he was so stressed he found it hard to breathe.


    Soon night fell.


    Mo Shanshan stood beside the city walls, her face reddened by the cold autumn winds.


    She wrapped her arms around herself and looked at the light in the households in front of her. She suddenly seemed to have understood something.


    However, that thought was fleeting and escaped her.


    She furrowed her brows slightly and continued looking at the city.


    Ning Que was also looking at the city.


    He sat atop the Yanming Mountain and looked across theke.


    Across theke, was a part of Chang¡¯an.


    His and Sangsang¡¯s house was there. It was dark and empty because they had not lived there for a long time.


    He looked at it for a very long time and thought of many things in the past.


    Back then, he had received a challenge from Monk Guan Hai and hade here to think for a long time by theke. Then, he had reaped plenty here.


    Of course, most of the things in the past were rted to Sangsang.


    However, he did not gain any inspiration.


    He was very tired.


    He fell asleep in the cold night.


    When he awoke, it was still dark across theke.


    Because the sky had brightened.


    Sounds of vendors shouting and selling their wares traveled through the fog.


    After the morning fog dispersed, the residential streets were enshrouded in mist from the Bun Shop.


    The crowd grew.


    So it was not that empty across the shore after all.


    Ning Que looked over there and seemed to have caught something.

 Chapter 757 - Looking at Changan (Part II)

    <h4>Chapter 757: Looking at Chang¡¯an (Part II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ning Que rose and patted off the grass and dew on his clothes before walking towards the shore across theke.


    There was a patch of white autumn reeds in the east of theke, and within which, nestled a wooden bridge. He walked over the bridge, through his side doors and along the alley. Then, he arrived at the bustling morning market of the mortal world.


    The Emperor died, but the people were still alive, and the war was still ongoing. Life had to continue. The steam from the Bun Shop spread like a mist across the streets and the soup from the noodle shop drenched the green stone path.


    People queued to buy breakfast, and as usual, they talked about news about their neighbors. Of course, their conversations included many things about the war at the border and women worrying about their sons and nephews in the army.


    Ning Que headed to the Bun Shop and listened to the water boiling in the pot. He looked at the steam in front of him and listened to the surrounding conversations. He looked at the adorable action of a child peeling off the paper from the bun and felt touched.


    Back then, he had met the Daoshi Monk before this very Bun Shop. He had seen the mud bun in the wild that was a-thousand-year old grave. That had started the most ferocious battle since he entered the human realm.


    The morning breeze had gradually picked up, and Daoshi Monk¡¯s head had rolled off his body like a hot steaming bun that a child had let go of. Then, blood that was thicker than dew and smellier than soup had drenched the green stone floors.


    Time passed quietly, and traces of blood left behind on the streets from back then had been removed, just like all traces of the battle had. People seemed to have forgotten what had happened that morning.


    The morning market was still the morning market, and the Bun Shop was still the Bun Shop. The boss and the chef at the counter were still the same people, but the children buying the buns were no longer the same.


    Was this the power of time?


    Ning Que stood before the Bun Shop, immersed in the images of what had happened back then. Then, he thought of what happened in the Tile Mountain and what happened after Sangsang had ced the ck chess piece on Buddha¡¯s chessboard.


    In Haotian¡¯s world, the highest rules such as time and death were eternal. What other rules could reach such a standard?


    The morning light grew furry due to the refraction from the steam, as if there were particles of time in it.


    People came and went on the streets.


    Ning Que stood in the middle of the street, his eyes closed and his head lowered, feeling everything around him.


    He saw many images.


    The blood had been washed away by water, leaving behind stains. Then, the stains were stepped over by people queuing to buy buns. There weren¡¯t any traces left behind on the green stone.


    The children held hot steaming meat buns in their hands and walked over the green stone floor. Women held the steaming buns in bamboo baskets, whining about theirzy husbands while walking across the green stone ground.


    The women gradually grew old and the children grew up, got married and had children. The old women stayed at home and waited while the children of those children started queuing with their mothers to buy buns. They secretly held one in their hands on the way home.


    For years, countless pairs of feet have stepped over these green stone floors. The floors became smoothly polished.


    He saw the Wilderness which was full of weeds. He saw the farmer setting fire to the grasnds. He saw old yellow bulls ploughing through the field, the ck soil being turned over.


    Rice and wheat was nted on the farnd, and in autumn they bore golden grains. The farmer began to harvest and thresh the grain. The stone mill slowly turned and milled out white flour, which was sent to the city to make steamed buns and meat buns.


    He also saw many other things, and as such, he understood a truth.


    Man would leave traces while living in the world, but as man continued to live in the world, these traces would gradually disappear in silence, without anyone noticing.


    This was not the power of time, but the power of mankind.


    He opened his eyes and looked at the never-ending flow of people and he smiled.


    The city was sorge, and the array, magnificent. So when the Headmaster, the representative of the world had left, one could no longer find anyone with the ability to gather sufficient Qi of Heaven and Earth to fix this city and the array.


    But the mortal world remained as before.


    And the power still lingered in the world.


    Ning Que did not know what the aura hidden in the world was.


    It could not be described as power.


    He could sense the magnificence, and could even seemingly touch those highest rules. But he did not know how to describe the feeling. What word should he use... the taste of life, or the power of fire?


    He did not know how to move that aura, but at least he had a starting point.


    Most importantly, this was the first time he had truly sensed that aura.


    At that moment, he had the same thought as his teacher and many other predecessors.


    That was why he was in a good mood.


    He saw Mo Shanshan who was on the other end of the street.


    Mo Shanshan watched Chang¡¯an from the city walls. She had stayed up for the whole night, so she seemed tired.


    Ning Que walked to the Bun Shop and bought two hot meat buns and walked to her.


    ¡°Beef and carrot filling. Two coins for each.¡±


    He handed the bun to Mo Shanshan.


    She epted it with both hands.


    Her hands were rather small, and her cotton dress was a little loose for her. Her sleeves draped over half her palms.


    The bun was very big, she had to use two hands to hold it.


    She carefully peeled off the paper from the bun and took a cautious bite.


    She was very focused and adorable.


    They arrived before the southern gates.


    They climbed up the city wall and looked at Chang¡¯an in the autumn wind again.


    ¡°Have you ever had that experience that Chinese characters look weirder and weirder as you repeatly stare at them? No matter their appearance or structure, they don¡¯t look like the same characters anymore.¡±


    ¡°Of course.¡±


    ¡°I thought it was because I had formed a habit from deconstructing the Eight Strokes Calligraphy of Yong.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the city bathed in morning light and continued, ¡°But for thest two days, after looking at Chang¡¯an for a prolonged period, I discovered that this was something very natural.¡±


    Mo Shanshan said, ¡°I have only looked at it for a night, but Chang¡¯an is no longer a city to me.¡±


    ¡°Is it a talisman or an array?¡±


    ¡°Neither. I think it is a person.¡±


    Mo Shanshan looked at the streets and buildings of the city and continued, ¡°He is called Chang¡¯an, and many of his acupoints in his Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi have been blocked. He is waiting for us to help cure him and unblock his acupoints.¡±


    After a moment of silence, Ning Que said, ¡°This is a very interesting way to put it. Just like how I had... But because of this, I know that it is almost impossible to unblock the Qi orifice of an ordinary person.¡±


    ¡°But you still did it.¡±


    Mo Shanshan looked at him and said, ¡°That is why I intend to use your method to cure Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Ning Que thought of all the things that had happened. Actually, he was still unsure of why his acupoints in the Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi had suddenly be unblocked and why he could cultivate.


    Mo Shanshan looked at the sky and said, ¡°Chang¡¯an¡¯s Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi is the heaven and earth. We do not have the ability to order both heaven and earth, so we can only allow them to do it on their own.¡±

 Chapter 758 - Second Brothers Rule (Part I)

    <h4>Chapter 758: Second Brother¡¯s Rule (Part I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    A blockage had appeared in a dark line of the God-stunning Array; as a result, the exit of the line should bepletely blocked. ording to the cycle of life and death of the tactical array, the flow of Qi of Heaven and Earth from north to south was forced to stoppletely. Therefore, the stagnation in the city became more and more serious until it flowed backwards and used the heaven and earth itself to clear away the blockages.


    The prescription given by Mo Shanshan to treat Chang¡¯an was very simple and extremely rough. It was really hard to imagine iting from such a beautiful and gentle girl. If she were treating a real person, that person would definitely bleed to death from all his orifices after taking this medicine. However, if it were Chang¡¯an itself taking the prescription, would it work?


    Ning Que was silent for a long while before asking, ¡°Where¡¯s has it been blocked? And how?¡±


    ¡°The exit of this line is the south gate, which is also just the entrance to the God-stunning Array. It faces the Vermilion Bird Avenue. If it were to be blocked, we would have to seal this gate. As for how we are going to do it...¡±


    Mo Shanshan said, ¡°I want to use rocks to seal this gate.¡±


    There did not seem to be a problem with blocking the gates with rocks. However, Ning Que knew that physically blocking the gate would not make any difference to the aura of heaven and earth. He immediately understood what she meant and thought of the rocks in the bottom of the Daming Lake at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He thought of the Stone Array Tactics.


    ¡°Are you sure it¡¯ll work?¡± He asked.


    Mo Shanshan shook her head and said, ¡°I¡¯m not, but I cannot think of any other methods. You told me that thest method is the best, that is why I wish to try.¡±


    This was indeed something that Ning Que said often.


    After a moment of contemtion, he said, ¡°Even though it is a little risky, it seems interesting.¡±


    They were pressed for time, so they had to start the blocking of the Vermilion South Gates immediately. Ning Que asked the Blue Dragon sect at the city gates to inform the Spring Breeze Pavilion and the pce of this arrangement.


    The administrative abilities of the Tang Imperial Court were demonstrated perfectly in the next few hours. It did not take long for the Ministry of Workers of the Imperial Center Administration to send several Array Tactical Masters and more than 3,000 civilian workers who were temporarily recruited to the South Gate. They were then put under themand of Mo Shanshan.


    Mo Shanshan asked, ¡°We need at least 30,000 rocks. Where can we find that many?¡±


    Ning Que looked at the houses in the city and said, ¡°If we can¡¯t find any, we¡¯ll demolish the houses.¡±


    The assistant minister from the Ministry of Revenue fell silent when he heard that. Then, he said softly, ¡°There is ake 1,500 meters south of the city where there are many rocks. When we were building the mansions of the lords...¡±


    Ning Que continued without waiting for him toplete his statement. He said, ¡°Theke with rocks is the best choice. Your Excellency, tell Ms. Mo if you have any ideas. We are in a rush for time, so there¡¯s no time for pleasantries.¡±


    The assistant minister agreed.


    Mo Shanshan asked, ¡°I need heavy rocks that are more than a hundred pounds. Can we move them?¡±


    The assistant minister answered, ¡°The machinery in the Ministry of Workers warehouse is being brought here. We can move even rocks tens and thousands of pounds from theke to the Southern Gate.¡±


    The imperial court decreed that the south gate of Chang¡¯an City would be closed. The grain team and the public would all enter and exit through the other gates, and thousands of volunteers and technical officials of the Ministry of Revenue and Array Tactical Masters would move the massive rocks and start constructing the array under Mo Shanshan¡¯smand. The South Gate immediately turned into arge and lively construction site.


    Confirming that there was no other problem, Ning Que bid Mo Shanshan farewell.


    Mo Shanshan asked curiously, ¡°What are you going to do?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Thest method is the best, but it is not yet thest moment. I want to see if I can find another method.¡±


    Mo Shanshan said calmly, ¡°Good luck.¡±


    Ning Que bowed at her with his hands folded in front, then he turned and left.


    Vermilion Bird Avenue was the only way connecting the Southern Gate and the city center of Chang¡¯an.


    The sky inte autumn was sometimes clear and sometimes dark, depending on the clouds in the sky.


    When Ning Que walked north along the Vermilion Bird Avenue, clouds drifted from outside the city, dimming the sunlight in the sky and casting arge shadow over it, lowering the temperature in the city.


    The stone carvings on the Vermilion Bird Avenue were darkened because of the changing light.


    Then, there was a gust of autumn wind and rain started to fall, driving the pedestrians on the street to the sides.


    Ning Que did not move but stood on the spot instead.


    He reached behind his back for the Big ck Umbre, only to feel the hilt of his de. Then he remembered that the Big ck Umbre was no longer with him and neither was the Big ck Horse and the carriage.


    Sangsang was not with him anymore, either.


    Ning Que thought of how he and Sangsang had felt when they first saw the carvings. He recalled how he had fallen in front of it, covered in blood. He kept silent, and he felt a myriad of emotions stirring within him.


    When the Headmaster took him and Sangsang in one of his travels, they had returned to Chang¡¯an once. Then, the Vermilion Bird appeared in the ck horse carriage.


    The Vermilion Bird was a Divine Talisman in the God-stunning Array, and Ning Que was the master of the array. Because of his rtionship with his teacher, the two did not have to speak tomunicate with each other.


    There were no words, only emotions and thoughts echoed between him and the Vermilion Bird.


    ¡°You¡¯re only at the peak of the Knowing Destiny State.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the Vermilion Bird carving that seemed toe alive after being drenched in the rain. He thought to himself, ¡°What use is it against a powerhouse like the Abbey Dean?¡±


    Yang Erxi panted as he held back his pitch-fork. He leaned against it and stood in the wild ins, taking a rest.


    There was a grave in front of him covered in fresh mud. It had just been freshly piled up.


    The pork trotters on the pitch-fork had already been given to the refugees. These days, he started to fight with grasnd barbarians holding cusses. The pitch-fork in his hand grew sharper and sharper because it was frequently used.


    It was used to pick up mud and dig graves, and was much easier to use than des.


    He had dug many graves in the past few days and buried many of hispatriots.


    After a short rest, Yang Erxi spat and yelled at hispanions in the distance. He picked up his pitch-fork over his shoulders and wearily headed towards the forest in the west.


    There were more than 2,000 new graves in these wild ins. They were all small and ugly.


    The Tang Army would never abandon any of itspatriots, no matter whether dead or alive.


    Even if it couldn¡¯t be done during the war, they would try their best to find the bodies of theirpatriots after the war.


    However, this was part of the Tang Empire. Burying the soldiers here would mean that they were buried in their homnd.


    They heard that thest Emperor was brought back to Chang¡¯an as ashes in a box.


    These deceased soldiers had nothing to be displeased about.


    Shortly after the start of the war, Chao Xiaoshu brought the Valiant Cavalry Battalion out of Chang¡¯an to fight against the grasnd cavalry at the Eastern Border. In the following days, several veterans came to join their ranks voluntarily. At the same time, their were joined by what was left of the Northeast Border Military that withdrew from the Yan territory, and their numbers increased.


    At present, the number of this army had exceeded 30,000, and it had been officially named the Volunteer Army by the imperial court. However, due to theck of equipment, especially war horses, they were still weaker whenpared to the grasnd cavalry.


    Just yesterday, the Eastern Border Volunteer Army and the grasnd cavalry fought their first real war. The Volunteer Army, which was weaker, gained the final victory with unbelievable courage.


    The victory had cost the lives of thousands of volunteer troops at the Eastern Border.


    However, what rmed Chao Xiaoshu and generals of the Valiant Cavalry Battalion was that nobody had seen Prince Long Qing and his fallen knightmanders in the valiant battle. What was even more disturbing was that of those who were trying to invade, the powerful Divine Hall Papal Cavalrymen and the elite grasnd cavalry were missing.


    Chao Xiaoshu looked at the forest in the west and thought of the emergency military report that had been sent by Pingyuan County. His face seemed to be covered with frost as he said, ¡°They have gone to Chang¡¯an.¡±


    The Eastern Border Volunteer Army continued to fight, but the logistics were tough and they were beyond exhaustion. They had already exceeded their capabilities in the fight yesterday, defeating most of the grasnd cavalry.


    At this time, even if they knew that Prince Long Qing was heading straight for Chang¡¯an with the elite cavalry, they were no longer able to make any response, nor were they likely to catch up in front.


    Liu V listened to Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s promation and his expression turned unusually dignified. However, he was still puzzled and he said, ¡°Although Long Qing¡¯s army is elite, it is absolutely impossible to capture Chang¡¯an City.¡±


    This was the reason for Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s icy features.


    It was clearly pointless, so why was Long Qing willing to give up so many troops just to gain time to go straight to Chang¡¯an? There was only one exnation. Long Qing firmly believed that when his cavalry arrived, Chang¡¯an City would have fallen.


    Before the vast green hills of the Verdant Canyon.


    There was a in before the green hills.


    This t and fertile in mostly belonged to Qinghe County. A small portion ofnd had been requisitioned by the Military Ministry. Besides meadows, there were many fields that have been cultivated for many years.


    After several days of bloody battles, the autumn grass was already painted with blood.


    Thousands of hectares of fertilend were trampled by the thousands of troops and horses of the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army.


    Many tragedies have urred this autumn. The farmers scattered and fled, the rice in the fields was not harvested. The rice reeds hunched their bodies feebly in the wind, looking like criminals waiting to be hanged.


    On the right side facing of the Verdant Canyon, there was a rtively t paddy field that had not been trampled by fighters. The paddy in the field was thickly dotted with golden yellow and looked very beautiful.


    Ye Su was standing in this paddy field.


    He walked towards the Verdant Canyon.


    With the wind rising in his footsteps, the golden ears of rice were blown, curled around and bounced up like a golden sea, and then the sea of rice gradually parted for him.


    The sea of rice had to make way for him because he had a thin wooden sword.


    Jun Mo was the proudest person in the Academy after Ke Haoran. He was the legendary Mr. Second.


    Ye Su was a Haotian Taoism genius who had broken the realm between life and death decades ago. They were both legendary figures.


    They were the truly supermundane beings.


    Who woulde out victorious in the meeting between the two?


    Everyone¡¯s gaze was on the paddy field and the wooden sword.


    All were silent, and there was only the gentle hissing of war-horses and some uneasy kicking hooves.


    For more than two days, the cavalry soldiers who were always ready to attack dismounted one after another because they knew that they were mere mortals who could not interfere in the battle. It was a fight for dignity among powerhouses.


    In the divine chariot, Ye Hongyu looked at the Verdant Canyon silently, her fingers tapping lightly on her blood red divine robe.


    Ye Su arrived at the Verdant Canyon.


    He looked at the metal canopy and at Second Brother¡¯s ck armor.


    Finally, his gazended on the iron sword. He frowned slightly, as if he was about to say something.


    Second Brother¡¯s voice rang out. It was still as stern and serious.


    He looked at Ye Su and said, ¡°You¡¯re standing at the wrong spot.¡±


    Ye Su did not expect that to be the first thing he heard.


    He calmed himself and asked seriously, ¡°Why is it wrong?¡±


    ¡°That is a farm, not a path.¡±


    Second Brother said, ¡°A path is for walking while a farm is for nting food. There is a path, but you did not use it and chose to walk across the farnd. That is ruining crops and is naturally wrong.¡±


    The disciples of the Academy in front of the Verdant Canyon were a little anxious because of Ye Su¡¯s visit. However, they could not help butugh because it felt like how their Senior Brother had lectured them over the years.


    He did not say anything else, neither did he frown nor hesitated. He just looked at someone and said ¡°you¡¯re wrong¡± because you were actually making mistakes. That was how Second Brother was.


    No matter if the other party was the World Wayfarer of Haotian Taoism, the Emperor, or a prostitute, if he or she were making mistakes, then they had to be lectured. That was the Second Brother¡¯s rule. There was nothing more important than this truth, and these were considered Etiquette.


    It was wrong to ruin crops, and it was wrong to stand in the wrong spot. It was also wrong to wear clothes of the secr world while keeping his hair in a Taoist bun. To Second Brother, Ye Su was problematic in every way. This made him very unhappy and even a little disappointed.


    Ye Su felt Second Brother¡¯s bad mood and could not help but smile. Jun Mo was exactly the person he had heard of. He smiled and said, ¡°Your ways are outdated. Furthermore, this is a war.¡±


    Second Brother said, ¡°Those who always keep in ord with time will never be outdated. Things like nting crops and harvesting have been done for many cycles and will not change with the times.¡±


    Ye Su stopped smiling and he asked, ¡°And how will you control others?¡±


    Second Brother said, ¡°The battle of Verdant Canyon hassted more than two days. I did not spare a single enemy who set foot on the field. Although the cavalry does not know it, they knew how to take advantages and avoid disadvantages. That is why the paddy field that you are standing in still remains.¡±


    Ye Su looked around the field of rice, slightly startled.


    Yesterday, with the permission of the disciples of the Academy, the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army collected corpses overnight, leaving a few corpses in front of the Verdant Canyon, but there was still blood in the fields.


    There should have been arge rice field near the paddy field where he was standing.


    That rice field had been trampled into waste soil, and rice was scattered on the ground. It looked rather bleak.


    The blood in the rice field was the deepest and most coagted, looking like pulp.


    It was just then when Ye Su realized that Jun Mo was not lying.


    The cavalry soldiers that once stepped on the field had all been all killed by him.


    One would lose both his sword and his life if he did not pay close attention in such an intense battle. However, in such a situation, Second Brother still insisted to use his iron sword to carry out his rules.


    What kind of person was he?


    Ye Su stood in the field in a prolonged silence. Then, he reached out and plucked an ear of rice and rubbed it gently. He looked at the ground that was drenched in blood and said, ¡°How can you teach me anything if I don¡¯t want to be taught?¡±


    Second Brother said, ¡°I¡¯ll teach you because you¡¯re making mistakes. And if you don¡¯t want to be taught, I will beat you until you do.¡±

 Chapter 759 - Second Brothers Rule (Part II)

    <h4>Chapter 759: Second Brother¡¯s Rule (Part II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    If you did not obey the rules, you will be beaten until you obey. Actually, this was not the Second Brother¡¯s rule, but rather the Academy¡¯s. It sounded unreasonable, but it wasn¡¯t always seen that way.


    Ye Su wasn¡¯t angered by this. He calmly said, ¡°Reason has nothing to do with force. Even if you can surpass me, you can¡¯t force me to agree with you. The truthes from Haotian. Reasones from the evaluation of reality and the teaching of wise men. Mr. First can teach me, but you cannot.¡±


    Since it did not make sense, there was no need to say more. When people on Jun Mo and Ye Su¡¯s level talk, they merely talk. They are confined to the words themselves,cking any type of psychological attack. This rendered their words meaningless.


    One stood in the Verdant Canyon. One stood in the rice field. Both kept silent.


    Hundreds of thousands of people who watched the battle in the wilderness looked nervously at the direction of Verdant Canyon. They did not know how the battle would begin, when they would make their move, and who would make the first move.


    No one knew exactly when, but Ye Su made the first move.


    The Haotian Taoism genius fought the Academy genius. It was different from what everyone had thought it would be. It wasn¡¯t earth-shattering. Boulders didn¡¯t fall from the mountains. There were no horrific disys of power. Instead, it seemed extremely ordinary.


    The thin wooden sword calmly and quietly went from Ye Su¡¯s front toward the Verdant Canyon. The rice field divided in front of the force of the passing sword, just like theke gradually parted, and the willow branches rose and fell forward in theke.


    Countless eyes stared at the wooden sword. Some looked surprised, some looked confused, others were even disappointed.


    However, in the next moment, a shocking scene took ce.


    As the wooden sword was flying, ayer of clouds suddenly appeared in front of Verdant Canyon.


    Theyer of clouds was dozen of feet thick and extremely dark. There was a faint hint of thunder and lightning in it as it stayed about 100 feet off the ground. From afar, it looked as though it would touch the ground.


    The cloud blocked the entrance of the Verdant Canyon.


    Between the clouds and the ground there was an iron shelter and Jun Mo, who was outside of it.


    Fourth Brother took some medicine. His spirits rose a little. However, when he looked at the clouds in the sky, he felt an aura of heaven and earth. His arms trembled again while holding the Sandbox.


    He was shocked. What horrifying level has a cultivator achieved, having the ability to use methods to understand the origins and rules of the heaven and earth¡¯s aura?


    ¡°This is the real peak of the five cultivation states. Ye Su really is deserving of the Haotian Taoism¡¯s genius title.¡±


    Fourth Brother looked at the sword flying through the rice paddy and said despondently, ¡°Second Brother used the iron sword to cut people down through the power of heaven and earth. Now, Ye Su also uses the power of heaven and earth. Both states seem...¡±


    Seventh Sister, Mu You, said concerningly, ¡°Who¡¯s stronger?¡±


    Fourth Brother replied, ¡°I don¡¯t know. For now, only Liu Bai can tell.¡±


    The cloud blocked the Verdant Canyon.


    In the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army, there were many priests, cultivators, and Papal Cavalrymen. In the Spring, they joined the war in the Wilderness and saw that cloud. Seeing that Tang, the Deste Men¡¯s most powerful warrior, was dejected at the sight of this cloud, they became shocked and excited.


    In the divine chariot, Ye Hongyu slowly looked up and looked at the cloud. A veryplicated emotion loomed deep in her eyes. Then all these emotions turned into indifference on her face.


    When she hunted Long Qing in the North of Yan Kingdom frontier fortress, she had seen this cloud on the side of the blue sea that was as thin as a waist. Therefore, the meaning of this cloud was different to her than to other people in the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    Liu Bai looked at the clouds above the Verdant Canyon, not saying a word.


    The clouds above the Verdant Canyon were white. Given that they were so close to the ground and so thick, it made them appear gloomy and dark. They were just like dark clouds in the summer that bring forth heavy rain.


    The wooden sword was a light white, just like Ye Su¡¯s clothes. The sword flew down into the wilderness with dark clouds overhead. Suddenly, the wooden sword became easy to spot as it looked like a slow sh of lightning.


    Then, a bright light shed through the dark clouds, followed by immeasurable brightnessing from their depths. This brightness turned into countless bolts of lightning. They all looked like thousands of horrifying swords.


    Lightning shed through the clouds for more than a moment, striking the wilderness 100 feet below. Countless terrifying rumbles of thunder soon followed, crashing into the Verdant Canyon.


    Second Brother¡¯s armor, charred by the fireworks from Ye Hongyu¡¯s Taoist Sword in the battle the day before, reflected the bright shes of lightning. It looked like several bright snakes crawling on ck soil.


    He held an iron sword. He stood tall and straight, his face serious.


    The high crown was tied onto his helmet. It stood still amid the thunder and lightning.


    His eyebrows didn¡¯t flinch.


    He looked very proper.


    Dark clouds hung overhead. Lightning continued to sh along with the rolls of thunder.


    He appeared as though he was going to a banquet.


    No observing. No squinting.


    Not looking at the clouds. Not looking at the sword.


    He just looked at Ye Su in the distant rice field.


    He held up the iron sword, level with his eyebrows, showing the ancient Etiquette.


    As he extended his sword, the autumn wind that was blowing in his face fell silent.


    The thunder and lightning finally came down.


    Countless horrible rumbles were heard in front of the Verdant Canyon. Countless bolts of lightning, with their frightening power, fell to the ground almost instantaneously.


    The dark clouds twisted restlessly. Bolts of lightning like snakes struck the mountains, causingrge boulders to fall.


    Second Brother extended his sword and the autumn wind stopped. Even the space in front of him seemed like thousands of cubes had been drawn by the broad and straight iron sword. Then the cubes turned into frames, and finally turned into thin strips.


    Countless rumbles of thunder and bolts of lightning entered these empty spaces and came towards his body. What was supposed to be zigzagging bolts of lightning suddenly straightened out into bright strips.


    The lightning and thunder continued.


    The charred surface of his armor reflected the lightning, bing hotter and brighter.


    The officers and soldiers watching the war in the southern coalition army felt as if they had seen the sun. Their eyes were stung with great pain. They quickly covered their eyes. Those who reacted slower cried out in pain.


    The cultivators also closed their eyes and sensed the change in the Verdant Canyon. They could feel the pure aura of heaven and earth that the thunder and lightning held, and were rendered speechless by the wooden sword.


    Maybe itsted just a split second, but it felt like millions of years to those watching.


    The white clouds at the Verdant Canyon finally dissipated. As the thunder stopped, the lightning also disappeared.


    The smoke gradually gathered and Second Brother slowly appeared.


    He stood in front of the Verdant Canyon.


    His armor was just as charred as before. His expression was just as serious as before. The iron sword was held level with his eyebrows, just as before. He stood with perfect posture. Even the most strict Etiquette professor could find no fault in him.


    Many ck holes as thick as a finger appeared on the ground in front of him. Each ck hole was produced by the thunder and lightning summoned by Ye Su¡¯s wooden sword. The ck holes were so deep, one couldn¡¯t see the bottom. One could imagine the power that sword held.


    The surprising thing was that these ck holes were all in front of Second Brother. But the ground behind him had not changed.


    Of all the thunder and lightning, none of them hit him. None of them hit the iron shelter behind him, either.


    The ck holes were arranged in front of him so perfectly, they looked like a straight line.


    Thunder and lightning have supreme power thates from heaven and earth. They only obey thews of nature.


    However, they could not cross the line in front of Second Brother.


    The Academy¡¯s Etiquette was the rule.


    That line was Second Brother¡¯s rule, guarded by his iron sword. That line was his Etiquette.


    There was a rule one that must follow. No matter who owns the sword, or if there¡¯s wind and rain or thunder and lightning, it must be obeyed.


    Clouds should stay in the sky. In the mountains, they cannot be this low.


    How can lightning bother me?

 Chapter 760 - Whats Done Is Done

    <h4>Chapter 760: What¡¯s Done Is Done</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The clouds and thunders had disappeared.


    The wooden sword shakily flew back from the Verdant Canyon, quietly suspending in the air.


    Ye Su slightly raised his eyebrows.


    He knew Jun Mo was strong, but not that strong.


    Only after getting surpassing the Five States, one was able to make his own rules in Haotian¡¯s world.


    Second Brother hadn¡¯t yet crossed over the Five States, but he had turned the rules into his own by his strong faith.


    In a sense, his way had exceeded the Five States.


    Ye Su gradually calmed down.


    He had finished his attack, and it was Second Brother¡¯s turn.


    Looking at the Verdant Canyon, he put his hands behind his back and calmly said, ¡°Please.¡±


    Second Brother moved.


    His sword was simpler.


    The broad straight iron sword flew away from his right hand, over the Verdant Canyon.


    As long as a person¡¯s height when set on the ground, the iron sword slowly flew toward the field.


    The ground from the Verdant Canyon to the field was covered with blood.


    It was the blood of the cavalrymen and the horses from two days ago.


    It looked bloody and gave off an terrible smell.


    The soil in front of the field even turned ck as ink.


    The iron sword flew over the bloody ground, without being contaminated.


    On the contrary, it became more assertive.


    Determinedly assertive.


    Cold and aggressive.


    Second Brother and Ye Su had never fought before.


    They had met each other, but their swords hadn¡¯t.


    This time, they finally had the chance.


    The iron sword had killed hundreds of people.


    Hundreds of people¡¯s blood dyed the ground.


    Therefore, the blood belonged to the iron sword.


    It was fostered and urged by its own blood.


    It moved after Ye Su, which was for the sake of etiquette.


    Even Ye Su could not dodge this powerful sword.


    He had to defend.


    In the south, Liu Bai slowly stood up by the carriage. Looking at the iron sword, he said, ¡°Finally, it is getting interesting.¡±


    The battle in Verdant Canyon hadsted for two days and the strongest man was waiting for Jun Mo at his strongest.


    Looking at the iron sword, he finally felt interested, which meant that Second Brother at this time was in his strongest phase.


    The iron sword was indeed interesting.


    More interesting than Liu Bai expected.


    It still represented Second Brother¡¯s rules.


    ck or white, no gray.


    Alive or dead, one or the other.


    To fight or defeat, no one could evade.


    Facing such an aggressive sword, everyone should make a decisive choice.


    There was only one way, going in one direction.


    There was no third way in the world and no weeds on the wall could stand still.


    The sword had gone beyond all expectation.


    It gave its enemies a chance to choose, and then it would smash and eliminate them.


    This was a kingly way.


    How would people choose between life and death?


    Even if they didn¡¯t care for it, they had to choose.


    Just because they had too much in sight, they didn¡¯t know how to choose.


    It was also a failure if they didn¡¯t choose.


    This was the puzzle from the iron sword to Ye Su.


    Ye Su didn¡¯t answer to the iron sword.


    Since the sword represented Second Brother¡¯s rules, if he took it, it was equal to epting his rules which could not be changed no matter how he tried.


    However, the iron sword needed to be taken.


    What could he do?


    Ye Su made the field to take the sword.


    The field was his rule.


    Before the iron sword came out of the Verdant Canyon, he had been putting his hands behind him.


    The breeze created by his sleeves slightly blew over the field.


    Then the iron sword flew into the field.


    The field of rice divided in two, waving like ake, a sea, and green pines in the mountains.


    The weeds on the ridge were stained with blood.


    The matured rice was stained with blood.


    The iron sword flew over the weeds, smashing them into dust, which flew up and fell on the ground.


    The matured rice fell down as the sword flew.


    Losing its heavy seeds, the rice straightened up, rebounding its leaves into the air.


    The ears of rice fell to the ground and the seeds bounced into the sky along with the leaves before they touched the ground.


    The bran covering the seeds cracked, revealing the round crystal grains.


    The grains flew around, reflecting sunlight like pearls which looked extraordinarily beautiful.


    The grains in the sky, burned by the sunshine, smelled fragrant.


    The grains on the ground, being dyed bloody, immersed in the earth.


    Green rice leaves grew in the soil.


    They sturdily grew up to the sky.


    In an instant, the field of rice had experienced harvest, death, and rebirth.


    The rice¡¯s life just happened in front of people.


    It was a continuous processes in the perfect harmony circles with no boundary, which even the flying iron sword could not find the dividing line.


    It was still flying forward in silence.


    The growth of rice suddenly speeded up, whooshing.


    The iron sword created a hurricane over the rice.


    Ye Su¡¯s wooden sword suspended in front of him and was swayed by the hurricane like a frail boat in the rice sea.


    The boat had no power and was swayed by the push of the rice and wind.


    No matter how strong the waves were and how fierce the wind was, the small boat had never sunk, rising and falling in the dark sea with white waves.


    A moment ago, it disappeared in the sea.


    The next moment, it showed up once again.


    The boat had no deck nor cabin.


    It was the wooden sword, the simplest piece of wood.


    It aimlessly floated in the sea of life and death.


    It asked for neither survival nor death.


    Therefore, nothing could control it either.


    Some time passed.


    The wind stopped and the sea calmed down as if nothing had happened.


    Only the seedlings on the ground could prove what had happened.


    Ye Su reached and caught some grains.


    They were full and burned by the sun, turning yellow and having a good smell.


    He put a grain into his month.


    He slowly chewed with a smile on his face, carefully tasting it.


    ¡°Over ten years ago when I traveled around many countries, I believed I had stopped caring for life and death and stopped being scared. I believed I and my sword had merged together, and it knew me as a second me,¡± said Ye Su.


    Ye Su sprinkled the rest of the rice to the ground and said with a smile, ¡°If I faced your sword at that time, I would have taken it and lost.¡±


    ¡°Until a few years ago, when I stabbed Mr. First across space against the sun on the Snow-capped Peak with my pure sword intent, I realized that I waspletely wrong.¡±


    Ye Su stopped smiling and calmly said, ¡°Because that sword I was proud of, never hit Mr. First. It didn¡¯t even stir up the water in the pool.¡±


    ¡°Mr. First was reading books by the pool and he didn¡¯t even look at my sword or think of it at all. Until that moment, I realized that... seeing through was a joke.¡±


    ¡°After that, I went to Chang¡¯an and lived in a small Taoist temple for a long time. I saw the Taoist temple copsing and my neighbor¡¯s roofs breaking. I was no longer supermundane. I was feeling them. I began to repair the temple and houses for them and finally understood the truth of ¡®first destroy and then build¡¯.¡±


    Looking at the blood in the field, he continued, ¡°Blood represents death, but it can fertilize the field. The blood-rice must be delicious.¡±


    ¡°Frist destroy and then build. This is the circle of life.¡±


    ¡°There is no death in the world.¡±


    Second Brother looked at him and suddenly said, ¡°There is.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°I know. But in our time, there is no death.¡±


    Second Brother said, ¡°Life and Death, how can you break them?¡±


    ¡°The Buddhism and Taoism both ask for thest great peace.¡±


    ¡°Seeing through life and death is aimed toward thest peace. However, at this moment, I understand death is eternal and life is lucky, both of which are full of joy. Why should people have to be in peace?¡±


    ¡°That kind of peace is false.¡±


    ¡°Facing life and death, people should follow their hearts. That is real.¡±


    ¡°This is my view of life and death now.¡±


    ¡°It seems simple and powerless, but it can¡¯t be broken.¡±


    ¡°Neither by your sword nor by anything in the world.¡±


    Upon hearing this, Second Brother thought for a moment and said, ¡°You have approached the Tao.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°But I haven¡¯t attained the Tao.¡±


    Second Brother said, ¡°However, your Tao has deviated from Haotian¡¯s.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°Tao exists in the heart of Heaven. Maybe this is the Tao Haotian teaches me.¡±


    Second Brother asked, ¡°If it isn¡¯t, what will you do?¡±


    Looking at the rice and seedlings, he answered after a long silence, ¡°I have my sword.¡±


    He reached out his hand to the golden rice sea.


    He held the wooden sword.


    Everyone had his own Tao.


    This was irrelevant to faith and piety.


    Someone like Ye Su was bound to develop his own Tao.


    Second Brother¡¯s question was practical.


    So was Ye Su¡¯s answer.


    He was prepared.


    This represented a shocking fact.


    If Haotian agreed with his Tao, he would remain pious.


    If not, he had his sword.


    Since his Tao had been built, he would like to hold on to it.


    Ye Su was a genius as well as a determined believer of Haotian, because of which the Abbey Dean took him as a disciple.


    However, he had changed.


    Maybe since he was in the wilderness, or in the temple in Chang¡¯an.


    Anyway, he held his own sword.


    The sword dared to question the Heavens.


    How powerful he must be.


    At this moment, he was a believer of Haotian.


    The Wayfarer of the Haotian Taoism.


    He didn¡¯t need to question the Heavens.


    Instead, he asked Jun Mo.


    Was Jun Mo able to take it?

 Chapter 761 - There Is No If

    <h4>Chapter 761: There Is No ¡°If¡±</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Both Jun Mo and Ye Su were proud and strong men. However, no one knew whether they were proud because of being strong or they were strong because of being proud.


    Two years ago, they encountered in under an autumn rain and had a fight. However, due to the Buddhism Sect, they didn¡¯t fight to their heart¡¯s content before they had to leave.


    This time, they met again; they took one strike respectively, and no one was able to hurt the other in front of the Verdant Canyon.


    The third strike was about toe.


    It seemed like the battle had just begun since this was just the third strike, but both the two fighters and the hundreds of thousands of people in the wilderness realized this would be the final one.


    Eighteen years ago in the wilderness, he was inspired by the birth of the Son of Yama and performed his best sword during his youth, cutting the small tree into 53,333 pieces.


    After that, he traveled all over the world to cultivate. His sword became slower and slower, turning thousands of them into one.


    One was enough.


    As the autumn wind raised, the Qi of Heaven and Earth seemed to be summoned by the wooden sword from all directions, refracted into a strange shape in the sunshine as if thousands of horses were running.


    Countless golden rice grains were blown in the wind to the north like a golden wave. The wooden sword proceeded through the rice waves like a fast ship.


    Ye Su started to move after the wooden sword, sleeves waving.


    The rice waves pushed the wooden sword to fly faster and faster under the influence of the Heaven and Earth¡¯s Qi like a sh of light, followed by Ye Su.


    No one could be that fast.


    Flying on a sword had always been a legend.


    More precisely, after the Headmaster, the legend had ended.


    Therefore, Ye Su didn¡¯t fly on the sword.


    The wooden sword was a boat.


    He was the one on the boat.


    The boat carried him.


    Not as one pushing the boat.


    After a gust of wind, Ye Su disappeared.


    In the next moment, he showed up in front of Jun Mo, holding his wooden sword.


    He bent his knees, lowered his waist, straightened his elbows, and straightened his wrists.


    The wooden sword stabbed toward Jun Mo¡¯s heart.


    An iparably Divine Light lit up on the sword.


    The sun over the Verdant Canyon turned dark as he swung his sword.


    The world and the sword had merged together.


    He had transformed the will of Haotian into his sword intent.


    This was Haotian¡¯s will.


    Contained in the wooden sword.


    Inevitable!


    The powerful sword was even more aggressive than Jun Mo¡¯s sword.


    Life and death could be ignored, but Haotian¡¯s will could not.


    Jun Mo remembered the sentence that his teacher repeated many times:


    There was no omniscient nor omnipotent existence, expect Haotian.


    He knew that he could not dodge Ye Su¡¯s sword, so he didn¡¯t try to.


    He didn¡¯t even look at the wooden sword that stabbed on his chest before he chopped down with his sword.


    It was a simple action.


    He just casually did it.


    If the question was hard to answer, you didn¡¯t answer it¡ªlike the puzzle Ning Que gave Chen Pipi before he entered the Second floor. Jun Mo just dropped it because it was tooplicated to work out.


    If the knot was too difficult to untie, drop it¡ªlike the knot Mu You made when she bathed in the cold water. Jun Mo dropped it because it was too troublesome to untie.


    He asked for the answer from Youngest Brother; if he didn¡¯t tell him, he would punish him with the school rules.


    He told Seventh Sister to untie it; if she didn¡¯t want to, just cut it.


    The wooden sword in front of him was difficult to take, so he didn¡¯t try to; It was difficult to dodge, so he didn¡¯t dodge¡ªhe held his iron sword as if he held the punishing ruler and scissors, just chopping down.


    Jun Mo had always regarded his Youngest Uncle as his idol. Even though he didn¡¯t learn the Great Spirit, he had learned the Haoran Sword which taught him to go forward bravely.


    Holding the iron sword and being about to destroy all the huge rocks in the Verdant Canyon, Jun Mo felt so free and contented.


    There was no Buddha or Haotian in front of the sword.


    Jun Mo was peaceful because he was confident that before the wooden sword touched him, his sword would cut Ye Su in two.


    This was a challenge to their courage rather than a mutually assured destruction.


    Courage was pride.


    People all knew Second Brother was the proudest and bravest man in the world. The countless cavalrymen that died in front of the Verdant Canyon could prove that.


    Ye Su was proud, too. Since Jun Mo acted so proudly, he became prouder.


    He didn¡¯t dodge either.


    The seemingly blunt wooden sword instantaneously merged into Jun Mo¡¯s chest through the ck armor and triggered the runes which began to shine, emitting a great aura.


    The iron sword didn¡¯t cut off Ye Su¡¯s neck but was blocked by the sheath on his back.


    In the bright light, the inconspicuous sheath was like a sail in a tempestuous ocean that kept out the wind and pushed the boat.


    The tip of the iron sword just hit on the sheath and was stuck since it was wide and straight.


    It looked true but seemed untrue.


    The iron sword was not an iron sword; the wooden sword was not a wooden sword; the sheath was not a sheath. All of them had been injected with the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    This was apetition between the fighters¡¯ Psyche Powers rather than their swords, in other words, this was a battle between two worlds.


    Vast amounts of Qi of Heaven and Earth wildly gathered. It was swallowed up by invisible whirlpools in an instant to enter their worlds and then broke out through the sword and the sheath.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth in front of the Verdant Canyon had been contracted, twisting the refractive daylight so that the Qi of Heaven and Earth began to produce friction, lighting me!


    If Ye Su¡¯s first sword lit a small sun in front of the Verdant Canyon, this time, they created a real sun, radiating light and heat.


    What a beautiful picture!


    Looking at this, everyone would be excited.


    Unfortunately, it was so bright that few people were able to see it clearly, just as the time when the Headmaster beheaded the Divine General in the wilderness.


    Liu Bai could see it.


    Ye Hongyu could as well.


    She was quietly sitting in the carriage, lowering her head and seeming not to care about what was happening at the Verdant Canyon.


    However, at this time, she could not help raising her head.


    In the light, Jun Mo pressed his sword down.


    With a hiss, the sheath on Ye Su¡¯s back was torn.


    Ye Su didn¡¯t change his expression while he pushed his sword harder.


    The wooden sword became shorter and shorter¡ªa short part of the sword had been stabbed into Jun Mo¡¯s chest while most of it was smashed into powder, violently burning like candles.


    Now the problem was if the iron sword could break the sail before the wooden sword could break the armor?


    The candle would burn up eventually.


    The burning wooden sword was getting shorter and it still didn¡¯t break Jun Mo¡¯s armor.


    In the zing light, Ye Su¡¯s face looked transparent without any expression.


    He continued pushing forward.


    Until there was only a hilt left.


    With a loud whistling, Ye Su pped the hilt and pushed it into Jun Mo¡¯s chest.


    Previously, his wooden sword had neither hilt nor sheath.


    Now it did.


    It was because, over these years, he had been regressing.


    He was making progress by going backward.


    From ten thousands of swords to one sword, from seeing through to not seeing through, from outside to inside.


    In this battle, he had been moving forward and had not stepped back.


    His sheath was the bond to understand the world.


    His hilt represented all his spirit in the Sword Taoism.


    He caught the iron sword with his sheath and inserted all his sword intent into Jun Mo¡¯s chest.


    Jun Mo¡¯s cultivation was as simple as his iron sword.


    He moved forward and never stepped back.


    He had been advancing toward the peaks one by one.


    When Ye Su hit the hilt into his chest, he suddenly released his hilt.


    The iron sword was too wide and straight, which could be contained by neither the sheath nor the world.


    At least for a short time, he could not break Ye Su¡¯s sheath.


    Therefore he dropped it as if he dropped the puzzle.


    He released his hilt and made apromise for the first time in his life.


    Instead, his left foot took a step forward in the light.


    His right hand clenched into a fist, holding the infinite light in the autumn wind, and smashed into Ye Su.


    The indomitable Jun Mo made his firstpromise.


    Ye Su, who used to retreat in order to advance, stepped forward without hesitation.


    The two geniuses of cultivation chose each other¡¯s most adept ways to fight at the same time in the battle. No one could figure out the winner.


    At the time the hilt totally sank into the ck armor.


    There was a cracking sound resounding in the wilderness.


    The sky seemed to be torn apart.


    Nothing seemed to happen in Jun Mo¡¯s armor and there were only some bits of wood remaining.


    However, behind him was a terrible sword intent.


    It pointed at the Verdant Canyon, leaving a deep hole in the cliff.


    The remaining sword intent was that powerful.


    What would happen to Jun Mo who took most of the sword intent?


    Almost at the same time.


    Jun Mo¡¯s fist punched Ye Su.


    He held the infinite light in his fist, which was full of the Qi of Heaven and Earth in the Verdant Canyon.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth was full of unimaginable sword intent:


    The iron sword¡¯s intent and Ye Su¡¯s intent.


    Jun Mo reced the iron sword with countless ones.


    As he hit Ye Su, the countless swords also fell on him.


    As the spring breeze blew the willows and leaves fell into the water.


    The sun rose and theke glowed.


    The wild wind blew over the winterke.


    In front of the Verdant Canyon, it was deadly silent.


    People all nervously watched the two people standing there.


    A long time had passed.


    Ye Su suddenly coughed up and began to bleed.


    Looking at Jun Mo, he sighed and said, ¡°If you didn¡¯t wear that armor, I could win.¡±


    ¡°There is no if.¡±


    Jun Mo didn¡¯t show any joy on his face and said, ¡°If you need an if, I will win whether I have no armor or you have no sheath; I will win if neither of us has a sword.¡±


    ¡°I won, if it was 18 years ago; I will win if it is 18 yearster.¡±


    Atst, he added, ¡°Anyway, I will win.¡±

 Chapter 762 - No Time for Break

    <h4>Chapter 762: No Time for Break</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ye Su asked, ¡°How far can you go with the help of foreign object?¡±


    The Second Brother answered, ¡°Haotian Taoism follows the Natural Law, which is wrong in the first ce.¡±


    Ye Su was slightly shocked. ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°What is a foreign object? If you consider everything except our bodies as a foreign object, then armor is a foreign object; a sword is a foreign object; the Qi of Heaven and Earth is a foreign object as well. However, everyone uses them.¡±


    ¡°We travel by horses and boats; we cook with knives and fire. The difference between human beings and animals is that we can use tools. How can we consider them foreign objects?¡±


    Ye Su thought for a long time. ¡°I thought you were a straight, staid, and stubborn man until today, but you are the wisest one.¡±


    ¡°Etiquette is a rule: think and follow the reasonable rules.¡± The Second Brother continued, ¡°Even when facing thousands of people, I never step back. This is my style.¡±


    ¡°Mr. Ke said, even thousands of people will not stop me, I should go after my goal.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s what I meant.¡±


    Looking at him, Ye Su asked seriously, ¡°The Academy has been doing its favorite things because you believe these things are right. Haotian makes rules but people make judgments. Different positions see different things. How can you judge whether this matter is reasonable?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re right, different positions will naturally lead to different standards, but once you choose a position, you will know the judgment. That is the rule.¡±


    The Second Brother added, ¡°The Academy¡¯s position is man¡¯s position: we feel nothing to the world. We love good things, like rice; We hate bad things, like disasters. So is the rule: we follow good rules and abandon bad ones.¡±


    Ye Su asked, ¡°The Academy judges things by pros and cons?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    Ye Su said bitterly, ¡°That is too realistic.¡±


    The Second Brother said, ¡°Human is realistic.¡±


    Ye Su smiled wryly, wiping the blood off his mouth with a handkerchief. The blood was thick, like the bottom of a wine barrel.


    The Second Brother guessed he must be in bad shape. When he remembered Ye Shu¡¯s Tao and the view of life and death, the Second Brother wanted to persuade him to hide in the Academy if he had trouble.


    However, he knew how proud Ye Su was, so he just said, ¡°Take care.¡±


    Upon hearing this, Ye Suughed and became happy. ¡°I have traveled for so many years but after being destroyed, I have received your wishes. Thank you.¡±


    After saying that, he turned around and left the Verdant Canyon.


    Watching his lone figure, the Second Brother slowly inserted his iron sword into the ground.


    His armor began to crack and fall apart. The burnt ck metal fragments looked like themon broken tiles in Chang¡¯an.


    Momentster, the fragments of armor piled around his feet, revealing his bloody clothes.


    In the north of the wilderness was the Verdant Canyon; in the south were the coalition camps.


    Ye Su didn¡¯t go north or south. He went east. Walking along the mountains, he would reach Great Lake. Past Great Lake was the Kingdom of Song; after Song, he would reach the sea.


    He didn¡¯t know why he wanted to see the sea, but he felt something was calling him there.


    Somewhere in the wilderness, he was stopped.


    By a red flower.


    Ye Hongyu stood in front of him and asked, ¡°Where are you going?¡¯


    Looking at her, Ye Su smiled and said, ¡°I¡¯m lost, so I decided to rx.¡±


    ¡°You are seriously injured,¡± she pointed out. ¡°You need medical treatment. Zhishou Abbey is in the south as well as the Divine Hall. Why are you going east?¡±


    Ye Su believed she must be clenching her fists even though he couldn¡¯t see them, but he felt too warm to feel the anger in her heart.


    He said with a smile, ¡°I am a cripple now. No one can cure me.¡±


    Ye Hongyu was indeed clenching. She was so angry that she could not help trembling, sting her robe in the wind.


    He was her elder brother and the most respected man in her life. He had been her idol and she had aspired to him since she was a little girl. She had always been watching his back but never to catch up. Even if she made the Great Divine Priest of Judgment, she would still be the little girl crying behind her brother...


    Yet, at this moment, he was calling himself a cripple...


    <i>¡°How can you be a cripple!¡±</i>


    <i>¡°How can you easily and calmly admit that you are a cripple!¡±</i>


    ¡°Even if you can¡¯t cultivate and stay normal, you are still extraordinary. How can you be so dispirited? Where is your pride? Your confidence!?¡±


    She said this tremblingly even though she looked calm.


    Looking at her, Ye Su said, ¡°Since I am neither Ning Que nor Long Qing and I am irrelevant to Yama, Haotian won¡¯t bless me. I am just a normal, hard-working person who has had his Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi destroyed. I am an ordinary person now.¡±


    ¡°I know why you are angry.¡±


    He gently added, ¡°When I stopped you from killing Long Qing in the North of Yan Kingdom, I knew you had doubt and you were angry because I didn¡¯t have the courage.¡±


    ¡°I am your elder brother, but I have less courage than you and that annoys you. But I have to remind you that I have doubted Haotian for a long time and I couldn¡¯t help thinking that today¡¯s failure was my punishment from Haotian.¡±


    Ye Hongyu was a little shocked.


    Ye Su burst outughing. ¡°It is useless to talk about these things now. Anyway, I am satisfied. I have experienced the most wonderful fight of my life.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Only victory can make me happy.¡±


    ¡°I am not you or Ning Que.¡±


    Ye Su smiled and said, ¡°People like Jun Mo and me are still conventional.¡±


    Ye Hongyu didn¡¯t know what to say. She and Ning Que would probably never understand why this battle could develop to this situation.


    Looking to the mountains not far in the distance, Ye Su said calmly, ¡°I wanted great fame when I was young. Luckily, I failed. I could have devoted my whole life to the Sword Taoism. I could have ranked in the top 3 of the Sword Taoism but unfortunately, the top 3 are all here.¡±


    ¡°Failure is not terrible. Over these years, I have failed more than once. I just didn¡¯t have a thorough defeat like today. I don¡¯t think it¡¯s sad. On the contrary, I think it is a good thing.¡±


    Ye Su turned to Ye Hongyu and said with a smile, ¡°The Academy is following Human Taoism, so they are realistic. I lost but I also gained some understanding.¡±


    ¡°Liu Bai is about to move and you should keep watching in the Verdant Canyon. This fight will be meaningful to you.¡±


    ¡°What about you?¡±


    ¡°From today on, I will be an ordinary person. I can¡¯t use the sword anymore, so I will have more time to think about other things.¡±


    ¡°Hold on to your Sword Taoism and you will overtake me one day,¡± Ye Su said. ¡°In fact, I have been waiting for you for so many years. Unfortunately, I fell behind. I hope you can forgive me.¡±


    Then he took Ye Hongyu¡¯s divine crown off with a smile. He rubbed her ck hair messily like a nest, making her look childish.


    Ye Hongyu suddenly froze. She was very ufortable with this.


    In all these years, Ye Su had never been so gentle with her.


    She was nervous, but she felt warm and contented.


    Therefore, she bowed her head obediently.


    Ye Su left.


    A long time passed. Ye Hongyu raised her head, thinking about what had just happened.


    As she watched the vanishing figure, she tried to control her sadness.


    Several deacons and guards from the West-Hill Divine Pce appeared around her.


    ¡°Go and protect him.¡±


    She said in a low deadpan voice and then turned toward the Verdant Canyon.


    Given it had been a fair fight, she was not angry. Her brother had gotten what he wanted, and he was happy. As Ye Su said, it was time for Liu Bai to take action, because Jun Mo, who had just beaten Ye Su, was in his peak period.


    The Second Brother was sitting under the tent, staring into the wilderness.


    The fragments remaining on his body had been collected by Mu You. She took off his armor and began to unskillfullyb his hair.


    Holding a bowl of herb water in his left hand and a bag of sugar in his right, Wang Chi said, ¡°The decoction is thick and bitter. If you can¡¯t drink it, take the sugar.¡±


    Looking at the sugar, the Second Brother frowned. ¡°How can a bitter decoctionpare to being alive?¡±


    He took the warm water and gulped it down as soldiers drank wine. His face didn¡¯t change but his eyebrows trembled slightly.


    The ck decoction was so bitter that he could not control his face.


    Wang Chi quickly passed him the sugar.


    After the Second Brother ate the sugar, his hair was wellbed.


    Mu You put a mirror in front of him, and then tied the crown on his head.


    The Sixth Brother was sweating profusely as he constantly refined the iron sword.


    Mu You asked, ¡°Do you need a break?¡±


    The Second Brother stood up dressed in his academy uniform with her help and said, ¡°I can¡¯t.¡±


    He couldn¡¯t because if he stopped to rest, he would be discouraged.


    He couldn¡¯t because his opponent wouldn¡¯t allow it.


    A carriage came from the south, heading straight toward the Verdant Canyon.


    It was moving quietly, driven by no one.


    The only person was inside the carriage.

 Chapter 763

    <h4>Chapter 763: Sword Competition in the Verdant Canyon (Part 1)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The carriage stopped in front of the Verdant Canyon.


    It could not havee, but it did.


    It meant the man in the carriage might note, or his sword might note¡ªbecause his sword could kill a person from thousands of kilometers away.


    The man in the carriage was Liu Bai.


    He was recognized as the strongest man in the cultivation world as well as the Sword Sage. He was so strong that even the Unworldly Sublime Beings from the Unknown ces could not beat him.


    Especially when he drew out his sword, a 30 centimeter circle surrounding him was his zone. Even the Abbey Dean of the Zhishou Abbey and Eldest Brother could not enter.


    Many people, including the Second Brother, believed that with his talent if he wanted, he could step over the Five States. However, he was never willing to.


    Liu Bai¡¯s voice floated out of the carriage.


    ¡°Do you need a break?¡±


    Looking at the carriage, the Second Brother buttoned his cor with his slender fingers. ¡°I don¡¯t know if I will be as confident after the break as I am now.¡±


    Liu Bai replied from inside the carriage, ¡°Then let¡¯s begin.¡±


    The Second Brother answered, ¡°If we had fought two days ago, I would have lost for sure. Thank you for waiting until now.¡±


    Liu Bai responded, ¡°I appreciate that you didn¡¯t kill my disciples.¡±


    The conversation between them seemed peaceful; it sounded warm and kind devoid of hostility or danger.


    There was no vendetta between the Academy and the Sword Garret. Even though Ning Que had blinded Liu Yiqing, it had been a fair duel. It did not enrage Liu Bai.


    Thus, the Academy disciples were confused.


    Looking at the carriage, the Second Brother asked, ¡°Why are you here?¡±


    Liu Bai answered him after a long time, ¡°Even the Headmaster could not beat Haotian. What can I do?¡±


    Upon hearing this, the Second Brother fell silent for a while. ¡°The teacher was right. There are no omniscient and omnipotent men. He probably wasn¡¯t expecting that his leaving would weaken men¡¯s confidence.¡±


    ¡°Moreover, I am still the Adviser of the Divine Hall.¡±


    Liu Bai spoke from the carriage, ¡°In the war between the world and the Tang, as a man from Jin, I should do something. And fighting against the Academy is also my wish.¡±


    ¡°If there is anyone in the world worth my sword, it has to be you and Li Manman.¡±


    He said this with respect, but the Second Brother could not agree with him. He shook his head. ¡°I think my Third Sister also needs your advice in cultivation.¡±


    Hearing this, Liu Bai became silent again.


    After a long time, he said in shock, ¡°Lin Wu is in the Academy!¡±


    The Second Brother continued, ¡°She is no longer using that name.¡±


    As the strongest man in the world, he was wise enough to figure out what Jun Mo was talking about. The mysterious Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivator was in the Academy.


    It was the most shocking news in the cultivation world. Even he was shocked.


    ¡°It seems that the Haotian Taoism has underestimated the Academy after all.¡±


    Liu Bai added, ¡°If she is in the Academy, that idiot Xiong Chumo is going to fail even worse than I expected.¡±


    In his mind, the Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivator was stronger than the Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    As for himself, he was also stronger than him.


    ¡°The tide of the world surges forward like a great river. Follow it, and we boom; resist it, and thuses our doom. Even if Lin Wu is in the Academy, he cannot change anything.¡±


    He added, ¡°Your Senior Brother can stall the Abbey Dean for three more days at most. The Buddhism Sect is waiting for him. It doesn¡¯t matter if you can beat me or not, after the battle you will be unable to stop the coalition. Once the Verdant Canyon is opened and the coalition goes north, Tang must be subjugated in the end.¡±


    ¡°You are not a mediocre person, why are you giving me such a boring speech?¡± The Second Brother said with a straight face. ¡°If everything is doomed, why have youe here? Why did Ie here? Why are you and I standing in front of the Verdant Canyon?¡±


    Liu Bai answered, ¡°That¡¯s what I thought, but after all, the battle is unavoidable.¡±


    The Second Brother asked, ¡°When shall we start?¡±


    Liu Bai answered, ¡°When your sword is repaired.¡±


    A sudden boom sounded under the tent. A heavy hammer was beating the fiery iron sword. The hot sword sank in the water, sizzling and misting up.


    Taking over the fixed iron sword, Second Brother said, ¡°It¡¯s fine.¡±


    ¡°Very well.¡±


    A hand opened the blue curtain.


    The hand was big with slender and powerful fingers that looked well suited for holding a sword.


    Liu Bai walked out of the carriage.


    The highly respected Sword Sage was a normal looking middle-aged man with a deeply engraved face.


    He had a normal appearance and normal temperament,pletely different from his legend. His essence existed in his sword rather than his body.


    His sword was in its sheath beside him.


    ¡°Once, people wrote down their imaginings of the cultivators in the stories, thinking that everything could be used as a sword and the cultivators could kill with flowers and branches. However, they were all armchair swordmen after all.¡±


    Looking at the Second Brother¡¯s sword, Liu Bai said, ¡°Neither a flower nor a de of grass can be a sword. Sword has to be a sword because it has to be hard, straight and sharp, something that can fly into the sky and kill people from thousands of kilometers away. If a sword can¡¯t cut grass or it can be easily broken, how can it break armor and kill people? A good sword is very important to a swordsman.¡±


    ¡°Today, I saw two fine swords. Ye Su¡¯s wooden sword is made from an exotic tree which is its best choice from the point of view of the material. However,paring it with your iron sword, it is inferior since a sword must be made of iron. Only the blood on an iron sword can be called blood iron and only by using an iron sword can I fight to my heart¡¯s content.¡±


    Liu Bai turned to the stove and the Sixth Brother. He praised, ¡°The Academy is indeed a great ce; you can refine such a good sword.¡±


    The Second Brother walked toward the wilderness. ¡°But it is a weapon nheless.¡±


    ¡°You are a good swordsman.¡±


    Liu Bai said, ¡°I¡¯ve always been wondering who is stronger, you or Ye Su. Now I know you are stronger. Your sword is stronger, and your sword skill is better.¡±


    The Second Brother stopped him and said, ¡°But not stronger than you.¡±


    Liu Bai had heard this kind of praise so many times, no one in the world couldment on his sword. His expression didn¡¯t change at all.


    Since he had been inspired at the riverside and traveled all over the world, no one dared to question his fame as the best swordsman.


    ¡°The Sword Taoism lies in sword and Taoism, but I prefer the sword.¡±


    Liu Bai said, ¡°I sword trained in the cave of the Sword Garrett for ten years. I had a fine sword, and the Headmaster borrowed it. Although I felt regret, it was an honor that the Headmaster could use it to ughter the Dragon. In addition to that sword, I have many more including the one on my waist, which is stronger than yours.¡±


    ¡°As for sword skill, I don¡¯t think I have any talent. I didn¡¯t create the sword style. It¡¯s from Mr. Ke.¡±


    The Second Brother said, ¡°But you carried it forward and developed it into a famous and respectful sword style.¡±


    Liu Bai was an unforgettable name in both the history of the cultivation world and Sword Taoism. He had been the first Great Sword Master and developed his closebat to an absolute high position.


    In the past, swordsmen preferred operating their swords. In their minds, controlling the Qi of Heaven and Earth was the biggest difference between a cultivator and an ordinary man.


    When Liu Bai and his sword style became invincible, the swordmen saw a new possibility in sword cultivation. It was revolutionary.


    This was why the Second Brother respected him so much.


    Liu Bai continued, ¡°In my early years, I swung back and forth between the two styles until the fight in the East Sea. I realized this switching vited the true meaning of the sword.¡±


    ¡°In that fight, I hurt Yan Se from a thousand kilometers away. Then he wrote a talisman toward the wild sea, which fell on my face from a great distance.¡±


    Touching his eyebrows, he smiled bitterly.


    ¡°After that fight I chose to hold the sword. The most fundamental difference between the two styles is you either operate a sword with the Qi of Heaven and Earth or you control the Qi with a sword. The advantages and disadvantages may not be obvious, but, if you think carefully, you will believe that holding the sword is the best way.¡±


    ¡°The Buddhism Sect¡¯s copper bowl is not the best, neither are the prayer beads. Neither is the robe nor the talisman. Because all of these natal weapons are not in their proper form. But a sword is. The sword¡¯s shape is suitable for controlling the Qi of Heaven and Earth to hurt people.¡±


    ¡°The sword is straight and sharp. Control the sword or hold the sword; you have to choose and you can¡¯t choose both.¡±


    Liu Bai said, ¡°You said a lot to Ye Su earlier that I don¡¯t understand. I only know sword: it is straight, so it should puncture. It is simple but strong.¡±


    ¡°Ye Su and I were talking about affairs of the human world, of which you no longer belong,¡± the Second Brother said. ¡°If you want to stay, you have to follow rules.¡±

 Chapter 764

    <h4>Chapter 764: Sword Competition in the Verdant Canyon (Part 2)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    ¡°If the rules can be broken, then they can¡¯t be followed.¡±


    Liu Bai¡¯s theory was followed by the powerhouses.


    In fact, the Second Brother agreed. His iron sword was his own rule, and it could easily break others¡¯. He continued asking, ¡°Since you want to break them, why haven¡¯t you started?¡±


    Only the two of them understood what he was talking about. In the beginning, Liu Bai had given his answer, but his answer could not convince the Second Brother.


    Liu Bai looked up at the sky and didn¡¯t answer him.


    Receiving no answer, the Second Brother knew that eventually, they would have to convince each other with their swords.


    ¡°Sword Taoism consists of sword and skill. Skill is divided into power and technique.¡±


    ¡°Power is the Psyche Power, while skill refers to how one uses the Psyche Power.¡±


    ¡°When I entered the Initial Awareness State, I saw a great continuous river, indicating that I had the strongest Psyche Power in the world. I practiced the sword for three days to control all the Psyche Power around me. Afterwards, even rain could not touch my clothes. This meant I had the best sword skill in the world.¡±


    Looking at Jun Mo, Liu Bai added, ¡°If we had fought before you would have definitely lost the battle. If we had fought 2 days ago there is a 90% chance you would have lost. You killed so many people, your spirit was climbing. Today there is an 80% chance you will lose. You have beaten Ye Su and reached your peak. However, Sword Taoism can¡¯t be predicted with Mathematics, so there is still a 100% chance you will lose the battle.¡±


    ¡°If it can¡¯t be predicted with Mathematics, why do you do the math?¡±


    The Second Brother said, ¡°I¡¯ve always believed that no one can know the result until the end.¡±


    Liu Baiughed. ¡°Good!¡±


    Jun Mo was walking in the wilderness when he stopped, some distance from the entrance. In front of him sat piles and piles of arrows and more than 200 old swords on the ground.


    The only thing these various swords had inmon was that they were ownerless.


    The battle in the Verdant Canyon had started two days ago. In this time, he had stopped hundreds of cultivators and more than 200 swords. These were inserted inanimately into the ground like a cemetery of swords.


    When he walked into the area, the swords seemed to feel something. They began to tremble like a windy sword forest.


    Just like forest in the depths of the Academy.


    Standing in the forest, Jun Mo raised his iron sword with a serious expression.


    Liu Bai observed the sword forest and the tall man quietly. He slowly reached for the hilt of the sword hanging on his waist.


    His hands were wide and thick with slender fingers, very suitable for holding a sword. They held the hilt tight without a gap as if they were meant to be; perfectly.


    The ancient sword was buzzing in its sheath; it sounded happy.


    Once he held his sword, it became a part of him. In other words, his body extended to his sword and they could never be separated.


    Holding a sword was not his only way of cultivating Sword Taoism.


    When he took out his sword, he could also make it fly up to a thousand kilometers.


    Liu Bai never chose the middle course, so he could cultivate more than one style. Even though he had once swung back and forth, once he reached the state, he no longer bothered himself with these problems. Since his heart was clear, he could choose whatever sword he wanted.


    No one knew how he would fight in this battle.


    People only knew that once he took out his sword, no one could take it. His sword was the fastest. Except for the Abbey Dean, Eldest Brother, and the Chief Preaching Monk, no one could survive it.


    There was one eternal truth: if Liu Bai took out his sword before an enemy, he won.


    Jun Mo didn¡¯t ask Jun Mo to go first. He chose to start before him.


    Even so, he still didn¡¯t know if he could win.


    Liu Bai¡¯s sword was so fast that it could startter but arrive earlier. Therefore, Jun Mo waved the sword forward instead of throwing it.


    Just as he had every time he had swung his sword during thest two days.


    He wore no expression on his face and his academy uniform didn¡¯t move an inch. The straight wide sword waved with his sleeves. It rolled up no clouds but a countless amount of Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    Without an enemy, what would the sword hit?


    There was no enemy in front of him.


    There was only the wind and the 200 swords inserted into the ground like a sword forest.


    The iron sword swept over the sword forest and hit an old sword.


    The sword was pushed deep into the ground until its hilt suddenly smashed.


    It became extremely bent.


    The tremendous force from the iron sword pulled it out of the soil like a hurricane.


    With a shrill sound, the rubbish sword turned into a light and flew to the south.


    Jun Mo continued waving the sword.


    His movements were very natural.


    Every movement carried the power of Heaven and Earth.


    Every movement sted a junk sword away, pushing them to the south.


    Neither his strength nor his skill was better than Liu Bai.


    He was unable to be faster and stronger than Liu Bai in either way of Sword Taoism.


    So, he had chosen a way no one ever thought of.


    He didn¡¯t stab or throw the sword. He waved it.


    He didn¡¯t chop, cleave, or stab. He smashed, or in other words, he hit with the sword.


    He condensed the Qi of Heaven and Earth from the mountains into the sword and sted the discarded swords away.


    He pushed the swords with the Force of Nature.


    Only in this way could his sword be faster than Liu Bai¡¯s.


    This was called the Mountains¡¯ hit.


    In front of the Verdant Canyon, numerous shrill whistles sounded.


    Dozens of swords flew from the bloody ground like rocks that were heavily struck; they turned into dozens of sword lights and disappeared before reappearing in front of the carriage.


    The Flying Sword was operating the natal flying swords by controlling the Qi of Heaven and Earth with the cultivators¡¯ Psyche Power. A powerhouse like Liu Bai could kill people from thousands of kilometers away.


    The way Jun Mo adopted was by directly applying the Qi of Heaven and Earth into the sword. This cut the middle link and transformed the natural forces into its terrible speed.


    The discarded swords were faster than the cultivator had imagined. No one had ever operated a sword like this and no one had ever seen such fast flying swords.


    These swords were so fast that the air began to moan. Neither eyes nor senses could catch them. It was as if they had disappeared.


    They were so fast that even Liu Bai was unsure if he could take out his sword before the swords arrived.


    He gave up on the flying swords and drew out his sword.


    The sword in his hand looked ordinary and rusty.


    He hadn¡¯t used it for a long time.


    No one had expected that Liu Bai would be the one to have to defend, including himself.


    He hadn¡¯t expected that there could be a sword faster than his.


    He would praise and admire Jun Mo some other time.


    However, right now, he had to be careful. He was about to face these fast swords.


    He was forced to defend.


    He had to defend.


    He crossed the sword.


    This was a type of sword intent. It was as straight as the sword and could not be shaken in the wind like a majestic granite city.


    His sword was rusty, straight, and indestructible. It was like an old wall that had stood for millions of years; it looked dpidated but was still tough.


    Jun Mo¡¯s first sword arrived.


    The discarded sword was no longer dead. The swords began reflecting cold light from the friction.


    The tip of the sword trembled at high speed, piercing through the air as if it could tear up a thick iron te with its high-speed vibrations.


    It was approaching Liu Bai and about to hit his sword.


    It was like the ancient bells ringing before the Lanke Temple was ruined.


    As if a naughty boy had thrown a stone into a wave-lesske.


    A sound rang in front of Liu Bai, clear and far.


    It sounded like paper tearing or as if a roll of wet paper had been kneaded into a mass and thrown under the table.


    The sword carried unimaginable strength at inconceivable speed but suddenly stopped in front of Liu Bai.


    Only one foot from the rusty sword.


    It didn¡¯t hurt Liu Bai.


    In front of Liu Bai an invisible barrier was formed.


    The sword was stuck into the barrier.


    The barrier was his sword intent; it was like a city wall.


    The second sword came in quick session.


    It also stuck and couldn¡¯t break the barrier.


    However, no one noticed that Liu Bai¡¯s rusty sword was slightly bent.


    The curvature was so small that it was indiscernible to the human eye.


    The third sword arrived.


    Then the fourth one.


    Dozens of swords arrived like thunder and all of them stopped in front of Liu Bai.


    Liu Bai¡¯s rusty sword bent more and more as these swords arrived until its curvature was evident.


    However, it was far from falling apart because it had turned soft.


    His sword was no longer like the old city; it transformed into a river under the city.


    It was the city moat.


    The river was gentle, but it could protect the city.


    None of the dozens of swords could prate the invisible barrier. They were all stuck in the air.


    It looked very strange and shocking like a sword forest was growing in front of Liu Bai.


    The swords were so close to him, it looked like they would stab him in the eye.


    Anyone would feel fear in this situation.


    Anyone but Liu Bai, because he had his sword.


    The swords could not approach him.


    Not near.


    Not far.


    They stopped just one foot from him.


    They stopped just 30 centimeters from him.


    This was his world.


    This was his sword¡¯s word.


    Wind and rain could enter, but other swords couldn¡¯t.

 Chapter 765 - Near or Far

    <h4>Chapter 765: Near or Far</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The swords were still trying to prate the barrier like wind and rain.


    The iron sword in Jun Mo¡¯s hand pushed the 200 discarded swords. They flew toward Liu Bai with the help of the Force of Nature, drawing lines in the air.


    The swords¡¯ whistles echoed in the wilderness, stirring the wind.


    Fighting against Ye Su had depleted Jun Mo. However, it had also caused Jun Mo¡¯s sword intent to reach its peak. He was stronger now than he had ever been.


    However, it was useless.


    Liu Bai held his sword horizontally. He was calm.


    His sword appeared to be stationary in front of him. No one could figure out if it had moved or if it had moved countless times.


    More than 200 swords were stuck in the air. They were so dense that they seemed to cover the sky, crowding and terrifying.


    It was shocking.


    Liu Bai put down his sword.


    The discarded swords suddenly fell to the ground with a series of ngs. They fell apart like a bundle of untied branches.


    Liu Bai turned to Jun Mo in silence.


    He no longer looked down on him.


    It was an attitude from a strong man to a weak man.


    Liu Bai had to admit that Jun Mo was qualified and capable of fighting with him equally. He respected him.


    Liubai¡¯s sword was his greatest respect for his enemy.


    However, he did not get the chance to draw his sword because Jun Mo already had.


    Jun Mo used the discarded swords again, instead of his sword


    The bundle of swords in front of Liu Bai suddenly began to bounce up.


    They turned into 200 sword lights. They flew up to the sky and rushed to the ground, aiming at Liu Bai.


    Liu Bai had to raise his sword again, frowning.


    The flying swords were operated by using the Psyche Power to control the Qi of Heaven and Earth. The more swords one wanted to operate, the higher the level of Psyche Power required.


    A Natal Item was so hard to obtain that few cultivators were able to cultivate with more than one at the same time. Even a Great Sword Master at the Seethrough Realm could only control his own Natal Sword.


    It was not a wise choice to forcibly control more flying swords.


    In the battle in the Spring Breeze Pavilion, Chao Xiaoshu had controlled five swords while at the Seethrough Realm. This had led to much discussion in the cultivation world. While everyone admired his talent, they were confused.


    Chao Xiaoshu was able to control more than five swords and had entered the Knowing Destiny State. But it was a martial taboo, so he seldom performed it.


    However, Jun Mo did today.


    The swords flew around like birds over the Verdant Canyon: they sped down, were sted away by Liu Bai¡¯s barrier, and returned to the sky.


    They seemed to be alive. Some flew fast and straight like thunder; others drew circles in the air like soft pens; and others flew unpredictably from east to west like dragons.


    They flew and shed between the heaven and earth, reflecting sunshine in all directions and lighting the whole sky.


    Compared to the fight against Ye Su, Jun Mo performed splendidly.


    His Psyche Power spouted out and expertly controlled all the discarded swords from hundreds of kilometers away, shocking everyone at the scene.


    Looking at the sword over the wilderness, the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army was speechless. The Sword Masters were particrly scared; they wondered if he was still human.


    Liu Bai¡¯s sword was stronger.


    He could take control of the flying swords from Jun Mo like he had done to the cultivators yesterday. Even if he failed to control all of them, at least, he could conquer most of them.


    However, he didn¡¯t want to be distracted. He was used to fighting with one sword. One was simple and more powerful than a thousand swords.


    He crossed his sword in front of him, ready to repeat his moves.


    The swords flying in the sky still could not prate his zone.


    Liu Bai was unsurprised at Jun Mo¡¯s amazing skills. In fact, he was confused about why he had to use so many swords, simr to Jun Mo questioning Ye Hongyu yesterday.


    Controlling multiple swords was no longer a burden once one reached a high state. Liu Bai believed Jun Mo knew the truth of simplicity and strength.


    All irrational actions must have reasons.


    Ye Hongyu had shot so many swords because she had been trying to set up a cage.


    What was Jun Mo trying to do? He wasn¡¯t trying to do anything. Maybe he just wanted to disturb Liu Bai by keeping him wondering.


    Liu Bai wasn¡¯t affected.


    He stepped forward, deliberately heading toward the Verdant Canyon.


    As he was walked, his sword and the rest of the world was one foot around him.


    The whistles of the swords became more shrill. The swords kept shooting to the ground like birds. It sounded like dull thunder.


    Liu Bai continued to move forward.


    He was the Sage of Sword.


    He was the Number One powerhouse in the world.


    He looked like an ordinary middle-aged man.


    He carried a rusty sword.


    He looked ridiculous walking forward with his sword in front of him.


    Facing the flying swords, he responded clumsily but none of them could break through.


    Even if the Eldest Brother stood in the Verdant Canyon, he would only be able to dodge it; he could not break through either.


    He walked with his world. Anyone who entered his zone would die.


    Liu Bai walked toward the Verdant Canyon, step by step.


    He walked slowly and steadily, looking clumsy, indicating that he was very serious.


    The strongest man¡¯s clumsiness meant respect.


    He respected both the Academy and Jun Mo.


    Maybe he had a deeper intention in doing that.


    His world could not be broken, which meant that Jun Mo had to either dodge or retreat.


    It might be thest chance for the Academy to leave.


    If they chose to go, they would never have to face Liu Bai¡¯s world. They could do anything they wanted.


    However, Jun Mo did not retreat. He raised his iron sword.


    His choice had nothing to do with the Tang Empire or the Academy.


    He did this because he wanted to.


    When he wanted to do something, he did it.


    Nothing could stop him from fighting with Liu Bai.

 Chapter 766 - Water in the Yellow River from Sky

    <h4>Chapter 766: Water in the Yellow River from Sky</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    No matter how slowly one walked, he would eventually reach his destination.


    Liu Bai arrived before the Verdant Canyon and stopped by Jun Mo.


    He was more than a foot away from Jun Mo, but that was enough.


    After all, an one-foot radius around a person was just a vague description.


    In fact, Liu Bai¡¯s Absolute Territory depended on the length of his sword and arms.


    He was the strongest in wherever his sword could reach.


    The distance right now was perfect. It was not far nor near, and was perfect for a sword to cut down.


    Distance was a rtive concept. It was fair to the both of them. Jun Mo naturally felt that it was perfect. That was why he raised his iron sword without thinking and swung it at Liu Bai.


    He did not say anything, nor did he make any extraneous moves. He waved his sword, just like that.


    It was a clean and clear cut.


    Just like the lovely jade green hills behind him that were still verdant even inte autumn.


    The iron sword cut down cleanly and fell toward Liu Bai¡¯s head like a green hill.


    Liu Bai did not wave his sword because it was one foot in front of him.


    This was his first strike in the true sense.


    Liu Bai¡¯s sword was indeed the most powerful.


    When the rusty sword in his hand fell, the mottled rusty marks disappeared instantly, and the body of the sword suddenly brightened. It reflected the floating clouds in the sky and the green hills by the wilderness. It was extremely beautiful.


    This sword seemed to have taken away all the splendor between heaven and earth, and countless creations in nature.


    It was beyond brilliant.


    The brilliance could be dazzling, just like how one could not look directly at the sun. However, this sword did not hurt anyone watching the war on the wilderness. Instead, they were intoxicated by it.


    They were intoxicated with this beautiful and moving picture. The cdon-like sky, the silk-like clouds, the warm sunshine, the beautiful wilderness, and a big river.


    The river originated from the Wilderness and was originally a trickle-down stream, stubbornly breaking through the mountains of the Yuelun Kingdom. It negotiated the primeval forest with fertile soil and abundant rainwater to form numerous tributaries, turning into a big river, carrying sediment from the south. The river was dyed a turbid yellow, and it grew more and more majestic.


    The turbid waves were so great that the yellow river kept beating against the ck cliff, stirring up thousands of heavy waves that were like mud. It sounded as if there were ten thousand horses neighing there, sounding especially startling.


    Between the ck cliff stones, a young man was practicing with his sword. He looked serene as if he could not hear the sound of the waves. The vibration of the cliff did not make him move at all, and he was very absorbed.


    Heaven and Earth shivered and lost their color. But it was unknown if it was because of the rushing river, or because of the person wielding the sword by the river.


    Liu Bai entered the cultivation path and saw arge river at the Initial Awareness State. As such, he was considered a rare genius in the cultivation circle. Later he gained awareness of his own Sword Taoism by the great river, so his sword technique was called the Dahe Sword, or literally the Great River Sword.


    When the Dahe Sword appeared, one would see a great river.


    Liu Bai¡¯s sword was the great river.


    When he used his sword, the great river would appear.


    All those who saw the great river would be swallowed by the rushing stream.


    Arge river hadrge waves.


    Muddy yellow river water fell from the sky, bing the Sky River.


    It was as if a hole had been pierced in the sky and there were endless water pouring down from heaven like a waterfall.


    The river did not have any other aura but strength.


    The river headed right toward him.


    Jun Mo¡¯s eyes suddenly brightened.


    He looked at the turbid waves in the river, his eyes looking like glittering streams.


    His eyebrows rose.


    All these details meant that he was bing excited.


    He was usually a cid person. To Ning Que and his other younger brothers, he was a stern, and even antiquated man that they would never rte to the excitement.


    His facial expression had not changed at all when he had gained the victory over Ye Su earlier.


    However, he was truly excited now.


    Because when he saw therge rushing river, he discovered that he was frightened.


    This was a foreign emotion to him, which was why he was excited.


    He had finally seen the most powerful sword in the world.


    He raised his iron sword and cut down toward the river.


    The broad and straight iron sword wielded the strength of the green hills. It mmed down heavily at the muddy rushing river.


    The river suddenly parted and surged toward both sides, revealing the bottom of the river full of sand and rocks.


    The river poured back the next moment, covering the sand and rocks.


    Jun Mo waved his iron sword once more.


    The river parted again.


    He continued waving the sword.


    The river parted and then poured back again.


    This happened many times, and the iron sword cut into the bottom of the river.


    The iron sword gouged many deep sword marks on the mud at the bottom of the river and shattered several rocks.


    The meeting between sword and rocks caused a loud dull crash.


    It was like the sound of hammering.


    Jun Mo continued waving the sword.


    He waved it several hundred times in an instant.


    However, he could not stop the river from flowing southeast.


    The river continued flowing downwards.


    Liu Bai¡¯s sword continued moving forward as well.


    The river that flowed down from the sky was the most magnificent thing that could be seen on earth.


    In the face of such a gushing Yellow River, many would subconsciously look up to it and feel intoxicated by its majesty. Then, they would regain their wits and lose their courage as they started to feel despair.


    This was where the Dahe Sword was most powerful.


    His sword did not borrow the power of heaven and earth.


    His sword was part of it, and that was its most magnificent trait.


    At this moment, his sword was the incarnation of heaven and earth.


    Before the river, Jun Mo could stand unwaveringly like a tree, resisting it with his sword. This was already beyond what many cultivators in the world could do. However, the river flow was too irresistible for him to stop.


    This was Liu Bai¡¯s sword style.


    The river bellowed.


    The wind screamed.


    A crown fell.


    And the hair was dishevelled.


    Jun Mo¡¯s ck hair fluttered in the air.


    Several openings had long appeared on his academy uniform and he was covered in blood.


    But he did not look pathetic at all. He seemed solemn and majestic, looking as if he was attending a banquet.


    A banquet that was yet to end.


    He was focused, calm, and even seemed a little wooden.


    He continued waving the sword.


    But the movement was no longer made ofrge or broad strokes. Instead, it was bing delicate.


    It was so delicate it looked like the embroidery needle in Mu You¡¯s hands.


    Jun Mo started using the iron sword to embroider.


    In seconds, the iron sword in his hands trembled countless times.


    The great river was Liu Bai¡¯s sword.


    The wind and waves resulted in ces where the iron sword and Liu Bai¡¯s sword shed several times.


    Jun Mo carved words in the wind and flowers in the waves.


    He wanted to use the most delicate instrument to carve the magnificent mountains and rivers. He used the most silent method to decorate the most beautiful and majestic image, just like how time and rain would smoothen green stone tiles.


    Jun Mo knew right from the start that he would have to face Liu Bain at the end of the battle of Verdant Canyon.


    Just like what Liu Bai had said, no matter the prowess of his sword or his swordsmanship, he was no match for Liu Bai.


    He was no match for Liu Bai either way, so he had to take another path.


    Liu Bai had once written a letter to Ye Hongyu. And he had drawn her a sword.


    Ning Que had seen the sword, and he had used Ke Haoran¡¯s form to exchange for a copy that he ced at the back of the mountain of the Academy.


    Before heading south to the Verdant Canyon, Jun Mo had looked at that piece of paper for a long time before he decided on a sword style.


    The sword style waspletely different from his character.


    But this was the only solution he hade up with after much consideration.


    Just like what Ning Que had said, the people in the Academy all believed in one simple truth. If there was only one solution left in the end, then it had to be the best solution.


    Furthermore, he had once told Ye Su that Etiquette set after making careful considerations and deciding that a rule was reasonable, he would not go against it the slightest even when facing down a thousand men.


    That is why even when he wanted to object to the solution, he persisted.


    In order to defeat Liu Bai, Jun Mo had made sufficient preparations, from the most vigorous to the extremely subtle. He had developed his Swordsmanship to the fullest. This was his most powerful moment.


    However, the Yellow River was still the Yellow River.


    And Liu Bai was still Liu Bai.


    He was not a willow branch by the river, nor the little shepherd boy under the willow tree. He was not a wild man on a sheepskin raft, a widow that was pushed into the turbid waves, nor a rock in the river.


    He was the great river.


    Jun Mo¡¯s sword style might wave freely, but it was still slightly inferior before this river.


    There was just the slightest difference between the two.


    The characters in the air were missing strokes and the flowers in the waves were missing a petal.


    The autumn wind swept over the sword marks and the waves covered the flowers.


    Liu Bai¡¯s sword hit the iron sword and arrived before Jun Mo.


    There was a swooshing sound.


    Second Brother¡¯s right arm tore from his shoulder and fell into the green hills. No one knew where itnded.


    The sword in Liu Bai¡¯s hands broke in two at the same time.


    If Jun Mo had been seconds faster, Liu Bai¡¯s sword would have broken first.


    Jun Mo could not be any faster; that was why his right arm, that had been gripping the iron sword, was broken.


    Several tiny cuts appeared on his body.


    These wounds all came from Liu Bai¡¯s sword style.


    His academy uniform waspletely drenched in blood, dripping onto the ground.


    Blood flowed like the river from where his arm had been torn off.


    Jun Mo looked at Liu Bai who was in front of him with a pale face.


    His right arm had been broken and his iron sword lost.


    Liu Bai only had half a sword left in his hand.


    Even a broken sword was still a sword and it could kill.


    Liu Bai did not stop because he could not.


    His sword was the Dahe Sword, and the water that fell was river water. It would not stop until it ended.


    Spilled water cannot be taken back.


    Liu Bai wielded the broken sword and cut down toward Jun Mo.


    The great river appeared once more.


    The surge of the Yellow River grew.


    Those who saw the great river had to die.


    No one in the world could stand against the great river.


    Because the river water came from the sky.


    And it flowed into the sea, never to return.


    The broken sword approached.


    He could even see the lines on the metal of the sword.


    Jun Mo knew that he was wrong.


    He had been wrong since the battle of Verdant Canyon started.


    To be more precise, he was wrong since the Academy.


    He should not have looked at that piece of paper, and that sword.


    He should not have thought of how Liu Bai would act to decide what he would do.


    He would lose the thing that made him strongest.


    That thing might be called confidence, or perhaps pride.


    He should have only thought of what he was going to do, just like how he did in the past.


    What¡¯s the difference if his opponent was Liu Bai or anyone else?


    Jun Mo thought as he looked at the river surging towards him.


    If he did not look at the sword, he would not see it.


    This sword intoxicated those who saw the great river and made them despair.


    Then he shall not look at it.


    He had to correct his mistakes, no matter where and when he was.


    He closed his eyes in the face of the most powerful sword in the world.


    The river surged up and fell from the sky, seemingly destroying the whole ins in front of the green hills.


    However, Jun Mo did not see it, so he did not feel the majesty of the river.


    There was turbid yellow river water everywhere. But if he did not see it, it did not exist.


    The broken sword in Liu Bai¡¯s hands cut through the air.


    This was the first time the Dahe Sword cut through the air since it appeared on earth.


    Because Jun Mo did not see the river falling from the sky.

 Chapter 767 - Reaching for a Sword Amongst Thousands

    <h4>Chapter 767: Reaching for a Sword Amongst Thousands</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    No matter how big a river is, it could not spread all over the world. However, when facing the river, no one could find the small, dry mounds of sand.


    Jun Mo did not see the river, but he could sense it. As such, he found a spot in the surging river and turned slightly, his feetnding on the spot.


    He opened his eyes once more and saw the river flowing beneath his feet like the passage of time. He did notment like his teacher, instead, a hint of light gleamed through his eyes.


    His face was pale, but he looked just as calm.


    A loud whistle burst out from his lips.


    It was like the call of a young phoenix, or like the first chirp of a phoenix after its rebirth in mes.


    The autumn wind grew stronger, and Jun Mo¡¯s hair danced in it.


    He opened his arms, his sleeves pping in the wind.


    Blood flowed incessantly from his torn limb.


    His Psyche Power burst in all heaven and earth¡¯s directions.


    There was a sword in a hob under the iron shelter of the Verdant Canyon. It sensed the wild calling of the Psyche Power. With a poof, it broke through the box, the shelter, and flew towards the ins.


    Sudden shrieks of surprise sounded in the southern ins where the camp of the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army was. The cultivators of different sects suddenly found their Natal Swords leaving their control!


    The crisp sound of sword and scabbard rubbing against each other could be heard in the Military camp. Several swords flew out of their sheaths and swept toward the Verdant Canyon.


    Deep in the green hills, several fallen leaves gently covered arge iron sword wielded tightly by a broken arm. Suddenly, the iron sword trembled violently, breaking through the leafy coverings and flying into the sky.


    The heaven and earth surrounding the ins were filled with Jun Mo¡¯s powerful Psyche Power.


    Countless swords, summoned by this Psyche Power, came from all directions. They crossed the distance at the speed of lightning, arriving at the Verdant Canyon and stabbing at Liu Bai!


    Liu Bai held the broken sword before him with a solemn expression, setting up an one-foot radius around him once more.


    Thousands of swords, suddenly stopped in front of him, hovering in the air.


    There were too many swords, and they made up arge ball of swords. They blocked the daylight, making it seem eerie.


    The intent to kill was overwhelming.


    This was the sword¡¯s world.


    It was a world surrounded by swords.


    Liu Bai was surrounded by thousands of swords.


    He could not see what was happening around him, and his connection to the Qi of Heaven and Earth seemed about to be broken.


    He could only calcte.


    Jun Mo wielded his sword amongst the thousands of swords.


    Using his left hand.


    There were swords everywhere in front of the Verdant Canyon, and sword styles were everywhere. The aura of Heaven and Earth was chaotic.


    However, he could still find where his iron sword exactly was.


    Because his right arm was still on the iron sword.


    By holding his iron sword, he was also holding on to his broken arm.


    He pulled out his iron sword and then rushed towards Liu Bai, who was surrounded by thousands of swords.


    Liu Bai could not see it, neither was he able to predict urately.


    But he could feel this sword.


    It was the most powerful sword he had ever seen.


    It was even more terrifying than the sword of the Sword Master from the South Sea who had dubbed him the Sword Sage.


    Liu Bai did not hesitate any longer.


    He did not sh his sword, nor set up any city walls or moats.


    At the most crucial moment, he only trusted his sword.


    At this time, Jun Mo had already sessfully risen his urge to battle and his pride.


    He believed that he was invincible.


    Those standing in front of the Dahe Sword shall fall.


    No matter how terrifying Jun Mo¡¯s sword was, it was no match for him.


    Liu Bai attacked.


    The great river flooded the ins.


    He was the Sword Sage.


    And his sword was the holiest of all swords.


    With his attack, there would only be one sword left on the world.


    The one-foot radius around him widened.


    Thousands of swords suddenly dispersed, flying across the ins around the green hills and falling to the ground.


    There was nothing else blocking Liu Bai¡¯s view and his sword.


    But there was still another sword in front of the Verdant Canyon.


    The iron sword was held in Jun Mo¡¯s hand.


    Then it was wielded by Jun Mo.


    The statement was repeated.


    But it was true.


    The hilt was held by a broken arm.


    And Jun Mo was holding his broken arm.


    The image seemed gory, but that was not the point.


    Other than the fact that the iron sword seemed to have grown longer.


    Jun Mo attacked, focused and solemn. He remained unshaken even though he was bathed in blood.


    Liu Bai attacked slightlyter, but his sword arrived before Jun Mo¡¯s. No sword in the world could be faster than his sword.


    However, Liu Bai only had a broken sword left in his hands.


    Jun Mo¡¯s iron sword was longer than usual.


    A light sound echoed around the Verdant Canyon.


    It was like a drop of water falling into the furnace, touching the red hot coals.


    The iron sword pierced into Liu Bai¡¯s chest.


    Liu Bai¡¯s broken sword was still a distance away from Jun Mo¡¯s throat.


    It was neither close nor near. It was exactly one foot away.


    Liu Bai abandoned his sword.


    The sword broke once more, shattering into countless bright shards.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth on the sword shook uneasily.


    The ins before the Verdant Canyon started to shake, and there was a loud, long groan.


    Liu Bai backed up with the moaning.


    He came like the yellow river rushing into the sea and left like the gushing flood.


    He backed up more than hundred feet away in the flow of the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    And then, he stopped.


    And began to cough.


    He coughed up blood.


    He looked at the wound on his chest with a slight frown.


    He finally understood why Jun Mo had taken control of so many swords.


    That was because Jun Mo wanted him to calcte.


    He might be the strongest powerhouse in the world, but he was no mathematical genius like Sangsang. No matter how powerful he was, he could not calcte all the changes in the world.


    Jun Mo did not need to calcte because all the swords were fake. Only his own iron sword was real.


    However, even so, Jun Mo¡¯s iron sword could not enter the one-foot around him.


    Until his arm had been broken and he was gravely injured. Jun Mo had felt pain, anger and was spurred on. The Etiquette that he had followed religiously for many years and had bound him for many years was finally released at this moment.


    He closed his eyes and did not see the Yellow River falling from above, and avoided the fatal strike of Liu Bai¡¯s sword.


    He whistled, and the green hills and ins shook uneasily, calling countless of swords towards him.


    A weak point had finally appeared in Liu Bai¡¯s sword style.


    Jun Mo¡¯s iron sword entered from that spot.


    That weak point, perhaps, was made deliberately by Liu Bai.


    Because he believed that his sword was the fastest in such a short distance.


    But he missed one thing.


    The Sword Taoism consisted of sword and skill, while it also was divided into power and technique.


    Other than speed, there was still length to consider.


    Liu Bai smiled as he looked down at his bleeding wound.


    His smile was not disconste, instead it had a tinge of self-mocking andment.


    He had not expected the ending to be like this.


    He could ept it if both parties were injured and both had lost. But he found it hard to ept this cause.


    This cause was too ludicrous.


    The broken sword had met the long sword. And for some reason, the person holding the broken sword had stabbed his opponent to death instead. And for some reason, the person holding the long sword gained an advantage...


    This was a battle scene that only a first learner of sword arts would think of.


    He and Jun Mo were the two strongest people in Sword Taoism.


    They chose to end the fight in this unique way.


    He suddenly thought that the clear stream would turn into a turbid river, but would clear up again after entering the sea. Would the same principle work in Sword Taoism?

 Chapter 768 - How Beautiful the Green Hills Are

    <h4>Chapter 768: How Beautiful the Green Hills Are</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    There were footsteps behind Jun Mo.


    Other than Fourth Brother who was holding the River and Mountain Sandbox, everyone else from the Academy rushed out from under the iron shelter.


    Sixth Brother raised his hammer, staring warily at Liu Bai who was more than 100 feet away.


    Beigong Weiyang and Ximen Buhuo held their zither and flute, standing on both sides of Jun Mo.


    They all knew that even though Liu Bai was badly injured, as long as he waved his sword, they would die should they leave the iron shelter. However, they had all rushed over here despite that.


    Because Second Brother needed them.


    Wang Chi held his medicine box and made preparations with a pale face.


    Mu You held her needle, about to staunch the blood flowing from Jun Mo. However, her hands were trembling too badly. She looked at his broken limb and felt as if it was her own arm that had been cut off. She felt a terrible pain.


    Jun Mo looked at the single teardrop under hershes. Then, he raised his left hand and hovered it over the wound.


    His fingers flicked lightly, as her tears fell. Pure Qi of Heaven and Earth covered his broken shoulder with an invisible web, immediately staunching the blood. It was like the act of a medical sage.


    Wang Chi rxed slightly as he poured medicine on the wound and prepared to bind it.


    Liu Bai looked at the scene ying out 100 feet away from him and did nothing.


    He had suddenly gained a deeper understanding as to why the Academy was so powerful.


    He said, ¡°I have a few questions.¡±


    Jun Mo motioned for Sixth Brother to move away and looked at Liu Bai. He said, ¡°Yes, please.¡±


    Liu Bai asked, ¡°I gave you an opportunity to retreat at the beginning. Why didn¡¯t you?¡±


    Jun Mo answered, ¡°Back then, when you challenged the Sword God at the South Sea, you were obviously not his match. So why did you not retreat?¡±


    After a moment of silence, Liu Bai said, ¡°That makes sense.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°It makes sense, so I did not retreat.¡±


    Liu Bai sighed and said, ¡°You paid such a terrible price but did not kill me in the end. Even I feel that it¡¯s not worth it.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°I used my arm to exchange for your injury so you would not be able to fight any further. It¡¯s worth it in my opinion.¡±


    Liu Bai said, ¡°No matter how severe the injury is, I can still recover, but you will never be able to regain your arm. I might not be able to fight now, but that is only temporary. You have lost your sword-wielding right hand. And that is for a lifetime.¡±


    ¡°I have lost exchanging my whole life for temporality. But in the battle of the Verdant Canyon, I have won because even though I am almost dead, I have managed to secure the canyon and you have to leave.¡±


    Jun Mo looked at him and said, ¡°Because you are too strong, you have many things you want to do. That is why you think staying alive is important. As such, you will return to the Sword Garret to recuperate since you¡¯re badly injured.¡±


    Liu Bai looked at him silently and suddenly smiled. He had not expected that his opponent would see what he was going for even as they had both lost and been injured. He said, ¡°Then you should also cherish your life as well.¡±


    Jun Mo asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    Liu Bai replied, ¡°The thousand-year Tang Empire is but just a fleeting moment in cultivation. Therefore, what else should we ce importance on other than our bodies?¡±


    ¡°We all have a promise to ourselves. And by cing ourselves first, we are also cing importance on the promise.¡±


    Jun Mo looked past Liu Bai and the quiet horse carriage. His gazended on the mass of Divine Hall army troops and said, ¡°I promised that no one would pass the Verdant Canyon as long as I¡¯m still standing.¡±


    Liu Bai said, ¡°It¡¯d be a pity if you died in their hands.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ll do my best and without questioning the future. I have no regrets.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°Furthermore, you¡¯ve failed to kill me, who else can?¡±


    Liu Bai looked at Jun Mo who was bathed in blood while carrying his iron sword. He suddenly felt as if he was looking at a different person.


    ¡°I feel as if I¡¯m looking at Mr. Ke.¡±


    Liu Bai said, ¡°Yesterday, I regretted and felt that I should have killed you at the beginning of the battle of the Verdant Canyon. However, I¡¯m d now. You should disy your splendor on these ins before you die.¡±


    With that, he turned around and walked back to the silent horse carriage.


    The horse carriage pulled away. Jun Mo looked away and at his left hand.


    There was a red thread around his ring finger. It was drenched by blood and felt slightly tight.


    His gaze continued downwards andnded on his broken arm and his iron sword.


    Perhaps he had lost too much blood, or expended too much of his Psyche Power; he looked very pale.


    He was silent for a long while as he looked at his broken arm and the iron sword. No one knew what he was thinking about.


    At this point of the battle of Verdant Canyon, the disciples of the Academy and the powerhouses of the Haotian Taoism were either dead or wounded. The situation was very tense and at its breaking point. However, with the army in the south, everyone could see how the battle would end.


    However, the West-Hill Divine Pce was not satisfied. They never thought that it would cost so much to pass through the Verdant Canyon. Furthermore, they had not expected even the Sword Sage Liu Bai to fail.


    Hope eventually turned into disappointment. This was hard for some to understand and they even grew suspicious.


    One of them was Su Chen, the new West-Hill Divine Pce divine guardmander.


    Su Chen was a close confidant of the Divine Hall Hierarch Lord. He had taken the position after Luo Kedi was killed by Ning Que¡¯s arrow on the Wilderness. He now had a high position in the West-Hill Divine Pce and was ranked beneath the two Great Divine Priests.


    Looking at the slowly-moving carriage, his expression grew ugly.


    ¡°My Lord, Sword Sage, I need an exnation.¡±


    Su Chen looked at the carriage and said, ¡°You are still able to fight, why did you retreat?¡±


    The Sword Garret disciples who were heading towards the carriage looked at him angrily when they heard that.


    Su Chen¡¯s expression was frigid because he was furious and disappointed.


    If Liu Bai was seriously injured by Jun Mo¡¯s sword, what was he afraid of?


    Furthermore, Liu Bai¡¯s sword had been broken.


    A man without a sword could no longer be called the Sword Sage.


    Liu Bai remained silent for a long time, yet he couldn¡¯t hear any sound of Liu Baiing out of the carriage.


    Then a cough came out.


    Liu Bai was seriously injured with blood flowing into his lungs. Pain and agony were evident in his coughing.


    A trace of mocking shone in Su Chen¡¯s eyes.


    Liu Bai continued coughing, louder and louder.


    Su Chen¡¯s pupils suddenly shrank, and his expression of mocking suddenly turned into fear and desperation.


    Because a blood line had appeared between his brows.


    The coughing continued in the quiet horse carriage.


    Every time Liu Bai coughed, a blood line appeared on Su Chen¡¯s body.


    Even though he was wearing an armor lined with golden runes and even though a sword had appeared in his right hand without anyone noticing.


    With every cough, a line of blood appeared.


    There was a loud ruckus.


    Su Chen and the war-horse he was sitting on turned into several pieces of flesh and blood, scattering onto the in.


    Blood flowed in all directions.


    Liu Bai was finally done coughing. He said, ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    The Sword Garret disciples gathered around the horse carriage and they moved towards the Military camp.


    They looked around them warily.


    Several pairs of eyes were following the horse carriage.


    Nobody dared to stop it or speak. In fact, no one dared to even look at the carriage with doubt.


    Liu Bai and Jun Mo were both injured in their fight.


    Jun Mo said that he was severely injured and was no longer able to battle. But by battle he meant the battle between the two of them.


    It was a conversation between the two most powerful swordsmen in the world.


    It had nothing to do with anyone else.


    The goshawk fought in the blue sky for several days and nights, shedding feathers, dripping blood, wearing down its beak. It was extremely tired and looked as if it was about to die. However, it was still not an opponent an ant could defeat.


    Liu Bai was severly injured, and he did not have a sword in his hand.


    But he was still the most powerful person in the world.


    Looking at the carriage that slowly pulled out of the Military camp, the people from the Divine Hall Coalition Army had many different emotions ying on their faces. Some of them looked as if they were in awe while even more of them looked disconste and frightened.


    Even the priests in the West-Hill Divine Pce were in the same mood. Their strongest warrior Liu Bai was already injured and had left. What would they do about the Verdant Canyon?


    Ye Hongyu looked at the carriage pulling away through the voile. She did not say anything.


    The climax of the battle of Verdant Canyon was the battle between Liu Bai and Jun Mo. She believed that it would be impossible to see such a battle between two swords for many years toe.


    As for that fool, Su Chen, his death was no bother to her at all. What she was concerned about now was what would happen after the climax. She badly wanted to know how much time the half-dead Jun Mo still had.


    The horse neighed once more as the cavalry geared up for battle once more. Then, the Coalition Army Military camp marched out like flowing water and met in the middle of the in. They formed a calm and yet powerful tide that rushed toward the Verdant Canyon.


    The Coalition Army cavalry did not speed up. Instead, it approached the Verdant Canyon slowly.


    They feared the terrifying sound of the zither and flute. And the man who frightened them most was seriously injured, so they could deliberately slow down and crush their opponents like a moving mountain.


    This was the best opportunity that the Coalition Army must seize, so this attack was personally led by marshal Bai Haixin and almost all elite cavalry soldiers were deployed. They were determined to win.


    Thousands of cavalries stopped in front of the Verdant Canyon. The Forward Camp was close to the iron shelter, and was at a most suitable distance to charge forth. Furthermore, if the zither and flute sounded, the cavalry could dismount and fight at any time.


    Bai Haixin lifted his armor and looked at the nearby Verdant Canyon. He looked at the man covered in blood and the iron shelter, a mocking look crossing his frosty face.


    ¡°You are disabled now.¡±


    He looked at Jun Mo and said, ¡°That is why I will not ept your surrender. Die.¡±


    Jun Mo¡¯s expression did not change when he heard that.


    Mu You looked furious.


    Bai Haixin was the marshal of the Coalition Army. He should¡¯nt havee personally.


    However, he thought that even the most terrifying powerhouse would be extremely weak with arm just being cut off. This was the best opportunity for the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army and it had to be seized.


    The issue was, the morale of the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army soldiers was at rock bottom.


    The Headmaster¡¯s ascendance to heaven had seriously affected the morale of the cultivation powerhouses from the Buddhism Sect. The Sword Sage Liu Bai¡¯s failure to kill the man had brought down the Coalition Army¡¯s morale to the lowest.


    As such, Bai Haixin personally led the elite cavalry to attack the Verdant Canyon.


    He also had deliberately said such humiliating words.


    Of course, he had made extremely careful preparations for this. There were dozens of powerful military cultivators and guards with big shields in their hands. He was not worried about being killed by that horrifying iron sword.


    Jun Mo looked at the general in the troop.


    He did not know who he was, but he knew that he must be someone important.


    That was why he had to kill the man.


    Had everything been normal, he would have walked towards the man with his iron sword without a second thought.


    But he was seriously injured and had expended most of his Psyche Power. He was exhausted.


    That was why he remained on his spot silently, watching Bai Haixin.


    He started to ruminate on the issue.


    How could he kill this person?


    He had many ways in the past.


    But he had to find new ways now.


    He suddenly thought of the moment when Liu Bai retreated.


    That imaged shed past his eyes quickly and then slowed down into several ovepping images.


    He had seen it clearly.


    He raised his left arm. The iron sword summoned the autumn wind before the Verdant Canyon.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth on the sword shook uneasily and the cold wind blew.


    The river burst out of its banks and flooded.


    His body was like a feather, floating on the surface of the water, sweeping across hundred of feet in an instant.


    He looked at Bai Haixin in front and waved his sword.


    Then he drifted back,nding on his original spot.


    Bai Haixin looked at the Verdant Canyon and frowned slightly. He did not know what had happened. He only felt that the scene before him was blurry, and did not know that many blood lines had appeared on his neck.


    Then, he looked at his subordinates beside him.


    It was a simple twisting movement, and he twisted his own head off.


    His head separated from his body andnded on the ground.


    Blood spurted everywhere.


    rmed screams started.


    Jun Mo shook slightly, his face grew even paler.


    His energy and Psyche Power had declined even more with this simple front and back movement.


    He could fall over at any moment.


    He had already killed the opposition¡¯s marshal.


    He had never exuded a sense of ferocity.


    But he was a truly ferocious warrior.


    A true warrior would fight thousands of armies and take the life of the general, even if he was about to die.


    There were sorrowful exmations and thunderous hoofbeats.


    The massive, dark crowd of cavalry started to charge.


    The sounds of the zither and flute started, like the murmuring of a fountain.


    From time to time, cavalry would fall from the horse¡¯s back, and a war-horse would fall miserably and be trampled into a pile of mush and blood by itspanions. The cavalry was not made up of cultivators, and they could not use talismans. They only held on with their lives.


    Beigong Weiyang and Ximen Buhuo were also holding on.


    Eldest Brother had fixed the strings on the Chinese zither and unblocked the vertical bamboo flute. They had been injured by the Great Divine Priest of Revtion, and even though Eldest Brother had healed them, they were not able to fully recover in such a short period of time.


    They lowered their heads and yed their instruments with focus.


    The strings of the zither were stained with blood and blood started dripping from the flute.


    Mu You stood under the iron shelter, holding several arrows in her hand. She looked at the flooding cavalry.


    Sixth Brother stood at the front, outside the shelter. He held the heavy hammer tightly, the muscles on his arms almost bursting out of his shirt.


    Fourth Brother held the River and Mountain Sandbox. His arms were shaking and his face was pale. He knew that the Academy was facing its greatest danger at that moment and they might all die in it. However, he could not help his Younger Brothers and Sisters.


    Jun Mo waved the sword.


    He held the hilt of the sword in his left hand, looking majestic.


    Blood flew everywhere, hooves breaking and heads flying.


    No one knew how many cavalry were felled by the iron sword.


    However, the cavalry soldiers rushing toward the Verdant Canyon numbered too many. Jun Mo had just lost his arm and was gravely injured. Even though he did not retreat against the crowd, he could not stop the tide from rising and flooding them.


    Jun Mo¡¯s figure was eventually swallowed by the cavalry.


    Dozens of cavalry crossed the gradually darkening sword and arrived before the Verdant Canyon.


    Mu You looked at the cavalry¡¯s twisted faces. Her hands pressed down softly, and she broke the arrow in her hands.


    A pure Qi of Heaven and Earth overflowed from the iron shelter to the in.


    Five deep ravines suddenly appeared on the surface of the in that was littered with arrows and blood.


    The five ravines surrounded the exit of the Verdant Canyon.


    Those ravines were deep, ck and bottomless. However, they were not wide, and were just enough to hold horse hooves.


    The front hoof of a war-horse stepped into a ravine and was broken off by the great force of its charge.


    The tragic neighing of horses rang out one after another, and in an instant, more than ten war-horses crashed to the ground.


    Several bellows rang out from the cavalrymen of the Divine Hall, and they continued charging forth.


    They knew that this was the power of the tactical array. They had to kill the woman powering it as soon as possible.


    Sixth Brother held his hammer and stood at the front silently. His bulking figure shielded his junior sisterpletely.


    Several arrows were shot towards them, but his expression did not change.


    The sharp arrows pierced through his naked chest, but only left a few white dots on his tanned skin.


    A cavalry charged up bravely, crossing the five ravines by luck and he rushed to the front of the shelter.


    The war-horse was very fast, speeding against the wind.


    Sixth Brother raised his hammer and brought it down.


    He had done this action all his life.


    Even powerhouses from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine might not be able to avoid his hammer.


    Much less the ordinary cavalry.


    The heavy hammer hit the war-horse¡¯s head urately.


    After a sharp crack, the horse¡¯s head cracked, spurting blood everywhere.


    The war-horse fell heavily on the ground, causing clouds of dust to rise into the air.


    Sixth Brother raised his hammer again towards his next enemy.


    The battle in front of the Verdant Canyonsted for an indeterminable amount of time.


    The autumn sun gradually moved westward and the cold wind grew colder.


    The sounds of the zither and flute grew weaker.


    Beigong Weiyang and Ximen Buhuo were pale and they kept coughing blood.


    Mu You grew more and more haggard.


    Wang Chi hid behind the furnace anxiously. He looked up at the sky from time to time, as if he was praying.


    Only Sixth Brother kept waving his hammer. The ground was littered with dead war-horses with heads split open.


    The gleam of the iron sword was no longer visible among the flood of cavalry. Only the flying limbs and blood proved that the man holding the iron sword was still alive and fighting.


    The night gradually grew darker.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce lit their torches and continued attacking the Verdant Canyon.


    Under the backdrop of countless torches, the night seemed as bright as day.


    The sounds of the zither and flute before the Verdant Canyon grew more chaotic.


    Beigong and Ximen were no longer pale. Their cheeks were suffused with a very ominous glow.


    They no longer coughed blood because they had no more blood.


    Mu You¡¯s hair was messy and unkempt, her Psyche Power was almost drained up.


    Even Sixth Brother¡¯s muscr arms started to tremble, his hammer even started to look deformed.


    Fourth Brother stared at the River and Mountain Sandbox silently.


    Wang Chi had already stood up from behind the furnace. He looked at the Night Dome and muttered to himself.


    They have not seen Second Brother¡¯s figure in a long time.


    But they knew that he was still fighting.


    The iron sword was still there.


    Because the Verdant Canyon was still there.


    An entire night had passed.


    The stories that happened that night and the determination that yed out were hard to describe with words.


    The Academy disciples who guarded the Verdant Canyon and the attacking cavalryman of Divine Hall were close to their breaking point.


    Dawn arrived, but the daylight was still bleak.


    Wang Chi kept looking at the sky, his neck was long sore. However, he did not feel much.


    He gave a sudden shout.


    Sixth Brother heard it and paused slightly. He tossed the misshapened hammer and hit over a cavalry before walking towards the shelter rapidly.


    Fourth Brother¡¯s left hand left the River and Mountain Sandbox and spat out blood with a poof. However, Sixth Brother ignored it and quickly retrieved a talisman paper, using his Psyche Power to turn it into a breeze.


    The breeze reached the furnace.


    Sixth Brother moved the breeze with his utmost power.


    The cold wind gradually stopped.


    Then, a wind emerged from the Verdant Canyon.


    The wind grew stronger.


    Wang Chi had kept a watch for the wind direction he needed for an entire day and night.


    The northern wind had arrived.


    He took the prepared medicinal powder from his arms, unwrapped it with trembling hands and sprinkled it on the fire.


    A slightly sweet aura filled the iron shelter as the powder was evaporated by the hot fire. Then, it floated towards the in with the northern wind.


    The cavalrymen of Divine Hall were still charging towards the Verdant Canyon incessantly.


    They suddenly smelled the faint sweet scent.


    And they started to bleed.


    Blood flowed from their eyes and noses.


    The blood that flowed out of them was faintly sweet and fragrant.


    A cavalryman suddenly recalled before he died, that he had once smelled such a scent.


    He was still in his hometown then, and there was a beautiful woman who sold this white flower on the streets.


    This was the scent of a flower.


    The fragrance of gardenia flowers.


    It turned out that the fragrance of flowers could really attack a person.


    It could really kill.


    The iron sword appeared once more before the Verdant Canyon.


    It was dull, and there were several breaches on the sword point.


    But when the iron sword appeared, it brought death.


    The cavalry continued to fall.


    Several flecks of blood flew into the sky and then fell like a rain of blood.


    In the rain of blood, Jun Mo continued to kill.


    The wind came and went, and the fragrance of flowers gradually dissipated.


    The cavalry gradually retreated, and a piece of clearnd finally appeared before the Verdant Canyon.


    Jun Mo stood there with his iron sword.


    Corpses littered the ground around him.


    The cavalry did not continue to charge.


    The ck tide turned into the quiet sea.


    A South Jin Kingdom general looked at the tragic picture in front of him and suddenly felt very tired.


    Many had died that night.


    He knew that if they continued to charge, those from the Academy would not be able to guard the Verdant Canyon.


    The scent of flowers could notst long, and the man holding the iron sword would eventually fall.


    But he did not order his subordinates to continue charging.


    Because everyone was already jaded and desperate.


    The tide could insist beating against reefs for millennia.


    But no man could insist like that.


    The general noticed that several Commandants under hismand, famous for their bravery, were looking at the camp in the south. He knew that these men, like himself, were waiting for orders to retreat.


    But the sound did note.


    They wanted to fight again, but theycked the courage.


    It was unknown who started it. It might be an ordinary cavalry soldier. Horse hooves sounded softly, leaving the Verdant Canyon dyed red with blood, heading towards the south. Then, more and more cavalry soldiers left the Verdant Canyon silently.


    Jun Mo held the sword single-handedly before the green hills.


    He was drenched in blood and filth. His face was pale, but he looked just as calm.


    One would usually describe mountains and forests as glorious and flourishing.


    But sometimes, these adjectives could be used to describe a person¡¯s disposition and appearance.


    Just like how he was right now.


    Looking at the thousands of cavalrymen who gradually left the Verdant Canyon, the iron sword in his hand finally dropped slowly.


    He turned and looked at the children under the iron shelter and nodded at them calmly.


    Then he looked up at the green hills.


    In the morning light, the green hills were beautiful.


    The green hills must think that he was beautiful as well.

 Chapter 769 - Enemy of Changan

    <h4>Chapter 769: Enemy of Chang¡¯an</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The three northern counties of the Tang Empire, shrouded in bloodshed, were the real main battlefields.


    The Golden cavalry below the southern end of the Wilderness never stopped fighting the Tang Empire¡¯s cavalry. The fertile expanse was a battleground that stretched dozens of kilometers. The fighting took ce at every moment. And, as such, people died at every moment.


    On the battlefield, the priests of the Golden Pce kept fighting with the Tang Empire¡¯s cultivators. The aura of heaven and earth shook the ground. The armored cavalry risked life and death in an assault. The ground was covered in red blood.


    In the Pamir Mountains, the General Shu Chengmanded the Tang Empire¡¯s West Army soldiers. After sacrificing 20,000 soldiers, they finally had a decisive victory against the Yuelun Kingdom on top of the teau.


    Due to the long journey, and even more so due tock of supplies, the Tang Empire¡¯s West Army could not return to the three northern counties. They instead chose to brave the increasingly cold weather and enter the Pamir Mountains. Their n was to ambush the Yuelun Kingdom.


    There hadn¡¯t been a war on the Eastern Border of the Tang Empire for many years. Now it was filled with fire and blood. Tens of thousands of grasnd cavalries were wreaking havoc in the countryside. Eight-hundred cavalrymen were leading tens of thousands of brave soldiers and the Northeast Border Military back from the Yan Kingdom. They were forming the fiercest resistance, gaining momentum little by little.


    When fighting a battle on their own soil, the Tang Army could get enough support from both the government and the people. Additionally, the Tang Army at the Eastern Border could turn the tide quickly. More importantly, the grasnd cavalry was withoutmand. Prince Long Qing started getting rid of his subordinates several days ago.


    Long Qing wasn¡¯t the only one to withdraw from the battlefield. He took almost 1,000 of the most elite cavalryman of Divine Hall, along with 2,000 elite soldiers from the Left King¡¯s Pce most loyal to him.


    The world war aimed to cut down the Tang Dynasty had been ongoing for some time. The cool autumn gradually passed, the winter wind gradually rose, and the Tang Empire¡¯s fertilends were frozen dry and hard. Smoke and dust rose from the ground with the pounding of horses hooves. More than 3,000 cavalries galloped on the field in the middle of the Tang Empire. From afar, it looked like a yellow dragon.


    There were continuous raids at all hours of the day and night. The charging cavalry had long before reached the point of exhaustion. Even though Long Qing thought he could no longer hold himself up, he never stopped giving the order to keep attacking.


    The Tang Empire¡¯s main forces had been transferred out of the country. In the central counties, there was no defense force other than the basic-skilled Garrison Troops. There was no way to stop the iing cavalry.


    At that moment, Long Qing arrived at Chang¡¯an with his cavalry. There was obviously no time to rest. He knew Chang¡¯an was about to be broken into. And this mighty city had no one there to defend it.


    The state highways on every side of Chang¡¯an were covered in dust and footprints. There were abandoned belongings everywhere, traces left by refugees in the surrounding areas.


    Thankfully, under the concerted efforts of the Tang imperial court, all of the nearly one million refugees fleeing the war were safely sent to the city within just two days. There wasn¡¯t a single body left on the roads.


    The grains had already been received from each county. The surrounding counties and viges had already been abandoned. All of the gates had been closed, except for the south gate facing Vermillion Bird Avenue.


    There were only a few pedestrians outside the city¡¯s gate and a small number of soldiers standing guard. They looked out in every possible direction. Chang¡¯an had already been sufficiently prepared for battle. And its soldiers were full of confidence.


    The border had already been broken through, but thend was still there.


    Both the Tang Empire¡¯s imperial court and themon people thought they would soon face their enemy. They thought the enemy would be the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s Armying from the north side of the Verdant Canyon. No one expected that Prince Long Qing and his cavalry would charge in from the state highway on the east side. Now, no one knew who Chang¡¯an¡¯s real enemy was.


    Given the situation, they didn¡¯t understand why the imperial court didn¡¯t close the Southern Gate. They couldn¡¯t grasp why, in this moment of imminent danger, they needed to use their men and their resources move boulders to the Southern Gate.


    Only the Academy and the Empress in the pce knew the real reason¡ª the God-stunning Array had been damaged. Even now, Chang¡¯an¡¯s army could deter any army, but it couldn¡¯t hold off the real enemy.


    The enemy who put Chang¡¯an City in danger was not the Golden Pce¡¯s cavalry, Long Qing and his cavalry, nor the Divine Hall¡¯s mighty army in the south. The real enemy was but one person.


    A terrifying person.


    A young girl stood outside the south gate and looked at the boulders all over the open fields. She could smell something familiar. With her ponytails swaying gently in the cold wind, she reminisced nostalgically of her youth.


    Ning Que stood behind her. He finally rxed a little after being exhausted from thinking too much. Though the God-stunning Array was still blocked, it would be much harder to enter the city with these Stone Array Tactics.


    The girl was the Academy Third Sister, Yu Lian. She didn¡¯t allow herself to stay in this nostalgic feeling for too long, and said calmly, ¡°In the end, Chang¡¯an will be repaired.¡±


    ¡°Is it still not working?¡± Ning Que asked.


    Yu Lian replied, ¡°Teacher has left this human world. Now there are only four people who are worthy of the ¡®Beyond Mortality State¡¯ title. And of these four, two of them do not care about the world. The Chief Preaching Monk¡¯s rules are like the thick soil. The only person who can threaten Chang¡¯an City is the Abbey Dean. This Stone Array Tactics can stop him for a short time. But how can it stop him for the rest of his life?¡±


    Mo Shanshan furrowed her eyebrows, looking somewhat worried.


    Ning Que hadn¡¯t yet met the legendary Abbey Dean. He thought to himself that his Eldest Brother had been dyed by this Abbey Dean for a few days now, but he didn¡¯t think this person had that much power. When he heard Yu Lian say this, he couldn¡¯t help but wrinkle his brow a bit.


    Yu Lian said, ¡°The God-stunning Array has already been broken. If not for Eldest Brother defending it with his life, all of us would have been killed by the Abbey Dean by now. The war would have been over long ago.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Eldest Brother and you, my Senior Sister, have already broken through the Five States.¡±


    Yu Lian replied, ¡°The Five States are the threshold of Haotian Taoism. Breaking through them doesn¡¯t mean we are absolutely powerful. Just like how I might not necessarily be able to beat Liu Bai even though I have broken through the Five States. But the Abbey Dean is different.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°What¡¯s the difference?¡±


    Yu Lian asked, ¡°Do you know who the youngest cultivator ever to break the Five States is?¡±


    Mo Shanshan thought for a moment, then offered ¡°My brother?¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°Eldest Brother was in the Limitless State for three days. At the time, he wasn¡¯t young. Both the Grandmaster of the Enlightenment Doctrine and the Great Divine Priest of Light, from 600 years ago, are older than him.¡±


    Ning Que thought of one possibility, but he did not say it.


    Yu Lian continued, ¡°The youngest cultivator to break through the Five States carries the surname Chen.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the rocks in front of the South Gate, which were still wet with water. He stood there shocked, speechless.


    Yu Lian continued, ¡°That is why I was not surprised that Chen Pipi was the first to enter the Knowing Destiny State.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°His name is also Chen because he is the Abbey Dean¡¯s son.¡±


    Ning Que kept silent for a moment before asking, ¡°So what is the Abbey Dean like?¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°At that time, the Abbey Dean was just a normal Taoist in a Taoist temple in the Kingdom of Song. At first, the Abbey Dean showed no special talent for cultivation. As such, he never entered the West-Hill Divine Pce. So, he gave himself the most ordinary name.¡±


    The Kingdom of Song was a small kingdom on side of the East Sea. They offered nothing in terms of historical studies, culture, or military aplishments. But many famous people and extraordinary bigwigs came from that kingdom.


    The Great Divine Priest of Light came from the Kingdom of Song 1,000 years ago. Wei Guangming came from the Kingdom of Song. Master Lotus also came from the Kingdom of Song. Even Second Brother spent his childhood in a little town there.


    Ning Que had just connected the dots. The Zhishou Abbey Dean came from the Kingdom of Song. And it turned out he had a strange name.


    He said, ¡°Chen Mou... since he¡¯s so great... why...?¡±


    ¡°He didn¡¯t have a reputation, and was seen as ordinary. For such an extraordinary person to not give people an extraordinary feeling? This is what Chen Mou fears the most.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°As far as objective reasons, apart from the unfathomable concept of the Zhishou Abbey, Chen Mou has been quiet as ofte. This is mainly due to the differences in history over the past decades.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°What¡¯s the difference between the history of these years and that of the past countless years?¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°The biggest difference between recent history and the history books is that the Academy has started entering the human realm.¡±


    In the mountain behind the Academy, she was the only one who didn¡¯t say ¡°Youngest Uncle¡±. Instead, she called him Mr. Ke. This was because she was the Grandmaster of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and it waster extinguished by Ke Haoran.


    Mo Shanshan said softly, ¡°After that year¡¯s trip to the Wilderness, I asked my teacher. My teacher realized Master Lotus was still alive, so he told me some stories from those times. He said the Abbey Dean once fought Mr. Ke.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°There were no witnesses to the fight between Mr. Ke and the Abbey Dean except for teacher. To this day, no one but teacher knew that Mr. Ke won the fight in the end.¡±


    ¡°Then, many powerhouses from Haotian Taoism attacked Mr. Ke. He cut down his enemies, not content to stop after breaking through many states. He drew his sword and pointed it to the Heavens, but was killed by Haotian.¡±


    ¡°Because of this, teacher was extremely saddened and angered. He went to the West-Hill Divine Kingdom, atop the Peach Mountain, and chopped down all of the peach blossoms. He killed countless Haotian Taoism powerhouses. The Abbey Dean invited the Chief Preaching Monk from the Xuankong Temple to form an alliance but they lost.¡±


    Yu Lian continued, ¡°The Academy has entered the human realm. So the Abbey Dean¡¯s name has been obscured.¡±


    Ning Que understood what his Senior Sister was saying.


    As the youngest person to break the Five States, Chen Mou was without a doubt entitled to leave his name in the history of cultivators. But there were two more names in these years¡¯ history. So his achievements inparison were not as grand.


    One man was the Headmaster.


    One man was called Ke Haoran.


    But on the other hand, this also showed Chen Mou¡¯s strength.


    Because he lost to the Youngest Uncle and the teacher, but he didn¡¯t die.


    He was forced to drift about in the South Sea, but he didn¡¯t die.


    Maybe the teacher cherished talent, maybe the teacher really couldn¡¯t kill him.


    Either way, it proved his strength.


    Youngest Uncle passed away long ago. Their teacher had also left this world.


    There was no one left in this world to rival the Abbey Dean.


    The man who had been suppressed for all these years would get the chance to bloom.


    The enemy Chang¡¯an will soon face is such a man.


    Everyone knew he wasing, but they didn¡¯t know when he woulde.


    Ning Que felt his shoulders be heavy.


    His sight crossed the jagged boulders andnded on the woods near the state highway.


    Chang¡¯an had already entered winter. There wasn¡¯t much vegetation left, and the storm and snow were approaching.

 Chapter 770 - Changan, the Falling Snow

    <h4>Chapter 770: Chang¡¯an, the Falling Snow</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Yu Lian continued, ¡°He encountered something after arriving at the South Sea. No one knows the exact details, for the teacher found Pipi when he was but a child. And upon seeing the child, Teacher knew he would have a bright future.¡±


    Ning Que was a little surprised and said, ¡°Is that the Great Divine Priest of Light who went missing in the South Sea 600 years ago?¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°Yes, I¡¯ve always thought he had gained a lot from this matter.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the boulders in front of the south gate. He remained silent for some time. With a sense of restlessness, he asked, ¡°With Senior Brother and Senior Sister on our side, how could we not defeat him?¡±


    ¡°Teacher once said this: Life is a cultivation.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°Sometimes, cultivation has a direct corrtion with years. He has lived longer than Senior Brother and I, so he¡¯s more powerful than we are. Even though Senior Brother is more naturally gifted than most men, he¡¯s too gentle. Even after learning how to fight, he would be no match for his adversary in the end.¡±


    She made no mention of her own power, which is also a kind of acquiescence. Ning Que thought of a very troubling and critical problem: the Third Sister was still suffering from injuries, which may be very serious.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce Hierarch is the most powerful powerhouse in the Five States. Despite being the most powerful and mysterious Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation, it would take everything topletely defeat the man.


    In this current situation, the only thing left in the mortal world that could defeat the Abbey Dean of Zhishou Abbey was the God-stunning Array.


    Ning Que turned and headed for the gate to continue the trip.


    As time went on, and because there were more Stone Array Tactics outside the south gate, the Qi of Heaven and Earth in Chang¡¯an City was more and more stagnant, especially the dark line between life and death. It waspletely blocked.


    Ning Que walked on Vermilion Bird Avenue, walking between the blocked aura of Heaven and Earth.


    Numerous refugees evacuated into Chang¡¯an were arranged by the imperial court into the homes of themon people everywhere. There were few pedestrians on the long streets, and most shops and restaurants along the streets had been closed. This ce hadn¡¯t been bustling for a long time. The cold winter breeze blowing back and forth in the street was cold and lonely.


    The Great Blockage Formation outside the south gate could y a very small role. Although it could hold back the Abbey Dean, it has been confirmed that it was impossible to break away the God-stunning Array in a short period of time. So where could he mobilize so much Qi of Heaven and Earth to repair this God-stunning Array?


    This problem had been bothering him for a long time. He hadn¡¯t rested for days, racking his brain. He asionally had concrete ideas, but he couldn¡¯t think of how to implement them.


    ¡°How can those imaginary auras be true, authentic power?¡±


    Ning Que looked at the Vermilion Bird on the center of the street and asked.


    The Vermilion Bird did not answer him because it didn¡¯t know either.


    Ning Que turned to continue walking, thinking about the Bun Shop he saw on the edge of Yanming Lake that morning, the hot fog on the green stone te. When he thought about how he felt then, his mood became more and more depressed.


    He understood what he needed to do, but he didn¡¯t know how to do it.


    He saw hope ahead, but was unsure of how to grasp it. Just like being able to see the other side of theke, but not having the boat. His troubles became more and more serious.


    He walked out of a quietne and suddenly heard the sound of someone reading behind the wall.


    He didn¡¯t know which tutor was teaching thew of the Tang Empire.


    He heard the sound of young students with their childish voices reciting theplicatedw of the Tang Empire. The voices weren¡¯t in unison but the students were very focused and interested.


    The country was on the verge of being torn apart and homes were about to be destroyed. Yet, there was still the sound of reading in the streets.


    He could still hear thew of the Tang Empire.


    This calm was very touching and even awe-inspiring.


    Because there was a power in this kind of calm.


    Ning Que stood outside the wall for a long time, quietly listening to the reading sounds inside.


    This was the aura of the mortal world. How could this kind of power be materialized?


    The Southern Gate Temple in front of the Imperial Pce was quite serene.


    Due to the tampering of the Edict, along with the He Mingchi incident, the Tang Empire¡¯s imperial court¡¯s attitude toward the Southern Gate Temple changed greatly. Many people were hiding outside the Taoist temple.


    Ning Que went up the steps and entered the Southern Gate Temple.


    The Taoists in the Taoist temple couldn¡¯t help but be stunned when they saw that it was him. They came forward to salute him.


    He was the disciple of Master Yan Se. The Taoists at the Southern Gate Temple called him Senior Brother.


    Ning Que waved his hand, telling people to leave him alone.


    He walked into the secluded Taoist Temple alone and stood under the wall, watching the stories of the religious scriptures painted with oil and the legendary myths. He remained silent for a long time.


    Religion was the best way to transform humankind¡¯s aura into real, authentic power.


    This is also called the power of faith.


    Although the power of faith in Haotian Taoism was used to pray to Haotian and to connect Heaven and Earth with man and god, it waspletely contrary to what he wanted to do now. Yet, he wanted to see if he could draw some inspiration.


    Ning Que walked around Chang¡¯an, just as he had done that summer at the beginning of his enlightenment.


    So he once again came to Wanyan Tower and went to the top.


    Standing by the small window at the top of the tower and looking at the quiet city of Chang¡¯an, he asked, ¡°Can people¡¯s thoughts really be concrete strength? If so, what channels are needed?¡±


    ¡°Thought itself has no power. It may show some power once it is disyed, just like the imperial edict of His Majesty. But if it is only an idea in the mind, it has no effect. Only when he says it or writes it on paper will ideas be useful.¡±


    Master Huang Yang walked beside him and looked at thest group of autumn geese flying south and said, ¡°In regards to the channels you were asking about, if all methods are equal,nguage is one way. Literature can also have such an effect.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°And what about faith?¡±


    Master Huang Yang said, ¡°Faith itself has no power and needs a specific direction. When countless people¡¯s beliefs focus on that direction, power will be reflected in that direction.¡±


    ¡°The Buddha strictly rules the disciples not to set up idols because of this.¡±


    Master Huang Yang looked at him and continued, ¡°Your teacher Yan Se once said that everyone¡¯s thought is actually a talisman, but it is too weak and subtle to be felt. When everyone writes a talisman at the same time, the symbol may appear and even be great.¡±


    Ning Que understood these things.


    It was really possible to find a way to summon the power of humanity that couldpete with Heaven and Earth. If he could find that force, he could clear the blockage in the God-stunning Array.


    He went to the south bank of Yanming Lake and sat in the dewden grass. After waiting for his heart to calm, he stretched out his fingers in the air and duplicated several inscriptions. He tried to find the word.


    He had already entered the Knowing Destiny State. The things he wrote casually were talismans; every time he wrote a character, he wrote a talisman. The character he was looking for was actually a talisman.


    The sun gradually moved westward. It dipped below the city wall, and the night came.


    He sat by theke and continued to write and search for talismans.


    Hundreds of words.


    Thousands of words.


    Eventually, there was only one word left.


    The word consisted of two straight lines.


    This was the only Divine Talisman he could write: The Two-Horizontal Talisman.


    He kept writing the Two-Horizontal Talisman until his eyes struggled to stay open, finally bing numb.


    He didn¡¯t know how long he had been writing when he finally stopped.


    He looked at the courtyard across the Yanming Lake in a daze.


    Just then, a snowke fell on him.


    He remembered the snow from that year.


    He remembered the battle on the snowke.


    Sangsang stood in the storm and snow holding the Big ck Umbre singing to the snowke.


    If Sangsang were still there, if the Big ck Umbre were still there, if the iron arrows were still there, he was confident that even if he could not remove the blockage in Chang¡¯an, he could kill the man with the help of the God-stunning Array.


    But Sangsang had already died.


    The courtyard across theke hasn¡¯t turned its light on for many days.


    The people the imperial court sent to the Sishui River reported that the Big ck Horse and horse carriage had vanished.


    He must find the word that can put the power of humanity into motion.


    Snowkes continued to fall.


    Eyshes fell.


    His face was pale and his cheeks were flushed, making him look extremely unhealthy.


    He looked calm, but deep down he was anxious and exhausted to the extreme.


    He couldn¡¯t find the word. He couldn¡¯t write the talisman.


    Master Yan Se spent his whole life looking for that talisman. If he couldn¡¯t find it, how could Ning Que?


    Ning Que sighed, white fog escaped from his mouth.


    He raised his finger, and continued to write in search of the word.


    He wrote in the white mist, in the falling snow, and on the gradual snowy ground.


    His hands trembled. They became heavier and heavier.


    The Two-Horizontal Talisman strokes became crooked at times.


    It was snowning in Chang¡¯an.


    It was the first snowfall in the 18th year of the Tianqi era.


    The night faded. The morning had arrived.


    The streets and the rooftops were covered in snow. It was so clean.


    The wind came from the northst night. The city was quiet.


    The south wall was covered by a thinyer of snow, as there was no cold wind to blow it away.


    It looked like a white curtain.


    Suddenly.


    A footprint appeared in the snow on the city wall.


    The spot was several hundred feet above the ground. An eagle could build a nest here, but people could not reach it.


    But there was one more footprint.


    A split secondter.


    Thousands of feet away from the city wall, another footprint appeared.


    Then another pair of footprints appeared.


    These footprints belonged to two people.


    The winter eagle was awakened by the footsteps on the city wall.


    On high alert, it looked out in the distance.


    It was clear that the footprints on the city wall belonged to the two men.


    But the eagle looked out in the distance.


    It saw the long city wall of Chang¡¯an.


    The footprints of the two men started appearing everywhere.


    But it couldn¡¯t see any people.


    It could only see footprints.


    It was as if immortals hade down to the mortal world and left their mark.


    The footprints reached closer and closer to the south gate.


    In the gently falling snow, ck clothes appeared.


    The Abbey Dean of Zhishou Abbey revealed himself outside the south gate.


    He held a Taoist Sword behind him.


    He hadn¡¯t slept for seven days, travelling thousands of miles between the mountains and rivers. He was still clear-eyed.


    A wooden rod suddenly appeared in the snow.


    It was very short.


    Very tough.


    The wooden rod hit the Abbey Dean in the back of his head.


    The Abbey Dean drew his sword.


    The sword and the wooden rod shed.


    There was a loud boom.


    The sound was like a loud melody.


    The clock rang out.


    Chang¡¯an awakened.


    The bells¡¯ ringing shook the city.


    No one knew if it was shaken by the bell,


    by the impact of the wooden rod and the sword nging together,


    or by the person.


    The snow that covered more than five kilometers of the Southern City wall fell down to the ground below.


    The falling snow exposed the ck color of the wall.


    There was a lot of snow piled up at the bottom of the wall.


    Like a curtain that had fallen, it was piled up in one ce.

 Chapter 771 - Storming into the City

    <h4>Chapter 771: Storming into the City</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The drifting snow was like a curtain. It fell at the root of the city wall, and piled up a snow barrier which was as high as half a man¡¯s height at the southern gate. A schr stood before the snow barrier, but nobody knew when he showed up there.


    He was still in the old cotton jacket, but the jacket had fresh cuts all over it, and the cotton filling wasing out from them, shivering in the snowy storm.


    He had bled for days. Some of the blood had been blown away by the wild wind, while more of it had condensed on the protruding cotton, looking ck and ugly. With the wooden rod which had cuts of the swords on it, he looked like a beggar that had been chased by a dog for days.


    He might be in difiture now, but his expression remained peaceful still. He looked tranquil from top to bottom, like the snow drifting slowly at the moment.


    He looked at the Abbey Dean and said, ¡°The Academy finally chose Chang¡¯an City for the final battle.¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked at him and said, ¡°I chose the ce first.¡±


    Eldest Brother asked sincerely, ¡°Why?¡±


    The Abbey Dean then answered, ¡°Because the city can no longer stop me.¡±


    Eldest Brother asked, ¡°Then what took you so long?¡±


    The Abbey Dean then answered, ¡°Because now is the time when the city stops shutting me out.¡±


    The Abbey Dean held the Taoist Sword in his hand, and looked at the magnificent city before him, saying, ¡°You were waiting, and I was waiting, too. You were waiting for the city to be restored, but I was waiting for the city to weaken.¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°I can see that you¡¯ve got what you wanted.¡±


    The Abbey Dean then said, ¡°I am not surprised. I¡¯ve been preparing to break the array for many years, and nobody can stop me ever again after the Headmaster ascended to heaven.¡±


    ¡°The will of Heaven is always irresistible, no matter if you obey it or not.¡±


    He looked at the Eldest Brother who was standing before the snow barrier, saying, ¡°The snow barrier can¡¯t stop me, and the Academy can¡¯t stop me, either. I¡¯ll kill you and destroy the God-stunning Array, and then everything would be put to an end.¡±


    He walked towards Chang¡¯an City after finishing those words.


    The snowyer covering the state highway at the southern gate was light. The Abbey Dean stopped before his right foot could barely touch the ground and leave a print.


    He had taken no more than one step, or to be specific, half a step.


    The Abbey Dean looked down at the ground.


    He wore cloth shoes.


    There was a tiny rock by his shoes.


    He looked at the tiny rock and frowned.


    Then, he drew back his right foot and stood still.


    He craned around and noticed that thousands of rocks emerged at the south gate of Chang¡¯an City. The rocks varied from small ones to huge ones, sharp-edged or rounded.


    No matter how the rocks looked, all of them were radiating a raging and disobedient aura. The aura mighte in silence but it was so indocile, and it was filling up the whole ce.


    The aura was so unique, so silent and so irresistible that it had added barriers in the air of Chang¡¯an City, making it hard for people to breathe.


    Like how it blocked the breath, the rocks had blocked those mysterious and tiny passages around. That was to say, in this world of rocks, there was no Limitless State.


    The first snow of the winter kept falling for a whole night. The thousands of rocks in the south of Chang¡¯an City looked like soldiers in white armor. And the bigger rocks stood like Snowfield Direwolves, stern and fearsome.


    The Abbey Dean looked at the rocks, and suddenlyughed.


    He had been to the Daming Lake on the Wilderness for more than once, and of course he knew the Stone Array Tactics.


    Using the Stone Array Tactics to block the Limitless State was a typically smart move from the Academy.


    But he feared nothing.


    He didn¡¯t step forward.


    He stood silently among the rocks, waiting for the next move of the Academy.


    Eldest Brother took a step forward and disappeared in the light snow.


    The Abbey Dean knew that the Eldest Brother wasn¡¯t in the Limitless State. He disappeared because the Stone Array Tactic blocked his vision.


    Standing in the craggy array, they couldn¡¯t see each other. So, the Abbey Dean did nothing but wait quietly for the Academy to attack him first.


    Snow kept falling slowly. The kes were so tiny but so beautiful. As they were about to fall on the ground, they disappeared suddenly and fell on other spots which might be dozen feet away. The scene looked so strange.


    A thin snowke fell along the ck city wall and onto the Abbey Dean.


    A short wooden rod fell closely after the ke.


    The wooden rod brought out no sound in the air. And it had little influence on the blocking aura around. It moved with the drifting storm and snow, showing up without a trace.


    The eyes of the Abbey Dean lit up.


    As simple as the short wooden rod might seem, it was more astonishing than the Great Blockage Formation because the Eldest Brother had reached such a state within days after he had learned how to fight.


    When referring to the speed of learning, the man was second to none.


    The Abbey Dean raised his sword to the wind and snow before him. He thought to himself that it would be hard for him to be his match if the Headmaster hadn¡¯t ascended to heaven and could teach the man for ten more years, because he was such a quick learner.


    The Taoist Sword rushed away, tearing apart the wind and snow. Then it hit right on the wooden rod which emerged from nowhere in the falling snow.


    That was the second time the sword had met the rod in Chang ¡®an City.


    The first time they met, the snow was falling heavily like a curtain, but this time it was different, when they met each other they seemed so quiet and gentle, like melting snowkes falling into theke.


    Thousands of rocks standing as the Stone Array Tactics at the southern gate were giving out a craggy and hard aura, which wereter overwhelmed by the gentle aura released by the sword and the rod when they shed.


    The sword met the rod in the air. They shed in a point and stayed still. In the space around their shing point, everything froze, including the wind and the snow.


    The snow stopped falling and it strangely floated in the stillness. Then those snowkes, all of them, started to copse from the edge to the center, till they copsed into the tiniest powder.


    The powdered snowkes drifted profusely and disorderly onto the Abbey Dean and the Eldest Brother.


    Many more cuts emerged on the Eldest Brother¡¯s cotton jacket, and he bled again.


    The snow was blown off the ground and drifted around him like a pair of invisible wings. His wounded body was supported and pushed forward, and then like a flurry of snow, he left the Stone Array Tactics for Chang¡¯an City.


    The Abbey Dean frowned slightly, and he was surprised.


    In the south of the city was the Stone Array Tactics, it might look limitless but that was an actual blockage.


    This might be troubling for him, and it would be even more troubling for the opponent of his.


    But since the Academy hade up with the way to break the Limitless State, surely it would have subsequent moves, so he ignored the crushed snowkes on him, and waited for the Academy¡¯s next move.


    However, the Academy did nothing but retreat into Chang¡¯an City.


    In that case, he had to go into the city as well.


    To get into the city, he had to break the Stone Array Tactics blocking before him.


    The Abbey Dean waved his sleeves and blew off a thousand clouds of snow drifting in the air.


    On the roadside of the state highway, a huge stone weighing tons was blown off the ground by the sleeve and fell onto a piece of farm field further away.


    As he waved his sleeves again, more huge stones flew away.


    He walked towards the city gate.


    As he walked, his sleeves waved like floating clouds, destroying the rocks and the array all along the way.


    How to destroy the Stone Array Tactics?


    When Ke Haoran entered the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, he destroyed it with his sword.


    The Abbey Dean destroyed it with his sleeves.


    That didn¡¯t mean that the Abbey Dean was more powerful than Ke Haoran. The point was, the Great Blockage Formation in the south of Chang¡¯an City was far less powerful than the one at the bottom of Daming Lake.


    As the leader of Haotian Taoism, he had done a deep research on the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. And he knew that a real Stone Array Tactics should be aplete world made up of stubborn rocks. Thought there might be thousands of stubborn rocks in the south of the city, they didn¡¯t form up a word.


    If they didn¡¯t form up a world, then they must¡¯ve left spaces.


    Where there is space, people would be able to pass and find more space.


    Continuous sound of falling rocks rang out of the city. The storm and snow gradually stopped, and the man in ck had walked far.


    On the city wall, Mo Shanshan paled, with snow in her hair and blood at the corner of her lips.


    The Abbey Dean destroyed the Stone Array Tactics by casually waving his sleeves. He was as rxed as when he was walking in his own backyard.


    Inside the southern gate was Chang¡¯an City.


    There was no one on Vermilion Bird Avenue. It was quieter than ever, and the snow kept falling.


    The Abbey Dean strolled along Vermilion Bird Avenue, looking rxed.


    Like a normal visitor, he looked at the buildings on both sides of the street; the embossment revealed by the snow in the middle of the street, the ck eaves and the roofs with snow on them.


    ¡°So this is what Chang¡¯an City really looks like.¡±


    Many years ago, when he was still a kid, he visited Chang¡¯an with the elders in his family, but that was so long ago that he had already forgotten what the city exactly looked like.


    Later he started cultivating and hadn¡¯t been to Chang¡¯an ever since.


    He cultivated and became powerful; that might be part of the reason why he was not weed in Chang¡¯an City. Another important reason was the Headmaster, who had been staying in the Academy in the south of the city.


    People always took what they couldn¡¯t get as the best.


    That was the truth in cultivation, romance, and all other things.


    So he liked Chang¡¯an City very much.


    But unfortunately, the city couldn¡¯t possibly belong to him, so he was going to destroy it.


    He had thought about the city for many years.


    Just as well, he had been nning to destroy it for many years.


    He had finally entered the city today.


    He was surely full of emotions.


    He looked into the snowing sky and said, ¡°If you can see the scene here from above there, will you regret leaving the world too early?¡±


    At this moment, a cicada suddenly chirped on Vermilion Bird Avenue.


    The snowkes falling into the city from high above looked reflecting, like the wings of cicadas.


    It was winter now and the first snow was falling, so where did the cicada chirpinge from?


    The Abbey Dean inclined his ear to listen, and finally seriousness emerged in his eyes.


    When the guy was sure that the Stone Array Tactics couldn¡¯t stop the Abbey Dean, he made the quick decision to retreat into Chang¡¯an City, and prepared to take advantage of the power of the city. An ordinary man couldn¡¯t possibly make a decision like that.


    The Abbey Dean was sure that someone interesting was waiting for him in the city.


    But still he was surprised because the guy was incredibly interesting.


    This must be the trump card of the Academy.


    ¡°There was a kind of cicada in the aridnd of the far west. The cicadas had been hiding amid the mud for a whole 23 years periods. It was not till the time when the Snow Mountain began to melt its snow and the flood started to arrive that the cicadas began to wake up and regain their consciousness. While showering in the muddy water and drying their wings in chilly winds, in the end, they fluttered to fly out of the void.¡±


    The Abbey stared at the storm and snow at the end of the long street, saying calmly, ¡°Of course you¡¯re here, too.¡±


    The snowy clouds became thicker and blocked the sky. The bleak chirp of winter cicadas echoed in Chang¡¯an City.


    A girl arrived with the storm and snow.

 Chapter 772 - The Immeasurable Abbey Dean

    <h4>Chapter 772: The Immeasurable Abbey Dean</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    For a man as powerful as the Abbey Dean, it might be hard for him to foresee the future, but he could easily predict the good and bad luck. Therefore, sneak attacks were meaningless, unless Ning Que was holding an iron bow in his hand as well.


    Yu Lian didn¡¯t hide and walked out of the storm and snow straightforwardly.


    ¡°Nobody canmune with Haotian in the city.¡±


    She looked at the Abbey Dean and said. Then she raised her hands in the air. She had made great achievements in Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation. Her soft hands seemed so small, as if they were likerger snowkes in the air.


    With her hand movements, the falling snowkes suddenly paused, and then they kept falling. Although instead of drifting, they shivered and danced in the wind tempestuously.


    The snowkes vibrating at high speed gave out an intense and deep sound. The sound resembled numerous cicadas waving their wings at the same time. A yellow leaf was blown up to the snowy sky by the wind and was torn into pieces.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t expect that you had attained the Divine Demon Realm, to be the first one to have gone beyond the Five States in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. You should¡¯ve known that Lotus was too afraid to take that step because he couldn¡¯t ovee the inexorable doom of his heart.¡±


    ¡°Lin Wu, you¡¯re indeed an extraordinary cultivator.¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked up at the numerous snowkes falling from the sky. He had a look of admiration on his face when he thought of that person. Anyone who could take the Twenty-Three-year Cicada as a disciple was a man to be respected.


    ¡°Lucky for me, I¡¯ve devoted my entire life to make a crack in the city.¡±


    He sighed and reached out his palm.


    The center of his palm was facing the sky, and it looked as if he was trying to catch those falling kes.


    What was falling down was more akin to overwhelming power than to snow.


    Thick snowy clouds covered Chang¡¯an City.


    Overwhelming power fell from heaven above, from a sun hidden by the clouds.


    As the exotic power fell in the mortal world, the God-stunning Array reacted in the shortest time. Then more vigorous breaths arose amid the streets and alleys in Chang¡¯an City, pouring into the snowy clouds.


    However, since the God-stunning Array had been damaged, the flow of the Qi of Heaven and Earth slowed down.


    Finally the overwhelming power fell on Chang¡¯an City.


    The thick snowy cloud in the sky was instantly torn, to leave a straight crack in it.


    Below the crack was the long and unswerving street.


    If someone standing on Vermilion Bird Avenue looked up at the sky, he would see the unbelievable tear in the snowy cloud covering the Firmament. Behind the crack was the blue sky.


    Clear and bright sunlight shone from the sky above. Sunlight fell on the street and made the buildings and snowkes extremely distinct, with a holy golden light on their edge.


    All the snowkes in the sky turned golden and were melting at a visible speed.


    The sunlight leaking out of the cloud, and the overwhelming power were falling on the Abbey Dean¡¯s body.


    That was the power beyond the Five States.


    It was the real Haotian Taoism Divine Skill, Haotian Initiation.


    Yu Lian stood under the storm and snow, her ck ponytail waving slightly.


    She felt that the snowkes were slightly cold.


    She had also reached beyond the Five States, and she had seen Xiong Chumo apply the Divine skill of Haotian Initiation.


    But still, it was hard for her to imagine that someone in the world could apply the skills beyond the Five States so easily, like picking up a snowke.


    She looked at the man who was still sighing, standing at the opposite end of the Snow Street, and then she lowered down her head.


    She looked at the snow in front of her shoes, and then started to write with her eyes.


    She wrote attentively.


    The Headmaster had asked her to write for many years. And she wrote her own world.


    After the first stroke on the snow field, her own world appeared on the Snow Street.


    All the snowkes in the air started dancing wildly, with their edges constantly shing against the air.


    The bleak chirp of cicadas grew.


    Numerous snowkes turned into transparent cicada wings, fluttering and flying at a high speed, covering the sky above the Vermilion Bird Avenue in mere moments.


    The Pure Light falling from the cracks in the clouds fell on these snowkes that could pass for cicada wings, then the light was reflected. The snow floating above the city looked like numerous golden leaves.


    An impalpable but extremely strong aura fell on the city with the dancing snow, and had set up a new regime in this world of Haotian¡¯s.


    The snow stopped falling, and so did the sunshine.


    The snow stopped melting, too.


    The Snow Street became quiet and cold again.


    Pure light enveloped the Abbey Dean¡¯s body.


    The Abbey Dean silently looked at the girl in the storm and snow.


    It was only then that he knew she had reached that state.


    He raised his right hand and pointed at her, from the opposite end of the street with four of his fingers curved.


    However, before his index finger pointed out, a harsh whistle suddenly emerged from the storm and snow.


    The sound must havee from the friction between a quick-spinning round material and the air.


    Something approached from the north of Chang¡¯an City. It spun fast, giving out an unstoppable sound of whistling and thunder.


    Wanyan Tower was located in the south of the city, and the thing that was approaching was a string of Buddha Beads.


    They were Master Huang Yang¡¯s Buddha Beads.


    The beads were spinning around quickly; and there seemed to be some blood stains over them, which might be the essential blood of Master Huang Yang.


    Many years ago, Huang Yang achieved his enlightenment in the depths of the Western Wilderness because of the hot blood of hispanions.


    For that reason, the Buddha Beads stained with his essential blood were hot as well.


    They were so hot that they almost started burning.


    A verypassionate but extremely violent fire spurt forth from the rotating Buddha Beads toward the surrounding storm and snow, burning everything they came in contact with.


    When the snowkes touched the beads, they didn¡¯t melt into water. Instead, they immediately turned into nothingness.


    Master Huang Yang was the Bhadanta of the Buddhism Sect, and one of the rare powerhouses living in this world. The Buddha Beads dyed with his essential blood would burn the heart with fire, which was a great threat to the weak Taoism Hearts of those powerhouses of Haotian Taoism.


    A line of fire appeared in the sky above the Vermilion Bird Avenue, and the snow storm seemed to fear the line.


    The Beads soared and roared in the air, then suddenly fell silent.


    The burning beads thennded on the Abbey Dean¡¯s wrist.


    Yu Lian looked up. There was a reflection of drifting snowkes deep in her eyes, and her academy uniform fluttered.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth on the Snow Street became turbulent, indicating that someone was about to make an entrance.


    At this time, the connection between Haotian and the Abbey Dean had been cut off in the cicada wings world. Then, it had been blocked by Master Huang Yang¡¯s fiery Buddha Beads. Thus he had no way to get out of the street even though he was in the Limitless State.


    That was the Academy¡¯s n.


    The real attack wasing next.


    However, the Abbey Dean still looked just as calm and resolute.


    He looked at the Buddha Beads on his wrist.


    The Buddha Beads were burning, but his dark-blue Taoist robe hadn¡¯t been burnt yet.


    While his eyesight settled, his mind changed.


    Together with his eyesight, a cold, ancient quietus sense from several inexorable fates fell on the burning Buddha Beads.


    Then the fire on the Budhha Beads suddenly was extinguished; the beads turned into decayed wooden spheres.


    That was called Quietus.


    That was the power beyond the Five States.


    In mere moments two kinds of realms beyond the Five States appeared on the Snow Street.


    Both of them came from the Abbey Dean.


    Still, he remained standing on the Snow Street, surrounded by the storm and snow. He was trapped in Yu Lian¡¯s world and couldn¡¯t break out of it.


    On the snow field which was more than a thousand feet away, two foot prints appeared.


    The snowkes fell on the cotton jacket and disappeared.


    Then the cotton jacket disappeared in the storm and snow.


    Eldest Brother attacked.


    The Abbey Dean raised his eyebrows slightly, and his right hand pulled back like an old pine tree in the wind. He then held the Buddha Beads on his wrist tightly, and disappeared.


    Half of the Snow Street was a tiny world.


    The cotton jacket and the dark-blue Taoist robe went in and out of the storm and snow. They showed up everywhere in the city; by the snowy well in the Nouthern Street, and then beside the shops in the south of the city.


    That was the Abbey Dean and the Eldest Brother chasing after each other.


    In the Limitless State.


    They moved in such a small scale at a speed faster than thought. It mightst a moment, but it was far more dangerous than the previous six days when they chased each other amidst rivers and hills.


    The storm and snow resumed, and Yu Lian¡¯s ck and long ponytail dangled around her waist.


    She looked peaceful and concentrated; the snowkes reflected in her eyes were bing denser.


    She had executed the Divine Demon Realm to the extreme.


    Numerous snowkes floated over Vermilion Bird Avenue, each of them being like a cicada. The sky was filled with them, producing an endless killing aura which concentrated on the Snow Street.


    The half Snow Street was her world.


    No matter how quickly the Abbey Dean could move, he couldn¡¯t possibly move faster than the original rules of the world.


    A snow ke fell slowly in front of the deputy yamen¡¯s gate of the Ministry of Revenue¡¯s Clean Water Agency.


    There was nothing there previously.


    But as the snow ke fell down, a cracking sound resounded.


    The heavy storm and snow forced the Abbey Dean to show himself.


    On the chest piece of his ck robe, there was a new and narrow wound.


    At the top of Wanyan Tower.


    Master Huang Yang sat cross-legged, chanting scriptures with his palms put together. The blood before him dripped down like a melting candle.


    Before the tower, dozens of monks of the temple knelt on the snow field and they were also chanting scriptures.


    The Buddha Beads around the right wrist of the Abbey Dean stopped burning.


    However, they did not fall.


    The Beads turned scarlet, as beautiful as pomegranates.


    The chanting came out of the snow storm.


    The beads kept shrinking.


    White snow covered the stone steps before the government office.


    Eldest Brother showed up by the snowy steps, and hit the Abbey Dean on the head with the rod.


    The Abbey Dean had a solemn expression. He pulled out his sword with a ng.


    Elder Brother¡¯s feet had sunk in the snow.


    Blood spurted out from the corner of his mouth.


    But he didn¡¯t retreat and instead, he wielded the rod and struck again.


    The Abbey Dean raised his sword and cleaved down again.


    The strikes might look simple, but actually, they were quiteplicated.


    The sword and the rod were now being wielded in the Limitless State, and they were moving at such a high speed that in a short moment they had shed countless times.


    Blood was all over Eldest Brother¡¯s cotton jacket, and shallow sword marks covered his wooden rod.


    The expression on the Abbey Dean¡¯s face became graver and graver.


    At the opposite end of the Snow Street, Yu Lian suddenly took a step forward.


    Snowkes were falling on the Abbey Dean.


    The Abbey Dean waved his sleeves, and then all cicadas went silent. The snow storm was disturbed and turned into a mess.


    Yet not a single snowke had fallen on him.


    He held the sword and retreated, then he raised his palm and pointed to the sky.


    Endless power fell from heaven above. It fell from the cracks in the clouds like lightning, attaching itself on the floating snowkes, to then fall on the transparent screen of the world.


    The Snow Street was disturbed, and the snow fell off the eaves like waterfalls.


    Yu Lian moaned and stopped moving.


    The Abbey Dean casually tossed the Taoist Sword into the snow storm.


    Momentster, he appeared before Eldest Brother and parried the wooden rod.


    He was only using a finger.


    The rod then shook uneasily, and the Qi of Heaven and Earth grew restless.


    Eldest Brother retreated to the other side of the Snow Street. He pressed a hand on his chest and coughed, with a look of extreme pain.


    The Abbey Dean again looked to his right wrist.


    The scarlet Buddha Beads kept shrinking, and they were about to press into his flesh.


    He slightly frowned and seemed a little bit unhappy.


    All of a sudden, the snow storm ended.


    The Abbey Dean instantly seemed as if he had grown many times taller.


    In fact, he was just standing still in the storm and snow.


    An aura filled the surrounding space. It was as vast and boundless as the ocean.


    Then suddenly, the string of the Buddha Beads broke.


    Dozens of Buddha Beads flew away, whistling into the air.


    Several round holes appeared on the gate of the Clean Water Agency¡¯s yamen.


    Not far away, a wall copsed with light smoke and dust rising into the air.


    The Buddha Beads were still hot. Although they had stopped burning, wood surfaces were scorched as soon as they came in contact with them.


    The snow storm was stilled, but the fire was slowly extinguished.


    At the top of Wanyan Tower.


    Master Huang Yang was in pain, clutching his chest with blood all over his palms.


    He looked at the snowy street in the south, and said in a trembling voice, ¡°Is it the Boundless?¡±


    The secret skill of the Buddhism Sect, the Boundless.


    Another realm beyond the Five States.

 Chapter 773 - The Burning Snow

    <h4>Chapter 773: The Burning Snow</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    There was a hole on the stone window of the Wanyan Tower. The hole was made by a sword, but now the sword was missing. Snow floated inside through the broken window, falling on Master Huang Yang¡¯s blood-soaked kasaya.


    Yu Lian could feel that the sharp sword style behind her wasing back. She frowned and waved her hand to roll up the snow in the air, as a means to resist the continuous falling light of Haotian Initiation, and finally, she took a step forward.


    She might have looked like a cute little girl in that moment, but after the step, her aura totally changed and became as overwhelming as an army.


    Instead of stepping on the shallow snow on the street, it looked more like that she was stepping on the vast Wilderness. She stepped as if she was drumming, and the ground was her drum. As she stepped, the ground in the Southern City started to shake.


    When the storm and snow stopped, with a trace of wind and snowkes behind her, Yu Lian took just one step forward to reach the Clean Water Agency yamen which was more than 100 feet away.


    Her fists looked tiny and as lovely as cotton candy, but the Abbey Dean had be quite serious by them, an even graver gesture than when he was when seeing Yu Lian exerting the Divine Demon Realm which was beyond the Five States.


    Yu Lian was now more than the Academy Third Sister; she was back on the throne as the Grandmaster of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Her fists represented the foundation of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, namely power.


    As the most gifted Grandmaster of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine in history, she was definitely qualified for the name of Grandmaster, and she was qualified to challenge any powerhouses at any state.


    The Abbey Dean clearly knew that the little fisting out of the snow might seem harmless or even weak, but it could definitely crush a mountain as long as it smashed on it.


    A palm was raised silently, soft like thin snowkes falling into theke.


    The Abbey Dean reached out his right palm to parry Yu Lian¡¯s fist.


    He wasn¡¯t crushed by the little but scary first because he was no mountain, no river. He was an ocean that could hold hundreds of rivers, and he was the air that filled Heaven and Earth.


    Looking at the palm before her fist and the Abbey Dean who was closely before her, Yu Lian¡¯s young face remained expressionless. She looked so peaceful and calm that it gave an odd feeling.


    After a cracking sound, the shallow snowyer covering the ground of the long street was shaken off, revealing numerous cracks on the green stone intertwining like spider webs.


    Yu Lian¡¯s back foot stepped right at the center of the spider web. The power stored in her tiny body for 23 years flowed out into the long street endlessly.


    Her ck ponytail was disheveled, dangling and dancing behind her like a whip, striking those miserable snowkes. The whip was as sharp as a knife, leaving deep marks on the wall.


    She didn¡¯t use the Divine Demon Realm, nor did she create a tiny world. She used no enigmatic skills, and she smashed over in her simplest and most reliable way.


    That was power. The greatest, and most absolute power.


    Nothing but the power was roaring on the Snow Street. At this moment, even the Qi of Heaven and Earth born from nature had to escape due to the fear for the shocking power given out by the tiny body.


    In this case, the Abbey Dean had no choice but to face her fist and resist her directly because he couldn¡¯t enter the Limitless State even if she had canceled the tiny world of cicada wings.


    She was the current Grandmaster of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. As small as she might look, she owned the greatest power in the world. And even the Abbey Dean had to avoid facing her power.


    Because no matter how simr he was to the ocean, he was by no means the ocean.


    And what could he do if he couldn¡¯t avoid the power?


    On the Snow Street, the absolute and pure power was soaring and roaring. The Abbey Dean¡¯s Taoist bun was undone; his long hair was dancing behind the ck Taoist robe, making himself look extremely flustered.


    Yu Lian looked at him, and she wanted the answer eagerly.


    She would get to the answer in no time.


    The Abbey Dean¡¯s hair fell before his eyes. His peaceful, silent eyes were like ancient water wells.


    Then a snowke floated over him. It narrowly passed his eyshes and flew into his ck pupil.


    It looked as if the white snow had entered his ck pupil.


    The ck pupil started fading.


    Or in other words, the white snowke that coincidentally ran into his pupil was turning darker.


    It turned grey.


    The eyes of the Abbey Dean turned grey.


    The ancient water well had gone through storms and rain, revealing the old skeleton at the bottom.


    The eyes of the Abbey Dean were turning grey.


    By then, Yu Lian felt her power was draining up as fast as the wind, so she paled.


    In that very moment, she thought of a rumor and her eyes turned cold. An uncontroble anger rose inside her.


    She wasn¡¯t going to withdraw her fist.


    The Headmaster taught her one thing after she was admitted by the Academy, namely how to write.


    Writing was used to create a self-contained world, and it brought peace as well as fury. Because the Headmaster knew she was easily angered. She hadn¡¯t been angry in the past 23 years.


    But she was very angry at this time.


    She had always resented all the Haotian Taoism trash.


    There was no doubt that the Abbey Dean was the worst trash in Haotian Taoism¡ª when this Haotian Taoism trash used the skills of her own Enlightenment Doctrine to counter her, she grew extremely angry.


    The Abbey Dean looked at her in the eye silently.


    Yet his eyes were so grey, so peaceful, with all the quietus inside.


    Without the support of the airflow, all the floating snow kes fell on the ground miserably.


    Like the winter cicadas whose wings had been torn.


    If the situation was allowed to continue, it would end up with either the Abbey Dean winning with the Grey Eyes or Yu Lian killing the Abbey Dean before her power drainedpletely.


    The probability of thetter to happen was no more than 20 percent.


    But after all, Yu Lian had the anger that had been quelled by the Headmaster for 23 years, and once it burst into mes, it would start a prairie fire.


    So she wanted to gamble on the 20 percent.


    Moreover, she knew she had won the 20 percent chance mostly because she was following her own wish, and because the 23-year anger was popping out. She doubted if she would ever have the opportunity again if she missed this one.


    Yet someone out there was unwilling to give Yu Lian the 20 percent opportunity.


    Because he was the Eldest Brother and should face the fatal situation where a life had to be gambled. He insisted that it should be his life rather than his junior sister¡¯s.


    The snow was drifting slowly, and the old cotton jacket came into Yu Lian¡¯s sight.


    It had alsoe into the sight of the Abbey Dean¡¯s Grey Eyes.


    The cotton jacket used to be stained with blood, but it was clean once again.


    Like the schr in a cotton jacket. He used to travel amidst mountains and rivers with dust from head to toe, but he came back clean.


    The clearest and purest things without any color could never be dyed or polluted.


    The old cotton jacket rustled against the wind, and Eldest Brother¡¯s aura was so steady that not a hint of it had leaked out.


    He raised the wooden rod in his hand.


    The Abbey Dean took a step backwards.


    Eldest brother picked up the rod and struck the street floor covered by light snow.


    Each strike made a wooden fence.


    He was the First disciple of the Headmaster, and he knew the God-stunning Array better than anyone else in the world.


    He attached the Qi of Heaven and Earth of Chang¡¯an in every stroke of his.


    After several strikes, a tough and aged city wall had appeared on the Snow Street.


    The Abbey Dean was at one end of the city wall.


    He and Yu Lian were at the other end.


    The Abbey Dean reached out to the snowy sky, and seized the Taoist Sword flying back from the Wanyan Tower.


    Then he raised the sword and stabbed the wall before him.


    His sword was just like the former fist of Yu Lian¡¯s.


    It was the purest and most powerful strike.


    There was no force in it, all it had was Taoism.


    The Taoist Sword carried the Sword Taoism he had devoted his life to.


    The city wall was suddenly broken.


    A clear sword mark appeared on the wooden rod.


    The sword point rolled like the storm and snow; it passed the rod and lunged into Eldest Brother¡¯s left shoulder.


    The point of the sword lunged into the cotton jacket by three inches, and blood came out.


    Yu Lian caught Eldest Brother by his waist, just like holding up a cat.


    She was very strong, so her speed was extremely fast.


    The sword point was going forward.


    While the sword was being drawn out of the cotton jacket.


    Becase her hand was now quicker than the sword.


    Eldest Brother¡¯s straw sandals were sliding on the snowy ground.


    He raised the rod and struck again.


    The Abbey Dean¡¯s expression remained peaceful. He raised his sword and lunged again.


    Yu Lian screamed and the snow on the eaves fell down.


    The scream burst out of her tiny body like thunder in the sky.


    She held back all her strength and concentrated it on her right first, then she punched forward.


    The snowkes in the sky were like the wings of cicadas covering the scar on the God-stunning Array. They reflected the sunshine and gave out a golden glimmer, like thousands of golden leaves.


    As Yu Lian held back her aura, the world she created naturally copsed.


    The golden snowkes above Chang¡¯an City started to burn fiercely, creating a breathtaking scene.


    The snow was burning.


    Eventually, the snow melted and a crack appeared.


    The overwhelming powering from heaven finally fell on the Snow Street.


    The endless brightness covered everything.


    With invincible strength, or overwhelming Qi of Heaven and Earth, three auras shed.


    The storm and snow roared. The walls and eaves were all broken. All the houses alongside the street were shattered into ruins.


    The storm and snow finally settled. Both Eldest Brother and Yu Lian had retreated back into the Northern Street which was thousands of feet away.


    Eldest Brother had blood all over his body, and the sword wound on his shoulder looked particrly frightening.


    Yu Lian was rarely injured, but she was a little pale.


    Suddenly, raindrops fell down.


    The two were soaked all over.


    It was winter now and the first snow had fallenst night.


    But it rained in Chang¡¯an on that day.


    The rain was strange.


    It rained at an odd time and in an odd way.


    It rained nowhere else.


    Other ces in Chang¡¯an were still snowy like before.


    Only the southern part of the Vermilion Bird Avenue was slowly soaked.


    Because the rain did note from the clouds; it came from the air.


    The burning snow melted and fell down as water, drenching the long street.


    Yu Lian looked at the opposite end of the street. She felt the winter rain was somewhat cold.


    The rain was suppressing the smoke and ashes that rose amongst the house ruins.


    The Abbey Dean appeared once more.


    He tossed the hilt into the snow pile on the side of the street.


    Because moments earlier, his Taoist Sword had been shattered by the Eldest Brother¡¯s wooden rod.


    Aside from that fact, he was not injured at all.


    His turquoise robe had been soaked, but not by blood.


    The Abbey Dean walked on the light snow.


    He walked in the storm and rain.


    Every step he took left a footprint on the snow.


    The rain falling from heaven umted in the footprints and became tiny oceans.


    Those tiny oceans were calm, reflecting the sky like mirrors.


    Above Chang¡¯an City, the line of snow in the sky was still burning.

 Chapter 774 - Full Devotion Because of Sadness

    <h4>Chapter 774: Full Devotion Because of Sadness</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The Abbey Dean entered Chang¡¯an.


    Faced with the most powerful people of the Academy and Huang Yang, he extinguished the essential blood fire on the Buddha Beads with just one nce, and he waved his sleeves to break the Divine Demon Realm. He waved and the Haotian Initiation fell on him immediately; with one single stroke of the sword, he had crushed the millennial city wall.


    Alongside the streets there was nothing but ruins. In the sky, there were snowkes burning. Raindrops kept falling. All these could only prove one thing: how powerful he was.


    The cultivation in this world had five states, and to go beyond the Five State was what most people could only dream of. In all ages, cultivators reaching beyond the Five States were less than rare. Attaining one of the Five States was enough for being a qualified as a legend, such as the Haotian Initiation State.


    However, on the snowy street today, the Abbey Dean applied the Boundless, the Quietus, Haotian Initiation and the Limitless State in a series, and he did it quite casually and easily.


    The state the Abbey Dean had shown was beyond the records in the West-Hill Scripture or any other cultivating ssics. It had touched the ceiling of ordinary cultivators¡¯ imagination; it was just too absurd to be true.


    Rain kept falling, and he walked to the north of the Vermilion Bird Avenue calmly and peacefully.


    The overwhelming power falling from heaven above poured into his body.


    Every step of his broke the stagnant water and dimmed the daylight, making his aura grow powerful.


    Chilly rainwater dripped down off Yu Lian¡¯s face.


    She looked at the Abbey Deaning from the rain and said, ¡°Rumor has it that 18 years ago, you exiled Wei Guangming to the mortal world, and kicked him off the throne of the Divine Priest of Light.¡±


    The Abbey Dean then answered, ¡°So I did.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°At first I didn¡¯t believe you had the ability to abolish the cultivation of a powerhouse who had reached the Haotian Initiation State. But now I see that you¡¯re more powerful than the legend tells.¡±


    The Abbey Dean walked forward slowly, saying, ¡°Being powerful is just a rtive concept. I may be more powerful than you and Wei Guangming, but that doesn¡¯t mean that I am powerful. Like you¡¯re more powerful than Xiong Chumo, but you¡¯re not genuinely powerful, either.¡±


    Yu Lian asked, ¡°What is genuinely powerful then?¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°To turn the rtive into the absolute. That¡¯s genuinely powerful.¡±


    Yu Lian asked, ¡°So being genuinely powerful is to be more powerful than everyone.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°That¡¯s right. Being invincible in the world is genuinely powerful.¡±


    Yu Lian asked, ¡°Are you saying that you¡¯re invincible?¡±


    ¡°Crazy Ke is dead, and the Headmaster has left.¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked up at the rainy sky, saying, ¡°I had no choice but to be invincible.¡±


    He answered the question calmly and peacefully, making himself sound quite reasonable like he was makingments on the dishes of the neighborhood.


    Yu Lian said, ¡°Then why did you learn my skill of the Enlightenment Doctrine? You¡¯re the leader of Haotian Taoism, but you learned things from your enemy, have you no shame?¡±


    By that, she meant the greying eyes of the Abbey Dean, as she saw before she punched out.


    That was the Grey Eyes adapted from the Practice of Taotie from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°Everything in the world belongs to Haotian. And what¡¯s more, you must be clear that the Enlightenment Doctrine still worships Haotian, so why couldn¡¯t I learn it?¡±


    The burning snow above Chang¡¯an City was nearly running out.


    So the rain on the Snow Street gradually started to cease.


    The Abbey Dean walked into an alley, at the entrance of which there was a well. Around the mouth of the well was umted snow which had yet to be melted by the rain. It looked like an adorable white mushroom.


    Yu Lian finally loosened her grip.


    She had been clutching on to Eldest Brother¡¯s cotton jacket hem.


    Eldest Brother didn¡¯t join the conversation between her and the Abbey Dean because he had been coughing and bleeding. His wounded body seemed extremely weak.


    Yu Lian kept holding on to him because she knew Eldest Brother would apply the Limitless State forcefully and fight with his life if she let him go.


    Now she had let him go because he needed time to rest. And more importantly, because the Abbey Dean was standing in front of them. The life and death between the victor and the loser were evident.


    Just at that moment, a man crawled out of the house ruins on the side of the street.


    It was a young man in a straw hat.


    He ran desperately away from the West-Hill to go back to Chang¡¯an, and to the Academy.


    The moon and clouds, the dust and dirt on the thousand-kilometer journey made him look thinner.


    Now he could no longer be described as chubby, he was more like burly now.


    Which was exactly how a usual man should be described.


    In many people¡¯s eyes, the Abbey Dean of Zhishou Abbey was a legend.


    And the rain and snow in Chang¡¯an City proved that.


    For a legendary man, he was still a man after all.


    So when he saw his only child standing so firmly opposing him, the first thing he said was no different from the words of a regr housewife.


    The Abbey Dean asked, ¡°How did I end up having a son like you?¡±


    Chen Pipi lifted a wooden beam falling on him, and then he walked to the middle of the street. Then he knelt down and said in shivering voice, ¡°Dad, but I am also one of the disciples of the Academy.¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked at his son kneeling in the rain, saying, ¡°You¡¯re too weak to choose your side.¡±


    Chen Pipi was regarded as the genius in Haotian Taoism when he was young, and he was the youngest cultivator to reach the Knowing Destiny State. However, among the four people standing on the street now, the other three exceeded him too much in both state and power. The Abbey Dean was not wrong on this aspect.


    Then he said, ¡°At least I should try.¡±


    The Abbey Dean¡¯s eyes passed over Chen Pipi¡¯s head and fell on the Eldest Brother at the other side of the street who was soaked in blood, then said, ¡°You did this to buy him some time to rest, do you think it¡¯s worth it?¡±


    Chen Pipi said, ¡°It¡¯s just a token of my regard to him.¡±


    The Abbey Dean then asked, ¡°So the Academy is worth your regards while the Haotian Taoism isn¡¯t.¡±


    Chen Pipi did not look back at his Eldest Brother and Third Sister.


    However, he knew clearly that after the seven-day hard chase and after oveing the powerful opponent of his, his Eldest Brother was badly wounded and nearly exhausted. Also, his Senior Sister was no better than him.


    After a few moments¡¯ silence, he said, ¡°Since it is a token of regards, it has toe from the bottom of my heart.¡±


    He didn¡¯t answer his father¡¯s question directly, but the answer had been given.


    His heart helped him break the tactical array in Zhishou Abbey and helped Eldest Brother toe and go easily. It was also his heart that made him run a thousand miles from the West-Hill to help here and made him stand on the street against his father.


    The Abbey Dean¡¯s expression grew more peaceful than ever, and he said, ¡°I can choose not to give you the opportunity.¡±


    Chen Pipi said, ¡°Please, father. Please give me onest chance, and I want nothing more from you.¡±


    The Abbey Dean then said, ¡°Promise me that your heart will not stray after I allow you to show your regards.¡±


    Chen Pipi said, ¡°Of course.¡±


    The Abbey Dean then said, ¡°Very well.¡±


    Chen Pipi stood up, and wiped the rain and dirty water on his face. Then he lifted his both arms.


    His fingers twitched slightly.


    Because he was about to use the Natural Stream Magical Finger, and the opponent was his father.


    Eldest Brother wanted to stop the fight because it would be hical for the son and the father to hurt each other.


    Yu Lian stopped him by simply saying, ¡°You should at least give Pipi the chance to show his regard to the Academy before it¡¯s destroyed, or how could he live with the regret for the rest of his life?¡±


    Chen Pipi used the Natural Stream Magical Finger with the no-boundary spirit of the Academy.


    The aura of his fingers flowed amidst the gentle rain. It was like the young swallows flying back to the forest, so naughty and so untraceable.


    He pointed to the east, while the Qi of Heaven and Earth had condensed like sword edge and lunged here from the west.


    His fingers flickered like the grass blown by the wild wind, while the aura of the fingers felt quiet and gentle like the lotus in theke.


    Thest time when Chen Pipi performed the Natural Stream Magical Finger, it was a day at the beginning of the year, and Sangsang was standing outside the back garden of the Chang¡¯an Local Government, with bedding in her arms.


    This was the second time when he had really attacked.


    It was also his most powerful strike.


    Seeing the finger auraing from the rain, the Abbey Dean¡¯s eyes becameforted.


    It was a move he had taught Chen Pipi.


    He was pleased with the state and power Chen Pipi was showing.


    Since he was pleased, he decided not to be too harsh on Chen Pipi.


    He reached out his index finger and clicked out.


    He decided not to kill his own son.


    There was the sound of storm and rain, after which came the messy sound of flute and drum.


    The finger aura flowing in the streets was immediately torn into pieces.


    Puff, puff.


    Chen Pipi fell into the rain water and was covered with blood.


    His limbs and joints were all injured by the finger aura. The bloody holes on his body looked extremely scary.


    The Abbey Dean used the Natural Steam Magical Finger, too.


    They were the real powerful Natural Stream Magical Finger.


    Chen Pipi was paralyzed, and he was sitting in the rain like a man before execution, wailing.


    He wailed desperately.

 Chapter 775 - Understanding and Defense

    <h4>Chapter 775: Understanding and Defense</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The rain stopped.


    The snow falling from the sky was also burned down and fell down no more.


    The street was deathly still, with only sounds of cries could be heard.


    Looking like a child who had been wronged, Chen Pipi sat on the ground and cried aloud.


    He was indeed a child, from his Senior Brother, Senior Sister and his father¡¯s perspective.


    The reason why he was grievously crying was veryplicated. On the other hand, his father, his Senior Brother and Senior Sister knew clearly that, under such circumstances, what else could he do other than crying?


    The Abbey Dean put his hands sped behind his back and walked by him. Neither did he cast him a nce, nor did he wear any expressions on his face.


    Eldest Brother sighed with emotion, ¡°It is also good for you to cry out. It is better to cry than to be depressed.¡±


    While with her brows creased slightly, Yu Lian kept her eyes on the other end of the street and said, ¡°Since we have not died yet and the Academy has not yet perished, what is the point of crying?¡±


    The Abbey Dean was walking slowly towards them. With the power from Haotian imbued into his body, he was bing stronger and stronger. However, what Yu Lian had said also made a strong point. Eldest Brother and she had not died yet after all.


    As long as they were alive, this war on the Snow Street will note to an end. Then the Academy would still exist.


    The Academy must trap the Abbey Dean in this long street. Only by doing so could the array center of the God-stunning Array and this Chang¡¯an City be saved. It was a pity that Eldest Brother was not really good at fighting and instead he was good at other things.


    The Pure Light scattered across the Snow Street fell down upon his simple and amiable face, along with his old cotton jacket which was filled with blood stains. He looked exactly like a butcher who had just killed the pig of the year in the countryside.


    As a matter of fact, he had always been a teacher at the back of the mountain of the Academy.


    Whether it was lyre ying, chess, calligraphy, and painting or array art and tonality, those Younger Brothers and Junior Sisters who held supreme positions in their respective fields were all his disciples. Consequently, he possessed capabilities in those aspects which were far beyondmon people¡¯s reach.


    Staring at the Abbey Dean who was walking over slowly, he naturally thought of all those things which he had got into contact frequently over these years, just like a school teacher who was always ustomed to using the chalk in his hands as a weapon when faced with difficulties.


    The wind howled from the north of the city at the moment, when Eldest Brother triggered his mind and ended up causing the snow remaining on the street to fly up. He touched the ruins of the residence and the eaves that had copsed on both sides of the street. His mind touched everything that it came across.


    The tiles trembled and rang lowly, sounding like a stone bell. Broken banners of the restaurant danced in the chilly wind and gave out sounds of fizzing, which were simr to those made by a zither with broken strings. While piercing through the gaps of crumbling walls, the wind sobbed like a vertical bamboo flute.


    When all these broken, sentimental and mncholic voices werebined together, a song which sounded like whimpering and confiding emerged. It came right to the front of the Abbey Dean in unceasing hidden bitterness, apanied with its own non-melodious tones.


    The Abbey Dean stopped to look across the street and pointed his fingers. He wore a slightly imposing look on his face.


    Stretching his hands towards the alleys located on the roadside, Eldest Brother turned numerous allies in the southern city into chess roads crisscrossed on the chessboard. He was then the master of chess sitting beside the chessboard who cut that finger signal into countless pieces.


    Flicking and rolling up his sleeves, the Abbey Dean rolled these crisscrossed chess roads intomotion and pointed once more.


    Eldest Brother lost hold of the wooden rod and threw it onto the wet street in front of him.


    Being ignorant of Talisman Taoism, he consequently did not inherit the God-stunning Array. However, he could take advantage of the aura of Heaven and Earth flowing in this array.


    At the moment when the wooden rod fell down, the city wall which had thousands of years¡¯ legacy did not make its appearance again. Only then a light smashing sound could be heard.


    A slight sound was also sent out from the cloudyers hanging above Vermilion Bird Avenue.


    Then came the loud re; innumerable loud res.


    Innumerable lighting bolts wormed out from the cloudyer and then hacked down toward the long street, toward the body of the Abbey Dean.


    These lightings were very intense and of extremely gigantic power. It was likely that even the Abbey Dean might get hurt should he step into the spacial inteyers in the aura of Heaven and Earth with the Limitless State.


    The Abbey Dean¡¯s figure became vague all of a sudden. A lighting struck down right at where he had originally stood. Smoke and dust pervaded all over, with burning smells looming in the air. However, the lighting failed to strike down the Abbey Dean.


    Numerous lightning bolts struck down one after another. The figure of the Abbey Dean showed up once again and then disappeared. As light and distant as the cloud and the fog, he constantly swept and drifted amid the lightning shes and thunder roaring. It was impossible for him to be captured.


    Yu Lian disappeared from where she had been.


    The chirping of cicadas, the raging chirping belonging to hundreds of and thousands of cicadas rang out once more on the long street.


    With the storm and snow rising again, the raging chirping and loud cicada roars looming around were as fierce as the tiger in the mountain which was fighting for life.


    The umted snow in tens of alleys was all floating up and flooded into the Vermilion Bird Avenue.


    The street turned into a world of wind and snow, with the inner scene difficult to be seen through.


    Only the sound of the finger signal slicing through the voidness, the sound of lighting hacking down, and the mournful chirping of cicadas could be heard.


    The storm and snow were as the smoke and the dust. While the long street was a battlefield.


    However powerful the lightning and the chirping of cicadas were, they were still not able to suppress down the finger signal flowing freely among the fingers.


    A finger signal was as distant and remote as the abyss.


    A finger signal was as vast as the grand sea.


    The finger signals flowing freely could both defend and retrieve everything in the world.


    The lightning¡¯s falling down was more and more slowly. The chirping of cicadas became more and more mournful.


    To the Abbey Dean, this long street filled with horrifying natural power was just like a courtyard where he could walk freely.


    He strolled out.


    The storm and snow gradually calmed down.


    Thest piece of snow drifted by the side of the Abbey Dean.


    Three fingers were cut off from the Abbey Dean¡¯s left hand.


    Blood was dripping down upon the street.


    He cast a nce at the broken finger.


    The blood gradually ceased to flow. The broken finger was smooth and as crystal as jade.


    He took out a handkerchief and wiped up the bloody water stained on his palm. Then he put the handkerchief back in his arms and looked across the street.


    It was unknown when Yu Lian had shown up on the street again.


    Her face was pale. Though there were not any evident wounds, she must have suffered from extremely severe internal injuries.


    With blood all over his body, Eldest Brother was extremely exhausted and shaking as if he was going to fall down.


    The game was all set.


    Zhishou Abbey was the holynd of Haotian Taoism.


    The name of this Taoist temple went the whole way back to a paragraph of true words originated from West-Hill Scripture.


    Understanding its masculinity and defending its feminity, it was called Natural Stream.


    Chen Pipi¡¯s Natural Stream Magical Finger derived its name from that also.


    It could be consequently imagined that what a supreme position this set of fingering held in Haotian Taoism.


    There were also a few other words in that paragraph of true words in the West-Hill Scripture.


    Understanding its cons and defending its pros, and that is called Natural Maneuver.


    Understanding its prosperity and defending its disgrace, and that was called Open-Mindedness.


    This was Haotian¡¯s world.


    Being capable of understanding everything in the world can lead to being capable of defending everything in the world.


    Either it is for power or for true intention.


    That was exactly the true meaning of understanding and defending.


    The fingering signal of the Abbey Dean referred not only to the Natural Stream Magical Finger but also to Natural Maneuver and Open-Mindedness.


    Having crossed the threshold many years ago, he was the one who had truly andprehensively mastered all the arts and who was proficient in all of Taoism, Buddhism, and Spiritualism. Being much more powerful than Lotus when it came to the aspect of strength, he was indeed worthy to be called as the most supreme powerhouse of Haotian Taoism over thousands of years.


    Unfortunately, he lived in the same age as the Headmaster and Ke Haoran who were both talents that appeared once in a blue moon. That was the reason why he had been forced to keep a low profile and silent for many years.


    Now that the Headmaster no longer existed in the world and Ke Haoran had already perished since a long time ago, he was then the highest and the steepest mountain in the world, the most powerful person. He was invincible in the world.


    So his finger was the Finger of the World.


    The storm and snow rose again. While this time, the storm and snow came from the natural world and could not get people killed.


    Keeping her eyes on the Abbey Dean standing on the other side of storm and snow, Yu Lian thought of that scene which she had previously seen, with slightlyplicated emotions revealed on her face.


    Taking advantage of the sound of houses-breaking, the chessboard of street alleys and the power of the grand city, Eldest Brother had sessfully trapped the Abbey Dean temporarily. Then she produced the furious chirping of the cicada rolling. It looked as if their opponent would be killed, but to their surprise, the whole situation changed all of a sudden.


    The Abbey Dean¡¯s eyes fell on the wound of the broken finger which looked like jade instantly.


    She knew exactly what was going on.


    This was the means of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. It was not an Immortal State yet, but a pretty close one.


    If it had not been the case, thest piece of snow of hers could definitely cut the body of the Abbey Dean into halves. Instead, it only shaved off three of his fingers.


    She looked at this ordinary Taoist and thought of that ordinary name. The expression on her face became gradually solemn¡ª being a leader of Haotian Taoism, the Abby Dean actually practiced the methods of Devil¡¯s Doctrine to a much more powerful state than she who was a Grandmaster of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. What kind of person was he actually?


    ¡°This is Haotian¡¯s world and I follow Haotian¡¯s rules. Consequently, Haotian¡¯s rule will be all at my service. Unless you two possess the ability to challenge Haotian now, it will never be possible for you to defeat me.¡±


    Looking at the two people across the storm and snow, the Abbey Dean spoke calmly, ¡°It has been beyond my imagination that you two actually can cause me so much trouble. I even feel a little bit of admiration towards you.¡±


    ¡°Li Manman. If you had not been so foolish as to have consumed too much of your energy over these seven days. If you hadn¡¯t been so foolish as to have been unwilling to learn how to fight over the previous tens of years, perhaps you could try to drag me back all the time.¡±


    ¡°Lin Wu. If you had not fought with Xiong Chumo a few days ago. Perhaps you could really grab some opportunities to kill me today on this snow street. Though the possibility is not that great.¡±


    The Abbey Dean stared at Yu Lian and said, ¡°You should have been the most powerful Grandmaster of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine since that traitor from a thousand years ago. You actually seed at opening up your own world via practicing the Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation and diffusing into the Divine Demon Realm. However, it is a pity that you are opposing me. The same situation also goes for me, who should have been the most supreme powerhouse in Haotian Taoism over thousands of years and who ran into your teacher instead.¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°It was only when you entered Chang¡¯an that I started to realize that you also have always been waiting for the time to pse away. That¡¯s because there is no way to get the God-stunning Array fixed and now is the time when the God-stunning Array¡¯s power is at the weakest. It is indeed true that I should not have wasted these seven days away. However, over these seven days, I actually have gained something.¡±


    The Abbey Dean asked, ¡°What is it?¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°I¡¯m able to catch up with you now.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°It was me who has been chasing you over these previous days. Now you want to catch up with me, what is the point?¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°As long as I can catch up with you, then there exists an opportunity that we can leave together.¡±


    The Abbey Dean replied, ¡°I know what you are implying. It is a pity that now that you have been so severely wounded and it is extremely difficult for you to catch up with me. Most importantly, you don¡¯t have the power.¡±


    Staring at this pair of Senior Brother and Sister from the Academy, he said, ¡°Upon retrospection, the admiration I have been holding towards your Headmaster is bing more and more profound. He actually is able to cultivate out such talents like you. If you two were the same person, I would indeed not be able to contend with you. Fortunately, in no way are you two able to be transformed into one person after all.¡±


    Yu Lian replied, ¡°I want to have a try whether I can exchange your one life with two lives.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°Though you have turned into a woman via practicing the Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation and you moreover have been studying for years under the guidance of the Headmaster, you are a Grandmaster of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine after all. It is ridiculous of you to speak with such excitement.¡±


    Yu Lian answered, ¡°It has nothing to do with speaking with excitement. It is only rted to happiness. The Headmaster has always taught me that the purpose of our own living is to seek out happiness and calmness. I would definitely be very happy if I can get you killed.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said with calmness, ¡°It makes sense. So I won¡¯t grant you the opportunity.¡±


    Even if he was the most invincible man in the whole world, he was still not willing to fight to the death with these two powerhouses from the Academy, under the situation when the game was all set. Because there still existed numerous possibilities before life and death.


    The purpose of his entering Chang¡¯an City is to destroy the array, not to kill people.


    As long as he could destroy the God-stunning Array, this grand show woulde to an end.


    Amid the storm and snow, the chirping of cicadas suddenly surged and then gradually died down.


    The figure of Abbey Dean vanished into the storm and snow.


    With the God-stunning Array impaired and the two people from Academy severely wounded, there were no more people who could stop him.

 Chapter 776 - This Road Is Impassable

    <h4>Chapter 776: This Road Is Impassable</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The figure of the Abbey Dean vanished into the storm and snow.


    Shaking slightly, Eldest Brother seemed to be falling and to want to get going at the same time. More and more blood oozed from his old cotton jacket all at once. It was at that exact moment that Yu Lian stretched out her hands to hook the belt strapped around his waist and shook her head.


    ¡°He was right.¡± Yu Lian continued, ¡°Even if you risk your life to catch up with him, it makes no sense if I am not capable of that. Not to mention that even if you want to leave Chang¡¯an along with him, you can¡¯t achieve it.¡±


    Eldest Brother said wearily, ¡°Then what shall we do?¡±


    Yu Lian replied, ¡°Since we cannot catch up with him, we can only wait for him to be stopped by others.¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°Who else can stop the Abbey Dean now?¡±


    Yu Lian answered, ¡°Chang¡¯an City.¡±


    Looking towards the cloud gap hanging on the sky above Vermilion Bird Avenue, Eldest Brother said, ¡°The city is broken.¡±


    ¡°It is only a hole that was cut out.¡±


    Yu Lian continued to say, ¡°When we are done with stitching up the hole, we wille together once again.¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°It is inappropriate of us to let Youngest Brother bear that heavy pressure all on his own.¡±


    Yu Lian replied, ¡°Though still weak now, he is the one who should defend this city since that the Headmaster had handed him this city. This is a pressure that he needs to undertake.¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°Then, shall we wait?¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s take a rest.¡±


    Loosening Eldest Brother¡¯s belt and holding his arm, Yu Lian supported him to walk toward the sides of the road. Meanwhile, Chen Pipi crouched on the tile debris with his two eyes as red and swollen as the rotten peach on the West-Hill.


    Yu Lian said, ¡°Can¡¯t youe and hold him?¡±


    Rubbing off the tears on his face in a hurry, Chen Pipi came forward to attend to Eldest Brother.


    Ruins littered both sides of the street. There was a silverware shop which was built with so strong a construction that it was in an only half-copsion state, with its broken eaves remaining which were able to shield off the snow and the rain. These three sat beneath the eaves and waited for the final oue.


    The chirping of cicadas in the winter days started to be mournful and quietened bit by bit. The morning snow rose again and danced along with the wind. The moment when the snowkes werending on the street, they were immediately blown away into chaos by the chilly wind. It seemed that there were numerous salt flowers rolling on the straight Vermilion Bird Avenue.


    The figure of the Abbey Dean was as vague as a flying bird amid the wind and snow drifting all over the sky. It looked also like a least eye-catching snowke. However, Chang¡¯an captured his trace instantly due to the fact that it was a God-stunning Array left behind by the Headmaster after all.


    The countless residences lying amid the 365 street alleys in Eastern City and numerous ck bricks and green stone all had perceived theing of the Abbey Dean. An ancient and distant aura was exhaled from the brick gaps, the green moss, and the umted snow.


    The fivekes in Western City also sensed theing of Chang¡¯an¡¯s enemy. Theke surface covered up by icy snow began to tremble in a slight way, with hot springs beginning to pour out from the stones located deeply in theke.


    Since the moment when the thin snow on the city wall of Chang¡¯an fell down like a waterfall, this grand city had already perceived theing of its enemy who was the most powerful one it had ever met for thousands of years.


    With arge amount of aura rising from the Imperial Pce, the Government Office, the people¡¯s homes, theke, the mountain, the well, and the trees, the aura of Heaven and Earth flowing above the grand city had gone through extremely severe changes all of sudden. The low and dark snowy cloud rolled over in a restless status and covered up the cloud gap hanging above the Vermilion Bird Avenue in an instant, which consequently blocked the majestic power projected from the vault of Heaven in a perfect way.


    Looking up and casting a nce at the sky, the Abbey Dean made certain that Haotian Initiation had been obstructed once again. Then he looked towards all directions of Chang¡¯an City and perceived the horrifying power which these aurae had contained.


    However, he still walked on to the north with a calm expression on his face, just as before.


    Because he was walking on the Vermilion Bird Avenue where the broken part of this city lied.


    The umted snow on Vermilion Bird Avenue had already been blown away to both sides of the road and ended up as snowdrift whose depth was knee-high, looking very much like the thousands of kilometers¡¯ city wall built at the time when the Yan Kingdom resisted the Eastern Wilderness in the old days. The statue of the Vermilion Bird located in the middle of the street was pretty obvious.


    The Abbey Dean walked by the statue of the Vermilion Bird.


    The Vermilion Bird suddenly opened its eyes which were intelligent and yet ruthless. It seemed to be transforming into something alive.


    Turning his head around and looking towards the statue of the Vermilion Bird, Abbey Dean said, ¡°Ungrateful beasts.¡±


    Emotions of struggle were revealed in the eyes of the Vermilion Bird¡¯s statue; they became grief-stricken out of fear in the end.


    Being simr to the Divine Talisman of bloody fighting in the God-stunning Array, the Vermilion Bird statue possessed the power which was equal to the all-out attack struck out by a cultivator at the peak of the Knowing Destiny State. Even for the cultivators who had already crossed the Five States threshold or for Liu Bai, they all should be mindful of these powers.


    But the Abbey Dean only said one sentence with an indifferent expression.


    Then the Vermilion Bird became instantly dejected.


    The array of Chang¡¯an City seemed as if an iron cover which had already covered the sky in the world for thousands of years. Even for the Abbey Dean who was the most supreme powerhouse of Haotian Taoism over the thousands of years, in no way could he tear the iron cover apart on his own.


    However, with enough time umted, anything can add up to the power which was already strong enough. It took Haotian Taoism thousands of years to tear a hole out in this iron cover in the end.


    The Abbey Dean continued forward and he was floating in the air as if he were a celestial being.


    People¡¯s residences and houses along the street were all with their doors tightly closed. Some people observed what was going on the street by peeping through the door crack and looked at the Taoist in indigo who seemed to be a supernatural being, with emotions of fear and desperation revealed in their eyes.


    Right since the morning began, thousands of bells had rung out together in Chang¡¯an City and the snow falling from the sky had been burning. Everyone inside the city knew what was happening now. However, when faced with the fight which had transcended through the Five States, the strength of the secr world was useless.


    The Northern City was closer and closer.


    With a vast space located beside the street showing up all of a sudden, sheets of the meadow covered with thin snow had added some senses of quietness and tranquility to the over ten blocks of tiny buildings and Winter Forest where lied exactly the Military Ministry of the Tang Empire.


    If it were in an ordinary war, the Military Ministry of the Tang Empire located behind the meadow covered up by snow would definitely be the ce which the enemy intended to exterminate most.


    However, the Abbey Dean did not even pay it any mind.


    He looked at those buildings in the north quietly.


    Those grand and majestic imperial city.


    That tiny building inside the Imperial Pce was his destination.


    He was going to destroy the eyes of the God-stunning Array, located underground, below the tiny building.


    Only he could make it happen.


    The Abbey Dean stepped up and intended to keep moving on.


    All of a sudden, his stepsnded back to where they had originally been.


    Looking at the storm and snow in front of him, he raised his brow slightly.


    The storm and snow raged all of a sudden and then froze bit by bit, finally ending up as two lines of traces.


    The expression on the Abbey Dean¡¯s face gradually grew solemn.


    The traces frozen by the two lines of the storm and snow were pretty marvelous which hung right in the middle of the sky. Neither did it spread out nor did it fall down.


    It seemed that someone had already written two strokes in the air.


    It was not an ink character, but a snow character.


    Ning Que had woken up early after a night of meditating quietly beside the Yanming Lake.


    When he woke up, his clothing and thekes, mountains surrounding him were all covered by the early snow. All was covered in a vast expanse of whiteness.


    He got up, and the snow fell off him, rustling.


    He looked at the snowke while standing at the edge of the cliff.


    Holding the array eye pestle in his hands and looking at the snowke, he was actually staring at Chang¡¯an City.


    He saw the snow falling down on the Southern City of Chang¡¯an, as if they were veils.


    He saw the snowkes on the vault of heaven burning away, as if they were real fire.


    He saw the street enveloped by rain in winter days.


    He saw the Taoist in indigo, natural and unrestrained like an immortal who would arrive at the imperial city in an instant.


    Suddenly, he stretched his hands back to his shoulders; he gripped and pulled out the cold hilt.


    Then he hacked down.


    The podao struck out randomly, apanied by two sounds of Chi-chi.


    Two lines of distinct knife scars appeared on the snowke.


    While in the next moment, the two lines instantly vanished from the snowke.


    They traveled between Heaven and Earth, without any traces to be found.


    The two lines of knife marks, which had been hacked out on the snowke by Ning Que, came right to the Vermilion Bird Avenue.


    They came right to the front of the Abbey Dean.


    The expression on the Abbey Dean¡¯s face was solemn.


    He stopped moving.


    There were two lines of knife marks, with one stroke to the left and another to the right.


    It then formed a character which was simple and sharp at the same time.


    It was the Chinese character ¡°Yi¡±.


    Its form looked as if the knife and the sword intertwined together.


    What the Chinese character referred to was that no sound was made while cutting the weed.


    It also had another meaning which could be grasped by even a little child.


    ¡ª The road is impassable.

 Chapter 777 - Divine Talisman, Pinprick, and Faded Lotus

    <h4>Chapter 777: Divine Talisman, Pinprick, and Faded Lotus</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The Abbey Dean looked at the snowy traces on the street and frowned.


    A chilly breeze blew away the snow covering the traces, revealing them clearly. They were transparent and shapeless, sharp as two knives.


    They spread to both sides of the street, shrouding the entire Vermilion Bird Avenue. The trees and grass on both sides all fell down as if they were saluting and showing their respects.


    While Ning Que was writing beside the snowke, the Qi of Heaven and Earth in Chang¡¯an condensed two invisible lines, spliting the heaven and earth like sharp knives and blocking the Snow Street like fences.


    Then they began moving to the south, cutting down the trees, shaking off the snow, and leaving two deep gullies on the ck ground.


    This was the power of both the Divine Talisman and the God-stunning Array. The two marks appearing in the Vermilion Bird Avenue perfectly blocked the gap of the God-stunning Array and fixed the crack on the iron cover.


    Facing the approaching word in the snow, the Abbey Dean could not cope with it even if he had entered the Limitless State since they could divide Heaven and Earth and cut the inteyers of the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    Therefore, he had to step back as far as hundreds of meters away from the northern city to the middle of the Vermilion Bird Avenue, where the Vermilion Bird Statue was standing.


    At this moment, the Vermilion Bird suddenly opened its bright eyes and seemed to fly up like a fledgling, strongly pping its wings.


    ¡°Stupid.¡±


    He put his right foot on the Vermilion Bird¡¯s wings.


    The air on the street was disturbed and began to scatter.


    The Vermilion Bird wailed and quickly fell silent.


    The Abbey Dean looked up at the other end of the street, narrowing his eyes.


    The long street was silent and empty.


    Only the character was approaching.


    A snowke fell on Ning Que¡¯s hand, melting into water and wetting his sleeves, which was because the array eye pestle in his hand was getting warmer, not because of him being feverish.


    Holding the array eye pestle and looking at the snowke, he could see all of Chang¡¯an and sense all the changes in the city.


    Although the character had faded away, he could feel it in his head, which had appeared in the Vermilion Bird Avenue, subduing the Winter Forest, and pushing the Abbey Dean back.


    Without being noticed, Mo Shanshan went down from the city wall and came to Yanming Lake. She quietly stood behind him in a bloody white dress, since she was injured when the Abbey Dean broke the formation.


    As a brilliant Divine Talisman Master, even though she hadn¡¯t seen the two marks, she could feel the remaining Talisman Intent in the snowke. At this moment, she reminded the two sword marks on the stones Ning Que and she had seen at the bottom of Daming Lake. She could not help misting up.


    The Stone Array in front of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s gates had been broken by Mr. Ke with two sword marks, which resembled the two Ning Que made. However, in fact, they werepletely different.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t use his podao to cut. He wrote with it¡ªboth he and Mo Shanshan were Divine Talisman Masters, which meant he was writing a Divine Talisman.


    In the past, he could only use one kind of Divine Talisman: the Two-Horizontal Talisman.


    He had been meditating for seven days while the Academy was waiting for the Abbey Dean. He had written down countless characters in the snowst night. Until the sun came out, he learned the second character.


    It was simple, like a deformation of the Two-Horizontal Talisman¡ªthe two horizontals were crossed like firewood which formed a new character¡ªits shape was different from the marks under the Daming Lake the Youngest Uncle left, which were more direct and tougher.


    Ning Que did not know whether this was the character he was looking for or the one his master, Yan Se had been going after for his entire life, but he liked it very much.


    The character was ¡°Yi¡±, which meant stability as well as cutting grass.


    It looked like a cross which represented a mistake if it was on a test paper or ¡°No Entry¡± if it was on a guide board.


    It was very suitable for the Abbey Dean who was going to enter Chang¡¯an. If Ning Que wanted to protect the city, he had to keep the Abbey Dean away and he was willing to chop his head off like cutting grass.


    The most suitable character was the best one. When it rose from the depths of Ning Que¡¯s head, he even believed that he had been inspired by his teacher in Heaven.


    A Divine Talisman could not resist the Abbey Dean, otherwise, the Vermilion Bird would not moan. However, at this time, Ning Que had control of the entire city and he was able to mobilize nearly all the Qi of Heaven and Earth, which meant that if his arms could hold on, he could write countless Divine Talismans.


    They would act like needles to sew up the God-stunning Array, blocking the Abbey Dean on Snow Street or even besieging him within the Divine Talismans.


    Ning Que turned to the snowke¡ªin his sense, the Abbey Dean was like a bright light, which had disappeared at this time.


    Since Ning Que had the God-stunning Array, he was able to observe Chang¡¯an in a meticulous way. Given the battle in the morning, he was sure that the Abbey Dean could enter the Limitless State in the city, teleporting within a specific range, but he could not perform it across the whole city.


    Even if Chang¡¯an, which was built by the Headmaster, had been torn open by the Haotian Taoism after a thousand years, it still subtly controlled the Qi of Heaven and Earth beyond people¡¯s abilities. If the Abbey Dean wanted to teleport within the array, he would take the risk to be torn up by the turbulence of the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    Ning Que believed in his teacher as well as the city, so he was sure that the Abbey Dean could not vanish¡ªhe must still be in somewhere in the street, looking for the leak of the God-stunning Array.


    He thought of one possibility.


    If the Talisman of ¡°Yi¡± was considered as a needle, which could sew the city, it would leave pinpricks that ordinary cultivators could not see or make use of.


    However, the Abbey Dean was not an ordinary person.


    He was able to paint within a needle eye.


    ordingly, Ning Que walked to the snowke where it was near the Vermilion Bird Avenue. He would continue writing and sewing to stall the Abbey Dean.


    There was only one problem to be solved.


    Ning Que stopped and turned to Mo Shanshan. He asked, ¡°Where should we go next?¡±


    It was a very important issue.


    It seemed ridiculous that he had not figured it out at this crucial moment.


    Mo Shanshan didn¡¯tugh. She held the array eye pestle on the other end, feeling its warmth. A totally different world showed in front of her.


    That was the God-stunning Array. In a sense, it was also the city of Chang¡¯an.


    It was not the real one or it was just the real one.


    Mo Shanshan put her sses on, looking at the snowke and the city, and said after a while, ¡°I think you should cut here.¡±


    She pointed at a faded lotus in theke.

 Chapter 778 - Walk while Writing

    <h4>Chapter 778: Walk while Writing</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Mo Shanshan had red and thin lips which looked like a young girl¡¯s rouge paper. Her long eyshes frosted up, trembling in the wind.


    After she put her sses on, the frost gradually melted, reflecting the light in her eyes. She looked adorable with her sses on.


    When she saw the faded lotus in theke, she pointed at it.


    The lotus referred to some small alley in the city. There was a pool behind the alley and a market which was called Lotus Pond, named after the pool.


    She was a talented tactical array master. Holding the array eye pestle, she could see Chang¡¯an clearly, after traveling with Ning Que for so many days.


    The faded lotus was her spection.


    Ning Que was willing to believe it.


    Looking at her beautiful face and lovely sses, he remembered that they were the gift from him when he and Sangsang were at the Lanke Temple.


    Holding his podao, he chopped forward¡ªthe two beams of sharp podao light cut off the refraction in her sses, the wind and snow, and the lotus, but they could not cut off his memories.


    Lotus Pond sold groceries or bargains, not far from the Vermilion Bird Avenue. In the past, it was normally crowdy and noisy in the early morning.


    Considering the imperial court¡¯s order, telling people that some powerful man had entered the city, people were all ordered to stay at home. Therefore, the market was quiet and empty.


    Suddenly, some eaves of the buildings cracked and the broken tiles began to fall, smashing to the snow ground. Even so, it didn¡¯t copse.


    Another straight crack happened on the walls of the warehouse 60 meters away from it and the sheepskin inside was revealed.


    There seemed to be nothing in the air, but the snow fell aside as if something invisible kept it away.


    Two deep dark holes opened in the ground which seemed to lead to the abyss.


    The two marks came from the Yanming Lake. With the help of the God-stunning Array, they spread to Lotus Pond in a short time. The marks were invisible, but the damage of the market had told people of its power.


    Neither the character nor the talisman could be seen in the market.


    The snow fell aside, the eaves weres broken, and the ground copsed. The two deep marks could only be seen from a long distance.


    The character of ¡°Yi¡±.


    Some slight but clear sounds rang out in the wind, sounding like the tearing of cloth.


    A piece of green cloth slowly fell on the ground from the sky.


    The Abbey Dean showed up. Looking at the distant ce, he was thinking. His green Taoist Robe was torn up in the front, being blown in the wind.


    The next moment, he stepped into the snow once again and disappeared.


    Ning Que and Mo Shanshan walked across the snowke and reached the north bank.


    They held the array eye pestle together as if they were ymates who didn¡¯t want to be separated.


    Mo Shanshan¡¯s face showed an unhealthy blush. She coughed along pointing at the willow by theke.


    In cold winter, the willows had dried up and hanged in the cold wind like frozen snakes which looked deste.


    Ning Que drew his podao out and cut the willows into pieces. Then they went to another ce in Chang¡¯an in the snow.


    Here was a sidene near the Vermilion Bird Avenue.


    It looked very normal like as any in the world. There was amon well at the entrance of thene, which looked like a doughnut since its edge was covered with thick snow.


    The two marks spread here.


    With the help of the majestic city, the Talisman of ¡°Yi¡± could spread to all directions.


    The snow on the edge suddenly floated to the air from the well. Even though it looked so weird, in innocent children¡¯s eyes, it was more like a dessert.


    With a slight sound, the doughnut abruptly broke off in two parts and turned into a straight rope.


    It blocked off thene.


    Thene was so quiet that even the snow fell in silence. Only sobs could be heard when the wind passed through.


    One foot stepped out of wind and snow.


    It was wearing a blue cloth shoe.


    The foot stepped on the rope and kicked it out.


    It was a simple kick, but enough to kick down Min Mountain, turning over the world.


    The snow rope was abruptly smashed.


    The Abbey Dean stepped back with the help of the counterforce, dodging the two marks.


    He stopped at the entrance of thene.


    Then he frowned.


    Mo Shanshan followed Ning Que to enter the yard in the north bank of Yanming Lake.


    This was the first time that she entered Ning Que¡¯s home.


    She noticed that Ning Que became more silent.


    He walked along the path in Plum Garden, passing through the parlor and reached the front room. He saw much old stuff and was reminded of many old memories. Then he looked up at the slightly bent beam, pondering in silence.


    He remembered that year Chen Pipi was terrified of Ye Hongyu when he found her in this room and crashed into the beam. He also remembered that when Xia Hou came here, the beam suffered a lot from him once again.


    Anyway, it survived and held the house together.


    ¡°Don¡¯t destroy it. It matters,¡± said he, looking at the beam.


    Mo Shanshan turned to the outside of the hall and found a basin of wintersweet out there, which had wildly grown because of neglect. She asked, ¡°How about here?¡±


    Ning Que said with a smile, ¡°Ye Hongyu liked them, but Sangsang and I didn¡¯t.¡±


    Then he wielded his podao to cut the wintersweet into numerous pieces.


    A momentter, a woodpile in the back of some mansion in Chang¡¯an transformed into an impregnable fence.


    It nearly trapped the green robe but was quickly being chopped like the wintersweet.


    Ning Que and Mo Shanshan were walking while chopping.


    Ning Que¡¯s podao was his pen and he was writing the talisman.


    He had written many Divine Talismans with his podao to rece the broken array intent in the Vermilion Bird Avenue. He also borrowed the Qi of Heaven and Earth from elsewhere in Chang¡¯an to block the Abbey Dean outside the Imperial Pce.


    Chen Pipi, as well as his brother and sister were sitting by the ruins in the south of the Vermilion Bird Avenue, feeling the changes in the city. When they perceived the intermittent sharp Talisman Intent in the streets, they hadplicated feelings.


    Ning Que had not fixed the God-stunning Array yet, but he had found a good method to stop the leakage. However, his recement seemed not sufficient for both the Academy and the Tang Empire.


    ¡°I will return to Haotian Taoism no matter how this ends,¡± said Chen Pipi.


    Both Eldest Brother and Yu Lian knew his meaning, but neither of them responded. Looking at each other in peace, they stood up and walked toward somewhere side by side.


    Since it was not enough, they had to go.


    It was meaningless even if Ning Que could stop the Abbey Dean or drive him off out of Chang¡¯an. If they could not kill him, the Academy would lose.

 Chapter 779 - Break up with the Past

    <h4>Chapter 779: Break up with the Past</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The big tactical array of Chang¡¯an was different from other tactical arrays in the world since it could connect with Heaven and Earth. No matter how bad it was destroyed, it could recover by itself if it had enough time.


    Because of this, the Academy ned to trap and kill the Abbey Dean in the city. On the contrary, the Abbey Dean¡¯s purpose was very clear¡ªhe wanted to destroy the city.


    Since he had to destroy Chang¡¯an, there was only one way he could take.


    He walked along the gap of the God-stunning Array that the Haotian Taoism had torn up. He seemed to walk along the Vermilion Bird Avenue, but in fact, his every step fell just right on the dim spots of the array, heading to the small building in the Imperial Pce.


    However, this road had been chopped with many marks. The God-stunning Array mobilized the Qi of Heaven and Earth in the city and pushed him out of the Limitless State.


    The marks, in another word, the characters were telling him that the road was impassable.


    From the market to the smallne, in the wild snow and wind, the Abbey Dean felt colder and colder. He had confirmed that before he could destroy all the Divine Talismans along the road, he could never enter the Imperial Pce.


    There was a direct and simple way to solve the dilemma: kill Ning Que, the one who wrote these Divine Talismans. Thinking about this, he turned around and flew with the wind, heading to Yanming Lake.


    When Eldest Brother perceived where the green robe flickering and stampeding in thene was going to, his mind weighed down.


    To perform the Limitless State within such a small zone was like embroidering in a pinprick or flying inside a grain of sand. Even if he had not been injured, he could not catch up to the Abbey Dean.


    However, he had to chase. He could not leave the Abbey Dean to his Youngest Brother alone. He stepped into the snow, dripping with blood, and his cotton jacket began trembling¡ªhowever, he had not entered the Limitless State because Yu Lian caught him by the belt behind him.


    ¡°The Abbey Dean is going to kill our Youngest Brother.¡±


    Eldest Brother looked at her in the eyes.


    ¡°I know. That¡¯s what he should do.¡±


    Yu Lian answered in peace because she could not do anything more.


    The Abbey Dean showed up on the snow bridge near the Yanming Lake.


    He was far away from the Vermilion Bird Avenue. The God-stunning Array was horrifying. The wind and snow seemed normal but they contained infinite power. He could not find a peacefulminar of the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    No one could enter the Limitless State under this situation.


    He walked down the snow bridge, passing through the reed marsh, and arrived at the foot of Yanming Mountain. He climbed the mountain in a snowy pass and finally reached the edge of the cliff but he found no one.


    He saw various messy traces on the ground: footsteps, sitting marks, and many scrawled handwritings, some of which were written with fingers and some with branches.


    He looked at the handwriting on the ground, picturing what had happenedst night. However, he still didn¡¯t know... where did Ning Que run off to?


    When he turned to theke and found two lines of footprints pointing at the faded lotus, the broken willows, and the crushed wintersweet, he frowned.


    He couldn¡¯t find Ning Que, neither in his sights nor in his sense of perception. It should not happen since even if he had the God-stunning Array, he could not avoid the vision of Haotian.


    There must be someone helping him.


    It must be the other footprint¡¯s owner on the snowke.


    A few small round stones fell on the ground, smashing holes in the snow and rolling forward. They impacted the stone steps on the street, clicking, and slowly stopped.


    They were just as big as a fingernail and could be contained a lot in a deerskin bag. If they were used to pave, they could cover the entire city.


    A light aura flowed from them and merged into the tiles and stones on the street, feeling like the Great Blockage Formation in front of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s gates.


    The stones were very round without any edges. They were different from the intent of the Stone Array in an interesting way, which softly covered the space instead of simply filling up it.


    Ning Que and Mo Shanshan walked out from the stones.


    They had already left Yanming Lake, passing through the closed Bun Shop, and arrived at the Southern City.


    ¡°Even the Great Divine Priest of Light, who created the Stone Array, could not expect that a thousand yearster, a genius Talisman Taoism girl could improve it like this,¡± said Ning Que with a smile.


    Said Ning Que with a smile.


    Mo Shanshan had no mood to smile. She said worriedly, ¡°What should we do next?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The present situation looksplicated, but in fact, it is very simple. The Abbey Dean should have figured out the way toe out and he should be on his way to kill me.¡±


    Mo Shanshan said, ¡°He can also withdraw from Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Ning Que exined, ¡°We don¡¯t want him to leave. A powerful man waiting outside Chang¡¯an will be a failure of both the Academy and the Tang Empire. I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s lucky or not, he would not like to go back either. Because for him, this is the best opportunity.¡±


    Looking at her toe cap, Mo Shanshan hesitated.


    Ning Que knew what she was thinking, so he said, ¡°Eldest Brother wille to save me, but Third Sister will stop him because they both know this is not the point.¡±


    Mo Shanshan looked up at him, confusedly.


    ¡°Unless I can trap the Abbey Dean with the God-stunning Array or separate him from Haotian¡¯s world in some way, Third Sister will take action. I don¡¯t me her because I would do the same thing if I was her. This is the only chance and we must take it.¡±


    He continued, ¡°What I should do right now is to hide. Then I need to find him and try to trap him. The question is who is faster.¡±


    Mo Shanshan thought for a moment. She pushed up her sses with her index finger, looking at the quietne in front, and said, ¡°Write it here.¡±


    Aiming at thene, Ning Que pulled out his podao and swung. The marks disappeared with wind and snow just like theplicated expression on his face.


    There were two mansions in this street standing opposite each other. One was the Official of Counsel¡¯s and the other was the Xuanwei General¡¯s; One was his home while the other was hers.


    An old house filled with cobwebs and dust suddenly copsed.


    Hearing the noises, Ning Que didn¡¯t turn around. He held his podao and continued moving forward. Mo Shanshan walked following him, throwing stones on the street.


    From Yanming Lake to the Southern City, and then Eastern City, they walked while throwing stones all the way. They hid from the Abbey Dean and looked for the way to trap him in silence.


    The second floor of the Building of Pines and Cranes copsed and the signboard of the Chenjinji Cosmetics Store fell and broke.


    Ning Que no longer needed Mo Shanshan to give him directions. Holding one end of the array eye pestle and sensing the green robe running in the city, he was thinking of the ck Umbre and wielding it.


    Finally, he returned to the familiar Lin 47th Street.


    He pushed open the closed wooden door of the Old Brush Pen Shop. Looking at the calligraphies on the walls, he went to the backyard, pulling out his podao to cut.


    A cat scream sounded on the wall and snow was kicked to the air.


    The well in the small courtyard was broken and the wall copsed.

 Chapter 780 - What a Pity!

    <h4>Chapter 780: What a Pity!</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    From next door, the yelling of Aunty Wu and the reprimanding of Boss Wu could be heard.


    Ning Que looked at the ruins and smiled for no reason. Then he turned around, back toward Lin 47th Street with Mo Shanshan, heading for the next location.


    He and Mo Shanshan wandered in the streets, like tourists that hade from far away. Although they looked peaceful, they both knew they were in great danger.


    Up until now, the Abbey Dean hadpletely controlled the initiative. As soon as he felt threatened by the God-stunning Array, he could retreat, but Ning Que could only wait passively.


    Even though he had avoided the Abbey Dean¡¯s notice, he could feel that the Abbey Dean was getting closer, so he needed help. Fortunately, he had passed by many people.


    Chang¡¯an was quiet in the early morning. There were few families cooking at this time and no one was selling hot and sour sliced noodle soup because they all anxiously stayed at home.


    A peaceful sea was still a sea. Ning Que entered the sea and hid in the sea¡¯s aura.


    The Abbey Dean showed up in wind and snow once again. His green robe was badly torn and his arms were injured, but they were not bleeding.


    As more and more Talismans of ¡°Yi¡± appeared, the cracks on the God-stunning Array were almost fixed. The crucial point was that the deepest cracks were fixed by the marks one by one.


    Looking at the direction of the Old Brush Pen Shop, the Abbey Dean appreciatively said, ¡°You are so amazing that you can figure out the origin of everything in such a short time. However, it is toote.¡±


    Ning Que walked around the city to make marks. Even though he looked rxed, he sometimes revealed a sad expression while talking about some old memories.


    All of Mo Shanshan¡¯s battleprehension hade from Ning Que when they were in the Wilderness. Given that, she knew how cold and calm he would be in a fight, so she felt he was acting weird at this moment.


    Emotions were useless in this tense situation. Ning Que should not have allowed himself to act like this.


    ¡°We rented the Old Brush Pen Shop together; we bought the house on Yanming Lake together; we even nted the lotuses in theke on our own. She liked those little things weaved with wicker that I taught her when she was little.¡±


    Ning Que continued, ¡°She used to go shopping in Lotus Pond since it was cheaper. When she was happy, she liked to order food from the Building of Pines and Cranes. And whether she was happy or sad, she liked to buy cosmetic powder in the Chenjinji Cosmetics Store. These are all her favorite ces.¡±


    Mo Shanshan did not know why he was talking about all of that until she remembered the ces they passed by. She had a vague understanding of what he was about to do.


    ¡°Most of the traces that she and I left in the city have been swept away. What a pity!¡±


    Mo Shanshan asked, ¡°Why do have you to do that?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I have been thinking about a question recently¡ªhow did Haotian Taoism tear open the God-stunning Array? He Mingchi was smart but he was too weak. Even if the Abbey Dean helped him, he could not aplish that. Then I guessed that maybe Haotian Taoism had figured out a n over the past thousand years. However, after the Abbey Dean entered the city, I confirmed that he was not capable of that.


    ¡°If I can¡¯t understand how to, then I will not fix it. But just now, when you told me to chop the faded lotus, I suddenly came up with one possibility.¡±


    He said in a low deadpan, ¡°Maybe even she didn¡¯t know, but where she had been to has now turned into our problems.¡±


    Mo Shanshan was confused and said, ¡°I don¡¯t understand. You mean... Sangsang?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Yes, Sangsang.


    ¡°She was a part of Haotian, so in other words, she was Haotian. The city was built for her. During the time she and I lived in the city, she intentionally or unintentionally did a lot of things.¡±


    Mo Shanshan was shocked and said while trembling, ¡°That is just your spection.¡±


    Ning Que did not argue with her. Looking at the brothel in front of them, he said, ¡°Only if we can clear away all of her traces and aura will we be able topletely fix the God-stunning Array.


    ¡°If I knew that we would end up like this, I would have not brought her to Chang¡¯an.¡±


    He spoke with a bitter smile.


    Looking at the expression on his face, Mo Shanshan suddenly felt sorry for him.


    The table engraved with the Chicken Soup Calligraphy in the House of Red Sleeves was chopped into pieces.


    Ning Que brought Mo Shanshan to the Chao Mansion on Spring Breeze Pavilion Street.


    The mansion was heavily guarded and Mr. Qi, as well as dozens of experts, were watching over the garden while Linzi was hugging the baby in the room. There was a mahjong table in the front hall.


    Old Master Chao had gotten a bad piece and was about to discard when he saw Ning Quee in, so he happily pushed down his tiles.


    ¡°We have visitors.¡±


    The prefectural magistrate of Chang¡¯an City, Shangguan Yangyu, was sitting next to him and had seen the tile in his hand. Even so, he could do nothing but stand up to salute.


    Ning Que said, ¡°I¡¯vee to say goodbye.¡±


    He saluted Old Master Chao and said, ¡°Uncle, I have to leave.¡±


    Old Master Chao did not say anything, but the expressions on the faces of the Zengs sitting next to him changed. Mrs. Zeng worriedly said, ¡°Be careful.¡±


    ¡°Please take care and don¡¯t worry.¡±


    Ning Que bowed deeply and left with Mo Shanshan.


    Old Master Chao said, ¡°It seems that your son-inw is going to marry a new wife.¡±


    Mrs. Zeng spat out a mouthful.


    Then, everyone in the room stopped talking andughing, falling silent. They all knew why Ning Que had toe here¡ªhis only family in the world was here.


    ¡°What a pity that I thought I had found the character but I haven¡¯t! But I am able to see it even if I don¡¯t understand it and can¡¯t write it down.


    ¡°What a pity that I realized it sote! Otherwise, I could have fixed the God-stunning Array. What a pity that the character is too difficult to write! Otherwise, I can try to kill him.


    ¡°What a pity that even though Chang¡¯an is so big, he can still find me!¡±


    As Ning Que looked at the street in the wind and snow and spoke, the figure of the Abbey Dean appeared.

 Chapter 781 - Armed with Changan to Fight (Part I)

    <h4>Chapter 781: Armed with Chang¡¯an to Fight (Part I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The snow had been beating down fromst night until now and had turned Chang¡¯an into a piece of ck and white cloth. This cloth was embroidered with houses, temples, mountains, andkes, but one of the streets was foggy and dim.


    Ning Que had heavily sewn that ce, trying to mend it or embroider a new flower to cover it up, which relit it.


    Unfortunately, he was toote to know that, and he did not have enough time to do that before the Abbey Dean found him.


    He and the Abbey Dean saw each other across a long street through the wind and snow.


    The Abbey Dean had been injured passing through Chang¡¯an. His robe was stained with blood, but he had not fallen down.


    They had not met, but they had seen each other.


    Once they met, the battle between them would end.


    Ning Que knew he would lose.


    Mo Shanshan took a look at him, threw all the stones to the ground, and then left.


    He took the Array Eye Pestle and tightly held his hilt.


    In the past, if he was sure that he would lose, he would have left. This time, however, he stayed.


    This had nothing to do with bravery¡ªhe was just confident.


    He believed that he could achieve the final victory.


    And that was because he was in Chang¡¯an.


    The Abbey Dean looked at him across the miles of wind and snow.


    The Array Eye Pestle in Ning Que¡¯s hand began to burn, and it was smoking and smelling pungent.


    From morning until now, this was the first time that Ning Que and the Abbey Dean really had any contact. Only with the power of the God-stunning Array was he able to remain conscious under the Abbey Dean¡¯s vision.


    The power of the God-stunning Array spread to the street through the Array Eye Pestle, protecting his heart and body. As the passageway of the God-stunning Array, the Array Eye Pestle had borne unimaginable Qi of Heaven and Earth and was heating up rapidly.


    Not only could his palm feel the pain, but his heart was also in pain.


    However, he remained calm and said nothing. Since it was hot, he still could fight.


    ¡°Even in Chang¡¯an, you are still too weak.¡±


    The voice of the Abbey Dean resounded from a distant ce, which even the wind and snow could not cover up.


    Looking through the wind and snow, Ning Que said, ¡°In Chang¡¯an, I know everything, so you can never catch up to me. Now, I just want to see if I can be omnipotent.¡±


    Then in a downward motion, he drew out his podao.


    The Psyche Power in his sense of perception overflowed through the Array Eye Pestle and spread out in all the directions of Chang¡¯an, covering the houses in Eastern City, the historied ck bricks, the fivekes in Western City, as well as the buildings and pavilions.


    A boundless aura came out of the brick joints, rising up from the bottom of the ice-coveredkes and the depths of the buildings.


    The withered beams creaked and the green-stoned tes shook, raising dust. The hot spring gushing out from the bottom of the fivekes got hotter and hotter, creating countless pearl-like bubbles, and fish fled from the boiling water.


    There was one way in and one way out.


    The God-stunning Array sensed the summoning of Psyche Power from the Array Eye Pestle and responded by sending endless Qi of Heaven and Earth to Vermilion Bird Avenue, surrounding him and his podao.


    Ning Que wielded his podao to chop the city down.


    Innumerable marks appeared on the snowy street with a cracking sound and then spread forward.


    Consisting of two strokes, every mark was the character ¡°Yi¡±, which was also a powerful Divine Talisman.


    The aura condensed in the marks was extremely powerful and each mark was above the Five States, which blocked the entire Vermilion Bird Avenue.


    The marks moved and killed people like grass being cut.


    They broke down everything in their way.


    They arrived with the power of the whole city.


    The Abbey Dean¡¯s green robe slightly moved and then his figure disappeared.


    And the next moment, a mark fell down, hitting the ground and cracking the stone tes.


    The air on the street was being torn apart.


    The Abbey Dean returned to the street and stood on the snow.


    A wound appeared on his left leg.


    He lowered his head to look at the wound and it suddenly healed and stopped bleeding.


    Numerous marks rushed over to him.


    He had to disy the Limitless State and then he disappeared.


    The marks that Ning Que had created, carrying Chang¡¯an¡¯s aura, pulled him out of the inteyer of the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    The Abbey Dean had to continually disappear and reappear.


    He reappeared at the entrances of alleys, in the markets, and in front of buildings.


    And every time he reappeared, he had a new wound.


    He had been the strongest man in Haotian Taoism over the past thousand years, as well as in the present word. However, facing the power of Chang¡¯an, he could only defend passively.


    Ning Que wanted to know if he could be omnipotent in Chang¡¯an. At least for now he could.


    The Abbey Dean was pulled out of the Limitless State once again.


    He had a small wound on the end of his eyebrow, which looked like a river that had been cut off, with blood dripping down from the slit.


    He stared at the end of the street, straightening his face.


    He raised his palm, erasing his face from forehead to chin, as if he could erase his face like the trick of changing faces in the Kingdom of Song.


    Then he put his palm down, leaving the blood on his face. He did not try to heal the wound, but just covered it with a thick frost.


    A chill aura enveloped his body.


    Another mark approached nearby along with the wind and snow.


    As the wind blew, he waved his sleeves. His body bulged out numerous times its normal size in an instant against the wind and was about to break through the sky.


    However, he still stood on the street and looked as normal as anyone else.


    An aura as vast and boundless as the ocean was being emitted from his body.


    Then, Ning Que¡¯s podao marks arrived.


    And so did the city of Chang¡¯an.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth that was wildly flowing sounded like people crying inside the wind and snow on Vermilion Bird Avenue.


    In the space of a moment, he had been attacked by dozens of marks.


    Every mark was above the Five States, carrying a power that could destroy mountains and rivers.


    However, the Abbey Dean was in the Quietus State and had been removed from his senses, emotions, feelings, and fear.


    Ning Que¡¯s Talisman of ¡°Yi¡± with the power of the God-stunning Array, which was above the Five States, was like the tsunamis in the Sea of Storm in the Kingdom of Song.


    However, the Abbey Dean at this time was in the Boundless State and was like a vast sea, both physically and psychically.


    Even the strongest weapon could not hurt a man who felt no pain.


    Even the most massive wave could notst for long once it returned to the ocean.


    The Quietus State and the Boundless State.


    The Abbey Dean used two states above the Five States at the same time and unified them perfectly.


    The wind and snow calmed down once again.


    The Abbey Dean continued moving forward.


    The marks only left small wounds on him.


    They cut off his eyshes and tore up his clothes and shoes.


    But they could not hurt him any more than that.


    Ning Que looked at him approaching and said, ¡°You are only a flying ant.¡±

 Chapter 782 - Armed with Changan to Fight (Part II)

    <h4>Chapter 782: Armed with Chang¡¯an to Fight (Part II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    At the bottom of the sinkhole in the Western Wilderness lived many serfs who had served the monks in the Xuankong Temple and maintained the society. In Haotian¡¯s eyes, all the humans living in the world were serfs, like ants who lived boring lives withoutint.


    Over the span of many centuries and millennia, a few very distinguished ants among the crowd would, out of enigmatic reasons, decide to strip their gazes from the rotten leaves and, just for once, gaze up at the crystal blue sky.


    Since that time they saw the sky, their lives had changed. Some of them saw hope; some were angry at the unreachable sky; some were afraid because of what they had discovered, so they knelt down on the ground, being thankful for the gift from the sky.


    No matter how they ended up, these ants were no longer ordinary ants. In a sense, they had evolved and they learned how to fly.


    Over the past thousands of years, there was no doubt that the Headmaster and Ke Haoran were the two most amazing flying ants. When Ning Que praised the Abbey Dean as a flying ant, he was respecting him rather than mocking him.


    ¡°Actually, I have been wondering... Since you have gone beyond the Mortality State and stopped caring about the world, why haven¡¯t you taken a look at the sky?¡±


    Looking at the end of the street, he asked him sincerely.


    ¡°The concepts of Haotian Taoism and the Academy have never been connected, the views of the Headmaster and my own are not the same. Every beginning will be followed by an ending, and all the cycles will be closed. That is the real cirction.¡±


    The Abbey Dean spoke through the wind and snow.


    ¡°Just like this city, the Headmaster left in this world has been isted from Haotian. No matter how powerful it can be, it is only a dead pool. The same as your Talisman of ¡°Yi¡±, which is violent and aggressive, but leads to nowhere. Without harmony, it will have no choice. So how can you stop me?¡±


    Ning Que asked from inside the snow, ¡°If it has no choice, isn¡¯t it free?¡±


    The Abbey Dean answered, ¡°No choice doesn¡¯t mean not to choose.¡±


    As his aura constantly crashed with the array, countless tiny and slender cracks appeared on the avenue, sending out soft popping sounds, and talismans were broken.


    The Abbey Dean¡¯s voice got closer.


    ¡°Even if being supported by the God-stunning Array, a weak man like you is unable to protect the entire city. You should have escaped from the city. When I saw you on the street, I was surprised.¡±


    ¡°Because teacher left the city to me, I have to stay here. And if I could have figured it out sooner, maybe I would have fixed the God-stunning Array two days ago.¡±


    He added, ¡°However, unfortunately, she had lived inside the city for a long time. Due to my sloth, she did almost everything and went everywhere for me, leaving behind so much aura. From this point of view, the dangers of Chang¡¯an are our responsibility.


    ¡°You are right that I should have escaped from the city. However, she is gone and left the responsibility to me. I have to stay to save Chang¡¯an. She was my wife and the bill has to be paid.¡±


    ¡°Even if you know you can¡¯t protect it?¡± asked the Abbey Dean.


    ¡°Even if I can¡¯t protect it.¡±


    Ning Que added, ¡°That¡¯s my style.¡±


    He then looked at the figure in the wind and snow, tightly holding his hilt, slightly kneeling and bowing, and then suddenly chopped down.


    He knew that the Abbey Dean was right.


    He had not found the character, so he was unable to perfectly mobilize the God-stunning Array.


    The only Divine Talisman he had learned was the Two-Horizontal Talisman, which represented cutting and absolute obstinance, as well as parallel opposition, and was isted from the world.


    The Talisman of ¡°Yi¡± that he came up withst night connected the two parallel lines and it could borrow the power of the God-stunning Array, which was as powerful as the one of the Five States. However, when the four ends of the two lines fell down on the ground, they gradually drifted away and never returned, dissipating in the end.


    Anyway, he had to try, because he did not believe that there was someone who could resist this majestic city.


    He wielded his podao and chopped toward the Abbey Dean.


    The Abbey Dean calmly covered his face with his palm and summoned his aura, which then rushed into the sky.


    His perfectbination of the Boundless and Quietus had changed the battle.


    The Array Eye Pestle in Ning Que¡¯s hand was as hot as the magma in a volcano.


    He looked at the swaying figure and spouted out his Psyche Power.


    Thekes were boiling and the ck bricks were quivering. It seemed that all of the Qi of Heaven and Earth in Chang¡¯an had been summoned to Vermilion Bird Avenue by Ning Que and was rushing toward the Abbey Dean.


    The sky over Chang¡¯an suddenly cleared. The clouds hovering in the sky dissipated in an instant, revealing the blue sky.


    The pressure of the entire city fell on the Abbey Dean.


    Almost at the same time, countless thunderbolts fell from the sky and struck the city.


    The Abbey Dean swayed in the wind and snow.


    The anger of Haotian and the power of humans collided through their bodies.


    Although there was no snow, it sounded like a blizzard.


    There was no wind but it sounded like a cyclone.


    The violent Qi of Heaven and Earth smashed all over Chang¡¯an and cracked numerous buildings. No sound could be heard aside from the horrible wind and snow.


    The wind and snow stopped and the clouds returned. The sun over Chang¡¯an was blotted out.


    Vermilion Bird Avenue was silent where the Abbey Dean and Ning Que were standing face to face.


    The distance between them was only a few hundred meters.


    Ning Que could even clearly see his face, including the wounds on it.


    The Abbey Dean walked toward him.


    The small round stones on the street quivered and rolled to the sides.


    Ning Que lowered his head and coughed badly in pain, bleeding from his mouth.


    All of sudden, he raised his head and turned to the Abbey Dean, reaching out from nowhere to punch him.


    He looked both calm and cruel.


    Like a young male tiger on the grasnd staring at its prey.


    He threw a punch and his fists showed up hundreds of meters away, right in front of the Abbey Dean.


    His body had be stronger and stronger and his power had be greater and greater since he began to cultivate the Great Spirit. He was never worried about a melee, so he had been waiting for the Abbey Dean.


    The fists carrying the mighty Great Spirit were just like the tiger¡¯s ws in the night.


    Sharp and deadly.


    The Abbey Dean lifted his hand and caught Ning Que¡¯s fists, which could knock down a small building.


    However, facing the Abbey Dean¡¯s palm, they seemed to be blowing at a mire in the Wilderness or falling down into a sea.


    Even Yu Lian could not threaten the Abbey Dean, let alone Ning Que.


    The Abbey Deanughed.


    The Array Eye Pestle held in Ning Que¡¯s left hand suddenly shone.


    All the Qi of Heaven and Earth in Chang¡¯an poured into his body through the Array Eye Pestle, bursting out from his fists!

 Chapter 783 - Frozen (Part I)

    <h4>Chapter 783: Frozen (Part I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Thunder boomed above the Vermilion Bird Avenue.


    The fists of the Abbey Dean and Ning Que shed.


    Endless aura flowed out of their bodies and shot to all directions. Wherever the aura touched, all the bricks, rocks and pirs were destroyed, and all the houses alongside the street fell into ruins.


    Ning Que¡¯s fist, with unbelievably overwhelming power, smashed onto the center of the Abbey Dean¡¯s palm.


    He was like a bridge connecting Chang¡¯an City and the Abbey Dean. The raging Qi of Heaven and Earth in his bones, blood and flesh were flowing out, making him nearly exhausted.


    He was in severe pain and his joints were cracking. His eyshes had been burnt, and his body couldn¡¯t stop shaking. Blood kept dripping off the corner of his lips and fell on the snow.


    Yet he was smiling.


    Three fingers of the Abbey Dean¡¯s had been snapped. The fracture surface was as smooth as jade, but after the sudden snap blood was oozing out of the surface, and soon blood burst out of the three fingers and fell on the snow.


    But the smile on his face stayed still, and had yet to fade.


    Then a snowke floated over him and narrowly missed his eyshes.


    His ck pupils started fading slowly.


    In other words, the white snowke running into his pupil was darkening.


    It turned grey.


    The Abbey Dean¡¯s eyes turned as grey as the mist on the abyss. It was the second time his eyes turned grey this day, and the second time he used the secret skill of Haotian Taoism, the Grey Eyes.


    The Grey Eyes was a scary and evil secret skill because it was created to suck the Psyche Power and spirit of other cultivators.


    Long ago Prince Long Qing learned the unique skill from the ¡°Sha¡± Handscroll from the Tomes of the Arcane, toter absorb the great power of Halfman Taoist. That was how he grew from a good-for-nothing into a powerhouse on the Wilderness.


    The Grey Eyes of the Abbey Dean was thousands of times more powerful than that of Long Qing¡¯s, and when facing the Grey Eyes of his which were like dark and deep dead wells, a powerful man as Yu Lian would feel anger and anxiety.


    Then what could Ning Que do?


    The scary suction of the Abbey Dean was like the power of a dark vortex. Ning Que felt it, and he was feeling the wind blowing in his face. He was expressionless and remained peaceful as before.


    He didn¡¯t do anything, because the Abbey Dean¡¯s Grey eye carried little weight on him. His Psyche Power and the Great Spirit stayed still peacefully inside.


    The Abbey Dean couldn¡¯t take any aura from him, not even a single breath.


    The Abbey Dean¡¯s eyebrows rose.


    Ning Que took a deep breath and his chest rose like the war g fluttering in the strong breeze.


    The freezing wind and snow had all been sucked in his lungs.


    The blood spurting out of the Abbey Dean¡¯s snapped fingers turned into blood fog, and was soon sucked into Ning Que¡¯s mouth.


    There were blood stains on the corner of his lips, some of which were his own, and others were of the Abbey Dean¡¯s.


    The whole picture looked extremely strange.


    While he had the whole Chang¡¯an City supporting him, Ning Que clearly knew that he was no match for the Abbey Dean. He didn¡¯t expect himself to win the fight when it started; his only hope was to fix the God-stunning Array.


    So, he walked on the streets and alleys, but finally, the Abbey Dean found him. Being the case, he waved the sword and cut the talisman runes on the distant Snow Street to keep the enemy ten kilometers away.


    Such action was a clear evidence of his fear which was too obvious to be ignored by the Abbey Dean. That was why the Abbey Dean approached Ning Que step by step, with a peaceful smile on his face.


    But actually, that was exactly what Ning Que needed.


    He had no chance to beat the Abbey Dean if they took Heaven and Earth as the battleground. On the contrary, if he could get close enough to the Abbey Dean, he might be able to find the frail hope to win out of desperation.


    Because he was good at melee fighting, since his body was awfully powerful and hard as rocks after he joined the Devil. Moreover, he had the array eye pestle in his hand, and he had seen the whole fight between the Abbey Dean and the Third Sister near Yanming Lake in the morning.


    While the Grey Eyes was a secret skill of the Haotian Taoism, Ning Que knew it well enough because he had fought Long Qing outside Red Lotus Temple, and because the Grey Eyes was born out of the Practice of Taotie of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    The Practice of Taotie had been long lost, and after Lotus¡¯ death, there was just one person in the world who knew the Practice of Taotie. The person was Ning Que, and only Ye Hongyu and Sangsang knew about this.


    So he had given the Abbey Dean the opportunity, waiting for him to approach.


    He was nervous and expectant when he saw the Abbey Dean getting closer.


    Then, upon seeing the Abbey Dean¡¯s eyes turn grey, Ning Que became excited and joyful.


    The Grey Eyes carried little weight on him, and once he started using the Practice of Taotie, he was like the legendary monster, Tao Tie, swallowing everything before him like crazy.


    The cold wind carrying snow, and the blood fog went in his mouth.


    He was like a monster chewing flesh and drinking blood. He was sucking the blood, the Psyche Power and even the spirit of the Abbey Dean like crazy; he had even forgotten to breath.


    A light reddish channel appeared between Ning Que and the Abbey Dean. His vigorous Psyche Power and spirit drained up soon and flowed into his body.


    Ning Que flushed like a drunk man, and his cheeks were like the rosy sky in the morning.


    His eyes were as bright as a golden pond, ready to swallow the figure of the Abbey Dean.


    He clearly felt that an aura pure as water kept pouring into his Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi, purifying his body.


    He was aware that it was the Abbey Dean¡¯s life essence aura.


    The Practice of Taotie was far more powerful than the Grey Eyes, and as long it had been conducted, there was no way back.


    Ning Que looked at the Abbey Dean who was close to him, and then he smiled.


    It seemed that his minuscule chance to win wasing true.


    But momentster, his smile was frozen.


    Because the Abbey Dean was still smiling.


    His spirit and Psyche Power were draining up at a scary speed, but he was still smiling.


    His eyes were no longer grey; they turned peaceful and were slightly mocking.


    His smile remained peaceful, like he had read all the stories in the world.


    Suddenly Ning Que felt how the aura which felt like water had turned chilly like ice.


    The change was not only mental but also physical.


    The aura which purified his Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi like water suddenly turned as chilly as ice. And now it had be countless ice shards and snow kes, filling every inch of his body.


    It was not because the aura he sucked inside from the Abbey Dean had changed.


    It was because another unexpected aura of the Abbey Dean had been sucked inside him.


    An aura of absolute quietus.


    Heat was generated by motion.


    Coldness meant the intensity of motion decreased.


    So, quietus would bring absolute coldness.


    Ning Que knew that he was wrong upon seeing the Abbey Dean.


    Any fighting skills would turn useless if the power of one side surpassed the other one too much. He was using the Practice of Taotie to counter the Grey Eyes, but it wouldn¡¯t work as long as the Abbey Dean sent him a small piece of Quietus beyond the Five States.


    His body turned stiff and cold all of a sudden, unable to move.


    Snow fell on his face, but it seemed as if it would never melt.


    His sense of perception started to freeze.


    And his inside world turned into a world of coldness and quietus.


    His heart was connected to Chang¡¯an City, but still he had no way to escape away from the quietus world.


    Even the whole city of Chang¡¯an was frozen.

 Chapter 784 - Frozen (Part II)

    <h4>Chapter 784: Frozen (Part II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Snow suddenly fell down from the clear sky, and onto thend stretching for ten thousand kilometers.


    Thick snow kes were like burnt bulrush ashes dancing, upying the whole blue sky above. The city cooled down fast and became extremely cold. The ice dam on house eaves became chillier and chillier. The ice in theke was creaking, and even the water in the well at the mouth of the alley was frozen.


    Ning Que stood in the storm and snow, with thick snow on his ck academy uniform. He was like a bridge which would be snapped anytime soon by the heavy snow umted on it.


    He was the bridge of this fight. Chang¡¯an City was waving his sword through him to attack the Abbey Dean. But now that the Abbey Dean¡¯s Quietus had been sucked inside by Ning Que through the Practice of Taotie, the Quietus was amplified countless times, or it had be a real thing that was hanging above Chang¡¯an City.


    The coldness of snowkes prated the thick academy uniformand reached Ning Que¡¯s skin. He was immediately nearly frozen, with thick frost on his eyshes and snow powder over his face, looking like Sangsang when she had put on make-up for the first time.


    When the coldness reached a threshold, all motion would cease. Ning Que, upied by the Quietus aura, felt like he had fallen into the deepest abyss. It was so cold that he couldn¡¯t shake, breathe, or even think with his mind frozen.


    He had been frozen like the well at the mouth of the alley.


    The transparent fluid in his belly was the only part of him that was still moving, but it moved so slowly that it might stop any second now. The fluid had the pride that could break all chains of coldness and Quietus.


    His sense of perception had turned into an ocean covered by ice and snow, and amid the sludge in the depths of the ocean, a broken piece was shimmering. Facing the coldness falling from above, it remained quite disobedient and outrageous.


    Ning Que inherited the Great Spirit from Youngest Uncle, and he inherited the piece of perception from Lotus. Both of the two were the greatest powerhouses back then, and both of them could stand up to the Abbey Dean as equals.


    This was the most dangerous moment he had faced since he was born, and at the moment when he was so close to death, the Great Spirit and the piece of perception which had saved him several times before burst out again.


    Suddenly Ning Que started shaking. The frost on his eyshes and snowkes on his face were shattered and shot away like arrows, revealing Ning Que¡¯s face.


    Blood spewed out of his mouth, dripping down and scattering.


    The blood was turbid because of the ice coagted by blood in it.


    Then the turbid blood dripped down on his clothes, his left hand, and then on the array eye pestle. The pestle immediately became burning hot; the blood evaporated into mist and steam blowing over his face.


    Ning Que screamed, and he seemed to be in extreme pain. The ice covering his ck academy uniform had been shattered, like the stone bridge revealing its original look after the snow over it was blown away.


    He opened his eyes. With his trembling hands, he put forth his strength and broke through the snow, then he dropped his sword.


    He had to seize the moment of awakening.


    He held both ends of the array eye pestle with his hands, sweeping it back and forth in the storm and snow.


    Every time he swept, two absolutely parallel lines would be drawn.


    A violent Talisman Intent burst out of the storm and snow.


    The Two-Horizontal Talisman.


    With the Talisman Intent as his cover, Ning Que stomped on the snow and flew backwards. In an instant he was more than a hundred feet away.


    The Abbey Dean had made it clear that he was invincible even if his opponent was supported by a city. Ning Que was almost killed by a simple nce on him, so all he wanted now was to escape far from the Abbey Dean.


    The further, the better.


    The two sharp Talisman Intents were like two hard-steel swords above Vermilion Bird Avenue.


    The Abbey Dean lifted his right arm and snapped with his fingers.


    Understanding masculinity and defending feminity, that is called Natural Stream.


    Understanding its cons and defending its pros, that is called Natural Maneuver.


    Understanding its prosperity and defending its disgrace, and that is called Open-Mindedness.


    The Abbey Dean used the Finger of the World.


    The aura of the fingers ignored the Two-Horizontal Talisman on the Snow Street and flew away in the air.


    Ning Que was still flying backwards, with a bloody hole on one of his knees.


    Then he fell backwards, with a bloody hole in his shoulder.


    After several puffs, seven bloody holes appeared on his body.


    The Abbey Dean had moved his finger seven times, which was an indication of Heaven¡¯s will, to cut off humanity.


    To cut humanity was to cut off people¡¯s way to live.


    The blood was gurgling out slowly, dyeing the snow Ning Que stood on red.


    He could barely sit in an ugly position, and he had little strength to wave the sword.


    The Abbey Dean then said, ¡°Skills are no better than petty tricks.¡±


    Ning Que knew this was the Abbey Dean¡¯sment on theirst fight, and he agreed with it.


    Whether it was pretending to be weak to lure the enemy to get closer, these were all no more than petty tricks in real fights.


    ¡°You still have quite a long way to go before you reach the real Great Way, no matter how strong your desire is, not to mention that you¡¯ve taken a wrong way.¡±


    The Abbey Dean approached. The storm and snow were avoiding him.


    ¡°I¡¯ve seen your calligraphy. Unlike other people in the world, I don¡¯t like it because you didn¡¯t know how to write in an unskilled way. The strokes of that character were too heavy, so you had to write in an unskilled way.¡±


    Ning Que tried hard to lift his arms and wiped the blood on his jaw, then he said, ¡°If I have opportunities in the future, I would definitely remember your teachings and try to write in an unskilled way.¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s no ¡®future¡¯.¡±


    The Abbey Dean sensed that two people were approaching from the storm and snow behind him at a high speed.


    He knew that it was the powerful Senior Brother and Sister from the Academy.


    But he didn¡¯t care.


    The whole city had been frozen by him.


    Then what else could the people in the city do?


    Not far away from the west side of Vermilion Bird Avenue, there was a block which seemed in or even shabby. That was quite amon scene in Chang¡¯an City. Beside the government offices, there were shabby and old houses. Prosperity and dpidation always coexisted, and it was hard to simply define it as good or bad.


    The block was called Sanyuanli, a ce where the mostmon residents of Chang¡¯an lived. The angry voice of a young man came out of the woodshed in the backyard of a house, along with the sound of pping a table.


    ¡°A pot of hot water? Why just one pot? It¡¯s not enough for us to drink! How could we bathe our mother¡¯s frostbitten feet? And that guy, why the grumpy face all day? Who was he making the face for?¡±


    A woman was sitting in the bedding pile, holding a three or four-year old girl. She looked at her angry son worriedly and said, ¡°We¡¯ve been lucky enough to have just food and shelter.¡±


    The young man was in a shabby cotton jacket. Judging by his dress and expression, he must be a boy from the countryside.


    He sat at the door of the woodshed where the wind kept flowing in. His young face turned pale in the chilly wind, and he said angrily, ¡°How difficult can it be to ask for just one more pot of water?¡±


    It was such a cold day today that ice hung fully on the eaves, and even the kitchen smoke couldn¡¯t go far. The young man worried about his mother¡¯s ill legs and went to the front yard for hot water, but he got only one pot of hot water and the young man in the front yard had criticized him. He was in such a bad mood when thinking about the bad situation he was in at the moment.


    At the same time, the door was opened with a creak. Another young man showed up at the door; he was in a firm cotton jacket with a rxing and prideful expression which obviously was learned from fooling around with the street people daily.


    Chilly wind poured in from the door and the woman started coughing, but instead of caring about herself, she cuddled the girl tightly, using more bedding on the girl.


    The countryside boy red at the city boy. As angry as he might be, his clenching hands dared not to move further.


    Because the city boy had two knives in his hands.


    A chopper, and a kitchen knife.

 Chapter 785 - The Young Men in Sanyuanli (Part I)

    <h4>Chapter 785: The Young Men in Sanyuanli (Part I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The mes of war spread all over the Tang Empire since the war started.


    The Northern Frontier had suffered the most. The cavalries of the Golden Pce heading south from the Wilderness kept fighting with the Northern Army there, and all the pastures and fortified buildings were soaked in blood.


    The most miserable one was the Eastern Border. The Northeast Border Military of Tang was ambushed by the Yan Army and the Eastern Wilderness Cavalries in Chengjing City. The overwhelming Tang Army had made the enemy pay a heavy price for it, but they did not have any soldiers that could serve after the war. Since then the border line of the Empire had been broken, and the invading hooves started stepping on the richnd ever since.


    The most dangerous one was the Southern Frontier, since Qinghe County had betrayed the Empire and General Xu Shi died in the war. The Southern Army came from thousand kilometers away to the rescue, but it was already toote. All the Academy disciples were badly injured since each of them had to face nearly 100 enemies in the war. The main force of the West-Hill Pce would break in the Verdant Canyon at anytime and enter the central area.


    It was fortunate that the core and most wealthy Wei and Sishui river basin was temporarily safe. The royal court of the Empire was famous for high efficiency, so it had started preparing for the worst days ago. Food stored in all counties was sent to Chang¡¯an City, and residents of the city were evacuated. The residents living in the suburbs had drawn back into the city.


    While the evacuation was carried out in order, the evacuated people were not that miserable. But they were refugees in a war after all and they would definitely suffer.


    More than a hundred thousand refugees flowed into Chang¡¯an. Some of them went to their friends¡¯ or rtive¡¯s, others had been arranged to board in local residents¡¯ houses.


    Haichuan of Tianbao County was close to Chang¡¯an City. The young man, his mother and sister were all from Haichuan, but they had no rtives or friends in the city, so they were arranged to stay with a family in the Sanyuanli block. The house sat near the Vermilion Bird Avenue and most of the residents had spare rooms; the arrangement was supposed to be appropriate.


    The young man had been living in the house for days. They were provided two hot meals every day, and though they lived in the woodshed, the host of the family had given them some bedding. Nevertheless, they were living under other people¡¯s roof and there was much inconvenience. It was understandable that they missed the hot bed, pickles and juicy meat at home.


    That was an arrangement made by the imperial court, and the government had promised that all expenses would be replenishedter. The local family had noints at this moment, but still, they felt inconvenienced with three refugees in their house all of a sudden, especially the young city man.


    The countryside boy had long been displeased with the attitude of the city boy, and he thought to himself that if it hadn¡¯t been for the food saved by the countryside man to feed him, he would have already starved.


    The woman understood her son quite well, but she still tried tofort him. Food, shelter, and protection from those barbarians was all she needed, and she expected nothing else.


    The country boy had been persuaded, but after the unexpected snowst night, the city turned unbearably cold. He went to the front yard for some hot water, but the young man gave him one pot and refused to give him more.


    He was going to get on the guy¡¯s back but the guy now broke into the woodshed by himself.


    ¡°Zhang III! What are you doing?¡±


    The country boy looked at the guy with the two knives and he turned a little nervous. He moved backwards for a bit and reached out for the stool beside the brazier in case the city boy had bad intentions. And he thought to himself that should the guy have any bad intentions to insult him, he would fight him with his life on the line.


    The stool was brought by him from his hometown, Haichuan. The heavy and tough stool was made from solid hardwood and was painted with varnish. When he was a little kid he was always mocked by others for having ¡°a lot of fathers¡±, and he had fought three of those kids with the stool and broken their heads, which proved that the stool could be quite useful.


    The family name of the city child who broke into the woodshed with two knives was indeed Zhang, but of course, his name was not ¡°Zhang III¡±, which literally meant Zhang the Third. His real name was Zhang Nianzu, and he was not the third kid of the Zhang¡¯s.


    ¡°Li IV, I¡¯ve got things for you.¡± Zhang III looked at the country boy and said.


    The name of the country boy was Li Guangdi, not Li IV which literally means Li the Fourth. They were calling each other by those two names to continue mocking and arguing with each other.


    Li Guangdi looked warily at the knives held in Zhang Nianzu¡¯s hand, but momentster, he found that it was not how he expected it to be because Zhang Nianzu¡¯s hands were shaking and his face was pale.


    Li Guangdi once looked down upon the city boy and thought he was cowardly and useless, but several fightster, he knew Zhang Nianzu was nothing like that. He wouldn¡¯t turn pale so easily even if he had killed or tried to scare somebody.


    It was obvious that he was truly scared.


    Zhang Nianzu looked at Li Guangdi and said, ¡°I saw a monster.¡±


    He looked pale and his kitchen knife and chopper were shaking in his hands, making a rattling sound.


    Zhang Nianzu swallowed hard and looked at Li Guangdi, then continued, ¡°My family members are all scared, and nobody would dare to go there and fight the monster, but I want to try.¡±


    Li Guangdi was a little confused and asked, ¡°What monster?¡±


    Zhang Nianzu said, ¡°A guy in ck clothes, with only two fingers on his left hand, but each step of his would cover half of a street, and he brought in storms and snow. He looks like a monster in every way.¡±


    Li Guangdi knew what he meant immediately upon hearing those words, and his facial expression turned ugly.


    The guy from the Chang¡¯an Local Government, Vige Heads and members from Fish-dragon Gang had been sending warnings to all families on the streets since days ago. He had been staying in the woodshed with his mother and sister these days, but he knew what had happened outside.


    The morning snow fell and there was no kitchen smoke. Chang¡¯an City seemed empty today, but actually, all the residents were nervously waiting for the oue of the war inside the houses.


    Li Guangdi woke up early. He stood in the storm and snow in the backyard and saw the scene that he had only heard about in stories and legends before. He saw the sky tearing apart, and thunder falling from heaven; he saw the winter rain fall down, and the burning clouds, too.


    He was scared, so he stopped looking. He turned toin about the hot water issue to his mother, and tried to ovee his inner fear with his resentment against the boy in the front yard.


    He was still young but he was after all one of the Tangs and he found such fear a disgrace.


    Li Guangdi didn¡¯t expect Zhang Nianzu to be so bold to peep at the fight on the street. And when he thought about his fear previously, he felt his face burning hot.


    ¡°What are you telling me that for?¡±


    To cover his shame inside, he stared at Zhang Nianzu and asked angrily.


    Zhang Nianzu hated his Haichuan ent, but considering what he was going to do, he tried not tough at it and kept swallowing hard out of fear and nervousness.


    ¡°The monster in ck clothes was terrifying, and it seemed like the man from the Academy failed to bring him down.¡±


    He said, ¡°I was going there but those old men in the front yard were too cowardly to follow me, and they didn¡¯t let me go, either. So I guess you¡¯re at least a bold man and I am asking if you want to go there with me.¡±


    Li Guangdi asked, ¡°Go there for what?¡±


    ¡°To help.¡± Said Zhang Nianzu.


    Li Guangdi asked, ¡°How?¡±


    Zhang Nianzu raised two knives in his hands and said, ¡°The chopper or the kitchen knife, you can pick first.¡±

 Chapter 786 - The Young Men in Sanyuanli (Part II)

    <h4>Chapter 786: The Young Men in Sanyuanli (Part II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Li Guangdi was stunned and he looked at the two knives in Zhang Nianzu¡¯s hands, not knowing what to do. Zhang Nianzu said anxiously, ¡°We¡¯re losing the war, what are you still doing here?¡±


    The woman had finally understood what the two young men were doing and was terrified. She said, ¡°How could you be of any help? You¡¯re too young.¡±


    Zhang Nianzu waved the knife in his hand and said, ¡°We can kill as long as we have knives. I¡¯ve seen many fights in Chang¡¯an City these years. I¡¯ve seen blood and I know how to kill people.¡±


    Li Guangdi hesitated and looked back at his mother. His father died long ago so he tried his best to treat his mother nicely, even when his mother inexplicably gave birth to a younger sister. His attitude towards his mother had never changed.


    Zhang Nianzu said, slightly angry and annoyed, ¡°People from the countryside are indeed spineless.¡±


    With that, he turned around and walked outside to the yard.


    Li Guangdi stopped him, and then he picked up a steel rake at the corner of the woodshed. He walked out of the door and said, ¡°When I was killing badgers in the watermelon fields, you were too afraid to even hurt a watermelon.¡±


    Zhang Nianzu looked at him and said joyfully, ¡°Li IV, I knew you wouldn¡¯t let me down.¡±


    It was extremely cold and the storm and snow were outrageous. Thick snow covered the streets.


    Chang¡¯an City had already been frozen, and Vermilion Bird Avenue was as quiet as the bottom of the snowke. There was no other sound but some coughing out of the snowy depths.


    Eldest Brother was coughing at the other side of the storm and snow.


    He could wait no longer when he saw Ning Que fail even with the support of the city and was almost killed, so he came into the storm and snow with his Third Sister, Yu Lian.


    This was not the moment Yu Lian had been waiting for because Ning Que hadn¡¯t separated Chang¡¯an City away from Haotian¡¯s world, so they failed again.


    The Abbey Dean walked towards Ning Que at the opposite end of the street. His injury was bing severe but his steps remained steady, leaving only slight footprints on the thick soft snow.


    The doors on both sides of the streets were all shut, and the nearby shops were as silent as tombs.


    Ning Que sat on the Snow Street, with blood all over his body. The snow under him had been dyed red, and he couldn¡¯t stand up anymore.


    Zhang Nianzu and Li Guangdi were hiding in a house. They peered out through the door at the situation on the street. Now it was so cold outside; snowkes kept falling on their faces, and they felt as if frozen.


    The two had been peeping for quite a long time, but they hadn¡¯t made any moves yet. It was not because they were literally frozen, it was because they were lonely and afraid.


    There was no one in the streets or alleys, and the whole world was so quiet.


    They didn¡¯t have any help. They didn¡¯t see the usual hooligans rampaging through the streets, or those Yulin Royal Guards idolized by all young men in the Tang Empire, not even those cultivators from the Southern Gate Temple. All they could see were both their pale faces and frightened eyes.


    They were brave, but after all, they were just ordinary teenagers. Seeing the monster in ck defeat the man from the Academy, the fear which had been washed away by warm blood captured them again.


    ¡°What do we do?¡±


    Zhang Nianzu¡¯s voice trembled slightly, and it sounded like that he was about to cry. But he was holding it back because this was his own idea and he didn¡¯t want to be looked down upon by the countryside boy.


    Li Guangdi was rtively calm, but his pale face revealed his real thoughts at the moment. He looked at the monster in ck walking on the Snow Street through the door crack, and then he said in quivering voice, ¡°I¡¯ll do as you say.¡±


    Zhang Nianzu swallowed to keep himself calm, but his tongue and lips were extremely dry because of nervousness and fear, plus he had nothing to swallow. He felt so ashamed.


    Shame was the source of courage, especially for the Tangs.


    Zhang Nianzu grabbed a handful of snow and stuffed it in his mouth. After chewing it for a moment, he said, ¡°I¡¯ll go first.¡±


    His words sounded muffled because of the snow in his mouth, so Li Guangdi didn¡¯t hear him clearly.


    But momentster he suddenly realized that Zhang Nianzu had kicked the wooden door open and ran to the street with the knife in his hand. That was when he realized what was happening and he hurried to catch up with him with the rake in his hand.


    He reached the street and saw the monster in ck. Soon his courage inspired by chewing the snow disappeared by half. His arms turned limp. He looked quite funny, dragging a kitchen knife and the chopper behind him, but he was still running.


    ¡°Go to hell, you monster!¡± He screamed.


    Li Guangdi followed him with the rake in his hand. And his face was paler than the snowy streets. Both of his arms kept shaking as if the rake was falling on the ground.


    ¡°Son of a bi**h!¡± He screamed.


    They didn¡¯t know who the taoist priest was, neither did they know whose son he was. But they did know he was a true menace because the man from the Academy failed to beat him.


    As scared as they were, they rushed over there.


    Because they had a breath of aura in their chests and bellies.


    They didn¡¯t know what the aura was either because they had no spare energy. They knew they would me themselves if they didn¡¯t rush over there now.


    Chang¡¯an City remained silent in the storm and snow, and the Abbey Dean remained invincible.


    At the same time, two young men from the Sanyuanli block rushed over here. They held the steel rake and chopper in their hands, cursing along the whole way.


    Their voices quivered and sounded as if they were crying.


    They cried and rushed at the unimaginable enemy.


    The whole picture looked ridiculous.


    But it was not.


    Chang¡¯an City was quiet, but there were still people in there.


    In the streets under the morning snow, countless eyes had been caught by what was going on in Vermilion Bird Avenue.


    The Abbey Dean was clearly aware because he had sensed the hostility behind the door while he was walking here on the street.


    But he didn¡¯t care for it because although the fight took ce in the mortal world, it had gone beyond the reach of ordinary people, and none of them was qualified to get involved in this fight.


    The Academy and the imperial court of Tang sent no military force here tonight, and that pretty much said everything.


    So he was surprised when seeing two young men rushing at him with a knife and a rake in their hands.


    He became gloomy for a moment and then he understood. He regained his calmness like snow melting into water.


    He smiled at the two young men.


    He wasn¡¯t mocking them. He was smiling with mercy, but he had no respect for them because he didn¡¯t worship the value of the secr world.


    He was Haotian¡¯s emissary.


    He was looking at the two young men like Haotian looked down at the ants on the ground from high above.


    The resistance of ants wouldn¡¯t bring out much sentiment of Haotian, but maybe he would find it interesting.


    There was another person on the street.


    Ning Que sat on the bloody snow, and his expression had changed.


    A subtle change.


    Not a slight one.


    And it took ce at all of a sudden.


    Seeing the two young men, he realized there was such a meaningful thing existing in the world.


    What he did for Chang¡¯an City was also meaningful.


    In other words, the city, with its residents like the two pale and trembling young men, was worth fighting for.

 Chapter 787 - City of Sins (Part I)

    <h4>Chapter 787: City of Sins (Part I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Snowkes fell on the teenagers¡¯ faces. It was slightly cold, just like how they had felt initially. As they ran, their bodies began to heat up, and the fear in their hearts gradually faded away.


    They looked at the Taoist in indigo on the street and felt that the man was just an ordinary person.


    Their breathing became rapid and their blood began to boil, feeling fearless.


    Zhang Nianzu thought, <i>¡°I want to kill you with a single stab. But if I can¡¯t, I¡¯ll kill you with two.¡±</i>


    Li Guangdi thought to himself, <i>¡°I¡¯ll stab you to death like a hog.¡±</i>


    A chopper and a kitchen knife approached.


    The melon rake was also lifted in the air.


    Then, they reached the skies.


    Looking at the snowy street growing further and further away, and the Taoist in indigo growing smaller and smaller, the two teenagers grew frightened. They did not know what had happened.


    The turbulent remnants of Qi of Heaven and Earth from the battle between the Abbey Dean and the Academy remained on the Vermilion Bird Avenue. In the seemingly gentle storm and snow, there was plenty of hidden power that ordinary folks could not get close to.


    Zhang Nianzu and Li Guangdi wanted to rush over, only to be shaken like two torn cloth bags, tossed into the air.


    The cold wind howled and brushed their cheeks as they fell from the sky dozens feet high and fell heavily on the Snow Street.


    There were two thuds and snow sttered everywhere. The two teenagers spat out blood.


    When they once again looked at the Taoist in indigo standing in the street, the fear in their eyes became even more intense.


    They hurt all over and did not know if they had broken any bones. They helped each other up, feeling each other¡¯s bodies while shaking. They began to cry as they were in pain and afraid.


    They tried to wipe away the tears, only to find that they could not wipe them clean. This made them feel ashamed, so they cried more and felt even more ashamed.


    They raised their knives and rake, crying and rushing into the street once more.


    No official would spend long watching ants climbing over his shoe, nor would a driver notice a mantis waving its ws by the state highway. After the Abbey Dean first saw the two Tang teenagers, he did not spare them any more notice. He continued walking peacefully on the Snow Street as if he were a fairy or a crane, unbothered by the snow or dust.


    Ning Que looked at the two teenagers running desperately, and his heart started beating faster for no particr reason. It was as if he had seen a mantis struggling to block a wheel or an ant propping up a giant¡¯s sole.


    He knew that the two teenagers could not change anything, including the fate of Chang¡¯an City, just as he could not change anything at this point in time, including the fate of the two teenagers.


    He was exhausted and helpless, feeling unwilling toward everything that happened in the storm and snow. This injustice was like a beast¡¯s ws tearing at his spirit, making him nervous and bringing him pain.


    There was a slight force and he began to bleed. However, he endured the pain and stood up slowly on his shaky legs because he knew the two teenagers would die soon.


    He wanted to stand there and watch them die.


    Zhang Nianzu and Li Guangdi did not die because they ran slowly due to their limping. There was one thing in front of them. They had arrived before the Abbey Dean.


    It was a ck brick, a piece of ordinary mottled ck brick with moss on. It was unknown how long it had been stuck on the wall and how much rain and wind it had endured.


    The ck brick came from an ordinary courtyard near the Vermilion Bird Avenue. It flew into the air with a puff and out of the courtyard, hurtling towards the Abbey Dean. Finally, it dropped in front of him.


    With a loud crack, the ck brick broke into four pieces.


    Zhang Nianzu and Li Guangdi stopped and looked at the ck brick. They wondered if the cultivators from the imperial court were finally showing their hand. Could the ck brick be the legendary magical weapon?


    What happened next cruelly destroyed any hope for the two teenagers. As the ck brick shattered into pieces, a man wearing a full-face beard appeared on the wall. His clothes were undone in the cold winter and his body was greasy and filthy. He looked like an unsavory character.


    Zhang Nianzu knew that he was a famous ruffian in the Sanyuanli area. The man was only good at a few things in his life, which were cheating and stealing. He was no true evil, yet he was no saint, either.


    While he respected and wanted to be like the men in the Fish-dragon Gang and the other gangs, he did not like the ruffian at all. For some reason, he felt rather disappointed and a little warm when he saw him. Perhaps the appearance of the ruffian had made him and Li Guangdi feel less lonely and helpless.


    The ruffian didn¡¯t dare to get down from the wall and sat there uncouthly. He held a dozen bricks in his arms, pelting them at the Abbey Dean standing in the middle of the street while swearing at him.


    ¡°I¡¯ll smash you to death!... You bastard!... Screw you! Damn you to hell!¡±


    Zhang Nianzu came to his senses and swore with the ruffian on the wall. His voice suddenly grew hoarse as he tossed the chopper in his hand at the Abbey Dean while Li Guangdi threw the rake in his hand.


    The ck bricks with the green marks and residual snow kept falling from the wall. The chopper and fork tore through the snow but naturally, none of them could even touch as much as a corner of the Abbey Dean¡¯s clothing before they fell to the ground.


    The Abbey Dean continued forward as nothing touched him and as if he could not hear anything.


    However, another knife tore the air.


    A ck wok flew from over the courtyard walls.


    A bamboo used for drying clothes fell from upstairs.


    Boiling hot tea was tossed, followed by an expensive teapot.


    Countless Tang people appeared on the courtyard walls by the street, and on the upper levels of teahouses.


    There were Tea Master, tofu sellers, children and ruffians.


    They tossed the heaviest objects in their hands at the taoist priest.


    They swore at the taoist priest and his family with the filthiest words they knew.


    The Vermilion Bird Avenue, which was silent moments ago, was suddenly buzzing with voices.


    Chang¡¯an, which seemed like a dead city earlier, suddenly came alive.


    The Tangs, who were hiding earlier suddenly all gathered.


    They were once afraid, and so, they stayed at home silently, waiting for the battle between Haotian Taoism and the Academy to end. They were still afraid now because they were mortals.


    But when they found out that the Academy had lost, they, like the two Sanyuanli teenagers and the ruffian, suppressed their fears and came to the ce where they were needed.


    They wanted to protect the man in the Academy and Chang¡¯an because the Academy belonged to the Tangs. And the Tang Empire was their mothend. As the Tangs, they had to contribute even if it meant death.


    The Fish-dragon Gang and men in ck clothes surged out from the streets and alleys.


    Dozens of thest men of the Yulin Royal Guards came from the other side of the Vermilion Bird Avenue.


    Cultivators from the Imperial Center Administration emerged from their hiding spots in the storm and snow.


    Old women brought their families to the Vermilion Bird Avenue.


    An elderly person holding a cane walked behind the crowd.


    A skinny taoist priest stood not far away from him.


    The skinny taoist priest brought other taoist priests in the temple with him, holding a censer used to offer sacrifice to Heaven. His expression was fierce and he looked like a gangster.


    Everyone looked mean and fierce.


    The good-natured, kind and devouted Tangs had turned into gangsters at this moment, turning Chang¡¯an into a city of sins.


    Because everyone in the city was going to risk their lives and they all wanted to kill someone.

 Chapter 788 - City of Sins (Part II)

    <h4>Chapter 788: City of Sins (Part II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Earlier, Ning Que left the Chao Mansion at the Spring Breeze Pavilion and headed for the Vermilion Bird Avenue. He left behind the worried Zeng couple and Old Master Chao who did not seem bothered at all.


    Chao Xiaoshu left Chang¡¯an with Liu V and the cavalry of the Valiant Cavalry Battalion. Yet, the Chao Mansion bustled with life as numerous decrees were issued from the house to every part of the city. Furthermore, they had also harbored dozens of refugees, so the Chao Mansion had been crowded in the recent days.


    The Chao Mansion was quiet today because the servants and refugees in the house had heard a lot of deafening noisesing from the city since early morning.


    They first heard bells ringing throughout the city, and then, they heard the wind howling and des colliding followed by thunder, snow, wind and explosions. Then they saw the ming snowy cloud in the sky.


    They gradually grew afraid because they did not know what was happening. When Ning Que came and left, they found out that the battle was no longer confined to the mortal world, and they grew increasingly disconste.


    There were government officials, war refugees, and brave members of the Fish-dragon Gang in the Chao Mansion. However, they were all ordinary people and did not have the means to join the battle.


    The courtyard was shrouded in silence for a long time. Refugees held their children nervously for fear that they might make a sound. Meanwhile, the Old Master Chao and the Zeng couple sat by the desk with a myriad of expressions.


    There were people who could bear it no longer, and the first person to stand was the one the Old Master Chao expected. He looked at the person and said, ¡°You should know very well that you¡¯ll die if you go.¡±


    Mr. Qi replied, ¡°Second Uncle, have I ever been afraid of death?¡±


    Chen VII who had been standing silently by the windows turned around to look at his fourth brother. He frowned slightly in disapproval. Just as he was about to speak up to stop him, the old Master waved his hand.


    ¡°Go if you wish. Do you need my approval to seek your death?¡±


    Mr. Qi smiled. He turned around and left the Chao Mansion with several members in ck of the Fish-dragon Gang.


    After a moment of silence, Chen VII said, ¡°It¡¯s pointless.¡±


    The Old Master Chao knew what he meant. The battle on the Vermilion Bird Avenue had long gone beyond the scope of the Five States. It was not a battle that could be influenced by efforts in secr world. Should the Academy fail to defeat that powerful enemy, not even the deaths of the Fish-dragon Gang and everyone in Chang¡¯an would be able to stop him.


    ¡°All men need to be helped. Or perhaps, one should say, we all hope to be helped.¡±


    Old Master Chao said, ¡°Mr. Thirteen might not be ordinary like us, but I suppose he could use a little help from Chang¡¯an citizens like us.¡±


    Chen VII said, ¡°It¡¯s pointless if our help is useless.¡±


    ¡°Even if the Abbey Dean was really a deity who could kill us mortals with a single nce, would it bepletely pointless if there is someone in the crowd who can make him take a second nce?¡±


    The Old Master Chao¡¯s face was filled with calmness. He said, ¡°Even if it is just as you said, that our appearance ispletely pointless, as long as we appear there, then it would be meaningful.¡±


    Grand Secretary Zeng Jing sitting by the desk was the first person toprehend the statement. He nodded in approval.


    ¡°The Academy is the Academy of the Tang Empire, and the Tang Empire belongs to the Academy. The Tang royal family respects the Academy and devotes all its resources to it. But have you ever seen a single Tang citizen speak down to the Academy and treat them as their servants? Why is the Tang Empire so different from other countries who have been bullied by the Divine Hall? It is because of the rules set by the Academy and the Headmaster. Most importantly, it is because of the attitudes of the Tangs.¡±


    The Old Master Chao said, ¡°We are nothing like the Yan Kingdom, the South Jin Kingdom or the Kingdom of Song who are the ves of Haotian Taoism. We are the masters of thisnd, so we need to make it there, even if we may die.¡±


    Chen VII was the Strategy Counsellor of the Fish-dragon Gang and was versed in long-term nning. However, he rarely went up to a real battlefield to judge the situation and would often act before anything else. When he heard the old Master¡¯s words, he seemed to have thought of something.


    ¡°Since I have to die, I would of course die with the old, weak, and disabled. I have already lived for more than 70 years, now it¡¯s my time for it.¡±


    Old Master Chao shakily pushed himself up from the table, epting the cane that his servant passed him. Then, he walked out of the mansion with the help of an old servant.


    Grand Secretary Zeng Jing said, ¡°I am old too, and should travel with Second Uncle.¡±


    Mrs. Zeng said, ¡°I am a useless woman, I should go there even more so.¡±


    Old Master Chao signaled for Chen VII to watch over the couple. He smiled and said, ¡°If Ning Que saw that his inws were tricked by me and sent to their deaths, he might quit helping me.¡±


    The Spring Breeze Pavilion was devoid of spring breeze today; there were only dancing snowkes. The main gates of the Chao Mansion opened and the Old Master Chao brought his aged and weak servants, including some elderly refugees, into the streets.


    The Old Master Chao held his cane in one hand and knocked on every door he passed. He called for his friends and invited hispanions, calling all the neighbors he had known over the years toe out.


    ¡°We only want the old, not the young.¡±


    The Old Master Chao said. His expression was not solemn nor sad. Instead, he said that with a smile, as if he was inviting old friends for tea and a chess session by the West Lake.


    The old people in the neighborhood did not think anything of it either. The Tangs were of military stock and they had all been in the army when they were young. Their trip to the Vermilion Bird Avenue was like how they went up to a battlefield in the old days.


    It was something very normal.


    They felt as if they had returned to the Military camp in those exciting days.


    Chen VII dealt with Mr. and Mrs. Zeng and ran after the old Master. He saw the valiant figures of several old men and their sons and nephews.


    A bitter and slightly mocking smile appeared on his face when he saw this. He thought to himself that these people were really stupid to go there just to let the deity take a second look at them.


    Although he thought so, he did not slow down. Soon, he reached the front of the crowd and took over the old servant to help the Old Master Chao.


    He had no choice because he was one of the Tangs, which sometimes seemed so ¡°stupid and idiotic¡±.


    There was a Taoist temple in a street. It was a skinny Taoist who was in charge of the affairs in the temple. He loved eating noodles and other than cooking noodles, the thing that he did the most was to fix the roofs of the neighbors that had been damaged by the wind and rain. That was because he only knew how to do that. If he did not do that, he would have to save for a long time, so that he could afford wine to entice his neighbors toe and listen to him preach about the West-Hill teachings.


    The Taoist temple was very humble. Many things that happened here would be written in history in the future. For example, Ye Su, the Haotian Taoism World Wayfarer once worked as a preaching Taoist here. The Eldest Brother of the Academy and Ye Su had once participated in a debate on the stone steps here. Ye Su once attained Tao enlightenment here and he destroyed the temple before building a new one.


    The skinny Taoist was an ordinary Taoist. He only knew Ye Su¡¯s status from his Taoist bun, and he did not know his true identity. He also did not know that these things had happened in his own little temple. Otherwise, he would not be as frustrated as he was now. Or perhaps, he might be even more frustrated than he was.


    ¡°I¡¯m very frustrated.¡±


    The skinny Taoist looked at the disciples in front of him with a worried expression. He said, ¡°I really don¡¯t know what to do. Do you have any ideas?¡±


    The little taoist priests were too busy memorizing and reciting the scriptures every day, how would they be able toe up with any ideas?


    The skinny Taoist looked up at the burning snowy cloud in the sky. He said, ¡°I am sure I have heard of the Zhishou Abbey. That¡¯s an Unknown ce in our Haotian Taoism. Then, the Abbey Dean is considered our grandmaster.¡±


    A little taoist priest said, ¡°But I heard the neighbors say that our grandmaster is about to destroy Chang¡¯an.¡±


    ¡°That is why I¡¯m very frustrated... Should we help our grandmaster or should we stop him?¡±


    The skinny Taoist sighed.


    Suddenly, he stamped his foot heavily and angrily. He shouted at the burning snowy cloud in the sky, ¡°Who cares if he¡¯s the grandmaster or not. I¡¯ve been minding this Taoist temple all my life. Even if it was Haotian who wanted to destroy my Taoist temple, I would also fight to the end!¡±


    The skinny Taoist left the Taoist temple with his little taoist priests. They held heavy incense burners and carried old logs of wood that had been piled up in the corner of the wall, ready to fight against their grandmaster.


    Unlike the ordinary people on the 2nd Street of the Spring Breeze Pavilion, their internal struggle was more intense. But once they had made a decision, they did not hesitate any longer and were about to do everything wholeheartedly.


    Because they were all beings with faith.


    Going against Haotian Taoism seemed to be a serious vition of faith, but neither the skinny Taoist nor the young taoist priests were sure about what they believed in.


    They were Tang citizens and had lived in Chang¡¯an all their lives. They once thought that they believed in Haotian. But when they lifted their incense burners, their wooden rods and walked out of the Taoist temple, they discovered that their faith was faith itself.


    In conclusion, they were all beings with faith.


    In the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s doctrine, suicide was a grave sin. However, it was a greater sin for taoist priests to go against Haotian Taoism. They would definitely be cruelly punished by Haotian.


    The Old Master Chao brought hispanions to the Vermilion Bird Avenue. They were walking to their deaths, and that was also suicide.


    The skinny Taoist brought the little taoist priests and stood before the Abbey Dean. They were betraying the teachings and alsomitting sphemy.


    In other words, they were all soiled with sin.


    There were many other people like them.


    Three taoists from the Southern Gate Temple were setting up a tactical array.


    They were skilled cultivators from the Imperial Center Administration and were also the most devout believers of Haotian.


    They were pale and their hearts ached terribly.


    But their actions did not slow at all.


    Lady Chu brought the women and the young from her manor with her, wielding a knife in the street.


    The Old Lady was the widow of General Chu Xiongtu of the 16th Guards. Her silver hair danced in the storm and snow.


    She had seven sons and 37 grandsons.


    In the past years, two of her sons and three of her grandsons had died at the Tang borders. She had lost 11 grandsons in the war waged in the Yan, in the Seven Stockaded Viges and in the Pamir Mountains.


    Now, all the male servants in the Chu family were fighting the invaders on the battlefield on the Tang Empire¡¯snds. She had only a dozen weak, elderly women and children as well as a few des with her.


    She knew that she was walking towards death, but her expression was indifferent. She did not care at all.


    The Chu family was filled with brave and loyal souls. Even if they all died, they were still a family full of brave and loyal souls!


    If Haotian was watching.


    She would see that everyone on this long street in the storm and snow were sinners who hadmitted different sins.


    Chang¡¯an was a city of sins today.


    What a sinful city!

 Chapter 789 - Pursuing Death

    <h4>Chapter 789: Pursuing Death</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Quietus emerged from the Abbey Dean¡¯s eyes and was devoured by Ning Que¡¯s Practice of Taotie. It enveloped the entire Chang¡¯an City through the array eye pestle, making the storm and snow be even wilder and the cold spread further.


    The Vermilion Bird Avenue was also very cold. As more and more Tang citizens appeared at the wall and on the street, the temperature gradually rose. They stood side by side in the crowded street, stepping on each other from time to time. The ice and snow gradually melted, and some people began to feel hot.


    The Tangs felt their hearts getting heated, and their blood grew hot until their entire bodies felt boiling. They clenched their fist, waved their arms and cried out in anger.


    Around Vermilion Bird Avenue, a cacophony of shouting, killing, and swearing could be heard. People kept hurling bricks, chamber pots, tea scraps, leftovers and urine at the Abbey Dean.


    The Tangs believed in Haotian, but also incredulously believed that man¡¯s determination could conquer nature. This was because while the Headmaster had not touched the affairs of the world for many years, his endless courage in the struggle against the heavens had spread to every town and city. It entered the blood of every Tang citizen through the Academy, the royal family, the imperial court and the army.


    They knew that the Taoist in indigo on the street was an extremely powerful powerhouse, undefeatable. Even though the ordinary person was as weak as an ant before him, two teens from Sanyuanli held their knives and rakes and rushed towards him. Even if the Abbey Dean was a human eating monster, they would still try to go against him.


    <i>Even though we can¡¯t beat you, can¡¯t we scold you with so many mouths? Even if this man was shameless and disregarded our scolding, if we hurl excretions at him, would he not look pathetic?</i>


    The Snow Street had looked like a holy pce earlier. It was ethereally beautiful and the snow was equally clean without a trace of dust, just like Haotian¡¯s face.


    As the crowd attacked, the street became filthy. The sphemous shouting, killing and swearing as well as the stench of the world was carried by the storm and snow into the skies high above. They smeared onto Haotian¡¯s face and it was a great embarrassment.


    The Abbey Dean looked at the filthy aura of the human realm floating into the sky and raised his eyebrows slightly. The excrement and urine did not stain his attire but made him slightly angry.


    Within the scope of his vision, there were at least thousands of Tang citizens on the Snow Street. He could also sense that there were more Tang citizens heading towards the Vermilion Bird Avenue to their deaths.


    The Abbey Dean was slightly surprised to see so many Tangs on the street. But he did not care. He only cared about implementing Haotian¡¯s will and ending the millennia-old history that the Headmaster had left on earth.


    Chang¡¯an was full of snow and wind and there were countless lines of Talisman of ¡°Yi¡± that Ning Que had hidden earlier in the snow. The talismans sessfully filled the gaps of the God-stunning Array, leaving only a single path.


    There was no change to the situation. The Abbey Dean had to kill Ning Que that was on the Vermillion Bird Avenue. And between the both of them, was arge crowd.


    The Abbey Dean walked into the crowd.


    The Abbey Dean was called Chen Mou, which was one of the mostmon names in the world. He looked like an ordinary person. When he walked into the crowd, he was like a drop of water that merged in the ocean of people.


    Then, a storm started in the middle of the ocean. Many people were tossed into the air, just like waves hitting against reefs. They brought with them white snow as they dissipated into the dangerous nature.


    The men in ck clothes who rushed at him with knives fell into a pool of blood. The dozen Yulin Royal Guards who charged forth on their horses fell off and did not rise again when they were still hundreds feet away from the Abbey Dean.


    The Abbey Dean gradually appeared in the crowd. Behind him was a scene of utter devastation. Under the oppression of a terrifying aura, the crowd gradually parted.


    Then, the Tang cultivators acted.


    The Imperial Center Administration had been quietly lurking in the surrounding city streets. Several Array Tactical Masters started the Encircling Array Tactical and the Qi of Heaven and Earth around the Vermilion Bird Avenue changed drastically. Some turbulent primordial Qi turned into locks in the air around the Abbey Dean and blocked his path.


    Almost at the same time, more than a dozen military Sword Masters hiding among the ordinary people suddenly and violently started to shoot. There were sounds of nging and ringing as bright flying swords rose into the air and plunged towards the Abbey Dean.


    The Abbey Dean¡¯s expression changed little. He flicked his sleeves and continued forward.


    With the flick, the sword styles in the vertical and horizontal long streets suddenly turned soft and weak like drenched straw. Meanwhile, the primordial Qi locks fell onto the ground like overripe apples in autumn. They fell to the ground, shattering into mush and sshing up juice.


    The Tang¡¯s Array Tactical Masters hidden in the city were impacted by the reflection of the primordial Qi and bled to death on the spot. The more than ten Sword Masters¡¯ Natal Swords were destroyed by the Abbey Dean with his flicking sleeves. It was unknown whether they were alive or dead.


    The Abbey Dean continued forward, searching for Ning Que who was behind the crowd.


    The crowd was disturbed, the flying bricks stopped for a moment, and then continued to fall like heavy rain.


    However, even cultivators¡¯ flying swords could not touch the Abbey Dean, let alone bricks. Master Huang Yang¡¯s prayer beads could not even trap the Abbey Dean for a moment, much less sewage.


    The Abbey Dean continued forth calmly. The people blocking his way were crushed like ants or tossed into the air.


    The brave Tang citizens continued surging at the Abbey Dean and died.


    The Snow Street turned into a street of blood. There was blood flowing everywhere.


    Courage was a word worthy of respect in the world, but in front of the absolute power representing Haotian, it was so weak and ridiculous that it could hardly be described as heroic.


    In the face of the gap that could not be countered, the people in Chang¡¯an should have despaired and given up like ants looking up at the sky.


    Incredibly, while sorrow, anger and unwillingness could be seen on their faces, there was not a trace of despair in them.


    They did not despair, cry or curse any longer. Instead, they continued fighting in silence. Even if it was a hopeless fight, they would fight to the end.


    A coolie porter picked up a pole and threw it at the Abbey Dean, then he died.


    A peddler from a foreign county picked up the dagger he used to protect himself in the mountains. And then, he died.


    A man nobody knew pounced at the Abbey Dean, and then, he died.


    People picked up bricks, kitchen knives, shot at the Abbey Dean with their family bows and arrows, and then died.


    They were dying for nothing.


    Dying did not sound good, it even seemed stupid.


    But men were wonderful creatures. Even though they knew that the end result could not be altered, many would still persist due to one reason or another.


    People even created a word with simr meaning for this purpose.


    Pursuing death.


    The Tangs were pursuing death today.


    They were all pursuing death.


    They wanted to stop the Abbey Dean.


    The towering city walls of Chang¡¯an City failed to stop the enemy.


    So they built a new wall with their own flesh and blood.

 Chapter 790 - Unacceptance of the Noble Kingdom

    <h4>Chapter 790: Uneptance of the Noble Kingdom</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The people on the street who stepped in front of the Abbey Dean, those who fell into pools of blood, and those who made up the new city walls were all certain that their deaths would not change anything.


    But they still did it. Because a thousand years ago, the Headmaster and their ancestors had created the Tang Empire by the Sishui River. Then, they had an Academy. And from that day on, they were changed.


    Ning Que had previously said such a sentence to the Abbey Dean. Even though they knew they could not protect it, they would still do it. The Tang citizens who were dying seemed to be proving his statement true.


    However, as he looked at the streets reddened by blood and at the falling people, Ning Que¡¯s heart began to tremble, and the frost on hisshes tinkled.


    There was a loud noise in the distance, and he knew that Eldest Brother had finally arrived and had made a move ¨C This was not the Academy trying to find an opportunity. Ning Que was the Academy¡¯s opportunity. However, in the face of the bloodied streets, Eldest Brother could not stay silent anymore, just like how Ning Que could not bear it any longer.


    It had been more than 20 years since he came to this world, and he still believed that he was a non-typical Tang Citizen. He had seen too much darkness and had believed in being cold-blooded to survive. He would pay any price as long as he could live. His heart was as cold as the frozen body that was sealed by the Abbey Dean¡¯s Quietus earlier.


    Most of the ice and snow had ked off, yet Ning Que¡¯s body was still cold. At this time, he felt his body was gradually bing hot, and the blood in his vessels began to steam. He started to feel something he had not felt in a long time.


    That was called feeling hot-blooded.


    He did not like words such as solemn or stirring, and he hated the feeling of his blood being heated. But how could the blood flowing from his wounds not emit steam as he watched countless people die before the Abbey Dean?


    But hot blood represented hope and desire. Ning Que desired to live and hoped that he could beat the Abbey Dean. In the face of a situation devoid of hope, what could hot blood do?


    From time to time, someone would run past him and rush towards the Abbey Dean. He picked up the podao he had dropped on the snow and struggled to support his body.


    The podao¡¯s de pierced the snow and plunged into the hard green stone street.


    Eldest Brother failed once more. Blood flowed from the cuts on his cotton jacket.


    He stood on the southern end of the Vermilion Bird Avenue, bent over and coughed incessantly. He seemed to be in pain and looked upset.


    No one knew where Yu Lian was.


    The Abbey Dean continued forward. He killed many people, and tossed many into the air. He passed by many, and ignored many. He continued forward, leaving bloodshed behind him.


    There were many injured people on the Vermilion Bird Avenue.


    The Abbey Dean walked up close to where Ning Que was.


    Separating them, were only a few hundred citizens who were old and weak, women and children.


    The skinny Taoist lived in Chang¡¯an city all his life, rising from the mostmon little Taoist to the current Taoist that he was. But he had always lived in that little temple. He had never seen the priests in red of the West-Hill Divine Pce. Several years ago, when the Great Divine Priest of Revtion came to Chang¡¯an, he had knelt for an entire night, but did not get the opportunity to listen to the Great Divine Priest¡¯s teachings.


    He finally met the truly supreme Taoist of Haotian Taoism now. His body trembled uncontrobly and he wanted to kneel in front of the Taoist in indigo. And kiss his feet piously.


    He suddenly shouted and grabbed the incense pot from the little Taoist and hurled it at the Abbey Dean.


    The incense pot was used in the little Taoist Temple to worship Haotian. It was made of bronze and was very heavy. The skinny Taoist felt that his heart was heavy and felt weak, so he could not throw it far enough.


    There was a dull crack, and the incense potnded on the skinny Taoist¡¯s feet. He started bleeding and moaning in pain, and only remained standing because of the little Taoist priest beside him.


    Old Lady Chu took the knife from her third-daughter-inw and stood before the Abbey Dean.


    Old Lord Chao walked to the front of the crowd, leaning against his cane.


    The Abbey Dean¡¯s expression was peaceful, and his eyes calm.


    There seemed to be hundreds of millions of dying stars¡¯ embers in his eyes, leaving behind only emptiness.


    It made one feel afraid and in awe of him.


    Everything was about to end under his vacant gaze.


    The Tangs who were pursuing death, the unyielding Chang¡¯an, the great Tang Empire, the Millennium-old Academy; all the glory and blood, heroics or evils, the time of light or darkness would all end here.


    The long street was chilly.


    Ning Que looked at the ordinary face and eyes of the Abbey Dean and suddenly remembered the great people he had met or felt in his life.


    No matter the Headmaster, Youngest Uncle, or Lian Sheng, they were all people who truly knew what they wanted. They had freed themselves and then understood what they wanted, which was why they were powerful beyond imagination.


    The Abbey Dean was someone like that.


    No wonder the Academy fell to the Abbey Dean today. The Academy believed that nothing was a mistake. Then, it should be as calm and collected as people who died on the street today.


    But he could not do that.


    Because he could not ept that.


    The Xiangwan in was a fertilend with abundant water in the north of the Tang Empire.


    Today, the in had be the most horrific battlefield.


    The Golden Pce cavalry and the elite cavalry of the Northern Army had been fighting here for three days and three nights, just for a key path by the side of the in.


    The Golden cavalry won as they had more soldiers. After paying a terrible price, they finally suppressed the Tang Army, keeping them between several hills in the north of the path and wereunching a final offense.


    The impact of war-horses made a dull and frightening sound; the friction between cusses and straight knives make a scratching sound that hurt the ears. The killing yells and the war drums were dying out because both parties were extremely exhausted.


    The war on horses had already be a war fought on foot. Thest thousand Tang Army soldiers fought with what was left of their strength and life to resist the attack of the Golden cavalry. However, it looked as if they would lose the battle any minute now.


    A Tang Empire officer and his dozen subordinates were surrounded by the warriors of the Golden Pce.


    The officer was a little short and not as strong as the generals in the Tang Army. However, he broke out into an unexpectedly powerfulbat spree at this critical moment and killed three enemies in session.


    Several cusses flew into the air.


    The scrawny officer raised his knife, knelt down on one knee and struggled to live.


    He listened to the cries of pain from all around the hills and through the hair strands flying before him, he saw many of hispanions die and watched the barbarians cruelly drive their knives into the bodies of hispanions.


    Can they really not hold on any longer?


    He thought to himself. Could they really not hold on until the main cavalry came to help?


    His pale but handsome face had no expression of hopelessness.


    He did not think that he should lose hope.


    Because he could not ept that.


    A troop ran wildly on the wilnds¡¯ eastern border.


    They were cavalrymen of the Valiant Cavalry Battalion. They left Chang¡¯an to fight at the Eastern Border.


    They were in a hurry to return to Chang¡¯an right now.


    The cavalry and horsemen were exhausted, but nobody asked to rest.


    Because they had finally determined where Prince Long Qing and the two thousand grasnd cavalry were headed.


    Long Qing was heading towards Chang¡¯an.


    This meant that they were going to fight against the Tang Coalition Army and they were sure that Chang¡¯an could be broken into.


    Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s face was so thin, like a carved stone. He was tanned and haggard.


    The cold wind rushed against his face.


    They were many dayste. They shouldn¡¯t be able to catch up even as he and his cavalry ran after them now.


    And even if they caught up, what could they do?


    Yet he asked for his troop to continue rushing towards Chang¡¯an.


    Because he could not ept that.

 Chapter 791 - Unacceptance of the Noble Kingdom (Part 2)

    <h4>Chapter 791: Uneptance of the Noble Kingdom (Part 2)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The mes danced on the silver mask and in the ck eyes, like lightning in the summer rain.


    It waste winter and was snowing. The Qi of Heaven and Earth in Chang¡¯an had been put to rest, so it was not really lightning, but embers of fire.


    The snowy field and the beautiful quiet vige on the state highway should have made a beautiful scene. However, they were burned by fierce mes and had be a ck and bleak wastnd.


    Prince Long Qing looked at the scene before him silently and indifferently. He did not look excited and only his hand wrapped tightly around the rope revealed how he truly felt.


    After leading the barbarian cavalry into the Eastern Wilderness, he had ordered his subordinates to set fire to the distant Eastern Border and this vige.


    He had led 2000 of the most elite among his cavalry to ambush Chang¡¯an regardless of any price they had to pay. Both the Tang army and the persistent Valiant Cavalry Battalion would not be able to catch up with him at this point in time.


    He was already very close to Chang¡¯an.


    Years ago, he had lost to Ning Que at the Academy¡¯s entrance exam. He had left Chang¡¯an with the West-Hill Divine Pce diplomatic corps and the Papal Cavalrymen on this particr path.


    On the same highway, he recalled what had happened back then and the emotions he felt. Then, he remembered the ambition he had in the past.


    ¡°I want to pull down all these ugly houses of the Tangs and eradicate all the rapeseed in the fields. Then I¡¯ll burn all of them, with all the sins and the filth, to rebuild into a holy, bright world.¡±


    He was about to return to Chang¡¯an, a city that had left him with endless humiliation and pain, changing his life in a certain sense. His cultivation state and strength had improved vastly, but his eyes no longer shone with purity.


    The rape blossoms in the field by the highway had not yet grown. The houses built by the Tang farmers which had been painted in various colors were not as beautiful or ugly as they had been. Then, he shall burn them all.


    He might as well tell those in Chang¡¯an that he had arrived.


    It was snowing in Chang¡¯an and the north of the Xiao Mountain, but it was just as cold. The rain soaked through the armor and into the leather coat until it reached the skin, making the days even more unbearable.


    The Southern Army marched northwards in the cold rain. The Tang army could be seen throughout the Xiao Mountain and in its forests. There were many of them, making it look like the forest was filled with leaves that had fallen and gathered for a thousand years.


    The march was very difficult. The cold weather and rain, the decaying leaves and the trampled mountain path were their enemies. Many had already fallen behind along the way.


    There were more people who moved forth even though they were pale, both emotionally and physically tired. They gritted their teeth, lowered their heads and followed the people in front of them, crawling through the muddy wilderness.


    They could only continue if they gritted their teeth, and they could only conserve thest bit of their energy by staying silent. Only when they hung their heads could these tired people see where the troops were marching to.


    More than 100,000 Tang Army soldiers walked in the mountains. However, they did not make too much noise. Only the asional sound of heavy objects falling could be heard when the troop¡¯s boots struck the mud.


    The silence was frightening, and this was also what frightened their enemy the most.


    The generals of the Tang army and the ordinary soldiers all firmly believed that even if the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army really had the one million soldiers strong troop told as in the rumors, they would be able to stop them if they could reach Chang¡¯an.


    They had to rush to the north of the Verdant Canyon, and the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army did not give them enough time. They did not have time to sleep or eat hot meals as they spent all their time on the road.


    They walked day and night, through the snow and rain and through the foggy forests in search of a faster path. They kept walking.


    However, the distance was still too long. The Southern Army had tried its best, but it was still a distance away from the northern Verdant Canyon. They were already several dayste from the arrival date requested by the Military Ministry.


    Theoretically speaking, the Verdant Canyon should have fallen and it was pointless for the Southern Army to rush over. In fact, it was dangerous for them to do so. What they should do right now was to seek information of their enemy, toter retreat and await for aid.


    However, the troop still rushed on because they did not receive any new orders. Their mission was still to rush to the Verdant Canyon and defend it because they believed, almost blindly, in the abilities of the Academy¡¯s disciples.


    Because they could not ept that.


    The clouds were thin and the rain light on the other side of the Xiao Mountain.


    Raindrops pattered, falling upon the quiet wilderness and were instantly absorbed by the soil. It was impossible to wash away the blood umted during these seven days and only added a certain amount of dampness to the ground.


    The ground in front of the Verdant Canyon was harder due to the pressure exerted upon it by the powerhouses¡¯ Qi of Heaven and Earth. As such, the rain seeped through it slowly and started to umte in the messy hoof prints on the ground.


    There was a booming sound from the far south of the Wilderness and the earth began to vibrate. The shallowyer of water in the prints started to shake.


    ¡°The South Jin Kingdom¡¯s trebuchet has finally arrived.¡±


    Sixth Brother looked at the people and objects that had appeared in the distance and felt the ground under his feet shaking. There were several bloodied wounds on his iron-hard body and a deep gouge on his hammer.


    Forth Brother sat under the iron shelter, holding the River and Mountain Sandbox, struggling against the Virtual Sword left by the Abbey Dean a few days ago. All the other disciples of the Academy other than him were seriously injured.


    The flower Wang Chi had stuck in his bun was long stained with blood, turning ck.


    Ximen Buhuo¡¯s front was stained with blood and his face was as white as a sheet of paper.


    Beigong Weiyang¡¯s handsnded on his bloodied zither, curled up like birds¡¯ ws.


    Jun Mo changed into new clothes that were in and devoid of blood. His left sleeve floated in the cold air. He lowered his head in the rain, looking exhausted.


    He silently looked at the water gathered in the hoof prints close to him.


    The front of the Verdant Canyon was littered with body parts and corpses. Only the area surrounding him was empty.


    There was yet another battle before the Verdant Canyon after Liu Bai retreated. Every time the Divine Hall Coalition Army thought they were about to overwhelm the Academy¡¯s disciples, they rose up from the sword and music.


    Ye Hongyu stood in the distance across them; her Divine Robe of Judgement had long been stained with blood, making it truly the color of blood.


    Seven monthster, she had finally seen a glimmer of victory.


    The Academy was not Haotian after all. It was not omnipotent.


    Jun Mo slowly bent down and picked up his high crown that had fallen to the ground.


    He had ignored the crown that had fallen after his battle with Liu Bai as he did not have the time.


    There was blood and ash on the crown.


    He slowly frowned, wanting to get rid of the blood and ash on it.


    He was holding the crown with his right hand because he had already lost his left hand.


    Mu You walked up to him and took the crown, carefully wiping it down with her handkerchief.


    Jun Mo leaned forward, bowing to her.


    Mu You¡¯s eyes were wet as she smiled and returned the bow.


    They bowed at each other.


    Mu You said, ¡°I will marry you.¡±


    Jun Mo said calmly, ¡°That¡¯s good.¡±


    Mu You ced the crown onto his head and arranged it seriously.


    This was the gifting of the crown.


    Jun Mo said, ¡°To die for the gift of the crown is reasonable.¡±


    Mu You replied, ¡°To die together is reasonable as well.¡±


    Crying and screaming sounded before the Verdant Canyon. It was a cry that tore one¡¯s heart.


    Beigong Weiyang broke his zither strings. Blood sttered everywhere as he screamed through his tears, ¡°I don¡¯t ept this!¡±

 Chapter 792 - Unacceptance of the Noble Kingdom (Part 3)

    <h4>Chapter 792: Uneptance of the Noble Kingdom (Part 3)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ning Que lowered his head, standing on the snowy street. Blood incessantly flowed from the holes in his fingers and was frozen, to be then flushed apart by fresh blood, making him look truly miserable.


    He held the array eye pestle in one hand and the hilt of his de in the other. However, he could not write a single talisman, nor did he have the strength to wave his de. If the podao had not been supporting his weight, he might have copsed in a second.


    He did not look at the Abbey Dean¡¯s eyes because he might die if they made eye contact. He could only look at the Abbey Dean¡¯s legs, in the lowliest way.


    He was covered in blood; his own, but mostly belonging to the ordinary people who had died in the hands of the Abbey Dean earlier. He felt that this blood was even hotter than his own.


    His blood was heated as their blood sshed onto him. However, what saddened him was that his body and his heart were both cold.


    No matter how indignant he was, he was overwhelmed by the coldness of the Quietus. He could not find any strength within him and was only left with exhaustion and helplessness.


    Numerous ¡°Yi¡± talismans were still floating in the streets and alleys of Chang¡¯an City. They were hidden in the snow and had not dissipated with the help of the God-stunning Array.


    This was Ning Que¡¯s most powerful skill. But it was also proven to be useless against the Abbey Dean.


    He looked at the Abbey Dean¡¯s feet and seemed to see countless of ant corpses under his soles. These ants were brave and fearless, and it was a pity that they had all died.


    The bravery that had stunned many could not change the distance between Heaven and mankind. What else could the people on Earth do other than surrender to Haotian? What was the point of being indignant?


    The Abbey Dean practiced cultivation all his life in Haotian¡¯s ruthlessness. He was a calctive person and was well versed in exercising tolerance. One who could tolerate others was absolutely heartless.


    The Tangs who had rushed to their deaths on the snowy street today might not have changed the ending of the battle today, but he was shocked by the incredible image before him.


    It was not that he could not help feeling bad for them, but he did not understand.


    The Abbey Dean had seen many who could face their end calmly, but they were all Grand Cultivators who were in the Beyond the Mortality State, and few of them were ordinary folk.


    But many of these ordinary people in Chang¡¯an were weing death calmly, and all at the same time. This was unexpected, or perhaps, one could say that it was beyond his appraisal of themon people.


    ¡°The Tangs... perhaps, they might really be a little special.¡±


    The Abbey Dean sped his hands behind his back and looked at the old, weak, women and children before him. He looked at the faces devoid of any fear and suddenly asked, ¡°Is there anyone who can ept dying like ants?¡±


    Old Master Chao was the one who answered his question.


    Old Master Chao hobbled to the front of the crowd with the aid of his cane. He said, ¡°eptance is sweet. eptance isfortable. How can we make ourselvesfortable? I don¡¯t know what the people out there would answer. But to us old residents of Chang¡¯an, we will feelfortable as long as we do not feel shame in death.¡±


    ¡°So this is how one can exin eptance.¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked at Old Master Chao and said, ¡°You are not an ordinary person. How should I address you?¡±


    Old Master Chao replied, ¡°My surname is Chao. The younger generation call me second uncle. I think I am older than you; you can just call me second uncle Chao so it¡¯s not demeaning to you.¡±


    ¡°There is nothing special about me. We are just ordinary folk. However, no matter whether we are the most ordinary or are like you, the most extraordinary, we are all human. We will all die.¡±


    The meaning behind the old master¡¯s words was clear. No matter whether they were the Abbey Dean of Zhishou Abbey or Haotian believers, they would all be an urn of sand or ash in the end. Then, they would all be equal.


    ¡°That is why there are so many people fighting to seek death.¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked thoughtfully at the corpses of the Tangs littering the Vermilion Bird Avenue.


    ¡°We, the Tangs, have always had the tradition of seeking death.¡±


    Old Master Chao¡¯s expression turned solemn as he said, ¡°In the first battle with the other countries, there was not a single Tang citizen who surrendered in the storm. The Tangs did not surrender in the war against the Deste. The Tang Empire has a history spanning a thousand years since we started on the Sishui River. There were many generations who have sought death bravely. The Tang Empire is strong because we are unafraid of death.¡±


    ¡°Back then, Taizu (Founder of the Tang Dynasty) did not hesitate to risk the country¡¯s safety and exhausted the nation¡¯s powers just for a single messenger. He sent the army to the northern wilderness and only returned when all the enemies were in.The only girl in the Academy had dared to fight both the Buddhism and Taoism sects.Mr. Second smashed the Buddha statue at Lanke before he felt appeased. The Tang Empire is strong because it is unafraid to hate.


    ¡°The Tang Empire is strong because of the Tangs.¡± Old Master Chao looked at the Abbey Dean and said in a wizened voice, ¡°Tang Empire has always been filled with hardworking people. Strong people who dared to stake their lives. In the face of unfairness and abuse, there will be people who dare to speak up against all of it. Facing the invasion, there will be people who would bravely seek to go to their deaths...¡±


    The Southern Army was in the forests of the Xiao Mountain, struggling towards the Verdant Canyon.


    The cold rain slipped through their cors, draining away the warmth and bringing forth sickness. Soldiers fell off the cliff from time to time. Hispanions would stand by the edge of the cliff silently for a moment before continuing forward.


    They looked down tiredly, refusing to stop even though they knew that they werete. They rushed forward, running wildly, risking their lives.


    Yang Erxi shed a barbarian from the Eastern Wilderness.


    He treasured the cuss gained on the battlefield. He kept the de in its sheath and retrieved the pitch-fork from his back. Then, he stabbed it down forcefully to ensure that the barbarian waspletely dead.


    The sounds of killing in the field calmed gradually.


    He wiped away the sweat on his forehead and looked around, panting heavily. Then, he saw several of hispanions lying on the field that were dusted with a thinyer of snow.


    The battle had ended. He stood before several new graves silently for a long time. Then, he looked at the direction his hometown was in. He missed his wife¡¯s braised pork trotters a lot.


    He still had not finished painting the school¡¯s walls.


    Back then, he had felt that the yamen was not paying him fairly and he had insisted on not doing the job. He had fought with the Vige Head and even almost smashed the wine table. He prepared to lodge awsuit at the county government. But he had epted the job unwillingly after being unable to bear his daughter¡¯s anger and his wife¡¯s natterings.


    He had only painted half of the wall when he saw the notice. He had carried his pitch-fork, some wine and meat, and left his hometown for the distant Eastern Border. He did not know when he would be able to finish the walls.


    He did not know if the paint job would ever be finished.


    By him.


    Yang Erxi looked at the direction of his hometown, thinking about the things that troubled him. He frowned angrily, and his newly scabbed wound tore open again.


    Blood flowed downwards. He raised his arm and wiped it carelessly with his sleeve. He suddenly thought of the teacher in the school and thought that he would not be angry about the unfinished wall.


    And he started smiling happily.


    The battle on Xiangwan in was still progressing ferociously.


    The short officer was forced to kneel on one knee by the barbarians¡¯ cusses and was in a perilous situation.


    The officer struggled to hold on.


    A dark figure flew up at the side, bashing down forcefully on the barbarians.


    The bright cusses slid across the seemingly zing meadow.


    The dark figure fell onto the ground. There were two des in his chest and he was bleeding heavily, looking as if he was on the brink of death.


    The officer recognized that it was his escort servant.


    He yelled anguishedly. The podao in his hands rose as he moved to stab it at his opponent.


    At this moment, he did not consider that the cusses above his head would cleave him into halves.


    He was very lucky.


    He killed the barbarians surrounding him and he did not die.


    One of his shoulders was wounded, and blood flowed from it like wine flowing out of a shed wine bag.


    What was most dangerous was that his helmet had been knocked off by the enemy¡¯s knife.


    The enemy¡¯s de had cut his bun after the helmet was knocked off.


    ck hair fell over the officer¡¯s shoulders. Coupled with the beautiful features that were not covered by armor, everyone could see that the officer was actually a woman.


    She was Situ Yn.


    She carried the heavy podao, covered in wounds, filled with anger. She brought thest of her subordinates and started the fight again. She did not know when the fight would end, but she knew that they would fight to death or victory.


    ¡°There is this saying in Chang¡¯an, that we can entrust our orphans...¡±


    Old Master Chao looked at the Abbey Dean and continued.


    At this time, the Imperial Pce in the distance was enshrouded in the storm and snow.


    Tang Xiaotang stood on the snowy grounds in front of the pce, looking at the south silently.


    The Empress held the little Emperor¡¯s hand, standing behind the railings. She stared at the thickening snow outside the pce.


    Coughs rang out from the end of the snowy street. Eldest Brother appeared.


    His cotton jacket had long been torn and was in disarray. Cotton that was as white as snow leaked out from it. Some parts were dyed red, looking like crimson flowers.


    It was refreshing and moving.


    Ning Que stood on the end of the street and was covered in blood.


    He held the array eye pestle. The blood had frozen his palm and the pestle together.


    This pestle, this array, this city. They were entrusted to him by his teachers and His Majesty.


    Then, he would never let it go until his death.


    The hand that Old Master Chao used to hold the cane shook slightly. His voice brightened all of a sudden.


    ¡°And we can entrust our lives...¡±


    In front of the Verdant Canyon.


    Jun Mo¡¯s clothing was once more put together, and his crown was straight.


    He held his iron sword in one hand and looked at the enemy cavalry in the wilnds.


    He was expressionless as he began to burn up thest of his Psyche Power.


    It was as if Heaven and Earth had sensed the heat that was his life force burning. The gradually tapering rain suddenly stopped, and the clouds above the wilnds gradually disappeared, revealing a blue line that was the sky.


    Sunlight streamed down through the cracks in the cloud, shining upon him.


    It shone on the students of the Academy.


    Old Master Chao looked at the street filled with the corpses of the Tangs, tears streaming down his face. Then, he suddenly smiled and looked at the Abbey Dean, bellowing, ¡°...in the face of death and trouble, do not be shaken and be unyielding.¡±


    The wizened voice echoed through the Vermilion Bird Avenue, in the storm and snow, through the winter willows and snowke, before the Verdant Canyon and in the Xiao Mountain. It echoed through the Eastern Border, the Northern Frontier and through every inch ofnd in the Tang Empire.


    A gentleman could be entrusted with the destiny of either a baby or a nation; and he would guard his own awareness even when faced with great changes. That was a how a real gentleman should be like.


    ¡°The Tang Empire is filled with people like this. Because the Tang Empire is a noble kingdom.¡±


    Old Master Chao stared into the Abbey Dean¡¯s eyes and said shrilly, ¡°Such a beautiful kingdom is about to be destroyed by you nasty Taoists. How dare you ask if we can ept this...¡±


    He raised his cane in preparation to throw it at the Abbey Dean.


    ¡°Screw you!¡±

 Chapter 793 - If Heaven Cannot Accept Me

    <h4>Chapter 793: If Heaven Cannot ept Me</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The impassioned, loud and hot-blooded deration suddenly turned into loud swearing. Old Master Chao cursed at the Abbey Dean and smashed his cane at the man.


    Ordinary people and extraordinary people were all human beings. They would all turn into ash after death. But there was still argedifference while they were alive. No way could the old man¡¯s cane knock down the Abbey Dean.


    The people on the snowy street thought that Old Master Chao was dead, but he did not die because the Abbey Dean did not do anything. Instead, he walked past the old man calmly.


    Eldest Brother faintly guessed the intention of the Abbey Dean. Haotian Taoism wanted to break into Chang¡¯an and the hearts of the people in the city. The Abbey Dean had killed many on the streets because he wanted to break the hardest of the Tangs with his strongest means. He wanted to stomp their pride into the mud. However, since killing them could not solve the problem, he then chose to ignore them.


    However, the Abbey Dean did not understand the Tangs. Old Master Chao had just skittered by the fine line separating life and death. He was not confused by the Abbey Dean¡¯s disregard, but instead, started to feel suspicious and even fearful.


    It was fine even if he failed to knock down the man. There would be opportunities to do so in the future. It was fine even if he did not die; not dying was better than dying after all. Was there any reason to start feeling self-doubt? Old Master Chao leaned against his cane and cursed colorfully as he walked to the street side. His cursing was violent, and his words, filthier than the filth on the snowy ground.


    The Abbey Dean frowned slightly and continued forward. He walked towards Ning Que, and closer to the Imperial Pce.


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°This is wrong.¡±


    The Abbey Dean replied, ¡°The Tang Empire might be strong, but what can you do if the Heavens want it to fall?¡±


    In front of the Verdant Canyon.


    Ye Hongyu looked at Jun Mo who was standing across her. Blood flowed down her sleeves, dripping onto the ground and mixing with the odors of the blood that had been building up over the past days.


    She was very calm because she knew that Jun Mo was more seriously injured than herself. He was burning up thest of his Psyche Power and life force, inching closer to death.


    She looked at Jun Mo¡¯s expressionless face and at the bloodied disciples of the Academy behind him. She thought of the terrifying fights before the Verdant Canyon over the past week. She thought of how the people before her had blocked the path of the powerful Divine Hall Coalition Army, and stopped them from entering the Southern parts of Tang Empire.


    People like Jun Mo would fight hard to the very end. And even she could not help but feel moved. Traces of pity and admiration could be seen in the Divine Light inside the deepest part of her eyes.


    ¡°The Heavens want your Academy to fall. What can you do about it?¡±


    She looked at Jun Mo and said.


    Jun Mo looked up at the sky. The rain had stopped but the clouds had not fully parted yet. Only a few spots of the blue sky could be seen. It was like shattered porcin.


    Furthermore, even if the rain were to stop and the clouds were to dissipate, it was daytime now, so he would not be able to see the moon. He was only looking at his teacher before he died in that fight.


    He did not answer Ye Hongyu¡¯s question directly. Instead, he said, ¡°Chao Xiaoshu is a good man. If there had not been any incidents back then, he would have been my Younger Brother.¡±


    Ye Hongyu knew who Chao Xiaoshu was. However, she did not understand why Jun Mo would mention him now.


    Jun Mo looked at the sky and sought for the traces left behind by the moon seven nights ago. He continued, ¡°However, he wanted to follow the previous Emperor, which was why he did not enter the Academy.¡±


    ¡°Back then, the previous Emperor wanted to clear the Royal Court, which was how the night at Spring Breeze Pavilion happened.¡±


    Ye Hongyu knew of the incident at the Pavilion. Chao Xiaoshu and Ning Que had be known to the West-Hill Divine Pce after that rainy night.


    Jun Mo looked away. He then said, ¡°Before that night, Chao Xiaoshu negotiated with the opposition at the House of Red Sleeves. There, he said two things thatter spread throughout Chang¡¯an.¡±


    ¡°This was what he said.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°If Heaven allows, I will live. If people won¡¯t allow that, I will kill them.¡±


    Ye Hongyu suddenly felt cold because she knew what he would say next.


    Even though the world was fighting against the Tang Empire now and Haotian Taoism was at odds with the Empire, she had not expected such a question raised up by someone so calmly and with such determination in Haotian¡¯s world.


    Sure enough, Jun Mo gently shook his right arm, and blood sprinkled off the wide and square iron sword.


    He held the iron sword and looked at Ye Hongyu. It looked as if he was looking at the sky above her head as he said, ¡°I always thought that this statement wasn¡¯t appropriate. Because even if the Heavens would not allow me, I will still live.¡±


    ¡°And if this bloodied Heaven won¡¯t allow me to live, then... I will now allow it to live either.¡±


    Finally, he said, ¡°At least, I won¡¯t let it live in peace.¡±


    On the snowy street in Chang¡¯an.


    Eldest Brother looked at the Abbey Dean and said, ¡°Teacher once said that where the human heart desires to go, Heaven would allow it.¡±


    ¡°And should Heaven not allow it, what would you do?¡±


    The Abbey Dean stopped and looked at the snow falling from the sky. After a moment of silence, he said thoughtfully, ¡°You can look up and see, when has Heaven ever spared anyone?¡±


    There was a moment of silence. Nobody spoke because no one could answer his question.


    In the face of absolute strength, courage was admired, but it was useless. In the indifferent eyes of Heaven, the desires of human beings rarely mattered.


    The skinny Taoist fell silent, so did the Old Lady Chu and the injured. The dead could no longer speak, and even second uncle Chao stayed silent, though his lips had hesitated for a moment.


    Finally, a voice broke the silence.


    The voice was hoarse and dry. The person seemed not to have drunk water in a long while and had lost too much blood. The voice sounded rather grating.


    The voice seemed weary and weak but was determined. It was grating, unlike the sound of something sharp scratching against ss, but like the sound of mirrors being broken.


    The voice said, ¡°Then we shall destroy it.¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked to the back of the crowd and spotted Ning Que¡¯s face which was covered in blood.


    Then, he saw Ning Que¡¯s eyes.


    Their gazes met for the first time.


    Ning Que looked at him and said, ¡°Where the heart desires, Heaven has to obey. And if Heaven does not, then we will destroy it. I think this is a very simple principle.¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked at the determination and confidence in his eyes. His eyebrows rose upwards..


    The Natural Stream Magical Finger had injured Ning Que gravely, and his confidence had taken a hit. However, his spirit was determined. But then, he gradually felt lost.


    He watched as the two teens cried and shouted while they tried something unimaginable. As such, he decided to stand up and then, he did.


    But he could only lean against the podao which was supporting his weakened body.


    Then, several ordinary people rushed by him, rushing towards the ck sea of death.


    He saw many people die before his eyes.


    He felt that it was wrong.


    The choices that these ordinary people had made went against the knowledge he had of this world. It went against his own rules. Even though he had seen many simr instances, what he saw today assaulted him with a shock that he could not bear.


    Because in the past, he had always ced himself outside the situation.


    Today, on this street, he was in the situation.


    His body and soul followed the spraying of blood and the fall of those bodies. They followed as those souls departed and gentlynded in this world.


    In the past, he was willing to die for Chang¡¯an because he felt responsible and emotionally-linked to the city. It was because of the responsibility and kinship he felt for the Headmaster, Master Yan Se and the Emperor. He was sure it was not because of zealousness.


    He thought that his blood was cold. When the blood in his body began to grow heated until it was boiling, he started to feel lost and confused.


    He vaguely felt a power.


    He had seen this power, and it had happened more than once.


    But it had not felt as real as it did right now on the snowy street.


    It was then, when a wizened voice rang in his ears and his heart.


    He did not know that it was second uncle Chao speaking.


    The wizened voice rang across the Tang Empire. His subconscious seemed to follow the voice, traveling across rivers and mountains. And everywhere, he saw different people.


    He saw those at war, marching in troops, fighting for their lives, seeking death. Those holding on, and those who were waiting. Even those waiting were filled with bravery.


    He saw many people who were impressive.


    Then, he saw many images shing across his eyes.


    He saw the bloodied chopper in the woodshed, the broken fields in Hebei county. He saw refugees that looked like ghosts and the wide Min Mountain. He saw the Old Hunter, the soil of the City of Wei. He saw the lights in the night of Chang¡¯an and theke in the Wilderness. He saw the grave covered in weeds at the Lanke Temple.


    He saw many people who were not impressive, but they were all humans.


    He seemed to have returned to the Lanke Temple¡¯s stone statue; as if he were still in the final conversation with Lotus in the Bone Mountain at the front gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He seemed to be looking at the Talisman Master in the tribe he met that summer when he entered Talisman Taoism.


    The earliest humans fought with wild beasts in the wilderness. They began to wear furs, eat meat, live in caves, and then began to farmnd, raise livestock, and eat more meat. Humans continued to eat meat, and think a lot of ways to cook meat to ensure that the meat was very fragrant. This was so they could eat more meat because eating meat made one stronger.


    He saw human beings building houses, viges and roads, and finally saw a majestic city standing on the ins, seeming to pierce the sky¡ªit was Chang¡¯an City.


    He walked through Chang¡¯an and saw the bun shop that he had seen a few days ago. He saw the green stones, and recalled the aura he had once sensed. It was the power that belonged only to the mortal realm.


    It was a power that could change everything.


    It was a power that could beat time.


    It was an ordinary power that was extraordinary. It was blinding but inconspicuous. It was the hot steam of the bun shop or a ck brick in the city wall. But it was also the passing on of wisdom and stubborn resistance.


    Ning Que suddenly felt very moved.


    This power was so magnificent.


    He was so close to it and could feel such an unvarnished feeling.


    He could feel his smallness, but it was unlike when he was facing Haotian. He did not feel angry because of his own smallness, but only felt a sense of awe.


    Because no matter how small he was, he was a part of this power.


    And no matter how magnificent this power was, it came from several insignificant people like him.

 Chapter 794 - Tens and Thousands of People

    <h4>Chapter 794: Tens and Thousands of People</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    This was the power of humanity.


    It was not the first time Ning Que had sensed its existence. The Headmaster had used this power when he reached out and called the ancient sword from the Sword Garret in the south from tens and thousands of miles away to kill the Golden Dragon and the Divine Guard. Ning Que had also sensed this power in the houses across Yanming Lake.


    He did not understand how he could harness this power.


    He had once asked the Headmaster about this. The Headmaster said that he was the world and his power was the power of humanity. This answer was simple, but was meaningless to him.


    He looked at the bright moon in the night sky and thought of his teacher. He looked at the pine tree at the edge of the cliff and thought of Youngest Uncle. He looked at the blood that flooded the front of Lanke Temple and thought of Lotus.


    He thought of hisst conversation with his teacher by the Sishui River. So Lotus had been right.


    Youngest Uncle was proud and free. He wanted to represent the human realm and pierce the skies as a powerhouse. The Headmaster, on the other hand, believed that he was the human realm. He wanted to lead the world and challenge Haotian.


    However, humans resided in the human realm and the power of this realm came from everyone living in it. This power could not be replicated or led. It could only truly be unleashed when everyone came together.


    The Headmaster built the Tang Empire and the Academy, and had been on the right path. However, he had only thought of leading the masses through education and uniting the people through this.


    Because of his obsession, Lotus did not reach the state attained by the Headmaster and Youngest Uncle. And also because of his obsession, his thoughts became radicalized.


    He looked at his wife¡¯s lone grave in the rain and wanted to dig it open. However, he gave up in the end and drifted far away. Lotus went mad from then on.


    Afterward, whether it was his destruction of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine or the massacre at Lanke Temple, it was all because he was crazy.


    He wanted to destroy the world because he thought that life and death were all pointless.


    He nned to use the Devil to go against Heaven, and Tao to follow Heaven and finally made use of Buddhism to reach the other side, a side beyond the three realms, a side beyond averagemoners¡¯ knowledge. It was only then he could create a brand new world and wipe off the old world that belonged to the heartless Heaven. It was only then he could go back in time and search for the things in the past.


    In other words, he wanted to break the most fundamental rule of the world. He wanted to destroy Haotian, and the method he chose was to have the entire world go mad with him and be destroyed.


    This method was bloody and cruel, but also correct.


    If Haotian knew that there was someone like him who hade up with such a crazy idea because he wanted his dead wife toe back to life, he would probably start shaking.


    When Ning Que was younger, he had brought Sangsang with him and traveled the world. He was not very patient, and when there were things that Sangsang showed the slightest skill in, he drilled a sentence into her incessantly.


    ¡°What you can do, do it yourself.¡±


    Then, what should be done by man in the human realm, should be done by everyone.


    Ning Que opened his eyes to find that he was still standing on the long snowy street.


    He did not know if he had already awakened or if he was still dreaming.


    He saw the injured on the street who refused to call out in pain. He looked at the corpses of the ordinary people and at the two injured but determined teens. He understood many things.


    Chang¡¯an was not a city. It was a person. It was made up of everyone living in the city.


    The power of humanity came from everyone living here.


    Tens, hundreds, thousands, tens and thousands, millions of people.


    Everyone¡¯s will and desire. This was a power.


    The desire of tens and thousands came together to be the power of humanity.


    It was extremely powerful and could change the world, able to go against the tide of time.


    In Lotus¡¯ hands, this was a bloody tide.


    In Youngest Uncle¡¯s hands, it was the sword marks left behind by his sword.


    In the Headmaster¡¯s hand, it was the desire to triumph against the Heavens.


    But that was not all.


    Lotus did not obtain the eptance of this power. Or perhaps, one could say that he did not have have the opportunity to move it.


    Youngest Uncle was unparalleled amongst many, and was thus lonely.


    The Headmaster was the teacher of many, but had forgotten that his students were the ones writing their own scripts.


    Master Yan Se spent his whole life looking for that character.


    The character that represented the power of humanity.


    But just as what the Abbey Dean had once said, the word was too heavy.


    The desire of tens and thousands of people would definitely be heavy.


    Furthermore, how could the desire of tens and thousands be the same?


    That was why nobody could write that character.


    Not even the Headmaster.


    Ning Que had finally seen the word.


    He saw the many people on the Vermilion Bird Avenue.


    Tens and thousands of ordinary peopleing together for amon goal.


    Building a new wall with their flesh and blood.


    And at this time, these people became a city.


    And right now, these tens and thousands of people had the same strong will and desire.


    They were part of humanity.


    For Chang¡¯an, this was the most desperate and angriest moment.


    And the best time to write that character.


    Ning Que now needed to consider how he would write the character. Even though he had seen it, it did not mean he could write it. Just like how he had ascended into the old library back then and saw the shelves full of precious ssics. He had looked at the characters he had read many times, but could not write or memorize them.


    He thought of the three months they had spent on sea and thought of the conversations held with his teacher.


    The Headmaster said that Haotian was not the world, but was the collection of the basic rules of the world.


    The Headmaster said that when rules control the world, the world would be stable but boring. Only when new forces emerge and break the old rules can the world regain its vitality and be interesting.


    The Headmaster said that man was the greatest product of this world because man is wise and can leave behind inheritances. Man had the instinctive will to confront and even break the fundamental rules of the world.


    That kind of will was so stubborn and powerful, it could be called a desire.


    Therefore, the world and Haotian would inevitably confront each other until a party won.


    In the past history of the world, Haotian had won countless victories, and the world had ushered in countless long nights. The wisdom that had been passed down had fallen into the cold Evesting Night.


    But the world would always recover to challenge once again.


    It was daytime, so the sky was naturally bright.


    The snow falling from the sky was white as well.


    The Vermilion Bird Avenue in the storm and snow waspletely white.


    The blood on the street gradually darkened.


    The Tangsying in puddles of blood all wore dark clothing.


    The bricks scattered on the street, the woks and the chamber pots, they were all filthy and ck.


    Since Haotian had chosen the color white, people would then choose the color ck.


    The world clearly separated into ck and white in Ning Que¡¯s eyes.


    Light and darkness, holiness and filth.


    The world of ck and white produced a simple image in his eyes.


    It turned into two absolutely straight lines running parallel and watching each other from a distance, aloof; refusing toe close.


    The two lines shortened and lengthened.


    This was an image Ning Que was familiar with. It was the first Divine Talisman he learned. It was the Two-Horizontal Talisman.


    Following that, a line suddenly turned, piercing into the other line.


    This was the second talisman he had learnedst night by theke, the Talisman of ¡°Yi¡±.


    When the two lines met, the two worlds connected, but they could not blend together and thus began a fierce conflict.


    A smashing cut urred, seemingly as if it was about to tear the entire space.


    Unlike Master Yan Se¡¯s Jing Fu, which had its own rules and its own areas of calmness, the Talisman of ¡°Yi¡± spread across the borders, growing like weeds.


    The Talisman of ¡°Yi¡± was very powerful. When they intersected, the two worlds couldmunicate with each other. There was a sense of endless life, which represented the bnce between the world and Haotian.


    But this was not what Ning Que wanted, nor was it what Chang¡¯an needed today.


    He looked at the Talisman of ¡°Yi¡± on the snowy streets, and felt as if he had seen several weeds, or two withered branches. It seemed to resemble a chopper that was nted on fertilend.


    Two pieces of firewood could not be firmly secured, and one of them slowly copsed.


    Holding the hilt with one hand, he wanted to pull the chopper out of the ground.


    A stone with moss appeared suddenly in the weeds.


    It was the stone at the bottom of Daming Lake which faced the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s Front Gate.


    Youngest Uncle had carved two sword marks on every rock when he had broken through the stone array tactics.


    The two sword marks made up one character.


    Ning Que was truly awakened by then.


    He was no stranger to such a situation. He had simr experiences in the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine when he saw the sword marks Youngest Uncle had left behind and also when he faced the stone Buddha statue at Lanke Temple.


    He had not been buried in his thoughts for long today, while on the snowy street. However, he had gained plenty. Even if some of his ideas could not be used right now, if he survived, they would be the most valuable treasures he had gained on his cultivation journey.


    He knew that some things had already happened.


    Then, he heard second uncle Chao¡¯s cursing.


    Following that, he heard the Abbey Dean ask Eldest Brother, ¡°When has Heaven ever spared anyone?¡±


    He had heard this before.


    Lotus had once said the same to him at the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    Back then, his answer had been that mankind would triumph over the Heavens. They did not have to be spared.


    But he did not wish to answer as he did today.


    Between the Abbey Dean and himself, were a few hundred citizens who were old and weak, including the women and the children.


    To him, these people were tens and thousands of people.


    He looked into the Abbey Dean¡¯s eyes across the tens and thousands and said, ¡°If Heaven does not abide, we will have to destroy it.¡±


    Compared to his answer to Lotus, his answer today was calmer and more certain.


    It was not because he was confident that he could defeat the Abbey Dean, and nor was he trying to show his arrogance. It was because he had finally understood, which was why he was calm.


    It was because the freedom that human hearts desired would not be allowed by the Heavens, so they could only destroy the Heavens.


    It was something they had to do no matter whether they won or lost.


    And they were doing it because it had to be done. This was the Academy¡¯s logic.


    With that, he held the hilt of his de and prepared to pull his podao from the ground.


    This movement caused the liquid that was churning in his abdomen to wildly burst out. It sprayed in all directions, and the Great Spirit grew quickly and spread like weeds.


    Chang¡¯an City sensed the change on the snowy street.


    A vast amount of Heaven and Earth¡¯s Qi fell with the storm and snow through the array eye pestle and into his body.


    His aura suddenly changed and began to climb up to the peak of the Knowing Destiny State.

 Chapter 795 - Tens and Thousands of Swords

    <h4>Chapter 795: Tens and Thousands of Swords</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth in Chang¡¯an City was so powerful that it was impossible to calcte the quantity. The Qi flowed through the array eye pestle and into Ning Que¡¯s left hand, pouring into his body incessantly.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth was not tangible and was clearer than the clearest water, lighter than the lightest air. But the quantity entering his body was way too much, bringing with it unbearable effects.


    Had it been an ordinary person, or even a cultivator at the peak of the Knowing Destiny State, death would be certain when epting so much Qi of Heaven and Earth into one¡¯s body in such a short period of time.


    But Ning Que cultivated in the Great Spirit and his body was as hard as steel. There was no other person stronger than him other than the Abbey Dean who cultivated in Taoism, Buddhism and Diabolism, and Third Sister Yu Lian, who was the Grandmaster of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    His body was like a container of stainless steel casting, akin to the steel used to create the Primordial Thirteen Arrows. It bore the constant influx of Heaven and Earth¡¯s Qi, thenpressed the primordial Qi to an unimaginable degree.


    Right now, hewas like a seashell in the depths of the sea. His body and soul were under terrifying pressure, but he did not know when he would be able to emerge as a precious pearl.


    This was a very painful process, but his face remained expressionless, other than the fluttering of his eyshes. The snow on his clothes melted as he kept his eyes on the Abbey Dean.


    His wounds tore open once more and started bleeding. The blood was shiny, like red jade and was scattered by the wind, turning into the smallest particles.


    These particles left the surface of his clothing and hung in the air around him. It looked like a me, while also like mist. Ning Que seemed like he was burning up and freezing at the same time.


    He continued to pull up his de.


    The sharp de lifted slowly from the cracks in the green stone of the Vermilion Bird Avenue, bringing up ck mud with it. While it looked as if it was about to leave the snowy ground, many things happened in Chang¡¯an.


    In the early morning, it snowed in Chang¡¯an City. The Abbey Dean waved his arms and broke through the Stone Array Tactics, then entered the city. He defeated Eldest Brother and Third Sister of the Academy; right after, many talismans appeared before his eyes, telling him that his path was blocked.


    From that moment on, until Ning Que saw the Abbey Dean in front of the Vermilion Bird Avenue in the snow, he went to many ces in Chang¡¯an. He thought of many things in the past that were rted to Sangsang and wiped away the many traces Haotian had left on the God-stunning Array.


    Even though he had not managed to repair the God-stunning Arraypletely, he had left behind enough Divine Talismans. Those talismans were made of two sword strokes and looked like the word ¡°Yi¡±.


    These talismans had embarrassed the Abbey Dean a little and had stopped him from entering the Imperial Pce to destroy the eye of the God-stunning Array. It had forced the Abbey Dean to enter the storm and snow on the Vermilion Bird Avenue, having to first kill Ning Que.


    Ning Que had been seriously wounded by the seven Natural Stream Magical Fingers. He did not continue writing the Talisman of ¡°Yi¡± because it was pointless. But the hundreds of ¡°Yi¡± Talismans he had written did not dissipate. Instead, they floated on the streets of Chang¡¯an, powered by the God-stunning Array and gradually disappearing into the storm and snow.


    The hundreds ¡°Yi¡± of Talismans appeared once more when he pulled up his de.


    They were on the streets and alleys.


    On the well and before the Yamen.


    Behind the walls, and in gardens.


    Under the willow and by the plum blossom.


    Hundreds of ¡°Yi¡± Talismans appeared once more in Chang¡¯an!


    Incredibly, the Divine Talismans were still changing.


    To be more precise, the ¡°Yi¡± Talismans were being distorted.


    The ¡°Yi¡± Talismans consisted of two de marks which were the strokes.


    One to the left and one to the right.


    As Ning Que pulled up his de, the stroke to the left slowly rose as if to float away from the right.


    The stroke was like an arrow being pulled back by an invisible bowstring. It moved further and further away from the bow, umting more power.


    It was also like a de that was lifting off the ground, about to unleash its sharpness.


    Drawing a de was a very simple action that Ning Que had repeated countless times. He was well-practiced in it and it was thuspleted quickly.


    The change in the streets and alleys of Chang¡¯an happened quickly as well.


    It was an abrupt change. The person to sense the change in Ning Que and Chang¡¯an was not the Abbey Dean, Eldest Brother, nor the people on the snowy streets. It was the sky above them.


    The water at the bottom of the well was already frozen. Two de marks suddenly appeared on it, as well as over the snow-covered clock and on Yanming Lake.


    The well water began to swirl again, the bells began to swing, and the willow branches on the shore of Yanming Lake began to sway in the cold wind. The thick snow on the pine trees in the Tantuo Temple fell, and a fat squirrel sat on his winter food, rubbing its paws, not understanding why he had felt frozen earlier.


    The Quietus aura that had envelopedkes, mountains and temples disappearedpletely with the reappearance and change of hundreds of ¡°Yi¡± Talismans. Even the falling snow stopped suddenly, and Chang¡¯an, which had been frozen, came back to life.


    The aura that had appeared out of nowhere continued to spread in all directions as Ning Que moved. It rushed up into the sky and dissipated the heavy snow clouds, causing the blue sky to appear once more.


    After the Headmaster¡¯s death, the Abbey Dean was now the strongest person on Earth.


    The sky was the first to notice this change, and he was the second.


    He could feel the danger.


    His eyes were suddenly dulled, turning fainter than the color grey, looking almost transparent and crystal-like. Countless rays of light and shadows pulsed in them at high speed, as if there were many things happening on them at the moment.


    He saw some images that he found hard to believe.


    In Chang¡¯an, the Abbey Dean could not see the future, just as he never saw what the Academy would be afterward. However, he had once seen images that he firmly believed in.


    But those images had changed.


    When Ning Que pulled out the de.


    The snow and wind stopped.


    The Vermilion Bird Avenue was very quiet.


    The Abbey Dean looked at Ning Que. His eyes had returned to normal, but there was still a trace of surprise within them.


    He believed in Taoism and was ambivalent towards killing.


    Today, the Abbey Dean had killed many. He had his own reasons and needs for doing so.


    He had wanted to kill Ning Que earlier because he needed to.


    But at this time, he wanted to kill Ning Que because of an inexplicable vignce.


    This unsettling feeling was strong and even made his Taoist Heart waver.


    He wanted to kill Ning Que and this desire was about to be an instinct.


    But he could sense that there was something hidden in the air between Ning Que and himself.


    He could not enter the Limitless State, and was thus unable to kill Ning Que in the shortest time possible.


    Being so, he at least could not let Ning Que raise his de.


    The Abbey Dean looked at Ning Que and said, ¡°Those who believe...¡±


    Ning Que did not know why he would speak at a time like this.


    The Academy¡¯s disciples in front of the Verdant Canyon heard his words and all thought of how the Great Divine Priest of Revtion had recited the West-Hill Scripture. It was the Haotian Taoism Skill that the Xuankong Temple¡¯s Chief Preaching Monk used.


    Ning Que did not die.


    Because the Abbey Dean only managed to say those words.


    Because Eldest Brother said at the same time, ¡°Confucius did not speak.¡±


    With that, his face suddenly paled and more blood appeared on his cotton jacket.


    With that, Ning Que finally managed to withdraw his de.


    The de left the snowy groundpletely.


    The Abbey Dean took a step back when he saw the de in Ning Que¡¯s hands.


    Taking a step back meant he was leaving.


    For a thousand years, he was the only person who had managed to barge into Chang¡¯an.


    He seemed to be about to destroy the God-stunning Array, the Tang Empire and the Academy, and with this he would aplish a world-ss feat.


    As long as he could kill Ning Que, he would be able to aplish all that.


    To the Abbey Dean, this was something very simple and something that allured him greatly.


    But he had to leave.


    Without any hesitation, without any longing.


    Only someone whose Taoist Heart waspletely clear and free of filth could do that.


    The street was devoid of wind and snow.


    The Abbey Dean could not move forward, so he had to move backwards. His right foot lifted off the ground and the storm and snow appeared.


    An invisible door appeared in the storm and snow.


    Only those in the Limitless State could see it.


    As soon as the Abbey Dean¡¯s right foot stepped through the door, his ck clothes turned transparent.


    He was about to step into the void.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth in Chang¡¯an might have been messed up by Ning Que, but it could not stop him from leaving.


    Ning Que would not allow him to leave.


    Because he had already pulled out his de.


    The de left the snow and made a very slight sound, like an oily brush smearing on a hot piece of meat over the bonfire, orlike a brush loaded with ink sliding over a white piece of paper.


    In the streets of Chang¡¯an, under the willow and by the plum tree, hundreds of sounds rang out at the same time.


    It was like the sound of the zither, likethe sound of a bowstring vibrating, like the sound of a de being drawn from a sheath.


    That was the sound of strokes rubbing together.


    It was the sound made by hundreds of ¡°Yi¡± Talismans.


    Following that, came the sound of more des leaving sheaths.


    It was a true sound.


    There were dozens of knives used to butcher pigs hanging on the wall of a pork stall in the Eastern City. They had beenying in their leather sheaths for an entire day and night. Suddenly, these butcher knives broke out of their sheaths.


    Not far from the Vermilion Bird Avenue, was a knife ced in the chopping board in a house. The knife was stained with fresh blood. Not far away, there was a pot of steaming meat stew. Suddenly the chopper jumped out from the cutting board.


    There were two teenagers lying in the pool of blood next to the Vermilion Bird Avenue. They were seriously injured and weakly leaned against a wall wet by the receding snow. Although they did not die, they could no longer hold the knife and pitch-fork next to them. Suddenly, the two choppers and kitchen knives jumped out of the snow and into their hands.


    Ning Que pulled out his de.


    All the knives in Chang¡¯an were pulled out.


    Hundreds, thousands, tens of thousands of des showed off their sharpness.


    The winter willow swayed by Yanming Lake.


    The winter pines in the Tantuo Temple bowed down.


    The snow umted on the whetstone floated up.


    One of the hundreds of lines making the Divine Talisman moved very slightly.


    The snow on the long street blurred, countless rays of aura appearing suddenly.


    The invisible door was instantly shattered to pieces.


    Several tiny cuts appeared on the Abbey Dean¡¯s dark clothes.


    Several cracks appeared on his powerful body that he had acquired after reaching the Divine Demon Realm.


    The Abbey Dean started bleeding profusely.


    Ning Que raised his de and said, ¡°I want to kill you.¡±


    An absolute condensation of Heaven and Earth¡¯s Qi burst forth from his lips as he spoke. They turned into tendrils of white mist that were about half an inch long, and within the mist, were shes of lightning and his extremely strong desire.

 Chapter 796 - To Write in the Sky

    <h4>Chapter 796: To Write in the Sky</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ning Que said ¡°I may kill you¡± instead of ¡°I¡¯ll kill you¡±, which might sound euphemistic. But being cautious and calm actually indicated that he was really eager to do it.


    That was the eagerness of all residents in Chang¡¯an as well as Ning Que. He wanted it, so he said it out sincerely like he was summoning or making requests.


    A clear and loud screeching resounded at the south of the long street as if something had been summoned.


    The storm and wind on the Vermilion Street had stopped, but the snow had yet to melt.


    The painting of the Vermilion Bird which had stunned Ning Que and Sangsang in the rainy spring that year was now buried deep in the snow, frozen, and deprived of its vividness.


    The paint of the Vermilion Bird was the killing Talisman of the God-stunning Array, and was of unbelievable spirit. When running by itself, it could strike as powerfully as a powerhouse at the Peak of the Knowing Destiny State.


    One thousand years ago, the Headmaster carved it by himself in the south of the Vermilion Street to protect the great capital city. Countless haunting evil spirits had been burnt into ashes by the Vermilion Bird in the darkness of the night.


    The Vermilion Bird knew that the Abbey Dean had entered the city, and was about to show itself to fight. But the Abbey Dean stepped on one of its wings with just one foot and it could barely move anymore.


    The Vermilion Bird felt fear because it had sensed the gap between the Abbey Dean and itself, therefore, it bent its proud neck in awe and buried itself in the snow, feeling ashamed to be seen by others.


    At that moment a voice reached into the depths of its soul, saying that he wanted to kill the Abbey Dean, and he might need its help.


    The Vermilion Bird knew who the speaker was. But it couldn¡¯t believe that there was still someone who could kill the powerful Abbey Dean since the Headmaster had left the mortal world. Therefore, it stayed timid.


    However, the voice echoed deepest part of its soul. It rubbed and burned it like surgingva, till its blood started to burn.


    It turned from timid to ashamed, but its courage wasing back. The melting snow was blown away by wind, revealing the eyes of the bird.


    A magnificent aura rose on the street.


    The Vermilion Bird¡¯s wings had broken away from the snow and green stone, showing itself in the sky.


    With a clear and loud screeching, its whole body took off from the ground and soared.


    Nobody knew for how many years the Vermilion Bird had kept silent.


    And they wondered if its screeching today could stun the Gods.


    The Vermilion Bird spread its hundred-foot wings and arrived at the southern gate of Chang¡¯an in an instant.


    The city wall towered up to Heaven and the ck bricks were almost antique.


    The Vermilion Bird was flying beside the city wall.


    Its red wings constantly pped and dragged two ming tails behind. It narrowly missed the city wall and flew so fast that it reached the north of the city in the shortest time.


    Then it reached the Imperial Pce.


    The Empress held the little Emperor¡¯s hand. She was staring into the sky, her body slightly bowed.


    At the turret in the Imperial City, Yu Lian raised her eyebrows.


    The Vermilion Bird flew across the Imperial City. It lowered down the altitude, flying right towards south along the Vermilion Street.


    Its path ahead was the straightest and broadest one in the world.


    The Vermilion Bird flew swiftly on the street. Its wings spreading a hundred feet and looked as if it was about to light the whole city up on fire. Wherever it touched, the melting snow evaporated immediately.


    It was so fast that no one on the street had the time to react.


    They heard a clear screeching and saw a firing figure arrive instantly.


    They barely had any time to consider, neither did the Abbey Dean.


    He smirked when he saw the Vermilion Bird arriving on the long street.


    It was unusual for him to show emotions like ordinary people. But for some reason that even he himself couldn¡¯t understand, he couldn¡¯t help mocking and feeling contempt for that legendary bird.


    Maybe that was because the Vermilion Bird was the only thing the Headmaster had left in the mortal world.


    When it reached the snowy street with two wings fully spread, the re was burning the air, bringing out a cracking sound.


    The whole world seemed as if it was gradually bing red.


    The Tangs were filled with anticipation that the Vermilion Bird could kill the Abbey Dean. And when the Abbey Dean reached out his hand to tear off the bird¡¯s ring wings, it screeched again.


    A spark shed.


    Silently, the Vermilion Bird withdrew its sounds and power, then it turned into a breath of fire, falling on the cuss held in Ning Que¡¯s hand.


    It sounded like searing iron slightly burning.


    Several burn marks emerged on Ning Que¡¯s cuss, along with a unique pattern.


    A red ring bird.


    Ning Que¡¯s cuss was thebination of the three cusses that had apanied him for many years. Like the Primordial Thirteen Arrows, they were the fruit of the wisdom of the Academy, with unimaginable strength and weight.


    Only the cuss tough like this one could bear the great power inside his body. However, as his cultivation state reached new heights, this cuss or the other three ones, along with the Primordial Thirteen Arrows and the countless talisman papers, could no longer meet his needs like they used to. And sometimes they even became his disadvantages.


    Ning Que was a fighter. And he clearly knew what trouble the unbnce between his own power and his weapon could bring, but still, he didn¡¯t give the cuss away. Somehow he knew that the cuss just belonged to him, and someday in the future, it would show its real edge.


    Even when the cuss came out of the smelter, he turned down Forth Brother and Sixth Brother¡¯s suggestion to carve talismans on the cuss to reinforce it like other cultivators or he himself used to do.


    Because at that time, Ning Que was not confident in talismans written by himself; to write them on the cuss would do no better than ruin it. Not even when he could write Divine Talisman now; he felt it far from enough.


    He had no other reason. He simply felt that the talisman qualified to be written on the cuss should be extraordinary.


    Thus, the iron cuss remained dim with no lines or talismans on it. Blood constantly washed it, but the heavy and broad cuss remained simple and unadorned.


    Till today when the clear screeching came from the south of Chang¡¯an City, the Vermilion Bird flew across the sky and turned into a breath of fire. Finally, it rested on the ck cuss, bing the red pattern.


    Ning Que finally understood what he had been waiting for.


    He finally understood why the Vermilion Bird came to see him before the Headmaster left the mortal world.


    The cuss had to be matched with an extraordinary talisman.


    The talisman was the Vermilion Bird.


    It was also the killing talisman in the God-stunning Array.


    The cuss had been pulled out of the snow.


    The snow fell off when Ning Que raised it up.


    The Vermilion Bird Divine Talisman on the ck cuss suddenly lighted up.


    Red fire erupted out of the de and into the sky.


    Now that the storm and snow ceased, countless pairs of eyes saw the blue sky revealing itself.


    The fire that erupted out of the cuss stretched more than ten miles. And as Ning Que moved the cuss, it moved to all directions in the blue and polished sky.


    The moving fire left burning marks on the blue sky, as if someone had written roughly in the sky with a pen as giant as a mountain.


    One stroke stretched half of the sky, and nobody knew how long it was exactly.


    As Ning Que lowered down the cuss, the fire erupted followed to move downwards, and that was the beginning of the second stroke.


    At the turret in the Imperial City.


    Yu Lian looked up at the sky, silent. She was watching the fire moving between heaven and earth.


    Then she nced at the cuss in her hand.


    It was arge scarlet cuss, two times longer and broader than herself.


    The scarlet cuss was the Halidom of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. It had been kept by Tang Xiaotang since the Deste moved south.


    It was natural that Yu Lian could wield the cuss since she was the Grandmaster of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    When the Abbey Dean was stepping forward on the snowy street, she came to the Imperial Pce for nothing but the cuss.


    Judging by the appearance, the scarlet cuss in her hand was definitely more frightening and awesome than the one in Ning Que¡¯s hand.


    But she knew that something about this cuss had been missing whenpared with the one in Ning Que¡¯s hand.


    Ning Que could write with the cuss.


    ¡°You¡¯ve finally written down that character.¡±


    Yu Lian saw the character in the blue skying into shape, and she suddenly took a deep breath.


    As she breathed, the melting snow around the pce floated off the ground.


    The ice in the moat cracked into pieces.


    Endless air went flooding into her petite body as she breathed.


    Her chest was slightly going up and down.


    Her eyes grew brighter and brighter.


    Everyone on the snowy street was looking at the sky.


    Everyone in Chang¡¯an was looking at the sky.


    People watched the giant ring pen writing in the blue sky.


    Eldest Brother was also looking up at the sky.


    There was no snow falling but his eyes were slightly wet.


    He looked at the sky and thought to himself, ¡°Teacher, Youngest Brother has finally finished writing that character.¡±


    Then he took a deep breath.


    Nothing changed on the snowy street.


    Even the fallen leaves on the melting snow hadn¡¯t shivered at all as he breathed.


    His eyes grew brighter and brighter.


    Blood kept oozing out of his cotton jacket.


    Before the Pamir Mountains, the wooden dipper cracked.


    The wooden rod was held in his hand.


    He didn¡¯t know where he had put the old book.


    The belt on his cotton jacket was free from things held by it, or worries.


    Therefore, it started to flutter, leaving afterimages behind.


    Ning Que looked at the Abbey Dean and hacked.


    The cuss in his hand had to fall on the Abbey Dean.


    So he had to hack urately.


    Ning Que¡¯s and the Abbey Dean¡¯s eyes met in the middle of the street.


    He saw nothing but peace in the Abbey Dean¡¯s eyes.


    Even the snowkes floating in the air turned peaceful.


    The light squeezing sound made by piled snow became low.


    The fleeting time slowed down.


    The Abbey Dean¡¯s voice echoed in his sense of perception.


    ¡°You wrote in the wrong order.¡±


    Yet Ning Que didn¡¯t worry at all.


    Because nobody could manipte time, except Buddha.


    The Abbey Dean couldn¡¯t do it, either. He was slowing down time with great power, but he himself was also inside slowed-down time, which meant that the cuss would eventually cut him no matter how slowly it had been wielded.


    He said to the Abbey Dean, ¡°The order of the stroke was wrong, but the character is right.¡±


    The Abbey Dean¡¯s voice went off for a moment and came back again.


    His voice was sentimental, full ofplicated emotions.


    ¡°Nice calligraphy.¡±

 Chapter 797 - Please Be Hacked into Pieces

    <h4>Chapter 797: Please Be Hacked into Pieces</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    ¡°I¡¯ve been wondering why the Headmaster took you as hisst disciple. You may have run into several lucky encounters and reached the Knowing Destiny State early in your age, and you may seem talented to ordinary cultivators in the world. But what has qualified you to be thest connection of the Headmaster in the world? You¡¯re no better than my son, Pipi, not to mention Li Manman, Jun Mo, or Lin Wu.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°I finally figured it out, by the time you finished writing this character. I understood that the Headmaster was worthy of his name. Fighting with Haotian was his one and only wrong choice, and he had not made any mistakes except that.¡±


    Snowkes were drifting slowly onto the street at this moment. Time seemed to have slowed down. Ning Que listened to the voice inside his sense of perception, which naturally reminded him of the Headmaster who was still fighting in Heaven.


    The Abbey Dean looked at Ning Que. He had made up his mind to kill Ning Que in the first ce, and his determination grew even tougher when he saw the cuss Ning Que was about to pull out. He couldn¡¯t let Ning Que pull that cuss out. At first, he was nning to retreat but he was trapped in the numerous cusses in Chang¡¯an City. He had to choose another way to retreat after Ning Que started to write the big character with the iron cuss imbued by the Vermilion Bird.


    Ning Que could never be his match even if he could finish writing that character because their power disparity was too significant. The reason he decided to retreat at any cost was those images he had seen.


    He saw a dark and somber night earlier.


    ¡°It¡¯s a pity that you wrote the letter in the wrong stroke order, and you didn¡¯t have the time to finish writing. I suppose no one could keep me here as long as I want to leave.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said with his arms opened, and it seemed he was weing something.


    While he was moving, the speed of the time flowing on the street went back to normal.


    His fingers were shivering in the chilly wind. He was embracing heaven, and only seven fingers of his showed up because the other three on his left hand had been cut off by the cicada wings of Yu Lian¡¯s.


    That was the seven Haotian Initiations.


    Seven pure rays of light and overwhelming power cast on him, or to be specific, on his broken fingers.


    The pure light cast on his fingers and changed. The ray on the thumb of his right hand turned red, and for the index finger, orange. The rays on other fingers had changed their colors all at the same time.


    Red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue and purple.


    The seven rays falling from heaven above made up a rainbow.


    A rainbow showed up in Chang¡¯an City.


    The rainbow started from the end of the snowy street and rose up into Heaven high above. It had drawn a perfect arc and ended somewhere outside the city.


    The rainbow carried unimaginable power which shook the ground of the street. The green stone floors were scattered inch by inch. People standing on the floor were shaken and fell onto the ground. The melting snow and dirty water were sted into powder.


    The Abbey Dean disappeared on the snowy street and flew against the wind, then he traced the rainbow and reached the sky.


    The sky was vast. The character Ning Que wrote with the Vermilion Cuss might be big, but it was far from enough to upy the whole sky, which left enough room for the rainbow to stretch.


    His cuss had yet to cut down, so the character in the sky hadn¡¯t been finished, either.


    His cuss carried the aspirations of countless people, which were extremely heavy.


    And the heaviness was slowing down the sword.


    The Abbey Dean was about to walk thousands of miles away on the rainbow.


    That was grand power.


    The sky was vast enough to keep any proud birds from crossing it, or to prevent any visionaries from seeing its end.


    Numerous sword marks and endless Talisman Intent had stirred the Qi of Heaven and Earth in Chang¡¯an City. It was now difficult for the Abbey Dean to leave, so he ascended into the sky and he felt that nobody could stop him.


    However, sometimes the sky could be small. It was so small that birds might collide into each other, and people living under the sky might feel suffocated.


    A hand appeared in the sky, then it grabbed the Abbey Dean¡¯s feet.


    The hand was clean and the nails had been cleanly cut. There was no blood or soil on it. The hand was steady and firm and didn¡¯t shake at all, just like that of a harpist.


    That was Eldest Brother¡¯s hand.


    On the Wilderness, when Sangsang was summoned by the Kingdom of Haotian and flew into the sky, Ning Que held her by the waist, and the Headmaster, who was standing on the ground, grabbed Ning Que¡¯s foot.


    They held each other¡¯s hands because they didn¡¯t want the other one to leave.


    Eldest Brother didn¡¯t want the Abbey Dean to leave, either.


    The Abbey Dean and him had been chasing each other in the mortal world for seven days and seven nights. The end of the fight was at the corner, so there was no way that he would let go of the Abbey Dean.


    He was the Eldest Brother of the Academy, a man seemingly gentle or even dull, but of true wisdom.


    He had the purest heart which gave him a clearer vision than Ning Que¡¯s of the real state of the Abbey Dean. He knew that the Abbey Dean¡¯s Taoist Heart was explicit, and that when Ning Que finished writing that character, the Abbey Dean would pay whatever it took to leave.


    So he made the preparation and took a deep breath.


    At the moment no withered leaf around was rustling, the only thing that was moving was the gown belt on his waist fluttering with afterimages trailing behind.


    That was the indication of entering the Limitless State.


    He tried to catch up with the Abbey Dean when he stepped on the rainbow and ascended to the sky.


    He had never been so close to Heaven and so far away from Earth.


    He climbed toward Heaven in the Limitless State, but whether he could return to Earth safe and sound remained unknown.


    He chased and chased, taking the risk of his life.


    Eldest Brother was not the only one who had made preparations; Yu Lian had prepared for it, too.


    She stared at the word to be finished in the sky, at the corner of some turret in the Imperial Pce, and she took a deep breath.


    As she breathed, snowkes were shattered and poured into her body with chilly air.


    Then the air was all burst out from her lips.


    The air flows were rubbing each other and buzzing annoyingly.


    She bent her knees slightly and concentrated all her power on her feet.


    The solid turret rumbled and copsed in rising smoke and flying dust.


    A petite figure was thrown out of the dust and soared into the sky like a stone shot out of the mangonel.


    She reached the heavens.


    Her body looked so small with the vast sky as the background.


    The bloody cuss she grabbed in her hand still looked quite big.


    Then the bloody cuss was wielded toward the rainbow.


    As the edge of the sword and the rainbow shed, golden and jade sprinkles flickered.


    Though the bloody cuss had been recognized as the Halidom of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, it still burnt and vanished quickly while resisting the pure light of Haotian Initiation.


    There came a crunching sound like paper being torn.


    The bloody cuss turned into an iron rod.


    The rainbow bridging the inside and outside of Chang¡¯an suddenly broke from the middle and copsed.


    The Abbey Dean fell from the sky.


    And Eldest Brother still held one of his feet.


    Yu Lian started to fall, too.


    They were like three falling stars.


    Boom!


    The threended on the snowy street.


    The melting snow was scattered, then smoke and dust rose.


    In the smoky and blurred image, Yu Lian was holding Eldest Brother in her arms. Eldest Brother could¡¯ve been shattered while falling from so high above no matter how high his state was.


    However, Yu Lian was still seriously injured. Though she was the Grandmaster of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, and she might have unimaginable strength and flexibility, she still suffered because she fell so hard and she had to protect Eldest Brother while falling.


    Her ankles were bleeding, and probably had been broken.


    The Abbey Dean was worthy of his title as ¡°the most powerful man in Haotian Taoism in the past thousand years¡±. He fell on his feet safe and sound. He waved his hand again, and another streak of Haotian Initiation fell down from Heaven overwhelmingly.


    Yu Lian flipped her fair hands slightly, and soon two crystal-clear cicada wings appeared on the snowy street.


    The power of Haotian Initiation struck the cicada wings.


    Both of Yu Lian¡¯s wrists cracked in a moment.


    Under the unbearable pain, she was still expressionless and kept the posture of pointing one of her palms to the sky.


    Eldest Brother could no longer pull through.


    She had to support the sky here for him.


    The Academy nned and would have to kill the Abbey Dean in Chang¡¯an City. In Eldest Brother and Yu Lian¡¯s earliest n, they expected Ning Que to fix the God-stunning Array and to trap the Abbey Dean in an exact position where Yu Lian and Eldest Brother wouldter devote their lives to make their all-out strike on.


    Yet things always went athwart.


    Ning Que failed to fix the God-stunning Array in time, and the Abbey Dean was more powerful than the Academy had ever expected.


    Fortunately, Ning Que finally finished writing the character. Therefore all Eldest Brother and Yu Lian had to do was to trap the Abbey Dean and save the chance of thest strike to Ning Que.


    The rainbow fell down.


    The Abbey Dean ascended to the sky.


    Then he fell back into the dusty world.


    That was when Ning Que¡¯s cuss made it here.


    The iron cuss was ck, while the Vermilion Bird on it was extremely red.


    The Vermilion Bird contained the power of an all-out strike of a cultivator in the Knowing Destiny State.


    Endless Qi of Heaven and Earth flowed into Ning Que¡¯s body through the pestle, and then the Qi was transferred into the iron cuss. One strike of the cuss now contained the power beyond the Five States.


    Wildwind suddenly rose on the snowy street.


    The wind was brought out by the cuss.


    The mess littered on the street was blown up by the wind and was thrown to the Abbey Dean as the cuss hacked.


    The vision on the street blurred.


    Suddenly the figure of the Abbey Dean turned vague and then disappeared.


    Only the wind was howling and shing.


    Numerous cuss edges cut through the air.


    Fatal turbulences from the Qi of Heaven and Earth appeared and twisted part of the nearby space.


    All the twisted parts reflected like mirrors.


    Some reflected knives.


    Some reflected a light figure of someone.


    Some reflected the indigo Taoist robe.


    A piece of cloth from a dark robe drifted down to the ground.


    Then the Abbey Dean followed.


    His was soaked in blood, with countless cuts all over his body.


    Blood flowed out of the wounds.


    Some of the wounds were deep, others were shallow, and their shapes differed.


    Parts of his flesh had been cut off, revealing the miserable and scary bones inside.


    Ning Que had connected all Qi of Heaven and Earth before he made the strike.


    The Abbey Dean then had nowhere to hide.


    When the edge was hurting his body, the Abbey Dean used the Boundless State of Buddhism Sect like he had done before.


    But this time it was different.


    Because Ning Que had more than one cuss now.


    He borrowed the cusses from everyone in Chang¡¯an City.


    All cusses in Chang¡¯an Citynded on him.


    Like the infinite ocean, the number of the cusses was inestimable.


    The Abbey Dean had ughtered thousands of people on the street.


    Thus it was the time for him to get hacked into thousands of pieces.


    He screamed out shrilly, with extreme agony.

 Chapter 798 - Killed by the Mortal (Part One)

    <h4>Chapter 798: Killed by the Mortal (Part One)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    While screaming sharply, the Abbey Dean made his way to Ning Que, leaving bloody footprints on the streets behind.


    Yu Lian hacked and broke the rainbow bridge, and Eldest Brother dragged him by his foot so he couldn¡¯t get away from Chang¡¯an City. He had no other choice but to take the strike of the cuss Ning Que borrowed from thousands of spirits.


    He was as miserable as a criminal executed by a body-dismembering death. Blood coated him but his bones were revealed and looked scary. However, he still believed that he could take that strike.


    He was flying and floating like an immortal, only this was a white boned one.


    One of his fingers pointed at the edge of the cuss.


    He looked solemn, like a sovereign from the Kingdom of God strutting in the mortal world.


    Then, the aura around him suddenly turned sharp.


    A breath of aura flowed from his fingertip to the edge of the cuss, colder than the abyss and lonelier than death. Shorter than a breath, the edge of the cuss had been frosted.


    What a formidable aura of Quietus!


    The Vermilion Bird chirped with fury, and breathed out endless mes to resist the Quietus aura.


    The tip of the cuss was colder than ice, giving out a bloodcurdling Quietus aura; however, its hilt held in Ning Que¡¯s right hand was sending burning mes.


    The two opposite auras shed on the unadorned cuss. The confrontation was so risky that nobody knew if the cuss would be destroyed by the frost or if it would burn out all the Quietus in the mortal world.


    At the moment, something suddenly nged in the whirlwind brought out by the cuss. It sounded like metal nging, then it grew noisier and noisier.


    The cuss wind blew over the street and hummed in the streets and alleys, rolling up countless things including pots thrown on the streets, broken gongs, flutes, and some other instruments.


    Rocks hit on the gongs, and iron pots were thrown onto the wall. The wind blew the flute like moaning. In the dim wind, the orchestration was bustling, as if some family on the street were having a wedding ceremony or a funeral.


    As the nging started, the snow and frost coating the cuss tip melted fast. The Vermilion Bird on the cuss breathed out fire, together with the edge of the sword, heading right at the Abbey Dean.


    The Quietus had been conquered by the bustling of the mortal world.


    The iron cuss brought with it a crazy wind, turning the Vermilion Avenue into the storming sea in the east of the Kingdom of Song.


    The Abbey Dean¡¯s aura of Quietus had been conquered. His dark robe fluttered in the storm.


    The Abbey Dean rose in the air suddenly and looked as if he had grown many times bigger.


    An aura as vast as the ocean appeared on the snowy street.


    Again, the Abbey Dean used the Boundless State of the Buddhism Sect.


    The pain he suffered made it clear to him that the Boundless State was far from enough to resist the cuss in Ning Que¡¯s hand because it was also thousands of cusses strong.


    So he used the Divine Demon Realm which was the top-secret skill from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Yu Lian and the Abbey Dean were the only two people in the world who could use it. The skill reinforced the cultivator¡¯s body to be tougher than iron. Moreover, it would create a new world, yet a fake one.


    What would happen when the Boundless of the Buddhism Sect and the Divine Demon Realm of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine were harnessed at the same time?


    Ning Que arrived at the shore of the East Sea, standing at the seawall which stretched endlessly.


    The seawall of the East Sea in the Kingdom of Song was well-known. He looked at the huge variform rocks under his feet, and looked at the boundless ocean outside the seawall, silent.


    Storms came from the remote sea and stirred the nearby seawater like ink, giving out a chilling aura. The far off sea water rolled up giant waves measuring ten stories high.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t wield the cuss to cut down the enormous waves.


    Beucase the Abbey Dean was not the storm, the storm was brought out by its iron cuss.


    The Abbey Dean was the ocean which would never be destroyed no matter how intense the storm was.


    The screeching of the Vermilion Bird resounded in the dim sky.


    The little red bird was carrying a small stone with its mouth. It flew against the storm and into the ocean depths, in spite of the violent storm and rain.


    It became a ck spot in the sky.


    It threw the small stone in its mouth into the sea.


    The stone was swallowed instantly when falling into the rampaging ocean, without producing any noticeable spray.


    But the Vermilion Bird was not disappointed at all. It chirped and pped to the shore to pick up another stone, then it flew against the storm and into the depths of the sea.


    It shuttled between the dim sky and the rampaging ocean, again and again.


    There was a mountain behind the sea wall which now had copsed by more than half.


    People at the foot of the hill were hammering the hard stone into small pieces so that the Vermilion Bird could carry them with its beak.


    There were countless people hammering stone there.


    Many of them came from Tile Mountain. For years they had carved the broken pieces of the copsed Buddha figure into smaller figures and sold them to the tourists to earn money. That was the thing they were good at.


    That was the thing that human beings were good at.


    Human beings were good at excavating mountains and smashing all the hardness in the world.


    The low hammering sound kept ringing behind the sea wall for days and nights. People were exhausted but they insisted, and the Vermilion Bird kept flying between thend and the sea.


    The Vermilion Bird had thrown countless small stones into the sea.


    They were filling up the sea.


    The sea was boundless, but if they kept throwing stones in it, they believed that someday the sea would be filled up.


    The Boundless would be conquered by the limitless of the morta world.


    The Abbey Dean turned into a deserted wildnd.


    Rain had been pouring for half a year and it was said that the rain was Haotian¡¯s punishment. Whoever disrespected Haotian would die in the horrible catastrophe.


    To avoid the flood, one had to escape from the Wilderness covered by knee-high grass and muddy marshes everywhere. The Wilderness might look safe but it was full of hidden risks and even the most brutal beasts wouldn¡¯t dare to go there carelessly.


    Being here alone at the border of the Wilderness, the first person hesitated because there were no roads on the Wilderness and he didn¡¯t know the correct way to walk on the Wilderness.


    More and more people gathered in the Wilderness. They wanted to negotiate the vastnd, reaching a new world, but just like the first one who had arrived here, they didn¡¯t know where the road was.


    They discussed for a long time and even quarrelled over it, yet still no one had any ideas about it.


    ¡°Please let me through.¡±


    A young man squeezed out of the crowd and walked into the Wilderness.


    His luggage was simple, and what really worked for him might be the slightly rusty chopper in his hand. What made others be concerned was the skinny little girl he carried on his back.


    People tried to talk him out of the journey because the Wilderness was dangerous; most importantly, there was no road.


    The young man ignored them and kept walking towards the Wilderness, holding the chopper in his hand tighter.


    The crowd remained silent for a long time as they saw the young man disappearing in the grass on the Wilderness.


    Somebody in the crowd fastened his backpack, following the young man and walking into the Wilderness.


    Someone else took a tree branch as his walking stick and followed.


    More and more people walked into the Wilderness.


    Some of them were killed by the snakes in the swamp; some were drowned in the mire; some became the dried corpses buried in the running sand; but most of the travelers made their way out of the vastnd and entered the new world.


    ¡®The world had no roads to begin with, but when many men pass one way, a road is made.¡±


    The Divine Demon Realm was conquered by the persistence of the mortal world.


    The Abbey Dean used three states at once.


    The Quietus of Haotian Taoism; the Boundless of the Buddhism Sect; the Divine Demon Realm of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    All three were beyond the Five States.


    Ning Que clearly hacked and cut.


    And he devastated all of the three.


    The Abbey Dean¡¯s finger was still pulling against the edge of the cuss.


    The frost and snow on the cuss had been long gone, so had the cuss¡¯ aura and the zing me.


    Many small yet bloody wounds appeared on the Abbey Dean¡¯s fingers.


    Ten more miserable wounds appeared on his body.


    Some of his flesh had been blown away, and other parts were exposed to the dim wind.


    Blood flowed down all over his body like waterfall.


    He looked miserable.


    Too miserable to survive.


    But the Abbey Dean was still alive.


    He was the most powerful man in Haotian Taoism for the past millenium; he wouldn¡¯t die so easily.


    He was one step closer to death, or to the Kingdom of Haotian.


    Everything woulde to an end if he couldn¡¯t resist the thousands of cusses in Ning Que¡¯s hand.


    He had been such a proud man in his whole life; seldom had he felt the fear of death.


    Except for the time when he was defeated by Ke Haoran¡¯s sword.


    The other time, when he was clubbed by the Headmaster.


    Yet still he had survived both, and he had even made progress in cultivation.


    For a disillusioned powerhouse like the Abbey Dean, the great fear of death was a rare opportunity to receive his Tao Enlightenment.


    He was facing Ning Que¡¯s cuss today, and once again he saw the abyss between life and death. What else could he read from it this time?


    The Abbey Dean stared at Ning Que with a strange expression on his face.


    Not the expression of light regret; not anger, nor a feeling of reluctance.


    The expression was out of the human range. He looked so peaceful and dispassionate that he seemed empty and emotionless inside.


    An expression without emotion was no expression at all.


    But Ning Que felt it was something he should be wary of.


    His eyes were expressionless; even his pupils were fading out.


    They were not like how they turned when using the Grey Eyes; they were literally colorless.


    His eyeballs were almost transparent. They were no longer jade-like, but more like tasteless water.


    Then he suddenly drew back his fingers.


    And Ning Que¡¯s iron cuss fell down.


    The wind started howling before the de arrived.


    ck hair fluttered in the air, and blood dripped in the wind.


    The flesh and blood falling off him were like scarlet flower petals.


    His bones were like white roots of lotuses.


    The bloody scene now looked sad but beautiful.


    He turned into a lotus.


    The blood couldn¡¯t stain him, and the dirt couldn¡¯t cover him.


    He was the purest.


    The purest of all.


    Broken rainbow shards fell down from the sky and finally fell on the street.


    Several pieces fell on the Abbey Dean and shone like gold and jade, then they slid off.


    Those broken rainbow pieces were remnants from the Haotian Initiation¡¯s aura. For some unknown reasons they were now unable to merge with the Abbey Dean¡¯s flesh and blood.


    The Abbey Dean seemed to have lost his connection with Haotian. He seemed to have disappeared in the world, and became floating snowkes. He was so independent, and untouchable like never before.


    Yu Lian raised her eyebrows when she saw the scene.


    Eldest Brother said with disbelief, ¡°State of Pureness?¡±

 Chapter 799 - Killed by the Mortal (Part Two)

    <h4>Chapter 799: Killed by the Mortal (Part Two)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The State of Pureness was the most mysterious state of Haotian Taoism which no one had witnessed in the cultivation history after the Evesting Night.


    For the real powerhouses in the world, there was one question that had confused them the most¡ªhow high the Headmaster was.


    Master Qishan in the Lanke Temple once guessed that the Headmaster had reached the State of Pureness, which strongly proved how high and powerful the State of Pureness was in people¡¯s eyes.


    The Headmaster proved his state on the Wilderness which was beyond everyone¡¯s imagination, but actually, even the Headmaster himself hadn¡¯t run into a man who had reached the State of Pureness.


    Eldest Brother hadn¡¯t met one, either. All of his fragmentary knowledge on the State of Pureness came from the library in the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain. Him shouting ¡°the State of Pureness¡± was just a guess.


    He felt he was close to the truth, or nothing could exin what was happening on the Abbey Dean.


    Ning Que finished writing the character. He gathered all desires and borrowed thousands of cusses from thousands of people in Chang¡¯an City, but no one expected that the Abbey Dean would reach the State of Pureness when he was nearly killed by Ning Que.


    Eldest Brother couldn¡¯t believe that there was someone living in the world who had actually reached that legendary state.


    But that was happening before him, so vivid and so real.


    The Abbey Dean surely honored his name as the most powerful man in the one-thousand-year history of Haotian Taoism, and he was second to Haotian.


    The State of Pureness was beyond the Five States. In fact, it was the state beyond all others because its reach was beyond this word.


    When attaining the State of Pureness, it meant that the cultivator was beyond any other forces in the world.


    The clear sunshine poured on the cliff, and the green pine trees cast shadows on the stone. As breeze was flowing by, the pine branches waved and dusted the dirt off from the stone, but the shadows remained still.


    Now the Abbey Dean¡¯s blood and flesh had be lotus petals, and his bones had be lotus roots. He lived in the pure water instead of the mortal world. Therefore, Ning Que¡¯s cuss, which he borrowed from the mortal world, had no way to reach the Abbey Dean.


    The cuss had broken through three states beyond the Five States in session. But how would it deal with the pureness?


    The iron cuss had shed the Quietus, the Boundless, and the Divine Demon Realm. Ning Que was at the peak of his morale and spirit; the scary and endless Qi of Heaven and Earth inside him could burst out at anytime.


    People liked to consider because they knew about things, and they felt annoyed when considering. That was how Eldest Brother was like now. He knew nothing about why the Abbey Dean could flow in the air, and why he looked even cleaner. Therefore, he considered no more, and all he had in mind was to chop this opponent of his.


    Finally his cuss cut down.


    Trailed by the re spreading for more than ten miles, the iron cuss finally finished writing that character in the blue sky.


    All things littered on the Vermilion Street were rolled up by the wind summoned by the cuss, and were then thrown to the Abbey Dean.


    There were silver ingots, gold bars, bird-and-flower paintings of the Calligraphy and Painting Shop, women¡¯s cosmetic powder and hairpins, and old censers from the small Taoist temple.


    There were iron pans and broken gongs, over-night tea from the teapot, urine from the chamber pot, left-over steamed buns, meat fillings with onion taste, and even human waste blown out of the drain.


    No matter if they were ugly or beautiful, sweet or stinky, delightful or disgusting, they were just how the mortal world was like.


    Ning Que¡¯s cuss hacked with the aura of the whole mortal world, including its disgusting side.


    When things were mixed up, they often lost their own identity. People wouldn¡¯t be able to tell they smelled sweet or stinky, or if it was a silver ingot or a chamber pot. They didn¡¯t see any difference in human waste and gold bars.


    In the wild wind, the Vermilion Street and the whole city of Chang¡¯an became extremely dark and windy, then it grew even darker, as if the night were falling.


    Continuous nging came out of the street wrapped in darkness.


    The Abbey Dean was floating in the air like an undefiled lotus, with red petals and white stalks.


    Countless things from the mortal world attacked him.


    Meat fillings with onion vor fell on his face, then rolled down, leaving thick gravy and chopped onion on his beard.


    A gold bar hit him heavily on the chest, his flesh hanging like flower petals twitched. A print was then left on his chest; it was the seal of the Tang Empire¡¯s national treasury.


    The chamber pot narrowly missed his right shoulder and spilled a disgusting yellowish urine. A box of powder dispersed on his face, painting his whole face white.


    The Abbey Dean was soaked in blood and was covered with stains. Two pieces of rotten vegetable leaves were hanging on his belt, and there were stains of human waste beside the wound of his broken fingers.


    He became extremely filthy.


    He had never been this filthy in his life, not even before he reached the State of Pureness.


    He spent his life traveling in the South Sea, yet there was no dirt on his shoes. However, now he had to face the ablution of the mortal world, and tried to ovee all the smells of the world.


    But the filth from the mortal word stayed outside his heart, and outside his body.


    He was still in the State of Pureness, which repelled all the harm that befell him.


    He could keep his body and soul clean as long as he kept his Taoist Heart in peace.


    However, his body and soul were so tightly connected that when his body was influenced by the human world for long, his heart and soul would no longer stay peaceful.


    The scene was, of course, shocking because the legendary State of Pureness had appeared once more after countless years, or even after several Evesting Nights.


    Shockingly, soon after its reappearance, it encountered its most powerful opponent in the mortal world¡ªthe mortal world itself.


    The lotus was shivering in the dim wind and it might wither or die at anytime soon.


    The Abbey Dean continued resisting Ning Que.


    The fight was between the ultimate state and the mortal world. Nobody knew how it would end.


    Not even Haotian.


    Jiang Rui, a swindler and a fraud, was the most notorious ruffian in Sanyuanli. But he was actually a real coward, even more cowardly than the mostmon ruffians, so even young kids looked down upon him.


    He was homeless and lived everywhere on the streets. So, he hadn¡¯t received the notice from the Imperial Court. He didn¡¯t wake up until the bell in the city rang. Then he heard loud noises brought to him by the wind.


    Jiang Rui had no idea that it was the fight between the Abbey Dean and the Academy. He didn¡¯t even know what was happening in Chang¡¯an City now. But when he found that the streets were empty and the government runners who were supposed to be patrolling the streets were all gone, his confusion was immediately reced by bliss.


    He stole embroidered cloth produced by the South Jin Kingdom. He even wanted to pick up several silver ingots when he found the door of the local government treasury had been broken, but he was so timid that he gave it up in the end.


    Though being a ruffian, he was as prideful as any other Tang. So when he returned to the small yard of his and thought back to his timidity earlier, he felt ashamed.


    To erase the shame, he made up his mind to do the thing he had thought about for long. He took a pointy knife out of his clothing and sneaked into the courtyard of the Villiage Head. He was going to kill the big yellow dog that had bitten him when he was a child.


    That happened more than ten years ago and the big yellow dog was now too old and too weak to resist him. As he shoved his pointy knife in, the dog breathed itsst.


    Jiang Rui even doubted whether the old yellow dog had been killed by him or by its own old age.


    But anyway, he had finished the task of his life. He carried the dog back to his small yard; he skinned and chopped it, preparing to light the stove and cook it.


    At the same time, he heard someone talking on the street.


    He couldn¡¯t understand any of that conversation. Later he heard two young men crying, and he could tell one of them must be the poker-face guy of the Zhang¡¯s.


    Jiang Rui climbed the wall with both hands and nced into the street. Soon he learned roughly about what was happening in Chang¡¯an City, which terrified him so badly that he instantly hurried back to his small yard.


    He went nk for a while, looking at the water to be boiled in the pot and the dog meat on the chopping board.


    Then he thrust the knife on the board and poured the bloody dog meat into the pot.


    He knocked down the old and shabby wall, picked up tens of bricks and held them in his arms. Later he climbed up the wall again, and took out one of the bricks, throwing it at the Taoist in ck.


    He thought he would be safe this way, and he had the mixed feelings of anger and pity for the dog, so he broke into curses at the Taoist.


    ¡°Take my brick and go to hell, you bastard!¡±


    Then Jiang Rui died. Nobody knew that he had finished the biggest task of his life today. And nobody knew that the small yard had a half copsed wall, with dog meat cooking in a pot.


    The Abbey Dean¡¯s Quietus hung over Chang¡¯an City and extinguished the fire in the stove. The water in the pot stopped boiling but the dog meat remained soaking in it until the water became all bloody.


    Ning Que pulled his Podao out of the snowy street, and at the same time, the pointy knife on the chopping board jumped up. Blood on the knife had yet to dry up, and a light steam wasing out of the pot.


    A character came into being in the blue sky. Then the wind swept by the Vermilion Street and wrapped it in darkness. It was as if the night hade in advance, hanging over Chang¡¯an City, including the small yard.


    A dark wind came violently and from all directions. It broke the eaves beside the streets, and pulled down the remaining half wall in the small yard; even the dog meat in the pot was blown away.


    The pot was swept away by the wind, flying over the wall and into the street. Finally, it fell onto a man.


    It fell on the Abbey Dean.


    The dog meat in a bloody soup was poured on the Abbey Dean¡¯s head.


    He was soaked in blood soup, from head to toe.


    Dog meat fell on his wounded body.


    If he was a lotus, the meat was hanging on his petals.


    Blood dripped off the petals.


    His body was stained, then his heart.


    The Taoist Pureness was finally conquered by the mundanity of the mortal world.


    Confusion emerged in the eyes of the Abbey Dean.


    ¡°I killed you.¡±


    Said Ning Que.


    His iron cuss fell on the Abbey Dean¡¯s left shoulder, on his flesh.


    Although the Pureness had been conquered, the Abbey Dean was still nearly eternal because he had reached so high in the Divine Demon Realm.


    So Ning Que cut with full strength.


    He bent his left knee slightly. The Great Spirit was howling, and endless Qi of Heaven and Earth flowed into his cuss. He wielded it down, leaving a scary wound on the Abbey Dean¡¯s body.


    The clean and peaceful lotus was rolled up by the dark wind, then withered, its petals falling down.


    Ning Que¡¯s attack contained the vicissitudes of Chang¡¯an City endured over a thousand years, and the expectations of all its residents.


    The Abbey Dean was cut and fell, floating to the south of the long street.


    Blood spilled all the way.


    Hundreds of ¡°Yi¡± Talismans in the streets and alleys of Chang¡¯an fell on his body again.


    Thousands of cusses in Chang¡¯an City chopped him.


    In the darkness and amidst the cusses.


    Seven of the Abbey Dean¡¯s fingers were cut off like lotus roots.


    Then his legs were separated from his body.


    His abdomen was torn open. His internal organs were deeply damaged.


    Dog blood and human waste polluted the depths of his body. The pollution was irreversible.


    The southern gate rumbled and a human shaped hole appeared on the gate.


    The Abbey Dean was thrown out of Chang¡¯an City.


    He had been nning to leave since Ning Que pulled out the cuss, but not in this way.


    The ck wind lifted the Abbey Dean¡¯s body and made him dance wildly.


    Those big rocks by theke outside the southern gate were chaotically rolling in the wind.


    Even the broken Stone Array Tactics couldn¡¯t halt Ning Que¡¯s cuss wind for a moment.


    Four miles away to the south of the city, there was ake.


    When the savage wind swept by, theke water was brought up toter fall like rain.


    The Abbey Dean fell heavily on thekeshore.


    The cleanke water then fell on him, washing away some of the filth on him.


    Several fishes fell on his side, jumping and struggling.


    The wind waved out by Ning Que¡¯s cuss kept heading south.


    Theke gradually grew peaceful and sunny again.


    The Abbey Dean was staring at the blue sky. His lips were moving as if he wanted to say something, yet no a word came out.


    He turned around and saw the fishes struggling in the water.


    They struggled for a moment, then they epted their fate and soon died.


    He stared and learned something from it.


    There were footsteps on thekeshore.


    Chen Pipi knelt down before the Abbey Dean.

 Chapter 800 - Laughing out Loud (Part I)

    <h4>Chapter 800: Laughing out Loud (Part I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The war against the Tang Empire hadsted for months. As the Abbey Dean had been chopped down by Ning Que, something had begun to change. Such changes could be idental, but some of them were inevitable.


    On the Xiangwan in in the north, thousands from the Tang Army, who were fending off enemies, thought that they were doomed to die when they saw the dust rise from the south. It was the reinforcement they had been waiting for.


    The situation suddenly changed. Thousands of the Northern Army Cavalry rushed toward the Golden Pce Army like an avnche, decapitating countless enemies with their cold des.


    The war was over. The bloody meadow had refracted the sunshine red. Situ Yn¡¯s podao had been broken. She wiped the blood off her face and looked around the battlefield. Even though most of her subordinates had been killed, they finally won the battle.


    The Verdant Canyon in the south had already been in the most perilous moment. Holding the iron sword, Jun Mo looked exhausted like a mountain in thete autumn which was peaceful and beautiful but was covered with yellow leaves.


    The disciples of the Academy were all standing behind him. Looking at the dust rising up in the wilderness and hearing the sound of hooves, they were all in silence, waiting for the final moment.


    Mu You reached out and held Jun Mo¡¯s empty sleeve.


    Fan Yue, who had been resisting the Abbey Dean¡¯s Virtual Sword with the River and Mountain Sandbox, totteringly walked out of the iron tent at this moment.


    They were brothers and sisters and they were supposed to live together and die together.


    The Coalition Army of the West-Hill Pce had reached the front of the Verdant Canyon once again.


    In the past seven days, they had stopped the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army multiple times. Both them and the coalition had been tired of this.


    This time should be different.


    And this charge should be thest one.


    At this moment, the Fourth Brother suddenly felt that the River and Mountain Sandbox in his hand became much lighter. Then he sensed that the Virtual Sword in the Sandbox had disappeared.


    People in front of the Verdant Canyon had no idea what had happened in Chang¡¯an. However, there was only one possibility for the Abbey Dean¡¯s Virtual Sword¡¯s disappearance: the Abbey Dean had been killed or abolished.


    The Fourth Brother clearly knew about the preparation of the Academy in Chang¡¯an and he also knew his brothers and sisters were trying their best to kill the Abbey Dean, but he never thought they could seed.


    Because he was good at deduction and no matter how he deducted it before, he never figured out how they were able to kill the Abbey Dean.


    However, at this time, the Virtual Sword in the River and Mountain Sandbox had disappeared. Whether he believed or not, something must have happened in Chang¡¯an.


    He hoarsely muttered, ¡°The Abbey Dean has lost.¡±


    His voice was hoarse because he had suffered the Virtual Sword attack for days and also because he was uncontrobly excited and filled with disbelief.


    Everybody from the Academy heard him.


    Silence reigned.


    Suddenly, Jun Mo raised his iron sword and pointed at the wilderness,ughing loudly.


    Beigong Weiyang burst intoughter, plucking the strings wildly.


    Ximen Buhuo rolled in the aisles, pping with his vertical bamboo flute.


    Sixth Brother grinned, clenching the hammer in his hand.


    Wang Chi cracked a smile. The faded flowers on his sideburns looked more colorful.


    Mu You was ady, who didn¡¯t need to be heroic. She didn¡¯tugh, but her eyes became misty.


    The Coalition Army of the West-Hill Pce had arrived in front of them.


    However, the disciples seemed not to see them at all. They were all in stitches.


    Theughter echoed through the Verdant Canyon and spread along the mountains.


    It didn¡¯t matter if they lived or died after today, and whether they could keep the Verdant Canyon or not; as long as the Abbey Dean was defeated, Chang¡¯an would be safe, and the Academy and the Tang Empire could keep thest hope.


    What they had protected with their lives in front of the Verdant Canyon for seven days was this hope.


    It was no longer a slim chance. It was within their grasp.


    More precisely, it was in Fourth Brother¡¯s hands.


    Under his brothers and sister¡¯s puzzled eyes, the Fourth Brother walked forward. Looking at the cavalry who surged as flowing molten iron and their sword light hiding in the sky, he lifted the River and Mountain Sandbox.


    Fourth Brother became extremely pale and his cheeks instantly became emaciated.


    He injected the River and Mountain Sandbox with all his Psyche Power.


    It was filled with fine grains of sand.


    There were rivers and mountains in the box and each sand represented a mountain peak or a bridge.


    The yellow sand billowed in front of the Verdant Canyon, covering the sky and darkening the wilderness.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce Cavalry entered the yellow sand and their eyes were blocked, losing their way.


    Screams rang out among the yellow sand, as well as the impacting sounds.


    A long time had passed, and the sand slowly rested.


    It calmed down in front of the Verdant Canyon where many bodies of soldiers and horses were revealed.


    The River and Mountain Sandbox could not change the fate of the Academy disciples.


    Since the Divine Hall Coalition Army restarted a charge after a small recuperation.


    At this moment, a Tang soldier walked out of the mountains.


    He looked embarrassed, dirty and was covered with mud, disarmed in torn clothes which had been cut into pieces when he passed through the mountains.


    He ran toward the disciples, totteringly and exhaustedly. Even so, he kept running while shouting.


    His voice sounded hoarse as if he had not drunk water for days, but in the disciples¡¯ ears, it sounded as clear as a spring.


    ¡°I¡¯m Wang Wu, from the second group of the Southern Army Scouting Camp, under orders to support you!¡±


    After that, he could not stand and heavily fell down to the ground, out of breath and unable to stand up.


    Wang Chi walked by his side and quickly felt his pulse.


    Jun Mo solemnly bowed to the mostmon soldier and said, ¡°Thank you.¡±


    An ordinary Tang soldier could not change anything, but for the Academy, hising meant a lot.


    The Academy was the Tangs¡¯ Academy.


    The Tang Empire was the Academy¡¯s Tang Empire.


    No one was fighting alone.


    Then, another Tang soldier came out of the mountains.


    Then more and more Tang soldiers showed up in the wilderness.


    They supported each other and cheered for theirpanions.


    They were exhausted. Once they walked out of the Verdant Canyon, they fell down on the ground and could not get up any more. Even if they could lift their weapons, they were unable to fight.


    Some of them fell down and were never able to stand up anymore since they suddenly felt relief when they had gotten out of the mountains.


    For the well-trained Tang soldiers, it was unbelievable.


    More and more Tang soldiers reached the Verdant Canyon.


    They had been walking for days without rest and sleep before they finally reached here.


    The Southern Army had arrived, and that was enough.


    Even though they were a tired troop.


    No one dared to deny they were a mighty troop.


    At this time, a gong sound came from the south of the wilderness.


    The cavalrymen of the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army looked at the Tang soldiers withplex emotions. Even though they were awed and grudging, they had to lift the reins, heading back to their camps.

 Chapter 801 - Laughing out Loud (Part II)

    <h4>Chapter 801: Laughing out Loud (Part II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The dark wind,ing from Ning Que¡¯s podao, blew through the long street, hacked the Abbey Dean, throwing him into theke like a dead fish. However, it didn¡¯t stop and proceeded to the south.


    There were two thousand cavalrymen outside the city who had no idea about what was happening inside Chang¡¯an. They still dreamed about how to rob the rich when they entered the city.


    There were only a few people in the West-Hill Divine Pce who were aware of the Abbey Dean¡¯s n, and Long Qing was one of them, who, in sense, was the Abbey Dean¡¯sst disciple.


    He thought that he had known what was happening inside Chang¡¯an¡ªhe tried his best to reach here at any price, to cooperate with the Abbey Dean.


    The Abbey Dean should have beaten the Academy and broken the God-stunning Array. With no real army to guard, the city of Chang¡¯an was like a tied up prisoner in front of his 2,000 cavalrymen.


    Thinking of this, he could not helpughing happily. His cavalry would be the first troop to conquer Chang¡¯an as well as thest one who destroyed it.


    As the prince of Yan, as well as the Divine Son of West-Hill, destroying Chang¡¯an and eradicating the Tang Empire were his lifelong wishes. He had worked so hard; even his soul had suffered countless tests until he was ck and blue.


    There was one more thing he had to finish while he destroyed Chang¡¯an¡ªkilling Ning Que, the opponent who had left him so many cruel memories in his life.


    He had barely entered the peak of the Knowing Destiny State when he devoured all the Halfman Taoist¡¯s cultivation with his Grey Eyes in the mountain behind the Zhishou Abbey, as well as many priests¡¯ spirit power in the Wilderness. Even though he had known that Ning Que had been reached the same level as he had, he still believed that this time, he would win.


    He had lost so many times: at the party in Chang¡¯an, on the path in the Academy, on the snow cliff in the Wilderness, and outside the Red Lotus Temple. What made him angrier was that Ning Que was obviously inferior in all aspects, yet he had beaten him again and again.


    If fate existed, if Haotian was watching them peacefully and lovingly, after inexplicably having lost for so many times, it should be his turn to win.


    The more he paid, the sweeter the fruit he harvested¡ªthe thought of Ning Que kneeling down in pain on the ground after he entered the city¡ªLong Qing looked at the majestic city and suddenly felt that all the pain he had suffered these years had turned into sweet memories.


    The huge fire burned down the houses on the roadsides, reflecting on his silver mask. His eyes looked calm through the mask but his hands trembled.


    At this moment, the raging fire in the vige suddenly went out!


    Looking at the vige that suddenly became quiet, the smoke, the scorched earth and ruins as well as the silent wilderness, Long Qing frowned and a strange feeling arose in his heart.


    Even the heaviest rain could not put off the fire in such an instant, not even the wildest wind.


    Moreover, the clouds had dissipated, revealing the blue sky and leaving no trace of the rain. Even the air had stopped flowing.


    What happened?


    The cavalrymen around him had also noticed the unusual condition, nkly looking around.


    Long Qing didn¡¯t turn around because he was focusing on the other end of the road.


    The straight and spacious state highway led directly to Chang¡¯an and its end was at the Vermilion Bird Gate.


    He seemed to see some ck sand blowing from the distance.


    He had no idea what it was but his heart sped up and shook slightly. He felt fear and his gut told him to run away.


    ¡°Spread out! Take shelter from the wind.¡±


    Long Qing¡¯s face turned pale. He began to shout at his soldiers. Then he lifted his rein, heading to the state highway, and ran to the ruined vige.


    The two thousand soldiers came from the Papal Cavalry of the Divine Hall and the Left King¡¯s Pce, who had been Long Qing¡¯s most loyal elites. Even though they didn¡¯t know what had happened, when they heard Long Qing, they all lifted the reins and urged their horses to run to the wilderness beside the road.


    As a powerhouse at the Knowing Destiny State, Long Qing was sensitive to danger, urately and timely. The soldiers also showed their excellent military ethics and responded quickly.


    However, the ck winding from Chang¡¯an had gone beyond humanity and could no longer be described by speed, instantly striking in front of them.


    Wind is the flow of air which should be colorless. The wind ravaging the world was ck because it had been mingled with many objects.


    The dust, dirty snow, teapots, leftovers, iron pans, and ck bricks were all whirled away by the wind and covered the sky, darkening the whole world.


    The horrible thing was inside the ck wind. Besides these sharp objects, a vast de intent was also hiding in it. It was so sharp that even the wind seemed to be cut into pieces when it blew over.


    Some cavalrymen, who hadn¡¯t run into the wilderness, encountered it first. They screamed until they were cut into pieces and rolled up in the wind with their horses.


    Even those who had spread to the wilderness were unable to get away from the ck wind. They hid behind broken walls. The wind would cut the broken walls, and then cut them; They hid behind the mound. The mound would be winded away, and then they were blown away as well.


    The ck wind came as if the deepest and darkest night had fallen.


    In the dark night, people could only hear the sounds of des but could not find the man who wielded the weapon.


    The cavalrymen cried out and died one by one.


    Looking at the residences that had been ruined, Long Qing trembled.


    Until the ck wind arrived in front of him, he was finally able to see the details in it clearly. He saw some household items from the families in Chang¡¯an and he also found some podao marks.


    Then he figured out who did this.


    He took out the dark, peaceful peach blossom from his chest and lifted it against the wind, screaming.


    It was his natal peach blossom, containing the cultivation throughout his life.


    However, even though the Abbey Dean had been inspired and entered the State of Pureness during the great danger, turning his flesh and blood into a red lotus, he was still hacked by the wind. Living was better than death. Let alone him.


    The ck peach blossom withered at a visible speed, with its petals falling off one by one.


    A vast amount of tiny cuts appeared on his body.


    The silver mask on his face cracked like a dry field and was peeled off.


    After a long time, the ck wind finally went away. No one knew where it went or whether it had just vanished. It might break the void and enter another space.


    The wilderness in the south of the city returned to peace. What followed wasn¡¯t the sunshine, it was a blood rain. More precisely, it was a bloody torrential rain.


    The flesh of the soldiers and horses that had rolled up to the sky had fallen down to the ground as the ck wind went away.


    Pieces of flesh ranging in the tens of thousands hit the ground, creating booming sounds and sshing bloodflowers as well as frightening juices.


    The two thousand soldiers who were going to attack Chang¡¯an were all killed by the ck wind. Most of them had turned into the pieces of flesh and the others were thrown up to the sky,ter falling to their deaths.


    The trees to the southeast of the state highway were covered with hanging pieces of bodies. A dozen ck crows flew around them, cheerfully cawing as they were looking forward to the grand meal.


    These ck crows could not eat up all the flesh; the rest would turn into nutrients for the soil, since the soldiers had burned down the vige and the trees earlier. It could be expected that some yearster, they would grow lush and beautiful.


    Long Qing was still alive.


    He was watching Chang¡¯an City.


    His silver mask had been broken, revealing the old and new scars on his face. The once perfect face had been ruined like a scary ghost in the Underworld.


    He suddenlyughed and then cried out.


    He had suffered a lot in order to destroy the city and kill the man inside it, including selling his soul. However, before he was about to seed, he found it was just a daydream of his.


    The city looked so close, but it turned out to be so far away.


    He easily failed even before he saw Ning Que in person.


    The most painful thing for him was to not even be Ning Que¡¯s target. He believed that Ning Que may not even not know of hising, being so close to the city.


    And still he lost.


    He looked at Chang¡¯an in the distance and cried out.


    ¡°Ning Que!¡±


    Since Ning Que entered the Second floor of the Academy, people had been enjoying describing them as enemies. However, at this time, Ning Que indeed didn¡¯t know Long Qing was out there.


    He had no idea that Long Qing had been driven crazy by the ck wind and of the two thousand soldiers who would have caused trouble, that had been hacked into blood and flesh.


    His target was the Abbey Dean.


    All the Tangs in Chang¡¯an aimed at the Abbey Dean.


    The ck wind brought night to the world and sted the Abbey Dean away as his podao¡¯s came down.


    The Vermilion Bird Avenue was quiet. Everyone, injured or uninjured, were all looking at Ning Que¡¯s back.


    Old Master Chao quiveringly asked, ¡°Is he dead?¡±


    People on the street were all brave, but they would never want to face a horrible enemy like the Abbey Dean.


    Ning Que shook his head.


    People were all silent.


    Ning Que said, ¡°Even if he hasn¡¯t died, he is a cripple now.¡±


    No one responded to hisment.


    Leaning against the wet walls, Zhang Nianzu and Li Guangdi nkly looked at each other.


    Old Master Chao paused and then said with a smile, ¡°Don¡¯t tease me.¡±


    He walked towards the Eastern City on a crutch while shouting loudly, ¡°It¡¯s over. Go home and get the doctors here.¡±


    Old Mrs. Chuughed and handed the old de to her little daughter-inw.


    They finally could confirm that the battle had ended.


    Zhang Nianzu and Li Guangdi looked at each other and cackled delightedly.


    The Tea Master chuckled.


    Everyone burst outughing.


    Cheerfulughter gradually spread.


    Laughter rang throughout Chang¡¯an.


    Yu Lian supported her Eldest Brother and walked to the street.


    The Eldest Brother had been chased for seven days, and he had already depleted his Psyche Power. During the battle in the morning, they fought from the street to the sky. He was injured and fractured.


    ¡°Senior Brother, you looked taller than I expected.¡±


    Looking at Eldest Brother¡¯s toes and finding they were nearly touching the ground, she frowned.


    She was confused and in pain.


    Even if she was a Grandmaster of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, when falling down from the sky, holding Eldest Brother in her arms, she was badly injured and the pain was intolerable.


    Blood emerged from her slender ankles and her bones had been smashed into pieces. Her every step was followed by bones stabbing into the flesh and hurt endlessly.


    She had to stop, sweating on her forehead.


    The Eldest Brother got off her to hold her in his arms instead, walking toward the curbside and coughing blood.


    When they finally reached the curbside, he put her down and said carefully and slowly, ¡°Junior sister, I¡¯m not getting taller. You are getting shorter.¡±


    Yu Lian nodded.


    They sat on the broken threshold side by side.


    The Eldest Brother looked toward the street and waved his hand.


    Mo Shanshan didn¡¯t see them. She was looking at the street.


    In the steet, Ning Que lifted his head and asked, ¡°Master, did you see it?¡±


    A momentter, he added, ¡°What about you? Sangsang?¡±


    Ning Que slowly sat down.


    Knife sounds rang throughout Chang¡¯an; they were sounds of des returning to their sheaths.


    His body was sizzling and it was the array-returning sound.


    A vast amount of Heaven and Earth¡¯s Qi poured out of his body, returning to the streets in Chang¡¯an.


    He began to bleed, misting up with thunder.


    These were disillusionment and rebirth.


    Mo Shanshan walked to him and helped him up.


    They also sat down on the broken threshold.


    None of them wanted to talk. They just looked at the sky quietly.


    As if enjoying the sight of a beautiful picture in the sky.


    There weren¡¯t any pictures in the sky.


    There were only two lines of steam there,ing from the iron cuss¡¯ me.


    Steam formed clouds.


    That was a character written with the cloud.


    A big ¡°human¡± character.


    It was suspended there for a long time before it vanished.


    As if it had never appeared.

 Chapter 802 - Coming Home (Part I)

    <h4>Chapter 802: Coming Home (Part I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The winter was cold and windy.


    As the tension was released, the refugees were relocated. People living in the Southern City were working hard to rebuild their homnd.


    Hundreds of Tang soldiers were passing by along the road. Judging from their armor and weapons, they were likely to be from the garrison troops. Seeing them, people would put down their tools and encourage them. Some of them would shout, ¡°Come on, Chang¡¯an is close.¡±


    The soldiers would nod and move on. The apuse would stop soon after. Since the imperial court was unable to increase the relief efforts, they had to help themselves out to pull through the winter. At least, they had to mend the houses.


    Behind the Tang Army¡¯s procession there were several carriages. People assumed they were southern officials and paid no attention to them. They would never believe that these people in the carriages had, in a sense, saved the country.


    The sunshine shone through the gaps and fell on Jun Mo¡¯s face¡ªhis pale face looked like white snow under the sunshine. He looked at the scorched vige and kept silent. Nobody knew what he was thinking.


    Mu You looked at his face and could not help bing worried.


    All of the Academy disciples had been injured in the Verdant Canyon. She was less injured but she had spent too much Psyche Power in maintaining the tactical array. She felt better after these days.


    The rest of them were all in worse shapes and still could not get up after treatment. They all rested in the trailing horse carriages, hoping to recover.


    Jun Mo was the one she worried the most since his injuries were the most severe. He had woken up after they left the Verdant Canyon. He seemed fine, but everyone was worried.


    It was because he barely talked during the trip¡ªhe just sat by the window, watching the wilderness covered with snow or the burned viges.


    Looking at his face and hair scattering on his back, Mu You rested her eyes on his empty sleeve and sighed silently in her heart.


    The carriages did not enter Chang¡¯an. They headed directly to the Academy.


    The Tang Army who escorted them had left before they reached the meadow. The meadow was covered with snow and peach flowers, which hadn¡¯t yet blossomed. The Academy was quiet and lonely.


    There was no royalty, ministers and citizens weing them and they heard no gong sounds. Only a few people were waiting for them.


    However, they didn¡¯t care. They did not inform the people in Chang¡¯an. Returning to the Academy wasing home.


    There were only two people waiting for them on the meadow¡ªthe cute little servant, Xu Jialun and Ning Que, who was leaning on a crutch and covered in bandages.


    The little servant cried out before he could say something.


    He had been scared since Jun Mo left. He was so excited when he saw his young mastere back safely until he found his empty sleeve.


    He cried out loudly.


    Jun Mo frowned and said, ¡°Stop.¡±


    Upon hearing this, the little servant tried to stop, but his tears were too much to be wiped off. Then he saw Jun Mo¡¯s hair which made him break down once again.


    ¡°Young master, what happened to your hair?¡±


    Staring at his empty sleeve and gray hair, Ning Que was speechless.


    Jun Mo said with a straight face, ¡°It is too dusty after the long trip.¡±


    It sounded clumsy and adorable, but no oneughed.


    The carriage was quiet.


    ¡°Why is the Academy so quiet?¡± Second Brother asked.


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Third Sister dismissed the instructors and students in advance, so some of them left. Most of them are working for the imperial court in Chang¡¯an or joined the army.¡±


    Jun Mo asked, ¡°How are Elder Brother and Yu Lian?¡±


    ¡°They are disabled for now, but they look fine,¡± Ning Que answered.


    The carriage drove through the ruined stone gate of the Academy and went deep inside.


    The buildings and the Front Hall of the second floor had been destroyed. Even the paths to the old library and the back of the mountain were devastated. They could not find anyone to rebuild them for now.


    Jun Mo grew silent as he was taking in the scene.


    It was still as warm as spring in the back of the mountain.


    The little servant and Tang Xiaotang carried the disciples into the hut andid them on beds for their recovery. Some of them had woken up, but the rest were still unconscious.


    There would be no vertical bamboo flute sounds, music, booming sounds, or brawls between Song Qian and the Eighth Brother temporarily. Probably they would never see their Master again.


    The Eldest Brother and Yu Lian were both sitting in wheelchairs.


    Jun Mo released Mu You¡¯s hand and walked to the Eldest Brother, saluting. Then he turned to Yu Lian and said, ¡°Xiong Chumo deserves to die. Why didn¡¯t you kill him?¡±


    Yu Lian answered, ¡°He is more useful living than dead.¡±


    Second Brother thought for a while and let it go.


    Looking at his empty sleeve and gray hair, Eldest Brotherforted him and said, ¡°Teacher told us, if something was unchangeable, we have to adapt.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t care, but I feel sorry.¡±


    He turned to the gloomy sky and said, ¡°I have always admired my Youngest Uncle, who could fight against Heaven with his sword. After Teacher left in the Sishui River, I was expecting to follow him in the future. Now I may have no chance.¡±


    Not everyone was able to understand him.


    The Eldest Brother sighed. Then he said, ¡°Pipi has left.¡±


    In the back of the mountain, Jun Mo and Chen Pipi were the closest. When he heard this, he asked after a little silence, ¡°Can the Abbey Dean recover?¡±


    It was the most important issue for the Academy.


    Jun Mo was asking Ning Que.


    Everyone in the hut were looking at Ning Que.


    On the Vermilion Bird Avenue that day, Ning Que had answered this question. Yet, he still thought for a long time before he answered, ¡°No, he can¡¯t.¡±


    Hearing this answer, Second Brother finally rxed. Even the wind had be warmer.


    The powerful Abbey Dean had always been the rainy cloud over their hearts. Even though he failed, he was not beaten by Ning Que. He was beaten by the God-stunning Array.


    In other words, he was defeated by the Master.


    If they fought in some other ce rather than Chang¡¯an, neither the Eldest Brother nor Jun Mo, plus Yu Lian, would be unable to beat him.


    As for Ning Que, he had no chance at all.


    The waterfall sounded deafening, echoing throughout the hut.


    Ning Que had always wondered how his Second Brother could sleep in this environment and how could they hear each other when they were talking in the yard.


    He once asked his Second Brother about this and his answer was: if you could get used to it, you would hear nothing when your heart was at peace.


    Dozens of days had passed, and after two wonderful and breathtaking battles, Jun Mo returned to his own small courtyard.


    For the first time, he realized that it was noisy.


    He knew it was because his heart was not calm enough.


    He stood in front of the window, looking at the night sky and fell silent for a long time. Then he watched his empty sleeve and frowned.


    He lost his right arm when he fought against Liu Bai.


    His arm was not the problem. He could use his left hand and he was still invincible¡ªthe problem was his heart, which was another pair of shoes.


    He clearly knew that he might never be able to reach the pinnacle of cultivation.


    The Great Way existed, at the beginning of the main road.


    The other side of the river brings us to the other end.


    It was a fairer ce above the Five States, where only the Headmaster and the Youngest Uncle could reach.


    It was above the sky.


    He was only a little inferior to Liu Bai in Sword Taoism, but he was younger and he had more potential. He should have been able to reach there.


    However, now all hopes had been cut off.


    This was the heaviest blow, even worse than death for a cultivator, which could drive people crazy. Even for a tough man like Jun Mo, his hair grayed.


    Yet if someone asked him if this was worth it, he still refused to answer.


    He never regretted.


    How was it not worth it to have a fight with Liu Bai?


    He just felt sorry for himself.


    ¡°If you can¡¯t fight with Heaven, you can fight with people. It would also be interesting.¡±


    Ning Que entered the yard and said, ¡°The Abbey Dean has been ruined, but Eldest Brother and Third Sister are badly injured. They will be unable to recover in a short time. Both the country and the Academy need you.¡±


    Jun Mo didn¡¯t turn around. He said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me.¡±


    ¡°I have to,¡± said Ning Que.


    Jun Mo turned around and said with a smile, ¡°I will drop it.¡±


    Ning Que suddenly felt that he wasn¡¯t able to recognize the man standing in front of him after he turned around. There was something happening to him, something subtle.


    Even he had taken his high hat off and he was smiling; he was the same proudest man in the world. He just looked less unamiable.


    Ning Que was unfamiliar with this, so he didn¡¯t know what to say.


    Jun Mo continued, ¡°I just haven¡¯t adapted to it since I can¡¯t hold my right hand with my left hand when I stand. It would look ugly when I make a salute.¡±

 Chapter 803 - Coming Home (Part II)

    <h4>Chapter 803: Coming Home (Part II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Mu You entered the room, holding a basin of hot water in her hands. She was surprised when she found Ning Que was inside the room, but she had no time to catch up before she served the Second Brother to clean up.


    ¡°It is so inconvenient to clean up and get dressed,¡± said Jun Mo.


    ¡°Seventh Sister will help you.¡± Ning Que answered.


    ¡°It¡¯s not the same. There are always some inconvenient things.¡±


    Ning Que smiled and said, ¡°After you get married, everything will be convenient.¡±


    No one was talking while only the waterfall was beating down. Mu You lowered her head and felt embarrassed. Jun Mo coughed and asked, ¡°What else can I do for you?¡±


    Feeling the embarrassment, Ning Que stopped smiling and said, ¡°Actually, I have something to tell you.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°Besides Eldest Brother and Yu Lian, only you can understand me, which means you did well in cultivation. Maybe your state is still unstable, but it will be fine.¡±


    ¡°That is not what I am going to talk about.¡±


    Ning Que pped and shouted, ¡°Hey, you two,e in.¡±


    Two young men entered the room, walking with sticks. Both of them were nervous¡ªthe one in expansive clothes looked around slyly, ying cool and tough; the other one in simple clothes kept his head down, trembling, and may have been unable to walk if he was alone.


    Ning Que said to Second Brother, ¡°They did well during the fight against the Abbey Dean. Judging from their recovery, they have a pretty good physical condition. I just don¡¯t know if they have potential.¡±


    ¡°You want them to enter the Academy, don¡¯t you?¡± asked Jun Mo.


    Ning Que answered, ¡°If you are avable, you can take one as your disciple and leave me the other one. But you have to teach them for a while because I am out of time.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°Senior Brother has yet to name a sessor.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°If he¡¯s willing, I¡¯ll find him one.¡±


    The two teenagers were Zhang III and Li IV, who had been taught a lesson by their families after the battle. Thanks to their bad injuries, they hadn¡¯t been beaten and Li IV¡¯s family hadn¡¯t returned to their hometown. They had been living in Zhang III¡¯s house until the Chang¡¯an Local Government took them to the Academy today.


    The two teenagers had no idea about what had happened. They entered the Academy dazedly, then stepped directly onto the real Academy.


    For the Tangs, the Academy was the most honorable ce, but it wasn¡¯t mysterious. On the other hand, the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain was a totally different world, and every detail made it seem like a fairnd.


    Entering the small courtyard where the sounds of the waterfall were echoing, and hearing the conversation between Ning Que and Jun Mo, they were aware of the lucky chance they had met and became more nervous. Even Zhang Nianzu didn¡¯t dare to look around, praying silently.


    Ning Que continued, ¡°I know they should be tested, but I really like them and I am concerned about whether they have no potential like me.¡±


    Jun Mo answered, ¡°If you can cultivate, they certainly can. No one can¡¯t be taught if the Academy wants to. If you want to keep them, then do it.¡±


    Ning Que said a few words to the young ones before he left. The Seventh Sister sent him out and seemed toe across someone outside the gate.


    The two teenagers were in a state of shock and happiness and were unable to notice Ning Que¡¯s departure. They were both staring at the man standing in front of them and waiting.


    At this moment, the big white goose strode into the yard, familiarly came to the house. After clumsily stepping over the high threshold, it sat beside Jun Mo¡¯s feet and began reposing.


    It was hurt when the Hierarch came to the Academy and hadn¡¯t recovered yet, so it was too listless to notice that there were two strangers in their yard.


    Even so, the two teenagers were still startled by the big white goose who acted like a human.


    ¡°The first thing you should learn is how to be calm.¡±


    Jun Mo said to them, ¡°Go and stand in the courtyard, no crutches, no bending. Stay awake until the next morning, then you pass.¡±


    Ning Que was nearly pecked by the big white goose when they ran into each other. He angrily said, ¡°Senior Sister, after you be the hostess of this yard, you should be strict with the big white goose. It is spoiled. I am disabled and it still dared to bite me.¡±


    Mu You, who had been nervous, didn¡¯t know how to respond when hearing this. She asked in a low voice, ¡°Did you already know this?¡±


    Ning Que answered with a smile, ¡°We are not blind.¡±


    Mu You twisted her handkerchief and whispered, ¡°He started it.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°None of us will bother about it since Teacher is gone.¡±


    Mu You asked cautiously, ¡°He would not disagree, would he?¡±


    Looking toward the bright moon in the night, Ning Que was somehow pissed off and said, ¡°Who knows what kind of bullshit he would say.¡±


    ¡°What is bullshit?¡±


    ¡°That is... the shit of a bull.¡±


    ¡°Why would he like to say bullshit?¡±


    ¡°Because... he used to be close to the old yellow bull?¡±


    ¡°Youngest Brother, you are talking nonsense again.¡±


    ¡°Anyway, he was unreliable.¡±


    ¡°Hmm, he indeed had been a little unreliable.¡±


    Mu You looked at the bright moon and smiled.


    Then she turned to Ning Que and said, ¡°Thank you.¡±


    She knew that Ning Que took the two teenagers to the Academy as a way to distract his Senior Brother.


    That was what she thanked him for.


    Ning Que smiled back and said nothing.


    The mountain behind the Academy was so huge that everyone could build their own small courtyard, which was either near theke or near the mountain, including Tang Xiaotang. Since Song Qian and Eighth Brother liked to always y Go games under the pine tree while the schr had been living in the library cavern, their houses were usually empty.


    Because of Sangsang, Ning Que had been the only one who didn¡¯t live in the mountain. He mostly lived in the Old Brush Pen Shop or in the house near Yanming Lake, and asionally slept over in the mountain, but his house was always kept.


    He walked slowly along the mountain path with his crutch, heading to his own yard in the dark night.


    Sangsang was gone. The house near Yanming Lake had been ruined and the walls of the Old Brush Pen Shop had been destroyed. He had no reason to go back. The yard in the mountain would probably be his home in the future.


    It was located behind the dense forest where Beigong and Ximen used to y music. It was near theke, quiet and secluded in the night.


    Someone was waiting for him in the room.


    Leaning against the mud wall, Tang Xiaotang kicked it sometimes, lowering her head and looking at her old small leather boots.


    Ning Que looked at her beautiful but sad face and asked, ¡°What do you want to know?¡±


    Tang Xiaotang looked up and asked, ¡°Is Sangsang really dead?¡±


    Sangsang had few good friends, but she was one of them.


    Thinking of this, Ning Que suddenly felt pain somewhere in his body.


    ¡°Few people mentioned Sangsang in front of me since I came back. They probably felt sorry, like my Senior Brothers and Sisters, but most of them have forgotten her.


    ¡°And yes, she is dead.¡±


    He said peacefully, as if he were describing amon thing.


    Although that made it even more sorrowful.


    Tang Xiaotang said, ¡°She really was Haotian¡¯s daughter.¡±


    After a moment of silence, Ning Que answered, ¡°Or you could say, she was Haotian.¡±


    He thought of the traces left by Haotian in the God-stunning Array, the traces of Sangsang passing by in Chang¡¯an, their home and past. He suddenlyughed and said, ¡°I raised Haotian and married her. Am I legendary?¡±


    Tang Xiaotang suddenly felt sorry for him and she did not know how tofort him.


    Because she felt sorry for herself as well.


    Ning Que looked at her and said, ¡°I know what you want to ask. Pipi has taken the Abbey Dean back to the Zhishou Abbey. I want to say, I owe him a lot. I owe him my life. If he needs me someday, I will try my best do do it.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang found her answer and said, ¡°Thank you, Youngest Uncle.¡±


    They embraced in the chilly moonlight and gave each other warmth and courage.


    Ning Que once believed he owed nothing to the world and was owed by it instead, until he lived in the City of Wei, then as he came to Chang¡¯an and entered the Academy, he found he owed many people.


    He owed Chen Pipi his life and he owed Mo Shanshan for her love.


    Mo Shanshan didn¡¯t live in the Academy. She preferred the hotel in Chang¡¯an.


    She came for the Academy and the Tang Empire from the Great River Kingdom, leaving her sect behind.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t know how to face her.


    They had something, but they didn¡¯t know what they should do.


    Not all men and women were like his Second Brother and Seventh Sister.


    Like him, who had a wife, but still slept alone.


    He hoped everything would pass after a sleep, but he was unable to fall asleep.


    He looked at the bright moon in the night.


    When they left the City of Wei, the stars were as cold and white as today.


    The wounds made by the Abbey Dean suddenly became more painful, as his heart.

 Chapter 804 - Coming Home (Part III)

    <h4>Chapter 804: Coming Home (Part III)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    There were a lot of people near the city gate. Thousands of Tang soldiers entered the city in session. They were shabby, injured, and tired.


    Countless people in Chang¡¯an weed them, waving their hands and smiling warmly.


    This was the first rotation since the war had begun. They were all rearranged back to various counties after withdrawing from the front line. Only a few could return to Chang¡¯an.


    The Tang Empire had disyed a perfect administration and amazing efficiency in the war. Since the conscription started, hundreds of thousands of former veterans had joined the front line and all kinds of resources had been delivered to every battle, which had given the Empire a break.


    But because the bloody war was still ongoing, the ceremonies all over the country were solemn and simple, including the one happening in Chang¡¯an. However, the Empress¡¯s presence still attracted many people.


    As the crowd melted away, amon carriage stopped along the state highway.


    Everyone in the city was cautious because their country was at war. As soon as they noticed the carriage, they reported it to the City Patrol Department. They became even more curious when they saw the soldiers of the City Patrol Department leave after they questioned the people in the carriage.


    A hand opened the curtain, and Ning Que looked through the window toward the frozen state highway until he saw someoneing.


    Dozens of riders arrived. Judging from their weapons and horses, they must have been from the Valiant Cavalry Battalion, which was the real royal military and had a higher status than the Yulin Royal Guards. However, they looked more battered than the soldiers who had entered the city.


    Ning Que looked at the man on the horse and said, ¡°You looked strange in that armor.¡±


    The man was dusty but still full of spirit. Hearing Ning Que, he said with a smile, ¡°I¡¯m a soldier, not andlord in Chang¡¯an anymore.¡±


    The man was Chao Xiaoshu, who had led the Valiant Cavalry Battalion to support the Eastern Border from afar.


    He jumped off the horse and could not help coughing before he spoke.


    Ning Que said, ¡°You should not ride a horse if you are injured.¡±


    Then, Ning Que turned around to go inside the carriage.


    Chao Xiaoshu smiled and turned around to say something to Liu Wu. Then, he went into the carriage after Ning Que and said, ¡°You came here to meet with me. How can you enter the carriage before I do?¡±


    Pointing at the bandage on his body, Ning Que said, ¡°Seven holes have been poked into me by the Abbey Dean and I¡¯ve lost most of my blood. I can¡¯t stand outside for a long time.¡±


    As he took a look at his face, Chao Xiaoshu could not find any traces of youth. Thinking of the news he had heard, he said, ¡°I thought that you died.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I thought you died too.¡±


    Then they smiled together.


    Ning Que added, ¡°Why did you think I was dead?¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu answered, ¡°I remembered that you said your story was not the same as the one in the storybook before you killed Xia Hou. With that being the case, when you met the Abbey Dean, you should have been killed.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°When I heard that you had gone to be a hero, leaving your wife and child behind, I thought that you would be killed, because a hero such as this must die to bring glory to himself.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu said after a while, ¡°Many people died.¡±


    Ning Que opened the window and looked back at the heavy carriages behind him.


    He saw the remains of the soldiers of the Valiant Cavalry Battalion. Having been blown by the wind for so many days in the cold winter, the horsehides on their bodies had warped and turned blue.


    ¡°Hundreds of cavalrymen set out, but only a few dozen of you came back. Many people indeed have died.


    ¡°It is a pyrrhic victory on the Eastern Border,¡± said Ning Que.


    Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°Compared to the Northern Army, who faces the Golden Pce alone, we are disqualified toin. However, the border is empty and the soldiers recruited from the counties have really suffered a lot.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I thought you woulde earlier.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°I had been chasing Long Qing to Chentang County until I found the problem was fixed by you for no reason. Then I went back to the Eastern Border. If the Academy had not protected Chang¡¯an, and the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army had not been stalled in Verdant Canyon for seven days, and the Gushan Commandery and the Northeast Border Military had been unable to reorganize, I would not havee back.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°It takes time.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu looked at his bandages and said, ¡°When can you recover?¡±


    The question sounded simple, as if he was just acting concerned, but Ning Que knew that it was not that simple because he spoke about his injury at this moment.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± He knew what Chao Xiaoshu was going to ask, so he continued, ¡°As for my brothers and sisters, I don¡¯t know either, so you should leave us alone.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu slightly frowned and asked, ¡°Why so slow?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°It¡¯s not easy to hurt us, and it¡¯s not easy for us to heal as well.¡±


    As long as he thought of his severely injured brothers and sisters and the Third Sister, who was sitting in a wheelchair, he could not help keeping a serious look on his face. If the powerhouses of Haotian Taoism were to infiltrate Chang¡¯an, they would be in big trouble.


    Because they had entered the city from the east gate, they would have to pass through Eastern City.


    When the carriage passed by the Old Brush Pen Shop, Ning Que saw it through the window and recalled plenty of memories about it.


    Chao Xiaoshu sighed and said, ¡°Since the spring of the 13th year of Tianqi, when you and Sangsang came to Chang¡¯an, to thete winter of the 18th year, five years have passed, but it seems like it has been 10 years.¡±


    Looking at the Old Brush Pen Shop and the shops next to it, Chao Xiaoshu remembered that spring rain in the 13th year, the killing, and the noodles without egg, and he smiled.


    Ning Que stared at him and suddenly said, ¡°In fact, we don¡¯t know each other very well.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°True, we¡¯ve only seen each other a few times.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t you think it is weird?¡±


    ¡°20 years ago, I met the dead emperor, who was still the Crown Prince, in the House of Red Sleeves for the first time, and we had a fight. After that, we drank together, and since then, I¡¯ve be Second Brother Chao.


    ¡°A bowl of wine was a life... so was a bowl of noodles.¡±


    He added, ¡°Chang¡¯an is such an interesting ce because many things like that happen every day. The people living here are enjoying it and there is nothing strange.¡±


    Ning Que thought it over, and replied, ¡°Indeed.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu did not go back home. Instead, he went to the pce.


    Seeing Chao Xiaoshu enter the pce following a eunuch, Ning Que turned toward the imperial study alone.


    He had experienced many important turns during his tough life and been to many significant ces. The imperial study in the Imperial Pce was one of them.


    He wrote the famous calligraphy work there. That was the first time he met the dead emperor. He had a long conversation with Li Yu there and he killed her brother the next day.


    He put his crutch in front of the bookshelf and slowly moved to the desk, opened up some paper, and began writing.


    He kept writing and writing.


    The dead emperor loved his writings, but he had been unwilling to give him any. Even when he had to, he felt like his heart was being cut. Now, he wished he had written more for him to make him happy.


    He was willing to write now, but His Majesty could not see it.


    The imperial study was very quiet, the only thing that could be heard was the sound of the brush gliding over the paper. All of sudden, he heard someone reprimanding sternly.


    Ning Que was stunned.


    The imperial study was close to the Front Hall, so the sound must havee from there.


    For a second, he thought that he had heard His Majestymbasting some moron.


    As he had said in the carriage, he was not familiar with Chao Xiaoshu, but they could watch each other¡¯s back.


    He was not very familiar with His Majesty either, but His Majesty dared to give Chang¡¯an, and the future of the Li Royal Family, to him. He had toplete the job with his life.


    Because this was Chang¡¯an, and things like this happened all the time.


    His trust did not start with the calligraphy work. It started because he heard His Majestymbaste a moron in the imperial study. He liked to call people moron, it made him happy.


    But His Majesty was dead, and no one would call anyone a moron in the Imperial Pce.


    He shook his head and continued writing.


    Suddenly, his right hand began to feel numb.


    That was because he heard the sound from the Front Hall again.


    And this time, he heard it clearly.


    There was someone calling people morons.


    It was the Empress.


    Ning Queughed and felt so happy.


    In the depths of the pce, a huge map marked withplicated lines and annotations was illuminated by dozens of bright candles so people could see it clearly.


    A middle-aged officer of the Military Ministry, pointing at the map with a long wooden rod, was exining to everyone in the hall. It was obvious, however, that not all of them were willing to listen.


    The Empress felt a little tired. She took up a cup of tea and drank it slowly.


    She looked so peaceful and graceful that the generals and ministers were unable to remember when she had called them morons upon learning that they had trouble transporting grain to the Western Army.


    Chao Xiaoshu stood quietly in the corner and said nothing, but he also could not help thinking of His Majesty, who had once called people morons in this same room.


    Some people were alive and returned home, and some people had died and they also returned home¡ªmaybe they had never left. That was very good.-

 Chapter 805 - A Later Story

    <h4>Chapter 805: A Later Story</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The long red wooden rod kept moving on the map, like a torch that was going to light the map and set fire to the entire Tang Empire.


    After they had a great victory on the hignds, the Western Army did not stop to recuperate or return. They went directly to Chaoyang City across the Pamir Mountains.


    General Shu Cheng had led his army into the depths of Yuelun alone. If they could conquer Chaoyang City and capture the royal family of Yuelun, they would be a great help to the Tang Empire.


    Long Qing and his 2,000 cavalrymen had been mauled heavily outside Chang¡¯an, which was a great shock to the Wilderness Cavalrymen. They had no effective militarymand and were unable to threaten the rest of the Northeast Border Military or the Tang Army. The situation on the Eastern Border had be stable and it was time to counterattack.


    The real threats existed in the south and the north. The Northern Army had beenplemented with new military strength and the Gushan Commandery was free to support the Eastern Border, but the Golden Pce had been preparing for the invasion for decades. They drained to the south like fire and thunder and started brutal wars. The Tang Army could only passively defend and was unable to eliminate the pce¡¯s main force or counterattack.


    The situation in the Verdant Canyon in the south was abhorrent as well. The main force of the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army mostly came from the South Jin Kingdom and their true strength was even greater than that. Whether they assaulted the Verdant Canyon or they took the road in the Eastern Border in the north, they would give Chang¡¯an a lot of pressure and probably change the whole war.


    However, it was surprising that the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army was much weaker than the Tang had expected and it seemed that they were not nning to turn to the north.


    The pce was quiet, and all of the ministers and generals were thinking hard.


    ¡°What the hell is the Divine Hall thinking?¡±


    Zeng Jing said, ¡°Maybe they want to conserve their forces until both we and the Golden Pce have suffered greatly?¡±


    The Empress pointed at a letter on the desk and said, ¡°They want to negotiate.¡±


    The letter was bright yellow, which was the color that could only be used by the West-Hill Divine Pce and royals.


    Everyone was stunned when they heard the Empress. None of them could figure out why the West-Hill Divine Pce wanted to negotiate at this moment.


    The room fell silent again.


    Even facing the entire world, they were fearless, but they were no longer young and they could also consider problems in a peaceful way¡ªas long as they calmed down. And once they did so, they had to admit that there was a huge gap between the Tang Empire and the human world.


    Even though the Tang Empire was the strongest country in the world, they still could notpare with the entire world in terms of poption, resources, or territory.


    Especially after the Northeast Border Military was eliminated in the Yan Kingdom and the navy of Qinghe County had defeated in Great Lake, the Tang military force had suffered heavy losses. Although the Academy and the imperial court had been trying to alleviate the crisis, no one could tell how long they would be able to hold on in the face of the Golden Pce as well as the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army.


    From a rational point of view, a negotiation would be the best result they could expect. However, under these circumstances, they would surely suffer a great deal and the Coalition Army would surely request that they cede territory and pay indemnities.


    For a thousand years, the Tang Empire won every battle and they never surrendered, let alone negotiated. Could not they keep their ancestors¡¯ pride anymore? Who dared to negotiate and sign that document, taking the risk of losing his reputation?


    That was why they all remained silent.


    The Empress said, ¡°You have to decide quickly. We must discuss this negotiation and it must happen soon. Because waiting one day will lead to many people¡¯s deaths.¡±


    In the imperial study, when the Empress saw the calligraphy on the desk, she was reminded of something. She said, ¡°Did you hear that?¡±


    Ning Que threw a brush into a bowl of water and wiped his hand. He said, ¡°Since the Divine Hall wants to discuss it, then discuss it. But either way, we can¡¯t suffer any losses.¡±


    The Empress said, ¡°They¡¯ve gained the upper hand, so if we don¡¯t lose something, they won¡¯t agree to it. If we are going to have a discussion, we must prepare for it.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°First of all, we should understand why the Divine Hall suddenly wants to negotiate. They haven¡¯t actually had a fight so far.¡±


    The Empress asked, ¡°In your opinion, why do they want to talk?¡±


    There was a pot of hot tea on the desk and a set of exquisite tea-things on the bookshelf. Ning Que took out two of the tea-things and filled them with the hot tea, leaving one for the Empress and drinking up the other one himself. Then, he took all the stuff out of the box and put it on the tea tray.


    The tea tray was broad and wide.


    Ning Que picked up the biggest teapot and said, ¡°We can now confirm that the Abbey Dean is disabled.


    ¡°And so is the Hierarch.¡±


    He took a small teaspoon from the tea tray and held a few cups with one hand. He continued, ¡°The Great Divine Priest of Revtion, Master Qi Mei, and Ye Su all lost.¡±


    Finally, he slightly knocked the tea container and said, ¡°Liu Bai hacked off my Second Brother¡¯s right arm and got stabbed in his chest, so he will be unable to do anything for a long time.¡±


    Reviewing the war that hadsted for months, Ning Que found that even though the soldiers and normal people had all taken part in the war, the battles between the Academy and Haotian Taoism had yed an important role.


    The Eldest Brother held back the Abbey Dean for seven days, seriously injured Master Qi Mei in the Pamir Mountains and the Great Divine Priest of Revtion in the Verdant Canyon. The Second Brother beat Ye Su first, then he hurt Liu Bai, and stopped the West-Hill Divine Pce Army in front of the Verdant Canyon with hispanions. And the Third Sister disabled the Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce and fought against the Abbey Dean with the Eldest Brother from earth to heaven.


    Besides the God-stunning Array left by the Headmaster and the character written by Ning Que, the Eldest Brother, Second Brother, and Third Sister were the people who had changed the war.


    ¡°The Academy really has suffered a great loss, but Haotian Taoism has lost more than we have. I even expected for them to do this a little sooner.¡±


    Ning Que looked at her and said, ¡°We both need time to heal. So you don¡¯t need to worry about the attitude of the Academy. Do what you need to do.¡±


    The Empress said, ¡°You are right. We have time.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the moon and said, ¡°Not exactly.¡±


    The room was quiet. The Empress turned to the moon in the sky, looking at it with Ning Que. They both knew that the key to final victory was on that moon.


    The Empress retracted her gaze and turned to him. She asked, ¡°What¡¯s the Academy¡¯s opinion?¡±


    ¡°My brothers and sisters don¡¯t know about political affairs, so they have no opinion to pass on to you. But I do have something I need to remind you about.¡±


    ¡°What is it?¡±


    ¡°If you can, withdraw General Shu Cheng from the Pamir Mountains as soon as possible.¡±


    Upon hearing this, the Empress lifted her eyebrows and said, ¡°They are going to break through Chaoyang City and subjugate the Yuelun in half a month. Why should I order them to give up?¡±


    ¡°They can¡¯t enter Chaoyang City.¡±


    Ning Que thought of the high peak in the Wilderness as well as the yellow temples amid the mountains, and said, ¡°Both the Academy and Haotian Taoism have suffered a lot, thus, I don¡¯t want anyone like the Chief Preaching Monk toe to Chang¡¯an.¡±


    The Empress was a member of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and knew very well about the legendary figures in the cultivation world. As soon as she heard Ning Que, she understood what he was talking about and could not agree more.


    She said, ¡°The Military Ministry had a n: the Western Army would leave the Yuelun Kingdom aside and enter the Wilderness from the north of the Pamir Mountains. They would then try to locate the Chanyu¡¯s position before the main force of the Golden went south.¡±


    Ning Que thought of the swamp called ¡°Quagmire¡± and said, ¡°It¡¯s too risky, so you¡¯d better drop it. The best way is to withdraw the Western Army and turn to the Seven Stockaded Viges.¡±


    The Empress said, ¡°I agree. If we have to negotiate with the Divine Hall, they will request that the Academy participates. Who will be going, you or Mr. First?¡±


    ¡°The Academy can¡¯t participate, or at least, I can¡¯t.¡±


    Looking at the scattered cups on the desk, he said, ¡°If the Academy does, we will regret it in the future. And if I were to sign on the paper, how could I kill people after regretting it?¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu had been waiting for Ning Que in the duty room to leave the pce together.


    Suddenly, snow began falling from the sky, covering the ground in a short time. It was a little slippery. Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°Let¡¯s have a drink and wait for the snow to stop.¡±


    Ning Que nodded.


    There was a soup shop on the corner, which was full of people. As the war subsided, people¡¯s normal lives had recovered. However, they were not as noisy as they had been before.


    When the shop owner saw these new customersing, he set tables outside the building and asked them if they minded.


    Chao Xiaoshu and Ning Que did not care about that, so they ate their hot mutton soup in the light snow.


    Chao Xiaoshu picked up a cup and asked, ¡°What are you going to do with Li Yu?¡±


    Ning Que was putting coriander into Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s bowl while he heard this. He was stunned. Then he said in his usual tone, ¡°That¡¯s up to the Empress or the imperial court.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°But I am asking you.¡±


    Ning Que put down his chopsticks and said while looking at him, ¡°I don¡¯t remember you two being close.¡±


    ¡°She is His Majesty¡¯s favorite daughter.¡±


    Then he picked up the dish of condiments and poured all of them into Ning Que¡¯s bowl.

 Chapter 806 - The Bean-like Light in the House, Laughing on a Crutch

    <h4>Chapter 806: The Bean-like Light in the House, Laughing on a Crutch</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Some of the houses close to the Vermilion Bird Avenue were impacted by the battle. You could see some people repairing the houses in the snowy night.


    Ning Que seemed like he didn¡¯t hear what Chao Xiaoshu said. He looked toward the houses for a long time and said, ¡°Many people died that day.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu stopped talking and started to scoop up mutton bits from the pot of soup.


    Ning Que poured some wine into his bowl and said, ¡°What do you think about the peace talks?¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°It¡¯s not appropriate for me to speak about matters of the Royal Court.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The war is in a lull now. But it¡¯s hard to tell if this is beneficial to the Tang Empire. Too much blood has been shed. It will take some time for them to catch their breath. Since we didn¡¯t lose the battle, we can have peaceful talks without suffering more losses.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°Let¡¯s eat first.¡±


    The pot of soup smelled good, partially subduing the wine¡¯s aroma. After all, it was a time of war. Chao Xiaoshu and Ning Que both liked this steamed food, but there was no way to bring it from the north.


    They ate their meal in silence, being sure to not drink too much. Chao Xiaoshu waited until they were almost finished eating to start speaking again.


    ¡°Too many things were involved in this battle. All of the Tang people are working hard. It looks like people have forgotten about Li Yu. But you should know, neither the king¡¯s court nor the Tang people have forgotten her.¡±


    He looked at Ning Que and said, ¡°The Academy has much authority. Her Majesty always finds a way. Due to the invasion, all of the people are of one heart. Even her most loyal subordinates have also chosen to remain calm. But if the war ends or is temporarily put on hold, the conflict will eventually arise again.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The people in the Royal Court aren¡¯t fools. Her Majesty showed her ability to manage the country. There¡¯s no reason for them to keep supporting Li Yu.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°It seems like you¡¯ve forgotten one thing: Everyone in the world now knows that Her Majesty is from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Although the Tang people have never obeyed the West-Hill Divine Pce, their belief in Haotian might not fade away in a short time. People have a natural hatred towards the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°What exactly do you mean?¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu answered him, ¡°That depends on how the Academy and the imperial court will deal with her.¡±


    ¡°If everything is peaceful, she will be imprisoned in the Princess¡¯ pce.¡±


    Ning Que looked at Chao Xiaoshu in the eye and said, ¡°If there are only a few signs of unrest, I will kill her in the shortest possible amount of time.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu looked at him and said, ¡°You were very close to her before. Everyone in Chang¡¯an knows that. I never would have expected you could be so cold to her.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Like I said, many people have died on this street.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°I want to see her.¡±


    Ning Que raised his eyebrow slightly and said, ¡°What will you do when you see her?¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°I¡¯ll just look. Or talk to her.¡±


    ¡°Though I don¡¯t think it¡¯s necessary to talk to her, but...¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I haven¡¯t seen Xiao Man for a long time, either. So go on then.¡±


    The streets at night were very quiet. The Princess¡¯ pce, previously crowded to the brim, was now cold and quiet. Even the normal people who would asionally pass by were not willing to look at the closed gate.


    Ning Que knew there were a lot of hidden bodyguards in the surrounding streets at night. He still thought Li Yu was a fool. But this didn¡¯t mean the mother and son in the Imperial Pce would drop their guard.


    He and Chao Xiaoshu walked towards the Princess¡¯ pce. The snow fell gently on the closed gate. It was silent inside the walls. The absence of light made it look like a tomb.


    After General Xuanwei¡¯s entire family was exterminated, his home also looked like a tomb. When Ning Que entered Chang¡¯an, he went to the tomb and mourned a few times. He knew the house looked as fallen mansions usually did, so he wasn¡¯t that surprised.


    He stopped suddenly. The walking stick under his arm fell in the snow.


    Chao Xiaoshu also stopped.


    In what was a normal night, they both felt something abnormal. Because they heard something breathing slightly amongst the old trees behind the wall. Based on how quickly they were breathing, Ning Que and Chao Xiaoshu could tell the men in the trees were nervous.


    Ning Que looked up at the snow falling in the night sky, The snowkes looked really beautiful as they fell, but he was actually not looking at the snow. His eyes darted through the branches.


    Between the branches, he saw sharp and cold arrows.


    ¡°It¡¯s the crossbow arrow.¡±


    He looked at Chao Xiaoshu and said with a smile, ¡°It seems like it¡¯s still the Shenhou crossbow.¡±


    When he heard the words ¡°Shenhou crossbow¡±, Chao Xiaoshu alsoughed. He and Ning Que went into the Spring Breeze Pavilion a few years ago. They killed countless people on a rainy night. When they opened the gate, they saw the Shenhou crossbow.


    Tonight, there was no rain. But there was snow.


    After all these years, the Shenhou crossbows were aimed at them again. The two men¡¯s expressions didn¡¯t appear to be as serious as that year. Instead, theyughed. For they were not the same people they were years ago.


    Chao Xiaoshu was no longer an emperor in the Jianghu world. By theke of the Imperial Pce, he entered the Knowing Destiny State. He could escape from Liu Bai¡¯s sword. There was already a space for him among the strongest cultivators in the world.


    Ning Que had changed even more so. Even though the Old Brush Pen Shop was still his, he was no longer selling calligraphy for a living. The young man from the downtrodden border town was now a person from the Academy entering the human realm.


    Even if there were hundreds of armored cavalriesing from the streets ready to attack, let alone Shenhou crossbows, Chao Xiaoshu and Ning Que would still be unworried.


    They were very strong, even stronger when together. This was evident from what took ce at the Spring Breeze Pavilion years ago. It was also made apparent yearster in front of the Princess¡¯ pce on that snowy night.


    ¡°I just want to know where they¡¯re from,¡± Ning Que said.


    Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°They should be from the Gushan Commandery¡¯s red capes. The best of Hua Jia¡¯s army. You may not know, but Hua Shanyue has already returned to Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Ask the world what love is, and it will make a man a fool.¡±


    It was still dark when they entered the Princess¡¯ pce. The only lights were from other houses¡¯ lights reflecting off the snow onto the garden. They could barely see the old path among the dead flowers.


    Ning Que had been to the Princess¡¯ pce many times before. He led Chao Xiaoshu by the stone gate and into the house. They walked across the frozenke, then saw the light beside the terrace.


    There were many veils on the terrace. The light was dim. The woman sitting there seemed lonely. In this cold winter, nobody could understand why she would sit there in this cold wind.


    Ning Que opened the veil, looked at Li Yu, and said, ¡°It looks like you¡¯ve been in a good moodtely. When you have a dream in your heart, you can get through any kind of bad day.¡±


    Li Yu seemed to have lost some weight. But she still looked pretty. She ignored Ning Que, and bowed to Chao Xiaoshu who stood next to Ning Que. She said, ¡°Thank you, Uncle Chao, for still remembering me.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu shook his head and didn¡¯t say anything.


    Ning Que walked towards her, using his walking stick. He gently rubbed the wick with his fingers to make the me in themp brighter.


    He looked at Li Yu and said, ¡°Before, I always called you a fool behind your back. That¡¯s because I had high standards for you. In reality, you are not a fool. And you should know that. Under the circumstances, you could either stay in this pce or die. The Tang Empire didn¡¯t give you the option to choose a third way.¡±


    Li Yu did not say anything, but looked at him silently.


    Ning Que said, ¡°Why would you do such a foolish thing?¡±


    When she heard him say this, sheughed to herself a little.


    ¡°There¡¯s no difference in being imprisoned and killed or being killed directly. I would rather choose thetter. And I can¡¯t let Xiao Man follow me in this tomb for a lifetime.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s just an excuse.¡±


    Ning Que¡¯s tone was calm, but it seemed colder than the snow on theke.


    ¡°If you were worried about Xiao Man, you could¡¯ve sent someone to tell me. Due to our former rtionship, I wouldn¡¯t allow him to waste his whole life here. But you didn¡¯t say anything. You still thought about yourself and how you could get out. But no matter what happened, you knew I wouldn¡¯t let you escape from this pce.¡±


    The cold night wind lifted the veil up and fell on Li Yu. She felt cold.


    Chao Xiaoshu stood there silently.


    Li Yu looked at Ning Que and asked, ¡°Do you really hate me so much?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°It has nothing to do with love or hate. You know I only consider things ording to my best interest.¡±


    When he finished saying this, he looked around the terrace and said, ¡°Come out.¡±


    There was a moment of silence.


    After a while, voices were heard from all sides, including from under the terrace. There were dozens of men in capes who came out. Hua Shanyue was in the front, holding Xiao Man.


    These people were outside for a while. They had endured a lot, but they still stood upright. It was apparent that they were soldiers. Then Ning Que noticed something: these men wore white capes, unlike how Chao Xiaoshu had described them earlier.


    But then a gust of wind lifted the capes up and showed a red lining underneath.


    Of course, Xiao Man had met Ning Que before, standing by his mother. He almost called out to him subconciously, but then he realized the atmosphere on the terrace wasn¡¯t normal. So he decided not to speak.


    Ning Que looked at him and smiled.


    Then his smile faded as he looked at Hua Shanyue.


    He didn¡¯t know how this man and these people with red capes had entered the Princess¡¯ pce. But he knew what these men wanted to do. And he absolutely could not allow them to do it.


    ¡°So quick believe a lovestruck fool could take you out of Chang¡¯an. I really don¡¯t know if I should be disappointed in you, or proud of my own judgement.¡±


    Ning Que looked at Hua Shanyue, but he was talking to Li Yu.


    Li Yu said, ¡°I never believed he could take me out of Chang¡¯an. But since he¡¯s here, I cannot tell him to leave. You know, he¡¯s the first guest this pce had these days.¡±


    Ning Que said to Hua Shanyue, ¡°Now, you are in charge of three states in the army. You are only three levels away from bing a general. I heard you have won many wars in the north. But tonight, everything you¡¯ve worked for will turn into smoke. Do you have any regrets?¡±


    Hua Shanyue looked at the walking stick under Ning Que¡¯s arm and said, ¡°With some things, you will only know if you regret them or not after you¡¯ve tried them. I heard you had a bad injury. Now that you¡¯ve met me, it is you who should be feeling regret.¡±


    Ning Que pointed at Chao Xiaoshu.


    Hua Shanyue said, ¡°I¡¯ve heard the news that the gang leader was also gravely injured. The average person wouldn¡¯t be able to tell that your cultivation is hurt, but ording to a saying in the army, you are as weak as a rabbit.¡±


    Ning Que looked at him and the dozens of red capes, then said, ¡°If there was always this much wishful thinking, it would be so easy to go crazy.¡±


    Hua Shanyue said, ¡°There are 30 Shenhou crossbows pointed at you in the night. I can think about whatever I want.¡±

 Chapter 807 - Broken Bows, Broken Knives, and Broken Dreams

    <h4>Chapter 807: Broken Bows, Broken Knives, and Broken Dreams</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ning Que held onto his walking stick and looked at Hua Shanyue. He leaned half of his weight on the walking stick. His posture made him seem earnest in his gaze toward Hua Shanyue, almost as if he would look through him.


    Hua Shanyue felt a little pain between his eyebrows. He felt like Ning Que¡¯s eyes were like two sharp knives. So he leaned over to one side, holding Xiao Man¡¯s hand.


    As he leaned, he opened the view of the night sky for others. But in doing so, he blocked Li Yu¡¯s sight.


    Earlier when he said there were 30 Shenhou crossbows in the night, he wasn¡¯t lying. As Hua Shanyue turned his body, a shrill sound suddenly pierced the quiet courtyard.


    Snowkes were pulverized as dozens of arrows were shot from the trees next to the wall, pointing at Ning Que on the terrace.


    There wasn¡¯t much snow falling in the courtyard, but now it seemed to umte more and more. There was a strange force on the snow, causing sharp lines to appear in it.


    After crossing the snow, the sharp arrowhead from the crossbow was like a head cut in half by a sharp knife. It was broken and fell. Then the crossbow arrow broke piece by piece. It was scattered in the air.


    There were dozens of arrows. They couldn¡¯t cross the snowstorm outside. They shattered into countless broken pieces. The snow scattered the pieces everywhere, like dead branches falling from a tree.


    The fragments of the arrow fell on the snow and made a loud noise. The people inside and outside the terrace were shocked by this scene until they came to after hearing the sound.


    There were two loud sounds. Many of the Tang Army soldiers shouted as they drew the swords. They swung their swords toward Ning Que¡¯s head.


    Ning Que leaned on his walking stick. He didn¡¯t even look at the swords. He just kept looking at Hua Shanyue, quietly.


    The pain between Hua Shanyue¡¯s eyebrows kept getting worse and worse. His body and soul were both cold.


    Before the Tang Army¡¯s swords could reach Ning Que¡¯s side, they fell down. The swords were cut in half by a sharp noise. Then the hands holding the swords were also cut.


    Two distinct cut marks appeared on their chests and abdomens. The blood slowly came out of the cuts. The cuts gradually opened wider and wider. It was a horrible sight.


    Even though Ning Que didn¡¯t have a sword, he still made the two cuts on the Tang soldiers¡¯ bodies. And even though the cuts were on their front sides, they felt the pain on their backs. The capes worn by the Tang soldiers were all torn in two and fell to the ground.


    The cut halves of the capes rolled up as they hit the ground. Blood streaks were visible. It looked like a river of blood. The Tang soldiers couldn¡¯t stand anymore and fell to their knees in the river of blood.


    Hua Shanyue¡¯s pupils were contracted to pinpoints, yet still looked calm. He asked Ning Que, ¡°Is this the word?¡±


    Ning Que looked at him, still holding onto his walking stick. He didn¡¯t say a word. Then he straightened his posture slowly and loosened the horizontal piece of wood from the bottom of his walking stick. He looked as though he was preparing to draw a sword or write something.


    These two scenes showed the power gap between the two sides. Everyone could see Ning Que¡¯s actions and guess what he would do next.


    Just then, Chao Xiaoshu grabbed Ning Que¡¯s shoulder.


    Ning Que wanted an exnation.


    Chao Xiaoshu looked at the Tang Army on the ground and asked, ¡°Did you juste back from the front lines?¡±


    It was very quiet on the terrace. Nobody answered his question because nobody knew why he would ask this question.


    Ning Que knew Chao Xiaoshu was talking to himself. He looked at the dew on the fallen Tang soldiers¡¯ faces, remaining silent. His right hand grabbed his walking stick again, putting his weight on it.


    He looked at Hua Shanyue and said, ¡°Whatever you¡¯re thinking, it¡¯s wishful thinking.¡±


    Hua Shanyue looked at his subordinates lying on the ground in their own blood. He was silent for awhile. Then he took his right hand back from covering Xiao Man¡¯s eyes. Hua Shanyue said to Ning Que, ¡°Thinking sometimes can be a ridiculous thing. You can kill me, but you cannot stop me from thinking.¡±


    When he said these things, he went through a myriad of facial expressions: regret, self-deprication, unwillingness. He wanted to help Li Yu escape Chang¡¯an, so he made a careful n. However, who could¡¯ve guessed two guests of this caliber woulde in this kind of weather to disrupt the calm where the Princess lived?


    The Princess¡¯ house had been quiet for a long time. But tonight, it came alive again. The Bodyguard office and Chang¡¯an Local Government sent a lot of people to the house. The front of the house was lit by many torches. People gathered on both sides of the street. They looked and judged all movements and sounds. They all said bad things. Only gossip and judgement.


    The fight was tense. The Tang people were still in the front lines, but the nobles within the city of Chang¡¯an were still causing so many problems. Nobody would show sympathy to the losers.


    Hua Shanyue and over fifty Tang soldiers from the Gushan Commandery had their weapons taken away. They were then removed from the Princess¡¯ Pce. The jail cells were waiting for them. As for what their ultimate punishment would be, nobody knew.


    In hindsight, this rescue seemed to be wishful thinking. It seemed fair to say these people were out of their minds going on a mission like this. But in actuality, Hua Shanyue deserved to be called a leader of the Tang Army. He wasn¡¯t as useless as he was shown to be. The n he had made in advance was actually perfect.


    Just when he had returned to Chang¡¯an, he started fighting thunderously. He nned every part. If he could just take Li Yu out of the Princess¡¯ Pce, no City Patrol Department or Bodyguard office could stop them from leaving Chang¡¯an. And if he really took Li Yu back to the Gushan Commandery, who knew what woulde of the Tang Empire?


    Unfortunately, he had terrible luck. Nobody could have thought Chao Xiaoshu would go to see Li Yu. What¡¯s more, Ning Que went to the Princess¡¯ Pce with him.


    The noise and gossip in the street outside the pce did not affect the quiet inside it.


    Ning Que said to Chao Xiaoshu, ¡°Do you still want to talk to her now?¡±


    After a few moments of silence, he said, ¡°We¡¯ve seen her, so there¡¯s no need to talk.¡±


    ¡°Then wait for me for a moment.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I¡¯ve just thought of something I would like to discuss with her.¡±


    The terrace was quiet. The snow on theke had gotten colder and thicker. Xiao Man was taken to bed by his servant. Tonight, he saw such a bloody scene. He didn¡¯t know if he could fall asleep.


    Ning Que put down his walking stick. It was a little difficult to sit at his desk. He reached out his hand to take the cold tea in front of Li Yu. He took two sips to soothe his throat and said, ¡°Actually, I really don¡¯t want to call you a fool.¡±


    Li Yu looked at the tea and asked, ¡°Are you tired of calling me a fool?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Stay in this garden quietly. Though the scenery is dull, it¡¯s still better than death. You should understand this. Why can¡¯t you give up fighting?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve said it before: Between dying of old age or being killed, I prefer thetter. And Hua Shanyue showed no regard to his own life in trying to save mine. What else can I do? How could I tell you this?¡±


    Li Yu looked at him and said sarcastically, ¡°In the imperial study that night, you told me I would see your coldness eventually. Then you killed Hun Yuan in the pce. Will you now continue to show your coldness? If you want to kill me, you better be direct with it. Don¡¯t use excuses like calling me a fool.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I want to call you a fool not because of what happened tonight, but because you still seemed confident that I wouldn¡¯t kill you.¡±


    Li Yu said, ¡°If you really wanted to kill me, you wouldn¡¯t stay here and say these things to me.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°It would be very simple to kill you. Not killing you is the hard part. But this kind of trouble is not what you¡¯re thinking.¡±


    Li Yu kept her gaze on Ning Que, but she didn¡¯t say anything.


    Ning Que looked at her beautiful face as if he had seen the maid holding Xiao Man listening to a fairy tale by the bonfire many years ago and said, ¡°It seems that you have figured out many thingstely.¡±


    Li Yu kept her silence.


    Ning Que continued, ¡°There is nothing of value worth holding on to in this world. Whether it be Xiao Man¡¯s birth, or your influence from your time in the grasnd, neither will affect the decision the Empress and I have made.¡±


    Li Yu stared at his eyes, her hands shaking in her sleeves. She knew Ning Que could read her thoughts and reasoning. She didn¡¯t expect for him to remain so calm after finding these things out.


    Now the whole world was fighting the Tang Empire, except for the West-Hill Divine Pce. Only the Golden Pce¡¯s cavalry moving their way southward could threaten the Tang Empire. If they wanted topletely shut down this threat from the north, Xiao Man¡¯s birth and her influence in the golden tent seemed to be of importance.


    Because of these reasons, she knew the Academy and the imperial court would keep her.


    ¡°Actually, you¡¯re not wrong. But the Academy and the imperial court wouldn¡¯t likely do that. Especially when I found out you wanted to keep these as bargaining chips.¡±


    Ning Que looked at her and said, ¡°I can still eat a pig, if the butcher who ughtered the pig is dead. If the Headmaster is gone, the Academy is still strong enough on its own. They are without enemies. I already had a n for the vast Wilderness of the Golden Pce. It would be better if I had your help. But if not, I could still get the final victory.¡±


    Li Yu looked at him with raised eyebrows and said, ¡°Even if many people die?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°As long as those who die are not Tang people.¡±


    Li Yu thought of some possibilities. She changed her expression slightly and sadly said, ¡°It seems like the Tang Empire doesn¡¯t need Xiao Man and me. Did you make a n before the war started?¡±


    Ning Que never thought she could¡¯ve guessed what he had done to the Golden Pce just from a few sentences. He said, ¡°It looks like you are no fool in this respect.¡±


    Li Yu said wryly, ¡°That means I¡¯m still a fool in other respects.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Yes.¡±


    The army left. The street in front of the Princess¡¯ Pce eventually quieted down. The snow that had been trampled until it became muddy water could not return to its clean white look in a short time.


    Ning Que and Chao Xiaoshu were walking on the street. They stepped on the muddied snow, making a crunching sound beneath their feet.


    ¡°Killing or not killing, you need to solve this problem eventually.¡± Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°After all, she¡¯s the favorite daughter of the king. If we don¡¯t have to kill her, it¡¯s better not to kill her.¡±

 Chapter 808 - Killing as I Think of Life and Death

    <h4>Chapter 808: Killing as I Think of Life and Death</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The sound of boots treading on snow echoed throughout the quiet streets. It sounded monotonous as if someone were pping the old bell in the Imperial Pce with his hand. It was a dull, painful ringing. The crutch under Ning Que¡¯s armpitsnded rhythmically on the snowy ground, following his footsteps. However, it did not make any sound.


    He had stayed silent after a long time, after hearing Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s words. Then, he said, ¡°The Academy does not interfere with politics. The Empress will be the one to decide whether to kill her or not.¡±


    If the Academy did not interfere in politics, the Tang Empire would have fallen months ago. The words ¡®The Academy did not interfere in politics¡¯ had long be a empty talk, and as such, the second statement was pointless too.


    Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°Should Hua Shanyue be killed?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I want to kill him.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu replied, ¡°The Hua family is still a prominent family in Hebei. Unlike the families of Qinghe County, he has always been loyal to the Tang Empire and has connections in the army and court, especially in the five camps of Gushan Commandery, which they are in charge of. The Hua family has fought hard this time in the Northern Frontier and the Eastern Border, and they¡¯re still fighting hard.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Are you telling me all this to say that Hua Shanyue shouldn¡¯t be killed?¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°You know this as well, otherwise you¡¯d have done it already even if I had not stopped you.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I was thinking, if I wanted to kill Hua Shanyue, should I also kill his entire family?¡±


    ¡°Even though this answer is cold and cruel, it is within my expectations.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°It¡¯s just that there are too many for you to kill them all. You cannot possibly exterminate the families of ministers that support Li Yu since that will doom the Tang Empire. However, once the war calms, these people will definitely worry if the Empress or the Academy will get rid of them. The conflict will thus continue. Even if the Hua Shanyue incident had not happened, something simr will also happen in the future.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I will find a suitable method to deal with this.¡±


    The two stopped their discussion about the matter. After all, those incidents and their solutions were all rather sinister. It was rather dissonant with the snow white streets and the days of hot-bloodedness.


    Ning Que did not say anything else since Chao Xiaoshu did not like it. The two continued forward silently, and they shortly arrived at the Eastern City¡¯s Spring Breeze Pavilion.


    Upon entering the Chao Mansion, Ning Que greeted Old Master Chao before being pulled away to the yard by Shangguan Yangyu. He looked at the prefectural magistrate sleazy¡¯s appearance and raised his brows, saying, ¡°How fast was the reaction over there?¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu touched his goatee, looking calm. However, his hand was actually shaking so hard he nearly plucked his already thin beard off. He said, ¡°It was not easy for things to calm down over thest two days. There would be great trouble if this matter is not handled properly.¡±


    ¡°How do we handle the matter well?¡± Ning Que looked at him and asked.


    Shanagguan Yangyu grew anxious at Ning Que¡¯s stare and he answered, ¡°The best way to handle it is the way that you deem is the best.¡±


    Ning Que smiled and said, ¡°Who¡¯s been pressing you for it?¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu answered, ¡°Not even the Grand Secretary or the senior ministers dare toe forward regarding this matter. Who else could it be? The Supreme Court minister is waiting at my house right now.¡±


    Ning Que only realized that the Supreme Court minister was rted to the Hua family after the prefectural magistrate¡¯s exnation. After thinking about it, he asked, ¡°What does the Empress intend to do?¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu said, ¡°The Empress asks that Mr. Thirteen handle this.¡±


    Then, he looked around him to make sure there was no one watching them. He said softly, ¡°The Hua family, old and young, are kneeling before the pce right now. It might continue until tomorrow morning.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s the point of kneeling now?¡± Ning Que asked.


    He understood what the imperial court wanted. Hua Shanyue¡¯s n did not agree with his actions. But at a point of time like this, everyone wanted to keep peace and remain united.


    Only the Academy was qualified to handle the matter and calm the storm.


    In other words, he had to handle the matter.


    Ning Que thought of the Northern Army officials and the army which attacked the Empress¡¯ convoy at the Northern Military Camp. He said, ¡°Send all those involved in the matter to General Xu Chi. Tell them that I have ordered them to do so. Following precedent cases, they have to redeem themselves with ten heads. Return to your home and tell the minister that if the war stops, have the Hua family be ready to hand over their military power.¡±


    ¡°I understand.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu had been tossed out by the Empress to be the middleman. But he was unwilling to offend the Princess and her faction. He finally heaved a sigh of relief when he heard Ning Que¡¯s suggestions and he asked, ¡°What about Hua Shanyue?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Throw him there too.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu could finally breathe easy. He had been extremely worried that Ning Que would insist on killing Hua Shanyue. Even the Empress thought that Hua Shanyue could not die at this time.


    Shangguan Yangyu left the Chao Mansion, leaving Ning Que alone in the courtyard. He caressed the rough surface of his crutch and thought of what had happened tonight. He felt that something was off.


    A cough sounded from behind the wintersweet bush. Old Master Chao walked out from behind it.


    Ning Que went up to help him.


    Old Master Chao waved his hand and said, ¡°You¡¯re a cripple now, and you¡¯re still thinking of helping me?¡±


    Ning Que smiled and suddenly asked, ¡°Second Uncle, what do you think of this matter?¡±


    Old Master Chao said, ¡°It¡¯s such an important matter of the Royal Court, why have youe to ask me?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Even the Abbey Dean has to ask you, let alone me.¡±


    Old Master Chao said, ¡°Then tell me about it.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I still think it¡¯s not right to handle it like that.¡±


    Old Master Chao replied, ¡°Because you are retreating.¡±


    Ning Que said thoughtfully, ¡°That¡¯s right, I¡¯m no longer used to retreating with regards to matters in the world.¡±


    Old Master Chao looked at him and said, ¡°If you want to ask about the Heaven¡¯s Way, then you shouldn¡¯t care about matters of the world.¡±


    Ning Queasked, ¡°But what if the matters of the world keeping to you?¡±


    Old Master Chao asked him, ¡°What did you do when the Abbey Dean stood before you?¡±


    There were many stoves in the Chao Mansion parlor; it was as warm as spring.


    The Fish-dragon Gang had suffered heavy casualties the other day, and the atmosphere in the gang was naturally subdued. Now that Chao Xiaoshu and Liu V returned, many gathered in the Chao Mansion. However, they did not drink much.


    Ning Que and Qi IV looked around the table after they discussed the rebuilding of Yanming Lake.


    Chen Liu was drinking hot tea. He did not like drinking alcohol because he thought that it hindered one¡¯s thinking ability.


    Ning Que excused himself, saying that he had drunk too much.


    Momentster, Chen Liu left the parlor as well.


    ¡°We are close to the army. How is our rtionship with the Northern Army?¡±


    Ning Que looked at Chen Liu and asked.


    Bright yellow light streamed through the window paper, shining on Chen Liu. It cast arge shadow, and his face could not be seen clearly.


    After the night at the Spring Breeze Pavilion, the rtionship between the Fish-dragon Gang and the army grew extremely close. Chen Liu knew that he could not hide anything regarding this matter, and so, he said softly, ¡°We are rtively close.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Tell them that I want Hua Shanyue to die.¡±


    After a long moment of silence, Chen Liu nodded.


    His nodding movement was so small that Ning Que would have missed it if he had not been staring at him.


    The two returned to the parlor one after the other.


    Chao Xiaoshu looked at the two and said, ¡°Eat quickly, the meat is about to rot.¡±

 Chapter 809 - The World in Heaven

    <h4>Chapter 809: The World in Heaven</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    After eating mutton giblets soup, Ning Que had quite a bit of wine during supper. He walked out of the Chao Mansion and into the cold wind, sobering up instantly. He felt dissatisfied, and even a little annoyed.


    The horse carriage had already left for the funeral parlor. Ning Que made the driver leave, and walked into the grounds, hobbling on his crutch through the snow. He could see Mo Shanshan writing through the window.


    The candlelight was just as before and the woman was just as beautiful. He stood outside the window silently for a long while before knocking on the door and entering. However, he did not know what to say.


    Ning Que wanted to drink with Mo Shanshan, but only realized that it waste into the night when he entered her room. He did not know what to say, and just asked, ¡°How is Cat Girl?¡±


    ¡°She¡¯s getting married...¡± Mo Shanshan was about to pour him some tea. She looked at his expression and could not resist smiling. She said, ¡°I want to drink some wine, do you want some?¡±


    The two drank aged wine from the Great River Kingdom and snacked on some dishes and vegetable porridge.


    Mo Shanshan asked, ¡°You seem worried.¡±


    Ning Que put down his cup and rubbed his brows. He said, ¡°Is it that obvious?¡±


    Mo Shanshan smiled and said, ¡°Why else would you look for me sote into the night?¡±


    After a moment of silence, Ning Que told her everything that happened that night. However, he did not mention the sinister things that he had gotten Chen VII to arrange. Hemented, ¡°Five years ago, I met Hua Shanyue for the first time at the Northern Mountain Road when I escorted Li Yu back to Chang¡¯an. I did not like him then, and I still don¡¯t. However, I would never expect that he would rather give up his life to save Li Yu. Love is something that baffles people.¡±


    ¡°Love...¡±


    Mo Shanshan turned her wine cup and looked at Ning Que silently before saying, ¡°...is something that is hard to understand.¡±


    Ning Que was slightly flustered under her gaze. He reached out to pick up fried anchovies, but the fish slid down from his chopsticks.


    He ced the chopsticks on the table and changed the topic, ¡°I¡¯m a little worried because of what had happened in the world. Many died on the snowy street that day, but they died quickly and cleanly. Many will live tonight, but their living makes me ufortable. Second Uncle Chao told me that if I should ask for Heaven¡¯s Way, then I should not be bothered by the things of the world. But if these thingse and bother us, then we should cut them like how the Abbey Dean was cut. However, it is easier said than done.¡±


    Mo Shanshan tucked her hair behind her ears and said, ¡°Everyone would be troubled by these choices on the cultivation path. Ihave once faced the same trouble only to realizeter that I am a very greedy person. I want to know Heaven¡¯s Way, and I also want to interfere with the matters of the world. I also want to think about love.¡±


    She looked up at Ning Que and said, ¡°Back then at the Tile Mountain, I wanted to ask Master Qishan something, but did not manage to. I thought I had already understood then. But after returning to the Great River, I sat by the Ink Lake and looked at the reflections in the water. I looked at the drifting clouds in the blue sky and discovered that my understanding was just an escape. I still had not epted it, and that was me being greedy. I once told you by the red walls in the snow that I liked you, and I still do.¡±


    After a long silence, he said, ¡°I like you too.¡±


    Then, he looked at the bamboos outside the snowy window and thought of that long night when he had bellowed at Heaven and Earth by the snowke. He said, ¡°That day when she ran away, I managed to get her back because she had not run far. This time, she ran away to the skies. It is too far and she can¡¯te back, so I can¡¯t do anything.¡±


    This statement did not seem to have anything to do with their conversation. But Mo Shanshan understood his intentions. Her longshes fluttered slightly, but her expression was devoid of any hurt, and there was only calmness on her pale face.


    ¡°I like you and you like me. That¡¯s good.¡±


    She looked at Ning Que and said, ¡°I might have been greedy before, but I may probably not be now. I won¡¯t feel sad because of this, since it¡¯s probably Heaven¡¯s will.¡±


    She poured a cup of wine and pushed it in front of Ning Que.


    Then, she turned around to look at the night sky outside of the window. She smiled slightly and said, ¡°Who let her be the Heavens?¡±


    Ning Que looked at her beautiful face and drank the wine in his cup as a toast.


    It was getting colder in Chang¡¯an as it grew colder in winter. The days inched forward, unstoppable. And the 18th year of Tianqi silently came to an end.


    The young emperor had not officially ascended the throne yet and the Queen was still handling matters of the court. It would still take some time to change its title. The war had yet to endpletely, so the Tang Empire was still under immense pressure. Many had died, but they still had to celebrate the New Year, and they had to make it even more lively.


    Ning Que spent the New Year in the Academy. His Senior Brothers and Sisters at the back of the mountain were all injured and recuperating, so Mo Shanshan and Tang Xiaotang were in charge of the reunion dinner. Dinner was only readyte into the night even with the little servant¡¯s help, but at least they had a hot meal.


    Everyone drank heavily that night, toasting several times at the moon in the night sky. If the Headmaster was free to drink the toasts his disciples offered, he would have been really drunk.


    It was calm and content as if nothing had happened, but in fact, everyone felt as if something important was missing from the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain. Perhaps it was their teacher, who enjoyed being a food connoisseur, or perhaps it was Sangsang, who had been in charge of making meals in the past years.


    As the old year passed and they weed the new, the state of the world also changed drastically. Due to the cold weather, the Golden Pce¡¯s cavalry stopped their frantic attacks, entering into a truce with the Tang Army. The Golden Pce camped out in the ins of the Seven Stockaded Viges while the Tang Army guarded the Xiangwan in.


    The King of the Yuelun Kingdom, as well as several of their marshals and important figures, had all died in Eldest Brother¡¯s hands. Most of their main force had been annihted by the Tang¡¯s Western Army at the Pamir Mountains. The Western Army had taken the opportunity to cross the Pamir Mountains and attacked Chaoyang City in an attempt to annihte the other countries. They had managed to take 17 other cities and only received the urgent missive from Chang¡¯an when they arrived at the north of Chaoyang City.


    General Shu Cheng considered for a period of time after receiving the letter written jointly by the imperial court and the Academy. Then, he ordered the army to retreat, disregarding the generals¡¯ surprise and objections.


    When the Tang¡¯s Western Army withdrew from Chaoyang City, smoke billowed into the skies. The citizens of the Yuelun Kingdom could not believe their eyes. When they ascertained that the Tang Army was not going to attack the city again, the city celebrated. Several citizens cried fiercely and started sshing clear water in celebration.


    On their way out of the city, the citizens of Yuelun even bade farewell to the Western Army in jubtion. Sometimes, the gentry, people and monks of Yuelun would give them grains, clean water and dyed red eggs. The generals who were opposed to withdraw finally determined that this gentle country was abnormal and that it was pointless to conquer them.


    The truly shocking change happened at the Verdant Canyon. The hundreds of thousands of the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army withdrew their troops from the north for an unknown reason. They did not try to attack the Verdant Canyon again, nor did they have any intentions of attacking the north through another route. Instead, they withdrew into Qinghe County and waited silently.


    The Tang Empire¡¯s Southern Army ran for thousands of miles to bring aid to the Verdant Canyon and had abandoned several pieces of equipment on the way. Most of the soldiers even threw away their armors into the mountains. They were exhausted and were surviving on sheer willpower. The retreat of the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army finally gave them a precious opportunity to breathe. However, this hade so suddenly that both the Southern Army generals and Chang¡¯an did not understand what had happened.


    The powerful Divine Hall Coalition Army did not do anything in this war against the Tang Empire. Or perhaps, to bemore exact, they did not y a role in it at all and had retreated without doing anything. Why was this so?


    The Tangs did not understand, neither did the citizens of the South Jin Kingdom, especially the South Jin Emperor who was grieving the death of his son. As such, he was very angry.


    Then, he died from his anger.


    The news of his death spread throughout the world after the New Year.


    ording to the official statement of the Southern Jin imperial court, the great South Jin Emperor died due to overworking himself regarding matters of the nation. He had read reports and had not slept for three days and two nights before dying suddenly from illness.


    The Tang Empire¡¯s Imperial Center Administration investigated and received other information from the south. And even though only some parts of the information could be confirmed, it was sufficient for people in Chang¡¯an to infer what had happened.


    The South Jin Emperor was furious the day before he died because of the withdrawal of the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army to the south. He had called the army generals into the pce and gave them a good dressing-down, scolding even the deceased marshal, Bai Haixin. Even then, the Emperor did not feel better, and ordered the Sword Garret to send someone into the pce to exin why they had failed at the Battle of Verdant Canyon.


    The Sword Sage Liu Bai was still recuperating. And furthermore, someone of his station would not visit the Imperial Pce to give any exnations. The Sword Garret had sent a random disciple called Liu Yiqing.


    Then... nothing happened after that.


    The death of the South Jin Emperor was recorded with a simple statement in the history books. It was not very different from the various sinister incidents in the various Imperial Pces throughout history. But to those with sharp eyes, the death of this Emperor was an important event. It meant that the power structure of the mortal world had changed fundamentally.


    Cultivators did not have enough power to influence the royal family in the secr world. Many details in this war against the Tang Empire had proven this. No matter the cultivators of the Yan Kingdom, the Array Tactical Masters of the Tang Army, or the Priests of the Golden Pce, they were no different from ordinary people when they rode on horses beneath a sky raining arrows upon them.


    The same war had also proven another possibility, which was that cultivators in the peak of the Knowing Destiny State were the true powerhouses. Once they showed their prowess, they could change the color of the rivers and mountains, just like the three people who had shown their hands at the battle of Verdant Canyon.


    The solemn South Jin Kingdom Imperial Pce seemed weak and vulnerable, even before the sword of a blind man. This was rted to the strength of the Sword Garret, but it also proved a fact.


    The Headmaster had left the mortal world and ascended to Heaven. From that day on, the mortal world was no longer the same. This was the so-called Heaven and Earth.

 Chapter 810 - Part of the World but Not Part of the Matter

    <h4>Chapter 810: Part of the World but Not Part of the Matter</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Cultivators like Liu Bai, Jun Mo and Ye Su have always existed, and over a thousand years, the world had be one that belonged to cultivation powerhouses. Be it the royal family or ordinary people, they all struggled in the gaps left behind by these cultivators.


    It was only a thousand years ago that sages emerged. With the construction of the Tang Empire by the Headmaster, the West-Hill Divine Pce followed suit with corresponding changes, thus changing the situation fundamentally.


    With the two mountains that were the Academy and the West-Hill Divine Pce, even the strongest cultivator had to obey the rules of the secr world unless they could surpass the Five States. However, once they have done so, they would realize that they had always been shielded under a blue sky and would never be able to exceed that.


    Now, the Headmaster had ascended to the sky and the Heavens seemed unbothered with the mortal world. The West-Hill Divine Pce had also suffered a great blow in the war. As such, the power of the two great mountains and the blue sky weakened.


    Under such circumstances, a powerful cultivator could naturally breathe in more fresh air, not to mention people like the Sword Sage, Liu Bai, who could cross the threshold of the Five States whenever they wished. So, the Emperor of the South Jin Kingdom died quietly and the incident became something natural because he did not understand the changes in the world at all.


    The stronger one was, the more freedom at hand. And once being able to bring this freedom upon the mortal world, the mortal realm would naturally descend into chaos, just like the wild years before the appearance of the Tang Empire.


    Now it depended on whether the Advisers of the Divine Hall like Liu Bai were respectful towards Haotian Taoism. It also depended on whether those in the Academy could shield themon folk like the Headmaster used to.


    If only from the present point of view, the West-Hill Divine Pce had been weakened the most in this war, but it had dominated the world for countless years with profound and unimaginable detail. No one knew if there was anyone in the Knowing Destiny State hiding in a humble Taoist Temple.


    Other than the heavy injuries that Master Qi Mei sustained, the Buddhism Sect had not been greatly affected. Both Qi Nian, the Wayfarer of Buddhism Sect and the monastery soldiers of the Xuankong Temple had not joined the war because they were restricted by the ideas of Buddhism. They would not be too active in the matter.


    In addition to the Taoist and Buddhist sects, the most powerful force in the world was the Golden Pce. Other than their vicious cavalry, the Nation Master and dozens of High Priests could beat several cultivators.


    The Sword Garret of the South Jin Kingdom had already begun to show its prowess. The offerings of many Dominant Families in various parts of the world had be evident in the storm. The secr world that had been controlled by the three Unknown ces for countless years would surely be chaotic, and everyone could see how it would end.


    If one wanted to see the future of the mortal world clearly, all cultivation sects had to keep a close watch on the Academy which was south of Chang¡¯an. No matter how silent it was right now, it was still the Academy.


    ¡°The world from now on belongs to the cultivation powerhouses. The chaos will still continue for some time unless the Headmaster returns to the mortal world or if the West-Hill Divine Pce regains their powers in a short time.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the carriage through the curtains and said, ¡°You should know this well by now. Those ministers should know too, and then, they will learn to ept reality.¡±


    The situation in Chang¡¯an City in the New Year was also somewhatplicated. After the strong external pressure exerted on the Tang Empire by the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army and with the Golden Pce cavalry temporarily out of the picture, some hidden problems had gradually surfaced within the Tang Empire¡¯s seemingly monolithic government.


    This was especially so after the news of Hua Shanyue¡¯s death came from the frontlines. The entire Chang¡¯an was shocked.


    Hua Shanyue came from a prominent family and had be the head of the army in the Gushan Commandery.He enjoyed a high status and power in the military, and was expected to be the head general of the Tang Empire.


    In the Tang Empire army, the death of a general on the battlefield was amon urrence. It was not known how many times in the Tang Empire¡¯s thousand-year history a general of higher position than Hua Shanyue had died of enemy attacks. As a matter of principle, the news of Hua Shanyue¡¯s death would certainly cause grief and regret in court, but it wouldn¡¯t have led to such a great shock.


    This was not the case because Hua Shanyue was the head of the army in Sanzhou Town and did not need to take the lead, at least he did not need to charge with his subordinates onto the dangerous battlefield while the war was in its temporary calm. The crux of the matter was that everyone knew why the Academy had sent Hua Shanyue to the Northern Army.


    The news of Hua Shanyue¡¯s death ignited the anger of the officials in the Princess¡¯ faction in a short time. After the end of a court meeting the following day, the silver-haired Minister of Rites wept in front of the pce walls. He yelled, ¡°Even though you have sinned, how could you die without a trial? Your Majesty, how can you face His Majesty like this?¡±


    The Minister of Rites was a bigwig in the Princess¡¯ faction. There were many people like him in the imperial court. Furthermore, the Hua family was prominent in the Tang Empire, with many sympathetic to their cause.


    If the Queen and the Academy choose to cleanse the powers in the court right now, they would hurt many, and would cause chaos.


    Not many could ept that the Empress was the Saintess of Diabolism. What was most dangerous was that the Tang Empire would face great difficulties if the chaos amongst the people was linked to the criticism of Haotian Taoism against the royal family of Tang. There was not any public opinion against the West-Hill Divine Pce for now, but everyone knew that the calm was only temporary.


    There were many horse carriages parked in front of the House of Red Sleeves. However, the building was very quiet. There was not a single sound of an instrument being yed, a song being sung, a dance tune being yed, or the sound of apuse.


    There were people seated behind the dozens of tables set up in the hall. They were all important members of the Princess¡¯ faction. They all looked angry, pensive, or were silent.


    No matter how they felt, they all looked coldly at the table in front of them.


    The table was set up right at the front and was a distance away from the other tables. Ning Que sat behind the desk and looked at the ministers in front of him who all had varying expressions.


    He was Mr. Thirteen of the Academy and there was no one in the Tang Empire who would dare to disrespect him. However, everyone ignored him right now, and as such, he seemed rather lonely.


    Ning Que was used to this loneliness. He was used to living like this no matter whether when he was living on Min Mountain or in the Wilderness.


    He raised the gon and filled the ss in front of him. He looked at the ministers in front of him and said, ¡°I know what you are thinking. You are unwilling or unconvinced, or have doubts about the Empress, or think I have done something very inappropriate.¡±


    The ministers¡¯ eyebrows raised slightly as they wondered to themselves if Ning Que was really going to admit to what he had done.


    Ning Que raised his wine cup and said, ¡°But I will not exin to you all because I do not have to. Thews of the Tang Empire have to be upheld and rules have to be obeyed. We will talk about this again when the Tang Army can leave the Verdant Canyon and regain control of the Qinghe River, or when they enter the Wilderness and burn the Golden Pce.¡±


    A minister said, ¡°Then why have you asked us toe today?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I need you all to shut up.¡±


    The minister could not hide his anger, and he said, ¡°Who are you to ask us to shut up?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°If there¡¯s no evidence, but there are rumors spreading everywhere, then that constitutes as nder. Furthermore, doing such a thing at a time like this would be the same as betraying one¡¯s country. You should know how important this is. What do you all want to do if you don¡¯t shut up?¡±


    ¡°We want to meet Her Highness.¡±


    ¡°No.¡± Ning Que said. ¡°Her Highness is a criminal and nobody can meet her. If you all insist on doing so, then we will put her on trial for changing the Emperor¡¯sst edict tomorrow.¡±


    ¡°Then let¡¯s hold the trial.¡±


    The silent Minister of Rites finally spoke. His voice was somewhat exhausted and solemn. He said, ¡°I can¡¯t watch Her Highness die silently like General Hua.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the wine cup in his hands silently. Then, he said, ¡°Meet her then.¡±


    With that, the bead curtain behind him moved, causing a pleasant chime. Li Yu, who was wearing her court clothes, walked into the hall apanied by two handmaidens.


    The crashing of dishes knocking into each other suddenly sounded. The ministers all stood up, looking at Li Yu in surprise. They only emerged from their stupor after a long time, and then, they saluted her.


    This was the first time Li Yu had left her mansion since the incident, and it was also the first time these people in the court had seen her since. While she looked slightly more haggard, her spirits were still up, so the ministers finally felt much more relieved.


    Li Yu looked at the ministers and was touched that they were still loyal to her despite their situation. She thanked them sincerely.


    The ministers said as one, ¡°We wouldn¡¯t dare.¡±


    Ning Que raised his cup and looked at it as if he was not involved in the matter.


    Then, he looked up at the ministers and said, ¡°If you all cannot calm down even with this, then I can guarantee that Her Highness will not die silently like Hua Shanyue. I will kill her before all of you and let everyone in the world witness her death.¡±


    The ministers were still reveling in the joy of meeting the Princess. When they heard Ning Que¡¯s words, it was as if they had been stabbed by an icy cold knife, and they felt the cold piercing through their organs.


    A young general sitting in the corner bellowed, ¡°Who would dare to touch Her Highness!¡±


    Ning Que drank the wine in his cup and walked out of the hall, heading upstairs.


    He did not answer the young general and neither did any of the ministers in the hall. It was silent in the building; only the sounds of the frantic breathing could be heard.


    Because they were angry, anxious and afraid.


    They finally recalled that Ning Que had even dared to kill the emperor.


    In a room on the top floor of the House of Red Sleeves, there was a table covered with a cloth embroidered with flowers, and a cdon bowl was filled with snow fungus soup. The bottom of the bowl was pressed against the gorgeous peony flower.


    Ning Que drank the snow fungus soup and wiped his mouth, saying, ¡°I only drank a cup of wine, I don¡¯t need any sobering up.¡±


    Mistress Jian replied, ¡°But you didn¡¯t even eat the snacks on the table.¡±


    Ning Que only knew then that she had been watching what happened downstairs. He said, ¡°I am not really in the mood to eat these days.¡±


    Mistress Jian replied, ¡°I asked Dewdrop to cook dumplings. I remember that you like eating that.¡±


    ¡°Thank you, Aunty Jian.¡±


    Ning Que paused and then continued, ¡°The Academy has given you face regarding this matter tonight.¡±

 Chapter 811 - The Woman Who Came with the Spring Rain

    <h4>Chapter 811: The Woman Who Came with the Spring Rain</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Mistress Jian said, ¡°I¡¯m giving the Empress face.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°The Academy is involved in this matter. The Queen has to call me Youngest Uncle, so I do not need to give her face.¡±


    Mistress Jian looked at him silently and asked, ¡°Do you really intend to kill Li Yu?¡±


    Ning Que replied without even thinking, ¡°Her death is the best choice.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± Mistress Jian asked.


    Ning Que exined, ¡°Who can the ministers in court be loyal to if both Li Huiyuan and Li Yu are dead? No matter how in pain or unwilling they are, they still have to follow Her Majesty¡¯s orders. To many, this war has made it inconvenient for the imperial court and the Academy to kill these people. But if you think about it from another perspective, the pressure of the war and their honor would exert pressure on the ministers.¡±


    When she heard that, Mistress Jian sighed and said, ¡°I used to think that you were really simr to your Youngest Uncle. After you attained his Great Spirit, I thought you two were even more simr. I only realized now that you were two different people.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I will never be able to catch up to what Youngest Uncle aplished in this life. But there are some things that I am confident that I can do better than him. For example, this situation that the Tang Empire is facing now.¡±


    Mistress Jian grimaced and said, ¡°That¡¯s why he is dead.¡±


    Ning Que said calmly, ¡°I¡¯m not afraid of death, but I want to survive together with the Tang Empire and the Academy.¡±


    Mistress Jian looked at him with pity. She clutched her hand at her chest and said after a moment, ¡°But you have never once thought that while the Prince has a close rtionship with Xia Tian, her surname is also Li.¡±


    When he heard the name, Ning Que thought of many things, like the thick blood in the General¡¯s Mansion. He said, ¡°He is already dead to me. I just need the right time.¡±


    Mistress Jian replied, ¡°Your calmness is terrifying to others.¡±


    Ning Que did not discuss the matter anymore. He said, ¡°I still would like to know why the Empress objected to me killing Li Yu. She is not someone who is affected by petty affections.¡±


    ¡°I really don¡¯t know what Xia Tian is thinking about.¡±


    Mistress Jian looked out of the windows. The sky had already darkened, and the moon hung above the city wall. She said, with an expression of loss on her face, ¡°Has the Headmaster really left?¡±


    Ning Que stood up and walked up to the window to look at the moon. He said, ¡°Who knows?¡±


    After a momentary pause, he continued, ¡°Other than him and Haotian, is there anyone who knows?¡±


    After New Year¡¯s Day, Ning Que stayed in Chang¡¯an. It was not because it was inconvenient for him to travel to and fro to the Academy, but there was an even more important reason and he also had to prepare for the arrival of the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s diplomatic corps.


    As spring gradually arrived, the Divine Hall diplomatic corps finally arrived at Chang¡¯an. The corps drove through the Vermilion Bird Avenue and entered their guesthouse under theplicated nces of the Tangs.


    Theposition of the delegation that came to the talks was somewhatplicated. The leader was the head of the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s Revtion Institute. His two deputies were a prince of the South Jin Kingdom and the prime minister of the Yan Kingdom. It seemed funny, butit really was not, since the thrones of the South Jin Kingdom and Yan Kingdom were both still empty.


    The war was temporarily over, and the two armies were still in the north and south of the Tang Empire. The tension would be difficult to dispell, which was why the talks between the two parties started swiftly with the arrival of the diplomatic corps. The learned members of the Tang imperial court and the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s diplomatic corps sat on both sides of a long table, sparring with their lips and tongues as expected.


    They would definitely need to have negotiations, but these often did not depend on who was right, but rather who had more strength. The negotiations in the side hall of the Imperial Pce were only one aspect. The most important, or perhaps, most critical ce of negotiation was a different ce in Chang¡¯an. There was ake that was the color of jade and had uneasy waves there.


    Before the battle with the Abbey Dean, Ning Que had walked through the streets with a knife and cut off all the traces left behind by Sangsang. The house at Yanming Lake was naturally involved. It was fortunate that the damage was not serious and was fixed shortly. He had stayed here in the days after the New Year.


    The thick snow on Yanming Lake had already melted, with the iceyer bing a very thin mirror, toter disintegrate. The wind had blown it to the shore of theke and piled it up into a crisp roll of snow, revealing the clear water of theke.


    Ning Que stood by theke, stretched out his hand and spread the winter willow branches that had not yet sprouted green shoots. He looked at the faint green stems in the water and thought of that summer when he and Sangsang rowed a boat to nt lotus flowers in theke.


    The clouds above theke gradually darkened. Rain fell silently without any thunder. This was the first spring rain in Chang¡¯an this year, and it brought with it some chill.


    Ning Que returned to the house and retrieved a handkerchief to wipe off the rain on his body. Then, he heard someone knocking on the door.


    He walked to the door and listened to the knocking. After a moment of silence, he opened the door.


    Rain fell incessantly, soaking through his clothes and also the girl outside the door.


    Ning Que looked at her and felt as if he was transported back to that summer.


    She was not wearing green Taoist robes, but instead, the blood red Divine Robe of Judgement. Her ck hair did not seem as pathetic as it had back then because of its dampness, since she was now wearing an elegant divine crown.


    But she was just as beautiful.


    Ning Que¡¯s expression remained calm, even when he saw the two people behind her.


    They were Liu Yiqing of the Sword Garret and Xie Chengyun, an official of the South Jin Kingdom¡¯s Ministry of Rites.


    They both saluted him calmly.


    Liu Yiqing was blinded by Ning Que and Ning Que had met Xie Chengyun at the Academy. However, it was unnecessary to remember many things as time passed.


    The doors closed slowly, leaving the two outside.


    Ye Hongyu followed Ning Que into the house.


    Ning Que and Ye Hongyu sat under the shelter in the garden. They fell into a daze as they watched the rain falling down. The sounds of rain falling upon Yanming Lake could be vaguely heard on the south side of the walls.


    ¡°Now that I think about it, the days that I¡¯ve spent here were really peaceful.¡±


    Ye Hongyu reached out to catch the rain falling from the shelter. She said, ¡°But there are many changes in the world. The peace cannot remain for long.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the rainwater sttering on her jade-white palms. He said, ¡°Your words don¡¯t sound like what a human being would say after bing the Great Divine Priest of Judgment.¡±


    Ye Hongyu retracted her hand and looked at him. ¡°Are you provoking this seat?¡±


    ¡°Bullshit.¡± Ning Que handed her a handkerchief and said, ¡°You¡¯d better speak human speech before me.¡±


    They had met on the Wilderness a long time ago. They had once tried to kill each other and had never once fallen in love. They had once lived together but had never been in agreement. He knew that they would kill each other one day right from the start, having attempted to do so many times already.


    What was interesting was that because they were both well aware of it, they were both especially calm when they met. It was as if there was a refreshing light breeze between them.


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Both the Abbey Dean and the Hierarch are still alive. So do your words mean anything?¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Since I havee to Chang¡¯an, I will honor my words. The problem is that the Academy has never meddled in court affairs. How much influence do you have on the people in Chang¡¯an?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I hold the master¡¯s namete of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. You already know of the Empress¡¯ past, so you need not doubt me.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°The price that the Tang Empire will pay will berge. The Devil¡¯s Doctrine Saintess cannot possibly suppress all opinions in court. So what is the point of this agreement?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Firstly, I don¡¯t think that we will get the short end of the stick on this agreement. As for the effectiveness and enforcement of this agreement, this is something the Academy needs to consider. The Divine Hall need not concern itself with it.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Our discussion is pointless if it is ineffective.¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°The point is the discussion.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Your statement is boring. You have be lifeless and worn out because of a woman. It¡¯s truly ridiculous.¡±


    Ning Que¡¯s expression did not change. He said calmly, ¡°Haotian rules the world, and there are many powerhouses around. Is it not ludicrous that a girl like you woulde to Chang¡¯an to take the risk?¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°What danger does Chang¡¯an pose to me?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°I can kill you anytime.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said. ¡°You¡¯d have been killed by me in that swamp if not for that pack of wild horses.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°We are not in the swamp in the Wilderness. We are in Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s eyes turned cold and she asked, ¡°So?¡±


    Ning Que answered calmly, ¡°I have no enemies while I am in Chang¡¯an. Even the Abbey Dean would be tossed into the air by a swing of my de. I don¡¯t think that you will have an opportunity to beat me.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°But don¡¯t forget, there is not a single person who can beat Haotian.¡±


    Ning Que wanted very much to say that he had bullied Haotian badly, while in the house by the Hot Sea in the Cold Region of the Far North. However, he did not say so because this was a matter between him a Sangsang and had nothing to do with anyone else.


    ¡°It is a great joy to fight against Haotian.¡±


    He thought of this statement that his teacher had made. He suddenly gained a new perspective and could not help smiling.


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°If the Headmaster could really beat Haotian, then he would not have be that moon and would be the new Haotian.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°This spection might seem correct but is in factpletely wrong. This is because you all don¡¯t know what my teacher is like. He is not interested in bing the sky that stretches over our heads. He wanted more to be pure light that scatters throughout the mortal realm and experience the emotions of joy and sorrow here.¡±


    This conversation in the spring rain was not a test but determined the tone of the negotiations. It was not a guess at the bottom line of the other party, but a probe of what the other party wanted and to see in which direction the spring rain will flow eventually.


    Since the spring rain fell into Yanming Lake and some seeped into the soil under the plum bush, it seemed that there was no way for the rain to gather together in a short period of time. Then, more specific things needed to be discussed.


    At this moment, Ning Que raised his hands and reached out to her temples to caress her cheek.


    Ye Hongyu did not react at all. It was as if she did not see his hands.


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Do you still feel burdened?¡±


    Ye Hongyu answered, ¡°Of course I do, but there is no one to help me carry it.¡±


    Ning Que took the crown from her head and said, ¡°Then look for someone quickly.¡±


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s damp ck hair fell on her divine robe, making her look even more beautiful.


    She looked at Ning Que and said, ¡°Where can I find someone as shameless as you?¡±

 Chapter 812 - Negotiations Do Not Have to Mean War

    <h4>Chapter 812: Negotiations Do Not Have to Mean War</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Negotiation was a battle and to raise conditions first was tantamount to being the first to draw one¡¯s sword.


    Ning Que and Ye Hongyu were both well-versed in battling. They both knew that the person who raised conditions first would get the upper hand in this battle. As such, they both felt that they should be the first to put conditions forward.


    ¡°This is Chang¡¯an, I should have home advantage,¡± Ning Que said.


    Ye Hongyu looked at him quietly and said, ¡°The Tang Empire is in a dangerous situation right now. The Golden Pce¡¯s cavalry and the Divine Hall¡¯s Coalition Army are both still on yournd.¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°This might be a little troublesome, but is not the crux of the matter. Both the Abbey Dean and the Hierarch are crippled, and I heard that your brother is in a simr condition. I don¡¯t understand how you can feel so emboldened.¡±


    Ye Hongyu answered, ¡°The Academy is in an even worse position. Mr. Second has lost his sword-wielding arm. I heard that Mr. First and the Twenty-Three-year Cicada Cultivation are both still in wheelchairs. As for your peers, I saw how they were injured in the Verdant Canyon; I¡¯m certain they will not recover in a short period of time.¡±


    Ning Que looked at her and said in a serious manner, ¡°You¡¯ve forgotten about me.¡±


    Ye Hongyu looked at him and said calmly, ¡°The problem is that you can¡¯t leave Chang¡¯an. You might not have enemies here, but once you leave Chang¡¯an, there would be many people from Haotian Taoism who can kill you.¡±


    Indeed, Ning Que had not left Chang¡¯an since the New Year. It was because he could channel the power of the God-stunning Array through the array eye pestle here. Once he left Chang¡¯an, he would not be able to affect the entire mortal world even though he was a powerhouse in the Knowing Destiny State.


    Ye Hongyu continued, ¡°Haotian Taoism has existed for millennia, and is as wide as the sea. Even though its waves are not as strong as before, I can find ten powerhouses in the Knowing Destiny State if you wish to meet them.¡±


    If she was not exaggerating, her statement could shock most people in the world. One had to be aware that some small countries did not have a single cultivator in the Knowing Destiny State.


    But this was not sufficient to scare Ning Que. He said, ¡°It¡¯s pointless even if there are many in the Knowing Destiny State and Haotian Initiation in the world one day. If they dare to enter Chang¡¯an, I¡¯ll kill them. I¡¯ll kill them all, and if they are not of the Abbey Dean¡¯s caliber, they are all just courting death.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Will you protect Chang¡¯an for your entire life?¡±


    Ning Que listened to her statement that sounded like a wedding vow and smiled, ¡°I will do it if it is really necessary. Fortunately, there are wine, meat and beauties in Chang¡¯an City, so it will not be too boring.¡±


    It seemed as if they were fighting over who would make the first offer, but actually, they had both ced all their chips on the table. Ning Que did not wait for Ye Hongyu to speak, and he suggested, ¡°Or maybe we can y a finger-guessing game. That¡¯s fair and simple.¡±


    Ye Hongyu frowned slightly.


    Ning Que said, ¡°You are the Tao Addict, and people say that you are well-versed in many skills. Do you not know how to y the finger-guessing game? You either win or lose when you y this game, and it hinges on your spirit and calction skills...¡±


    Without waiting for him toplete his statement, Ye Hongyu asked, ¡°Which finger-guessing game?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°The lewd finger-guessing game.¡±


    Ye Hongyu asked, ¡°What kind of game is that?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You want to learn it? I can teach you.¡±


    Ye Hongyu lost the game as expected. She might be the Tao Addict who was versed in many areas, but she was no match for Ning Que in gambling.


    Ning Que had been gambling since he was a child and had gambled from the City of Wei to Chang¡¯an. He had experienced hardships and even escaped from death before he could cultivate, and the first thing he had done right after was to win money at a gambling den.


    Ye Hongyu was enraged. She did not like to lose, and most importantly, she finally understood why the lewd finger-guessing game had such a name. It was indeed lewd.


    Ning Que exined, ¡°This is a culture that has been passed on for many years, I did not intend to take advantage of you.¡±


    Ye Hongyu breathed in the cold air deeply, the spring rain moistening her lungs, and she finally got a grip on her emotions. She thought to herself that she indeed could not find a second man who was as shameless as Ning Que.


    ¡°The Divine Hall Coalition Army has left Qinghe County, we have to get the county back.¡±


    Ning Que¡¯s expression turned solemn and he said, ¡°There is nothing else to discuss regarding this matter.¡±


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s expression remained the same, one could not guess what she was thinking. She asked, ¡°The families?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Of course we have to kill all of them.¡±


    Ye Hongyu remained nomittal and said, ¡°Go on.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The Yan Kingdom has returned the remains of the soldiers of the Northeast Border Military. Crown Prince Chong Ming came to Chang¡¯an and pled guilty, kneeling before the altar for an entire night. We do not have any other demands.¡±


    ¡°Do continue.¡±


    ¡°In order to express the Tang Empire¡¯s sincerity and amicability, we are willing to withdraw from the Yuelun Kingdom. But you have to give us the Pamir Mountains and the Great River Kingdom has to be neutral forever.¡±


    ¡°Is there anything else?¡±


    ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°Do you want to hear the Divine Hall¡¯s conditions?¡±


    ¡°To be honest, I don¡¯t really want to because the Academy and the imperial court cannot possibly agree to them.¡±


    ¡°But you still have to listen to them.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s already noon, let¡¯s eat first.¡±


    Ning Que got Ye Hongyu to change out of her Divine Robe of Judgement. What wasmentable was that her clothing from back then was still in the Plum Gardens.


    The two walked to the edge of Yanming Lake and crossed the wooden bridge in the south that was nestled in the reeds. They entered the streets and left Liu Yiqing and Xie Chengyun at the doors.


    They bought a few hotcakes on the streets and Ning Que brought her towards the Southern City. They saw many civilians who were holding crutches and many soldiers who were injured.


    The injured soldiers were mostly brought back from the frontlines. They all looked pathetic with their arms and legs broken. The civilians were mostly injured on the day the Abbey Dean entered Chang¡¯an.


    ¡°The whole city is filled with those on crutches.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°The Tang Empire is already so pathetic, why does the Academy insist on holding on?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°The same image you see can be interpreted differently. To the Divine Hall, these injured people on crutches prove that the Tang Empire is about to fall. But you see, it proves that the Tang Empire is still powerful because we can save our injured soldiers from the frontlines. And the most important things is, even against an enemy that is as terrifying as the Abbey Dean, even the most ordinary Tang citizen would dare to fight him. A city filled with people on crutches? No, these are not crutches. To me, they are all des. They are very sharp des.¡±


    Ye Hongyu did not say anything else.


    Ning Que stooped at the entrance of the Southern City¡¯s Shishi alley. There were tworge trees at the entrance that were of unknown variety. They were slowly turning green in the spring wind.


    Ye Hongyu asked, ¡°Has the Calligraphy Addict left?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°She is studying with Eldest Brother in the Academy.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°If she seeks for Heaven¡¯s Way, how can she be trapped by love?¡±


    ¡°I thought of the very same question a few days ago.¡±


    Ning Que walked under the tree. He found it difficult to find green shoots on the bald branches.


    ¡°We saw these two trees turning green in the spring wind earlier. But now that we are under the tree, it is difficult to find green shoots. Heaven¡¯s Way is like spring. You can only look upon it from afar. And things like the love between humans in the mortal world are like the green shoots. You can see Heaven¡¯s will, but you cannot catch it. And precisely because you do not wish to lower yourself into the dirt and refuse to look at the ugly bare tree trunks, Heaven¡¯s Way bes a small matter.¡±


    He looked at Ye Hongyu and frowned, ¡°I did not see Second Brother fighting against Liu Bai and Ye Su at the Verdant Canyon, but you saw it. Have your opinions not changed?¡±


    Ye Hongyu thought of what her brother said before leaving and was silent.


    ¡°Everyone¡¯s path is different, and Teacher¡¯s path was one that went against Heaven. What is yours?¡±


    Ning Que looked at her and said, ¡°What are you pursuing in this life? You wanted to chase after your brother in the past and be a powerhouse in Haotian Taoism, then allow your brother to be the Abbey Dean. But what¡¯s the point of bing the Abbey Dean? The Abbey Dean traveled across the South Sea aimlessly for decades and was unable to return to the Zhishou Abbey. After that, you wanted to be the most powerful person and outstrip your brother. What was the point? We might be the two people in the world who are best at fighting and have no opponents in our state. But have you considered that I cannot be the Headmaster and you cannot be as powerful as the Abbey Dean? What is the point of us continuing in cultivation?¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Not everything has to be meaningful.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Teacher once said that we live not for any meaning, but to have meaning.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°I live to be more powerful.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°I once thirsted to be powerful because I had to survive with Sangsang. Furthermore, I wanted to seek revenge, which is why I was obsessed. But you have lived in the Zhishou Abbey since you were a child, and then, you entered the Revtion Institute on Peach Mountain and entered the Judicial Department after that. Your life has been smooth sailing. Where did your obsessione from?¡±


    Ye Hongyu said calmly, ¡°Not everything has a reason. You can understand my growing powerful as an instinct. Just like how when ants see two leaves and would want to reach out for the bigger of the two. As a cultivator, I¡¯m not interested in power or profit. But I enjoy the feeling of watching the scenery from the peak.¡±


    Ning Que thought of how he had sessfully scaled the mountain and watched the scene before him from the peak. The starlight was silver and the clouds floated around the peak. He could vaguely see a few peaks in the distance, it was absolutely beautiful.


    ¡°That feeling is indeed really good.¡±


    He agreed with Ye Hongyu.


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°You did not kill Li Yu, are you not worried about internal strife?¡±


    Ning Que looked at the peaceful expressions of the pedestrians on the street. He said, ¡°Have you seen any possibility of chaos in Chang¡¯an? There are many Divine Hall spies in Chang¡¯an, and you should know that I can kill her any time. I just do not wish to kill her for now.¡±


    ¡°Do you not wish to kill her, or can you not bear to?¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°You did not kill her because of her rtionship with the Golden Pce. You did not mention the Golden Pce earlier, so it seems like you have already made preparations on the northern front.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I do not have any preparations.¡±


    Ye Hongyu answered, ¡°The Divine Hall has power over the Golden Pce, to a degree that the Academy cannot imagine.¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Isn¡¯t it just Tengri? I already thought it was weird when I passed through the Wildernessst year. After that, I got someone to check it out for me, and only realized that the Divine Hall had been preaching in the Golden Pce through the years. It might seem interesting, but does Haotian think we won¡¯t recognize him just by changing his vest?¡±


    Ye Hongyu did not think that he already knew of the matter. She said, ¡°You do not have any arrangements regarding the northern front and you have also rejected the Divine Hall¡¯s good intentions. What do you intend to do with the Golden Pce?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°I have only one intention towards the Golden Pce.¡±


    Ye Hongyu asked, ¡°What is it?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°To kill them all.¡±

 Chapter 813 - Someone Has Come to Changan City

    <h4>Chapter 813: Someone Has Come to Chang¡¯an City</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    This sentence itself and the unspoken meaning hidden in the sentence were very bloody and cruel. However, Ning Que¡¯s tone was calm as if it were only natural.


    His expression was calm and he even had a trace of a smile. To him, there was nothing much to discuss regarding the matter of the Golden Pce. He would not ept any result other than their deaths.


    Even Ye Hongyu felt cold at this moment.


    Spring had just begun, the green buds on some trees could hardly be seen. Some trees already had tender young shoots. The sudden gust of cold wind on the street caused these shoots and some green leaves to fall.


    Green leaves floated onto the ground from above, as their conversation finally arrived at the crux of the matter. Ye Hongyu raised the requests of the West-Hill Divine Pce which were in sharp opposition to the conditions that had previously been offered by Ning Que by Yanming Lake. The Divine Hall had requested for Qinghe County to remain independent and requested for arge amount of money from the Tang Empire as reparations for the war. The royal family also had to go to Peach Mountain to ask for forgiveness. As for the Golden Pce, they requested the pastures around Xiangwan in and also Hn City. As for the Yuelun, Yan, Jin, Qi, and Song Kingdoms, they also had their own requests which were rtively unimportant.


    After a moment of silence, Ning Que asked, ¡°What¡¯s happening with Long Qing now?¡±


    ¡°Two thousand of his picked cavalry have perished. While he was lucky to have survived, he was severely injured and he is recuperating in the Divine Hall now. We don¡¯t know when he will recover. Ye Hongyu did not like Long Qing much, and her expression remained stoic when he was mentioned. However, she did not understand why Ning Que would suddenly bring him up. She said, ¡°While his cultivation state is higher than yours, you don¡¯t need to be so vignt against him.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Asking about him does not mean I am wary of him.¡±


    Ye Hongyu asked, ¡°They why do you want to ask about him?¡±


    ¡°I once told him something, a few years ago in Chang¡¯an,¡± Ning Que said. ¡°Back then, I told him that he was really beautiful, and since this was so, he shouldn¡¯t have dreams that are too grand.¡±


    Ye Hongyu did not say anything.


    Ning Que looked at her and smiled, ¡°Everyone knows that the Tao Addict is the most beautiful woman in the world.¡±


    ¡°So I shouldn¡¯t have dreams that are too grand?¡± Ye Hongyu asked. ¡°No matter how strong your words are and how unwilling you are, you still have to ept these conditions in the end.¡±


    Ning Que smiled and replied, ¡°I don¡¯t see any reason why I should agree.¡±


    Ye Hongyu answered, ¡°I don¡¯t either. But someone told me that you will.¡±


    Ning Que raised his eyebrow slightly and asked, ¡°Who did? The Abbey Dean?¡±


    Ye Hongyu did not answer his question. Instead, she turned and left the tree.


    Ning Que did not follow her. He looked at the tender green leaves on the ground and his frown deepened. Ye Hongyu¡¯s parting words had made him feel somewhat uneasy.


    The negotiations between the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s diplomatic corps and the Tang Empire continued in the side hall of the Imperial Pce. The views of both parties differed too greatly and they could not find apromise.


    When both parties could note to apromise, its was a waste of time to continue. However, this statement only applied to conversations at the dining table and not during negotiations. As such, both parties had to continue. Ning Que and Ye Hongyu continued watching the spring rain in the courtyard by the Yangming Lake. They conversed about random topics, testing each other¡¯s patience and tried to determine each other¡¯s limits.


    Just then, Crown Prince Chong Ming finally ascended the throne in Chengjing City, officially bing the new Emperor of the Yan Kingdom. He sessfully conquered Long Qing¡¯s faction and started to concentrate on internal affairs.


    South Jin Kingdom also became calm, and under the powerful deterrent of the Sword Garret¡ªespecially under the control of Liu Bai, the Sword Sage¡ªthe royal family and the military, which had started to stir, became much more rational.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army did not withdrawpletely to their respective countries but continued to stay in Qinghe County with supplies provided by Qinghe¡¯s various warlords. This was sufficient to serve as a deterrent to the Tang Empire.


    After the western army of the Tang Empire withdrew to the Pamir Mountains, the Yuelun Kingdom, which suffered the disaster of an army shortage for the first time in countless years, finally recognized its own position. They went under the radar and it was as if they did not exist. The monks of the White Tower Temple started the process of electing a new Emperor while the Xuankong Temple kept silent.


    The world seemed to have gotten rid of the threat of war, but no one had forgotten the north. After spending the winter in the Seven Stockaded Viges, the Golden Pce¡¯s cavalry began to stir again through the spring festival.


    The Tang Empire soldiers and civilians were all watching the north. Although they were alert, they were not as tense as they were at the beginning of the war, because with the passage of time, the Tang Empire¡¯s strength gradually recovered.


    Smoke from cooking fires rose in the wilnds of the Eastern Border. The armors of the Northern Army¡¯s soldiers were brand new and their newly reced weapons were very sophisticated. The convoy carrying grain supplies kept going back and forth on the roads extending in all directions in the Tang Empire. Mining workshops everywhere were in full swing. The curfew in Chang¡¯an City was lifted and smiles gradually appeared on people¡¯s faces.


    In a negotiation, what both parties werepeting in was patience and confidence in time. The Tang Empire had nevercked in these two aspects. And from the visible changes happening, it seemed as if they were winning.


    Mo Shanshan was seated by the stream reading an ancient tome.


    Eldest Brother sat beside her, holding a fishing pole. His cotton jacket quivered in the wind as he stayed motionless for a long time as if he had fallen asleep.


    They were next to a mountain stream that came from the waterfall at the cliff.


    Second Brother stood by the pool and looked at the waterfall solemnly. The big white goose floated in the pool, paddling with its red feet from time to time. Just like Second Brother, it looked at the waterfall solemnly but also with a mocking expression.


    There were two sets of crutches by the pool and there were two teenagers under the waterfall.


    Zhang Nianzu and Li Guangdi were squatting beneath the waterfall. They had yet to heal from their injuriespletely. And as the strong bursts of icy cold water fell upon them, their faces paled and it looked as if they might fall anytime.


    They had already fallen many times. But when they saw Mr. Second standing beside the pool and the annoying big white goose, they gritted their teeth and continued.


    Behind the pool and into the mountains, through a narrow entrance, was the towering precipice at the back of the mountain. There was a wheelchair on the tform.


    Yu Lian was seated on the wheelchair. She held a brush and paper in her hands and was writing Hairpin-style Small Regr Script. Although she did not have a desk, her handwriting was just as neat.


    When her eyes tired, she would look at the floating clouds before the precipice and look at Chang¡¯an City in the distance. Sometimes, she would look at the narrow stone path above the precipice.


    That stone path led to the cliff cave where Ning Que had once cultivated in seclusion. It was very dangerous to walk on and should there be strong winds, there was a chance that one might fall into the abyss.


    Tang Xiaotang was on the stone path at this time. What she had to do was to use the blood-colored huge de in her hand to cut the rock wall and widen thedder surface on the stone path.


    This was a very meaningful work that was, of course, also very difficult. The rocks between the cliffs were very hard. Even though she had practiced in the skills of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine since childhood and was very strong, the rocks were still very difficult to chisel.


    What annoyed her most was that Yu Lian¡¯s cutting off the rainbow during the war in Chang¡¯an had resulted in the destruction of the blood-colored huge de she was holding.


    She had been chiseling on the cliff stone path for more than ten days, but she had only finished less than one-tenth of it. She looked up and could not see the end of the steep mountain path at all. The trellis in front of the cliff cave looked like a small ck dot.


    The little white wolf dozed off between the stonedders at the top, listening to the sound of chipping stones from below, and felt a little agitated. It did not worry that it would be injured by the stone shards because ording to the speed at which Tang Xiaotang had worked in the previous days, she would still take several days before she would reach where it was.


    Song Qian and Eighth Brother were ying chess while covered in bandages.


    Beigong plucked the zither¡¯s string with one hand. It was the only hand he could move right now.


    Wang Chi was brewing medicine in the courtyard, and the corner was filled with all kinds of flowers and herbs. Momentster, the old yellow bull arrived with a head full of wildflowers. Fourth Brother, Fan Yue, coughed as he discussed the God-stunning Array with Mu You as they poured over the map. Sixth Brother sighed repeatedly as he looked upon his furnace which had not been lit for many days.


    The teachings were taught and those who educate educated. Those who were doomed to be tortured continued to be tortured. Schrs continued to read while those recuperating continued making progress. The back of the Academy¡¯s mountain was calm and warm.


    Suddenly, Eldest Brother opened his eyes.


    He looked at the stream and slowly raised the fishing pole in his hands.


    There was not a hook on the line. Eldest Brother never needed a hook to fish, not even a straight one.


    But when he raised the pole, there were three fish on the line.


    The three fish hung from the line. They struggled even though there was nothing trapping them. Yet, they could not free themselves no matter how they struggled. Their tails wriggled, flicking water onto the stream that reflected the sunlight. It was a beautiful sight.


    Eldest Brother¡¯s wrist turned slightly and the three fish were freed. They swam back into the stream.


    He looked at the stream silently and suddenly said to Mo Shanshan, ¡°You go on reading. If there¡¯s anything you don¡¯t understand... continue to read. Ask me when I return.¡±


    Mo Shanshan¡¯s expression was odd. She sensed that something had happened. She closed the book she was reading and walked up to Eldest Brother, saying, ¡°I¡¯ll go with you.¡±


    Eldest Brother smiled at her gently and said, ¡°It is not anything important. It¡¯s just a little sudden.¡±


    Eldest Brother left the edge of the stream in his wheelchair, leaving behind the mist gathered around the middle of the mountain.


    His expression was unusually grave and he arrived quickly.


    Yu Lian was even faster than him.


    She was wearing a simple and elegant yellow dress as she sat in a wheelchair and looked in the direction of Chang¡¯an City.


    A cold breeze blew on the mountain path, rousingyers of yellow leaves that had gathered on the ground since autumn and raising the edges of her skirt.


    Yu Lian said, ¡°I didn¡¯t expect that he¡¯d reallye.¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°Teacher has left, they¡¯d naturallye if they wished to. What I don¡¯t understand is why they¡¯de.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°I don¡¯t understand either. It seems like we can only go and ask them directly.¡±


    Eldest Brother said gently and firmly, ¡°I am your Senior Brother. I should go and ask.¡±


    Yu Lian answered, ¡°Senior Brother, you¡¯re really slow now, so only I can go.¡±


    Someone hade to Chang¡¯an.


    Nobody knew who it was.


    Eldest Brother and Yu Lian knew, so they would go to meet that person.


    Their expressions were grave and stern, and were even more serious than when they faced the Abbey Dean.


    Who exactly was that person?

 Chapter 814 - That Person Drinks

    <h4>Chapter 814: That Person Drinks</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Rustling sounds could be heard on the mountain path.


    The female professor came before Eldest Brother and Yu Lian. She put down the broom in her hands and used her hand to wipe the dust from her greet coat. Her wrinkles were filled with indifference as she said, ¡°Both of you are already injured. I should go.¡±


    While she had been indifferent to the world for many years and could only watch in silence as the world tried to defeat the Tang Empire due to the circumstances of her birth, she could no longer sit in the staff room now, since that man was here in Chang¡¯an.


    Then, Jun Mo walked out from the mists and said, ¡°You all don¡¯t have to fight over it. Senior Brother and Junior Sister are both still recuperating and you¡¯re old. Naturally, I should be the one to go.¡±


    The female professor said, ¡°That¡¯s rather rude.¡±


    The four present were the four strongest people in the Academy. Now that the man had arrived in Chang¡¯an, they had to represent the Academy in receiving him. However, they all knew that the oue of meeting him was difficult to predict, which was why they all were fighting to go.


    Jun Mo kept quiet.


    The female professor stared into his eyes and said, ¡°You are no match for him even at your peak condition.¡±


    ¡°I have never once asked for perfection.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°That is why many who are stronger than me have lost to me. Even Liu Bai did not gain victory over me.¡±


    The female professor did not say anything else when Liu Bai was mentioned. Her wrinkles deepened.


    ¡°Come on out,¡± Jun Mo said.


    With that, Zhang Nianzu and Li Guangdi walked out from the mist. They were rather excited for it was the first time they left the Cloud Gate array on their own. However, they were extremely cold from the stream water that they were blue and pale, looking rather pathetic because of it.


    Jun Mo looked at Eldest Brother and Yu Lian who were seated in their wheelchairs. He said, ¡°Don¡¯t fight. I have to bring these two to Chang¡¯an, so it is on the way for me to meet that person. I have a reason to go, so I shall go.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°Why do you have to bring them back to Chang¡¯an?¡±


    Jun Mo thought about it and answered, ¡°Home visit?¡±


    The atmosphere in the carriage was very depressing because Jun Mo never spoke.


    Zhang Nianzu and Li Guangdi exchanged nces furtively and seemed to have guessed that something major had happened in Chang¡¯an. They started to grow anxious but did not dare to speak. They kept their mouths tightly shut as they looked at the scenery outside the window.


    The trees beside the road were dotted with green and the scenery outside the window swept by quickly. The two teenagers looked past the neat trees and into the distance, seeing the city wall of Chang¡¯an.


    At noon, the south gate of Chang¡¯an City should be very busy usually. Soldiers from the City Patrol Department should carefully check the people entering and leaving the city. The people in line would probablyin about the speed of entering the city, and vendors selling herbal tea and eggs would keep calling out their wares. However, it was very quiet today.


    During daylight hours, the two heavy gates were tightly closed. There were no pedestrians, vendors or soldiers from the City Patrol Department outside the city gates. There was no one at all.


    There was only one horse carriage.


    The horse carriage looked ordinary and was covered with ayer of mud and dust. It was dull, and when a gust of cold spring wind came, the dust on the carriage would peel off a little, revealing it¡¯s darkish color. It seemed to be crafted from metal and one could vaguely see several lines on it.


    There wasn¡¯t a horse pulling the horse carriage and the carriage stood alone. The wheels of the carriage dug deeply into the surface of the ground and fine gravel could be seen on both sides of the wheels. Looking in the direction from where it hade from, one could see two deep lines digging into the tough stone surface of the state highway from a long distance away. One could not see where it started.


    How heavy was this horse carriage to have destroyed the road?


    What was even more interesting was the person standing by the horse carriage. Since there wasn¡¯t a horse, did this person pull the heavy carriage for such a long way?


    The man was wearing an ordinary shirt. He looked ordinary, and other than a few wrinkles at the corners of his eyes, his skin was smooth and tender. There were some traces of white in his hair, but should one look closely, they would discover his youth in his ck hair. One could not gauge his age, and one could not say whether he was old or young.


    He had a gon tied to his waist that swung in the spring breeze.


    He seemed to be waiting for someone. And as he grew bored waiting, he took a gulp from the gon.


    He looked extremely carefree when he drank. He looked like a whale taking in seawater and he did not release the gon even after a long time. The gon did not seem to empty either as wine continued to pour from it.


    There were several arrows on the city wall pointing at the drinking man. However, no one dared to shoot at him.


    Because the man did not care at all that he was being aimed at by the powerful arrows guarding the city. He only cared about drinking his wine as he stood silently in the spring breeze, as if he were not of this world.


    The man put down the gon and wiped his mouth. He squinted.


    His eyes were closed, and he seemed to enjoy the alcoholic buzz. He enjoyed only one thing in life, and that was drinking. However, if one looked deeply, one would see the coldness and age in his eyes. He had already seen thorough everything in life and was tired of the world, and thus, was indifferent towards it.


    The sound of hooves gradually slowed as another horse carriage arrived at the city gates.


    Zhang Nianzu crowded to Li Guangdi¡¯s side. The two teens looked at the man from the window and they started shaking uncontrobly. They were dreadfully pale because they felt as if having seen the Taoist in indigo they saw on the street that day.


    Jun Mo lifted the carriage curtains and alighted.


    He walked up to the man and stopped.


    The spring breeze caused his empty right sleeve to flutter. He seemed gentle, but his aura was cold.


    His iron sword remained in its sheath by his waist.


    Jun Mo looked at the man in the ck carriage, his gazending on the gon at his waist. After a long moment of silence, he lowered his head and said, ¡°Greetings, Senior.¡±


    The man said with satisfaction, ¡°No need to be so polite.¡±


    That was a simple statement, but even the Southern City gates trembled.


    It was because the man¡¯s voice was old to the extreme. And when air passed through his vocal cords, it sounded like dusty bronzed implements rubbing against each other. Even if the dust had been wiped off, the rust on the bronze objects rubbed against each other. It made everyone¡¯s soul shudder.


    Zhang Nianzu and Li Guangdi did not get off the carriage. Their faces turned even paler when they heard the voice and their bodies cooled and felt like ice. It was as if they had suddenly neared their twilight years and were about to die.


    Several dull groans could be heard inside the city wall. The Tang Army that had been aiming at the man with arrows were extremely distressed by the sound. Even the moss-covered wall bricks showed some faint signs of loosening. The wall had endured thousands of years of wind and rain, butseemed young before this old sound.


    Jun Mo looked up calmly. There was not a trace of respect in his eyes.


    He said, ¡°Leave, or die.¡±


    The spring breeze started again. The gon at the man¡¯s waist started swinging once more. He was a little surprised, and then, his expression returned to one of indifference as he looked at Jun Mo and said, ¡°I heard that you adhered to etiquette the most.¡±


    ¡°I have already greeted you, so I do not need to present any more etiquette.¡±


    Jun Mo looked at the man and said, ¡°Those who study etiquette are learned because they respect. I have already saluted you because you are older than I am. My teacher once studied under you; I have already respected the order of things, but I don¡¯t respect you as a person.¡±


    The man raised his eyebrows and said indifferently, ¡°Why am I not worthy of respect?¡±


    Jun Mo answered, ¡°Because you are a coward.¡±


    With that, the Qi of Heaven and Earth in front of the Southern City gates suddenly changed.


    The spring breeze turned into a bone-chilling cold wind.


    Jun Mo¡¯s empty sleeve that swayed in the spring breeze looked as if it had been starched too many times and was suddenly stiff. The extremely soft lines on the sleeves became extremely sharp lines.


    His right arm was broken, but he still had sleeves.


    He did not wave his sword, but his sleeves were still filled with sword style.


    Several sharp sword styles appeared in the suddenly chilly spring breeze.


    In the carriage, Zhang Nianzu and Li Guangdi looked even paler because they discovered that there seemed to be many sharp fine lines in the air, and every breath they took was so painful.


    Several sword marks appeared in front of the man.


    Crisp sounds ured on the gon at his waist, and then, it gradually receded.


    He looked at Jun Mo and said, ¡°He is indeed better at selecting disciples than us.¡±


    Jun Mo answered, ¡°Teacher is better at everything than the two of you.¡±


    With that said, he stretched his left hand to his waist, held the middle part of the scabbard, and held the sword in front of him. He held the iron sword in front of his brows, and he seemed respectful. But actually, he was as indifferent as ice.


    Jun Mo had executed the junior¡¯s bow. He held the sword in front of him gravely.


    The iron sword was straight and broad and was an imprable city wall in the wind.


    The shadow of the iron sword and his sleeve cast on the ground as a dignified and continuous castle peak.


    ¡°You guarded the Verdant Canyon for seven days. First, you defeated Ye Su, and then, you injured Liu Bai. You are indeed extraordinary.¡±


    The man looked at Jun Mo¡¯s raised sword and his expression turned slightly more serious.


    But the change was slight. He waved his sleeves casually, and the spring breeze responded, lingering around his body. His aura suddenly rose and he suddenly broke through the Five States, arriving at an unknown peak.


    He was not in the city, so the city wall could not stop him. He was not in the mountains, so one could not see him there. He did not wish to fight, so not even powerful Jun Mo could fight him. What state was this?


    ¡°Teacher once said that not even Buddha canpare to the state you have attained.¡± Jun Mo looked past his sword point and at the man. He continued, ¡°Since you do not wish to fight, why have youe?¡±


    The man looked at him and said, ¡°I came to Chang¡¯an to return something to the Academy.¡±


    Jun Mo asked, ¡°What is it?¡±


    The man replied, ¡°This horse carriage.¡±


    Jun Mo answered, ¡°I am here, you may leave.¡±


    The man asked, ¡°Does the carriage belong to you?¡±


    Jun Mo answered, ¡°No.¡±


    The man said, ¡°Since this is so, you are not the person I¡¯m looking for.¡±


    Jun Mo answered, ¡°Since this is my Youngest Brother¡¯s carriage, I can make a decision on his behalf.¡±


    The man shook his head slowly and took a sip from his gon. He looked at the mottled city wall and said, ¡°No, because you can¡¯t make any decisions in this city.¡±


    Jun Mo looked at him and did not say anything.


    He only had one hand. It held his sheath and he could not hold his sword.


    The iron sword would show its sharpness since it had been pulled out of its sheath by itself, apanied by the slightest sound of friction.


    Then, the sound of friction sounded at the city gate as it started to open slowly.

 Chapter 815 - Come in Please

    <h4>Chapter 815: Come in Please</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The city gate opened slowly, revealing the figure of Ning Que.


    He carried the iron cuss on his back, with the iron pestle in his hand, looking outside of the city through the gate.


    He said, ¡°Senior Brother, he¡¯s here for me, so I¡¯ll talk to him.¡±


    Jun Mo hesitated for a moment. His eyebrows were like theke cast by the shadow of willows, so peaceful.


    The straight and broad iron sword was slowly shoved back into the sheath.


    He saluted the man by the carriage again and went back to his own carriage.


    The carriage drove into Chang¡¯an City and stopped by Ning Que.


    Jun Mo looked at him and said, ¡°If you insist on talking, make it a nice one. Though the Headmaster has left the mortal world, we still have the Academy supporting us. Cowards like them are no trouble to us at all.¡±


    Ning Que saluted and said calmly, ¡°I understand.¡±


    He looked at the dirty carriage outside the city gate, the dust on it blown away by the spring breeze, and he looked at those familiar runes; he then turned to the man standing by the carriage.


    ¡°Second Brother is the only one in the world qualified to call this man a coward.¡±


    Ning Que was muted and thinking to himself because he seemed to know the man ignoring the rule of time. The man had once been noted by the Headmaster, and had shown up in one of his dreams.


    He once had a dream in which he was in the Wilderness. All the people on the Wilderness were looking at the sky where light and darkness had a clear boundary. He saw the Headmaster in the sky, as well as the Drunkard and the Butcher. Later he had a dream again in which the Headmaster grabbed the Drunkard¡¯s wine bag and sipped, then he bit the pork leg on the Butcher¡¯s bag.


    The Headmaser once mentioned two powerful cultivators who had survived thest Evesting Night. They were no one else but the two breaking into his dreams, the Drunkard and the Butcher.


    When he took Sangsang to the Wilderness on the ck carriagest year, he ran into the fierce battle between the West-Hill Coalition Army and the Deste, and that was when he had realized he was actually at the ce that was once in his dreams.


    When dreams became reality, behind the clouds in the ck and white sky, Ning Que saw the Kingdom of God, the giant Golden Dragon¡¯s head and the Headmaster who was as tall as he had expected. He hadn¡¯t seen the Drunkard or the Butcher until this day.


    The Drunkard and the Butcher had pulled through the Evesting Night and lived a near-eternal life under Haotian¡¯s watch. That meant they knew ways to encounter Haotian, or as the Headmaster once said, cultivation is all about living longer, which was to say that the two had reached a state that ordinary people could hardly imagine.


    As in the Headmaster¡¯s words, the two were no longer mortal.


    Among those Ning Que had known, nobody else had met the Drunkard and the Butcher except the Headmaster. So the only one who was able to find them was the Headmaster. They had turned into legends for as long as they lived.


    The man might have a gon, but he had no pork leg on his back. He was not the Butcher.


    Ning Que was no ordinary person, yet he was still shocked and cautious when seeing the man. It took him a while before he calmed down and asked, ¡°Sir. Drunkard, what can I do for you?¡±


    The Drunkard looked at him and said with a hoarse voice, ¡°I was sent here by someone else to give something back to you.¡±


    His voice was still not likable. Every word of his carried the touch of the ancient emperors¡¯ tomb and the smell of silk rotting on corpses.


    Ning Que frowned slightly.


    He quit asking because Second Brother had asked enough questions. Watching the carriage that had apanied him for years and the traces behind it reminded him of what had happened by the Sishui River.


    Sangsang showed her identity as a real god by the Sishui River. She was the dark night walking in the light with her lotus-like feet. She asked the Headmaster to ascend to heaven, to enter the Kingdom of Haotian. At that time flowers showered and the whole world shook.


    The Headmaster and Sangsang then left him by the Sishui River, so did the big ck horse, the ck carriage, including the Primordial Thirteen Arrows and the Big ck Umbre in it.


    Ning Que had sent people there to look for the two. By the windy riverside, there wasn¡¯t a single trace of the Big ck Horse, the ck carriage, or those things in the carriage.


    Finally, one thing hade back from Heaven to the mortal world today. Then, where were the other things and people? The Arrows, the Umbre, the funny horse, the Headmaster and Sangsang?


    Ning Que felt uneasy. It took him long to calm down and concentrate on what was really happening. Who was keeping his stuff? Who was able to find the Drunkard and let him send the message?


    ¡°Who is it?¡± He looked at the drunkard and asked directly.


    The Drunkard¡¯s answer was direct. He did not answer at all. The Headmaster was no longer in the mortal world, so if he didn¡¯t want to talk, nobody could force him to.


    Spring breeze blew in Ning Que¡¯s face, bringing him not a bit of warmth. It felt chilly, or he felt cold, inside and outside, which cooled down the spring breeze passing by him.


    By the Sishui River, he saw the Headmaster and Sangsang ascend to Heaven and explode into shooting stars shimmering all over the sky. He was sure that Sangsang had died, or she had gone to the Kingdom of Haotian; either way, she was no longer in the mortal world now because if she were, he would¡¯ve felt it.


    <i>¡°Then who has taken away the Big ck Horse? Who picked up the Arrows? Who¡¯s holding the Big ck Umbre now? Who¡¯s giving the carriage back to him? Why is the carriage in the Drunkard¡¯s hands?¡±</i>


    Ning Que was trying to figure it out.


    ¡°Those perturbing me shall be left behind.¡± He chinned up and looked to the dim sun hanging in the spring sky. He fell into silence for a moment and continued, ¡°Those leaving me shall be forgotten.¡±


    He looked at the Drunkard and said, ¡°Pleasee in.¡±


    The quiet southern gate turned tense after his weing. The tension flooded at the foot of the city wall and burst high into the sky.


    The Drunkard watched the magnificent city wall of Chang¡¯an and asked, ¡°Why would I?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Every guest should be introduced inside.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°Not if he was an unweed one.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Being wee or not, he is, after all, a guest, and a guest has to agree with the host.¡±


    The Drunkard found him interesting, so he said with a smile, ¡°Then I am no guest at all.¡±


    Ning Que smiled but inside he felt the contrary.


    Because one could either be a guest, or an enemy.


    He looked at the Drunkard and asked with sincerity, ¡°How can you give my things back to me if you don¡¯te inside?¡±


    The Drunkard looked at him as if he were looking at a naughty kid, and he said, ¡°I am an old man. I¡¯ve already walked so far, do you really want me to finish thest a few steps all by myself?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Even if it¡¯s only a few steps away, you still haven¡¯te.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°You cane out.¡±


    Ning Que said with a smile, ¡°You cane in.¡±


    The drunkard looked at the mottled city wall of Chang¡¯an and fell in silence for a moment, then he said, ¡°Maybe someday in the future.¡±


    Ning Que responded immediately upon hearing those words, and he said, ¡°How about today?¡±


    That was an invite as well as a gamble. Or to be specific, he was gambling with his life, with the future or Chang¡¯an, with the vicissitudes of the Empire, and with the destiny of the mortal world.

 Chapter 816 - Somebody in the Mortal World

    <h4>Chapter 816: Somebody in the Mortal World</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The Drunkard turned down Ning Que¡¯s invitation and said, ¡°Not today.¡±


    Ning Que raised his tone and said, ¡°Are you afraid?¡±


    The Drunkard¡¯s expression vanished. His hair, white like snow and ck as soil, was dancing in the wind. He said, ¡°All that apanied me in these years were wine and meat. I love wine best because tipsiness eased my pain. It made people angry or relieved, and I chose thetter one, but that doesn¡¯t mean I couldn¡¯t be the former.¡±


    Ning Que stared at his eyes and asked, ¡°But you¡¯re still afraid.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°You cane out.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°I am quite the coward.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°A coward wouldn¡¯t dare to wave his cuss at the Abbey Dean on the street.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I got no guts toe out, so I am a coward. What about you? Have you any guts?¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°You¡¯re spoiling the fun.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°¡®Come if you dare¡¯ sounds so childish, and it¡¯s boring, even humiliating. I can humiliate myself because I am your junior, but how can you put up with the humiliation? Let¡¯s get this straight and juste in.¡±


    They were talking their own nonsense and that might sound funny and adorable, but frost and snow were hiding behind it, so chilly and frigid.


    Ning Que was being aggressive.


    He was luring the Drunkard into the city. No matter whether the Drunkard would do it or not, the Academy had to try to find the chance because the meeting was so sudden and perilous.


    That was the final decision of the Academy.


    But the drunkard killed the n so easily.


    He lifted the gon and started drinking. And he quit talking with his mouth full of wine.


    He stopped talking, but that didn¡¯t mean refusal or eptance.


    The only sound before the southern gate was of wine being poured into the Drunkard¡¯s chest. It sounded like a waterfall, or a stream at first, and atst, a flooding river.


    As had been mentioned, since the Headmaster had left the mortal world, nobody else was able to make the Drunkard talk, and nobody could hold his hand to introduce him into the city or to send him back home.


    The Drunkard put down the gon.


    Ning Que suddenlyughed upon seeing the wine stain at the front of his clothes.


    Theugh was helpless, self-deprecating and gloomy.


    The Drunkard was the survivor from thest Evesting Night, and teacher of the Headmaster. Ning Que¡¯s intention to irritate him with simple words was too conceited even if he had Chang¡¯an City behind his back.


    Theugh on his face gradually disappeared. Then he looked at the Drunkard and said, ¡°Just leave the carriage there and I¡¯ll send someone to fetch it if you insist.¡±


    The Drunkard smiled at Ning Que and said, ¡°I can¡¯t leave without returning it to your hand.¡±


    The situation was turned over when he said that. The initiative had been in Chang¡¯an before, but now it was being challenged by the Drunkard¡¯s words.


    It could¡¯ve been hard for Ning Que to handle the situation considering his limited state. However, he was the one who had nearly died once, and he had run into another world, which made him tougher and less fearful than anyone else.


    ¡°I¡¯m a coward, a loser, an idiot. Imited all sins a man could possibly do. I¡¯m cruel and timid. I¡¯m such a mess that even brooms cannot piece me together.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the Drunkard and said seriously, ¡°I have no shame. And by no means would I step out of Chang¡¯an today, not even if you revive my wife and threaten me with her life.¡±


    A man who was indifferent to his own stuff like emotions and dignity had no fear. And there was a quote for that attitude.


    Those who loved not had nothing to fear for, and those who wanted nothing had no desire, which made themselves naturally tough.


    The Drunkard had understood, so he was clear that no matter what he did, or how many people he killed, Ning Que would nevere out of the city, so he stopped trying.


    He left the small town where he lived in seclusion and headed for Chang¡¯an, because someone asked him for the favor. It was also partly because he wanted to visit the Academy without the Headmaster and to see what kind of person Ning Que was.


    When it came to picking up students, the Headmaster had never failed him. However, he still felt a little disappointed because the world didn¡¯t seem to have changed much.


    He sighed out of disappointment and patted the carriage on his side.


    He patted casually and his palm fell softly without any excessive force.


    The carriage suddenly seemed lower because the iron wheels had all sunken into the solid ground. Then owing to the fearful counterforce, the carriage bounced back into the air.


    This carriage was Master Yan Se¡¯s relic. It was made of fine steel all over and was extremely heavy. It could ovee any roads without any runes activated. Such a heavy iron carriage had was sent to the air by the Drunkard so easily, as if he were bouncing a rubber ball.


    The Drunkard waved his sleeves.


    The spring breeze became turbid.


    The heavy iron carriage whistled and flew to the city gate like a stone shot off from a mangonel.


    Ning Que held the array eye pestle tightly.


    Endless Qi of Heaven and Earth flowed in wildly through the gate; it poured into his body through the pestle, and filled his Snow Mountain at once, giving him continuous Psyche Power and strength.


    ng!


    He pulled out his cuss to split the wind.


    The iron cuss met the carriage.


    The ck carriage suddenly hovered in the spring breeze before the city gate.


    The first spring thunder exploded before the southern gate of Chang¡¯an City.


    Several lines of light blue airflow dispersed to all directions from the shing point when the cuss and the carriage met.


    In a sh, the light blue airflows spread to more than a hundred feet, looking like light bubbles.


    Ning Que and the ck carriage were in the center of one of the blue light bubles.


    The bubblessted for a short time and then exploded after a slight cracking sound.


    Countless pieces of Qi sprayed to all directions, cutting the trees outside the city before they sprouted. Stones on the state highway shot like arrows.


    The city wall had scars gained from a thousand year¡¯s worth of rains and storms. As the ground trembled, its surface started peeling off like pouring rain, swooshing.


    The wall looked even more scarred after the wind and dust had settled, but there was no evident damage on it. Instead, on spots cut by the Qi of Heaven and Earth, ck bricks looked like newly polished ones.


    After all, Chang¡¯an City was unshakable.


    ¡°Interesting.¡± Said the Drunkard looking at the city wall.


    Then he looked to Ning Que and said, ¡°Unlike you, such a boring one. There¡¯re things I¡¯ve given up for thousands of years, but I can still pick it up if I want.¡±


    Ning Que drew back his cuss. The ck carriage finally fell on the ground, giving out a muffled sound.


    He looked at the Drunkward and said, ¡°I¡¯m joking, are you taking it seriously?¡±


    He wasughing and talking, but inside he felt so annoyed.


    He had to smile because at certain moments, smiling was the only proof of power.


    He started coughing, and stepped back a little subconsciously. Then he leaned to one side, firmly holding the hilt and pestle in his hands. One of his hands felt like ice, the other burnt like meltingva.


    ¡°I say you¡¯re boring because you¡¯re unqualified.¡±


    The Drunkard looked at him and said, ¡°Nobody¡¯s qualified since the Headmaster left.¡±


    Ning Que knew that he was unqualified because he couldn¡¯t leave Chang¡¯an City; the Headmaster, with Eldest Brother, were able to travel all the states for years on the cattle cart.


    ¡°The key point is, to write or not to write the character is still not your decision to make.¡±


    The Drunkard looked disappointed, with impatience between his eyebrows.


    Ning Que was trying to save something. He said, ¡°At least I¡¯ve done it before, and your being kept out of the city was the proof.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°Chang¡¯an City may be a big city, yet it is just a very small part of the world.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Someday I¡¯ll make it out of the city.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°You may have the courage, but in no way could you turn the world into your Chang¡¯an. We cannot change the world because we ourselves are part of it. Your teacher failed; I failed; Chen Mou failed; what makes you believe that you can do it?¡±


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t answer.


    The negotiations between the Academy and the Divine Hall were in a stalemate, which was delicate and critical. At this very moment, a world changer, the Drunkard showed up; of course he was here for a reason.


    That was the change both the Academy and the Empire least expected.


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand why you¡¯re here.¡±


    Ning Que was talking while looking at the Drunkard in the eyes. Temporarily, the Academy and he himself couldn¡¯t change the rtionship between Haotian and the mortals, but that was no exnation for why the Drunkard was here.


    He looked at the Drunkard in the eyes and said with sincerity, ¡°In my dreams, both you and Butcher looked at me, which meant that just like moments ago, you still have hope.¡±


    ¡°Dreams are too often contrary to reality.¡± Said the Drunkard.


    Ning Que said, ¡°The Headmaster once mentioned you and the Butcher had survived thest Evesting Night, which proved that Haotian is no longer a threat to you. Then why are you here? In Chang¡¯an?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve been drinking too much over the years, and most of the time I was stoned, not knowing whether I was in dreams or reality. But in the dreams I knew, I¡¯ve never dared to dream of how a night was like.¡±


    The Drunkard looked at him and said, ¡°That was the scariest scene I¡¯ve ever seen.¡±


    No one could have the memory from those long gone days, because almost all of them died in the Evesting Night, except the Drunkard and the Butcher.


    The fear came out for a reason.


    ¡°After that day, the moon came out, which surprised me and the Butcher. Especially when we found the moon never set ever since. That was probably the hope you mentioned about me.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°We thought we could hang on. We hate to hide, but we could keep doing it for at least several hundred years. I hate it when fate always goes against people¡¯s wishes.¡±


    Ning Que felt cold, and he asked, ¡°Did Haotian find you?¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°Yes.¡±


    Ning Que kept silent for a long time, and he muttered, ¡°How could Haotian find you just at this very moment? You¡¯ve been hiding sessfully for thousands of years.¡±


    The Drunkard didn¡¯t answer. He looked up at the blue sky, then he thought to himself, ¡°It¡¯s hard for him to find us when he is in Heaven because of the distance, but what if hees to the mortal world. Where could we hide then?¡±


    Everything had been settled, which made Ning Que feel frustrated.

 Chapter 817 - The Mans Word

    <h4>Chapter 817: The Man¡¯s Word</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    ¡°Then why didn¡¯t you strike when the Headmaster was still alive? Second Brother was right, you were no match for the Headmaster and Youngest Uncle. You¡¯re cowards, no better than pathetic dogs.¡±


    Ning Que stared at the Drunkard and said. His words were simple, but the simple words contained three edgy points, each stabbing the Drunkward like a knife, or like painful face-ppings.


    The Drunkard¡¯s expression remained still, and he said, ¡°You will realize that honor and shame actually mean nothing if you reach a certain realm someday.¡±


    ¡°Then what else is meaningful?¡±


    ¡°Eternity is the one and only meaning or goal of life.¡±


    The Drunkard looked into the blue sky and said, ¡°To reach the destination and realize the goal, and to fulfill the meaning of life, we shall pay any price even if we have to bend like a dog. You should thank God that it was me rather than the Butcher that showed up outside Chang¡¯an City today, or no one knows what could happen.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°If you would like to be a dog, you should¡¯ve been one in West Hill.¡±


    The words were mean but there was still no change of expression on the Drunkard¡¯s face. He said peacefully, ¡°The precondition of eternity is to exist, and the precondition to exist is self-existence, which is what we¡¯ve been persisting.¡±


    Ning Que realized something after the conversation, so he asked, ¡°Is that what you¡¯ve been promised?¡±


    The Drunkard didn¡¯t answer. He pointed at the carriage before the city gate, and said, ¡°Those were things given back to you, and I have a message for you from somebody else.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°What is it?¡±


    The Drunkard said it with a calm and even dull expression. Obviously, he was reciting the quotation from somebody else without any emotion of his own.


    Then he turned away, with his gon swinging in the spring breeze. It reminded Ning Que of Eldest Brother¡¯s wooden dipper on his waist, and even their walking postures looked the same.


    Many years ago in the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain, while Eldest Brother was walking seemingly slow on the mountain path, Ning Que tried to catch up with him; however, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn¡¯t make it.


    Watching the Drunkard leaving, Ning Que looked pale and felt restless, thus he ignored the message the Drunkard had for him.


    The war mes kept burning for months. The Empire of Tang and the Academy paid every price to stabilize the situation. The future had turned bright, till the Drunkard and the Butcher came out of their endless years¡¯ seclusion.


    And suffering from the dramatic change of the world¡¯s situation, the bright future turned dim.


    The clear sky turned grey, then raindrops started falling, cold and chilly.


    Ning Que looked up at the grey sky and fell silent for a long time.


    He walked into the ck horse carriage and saw a ck box in the corner.


    The ck box looked familiar even if it had been deformed; Ning Que would not be able to forget about it because the box had traveled with him through mountains and rivers, witnessing how he defeated countless enemies.


    He reached out to feel the edge of the ck box with his fingers. The dirt on the box was dusted away. Then the box was opened, revealing the iron bow and glittering arrows inside. They were waiting for him.


    The ck carriage stopped by Yanming Lake. Those horses were assigned to pull the carriage temporarily, now they looked exhausted.


    Spring rain had washed lots of the dirt on the carriage, yet the talisman in front had yet to be activated.


    Liu Yiqing had been waiting at the Academy gate with a sword in his arms. As he heard the carriage wheels rolling on the ground, he stood up slowly.


    Ning Que got off the carriage with the ck box in his hand, walking towards the yard.


    Suddenly Liu Yiqing felt the terrifying killing aura. The white cloth wrapped on his eyes was soaked by spring rain, but his heart was dry and restless. His soul was so shaken that his right hand held the sword more firmly.


    Ning Que barely looked at him as he passed by. He ignored the powerhouse and looked extremely peaceful even though this Knowing-Destiny-State powerhouse could pull out his sword at any time.


    Liu Yiqing failed to pull out his sword because several cracks appeared on his wrists like drought farnd, and bleeding. Chilly wind with rainwater unwrapped and tore the white cloth on his eyes.


    Ning Que walked in the yard by Yanming Lake.


    Liu Yiqing lowered his head. Blood kept dripping off his hands holding the hilt, pitter-pattering, just like the sound of raindrops falling off the eaves.


    ¡°Such a terrifying rage and killing aura.¡±


    Nobody could tell if Ning Que was angry, neither did Ning Que have any rage in his expression. He was like an abandoned dry well, too isted to be measured.


    Under the porch, Ye Hongyu was admiring the plum blossom in the rain with a cup of light tea in her hand.


    Ning Que walked to her and asked, ¡°Are you aware of that?¡±


    Ye Hongyu put the cup on the stone window and answered, ¡°I knew it moments ago, no earlier than you.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You once told me that the Academy would definitely change its mind.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°I was told of this by somebody else.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Who?¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Who else could order me toe to Chang¡¯an to negotiate with the Academy on behalf of the Divine Hall, except the Hierarch?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°He¡¯s now a total wreck.¡±


    ¡°Or maybe you were telling the truth.¡±


    Ye Hongyu looked at him and continued, ¡°Nobody has ever seen him again since he returned to the Divine Hall, so his words still carry weight no matter if he is a wreck or not.¡±


    ¡°His words make sense, and the Academy will change its attitude.¡± Ning Que stood by the stone window and looked out. The plum blossoms were glowing in the chilly spring rain, then he said, ¡°But the Divine Hall should know its limits.¡±


    Ye Hongyu looked at his back and said, ¡°The Divine Hall¡¯s requests were totally reasonable considering the sins the Tangs has beenmitting.¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t turn around, and he said, ¡°No way would we go to the Divine Hall to apologize.¡±


    ¡°The Tangs are too prideful. We can skip that.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Besides the requests we made the other day, the Divine Hall also demands that your little Emperor should abdicate and the Empress should leave Chang¡¯an City for the reason we both know.¡±


    Ning Que fell in a moment¡¯s silence. He watched the glowing plum blossom faded in the rain. He said, ¡°You know clearly that people had to gamble their lives when there¡¯s no way back.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°But you have another way. The Lis still have the Prince.¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t move his eyes away from the plum blossoms. ¡°F**k your mother,¡± He said.


    His voice was calm and gentle, but with firm determination.


    ¡°She died long ago.¡± Said Ye Hongyu without any change on her expression.


    Ning Que turned around and looked at her. ¡°Then f**k you.¡± He said.


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Haotian wouldn¡¯t give the Academy that much time. You should go and negotiate with others instead of getting angry or afraid here.¡±


    Ning Que looked her in the eyes for a while, then he turned away.


    Ye Hongyu fell into moment¡¯s silence. Then, she picked up the half cup of tea. Golden ripples waved in the cup, not because raindrops had fallen in the tea; it was because of her shaking hand.


    Ning Que was in the most dangerous state she had ever seen. He didn¡¯t do anything. He might look peaceful and talk calmly, but actually, he was on the brink of a melt down.


    If she hadn¡¯t been able to calm him down, he might have tried to kill her with the God-stunning Array, or he might have really raped her.

 Chapter 818 - The Dilemma about Rage and Courage

    <h4>Chapter 818: The Dilemma about Rage and Courage</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ning Que didn¡¯t go back to the pce after he left Yanming Lake. He went to the Building of Pines and Cranes for a drink and to the Vermilion Street for a walk. He hadn¡¯t drunk much or walked too far. Spring rain fell upon him gently on his head; his face and his clothes became slightly damp.


    The drink sped up his blood cirction; the walk eased his temper; the rain cleared his heart. Finally, he turned calm again and epted the dramatic change of the world¡¯s situation which made the Tangs and the Academy outrageous. Later he reached the Sanyuanli area.


    The neighborhood was preparing dinner. The smell of cooking oil in pans was mixed with the smell of damp wood burning. It smelled nice, making him even more calm.


    He was waiting beneath the stone steps in the yard. Soon, there was a creaking sound of the door opening and Second Brother came out, then the creaking sound kept echoing in the darkness of the night.


    Ning Que saluted to the one on the steps in the darkness, then he said, ¡°The Drunkard and the Butcher must¡¯ve had received Haotian¡¯s promise that they could keep their self-existence eternal, so they pledged allegiance to Haotian as the price.¡±


    Jun Mo continued, ¡°Their biggest fear was that they couldn¡¯t make it through the second Evesting Night.¡±


    Someone in the yard lifted antern high in the air, lighting up the street and dispelled the darkness, revealing two wheelchairs.


    Yu Lian said, ¡°The Kingdom of Haotian is no ce for self-awareness.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°No matter how wise a coward could be, he would never be a match for a brave man¡¯s stupidity.¡±


    Eldest Brother didn¡¯t join the discussion among his sisters and brothers. He stared at the night sky silently, and at the bright moon after the rain. It also seemed as if he were staring at the Kingdom of Haotian, from which nobody hade out of alive.


    Jun Mo looked at Ning Que and said, ¡°Sometimes anger may bring courage, but most of the time it is meaningless.¡±


    Yu Lian looked at Ning Que and said, ¡°We can go on with our conversation since you¡¯ve calmed down.¡±


    Ning Que figured out what his brother and sister were talking about, so he asked, ¡°How?¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°Talk as you like.¡±


    Ning Que recalled that he had a simr conversation with the Queen, and his expression turned bitter.


    Eldest Brother turned away from the sky and looked at him with a smile. He said, ¡°Youngest Brother, just try harder.¡±


    The main hall was so quiet that even the candle looked dim. All eunuchs and pce maids were standing far away, leaving only the Queen and Ning Que before the desk.


    The Queen looked at the yellow-covered envelopes on the desk, silent. Ning Que looked at the summary files sent by the West-Hill Divine Pce diplomatic corps; he was temporarily silent, too, but he knew he couldn¡¯t keep silent forever.


    ¡°Are there really cultivators who have lived through the Evesting Night?¡±


    The Queen was asking Ning Que, feeling the notion so unbelievable.


    Ning Que thought it for a while, and said, ¡°Every one thousand years, a sage would be born. The Drunkard and the Butcher, nobody knows how long they had been cultivating in the mortal world. Though the Drunkard didn¡¯t make his power felt outside the city, I am sure that his power was beyond most people¡¯s imagination. In other words, the mortal martial arts mean nothing to him.¡±


    The Queen frowned slightly and said, ¡°Then who¡¯s the more powerful one, the Drunkard or the Abbey Dean?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The Drunkard has a higher state, but I doubt he surpasses the Abbey Dean in power.¡±


    The Queen was puzzled and asked, ¡°How so?¡±


    ¡°The Drunkard and the Butcher have no choice but walk in the darkness for all these years, and their bodies and souls are all rotting. The Abbey Dean, however, has been walking in the light and reached the peak as the Headmaster left.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°If one of the two enters Chang¡¯an City someday, there¡¯s 70 percent chance that I could kill him; if both of the two enter Chang¡¯an together, there¡¯s still 10 percent chance that I could kill both of them.¡±


    The Queen then said, ¡°Ten percent chance is no different from no chance at all.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°That works for other cultivators, except for the Drunkard and the Butcher who were so afraid of death. For them, ten percent chance equals 100 percent.¡±


    The Queen asked, ¡°They are grand cultivators with such high states, why does death still haunt them?¡±


    ¡°The Headmaster once pointed out that cultivation is all about time. The longer you live, the more powerful you¡¯ll be, and the more fearful you¡¯ll be of death. Immortality is the biggest temptation, and death is the greatest fear.¡±


    Ning Que continued, ¡°The Drunkard and the Butcher are so typical, so they pledged allegiance to Haotian. Since then, they were banned from entering Chang¡¯an City.¡±


    The Queen¡¯s eyes started glowing, and she said, ¡°How about outside the city?¡±


    ¡°We can have a try if my Senior Brother and Sister were at their peak.¡±


    Ning Que remembered the gon swinging in the spring breeze, then he nodded and said, ¡°The problem now is that nobody could find the two, not to mention catching up with them.¡±


    The glow in the Queen¡¯s eyes finally vanished, and she said, ¡°You mean the Drunkard and the Butcher are like two swords hanging above the Tang¡¯s, and they could fall down anytime.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°And that is what the West-Hill Pce is threatening us with.¡±


    After ncing at the negotiation files on the desk, the Queen fell into a moment¡¯s silence and said, ¡°The Drunkard and the Butcher, the two should be a secret that nobody else should ever know.¡±


    Ning Que understood what she meant.


    The Tangs were in recovery from desperation, and they were regaining their confidence. The Tang army was in its best days. However hard the Southern Army was fighting, they refused to block the Verdant Canyon because they were saving it for the day to fight back.


    The Tangs would be frustrated being aware of the presence the Drunkard and the Butcher, and if they knew the hope was frail, the war would be an endless torture.


    Ning Que looked at the Queen in the eyes, and said, ¡°How could the imperial court and the Academy exin this agreement with the West-Hill Divine Hall? People would definitely know that the Empire of Tang has ceded territory and paid war indemnity.¡±


    The Queen smiled and said, ¡°Shame brings courage as well as anger. And if anger could be sessfully released, courage would be the only thing left.¡±


    Ning Que found the Queen¡¯s smile beautiful, but somehow chilling. How could they let the soldiers and people of Tang release all the anger brought by the shame?


    He wasn¡¯t going to think further because he felt that he had already thought too much.


    ¡°Ordinary Tang people would be none the wiser, but the ministers had to be informed because the Academy doesn¡¯t want the imperial court to fall in chaos again. There was no better time than this moment, for them to hold the pressure for people because this is what people supported them for.¡±


    The Queen considered and agreed with him, then she knocked the golden bell on the desk.


    Soon the ten most important ministers gathered in the hall at night.


    They looked tired because it was already midnight. However, they were called urgently and feared that it was because the war at the Northern Frontier had started again or that there was a problem with the negotiations with the West-Hill Divine Pce. As such, they did not dare to dawdle.


    They had prepared for the worst in their minds, yet they still didn¡¯t expect the news waiting for them in the pce was so bad that they were all muted. The hall was in total silence.


    ¡°We can meet any requests of them other than...¡±


    The tired voice came from General Shu Cheng who had juste back to Chang¡¯an.


    He looked grave because he knew the agreement would forever be a shame for the Empire, and every use of it stung his heart like a thorn.


    Some of the requests could be met given the severe situation the Empire was faced with because it had no other choice; however, there was one single use in the agreement that the Empire would never ept.


    He looked at the Queen and Ning Que. Word by word, he spoke it out, ¡°Xingwan in shall never be ceded.¡±


    The West Expedition Army drew back from Pamir Mountain and merged into the Northern Army which was ruled by General Xu Chi, preparing for the possible war against the Golden Pce Cavalry in the spring. General Shu Cheng was now back in Chang¡¯an and had given away the control of both the two armies to Xu Chi because Chang¡¯an needed the protection of an important general now. General Shu Cheng was against the idea to cede Xiangwan in not because the army couldn¡¯t take the shame; it was because Xiangwan in was important.


    Xiangwan in was in the south of Seven Stockaded Viges in the Northern Frontier. It was a vast grasnd stretching several thousand miles, a ce of abundant rain and properndform to feed horses. It was the main birthce of the Empire¡¯s warhorses.


    Xiangwan in had been providing horses for thousands of years, which was an important reason why the Tang could stomp freely in the mortal world.


    In the requests of the agreement, one of the most important uses was to ask the Empire to cede Xiangyuan in on behalf of the Golden Pce, which was also the use the Empire would never agree on.


    Last autumn, the cavalry of Golden Pce invaded southwards like wolves, and the Tang Imperial Court was in chaos. The expedition cavalry following the Emperor was trapped in Hn City. The Seven Stockaded Viges were captured in session because of the inadequate preparation of the Northern Army. Under the severe situation, General Xu Chi didn¡¯t draw a single step back. The Northern Army had paid a heavy price and finally kept the Golden Pce Cavalry 100 miles away in the south of the Seven Stockaded Viges.


    Why had they done so? It was because the Empire couldn¡¯t afford to lose Xiangwan in. It was a basis of the thousand-year prosperity of the Empire, and the foundation of Tang Army¡¯s invincibility in the world, One could even say that the in was the Empire.


    The Golden Pce had been against the Empire for long, and it would grow more perilous if Xiangwan in was ceded, thus weakening the Empire day by day.


    A civilian minister in the hall asked in a confused tone, ¡°The grasnd is nothingpared to Dongshan County. We can rob horses from the Golden Pce if we want.¡±


    Even under such circumstances, the officials of Tang were still optimistic and assured.


    Shu Cheng said coldly, ¡°The West-Hill Pce asked us to pay for the war-horses and cede Xiangyuan in. Robbing wouldn¡¯t do any help if we had the finest armors but no mount in the future. Their requests are meant to kill us, and they won¡¯t allow any idents to happen. They are determined to destroy the foundation of our Tang Empire.¡±


    He was afraid that the Academy and the Queen knew little about the importance of Xiangyuan in, so he looked at Ning Que and said sternly, ¡°Cede Xiangwan in to the Golden Pce, and the Empire will soon fall!¡±


    The Queen looked at Ning Que and said, ¡°The restoration from ceding Xiangyuan in would cost more than a hundred years, and the West-Hill Pce made the request because they knew it clearly.¡±


    Ning Que stared at the files on the desk. It took him long to make the final decision.

 Chapter 819 - Singing to the Moon and Waiting

    <h4>Chapter 819: Singing to the Moon and Waiting</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ning Que had stayed in the City of Wei for many years, and naturally knew the importance of the Xiangwan in.


    This war in the mortal world had to be split into two levels. The Academy against the Drunkard, the Butcher, the Sword Sage, Liu Bai, and the other sublime beings hidden in the world. The Tang cavalry would take care of the rest of the enemies.


    The Tang Empire cavalry was still the most powerful in the world. As long as they limated to the situation on the battleground, they could kill cultivators within the Five States. The situation that had happened before the Verdant Canyon would be impossible to replicate because there would not be another Academy in this world. And no one would be able to find someone like those at the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain.


    If the Tang Empire really acquiesced to the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s conditions and gave up the Xiangwan in to the Golden Pce, it would mean breaking their own limbs. They would be giving up their greatest weapon.


    Ning Que would not agree to this condition under any circumstances. However, he knew the key point of this negotiation with the West-Hill Divine Pce, and the appearance of the Drunkard in Chang¡¯an was truly about the Xiangwan in.


    The Night Hall was silent. Everyone, including the Empress, was waiting for him to make his stand. The Academy¡¯s stand in this situation was the Tang Empire¡¯s stand.


    Ning Que stood up and looked at the officials, then said, ¡°Negotiate with them first and let me think about it again.¡±


    Since this matter was one of a national scale, there wouldn¡¯t be a single person who could make a decision in such a short period of time.


    That night, Ning Que returned to the house at Yanming Lake. However, he did not look for Ye Hongyu.


    Dawn approached, along with the sounds of roosters crowing. Dog barks and chicken squawking filled the streets. Hot steam escaped from the seams of the Bun Shop which had yet to open. The morning breeze blew the steam onto the streets, wetting the green stone floors.


    A new day hade.


    The imperial court continued negotiating with the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s diplomatic corps. ording to news from the pce, the Divine Hall seemed oddly insistent, unlike the previous days. They refused to make any concessions on regards to ceding the Xiangwan in.


    Ning Que knew why the Divine Hall was acting so. He waved his hand, signaling for the Imperial Center Administration official to leave. He woke up, drank a bowl of porridge and arrived at the plum garden. He opened the doors and entered.


    Ye Hongyu liked to bathe in the morning because she liked to spend the day refreshed.


    She had just showered when Ning Que entered her room.


    Damp ck hair hung on her naked shoulders, the tips dripping with water, covering her chest nicely.


    Ye Hongyu nced at him, then walked up to the mirror and startedbing her hair. She asked, ¡°Have you decided?¡±


    As shebed, her ck hair was moved from the front to the back and everything could be seen clearly in the mirror.


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Decided on what?¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°On signing.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head.


    Ye Hongyu saw him shaking his head in the mirror, and her hand holding theb froze. She said, ¡°I thought you had already decided and were unhappy, havinge to rape me in return.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Even though you¡¯re really beautiful.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Even thinking about it is distasteful.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°At least I never thought of it.¡±


    Ye Hongyu replied, ¡°I¡¯m not wearing any clothes, and you are staring at me. Then, what are you thinking about?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°This is my home. Furthermore, I¡¯ve already seen you naked in the Wilderness swamp.¡±


    Ye Hongyu asked calmly, ¡°I¡¯ve never asked you, did I look good?¡±


    Ning Que thought about it and said, ¡°Your body is indeed mesmerizing, but once I think of your Divine Robe of Judgement and those threads under your skin, I be disinterested.¡±


    Ye Hongyu rose and put on her blood-colored Divine Robe of Judgement. Then, she faced the mirror and started drawing her brows.


    The Divine Robe of Judgementbined auras that were both holy and cruel. Itid over a delicate body that was like white jade, and it grew even more enchanting, especially since Ning Que knew that she wore nothing under the robe.


    She was not wearing the skirts of maidservants, because she was now the Great Divine Priest of Judgment.


    ¡°The Tang Empire cannot possibly keep the Xiangwan in. The Divine Hall can make concessions except for the Xiangwan in. Otherwise, this war against the Tang Empire would be pointless.¡±


    She said as she drew her brows.


    Ning Que watched as she drew lightly on her brows with a fine charcoal pen. He said, ¡°Living isn¡¯t for...¡±


    Ye Hongyu interrupted him, ¡°The people in the Academy live for meaning, but there are more people who live for meaning. The Divine Hall has to answer to other countries in the world.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I think the other conditions are sufficient enough for the Divine Hall to answer to them.¡±


    Ye Hongyu put down the brow pencil and retrieved a red rouge paper from her make-up box. She looked at Ning Que in the mirror and said, ¡°Then how will the Divine Hall answer to itself and to Haotian?¡±


    She pursed her lips tightly; they were as bright as red plums.


    Then, she turned around and looked at Ning Que, tearing the rouge paper in two.


    ¡°We both know that when the Tang Empire and the Academy recover, any agreement would be a useless piece of paper. We cannot allow the Tang Empire to continue being as strong, so the Xiangwan in has to belong to us.¡±


    The West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s diplomatic corps held their ground and the Tang officials participating in the negotiations were ced in a passive position. Perhaps a hot-blooded young official had leaked the news, and the details of the negotiations between the two sides and the conditions of the Divine Hall being degrading to the Tang Empire gradually became known to the Tang people. In particr, the two conditions, giving up the Xiangwan in and the Eastern Hill counties, enraged the Tangs. Had the The TangEmpire ever suffered such humiliation in the thousand years since its creation?


    Many people from the Tang Army and its citizens had died, from the Northern Frontier to Capital Cheng, and from the Pamir Mountains to the Vermilion Bird Avenue, before the situation was turned around. They had not lost, so why did they have to sign such a humiliating agreement?


    The whole city was in an uproar and the people were furious. Food vendors were not in the mood, and the hot and sour sliced noodle soup seemed to have be nd. They were not in the mood to do anything. Who could sit at home and not do anything? Many citizens, students, disabled veterans volunteered toe to the square in front of the Imperial Pce without anyone¡¯s prompting.


    No one rioted or even made any noise. Thousands of people stood outside the pce in silence, standing in the cold spring rain. They did not leave even as the night deepened.


    Tens of thousands of people gathered together in silence outside the pce. This was an indescribable pressure for the people in the pce, and officials who knew about the agreement seemed to grow old instantly.


    Many were waiting during this night, and there might be people doing other things. Though they were as angry as other Tang citizens, they had to make ns for the future.


    At the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain, Mu You carried a wooden basket on her back and walked in the mist at the waist of the mountain. She took out a small g from the basket from time to time, and inserted it into the sand or between the seams of the mountain rocks.


    The Cloud Gate array was a big tactical array that the Headmaster had taught her. It was the back of the mountain¡¯s most important screen. There was no one to helm the array when she was at the Verdant Canyon, and the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s Hierarch had broken through forcefully. It had been badly damaged.


    Even though the Abbey Dean was seriously injured, and could barely recover, the Drunkard and Butcher seemed to be like two newfound dark clouds that shrouded the hearts of the Academy¡¯s disciples. She had to fix it as soon as possible so she could rest easy.


    The smithy by the stream was still quiet. Sixth Brotherid his head on his hammer in the dark and was staring at the mountain and forest in a daze. The room behind him emitted gentle sounds from time to time.


    ¡°One is in the Limitless State and is Boundless while the other is almost immortal. It seems that no one can kill them as long as they do not enter Chang¡¯an. But I always remember what the Headmaster said.¡±


    Eldest Brother¡¯s fingers drew lightly on the yellow sand in the River and Mountain Sandbox. He said with a serene expression, ¡°Other than Haotian, there is no one in the world who is omniscient and omnipotent. So there must be a way to kill them. That is why we should start nning. I guess this would be arge project.¡±


    Fourth Brother said, ¡°I am willing to analyze this with you, Senior Brother.¡±


    Yu Lian was deep in thought as she sat by the cliff, writing in the wind with her fingers. Tang Xiaotang was widening the stone steps on the steep mountain path. The blood-colored huge de in her hands was starting to look like arge metal rod.


    The little white wolfid on the stone steps listlessly.


    A gust of wind suddenly blew on the cliff, blowing straight up into the sky and dispersing the cloud, revealing the moon.


    The little white wolf howled at the moon. Its voice was clear and young, but not aggressive at all.


    Jun Mo stood by the pool. Zhang III and Li IV were standing beneath the waterfall.


    He was understanding the sword, and the big white goose was beside him, washing its feet in the pool.


    The little white wolf¡¯s howl could be heard from the cliff.


    The big white goose looked up and nced at the ce the howl came from. Then, it lengthened its neck and sang to the moon.


    ¡°Hoot hoot!¡±


    Ning Que was on the turret of the imperial city.


    He looked at the moon in the night sky and at the silent crowd beneath. He seemed to have heard something, and then, he thought of some things and smiled.

 Chapter 820 - The White Flag in the Rain

    <h4>Chapter 820: The White g in the Rain</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The Night Hall was very silent and the candlestick within it swayed lightly. Ning Que looked into the Empress¡¯ eyes and said, ¡°Shame will bring courage and anger. If this anger can be released, then what has been left will be courage. You said it and I quote, Your Majesty. What we need to consider now is who would bear the Tang¡¯s anger.¡±


    The Empress did not answer.


    Ning Que continued, ¡°Ceding the Xiangwan in, and the the war-horses issue will be settled by the Academy.¡±


    The Empress shook her head and said, ¡°No matter how strong the Academy is, it cannot create something from nothing.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Everything I lost, I will take back.¡±


    The Empress did not understand why he was so confident, but in the end, she was convinced by his determination. After a moment of consideration, she said with a grave expression, ¡°Since this is so, I will sign it.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You can¡¯t sign it because I cannot allow you and His Majesty to bear the anger of the people.¡±


    The Empress replied, ¡°But you have once said that the Academy cannot sign it because we will renege on this agreement.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The West-Hill Divine Pce has made sufficient preparations, and will definitely request that I or even Senior Brother do the signing. As for the imperial court, Ye Hongyu was right, we still have one more way out.¡±


    The Empress was very intelligent and immediately understood what he meant. She said in agreement, ¡°The one on the throne is my son, so I have to bear the relevant responsibilities and do the tasks. There won¡¯t be any difference whether it¡¯s me or anyone from the Li family to sign the agreement.¡±


    ¡°At least it will form a certain buffer,¡± said Ning Que. ¡°As a member of the Li Royal Family, you can only die to pay for signing this agreement that will shame our nation. This is the only way to appease the anger of the people. And in such a current situation, you cannot die.¡±


    ¡°The Academy is more and more closely bound with the human society, and Mr. First has agreed to mentor my son. The Royal Court is no longer fighting. Now that we think about it, I am no longer important to the Tang Empire.¡±


    The Empress smiled and said, ¡°Furthermore, to me, death is no longer frightening.¡±


    Of course, Ning Que would not push the Empress to do it. He rushed to the prince¡¯s residence in the night.


    The candles in the study were dim but Li Peiyan was just as handsome. He smiled warmly, but there were many more wrinkles by the corner of his eye. His eyebrows which were once sharp as swords had be extremely gentle.


    ¡°I do not have much ambition in my life. I just want to make up for what my royal brother iscking. I want to represent the royal family in bettering the rtionship with Haotian Taoism, and at the most, wanted to be known in history as a good prince.¡±


    Li Peiyan looked at Ning Que who was sitting across him. He smiled self-mockingly, ¡°Now that I think about it, if I had not been born in the royal family and been sent to a county to be a prefecture governor, I might¡¯ve been more useful than I am now.¡±


    ¡°This is where your Highness¡¯ problemsy.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You think of things that are too trivial in the grand scheme. And over the years, you have given the Divine Hall too many concessions. His Majesty does not like it and neither does the Academy or the people.¡±


    Li Peiyan said, ¡°It seems that I am indeed useless.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°This aligns with the role your highness will y, so I think you can still make some contributions to the Tang royal family before leaving the world.¡±


    Li Peiyan looked at the candlestick on the table and looked at the wax streaming down the candle. He sighed and said, ¡°You have ignored me ever since you killed Xiahou. I always thought it was the Academy that put pressure on you on behalf of my royal brother, or that you had killed enough people and your resentment subsided. Or you just wanted me to be trapped in the fear of not knowing when I¡¯d die, but I didn¡¯t expect you to be here waiting for me.¡±


    ¡°No one can work out what will happen years or even decadester like Haotian. I can¡¯t think so far out in the future either. But just like what my Third Sister once said, some people are more useful alive than dead.¡±


    ¡°They are useful... in dying at the right time?¡±


    ¡°Indeed.¡±


    ¡°Ning Que, you are indeed the most cold-blooded person in the world.¡± Li Peiyanmented, ¡°The Tang Empire is in danger now, and it needs someone who¡¯s cold-blooded and practical like you to protect it.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Everyone but you has the right to say that I¡¯m cold-blooded, your Highness.¡±


    He had not slept for a night, not because he was tossing and turning in bed, but because he was wandering within Chang¡¯an City.


    Ning Que left the prince¡¯s residence and went back to the house at Yanming Lake to meet Ye Hongyu. He said, ¡°Neither the Academy nor the royal family can go to the West-Hill Divine Pce to pay homage to Haotian.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Yes, they can. You can send a diplomatic envoy.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°No.¡±


    Ye Hongyu thought about it for a moment and said, ¡°Just like what you have done for the South Jin Kingdom, letting the House of Red Sleeves dance at the Divine Hall.¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°That might work, but they have to do it without any official representation. I also have to ask if they are willing.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Go on.¡±


    Ning Que continued, ¡°We can agree to all other conditions, but the Divine Hall has to guarantee the absolute safety of the Great River Kingdom. No matter whether it is Yuelun or the South Jin Kingdom, if they take a step across the great river, we would deem it as them reneging on the contract.¡±


    Ye Hongyu answered, ¡°That is not a problem. And to reciprocate, the Tang Empire has to guarantee the safety of Qinghe County.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The Divine Hall¡¯s had already made that requirement.¡±


    Ye Hongyu shook her head and said, ¡°It is the safety of everyone in Qinghe County. That includes the people of Qinghe who stayed in Chang¡¯an during the war. The Tang Empire has to release them.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°It seems like this is a condition the Qinghe River warlords raised to the Divine Hall when they swore fealty to the Divine Hall.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°If the Divine Hall can¡¯t even do this, how can we gain the trust of millions and billions of believers in the world?¡±


    After a moment of silence, Ning Que replied, ¡°I promise you, that once the agreement has been signed, and as long as the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army leaves Qinghe County, I will send back those people in the Qinghe County Guild.¡±


    The spring rain started once more early in the morning, and an agreement was made.


    The Tang Empire agreed to most of the conditions set by the West-Hill Divine Pce and Prince Li Peiyan signed his name on the agreement solemnly. He was, at the same time, signing his name on the pir of shame in history.


    The news spread and a furor started in the royal court and themonalty. No one knew what had happened in the long night and why the bigwigs in the Imperial Pce would dare to sign the agreement despite it being so shameful.


    The Tangs gathered in front of the imperial city could not control their emotions and cursed angrily. They spat at the vermilion-colored pce walls and then, the old rumors started spreading in the crowd.


    The old rumors were not really rumors but were things that everyone knew. For example, the massacre in the Yan territory, the Prince¡¯s secret rtionship with the Hierarch of the West-Hill Divine Pce and the massacre in Chang¡¯an that had involved Haotian Taoism; leading to the previous Emperor being banished to be amoner and only rejoining the royal ranks after Li Peiyan ascended the throne...


    The pce gates opened slowly, and Li Peiyan walked toward the crowd. He was wearing a dark robe of ck red and gold which stood out in the light spring rain falling in the morning.


    Countless people looked at him with disdain and anger in their eyes, and some even tried to beat him.


    A lowly-ranked official in the government questioned why the court ceded Dongshan County and the Xiangwan in. The official sounded as if he was in extreme pain, as if he was bleeding.


    Countless people were asking him and were berating and scolding him. Did the imperial court not want to regain Qinghe County? Why are they sending the traitors in the Qinghe guild hall back?


    The front of the Imperial Pce was filled with blood-smelling voices.


    If not for the heavy protection of the Yulin Royal Guards, Li Peiyan would have already been torn into shreds.


    Li Peiyan suddenly stopped, and looked at the angry masses.


    His expression was very calm and the look deep in his eyes wasplicated.


    The crowd gradually quietened.


    ¡°Why? The world isn¡¯t that reasonable. The Tang Empire needs time, so I have fought for time for you all. The Tang Empire needs peace, so I have fought for peace for you all. The world had fought against the Tang Empire, so how will the Empire deal with itself? Can we really fight against the entire world? If you think that I am wrong, then prove it to me in the future.¡±


    His expression was dispassionate, but his hands hidden in his sleeves trembled incessantly.


    Li Peiyan returned to his residence.


    The angry people of Chang¡¯an surrounded it.


    Students from the front yard of the Academy and students from the imperial academy were assisting the Ministry of Workers in repairing homes damaged during the war in the city. After hearing the news, they carried numerous pieces of bricks and stones there.


    The Yulin Royal Guards and soldiers were guarding the residence, buttheir numbers were too small and were not enough to deter the angry crowd. Angry calls echoed around the prince¡¯s residence.


    Some even carried oil and lit their torches.


    And at the most critical moment, a disconste cry rang out from within the walls of the prince¡¯s residence.


    A white g was raised from behind the prince residence¡¯s door.


    The Tang Empire Prince, LiPeiyan, was dead.


    The street became very quiet as the people looked at the bleak white banner in the spring rain. People put down the bricks and stones in their hands, and the newly lit torches gradually died out.


    Ning Que silently watched from the alley at a distance.


    His face remained emotionless.


    Li Peiyan signed the agreement on behalf of the Tang Empire. This, to the West-Hill Divine Pce, was not the end of the negotiations, and neither was it the final victory. That was because they needed the Academy¡¯s signature.


    If possible, they would want the renowned Mr. First, or the gentleman, Mr. Second, to sign. But only one person from the Academy had entered the human realm, and that was Ning Que.


    Yanming Lake was shrouded in the misty spring rain, but it did not seem mournful. All the members of the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s diplomatic corps and all of the Tang Empire¡¯s Grand Secretaries were inside the hall. No one spoke, and they all felt different emotions. It was unnecessary to mention the West-Hill Divine Pce, but Grand Secretary Zeng Jing and the other Tang officials all bore solemn expressions.


    Everyone was waiting for Ning Que to return and sign the agreement. Ye Hongyu was also waiting in the plum garden, but Ning Que arrived veryte, because he had gone somewhere else before returning to Yanming Lake.


    In front of the Qinghe County Guild Hall was a straight street, and behind it was ake and mountains. The spring rain cast a fog over it and the scenery was beautiful.


    Several bodyguards and over 20 members of the Fish-dragon Gang were watching the guild hall warily.


    The descendants of Qinghe County¡¯s warlords had tried to escape from the guild hall the night of the battle in Chang¡¯an. They had all been captured through a lot of effort, and they did not want a repeat of it. If they found out that the people in the hall were about to be sent back to Qinghe County, they would be enraged.


    And at a moment like this, Ning Que entered the Qinghe River Guild Hall. He took a handkerchief and wiped his hair that was dampened in the rain. Then, he flicked off the water droplets on his clothing. He behaved so naturally, it was as if he were at home.

 Chapter 821 - May the Spring Rain Wash My Blood

    <h4>Chapter 821: May the Spring Rain Wash My Blood</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The world war against the Tang Empire began with a plot in Chengjing City of the Yan Kingdom. But the real turning point was in Qinghe County, where the rebellion by the warlords led to the demise of the Tang navy, and the Great Lake was dyed red with blood. After that, the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army invaded the north. The Southern Army did not arrive in time to help, and if not for the Academy¡¯s disciples guarding the Verdant Canyon, even though they suffered serious injuries and even lost an arm, the Tang Empire might have really been destroyed.


    This was the first rebellion in the Tang Empire since its founding. And ording to the news that spread after the incident, the scene was extremely gory. That was whypared to the powerful West-Hill Divine Pce and the Golden Pce, the Tang Army was more enraged against the warlords of Qinghe County.


    The warlords of Qinghe County nned the rebellion to knock Chang¡¯an out cold, first by winning Li Yu¡¯s trust. To do so, they had left many of their citizens in Chang¡¯an as hostages, and many of them were important figures to the warlords. When the news of the rebellion spread to Chang¡¯an, these people naturally became top priority in the Tang¡¯s surveince. Those belonging to the Qinghe guild tried to escape and almost seeded, but were captured by the prefectural magistrate of Chang¡¯an City, Shangguan Yangyu¡¯s vicious ways. And they were not able to leave the guild again after that.


    There were two different opinions on how to deal with these descendants of the Qinghe County warlords. One faction felt that they should quickly kill them using the cruelest methods so as to subdue the rebels in Qinghe county, and at the same time, appease the spirits of the Tang navy and hundreds of martyred officials. The other faction thought that they should use the descendants as bargaining chips in order to shock the traitors and subdue the warlords.


    With the arrival of the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s diplomatic corps, and especially with the sudden change in the current situation, the peace treaty was about to be signed. The opinions of both factions were now unimportant. The Tang officials could only watch as the people were taken out of the guild hall and sent to Qinghe County. They could only stay silent no matter how indignant they felt.


    It was then when Ning Que entered the Qinghe County guild hall. A middle-aged officer wearing the Tang official uniform without wearing the hat weed him. The man looked honest and trustworthy.


    ¡°Greetings, Mr. Thirteen,¡± the middle-aged officer greeted him calmly and politely.


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Since you do not admit that you are a Tang citizen, why are you still wearing our court uniform?¡±


    The middle-aged officer was called Cui Yuan. He was the second son of the Cui Family from Qinghe County and had been an official in Chang¡¯an for many years. He had held an easy position that paid well in the Ministry of Rites before the war.


    The Qinghe guild hall was under the strictest surveince and supervision at all times. The court did not deliberately humiliate the descendants of the warlords. They lived in there just like before. However, with hundreds of people staying in the guild hall, it wouldn¡¯t make any difference wearingmon clothes or uniforms. As such, Cui Yuan continued wearing his old official uniform.


    Cui Yuan smiled bitterly and said, ¡°I am an official of the Tang Empire. The elders in my n are ignorant and muddled, and their rebellion has nothing to do with me.¡±


    The average person might consider these words, but Ning Que did not. He did not care whether Cui Yuan¡¯s attitude was sincere or not. He only knew that the man was old Master Cui¡¯s second son and was an important figure amongst the warlords.


    He said, ¡°I heard the old Master has a few grandsons that he dotes on a lot. Are they in the guild hall?¡±


    Cui Yuan looked at his expression and knew that he did not need to put up any false pretenses before Mr. Thirteen. He bowed deeply and sighed, saying, ¡°Please do not be angry, sir.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°To calm the anger is to maintain inner peace, which is very difficult. Furthermore, the Tangs have always thought of those from Qinghe County as part of their own. The betrayal of the warlords was like stabbing us in the back. Do you think that the people living in this city can still smile at you under such circumstances?¡±


    Cui Yuan¡¯s expression grew ugly and he said, ¡°The families here have been schrs and have a history that is longer than Chang¡¯an. Their only wish is to return the county to how it was a thousand years ago; it can¡¯t really be called a betrayal.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°This makes sense. I know what you¡¯re worried about. Otherwise, you¡¯d have offered me tea even though you are trapped here and I am an unweed guest.¡±


    Cui Yuan smiled bitterly and replied, ¡°Is there anyone unafraid of death? Forgive me for being too concerned.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Even though I cannot be appeased, I havee to tell you something very unwillingly. The West-Hill Divine Pce wants to save your lives.¡±


    Ning Que had been paying attention to Cui Yuan¡¯s expression when he said that. When the man heard the news, he remained as serene as before, but a trace of happiness shed across his eyes.


    This was exactly what he wanted to see.


    Cui Yuan bowed deeply to him once again, and thanked him with a trembling voice. ¡°Even though I know how angry you are, I would still like to thank you. Once we return to Qinghe County, I will restrain my n and we will live harmoniously with the Tang Empire.¡±


    Ning Que admired the man¡¯s performance very much and thought that the warlords of Qinghe did have many talents. Even the man who had entered the capital as a hostage was able to perform so perfectly under the circumstances. The man did not say anything and behave in any way that might displease or enrage the Tangs.


    He said, ¡°I do not understand the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s intentions.¡±


    Cui Yuan thought to himself that it was impossible for Ning Que to not have known. Ning Que was asking just because he wanted to hear Cui Yuan to say it. He said bitterly, ¡°If they cannot even protect Qinghe County, no one else in the world will trust the Divine Hall again.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s true.¡±


    Ning Que said thoughtfully, ¡°Power speaks louder than reasoning. The Divine Hall¡¯s power is indeed great now, so they are more well-reasoned.¡±


    Cui Yuan added on, ¡°The Academy¡¯s recession is temporary, there¡¯s no need for you to be so modest.¡±


    ¡°I have never enjoyed being modest. Even though Haotian Taoism¡¯s fists are bigger in the world for now, in Chang¡¯an, the Academy¡¯s fists are still bigger. As such, I have decided to be reasonable.¡±


    Ning Que looked at him and said, ¡°Earlier, you said that no one would trust the Divine Hall if they could not protect Qinghe County. That is very reasonable, so tell me, why shouldn¡¯t we kill you all?¡±


    Cui Yuan frowned with confusion. He wondered to himself what was the point in saying so much if Ning Que was going to kill them all.


    Ning Que said, ¡°Should the warlords of Qinghe County have the chance to shine as brilliantly as they had a thousand years ago, you and all the others in the guild hall will regretfully have no opportunity to see it.¡±


    When he heard that, Cui Yuan¡¯s expression changed drastically. He asked softly, ¡°What do you mean by that, Sir? Was everything you said earlier false? Did the West-Hill Divine Pce not make this demand?¡±


    ¡°The West-Hill Divine Pce does want you all to live to prove the greatness of Haotian.¡±


    Ning Que looked at him and said, ¡°The problem is that Qinghe County killed more than 300 officials of the Tang Empire. More than a thousand people in the navy died, from the chiefmander to auxiliary troops. More than a thousand people are doing hardbor in the Mei Mountains downstream from the Fuchun River. Compared to the greatness of Haotian, I think these are all more important.¡±


    Cui Yuan understood what he meant and he could not help but tremble. He yelled angrily, ¡°Mr. Thirteen, do you intend to sabotage the negotiations? Do you even want to sign an agreement with the Divine Hall?¡±


    ¡°The warlords of Qinghe have not behaved like obedient dogs for a thousand years since the Tang Empire ruled. It¡¯s been too long and you all have seemed to have forgotten how to behave like dogs. You have forgotten to think like dogs.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You do really have to make sure who the owner is before you beat the dog, because the master of the dog would, of course, want to protect his own dog. Butwhat if I do really kill all of you dogs, what then can your master do? At the most, I¡¯ll have to pay the price, but not with my life. Do they really think that I would rpense them with my life? A dog¡¯s life is cheap and is never as worthy as the life of a human being. Qinghe County has been the Divine Hall¡¯s dog since the day they turned against the Tang Empire and your lives are worthless.¡±


    Cui Yuan red at him and bellowed angrily, ¡°Come at us if you wish to kill us. I have been waiting in the guild hall for days, and never expected to leave alive. Even the children are prepared. Why would you say all that to shame us? Is this the manner of the Tang Empire?¡±


    ¡°I know that you are all prepared to die. I told you about the Divine Hall¡¯s demands not to shame you, but I hoped that you would all regain hope again. Hope is beautiful, and the hopelessness thates after is painful, just like how those officials and soldiers felt when they died in the warlords¡¯ hands.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°This is indeed not the way the Tang Army and people would do things, but I have never been the model Tang citizen. I can do many things to return the pain to my opponent. I will be very patient. You all will be the first to experience this, but not thest.¡±


    Cui Yuan¡¯s face was extremely pale. A sh of joy had crossed his eyes earlier, when he heard that the West-Hill Divine Pce had requested for the Tang Empire to send him and his n members back to Qinghe County. The joy had long disappeared now, and his eyes were devoid of hope and calmness, leaving behind only hopelessness.


    ¡°I seemed to have heard some cheering earlier, it seems as if our conversation has already spread through the guild hall. I imagine those cheers wouldter be sobs, and this makes me really happy.¡±


    Ning Que said that, and then, pulled out his podao and stabbed forward.


    There was a soft puff and the sharp but heavy de slowly pierced through Cui Yuan¡¯s abdomen.


    Ning Que started to pull away his de. His action was slow and very gentle, and as such, Cui Yuan was in extreme pain.


    Cui Yuan clutched at his bleeding abdomen and slowly sat on a chair. His face was pale and his chest heaved. He seemed to be in extreme pain, but he could not die immediately.


    Ning Que held his de and walked to the entrance of the Qinghe guild hall.


    The Yulin Royal Guards and the Fish-dragon Gang had already surrounded the guild hallpletely.


    Ning Que ordered, ¡°Kill those wearing the Tang Empire uniform slowly. Don¡¯t forget to strip them of the uniform when you collect their corpses. Kill those under 14 quickly.¡±


    ¡°Yes!¡±


    The Yulin Royal Guards and the Fish-dragon Gang answered as one as they walked past him, charging with intent to kill.


    A young Qinghe County teen ran downstairs from the guild hall. He hugged the dying Cui Yuan who was sitting on the chair. His face was covered in tears as he sobbed, ¡°Father!¡±


    A man from the Fish-dragon Gang stabbed him and he fell into a puddle of blood.


    The massacre in the Qinghe County guild hall started. There were dead people everywhere and blood flowed everywhere. The sounds of des cutting bone and crying apanied the spring rain and could be heard from afar.


    Ning Que held his podao and stood at the door of the guild hall, watching the spring rain.


    The rainwater on his shirt had long dried but he had been dampened anew with lots of blood.


    Both the Yulin Royal Guards and the Fish-dragon Gang found it hard to kill some of the people. Ning Que did not give them time to hesitate. Instead, he chose to dye his own iron cuss with blood.


    He did not wipe the blood off because it could not be cleaned no matter how he wiped it.

 Chapter 822 - Trapped in a City of Woe

    <h4>Chapter 822: Trapped in a City of Woe</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ning Que returned to the house by Yanming Lake. The blood dyed on his clothes was sprinkled by the spring rain on his way back, diluting the color, and making it look like a watercolor painting.


    There were many people awaiting his return and for him to sign his name toplete the agreement.


    No matter the ministers of the Tang empire, the Head of the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s Revtion Institute, or the important figures in the diplomatic corps, they all heaved a sigh of relief when they saw him entering the house.


    Ning Que took the handkerchief from a maidservant, and wiped the rain off his face. He came to a desk and carefully read the uses in the agreement. Then, he lifted his brush pen and prepared to sign without any hesitation.


    The Head of the Revtion Institute looked at the bloodstains on his shirt and a grim thought shed through his mind. He asked softly, ¡°Hold on, where has Mr. Thirteen been?¡±


    Ning Que did not answer, but someone ran through the rain and arrived at Yanming Lake, telling everyone of the massacre that had happened at the Qinghe County Guild.


    The hall suddenly fell silent, and the expressions of the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s diplomatic corps turned ugly. Liu Yiqing gripped his sword¡¯s hilt tightly while Xie Chengyun looked at Ning Que in shock. He could not imagine his peer to be so cold-blooded.


    The Tang officials were also very surprised, but their emotions were very different from the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s. Grand Secretary Zeng Jing nodded at Ning Que, showing his agreement. Great General Shu Cheng who had been seated at the corner pped the desk heavily and bellowed, ¡°Good job.¡±


    ¡°Did Mr. Thirteenmit the massacre at the Qinghe County Guild Hall?¡±


    The Head of the Revtion Institute stared into Ning Que¡¯s eyes, his voice extremely cold.


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Do I have to report what I do to you?¡±


    ¡°So you¡¯re admitting it?¡± The Head of the Revtion Institute¡¯s expression was very ugly as he bellowed, ¡°Since this is so, do you still intend to sign on this agreement?¡±


    Ning Que shrugged it off, even though the other person was thehead of the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s diplomatic corps. He threw the brush back into the inkstone and walked towards the backyard. Then he took a cold-water bath, and asked the maidservant to make a pot of hot tea before making his way straight to the plum garden.


    Ye Hongyu stood up slowly from under the shelter and looked at him. She said, ¡°Why create otherplications?¡±


    Ning Que walked to her side and poured the hot tea into two cups. He took one up to warm his cold palms that had been wet by the rain. Then, heid down on the bamboo chair.


    He said, ¡°The Tang Empire always keeps its promises, and once we sign the agreement, it would be hard to take any actions. That is why I had to kill all those I wanted dead before I signed the papers.¡±


    Ye Hongyu stared into his eyes and said, ¡°You promised me that you wouldn¡¯t touch them.¡±


    Ning Que pushed the teacup to her hand and said, ¡°I did promise to send back the sons of the warlords in the Qinghe Guild Hall, but I did not say I would send them back alive. Their bodies are right outside the yard. If the Divine Hall is interested, you can bring them back to Qinghe County anytime. I have no interest in clearing up these bodies.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Do you think this is funny?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Of course it is, or why would I do that? Even if you think the word game is meaningless, you have to know that I have yet to sign on that paper. As such, I can do anything.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°You should feel worried that you would anger me.¡±


    ¡°Your anger cannot decide the results, just like how you have long angered me but I cannot kill you because I cannot handle the situation. Simrly, you cannot decide everything. No matter the Hierarch, or the person hiding behind the scenes, they all need you to bring back an agreement to the Divine Hall. Your anger carries little weight.¡±


    Ning Que drank a sip of tea and said, ¡°Furthermore, we have already given you what you want the most. People in the Qinghe guild hall are just extras and unimportant.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°You cannot decide whether they are important or not.¡±


    ¡°The Qinghe County warlords are just dogs raised by the Divine Hall. You all might be angry that these dogs have been killed, but they will not get in trouble with the Academy just because of this. On the contrary, don¡¯t you think that allowing us to appease our rage is beneficial to the Divine Hall?¡±


    Ning Que smiled and said, ¡°Also, I might not be able to decide whether this incident is important to you all or not, that is why I did it before informing you all to help in making the decision.¡±


    The spring rain in front of the eaves fell heavily and the sky was a little dim. Ye Hongyu¡¯s Divine Robe of Judgement looked like a blood g but it could not hide the scent of blood emanating from Ning Que¡¯s body.


    He had already showered, but the scent of blood was still strong. No one knew how many he had killed earlier at the Qinghe County Guild Hall. It would be difficult to cleanse his heart no matter how much bitter tea he drank.


    It was silent under the shelter for a long while.


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Everything hase to an end.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Or perhaps, everything has just started.¡±


    Ye Hongyu looked at him and asked, ¡°Will you still kill like today in the future?¡±


    Ning Que thought it over, and replied, ¡°There are indeed still many that I wish to kill.¡±


    Ye Hongyu raised her brows and said, ¡°Your name will be in the agreement.¡±


    Ning Que said with a smile, ¡°You know the extent of my shamelessness.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Even in the name of the Academy?¡±


    ¡°I have never once cared if it was done in my Teacher¡¯s name.¡±


    Ning Que put down the cup in his hand and stood up, stretching. He yelled into the spring rain under the eaves and said, ¡°If the Divine Hall really cares, I can leave the Academy any time.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°You seem to have not considered that the Divine Hall might not hold to its promises if you kill too many.¡±


    Ning Que turned to look at her and said, ¡°Those who can make the Academy fear are not in the Divine Hall in the first ce. To those two, the people in the world are all like ants. Would they grow angry just because of the death of a few ants? Of course, I will kill only those I can and try my best not to anger the Divine Hall.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Are you testing the tolerance of Haotian Taoism?¡±


    Ning Que smiled slightly and said, ¡°Has Haotian Taoism ever had tolerance?¡±


    Ye Hongyu looked at him and said, ¡°Do you know why I don¡¯t care about the massacre at the Qinghe County Guild Hall?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Not because you really think they are dogs at least.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Those people are already dead, and I believe that even if you want to kill again, even if there are more you want to kill, you would be unable to do it.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± Ning Que asked calmly.


    ¡°Because you will never be able to leave Chang¡¯an again.¡±


    She looked into Ning Que¡¯s eyes, her eyes indifferent. She said, ¡°You will be trapped in Chang¡¯an forever, as an angry prisoner.¡±


    Ning Que did not say anything because this was a fact.


    If he left Chang¡¯an, Haotian Taoism would exhaust all means and would pay any price to kill him. He was undefeatable in the city but weak outside it.


    He was the array eye pestle of Chang¡¯an.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s diplomatic corps left Chang¡¯an.


    They had not held on to much hope when they arrived, and had left the city with endless gold and treasure, as well as a victory that no one had ever gained before.


    The only ones in the internal department of the Divine Hall¡¯s diplomatic corps who knew of the true secrets in the negotiations were Ye Hongyu and the Head of the Revtion Institute.


    It was because he knew that Haotian Taoism had two Grand Cultivators who had high states that the Head of the Revtion Institue felt dissatisfied with the agreement and was confused. He did not understand why the West-Hill Divine Pce did not take this opportunity to continue the climax of waging war against theTang Empire but chose to call a truce.


    Ye Hongyu looked out of the window at the shadows of willow branches and thought, ¡°Drinking kills, calligraphy kills, and even reading kills. Other than Divine Lord Lotus, there is no one else who wishes to see such a mortal world. Furthermore, Mr. First has learned how to fight. Jun Mo did not even pick up his crown when it fell. Mr. Third is that cicada and Ning Que is no longer afraid of dying. Who would dare say they can beat an Academy like that?¡±


    Ning Que stood under the Southern City gate and looked at the falling rain. He said, ¡°The rain has eased up.¡±


    He was saying goodbye, bidding farewell not to the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s diplomatic corps, but to Mo Shanshan.


    Mo Shanshan said, ¡°I should go then.¡±


    After a moment of silence, Ning Que said, ¡°It¡¯s actually not bad to leave a few dayster.¡±


    Mo Shanshan said calmly, ¡°No matter howte I leave, I still have to go.¡±


    Ning Que did not know what to say, so he did not continue.


    Mo Shanshan looked at him and said seriously, ¡°Will you kill many in the future?¡±


    Ning Que thought it over, and replied, ¡°That¡¯s right. If I can leave Chang¡¯an, I will kill many.¡±


    Mo Shanshan looked at her white shoes peeking out from under her skirt. She did not say anything for a long time and nobody could tell what was in her mind. Then, she raised her head and suddenly smiled, ¡°Have a good time killing.¡±


    Ning Que thought that the spring rain had be even more gentle. He replied, ¡°I will try my best.¡±


    The West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s diplomatic corps left, and the war officially ended. It waste spring, the Golden Pce, which had upied the Xiangwan in, tried to continue south. They met a strong counterattack by the Northern Army, and were severely reprimanded by the West-Hill Divine Pce in a rescript. They had no choice but return to the Seven Stockaded Viges and ept reality.


    The fighting in various ces gradually ceased, and the Eastern Wilderness Cavalry fled back to the Yan territory. Most of the Divine Hall¡¯s Coalition Army had also withdrawn to the South Jin Kingdom and the West-Hill Divine Kingdom. The days gradually calmed down, after the death of many.


    The Tangs were notpletely appeased by the white banners at the gate of the prince¡¯s residence, and the imperial court worked hard on the situation, hoping to direct the anger to the right subject, such as Haotian Taoism.


    Ning Que was unconcerned about the matter. In peacetime, the back of the Academy continued in following the rule of not interfering with court matters. Most importantly, he was not in the mood to bother about this.


    He wanted to leave the city.


    He had not left the city in many days.


    Many people wanted to enter Chang¡¯an but could not because he was in the city.


    He wanted to leave the city but dared not because, in a certain town outside the city, there was someone drinking and eating meat.


    Ning Que discovered that Ye Hongyu was right. He was really a prisoner in the city.


    There were still many things he did not understand.


    Who had found the Drunkard and sent him to Chang¡¯an? Why did that person return the horse carriage and iron arrows to him? And why that person asked the Drunkard to pass on that message to him?


    ¡°Every death in the world is a reunion after a long separation.¡±


    What did that mean?


    He had once thought of a certain possibility, but logic told him that it was highly impossible.


    That was why he was trapped in a city of woe.

 Chapter 823 - The Great Object Between Life and Death

    <h4>Chapter 823: The Great Object Between Life and Death</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Every death in the world is a reunion after a long separation.


    This statement was somewhat obscure and very artistic. Unlike the spring breeze at this time, it was more like the spring breeze with sand and loess that would stir in Chang¡¯an for a few days in the deep spring.


    Ning Que thought about it for a long while, but did not understand what it meant. He did not even have a single idea what it might mean, and as such, felt even more woeful.


    What he was more aniouxs about was that he could not leave Chang¡¯an, and this city was his city of woe. He was trapped in the city of woe, which was why he sat high up on the city wall every day in a daze.


    There was a soft nging of jade essories. The Empress had arrived and walked up to him. She rubbed his head softly and said with pity, ¡°Have you not figured out what that statement meant?¡±


    ording to the hierarchy in the Academy, the Empress should call Ning Que Youngest Uncle. However, she was still older than Ning Que and the Emperor was Ning Que¡¯s senior. Moreso, sincest autumn, she and Ning Que had returned to Chang¡¯an from the Wilderness together and they had shared hardships. They trusted each other and were close. As such, she acted naturally.


    Ning Que nodded softly.


    He did not understand that statement. The Empress and his Senior Brothers and Sisters at the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain knew of this statement, but they did not understand this message that the Drunkard had passed on.


    They analyzed it for a long time and discovered that if they only inferred it literally, there was a simr statement in the West-Hill Scripture. Death in the mortal world was not the end. The end was when one returned to the divine light in the Kingdom of Haotian. The problem was that only Haotian was qualified to make a statement like that.


    The Empress looked at him and asked, ¡°Do you still think it¡¯s not her?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Sangsang is dead.¡±


    The Empress replied, ¡°Why are you still so certain?¡±


    Ning Que looked at the streets below that looked like thin lines and searched for where the Old Brush Pen Shop was. He said, ¡°She is my natal item. If she were still alive, I¡¯d know.¡±


    The Empress walked to the side of the city wall and said softly, ¡°Many people have died, but the problem has yet to be solved.¡±


    While Ning Que was not concerned with the dark undercurrents of the court, he knew what she meant.


    ¡°Even though no one dared to say it openly, many still cannot ept that I, the Saintess of Diabolism, am in charge of the Tang Empire. They cannot ept it in their hearts, and that is not a good thing.¡±


    ¡°The agreement with the West-Hill Divine Pce is also a sore spot with the Tangs. Li Peiyan¡¯s death might be able to soften the blow, but it cannot solve the problempletely. I¡¯m the one who has a say in the Imperial Pce.¡±


    ¡°The Li family have ruled the Tang Empire for thousands of years and have epted offerings from the people for thousands of years. As descendants of the royal family, we should die before our people. I am a daughter-inw of the Li family and am willing to do something about it. You said in the pce a few days ago, now that Li Huiyuan is dead, Li Yu only has a brother left. I trust that she will know what to do.¡±


    The Empress looked at the city she had lived in for many years and said with a sight smile.


    Ning Que¡¯s heart felt heavier with every sentence she spoke. He did not wait for her to finish her statement and he said, ¡°Your Highness, please keep a clear head and not think of unreasonable things.¡±


    The Empress gradually stopped smiling and gazed at the clouds passing by the city wall. She looked at the vaguely present Imperial Pce in the distance and said calmly, ¡°I have never intended to be reasonable with you, Mr. Thirteen.¡±


    Ning Que stared at her hands which were ced on the city wall and asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Because I¡¯m very tired. I¡¯m really very tired now.¡±


    The Empress frowned slightly, looking extremely gentle and weak. She looked beautiful when her expression changed slightly even though she was not a great beauty. It was only at this moment, that people would remember that she was the legendary Saintess of Diabolism who could control the wills of people.


    ¡°Many years ago, I was just an ordinary girl by the Daming Lake. I did not know why my elders in Haotian Taoism picked me to be the saintess and ordered me to seduce the Crown Prince of Tang to bring an age of chaos.¡±


    She said, ¡°I thought then, that he was a corrupt pervert, and was unwilling. Furthermore, I did not think that I was skilled in seducing men. And so, I decided to trick and kill him.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Was that when His Majesty sustained his hidden injury?¡±


    The Empress answered, ¡°That¡¯s right, but I did not kill him straight then, so I thought that I had failed. I did not expect that he did not me me, and even helped me to hide many truths.¡±


    Ning Que did not speak. Even though he knew that His Majesty was someone who cared about rtionships, he could not understand why he would make a choice like that back then.


    ¡°It was only then when I realized that he had truly fallen for me. Though I was unwilling, I pretended to ept him and used all the skills I learned in the Enlightenment Doctrine, or perhaps, I used all the skills that I was born with. I used these skills on him until he could never leave me again and even decided to bring me into the pce.¡±


    The Empress smiled slightly and said, ¡°Back then, I thought I had won, but I did not expect to have lost. Because I had expended so much thought on him, I fell in love with him without me discovering it. And just like how he could not leave me, I couldn¡¯t leave him either.¡±


    ¡°His Majesty was one of the two men in the world who hurt me the most.¡±


    ¡°I helped him manage the nation¡¯s affairs for a period of time. The rumors say that it was because of certain talks out there that he did not allow me to continue. Only I know that it was because he was worried that I¡¯d be too tired.¡±


    ¡°I have the ability to handle the nation¡¯s affairs, but I truly do not like it. I enjoyed talking andughing and having fun with him. I like throwing little tantrums, making some food, and that¡¯s it.¡±


    ¡°He left because of the injuries I nted on him many years ago. That is why I had to hold on and keep calm through our journey from the Wilderness back to Chang¡¯an until I settled his inheritance.¡±


    ¡°I think I have done well and I believe that he will be pleased when I see him again. Then why should I still stay here? I don¡¯t want him to wait for me for too long.¡±


    Silence reigned on the wall.


    Ning Que¡¯s gazended on the hand the Empress ced on the wall. He had many conflicting emotions right now. He was shocked and lost, and he could not find an appropriate word to describe it.


    He said in a hoarse voice, ¡°Don¡¯t you think that¡¯s very selfish?¡±


    The Empress smiled slightly and said, ¡°To the world, I am the saintess of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. It is natural that I am selfish.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The Prince is still young and needs you as a mother to raise him.¡±


    ¡°My son already has Mr. First as his teacher. Do I still need to worry? I have already made ns. There are letters that I have left with Xu Chi and Zeng Jing. The situation right now might be difficult but is stable, and the matters of the court have its orders. There is no difference whether I¡¯m here or not. It is beneficial to the Tang Empire if I¡¯m not around. At least those wacks from Haotian Taoism cannot use my existence to create trouble anymore.¡±


    Her smile seemed to be radiating light and seemed extremely proud.


    Ning Que said, ¡°I will not allow this to happen.¡±


    The Empress smiled lightly and said, ¡°I remember someone once said that there are two things in the world that cannot be controlled by anyone. Not even Haotian can do that. That is life and death.¡±


    Ning Que intended to say something else.


    The Empress looked at him and said calmly, ¡°I said earlier that there were two men in the world who loved me the most. Other than His Majesty, the other man was my brother Xia Hou, and he died in your hands.¡±


    Ning Que kept quiet.


    ¡°Whatever you felt when Sangsang died was the same feeling I felt when His Majesty closed his eyes. Back then, I jumped from Hn City because I was forced by the situation. Now that I think about it, perhaps I had already wanted to die then, but Hn City was a little short.¡±


    The Empress looked at the clouds under the city wall and said with a smile, ¡°I think Chang¡¯an should be tall enough.¡±


    Though she was smiling, her eyes were as vacant as clouds and smoke. It was as if she was no longer in the mortal world.


    Then, she left the city wall and fell into the clouds and mist.


    Ning Que had many ways of catching her or even pulling her back. But he did not do anything because his body was very stiff since he saw her face when she left.


    Her skirts fluttered like flowers. Her expression was serene when she closed her eyes as if she were about to enter the most glorious world. It made one feelforted and reassured.


    It was a calm that not many could bear to disrupt.


    Ning Que stood on the city wall and watched the moving clouds silently for a long time before leaving.


    There were many who came and went in his life. They left and never came back, and they left suddenly and absolutely, making him lost and sad.


    His family and friends in the General¡¯s Mansion, the Headmaster and Sangsang, His and Her Majesty. They had all left like that.


    There is great fear between life and death. Ning Que had lived two lives and was used to seeing life and death in the Wilderness and the Min Mountain. However, this fear was difficult for even eminent monks and Bhadanta to ept, and he himself had never understood it.


    On the night Hua Shanyue wanted to save Li Yu and take her out of Chang¡¯an, Ning Que had told Chao Xiaoshu that such an idiotic behavior was hard to understand. It was because he had never understood love.


    ¡®What is love? Such that man would live and die for it.¡¯ Ning Que had always remembered this statement. He used to think that it was too artistic and trite, disliking it a lot.


    Just like that statement, ¡®Every death in the world is a reunion after a long separation.¡¯


    It wasn¡¯t until this moment when he understood a little.


    Ning Que walked down the city wall and went to the Princess¡¯ residence.


    He lifted the heavy voiles on the balcony and looked at Li Yu. He said, ¡°The Empress has passed away.¡±


    Li Yu was telling little Wild a story. Ning Que was observant and noted that she was telling stories that he told in the past.


    She did not react when she heard Ning Que¡¯s statement. She only raised her head slowly after a long time, a lost expression on her pale face. She asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know if you¡¯d believe it if I said that it was for love.¡±


    Ning Que looked at her and said, ¡°Prepare to enter the pce. I will send little Wild to study in the Academy.¡±


    In the blink of an eye, it waste spring in Chang¡¯an. However, it was still gloomy and rained incessantly.


    The people had yet to emerge from the sadness that came from the Empress¡¯ death. The soldiers on the Vermilion Bird Avenue who were waiting to collect their reward still had white cloths tied around their arms.


    The Yulin Royal Guards lined up before the Imperial Pce solemnly. Solemn and elegant music resounded through the pce and officials of the court dressed in royal robes lined in under the guidance of eunuchs. The bell rang gradually.


    On this day, the new Emperor of the Tang Empire officially ascended the throne. A new era had begun.

 Chapter 824 - A Rain of Tears

    <h4>Chapter 824: A Rain of Tears</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    It always rained during the Qingming Festival.


    As time passed, Chang¡¯an had calmed down. The people who had passed away were not forgotten. They had been ced in the depths of people¡¯s hearts. There was an invisible power that had been peacefully umting in the streets that was going to burst out at any time.


    There were officials fiercely discussing political affairs at the court meeting, then some military officers came forward with a new proposal, which prompted another new round of discussions. Shangguan Yangyu, who had been promoted to Grand Secretary by the prefectural magistrate of Chang¡¯an City a month ago, narrowed his small eyes and stroked his thin beard as he was about to argue with the officers of the Ministry of Revenue.


    A little boy was sitting on the throne, listening to their debates. Apparently, he could not totally understand what they were talking about, but he remained calm. His small hands tightly gripping his bright yellow clothes was the only indication that he was nervous and confused.


    The ministers were all satisfied with the young Emperor¡¯sposed performance because he would have just been a naughty boy if he lived in a normal family. When they thought of this, they could not help admiring the man in the wheelchair next to the throne.


    The wheelchair was very ordinary but unsightly in the solemn pce. However, it became less unsightly because of the schr who was sitting in it.


    He was wearing an old cotton jacket and holding an old book in his hand. He quietly read the book as usual as if he could not hear any noise in the room. However, most of the officers could not help focusing on him and trying to figure out his thoughts even when he just frowned due to fatigue.


    So did the little Emperor. He quietly sat on the throne, enduring the boring political affairs, and tried to be focused and calm, just because his teacher was sitting beside him.


    That schr was his teacher.


    He was the Eldest Brother of the Academy.


    After the meeting, the relevant memorials to the throne and files were all sent to a side hall in the depths of the pce instead of the imperial study, where the little Emperor also went.


    This was Li Yu¡¯s residence. When the Empress passed away, the party struggles ended and all the officers concentrated on political affairs and armament. Moreover, the Academy had no interest or ability in state affairs. As the Royal Sister, she was the most suitable candidate for that.


    Therefore, she had to review the memorials and files every day, and the most important job for her was teaching the young Emperor how to handle government affairs. Just as the Empress had said before her death, he was her only brother left.


    The Academy had not restricted her at all, but for some reason, since she moved back to the pce, she seldom stepped out. And as for the courtiers who were loyal to her, she never saw them.


    The spring rain fell on the pce while the officers went out of the main hall. They could not help looking toward the depths of the pce and sighing. Most of them nodded toward the imperial study before they left.


    After a long time, the door of the imperial study slowly opened. Ning Que washed his hands in a copper basin carried by a maid before he entered the rain, holding an umbre.


    Although the spring rain at this time was no longer cold, it was continuous. It was so light that no one needed an umbre, but it felt different this time when they were walking into the rain.


    Ning Que could not leave the city, so he had gotten used to walking around it on his feet. He went to the Old Brush Pen Shop and found that its walls had been fixed, but the old cat had gone. Then he went to the house on the bank of Yanming Lake, looking at the willow and lotus. He fell silent for a long time.


    The Eldest Brother was staying at the Imperial Pce while the Second Brother was protecting the Academy. The Third Sister had gone but he did not know where to. Master Huang Yang had not yet recovered since being injured by the Abbey Dean, but he had left the day before yesterday. He said he wanted to go to the Xuankong Temple to seek advice from the Buddhist Sect disciples about some questions in his heart.


    Many people died or left and there was always someone who would be concerned about or missing them. However, as Ning Que expected, besides the cat in the Old Brush Pen Shop and the lotus in Yanming Lake, few people still remembered Sangsang.


    She was easy to forget¡ªyellow-haired, ck-skinned, hard-working, frigorific, and in-looking. She was so inconspicuous, even being Yama¡¯s daughter, the sessor of Light, or Haotian. She just vanished.


    Ning Que received a letter from the maidservant and opened it. It was a receipt from the post office, in which there were notes that had been rejected. He looked at the notes and was reminded of a lot of things. He closed his eyes. He was feeling like a prisoner in Chang¡¯an who was even unable to breathe.


    He thought for a long time before he walked out of the courtyard. Looking at the coachman in front of the ck carriage, he said, ¡°What a waste it is for you to be my coachman.¡±


    The coachman was Wang Jinglue.


    He had delivered the message of General Xu Shi¡¯s death and worked in the Military Ministry since then. Nobody knew why he had be Ning Que¡¯s coachman.


    Wang Jinglue said indifferently, ¡°If you can do as you promised, I will do anything you want.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Of course.¡±


    Wang Jinglue asked, ¡°Where are you going?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°The Southern Gate.¡±


    The ck carriage moved forward quietly in the rain.


    They reached the Southern Gate in a short time.


    They stopped at the gate for a long time until the raindrops on the walls of the carriage had already evaporated. It seemed that the man inside the carriage had no idea of whether he should leave or enter the city.


    All the soldiers and peddlers around the gate were already familiar with this carriage because it could frequently be seen stopping at the gate for a long time recently.


    Many people focused on it, wondering if it would leave the city today.


    Time passed slowly.


    Wang Jinglue said, ¡°There are some other ces that you can hang out.¡±


    Ning Que did not answer him. He sat inside the carriage, tightly holding the letter in his hand. He was once again reminded of that feeling he had when he saw the Empress jump down in front of him.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± he said.


    Wang Jinglue was going to turn around, and lifting his reins, he asked, ¡°Where shall we go?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Leave the city.¡±


    Wang Jinglue was stunned, then he asked again, ¡°Are you sure?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°If I can¡¯t leave the city, how can I kill people out there in the future?¡±


    There was a pavilion to the south of Chang¡¯an. Around it was arge field of weeds with a lot of cemeteries.


    Ning Que first went to the joint tombs of the Emperor and Empress, then he went to the public cemetery of the Military Ministry. Many soldiers were buried there. Atst, he went to Yan Se and Wei Guangming¡¯s tomb.


    ¡°When you leave, you should be able to see much in the future. But why can people only see the future when they are dying? What is the point of that for the people who are living?¡±


    Then he turned to his left. There was a new tomb.


    It was small, just as small as Sangsang.


    There were only some clothes, half a box of notes, and two boxes of cosmetic powder from the Chenjinji Cosmetics Store in the tomb.


    The Zengs were standing in front of it, holding each other¡¯s hand. Mrs. Zeng must have been weeping for a long time because her eyes were red and swollen. Servants were there cleaning the tomb.


    Ning Que bowed and stepped forward. He said respectfully, ¡°Father-inw, you should take my mother-inw back.¡±


    Zeng Jing had not expected that he would see him outside the city, so he was shocked. Then he understood and cried out, patting him on his shoulders with relief.


    Then they all went back home.


    Ning Que stood alone at Sangsang¡¯s tomb.


    He took the letter out and tore the notes apart. Then he burned one half with the receipt in front of her tomb and carefully put the other half in his pocket.


    Then he left.


    The ck horse carriage approached Chang¡¯an.


    Listening to the rain, he sat inside, silent.


    Suddenly, a st of wind came from the north.


    Yellow soil came along with the wind, bing mud after being drenched by the rain.


    The rain beat down and flowed down from the walls to the ground like a yellow curtain, which reminded him of the walls in the City of Wei.


    The notes were sent to the City of Wei.


    Sangsang had been sending notes since they arrived in Chang¡¯an.


    On this receipt, it said: ¡°No one was found¡±.


    No one was in the City of Wei.


    Neither was Sangsang.


    Ning Que cried inconsbly.


    He jumped out of the carriage and ran into the rain.


    The rain fell on his face and dirtied his tears.


    The ck carriage followed him.


    The people passing by looked at him and asked inquisitively, ¡°Why not get in the carriage? It is not a good time to enjoy the rain. It is too dirty.¡±


    Ning Que wiped the dirty rain off his face. He pointed at the growing willow on both sides of the road and said, ¡°It is spring, isn¡¯t it?¡±

 Chapter 825 - Her

    <h4>Chapter 825: Her</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The Kingdom of God had been ruined, shaking the firmament. It cracked and a vast amount of white stones fell down through the gaps, crashing down to the ground.


    Countless fiery meteorites fell into the peaceful ocean, heating up the water. The ocean began surging and fogging up. Birds and fish died along with the undtion of the waves.


    There was an unusual meteorite amid the sky, which looked like a crystal. It fell into the snow sea in the north, drawing a bright arc through the sky.


    This ce seemed like the Evesting Night. There was only the high Snow-capped Peak under the dim starlight. It was so high that it seemed as if it would pierce through the Night Dome.


    The transparent stone flew from far away, drawing a bright line in the air and illuminating the gloomy sky for a second, and crashed into the Snow-capped Peak.


    With a booming sound, the thick snow was impacted, scattered in the air, and fell back down softly, revealing rocks. A deep dark hole could be faintly seen. It might have reached the depths of the mountain.


    The falling snow refilled the hole in a short time. The sound of the impact echoed, spread high into the sky and the dark sea on both sides of the snow mountain, and then vanished. The former peace of this world was restored.


    The world around the mountain was inplete silence, aside from the sound of the trees cracking. It took a while before the wind began roaring. A storm wasing.


    This was the northernmost part of the world. It was also the coldest and the darkest ce. For tens of thousands of years, it had never rained. However, this rain hadsted for months and it seemed as if it would never stop.


    The heavy rain beat down and hit the snow packs over the Hot Sea, which created countless ck holes that looked like entrances of ants nests. The ink-ck sea rolled into various shapes that looked a little disgusting or like it had many fish in it.


    Meanwhile, as the snow fell, the mountain revealed its true color. It was dark ck. Reflecting the snow and ice, it looked variegated.


    At some point, the heavy rain that hadsted for several months suddenly stopped. It stopped abruptly, looking just like it did the day it began to rain. The world around the mountain fell silent once again.


    A hurricaneing from the Night Dome blew the gloomy clouds away, revealing the stars and the new moon in the sky. The quiet dark sea was blown by the hurricane, causing it to surge. The snow covering the Hot Sea began misting up. All traces of the rainstorm were instantly erased.


    After the wind broke the peace, a great sound was heard.


    It was as if someone had opened a door between heaven and earth that had already rusted and had not been opened for tens of thousands of years. It sounded so heavy.


    The sound became louder and louder, echoing around and disturbing the snowy, icy world. The surface of the Hot Sea cracked. Some variable tyfish jumped out of the sea and were frozen instantly into transparent iced fish. A dozen cawing ck crows came from the south and perched on the cold, frost-covered branches.


    They looked at the Snow-capped Peak where the sounds came from.


    The Snow-capped Peak was the farthest, coldest, and highest mountain in the world. After being washed for days, it looked like a rusty iron bar standing between heaven and earth.


    There was a ck stone peak appearing amid the mountains that was erging at a visible speed, tearing and smashing the rocks of the mountain and making a grating sound.


    This horrible sound was noting from opening a rusty door, but from breaking a rusty stick.


    It became more and more clear as the cracks erged. The speed of the peak falling backward became faster and faster.


    Finally, one day, the Snow-capped Peak broke in the middle. The upper half of the mountain fell into the ck sea, creating earsplitting sounds.


    The whole world began shaking and the ck sea began surging with high waves. The shells and sediment that had sunk to the bottom of the sea over the past tens of thousands of years were shaken out of the sea and scattered, then were swept away by the waves.


    10 dayster, the tide in the Great River Kingdom suddenly rose. All the fishermen were surprised because they had no idea where this tide hade from on such a clear day.


    No one knew the waves hade from the farthest ck sea. The sea and the remaining half of the mountain would never be able to know how much surprise and confusion they had brought to the world. At this moment, the Snow-capped Peak fell silent once again and only the moon and stars were illuminating its cross-section.


    The cross-section was not smooth, looking like a willow tree that had been broken by force. Sharp rocks bulged on the broken ck cliff like it was a dangerous stone forest.


    But there was a white dot amid the ck cliffs.


    It was a naked woman, who had very white skin. She looked so pure that neither the warm moonlight nor the cold starlight could leave any color on her body.


    She was sleeping with her eyes closed and even her eyshes did not vibrate. She looked very ordinary or nd, but very young.


    Her body, on the other hand, was special¡ªher skin looked like silk without any scars and her body was perfect and plump, which looked like a piece of jade or white steamed bread on a ck te under the moon and stars.


    Then, her eyshes vibrated and she opened her eyes and looked around.


    She looked taller than average when she stood up and there was no discernable emotion in her eyes. There were just simply the purest ck and white.


    She noticed a bright light on the cliffs, so she looked up. She saw a bright moon in the Night Dome¡ªthis was the picture that she dreamed about many years ago that she hated the most. She frowned and that made her more alive.


    The Snow-capped Peak was the highest point of the world. Even though it was broken, its top was still close to the Night Dome, which meant that it was close to the moon. And since she did not like the moon, she decided to leave.


    The cliffs were rocky. Even the best cultivator in the world could not get down them easily. However, that did not bother her. She just walked on her bare feet. Every one of her steps created a white lotus that supported her plump body.


    Beautiful white lotuses flowered amid the cliffs in a line, like a straight path, leading to the foot of the mountain. She walked on the flowers, floating down from the cliff.


    The crows flew nearby to wee her return or her arrival, with unknown flowers and grass in their beaks, flying around her.


    They dropped the flowers and grass on her body then flew up into the sky, cawing. They had made her a blue robe embroidered with flowers.


    She was confused by the clothes. She loosened them but found them to still be a little tight, so she frowned.


    She stepped on the snow that covered the Hot Sea and found some variable tyfish frozen in the sea. She seemed to remember something and then she walked south.


    White lotuses were being born under her feet.


    She traveled thousands of feet in the first instant and 300 miles in the next two hours. It took her a whole day to reach the edge of the wilderness.


    She found that she was bing slower and slower, and her aura was getting turbid. She tightly frowned, bing a little angry.


    She was not used to this dirty world nor the slow speed. And what she was most not used to was how plump she had be, and she had not figured out why that was.


    She had been walking slowly, so she did not feel tired. When she finally arrived at the Wilderness, she saw weeds and some stinky tents.


    This was a small tribe of the Golden Pce. The people inside the tents had been dead for days and their bodies had been eaten up by animals.


    She nced at the tents and knew everything that had happened here. The killer¡¯s weapon had been a heavy iron cuss and he was good at cutting throats.


    She frowned again because she remembered the iron cuss. She also remembered the man who liked to cut throats like this because he said it was the best way to kill.


    She kept silent for a little while before she dropped it. As long as she killed that man, this memory in the human world would be erased and she would remember nothing.


    She felt a little hungry, so she searched the tents and found a dozen bags of kumiss. She drank up all of them, standing amid the bones. In her eyes, there was no difference between people and weeds, and there was also no difference between the bones and her clothes, so she did not feel any nausea.


    Moreover, she enjoyed drinking, and she really could drink.


    The kumiss had not changed her expression, but when she looked at her body, she revealed a look of disgust.


    Just then, the sounds of rapid hoofbeats and whistles came from outside. It was a little noisy. She listened quietly for a while before walking out of the tent.


    10 cavalrymen from the Golden Pce were approaching. Judging from their outfits, they had to be scouts.


    When the cavalrymen smelled the tents, they all drew the cusses from their waists and straightened their faces, pointed at her, and began shouting. However, she had no idea what they were saying.


    This was the first group of people that she had met in this world, so she decided to forgive them rather than punish them or kill them in anger.


    She went over to them with no expression on her face.

 Chapter 826 - It

    <h4>Chapter 826: It</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Looking at the girl in blue walking toward them, these Golden cavalrymen hadplicated feelings. They did not know why she was not afraid of the sharp des in their hands, or how she could be so calm as if she saw nothing.


    A soldier cried out and lifted his cuss up high. However, looking at her face, he could not do anything because he was scared.


    In addition to being tall and plump, she was very ordinary, with no weapons in her hand or strong aura at all. He just felt fear for no reason and wanted to throw his cuss far, far away. He wanted to kneel down in front of her and beg for her forgiveness.


    The leader of this group shouted a word. She supposed that it meant ¡°evil girl¡± or something simr. He drew out his cuss and hacked without thinking. He had to close his eyes because he was not sure if he would be able to do it after looking at her face one more time.


    The sharp cuss fell onto her head, but it cut no hair off. There was no bleeding, nor did any other cruel thing happen. There was not even a sound of impact. He felt that he had cut into a vast sea. Then, his cuss began shining and it melted instantly.


    The flowers embroidered on her clothes began to spread out, giving off a vast amount of beams of the purest light, which covered the meadow near the tents instantly.


    A momentter, she came out of the light and went on to the south.


    The light on the grasnd gradually went away. The 10 soldiers had fallen down on the ground without breathing, as had their horses. However, there were no wounds or blood on them. The bad smell in the tents had gone as well, leaving only the white bones. That was a purification.


    The next day, she met some other human beings. They consisted of several horse-drawn carriages and hundreds of riders, whose hoofbeats sounded like thunder. However, in her eyes, they were the same as the weeds under her feet. Thus, she ignored them and continued moving forward.


    An old man in normal prairie clothes was sitting in a carriage, looking at the view through the window in silence. He was the most honored Nation Master in the Golden Pce. He had been traveling around the depths of the grasnd since he had left Hn City. In addition to needing to figure something out, the most important reason was he did not want to go south with the ambitious Chanyu. In his opinion, they should not have gotten involved in the Tang¡¯s war from the beginning. The more violent the war became, the more peaceful the grasnd would be. Moreover, the two powerhouses in Hn City were keeping him vignt.


    There were hundreds of elite golden cavalrymen guarding around him. And because he was the supreme Nation Master and their scouts that they sent out yesterday had yet toe back, they had to buck up.


    At this moment, they saw the girl. She looked so tall and conspicuous wearing those blue clothes on her plump body. They could not ignore her.


    With a whistle, the cavalrymen changed their formation and got ready to charge or defend, even though they were only facing a girl walking amid the meadow. It was eerie.


    Just like the cavalrymen who had died yesterday, once they had a chance to look at her face, everyone would be scared¡ªeven their hands were shaking.


    They were the best cavalrymen in the Golden Pce and the Nation Master enjoyed a lofty reputation. They even had two High Priests traveling with them. They were so strong that they even could eliminate some small countries in the south. Even the Tang and the West-Hill Divine Pce would not ignore them. However, at this moment, they were looking at a girl and were scared by her, which confused them and made them be even more scared.


    The Nation Master looked at the girl in shock, his wrinkles bing deeper and his eyes sinking into their sockets, as if he was looking at some being that did not belong to the human world.


    The cavalrymen did not understand why her face was so frightening because they were just normal people, but the Nation Master was not.


    Her face looked ordinary indeed. So extraordinarily normal that once she entered a crowd, you would never be able to find her again nor even be able to remember her face anymore.


    She had average eyes, eyebrows, nose, and lips that could be seen anywhere.


    However, this kind of banality was the most unusual thing.


    So ordinary, and so extraordinary.


    No one had seen such an ordinary person in the world, nor should they have. Upon seeing her, the Nation Master figured out who she was and where she came from in a second.


    He knelt down and put his forehead to the ground with his palm facing up. He reverently cried out, ¡°Tengri...¡±


    The Headmaster had ascended to heaven near the Sishui River.


    He threw Ning Que to the remote Wilderness in the north first before going up to heaven. After that, rain began falling from the sky.


    When the rain beat down, there was nobody around the Sishui River except for a ck horse.


    It stared at the sky. Up until this moment, it had not figured out what had happened¡ªhow the little ck girl suddenly had be so beautiful; how the old guy had turned into a fairy; and how Ning Que had been able to fly.


    As the rain continued to beat down heavily, the weather got colder and colder. The horse kicked disconstely and snorted, raising dust and mud.


    It could not leave. It had to wait on the shore of the Sishui River until Ning Que returned. It was afraid that if it left, Ning Que would be worried when he could not find it.


    Of course, the most important reason was that the carriage made of stainless steel was too heavy. If Ning Que did not return, it would have to drag the carriage back to Chang¡¯an, and that was thest thing it wanted to do. Well, if Ning Que did return, even though the carriage was heavy, it would like to drag it back, so long as he came back...


    Standing in the continuous rain, the Big ck Horse had been waiting for an entire day. Its mane was already wet like a rag, hanging on its neck, which made it look even more miserable.


    It was dissatisfied with the willow trees nted along the Sishui River because they were so thin that they could not cover its whole body. It was jealous of the carriage being washed in the rain, which had no feelings at all.


    It waited for three more days, drinking rainwater when it was thirsty and chewing weeds when it was hungry. If someone tried to take it away, it would knock them into the river. If the local government runners tried to trap it, it would spray spit all over them and kick them over and over again.


    However, Ning Que did note back, the little ck girl did note back, and neither did the old guy.


    Its mane had absorbed so much rain that it became heavy and wet, pulling down its noble head lower and lower. It would soon be unable to support the weight.


    In the early morning of the fifth day, when it saw the sun prate the thick clouds, it raised its head, neighing toward the sky and the Sishui River. And dragging the heavy carriage, it started on its own journey.


    It did not n to return to Chang¡¯an nor to the Academy because these guys had note back, and it believed that they would probably nevere back.


    It decided to go to the Wilderness. It remembered that it came across a senior when they passed through the quagmire. The senior never pulled a carriage, it was only on a carriage. It lived a happy and free life there. The Big ck Horse decided to join it because it had thousands of younger brothers out there.


    Without Ning Que triggering the array, the carriage was so heavy that only the Big ck Horse could pull it. Even though he could manage it, from the Sishui River to the Wilderness, the trip was long and tough.


    Itforted itself by thinking, <i>¡°If you can find the senior, you will be the second best of the Wilderness.¡± </i>It had to lower its head and grit its teeth, struggling in the heavy rain, and it finally reached the Wilderness from the Sishui River.


    The heavy rain finally stopped. The Big ck Horse was covered with mud and had lost a lot of weight. It looked terrible, but when it saw the beautiful grasnd in front of it, it opened its eyes.


    The wind smelled good. It could not help thinking that it was the smell of freedom.


    All of a sudden, it looked back at the heavy ck carriage. What a fool it had been. Since it was going to join its senior, why did it have to drag it on such a long journey?


    What if Ning Que was alive and he found it in the future? The Big ck Horse was wondering while going toward the swamp in the west of the Wilderness. In fact, that was what it was thinking about right now.


    The journey of freedom ended on an ordinary autumn day.


    That day, a young girl came out from the depths of the grasnd. She looked so ordinary in blue clothes with flowers on them.


    The Big ck Horse wanted to convince itself that it did not know her. She was fat and not that tall and she did not have very nice breasts. However, it knew who she was, so it neighed and turned around to run away.


    It had never run so fast before¡ªeven when it was chasing after the white horse in the Wilderness. It ran faster than Ning Que¡¯s arrow.


    The wind roared past and the Big ck Horse felt terrified.


    Then it fell to the ground heavily, raising up dust.


    She had sat on its back from out of nowhere.


    The Big ck Horse panicked. The little, thin ck girl had be a big, fat white girl...


    What had happened to the world?

 Chapter 827 - Them

    <h4>Chapter 827: Them</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The Big ck Horse thought that it made no sense.


    But since she was heaven, everything that she thought could produce unnatural results.


    The Big ck Horse had just run hundreds of meters in a short time. Therefore, she returned to the grasnd with her hands behind her back.


    It had given up the idea of running away and listlessly followed behind her. Her blue dress looked tight on her because she was plump. The Big ck Horse looked at her back and shuddered.


    Then it remembered the Calligraphy Addict, who looked slender in the same color clothes, and sighed inwardly. <i>¡°Ning Que, I told you that woman was better, but you never listenedto me!¡±</i>


    When they returned to the ce that she had found it, she saw the ck carriage. She entered it quietly and found the broken Big ck Umbre and the iron box in the corner.


    She sat down next to the iron box, stroking it with her fingers and wiping the dust off. Her fingers were very steady and the box became clean instantly.


    She looked toward the Tianqi Mountains in the south and fell silent. The Big ck Horse saw this and just knew what it should do next, so it raised its hoofs and was about to go.


    Its sweat trickled out of its ck skin and wet its dirty mane. It was pissed because even though it had tried its best, it still could not pull the carriage.


    She stretched out her right hand and touched the wall of the carriage. A blue light shed and the talisman of the walls was started. Then the carriage was able to move.


    If they wanted to go through the Tianqi Mountains, they would have to pass through Hn City. The Tang Army had retreated to the south, and only a dozen Tang soldiers were left. The city was empty.


    Although they were short-handed, when they saw the ck carriage approaching, they still picked up their weapons and got prepared. Just then, she opened the curtain and took a look at them.


    The gate of Hn City, which even the Golden Pce could not open, slowly opened under her gaze. The ck carriage entered the city and passed through the gorge, heading toward the Eastern Wilderness.


    Not until the ck carriage had disappeared did they finally revive, feeling confused and shocked. They knew exactly what had happened, but they did not know why they had done that.


    The ck carriage passed through the Eastern Wilderness and the border viges. It entered the Yan Kingdom and continued on, heading for the south. The trip was mountainous and deste and she never spoke.


    One day, they arrived at a small town between the Yan Kingdom and the Song Kingdom. It was so small that it only had one street. The buildings in the town were old and broken, filled with bad smells and rotten vegetable leaves.


    The town was remote and had not been involved in a war, but the people had been affected. All the businesses aside from those dealing with food had declined. The butcher¡¯s shop was the only one on the street, which should be crowded on sale days, but it was so quiet today that even the flies felt bored.


    The ck carriage stopped in front of the shop. She went out of the carriage. When she saw her breasts in the tight clothes, she frowned again. She hated her body.


    Although the business was not good, the butcher was in a good mood. He did not count on this shop to make a living. At this moment, he was cutting some marinated ribs for his next meal.


    Hearing the footsteps, he looked up and was stunned when he saw the girl in blue. He was wondering who she was and why he did not remember her.


    Then he continued to cut the ribs. His knife was sharp and heavy. As he hacked down, the meat residue would be thrown into the air and the thick chopping board would shake.


    She walked over to him and watched quietly, as if she was very interested in what he was doing.


    The butcher just kept cutting.


    Then he sped up his breathing like a sick old man. His chest was moving up and down like a bellows and his hand holding the hilt began trembling.


    He felt more and more scared, and his speed of cutting the ribs became faster and faster. He felt the knife get heavier and heavier and he did not even dare to wipe the sweat off his forehead. The sweat fell down onto the ribs and was smashed by the knife, melting into the meat.


    As his hands continued to tremble, he finally chopped onto his finger.


    With a muffled sound, the waist-high board cracked, spraying out a vast amount of fat and wood.


    The knife did not stop after it chopped the board in half. A deep crack appeared on the ground, which was dark as if it had no bottom. Only the sound of water could be heard and it belonged to the underground river.


    What a terrifying knife! It hadnded on his finger instead of the chopping board, but it cracked the ground all the way to underground.


    However, this terrifying knife had not cut his finger off, it just left a shallow white mark.


    What was this man made of? No matter what he was made of, under her peaceful gaze, he was going crazy.


    Looking at the ribs all over the ground, the butcher opened his mouth, revealing his yellow teeth, and was about to cry out as if he wasughing at himself. Suddenly, he threw his heavy knife to the ground, crouched down holding his head with his hands, and began crying. He still did not dare to look at her face.


    ¡°The marinated ribs may be too fatty. I will steal some cordate houttuynia from the pce. That is the best condiment to be cooked with the meat, they...¡±


    A drunkard came in from outside. He was murmuring until he saw the crack and the butcher, who was crying like a child that was seeing a ghost.


    He opened his mouth and wanted to say something but he discovered that his throat was too dry to make a sound. Only the gon hanging on his waist shook in the cold wind, making a whooshing sound.


    He looked at the girl in blue and his face turned pale in one second. He was in shock because he could not understand anything in front of him and did not know how this had happened.


    The butcher¡¯s shop was silent.


    The drunkard gradually calmed down, at least he looked a little more normal. He hoarsely said, ¡°Can I know who you are? Where are you from and where are you going?¡±


    For the girl, thest two questions were not the real questions, but the first question was. Therefore, she thought for a moment, putting her hands behind her back. She was looking at some ce in the world and thinking of her past.


    The gon stopped swinging, but the chilly wind still continued.


    In the twinkling of an eye, the drunkard disappeared from the butcher¡¯s shop.


    The drunkard went to therge levee of the Sea of Storm in the Kingdom of Song, and then he went to Lanke Temple. After that, he went to a nest of a group of water bandits in the middle of Great Lake. He even went to Chang¡¯an and stopped in front of the Academy for a long time. However, eventually, he chose to go to some small ind in the depths of the South Sea because he believed that Chen Mou would not make a mistake.


    He just stayed on that ind, which was full of hot fog, for a short while. This short time was the sun rising and falling three times, as well as the tide going out anding in three times.


    The drunkard had spent those three days dawdling, thinking only of one thing. In order to aplish that, he was willing to suffer a great loss. In order to avoid her, he would do anything that could keep him alive.


    The drunkard stood on a ck rock in the morning, looking toward the far north. He had tried his best but he was still unable to see the maind. He considered it a relief rather than a sadness. At this moment, he thought he could probably sympathize with Chen Mou during those years.


    Even if he could not step on the maind, so what?


    In his lengthy life, besides thest Evesting Night, he had only had this kind of ¡°Treme¡± feeling one other time¡ªwhen he saw the broken carriage being dragged by an old yellow bull entering the small town.


    Even those two times were not as thrilling as this one. The drunkard felt lucky for himself, but sorry for the butcher. And when he was happy, he needed to drink.


    As he took the gon off his waist and lifted it to his mouth, a white-jade hand came and took it away through the sea breeze.


    The hand was so natural and casual. No one could refuse it.


    She picked up the gon and began drinking, dripping the wine on her blue dress before drinking it all up.


    She threw the gon back to the drunkard.


    Then they returned to the small town together.


    Three days had passed. The town was smellier but not a thing had changed in the butcher¡¯s shop. The butcher stood in the corner with his head lowered, not crying or running away.


    The drunkard was limitless and boundless. Three days was merely his one sh of thought. His realm was really profound. He might have understood the most advanced rules of time and space in the world of Haotian.


    However, she was Haotian and this was her world. She was the rule. No matter how deep they understood the rule, they were still in the rule. How could they get away from her?


    ¡°Good wine,¡± she looked at him and said.


    This was the first time she had spoken in the world. Her voice was so t, expressing no emotion. It did not sound mechanical but it was nk, quiet, transparent, and void.


    She had only said two words, but they sounded like countless sybles. It was asplex as a beautiful song of nature.


    Everyone would be in awe when they heard this sound. The higher the level they were at, the more they could feel in her voice and the more eager they would like to worship such a great being.


    That included the drunkard and the butcher.

 Chapter 828 - For I So Loved the World (Part One)

    <h4>Chapter 828: For I So Loved the World (Part One)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    ¡°Bacon tastes better if smoked by pine woods for a month or longer.¡±


    She looked at the Butcher and spoke her second sentence after entering the mortal world. The sentence silenced the meat shop even more. The Drunkard¡¯s and the Butcher¡¯s facial expressions wereplicated. They were shocked and confused upon hearing her praising the wine and then the bacon. They didn¡¯t expect such casual praisesing out of her mouth.


    She frowned because those words were also out of her own expectation. She didn¡¯t know why she still kept those meaningless things in her mind, or even worse, saying them out loud.


    After the two sentences, the solemn sound of natureing out of her becamemon. It was still spiritual and clear, but not asplicated as before.


    The Drunkard asked her three questions which he had never understood throughout his life, and which had haunted philosophers or priests till they died. He asked her because he wanted to distract her with theseplicated human cliches, so that he could sneak away.


    But just like how he sighed before Chang¡¯an City, since Haotian hade to the mortal world, no way could the Butcher and him avoid being found by Haotian.


    She did know why the Drunkard would ask the three questions, but she had found their answers long ago. The question was once meaningless to her, but now they suddenly turned somehow meaningful, so she crossed her hands behind her back and looked into the distance thoughtfully.


    She made her final decision, and looked at the Drunkard and the Butcher without any emotions, saying, ¡°If your first question is about how you will call me, you can call me Sangsang.¡±


    Her name was Sangsang. She was Sangsang. But as soon as she made the decision to use the name, she felt hatred, just as much as how she hated herments about the wine and bacon.


    The Drunkard and the Butcher confirmed it when hearing the name. Their fear gradually settled, and wrinkles of thousands of years made up the bitter smiles on their faces.


    The Drunkard said respectfully, ¡°I was told that you had gone back to the Kingdom of God, so I didn¡¯t expect you to still be in the mortal world.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I had things to do.¡±


    The Butcher signaled the Drunkard with a nce, but the Drunkard deliberately ignored him, and wouldn¡¯t reply to Sangsang as the Butcher hinted.


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Are you two willing to do it for me?¡±


    The Drunkard¡¯s voice sounded dry. He said, ¡°Toplete the mission on Heaven¡¯s behalf is beyond honorable, but please forgive us for having been too tired hiding away from you in thest thousands of years.¡±


    She looked at the furnishings in the meat shop, hands behind her back and said, ¡°You two are different from other folks because you¡¯re able to fly high enough. It¡¯s so stupid of you not to leave the shabby world.¡±


    The Drunkard replied, ¡°The Kingdom of Haotian is your residence, and we wouldn¡¯t presume to disturb you there.¡±


    Sangsang said: ¡°I¡¯ll grant you immortality.¡±


    The Drunkard and the Butcher fell into silence. They would¡¯ve thrown themselves into Haotian¡¯s arms, and be the most devout followers before thest Evesting Night if they believed their faith could grant them immortality.


    Sangsang looked at them and said indifferently, ¡°I mean the real immortality.¡±


    The Drunkard and the Butcher looked at her in the eyes, then they could no longer escape.


    Her crystal eyes were charming and pure, in the deepest of which was nothing but real starlight. On every star, there was an independent Kingdom of God. Those kingdoms looked so beautiful because of their eternity, which was made up of the universe¡¯s origination, and granted by time.


    The most shocking thing for them was to see the presence of their own self-consciousness. The perfect lines made up of rules shone and faded as the self-consciousness ebbed and flowed.


    The Drunkard and the Butcher bent their knees and knelt down on the ground before her.


    They had been hiding for thousands of years, only to be found by Haotian in the end. They saw the Kingdom of God Haotian had promised them, and they now believed it truly existed, then what else could they possibly want?


    Sangsang went out of the meat shop with the Drunkard and the Butcher humbly following behind her. She waved her hand, then the rein, with one of its ends on the neck of the Big ck Horse, fell off the carriage like petals.


    She took the Big ck Umbre out of the carriage and held it in her hand. Then she turned to the Drunkard and said indifferently, ¡°Tell him, death is the reunion after a long separation.¡±


    After that, she left the small town with the Big ck Horse. The Drunkard and the Butcher looked at the fading figure of the girl and the horse, silent and shocked, because they still doubted if what they had seen today was real.


    No religious ssic had recorded the presence of Haotian in the mortal world, nor did any legend tell about it. ording to the description in Haotian Taoism, Haotian was the beginning of everything in the world. Haotian had countless shapes, big as the universe or small as sand. Haotian was omniscient and omnipotent, so it was understandable that he could turn into a chubby girl with fair skin ande to the mortal world. But the Drunkard and the Butcher felt it hard to ept that Haotian had the form of a human, and they couldn¡¯t believe they had just talked to Haotian.


    It took long before the Drunkard and the Butcher recovered from the shock. The Butcher looked at the cumbersome carriage and said, ¡°The way to Chang¡¯an is too far and the carriage is too heavy. Haotian wouldn¡¯t allow me to help, it will be hard for you.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°There wouldn¡¯t be any punishment if I hadn¡¯t resisted or hidden. Now that I¡¯ve tried to hide, it¡¯s time for me to take the punishment, which was exactly the Limitless State I used to be proud of.¡±


    Nobody could use the Limitless State while carrying a stainless-steel carriage, for it weighed like hills.


    The Butcher paused for a second and said, ¡°Just go to the Academy and meet Ning Que. There must be a reason why Haotian values him, or kill him if it doesn¡¯t work out.¡±


    The fair, tall and plump girl leading the horse walked amongst the forests andkes. No one knew who she was, where she came from, or where she was going.


    She was in indigo clothes which seemed tight, or it was because she was plump. The tight clothes really ented her tender body shape.


    She traveled to ces with the horse, small towns, big cities, and viges. Sometimes men would peer at her in a strange way, but she didn¡¯t care. Women saw her and turned around reluctantly, but still, she didn¡¯t care, because they were no better than ants and worms in her eyes.


    When passing by a county from the Kingdom of Song, she suddenly felt hungry and wanted some noddles.


    Her body was familiar with hunger, but her mind was not. This biological nature of humans made her feel low and resentful.


    Moreover, though she was plump, ording to the Heaven¡¯s Calction, she wouldn¡¯t have to replenish energy in at least half a year, not to mention that she had drunk ten more bags of kumiss on the Wilderness, and finished the Drunkard¡¯s thousands of wine barrels in the small town.


    Then why would she feel hungry? She was immersed in her thoughts, and never noticed that she had arrived at a noodle shop.


    It was nowte in winter; the streets of the county were covered with light snow. Later the snow was stepped into mud. Sangsang hadn¡¯t worn shoes since she came out of the broken mountain. Her bare feet, which looked like lotuses, were so eye-catching in the ck mud.


    Behind the stall sat two stoves, in which the soup was boiling, giving out the light fragrance. The chopped coriander on the stall gave a stronger scent.


    Sangsang halted before the noddle stall for a while, then she decided to have some.


    Nobody noticed her, not even the owner of the stall, just like how they ignored her bare feet in the snow and mud. She didn¡¯t care about that, just like how she ignored the coldness.


    The stall was now noisy and crowded, not because there were too many customers, but because someone was causing a scene.


    The owner of the stall had a 12-year-old daughter helping him make noddles. She had been molested by local ruffians. As angry as the father was, he dared not to pick his knife to argue with the ruffians. The ruffians spoke louder and louder.


    ¡°Noddles, please.¡±


    Sangsang looked at the stall owner and said. Her tone sounded strange, because eating noddles felt strange enough to herself. The stall owner ignored her because he felt ufortable at the moment.


    Sangsang was displeased and said with dignity, ¡°I want noddles, please.¡±


    People kept ignoring her. The ruffians turned the stall over, making the scene chaotic. Pots and pans were thrown everywhere, and the coriander bowl fell onto the ground.


    Sangsang looked down, feeling pity for the coriander that had fallen into the mud. Then she hated herself for feeling pity, because it made her feel low.


    Smashing sounds grew louder and louder. The stall owner sat on the ground helplessly, with his head wounded and covered in blood. The little girl squatted beside his father and wouldn¡¯t stop crying, yet the ruffians showed no intentions of stopping.


    Sangsang forgave the boss¡¯s disrespect. She felt the hotcakes at the other side of the street smelled nice, too. As she was going for the hotcakes, she heard the stall owner praying in pain.


    ¡°Dear God, if you are watching, why wouldn¡¯t you take those bastards away?¡±


    Sangsang slowed her pace, and lowered down her head.


    The Big ck Horse knew it was going to witness the most dramatic scene in the history of religion, so it stared at her with excitement, breathing out white fog.


    The stall owner continued cursing and praying, while Sangsang¡¯s face remained expressionless.


    She looked at those local ruffians.


    They were smashing things around while some were waving the knives in their hands in extreme excitement, cursing with dirty words.


    ¡°F**k you! Even Haotian won¡¯t be able to help you today!¡±

 Chapter 829 - For I So Loved the World(Part Two)

    <h4>Chapter 829: For I So Loved the World(Part Two)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The ruffian was so excited that he didn¡¯t notice the ice under his feet. He then slipped and fell down, with his knife cutting on the thigh of hispanion, then the knife cut the bamboo supporting the stall.


    He fell down hard, and the knife was so sharp, cutting arge wound on the thigh of thepanion. Blood flowed out wildly. The broken bamboo was shoved in the chest of another ruffian.


    The ce was in a total mess. The three ruffians were all dead before people realized what had happened.


    One ruffian was soaked in his own blood, another one¡¯s chest had been prated, and the one with the knife cut himself open in the mess, his intestines spilled all over the ground.


    The bloody image and the shocking change totally stunned the audience. They were all pale, including the father and daughter beside the noodle stall.


    ¡°Cook noddles for me.¡±


    Sangsang said as she looked at the stall owner. Then she frowned as soon as she saw that there was no coriander or chili oil avable. She immediately lost interest in eating noodles, so she left the stall with the horse.


    She was going to the hotcake seller at the opposite side of the street for hotcakes, but somehow she had changed her mind. At the same time, she heard people at the noddle stall discussing.


    They were hailing Heaven for watching, marveling at this miracle Haotian had brought, saying that they were willing to be the father and daughter¡¯s witnesses. They suggested the father and daughter go and thank Haotian in the Taoism Temple outside the town. They said that Taoist Niu who lived in the temple was really a nice person, then a woman sighed and said that bad thing happened to good people, since Taoist Niu would die soon.


    Sangsang walked out of the town with the Big ck Horse. Then she found the temple which looked decent and simple. Her indifferent gaze climbed over the wall and saw the old Taoist who was on the brink of death.


    Abscesses scattered on the old Taoist¡¯s skinny body. His middle-aged sessor stood out of the door reluctantly. Those who had been helped by the temple had to bear the disgusting smell and waited aside.


    Sangsang watched it for a while, then she left.


    A while after she left, an exotic fragrance suddenly rose in the temple. Later golden flowers floated down from the old beams, scattering on the old Taoist.


    People could see the abscesses on him getting smaller and disappeared. His white hair turned ck. He had been fully healed and turned to be ten more years younger than before.


    The middle-aged Taoist was astounded. All the Haotian believers in the room knelt down, and wouldn¡¯t stop praying to Heaven, crying for Haotian¡¯s grace.


    The old Taoist struggled to sit on the bed with the support of other people. He had been faithful, trying every best to help people throughout his entire life, now finally he had been rewarded. With both palms flipped up to the sky, he cried in streaming tears, ¡°For God so loved the world!¡±


    With the horse behind, Sangsang was walking in the forest, a few miles southwest of the Temple.


    The Big ck Horse looked at her with confusion because it couldn¡¯t understand why she would do those two things. Ning Que once mentioned that Heaven¡¯s way was intangible and ruthless. The believers in the mortal world were no better than ants in her eyes, then why was she willing to get involved in those trifles?


    Deep down in the forest, Sangsang ran into a house. The family had fourteen people, old and young. They made charcoal for a living. Life was difficult but peaceful and happy for them.


    Nobody knew that the old master of the family was a junior deacon of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He fled into the deep mountain after the Doctrine was extinguished. Then he married a local woman and fathered a few children. When the children grew older, he taught them the skills of the Doctrine, though not the advanced ones. Those skills were of no use in the deep mountain, he taught them just because he felt he had to.


    As Sangsang left, the charcoal kiln suddenly copsed. Piled wood in the yard was set on unbounded fire, burning all the fourteen people into ashes, which was her purification.


    The Big ck Horse was following her, staring at her fair bare feet. It thought to itself that Ning Que was right, innocence could be cruelty.


    God so loved the world, in the way that she wanted.


    Haotian was still ruthless.


    In deep winter Sangsang and the horse arrived at the capital of the Kingdom of Song. They passed by the busy streets, and stopped by amon restaurant. She suddenly felt very hungry.


    The wine she had had was enough for her to walk in the mortal world for a long time, so the hunger she had now was not physical, but mental. She had been aware of that and felt reluctant.


    But she still made her way into the small restaurant, and walked to the third floor which was quieter. Then she ordered eighteen dishes without looking at the menu, with a sweet mashed taro for dessert.


    She had been here before. She remembered those dishes, and the dessert. Everything here was exactly the same as thest time she came.


    Soon the sweet mashed taro was served, then followed by eighteen well-matched dishes. Meat and vegetable, cold and hot dishes fully upied the table before her.


    Sangsang didn¡¯t pick up the chopsticks. She stared at the dishes on the table for a long time, then she remembered what the man told herst time when she was in the restaurant.


    ¡°You have to try this dish, you poor child. You have never led a good life with Ning Que all these years and you don¡¯t know how many delicacies there are in the world, and how much fun there is out there. Just enjoy yourself with me these days.¡±


    She closed her eyes slowly, and recalled those words the man spoke to him by the Sishui River.


    ¡°I brought you the best gigot in the world, the most exquisite eighteen dishes in the Kingdom of Song, and the most delicious instant-boiled mutton on the grasnds. I also took you to eat variable tyfish and drink oyster soup. I took you to see the Snow-capped Peak and boated on the sea. I also agreed on your marriage with Ning Que.¡±


    ¡°I took you to eat all kinds of fine food and to see all the good sceneries in the world. I let you enjoy the greatest happiness as a human being. I even helped you experience a deeper feeling.¡±


    The Headmaster looked at Sangsang and said, ¡°Human beings are nobodies in your eyes. But now you are married to a nobody and feel his happiness. Have you ever thought of staying in this world since you have fully enjoyed the happiness of this world? You spared no effort to find me over these years and desired to invite me to fight in Heaven. However, have you ever thought that I really wanted to invite you to visit me in this world?¡±


    She opened her eyes, without any emotion inside.


    A blizzard arrived, covering the whole capital city of the Kingdom of Song. On the streets, people eximed in shock, walking to take shelter. The handrails in the restaurant were immediately frozen, since it was so cold.


    The blizzard came because she was furious.


    She woke up in the broken mountain. When she passed by the sea of snow, she took a look at the variable tyfishes.


    Her first step covered ten thousand miles, then she started to slow down.


    The Drunkard couldn¡¯t avoid her, not because she was fast, it was because she was the rule by herself, and whatever rules the Drunkard used, they belonged to her.


    She slowed down, because her aura became turbid and heavy as she walked.


    She walked in the mortal world, and started to fit in.


    She looked to her own plump body, and figured out what was new in her body.


    It was the power of the mortal world left inside her by that man.


    Those are the joys of the mortal world she experienced with that man; it was low but obstinate.


    She looked at the 18 dishes on the table, then she picked up the chopsticks, and started to eat.


    She ate fast, faster than a man would.


    Momentster, all the 18 dishes were in her belly, including the iced mashed taro.


    The snow finally ceased in the capital city of Song.


    She left the restaurant and walked on the street with the Big ck Horse.


    The street grew bustling again. Children were making snowmen, others were fighting with snowballs. Vendors seized the opportunity and peddled, ¡°Sugar-coated Berry!¡±


    She saw the Chenjinji Cosmetic Store not far away, which reminded her that the man had once bought her a jar of cosmetic powder, andter when they were in the city called Chang¡¯an, he bought her another one.


    She turned serious, and the emotions in her eyes vanished.


    People came and went. She held the rein in her hands, and crossed her hands behind her back, proud but lonely.


    She wouldn¡¯t look up to Heaven because she was Heaven.


    She was looking at the mortal world. She couldn¡¯t draw back, neither could she move forward.


    She wouldn¡¯t allow herself to step any further into the mortal world.


    This was a trap set by the man who had ascended to Heaven, or a question asked by him to her.


    How to break out of the trap? How to answer that question?


    She might be omnipotent, but she still needed time to solve the big problem.


    Her expression grew more and more indifferent, and her pupils faded, as if bing transparent.


    Sounds of vendors shouting and selling their hotcakes came from nearby.


    Again, she felt hungry.


    She hadn¡¯t eaten any hotcakes in the town.


    She was angry, and decided to kill all men in the capital city.


    Suddenly, she felt something wet and soft on her hand.


    She looked back. Her ck hair fluttered and shattered a snowke into the tiniest particles.


    The Big ck Horse lifted its front hooves, like it was kneeling. Sweat kept leaking out of its mane in this chilly weather, obviously, because it was extremely tense.


    It grew tenser when Sangsang looked at it.


    It hesitated for a moment, then licked her hand gently.


    Sangsang silently looked at it.


    The horse wagged its tail desperately, like it was begging for mercy.


    The short hotcake seller passed by, shouting and selling. He had no idea that he just narrowly missed death.


    Sangsang looked at the horse and asked, ¡°How dare you?¡±


    The horse regretted it so much that he nearly buried its head in the snow.


    She looked back at the long street, and watched the mortal world once again.


    The coldness between her brows and eyes was reduced.


    The Big ck Horse lifted its head, and felt a little bit more pleasant when seeing her back.


    The short hotcake seller ran to the end of the street, with a carrying pole on his shoulder.


    A beautiful young woman was waiting for him.


    The two chatted and walked home. The short hotcake seller was proud but self-abased at the same time. He wouldn¡¯t make eye contact with other people, but the young woman kept greeting those they walked by.


    Sangsang looked over there and said, ¡°The love and hate of folks, which they falsely take as their faith, are so low and so funny. Why do you think they deserve your sympathy?¡±


    The Big ck Horse lowered its head. It dared not to go against her, but it wouldn¡¯t agree with her, either.

 Chapter 830 - Father and Son

    <h4>Chapter 830: Father and Son</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    ¡°The woman was a natural beauty and she thought she deserved more than to be a concubine. So she saved money and sold all her jewelry to buy her own freedom, then she married the hotcakes seller and bought a house on the street with the money they had earned. She stayed in the house, doing needlework and chores. The life was in and peaceful. The couple shared happiness and sorrows. Sometimes, the woman would even admire herself for all she had earned.¡±


    Sangsang knew what was in the Big ck Horse¡¯s mind, and she was saying it while looking at the couple at the end of the street.


    She then continued, ¡°People are always greedy and unsatisfied, they always think that they deserve more from the world. There will be a day when the woman resents her short husband and mock him. The man feels guilty, so he stays modest and tries not to talk back. Then the woman finds the man even more boring in that way. She is so impatient and unhappy until someday her clothesline pole falls onto a handsome rich yboy downstairs. The yboy sees her under-skirt flesh. He feels itchy, so does the woman. Someday when they are caught in bed, the woman will be so ashamed and fearful, she leaves all those vows and peaceful days behind, and tries by all means to kill the dwarf so that she can hook up with her lover.¡±


    The storm settled, and snow on the eaves started melting. As the sun moved westward, it turned colder and the water dropping from the eaves froze into ice again.


    She was talking while looking like the chilly ice ridges, transparent and emotionless. Her beautiful exterior had been torn, revealing the cruelty hidden inside.


    The Big ck Horse stopped wagging its tail. It looked down at the melting snow on the street and felt cold. It knew she could see through all that was happening here, and those cruelties of hers must be the reality of the mortal world.


    Sangsang held the rein in her hand, and with her hands behind her back, she walked towards the end of the street.


    Someone called out to her when she passed by a yard. The short hotcakes seller, with a cloth-pack in his hands, looked at her and stammered for quite a while. He was too nervous to express himself clearly.


    Sangsang nced at him expressionlessly and was about to leave.


    The beautiful woman squeezed out of the door, and grabbed over the cloth pack in the short man¡¯s hand. Then she looked at Sangsang with a smile and said, ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid, girl. We¡¯re not bad people. My husband saw you walk in the snow with bare feet and he felt sorry for you. He¡¯s giving you a pair of cloth shoes made by myself. The needlework may not be that delicate, but it¡¯s tough enough. Just take it, please.¡±


    Saying that, the woman thrust the pack in Sangsang¡¯s hand. Then she held the short man¡¯s hand and went back inside the house. Sangsang could hear them flirting.


    Sangsang watched the pack in her hand for a while in silence. Then she tossed it in the snow by the street, walking forward with hands behind her back. The Big ck Horse felt sorry for the shoes.


    The middle-aged woman next door saw a young man walking towards her. She smiled and greeted him, saying, ¡± Where are you going, young man? Would you like toe in and have a cup of tea?¡±


    The young man looked handsome and glowing. His eyes seemed as if they could speak. The most fascinating part was that he was so gentle, even when he was talking to the middle-aged woman.


    Sangsang walked out of the city without giving one more look at the stories ying out in the streets.


    The young man chatted with the middle-aged woman for a while, and was about to go inside to have a cup of tea. As he passed by the stone stairs, the ice dam on the eaves suddenly broke and fell down to the ground. ¡°Puff-puff¡±, the young man¡¯s chest was pierced by the icicles and he died in no time. The whole street started screaming.


    Out of the capital city of the Kingdom of Song, Sangsang looked toward the southwest with the rein in her hand. Her expressionless face was fair as the moon, and inside her eyes, countless rays of light shined, then vanished.


    They were like countless cusses.


    The snow and storm were cutting people¡¯s faces like knives. Chen Pipi lowered his head, and staggered in the storm and snow with a piece of shabby cloth covering his face. From time to time, he would look back at the handcart behind to check if his father lying in it felt well, or if the quilt covering him had been blown away by the wind.


    It had been days since he left Chang¡¯an, and the fierce dark wind was nowhere to be found. He ran into the storm and snow, only to find that he could barely find any food in the vige because of the war, not to mention finding a horse carriage. In the end, he could only use a creaking handcart.


    The storm and snow finally settled when he passed by a forest. Chen Pipi pulled the handcart over by a big tree. He took no rest before he started to dig the ground to make a bonfire. He cooked some porridge and boiled herbs. When everything was ready, he walked to the cart and lifted the quilt on his father¡¯s face, then started to feed him medicine.


    The once invincible Abbey Dean of the Zhishou Abbey was now a heavily injured and dying old man. His eyes remained peaceful as before, and his face, expressionless.


    In the astonishing fight in Chang¡¯an, he failed to counter Ning Que¡¯s character and had been sliced ten thousand times. What was worse, those slices polluted his wounds with the filth of the mortal world like nasty ink. He couldn¡¯t wash it away, neither could he purify it with the West-Hill Divine Skills. Chen Pipi had him swallow thest Heavenly Power Pill to extend his life temporarily, but he wouldn¡¯t get any better.


    Their travel went on in awkward silence. They kept silent even when taking the medicine because Chen Mou was too injured to talk, or because their father-and-son rtionship was weird due to the years¡¯ separation.


    Chen Pipi tucked the quilt after he was done feeding the medicine. Then he seated himself instantly in the snow by the handcart, gobbling a bowl of warm porridge in his hand.


    Snowkes stopped falling, but the cold wind was still howling. Snow on the trees was blown off by the wind, falling on the handcart or into the bowl. Chen Pipi watched the drifting snow and suddenly he wanted to talk.


    ¡°Why did you insist on this? You knew the Headmaster was right.¡±


    Finally Chen Mou heard him talking, he smiled and said, ¡°What did I insist on?¡±


    Chen Pipi knocked the bowl with his chopsticks and said, ¡°You¡¯re a man of great wisdom. You know that mortals will be against Haotian someday. Mortals will have to face the Apocalypse, in the way of an Evesting Night or another plight. Then why did you insist to choose Haotian¡¯s side? I won¡¯t take faith as the exnation.¡±


    No more than eight cultivators had reached the same realm Chen Mou had in history. It was hard for Chen Pipi to figure out the answer because he believed that for cultivators in that realm, faith barely mattered.


    Chen Mou continued, ¡°That was not a choice about faith, it was about being reasonable. In the Headmaster¡¯s and Ke Haoran¡¯s opinion, humans and Haotian go against each other. However, Haotian Taoism believed the two reinforce each other.¡±


    Chen Pipi asked, ¡°Wouldn¡¯t it be boring if the world is enclosed?¡±


    Chen Mou said, ¡°Haotian Taoism believes that solemnity and bnce are the eternal beauty. The Buddhism Sect calls the cycle and transmigration ¡®karma¡¯. Everything starts with an end, and that is the full process. The Headmaster wanted to break the process, so he was getting further and further away from eternity.¡±


    Chen Pipi said, ¡°Is there the kind of eternity that has no self-consciousness?¡±


    Chen Mou said, ¡°Quietus is eternity. We will end where we started, and in that world, we¡¯re our own Haotian. The world was created without us in the first ce, so it has to end up the same way.¡±


    ¡°That was my reason, and my faith. It¡¯s not about being right or wrong. The Headmaster might be right, but he was wrong in my opinion, and that was why we chose different ways.¡±


    Slow hoofbeats came out of the forest.


    Chen Pipi looked back holding the porridge bowl, only to see the withered woods behind. The storm and snow had ceased but it was not yet sunny. A young woman was going out of the woods and leaves with a Big ck Horse following.


    He knew the Big ck Horse, but not the woman. He looked at the Big ck Horse, but it avoided making eye contact and lowered its head, with his hoof kicking slightly.


    He looked at the woman. The woman might look ordinary, but she was radiating an indescribable aura. Her face reminded him of somebody else.


    He was shocked. Looking at her chubby shape, he asked, ¡°Why are you so fat?¡±


    Sangsang did not answer.


    Then he remembered that Sangsang was no longer who she used to be. So he jeered, ¡°I¡¯m in no position to judge you, because no matter who you¡¯ve be, I¡¯ll always be the fattest one.¡±


    He used to be one of the most devout believers of Haotian. However, after years¡¯ study in the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain with the Headmaster, and with all the Haotian Taoism outsiders like Ning Que and Tang Xiaotanging into his life, his faith, or his attitude towards Haotian had changed a lot.


    He would kneel before her if it had been five years ago, but now he stood before her casually, with the porridge in his hand.


    Haotian weighed less than a bowl of porridge to him now.


    With sadness, he said, ¡°Now I know what a huge mistake Second Brother and I made.¡±


    Back in the old days at the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain, Eldest Brother had kept a distance from Sangsang, but Jun Mo and Chen Pipi had be her most firm supporters after seeing how she held the ashes outside Chang¡¯an.


    Then the Headmaster left the mortal world by the side of Sishui river because of her presence.


    So it was natural for him and Jun Mo to feel regretful.


    ¡°Mistakes are always toote to be corrected, or too huge to be remedied, but one should at least try so that he could live without regrets.¡±


    Chen Pipi looked at her and said, with a touching smile on his round face.


    He put the chopsticks on the porridge bowl, and pointed out with his fingers.


    He was running the Natural Stream Magical Finger with the no-boundary spirit. The trees shook off leaves, and snow piled up a snow line. The line came out of nowhere and rushed off, right into Sangsang¡¯s face.

 Chapter 831 - Peach Blossoms Over the Mountain

    <h4>Chapter 831: Peach Blossoms Over the Mountain</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Sangsang didn¡¯t move, but the forest did, or the whole world did, so to speak. The space had been twisted, making the snow line miss her narrowly, and fall softly on the ground. Then it bounced back, and returned in the same way it came, shoving into Chen Pipi¡¯s body.


    Chen Pipi looked pale with the bloody hole on his shoulder which was poked by his own Magical Finger. He looked into Sangsang¡¯s eyes again, bitter and sentimental.


    The bitter sentiment had nothing to do with the gap between their realms. He had never expected his victory over her because this was her world. It would be weird if she could be injured here. He felt sentimental because he remembered years ago, on the first day of the New Year, she was still a skinny tanned girl. She held the heavy quilt in her arms and stood in the Chang¡¯an Government silently and stubbornly, looking pitiful. That was the first time he used the Magical Finger, and he used it to protect her.


    Sangsang looked at Chen Pipi, the man was the first one who dared to attack her after she came back to the mortal world. Even the Drunkard had only dared to escape, and the Butcher whimpered in the corner when seeing her.


    However, she didn¡¯t punish Chen Pipi for his offense to Heaven. She turned back to the direction of Chang¡¯an, saying emotionlessly, ¡°You turned me down there.¡±


    She was looking at Chang¡¯an but was talking to Chen Mou in the handcart. She was talking about the whole thing, when he broke into Chang¡¯an City alone and used the State of Pureness.


    Instead of exining, Chen Mouughed out weirdly.


    Hisugh was full of emotions, including the joy of seeing the period of his life, the relief of seeing everything through, the peace of admiring the cloud; it had everything except awe.


    This was his first time seeing Haotian. She was so proud and indifferent, without any human feelings. But he still found her interesting.


    He had sensed the changes that had taken ce in her, and he really wanted to sing praise for the Headmaster, though he had already left the world. Chen Mou knew that from now on, nobody would be able to see the future of the world clearly.


    Nobody besides Haotian could.


    The West-Hill Divine Kingdom was warmer than Tang or Yan, but it was still cool since spring just arrived here. The wind in the mountains was chilly, and the green trees looked dim when covering in winter dust. No wildflower could be seen here.


    The Peach Mountain was now nervous and depressed because the war against the Tang Empire wasn¡¯t going on well. Haotian Taoism Powerhouses like the Great Divine Priest and Ye Su had all been injured, and the coalition army couldn¡¯t march any further before the Verdant Canyon. The Hierarch Lord had shut himself off from everybody else after he returned from Chang¡¯an.


    There weren¡¯t many people in the Divine Hall, and they wouldn¡¯t go outside or talk about it. That was probably part of the reason why nobody noticed when the tall chubby girl in ck had reached the foot of the mountain, with the registered Big ck Horse.


    Instead of Chang¡¯an, Sangsang chose the West-Hill Pce to go to. She walked amongst the green mountains, peaceful and rxed, like patrolling her own territory.


    She walked in the Divine Hall of Revtion with the horse. The hooves clicked on the polished floors, clopping-clopping in the quiet empty hall.


    The Great Priest of Revtion was lying in bed, in the deepest part of the hall. Dim light poured down from the dome and cast on his face, enting his deep wrinkles. He was so old, seeming as if he would die any minute now.


    He was knocked down by Eldest Brother¡¯s wooden rod before the Verdant Canyon. His chariot had been burnt into ashes, and his old body was no better than the chariot. He spoke the best prophecy in Haotian Taoism, so he knew clearly how severe his injuries were, then he gave up doing anything after getting back. He had driven Cheng Lixue and other deacons out of the hall, waiting for his day to return to the Kingdom of Haotian.


    The hall had been dark and quiet for long before someone dared to go inside, and break into the peace of the Great Divine Priest¡¯sst moment. As the disturbing clopping sounded, the priest opened his eyes with difficulty. He saw the Big ck horse, and the girl holding its rein.


    It took him just one nce to figure out many things. His dim eyes lit up again, and his wrinkles stretched, making up the happiest smile.


    Sangsang went to his bed quietly to make sure that his life was near its end. No one could help him stay in the mortal world, not even Sangsang, but she could at least extend his time.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion read her mind and said humbly and sincerely, ¡°Going back to you was the biggest wish through my entire life, I hope you can help me with it.¡±


    Sangsang sat beside the bed and held the skinny old man in her arms. Her face showed no emotions. A peaceful aura wasing out around her.


    The Great Priest leaned his head on her shoulder and murmured, ¡°It¡¯s a little bit toote, isn¡¯t it?¡±


    He once met her in the Old Brush Pen Shop in Chang¡¯an. Three yearster, he saw the light on Peach Mountain, so he made the three-year deal with her. That happened in the 15th year of Tianqi, and four years had passed unknowingly since.


    Sangsang said emotionlessly, ¡°Time is nothing fun to y with.¡±


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion smiled peacefully and closed his eyes.


    Sangsang checked if the soul of the man had really ascended to the Kingdom of Haotian. Then she put him back on the bed, rose up and left the hall with the horse.


    She didn¡¯t leave the Peach Mountain.


    She went to the highest white hall in the mountain.


    The Hierarch Lord grew quite grumpy after returning to the West-Hill Divine Pce. His angry yelling could be heard at the foot and the top of Peach Mountain; his trusted followers were too afraid to step any closer to the Divine Hall.


    More than ten priests were kneeling before the white Divine Hall. They were going to yell at Sangsang when they saw that she had shown up with the Big ck Horse, yet soon they found that they didn¡¯t know how to talk anymore.


    Those respected priests of the West-Hill Divine Pce had lost the ability to talk, and they forgot how to write when picking up the pen. They had been deprived of all their expression abilities.


    Sangsang walked into the Divine Hall with the Big ck Horse.


    There were thousands of rays of light in the hall, casting a huge shadow of a man on the endless voile in the Hall.


    That was the figure of the Hierarch Lord of the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    Sangsang might be tall, but she now looked so smallpared with that figure.


    The tall figure suddenly trembled, so did his voice that wasing out of the voile.


    ¡°You¡¯re not Lin Wu, who are you?¡±


    Sangsang kept moving forward without any expression. She grew taller with every step she took.


    On the contrary, the tall figure behind the voiles grew smaller and smaller.


    She walked into the voiles and rays, then light stopped brimming out.


    The Hierarch knelt and kissed the ground before her bare feet. In the most humble way he said, ¡°I am your most loyal servant in the world, waiting for your presence.¡±


    He looked even more skinny and pathetic than the days when he was in the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain because his wounds were difficult to heal. His eyes had gone blind, and his arms had been broken.


    The skinny dwarf at her feet reminded her of a saying, which she heard many years ago when she was abandoned in the mountain.


    ¡°That person looked as pathetic as a dog.¡±


    Omniscient and almighty might she be, she couldn¡¯t understand why that man wouldugh so happily with tears running down when he said that.


    She frowned, and holy mes emitted deep in her pupils.


    The Hierarch started to groan painfully. His eyes, which had been stabbed by Yu Lian with cicada wings, were ring. Momentster, the re went down as a piece of ash floated out of his eyes.


    When he could see the world clearly, he burst into tears and couldn¡¯t stop kowtowing.


    Sangsang watched him no more, and left with the horse.


    She then took a look at the ck Divine Hall, and went to the Divine Hall of light.


    There was Eternal Fire in the Divine Hall of Light. The former Great Divine Priest of Light had been imprisoned, and his throne had been suspended ever since. Only the Eternal Fire never stopped burning, because it was the symbol of this Hall.


    The 3450th year of Dazhi in the West-Hill, on a cool early spring day.


    The Great Divine Priest of Revtion went back to the Kingdom of Haotian. The Eternal Fire in the Divine Hall of light finally died out before a girl walked into the hall, because there was no better symbol for the light than her.


    Wildflowers in the mountains around West-Hill burst into blooms causing many weird looks because it was all too early even for a warm ce like the West-Hill.


    What came next was even more shocking. The Peach flowers had never bloomed since the Headmaster climbed the mountain and chopped all of them several decades ago.


    However, today over the mountains, there were countless peach trees in full blossom.

 Chapter 832 - Old Schoolmates

    <h4>Chapter 832: Old Schoolmates</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    It was early summer in Chang¡¯an. Though it wasn¡¯t that hot, the rich had already set ice pots in their rooms. The breeze flowed across the rooms, leaving coolness in the room, making it feel like winter.


    Master Chu was sweating, and he kept his shirt open. He couldn¡¯t stop waving the cattail leaf fan in his hand, because he felt so hot after hearing the news; it felt that even his heart was burning.


    ¡°Is it true? Really?¡± He stared at Chu Youxian, asking in a low and mysterious voice, ¡°Don¡¯t say it if it¡¯s inconvenient for you. Just give me a wink.¡±


    Chu Youxian looked at his father, then he sighed and face-palmed because he didn¡¯t know how to answer it. Though the rumor had been spreading in the house recently, he simply couldn¡¯t admit it.


    Master Chu had read the answer from his reaction. His wrinkles stretched. Then heughed while patting his son on the shoulder excitedly, saying, ¡°I was wondering why I didn¡¯t see you at home or in the House of Red Sleeves. I wasn¡¯t expecting you could start a new life. Now you¡¯ve be an official. That¡¯s nice. I was right earlier to have paid the high tuition fee of yours in the Academy.¡±


    Master Chu was the well-known rich man in Chang¡¯an. And it was his life¡¯s wish for his descendants to have high positions in the government. Chu Youxian¡¯s position might not be that high, but it was crucial for the imperial court. Master Chu then had every reason to be pleased when hearing the news.


    He looked at Chu Youxian and warned, ¡°You should be clear about how you¡¯ve reached the position. Your grades at school were such a mess, and you had no outstanding working abilities. You have the position only because Mr. Thirteen cherished your friendship. You should never let him down. Be cautious, and don¡¯t get dizzy from sess.¡±


    Chu Youxian couldn¡¯t bear it any longer when he heard those words. He waved his arms and shouted angrily, ¡°Who¡¯s getting dizzy from sess anyway? Who? I am a secret guard, a fact that cannot be disclosed to anybody! Why did you have to pay a thousand taels of silver to have me investigated? Now that you¡¯ve found out, how can I continue my job? Will you spend more to shut people¡¯s mouths? Why do you have to make everything so troublesome?¡±


    Master Chu was lectured but he couldn¡¯t talk back, because he had indeed acted inappropriately. He flushed and paled, then he said, ¡°I won¡¯t say a word about you from today on.¡±


    Chu Youxian stood up. He was about to leave in anger.


    Master Chu had been as humble as he could, but his son wouldn¡¯t buy it. He was seriously irritated and shouted, ¡°I can still beat you even if you¡¯re an imperial official now! Where are you going? It¡¯s sote at night.¡±


    Chu Youxian said, ¡°There¡¯s a party at the House of Red Sleeves tonight, I have to go.¡±


    Master Chu said angrily, ¡°I haven¡¯t been there for ten days, who do you think you are to be there now?¡±


    Chu Youxian said annoyedly, ¡°It¡¯s the reunion party for schoolmates in the Academy. I won¡¯t go if you don¡¯t let me.¡±


    Master Chu was going to say ¡°what if you don¡¯t go¡± before it urred to him that Mr. Thirteen was also a schoolmate of his son¡¯s. So he swallowed the words back and said, ¡°Just go ande back early.¡±


    In early summer, Chang¡¯an was covered by green trees. People could see therge green area even if looking at the city from far away, the scene was soforting.


    The most beautiful scenery would be boring if people looked at it for too long, just like the Headmaster felt the world was so boring after he had watched it for over a thousand years, so he wanted to visit somewhere else; or like the Empress who had lived more than ten years in the city, she had felt bored for long without being apanied.


    Ning Que came up with two people when he was standing on the city wall, looking at the woods andkes in the city. Then he remembered the words Ye Hongyu said by Yanming Lake.


    ¡°You will be trapped in Chang¡¯an City till you die, being an angry prisoner.¡±


    He went outside of the city for the Qingming Festival, so it had been days after thest time he went outside of the city. He was bored, but not yet angry. He knew he had already be a prisoner.


    A warm breeze blew gently on the city wall. Early summer, together withte spring, were the two warmest and most beautiful seasons of Chang¡¯an. Eldest Brother was still in his cotton jacket.


    Ning Que was sure, that Eldest Brother¡¯s cotton jacket hadn¡¯t been washed since he met him on the day in the 13th year of Tianqi. He always looked dusty yet felt so clean, why?


    ¡°Because my heart is clean.¡± Eldest Brother said slowly.


    Ning Que smiled and said, ¡°I heard that a tranquil heart istes people from the crowd around, and yet I¡¯ve never heard that a clean heart keeps the body clean, you¡¯re just being unreasonable.¡±


    Eldest Brother walked to him slowly, and looked down at the streets and alleys under the city wall, saying ¡°A tranquil heart istes people from the crowd around... that¡¯s interesting, what a pity that you can¡¯t keep your heart in tranquillity.¡±


    If one¡¯s heart could reach absolute tranquility, his mind would be able to experience the whole world, even when he was being physically trapped. Ning Que clearly knew clearly about what Eldest Brother meant, but he couldn¡¯t feel the tranquility now because of the current situation.


    Eldest Brother looked at him sympathetically and said, ¡°If your heart isn¡¯t a tranquil one, then just try to move.¡±


    Ning Que thought it over, and replied, ¡°The risk is too high.¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°The God-stunning Array is still working, and it can resist for quite a while even if I am not here. You can¡¯t just waste your life while for nothing here.¡±


    Ning Que pointed at pedestrians in the streets and alleys, then he said, ¡°Their lives and their future all depend on me, I can¡¯t take the risk of losing them.¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°You¡¯re now the guardian of the city and its citizens, but if you can¡¯t get out of the city ever again, it will be the citizens who would be protecting you instead.¡±


    After a long silence, Ning Que said, ¡°I get it.¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°Just move as how we¡¯ve nned days ago. Jun Mo and I are not worried about Chang¡¯an; we¡¯re more afraid of something happening to you on your way.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°If everything goes ording to Fourth Brother¡¯s calctions, I¡¯ll be able to solve whatever trouble I meet. Now we have to confirm the news from the West-Hill Pce.¡±


    Eldest Brother asked, ¡°How long will it take?¡±


    Ning Que said after a moment¡¯s silence, ¡±Probably forever. I¡¯ll try to get more information before making the final decision. And I may need your help in that case.¡±


    Eldest Brother said gently, ¡°Then you can stay and see if you can get more information. I have to go now.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Are you going back to the pce?¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°Something is wrong with the Weihe River Dam. Officials from the Ministry of Workers are quarreling with those from the Ministry of Revenue. His Majesty and Li Yu are waiting for me to decide.¡±


    Ning Que asked sincerely, ¡°Is there anything you are not capable of, Senior Brother?¡±


    Eldest Brother smiled and said, ¡°I know nothing about Talisman Taoism, or I¡¯d be the prisoner of the city, but if that really happened, I¡¯ll be fine with it.¡±


    Eldest Brother left, leaving Ning Que standing on the city wall for a time. He watched the sunset. He saw the city wall shining, reflecting the golden glow, and he saw the city under the wall bing an ocean of flowers.


    Thousands of Tang soldiers came into the city amongst people waving hands, showered by the floating flower petals. They served the Northern Army, which was the most sufferable force in this battle. They had to put off theing-back date because of the pressure from the Golden Pce, and it was not until the early summer that they were able to return to Chang¡¯an and get awarded for their honor.


    Ning Que walked down off the city wall and left for the House of Red Sleeves.


    The whole House of Red Sleeves was booked by the Academy graduates of the 13th year of Tianqi.


    Ning Que was standing by the window and looked at the young generals who wouldn¡¯t give up drinking, and at those new officials of all departments. He saw Chu Zhongtian with a thick beard who no longer looked young. He saw Wang Ying from Lin Chuan, who was now well respected in the Imperial Academy. He saw Chen Simiao, He Yingqin, and Chen Zixian; those were his ssmates in ssroom Three.


    Situ Yn and Jin Wucai sat at the table, hand in hand, telling the stories that had happened after theirst separation. Situ Yn saw Ning Que¡¯s figure by the window, and she asked, ¡°Are you sure you don¡¯t want to go downstairs?¡±


    Ning Que shook his head. Then he turned away to the table and sat down.


    He felt it ufortable if he went downstairs considering his social status now. He didn¡¯t want to make those postures. This room was just fine with Chu Youxian and the two girls he was familiar with.


    Jin Wucai married a young official from the Ministry of Workers as soon as her mourning period ended. Her marriage must have been a happy one because she looked gentle and quiet now. Nobody knew that from time to time, she would miss the man named Xie Chengyun.


    Situ Yn had been in the army sincest year. She had been fighting against the cavalry of the Golden Pce in the Northern Frontier and had juste back to Chang¡¯an today. The school reunion was held today mainly because other people were waiting for her toe.


    Chu Youxian toasted others and when he noticed Situ Yn¡¯s expression; he knew she had things to say to Ning Que. So he winked at Jin Wucai and the two left the room to go downstairs.


    Situ Yn looked Ning Que in the eyes and said, ¡°It¡¯s said that ceding Xiangwan in was the His Highness¡¯ idea. Nobody, including the soldiers in the Northern Army, would me them because if His Highness died, even the Empress would die. But I know that decision must have been authorized by the Academy.¡±


    She was in casual clothes at the moment, and though she might have been burned by the sun in the Northern Frontier, she was still beautiful as before. Only the cloth wrapped around her head felt weird.


    Ning Que looked at her and said, ¡°I know what you mean. You¡¯re right. The Academy, or I, to be specific, authorized all the agreements, including the one ceding Xiangwan in to the Golden Pce, and the one ceding Dongshan County to the Kingdom of Yan.¡±


    Situ Yn asked, ¡°Why? Ceding Dongshan County might be a deliberate showing of weakness, but why Xiangwan in? You know how much its pasture means to the Empire.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You may have known that something has happened to the Academy, forcing us to draw back.¡±


    Situ Yn said, ¡°But the Golden Pce was really powerful, we lost lots of people there. I feel so restless as long as I know that they¡¯re probably growing stronger.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°No worries, I¡¯ll kill them all.¡±


    Situ Yn trusted him. She knew that no matter how powerful a cultivator was, it was still impossible to kill all of the people of the Golden Pce alone, but she had no worries because the promise was made by the Academy.


    She noticed that Ning Que kept staring at something on her. So she smiled and said, ¡°Want to have a look?¡±


    Ning Que nodded.


    She unwrapped the cloth on her head.


    Her hair, which used to be as smooth as waterfall, had been cut short, in the most casual way.

 Chapter 833 - Time for Reunion

    <h4>Chapter 833: Time for Reunion</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    ¡°Having long hair in the army could be inconvenient, because it is hard to wash after being stained by blood, so I cut it. And I¡¯ve gotten a tan. Those scars on me, they looked so ugly.¡±


    Situ Yn said, with her hands rubbing her hair. She had changed a lot since she joined the army, but it was natural for people to have the desire to be beautiful, especially for women.


    Ning Que was gentle when seeing her acting like a naughty boy, and he said, ¡°You¡¯re more beautiful than ever in my eyes.¡±


    Situ Yn said, ¡°Don¡¯t try to coax me.¡±


    Ning Que smiled, and he wasn¡¯t going to defend himself on that. Then he said, ¡°What are you going to do next?¡±


    Situ Yn said, ¡°The Military Ministry is sending me to Gushan County.¡±


    Her words silenced the room. The imperial court was sending her to Gushan County, and Ning Que knew it was because the court wanted to subdue the force of the Huas in the army in the name of General Yunhui. Though Li Yu owed the Huas much, she had to do that because Hua Shanyue had died.


    Situ Yn came back from the Northern Border, and was clearer than everyone else about how Hua Shanyue died. She knew it had something to do with Ning Que, but she didn¡¯t say it, instead she said, ¡°I would like to have an audience with Her Highness.¡±


    ¡°She refused to see you?¡± Ning Que was surprised because he thought it would be easy for her to meet Li Yu, considering their rtionship, and her connection with General Yunhui.


    Situ Yn nodded.


    Li Yu¡¯s solidarity was out of Ning Que¡¯s expectation. He paused for a second and said, ¡°I¡¯ll lend you the ID token. You can go into the pce at night and just try to talk to her.¡±


    There was no dancing girl that night, because it was a schoolmate reunion, and partly because of the current situation. The House was now bustling and joyful. Ning Que went upstairs to meet Mistress Jian.


    Dewdrop made a bowl of dumplings and put it on the desk before Ning Que. She then sat down near him and held his arms. Mistress Jian was frowning, but Dewdrop smiled and wouldn¡¯t let Ning Que go, because she was no longer a registered girl in the House. She was here because she liked living here. Therefore, she was not the fearful girl like she used to be when facing Mistress Jian. She felt sorry for Ning Que because he could only take her softness as a test.


    Xiaocao was standing behind Mistress Jian and grunted reluctantly. The girl had grown up as time went by, and she became even more mature after Mistress Jian let her in charge of the song-and-dance troupe business. She might look like a girl, but she worked in a clear cut fashion. She quit acting like a shy girl except now, partly because of Sangsang, and because she hated it when other girls clung to Ning Que.


    Mistress Jian said, ¡°I asked you toe over here today to discuss about the Light Sacrifice. The West-Hill Divine Pce wants the House to dance for the sacrifice. I¡¯m seeking the Academy for advice.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°It¡¯s all up to you, Aunt Jian. You can go if its convenient, but you don¡¯t have to if you don¡¯t feel so inclined. The West-Hill Pce wouldn¡¯t do anything about it because we¡¯ve already had the agreement signed.¡±


    Mistress looked at him, and said with profound meaning, ¡°The Light Sacrifice is the biggest festival recorded in the West-Hill Scripture. People won¡¯t celebrate it until Haotian showed the sign, so I was wondering why the Pce is going to celebrate it now. If it¡¯s to celebrate victory in war, that would make them a joke for all people in the world.¡±


    Ning Que was considering and he asked, ¡°You mean...¡±


    Mistress Jian said, ¡°It¡¯s no harm if we go there, at least we can watch if for you.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m afraid the journey will not be peaceful.¡± Said Ning Que.


    Mistress Jian looked him in the eyes and asked, ¡°Can you at least guarantee the safety of the girls?¡±


    Ning Que said after a short moment of silence, ¡°Someone can do it for me even if I can¡¯t.¡±


    Dewdrop and Xiaocao heard the conversation clearly. They were confused and wondering who that ¡°someone¡± was.


    Ning Que left the House of Red Sleeves in the ck carriage.


    A short distance away from the street entrance, the curtain of the carriage swayed slightly and Chu Youxian climbed in. In the dim light, he took out several big envelopes, then put them in order and whispered, ¡°The Great Priest of Revtion throne is still empty. There¡¯s no trace indicating who¡¯s going to be the sessor.¡±


    The West-Hill Pce had sent spies to the South School of Haotian Taoism, and the Empire of Tang had sent spies to the West-Hill Pce. Those spies had yed important roles. The Tang spies worked out together to kill several Divine Talisman Masters at the cost of some of their own lives, and survivors kept spying in the Divine Hall.


    It started at the negotiation in early spring. Those spies in Peach Mountain began to send messages through the Imperial Center Administration and secret guards. Chang¡¯an had known of the Great Divine Priest of Relevation¡¯s death, even before Ye Hongyu did, because she was at Qinghe County at the time.


    Ning Que silently recalled the peach blossoms over the mountain, mentioned in the intelligence.


    ¡°ording to the analysis of the Imperial Center Administration, Cheng Lixue was the most hopeful sessor of the throne of the Great Priest of Rvation, but there seems to be something special about the inheritance of the Throne. Anyway, he is in an awkward position now, and if anyone else takes over the throne, Cheng Lixue will be a trouble to deal with.¡±


    Chu Youxian had inherited the businessman¡¯s mind from his father. He might not be a good cultivator, nor did he have any outstanding abilities; however, he could always dig out the most valuable results, from the reports of the Imperial Center Administration, or from the secret guards.


    He looked at the file in his hand and said, ¡°The Eternal Fire in the Divine Hall of light has died out for a reason nobody knows, because those seeking for the reason have all died. And it can be certain that ten more priests mentionedst time have gone mad. That¡¯s all we¡¯ve known so far.¡±


    Ning Que frowned slightly. He was not satisfied, obviously.


    With guilt Chu Youxian said, ¡°We¡¯ve even checked the trash in the Divine Hall. But all the trash had been disposed of. We couldn¡¯t find any trace to analyze.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°How about the stables?¡±


    Chu Youxian shook his head and said, ¡°Nothing there, either.¡±


    Ning Que thought it for a moment and asked, ¡°How about the use of wine?¡±


    Other ordinary officials might have just ignored the change on the amount of daily use articles, but Chu Youxian hadn¡¯t, he said, ¡°There¡¯s a considerable increase.¡±


    Ning Que grew cautious and asked, ¡°Any horse became pregnant?¡±


    The male war-horses of the Papal Cavalrymen in the West-Hill Pce had all been castrated, which made Ning Que¡¯s question seem odd and confusing to Chu Youxian.


    ¡°There¡¯s no information about that.¡±


    Chu Youxian mped thest big envelope with his two fingers and said, ¡°There was one thing that was odd. Our spy once saw a pot of left-over corn porridge in the stables. He remebered you had mentioned it before, so he collected some.¡±


    Ning Que took over the envelope, and poured out the left-over porridge. A sour and terrible smell filled the carriage. Chu Youxian frowned and covered his nose.


    Ning Que was dignified, as if he hadn¡¯t smelled it at all. He was poking the smelly porridge with a knife, and he finally found a hairs of a ck mane.


    ¡°Thank you, little silly.¡±


    He looked at the ck hairs, and thought to himself.


    The ck carriage stopped by Yanmingke. Chu Youxian left the carriage and disappeared in the dark streets. Then Ning Que got off the carriage, too. He stood in front of the yard, silent, then he said to Wang Jinglue, ¡°Get things ready, I¡¯m going on a long journey.¡±


    Wang Jinglue took off his straw hat, then he put the reins away and said, ¡°Are you sure about that? It¡¯s not a ten-mile journey to the suburbs, but a one thousand miles journey full of risks.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°It has to be done anyway, better by ourselves than by others.¡±


    In the darkness, Yanmingke reflected ten more lights from the houses. It was like the lonely sky on which stars faded because of the strong moonlight.


    Ning Que was drifting on a boat. Fresh green lotus shoots flicked the boat from time to time. The lotus flowers were yet to bloom, but their leaves were meeting each other.


    The lotus leaves were gathering, while people did not. Looking at the lotuses Sangsang nted those years, he recalled the words from the Drunkard, ¡°Death is the reunion after a long separation.¡±


    He was still trying to figure out how did Haotian find the Drunkard and the Butcher in the mortal world. He had been looking for clues, all of which traced back to the one he couldn¡¯t possibly find.


    He moved his eyes from the boat to Yanming Mountain by theke. He could almost hear that girl singing in the storm and snow, with the ck umbre in her hands.


    <i>¡°How could I not have known it was you? Are you still my other half? You returned the carriage and the iron arrows to me, and took away the big ck horse and umbre. Are you really divorcing me?¡±</i>


    <i>¡°But I won¡¯t make it easy. Your name is still on my household registration book; your address is still the Old Brush Pen Shop; your note is buried in the tomb. How about I send it to you?¡±</i>


    The early summer night wind blew in Ning Que¡¯s face. He had a meaningful smile on his face as he thought, <i>¡°If death is the reunion after long separation, then we shall reunite.¡±</i>


    The next morning, the well-known ck carriage passed by the steamy meatbun shop. Many citizens and royal guards saw it run into the Imperial Pce, to nevere out ever since.


    Dayster, people were suspecting. Nobody knew what Ning Que was doing in the pce, not even the ministers in the imperial court. But one thing they were sure was that he had never left the city.


    Those spies from the West-Hill Pce in Chang¡¯an grew restless. They paid a heavy price to kill two maidservants working for the Chu¡¯s, and finally they acquired some information.


    A dull knocking sound came out from the ground near the small building in the Imperial Pce. The imperial study was still lit up till midnight. Rare and precious materials kept being transported into Chang¡¯an from small counties under the arrangement of the Ministry of Revenue. One day at dusk, people saw a tough man enter the Imperial Pce with a hammer on his shoulder.


    When the information was sent back to Peach Mountain. The West-Hill Pce came up with a stunning conclusion: the Academy might be improving the God-stunning Array, but was it true?

 Chapter 834 - To Fetch Her

    <h4>Chapter 834: To Fetch Her</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ning Que did not leave after entering the Imperial Pce. Not even Chao Xiaoshu knew what he was doing. When he received the invitation from the Academy, he thought he would be able to find the answer.


    An adorable and handsome little servant was waiting on the mountain path in the mist. When he saw theming, he saluted politely and said, ¡°Mr. Chao, pleasee this way.¡±


    They arrived on a teau at the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain after walking through the mist. Chao Xiaoshu looked at the beautiful scenery and inwardlymented that, had the Emperor not needed him back then, he would have definitely applied to enter the Academy. He might even have had the opportunity to be a student on the Second Floor and be one of them.


    The Tangs who visited the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain for the first time would feel rather nervous. Chao Xiaoshu did not feel as nervous, but Chen VII who had apanied him on the trip could barely control his emotions. He was unlike his usualposed self.


    They heard the sound of a waterfall cascading down and the little servant brought them to a small courtyard where Jun Mo was waiting. The three greeted each other; then, Jun Mo handed a file to them and said, ¡°The Academy has drawn some ns. We don¡¯t see any problems with it, so we need you two to help us look through it.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu epted the file and opened it. Chen VII stood beside him, confused. The students of the Academy were all highly intelligent people, why would they need him and his people to evaluate the files?


    Jun Mo knew what he was thinking and said, ¡°The Academy has killed many people, but usually, we kill them when we meet them. We don¡¯t really have experience regarding this.¡±


    Chen VII understood what Jun Mo meant, and he suddenly felt the burden on his shoulders growing heavier. He also could not help but feel proud, and thought to himself that it was no wonder that Second Brother Chao would bring him along.


    After Second Brother Chao read through the file, he passed it to Chen VII and then, looked at Jun Mo with a grave expression. He said, ¡°Is what Ning Que is doing rted to this n?¡±


    Jun Mo replied, ¡°What he has to do is not written in the file, but is the most important part of it.¡±


    Chen VII¡¯s breathing grew more rapid as he read the file. As the brains of the Fish-dragon Gang, he was no stranger to plots and schemes. He himself had set many. For example, the plot at the Spring Breeze Pavillion that rainy night. However, he had never imagined that he would have the opportunity to participate in such a n. After all, the two targets of the n were like deities to him.


    The n in the file was initially conceived by Fourth Brother, Fan Yue, and Ning Que. Then, Eldest Brother had written it personally. There were not any problems if one thought through it rationally and logically. However, the matter was simply too important and the Academycked experience in this aspect, which was why they needed the help of the Fish-dragon Gang.


    Chen VII held the file tightly and read it for a long time. He forcibly repressed his excitement and nerves as his brain whirled quickly. He only looked up after a long time.


    ¡°This plot is very well done and only some minor details need to be tweaked. Give me one night and I can fix them. I believe that even if the two of them were truly deities, they would not be able to see through the n.¡±


    He looked at Jun Mo and said, ¡°However, the crux of the matter is that where to find the most suitable person to carry this out? The person who would dare to do this would have to be extraordinary. A regr person would not have the courage.¡±


    Jun Mo answered, ¡°We heard that tens of thousands of hot-blooded people stood before Youngest Brother the day the Abbey Dean entered Chang¡¯an. It is not difficult to find someone like that. And if we can¡¯t, we will send two of the newest disciples the Academy epted. They have yet to start cultivating officially and fit the criteria.¡±


    ¡°I was on the Vermilion Bird Avenue that day too.¡± Chen VII shook his head and said, ¡°The ordinary people were acting on the spur of the moment. What we are doing now is nning before acting. These arepletely different concepts.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu had not spoken, but suddenly said at the moment, ¡°There¡¯s another way.¡±


    Jun Mo and Chen VII understood what he meant immediately. Chen VII did not hesitate to object with vehemence while Jun Mo stared at him quietly.


    Chao Xiaoshu smiled slightly and said, ¡°It is my greatest regret that I have never been able to study in the Academy. But I have learned much in the city and on the streets. I can behave like a human or a ghost as I wish.¡±


    ¡°Does that horse of yours still like grain porridge?¡±


    Yang Erxi pushed the basin containing the pork trotters to the opposite side of the table, and motioned for Ning Que and Wang Jinglue to eat it. Then, he lifted the gon and filled up the wine bowls in front of the two.


    Ning Que remembered the rotten porridge he saw the other day and said with a smile, ¡°I don¡¯t know whether he still likes drinking grain porridge or not, but that silly horse never forgot about it.¡±


    Yang Erxi took a bite of the pig trotters and guzzled down half a bowl of wine. He rubbed his belly and sighed in satisfaction. Then, he looked at Ning Que and warned him, ¡°The situation right now isn¡¯t that great. Be careful on the road.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°The Eastern Border is peaceful now, and there shouldn¡¯t be an issue with the southern side.¡±


    Yang Erxiughed and said, ¡°The peace at the Eastern Border was fought for by us. Those idiots at Qinghe County in the south have never been beaten. Would they really behave themselves?¡±


    Ning Que¡¯s brows picked up and he said, ¡°I remember you saying three years ago that you¡¯ve already retired from the army.¡±


    Yang Erxi patted his oily chest and said with satisfaction, ¡°I don¡¯t look it, do I? I joined the voluntary army. I am the best at painting in my county, and I¡¯m also not bad at fighting wars.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the farmer who was amon sight in the viges of the Tang Empire and did not know what to say.


    Wang Jinglue had focused on eating meat and drinking wine since he entered the courtyard. He did not understand how Ning Que had gotten to know such a farmer and had even wanted to stop here until he heard that...


    He looked up and raised his wine bowl, cing it in front of Yang Erxi to say, ¡°I admire you.¡±


    Yang Erxi took up his wine bowl and they toasted each other before he drank the remaining wine in his bowl. He said, ¡°Compared to those dead fellows, I don¡¯t deserve the admiration.¡±


    It was only then when Ning Que noticed that he bore a new scar between his brows.


    Yang Erxi pointed to the spot and said with a smile, ¡°I was really lucky. Even though the barbarians cut me several times, they did not hit anything important. Even this wound on my face is hidden between my brows, and I have not been disfigured.¡±


    Ning Que did not say anything else. He took up his wine bowl and dedicated a toast to him again.


    Yang Erxi lifted the gon and realized that it was empty. He yelled out of the window, ¡°Go get another gon of wine from the vige. Oh, and cut me another pork trotter!¡±


    ¡°I wanted to eat the pork trotters from our home when I was at the Eastern Border.¡±


    Yang Erxi looked at both Ning Que and Wang Jinglue, and said as hemented, ¡°Say, why do you think we work so hard for? Isn¡¯t it for our wives and children? Isn¡¯t it for them to have tasty and fragrant meat to eat?¡±


    It was then, when the sound of his wifeining could be heard from the courtyard. ¡°You only know how to drink wine and eat meat every day. You invite everyone you see in our house to eat and drink and you never ever worry that they will eat away our family¡¯s money.¡±


    The voice was not high nor low and could not be heard by anyone outside the courtyard. However, it would definitely be heard by the two people sitting by the table eating meat. Wang Jinglue felt a little uneasy, while Ning Que seemed to not have heard it at all.


    Yang Erxi felt embarrassed and mmed his hands on the table angrily and shouted, ¡°What are youining about? Is it wrong for me to want to eat a piece of meat and drink a bowl of wine when I return home? Do you not want me toe back?¡±


    The courtyard was suddenly silent, and then, the sound of a woman crying could be heard.


    Yang Erxi felt even more embarrassed and yelled, ¡°Cry, you only know how to cry! You cry when I am not home, and you cry when I return!¡± ¡°I gambled with my life at the Eastern Border and rendered military service. I was awarded 200 taels of silver, so why am I not allowed to eat meat? Also, if you dare to pick the meat out of my bowl and give it to our son, I¡¯ll give you a sound thrashing!¡±


    The woman stopped crying and started to chop up the pork trotters. She cursed the man for being heartless as she chopped the pork.


    Ning Que looked at him and asked hesitantly, ¡°Are you really going to thrash her?¡±


    Yang Erxi said, ¡°Women, will they be obedient if you don¡¯t thrash them?¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Are you not afraid that she will sue you at the county government?¡±


    Yang Erxi¡¯s expression grew awkward and he replied, ¡°This is called being fierce, do you understand?¡±


    Ning Que thought of why he was going to the West-Hill and seemed to have learned something.


    They had to leave after eating and drinking their fill.


    Yang Erxi sent them to the mill and said, ¡°I don¡¯t know who you are, but I don¡¯t think you are ordinary people, and I don¡¯t know what you¡¯re going to do. If you¡¯re going to kill, kill more people on my behalf.¡±


    Yang Erxi would definitely not say this had he not drunk so much.


    Ning Que smiled and asked, ¡°How did you know?¡±


    Yang Erxi said, ¡°We met once three years ago. I would have forgotten about you if not for your ck horse that ate my grain porridge. Would an ordinary person be able to afford feeding a horse like that?¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°And how did you know we are going to kill someone?¡±


    Yang Erxi said, ¡°You are Tangs.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°So?¡±


    Yang Erxi said matter-of-factly, ¡°What else other than killing are the Tangs going to do when they head to Qinghe River now?¡±


    Just then, a pair of siblings ran towards them.


    Yang Erxi swooped down and carried them. He looked at Ning Que and boasted, ¡°My daughter and son. How are they? Aren¡¯t they great? They rank in the top at school.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I don¡¯t have children, why are you so proud?¡±


    Yang Erxi said, ¡°Are you married?¡±


    Ning Que nodded and said, ¡°Yes. You¡¯ve met her.¡±


    Yang Erxi asked, ¡°Is it that girl who likes to drink?¡±


    Ning Que smiled and answered, ¡°She doesn¡¯t like to drink now.¡±


    Yang Erxi replied, ¡°It¡¯s been three years, why do you still not have children?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°There¡¯s nothing wrong with me, I think the problem lies with her.¡±


    Yang Erxi said unhappily, ¡°I don¡¯t like listening to this. Men like to push all the me to women. If there¡¯s a problem, find a way to resolve it and don¡¯tin so much.¡±


    Ning Que replied seriously, ¡°I intend to do that too.¡±


    Yang Erxi¡¯s daughter looked at the two strangers and asked curiously, ¡°Father, who are they?¡±


    ¡°They are father¡¯s friends from Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Yang Erxi said proudly. He did have friends from Chang¡¯an and had never lied to his daughter.


    The daughter looked at Ning Que, her eyes turning in their sockets as she asked, ¡°Where are you going?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°I want to head to the south.¡±


    The daughter asked curiously, ¡°Why are you going to the south?¡±


    Ning Que said with a smile, ¡°To pick up my wife.¡±


    The daughter said happily, ¡°Is your bride beautiful?¡±


    Ning Que thought it over, and replied, ¡°She¡¯s not really beautiful.¡±


    The daughter said seriously, ¡°Even if she¡¯s not beautiful, you can¡¯t abandon her.¡±


    Ning Que looked at her and said seriously, ¡°Of course.¡±

 Chapter 835 - Not Even the Fuchun River Can Cleanse Them

    <h4>Chapter 835: Not Even the Fuchun River Can Cleanse Them</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The summer in the wilnds south of the Tang Empire was not extremely hot. It was as gentle as the Empress, called Xia Tian, (Summer in English) and it made one feel veryfortable. Along the way to the south, Ning Que naturally recalled the trip to Lanke Temple he had made with Sangsang. It was here, where he fell in love with this ce.


    Ning Que and Wang Jinglue rode in an ordinary carriage, and when they reached the Verdant Canyon and the carriage could no longer move forward, they abandoned it and walked. They struggled to find their way between the rocky mountains. There were a lot of Tang soldiers the steep canyon to guard it. The imperial court still had no intention ofpletely sealing the Verdant Canyon, having ns to recover it one day in the future.


    Upon exiting the Verdant Canyon, they saw a in that was filled with wildly growing weeds. The cultivatednds which were ready for harvesting had been abandoned, and aged, brown blood stains could still be vaguely seen on the field. It felt as if blood would still spurt out of thend should they step on it.


    Ning Que seemed to be able to see his Senior Brothers and Sisters standing before hundreds and thousands of troops here in thete autumn ofst year. He seemed to be able to see his Second Brother fighting against the world with his iron sword in his hands, and he felt the pressure on his shoulders grow even heavier.


    It was gettingte. The two rested in the open air between the wilnds in front of the Verdant Canyon. The chirping of the summer bugs grew denser. The bright moon appeared at the top of the canyon between the clouds. Ning Que looked at the clouds and thought silently.


    When they awoke the next morning, he and Wang Jinglue continued to the south. What they saw throughout their journey was no different from the previous years. The bridges and running water, the white walls and ck eaves were just as before. The famous gardens on the banks of Fuchun River were just as beautiful.


    Not a single trace of the war could be seen in Yangzhou City. The greenstone streets were clean, as if they had been washed by water. There was not a single trace of blood. The street vendors sold their wares in their soft local ent. The unique fragrance of ducks flowed from restaurants. If not for the well-equipped troops patrolling the streets, no one would have thought that many people had died in the city just a few months ago, along with the many murders that had taken ce.


    Ning Que and Wang Jinglue went outside the rear garden of the Chatin¡¯s Mansion. He looked at the clumps of bamboos sticking out of the wall and kept silent. The bamboos had spots on them, like tears and blood.


    ¡°That day, the Chatin¡¯s Mansion had ordered the West-Hill Divine Pce Coalition Army to gather the Yangzhou officials in the mansion. Then, they had suddenly turned against them and asked these officials to pledge allegiance to them. When they refused to, they began to kill them. Over 30 imperial court officials were killed, and among them, three were children of the warlords.¡±


    Wang Jinglue looked at the Chatin¡¯s Mansion and said softly, ¡°The person who organized this is called Zhong Da Jun. He is an official based at the Chatin¡¯s Mansion and is the son of the Yangguan City¡¯s mayor. The warlords had invited the navy to Fuchun River to discuss matters, but had ambushed them. After a bitter battle, many high ranking officials in the navy died, and then, the massacre of the navy on the Great Lake followed. In the evening, the Cui Family¡¯s armed forces forced their way into the prefect¡¯s office in Qinghe County and the prefecture chiefmitted suicide.¡±


    He had made it clear that the day of the rebellion in Qinghe County was a big event in a few simple sentences. On that bloody day, 3,000 officers and soldiers of the Tang Empire navy were killed or injured, and more than 300 court officials loyal to the Empire were beheaded. As Wang Jinglue said earlier, these officials included the children of the warlords. They had not agreed with the opinions of their elders in the family, and became sacrifices.


    No matter how cleanly the green stone streets in the city of Yangzhou were washed, the blood had already flowed. Even if not a single trace of blood could be seen, and even if the scent of blood could not be smelled, the blood had already seeped into the mud through the cracks in the green stones. Not being able to see or smell it did not mean that it had never existed. And since it had once existed, it should be remembered.


    Ning Que did not say anything. He brought Wang Jinglue with him and left the Chatin¡¯s Mansion. They did not go to an inn, but instead, headed straight out of the city and to the banks of Fuchun River. They rented a boat with ck awning for five taels of silver and journeyed with the flow of the river.


    The war had just ended, and Qinghe County was calm for the time being. However, the people did not feel truly rxed. At least, it was difficult for tourists to rx, so there were not many boats on the beautiful Fuchun River.


    Ning Que and Wang Jinglue sat on both sides of the boat and looked at the scenery along the river. They were both well traveled but had to admit that nothing in the world could beat the river if they wanted to discuss exquisite beauty.


    The boat swayed and floated through the famous gardens along the river. The boatman exined from time to time the history of the famous gardens, and about who owned which piece ofnd. He seemed to know all these details very well. Wang Jinglue was not in the mood to listen to these things, but Ning Que listened very seriously.


    Fuchun River was very beautiful, but unfortunately, it was not long. The boat moved slowly, shaking and wobbling as it arrived downstream. The two headed ashore and walked through a forest, arriving at the Mei Mountain of Qinghe County.


    The warlords of Qinghe County were known to be families of schrs. But they nevercked military and economic support. The Mei Mountain, which stretched for hundreds of miles, was the treasure given to the warlords by Haotian.


    Ning Que and Wang Jinglue stood in the remote part of the Mei Mountain, silently watching the movement here. They saw the stewards of the warlords waving whips, the naked miners pulling coal carts, crawling with difficulty. Their bodies were dusted with coal ash, mixed with blood caused by the whipping. They looked wretched.


    Wang Jinglue¡¯s expression was very ugly at first, and then, itimproved slightly after he observed them for some time. He said, ¡°They should be barbarians captured from the primeval forest and some ves sent from the West-Hill.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Since an agreement was reached, as long as the families in Qinghe County are not as arrogant and stupid as idiots, they should know what will be waiting for them if they still dare to put our people here to work as coolies.¡±


    Qinghe County had rebelledst fall, killing 3,000 Tang Empire navy officers and soldiers. All the other Tang Army soldiers who did not die were taken to the Mei Mountain, downstream of Fuchun River, to do hardbor. In the agreement signed by the Tang Empire and the West-Hill Divine Pce, the Tang Empire had asked for the return of these soldiers by the Qinghe County. That was the most important condition. Some time ago, the Tang Army, who suffered inhuman torture, were sent back to Chang¡¯an. ording to them, those days were really too painful.


    Ning Que had made a special trip to the Mei Mountain this time because the Tang Empire imperial court felt there was a problem with the number of people returned by Qinghe County. After the rebellion, there were at least 1000 people in the Tang Army who were sent to Mei Mountain to do hardbor, but less than 600 were sent back to Chang¡¯an this time. Qinghe County exined that many of the Tang Army were seriously injured in the battle and died after being taken to the Mei Mountain. They had died even though they had received medical treatment.


    This was a very reasonable exnation, but Ning Que did not believe it. As time slowly went by, the sun began to move westward, the coolies in Mei Mountain continued to struggle. He walked toward an abandoned coal mine.


    ording to the intelligence from the secret guards, when the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s diplomatic corps left Qinghe and began to prepare for talks with the Tang Empire, the coal mine had be quiet and no one ever entered again.


    Ning Que and Wang Jinglue walked into the abandoned coal mine and along the tunnel. As the tunnel extended inward, the top of the mine became shorter and shorter. They had to hunch their bodies and move with increasing difficulty.


    They walked for an indeterminable amount of time. The bottom of the mine waspletely dark and freezingly cold. The cold wind gathered the pungent smell of decay into one ce, unable to release it outward.


    Ning Que stopped and reached for his podao. After confirming that there was no danger at the bottom of the mine, he lit an oilmp near the cave wall. Wang Jinglue looked at the bottom of the pit illuminated by dim light and turned extremely pale.


    Ning Que¡¯s facial expression did not change. He squatted down and touched the femur of a decaying remain with his hand. He determined it to have been broken by a heavy object. Then he walked inside to see the injuries on the bodies.


    There were at least hundreds of corpses piled up at the bottom of the coal mine. These corpses were badly decayed and could not be identified, but he knew these were the people he was looking for.


    These people were not killed by knife or arrow wounds, but had died of starvation and thirst, or exhaustion. These people were the heroic soldiers of the Tang Army and had, of course, resisted against torture. That was why the whips had torn away the flesh on their bones, and that was why their femurs were broken by stones.


    Ning Que and Wang Jinglue stood in front of the corpses of these Tang soldiers and remained silent for a long time.


    The Tang Empire always paid the highest respect to the soldiers who fought for their country. Even their remains would not be allowed to be left out, much less the soldiers who were alive then. The Tang imperial court had not ceased their efforts in rescuing these soldiers once they found out that more than a thousand Tang navy officers were sent to Mei Mountain by the warlords of Qinghe County to do hardbor. Even at a critical moment when the Abbey Dean had entered Chang¡¯an, the imperial court had not forgotten to send warnings to Qinghe and secretly promised to reward them should they release these men.


    The families of Qinghe County should be well aware of Chang¡¯an City¡¯s stance and would not dare torture these soldiers again. However, in less than a month, hundreds of these soldiers had died in Mei Mountain. One could imagine what kind of torture they had suffered.


    Wang Jinglue used to be the Minister of Offerings at the prince¡¯s residence. He had lived a carefree life before being sent by His Majesty to study under General Xu Shi. After several years of training, he was now a true soldier.


    He looked at the hundreds of remains at the bottom of the pit and said, ¡°We must find a way to send them back.¡±


    Ning Que had joined the army in the City of Wei for many years and clearly understood the military practice, but he did not agree with Wang Jinglue. He said, ¡°There is no problem with them being buried here, but a better tomb needs to be built.¡±


    Wang Jinglue understood what he meant. One day in the future, the Tang Empire cavalry will rush out of the Verdant Canyon and sweep across the south. Qinghe County was and will be the Tang Empire¡¯s territory.


    Ning Que said, ¡°I have flooded the Qinghe River Guildhall in Chang¡¯an with blood. Some think that I was too vicious and are worried that it would affect the loyalty of those in Qinghe River County. I wonder if they will still hold on to their views if they were to see this. The loyalty of the people can take time, but the dead will urge us to hurry.¡±


    Wang Jinglue said, ¡°There are still many people in Qinghe County who are still loyal to the Tang Empire, and even many of the warlords¡¯ children still regard themselves as Tang citizens. Otherwise, there would not have been so many officials who were also children of warlords who died in martyrdom during the rebellion. The only worry is that killing too many of them might push them into opposing us.¡±


    ¡°When the warlords rebelled, the people did not stand up and make their stand. When more than 300 Tang officials were beheaded, they remained silent and looked on. I don¡¯t know who they are loyal to. I only know that they were silent once. That is being an aplice, and that is a reason to die.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I have a lot of blood on my hands, but they can¡¯t be cleansed no matter how much I wash them. Some people don¡¯t seem to have blood on their hands, but even if they jump into the Fuchun River, they can never be cleansed.¡±

 Chapter 836 - A Rundown Temple Outside Yangzhou City

    <h4>Chapter 836: A Rundown Temple Outside Yangzhou City</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Outside of Yangzhou City, the scenery at the Fuchun River was the most beautiful. Within the city, the Thin Lake had the best view. It was already summer, theke surface with lotus leaves floating, looking as if it were a field. The willow trees by theke provided some shade, and it was so exquisite it was beyond words.


    Just like the years before, the dance troupe of the House of Red Sleeves who were headed to the West-Hill Divine Pce to participate in the Light Sacrifice was staying in the Song Family Manor by the Thin Lake. And just like before, the atmosphere was just as depressing.


    As in thest time, the invitation was sent by the fourth steward of the Cui Family. The steward did not put his hand behind his back to hide his broken fingers. Instead, he calmly ced them in front of him, as if he wanted the girls from Chang¡¯an to clearly see what kind of injuries he had suffered because of them.


    Three years ago, the House of Red Sleeves went to the Lanke Temple to attend the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival. It had coincided with old Master Cui¡¯s 100th birthday. The Cui Family had asked the House of Red Sleeves to present a song that had been lost in history. Ning Que wrote a letter, and the arrogant fourth steward had had several of his fingers broken and was severely thrashed.


    As time passed, many things had changed. Today¡¯s invitation from the Cui Family was to invite the House of Red Sleeves to the Cuiyuan Garden by the Fuchun River to celebrate the n leader, Cui Shi¡¯s birthday. The invititation indicated that they should present the same song. Xiaocao, who could face it with silent pride before grew more and more solemn. Qinghe County was no longer part of the Tang Empire, and the Academy could not guarantee the safety of the girls.


    Xiaocao looked at the West-Hill Divine Pce priest beside her. He seemed to not have heard anything. Even though he was ordered to bring the House of Red Sleeves to the West-Hill Divine Kingdom in good condition, it did not mean that he did not want to see the proud Tang girls be humiliated in Qinghe County.


    The fourth steward of the Cui Family smiled contentedly as he watched the young girl in charge of the House of Red Sleeves epting the invitation. He gently stroked his itchy severed finger and walked out of the Song Family courtyard with his head held high.


    When he came to the streets of Yangzhou City, noisy shouts could be heard through the little sedan chair with green curtains. The fourth steward frowned slightly and lifted the curtains. He asked softly, ¡°What is Young Master Tang doing here?¡±


    Ning Que and Wang Jinglue returned to Yangzhou City. They wore straw hats and looked like ordinary people. They did not draw any attention or suspicion.


    While walking on the street, Ning Que stopped suddenly and looked up at the que with the writing ¡®Qinghe Post Office¡¯. He could not help but remember that this ce used to be called ¡®Tang Empire Post Office¡¯, and it was here, where Sangsang had sent money to the City of Wei.


    Before he could sigh with emotion, his attention was drawn to the noise in the street. Ning Que and Wang Jinglue walked over and saw a crowd around several young people dressed up like schrs, one of whom was shouting something, while the others were ring at the warlords¡¯ armed forces that kept order. After standing in the crowd and listening for a while, Ning Que found out that the young man who was talking loudly was a distant rtive of the Cui Family.


    The young master Cui waved his arms around and looked at those Yan or South Jin Kingdom people on the streets who wore haughty looks on their faces and shouted angrily. ¡°Why should we, the Tangs, allow foreigners to behave arrogantly on ournd? Why has the Divine Hall deacon who injured the little girlst night been sent out of Yangzhou City?¡±


    Those children of the warlords who were all holding sabers looked slightly uneasy. There were also some on the crowd who refuted the statement made by the man. The argument naturally evolved to one in which it was questioned whether the people of Qinghe River were Tangs.


    ¡°What sphemy against Haotian? This is just a one-sided argument of the West-Hill Divine Pce! Who can prove it? I, Cui Huasheng, have been a Tang since I was born. I have been proud for more than 20 years, but they now say that I am not a Tang and want me to be a dog like those people from the South Jin Kingdom and Yan. Why should I agree?¡±


    The crowd gradually settled and Ning Que looked on coldly. He found that the young man named Cui Huasheng and those beside him were all sons of the warlords. This confirmed that there were still many people in Qinghe County who were loyal to the Tang Empire, especially those who had not been blinded by the moss walls.


    At that moment, the crowd gradually divided and a small sedan chair with green curtains entered. The fourth steward of the Cui family lifted the curtains and got off the sedan chair. He looked at Cui Huasheng and said coldly, Young master Tang, your cousin and uncle, and hundreds of people in Qinghe have died in our guildhall in Chang¡¯an city. Do you still want to call yourself a Tang?¡±


    Cui Huasheng was startled when he first saw the man. Then, he said mournfully, ¡°My wife¡¯s family, the Qius, were killed by youst autumn. It was a family of more than 40. They were killed, and yet, no body was found. My nephew was not even four years old, and he was killed by you all. My brother was a prefectural magistrate, and yet, he was beaten to death by a rod by you all. ording to you, steward, if I call myself a son of the Qinghe families, wouldn¡¯t I be ashamed to see them?¡±


    The steward¡¯s face darkened and he said, ¡°Young Master Tang, you should know that this is something that Qinghe County has dreamed of for a thousand years. There is no turning back regarding this matter, so why are you being so obstinate?¡±


    Cui Huasheng bellowed, ¡°I am obstinate, what can you do to me? Qinghe does not belong to any country now, and it has nows. Can you condemn me to any crimes?¡±


    The fourth steward said coldly, ¡°There are nows, but there are n rules. Come, tie Young Master Tang up and send him to the ancestral hall for his n to deal with!¡±


    With that, several people emerged from the crowd and hit the young man until he fell to the ground. They tied him up tightly with hemp ropes onto a wooden rod and lifted him up, walking towards the ancestral hall outside the city.


    It was still the beautiful Fuchun River.


    Ning Que only discovered then that there were many bamboo cages on the river, which were probably used for drownings. One wondered how many young men and women were drowned to death in the beautiful Fuchun River over the years, and how many wretched souls there were in the tender and beautiful reeds.


    He stood by the river looking at the reeds, listening to the sounds of the rods and the cheering of the people that came from the Cui ancestral hall at the back. His expression did not change, and he turned away after a long time.


    The ancestral hall was surrounded by nearly a thousand people. Cui Huasheng was dressed in white, pale and covered in blood. He was hung on a pole outside the ancestral hall, on his dying breath. He seemed as if he would die at any moment.


    Wang Jinglue walked to his side.


    Ning Que said, ¡°It does not mean that everyone agrees with how the Cuis have handled the matter just because they cheered. It is because Cui Huasheng is a high and mighty young master, but has been stripped and beaten up today. The people watching would naturally feel happy.¡±


    Wang Jinglue paused and said, ¡°I have heard some news that Cui Huasheng is indeed a son of the Cui Family and married a woman from the Qiu family. She was the youngest daughter of the Qiu family from the Zhi State in Ruyang. The Qiu family was killed by the rebels on the day of the rebellion. His wife was at home that day and died on the spot.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The people have to calm down first before we can gain their loyalty. The Cui Family has allowed their children to die in exchange for the silence of the people of Qinghe County.¡±


    Wang Jinglue asked softly, ¡°In that case, should we save him?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°This man loves his wife very much, and it is also painful for him to stay alive.¡±


    Wang Jinglue said, ¡°At least he should not suffer while he is alive.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°There are still two cultivators in the Knowing Destiny States by the Fuchun River. I won¡¯t take risks for this person, of course... if he can survive this, he might be of some use in the future.¡±


    With that, Ning Que turned to leave the ancestral hall.


    He looked across the Fuchun River and sensed the faint fluctuations of the array intent in the manor. He thought it was indeed a ce with a longer history than the Academy and that it should not be underestimated.


    There were two people on the banks of Fuchun River who were in the Knowing Destiny State. This would not make him feel afraid, but if he wanted to start working, there would be a lot of movement. Everyone would then know that he had left Chang¡¯an.


    He could not allow anyone to know that he had already left Chang¡¯an, at least not before he entered the West-Hill Divine Kingdom. Otherwise, cultivation powerhouses all over the world would try to kill him.


    After all, he had signed a peace treaty with the West-Hill Divine Pce to ensure the safety of Qinghe County. The Divine Hall would not endure it for too long if he killed too many people here. He had a lot of things he could not do until the Academy gets rid of the Drunkard and Butcher¡ªthe two knives that had always hung over the Tang Empire¡¯s head.


    But there were some things that he could do and should do.


    Just like what Yang Erxi said, what else can the Tangs do now at Qinghe County other than killing people?


    Ning Que did not enter Yangzhou City this time.


    He stood in the woods outside the road silently and looked at the official riding a white horse.


    The official was very young and looked elegant and quiet. He had dozens of subordinates and guards with him. He did not forget to wave to the people of Qinghe County and drew cheers.


    To Ning Que, the young official was very funny, because the official uniform he was wearing was clearly in the Tang style with only some minor details changed. It seemed rather ludicrous.


    The reason why Ning Que always thought this person was funny was because he was called Zhong Da Jun.


    ¡°On the day of the rebellion, he made the greatest contribution. He is also the son of the city guard of Yangzhou, so he received plenty of boons after the incident. He is likely to be knighted if Qinghe County bes an independent country.¡±


    Wang Jinglue looked at Zhong Dajun and said.


    The great meritorious service rendered during the rebellionnaturally meant that many Tangs were killed. The officials of all levels from Yangzhou City were all tricked into going to the Chatin¡¯s Mansion and then, were ambushed and killed.


    Ning Que looked at Zhong Dajun¡¯s hands which were holding the reins and said, ¡°I will kill him before leaving. Make preparations in Yangzhou City. I¡¯ll be back in a month at most.¡±


    There was a rundown temple outside Yangcheng Prefecture. It was the only temple there.


    Two monks had suddenlye to the rundown temple, one of whom was dark, quiet and distinguished, while the other was blind, dejected and silent.


    Ning Que entered the rundown temple at dusk.


    He looked at the tanned monk and smiled, ¡°Senior Brother, long time no see.¡±


    The monk was the abbot of Lanke Temple, Monk Guan Hai.


    The monk, Guan Hai, looked at him and sighed. ¡°Everyone in the world is waiting for you to leave Chang¡¯an so that you can be killed. Who would have thought that you¡¯d really leave the city?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Senior Brother, you¡¯ve been cultivating for all these years. Haven¡¯t you also left the temple?¡±


    Guan Hai said, ¡°The West-Hill Divine Pce is organizing the Light Sacrifice, and someone from the Tile Mountain has to go.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I want to go and watch the bustle as well.¡±


    Monk Guan Hai only knew then that Ning Que was about to go to the West-Hill. He was shocked speechless.


    Ning Que looked at the back of the temple and asked, ¡°How has he been?¡±

 Chapter 837 - The Distant Past

    <h4>Chapter 837: The Distant Past</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ning Que used talismans to set up a Taoist enchantment in the rundown temple. He did not worry that the sounding from the front of the temple would travel to the back. But even so, he still paid close attention to his volume and did not want the blind monk to hear it.


    The monk Guan Hai said, ¡°He had drifted from ce to ce after being exiled from Chang¡¯an. Even though his cultivation state is still as before, he can no longer see, so his life has naturally been a little difficult. The year beforest, he wandered to the Tile Mountain and was discovered by monks in the temple. He has been cultivating with me in Lanke Temple ever since.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the back of the temple and thought that the father of the rogue monk had been killed by himself in the Western Wilderness. The Xuankong Temple had long since expelled him and would not care about his life or death. He must have lived a miserable life drifting from ce to ce over the years. However, Ning Que simply thought about it but did not feel any sympathy for the monk.


    ¡°It¡¯s been hard on you, Senior Brother.¡± He looked at Monk Guan Hai and said, ¡°I¡¯m really sorry to ask you to talk about that.¡±


    Monk Guan Hai sighed and said, ¡°Even though he hadmitted many crimes in those days, he is now blind. In the temple, there are no disputes with the world. Why drag him into the matters of the mortal world and have him suffer?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°If he really cares not about the world, why would he leave the Tile Mountain with you?¡±


    Monk Guan Hai looked at him and said, ¡°I can understand how the Tangs feel. But if you really want to do something, why do it under someone else¡¯s name? Why bother?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Yes, it is indeed pointless to ask you to bring him over. It is just an excuse. The Academy does not want to give Haotian Taoism any excuses to attack, and I need an excuse to convince myself to do some things.¡±


    Monk Guan Hai sighed with emotion and said, ¡°Not even Teacher could see which road you would take back then. Now I can¡¯t help but worry.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The master was called Qishan (alternate mountain), so why would he not think that I might take the alternate path?¡±


    Ning Que entered Yangzhou City in the night. He arrived at the outside of the Chatin¡¯s Mansion and looked at the clumps of bamboos sticking out of the courtyard wall. He was silent for a while, and he bent his knees slightly back before jumping onto the wall. He stretched his right hand in a sh and held on to the rough bamboo, slipping quietly into the office like a piece of thin cloth.


    Wang Jinglue had already left at this time and was probably making preparations by the Fuchun River. He was the only one who entered the Chatin¡¯s Mansion. He did not use any talismans nor held any des, and had easily entered the deepest part of the mansion just using his incredible physical strength. Nobody could discover him.


    ording to cultivation states, he was now a powerhouse in the Knowing Destiny State. But his true strengthid in the body he had gained after cultivating in the Great Spirit and joining the Devil as well as his identity as a Divine Talisman Master.


    In Qinghe County, there was no one other than the two aristocratic powerhouses in the Knowing Destiny State who posed a threat to him. This also meant that there was no one in Yangzhou City who could stop him from doing what he wanted.


    After some time, he brought Zhong Da Jun out of the backyard. Zhong Da Jun was not unconscious but he could not speak. His face was pale and filled with terror.


    Ning Que walked to the courtyard walls casually as if he was holding a bag of trash. He lifted his arms, and tossed Zhong Da Jun over the wall. There was a dull thud, and then, Ning Que jumped over the wall.


    There was some blood on the street outside the wall. Zhong Da Jun¡¯s face was even paler and his features were scrunched up in pain. Some of his bones had probably shattered but he still could not speak. Even at this time, he did not know who had silently infiltrated his home and restrained him.


    Arriving at the rundown temple at Yangzhou City, Ning Que tossed Zhong Da Jun on the ground, then poured himself a bowl of herbal tea and drank it slowly. Zhong Da Jun discovered that he could move his limbs, but he did not attempt to try to run and instead sped his hands at his chest which was hurting. Then, he spat out the blood that had been trapped at his throat for some time.


    There were beads of sweat on his forehead due to pain and terror. His arm trembled as he wiped his sweat. He forced himself to calm down before he dared to see how his captor looked like.


    Zhong Da Jun was a son of a prominent family in Qinghe River and had grown up wealthy. His life had been smooth-sailing and he had brought merit in the rebellionst year. He had both status and power. If asked if he had any regrets in life, he would say that it was a person called Ning Que who was once his peer in the Academy.


    Naturally, he remembered Ning Que. He would recognize him even if Ning Que turned into ashes. How would he be able to forget the person who had brought unto him endless humiliation back then?


    What made him feel even more ashamed was that he discovered that he could not hate Ning Que after seeing him after such a long time. He did not feel the pain in his body, and only fear and desperation.


    Even if he had done well for himself in Yangzhou City, how could hepare with Mr. Thirteen of the Academy? The fight between Prince Long Qing and Ning Que may make a good conversation from another perspective, but if the world knew that he had been secretly jealous and hated Ning Que for years, theywould onlyugh at him.


    Just as Zhong Da Jun had thought with indignance and self-mockery, helplessness and despair in countless nights over the years, Ning Que had basically forgotten the little incidents that happened in the Academy back then. He did not know that Zhong Da Jun hated him, but he truly hated Zhong Da Jun.


    Zhong Da Jun stood up with difficulty and looked at Ning Que¡¯s back as he stood in front of the ruined Buddha statue. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something but not knowing what to say. Would it help to beg for mercy now?


    Ning Que turned around.


    Zhong Da Jun asked in a quivering voice, ¡°What are you going to do?¡±


    Ning Que looked at him and did not say anything. His eyes were cold and devoid of any emotion.


    Zhong Da Jun looked at Ning Que¡¯s expression and knew that he would suffer greatly today and might even die. However, he did not understand why Ning Que would do it.


    ¡°Why?¡± He asked.


    Ning Que did not say anything but only looked into his eyes quietly.


    Zhong Da Jun could see from Ning Que¡¯s eyes that he was about to kill him. He saw the blood in the Chatin¡¯s Mansion that day and saw the indignant eyes of the Tang officials who had died under des and axes.


    He started to tremble violently, and his desire to live overpowered his fear. He clenched his fists tightly in front of his chest and said raspily, ¡°The Academy signed the agreement. You cannot kill me!¡±


    Ning Que still did not say anything.


    Zhong Da Jun knelt in front of Ning Que and spread out his hands. He defended himself desperately, ¡°I was ordered to act, and I was just a nobody in Qinghe County. If you want to kill people and show them how powerful you are, it doesn¡¯t make any sense to choose me. What¡¯s more, if it was found out that you left Chang¡¯an, the powerhouses from Haotian Taoism wille to kill you. Why would you take such a risk for a nobody like me?¡±


    Ning Que looked at him silently, not saying anything.


    Zhong Da Jun despaired and cried out in horror, ¡°You had not yet signed the agreement when you killed the people in the Guildhall, but if you kill me now, you¡¯re challenging the Divine Hall! The Divine Hall wants the loyalty of the world, would they allow something like this to happen? Do you want to start the war again? What do you intend to do?¡±


    It was eerily silent in the dpidated temple and only the sound of Zhong Da Jun¡¯s yelling could be heard. His voice echoed between the broken Buddha statue and the dirty old curtain cloth. This strange feeling made him feel as if he was about to go mad. He beat the dusty ground desperately, reasoning in his hoarse voice why Ning Que could not kill him. He belittled himself, sounded regretful, and yelled and cursed crazily wanting only to save his own life.


    ¡°You¡¯re trying to scare me, right?¡±


    Zhong Da Jun looked at Ning Que, his face filled with tears and snot. Heughed dazedly like a madman and said, ¡°You cannot kill me, so you¡¯re trying to scare me into bing crazy!¡±


    He seemed to have caught on to the most important point in the matter and waved his arms around excitedly. He shouted, ¡°I understand now! You¡¯re trying to scare me! I, Zhong Da Jun, will not be scared!¡±


    When he heard that, Ning Que smiled and left the rundown temple.


    Zhong Da Jun was startled as he looked at the tightly shut temple doors. His arm was still in the air. He did not understand the situation right now. Why did Ning Que just leave like that?


    At this moment, a voice rang from behind the temple. ¡°Are you Zhong Da Jun?¡±


    At the sound of his voice, a monk came out from behind the temple. He leaned on a bamboo stick and wore a cloth kasaya. His head was slightly tilted and his eyes deeply sunken, looking like a deep ck hole.


    Zhong Da Jun looked at the blind monk and answered subconsciously, ¡°Indeed.¡±


    The blind monkughed when he heard his reply. Hisughter was hoarse and yet loud and bright. It shattered against the four walls of the deteriorated temple, shaking the dust off the walls. Yet, it seemed evil.


    Zhong Da Jun sensed that something was off and asked, ¡°Who are you?¡±


    The blind monk fell silent and then slowly answered, ¡°I am Wudao the monk.¡±


    Zhong Da Jun felt that the name was slightly familiar but had forgotten where he had heard this name.


    Wu Dao walked up to Zhong Da Jun and scrunched up his eyes. He looked at the man he could not see and asked with an indifferent expression, ¡°Have you stayed in Chang¡¯an before?¡±


    Zhong Da Jun grew more vignt and answered cautiously, ¡°I only stayed there for two years.¡±


    The blind monk was the illegitimate child of a great Bhadanta in the Xuankong Temple. He was expelled from the Wilderness because of his bad conduct. After stepping into the mortal world, he incurred many debts of love and ruined many good women. He had once participated in the Academy¡¯s entrance exam, and it was on that day that he met Ning Que and Sangsang.


    He fell in love with Sangsang at first sight and wanted to be close to her. However, he was chased off by Master Yan Se and then, blinded by the Great Divine Priest of Light, and was thus handicapped.


    He was a rogue monk in the mortal world and had no contact with the cultivation world, not knowing what happened in it. Growing weary he was blinded, he wandered around the world. He cultivated in seclusion at the Lanke Temple and eventually forgot the past. He was about to forget the stories Senior Brother Guan Hai told him and was about to forget how the girl looked like. But he had never forgotten the name that the man on the mountain path called himself.


    The Academy¡¯s, Zhong Da Jun.


    He did not hear the entire conversation between Ning Que and Zhong Da Jun and only heard Zhong Da Jun¡¯s final statement. He had thought that he was already far from the mortal world and did not love nor hate. However, today, in this rundown temple, he had heard the name and discovered that he still hated.


    He hated that he was blind and that he had been so blind to have fallen for that girl. He hated that the girl was blind to be together with the man called Zhong Da Jun and hated that he had lost everything, while that man had everything.


    ¡°No wonder Senior Brother brought me here. He wanted me to see my heart for myself so that I can find true peace. I have to disappoint him. Because only by killing you can I attain true peace and get release from the abyss that is hatred.¡±


    Wudao said seriously as he looked at Zhong Da Jun.


    Zhong Da Jun looked at the monk¡¯s blinded eyes and felt his body turn cold.


    Wudao said calmly, ¡°Please rest assured that I will use the most solemn attitude and kill you seriously.¡±


    Zhong Da Jun had wanted to say something, but could only utter a terrified huff.


    To be serious in whatever one was doing, one had to be focused. Being focused would make things slow. One could imagine that Zhong Da Jun would die very slowly this night, in this rundown temple that no one had visited to made offerings in a long time.


    Sad and inaudible cries and pleadings for mercy rang out from the temple. The two aged doors seemed to tremble, as if they could not bear to see the images happening inside.


    Ning Que stood in front of the temple, listening to the sounding from behind. He thought of the first time he hunted with the Old Hunter and of the beast at the bottom of the pit that had been pierced by about ten bamboo sticks but had not yet died. Its cries were very simr to Zhong Da Jun¡¯s, and Ning Que could not help butugh.


    Monk Guan Hai looked at Ning Que¡¯s expression and silently uttered the name of Buddha. He said with a bitter expression, ¡°You have indeed joined the Devil. I have done evil things with you, and I guess it¡¯d be hard for me to enter thend of Buddha this life.¡±


    Ning Que looked at him and said, ¡°Since Zhong Da Jun deserves to die, this can¡¯t be considered an evil matter.¡±


    Monk Guan Hai shook his head and said, ¡°Evil and goodness are from the heart. Lying is evil. Younger Brother Wudao¡¯s early life was filled with evil, but he repented in the temple. Yet, I have tricked him intoing to kill someone. I have sinned even more.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I have said earlier that since he was willing to leave Tile Mountain with you, it means that he still longs for the mortal world. It looks like this longing was made up of hatred. How can we release his hatred? Buddha Dharma will not work, and neither would the ssics. Revenge, revenge. If we do not return the pain we felt, can we release the hatred brought by pain? After tonight, Wudao will be released from his hatred and will no longer long for the mortal world. He might even be enlightened in the Great Way. No matter how I see it, you have done good, Senior Brother, so where have you sinned?¡±


    ¡°I cannot win against you in an argument.¡±


    Monk Guan Hai said guiltily, ¡°But I know that my actions have not pleased Buddha.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Buddha is but a cultivator, so how can he determine whether we are right or wrong based on his moralpass? If you¡¯re worried that you will not enter thend of Buddha in this life, shall I build you one in the mortal world?¡±


    Monk Guan Hai did not know how to reply.


    At this time, the screams in the rundown temple had slowly weakened and stopped.


    Wudao pushed open the temple doors and stumbled out. He syed out his hands that were filled with blood and looked around him. He said, in a crying manner, ¡°Senior Brother, where are you? Where are you?¡±


    Ning Que walked to the side silently.


    Monk Guan Hai walked up and held Wudao.


    Wudao fell to the ground and hugged his legs to himself and cried out loud. He said, in an unsteady voice, ¡°Younger Brother has failed Senior Brother¡¯s teachings.¡±


    Monk Guan Hai teared up as well. He gave Ning Que a parting nce that held a myriad of emotions. Then, he helped Wudao into the dark night.


    Ning Que looked at the gory image in the dark ruined temple. He stood silently until the sounds of people approaching could be heard on the state highway in the distance. He saw the lited torches and then, he turned away and left.

 Chapter 838 - Indifference

    <h4>Chapter 838: Indifference</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    It did not take long for the people in the Chatin¡¯s Mansion to discover that Zhong Da Jun had been captured. They started searching in Yangzhou City. The warlords¡¯ armed forces showed how powerful their control was, as they discovered a lead in an extremely short period of time. Then, they brought their torches to the rundown temple outside the city.


    In the ruined temple, they discovered Zhong Da Jun lying in a pool of blood. After ascertaining that the noble was no longer breathing, they all looked tense and uneasy.


    The manors by the side of the Funchun River grew tense because of Zhong Da Jun¡¯s mysterious death. The leads that they found afterwards made the atmosphere even more stifling.


    ¡°The two monks boarded the State Ship of the South Jin Kingdom an hour ago. It should already be on theke. Even if we go after them on a speedboat, I¡¯m afraid we will only catch up when we reach the opposite shore.¡±


    Cui Shi looked at the wrinkles on his father¡¯s face and spoke after a moment of silence, ¡°The Zhong Family¡¯s reaction was really strong. They requested that we immediately send men and give chase. I have stopped them for now.¡±


    The head of the Cui Family looked like an ordinary rich man. Butpared to his father the true Dominator of Qinghe County, he seemed not asposed.


    The old Master had once served as prime minister of the Tang Empire, and he had great prestige in Qinghe County. He could turn tides just with the wave of his hand, and he had given Qinghe County the rare opportunity they had sought for a millennium. However, such a powerful old man looked like an ordinary servant, and he had indeed once met Ning Que under the guise of an old servant.


    ¡°The Zhong Family has no other son as aplished as him. He died so miserably, it is natural that they would react so strongly. You have done well, we cannot let their anger spoil the hard-earned peace in Qinghe.¡±


    Old Master Cui reached into a copper basin and rubbed the hot wet towel inside it. His weary voice gradually grew, soothed by the heat, and he said, ¡°But we have to find out who those two monks are.¡±


    The most important reason for the low-key response of Qinghe County¡¯s warlords to the murder case tonight was that the two monks were the biggest suspects. In today¡¯s world, Buddhism was as low-key as in previous years, but with the defeat of the Academy and Haotian Taoism, people gradually began to grow wary of the power of those monks.


    The old Master covered his face with a hot towel and remained silent for a long time. He felt that there was more to Zhong Da Jun¡¯s death but could do nothing.


    ¡°Be silent, be silent.¡± His voice came through the wet towel, and reverberated through the silent study in the mist. ¡°Qinghe should be silent at a time like this.¡±


    Cui Shi knew where his father¡¯s worries or fears wereing from. But Qinghe would live in fear as long as the West-Hill Divine Pce is unable to destroy the Tang Empire. What was the use of being silent?


    Old Master Cui threw the towel into a ball and looked at him and said, ¡°You will keep a low profile for the birthday party tomorrow. As for the House of Red Sleeves... send them out of the country respectfully.¡±


    Cui Shi looked at the white cloth on his father¡¯s face and suddenly thought with malice that it was really like how the old man had died. Then, he agreed calmly and walked out of the study.


    It was silent in the study, the old Master stumbled to the side of the case, picked up the cup of tea that was the right temperature, put it to his lips and drank it lightly. His wrinkles were full of worries.


    The cup in his hand was shaking gently, and the clear yellow tea looked like waves, just like his mood at this time. After learning of Zhong Da Jun¡¯s death, he behaved very calmly as in the past years, but who would know that he had already started to fear and be uneasy.


    At the beginning of his studies, he had set a grand wish to lead Qinghe County to regain its independence and glory from one thousand years ago. He wanted to separate them from the savage and uneducated Tangs. However, he had not dared to do anything, and could only wait.


    He nursed his body, strictly controlled his diet, lived for more than 100 years, and was still in good health. He could even live for many more years. Then, the day he had waited for had arrived.


    The Headmaster had left the mortal world.


    Old Master Cui started to leave his name in history. But he still feared. Especially every night, when he looked at the moon shining over Fuchun River; he was so terrified he could not fall asleep.


    Monk Guan Hai and Wudao left on a boat in the night. They would head straight to the West-Hill to participate in the Light Sacrifice organized by the Divine Hall. Wudao might attain an opportunity on their way there, arising from the bloody night, and leave.


    Wang Jinglue wore his straw hat and disappeared inside Yangzhou City. Other than Ning Que, no one knew that he was once here, and no one knew where he was hiding or what he was preparing to do.


    Zhong Da Jun had died and Qinghe County was uneasy. The manors by Fuchun River started to fear. Ning Que had done what he wanted to and left Qinghe, arriving at the Great Lake.


    It was an extremely ordinary passenger ship. Compared to the South Jin Kingdom navy fleets that were patrolling the Great Lake, it was miserably small. The ship would shake badly when it encountered slightlyrger than usual waves.


    The passenger ship moved very slowly and needed two days to travel through the Great Lake. The people who took the ship were naturally ordinary folks who did not have money. The wide and endless Great Lake, theke view that grew boring rapidly and the bad smelling cabin that they could not escape from made the already numb people even more so. There were only the sounds of asional retching that identified that these people were alive.


    Ning Que sat at the end of the ship. He did not enter the cabin to squeeze with the others for a sleeping ce. The two-day journey was not difficult for him. And if he had not been afraid that he¡¯d call attention upon himself, he would not even eat.


    The wind was strong and humid. Ning Que sat at the end of the ship and watched the white froth on theke¡¯s surface. He did not feel like reciting poetry, and only thought of other things silently.


    His Psyche Power was sensing between heaven and earth. He did not want to startle the cultivators in the South Jin navy, and his psyche power was precisely controlled on theke behind the ship while some part fell into theke.


    On that snowy day, he wrote the word in the snowy street and cut tens of millions of times. From that moment on, not even the Drunkard or the Butcher dared to enter Chang¡¯an.


    However, he could not be forever trapped in the city of sorrows. He did not wish to be a prisoner in Chang¡¯an. He knew that he had to leave, especially after the news from the Peach Mountain had spread.


    If the world knew that he had left Chang¡¯an, the future that weed him would be endless assassinations. He might even see that gon waving in the wind on the boat the very next moment.


    He needed to be able to write that character outside of Chang¡¯an as well.


    However, the people in the world are just as numb as the passengers on the ship. Faced with the inescapable, they choose to ept with silence. Who would travel with him?


    If there was no one who could travel with him, how would he be able to write the character ¡®people¡¯?


    Ning Que looked at gulls on theke, his right hand holding the de of his iron cuss. He considered the question silently from day to night, continuing until the morning light turned theke into a fish belly.


    But he still did not receive an answer.

 Chapter 839 - The Man in the Shabby House

    <h4>Chapter 839: The Man in the Shabby House</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    To cultivators, every danger was an opportunity. The greater the danger, the more likely it would help them break through the realm. Master Huang Yang had received enlightenment as he pendted between life and death when he met with the Horse Gang in the Western Wilderness. The Abbey Dean entered the legendary State of Pureness in Chang¡¯an before thousands of des. These were all proof to that statement.


    Ning Que was naturally taking a risk in leaving Chang¡¯an. But he had toe, and he had also wanted to master the ¡®people¡¯ talisman through this journey.


    The colors of theke and nature, the different types of people in the ship cabin, thinking without eating or sleeping had given him some vague insights, but he was not able to put it into his cultivation.


    After two days and a night, the passenger ship docked at a pier on the South Jin Kingdom. The people on the ship brought their body odors with them, and carried their luggage up ashore. They walked through the streets where vendors called their wares and disappeared into the crowd.


    Since Wang Jinglue was not around, Ning Que, who carried his iron cuss on his back and held the box carrying his iron arrows would not be able to enter the city. He left the state highway and climbed a mountain peak where few people visited. He found a mountain stream and took a bath. He caught an antelope, barbequed it and ate it. Then he slept soundly in a tree.


    Several years ago, while he was still a teen, he had carried Sangsang on his back and lived in the Min Mountain. Now that he had the Great Spirit, he could kill a tiger with a casually thrown rock. Living in the wild might be difficult for an ordinary person, but was simple to him and he could livefortably.


    He traveled through the wilnds of the South Jin Kingdom, and before long, he saw the city in the distance. While it was not as grand as Chang¡¯an, it was still a city that ranked highly in the world.


    Ning Que became much more cautious. He made some modifications to his appearance, restrained his Psyche Power, and covered his Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi with the Great Spirit before entering the state highway.


    He waited for half a day on the state highway and found the traveling team from the prince¡¯s residence. He quietly ced his de and arrows onto the carriage and then followed the team far into the city.


    He was being very cautious not because this was the capital of the South Jin Kingdom, Linkang City and that there were many highly skilled people in the city. It was also not because there was a tactical array on the city walls. It was because there was a lonely mountain not far from South Jin Kingdom¡¯s capital.


    The Sword Garret was in that mountain. Ning Que was confident in his cultivation state and abilities. But he did not think that he could withstand the onught of Liu Bai¡¯s sword for even a moment.


    He followed the carts into Linkang City and stayed in a quiet ce. He retrieved the iron cuss and arrows from the carriage. The whole process was simple and no one discovered him.


    He nned to stay in Linkang City for two days ording to the original n, to experience the ce. He wanted to see if it¡¯d be of any help to his cultivation before leaving.


    Since he was returning to the mortal world to find a Lucky Chance, he had to feel the aura and strength of the world, and he naturally had to make contact with ordinary people. As such, he went straight to the Eastern City. Like Chang¡¯an, the eastern city of LinkangCity was where the poorest people lived. The poorest people were the most ordinary people because poverty was the norm in the world.


    He had prepared himself mentally before entering the Eastern City of Linkang. However, when he crossed the straight and prosperous royal street and entered the smallne, he still found that his preparations were inadequate. He thought that he was used to poverty having stayed in the Eastern City of Chang¡¯an for many years. Linkang was also the capital of South Jin Kingdom, so he had not expected the poverty to be beyond his imagination.


    The streets were already very narrow, and the awning set up haphazardly by the residents upied most of the area, making it extremely crowded. It was difficult for anyone to walk between them without having to dodge the protruding iron sheets. One also had to guard against the urine that people inside the shelter would ssh out.


    Ning Que stepped on the old bricks in the sewage and made his way through the dirty air and the noisy scolding sounds. Suddenly, he smelled a greasy smelling from the side and turned his head to see a ragged woman with a piece of meat in her hand wiping a hot iron pan.


    Several little boys, shirtless and covered in mud, stood by the iron pan and waited, tightly holding the chipped bowls in their hands with light in their eyes.


    The sound of someone using the toilet emerged from the bathroom at the side which was separated by a cloth. After a while, the old cloth was lifted up and a girl holding her pants walked out. There was not any shyness on her face, and only anger as she yelled at the boys, ¡°Is this for you? Don¡¯t even dare think about it!¡±


    Ning Que looked at the scene, and remained silent for a moment. Then, he continued walking on the neglected street. He saw scenes that were sadder and darker than the one before. He had not experienced life like this since he left the City of Wei. He would never see something like this in Chang¡¯an.


    He walked slowly because of the narrow streets and because he wanted to see more. He squatted not far from a well on the street corner and watched the women wash clothes. He found that they did not use soap powder, and even the washing hammer lying beside them was seldom used. They just rubbed the clothes incessantly with their white hands, damaged by the water.


    Chatters rang out behind him. He got up to let the people pass. The girl whom he saw earlier walked over with a rice bowl in her hands. The bowl was moreplete than the others and there was still color on the porcin. There was steamed rice in the bowl, with ayer of green vegetables and two pieces ofrd.


    The boys, who most likely were her younger brothers, followed behind her excitedly. They would asionally raise their arms to wipe their noses and had surely been thinking about stealing food from that bowlter on.


    Ning Que thought about it and followed.


    In the deepest part of this dpidated square city, there was one of the most dpidated houses. The girl came to the house with her brothers and discovered that the house was already surrounded by children like them, with rice bowls in their hands.


    Her younger brother stood on tiptoe and looked at the rice bowls held in the hands of other children. He turned to her and shouted, ¡°Elder sister, Zheng Lili¡¯s family actually cooked Braised pork! Braised Pork!¡±


    The little boy¡¯s expression was unusually exaggerated, and he waved his hands around, his expression was one of incredulity and shock. It was as if he had seen the most ludicrous thing in the world.


    The girl listened to her brother¡¯s reports and her expression grew ugly. She pushed through the crowd and looked at the girl who was her age, but better dressed. She said loudly, ¡°It¡¯s my family¡¯s turn to cook!¡±


    Then, she looked at the children holding rice bowls outside the shabby house and red at them. ¡°It¡¯s my family¡¯s turn. If you dare fight with me, I¡¯ll burn your houses in the night!¡±


    There were more than ten children who had brought food to the house. Some of them were obviously older than her. When they heard her, they looked afraid and backed away subconsciously.


    The girl who was her age was not afraid of her and even took two steps forward.


    This was because there were five pieces of thick and oily braised pork in her bowl. This was why her face shone with pride, just like braised meat. She said, ¡°Your family only has a few rotten pieces of leaves. How will teacher be full from that? If the teacher is hungry, how can he teach us?¡±


    The girl¡¯s brother who was standing at the side said softly, ¡°That¡¯s right sister. Why don¡¯t we let teacher eat the braised pork and we split this bowl of steamed rice?¡±


    The girl pushed the little boy away and walked up to the girl holding the bowl of braised pork.


    She had never liked thispanion of hers who was proud because her seventh sister had married a man who worked in a rice shop. When she saw the cheap ribbon on her head, she grew even angrier. She said, ¡°Zheng Lili, you shameless wench, are you sending food to the teacher or trying to seduce a man?¡±


    Zheng Lili was flushed with anger but was not good at scolding others. Her hands began to tremble, but she was afraid that the braised pork in the bowl would fall to the ground and did not dare to reach out to hit the other girl.


    The girl looked at her and harrumphed. She looked up and puffed up her undeveloped chest, looking like a victorious hen. She held the vegetable rice and walked into the dpidated house. When she reached the front of the house, her expression turned respectful and she said softly, ¡°Teacher, food is here.¡±


    There was a creak, and the door of the house was pushed opened from the inside. The sound made one feel as if the door might fall at any time.


    A man walked out of the shabby house.


    The man¡¯s features were extremely clear. He wore a thin cloth shirt that did not have a cor. His ck hair had beenbed back casually into a bun. There was a chopstick inserted in it. His expression was calm and natural.


    He looked at the children holding the rice bowl and at the hopeful expressions on their faces. He could not help but smile and said, ¡°Go home and tell your parents, we have already arranged for each family to take their turns. If you insist on doing this, I have to leave this ce.¡±


    The children seemed to have heard the most terrible thing when the man said that he would leave the ce. They quickly kept the bowls they raised high in the air and hugged them closely. They did not know what to do next. Every child naturally looked towards Zheng Lili because her family had sent braised pork with rice.


    The man smiled lightly and took the vegetable rice from the girl right in front of the door. Then, he picked up his chopsticks from the windowsill, squatted by the door and began to eat.


    The girl stood beside him, satisfied. She ced her little hands behind her, looking extremely proud.


    The man looked at the children who still refused to go home. He said with a bitter smile, ¡°What are you all still doing here? Eat the food in your bowls and we¡¯ll start ss in a while.¡±


    When they heard this, the children looked at each other, and then cheered. They knew that the food they were holding was more delicious than the food they usually ate. They had long since wanted to eat it.


    Only Zheng Lili did not eat the food in her bowl. She walked to the man and looked at him tearfully. She said, ¡°Teacher, have a piece of meat, just eat a piece.¡±


    The man smiled helplessly and reached out with his chopsticks for a piece of braised pork.


    Zheng Lili smiled through her tears and ran home with the bowl of food. She still had a younger brother at home, and braised pork was a delicacy that she dared not eat alone secretly.


    The man smiled and said, ¡°We¡¯ll have ss in a while.¡±


    ¡°I won¡¯t forget.¡± Zheng Lili said with a smile and then bounded away. She had a red hair tie in her hair, and it looked adorable as her hair bounced.


    The girl standing behind the man held the corner of her skirts and pursed her lips. She was envious of the girl, but she had gone to the market to look at the red hair tie. It cost two pence and she could not afford it.


    The man nced at her and said softly, ¡°Teacher will buy you one secretly.¡±


    The girl smiled happily and nodded.


    Ning Que stood outside the crowd.


    He looked at the shabby house and at the children who went to send food. He looked at the man who walked out of the shabby house and was extremely shocked.


    He had seen this man before. Then, the wind had blown at the Hn Sea and several powerhouses had gathered. Not even Eldest Brother could overwhelm the brightness that this man gave out.


    No matter where the man appeared, the West-Hill Divine Pce, the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, the Imperial Pce of the secr world or in the ancient temple of Lanke, he was just as proud. He was the World Wayfarer of Haotian Taoism, Ye Su.


    However, he was now hiding in a dpidated house in the east of Linkang City. He was so calm and ordinary as if he had lived here for many years.


    What had happened?


    Then, the crowd suddenly heard violent yelling and whipping.


    A priest who was under the protection of more than 10 guards arrived at the old house. He looked at Ye Su who was holding his rice bowl and asked coldly, ¡°Who allowed you to teach here?¡±

 Chapter 840 - A Sage in Town (Part One)

    <h4>Chapter 840: A Sage in Town (Part One)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Dressed in a long robe made of silk, the prosperous-looking priest raised his hand slightly to cover his nose, obviously not used to the unpleasant odor of the dirty watering from the alley.


    Ye Su asked, ¡°Do I need permission to teach at Linkang City?¡±


    The priest replied, ¡°If you want to teach the children manual skills, no one will stop you. But apparently, every day, at the end of your lesson, you will share with them a piece of doctrine from the god, Haotian?


    Ye Su replied, ¡°Yes, you are right.¡±


    The priest looked at Ye Su and chastised him in a stern voice, ¡°Anyone who shares the teachings of the gods but is not a priest ismitting an unforgivable sin.¡±


    Ye Su thought about it, ced his rice bowl on the windowsill and said, ¡°If you think that I have sinned, I will not deny it.¡±


    The priest looked at Ye Su¡¯s calm expression and felt really humiliated. He thought that he would see Ye Su sniveling and being penitent and was ready to assume the role of a savior with much pleasure. So, he became furious, grabbed a whip from his bodyguard and proceeded to unleash his whip on Ye Su.


    No one dared to stop him. Regardless of how much the children who held their rice bowls loved their teacher, at this moment, they could only stand at one side, trembling. That was because the priest represented the will of Haotian, the supreme god.


    Ning Que stood amongst the crowd, looking down at how the lowly priest punished Ye Su for such a minor offense and naturally, found it ridiculous. He thought what Ye Su had done was akin to courting death.


    Yet when the whip cracked down on Ye Su, he had no reaction. He lowered his head while standing in front of the dpidated house, as if waiting for thesh to leave a bloody imprint on his face.


    Ning Que just recalled, during the battle of Verdant Canyon, Ye Su was defeated by Second Brother in a sword fight, lost his cultivation and became a normal person. Perhaps, even a useless one. He was no longer the proud, sword-yielding Taoist practitioner walking the earth.


    The Ye Su now, could not avoid this whipping so naturally, he could not avoid the barrage ofshes thereafter. Once a talented Taoist martial artist, he would perhaps die at this mediocre person¡¯s hands.


    Ning Que did not prepare to help because he had no reason to.


    He felt that for a talented martial artist like Ye Su to die in such a pathetic way, it was quite regrettable. But he did not want to reveal his own whereabouts. When he saw a blind man with a sword amongst the crowd, he knew such a regrettable act would not happen.


    The whip broke into pieces, inch by inch, in the middle of the grimy air andnded in the muddy water in front of the dpidated house. The priest looked at the whip handle in his right hand perplexingly, wondering what had happened.


    And then, all five fingers on his right hand were sliced off and the whip handle fell onto the floor. Fresh blood gushed from the exposed cross section of the eerily white bones, signifying five white gs that announced the priest¡¯s surrender.


    The priest¡¯s face became ashen white, looking at his right hand with blood trickling down, he was in so much pain that his body shook uncontrobly. Yet he bit down on his lips and refused to cry out in pain.


    He was not a particrly devout or determined person but he was able to bear the pain because like Ning Que, he too had spotted the blind swordsman.


    From the moment he set eyes on the blind swordsman, the priest knew why his whip and his fingers had been cut. And he also knew that if he wanted to keep his head, he had to bear with the pain.


    The Xi Ling Temple had a respectable status outside of the Tang Dynasty. The nobles did not even dare offend their lower level priests. However, there was a ce in the South where even those from the temple must be careful and respectful because the lower level priests were looked down upon.


    That ce is the Sword Garret.


    The priest did not dare to stay in front of the house any longer. Together with his bodyguards that amounted to more than ten, he bowed his head as he walked along the street. When he passed by the blind swordsman, he wished he could bury his head further into his trousers.


    ording to hearsay, the King of the South Dynasty died at the hands of this blind swordsman. He felt that his life was not any more precious than his bodyguards.


    Liu Yiqing walked to the front of the house and respectfully greeted Ye Su as a junior. Even though he had achieved a high status and Ye Su was just a normal person whose Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi had been abandoned, Yiqing was still respectful towards him.


    ¡°Teacher would like you toe back to the cab and meditate?¡± Liu Yiqing gently said, ¡°You are so brilliant, why do you hide? Teacher knows that there will always be those ignorant and arrogant people making fools of themselves.¡±


    Ye Su saw the smiling blind swordsman in front of him. This was the third time that the Sword Garret had sent someone for him; he also knew what Liu Bai meant by those words.


    Having failed to learn the ways of Taoism as well as his studies, the situation had changed subtly. Having stayed hidden for many years, the Taoist monastery was no longer a ce people revered and paid respects to.


    He looked at Liu Yiqing and said, ¡°I am only an ordinary person; those people who have their eyes on me can¡¯t go too far. If that is the case, there¡¯s no need to care.¡±


    Liu Yiqing asked doubtfully, ¡°Mister, how can you be sure this living is safe?¡±


    Ye Su replied, ¡°The people living here are all ordinary people. I too wish to live like them. If I cannot do so, it means that it is Haotian¡¯s will. Please give my regards to Teacher.¡±


    Liu Yiqing knew that it would not be that easy to convince him and shook his head helplessly. He knew in his heart that his state had been destroyed, and although it seemed that he had resigned to fate, Ye Su would always be Ye Su.


    Liu Yiqing used the sword as a walking stick and left. The dpidated house regained its serenity and the children looked up at Ye Su whose eyes filled up with passion once again. The children were used to seeing bloodshed on the streets so they were not affected by the sight of the bloody severed fingers in the muddy waters, but they understood that their teacher was no ordinary person.


    As the saying goes, children from poor families tend to take charge of the household much earlier. If this saying did not have some truth to it, Sangsang would not be what she had be. The children who were in front of the dpidated house had used the knowledge that they had gained from the streets to figure out that Ye Su was no ordinary human. Hence, they were not frightened by him or what had happened just now. Instead, they used their charms and innocence to im a ce around him.


    Ye Su did not care too much about the excitement around him. After the children had finished their meals, he went into the house, retrieved a small ckboard and started teaching the children. In an instant, the surroundings became much quieter.


    Ning Que stood outside and looked on. He listened to Ye Su¡¯s calm and gentle voice, seeing how patient he was when it came to answering the children¡¯s questions and suddenly realised that Ye Su reminded him of his big brother.


    The content of Ye Su¡¯s lessons surprised him because it was not about religion. Initially, he started by teaching them how to weave a flowery ornament for the head, then he proceeded to teach them how to draw. He also taught the boys carpentry. It was only when the lesson wasing to an end, that he started to talk a little about religion and it consisted of very simple teachings.


    Ning Que did not understand.


    As dusk approached, the street was filled with the voices of parents asking for their children to return. The poor could only afford two meals a day and dinner was always served earlier so that if they were to be hungry, they could retire to bed and the hunger would be more bearable.


    Ye Su waved his hands, indicating that the lesson hade to an end. With the ckboard wedged between his arms and body, he walked into the house as the children bowed respectfully and left the house while chattering boisterously.


    Ning Que walked to the front of the house and stared in silence at the pping broken door that could not even hold back the wind.


    Logically speaking, he should not enter. However, it was his destiny to follow the same path as those in the mortal world. To have met Ye Su in this town where muddy waters flow through was precisely an opportunity that Fate had nned for him. To think that he would chance upon Ye Su before he was headed for the West-Hill to meet death was an even greater opportunity. Therefore, he believed that he was ready to kill the other person.


    He took two steps forward, raised his hand and knocked on the door.


    ¡°Pleasee in.¡± Ye Su announced from inside the house.


    Ning Que entered the house and looked around. There was a bed, a water jar and the felt that covered the roof was full of holes, which allowed the sun¡¯s rays to enter, brightening up the ce.


    Ye Su was surprised to see him. He smiled and asked, ¡°What are you doing here?¡±


    Ning Que replied. ¡°I am just wandering around and did not expect to see you here.¡±


    Ye Su invited him to sit on the bed and said. ¡°Meeting like this is always random.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Who would have thought that you would be hiding here and working as a teacher?¡±


    Ye Su scooped a bowl of water from the jar, handed over to him and said, ¡°After the battle at the Verdant Canyon, I headed to the Kingdom of Song and from there, I came here and have been here for a while.¡±


    Ning Que took the bowl of water from him, thanked him and asked, ¡°It was rumoured that you had faced death during that particr journey?¡±


    With a smile on his face, Ye Su replied, ¡°Life and death are things that one cannot fathom. Looking back at the days when I was so full of pride, it is really quite ridiculous.¡±


    Considering the state that Ning Que was in, he could not quite understand what Ye Su had said. But he could vaguely grasp the idea that Ye Su might have already surpassed his former self in certain ways, even though he seemed to be in a decrepit state right now.


    Ye Su asked, ¡°Why did youe to the South Jin Kingdom?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°I was just passing by. I was preparing to go to the Xiling temple.¡±


    After the battle of Verdant Canyon, Ye Su had be powerless and no longer practiced self-cultivation, so naturally, he did not concern himself with the matters of the spiritual world nor did he care.


    Ning Que remembered the scene where Ye Su was teaching and asked, ¡°Based on your knowledge, if you wanted, producing an outstanding schr or a cultivation powerhouse for the South Jin Kingdom is chicken feed to you. But why do you teach them such simple things?¡±


    Ye Su replied, ¡°If one wants to follow the ways of the Buddha, one needs an innate talent for it. Linkang City does not have that many talents. Even if there are, they would have joined the Sword Garret. As to why I teach these children to knit and to work with wood, it is because these skills can help them earn money in the shortest possible time. Hence, they can have more food.¡±


    Ning Que pondered for a long time and finally replied with two words, ¡°That¡¯s admirable.¡±


    Ye Su replied, ¡°If you think that what I did was admirable, what about your eldest brother? He taught here many years ago, so what I am doing now is nothing new.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Eldest Brother has been that kind of person all along but for you, it was a big change so that is why I admire you.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°When I was staying at a Taoist temple at Chang¡¯an for a while, I was able to find true righteousness in the streets and I liked that. Now, I am still searching for peace so there is nothing much to admire about me.¡±


    After hearing what Ye Su had said about finding true righteousness, Ning Que raised his bowl of water, looked into Ye Su¡¯s eyes and asked him in a serious tone, ¡°Can you teach me all these?¡±

 Chapter 841 - A Sage in Town (Part Two)

    <h4>Chapter 841: A Sage in Town (Part Two)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Darkness thickened in the shabby house. Ye Su looked at him, smiling and saying, ¡°I¡¯ve learned some from your Senior Brother before, so I should teach you. But you¡¯ll have to pay for it. What do you want to learn?¡±


    Ning Que looked at the bowl in his hand, in which the water looked like wine. After a moment of silence, he started to tell the stories that had happened sincest autumn.


    The snow fell like a light curtain hanging over the city wall. The Abbey Dean met thousands of cusses in the city. The snow burnt in the air, burning out a hole, revealing a piece of blue sky. And Ning Que wrote a character in the blue sky.


    Ye Su was now an ordinary person, an outsider of to the cultivation world. He might have missed lots of things, but he had been informed of the Abbey Dean¡¯s breaking into Chang¡¯an by the Sword Garret long ago.


    ¡°You are invincible in the city as long as you can write that character, so even my teacher could be beaten by you. But if you step outside the city, it would take no more than a nce for teacher to kill you.¡±


    Ning Que admitted it and said, ¡°I want to know how to be equally powerful, even if I am outside of Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°I am not qualified to teach you, neither are Yan Se and your many predecessors. In fact, nobody is qualified because you¡¯re the first one who has been able to write that character.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°How can I gather more of the people¡¯s will?¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°In the mostmon way, it¡¯s presented as faith.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I¡¯ve got the same idea, but I don¡¯t want to follow the old way of Haotian Taoism.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°But you¡¯ve taken great risks to go out of Chang¡¯an and into the mortal world, travelingnd and seas. That is still the old way I went, when I was trying to see through life and death.¡±


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t quite understand what that meant.


    ¡°Back in the old days, when your Senior Brother was reading by the pool, he didn¡¯t even notice my sword; that was when I realized I still had to seek even if I had seen it through, but I¡¯ve lost it when I insisted it was something to be ¡®seen¡¯. Later when I was in secluded cultivation in the small Taoist Temple, I watched the temple breaking and copsing, then I realized that a wall has to be broken first if it needs to be restored. And finally I knew nature was all about the circle between life and death.¡±


    Recalling the strike at the mountain in the Wilderness, and the schr by the pool, Ye Su looked at him, then he smiled and said, ¡°That was why I was able to take Jun Mo¡¯s sword before the Verdant Canyon.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°What does it have to do with my current question?¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°You wrote the character no one had written out before; you¡¯re on a way without any pioneers ahead. I¡¯ve made it clear that nobody is qualified to teach you. I am sharing the process of my enlightenment. I am exhibiting it to you; I¡¯m bringing it out for you to touch. It¡¯s not up to me if you can catch anything from it.¡±


    After a brief silence, Ning Que replied, ¡°Go on.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°During the trial when I saw through life and death, I had been watching the mortal world as an outsider. Then, I became an insider when I was paralyzed, and came back to the mortal world, in this shabby alley in Linkang City.¡±


    Ning Que remembered when he stood on the city wall in Chang¡¯an, watching the crossing lines of streets and alleys, on which walkers were like ants. He remembered those dull faces of the travelers in the ship on the Great Lake. Then he realized he had never quit being an outsider.


    Ye Su looked at him and continued, ¡°You hate to follow the old way of Haotian Taoism because you hate the religion in your nature. While religion is indeed a kind of faith, faith is not all about religion; at least not all about religions like Haotian Taoism.¡±


    After thinking for a while, Ning Que said, ¡°I agree on that.¡±


    ¡°You know that for those powerhouses in Haotian Taoism, the higher their realms are, the harder it is to keep their hearts pure, which in simpler terms is: ¡®it¡¯s hard for powerhouses to have faith¡¯. Faith exists not in Heaven but in the dust and the lower ces. It is the unshakable will and desire of the ordinary. If you want to gather their will, you have to figure out what they really want.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°My Snow Moutain and Ocean of Qi are all broken, which made me a true ordinary person. I lost the qualification to consider thoseplicated questions, but I¡¯ve been given the opportunity to live like the ordinary, and know about their thoughts. For example, the children in my neighborhood, eating was their only faith.¡±


    Ning Que nodded as he thought of those pictures he had seen.


    Ye Su looked at him and asked, ¡°Have you eaten anything?¡±


    Ning Que saw therge bowl of green vegetables and rice, saying, ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°See? That is what differentiates you from the ordinary.¡±


    Ning Que understood him, and asked, ¡°Do you have noddles?¡±


    There was almost no furniture in the house. Thought there was an old pot and an ancient stove, rice and noddles were nowhere to be found. Lucky that Ye Su was a respected man in the neighborhood, and soon someone sent him a bowl of vegetarian noddles.


    Ning Que finished the noddles and drunk up the soup. He ced the bowl and chopsticks on the window. Then something came to his mind, so he asked, ¡°You said you want to live like the ordinary, then why let those kids send you meals?¡±


    Ye Su¡¯s answer was simple and convincing, ¡°I don¡¯t know how to cook.¡±


    That was an exnation Ning Que couldn¡¯t argue against. The he asked, ¡°I saw women doing theirundry in the front alley. They didn¡¯t use any soap powder; I thought it was because they were poor, but why not use rods for beatingundry?¡±


    Ye Su¡¯s exnation was still convincing: ¡°The beating rod would surely help to wash the clothes, but their clothes were made of inferior cloth, and might be damaged after a few beatings.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°They definitely live a hard life here, but do you have to be the same to understand their feelings? That¡¯s too self-inflicting.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve just started my learning, so I can¡¯t give you the exact answer or show you the way. I¡¯m telling you some of my intuitions, for your reference.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°I told you that faith could gather the people¡¯s will, and the point makes sense in the other way, that all the will gathered will finally be faith. What we need to know is the thing people really want.¡±


    ¡°Human beings are good at hiding their hearts, because confession is like taking off armor, too often followed up by danger. You can ask them what they want in themon andfortable days, but you could barely get the true answer. The true answered wille out by itself clearly, only when they are in the most desperate and extreme situations. They will be honest under the circumstances, no matter how dull or tricky they are.¡±


    Ning Que paused and thought of those brave Chang¡¯an people in the storm and snow day.


    Ye Su continued, ¡°Your previous sentence is wrong. I don¡¯t have to live a hard life to understand the feelings of the ordinary. I am living a hard life because hardness ismon in this world. I chose Linkang instead of Chang¡¯an, because the Tangs¡¯ life was too free and toofortable, unlike the lives of most people in the world.¡±


    ¡°In Linkang City, I have seen the most extravagant nobles and the poorest citizens, as well as the arrogant priests and the miserable servants. They seemed to be born to be rich or poor without a choice. I started to think about one question: why is it so difficult to change?¡±


    Dusk sneaked into the shabby house through the broken roof. Ye Su¡¯s body was glowing in warm red. He didn¡¯t look dignified anymore, but very amiable instead.


    He looked at Ning Que in silence, saying, ¡°ording to the doctrine of Haotian Taoism, men are born with original sins. And they shall confess so that they can be saved, and so that they can ascend the Kindom of Light. But why do they have to suffer decades of torture before they enter the Kingdom of God?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve never been to the kingdom of God, so I have no idea if it is as beautiful as it is described in the scripture. What I do know is that the world under the Kingdom of God, is far from perfect. What should Haotian¡¯s believers do when Haotian¡¯s merciful eyes aren¡¯t watching, or when he was deliberately testing mortals? Shall we wait for the salvation bitterly and dully, kneeling to the West-Hill like we¡¯ve been doing for countless years? Original sins exist with the fall of men, but where do they stem from? Is it greed? Is it yearning for freedom? Or is it the restless heart?¡±


    ¡°These are all desires that human beings can¡¯t possibly get rid of. If they are sins, then never can they be wiped outpletely. For the sins, the Buddhism demands meditation, which is to block the way of desire; Taoism takes advantage of these desires and converts them into devotion, faith as the medium. Only the Academy left no restraints for it.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°They are all reasonable, but not perfect. Buddhism ignored this life and pinned hope on the afterlife. Haotian Taoism ignored the real world, pinning hope on the Kingdom of God. The Academy set the Law of the Tang Empire, and is in the leading position, but it requires too high of a man¡¯s personal aplishment. I¡¯ve been thinking these days about another way to turn this world full of sinners into something better.¡±


    Ning Que looked at him and said, ¡°What way?¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°Haotian will save us at the end of our lives, then who can save us during the process? We must save ourselves.¡±


    After a moment of silence, Ning Que said, ¡°So you¡¯ve taught those kids.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°This is just the beginning.¡±


    Ning Que looked at him in the eyes and said, ¡°ording to the doctrine, Haotian is the only qualified one to save people. Your ideas and behaviors now will be considered sphemous by Haotian.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°We¡¯ll be allowed to save ourselves if Haotian really loves people.¡±


    Ning Que watched him in the twilight, speechless.


    As time went by, if he could really make it in the end, this street covered by waste water might be turned into a sanctuary of Haotian Taoism, and he would be the Sage.


    Of course, there was a high chance that, this former Taoism Wayfarer would be tied on a stake, and burnt to coal by those priests in red from the West-Hill Pce.

 Chapter 842 - The Waning Moon

    <h4>Chapter 842: The Waning Moon</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ye Su was saving himself by preaching in streets and alleys. He was leading folks to save themselves. The change might look tiny, considering how long Haotian Taoism hadsted in this world. However, it was revolutionary because the worship for Haotian had been reced by the new doctrine, and the yearning for the Kingdom of God had been reced by the love for living in the moment. That was what shocked Ning Que most.


    Ye Su looked at Nin Que and said, ¡°Preaching is the process of gathering the people¡¯s will, and uniting their faith. I am still trying to figure out the details. You can go to the Book Hall in the West-Hill Pce, if you are interested. There are many examples in Haotian Taoism ssics.¡±


    Ning Que settled in Linkang, and continued to discuss and study. The longer he stayed with Ye Su, the more he respected the man living in the shabby house. He was like a grindstone, round outside, but tough inside. He ground all the details from the scriptures into the tiniest powder, and made them his own.


    During discussions of those days, Ye Su had kept silent on the character Ning Que wrote. Like at the beginning, he peacefully talked about the inspiration he had learned from his life and from traveling to all the countries. He had read many scriptures since he was young, so Ning Que learned the systemic theory of Haotian Taoism from him.


    Ye Su put forward an interesting hypothesis during discussions, that if Haotian was the rule of the world, like the Headmaster once said, then how did the cold and impersonal rule gain life and strength? He thought it was possible that its life and strength came from the faith of people, which Ning Que found it reasonable. But when it came to the Evesting Night which happened every ten thousand years, the hypothesis didn¡¯t make any sense.


    Aside from discussions, Ye Su taught the neighborhood children every day. He taught them woodworking, weaving and wine-making methods, and sometimes he told them stories from the scriptures.


    Lingkang City was rainy in midsummer. The district was full of temporary buildings and dpidated old houses, which were so vulnerable in the heavy rain, that some copsed every day.


    Ye Su saved people everywhere with the children, and fixed broken eaves. He even nned to fix the drainage system of the block after winter.


    Disciples from the Sword Garret dropped by from time to time, so Ning Que seldom went outside the shabby house, and he didn¡¯t help with those things, either. He was watching the process, and finally he learned something.


    The rain had been pouring for three days, exhausting everyone. Just as they were about to lose all hope, the rain stopped, and the sky cleared up.


    People in the soaked streets and alleys were cheering. Ye Su was worried about the gue after the rain because of increasing mosquitoes. So he carried his medical box and dropped by the neighborhood.


    Ning Que poured away water in the three broken bowls before his bed; they were used to contain the leakage from the roof. He looked through the hole on the roof, and at the sun. Then he asked in silence, ¡°Why did you stop crying?¡±


    Ye Su was exhausted when he returned. He handed a bowl of green vegetables and rice to Ning Que, saying, ¡°I¡¯m not feeling well today. You may eat it alone.¡±


    Ning Que looked at his pale and bony face, and thought that he seemed weaker than most ordinary people; if he persisted, he would die before he became a sage.


    ¡°I won¡¯t eat it.¡± He looked at the piece of blue sky on the roof and said, ¡°I¡¯ve got to go.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°Of course, I have nothing left to teach you.¡±


    Ning Que looked back at him and slightly frowned.


    Ye Su then smiled, saying, ¡°Don¡¯t hesitate. Mercy was delicious but poison to you now. I won¡¯t hate you for killing me.¡±


    Ning Que thought it for a while and said, ¡°I still feel it a pity.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°You¡¯ll die if I spread the news that you¡¯ve left Chang¡¯an City, no matter how diligent you were.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I hope you can live as much as you hope me to.¡±


    Ye su asked, ¡°Why would I?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Because what you¡¯re doing and what you¡¯ll do are quite meaningful. And you¡¯ll face obstacles in the future; you will need me then.¡±


    Ye Su said nothing, and he smiled.


    Ning Que looked at his eyes, and said, ¡°You need Tang and the Academy.¡±


    Ye Su didn¡¯t answer him directly. He said, ¡°If you don¡¯t kill me, then you¡¯ll have to pay the tuition fee before you go.¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t take it as a joke, he took out notes, and handed one of them to Ye Su.


    Ye Su took it and found that it was 100 taels of silver. He smiled and said, ¡°Rumor has it that you and that man are misers. It seems to be true.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Other students paid you with vegetables and rice, why should I be used for giving one hundred taels of silver?¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°A bowl of vegetable and rice with fat dregs is more important to those children than 100 taels of silver to you, let alone that it was steamed rice.¡±


    Ning Que thought for a moment, and he found it reasonable. So he said, ¡°I¡¯ll pay you more.¡±


    Ye Su replied, ¡°Just go and buy something for me.¡±


    Ning Que came back from the market to the alley. He walked over the bricks soaked in waste water. Squeezing through the dense shacks, he arrived at the door of a house.


    Several unkempt boys were eating sorghum rice from the bowls. Their mother was looking at the meat hanging on the stove, worrying because it was bing thinner every day. Then the corner of the curtain was lifted up; a girl came in with her hands on her pants, saying, ¡°Teacher said you should buy me a belt.¡±


    Her mother said angrily, ¡°Where¡¯s the cloth belt I cut for youst night? Just keep ying on the street, and you¡¯ll tear all the tough belts apart! Where should I buy you another one?¡±


    Ning Que called the girl wearing the reluctant face, and handed her some things.


    The girl was young and smart. She asked as she took over the things, ¡°Who are you?¡±


    Ning Que looked at her messy hair and said, ¡°I¡¯m a friend of your teacher. This is the belt he wanted me to buy for you, and this is the headdress flower he promised you long ago.¡±


    ...


    ...


    The severe heat of midsummer arrived as soon as the rain stopped pouring. The air was so humid, and the umted waste water was giving out a terrible smell.


    Ye Su sent Ning Que off. They stopped by a quiet ce outside the alley. Ning Que looked at him and said, ¡°The girl was so happy, and... are you sure you¡¯re just making her happy, for nothing?¡±


    ¡°Her name is Huanzi. She¡¯s just a little girl.¡± Said Ye Su.


    Ning Que said, ¡°Why so serious? I was joking.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°We¡¯re not that close.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°But she and I were very close.¡±


    Ye Su asked, ¡°Who¡¯s she?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Your sister.¡±


    Ye Su felt the two words familiar, then he realized Ning Que said the same two words when he asked him where he had learned the Dahe Sword, in the snowy Chang¡¯an.


    ¡°People from the Academy can be really annoying sometimes.¡±


    He looked at Ning Que and said, ¡°I still don¡¯t understand why you don¡¯t want to kill me.¡±


    ¡°I hated you before, but now I can live with it. I never hesitate to kill, but only for proper reason or the mood.¡±


    Ning Que told him what he did in Qing He County, then he said, ¡°I let Wudao kill Zhong Dajun to help Guanhai solve the problem, to subdue Qinghe County and to release my anger. And most importantly, I want to bind the Buddhism Sect, or at least the Lanke Temple, with the Academy. But meeting you in Linkang made mee up with another possibility, that if you¡¯re the future of Haotian Taoism, then why would I try to kill you?¡±


    Ning Que hadn¡¯t walked far before he heard children reading in the alley. Or to be specific, they were reciting the method of headdress flower weaving instead of reading books.


    He turned back to see the alley, only seeing the mist rising at dusk. He heard the sound of children, and as he walked further, the terrible smell was gone. He could only see the picture, and it was beautiful, in its own way.


    Ye Su had integrated theories from the Buddhist Sect and Haotian Taoism, and mixed it with his own experience in the small temple. Now he had his own view of the world, which betrayed Haotian.


    He had betrayed Haotian before the Verdant Canyon, just like how the Abbey Dean had betrayed Haotian in Chang¡¯an. For those who were really powerful, no matter how devout believers they used to be, they would definitely find their own way one day if they wouldn¡¯t stop thinking.


    ¡°We¡¯re all leaving you.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the sky above Linkang, talking to her.


    He hadn¡¯t learned any wisdom directly from Ye Su in those days, but there was one thing that he had finally figured out, which was to never ask a Sage for the way to be a Sage.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que had never run into any other cities after he left Linkang. He walked in the mountains, and the whole journey was peaceful until he was about reach the West-Hill Divine Kingdom.


    He made a bed with cloth tied between trees, and slept on it at night. Soon he slept soundly in the gentle summer breeze, on the swinging bed.


    Suddenly, he was awakened by firecrackers. While rubbing his eyes, he saw the small vige,ying at the foot of the mountain, setting firecrackers everywhere.


    He was confused because there was no festival that day, and it was days away from the Light Sacrifice. Why were they setting off firecrackers? Did someone just die?


    If someone had died, the firecrackers should only be set off by one family, the family of the dead. So why was it everywhere now?


    Then the sound came from the ridge of the mountain, and that was when Ning Que realized something was happening, and he turned serious.


    He suddenly noticed that the moon light in the forest was dimmer than usual. The difference was slight, which the ordinary might ignore, but not him; not one of the students who too often looked up at the moon and called the Headmaster¡¯s names. The slight difference was obvious enough.


    He looked up into the night sky, and then he couldn¡¯t move his eyes from it.


    The moon in the night sky was waning by a piece.

 Chapter 843 - Into the Kingdom of God

    <h4>Chapter 843: Into the Kingdom of God</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    After the Headmaster ascended to heaven by the Sishui River, rain poured for more than ten days. The night when the rain retreated, the bright moon shone upon the mortal world.


    Nobody had ever seen the moon except for the Buddha. He had once seen the obscure prophecy about the moon in the ¡°Ming¡± Handscroll from the Tomes of the Arcane, and it waster clearly pointed out in his reading notes of the ¡°Ming¡± Handscroll.


    ¡°The moon rises as the nightes¡± referred to something called ¡°moon¡± showed up in the mortal world, as the Evesting Night approached. However, how could the Evesting Night be called ¡°night¡± if the moon was too bright?


    Too often, people panicked because of the unknown, and they had another tough but pathetic trait: they would get used to everything as soon as they found it hard to make the change; they epted it in mere time, and submitted to it silently.


    As soon as they found that the bright moon did not disappear, they soon epted its existence. Imperial astronomers observed its moving trajectory, and tried to tell fortunes from it. Poets wrote poems to praise the beautiful moon, and some of themon folk began to worship the moon god.


    The moon stayed in the night sky just like any other thing staying in Haotian¡¯s world, solemn and stable. Why bother to worry about it?


    All these feelings were based on their thought that the moon was stable, and so it was. No changes had ever taken ce since it showed up that day; it was always full and bright. It appeared in a fixed spot in time, and its position had not changed.


    Something different was happening tonight.


    The moon turned from bright to dim, just like the sky; then it waned as if it were missing a piece. Changes were taking ce on the moon, and everyone on Earth could see it.


    Firecrackers resounded through the mortal world for more than ten nights. Countless towns and viges were sparkling. People looked up at the night sky with fear. They couldn¡¯t stop ying the gongs and drums because they were afraid that the moon would fall down from the sky. They couldn¡¯t tell whether they were ying the gongs and drums to regain their confidence or to cheer the moon up.


    Unlike those praying to Haotian and worshipping the moon god, Ning Que was walking in the woods, doing nothing at all. He looked at the moon every night, silent, with worry all over his face.


    He had seen the moon wax and wane for countless times, so he wasn¡¯t as panicked as others. What confused him now was not knowing the reason why this moon would wax and wane, making him worry about the Headmaster. <i>¡°Did you get hurt? Can you hang on?¡±</i>


    Ning Que arrived in the West-Hill Divine Kingdom. He still felt exotic even though this was his second time being there. Hisst journey had been on the carriage with the Headmaster and had not left any impression on him, so his mood was still a little strange.


    Along his way, he didn¡¯t see anything impressive except those believers kowtowing devoutly on the mountain path. Even the food here tasted far worse than what could be had in Chang¡¯an City.


    He arrived near the West-Hill Divine Pce, and felt the typical solemnity that the country was famous for as he watched the towering moutain, the three cliff tform beyond the reach of normal people, and several lofty temples seated on the cliffs.


    In Haotian¡¯s world, Haotian Taoism had unimaginable authority and resources, and since the Zhishou Abbey was eminent but reclusive, the West-Hill Pce became the political and power center of the world. That was the fact which could never be changed by neither the rise of the Tang Empire nor the presence of the Academy in the southern part of Chang¡¯an City.


    There was still a long time to go before the Light Sacrifice, and the West-Hill Pce was heavily guarded already. Inspections were much more intense on believers from the Tang Empire and the Great River Kingdom because of the war, and they had to go through three checkpoints before arriving at the foot of the hill the pces sat on.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t have the passport of Tang, and he was using his Song identity. He learned it from the best; Fouth Brother and Six Brother were second to none in the world for making falsified documents. What alerted him the most was the third checkpoint, or to be specific, the old priest lying on the bamboo couch, with eyes closed.


    Judging by the brown robe he was in, the old priest might not have a high position in the Divine Pce, but even the priest in red, who was in charge of the checking, showed great respect for him.


    The old priest was in charge of forbidding cultivators from sneaking into the Divine Pce. Unless they had some special Taoists Skills, or had already reached the Knowing Destiny realm, he could detect all those smugglers.


    Ning Que felt it hard to imagine that Haotian Taoism could so casually send a Knowing-Destiny powerhouse after the severe loss it had suffered from the war.


    He looked at those eminent Divine Pces from afar, and thought to himself that Haotian Taoism really proved itself to be the ruler of the world for thousands of years. Nobody knew how many great figures were hiding in the mountains.


    He walked over there as he was thinking. The old priest in brown didn¡¯t react to him at all; his eyes were closing, and he might have slept even deeper.


    During the fight with the Abbey Dean in Chang¡¯an City, Ning Que was immediately promoted to the peak of Knowing Destiny State by the endless Qi of Heaven and Earth poured into his body by the God-stunning Array. Later when the war ended, his state fell back to the middle of the Knowing Destiny State as the gathered Qi flowed back to the streets and alleys in the city. But his real power now was more than the middle, and he was a powerhouse edging to the peak of the Knowing Destiny State.


    The key point was that a breath Chang¡¯an Qi was still lingering in his body; the breath might be negligible for a thousand-year city, but it was an unimaginable resource for a cultivator.


    Ning Que hadpletely mastered the skill of storing the Great Spirit, during his cultivation in seclusion in the precipice at the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain, and he grew familiar with it after Yu Lian instructed him. As time went by, that Qi lingering inside was turning into his own Great Spirit.


    The drops of the Great Spirit inside Ning Que had converged into a pond, which could support him endlessly during fights; he could also use the power to cover his Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi to pretend to be an ordinary person. Even the Hierarch of the West-Hill Pce would fail to notice his disguise, let alone the old priest on the couch. That was also why he dared to walk back to the mortal world and march straight into the West-Hill Pce.


    No idents were supposed to happen to his identity, because he had long been fully prepared for this trip by the Tang Imperial Court and the Academy. The letter in his pocket was written by the Dean of Baiyun Abbey in his own hand.


    The priest in charge of logistics of the Revtion Institute turned gentle to Ning Que after he had read the letter, then he said, ¡°I have to ept you since this is the rmendation from my Senior Brother. You do your work in the Book Hall those days, and behave yourself. Don¡¯t go out too often.¡±


    Ning Que thanked him and put all those precious Song-style gifts at the room corner. Then, he saluted the priest and went to the Book Hall for the registry, with the approval in his hand.


    He was temporarily a servant in the Revtion Institute, in charge of the cleaning. The deacon didn¡¯t give him a second look after throwing him a bunch of keys and telling him some helpful things.


    A servant could hardly catch any attention, which was why he chose the position at the beginning of the discussion in the Academy. Moreover, he wanted to stay in the Book Hall because the Headmaster had once been here.


    The Book Hall used to mean a lot to Peach Mountain many years ago. However, everything had changed; the Book Hall was directly under the Divine Hall of Light now, and managed by the Revtion Institute.


    Ning Que looked at the cheerless hall, and at the many ssics on the bookshelves. As he saw the changes of the hall, he couldn¡¯t help feel sorry for the declining Haotian Taoism.


    The disciples of the Academy might find hard to imagine that the Book Hall had fallen to this state. Not to study is to regress, and a ce without book readers was doomed to decline.


    Lots of bigwigs came from this Book Hall, including the Headmaster and the Great Divine Priest of Light who had established the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. They were cleaners here a thousand years ago, and look at what they had be!


    Lamenting for Haotian was like worrying for the ancients, which was meaningless. He picked up the broom and the rag, concentrating on the cleaning for a while, then he began to read.


    Ye Su said there were lots of Taoism ssics here which would take much time to read, and Ning Que loved reading. Given the situation around him now, no one would disturb him.


    Some of the students of the Revtion Institute were in Qinghe, some in the South Jin Kingdom, and others were busy on Peach Mountain due to the battle with the Tang Empire and the Light Sacrifice. Ning Que had not met anybody in days because he was immersed in the Book Hall. He kept reading the books he needed.


    Time passed slowly. Sometimes he felt like a schr himself, but actually he was not. His eyes moved from the paper to the Divine Pce from time to time, and the expression gradually becameplicated.


    Before the Divine Hall of Light stood two girls.


    The two girls were very young, dressed in white, and nd in appearance. People felt so hard to move their eyes off the two girls because they were so white. Every inch of their skin was extremely fair, like snow with sheer perfection. Their expressions were pure like water.


    Not far away from the cliff tform, busy deacons and priests looked at the two girls in white, with their eyes full of curiosity and awe.


    The two were picked out from more than a hundred thousand of girls in the West-Hill Pce. ording to the order of the Hierarch, they had the status of saintesses, therefore, nobody would dare to ask no matter how curious they were of the girls or about the Divine Hall of Light.


    People in the hall seldom saw the two girls because they seldom stepped out of the hall. They were extremely mysterious.


    But today, they were standing outside of the temple.


    What were they waiting for?


    Dust rose on the mountain path at the foot of Peach Mountain, as several horse carriages were approaching at an unbelievably fast speed. It felt as if they were charging.


    People in the hall were shocked and wondering what was happening.


    <i>¡°Is it the war starting again?¡±</i>

 Chapter 844 - The Return of an Old Friend

    <h4>Chapter 844: The Return of an Old Friend</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The West-Hill pce was not an Unknown ce like the Zhishou Abbey or the Xuankong Temple, but still it was secluded from the mortal world. Inmon believers¡¯ eyes, it was the Kingdom of God seated in the mortal world. Horse carriages were running fast towards it from the foot of the mountain, seemingly bringing messages from the mortal world. Nobody wouldugh at that.


    The priests and deacons started checking. Not surprisingly, they saw high-level ID tokens, and when they found these cavalry soldiers and carriages were from Chang¡¯an, they grew more anxious. They looked at each other with shock and confusion in their eyes, <i>¡°Is war reallying back?¡±</i>


    Guarded by the cavalryman of the Divine Hall, the carriages were driven to the Peach Mountain, leaving dust behind, and it didn¡¯t stop until it reached the Divine Hall of Light at the cliff¡¯s tform.


    The two girls in white pped their hands gently.


    Ten more deacons walked out of one side of the Divine Pce, carrying ck cloth piled as high as mountains. Then, they stretched it to the front of the pce. The ck cloth was very long, almost the height of three people. The whole square was enclosed by the ck curtain, and people could barely see into the square even if they were at the white pce, seated at the peak of Peach Mountain.


    At present, there were only cavalry soldiers and carriages inside the ck curtain enclosure. Those who had just finished the long journey didn¡¯t care to salute the two girls in white. They opened the carriage door and supported the maning out of it.


    The girl in white looked at the priest in charge of the mission and asked with a childish voice, ¡°Are you sure there¡¯s nothing wrong?¡±


    The priest turned grave and said, ¡°Of course not. We¡¯ve used the connection with our old friends in the Southern Gate Temple, and surely the man has been staying in Lin 47th Street for all these years.¡±


    The girl in white looked at the middle-aged man beside the carriage, and nodded in satisfaction.


    The clothes covered by oil stains and the hands full of scars indicated the man¡¯s identity as an ordinary person. He was extremely nervous like everybody would be. He had been an ordinary Chang¡¯an citizen, and someone deceived him and brought him to the suburbs, then, he was dragged away. They traveled day and night. Finally he had gotten off the carriage, only to find he had reached the Kingdom of God for Haotian believers, the West-Hill Pce. He could barely support himself beside the carriage.


    He should be excited except for the fear and confusion as a Haotian believering to the West-Hill Pce. However, given the war with Tang which had just ended, he could barely believe anything nice was in store for him.


    The other girl in white asked the priest, ¡°Did you bring the other thing back?¡±


    This priest was the most loyal subordinate of the Divine Hall of Light, and he didn¡¯t even know what mission he had been carrying on until now, but he could at least guess that this was about the Divine Hall¡¯s biggest secret.


    He took a few careful steps forward and took out a cloth package, whispering, ¡°The tomb is too close to the Academy, so we had to be careful. The Old Brush Pen Shop was guarded and the yard wall had been pulled down months ago. Fortunately, that thing was just under the broken bricks, and nobody had found it. We made some efforts and finally brought in back.¡±


    He said like it was easy, but everyone knew how much it would take for men of the West-Hill Pce to sneak into Chang¡¯an, and to smuggle that thing out of the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    The girl in white took over the package. Her hand went downward a little because of the heaviness. She said nothing to all the otherpanions, and signaled all subordinates to get out of the ck curtain. Then she walked towards the absentminded man, and said, ¡°Let¡¯s get started.¡±


    The asked with confusion, ¡°What are we starting?¡±


    One of the two girls in white answered, ¡°On what you¡¯re good at. Don¡¯t tell me you cannot do it. We have every ingredient you need here, including the pot and the cookstove.¡±


    Till then the middle-aged man had known what they wanted him to do. Then, he felt more confused and shocked. He had traveled a thousand miles, and was that really what they dragged him here for?


    The situation here was too weird, but he wouldn¡¯t dare to say anything because he was in the territory of the Divine Temple, and he had to be obidient because of the situation.


    With honesty and sincerity, he took out the cookers and ingredients out of the carriage, and started to work.


    The West-Hill Pce hadn¡¯t missed a single item. All he had been using for the past ten years was here, including the cookers, the stove, the flour, the seasonings, and even the firewood.


    Smoke rose around the old cookstove as the firewood was lit up. The flour turned from sticky to firm again and again. It was not the right dough for either steamed buns ormon noddles. The kitchen knife fell on the slightly messy board, chopping green onions and coriander into pieces. Then ingredients like sauce and vinegar were poured into the bowl.


    The girl in white said, ¡°There shall be no mistakes, for either the ingredients or the procedure.¡±


    The middle-aged man thought to himself that it was impossible for him to made any mistakes, for he had cooked hundreds of bowls every morning for more than ten years, but that was only in his mind, and he didn¡¯t have the guts to say it out loud.


    When the water in the pot had finally boiled, he tore the dough in the basin into casual shapes, and threw them into the boiled water piece by piece. Those pieces quickly came into form, diving and floating.


    He stirred the pot with a smokey-handled spoon. The spoon was full of cooked flour pieces when it was brought out. The pieces were white and chewy like fish fat. The pot was empty without a single piece left, and in the spoon was the proper amount of soup, which was the skill gained from decades of repetition.


    The soup and the flour were then poured into arge bowl. Thick scent of sour and spicy vor rose in the square facing the Divine Hall of Light. Then, the fragrance of chopped coriander and green onion greeted everyone.


    The two girls were fully concentrated and expressionless. One of them had therge bowl in her hands, and the other one was holding the cloth package. Then, they turned away and headed to the Divine Hall.


    The middle-aged man said subconsciously, ¡°One bowl may not be enough for you two. The girl in the Old Brush Pen Shop, she was so thin, but she always ate one bowl and took two away.¡±


    The two girls in white ignored him, and walked into the Divine Temple.


    The middle-aged man was standing on the empty square at a loss. He watched the boiling water in the pot, and held the spoon in his hand, feeling so nervous standing before the solemn pce.


    It hadn¡¯t been long before one of the girls in white came out of the Divine Hall of Light. She handled several things to the middle-aged man and said, ¡°Someone will send you back to Chang¡¯an.¡±


    She went back to the Divine Hall of Light after finishing that, and never came back out.


    The middle-aged man was stunned for a long time. Then, he noticed the things in his hands were a perfect luminescent pearl, and a Dan Medicine pill giving out light exotic fragrance!


    He might be ordinary, but he could still feel how extraordinary the two things were. He grew terrified because as much as he prided himself for his own cooking skills, he never felt they would be worth so much.


    The nobles in the West-Hill Pce dragged him a thousand miles from Chang¡¯an City to Peach Mountain, and gave him a luminous pearl for just a bowl of cheap food?


    Were the hot and sour sliced noodles really that delicious?


    As the ck curtain was removed, the horse carriage rolled down Peach Mountain. In rising dust and smoke, it drove back into the mortal world.


    Ning Que was holding a bag of rice in one hand, frowning slightly at the horse carriage. He didn¡¯t know that the carriage was from Chang¡¯an, and just like other people in the Divine Hall, he had lots of questions about it.


    He turned around and walked back to the Revtion Institute through the side door, and didn¡¯t take another nce at the pces on the mountains. He wasn¡¯t been cautious; he didn¡¯t take a second nce because the more the looked, the harder he felt to suppress his desire.


    She and the little silly horse he had been looking for were there, as well many risks. So he wouldn¡¯t step any closer to the Divine Pce before he was fully prepared. He left Chang¡¯an,ing to this ce with the courage to die, and he didn¡¯t want to die meaninglessly.


    The Revtion Institute was silent. He walked back to his own room, and prepared for dinner. He stared at the rice bag but in his mind, he was thinking about noodles, a bowl of noodles with fried eggs.


    He stood before the hearth for a long time, silent. Then, he started to chop green onions and took eggs stored in the rice bags; he bought those eggs in the town at the foot of the mountain. He fried the eggs and cooked a bowl of noodles.


    A bowl of noodles with fried eggs in clear soup, with three peppers, and thirty more pieces of chopped onions.


    He held the bowl and walked into the depths of the book hall. That was the back of Peach Mountain, with fog, clouds, and cliffs. There he thought about the City of Wei and started eating noodles.


    He finished it fast, and finally drank up the soup.


    He hadn¡¯t cooked for many years but he still remembered how to cook well. The noodles were delicious, but he wasn¡¯t enjoying them because she wasn¡¯t the cook.


    He stood there for a long time, until the night fell and the moon rose.


    The beautiful moon in the night sky had grown back to its full size. He was still worried because he wasn¡¯t sure if it would wax and wane again tomorrow night.


    He was worried about other things, or to be specific, he was fearful of them.


    ¡°Aren¡¯t you omniscient and omnipotent? Why aren¡¯t you aware that I am here? Why... why can¡¯t I feel where you are? Are you no longer my natal artifact? Or have you died once, and are no longer who you used to be?¡±


    He thought of this silently as he looked at the pce at the peak, from which no light was leaking out.


    Behind the Divine Temple was the precipice, and at the downside of the precipice was the legendary You Prison. Fog and clouds grew thicker at night; an evil and cold aura was overflowing.


    She put her hands at her back, standing between the stone pirs before the precipice. She looked at the moon in the night sky without any expression, and the moon cast the lonely shadow of her tall and chubby figure wrapped in ck cloth on the ground.


    The moon waned for ten days and waxed. She was getting paler and paler, not because of her solemnity, but because of her weakness.


    Behind her there were hundreds of wine jars, and a bowl of hot and sour sliced noodles which she had taken barely one bite. Beside the bowl there was a cube, its covering cloth had been lifted up, revealing the corner of a golden brick and some crumbs.


    The wine was Nine-river double-disdistilled wine; the hot and sour sliced noodles were from Chang¡¯an. The golden brick had been hidden in the wall of the Old Pen Brush all these years. These were all her most reluctant memories, and she had to take them back.


    Or, that was it.

 Chapter 845 - Hatred of Two (Part 1)

    <h4>Chapter 845: Hatred of Two (Part 1)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Sangsang looked at the moon in the night sky. When it was full, she felt as powerful as she had been in the past countless years; when it waned, she felt weak more than ever, or in other words, she could feel herself weakening in the Kingdom of God. That man once said that the moon was bright or dim, and it might wax and wane, just like the unexpected fortune of people. So what did that mean to her?


    She felt like leaving the mortal world and return to her own kingdom as soon as she fell in the Snow-capped mountain, because she smelled danger. She would be in danger no matter if she was in the Kingdom of God or in the mortal world. However, the gate to the Kingdom of God had been destroyed, how could she go back?


    Different people looked at the same moon on the Peach Mountain tonight, and their thoughts also wavered; some of them considered leaving, some wanted to stay, and some weren¡¯t sure if they would like to meet each other.


    She stood at the gazebo behind the Divine Hall of Light for a long time. She left until the moon disappeared. To the east of the mountains, the sky was growing brighter, casting morning light upon her.


    The morning clouds were radiant with splendor, then they were gone with the wind, leaving the red and warm sun there. She was showered with the sun light with her eyes squinting, looking peaceful and beautiful.


    She was the rule and the Dominator of the world. She might have fallen into the mortal world, bing a mortal, but all she needed to recover was the sunlight. The red sun, no matter if it was real or not, had the real light and heat which were the source of her power. As for the wine and dishes, she had them just for her mortal body, or she needed them mostly to weaken her own consciousness.


    She was now very plump, or nearly fat. The ck clothes with many embroidery flowers looked small on her. She had grown tall and white, looking quite different from how she used to be for the past 19 years, but her eyes didn¡¯t change at all. They were pure, long and thin like willow leaves.


    Her eyes grew even thinner as she squinted, much like those willow leaves on the bank of Yanming Lake in Chang¡¯an City. She wasn¡¯t closing her eyes, so she could still see things.


    The red sun jumping out of the morning cloud, along with the threads of clouds and fog and the thin water fall on the cliff, were all in her bright eyes. She saw birds flying between the cliffs, cubs in the far away mountains, rocks revealed by the ebb tide, and sea water steamed by the heat of the sun.


    All the pictures indicated that the rule of the world was running stably, and the rule was unshakable, so the world was stable, too. The Qi of Heaven and Earth, and all other materials were distributed in such a bnce, and she was the rule; she then felt satisfied.


    Her face was expressionless, but deep in her eyes there seemed to be emotion of an enchanted human. She was enchanted by the harmony between the world and herself.


    She continued to stand on the gazebo behind the Divine Pce of Light, watching the scenery. The scenery seemed to be changing all along but it actually stayed the same. She never left until the night fell, and moonlight shone again.


    The moon was different from how it lookedst night, and she didn¡¯t like the change.


    The moon waxed and waned. She was never worried about her own good or bad fortune, but now she smelled the aura of life and death. She hated it because it was the aura which only humans could feel.


    The scenery behind the Divine Pce of Light became unstable because of her hatred. Her hatred was turning the whistling of wind in the woods into thunder in her ears. The waterfall falling into the fog sounded silent, but she felt someone was ying drums. The peace she enjoyed had been long gone. She had drunk up all the strong wine in those jars, and nothing would change even if she threw all those jars off the precipice.


    ¡°I¡¯m going out for a walk.¡±


    She looked at the bright moon on the night sky and said.


    The two girls in white were so shocked, and they were speechless because the saintess had never stepped out of the Divine Hall of Light since they came to the Peach Mountain. Nobody else in the West-Hill Pce had seen her face. They wondered why she was leaving, and where she was going.


    An ordinary horse carriage stopped in front of the Temple of Light the next morning.


    The Big ck Horse popped its head out of the pce, and looked at the two war horses from West-Hill. It had an endless kill intent in its eyes, and it was trying to scare off the two war horses to create an opportunity for itself.


    She walked out from the depths inside of the Divine Hall, and took a nce at it.


    The Big ck Horse hurriedly took a few steps back, and bent on the frozen ground of the hall. It was grinning, and looked happy, or even a little bit ttering.


    She got on the carriage and closed her eyes to rest. One of the two girls in white served her in the carriage; the other one whipped the horse, driving the carriage away from the Divine Hall of Light and down to the foot of the Peach Mountain.


    An ordinary carriage looked even more conspicuous in the solemn Divine Hall, but it was strange that no priests or deacons seemed to have noticed the carriage, and nobody had heard the whipping and clopping. The carriage drove down the mountain like a ghost.


    The carriage didn¡¯t stop at the foot of the mountain. It continued driving forward, crossing more than a ten-mile mountain path, and arrived at a small town. Then it was pulled over by a shop opposite the Taoism Temple of the town.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que woke up early. He warmed up by practicing the cuss techniques, and then he started to breathe while in meditation. The resourceful Qi of Heaven and Earth in the Peach Mountain taken inside and turned into his own Great Spirit. He was carrying out the whole process very carefully.


    The morning fog was not yet dispersing when he finished practicing. As he walked along the path behind the Book Hall, a light flower fragrance reached him, making him feel freshed. The red sun hadpletely leaped out of the morning clouds, and the fog had finally disappeared. It was till then that he found he had been surrounded by thousands of blooming peach flower trees, so he frowned in disgust.


    No peach flower had ever bloomed after the Headmaster climbed here to drink, and cut off all the peach flowers on the mountain. This spring, the Eternal Fire in the Divine Hall of Light suddenly went out, and peach flowers bloomed over the mountains. The flowers never withered, even though now it was already midsummer.


    He loved the peach flowers in front of the Academy because they were brought there by the Headermaster from Peach Mountian, but he didn¡¯t like these peach flowers here in the West-Hill Pce because they were the symbol of the Headmaster¡¯s passing on.


    There seemed to be a path hidden in the peach flowers, but Ning Que didn¡¯t know where it led. He went there and felt the mountain wind turned cold all of a sudden. Flowers were shivering on the branches, as if winter hade in a moment.


    A great tactical array was hiding in the peach flowers. No wonder the Headmaster had cut them that year. Ning Que decided to leave immediately as soon as he figured this out.


    Given his cultivation state and aplishment in Talisman Taoism, it wouldn¡¯t be hard to leave, but at the same time it was impossible for him to break the array and move forward.


    At the moment he felt a familiar aura in the peach flowers, and he could even vaguely sense the feelings of the flowers. Though he was ayman in the tactical array, he knew the key point to break the array was that the blossoms were open to him.


    Other people would be shocked and confused by the sudden change, or they would even temporarily retreat. Ning Que was not one of those because he figured out the cause of the change immediately.


    The flowers wouldn¡¯t stop him because they were blooming for her.


    The fragrant pink petals drifted down when rubbed by the corner of his clothes. There was no need to tell the direction or to mind the powerful tactical array in the flowers. He was following the feelings that peach flowers give him, and it didn¡¯t take him long before he walked out of the peach woods which used to be an extremely dangerous ce for cultivators.


    Outside the peach flower woods was the precipice.


    He stood by the precipice and looked up at the eminent Divine Pce. Then, he found he had already reached the middle of the mountain. He looked to the opposite side, and still found a precipice standing in front.


    The precipice he was standing on was part of Peach Mountian, so was the precipice in the opposite side. They were under several Divine Pces, but for unknows reasons, they were independent from the Peach Mountain.


    They were separated by a hundred feet, without any bridges but mountain wind in the gap. Cool aura came out of the foggy gap, and nobody knew how deep it was.


    A hundred feet was not far for cultivators, and especially for those from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Judging by the ground and the moss on the precipice, nobody had been here, or had been to the opposite precipice. The two precipices had never met each other.


    The two precipices had been staring at each other for thousands of years, silent. Did they ever hate each other?


    Chilly wind blew from the downside of the precipice. After the fog dispersed, something showed up on the opposite precipice. Ning Que had an excellent eyesight and he tried to make sure if they were rows of stone windows. He kept waiting and watching until the mountain wind came again, and the fog dispersed. Then, he found there were indeed stone windows on the precipice.


    <i>¡°Is this the legendary You Prison of the West-Hill Pce, used to imprison its traitors?¡±</i>


    He looked at the opposite precipice and frowned.


    After a while of watching, he suddenly closed his eyes. Tears dripped along his eye corners.


    Many predecessors of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had been imprisoned to die in the You Prison in the past thousands of years; the Great Divine Priest of Light had been prisoned here for more than ten years, which reminded Ning Que of Master Yan Se; the stone windows on the precipice were now giving out a bloody and mncholic aura, which might make other people feel sympathy, but not Ning Que. That wasn¡¯t the cause of his tears.


    It was because his eyes hurt.


    There was nothing here except for the mountain wind, however, he felt like thousands of invisible fingers had touched his eyeballs moments ago.


    The fingers were gentle, but he could¡¯t bear the extreme pain and shed tears because the eyes were the softest part of the human body, though he had made great achievements on the Great Spirit.


    Momentster he opened his eyes, and looked at the precipice once again. Then, he closed his eyes again and shed more tears because the fingers touching his eyes grew more powerful.


    He was sure that the aura touching his eyes came from the precipice, and he knew if he insisted on looking, the power striking back would grow stronger.


    There was a great array between the precipices to block those who tried to peep into the You Prison. Nobody could avoid being touched on the eyes whether they were standing a hundred feet away from the precipice like Ning Que, or they were standing a thousand miles away from here. People could see it not because their eyesight fell on it; it was because the precipice cast its picture in their eyes, along with the power of the array.


    The array was called Eye Touch.

 Chapter 846 - Hatred of Two (Part 2)

    <h4>Chapter 846: Hatred of Two (Part 2)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The precipice wouldn¡¯t allow Ning Que to look at it, but Ning Que insisted. He stared at the fog clusters between the precipices, and those vague stone windows. Then, he felt more and more prickling on the eyes, whichter turned into the stabbing of thousands of swords. He couldn¡¯t bear it any more and started shedding tears, looking extremely sad, and when he opened his eyes, the eyes had already swollen like peaches.


    He didn¡¯t know the name of the array between the precipices, but he had felt its magic. He thought to himself that Haotian Taoism was surely the greatest power in the world now. Its foundation was so strong that not a single trace of declining could be found around the West-Hill Pce, even though it was declining these years.


    The array between the precipices were to block those who tried to peep into the You Prison. And it wouldn¡¯t do terrible damage if one kept far away from it, or stopped staring at the fog.


    Ning Que wasn¡¯t afraid. Judging by the powerful array here in the West-Hill Pce, the one set in the Zhishou Abbey must be more powerful. Eldest Brother wouldn¡¯t have broken into the Zhishou Abbey so easily without the tricks Chen Pipi yed in advance, not to mention the Tomes of the Arcane which had trapped the Abbey Dean for such a long time.


    He wondered how Chen Pipi was doing, and missed all his other friends while watching the drifting clouds and the red sun. Then he remembered Chen Pipi¡¯s father, the Abbey Dean, who had been chopped by him with thousands of cusses. It had been long since the Tang Empire and the West-Hill Pce had heard about him. They weren¡¯t even sure if he was alive; they wondered if the great man had been back to the Zhishou Abbey, or if he had died on his way home, ending up as a cold corpse wrapped in a straw mat.


    Ning Que never had the chance to meet his Youngest Uncle, so the Abbey Dean was the most powerful people he had ever seen after the Headmaster. He still held awe everytime he recalled the fight on the snowy street in Chang¡¯an. He would dly ept it if a powerhouse like the Abbey Dean disappeared quietly in history, and at the same time he would feel regret.


    He left the precipice and went back to the Book Hall through the peach flower woods. He collected and read all those repairing records of the Divine Hall, looking for information about the array on the precipice, only ending up in vain. It was still early when he woke up from the piled books, and he felt hungry. Then he remembered that he hadn¡¯t eaten any breakfast today. He saw the rice and vegetables in the kitchen, but he didn¡¯t want to cook for himself.


    He seldom cooked since Sangsang had grown up. Now he was in the West-Hill Pce, and he felt even more annoyed every time he stood before the hearth and looked at the splendid Divine Pces.


    However, after all, men needed to eat. There shouldn¡¯t be any problem if he didn¡¯t eat for ten days given his current cultivation state, but he needed satisfying, both mentally and physically. He missed the delicacies the Headmaster took him and Sangsang to eat as they passed by the West-Hill Pcest summer.


    A running stream and a stone bridge made for a beautiful scenery outside of the small town. One could raise his head and easily see the Peach Mountain located twenty miles away. But there weren¡¯t many Haotian believers here because the ce was off the main road.


    In the shop facing the Taoist Temple, there was a wrinkled old man. Several metal buckets sealed with yellow mud were set beside the door, brimming with a sweet fragrance. The old man was drinking. From time to time, his hand, with calluses all over, would send several peanuts into his mouth. The wrinkles on his face were filled with ck ash, it seemed like it could never be washed away.


    An ordinary carriage stopped in front of the shop. The girl in white stared at those metal buckets and felt curious, wondering how could the sweet potatoes baked in there taste so good and smell so nice that people would like to eat them in the hot summer, even their saintess would leave the Peach Mountain for this.


    They were here a little bitte, and the well-cooked potatoes earlier had been bought by the two deacons of the Divine Hall of Revtion. Therefore, they had to wait outside the shop, which made them bored.


    Sangsang was sitting inside the carriage. She wasn¡¯t feeling bored because she thought that only boring people felt bored. Time meant nothing to her but the order of things happening. Moreover, she always put all her time into use, for example, when she was watching the steam and smelling the fragrance of the baked potatoes, she was actually feeling the rules of heat, or in other words, she was feeling herself. Someone might use her of narcissism, but actually, narcissism was also a kind of emotion, and she didn¡¯t have any.


    Ten more Papal Cavalrymen were guarding a priest. They passed the small town. Judging by their direction, maybe they were crossing the stream, and going back to the Peach Mountain.


    That priest was He Mingchi.


    He Mingchi was taught by the Nation Master of Tang, Li Qingshan. He was the most crucial person the West-Hill dispatched to the Tang Empire. He was the one who initiated the night of fire and blood in Chang¡¯an. The key point was that he had damaged the God-stunning Array. Just like what the Hierarch had said when rewarding him, He Mingchi yed a more important role than all other cavalry soldiers had done together.


    The West-Hill Pce knew that He Mingchi was the one that the Tang Empire and the Academy wanted to kill he most. Therefore, they didn¡¯t list him out when negotiating with the Tang Empire, because they knew clearly that the Tang Empire, especially the Academy, would never ept it. For the safety of He Mingchi, the West-Hill Pce sent him to the south to stay away from the trouble, and they didn¡¯t let him return until today.


    Sangsang looked at He Mingchi through the curtain. She was expressionless on the outside but inside, she felt an extreme disgust. She knew the man was loyal to her second to none, and he was a close confidant of the truckling Hierarch, which meant that he would be promoted to a important position as soon as he was back in the Divine Hall, but she just hated him.


    She hated the ant dressed in a red robe for no reason, or she did have the reason, but she just couldn¡¯t ept it. Therefore, she thought she didn¡¯t know the reason.


    The sweet potato was finally baked. The old man narrowed his eyes and picked up three of them. He wrapped them with papers and gave them to the girl in white before his shop, and it seemed he didn¡¯t care about the burning heat on his fingers at all.


    The girl in white took money out of her waist pocket and put it down. Then she went back to the carriage with three hot potatoes in her hands. She lifted the curtain and handed in one of the three, then she gave the other two to herpanion.


    After a whipping the wheels started rolling, and suddenly stopped.


    Irresistible power of will wasing out of the carriage, forcing the girl to halt the carriage. Then she and herpanions sat in the front of the carriage quietly, waiting for things to happen.


    Secondster, a man in servant uniform from the Divine Pce walked to the shop. He asked the old man, ¡°Is this really a one-thousand-year-old shop?¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t care much when seeing the ordinary carriage outside the shop. Only the two girls in white reminded him of his little dark skinned maid.


    The old man squinted and said, ¡°It was my grandpa¡¯s grandpa¡¯s grandpa¡¯s...¡±


    Ning Que stopped the pedigree reciting, and he said, ¡°I¡¯ll have three.¡±


    The old man said, ¡°My sweet potatoes are bigger than usual, three would be too much for one person.¡±


    Ning Que said three subconsciously. One for the Headmaster, one for himself, and one for Sangsang. He didn¡¯t realize it until he heard what the old man said, then he replied, ¡°Give me two then.¡±


    The old man picked up the sweet potatoes with his bare hands, and handed them to him. Then, he epted the copper, and immediately resumed his drinking.


    The Headmaster once noted that potatoes should be eaten when it was hot in summer, like eating ice in winter so as to find the extreme in the extreme, and to feel the stimtion out of the stimulus.


    Ning Que wasn¡¯t a purely filial student, and he had forgotten many of the Headmaster¡¯s words, but he had never forgotten a single word the Headmaster said about food. Therefore, he insisted that the title ¡°the greatest gourmet in the world¡± suited the Headmaster better than ¡°the greatest man in the world¡±.


    He held the sweet potatoes and sat on the threshold. He pinched and slightly tore the potato skin with his fingers, then the yellow and soft flesh was revealed, steamy and sweet. The sweet fragrance spread all around him.


    He ignored the heat and started on the flesh. The flesh was so hot that he couldn¡¯t help sticking out his tongue at times.


    Sangsang looked at the man eating potatoes on the threshold through the curtain. She was still expressionless and cold, too cold to notice that she had crumbled the sweet potatoes in her hand.


    She frowned in disgust, and lifted her hands to take a bite of the steamy potato. She kept eating, and she didn¡¯t feel any of the heat.


    The small town was so sultry but so quiet in midsummer. Cicadas were chirping on the trees behind the yard, celebrating their reunion after the half-an-hour separation during the afternoon nap.


    He was eating sweet potatoes on the threshold.


    She was eating sweet potatoes in the carriage.


    With the thin curtain in between.


    The sweet potato shop was quiet. After a few cups of wine and some peanuts, the old man was tipsy and he started humming, with his dusty fingers hitting the bucket as the beat.


    Ning Que sat on the threshold and listened to the humming. As simple as the melody was, it was touching, especially the meaningful lyrics. Ning Que was gradually absorbed.


    ¡°With the chopper in hand I move forward, in fear of awakening the mountain ghost. Rain pattered on the banana leaves, washed down the cicada slough falling on the shoes. On the vines high into the clouds, monkeys are mocking. The long unused pottery mould under the rotten leaves were covered with dirt. The swannded in the winternd, their prints were the burden of the snow. On the sky, the past dispersed like smoke and clouds.¡±


    Ning Que was holding the sweet potatoes, saying, ¡°That¡¯s interesting.¡±


    The old man turned prouder after he heard the praise. The humming grew louder, but the key turned peaceful all of a sudden, as if people in the countryside were talking.


    ¡°Chop firewood as the fence, three peach trees nted inside. Harvest crops for rice, then making two jars of light wine. Pick flowers for the color, painted the middle spot of the bride¡¯s eyebrows. In resounding firecrackers, crying of new babies pleased the old house. In the deer¡¯s calling, the maid picked up plums and warmed wine. Nobody threw the wine cups away when recalling childhood lovers.¡±


    Ning Que rememberedst summer when he was in front of the shop, with the Headmaster and her beside him. Now he was all on his own. He couldn¡¯t help feeling sad.

 Chapter 847 - Hatred of Two (Part 2)

    <h4>Chapter 847: Hatred of Two (Part 2)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The nd lyrics were about themon affairs of vige men and women, and there was no tragic element to it. But somehow, the beautiful imagery made one feel rather disconste at the end.


    Ning Que always thought that sentimentality was a luxury to have as an emotion, especially now that he was in the West-Hill Divine Pce and could be discovered any time. As such, he did not allow himself to be immersed in this emotion for too long. He rubbed his eyes which were stung by the cliff array, then stood up from the threshold and walked to the outside of the town.


    Sangsang sat in the carriage quietly, listening to the old man¡¯s song without feeling any emotions. However, her subconscious was stirred up and was like a sea that was about to pounce on earth!


    Every drop of water in the tide represented extreme disgust. She hated the young man outside the carriage, even countless times more than she hated He Mingchi!


    She frowned and pursed her lips. Her willow eyes were bright like sharp fine knives. This was the first time she really felt emotional ups and downs since she came to the mortal world, so she became more and more disgusted.


    Hatred would bring anger. Her anger was the wrath of Heaven. When she was angry, the world would change, the river would flood, and all the people would be disced. No one could resist it.


    For some reason, she did not want to kill this young man. To be more precise, she did not want to kill this young man at this time. So she had been repressing her resentment and anger with unimaginable willpower these days and nights when she looked at the moon.


    Only the heart of Heaven could control the anger of Heaven.


    She hated him. She hated him, who hated her. Which was why she did not want to see him. She knew that when they met, hatred would arise, and at that time, she would no longer be able to suppress her desire to destroy him.


    However, not even she herself had predicted that she would leave the Divine Hall of Light, to arrive at this small town and meet him. She had not predicted that she would hear his voice and see him in front of this sweet potato shop through the curtains.


    She looked at his face and listened to his voice. She could no longer suppress the hatred and ire she felt for him. A terrifying aura burst forth from her full figure towards the skies.


    Suddenly, countless ck clouds floated from miles away, covering the extremely clear skies inte summer of the entire West-Hill Divine Kingdom. Daylight suddenly dimmed.


    The cold wind was blowing in the mountains and fields; signboards shook, and the clutter on the street rolled around. Shouts of closing windows rang out from the houses.


    The scene at the West-Hill Divine Pce was even more shocking. Several bolts of lightning grew like golden threads in the ck clouds and then fell, breaking into numerous dull thunders.


    There was a boom, a muffled thunder split from the depths of the dark clouds. More than 20 miles away on the Peach Mountain, a faint fiery glow could be seen and the crackling sounds of peach blossoms burning could be heard.


    It was fortunate that rain started and extinguished the burning peach blossoms. On the three cliff tforms of the West-Hill Divine Pce, countless priests and deacons knelt in the rainwater and looked at the firmament, terrified. They prayed incessantly.


    She looked at Ning Que through the curtains. Her eyes were emotionless and even cold; deep within them was the unimaginable maic powers of stars being destroyed and the world being reborn.


    She had never truly looked at Ning Que since he arrived at the little town. She only decided to take a look at him when the intent to destroy was about to reach the little town.


    So she took a look at him.


    At his red and swollen eyes which were like peach blossoms. His eyes that looked as if he had just cried.


    The cold wind which was particrly eerie in summer gradually stopped, the thunderstorm gradually weakened as well, before disappearing without a trace. The dark clouds hanging over the West-Hill Divine Kingdom dispersed to the corners of the world.


    Ning Que had ran back to the Sweet Potato Shop when it started raining. The thunderstorms in summer were always sudden and he did not grow suspicious.


    He didn¡¯t sense that there was an aura in the horse carriage that rushed straight up into the sky. No one had sensed such a powerful aura since the Headmaster left the mortal world.


    ¡°Weak and useless humans.¡±


    Sangsang looked at his red-rimmed eyes and said emotionlessly through a cloth curtain. Then, she continued eating her sweet potato, not sparing him another nce, as if they did not know each other.


    Ning Que looked at the horse carriage pulling away in thest vestiges of rain and wondered why he felt so upset. He looked at the back of the carriage that had been wet by the rain and could vaguely see the back of a tall and fat woman. He frowned and said in annoyance, ¡°Why is the girl in the horse carriage as fat as a pig?¡±


    The old man said, ¡°Talking behind other¡¯s backs. I wonder what your teacher taught you.¡±


    Ning Que did not answer him until the horse carriage left his sights. He said, ¡°She didn¡¯t even react to that. It seems like she really didn¡¯t hear it and must be an ordinary person.¡±


    The old man put down his wine cup andmented, ¡°So that was what you intended to do. When did those from the Academy be so sly and cunning?¡±


    Ning Que entered the shop and retrieved the iron cuss and arrows he left here before entering the Divine Hall. He smiled at the old man and said, ¡°I¡¯m not as capable as Teacher or Uncle, so of course I have to be more careful.¡±


    The old man said, ¡°That is true. Back then, when the Headmaster went to the Peach Mountain, my father and I grilled sweet potatoes here for him. He returned before the potatoes were done, how can youpare?¡±


    The West-Hill Divine Kingdom was and that was overseen by Haotian. Its four seasons were clear, on the warm side and had no natural disasters. This was especially true in the Peach Mountain where the Divine Hall was located. Even without the strong arrays in the Divine Halls, lightning had not struck in thousands of years. This was why today¡¯s thunderstorms shocked many. Other than the Hierarch who had vaguely guessed the truth, the other priests and deacons all knelt on the moist cliff tform, praying to the heavens incessantly, asking for Haotian to forgive their sins.


    The three cliff tforms were filled with kneeling people, yet no one could see the ordinary horse carriage driving slowly up the Peach Mountain. And neither did anyone see Sangsang and the two girls in white walking into the Divine Hall of Light.


    She stood in front of the cliff behind the Divine Hall, looking at the smallest raindrops that had already be the fog at her feet expressionlessly. She thought of him silently, whom he had seen in the small town earlier.


    The door to Haotian¡¯s kingdom had been destroyed and she could not return for the time being. She could only stay in the mortal world. It was natural for her to hate humankind and especially him.


    However, only she knew that there should be no emotional connection between Haotian and human beings. Neither love nor hate should exist. Once she began to hate, it meant that she began to have human emotions, just as she looked at the couple at the table filled with dishes in the capital of the Kingdom of Song.


    She hated this emotion of aversion.


    She could predict everything in the world but not her own future. Just like today, she did not know that she would meet him in the small town. But if she had not wanted to meet him, would they meet?


    In a sense, Ning Que¡¯s eyes being injured by the tactical array on the cliff had saved his life in front of the small town¡¯s sweet potato shop, but he didn¡¯t know it. After returning from the small town to the Revtion Institute, he continued to search for information and tried to find a way to crack the cliff array.


    He was now sure that the stone window looming between the precipice clouds was the legendary You Prison. It was where the West-Hill Divine Pce held criminals and traitors. For countless years, no one had escaped from it other than Sangsang¡¯s teacher Wei Guangming.


    ording to the information he found in a book, numerous arrays had been set up on the You Prison¡¯s precipice by the powerhouses of the Divine Hall¡¯s previous generation. One of which was the ¡®Eye Touch¡¯ he had experienced.


    His concern for the precipice had nothing to do with the You Prison. There was no one in it worth him risking his life to rescue. He wanted to go to the ce above the precipice.


    He wanted to go to the Divine Hall of Justice at the peak of the Peach Mountain. Of course, that was hisst backup n. He was first going to the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s stables, which was on the third cliff tform.


    One needed to go through three cliff tforms if one wanted to go to the Peach Mountain. Ning Que did not think that his current cultivation state was enough for him to barge straight into the West-Hill Divine Pce. After all, he was neither his Youngest Uncle nor his teacher. If he really did as they did, he would probably die within 10 minutes.


    That was why he could not take the usual path, and could only walk through the blind alley.


    At night, Ning Que entered the patch of peach blossoms. Even in the dark night, the hundreds and thousands of peach blossoms were still blooming with white and were very beautiful.


    The peach tree that had been struck by lightning a few days ago had been moved by the deacons of the Divine Hall. Everything had returned to normal. When Ning Que walked between the trees, he felt rather odd.


    The peach blossoms that covered the mountain also formed a terrifying tactical array. It was even stronger than the array on the precipice. Even a true powerhouse who had broken through the Five States would find passing through this patch of peach blossoms extremely difficult. That was why the Divine Hall did not need to set up any other forces here to prevent entry. But to him, it was easy to walk through the patch because she was the one who had nted these peach blossoms. Every time he thought of that, he would feel that fate was really hard to exin.


    Ning Que did not even nce at the precipice when he arrived at the edge of the cliff. He jumped towards the opposite side without hesitating.


    The two cliffs were separated by dozens of feet, and even a strong cultivator would think that it was a natural moat. But to powerhouses in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and cultivators in the peak state of Martial Arts, it was just a shallow ditch.


    Ning Que¡¯s Great Spirit had already reached a high level. Other than Third Sister, Yu Lian and Tang, or the Abbey Dean before he was injured, there was no one who had a body stronger than his and was stronger than him.


    He did not even have to break into a run, nor did he put in any power. He bent his knees slightly, and the pool of Great Spirit in his abdomen was sent to all parts of his body. Then, he jumped toward the opposite precipice.


    The night wind howled and beat his body as if it were beating a stone. He arrived at the opposite precipice at the blink of an eye. His hands suddenly softened and stuck to the precipice like cotton.


    There was an abyss under his feet which was swirling with clouds. It seemed to grow dark and frightening.


    The Isted Array on the precipice could not only stop peeking eyes, but could also sense the most subtle fluctuations in a cultivator¡¯s Psyche Power. It could even sense the Qi of Heaven and Earth hidden within the body of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine with more uracy.


    Ning Que sent most of the Great Spirit back to the pool in his abdomen shortly beforending on the precipice. At the same time, he used part of the Great Spirit to hide his Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi.


    In order to avoid touching the array on the precipice, he did not dare to use any talismans. It meant that he was climbing the precipice entirely with the strength of his own body.


    He was now an ordinary person.


    However, even so, it was still not enough. Although he had closed his eyes, the cliff still seemed to think that he was looking. There was a sharp pain in his eyes and he immediately loosened his hands which were holding onto the cliff stones.

 Chapter 848 - Indifference

    <h4>Chapter 848: Indifference</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Many years ago, after the Headmaster ended his travels and returned to Chang¡¯an, he locked Ning Que inside the cliff cave at the back of the mountain. In the long days of his imprisonment, Ning Que learned many things in order to get out of there. Parti of it included keeping his Great Spirit concealed. That was why he had initially thought that the precipice would not pose much of a challenge to him.


    But he had forgotten the Isted Array on the precipice. Other than sensing the subtle fluctuations in a cultivator¡¯s Psyche Power and the changes in the Qi of Heaven and Earth, it could also sense one¡¯s peeking. As long as one looked at the precipice, it would enter the person¡¯s eyes. What was more interesting was that even if you closed your eyes and not looked at it, the precipice would still think you were looking at it, if you did not erase all thoughts of looking at the precipice in your subconscious. It would be like a fallen peak, knocking straight into your eyes, and then barging into your brain, causing countless waves.


    Ning Que¡¯s eyes were pierced by countless sharp Taoist Swords and he was in immense pain. His face paled drastically. And then, his subconscious was hit by the precipice, causing several tall waves and bringing him pain.


    The pain was too intense, and even Ning Que¡¯s whose will was very strong could not withstand it. His world turned ck; he loosened his fingers and fell downward.


    There was a swirling night fog under the precipice and an abyss below it. Daylight did not shine through it and no one knew what was at the bottom. The crux of the matter was that the fall was too high.


    No matter how powerful the bodies of cultivators in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine were, they could notpletely ignore the power of the earth. The Empress had died after jumping off Chang¡¯an¡¯s city walls. Even Yu Lian, who was the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s Grandmaster, the Twenty-Three-year Cicada had shattered bones in her leg after falling from the blue sky. Ning Que¡¯s current position on the precipice was not much higher than the blue sky. If he really fell into the abyss, he would definitely die.


    His body rubbed against the cliff walls, causing a rustling sound. The cold wind howled in his ears and he started to fall even faster. It was an extremely dangerous situation and he was about to die.


    Throughout the descent, Ning Que thought of many things. They were not any sweet or bitter memories, but cultivation skills that he had mastered. He wanted to find a way to escape death.


    However, both the Academy and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s methods required him to use his heart or his Psyche Power. But should he use his Psyche Power, the Isted Array on the precipice would continue its attack on him. He could not bear the pain while scaling the cliff rocks.


    How could he act without using his heart or his Psyche Power? No matter how one looked at it, it was impossible. How could somone control his body if one did not have thought?


    Anyway, his eyes hurt even if they were closed, so hemight as well open them. If he were to die, he wanted to die looking at the world. He stared at the cliff walls that quickly shed by in front of his eyes. He did not feel despair but instead mocked himself because of his impending death.


    The walls on the precipice were not smooth, but there were not too many crevices. The lines passed quickly in front of his eyes and gradually turned into fuzzy color patches, which seemed to float in the night wind.


    Ning Que felt as if he had seen such an image somewhere. The attire swaying in the breeze and the soft lines, and it was also carved on the stone.


    He recalled that it was the stone statue in the Buddhist Hall under the Wanyan Tower in Chang¡¯an.


    Some of the stone Buddha statues in the side hall of the Lanke Temple were also simr.


    His eyes brightened slightly, and his hands which had been stuck on the cliff walls suddenly became gentle. Not as gentle as cotton like before, but his hands had be so gentle it was as if they did not exist.


    In the fall, in the howling night wind, he suddenly put his palms together. He flexed his right index finger slightly in the air while cing his left index finger at the back of the right hand, making an Emblematic Gesture.


    The gentle pair of hands and the Emblematic Gesture that looked as if it could not hold on to the precipice had a magical effect. He suddenly stopped falling and was suspended between the precipices.


    A long time seemed to have passed, but it was just a moment. He slid down the precipice for about ten feet, and his legs looked as if he were stepping on the clouds covering the stone windows.


    When he was in the Lanke Temple, he had looked at the stone statue of Buddha for an entire night in the autumn rain. He had understood the four Emblematic Gestures of the Buddhism Sect, ¡°Fearless, Dhyana, Surrendering Evil and Indifference.¡±


    He had used them several times while fighting against powerhouses in the Buddhism Sect and then had never used them again. Becausepared to the Great Spirit and the Primordial Thirteen Arrows, the Emblematic Gestures of the Buddhism Sect were not as powerful.


    It wasn¡¯t until tonight, just as he was about to die on the precipice, when he thought of them again.


    He hovered between the cliffs and felt some strange aura moving slowly in the clouds beneath him. His sense of perception was still whipping up crazy waves.


    Without any hesitation, he closed his eyes again, and at the same time, he spread out his hands that had been ced together. Silently, he made the ¡°Dhyana¡± and ¡°Indifference¡± gesture with his right hand, andnded gently on the precipice. He no longer looked at the things of the world nor did he think of them. He hadpletely forgotten himself and the heavens and the earth. With the first idea that had appeared in his mind, he began his ascent.


    He entered an absolutely empty state, even forgetting himself and the existence of the precipice. Naturally, he did not know he was climbing the precipice. He moved up slowly like an ignorant leaf.


    He did not know how much time had passed, but he finally climbed up the precipice.


    The Emblematic Gesture on his hands dissipated after his handsnded on the t ground. He opened his eyes and awakened to discover that he was already standing on the cliff tform. He turned around to look at the dark abyss, and his calm features gradually paled; his clothes were soaked through with sweat.


    In his lifetime, he had encountered numerous dangers and tests of life and death, but today¡¯s encounter between the precipices of the Peach Mountain had frightened him badly. Climbing a precipice might look simple, and he did not even have any recollection of it. However, if he had not learned the skills of both the Buddhism Sect and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, he would have long fallen to his death. One could even say that had he been a different powerhouse in the Knowing Destiny State, he would definitely have died falling off the precipice.


    He respected the West-Hill Divine Pce and thought that he had made sufficient preparations. Only until he had truly entered the Peach Mountain did he realize that he had underestimated Haotian Taoism.


    This was the lowest cliff tform at the Peach Mountain, inhabited by ordinary priests and deacons as well as the cavalry of West-Hill Divine Pce. The stables of the war horses were also located here. Ning Que went to the stables through the cover of night. He did not release this Psyche Power to subdue those horses that had woken up. Instead, just like how he had subdued the Big ck Horse back then, he used the bloody aura that he had from killing countless horses to scare the war horses into submission. They did not make a single sound.


    He stood on the eastern face of the stable because this was where the imperial court spies at the West-Hill Divine Pce had discovered the remains of half a pot of porridge. He could only wait here if he wanted to find the stupid fool.


    There wasn¡¯t a single sound even after a long time. The warhorses that had awakened chewed on the night grass while assessing Ning Que. They wondered who he was waiting for.


    Ning Que did not worry but waited in the stables quietly until the clouds dissipated and the moon sank. He waited until the sun was about to rise before he was certain that his wait for the night was futile.


    He stretched out his hand and rubbed some dirt on his neck and sprinkled it on the straw at the east end of the stable. Then, under the disdainful gazes of the war-horses, he went to the cliff tform. He made a Buddhist Emblematic Gesture before the first rays of daylight could shine on the Divine Hall, and followed the precipice back to the clouds into the forest of peach blossoms.


    That night, he continued the risky journey of climbing the precipice. He waited in the stables for an entire night, but the stupid fool did not appear.


    He went again on the second night and was disappointed.


    On the third night, he was still disappointed.


    By the fourth night, he was already very familiar with the Isted Array on the precipice and had learned more about the Emblematic Gesture of the Buddhism Sect. The journey that had seemed perilous once was now an ordinary process. That was why he could even hum a tune or two when he walked to the eastern part of the stables.


    It was the song the old man at the town¡¯s Sweet Potato Shop had hummed.


    Then, he saw a pile of hay on the eastern end of the stables, and on the pile of hay, was the Big ck Horse lying on its back, rubbing its back against the hay. It looked extremely funny, and Ning Queughed.


    The Big ck Horse smelled a familiar smell. It rolled around and stood up, looking around vigntly. Its eyes were opened widely, and it did not know which hoof to step forward with.


    Ning Que walked over and hugged the horse¡¯s neck. He stroked the horse¡¯s hair and patted it strongly.


    The Big ck Horse opened its mouth and licked its lips, butting at Ning Que¡¯s head.


    Ning Que released the horse and swept the hay off its back, saying, ¡°Where did you learn these dirty habits? You¡¯re not Youngest Uncle¡¯s donkey.¡±


    The Big ck Horse thought to itself, that its dream was to be something like the donkey who could control the Wilderness. It wanted to be an important horse, but had be a horse imprisoned by the West-Hill Divine Pce.


    It wanted to cry out loud thinking about what it had gone through, but did not dare to. It only opened its teary eyes widely and looked at Ning Que, looking extremely aggrieved.


    Ning Que sighed and patted its head. He said, ¡°I know she¡¯s changed, she¡¯s not who she was. Try to hold on a little more, and I¡¯ll try to see if I can change her back.¡±


    When it heard that, the Big ck Horse felt slightly better. Then, it seemed to have thought of something and kept winking, as if telling Ning Que to be more vicious when the timees.


    Ning Que went up to the horse¡¯s ears and told it his n.


    The Big ck Horse¡¯s eyes glistened as it listened and nodded frantically. It thought to itself that Ning Que was indeed its master to have thought of such a shameless n. However, its mistress was simply too powerful right now, and no matter how shameless Ning Que was, he was doomed to fail. However, just thinking about it made it happy.


    After the discussion, Ning Que and the Big ck Horse made ns to meet again and then parted for the time being.


    He walked to the edge of the cliff and jumped down against the precipice. Now that he had mastered the Emblematic Gesture, he could be slightly distracted while climbing the precipice. He nced at the top of the Peach Mountain.


    The nce was imbued with Indifference, so he was not worried that it would ignite the precipice array. However, he had forgotten that there was more than one definition to Indifference.


    Which was why when his gazended on the dark Divine Hall of Light, he could no longer suppress the longing he felt for a certain someone. There was nothing there, but he seemed to have seen her.


    He felt a ray of light shining on him at the same time.

 Chapter 849 - Rain and Wind, I Come, Not Alone

    <h4>Chapter 849: Rain and Wind, I Come, Not Alone</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    In the dead of night, the Big ck Horse ran back to the Divine Hall of Light. It did not dare to bray, but kept shaking his head back and forth. Its hooves sounded especially brisk, and his mane, wet by the dew, danced incessantly.


    Suddenly, it sensed that it was being watched. It turned around to look and saw the tall fat figure in the depths of the Divine Hall. It sweated buckets, washing the dew off its body cleanly.


    Sangsang did not punish it for its disloyalty. She ced her hands behind her back and walked to the railings at the balcony behind the hall. She looked at the young man who was slowly falling down the precipice like a leaf and did not speak.


    There were clouds covering the moon in the recent nights. The colors of the mountain ranges in the West-Hill Divine Kingdom had all turned darker and it was especially quiet. There was only the asional shuffle at the precipice below the Divine Hall.


    No one else but her could hear the sounds.


    She had been standing by the railing, quietly watching since the first night. She watched as he jumped from the peach blossoms to the cliff and watched him fall dangerously. She watched as he climbed up with difficulty and watched while he waited by the eastern side of the stables every night. She watched as he returned to the bottom of the precipice silently before the sun rose.


    She did not do anything but only watched silently until tonight, when she saw the man on the precipice looking up, looking towards the Divine Hall where she stood.


    She knew he was looking at her and knew that he could not see her. She could see what was in his eyes¡ªIndifference. It wasn¡¯t an indifference where he did not care, but was one where he sent his thoughts out. In other words, he was projecting his missing her to the balcony of the Divine Hall of Light.


    She was the one he missed. She was Haotian, and not even mankind, which amounted to ants, had any right to miss her. That was why she felt that this was a great disrespect to her and should even be called sphemy.


    The hatred and anger in her subconscious burst forth once more as she found them hard to repress.


    Just like how the thoughts in the man¡¯s eyes had burst forth, unable to be repressed.


    A crazy wind started above the seas, several thousand miles away in the Kingdom of Song, whistling in the high and distant night dome. It caused the clouds above the Kingdom of God to shake uneasily, as if they were bouncing pieces of cotton below a string which could be torn apart any time.


    The peach blossoms in the mountains shook and hundreds and thousands of petals fell in the wind. The countless Divine Halls on the Peach Mountain had roofs made of gold and jade, and they started to issue howling and crying sounds.


    The Divine Hall of Light was high up at the peak and no matter how good Ning Que¡¯s eyesight was, he would not be able to see it clearly. And even if he could, he would not be able to see the tall and plump woman standing at the railings of the balcony. Furthermore, in his imagination, if he were Romeo, the precipice would have been the area beneath the balcony and the girl standing by the railings should be thin and tanned.


    He looked at the spot and smiled, tossing his thoughts and his sense of loss regarding his unknown fate into the depths of his sense of perception. He calmed himself down and continued his descent down the precipice.


    It was then when a gust of crazy wind blew from the mountains, bringing with it the heavy stench of sea water and colliding onto him. His face felt damp and cold, and when mixed with the vague sense of light he had felt earlier on, it broke the Dhyana State that he had been maintaining.


    Since the Dhyana State had been broken, Ning Que naturally released his Emblematic Gesture. What was even more terrifying was that, no matter how calm he was during the danger and how he had tried to return to the Dhyana State, he was unable to make the gesture again.


    The wind was simply too cold and strong. It whipped around his body, howling. And everytime he wanted to make the Emblematic Gesture, it would dissipate it.


    Unable to use the Emblematic Gesture of the Buddhism Sect, Ning Que no longer had any connection with the precipice. He was blown by the strong winds towards the deep abyss. He was no longer falling like a leaf, but like a rock.


    The fall this time was even more frightening than the first night. He had only just breathed and had already fallen several hundred feet down the precipice. His speed was growing faster and faster!


    He fell into the deep night fog, and Haotian no longer cared for him. He might be forced out by the precipice at the next moment and could find nowhere to ce his hands. He would break through the fog and fall to his death.


    Ning Que made the strongest and fastest response in in such a dire situation. He harrumphed and the Great Spirit in his body burst out. He stretched out his hands forcefully like two sharp des and pierced them into the hard rock walls of the cliff. There were two cracking sounds, and his steel-like hands had broken two holes two feet deep into the wall, stopping his descent and allowing him to stop on the precipice.


    He had not gotten out of danger, even though he was clinging on tightly to the precipice. He was no longer able to maintain the Buddhism Sect¡¯s Dhyana State and the Isted Array on the precipice began to attack his eyes and his sense of perception. He could only bear the pain in his eyes and the waves in his sense of perception, clinging tightly to the icy cold walls.


    Something even more bizarre happened. The forces he once noticed in the cloud and mist on the precipice swam up like snakes and filled his body surface in a very short time.


    Ning Que endured the pain in his sense of perception and released his Psyche Power to sense it. He could not ascertain what those wisps of power were, and when he looked with his naked eye, he found that they were just wisps of fog.


    The fog swirling between the Peach Mountain and the precipice was responsible for sealing the You Prison. It was naturally not a simple fog. Those wisps of fog had mysteriously seeped through his clothing and into his body. He did not bleed, butfelt a clear pain and a cutting feeling that entered with the fog. He felt as if he was being cut by countless sharp knives.


    At this time, Ning Que respected the Abbey Dean whom he fought with in Chang¡¯an. It was because he had finally understood how it felt like to be cut by hundreds and thousands of des.


    What followed was even more incredible. As Ning Que¡¯s hands dug deep into the precipice, the precipice that had never moved over the past hundreds and thousands of years suddenly moved.


    No one could see the precipice shaking, and not even Ning Que who was very near it could. Nobody could hear the rumbling movement of the precipice. Ning Que¡¯s ears could not hear it, but his heart could.


    The precipice vibrated with a soothing rhythm. The vibration spread down his arms, which were stuck in the wall to his body, moving further to his sense of perception and finally to his heart.


    Ning Que¡¯s body began to shake uncontrobly. His clothes shook with him, casting shadows. An earthquake seemed to have urred in the depths of his sense of perception, and the waves on the sea grew even more violent. What was most terrifying was that his heart started beating with extreme strength, as if it might tear and shatter into countless pieces at any moment.


    The precipice on the Peach Mountain had turned into arge war drum. As the auras in heaven and earth shook, Ning Que, who was perched on the drum would definitely be shattered into pieces by the vibrations on the drum, no matter whether he was a falling leaf or a rock.


    There were two arrays on the precipice where the You Prison was located. One was called ¡®isted¡¯ while the other was ¡®shocking¡¯. When put together, it would truly shock and kill its enemies with their attack.


    Ning Que sensed then, as if there were hundreds and thousands of swords stabbing at his eyes incessantly, and that there was a drum beating within him. His heart might shatter at any time!


    If not for the experiences he had had over the past few nights, he might not evenst until this moment. If not for his body that was as hard as stone both inside and out, he would have long vomited blood and died!


    By then, his face had turned extraordinarily pale. His pain was indescribable, and what truly made it unbearable for him were the wisps of fog surrounding him and invading him.


    The fog was not made from the condensation of the Qi of Heaven and Earth. Instead, Haotian Taoism had used their skills to gather the hatred of the prisoners confined in the You Prison who had died and made it into a tactical array that guarded the prison.


    Many of the prisoners who were eligible to be held in the You Prison were strong with great mystical powers. How powerful were their Psyche Power and resentment before their deaths? After dying, the two were merged and cultivated by Haotian Taoism. Every wisp of fog was a sharp sword full of all kinds of negative emotions in the world such as resentment and hatred. It was extremely powerful. Otherwise, how could they have imprisoned someone as powerful as Wei Guangming for several decades?


    No matter how strong Ning Que¡¯s willpower was to be able to endure the gruesome pain of the arrays, he would not be able to endure the cutting of those tens and thousands of des filled with rage. After all, he was not the powerful and invincible Abbey Dean.


    His heart beat faster and faster and the precipice before his eyes grew more and more blurry. The blood that flowed from his lips grew and his perception gradually dulled, but the pain was just as clear.


    He could not hold on any longer.


    Just as he was about to pull his hands out of the cliff, preferring to die from falling off the cliff than to stay on the terrifying precipice and in the fog, a sudden patch of bright light appeared in front of his eyes.


    He thought that he was hallucinating, but realized that he was not at the next moment. The dark and cold precipice in front of him had really brightened up!


    The clouds over the Peach Mountain had been blown apart by the wind from the Sea of Storm several thousand miles away, revealing the round moon. The silver moonlight shone on the mountain ranges, and onto the precipice and himself.


    Sangsang put her hands together on the balcony of the Divine Hall of Light and looked at the moon in the night sky. Her face seemed especially pale, and one wondered whether it was caused by weakness.


    The moonlight had no heat, but when it fell on Ning Que, he felt a warmth seeping into his body. Even his wildly beating heart had be quieter.


    The fog between the precipices was dispersed by the moonlight. Ning Que took advantage of this fleeting moment to calm down and re-enter the Dhyana State. He made an Indifference Emblematic Gesture with his right hand and prepared to leave.


    Just at that moment, he suddenly saw the stone window on the precipice beside him.


    He had seen this stone window from the opposite precipice the other day. However, he had not studied it carefully since there were the asional wisps of clouds on the precipice and it was shrouded by a tactical array. Now that the clouds were dispersed by the moonlight, and he had re-entered the Dhyana State, he could see the stone window and the person inside it.


    Ning Que should take the opportunity to leave the terrifying precipice at a time like this. However, he knew that he could not leave when he looked at the stone window.


    Because there was a young fat person inside the window.


    The person¡¯s face, which had be thinner, grew round again, perhaps because of the good food in the You Prison.


    He looked at Ning Que who was outside the stone window and was shocked speechless.


    His eyes were just as clean as before and his expression just as amiable. When he was surprised, his mouth opened so widely it could fit Tang Xiaotang¡¯s fist, just like before.

 Chapter 850 - Before the Flowers and Beneath the Moon (Part 1)

    <h4>Chapter 850: Before the Flowers and Beneath the Moon (Part 1)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ning Que would never have imagined that he would see Chen Pipi¡¯s annoying face in the walls of the precipice. Ning Que and his Senior Brothers and Sisters at the Academy all thought that Chen Pipi had brought the Abbey Dean back to the Zhishou Abbey. They did not imagine that he had been incarcerated within the precipice, bing a prisoner in the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s You Prison.


    Chen Pipi had also not imagined that moonlight would shine on the unchanging scenery outside the stone window and that he would see Ning Que¡¯s annoying face. He seemed dull, but was actually very smart and had long predicted that Ning Que would be a prisoner of Chang¡¯an City. He had not expected that Ning Que would be so gutsy to dare toe to the West-Hill Divine Pce and had even appeared in front of him.


    This was a reunion that no one had expected. The two Academy brothers looked at each other through the stone window and were stunned for a long time before they started smiling dumbly at each other.


    The prison cell was simply decorated, with just a bed and some tools. Ning Que looked in from outside the stone window and discovered that it was at least dry and devoid of blood stains. There was some food and clean water on the little table, and Ning Que rxed.


    He started to examine the stone window after that. Even though the meeting was sudden and the Academy did not know that Chen Pipi had been imprisoned in the You Prison, and naturally did not have any ns, since he had already seen him, then there was no need to hesitate. Ning Que was prepared to spring Chen Pipi out of the You Prison.


    As he examined the window, Ning Que¡¯s expression grew grave. It was not because the fog that had been dissipated by the wind was once again cutting his body, but because he realized that the prison break was a difficult task.


    The stone window was very small and one could only see the sky through it. A bird that was slightly bigger would not be able to fly in. He had to make the window bigger if he wanted to extract Chen Pipi from the prison cell. However, when he reached out, he was blocked. He was somewhat shocked to realize that the precipice was a solid whole. The stone window was a little hole opened up in the small precipice. If he wanted to break open the stone window, he would have to break down the entire precipice of the Peach Mountain. The mountain was shrouded by an extremely powerful tactical array and might be a cage. How would he be able to break through it?


    The powers of the West-Hill Divine Pce might be strong, but other than the Headmaster, who else would be able to pry open the Peach Mountain that had several unknownyers of arrays and talismans? One had to know that only one person had sessfully escaped the You Prison over the years, and not even Wei Guangming had thought of prying open the stone window. He had instead chosen to break the wooden rods in front of him.


    Ning Que said, ¡°It seems like you have to stay in there for a couple of days. I need to think of a way.¡±


    Chen Pipi stood by the stone window, somewhat lost. He did not react.


    Ning Que only recalled then, that when the two had smiled at each other, he did not hear Chen Pipi¡¯sughter. He thought of a certain possibility and asked at a slower speed, ¡°You can¡¯t hear me?¡±


    Chen Pipi looked at Ning Que¡¯s mouth shapes and nodded. Then, he said something. Ning Que looked at the shapes his mouth made and understood, ¡°Other than light, nothing can pass through this window.¡±


    Ning Que thought about it and just as he was about to say something, Chen Pipi¡¯s expression suddenly turned into one of worry. His lips opened and closed, and Ning Que understood Sangsang and Tang Xiaotang¡¯s names.


    He knew what Chen Pipi wanted to say, and nodded to indicate that he already knew what happened to Sangsang. Then, he told him that Tang Xiaotang was at the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain and that he need not worry.


    Moonlight scattered down from the night sky and onto the precipice and Ning Que. Only a small amount of light could pass through the small stone window and on Chen Pipi¡¯s face. The two continued conversing without any sounds.


    ¡°Wait for me to get you out.¡±


    Ning Que looked at Chen Pipi¡¯s eyes and said. He said it really slowly and enunciated perfectly to ensure that Chen Pipi could understand every word that he said and could sense his determination.


    Chen Pipi looked at him silently and suddenly smiled and shake his head.


    Ning Que looked at the smile on his face and slowly pointed his middle finger. He said, ¡°You are just a prisoner now, you have no choice other than waiting passively for me to save you.¡±


    With that, he looked at his middle finger bathed in the moonlight. He wondered to himself in confusion; if he only had the Dhyana Emblematic Gesture on his left hand, then how could he stay on the precipice?


    Ning Que tried to stretch his hand and reach the stone window once more under the moonlight. He startled the inhibition on the You Prison, and the West-Hill Divine Pce knew that someone had approached the prison and began to grow wary. The ck-clothed deacons from the Judicial Department appeared on the three cliff tforms, but they had yet to check the Revtion Institute under the mountain.


    Ning Que was not worried that they would find him. The patch of peach blossoms at the waist of the mountain was his best shield. As long as no one in the Divine Hall expected that someone would be able to pass through the patch, they would not grow suspicious of the area under the mountain.


    Other than thinking about how to spring Chen Pipi from the heavily guarded You Prison, what made him feel cowed was the cold gaze from the peak that night.


    He was certain that there was no one on the Divine Halls at the peak then, but he kept feeling as if someone was watching him. Who was the owner of that cold gaze?


    He admitted that courage was an important aspect in battle, but it was not the deciding factor. That was why he did not leave Chang¡¯an with courage only. The Academy had made detailed ns and arrangements earlier, and his hiding in the Divine Hall was an important aspect in the n. If the cold gaze was what he thought it was, then it would not have any impact on the Academy¡¯s ns.


    The true impact was Chen Pipi.


    Haotian¡¯s world was stable as if it would never change. But the mortal world that was made up of several tiny details changed all the time. The Academy¡¯s ns had to be changed when he saw Chen Pipi¡¯s face in the precipice, and they might even have to be re-drawn.


    Ning Que did not understand why the West-Hill Divine Pce had locked Chen Pipi in the You Prison. Even if the Abbey Dean had died, the Zhishou Abbey could not continue to control the West-Hill Divine Pce behind the scenes; and even if Chen Pipi¡¯s identity as a disciple of the Academy was uneptable to Haotian Taoism, it was still incredulous to think that they would imprison someone of Chen Pipi¡¯s status. Were the bigwigs in the Divine Hall not afraid that Haotian Taoism would split because of this?


    In the middle of the night, Ning Que followed the path in the peach blossom cluster to the cliff again. But the clouds were thick tonight and the moonlight could not shine on the mortal world. The fog beneath the precipice would not dissipate. Ning Que dared not go down as he thought of the pain that he had endured from hundreds and thousands of des cutting him and the hatred in the fog.


    This held true in the next few nights as well. He had no way of seeing Chen Pipi.


    At this point, Ning Que had used the Great Spirit to repair the internal injuries he had suffered on the precipice. He had also taken out several old ssics to read in an attempt to find a way. Then, he began to observe the moon every night.


    Since light could enter the tiny stone window, then images could enter as well. He did not want to mime with Chen Pipi like an idiot on the precipice, so, he started to write a letter.


    Fine hair dipped in ink left behind a clear and beautiful writing on white paper. Ning Que sat at the desk and wrote without stopping, writing the Academy¡¯s ns and his thoughts on the paper. In the letter, he also wrote about some random happenings at the back of the mountain and asked if the food at the You Prison was really that good.


    In the gardens in front of the Revtion Institute, Long Qing and the Flower Addict, Lu Chen Jia, were looking at the moon.


    Lu Chenjia was still as beautiful as before, looking like a flower. However, the petals on the flower had been stained and seemed a little cold. It was not the delicate beauty that it was before.


    Long Qing was wearing a silver mask. There was no one in the world who could see his face hidden under the mask. The beauty that had dazzled countless girls was now a memory.


    ¡°I wonder when the practice of eating sweet potatoes during summer formed. I heard that the Divine Hall had this practice for over a thousand years. Habits are really powerful.¡±


    Long Qing looked at the half portion of sweet potato in his hand and the corner his lips left visible from beneath the mask rose up slightly. He said calmly, ¡°I just never thought that it would be so easy to form a new habit.¡±


    Lu Chenjia looked at the scar under his lips. Her expression darkened as she thought to herself that it was not scary to be ustomed to failure, but it was even more hurtful to have forgotten habits that a person once had. Have they ever been so distant?


    The war against the Tang Empire had ended and Long Qing had returned to the West-Hill Divine Pce to discover that everything had changed.


    He used to be a Priest at the verdict of the Divine Hall, but the person on the ck jade throne was now Ye Hongyu. How would she allow him into the verdict of the Divine Hall once more? Furthermore, he had been punished for betraying the sect. Even though the Abbey Dean had absolved him for his crimes, but with the defeat of the Abbey Dean in Chang¡¯an, many in the Divine Hall started to look at him with nces filled withplex thoughs once more.


    The West-Hill Divine Pce had suffered heavy damages in the war. As a powerhouse in the upper Knowing Destiny State, he should deserve more respect. With his status in Haotian Taoism and his cultivation state, not even Ye Hongyu nor those crimes that he hadmitted could affect his current position. There should not be any objections should he take over the position as the Great Divine Priest of Revtion.


    However, everyone knew that he had encountered that dark wind in the south of Chang¡¯an. His cultivation state had been torn into tatters by the wind and he had returned to the Divine Hall badly injured.


    Nobody believed that he would be able to climb up once more from the abyss of despair, like he did when he was shot by Ning Que¡¯s arrow to rise again to the peak. Just like what Lu Chenjia thought earlier, failure was not terrifying, but if one lost every time, and if failure became a habit, not even the most determined Taoist Heart would be able to bear such a terrible blow.


    If not for the Yan Kingdom¡¯s new emperor, Chong Ming, who had given the Divine Hall plenty of boons and showed his support for it¡ªand, if not for the fact that he was still in control of hundreds and thousands of elite cavalry on the Eastern Wilderness¡ªhe did not even have to think about the position as the Great Divine Priest of Revtion. He might not even be able to keep his unimportant position as a Minister of Offerings in the Revtion Institute.


    ¡°The new habits that I mentioned was not rted to being defeated by Ning Que. What I meant included everyone in the Divine Hall. We have gotten used to the moon hanging over us in less than half a year.¡±


    Long Qing looked at the moon that emerged from the thick clouds in the night dome and said, ¡°Peach blossoms that have not bloomed in decades suddenly did this year and are still in full bloom. People are also used to such an incredible thing, but no one ever looked at the mountains full of peach blossoms and asked why.¡±


    His gazended on the Divine Hall of Light at the peak and said, ¡°I would like to ask why.¡±

 Chapter 851 - Before the Flowers and Beneath the Moon (Part 2)

    <h4>Chapter 851: Before the Flowers and Beneath the Moon (Part 2)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The light in the Divine Hall of Light went out and the peach blossoms in the mountain blossomed. Although the Hierarch Lord had been missing since his return from the Academy, everyone knew that he had been seriously injured. However, on the day the peach blossoms bloomed, the Hierarch¡¯s chariot reappeared. The people looked at the shining figure behind the voile and found that he had recovered fully, his power even stronger than before.


    Many changes have taken ce in the West-Hill Divine Pce since spring, but no one seemed to notice. Some people did not perceive the changes at this level, while others did not dare to.


    ¡°There are some things that you can only guess about but you can¡¯t, which is why the process is made interesting. The people in the Divine Hall are all very smart. They are truly smart, so they will not die of intelligence.¡±


    Long Qing looked at Lu Chenjia and said, ¡°Some things can be guessed, and I want to confirm that I need to make a trip to the You Prison. Now that the verdict of the Divine Hall still has its eyes on me and Ye Hongyu has gotten rid of all my people, I do not have the chance to at all. But it is different for you, and I would like to ask you for your help.¡±


    His expression and tone were much more gentle than before. He was not as prideful or cold, but the words were still as cold to Lu Chenjia¡¯s ears because of his politeness.


    ¡°How am I different?¡± She asked.


    Long Qing looked at the Divine Hall of Light at the peak and said, ¡°It is said that she was by the Great Divine Priest of Revtion at his death. She went to see the Hierarch, and the Hierarch¡¯s blinded eyes recovered. However, the peach blossoms over this mountain have already bloomed for such a long time, yet she had not entered the verdict of the Divine Hall still and not met that woman, Ye Hongyu.¡±


    Lu Chenjia asked, ¡°What are you trying to say?¡±


    Long Qingsaid, ¡°If I have not guessed wrongly, she is the person in the Divine Hall of Light. Then, your bad rtionship with Ning Que is beneficial to you now. You can help me as long as the two girls in white in the Divine Hall speak. Not even Ye Hongyu would dare to stop you.¡±


    Lu Chenjia lowered her head and asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    Long Qing answered, ¡°Because she knows that helping you would mean helping me. She would definitely be willing as long as it is something that hinders the Academy and Ning Que because she hates them the most.¡±


    Lu Chenjia said, ¡°Then why don¡¯t you head straight to the Divine Hall of Light? Everyone knows that if we wanted to find someone Ning Que hated the most in the world, it¡¯d definitely be you.¡±


    After a pause, Long Qing said, ¡°I do not dare to take the risk because she also used to hate me a lot.¡±


    Lu Chenjia looked at his eyes and said, ¡°You said earlier that smart people easily die because of their intelligence. Mortals daring to guess Heaven¡¯s will are also equally in danger.¡±


    Long Qing answered, ¡°There are some things that have to be done even if you would die.¡±


    Lu Chenjia looked at the flowers in front of her and asked, ¡°When?¡±


    Long Qing replied, ¡°As soon as possible, as I do not have a lot of time.¡±


    Lu Chenjia said, ¡°I like how honest you are with me, so I will do it. But I do not understand why you want to enter the You Prison.¡±


    Long Qing answered, ¡°I have to see someone.¡±


    Lu Chenjia asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    Long Qing replied, ¡°I went to the Zhishou Abbey. The doors were closed.¡±


    Lu Chenjia looked at his face and asked with a wavering voice, ¡°Have you not given up yet?¡±


    Long Qing said calmly, ¡°It would be a shame to have suffered all these years and to have struggled in dire situations countless times if I just gave up so easily.¡±


    Lu Chenjia could sense the aura he was giving off and understood that he had gained true peace. She could not understand why a calm man like this would be so stubborn.


    ¡°Just because my heart is still does not mean that it is dead.¡±


    Long Qing looked at his chest. Beneath the divine robe, was a hole. There wasn¡¯t a heart inside, only a ck peach blossom. When the entire mountain bloomed with peach blossoms, the ck peach blossom in his chest that had almost withered in the south of Chang¡¯an had miraculously recovered. He felt that this was a sign from Haotian.


    He looked in the direction of the Divine Hall of Light and said calmly, ¡°I used to think too much in the past, so my Taoist Heart might be firm, but mottled. Those marks are scars from past fears. Just like the dream I had when I ascended the mountain in the Academy, I saw light and darkness, but did not understand where I should stand. Now, I just want to heal my injuries and have a fair fight with Ning Que, to see whom Haotian will choose. Even if Haotian does not choose me, I cannot give up on myself.¡±


    The moon shone on the flowering trees in the Revtion Institute and also on the peach blossoms covering the mountain. Ning Que stood on the edge of the cliff in front of the flowers and looked at the moon in the night sky. Once he had ascertained that the night would not be cloudly, he jumped to the opposite precipice.


    Hended on the precipice with both hands making the true Emblematic Gesture of the Buddhism Sect. The Dhyana and Indifference ignored the array intenting from the precipice. Then, he released his right hand slowly and held on to a rope hanging down from the top of the precipice.


    The rope was very long and strong, with one end tied to the neck of the big ck horse on the cliff tform while the other end hung off the precipice and was tightly tied to Ning Que¡¯s waist.


    He tugged on the string tightly, sending a signal to the top of the cliff tform. The Big ck Horse felt the vibration on the string on its neck and walked towards the edge of the cliff slowly. Ning Que slowly descended the precipice.


    Moonlight shone down, and the fog enveloping the You Prison lowered, revealing the stone windows dotting the precipice, looking like ant nests. Ning Que arrived at the cell Chen Pipi was imprisoned in and tugged on the rope once more.


    The Big ck Horse stopped moving forward.


    Ning Que was worried about being swallowed up by the fog and that he would not be able to hold onto the precipice and fall to his death. Now that he was tied by a rope to the Big ck Horse, he should be able to rest assured. However, he still felt rather nervous as he looked at the fog beneath his feet.


    He did not dare to look down and looked into the stone window instead.


    Chen Pipi was smiling at him inside the stone window.


    Only light could pass through the stone window. And even if someone on the precipice used the blood-colored huge de to gouge at the stone, the sound would not be able to pass through into the prison cell. Chen Pipi immediately discovered Ning Que when he arrived outside the stone window, not because he shared a connection with Ning Que and also not because he had great divination skills, but because he had been looking out of the window all this time.


    To be more exact, in thest few days, he ate, showered and farted, but did not sleep much. He spent all his time looking outside the stone window.


    The deacon in the You Prison thought he had gone mad, just looking at the unchanging blue sky in a daze all day. But actually, he was waiting for Ning Que. He knew that Ning Que woulde, but not when, so he could only keep looking out the window to ensure that he would not miss him.


    Ning Que took out the letter he wrote andid it t against the window.


    Using the light from the oilmp, Chen Pipi looked at the small print on the paper and frowned slightly. He was indeed the genius of the Academy, the only one who scored six A+¡¯s. He looked through it quickly and memorised the content on the paper. It would not be difficult for him to recite it again.


    Ning Que kept the paper and smiled. He asked silently, ¡°Isn¡¯t it amazing?¡±


    Chen Pipi only knew then, that it was the Academy¡¯s n. He could not help but grow frantic. Now that he thought through it, he felt that it was rather rational. But in the end, he still shook his head.


    It had nothing to do with the Academy¡¯s n. He just disagreed with Ning Que¡¯s addition to the n for rescuing him from the You Prison. The more rational the Academy¡¯s n was, the more he could not ept the risk of foiling it.


    Ning Que did not say anything when he saw Chen Pipi shaking his head. He pointed his middle finger.


    Chen Pipi continued shaking his head and wrote some words with his finger in the air.


    Ning Que looked at the words and frowned slightly. He did not understand why Chen Pipi brought her up.


    He extended his finger and wrote a dirty statement in the air outside the window.


    Chen Pipi felt a little angered, and wrote something even more crass with his finger.


    Ning Que did not grow angry. What was happening now reminded him of when he first entered the Academy and how he had exchanged messages with the fat boy in the old library through a note. He could not help butugh.


    Time passed silently and disappeared without a trace. Who would have thought that many yearster, he and Chen Pipi woulde to the Peach Mountain and exchange messages through a precipice?


    Chen Pipi must have thought of the past as well and heughed silently, saying, ¡°The food in the You Prison is indeed good. If you¡¯re interested, you cane in and try.¡±


    Then, he suddenly heard the sound of the door opening from behind him. Someone entered his cell, and Chen Pipi¡¯s smile faltered. He raised his brows at Ning Que who was outside the window.


    Ning Que understood and quickly moved to the side of the precipice to ensure that the people in the cell would not be able to see him from his angle. Then, he looked into the cell. When he saw the person walking into the cell, he could not help but feel a little surprised, not knowing why the person would appear there.


    Chen Pipi had never met the man entering the cell. He recognized the silver mask, if he had not remembered wrongly, which was why he was a little shocked and confused.


    ¡°If I haven¡¯t predicted wrongly, you should be very discreet in the West-Hill Divine Pce now. Why have you gone against the rules and visited me? Furthermore, how did you know I was imprisoned here? Don¡¯t tell me you still have cronies in the Judicial Department. I know how cold-blooded and powerful that woman is.¡±


    Long Qing looked at the fat boy by the window and said, ¡°You are indeed the genius of Haotian Taoism. You seem to be able to see what¡¯s happening outside even though you¡¯ve been shut in the You Prison. It¡¯s a pity... that you¡¯re useless now.¡±


    Chen Pipi replied, ¡°Even though I¡¯ve always been good natured, it does not mean that I do not have a temper at all. Even a blind man can see that you have no right to call me useless.¡±


    Long Qing smiled and said, ¡°Your Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi have already been destroyed. What are you if not useless?¡±


    Chen Pipi¡¯s expression did not change, and he said with a smile, ¡°Even a true useless person like you can regain your powers after being shot by Ning Que. Would I, a genius, be unable to do so?¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°You are still useless even if you regain your powers.¡±


    Chen Pipi sighed and said, ¡°It seems that you¡¯ve be childish after being bullied by Ning Que.¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°There¡¯s indeed no need to continue such a childish conversation. You¡¯re about to be burned by the Holy Fire at the Light Sacrifice. Why would I need toe and shame you again?¡±


    ¡°I want to hear why you think I¡¯m useless.¡±


    Chen Pipi¡¯s expresion wavered and he stood in front of Long Qing, and asked. He wanted to block the person and not let Ning Que, who was outside the window, see what he was saying. However, he was toote.


    Ning Que saw what Long Qing said clearly.


    The Light Sacrifice was the grandest sacrificial ceremony of the West-Hill Divine Pce. It required otions of the highest level. No one knew what the otion of the Light Sacrifice was until today.


    Ning Que only found out tonight that Chen Pipi was the otion of the Light Sacrifice. What was awaiting him was the burning of the holy Haotian Divine Light and death.


    ¡°This otion is rather precious... and heavy.¡±


    Ning Que smiled as he looked at Chen Pipi¡¯s wide figure within the prison. Then, he silently scolded Mrs. Zeng in his heart, calling her the most shameless prostitute in the world.

 Chapter 852 - A Useless Oblation is not Useless

    <h4>Chapter 852: A Useless Otion is not Useless</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    ¡°You want to hear why I say you¡¯re useless.¡±


    Long Qing did not know that Chen Pipi had asked the question in order to block Ning Que¡¯s sight. He said, ¡°Back then, I was considered as the Divine Son of West-Hill. It seemed as if they thought well of me, but I always knew that to the old people of the West-Hill Divine Pce, the future of Haotian Taoism had been entrusted to you. Compared to you, I am nothing. And I believe that I have never existed to you.¡±


    This statement was very true. To the deacons and priests working under the West-Hill Divine Pce Judicial Department, and to the ordinary believers in the world, Long Qing was the most dazzling person. There were so many believers of Haotian in countless Taoist temples, but not many had heard of Chen Pipi¡¯s name.


    However, in the eyes of the upper-level figures who truly understood the secrets of Haotian Taoism, only Chen Pipi was qualified to represent Haotian Taoism in the future. It was because he came from the Zhishou Abbey, and had inherited the Abbey Dean¡¯s Taoists Law. He had been thought of as a rare genius since he was a child. He could onlypare to the sessors at the Academy or the Xuankong Temple. But after he became the Headmaster¡¯s disciple, there was no reason topare anymore.


    Whenpared to Chen Pipi, who was born in the embrace of Haotian¡¯s grace, Long Qing seemed too ordinary no matter how genius he was. And no matter how noble his family was, they seemedmon.


    Several years ago, Long Qing entered Chang¡¯an, hoping to enter the Second floor of the Academy. Ning Que once asked Chen Pipi about him. Back then, Long Qing was well known in the world, but Chen Pipi did not care at all. The difference between the two was too great, and it was indeed hard for Long Qing to exist in Pipi¡¯s eyes.


    ¡°You are not Ye Hongyu. I did not feel the need to watch you.¡± Chen Pipi said to Long Qing.


    Long Qing said, ¡°You are the rare genius of Haotian Taoism while I am just a Prince in the mortal world. Of course, you had no need to watch me. Furthermore, you are indeed the youngest person in the cultivation world to enter the Knowing Destiny State. But what I find confusing and funny, is that you have remained stagnant since then. Ye Hongyu has already surpassed you, and your cultivation state is lower than mine. You have an incredible lineage and experiences, and you are talented, yet in the end, you became a mediocre person. How can this be simply exined away by having a smart childhood but being mediocre in adulthood? This only proves that there is something wrong with you. A useless person who possesses plenty of talent is still useless.¡±


    Chen Pipi smiled and did not say anything.


    Two red patches appeared on Long Qing¡¯s pale cheeks. He looked at Chen Pipi¡¯s eyes and said, ¡°I don¡¯t understand. Even I can see that there is something wrong with your heart. Why can¡¯t the elders in Haotian Taoism see it? Why didn¡¯t the Abbey Dean see it? Why didn¡¯t the Headmaster see it? Why do you still have the right to be ced in the You Prison and be taken so seriously even though you are now useless? How can someone so useless like you has the right to be an otion at the Light Sacrifice and be the sacrifice that Haotian wants?¡±


    Chen Pipi thought that it was indeed rather funny and he said, ¡°The otion at the Light Sacrifice has to be burnt to death. I don¡¯t think this is very glorious. If you think I don¡¯t have the right to do it, please hurry and tell the Hierarch.¡±


    Long Qing suddenly realized that he had lost control of his emotions. He did not know why he had spoken about his true feelings after looking at Chen Pipi¡¯s amiable expression, and his expression froze.


    ¡°Even if I¡¯m useless, I do not wish to listen to too much crap.¡±


    Chen Pipi looked at him and said, holding his palms out, ¡°You must have spent a lot of effort to enter the You Prison. Is it just to vent your resentment and jealousy? I don¡¯t remember meeting you when I was a child. If you had any psychological trauma from your childhood, I can¡¯t be responsible for it. Just look at that woman, she has never been responsible for mine.¡±


    Long Qing calmed down and looked at him, saying, ¡°I admit that I am indeed a little jealous of you because your cultivation path has had too much smooth-sailing. People like me have to put in a lot of effort and even suffer plenty of torment to be able to reach the state we have now. You have only managed to reincarnate well and met a good teacher, so you were able to reach where you are easily. I can¡¯t not be jealous.¡±


    Chen Pipiforted him, ¡°Get over it, I didn¡¯t want for things like that to happen either.¡±


    Long Qing looked at his smile and his eyebrows picked up. He continued, ¡°I am more angry rather than jealous. I¡¯m angry that my teacher has an unfilial descendant such as you.¡±


    Chen Pipi only recalled then that Long Qing was his father¡¯s disciple. After a moment of silence, he said, ¡°I did my best for the Academy in Chang¡¯an, and I was filial to my father outside the city. I do not owe anyone anything.¡±


    Long Qing stared at him and said, ¡°Teacher isn¡¯t doing very well now; he is no better than an ordinary person and needs someone to take care of him. If you cannot be filial, then I hope you can help me.¡±


    Chen Pipi did not understand and asked, ¡°How do you want me to help you?¡±


    Long Qing replied, ¡°I went to Zhishou Abbey but could not enter.¡±


    Chen Pipi said helplessly, ¡°There are still times you have to be rational in this world. I won¡¯t really be useless just because you called me that many times, and then be so stupid to believe you.¡±


    Long Qing answered, ¡°Teacher needs someone to take care of him now.¡±


    Chen Pipi replied, ¡°He is the Abbey Dean of the Zhishou Abbey and is supported by several countries in the mortal world. He does not need anyone to care for him.¡±


    Long Qing answered, ¡°You know what I mean by taking care of him.¡±


    Chen Pipi lowered his eyelids and said, ¡°If Haotian does not speak, there is no one in Haotian Taoism who would dare to disrespect the Zhishou Abbey.¡±


    Long Qing realized that Chen Pipi was indeed very clever. Even though he did not have much experience with worldly matters, he knew what he wanted to say, and it was as if he could see through the depths of Long Qing¡¯s heart. Long Qing could not help but grow vignt.


    ¡°Order depends on strength andes from knowing that the Zhishou Abbey can control the West-Hill Divine Pce from behind the scenes and influence the world for countless years. The anthill on the green hills was trampled by the Headmaster, and the strongest power in the abbey disappeared like clouds and smoke. Teacher was seriously injured and it is extremely difficult for the Zhishou Abbey to be any sort of influence, much less control the Divine Hall. The hundreds and thousands of Taoist temples and Haotian believers in the mortal world only know about the existence of the West-Hill Divine Pce but not of the Zhishou Abbey. In such a situation, even if Haotian does not speak, do you think that the West-Hill Divine Pce which has been suppressed for countless years would not start having ideas? Do you think the Hierarch Lord is willing to think back on the days he was my teacher¡¯s dog? Would the cottages by theke be able to weather the storm if no one takes care of them?¡±


    Long Qing looked at Chen Pipi and said frankly, ¡°I know my present cultivation state is not enough to restore the former glory of the Zhishou Abbey. But whether it¡¯s Emperor brother Chongming or the cavalry in the wastnd, they can give me strength. Otherwise, I would have been forced to leave the Peach Mountain long ago. I think this should be some kind of proof.¡±


    Chen Pipi looked into his eyes silently and said, ¡°He was seriously injured in Chang¡¯an, and his cultivation state has been irrevocably damaged. Even if Haotian takes pity on him, there is no way to save him.¡±


    Long Qing understood that Chen Pipi had said this to remind him that it¡¯d be pointless for him to use the Grey Eyes to take the Abbey Dean¡¯s power if that was why he wanted to enter the Abbey.


    The temperature dipped slightly and he felt that Chen Pipi¡¯s seemingly simple gaze was suddenly filled with conflicting thoughts. It was as if they were looking at the deepest part of his soul, and he could only remain silent.


    ¡°Seven in and thirteen out.¡± Chen Pipi suddenly said.


    Long Qing paused slightly and asked, ¡°What does that mean?¡±


    Chen Pipi looked at him and smiled, ¡°It is the way to enter the abbey. If you cannot understand this, then it means that you¡¯ll never be as good as someone useless like me.¡±


    Long Qing left the prison cell after receiving the answer he wanted.


    Chen Pipi turned around and looked out of the stone window.


    Ning Que¡¯s face appeared and he looked at Chen Pipi, asking something soundlessly.


    Chen Pipi smiled and shook his head.


    Ning Que pointed his middle finger once more.


    Chen Pipi refused to say anything else. He turned around, showing his wide back and buttocks to Ning Que. Then, he lifted his right hand high above his head and pointed his middle finger.


    Ning Que looked at his Senior Brother¡¯s back through the stone window on the precipice. After a long pause, he tugged on the rope.


    The Big ck Horse who was on the cliff tform felt the movement from the string. It walked backwards. Ning Que climbed up the precipice, and the distance between him and the stone window grew gradually.


    The Light Sacrifice was the greatest ceremony of Haotian Taoism. It could only be held when Haotian sends miraculous signs to the world. The human world had not seen the miracle of Haotian for many years, so the Light Sacrifice had not been held for many years. Even the most learned priest in the Revtion Department of the West-Hill Divine Pce was not very clear about the requirements and procedures of the sacrifice ceremony. Ning Que naturally did not know anything about it.


    After leaving the You Prison in the precipice and returning to the Revtion Institute, he stayed in the Book Hall to consult the ssics, and finally found some relevant content in an extremely thick record, confirming that the Light Sacrifice really needed sacrifices. The sacrifices could be swords, sheep or a de of grass, but they must have the purest belief, and sometimes are even the essence of Haotian¡¯s miracles, so they were extremely rare.


    As time passed, the shadow of the Evesting Night slowly approached. The belief in Haotian¡¯s world gradually declined, and it became extremely difficult to find such otions. If one looked at the requirements of the otions, Sword Sage Liu Bai might be the most suitable. However, his belief in Haotian was questionable. Perhaps the old yellow bull in the Academy might be qualified, but the West-Hill Divine Pce did not dare to even think about it.


    Ning Que gathered plenty of information through various means and eventually ascertained that the otion at the Light Sacrifice was Chen Pipi. He heard from the rumors that the West-Hill Divine ce was using him as an otion not because he was a known genius in Haotian Taoism or that he was a disciple on the Second floor of the Academy. The crux of the matter was that his father was the Abbey Dean of Zhishou Abbey and his mother was a descendant of the Great Divine Priest of Light who had left the Peach Mountain six hundred years ago for the South Sea and then had disappeared.


    His identity as a sessor of the Academy was a betrayal to Haotian, and the most precious blood of Haotian Taoism flowed in his veins. Was there any other traitor of such pedigree who was more suitable to be an otion?


    Furthermore, to the West-Hill Divine Pce, when the Peach Mountain burns with holy fire and when Chen Pipi faces the danger of burning to ashes, would the Academy do nothing? Would Ning Que continue staying in Chang¡¯an?


    Ning Que felt cold thinking about how the fat boy would be burned into a puddle of fat. He looked at the Divine Hall of Light at the peak and thought, ¡®do you really want him to die so badly? Do you really want me to die?¡¯

 Chapter 853 - Sweet Potatoes Cool Easily

    <h4>Chapter 853: Sweet Potatoes Cool Easily</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Ning Que, who was on the Peach Mountain, was able to find out what the otion for the Light Sacrifice was. The Tang Empire, which possessed numerous intelligence systems would naturally find out about it, and might have even known about it before Ning Que did. However, Ning Que could only think about how to handle the matter now.


    He was basically certain that the news was released intentionally by the West-Hill Divine Pce. The Divine Hall wanted to force the people in the Academy, especially him, out of Chang¡¯an. The Divine Hall thought that he was still in the city and this was a problem they could not resolve. He was so mad at the peak of the Divine Hall of Light because he was certain that the woman inside the hall had chosen Chen Pipi. The Divine Hall of Light sacrifices to Haotian, and since Haotian was in the mortal world now, then only Haotian could decide on its own otion.


    Ning Que had mixed emotions. Many years ago, he had met with an attempt on his life by the Vermilion Bird¡¯s Divine Talisman on the Vermilion Bird Avenue after killing Yan Suqing. He had not died on the spot thanks to the Big ck Umbre. He would not have been able to survive, if he had not gained Chen Pipi¡¯s help after escaping into the old library in the Academy and eaten the extremely precious Heavenly Power Pill. And then, he had been extremely fortuitous and rebuilt his Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi; the pile of firewood that could not cultivate finally stepped on the path to cultivation. In other words, Chen Pipi had truly changed his fate, and in theirter encounters, while he had not mentioned anything, Ning Que had never forgotten it either.


    He had told Sangsang once, that she had to help him remember that he owed Chen Pipi his life. He had done so because this was an important matter to him and he was afraid that he might forget. That was why he asked Sangsang, who never forgot anything, to help him remember it. It seemed that he had long forgotten those things.


    That night, Ning Que entered the precipice once more and scolded the woman in the Divine Hall of Light by the stone window, to make his stance and choice clear between his friend and his old lover. Then, he took out the n he had amended earlier and exined it in front of the stone window. However, he could not help but stop shortly after he began.


    He did so, because Chen Pipi had refused to listen and did not turn around. He turned his back against Ning Que who was outside the stone window, whose face was illuminated by moonlight. Since he did not see Ning Que¡¯s mouth nor the words on the letter, he could not hear them.


    Chen Pipi expressed his determined objection through silence. His Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi had been sealed. In Long Qing¡¯s words, he was now useless. So what right did he have to ask his Senior Brothers and Sisters at the Academy to risk themselves for him? What right did he have to ask Ning Que, his Younger Brother to risk his life for him?


    Ning Que looked at his broad back and fell silent for a moment. Then, he pointed his middle finger at him and said in a hoarse voice, ¡°Do you think you¡¯ll look good if they burn you into a puddle of fat?¡±


    Ning Que could use the powers of the Buddhism Sect he had learned from Master Qishan, and the moonlight shone upon the world thanks to his teacher, to counter the tactical array on the precipice. However, his current cultivation state could not open the precipice and rescue Chen Pipi from the You Prison. When Chen Pipi turned around, he could not even make him hear what he wanted to say. If he did not want to watch Chen Pipi die, he had to choose a different method.


    No matter the edge of the skies or the seas, when the Academy encountered a problem they could not solve, they would request help from their sect. Because to them, their rtionship with the Academy was like that of Haotian and his believers. The Academy was omnipotent. Even though Ning Que and the others had be the source of confidence of the Academy after the Headmaster ascended to Heaven, he still wanted to ask his Senior Brothers for their opinions at a time like this.


    Ning Que left the Revtion Institute and walked on the stone bridge across the stream. He arrived at the little town once more, and handed a letter he had written to the Academy to the old man selling sweet potatoes. He hoped that he would receive a reply as soon as possible.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what you guys are going to do, but be careful.¡± Said the old man selling sweet potatoes.


    Ning Que answered, ¡°I have not thought of being able to leave the Peach Mountain alive since I am already here. Or perhaps, I have never thought of returning alone. Still, I don¡¯t think anything will happen to me.¡±


    After settling his business, Ning Que took two sweet potatoes with him and left the town. The sweet potatoes were fresh from the oven and were very hot. Even though he was not worried that he would be burnt, he still switched them from hand to hand in order not to draw attention to himself. He looked rather funny.


    A horse carriage sped towards him. He looked at the white dressed girl in front of the carriage and thought of the day with a thunderstorm. He had encountered this horse carriage once. It had brushed by him and he had turned around to look at it subconsciously to see that the girl in the horse carriage was still as tall and plump. He could not help but have some sinister conjectures and felt happy for no reason.


    He dived down to the bottom of the precipice once more in the middle of the night, The Big ck Horse was still working hard on the cliff tform while Ning Que hung in front of the stone tform and tried to persuade Chen Pipi who was in the prison cell. However, no matter how much he tried, Chen Pipi did not turn around. Since he could not hear Ning Que¡¯s voice, Chen Pipi could pretend he did not exist.


    ¡°What is most important to us is that we need to have confidence. I know what you are worried about, but what¡¯s there to be worried about? Teacher is watching us in the skies, don¡¯t you even dare to try?¡±


    ¡°Are you not worried that he¡¯ll be angry? What if he is was fighting with Haotian while getting angry, and is distracted and then hit by Haotian?¡±


    ¡°Teacher said you please the Heavens, which is why you could attain the Knowing Destiny State so easily. But how are you pleasing the Heavens now? Are you feeling inferior because you¡¯re fat and don¡¯t want to meet people?¡±


    ¡°You¡¯re so useless. I saw a rich girl these past few days. She¡¯s unmarried, and is even fatter than you! And taller than Second Brother! She looks as if she got pregnant before she got married! But does she feel inferior?¡± ¡°She travels around the world with her maidservant every day and buys a pile of high-calorie food like sweet potatoes! A pile! Do youknow how many sweet potatoes there are in a pile?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s enough to feed the refugees in Hebei County back then! But she doesn¡¯t care! Look at what she¡¯s doing! That¡¯s confidence!¡±


    There were dangerous clouds floating around the quiet precipice. Ning Que climbed to the stone window like a herbalist and talked earnestly to the window. Even though Chen Pipi refused to turn around and could not hear what he was saying, he grew more and more excited. He could not help butugh rudely when he thought of the fatdy.


    There had not been any trace left behind by humans on the precipice for tens and thousands of years, and the West-Hill Divine Pce did not have any surveince on the area. That was why Ning Que could speak as he wished. And even if his voice traveled upwards with the wind, it would be softer than the rustling of leaves once it reached the peak where the Divine Halls were. Not even powerhouses who were above the Five States would be able to hear him. As such, Ning Que was very assured. However, he had long forgotten that the woman in the Divine Hall of Light was not human.


    Sangsang stood on the balcony behind the Divine Hall of Light and looked at the ludicrous scene happening in the abyss below. She listened to the funny man saying ridiculous things, and she frowned slightly.


    The floor behind her was as smooth as jade, and on them, was a neatly piled stack of sweet potatoes. Not far away, were the skins of already devoured potatoes. She held an icy cold sweet potato in her hand.


    The holy and solemn Divine Hall of Light was crammed with urns of food and sweet potatoes. Even though those objects, including the trash, were all kept neatly and were filled with icy cold lines, they were still food. No matter how cold and orderly they were, they still had the unique taste of the mortal world.


    This was also the reason why she had be so angry after hearing what Ning Que said on the precipice.


    Countless stars ignited and burnt into oblivion in her eyes, and countless seas were set on fire and boiled. Her powerful will swept through the world with an angry fire, as if it was about to burn everything.


    Unlike the previous two times, the skies did not change due to her anger tonight, and lightning and thunder did not strike. She had already learned how to control things like her emotions.


    To cultivators or human beings, learning how to control their emotions was definitely a good thing. However, it was not for her. Because if one looked at it from a different point of view, it meant that she had started to grow used to the emotions in her subconscious, but she was not supposed to.


    Only humans needed something as useless as emotions. She was the order of the world and was objective and cold. She would not feel joy from the things around her, and did not feel sadness. When she started to feel hatred and anger or other emotions, and even learned to be used to them, what changes would ur?


    The sweet potato she held in her hand had already turned cold, just like the world and life that she had once been used to. She raised the potato to her lips and took a bite and realized the diforting from her tongue and lips. She knew that this was because the potato did not taste good. Sweet potatoes were good only when they were eaten hot.


    She looked at the moon in the night sky and did not speak as usual. Her slender long eyes scrunched up lightly, just like how the willow leaves were folded up by the wind at Yanming Lake.


    She was Haotian who had been left behind on the mortal world. As the aura of the world grew cloudy, she wanted to return to the world and life she was familiar with. However, the door to the Kingdom of God had been destroyed and blocked by the moon. She could not clear the path blocked by the moon with her own strength.


    The Light Sacrifice held by the West-Hill Divine Pce was their attempt at trying to help her to clear the path to the Divine Land of Haotian. They had chosen Chen Pipi because of his pure bloodline, and the most pious belief of many generations of his ancestors. Also, he was the student the moon doted on the most.


    She looked at the moon and imagined what she would do once she returned to the Kingdom of God and felt slightly better. Then, she suddenly recalled that there were neither hot nor cold sweet potatoes in the Kingdom of God.


    Her mind suddenly cleared, and the alertness in her heart grew. She nced at the sweet potato in her hand that had been heated up with Divine Light and frowned in displeasure. Then, she threw the potato off the balcony.


    The Divine Hall of Light was at the peak and below it, were three cliff tforms. Below them, were the precipice and the You Prison. The sweet potato did not fall into the abyss, but instead, fell on the third cliff tform.


    Ning Que, who was on the precipice, had, fortunately, escaped the fate of being the first person in history to have been struck to death by a sweet potato. The Big ck Horse was startled by the sweet potato thatnded beside it. It looked at the sweet potato that sttered onto the ground and at the steam emitting from it. It smelled the fragranceing from the potato flesh and thought of how he had worked hard for Ning Que over the past few nights, along with it his sad fate of not even having supper. He could not help but be thankful, and thanked Haotian incessantly for his gift.

 Chapter 854 - The Girl from the South Sea

    <h4>Chapter 854: The Girl from the South Sea</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    There was nothing in the world that could be kept as an absolute secret. Instead, oftentimes, the news spread even faster because it was a secret. Just as how Ning Que had imagined, Chang¡¯an had already received relevant information regarding the Light Sacrifice, even before he had found out that Chen Pipi was about to be burned to death.


    The Light Sacrifice had not been held for too many years, and so while the back of the Academy¡¯s mountain had many books, not much information could be found about it. The people did not understand why the West-Hill Divine Pce would want to use Chen Pipi as an otion. However, they knew that there were dangerous undercurrents running beneath this matter. Haotian Taoism was using Chen Pipi¡¯s life to force the people in the Academy out of Chang¡¯an, and their main target was naturally Ning Que.


    The precious and rare materials in various counties of the Tang Empire continued to be sent into the Imperial Pce. The heavy ck horse carriage was parked within the pce, and various sources proved that Ning Que was still in the pce and was working with Eldest Brother on fixing the God-stunning Array. Would he really watch Chen Pipi die?


    The people at the back of the mountain naturally knew where Ning Que had gone. However, the distance between both parties was too great. Though they did not know what kind of choice Ning Que would make, they could not continue waiting. And just before Ning Que¡¯s letter arrived in Chang¡¯an, someone in the back of the mountain had made a decision without even thinking.


    Eldest Brother looked at the young and adorable girl at the front of the hall. He looked at the old leather boots on her feet and the blood-colored huge de that looked more like a metal rod in her hands. He thought for a moment and said, ¡°Your teacher is not in Chang¡¯an. I cannot stop you, but you must know what this decision means.¡±


    Yu Lian had left the Academy and not many knew where she went, but Tang Xiaotang did. She knew that she could not wait for her teacher or her brother toe, and so, she said respectfully and determinedly, ¡°Uncle, I understand what you mean. But I cannot have a peace of mind if I do not go and see.¡±


    There were many gravel bits in her boots, and her clothes were coated with dirt. She had been widening the stone steps on the precipice of the back of the mountain in the past six months. No matter whether her teacher was around or not, she would sweat as she squatted on the steep stone steps and use the iron rod in her hand to fight against the tough stones.


    To think that back then, in the Wilderness on the snow cliff, her abilities were close to Ye Hongyu¡¯s. Now, Ye Hongyu was a Grand Cultivator at the peak of the Knowing Destiny State while her abilities remained at the past standards. This was not because she did not have talent, but because the difference in cultivation between the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and Haotian Taoism wasrge in the first ce.


    Yu Lian made her jump in the waterfall endlessly and made her endure hardships. This was the assignment a teacher had for her student, and this was also the polishing the Grandmaster of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was doing for the younger generation. The years and months of learning and polishing had strengthened the girl¡¯s spirits to one that was unimaginable. However, her cultivation state had not changed because she needed an opportunity to use all that she had learned.


    Tang Xiaotang felt as if this was an opportunity for her to raise her cultivation state. She wanted to go to the Peach Mountain and to see Chen Pipi. To do these, she had to face several rounds of dangerous battles. To a cultivator in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, battle was the only means to raise one¡¯s abilities. Only a truly horrifying battle could sculpt a truly powerful powerhouse.


    She wanted to be the strongest girl in the world, so she had never been afraid of battle. However, when she bade the Academy farewell, she had never thought that even if she became as powerful as Ye Hongyu, she would not be able to barge into the Peach Mountain to save Chen Pipi. And even if she was able to find the true meaning of being a powerhouse through battles, what was waiting for her might not be the shocked nces of those in the cultivation world, but only a cold hard death.


    That was all fine. Just as what she had said earlier, what she was looking for, was peace of mind. She was pursuing battle. If she dared not fight, how would she gain peace of mind?


    Eldest Brother looked at her. It was as if he were looking at his Third Sister many years back when she had followed their teacher to the Academy. Then, she used to love wearing green dresses and possessed eyes that were mature and so cold they were terrifying...


    ¡°If anything happens, listen to your Youngest Uncle.¡± He instructed.


    ¡°I will listen to him if he makes sense, ¡°Tang Xiaotang said.


    She put away the iron rod and flicked off the dust on herself, stomping to get rid of the gravel on her boots. Then, she left Chang¡¯an, heading towards the distant West-Hill Divine Kingdom and the stupid fat boy.


    A gust of wind started above the sea, and the waves rose. The cerulean blue sea waters rolled, seeming to be extremely restless. As such, several agitated clouds appeared above the sky above the sea.


    An entirely ck wooden boat burst out from the waves in the sea. Not a single fisherman at the shore or the coolies at the pier could see where the boat appeared from. They could not help but feel as if the boat had suddenly jumped onto the surface of the sea from the Underworld.


    The ck boat approached the shore slowly, the women selling water and food continued shouting. The odd feeling they had was not as important as their survival. However, the boat did not reply to them. Momentster, a dozen people left the ck boat. They carried water and food in their hands and started giving them out to the poor people on the shore.


    Some of them were male, some were female, some were old and some were young. Their skin color was extremely dark and they wore themon wide-brimmed bamboo hat. They were no different from the fishermen at the South Sea. However, what was most startling was that they all wore red colored divine robes!


    The people on the shore were not mistaken. The style of the divine robes might have been old and the material faded, but the badge they wore was real and one that no one dared to replicate. Compared to the ordinary West-Hill Divine Pce divine robes, the only difference was that some of these people wore a ck silk belt at their waists.


    The difference in status priests and deacons in the West-Hill Divine Pce was observed strictly. The priests in red were very important figures, and held noble status, especially in the secr world. Usually, there would be a priest in red governing a tiny country. The town, ruled by the Great River Kingdom had three priests in red. The dozens of men and women who looked like fishermen and had descended from the boat were all wearing red robes. Were they all priests in red? Why would so many bigwigs appear at the remote south sea? The people in the town all found it hard to believe. What made it even more incredulous was that these priests in red were giving out food to the poor even though they were of such noble status!


    When have the priests in the Divine Hall ever done such a thing?


    The news of dozens of priests in red appearing in the little town near the South Sea quickly spread throughout the Great River Kingdom. When the King and the representative of the ck Ink Garden arrived by the sea after traveling through the night, the priests in red had long left, and no one knew where they had gone to.


    The priests in red who were like fishermen started to walk towards the north silently after reaching the shore. They specifically chose remote paths, and sometimes, chose to walk straight through the mountains and forests as if they were afraid of bothering the ordinary folk.


    They stayed by the stream, and ate their meals with the salted anchovies they brought with them. They would pay if they asked for rice and would not ept the money offered by the most pious believers of Haotian they met.


    Even though they wore divine robes, they were unlike the proud priests in the West-Hill Divine Pce. Instead, they were more like the Ascetic Monks of the Yuelun Kingdom who walked silently and proudly.


    One day, they arrived at the Shaoming Lake near the ck Ink Garden for a short rest. A girl looked up towards the beautiful Mogan Mountain and said, ¡°Is this the legendary ck Ink Garden?¡±


    It could be because these people dressed in red divine robes fished all year round, and were exposed to the elements; they were all very tanned and rough. The girl was very young, and her skin color was lighter and smoother. Her brows were thick and straight and she exuded a sense of healthiness and strength.


    A thin and tall middle-aged man answered, ¡°Indeed.¡±


    The young girl looked at the attics that were somewhat hidden between Mogan Mountain and said, ¡°I heard my uncle mention once, when I was a child, that there were many Talisman Masters here. A few days ago, I heard that his female disciple had be a Divine Talisman Master. It seems that it is a rather good sect. Should we destroy the ck Ink Garden while we are at it?¡±


    Talisman Masters were the most powerful existences in the cultivation world. They held high positions even in the West-Hill Divine Pce. It was difficult to beat a Divine Talisman Master in battle. Furthermore, the Master of Calligraphy and Mo Shanshan were both in the ck Ink Garden. The girl looked to be about 17 or 18, but she dared say she wanted to destroy the ck Ink Garden!


    Even if she had started cultivating in the womb and was able to reach the Initial Awareness and Perception State before she was born, she should not be able to say something like that. What was even more unexpected was her natural expression when she mentioned destroying the Garden. It was as if she were talking about which tent she should stay in tonight!


    If other cultivators had heard the girl saying that, they might have been stunned speechless. But it was more likely that they wouldugh at her. However, the people by theke did not look at her oddly. It was as if they felt that it would be an easy task destroying the ck Ink Garden. Some of them even looked at the girl fondly as if they would rush to the ck Ink Garden immediately if that was what she desired.


    The thin and tall middle-aged man looked at the girl and shook his head. He said, ¡°Xiao Yu, don¡¯t make a fuss. We have a more urgent task at hand. Let¡¯s talk about it when we return to the Peach Mountain.¡±


    The teenager¡¯s tanned face turned into one of joy and pride when she heard the words ¡®Peach Mountain¡¯. Even the most solemn old man smiled.


    The Light Sacrifice was the most solemn ceremony of the West-Hill Divine Pce, and was the greatest celebration in Haotian¡¯s world. Thest Light Sacrifice was already a distant memory, and thus, this Light Sacrifice had gained the attention of all believers and many noble guests of the mortal world.


    The otions from each country were sent to the West-Hill Divine Kingdom. While those rare objects could not be the main otion for the Light Sacrifice, they were sufficient to satisfy the Divine Hall.


    Some of the most pious Haotian believers came to the West-Hill Divine Kingdom when they heard of the news of the Light Sacrifice. They came in spring and had never left. Other than these people, the House of Red Sleeves from Chang¡¯an and some other dance troupes were the earliest participants of the Light Sacrifice. The Divine Hall arranged for them to stay in a garden, and other than practicing their dance moves, they were instructed in etiquette. Most importantly, their performances had to pass several rounds of inspections.


    A letter from Chang¡¯an was sent to the garden and into the Sweet Potato Shop in the town before Ning Que brought it back to the Book Hall of the Revtion Institute. After reading the letter written by Eldest Brother, Ning Que did not do anything else. He did not visit Chen Pipi at the precipice again. It was as if everyone in the world was quietly waiting for the Light Sacrifice.

 Chapter 855 - Seven Steps into the Zhishou Abbey

    <h4>Chapter 855: Seven Steps into the Zhishou Abbey</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    Countless Haotian believers entered the West-Hill Divine Kingdom to participate in the Light Sacrifice. Diplomatic corps from various countries had also arrived one after another, and the Divine Hall arranged for them to stay in the Taoist temples in the gardens surrounding Peach Mountain. Those who were of noble status stayed at the Revtion Institute.


    Liu Yiqing represented the Sword Garret of the South Jin Kingdom. Ning Que stood on the cliffs and watched as Priest Moli led the blind swordsman into the Revtion Institute. He thought of the battle outside the side gate of the Academy and could not help butment.


    The earlier part of Liu Yiqing¡¯s cultivation path was rtively unknown, and he only be slightly more famous when he entered the Sword Garret. Many thought well of his talent in Sword Taoism. Second Brother even said once that if Liu Yiqing did not miss any opportunities, he might even reach his brother, the Sword Sage, Liu Bai¡¯s standards.


    Liu Bai also thought highly of him and wanted him to go to Chang¡¯an to find and challenge the person who had entered the human realm on behalf of the Academy. He wanted to use this opportunity to polish his spirit and he would benefit from it even if he lost. However, they had not expected that the West-Hill Divine Pce¡¯s Judicial Department would meddle in it and that the battle would turn out to be one of life and death. Ning Que, who had emerged from seclusion had blinded Liu Yiqing with a de.


    If he had been an ordinary cultivator, Liu Yiqing would have given up when he encountered such a massive failure. However, he did not let Liu Bai or Second Brother down. He cultivated in seclusion in the Sword Garret for many years after he was blinded, and he improved tremendously, entering the Knowing Destiny State. Perhaps one could say that him being blinded by Ning Que was the opportunity that Second Brother had mentioned.


    In the battle of Verdant Canyon, Liu Bai had cut off Second Brother¡¯s right arm and had suffered rather serious injuries. He returned to the Sword Garret to recuperate, and Liu Yiqing was not in charge of managing affairs in the Sword Garret. It was rumored that the Sword Garret had been angered and had killed the Emperor of the South Jin Kingdom, being Liu Yiqing who had entered the pce alone and done it.


    Ning Que had once met a powerhouse called Cheng Zhiqing in the Knowing Destiny State from the Sword Garret when he was at Lanke Temple. However, he did not see the person in the Sword Garret¡¯s convoy. It seemed that Liu Yiqing¡¯s position in the Sword Garret had stabilized.


    He still could not understand why the Sword Sage, Liu Bai, had note. Even though the rumors said that the had not recovered from his injuries, the Light Sacrifice was a grand event. Liu Bai was the Adviser of the Divine Hall and should havee personally.


    Following that, Ning Que saw the diplomatic corps from the Golden Pce. They only took up a single carriage, with only an old man who had a face full of wrinkles and was wearing a cloth shirt sitting in the carriage. No horses were pulling the carriage. Instead, a heavily built man from the grasnd, who possessed muscles as hard as stone, pulled the carriage. It looked pathetic to an extreme.


    However, when people found out who the two were, they no longer thought that the scene was pathetic. The man in a cloth shirt sitting in the carriage was the most esteemed Nation Master, Master Bao Ding of the Golden Pce. The muscr man pulling the carriage was a powerful Martial Arts cultivator from the Golden Pce, General Le Bu!


    Even if only one of the two of such noble status had turned up, it would have been sufficient to show the respect that the Golden Pce had for the West-Hill Divine Pce and how important they thought the Light Sacrifice was. What shocked the Divine Hall the most was that the Nation Master of the Golden Pce and Le Bu had entered the West-Hill through the Tang borders instead ofing from the Yuelun Kingdom.


    Ning Que had met the Golden Pce¡¯s Nation Master on the Wilderness before. He knew how high the cultivation state of the man dressed in ordinary clothes was. He did not even dare to take a second look at the old man.


    The diplomatic corps of the Yan Kingdom had also arrived. Emperor Chong Ming, who had only ascended the throne early in the year had abandoned all matters of the state and brought hundreds of his staff with him, traveling miles just toe.


    Following them, were the representatives of the Buddhism Sect. The abbot of the Lanke Temple, Monk Guan Hai came alone, and Monk Wu Dao was nowhere to be seen. Many Ascetic Monks from the White Tower Temple hade as well. But what made Ning Que most wary was that the Xuankong Temple, located in the distant Western Wilderness, had also sent representatives. And it was no other than the World Wayfarer of the Buddhism Sect, Qi Nian!


    The noble royal families of the mortal world and the most powerful cultivators had alle to the West-Hill Divine Kingdom in preparations to participate in the Light Sacrifice. Its vastness and grandeur of the even had far surpassed that of the Yue Laan Hungry Ghost Festival organized by the Lanke Temple. Only the Tang Empire had not sent an official delegation. The House of Red Sleeves was sent as a token and no one from the Academy hade.


    The war fire had just ceased, so many could understand why the Tang Empire and the Academy had not sent anyone to participate in the Light Sacrifice. However, what they could not understand was that even the Unknown ce of the Buddhism Sect, the Xuankong Temple, had sent representatives. Why did the Zhishou Abbey not send anyone? After all, the mysterious abbey was the Unknown ce of Haotian Taoism.


    Many came to the West-Hill Divine Pce. Some waited inside while others chose to leave because there wasn¡¯t anything they wanted here. One of those people was Prince Long Qing.


    Long Qing left the Peach Mountain for the Zhishou Abbey. As a mysterious Unknown ce, not many knew where the abbey was located, even in the West-Hill Divine Pce. However, Long Qing had once stayed in the abbey for a long period of time and naturally knew the way back.


    The Zhishou Abbey was within the West-Hill Divine Kingdom and was not far away from the Peach Mountain where the Divine Hall was located. There were several tall mountains between the two, and when the weather was good; one could even see the Divine Hall from the Abbey.


    Long Qing turned his gaze away from the Divine Hall and looked at the simple and rundown door before him. Just like thest time he came, the wooden door of the abbey was tightly shut and nothing could be heard inside.


    The Zhishou Abbey was an Unknown ce of Haotian Taoism, and was naturally, not as ordinary or rundown as it appeared to be. There was a powerful array in the abbey, and once it was ignited, one would not be able to enter the abbey by climbing the walls or through the window. The only way in or out was through its doors. And when the abbey is closed, no one else could enter or leave. The abbey thus became a prison shielded from above by the sky and below by the earth. Not a single person could escape from it.


    After the Zhishou Abbey appeared in the mortal world, no one else had dared to break into it other than the Headmaster. Last autumn, when Eldest Brother of the Academy and the Abbey Dean fought, they had once gone there and then left promptly. They were not imprisoned by the array in the abbey, but that did not mean that Eldest Brother¡¯s cultivation state was high enough to ignore the array. It was because someone well versed in arrays had meddled with it beforehand.


    That person was Chen Pipi, who had lived in the Zhishou Abbey since he was a child. Long Qing knew of this matter, which was why he had taken the risk to visit Chen Pipi in the You Prison, as a way to find out how to enter the abbey.


    Chen Pipi told him that the way to enter the abbey was to use the, ¡®seven forth and thirteen back¡¯ method.


    Long Qing did not know what he meant, and after mulling over it in the past days, he guessed that seven forth meant the seven thatched cottages by theke housing the Tomes of the Arcane. They represented the seven paths of the tactical array. And 13 back meant the 13 doors of the tactical array that circled between life and death.


    He had not studied tactical arrays much, but was brave and determined. Long Qing looked at the mossy stone steps in front of the abbey. He took a deep breath and walked on them, reaching to push the abbey door open.


    Before his palm couldnd on the door, a powerful aura took over his body and soul immediately. Several streaks of ck colored blood flowed from his nose and eyes. He had been heavily injured silently. If he had meant harm, he would have already been dead!


    Long Qing retreated to the bottom of the stone steps and looked at the ordinary wooden door. His face had be extremely pale. He had not expected to enter the abbey in one try, but had not imagined that the tactical array was so terrifying.


    After a moment of silence, he left the abbey door and walked to the back of the abbey. He looked at the short grey stone walls, but did not have the courage to climb them. Then, he saw the mountain behind the abbey.


    Long Qing was very familiar with the mountain. He had traveled between the abbey and the mountain several times, and he had gone several times through the caves in the mountain that were like ant tunnels. He knew that the mountain looked green because there was a denseyer of moss covering it. And he knew that many scary people lived in it.


    The green mountain had copsed, turning into a mud mound that was about ten feet tall. There was green grass growing over it, and it looked like an old tomb that had been abandoned for years.


    Long Qing looked at the green hill and noticed that the top of it was very t. It gave one the sense that a giant had stepped down from the skies and squashed the original mountain into its current state.


    The caves that were like ant tunnels inside the green mountain were long gone. The absolute powerhouses of Haotian Taoism who once lived in those caves have also be ashes in therge tomb.


    He recalled the torture he had experienced in the caves and the power he had once experienced, as well as the Halfman Taoist who was so powerful that it could not be described. Long Qing could not believe what he had seen and was shocked speechless. He hated those old Taoists, but they represented the power of Haotian Taoism. That experience was the source of Long Qing¡¯s pride and confidence. However, how ludicrous was his pride and confidence before this image that was like a miracle?


    He returned to the front of the Zhishou Abbey and sat down with his knees crossed. It took a long time for him to rid the shock in his heart and to regain peace. He started to think about what Chen Pipi had said.


    Seven forth and 13 back. What exactly did this mean? He pondered it through the night, and finally opened his eyes again when dawn broke. The mossy stone steps entered his sights once more.


    He suddenly noticed that there were six steps on the stone stairs.


    13 minus 7 was 6?


    After a moment of silence, Long Qing stood up and walked to the stone steps. He turned around and retreated, taking six steps up, and then six steps down. Then, he turned again and took seven steps up.


    There were only six steps on the stone stairs outside the abbey. After taking seven steps back, his back should have collided with the wooden door. However, he did note into contact with anything because he had entered the Zhishou Abbey.


    To move forward, one had to move forward while retreating.


    To understand masculinity and defend feminity, that was the Zhishou Abbey.


    To understand the need to move forward, and to defend retreating. To retreat so that one might move forward. This was the way to enter the Zhishou Abbey.


    To take seven steps forward and 13 back. Perhaps, this was the meaning of it.


    Walking into the Zhishou Abbey, Long Qing followed the familiar path around theke and arrived at a familiar house. The door opened before he could knock. A middle-aged Taoist looked at Long Qing and said, ¡°You arrived faster than I thought you would.¡±


    Long Qing bowed to the Taoist and said, ¡°Greetings, Uncle.¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist waved his hand and said, ¡°Enter.¡±


    Long Qing entered the house and smelled something faintly unpleasanting from the person on the couch.


    He had smelled this once in the ck wind in Chang¡¯an.


    Long Qing looked at the man on the couch, feeling a myriad of emotions. Yet, his facial expression did not change. He walked to the couch and knelt, saying, ¡°Your disciple is useless, please punish me, teacher.¡±

 Chapter 856 - The Silent Wreck

    <h4>Chapter 856: The Silent Wreck</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The Abbey Dean was the man on the couch.


    He had once been undefeatable but was now wrecked by illness. He looked like an ordinary old man who was on his deathbed. However, his gaze was still just as calm as if he could see everything.


    Long Qing knelt before the couch and did not dare raise his head. However, he felt as if all his thoughts could not be hidden.


    ¡°I am not as good as the Headmaster and you¡¯re not as good as Ning Que. This is natural.¡± The Abbey Dean looked at him and said in a weak voice, having to stop after every few words.


    Long Qing looked up, not daring to look into the Abbey Dean¡¯s eyes nor the deep and light scars on his face. His gazended on the furnishing in the temple.


    It was a simple temple and was simr to the cells of the You Prison in the Peach Mountain. However, he was surprised that he did not sense any inhibition in the Zhishou Abbey.


    The Abbey Dean looked at his expression and knew what he was thinking. He smiled and said, ¡°I learned about silence in Chang¡¯an, and rejected Haotian¡¯s will in that instant. This is naturally disrespectful, which is why Haotian did not allow me to die, but made me feel this pain. You were right, there is no inhibition in this temple, and only Haotian¡¯s will. What I¡¯m doing now, is like self-imprisonment. If I cannot reflect on my mistakes, I might leave, but I do not know what will happen after I do so.¡±


    The big tactical array in the Zhishou Abbey could stop outsiders from entering and leaving but was not able to stop Chen Mou. Haotian did not ce any restrictions on him, and he was restricted by the respect and fear he had for Haotian. He reflected upon his mistakes and felt remorse. Thisck of restriction was thus the greatest torture.


    Long Qing bore the stench emitting from the couch and said respectfully, ¡°Your disciple will care for you together with Uncle. When you are recovered, we can go and walk around theke.¡±


    The Abbey Dean answered, ¡°I thought that your eyes would turn grey immediately after entering the room. I never thought that your patience would be much stronger than before.¡±


    There was a skill in the world that would turn a cultivator¡¯s eyes grey. It was a skill that originated from the Devil Doctrine¡¯s Practice of Taotie and was called the Grey Eyes. It was written in the ¡°Sha¡± Handscroll from the Tomes of the Arcane.


    Long Qing kowtowed once more and said in a trembling voice, ¡°How would your disciple dare to be so unfilial?¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked at him and smiled, ¡°The Halfman Taoist could also be considered half your teacher, didn¡¯t you also suck him dry? You are unfilial alright.¡±


    Long Qing knew that the Abbey Dean was now a useless wreck and that he could kill him if he just extended a single finger. However, he did not dare to look up. This was not because Chen Pipi had told him in the You Prison that the Abbey Dean no longer possessed any Psyche Power and that the Grey Eyes were useless on him. It was because he was truly afraid.


    Back then, by the South Sea, he had decided to be an ordinary merchant and lead an ordinary life. However, he had seen that wooden boat and realized that he was indignant.


    A ck peach blossom grew from the starboard of the boat and swayed gently in the salty sea breeze. He studied under the Abbey Dean and was sent back to the Zhishou Abbey. There, he encountered several miraculous incidents and regained his powers; a ck peach blossom grew from his chest, covering the hole that Ning Que had shot in it.


    To him, meeting the Abbey Dean by the South Sea was his greatest Lucky Chance in his life. However, it was also from that day on, that the ck peach blossom in his chest could only sway in the breeze of the South Sea.


    He had thought of using the Grey Eyes to swallow the Abbey Dean¡¯s cultivation state, and even though Chen Pipi had already warned him, he still wanted to give it a try after entering the Zhishou Abbey. However, when he knelt before the couch, he realized that this was all wishful thinking. He had the courage to suck the Halfman Taoist dry, but did not dare to even nce at the Abbey Dean.


    ¡°I¡¯m rather disappointed in you,¡± The Abbey Dean sighed at him.


    Long Qing lowered his head even more, trembling, and not daring to reply.


    ¡°Do you know why I took you as my disciple back then? It wasn¡¯t because of your talent, even though you were known for it in the secr world. You should know now that there are many more who have greater talent than you in every abbey, every temple, every sect and on the Second floor. It wasn¡¯t because of your determination and willpower, either. You gave up on yourself after Ning Que crippled you with his arrow. But have you thought of Ning Que¡¯s state of mind back then when he could not cultivate?¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked at his pale face and said with pity, ¡°I chose you because I thought I saw the destruction and madness in your bones. I thought that you¡¯d do anything in order to reach your goals, no matter how cruel, how treasonous or unfilial. Because you do not have a heart, and thus, do not love. When you do not love, you do not fear and do not respect, and would thus be able to ignore all rules. And so, you could cross the threshold over to the Limitless State.¡±


    ¡°I was pleased when you used the Grey Eyes to swallow the powers of the Halfman Taoist and to kill and maim,mitting heinous sins on the Wilderness. Because then, you seemed to possess countless possibilities. However, today, you dare not lift your head and look at me. I am disappointed in you not because you once thought of lying to me, trying to kill your family and me. I am disappointed that while you have no heart, you still fear and did not grasp such a good opportunity.¡±


    When he heard that, Long Qing¡¯s body was drenched in cold sweat. Then, he asked in a hoarse voice, ¡°It is because I still want to learn from you, and I thought that I could be sufficiently strong if I did that.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said expressionlessly, ¡°I am now a useless wreck, what can you learn from me?¡±


    Long Qing lifted his head with difficulty and answered, ¡°You still possess wit that is as wide and deep as the sea.¡±


    The Abbey Dean thought of the hundreds and thousands of des in Chang¡¯an and said distantly, ¡°Wit is not as mysterious as we think it is. It is just a way of doing things. Compared to absolute strength, it might seem extremely weak at times.¡±


    Long Qing replied, ¡°I still have power, and...I will gain more and more power. So I wish to gain your wit and learn how to use this power.¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked at him silently and said, ¡°What will you do after learning these powers?¡±


    Long Qing looked at the scars on the Abbey Dean¡¯s face and said, ¡°I want to challenge Ning Que.¡±


    The Abbey Dean asked, ¡°All these for such a boring reason?¡±


    He had been crippled by Ning Que in Chang¡¯an. And by right, should hate Ning Que for it. However, his expression remained cold and distant when he listened to Long Qing, and he even seemed bored.


    Long Qing could not understand what the Abbey Dean was thinking. After thinking about it, he spoke, ¡°This is something I want to do badly. It might seem pathetic, but I seem to be living for that person right now.¡±


    ¡°That is indeed pathetic.¡± The Abbey Dean said.


    Long Qing said, ¡°We all need a reason to live.¡±


    The Abbey Dean replied, ¡°It makes Haotianugh when mankind tries their hardest to find a reason for their behavior. Since she thinks I¡¯m disrespectful, how will she allow you to study under me?¡±


    After a moment of silence, Long Qing answered, ¡°She knows that I¡¯m loyal and cowardly. Furthermore, perhaps... she needs my reason. So even though she mightugh at me, she will not stop me.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°If she does not need a reason to kill Ning Que anymore, what will you do?¡±


    Long Qing paled, not knowing what to say.


    The Abbey Dean looked at him quietly, and then, suddenly said, ¡°Let me tell you what to do. You can only find a reason belonging to yourself if you find a reason for your own behavior. You have already turned your back against Haotian once, so why not betray again? You can only be loyal to yourself. The source of your cowardice can only be because of your selfishness. What are treason and heresy if you don¡¯t even dare to defy the Heavens and Haotian Taoism?¡±


    Fear emerged in Long Qing¡¯s eyes, and he looked out of the window subconsciously, as if he felt that someone might be evesdropping.


    After being made a wreck by Ning Que¡¯s arrows on the Wilderness, he had painfully and viciously abandoned his faith. Then he used the Grey Eyes to swallow the Halfman Taoist¡¯s powers and jumped off the cliff, deciding to stand on the side of darkness and not pursue the light. However, in the end, he realized that the dark night that he had chosen belonged to Haotian. At that moment, he felt a relief he had never felt before and his respect for Haotian became unshakable.


    ¡°Do not worry about her listening to our conversation.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°Haotian is omnipotent and omnipresent. That is because she stood at a ce that is high enough above the mortal world. She is but just a little higher than us aftering to the mortal world.¡±


    Long Qing seemed to have understood, but found it hard to hide his fear.


    The Abbey Dean slowly stretched out his left hand to Long Qing and said, ¡°Return to your room.¡±


    Long Qing heard this and was certain that the Abbey Dean was allowing him to cultivate in the Zhishou Abbey. He was overjoyed, and quickly pulled out the ¡°Sha¡± Handscroll that he had stolen.


    The Abbey Dean did not take the scroll, but said, ¡°The seven Tomes of the Arcane are weapons that Haotian had bestowed upon Haotian Taoism. These weapons are knowledge and wit. Since you want to study my wit, the scroll shall stay with you. You can take and read the other five scrolls as you wish. What I want, is something else.¡±


    Long Qing vaguely understood what the Abbey Dean wanted, but did not understand why he wanted it. He took out the ck peach blossom inside his chest and ced it in the Abbey Dean¡¯s hand respectfully.


    The Abbey Dean twirled the petiole of the ck peach blossom in his hand and asked, ¡°What is this?¡±


    Long Qing did not understand, but he answered honestly, ¡°This is your disciple¡¯s natal peach blossom.¡±


    The Abbey Dean replied, ¡°What will happen to it if you die?¡±


    All cultivators understood what their natal items meant. This was a knowledge that cultivators had to know when they started cultivating. As such, Long Qing did not understand why the Abbey Dean would ask such a simple question. He answered, ¡°The peach blossom will wither when I die and will note back alive again.¡±


    The Abbey Dean pointed at the ck peach blossom and asked, ¡°What if it is another natal object?¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°If it is a natal sword, one can make another, but even then, it would mean that the person had died once.¡±


    The Abbey Dean signaled for him to leave the temple. Then, the temple was silent once more. Wind entered through the window, but it did not manage to dispell the stench that spread from the couch.


    He got up with difficulty and inserted the stem of Long Qing¡¯s natal peach blossom into the sand table in front of the window. He watched as the ck peach blossom swayed slightly in the wind and thought of the mountain full of peach blossoms on Peach Mountain and smiled.


    Haotian hade to the mortal world while the Zhishou Abbey had be an abandoned prison. The strongest cultivator in the mortal world had be a useless wreck. But the true story was only just beginning.

 Chapter 857 - Haotian Taoisms Gamble

    <h4>Chapter 857: Haotian Taoism¡¯s Gamble</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Transn <strong>Editor: </strong>Transn


    The middle-aged Taoist entered the temple. He was very shocked when he saw the Abbey Dean standing by the window and smiling at the ck peach blossom. He hurried forward to help him lie back down on the couch.


    He looked at the Abbey Dean gravely and said, ¡°Senior Brother, are you really going to abandon your belief?¡±


    The Abbey Dean smiled and said, ¡°I grew up in the Taoist temple, and the first book I read was the Taoist scriptures. My belief in Haotian has long entered my blood, bing my every breath. The point of my life is to carry out Haotian¡¯s will. If I give up on my belief, it would mean betraying myself. I can¡¯t do that.¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist asked curiously, ¡°Since this is so, why have you allowed Long Qing to stay in the Zhishou Abbey? Why did you spread the gospel at the South Sea, and why did you treat that person in the Divine Hall of Light...¡±


    The Abbey Dean interrupted, ¡°I believe in Haotian, and not the person in the Divine Hall of Light.¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist was even more confused. He thought to himself that the girl in the Divine Hall of Light was Haotian, this could not be wrong.


    The Abbey Dean looked at him and said, ¡°If she were Haotian, who¡¯s the one fighting with the Headmaster in the Kingdom of God? Even though she might have been Haotian once, is the Haotian who came to the mortal world still the Haotian we believe in? Is the Haotian that has been sphemed against by mortals still the Haotian we believe in?¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist said in a trembling voice, ¡°Belief does not allow any doubts.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°What is piousness? It is loyalty to belief. What is loyalty to belief? It¡¯s not just the object of our belief, because faithes from you and me. It involves you, me and Haotian, andnot a single one of us can be missing in this equation. Then only the Haotian that we believe in is the true Haotian.¡±


    This statement was rather enigmatic, but the middle-aged Taoist understood this, and his clothes became drenched with sweat. He said, ¡°But Haotian would not think like this.¡±


    ¡°I told Long Qing earlier that since she hase to the mortal realm, she is no longer omnipotent and omnipresent. Now that I think about it, the Headmaster is indeed an impressive figure.¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked at the sky outside the window andmented.


    The middle-aged Taoist said, ¡°However, no matter how great he was, he was not able to defeat Haotian.


    ¡°Is death really scary? Do humans cultivate just so they can possess eternal self-awareness? The Drunkard and the Buther thought that they would live forever for they have their own Divine Kingdom, but I doubt it.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°Haotian is not life, so it has eternal attributes, but each beginning should have an end. Every life should return to eternity that is not life. If life wants to be eternal, then it can only change and be apletely different form of existence. Then how is it any different from death?¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist asked, ¡°Then why do we cultivate?¡±


    The Abbey Dean thought of the hundreds and thousands of des in Changan and the incident filled with the sensation of the human realm. He thought of how he hadnded by ake south of the city and how the fish had struggled in the pool by his face. He said, ¡°Cultivation is to sense so that we may free ourselves. This is the only way to peace and joy when we die.¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist frowned lightly and asked in confusion, ¡°There are many cultivation sects in the world, should they all walk on this path?¡±


    The Abbey Dean answered, ¡°The people in the Academy are arrogant and lively. They would all eventually take the path against Heaven. They can face death calmly because they have not let down the time they have alive. But only true powerhouses can live like them. The ordinary people in the world are like pigs and dogs, how can they face the end so narcissistically like them? Neither the Headmaster nor Ke Haoran had ever considered these issues, but Haotian Taoism has always been considering them because we know that we are all dogs and pigs under Haotian. That is why we have to search for a way for even ordinary people to face the end calmly.¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist understood this, and he said, ¡°Then that is faith in Haotian and hope for the Kingdom of God.¡±


    ¡°Indeed, Haotian never wanted us to believe in her, but we had to. I need to believe in her, but I only believe in the one who is in the Kingdom of God and not the one who is here.¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked in the direction of the West-Hill Divine Kingdom in the distance silently.


    The middle-aged Taoist asked after a moment of silence, ¡°What are you going to do to Long Qing?¡±


    The Abbey Dean retracted his gaze and looked at the ck peach blossom in the sand box before the window. He said, ¡°I was really quite disappointed in him. After experiencing so many setbacks and terrible things, he still did not have the courage or desire to challenge rules. Even if he reads the seven tomes now, he will only be a second Drunkard or Butcher, no matter how much effort he puts in and no matter how blessed he is. Then what is the point of it all?¡±


    The Drunkard and the Butcher were booth Grand Cultivators who have experienced thest Evesting Night and were of the highest status in the cultivation world. Their cultivation state was so high it was beyond charts. They had only appeared in Chang¡¯an and had managed to suppress the Academy and the Tang Empire was forced to sign a deplorable agreement with the West-Hill Divine Pce. However, it was rather surprising to hear that the Abbey Dean would not be pleased with Long Qing even if he became someone like them.


    The middle-aged Taoist fell silent. He knew that his Senior Brother had never thought well of the Drunkard and the Butcher. The Abbey Dean¡¯s state epassed the Taoism, Buddhism and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine skills before he entered Chang¡¯an. After he had attained the State of Pureness, he felt that the deterioration in the Drunkard and the Butcher¡¯s mental states were not worth mentioning. He only had eyes for the Headmaster, who was his goal in life. And he wanted to reach the Limitlessness State that the Headmaster had achieved.


    It wasn¡¯t just the Limitless State he wanted, but he wanted to be limitless. Because of his faith, the Headmaster would never be able to understand it. This was why he had taken Long Qing as his disciple because there was hope for him to break through to this state and also because Long Qing had once turned his back against his faith. He hoped that Long Qing would have the opportunity to take the path, but it was a pity that he had not seeded.


    ¡°This is a very cliche story, but all stories are like this.¡± The Abbey Dean said, ¡°Haotian has foreseen the stories happening in the world today many years ago. That is why she bestowed upon the mortal world the seven Tomes of the Arcane. I¡¯m not talking about the prophecy on the ¡°Ming¡± Handscroll, but about the names of the seven tomes.¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist had been guarding the seven Tomes of the Arcane in the Zhishou Abbey and thus knew of their names. He said shakily, ¡°When the sun falls and the sand lights up... the heavens will fall apart?¡± (Ri, Luo, Sha, Ming, Tian, Dao, Kai)


    The Abbey Dean looked at the sky outside the window and said expressionlessly, ¡°Indeed, she will split the skies apart once more.¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist seemed to have suffered a blow. His face was pale as he said, ¡°Then, what will happen to the mortal world?¡±


    The Abbey Dean ignored his shock and uneasiness, and slowly closed his eyes. He continued, ¡°She wants to return to the Kingdom of God, so the Divine Hall is holding the Light Sacrifice, hoping to use the pure blood of the Chen family as a sacrifice to open the path to Heaven. This will inevitably fail because the Academy will go to Peach Mountain. The people in the Academy are already there. However, the Academy will fail because she is all-knowing. She has always been waiting in the Peach Mountain for those from the Academy. But she has also failed because she thought that she could do it alone, but she can¡¯t. In the end, everyone will fail and no one will win.¡±


    This statement was a description of a matter that had already happened, but this story had yet to happen. It felt inexplicably like a prophecy.


    The middle-aged Taoist said in shock, ¡°There is something Haotian cannot do?¡±


    The Abbey Dean opened his eyes and looked at his Younger brother beside the couch. He said, ¡°Even if the sun falls and the sand lights up, and the heavens fall apart, she still needs to let go of her life in the mortal world so she can return to the Kingdom of God. But would she understand that it is not easy to get rid of both the aura of humanity the Headmaster left in her and her life in this world?¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist sweated profusely as he listened. He thought that his Senior Brother¡¯s words were highly disrespectful to Haotian and he said in fear, ¡°Haotian is all-knowing, and would know what you intend to do.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said ndly, ¡°I don¡¯t even know what I will do now. Even if she is all-knowing, how would she know about something that does not exist?¡±


    Ning Que shut his eyes on the precipice, but the precipice was still looking at him. This was called sensing. Even though he had used the skills of the Buddhism Sect, he could only calm his mental state but was not able to cease its existence. In fact, there was not a single person who could make his mental state cease to exist in order to escape from Heaven¡¯s ns.


    However, the Abbey Dean had mentioned it and was able to do it.


    Because while he was a wreck, he was a wreck in the State of Pureness. There had never been such a powerful wreck in the history of mankind.


    The middle-aged Taoist asked, ¡°Senior Brother, what should we do?¡±


    The Abbey Dean answered, ¡°Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. What happens in the Kingdom of God stays there, and what happens in the mortal world stays here.¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist said shakily, ¡°This is a gamble.¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked at him and said, ¡°Do you know why you can only enter the Zhishou Abbey by taking seven steps forth and 13 back?¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist shook his head.


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°This was before the countless Evesting Nights. Its because the first Abbey Dean of the Zhishou Abbey was a gambler before he started cultivating. He was always troubled that he had to spend 13 coins to win seven.


    The middle-aged Taoist was hearing about their sects first leader for the first time and was stunned speechless.


    He started Haotian Taoism after he seeded in cultivation and learned about peace. He could have left everything behind, but he pitied the mortals and represented mankind in choosing Haotian to be our faith. From that moment on, the mortal world they lived in became Haotian¡¯s world. All were protected by Haotian and had survived for millennia.


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°This is thergest gamble that the mortal world has ever taken. Haotian Taoism has already represented mankind in gambling for several generations, so why cant I continue the gamble?¡±


    The middle-aged Taoist said after a moment of silence, ¡°That is why Haotian Taoism has to be wary of her.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°Indeed. If she cannot let go of her life in the mortal realm, then we have to do it for her. If not even Haotian Taoism can do that, then we have to find a way to get rid of her.¡±


    ¡°Then... Pipi?¡± The middle-aged Taoist asked.


    The Abbey Dean answered, ¡°He is a son of Haotian Taoism, and if he could really help her to return to the Kingdom of God and return to her position as Haotian, his death would be meaningful. If the Light Sacrifice turns out to be a joke, then he would not die, and if he does not die, he would encounter great opportunities. My blood flows in him and he is a student of the Headmaster. He will make something of himself alive or dead.¡± ¨C

 Chapter 858 - Shaving His Head

    <h4>Chapter 858: Shaving His Head</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Because of the Rite to Light, all powerful figures like the Golden Tribe¡¯s Master of the Nation and Qi Nian from the Hanging Temple had gathered at the West-Hill Divine Pce. Ning Que did not have the slightest chance of winning against a single one of them. He had thus been very quiet these days, spending most of his time in Revtion Institute without taking even one step closer to the cliff.


    Normally, he would never have ced himself in such a dangerous situation. In fact, his original n was to sneak into the West-Hill Divine Pce, stay for no longer than a month, and get things done even before the Rite to Light officially began. However, due to the sudden changes, with Chen Pipi being imprisoned in the Secluded Pavilion, he could only continue biding his time.


    Before leaving Qinghe Prefecture, he had told Wang Jinglue that he would return in a month at the most. Now, fall had arrived, but he was still stuck here. He had to send another message to Qinghe Prefecture asking Wang Jinglue to wait for a while longer. As for the troubles to Wang Jinglue¡¯s arrangements over there, he had to leave them aside for the time being.


    The sky had turned dark. He went back to Revtion Institute to grab his arrow case and iron sword and took the path from the backyard to the front yard of the Peach Mountain. The front yard of Peach Mountain and Halls on the summit formed a straight line. The front yard was extremely wide and it could amodate tens of thousands of followers at the same time. At the venue where the Rite to Light would be held, deacons of the Halls were finishing the set-up. Not far from here, several high-ranking array masters were reinforcing the perimeter of the front yard. There was no doubt that at the opening of the Rite to Light, some dazzling divine skills were going to be exhibited.


    Ning Que was wearing the clothes of a servant in the Revtion Institute, looking no different from other footboys and being very inconspicuous. Although the front yard of Peach Mountain was heavily guarded, his speed and reaction had far exceeded that of ordinary human beings. Diving into the woods to the left, he secretly buried the arrow case and the iron sword in the side of the yard.


    Brushing off some mud, he looked at the numerous torches in the night and the nervous-looking deacons of the Halls. He pictured the grand ceremony of the Rite to Light that was to be held in a few days and even he began to feel nervous. Then he looked towards the four Halls on the summit with a frown.


    Tonight, instead of the Divine Hall of Light, he stared at the ck-colored Divine Hall of Judgement located on the edge of the cliff. The Divine Hall of Judgement was situated somewhat apart from the other three, chilling and lonely.


    Hisst resort was to strike at the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade in the Divine Hall of Judgement. Although he feared the woman on that throne and had previously judged that it was too risky, Chen Pipi was about to be burnt alive soon. He had no choice but to give it a try.


    It was said that Ye Hongyu had been staying in the temple meditating ever since she came back to the Peach Mountain from Chang¡¯an. He had not seen her ever since he came to the West-Hill Divine Pce. Since it was impossible to run into her, he could only go to pay a visit.


    ...


    Fall had arrived in Qinghe Prefecture as well.


    Wang Jinglue received a secret message from the City of Chang¡¯an. After a long silence, he put on that bamboo hat again and left in a carriage, arriving at an ordinary residence in the City of Yangzhou.


    Inside, someone was coughing non-stop. He stood outside for a moment to make sure there was no ambush. Then, he entered and ced the medicines he bought on the table. He asked, ¡°What¡¯s your decision?¡±


    A young man was lying in bed. He was pale and withered. Even the strong scent of medicine in the room could not mask the bloody smell that came from behind the bed.


    Behind the bed were some crumpled gauze stained with blood.


    This man was Cui Huasheng, a descendent of the Cui n. His wife was the youngest daughter of Qiu Fangwu, former governor of the Ruyang County of Great Tang. She died on the day her whole family was in by the rebel army formed by the ns during the rebellion.


    Out of deep sorrow and anger, Cui Huasheng kicked up a fuss throughout the City of Yangzhou. This eventually caused him to be punished in the ancestral hall of the Cui n. He was further hanged on a pir for three days before he was released.


    The ns in Qinghe Prefecture were known to be ruthless at discipline. If Cui Huasheng was not a very close nephew of the n leader Cui Shi, he would have been beaten to death. Even so, he was so seriously injured that although he survived, he had been bedridden and suffering from those festering wounds.


    Cui Huasheng looked at the man wearing the bamboo hat and said in a faint and hoarse voice, ¡°It won¡¯t be difficult for me to go to Fuchun River and enter Cui Garden. But it will take some time.¡±


    Wang Jinglue took off his bamboo hat and asked, ¡°Why will it take time?¡±


    Seeing that he took off his hat and revealed his face, Cui Huasheng showed more trust and replied, ¡°It takes some time to y being regretful. Otherwise no one would believe me.¡±


    Wang Jinglue nodded, ¡°That makes sense. I did worry about seeming too hypocritical. It¡¯s good to have more time.¡±


    ¡°Cui Shi just celebrated his birthday. It will be a while before they throw another party.¡± Cui Huasheng replied.


    Wang Jinglue counted the dates and found it to be ovepping with the Rite to Light. ¡°That¡¯s perfect.¡± He agreed.


    Cui Huasheng seemed to be thinking of something, only to start coughing again. When he was finally able to regain his breath, he asked seriously, ¡°Don¡¯t you worry that killing too many people would force the Divine Halls to take action?¡±


    Wang Jinglue reasoned that as long as Ning Que struck at the Rite to Light, the war that had ceased for barely half a year would be started again. What else would he worry about?


    ...


    Great Tang had just recovered from the war and was far from ready to confront the whole world again. Psychologically or resource wise, it would take a while for them to get prepared.


    However, the Academy was ready. They firmly believed that as long as Ning Que could implement their n perfectly, the West-Hill Divine Pce would not dare to provoke another war. What really bothered the Academy was that the Drunkard and the Butcher were still out there, like two giant swords hanging above of the City of Chang¡¯an. Yet, precisely because of that, the Academy had no choice but to carry out the n. Only thus could they prevent those two people from doing any harm, even if it was temporary.


    Eldest Brother was not in the Academy. He should still be in the pce directing the repair of the God-Stunning Array. Fourth Brother and Sixth Brother were also assisting there. Senior Sister Yu Lian had left after the war. The rest were undergoing a long healing process. That left Second Brother in charge at the Academy.


    Jun Mo was a swordsman. In order to protect the Academy, he had to sharpen his sword. Therefore, in the past few days, he had been sharpening it by the waterfall behind the small backyard.


    For days and nights, he kept sharpening his sword. He had worn down dozens of firm rocks but it still failed to ease his disturbed heart, which was as restless as his sleeve swinging in the wind.


    Mu You walked to thekeside with a lunchbox. Looking at his empty sleeve and neatlybed gray hair, she felt slightly dejected. She said with a tender voice, ¡°Our Headmaster once said that Pipi was always optimistic and knew his destiny. He is bound to be profoundly blessed. Youngest Brother is in the Peach Mountain now. He would definitely save him.¡±


    Jun Mo was restless not because of his own broken arm or grey hair, or his hopelessness to reach Headmaster or Youngest Uncle¡¯ state with this sword. Rather, it was because Chen Pipi was close to dying.


    Throughout the years at the Academy, he had scolded Chen Pipi most frequently, punished him the most, talked to him most frequently, and thus was the closest to him.


    The Rite to Light would be held soon, and Chen Pipi was to be burnt alive. Yet he could only sit by theke helplessly, sharpening his never-to-be-broken sword. How could he regain his calm?


    ¡°Many powerful figures have gathered at the West-Hill Divine Pce by now. I heard the Hierarch has fully restored his power, and those frauds from the Golden Tribe and monks from the Hanging Temple are also there. Although Eldest Brother¡¯s n seems wless, and Youngest Brother is the best person to execute it, we were not aware that Pipi is in Peach Mountain. I¡¯m indeed worried.¡±


    Mu You realized that whatever she could say would not give him anyfort. She ced the lunchbox on a rock by theke and urged, ¡°Have your dinner first. Remember toe home tonight. It will be cold outside.¡±


    Speaking of going home, Jun Mo felt a bit awkward. However, he knew what he had to do. He got up and replied, ¡°Thanks for taking care of everything these days. I ... will go home tonight.¡±


    ...


    Having finished his dinner, Jun Mo continued to sharpen his sword. The surface of the hard, blue rock was grounded into very fine powder by the iron sword and drifted away with the water. This was probably a bubble of toughness.


    Twods came to theke, brought him some water and took the lunchbox back.


    Looking at the lonely figure of Jun Mo, they hesitated. Finally, Li Guangdi gathered his courage to speak. ¡°Master, Eldest Uncle mentioned the other day perhaps you could read more Buddhist scriptures...¡±


    Since Ning Que sent them to the Academy till now, Li Guangdi and Zhang Nianzu had yet to officially start their cultivation, not even to the Initial Awareness State. They were stillmoners. However, while they made their acquaintance with the Uncles, they began to vaguely understand some principles of cultivation, or maybe some words. Seeing their master being worried and constantly sharpening the sword by theke, they also felt anxious and wanted to share some advices no matter what.


    Li Guangdi found his own voice diminishing as he knew it was just nonsense. They had heard from Fifth Uncle that their master could not bear with Buddhism and monks. It was he who cut down the stone statue of the Washan Buddha with his sword, and he who smashed the Lanke Temple. How could he dare to advice his master to consult with Buddhism?


    Without turning back or getting angry, Jun Mo said, ¡°When you go to town, listen to Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s orders. Although you have not begun your cultivation, you are already disciples of the Academy. You should not dishonor the Academy.¡±


    When Ning Que led a group of disciples to the Wilderness for practice years ago, he told him the same thing. His requirement seemed very simple but was actually quite stressful.


    The twods felt a bit uncertain about their future journey and things to be aplished, and they were also unwilling to leave their master.


    Zhang Nianzu hesitated and said, ¡°Master, we are afraid that we would not be able toe back. But you have our words. We won¡¯t be scared, nor dishonor the Academy. However, ...¡±


    Jun Mo interrupted him, turned back and said, ¡°You will survive as long as you wish to. Even if Haotian came here and questioned me, I would provide him with the same answer.¡±


    That night, Jun Mo stopped sharpening his sword and went home.


    Mu You cooked him somete-night snacks, and prepared breakfast the following morning. She showed Zhang Nianzu and Li Guangdi their way to exit the Cloud Array, apanied them to the front yard of the Academy, and could not stop nagging.


    They kneeled in front of her.


    Li Guangdi said, ¡°Madam, please go back. We are still worried about our master.¡±


    Mu You smiled and patted him on the head. But she did not turn to leave until the carriage drove down the meadow. She had to maintain her appearance as the master¡¯s wife.


    When she returned home, however, she realized she should havee back earlier as Li Guangdi said.


    She was shocked to see grey hair all over the ground. When Jun Mo raised his head from beside the well, she almost fainted.


    Jun Mo was always particr about his appearance. His hair was always neatlybed, ck or grey. The ancient crown was always pointing upright.


    Yet he could neverb his hair or wear that symbolic crown ever again. He had shaved his head.

 Chapter 859 - Unveiling His Ambition

    <h4>Chapter 859: Unveiling His Ambition</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Mu You stared at Jun Mo¡¯s head, with her right hand clutching her dress. She bit hard on her lips so as to clear her mind and trembled, ¡°What are you doing? Will you turn to Buddhism?¡±


    Jun Mo just washed his head by the well. Clear well water fell off his head and damped his clothes. Upon hearing Mu You¡¯s words, he replied without turning back, ¡°There¡¯s no harm in reading some Buddhist scriptures.¡±


    Mu You¡¯s voice was still trembling. ¡°As much as you respected Eldest Brother, you didn¡¯t care when he told you to consult with Buddhist scriptures. They were just two kids who are ignorant about cultivation. Why did you take them seriously?¡±


    Jun Mo looked at the hair scattered around the well, and spoke again after a moment of silence, ¡°I hated Buddhism throughout my life. However, it recently urred to me that I might have missed something there.¡±


    Mu You replied sadly, ¡°In order to find a way in Buddhism, you have to be a monk?¡±


    Jun Mo turned to her, looked at the tears on her face and said, ¡°When did I say I would be a monk? I hate Buddhism because those monks do not produce anything nor take care of their parents. How could I be a monk? I meant to read some Buddhism scriptures and see if I can find some peace there.¡±


    His exnation made Mu You even more heartbroken. She replied in tears, ¡°You¡¯ve shaved your head. How could you still be lying to me?¡±


    Jun Mo exined awkwardly, ¡°I just thought the grey hair was ugly, and gave you more troubles every morning. So I shaved it.¡±


    Mu You could not believe him. ¡°Is that all?¡±


    Jun Mo nodded and came to her. ¡°You will get used to it in a few days. Please don¡¯t be sad.


    ¡°It¡¯s good I shaved. Maybe the newly grown hair will be ck again.¡±


    Mu You smiled through tears, and subconsciously reached out to touch Jun Mo¡¯s head.


    Jun Mo was very particr about etiquette and usually would not let anyone touch his body, let alone his head. But he did not avoid her this time.


    Yet, he was obviously stiff and uneasy.


    Mu You gently touched his bare head. Suddenly she realized something and reminded him, ¡°I know you hate Buddhism. But from now on you cannot make fun of the monks for their bare heads.¡±


    Jun Mo frowned, ¡°Reading some Buddhist scriptures does not necessarily mean I would worship Buddha. I would still scold him if the Buddha himself showed up.¡±


    Mu You could not helpughing. ¡°Whatever. You can no longer mock their bare heads.¡±


    ...


    A guest arrived at the Sword Garret. He was dressed in an indigo gown and carrying a long sword. He was middle-aged, yet he was still charming and elegant.


    As a powerful man of the Knowing Destiny State, he certainly deserved great courtesy. However, the students at the Sword Garret showed him exceptional respect not because of his high stage, but because the Sage of Sword had ordered them to. This was not only because of his unique background, but also because this man was worthy of respect.


    They admired him for his courage, daring toe here despite having been seriously wounded in the eyes by the Sage of Sword years ago, or the fact that he was already a national enemy of the Great Tang.


    Cheng Ziqing looked at him and said, ¡°Pleasee in, Mr. Chao.¡±


    The man in the indigo gown was Chao Xiaoshu, also known as Old Chao from the Spring Breeze Pavilion.


    ...


    The Sword Garret was built between sword-like cliffs.


    In the mountain behind these cliffs, there was a huge cave with a hidden tranquil pond in it. Only a small hole at the top of the cave allowed some light to filter through. Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword lived in a cottage by the pond.


    When Chao Xiaoshu entered the cave, Liu Bai was not at home but fishing by the pond. Fishes were swimming in the chilling pond water. And there was no hook at the end of his thread.


    Chao Xiaoshu came to Liu Bai and bowed.


    Without turning to him, Liu Bai said, ¡°It was said that great men never use hooks when fishing. I was trying to see if it works. I didn¡¯t manage to catch any fish, but there you came.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu replied, ¡°As the Sage of Sword, why do you need to learn from others?¡±


    Liu Bai put his pole aside, shook his head and said, ¡°Everyone should learn from others. Even the Headmaster of the Academy once learnt from the farmers, not to mention ordinary people like us.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu agreed, ¡°Indeed. So here I am, to learn from you, Sage of Sword.¡±


    Indifferent as he was, Liu Bai replied, ¡°A few years ago, you reached the State of Knowing Destiny merely by observing theke in the imperial pce in Chang¡¯an. Then you came to me via the South Jin Kingdom, inviting me to show off my skills. For the sake of the Tang emperor, I agreed to your request, which caused you to be blind for months. Even if you have improved over the years, how could you stand up to me? If only you were enrolled to the Second Floor of the Academy back then, you might have had the slightest chance of winning. But how dare youe to me again now?¡±


    ¡°Your skills are as massive as a roaring river, while mine is as weak as a murmuring creek. How could I match up to you? Still, just as water always flows downstream, some things have to be done.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu smiled and continued, ¡°I understand that I¡¯m far from qualified to challenge you. But I am about to go on an assignment, which might cause me to lose something very important. I want to leave with no regret. Over the years, I have found friendship, brotherhood, a family, and aging but still healthy parents. I was able to rebuke the Abbot in the City of Chang¡¯an and have not spent my years idling around. I did have some aplishments throughout my life, not huge ones, but I was happy. I did have a few missed opportunities, but I do not regret it. I nevercked courage when encountering powerful enemies and I have never failed to stay calm. I¡¯ve led a fruitful life for the past decades.


    His calm and gentle voice resounded through the tranquil cave, and it became firmer when it echoed back from the rocky cliffs, as if it was metal nging against each other.


    Liu Bai¡¯s eyes lit up as he found this man to be increasingly interesting. He stated, ¡°Now I know why you are here.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu put on a slightly ashamed smile and confirmed, ¡°My life¡¯s greatest regret is being unable to take even one strike from you back then. Therefore, would you please grant me one more strike from your sword? But please do not kill me as I have something to fulfill, something that¡¯s even more important than my own life. I know it is an absurd request, but I wish you would honor it.¡±


    Liu Baiughed and said, ¡°How could I not satisfy such a ridiculous request!¡±


    ...


    It was noon. The sunlight finally began to filter into the cave from the hole above, shining upon the cold pond. Fish hidden in the water nts came out to take advantage of a moment of warmth.


    However, they quickly hid back among the nts not longter, startled. The fearsome sword strikes created a pressure that suppressed the light, and the fierce sword intent that emanated threatened to cut the water into countless pieces.


    Four distinct, sharp sounds rang out, before the cave descended back into silence.


    Liu Bai was sitting by the pond, as if he had never moved.


    His ancient sword was back into the sheath, as though it had not been drawn out.


    Chao Xiaoshu was holding only half of his sword, with four broken pieces scattered in front of him. He had attempted to transform his single sword into five, intending to use four to withstand the four strikes from Liu Bai. But he lost again.


    As pale as he was, Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s eyes got brighter. Wearing the blood stained gown, he seemed very satisfied. After all, he was able to withstand four strikes from Liu Bai. He had no more regret.


    Liu Bai stared at him and asked, ¡°Are people from the Tang Empire all so cruel to themselves?


    Liu Bai was the world¡¯s most powerful man. Throughout the years, he had several chances to go beyond that threshold and reach a higher level than the Five States. But he had been suppressing his power by staying in the cave, until the fight in the Verdant Canyon where he was forced by Jun Mo to release his strongest sword strike. And thus, he had reached the superior state he had been reluctant to step into. At this stage, he was more sensitive to the subtle changes in earthly matters.


    When his sword was getting close to Chao Xiaoshu, he immediatelyprehended the minds of the Tang people.


    Chao Xiaoshu replied with a gentle smile, ¡°There are lots of Tang people like me. If the South Jin Kingdom seeks an alliance with the Great Tang, and the Sword Garret fights alongside the Academy, we might even shake the heavens.¡±


    Liu Bai remained silent.


    Chao Xiaoshu rose and bowed, then stepped out of the Sword Garret. The autumn breeze lifted a piece of his broken gown, and revealed a bloodied sword wound, a gash that looked so long it might reach the sky.


    His Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow waspletely destroyed. He could no longer continue cultivating but only live as amoner. However, he felt so refreshed and relieved as he stood in the mellow breeze.


    ...


    Chao Xiaoshu left the South Jin Kingdom and came to a small town between the border of the Song and Yan Kingdoms. He leased a ce in the market, built a small house, and set up his business of painting and calligraphy.


    After a short while, twods from afar arrived at the town. He hired them as helpers and his business picked up pretty quickly. It was not long before everyone found out about this businessman of fine taste, including those celebrities in town. People knew that he came from the City of Chang¡¯an, and he was elegant but not arrogant. He was capable but did not show off and was courteous to everyone including the poor and low. Neither did he try to extort the poor. He was as refreshing as a mellow breeze.


    He was always nice to the poor and low. When beggars came to him, Chao Xiaoshu gave them money and served them tea. However, as kindly as Chao Xiaoshu treated them, even the most desperate beggars would not bother him too much knowing that they were not the appropriate guests for such a business of fine arts. The Butcher, greasy as he was, showed no interest to these paintings and calligraphy. A butcher¡¯s business was, after all, about meat.


    Paintings and calligraphy were always associated with tea and liquor. Not the game for the Butcher, but they were full of attractions to the Drunkard. When the Drunkard found about Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s talented tastes, he never left the store again with only exceptions of his daily meals.


    ...


    When Chao Xiaoshu arrived at the little town, Liu Bai left the Sword Garret and went to Linkang City.


    Liu Bai and his sword had always been the pride and honor of South Jin Kingdom. He should have been weed anywhere like a god. Yet when he entered Linkang City, no one paid him any attention.


    After all, no one would have believed that mostmon-looking figure could be the Sage of Sword. They would be even more appalled if they knew that such a figure was walking through the mud-choked streets to the east of the city.


    Liu Bai came to that worn-out cottage and turned to look at Ye Su who was teaching a ss to children. When Ye Su raised his head and saw Liu Bai, he helplessly shook his head, saying to the children, ¡°Let¡¯s call it a day now.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 860 - Till Death Do Us Apart

    <h4>Chapter 860: Till Death Do Us Apart</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    ¡°You should thank Jun Mo.¡±


    Inside the worn-out cottage, Ye Su was talking to Liu Bai. He sighed and said, ¡°Although I won¡¯t be able to use my sword again, being able to see your skills, I am already satisfied.¡±


    Liu Bai stood by the window and looked at a lunchbox on the windowsill. Upon these words he turned to Ye Su and replied with a smile, ¡°I am also very satisfied.¡±


    He was wearing a cozy silk shirt with gold thread embroidery, and a pair offy but not too worn-out cloth shoe. Without his sword, he looked just like an ordinary person living an ordinary life in Linkang City.


    Ye Su¡¯s Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow waspletely destroyed, but he could still tell at one nce that Liu Bai was one of the strongest, and he had improved further to a level that Ye Su could not figure out.


    It was hard for someone at the highest peak to reach a higher level, but Liu Bai did it. Ye Su knew that it had something to do with the fight in Verdant Canyon. That was why he said Liu Bai should be grateful to Jun Mo.


    The fight in the Verdant Canyon was a miracle for swordsmanship. Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword, Jun Mo from the Academy and Ye Su from Taoism were the stars. They represented the highest level of swordsmanship in the world. After this fight, Ye Su was crippled. Jun Mo lost his arm and thus his way to cultivation. Liu Bai was also seriously wounded. But being the strongest in the world, he was the first to recover and even made a breakthrough.


    Liu Bai said, ¡°Chao Xiaoshu came to me at the Sword Garret. He couldn¡¯t make it to the Academy nor seek Taoism. He could not achieve any higher level in swordsmanship, not even to where you were ten years ago. However, this man is very unrestrained. He was not afraid of death or loss, and he followed his heart throughout this life. He was the reason I left the Sword Garret.¡±


    Only then did Ye Su realized that apart from Jun Mo, this was the other reason.


    Liu Bai continued, ¡°A few years ago I kept Chao Xiaoshu¡¯ sword in the Sword of Garret, which Iter passed on to Yi Qing. When Yi Qing was wounded by Ning Que, I gave that sword to Ye Hongyu to kill the Great Divine Priest of Judgment. That was very satisfying. Last year, the Headmaster of the Academy borrowed that sword to y dragons and spirits in the Wildness. That was my honor. This time the Academy sent Chao Xiaoshu to borrow that sword. I could not reject him because I was fond of him, and also because the Headmaster of the Academy once honored me. I was most willing to lend them the sword.¡±


    Ye Su came to the window and poured him a bowl of water.


    ¡°The first time I lent that sword, the Great Divine Priest of Judgment was killed. The second time, the sky was split. The third time, it will likely be someone extraordinarily influential. If just lending the sword causes this much mayhem, what am I supposed to do with my own sword?¡±


    Liu Bai said with a smile, ¡°People die whenever I lend out the sword. Then who am I supposed to kill with my own sword? Coming out of seclusion this time, I find myself all alone. Ke Haoran is gone, and Lian Sheng is gone too. Meanwhile, the Headmaster of the Academy has passed on. The Abbot is crippled while Jun Mo is trapped. And here you are teaching in such a shabby ce. Who else could I confront?¡±


    Ye Su knew what he was about to say and interrupted him, warning, ¡°You will die.¡±


    Liu Bai said, ¡°The path of a swordsman is straight and lonely. It would rather be broken than rot in a tomb.¡±


    Ye Su was still holding the bowl of water. He asked after a moment of silence, ¡°Why did you tell me all these?¡±


    Liu Bai answered, ¡°Chang¡¯an is too far away. Besides Jun Mo, you are the only one I can confide in.¡±


    Only Jun Mo and Ye Su were qualified to hear about these things. Therefore, he had another objective when he left the Sword Garret for Linkang City. ¡°With what you¡¯ve done and what you¡¯ve taught the people, you would have no escape within Haotian, and neither the Taoists nor the Abbot would ept you. I won¡¯t being back. Without my protection you are doomed. Therefore, I suggest you go to the Academy.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°Someone had told me the same thing.¡±


    Liu Bai said, ¡°So Ning Que really did leave Chang¡¯an? I suppose in a few days there will be a good show in the Peach Mountain. How could I miss that?¡±


    Ye Su said after a moment of silence, ¡°Probably.¡±


    Liu Bai said, ¡°Your junior brother is going to die soon.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°Can you help me deliver a letter?¡±


    Liu Bai said, ¡°Sure.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°I hope it won¡¯t interfere with your pursuit of Taoism.¡±


    Liu Bai said, ¡°It won¡¯t.¡±


    Ye Su gave him a letter and said, ¡°Wish you luck in seeking the Grand Dao.¡±


    Liu Bai concluded, ¡°Taoism will definitely seek for me if I wish.¡±


    Upon saying that, he took the bowl of water from Ye Su. Without drinking it, he poured it onto the ground. With some heartyugh, he left the cottage.


    Ye Su looked at the water he poured, knowing that it was his condolence to their future.


    There was no one left in the world for Liu Bai to challenge. Hence, no one could stop him from whatever he had determined to do. Ye Su did not waste much time on this. His only wish was for Chen Pipi to be alive. Yet, writing a letter was all that he could have done at this point.


    ...


    A letter arrived at the Divine Hall of Judgement via a secret channel. As it was secret, that meant no one, not even those in the Divine Hall of Judgement knew who sent this letter and to where it would end up. When the ck-robed Deacon of the Judicial Department tried his best to investigate it, three men were found dead by the cliff of the Divine Halls of West-Hill. Brutal as they were, the Judicial Department could not make the dead talk.


    There was a sword on the cover of this letter, stating clearly that it had to be opened by the Great Divine Priest of Judgement. The deacons of Judicial Department had profound respect for that female figure on the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade. They dared not make any decision by themselves, nor sharing this with other Divine Halls. What they could only do was to deliver the letter to the Great Divine Priest.


    Ye Hongyu just needed a nce to figure out where it came from. A few years ago, there was a simr letter delivered through this secret channel. At that time, she was living in a remote stone cottage by the cliff, undergoing the darkest moments of her life. That letter meant a lot to her.


    She didn¡¯t know when or why Liu Bai wrote to her at this point. Her fingers became a bit stiff when she opened the letter and saw those familiar yet strange handwritings.


    She was silent for quite a while after finishing reading the letter. When they were at the Verdant Canyon, she sent dozens of ck-robed Deacons and sacred guards of West-Hill to protect Ye Su, only to find out that all the guards were killed in a few months. She knew that there were people from Taoism who wanted to kill Ye Su in order to prove themselves. But what really haunted her was that she could not find out where Ye Su was and whether he was fine.


    Upon seeing this letter, she realized that her brother had been in Linkang City of South Jin Kingdom. Being protected by the Sword Garret, he should be fine. She felt somewhat relieved but frowned again for what her brother had written in the letter.


    The faint me of Haotian rose from between her hands, and burnt the letter and cover into ashes. She gently opened her hands and looked to the direction of Divine Hall of Light.


    Ye Hongyu knew who the man in the Divine Hall of Light was, and could tell why he refused to call her in. The reason seemed funny and contemptuous to her.


    Despite her mocking and scorn, that person was after all a superior existence. No matter what had happened between them previously.


    Since the moment Ye Su passed on the order from Haotian not to kill Long Qing at Yanbei Lake, she began to have doubts in Haotian and was disappointed with her brother.


    Yet what happened in Sishui River had cleared all her doubts.


    Ye Su had warned her before he went to the Verdant Canyon. He used to have doubts, which had only led to a fatal failure. That was the punishment from Haotian.


    ...


    The moon was invisible that night, because of the thick clouds and dense mist.


    Ning Que was climbing up along the dark steep cliff at the back of Peach Mountain. The Divine Halls were heavily guarded. But no one paid any attention to that cliff. That was because, since ancient times, no one except for the Headmaster of the Academy could get through the peach blossoms in the valley, nor could anyone break through the arrays along the cliff.


    He did not stop at the third tform on the cliff but continued to climb straight up. Still, it took him quite a while to reach the summit of Peach Mountain.


    He had picked a very remote route which led to the back of the Divine Hall of Justice. He quietly wiped off the dust on his hands and looked at the ck smoldering Divine Hall, silently.


    It was no doubt a gamble, thest and most risky option in the original n. But after many days of reasoning he was still unable toe up with a better n to rescue Chen Pipi. Therefore, he had to take the chance.


    The Divine Hall of Justice was rtively empty of people. Especially on the side facing the cliff, there was not a single sign of either the Cavalrymen, ck-robed deacons or the Red-robed Divine Priests.


    The hall was spacious, massive and dull. The ck floor reflected the lights of crystalmps without a slightest touch of warmth, but a bone-chilling cold.


    It perfectly matched the tone of justice, and the current master of this Divine Hall. Ning Que felt that the Divine Hall of Justice was like a huge tomb, and the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade a coffin.


    A beautiful female figure was sitting on that throne with her eyes closed. He looked up to her and uttered, ¡°Please help me.¡±


    The Seat of Heavenly ck Jade was as huge as an ocean of blood. The woman was dressed in the blood-colored Gown of Judgement, and seated on that huge throne, it seemed as if she was the coldest, thickest drop of blood.


    The Seat of Heavenly ck Jade was as cold as a blood-crystal coffin. With her eyes closed, cheek on hand and eyshes stayed still, she seemed like the sleeping princess who would never wake up again in that blood-crystal coffin.


    But she opened her eyes. The ocean of blood began roaring and the blood coffin slowly lifted. She did not look at Ning Que. Instead, she stared at the ck floor and asked, ¡°Are you here because of the life and death vow?¡±


    ...

 Chapter 861 - The Rite to Light

    <h4>Chapter 861: The Rite to Light</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    If people from the Divine Halls found out that Ning Que was there, he would definitely be killed.


    Ye Hongyu thought about the life and death vow because she felt that Ning Que was either courageous, or very stupid toe in front of her at the Seat of ck Heavenly Jade. This was akin to cing his life in her hands.


    She sounded extremely bitter. The life and death vow very aptly described the situation Ning Que was facing and the purpose of his appearance on the Peach Mountain.


    What is love? People live for it and die for it. It was normally the cause for suicidal craziness. Ning Que did note to the Peach Mountain for her, nor for the imprisoned Chen Pipi. He was clearly here solely for the person in the Divine Hall of Light.


    What a stupid choice it was to walk to his own demise because of love.


    Ye Hongyu had always thought that Ning Que was one of the very few who were calm and wise like herself. However, she was disappointed to see him acting like those fictional heroes indulging in their naive choice of dying for love. She could not help scorning him


    She and Ning Que were indeed simr, and he immediately picked up on the implications of her words. After a moment of silence, he said, ¡°I asked for your help this time, not because of her, but because of Pipi. You and Pipi shared some cherished childhood memories. Are you really going to watch him get burned to death?¡±


    Ye Hongyu replied emotionlessly, ¡°My childhood was just like the time you shared with the one inside the Divine Hall of Light. Something I hated most and wish I would never recall again.¡±


    Even as she replied, she was still seated on the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade with her cheek resting on her hand, staring at the ck floor in front of her neither turning around nor even sparing a nce at Ning Que.


    Ning Que looked up to her beautiful face and said abruptly, ¡°I met Ye Su in Linkang City.¡±


    If this was before Ye Hongyu had read that letter, she might had replied differently and their conversation lead to a different conclusion.


    But at that point, she could only say indifferently, ¡°Haotian knows everything in the world. You could havee to the Peach Mountain without being noticed by me or the hierarch. But you could never deceive her. I have no idea what Haotian was thinking about. And I am not going to interfere. If you are to be killed here, it has nothing to do with me.¡±


    Upon this she closed her eyes again with no further words, as if she felt asleep again. The silence in the empty hall was horrifying.


    Ning Que was quiet for a long while, then stepped backward. When the huge and cold crystalmp above was no longer shining on his face, he answered, ¡°Thank you.¡±


    He had thrown his life into her hands by entering the Divine Hall of Justice. If only she had turned to him or spoken towards him, there would havee numerous powerful guards. But she didn¡¯t. He was grateful for her reminder, and also for letting him go.


    There was no more sound from in the darkness, not even the sound of breathing. Ning Que left quietly. Ye Hongyu was still siting in her ck jade throne with eyes closed and cheek on hand.


    She told Ning Que many years ago that they would meet again in battle and fight till the death. The two of them did not have any sweet memories with each other.


    By killing Ning Que, she would have put an end to this battle. As the Great Divine Priest of Judgment, she should not have had any hesitation. Yet she chose not to take any action. She wanted Chen Pipi to be saved. Since she could not help with what her brother wanted, she could only hope that Ning Que could fulfill it.


    Most importantly, she did not know whether that person inside the Divine Hall of Judgement was looking at them, and what she would do to Ning Que.


    That person was a divine figure who happened to descend to the human world, and thus made thingsplicated. Even if the Great Divine Priest of Revtion, Li Qingshan and Master Qishan were reborn again, and the Abbot were restored to his strongest state, it would not be enough to predict what would happen in the end. No one could predict Heaven¡¯s will.


    In the quiet Divine Hall of Judgement, Ye Hongyu remained seated on the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade. Setting her cheek on her hand, she did not want to think any more about the uing Rite to Light and fell asleep.


    The blood-colored Gown of Justice covered her perfect figure, while the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade nourished her mind. She appeared majestic, but also lonely.


    ...


    In the fall of the 3450th year of Dazhi, the Rite to Light was held at the Peach Mountain.


    Down in the towns at the foot of Peach Mountain, over two thousand Papal Cavalryman were fully armed, patrolling about on their holy mounts. The number of guards in the front yard of Peach Mountain was overwhelming. Hundreds of Sacred Guards of West-Hill were watching every single path that led to the site.


    At dawn, delegates and followers flooded the mountain. Yet no one dared to speak a single word, not because of the soothing ceremonial musicing from the front yard, but the chillingly sacred atmosphere that covered the entire Peach Mountain.


    Over ten talisman masters and array masters were standing in the center of the front yard, preparing to activate the giant array they had already set up. Upon its activation, the wind blew petals of peach blossoms into the air. The Qi of Heaven and Earth stirred. Tens of Haotian gs were waving in the wind. The forty-seven waterfalls in the Peach Mountain sprayed innumerous tiny beads of water into the winds, which blew them to the front yard, gently falling.


    Drizzling on the mountain, it cleaned every single dust and calmed the restlessness. The t stone ground was washed thoroughly. And the white stone altar in the center was pure as jade.


    The drizzle from the waterfalls turned into mist in the autumn sun and gradually rose into three huge cloud shields. When the clouds dispersed, it became three clear circles of lights. The Peach Mountain was seamlessly shielded. When the clear circles of lights gradually disappeared, the three massive arrays were established.


    Tens of thousands of followers were covered by the falling rain. Yet, instead of soaking their clothes, it instead refreshed everyone at the scene. When the three cloud shields turned into three circles of lights, and eventually the three arrays, those who had never witnessed such great asions all fell to their knees and begin exalting the great Haotian.


    Chongming, the newly crowned king of the Yan Kingdom had arrived, as well as the governors of the Song, Qi, Liang, Zhen and other smaller kingdoms. Present too were the head of the Song family who represented the ns in Qinghe Prefecture, Monk Guanhai, the abbot of the Lanke Temple, Qi Nian from the Xuankong Temple, the national master of the Golden Tribe and their number one royal martial art master General Lebu. There were also independent cultivators, faculties and students of the Revtion Institution, divine priests and deacons of the four Divine Halls, and even the servants.


    These people stood closer to the foot of the Peach Mountain, some distance away from the tens of thousands of followers. They felt varied emotions when seeing those followers kneeled down and prayed. The priests and deacons of the Divine Halls of West-Hill were feeling proud, while the Buddhist practitioners kept quiet. The national master of the Golden Tribe smiled without a word, while General Bule frowned.


    Two sacred sedans descended from top of the mountain, and came to a stop above the front yard.


    The one in the middle was huge, shining with radiant light. A tall figure rose from within it ¨C the hierarch of the Divine Halls of West-hill.


    The other one by its side was smaller, with blood-like gauze curtains. Chilling as it was, a beautiful woman was sitting inside, with her cheek on hand and stunningly charming ck hair poured from her sacred crown. It was the Great Divine Priest of Judgment, Ye Hongyu.


    For tens of thousands of followers, it was their first time to see the hierarch and the Great Divine Priest of Judgment. They became even more excited and their prayers started trembling.


    Those powerful figures gathered felt even moreplicated feelings. West-Hill had been the governor of Haotian¡¯s world. The hierarch and three Great Divine Priests were the mightiest human beings in this world. However, the Great Divine Priest of Revtion was gone and there was no sign of his sessor even now. The Divine Hall of Light had undergone lots of disputes throughout the years. Even their evestingmp had died outtely. At the extravagant opening of the Rite to Light, those two sacred seats appeared extremely lonesome, and the power of West-Hill seemed dimming.


    In contrast to the Divine Halls of West-Hill, their guests seemed exceptionally powerful. Except for the Academy and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine from the Wilderness, almost all renowned cultivators from every school were presented, especially the national master of the Golden Tribe and Qi Nian from the Xuankong Temple, which had made the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom even more outstanding.


    Liu Yiqing was representing the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom. This blind sword master had reached the Knowing Destiny State and became famous for killing of the king of the South Jin Kingdom. But still he was clearly not a match for the other masters at the Rite to Light. It was somewhat disappointing for the Divine Halls of West-Hill.


    Everyone present could sense that the hierarch was displeased.


    Right then, a white line appeared in the clear blue sky above the Peach Mountain. It was as distinctive as a crack.


    Immediately after the crack, a sword appeared, hovering above the front yard.


    That was just an ordinary sword, wrapped with soft and thick cloth. Its de was made of bronze, but it did not seem particrly sharp nor bear any runes on its body.


    Immediately, it captured everyone¡¯s attention.


    Because, it did not seem to be held by any person, but was simply hovering there in the air, vibrating and buzzing slightly.


    No one knew how it ended up there.


    Even people like the hierarch, the national master and Qi Nian were only able to see the white line that appeared, and the sword that appeared after it.


    What was most terrifying was that the invisible massive array on the outmost of Peach Mountain was not able to sense iting nor stop it.


    The hanging sword remained in the air as if held by an invisible hand.


    If a person stood behind that sword, he would immediately notice that the sword was slightly pointing towards the Divine Hall of Light in no particr offensive manner. Rather, it seemed as if it was just looking at the Divine Hall.


    ...

 Chapter 862 - Waiting in the Rain of Peach Petals

    <h4>Chapter 862: Waiting in the Rain of Peach Petals</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Perhaps it was because the invisible massive array being broken in by this sword, there came a tender breeze in the front yard, lifting a few autumn leaves.


    One piece of leaf felt on the de of that sword. But it was not split for the sword was calm and peaceful. The leaf bounced up a bit and fell onto the ground again.


    It was an unsettling sort of calm.


    Everyone had since realized who this sword belonged to. No one but Liu Bai would have dared to barge in and aplish it in such a short instant.


    Inside the sacred sedan with radiance of lights, the Hierarch leaned forward.


    He felt irritated. This was because Liu Bai¡¯s sword was pointing towards the Divine Hall of Light, even if it meant no offense nor respect. Moreover, that sword had shown upter than himself.


    This implied that Liu Bai saw himself above the Hierarch.


    He was the Hierarch of the Divine Halls of West-Hill. By cing himself above the Hierarch, Liu Bai was cing himself above all of humanity.


    ...


    The Hierarch was seriously wounded by the Twenty-Three-year Cicada in the back mountain of the Academy. He was blinded, his arms were broken, and his Ocean of Qi destroyed. It took him a lot to get back to the Peach Mountain. He thought he was destroyed, and dared not toe out of the radiating lights because of his fear. But no one could have expected that Haotian woulde to the human world.


    Since the moment he began following Haotian, he had regained his faith and courage which he lost decades ago. Haotian had already punished Zhishou Abbey in his rage. And thus, the Hierarch became the only one who represented Haotian in the human world. As long as he stayed in the Peach Mountain, he would be undefeatable. No one could defeat him, not even Liu Bai. The Drunkard and the Butcher would not dare to show him any disrespect either.


    Therefore, he did not try to hide his anger toward this invasive sword. Yet, despite his resentment, the sword just hovered there calmly without even the slightest reaction.


    Out of the five guest ministers in the Divine Halls of West-Hill, Xiahou was gone. The Sage of Calligraphy was already in seclusion. Liu Bai was still the most respected guest minister. His sword was enough to represent his presence, and this was already showing respect to the Rite to Light. Therefore, even the Hierarch could not do anything about it.


    The head of Revtion Institute was standing by the Hierarch¡¯s sacred sedan. He was in charge of the agenda of the day. Since the Hierarch did not give further instructions, he announced the official debut of the ceremony.


    Sacred music resounded from around the Peach Mountain, resonating in the front yard and was heard by all the participants. The Qi of Heaven and Earth echoed with the music, and along with it arose a warm breeze that reced the chilling autumn wind.


    The peach buds in the valley bloomed in full and their petals were lifted by the breeze. They drifted down the Peach Mountain and gathered above the front yard, dancing in the breeze.


    Tons of peach petals sent forth a mystic fragrance. It was not a regr scent of peach blossoms but was stronger than any earthly fragrance and sweeter than any sugar. It was not too overwhelming, just like a refreshing fresh breeze after the rain.


    Tens of thousands of followers looked up to the dancing peach petals, enjoying the dazzling beauty and the refreshing fragrance.


    They had passed strict exams and traveled a long way toe to the Rite to Light. They were the most devout followers on earth. Based on some very simple logic, devoutness always came from suffering. Therefore, most of them had experienced a lot of sufferings, and many were seriously ill or even dying, carried all the way to the West-Hill by their families.


    When the mystic fragrance came, the ill or disabled felt sudden relief, as though they were liberated from any negative energy or sufferings they had undergone. They were refreshed and even seemed to see the sacred kingdom of Haotian through that fragrance.


    Theme threw away their crutches, kneeled with trembling hands and prostrated towards the Peach Mountain. Those previously lying on stretchers struggled to get on their feet and prostrated despite of the objection from their families.


    Although it was autumn, the front yard of Peach Mountain was as warm as spring with countless peach blossoms dancing in the breeze and spreading their charming fragrance. All of a sudden, the breeze disappeared, and peach blossoms fell toward the ground.


    The falling peach blossoms turned into a rain of petals.


    Tens of thousands of followers kneeled in the rain of petals. Those petals fell on their bodies, changed into soft beams of lights, prated through their clothes and skins, melted into their blood and disappeared.


    Theme no longer felt any pain from their crippled legs. The festered wounds became clean and new flesh grew back with healthy skin.


    Those seriously ill were recovering. Their pale cheeks became pinkish. The diseases they suffered from for years were washed away by the rain of petals.


    Those healthy, because of their devoutness, had received profound blessing. ck hair grew on the heads of the elderly. The youth felt never stronger. Women acquired younger skin. A few young women even found their dark skin became fairer, as if they had put on expensive cosmetics.


    In the front yard of Peach Mountain, tens of thousands of followers burst into tears, crying and screaming for the blessing they¡¯ve received.


    The Rite to Light had always been the grandest ceremony in Taoism. It was the time when Haotian revealed his divine magic. The tons of followers in the front yard of Peach Mountain had no doubt in this. But those delegates from various kingdoms were not so sure. After all, those were only legends described in the scriptures. However, after seeing what happened right in front of their eyes, they did not dare to have any further doubts. The falling peach blossoms, the recovering ill people, the healthy blessed... if those were not miracles, what else should they be?


    The divine priests and deacons of West-Hill had been on their knees for a long time. Not longter, so did the national master of Golden Tribe, General Bule, and all the other delegates and independent cultivators.


    Although Qi Nian from the Xuankong Temple and Monk Guanhai from the Lanke Temple were still standing there because of their different religions, they were no less stunned by the sacred magic they just witnessed. They put their palms together devoutly and bowed towards the merciful Haotian.


    The hanging sword also lowered its tip towards the Divine Hall of Light.


    ...


    When the crying and screaming gradually came to an end, and following a series ofplicated procedures, it was finally time for the most important part of the Rite to Light.


    The offering to the Heaven.


    There were numerous temples and abbeys around the world providing offerings to the Heavens every day. Not to mention a ce sacred as the Divine Halls of West-Hill. They had be very proficient with the rituals. But there had to be something unique for such a grand asion as the Rite to Light. The white stone altar right in the center of the front yard was the proof.


    Moreover, the offerings picked for the Rite to Light had to be extraordinary.


    Various extremely rare treasures were piled up around the white stone altar offered by delegates and independent cultivators from all over the world, including two unique ingredients for Heavenly Power Pills. Haotian¡¯s followers had made great efforts for this rite. However, those were still too shabbypared with the most important offering for the day, a human sacrifice.


    That human being could not be amoner for sure. He was born to be a genius of genius, with the purest and noblest legacy from Taoism. He grew up studying in an unknown ce, went to the City of Chang¡¯an and followed the Headmaster of the Academy. He was the youngest among all those who had reached the Knowing Destiny State. As for the Heavenly Power Pills, he had even tried some of it. He was Chen Pipi, the only person who belonged to both Taoism and the Academy.


    On a warm autumn day, it felt cozy around the white stone altar. Yet when the altar opened, an extreme coldnessing from underground almost froze the entire altar. After all, the bottom of the altar led directly to the Secluded Pavilion.


    When the altar closed again, Chen Pipi was brought out by two divine guards. He still wore his uniform from the Academy. It was unclear if it was of his own will or deliberately arranged by the Divine Halls. He was not restricted by any spells, nor chains. Not even handcuffs.


    They did not worry about him running away. Although he was not restricted by any spells, he was interdicted by Haotian. No one could escape from that.


    Around the white stone altar, there were delegates and cultivators from all over the world, among whom only a few had met Chen Pipi before. But due to the information deliberately spreaded by the Divine Halls, they all knew that he was the twelfth disciple of the Academy, and the son of the Abbey Dean of Zhishou Abbey.


    No one spoke. Some did not know what to say, but most of them did not dare. The Divine Halls had chosen Chen Pipi to be the offering for the rite. This meant there was finally some significant changes within the Haotian Taoism, which implicated that the Heaven was disappointed, especially by the Zhishou Abbey. It was also a cruel punishment to the Academy.


    They were quiet and serious because they all knew that this asion was not only a rite to Haotian, but a trap for the Academy as well. No one from the Academy was present so far. But they woulde for sure. Even knowing that it was a trap, they had no choice but to step into the trap. Because they were the Academy.


    Although there had been the rain of peach petals, Haotian¡¯s blessing and sacred happiness, everyone knew that they would notst forever. The moment someone from the Academy arrived at the scene, a most horrifying battle would begin. No one knew how many people would die then.


    ...

 Chapter 863 - An Optimistic Offering

    <h4>Chapter 863: An Optimistic Offering</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Those who stood by the white stone altar knew that someone from the Academy would definitely being. But they did not know when. The tense atmosphere was a different kind of torture, in which they could only wait silently. To some extent, this was also out of respect to the Academy. Yet, despite their awe and respect, no one would believe that the Academy could win in such a situation.


    In the front yard of the Peach Mountain, powerful men like Liu Bai, the hierarch, the Great Divine Priest, the national master of the Golden Tribe and Qi Nian from Buddhism were all gathered. Although they were not as mighty at the Abbey Dean, it was after all not in the Verdant Canyon or the City of Chang¡¯an. It was in the realm of the West-Hill. Hidden here were formation arrays inherited from their predecessors over the years, and the people that had amassed. No matter if it were the Eldest Brother, the Second Brother, the Third Brother with the Twenty-three-Year Cicada, or even all of theming together, they were bound to lose. Not to mention that people like Qi Nian or the national master already figured out the secret inside the Divine Hall of Light, and people from the West-Hill were already aware of the presence of the Drunkard and the Butcher. It was far beyond the Academy¡¯s power.


    It is fair to say that courage stems from ignorance, especially for asions like this at the religious Peach Mountain. Different from the important ones close to the altar, those tons of followers who had just awakened from the rain of peach petals were unaware of the danger they were about to face in the Rite of the Light. Nor did they have any idea who the fat figure was on the altar. They reasoned he must be an extremely evil person since he was chosen to be the offering for the Rite to Light.


    They were standing on their toes, trying to see him more clearly. They stared with hatred and cruelty, and if looks could kill, they would have killed Chen Pipi many times over with their stares.


    Chen Pipi was chubby and cheeky, and his skin was extremely thick. He stood there on the white stone altar, facing the hostile stare from tons of followers without paying any attention to them. Then he did something that no one would have expected.


    There, at the Rite to Light, on the sacred altar, while everyone was waiting for him to be burnt, he seemed unaware of his doom. Nor did he cry, repent, or look pale. He did not me the Heaven as some renowned historical devils did. Of course, all those who did were struck down by lightning. Instead, he sat down on the altar.


    Chen Pipi figured it was too tiring to stand there. And he was still feeling cold because of the freezing air down in the Secluded Pavilion. It wasfortably warm on the altar, so he thought it might be morefortable to sit down. Why should he care about those killing stares and the divine rituals? He was the one about to be burnt. How could he care about his gesture or appearance at this moment? He was not their Second Brother after all.


    It was indeed very warm, and perhaps even a little hot. Chen Pipi moved a bit and exposed the left side of his buns to the hierarch. Then he unbuttoned his shirt to get some cool air.


    ¡°The damned autumn heat!¡±


    He wiped off the sweat on his forehead, looked at one of the Divine Guards of West-Hill down there and asked, ¡°It seems you are still expecting someone. Could you bring me some water in the meanwhile?¡¯


    The divine guard looked emotionless. The guard had never seen any death-row prisoners like him. He was about to be killed. Yet he seemed utterly unafraid. Furthermore, he was even asking for water.


    Those standing close to the altar were all shocked to hear such a request. Monk Guanhai put his palms together again and started praying. He is indeed Ning Que¡¯s Brother. They act equally .... unpredictable, he thought.


    Qi Nian thought, Disciples of the Academy are indeed respectable. He remains fearless even till now. Chongming, the king of Yan was thinking, He was not from Tang. But why does he sound exactly the same as them? Ye Hongyu was wondering, He is still as cheeky as always.


    General Lebu, the number one martial art master of the Golden Tribe looked at Chen Pipi on the altar and questioned, ¡°You are about to be burnt by the divine me. Yet you are still asking for water?¡±


    Chen Pipi seemed innocent about his implications, and exined to him sincerely, ¡°To be burnt and to die of thirst are two different sentences. You people from the West-Hill should keep your words. Shouldn¡¯t you?¡±


    General Lebu was speechless upon hearing that.


    Chen Pipi waved his chubby fingers at him and continued, ¡°Don¡¯t think that you can humiliate me because I cannot beat you now. If only I was...¡±


    Lebu was enraged. He took one step forward, then stepped back to the side of the national master.


    Chen Pipi looked at the footprint Lebu just made with his right foot and realized that even if his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow was not destroyed, he could have not defeated this person. He felt ashamed.


    The Academy emphasized the course of nature. Therefore, the disciples were trained to find reasons for anything. Right then Chen Pipi was irritated for the reason that he felt ashamed.


    He folded his sleeves and stepped down from the altar, yelled to Lebu, ¡°If my father was not destroyed, he would have squeezed you with his fingers. Anyone of my Brothers and Sisters would have given you a good beating. How dare you to pretend high in front of me? Would you like to try killing me now?¡±


    The offering to the Rite of the Light just walked down from the altar. That was funny and stirring. The head of Revtion Institute had to ask a few divine guards to stop him.


    But Chen Pipi was not willing to surrender. He continued cursing, ¡°Do you dare to kill me now? Aren¡¯t you actually quite worthless?¡±


    Then he turned to the head of Revtion Institute and the divine guards, ¡°You don¡¯t try to stop me from beating up this barbarian. Are you from the civilized world or not? Instead of standing by my side, you are even stopping me? I¡¯m not going to run. I was just trying to show him our most powerful strike ¨C the Natural Stream Magical Finger!¡±


    His Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow was already destroyed. He could barely catch a chicken, not to mention to use the Natural Stream Magical Finger. Yet he was yelling unreasonably like a lunatic. No one would associate him with a genius of Taoism.


    His ridiculous behavior had irritated the West-Hill. They could not stand that their most sacred rite was about to be a scene of absurdity.


    The head of Revtion Institute said sternly, ¡°We did not spell or chain you as we respected the Abbey Dean. If you do not want your mouth to be gagged with stinky socks, you¡¯d better start behaving yourself.¡±


    The unreasonable Chen Pipi did not expect them to be so stern. He stared at the Knowing-Destiny head and replied, ¡°You do know me.¡±


    Before the head was able toment on that, he stood straight as if ready to confront his destiny. ¡°Anyway, I want some water now. Otherwise, you might as well just kill me right now.¡±


    The silent national master of Golden Tribe suddenly started talking.


    This ordinary-looking old man was ying with a tiny wooden tripod while he talked to Chen Pipi, ¡°The Abbey Dean is too divine to bemented by people like us. Lebu¡¯s words were not appropriate. I apologize on his behalf.¡±


    Chen Pipi squinted at the national master¡¯s tiny wooden tripod, finding it familiar. He felt even more uncertain when he remembered that this man was titled the Great Divine Priest of Tripod.¡±


    The national master of Golden Tribe turned to the head of Revtion Institute, ¡°There¡¯s no harm in giving him some water though.¡±


    The Golden Tribe was the most powerful in the Wilderness. They had been converted to believing in Tengri, which was also under Haotian. It was one of the biggest sess of Taoism throughout the years, and also the reason why they could almost defeat the Great Tang in the war startedst autumn.¡±


    Following the example of South School of Tang Empire, the West-Hill had conferred the title of Great Divine Priest of Tripod on the national master of the Golden Tribe. This was not only because the Golden Tribe was as important to the West-Hill as the Great Tang, but also that the national master had yed an extraordinary role in the converting of Golden Tribe. If it was not because of his iparable reputation in the grasnd, how could Haotian have spread his teaching there sessfully?


    Among the Divine Halls of West-Hill, it remained unknown how their priest could have convinced the national master to change their belief. If he had witnessed Haotian¡¯s divine magic as they did today, they would have no doubts. But given that the Golden Tribe had been fully supportive in West-Hill¡¯s n so far, they had to believe that it was all because of Haotian¡¯s almighty will that the Golden Tribe was converted.


    Therefore, upon the national master¡¯s words, the head of Revtion Institute looked up to the hierarch to make sure he had no objection, and asked a divine guard to fetch a bowl of water.


    Chen Pipi held the bowl of water and sat down on the altar. He looked around and frowned.


    The more sacred this Rite to Light became, the more irritated he felt. Hence, he had tried to mess around with it. It would have been ideal if that barbarian called Lebu had killed him out of fury.


    Chen Pipi was afraid of death, whether it was from being burnt or beaten. But he was indeed trying to get this done as soon as possible. Because he did not want his fellow Brothers from the Academy to risk their lives for him.


    On the day he saw her in the storm, he had realized from that moment that the Academy would never win. Even if their Headmaster was still here they would have no chance of winning. Not to mention that their Headmaster had be the moon by now.


    When he found out that he would be the offering for the Rite to Light, he tried desperately to kill himself, by knocking his head against stone walls, refusing any food, chewing up his tongue, cutting his wrists, swallowing ceramic chips, or even destroying his own Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow.


    However, the Judicial Department was so experienced and the female in charge knew him so well that they spared him no chance to seed. As to his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow, it was already destroyed. How could he have destroyed it once again?


    Chen Pipi frowned because he did not see Ning Que. But he was also pleased that Jun Mo and Ye Su did not came. His most respected Brothers and his favorite Tang Xiaotang did not show up.


    The difference between frowning and being pleased was because Ning Que was different from the others. It was hard to describe, but almost like this:


    We were fellows at the Academy, but also as intimate as brothers. I saved you once, so you have toe for me this time. Although I told you not toe by the stone window that day, how could you really note for me?


    Chen Pipi sincerely wished that Ning Que would note. But he could not help feeling disappointed and wronged. There was not a single one he knew among the tons of people standing in front of him in the front yard of Peach Mountain. Isn¡¯t that a bit too lonely?


    Then he realized that there was indeed someone he knew at the scene, the one who was sitting in the bloody sacred sedan, Ye Hongyu. Despite the sentence he was about to be given, he finally had the gut to say something he had wished to say since childhood.


    ¡°Ye Hongyu, you are heartless!¡± He yelled while holding onto his trousers, ¡°On that day when we were kids, our Brother only bought me five sweet pancakes and I gave you three out of them. Now you are sitting there watching me get burnt! Is it just because I sneaked a peek once when you were bathing? How about I let you see me naked today in return!¡±


    Sitting in the sacred sedan, Ye Hongyu wished she could have torn up his mouth. The head of Revtion Institute standing by the altar wished he had stuffed his mouth with socks previously. The divine Rite to Light had just turned into an absurd show by its own offering.


    The Headmaster used to say that Chen Pipi had a pure heart and thus understood his fate well. They believed in the course of nature in the Academy. And thus, Chen Pipi had be the youngest one to reach the Knowing Destiny State.


    That was him, the optimistic Chen Pipi, even though he was about to die.


    No one knew whether Haotian was amused by this.


    ...

 Chapter 864 - A Unique Oration of Rite

    <h4>Chapter 864: A Unique Oration of Rite</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    She stood inside the Divine Hall of Light with her hands sped behind her back. She watched Chen Pipi making a scene in the front yard of Peach Mountain as he was about to take off his trousers. She did not find that interesting, only ridiculous.


    She remembered Chen Pipi. She met him several times in the City of Chang¡¯an, and even cooked noodles for him before. He had the purest blood from Taoism. Although he had been with the Academy for many years, he still had respect for Haotian deep down his heart. Still, he had doubts.


    Teachers and students of the Revtion Institute stood in the front yard of Peach Mountain, together with dozens of servants. Ning Que, who was standing in the crowd, saw what had just happened there and could not help but feel worried.


    That night, Ye Hongyu had let him leave the Divine Hall of Justice. That implied something. Furthermore, for the sake of her brother, Ye Su, she should remain neutral. However, she was the Great Divine Priest of Judgment after all. How could she tolerate that damn fatty humiliating her in front of the tens of thousands of people here?


    Other than Ning Que, there were others who were also worried, such as the head of Revtion Institute. People in the Divine Halls knew how horrifying the Great Divine Priest of Judgment could be. If she was seriously offended, she could easily have him killed even before the ritual starts.


    The head of the Revtion Institute did not dare to look at her Sacred Sedan. He ordered the divine guards to drag Chen Pipi onto the altar. Upon receiving permission from the hierarch, they started the rite as quickly as possible.


    They did not announce Chen Pipi¡¯s crimes and started the sacrificial ceremony immediately. The head of Revtion Institute held the golden book and read out the Anthem to Heaven. The Anthem was mainly about Haotian¡¯s profound blessing towards the human world. It was recognized as the most important one out of the Three Sacred Anthems.


    The Anthem to Heaven was the official oration for the Rite to Light held today.


    The head read through the oration with devoutness, calm and sincerity. The teachers and students at the Revtion Institute chanted after him harmoniously, sentence by sentence.


    Tens of thousands of followers started following the head¡¯s chanting like the teachers and students. It was unclear whether this was a spontaneous action or if they were directed to do so by the priests on the grounds.


    Their chanting became louder and louder. Like the waves on the sea bing stronger with each sessive wave, it kept a perfect rhythm, resounding throughout Peach Mountain, as if it was meant for the Heavens high above to hear.


    Chen Pipi sat on the white stone altar, holding up the bowl of water given to him. He felt regretful for being unable to infuriate Ye Hongyu to kill him. Just as he was about to drink some water, he heard the waves of chanting resounding from Peach Mountain and stiffened.


    He was born into a Taoist family and had been able to recite all those scriptures since young. He knew that it was going to be a long one, and that they had just finished the first two paragraphs filled with respect and affection for Haotian. The following paragraph would be about the blessings that Haotian had given to the human world.


    He stiffened not because he subconsciously wanted to recite the scripture as well, but because he sensed some indescribable pressure, an extremely powerful pressure that did not belong to this realm.


    The pressure did note from the chanting of the followers, instead it seemed to have been summoned from above.ing from Heaven.


    Chen Pipi looked up at the sky. The cold and dim autumn sun became dazzling and bright lights poured down to the white stone altar and onto his body. Within the lights there was the purest and mightiest power. That was where the pressure came from.


    It seemed to have pressed him down into the white stone altar. Initially, he was just sitting on the altar, but now he felt his bottom already melted into the hot white stone.


    His face paled and he frowned. The bowl in his hand broke into pieces under the radiating lights, and water sshed all over his body.


    When facing great pressures from the Heaven, people tended to either surrender or escape. Chen Pipi did not want to surrender and tried to get away, only to find himself unable to move any further. It was already difficult enough for him to keep looking up. He felt sore in the neck.


    He was able to sense his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow again. But that was nothing to be happy about. It was not a recovery, but the beginning of his ultimate demise.


    Although his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow was already destroyed, he was still optimistic because he had witnessed how Ning Que found his path to cultivation. If Ning Que could make it, a genius like him would definitely be able to recover. He had believed that he would be able to re-establish his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow. But he realized at that point that was only an illusion when facing the almighty Haotian.


    Chen Pipi kept looking up and saw the increasingly bright lights falling onto his body. Although he did not know what thest step for the rite was, he intuitively depicted that he would melt away and then disappear from this world.


    Ning Que had been staring at him from the crowd. He looked over the shoulders of the servants and stared right at the white stone altar. The sacred lights were reflected in his eyes, dancing around constantly. He knew Haotian well enough to knowthat when the oration was finished, those bright lights on the white stone altar would be the purest sacred me of Haotian, the so called divine me. And Chen Pipi would be burnt into ashes in a blink.


    Since he saw Chen Pipi from behind the stone windows down in the cliffs, he had been thinking of how to get him out. He could not stand by and watch Chen Pipi burn to death. But he could not work our any better n than waiting for the change his Senior Sister had mentioned. However, that change was not happening and Chen Pipi was dying. He could wait no more. Then, he inhaled deeply and got ready to go.


    Breathing created noise, and as a high-ranking cultivator from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, Ning Que¡¯s breath was extremely powerful. As he put all his effort into that earlier breath, it sounded like a strong gust of autumn wind blowing by.


    Those servants and the head of Revtion Institute vaguely heard Ning Que inhale. But another sound grabbed their attention before they could react to it.


    Ning Que also heard that other sound. Therefore, he exhaled immediately and adjusted his aura, staying low and continuing to pretend to be an ordinary servant boy.


    That sound hade from outside the front yard. Some people were also chanting the Anthem to Heaven, with the same content, and almost the same rhythm. There were only tiny differences in some sentences in a few paragraphs.


    Yet because of those tiny differences, their chanting became distinctly discordant. It was like a perfect and harmonious movement being interrupted by the sound of knocking bamboos.


    The other chanting continued calmly and reached all the way to the Peach Mountain. The chanting of the many followers was interrupted, and those on their knees turned to looked back towards the sound.


    The sound of solemn chanting instantly diminished. Only the teachers and students from the Revtion Institute persisted in their chanting as a way of resisting the sound from below the Peach Mountain.


    There came a group of people, young and old, male and female. They had dark skin and wore bamboo hats as though they were fishermen. Yet, they were all wearing the very distinct sacred red gowns.


    These dozens of fishermen-looking priests in red lined up and walked with a slow but consistent pace. If someone looked at them from in front, they would have only seen the elder male who was first in line.


    The distinctive chanting came from these people. They sounded like one single entity even though there were over ten of them. Compared with the chanting from the Divine Halls, this was a true perfection of harmony.


    Upon the arrival of these people, a clear light appeared from the first array shielding the Peach Mountain. But the elder did not stop, nor did he have any expression on his face. Their chanting was not disturbed at all. Lines from the Anthem to Heaven continued to be read.


    The clear light of the first array dimmed without showing any resistance. Those fisherman-looking priests in red had stepped onto the front yard of the Peach Mountain. Chasing after them were dozens of Papal Cavalrymen. Divine guards also rushed in after. However, looking at the scene, none of them knew what to do next.


    Those red gowns were indeed authentic pieces from the Divine Halls. More importantly, even the array of clear lights had granted them entrance. Only those most devout to Haotian and carried the most genuine heritage would have been able to walk through the array so easily.


    The people in the front yard rose up and cleared a way for the group. The group continued making their way directly toward the Peach Mountain, with sacred devoutness and firmness. They worshipped Haotian no less than those people from the Divine Halls, but in a different way.


    The head of the Revtion Institute looked at this group of people and turned pale. They had suppressed the chanting of tons of followers and numerous priests with their single voice. It was not because of their high level of cultivation, but rather, their better understanding of the anthem. That meant they had a more thorough understanding of the teaching of West-Hill than the head himself, and perhaps even better than the Hierarch. But he could not understand why. Who were they? And why were they doing it so well?


    The other guests were equally surprised. They looked at this strange group in the sacred red gowns, trying to figure out where they came from and their purpose here.


    Qi Nian was the World Wayfarer of Buddhism. He had read many secret stories of cultivation when he was at the Xuankong Temple. Looking at these fisherman-looking priests in red, he frowned as he considered one particr possibility.


    ¡°Could it be possible that the Great Divine Priest of South Sea has descendants?¡±


    This group of people proceeded slowly to the white stone altar and stood in a straight line, facing Chen Pipi and continuing with their calm and devout chanting of the Anthem of Heaven.


    The voices of people from the Divine Halls became softer and softer until they could almost not be heard. The bright lights on the white stone altar were converted from pressure to sympathy, and eventually benevolence.


    ...

 Chapter 865 - The Divine Priest of South Sea

    <h4>Chapter 865: The Divine Priest of South Sea</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The chanting from West-Hill had died out, however the people from the strange group were still chanting. Judging from their bamboo hats and the smell of the sea on their bodies, the head of Revtion Institute had finally figured out their origins. His face turned pale and without any hesitation, he shouted with blood dripping out of his lips, ¡°Upon my word! Cease!¡±


    This was the first sentence from the Anthem of Genesis. He had incorporated his Knowing Destiny state cultivation with his experience from decades of chanting, making his order extraordinary.


    The chanting finally came to an end. However, what rmed the head was that the chanting of these people did not stop immediately after his order. Instead, they gradually stopped with a long sacred resonating sound, like a fisherman¡¯s song.


    ¡°It has been six hundred years.¡± The pale head of Revtion Institute looked at the people in front of the altar and continued, ¡°Six hundred years have already passed, why do you still want toe back?¡±


    The elderly male standing in front had very dark and wrinkled skin, with a short and sparse beard. His calm eyes looked as though it had seen all the good and bad in the world. He looked just like an old fisherman because of the faint smell of the sea on him.


    The elder answered, ¡°We belong to the same school. Why can¡¯t wee back to the Divine Halls of West-Hill?¡±


    After a moment of silence, the head of Revtion Institute asked, ¡°What is your Taoist name?¡±


    ¡°Zhao Nanhai from the South Sea.¡± The elderly looked at him and stated. ¡°A Rite to Light at the Peach Mountain should have been hosted by the head of Divine Hall of Light, not someone from the Revtion Institute. My South Sea School is a direct branch of the Divine Hall of Light. Since there¡¯s no one in charge of the Divine Hall of Light, I had toe back to take charge.¡±


    The guests at the rite were either powerful cultivators or noblemoners. All of them were more or less familiar with the secret history of Taoism. At this moment, most of them had already realized the origins of these people. They were shocked. Are they really the descendants of the Great Divine Priest of South Sea?


    The Divine Halls of West-Hill were the core of the Taoism world. Led by the Hierarch, there were three Great Divine Priests in charge of the Light, Revtion and Judgement Departments. The Hierarch ran the governing body. The Great Divine Priest of Revtion was in charge of taking orders from Haotian and cultivating divine priests. The Great Divine Priest of Judgment oversaw the order and executed the punishments of Taoism, sentencing rebellions and cultivators from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Both were powerful and respected. Only the Great Divine Priest of Light did not have any specific responsibility, yet it still held the most divine position.


    The Great Divine Priest of Light was viewed as the being closest to Haotian. He ranked first among the three Great Divine Priests, and was respected almost as much as the Hierarch. It was said that over three thousand years ago, before the first year of Dazhi, the position of Hierarch did not exist in West-Hill. The Hierarch¡¯s position waster created to bnce the power from the Light.


    For the past thousand years, the three greatest figures of West-Hill were all from the Divine Hall of Light. The first one was the Great Divine Priest of Light who sailed to the Wilderness with the Bright Volume of the Tomes of Arcane, and consequently established the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Thetest one was Wei Guangming who, after a decade of imprisonment in the Secluded Pavilion, hade out but perished together with Yan Se.


    The second and final one was the master of the Divine Hall of Light six hundred years ago. That Great Divine Priest of Light had studied in the West-Hill since childhood and was widely respected. He was introduced to the three Tomes of Arcane in Zhishou Abbey and was once believed to be the next Abbey Dean. However, no one would have predicted that after reading some of the Buddha¡¯s teaching, he was enlightened and started to amend the teachings of West-Hill.


    That was an impossible mission, and was furthermore, uneptable in Taoism. These were Haotian¡¯s teachings. How dare he amend them? At that time, both the Great Divine Priests of Judgement and Revtion did not approve his behavior. They decided that he had gone on a wrong path and their disagreements with his teaching eventually turned into a battle for power.


    That Great Divine Priest of Light had reached a state that no one couldpete with no matter in cultivation or debating. Even the Hierarch together with the other two Great Divine Priests could not defeat him. Therefore, there had been fierce conflicts within the Divine Halls.


    When Wei Guangming fled from the Secluded Pavilion, many were sacrificed at the Peach Mountain. Prior to that, the internal turmoil six hundred years ago was the most horrifying event throughout the history of the West-Hill.


    That turmoil was so destructive that it even affected Taoism¡¯s control over the human world and forced the secluded Zhishou Abbey to take a stand. But even the Abbey Dean and those most powerful figures were unable tell who was in the right. They could only make a decision based on their knowledge at that time.


    They banned him from making further amendments to West-Hill¡¯s teachings and expelled him together with his followers from the Peach Mountain. But they still recognized them as a branch of the West-Hill.


    That Great Divine Priest of Light had thus drifted away from the Peach Mountain and carried out his teaching in the South Sea thereafter. He swore that he would nevere back again unless Haotian disyed his divine magic or the West-Hill apologized.


    Ever since then, news came from the South Sea that the priest and his followers had travelled from ind to ind cultivating the barbarians. He was so devout that people began calling him the Great Divine Priest of South Sea. He died decades after his expulsion.


    The West-Hill had always been aware of who this Great Divine Priest of South Sea was. When he died, they ced a name board for him.


    That was where this Great Divine Priest of South Sea came from.


    Not much was heard after his passing. The West-Hill had thought his followers were also gone, and that after six hundred years, there was no longer such a branch in the South Sea.


    Who would have expected the Great Divine Priest of South Sea to have descendants, and that they would have travelled all the way back to the Peach Mountain?


    People around the altar were all shocked, especially those divine priests and deacons who knew this story. They were back after six hundred years!


    Not everyone was kept from this secret that the Great Divine Priest of South Sea did have descendants. Ye Hongyu was aware that Chen Pipi¡¯s mother was a direct descendant of this Great Divine Priest. The Hierarch knew this as well.


    Up in the sacred sedan covered by floating gauze, the Hierarch moved a bit forward under the radiating lights. He did not speak, nor look at this group. He just looked at Chen Pipi calmly.


    Chen Pipi was half from the South Sea branch. Had they thereforee all the way to save him from being burnt as a sacrifice?


    The head of Revtion Institute wiped off the blood at the corner of his mouth, and lowered his voice to Zhao Nanhai from the South Sea, ¡°Although you are a branch of the West-Hill, did you forget the oath your Great Divine Priest made when he left the Peach Mountain?¡±


    Zhao Nanhai replied emotionlessly, ¡°We from the South Sea never expected you rotten people on the Peach Mountain to apologize. But since you dared to host the Rite to Light, Haotian would definitely reveal some divine magic. Thus, ouring back to the Peach Mountain is not a betrayal of the Great Divine Priest¡¯s oath.¡±


    The head of Revtion Institute was speechless.


    As the chanting stopped, the Anthem to Heaven was left unfinished. As the bright lights dimmed, Chen Pipi felt liberated. His melting Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow regained its tranquility. He realized he was saved.


    But he could not recognize those people from the South Sea. He left the South Sea as a small boy. Those things and people were almostplete irrelevant to him.


    He only knew that these people were his mother¡¯s rtives. In another word, they were his family. He should have been more excited and grateful to see his family and life-savers from the South Sea.


    But he was not. He merely looked nkly at the group of people from the South Sea. Even if he could barely remember anything associated with them, he could still recall their coldness toward themselves and the people around them. They only cared about spreading their religion.


    He had almost forgotten what his mother told him before she died. But at that moment he realized that they would have never betrothed his mother to his father if they were not intending to return to the Peach Mountain.


    Chen Pipi knew very well that the descendants of the Great Divine Priest of South Sea did note for his sake. At least, he was not the main reason they were here. There had to be something to do with his father.


    The descendants of the Great Divine Priest of South Sea could havee back to help his father regain control over Zhishou Abbey. But his father should have known that she was right there inside the Divine Hall of Light.


    As long as she was there, anyone who dared to challenge the West-Hill would be doomed, even if it the former Great Divine Priest of Light from six hundred years ago was here. There was nothing his descendants could do.


    What was his father thinking about?


    ...


    By theke at Zhishou Abbey, therey a bamboo bed.


    The Abbey Dean was lying on the bamboo bed, holding on to something unknown, and looking at the direction of the Peach Mountain. A middle-aged cultivator was cooking tea. Meanwhile, Long Qing was reading the Tomes of Arcane in a cottage on the other side of theke.


    The middle-aged man prepared the tea and ced a cup of tea by the side of the bamboo bed.


    The Abbey Dean picked up the cup with his newly regrown fingers and sipped gently.


    The middle-aged looked at the direction of the Peach Mountain, and sighed after a long silence, ¡°What a pity.¡±


    The Abbey Dean knew what he meant by pity. There were two reasons.


    When the Headmaster of the Academy stepped up to heaven from Sishui River, he smashed their ce at the Abbey. All the secluded powerful cultivators were killed. From then on, the centre of Taoism had shifted from Zhishou Abbey to the West-Hill. Because authority always came with power, not belief.


    He was there when the Abbey was in power. But he was now crippled. His middle-aged disciple was powerful but not enough to seed his position. Thus, the Zhishou Abbey had declined.


    When the middle-aged cultivator had said it was a pity, he had two meanings. The first was pity that the core of Zhishou Abbey was already lost because of the Headmaster. Meanwhile, the second intent was that it was a pity for those divine priests from South Sea who were at the Peach Mountain at the moment.


    Because she was in the human world, right there at the Peach Mountain.


    ¡°I do not think so.¡±


    The Abbey Dean threw away the things he was holding. They fell onto the ground and sounded like something hard. Then he looked at his disciple and stated, ¡°She would not win. At least not today.¡±


    The middle-aged disciple looked to the ground and saw two pieces of yak bones facing two different directions.


    That was a prediction.


    ...

 Chapter 866 - Chaos at the Peach Mountain

    <h4>Chapter 866: Chaos at the Peach Mountain</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The middle-aged disciple asked, ¡°How can human beings predict Haotian¡¯s will?¡±


    ¡°Haotian can predict anything, but she might not be able to predict her own future.¡±


    The Abbey Dean held onto his cup of tea, looking towards the Peach Mountain, as he said emotionlessly. In order not to let the figure in the Divine Hall of Light know about his arrangements, he chose not to think about what he wanted.


    If that person could return to Haotian¡¯s Divine Kingdom and let the people from the South Sea return to Peach mountain, it can be said that the true descendants would be presiding over the Rite to Light. However, if she was unable to find her way back, the Rite to Light would be held in vain. West-Hill would have to consider their situation in the future. In that case, the people from the South Sea would be his supporters, and Chen Pipi would not need to be sacrificed.


    The middle-aged wondered, ¡°How could she lose?¡±


    The Abbey Dean exined, ¡°The Headmaster made her stay in the human world. If she is unable to cut away her bonds to the human world, she would naturally lose.¡±


    The middle-aged questioned, ¡°Even if she failed to cut away her bond to the human world, she could still take our lives.¡±


    Answered the Abbey Dean, ¡°Although she is in now the human world and is no longer the Haotian I used to believe in, she would still be objective and fair. After all I¡¯ve done for Haotian Taoism, why would she kill me? I will survive because of my belief. No one can change that.¡±


    The middle-aged was still worried, ¡°What about those people from the South Sea?¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°If they survive, they will be the future of Taoism. Otherwise, may they rest in peace.¡±


    ...


    Back at West-Hill, in the front yard of the Peach Mountain.


    The head of Revtion Institute asked Zhao Nanhai, ¡°What are you trying to do?¡±


    After six hundred years, the descendants of the Great Divine Priest of South See could not being all the way back just to participate in the Rite to Light. Zhao Nanhai looked towards the Divine Hall of Light at the top of the Peach Mountain and answered withplex feelings, ¡°We shall return to the Divine Hall of Light, and re-light the eternalmp.¡±


    As their school was descended from the former Great Divine Priest, the School of South Sea was a legitimate branch of West-Hill. Since there was not yet a new Great Divine Priest of Light, they were justified to make a im for the position.


    Most importantly, after hearing their chanting previously, people felt that these divine priests from the South Sea were indeed powerful enough to take over the Divine Hall of Light.


    Upon hearing their request, the Hierarch in the sacred sedan sat back upright again indifferently.


    If it was in the past, he would have frowned at their return, since they had the right to reim the Divine Hall of Light no matter in terms of rules or legacy. Yet he could not care less about such matters at this point. Although the eternalmp had died out previously, as long as that figure stayed in the Divine Hall of Light, anyone else would have no chance to take it over. For them to even think about that would be the most ridiculous.


    The head of Revtion Institute turned to those from the South Sea and replied, ¡°The inheritance of the Divine Hall of Light is a serious matter. Let us finish the rite first. We will look into it afterwards. Please stand aside for the time being.¡±


    Except for the Hierarch, no one was aware of the true purpose of this rite, not even the head of Revtion Institute. But being the grandest rite for the Haotian Taoism, it should never be interrupted by people like those from the South Sea.


    There was a young girl in the group form the South Sea, the one who swore to smash the ck Ink Garden when they passed by the Mogan Mountain. She mocked at the head of Revtion Institute, ¡°You people from the Revtion Institute could not even recite the Anthem to Heaven properly. What makes you think you are qualified to host the Rite to Light? It is you who should stand aside.¡±


    Although he head of Revtion Institute was embarrassed by her im, the fact that he was indeed not as good as those from the South Sea based on their earlier chanting showed that this was indeed the truth.


    Zhao Nanhai looked at the Hierarch in the sacred sedan and stated emotionlessly, ¡°The Divine Hall of Light has been without a leader for almost twenty years. When West-Hill went to war with the Great Tang, they ended up in failure. The Great Divine Priest of Revtion had returned to the Divine Kingdom for months, yet no one has yet seeded the position. The Hierarch is nothing but ipetent.¡±


    The audience went to an uproar. No one would expect them to attack the Hierarch on top of trying to reim the Divine Hall of Light.


    There were only a dozen of them from the South Sea. How dare they challenge the entire West-Hill? There were so many powerful cultivators gathered in the front yard of Peach Mountain. The West-Hill was far from being weak enough to be put down by such a group of people.


    The divine priests and deacons were infuriated by their criticism of the Hierarch. Some of them started challenging back. But the Hierarch remained silent. People wondered why he had not rebuked them ¨C they did not know that he just did not care.


    Seeing that the Hierarch was still sitting calmly in the sacred sedan, Zhao Nanhai frowned to the fact that he was not as arrogant and easy to be irritated as people had said. He looked around among the guests standing by the altar, and seemed angry upon seeing the national master of the Golden Tribe and General Lebu. ¡°Even barbarians from the Wilderness were allowed to participate. The West-Hill has gone too far.¡±


    Although he was mocking the Golden Tribe, but he was actually still mocking the West-Hill and the Hierarch. But before they could have challenged back, General Lebu was already on edge.


    Yet the national master simply replied with a smile, holding his wooden tripod.


    Zhao Nanhai apparently ranked the highest among all from the South Sea and had achieved the Knowing Destiny State. If the branch from South Sea were to take over the Divine Hall of Light, he would definitely be selected as the Great Divine Priest of Light.


    Seeing the intangible smile on the national master¡¯s face, this leader from the South Sea frowned. His wrinkled face scrunched up even more.


    There was no wind in the front yard of Peach Mountain. Nor did the Qi of Heaven and Earth stir in response to any of these. Staring at each other, Zhao Nanhai and the National Master were waging a mental battle.


    That was a battle of their pure psyche, not using any weapons or even disturbing a single leaf. Others could not feel anything, but it was extremely dangerous for the two of them.


    The national master of the Golden Tribe had been practicing the use of psyche throughout his life and had acquired profound power via years of making offerings to the Heavens and his own meditation. Powerful in psyche as Ning Que was, he had almost failed when confronting this national master in the Wilderness. Although Zhao Nanhai had a high cultivation base, fighting a fierce battle with a powerful psyche as the national master naturally ced him at a disadvantage.


    Zhao Nanhai moaned slightly when some dim sh of light came out from his eyes and disappeared inches from his face. He had managed to withdraw from this battle using his divine skills.


    The national master looked away, still smiling silently and holding onto his wooden tripod.


    The battle between the two powerful experts, the national master of the Golden Tribe and the highest ranking descendant of the South Sea, started and concluded inplete silence. Zhao Nanhai had understood his disadvantagepared to the national master¡¯s powerful psyche, but was still able to retreat without being hurt. That was also a proof of his high level of cultivation in Haotian Taoism.


    Most of the audience were not aware of the battle just happened in a blink of time. But General Lebu was more than aware. He could not forget the humiliation, and took one step forward to strike out.


    Being the number one martial artist in the Golden Tribe, Lebu was as strong as an iron man. One simple hit from him would have shaken the earth. At that moment, his strike carried along with it the Qi of Heaven and Earth and pointed directly at the group from the South Sea.


    While Zhao Nanhai was busy staring at the national master, he could not react to this invasive hit. But a very thin figure from their group stepped out and hit an equally simple strike.


    Different from the previous silent battle, the strikes from Lebu and the thin man had caused roaring winds and thundering sounds to arise around the altar.


    A huge bang was heard when the two strikes met in the air. The peach petals which previouslynded on the altar were blown up and ground into dust.


    The ground in front of the altar looked as if it had gone through years of drought. Numerous deep cracks were formed as if the ground was about to copse into an abyss.


    The thin man stepped back with a silent moan. His bamboo hat broke apart and scattered on his head and face.


    General Lebu did not step back. He just shook for one second, before pulling back his fist. He taunted the group, ¡°Is that all the Great Divine Priest of South Sea had taught you?¡±


    Zhao Nanhai looked at the national master of Golden Tribe and stated, ¡°No wonder you could have stood up to the Tang Empire for years. Impressive indeed.¡±


    Still, it was not the national master who seemed most impressive to the audience. They already knew how powerful the Golden Tribe was throughout their years of resisting the Great Tang. What they were surprised by was how powerful those from the South Sea actually were.


    Although they did not win from the previous rounds, the audience could tell that if Zhao Nanhai tried his best, there was a chance that he would have won.


    As for that thin man who stood up against General Lebu, he was only the sixth in the group. If they were lined up ording to their cultivation levels, did that mean they were almost all powerful as or even superior to Lebu? Lebu was supposed to be the most powerful man in the Golden Tribe!


    If the group from the South Sea was indeed that powerful, the West-Hill might have just found themselves in some serious trouble. How would the Hierarch handle this?


    The Hierarch still remained silent. After all, there was someone else who was responsible for resolving such disputes from the Divine Hall of Judgement.


    Right at that moment, the young girl from the group looked up to the Sacred Sedan of Judgment and stared at the beautiful woman sitting inside the blood-colored gauze. She questioned, ¡°Are you Ye Hongyu?¡±


    Ye Hongyu did not respond. Instead, a deacon from the Judicial Department replied coldly, ¡°Her highness is the Great Divine Priest of Judgment. Be quick if you have anything to say.¡±


    ¡°So you are the current Great Divine Priest of Judgment.¡± The girl looked up and down upon the sacred sedan and seemed to find the color distasteful. She then said, ¡°Get down from there. I¡¯m taking over.¡±


    The audience burst into an uproar again. After Zhao Nanhai challenged the Hierarch¡¯s authority, no one would have expected such a young girl to have the guts to also challenge Ye Hongyu¡¯s position.


    ...

 Chapter 867 - The Sword of Judgement (I)

    <h4>Chapter 867: The Sword of Judgement (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ye Hongyu silently thought about the earlier two fights.


    In terms of divine skills, she was the most powerful person in the West-Hill. But she was surprised to learn that Zhao Nanhai, a descendant of the former Great Divine Priest of Light six hundred years ago, was even more powerful than her.


    She also felt that the fight between Leibu and the thin man from the South Sea was somewhat simr to the battle between Tang and Xia Hou years ago. Leibu was after all the best martial art master from the Golden Tribe. But how did that thin man reach such a high level?


    While she was deep in thought, her subordinates were waiting for her order outside her sacred sedan. The arrays shielding the Peach Mountain had been activated and the two thousand Papal Cavalrymen had assembled, ready to fight. Simrly, hundreds of ck-robed deacons prepared to collect the dead bodies of people from the South Sea.


    Right then, that girl¡¯s voice sounded out. Standing in front of the altar, her voice was calm but arrogant, as though what she was saying was perfectly natural. Hearing it made Ye Hongyu frown.


    The divine priests of the Judicial Department and ck-robed deacons were getting impatient and annoyed. They were just waiting for an order from their master to activate the formation arrays and kill these arrogant people from the South Sea.


    Looking at the girl, Ye Hongyu couldn¡¯t help recalling herself being as proud many years ago. She did not give any order to her subordinates. Instead, she was nning to kill them herself.


    Chen Pipi had been sitting on the altar all this time. Due to the arrival of the South Sea branch, attention had shifted away from him. He was satisfied by this episode turn of events. He had no idea why his father had sent these people back to the Peach Mountain. But it felt good to still be alive.


    He had attempted to get the Divine Guard watching over him to fetch him tea and fruits, but naturally, no one had bothered. Still, he was contented with watching the fight until he heard the girl¡¯s request.


    He found the South Sea girl pretty and felt it would be a pity if she just got herself killed by challenging Ye Hongyu.


    The South Sea girl did not pay any attention to him, and continued with Ye Hongyu, ¡°I have been practicing since I was a child, and reached the Knowing Destiny State at the age of seventeen. I¡¯m the youngest among all Knowing Destiny State cultivators, with the exception of my cousin. I heard that you only reached this state after twenty years. What qualifications do you have to sit on that seat?¡±


    It was already shocking enough for the audience to hear her talking to the head of Judicial Department with such disrespect. But they were more shocked to know that she reached the Knowing Destiny State at the age of seventeen. Still, they looked at this South Sea girl with some pity and mockery, wondering who that genius cousin she mentioned was.


    Aside from the Academy and Zhishou Abbey, it was very rare for a cultivator to reach the Knowing Destiny State at the age of seventeen. This girl deserved to be proud of herself.


    However, everyone also knew that Ye Hongyu was not unable to reach the Knowing Destiny State at the age of seventeen. Rather, she had been using her strong willpower to limit her level to the Seeing-through State, only to wait for a perfect moment to make the leap. What a horrifyingly strong mind and willpower she possessed!


    It was because of her fixation with bing stronger that allowed Ye Hongyu to surpass all the other young genius in the cultivation world, reaching the highest level in Knowing Destiny State and bing the respected Great Divine Priest of Judgement.


    The world of cultivation did notck geniuses. But how many of them could have aplished what Ye Hongyu had? How could a regr young genius stand up to someone like her?


    The girl from South Sea felt a bit confused upon their stare, wondering why they would be sympathizing and mocking instead of praising and worshiping her.


    She figured it was because they were afraid of Ye Hongyu¡¯s power and wanted to make her lose her focus. This had only infuriated her even further. She was about to call out her natal sword.


    At the beginning Zhao Nanhai did not stop her from mocking Ye Hongyu because he knew his daughter was a genius for cultivation. And he also thought that it was not necessarily because of Ye Hongyu¡¯s capability that she had be the Great Divine Priest of Judgement at such a young age, but rather another testament of the declining power of West-Hill.


    The South Sea branch had been secluded in the South Sea and was not fully aware of what happened in West-Hill. Only after seeing the audiences¡¯ faces did he feel that something was amiss.


    He reached out to stop his daughter and spoke to Ye Hongyu in the sacred sedan, ¡°Your highness, please forgive my little girl. She is too young and naive.¡±


    Unexpectedly, he continued, ¡°If I did not remember wrongly, ording to the rules of the Divine Halls, the title of Great Divine Priest of Judgement is usually decided based on a duel to the death.¡±


    Ye Hongyu had been sitting in the sacred sedan while resting her cheek on her hand. Hearing Zhao Nanhai¡¯s words, she perked upright and replied, ¡°If you could kill me, the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade would be yours.¡±


    Inheriting the seat of heavenly ck jade in the Divine Hall of Judgement had always been associated with life and death. Every round of passing-on of the position was a brutal and bloody story.


    Ye Hongyu was able to be the Great Divine Priest of Judgement only because she had killed her predecessor. Of course, she could have ignored Zhao Nanhai¡¯s challenge. But that was not her style.


    She was Ye Hongyu, someone who was most fond of challenging the powerful. She had just witnessed Zhao Nanhai¡¯s superior skills prior to this, and given what she had seen from his skills, she was more than willing to battle him.


    Yet the one who stepped out to confront her was not Zhao Nanhai. but a middle-aged male figure who looked like he was a fisherman. As observed by onlookers, he was ranked fourth among Zhao Nanhai¡¯s followers.


    Even a fourth ranked person dared to seek for the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade? The audience looked at the dark-skinned, thin and short middle-aged man, and frowned at his overconfidence.


    Yet as he stepped out of the line, his skinny right hand reached into his sacred red gown, and all of a sudden, a sword appeared out of thin air.


    Wielding his sword, the skinny, dark and short middle-aged fisherman now appeared more menacing. With his sleeves floating in the autumn wind, he looked like a master.


    The audience no longer thought that he was being too bold. Liu Yiqing felt his sword buzzing inside its sheath. He sensed the killing intent of that sword and realized even he himself could not defeat this man.


    Ye Hongyu saw from her sacred sedan that her challenger was not Zhao Nanhai. Although she frowned slightly, she did not bother asking the middle aged man to step back.


    People like Ning Que and her never wasted a single word before starting a match. She casually waved her hands and sent off a light of sword directed to that man.


    It was a sudden strike. ¡°A shameless sneak attack!¡± The South Sea girl cursed. On the other hand, wearing a solemn look on his face, the middle aged man started dancing in front of the altar!


    Ye Hongyu¡¯ sword was as swift and fierce as ever. It flew directly to the man and brought with it a deafening buzzing sound.


    The middle-aged man was still dancing. He was dark, skinny, short and hence looked funny when dancing. But he looked no less powerful. His thin sword was hanging and dancing with him in the air, but all of a sudden, it disappeared and took an unexpected curve to the front of the sacred sedan.


    His swordsmanship was very strange. It was neither going straight nor turning, but it swam in the air like a fish in water. There was no way to predict where it would be going next.


    This was probably the sword skill the South Sea branch had invented after years of living by the sea.


    Ye Hongyu also did not expect that the man would have such a mysterious way of swordsmanship. She frowned and used her psyche to call back her sword immediately, barely warding off her enemy¡¯s sword.


    Nheless, a very slight sound was heard when her enemy¡¯s sword made a tiny cut on the blood-colored cloth donning her sacred sedan. Although it was tiny, it was no less obvious that she had failed in this round.


    The sword flew back to hover above the head of middle-aged man, getting ready for another strike.


    Ye Hongyu sat upright slowly in her sacred sedan.


    She was the Great Divine Priest of Judgement. It was unbelievably embarrassing to lose even a single round. This tiny cut was shameful.


    Ye Hongyu stared intently at the man outside, with an increasingly chilling look. It was not because she saw him as a close enemy, but rather she had decided to kill him with no mercy.


    The girl from South Sea sneered, ¡°The Great Divine Priest of Judgement is only worth this much.¡±


    Previously, her father, Zhao Nanhai, was unable to win the national master of the Golden Tribe, while her Sixth Brother had lost to General Bule. General Bule mocked that that was all they had learnt from the former Great Divine Priest of South Sea. Hence, she had to take advantage of Ye Hongyu¡¯s embarrassment this time round to deride the West-Hill.


    Ye Hongyu did not pay any attention to her. She closed her eyes again, letting her sword fall back down in front of her knees. Instead of staring at that middle-aged man or sending her sword out in the air, she was getting prepared for her next round.


    Everyone at the front yard was aware of her next step.


    That middle-aged man frowned.


    Right then, there came a sudden storm in the front yard of the Peach Mountain. But it was not a real storm for there was no rain. Only the sound of howling winds and pouring rain was heard.


    The wind came from Ye Hongyu¡¯s sword, while the sound of rain arose because of her sword rushing forward.


    Ye Hongyu was still seated inside the sedan with her eyes closed, and her sword was still lying in front of her. But thousands of lights flew out from the blood-colored sacred sedan and rushed directly toward the middle-aged man in front of the altar.


    Every ray of light was a sword sent by her psyche.


    She did not open her eyes, but under her closed eyelids, they were shining with divine lights. She had already integrated with the Qi of Heaven and Earth in the front yard of Peach Mountain. Therefore, even if she did not actually move her sword, she could cause thousands of swords of lights to rush out.


    With thousands of swords of lights being sent out, a soft glow shrouded the Peach mountain. This was the shield over Peach mountain and its automatic activation was a strong testament to the power of Ye Hongyu¡¯s swords.


    The middle-aged man harrumphed, and his very thin sword started dancing around him. Radiant lights appeared that formed a shield around him.


    Deafening sounds reverberated from the thousands of swords of lights attacking the middle-aged man. Yet the lights around him from his own sword never faded.


    He had incorporated his divine skills into his swordsmanship!


    The audience were again shocked. They were surprised that the descendent of the South Sea could hold up to such a furious attack by the head of Judicial Department without showing any signs of losing.


    The South Sea girl mocked again, ¡°They say you are powerful. Yet, this is all you can do?¡±


    Ye Hongyu was still sitting inside with her eyes closed. She was not paying any attention to the girl, nor did she need to look at that middle-aged man. Because she knew that he was doomed.


    Ever since she reached her current level of swordsmanship, this was only the second time she had used this attack. The previous one was at the Verdant Canyon when she sent out tens of thousands of swords but was only able to trap Jun Mo for a few seconds. This time, she had merely sent out a tenth of what she had previously.


    But was there really another Jun Mo in this world?


    ...

 Chapter 868 - The Sword of Judgement (II)

    <h4>Chapter 868: The Sword of Judgement (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    There in the front yard of Peach Mountain, thousands of swords of light were roaring around the middle-aged man while his thin sword flickered seamlessly around him. Many were thinking that this man might be able to hold up and eventually strike back. But Zhao Nanhai had be worried and frowned, saying, ¡°Creating a cage of swords?¡±


    No wonder he was the strongest from the South Sea branch. He had figured out Ye Hongyu¡¯s true strike behind the thousands of swords. During their fight in the Verdant Canyon, even Jun Mo was trapped by Ye Hongyu¡¯s tens of thousands of swords, not to mention this middle-aged man. The second ranking among the South Sea group was a tall and thin elderly man. He realized how fierce the storm of swords would be and stepped out from behind Zhao Nanhai. He reached out his right hand and shot out a strand of Haotian¡¯s Divine me, trying to shield the middle-aged man from the storm of swords.


    The middle-aged man had also sensed the killing intent in the storm of swords. He shouted out, integrated all the power of his cultivation base into his unpredictable sword and shot it directly at the sacred sedan. With protection from the willowy senior fellow, he tried to step back swiftly to survive.


    The swimming sword pierced directly through the blood-colored gauze, into the sacred sedan and pointed at Ye Hongyu between her eyebrows.


    When the second ranking senior stepped out to help, Ye Hongyu already opened her eyes which were already glowing brightly with starry lights. She could not help bing irritated because someone was trying to stop her from killing that middle-aged man. She was very displeased.


    When the middle-aged man¡¯ sword stabbed into the sacred sedan, her eyes shone even brighter as they reflected the gleam of light from the sword. Instead of holding up her natal sword, she lifted her left hand.


    Though the thin sword was swimming through the air like a fish, it was immediately caught when Ye Hongyu reached out her fingers.


    The radiating sword trembled between her fingers like a fish struggling onnd, swishing its tail. Her slender fingers seemed to be glowing as they mped onto the sword.


    ng. All of a sudden, the sword started emitting green smoke, and Ye Hongyu flung it aside. She had crushed it into useless scrap metal, and it was now like a dead fish which could no longer struggle.


    The middle-aged man was retreating when he sensed the loss of his natal sword. Feeling both fear and fury, he vomited a mouthful of blood. He had integrated the divine skills of West-Hill into his swordsmanship and created his unique sword style. It was indeed outstanding and was able to stab through Ye Hongyu¡¯s sacred sedan in the beginning. However, when Ye Hongyu had figured out his technique, he was helpless.


    Her specialty was West-Hill Divine Skills. As for swimming, her name bore the meaning of fish and she had once defeated Ning Que and Mo Shanshan by Daming Lake in the Wilderness using her swimming sword. Being the Great Divine Priest of Judgement, how could she possibly be hurt by this level of sword intent?


    Furthermore, she could not tolerate that the man¡¯s sword had pierced into her sedan and pointed directly at her. After she got the letter from Liu Bai years ago, no one would have dared to ce a sword in front of her.


    Although others from the South Sea had interfered, Ye Hongyu had destroyed the middle-aged man¡¯ natal sword and wounded him seriously. To everyone else, she had won an absolute victory.


    But she did not want to stop there. Whoever dared to challenge the head of Judicial Department must die. There was never another option. She had created the cage of swords just to kill that man.


    Even though the extremely powerful willowy old man was still holding up against her swords storm, she was no less determined to proceed.


    No one could stop her.


    ...


    The storm of swords was continuing while the willowy old man was holding his right hand high to keep the cage from beingpleted. The middle-aged man would survive if he could retreat a few more paces.


    Zhao Nanhai was no longer worried, and the willowy old man felt somewhat relieved.


    Right there, in a breath of time, a ghost like figure rushed out of the Sacred Sedan of Judgment covered by blood-colored gauze, flying over the willowy old man and arriving before the middle-aged man.


    That was Ye Hongyu, wielding her natal sword. She directly stabbed towards the man.


    People cried out in shock, in the front yard of Peach Mountain.


    No one expected that Ye Hongyu would leave her sacred sedan and risk a close-ranged battle. In the cultivation world, only the martial art masters and those from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine would opt for close-range battles. Even masters from the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom would nevere that close.


    But Ye Hongyu hade out prepared.


    She had been used to close battles since childhood. Although their divine swords flew swiftly, nothing was quicker than a sword stabbed at point-nk range. And it was far better to make sure the enemy was dead right in front of her. Later on, from her several encounters with Ning Que, she had learnt from him the skills of close battles as well. Though she was not practicing the Haoran Qi, nor did she possessed a strong and fearless body trained by the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, she had learnt enough from Liu Bai¡¯ sword.


    Liu Bai¡¯ sword was all about one fatal strike. As long as he stabbed the enemies within inches, there was no chance for them to survive.


    What if the enemy was standing at a distance? Well, he would simply go right in front of the enemy to deal his fatal strike.


    ...


    Being the closest to her sword, the middle-aged man could definitely feel her killing intent. He sensed profound fear and death.


    With his natal sword destroyed, there would be no way for him to escape. He tried to use divine skills of West-Hill to condense a ming light ball in front of him, so as to stop the horrifying sword.


    The willowy old man was holding up against the storm of swords. Upon seeing his junior forced into a hopeless situation, his expression turned serious as he pointed his left hand toward Ye Hongyu.


    It was not a simple move. From the tip of his finger emerged a ming flower emitting a blinding light. The flower rushed towards Ye Hongyu¡¯s back, and it almost seemed to hit her despite the distance between them.


    Ye Hongyu sensed the attacking from behind but nheless continued stabbing toward the middle-aged man. Her sword broke through the ming ball of light without slowing down.


    She chose to ignore the attack from behind because she was determined not to give her prey a chance to flee. If she had hesitated for even a single second, that would have given Zhao Nanhai enough time to rescue him.


    She was determined to kill him, no matter what. It was for the simple reason that anyone who dared to challenge the Great Divine Priest of Judgement was doomed to die.


    ...


    Ye Hongyu¡¯ sword had stabbed into his chest and heart. People in the front yard of Peach Mountain could almost hear the sound of that heart being stabbed through.


    The man screamed and fell onto the ground. His blood sttered.


    Zhao Nanhai shouted furiously, while the willowy old man¡¯s expression turned even darker. The old man pulled back his right hand andmitted himself to a all-out strike at Ye Hongyu, disregarding the iing rain of swords from the sky.


    The tip of his finger was about to hit Ye Hongyu¡¯s back with the majestic divine me.


    Ye Hongyu could not turn or react in time. Just then, when everyone present thought that she was about to be hit, a golden flower bloomed on her back!


    It was right at the spot where the finger was pointing at!


    The pure and golden flower was created from her divine skills and divine me. Only that could have defended against the old man¡¯s hit which utilized an equally powerful divine me. Upon crashing into each other, the divine mes created dazzling fireworks in the front yard.


    Ranking high among the divine priests from South Sea and only second to Zhao Nanhai, the willowy old man was definitely better than Ye Hongyu in his practice of West-Hill¡¯s divine skills. It was not long before the dazzling fireworks from their divine mes died out. And thus, he gained the upper hand in this exchange.


    People from the Divine Halls of West-Hill cried out in shock and looked toward the highest sacred sedan, hoping that the Hierarch could save Ye Hongyu at this crucial moment.


    But what happened next was something none of them expected.


    The willowy man¡¯s fingertip broke through the golden flower, piercing through her blood-colored Gown of Judgment and continued into her flesh.


    Yet, all of a sudden, a golden thread appeared at the spot where she was pierced.


    That golden thread appeared to be as light as air and fast as lightning. It traced the old man¡¯s divine me all the way back to its source, the old man himself.


    It was traveling so fast that it brought with it an immense sense of destruction.


    The willowy man yelled in rm. He pulled back his Haotian Divine me as fast as he could in an attempt to get away from the golden thread. However, his actions were in vain. Not only was the mysterious thread not afraid of the power of the divine me, it did not seem to slow down even the slightest. Upon reaching the bottom of his finger, the thread started wrapping round the finger and constricting itself.


    Without a single sound, that finger fell onto the ground.


    No blood came out of his wound as it was wrapped up in the divine me. In truth, however, had the old man been any slower to react, he would have lost his whole hand.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth echoed slightly while Ye Hongyu drifted back to her sacred sedan like a piece of red maple leaf.


    She gave Zhao Nanhai a nce when she passed him by, without showing any particr emotion.


    It was as silent as grave in the front yard of Peach Mountain.


    The willowy man looked at his broken finger in silence.


    Zhao Nanhai looked down at peach petals by his side, simrly not saying anything.


    The rest of the people from the South Sea gathered around their dead member, solemn.


    The girl from the South Sea turned pale, not believing what she had just seen.


    Two light coughs broke the silence.


    It was then followed by the sound of the Sword of Judgement being returned to its sheath.


    Inside the blood-colored sacred sedan, Ye Hongyu closed her eyes again, resting her cheek on her hand. She seemed to be feeling a bit worn out.


    ...

 Chapter 869 - The Man of the Show

    <h4>Chapter 869: The Man of the Show</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Her cherry-red lips were now pale. She seemed exhausted, but no one would have thought she was weak. Just like her sword thaty motionless at her side, her actions had already said a thousand words.


    The previous short battle had shocked everyone. They stared at the blood-red Sacred Sedan of Judgement. Silence stretched over Peach Mountain.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s swordsmanship in battle was very different from the elegant Taoist style that the people were expecting. It was cold and ruthless. Her performance in this battle had been chilling.


    Among the Divine Priests of the South Sea, the willowy man¡¯s skills were second only to those of Zhao Nanhai. The West-Hill Divine Skill he demonstrated in battle was intricate and mysterious. Even if he was unable to rival the legendary Wei Guangming, he was definitely better than Ye Hongyu.


    The willowy man had already raised his finger when Ye Hongyu¡¯s de pierced the middle-aged man¡¯s heart. If she had ignored his move or tried to quickly regain her form after wounding the man, she would have been forced into a desperate situation. If anyone else had been in that precarious position, they would undoubtedly have made one of those two choices.


    Instead, she did the unthinkable. In a sh, she ughtered the middle-aged man, then used his corpse to shield against the force of the willowy man¡¯s finger, and finally sliced off his finger.


    Her ruthlessness and resolute self-confidence in that instant made the blood of those watching run cold. They could not believe that a person with her status would take such risks to kill.


    Only then did they remember that before she held the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade, she had been known as the skilled Tao Fanatic. She had used the same brusque, ruthless methods to kill countless others.


    The oue of the battle hade as a surprise to many.


    Everyone knew that Ye Hongyu was a talented cultivator and had formidable strength. However, cultivation takes years of disciplined training, and she was simply too young. When she became the Great Divine Priest of Judgement, the cultivators were doubtful. If it was not for the previous Great Divine Priest of Judgement¡¯s wound at the hands of Wei Guangming, they felt that such a young girl could never have killed the Priest, and she would never have assumed the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade.


    For this reason, when the middle-aged man, the fourth Great Divine Priest of the South Sea, began to fight, those watching the battle were not optimistic about Ye Hongyu¡¯s fate. When she managed to rapidly break out of the entrapment with a thousand swipes of her de, they started to change their minds. Still, when the willowy man started lifted his finger, they felt that she would lose for sure.


    However, she did not lose. Even when two of the South Sea¡¯s strongest fighters worked together, she emerged with a clean victory, putting her iron will and ruthlessness on show. After this battle, nobody else dared to question her position, much less disrespect her.


    Xiaoyu, the young girl from the South Sea, had been watching. Her face was pale, and an ufortable queasiness settled in her stomach. During the ferocious battle, she had noticed that Ye Hongyu wore an expression of calm indifference. It sent a chill racing down her spine.


    Ye Hongyu did not put the girl in her sights, only the girl¡¯s father. She took no notice of the proud girl. Just moments before, this would have made the girl feel humiliated and angry. Right now, she only felt relieved.


    She, too, had a talent for cultivation. At the age of seventeen, she had attained the Knowing Destiny State ¨C a rare urrence amongst cultivators. Yet, since she had always lived in the faraway wildernesses of the South Sea, she remained unknown. Whenever she thought about the Central ins¡¯ famed Three Fanatics, she only felt contempt. To her, they were just three lucky idiots.


    In her little town on the South Sea, what she wanted to do most in the world was to defeat the Three Fanatics and prove to the world that she and her brother were the real geniuses of cultivation.


    Hence, when she passed through Mogan Mountain, she sought out the Calligraphy Fanatic. Here, on Peach Mountain, she had intended to challenge Ye Hongyu, the Tao Fanatic.


    However, Ye Hongyu did not make any moves against her. She had massacred four of her masters and chopped off the finger of a swordsman she respected.


    Since the Tao Fanatic was so strong, how could the Calligraphy Fanatic be weak? Her face drew pale as she looked at the sedan. The world of cultivation in the Central ins is scary. No warrior stays alive long enough to enjoy their fame.


    The end of the day¡¯s battle surprised all but two people; two people who knew Ye Hongyu well.


    Strangely, the two people who knew West-Hill¡¯s Great Divine Priest of Judgement well were two schrs of the Academy.


    Spectating the battle, Chen Pipimented. He thought, these South Sea people must have a death wish, challenging that crazy woman. Meanwhile, Ning Que stood amongst the crowd, smiling and not saying a word.


    Chen Pipi only knew that Ye Hongyu was ruthless, crazy, and unbelievably strong. Ning Que knew her strengths alsoy elsewhere. It was exactly as Ye Hongyu had told him ¨C only she and him truly knew war. Both of them hade close to death countless times. She knew that he was shamelessly ruthless, and he knew that her body held cold threads of gold. They were kindred spirits.


    The audience of the battle included not only the people, but also a sword that was quietly suspended above the altar. This sword, the strongest in the world, belonged to Liu Bai. Since the man himself was not here, the crowd paid no attention to the de. When Ye Hongyu allowed the middle-aged man toe within a meter of herself, then pierced his heart, nobody saw the sword move slightly, as if to nod in approval. The one-meter strike was, in fact, a secret technique of the Sword Garret, and Ye Hongyu had done it well.


    ¡°This Great Divine Priest is truly the youngest we have seen in a thousand years.¡± Zhao Nanhai regarded the blood-red sacred sedan coolly. Rubbing his hands together with gusto, he proimed, ¡°The Descendant of Light Zhao Nanhai challenges you to a duel.¡±


    Zhao Nanhai was the strongest warrior in the South Sea. Although he did not gain the upper hand in the Psyche battle against the Golden Tribe¡¯s national master earlier, his real strengthy in using the West-Hill Divine Skill. He had stood as steady as Peach Mountain against the warriors of the Golden Tribe. That gave one an idea of his fearsome strength.


    In terms of seniority, he belonged to the same generation as the Hierarch and thus was Ye Hongyu¡¯s senior uncle. This gave him the right to speak informally to her. Nevertheless, he addressed her by her full title. This showed that he recognized her qualifications to upy her position.


    It also showed that he respected her and wished to challenge her as equals.


    After six centuries, the South Sea had finally returned to the Divine Halls of West-Hill. They harbored high hopes and resolute wills, and they were sure that they would be able to defeat West-Hill with a force which would shake Peach Mountain to its core. To their knowledge, the Divine Halls of West-Hill had suffered heavy losses after the battle with the Academy. The Hierarch was nearing death¡¯s door and there remained only one warrior who could hope to defend the temple ¨C the Tao Fanatic, Ye Hongyu.


    When they arrived, they found to their surprise that the Hierarch, rumored to be bordering on death, had made a full recovery and the young Great Divine Priest of Judgement had single-handedly crushed the mighty force of the South Sea!


    Zhao Nanhai could not allow events to continue developing in West-Hill¡¯s favor. If he failed, not only would the South Sea fail to gain control of Peach Mountain, he would also lose hope of regaining the Divine Hall of Light. Thus, he challenged Ye Hongyu without hesitation.


    This young Great Divine Priest of Judgement of West Hill was indeed very strong, but he was confident that he would be able to defeat her.


    In her sacred sedan, Ye Hongyu¡¯s eyes were shut. It was almost as if Zhao Nanhai¡¯s words had not reached her.


    In truth, she was intrigued by Zhao Nanhai¡¯s West-Hill Divine Skill and wanted to challenge him. However, she did not wish to challenge him anymore as she was exhausted. She anticipated that the long day would bring more events. The people from the Academy had not yet arrived, and she did not wish to expend any more Qi.


    The inheritance of the title of the Great Divine Priest of Justice was determined through killing and bloodshed, but this did not mean that the holder of the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade would have to endure endless challenges. If they did not wish to ept the challenge, the challenger would then have to carve out their own bloody path to the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade.


    She raised her right hand. The priests and ck-robed deacons outside the Divine Sedan began to assemble. From afar came the rumble of hooves. Two thousand Papal Cavalrymen grouped together, ready to attack in a show of the Peach Mountain¡¯s force.


    She was the current Great Divine Priest of Judgement. She would only fight if she wanted to. If Zhao Nanhai was not satisfied with that, he would first have to ughter his way through everyone from the Divine Hall of Judgement. Just like she said before, her and Ning Que were oddities among cultivators ¨C when necessary, neither of them would hesitate to deploy everyone under theirmand against a single enemy.


    The Divine Hall of Judgement readied itself to crush the South Sea. Previously, the South Sea forces had been able to enter Peach Mountain freely because they both followed the Taoist tradition. Now that the Divine Priest of Judgement had raised her hand as a signal, why would anyone care about tradition?


    Hearing the hooves assembling in the distance, Ye Hongyu thought, do you think you are Jun Mo? The two thousand soldiers on horseback will trample you to death.


    When the South Sea fighters saw the silhouettes of the two thousand iron horses in the distance, they understood the strength of Peach Mountain. The fear showed on their faces.


    They had wandered in the South Sea for hundreds of years, leading hard and cruel lives. They had seen many things, but never in their wildest dreams would they have thought that Ye Hongyu would resort to such a dishonorable method to deal with them.


    ¡°It has been six hundred years. Must the sects massacre each other again?¡±


    Zhao Nanhai¡¯s voice was heavy. His eyes were fixed on Ye Hongyu, who was seated in the blood-colored Sacred Sedan.


    Today, the Divine Halls of West-Hill held a Rite of Light. Only the Hierarch knew the secret reason behind this. Everyone else thought it was a ploy against the Academy. Nobody could have foreseen that the descendants of the South Sea would appear at Peach Mountain and cause such a stir.


    Although the Divine Hall of Judgement disyed an extremely powerful force in this fight, they did not dare to underestimate the South Sea people who had cultivated through many years of hardship. If they were to crush the South Sea, it woulde at a heavy cost. This would impact their efforts against the Academy.


    Even at this moment, when the Rite of Light was already underway and Chen Pipi¡¯s face was bathed in the radiant light, no one from the Academy appeared. Everyone believed that they would ¨C it was just a matter of time.


    For this reason, the Divine Halls of West-Hill had no desire to wage a battle against the South Sea at this time. The head of the Revtion Institute called out to Zhao Nanhai coldly. ¡°The Great Divine Priest of the South Sea¡¯s tablet is still enved within the halls of the Divine Hall of Light. The Divine Halls of West-Hill has acknowledged you as orthodox Taoists and thus have allowed you to enter the mountain. If you repay us by attempting to disrupt the Rite of Light, do not expect the Divine Halls to show you mercy!¡±


    ¡°The Great Divine Priest of Revtion has already returned to the Divine Kingdom. Up till today, there are still no inheritors. Who dares to dictate the will of the heavens?¡±


    Zhao Nanhai ignored him. He turned and shouted, ¡°Commoners might not know, but who in the Divine Halls of West-Hill does not know that Zhishou Abbey is Taoism¡¯s gateway to heaven? The person on the altar is our master¡¯s only descendant but you use him as a sacrifice. Are you not afraid of heaven¡¯s wrath?¡±


    The altar was deathly quiet. Many already knew about Chen Pipi¡¯s identity but no one dared to say it. For many of them, it was already a life-and-death struggle to reach the main gates. Yet, the people from the South Sea had managed to intrude all the way to the altar. The faces of the older priests woreplicated expressions.


    The head of the Revtion Institute felt this sudden change of atmosphere. He knew that he could not allow this person to continue talking, otherwise nobody would know what the people in the Divine Halls would do.


    He roared, ¡°He is indeed the master¡¯s heir, but he has betrayed us by entering the second level of the Academy. What right does he have to live?¡±


    Only when she heard this did Xiao Yu realize that the Divine Halls of West-Hill truly intended to kill Chen Pipi. It was not entirely a trap for the Academy. She barked out, ¡°Who dares to kill my man?¡±


    Chen Pipi had never felt much affinity to his mother¡¯s South Sea tribe, or for Ye Hongyu. He had simply been enjoying the show. The Sacred Guard of West-Hill assigned to him could not stand his chuckling and sought to quiet him down. Since he could not actually go and get some melon seeds for him to eat, the guard poured him a bowl of water instead.


    At this point, Chen Pipi was drinking his water and enjoying the juicy show being put up by those of West Hill and South Sea. He thought, it¡¯s not all bad, at least I get to enjoy such entertainment before I die.


    He was relishing in that thought when he suddenly heard the shrill cry from the young South Sea girl. Man? Whose man? I¡¯m your man?


    With a spluttering cough, he spat out a mouthful of water. Itnded on the guard, making his clothes wet.


    He stared openly at the girl in front of the altar, mouth agape. It¡¯s alright if you want to confess, but right now? And like this? I was just watching the show, how did I suddenly be the male lead?


    ...

 Chapter 870 - The Intruder

    <h4>Chapter 870: The Intruder</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    It became quiet again around the altar. They had been surprised too many times today, due to the shocking scenes they had witnessed.


    Little Yu turned to Chen Pipi and said, ¡°Hang on, cousin.¡±


    Although the Hierarch knew about Chen Pipi¡¯s connection to the South Sea branch, other people were surprised when Little Yu previously called him her man. Then, hearing what she said to Chen Pipi, they figured out that he was the young cultivator who had reached Knowing Destiny State she talked about previously.


    Chen Pipi was also surprised upon her words. He looked at the bowl of water and nodded subconsciously, but immediately realized he should not have done so. Did father choose a wife for me even before I was born?


    The battle between the West-Hill Divine Halls and South Sea branch had just began. Originally, they were not nning to fight against each other. After all they both belonged to Taoism. It was the Academy that should be theirmon enemy.


    However, at this point, only the Hierarch could put an end to the battle. Since Zhishou Abbey had been abandoned by Haotian, the Hierarch was the only leader of Haotian Taoism.


    But the Hierarch had been acting weird. Even till now, he had not said a single word. Unlike the rumors, he did not seem as irritable as what people had said about him.


    No one knew that this was because he thought he was no longer his former self.


    Years ago when Xiong Chumo was not yet the Hierarch but rather a regr divine priest, he went preaching in the Wilderness together with his former teacher. There he met the first enemy of his life ¨C Lin Wu, the head of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. At that time, he was seriously wounded by Lin Wu on his lower abdomen, and thus lost his sexual organ.


    Losing one¡¯s sexual abilities was not necessarily a bad thing for the cultivators. Ever since then, Xiong Chumo had been freed from any human desires and had devoted himself solely to cultivation. Thus, he was able to enter Taoism with heavenly discipline, made tremendous aplishments, and eventually became the Hierarch. His lifetime enemy Lin Wu had then been practicing the Twenty-Three-Year Cicada and became the Senior Sister of the Academy.


    However, that wound was indeed influential on his characteristic. Although he was freed from human desires because of his impotence, he could still feel those desires deep inside. It tortured him throughout the years and made him increasingly irritable.


    Xiong Chumo enjoyed his high ranking and being powerful, but he did not like that irritable part of himself.


    As the Hierarch, he met many strongest cultivators such as the three Great Divine Priests and Liu Bai. As great masters they all shared amon character of gracefulness. He wanted to be like them but had always failed because of the imprisoned me of desire in his under abdomen.


    It was not until recently that he had acquired some gracefulness because of Haotian¡¯s appearance. He was blessed, supported by the Heaven and hence became unbeatable. Since then, he felt that he should carry himself with a calm demeanor.


    Although the arrival of the group from the South Sea was not expected, he did not care at all. Even if they were surely sent by the Abbey Dean, they were still not qualified to make him worried. If they dared to stand up against Haotian and try to destroy the Rite to Light, he would definitely suppress them.


    Therefore, he had been very calm and quiet thus far.


    The purpose of the Rite to Light was to lead a path to Haotian¡¯s Divine Kingdom. However, he did not care even if this failed. He devoutly wished he would always be able to kiss the ground in front of Haotian.


    What he cared more about was to destroy the Academy in the Rite to Light. He was eager to see his own victory against Lin Wu and shake up the human world.


    But he was disappointed. What if no one from the Academy ever showed up? That damned Lin Wu, being my lifetime enemy how could you note to me on such an important asion?


    As the Hierarch sat inside his sacred sedan, he looked out of the gauze curtains toward the mountains afar. He saw the beautiful autumn leaves in yellow and red colors, and felt an indescribable sadness.


    He uttered his first sentence of the day.


    His thundering voice came out from behind the gauze curtains with undisguised contempt and a hint of loneliness, echoing through the valleys at the Peach Mountain.


    ¡°The Academy is worthless now.¡±


    They all knew what he meant.


    Everyone in the human world was aware that the Rite to Light was a trap for the Academy set by the West-Hill. Since the Headmaster left for the Heaven by the Sishui River, the Academy and West-Hill had been fighting non-stop, from the Verdant Canyon to the City of Chang¡¯an, as well as in many other ces around the world. Both powerful forces had taken great losses. Knowing that this Rite to Light was a trap, how could the Academy tackle it?


    If only the Headmaster or Ke Haoran were still here, they would never have watched their disciples being executed, even if they did not possess the strongest might.


    The Hierarch¡¯sment of them being worthless was not because the Academy had been badly defeated. Rather with their Headmaster and Ke Haoran gone, no one from the Academy was courageous enough to challenge the Peach Mountain.


    Inside her blood-colored sacred sedan, Ye Hongyu had been restoring her spirit with her eyes closed.


    The fierce debate between Zhao Nanhai and the head of Revtion Institute had not caught her attention. She spared a mocking smile when Little Yu talked about Chen Pipi as her man. When the Hierarch said that the Academy was worthless, she sniggered even more.


    She knew that Ning Que had been there all the time and he would definitely make his move. But she did not know where he was nor to whom he would be take out first.


    All of a sudden, she opened her beautiful eyes, which were still shining with starry light. The descendants of the Great Divine Priest of South Sea were not strong enough to capture her interest. Then who was it this time? Is Ning Que finally here?


    While Ye Hongyu opened her eyes inside the sacred sedan, from outside the Peach Mountain came the sounds of people approaching in a rush. It seemed that people were rushing over, and there were heavy sounds of shing metal.


    The followers at the front yard turned back to see a cloud of dust being kicked up. As this was happening, the ranks of the gathered Papal Cavalrymen were somewhat disrupted.


    Then, the sounds became clearer as the intruder broke through the numerous Papal Cavalrymen. The shing sounds were from their weapons.


    Deacons of the Divine Halls cried out, ¡°An intruder!¡±


    Those strong cultivators and noble guests around the altar frowned. They were amazed that anyone would dare to invade the Peach Mountain.


    Situated high up in the Peach Mountain, the West-Hill Divine Halls were home to numerous powerful figures. The Papal Cavalrymen and divine guards would have killed all intruders. Except for the former Headmaster of the Academy, who else had the audacity to confront the Peach Mountain?


    The divine priests of the South Sea were epted because they were a branch of Taoism returning home. It was granted by Haotian. Yet, who was this other intruder?


    There was a thick cloud of dust at the back of the mountain. The shing sounds had yet to cease, but instead got even more frequent. On the other hand, the people could no longer hear the invader¡¯s footsteps rushing forward. It seemed like that person had been caught up in a tough fight.

 Chapter 871 - A Mountain Song, A Majestic Person

    <h4>Chapter 871: A Mountain Song, A Majestic Person</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Hearing the distant sound of forces trying to breach the mountain, the crowd around the altar could not help but feel shocked. After all, this was no ordinary mountain ¨C this was Peach Mountain. Yet their panic turned out to be short-lived.


    The sounds of battle intensified. Smoke and dust from the fighting gathered into swarthy plumes. Even in the outer reaches of the mountain where the defenses were the weakest, the invading forces had already entered a tough battle. The strength of the invading party could be seen from this.


    Any of the strongest warriors amongst those gathered, such as the Golden Tribe¡¯s National Master and Qi Nian from Buddhism, needed only to nce at the smoke rising in the distance to draw this conclusion about the invader¡¯s skills.


    Ye Hongyu had already assembled two thousand Papal Cavalrymen in preparation to stamp the South Sea¡¯s people into submission. Although the terrain made it impossible to charge through, people without sufficient strength still would not be able to break through. This made the audience curious about the identity of the invader, but not worried. Some of the Divine Priests even mocked silently, What kind of crazy cultivator who can¡¯t even defeat the soldiers on the boundary tries to pick a fight with the famous fighters gathered here? They must be unbelievably stupid.


    Since the invader was no cause for concern, the crowd¡¯s attention returned to Chen Pipi, held captive on the altar of white stone. Everyone wanted to know how the Hierarch would respond to the Great Divine Priest of the South Sea¡¯s interrogation ¨C would he maintain his calm facade, or would he explode in rage?


    An unexpected melody suddenly arose from the battlefield on the outer reaches of Peach Mountain. Although it came from far away, the clear notes of the song carried across to the mountain, instilling joy in the hearts of those who heard it. It was as if the song stretched across a thousand li of grasnd.


    Those around the altar pricked their ears up and looked towards the battlefield to listen to the sparse yet beautiful melody, imagining a young girl singing.


    The invader was in the heat of battle, how would they be in the mood to sing?


    The crowd soon drew their attention back to the valley. Only a few kept their eyes fixed on the battlefield, as if in a daze. Ye Hongyu stared quietly, betraying no emotion on her face. Hidden in the crowd, Ning Que began to regte his breathing. On the altar, Chen Pipi stared at the source of the sound, and his right hand which held the bowl of water began trembling.


    They knew the identity of the invader and also knew why they were singing. The Wild People all liked to sing, especially before a life-and-death battle, to build up their courage.


    There were still people looking at the smoke.


    Sang Sang stood before the Divine Hall of Light, looking down the mountain. At this point, the two nuns were in the hall and there was nobody else on the mountain. Sang Sang¡¯s silhouette struck a lone figure.


    Her gaze showed no emotion.


    ...


    When they looked at the smoke and heard the beautiful song with its notes of iron conviction, the audience felt as if they were staring at thousands of iron-d cavalry charging across the vast ins of the Wilderness.


    Suddenly, a discordant noise disrupted the melody. It was a dull, deafening sound of a blow. One of the horses from the Papal Cavalry was suddenly thrown up into the air and ripped into chunks of flesh. Fresh blood spurted out, falling like a fine sheet of rain on the ground.


    All those who heard the impact bore witness to the horse¡¯s cruel end and heard the sound of the blood falling like raindrops on the ground. They could even hear the sickening noise of the horse¡¯s flesh being torn apart.


    The dull sounds of the blows came faster and faster. Now, all those gathered no longer thought that the invader was having a hard time fighting Peach Mountain¡¯s defensive forces as they could hear the sounds clearly. Some of the noises were dull but others sounded like something breaking. With every blow, the invader seemed to break the armor of a Papal Cavalryman.


    Since the blows sounded dull, the person must have been wielding a blunt weapon. The Papal Cavalrymen were covered in armor strengthened with runic symbols. Yet, the armor had been broken so easily. Even if the invader had some legendary weapon, how could they have such strength?


    Apart from the Papal Cavalrymen thrown into the air, many more had toppled directly into the river of blood which had formed. Although they were out of sight from the crowd on Peach Mountain, the smoke was easily visible.


    The surroundings of the altar became quiet. Nobody spoke a single word. After a long pause, a Deacon from the Divine Hall rushed to the scene and yelled, ¡°Peach Mountain is under attack!¡±


    It was the same ck-robed Deacon who had reported the situation at the beginning. At that time, his tone was loud but calm when he first reported that someone was attacking the mountain. Now, when he said that Peach Mountain was under attack, his voice had be desperate.


    To say that the mountain was under attack was a matter-of-fact deration. To say that Peach Mountain was under attack was apletely different matter, although there was only a difference of one word. This meant that the invader had already fought their way through its defences and now stood at the entrance of the heavily-defended Peach mountain.


    Seated in the Sacred Sedan, Ye Hongyu ignored his cries.


    The audience became worried, furrowing their brows and trying to guess the invader¡¯s identity.


    The smoke finally reached Peach mountain.


    Two hundred Sacred Guards of West-Hill streamed towards the source with their swords in hand. These Sacred Guards were the Hierarch¡¯s forces. Back then, they were led by Luokedi. Although they did not im to be undefeatable, they were still undeniably tyrannical. When Ning Que encountered them in the Yuelun Kingdom¡¯s Chaoyang City, he felt fear strike deep inside him.


    The sounds of the blunt blows and sharp rips echoed before Peach Mountain, then slowly died down. It was obvious that the West-Hill divine forces had attained an absolute advantage. The pained expression on the face of the head of Revtion Institute rxed a little, and the West-Hill officials rxed their tense postures in relief.


    At this moment, the invader¡¯s song arose again. This melody was soft yet chilling, like ughter and blood running through soft water weeds. As if by magic, silence again settled on the crowd and the sounds of battlefield intensified once again.


    The disciples on the edge of the dais suddenly scattered to two sides in fright. Amongst the screaming, there were whistling sounds. Countless Sacred Guards of West-Hill were thrown into the air, then mmed into the faraway trees. With a smattering of sharp ps, the solid trees remained still, but the divine soldiers¡¯ bodies were smashed into a bloody mess.


    The guests of the West-Hill Divine Halls who hade to participate in the Rite to Light were unperturbed by this disturbing sight. They were sure that the invader¡¯s skill had only reached the level of the Knowing Destiny State. For some reason, this person had decided to give this battle their all. Still, the dais of Peach Mountain was filled with countless expert masters and famous fighters, and the guests saw no need to worry.


    Chen Pipi sat on the altar, staring intently at the battle. Seeing the silhouette flickering in the smoke, the colour drained from his face and his hands trembled more violently.


    Ye Hongyu and Ning Que continued to watch.


    In front of the Divine Hall of Light, Sang Sang looked neither down the mountain nor at the sky. She was staring towards the Chang¡¯an in the North. Listening to the song from the foot at the mountain, she thought about how she had sung countless years ago to a certain person on the banks of a snowy river, although the song had no words and no melody.


    Thinking back to that day, she found it a little ridiculous.


    Suddenly, her expression changed. Just recently, she had found it ridiculous when Chen Pipi had moved to loosen his pants. Perhaps what she was thinking of now was not that funny or ridiculous after all ¨C perhaps she had forgotten that emotion.


    ...


    The Sacred Guards of West-Hill had been decimated.


    A figure appeared before the dais in a gust of wind, shining in a gentle light.


    The cast of luminous light seemed to be controlled by some external force. It suddenly spiked up some three metres off the ground. It seemed like someone was popping bubbles on the surface of the water with a twig.


    The spike became brighter and brighter. With a p, it transformed into a hole.


    Who was this that could break through the Peach Mountain¡¯s battle formations?


    It was a very thick iron rod. Its surface had recently been melted; it was still covered with traces of molten iron. It seemed quite ugly, but indestructible.


    The question was, what kind of force could have melted such a sturdy rod into this mess?


    With one fell swoop, the rod scattered the Blow of Light, leaving a hole in the ground. Slowly, the smoke from the battlefield started to seep out of the hole. It was a strange, magical sight.


    A silhouette appeared in the smoke.


    Suddenly, a flying sword appeared, charging down the mountain.


    The sword came from an elderly Divine Priest.


    Ning Que had first seen this Divine Priest when he entered the West-Hill Divine Hall. The priest was responsible for checking if there were any cultivators present. Even though he had attained the Knowing Destiny State, he still attempted to use an ambush.


    The person in the smoke did not turn to face the attack, and instead simply waved the iron rod lightly. It somehow made direct contact with the sword, which promptly broke into two.


    That old Divine Priest fell on the ground, coughing up blood.


    The same officer who had reported the situation before now kneeled before the Divine Sedan. His voice was nothing more than a trembling whisper as he delivered histest report. ¡°The invader has made their way inside.¡±


    Everyone looked towards the subsiding smoke. The mood was heavy,den with tension.


    All who were present were strong cultivators. Even if the opponent were any stronger, they would not be shaken. The intruder was obviously a student of the dissolved Devil¡¯s Doctrine sect. As long as it was not the Twenty-Three Year Cicada, there was no need to fear. If it was indeed the Twenty-Three Year Cicada at the mountain, why would the battle be so bloody and long-drawn?


    Still, they found it hard to remain calm. What they felt was shock, and even respect for the invader.


    This was not because the person could ovee two lines of defense and the Blow of Light, but because of how their power seemed to have grown. In the early stages of battle, their strength was formidable, but not a match against the forces of the West-Hill Divine Halls. After the long, arduous battle, the invader¡¯s power had not weakened. In fact, it seemed to have grown much stronger by multiple levels by the time they stood before Peach Mountain.


    Buddhist philosophies spoke of the pursuit of enlightenment, while the followers of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine sought to im victory by sowing discord and waging war continuously. Yet these battles had been over in a sh, how had this person done it?


    Other than the legend of the Academy¡¯s senior student Mu Zhiming, when had the world of cultivation been shaken to this extent? Who was this person?


    Chen Pipi looked at the figure in the smoke. His body shook so violently that water spilled out of his bowl and made his clothes wet. He knew who the invader was and he also knew that she sang not just to give herself courage, but to remind him to have faith.


    She was using the song to send him a message: Hold on a little longer, I¡¯m here.


    In the crowd, Ning Que looked at the ground beneath his feet. In the Divine Sedan, Ye Hongyu silently stretched out her right hand to grip her sword.


    The smoke subsided to reveal a small, graceful figure.


    Her shining, jet-ck braid trailed behind her in the wind.


    The animal skins she wore had been torn and cut by countless swords.


    Her body was covered in bleeding wounds. Blood dripped to the floor.


    Her name was Tang Xiaotang.


    She came from Chang¡¯an City, a thousand miles away.


    She looked battered and bruised, but still majestic.


    She looked at the West-Hill Hierarch and asked, ¡°Who dares to say that the Academy has no one?¡±


    She turned her head towards the young South Sea girl before the altar and asked, ¡°Who dares to steal my man?¡±


    ...

 Chapter 872 - If a Fight is What You Want, a Fight is What You’ve Got (I)

    <h4>Chapter 872: If a Fight is What You Want, a Fight is What You¡¯ve Got (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Chen Pipi used all his strength to keep his right hand from trembling and spilling the water out of the bowl. He stared at Tang Xiaotang who looked travel-worn and said, ¡°You came.¡±


    It was more a statement than a question. He did not need to ask as he had heard her refreshing song and seen her in person. Although he did not wish for her toe, she was already here.


    ¡°Yup.¡±


    Ignoring the crowd between them, Tang Xiaotang asked Chen Pipi, ¡°Are youing with me?¡±


    Chen Pipi thought it through and answered, ¡°If you can take me, I will definitely go with you.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang consented and walked toward the white stone altar. Her blood was dripping as she proceeded. People cleared a way and no one dared stop her, not even those divine priests nor the ck-robed deacons.


    She came to the front of the altar.


    Chen Pipi handed her the bowl of water and asked, ¡°You want some water?¡±


    Tang Xiaogang drank the remaining water as if she was enjoying some strong liquor.


    Little Yu from South Sea had been standing there watching them as Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang¡¯s exchange. She turned pale as she realized the rtionship between this woman and her cousin.


    This woman hade for her man. She felt outrageous and sad, yet, she did not know what to do.


    She felt like she was unwanted right there in front of the altar. Neither Chen Pipi nor Tang Xiaotang had bothered to spare a nce at her, as if she wasn¡¯t there.


    She had been a very proud person. Thinking of herself as a real genius at cultivation, she had firmly believed that no one but her cousin who had been engaged to her since childhood would beparable with her, not even the three Addicts nor the other disciples of the Academy. Therefore, she had tried to proof herself by challenging the Calligraphy Fanatic, and then Ye Hongyu.


    Only now did she just realize how naive she used to be. In terms of willpower and mentality she was not evenparable with the girl who had fought all her way up the Peach Mountain, not to mention Ye Hongyu.


    Standing in front of the altar, she felt all her former pride being smashed. It was not only because she felt interior in front of the girl with the iron stick, but also because her cousin had taken the bowl of water that girl gave him, and his attitude and tone when talking to the girl made it seem like they had been together for decades.


    ...


    Little Yu¡¯s feeling was not wrong.


    Right there in Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang¡¯s eyes, there was no room for anyone else. Even the whole world had disappeared. They could only see each other, and merely that half bowl of water.


    That was until a thundering sound was heard at the front yard of Peach Mountain.


    In the huge sedan with radiating lights, the Hierarch stood up and stared at Tang Xiaotang. His tall figure was leaning like a mountain about to copse.


    ¡°Who are you? What¡¯s your rtionship with Lin Wu?¡±


    ¡°I am Tang Xiaotang. It¡¯s always Tang Xiaotang even if you read it from the back.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang gave the bowl back to Chen Pipi, looked at the Hierarch in the sedan and continued, ¡°Yu Lian is my master. I came to the Peach Mountain to get my man back. You cannot stop me.¡±


    Upon hearing these words, the Hierarchughed heartily and said, ¡°How ridiculous.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang did not think it was funny. She held up her iron stick and stared at the huge sedan.


    She was wounded quite seriously when breaking through the three arrays. Her clothes were stained with blood and dust. Yet she spoke with no less pride and assertiveness.


    That persistent character of hers was what made her so pleasant and loveable.


    Most of the audience were notughing except for Mo Li, the divine priest and head of Revtion Institute. He was faking hisughter to support the Hierarch. It sounded rather awkward.


    No one else wasughing because Tang Xiaotang had shown a very strong fighting spirit and unbelievable improvement through the rounds of fighting. It was more horrifying than funny.


    They were shocked and wondered how she could have made several breakthroughs in such a short period of time, or rather in just a few rounds of fierce fighting.


    Only Chen Pipi, Ye Hongyu and Ning Que were not surprised by Tang Xiaotang¡¯s power and improvement that she had just shown.


    They all knew that Tang Xiaotang had always been working hard to be the most powerful woman in the world. With such an ambitious goal she would do literally anything, and nothing could have surprised them.


    Ever since challenged by Ke Haoran, the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had very few descendants left. Tang Xiaotang and her brother were basically the only two remaining. That also meant Tang Xiaotang had be the Saintess of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    Whether it was because of her bloodline from the Wilderness or her heritage the from Tang family, Tang Xiaotang was very talented in cultivation. Back then, in the fight at the snow cliffs in Tianqi Mountain, Tang Xiaotang had almost defeated Ye Hongyu when she was only fourteen years old. She would have done better if not for Ye Hongyu¡¯s extremely practical style that only a few people like Ning Que could handle.


    Many years had passed. Ye Hongyu was already a great cultivator of the Knowing Destiny State and had be the Great Divine Priest of Judgment sitting on the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade. But Tang Xiaotang still seemed like the Saintess of Devil¡¯s Doctrine years ago.


    Although the Devil¡¯s Doctrine did not have clear stages like No Doubts, Seethrough, and Knowing Destiny states, they did have their own levels of cultivation. Yet, it was almost like Tang Xiaotang had stagnated at the Seethrough state for years.


    For a girl from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, she was already strong enough by being at the pinnacle level of the Seethrough State. Yet,pared to people like Ye Hongyu and Ning Que, she was barely making any progress.


    Ning Que¡¯s great progress might have been results of his studying at the Academy and serious of unexpected adventures, while Ye Hongyu had reached her current stage because of her persistent pursuit of Taoism and the letter from Liu Bai. Then, what about Tang Xiaotang?


    She had also been studying in the Academy for years. Her master was the most mysterious leader of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, the Twenty-Three-Year Cicada who was no less powerful than Liu Bai in terms of cultivation stage. Why did she then fail to make any progress along these years?


    In the Academy, she jumped off the waterfall countless times, moved huge rocks and ttened out countless stone steps with her iron stick. She had never stopped cultivating.


    Those were the practices Yu Lian had assigned to her.


    In the back mountain of the Academy, Tang Xiaotang practiced like a sadhu, hardening her body and mind to get ready for the optimal opportunity.


    Buddhism was all about seeking enlightenment,


    But the Devils¡¯ Doctrine was all about fighting.


    With her bloodline from the Wilderness and her heritage from Devil¡¯s Doctrine, she could only breakthrough to higher levels through fighting. Yet she had never been given any chance to fight, neither in the battle at Verdant Canyon nor in the Academy. Yu Lian had deliberately kept her from participating in serious fights.


    Yu Lian was the leader of Devil¡¯s Doctrine with extraordinary skills and power. Furthermore, she was also a great master, good at cultivating students. She had once tried to take Ning Que as her sessor but failed. Therefore, she had spared no effort to train Tang Xiaotang. Naturally, she had her reasons for keeping her away from those battles.


    Ye Hongyu was able to reach Knowing Destiny State years ago. But she used her strong willpower to keep herself at the Seethrough State, only to wait for a perfect timing for breakthrough.


    Tang Xiaotang was simr to Ye Hongyu in terms of willpower. Yet,pared with Taoism, the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had a disadvantage that they could not control their breakthrough consciously during fighting.


    Tang Xiaotang had almost defeated Ye Hongyu years ago. As her master, Yu Lian would definitely want her to outshine Ye Hongyu after all these years. She thus had to choose a perfect timing for her breakthrough. Since Tang Xiaotang had no control over that, Yu Lian had to control it for her.


    She had kept her away from fights because she was waiting for the right moment toe.


    Today at the Rite to Light in the Peach Mountain, Chen Pipi was about to be burnt to death by Haotian¡¯s divine me. Tang Xiaotang definitely had toe for him. She had to intrude, fight and breakthrough.


    Action was driven by necessity. That was the philosophy that the Academy had always been teaching. Naturally, this was the moment Yu Lian was waiting for. With all the conditions set up for her, Tang Xiaotang explosive growth was only a matter of course.


    ...


    The West-Hill had nned the Rite to Light for the Academy. But, who would have expected that after all the time and efforts they had spent, only second generation rookies from the Academy would turn up?


    Although Tang Xiaotang had shown exceptional improvements and power, she was after all a young girl. There were so many powerful figures gathered at the front yard of Peach Mountain and at least ten of them could defeat her. Therefore, when people had calmed down, they felt a bit disappointed.


    It was as though one had prepared all his strength to y a tiger, only to find that his enemy was only an innocent white rabbit. This was just like when the son of a maligned official who, after plotting for several years, attempts to get revenge for his father by assassinating the emperor, only to find out on the night of the assassination that the emperor had passed away, leaving behind only a seven-year-old crown prince in his ce.


    The Hierarch was the one most disappointed by the turn of events. He had exposed his feelings when he said to the mountains afar with profound loneliness that the Academy was worthless.


    ¡°As a mere second-generation disciple, how dare you im that you are taking this man out of the Peach Mountain?¡±


    The Hierarch sighed, ¡°The person I have been waiting for is Lin Wu. I didn¡¯t expect him to be so timid as to send a young girl like you to your death. The Academy is indeed worthless now.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang confronted his stare and retorted, ¡°Last year at the back mountain of the Academy, my master made you blind, cut off your arm, and crippled your Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow. You would have been dead if she had not shown mercy because of your previous acquaintance. Being a loser, what makes you think you are qualified to challenge her again? You need to defeat me first.¡±


    People burst into an uproar again upon her words.


    Though it was already a public secret that the Hierarch had been seriously wounded at the back mountain of the Academy, no one had dared mention it in front of him. Yet, here in the front yard of Peach Mountain, someone had just openly mocked him in front of everyone.


    While everyone was expecting the Hierarch to punish Tang Xiaotang, General Lebu of the Golden Tribe stepped out from the crowd. ¡°You are from the Wilderness?¡±


    Tang Xiaotang looked back and said, ¡°Right. And you, barbarian?¡±


    General Lebu answered, ¡°Yes. I¡¯m from the grasnd.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang corrected him, ¡°It is not the grasnd, but the Wilderness.¡±


    General Lebu answered, ¡°When you were there it was the Wilderness. Now it is called the grasnd.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang confronted, ¡°If you want a fight, then let¡¯s fight!¡±


    ...

 Chapter 873 - If a Fight is What You Want, a Fight is What You’ve Got（II）

    <h4>Chapter 873: If a Fight is What You Want, a Fight is What You¡¯ve Got£¨II£©</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    All those who were listening found the exchange simple, yet confusing. Tang Xiaotang said that if General Lebu wanted a fight then he had one, but when had he incited a fight?


    Their confusion stemmed from the fact that they had never lived in the Wilderness, and so they had no understanding of its history or of the culture of its people.


    The vast grasnds of the North were called the Wilderness because they had once belonged to the Wild People. One thousand years ago, the Wild Kingdom was the strongest force on earth. Now all who lived in the Wilderness were outcasts; remnants of the wild people who live out their days in suffering.


    Once the Wild Kingdom was defeated by the Great Tang, the Wild People were exiled even further north. Their former ves from the Tribe of Savages joined forces with their nomad tribesmen in the west to rebuild the Three Great Halls of Kings, finally regaining their freedom.


    Those tumultuous times had left a cruel scar in the memory of both sides. The Tribe of Savages¡¯ attitude towards the Wild People was exactly as hateful as one might expect, while the Wild People thought of the Tribe as traitorous ves. The conflict was a blood feud, but after the Wild People were exiled to the cold north, the two sides hardly encountered each other, and their hatred dulled with time.


    As the Ever Night fell, the Wild People forged a bloody warpath southward to reim their ancestral homnds, spilling blood in the Left Royal Court in the East. The blood feud between the two peoples was once again awakened. In view of this history, General Lebu and Tang Xiaotang¡¯s discussion about the appropriate name for those ins wasden with significance and established the position of each party.


    Since you are of the Wild People and I am of the Tribe of Savages, this fight is inevitable.


    ¡°There are many people here, but none will fight you. This is not because their strength surpasses you so much that it would be an unfair fight: after all, everyone knows the standard of the Academy, and even if you are a second-generation student, you cannot be considered their junior. They only do not dare to fight you because of your identity as the Academy¡¯s student.¡±


    General Lebu said to Tang Xiaotang, ¡°The conflict between the royals of my Golden Tribe, the Tang Kingdom and the Academy runs just as deep as the feud between you Wild People. I do not care about your status in the Academy. I admire your song and your fighting from before, so I will kill you.¡±


    Only then did Tang Xiaotang hear from Chen Pipi about the General¡¯s identity as the Golden Tribe Royal Hall¡¯s top martial artist. Still, her face showed no trace of worry.


    Unlike the General, she was not in the habit of delivering a long monologue before a fight. She immediately charged at her opponent, her metal rod in hand. Her leather boots left a trail of trampled flowers in their wake.


    The rod whistled through the air, delivering a clean, direct blow.


    With a ng, Lebu deflected the blow with the scythe from his waist, blocking it just as cleanly.


    Both had lived in the Wilderness. Their fighting styles were simrly direct and free of any sneaky tricks. The win depended on two things alone: strength and cultivation level.


    The sound of the two weapons colliding was like an earth-shattering thunderp.


    Amongst the audience, the Divine Priests at lower levels of cultivation paled when they heard this noise. The junior students on the dais found the noise unbearable, covering their ears.


    Suddenly, Lebu¡¯s eyes widened. He thought that the collision would have broken Tang Xiaotang¡¯s weapon, but in fact, it had snapped his tempered scimitar into pieces.


    What kind of weapon was that ugly rod? How could it render the Blow of Light useless, then shatter his own formidable de?


    All those watching now looked at the rod with fear in their eyes. Little did they know that this ugly rod was a Devil¡¯s Doctrine artifact. It had originally been a gigantic, blood-red scimitar. In the Battle of Chang¡¯an, the Abbey Dean created seven rainbows linking the sky and the earth, intending to use them as escape routes. Yu Lian had used this huge crimson de to break them.


    While the scimitar sessfully broke the rainbows, it was also melted into this ugly rod by the sheer force of the Haotian energy woven into the rainbows as fortifications. Although its appearance was much uglier and Tang Xiaotang now used it as a rod, it was still the same rainbow-breaking material. Nothing on earth could match up to it.


    Although the rod had emerged victorious over the scythe, the weapons¡¯ owners had not yet finished their battle. With a mighty cry, General Lebu harnessed the energy of the grass ins, making it course through his body. His curled-up right fist seemed as solid as a mountain. With a glint in his eye, he advanced menacingly towards the rod.


    The meeting of the rod and the fist was once again apanied by a deafening noise.


    The noise was so loud that the Divine Priests at lower levels of cultivation were now cupping their ears in pain. It was so powerful that it even made some onlookers sustain internal injuries, causing them to cough up blood.


    Lebu was the strongest warrior in the Golden Tribe. Based on strength alone, it would be hard to find an opponent who could match him. He had recently gone to war with the Great Tang¡¯s great general Xu Chi in northern Xinjiang and shone just as brightly as Xu Chi on the battlefield. Unless Xia Hou resurrected, nobody would be able to defeat him, Tang Xiaotang included.


    His iron fistnded on the rod. Although the weapon did not bend or break, the gargantuan impact traveled through the rod and hit Tang Xiaotang¡¯s body in full force.


    The recoil shocked her body. Blood trickled from the corner of her mouth. Still, she held the rod staunchly, not saying a word.


    Lebu had been thrown into a rage by the destruction of his treasured de. After that earth-shattering blow, he charged again with a roar.


    He was stopped in his tracks after only two steps.


    Without missing a beat or even rubbing the blood off her lip, Tang Xiaotang charged right back at the general.


    By this time, the peach flowers on the ground before the altar had been ground into dust by her boots.


    Tang Xiaotang and General Lebu met at blows again. They were both using short-range weapons: the rod and the fist.


    It was as if two mountains had collided head-on. The sh created a thunderous noise which once again shook Peach Mountain, along with a shrill sound of the piercing wind.


    Tang Xiaotang was struck back again. This time she was thrown back a further distance and the blood dripped steadily from her wounds. With another cry, she bolted forward towards her enemy.


    The rod was brought down; the fist shot out. They parted and met. Tang Xiaotang charged so many times that she lost count.


    Although she had not managed to topple General Lebu, her feet never stopped to rest. Since the beginning of the battle, the general had not made a single step of headway.


    The terrifying crashes echoed again and again. Many Divine Priests had now been forced to the floor, and ten or so junior students were now out cold on the ground. The unceasing quake was too much for them to handle.


    All the skilled cultivators in attendance felt terror in their hearts. Tang Xiaotang was clearly no match for General Lebu but she never stopped charging forward. Her unwavering determination was a fearsome sight.


    Ning Que stood in the crowd and thought about what he had seen outside the Chang¡¯an city gates, years ago. Tang Xiaotang had been swindled of all her money. When she passed by the city, she thought about how Chang¡¯an had a reputation to uphold for the Academy, so she decided to earn money performing on the streets. Her act was lying on a bench and breaking boulders on her chest.


    The Tang Xiaotang he saw persistently charging today reminded him of that sight from years ago: a huge hammer hitting a rock over and over, and below the rock, a young girl. Her chest was not broad, so the rock rattled on an uneven surface, making it hard to break. Although the rock did not break easily, the hammer kepting down ¨C eventually, the rock would break.


    Chen Pipi stood in silence on the altar. His brow was furrowed and his lips quivered, but a smile lit up his face.


    He thought about the story Tang Xiaotang had told him about her time in the Wilderness. To protect the vulnerable women and children, she and her senior had kept all manner of beasts away. She once encountered a pack of huge wolves. Although she was scared, she charged at the wolves until she forgot how many times she had charged. He was shocked and asked her, ¡°But didn¡¯t you say that you were scared?¡±


    She replied, ¡°When I¡¯m about to enter battle, I forget that I¡¯m scared.¡±


    ...


    Before the dais of Peach Mountain, the battle between two strong cultivators continued. The peach flowers had long been decimated. Even the wind seemed to be shattered into a thousand pieces. It was as if it would never end.


    Just as everyone thought that they could no longer hang on, that their hearts were about to give up, they realised that the battle had somehow ended.


    The battle ended, not because Tang Xiaotang had stopped charging.


    Rather, it was because Lebu had taken a step back.


    The proud warrior, the best in the Golden Tribe, had silently retreated back into the crowd.


    Tang Xiaotang¡¯s body was drenched with blood. It dripped from her lip and flowed onto the iron rod. Countless bones in her body were now broken but she stood at attention, as if ready to resume her attacks at any time.


    General Lebu seemed unhurt. His face was a little pale and his right fist trembled slightly. It seemed not to want to be formed again into a fist anytime soon.


    The battle ended because he chose to retreat by one step. This showed that the battle had stayed consistently under his control, allowing him to end it with a dignified retreat.


    He still looked powerfully formidable.


    Tang Xiaotang¡¯s braid hade apart. Her hair flowed wildly.


    Her whole body was wounded. She was no match for Lebu.


    Still, it was Lebu who had first retreated.


    Although the battle seemed to reach no clear conclusion, the victor had been decided.


    The winner on raw strength was undoubtedly Lebu, but he admitted defeat.


    ¡°I ept defeat.¡±


    Lebu addressed Tang Xiaotang. ¡°I have seen those who do not fear death, but I have never seen anyone like you. Initially, I could not understand how you could be this crazy, but I remembered your background. Now I understand. I admitted defeat because I would like to kill you, but I do not want to carry on fighting with you. I¡¯m not insane.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang was a Wild Person, a follower of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, a student of the Academy. That was her background.


    In the eyes of many, Wild People were all crazy on the battlefield. Many followers of Devil¡¯s Doctrine seemed crazy. The Academy had produced the most famous lunatic of all, Maniac Ke.


    It was only natural that she would seem crazy in battle.


    After the end of the battle, Tang Xiaotang regained herposure. She cast her eyes over all the strong cultivators gathered at the altar and felt her hand tremble around the iron rod. Suddenly, she broke out in a smile.


    She turned to Chen Pipi and said, ¡°Looks like I¡¯m not taking you away after all.¡±

 Chapter 874 - The Academy’s Prediction (I)

    <h4>Chapter 874: The Academy¡¯s Prediction (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The strongest cultivators at the front yard of Peach Mountain had yet to join in the fight.


    The national master of the Golden Tribe and Zhao Nanhai were both unfathomably powerful. Ye Hongyu had shown that she could be horrifying. Qi Nian from Buddhism had been so quiet that people almost forgot he was there. But he was after all the world wayfarer and as mighty as Ye Hongyu and her brother Ye Su. There was no need to mention the Hierarch. Since General Lebu had wounded her seriously, Tang Xiaotang figured it seemed impossible for her to get her man out of this no matter how desperately she fought.


    It seemed Chen Pipi should have been more depressed than her because he was the one waiting to be rescued. Yet he did not think that way and still carried a smile on his chubby face.


    ¡°Why?¡± He asked Tang Xiaotang.


    Tang Xiaotang replied seriously, ¡°Because I can¡¯t make it.¡±


    Chen Pipi said, ¡°If it was only you, of course you could not make it.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang said fearlessly, ¡°I don¡¯t care if we die together.¡±


    Chen Pipi disagreed with grievance, ¡°I don¡¯t want to die.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang reassured him, ¡°There¡¯s nothing to be afraid of in death.¡±


    But Chen Pipi insisted, ¡°I just don¡¯t want to die together.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang felt a bit upset and did not reply to that.


    Chen Pipi patted on her head andforted with a smile, ¡°Since you are here, you are my girl. You need to listen to me. We are not dying here today.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang said without raising her head, ¡°I¡¯m not leaving.¡±


    Chen Pipi continued, ¡°No worries, I¡¯m not going to die either. None of us will die here. Although we will face death eventually, I¡¯m pretty sure we are not dying here today.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang looked up at him with hope, ¡°You think you can do it?¡±


    ¡°No, I don¡¯t. But since Eldest Brother approved of your trip to the Peach Mountain, he is definitely not nning to let us die.¡±


    Chen Pipi shook his head but smiled.


    He knew that Ning Que was already at the Peach Mountain and right there at the Rite to Light. His fellows from the Academy must have nned for something. Tang Xiaotang should have known. She just had not realized it.


    People around the altar had thought so too. Since the Academy had sent someone from their second generation, they had made it clear. Someone else must being too.


    But who could that be? The Eldest Brother, Second Brother or Senior Sister?


    Qi Nian was thinking silently about Jun Mo who cleaved the stone statue of Buddha with his sword on that rainy autumn day at Lanke Temple. Other people were also silent and somewhat scared.


    Li Manman, the Eldest Brother, had killed numerous people in front of Cong Ridge. No one in the Yuelun Kingdom had survived, from the emperor all the way to the foot soldiers. Even master Qi Mei from the Xuankong Temple was not able to stand up to him and was seriously wounded. Then he shed with the powerful Abbey Dean throughout the world, before finally fighting him in the decisive battle in the City of Chang¡¯an.


    When Second Brother Jun Mo was defending the Verdant Canyon, tens of thousands of cavalrymen could not get through. Even Ye Su was defeated. Although Jun Mo lost an arm to Liu Bai eventually, he had also seriously wounded the most powerful man in the world. Senior Sister Yu Lian was the legendary Twenty-Three-Year Cicada. She defeated the Hierarch and wounded him seriously in the back mountain of the Academy. Even though the West-Hill Divine Halls tried to keep this a secret, the Great Tang had spared no efforts in spreading the news throughout the world. There was no need to mention thatter on in their battle in Chang¡¯an she had leapt into the sky, cut off the rainbow and left the Abbey Dean no choice but to stay in Chang¡¯an.


    The three of them from the Academy had shown extraordinary power and cultivation base in the battles defending the Great Tang. Although they were more or less wounded and still recovering, the West-Hill Divine Halls were also not ready for another decisive fight. If they came to the Peach Mountain today, were the West-Hill Divine Halls ready to fight them? Was Taoism really going to win?


    ...


    Eldest Brother was not in the Peach Mountain. He was about to enter a small town by border of Yan and Song Kingdom.


    It was a cool autumn day and he was already wearing a cotton padded gown. The skeet he had been carrying by his waist for years was broken that day in front of Cong Ridge. Now it was an ordinary wood stick he carried around.


    Maybe he was named Li Manman (Note: the character ¡°man¡± means slow in Chinese) because he did things very slowly and talked very slowly. He was walking slower that day, even slower than he normally did.


    During his seven-day fight with the Abbey Dean in the battle in Chang¡¯an, the Eldest Brother had also been badly wounded with many of his bones broken. Although he had recovered a bit and no longer needed a wheelchair, he was still unable to walk faster. Apart from that, he was walking so slowly also because he felt very nervous, even as nervous as when he faced the Abbey Dean.


    It took him a long while to get further down in the small town. He stopped in front of a painting and calligraphy store, lifted the front part of his gown, crossed the threshold and bowed slowly toward a man inside.


    That man was sitting in a chair behind the counter and holding a bottle of liquor. He had wrinkled skin and grey hair and seemed to be in his forties. At the same time, it also seemed that he had lived for more than a thousand years.


    ¡°It is an honor to meet you, sir,¡± The eldest Brother greeted the man in the chair.


    The owner of the store stepped out from the counter and looked at Li Manman. Upon finding him unfamiliar, he asked, ¡°Sir, would you like to enjoy some tea or liquor? We have very good collections of both.¡±


    Eldest Brother answered, ¡°I¡¯ll just have some water please.¡±


    The man in the chair turned to the owner and said, ¡°Please go inside and don¡¯te out if there¡¯s nothing important.¡±


    The man with the liquor was the Drunkard, while the owner was Chao Xiaoshu from Chang¡¯an. They just got to know each not long ago, but already became good friends. The Drunkard did not want him to be killed in vain.


    Only the Drunkard and Eldest Brother was left by the counter.


    The Drunkard said, ¡°You were walking so slowly. It seems you have not fully recovered.¡±


    Eldest Brother answered, ¡°I will one day.¡±


    The Drunkard questioned, ¡°You won¡¯t be faster than me even if you were fully recovered, not to mention like this.¡±


    Eldest Brother replied, ¡°I walk slowly, but firmly.¡±


    After a short silence the Drunkard replied, ¡°Indeed, you walk more firmly than I do. I didn¡¯t expect that anyone in this world could walk more firmly than I do. Yet you are still no match for me.¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°I have only been practicing cultivation for a few decades. Of course, I am no match for a master like you.¡±


    The Drunkard asked, ¡°Then how dare you leave Chang¡¯an ande here to meet me?¡±


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°Because the Academy is nning something and we hope that you will not interfere with it.¡±


    The Drunkard squinted and his voice became lower and husky. His breath let off a scent that smelled like bronze and iron being rubbed together. ¡°Are you not afraid of being killed?¡±


    Eldest Brother answered slowly, ¡°You won¡¯t kill me.¡±


    The Drunkard¡¯s voice sounded more chilling as he asked, ¡°Why makes you think I won¡¯t kill you?¡±


    Eldest Brother answered calmly, ¡°Because you are not sure if you can kill me.¡±


    The Drunkardughed at him and taunted, ¡°You only have a slightest chance of surviving.¡±


    Eldest Brother smiled in response, saying, ¡°Even if I had less than that, you still wouldn¡¯t dare to try killing me, not to mention that I still have a slightest chance.¡±


    The Drunkard stiffened and asked, ¡°Why are you so sure?¡±


    Eldest Brother answered, ¡°I know nothing about fighting. But no matter whether within the Academy or throughout the world, Jun Mo, Senior Sister and Youngest Brother are the three most powerful ones in fighting. Since they all said you won¡¯t try killing me, I chose to believe their judgement that you won¡¯t kill me.¡±


    The Drunkard questioned, ¡°Even if their judgment will lead to your death?¡±


    Eldest Brother answered, ¡°I think they are right. So, I¡¯m willing to try.¡±


    The Drunkard asked, ¡°What did they say to make you believe so?¡±


    Eldest Brother replied, ¡°They said you had lived such a long life, so long that you were already very afraid of dying.¡±


    Upon hearing these words, the Drunkard became silent for a long while.


    Then he asked again, ¡°Why did they send you to me instead of the Butcher?¡±


    Eldest Brother answered, ¡°Senior Sister said that the Butcher walked too slowly, barely any faster than me or the chief monk. Therefore, we do not need to worry about him, at least for today.¡±


    ¡°What about her?¡± The Drunkard asked all of a sudden, ¡°Are you really not afraid of her?¡±


    Eldest Brother knew who he was talking about and smiled at that, ¡°She has lived for a while at the back mountain of the Academy. We are not afraid of her. Instead, we are all fond of her.¡±


    ...


    In the valleys between the indigo mountain range, a road had been constructed that was almost wide enough for simple carriages. But people chose to cross it by walking for the sake of convenience.


    Two people had just walked out of the Verdant Canyon. The man was wearing a bamboo hat and a cloth gown and he was holding a rod. He looked like a sadhu sometimes seen in the rural areas. While the woman beside him was holding some embroidered pieces and garbed in red. She was sweet and charming as a new bride. This awkward looking pair were Jun Mo, who had shaved his head to pursue Buddhism, and Mu You, his Seventh Sister and new wife.


    Jun Mo looked at the dark and richnd in front of the Verdant Canyon, recalling what had happened here half a year ago as well as his arm that was broken here. He kept silent. Mu You also did not say a thing.


    They kept walking south. However, they were not like their Eldest Brother, who was able to reach the Distanceless State. It seemed likely that they wouldn¡¯t be able to arrive at the Peach Mountain in time. Where were they headed and what were they nning to do then?


    Coming to Fuchun River, they climbed up to the pavilion on top of Hu Mountain. Jun Mo frowned as he looked toward the southeast. He sensed that Liu Bai¡¯s sword had left the Sword Garret for the Peach Mountain.


    He kept quiet for a while, feeling the wind blow against himself.


    He used to stand in front of the Verdant Canyon, full of lofty ambition. Now, Liu Bai had fully recovered and made another breakthrough to the legendary level. On the other hand, he was still recovering from his injuries, with one arm still missing. He did not know when or how he could ever reach the same level of Liu Bai. It was hard to swallow for him.


    He looked toward the direction of West-Hill Divine Kingdom, as if he could see Liu Bai¡¯ sword flying to the Peach Mountain and the girl standing in front of the Divine Hall of Light in the Peach Mountain. Then he recalled the girl who was kneeling on top of a nameless mountain to the north of Chang¡¯an years ago, trying to collect the ashes of her master into a pot. He did not know which was the real her. But he knew that she had always been strong.


    ¡°What if she steps in?¡± Mu You was worried about their juniors in the Peach Mountain.


    Jun Mo answered, ¡°That is what we nned.¡±


    Mu You was surprised and asked, ¡°Then what if she didn¡¯t?¡±


    Jun Mo answered, ¡°With our Headmaster gone to the Heaven and the Abbey Dean crippled, Liu Bai is already the most powerful in the world even if he does not breakthrough to the Five States, not to mention that he already has. He easily outranks the Drunkard and the Butcher. Now, his sword is already there in the Peach Mountain, so there is no reason for her to not get involved. The change Yu Lian mentioned was in that sword.¡±


    Mu You said, ¡°She should have expected that.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°Our Youngest Brother being there will probably be very annoying for her. When people are annoyed, they are not good at reasoning. When Haotian is annoyed, she wouldn¡¯t bother to think.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 875 - The Academy’s Prediction(II)

    <h4>Chapter 875: The Academy¡¯s Prediction(II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Fall in the Wilderness was a little colder, but the man standing in the foothills did not seem cold. The wind blustered around him, blowing the furs on his body aside to reveal a muscr physique.


    His body seemed to contain immeasurable strength, almost as if he could move mountains and decimate cities with a wave of his hand. Now, he stood as motionless as a rock, not because he was afraid of unleashing this force, but because a small girl in a very small sedan was perched on his shoulders, and he was worried about jolting her unnecessarily.


    He was Tang, a wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine sect. The girl in the sedan, resting her chin on her hand in boredom, seemed to be twelve or thirteen. She was the teacher he had not seen in many years, the current Twenty-Three-Year Cicada and the leader of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine sect.


    She was also the third senior student of the Academy¡¯s Back Hill, Yu Lian.


    In the war between Chang¡¯an and the Abbey Dean, Yu Lian had leaped into the sky to fight. Afterward, she fell into Snow Street. Although she had mastered the Devil¡¯s Doctrine technique, she still sustained major injuries. Her sturdy ankle was pulverised. It had not been easy for her to heal to the point where she no longer needed a wheelchair, but walking was still difficult. Thus, here in the Wilderness, she sat in the sedan on Tang¡¯s back.


    She looked at the vast ins of the Wilderness that stretched out before her and the gorge that loomed in the distance, half-obscured. She said. ¡°You can¡¯t even aplish such a simple task. You¡¯ve disappointed me.¡±


    The cold winds blew, making her long pigtails flutter behind her. The braids and her bright eyes almost made her seem adorable. At the same time, her face was emotionless, and she had the aloof air of a sect leader. This made her seem quite intimidating.


    Tang said, ¡°The Golden Tribe Royal Court intends to attack Hn in deep winter. This news has already spreaded through the Wilderness. Even if our tribe wants to lend assistance, the tens of thousands of the Left Royal Court cavalrymen in the eastern regions of the Wilderness would be too much of an obstacle.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°It would be easy to pass through after killing all those stupid cavalrymen.¡±


    Tang was confused. He asked, ¡°How do we kill them?¡±


    Matter-of-factly, Yu Lian replied, ¡°Your wounds are all healed. In your current state of cultivation, would it be a problem for you to kill two hundred idiots on horseback?¡±


    Tang thought about it for a second, then replied, ¡°It should be no problem.¡±


    ¡°If you kill two hundred cavalrymen a day, you only need a hundred days to kill twenty thousand cavalrymen. Even if the Left Royal Court still has forty thousand cavalrymen, they will still be killed by you eventually.¡±


    Tang was speechless. He thought, Why would the troops just sit there likembs to the ughter? Why would they deliver two hundred cavalrymen to you every day, and what if they decided to send out ten thousand cavalrymen to you at once? War could not be solved by a simple form. His teacher had not been around for years. Anyone would struggle to understand her logic.


    ¡°There¡¯s nothing to be confused about.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°That wastrel Long Qing is no longer in the East Wilderness, so the backbone of the Left Royal Court is gone. If you do as I say, dealing with these savage cavalrymen will be even easier than defeating wastrels.¡±


    Tang felt that there was no need to continue this discussion with his teacher. He said, ¡°I want to go to Peach Mountain.¡±


    Yu Lian replied, ¡°It¡¯s toote to go now.¡±


    Tang paused. ¡°Teacher, why did you choose toe to the Wilderness instead of Peach Mountain?¡±


    Yu Lian hugged her knees to her chest and said, ¡°My wounds have not yet healed, what¡¯s the point of going to Peach Mountain? Honestly, in the current situation, there¡¯s no point in anyone going there.¡±


    ¡°We have no knowledge of what the current situation is.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s definitely chaos up there.¡±


    ¡°Who would have gone?¡±


    ¡°What kind of person is the Hierarch? As long as he¡¯s alive he, has an opinion about everything, and his opinion is always unsatisfactory to the Taoists. Now that I think about it, the branch from the South Sea should be there by now.¡±


    ¡°The Divine Priest of the South Sea¡¯s sessor?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right. I think Liu Bai should be there too.¡±


    ¡°Why would he want to participate in the Rite of Light?¡±


    ¡°Because she wants to leave during the Rite of Light, but he doesn¡¯t want her to?¡±


    ¡°Liu Bai has that kind of courage?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s lonely at the top. The strongest person is always the loneliest. It¡¯s unavoidable that they have some thoughts they shouldn¡¯t be thinking.¡±


    ¡°Why is Liu Bai the strongest?¡±


    ¡°Because he lent a sword to Chao Xiaoshu and Elder Brother imnted messages in Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s mind about the philosophies and viewpoints of those in Chang¡¯an and the Academy.¡±


    ¡°Actually, I still don¡¯t understand why Liu Bai agreed to lend him the sword.¡±


    Tang cut a mighty figure in the Wilderness, but at this moment, with Yu Lian on his back, he seemed every bit the honest, obedient disciple, earnestly deep in thought.


    Yu Lian said, ¡°He did it because he admired Chao Xiaoshu. He did not kill himst time, and he won¡¯t do it this time either.¡±


    Tang replied, ¡°Maybe it was not out of admiration.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°Don¡¯t forget, Liu Bai cultivates the way of the sword.¡±


    Tang understood what his teacher was saying. Swordsmen were as sharp and direct as their swords. If Liu Bai did not dare to kill Chao Xiaoshu because of the Tang Kingdom¡¯s power or the Academy¡¯s reputation, how could he have be the world¡¯s greatest Sage of Sword?


    He asked, ¡°Is Liu Bai capable of defeating the Drunkard?¡±


    ¡°Liu Bai doesn¡¯t even see the Drunkard as a threat,¡± Yu Lian said. ¡°Even if he does not die this time, the Drunkard will definitely die at the hands of the Academy.¡±


    Tang thought for a moment. ¡°Is this the kind of change you wanted to see?¡±


    With a wave of her soft hand against the spring breeze, Yu Lian replied nonchntly, ¡°Even I don¡¯t know what changes wille.¡±


    At these words, an expression of worry crossed the steady Tang¡¯s serene face.


    Yu Lian knew what he was anxious about. ¡°Although everyone is waiting for the changes I¡¯ve predicted, I haven¡¯t set any ns into action. How can anything I do change the will of the heavens?¡±


    Tang now looked troubled.


    His most precious little sister was now at Peach Mountain fighting for that fatty who deserved to die. If everything was in the hands of fate, how could she possibly seed and leave safely?


    ¡°Are you saying that Liu Bai won¡¯t fight?¡±


    ¡°Both Jun Mo and I think he will fight; it¡¯s only a question of when. Of course, once he makes a single move, there will be trouble from that person in the Divine Hall of Light. One could call that the change.¡±


    ¡°Even the Headmaster of the Academy can¡¯t defeat her, how could Liu Bai?¡±


    ¡°It should be obvious to Liu Bai that he can¡¯t defeat her, but his sword is still there. He must think that the Academy¡¯s point of view is interesting, so he wants to be part of this interesting event.¡±


    ¡°In what way is it interesting?¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°We told him that once he made a move, it would give her trouble. To Liu Bai, there is nothing more interesting than doing something that would make even Haotian troubled.¡±


    Tang furrowed his brow. ¡°What kind of trouble?¡±


    ¡°Even if she were Heaven, she would have to pay a price to defeat the strongest cultivator in the world. She would probably be weak, maybe anxious, then sensitive.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand.¡± Tang was confused.


    ¡°If she begins to be worried and oversensitive, Ning Que stands a chance to defeat her.¡±


    Yu Lian grinned. ¡°When I say that there¡¯s no point for anyone to go to Peach Mountain today, that doesn¡¯t include Ning Que. He has a purpose and he¡¯s there right now.¡±


    Tang still didn¡¯t understand. If even the Headmaster couldn¡¯t defeat her, what could Ning Que possibly do?


    ...

 Chapter 876 - Cutting the Bond

    <h4>Chapter 876: Cutting the Bond</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    No one else had arrived at the front yard of Peach Mountain so far.


    The three disciples of the Academy did note.


    Chen Pipi stood on the altar, looking towards the direction where Tang Xiaotang came from and smiled to her, ¡°It seems our Brothers and Sisters were stuck by some matters. I think you should leave first.¡±


    ¡°I can¡¯t leave now.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang smiled back, and then turned to the blood-colored Sacred Sedan of Judgment. She switched to a serious look and asked, ¡°What are you waiting for?¡±


    No one could understand why she had chosen to challenge the Great Divine Priest of Judgment. Only herself, Ye Hongyu, and Ning Que who was still hidden in the crowd knew that that was from a promise years ago in the Wilderness.


    At that time Ning Que, Mo Shanshan and Ye Hongyu had juste out of the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. On the ropeway, they found a snow white puppy in a basket as well as Tang Xiaotang, who had gone there in search of her dog.


    The four of them traveled through the rocky valley carved out by predecessors from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. They cursed badly on each other, but none of them could beat Ning Que, the disgrace of the Academy.


    Ning Que looked at the blood-stained Tang Xiaotang who was still holding her iron stick. All of a sudden he remembered the first time they met her. At that time, they had heard her voice before seeing her in the foggy valley. She had yelled, ¡°Who dares to touch my dog!¡±


    Today at the Rite to Light in the Peach Mountain, she had once again yelled, ¡°Who dares to kill my man?¡± It seemed Chen Pipi was no less important to her than the white wolf dog at that time.


    He could not help butugh while remembering the incident. The other footboys found him very weird, as they wondered, How could you still be so cheerful in such a situation?


    Ning Que mood was actually not cheerful at all, as he thought about Shanshan, away in the Great River Kingdom, and Ye Hongyu in the sacred sedan. Back then, they were in their prime. Now, after a few years had passed, they were still young, but no longer the youngsters they used to be.


    Ye Hongyu looked at Tang Xiaotang outside her sedan and smiled.


    She did not waste any time talking.


    Her natal sword buzzed, eager to get out of its sheath.


    Almost at the same time, as though hearing that signal, the swords of the deacons of Divine Hall of Judgment were drawn.


    Dozens of swords flew out and encircled Tang Xiaotang immediately.


    Tang Xiaotang wielded her roaring iron stick and hit the dozens of swords onto the ground at a speed that no one could follow.


    Continuous clicking sounds were heard in front of the altar, like some cheerful music.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s natal sword was thest to arrive in front of the altar, and it stabbed directly towards Tang Xiaotang¡¯s face.


    Tang Xiaotang shouted out with a clear yell and pulled back her iron stick swiftly, barely managing to ward off the sword.


    Rather than a stick hitting a sword, it was more like a sword cutting an iron stick. The sword was not damaged in the least, but the iron stick trembled uncontrobly.


    Tang Xiaotang turned pale, as blood leaked out of the corner of her mouth. She had been seriously wounded previously. Taking the hit from Ye Hongyu¡¯s natal sword, her former injuries seemed to all open up again.


    But she was still fearless. Looking at the sword flying above, she held tighter to her iron stick.


    But that sword did not stab towards her again.


    Inside the sacred sedan, Ye Hongyu said coldly, ¡°You can try hit me again after you figure out how to break out of my Confinement.¡±


    Only then did Tang Xiaotang realize that the swords she had previously warded off had all been inserted into the stone ground, forming some straggly fence.


    Some very strong energy arose from the fence of swords.


    That was the highest-level array of West-Hill¡¯s Divine Hall of Judgment: the Confinement.


    How could she break out of the Confinement? Tang Xiaotang did not expect that Ye Hongyu had reached such a high level. But she knew that by confining her, Ye Hongyu was actually showing her mercy.


    But she was not pleased.


    Stuck in the confinement of swords, she shouted at Ye Hongyu in the sacred sedan, ¡°I wanted a real fight!¡±


    Ye Hongyu did not bother answering her.


    Many others were not pleased either. The elder divine priests from the West-Hill Divine Halls thought that the head of Divine Hall of Judgment was too soft hearted toward Tang Xiaotang. There was one person who was even more irritated. Ye Hongyu had just killed one of her martial uncles and wounded the other. Yet now she was showing mercy to this evil girl from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine!


    Little Yu from the South Sea used, ¡°Who would have expected the head of Divine Hall of Judgment to be friends with this evil girl from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. If you won¡¯t kill her, I¡¯ll do it for you!¡±


    Upon these words, a very thin sword came up from behind her, toured a half circle round the front yard of Peach Mountain, got through the fence of swords and stabbed to Tang Xiaotang directly.


    She deserved her fame of a genius in Taoism who had reached Knowing Destiny State at the age of seventeen. A simple sword strike like that possessed exceptional power. What was more scary was that it had actually flown through the fence of swords!


    Ye Hongyu was a little surprised as this girl was able to pierce through her Confinement. It seemed that when the former Great Divine Priest of South Sea left the Peach Mountain, he did not only take away teachings from the Divine Hall of Light, but also from the Divine Hall of Judgment.


    Tang Xiaotang was concentrating on challenging Ye Hongyu in the sacred sedan, and she never expected someone beside her like this girl from the South Sea tounch such a sudden and powerful attack. She hurried to deflect the sword and avoid the danger.


    As her iron stick was kicked away, there was a clear ringing sound, and Tang Xiaotang vomited a mouthful of blood.


    Little Yu from the South Sea immediately controlled her sword to spin another half circle, before again aiming at Tang Xiaotang.


    It seemed no one could ever save her from this.


    Chen Pipi looked pale. His chubby figure was trembling and about to fall.


    Then, there was a sudden sh of a sword.


    Little Yu from the South Sea grunted, and blood began to leak out from the corner of her mouth. She struggled to pull back her natal sword.


    Before anyone could react to it, the bright sword shed downwards and swept by Little Yu¡¯s cheek. She struggled to block it, but was unsessful.


    There, on the cheek of this South Sea girl, a bloody sword wound was made.


    The radiant sword flew back to the sacred sedan.


    Inside the sacred sedan, Ye Hongyu¡¯s cold voice sounded out again.


    ¡°This is a fight between me and her. How dare you to step in?¡±


    Seeing that Tang Xiaogang was bleeding but not fatal wounded, Chen Pipi finally felt relieved and copsed onto the white stone altar.


    He looked at the Sacred Sedan of Judgment, rubbing on his chest as heined, ¡°Why couldn¡¯t you stop her earlier? You had to scare me to death like this?¡±


    Inside the sacred sedan, Ye Hongyu frowned as she thought, Still that annoying fat boy.


    Chen Pipi was obviously grateful, yet he was stillining. Ye Hongyu had wanted to kill him all these years. Yet, at that moment, she could not hold herself back from saving the woman he loved. It seemed that all the hatred and resentment from childhood memories would always evolve into something beautiful and fascinating when people grew up.


    ...


    Ning Que was not expecting their three senior Brothers and Sister to show up, as people from the West-Hill Divine Halls were. They had never been part of the Academy¡¯s n to begin with. What he was waiting for was the change.


    When Eldest Brother reviewed the n Ning Que and Fourth Brother had made, he questioned about the most crucial part. Ning Que was not able to provide any answer, as he did not know how that change would happen. But Yu Lian had told them that the opportunity could not be created, but would follow ording to the everchanging flow of things.


    When Liu Bai¡¯s sword broke through the clear light arrays and hung there, pointing humbly at the Divine Hall of Light, he thought that was the change Senior Sister mentioned about. When the descendants of the former Great Divine Priest of South Sea barged into the front yard of Peach Mountain and started challenging the West-Hill Divine Halls, he thought that might be the change. When Tang Xiaotang had broken through the three arrays and fought her way to the altar, he thought again that that might be the change. Yet nothing had really changed, and the chance he had been waiting for had not arrived.


    He could barely wait any longer. When Chen Pipi was being burnt by Haotian¡¯s divine me, he had almost stepped out. When the girl from South Sea suddenly attacked Tang Xiaotang, he was already on his edge. He knew that Chen Pipi was actuallyining about him instead of Ye Hongyu.


    However she was still up there on top of the Peach Mountain, inside the Divine Hall of Light. He would never have a chance to defeat her if that change Yu Lian mentioned did not happen. Yet what would the change be?


    ...


    Sangsang was standing in front of the Divine Hall of Light emotionlessly. She was no longer reminiscing the years in Chang¡¯an. She was now focused on her own realm, as well as the present.


    People were fighting for life and death in the front yard of Peach Mountain. Every bit of human ugliness or beautifulness was hidden in the fighting. But all of it seemed absurd to her, nothing but some entertainment.


    Throughout tens of thousands of years, only very few like the Headmaster of the Academy had done something worthy in Haotian¡¯s eyes. What mattered to human beings had always seemed trivial to Haotian, from wars to disasters, from birth to death. It was the same as how the emotions of ants seemed trivial to human beings.


    When the South Sea branch came to the Peach Mountain, she did not care. They were also her most devout followers. From her Divine Kingdom above she had seen them fighting for power for countless times. There was nothing unexpected. She did not care about Liu Bai¡¯ sword because she was Haotian who knew everything in the human world. What was more important to her was the Academy¡¯s n. She wondered if they could surprise her.


    Even after such a long wait, nothing unexpected had happened. She felt bored and impatient as she looked at Chen Pipi standing on the altar.


    Even if the Rite to Light would not open a path to the Divine Kingdom, she would still need to cut her bonds to the human world. Or, if she could not sever the strongest bond, she would at least have to cut off some branches. The death of Chen Pipi would mean to cut off a branch of that bond. However, him still being alive, as well as another branch, Tang Xiaotang, being saved by yet another branch further irritated her.


    She did not want to admit that her irritation came from the bonds between the branches themselves, nor that the other end of the bond was still clinging onto her. That was why she wanted to quickly kill Chen Pipi.


    She thought she would never get angry. Yet, deep down inside, a storm was forming. She went back to the terrace of the Divine Hall and looked at the steep cliffs and floating clouds, declining to pay further attention to the trivialities happening down in the front yard.


    When Haotian felt something, the human world echoed.


    Those most devout followers, divine priests and deacons of the West-Hill Divine Halls and people from the South Sea could sense the anger of Heaven.


    When Haotian pondered, Heaven and Earth echoed.


    The autumn wind roared through the valley in Peach Mountain. Those fallen peach petals were lifted again as they danced in the wind. Dancing toward the sky, they looked charming and somewhat bloody because of their color.


    ...

 Chapter 877 - The Sword Raises, Us at Each End of the Bridge

    <h4>Chapter 877: The Sword Raises, Us at Each End of the Bridge</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    An indescribable bout of awe-inspiring energy descended from the summit of Peach Mountain, enveloping the entire teau.


    All the people who were present felt an unearthly power.


    Inside the Sacred Sedan, the Hierarch knelt without hesitation.


    Ye Hongyu thought for a moment, then dropped from her seat into a kneeling position.


    At first, Zhao Nanhai was about to reprimand her. Once he felt the mood shift, as well as the imposing presence of this bout of Sublime Heavenly Power, he did not dare to speak. He knelt on the ground with an expression of respectful solemnity.


    Everyone in the Divine Hall of West-Hill were kneeling. Those from the South Sea were all on their knees. The Golden Tribe¡¯s national master, who had travelled hundreds of miles to the Peach Mountain to be part of the Rite of Light just to see the face of the heavens, had also solemnly knelt a long time ago.


    Everyone in the front yard of Peach Mountain were kneeling without exception, including the Buddhist monks.


    Chen Pipi was still sitting on the white stone altar. He thought, I¡¯m almost a dead man, there¡¯s no way I¡¯m kneeling now.


    Tang Xiaotang knew who was on Peach Mountain, so she did not want to kneel. If you were Haotian and I were a Light Sect disciple, how could I kneel to you? If you are Sang Sang and I am your friend, why should I kneel to you?


    She stubbornly remained upright, resisting the immense pressure on her body. Blood gushed out of every gash on her body. It was a wretched sight. Her knees seemed ready to snap, creaking and bending slowly under the force.


    No matter how obstinate she was, she was only human. How could she possibly withstand the terrifying Sublime Heavenly Power? Just as she was about to be pushed down to her knees, she caught sight of Chen Pipi sitting on the altar. She followed his lead, plonking her bottom directly on the ground. Grinning at Peach Mountain, she thought, How will you deal with me now?


    Chen Pipi beamed at her and gave her a thumbs-up in approval of her quick-wittedness, effectively praising his own ingenuity as well. However, he did not realize that being the sacrificialmb on the altar, he was experiencing the full, concentrated impact of the Sublime Heavenly Power. Almost instantly, he found that he was no longer able to stay seated.


    The sky was filled with peach flowers that were swirling around in the whistling autumn wind. Chen Pipi swore loudly and found himself sprawled awkwardly on the altar. Although this was an exceedingly inelegant position, it was once again a victory against Haotian.


    Ning Que had knelt very quickly, almost faster than the scrappy servants next to him. As he knelt heforted himself by thinking, You¡¯ve knelt to wash my feet so many times over the years, so what if I return you the favor today?


    The wind blustered around. Then, the sound of sacrificial worship rang through the air.


    It was West-Hill¡¯s Anthem to Heaven, but it emanated from the mouths of the South Sea Divine Priests.


    None of the South Sea people, including Zhao Nanhai, knew why they started to worship. It was as if an unknown noise hadmanded them.


    The color drained from their faces. Their eyes brimmed with awe and admiration.


    The Divine Hall of West-Hill¡¯s Divine Priests, the disciples of the Revtion Institute and the thousands of trembling, kneeling disciples on the teau all joined the South Sea Divine Priests in worship. Their solemn, sacred chants carried across Heaven and Earth.


    The Anthem to Heaven, passed down between the South Sea Divine Priests, became even more exquisite. Compared to the sacrificial ceremony at the very beginning, it was obviously going to be much more sessful this time. Haotian would hear it much more clearly.


    Countless rays of light from the autumn sun appeared, shining upon the white stone altar.


    Chen Pipi was bathed in the light. In his difort, he tried to roll over, only to realize that he could not move.


    At the Anthem to Heaven¡¯s final word, the rays of light would turn into pure Haotian energy and he would be incinerated, bing green smoke. What would happen after that, nobody knew.


    Looking at the azure sky, he seemed to see another thread forming.


    He eximed in wonder, ¡°Look, everyone, the sky is opening up!¡±


    Nobody heard his cry. Most of the crowd on Peach Mountain¡¯s teau were concentrated on their worship.


    At the sight of him, the young South Sea girl Xiao Yu wept, her face filled with anguish. Even though he was her fianc¨¦, this was the wish of Haotian, so she did not dare to defy the will of nature.


    Tang Xiaotang gazed at Chen Pipi and said, ¡°Let me try again.¡±


    She felt that since he was her man, she should at least do something. A rush of strength entered her body from some unknown source. Somehow, it allowed her to stand under the force of the Sublime Heavenly Power!


    She did not know how she could defeat Haotian. Since it was a battle, she needed a weapon, but her iron rod had been hurled some distance away earlier on.


    With great difficulty, Tang Xiaotang stood and searched for a weapon.


    Suddenly, she saw a sword.


    She did not know that it was Liu Bai¡¯s sword, but she found it quite suitable.


    This was because the sword was stationary and floated in the air before the altar.


    Even before the Sublime Heavenly Power came from Peach Mountain, everyone was already kneeling. Even the fence of swords forming the Confinement were bent towards Peach Mountain, almost as if they were kowtowing.


    Only this sword remained still and unyielding, unwilling to bend.


    Tang Xiaotang reached out to grab the sword but found that she could not move it.


    She was unwilling to ept this and drew on all the strength in her body to pull, but the sword refused to budge. It was as if the sword was not even in their world.


    The more she realized that the sword was no ordinary sword, the less she wanted to let go. The harder she exerted herself, the quicker the blood flowed out of her body. It flowed along her wrist and onto the sword.


    To get here from Chang¡¯an, she flew nonstop across hundreds of miles. She had never stopped fighting. Her blood was always boiling hot. It flowed onto the sword with a sizzle.


    Suddenly, the sword moved.


    The sword trembled slightly, then slowly raised until it was pointing directly at the Divine Hall of Light on the summit of Peach Mountain.


    Tang Xiaotang¡¯s eyes grew round and wide. She stared at it curiously, not understanding what had just urred.


    Chen Pipi suddenly broke out into a broad smile and said, ¡°Great Sage of Sword, rescue me quickly.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the steadily rising de without a word.


    Yu Lian said there would be no change because it was true that no human n could upbraid any n of the heavens. Therefore, she had made no ns, deciding instead to let events unfold ording to their natural course.


    The change he was always waiting for had finally happened.


    ...


    Three hundred miles* from Peach Mountain was South Jin, where the Sword Garret was.


    When the disciples of the Sword Garret knelt before the sword-like peak, they formed a solid sea of ck.


    After Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s visit to the Sword Garret, the Sword Sage Liu Bai went to Linkang City. After returning to the Sword Garret, he went into istion.


    Cultivators often needed to go into istion. Liu Bai devoted his life to swordsmanship, so the number of times he went into istion was numerous. This time was a little different, however, because he had chased all the students out of the Sword Garret.


    Deep in the hillside, the water of thegoon was as frigid as ever.


    Liu Bai sat at the edge of thegoon with his eyes closed in deep thought. An ancient sword hung suspended over thegoon.


    After decades of work, he had finally cultivated the ancient sword to perfection. Last autumn, the Headmaster of the Academy had borrowed it and used it to defeat the Golden Dragon and the Divine General. Since then, nobody had the right to use the sword.


    Not even he deserved to use it.


    He sat facing the sword for days and nights at a time.


    The shadow that the sword cast on his body became darker and darker, as if the man and the sword were about to meld into one.


    The ancient sword suddenly began to vibrate gently.


    Liu Bai felt it happen. He opened his eyes to look at the sword and said to himself with a smile, ¡°The hot blood of a young girl is indeed the best at firing up the bravery of mankind.¡±


    The ancient sword began to whistle. It threaded through the hole in the mountain¡¯s peak and flew into the sky.


    Thegoon was still freezing cold but, Liu Bai¡¯s figure was nowhere to be seen.


    ...


    The sacred words of West-Hill¡¯s Anthem to Heaven reverberated throughout Peach Mountain. Everyone present was kneeling and devoutly offering their prayers and worship. Only the sword in the air before the altar was slowly raising its head.


    Instead of bowing, the sword looked up. This represented that person¡¯s attitude toward Peach Mountain where the de was pointed at, toward the Divine Hall of Light and toward the person inside the Divine Hall of Light.


    The Hierarch was most affected by this scene. He became enraged, then confused. He could not understand it. There was a deep enmity between the Sword Garret and the Academy; Liu Yiqing had been blinded in both eyes by Ning Que and innumerable Sword Garret students had died at the hands of the Great Tang. The most Liu Bai could do in this fight between Taoism and the Academy was to remain neutral. Why would he do what he was doing now? How could he dare to use his own sword to provoke the one who stood atop Peach Mountain?


    When Tang Xiaotang¡¯s hot blood dripped onto the sword, it evaporated into a bloody mist which spread amongst the broken peach flower petals dancing in the sky. The mist of blood secretly scattered the sword¡¯s haughty will. The devoutly kowtowing disciples and Divine Priests were pierced by the sword¡¯s will. They only became aware of a ghastly cold, then felt an intense pain in their throats, which made it hard to produce any sound.


    The Divine Priests who, like Zhao Nanhai, had strong Taoist Hearts and a high cultivation, resolutely continued to chant the Anthem to Heaven. However, the tens of thousands of disciples, servants and ves found it impossible to speak. The sound from before Peach Mountain steadily became weaker, less unified and more garbled.


    The rays of light shining down from the autumn sun had also dimmed significantly. On the white stone altar, Chen Pipi had no idea what had urred. He gazed doubtfully at the sky.


    The bout of Sublime Heavenly Power that shrouded the front yard of Peach Mountain felt the change in the atmosphere and seemed to conceal a divine rage. The Hierarch felt his heart trembling. He stood and red angrily at the sword.


    He had already guessed what Liu Bai was going to do. Although he was shocked at his decision and infuriated at him for making Haotian unhappy, he actually weed this situation.


    Since the Twenty-Three-Year Cicada has not dared to make an appearance, then let me destroy your sword and kill you, the strongest person in the world, and thus help the West-Hill Divine Hall rebuild its prominent status!


    The West-Hill Hierarch was a very strong individual who had already transcended the Five States. After he was cured by Haotian, he had be even stronger. Even so, when he faced Liu Bai years ago, he never would have had this kind of confidence. Although Liu Bai had not broken through the Five States, the reason was not because he could not surpass them, but because he did not want to. His sword could weave through hundreds of miles*, how could it not be able to cross the barrier that seemed sky-high to normal cultivators?


    Yet the Hierarch was now sure that he could defeat Liu Bai. He was prepared to destroy the Academy at the Rite of Light, so could he fear Liu Bai, who was merely one person? Still, the question remained ¨C where did his confidencee from?


    His assurance came from the Divine Hall of Light on Peach Mountain, and from the person inside the Divine Hall.


    In fact, the Hierarch¡¯s divine ability to transcend the Five States was due to Tianqi, which was essential to Taoism. Tianqi was a cultivator using their greatest sincerity and faith to ask Haotian to grant them power. Since Haotian was now on Earth and was only separated by the distance of the mountain, his Tianqi did not need to travel across the sky and thus would not sustain any damage. Once he offered a prayer to the sky, he would then possess unfathomable power. How could any opponent match him?


    The Hierarch outstretched his arms, with his palms spread across therge Sedan, weing the clear blue sky.


    A bout of majestic strength descended from the Divine Hall of Light on Peach Mountain and arrived in the front yard of Peach Mountain.


    This bout of strength was terrifying. It was many times stronger than the Sublime Heavenly Power from before.


    The Hierarch looked at his soft, reborn palms and smiled, thinking: I am the strongest under heaven. It doesn¡¯t matter if it¡¯s Liu Bai or Lin Wu. Even if the Headmaster of the Academyes to life, none of them can oppose me!


    Just at that moment, Liu Bai¡¯s sword silently turned and flew forward, whistling through the air!


    The sword¡¯s hilt scraped Tang Xiaotang¡¯s hand.


    The young girl¡¯s hot blood on the sword¡¯s body quaked and separated into countless drops, sprinkling into the sky.


    The shining, yet ordinary de pierced the Sedan andunched into the face of the Hierarch.


    The Hierarch¡¯s broken shout was as loud as thunder. He moved to use the Tianqi to crush the de.


    Yet...he suddenly realized that he had remained unchanged!


    He did not feel a single trace of Divine Power developing anywhere in his tiny, weak body.


    What about the Tianqi? Didn¡¯t I just activate the Tianqi Divine Ability? Why do I not feel any Divine Power in my body? Just what had happened?


    Liu Bai¡¯s sword did not even enter the Sedan, and it was not hovering before the Hierarch¡¯s face. Following the requests of the Academy, it had only used its will to attack, then flew towards Peach Mountain.


    The sword neverunched towards the stunned Hierarch, because it came from Earth but there was nobody left on Earth with the right to stain it with blood.


    Furthermore, the person controlling the sword had to remain focused. If anyone who tried to challenge Haotian became distracted for a split second, it would be offensive to Haotian and to themselves. It would be unforgivable.


    The sword¡¯s will came from hundreds of miles* away. It spanned across the space between heaven and earth.


    The sword flew towards Peach Mountain.


    Two Blows of Light were set up around Peach Mountain. Each Blow of Light was stronger than thest. Even a strong individual who had reached the peak of the Knowing Destiny State would find it hard to break free quickly.


    Yet Liu Bai¡¯s sword moved too quickly. It was as fast as lightning.


    Liu Bai¡¯s sword was too sharp for anything on Earth to stand in its way.


    Two bright shattering sounds rang clearly from atop Peach Mountain.


    That meant that the two ssmps in Xuankong temple had been shattered.


    It meant that the ink b in Zhishou Abbey had been broken.


    It meant that the white bones in the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine had cracked.


    It meant that the iron te on the stove of the Academy¡¯s Back Hill had copsed.


    Two blows of radiant light shed, announcing destruction!


    Liu Bai¡¯s sword turned into a single sharp line. It never entered the Divine Hall of Light!


    Before the altar, the sounds of worship subsided, and the sword vanished into thin air.


    Inside the Sedan, the Hierarch¡¯s silhouette appeared huge in the boundless light. Although he offered his palms straight out, the sight of him seemedughable and humiliating.


    The sword shot straight up Peach Mountain and did not pay him any mind.


    On the altar, Chen Pipi saw the sight andughed, thinking, You¡¯re still an idiot.


    The Hierarch was still the same old Hierarch. He did not transform into the most powerful person in the world because his Tianqi failed.


    How could it have failed? When the Hierarch used his Tianqi, everyone present felt a bout of majestic and fearsome Divine Energye down from within the Divine Hall of Light on Peach Mountain.


    Haotian had already bestowed the Divine Energy, but it had not entered the Hierarch¡¯s body.


    Where, then, did that majestic Divine Power go?


    The people looked around the teau pale-faced. The Golden Tribe¡¯s national master and Qi Nian seemed especially worried and could not help but wear expressions of worry.


    That area was some distance from the altar. The position was off to the side. Over there, in a patch of ck, huddled some of the Divine Hall¡¯s ordinary deacons and lowly servants from the Revtion Institute.


    The majestic Divine Power from the Divine Hall of Light fell somewhere amongst that crowd.


    It fell directly onto a scrappy manservant, clothed in green.


    Haotian¡¯s Divine Power charged endlessly into his body.


    It seemed like a bridge.


    One end of the bridge was on the mountaintop, and the other end was at the mountain¡¯s base.


    One end was on her body, the other end was on his body.


    This was fate, as well as a reunion.


    They could never even think about separating again.


    ...

 Chapter 878 - The Unseverable

    <h4>Chapter 878: The Unseverable</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The bridge never disappeared. Magnificent divine power from atop the Peach Mountain was endlessly charging the body of that manservant in green. Within a very short period of time, his Qi elevated astonishingly from that of an ordinary human to one of a mighty cultivator. He reached the Knowing Destiny State almost in the blink of an eye, and even proceeded to go beyond the Five States!


    The manservant in green was lowering his head, with his body surrounded by divine lights. People in front of the altar could not see his face or figure out who he was. They were confused to why the Haotin was bestowing this manservant with divine power, uninterruptedly and endlessly even though it was the Hierarch who used Tianqi.


    The bout of unworldly power entered the body of an ordinary human being and activated an intensive response between heaven and earth. An invisible wave spread out from within the body of that manservant towards every corner of the human world, from Chang¡¯an to Min Mountain, even to the farthest North Sea.


    No doubt it had been the most majestic Tianqi in the history of cultivation.


    Tianqi was the great Divine Ability that surpassed the Five States. It had only been recorded in the teaching of the West-Hill and oral legends. It was never known to ordinary people, not to mention for them to witness.


    The guests of the Rite to Light on Peach Mountain were either great cultivators or people of high-ranks in the human world. They were aware of the Tianqi state. Some had even witnessed it previously. But they would have never imagined that Tianqi couldst for such a long period of time. Why was the Haotian exceptionally generous to that person?


    Staring at the bold cliffs and floating clouds, Sangsang stood there on the terrace of the Divine Hall of Light. She was enraged as the bout of power had left her giant body and was continuously being poured into the body of that person in the front yard of Peach Mountain.


    Her presence in the human world made this Tianqi extraordinarily magnificent. Yet not one Haotian besides herself was aware of the reason for such a scene. She knew it because it had happened before.


    Years before her awakening, she was still a maidservant to that person in the coldest winter in Chang¡¯an. She was holding onto a big ck umbre at the Snow Cliff by the Snow Lake when he re-encountered Xiahou. He proposed that she sing for him that night. And she also opened her heart and soul for him. She then sang to the Snow Lake, as well as for him.


    Although she did not want to sing today, he could still hear it if he wanted.


    When her power was poured into his body, a bridge was created between them again. This infuriated her even though it was not unexpected.


    Uponing back to the human world, she had been trying to cut any possible connections with that person. She never went to Chang¡¯an to visit him. Even if it seemed like she had to put an end to their rtionship and telepathy, what had happened just now was nothing but a proof of their bond. Whenever she sang, he would be her only audience. It was because of the pre-existing bond between them.


    Right at the moment of Tianqi, they were reunited and never to be parted. She knew what he was thinking about and he also read her mind. The two of them formed a world of their own again.


    Sangsang was more than willing to present her life and soul to that person when they were by Snow Lake. However at that moment in the Divine Hall of Light, she could feel nothing but fury and disgust.


    Thunder and bolt gathered in her eyes. She waved to cut off that bridge and stopped her power from continuing to pour into that person down at Peach Mountain. However, she could never sever that bond.


    She thought about the past that only belonged to the two of them and experienced his breath. Color was fading from her face either due to outrage or due to the power being drained from her.


    For certain reasons she had refrained from killing him. They hade across each other a few times recently in Peach Mountain, where her fury and hatred had turned the colors of heaven and earth, pulled storms from thousands of miles away and quaked the Divine Halls of West-Hills. She had been able to suppress her feelings until now. Yet her only wish at that point was for him to be dead immediately. No matter what consequences it would bring, flood or destruction, she just wanted him dead.


    However, there was one thing she needed to take care of before killing him.


    It was to scrap the sword behind her.


    The sword came from the foot of Peach Mountain.


    It was Liu Bai¡¯s sword.


    The most powerful sword in the human world.


    She had been looking down toward the foot of Peach Mountain with fury and did not spare a moment for the sword because the sword could note close to her.


    Liu Bai¡¯s sword was hanging quietly in the air a few meters behind her.


    Beams of the autumn sun shed in and slightly brightened the Divine Hall of Light. The beams bended almost imperceptibly when passing between her and the sword. It was only then that one could see that the air in front of the de had sunken.


    Upon more careful observation, one would notice that Liu Bai¡¯s sword was not staying still at all. It was flying at unimaginably high speed but could still not pierce through the space in front.


    With thebination of speed and stillness, it formed an uncanny scene.


    There was a shapeless and transparent shield protecting her body and it separated her from the human world. Besides that bond, nothing else had entered her world.


    This was a space she created with her own rules, much more powerful than any cultivator would ever be able to create. It was because no other isted world was allowed within the world of Haotian. The space she created was from the same source as the Haotian¡¯s world. They were not connected but somehowmunicable, and could generate endless new power. Compared to this one, the isted space Yu Lian had created in Chang¡¯an with cicadas¡¯ wings was nothing but weakness.


    Her isted world took shape in the air. It was horrifying that Liu Bai¡¯s sword could almost change the shape of the air behind her. But powerful as it was, the sword was still not able to invade.


    She turned to that quietly flying and trembling sword and reached out.


    She could have harvested stars from the night sky if she had wished, not to mention a mere sword from the human world.


    Right then, a blow of autumn wind invaded the Divine Hall of Light.


    Throughout the Rite to Light at the Peach Mountain today, no human being was present in the Divine Hall of Light. She was not human.


    Then a human being entered the Divine Hall along with the autumn wind.


    It was Liu Bai.


    Before her fingers touched the de, he got hold of the hilt.


    Looking at her quietly, he pushed the sword forward with his right hand.


    She was not expecting him toe to Peach Mountain. She frowned with a real sense of seriousness for the first time since she came back to the human world.


    A second ago, Liu Bai was at the Sword Garret in South Jin Kingdom and not at the Divine Hall of Light. Even if he was the most powerful Sage of Sword in the world, he had not reached the Distanceless State. How did he make it here?


    Upon looking at Liu Bai and his ancient sword, she figured it out.


    A cracking sound rang and echoed in the secluded Divine Hall.


    It exined why the ssmps in Xuankong Temple were shattered, why the ink b in Zhishou Abbey was broken, why the white bones in the Front Gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was cracked and also why the iron te on the stove of the Academ¡¯s Back Hill copsed. People from all these unknown ces in the human world had witnessed the power of Liu Bai¡¯s sword.


    His sword was able to pierce through the separation between heaven and earth. Then, the human world echoed with silvering crushing sounds.


    A tiny crack formed on the isted world in front of her.


    The invisible shield created by the most fundamental rules was easily pierced by Liu Bai¡¯s sword.


    The shining de moved a bit forward, inching closer to her body.


    Then the tip of the de started to rust.


    She stared at him and slowly reached out her fingers.


    Liu Bai was not distance-less. But how did hee to Peach Mountain in a split second?


    It was because his sword could travel thousands of miles in a blink of an eye.


    He and his sword were one entity.


    With his hand on the hilt, he was able to pierce through her isted world.


    He was not using the sword in his hand, but the sword of his heart.


    There was an ancient sword in his heart, the sword that ughtered the Gold Dragon and the Divine General in the Wilderness. He united with his sword today and came in front of her.


    She agreed that Liu Bai was indeed the most powerful one in the human world.


    Wearing no expressions, she was determined to destroy the sword in his heart.


    She was the only ruler in this world. Even if Liu Bai¡¯s sword could pierce through the separation between heaven and earth and through her world, she still had time, endless and ruthless time.


    Right then, an iron arrow was shot toward her back. It was soundless because the speed of this iron arrow was almost distance-less.


    She had cut that bridge.


    The magnificent divine power descending from the Divine Hall of Light to the front yard of Peach Mountain had finally came to an end.


    The most majestic Tianqi in the history of cultivation was over.


    The manservant in green looked up. His body was thoroughly covered with the purest divine power. Slightly white halos were spreading out from every single pore on his skin with every breath he took.


    They could still not see his face clearly. Yet the terrifying energy he spread out was so distinctive that all the other manservants beside him had fled with fear.


    He lifted his right foot and stepped on the ground.


    The quartzite floor cracked under his foot like a fracturing field during a drought. The people around him felt the quaking of Peach Mountain¡¯s front yard.


    An iron bow came from under the ground and rested in his hand.


    The iron bow was never pulled in full as it was today. The powerful bowstring was pulled to its limit by his powerful arms, as if it was about to break.


    The bow was pulled open as a full moon.


    He thought, I can finally call you a full moon today.


    Upon that full-moon shaped bowstring, a ck iron arrow was ready to set off.


    The cold arrow was pointing at the sacred sedan resting high above the front yard of Peach Mountain.


    The sacred sedan was radiating and covered by countless gauze.


    The figure inside the sacred sedan appeared to be huge.


    The bowstring rang.


    The iron arrow was set forward. Diamonds mounted on the bow shed with the arrow.


    The Fu on the iron arrow waspleted.


    Upon setting off, the tail of the arrow stirred up a whirl of terror.


    Then it disappeared.


    At the same time people around the altar cried out with astonishment.


    ¡°It¡¯s Ning Que!¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s the Thirteen Primordial Arrows!¡±


    Although people around the altar could still not see clearly the face of that manservant in green, they recognized him from the iron bow. There was only one bow of its kind in the world.


    The iron bow belonged to Ning Que.


    He was Ning Que from the Academy.

 Chapter 879 - Impossible as Ants to Shake a Mighty Tree, I Have become Invincible! (I)

    <h4>Chapter 879: Impossible as Ants to Shake a Mighty Tree, I Have be Invincible! (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    In the front yard of Peach Mount there was an uproar. No one was willing to believe this. They had all been waiting for someone from the Academy to show up. But none of them knew that he had been there in the crowd all along.


    When Ning Que pulled his bow and shot an arrow toward the huge figure in the giant sedan, people eximed with more dread. They all knew how terrifying his arrow could be.


    Years ago in the Wilderness, Ning Que used an iron arrow to paralyze Prince Long Qing, who was already stepping into the state of Knowing Destiny. Ning Que was merely at the state of See-through at that time. In the present however, not only had he be a Knowing Destiny, but he had also just stolen the most powerful Tianqi in history and surpassed the Five States. How devastating would his iron arrow be now?


    In fact, before the crowd went into an uproar, the Hierarch in the giant Sedan had sensed the danger. After all, he was the most powerful cultivator present at the front yard of Peach Mountain.


    Pulling himself back from being stunned previously, he shouted out, waved his newly grown palms swiftly above, and generated ten bouts of distinctive Qi in front of the sedan.


    These bouts of Qi were of irresistible prestige as divine rules under the heaven. It could be used as guidance to anything in the human world, namely the Heaven¡¯s Rules.


    After severely wounded in the lower abdomen by Yu Lian years ago in the Wilderness, the Hierarch had be a eunuch and relinquished his carnal desires ever since. He cultivated with the Heaven¡¯s Rules along the years until it had be his natal skill.


    He was truly the master of the Divine Halls of West-Hill. Although the Tianqi of Haotian¡¯s Divine Power was stolen by Ning Que, the Hierarch still held unfathomable power and a high state, and was never an easy prey.


    Even he had adopted the Heaven¡¯s Rules, the Hierarch did not dare to try to control Ning Que¡¯s iron bow and arrows. It was because Ning Que had acquired the magnificent Haotian¡¯s Divine Power and made the leap beyond the threshold of the Five States. His power was beyond this world. The Heaven¡¯s Rules had control over any in this world, but not beyond.


    Therefore the Hierarch chose to control the divine priests and deacons of West-Hill under his giant sedan. Ten bouts of Heaven¡¯s Rules descended to the crowd. People there suddenly turned pale when they lost control of their own bodies. The dean and deputy-dean of Revtion Institute and over a dozen of red-robed divine priests were ced in front of the giant sedan.


    It was then that Ning Que¡¯s iron arrow just left the bowstring.


    No sound was heard when the iron arrow left the bowstring until it came in front of the giant sedan. It made a horrifying bang when shooting into the first red-robed divine priest who was immediately blown up into a bloody mist. It proceeded to the second red-robed divine priest who was again blew up into a mist of blood.


    Over a dozen of red-robed divine priests and the dean and deputy dean of Revtion Institute were floating in the air between Ning Que and the giant sedan. Upon a ck bolt they were all blew up into mist of blood.


    Everyone in front of the giant sedan was killed, including Mo Li, the deputy dean of Revtion Institute and their dean who was already a Knowing Destiny. They were blown up before they could even react.


    Then the arrow pierced into the giant sedan.


    Layers of gauze was scattered into the sky. Radiating lights were dimmed like an oilmp in storm. The giant sedan was smashed into pieces and the Hierarch¡¯s wretched and skinny body was revealed.


    After employing the Heaven¡¯s Rules, the Hierarch could only fall to the ground. He would have done anything to escape from that horrifying iron arrow. How could he possibly care about the dignity of Taoism?


    The iron arrow was too fast. Though it slowed down a bit after blowing up a dozen of divine priests and smashing the giant sedan, it was still too fast for anyone to predict.


    When the iron arrow came to the Hierarch, he was only able to slightly bend his knees and lean his body. His palms were barely reaching out so he failed to avoid the attack.


    He was terrified and his pupils shrank.


    Upon two bangs, his right palm was blown up and right shoulder followed next. Every part bursted into a bloody mist upon being hit by the iron arrow.


    One of his original palms was chopped by Xu Shi in Xiao Mountain, and the other was taken by Yu Lian at the Academy¡¯s Back Hill. It was only because of Haotian¡¯s bestow that his palms could grow back. But now they were gone again.


    He also lost his right shoulder, which was reced by a scary bloody breach.


    The Hierarch yelled a miserably and looked like a bloody maniac.


    Yet the iron arrow did not stop after destroying the giant sedan. It flew away from the front yard and arrived atop the Peach Mountain in a split second, pointing into the Divine Hall of Light.


    ...


    ...


    Though the ck iron arrow looked simple and ordinary, no one was able to stand in its way despite being cultivators of the See-through or the Knowing Destiny. They could do nothing except being blown up into blood mists. Even the Hierarch was severely wounded. How could a single arrow shot be so powerful?!


    It was shocking but not unexpected. No one was surprised because the Thirteen Primordial Arrows were the joint creation by all the wise cultivators from the Academy¡¯s Back Hill. It was a production of Tang Empire¡¯s national power. It had proved itself in previous battles to be a horrifying killing weapon that surpassed any states.


    Ning Que was already bestowed with Tianqi and possessed unlimited Divine Power. Even if the Hierarch was in his glorious days he would have not been able to take this arrow shot, let alone anyone else in front of Peach Mountain.


    People at the front yard thought that if Ning Que¡¯s arrow was pointed at the Peach Mountain instead of the Hierarch in the giant sedan, the whole Peach Mountain would have copsed.


    The Thirteen Primordial Arrows were unique throughout heaven and earth.


    As powerful as Ning Que and his iron arrow were, it was unexpected for the Hierarch to be able to survive the shot.


    Although the Hierarch was seriously wounded, he was still alive. A powerful cultivator at his state could never be underestimated as long as he was still breathing.


    Ning Que did not find it unexpected because he had a different perception. The Thirteen Primordial Arrows were nothing like ordinary arrows which were more powerful when being shot from closeness. They could be much more unpredictable and horrifying when shot from a far distance.


    As long as the arrow had a specific target, it could destroy the target from mountains and oceans afar because no one could avoid his arrow without being prepared. But when the opponent could see his arrowing, they could react in advance by observing and predicting his movements. That was why he failed to kill Ye Hongyu previously. Although he was at his strongest state, this principle could not be changed.


    He was standing too close to the giant sedan and the Hierarch was able to see his movement clearly. Being a powerful cultivator, the Hierarch was definitely able to react precisely.


    In fact he would have missed him if he did not point lower at the Hierarch. This was the lesson he learned from the previous shot made to the Hierarch that was missed when they were in the Wilderness.


    It was not a pity to him that the Hierarch survived his shot. In the Academy¡¯s n, it did not matter whether the Hierarch was alive or not. Liu Bai¡¯s sword was also just a lead. It led to the most important part of the show, the magnificent Tianqi, and his seizure of Haotian¡¯s Divine Power and their union.


    He knew that he had seeded and was very satisfied.


    Up until then, no one was able to figure out when Ning Que hade to Peach Mountain or why Ning Que was bestowed with Haotin¡¯s majestic Divine Powers even though it was the Hierarch who called for Tianqi. How was he able to be the youngest cultivator in the world to surpass the Five States?


    But the other powerful cultivators were all aware of one thing for sure, that they could not allow Ning Que to shoot another Thirteen Primordial Arrow. If he could make it again, no one in front of Peach Mountain would survive.


    The first to react was the national master of Golden Tribe, the Great Divine Priest of Tripod. Because he was the highest in state, he was a priest and he cultivated on psyche.


    Priests were those with the steadiest state of mind. And the fastest weapon in the world was psyche. It could be faster than any action, whether it be Ning Que pulling his bow or Liu Bai swinging his sword.


    When the national master of Golden Tribe stared at Ning Que, the wrinkles on his face deepened. His psyche then entered Ning Que¡¯s ocean of consciousness, arose terrifying waves and thundering surfs and attacked continuously.


    Colors drained from Ning Que¡¯s face like when they met in the Wildernessst year. He felt disturbance in his ocean of consciousness, and his right arm got rigid when he tried to obtain an arrow from the case.


    Ning Que had acquired the strongest Psyche Power among cultivators. But he was after all not a psyche master nor had cultivate with any Psyche Skills. He was disadvantaged in front of the national master who had cultivated Psyche Skills for decades.


    Yet with his body and soul that have been bestowed with Haotian¡¯s majestic Divine Power, how could he be easily defeated as he was back then? With a blink of an eye, he cleared the disturbance in his ocean of consciousness and left his psyche with pure tranquility.


    Right then a bout of vast power descended and attacked towards the top Ning Que¡¯s head.


    Ning Que knew this bout of power. When he looked up, he saw the figure of a Buddha statue, with his robe floating and Buddha¡¯s glory shining,passionate yet chilling.


    Deep in the glory of Buddha, Qinian from Xuankong Temple sat in padmasana with his lips slightly opened.


    The statue was Qi Nian¡¯s Dharmakaya of atha. What he chanted was the genuine Buddhist Mantra.


    The two together formed the most powerful Buddhist Mantra and Mudra.


    Years ago in Lanke Temple, Ning Que suffered a lot from Qi Nian¡¯s Buddhism Mantra and Mudra. He had practiced Mantra and Mudra but not Dharmakaya so he was no match to Qi Nian at that time.


    However, he was different now.


    Ning Que¡¯s right hand was in the middle of obtaining an arrow. He could not pull it back in time, so he turned it towards above instead!


    The Dharmakaya of atha looked furious with nting de eyebrows and thunderbolt in his eyes. His giant palm was pressing swiftly toward the ground.


    Autumn trees around the front yard trembled in the bout of awe-inspiring Buddhist power. Red and yellow leaves drifted off from the trees.


    Ning Que¡¯s palm seemed tiny and powerless in front of the giant palm of the Dharmakaya of atha.


    When the two palms shed, the Qi of Heaven and Earth in the front yard of Peach Mountain scattered in all directions.


    With a big crash the Dharmakaya of atha was smashed into innumerable pieces.


    Ning Que destroyed this seemingly indestructible Dharmakaya of atha with Haotian¡¯s Divine Power!


    A bout of Haotian¡¯s Divine me came from the side.


    Without turning around Ning Que figured out it was Zhao Nanhai¡¯s sneak attack.


    Without paying any attention, he clenched his right fist which had just smashed the Dharmakaya in the autumn breeze. The fist was clenched loosely so that it could get hold of the hilt of the iron de.


    He brandished his iron de toward Qi Nian from some distance.


    Upon a chilling whistle the iron de became burning red and generated a terrifying me.


    Though Qi Nian had not managed to achieve Buddhahood, his body was already as firm as a rock. Yet he was still not able to take a single strike from Ning Que¡¯s de.


    His robe was smashed. A wretched gash was made on his body.


    But neither Ning Que¡¯s iron de nor the chilling whistle was stopping.


    From within the ming ze, a Vermilion Bird appeared.


    The iron de hewed toward the national master of Golden Tribe.


    With his eyes slightly closed, the national master lifted his ordinary-looking wooden tripod.


    The Vermilion Bird whistled again.


    The wooden tripod was burned ck and cracked.


    In a sh, the national master seemed to have aged several decades and blood gushed from his mouth.


    At that moment the Haotian¡¯s Divine me from Zhao Nanhai fell upon Ning Que.


    Ning Que seemed unaware and turned to look at this descendant of the Great Divine Priest of South Sea who was already at the peak of Knowing Destiny State. The iron de attacked with overwhelming power and Zhao Nanhai was hurled miles away.


    ¡°Stupid,¡± hemented.


    With his body purified by Haotian¡¯s Divine Power, how could he be wounded by Haotian¡¯s Divine me?


    It was deadly quiet in the front yard of Peach Mountain.


    Ning Que felt his body as well as the iron de in his hand, burning.


    As they stopped him from shooting the Thirteen Primordial Arrows, he had to use his iron de.


    He drew his de three times, and three people were badly wounded.


    One was Qi Nian, the World Wayfarer of Buddhism.


    Another was the national master of Golden Tribe, the Great Divine Priest of Tripod.


    Thest one was the stupid Zhao Nanhai.


    No one could believe what they had just witnessed.


    But it was real.


    ...

 Chapter 880 - Impossible as Ants to Shake a Mighty Tree, I Have become Invincible! (II)

    <h4>Chapter 880: Impossible as Ants to Shake a Mighty Tree, I Have be Invincible! (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The front yard of Peach Mountain quaked violently. Lebu, the number one martial art master of the Golden Tribe, finally made his attack. He did not react more slowly than the national master or Qi Nian or anyone else. He was a bitte because he cultivated on martial arts and it took some time for him to hurl his bulky body onto Ning Que like a tiger onto its prey.


    But it did not matter whether he came earlier orter, as he was doomed to fail. Ning Que heard the roaring from behind. He turned his wrist and drew the jet-ck de back from over his shoulder, pounding onto Lebu¡¯s fist.


    Lebu¡¯s fist had knocked against Tang Xiaotang¡¯s iron rod again and again previously. Although the iron rod was a sacred artifact of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, his bare fist has never been injured before. It had shown how horrifyingly high his cultivation level on martial arts was. However, when his fist met the iron de, upon a cracking sound Lebu started howling like a wounded tiger. His wrist bones were smashed. The doughty and bulky figure was hurled away and plonked onto the ground.


    Then came waves of South Sea groups and divine priests of the Divine Halls of West-Hill. Hundreds of Taoist swords were roaring and storming rapidly at Ning Que¡¯s body in the front yard of Peach Mountain.


    Everyone at the scene was aware that they had to kill Ning Que as soon as possible. In order to prevent him from shooting another arrow, they attacked one wave after another with no fear of risking their own lives. They came in waves because of their different levels in cultivation. The national master of the Golden Tribe, Qi Nian from Buddhism and Zhao Nanhai were of the highest state of cultivation. Lebu was slightly lower than them. The rest were even lower.


    But it did not necessarily mean theter waves of attack were weaker than previous ones because theter waves were massive. Everyone joined this fight except Liu Yiqing and Monk Guanhai from Lanke Temple.


    With the density of the sword storm, it was impossible for even the nimblest to escape. However, Ning Que had practiced his swordsmanship to perfection in the Wilderness on Min Mountain and learned the closeness principle from Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom from Ye Hongyu. Even a real storm would not be able to wet his clothes as long as he put his skills to good use, not to mention a storm of flying swords.


    Astonishingly, Ning Que did not even try to escape or shield his body by brandishing his de. He took down one Taoist sword of an elder divine priest from the South Sea and simply ignored the rest of them.


    Hundreds of flying swords hit Ning Que¡¯s body and made him look like a hedgehog from outside. However, in a sh these hundreds of swords fractured inch by inch and fell around his feet like rotten straws.


    The majority of Taoist swords were not even able to pierce through the divine glory enveloping his body. Even those Taoist swords propelled by people of Knowing Destiny State from Divine Halls of West-Hill and South Sea were merely able to rip his clothes and touch his skin before they were stopped and broken in a split second.


    After practicing Haoran Qi, Ning Que trained his body to be as firm as a rock. When he was bestowed with Haotian¡¯s Divine Power, he had run it through with Haoran Qi from inside out and made his body as strong as diamond, almost reaching the State of Immortality of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. How could some ordinary flying swords possibly hurt him?


    Broken swords fell piece by piece and piled up on the ground to the height of half a foot. They looked like piles of red and yellow leaves on the cold ground at the front yard of Peach Mountain. Ning Que stood amongst those piles.


    Upon seeing this scene, the people in front of the altar felt chills. The ones whose natal Taoist swords have been fractured by Ning Que became hopelessly frustrated.


    Today in the Rite to Light, there were at least two dozens of cultivators at the Knowing Destiny State. In addition, there were also peerless masters like the Hierarch, Qi Nian from Buddhism and the national master of the Golden Tribe, more than half of the top cultivators were assembled at the front yard of Peach Mountain. However, a troop of such great caliber was destroyed by Ning Que¡¯s single de.


    In the intensive besiegement by powerful cultivators, Ning Que could not draw a second shot of the Thirteen Primordial Arrows or apply the legendary horrifying Divine Talisman. Yet he defeated all of them with an iron de.


    Ning Que used to be referred to as the weakest World Wayfarer in the history of cultivation. But now, who dared to call him weak again? Who was qualified to call him weak and who could ever out-power him?


    Why was that? Was it because he had been bestowed with Tianqi? Why was he bestowed with Haotian¡¯s Divine Power? Even if he had indeed surpassed the Five States, he was still not a follower of Haotian. Why was he not blown up by Haotian¡¯s majestic Divine Power?


    The people were stunned and speechless. They had so many questions but no one could provide an answer.


    Right then, Ning Que thrusted his iron de deeply into the ground and pulled up his iron bow again.


    People in the front yard of Peach Mountain shouted out in rm.


    His iron de was already horrifying enough. What would happen if he were to shoot the Thirteen Primordial Arrows again?


    People would not allow such events to happen. Wounded or not, they made another fearless attack at Ning Que and stirred up the Qi of Heaven and Earth at the front yard of Peach Mountain.


    Same as before, those of the highest states were the first to react.


    The Divine Priest of Tripod, who was also the national master of the Golden Tribe, put on an even more imposing look. The wooden tripod in his hand darkened immediately and it was secretly covered with a thinyer of frost.


    The national master activated and erged his ocean of psyche with the wooden tripod. He formed a bout of frigid psyche power that carried the hatred of countless victims from the Grasnd and charged it at Ning Que.


    He was so sure that even though Ning Que was empowered by Haotian¡¯s Divine Power, he would not be able to stand still when facing this bout of psyche power with chilling hatred at the cost of countless victims. However, he found that his bout of psyche power disappeared right after he activated it, like a y ox entering the sea and never to be found again.


    Such a strike of psyche power was cut off by an invisible force!


    What force could have cut off the psyche power?!


    ...


    ...


    Almost at the same time, Qi Nian employed his strongest skill of Buddhism.


    Qi Nian was a high-ranking monk from Xuankong Temple and the World Wayfarer of Buddhism who shared equal fame with Ye Su and Tang. Since the Heaven unveiled some preternatural vision in the Wilderness twenty years ago, he had swallowed his tongue and had been practicing Silent Meditation withpassion and perseverance ever since.


    No one had heard him talk for over a decade. He did not open his mouth when he faced the secluded Twenty-Three-Year Cicada, leader of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, by the Snow Lake in Chang¡¯an.


    It wasn¡¯t until recently that he spoke again. It was when Ning Que and Sang Sang was about to enter Buddha¡¯s checkerboard in that autumn rain in Lanke Temple. Jun Mo, the Second Disciple of Academy, broke into the temple and Qi Nian uttered his first word after so many years. It was, ¡°Swift!¡±


    Because of the word ¡°swift¡±, the ancient bell in Lanke Temple cracked, and Jun Mo was forced to unveil his weakness to Ye Su and hurled his iron sword. Thus it showed how powerful the Silent Meditation of this high-ranking monk was.


    It had been a few years since then. Qi Nian had strengthened his Silent Meditation. He slightly opened his lips between which, in a tender autumn breeze, a pure white lotus flower was formed!


    This monk had cultivated his Buddhist psyche into an entity!


    This was even more unbelievable whenpared to his Dharmakaya of atha!


    The pure white lotus flower drifted away from his lips towards Ning Que.


    No one knew what kind of power this pure white lotus flower would generate when it was approaching Ning Que.


    Ning Que did not know either. And he did not want to know.


    People at Peach Mountain¡¯s front yard did want to know but that they were not able to figure it out.


    It was because this pure white lotus flower that held boundless Buddhist psyche did not even get any closer to Ning Que. It did not go far from Qi Nian¡¯s lips before it was broken into relics in front of his face.


    What power could have silently chopped the lotus flower of Buddhist psyche into relics?!


    ...


    ...


    Zhao Nanhai attacked Ning Que again with Haotian¡¯s Divine me.


    The Divine me formed a holy stream of light, but was again severed before it could travel further than several feet away from his index finger.


    Lebu shouted loudly and sprang onto Ning Que like a wounded tiger.


    He only made three steps before dozens of gashes were made on his body.


    The psyche power was cut off!


    The white lotus flower was chopped!


    The stream of Haotian¡¯s Divine me was severed!


    The strongest body was gashed!


    It seemed as if there were countless bouts of power hidden in the air around the altar.


    Those bouts of power were sharp enough to cut off any worldly existence.


    What power could be so horrifying?


    The severed Divine me squirted around wretchedly. The chopped white lotus flower released Buddhist psyche that twisted lights. Lebu¡¯s blood gushed out like a waterfall. Some lines loomed amongst those Divine me, lights, and blood.


    The bouts of power were generated from the lines.


    The lines seemed to be in a mess but had merged into groups of two to form the shape of a cross.


    In the air around the altar, dozens of Yi Talisman appeared gradually.


    These were the most powerful Divine Talisman Ning Que could ever draw.


    This was the Divine Talisman that cleaved the Abbey Dean¡¯s bones and flesh in Chang¡¯an.


    No one saw how he activated the Talisman. They did not knew that when Ning Que was drawing the iron de, he was not only repelling his enemies but also drawing the Talismans.


    With one draw, it was a single line. Upon a second draw, it became a Talisman.


    That was the Yi Talisman!


    ...


    ...


    Yi Talismans were flying around the altar.


    No one dared to make further attacks. Even the proudest and strongest cultivators did not dare to take the risk against these simple crosses, as they had learned from the Abbey Dean¡¯s mistake.


    People were stunned not only because of Ning Que¡¯s mystical skills of drawing talisman with de, but also that he was able to draw so many talismans in such a short while.


    A talisman master was gifted. It was not a game for everyone. People like Qi Nian could only grasp the basic principles of talisman. Ifpared with calligraphy, a talisman master¡¯s psyche would be the ink to draw the talisman. It was hard for an ordinary human to imagine how much psyche power it required to draw a Divine Talisman.


    It was impossible for the strongest Divine Talisman master like Yan Se to draw so many Talismans in such a short period of time!


    But Ning Que made it. He did not even need to use meditation to recover his psyche. How could he have ever made it?


    The Yi Talismans were flying around the front yard of Peach Mountain. Innumerable leaves fell and were smashed by the talismans. Countless screams were heard. Many were killed. People like Qi Nian were too stunned to make any step further.


    The iron arrow was set on the bowstring, and the iron bow was being pulled.


    Ning Que looked at the scene in front of him and recalled the snowstorm he experienced in Chang¡¯anst year. The Tianqi bestowed by Haotian¡¯s Divine Power was just like the boundless power that Chang¡¯an had provided him.


    With such power, he could fulfill many unimaginable tasks and draw as many Talismans as needed. He could stand in front of the Abbey Dean with confidence. It felt extraordinarily good.


    It was the feeling of invincibility.

 Chapter 881

    <h4>Chapter 881: Impossible as Ants to Shake a Mighty Tree, I Have be Invincible! (III)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Autumn leaves fell all over the mountain. People on the front yard trembled with fear. Broken limbs were scattered in front of Peach Mountain and blood gushed from people¡¯s gashes. Dozens of Divine Talismans loomed around the altar. The strongest cultivators looked pale and were seriously wounded. They were coughing blood while fleeing.


    The Confinement of Swords around Tang Xiaotang was sliced by the sharp talismans in the air, and became even more terrifying thinner slices of iron des.


    The blood-stained Hierarch stood up from his smashed sedan. Disregarding his wounds, he shouted loudly and pushed forward his left pam. Several bouts of chilling Qi were aimed at Ning Que from afar.


    The Academy always emphasized the natural course of things. They reasoned that one could obtain strong mind power as long as one clung to the natural course. The Hierarch had applied Heaven¡¯s Rules. In a world reigned by Haotian, Heaven¡¯s Rules were also Haotian¡¯s Rules and thus the most powerful natural courses. Therefore, Ning Que¡¯s bouts of Qi were stagnant when he was wielding his de.


    He was after all, the Hierarch of Divine Halls of West-Hill. Though seriously wounded, he was still able to apply powerful skills.


    Ning Que was already invincible in the human world. How could he be trapped by the Hierarch¡¯s Heaven¡¯s Rules? He stormed his psyche power at the bouts of Qi and repelled them. But it required a few seconds.


    The Hierarchmanded, ¡°Activate the Array!¡±


    Within these few seconds, over a thousand divine priests, though badly wounded, managed to sit down on the ground with their legs crossed and started praying to Haotian.


    Upon the Hierarch¡¯smand, a bout of clear light arose from the mountain¡¯s circumference, soared into the sky and bounced back downward. The array of Divine Halls was immediately activated and reduced in size until it became a circle of light at a circumference of several hundred feet.


    Ning Que and the white stone altar were shrouded in this circle of clear light.


    With the guidance of divine priests, tens of thousands of followers in the front yard began to pray. Many of them had been seriously wounded, so their prayer sounded more like weeping grief.


    The prayer of tens of thousands of followers resounded in the Peach Mountain and also reached to the sky. The Array of Clear Light had reduced its size in a hundredfold and thus inversely increased its power in a hundredfold and fell on Ning Que.


    Confronting this array of the assembled psyche power of tens of thousands of people, Ning Que stood and endured so much pressure that it felt like he was fighting against the entire world.


    If it were another powerful cultivator, he would have copsed under such tremendous mental pressure. But Ning Que was different. He had fought against the entire world when he carried Sangsang on his back and escaped to thousands of miles away. He was experienced enough. Fully confident in himself, he slightly applied his psyche power, using Haoran Qi to transform the Haotian¡¯s Divine Power within his bodypletely into his psyche power, and propelled dozens of Divine Talismans against the Array of Clear Light.


    When dozens of Yi Divine Talismans finally shed with the Array of Clear Light, several dozens of white cracks were suddenly formed in the sky above the front yard of Peach Mountain. The violent grating sounds left people sour at their teeth.


    Though the dozens of Yi Talismans could not cut through the Array of Clear Light in a short period of time, the Array was also not able to prate the terrifying power of the Talismans and crush onto Ning Que.


    A temporary moment of peace and bnce was achieved between the Array of Clear Light and the Divine Talismans. The cracks on the Array clearly unveiled the tracks of those Divine Talismans.


    Upon seeing dozens of Divine Talismans around the altar and above in the sky, people in the front yard of Peach Mountain felt some biting coldness from inside out. They could not find any ws. By then, only the space in front of the altar was free of floating Divine Talismans. Yet Ning Que had already pulled his iron bow and aimed his iron arrow towards there.


    The Divine Halls of West-Hill were situated in north and facing south. The only way up was via the front yard, located on the north of Peach Mountain. Ning Que stood in front of the altar and aimed his iron arrow at north. What is he going to do with his arrow pointing there?


    It took a long time to describe this battle in details. But it was actually a mere instant from Haotian¡¯s Divine Power descended from the Divine Hall of Light and charged into Ning Que¡¯s body, to his shot at the Hierarch, his de against the strongest opponents in the world, and his Divine Talismans¡¯ shing with the Array of Clear Light. Many were killed even before they could figure out what was going on.


    Tens of thousands of followers and over a thousand of divine priests and deacons went on praying. While their prayer resounded in the front yard of Peach Mountain, it had be deadly quiet around the altar. Nothing was heard except for the grating sounds of the Yi Talismans cutting the Array of Clear Light.


    The strongest cultivators had fled. They stared at Ning Que and his iron bow, stunned and speechless. No one wanted to try to stop him from further actions. They could only wait.


    Without a doubt, talismans were the strongest weapons in the world of cultivation. For a powerful Talisman Master of high state, it did not really matter whether he was confronted with one opponent or ten.


    Yet talismans were not wless. No matter how powerful a Divine Talisman was, it could not slip the leash of time and distance. Eventually it would disappear into nature.


    Although they had suffered tremendously from Ning Que¡¯s de, people like the national master of Golden Tribe and Qi Nian were after all on the top of the world of cultivation. It did not take them long to realize what they should do at that moment.


    They retreated to a safe distance in order to avoid the attack of the Yi Talismans, and waited patiently for the Divine Talismans in front of the altar to disappear, and for Haotian¡¯s Divine Power to be drained from Ning Que¡¯s body.


    They could only hope that Ning Que did not have enough of the Thirteen Primordial Arrows left, or at least he would not aim at themselves for the next shot. They had no other choices.


    After a temporary silence, an old and angry voice spoke.


    It was the second-ranking elder divine priest from the South Sea. He pointed at the Sacred Sedan of Judgment with his blood stained finger and upbraided, ¡°Ye Hongyu, how dare you to collude with the Academy?!¡±


    When the South Sea group challenged the Divine Halls of West-Hill, Ye Hongyu had killed one of them without mercy. Even this elder divine priest of highest state had lost a finger to her unbelievable skills.


    His reprimand was not based on their enmity but somewhat rted. Otherwise no one would have cared about Ye Hongyu¡¯s reaction at such a stage.


    He realized that when the strongest cultivators fought fearlessly against Ning Que, the Sacred Sedan of Judgment did not move at all while Ye Hongyu did not spare a single strike. While all of them had retreated to some distance from Ning Que¡¯s floating Yi Talismans around the altar, the Sacred Sedan of Judgment was still hanging there and Ye Hongyu was still seated calmly inside. She was not affected by the Yi Talismans and Ning Que did not bother to look at her!


    Could there be any reason besides her collusion with the Academy?


    No one but Ye Hongyu and Ning Que could have exined this. Ning Que did not attack her because he did not want to and that it was also a part of the Academy¡¯s n.


    However he was not going to exin that to the Divine Halls of West-Hill.


    Instead of giving any exnation, Ye Hongyu simply stared at a certain direction and pondered with mixed emotions. She was staring at it when the strongest cultivators attacked Ning Que and when Ning Que activated those dozens of horrifying Divine Talismans. She did not fight or escape. Instead, she just stared at that direction intently.


    She was gazing into somewhere above the rock stairs behind the altar, where the giant sedan used to be. Now that the giant sedan had been smashed, the Hierarch finally unveiled his true self in front of everyone.


    He was a wretched, skinny, ck, short, and old Taoist priest.


    If it were on a different asion, the whole world of cultivation would have been shocked by the wretched appearance of the Hierarch of Divine Halls of West-Hill. Yet today at the Rite to Light in the Peach Mountain, facing a life and death situation, who would care about his appearance at all? Even if they saw it, how could they spare a second on staring at him?


    But Ye Hongyu had been looking at the Hierarch ever since. It seemed this was a far more important matter than life or death.


    Ning Que did not know that she had been staring at somewhere behind him. This part of the Academy¡¯s n was designed by their Senior Sister. He did not even understand why.


    What he was thinking about right then was something else: the things that had happened to him and had confused the strongest cultivators. For instance, when did he surpass the Five States? Why was he bestowed with Tianqi? How could he have survived after receiving so much of Haotian¡¯s Divine Power? The answer was rather simple: it was because he was Ning Que.


    He did not actually surpass the Five States, but rather he could apply a Divine Skill that surpassed the Five States, which was the Divine Skill of Tianqi from Taoism. And that was based on his special bond with Haotian.


    As for how he could have survived even though he did not surpass the Five States or that he was not a devout follower of Haotian, it was because of his strong body and experience.


    In his fight against the Abbey Dean on the snow covered streetst year, the God-Stunning Array had charged the Qi of Heaven and Earth throughout Chang¡¯an into his body via the Core Vajra of the Array. He had undergone worsepared to what he experienced today.


    Having survived that, how could he fail to survive the Tianqi today?


    Ning Que knew from their fight in Chang¡¯an that the Divine Power he took from Haotian could onlyst for a specific amount of time. It would disappear again like the Qi of Heaven and Earth did previously.


    And indeed he did not have many iron arrows left in the case. If only he could make endless shots of iron arrows, he would have taken over the whole world by simply standing on top of the walls around Chang¡¯an. Why did he travel all the way to take the risk at Peach Mountain?


    The Yi Divine Talismans around the altar would disappear in time. If a Divine Talisman couldst forever, his master, Yan Se, would have buried the Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom long time ago.


    His invincibility could onlyst for a while.


    And that was the time he had to aplish his mission.


    He turned back and looked above to the Divine Hall of Light on top of the Peach Mountain.


    Following his look, the strongest cultivators in the front yard realized that Liu Bai¡¯s sword had already made its way into the Divine Hall of Light. If there was going to be a battle, it must be the most horrifying one ever.


    It was because it would be a battle between the human world and the heavenly Haotian.


    They were inside the Divine Hall of Light.


    Sangsang lifted her right hand, reached for the jet-ck iron arrow and took it down. It seemed as if the iron arrow had been waiting obediently for her.


    She could have grasped stars and moon, not to mention a single arrow.


    The iron arrow gloomed between her fair fingers.


    She threw it away and turned to Liu Bai.


    Liu Bai had been watching her with his sword in hand.


    By looking at each other, the gap between Heaven and the human world was filled. Enormous amounts of information were exchanged between her and Liu Bai.


    She knew that Liu Bai was renowned as the number one cultivator in the world. If he could live an infinite life, he might at some point be as strong as that lunatic. However it was too early right now. He should not have been able to achieve such state ording to the heavenly prediction. What had happened to him? Since he had achieved such state ahead of time, why didn¡¯t he wait for several hundred years so that the other one could have also reached his highest state?


    She raised her question to Liu Bai.


    And Liu Bai provided a sincere answer.


    ¡°That day at Verdant Canyon, I was somewhat enlightened by the battle between Jun Mo and Ye Su. When you see nothing, my Yellow River does not exist. Later on, Li Manman sent me a bout of Qi with the Academy¡¯s perception of the human world. I was once again enlightened. When I went to Linkang City and saw Ye Su teaching in a shabby alley, I was further enlightened. Finally, when the young girl¡¯s blood shed on my sword today, I felt fully enlightened and filled with wisdom.¡±


    ¡°How could some ants possibly shake a massive tree?¡±


    ¡°My sword does not need to surpass the Five States. If there was a gate to the world beyond the Five States, my sword would cleave it. It can cleave anything, even infinity.¡±


    ¡°When your sword falls, it will hurt you.¡±


    ¡°I opened my eyes to search throughout the world, only to find the crippled Abbey Dean, Li Manman who does not know how to fight, and the Drunkard and the Butcher who are capable but unambitious like two wastrels. Perfect as my swordsmanship is, I could not find a match in the human world. How could I not be resentful?¡±


    ¡°Resentful for what?¡±


    ¡°Resentful because I could never fight with Ke Haoran or drink together with Lian Sheng. Because I was not born a thousand years ago, when the decisive battle against the Light took ce in the Wilderness, or around the same time as the Headmaster of Academy. All of the greatest predecessors were gone, with no one to follow their legacies. I wanted to hold up my sword against Heaven, yet the gate to the Divine Kingdom was already closed. I could no longer step into Heaven. Being trapped here, how could I not feel lonely and be resentful?¡±


    Liu Bai stared at her in front of his sword and sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t want to shed my lonely tears to the endless universe. Since you are here in the human world, I had toe to see you.¡±


    How could some ants possibly shake a massive tree? And how dare youe to the Peach Mountain? The Heaven questioned.


    I am invincible now in the human world. Who else can I fight against if not the Heaven? The strongest sword in the human world answered.


    What was the ultimate purpose of cultivation? ording to Taoism, it was the gift to humans from Haotian. But for the Academy and people like Liu Bai, cultivation had nothing to do with Haotian. It was merely a way to strengthen oneself. Whening to the end of cultivation, they would have to look above and raise their swords against the Heaven.


    It was what Ke Haoran did years ago. The Headmaster of Academy did it as well, for the past thousand years. The Academy continued to do so, even today. And now it was time for the strongest sword in the human world to do the same.


    Liu Bai was his sword.


    The sword in his hand used to be the strongest in the world. Now that he himself had united with the sword once used by the Headmaster of Academy, how strong would they be?


    It had never happened before in the history of cultivation.


    As he mentioned, he did not surpass the Five States. Firstly, he dared not to. Secondly, he did not want to. Andstly, it no longer mattered. Because he had be the sword himself. Whenever there was an obstacle, they will cleave it.


    As for whether or not this sword would fall onto himself as she had affirmed, he did not even care.


    It was because that was the only meaningful thing for him to do now.


    In front of the Sword Garret, thousands of miles away in South Jin Kingdom, his hundreds of disciples stayed on their knees. The sword-shaped ck peak rose all of a sudden and soared into the sky.


    The disciples were shocked and confused. Yet, when they looked up again, the peak seemed to have never moved.


    The Divine Hall of Light vibrated ording to the sword¡¯s will. Numerous slits were seen on the quartz walls. The eternalmp that died out months ago was broken into three pieces.


    The autumn breezeing up from the cliffs was smashed upon reaching the terrace. It tickled people¡¯s desires and made them impatient. It was not the impatience of waiting for a prey, but an eager to be able to eventually witness the Grand Tao.


    Sangsang stood silently on the terrace, facing Liu Bai.


    Liu Bai pushed his sword further with right hand. He found himself to be filled with joy.

 Chapter 882 - Battle between Heaven and Human

    <h4>Chapter 882: Battle between Heaven and Human</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The edge of the sword was pushed one inch forward.


    Liu Bai¡¯s sword had entered two inches of Sangsang¡¯s isted world.


    In front of Haotian, an inch was equal to the furthest distance.


    This meant his sword had traveled thousands of miles.


    Liu Bai was not the first human to challenge Haotian, yet he was the first to get this close to Haotian. It was not because of his power, but rather that Haotian was present at the human world.


    The Heaven was supposed to be eternally divided from the human world, with a huge gap in between. As for their battle inside the Divine Hall of Light, the gap took its shape in an invisible shield ¡ª Sangsang¡¯s isted world.


    How did Liu Bai¡¯s sword enter her isted world?


    It was because he had his sword that consisted of the peak from Sword Garret of South Jin Kingdom, the shabby alley from Linkang City, the memory of ughtering the Golden Dragon and the Divine General in the Wilderness, the perception of human world provided by the Academy, his decades of persevering cultivation and mediation, and the courage to challenge the Heaven from his predecessors in hundreds of thousands years. Thus, he had a boundless universe in it.


    And he had invaded Haotian¡¯s world with the boundless universe.


    Upon hearing the prayers from bottom of the mountain, Sangsang waved her green sleeve and propelled a refreshing breeze down Peach Mountain, while paying no attention to the sword pressing onward.


    Liu Bai¡¯s sword started rusting gradually. Its shiny edge became gloomy and stained with greenish red spots. The rusty spots kept spreading all over the de.


    She was the ruler of this world. Even though she could not reverse cause and effect, she had perfect control over the most basic and most powerful rules in her isted word.


    That was her weapon. She defeated Liu Bai¡¯s boundless universe with time. Despite the flourishing of human world, the Ever Night would still fall. Despite the luxuriance of the forests, the autumn wind would bring down their leaves. The greatest, bravest, most elegant or secr would all be insignificant in time.


    Liu Bai¡¯s sword was pushed forward another inch.


    The inch on the de rusted immediately.


    While his sword pressed onto her gradually, the de was eroded by time.


    For her, it was the most intimate distance with a human being ever since she entered the human world.


    There were less than three inches between them.


    No one knew which woulde sooner: Liu Bai¡¯s sword getting into thest inch in front of her or Sangsang eroding the strongest sword in human world to a wastrel.


    A refreshing breeze descended from the Divine Hall of Light onto the front yard of Peach Mountain.


    The blood that was gushing from the Hierarch¡¯s shoulder immediately stopped. The wound was recovering at a slow but obvious speed with new flesh growing from within.


    Those seriously wounded by Ning Que were all restored with new power by the refreshing breeze. The devout followers of Haotian all realized that their gashes started to heal except for Qi Nian.


    Besides the people who were already dead, everyone else felt thepassion and love from Haotian and witnessed her miraculous power. Their prayers became more devout and concerted, and they were filled with awe and faith in Heaven and Light.


    The Array of Clear Light of Divine Halls of West-Hill seemed ordinary. It was pierced by Liu Bai¡¯s sword and broken in by Tang Xiaotan¡¯s iron cudgel. But now it had reduced into a circle of some hundred feet and unveiled its true power through their prayers.


    Because of this Array of Clear Light, Ning Que was not able to kill all of the powerful cultivators an the front yard. He did not have enough iron arrows and he was not able to draw more Divine Talismans.


    Only Ning Que, Chen Pipi, and Tang Xiaotang were left standing around the altar, alongside the Sacred Sedan of Judgement. Everyone else, including the Hierarch, had retreated. No one dared to stay in front of his iron arrow. Thus, a clear path was formed from the north of the altar.


    Ning Que would have left if he were by himself. No one could stop him while he was still invincible because of Haotian¡¯s Divine Power.


    But he did not came all the way from Chang¡¯an to the Divine Halls of West-Hill to simply kill a few strong cultivators and reim reputation for the Academy. His mission has just started and not fulfilled.


    And there were Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang as well in front of the altar.


    Ning Que sensed the draining of Haotian¡¯s Divine Power from his body. Although it was not very fast, it would be drained in time. The Yi Talismans were flying above and around the altar. However, they would also disappear eventually.


    Without turning around he told Chen Pipi, ¡°Go!¡±


    His single word had indisputable affirmation. Chen Pipi did not hesitate at all. He stepped down from the altar, clutched Tang Xiaotang and left the front yard.


    He did not even look back at Ning Que before they left. Tang Xiaotang felt worried and asked, ¡°What about the Youngest Uncle?¡±


    Still without turning around, Chen Pipi panted and said, ¡°We won¡¯t be able to save him anyway. In the Divine Halls of West-Hill, his life or death lies only in the hands of Haotian.¡±


    His chubby figure seemed weaker than any ordinary man because his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow were chained up. He panted heavily while clutching Tang Xiaotang and ran at a high speed.


    Tang Xiaotang did not understand what he said, but she understood their brotherhood. She took out an elixir and swallowed it, then carried Chen Pipi on her back. She cultivated the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, which possessed her with a strong recovering power. Plus, she had just consumed the elixir refined by her Eleventh Uncle, Wang Chi. Although she was still quite weak, she ran much faster than Chen Pipi now. She knew that they were running out of time and Ning Que had risked his own life for their escape. Therefore, she carried Chen Pipi, lowered her head, and ran away from the front yard rapidly.


    Compared with her exquisite figure, Chen Pipi looked like a loaded bear in winter before hibernation. They looked funny as people could not even see Tang Xiaotang from behind.


    Ning Que stood in front of the altar and could not help butugh at this couple. However, the iron bow in his hand stayed still and so did the iron arrows on the bowstring.


    As long as the arrow stayed on the string, no one dared to stand in front of it.


    There was a path before Ning Que¡¯s iron arrow. It was a fatal route for the enemies, but the safest for his allies.


    Not even one strong cultivator had tried to stop Tang Xiaotang and Chen Pipi, not even the most devout ones from the South Sea. They were all afraid of the Thirteen Primordial Arrows.


    Yet, the cavalrymen of Divine Halls of West-Hill did not care. They were used to such fatal battles and had the most passionate devotion for Taoism. They did not care for their own lives. Horrifying as they were, the Thirteen Primordial Arrows could never kill two thousand veteran cavalrymen.


    Together with the refreshing breeze, some dust rose and came from the path afar.


    Ning Que figured out what might be happening and called out, ¡°Liu Yiqing!¡±


    No one in the front yard could understand why in such a crucial moment he called for help from the Sword Garret of the South Jin Kingdom. Ye Hongyu knew why somehow, but she could not spare further attention to it.


    Liu Yiqing and disciples from the Sword Garret did not participate in this earth-shaking battle. Even though they were all at the Knowing Destiny State, they were far too inferior whenpared with ones like the Hierarch and Qi Nian. Furthermore, they did not know what they should do.


    Liu Bai, the Sage of Swords was a visiting minister for the Divine Hall of West-Hills. Thus, the Sword Garret of the South Jin Kingdom had always viewed themselves as a branch of Taoism. Though they were too arrogant to submit themselves to the Divine Hall of West-Hills, they never thought about betraying the Divine Hall either.


    The South Jin Kingdom and the Great Tang Empire had had feuds over generations. There had been no friendship but only feuds between the Sword Garret and the Academy. They should have been on the same side with Taoism. Yet, Liu Bai and his sword had already entered the Divine Hall of Light.


    Everyone knew clearly what that meant.


    Liu Yiqing lowered his voice and asked, ¡°What for?¡±


    Ning Quemanded, ¡°Go with my Academy fellows.¡±


    The disciples of Sword Garret hesitated. If they did not leave right now, the Divine Halls of West-Hill would definitely chastise them shortly. Yet if they did retreat with the Academy, it would mean an official betrayal to Taoism and a deration of their alliance with the Tang Empire.


    They looked at Liu Yiqing. While the Sage of Swords was challenging the Heaven in the Divine Hall of Light, they could only rely on Liu Yiqing to make such a crucial decision.


    Facing such a tense situation with limited time, Liu Yiqing closed his eyes and tried to sense the intangible Sword¡¯s Will from the Divine Hall. Then he stamped heavily and eximed, ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡±


    With some mixed feelings, the disciples of Sword Garret made up their minds.


    They prostrated three times toward the Divine Hall of Light, then rushed out of Peach Mountain and joined Tang Xiaotang and Chen Pipi shortly.


    Now that they were on the same path, they became fellows.


    The cavalrymen of Divine Halls of West-Hill lined up in their arrays.


    The disciples of Sword Garret were holding their swords solemnly with blood rushing into their eyes.


    ¡°Protect the superiors of the Academy!¡±


    Liu Yiqing was clutched by his Younger Brother, with a sword in his hand. He listened to the hoofing sounds from ahead, thought of his brother who was fighting in the Divine Hall of Light, and shouted with tragical heroism, ¡°Whoever in our way is dead!¡±


    After all, the cavalryman of Divine Halls were previously defeated by Tang Xiaotang and had witnessed a series of unimaginable scenes. Although they had gathered all of their remaining courage to stand up again, they were not a match against the disciples of South Jin Kingdom, who were determined to sacrifice themselves. The cavalrymen copsed immediately, particrly when Liu Yiqing and Tang Xiaotang started fighting desperately.


    On the way out of Peach Mountain, the fight turned from fierce to restrained, until the pursuit fainted and only wounded soldiers were left moaning. People in the front yard continued with their prayers gravely.


    People from the Divine Halls of West-Hill and their guests to the Rite To Light could still not believe what they had just seen. There were supposed to be blood feuds between the Academy and the Sword Garret. Ju Mo lost his right arm to Liu Bai, while Liu Yi Qing lost his eyes to Ning Que. How could these two parties form an alliance upon a few simple words from Ning Que?


    The guests did not understand. To the disciples of the Academy and the Sword Garret, losing an eye or an arm was ordinary. Their fights were impartial and so were the results. As for their alliance, it was initiated when Chao Xiaoshu paid his visit to the Sword Garret, and it was confirmed when Liu Bai¡¯s sword flew up to Peach Mountain.


    With his fellows from the Academy and disciples of the Sword Garret gone, Ning Que was alone. Yet instead of loneliness, people found in him something more horrifying.


    Now he had nothing to worry about and nothing to distract him. He could do whatever he wanted to do. Thus, he lifted his iron arrow again.


    Bestowed with Tianqi, he had acquired tremendous strength that far surpassed those of any human beings. He pulled his bow so far back that it felt like it would break. The arrow was aimed north, and it was still, cold, and horrifying.

 Chapter 883 - With Heaven in my Embrace, the World Becomes an Ocean

    <h4>Chapter 883: With Heaven in my Embrace, the World Bes an Ocean</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    What was the most famous, most widely feared weapon in the world of cultivation? It was neither Fu Zi¡¯s cudgel nor Ke Haoran¡¯s sword. It also wasn¡¯t the Chief Monk of Scripture¡¯s iron staff or the Abbey Dean¡¯s psyche. It was a set of bow and arrows.


    Toter generations, Thirteen Primordial Arrows would undoubtedly be considered a milestone of weaponry. Its sheer power was stupefying. It was a shame that only the Academy and Tang Kingdom were able to create such a weapon, and only a freak like Ning Que who studied talismans and cultivation at the same time was able to use it.


    The Thirteen Primordial Arrows disobeyed thews of physics and seemed to be almost free of the shackles of time. The metal arrows were crafted from the toughest material in the world. How powerful would it be if released at full force?


    When Ning Que was in the See-through State, he rendered Long Qing a wastrel with a single arrow. When he was in the Knowing Destiny State, the strong fighters who had been hit fled covering their heads with their hands. On this day at Peach Mountain, he had already entered the Tianqi State. He killed ten strong opponents from the West-Hill Divine Temple with a single shot, and even wounded the Hierarch almost to the state of insanity.


    Nobody could escape the Thirteen Primordial Arrows when he entered the Tianqi State. Other than the Xuankong Temple¡¯s Chief Monk of Scripture, it seemed that nobody else would be able to withstand its power ¡ª not even the people gathered in front of Peach Mountain.


    At the sight of the jet-ck arrow and the iron bow in Ning Que¡¯s hands, the people on the teau before Peach Mountain felt their blood run cold. Some even felt their knees weaken. They could not begin to imagine what they would do if that arrow were aimed at them, much less if it were hurtling towards them.


    They never would have thought that they would one day be facing the might of this fearsome bow and arrow at such a close range. Really, they were lucky. Much of the Thirteen Primordial Arrows¡¯ power came from the stealth. The reason why it was impossible to defend oneself from the arrows was because the arrows¡¯ flight was propelled not by the bow¡¯s release, but by the will of a talisman. There was no need for it to even consider its distance from a target. In fact, it could be said that the further away the weapon was positioned from its target, the more effective it would be.


    Still, there are two sides to every coin. The world would never have a perfect weapon. The Thirteen Primordial Arrows, too, had weaknesses. More urately, the weaknessesy in its user, Ning Que.


    The further away it was positioned from the target, the more the Thirteen Primordial Arrows¡¯ power grew, but once the distance exceeded the range of human vision, it became impossible for Ning Que to take aim.


    Even the hulking, monstrous bulk of someone like Xia Hou would be reduced to nothing but a miniscule speck from tens of thousands of li away. No human would be able to see him with the naked eye, not even Fu Zi.


    That year in Tianqi Mountain, Ning Que depended on his intuition tond an arrow on Long Qing from miles away, not with his eyesight. Long Qing¡¯s misfortune was in the fact that he had just seen through the Confinement made of firewood and was just about to enter the Knowing Destiny State. In Ning Que¡¯s mind, this made him as bright as the sun.


    At Ning Que¡¯s current state of cultivation, he would only be able to aim urately at a faraway target if his target was at the peak of the Knowing Destiny State and hadpletely relinquished control of their own boundaries. The epitome of this would be at the point of entering a different state.


    Who would release their boundariespletely right when Ning Que drew his bow? Why should a target meet the conditions of his aim? Who would enter a new state at the very moment Ning Que was taking aim? Someone entering a new state was not an everyday urrence in the world of cultivation, and it would be even less umon to do so just when Ning Que was shooting an arrow. Not everyone was as unlucky as Long Qing.


    Although the famed figures present did not haveplete knowledge of the Thirteen Primordial Arrows¡¯ secrets, they had still deduced a few basic principles from their years of experience and what they knew of Ning Que¡¯s experiments in battle. Thus, when they saw him drawing his bow as clear as day, they were overtaken by anxiety and a desire to know whom he wanted to shoot.


    Where was his iron arrow pointed towards?


    Ning Que raised the iron bow and gazed silently northward.


    He did not look with his eyes, but with his mind. In his pysche, the world¡¯s image seemed like a broad ocean.


    This ocean was the whole world.


    There were a few shining specks in the ocean.


    In the far west, there was a speck which gave off a strong, steady light. The speck in the northeast shone evenrger and brighter. On closer inspection, the speck was made of three different lights.


    There were lights around him as well. Behind him, there seemed to be an sea of light, too bright to even look at.


    Ning Que was now in the Tianqi state. Other than any cultivators who may have been entering a new state at that moment, the rest of the lights were all strong individuals. The brighter the light, the deeper their level of cultivation!


    The brilliant sea of light behind him was her.


    She shone so brightly that shepletely blocked any trace of Liu Bai¡¯s spirit.


    The strong light in the far westward reaches was the Xuankong Temple¡¯s Chief Monk of Scripture.


    The three clustered lights in the northeast were Eldest Brother, the Drunkard, and the Butcher.


    All the strong warriors were visible to him.


    In this instance, he seemed to have turned into the first edition of the Arcane Tome of the Sun.


    This made no sense for he was not a Tome of the Arcane. He was human.


    In the human world, there was no exnation of how he was able to perceive this ocean in his mind.


    Many years ago, during his return from Wei City to Chang¡¯an, Ning Que had a conversation with the passerby, Lu Qingchen. In that dialogue, Ning Que said that he had once perceived an ocean in his dream. At that point, Lu Qingchen thought it was a dream and nothing more, since Ning Que did not have the potential for cultivation.


    This was because of Initial Awareness, the ability to perceive the surrounding world and it was an initial indication of a cultivator¡¯s potential. In all of recorded history, Liu Bai was known to have had the most powerful Initial Awareness.


    When Liu Bai experienced Initial Awareness, he saw a broad, coursing, yellow river.


    How Could Ning Que see a whole ocean?


    Still, standing beneath Peach Mountain, he could really see a whole ocean.


    ¡°I think I am the ocean.¡±


    Ning Que spoke to himself.


    In the years since he gained the abilities of cultivation, he had returned to mull over his conversation with Lu Qingchen many times. Only this year did he realize that it was all because of Sangsang¡¯s destiny.


    While he dreamt, he had always been hugging Sangsang.


    Having Haotian in his arms, was it really such a big deal to perceive all of humanity?


    Coming to Peach Mountain, enduring the Tianqi and having the Haotian energy course into his body, he once again drew on the connection between him and Sang Sang, almost like enveloping her in his embrace once again.


    Why wouldn¡¯t he be able to perceive this ocean of humanity?


    Could it be that what he wanted to shoot was a bright spot in this ocean?


    Was it the Xuankong Temple¡¯s Chief Monk of Scripture, the Drunkard, or the Butcher?


    Nobody knew.


    ...


    ...


    Standing before Peach Mountain, Ning Que could perceive the whole world.


    At this moment, the whole world had already perceived him.


    It was because of the huge burst of Tianqi.


    At the border of Song and Yan, the fragrance of wine wafted delicately through the air in the calligraphy shop. Only a bowl of water sat on the table in front of Eldest Brother, but his spirits were as high as if he were savoring a fine wine.


    It was because he now knew that his Little Brother had survived.


    The drunkard¡¯s voice was uncharacteristically hoarse. ¡°How could Haotian¡¯s Divine Power enter a normal person¡¯s body?¡±


    Eldest Brother replied, ¡°You can¡¯t apply logic to my Little Brother.¡±


    The Drunkard¡¯s brows furrowed in a sh. Although there was no wind, the sk at his hip seemed to float parallel to the ground. His clothes morphed and became faint, almost as if he could disappear at any moment.


    He was not certain that Ning Que was aiming at him from Peach Mountain, but he felt like he was in danger.


    Eldest Brother said, ¡°You¡¯re not his target. You¡¯re too quick.¡±


    Thinking back to their previous conversation, the Drunkard¡¯s expression grew cold in fear. ¡°You were right before...the Butcher is very slow.¡±

 Chapter 884 - A Step from Jun Mo, an Arrow from the South

    <h4>Chapter 884: A Step from Jun Mo, an Arrow from the South</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Four pig trotters were arranged neatly on a chopping board. The hair had been removed from them and they had been rinsed over with water. They looked as pale and white as new shoots plucked freshly out of the mud. With one glide of a sturdy knife, the earthy brown paper unfurled like a lotus leaf. The four trotters tumbled lightly onto the paper and were wrapped up into a parcel.


    The Butcher handed the wrapped trotters silently to the waiting young man. Li Guangdi fished some coins out, ced them on the shop table and walked towards the exit.


    Suddenly, the Butcher had a strange feeling. He raised his head and looked southwards in the direction of the West-Hill Kingdom. His vision passed directly through the ckened wall. His face paled.


    The half carcass of arge white pig that was hung up on a hook behind the butcher shop began to sway. The ughtering knife in the Butcher¡¯s hand began to tremble too. No wind blew, but the whistling sound of the wind filled the air.


    Looking towards the West-Hill Kingdom with his knife in his hand, the Butcher came to a realization.


    He raised the sturdy knife above his head with both hands as quickly as he could, with a fixed stony expression on his face. Neither the wind nor anything else would be able to reach him.


    The half carcass on the iron hook continued to sway slowly. The movement made blood trickle out of the pig¡¯s organs. Each drop pped on the floor like a clock counting down the seconds.


    Time seemed to move slowly. Nothing happened. The Butcher squatted down, shrinking his body into a corner of the wall. His hands held the knife up, shielding his face. He seemed very much like a turtle hiding in its shell.


    Outside the butcher shop, Li Guangdi and Zhang Nianzu were walking towards the calligraphy shop. If one were to stand near, one would have been able to hear one of them chanting something under his breath, as if he were trying to memorize something.


    Zhang Nianzu asked worriedly, ¡°Is there something wrong?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t speak.¡± Li Guangdi¡¯s expression was simrly in panic. He red. ¡°Don¡¯t think about using pen and paper either. It¡¯s best for you to just memorize it.¡±


    Zhang Nianzu pressed his lips shut and decided not to continue talking about the issue. Li Guangdi reflected quietly on the scene he had just witnessed and realized that the Butcher¡¯s weak spot must be his face.


    The parcel of four pig trotters that was wrapped in brown paper tossed about in the young mens¡¯ arms. They seemed identical to all of the human necks that the Butcher had broken.


    .....


    .....


    On the teau before Peach Mountain, thousands of li away, Ning Que¡¯s iron arrow was no longer aimed at the little town on the border of Song and Yan. Instead, it was pointing northwest.


    The Drunkard and the Butcher were both in that little town. Those two people were the Academy¡¯s strongest enemies and the strongest in Chang¡¯an. He really did want to see if he could kill them.


    Nevertheless, the two were still skilled cultivators who had survived the Ever Night. They had been able to hide from Haotian for centuries. One had an idea of what kind of advanced state they must be in and just how powerful the tricks they had up their sleeves might be.


    When facing a change in the paths of their lives, cultivators in the Knowing Destiny State get a certain feeling ¡ª an inkling of what was toe.


    All cultivators in the Knowing Destiny State had the ability to sense when their destinies were about to change. Of course, skilled cultivators like the Drunkard and the Butcher would be able to do so as well.


    When Ning Que lifted his bow and aimed his arrow at the little town, the Drunkard and the Butcher felt it immediately and began taking defensive measures: the Drunkard prepared to leave and the Butcher raised his sword.


    When the Hierarch became a wastrel, the Drunkard became the fastest person on Earth, even faster than Eldest Brother. He had attained the Distanceless State and had innumerable tricks up his sleeve. Unless someone managed to imprison him, he would be extremely difficult to kill.


    On the other hand, the Butcher was the strongest in the world, whether in bodily strength or sheer force. Other than Xuankong Temple¡¯s Chief Priest of Scripture, no one could bepared with him, not even Yu Lian.


    The Drunkard was ready to leave and the Butcher was poised to strike with his sword. Ning Que¡¯s Thirteen Primordial Arrows would not be able to kill them. In that case, he did not shoot.


    It was not because he was running out of arrows or that they were too precious ¡ª the Academy was willing to pay any price for the Drunkard and the Butcher¡¯s lives.


    Ning Que did not shoot for one simple reason: he would not be able to kill them. All along, he had never done anything which was exceedingly dangerous where sess was not guaranteed.


    The dangery in the fact that if the opponent was not killed, they would surely be provoked.


    He was a little regretful about this, but not too much. Although the Academy had always wanted to try killing them, they had never lost theirposure. It was an aspiration, not a feral desire.


    Furthermore, the Academy already had long-standing ns for the Drunkard and the Butcher.


    The iron arrow in Ning Que¡¯s hand was now pointed northwest, towards the Qinghe Prefecture.


    When Ning Que moved the arrow slowly, the atmosphere of the Peach Mountain teau became increasingly tense and fearful.


    Nobody knew who he was going to shoot.


    In fact, even Ning Que did not know. In his Perception State, Qinghe Prefecture was an exceedingly unremarkable little space amongst the ocean of humanity. There was not a single speck of light.


    Suddenly, a glimmer appeared.


    It was Song Xian.


    ......


    .....


    Jun Mo stood with Mu You on the banks of the Fuchun River, looking at the elegant gardens across the river. After a long period of silence, he asked, ¡°Do you understand now?¡±


    Mu You fished the embroidery needle out of her handkerchief and replied, ¡°It will be a little troublesome, but not too hard.¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s go then,¡± Jun Mo said.


    Mu You heard the changing from the other side of the river and furrowed her brow slightly. ¡°Little Brother¡¯s n doesn¡¯t include us.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°He underestimated the powerful individuals. Wang Jinglue can¡¯t do this.¡±


    In the Academy¡¯s original n, Ning Que would go to West-Hill, Eldest Brother would go to the small town, while Second Brother, heavily wounded at Verdant Canyon, would stay in Chang¡¯an to defend the rear.


    He had instead materialised in Qinghe Prefecture, leaving the Academy deserted.


    ¡ª¨C


    ....


    At that moment, Wang Jinglue was in Cui Garden, by the banks of the Fuchun River. All of the famous people of Qinghe Prefecture were gathered. This was because the West-Hill Divine Temple was convening a Rite to Light, but due to the strained state of affairs in the prefecture, many could not go to Peach Mountain to pay their respects. They chose to perform simr rituals in Cui Garden instead.


    He had gained entry to the Cui Garden through Cui Huasheng. Seeing the pious expressions of the mighty, famous people alongside the rushing creek, his brows formed a deep furrow. He was not able to determine who was his target.


    The Qinghe Prefecture belonged to the Zhu family, whose regime relied on traditional and customary rules. However, the real reason for the Qunghe Prefecture to dare to betray Chang¡¯an was due to the two powerful Knowing Destiny fighters of Fuchun River bank.


    Not many people knew who the two Knowing Destiny Experts of Qinghe Prefecture were. Wang Jinglue did not know, and even if he did, it would be very hard toplete the task that Ning Que had assigned to him.


    A gust approached from the south. It was a dry wind. The cultivators in the garden felt a certain divine solemnity from the breeze.


    The autumn flowers on the riverbank were covered with a fine sheen of liquid, so they looked pure and holy.


    There was an old cultivator under the rain shelter. He was an unknown and distant rtive of the Song n. Although he was hunched over due to age and usually nodding off, his eyes were now wide open.


    After the talisman shook Peach Mountain and the Tianqi sent shockwaves through the world, every cultivator knew that something big had happened on Peach Mountain because they could feel the huge change in the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    The uracy of this feeling depended on the individual cultivator¡¯s state of cultivation. Advanced cultivators like the Drunkard and the Butcher naturally had a clearer sense of what had transpired, but others like Wang Jinglue, who had only reached the See-through Zenith, could only guess.


    It was enough for him to be able to guess. In the arrangement he made with Ning Que, if he were to guess that the event had happened, it would be the right time to strike.


    Wang Jinglue surveyed the area. Looking at the scene, his heart thumped. He knew he had found the right moment, but how was he to proceed with getting the opponent to release his entire state?


    He was known to have no enemies at the Knowing Destiny State or below. However, as Chen Pipi said long ago, even if one could defeat anyone at the Knowing Destiny State or below, a strong cultivator at the Knowing Destiny State might not necessarily have to release his entire state.


    At this moment, a man with a bamboo hat and a cane and a woman in red appeared by the creek in the Cui Garden. Nobody saw how they had arrived there.


    An urgent warning sounded throughout the Cui Garden grounds. The air was filled with the sound of scabbards colliding. An ancient array¡¯s energy began to slowly seep out of the courtyard pond.


    The Song n elder slowly lifted his head and looked toward the pair by the creek.


    ....


    ....


    Jun Mo never looked at the Song n elder. Although he knew that the elder was one of the Knowing Destiny individuals that his Little Brother was searching for, Jun Mo was looking for a different person ¡ª someone stronger than this elder.


    The Cui n of Ruyang County was the first of the seven surnames of the Qinghe Prefecture. Cui Garden was their business and the n leader Cui Shi was naturally the person with the highest status. However, on this day, he was not allowed to sit.


    This was because Elder Cui was sitting, and as his son, Cui Shi could only stand.


    Long ago, Elder Cui was a university schr in Chang¡¯an. He was appointed Prime Minister and was given the title of Imperial Tutor after retirement. Thus, he was sitting on an Imperial Tutor¡¯s chair, drinking schr¡¯s tea.


    At the sight of the man and woman on the riverbank, Elder Cui slowly put down his tea. His expression showed his unreadable mix of emotions ¡ª somewhat perplexed and afraid, but also taunting.


    Once he saw the man¡¯s empty sleeve, Elder Cui knew his identity.


    He never thought that the Academy would ignore its agreement with the West-Hill Divine Temple and send someone to Qinghe Prefecture, much less send this person.


    After a moment, he shook off his confusion and disbelief with the realization that the one he most feared and respected, Fu Zi, was no longer on this earth, and the Academy was no longer the same.


    ¡°If this was before, I wouldn¡¯t have had the courage to fight Second Master.¡±


    Elder Cui looked at Jun Mo on the riverbank and said calmly, ¡°But one of your limbs is broken and you have not recovered from your serious wounds, how can you be any match for me?¡±


    With these words, the Cui Garden array began to manifest in a show of power. The array of the Fuchun River¡¯s bank, passed down between countless generations of the long-established family, was indeed powerful. A somber, deathly atmosphere filled the air.


    Jun Mo knew that the man¡¯s conclusion about the current situation was urate. If this were before, he would have been able to kill all the enemies in the garden while brandishing his sword alone, but today, he was in no position to defeat the man.


    Still, he neither said nor did anything.


    Mu You picked up her embroidery needle and pierced it into an autumn lotus on the riverbank.


    Her movements were nonchnt, almost subconscious.


    Elder Cui¡¯s expression turned.


    The fearsome array of the Fuchun River¡¯s bank dissipated in a single breeze.


    The old family names of Qinghe Prefecture had a formidably rich history, dating back further than the Academy itself. Yet age did not necessarily make one mightier, or turtles would have long ruled the Earth.


    Mu You was a bride; she was Seventh Sister, a lover of cracking melon seeds between her teeth, idle gossiping, and ying mah-jong. She was also the most talented array master on Earth. Having had half of the day on the banks of the Fuchun River to observe its array, she had long figured out how to dissolve it.


    Jun Mo regarded Elder Cui coolly.


    Elder Cui said indifferently, ¡°I passed through the Academy many times as Prime Minister and saw you growing up as a child. Who would have thought that I would kill you today?¡±


    Qinghe Prefecture had many spies in Chang¡¯an. Elder Cui was sure that Jun Mo had not recovered from his severe wounds. More importantly, nobody knew that he had not only reached the Knowing Destiny State, but was also now at the Knowing Destiny Zenith. Although the array of the Fuchun River bank was so easily dissolved by that Academy girl, he still had the utmost confidence that he could crush Jun Mo into the riverbank.


    In the crowd, Wang Jinglue¡¯s face was ashen.


    He was shocked enough at the appearance of Second Master. Finding out that Elder Cui was the Knowing Destiny State expert he had been searching for the whole time made him stunned.


    ording to Ning Que¡¯s n, now was the time for him to strike. However, to make a Knowing Destiny expert unleash hisplete State, it required a sufficiently strong person to strike with a sufficiently strong blow. After hearing Elder Cui¡¯s tone and unwavering confidence in his ability to defeat the Academy¡¯s Second Master, how could Wang Jinglue seed?


    Jun Mo did not strike, but simply stepped forward.


    Elder Cui¡¯s expression turned to one of intense concentration. Under the shelter, the Song n elder stood up, holding his sword.


    Although Jun Mo had a broken limb and his state was nowhere as powerful as it was before, he was still Jun Mo.


    Qinghe Province was quite close to Verdant Canyon. The nightmarish image of Jun Mo ying thousands with a single sword in the Battle of Verdant Canyon at the end of the previous year was still branded in people¡¯s minds.


    Nobody who faced Jun Mo in battle dared to underestimate him. Even Liu Bai would approach him as a formidable enemy if they were to fight now.


    Elder Cui exhaled sharply and was instantly at the Knowing Destiny Zenith!


    He smiled at Jun Mo. ¡°Isn¡¯t it a little surprising?¡±


    Jun Mo replied, ¡°I¡¯m surprised by your stupidity.¡±


    A wild, ferocious wind suddenly rose, stirring up the waters of Fuchun River. The waters of Cui Garden¡¯s little creek were so disturbed they seemed to boil, while autumn lotuses were tossed around on the creek¡¯s surface, limp like the floating carcasses of dead fish.


    An arrow approached from the south.


    Elder Cui paled, and was torn into pieces.


    His body was shattered into hundreds of chunks of flesh, scattered all over the garden.


    To keep from being discovered by the Academy, Elder Cui had lived his whole life quietly, keeping his cultivation State secret until he was a hundred years old. Today, when Jun Mo came to Cui Garden, Elder Cui thought that the moment had finallye. He wanted to shock the Academy by revealing his decades of training and unleashing years of bitter hatred in one go.


    In the end, he died without carrying out any surprise ambush.


    The whole time, he had never gotten the chance to fight with Jun Mo.


    This was because Jun Mo never moved to strike ¡ª he only took a single step forward.


    He only needed to take a single step for his opponent to release his entire state.


    It was because he was Jun Mo.


    At the sight of Elder Cui being ripped into countless pieces of flesh, the Song n elder¡¯s expression turned to one of shock and horror. All these years, he had remained at the lower levels of the Knowing Destiny State. Amongst the rest of the world, he was considered as a formidable opponent. Yet he had just seen with his own eyes how the mighty Elder Cui at the Knowing Destiny Zenith suffered a cruel death after a single step from Jun Mo. How could he have the courage to fight?


    Jun Mo turned to face him.


    The Song n elder decided to release his entire state with a mighty bellow. His sword hurtled into the sky.


    He was only at the lower levels of the Knowing Destiny State. Even if he were to unleash his entire state, he would not shine brightly enough to show up in a certain person¡¯s Perception State ocean, so a second arrow did note hurtling from the south.


    Jun Mo raised his left hand and moved it slowly in the autumn breeze.


    The flying sword abruptly turned back around. In a single thrust, it drove straight into the Song n elder¡¯s bosom.

 Chapter 885 - The Yellow River Once Flowed

    <h4>Chapter 885: The Yellow River Once Flowed</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The Song n elder felt a freezing chill spread across his chest. He stared at his own sword, jutting out of his bosom, and the stream of blood steadily flowing down the de. As the cold slowly crept over his heart, he realized that he would never be a match for Jun Mo, even with his serious wounds. Jun Mo never actually attacked ¡ª with a simple wave of his hand in the autumn breeze, he was able to steal his natal sword and take his life.


    The Cui Garden creek bank was such a scene of devastation and death that even the sshing sounds of the Fuchun River were now silenced. The Song n elder toppled slowly to the ground. Jun Mo left with Mu You, leaning on his cane. Nobody dared to even move.


    Wang Jinglue was still standing in the crowd. He¡¯d never even gotten the chance to attack. Only after he had seen flesh and blood strewn around the Imperial Tutor¡¯s seat and the pale corpse of Elder Cui did he realize the power of Ning Que¡¯s arrow. Only when he saw the Song n elder bathed in blood and the sword buried in his chest did he realize the capacity of Second Master¡¯s sword.


    A long time psed after Jun Mo and Mu You left Cui Garden before the people emerged from their states of shock. The air was filled with sounds of crying and screaming.


    To Qinghe Prefecture, there were many ns, but Ruyang County¡¯s Cui n was where their collective spirits came from, and Elder Cui was to them as the Academy Master was to the Academy. They had just witnessed the Elder, whom they relied on, pulverised and scattered all around them without being able to do anything. How could they not feel unsettled?


    News of his death quickly spread to Yangzhou and reached thousands of homes. Naturally, the news was rapidly received in Chang¡¯an.


    The Great Tang reacted instantaneously. That night, the craftsmen deployed by the Ministry of Works in the south-central regions and the reserve army in the neighbouring prefectures were sent as quickly as possible to Verdant Canyon in the north.


    Last autumn¡¯s Battle of Verdant Canyon had seen countless troops buried and the already inessible official road had been blocked by huge stones, making it almost impossible to get through. After running its clean-up operation for half a year, the imperial court had only been able to clear a tiny path. Of course, with the manpower from the soldiers apanying the craftsmen, the speed of clean-up had be exponentially faster.


    At the current rate, it seemed that it would only take a few more months for the Chang¡¯an side to finish the initial clean-up operation. It thus followed that it would only be a few months before the Great Tang¡¯s iron horsemen would be able to ess the south via Verdant Canyon and wipe Qinghe Prefecture out with the force of an iron river.


    The famed figures andmon people of the Qinghe Prefecture did not know what had happened in Verdant Canyon to the north, but the consequences of Elder Cui¡¯s death were very clear to them ¡ª the contract between Tang Kingdom and West-Hill Kingdom was now reduced to a worthless piece of paper, and Tang troops could appear in Qinghe Prefecture at any time.


    The immense pressure from the north hung overhead like a low-lying dark cloud, even making it hard for some people at Qinghe Prefecture to breathe. They could not understand why the Tang Kingdom would forsake their contract so quickly after the cruel event that had just transpired.


    Chaos had appeared in Qinghe Prefecture, and there would never be peace again.


    Wang Jinglue did not leave Yangzhou. He had to wait there for Ning Que, and most importantly, he was in charge of handling all the cultivators of the Tianshu Institute and army spies entering Qinghe Prefecture from Tang Kingdom at that moment. Then, he had to use this power to help Cui Huasheng secure a position of power amongst the chaos.


    ...


    ...


    A cylindrical channel appeared in the air above the Peach Mountain teau. The turbulent interference appeared in the air like strands of silk or cotton, making the shape of the passage even more distinct.


    This was the scar left by the iron arrow¡¯s passage, and it was also the arrow¡¯s path.


    Ning Que stood before the altar, holding the bow in his right hand and lifting his left hand high in the air like he was seizing a tiger¡¯s tail. He was frozen in the posture he held right after the arrow¡¯s release, as stable as a wooden carving.


    The sounds of the chanting had since stopped. The thousands of people on the teau looked at him in panic and did not utter a single word. It was as if they, too, had been turned into wooden figures.


    Nobody knew where Ning Que¡¯s iron arrow flew to, but they knew that someone¡¯s life ended. The fact that nobody saw the actual result but already knew the result made the people petrified.


    Ning Que returned the bow to his shoulder and looked back towards the Divine Hall of Light, with a somber expression on his face. If the Haotian energy in his body were to dissipate, the Yi Talisman around the altar would also return to heaven, spelling out a certain death for him at the hands of the powerful cultivators around him, but this thought never crossed his mind.


    He had justpleted the first half of the Academy¡¯s n and his focus was now on the Divine Hall of Light. He had a feeling that the battle in the Divine Hall would result in a fatality.


    In the same way that the people on the teau knew that someone¡¯s life wasing to an end when they saw him shoot his bow, he knew that there would be death if anyone entered the Divine Hall of Light. The thought made his heart lurch.


    In a battle between heaven and a mortal, the mortal would have to die because the winner would naturally be heaven.


    ¡ª


    ..


    Sangsang looked at the thousands of worlds on the sword. Her eyes zed with mes and stars, sunrises and sunsets, the rise and fall of empires and innumerable seasons, as if wading through time in the world of humanity.


    Liu Bai¡¯s sword was only two chi away from her. The fault lines in the de became deeper and deeper. Its surface became a mottled grey-white, meaning that it waspletely melted and was now starting to erode in the breeze.


    The closer things came to her body, the faster time passed for them, and the more damage they sustained due to the ravages of time. Even a sword sturdy enough to endure years of wind and rain would not be able to survive.


    It was already extremely remarkable that Liu Bai¡¯s sword could enter her little world ande that close to her. This was inexplicable by ordinary principles of cultivation.


    His sword was of the mortal world and carried the Sword Garret¡¯s intention and the red dust of the mortal world, but was not the mortal world itself. Thus, it would never be able to ovee the ravages of time.


    The corrosion scars seemed to overflow with frost, then the sword split apart, and vanished without a trace in a cloud of green smoke.


    The sword was destroyed but the man was still there. His body was the real sword.


    The bright glimmer in Liu Bai¡¯s eyes shone brighter than when he first felt that flowing yellow river. They shone even brighter than when he gained the knowledge of the Sword¡¯s Will of the Great River by the riverbank.


    The moment he sent his sword out to strike, he knew he could not win, but he did not give up. It was just as he said: this was already thest highlight of his time on Earth, and he wanted to see how close he could get to heaven and to see if he had the ability to touch heaven, even if he would only be able to leave a single scar on the sky attributable to him.


    Liu Bai¡¯s hand reached into Sangsang¡¯s little world.


    His hand was long and elegant, with long, thin fingers. It was the only hand on Earth that was most suited to hold a sword. Whenever he held the sword¡¯s handle, it was as if the hand and sword were two inseparable parts of a whole.


    At this point his hand did not hold the sword ¡ª his hand was the sharpest de.


    His hand reached towards Sangsang¡¯s face, as if it were trying to pierce through the hair framing her face.


    As his hand came closer and closer to her face, his fingernails steadily darkened to an ashen grey. The skin on his hand shriveled and wrinkles appeared. His sleeve disintegrated into ashes in the wind.


    Liu Bai continued to advance. As the scars of time spread up his forearm, the skin there began to loosen and sag, as if it belonged to an old man on his deathbed, losing signs of life.


    He continued to move forward, disregarding the boundaries of the mortal world, fighting the quietest yet scariest battle with the merciless force of time. It was as if he had traversed thousands of years, or perhaps even really traversed thousands of years.


    After an immeasurable amount of time, Liu Bai finally stood before Sangsang, one chi away from her in her little world.


    It was a shame that, when he raised his hand weakly, he no longer had the power to deliver thest blow. The white hair scattered on his shoulder was withered and brittle like dry weeds in frost. The wrinkles and grooves on his face were as deep as those in the green stone tiles of Linkang City. He had morphed into an old man on death¡¯s door.


    Sangsang said, ¡°You¡¯ve lost.¡±


    With his voice dry and weakened with age, Liu Bai said, ¡°You¡¯ve lost.¡±


    Sangsang furrowed her brow slightly, notprehending his words.


    ¡°I have left a sword in the mortal world. The sword will not disappoint them.¡±


    Liu Bai looked at her and smiled. ¡°But this has nothing to do with this war.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°How could you possibly defeat me now?¡±


    Liu Bai took a few shaky breaths. With incredible difficulty, he raised his brittle hand and touched her brow with the tip of his finger. It caused no harm. It was more like a caress.


    There was no such thing as mortals defeating heaven. There had never been such a thing in all known history, but many had fought for this for years. They wanted to win, to show heaven the power of mortals, but more often than not, they simply wanted to prove to themselves and humanity that one can achieve anything if one was willing to work for it.


    Liu Bai had no feud with the mortal world. Bying to Peach Mountain, entering the Divine Hall of Light and taking on a fight with heaven, he had never thought that he could win the final victory, but he did want to prove something.


    In the moment before his death, he was finally able to touch the cold, distant heavens. He had fulfilled his own wish and could therefore see his own destiny.


    Sangsang regarded the falling limb before her wordlessly.


    Like a post-drought riverbed which had separated into chunks of parched earth and dry soil, Liu Bai¡¯s body fell apart with a rustle into a heap of dust on the floor.


    No one could truly attain eternal glory. No one could truly survive through the ages. Even the sturdiest city wall will eventually wear down into dust by the wind, and even the mightiest river will dry up one day.


    Yet in the same way, nobody, not even heaven, could deny that the wall had once stood stubbornly in the mortal world, and that the river had once flowed over thousands of li.


    A sword suddenly appeared before Sangsang. The sword was brimming with ancient intent, but no longer held any more spirit or life and ttered on the floor, ringing clearly.


    Both Liu Bai¡¯s body and sword had disintegrated into ashes, but the sword was still there, gleaming and new, not bearing a single trace of damage. It was as if the post-chaos mortal world was hinting at something.


    Sangsang looked silently at the pile of ashes and the ancient sword at her feet.


    This was the first time she had truly made a move against humanity. Just by tracing a few words lightly, the strongest cultivator in the world had been reduced to ashes. Still, her face showed a slight pale cast, perhaps due to a wound or perhaps due to something else.

 Chapter 886 - Messy to Unravel

    <h4>Chapter 886: Messy to Unravel</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Mellow winds blew from inside the Divine Hall of Light, raised the pile of ashes and carried the ash outside of the Divine Hall.


    Sangsang walked together with the ashes in the wind, left the terrace and stepped onto the cliff outside the Divine Hall. She watched the ashes fall down slowly like snowkes.


    People went into an uproar in the front yard of Peach Mountain. The sacrifice had disappeared. Dozens of Divine Talismans shone distinctively on the Array of Clear Light. Ning Que had done a lot.


    She looked at the figure standing in front of the altar and could no longer hold her anger. Thus, the refreshing breeze among the hills turned violent, left the Divine Hall and roared towards every corner in the human world.


    ...


    ...


    In Linkang, the capital of the South Jin Kingdom, autumn was not refreshing. This autumn clung onto the summer heat. It became a mire after an autumn rain, especially for the people who lived in the poor areas. The foul water slopped over scattered bricks and smelled worse than the sewage.


    All of a sudden, a refreshing breeze came from the south, whistled through streets and cleared the unpleasant smell. Ye Su was guiding a dozen of students to clear those out-of-use sewers along the streets.


    He experienced the refreshing breeze lingering in the streets and sighed in relief, ¡°You¡¯ve found it.¡±


    This was for his old friend who just passed away. When Liu Bai left Linkang, Ye Su wished for him to find the ultimate Taoism. He had found it and Ye Su felt relieved.


    ...


    ...


    Autumn by the Fuchun River was charming. Trees along the river banks changed to various colors and their reflections in the water made the river dazzle.


    Jun Mo and Mu You stepped out of the Cui Garden. He looked at the scattered reflections on the river banks and said to her after a long silence, ¡°I need to go on a long journey.¡±


    He sensed Liu Bai¡¯s passing and so did Mu You. However, she did not understand why Jun Mo had to set off for the long journey because of his passing.


    ¡°Where to?¡± she asked worriedly.


    ¡°To the Xuankong Temple. Since I am studying buddhism, I have to go there.¡± Jun Mo saw her expression and continued, ¡°I just want to study Buddhism. I¡¯m not bing a monk.¡±


    Mu You asked, ¡°Why did you make such a rush decision?¡±


    Jun Mo answered, ¡°She is way too powerful. Our Youngest Brother might not be able to conquer her.¡±


    Mu You looked at him and said, ¡°In reality, it¡¯s just because you admire Liu Bai.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°Yes I do admire him. I am also grateful as he carried Ye Su and me in his sword when he used it to stab Haotian today.¡±


    ...


    ...


    In the Wilderness, autumn was cold. The wind blowing over the deste fields was chilling. It felt like bites on the body. Tang was topless but he did not feel anything, so he continued the conversation with his master who was sitting in the sedan on his shoulder.


    ¡°Even if Liu Bai¡¯s sword could make her sentimental, what good would that do?¡±


    ¡°If she were to be sentimental, Youngest Brother will have a chance.¡±


    Yu Lian was sitting in the sedan as if she was on a hill. She looked toward the south and frowned. It was because the rushing yet refreshing wind carried messages.


    Tang sensed the messages too and suddenly felt chills.


    Yu Lian said, ¡°Liu Bai is dead. She is indeed invincible. There¡¯s no point for us to go to Peach Mountain. No one but Ning Que can stand up to her.¡±


    Tang said, ¡°I¡¯m a bit worried.¡±


    Yu Lian asked, ¡°Tang Xiaotang, Pipi, Ning Que and the girls from the House of Red Sleeves are at Peach Mountain. What do you think this could mean?¡±


    ¡°No idea.¡±


    ¡°There is a girl named Xiaocao from the House of Red Sleeves. She used to be her best friend in Chang¡¯an. Tang Xiaotang was also her best friend at the Back Hill of the Academy. Pipi was very close to her, not to mention also to Ning Que. This means everyone she used to be very close to is presented at Peach Mountain.¡±


    ¡°Then?¡±


    ¡°She bestowed the Headmaster with Heaven¡¯s Will, and he returned by bonding her to the human world. She sent him to Haotian¡¯s Divine Kingdom, and he kept her here. If she wants to go back to the Divine Kingdom, she has to cut the bond.¡±


    ¡°How should she cut the bond? The most important is to end her rtion with humans in this world.¡±


    ¡°So she wants to kill Xiaotang and the others?¡±


    ¡°Correct.¡±


    ¡°Then we should be even more worried. Shouldn¡¯t we?¡±


    ¡°You think it would be such an easy task to cut the bond?¡±


    Yu Lian continued, ¡°I suppose she is the distressed one now.¡±


    Tang asked, ¡°What is the Academy¡¯s n after all?¡±


    Yu Lian answered, ¡°The Academy had no n at all.¡±


    Tang was shocked and questioned, ¡°No n at all?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s right. I¡¯ve told you no one could predict the Heaven. Then why should the Academy bother nning?¡±


    ¡°Then the Academy just did nothing at all?¡±


    Yu Lian replied, ¡°The Academy arranged for Ning Que¡¯s trip to Peach Mountain.¡±


    ¡°And that¡¯s it?¡±


    ¡°If there¡¯s no way we could out-predict her, then we just let her do whatever she ns to do. After all, no matter how well she ns, the only oue would be the result our Youngest Brother has ever wanted.¡±


    ¡°Why is that?¡±


    ¡°Because she is his natal item.¡±


    Tang was even more shocked and did not know what to say.


    Yu Lian looked above at the vast sky and said, ¡°The Headmaster had chosen the Youngest Brother to be hisst disciple. Now we finally understand why.¡±


    Tang frowned. ¡°But she should also be able to predict this.¡±


    ¡°Even Haotian cannot choose her own natal item.¡±


    What Yu Lian did not know was that there was another reason why she could not include Ning Que in her God¡¯s n. It was not only because Ning Que was Sangsang¡¯s natal item, but also because he did not belong to this human world.


    Tang understood and sighed. ¡°I see. No n is also a n.¡±


    ¡°We, the Light¡¯s Doctrine, have always been good at plotting ever since our Uncle Lian Sheng had trapped the entire world. However, not even our Headmaster could out-predict her. How could I?¡±


    The winds at the Wilderness brushed her hair by her cheeks. Yu Lian looked back to the Divine Halls of West Hill to the south and said, ¡°So I¡¯m waiting for her to n for her own deadlock.¡±


    The Devil¡¯s Doctrine had always been good at plotting. If it was not for Ke Haoran, Lian Sheng would have led the Devil¡¯s Doctrine to be the leader of the entire human world.


    As the current leader of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, Yu Lian was definitely gifted and very powerful in plotting. As Tang said, her not predicting Haotian¡¯s will was actually a most incredible nning.


    Except for Haotian, everything else was as she had nned. She let go of Xiong Chumost year at the Back Hill of the Academy and paid no attention to the people from the South Sea. These were all parts of her n. Although she did not know what would be the ultimate oue, she was very certain that Taoism was doomed.


    The declining of Taoism was exactly the time for the Academy to start reiming.


    Tang said suddenly, ¡°Sometimes I wonder what if that were to never happen and that Master Lian Sheng was still alive, what would the human world look like?¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°If I had not entered the Academy, at least half of the human world would have be the realm of the Light¡¯s Doctrine, let alone Lian Sheng.¡±


    Tang turned back to her and asked, ¡°Have you ever regretted it, Master?¡±


    ¡°Regretted it? As long as Youngest Brother wins, the whole world will belong to the Academy.¡±


    Yu Lian opened her arms as if she wanted to embrace the entire world.


    ...


    ...


    The refreshing winds changed from mild to fierce. The peach petals that just fell to the front yard started dancing in the wind again. The Array of Clear Light shook, and the dozens of Divine Talismans dimmed.


    Ning Que figured out that Liu Bai was already dead. The result of this battle between Heaven and Human was not unexpected. Whoever challenged Haotian throughout the history had all ended dead.


    Although his Headmaster was still up in the Divine Kingdom, he could never return to the human world.


    The Academy did not make any ns, but they had been waiting for a change. It was not the stabbing of Liu Bai¡¯s sword, but rather the consequences of this stabbing, that represented the human world,.


    All of the courses served for the same purpose, which was for Ning Que to rebuild his natal bond with Sangsang. It was thest chance for the human world.


    With Liu Bai¡¯s sword flying to Peach Mountain and the Hierarch calling for Tianqi, the Academy finally got the change they had been waiting for.


    Haotian¡¯s Divine Power came out of her body and charged into his. It was not yet a victory but had definitely rebuilt their bond. He felt calm.


    However, she was enraged.


    The gate to Haotian¡¯s Divine Kingdom was destroyed and she could no longer return. Upon her waking up in the human world, the first thing she did was topletely cut her bond with Ning Que.


    That was why Ning Que could not feel her in the city of Chang¡¯an. However, she did not expect the events at the Peach Mountain today. It was the same as what had happened years ago by Yanming Lake. Their bond was rebuilt.


    She stood in the Divine Hall of Light yet she could feel everything he felt down there.


    He felt sad for Liu Bai¡¯s passing, and she felt sad as well. He was happy to know that she was there, then she became happy soon after. She experienced his grief and joy, his happiness and anger, and thus became even more enraged.


    She was the great Haotian while he was a menial being. How could she be his natal item? Every single feeling she experienced from him was the most terrible sphemy to her.


    However, anger was not something that Haotian should experience. This meant she was increasingly humanized and affected by him, which had made her even angrier.


    Until then she had realized the reason why Chen Pipi could have escaped from Peach Mountain and her Divine me. It was because of no one else but herself.


    Many years ago, Ning Que told her, ¡°There is a student in the Academy called Chen Pipi. I need you to remember this for me. He saved my life once. So someday somewhere in future you need to remind me to pay him back.¡±


    She realized that she had always remembered this. Therefore no matter how determined she was, she could never kill Chen Pipi or cut even one of her connections to the human world.


    She also realized that no matter how hard she tried to cut the bond with Ning Que, it had always been there. She was his natal item and it never changed.


    She wanted to unravel the tangle, only to find it messier.


    How could she stay calm?


    ...

 Chapter 887 - Climbing Up the Peach Mountain

    <h4>Chapter 887: Climbing Up the Peach Mountain</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    It was hard to cut the bond and reopen the gate to the Divine Kingdom. And the Rite to Light was doomed to be a failure. Those were all in her n. Yet when it happened, she still felt enraged.


    Staring at the figure in front of the altar who had destroyed everything and killed her followers by using her own Divine Power, she could not stop her hands from trembling on her back.


    Everything in the human world happened ording to her n, except for him. Therefore, she was not able to tell that he would have destroyed the Rite to Light and made her look ridiculous.


    She became increasingly angry and the breeze turned increasingly fierce. It raised dust from the ground and covered the clear autumn sky. Numerous dark clouds came from the East Sea afar and dimmed the Peach Mountain. Then a storm followed.


    The storm caused havoc. Trees and trails were soaked. Peach petals were smashed and blood was washed away. Water umted in the front yard immediately. Dead branches as well as broken limbs were floating in the water.


    The storm blocked people¡¯s visions. It seemed like nothing except the chilling rain was left in the world. The roaring storm sounded like thunder.


    The power of Heaven and Earth took the form of a storm and washed Peach Mountain, as well as people¡¯s bodies and souls. Tens of thousands of followers in the front yard fell on their knees, pale and horrified.


    The storm continued to roar. The bout of light above the altar was washed away. The dozens of Divine Talismans were also dimmed and eventually disappeared.


    The Hierarch, Qi Nian, and other powerful cultivators also fell to their knees. They were more powerful and thus more sensitive than ordinary cultivators. They could clearly sense Haotian¡¯s anger though the storm, which had made them more horrified and pale. They kneeled on the ground and dared not to look up.


    Tens of thousands of wounded followers were freezing in the storm. Their lips turned blue and their blood was washed away upon gushing out of their wounds. Yet no one dared to seek for shelter. Even the storm was Haotian¡¯s gift to them.


    If there was an eye in this storm, Ning Que was the one standing right on it. He experienced Haotian¡¯s Divine Power most distinctively, and therefore became the most wretched. His dozens of talismans were dismissed, and Haotian¡¯s Divine Power that was bestowed to him was being drained even faster.


    Rain fell on his pale cheeks. He fell the draining of the Divine Power from his body and trembled. He seemed so weak and could fall at any time.


    Yet no matter how severe the storm became, he was still standing and staring at the top of Peach Mountain in silence. He squinted and tried to see her through the storm.


    Thousands of miles away above the ocean in the Song Kingdom, roaring winds rolled on with dark clouds. Between the dark clouds and the ocean, sea swallows were flying proudly like ck bolts.


    Let the storm be fiercer.


    In the front yard of Peach Mountain, tens of thousands of people kneeled down and covered the ground like a ck carpet. They looked so insignificant. Ning Que was the only one standing there, lonely but heroic.


    He was not a brave and proud sea swallow. He never cared about dignity whenever he faced life or death situations. Even though he had kneeled previously, he did not want to do that again at this point.


    Now that he had rebuilt their bond, You are my natal item, so you are my Sangsang and my wife. We are equal. How can I kneel to you?


    ¡ª¡ª Fuck you. Try to kill me, if you dare.


    ...


    ...


    The storm today was different from that on the day when the Headmaster left the human world. It carried Haotian¡¯s anger, so it was much more furious. Although it did notst as long as the rain that fell after the Headmaster¡¯s ascension, it did continue longer than ordinary summer storms.


    It continued for half a day before it became ticking rain. Winds turned into mellow breeze and broughtforting moisture to the people in the front yard..


    Tens of thousands of followers awoke and found that the roaring storm had stopped. It finally became tranquil again at Peach Mountain. Many of them were knocked out by the storm and some even died. Their soaked clothes passed the biting coldness to their bodies. No one dared to say anything.


    The powerful cultivators were even more wretched. The storm was so horrible that the Qi of Heaven and Earth in the mountains and fields were washed away. The stronger their senses were, the worse their psyche was hurt.


    Without a doubt, Ning Que was the most wretched. Haotian¡¯s Divine Power was drained from his body. His psyche in the Ocean of Consciousness was seriously destroyed. His hair was scattered on his shoulders and was dripping with rain water. He looked pale and exhausted. His eyes no longer shone, as if all the lights were dying out.


    When the storm stopped and the sky cleared, a rainbow appeared from the Divine Hall of Light and reached to some ce afar. It seemed like the other end of the rainbow fell somewhere in the South Jin Kingdom.


    Looking at this charming scene, the people in the front yard almost forgot the biting coldness on their bodies and the chilling rain water around their feet. Recalling the power of Heaven and Earth, they found it awe-inspiring again.


    The sun gave way to darkness. Some people turned away from the rainbow and looked at Ning Que in front of the altar.


    The storm thatsted for half of the day had washed away the resentment and dust in the human world, drained Haotian¡¯s Divine Power from Ning Que¡¯s body, and washed off the Divine Talismans as well as the Array of Clear Light. Yet, it could never erase their past.


    The Hierarch looked at Ning Que and raised his right hand gradually to give themand of attack to the people from the Divine Halls.


    No one could understand why Ning Que did not run away when the storm turned into shower. Without Haotian¡¯s Divine Power, what else could he do?


    Ning Que looked at people around him including Qi Nian, the national master of the Golden Tribe, and Zhaonanhai, and saw their expressions. He carried the iron bow on his shoulder and held his iron de tighter.


    He was previously invincible because of Haotian¡¯s Divine Power that was bestowed to him in the magnificent Tianqi. They were no match to him at that time. However, the situation waspletely different now. He would not be able to withstand a few rounds under their fierce attack.


    If he were to shoot another arrow at this time, he might be able to frighten them and clear out a way for himself. There were only a few arrows left but he never considered running away. He never wanted to leave the Peach Mountain.


    Looking around at the powerful enemies, Ning Que was not afraid at all. He stared at Prince Chong Ming and some other governors of smaller kingdoms and said, ¡°I won¡¯t kill you today. It¡¯s not because of the rule that cultivators should not kill ordinary people, but I¡¯d rather have you killed by our Tang army.¡±


    People wondered why he could still be so calm in such a hopeless situation. What is he thinking about? The Hierarch shouted angrily, ¡°Do you still believe you can run away from Peach Mountain?¡±


    Ning Que looked at the terrible wound on his shoulder and replied, ¡°You won¡¯t be able to stop me.¡±


    The Hierarch looked even more chilling. ¡°The path in front of you leads to nowhere but death.¡±


    Ning Que disagreed. ¡°It¡¯s only a path to death when there is no way to retreat.¡±


    The Hierarch asked, ¡°Where is your way to retreat?¡±


    By then, people like the national master of the Golden Tribe had blocked every single way out of the front yard. Ning Que could not defeat any of them without Haotian¡¯s Divine Power.


    Generally speaking, there was no physical way out. However, people including the Hierarch had all forgotten that he could go on a different path by simply stepping backward ¡ª the path to the top of Peach Mountain.


    With Haotian at the top of Peach Mountain, the Hierarch and everyone else would have never thought that Ning Que would choose to climb up. That was because it was definitely a path to death. However, he again chose the unexpected.


    He turned back and rushed up Peach Mountain.


    It was so unexpected that it took the Divine Halls a while to react. The Hierarch made a long whistle and countless swords were set off to Ning Que.


    The national master of the Golden Tribe lifted his cracked wooden tripod. Zhao Nanhai released dazzling lights from his hands. Qi Nian sat down in the water and crossed his legs, chanted some Buddhist mantra and formed a mudra in the sky and threw it onto Ning Que.


    Ning Que knew that he could never withstand their attack. Even if his Senior Sister was here, she would have sought for shelter rather than confronting a joint attack of the most powerful cultivators in the world and the array of sword that was formed by the rage of the people from the Divine Halls.


    Therefore, he did not choose to turn around and fought back or to dodge. He elerated with horrifying speed, smashed the rock stairs under his feet and made a spurt toward the peak.


    Several low bangs were heard repeatedly. The national master of the Golden Tribe continued to bomb his Ocean of Consciousness. Zhao Nanhai hit his back with Haotian¡¯s Divine me. Qi Nian pounded the mudra of atha on his body. Dozens of flying swords shredded his clothes.


    Ning Que vomited some blood and turned more pale. He almost fell off the rock stairs.


    If it were not for his practice of Haoran Qi, his body would not have been strong enough to withstand the first round of attack. It could have smashed him. Though he survived, he was already seriously wounded.


    Ning Que applied vigorous psyche to gather his Ocean of Consciousness, which was almost destroyed in anguish. He made another pounding step and smashed a few rock steps, then rushed up like a scattered shadow.


    Instead of falling down, he became even faster.


    Within a few breaths, he smashed hundreds of rock steps and was out of the reach from the powerful attackers. They could only see a dimmed figure on its way up to the mountaintop.


    While the divine priests, deacons, and people like Zhao Nanhai were preparing for another round of attack, the Hierarch raised his hand again to order a cease. The expression on his face wasplex.


    ...


    ...


    During the Rite to Light, almost everyone from the Divine Halls was standing around the altar. No one was up on Peach Mountain. Only the sound of the stream running by the rock stairs was heard. It was silent and frightening.


    Yet the silence was broken by a series of steps. Ning Que became a dim figure when he spurted towards the peak and left a line of blood and smashed rocks behind.


    He was seriously wounded at that moment. His Ocean of Consciousness was roaring in restlessness. The pain intensified with every step he took. His ribs were cracked by Qi Nian¡¯s mudra and they cracked even further with every step. He did not know when they were going to break.


    If the big ck umbre was here, who could ever hurt me? Ning Que missed it so much at that point. Then he was cheered up because he would see his big ck umbre again soon.


    He could neither see anyone on Peach Mountain nor see anyone chasing him up the rock steps. He continued to run alone without feeling lonely or nervous.


    He was running up to meet her. How could he feel lonely or nervous? He ran faster and felt happier with cheerful smiles on his face. Even the chilling autumn wind after the storm could not take away his smiles.


    The two Arrays of Clear Light were torn by his iron de and Divine Talismans.


    He reached to the front of the Divine Hall and stood on the teau.


    The autumn sky was cloudless after the rain. The view was unobstructed on top of the mountain. He could even see the sun setting in the far west and the Yellow River flowing into the sea further to the south.


    He looked to the Divine Hall atop and the rock steps in front of him and thought, I am about to climb up. Are you going to flee again?


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 888 - Asking the Heaven (Part I)

    <h4>Chapter 888: Asking the Heaven (Part I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    After the rain was over the sky cleared up, which made it possible to see even though the darkness was falling. Seeing the figure on the summit of Peach Mountain, tens of thousands of followers at the front yard had mixed feelings, since the scene resembled that of the day Ning Que climbed the back hill of the Academy many years ago.


    The dark sky was like a piece of ck paper, hanging over the t ground, and dozens of mountain peaks stood in between. It gave an impression that the sky would fall to the earth if not for these mountain peaks.


    The night sky above the Divine Hall of West Hill looked a bit peculiar, with a skyful of stars yet no trace of the moon. The starlight sprinkled on Peach Mountain, covering it in silver.


    Looking across the silver mountain pass, Ning Que stared at the Divine Hall of Light. Then he began to tidy his drenched clothes, tighten his wet hair, put away the bow and sword, and wipe the rain off his face.


    His movements were slow and his expression was serious. Ning Que did not walk up the stairs until he confirmed that there was nothing wrong with his clothes and manners. It was only natural to show respect while attending an appointment.


    It waste at night, and the crescent moon waspletely unseen, probably hiding behind the night clouds. The stars were quite bright as they were hanging in the dark sky.


    The seven brightest ones were so bright that they made people feel dizzy. As the most reliable beacons for fishermen to sail on the sea, they were called the Guide Stars.


    Seven hundred stone steps were paved on the mountain pass between the cliff and the Divine Hall of Light on the summit. Ning Que seemed to be walking slowly, but in actuality one of his steps was equivalent to one hundred stone steps. It looked like he was riding the wind.


    Lifting his foot from the cliff and falling on the hundredth stone step, he took the first step. All of a sudden, the Litian Star, the northernmost one among the seven guide stars, darkened.


    Ning Que continued to take another step, and then the second guide star darkened. Each step he took led to the darkening of another guide star, as if the eternal starlight was absorbed into his body by his footsteps.


    Not everyone at the front yard could see him walking on the mountain pass, but they all saw the seven guide stars darkened, one after another. The crowd abruptly bursted into shocked shouts and disturbed prayers. Seeing the bizarre change of the astrology, the Hierarch and others looked extremely solemn.


    ...


    ...


    Several divine halls stood on Peach Mountain, but Ning Que only cared about the Divine Hall of Light.


    The building materials used in the Divine Hall of Light were quite unusual. It was not made from gold, jades, or stones, but this divine hall naturally looked valuable and even slightly holy due to the starlight.


    Standing before the Divine Hall of Light, Ning Que was like an inconspicuous ant.


    He looked at the divine hall in silence and had mixed feelings in his heart: a little fear, a little excitement, a little yearning but also the desire to flee.


    He risked his life to leave Chang¡¯an ande to the West Hill Divine Kingdom, only to sneak into the Peach Mountain to see her in the Divine Hall of Light. He had been calm the whole way, but it was difficult to keep his head while he was actually standing in front of the Divine Hall of Light and about to see her.


    No matter how he tried to convince himself that the one in the divine hall was Sangsang, who was the ck thin girl he raised and a beloved family member ¡ª she was nevertheless Haotian.


    People used the term ¡°a world of difference¡± to describe the remote distance between two things or people and ¡°barrier between heaven and earth¡± to describe the fact of not getting touch with each other any more.


    He was just a mortal, and she was Haotian. The distance between them was like the distance between heaven and earth. He was separated from her by a high wall that ran through heaven and earth, forever.


    Ning Que had never had such mixed feelings or fear before. In a simr experience in his past life, it actually involved her as well.


    At that time, Sangsang ran away from home. He waited for her at Old Brush Pen Shop and then looked around the City of Chang¡¯an for her. He sneaked into the Grand Secretary Mansion to watch her in secret, and shouted out his anger about her attitude by the Yanming Lake.


    It seemed like nothing had changed. She ran away from home again and he tried to find her and bring her home again. He was worried and even scared that she would refuse toe home with him again.


    Perhaps it was due to his fear of losing her or due to her rebellious nature, Ning Que suddenly became furious. And his voice trembled.


    ¡°Is it fun to run away?¡±


    ¡°You were still young and naivest time. But how do you exin this time?¡± He looked deep into the Divine Hall of Light and said, ¡°You are already in your twenties. You should know better!¡±


    ¡°Do you know how dirty Old Brush Pen Shop is now? The dust on the desk is even thicker than the ash in the stove! These things should have been your responsibility. As a married woman, you should stay at home and take care of the house. But you are never home and always wander around.¡±


    ¡°Is it really fun to wander around? Look at this damn divine hall, deserted like a stone tomb. Lin 47th Street is far more bustling than here. I doubt that the Chenjinji Cosmetics Store here is better than the ones in Chang¡¯an.¡±


    No replies came out of the Divine Hall of Light. Ning Que got more angry and shouted, ¡°Say something! Say something! Why are you so quiet? Feeling guilty now?¡±


    ¡°Did you really decide to divide our family property? You¡¯re leaving the arrow and the carriage to me and keeping the ck umbre and the stupid horse for yourself? You really thought it through. But did you get my permission?¡±


    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s put aside the permission part and talk about dividing family property. Since you want to split, we better do it properly. I buried half of bank notes in Old Brush Pen Shop in your grave, put your name on thend lease of Yanming Lake Estate and transferred shares of the casino to the Grand Secretary Mansion...¡±


    ¡°In fact, I¡¯ve never thought about splitting with you. Those properties were disposed as your heritage.¡± He suddenly felt down and said in a low voice, ¡°Since you are still alive, my disposal of those properties are naturally invalid. How about you return the things you took and we forget all of this?¡±


    Still no reply from the Divine Hall of Light.


    ¡°Give the horse back to me. Give the big ck umbre back to me. And give... yourself back to me.¡±


    ¡°I believe that even if you have forgotten a lot of memories, you still remember these. Otherwise you wouldn¡¯t have sent the Drunkard to deliver the arrow and carriage to Chang¡¯an,¡± said Ning Que.


    No one answered him.


    ¡°I see now why you ordered the Divine Hall of West Hill to hold the Rite to Light. You want to kill Pipi, but you can¡¯t. Because I¡¯ve told you that we owe him our lives.¡±


    Ning Que walked into the divine hall and said, ¡°Our rtionship will always exist, with or without Tianqi.¡±


    ¡°Even though you blocked my perception, it is still there. Just like how applying threeyers of cosmetics on your face won¡¯t make your face white because you were born this way. It was destined.¡±


    His footsteps and calm voice echoed across the quiet Divine Hall of Light.


    ¡°You are Haotian, and you are also Invariant Yama. You can make your own decision about our rtionship. How could you end it without me?¡±

 Chapter 889 - Asking the Heaven (Part â…¡)

    <h4>Chapter 889: Asking the Heaven (Part ¢ò)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Stepping deep into the divine hall, Ning Que saw the figure on the terrace.


    He was a little shocked by the size of the figure, which was even taller than ordinary men. The woman on the terrace was too fat to be called plump.


    She wore a light cyan dress decorated with flowers. The dress stayed still even though the autumn breeze was blowing from the cliff. That was because the dress clung to her body tightly, showing her exaggerated body line.


    Ning Que had imaged the picture of reunion with Sangsang many times, but it never urred to him that a thin girl could turn into such a fat woman.


    He remembered the day he bought sweet potatoes in the town and saw the carriage and the tall fat girl in it. And he also remembered calling her a fat pig. It turned out that they had already met.


    At that time, he didn¡¯t know the girl in the carriage was her, but she must have known everything. Thinking of this, he felt his confidence evaporating, and the Academy¡¯s n seemed to be ridiculous too.


    He stared at her back and went silent for a long time.


    The woman looked nothing like Sangsang in his memory, but he knew for sure she was Sangsang due to positive perception rather than mystical feeling. Since the barrier between them had disappeared, he knew it was her.


    Although looking white and fat, the woman on the terrace was indeed Sangsang. Ning Que suddenly felt sad as he knew that he was probably never able to see the ck thin Sangsang again.


    Standing on the terrace with her hands behind her back, Sangsang enjoyed the autumn night. Her sleeves were as wavery as seas and her posture was as upright as mountain peaks. However, he felt her loneliness.


    ¡°Come home with me.¡±


    Ning Que spoke in a casual tone, looking at her back. Acting quite contrary to the previous excitement outside the divine hall, he was like a man seeing his yful little wife by theke.


    Sangsang didn¡¯t turn around and kept silent with her hands still behind her back. The starlight fell on the terrace and her thick shoulders, bleeding like ink.


    The divine hall was quiet and secluded. Blowing from the terrace and passing by the ever-brightmp broken into pieces, the night wind lifted a piece of old cloth to reveal a golden brick and a big ck umbre.


    After staring for a moment in silence, he walked to the terrace. He walked up behind her and reached out to her shoulder as if he were to brush the starlight away from her body.


    Feeling the soft and gentle wind, his fingertip fell on her shoulder.


    Upon touching her shoulder, a piece of his fingertip was cut off and he started to bleed. The blood coagted into a well-shaped circle which looked like a scarlet dot, as beautiful as a cinnabar mole.


    On the terrace, countless invisible lines divided the space into two worlds: Sangsang¡¯s world and the earth.


    Sangsang¡¯s world was made up of the most basic rules, including the space rule. Hence nobody could enter her world without her permission.


    Her world was far from the earth. The situation remained the same even though she was on earth. She was standing right before Ning Que, but it looked like she was far away.


    The distance between Ning Que and Sangsang was so close yet so far.


    ...


    ...


    Seeing the blood on his fingertip, Ning Que kept silent for a long time and thenughed sardonically. ¡°Barrier between heaven and earth indeed.¡±


    He looked up at her tall and chubby figure, and said, ¡°You¡¯ve put on a lot weight and grown much taller. You¡¯ve changed, and I bet you don¡¯t remember much about the past.¡±


    Sangsang didn¡¯t respond or turn around and just looked at the mountains under the night sky with her hands behind her back.


    ¡°But I remember all of it. That year in Hebei Province, the starving refugees fought against each other, and desperate parents even used their dead children as food. Although I survived, I was on the verge of copsing. I don¡¯t know what I would have turned into if I had not saved you from the piles of the dead bodies. In a sense, you saved me too. You made me into a decent man. You made my life meaningful even when I was as wicked back in Min Mountain and the Wilderness. During that time, you were my only light. You know, you were the only reason I wanted to live.¡±


    Looking at her back and her hands behind back, Ning Que suddenly wanted to hold her hands. Just like the time when she was crying and frightened due to the wolves in Min Mountain many years ago, he held her in his arms, held her hands tightly, and told stories the whole night tofort her. Although her hands were not as small as before, he still wanted to hold them. The craving was so strong that his voice trembled slightly.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know if you¡¯ve thought about the meaning of life. You are an eternal objective existence, and human are just passers-by. Our lives are short and will end one day, hence we are prone to nihility. In the end, the only things that help us get through the day are spiritually strong things, like emotions. After careful consideration, you will discover that all of this is based on memories. The more memories you possess, the stronger your emotions will be and the longer they willst. I don¡¯t want to recall the past at this point, but you know very well that the memories we share are iparable. So we can¡¯t leave each other. As I¡¯ve said before, you are my natal item and you are my destiny. Ie here today to take you home.¡±


    Then he reached out to her shoulder again, trying to brush the lonely starlight away and pull her back from her lonely world to the earth and back to him.


    Countless clear crunches echoed around on the terrace. His sleeves were instantly split into pieces, and the pure Haoran Qi covering his armssted for only a short amount of time before being cut into pieces by the invisible lines in the air. Innumerable fine blood lines appeared on his arms, which were about to be chopped off.


    All of a sudden, the space rule that divided the world into two parts disappeared, and the horrible blood lines on his arms did not go deeper. Because...Sangsang opened her world to him.


    Sangsang turned back slowly and looked at him in silence, with nothing but calmness in her eyes.


    Ning Que was in shock from her opening her world at this time. Seeing her eyes, he was even more shocked since she had never looked at him like this before.


    Sangsang reached out to hold his frozen hand.


    He felt that her soft and warm hand, like waters of ake. No, it was not hand, but a gentle universe, making him feel enchanted.


    She was his natal item, so she could sense what he was thinking. And when their hands were held together, he also sensed her consciousness and what she was thinking.


    The consciousness of Haotian was as vast as an ocean of stars, which was too much for human beings to bear. Even though Sangsang controlled her consciousness, it still whipped up huge waves in the ocean of consciousness of Ning Que.


    The corner of his eyes began to ooze blood, but his eyes were still bright as he saw a lot of her memories in the tempestuous waves. He saw the mulberry trees with their barks stripped off in Hebei Province, the starvingmbs in Min Mountain, the roast chicken and liquor in City of Wei, Old Brush Pen Shop in Chang¡¯an, cosmetics of Chenjinji Cosmetics Store, the summer rain, the bank notes under the bed and the night by the Snow Sea.


    It turned out that she had never forgotten anything. She remembered these things even more clearly than he did.


    Abruptly, Ning Que¡¯s eyes went dim, and then he was angry as he understood a cold fact that she was Haotian. The scenes in her memory were arranged by herself in the first ce, and they were merely derivatives of her n to make the Headmaster of Academy go up to heaven!


    The Headmaster of Academy and she were neck to neck in their fight for over a thousand years. She set up God¡¯s n toe to earth, eventually forcing the Headmaster of Academy to go up to heaven by the Sishui River.


    The memories she shared with Ning Que were a part of God¡¯s n, and they were neither the cause nor the purpose, but only the means.


    Staring at her eyes, Ning Que looked at the eternal calmness that was absolutely not human and slowly clenched his left fist. The blood lines on his right arm opened again because he tightened his body too much.


    He had always understood that all the memories he cherished were part of her calctions. Clearly, the two most important points for his master to leave were: he became the master¡¯s protege and he eloped with Sangsang all over the world after she was exposed as the daughter of Invariant Yama. All of this was just God¡¯s n.


    But he was unwilling to think about these things. Although all the things were exposed at this moment while they were holding hands and sharing their consciousnesses, he wanted to believe that she was still Sangsang. He was in severe pain.


    All of this was just God¡¯s n. The memories were also fake.


    Thinking silently, Ning Que then understood everything in his mind. Those memories could be real before Sangsang was woken up. She was still his Sangsang back then.


    Only when Sangsang woke up did those memories be mere means.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t calcte correctly because you were not from my world. I stayed on earth, but I had never been able to cut off the bond with you,¡± said Sangsang.


    ¡°So you must surrender to me.¡±


    Ning Que had never kept anything from her, including his biggest secret. He didn¡¯t even hide the conversation with his master from her while they were wandering on the seast year. She knew he was not a part of the world of Haotian, so she decided to show him mercy.


    Staring at her eyes, Ning Que asked, ¡°I¡¯m not one your people, why should I surrender to you?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I will grant you eternity.¡±


    ¡°What¡¯s eternity good for? Food? Or making the bed for me?¡± Ning Que asked.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 890 - Sangsang Has Hurt Me a Thousand Times(Part I)

    <h4>Chapter 890: Sangsang Has Hurt Me a Thousand Times(Part I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    ¡°Every death in the world is a long-awaited reunion.¡±


    The Drunkard once said to Ning Que outside of Chang¡¯an. It was not until this moment did Ning Que truly understood that this sentence was an invitation.


    Sangsang asked the Drunkard to pass the message to Ning Que.


    In the Haotian doctrine, the death of a believer was to return to the Divine Kingdom of Light and to Haotian¡¯s arm. If he was willing to surrender to her, he would naturally stay with her forever after death.


    But what is surrender? Of course it meant that Ning Que had to break the natal rtionship with Sangsang.


    Although she was Haotian, she also had to obey the rules of the world of Haotian. When she found out she wasn¡¯t able to end her rtionship with Ning Que, she could only hope he would do it.


    Haotian wouldn¡¯t deceive the world. As for the time when the whole world was hunting for the daughter of the Invariant Yama, it was the fault of people who were blinded by illusion rather than her intent to fool people. She promised to grant Ning Que eternity, then it must be true. Even though his answer was so rude, she didn¡¯t change her mind.


    If the Hierarch knew Haotian promised to grant Ning Que such a blessing, he would definitely go crazy with jealousy. But Ning Que was quite calm. ¡°A god never negotiates with ordinary people. Why are you doing this? Are you fond of me? Or are you afraid of me?¡± He asked, staring into her eyes.


    ¡°You are not part of my people, so I can forgive the crimes you havemitted. I loathe those memories, but I can feel your esteem for me. Therefore, I will grant you eternity.¡±


    Sangsang had no emotion on her face, which was daunting.


    ¡°That year at the Victory House in Chang¡¯an, you hid behind me and drank Kui Kiang Shuang Zheng rice wine. You had such a good time and totally forgot about Prince Long Qing. The prince wanted you. And I said he was beautiful.¡±


    Ning Que looked at her in face and said, ¡°You are whiter and fatter than before, but you are still not a pretty girl. Anyway, I really wanted to say what I¡¯ve said to Long Qing to you at this point.¡±


    ¡°Since you¡¯ve already got such a beautiful face, just drop other wishful thinkings. I adore rather than esteem you in the past years. Why should I surrender to you?¡±


    ¡°From what I remember,¡± Sangsang said. ¡°You fear death very much.¡±


    ¡°Then you must remember that I fear some other things even more.¡±


    ¡°Like what?¡±


    ¡°You. Our rtionship.¡±


    ¡°So you are not willing to surrender to me even if I were to kill you?¡±


    ¡°In fact, I don¡¯t think you will kill me. That¡¯s why I find the courage toe here.¡±


    Sangsang wore a little frown and asked, ¡°Why do you think so?¡±


    ¡°Because you are my natal item.¡±


    ¡°So?¡±


    ¡°If I die, you will die too.¡±


    ¡°Haotian will never die.¡±


    ¡°But Haotian will be whitewashed. Is the new Haotian still be the original one? You left Haotian Divine Kingdom and became a being. You have memories on earth and your body is tinged with dust and smell of earth. You already possess self-consciousness, so you are a life. A life will never want to die or lose his present self.¡±


    Ning Que looked at her eyes and continued, ¡°We can only live together, or die together. So you dare not go to Chang¡¯an, dare not kill me, and even dare note to see me.¡±


    ¡°Why not enjoy eternity with me?¡±


    ¡°What the hell is that? I want to be together with you, just not the way you say it. I want us to be together as two independent individuals. We can be integrated into one, but we shouldn¡¯t. Because in that way, you and I won¡¯t exist anymore. It¡¯s meaningless.¡±


    ¡°The Academy has always believed in meanings.¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t it better to find something meaningful?¡±


    ¡°I can give you what I gave to the Drunkard and the Butcher, which is objective and independent eternity of the divine kingdom. You don¡¯t have to worry about the annihtion of self-consciousness¡±


    ¡°But you still need my surrender.¡±


    ¡°All life must surrender to me.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t ept it.¡±


    ¡°Why not?¡±


    ¡°Because you are mine.¡±


    Sangsang didn¡¯t understand him.


    Ning Que stared at her and said, ¡°Since you are mine, you must surrender to me. It¡¯s totally up to me both in bed and at the diner table.¡±


    ¡°How do you n to achieve that?¡± Sangsang asked with a frown.


    ¡°Just like that night by the Thermal Sea,¡± Ning Que said calmly. ¡°I won¡¯t stop fucking you until you surrender.¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s expression remained the same, but billions of stars died out deep in her brightly arched eyes.


    Her hands were no longer a gentle universe but an angry one.


    Ning Que felt a strong and invincible mighting down on him, like numerous mountains weighing on his shoulders. With a sound of creaking bones, his knees were about to break at any moment.


    He clearly sensed the cold and majesty of her hands that he was holding. His eyes and ears began to bleed, dripping on the terrace.


    ¡°I¡¯ve wondered about one thing for many years.¡± His face was covered with blood, but still showed a gratified smile. ¡°Howe there aren¡¯t many people who like you even though you are such a diligent andpetent person? They like Shanshan, Yn, even that stupid Li Yu, but why not you?¡±


    ¡°It was not until this moment did I truly understand that the reason was that many people can¡¯t feel the emotions and warmth of human from you. Because you are certainly not a human being.¡±


    ¡°You made my master go up to heaven, and he made you fall to earth,¡± Ning Que said, staring into Sangsang¡¯s eyes. ¡°You are a god, but I¡¯m going to turn you into a human being. If it¡¯s a war, then it¡¯s a war with my master and I against you. I can feel clearly your anger and hatred which are the emotions only humans have. I call it the dawn of victory.¡±


    Upon saying so, he took one step forward and tried to hold her in his arm. While casting a Divine Talisman with his left hand to cover his body, he began to summon his natal item in the consciousness.


    He began to summon Sangsang.


    He once sang a song to Sangsang on the cliff by the Snow Lake. Sangsang understood the song and the summon and invitation he made in the song.


    Unlike the invitation she asked the Drunkard to convey, Ning Que¡¯s invitation made such a tight connection that even the shadow of death and the threat of Invariant Yama couldn¡¯t tear it apart. It meant absolute obedience.


    Facing such an absolute and unteral connection, any life with self-consciousness would reject instinctively and put up a long struggle even if they were to eventually surrender.


    But Sangsang was different. She epted the invitation without any hesitation or struggle. Because she was not Haotian yet ¡ª she was just his little handmaiden.


    Once the natal connection was established, nobody could break it, not even Haotian. Sangsang went pale instantly, wearing a tighter frown.


    It was the most crucial part of the Academy¡¯s n, or to be urate, the continuation of the Headmaster of Academy¡¯s n of cultivating Sangsang¡¯s love for the world by making her travel everywherest year. It was also the reason Ning Que dared to leave Chang¡¯an to the Divine Hall of West Hill.


    No natal item could ever disobey the cultivator¡¯s orders.


    However, what happened next was beyond Ning Que¡¯s expectation. Sangsang went a little pale and her sleeves trembled for a few seconds. But besides that, she looked fine.


    She didn¡¯t pass out as he had expected, and he didn¡¯t get the chance to hold her.


    Because she was Haotian, not just some normal natal items like swords, talismans or prayer beads. She was the objective rules. Although she needed to obey the rules of natal item, it took more power to force her since she was a nearly infinite existence herself. It was simr to how a derrick stone could fall off the cliff due to the basic rule of nature, but the strength to push it to the verge of the cliff must be enormous.


    As one of the few strongest on earth, Ning Que had forceful Psyche Power. But it still looked insignificant and ridiculous when he tried to control Haotian with his consciousness.


    Sangsang didn¡¯tugh and only stared at Ning Que without showing any emotion.


    The Ning Que found out that the Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow inside his body were locked out instantly by rules he couldn¡¯t understand and then fell apart gradually. With his Haoran Qi dispersing into the night wind, he lost all his strength.


    Sangsang let go of his hands slowly.


    Ning Que¡¯s hands were no longer wrapped by gentle water. With his body bing light suddenly and his feet leaving the ground, he flew backwards in an uncontrolled fashion.


    He floated to the top of Divine Hall of Light like a dandelion catkin and he was tied by dozens of invisible forces, looking like a poor little reptile trapping in a cobweb.


    The force couldn¡¯t be casted off no matter how hard one tried, because it was the rule. Ning Que didn¡¯t struggle and stared at the blood dripping down in silence.


    Walking up to the spot right below him with her hands behind her back, Sangsang stared at him without any emotion. Obviously she was looking up at him, but it looked like she was looking down at the earth.


    She won the battle just by ncing at him because she was Haotian. However, Ning Que knew he had notpletely failed as long as he was alive and she was still his natal item.


    Ning Que started to think about how to fight on. He had no precedents to follow since the battle was different from the ones Headmaster of Academy or Liu Bai had fought.


    His thought was interrupted by an unexpected sharp pain.


    His shoes splintered into pieces, and so did his skin. His skin was king off with blood and blood clots, resembling a peeling wall that went through many days of raining and then exposed to the sun.


    His feet were cut apart by countless fine spaces in an instant, with innumerable flesh and blood being cut into small and neat shapes and falling to the floor of the divine hall dozens of zhangs below. Bare bones were the only things left of his feet, covering with blood and meat debris. The scene looked extremely horrible.


    The speed of cutting was fast but had deliberate dys, which was Sangsang¡¯s intention to let Ning Que see the scary process more clearly and critically and to give him enough time to feel the severe pain.


    Ning Que suffered many injuries before and was brutally tortured by mounted gangsters back in Wilderness, but he had never been through such clear and horrible pain.


    His lip turned blue and pale. Soybean-sized sweat beads oozed out and fell to the floor, causing light sound of ssh and diluting the flesh and blood down there.


    A magisterial voice echoed in his ocean of consciousness nonstop, like tens of thousands of drums being beaten at the same time and tens of thousands of wooden buildings copsing ceaselessly. The voice saidplicated sybles he couldn¡¯t understand, but conveyed a very clear message: ¡°Surrender!¡±


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 891 - Sangsang Has Hurt Me a Thousand Times(Part â…¡)

    <h4>Chapter 891: Sangsang Has Hurt Me a Thousand Times(Part ¢ò)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ning Que frowned tightly, and his face was even paler than Sangsang¡¯s sace. But he never made a sound, for he didn¡¯t want to surrender to her.


    Standing on the ground of the divine hall, Sangsang looked up in silence.


    Ning Rue¡¯s pants turned into rags and countless thin red lines appeared on his legs.


    The invisible de continued to cut off flesh and blood like butterflies and revealed the bone short after.


    Ning Que looked terribly pale, and his eyes and brows twitched due to severe pain. It looked like crying and smiling at the same time. His lips moved slightly as if he wanted to say something.


    Sangsang seemed satisfied.


    With flesh floating in the air, his legs turned into bones. Ning Que stared at Sangsang and asked, ¡°Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s like peony fish? Do you want to eat some with soy sauce?¡±


    Sangsang was no longer satisfied. A blood line appeared on his throat, cutting off his vocal cord directly. He was not able to make another sound.


    The invisible force in the Divine Hall of Light continued to rage. His flesh fell down like snowkes, revealing the bone gradually and leaving less and less blood.


    The most horrible penalty on earth was death by a thousand cuts. Tonight, Ning Que suffered as much as the worst criminals did.


    His flesh and blood were all gone. Under endless pain, his consciousness was as badly mutted as his body was. The divine hall would have echoed with shrill screams if he was able to make a sound. But he couldn¡¯t. The deathly stillness in the divine hall was overwhelmingly disturbing.


    Ning Que¡¯s eyes, dimmed to the extreme, were like candles in the wind that were about to die out any minute, or like the creepy scene of the lights of fireflies floating over the old graveyard covered with moss.


    Suffering from such severe pain, an ordinary person would have already been dead. Even though Ning Que had cultivated Haoran Qi, he wouldn¡¯tst this long if Sangsang didn¡¯t want him to.


    Sangsang wanted him to be alive to feel the pain.


    But he still didn¡¯t surrender.


    Staring at him with her hands behind back, Sangsang revealed no emotion on her face. But she frowned, for she didn¡¯t expect his resistance tost this long.


    From what she remembered, Ning Que had never been an impassioned figure, let alone facing death calmly. He preferred life to dishonor and chose leisure overbour, having no moral bottom line at all.


    Why did he still refuse to surrender to me at this moment?


    Sangsang was a little frustrated, for she found out that she had never really known this man or perhaps something happened to him while she was away.


    A gentle breeze blew through the Divine Hall of Light.


    The breeze blew on Ning Que¡¯s body, more gentle than a lover¡¯s hand. But it caused him extreme pain. Then he felt a chill that was hard to resist and began to shiver, breathing out the air mingled with frost.


    At this point, he had no inch of intact skin and even his flesh was almost cut offpletely. The night wind directly blew into his bone and viscera covered by a thin membrane, causing enormous pain and extreme coldness. People talked about bone-chilling cold, but who could understand it better than he did at this moment?


    All of a sudden, Ning Que felt itchy from his scalp to fingertips and to the abdomen, like innumerable ants and bugs were biting him. He barely opened his eyes and looked down to his own body, realizing that it was not a new interesting punishment Sangsang came up with but new flesh growing back on his bones.


    The itch came from the bones and flesh growing back.


    His body recovered at a rate visible to naked eyes. The bare bones were covered by flesh and skin again. And his new skin had no wounds and it was smooth as a newborn baby¡¯s skin.


    Was it a miracle created by Haotian? Ning Que didn¡¯t feel joyful, for he knew that Sangsang didn¡¯t show him mercy. It was just the beginning of next round of torture.


    Just as expected, the gentle breeze became swift and fierce again.


    With the itch and cold gone, Ning Que only felt pain. The new flesh was being cut off again, falling to the floor like raindrops.


    He suffered death by a thousand cuts again.


    The magisterial voice echoed in his ocean of consciousness ceaselessly, demanding his surrender.


    He expressed his rebellion with silence, and showed his scorn with pride.


    The stars outside the divine hall watched the most brutal and bloody scene in silence.


    Time passed slowly, and it was undoubtedly the longest night Ning Que had ever went through.


    He suffered death by a thousand cuts and then was healed, repeatedly. The extreme anguish made him crave for death. Only then did he understand that death was indeed not the worst thing. However, he was no longer able to die at this point.


    His consciousness was distorted and broken due to severe pain, and it gradually blurred. He vaguely remembered the child who cut off his own flesh and returned it to his father, the handsome eunuch who got his feet cut into bare bones the moment he stepped into the desert, Lian Sheng sitting on a mountain of human bones in the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, and the old eunuch who was famous for dying from a thousand cuts.


    He didn¡¯t know whether these people and memories were real or fictitious. Many pictures shed in his mind, making him more miserable rather thanfortable. For some reason, he always kept thest bit of sobriety and stubbornness and refused to surrender to the magisterial voice in his ocean of consciousness.


    His forehead had been cut open, with diluted blood dripping down nonstop. Through the bloody curtain, he squinted at the tall, fat woman standing.


    Looking at this woman, he had never felt such intense fear in his entire life, and he had never felt such intense anger either.


    He stared at Sangsang with blood-red eyes like a dying beast, gasping in pain.


    Losing the ability to speak, he could stillmunicate with her in consciousness.


    ¡°Fuck.¡±


    Sangsang looked at him in silence, revealing no emotion on her face.


    He stared at her and said, ¡°I¡¯ll fuck you¡±.


    Still no response came from Sangsang.


    ¡°You should kill me now,¡± said Ning Que. ¡°Otherwise I will fuck you nonstop like before.¡±


    Sangsang finally responded, ¡°Stupid human¡±.


    Her voice echoed across the quiet Divine Hall of Light. It was the first time Ning Que heard her voice today, not the voice in consciousness, but her voice in reality.


    Ning Queughed and it sounded like a broken bellows.


    ¡°You, Haotian, were fucked by me, a mere mortal...Haotian still can¡¯t avoid karma to change what had happened. Even though you can restore your virginity and forget the history we had, you can¡¯t change the fact that I fucked you. That¡¯s why you are pissed off.¡±


    He stared at her and said, ¡°You made me suffer, and I¡¯d like to return the favor. You are gonna always be angry about it as long as you dare not kill me.¡±


    A sincere smile appeared on his face covered with blood, and his bleak eyes were filled with firm and calmness, which looked extremely wired and daunting.


    ¡°You did make me angry,¡± said Sangsang.


    Suddenly, Ning Que felt a chill between his thighs.


    Normally, his body should have been numb due to pain and feel nothing at this moment. Thus, the chill were noting from his body but his mind.


    Trying hard to look down, Ning Que found out that his thighs were badly mutted and a valuable body part there was gone. Then he was hit by overwhelming pain.


    The pain was so severe that he almost fainted. His lower abdomen and thighs kept twitching, and the bloody flesh left between his thighs kept swinging.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que woke up in pain after a long time. He stared at his badly mutted thighs, realizing that he was castrated.


    Many men were castrated by their wives in history, mostly because of their infidelities. Ning Que couldn¡¯t ept the fact, for he thought he was very faithful to Sangsang.


    Besides, while suddenly discovering the fact of bing an eunuch, any man would try to convince himself it was just an illusion no matter how strong his willpower was.


    ¡°I can live with your intention to kill me. I will always treat you as my first love even though you¡¯ve hurt me a thousand times. But what you are doing now is far beyond my limits. I am very upset.¡±


    He spoke to Sangsang sincerely while looking at her.


    In Sangsang¡¯s eyes, Ning Que was no different from other stupid and menial human, especially when he tried to irritate her with those profane words.


    ¡°I should have known your limits earlier. I am very happy to make you unhappy, and I¡¯d like to know what you can do about it.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°As I¡¯ve said repeatedly, I will fuck you¡±.


    ¡°Fucking is the sexual behavior low lives performe to produce offspring. Since you tried so hard to make me remember the sexual rtionship we had and threatened me by iming to restore that rtionship in the future, then I must destroy your genitalia. After all, you can¡¯t have sex without your genitalia.¡±


    Sangsang exined and looked at him without any emotion.


    Ning Que looked at her quietly and said, ¡°Have you ever heard about sexual fantasies?¡±


    Hearing this, Sangsang¡¯s expression suddenly changed because she felt like she was touched by a pair of hands.


    The hands acted indecently and impudently.


    The hands were not real and just illusionsing from psyche.


    Ning Que¡¯s gaze alighted on her plump breast.


    Sangsang frowned tightly and felt the hands reaching into her dress and rubbing her breasts.


    She couldn¡¯t cut off the connection with Ning Que due to the reason that she was his natal item. Ning Que¡¯s thoughts were concretely present in her consciousness.


    They shared the same sorrows and joys, and of course the same lusts.


    While torturing Ning Que, she suffered just as much as Ning Que did. She could take the pain which was too much for human to bear, for she was omnipotent Haotian.


    But when it was for lusts, could she still take it?


    Parting from the life of being an untrainable loser, Ning Que officially embarked on the journey of cultivation many years ago. While Ning Que was looking for his natal items, Sangsang would often giggle like a silver bell and sometimes even cry out a little in the small yard of Old Brush Pen Shop, because she always thought the young master was tickling her.


    His thoughts would fall on her, for she was his natal item.


    Even though she was Haotian and beyond his control, he could still touch her like the old days.


    He could touch her any time he wanted to.


    In the holy Divine Hall of Light tonight, he kept touching her.


    However, whether she would touch him back in a moment still remained a mystery.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 892 - The Feeling

    <h4>Chapter 892: The Feeling</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Sangsang¡¯s body was divine, so it was immune to almost all physical damages in the human world. Her consciousness was as vast as the universe, so it could ignore most of spiritual damages. Therefore, Liu Bai couldn¡¯t hurt her with his sword, and Ning Que couldn¡¯t control her with his natal psyche either. But it didn¡¯t mean that her body and consciousness had no feelings.


    An indestructible body was not equal to an insensible one, which was a simple truth that worked for dark powerhouses like Yu Lian and Tang too. Ning Que¡¯s consciousness couldn¡¯t hurt her, but could stir up her feelings. Just like the gentle breeze couldn¡¯t blow the ice on theke away, but it could make the lotus in theke swing.


    Ning Que¡¯s consciousness was not quite clear, but he continued to instinctively touch her with his consciousness. As his gaze wandered, his hands slid into her dress like a st of wind, gently touching her plump body.


    People said lovers had the gentlest hands. With consciousness as his hands, Ning Que was the gentlest lover, possessing a pair of hands that would fascinate all women.


    Stroking her neck gently, his fingertips slid over her shoulders, drew circles on her chest softly, rubbed her stic earlobes mischievously, and finally fell on her hips.


    No wind blew over the Divine Hall of Light, hence no wrinkle appeared on her light cyan dress that was decorated with flowers. However, she clearly sensed that an annoying breeze traveled through her dress and the invisible hands kept touching her body impudently and abominably.


    She turned extremely pale and her eyes were extremely cold due to anger. But her cheeks blushed quietly, her eyes were as clear as gemstone and her chubby thighs trembled slightly because of her involuntary reactions.


    The hands were getting more unbridled, wandering over her holy body. Even the most secret body parts couldn¡¯t escape from his fingers. The hands were so gentle at first, but asionally became violent to twist her nipples and inner thighs. The hands left no bruises but made her reactions more and more obvious.


    Sangsang was furious about the obscene scenes. Even though she dispelled Primordial Qi and Breath of Nature in the Divine Hall of Light with her rules to forbid Ning Que from touching her body with his consciousness, she wasn¡¯t free from feeling the hands clearly. She could sense the vivid pictures and feelings in his imagination as long as he could think or imagine.


    They had to share the same feelings because she was his natal item.


    Sexual fantasy was a very historical and literary term which did not necessarily refer to obscenity. And it surely would have some religious and direct exnations after tonight.


    Ning Que¡¯s sexual fantasies were not like sexual dreams or the spring breeze that would be gone without any trace, but they actually fell upon the woman his fantasies targeted.


    He kept touching Sangsang in his consciousness and Sangsang had to ept it passively. She turned paler but cheeks blushed more intensely. Her eyes turned colder but also brighter, and she closed her thighs tightly and gripped her hands together. Her feelings were getting stronger.


    She felt warm, itchy, unsettled, nervous, tranquil, fretful, humid, thirsty, joyful and terrified at the same time.


    The feeling was strange but not new to Sangsang. In her memories of being a human being, she asionally had the same feeling when Ning Que held her little feet to sleep in the past. And as for the night in the log cabin by the Snow Sea, although it hurt a little, she definitely felt the same way as this moment.


    She knew what the feeling meant. Human tended to endow the feeling with many meanings and cover it with beautiful words, such as romance and lust for life. In reality, it was just a physical pleasure possessed only by lower creatures. And the reason why lower creatures like humans couldn¡¯t resist the temptation of physical pleasure was that they needed it for procreation.


    She was Haotian, free from the need of producing offsprings. As an advanced life, she should not have felt the low-level physical pleasure even though she had the body of a human being.


    However, she felt the pleasure clearly and intensely, which meant that the force of earth Headmaster of Academy left in her body still worked and her bond to the human world still lingered, making her more and more like an ordinary human, emotionally and physically.


    With her lips dry, her neck sweaty, her breasts swollen and her earlobes itchy, she felt moist between her thighs. Being flustered and tranquil at the same time, she found herself happy, then bing anxious and even frightened.


    The worst sin in West Hill literary canon was to spheme Haotian, such as wearing untidy clothes and using foulnguage during a sacrificial ceremony, which was nothingpared to what Ning Que was doing at this moment. Haotian was vited by a human being and she was treated as a human being.


    How could Haotian not be angry?


    She violently swung her sleeves. And chilly wind swept across the Divine Hall of Light violently, piercing through Ning Que¡¯s bones and into his viscera like innumerable fine steel spikes.


    With blood everywhere, Ning Que was at hisst gasp. He was barely conscious, looking at Sangsang and saying in his consciousness, ¡°If you don¡¯t want to lose, kill me now. As you said, every death in the world is a long-awaited reunion. Then let us die together, but I¡¯m never gonna leave you alone even after going to the Divine Kingdom.¡±


    A wired smile appeared on his miserable face, which was either because he was at death¡¯s door or he saw the stories that might happen in the Divine Kingdom.


    ¡°Enough!¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s voice echoed across the Divine Hall of Light like thunder.


    The starlight filtering into the Divine Hall of Light from the terrace broke into pieces, the golden brick under the cotton curtain broke into two, and deep marks appeared on the hard stone wall, which were all due to her loud shout.


    A few clouds in the night sky above the Divine Hall of West Hill vanished in a sh. Thousands of miles away in the Song Kingdom, a horrible storm piled on the sea, submerging the bizarre pirs on the coast instantly.


    If an emperor were to be angry, blood would shed like rivers, covering thousands of miles ofnd. If Haotian were to be angry, the whole world would be destroyed. But she could neither destroy the world nor kill the man who irritated her, which made her even more angry.


    Hanging in the air, Ning Que kept bleeding. He looked like a pig that was ughtered moments ago. Sangsang stared at him with nothing but hatred in her eyes.


    Ning Que appeared in a lot in in her memories on earth, and she knew he was so shameless that he even received a nickname: Academy¡¯s Disgrace. Moreover, as Haotian, she overlooked the earth for countless years and saw many shameless souls who killed their wives and sold their mothers. She surely knew how disguising humans could be, but what Ning Que did still surprised her. He even got the spirit to sexually harass her with his consciousness after being castrated.


    Ning Que sensed her hatred clearly. Heughed in a self-mockery way and exined to her seriously, ¡°This is a war, and I will do whatever I need to win.¡±


    With his vocal cord cut off, his voice was directly squeezed from his lungs. He sounded raucous and vague, just like two rough stones rubbing together, and blood came out with every word.


    He insisted on exining himself because he wanted her to know that he would never surrender in this war no matter what horrible torment fell on him.


    Staring at his eyes, Sangsang talked to him in her consciousness.


    ¡°Name your price.¡±


    ¡°Come with me.¡±


    ¡°To where?¡±


    ¡°As long as it¡¯s not the Divine Hall of West Hill.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Because earth is still earth except this ce. As a protege, I must finish where my master left off. You are my wife, so of course I want you to be a real human being. Come with me, and don¡¯t forget that we missed our honeymoon.¡±


    ¡°You think you can threaten me like this?¡±


    ¡°Why not? You can¡¯t keep hopping, can you?¡±


    Sangsang understood Ning Que¡¯s inexplicable answer. Many years ago back in the City of Wei, Ning Que talked about something named movie in the world he came from.


    She woke up, heading to the terrace with her hands behind back.


    Ning Que noticed that her body beneath the light cyan dress trembled slightly, knowing that he survived tonight¡¯s battle.


    ¡°Cure me first, or I will bleed to death. You should be careful since you must be buried along with me.¡±


    He spoke with his mind while staring at her lonely back.


    In the light of the early morning sun, the distant lofty mountains could be seen from the terrace.


    She stood on the terrace and was silent for a long time. All of a sudden she said, ¡°You think you¡¯ve won?¡±


    From Ning Que¡¯s point of view, he was in an invincible position as long as she did not dare to kill him. One never actually failed if one survived, which was not the philosophy of Academy, but the truth he and she learned at Min Mountain and the Wilderness.


    The morning light fell on Sangsang¡¯s face. The blush on her snow-white skin was very clear, just like the peach blossom on the mountainside, which made her in features attractive.


    It was a long night for both of them. She also suffered a lot of pain and consumed plenty of divine power to keep him alive.


    She looked a little tired. She waved her hand, then a stone flew from the mountain beside them and into the Divine Hall of Light, falling on Ning Que.


    Ning Que was knocked out.


    Although she couldn¡¯t kill him, she still could knock him out. A man in aatose had no way to continue the sexual fantasy no matter how bold and shameless he was. But it also meant that she couldn¡¯t make him suffer anymore. It was a tie.


    Nobody lost the battle, and nobody won it either.


    The war would inevitably continue, and nobody knew for how long. It mightst until the seas have dried up and the rocks had eroded or until they have reached old age together.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 893 - Toss and Turn

    <h4>Chapter 893: Toss and Turn</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ning Que woke up only to find himself lying on a cold and firm rock bed. Apart from the grating, it seemed the walls, the table, and chairs were all made of rocks in this room. This setting looked familiar. However, it was not until he saw the tiny window he realized it was the Secluded Pavilion under the cliffs in Peach Mountain. He visited from the other side of the window once. At this moment, it was Chen Pipi who had escaped and he was the imprisoned one instead.


    He tried to sense his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow only to find it chained up by Sangsang with an unbelievable method. He was weaker than an ordinary man now and there was no way for him to escape from this prison. Therefore, he chose not to look at the seemingly thin wooden fence. Instead, he stared into the sky outside the tiny window in a silence.


    He was exhausted and almost at the edge of physical and mental breakdown. While he desperately needed a rest, he just could not sleep. Although his body seemed to be in a good condition, the tortures he underwent inside the Divine Hall of Light and the pain of slow slicing was distinctively recorded by his body.


    Hey his arms on the rock bed. Even though he dared not to move, they still trembled in pain. His back and hip were also suffering from burning pain from lying down.


    As pain had left him with restlessness, he tried to make good use of his time thinking it through. But regretfully, his thinking only gave him more restlessness.


    In the Academy¡¯s n, he should first conquer or control Sangsang, then bring her out of the Divine Halls of West Hill, and finally go back to Chang¡¯an. That was because she was the only one who could fully restore the God-Stunning Array.


    Beforeing to Peach Mountain, he was prepared for a cruel battle with Haotian. But it was to his astonishment that the battle could be so difficult and painful that he was not even able to make the first step.


    There was not something wrong with the Academy¡¯s n. The magnificent Tianqi in the front yard of Peach Mountain was already proof that Ning Que was the only one who had a chance to win against Haotian.


    However, no one in the human world had any experience fighting against Haotian. Ning Que and his Brothers and Sisters had nned for months and prepared for various possibilities. What they did not realize was that the gap between Haotian and human beings would be so vast that even their natal bonds were not good enough for Ning Que to take control.


    Fortunately, the Academy did not lose either. As long as Ning Que was alive, they still has a chance to win an unexpected victory. The battle between Haotian and human beings hade to a strategic stalemate. The turning point would ur when one of them could find a way out.


    Ning Que did not know for how long he had passed out or what had happened during hisa. After making sure that no one wasing to interrogate him, he closed his eyes and started recalling what had happened in the Divine Hall of Light that night. He went through every bloody and brutal moment he had suffered in detail.


    He was tortured inhumanely that night. Even thinking about it brought pain. However, he insisted on recalling every single detail, not because he enjoyed being tortured, but because he wanted to learn from it.


    Those invisible des Sangsang drew on him were all based on the most basic rules for the flow of space. Each wound she gave him was a rare teaching.


    Ning Que controlled the Divine Talismans. Whether it was the Two Talisman or Yi Talisman, they all followed the rules for the flow of space. It was a rare opportunity to learn these rules from Haotian and he did not want to miss it.


    He could still feel the remaining pain caused by those des, and could barely pull back his consciousness. However, he kept his eyes closed and tried hard to recall and learn from those memories. He could not waste any chance to learn and elevate his skills even from failure and anguish. That was how he had be so powerful.


    With his eyes closed, he recalled his experience that night. Pulling together the memories of the rules of dividing space, he quivered his fingers on the rock bed. His fingers seemed to be trembling unintentionally. But actually he was trying to imitate the talismans.


    Ning Quey on the rock bed for a long time until the light faded outside the rock grating. Someone brought him fresh water and simple dishes during that time, but nothing else happened.


    Gurgling sounds from the stomach awoke him from contemtion. He looked around the secluded cell and rebuilt his talismans in his mind again to make sure that his skills of drawing the Two Talisman and Yi Talisman had improved. His eyes brightened and lips lifted with a satisfied smile. Suffering does pay off sometimes, he thought.


    He made an effort to sit straight and pushed against the rock bed to stand up. Upon such a simple movement, he felt as if his muscles were about to crack again and his legs trembled in pain.


    He made it to the rock table and started his dinner quietly. He did not know how long this battle wouldst. Therefore he had to make sure to restore enough strength so that


    he would survive.


    Even if it was merely an illusion of being able to survive, he needed strength.


    His dinner was in rice with vegetables and tofu on top. There was nothing tasty but he found them delicious as if he was enjoying the finest feast that his Master treated him years ago.


    Upon finishing his meal, he felt satisfied and refreshed. He even felt some relief from the remaining pains on his body.


    He wanted to drink some fresh water after the meal, but when he held up the bowl of water and lifted it toward his lips, he suddenly realized something which immediately drained the colors from his face.


    The pain engulfed him again even more distinctively than ever.


    With trembling hands, he put the bowl of water back on the rock table, managed to stand up holding the table and moved to the chamber pot at a corner of the cell.


    The chamber pot was clean. There was some clear water inside that looked like a mirror.


    He stood there in front of the chamber pot and looked into the reflection of his withered face on the water. There was a long silence.


    He did not loosen his pants or did anything else, but rather just stood there and stared. Then he moved back to the rock bed with painstaking steps and sat down very slowly.


    Upon sitting on the freezing rock bed his face distorted because of the sharp paining from in-between his legs. He almost passed out again.


    He panted in pain until he finally got used to it after a long while. He calmed down somehow but heavy breaths heaved his chest in both fear and anger.


    He knew his body well and realized what had happened without loosening his pants. He looked down in-between his legs and said to himself with frustration, ¡°You will grow back, won¡¯t you?¡±


    After a pause, he affirmed, ¡°You must grow back.¡±


    People said it was had to gather spilled water, to reconnect cut hair or to fix a shattered mirror. However, being hard was different from being impossible. However, it was not something he could decide. It depended on the woman who was inside the Divine Hall of Light.


    After a long silence, he suddenly sensed some ridiculousness and bursted intoughter. However hisughter froze within a few seconds because it was indeed not funny at all.


    The person inside the Divine Hall of Light did not feel any human emotions. She had no pity on him because she was no longer Sangsang but Haotian. Only the pain in-between his legs was reminding him of a slightest chance of winning this battle. It was a slight and painful chance, too unbearable and wretched for any man to take.


    Now that he had paid such a bitter price, he had to win something in return.


    Ning Que looked into the night sky outside the rock grating and remembered the pain he had undergone. It drew some inspiration on his Ocean of Consciousness and bestowed some indescribably divine beauty to the talisman he had beenposing.


    In terms of cultivation, he hade to a crucial moment. If he couldprehend Haotian¡¯smand of basic rules for the flow of space, he could make a huge leap on this way to drawing a perfect People Talisman.


    Since Haotian took his humane part from him, he had to try drawing the character by himself.


    At that moment, light mist poured in from the rock window.


    Ning Que¡¯s pupils contrasted slightly. He had once visited the Secluded Pavilion during the night, so he knew that the reluctance and resentment psyche of numerous previous strong cultivators from the Divine Halls of West Hill was in the mist. Even if he were his strongest self, he would not be able to withstand it and would have to seek for refuge in the moonlight. Now with his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow chained up, he was nothing but a wastrel.


    And there was something far more important than staying away from the harm of the night mist. It was a crucial moment for him toprehend Talisman Taoism. He would never know when such a rare opportunity could fall onto him again if he missed this one.


    However, he knew clearly that the mist was her way of stopping him. If she had not sensed the change inside the Secluded Pavilion, the night mist could have never entered his cell.


    ¡°You have tortured me enough. What else do you want?¡±


    Ning Que stared into the direction of Divine Hall of Light and shouted with anger, ¡°If you dare to take one more finger from me, I will kill myself right here! And you will be dead too!¡±


    While he was yelling, he also saluted his middle finger to the Divine Hall.


    He knew that Sangsang would understand what he meant by the middle finger.


    After all, that was the only pride he had now.


    But he forgot that Sangsang knew him better than he knew himself. She knew that he would nevermit suicide unless it was his veryst measure and a middle finger did not convey that message.


    Unsurprisingly, a wind stirred up in the cell, cleared the mist, and chopped Ning Que¡¯s middle finger.


    Then, on his body countless thin red lines formed. The brutal slow slicing was happening again. Ning Que was not able to do anything but wear a bitter and helpless smile.


    Ineffable pain tortured him non-stop untilte at night. He started to lose control of his consciousness until the veryst bit of it became blurred like the mist.


    Haotian¡¯s will was so powerful and irresistible that he was falling into an abyss of surrender. It was either because of his instinct to avoid pain or the pain being too overwhelming that he fell into a dream.


    In the dream, he was sleeping and cuddling Sangsang. He touched her lotus-white little feet and well developed figure, and felt some increasing moisture on the tips of his fingers.


    He tossed and turned on the rock bed in the cell. The pain was keeping him from falling asleep, but he could not wake himself from the dream. Blood was all over his fingers as they were hanging by the edge of the bed.


    Thousands of miles above the Secluded Pavilion atop Peach Mountain, Sangsang was also having a dream in the Divine Hall of Light. It was a beautiful and romantic yet annoying dream that enraged her.


    In the Divine Hall, shey on the ground, with her eyes closed andshes trembling, while tossing and turning. Her thighs were tight and her breathing deep. The green flowery dress she was wearing seemed to be ready to blown at any moment.


    Ning Que was still in great pain in his dream. He was about to copse.


    He got up from beneath her and saw her face. It was not the indifferent face of Haotian, but rather the young, slightly dark and amiable face that he knew well.


    She was staring at him curiously with shining smiling eyes.


    He felt a sudden peace and forgot all the pain from his body. Slowly lowering his head, he ced a tender kiss on her lips. And with that kiss, he saved himself.


    ...

 Chapter 894 - Those You Could Never Understand

    <h4>Chapter 894: Those You Could Never Understand</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The dream was quirky. Ning Que was enjoying the romance while enduring the brutal pain from the slow slicing, which were twopletely different and opposite feelings. His mind was about to be torn and he almost surrendered to her divine majesty.


    Fortunately, he saw Sangsang¡¯s face at the critical moment. The young and familiar face ced some genuine peace in him. He kissed and thus survived the romantic yet brutal nightmare. He woke up to find himself still lying on the freezing rock bed, soaked with sweat.


    He realized that the dream was actually a battle between their consciousnesses. He panicked at the thought that he had almost surrendered. By holding his fists tightly and stretching the muscles on his arms, he felt another wave of fierce pain and difort. It confirmed his dream. He was again tortured by slow slicing.


    He heard some sudden footsteps outside the cell and turned to take a look. This time it was not the deacon from Judicial Department who had been pretending to be deaf and dumb. Instead, it was an acquaintance.


    It was a young, tender and good-looking man dressed in an ordinary Taoist robe, with a pale brown oiled paper umbre under his armpit. It was He Mingchi, the disciple of Li Qingshan who was the former national master of Great Tang Empire.


    When Li Qingshan passed away, He Mingchi had taken over the Tianshu Institution of the Great Tang Empire. However, no one knew that he was the Hierarch¡¯s most important pawn in Chang¡¯an. He took direct orders from the Abbey Dean and the Hierarch, and aplished the task that took Taosim over a thousand years to n for. He made use of the shadow that Haotian left in Chang¡¯an and destroyed the God-Stunning Array, which resulted in the riot of blood and ze that night. That was all because of him.


    In the battle against Tang Empire, He Mingchi was the one who brought the fatal strike. Therefore, he was on top of the revenge list that Tang Empire held. For exactly the same reason, the Hierarch sent him to the south after the battle and did not call him back to the Peach Mountain until the Rite to Lite.


    Ning Que looked at He Mingchi, who stood outside the fence. He Mingchi could not find any trace of anger on Ning Que¡¯s face. Yet the calmness was just a deration of his determination. He would only look at a dead man with such calmness.


    He Mingchi was a senior brother to him in terms of their Taoist lineage from the South Gate Abbey. But he was already a dead man in the eyes of Ning Que, as well as in the eyes of any person from the Tang Empire.


    He Mingchi opened the fence and entered the cell. He ced a box of dishes and fresh water on the rock table, lifted his robe and sat on a rock chair, with eyes fixed on Ning Que who was lying on the rock bed.


    Different from the Ning Que¡¯s calm and emotionless demeanor, He Mingchi had mixed feelings of envy, jealous, fear, pity and admiration.


    When he was in Chang¡¯an, He Mingchi always carried his pale brown oiled paper umbre in his armpit, and bended it slightly when he walked between the imperial city and the South Gate Abbey. Compared with Ning Que, he was rather low profile and insignificant.


    Now Ning Que knew that was just his disguise. He probably had a much higher ranking in Haotian Taoism than anyone had imagined. Otherwise how could the Abbey Dean and the Hierarch have assigned him with such a crucial task? And how dide into the Secluded Pavilion to visit Ning Que? If Prince Long Qing was the brilliant charming prince in broad daylight, He Mingchi would probably be his counterpart hidden in the darkness of Divine Halls of West Hill.


    He Mingchi was exceptionally shrewd and probably had surpassed the state of See-through a long time ago. Even after the riot in Chang¡¯an, no one from the Tang Empire was able to figure out whether or not he had reached the state of Knowing Destiny. Now that Ning Que was already a wastrel, he couldn¡¯t care less about He Mingchi¡¯s state of cultivation.


    He just felt some regret. When he was the invincible Ning Que bestowed with Tianqi that day in the front yard of Peach Mountain, he tried to look for He Mingchi while he held his arrows. But either because of his extraordinary insight of predicting danger or pure luck, He Mingchi was able to flee from the Hierarch¡¯s sacred sedan and was nowhere to be found.


    Neither He Mingchi nor Ning Que said a word. Ning Que did not want to talk to him at all. It was incredibly quiet in the cell until a dripping sound rang.


    A drop of rain water fell on the ground from the tip of the pale brown oiled paper umbre.


    Ning Que looked outside the rock window but could not see any rainfall due to the foggy sky.


    He Mingchi said, ¡°It¡¯s raining out there. It¡¯s a pity you could not see it from here.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°It doesn¡¯t sound like a bad thing to not be exposed in the rain.¡±


    He Mingchi countered, ¡°Not necessarily a good thing if you would be staying out of the rain forever.¡±


    ¡°You did note to ask me questions. Even the Abbey Dean or Xiong Chumo was not qualified to ask me questions, let alone someone like you. Then what are you here for? To enjoy the sight of me being imprisoned? Does it count for not being exposed in the rain? Howe I sense some jealousy from you?¡±


    There was no trace of any emotion in Ning Que¡¯s voice while he looked outside the rock window when he spoke.


    He Mingchi replied after a while of silence, ¡°I am indeed jealous of you.¡±


    Ning Que turned to him and said, ¡°For someone as great as me, I have a thousand of reasons for you to be jealous of. I can¡¯t help being so extraordinary. There¡¯s no need for you to feel inferior.¡±


    He Mingchi replied sarcastically, ¡°Even though you will be imprisoned probably for the rest of your life, you are still so confident and cocky. I am indeed inferior in this case.¡±


    Ning Que confirmed. ¡°There¡¯s no doubt you are inferior to me in every aspect.¡±


    He Mingchi disagreed. ¡°That¡¯s your perception, not mine. I am indeed jealous because I don¡¯t understand why Haotian didn¡¯t kill you.¡±


    Ning Que found the disappointment and devoutness deep down his gentle eyes and caught some subtle sentiment. ¡°You are way too inferior to understand this.¡±


    He Mingchi continued, ¡°I followed Haotian¡¯s shadow everywhere in Chang¡¯an and destroyed the God-Stunning Array upon her call. I am the closest human being to her in this world.¡±


    Ning Que disapproved. ¡°No one is closer to her than I am.¡±


    He Mingchi consented. ¡°Yes. And that¡¯s why I¡¯m jealous of you.¡±


    Ning Que questioned, ¡°Jealousy drives people crazy. Perhaps you should try to kill me.¡±


    He Mingchi kept silent for a while and then replied, ¡°No one disobeys Haotian.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°My Master did it, and so had my Youngest Uncle. And I¡¯ve tried several times myself.¡±


    He Mingchi reasoned, ¡°That¡¯s why the Headmaster and Mr. Ke were both dead.¡±


    ¡°But I¡¯m still alive,¡± said Ning Que.


    ¡°Indeed.¡± He Mingchi agreed.


    Ning Que continued, ¡°I am the living proof that Haotian is not almighty.¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± He Mingchi agreed again.


    Ning Que said, ¡°Therefore, you desperately want to kill me.¡±


    Ning Que had finally led their conversation back to the point because he knew clearly that him being still alive was sphemous to Haotian for the devout Taoist followers like He Mingchi.


    He Mingchi stood up in silence, and tucked the umbre in his armpit.


    Ning Que reminded him. ¡°The umbre is wet. You won¡¯t look good with your armpit soaking. It will seem like you have body odor. Likewise, you should hide your killing intent if you do want to kill me. Otherwise you will hardly seed.¡±


    He Mingchi shifted the umbre to his hand and stared at the water stain on the floor in front of his feet. He sounded confused, ¡°Howe it feels like you are so desperate to be killed by me?¡±


    Ning Que pondered and replied, ¡°This is again something you would never understand.¡±


    If he were to die, Sangsang would also die. Then, the Academy and Tang Empire would win this battle and his Master would have a better chance of winning in Heaven. Thus, there would be hope for the human world. Plus, he had been continuously tortured by slow slicing and was almost at the edge of copse, so he had various reasons for seeking death.


    Yet he did not want tomit suicide, or did he like the idea of Sangsang dying. He was both afraid and unwilling to do so. Therefore, he would prefer to be killed. In that case, he would die together with Sangsang for any reason that was out of his control.


    He Mingchi could not figure out what he was thinking about and felt humiliated. He mocked Ning Que instead. ¡°Is it a pity that you can no longer kill me?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°It was. Now I realize that although I¡¯m a wastrel I still have various ways to kill you. To be more precise, if I¡¯m going to leave Peach Mountain or the human world for good, I¡¯d definitely kill you before that. This means you don¡¯t have much time left.¡±


    He Mingchi still did not understand his words. However, he could not help feeling but feel some chills deep down his heart. He asked, ¡°How?¡±


    Ning Que stared at him and said, ¡°If Haotian wants you dead, how much time do you think you have left?¡±


    ...


    ...


    He Mingchi retold every single word of their conversation in the Secluded Pavilion.


    ¡°Although you have made tremendous contributions to Taoism, I still have to grind you into dust should you ever dare to do such things again.¡±


    The Hierarch conveyed to He Mingchi, who was kneeling on the rock stairs.


    He still looked gorgeous inside theyers of gauze. Although after the Rite to Lite everyone knew that he was merely a skinny old dwarf, no one dared to challenge him due to the radiating figure in the Divine Halls.


    Though the Hierarch was upbraiding He Mingchi, he kept his voice low and humble. That was because he knew that the one inside the Divine Hall of Light would hear him if she were spontaneously listen.


    He Mingchi questioned, ¡°I just don¡¯t understand why Haotian is keeping Ning Que alive.¡±


    He knew that Haotian was there in Peach Mountain and that Haotian was almighty. He still asked such a question not because he had lost his respect but because he thought he was asking for the good of Taoism. He reasoned that Haotian would definitely forgive him because of his devoutness.


    Many in the Divine Halls of West Hill also did not understand why Haotian did not kill Ning Que. If he were to die, the God-Stunning Array would lose its master. Then the Drunkard and the Butcher could kill the rest in the Academy upon their request. Additionally, Chang¡¯an, the Tang Empire, and the Academy would be destroyed in no time.


    The Hierarch frowned to his question and reprimanded, ¡°How could ordinary human beings like usprehend Haotian¡¯s will? You are not in a position to ask such questions.¡±


    He Mingchi kept his head down and did not speak further. All of a sudden he realized that perhaps Haotian could use some help, just like Ning Que wanted to be killed by him. However, he knew that his thought was too disrespectful. He dreaded and sweated profusely due to this disrespectful thought.


    In order to dispel his fear, he brought up something else: ¡°I heard that the Divine Priest of Judgement has been feeling depressedtely. And she stares into the Divine Hall of Light from time to time.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 895 - First of the Three Petty Things

    <h4>Chapter 895: First of the Three Petty Things</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Behind the veil, the Hierarch kept quiet. His broken palm was already restored by Haotian. But the shoulder that was injured by one of Ning Quo¡¯s Thirteen Primordial Arrows was not as lucky. As He Mingchi just said, there were more and more things they could not be understood in the Divine Halls of West Hill, including the recent silence in the Divine Hall of Judgment.


    After the Rite to Light, many people, especially those descendants of the former Divine Priest of Light from the South Sea, questioned Ye Hongyu, the Divine Priest of Judgment, for her behavior during the ceremony. However, due to her honorable position, even the Hierarch could not penalize her without any solid evidence.


    Yet, what He Mingchi just said had put him on alert, both because of something that happened years ago and her frequently looking into the Divine Hall of Light.


    The Divine Hall of Light was distinctively located atop Peach Mountain. Everyone could easily see it at a nce. Ye Hongyu was the Divine Priest of Judgement. No one would have questioned her observing the Divine Hall of Light in the past, not to mention just looking into it from some distance.


    However, the Divine Hall of Light was no longer the same.


    Since this spring, when peach blossoms bloomed again and the eternalmp died out, the Divine Hall of Light became an off-limits location for everyone.


    After Haotian repeatedly revealed the Divine Manifestation during the Rite to Light, the followers had confirmed their spection, thus no one dared to disrespect the Divine Hall of Light. They refrained from talking about the figure inside the Divine Hall. It was even a taboo to make wild guesses, not to mention to peek.


    The Divine Priests from the South Sea were settled in the Revtion Institution. Zhao Nanhai and his people had originally came back to reim their authority over the Hierarch in Taoism. Now they did not dare to do anything but to prostrate toward the Divine Hall of Light everyday and pray devoutly, hoping to be able to see Haotian in person one day.


    Under such circumstances, Ye Hongyu¡¯s looking into the direction of the Divine Hall of Light would definitely put people on alert and cause confusion. What is she looking for? How dare she pry into the Divine Hall?


    Inside the Divine Hall of Judgment, Ye Hongyu sat on the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade and kept quiet. She showed no expression on her face and looked indifferent and cold. She had been sitting there most of the time these days and paid no attention to her subordinates¡¯ reports. It seemed she had lost the ability to think.


    It was actually because she had been thinking about and reying what had happened at the Rite to Light ¡ª when Ning Que smashed the Hierarch¡¯s sacred sedan, the skinny old dward looked so ridiculous.


    Because of that scene, she had been sleepless recently. A myriad of thoughts crowded in her mind and left her with no peace. She was indeed very depressed as He Mingchi reported. As for her looking into the direction of Divine Hall of Light, it was because she, as the Divine Priest of Judgment, was clearly aware of Ning Que being imprisoned in the Secluded Pavilion. She wondered what that figure in the Divine Hall would do to Ning Que. This would affect her perception on certain things.


    Same as people in Peach Mountain, the entire West Hill Divine Kingdom was enveloped in awe and tension.


    Due to the Academy¡¯s intrusion, the Rite to Light was not sessful at all, with its sacrifice gone and many seriously wounded from the Divine Hall of West Hill. After Liu Bai¡¯s death, the Sword Garret was officially broken from Taoism. Several celebrations on the agenda were not carried out. And the Rite ended in a haste.


    Many had chosen to stay at the Divine Halls of West Hill. Governors of various kingdoms had to go back to their government. They prostrated devoutly and left their delegations behind. Meanwhile, bands and musicians who had prepared for performances during the ceremony also stayed and so did tens of thousands of followers.


    Haotian was present in the human world, and most probably inside the Divine Halls of West Hill. How could these devout followers leave the West Hill now? Even if someone were to ce swords on their necks, they would never leave. Therefore, the front yard of Peach Mountain and the viges around were overpopted. But none of them dared to say too much.


    The Tang Empire did not sent any delegation to the Rite to Light. Only a dancing team from the House of Red Sleeves were forced toe. If it were not for the insistence of the Divine Halls of West Hill, no one from the Tang Empire would havee, for they knew they would not be treated nicely here.


    The dancing team from the House of Red Sleeves was scheduled to perform after the sacrificial ceremony. As Chen Pipi was rescued, the celebration could not carried on. However, the Divine Halls of West Hill forced them to stay afterwards.


    This was a battle between the Tang Empire and West Hill. Since the Rite to Light was jeopardized by the Academy, the coercion to stay behind was frustrating and dangerous.


    Young girls from the House of Red Sleeves were amodated in an ordinary house in a small town. The house was heavily guarded by the cavalry of Divine Halls. They were scared and did not know their fates.


    Xiaocao was in charge of the team from the House of Red Sleeves. The naive and lovable girl was grown. Though still young, she revealed some remarkable leadership.


    When she learned that the Divine Halls was not letting them go, she immediately sent a message back to Chang¡¯an via certain channels. The day before yesterday an official dispatcher arrived from the Tang Empire. That was the reason why they were not mistreated by the Divine Halls of West Hill thus far.


    Yet, Xiaocao knew that the official dispatcher could only dy their destiny but not send them home. She worried that her girls would not be able to hang on any longer if they were to continue to stay in such a hostile and dangerous situation.


    ¡°Respected Divine Priest, I need a definite answer.¡±


    Xiaocao stared at the Divine Priest of West Hill in front of her and affirmed. ¡°If the Divine Halls still won¡¯t let us go, we do need an exnation.¡±


    The Divine Priest of West-Hill squinted at her. ¡°Are you threatening the Divine Halls?¡±


    Xiaocao slightly lowered her head and replied, ¡°We do not dare to. But you should be reasonable.¡±


    The Divine Priest sneered and thought, After what your people from Tang Empire have done to our Rite to Light and disgraced the Divine Halls, how dare you to ask for an exnation from us?


    ¡°I¡¯ve told you days ago. You came here to perform. How could you leave without fulfilling your task?¡±


    Xiaocao replied, ¡°If you want a performance we can do it any time. But when?¡±


    The Divine Priest frowned and said, ¡°It is a great honor for you to perform for the Divine Halls. You just need to wait with patience. How dare you to ask so many questions? You want to be punished for your impiety?¡±


    Xiaocao panted and managed to control her anger. ¡°For a good performance, we do need time to prepare. Please, Respected Divine Priest, do let us know when.¡±


    The Divine Priest answered indifferently, ¡°I have no idea.¡±


    Xiaocao questioned, ¡°Then who would know?¡±


    The Divine Priest looked at her with mockery. ¡°I have no idea either.¡±


    Xiaocao asked calmly, ¡°I want to see the Hierarch. I guess he would know for sure.¡±


    ¡°What makes you think that you can ask to see the Hierarch?¡± The Divine Priest reprimanded.


    Xiaocao stayed calm and continued, ¡°Then I ask for the Divine Priest of Judgment.¡±


    The Divine Priest looked at Xiaocao with mockery again. ¡°Up until now, you stubborn Tang people still won¡¯t ept the reality. Then I will give you a definite answer ¡ª you are doomed. You are not leaving this house unless you are dead.¡±


    Since the official dispatcher from Tang imperial court could not make the Divine Halls of West Hill to release them, Xiaocao knew that she and the girls were going to die miserable deaths. Even if the imperial court were willing to go into another war for their sake, they would still be doomed.


    The girls from the House of Red Sleeves were also aware of this. However, they were still clinging to a slimmest chance until it was disclosed by this Divine Priest. Colors were drained from Xiaocao¡¯s face, and the girls started weeping back in the house.


    The Divine Priest was satisfied by their grief. When he was about to say something further to add to their misery, the door was pushed open.


    The Divine Priest turned to those divine guards and asked, ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±


    One of the divine guards replied, ¡°Someone is asking for these girls from the House of the Red Sleeves.¡±


    The Divine Priest frowned at this request and coldly asked, ¡°Which Divine Priest from which Divine Hall is asking for them? I took the order from the Hierarch to watch these Tang women. No one can ask for them.¡±


    The divine guard reprimanded, ¡°Who do you think you are to ask such questions?¡±


    Xiaocao found some vent in their conversion. Yet she wondered who dared to disregard the order from the Hierarch. Could it be the Divine Priest of Judgment who was said to be a friend of Ning Que?


    The Divine Priest trembled with rage and cursed to them, ¡°How dare you to disrespect the Hierarch? Are you all courting death?¡±


    ¡°Who dares to stand in the way when the Divine Hall of Light is asking for them?¡±


    Upon hearing this cute voice, the divine guards cleared the path for a young girl in a white dress.


    The Divine Priest looked into this young girl in white dress and suddenly realized something. He felt his strength drained immediately and copsed on the ground.


    The girl in white dress did not spare a single nce at him and proceeded to the courtyard. She looked around the girls dressed up in their performance costumes, slightly frowned and asked, ¡°Who is Xiaocao?¡±


    Xiaocao took a deep breath, moved one step forward and answered piously, ¡°I am.¡±


    They had been confined in this humble house ever since themencement of the Rite to Light. She had no idea of what had happened these days or how much the Divine Hall of Light meant to the Taoists right now. Although she did not know the background of this girl in white dress, she could tell from the reaction of the Divine Priest that this girl held an unusually important position in the Divine Halls of West Hill. No matter what would happen next, she had to take her chance.


    The young girl in white dress stared at Xiaocao and could not figure out why her master had asked particrly for this Tang girl. After all, no one, not even the Hierarch, had been allowed to enter the Divine Hall of Light.


    Xiaocao followed the girl in white dress, stepped into the carriage, and left the small town.


    The girls from the House of Red Sleeves poured to the gate and watched the carriage until it disappeared. They could not help but worry for Xiaocao as they had no idea what would happen to her in the Divine Hall of Light.


    The Divine Priest awoke from his panic and seemed lost. He sleepwalked out of the courtyard, and hanged himself in his house that night.


    ...

 Chapter 896 - Second of the Three Petty Things

    <h4>Chapter 896: Second of the Three Petty Things</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ever since spring, no one had entered the Divine Hall of Light, not even the Hierarch. Therefore, when the pious deacons on the teau saw Xiaocao being escorted into the Divine Hall, they were shocked and could not believe what they just saw.


    Xiaocao did not understand what had happened to her either. She knew that the Divine Hall of Light had beencking a master for years, so who was asking for her?


    A girl in a white dress led her into the Divine Hall and then disappeared. She looked around the spacious and imposing Divine Hall and found herself small inparison. She instinctively kneeled on the cushion.


    Curtains hung in the far end of the Divine Hall. She saw no one behind the curtains or heard any sound. The silence was frightening. She lowered her head and waited anxiously for her destiny.


    Time passed by slowly. She kneeled for so long that her knees became sore and painful. However, she neither dared to stand up nor refrained from being more anxious.


    Suddenly she saw a big ck horse.


    Xiaocao¡¯s eyes shone with some joy because she knew that the big ck horse belonged to Ning Que. However, before she greeted the big ck horse, she remembered something else.


    She used to have a good friend in Chang¡¯an. They were of the same age. She was dark and skinny. They used to exchange many inexpensive gifts. She taught that friend how to do makeup and how to tempt her lustful master.


    Later on, that friend went through a lot. She became the daughter of the Grand Secretary and even was said to the descendent of the Divine Priest of Light. However, when they met asionally she was still the friend Xiaocao used to know.


    Xiaocao was shocked. She felt lost and fell onto the cushion with her hand covering her chest. She could not believe her own reasoning. Yet she knew there could be no other exnation for this.


    A wind blew from within the Divine Hall of Light and the curtain was lifted from a corner. Instead of her acquaintance, she could only see a lofty girl standing on the terrace.


    Is that Sangsang?


    Xiaocao stood up and stared at that figure. She wanted to call her but did not dare to. It did not matter if she was the master of the Divine Hall of Light or some other high-ranking figure in the Divine Halls of West Hill because she was no long her former friend who was of no significance.


    ¡°I grant you immortality.¡±


    An awe-inspiring voice resounded in the Divine Hall of Light.


    Xiaocao could not figure out whether or not this voice belonged to the figure standing by the terrace. She gazed nkly at the curtain that divided the world into two realms and slightly clenched her fists.


    The formerly disappeared girl with the white dress showed up again and led her out of the Divine Hall of Light.


    Xiaocao did nothing inside the Divine Hall of Light. She was not tortured. She neither met an acquaintance nor prostrated to Haotian. Then she just left.


    It seemed she was only taken there for these words: ¡°I grant you immortality.¡±


    Xiaocao left the Divine Hall of Light and returned to the small town. The girls from the House of Red Sleeves kept asking her about what had happened, but before she could tell them anything, the Divine Halls sent a group of cavalrymen and escorted them out of the West Hall Divine Kingdom courteously. They escorted them to the south of the Verdant Canyon.


    Until they came back to Chang¡¯an, Xiaocao still felt that their trip to the West Hill was like a dream, especially her experience inside the Divine Hall of Light. It was so unreal. She did not realize what she had been granted until many yearster.


    ...


    ...


    The Haotian¡¯s Divine Hall where the Hierarch dwelt used to be the most respected ce in Peach Mountain. However, now people viewed the secluded Divine Hall of Light as the supreme ce.


    No one dared to disobey the orders from the Divine Hall of Light, not even the Hierarch. But the figure inside the Divine Hall of Light had kept quiet since spring. It was only until recently that several orders were issued.


    The first one was to escort the girls from the House of Red Sleeves back to Chang¡¯an. Many people from the Divine Halls did not understand why. For those who knew the stories like the Hierarch, the reason was very simple. When Haotian was taking a rest in the human world, some people were nice to her. She was just paying them back now.


    However, the second order from the Divine Hall of Light was a shock to all of them including the Hierarch. The girl in the white dress announced expressionlessly that they must stop going after Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang.


    Tang Xiaotang had intruded Peach Mountain and took Chen Pipi away from the Rite to Light. It was extremely humiliating to the Divine Halls of West Hill and they wanted them to pay for it.


    The strongest men were sent out from the Divine Halls and series of traps were set up along the way from Qinghe Prefecture to Chang¡¯an. The Hierarch was so sure that those senior cultivators from the Back Hill of the Academy would not dare to interfere under the pressure of the Drunkard and the Butcher. Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang would eventually be taken back to the Divine Halls and sentenced with slow slicing.


    Right then, the girl in the white dress conveyed the order to stop tracking them down. Why should Haotian make such a decision? The Hierarch was confused but did not dare to question.


    ...


    ...


    For the Divine Halls of West Hill, it was very annoying that the girls from the House of Red Sleeves had returned to Chang¡¯an safe and sound but it was a trivial matter. However, to stop hunting for Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang was significant.


    Yet for Sangsang, those were all petty things because whatever happened in the human world was of no significance to Haotian. She made those decisions only because she had a n, rather than some attachment to any human beings.


    The Rite to Light was organized to reopen the gate to Haotian¡¯s Divine Kingdom, as well as cutting her connections to the human world. That was why she wanted Chen Pipi to be the sacrifice and asked the Tang Empire to send the girls from the House of Red Sleeves. In her original n, Chen Pipi, Tang Xiaotang, and Xiaocao would have been burnt in the holy me. Then most of her connections to the human world would have been severed.


    However, Ning Que showed up and he proved to her through the Tianqi that it would be impossible to cut her connections to the human world. Then she decided to use a different approach.


    Her connections to the human world was affection, so she wanted pay them back with life. She granted Xiaocao with immortality and spared Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang¡¯s life. She thought she could have severed her bond to the human world this way.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que had no idea of what had happened. As He Mingchi said the other day, he could only see the falling leaves and rain from inside the rock window but could not feel the rain.


    He was the most important prisoner inside the Secluded Pavilion but he did not care. If he had note to Peach Mountain, he would have been a prisoner in Chang¡¯an. It did not matter where he was imprisoned.


    What he cared more about was his battle with Sangsang. He kept dreaming on the rock bed. The dreams were romantic as well as horrifying. The woman in his dream was sometimes plump and sometimes skinny. They fought against each other and went through extreme happiness and anguish. He kissed her, bit her, felt her plumpness and was tortured by slow slicing.


    She stayed in the Divine Hall of Light, whereas he was confined in the cold stone cell down the cliff. They tortured and loved each other despite of the distance of thousand of miles. He gave her the most wonderful happiness in the human world and she paid him back with the most horrifying torture in the human world. She kept killing him while he kept loving her. Both were torture.


    It was a battle between Heaven and Earth as well as one between man and woman. There had been numerous battles of both kinds throughout history but they never happened at the same time.


    It was rather a simple battle, like a family drama. The result would be either one party surpassing the other, or simply one party maintaining their position on top. Eventually, one of the two parties would win and be the boss of the house.


    On the other hand, It was not so simple because it was not a matter of who would take charge in the Old Brush Pen Shop. It would decide the destiny of the human world whether it was Haotian or the human who won.


    The destiny of the human world was in their hands. Ning Que felt that it was absurd but could not refrain from being proud and satisfied.


    Their battle in his dreams continued. He could not tell how long he had stayed in the cell. Outside the rock window, there were fewer autumn leaves falling. When he saw several snowkes, he knew that winter hade.


    Neither of them surrendered or won.


    Ning Que watched the falling snowkes outside the rock window and realized that he was tortured less frequently these days. He frowned and wondered why.


    He had no idea of what had happened outside. He knew that Elder Cui was shot dead by him and someone was meeting with the Drunkard and the Butcher in that small town. However, he did not know that the someone was one of his acquaintances, or that the Tang Empire and the Academy were ready for a revenge in the Qinghe Prefecture soon.


    These could only happen on the condition of him conquering Sangsang.


    If Heaven were to have feelings, then Heaven would grow old and be vulnerable. If Sangsang were to have feelings, then he would have a chance to win. Unfortunately, he had not been able to make any breakthroughs.


    What troubled him most or made him vignt was that Sangsang could not find a way to cut her bond to the human world yet she still seemed so calm and confident in his dreams. Why was that?


    Then another petty thing happened inside the Divine Hall of Light.


    Two girls in white dresses kneeled behind Sangsang. They seemed extremely nervous and sad, especially the older girl on the left. She was weeping in fear.


    Not far from them on a wooden tray there were two pairs of white pants stained with blood.


    The girls had their first menstruation.


    The girls were chosen from hundreds of thousands of young girls throughout the West Hill Divine Kingdom. They were supposed to be fair, pure, and free of any worldly filthiness. They knew it very clearly.


    They had spent half a year in the Divine Hall of Light and realized how magnificent their master was. It made them proud and even more pious.


    However their first menstruation had finallye. They knew what they were going to face but did not dare to cheat. Therefore they kneeled behind Haotian and waited in tears for their punishment.


    However, Sangsang did not punish them.


    Instead, she looked at the hidden moon and asked, ¡°People call it a lunar period. Do you find it interesting or annoying?¡±


    Light snowkes fell on the terrace.


    She frowned to somewhere down the cliff, and put her hand slowly on her under abdomen.


    A dam of thousand miles long was built with baskets of soil. A city with a thousand years of history was started from pieces of ck bricks. Anything significant was consisted of trivial matters.


    Three petty things happened in her world.


    These three things led to a conclusion: she decided to let him out.


    ...

 Chapter 897 - Do You Find This Interesting?

    <h4>Chapter 897: Do You Find This Interesting?</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ning Que looked over the rock window and saw the umtion of snow on the cliffs. He felt a bit disappointed. It was not because of the frustration of being imprisoned but because he hade all the way here just to watch some snow fall.


    He had no dreams for the past two days, namely he was not tortured for the past two days. Under such circumstances, he was definitely not stupid enough to try alluring her. However, it felt weird when a fierce battle came to a sudden pause. He could not help but wondered and stayed alert.


    The sound of steps was heard from the mountain trail that led to the Secluded Pavilion. Two expressionless ck-robed deacons from the Judicial Department arrived in front of the fence and took out two keys to open theplicated twin lock.


    Ning Que watched them open the fence and looked at the trail ahead. He lifted his eyebrows and asked, ¡°Are you going to kill me or let me go?¡±


    Apparently, the ck-robed deacons had received a strict order. They did not reply as if they did not hear him. They held him on each side and took him out.


    Ning Que was in aa when he was taken into the Secluded Pavilion. He could finally take a close look at the structure of the Secluded Pavilion now. Torches lined up along the mountain trail. It looked simr to every ordinary prison in the human world. He felt somewhat disappointed. Then he realized that he could not sense the change of the Qi of Heaven and Earth because his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow were locked up. Otherwise he should have found the horrifying arrays people talked about.


    As they came out of the Secluded Pavilion, they walked to the highest teau close to the ck Divine Hall of Judgment. Ning Que was held in between the two deacons. He nced at the Divine Hall of Judgment and wondered what Ye Hongwu was doing and what she would think if she knew what he had went through.


    It waste winter and a snowstorm whirled throughout Peach Mountain. The teau was covered with thick snow and the imposing Divine Halls seemed more awe-inspiring in the storm.


    Ning Que could only see his own footprints on the snow covered ground. It was quiet on the teau. He did not see a single person from the Secluded Pavilion to the teau.


    When they arrived at the Divine Hall of Light, the two ck-robed deacons kneeled and kowtowed and then left silently. They did not speak a single word or make a sound throughout the walk.


    It was Ning Que¡¯s second time at the Divine Hall of Light. The first night he spent in the Divine Hall of Light was the longest night in his life that had left him with indelible pain. Now that he came again to the Divine Hall in the snowstorm, he looked extraordinarily calm and fearless.


    He was very certain that since she allowed him to be in the Divine Hall of Light again, it proved that she had not figured out a way to break through. The battle between them hade to a next level and he hoped that he could make the most powerful strike back in this round.


    Even if he was a guest of the Divine Hall of Light and not a prisoner, he should have waited outside until someone invited him in. However, he had some different reasoning. Since the Divine Hall of Light if not the entire West-Hill Divine Kingdom belonged to Sangsang, it consequently belonged to him, ording to the marriage legition of the Tang Empire. Therefore the Divine Hall of Light is my home. Why do I need permission to return to my own home?


    Ning Que whisked off the snowkes on his clothes and stepped into the Divine Hall of Light as if he was returning home.


    People from the other three Divine Halls sighed for different reasons. Some were shocked, some felt for him and others were disappointed, while the person inside the Divine Hall of Judgment mocked him.


    The Divine Hall of Light was spacious and secluded. He walked toward the far end for quite a while and finally saw the big ck horse by the pir of a hundred miles height.


    He walked toward the big ck horse and patted him on the neck. He felt happy for him. ¡°They feed you well! You looked bigger than when you were in Chang¡¯an.¡±


    The big ck horse thought, Although this mistress is not my favorite, she is still the master of the entire world. How could she underfeed me?


    He looked at Ning Que and worried and pitied him. Obviously he had been underfed these days. He was so skinny and wretched as if he could been blown away by the wind.


    Ning Que said, ¡°No worries. Quarrels between couples is just a part of life, right?¡±


    The big ck horse looked down at his abdomen and shook his head sympathetically.


    Ning Que felt extremely humiliated and rebuked, ¡°When I get you back to Chang¡¯an, the first thing I¡¯ll do is to castrate you!¡±


    The big ck horse raised his head slightly with pride and thought, As long as I can please the mistress, who are you to me?


    Chilling winds brought snowkes into the Divine Hall. They fell on the jade-warm floor and melted instantly. Ning Que looked at where the snowkes flew in and found her still standing on the terrace behind the curtains.


    He walked to her and stopped at about ten meters away from the terrace.


    She stood by the terrace, held her hands behind her back and overlooked the human world and mountains in the snowstorm.


    Ning Que looked at her hands and recalled the tender and furious worlds she gave him, and could not help but stay away from her.


    He did not dare to look at her hands any longer and turned to look at her lofty figure. Her figure looked clearer than before. Although the snowstorm was roaring, the outline of her figure was as distinctive as carvings on rocks. It looked stable, profound and indelible. This meant she was increasingly bonded to the human world and to people in it. This also meant that Haotian was bing vulnerable.


    Ning Que was very satisfied by the changes he found in her.


    Sangsang did not say anything but their psyche was connected. Ning Que could hear her thoughts ¡ª the very thoughts from her heart.


    ¡°The bond to the human world is inseverable. The Headmaster had left human power in your body and destroyed the gate to Haotian¡¯s Divine Kingdom. He didn¡¯t leave any chance for you to go back there.¡± He looked at her back and continued. ¡°I don¡¯t know whether your trick would work by granting Xiaocao immortality. Would you like to wait for some hundreds of years before she realize what she was granted with? Even if you can wait, she may not be willing to exchange it for the memories she had with you. As for Chen Pipi and Xiaotang, they would never see their survival as a gift from you.¡±


    Sangsang looked indifferent but confident.


    Ning Que continued after a brief pause, ¡°Even if you are right, it¡¯s far from enough. How about our Second Brother and Li Yu? They were both nice to you, so they are also your connections to the human world. Our next door neighbor Aunt Wu used to treat you frequently. How would you pay her back? Not to mention those in the City of Wei. They were good to us but were killed because of you. How could you pay back the dead?¡±


    Sangsang frowned slightly. Suddenly, an avnche starteding down the mountains and unveiled the dead branches and wild grass underneath.


    The snowstorm continued to roar around the cliffs by the Divine Hall of Light. Thicker snow umted on the terrace and the wind became even more chilling and so did Sangsang¡¯s expressions and feelings.


    ¡°I could not give it up.¡±


    Ning Que heard the answer from her Ocean of Consciousness and replied, ¡°Like our Headmaster used to say, human beings are gifted with the ability to explore the unknown, namely the desire for freedom. You are the rules of this world. Your existence and your life was formed by this world. You would never allow them to break the rules. Therefore you¡¯ve got irreconcble conflicts with the human beings in this world.¡±


    Sangsang turned to him and uttered her first sentence today, ¡°You are not a human being from this world. Why do you also want to fight against me?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°I am a still human after all. I came to this world and became a part of it. Many years ago when I was studying in the Old Library in Chang¡¯an, I was exhausted and sick every night. When you attended to me, you used to ask me what I would do if Haotian won¡¯t let me cultivate. I told you in that case I would have to fight against Heaven.¡±


    Sangsang searched for that conversation through her worldly memories and found that scene. When they were talking about that, no one knew that she was Haotian. It seemed weird to her now.


    ¡°So you are determined to stand against me?¡± she asked Ning Que.


    Ning Que looked at her arched eyes which were the only familiar parts on her now, and answered after a short pause, ¡°That is probably my fate, and you cannot resist it either.¡±


    Sangsang relied, ¡°I am Haotian. I am able to change your fate.¡±


    ¡°You are my natal item. My fate is your fate. How could you change your own fate? To change one¡¯s fate is to fight against the Heaven. I have realized that ever since the day I found you in Hebei Province, I have been fighting against you every single day. Though I¡¯ve never won, I have been fighting against Heaven.¡± Ning Que continued to look at her and continued, ¡°However, you cannot fight against yourself. It¡¯s like how one could never lift himself up by grasping his own hair.¡±


    Sangsang nced at him.


    Ning Que¡¯s hands involuntarily reached above his head and grasped his own hair. Then, he was lifted from the ground and hung ridiculously in the air.


    He sighed. ¡°Do you find this interesting?¡±


    Sangsang concurred. ¡°Isn¡¯t that what you pursue in the Academy: to be interesting?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Yes, but we have to be reasonable.¡±


    Sangsang questioned, ¡°Have you ever been reasonable in the Academy?¡±


    Ning Que fell down miserably.


    Sangsang stopped talking and left the terrace for the Divine Hall. Ning Que looked at the increasingly fierce snowstorm among the cliffs and did not dare to stay in the terrace any longer. He followed her into the Divine Hall.


    There was a huge bed on one side of the hall covered with ordinary soft quilts. Sangsang sat onto the bed indifferently.


    Ning Que stood by the bed and felt restless.


    Then two girls in white dresses came in with a bronze basin and some towels.


    Ning Que thought, It was still early. Are you calling for bed now? He wanted to mock her for ordering such things in broad daylight. Then he realized his miserable situation and stopped the thought.


    The fresh water in the bronze basin was warm.


    The two girls did not squat to serve Sangsang but stood by the bed and looked at him.


    By then, Ning Que realized what he was supposed to do.


    He thought for a while then squatted down, ced Sangsang¡¯s feet into the bronze basin, and started washing them carefully.


    ¡°Do you find this interesting?¡± he asked with his head low.


    Sangsang replied, ¡°I have many connections to the human world. There are many people I need to pay back and I am working on it. As for you, you are the one who has to pay me back, so keep doing it.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 898 - The Days in the Divine Hall of Light(Part I)

    <h4>Chapter 898: The Days in the Divine Hall of Light(Part I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    When Sangsang was still a human being, she seemed a little naive and clumsy and didn¡¯t talk much. It was just a facade because she had an indifferent personality. To dig deeper, she acted this way because she had no attachment for the world she lived in.


    Soldiers and civilians of City of Wei, Second Brother and Chen Pipi all cared a lot about her, and Xiaocao sent many gifts to her. However, she rarely paid them back in the old days.


    These were her bonds with the human world which she couldn¡¯t entirely cut off. She could onlypensate these people who treated her nicely back to put an end to her earthly bonds. However, Ning Que was an exception.


    She gave all of her attention and life to Ning Que back then, thus she owned him nothing. To cut off her bond to Ning Que, she should ask him forpensation, such as washing her feet, making her bed, and attending upon her.


    She didn¡¯t think it was a matter of whether or not it was meaningful, but it was just what should be done.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t see the matter like Sangsang did, but washing her feet was just a trivial actpared with death by a thousand cuts, so he had no hesitation in doing so.


    He didn¡¯t feel humiliated about this, as he didn¡¯t feel humiliated when he worshiped on his bended knees towards the Divine Hall of Light on the peak during the Rite to Light. You had washed my feet on your knees many times over the years. So what if I washed yours for return?


    The temperature of the water in the copper basin was just right for the feet, but a bit hot for the hands. Ning Que poured water to her feet and carefully massaged them, not even missing the spot between her toes.


    Her feet were as white as before but softer, and the skin above her ankles was white too. Staring at her feet in the basin, Ning Que was distracted by the memories of the old days and found his hands to be red from the hot water. Then, he suddenly remembered her hands were the same as his when she washed his feet in the past.


    Sangsang hadn¡¯t worn any shoes since she woke up in the broken peak of farthest north. A charming woman in the city of the Song Kingdom once gave her a pair of shoes, but she tossed them away.


    She walked across Wilderness, the countrysides, the cities, and to the Divine Hall of West Hill with her bare feet, leaving the mortal world behind. However, her feet were so clean that no dust could be found between her glossy toenails, looking beautiful and charming.


    Ning Que washed her feet for a long time. The water in the copper basin was still clear, which even gave an impression that fishes would like to swim in there and drinking the water must be refreshing.


    However, he continued to wash carefully, for he knew that the reason why Sangsang made him wash her feet was not that she needed it, but she wanted him to do so.


    With her feet held and massaged by a man, any ordinary girl wouldugh like a silver bell even if it tickled. Whether Ning Que¡¯s massage was light or heavy, Sangsang had no reactions. She looked very serious and solemn, like she was attending a baptism, which was a little ridiculous to be washing her feet at such an event.


    Ning Que took her feet from the basin, put them on hisps, dried her feet with a white towel and put them back on the bed. Then heid the towel on his shoulder, picked up the copper basin, walked to the terrace and poured the water down the cliff and into the blizzard.


    The blizzard and the cliff were picturesque, and the water that Ning Que poured was like a naughty child holding an ink pen, unreasonably doodling on a beautiful painting.


    Ning Que remembered that when he was locked in the cave on the cliff in the Back Hill of Academy by his master many years ago, Sangsang was there to look after him. She poured the used water and the excreta in the chamber pot into the beautiful cliff, disturbing the white clouds and silver waterfall.


    It was interesting that the scenarios were so alike.


    Through the recent battle between them and the ritual-like feet-washing tonight, he had a better understanding of today¡¯s Sangsang, who was also Haotian fallen on earth.


    She was the collection of rules of the world. As Headmaster of Academy said in a restaurant at Song Kingdomst year, she was objective and extremely calm and thought with absolute logic. Even though she possessed subjective self-consciousness and animacy resulted from self-perpetuation, it was the way she lived.


    This kind of advanced manifestation of life indeed frightened people. However, in Ning Que¡¯s point of view, Sangsang was frightening but could also be cute. He still saw her as his little handmaiden who was always clumsy.


    She was never stupid, just a little clumsy.


    She wanted topletely cut off her bonds with the human world. After finding out it was impossible, she chose to end it by liquidating her connections on earth instead. However, she didn¡¯t realize that the connections were not just cold numbers, and things like attachments and life couldn¡¯t be calcted.


    She thought she could break off with the human world and return to the Divine Kingdom of Haotian if she paid back what she owed and reimed what Ning Que owed her.


    However, she didn¡¯t understand that for humans, sometimes love was not an unteralmitment or an unteral demand. Even though she could perform God¡¯s n, it was still impossible to calcte all the details of such aplicated matter. Quite on the contrary, the more she thought and calcted, the deeper she went in the human world.


    When she began to think like humans and value human emotions, she would gradually lose her objectivity, bing more and more like human beings.


    Ning Que began to think that the whole matter was getting more and more interesting.


    The Divine Hall of West Hill ruled the whole world. In the old days, treasures from all kingdoms were sent to the West Hill endlessly to support the disabled elders of the Zhishou Abbey. The elder Taoists in the cave lived suchvish lives that they even used the fur of snowfield giant wolves as mattresses. Since the Divine Hall of West Hill enshrined Haotian now, it was conceivable that how many rare food ingredients would be sent to Peach Mountain when Haotian demanded food.


    A young handmaiden in white took Ning Que to the kitchen. He never thought that a kitchen could ever be more resplendent than a pce or that he would ever see so many rare ingredients. Looking at the bear paws piling up like they were cabbages and shark fins soaking carelessly like they were pickles, he couldn¡¯t help but shake his head and said, ¡°Is the Divine Hall gonna turn to a restaurant?¡±


    The young handmaiden in white flushed. She and herpanions have lived in the Divine Hall of Light for half a year and enjoyed infinite glories, but no one dared to talk to them. Although fullymitting to Taoism, she was still at a young age, and she nearlyughed out hearing what Ning Que said. The handmaiden then said to Ning Que, ¡°The bear paws and shark fins are just for soup. Today¡¯s main ingredients are in the back. How about...you go and see for yourself?¡±


    ¡°Extravagant, too extravagant!¡±


    Ning Que walked through the rare ingredients and thought, Academy has a bunch of gormandizers, but I bet even the Headmaster of Academy who cares about food the most has never seen such extravagant ingredients.


    Walking to the stove and looking at the utensils and condiments, he nodded with satisfaction and asked, ¡°What kind of food does she currently like the most?¡±


    The handmaiden in white thought seriously and said, ¡°The master is not picky about food, but she was quite pleased the time when we hired a cook from Chang¡¯an to make hot and spicy shredded noodles.¡±


    Ning Que understood.


    ...


    ...


    The dinner tonight was so simple that two young handmaidens in charge of setting the table turned pale and worried that Sangsang might be angry.


    Ning Que prepared cabbage soaked in vinegar, stewed pigs¡¯ feet with radish, stir-fried water spinach and stewed tofu with egg yolk, which were allmon dishes. The handmaiden in white was very anxious, suggesting at least recing the egg yolk with crab roe, but Ning Que refused without hesitation.


    The dining table was quite big, even bigger than a normal house. The few simple dishes looked very shabby on such a table.


    Sangsang sat down at the table, and Ning Que stood beside her, scooping up a bowl of pigs¡¯ feet soup and then a bowl of rice for her. Two handmaidens in white lowered their heads and were too nervous to make a sound.


    Staring at the shabby dishes on the table, Sangsang didn¡¯t say anything or get angry. She just took the rice bowl that Ning Que handed over and started to eat.


    She ate very fast, as fast as she used to. In the past, the reason of eating fast was that she had to clean the table and wash the dishes after the meal. But now, eating was just a habit, having nothing to do with absorbing energy or enjoyment.


    The dishes were almost eaten up in a while. After eating three bowls of rice, Sangsang got up and left. She appeared to be satisfied even though she didn¡¯t say so.


    Ning Que smiled to the handmaidens in white and sat down at the table. He pulled the rice bucket to himself and poured the leftovers into it and started to eat.


    She used to be the one who ate the leftovers, but now it was his turn.


    And she used to be the one who washed the dishes, but now it was his turn.


    After finishing the dishes, Ning Que had back pain. Walking back to the Divine Hall, he tried to light thentern on the stone wall but found out that Sangsang was ready for bed.


    Ning Que made the bed first and then prepared the hot water to wash Sangsang¡¯s feet.


    Upon finishing, Sangsang took back her feet, put them into the bedding, and closed her eyes slowly.


    Ning Que washed his own feet in the used water and then braved the blizzard to pour the water over the cliff. Rubbing his hands, he ran back to the bed and sat down.


    Sangsang opened her eyes, looked indifferent and scary.


    Ning Que exined carefully, ¡°I am trying to warm the bed for you.¡±


    Sangsang frowned slightly, revealing her displeasure.


    Ning Que seemed to miss her reaction and said with a smile, ¡°You had a cold body and always failed to warm my bed in the past. But unlike you, I have a very hot body.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 899 - The Days in the Divine Hall of Light (Part â…¡)

    <h4>Chapter 899: The Days in the Divine Hall of Light (Part ¢ò)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ning Que said he had a very hot body in a humorous way, which sounded like a poor poem written by a young and inexperienced poet.


    Sangsang didn¡¯t feel joy and said in a cold voice, ¡°No need.¡±


    Taking the answer as she was just being polite or pretended to be polite, Ning Que moved a little to the bed immodestly, with his hand falling on the bedding.


    Sangsang stared at him and her bright eyes had no emotions, not even hatred.


    Ning Que turned pale instantly and began to cough.


    Once the coughing began, it was difficult to stop. He coughed violently and curled up painfully, and his blood dripped to the ground, like scarlet plum blossom.


    His chest was so painful that it felt like he was being pierced by a burning knife. He was worried that he would bleed to death or cough out his heart and liver.


    Sangsang revealed no emotions on her face.


    Rubbing his painful chest and picking up his bedding, Ning Que left the bed and walked to a dark corner. Heid the bedding at the dark corner,y down, and sighed.


    The sigh sounded a little aggrieved.


    Back in the days when they were in Min Mountain, they always shared one bed. Although their house in the City of Wei had two beds, they would always end up sleeping in the same one.


    It was even more so when they went to Chang¡¯an that it did not matter whether they stayed at the Old Brush Pen Shop or the mansion beside Yanming Lake. Now that their statuses were reversed, he unexpectedly lost the right to sleep in bed.


    Two handmaidens in white put the bed curtain down with pear wood rod in their hands. Seeing this and hearing Ning Que¡¯s aggrieved sighs, the handmaiden who talked with him in the kitchen before couldn¡¯t help butugh noiselessly.


    Back in the old days, Ning Que would definitely flirt with the handmaiden, but now he did not want to because he worried that the flirting might displease Sangsang. Her displeasure could easily make this handmaiden disappear.


    He knew she could do such things because she was Haotian. She could even kill him. If she was willing to kill him, then she was willing to kill anyone.


    Ning Que was a cold-blooded man, but he didn¡¯t want to cause any more meaningless deaths. He wanted to bring nothing but warmth to this cold Divine Hall of Light.


    These two handmaidens went to the side chamber to rest. The Divine Hall of Light under the night sky became extraordinarily quiet, and the temperature inside remained high even though the wind and snow kept drifting into the Divine Hall from the terrace.


    Under such circumstances, Ning Que had trouble sleeping. Looking at the increasingly big wind and snow, he thought that the snow hadsted several days. He frowned slightly.


    West Hill Divine Kingdom was known as thend that Haotian favored. It had four distinct seasons and pleasant weather, which was much better than the climate at Chang¡¯an. However, this winter was colder than the ones from previous years in West Hill. The snow came early and never stopped.


    Ning Que had never lived in West Hill before, but he sensed that the situation was rare. The Headmaster kept Sangsang in the human world. Could Ever Night fall again?


    He slowly sat up and walked to the side of the bed, staring at Sangsang.


    With her eyes closed, Sangsang¡¯s eyshes flickered slightly. The length of her eyshes and the distance between them were so precise that it looked like they were painted and it revealed a feeling of unreality.


    Ning Que looked at her quietly for a long time.


    He looked at her eyes, brows, eyshes, rosy lips, ears and hair, and he felt her indifference and wisdom.


    He didn¡¯t know whether she was asleep and whether Haotian needed to sleep. However, he did know the changes around wouldn¡¯t be able to escape from her perception even though she was asleep.


    She didn¡¯t wake up and closed her eyes quietly as if she was having the sweetest dream. Her appearance was so in, but she looked like the most noble princess.


    For Ning Que, Sangsang¡¯s face was very strange now. However, by quietly looking at her more, he got more familiar with her appearance and felt as if she looked like this all along.


    He didn¡¯t understand why.


    Was it because she was Haotian or because she was his wife?


    The night sky under the West Hill Divine Kingdom was covered by snow clouds thatpletely blocked the moon. The Divine Hall of Light was dark and quiet that the sound of falling snow echoed.


    His voice was as clean and soft as snow.


    ¡°If you want mypensation just because you want to cut off your connection with me, then what about yourpensation for me? Should you return the things you took from me?¡±


    Sangsang opened her eyes which were very clear and not drowsy at all. It turned out she never fell asleep.


    She looked at Ning Que and asked emotionlessly, ¡°Like what?¡±


    Ning Que thought for a while and didn¡¯t say anything because in his heart, he did everything willingly for Sangsang. As a proud human being, how could he be as dull as Haotian?


    He looked at his crotch and said ruefully, ¡°How about this? It would be very inconvenient for me to lose it.¡±


    Sangsang closed her eyes again and said nothing.


    Ning Que said, ¡°I will continue to look at you, so please do not open your eyes suddenly again. Although you look even iner than before, it¡¯s still pretty scary to do so.¡±


    Sangsang didn¡¯t respond.


    Ning Que did not care that she ignored him. He continued to stand beside the bed to look at her quietly for a long time. When he felt tired, he even took out a jade stool to sit.


    He kept looking at her until the blizzard died down and the day broke.


    ...


    ...


    In 3450 West Hill Dazhi year, the West Hill Divine Kingdom had a heavy snow, giving Peach Mountain a white coat. The followers who still gathered in the viges and towns nearby were very helpless in such a freezing cold condition. Nobody knew why the warm West Hill would have such a cold winter. The Hierarch and Ning Que spected that it might be rted to Ever Night and feared the Divine Hall of Light even more.


    Nobody knew what happened in the Divine Hall of Light. Ning Que never came out after he was imprisoned in the Divine Hall of Light and no message came out either.


    The stories that were happening in the Divine Hall of Light were ridiculous and naive, even a little childish. Naivety was often the cruelest thing.


    If this was the game of running a household, then Ning Que of course was the servant. When he woke up every morning, he began to clean the yard. He was quite worn out since the Divine Hall of Light was really big.


    Then he had to prepare breakfast, wash the dishes, wash clothes, make lunch, wash the dishes again, mop the floor, make dinner, and wash the dishes again. He could not go to bed until he washed Sangsang¡¯s feet.


    He ate leftovers everyday, and washed his feet with the water that was used by Sangsang. Devout believers, such as the Hierarch would probably be willing to drink the water in the copper basin that Sangsang used to wash her feet, for it contained the smell of Haotian. Hoewever, Ning Que was not as crazy as they were. Besides, from the world he came from, it was the biggest insult for a man to drink the water his wife used to wash her feet.


    In addition to the daily essential chores, he had to take care of Sangsang¡¯s daily needs, which included brewing tea and ying Go. The former was easy, but thetter was the most painful and humiliating thing for him, for he was not able win against her in the game.


    The days were repeatedly simple and dull. He did all sorts of chores and fell asleep instantly at night, so he never stood beside her bed to watch her again.


    Sangsang looked exactly the same, just as indifferent as before.


    Ning Que expected more from his life in the Divine Hall of Light, hoping to make her be more and more like a human being through living together. However, he was very disappointed to consistently see her indifferent expression.


    One day, he swept the snow at the terrace with a bamboo broom, without a smile on his face. The weather was extremely cold, just like his mood at this moment.


    The broom swept across the snow, like writing on rough paper with a brush pen. The messy traces left on the terrace looked like a cursive script.


    The one who wrote the cursive script seemed a little fretful.


    Just then, the blizzard raged and continued to spill over the cliff. The terrace which had not been cleaned up yet was covered by snow again, ruining the cursive script.


    Ning Que stopped cleaning, stood in the blizzard with the broom in his hand and asked, ¡°When will this end? What do you want from me?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I washed your feet many times, cooked for you many times, mopped the floor many times, and washed the dishes many times. What you are doing now was less than one percent of what I did before.¡±


    Ning Que went silent for a while and said, ¡°You know this won¡¯t work. I do owe you much, but you owe me just as much. Things will never be even between us.¡±


    After he said this, he turned to the hall and said, ¡°In Min Mountain, I carried you on my back many times, I washed your diapers many times, I spoon fed you many times, and I killed for you many times.¡±


    Sangsang walked slowly and said without any expression, ¡°This was just the universal emotion of human beings: pity for the infants.¡±


    Ning Que¡¯s heart was as cold and angry as the blizzard.


    ¡°What about after you grew up?


    ¡°When you were sick, I held you in my arm and warmed you with my body. How are you gonna pay me back? I washed your feet when we were in the Academy, Lanke Temple and Chaoyang City. How are you gonna pay me back?


    ¡°I carried you on my back, fought our way out of Chaoyang City and then fought our way into the Wilderness. I carried you on my back all along when the whole world wanted you dead. How are you gonna pay me back?¡±


    Sangsang walked to the balustrade and looked at the world with her hands behind back. Many pictures appeared on her mind, vaguely and vividly at the same time: the rain in Hebei Province after the serious drought, the cub that struggled in a trap in Min Mountain, thed who cut off mounted gangsters¡¯ heads happily by the Shubi Lake, the little handmaiden who waddled with gon and roast chicken in her hands, the noodle soups with fried eggs in the Old Brush Pen Shop, and the morning sun in Chaoyang City.


    Under the sun, he carried her in his back as he continued to run and wave his sword. She leaned on his shoulder weakly but happily and held the big ck umbre tightly.


    ...

 Chapter 900 - The Quake (I)

    <h4>Chapter 900: The Quake (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Through the snowstorm, she saw all the scenes she had gone through previously in the human world and he was there in every single scene.


    She was Haotian, and her story in the human world should have followed the n. However, he was not a part of the original n, and he did not leave. With or without this thread, they were still bonded throughout the story.


    She could be indifferent to the entire human world, but not to him.


    Sangsang watched their story in the human world throughout the snowstorm, and her eyes brightened. Her left eye was full of memories and affections, while her right eye was filled with more hatred and resentment.


    Those two streams of opposite emotions were interdependent.


    Ning Que asked how she could pay him back. Indeed, how?


    ¡°I can forgive your impiety and grant you immortality.¡± She looked at Ning Que and said emotionlessly, ¡°But if you refuse to ept that, you will fall into eternal destruction.¡±


    The snowstorm outside the cliff suddenly became more violent. The scenes of their story in the human world were smashed into numerous snow kes and swirled in the biting wind toward the terrace, many of which were blown into her eyes.


    Sangsang¡¯s emotions disappeared immediately, and it did not matter that they were affectionate memories or resentful ones. They froze into crystal ice cubes and vanished.


    Ning Que watched this and felt even more chills. He said, ¡°We went through life and death before, and we will live and die together in future. Neither the human world nor I want to leave you. I could do as much as you want, like what I¡¯m doing right now.¡±


    ¡°What you¡¯ve done is far from enough.¡± Sangsang continued, ¡°I once submitted myself to you. Now it¡¯s your turn.¡±


    Ning Que knew clearly what she meant by submitting himself to her. It was the same as the divine power that quaked his Ocean of Consciousness previously. By submission she meant to cut their natal bond.


    He picked up the broom and continued to sweep the snow. With the blizzard roaring outside the cliff, every corner of the terrace was covered with snow immediately after he cleaned it. His effort in vain.


    He could neither sweep away the storm nor put an end to this battle. However, Ning Que did not give up. He continued to sweep from dawn to dust, and untilte at night.


    Sangsang did not leave either. She stood there in the same spot and watched him sweep the snow. The storm had put ayer of silver frost on her eyshes and made them very charming.


    The storm finally stopped at midnight. Ning Que did not stop cleaning until thest ke was swept off the terrace.


    He was just an ordinary man now. Sweeping for the whole day had left some aches in his waist and back. He tried to stand straight but his eyebrows furrowed in pain.


    ¡°You see. As long as I keep sweeping I can clean up them all. Because the snowstorm cannotst forever.¡±


    He stared at Sangsang and continued, ¡°And I am not afraid of some eternal destruction. Because I don¡¯t believe in eternity. As long as you are in the human world, you cannot always be the winner.¡±


    Sangsang kept silent. It was a pitch dark night and no sound was heard around the terrace.


    Suddenly some dim light shed on the terrace and then over the whole Peach Mountain. It was still chilling but became somewhat charming and vivid.


    Ning Que looked to the sky. He saw some cracks on the snow clouds. A bright moon was passing by and scattered some light on the human world. He smiled to the moon.


    Sangsang looked at the bright moon and continued to keep quiet.


    When the clouds cleared, the moonlight became even brighter. It poured on the mountains and fields, and added a silver lining over the entire human world.


    The rolling hills around the Divine Halls of West Hill looked extremely charming under the moonlight. The snow umted on the terrain and formed the shape of something that Ning Que and Sangsang loved most, which led nature to bing the most beautiful thing to them.


    Ning Que put the broom back to a corner, leaned against the railing and looked at the rolling hills under the moonlight. ¡°Tonight the moonlight looks like a hundred thousand taels of silver. How charming.¡±


    Sangsang came to his side and agreed. ¡°Indeed.¡±


    Her reaction was so natural and unintentional. Clearly she did not think before she spoke.


    Ning Que found his hands trembling and ced them slowly on the railing. After a long silence, he turned to her and looked into her eyes. ¡°You are Sangsang,¡± he said.


    He meant that she was his handmaiden Sangsang, rather than Haotian with the name of Sangsang.


    Sangsang did not say anything or look at him, but her eyebrows furrowed slightly.


    Ning Que stared at her and continued, ¡°Even if you deny it, you are still my Sangsang.¡±


    Sangsang turned and walked back to the Divine Hall.


    Ning Que shouted at her back, ¡°I bet with the moonlight of a hundred thousand taels of silver that you are my Sangsang!¡±


    A momentter, Sangsang said inside the Divine Hall with the coldest voice, ¡°Go fetch water to wash my feet.¡±


    ...


    ...


    They had lived a very ordinary life like an ordinary couple in the Divine Hall of Light. Ning Que thought that Sangsang would have surrendered to his tricks, but only to realize that it had be torturous for himself.


    He wanted her back as his wife, rather than being isted from the world. Yet he could not find even the slimmest chance of hope. She did not change at all. Everything he had tired was in vain and he was at the edge of giving up. However, that was before tonight. When he cleaned up the terrace after the storm and the moonlight poured into the human world, he finally heard something from Sangsang.


    Haotian would never feel for anything in the human world because she did not care. Shemented on the moonlight tonight, not because of the Headmaster¡¯s previous deed, but because he said the moonlight looked like a hundred thousand taels of silver. What she cared about was the silver. The intention was so strong that she temporarily forgot that she was Haotian.


    If she cared so much about silver, then she was definitely his Sangsang.


    Ning Que had mixed feelings. He was delighted because he finally confirmed that Sangsang was still his Sangsang. He was excited because he was able to find some hope. Yet, he was anxious because the hope had aroused some strong impulse and desire in him. He desperately wanted his wish toe true.


    As he carried the mixture ofplicated emotions, he continued to wash Sangsang¡¯s feet for a long while until the water in the copper basin became cold. He could not stop his emotions.


    The water was chilling and so were Sangsang¡¯s feet. He rubbed them continuously but could neither warm the water nor her skin. Eventually, his hands became cold as well.


    Ning Que did not feel any difort at all. He found Sangsang¡¯s feet fragrant and tender because of the hope. He liked touching them and even wanted to keep washing them forever.


    He could hardly tear himself away from them.


    Ning Que¡¯s movements slowed down and became very subtle. He scrubbed her sole, her instep and her ankle, and then he tickled and rubbed on her toes. He enjoyed the wonderful touch so much that some secret and erotic feelings aroused in him.


    He washed her feet for what seemed like an eternity. Ning Que felt increasing tension in his throat while Sangsang stayed indifferent.


    She knew exactly what he was thinking about. She did not get angry because that was merely the lowest level of physiological reactions that human beings could have. It was not even eligible for her anger.


    By the moonlight, Ning Que stared at those lotus white feet in the copper basin. After a long while he suddenly raised his head and looked at her in silence.


    She looked back also in silence.


    They stared at each other for a while. There was nothing else in Ning Que¡¯s gaze but yearning and desire.


    Deep down in Sangsang¡¯s eyes, there was intense hatred plus a bit of mncholy. At that moment she sensed some turbulence in her divine mind.


    Ning Que looked into her eyes and proposed in a hoarse voice, ¡°I want to fuck you.¡±


    He was hoarse because he was both nervous and excited.


    Sangsang blinked away the mncholy and her eyes became emotionless once again.


    A bloody gash was made on Ning Que¡¯s throat, then it was widened and deepened into his vocal cord. He could no longer speak.


    Blood dripped from his neck into the copper basin and turned the water into scarlet. His hands and and her feet were soaking in the basin and it seemed like he was about to pick up a white lotus from a pond of blood.


    Ning Que¡¯s eyes turned slightly red like a monster in heat. He paid no attention to the gash on his throat, stood up slowly and stepped towards Sangsang.


    Sangsang still looked indifferent.


    A looming crack appeared in the space in front of the bed. It appeared between her and Ning Que, iming the boundary of her isted world. If Ning Que dared to proceed he would be dead.


    She allowed no one in her isted world, not even someone as special as Ning Que.


    Ning Que saw the boundary of her world where he could never break into. Then he chose to close his eyes and lean to fall on her. He was trying to make use of the most basic rules.


    This was the universal gravitation. Whether he would regret it or not, he could not stop his desires. Even if he would be killed in a minute, it could not change his mind.


    He fell toward her.


    Instead of cutting his throat, the crack scratched his cheek. A thin cut was made on his cheek, where there used to be a dimple.


    He fell on her body.


    And he pushed her down to the bed.


    His blood spread on her.


    He opened his arms and cuddled her tightly. Since you let me into your world, you will never flee from me again.


    Ning Que and Sangsang gazed at each, face to face.


    It had happened many times in his dreams, where they had numerous intimate encounters, but it was the first time for it to happen in reality.


    Ning Que found the woman in his arms chubby and tender. It felt strange because his Sangsang used to be very slim. Yet her smell was so familiar as he had lived with it for so long.


    His right hand naturally felt her plump chest and sunk inside her green dress. It felt like he was lying on a boat and drifting with ocean waves. It felt so wonderful.


    Sangsang had no expression at all and her eyes became even brighter. She red at him in silence.


    Ning Que¡¯s desire was so strong but his carnal instincts could not bepletely fulfilled.


    It was deadly quiet inside the Divine Hall of Light.


    He ced a tender kiss on her lips.


    He used to kiss her in his dreams.


    Now he wanted it in reality.


    Haotian was being kissed by a man.


    Thus, the entire human world quaked.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 901 - The Quake (II)

    <h4>Chapter 901: The Quake (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Neither Ning Que nor Sangsang closed their eyes. They became increasingly closer to each other and almost melted into one.


    Starlights vanished and reappeared in Sangsang¡¯s eyes, then turned into frustration.


    Although everything was going ording to her n, she could not help but feel frustrated at the moment because she did not resentful towards Ning Que for being intimate. It was a very annoying fact. She clenched her fists, looked at Ning Que and felt the disgusting moistureing from his lips. Her divine body tightened as rock, and started trembling.


    Ning Que woke up from the mysterious state of mind. When he was sober, he realized what he had been doing ¡ª he was kissing her. That was because he saw her as Sangsang, but now he was afraid. The fear made him rigid and tremble.


    They were cuddling and kissing in bed. Their trembling lips consistently rubbed against one another. Even their teeth slightly bumped together and made some clicking sounds.


    That was the quake.


    Ning Que cuddled Sangsang and trembled even more violently. His bones and joints were pping, and she trembled until her green flowery dress started to rip. It sounded like something was about to copse while their trembling intensified. Then, bang.


    The bed beneath them copsed.


    Ning Que and Sangsang fell, holding each other, to the solid ground of the Divine Hall. The ground quaked and spread waves of vibration that cracked the pirs of the Divine Hall.


    The solid walls of the Divine Hall looked like they were eroded by biting winds through tens of thousands of years. The coat of the walls cracked down together with stone chips and hit the ground. It sounded like someone was pping, or something simr.


    The unimaginable quake spread immediately from the Divine Hall of Light toward every direction in the world. The umted snow in the terrain was shook off into delicate snow falls. The frozen peach blossoms burst from the frost and swung in the biting winds.


    Along the coastline of the Song Kingdom, the grotesque rock drums by the thousand mile long dam started jumping up and down, smashed countless reefs and sshed a mass of ck sea mud. The ck sea water was boiling. The darkest clouds were rolling above as if they were being wrung by some massive angry god.


    In the Mogan Mountain at the Great River Kingdom, water sshed from the Ink Fountain. Mo Shanshan watched the restless water and wondered what was happening. She felt lost. Looking back at the celebratingnterns along the foot of the mountain and around their cottage, she could not help but grieve and started to weep.


    The Great Swamp was also shocked. The white reeds seemed helpless in the wind. The water from thekes flew backward to rivers, and flooded the City of Linkang. Ye Su gathered hundreds of poor men to rebuild the waterways. Seeing that the dirty water had brimmed over their feet, he looked to the Divine Halls of West Hill far away and mused.


    In Ye Su¡¯s shabby cottage, Tang Xiaotang sat at the edge of the bed and was about to deliver some well-cooked chicken soup into Cheng Pipi¡¯s mouth. The soup started to ripple on the spoon.


    The entire human world quaked. Several waves of quakes took ce in Haotian¡¯s realm. They did not destroy many houses or kill many people, but everyone felt them.


    Being in the center, people in the Divine Halls of West Hill in Peach Mountain experienced the quake most distinctively. Thousands of divine priests and deacons rushed out of their residences in nightgowns, and looked at the Divine Hall of Light with dread. Tens of thousands of followers in the viges at the foot of the mountain were awoken by the quake. They rubbed their eyes, held each other¡¯s hands and came out of their houses. They felt confused as they looked at the Divine Halls.


    The Hierarch, Ye Hongyu, Zhao Nanhai and some others came to the front of the Divine Hall of Light. They looked serious but no one dared to step into the Divine Hall.


    The worldwide quake vanished gradually. The eaves of the Divine Hall of Light copsed. The pirs cracked and seemed shaky but held on. It looked like a havoc after a hurricane.


    Inside the Divine Hall of Light, silence took over again.


    Ning Quey in the debris of the bed cuddling Sangsang. Their lips and bodies were not trembling like they had previously and turned into a tender breeze that lingered around each other.


    Like embracing aforting and refreshing breeze, Ning Que felt increasing peace in his mind, while Sangsang¡¯s eyes became more yielding. He found himself indulging in the most desirable warmth, like drifting on a summer sea. She felt that she was embracing the most genuine warmth, like the sea enfolding the glory of the sun.


    When Ning Que reached his Initial Awareness State, he saw an ocean. Now he realized that when he meditated and felt the ocean, it was because he was holding the infant Sangsang.


    Now that he had regained the embrace of that warm ocean, he would never leave again. He held his arms around her, kissed her lips tenderly and did nothing else.


    The two of them were cuddling. Cold winter winds came from her lips into his lips because they breathed each other¡¯s breaths. The warmth of life passed from her body onto his, thus they felt each other¡¯s heart beats. He had no one but her in his world, and likewise for her.


    Ning Que and Sangsang entered a wonderful state of mind for an uncertain amount of time. She shuddered and so did he. No one had won in this battle between Heaven and human, woman and man. After rounds of caressing and torturing, they finally reached a harmonious state of life.


    The front part of Divine Hall of Light crashed. Dust surged up towards the night sky and covered the bright moon.


    The divine priests and deacons of the Divine Halls of West Hill turned extremely pale upon the loud crash. Thousands of people rushed towards the Divine Hall of Light, and stopped anxiously in front. The Hierarch looked more severe, but he did not dare to do anything. It seemed profane to even to try to figure out what was happening.


    At dawn, Ning Que finally woke up from that mysteriously wonderful state of mind. He realized what had happened over the night, looked at Sangsang¡¯s face in front of him, and kept silent.


    The reason for his silence was a bit different from that of when a man woke up from a sexual intercourse. He was rather precautious than embarrassed. He was not sure what to expect after this, since there had been rounds of caressing and torturing previously.


    Suddenly he heard beautiful sounds from within his body. They were sounds of melting-snow water flowing over rocks and clouds floating over mountains. It was the most beautiful sound in nature. Then he realized that his Mountain of Snow and Ocean of Qi were finally released afterst night!


    A night with Haotian came with such a rewarding consequence! He looked at Sangsang¡¯s face and could not stop smiling. It must be the best deal in the world to be married to such a wife, he thought.


    Sangsang was still sleeping, like a real human with her eyes closed and her breath profound and subtle. One would have mistaken her to be breathless if one had not observed very closely.


    Then her profound and subtle breath suddenly became rapid.


    She opened her eyes and stared at Ning Que. Roaring waves urred in the ocean of innumerable starlights deep down in her eyes, where endless and evesting divine power was stored.


    ¡°You can coun...¡±


    Ning Que was after all an ordinary human. He could not stop feeling worried about what he had done to Haotian. He tried to find some excuse but could not even finish the first few words.


    A furious yell bursted from Sangsang¡¯s throat that sounded like the most horrifying wind whistling through a dead bull¡¯s bones in the Wilderness.


    Ning Que¡¯s arms were immediately broken into twenty pieces, representing the twenty years they went through together. By destroying those twenty years, she slipped them from her memories and he could never hold her again with those arms.


    A bout of horrifying power swirled throughout the Divine Hall like a tornado. Before he could even react, Ning Que was hurled away dozens of meters and plonked onto the wall of the Divine Hall.


    The walls used to have paintings of ancient legends that were passed on in the teachings of Divine Halls of West Hill. After the quakest night, the paintings were severely damaged and paled. Upon Ning Que¡¯s plonking onto the wall, pieces of the paintings fell over and became stained with blood. The legends became sanguinary.


    Ning Que sat by the wall with his legs reaching out, coughing blood and looking wretched.


    Sangsang drifted to him, revealed no emotions but looked extremely pale.


    Ning Que beamed at her, with blood over his teeth. It seemed as if he had taken a good bite out of her plump figure, yet he looked frustrated and disappointed.


    Chilling winds swirled in the Divine Hall of Light. He sensed a distinctive ruling power prating his body with those winds as if they were trying to lock up his Mountain of Snow and Ocean of Qi again.


    So nothing has changed after all?


    Ning Que finally understood what the empress went through during thest few minutes of her life. He stared at the pale Sangsang, with his frustration and disappointment reced by extreme tranquility and determination.


    ¡°You were my handmaiden, but I never enved you.¡± He stood up slowly and smiled at her. ¡°Therefore I am your ve no more.¡±


    With another st of wind, he erupted the Haoran Qi and transformed his distorted body into a wretched shadow, then rushed toward the terrace of the Divine Hall that faced the cliff, leaving a distinctive line of blood behind.


    His steps on the terrace smashed the newly umted snow in the morning. He rushed to the edge and pounded on the handrail to leap over.


    With that pound, he cut off his journey to the Heaven.


    With that pound, he cut off his journey with Sangsang.


    He jumped over the handrail and off the cliff.


    At the same time, Sangsang came to the terrace.


    She was not able to stop him from jumping off, as she did not predict that. The Heaven could not predict his actions because he was never her disciple or her ve.


    She stood by the handrail and looked at him falling through the clouds. He looked back at her through the fog. They stared at each other with life and death in between. Time seized at that moment.


    ¡°You just couldn¡¯t wait to kill me?¡±


    Sangsang looked at the falling Ning Que and felt a pain in her chest.


    She thought it was an injury fromst night. However, it was not.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 902 - Into the Abyss Together

    <h4>Chapter 902: Into the Abyss Together</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ning Que continued to fall down between the cliffs. Sangsang looked at him and thought of some stories Ning Que used to tell about the human world when they were in the City of Wei. In those stories, when a bad guy was extremely furious he would normally say something like, ¡°You want to die? No way!¡±


    She was in charge of the most fundamental rules of this world. Nature formed ording to her will. Since she was already in the human world, she thought, You want to die? No Way!


    Sangsang slightly waved her sleeves. The blossoms on her green sleeves almost became real. Behind her, the Divine Hall of Light continued to copse and crash into ruins.


    Innumerable bouts of Qi of Heaven and Earth were called in and formed into chilling winds. A storm swirled outside the cliffs. Foggy clouds were smashed and reformed into something like a cotton quilt.


    Ning Que was still falling between the cliffs. All of a sudden, the air around him thickened. Countless clouds surrounded and tangled around him. Thus, his falling speed was slowed down.


    Among the thick clouds he sensed the power of rules, and more distinctively, her will. She did not allow him to die like this, so he will not die.


    It was impossible for Ning Que to put his fate in someone else¡¯s hand, even if that someone was her. When he jumped off the cliffs he had determined to never surrender to her will again.


    Pointing at theyers of clouds and fog below him, he reached out and drew a character in the wind.


    His hand trembled violently due to the roaring winds between the cliffs and that his arms were broken into twenty pieces previously. Every single movement was extremely painful to him.


    But he managed to draw that character very clearly and he almost carved it on the stones. Swirling winds could not blow it away and a bout of fierce Talisman Intent was released from amongst the cliffs.


    Theyers of clouds were set by Haotian and imed the power of rules. Normally no one but the Headmaster of the Academy would have been able to destroy it.


    However, Ning Que was an exception. It was because she was his natal item. When he was in the Secluded Pavilion in the Divine Hall of Light, whether in reality or in his dreams, he had been tortured for countless rounds. Through those bloody encounters and endless pains he learned her rules and power repeatedly.


    During his days in the Secluded Pavilion, except for their rounds of caressing and torturing, Ning Que had applied all his time in learning and reviewing the rules and power she revealed.


    Throughout the history of human world, he was the one who best understood Haotian. Now he had acquired the knowledge of the ruling power of this world and thus surpassed all his predecessors.


    He drew a Yi Talisman among the cliffs. It was not one of his most powerful talismans, and was nothingpared to the People Talisman he once drew in the sky above Chang¡¯an. However, this Yi Talisman carried his vague understanding of the fundamental rules for the flow of space.


    Without a single sound, theyers of clouds among the cliffs were pierced into four pieces and rolled back towards the cliffs.


    Ning Que fell through the clouds even more rapidly. The remaining snowkes among the cliffs were pped into finest powder by his flying sleeves.


    In no time, he fell below the three teaus and passed by the stone window of the Secluded Pavilion. The cliffs formed into a single-color scene and some randomly raised rocks became straight lines in his eyes. He was falling extremely rapidly.


    Roaring winds resounded around him. He felt the cutting winds on his face and looked down at the darkness beyond the fog at the bottom of the abyss. However, he felt absolute tranquil, with no fear at all.


    ¡°You used to be so afraid of dying, yet today you would rather kill yourself in order to kill me?¡±


    Sangsang stood by the handrail and watched Ning Que fall and be a ck spot among the cliffs. She looked pale. He would definitely be dead if he were to fall to the bottom of the abyss. If he were to die, how would she survive?


    When she made her first step in the human world, she traveled a thousand miles. It would have been easy as winking to stop Ning Que. Yet, upon her second step she was slowed down because the Headmaster had poured the world of mortals into her body. It had contaminated her Qi and made it impossible for her to leave the human world.


    Sangsang¡¯s hand felt gently onto the handrail.


    She did not pound on it, but the handrail broke.


    The handrail broke into pieces and the cliff by the terrace copsed and fell towards the abyss.


    She walked towards the clouds among the cliffs.


    Thundering sounds rang from the cliffs behind Peach Mountain.


    It was actually the sound of her breaking into the air.


    A green dress appeared among the cliffs. Snow and clouds were scared away. The mist that carried the resentment of prisoners in the Secluded Pavilion throughout tens of thousands of years did not dare toe close to her and fled the cliffs.


    She descended to him from high above.


    Mountain winds swayed her hair, but could not change her indifferent look.


    She fell with Ning Que toward the bottom of the abyss.


    She did not look at him but her will was ced onto him.


    ¡°You just couldn¡¯t wait to kill me?¡±


    Ning Que looked at her in silence and spoke in his heart, ¡°No. I just don¡¯t want to live alone. Compared with that, I¡¯d rather we die together.¡±


    Clouds gathered again among the cliffs and covered the fall of Ning Que and Sangsang. At the bottom of the abyss it waspletely quiet, as it has been throughout the tens of thousands of years.


    The Hierarch, Zhao Nanhai, and the rest came to the edge of the cliff. They looked down solemnly but could not sense anything. A momentter a violent quake came from deep down the abyss.


    Something had plonked to the bottom of the abyss.


    The horrifying power of the crash soared and smashed the clouds again among the cliffs. Even the cliffs that were covered by various Taoist arrays were cracked.


    The Hierarch and others seemed very worried. Who could survive such a horrifying crash? Of course Haotian would be safe and sound, but how would shee back from such an abyss?


    From a corner in the half-ruined Divine Hall of Light, a horse suddenly neighed and rushed out like a storm. The big ck horse knocked over a few ck-robed deacons and galloped down the mountain.


    ...


    ...


    The bottom of the abyss was covered by a foul fog. Even the brightest sunlight could not prate.


    Ning Que opened his eyes and looked at the grey sky. It felt like he had traveled back in time to the City of Wei in the Ninth Year of Tianqi, when they went through the worst sandstorm ever.


    He felt dizzy. It took him a long while to realize that he was in the abyss behind Peach Mountain, and that he was lying in a pit.


    He jumped off from the peak of the mountain. It was not surprising that he had plonked into a pit on the ground. However, he did not understand why he was still alive. If it was Sangsang who let him survive, then where was she?


    The trees at the bottom of the abyss were different from ordinary trees. Their roots were clearly stronger than the branches. They were mostly vines with tiny and scattered leaves. Probably no one had ever visited this ce. Layers of fallen leaves rotted over and over throughout the years.


    Ning Que was not fully recovered from the dizziness and felt cozy lying on the soft rotten leaves. He did not want to stand up and even preferred to lie like this forever.


    Right then he heard Sangsang¡¯s voiceing from amongst the fog.


    ¡°Are you going to lie down here forever?¡±


    She still seemed indifferent, cold and awe-inspiring. Yet the words she said had be somewhat mortal. Ning Que felt that her voiceing from somewhere in the fog, yet it also sounded like it was right by his side. Being far away as well as in my ear, you are indeed Haotian. Ning Que sighed.


    ¡°Get up.¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s voice became increasingly indifferent.


    Ning Que¡¯s expression froze. Now he confirmed that her voice was indeed by his side. He turned in great pain and found her right there beneath him.


    There was a huge hole on the ground in the foggy forest, carpeted with rotten leaves.


    Sangsang was lying on the rotten leaves. Her giant and plump figure seemed like mother earth among the leaves and the fog. He was lying in her embrace like a child.


    Ning Que rolled away from her. When he tried to stand up, he felt overwhelming pain all over his body because of countless broken bones. Dark blood gushed out of his mouth.


    Sangsang stood up. Her body was perfect and divine. Falling down from high above could not do her any harm or crack her clothes. There were only some leaves that hang on her dress.


    She gathered her ck hair and ced them behind her shoulders. ¡°You could never escape from my palm,¡± she said indifferently to Ning Que, who was stooping in pain and coughing blood.


    Blood kept gushing out of Ning Que¡¯s mouth and nose. He was wretched but could not helpughing at her words. He said bitterly, ¡°I¡¯m not that Monkey*. No one could stop me if I¡¯m determined to die.¡±


    Sangsang squinted and resented his answer. ¡°You are not able to die when I¡¯m here.¡±


    Upon these words, she ced her right hand on him. Clear light came out of her fingers and brightened up the foul fog, as well as Ning Que¡¯s face.


    When the clear light grew brighter, Sangsang turned pale and Ning Que¡¯s wounds started recovering visibly. His broken bones were fixed and ruptured organs healed.


    Even the cut she made on Ning Que¡¯s cheekst night was gone. His dimple deepened and the clear light shone in it like some vintage wine.


    Upon finishing the healing, she stood up, held her hands back and stepped into the deep fog.


    Ning Que gazed at her back for a long time, then got up and followed her into the fog.


    He wanted to die but she neither allowed nor wanted him to. Therefore, she left the Divine Halls of West Hill together with him and dived into the fog and the abyss.


    Though they did not have a rope and he could not tie it on her, there had always been an invisible rope of fate holding them together.


    Deep down at the bottom of the abyss, they walked in line and kept a few miles of distance. The fog was thick. They stepped on the soft carpet of rotten leaves without creating a sound. It was frighteningly quiet.


    They kept walking. The sceneries around them looked alike ¡ª dry ivy, ancient trees, and sometimes a few crows. More and more moss clung onto their shoes.


    Ning Que asked behind her, ¡°Where to?¡±


    Sangsang stopped and replied coldly, ¡°It has always been your call, hasn¡¯t it?¡±


    ...


    ...


    * Note from the trantor: The Monkey refers to the Monkey King in the novel of Pilgrimage to the West.

 Chapter 903 - From the Abyss to the Abbey

    <h4>Chapter 903: From the Abyss to the Abbey</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Sangsang was right. When they traveled, it was always Ning Que¡¯s call. She nevermented or objected. In Ning Que¡¯s words, it was not because she was stupid. She just did not care about trivial things and would rather leave it to him.


    Ning Que kept quiet and stepped ahead of her. Just a few steps had made him breathless and pale.


    He had gone through countless rounds of savage torture. The slow slicing and arm breaking had almost drained him. If it was not for Sangsang, he would have died several times. Although he was still alive and no wounds could be seen on his body, the newly grown flesh was not fully integrated with his mind and body. The fall triggered his previous wounds. With every step he took, his spirit shivered and he suffered from tremendous pain.


    Sangsang could feel his pain but remained indifferent.


    Ning Que stood on the rotten leaves and rested for a moment. He found a pretty strong stick and crutched on it, then walked in frustration and pain into the thick fog.


    Deep down the abyss under the cliff behind Peach Mountain, it was covered by clouds and fog all year round. There was no way out, unlike the abyss at the Back Hill of the Academy. It was isted from the rest of the world and no one knew what kind of creatures lived there and how dangerous they could be.


    They walked in the foul fog without worrying because nothing could ever hurt Haotian. They were the only ones who were able to hurt each other.


    Sangsang looked at the back of Ning Que, emotionlessly and quietly.


    She could have easily controlled him, chained his Mountain of Snow and Ocean of Qi again and dragged him back to the Divine Halls of West Hill. There he would be her ve until eternity and never to be freed again.


    However, Ning Que showed his determination by jumping off the cliff. It would be meaningless to take him back to the Divine Halls. Furthermore, she had her own n in mind.


    Having made up her mind, Sangsang held her hands behind her back and followed Ning Que wandering in the thick and moist fog. She was fascinated by the grotesque vines.


    Ning Que was tired and sat on a rock to rest. He looked at the rxed and cheerful Sangsang and said, ¡°I know you despise my tricks, but I had no choice. You are way too powerful than me. I had to make those embarrassing scenes to get you out of Peach Mountain. It should have been your tricks. I just borrowed them.¡±


    Sangsang did not reply to him and walked towards deep into the dark vines. She looked above with her eyes wide open and seemed curious. Ning Que was surprised by her reaction and felt some hope again.


    After a while, Ning Que regained some strength and stood up crutching to the stick. He passed by the dark vines and called to her, ¡°Time to go!¡±


    Sangsang walked out of the vines still without any expressions. It seemed that she had found nothing interesting, but Ning Que noticed some slightly rosy stains by her lips and several bright red fruits in her hands. Those fruits should taste good, he thought.


    Ning Que said nothing but kept walking. The fog thickened in the abyss. In a few steps he could no longer see Sangsang¡¯s face clearly. The surroundings became increasingly vague and there were only random shadows of the vines and weird growls.


    Aftering down to the abyss, Sangsang was obviously different from her previous self inside the Divine Hall of Light. She showed great interest in the things around her. She wanted to taste the fruits and became curious of the unknown, just like how human beings were. However, she definitely did not feel fear as they did.


    Due to her increase in curiosity and herck of fear, Sangsang found the foggy abyss exceptionally interesting. From time to time she disappeared from Ning Que¡¯s sight and went into the fog. She went somewhere and saw some things then came back to him silently.


    Ning Que was not even aware of her being away at the beginning. When he found that she was disappearing, he started to worry instinctively. Then he realized that he was just being absurd.


    ¡ª In Haotian¡¯s world, who could ever hurt her? He did not need to worry about her getting lost either because no matter how thick or dim the foul fog was, as long as he tried he could sense where she was and knew that she woulde back. He also did not worry about himself as long as she was by his side.


    For years, the abyss had been under the dark rule for years. The foul fog carried the resentment of numerous former prisoners in the Secluded Pavilion and also poisonous particles from nature. Whenbined, the two could be very dangerous. Although Ning Que became immune to poison after he practiced Haoran Qi, he still felt dizzy after walking in the foul fog for a long time. However, when Sangsang came back to his side, he became refreshed and restored immediately. Nothing could ever poison him again.


    The real danger inside the abyss was not the foul fog, but rather the creatures in it. In order to survive in such a hostile environment, these creatures had acquired brutal vitality and vital killing skills. Ning Que spread his psyche power towards the fog and sensed the vitality from the old moist vines, snakes, and beasts that were hiding among them and even under the rotten leaves. He felt tingled.


    Along their way in the fog, he and Sangsang came across with several grotesque creatures. They were mostly snakes. One of the snakes was covered in mucus and had degenerated eyes, so it used its emerald hiss to sense the environment. Most of the snakes were dazzling and colorful, even in the thick fog.


    However, what most horrifying was the sound of swaying vines and branches. They sounded like crying and howling. Ning Que knew that there must be creatures jumping from trees to trees. He sensed their rapid speed even though he was not able to see them clearly. However, he was not aware of one thing. What was the creature that was hiding under the rotten leaves? This made him extremely cautious and scared.


    Sangsang had no dreads at all, but she was annoyed by the wretched howling and rustling from under the rotten leaves. As a result, she slightly waved her sleeves.


    Upon the waving of her sleeves, blossoms bloomed and innumerable fire flies flew out of the petals. They flew towards the foul fog and burned into countless bright spots, until they merged into a whole lot of brightness.


    Then the brightness took over the abyss and defeated the thick fog. With burning sounds, the foul fog disappeared visibly and everything around them became clear.


    Layers andyers of rotten leaves covered the ground. Moss and strange mushrooms surrounded the roots. Vines hung on the branches twisted and tangled, which looked like the clinging plum branches outside their house by the Yanming Lake.


    Beasts howled in panic deep in the bushes. This led to intensified rustling sounds under the rotten leaves, and the dazzling snakes raised their heads in fury. Ning Que stayed on alert.


    Before he could do anything, the horrifying howl and rustling vanished immediately. Those snakes put their heads down to the ground in no time.


    It was because Sangsang walked ahead of Ning Que towards the foul fog. With every step she took, brightness spread rapidly around her and miles of fog cleared up. The dark abyss brightened suddenly. If she were to continue walking, her brightness would clear all of the fog and expose the bottom of the abyss to daylight.


    The azure sky was familiar to lives outside the abyss, but rather strange to the creatures living inside. They stared at the blue sky and howled in panic.


    Brightness continued to spread out. Countless green ants ran out from under the rotten leaves and pped their front legs towards Sangsang¡¯s footprints in awe. The colorful snakes crawled to the creeks and wiggled their mucus-covered bodies, hoping to lower themselves to the deepest marsh. Grotesque beasts that were hiding in the foggy bushes finally revealed themselves. Hundreds of ghost monkeys jumped off the vines and repeatedly kowtowed on the wet ground.


    Ning Que frowned to these scenes with disgust, but Sangsang showed no interest and walked through the scared creatures with her hands behind her back. It was not like a governor touring around his realm, for she did not even see these low level beings as her subjects.


    The abyss covered with foul fog and dwelled by poisoning creatures was like a natural chasm for human beings. It would be extremely difficult even for those at Knowing Destiny State to walk out of the abyss, but for Sangsang it was merely a ditch. She strolled through the foul fog and arrived at the front of the rolling mountains.


    Ning Que looked at the rolling mountains and was stunned. Dark clouds covered the sky again and storms enveloped the mountains. A simple abbey became visible in the storm.


    Was that the legendary Zhishou Abbey?


    If it was in the past, Ning Que would have been extremely interested in visiting the simple abbey. It was not because it was one of the unknown ces in the human world but because there were six volumes of the Seven Tomes of Arcane in the Abbey. Now the author of the Seven Tomes of Arcane, Sangsang, was right next to him. It diminished his interest for the Abbey.


    ...


    ...


    Someone else had also made his way out of the abyss previously.


    Instead of declining, the Abbey looked calm and charming in the storm.


    Long Qing sat by theke with his legs crossed and was reading the Arcane Tome of the Opening quietly. He had sat in the storm for so long that the snowkesnded on his eyshes had be frost.


    All of a sudden, he heard soundsing from down the cliff. Colors drained from his face as it reminded him of the painful past he went through in the abyss. The frost on his eyshes disappeared.


    The middle-aged man pushed the wheelchair toward the side of theke. The Abbey Dean in the wheelchair watched the storm and the peopleing out of the abyss and sighed gravely.


    ...

 Chapter 904 - Peach Mountain in Havoc after the Snowstorm

    <h4>Chapter 904: Peach Mountain in Havoc after the Snowstorm</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Long Qing was only able to make it out of the abyss alive because of Gray Eyes and the Heavenly Power Pill. He still felt fear every time he recalled the hardships he went at the abyss. However, he was also proud for being probably the first one to get out of the abyss alive. It surprised him to see someone else stepping out of the abyss today. What was even more annoying was that they seemed so rxed and cheerful, as if they were on a stroll.


    He figured out who they were and was caught speechless. The Tome of Arcane became worthless to him. The Abbey Dean felt aplex of emotions as well. He looked above to the snowstorm and sighed after a while of silence. ¡°It¡¯s time for us to go back, since she finally left Peach Mountain.¡±


    The snowstorm became more violent and enveloped the Abbey and surrounding mountains. The gate of the Abbey creaked open. Long Qing and the middle aged man walked out with the Abbey Dean in the wheelchair. He had an ordinary nket on his knees. He reached out his skinny hands to whisk off the snow on his nket, then slowly closed his eyes.


    ...


    ...


    The Peach Mountain was also suffering from the snowstorm. Thousands of divine priests and deacons gathered on the teau but no one dared to speak a word. They looked at the half-ruined Divine Hall of Light and thought of the huge crashing sound that previously came from the abyss. They guessed what had happened but dared not to believe it. Everyone was shocked and stunned.


    No one had the gut to step into the Divine Hall of Light and find out what had happened. The divine priests and deacons stood in front of the Divine Hall without knowing what to do next. They had been standing there in the snowstorm for the whole night.


    Due to the urgency, the Hierarch did not have time to mount into his sacred sedan before he rushed to the Divine Hall of Light. His skinny and dwarf figure was thus exposed to everyone and looked a bit funny with snowkes hanging over his thin eyebrows. However, he was less serious than ever and paid no attention to his appearance which he had always cared the most.


    Nothing could be more serious than what had happened in the Divine Hall of Light. As evening fell, the Hierarch could wait no longer and finally stepped into the Divine Hall. He came out after a long while and his expressions were as severely frozen as snow mountains.


    Upon seeing his expression, people at the Divine Halls could tell that their spection was more or less correct. They became even more scared. Some elder divine priests fainted in despair. Had Haotian really left the Divine Halls? How could she abandon her most pious followers?


    Later on, it was deadly quiet in Haotian¡¯s Divine Hall. The Hierarch stood behind the curtains. He looked even more wretched with his skinny and dwarf figure stooped.


    There were only the three of them: the Hierarch, Ye Hongyu, and Zhao Nanhai. He frustrated said, ¡°We have to keep this secret to ourselves and never reveal it to the followers around the world.¡±


    Zhao Nanhai nodded in awe and agreed to whatever the Hierarch nned. Ye Hongyu stared at the Hierarch emotionlessly. The sword under her red dress became stern.


    The Hierarch did not sense her unusual reaction and ordered impatiently, ¡°Send everyone from the Divine Hall of Judgment to get .... back to Peach Mountain.¡±


    He was frustrated and anxious like a child who lost his mother on the streets, rather than an unrestrained cultivator who had surpassed the Five States.


    Staring at the Hierarch¡¯s trembling eyebrows, Ye Hongyu could not refrain from revealing her scorn. She slowly lifted her right hand and it started to glow under the cover of the radiating lightsing from behind the curtains.


    She was ready to call her sword. With a slight Taoist intent, her Taoist sword would rush toward the Hierarch. She knew that the Hierarch was still a strong figure even after a series of severe injuries, but she could wait no more.


    Then, an uproar came from the path leading to the Divine Hall, followed by rushing steps. Several divine priests hasted into Haotian¡¯s Divine Hall and reported, ¡°There are peopleing.¡±


    Three people from the Zhishou Abbey arrived at the Divine Halls. Led by Long Qing, the middle-aged man rolled the wheelchair to where the Abbey Dean was seated. The Abbey Dean looked peaceful and calm. His indigo robe stood out from the snowy world as distinctively as the sky.


    Thousands of divine priests and deacons on the teau watched them as they were approaching from down the hill. They were shocked to find that the array of clear light of Divine Halls did not react to their approach. When they realized that it was Long Qing in the forefront, they figured out who the person in the wheelchair was and dared not to stop them.


    The dense crowd cleared a way for them. The Abbey Dean sat in his wheelchair and gazed at the Divine Halls that he had kept his distance from for years. It was hard to tell whether he felt yearning or indifferent. However, his eyebrows slowly furrowed upon the sight of the half-ruined Divine Hall of Light.


    Dozens of elder divine priests hasted to kneel down in front of the wheelchair, and prostrated to him with the highest level of courtesy in Taoism. They were old enough to know who this Taoist in indigo rope was.


    Upon seeing, this they immediately realized who he was. The looked at each other and wondered what they should do. Some lower ranking divine priests and deacons also fell on their knees upon seeing this appealing scene in front of the Divine Hall of Light.


    Zhao Nanhai, Ye Hongyu, and the rest of the people from the South Sea also rushed to the Divine Hall of Light. These important figures at Peach Mountain all greeted and saluted to the indigo-robed Taoist in the wheelchair.


    It was the Abbey Dean who arranged for the group from South Sea to return to the Divine Halls. They had to pay him respect upon his arrival at Peach Mountain. As for Ye Hongyu, she used to live in the Zhishou Abbey when she was a child, and her dearest elder brother was a disciple of the Abbey Dean. Therefore, she also had to kneel down to him.


    ...


    ...


    There was one less person in Haotian¡¯s Divine Hall now, and only two were left. The Abbey Dean sat quietly in the wheelchair, while the Hierarch stood by his side withplex expressions.


    Looking at the Abbey Dean in the wheelchair, the Hierarch started trembling.


    He could not figure out why. The Abbey Dean was already paralyzed by the God-Stunning Array and abandoned by Haotian. He had nevere the Divine Halls for years. Yet today by merely showing up at Peach Mountain, he had the Hierarch utterly isted. It was only until then that the Hierarch realized he had underestimated the Abbey Dean¡¯s standing and influence in Taoism.


    It was deadly quiet in the hall. His radiating light dimmed like a dying candle with dreariness and desperation.


    The Hierarch knew he could have easily killed the wheelchaired Abbey Dean with his psyche. Yet he did not dare. He was so afraid without knowing why. For what reason could a paralyzed man make him feel so oppressed?


    Finally he kneeled in front of him and greeted, ¡°Honorable Uncle.¡±


    The Abbey Dean questioned, ¡°Have you ever called me uncle ever since you became the Hierarch?¡±


    The Hierarch kept his head low and replied, ¡°Honorable Uncle, you have been traveling around the South Sea for years. It was hard for us to meet.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°You¡¯d rather not see me.¡±


    The Hierarch did not say anything. He knew that he could make no exnations in front of the Abbey Dean. Yet he wondered what he hade back for.


    ...

 Chapter 905 - Overestimating Oneself by the Yellow River

    <h4>Chapter 905: Overestimating Oneself by the Yellow River</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The Abbey Dean looked at the Hierarch and asked indifferently, ¡°You want to know why I came back? ... You probably won¡¯t believe it, but I came back because Haotian needs my help.¡±


    The Hierarch kept quiet. He thought, It was you who chose to enter the State of Purity in the City of Chang¡¯an and cut your connection with Haotian. That was why she paralyzed you. Haotian is almighty and omniscient. Why would she need help from an ordinary man, particrly from you, a wastrel?


    The Abbey Dean could read his mind and smiled, ¡°Haotian did not need my help previously and that was why I kept my distance in the Zhishou Abbey. However, she had left the Peach Mountain. It means she could not handle certain things here. Therefore I have toe back and try to help. At least I can deal with something that¡¯s less convenient for her.¡±


    The Hierarch still did not understand.


    The Abbey Dean was as calm as the tranquilke in the Abbey. He continued, ¡°Faith is a simple thing. If you cling onto it even after it abandons you, your faith is genuine.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que and Sangsang walked out of the abyss and strolled among the rolling mountains. The azure sky was covered by heavy clouds, and the violent snowstorm stirred bouts of dust that blocked their sight.


    They kept walking and finally came to a rugged mountain trail when the snowstorm came to an end. Then they heard a happy neigh from ahead.


    With thundering clops and repeated neighing, the big ck horse bolted towards them. He wagged his head and tail while he was galloping and seemed extremely happy.


    Coming in front of Ning Que, the big ck horse realized that Sangsang was also there. He recollected its manner, lowered his head and walked toward Sangsang, wagging slightly to please her.


    ¡°You worthless thing.¡± Ning Que smiled at him, then found their big ck umbre and the arrow case both on his back. He was surprised and wondered how the horse had made it.


    He patted the horse¡¯s neck and said approvingly, ¡°Now we are ready.¡±


    With Ning Que, Sangsang, the big ck horse and their belongings together, it was exactly what when they were on exile, except for the carriage that was left in Chang¡¯an.


    Sangsang did not pay any attention to the obsequious big ck horse or to Ning Que¡¯sments. She held her hands behind her back and continued to walk along the snowy mountain trail.


    The hidden rough trail was very long. The trail must had been neglected for years and few people had trodden on it. However, it did not bother them. Sangsang¡¯s flowery green dress swayed in the wind. Ning Que continued to use the stick as a crutch. The big ck horse carried their belongings and followed passively.


    After a couple of hours, they finally walked out of the barren mountains and came to a fork. Ning Que looked at the snow-capped mountains and asked, ¡°Which way?¡±


    Sangsang replied emotionlessly, ¡°It was you who yed ugly to get me out of Peach Mountain. You wanted to bring me to the human world and here we are. Does it really matter which way we go next?


    Ning Que looked at her ck hair drifting by her cheeks and said, ¡°Since you followed me out of Peach Mountain, I suppose you are interested in touring around the world of the mortals again. So, is there any ce you¡¯d like to visit?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I already said it was your call.¡±


    Ning Que thought for a while and suggested, ¡°How about the Song Kingdom? It¡¯s not far from here.¡±


    The big ck horse heard his suggestion and lowered his head further. My master, you should try hiding your tricks in front of my mistress. Don¡¯t you think you are making a fool of yourself?


    Sangsang said, ¡°You want to take me to tour around the human world, try delicious dishes, and see beautiful sceneries like your Headmaster once did? That won¡¯t work for me.¡±


    Ning Que was embarrassed. His hands shifted awkwardly on the stick. ¡°I just thought that restaurant was good.¡±


    Sangsang killed the suggestion. ¡°I¡¯ve been to that restaurant. Come up with another one.¡±


    Ning Que continued, ¡°How about Linkang? Someone teaches there. He has different ideas from the teachings of West Hill. You might find that interesting.¡±


    Sangsang killed it again. ¡°I never cared about how human beings interpret my will.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°That¡¯s abstruse.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I am Heaven¡¯s Rules.¡±


    Ning Que understood and continued. ¡°Then shall we go back to City of Wei?¡±


    Sangsang replied after a moment of silence, ¡°You actually want me to go back to Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Ning Que confessed, ¡°I wasn¡¯t sure if you want to.¡±


    Sangsang replied, ¡°Not now.¡±


    Ning Que proposed a few other ces but Sangsang rejected them all.


    He thought of their conversation in the abyss previously and said desperately, ¡°You asked me to lead, yet you disagree with every ce I propose. It¡¯s your call after all.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°You¡¯ve proposed the east, the west and the north. Why not to the south?¡±


    Ning Que did not know how to answer that. To the south of the mountains of Divine Halls of West-Hill was the famous Great River. Beyond that river was the Great River Kingdom...


    Sangsang looked at him and questioned indifferently again, ¡°Why not to the Great River Kingdom?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°That ce is far from prosperity. It¡¯s just a remote vige. There¡¯s nothing special to see or anyone interesting to meet, so I didn¡¯t think of that.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°But there is someone we both know.¡±


    Ning Que pretended to be ignorant. ¡°There are lots of people we both know in this world.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°What exactly are you scared of?¡±


    Ning Que did not reply.


    Sangsang looked into his eyes and asked, ¡°Are you afraid that I might kill her?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Why would you kill her?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Haotian doesn¡¯t need a reason to kill.¡±


    Ning Que stared back at her and said after a moment of silence, ¡°Are you jealous?¡±


    Nothing changed in Sangsang¡¯s expression. She said, ¡°You are afraid that I might kill her because in your subconsciousness you wish I would be jealous. That doesn¡¯t mean I actually have such low level emotions.¡±


    Ning Que continued to stare at her and questioned, ¡°But you are being jealous.¡±


    Sangsang did not reply to that.


    ¡°Otherwise you wouldn¡¯t have asked why I did not pick the Great River Kingdom.¡± Ning Que startedughing, as contented as the cat used to be in the Old Brush Pen Shop when it caught a mouse.


    Sangsang smiled and said, ¡°Then are we going to the Great River Kingdom?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Can I oppose to that?¡±


    Sangsang replied, ¡°Yes. But I won¡¯t take it.¡±


    ¡°Then let¡¯s go,¡± said Ning Que.


    The big ck horse listened to their conversation and felt bored. However, when he realized that he was about to see the mistress that he liked the most, he became excited and worried.


    He worried for same reason that worried Ning Que. Sangsang was back into the human world. Ning Que would love to see her acting like a real human again. If she were to experience any human emotions, no one knew what she would do with them because she was the almighty Haotian after all.


    ...


    ...


    They kept walking towards the south along the mountain trail. The snow storm gradually disappeared and the bright sun shone over hills and fields. It was very warm in the south, even duringte winter.


    After they came to the hills, Sangsang left the trail and walked south. No matter how rough the terrain was, Sangsang strolled as if she was walking on t grounds, but for Ning Que and the horse it was very frustrating. He could not stopining, Who said I am the leader?


    One day, they heard some thundering soundsing from the front of the hills and felt moist air. It reminded Ning Que of the waterfall at the Back Hill of the Academy and his Second Brother¡¯s cozy courtyard. He wondered how massive that waterfall could be as they could hear it from such a distance.


    Coming by the edge of the cliff, Ning Que realized that it was a massive river rather than a waterfall. The yellow river with plenty of water surged and roared through the ck rocks and yellow fields. There was a huge drop in the valley that had made the surging yellow river into several wide falls. The water fell, thundered, and almost smashed the reefs beneath. This was the renowned Great River.


    Standing in front of the yellow Great River and feeling the shivering of the rocks, Ning Que sensed the massive power that was carried in the river and was deeply shocked. Now he understood why the Great River could have helped the Great River Kingdom withstand the shrewd troops from the South Jin, and how Liu Bai reached his enlightenment with the river.


    He recalled the previous autumn when that sword flew from the Sword Garret and arrived at Peach Mountain. When he was cleaning up the Divine Hall of Light, he found the ancient sword that was left by Liu Bai in a corner of the hall.


    The Headmaster once used that sword to kill the Golden Dragon and Divine General. Liu Bai had integrated his spirit into that sword and challenged Haotian at Peach Mountain. That ancient sword had be the sword of the human world.


    The sword was still there, but the people who had propelled it were all gone.


    Looking at the surging yellow river and thinking of the predecessors, Ning Que felt aplex of emotions. When he turned to Sangsang, who standing beside him, he could not help but feel moreplicated emotions and was left speechless.


    Sangsang looked at a ck reef by the river and said, ¡°This was the ce where Liu Bai reached enlightenment.¡±


    Heading toward south anding to the ce where Liu Bai found enlightenment, Ning Que realized why Sangsang had taken him there. He looked at a loom sword cut on the ck reef and pondered.


    After a while of silence he reached out his right hand in the moist air and got hold of his iron de in the thundering sounds. He tried to grasp some de intent at the ce where the predecessor had reached enlightenment.


    Sangsang said, ¡°You are a talisman master.¡±


    Ning Que knew what she meant and replied, ¡°I can draw Talismans with my de.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°You look cheered up.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Coming to this site and thinking about the predecessors, one has to be inspired somehow.¡±


    Sangsangmented, ¡°Human beings are always engaged in their useless emotions.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Why else did you take me here?¡±


    Sangsang replied, ¡°I took you here so that you could see even someone as strong as the Headmaster or powerful as Liu Bai was no match against me. You¡¯d better give up.¡±


    Upon hearing these words, Ning Que kept quiet for a long while.


    He took her around the human world because he wanted to continue with what his Headmaster had tried ¡ª to humanize her. However what she had been thinking about was to make him intoplete surrender.


    ¡°When Liu Bai started cultivation, he saw this yellow river.¡±


    Ning Que continued, ¡°When I started cultivation, I saw an ocean. This means as long as I keep practicing, I would eventually surpass Liu Bai and achieve what he had failed to achieve.¡±


    Sangsang mocked him. ¡°When you entered the Initial Awareness State, you saw the ocean because I was by your side that night. It does not mean you are talented in cultivation. Don¡¯t overestimate yourself.¡±


    Ning Que was annoyed and replied, ¡°It¡¯s none of your business.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 906 - The Gloom Absorber, the River Crosser and the Marshmallow

    <h4>Chapter 906: The Gloom Absorber, the River Crosser and the Marshmallow</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The yellow river formed a line of falls. Water smashed into mists, thundering and surging with mud. The magnificent scene was awe-inspiring.


    Ning Que stood quietly by the river while Sangsang walked toward the ck reef. When her bare foot stepped on the reef, the sword cuts began to fade until theypletely disappeared.


    Those cuts were made by Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword. They represented the strongest will and decisiveness of mankind. She came here just to erase them. Watching the traces of predecessors being erased, Ning Que felt some hollowness in his chest. Yet he could do nothing to change it.


    He looked eclipsed as he was cing his de back into the sheath.


    The Great River Kingdom was situated to the south of the roaring yellow river. If they were to go there, then they had to cross the river. With the torrential and horrifying flow and lines of falls in front, it was impossible for any ordinary human to cross. They had to walk toward either direction for miles before they could find some sheepskin rafts to cross.


    Ning Que stopped himself from bing more depressed because that was exactly what Sangsang was looking for, just as he was wishing for her to be humanized. Thus, he decided to do something to cheer himself up.


    ¡°Little sister needs to cross the river. Who would carry me?¡±


    He looked at the surging river and sang with dancing eyebrows. Sangsang heard him sing this song when she was little. She turned to him and said, ¡°Your world is really noisy.¡±


    Upon saying these words she held her hands behind her back and walked toward the river. It seemed like she was walking on a grasnd and the surging river suddenly stopped by her feet.


    Rather thaning to a stop, the river looked more like it was unable to get closer to her. The muddy yellow river repeatedlypped against an invisible shield by her feet and smashed numerable fine bubbles.


    Sangsang continued to walk across the river while muddy waves divided in front of her. The sludge under the water immediately solidified into t rocks and her bare feet stepped on them like white lotus blossoms.


    Muddy water rushed down from the upper reaches. Yet no matter how fiercely it roared, not even a single drop of water was able to reach to her green dress, not even to her feet.


    Ning Que knew that it was her world. Upon witnessing this miraculous scene, he could not help but think of the legend of Moses¡¯ Crossing of the Red Sea. He led the big ck horse and followed closely.


    The group of two people and a horse entered the roaring river. With the river divided and the sludge turning into rocks, a dry path was naturally formed. Rushing water came down from upper reaches but was not able to proceed. It umted by the invisible shield, and reached several meters high when they crossed halfway through the river.


    Ning Que looked at the translucent water wall and the swirling river and sand in it. He wanted to reach out and push his hand through the wall to feel the water and sand, but he did not dare to do anything.


    This miraculous scene was astonishing and startling. He worried that if he were to break the water wall, the roaring Great River would drown them.


    Although he had reached the state of Knowing Destiny, he still did not dare to challenge the Great River. It was because the power of the river came from nature, which was something that humans would never be able to withstand.


    Sangsang looked calm without any solemnity or vignce. She walked along the water wall with her hands held behind her back, as if she was passing by a beautiful meadow.


    Only Haotian could ovee nature.


    The yellow water wall was reaching higher and almost blocked the sun. The rocky path crossing the river became dark and the big ck horse seemed worried.


    Ning Que was also worried about the water wall. If it were to continue umting and never copse, floods would be formed in the upper reaches, which could be catastrophic for people living by the river banks.


    Then, the yellow water wall copsed. From the roaring river a straight white wave was formed and poured onto the rocky path and the group of two people and a horse.


    Instead of being engulfed by the river, Ning Que stayed dry. The yellow water wall copsed but did not fall on them. Instead, it flew over their heads.


    The path turned into a tunnel formed by water. They walked through the tunnel. It was dim but they could still see clearly through the water.


    Lights prated the muddy water and sprinkled on them like a scattered painting. The river water flew from above carrying swirling sands picturesquely.


    The big ck horse neighed in surprise. Ning Que stared at the beautiful underwater scene and was not willing to blink. Only Sangsang was as calm as always.


    ...


    ...


    They kept walking south and came to a popted town.


    It was a day of a fair. The small town was crowded and lively. Various stalls lined up along the streets, selling shoe-pads, bamboo baskets, eggs, and mostly food.


    Entering into this lively scene, Ning Que calmed down from the previous astonishment. He held the rein and took Sangsang on a stroll. This was his world.


    There was a stall by the corner. A swarthy man wore a white coif and sat by an iron stove. He pedaled so that something was spun inside the stove.


    Sangsang lowered her head with her hands still behind her back. She looked very calm as if she was an elder collector who was preying in an antique market, or an old official checking on the inventory in a barn.


    The sweet smell and some indistinct burnt scents reminded her that was sugar inside the stove. However, she could not understand why he could pedal to spin the sugar inside, and why the sugar was spun into charming wisps of clouds.


    The man wondered why a girl could be so lofty but did not pay much attention. He made a fluffy ball of cloud wisps and handed it to a cheerful kid standing by the stove.


    ¡°This is marshmallow. I used to buy this for you when you were a kid,¡± Ning Que said.


    Sangsang kept quiet and just watched with fixed eyes. In a short while, another marshmallow was ready. The man got the marshmallow on a stick and handed it to her.


    She frowned and hesitated.


    Ning Que took two copper coins and gave them to the man. He took the marshmallow and offered them to Sangsang.


    The man took the coins and found them to be Tang currency. He was surprised as well as pleased because Tang currency was better than their official currency in the Great River Kingdom.


    Getting out of the fair, Sangsang held the marshmallow but did not eat it. She exined to Ning Que, ¡°I¡¯ve seen marshmallows. I just didn¡¯t remember how they were made.¡±


    Ning Que doubted and thought, You are Haotian. How could you not remember something you had seen?


    Sangsang continued, ¡°Now I¡¯ve figured out how they¡¯re made. Why did you buy this?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°To eat, of course.¡±


    Sangsang looked at the marshmallow in her hand and wondered. ¡°I have forgotten the taste of it.¡±


    It looked a bit funny when a plump and lofty girl held a fluffy marshmallow. It was cute especially when she took a bite and left some sugar wisps around the corner of her lips.


    Ning Que smiled at her and said, ¡°If you still can not remember the taste, we can try a few more times.¡±


    The smile on Ning Que¡¯s face was a bit weird. It was like parent¡¯s affection towards their kid, but alsocency after a trick. Both were hateful to Sangsang.


    She frowned and applied some divine power. The sugar wisps by her lips were immediately cleaned.


    She looked at the marshmallow in her hand, and offered it to the big ck horse after some hesitation.


    The big ck horse was surprised and then excited.


    It was a great honor to be rewarded with food by Haotian, or more precisely with some food left by Haotian. Anybody would have taken it as a great honor except for some unappreciative idiot like Ning Que.


    He rolled in the marshmallow with his tongue and smacked his lips. It fell to his belly so quickly that he was barely able to figure out the taste and tried to recall the vor.


    Ning Que was a bit disappointed that Sangsang did not finish the marshmallow. He saw that the big ck horse was trying to recollect the pleasant taste and got angry at him. ¡°When was thest time you had a meal? How could you be so greedy? Have I ever underfed you? Was that marshmallow for you? How could you have eaten it?!¡±


    The big ck horse thought, It was her who gave it to me. As long as she was happy that¡¯s none of your business. He turned to Sangsang for more reward only to find that Sangsang looked a bit angry as well. He grieved, If you liked it then why did your highness give it to me? Could you not drag me into your fight please?


    Two kids were ying outside the fair and both held a marshmallow. They licked it carefully from time to time, as if it was a treasure. They want to leave some for when they return home.


    Sangsang looked at the marshmallows in the their hands and seemed sad.


    Ning Que mocked her. ¡°Keep pretending that you don¡¯t regret it.¡±


    Sangsang kept her behind her back and walked toward the outside of the town, as if she did not hear him.


    Although it waste winter, it still felt warm in the Great River Kingdom in the south. The sun was dazzling and it felt hot in the sunlight.


    Ning Que kept talking about the marshmallows until they got to a hill to the south of the small town.


    Sangsang stopped suddenly and snapped a twig from a tree by the side.


    Ning Que wondered what she was about to do.


    Sangsang reached the twig to the sky.


    It was cloudless.


    Then above the stormy ocean afar in the Song Kingdom, ck clouds gathered all of a sudden. A piece of cloud drifted away with the wind and traveled for thousands of miles to atop a small hill in the Great River Kingdom in the south.


    Then itnded on the twig in her hand.


    It blocked the sun and cooled it down in the trail.


    Sangsang remained calm. With one hand behind her back and the other holding the twig, she continued walking south.


    The cloud on her twig was bigger than the hill.


    What a massive marshmallow.


    Ning Que was stunned by this shocking scene.


    He would have never expected her to grab a cloud from afar to fake a marshmallow just because she was mad.


    After all, she was Haotian.


    This Haotian who possessed human emotions was truly unpredictable.


    Thinking of having such a wife like her, he looked at the cloud on her twig and felt exceptionally proud while inferior at the same time.


    However, upon arriving at the Great River Kingdom, all of his sentiments turned into rage because there was a wedding preparation.

 Chapter 907 - Those No One Could Understand

    <h4>Chapter 907: Those No One Could Understand</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Although the Great River Kingdom was far from the Tang Empire, the two countries had kept friendly diplomatic rtions for generations. People in the Great River Kingdom admired Tang culture. They had sent numerous delegations and students to Chang¡¯an throughout the decades. Its political system, architecture, culture and even lifestyle were greatly influenced by the Tang Empire.


    Jingdu was the capital of the Great River Kingdom. The city was surrounded by snow mountains. Most houses in the city had ck eaves. Flowers bloomed in people¡¯s gardens as well as along the rivers. The imperial city set off among the blossoms. It was picturesque.


    People living there were very good-looking. They had peaceful and tender smiles and looked persistent and devoted. They wore light colored robes with flowery waistbands. Most of them bore long swords in ck sheaths by their waists.


    Entering Jingdu, Ning Que found the people and sceneries familiar yet strange, but mainly familiar. He felt more excited upon seeing a Chenjinji Cosmetic Store next to Chongwen Gate.


    He turned to Sangsang and asked, ¡°Wanna take a look inside?¡±


    Sangsang darted a look at the que of Chenjinji and replied, ¡°My skin being fair like this, do I even need cosmetics?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°There¡¯s no harm in taking a look. Maybe you can buy some rouge.¡±


    Sangsang thought for a while then went into Chenjinji.


    Ning Que and the big ck horse looked at each other cheerfully.


    This branch of Chenjinji in Jingdu was the biggest branch throughout the world outside of Chang¡¯an, which showed how passionate the girls here were about products from the Tang Empire. It should have been very busy and showcased a great variety of cosmetics. Yet today there were only few visitors.


    Ning Que and Sangsang entered the store only to find their shelves surprisingly empty. Sangsang squinted her arched eyes which meant she was about to get angry.


    If Haotian were to get angry here, then Jingdu would probably be flooded in no time and the blossoms would be all washed away. Ning Que tried tofort her and asked the store keeper for a reason. It turned out that all of their seasonal products had been sold to the imperial pce a few days ago. The next shipment would arrive in a month from Chang¡¯an.


    ¡°Why do they need so many cosmetics in the imperial pce? How many maids are there?¡± Ning Que recalled a sentence from some poem and recited, ¡°Grease floats on top of the Wei River. It was the perfumes and cosmetics abandoned by the maids from the imperial pce.¡±


    Sangsang recited suddenly, ¡°The other maids became pale.¡±


    She learned that from Ning Que when she was a kid.


    Ning Que was very worried. If you were to break into the imperial pce, then of course they will be pale. He said helplessly, ¡°Nonsense. They were not even by the same poet.¡±


    Many other girls were as disappointed as Sangsang by the empty store. Two girls from the Great River Kingdom worried about their makeup for the Spring Offering andined, ¡°What was our emperor thinking about? Just because of his wedding we can¡¯t find any cosmetics throughout the city.¡±


    Herpanion wondered. ¡°Does he really dare to marry her?¡±


    The girl answered, ¡°Who else would be eligible to marry her other than our emperor?¡±


    Herpanion seemed worried. ¡°Everyone knows that she likes the Mr. Thirteen from the Academy. Even if she was willing to marry the emperor, does he dare to marry her? Aren¡¯t they afraid of offending the Tang people?¡±


    Ning Que and Sangsang were about to leave but stopped upon hearing these words.


    He did not turn around to ask, but just stood there to listen. That was when he figured out that a grand wedding was about to take ce in Jingdu ¡ª Mo Shanshan would be the empress.


    Ning Que looked at the blossoms across the street, paused for a while, then left the store. He grasped the rein on the neck of the big ck horse and walked toward the outside of Jingdu.


    Outside the City of Jingdu, flowers were also blooming. A creek ran through the woods and some high pors stood on the other side of the creek. Ning Que let the big ck horse run loose and sat down against a por.


    He seemed calm. Sangsang knew that he had always been indifferent but still found it unexpected because she thought that the marrying woman meant a lot to him.


    She came to the tree by the creek, held her hands behind her back and watched the reflections of clouds floating in the water. She asked, ¡°Why are you not angry?¡±


    Previously in the Chenjinji Cosmetic Store, even the two girls from the Great River Kingdom were worried that the marriage of their emperor and Mo shanshan would probably offend the Tang people. How could Ning Que be so calm?


    Ning Que replied, ¡°I was a bit irritated upon hearing that. However, after walking through the blossoms and trees I realized that I have no reason to be angry. The blossoms and trees have always been there. None of them belong to me.¡±


    Sangsang turned to him and said, ¡°You humans are indeed hypocritical.¡±


    Ning Que stared at the ordinary looking Sangsang and felt agitated. He asked, ¡°You knew this. That was why you dragged me here?¡±


    She was the almighty Haotian. Of course she knew it. However, she did not know that the cosmetics were all sold out in Chenjinji.


    Ning Que looked into her eyes and asked, ¡°Did you do this?¡±


    Sangsang replied calmly, ¡°You think I would care about such trivia?¡±


    Ning Que agreed with what she said and apologized. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I shouldn¡¯t have thought the worst of you.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°What you think does not matter to me at all.¡±


    Ning Que stood up by the tree and walked to her. He stared into her eyes and asked again, ¡°But you knew this and you wanted me to witness it. What is your n?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Throughout the cyclic existence, I looked down at the human world from the Divine Kingdom. I saw your happiness and sorrow, partings and reunions, as well as intriguing against each other. However, there are still things that I couldn¡¯t understand.¡±


    ¡°Like what?¡± Ning Que asked.


    ¡°Such as love. The sentiment you treasure now and abandonter like some worn shoes.¡±


    Sangsang kept her hands behind her back, looked over the woods, blossoms, creeks and city walls and watched the boys and girls inside the City of Jingdu. She asked indifferently, ¡°You said you loved me. Then what is love?¡±


    Ning Que replied after a while, ¡°Some things are hard to be exined.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°It should be visible, so I came to take a look.¡±


    Ning Que frowned slightly and asked, ¡°What are you trying to see?¡±


    Sangsang looked back at him and said, ¡°I want to see what is love.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Does that have anything to do with their wedding here?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Of course. I want to know whether or not you love her.¡±


    Ning Que did not know how to answer, and asked, ¡°What¡¯s the point?¡±


    Sangsang continued, ¡°In books and records, people described love to be blind, persistent, and exclusive. If you do love me, then how could you love her at the same time?¡±


    Ning Que was stunned and could only remain silent.


    Sangsang¡¯s curiosity was formed when they were in the foul fog in the abyss. It kept growing until now. She was eager to find answers to questions she could not understand.


    She looked at him, as if she was looking at those young lovers walking hand in hand under blossoming trees inside the City of Jingdu. She asked seriously, ¡°Can love be given to two people at the same time?¡±


    Ning Que could only keep quiet.


    Sangsang continued, ¡°What are the criteria for love? You love me or her? Or do you love me more? If it is beyond words, then how could there be more or less? How could one love someone more than others?¡±


    Ning Que could do nothing but keep quiet. Her question was too big for anyone.


    ¡°I can tell that you are not feeling calm. You are even angry. That¡¯s what I don¡¯t understand. I know you don¡¯t want her to marry that man, but to me that is different from love. That is because you are not going to marry her regardless. As you are not marrying her, why can¡¯t she marry someone else? Why would you feel disappointed and want to destroy her marriage?¡±


    Sangsang was confused. ¡°ording to my understanding, your reactiones from a male instinct of possession over females. It is a strong instinct to multiply. In that case, how is your love different from sexual intercourse?¡±


    She seemed calm without any jealousy. As if she was one of the diligent students from the Academy, always seeking for an ultimate answer.


    Ning Que was irritated by her calmness and asked helplessly, ¡°What are you trying to say?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m saying that since there is no such thing as love, your love for me is hypocritical,¡± Sangsang said calmly. What she did not finish was: Or is my love for you is also hypocritical?


    Ning Que asked, ¡°What¡¯s the point of such non-sense reasoning?¡±


    He had asked what was the point previously. Sangsangughed at his reply. After leaving Peach Mountain, sheughed more frequently.


    ¡°Maybe nothing at all, but very interesting.¡±


    Ning Que looked at her and said, ¡°I think you are more like a student of the Academy than I am.¡±


    ¡°Strangely, I do not resent that im.¡± Sangsang wondered. ¡°Is it because I lived in the Academy for some time?¡±


    Ning Que looked toward the greenish Mogan Mountain and said nothing more.


    ...


    ...


    Mogan Mountain was situated not far from Jingdu. Halfway up the mountain, there was a tranquilke. It was said that the Sage of Calligraphy used to wash his brush pen by theke when he was young and theke water became ck in a few years time. Therefore theke was also called Brush Washing Fountain, or more famously, the Ink Fountain.


    Nevertheless, it was just a legend. The water in theke was still clear and the ck Ink Garden was established many years before the Sage of Calligraphy was born. Hoever, that did not harm the influence of the ck Ink Garden to the Great River Kingdom or in the world of cultivation.


    It was exceptionally lively in the cottage of ck Ink Garden today. Lanterns and streamers were decorated everywhere. Before the evening lights were lit, the streamers and brush pens were already hanging along the corridor, which announced the approaching of the wedding.


    Newly grown green lotus floated on the Ink Fountain, swinging their freshness. The Cat Girl sat by theke and frowned to the green lotus, feeling very wronged.


    Zhuo Zhihua came to her Youngest Sister and asked with concerns, ¡°What are you thinking about?¡±


    The Cat Girl saw her Senior Sister and leaned on her. She uttered a question after a long pause, ¡°Senior Sister, what do you think love is?¡±


    Zhuo Zhihua smiled and mocked her. ¡°You just got engaged. Now you are thinking far ahead?¡±


    The Cat Girl frowned and asked sadly, ¡°Don¡¯t people get engaged because of love?¡±


    Zhuo Zhihua asked instead, ¡°What are you trying to say?¡±


    The Cat Girl stared at the green lotus and the streamers around the cottage, and sighed vulnerably. ¡°I just don¡¯t understand why our master would marry the emperor while she is obviously in love with Ning Que.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 908 - The Most Despicable Man

    <h4>Chapter 908: The Most Despicable Man</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Zhuo Zhihua got married a few years ago, but she was still focused on cultivation at Mogan Mountain, which her husband had no issues with. Since the monarch was about to marry Mo Shanshan, the master of Mogan Mountain, she was the busiest one. Feeling too tired, she went to theke to enjoy a bit of leisure time and saw Cat Girl there with a sad look. Sheforted Cat Girl and heard her words.


    The whole world knew the history between Mo Shanshan and Ning Que, and the cultivation world would be happy to see them tie the knot. People all thought that Mr. Thirteen of Academy and Calligraphy Fanatic were undoubtedly meant to be together, but things between them did not work out.


    Thinking about this, Zhuo Zhihua was in low spirits and smiled barely. ¡°What¡¯s wrong with marrying the monarch? Our master would be a queen, and she will still stay at the mountain most of the time. Don¡¯t be sad, you can see her very often.¡±


    Cat Girl looked at her and said, ¡°Sister, you know that I¡¯m not sad about this. I feel upset because I know master loves Ning Que. Why doesn¡¯t Ning Que love her?¡±


    Zhuo Zhihua sighed and shook her head, wondering how to exin theseplicated things to her.


    In a cottage at Ink Fountain facing the cliff, Mo Shanshan sat by the window and traced the tiny regr script calmly. She still wore the white dress, with her cascading ck hair in a simple bun. Her face was fair without cosmetics and her lips were rosy without rouge ¨C she was as gorgeous as ever. However, she didn¡¯t look like a bride-to-be indeed.


    With a light creak, the wooden door was pushed open, and a man in a ck long gown walked in slowly. The man had a full head of silver hair and deep wrinkles around his eyes due to old age. However, his eyes were still very bright and his posture was elegant as if he was still quite young. He was the famous Sage of Calligraphy, His Excellency Wang.


    A man must be incredibly extraordinary to be called sage, such as the Sage of Sword, Liu Bai.


    His Excellency Wang was the most famous calligrapher in the world, and also the most famous talisman master. He was the most powerful guardian of the Great River Kingdom as Liu Bai was for the South Jin Kingdom. He enjoyed an esteemed position. Even the monarch treated him like a mentor.


    Hearing the sound, Mo Shanshan stood up and bowed to her teacher. Then, she sat back down. She dipped the brush pen in the ink stone and continued to focus on her writing.


    Walking to her back, the Sage of Calligraphy looked at the neat and elegant writings on the paper and surprised to find that she was so calm. He frowned and worried about her.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you understand? You are my favorite student, a talisman master who no one dares to scorn. After I die, you will be the guardian for Great River Kingdom. It¡¯s never my intention to deprive you of happiness. The monarch doesn¡¯t deserve you, but he is your best choice if you must get married.¡±


    The Sage of Calligraphy looked at her and spoke solemnly.


    Mo Shanshan¡¯s right hand trembled slightly and said, ¡°I understand.¡±


    After saying this, she continued to write quietly and calmly.


    However, the calmer she was, the more worried Sage of Calligraphy was. The look on his face became more and more serious and his voice became more severe.


    ¡°I must warn you again. If you don¡¯t want Jingdu to be swallowed by the flood and millions of people in Great River Kingdom to die, then you must die or get married soon.¡±


    Looking at her attractive face, the Sage of Calligraphy felt a dull ache in his heart, but he suppressed his pity and unwillingness. He said severely, ¡°We human beings can¡¯t fight against the god.¡±


    ¡°I got a message from West Hill that Ning Que had entered the Divine Hall of Light but never came out. Nobody knows what is going on in the Divine Hall. Even though Haotian will kill Ning Que eventually, she would hate to see you still unmarried. You know that the world can¡¯t survive from her anger.¡±


    After saying this, the Sage of Calligraphy turned to leave.


    Putting the brush pen aside, Mo Shanshan stood up and looked at his back and calmly said, ¡°I know you like me, and you¡¯ve always liked me since I was young.¡±


    His Excellency¡¯s body trembled slightly, and even his straight back looked a little stooped.


    ¡°The only pity was that I grew up too fast, and you didn¡¯t think I would be a talisman master at such a young age. Just like you said, no one can deprive me of my happiness, but you still have to see me marry someone else. Do you feel a bit of happiness other than pity and unwillingness?¡± Mo Shanshan continued calmly, ¡°Of course I admit that you are right. Nobody knows what Haotian would do and the Great River Kingdom can¡¯t afford to take the chance. I will get married soon as you wish.¡±


    ¡°Nonsense!¡± The Sage of Calligraphy snapped and then stormed out of the cottage. He left Mogan Mountain and went directly to the pce of Jingdu and met with the monarch to arrange the marriage. Whether or not the reason for his haste departure was that Mo Shanshan revealed the secret he hid for many years remained a mystery.


    The door was closed and opened repeatedly by the breeze from theke. Staring at the swaying door, Mo Shanshan went silent for a long time and then sat back down.


    She continued to write quietly, but her lips were slightly raised, showing a smile of joy. She felt veryfortable to finally speak out after so many years of silence.


    Momentster, Zhuo Zhihua and Cat Girl arrived at the cottage. Sitting beside Mo Shanshan, Cat Girl held her hands and looked at her pitifully. ¡°What to do now?¡±


    All of sudden, Mo Shanshan remembered how Ning Que answered her when she asked the same question back in the Wilderness many years ago. She didn¡¯t quite understand the humor of his answer, but she stillugh amusedly.


    ¡°What to do now? Just do it like a cold sd.¡±


    Cat Girl asked, ¡°Are you gonna marry the monarch?¡±


    Mo Shanshan answered with a smile, ¡°Of course not.¡±


    Cat Girl was somehow happy and upset at the same time and said, ¡°Mr. Thirteen was such a heartless man, but who are you gonna marry if not the monarch?¡±


    The more beautiful and powerful a woman was, the harder it was for her to get married, due to the difficulty of finding the perfect match. It won¡¯t be easy for Mo Shanshan to find a perfect husband, for she was famous for her beauty and her excellence of bing a talisman master at a very young age.


    ¡°Why must I get married?¡±


    Mo Shanshan touched Cat Girl¡¯s head in a spoiled way and said, ¡°It would be a joke to force a talisman master to get married. Remember to perfect your calctions if you don¡¯t want marriage either.¡±


    Cat Girl thought what her master said made sense and thought, I won¡¯t marry a man who is not good enough. However, I heard that the man I likees from a long line of generals. I must improve myself to be the perfect match for him.


    Zhuo Zhihua didn¡¯t say anything and just worriedly stared at Mo Shanshan.


    Mo Shanshan knew her concerns and said to her calmly, ¡°The whole world admired but feared Haotian, and I am no exception. However, I have already fought against her before, so what¡¯s the point to fear her now? If Haotian were to destroy the world because of me, then that¡¯s her sin, not mine.¡±


    ...


    ...


    The winter maples in Luomeng Mountain of Jingdu were known to the whole world. Luomeng Mountain would have been crowded with tourists if Jingdu hadn¡¯t imposed a curfew for the sake of the monarch¡¯s forting wedding.


    The royal road outside of Jingdu was covered with red leaves. As she was salking on the royal road, Sangsang crushed the withered red leaves, making a very crispy sound.


    Compared with the time they left the Divine Hall of West Hill, Sangsang had changed a lot. Urged by Ning Que, she wore shoes and no long held her hands behind her back.


    With a bowl of fish balls in her left hand and a bamboo skewer in her right hand, Sangsang continued to eat. Although the look on her face was still indifferent, she seemed satisfied due to the speed of her eating.


    For Sangsang, the red leaves were obviously not as attractive as the fish balls. Thus, she didn¡¯t show any pity for the crushed red leaves, like normal girls would.


    Upon arriving at the main entrance of Jingdu, she just finished eating and handed Ning Que the bowl.


    Ning Que led the big ck horse and walked behind her all along. Seeing her gesture, he took the bowl from her immediately. He was ustomed to taking care of her as her servant.


    ¡°How are you going to choose?¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s lips were slightly red due to the hot fish balls, which looked very cute.


    Should I choose to break up the marriage between the monarch of Great River Kingdom and Mo Shanshan? That proves that I love Mo Shanshan which then proves that there is no true love. This will prove that I don¡¯t love Sangsang!


    Or should I just let Shanshan marry that damn monarch, proving that I don¡¯t love Shanshan? This proves that there is true love, and I can choose to stay with Sangsang forever.


    ¡°Why do you have to make me chose?¡± Ning Que said, ¡°You know that Academy only pursues freedom. Not choosing is also a kind of freedom.¡±


    ¡°As I¡¯ve said before, humans are all hypocrites.¡± Sangsang stared at him and continued, ¡°You know very well why she must get married.¡±


    Ning Que did know why Shanshan had to marry the monarch in such a hurry. It was because Shanshan had a history with him, which angered Haotian.


    Sangsang said, ¡°Am I responsible for forcing her to get married?¡±


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°I¡¯m not that stupid to make such a judgement.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Then who do you think should be responsible for that?¡±


    Ning Que pointed to himself and said, ¡°I am, but I don¡¯t know what to do.¡±


    ¡°I have an idea for you. Why don¡¯t you just kill the monarch?¡±


    Looking at the main entrance of Jingdu, Ning Que went silent for a moment and said, ¡°It sounds like a pretty good idea.¡±


    ¡°Then why the dy?¡±


    Ning Que looked at her and said, ¡°I¡¯m afraid that you will leave me after I go to the pce by myself.¡±


    Hearing this, Sangsang became quiet.


    Ning Que added, ¡°Your logic is wed, so I can¡¯t do anything.¡±


    Sangsang looked down at the tips of her shoes.


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Maybe you want to help me?¡±


    She looked up and said sincerely, ¡°Men are despicable.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I want to be the most despicable one until I die.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I can¡¯t kill you right now, so I have to endure your despicable behavior?¡±


    Ning Que swore, ¡°From now on, you will the the only one who can see my despicable behavior.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Why should I help you?¡±


    Ning Que answered boldly, ¡°You set up the problem. I can¡¯t solve it, so you have to help me out.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Are all humans like you?¡±


    Ning Que said in astonishment, ¡°After sharing a bed with me for so many years, you still don¡¯t know that I¡¯m odd?¡±


    Sangsang fell into a flutter, sensing theplexity of this matter.


    Ning Que added, ¡°All cosmetics of Chenjinji Cosmetics Store are now in the pce.¡±


    Sangsang thought about it and found that it was indeed a problem.


    She headed to Jingdu, holding her hands behind her back again.


    Ning Que led the big ck horse and followed her obediently.


    Then he began to smile secretly.


    ...

 Chapter 909 - Intruding the Palace

    <h4>Chapter 909: Intruding the Pce</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ning Que felt odd to sabotage a girl¡¯s marriage with his wife and more oddly, the girl happened to be his admirer. However, he nned to do it anyway.


    Approaching the pce, Sangsang looked around with her hands behind her back. However, the pce guards saw her behavior as a great disrespect to the monarch.


    The guards yelled at her and tried to drive away her and Ning Que, who led the big ck horse. The guards would have drawn their swords if not for the forting wedding.


    Sangsang ignored the guards and looked up at a flower tree on the corner, which was new to her. She kept walking forward and approached the entrance of the pce.


    Anyone who ignored the guards and walked directly to the pce would be treated as an idiot or a real powerhouse intending to intrude the pce.


    The situation became tense immediately. The guards all drew their swords, reflecting the clear light of the winter. The swords were Xiu Swords peculiar to the Great River Kingdom. The crossbowmen on the city wall aimed at them too.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t worry about Sangsang¡¯s safety, but he worried that Sangsang would kill too many guards. The Great River Kingdom and the Great Tang have enjoyed a peaceful rtionship for many generations. As a part of the Great Tang, he could not let things get too bloody. Leading the big ck horse, he stepped up and told one of the guards that they were from the Academy.


    He thought that the reputation of Academy would get him to the pce easily, but he lost his certification, so the guards believe him.


    Countless sharp swords cut through the chilly wind, only to fall. Sangsang knew what Ning Que was thinking, but she didn¡¯t care. She just continued to walk forward, with hands behind her back.


    The pce guards didn¡¯t want to kill them at first, so Sangsang spared the guard swaying his sharp sword at her shoulder from death.


    The winds in Jingdu were always tender, which led to blooming flowers and red leaves covering the royal road. Suddenly, the wind turned fierce.


    Sangsang kept walking calmly with her hands behind her back, and the winds around her turned calm, just like the look on her face.


    The sword broke through the wind and came to her, but suddenly deviated its way as if it was immersed in a bottomless swamp or sucked into a raging wave.


    The guard looked at his palm in shock and didn¡¯t understand what was going on.


    The same thing happened to all the guards. Their swords were surrounded by the wind, swaying like rootless duckweed in the water.


    Gasps of amazement rose from the entrance of the pce. Crossbow arrows finally were shot from the direction of the city wall, but they never touched Sangsang and they disappeared in the wind.


    The people in Jingdu admired the Great Tang¡¯s culture and shared the same temperament with the Tang people. The guards had already figured out that the ordinary woman who was tall and fat must be a very high-level cultivator. Although losing their swords, the guards still rushed to her with great courage and tried to keep her out of the pce with their own fleshes.


    However, she was Haotian. Liu Bai couldn¡¯t enter her world with his sword, let alone these ordinary men.


    The guards were flown up and dropped, crying in pain.


    Sangsang continued to walk calmly with her hands behind her back. When she approached the entrance, the door opened by itself.


    Leading the big ck horse, Ning Que followed her tightly and watched what she did quietly. It was even not a real battle since the strengths between two parties were not even close, and Sangsang didn¡¯t treat it as a real battle either. Yet Ning Que still wanted to find something he longed to see in Sangsang¡¯s battle with the guards.


    Sangsang was the rule. Although she couldn¡¯t change the rule, she could use it in a way that was magical to human beings. This demonstrated that the ingenuity in varying tactics depended on mother wit.


    Everything in nature could be her weapon if she wanted, including the wind, the flower tree in the corner, the bowl of fish balls she ate before, and the streams or rivers they passed through along the way.


    The door of the pce opened, and Sanggang went in calmly. The pce guards of the Great River Kingdom were shocked but couldn¡¯t do anything to stop her. Their eyes were filled with despair and sorrow.


    The most powerful force in the human world meant nothing to her. It seemed to her that the pce was the same as a brothel where she could walk in whenever she wanted.


    Leading the big ck horse, Ning Que followed her with a wonderful feeling.


    He had the same feeling when he saw his Youngest Uncle¡¯s loneliness due to his invincibility in the Snow Cliff of Wilderness and when he sensed his master¡¯s strength as a model for posterity.


    He also had the same feeling during the Rite to Light at Peach Mountain back then, which was because her strength was in his body. Now it was because he walked behind her.


    The feeling came from invincibility, and his invincibility came from her. He didn¡¯t feel embarrassed, for they were married and shared everything. Nobody could deny that her invincibility was also his invincibility.


    ...


    ...


    The pce of the Great River Kingdom was very beautiful. Countless flower trees were nted between the wooden halls with ck eave, just like the streets of Jingdu. The blue gstones in front of the halls were full of impressions of wind and rain, showing a refreshing beauty in their vicissitudes.


    Ning Que led the big ck horse and walked up to the main hall, looking at the hallplex silently and sighing with all sorts of feelings. All of a sudden, he found that Sangsang was gone, and he couldn¡¯t find her anywhere.


    By controlling the direction of the wind to form numerous tiny mirrors, it was possible to change the trajectories of light. One could even hide in the wind without being seen. It might sound easy, but actually Sangsang was the only one who could do it. The calction was so massive that it might turn Fourth Brother¡¯s hair into white overnight.


    Ning Que knew that Sangsang was still here. With his consciousness, he could sense she was wandering in one of the halls, but he was flustered when she was not in his sight.


    Terrifying guards and soldiers rushed to him from all directions of the pce. He stood in front of the hall, realizing that he had to face them alone.


    Ning Que was silent and understood what Sangsang meant.


    He hated to see Shanshan get married, but he was also afraid that Sangsang was disappointed in him. So he was shamelessly silent as many men would be in the human world. He refused to solve the problem that Sangsang set up and pushed his responsibility back to her.


    She took him into the pce of the Great River Kingdom and then disappeared. He entered the pce and stood in front of the hall, so he had to make his decision.


    Looking up at the quiet and solemn pce, he drew the iron sword from the sheath and held the rein. He walked to the main hall slowly and firmly.


    ...


    ...


    The Sage of Calligraphy had meticulositybed white hair that looked like the famous silver wire-knitted ornament in Yuelun Kingdom. His image perfectly matched with what people in the Great River Kingdom had imagined.


    Another middle-aged man was also in the hall, wearing an imperial robe. He had an unhealthily pale face and rtively calm eyes, but joy and anxiety were tangled deep in his eyes.


    He was the monarch of the Great River Kingdom. He looked at the Sage of Calligraphy and said, ¡°How about we think this matter through and discuss itter?¡±


    The Sage of Calligraphy said, ¡°Please rx, Your Majesty. All we need is her consent.¡±


    The monarch frowned. He thought, The message I got from ck Ink Garden is quite different. Although the Master of Mogan Mountain didn¡¯t say no explicitly, it seemed that she didn¡¯t want to marry me.


    Looking at the monarch, the Sage of Calligraphy understood his concern and said, ¡°Even though she objected, it didn¡¯t mean anything. As her teacher, I can make decisions for her.¡±


    The monarch said, ¡°I have admired her for many years, but the Tang...¡±


    The Sage of Calligraphy was a little displeased and said, ¡°It¡¯s none of the Academy¡¯s business. Ning Que never proposed to Shanshan. The Tang and the Great River Kingdom have enjoyed a peaceful rtionship for many years. They won¡¯t be unreasonable about this matter.¡±


    The monarch was a little uneasy and said, ¡°But what about Mr. First of the Academy?¡±


    All of the big names in the cultivation world and the human world already knew that Mo Shanshan and Teacher One were sworn brother and sister. If it were not for their rtionship, the Great River Kingdom would have been destroyed by the Divine Hall of West Hill because Mo Shanshan helped the Academy to fight against Abbey Dean of the Zhishou Abbey.


    The Sage of Calligraphy answered in a lower voice, ¡°Now the Academy is busy with its own affairs. It is in no position to meddle with our business.¡±


    While they were speaking, a loud noise came from outside the hall, and then the sounds of terrible fighting were everywhere. A pale eunuch entered the hall and cried out, ¡°Your Majesty, there is an assassin intruding the pce!¡±


    The Great River Kingdom had always been peaceful, and Jingdu didn¡¯t have any riots in the past few years. Now that the grand wedding was in the corner, it wouldn¡¯t be a coincidence for an assassin to trespass the pce.


    Thinking about this, the Sage of Calligraphy turned pale and released his Psyche Power to explore what had happened outside the hall.


    As a superb talisman master, his Psyche Power was extremely powerful but he was shocked that he sensed nothing. Even Liu Bai couldn¡¯t control his breath so perfectly that he can hide from my Psyche Power. Then who could be the intruder today?


    He opened the door of the hall and walked outside. When he saw the young man leading a big ck horse in front of the hall, he was more puzzled than shocked.


    ¡°Ning Que! Shouldn¡¯t you be at the Divine Hall of Light?¡±


    Looking at the old man with silver hair, Ning Que figured out his identity and said with a smile, ¡°I can¡¯t stay at West Hill forever. I am traveling around the world and passed through the Great River Kingdom, wanting to pay my respects to Your Excellency.¡±


    The Sage of Calligraphy raised his eyebrows slightly and said with an extremely indifferent expression, ¡°I don¡¯t know how you escaped from the Divine Hall of West Hill. I guess you have a better excuse than just paying your respects to me for the intrusion today.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Of course it was a lie. I¡¯m not Haotian, how could I know that Your Excellency is also in the pce. I¡¯vee to the pce to meet the monarch.¡±


    The Sage of Calligraphy asked, ¡°What do you want from His Majesty?¡±


    Ning Que said with a smile, ¡°I came here to inform the monarch that his wedding with Shanshan might have to be postponed indefinitely.¡±


    The Sage of Calligraphy looked at him and said sarcastically, ¡°Even though Haotian will get angry?¡±


    Ning Que sighed and answered, ¡°I can tell from your disgusting expression that you¡¯ve heard some rumors. Unfortunately, you probably don¡¯t know that I make the important decisions in my family.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 910 - Cursive on the Cloud

    <h4>Chapter 910: Cursive on the Cloud</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Countless guards and soldiers rushed to the square in front of the hall, holding up their swords. They were very intimidating and well prepared to attack Ning Que.


    Raising his right hand, the Sage of Calligraphy signaled the guards and soldiers to halt and said to Ning Que with no expressions on his face, ¡°You Tang people are indeed unreasonable.¡±


    Ning Que smiled and asked, ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    The Sage of Calligraphy frowned, ¡°Why do you meddle with Shanshan¡¯s marriage even though you don¡¯t want to marry her?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°That is because I know for sure that she doesn¡¯t want to marry the monarch of the Great River Kingdom.¡±


    ¡°What makes you say that?¡±


    ¡°Eldest Brother and I are the closest to her, and we know what she is thinking.¡±


    ¡°I am her teacher, and I raised her.¡± The Sage of Calligraphy shouted, ¡°How could you and Li Manman be the closest to her?¡±


    Ning Que spread his hands and said, ¡°I know that Shanshan never thought of you as the closest one. It¡¯s very clear that who is the closest to her and who knows her better.¡±


    The Sage of Calligraphy didn¡¯t want to argue with him and said indifferently, ¡°I don¡¯t know how escaped from the Divine Hall of West Hill. However, since you came here today, I won¡¯t let you leave.¡±


    Ning Que thought of how surprised the Sage of Calligraphy was to see him. After hearing what the Sage of Calligraphy said at this moment, he realized that his escape still remained a secret. The Divine Hall of West Hill probably kept Academy in the dark about his whereabouts, let alone the fact that Sangsang was with him. However, it wouldn¡¯t be a secret anymore after today. What really made him feel puzzled and vignt was that the Sage of Calligraphy revealed his intention to kill him.


    ¡°What do you mean, Your Excellency?¡±


    The Sage of Calligraphy didn¡¯t answer him, but the emotions in his eyes turned to indifference. He thought that killing Ning Que would solve a problem for Haotian.


    His Excellency Wang was not Abbey Dean of the Zhishou Abbey and didn¡¯t know theplicated rtionship between Ning Que and Haotian. However, he was a super powerful man standing at the peak of Knowing Destiny State. He had intuition for everything, and his intuition was perfectly urate.


    Looking at the expression on the silver-haired old man¡¯s face, Ning Que quickly understood the reason. His body suddenly turned cold, not because of fear, but because he had to calm himself.


    Suddenly hearing that Shanshan was about to get married, Ning Que had to do something, but he didn¡¯t expect to make such a big fuss. He couldn¡¯t just kill the monarch of the Great River Kingdom like Sangsang had suggested. The Great River Kingdom and Great Tang had enjoyed a peaceful rtionship for generations and the Sage of Calligraphy was Shanshan¡¯s teacher. However, if the Sage of Calligraphy wanted him dead, then Ning Que would not hesitate to roughly fight back.


    Ning Que respected the old man in front of the hall, not because he was Shanshan¡¯s teacher, but because his surname was Wang and he was known as the Sage of Calligraphy who was also a talisman master equivalent to Yan Se, Ning Que¡¯s master.


    The Sage of Calligraphy was his predecessor and probably the strongest in the field of Fu Tao. Of course Ning Que had to respect him, but as a talisman master who learned Fu Tao, Ning Que had his own pride.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t want to die and was very proud of his Fu Tao. Therefore, the battle with the Sage of Calligraphy was inevitable. He would never give up even if he were to lose.


    ¡°My master, Yan Se, once mentioned to me that Your Excellency was proficient in Fu Tao and he told me to learn from Your Excellency if I ever had the chance.¡± Ning Que added, ¡°Enlighten me please.¡±


    The Sage of Calligraphy said, ¡°Yan Se might have had a chance to beat me if he was still alive, but you don¡¯t have a chance.¡±


    Ning Que said seriously, ¡°You are wrong.¡±


    The Sage of Calligraphy asked indifferently, ¡°Where am I wrong?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°The proof of the pudding is in the eating.¡±


    The Sage of Calligraphy was stunned by the change in Ning Que¡¯s tone, which made his face darken.


    The guards turned pale, withplicated emotions in their eyes, for they already knew who Ning Que was. The Great River Kingdom and Great Tang had a very close rtionship. The Academy was not only the pride of Great Tang, but also the pride of the people of the Great River Kingdom. The ck Ink Garden and Mo Shanshan were of course also the pride of the Great River Kingdom. The people of Great River Kingdom naturally valued Mr.Thirteen from the Academy who had a much-told history with Mo Shanshan highly. However, he became an enemy today.


    Ning Que dared to threaten the monarch and came to break the marriage, which made the people of the Great River Kingdom angry. However, they would be disappointed if Ning Que had not showed up. When Ning Que did show up, they were somewhat pleased andcent rather than angry. The people of Great River Kingdom suffered mixed emotions which were hard to exin.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t know what his appearance meant for the people of the Great River Kingdom and whatplicated mental stimtion he brought to them. He looked at the Sage of Calligraphy in front of the hall and took a step forward.


    At this time, he was separated from the Sage of Calligraphy by a distance of tens of zhang. Although he was only taking a small step forward, it meant that the battle was about to begin.


    Guards and soldiers evacuated from the square and poured into the main hall, guarding the monarch behind the crowd. Theplex emotions became tense at this moment, and a perfect silence prevailed the pce.


    The Sage of Calligraphy was an extremely powerful human and he entered the peak of Knowing Destiny State many years ago. Ning Que was not an ordinary person either. Putting aside the skills he learned in the Academy, his talent for Fu Tao was also known all over the world. Additionally, he was the second youngest talisman master in the world.


    The cultivation world always believed that a talisman master was naturally invincible in the battle of the same state, so it could be imagined how profound and horrible Fu Tao was. What would the battle between two talisman masters be like?


    After all, the human world hadn¡¯t seen the battle of talisman masters for many years.


    The winter winds in Jingdu were not cold, only a little chilly. They were breezing from the flowers and trees inside and outside the imperial city to the square in front of the hall and to Ning Que¡¯s face.


    Ning Que lifted his right arm solemnly and began to write in the wind.


    The word he wrote was very simple and only consisted of two strokes, one on the top, the other on the bottom. The two strokes were rtive to each other, as if they would never engage or separate.


    It was the first Divine Talisman Ning Que mastered: Two Talisman.


    This Divine Talisman was born out of Yan Se¡¯s Well Talisman. Although the Two Talisman can¡¯t cut off everything in the world like the Well Talisman which can even cut off the space in Battle of Light, it suited the temperament of Ning Que and the Academy perfectly, full of tyrannical implications.


    Summoning the Qi of Heaven and Earth, fierce Talisman Intents raged in the pce of the Great River Kingdom.


    Petals of the flower trees in the imperial garden fell down, and the twisted trees tied by the gardener were tied more tightly by themselves to cause two looming traces on the bark. The notches on the surface of the copper cranes in front of the hall were so deep that the color of unoxidized copper in the notches could be seen. It was as bright as gold.


    The Talisman Intent applied by Ning Que fell in front of the hall and suddenly tightened. It was overflowing with a horrible atmosphere. A few white hair fell with the wind. However, the Sage of Calligraphy was still calm. He took out a brush pen from the sleeve and drew freely in the wind.


    The brush pen was trembling in the wind, and the Sage of Calligraphy looked extremely solemn. All of a sudden, a gust of wind roared, and countless dark clouds appeared to cover the clear sky over Jingdu. The pce became extremely dark and the cloud continued to roll, looking violent. Then a ¡°suppress¡± script vaguely appeared on the surface of the cloud!


    He must be extraordinary to deserve the name of ¡°Sage of Calligraphy¡±. His cultivation of Fu Tao was different from that of ordinary Talisman masters. Besidesprehending its shape in Heaven and Earth, he also inconceivably possessed his natal item.


    His natal item was the brush pen in his hand. This brush pen looked very ordinary and was as long as an ordinary person¡¯s forearm. It looked like an item used to write big characters. The scripts he wrote in the wind were indeed very big.


    The ordinary Talisman masters normally wrote the characters for Nature with their Psyche Power as the brush pen and their insights as the ink. When Nature understood the characters, Qi of Heaven and Earth would appear and became countless magical means.


    However, the Sage of Calligraphy wrote the characters with his natal item as the writing instrument and the Qi of Heaven and Earth as the ink. He didn¡¯t need Nature to understand him because he wasmanding Nature!


    All of a sudden, a ¡°suppress¡± script appeared on the surface of the cloud, then a forceful pressure was applied to the pce. The Talisman Intent released by Ning Que was suddenly stagnated, so it was not as powerful as before.


    Looking at the old man writing in the wind, Ning Que admired him inwardly. After the Sage of Calligraphy wrote the ¡°suppress¡± script, the brush pen was still moving. The winter wind surrounding the pce passed the intent to the cloud in the air, stirring up the dark cloud again. Then countless sprawling characters slowly appeared.


    The cloud was like a piece of paper for the Sage of Calligraphy to write on.


    Innumerable,plicated, and unfathomable Talisman Intent fell down from the cloud and descended on Ning Que.


    Even if Liu Bai was revived, he would also feel a little tricky facing the Talisman Intent, for these characters were too scribbled and the intent changed constantly. How was one supposed to break the intents without understanding them?


    Ning Que was an exception because he was also an calligrapher and a well-known one. Looking at the scribbled characters on the cloud, he was still amazed.


    ¡°What impressive cursive!¡±


    Understanding the cursive was only the first step to destroying it. To destroy the cursive whichpletely reflected an calligrapher¡¯s spirit, the two important things were momentum and magnanimity!


    Ning Que did have talent for Fu Tao but he was only enlightened a few years ago and became a talisman masterst year. How was he be supposed topete with the Sage of Calligraphy who had mastered Fu Tao many years ago?


    Ning Que couldn¡¯tpete with the Sage of Calligraphy in terms of momentum and magnanimity. How could he destroy the Talisman Intent applied by the Sage of Calligraphy? What characters should he write?


    Feeling Talisman Intent falling from the clouds, Ning Que withdrew his hands and held the hilt by his waist, taking out the heavy iron sword and waving to the cloud full of characters!


    Waving it to the left!


    Then to the right!


    The Yi Talisman appeared again.


    In terms of the state of Talisman Intent, even Yi Talisman, the most powerful Talisman Ning Que possessed, couldn¡¯t destroy the cursive on the cloud. However, he didn¡¯t use the intent of Yi Talisman but the original meaning of ¡°Yi¡±!


    Ning Que¡¯s Talismans were always so simple that it didn¡¯t need to be written in cursive style. Besides, Yi Talisman especially couldn¡¯t be written in cursive style, for ¡°Yi¡± originally meant grass cutting.


    Many people thought that the word ¡°Yi¡± meant to kill people arbitrarily, which was only an extended meaning of this word. Originally, ¡°Yi¡± meant a knife used to clear weed in the field.


    You wrote a cursive on the cloud. Then I had to cut if off.

 Chapter 911 - Splash-Ink and Dirty Clouds

    <h4>Chapter 911: Ssh-Ink and Dirty Clouds</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The cursive on the clouds was quite messy and full of murderous intent. Countless thin traces appeared on the sky upon the arrival of the Yi Talisman and the cursive suddenly became scattered.


    Ning Que¡¯s method was indeed magical. Seeing this, the Sage of Calligraphy admired Yan Se¡¯s sharp eyes for discovering talents. However, he was too proud to admit that he admired Ning Que, who happened to be the talent that Yan Se discovered.


    The Sage of Calligraphy gave a loud shout, then chilly winter winds suddenly sted, drawing more clouds. The sunlight behind the clouds was blockedpletely, making the pce quieter.


    The clouds were very strange. Whilecking in number, they were just white clouds floating in the clear blue sky. While increasing in number and ovepping each other, their colors became darker and darker.


    The clouds over the pce were getting thicker and thicker, turning into dark clouds. With the movement of the clouds, they looked like the ink in the ink stone, stirred up by the invisible brush pen.


    The previous white paper became the ink, hence the fierce and chaotic cursive script disappeared. However, in the next moment, the clouds suddenly became lower and then scattered clouds flew out, looking like countless ink spots.


    Every scattered cloud was a scribbled character.


    The cursive script that the Sage of Calligraphy wrote did not disappear but became ink spots from the traces on the cloud paper, falling on Ning Que like raindrops as if they possessed material energy.


    What magical means!


    Ning Que turned pale, and the Psyche Power in his Ocean of Consciousness was desperately poured out. He kept waving his iron sword, creating Yi Talismans one after another and destroying the characters formed from the ink clouds.


    However, the dark clouds covered the entire imperial city. At least hundreds of characters were hidden in the clouds and they were constantly falling down. How could Ning Que destroy them all?


    His iron sword broke out of the wind, and the Yi Talismans wiped out the characters silently. The scribbled and powerful characters were harvested and chopped like real grasses. However, the characters in the ink clouds became denser and denser and continued to fall indefinitely. Ning Que turned paler and paler and struggled to fight against his enemy. He was only relying on his Talisman Intent to surround him.


    In the battlefield, the only thing that could restrict the power of Fu Tao was the power of Psyche Power. A powerful Divine Talisman like the Yi Talisman consumed enormous Psyche Power, which was beyond imagination. If it that was not the case, then wouldn¡¯t that mean that only a few Divine Talisman masters could wash over the whole world?


    Ning Que rarely realized the importance of Psyche Power whenever he used to cast Divine Talismans in the past because he began to meditate at a very young age and possessed more Psyche Power than ordinary Talisman masters did. For the key moments that really required him to cast countless Divine Talismans, such as fighting against a group of talisman masters in the Rite to Light or fighting against Abbey Dean of the Zhishou Abbey in Chang¡¯an, he had an inexhaustible source of Psyche Power ¡ª the God-stunning Array and Sangsang¡¯s Divine Power.


    However, the situation was different today. Facing the unpredictable Sage of Calligraphy, Ning Que must exert all his strength. After writing seven Yi Talismans, he felt that his Psyche Power was about to dry up without the help of Chang¡¯an!


    Yan Se had exined this when he taught Fu Tao to Ning Que. Ning Que knew clearly that it was verymon for talisman masters to exhaust their Psyche Powers, which was even the mostmon cause of their deaths. What really shocked him was that he exhausted Psyche Power after writing Yi Talismans while his opponent didn¡¯t change at all after writing a wild cursive containing hundreds of characters in the clouds!


    Ning Que rarely encountered a cultivator whose Psyche Power was more forceful than his, but at this moment, he realized that his opponent¡¯s Psyche Power was horribly stronger. It seemed that the Sage of Calligraphy was even more powerful than the national master of Golden Tribe Royal Court! The Sage of Calligraphy was indeed a superb talisman master!


    Ning Que knew that he must make a decision as soon as possible. While the Yi Talismans were still fighting against the scribbled characters falling from the clouds, he inserted the iron sword in his hand into the bluestone ground, taking out the bow and arrow from the back of the big ck horse.


    He drew the iron bow and put on the iron arrow, pointing at the Sage of Calligraphy, who was standing on the stone steps in front of the hall.


    Your Psyche Power was indeed forceful and your cursive script was indeed horrible, but how can you survive from my arrow?


    At this point, the ink clouds flew around and the Talisman Intent caused a great sensation. Nobody could see clearly, but the Sage of Calligraphy saw clearly what Ning Que was doing.


    Looking at the world-renowned iron bow, the Sage of Calligraphy was as calm as before, showing no fear or vignce. He wanted to kill Ning Que, so how could he not think of the most powerful weapon that Ning Que possessed?


    The Sage of Calligraphy stretched out his right hand from his sleeve and grabbed a dark cloud from the sky and threw it at Ning Que.


    A Ssh-Ink!


    The Great River Kingdom was the home field of the Sage of Calligraphy. There was no chance he would let Ning Que win!


    With the Sage of Calligraphy¡¯s grabbing of the dark cloud and dropping it down, more than ten halls and countless stone and bronze statues suddenly gave a solemn and killing atmosphere. It was the Array of the Imperial City!


    The Array was the Grand Talisman, and the Array of Imperial City was the Grand Talismans written by generations of Grand Masters from the ck Ink Garden. The Sage of Calligraphy captured the clouds as ink and moved the hall like a talisman today, in order to defeat Ning Que on the spot!


    Darkness engulfed the square in front of the hall, and a shrill voice was heard vaguely. Everywhere was covered by the dark and the space was distorted by the chaos in the ink cloud!


    Ning Que¡¯s arrow had already left the bow but it somehow disappeared.


    It was the most effective way to deal with the Thirteen Primordial Arrows. If one couldn¡¯t aim and the space one saw was fake or distorted, then how could one hit the target?


    Looking at the ink cloud, Ning Que sensed that there were countless chaotic Talisman Intent hidden in it. His expression becameplicated, for he knew that he had lost. He acknowledged his defeat sincerely.


    After Yan Se and Wei Guangming perished together in Chang¡¯an, the Sage of Calligraphy was the only Grand Master of Fu Tao left in the world. Obviously, Ning Que needed more time to catch up to him.


    Ning Que was about to be killed by the Talisman Intent that were contained in the ink cloud, but oddly, his face revealed no fear. He seemed calm, but still a little defeated


    Looking at the expression on Ning Que¡¯s face, the Sage of Calligraphy frowned slightly and felt puzzled.


    Ning Que had experienced many sinister battles, but he only saw two battles as fair decisive battle with the real powerful talisman masters: one was the battle with Xia Hou by the Snow Lake and the other was the battle with Abbey Dean of the Zhishou Abbey in Chang¡¯an.


    During the former battle, Xia Hou was still injured. During thetter battle, the entire city of Chang¡¯an and all of the people in the city helped him fight against the Abbey Dean of the Zhishou Abbey. Technically, the battle with the Sage of Calligraphy today should be the most sinister one that Ning Que had ever fought, for the opponent was powerful enough to grab clouds and cast magical Divine Talismans.


    Ning Que was doomed to fail but he still regarded the battle today as the easiest one in his life.


    He put down the iron bow, and pulled out a heavy iron sword from the bluestone. He stepped on the bluestone heavily with his right foot, crushing four connected bluestones. Then he rushed toward the Sage of Calligraphy!


    The Haoran Qi in his abdomen bursted into inexhaustible strength, pouring into every part of his body and raising his speed to an unimaginable level!


    Ning Que rushed into the ck fog.


    The dark fog contained countless scribbled characters and chaotic Talisman Intent hidden in the ink.


    The air in the fog was twisted.


    The Haoran Qi covered every inch of his skin, but still not enough topletely iste the Talisman Intent. With his clothes broken, small wounds appeared on Ning Que¡¯s body, and the blood was turned into mist the moment it bled out.


    Surrounding by the faint blood mist, Ning Que kept running and shed his sword at the Ssh-Ink.


    Every time the sword fell, the Ssh-Ink became lighter, and a clear sword mark appeared on the gray clouds above the pce, revealing the blue and clear sky.


    The Sage of Calligraphy raised his eyebrows slowly, and the strands of white hair that were cut off by Ning Que¡¯s Divine Talismans previously were dancing in the wind.


    The Sage of Calligraphy knew that Ning Que had cultivated Haoran Qi and realized that the kid had already gone mad. However, he still felt that Ning Que was seeking his demise because the space in the Ssh-Ink had been twisted. Even though Ke Haoran rose from death, it was still impossible to burst through the mist, let alone Ning Que. It was because the space represented the power of the rules.


    Since Ning Que was seeking his demise, the Sage of Calligraphy decided to help him seal his fate.


    A vigorous Psyche Power enveloped the entire pce, and the scope of the ink sshed farther and farther. The faint mist filled the square in front of the hall, gradually submerging the flower tree in the corner of the Imperial City.


    Ning Que rushed into the Ssh-Ink, and countless clear sounds rang out, which was caused by the winter winds that were stirred by Ning Que¡¯s body cutting through the twisted space and chaotic Talisman Intent in the Ssh-Ink.


    Even winds could be cut through, let alone a sword or a person.


    The flower tree in the corner of the Imperial City couldn¡¯t bear the Talisman Intent and lost several branches.


    Ning Que kept running,pletely ignoring the horrible ck mist.


    The he ran out of the mist and appeared before the Sage of Calligraphy.


    The twisted space and chaotic Talisman Intent in the mist did not kill him. Apart from the broken clothes and small wounds in the very beginning, he did not even suffer any new wound.


    The flower tree in the corner of Imperial City was unscathed.


    Looking at Ning Que before him, the Sage of Calligraphy frowned silently.


    The Sage of Calligraphy found the matter obscured and unreasonable.


    Although the Tang People were indeed unreasonable, and the Academy was even more infamous for being unreasonable.


    However, the whole matter was just extremely unreasonable.


    Ning Que was no longer prepared to reason things out. When the Sage of Calligraphy called the Tang people unreasonable in their previous conversation, they had talked about the matter and didn¡¯t need another round of debate.


    He lifted the heavy iron sword and shed it toward the Sage of Calligraphy.


    Ning Que was just one chi away from me holding his sword. I bet nobody couldpete with him in this world except for a few powerhouses from Light¡¯s Doctrine and Ye Hongyu.


    The Sage of Calligraphy shouted out and put the brush pen athwart his chest.


    The brush pen broke.


    The Sage of Calligraphy was blown away and hit against the pir of the main hall, spitting lots of blood.


    After all, he was just the Sage of Calligraphy, not Sage of Sword.


    ...


    ...


    The Sage of Calligraphy looked much older in a very short period of time. He looked at the half-broken brush pen he held in his hand and was a little stunned, for he still didn¡¯t understand what had just happened.


    The Sage of Calligraphy was very confident in the state of his Fu Tao and believed that his state was very close to Yan Se¡¯sstate. How could Yan Se¡¯s disciple defeat me?


    Why did Ning Que ignore my Ssh-Ink?


    Staring at Ning Que, he asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    Ning Que thought about it and answered, ¡°Maybe it¡¯s because...you can¡¯t defeat me.¡±


    The Sage of Calligraphy didn¡¯t understand and continued to ask, ¡°Why can¡¯t I defeat you?


    At this point, a voice came from the side of the hall.


    The voice had no emotions, but convinced all of the people hearing it that what she said was totally right, for she sounded so naturally.


    ¡°Because I don¡¯t want you defeating him.¡±


    Walking to the square in front of the hall with hands behind back, Sangsang ignored Sage of Calligraphy lying in a pool of blood. She looked up at the gray clouds in the sky and said, ¡°Your means of collecting clouds is quite good, but the clouds are too dirty.¡±


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 912 - Some Trivial Matters

    <h4>Chapter 912: Some Trivial Matters</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    All of the Fu Tao and the means that the Sage of Calligraphy revealed in this battle were far beyond what ordinary cultivators could imagine. Ning Que was shocked and admired him at the same time. The the Sage of Calligraphy was indeed at the peak of the human world.


    However, Sang Sang didn¡¯t favor him. She liked the means that the the Sage of Calligraphy used to collect clouds, but she thought the clouds were dirty.


    Looking at Sangsang¡¯s tall figure, the Sage of Calligraphy was extremely shocked and turned especially pale. Then he wept bitterly, diluting the blood on his robe.


    The Sage of Calligraphy was a visiting minister of the Divine Hall of West Hill and follower of Haotian. After knowing that Haotian came to the world, he was desperate to meet her, and he couldn¡¯t believe that Haotian suddenly appeared before him.


    How did Ning Que escape from the Peach Mountain and ignore the Ssh-Ink? The Sage of Calligraphy knew the answer instantly and even had a better understanding of some other things.


    Standing on the opposite side of Haotian, he was doomed to lose. His failure was Heaven¡¯s Rules. Thinking of this, his mind shook and his the Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow were not stable. Then he began spitting blood again.


    Standing before him, Sangsang ignored the change of his mind and just looked at the sky full of ink clouds quietly with her hands behind her back. As her eyes turned downcast, the crack in the clouds that Ning Que had chopped with his sword previously was expanded instantly and spread around the heaven and the earth. The expanded crack disappeared without a trace in a moment, revealing the blue sky.


    With the ink clouds scattered and the sunlight revealed again, the Pce of the Great River Kingdom was restored to clear and bright. People whose sights had been blocked saw the picture of the Sage of Calligraphy sitting in a pool of blood now, crying out in rm.


    Sangsang walked to the main hall, and the tall and thick door opened by itself even though there was no wind. The big ck horse walked from the middle of the square, and Ning Que put the iron sword to the sheath and reattached it to the side of the saddle. Both of them followed Sangsang to the hall.


    More than a hundred guards in the main hall were undoubtedly the most heroic men in the Great River Kingdom. However, no one dared to stop Sangsang from entering the hall.


    The guards did not know who the woman in light cyan was but they remembered the unbelievable scene that happened at the main entrance of the Imperial City previously and knew that even the Sage of Calligraphy was no match for her.


    Sangsang walked in the quiet pce without footsteps. Countless guards and eunuchs shielded the monarch behind them and kept stepping back, which was quite a weird scene.


    There was a beautiful and luxurious chair on the high tform, which was a square in the deepest part of the hall. It was the throne of the Great River Kingdom. She walked on the carpet on the floor and approached the throne, sitting on it very casually.


    Things about the human world hardly interested her and she only walked into the pce for the matter today was rted to Ning Que. She had no interest in the position of the monarch of the Great River Kingdom. At this time, the reason she sat on the throne was very simple: this was the highest and most central position in the hall. She was Haotian and supposed to sit in the position.


    For the people of the Great River Kingdom in the hall, it was definitely not that simple. They didn¡¯t know what the woman in light cyan was thinking and only knew that she sat on the throne that belonged to the monarch!


    What Sangsang did was rebellion and the biggest insult to the people of the Great River Kingdom, which was impossible to be forgiven. However, the people crowded in the hall turned pale, but still did nothing to stop her. They looked like in great pain.


    Leading the big ck horse to the throne, Ning Que looked up and asked her, ¡°Why are you sitting there?¡±


    Sangsang flicked her sleeves slightly, and flowers bloomed in the throne. Then she answered calmly, ¡°Because I like it.¡±


    Ning Que was a little helpless. He looked toward the crowd and asked, ¡°May I know which of you is the monarch?¡±


    The monarch was the king of a country. He reached out to separate the eunuchs and guards in front of him and looked at Ning Que, ¡°Mr. Thirteen, what¡¯s your intention to intrude my pce?¡±


    Looking at the monarch, Ning Que said, ¡°Please don¡¯t worry, Your Majesty. I just want to ask for a favor.¡±


    The monarch looked at Ning Que¡¯s expression and felt like he saw a wild cat who was ying with a dying mouse. He said with a sullen smile, ¡°Your mothend has a great rtionship with my Great River Kingdom for generations. You really want to ignore all that and kill me?¡±


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°You worry too much, Your Majesty.¡±


    The monarch turned pale. Looking at the women sitting on the throne, he said bitterly, ¡°You took my throne. You expect me to pretend like nothing happened?¡±


    Sangsang felt that Ning Que was extremely hypocritical. After Ning Que had made a scene at the pce and bullied the monarch, it surprised her that Ning Que was too shy to ask for what he wanted.


    She had seen all the flower trees in the pce and found what she wanted, so she didn¡¯t want to dy any more time. Staring at the monarch, she said, ¡°Cancel the engagement.¡±


    The monarch and people of the Great River Kingdom in the hall were not surprised to hear the answer. The only reason why Ning Que disregarded the great rtionship between the Tang and the Great River Kingdom to intrude the pce was that he wanted the wedding to be canceled. However, they did not understand who the woman sitting on the throne was and why she was helping Ning Que. It appeared to them that she was the one who was really in charge.


    Courage didn¡¯t make much sense when facing an unimaginable strength gap, but canceling the engagement was one of the two most humiliating things for men. Ning Que was able to bear one, but it didn¡¯t mean that other men could bear the other like Ning Que did.


    Moreover, the man was the king of a country.


    The monarch said, ¡°If I were to cancel the engagement, then how could I ever gain the trust of my people?¡±


    Sangsang thought that the problem was very simple. Humans always make problems much moreplicated than they should be. She was a little irritated and said to the monarch, ¡°Since the engagement was between the monarch and Mo Shanshan, you could resign.¡±


    The monarch stood in amazement. The monarch is not a normal official position, how could I just resign?


    Sangsang looked at him and said, ¡°Die or give up the throne. It¡¯s your choice.¡±


    For the monarch, there was no difference between death and abdication, and giving up the throne was not an option. He turned very pale instantly, revealing a desperate air in his eyes.


    If fighting wouldn¡¯t change the result, then some people might just give up and suffer in silence. However, the Tang people and the people of the Great River Kingdom were different. They thought that it was better to the bitter end.


    Seeing the look on the monarch¡¯s face, the guards in the hall went silent. Then they clutched their hilts, ready for the final battle.


    At this moment, there was a rush of sound of hooves outside the hall, followed by a flustered reputation. A sergeant with an air of fatigue rode straight to the front of the hall and fell to the ground.


    ¡°The cavalry of the Divine Hall of West Hill is going south. The vanguard has already crossed the Great River and entered the North Prefecture!¡±


    ...


    ...


    The hall suddenly went silent, and the courage and fighting heart that the monarch and the guards gathered up moments ago suddenly disappeared. It was because the cavalry of the Divine Hall of West Hill was about to arrive.


    The Great River Kingdom had a great rtionship with Great Tang for generations, hence its rtionship with the the Divine Hall of West Hill was quite distant. Additionally, the Great River Kingdom bore deep grudges against the South Jin Kingdom and Yuelun Kingdom. The reason why Great River Kingdom was able to be in smooth water all these years was that it showed great respect to the Divine Hall of West Hill and the awe-inspiring reputation of the Great Tang.


    The cavalry of the Divine Hall of West Hill has already crossed the Great River? Why are theying here? What do they want?


    The Great River Kingdom was definitely not the able to fight against the Divine Hall of West Hill. The Divine Hall might have feared the Sage of Calligraphy before, but thetter had been defeated and severely injured, impossible to fight again. Then who could resist the cavalry?


    In the past, the Great River Kingdom would definitely seek help from the Great Tang, hoping that the power and influence of the Great Tang would frighten the enemy away. Looking at the young man leading a big ck horse, people in the hall know that it was a dead end now.


    ¡°Your Majesty, please abdicate.¡±


    The Sage of Calligraphy came in. His footsteps were extraordinarily heavy, and his face was paler than his disheveled hair. His expression was even more frightening andplicated.


    The monarch was angry and stared at him in confusion. Even if I were to die today, I won¡¯t surrender to the enemy.


    The Sage of Calligraphy coughed twice in pain and dared not to look at the woman sitting on the throne. He said with a mncholy expression, ¡°If Your Majesty doesn¡¯t want the Great River Kingdom to disappear, then it¡¯s best to listen to the distinguished guest.¡±


    Haotian left the Divine Kingdom and came to the human world. She was of course the distinguished guest.


    Looking at the Sage of Calligraphy, the monarch suddenly understood many things and lost all his strength for an instant.


    The Sage of Calligraphy kneeled down in front of the throne and said, ¡°Please instruct us.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Abdicate and cancel the engagement. What more instructions do you need?¡±


    The Sage of Calligraphy answered in a trembling voice, ¡°Who should seed the throne?¡±


    Sangsang went silent for a moment and found that this was indeed a problem.


    She looked around the hall and only saw one acquaintance.


    ¡°Him.¡±


    Ning Que pointed to his own nose in shock and cried, ¡°You want me to be the monarch of the Great River Kingdom?¡±


    hte Sage of Calligraphy was in shock too. He looked up and said, ¡°But he is from the Great Tang.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°The Great Tang or the Great River Kingdom, no difference to me.¡±


    The Sage of Calligraphy dared not to say anything more.


    The people in the hall were too shocked to make a sound.


    Sangsang stood up and walked outside of the hall.


    Enduring the great pain caused by the injury, the Sage of Calligraphy bent down and walked behind her.


    Outside the hall, Sangsang stopped and looked back at him, ¡°I had some interest in you before. I thought you must be different since you are the Sage of Calligraphy, but you have disappointed me.¡±


    The Sage of Calligraphy dared not to argue with her and answered with a humble expression, ¡°Please enlighten me.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Liu Bai drew his sword to fight against me once, but you dared not to attack me. He was the Sage of Sword. Why do you deserve the title of the Sage of Calligraphy? From now on, your name is Calligraphy Wang.¡±


    The Sage of Calligraphy changed his name to Calligraphy Wang.


    Simply because Haotian had said so.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que led the big ck horse and headed outside the pce behind Sangsang. There was a big parcel on the back of the big ck horse. From the faint smell the parcel gave off, it should be something like cosmetics.


    There were many flower trees in the pce, so their clothes smelt like fragrance of flowers all the way through the flower trees. Looking at the back of Sangsang and thinking about what happened before, Ning Que couldn¡¯t help butugh.


    ¡°The Sage of Calligraphy is just a honorific title and he has a real name. If you don¡¯t think he deserved the title, just say so. It¡¯s ridiculous that you made him change the name to Calligraphy Wang.¡±


    Sangsang stopped but didn¡¯t turn around. She said in an indifferent voice, ¡°I think the more ridiculous thing is that you said you make the important decisions in your family.¡±


    Ning Que felt a little unsettled and his body became a bit stiff. He pulled out a smile and exined, ¡°I have to protect my honor in public but you know that I can only handle the trivial matters.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°But it seems to me that you have a lot of things to manage.¡±


    Ning Que walked behind her and said, ¡°Just trivial matters, trivial matters.¡±


    Sangsang turned around and stared at him, ¡°Then what are the important matters? What are the trivial matters?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°You are Haotian. All the things on earth are trivial in your eyes.¡±


    Sangsang thought about it and felt that it made sense yet made no sense.


    ...

 Chapter 913 - Her Image

    <h4>Chapter 913: Her Image</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Sangsang never gave the impression of being wise, and she appeared to be a little slow in some aspects even though she was Haotian. Racking her brains to God¡¯s n, she was best at mathematical inferencing and had difficulties dealing with the trivial matters of daily life.


    However, it didn¡¯t mean that she was actually slow. As long as she was willing to put her mind to it, she could reason out the abominable truth hidden in Ning Que¡¯s words.


    Ning Que was very clear about this, so he continued to say before she reasoned out, ¡°It¡¯s even more ridiculous that you named me as the monarch of the Great River Kingdom.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Why is it ridiculous?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°It¡¯s unrealistic. Even if the Great River Kingdom were to not dare to oppose your will under the pressure of fearing the Divine Hall of West-Hill, we have to return to Chang¡¯an one day.¡±


    Sangsang said without any expressions, ¡°When did I say I want to go to Chang¡¯an?¡±


    Ning Que sighed in his mind and then said, ¡°But we can¡¯t stay in Great River Kingdom forever.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°If you don¡¯t want to be the monarch, then just give the throne away when you leave.¡±


    Ning Que thought about it and said, ¡°That will do.¡±


    God knew how many bloody conflicts were caused by the throne of a country in the human world. However, for Sangsang and Ning Que, the throne was no different than a toy. Ning Que said that all the things on earth were trivial in Sangsang¡¯s eyes, and he was right from this point of view.


    Strolling out of the pce, they were getting farther away from the flower trees. Sangsang looked at the lonely flower tree in the corner of the Imperial City and said, ¡°I just don¡¯t want to see this tree cut off.¡±


    Ning Que knew that she was exining why she had helped him break down the Ssh-Ink that was casted by the Sage of Calligraphy, but he couldn¡¯t help but smile. She was just as unyielding and sensitive as before even after bing Haotian.


    He didn¡¯t want to discuss the issue further and force Sang Sang to say that she cared about him, which might make Sangsang turn shame into anger. Therefore, he changed the subject.


    ¡°I saw you put a cloud on the branch on the way here and I found it amazing, but what Sage of Calligraphy did was even more magical.¡±


    ¡°His name is Calligraphy Wang now. Besides, the clouds he collected are dirty.¡±


    ¡°You can guarantee that the clouds you collected are clean?¡±


    ¡°All my clouds areing from the middle of the Storm Sea of the Song Kingdom thousands of miles away. There are no human traces or dust pollution, so it¡¯s absolutely clean.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t feel that it¡¯s so low-carbon and environmentally friendly.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t say any word from your world.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Because I don¡¯t like it.¡±


    While talking, they walked out of the pce and came to the royal road covered with red leaves. The big ck horse looked down and sniffed the faint smell in the maple leaves. Looking into the distance, Ning Que suddenly did not know where to go.


    ¡°Where should we go?¡± Ning Que looked at Sangsang and asked.


    Sangsang answered, ¡°Mogan Mountain.¡±


    Ning Que went silent for a moment and asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    Sangsang stared at him quietly and then said, ¡°Don¡¯t you want to go there?¡±


    Ning Que answered without thinking, ¡°Indeed I don¡¯t.¡±


    Staring at his eyes, Sangsang said, ¡°I know what you are thinking.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Then I¡¯ve got nothing to say.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Mogan Mountain was verdant and beautiful, just a few miles away from Jingdu. Ning Que and Sangsang saw theke on the mountainside at sunset.


    The cottage on the shore of theke was decorated withnterns and colored hangings to wee the uing wedding. It seemed to be quite lively, but no sound could be heard. The Ink Fountain was very quiet, and even the lotuses floating on theke found the situation odd and faced to the cottage curiously.


    Ning Que and Sangsang walked toward there but didn¡¯t see any guests or disciples along the way. Ning Que sensed the situation to be a little weird.


    Approaching the gate of the cottage, he pushed the door open, and several lights of sword flied at him.


    The sword¡¯s will was fierce and decisive. It was the famous Windward Chop of ck Ink Garden!


    Facing the fierce lights of sword, Ning Que kept calm and said, ¡°It¡¯s me.¡±


    The lights of sword were restrained immediately, and the three slender Xiu Swords stopped in front of his eyebrows. Seeing Ning Que, the women who held the swords were surprised and cried out.


    ¡°Ning Que!¡±


    ¡°Mr. Thirteen!¡±


    ¡°Master Ning!¡±


    Not only the three women who held the swords, but at least a dozen disciples of ck Ink Garden recognized him and cried out surprisedly. They called him by different names due to their old habits.


    Ning Que was very familiar with the female disciples of the ck Ink Garden since they had journeyed together to the Wilderness and fought against mounted gangsters and the Yuelun Kingdom in the past. Although they haven¡¯t seen each other in a long time, their friendships remained the same as before.


    Ning Que walked into the cottage in smile and saw Mo Shanshan.


    She wore a cotton white dress, standing next to a fine yellow horse with a bag on its back. It seemed like she was ready for a long journey instead of a wedding.


    Looking at her, Ning Que had mixed feelings and didn¡¯t know what to say.


    The big ck horse Ning Que was holding was much more direct. Looking at its former mistress, the horse opened the thick lips and revealed the big white teeth, whinnying cheerily toward her.


    Ever since the Sage of Calligraphy had agreed to marry Mo Shanshan to the monarch, the disciples of ck Ink Garden had been worried, many of which had expected Ning Que toe here. They were pleasantly surprised when he actually did.


    Seeing Ning Que, Cat Girl was even more surprised. Ning Que did have a heart, and all the snacks I gave him by the Thin Blue Rognon Sea were not a waste after all. She rushed over to him with silveryughters.


    All of a sudden, her arm was grasped by Zhuo Zhihua.


    Zhuo Zhihua grasped Cat Girl¡¯s arm tightly, and even her knuckles turned pale. She seemed so frightened that her face turned pale too.


    She saw the woman in light cyan walking behind Ning Que.


    The woman in light cyan was very tall and a little fat, with a in face. Standing there with her hands behind her back, she seemed to be as high as the sky.


    Zhuo Zhihua was sure that she had never seen the woman before, but she guessed who the mysterious woman was. Thus her mind was instantly upied by fear and her hands were all sweaty.


    The big ck horse suddenly woke up and was too afraid to whinny again. He sent his apologies to Mo Shanshan by winking and then hurriedly retreated behind Sansang obediently.


    With her hands behind her back, Sangsang looked at the cottage of the ck Ink Garden, revealing no emotions on her face.


    Looking at the tall figure of the woman in light cyan, the disciples of ck Ink Garden all turned pale.


    Mo Shanshan had a hint of joy in her eyes which were as clear as theke the moment she saw Ning Que, but the joy suddenly turned into bitterness and disappointment after seeing Sangsang.


    Walking to Sangsang, she lifted her white dress gently and kneeled down slowly.


    Seeing this, the disciples of ck Ink Garden confirmed their spections and knew who Sangsang really was. So they all went forward and kneeled down before her silently.


    Looking at the brush pens hanging between the beams of the cottage, Sangsang felt that they were not as attractive as the cured meat hanging on the beams of the farmhouses in Yanbei viges she sawst year. It took her a while to realize that the disciples of ck Ink Garden were kneeling.


    ¡°Stand up,¡± she said.


    Mo Shanshan and the disciples got up and stood still quietly.


    Sangsang looked at her pale cheeks and asked, ¡°Do you fear me?¡±


    Mo Shanshan said, ¡°Respect, not fear.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Then why are you so pale?¡±


    Mo Shanshan said, ¡°I¡¯ve always had a white face.¡±


    Sang Sang thought about it. When we met in Chang¡¯an, she was indeed very white and I was the one who had dark skin. Actually I¡¯m only bing a little whiter recently.


    Staring at her face, Sangsang said with an unpleasant voice, ¡°Your face is not as round as before.¡±


    Mo Shanshan didn¡¯t understand her dismay, but answered, ¡°upied by mundane affairs.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Your engagement has been canceled. What else could bother you?¡±


    Hearing this, the disciples of the ck Ink Garden were pleasantly surprised first and then a bit stunned, for they were confused why Sangsang did them such a favor.


    Staring at Sangsang¡¯s eyes quietly, Mo Shanshan was very grateful but didn¡¯t say a word.


    As Calligraphy Fanatic, the youngest Divine Talisman master in the human world and sworn sister of Mr. First of the Academy, the one thing that bothered Mo Shanshan had to do with romance.


    Sangsang said suddenly, ¡°It appeared that you didn¡¯t fear me at all.¡±


    Mo Shanshan still kept quiet.


    As a follower of Haotian, Mo Shanshan had the courage to stand before her, stared at her calmly and did not even take a step back, but it didn¡¯t mean that she would utter impertinent remarks to Sangsang.


    She knew for sure that Haotian could understand what she was thinking.


    I¡¯ve asked this world what is the love on earth that binds the lovers up in life and death? I don¡¯t care about life and death, let alone fear.


    Sangsang understood what she was thinking.


    ¡°I admire you.¡± Looking at Mo Shanshan, she continued to say, ¡°But not your teacher.¡±


    Nobody understood what she meant expect for Ning Que.


    Sangsang said, ¡°Humans who dare to contend with me are much more fun, such as the Headmaster of the Academy, Liu Bai, Maniac Ke, and you. Although you are not as powerful as those three people, you are indeed their equal in terms of courage. However, I don¡¯t really understand where you find the courage.¡±


    If contending with Haotian was rebelling against the Heaven, then Mo Shanshan was definitely doing it.


    ¡°In my memories of the human world, he was really good to me. I offered him immortality, but he refused. It¡¯s none of my business that he wants to suffer in the human world and how he ns to deal with his rtionship with you.¡± Sangsang continued to say, ¡°I¡¯m Haotian, and you are a human being. The things that concern us are naturally different. Your courage shall fall upon him, not me. ¡±


    Mo Shanshan stared at the tips of her shoes and remained silent.


    Being forgotten for quite a while, Ning Que couldn¡¯t help but say helplessly, ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you ask for my opinion first?¡±


    ¡°Your opinion never matters,¡± Sangsang said emotionlessly and walked out of the cottage with hands behind her back.


    The Ink Fountain in the twilight seemed to be burning and the lotuses were like elves in the fire. It looked beautiful. Sangsang sat by theke and looked at theke quietly.


    She seemed to be as high as the sky a few moments ago, but at this moment, she looked lonely.


    ...

 Chapter 914 - Untitled

    <h4>Chapter 914: Untitled</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ning Que and Mo Shanshan sat on a stone chair facing theke under the twilight. Grazing not far away, the big ck horse didn¡¯t swallow the grass but rather to pass the time.


    Ning Que talked about what happened in Jingdu. Mo Shanshan shed her slender eyshes gently and looked down at the tips revealing from the white skirt silently. Even when she heard that her teacher was seriously injured, the look on her face remained the same. However, she was a little surprised when she learned that Ning Que became the monarch of Great River Kingdom.


    Unlike many women in the human world who had been swayed by the novels of talented schrs and beautifuldies, she didn¡¯t ask the man she loved why to meddle in her marriage when he had refused to marry her.


    ¡°Back in Chang¡¯an, you said that she ran far away to heaven and could note back, so there was no way for you to reach her. Now that she has returned to the human world, what do you n to do?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I found that what I thought back then was too simple. In fact, she is always there whether she goes to heaven or stays in the human world.¡±


    Mo Shanshan said, ¡°She is not Sangsang, but Haotian now. Could you still love her?¡±


    Ning Que thought about it and then said, ¡°I have thought about this problem. She is indeed Haotian, but she possesses all the memories of Sangsang and all the memories with me. How can I believe that she is not Sangsang?¡±


    He went silent for a while and continued to say, ¡°I know that no one likes her, but I don¡¯t care. Actually, I have never cared about it. I guess I truly love her.¡±


    Mo Shanshan looked up and stared at his eyes, ¡°What about me?¡±


    Ning Que went silent.


    Mo Shanshan whispered, ¡°You are such a heartbreaker.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°From a certain point of view, I certainly am.¡±


    Mo Shanshan said in smile, ¡°But it¡¯s better for you to be a heartbreaker.¡±


    Love wasplicated. If Ning Que wanted to be with Shanshan, then he would hurt Sangsang. If he tried to please Shanshan and Sangsang at the same time, then he would hurt them both.


    Most men were yers. Some may be able to please several girls at the same time, but Ning Que couldn¡¯t. Besides, the most crucial problem was that Sangsang and Shanshan wouldn¡¯t allow him to do so.


    Looking at her beautiful face, Ning Que thought about it for quite a while and said, ¡°You are so nice.¡± He felt very stupid the moment he said so.


    ¡°I also feel that I¡¯m a very nice girl.¡±


    Looking at the direction of theke, Mo Shanshan sighed, ¡°But it¡¯s still not enough. I won¡¯t win the war after all, but it¡¯s not because that I¡¯m a bad fighter. I just have to yield to god.¡±


    The setting sun shone on the quietke between the cliffs, covering theke surface with golden waves. With the darkness fallen, the water was getting dark and drifted with the wind, like the ink in the ink stone.


    Sangsang sat on thekeside. She seemed a bit lonely, but still as high as the sky.


    Mo Shanshan looked at the direction of Sangsang and went silent for a long time. Then she took her legs to the chair and sped her arms around her knees like she was cold, asking, ¡°Do you still like me?¡±


    Ning Que gave it a thought and then answered honestly, ¡°Yes.¡±


    She said, ¡°But not enough.¡±


    The former ¡°not enough¡± was meant for herself, but this ¡°not enough¡± was meant for him.


    What should Ning Que say?


    She sped her arms around her knees and said sadly, ¡°You like her much more.¡±


    The tears moistened her dress.


    People all thought that she was a gentle woman who cared about nothing but talisman books, and that she was out of tune with themon folk. As mentioned before, she was the best of the best.


    Who could imagine that she would cry for a man?


    It was the first time for Ning Que to see her cry. He was very confused and didn¡¯t know what to do or say. Finally he blurted out, ¡°Would killing me make you happier?¡±


    He wasn¡¯t joking this time. He really meant it.


    Shanshan¡¯s kindness to him was just too much for him to repay. He subconsciously offered her the most valuable thing he had: his life.


    ¡°You only have one life. If you give it to me, then what about Sangsang? Or is it just your ruse to fool girls? You are such a...¡± Mo Shanshan said with tears. It was the first time she shed tears in front of people, and also the first time she wanted to curse. However, she took it back at thest moment.


    Ning Que had done a lot of things that wouldn¡¯t be tolerated in the human world and he was well aware of his own cold-blooded nature. To normal people¡¯s eyes, he was undoubtedly a scumbag, but he never cared how people saw him. Only after seeing Shanshan cry did he discover that it was truly hard to be a scumbag.


    It was very quiet and the twilight disappeared little by little. The shadow projected by the tree behind the chair gradually spread until it merged with the night. No one made any sound for a long time.


    ¡°Where would you go next?¡± she asked in a husky voice.


    Ning Que said, ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    Mo Shanshan looked up at him and said carefully, ¡°It¡¯s very hard, isn¡¯t it?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I can take it.¡±


    He must continue the journey whether it was for the human world or for himself. Besides, he wouldn¡¯t be the only one who had suffered since Sangsang went along with him.


    Looking at the sight of Sangsang¡¯s back, Mo Shanshan had mixed feelings and said, ¡°I guess it must be hard for her too.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang sat by theke the whole time.


    She first looked at the few green lotuses floating on theke and figured out that the young lotuses would be luxuriant and give birth to very beautiful lotus flowers exactly the morning after twenty-eight days.


    Then she looked at theke and figured out that the underground river beneath the Mogan Mountain would be connected to the mountainside in the next three hundred and seventy-four years and by then theke would disappear.


    Cat Girl came over nervously and served Sangsang a cup of tea. She was extraordinarily nervous and wanted to retire, but Sangsang asked her to stay.


    Sangsang adored little girls, for she used to be a little girl herself. However, the Cat Girl didn¡¯t know what was in Sangsang¡¯s mind and was just too nervous to talk to her.


    It was difficult to keep the chat going on if one party was too nervous. Sangsang slightly frowned and got bored, waving to excuse Cat Girl.


    Sangsang continued to look at theke, trying to figure out whether theke would disappear in advance due to thendslide six hundred yearster. She was disturbed and suddenly remembered the Yanming Lake in Chang¡¯an.


    The lotuses in theke reminded her of the lotus flowers in Yanming Lake.


    It didn¡¯t mean anything. The only reason I remembered those lotuses was that I nted them myself. Sangsang thought so in her mind but knew clearly it was just an excuse.


    Night fell. She looked up at the stars.


    Human beings considered the stars to be iparablyplex, but to Sangsang, they were just pure numbers and much simpler than the matters in the human world. Sangsang thought that humans tended toplicate things, which was because only then can they feel that their existences were meaningful.


    The stars watched the earth quietly. The positions of the stars and the distances among them remained exactly the same for millions of years.


    She suddenly found that,pared with looking at the stars in the Divine Kingdom, looking up at them on the ground was equally beautiful, but always seemed a bit monotonous.


    No, serenity was the real beauty.


    Taoism believed that serenity was the real beauty, for the distribution rule of the stars was Haotian.


    Then it couldn¡¯t be changed.


    At this moment, the cloud in the southwest of the night sky was blown away, revealing the full moon.


    The moon shone on earth, and it shone on the night sky too. The starlight that seemed to be stagnant before instantly became alive, and so did the whole world.


    Sangsang squinted and her willow leaf-shaped eyes looked bright.


    Her eyes were also filled with confusion.


    Haotian came to the human world, which sounded like a god befell earth. In fact, when the rule left its objective area and came to the human world, it was like a newborn baby to a new world.


    Newborn babies relied on instincts and learning to survive and grow, respectively.


    She also relied on instincts to survive on earth, but her instincts were cold rules and logic. The tender feelings in the human world were totally new to her.


    She learned her lessons clumsily.


    She was lonely and she would be more lonely without Ning Que.


    ...


    ...


    Mo Shanshan looked at the back of Sangsang on thekeside and said with pity, ¡°She indeed lives a miserable life.¡±


    Looking at the direction of Sangsang, Ning Que went silent for a while and said, ¡°She certainly didn¡¯t want to hear what you said, but you¡¯re right.¡±


    Mo Shanshan said, ¡°Just take good care of her.¡±


    Thinking of the torture he went through in the Divine Hall of West Hill and on the journey, Ning Queughed ironically and said, ¡°I live a miserable life too.¡±


    Mo Shanshan said, ¡°Don¡¯t you think that I¡¯m miserable too?¡±


    Ning Que was about to speak, but he suddenly felt a soft and wet touch on his face.


    Mo Shanshan kissed him on the cheek.


    He was a little stunned.


    She was a bit shy. She didn¡¯t want topete with Sangsang. She just wanted to express her feelings to Ning Que.


    Ning Que was nervous and nced to the direction of Sangsang.


    Mo Shanshan looked at the other shore and whispered, ¡°It feels like we are cheating.¡±


    Ning Que forced out a bitter smile and went silent.


    Mo Shanshan said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I¡¯m not worrying about her.¡±


    Knowing that Ning Que was strong in appearance but brittle inside, Mo Shanshan couldn¡¯t help butugh.


    Ning Que said, ¡°I¡¯m worrying about you.¡±


    Mo Shanshanughed and said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me. Actually I figured the whole matter out a long time ago.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°How? I can¡¯t understand it at all.¡±


    Mo Shanshan smiled and said, ¡°She met you earlier than me, a decade earlier actually. Even Haotian can¡¯t reverse time, let alone me?¡±


    ¡°Go with her. If she were to return to the Divine Kingdom or abandon you, then you can alwayse back to me. Before that, I will make everyday count.¡±


    ¡°If?¡±


    ¡°I will meet a really good man.¡±


    Hearing this, Ning Que almost subconsciously said, ¡°Where can you find a man as good as me?¡± However, he suddenly realized that it would be too cheeky if he were to say so.


    Mo Shanshan knew what he was thinking. She smothered herughter and said, ¡°There are not many women as good as me, but plenty of men better than you.¡±


    Ning Que was a little embarrassed and got his self-esteem hurt.


    All of a sudden, Mo Shanshan said, ¡°I like you.¡±


    The moonlight fell on her face, and she looked attractive and elegant.


    How could a man ever forget a girl like her?


    ¡°But I also like that you like her.¡± Mo Shanshan smiled and said, ¡°And I like the way you care about her.¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t say a word and just smiled at her.


    I like you too. He said so in his mind. And I like how you deal with the whole matter.


    He got up and walked out of the shadow of the tree. Then he walked to the other shore of theke, looking at the back of Sangsang and saying, ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    Sangsang stood up and looked at Ning Que, trying to say something. However, she said nothing in the end.


    They continued their journey.


    A girl in a white dress saw them off on thekeside.


    It was the deep winter of the first year of Zheng Shi in the Great Tang, the three thousand four hundred and fiftieth year of Da Zhi in West Hill Divine Kingdom and the fourteenth year of Chong Sheng in the Great River Kingdom.


    Two thousand cavalrymen from the Divine Hall of West Hill crossed the river and went all the way south.


    A young couple came to the Great River Kingdom.


    The monarch abdicated.


    The Great River Kingdom changed its reign title to Xi Huan.


    Xi meant sunbathing.


    Huan was the name of a stream in the Soutnd which had thousands of acacia trees on both sides.


    The new monarch was a woman. On the day of ascension, she still wore a white dress instead of the imperial robe.

 Chapter 915 - I Want to See the Sea

    <h4>Chapter 915: I Want to See the Sea</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The night wore on and only some clip-clop sounds could be heard. Ning Que and Sangsang walked down the mountain. Trees became lusher along their way. The moonlight scattered dimly on them.


    Sangsang said, ¡°I used to think that she was one of the most courageous human beings and would have kept you there. Surprisingly, she let you run away.¡±


    Ning Que found her words awkward and said, ¡°I know you wanted me to stay. Otherwise you wouldn¡¯t have told her those things earlier on.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I don¡¯t have a preference.¡±


    Ning Que stopped and threw the rein on the back of the big ck horse. He stared at her silently and continued after a long pause, ¡°I think you are a bit afraid of me now.¡±


    Sangsang squinted her arched bright eyes and replied, ¡°I think you are sick.¡±


    Ning Que wondered and asked, ¡°Are you bing afraid?¡±


    Sangsang replied emotionlessly, ¡°You menial human beings...¡±


    Ning Que waved to stop her and said, ¡°Even if you were to repeat that sentence thirty thousand times, it¡¯s not going to change the fact that you are bing afraid of me, of being kept in the human world because of me.¡±


    Sangsang thought for a while and said, ¡°I¡¯m upset.¡±


    Ning Que thought she was saying that his confidence upsetting her, and tried to exin, ¡°It doesn¡¯t mean that I¡¯m stronger than you. It just shows that you can now see that I care about you.¡±


    Sangsang stared at a spot his face and did not say a thing.


    Ning Que then understood what she meant and felt embarrassed. He thought, Why weren¡¯t you mad at me previously when you saw it? What¡¯s the point of being sarcastic now? Don¡¯t you know that it is annoying?


    Even though he had such aint, he did not dare to speak it aloud. Even if Sangsang could read his mind, it was after all different between thinking of stealing and acting on it.


    There was a limpid stream by the trail. He squatted by the stream and washed his face very carefully, especially the spot where Shanshan kissed until this face became irritated and red.


    Ning Que went back to her, pointed at his flushing face and said, ¡°Now are you satisfied?¡±


    Sangsang frowned and shook her head. Apparently she was still upset.


    Ning Que said helplessly, ¡°It would peel my skin off if I keep on washing it.¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s arched eyes brightened up at his words. It reminded her of a very good idea. Suddenly some chilling wind blew on the trail and swept by his cheek.


    Ning Que shouted out in pain. Covering his cheek, he was shocked and could not believe what just happened.


    No blood came out from between his fingers. Because Sangsang was so quick. The moment his cheek was swept by the wind, she had his wound healed immediately.


    Ning Que could not feel any wound or blood on his cheek, but he knew clearly what happened just now because of the pain and fear that remained.


    ¡°You crazy woman!¡± He could not stand any longer and shouted at her, ¡°You wicked woman! I am your man! Not some piece of meat for barbecue!¡±


    Sangsang did not have first hand experience of pain but only knew it from data and analysis. She thought Ning Que would have been used to it after rounds of slow slicing in the Divine Hall of Light and the Secluded Pavilion. It was surprising for her to see him reacting so dramatically.


    She would never know how humiliating that could be for a man. Moreover, it reminded Ning Que of the most humiliating cut that was still unhealed. Most importantly, previously in the Divine Halls of West-Hill they were fatal enemies. But now their rtionship was slightly changing.


    That was why Ning Que was so angry.


    Sangsang could not understand why but she knew that Ning Que was seriously angry. After a short pause she said, ¡°Next time I will give you a heads-up.¡±


    To inform him before cutting his flesh, it would have sounded absurd for others. They would have thought that Sangsang was just making fun of Ning Que.


    However, Ning Que knew that it was not a joke. For Haotian, it was exceptionally merciful if she would inform you before doing something. It could even mean that she was sorry.


    Haotian would never apologize to human beings. Even if she were to feel that it was inappropriate, she would not admit it. Ning Que found somefort in such reasoning then despised himself for being so degraded.


    ¡°There better not be a next time,¡± he said.


    Sangsang did not reply and kept walking down, still holding her hands behind her back.


    The big ck horse nced at Ning Que with contempt and followed Sangsang, trucklingly down.


    Ning Que felt embarrassed. He paced up to her and said earnestly, ¡°There¡¯s no point in wasting your Divine Power on such things like cutting my flesh and having it grow back.¡±


    Sangsang replied, ¡°I found it interesting.¡±


    Ning Que rebuked, ¡°Yours is mine. Your Divine Power is my Divine Power. Who knows where we would need it in the future? How could youvish like this? You covetous woman!¡±


    Sangsang stopped and turned to him. ¡°You want to try that again?¡±


    Upon these words. Ning Que found her to be like the arbitrary fellows in Chang¡¯an who would go into a fight because of nonsense. Therefore he said again with sincerity, ¡°I said, as you wish.¡±


    When they arrived at the outskirt of Jingdu, the darkness retreated and dawn arose. The houses with ck eaves inside the city looked charming in dim lights, but the numerous torches had added quite some tension to it.


    The emperor was forced to give up his throne and two thousand cavalrymen from the Divine Halls of West Hill were crossing the river anding toward the Great River Kingdom. Some unprecedented storm was about to take ce. No one could have had a good sleep tonight.


    Before they left Mogan Mountain, Ning Que had talked this through with Mo Shanshan. He knew that the storm and chaos would be over tomorrow, but he still had a question.


    ¡°You must have known that Shanshan would be the next governor. However, I don¡¯t understand why you insisted on me taking over the throne as a transition. What was the point?¡±


    ¡°There¡¯s no point, but it¡¯s interesting.¡±


    Mystifyingly Sangsang had been very fond of the ideas of being significant and being interestingtely. It seemed she was trying to scorn on the Academy¡¯s philosophy of life.


    ¡°Such as?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Our neighbor Old Wu and his wife used to say such things.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head, ¡°They quarreled everyday. How could I remember what they¡¯ve said?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°That woman said Old Wu could never take a concubine unless he became an emperor.¡±


    Ning Que recalled that but found it ridiculous. ¡°Just for that reason you wanted me to be an emperor, even just for one night?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°An overnight emperor is still an emperor.¡±


    Ning Que found himself almost speechless. ¡°You are indeed a nosy Haotian.¡±


    Sangsang ignored his mockery and continued, ¡°You said I owed to a lot of people so that I could not cut my bond with the human world. This couple is one of those you mentioned.¡±


    Ning Que wondered. ¡°So you were trying to pay them back?¡±


    Sangsang concurred. ¡°Correct. Now I have paid back Old Wu.¡±


    Ning Que questioned, ¡°In that case, don¡¯t you owe Aunt Wu even more?¡±


    Sangsang thought for a while and found that reasonable, and said, ¡°I will find a way to pay her backter.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°How? To grant her immortality? Be careful not to scare her to death! Immortality... I do wonder what you are thinking about.¡±


    Sangsang did not get mad and said, ¡°You menial human beings would never know what I am thinking about.¡±


    Ning Que was annoyed and said, ¡°You see, every time you don¡¯t know how to answer my question you throw that word at me. Can¡¯t you think of anything different?¡±


    Sangsang replied calmly, ¡°You hangdog.¡±


    Ning Que could not argue with her and continued walking to the east depressedly.


    Sangsang followed him and asked, ¡°Why are you upset?¡±


    Ning Que replied without turning back to her, ¡°You forced the former emperor to give up his throne just to let Old Wu get a concubine. You owe me a lot too. How about you think of a way to let me take a concubine as well?¡±


    Sangsang replied, ¡°Because I don¡¯t want to. Then don¡¯t you dare even think about it.¡±


    He kept chatting with Sangsang and walked further away from Jingdu. Time passed by and rays of dawn became brighter. Eventually the morning sun med above the horizon.


    There was a breakfast stall by the trail. The stall keeper had no idea of what had happened inside Jingdu. Despite the anxious preparations for war in the Great River Kingdom, he continued to boil water and prepare the noodle as he always did.


    Sangsang stopped by his stall and ordered, ¡°One bowl of noodle please.¡±


    Ning Que joined her and said, ¡°Two please.¡± He looked at the rising sun in the east and said, ¡°Doesn¡¯t it look like a salted egg yolk?¡±


    The stall keeper had some sense of humor and relied, ¡°We don¡¯t have salted egg yolks, but we do have fried eggs.¡±


    Ning Que was lost in his thoughts for a second upon hearing about the fried egg.


    Sangsang said, ¡°We¡¯d like one on each bowl.¡±


    In the rosy glory of the morning sun, the two of them squatted by a willow next to the trail and started eating their fried egg noodle soup. Ning Que had been hungry for a while so he ate aloud with no manners at all.


    Sangsang ate silently but no slower than Ning Que.


    She was still expressionless, but Ning Que knew that she was happy. Ever since they had left the Divine Halls, Sangsangughed asionally but kept expressionless most of the time. Yet he had learned how to notice her emotions by other indicators, such as how fast she ate or drank, or how she looked at the marshmallows.


    Ning Que finished his noodle soup and left the fried egg in the bowl.


    Ever since he was a child, he would finish his noodle soup before the egg. That was because they had went through many years of poverty.


    He picked up the fried egg. Instead of cing it into his own mouth, he put it into Sangsang¡¯s bowl.


    Sangsang nced at him and ate it without saying anything.


    Ever since she was a child, he would save the best foods for her. She was used to it.


    The big ck horse stood beside them and chewed on the flowers in the morning glory. He sucked out the juice and spat out the dregs. He seemed clear and bright, even a bit transcendent.


    In actuality, he was feeling really low because it had been days since he had noodle soup or his favourite yellow fruits. What most annoying to him was that it seemed Ning Que and Sangsang hadpletely forgotten him.


    He resented and thought, Keep showing off, you love birds. Your trouble wille soon!


    The big ck horse did not know that he was a prophet regarding this.


    Leaving Jingdu, they walked along the road for more than half a day. Suddenly, roaring dust were kicked up from afar and the earth started quaking. Numerous cavalrymen in ck armor spurted out of the dust overwhelmingly.


    Two thousand cavalrymen from the Divine Halls had crossed the river, broke through the North Prefecture and finally arrived.


    Ning Que frowned and felt slightly annoyed by these travel-stained cavalrymen of the Divine Halls.


    Since he and Sangsang jumped into the abyss and left Peach Mountain, the Divine Halls had been keeping the secret from the world. Even the Sage of Calligraphy had no idea of this previously.


    If the world knew that Haotian had left West Hill, how could Taoism maintain their fame?


    In the meantime, West Hill had been constantly tracking Sangsang and trying to escort her back to the Divine Halls.


    Ning Que and Sangsang did not disguise themselves along the way. Therefore it was not difficult for West Hill to locate them.


    In order to keep the secret as well as to respect Haotian¡¯s n, West Hill only sent out two thousands of cavalrymen to follow them from a distance. After Ning Que and Sangsang had visited the imperial pce of the Great River Kingdom and unveiled Haotian¡¯s Divine Manifestation, it was no longer necessary for them to keep the secret. The Divine Halls had to take actions.


    Two thousand cavalrymen traveled day and night, crossed the river and finally came to Ning Que and Sangsang.


    The dust fell down. The cavalrymen had stopped a few miles away and did not dare toe closer.


    Someone rode in from the dust in the dusk. Perhaps he wanted to greet Haotian but they could not figure out who that was.


    Ning Que nced at Sangsang and was worried.


    He worried that she would choose to go back to West Hill with the cavalrymen.


    It was just like how she was worried that he would stay at the Ink Fountain.


    Sangsang looked at those pious human beings and talked to him after a while. ¡°Is there any other ce you want to go?¡±


    Ning Que thought for a while and asked, ¡°Where do you want to go?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I want to see the sea.¡±


    They turned south because the sea was in the south.


    There was an uproar among the cavalrymen. The person who was slowly riding had stopped. It appeared that the person was dressed in red.


    After a short while, the cavalrymen also proceeded south.


    Among the fields of the Great River Kingdom, thick dust were kicked up and clip-clop sounds resounded endlessly.


    The cavalrymen seemed quiet but firm. They did not care about whether or not the Great River Kingdom would send some troops to intercept or attack.


    They seemed quiet yet humble. They followed the group of two and a horse from a distance of several miles. They did not dare toe closer or go away.


    This scene in the fields of the Great River Kingdom was awe-inspiring as well as peculiar. Roaring dust followed the lofty figure under the setting sun. Where were they going?


    Ning Que and Sangsang went to the sea.


    The sea in the south was different from the fierce sea in the Song Kingdom. It was tranquil.


    Tender breeze blew above the sea. Up in the sky, clouds of various shapes and slight waves reflected various levels of blue on the sea.


    The big ck horse rushed into the deep blue sea and neighed with joy.


    Ning Que and Sangsang walked to the beach and watched the tranquil sea.


    A storm wasing from the sea.


    ...

 Chapter 916 - I Think I Am the Sea

    <h4>Chapter 916: I Think I Am the Sea</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The wind was whirling and the storm was roaring from the center of the South Sea. The rain poured down and turned the beach to slush. The deep blue sea became restless and darker.


    The big ck horse came back ashore and wanted to seek shelter under the trees by the beach. However, he found Ning Que and Sangsang standing still by the sea. He hesitated for a while and came back to join them. He stood behind them and looked wretched with rain water dripping down his hair.


    Sangsang watched the scene quietly. Neither the sea storm nor the wind from above left any trace in her eyes. Nature seemed ruthless and ruleless, but rules applied everywhere in the sea and in the wind. She stood between the sea and the sky, but she was also everywhere.


    She did not know the destination of their journey. Ning Que took her to the human world to experience and tighten her bond with this world. She chose to leave Peach Mountain with him because she wanted to prove that Heaven¡¯s Rules were never to be vited and also to seek for a way out.


    She wanted to visit the Great River because she was hoping to experience love, the sentiment that formed her most profound bond with the human world. However, it appeared that it was not enough. It was still not enough for Ning Que to keep her here, no for her to find a way out.


    She felt restless. Hence, this storm formed. She unintentionally exposed her Heaven¡¯s Rules to Ning Que, but Ning Que chose not to see it.


    The sandy beach was washed by the storm, formed numerous tiny mud slides and unveiled relics of marine lives and ss beads buried by some naughty kids.


    Ning Que squatted and picked up a pretty shell.


    Then the storm stopped.


    ¡°I think I am the sea.¡±


    She wanted to see the sea and there she was. Then she said, ¡°The sea is shapeless. The waves could only follow the winds.¡±


    This was the first time she talked to Ning Que about herself, the self as Haotian.


    Ning Que understood her and feltplicated.


    For the followers of Taoism, Haotian was the indescribable and unexinable sole dominator of this world and the only true god. However, he knew that was wrong.


    When they were in the restaurant in the Song Kingdom, the Headmaster once pointed to the sky using his chopsticks and said that Haotian was thebination of objective rules. Her life was the inertia of the continuation of those rules.


    Since when did the objective rules of this world be alive?


    In other words, if Haotian was an objective will, then who had awaken this will from the very beginning?


    This was no doubt the most difficult question in the world. Even the most learned mentors from the Divine Hall would not be able to provide an answer.


    The Academy did try to find an answer, but there was no conclusion. Ning Que would never be able to solve the puzzle with his current stage of cultivation. However, she was his natal item therefore he could understand her.


    The awakening of the objective will was caused by humans¡¯ belief.


    Long long ago in their cyclic existence, human beings started to seek for enlightenment and exploration to the unknown world. They discovered and mastered many rules of this world. Some of them gradually became fearless while the others became reverent.


    Taoism chose to be reverent on behalf of human beings and selected her as the guardian of this world. Then the belief was created. People¡¯s collective consciousness grew so strong that it eventually awoke her.


    She was awoken and possessed her own life. As they prayed, she became a tranquil sea and guarded the world silently.


    ¡°Human beings were afraid of the world below and beyond the sea. Therefore they had chosen you to protect them.¡± Ning Que threw the shell back into the sea. He looked deep down to the sea and said, ¡°Later on, people¡¯s curiosity or their desire for freedom outgrew their fear. They tried to build ships to cross you, the sea. They even tried swimming in the sea to explore the world under and beyond.¡±


    Sangsang kept quiet.


    Her existence was not a result of her own choice, but the choice of humans. If they were to try to change the world and break the rules, then what would happen to her?


    Ning Que turned around, looked at her for a while and held her in his arms.


    Sangsang stayed in his arms expressionlessly.


    Ning Que suggested, ¡°Now I want to take you to another ce.¡±


    She asked, ¡°Where?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You¡¯ve been there. We¡¯ve seen the sea. Now we should visit a mountain, the Wa Mountain.¡±


    The group of two and the horse left the sea and walked along the coastal line toward the east.


    The travel-stained cavalrymen from the Divine Hall were staying in the field several miles away. They waited for a while, then followed them toward the east slowly.


    The Wa Mountain was not far from the South Sea. Spring came very early here.


    Ning Que and Sangsang came to the small town in front of the Wa Mountain. New leaves grew on the branches of the trees by the road. Although it could not be blossomy all year round like the Great River Kingdom by the South Sea, the new green was also very cheering.


    The Lanke Temple was half-ruined many years ago. Although people had been constantly restoring it, the project was too huge to be finished within a few years. It would take a while for the Buddha statue to be restored. The Ghost Festival Ceremony was no longer held here. The small town once crowded by tourists was not very quiet.


    It was not quiet because of the beating sounds pounding throughout the town. Everyone from kids to adults were knocking on rocks. They gave the rocks to the sculptors to produce Buddha statues.


    ¡°Our Eldest Brother and Monk Guanhai told me that people now make their living by producing Buddha statues here. When the Buddha statue on top of the mountain copsed years ago, rocks fell all over the valley. They will never run out of rocks now.¡± Ning Que exined to Sangsang while leading the big ck horse to the front yard of Lanke Temple.


    The front yard of this temple had witnessed numerous stories previously, but now it seemed exceptionally quiet. Upon knowing who they were, the wee monk was shocked and immediately rang the wee bell.


    When they entered Lanke Temple, rain fell again.


    Rainfalls in early spring were usually called the blessing rain. Ning Que was not fond of such chilling showers, but he could not refrain fromughing whenever he saw the rain dripping on Monk Guanhai¡¯s bare head.


    Monk Guanhai put his palms together and greeted him, ¡°Even though you just survived a huge disaster, you could still be so naughty.¡±


    Previously in the Rite to Light, he saw Ning Que frightening whoever was present, spurted into the Divine Hall of Light and never came out again. Therefore he was certain that Ning Que must have escaped from Peach Mountain.


    Ning Queughed and replied, ¡°Being able to survive a disaster is definitely something cheerful.¡±


    Monk Guanhai smiled and shook his head. Then he noticed there was a lofty woman standing beside Ning Que.


    She was right there in the chilling spring rain yet he did not see her until now.


    Mong Guanhai was held in a trance and wondered who she was.


    ¡°This is Sangsang.¡± Ning Que introduced, ¡°You¡¯ve met her, my wife.¡±


    Mong Guanhai turned extremely pale.


    He have met the previous Sangsang, but not the current one.


    The Divine Hall had kept it secret so he did not know that Sangsang had left Peach Mountain with Ning Que, but he did know that Sangsang was Haotian. Does this mean I have met Haotian in person?


    Ning Que jokingly said, ¡°Stand still. I don¡¯t want you to be scared to death.¡±


    It took Monk Guanhai a long while to recover from the shock.


    If he were not an eminent monk but a follower of Haotian, he indeed could have been scared to death.


    Sangsang was pondering over the old temple in the rain and only heard their conversation now.


    She looked at Ning Que and asked, ¡°What did you say I am to you just now?¡±


    Ning Que opened the big ck umbre for her and replied, ¡°I don¡¯t want to scare you to death. So I will not say it again.¡±


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 917 - I Am Not Among All Living Creatures

    <h4>Chapter 917: I Am Not Among All Living Creatures</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Due to the spring rain, pure and fresh air enveloped the ancient temple. The huge stones that fell from the cliff and crushed the back temple into ruins gave an impression of dpidation, even desting the drizzle.


    Monk Guan Hai dared not let other monks of the temple apany Ning Que and Sangsang due to Sangsang¡¯s identity. While he strolled in the rain with the young couple and approached the Sounds of Heaven Pce, a monk rushed to them and cried out.


    ¡°The cavalrymen of the Divine Hall have reached the town by the bottom of the hill.¡±


    The monk was a little pale, for he didn¡¯t even know what had happened. Why did the cavalrymen of the Divine Halle to the Lanke Temple? What does Taoism want?


    Monk Guan Hai guessed that the cavalrymen were rted to Ning Que and Sangsang, but he guessed their intention wrong, so he was a little solemn and nervous.


    Ning Que said, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. They won¡¯te in here.¡±


    Despite hearing this, Monk Guan Hai was still worried. Surrounding the Lanke Temple like this, they must want me to hand over Ning Que. It¡¯s definitely not a good sign for the temple and monks.


    ¡°They are not here to arrest me.¡± Ning Que felt a little embarrassed and exined, ¡°Just think these cavalrymen as her bodyguards.¡±


    It dawned on Monk Guan Hai suddenly that the cavalrymen came here to apany Sangsang.


    Ning Que sensed that Monk Guan Hai was still unsettled, so he asked the monk to go and handle affairs of the temple.


    Monk Guan Hai refused. ¡°As the abbot, it¡¯s my obligation to apany the distinguished guestsing from afar.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°My wife and I take delight in strolling in the rain, and we don¡¯t need a monk following us around.¡±


    Monk Guan Hai insisted. ¡°The path on the back temple is difficult to walk.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You are telling jokes now.¡±


    Monk Guan Haiughed. What I just said was indeed unreasonable. There are no difficulties and obstacles in the world that can stop Ning Que, not to mention that Haotian is by his side.


    The big ck umbre bloomed in the drizzle, like a ck lotus flower.


    The big ck horse was very sulky because he was getting wet from the rain.


    However, Ning Que didn¡¯t care about the horse¡¯s feeling. He just held the umbre and walked in the temple freely with Sangsang.


    They had lived here for one autumn before, so they were very familiar with the ancient temple. Although the misty rain blocked their sight, they didn¡¯t walk in the wrong direction.


    Ning Que went to the Forest of Pagoda first. He stood in front of the grave covered by moss and greeted the dancer buried in the tomb whopletely changed the whole cultivation world.


    Then he walked through the rain shelter and went to the room where he once lived. Next, he went to the wing hall and pondered for a while towards the stone statues. Finally he walked to the dpidated halls of the back temple.


    The halls of the back temple werepletely copsed and the stones fell from the cliff were covered by moss. The broken Buddha statues were partly hidden and partly visible among the stones, which brought about a sense of vicissitudes.


    Standing before the damaged back temple, Ning Que looked at the huge stones in silence.


    After stepping into the Lanke Temple, Sangsang hadn¡¯t said a word.


    The Lanke Temple changed the fate of Yan Haoran and Lian Sheng, and also changed the fate of Ning Que and Sangsang.


    During the autumn a few years back, Ning Que took Sangsang here to cure her disease and to study Buddha Dharma. Also in the temple, Sangsang was discovered to be the daughter of Invariant Yama, who the whole world wanted to kill.


    They began their escape from here. Then they passed Buddha¡¯s Chessboard, fled to the Xuankong Temple, Yuelun Kingdom and then East Wilderness, met Headmaster of Academy and took a voyage at sea together. They came back to the Lanke Temple today.


    Too many things had happened over the past years. Looking at the dpidated halls, Ning Que recalled what he had done here and was hit with mixed feelings.


    They were on the run together for thousand miles and they swore to live and die together. However, it turned out to be a lie. It was just a scheme set by Haotian. The scheme fooled Ning Que, outwitted the Headmaster of Academy, turned the mortal world upside down and even deceived herself.


    Standing in front of the temple in the rain, Ning Que remembered the conversation with Master Qishan and looked down to Sangsang standing by his side subconsciously. The will of heaven is really difficult to predict.


    Walking along the gap between the huge stones, they left the back hall and walked to the Wa Mountain through the broken temple wall of the Lanke Temple. Then along the mountain road they once passed, Ning Que and Sangsang passed the chessboard under the tree, crossed the bridge above the stream, looked at the trees in the rain, and finally came to the small courtyard on the hillside.


    The small courtyard was decorated just as before, which was simple and clean. The cotton bedding on the bed was as soft as the old days. There were fan-shaped stone windows on the garden wall, through which one could oversee the Wa Mountain in the rain.


    At that time, Sangsang was seriously ill and coughed a lot while lying in bed. When Sangsang said herst words to him back then, Ning Que stood in front of the stone window silently for a long time.


    He stood in front of the stone window again, as if it was yesterday once more.


    Sangsang walked up to him and coughed slightly.


    Ning Que turned to her and suggested, ¡°Do you want a feet bath?¡±


    Sangsang didn¡¯t respond to him.


    It was not because she was immersed in the sorrow of the past but because she was actually ill.


    The illness that she had was weakness.


    The moment Sangsang woke up between the broken peaks, she became weaker and weaker, her body became heavier and heavier, and her Divine Power was less and less powerful.


    Here was the human world full of mortals, not the objective and cold Divine Kingdom. The longer she stayed in the human world, the weaker she became.


    She was still very strong now, even stronger than all the cultivators in the worldbined together. However, she was much weaker at this pointpared to the time she was in Divine Kingdom. She became sentimental due to her weakness.


    Left the small courtyard, they came to the summit of the Wa Mountain.


    The stone statue of Buddha that once soared in the sky only had a small part of the mutted body left. The pattern of drifting clouds on Buddha¡¯s kasaya could still be seen faintly, but most of the status had been cut into pieces by Jun Mo¡¯s sword.


    Sangsang looked up at the sky quietly with her hands behind her back.


    There used to be thepassionate and calm face of Buddha, but now there was nothing but the rain.


    She still looked at it quietly as if she was looking at Buddha¡¯s face. No one knew what was on her mind.


    Ning Que was a little unsettled and asked, ¡°What are you looking at?¡±


    Sangsang stared at the face of Buddha that didn¡¯t exist and answered, ¡°I¡¯ve met him before.¡±


    Buddha was one of the most powerful people in innumerable samsara. As Haotian, you obviously would be impressed by him, just like you were when you met my teacher.


    Sangsang knew what he was thinking and argued, ¡°Not the way you thought. I mean I¡¯ve met him.¡±


    Ning Que was confused and said, ¡°When Buddha was still alive, of course you¡¯ve met him.¡±


    Sangsang exined, ¡°No. Buddha dared not see me when he was alive.¡±


    Ning Que frowned and asked, ¡°Then when did you meet him?


    Sangsang answered, ¡°Just a moment before.¡±


    Ning Que was silent for quite a while and asked, ¡°When you saw this ruined status?¡±


    Sangsang answered, ¡°I saw him just before I looked up at him.¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t understand, but deduced a shocking fact, ¡°You mean, Buddha hadn¡¯t reached Nirvana? Is he still alive?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°He was already dead, but still lives.¡±


    Ning Que felt that what she said was too abstruse.


    Sangsang turned to Ning Que and added, ¡°Or, he is alive and dead at the same time.¡±


    Ning Que looked toward the ruined stone statue, staring at the spot where had nothing but the rain.


    The big ck umbre leaned back due to his movements. The rain fell on his face, making him wet and cold. He seemed to see Buddha smiling in the rain with hispassionate face covered by tears.


    He said, ¡°I still don¡¯t understand.¡±


    Sangsang walked toward the back of the lotus throne and said, ¡°It¡¯s like the cat you told me about before.¡±


    Ning Que remembered that he told her a horrible story when they were at Min Mountain many years ago, for that night was too boring and she had trouble sleeping.


    The leading role of that story was the cat of Schrodinger.


    For him, a cat that may be simultaneously both alive and dead was only a little puzzling, but it was pretty confusing and frightening for a three-year-old girl.


    Looking at the something that didn¡¯t exist, Ning Que was suddenly frightened.


    ...


    ...


    The spring rain became unexpectedly heavier. With the umted water, the mountain road became so wet and slippery that it was difficult to walk. Ning Que took Sangsang to the cave in the back mountain to temporary rest.


    ¡°The rain is right on time.¡±


    Ning Que closed the big ck umbre and sat on the cattail hassock by the stone table. He looked at the sizzling vines that were hit by the rain above his head, ¡°I intend to take you here.¡±


    The cave was once the residence of Master Qishan who had yed the game of Go here with Sangsang. They used the chess board of Buddha during that time, which contained countless dooms.


    ¡°Why did you take me to the Lanke Temple?¡± Sangsang asked.


    Ning Que answered, ¡°I bring you here to visit the old temple and clear your mind.¡±


    Sangsang sat by the table, ¡°Go on.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°What you said by the South Sea made me very nervous. I can¡¯t imagine what would happen if you were to be disappointed and even angry with the whole human race.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°When you humans need me, you treat me like a god, but when you don¡¯t, you treat me like dirt. If you were me, what kind of emotional response would you have?¡±


    ¡°I have no idea, for I am not Haotian. After all, I¡¯m not the who who has enjoyed the incense burned by the human world for hundreds of millions of years, and naturally I can¡¯t understand the anger of being betrayed.¡±


    Ning Que continued, ¡°But I want you to know that human beings are not as indifferent as you think. You still have countless devout followers on earth.¡±


    Sangsang argued, ¡°That¡¯s because they can benefit from following me.¡±


    Ning Que exined, ¡°Not all human beings give their priorities for interests, and we can be influenced by many other things. We are not born evil. On the contrary, we always kindly treat the world we live in. I take you here to feel the kindness.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°What kindness?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Master Qishan. He represented the simplest and cleanest kindness of mankind.¡±


    Master Qishan was the most highly respected man of virtue in Buddhism. He sacrificed himself in exchange for the well-being of mankind. Besides, he took Lian Sheng in and tried to cure Sangsang.


    The master was impable in terms of virtue. He was a loving teacher to Ning Que and Sangsang regardless of Buddha Dharma or other aspects.


    Sang Sang acknowledged theck of views, but she disagreed with theck of ims.


    ¡°Qishan was good, but the starting point of his kindness was still the interests of mankind, which was exactly the reason why he took Lian Sheng in and helped the daughter of Invariant Yama escape using Buddha¡¯s Chessboard.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Doesn¡¯t it show his kindness?¡±


    Sangsang looked at the summit quietly and said, ¡°The Buddha wants to deliver all living creatures from torment and encourages all his disciples to do so by devoting to their cultivation. How could Buddha Dharma relieve my suffering if I¡¯m not among all living creatures?¡±


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 918 - God Gets Sick(Part â… )

    <h4>Chapter 918: God Gets Sick(Part ¢ñ)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    It was also raining in the capital of Qi Kingdom.


    The chilly rain dampened the ginkgo trees that lined the street and the clothes of the pedestrians. There were a few tourists in the city, for it was not yet the best time to view and admire the ginkgo trees. The street was quite empty, except for the coolies who were passing by asionally with their carts. With wrinkles on their faces, they seemed numb and resigned, showing no signs of positive spirits which could be seen from the Tang people.


    The Dragon and Tiger Mountain was empty after the murder case several years ago. The investigation was terminated with Prince Long Qing¡¯s return to Taoism. The status of the Divine Hall of West Hill in the Qi Kingdom became more and more esteemed, and the Taoist temples were worshipped everywhere. People¡¯s faith in Haotian was more and more devout, but life was clearly bing increasingly difficult for them.


    The Taoist Halls of the Divine Hall were all located in the north of the capital, which were extremely luxurious and solemn. The surfaces were covered with white powder and decorated with countless precious gemstones and their eaves and drainage ditches were coated with gold powder. The heavy spring rain dazzled the gemstones but dimmed the Taoist Halls.


    The deacons of the Taoist Halls were reluctant to be on guard outside the hall in the rain. They had already hidden behind the gate and indulged themselves in the fine wine and food since they couldn¡¯t be seen by the followers.


    At this point, clear hoofbeats came from the rain. A deacon opened the spy hole on the door and looked out, seeing a gant ck horse running through the rain with an ordinary carriage behind.


    The carriage stopped outside the hall.


    Inside the carriage, Ning Que looked at Sangsang and worried. ¡°It¡¯s easy to catch a cold when it¡¯s raining. Let¡¯s take a break here. We left some medicine herest time, but I wonder if it would work.¡±


    How could cold weather ever bother Haotian? What he said seemed a bit ridiculous, but Sansang was indeed pale and tired.


    Sangsang caught the cold after strolling in the rain.


    This was difficult to understand. Ning Que could sense that nothing went wrong with her body and her Divine Power remained the same, but she caught the cold anyway.


    Only human beings would catch a chill and die of illness or old age.


    Sangsang didn¡¯t feel particrly ufortable. Unlike the disease she had many years ago, she didn¡¯t cough blood, but rather felt a little drowsy and lost her interest in doing anything.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t take it seriously at first, but he got nervous after finding out that her interest in fine food had lowered.


    He approached Monk Guan Hai for help.


    Monk Guan Hai was also very nervous. He immediately informed the two eminent monks of the previous generation with whom Ning Que had met in the Third Bureau of Wa Mountain. The whole temple was focused on curing Sangsang.


    Master Qishan was famous for his medical skills, and the Lanke Temple inherited his means, which was naturally many times better than the quacks in the outside world. It was undoubtedly the greatest glory of the Lanke Temple to treat Haotian.


    The Lanke Temple was very nervous about this matter, mobilized all medical knowledge and abilities, and looked through the medical books kept in the temple. However, all of the monks in the temple was not able to make an effective prescription in the end.


    They couldn¡¯t find out what disease Sangsang had.


    Ning Que was a little irritated. He grabbed Monk Guan Hai¡¯s robe and expressed that he just wanted to know what went wrong with Sangsang and wouldn¡¯t cause him any trouble even if Sangsang was diagnosed with an incurable disease.


    Monk Guan Hai was very helpless. Being forced by Ning Que too hard, he had to diagnose that Sangsang caught a cold because she got wet in the rain based on how Sangsang felt.


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t believe that Haotian had a cold, which was just too incredible. However, he had no choice but to boil the medicinal herbs that were prepared by the monks and hope that Sangsang would be cured overnight.


    After leaving Lanke Temple, Sangsang didn¡¯t get any better and still feltnguid. She nodded off all day long in the carriage that Ning Que bought.


    In fact, in addition to her low spirits, Sangsang didn¡¯t have many other symptoms or any pain. It even seemed that she experienced a vernal fatigue.


    However, Ning Que was extremely nervous, for he knew that she would never get vernal fatigue or catch a cold. The way she behavedtely looked a lot like the situation when he took her to Lanke Temple for treatment in the autumn of that year, which disturbed him badly.


    Passing through the capital city of Qi Kingdom, Sangsang became more and more exhausted. He remembered that he had left some rare and valuable medicinal herbs in the Taoist Hall here, so he decided to rest here for a night. He nned to relive the past and visit old acquaintances with Sangsang, in hopes of convincing her to care more about the human world.


    The Taoist Hall in the rain was closed, and some followers who came to seek medical help were kneeling on the stone steps in front of the hall and bowed devoutly. They were all wet and looked very miserable.


    Looking at the scene, Ning Que didn¡¯t feel well.


    He did not sympathize with the followers, but was somewhat unhappy with the people inside the Taoist Hall.


    Normally, the decay and absurd of Taoism had nothing to do with him.


    Interestingly enough, he felt that since Haotian was his wife, then he was supposed to be concerned with Taoism. How could he allow those guys to undermine it?


    Walking to the front of the hall, he knocked on the door. His knuckles were slightly pale. He counted silently in his mind. If no one answers the door after the count of three, I will kick it open.


    The door was slowly creaking open. A bent middle-aged man came out and did not even look up, ¡°What¡¯s your business here?¡±


    Looking at this middle-aged man, Ning Que felt a little strange. This man clearly wore a divine priest¡¯s robe which represented his distinguished status, but he gave an impression of being an inconspicuous handyman.


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Why did no one answer these followers who came here to seek medical help?¡±


    The middle-aged divine priest sighed and was about to say something. Suddenly, there came several extremely arrogant voices behind him, along with strong aromas of wine and meat.


    ¡°You dead cripple! I told you to ignore the door! Are you deaf?¡±


    ¡°Shut the door!¡±


    ¡°You think it¡¯s still like before? Chen Cun is already dead! Who will protect you now?¡±


    Ning Que looked down and found that there was something wrong with the middle-aged divine priest¡¯s legs.


    He knew who Chen Cun was.


    Chen Cun was a very senior red-robed divine priest of the Divine Hall of Light. He was squeezed out of Peach Mountain and then went to manage the Taoist Hall in Qi Kingdom. In the autumn of the year they went to Lanke Temple for medical help, Ning Que and Sangsang had met him in this hall.


    The next autumn, Ning Que and Sangsang were trapped in Yuelun Kingdom¡¯s Chaoyang City and hunted by the whole world. Three red-robed divine priests helped them escape by using the Divine Skill of Light to explode themselves.


    At that time, a burning carriage appeared on the wilderness outside Chaoyang City, which was the scene of thest red-robed divine priest who used the Divine Skill of Light to explode himself. That divine priest was Chen Cun.


    Ning Que also remembered who this middle-aged divine priest was.


    He ordered, ¡°Look up.¡±


    The middle-aged divine priest looked up and looked at Ning Que. He was puzzled at first, but soon his eyes were brimmed with bright, for he recognized Ning Que.


    He bursted into tears.


    ...

 Chapter 919 - God Gets Sick(Part â…¡)

    <h4>Chapter 919: God Gets Sick(Part ¢ò)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Two years ago, Chen Cun and the other two red-robed divine priests helped Ning Que and Sangsang escape in Chaoyang City. In their subsequent journey of escaping, the divine priests of the Divine Hall of Light had also helped them a lot secretly. What they had done for Ning Que and Sangsang back then was difficult to understand in the eyes of the world, for Sangsang was the daughter of Invariant Yama. What¡¯s worse, it was an unbearable betrayal that the Taoism couldn¡¯t ept.


    The Divine Hall was furious about this, especially the Hierarch. Thus, a bloody purge and punishment swept through Taoism quietly. In just a few months, many Taoists died without the outside world knowing.


    After Chen Cun¡¯s death, the Taoist Hall in the Qi Kingdom fell prey to a red-robed divine priest trusted by the Hierarch, and the subordinates who were loyal to Chen Cun were severely tortured. As a trusted follower of Chen Cun, the middle-aged divine priest was not spared either. Although he survived and kept his title of divine priest by handing all the properties he had umted over the past decades to the new red-robed divine priest, he no longer held his old position. He served as a handyman in the Taoist Hall. Any ordinary deacon, even a guard, would berate him.


    The middle-aged divine priest had expected that he would live like this until hisst day, but he would rather endure endless humiliation than leave, for he wanted to keep eyes on the hall for Chen Cun and wait for the revival of the Divine Hall of Light. Most importantly, he was still waiting for the young couple who came to seek medicine herbs that year.


    The beginning of the West Hill literary canonid out that one would be rewarded for believing in Haotian. The middle-aged divine priest finally got his reward and saw Ning Que again.


    The spring rain was chilly, and the ground in front of the main entrance of the Taoist Hall was wet. Ning Que listened quietly to the middle-aged divine priest¡¯s remarks about the past two years, and then asked, ¡°Where is everyone else?¡±


    Through what the middle-aged divine priest had said, Ning Que knew that the Divine Hall of Light that had already been weakened for over a decade and was almost swamped in the bloody purge. The divine priests who were sent by the Divine Hall of Light to the countries were nearly all gone, which made it impossible to continue the heritage.


    The middle-aged divine priest cried while talking.


    Ning Que was silent.


    At this moment, the indifference voice of Sangsang came out of the carriage behind him, ¡°Go inside.¡±


    The Divine Hall of Light had changedst spring, and many Taoist followers figured out what happened vaguely, and so did the middle-aged divine priest, for he belonged to the faction of Divine Hall of Light. He struggled for years in the despotic power of the new red-robed divine priest and the ridicule of those deacons. It was because he had faith.


    He knew Ning Que¡¯s rtionship with Haotian. Hearing the voice from the carriage, he suddenly turned very pale and trembled fiercely, as if he would faint in the next moment.


    How could he possibly faint at such a crucial moment? The middle-aged divine priest bit his tongue, forced himself to wake up with pain, and then desperately pushed the main entrance of the hall wide open.


    The main entrance of the Taoist Hall was very thick and heavy. It seemed that he used all of his strength because his teeth and joints were squeaking. The expression on his face looked like a mixture of crying andughing at the same time, which seemed like he had gone mad.


    It was the red-robed divine priest ,favored by the Hierarch, who was in charge of all the Taoist affairs in the Qi Kingdom now. The deacons and guards responsible for the safety of the main entrance were all loyal to the new red-robed divine priest, and the deacons indulged themselves in wine and food behind the door at this moment.


    They were annoyed when the middle-aged divine priest opened the door just a crack. Seeing what he had done, they were extremely furious.


    With the door wide open, the wind blew the rain outside into the hall, which made the ash under the bronze furnace float around and the broth in the copper pot blended with rain. How could they not be angry?


    ¡°Are you fucking out of your mind? Didn¡¯t you see that we are eating?¡±


    ¡°Shut the door now, or I will beat you!¡±


    Shouts and scoldings rose one after another.


    Normally, the middle-aged divine priest would have already apologized and tried to remedy if he were scolded like this. However, he did no such things today.


    He drew the reins and led the carriage to the hall. He looked humble, but didn¡¯ty eyes on the deacons and guards.


    Seeing this, the deacons and guards felt surprised, and some evenughed in extreme anger. One deacon knocked the edge of the pot with his chopsticks and cursed loudly.


    Looking at these deacons and guards, Ning Que thought of the followers who kneeled down and asked for medicine help in the rain outside the hall. Ning Que shook his head indignantly.


    The deacon knocked the edge of the pot even louder and shouted out some worse swear words.


    Ning Que put his hand on the hilt which was cold due to the rain.


    He did not make a move because this was the Taoist Hall.


    All of a sudden, the deacon who cursed noticed that something fell into the copper pot in front of him, giving off an intense smell of boiled meat.


    The deacon was surprised. He swayed his chopsticks in the soup and found a pork tongue.


    ¡°The pork tongue is too big. Why didn¡¯t you chop it before putting into the pot?¡±


    He med and scolded as he usually did, but only found that he couldn¡¯t make a sound and hispanions who were sitting by the table looked at him in a shocked and weird way.


    It was as if he was a ghost.


    The deacon was stunned, and then found that the front part of his robe was full of blood. Shouting in panic, he still couldn¡¯t make a sound but rather spit a lot of blood!


    Only until then did he notice that his tongue was gone!


    His tongue was rolling in the boiling soup!


    He turned pale and looked muddled. He subconsciously held the chopsticks with trembling hand and reached into the soup, trying to get his half-boiled tongue out.


    At this moment, a straight blood line appeared on his wrist.


    His right hand which held the chopsticks was cut off from the wrist, then fell into the boiling soup with a ssh.


    The boiling hot soup fell on him, but he had no reaction at all because he had already gone mad.


    The deacons at the table were burned by the spilled soup. Their streaming onlysted for a short time, for they also lost their tongues in the next moment.


    All of a sudden, silence hung in the main entrance of the Taoist Hall.


    In such a weird and terrifying atmosphere, these deacons and guards turned pale and covered their mouths desperately. The next moment, they finally woke up and rushed into the hall like crazy.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t try to stop them.


    Sangsang stayed in the carriage quietly.


    The middle-aged divine priest drew the reins and looked at the backs of these people indifferently like they were already dead. His eyes sparkled with the me of revenge.


    The rms ran through the Taoist Hall, and the sounds of armors and weapons colliding together were heard everywhere.


    The carriage slowly stopped inside the Taoist Hall. Hundreds of divine priests, deacons and fully armed cavalrymen came from all directions of the hall and circled Ning Que, the middle-aged divine priest, and the carriage.


    An imperious red-robed divine priest stepped out from the crowd.


    Looking at the middle-aged divine priest, Ning Que and the ordinary carriage, he raised his arm apathetically with his palm facing the gray sky.


    ¡°I don¡¯t care who you are, but you are now at the Divine Hall of Haotian! In the name of Haotian, I shall send you all to the deepest part of theher world with the most holy divine me!¡±


    Instantly, a divine me slowly appeared in the palm of the red-robed divine priest.


    Ning Que found that this Haotian¡¯s divine me was very pure, which surprised him. Xiong Chumo indeed chose capable people to take over the Divine Hall of Light.


    Seeing the holy divine me, hundreds of divine priests, deacons and cavalrymen in the hall all showed awe. Tven the men with their mouths covered in blood began to get excited. They could never imagine what would happen next.


    The Haotian¡¯s divine me fell directly to the red-robed divine priest himself!


    They were all shocked and didn¡¯t know what was going on, and some foolish ones even thought that it was a Divine Skill that the divine priest newly mastered until they saw that their superior looked very painful in the mes!


    The red-robed divine priest struggled desperately in the mes, trying to escape and even lying down on the ground to extinguish the fire. However, he could not do anything other than struggling uselessly.


    The holy mes burned brightly and fiercely on his body, turning his robe to ash in an instant and revealing bloody flesh, which looked exceptionally miserable!


    The power of Haotian¡¯s divine me was extremely terrifying. It took only an instant to burn copper and iron into liquid, let alone the human body. However, the red-robed divine priest somehow did not die right away...


    This was even more horrible, for he had to bear the pain ceaselessly caused by the burn!


    The curtain was picked up slightly, and Sangsang looked at the red-robed divine priest with no expression.


    The Haotian¡¯s divine me surrounding the red-robed divine priest suddenly became fiercer but burned more slowly. It was fiercely burning not only his body but his Taoist Heart!


    Even the most devout followers of Haotian wouldn¡¯t be able to bear the extreme physical and spiritual pain, let alone the red-robed divine priest who had indulged in earthly pleasures.


    Suddenly, an miserable scream suddenly came out of the raging me!


    The miserable sound directly broke through the spring rain falling over the Taoist Hall and the rain cloud hung over the sky of the capital city of Qi Kingdom, then fell onto the streets and houses of the capital city.


    Hundreds of thousands of people in the capital city of Qi Kingdom heard a shrill cry in the spring rain!


    The cry was full of infinite pain and regret, which was so clear and profound that even people who had heard it felt guilty and went down on their knees.


    Hundreds of divine priests, deacons and cavalrymen in the hall were no exception.


    They had already kneeled down in the rain.


    Sangsang looked tired and ignored these people and walked straight to the hall.


    Looking at her back, the people who kneeled down in the rain were terrified and intended to attack her. However, they found that their bodies were shaking as if they were going to fall apart, and they could not even stand straight.


    The sound of hoofbeats suddenly came through the rain outside the hall, which sounded like thunder.


    A cavalryman of the Divine Hall came to the hall and was wet from head to toe.


    Seeing the armor this man wore, the people kneeling down in the rain recognized his identity and hope was revived, for they thought that the cavalryman must be chasing his enemy.


    No matter how strong the woman is, she is definitely not a match for the cavalryman of the Divine Hall. They all thought so but didn¡¯t realize that what happened today had been far beyond their imagination.


    The cavalryman fell on his knees, and the rain sttered. Facing the back of Sangsang, he touched the wet ground with his forehead and dared not look up.


    Ning Que looked at themander and ordered, ¡°Finish them, but don¡¯t make too much noise.¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± themander answered without any hesitation, stood up, and pulled out his sword from the sheath.


    Hundreds of cavalrymen of the Divine Hall who were standing in the rain rushed into the hall quietly.


    The people kneeling down in the rain finally sank into despair.


    ...

 Chapter 920 - God Gets Sick(Part â…¢)

    <h4>Chapter 920: God Gets Sick(Part ¢ó)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The Taoist Hall was very quiet. The only sounds were Ning Que¡¯s footsteps echoing down the corridor.


    Walking along the stonedder to the upstair, he looked to the stone window on the street side. Blowing from outside, the drizzle gently sprinkled on Sangsang¡¯s light cyan dress and expressionless face.


    Seeing this, Ning Que was hit by mixed feelings. She appeared to be a lot lighter and have much clearer breath, as if she will leave the world at any time.


    After seeing the dpidated Buddha stone statue in Lanke Temple, Sangsang got sick. She began to feel tired and asionally coughed like human beings, but she became less and less human at the same time.


    The problem Sangsang faced was to either remain in the mortal world or return to the Divine Kingdom, which was also the problem that the Academy wished to solve. Ning Que knew clearly that it was certainly a long and dangerous process full of ups and downs, just like the game of tug-of-war. He was a little nervous but didn¡¯t take it seriously.


    He went up to Sangsang and looked at the capital city of the Qi Kingdom in the rain through the stone window. They stood silently side by side, as if they wanted to engrave the street in the spring rain into their memory.


    The street was washed clean by the rain. However, the rain that was umted on the ground gradually became red due to the blood flowing from the hall.


    The Taoist Hall was still quiet. Themander and his subordinates executed the order perfectly, making no sounds during the ughter.


    After a short while, Ning Que heard the door open downstairs, and then saw several cavalrymen quickly rushing into the spring rain and then riding toward different directions.


    These cavalrymen were rushing back to Peach Mountain to report thetest situation to the Divine Hall, and they also had to inform the cavalrymen and the principal stationed outside the capital.


    Two thousand cavalrymen from the Divine Hall had followed them all the way, which made Ning Que less curious about their principal.


    All of a sudden, the cavalryman who was rushing toward the south of the capital raised the g he was holding and shouted loudly, as if he was admonishing the people on the street.


    Although the spring rain was not violent, the far distance muffled the voice of the cavalryman. However, Ning Que was able to capture the words clearly due to his sharp perception.


    ¡°One shall bear the wrath of heaven if one ever disrespects the Light!¡±


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que knew clearly that the wrath of heaven was just a saying. He had hung around Sangsang for twenty years, but never saw her personally criticize anyone, let alone going through the trouble to get a knife to stab someone.


    In the history of mankind, it was always the Divine Hall who had condemned and killed the enemies in the name of Haotian, even without Haotian knowing.


    Sangsang was a little tired and went to rest. Ning Que stood by the stone window and looked at the capital in the rain. He listened to the crying and shouting sounds from the rain, showing no expressions on his face.


    There were faint shouts rising out of the distance. Every once in a while, a cavalry squad of the Divine Hall rushed to the hall, untied the bag under their saddle, and poured the bag¡¯s contents on the stone steps in front of the hall.


    Those bags were filled with human heads.


    After a day and a night, the heads that piled up on the stone steps in front of the hall sent out the smell of blood which was so strong that the rain could not weaken the odor.


    There was a total of 180 people, which included the divine priests and deacons who had participated in the bloody cleansing previously as well as the ordinary Taoists around the capital city. They were all beheaded by the cavalrymen of the Divine Hall.


    The heads piled up like a mountain, some of which still had their eyes wide open unwillingly while some had the expression of regret and fear. Whether the owners of these heads were noble red-robed divine priests or just some unknown person who was forced into the torrent, their faces were now full of blood.


    Sangsang woke up and ate a bowl of rice porridge and two steamed buns stuffed with beef and carrot under Ning Que¡¯s service. Then she walked to the stone window and looked at the heads in front of the hall, looking rather pleased.


    The morning light was so fresh, but the scene in front of the hall was so bloody. The holy me was lit on the piled heads, and quickly became fierce. The rain did not extinguish the fire. It only helped the fire spread.


    In the zing me, one could faintly see the deformation of the skulls, as if those who have died can still perceive the pain despite their distorted five senses.


    The unpleasant smell of burning filled the hall.


    In the spring rain, thousands of people of the Qi Kingdom watched the me and the burning heads in front of them. The looks on their faces were finally not as numb as before. They seemed a little terrified but also excited.


    ¡°I am Haotian.¡± Sangsang looked at the pile of human heads and continued to say without any expressions, ¡°Human beings must obey my will.¡±


    Ning Que thought for a while and suggested, ¡°Or you could use another word instead of obey.¡±


    Sangsang nced at him and asked, ¡°Like what?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Although I have no faith, I still think that humans obey your will out of love.¡±


    Sangsang argued, ¡°Humans will never love me.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the middle-aged divine priest whose face was wet with tears and said, ¡°I bring you here because I want to remind you that some people do love you even though some had to die due to their love for you.¡±


    Sangsang didn¡¯t take it seriously. ¡°That¡¯s because I am Haotian.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head. ¡°In the past, Chen Cun, Hua Yin, and Song Xixi all died to save you. You were not Haotian back then, but the daughter of Invariant Yama.¡±


    Sangsang still insisted. ¡°That¡¯s because they believed in what Wei Guangming said.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°But what do you think their beliefs were prior?¡±


    Sangsang went silent.


    Ning Que said, ¡°You said that the only reason Master Qishan saved you was to save all living creatures, and he did not love you for you are not among all living creatures. Then what about those in the Divine Hall of Light? What about your teacher Wei Guangming? They do love you unconditionally before and after realizing that you are Haotian. Why can¡¯t you love them as they love you?¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°So you mean I should love all living creatures?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°The first chapter of West Hill literary canon says, ¡®God so loved the world.¡¯¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I just no longer do.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Because you are too tired?¡±


    Sangsang nced at him and answered, ¡°Your jokes often don¡¯t have any logic.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Then what¡¯s the reason?¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Why should I love the world?¡±


    Ning Que thought for a while and found that this was indeed a good question.


    In any world, constantly questioning wouldplicate the problems. Human beings have always been obsessed with love, but it doesn¡¯t necessarily mean that humans would be rewarded by asking for it ceaselessly.


    Indeed, why do you have to love? Why do mothers love their children? Why do women love their men? Why do people love their country?


    Even though the love you bestowed was indeed unconditional, you may only get a cold response which might make you breathless.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t know how to answer this question. Just like how he couldn¡¯t exin to Sangsang what romance was back in the Great River Kingdom, he couldn¡¯t exin to her what love was either at this point.


    Just then, a sacred sedan wasing slowly from the end of the street in the spring rain. The sheer curtain around the sacred sedan was dark red, and seemed to be bleeding after being wet by the rain.


    The Sacred Sedan of Judgment appeared in the human world again.


    Ning Que was not surprised, for he had guessed that who the principal of the Divine Hall was back in the South Sea. Besides, the bloody purge of the past day and night affirmed his judgment.


    Only a few people in the Divine Hall had the ability to make such an important decision and implement it in such a short period of time, and she was the most possible one since shemanded the cavalry.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to see these people.¡± Sangsang sounded a little tired and turned away from the window.


    ...


    ...


    ¡°Everyone in the three prefectures of the Qi Kingdom who dared to disrespect the Light are now dead.¡± Ye Hongyu said, ¡°The official decree of the Divine Hall should be sent to the kingdoms very soon, and the Divine Hall of Judgement has taken action in advance. I believe the purge won¡¯tst long.¡±


    Looking at her, Ning Que frowned slightly and thought that the whole matter was not so simple.


    Taking off her sacred crown, Ye Hongyu stared at him and said, ¡°I want to see Haotian.¡±


    The scene at this moment resembled an autumn day a few years ago.


    Ning Que reached out to take the sacred crown in her hand likest time.


    However, Ye Hongyu didn¡¯t let him.


    Ning Que was surprised. ¡°Why are you so distant from me? I remember...¡±


    Ye Hongyu interrupted him, ¡°Stop your smooth tongue. Unlike Mo Shanshan, I have no intention to fight against Haotian over a man.¡±


    Ning Que clicked his tongue, ¡°Now you are the one who had a smooth tongue.¡±


    Ye Hongyu brushed away the raindrops in her ck hair and said, ¡°Cut the crap. Just lead the way.¡±


    Ning Que was displeased. ¡°You know I am Haotian¡¯s husband. Show me some respect.¡±


    Ye Hongyu threw the sacred crown to the table casually and taunted, ¡°How could one respect a man who sponged off his wife?¡±


    Ning Que was angry. ¡°I dare you to say that again!¡±


    Ye Hongyu tightened her damp hair and said, ¡°You are indeed a man who sponged his wife.¡±


    Ning Que suddenly understood how Chen Pipi felt back then.


    He was irritated and argued, ¡°It¡¯s not easy to sponge Haotian.¡±


    Ye Hongyu responded, ¡°It¡¯s never easy to sponge anyone.¡±


    Ning Que felt embarrassed and changed the subject, ¡°She doesn¡¯t want to see anyone from the Divine Hall.¡±


    Ye Hongyu thought for a while and said, ¡°It may not be a bad idea. Besides, I don¡¯t want to kneel before her.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°It seems that your faith is not as firm as you said before.¡±


    Ye Hongyu went silent for a few moments and suddenly asked, ¡°Which is more important, faith or revenge?¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t understand her question, but he remembered his revenge in Chang¡¯an and the killings in Snow Lake. He answered, ¡°To me, revenge is clearly more important.¡± He continued, ¡°But of course it¡¯s because I never had any faith.¡± He looked at Ye Hongyu and said solemnly, ¡°As for what you should choose, I can¡¯t give you any specific suggestions. I just want you to know that just do whatever that makes you happy.¡±


    Ye Hongyue thought and asked, ¡°Is that the principle of your intentions?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Yes. Instinct and intention are always the most powerful things.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 921

    <h4>Chapter 921: The Moon Does Wax and Wane, and People Do Suffer Old Age and Illness</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The rtionship between Ning Que and Ye Hongyu had always been very subtle ever since they met many years ago. It was because they had felt irreconcble hatred for each other and also fought side by side.


    Before the Rite to Light, he went to the Divine Hall of Judgement to see Ye Hongyu, and she did him a favor. Ning Que was still grateful and wanted to pay her back, so he answered her question sincerely.


    Which was more important, faith or revenge? Ning Que knew that Ye Hongyu was practical, just like himself. Then her question must point to something specifically, but what was it?


    ¡°After you and Haotian left, the Abbey Dean came to Peach Mountain.¡± Ye Hongyu exined, ¡°The Hierarch seemed to submit himself to the rule of the Abbey Dean, but actually Taoism is still in the bnce of power. Long Qing has be very powerful. All these things bother me.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°So you chose to leave Peach Mountain.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°I just came to see where you are taking Haotian.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Why do you want to see her?¡±


    After a moment of silence, Ye Hongyu answered, ¡°I just want to gain courage through her.¡±


    Ning Que somehow understood what she meant, ¡°I think you have already started. I really want to know the hatred between you and Xiong Chumo.¡±


    The purge fromst night was a reaction of the Divine Hall of Light be means of the divinity of Haotian. The Divine Hall should not have responded so quickly and resolutely. However, it¡¯s not hard to see that it was the Hierarch¡¯s trusted followers who conducted thest purge inside the Divine Hall of Light.


    The purge would inevitably shake the authority of the Hierarch in the end.


    Ye Hongyu did not answer directly but imed, ¡°I am only doing what Haotian would love to see.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You are ying the strategy of controlling Haotian andmanding Taoism.¡±


    Ye Hongyu looked at him and mocked, ¡°Isn¡¯t it exactly what you have been trying to do?¡±


    Since she refused to tell the details of her hatred, Ning Que didn¡¯t try to get to the bottom. He went silent for a while and asked, ¡°What is your n if you were to ever seed?¡±


    Ye Hongyu answered, ¡°I will figure that outter.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°What is the point of bing the new Hierarch of the Divine Hall or the Abbey Dean?¡± He once said simr words to her in Chang¡¯anst year.


    ¡°The Academy always needs a cause to justify its actions, but for me, I only value whether or not an action is worthwhile.¡±


    Ye Hongyu added, ¡°I have already made up my mind regarding my own business. Where do you want to take Haotian? The whole world is now trying to guess your destination.¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°I don¡¯t get to pick our destination. In fact, she is the one who wants to see the world. All the ces we visited were picked by her.¡±


    Ye Hongyu didn¡¯t know how to respond, for the current situation had never appeared in human history. Even the Abbey Dean had no experience of this, so he did nothing but waited quietly.


    Ning Que said, ¡°Now I can only take one step and look around before taking another.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°It¡¯s like crossing the river by feeling the stones.¡±


    Thinking of the picture of how they crossed the Great River, Ning Que smiled and said, ¡°We don¡¯t have to feel the stones while crossing the river.¡±


    Their conversation ended here. Ye Hongyu returned to Peach Mountain with two thousand cavalrymen. The punishment that Haotian applied to Taoism was bound to continue, but no one knew when the storm would stop.


    Ning Que and Sangsang left the capital of the Qi Kingdom and continued their journey west. They walked between the cyan hills in the spring rain and came to Red Lotus Temple, which had been burned into ruins.


    Looking at the rubbles, weeds among the rubbles, burned wood and the wild mushrooms grew on the wet wood, Ning Que went silent for a long time and was hit by mixed feelings while thinking of what Ye Hongyu had said.


    In the past, Long Qing led the cavalrymen to attack Ning Que and Sangsang. Ning Que in desperate circumstances, seriously injured Long Qing with Practice of Taotie, and broke the Knowing Destiny, which all happened in front of this dpidated temple.


    Now, Long Qing was more powerful.


    Ning Que knew how proud and confident Ye Hongyu was. The whole world saw Long Qing as a charming man, but in her eyes, he was nothing but an ordinary subordinate.


    Now she had to admit the power of Long Qing.


    Then it meant that Long Qing was indeed powerful.


    Many people thought that Ning Que and Long Qing were nemeses for their whole lives and would end theirpetition with the death of one person and the final victory of the other.


    Ning Que should have been the one who feared the most if Long Qing had gotten stronger. However, Ning Que didn¡¯t feel nervous at all and expressed his feelings while looking at the dpidated temple in the spring rain.


    Nobody dared to oppose Ye Hongyu¡¯s action ofunching the purge and weakening the power of the Hierarch only because she did it in the name of Haotian. Of course Ning Que didn¡¯t need to worry about Long Qing since he was traveling around with Haotian.


    Ye Hongyu controlled Haotian andmanded Taoism, so Taoism was naturally under her control.


    Ning Que travelled around the world with Haotian, so the world was naturally peaceful.


    Ning Que and Sangsang left the Divine Hall, went south to the Great River Kingdom, went to the Wa Mountain to visit Lanke Temple, and then went to Qi Kingdom and visited Red Lotus Temple. After traveling for several months, they finally entered the South Jin Kingdom.


    For Sangsang, this was a war between her and the world. For Ning Que, this was the means to make her stay on earth. For the both of them, this was also the retrospection of the trip during the autumn a few years ago.


    For the human world, their trip had been given moreplex and sacred meanings. Countless pairs of eyes watched and followed their footsteps. Many people even forgot about eating and sleeping as they felt Ning Que and Sangsang¡¯s ups and downs, and naturally they also forgot the disputes with each other.


    There was an unnamed smallke in the south of the South Jin Kingdom. Compared with the Great Swamp in the north, it was so shabby. It was also very quiet since it was located in a deserted mountain, without inhabitants.


    Ning Que sat on thekeside and grilled fishes.


    The bonfire was controlled very well. Ning Que was good at using Haotian¡¯s divine me to cook. The surfaces of the fishes had been roasted to a golden color, but the flesh were still tender.


    Sangsang took the grilled fish from Ning Que. She stared nkly at theke rather and expressed her appetite with the speed of eating like she usually did.


    Theke was very small and looked very pitiful among the mountains.


    The reflection of moon could be seen in theke as long as one was sitting by theke.


    It was a full moon, and the bright moon hung in the night sky, shadowing all the stars. The moon sprinkled its silver glows on earth and even illuminated the fishes in theke.


    Looking at the reflection of the bright moon waving gently with theke water, Sangsang looked pale and a little tired.


    Ning Que had long noticed the phenomenon. Whenever the full moon was in the night sky, Sangsang would be weak, and when the moon was waning or there were clouds, she would be strong again.


    Of course, this kind of strong or weakness was only rtive to her inherently infinite power. She was more powerful than all the cultivators together in the whole world even in her weakest moment.


    The war between the Headmaster of Academy and Haotian would affect the human world even though it happened in the sky, for Haotian was on earth.


    The moon does wax and wane, and people do suffer old age, illness and death. Sangsang became more and more human. Ning Que could figure out the cause, how could she not?


    ¡°You wish for me to be dead this much?¡± Sangsang looked at the bright moon in theke and said to Ning Que. She once said so in her mind when she saw Ning Que jumping into the abyss. Now, she finally said it to his face.


    Ning Que went silent for a long time and said, ¡°We¡¯ll figure this all out.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°This is an objective question, not a subjective one.¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t know how to reply.


    Thekeside was very quiet. With the night wind breezing the water, the moon was broken and then slowly gathered together again as the water surface swayed, as if nothing had happened.


    In the depths of Sangsang¡¯s eyes, countless stars died out and then reborn, which expressed her anger.


    Countless stars in the night sky which were too dim to be seen suddenly shined brightly and instantly shadowed the brilliancy of the moon.


    All of a sudden, the human world became bright and white in the middle of the night.


    The smallke among the mountains was especially bright, as if it was the divine kingdom of light.


    With innumerable divine mes falling, theke water began to boil and filled with mist. The fishes in the water were terrified, wandering around and desperately drilling deep into the water, but how could they escape from the god¡¯s anger?


    A thunderous roar sounded in the mountains.


    Theke water spewed up into the night sky, like a huge fountain, and the ssh rose over the summit behind.


    The fallingke water was a warm rain, like tears.


    The stars gradually dimmed, and thekes and mountains gradually became quiet.


    Hundreds of fishy in the mud of theke, flipping their belly and sending out steam, like they were cooked thoroughly.


    Ning Que and Sangsang were all wet and looked very embarrassed.


    The rain re-aggregated into theke and gradually became clear again.


    Sangsang had mud on her face and looked like a naughty child.


    Ning Que brought a basin ofke water and squatted in front of her, then wet the towel and wiped the mud stains off her face gently and carefully.


    ...


    ...


    If a god could ever fall in love, it must be just for a moment. Sangsang was calm and silent most of the time. Being calm meant everything was still in her calctions, and being silent meant she thought that no human being was qualified tomunicate with her spiritually. Ning Que might be qualified, but she got tired of himtely.


    Walking together in such a calm and silent way, they left the mountains andkes and came to the fields with crisscross of paths. The carriage had already been broken, and only the big ck horse followed them silently.


    Along the state road, Ning Que and Sangsang walked into Linkang, the capital city of the South Jin Kingdom. Ning Que was quite familiar with this city, and he directly went to the slum area in the eastern part of the city.


    The streets were still cramped, the smell was still unpleasant, the buildings temporarily built by households were still teetering, and the curtains outside thetrines were still too short to cover the person inside. However, there were some changes.


    There were less visible sewage on the streets, and the streets had became rtively dry, with fewer mosquitoes and flies. The most important thing was that people walking inside seemed to be livelier.


    Ning Que was rather surprised that the slum area had changed so much in less than a year. He was amazed at the man who preached in the mean alley.


    There were hundreds of people in front of a decrepit house, listening to someone preaching. The person who was preaching wore an old long gown and had an old chopstick in his Taoist bun. He looked calm.


    What he preached was the West- Hill literary canon, but the way he exined it was quite different.


    Sangsang looked at them and suddenly said, ¡°These people should be burned to death.¡±


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 922 - The Mean Abbey

    <h4>Chapter 922: The Mean Abbey</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Compared with thest time Ning Que saw him in Linkang City, Ye Su appeared to be skinnier, paler but calmer, and hepletely lost his cocky expression.


    There were hundreds of people listening to his preaching and theypletely packed the street. No one made a sound.


    His voice hung over the quietne in front of the decrepit house, mixed with asional painful coughs. The content of his preaching was mainly the West Hill literary canon, but the way he exined it was quite different from that of divine priests.


    Ning Que looked at the people who were listening to the preaching. Although most of these followers were simply dressed, some of which even had patches on their clothes, their clothes were all very clean and neat. Dozens of people sitting on the southeast side were obviously dressed in finery, but they sat quietly on the white futon like others.


    Through observation, he found that Ye Su¡¯s preaching was much smoother than he thought, and he was even more worried, for Sangsang said that these people should be burned to death, and he knew she was capable of doing so.


    Soon after Ye Su began his preaching in Linkang City, Ning Que came here, knowing well that this was Ye Su¡¯s self-redemption and also the redemption he wanted to lead the world to pursue.


    Taoism required its followers to turn their desires into offerings and ce their hopes on the Divine Kingdom based on their faith in Haotian. However, the redemption Ye Su mentioned was to save oneself.


    For Haotian Taoism, the change seemed to be trivial, but it was actually a very shocking revolution, for the revolution originated from the bottom of the society, recing the yearning for the Divine Kingdom with the love for the human world and asking the followers to save themselves. If it ever seeded, then where was Haotian¡¯s position in the human world?


    ¡°Haotian is watching you.¡± Standing in front of the decrepit house, Ye Su looked at the followers calmly and said, ¡°Whatever you do, whatever you are thinking, you are being watched by Haotian. So you must always reflect on your behavior from the early morning to the nightfall and from waking to sleeping. Did you ever vite the doctrine of Haotian, ever do charity and control your evil?¡±


    Hearing this, Ning Que couldn¡¯t help but look at Sangsang by his side.


    Sangsang was watching Ye Su.


    Haotian was watching him.


    She said nothing, just quietly listened to him preaching, without any expressions.


    ¡°Actually... what he said is notpletely unreasonable.¡± Ning Que said, ¡°Lose the intermediate link of the Divine Hall and the followers directly dedicate their love to you. From the perspective of logistics, it can improve efficiency and save costs.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Divine Kingdom to Divine Kingdom, human world to human world. Then the Haotian whom they believed in was me or themselves?¡±


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t answer this question. Ye Su¡¯s preaching had fundamentally overthrown the doctrine of Haotian Taoism and spread the specific meaning of the faith into self-recognition.


    From this point of view, the faith of these followers were not the faith that Haotian needed, for it was most likely that Haotian would no longer be able to absorb the power of their faith.


    While they were talking, the doctrine lectures ended, and hundreds of followers left in a very orderly manner, leaving a group of children to start arranging the venue and preparing for the afternoon craft courses.


    Ye Su covered his lips with his hands and coughed twice slightly. While taking off the ckboard hanging in front of the window, he suddenly saw Ning Que and Sangsang outside the crowd and froze involuntarily.


    ...


    ...


    The door of the decrepit house was pushed open, and Ning Que and Sangsang walked in. They were surprised to see Chen Pipi lying in the bed and Tang Xiaotang cooking in the corner.


    Chen Pipi opened his eyes and smiled at Ning Que, but he froze before he was able to wave his hand, and the spat that Tang Xiaoyu was holding also froze in the air. They had never seen the new image of Sangsang, but they knew the girl must be her since she was with Ning Que.


    Ye Su had already lifted up the front part of his robe and kneeled in front of Sangsang obediently.


    Sangsang held her hands behind her back and looked around the room with indifference.


    She said nothing, so Ye Su continued to humbly kneel.


    Sangsang¡¯s gaze fell on him without any trace of warmth.


    ¡°Twenty years ago, you called the Tang an evil devil and Qi Nian a heretic outcast of the Wilderness. If the man who you were back then ever were see you now, what will he think of you?¡±


    On the day, Sangsang was born in an official¡¯s mansion in Chang¡¯an, Ning Que climbed over the wall with a bloody hatchet in hand, and a ck line appeared on the Wilderness.


    The expression of Ning Que was a bitplicated.


    Ye Su was silent for quite a while, and then said calmly and firmly, ¡°I do not think what I¡¯ve done is foolish, and I believe the man who I used to be will never see what I am doing now as evil.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°You don¡¯t see sphemy as evil?¡±


    Ye Su answered, ¡°Human beings are insignificant in your eyes, but they deserve better lives.¡±


    Sangsang argued, ¡°I have never punished them.¡±


    Ye Su asked, ¡°How do you exin the Ever Night?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Just pruning.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°But even branches and leaves are lives.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°That¡¯s the Buddha¡¯s lie.¡±


    Ye Su disagreed, ¡°Even the Buddha said nothing, a life is still a life.¡±


    The voices of Sangsang and Ye Su hung over the decrepit house, and the atmosphere became more and more serious and depressed. Tang Xiaotang stood in front of the stove with the spat in her hand, and a faint burned smell spread out in the room.


    As a former traveling disciple of Taoism, Ye Su kneeled in front of Haotian at this moment and dared to directly point to her sins and adhere to his own views. Although Ye Su had lost all his power, he was stronger than most people in the world.


    Sangsang asked, ¡°If humans want me to love them them, why do they bother saving themselves?¡±


    Ye Su answered, ¡°If Haotian do love humans, why not allow them to save themselves?¡±


    Sangsang nced at Ning Que, and then said to Ye Su, ¡°Why should I love humans?¡±


    She once asked Ning Que the same question, but thetter couldn¡¯t answer it. Ye Su was far better than Ning Que in terms of knowledge, but he still couldn¡¯t answer it. So he decided to ask another question in reply. ¡°In this case, why should human beings love Haotian?¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s willow-shaped eyes were suddenly bright and extremely cold.


    With a sound of frying, the vegetable leaves that Tang Xiaotang was cooking in the iron pan were finally burned.


    Ning Que pped his hands heavily and shouted, ¡°I¡¯m staving, I want to eat!¡±


    Chen Pipi sat up from the bed and yelled at Tang Xiaotang angrily, ¡°I can¡¯t believe you burned the vegetable leaves! Are you trying to starve your husband to death?¡±


    Tang Xiaotang knew that they just tried to lighten the atmosphere but still felt wronged. She waved the spat and shouted indignantly, ¡°I¡¯ve never cooked back in the tribe and the Back Hill. Why are you making me cook now?¡±


    Ning Que walked to Sangsang and asked, ¡°Are you hungry? What do you want to eat?¡±


    Chen Pipi got out of bed quickly and helped Ye Su to stand up and sat him down. Then he looked to Sangsang and suggested, ¡°Seriously speaking, I haven¡¯t eaten your cooking in years. Do you feel like cooking today? ¡±


    Being ignored, Tang Xiaotang felt wronged, and she kept turning over the spat in the iron pan to make some noises, showing her dissatisfaction.


    In an instant, the room was noisy and filled with the earthly smoke and fire and a table of meals was ready in a twinkle.


    Sangsang did not adapt to the change and seemed a bit stunned. Before figuring it out, she was taken to the table by Ning Que and was holding a bowl of rice that Tang Xiaotang had put into her hand.


    Looking at each other, Ning Que and Chen Pipi saw the lingering fear in each other¡¯s eyes and wiped off the cold sweat on their foreheads. They might be the only two people in the whole world who dared to fool Haotian like this.


    Sitting at the dinner table, Ning Que said to Ye Su, ¡°I officially introduce my wife, Sangsang.¡±


    Ye Su was still stunned, and nodded in the subconscious. The he said to Sangsang, ¡°Just some home-cooked food. Please make yourself at home.¡±


    After saying this, he felt that it was a bit weird.


    Sangsang kept quiet, just staring at the bowl of rice in her hand and the green vegetables within.


    Worrying that Sangsang might suddenly realize that she was fooled, Chen Pipi desperately squeezed his eyebrows and signaled to Tang Xiaotang to say something. Tang Xiaotang¡¯s eyes rounded with discontent. I¡¯m not good at talking. It should be you and Ning Que who should calm down the situation. Chen Pipi kept coughing. Aren¡¯t you Sangsang¡¯s best friend?


    Tang Xiaotang looked at the men sitting at the table looking like y sculptures. Suddenly she found that something seemed to be missing and asked, ¡°Where is the big ck horse? I heard he left Peach Mountain with you, and I thought he will follow you here.¡±


    Ning Que has the ability to spread out a topic as long as someone were to start it. So he pretended to be surprised and asked, ¡°How do you know what happened in the Divine Hall of West Hill?¡±


    Chen Pipi jumped in. ¡°We left West-Hill with the disciples of the Sword Garret, and now we live in Linkang City. Liu Yiqing will inform us about what happened in the cultivation world.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang pulled the topic back in a very timely manner. ¡°So where is the big ck horse now?¡±


    ¡°That stupid beast is too big, and I am afraid he might hurt people in the alley.¡± Ning Que answered, ¡°So I left him in the mountain outside the city. Anyway, what have you guys been through these days?¡±


    Chen Pipi said helplessly, ¡°I¡¯m so tired of listening to the elder brother¡¯s preaching.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang gave him a stern look, and Ning Que was anxious to strangle him. People all say you are the most talented guy in Taoism and the Academy. How could you be so stupid? We tried so hard to change the subject. Why are you talking about Ye Su¡¯s preaching again?


    Chen Pipi also found that he put his foot in his mouth. He was anxious and fearful, ncing at Sangsang secretly.


    Sangsang obviously knew that he was peeking at her, but she ordered without any expressions,¡±Eat.¡±


    Everyone responded very obediently, then began to eat. They did not make another sound.


    Eating in silence meant eating attentively, thus leading to eating quickly. It didn¡¯t take long for the five of them to finish eating. Chen Pipi was so timid that he hid in the kitchen to wash the dishes, leaving others to deal with Sangsang.


    Sangsang stood up and said to Tang Xiaotang, ¡°You.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang stond up nervously and said, ¡°Yes?¡±


    Holding her hands behind her back, Sangsang walked outside and ordered, ¡°Follow me.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang looked around and didn¡¯t know what to do.


    Ning Que consoled, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ve never seen her eat a human being.¡±


    ¡°You call this constion?¡±


    Chen Pipi rushed out with a wet rag in his hand, and shouted at Ning Que angrily. Then he stared at the back of Sangsang and said in a shaking voice, ¡°Be back soon. I will serve wine and meat for dinner.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 923 - The Mean House

    <h4>Chapter 923: The Mean House</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The drainage in this area waspletely renovated. Although it was not as good as that of the pce of South Jin Kingdom, which could keep the stairs dry during rainstorms, the continuous spring rains these days did not leave too many traces here. It proved that the followers, under the leadership of Ye Su, had been rewarded for their efforts.


    Sangsang walked through the streets with her hands behind her back, and Tang Xiaotang followed her, with her ck braid swaying in the spring breeze, which resembled her disturbed mood at this time.


    Sangsang was indeed her best friend. However, with Sangsang now being Haotian and she belonging to the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, it seemed impossible for them to continue their friendship. She wondered why had Sangsang taken her out?


    Tang Xiaotang felt strange that Sangsang who used to be ck and thin became so white and chubby, and she was also not used to the silence along the way. So she gently kicked the stone on the street to ease her tension.


    Walking up to the front of a vegetable store, Sangsang suddenly stopped and said, ¡°He is now a basket case.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang froze for a while, then realized she was talking about Chen Pipi. ¡°You locked up his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow. He is weak and likes to stay in bed. Of course you can call him a basket case.¡±


    Walking into the store, Sangsang looked at the normal vegetables on the shelf and said, ¡°I left Peach Mountain. The Divine Hall must have begun to chase you.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang said, ¡°Yes. We can¡¯t get through Qinghe without the Divine Hall knowing, otherwise we have already returned to Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Sangsang stopped and turned to her. ¡°Why?¡±


    Tang Xiaotang was puzzled and asked, ¡°Why what?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Everything is determined by destiny. Why do you have to go to Peach Mountain to save him? Why do you apany him to wander around? If you are willing to surrender to me, I will grant you eternity.¡±


    In a very inconspicuous vegetable store in Linkang City suffusing with the smell of vegetables and mud, she calmly said that she would grant Tang Xiaotang eternity.


    Tang Xiaotang was stunned for quite a while, and then said unnaturally, ¡°This is a surprise for me...Why don¡¯t we buy the ingredients for dinner first?¡±


    At this time, the woman who owned the vegetable store recognized Tang Xiaotang and greeted her warmly and humbly. The woman put everything that Tang Xiaotang was looking at into her basket.


    Sangsang was confused, pointed to the basket, and asked, ¡°Don¡¯t we need to pay for that?¡±


    Tang Xiaotang, Chen Pipi and Ye Su had lived together these days. Ye Su normally would teach the children in the street some courses. Thus, for the people living on this street, Ye Su was no different from a sage even though he lived in a decrepit house. They respected and adored Ye Su, and naturally gave Tang Xiaotang and Chen Pipi the same treatment.


    The woman thought that Sangsang was an ordinary friend of Tang Xiaotang. She patted her shoulder intimately and said with a smile, ¡°Why are you regarding me as an outsider? How could I let you pay for these worthless vegetables?¡±


    Sangsang frowned, for she noticed that the woman had just touched the vegetables and had some muddy water on her hand.


    Tang Xiaotang quickly pulled the woman to the side and asked her to take care of her store with a smile. Then she looked at Sangsang and said nervously, ¡°Please don¡¯t be angry.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I just don¡¯t understand. I thought that the poorer the people are, the more they value money.¡±


    Remembering that Sangsang was very mean when she was still a human being, Tang Xiaotang couldn¡¯t help butugh. ¡°Sometimes people just like something so much that they use things that they value the most to express their kindness.¡±


    Sangsang thought about it and asked, ¡°Like how the followers of Taoism devote their wealth and life to me?¡±


    Tang Xiaotang answered, ¡°More or less. But...there is still a difference.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°What¡¯s the difference?¡±


    Tang Xiaotang thought for a while and said, ¡°Adore and respect?¡±


    Sangsang suddenly felt a little displeased, and then she found that she actually began to care about whether or not she was liked by others. Then she became even more displeased.


    The basket was stuffed with green vegetables. Tang Xiaotang offered to pay, but the woman rejected her firmly.


    Walking out of the store, Sangsang said, ¡°You haven¡¯t answered my question.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    Tang Xiaotang reached out to hold Sangsang¡¯s hand, looked at her with sympathy and said, ¡°After visiting so many ces with Ning Que, you haven¡¯t figured it out yet?¡±


    Sangsang answered, ¡°That¡¯s different. If he were to die, then I will die too. I have to follow him around.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang smiled and responded, ¡°In fact, that¡¯s not different at all. If Chen Pipi were to die, then I wouldn¡¯t want to live by myself.¡±


    Sangsang thought for a while and said, ¡°Humans are indeed stupid.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang said, ¡°But sometimes we¡¯re happy being stupid.¡±


    Sangsang looked at her hand and said, ¡°I am not happy that you sympathize with me, and I am also not happy that you touch my body. I don¡¯t understand why you are happy for being stupid.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang answered with a smile, ¡°It is not a good thing for the Academy and Light¡¯s Doctrine that you are still alive, but I am still very happy seeing you alive. Maybe this is the pleasure of being stupid?¡±


    ...


    ...


    The two girls went out to buy food and talked heart to heart, leaving the three men in the decrepit house, who sat facing each other in silence. It didn¡¯t matter how they survived as long as they were still alive.


    Chen Pipi looked at Ning Que and asked worriedly, ¡°Is she willing to return to Chang¡¯an with you?¡±


    Ning Que shook his head and answered, ¡°She didn¡¯t say so, but we are getting closer to Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Chen Pipi asked, ¡°Does she know about the Academy¡¯s intention?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The Headmaster once said that Haotian knows everything.¡±


    Chen Pipi went silent for a moment and said, ¡°If that is the case, then you have no chance of winning.¡±


    Looking at the blue sky and white clouds outside the window, Ning Que said, ¡°The Headmaster also said that there are some people in the world who would do things which they know clearly can¡¯t be achieved.¡±


    Chen Pipi said, ¡°The Youngest Uncle and the Headmaster are exactly this kind of people. You and I may be more like them in the future, but this cannot influence her, for she is not a human.¡±


    Ning Que signed. ¡°I hope she can make her own choice.¡±


    Chen Pipi said, ¡°But no one will make a choice that may destroy themselves.¡±


    Ning Queughed and said, ¡°As you said, she is not human being.¡±


    Chen Pipi asked, ¡°If so, what¡¯s your n?¡±


    Ning Que was hit by mixed feelings and answered, ¡°I hope to find a solution when the timees. The original n I thought of now seems impractical.¡±


    Chen Pipi asked, ¡°Is it possible to fix the God-Stunning Array without her?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Whoever started the trouble should end it. She had lived in Chang¡¯an for many years, and her footsteps and breath had broken the God-Stunning Array. To fix the array, she must be back to Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Chen Pipi looked at him quietly, and then suggested, ¡°I only hope that you have no regrets when the timees. If you have any doubts, then it is better to change your mind now, for there will be no turning back when the timees.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°When I left Chang¡¯an and went to Peach Mountain to pick her up, I had already made my mind. Even though I have to choose one day, it won¡¯t be that hard.¡±


    Chen Pipi sighed, for he understood the hidden determination in his words.


    Ye Su kept quiet all the time and looked at the streets and the sky outside the window with a smile on his face. His pale face was covered by the sunlight and it seemed very gentle.


    All of a sudden, he said, ¡°y with god, you can only end up hurting yourself.¡±


    Ning Que turned to him and asked sincerely, ¡°Do you mean that we will do nothing?¡±


    Ye Su turned around and smiled to him. ¡°Doing well in your own business is more important than anything else. Haotian to Haotian, and Earth to Earth. Why bother meddling with things beyond our reach?¡±


    Haotian to Haotian, and Earth to Earth. This was the Tao that Ye Su believed.


    Ning Que was somehow woken up, and then asked, ¡°The Divine Hall of West Hill won¡¯t allow you to continue to preach, and even the Sword Garret can¡¯t protect you. What are you going to do next?¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°Linkang City is getting better. I am ready to leave.¡±


    Chen Pipi was surprised, for he had learned that the Elder Brother intended to leave Linkang for the first time.


    ¡°You are going to Chang¡¯an, aren¡¯t you?¡±


    Ning Que was also surprised. Since the Divine Hall won¡¯t allow him to continue to preach, Ye Su can only go to the Tang where he can be tolerated after leaving the South Jin Kingdom. ¡°Like I once said, the Tang is too good, and the world is too bad.¡±


    Ye Su continued to say calmly, ¡°Since I n to experience human sufferings and save humans, I have to step foot on the soil where sufferings happen and really understand the people who are suffering.¡±


    The sunlight prated the window andnded on him. His old shirt seemed to shine, and the chopsticks used in his Taoist bun seemed to be more beautiful than the most expensive ebony.


    Ning Que suddenly asked, ¡°Do you remember the first time we met?¡±


    Ye Su shook his head. When they first met at the foot of Tianqi Mountain in the Wilderness, Ye Su was still a proud traveling disciple of Taoism and had his eye on the position of Eldest Brother, and he had no impression of who Ning Que was.


    ¡°But I am very impressed with you.¡± Ning Que looked at him and said, ¡°I have never met a person so lonely, as if your feet were not standing on the ground but on another world. Although you are clearly alive, I still felt that you were dead for many years. To be more urate, you seemed to be alive and dead at the same time in my eyes back then, and I pitied you.¡±


    Ye Suughed and said, ¡°You should pity me now.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°No. Although you are far less powerful than you were in the past, you are not pitiful at all. I think you will be a sage.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°The world can only see a sage once in a millennium. You just give me too much credit.¡±


    Ning Que disagreed. ¡°If you can make everybody be sage, then you are indeed a sage.¡±


    At this moment, the door was pushed open. Tang Xiaotang held the basket and shouted merrily, ¡°Look, we brought so many vegetables back. Throw away the leftovers!¡±


    Dinner was very simple, mainly vegetables.


    In order to please Haotian, Chen Pipi went to the butcher shop to buy streaky pork and braised it with Chinese cabbage. Then he went next door and brought back two buckets of light wine.


    Meat and wine can always liven things up. After a little while, the atmosphere in the house was lively. Ning Que was a wimpy drinker and was no longer his normal self after a few drinks. He asked for paper and ink, and then wrote the famous article, ¡°An Epigraph for My Humble Room¡±.


    ¡°A mountain needn¡¯t be high; it is famous so long as there is a deity on it. Ake needn¡¯t be deep; it has supernatural power so long as there is a dragon in it. My home is humble, but it enjoys the fame of virtue so long as I am living in it. ¡±


    With her hands behind her back, Sangsang stared at the and then asked, ¡°Who is ¡°I¡±?¡±


    Ning Que answered angrily, ¡°Why are you asking me such a philosophical issue?¡±


    Sangsang pointed to the word ¡°I¡± on the paper.


    Ning Que then understood what she meant and pointed to Ye Su. All of a sudden, it urred to him that Sangsang must had some expectations since she brought this up. So he pulled back his finger and answered, ¡°I didn¡¯t mean me.¡±


    ¡°Then who is that?¡±


    ¡°I am you, and you are me. Who do you think I am talking about? ¡±


    Sangsang knew he was lying, but she seemed satisfied.


    Chen Pipi was very dissatisfied and said sarcastically, ¡°When you wrote the article, I just thought you are still shameless. After listening to your exnation, I realize that you can be worse.¡±


    Ning Que was angry and shouted, ¡°I am always like this. Suck it up!¡±


    It was time to say goodbye.


    Sangsang couldn¡¯t stand this kind of human custom so she stood afar with her hands behind her back.


    Chen Pipi looked at Ning Que and said, ¡°Take care.¡±


    ¡°I will.¡±


    Ning Que answered with smile and walked to Sangsang.


    Sangsang suddenly turned around and said to Ye Su, ¡°You will be burned to death.¡±


    At this moment, the sky was covered with the sunset glow which was like blood and fire.


    Ye Su stood in the twilight and it looked like he was standing in fire.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 924 - Long Time No See

    <h4>Chapter 924: Long Time No See</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang stood anxiously at dusk in front of the shabby cottage. They looked at Ye Su but could not say anything. Haotian¡¯s words meant a prophecy. She was never wrong. Then how could Ye Su survive?


    Ye Su prostrated toward Sangsang¡¯s receding figure. He did not feel anxious at all. Their meeting with Haotian today meant a lot to him, especially for his teaching. He could only feel calm.


    Ning Que and Sangsang left Linkang and walked slowly at dusk. He could no longer refrain from talking and asked, ¡°Couldn¡¯t you just say something nice?¡±


    Sangsang replied, ¡°I told the truth.¡±


    Ning Que got angry. ¡°That¡¯s exactly why it¡¯s inauspicious!¡±


    Sangsang did not talk further and walked north, holding her hands behind her back.


    No one knew if Ye Su was really going to be burned to death. Sangsang should know everything. However, she had been wrong many times when it came to things or people rted to Ning Que.


    Ning Que turned to take a look at the City of Linkang at dusk and did not say anything further.


    The big ck horse ran out of the hills and neighed with joy.


    ...


    ...


    Someone had been preaching in Linkang without the permission of the Divine Halls. It was not a surprised to the Divine Hall until they figured out who the priest was. It became a more serious matter when they found that his disciples were increasing and his teachings were profane.


    Behind the radiating curtains in Haotian¡¯s Divine Hall, the Hierarch still looked strong and tall. He seemed outraged and kept waving his arms and shouting.


    Long Qing stood downstairs by the curtains and seemed extremely calm when hundreds of divine priests and deacons kneeled beside him. He knew that the Hierarch was not just angry about Ye Su¡¯s preaching in Linkang. He became more irritated because of the the turbulence under the table, his awkward position, and an increasingly dangerous situation.


    The Divine Hall of Judgment had executed a bloody purge throughout the Taoism branches in the name of Haotian. In less than twenty days, many people from countless abbeys were arrested. The Secluded Pavilion was now packed with prisoners, most of whom were the Hierarch¡¯s cronies.


    The woman on the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade had made her strike. No one knew why she started attacking the Hierarch all of a sudden. Yet no one would choose a wrong side.


    The Hierarch had been the leader of the Divine Halls and Taoism for decades. He certainly had profound connections and should have attacked back or even suppressed the Divine Hall of Judgment. However, he seemed helpless this time. It was not only because the Abbey Dean had left Zhishou Abbey and returned to Peach Mountain, but also because the purge was ordered by Haotian.


    Hundreds of divine priests and deacons took his orders and left. Haotian¡¯s Divine Hall became quiet again. As for how they could break through the blockade of South Jin and get into Linkang, that was their own concern. If they were to dare to doubt now, then they would definitely enrage the Hierarch.


    Long Qing bowed to the Hierarch behind the radiating curtains and left Haotian¡¯s Divine Hall. He walked silently through the teau, entered the solemn and frightening Divine Hall of Judgment, and went directly to the Secluded Pavilion via the tunnel that he knew well of.


    The Divine Hall of Judgment and the Secluded Pavilion was intensely guarded especially during such an upheaval. Everyone knew that the Divine Priest of Judgment was challenging the Hierarch, so no one from Haotian¡¯s Divine Hall was allowed into the Divine Hall of Judgment.


    Yet Long Qing was an exception. Not only because he was already the descendent of Zhishou Abbey, but also because he used to live in this Divine Hall. He was the previous Divine Priest of Judgment and still had many loyal underlings here. While Ye Hongyu was away for the execution of the purge, who else dared to stay in his way?


    The Secluded Pavilion was as secluded as usual. No sounds could be heard in the cells along the dry corridor. The arrested divine priests were already half dead after the cruel tortures carried out by the Judicial Department. They were even unable to moan and could only lie on the dry straws and wait for theirst moments toe.


    Although very quiet, the Secluded Pavilion had never been so crowded fin years. Hundreds of divine priests and deacons were held in prison after arrested by the Judicial Department throughout the world. A bloody odor prated the dim light and added to the suffocating atmosphere.


    Long Qing walked through the quiet corridor calmly without feeling suffocated. Looking through the waggling light and sensing the smell of blood, he could only feel his heart beating faster in excitement.


    He wore an ordinary priest robe. There was a hole in his chest under the robe. The robe moved up and down with his heart beating in the hole. It looked like tender waves in the South Sea under the waggling light.


    He opened the fence of one cell and walked to the bed. He looked at the blood stained old man lying on the straws and greeted calmly, ¡°Long time no see, Priest Qu.¡±


    Qu Fengchi was the Chief Red-Robed Divine Priest stationed in Song Kingdom by the Divine Halls of West-Hill, and also the most loyal underling to the Hierarch. He ranked very highly in Taoism. During the previous purge against remaining underling of the Divine Hall of Light, he was the one who applied most unbridled ferocity. Therefore this time he had be a main target in this purge executed by the Divine Hall of Judgment.


    Ye Hongyu, the Divine Priest of Judgment went to the Song Kingdom in person, cut Qu Fengchi¡¯s arms right in their Taoism Hall and had him dragged back to Peach Mountain by the cavalrymen of the Divine Halls. He was half dead now and the Hierarch could do nothing to it.


    Qu Fengchi had gone through ruthless tortures these days and the Hierarch never came for him. He knew that he was doomed and could only wait exhaustedly for that day toe.


    However, someone came for him today.


    Qu Fengchi opened his eyes with great difficulty and looked to the person beside his bed. This was a young priest with frightening scars on his face.


    Being the Chief Red-Robed Divine Priest stationed in Song Kingdom, how could he not know Long Qing?


    ¡°Prince Long Qing?¡±


    Qu Fengchi was a bit shocked and confused, then became excited as he realized Long Qing¡¯s rtion with Ye Hongyu and his ranking in Taoism currently.


    Even the Hierarch had abandoned him. If there could still be someone to save him, that must be Long Qing and the Abbey Dean.


    The desperate Qu Fengchi suddenly found hisst chance. He was restored immediately and his eyes were filled with hope and begging. He rushed to say, ¡°I, Qu Fengchi would offer my life and soul to you, the Prince and the Abbey Dean. If only I could return to the Song Kingdom, I would offer my abbeys and all my fortune to you, Prince.¡±


    ording to him, Long Qing definitely came for his rescue. The only prize he could pay now would be the several abbeys and his private fortune in the Song Kingdom. What else could he please him with?


    Long Qing said to him calmly, ¡°Look at me.¡±


    Qu Fengchi felt confused but still looked into his eyes. Long Qing¡¯s eyes were in ordinary ck and white colors. However, the moment he looked into those eyes they changed peculiarly.


    The edge of his pupils disappeared and the ck and white of his eyes merged.


    The ck became lighter and the white darkened. They merged into grey, like the color of the earth when it first separated from heaven. In a split second, Long Qing¡¯s eyes turnedpletely grey.


    Looking into these grey eyes, Qu Fengchi felt frightened and extremely cold. Instinctively he tried to turn away but only to find that he had lost control over his own body.


    Qu Fengchi¡¯s cheeks suddenly sank. The blood stains on his body faded. He tried to scream but could not make a sound. He wanted to push Long Qing away but his arms were already broken by Ye Hongyu. Therefore he could only despairingly feel the draining of everything inside his body


    That was literally everything, with no exceptions. Qu Fengchi¡¯s life and spirit, as well as his cultivation and psyche power were dispossessed by Long Qing with his immortal evil eyes in grey.


    In a wink of an eye, Qu Fengchi had died. Long Qing closed his eyes. When reopened, his grey eyes turned back to the normal ck and white. There was nothing suspicious at all.


    No one would knew that he had taken another life. A whole bunch of perceptions and fresh knowledge was added into his Ocean of Consciousness and he became even stronger.


    Qu Fengchi¡¯s dead body crouched wretchedly on the straws. Until hisst moment he had not figured out why Long Qing wanted him instead of his treasures hidden in the Song Kingdom.


    Long Qing walked out of the cell calmly and entered the next. He looked at the person on the bed and greeted calmly, ¡°Long time no see, Priest Mu.¡±


    After a short while he stepped out again and entered the next.


    He repeated this silent and horrifying practice until dawn. He dispossessed many strong cultivators from the Left Royal Court of the Wilderness and his Grey Eyes practice had reached the highest level.


    Morning glory came in from the rock window and scattered on Long Qing¡¯s face.


    He looked extremely calm and his eyes were in ck and white. He seemed to be the most undistracted and limpid young man. With his cultivation level elevated, the scars on his face deepened instead of lightened. They looked even more horrifying, just like those demons on the murals inside the Divine Halls.


    Long Qing sighed to the morning glory outside and turned to leave the Secluded Pavilion.


    When a powerful cultivator breathed, his inhaling and exhaling was profound. When Long Qing breathed, his pink and moist heart and lungs squeezed against each other in the hole on his chest. It looked disgusting.


    However, among the disgusting flesh there was a blooming peach blossom hidden inside. It appeared ck or golden now and then. In either color it looked pure and holy.


    ...


    ...


    Coming out of the Divine Hall of Judgment, Long Qing walked through the teau again toward several humble stone cottages by the edge of the teau.


    Years ago when Ye Hongyu came back almost as a wastrel after her fight with Lian Sheng in the Wilderness, she suffered from cold ridicule and bully because of her self-degradation. She stayed in one of those stone cottages during the difficult days.


    Long Qing did note here to recall the past or to prove his power to that woman who was not present. He came to visit the Abbey Dean who lived here now.


    The Abbey Dean was the actual leader of Taoism now. He should have moved to the highest Divine Hall on Peach Mountain, Haotian¡¯s Divine Hall, because the Hierarch had chosen to kneel in front of him.


    For some unknown reason the Abbey Dean chose to stay in a humble stone cottage on the teau instead. He did not interfere with anything the Divine Halls of West-Hill was handling.


    Long Qing could not understand what the Abbey Dean was thinking about. Although the Hierarch had cultivated to a very high state, his weakened Taoist Heart was already exposed to the world. Why haven¡¯t the Abbey Dean dismissed him?


    The Hierarch still had a strong influence on other kingdoms in the world. However, in Peach Mountain the Abbey Dean was absolutely supported by Zhao Nanhai and his group from the South Sea, as well as the elder divine priests, the Uncle and Long Qing himself. If the Abbey Dean were to thunder against the Hierarch, they could easily expel the Hierarch from Haotian¡¯s Divine Hall.


    He stood in front of the stone cottage and wondered for a while. When he realized he could never figure out the reason, he shook his head and opened the ill-maintained wooden door. Upon an irritating squeak, he entered the darkness.


    It was very dark inside the stone cottage. He had to take a good look to see the Abbey Dean¡¯s face clearly. The middle-aged priest behind the Abbey Dean¡¯s wheelchair was almost invisible in the darkness.


    The Abbey Dean coughed a little bit and reached out for some water.


    The middle-aged priest had been holding the back of the wheelchair. Long Qing stepped forward, got the kettle and poured some water in to the bowl, then handed it to the Abbey Dean reverently.


    The Abbey Dean seemed feeling better after having some water, and said to Long Qing, ¡°You seem perplexed.¡±


    Long Qing did not dare to hide and stated his doubts.


    The Abbey Dean did not borate much but just said calmly, ¡°What you wanted to do, the Divine Priest of Judgment is doing you favor. Why are you still so anxious?¡±


    Long Qing understood this part, but he still could not understand why Ye Hongyu chose to make such a fierce attack against the Hierarch. It seemed like the Abbey Dean had been aware of the reason for long.


    Suddenly the Abbey Dean asked him, ¡°What do you think of Ye Su?¡±


    Long Qing thought for a while and replied, ¡°The Elder Brother is very talented.¡±


    The Abbey Dean nodded slowly and said, ¡°He is indeed a rare genius in Taoism. I used to think he was less talented than Chan Pipi. It appears that I was wrong.¡±


    Long Qing wondered, now that the Elder Brother is already a wastrel, the Abbey Dean must be referring to his preaching in Linkang rather than his state of cultivation. ¡°The Hierarch was furious and had sent out people to carry out thorough investigation in Linkang. However, in my opinion the Elder Brother just started preachingtely and his followers are mostly illiterate. There¡¯s nothing to be worried about.¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked at a thin pamphlet in his hand and said, ¡°I tried to train your elder brother to be the sharpest sword in Taoism. It was a pity this sword was destroyed by Jun Mo in Verdant Canyon, but surprisingly he opened another world for himself. He might even exceed what I had expected for him.¡±


    The thin pamphlet was a copy of Ye Su¡¯s teaching recorded by someone sent to Linkang by the Divine Halls of West-Hill. His words were simple and his reasoning shallow. However, even the Abbey Dean was wavered.

 Chapter 925 - On Behalf of Heaven

    <h4>Chapter 925: On Behalf of Heaven</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    It was very quiet inside the stone cottage. Long Qing looked at the thin pamphlet and wanted to say something. When he finally uttered his words, it was far from what he originally wanted to say. ¡°The Verdant Canyon is still blocked. It is very hard for the Tang people to get to the south. With Qinghe Prefecture to its North, the South Jin Kingdom is now on its own. The Sword Garret has lost Liu Bai. There¡¯s no one to protect Linkang. If you want him killed, I can do that any time.¡±


    ¡°No need to hurry. Let¡¯s work on the more important matter now.¡± The Abbey Dean said, ¡°We are expecting a very important guest today. You wait here and don¡¯t waste any opportunity to gain some insight.¡±


    Long Qing was a bit surprised. He wondered, with the Headmaster gone, Liu Bai dead and the Chief Monk of Scripture never leaving the Xuankong Temple, who else could be treated as a very important guest by the Abbey Dean?


    Right then someone knocked at the door of the stone cottage. He knocked carelessly, with no rhythm at all. It seemed like he had not been used to being a guest or he was seriously drunk.


    Long Qing opened the door. A refreshing wind rushed in upon an annoying squeak, together with some charming smell of liquor and a middle-aged man wearing an ordinary cloth gown.


    The middle-aged man seemed nothing special. He had some wrinkles and grey hair but did not seem like he was old because his skin was fairer and softer than those of a young girl and his ck hair was darker than that of a newborn.


    It was hard to tell his age. Or rather, he was a man of no age.


    Long Qing was stunned. He suddenly realized something and his pupils constricted. The peach blossom started blooming in the hole in his chest and he was ready for a fatal strike.


    He was not from the Divine Halls of West-Hill yet he hade atop Peach Mountain to the teau. No one from the Divine Halls was able to sense him, including Long Qing. This could only mean one thing.


    He was Distanceless!


    The next moment, Long Qing regained his calm and recollected his furious psyche back to the Ocean of Consciousness. The peach blossom in the hole in his chest stopped blooming and closed slowly.


    The middle aged man had loosened the gon from his belt and started drinking. He kept boozing like a tornado on the sea. He never put the gon down and liquor kepting out of it.


    He was Immeasurable!


    The States of Distantless and Immeasurable were both great Divine Abilities above the Five States of cultivation. Throughout the history of thousands of years in Taoism, the Abbey Dean was only one to reach both states. Today Long Qing met the second one.


    In front of such a high ranking cultivator, Long Qing realized there was no point for him to stand up. Therefore he calmed down and reasoned this must be the very important guest his master had mentioned.


    ¡°Sir, pleasee in.¡±


    ...


    ...


    The Drunkard walked into the stone cottage with one hand holding his gon and the other behind his back. He looked around the stone cottage and mocked, ¡°It has been so long. I didn¡¯t know the West-Hill was on such a decline.¡±


    His voice sounded elderly, like antique bricks and bronze rubbing against each other. It pierced right into everyone¡¯s heart.


    Long Qing turned pale. He felt his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow shaking or even copsing upon those words. He tried hard to take a deep breath and applied his extremely firm psyche to barely keep his Taoist Heart, his Ocean of Qi, and Mountain of Snow.


    The Drunkard turned to Long Qing. It was to his surprise that this young priest was able to calm down himself. He said, ¡°I take back my previousments. The young people in Taoism were better than I had expected.¡±


    The Abbey Dean was already paralyzed but he was never affected by the Drunkard¡¯s voice. He looked at Long Qing and smiled with content. ¡°He have made great progress these years.¡±


    The Drunkard looked to the middle-aged priest behind the wheelchair and praised, ¡°You are even better.¡±


    The middle-aged priest smiled and said, ¡°Thank you.¡±


    The middle-aged priest looked too ordinary for anyone to remember. He was easily drowned in the darkness and had no fame at all in Taoism or in the world. The Hierarch and Long Qing were only aware that he was a disciple of the Abbey Dean and already reached the state of Knowing Destiny. They did not even know his name.


    He seemed to be a nobody. However, since the Abbey Dean was forced by the Headmaster to stay away from thend and confined to the South Sea, he was the one who actually ran the Zhishou Abbey or even Taoism. He had done so much quietly and calmly throughout the years. How could he be ordinary? Others could not tell the difference, but for someone like the Drunkard, he was obviously extraordinary.


    The middle-aged priest did not care about worldly fame, but being a cultivator, how could he truly be freed from vanity? Therefore, he was very pleased by the praise from the Drunkard.


    ¡°Of course, you are still the best.¡± The Drunkard turned to the Abbey Dean in the wheelchair and said, ¡°I have to admit if you were still in your full glory, the Butcher and myself together would barely be your match.¡±


    The Abbey Dean smiled at that. ¡°Those are all gone.¡±


    Then the Drunkard suddenly turned the conversation. ¡°That¡¯s why I don¡¯t understand. You are a wastrel now, so how dare you to invite me here? Aren¡¯t you afraid that I¡¯m going to kill you?


    Although he had praised Long Qing and the middle-aged priest standing in the darkness, that was nothing butpliment. He could still easily the three of them as long as he wanted to. ¡°If I am not wrong, Haotian should have visited the two of you in the small town. That was why you showed up outside the City of Chang¡¯an. That was also why we, Taoism, had a break. We are grateful for that.¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked at him with a smile, ¡°Then why would you kill me?¡±


    He put it clearly. Both of us are working for Haotian now, so why would you kill me?


    The Drunkard looked into his eyes and said, ¡°If you were not a wastrel today, you probably would be of equal importance. However, you are nobody now. Why would Haotian even care if I were to kill all of you?¡±


    The Abbey Dean said calmly, ¡°If the gate to the Divine Kingdom could not be reopened, you will eventually be a nobody too.¡±


    The Drunkard was slightly shocked. He did not expect that a wastrel like the Abbey Dean would be aware of such a secret. He said with a cold voice, ¡°Someone like you can contribute nothing to those heavenly matters.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°It was said when the Chief Monk gave the preaching, there were countless ants flying up as they bathed in the sunlight. Although they couldn¡¯t reach the sky, they became countless ming spots as if that was the gate to Nirvana.¡±


    The Chief Monk he mentioned was definitely the Chief Monk of Scripture of the Xuankong Temple. The Drunkard understood what he meant and frowned. ¡°You are so conceited. How could Haotian considered you pious?¡±


    The Abbey Dean answered, ¡°Haotian¡¯s perception of human beings would never change no matter what we do.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°I¡¯m not Haotian and I do change. Now I want to kill you even more.¡±


    The Abbey Dean asked, ¡°Why do you want to kill me?¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°Because your conceit makes me afraid. I¡¯m the Drunkard. Do I even need a reason to kill?¡±


    The Abbey Dean continued calmly, ¡°You don¡¯t need to pretend to be mad. That¡¯s not going to work with me. I know you are neither Ke Haoran nor Liu Bai. You are just addicted to alcohol.¡±


    The Drunkard was a bit stunned and said, ¡°So what kind of person do you think I am?


    ¡°Addiction to alcohol is indulgence, and addiction to meat is greed. The two of you have been cultivating on human desires. The human desires are overwhelming and indestructible. You survived the previous Ever Night just because you cultivated on these desires. Therefore, you are cowards. The stronger your desire for survival is, the more fearful of death you be.¡± The Abbey Dean said to him with a smile, ¡°You said previously you have not been to West-Hill for a long while. I know that was a lie. Actually you¡¯ve nevere to West-Hill because you are afraid. You are afraid of being found by Haotian.¡±


    The Drunkard became stern.


    The Abbey Dean continued, ¡°In the teaching of our Haotian Taoism, the human desires are our original sins. You and the Butcher are steeped in your sins. Now that Haotian has promised to cleanse your sins, I suppose you should no longer be as cowardly as you used to be.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°But what you are going to do is against her will.¡±


    The Abbey Dean shook his head and said, ¡°You are wrong.¡±


    The Drunkard asked, ¡°Why am I wrong?¡±


    ¡°Taking the human desires and the cause and effect concept taught by Buddhism into consideration, we would be able to see through truth of most things and what every human being actually desire for. Xiong Chumo sought for glory, magnificence, and the worldly fame. Therefore he cared nothing but his power.¡± He nced at Long Qing and turned back to the Drunkard, ¡°You and the Butcher want immortality, while Haotian wants to return to the Divine Kingdom. She might forget that, but we, as her followers, should constantly remind her. If she could no longer remember it, then we have to find a way to send her back.¡±


    The Drunkard asked, ¡°So that¡¯s not against her will?¡±


    The Abbey Dean answered, ¡°Correct.¡±


    The Drunkard kept quiet for a long while. Then he looked at the wise Abbey Dean and sighed. ¡°I never met anyone as weird as you. Please excuse me for not going to keep yourpany.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said calmly, ¡°You have to stay on my side.¡±


    The Drunkard mocked, ¡°Throughout these years, the Taoists dared not to mess with me. Now it has changed, huh?¡±


    The Abbey Dean asked, ¡°How about Haotian?¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°Her telling me that in person ispletely different from you specting her thoughts. Not to mention that your spection is probably against her will.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°You could go take a look and help me send a message.¡±


    The Drunkard frowned and asked, ¡°Send a message to whom?¡±


    The Abbey Dean exined slowly, ¡°I can¡¯t travel much now. The way to the west is too long. I can only rely on you.¡±


    The Drunkard finally confirmed what he had spected. He turned dramatically and shouted, ¡°That¡¯s extremely audacious! There¡¯s no chance to win! Even if she is much weaker now, she is after all Haotian. Throughout the cyclic existence of the human world, all those who dared to disobey Heaven all died. Even the Headmaster lost to her. How could someone like you and me win?¡±


    ¡°You are wrong. This is not disobeying. It is ...¡± The Abbey Dean said calmly, ¡°To proceed on behalf of Heaven.¡±


    To proceed on behalf of Heaven ¡ª what if Heaven would not speak or approve? In that case, how could they proceed? By floating on the sea?


    Yet none of those would be the Abbey Dean¡¯s choice.


    He was extremely firm. If Heaven could not do this, then I will proceed on behalf of Heaven. As long as I pursue and execute Heaven¡¯s Rules, no one could im me wrong, not even Heaven.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 926 - Life is A Cultivation

    <h4>Chapter 926: Life is A Cultivation</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The Drunkard looked at the Abbey Dean as if he was looking at an idiot, and said with a trembling voice, ¡°You are out of your mind.¡±


    The Abbey Dean answered with a smile, ¡°On the contrary, I¡¯ve never been so sober.¡±


    The Drunkard furrowed his eyebrows even further and asked, ¡°If, and I mean if, she could never return to Haotian¡¯s Divine Kingdom and you had chosen to proceed on her behalf, what would happen to this world?¡±


    The door of the stone cottage was still opened.


    The Abbey Dean stared into the blue sky above the teau and said, ¡°The would will remain unchanged because everyone, including you, seems to have forgotten one thing.¡±


    The Drunkard asked seriously, ¡°What¡¯s that?¡±


    The Abbey Dean raised his right hand and pointed to the sky, ¡°Haotian is in the human world, but Haotian is also above in Heaven.¡±


    The Drunkard finally understood and became silent.


    ¡°I knew you would agree to my suggestion.¡± The Abbey Dean continued calmly, ¡°If she were to stay in the human world forever, then how could you be immortal?¡±


    The Drunkard was confused and asked, ¡°You said just now to see through this world is to know what everyone really wants. If what I want is immortality, then what do you want?¡±


    ¡°I want eternity,¡± said the Abbey Dean.


    The Drunkard pondered on his words and felt his infinite desire.


    The Abbey Dean continued, ¡°Eternity means no change. Any change will lead to an end.¡±


    That was the fundamental conflict between the Academy and Taoism. For someone like the Drunkard, it was an obvious fact. He frowned and asked, ¡°Even if it were to be like a pool of stagnant water?¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°You and I live here. Our numerous predecessors and descendants had lived and will live here. There are lush trees and blooming peach blossoms. Who would say it is like a pool of stagnant water?¡±


    The Drunkard doubted. ¡°That probably won¡¯t convince the Headmaster.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°Even if it were to be a pool of stagnant water, it is eternity.¡±


    The Drunkard asked, ¡°I want immortality because I want to be alive. Is eternity really so important to you?¡±


    The Abbey Dean said after a long pause, ¡°Ever since I have been enlightened, I have been thinking of that question. I¡¯ve found that I cannot ept a world without eternity.¡±


    It became quiet again inside the stone cottage. His voice resounded continuously as if it was trying to awake every bird in Peach Mountain and every flower around the Divine Halls.


    ¡°If there will be an end to everything, then what is the significance of every existence throughout time? Whenever Ie across that possibility, I feel the most profound despair. Don¡¯t you find that depairing?¡± the Abbey Dean asked the Drunkard seriously. In the meantime, he was also asking his disciple and Long Qing as well as everyone in the world, including the Headmaster and those from the Academy.


    The Drunkard found it bitter. He did not know how to answer because when he thought carefully, he sensed the most profound horror hidden in this question, which prevented him from thinking further. He asked instead, ¡°How about yourself? What if you could not find eternity together with Heaven and Earth?¡±


    The Abbey Dean answered, ¡°Everyone is a part of this Heaven and Earth. If Heaven and Earth is eternal, we will definitely be eternal.¡±


    The Drunkard asked, ¡°Even without your own consciousness?¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°It is alreadyforting enough to know that eternity exists.¡±


    The Drunkard shook his head with disagreement. ¡°Your thinking has already deviated from the true meaning of life.¡±


    The Abbey Dean smiled and asked, ¡°Isn¡¯t that the reason why we cultivate?¡±


    ...


    ...


    Life is a cultivation.


    Ning Que could not remember where he saw that sentence, but he remembered it because he found it very sophisticated and extremely magnificent.


    While he toured around the world with Sangsang, they crossed many rivers and mountains and met many strangers as well as acquaintances. He suddenly realized this saying was very substantial. Then he found out he might have mistaken it with another saying ¡ª life is a journey.


    The sceneries changed constantly on their journey and so did their sentiments. Leaving Linkang, they crossed the Great Swamp, traveled along the southern part of Yan Kingdom and entered the territory of Tang Empire. Ning Que suddenly regained his good mood ¡ª they finally returned home. The green fields looked so charming and even the smell of manure in the wind was not that disgusting.


    People appeared differently when they were in a very good mood. As for Ning Que, he would repeatedly do very simple tasks. It was the only way that he could fully express his happiness.


    He sometimes wrote on the ground with sticks, and sometimes sharpened his sher against the stone, or sang a part of a song repeatedly.


    He sat on the back of the big ck horse and kept Sangsang in his arms. It was a bit hard to hold her tight because of her lofty figure, but that did not affect his good mood at all.


    ¡°Hey Jude,lll...¡±


    It seemed to be a song from his previous life. He could only remember the first line and kept repeating it. There might be some other reason for his good mood. He kept singing and became so happy that even his eyebrows dancing.


    Sangsang had been indifferent until he was only singing that line. She became more and more annoyed and looked gloomy. She looked gloomy for a long time before Ning Que finally noticed that she was unhappy. He got close, looked into her eyes and asked, ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I don¡¯t like being called a ck pig.¡± *(see note)


    Ning Que finally understood why she was unhappy and tried hard to keep himself fromughing. He said, ¡°Your have such fair skin now. Who could call you ck? Don¡¯t be so sensitive, okay?


    Sangsang said, ¡°It was just because you kept thinking of me being dark in the past. That¡¯s why I¡¯m not happy.¡±


    Troubles like misunderstanding song lyrics were merely some episodes along their way. They rode on the big ck horse and continued to the east. They saw the golden rape flowers in the fields and farmers¡¯ cottages in bright colors. They finally came to the City of Chang¡¯an.


    The sky crapping city was unparalleled and magnificent.


    They used to loaded with emotions whenever they saw magnificent cities. Now they were very calm because they had lived here for a long while.


    Ning Que was still a bit excited because he had finally brought Haotian home.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t say I want to go into Chang¡¯an.¡± Sangsang¡¯s words were like dumping freezing water on him. He felt cold from inside out.


    He said after a while, ¡°There¡¯s indeed no reason for you to go to Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Throughout the human world, the only thing that could pose some threat to Haotian was the God-Stunning Array in Chang¡¯an. Even though it was a disabled God-Stunning Array, she was still on the edge.


    They came to the Farewell Pavilion by the road and looked at the magnificent city from some distance. He asked after a long while, ¡°If this is not the end of our journey, then where should we go?¡±


    Sangsang replied, ¡°If this is the end of your journey, you can leave now.¡±


    Ning Que did not say anything. He did not realize until they came to the City of Chang¡¯an, that the battle between Haotian and humans was far from ending. Their journey should continue.


    He could have threatened her by trying to kill himself and forced her to get into Chang¡¯an. However, he did not want to because that would make no sense and could not be imed as a victory.


    The day when Sangsang would enter the City of Chang¡¯an voluntarily would be his day of victory.


    The Farewell Pavilion was located a few miles away from the city.


    Ning Que looked at miles away, as if he could see the city wall made of ck bricks. Then he saw the gate of the city slowly opened. A schr-looking man walked out of the city holding a young boy in his hand.


    This man was still wearing a cotton-padded gown in the spring. It must be his Eldest Brother.


    The Academy guarded the Tang Empire. Therefore ,the young boy in his hand was definitely the young emperor of Tang Empire.


    The young emperor was handsome and dignified, but he looked a bit confused at the moment.


    ¡°Master, why do we need to get out of the imperial pce today?¡±


    The Eldest brother answered, ¡°Because I want you to meet two people.¡±


    The young emperor looked afar but could not find anyone. He knew that ever since ten days ago, the City of Chang¡¯an had been more intensely guarded. Ever sincest night, they even closed the gates and did not allow anyone to enter or exit.


    ¡°Master, who are we meeting with? Does that have anything to do with the tension in the imperial pce? Are they our enemies? Are they from Taoism or is that the national master of the Golden Tribe?¡±


    The Eldest Brother answered with a smile, ¡°They are two interesting people. The woman is learning how to be a human being, or not to be one. Meanwhile the man is on a more difficult assignment. His task is to make her fall in love with human beings and teach her to be a one.¡±


    Recalling those rumors he heard in the imperial pce, the young emperor seemed to understand and became anxious. He instinctively held his Master tighter and asked, ¡°Is the Youngest Uncle back?¡±


    The Eldest Brother answered, ¡°Yes. Your Youngest Uncle is back. Your father and mother had entrusted the City of Chang¡¯an and the Tang Empire to him. He never lets anyone down. He even left behind his own life and those he treasured, only to strive harder for fulfilling his task.¡±


    The young emperor pulled his hand from his master¡¯s hand and made a serious salute to afar.


    The Eldest Brother looked to the Farewell Pavilion and thought, Youngest Brother, I brought His Majesty here for you. Chang¡¯an is safe as usual. There¡¯s nothing to be worried about. You just need to try your best but never push it too hard or forget your original aspiration.


    He held the young emperor in his hand and walked back into the city.


    The gate was not closed. Dozens of strong men wearing ck clothes pulled out a ck carriage from the city. They had to use extremely strong ropes and pulled really hard to get it out.


    It took them a long while to get the ck carriage to the Farewell Pavilion.


    The Fourth Master Qi led his dozens of nsmen from the Fish-Dragon Gang to the pavilion and kowtowed to Sangsang. Then he smiled at Ning Que and headed back to Chang¡¯an.


    The Grand Secretary, Zeng Jing, and his wife had alsoe with the crowd.


    Zeng Jing¡¯s wife came to the Farewell Pavilion. She feltplicated while looking at Sangsang and wondered how her daughter had be such a lofty woman.


    Ning Que said to Sangsang, ¡°You have to pay back the worldly bonds.¡±


    Sangsang turned to Zeng Jing¡¯s wife and said emotionlessly, ¡°I grant you immortality.¡±


    Ning Que was speechless. He mocked silently, What do you think immortality is? A cabbage?


    Zeng Jing¡¯s wife did not get her words clearly but felt heartbroken upon hearing the familiar voice. She took some steps forward and sensed her familiar smell.


    She got hold of Sangsang¡¯s sleeves and held her tight in her arms. She cried with trembling voice, ¡°My child, what had happened to you?¡±


    Sangsang frown and felt annoyed.


    Ning Que looked at her and thought, If you havee to the human world for a cultivation, then being hugged in the Farewell Pavilion and seeing her crying was an inevitable part of your journey.


    Sangsang knew what he was thinking about, not by guessing or reasoning, she just knew. She heard his silent voice then calmed down.


    She let herself be held by Zeng Jing¡¯s wife and her warm tears fell on her flowery green dress. However, she still looked indifferent. No one knew if she even felt anything.


    ...


    ...


    * Note: The pronunciation of ¡°Hey Jude¡± sounds like ¡°ck pig¡± in Chinese. /hei/ ¨C ck; /d?u/ ¨C pig.

 Chapter 927 - In the Human World (I)

    <h4>Chapter 927: In the Human World (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The Farewell Pavilion was meant for farewells. Zeng Jing held his wife in his arms and tried tofort her. She turned to look at Sangsang again and again with tearful eyes and could not bear to be parted from her.


    Sangsang still looked indifferent. She lowered her head to look at the stains of tears left by Zeng Jing¡¯s wife. The stains immediately disappearedpletely.


    Ning Que looked at the faraway magnificent city and wondered, How could I find out a perfect way in which I would never let down the people in Chang¡¯an or betray you?


    On the threshing ground in a few miles to the south of the city, the Drunkard slowly put down his gon. He looked at a distance, with aplex of emotions of sadness and confusion.


    On the teau of Peach Mountain numerous miles to the south of the city, the Abbey Dean sat on his wheelchair and looked into the blue sky outside the rock window. He sighed and said, ¡°It seems Haotian does need our help,¡±


    Long Qing asked, ¡°What should we do?¡±


    The Abbey Dean answered, ¡°Haotian knows clearly what she needs to do. What we should do is to get her well prepared for what¡¯s going to happen, for her destiny.¡±


    The gates of Chang¡¯an were firmly closed. There was no one in the surrounding fields. It looked clear, but no one knew that many were actually watching the Farewell Pavilion to the south of the city.


    Sangsang knew that many people were watching her and waiting for her decision. She did not care because she was Haotian. She did not need to exin to anyone for whatever she did.


    The big ck horse automatically set the heavy ck carriage on himself.


    Getting into the carriage, Ning Que found that the Academy had prepared everything he needed. He took out something from a hidden drawer and inserted it into a crossing ling on the wall of the carriage. A very dim clear light appeared and the array set on the walls of the carriage was immediately activated. The iron carriage became as light as a feather.


    When Sangsang got into the carriage, he was collecting his belongings: a ck sword case, a ck de and a ck umbre. Being inside an iron ck carriage, it was indeed like being in the night.


    The ck carriage proceeded on the straight road. It passed the graves of Yan Se and Wei Guangming, went through the fields of green reeds like wheat seedlings in spring, and arrived at the grassy meadows.


    Beyond the grassy meadows there was a sky reaching mountain. In front of the mountain there was a unique and elegant building. In front of the building there was a newly restored archway. Sonorous sounds of reading came out from behind the archway.


    ¡°Do you want to go take a look inside the Academy again?¡± Ning Que looked at the familiar building and surroundings and asked Sangsang.


    Sangsang did not answer but shook her head.


    Suddenly the sounds of reading stopped. Remote and melodious music was yed with the Chinese zither and bamboo flute, as if they were expecting a very important guest.


    Ning Que got out of the carriage and saw his Brothers Ximen and Beigong who were respectively holding their zither and flute, his Seventh Sister and other Brothers, Professor Huang He and his female math professor who still wore a blue cloth gown. Somehow he found his eyes welled up with tears.


    Sangsang sat inside the carriage and listened to the music of zither and flute quietly. After a long while, she finally lifted the blue curtain of the carriage and stepped onto the meadow among blossoming trees.


    Many students came out from the Academy and stared curiously and confusedly at the ck carriage on the meadow. They wondered who these people might be as they had awaken the entire Academy.


    They were newly enrolled to the Academy this year. Ning Que knew none of them and none of them knew him. He said to the Fourth Brother, ¡°Hope they will live longer lives.¡±


    During the war against the Tang Empire two years ago, most of the students were either killed or seriously wounded. It did not matter whether they served in the army or in bordering cities. He took Sangsang on this journey around the human world and never gave up despite the pains and tortures he went through, just because he did not want to see that happen again.


    The Fourth Brother looked at him and said, ¡°That is up to you, Youngest Brother.¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Don¡¯t worry Brother, I will do my best.¡±


    The Fourth Brother nodded to him with relief. Then he turned to Sangsang who stood under the blossoming trees and took a deep bow. All of the teachers and students of the Academy followed and bowed deeply.


    Although they were hostile towards Taoism, most Tang people were still Haotian¡¯s followers. Therefore, wherever Sangsang went, people who knew her would perform the most respectful salute and bowed almost to the ground.


    The Academy was after all the Academy. They saluted to Haotian but they would never kneel to her. It was because she used to be one of them, and also because she was an enemy now.


    When they bowed, they could no longer y the zither and flute, and the music was stopped.


    Ximen Weiyang held his zither and stood up with tears in his eyes. He stared at Sangsang and his tears were finally shed. He sighed, ¡°Why are you still alive?¡±


    Sangsang replied emotionlessly, ¡°I will never die.¡±


    The Seventh Sister already ced a flower cloth on the meadow and settled the dishes they prepared on it. Upon hearing this she hastened. ¡°Let them enjoy the meal first. They have a long way to go.¡±


    Like what they had done in Linking in the South Jin Kingdom, people who had ever lived in the Academy always treated dining as the most important matter, even more important than Haotian.


    Interestingly, it seemed Sangsang was still used to the lifestyle at the Back Hill of the Academy. She kept silent but sat down by the flowery cloth as Mu You said.


    Ximen Weiyang wiped his tears and sat down by her side. He picked up the chopsticks and got all the vinegar-soaked cabbage heads into his own bowl. That dish used to be Sangsang¡¯s favorite. He kept pushing them into his mouth without even chewing until it was fully loaded.


    Then he started chewing very hard. The cabbages sounded crispy, but his eyebrows scrunched together. He seemed miserable either because of the sour or some unknown reasons.


    Sangsang was a bit upset and that cheered up Ximen Weiyang. He thought, Although you are Haotian and although you could burn me into ashes with a single thought, there¡¯s no way I can let you enjoy your meal today.


    A farewell meal was not thest meal. It was not necessarily heartbreaking yet in no way pleasant. People from the Academy were worried that they might not be able to see Ning Que again once they leave. Otherwise they would have treated Sangsang with several swords instead of a meal.


    The pic on the meadow among blossoming trees was finished quickly. Sangsang got back into the carriage and the students left. Ning Que chatted with his Brothers and Sisters and was about to set off. Then, his Seventh Sister Mu You dragged him aside and murmured something. Upon her words he furrowed his eyebrows again.


    ¡°Where are we going?¡± Getting into the carriage, he asked Sangsang who seemed to be pretty exhausted.


    Sangsang said, ¡°To the west.¡±


    Ning Que wondered after a pause, ¡°Why is everyone going to the west?¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Is Jun Mo already there?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Second Brother went there for Buddhism. Why do you want to go to the Xuanzong Temple?¡±


    Sangsang gave no exnation.


    Ning Que recalled his sentiments when he was looking at the City of Chang¡¯an from some distance. He seemed to have caught a glimpse of some idea. Is it true that everything has its own destiny? Where can I find a perfect way to not let anyone down?...Could that be Buddhism?


    The iron wheels rolled tenderly on the rocky road among the meadows, making no sounds at all.


    The ck carriage headed west as if they were traveling back in time.


    While Ning Que and Sangsang had just set off, someone had already arrived in the west.


    ...


    ...


    To the very west of the Wilderness, there was a boundless cliff.


    The cliff dived down into the underground with extreme steepness and spanned numerals miles.


    Under the cliff there was a deep Giant Sinkhole. At the bottom of the Giant Sinkhole lied vast fields.


    Right in the middle of the fields there was a magnificent mountain.


    If this mountain was located above the earth, it was probably higher than Tianqi Mountain. However, because it was sunk in the Giant Sinkhole, people standing on the ground level could only see its lush peak.


    Giant ancient trees flourished on the giant peak. Among the luxuriant forest scattered many yellow temples and halls. The collection of those temple and halls was the unknown ce of Buddhism: Xuanzong Temple.


    The Drunkard stood by the cliff and looked at the giant peak afar at his line of sight. He pondered for a long while and looked increasingly solemn.


    In terms of time spent on cultivation, the Buddha started muchter than him and the Butcher. However, as for the influence to the human world and the state they have reached, the Buddha had far surpassed him.


    Just as the Abbey Dean had said, the Drunkard and the Butcher cultivated on human desires. They had reached the highest level that human beings could ever reach. However, the Buddha cultivated on himself. When he achieved nirvana, he had gone beyond the limitations of human beings.


    When the Buddha gave teachings, the Drunkard never came to Xuanzong Temple. After the Buddha¡¯s nirvana, he came twice but never entered, just like how he never entered the Divine Halls of West-Hill.


    He could not help but feel disturbed.


    Looking at the yellow temples and halls scattered in the mountain, he felt even more restless. He seemed to have realized that what the Abbey Dean said had unveiled some impossible truth.


    Some clear but distant sounds of bells came from one of the temples on the peak. The bell sounds prated the dense forest and went beyond the buildings. They traveled all the way through the Giant Sinkhole and the Wilderness and into his ears.


    ...


    ...


    There were two ways from Chang¡¯an to the West Wilderness. One went directly to the west, crossing the Cong Ridge and Yuelun Kingdom then turning northwest west into the West Wilderness. The other went north into the Wilderness first, and then turned to the west.


    Sangsang just said to the west. Ning Que chose the path to the north first because this road had many familiar sceneries and things and he hoped it could somewhat reach to her.


    Going to the north, the ck carriage crossed Hebei Prefecture and entered Min Mountain. They went by the ce where he found Sangsang as an infant and the forest where the old huntsman used to live in. She never showed any sentiments.


    Ning Que did not feel disappointed. He believed that Sangsang would eventually be touched one day and let her humanity ovee her divinity. When she bes a real human, they would sing his songs together.


    Of course they would not sing the ¡°ck pig¡± song, but rather the poem that was written for killing.


    Ning Que kept his optimistic hopes until the carriage crossed North Mountain Road and arrived at the familiar dusty city. Then he realized that everything had changed.


    ...

 Chapter 928 - In the Human World (II)

    <h4>Chapter 928: In the Human World (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    It was alreadyte spring in the Central ins. In the north, it was no longer chilly and even became sweltering hot. The weather had be unpredictable these years, the same as Haotian¡¯s mood.


    Together with the heat came the drought. On the borders of the Wilderness there had always been little rain. Now it became even more dusty. The grass grew perversely on the grasnd but it didn¡¯t look good in the dust.


    It was even more dusty in the City of Wei. The northwest winds had left obvious traces on the y walls. Dusts were carried everywhere. If it was in the past, the dust-covered old soldiers would have been cursing on top of their shabby barracks. General Ma would have been sighing over his dusty liquor in the bowl he was holding.


    It was still dusty, but these people were nowhere to be seen. Damages of the war from two years ago could still be seen around the corners of the walls. Winds could cut the walls but they could never erase the ck blood stains. The leaning well with bitter well water had been filled with sand. The shabby barracks had already copsed. The small city was abandoned. They could see no one in the city.


    On the contrary, outside the City of Wei there were plenty of people. Dozens of yurts stood steadily in the sandstorm. The savages enjoyed living in the wild. Praying and chanting could be heard from time to time.


    Standing under the zing sun and in the piercing winds, Ning Que became even paler. He stared at the dead city where it used to be his home in profound silence. No one could tell what he was thinking about.


    Sangsang seemed more cheerful than before. She sat by the window in the carriage and looked at the yurts. She listened to the hearty and pure chantings and felt extremely calm.


    Taoism had striven for the years and finally converted the most powerful n in the Wilderness, the Golden Tribe. They were Haotian¡¯s followers now.


    They worshiped Tengri, namely Haotian, and therefore Sangsang.


    The winds gradually disappeared outside the City of Wei. A piece of cloud covered the zing sun and brought refreshing breezes from deep in the Wilderness. The savages came out of their yurts and indulged themselves in the rarely pleasant weather. They smiled with joy. An elderly even kneeled to kiss the ground in gratitude of Haotian¡¯s bestowal.


    Ning Que turned to Sangsang and asked, ¡°Did you send the cloud?¡±


    Sangsang did not answer. She lifted the blue curtain and stepped out of the carriage. She walked across the yurts and enjoyed the worship from the savages. Her eyebrows unfolded and the flowers on her blue dress bloomed.


    After leaving the Divine Halls, they had been to the Great River, Lanke Temple, South Jin Kingdom and the Tang Empire. She never felt like being in her own kingdom until now.


    The sun gradually set but it did not take away the heat. More savages came out of their yurts. The women started preparing their dinners while the men piled up firewoods and set up for a party in the night. It was a very lively scene.


    No one could see him and Sangsang.


    The savages around the yurts suddenly went into a hail. Ning Que turned and found a group of ck horsesing from the south of the City of Wei, driven by dozens of cavalrymen of the Golden Tribe.


    Upon seeing this he felt even moreplicated.


    Those were no wild horses. They were the best warhorses the Tang Empire had raised in the Xiangwan in.


    The Tang Empire went short of warhorses and could no long find enough supply. ording to the West Hill¡¯s n, the Tang Empire would ran out of warhorses in three years. Even if they couldunch another war, the Tang Empire was doomed to be defeated.


    In another word, since the moment the Tang Empire ceded Xiangwan in, there was no chance for the empire to reim its former glory.


    There were about a thousand horsesing. It was thest bunch of trophies they acquired. The savages were definitely excited. The circle of firewood was instantly erged. They killed morembs. Some high-ranked people sent their ves to get numerous bottles of fine wine and collected another round of hail.


    The night fell. The campfire was set and everyone came out from their yurts. They circled by the campfire and started feasting and drinking. After getting a bit drunk, they started wrestling. Young boys and girls passionately danced in pairs.


    Ning Que stood outside the crowd and calmly looked at them. In fact, he had tried really hard not to look at the destroyed and abandoned City of Wei.


    The more cheerfully the savages celebrated, the more miserable the dusty city looked. The happier the savages were, the sadder the dusty city seemed. The more vigorous their campfire turned, the more outrageous the dusty city became.


    The big ck horse sensed his fury and lowered his head gently. Sangsang finished her cruise and came back by the carriage. She asked, ¡°Are you enraged?¡±


    Ning Que answered calmly, ¡°Yes. I am enraged.¡±


    Sangsang kept asking, ¡°Why?¡±


    Ning Que did not look at her and said, ¡°This is a human emotion. It has nothing to do with you.¡±


    Sangsang continued, ¡°I am not a human being but I can analyze.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You will never understand.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°You can exin it to me.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I am definitely enraged because of these savages, but I am even more enraged due to your indifference. It makes me sad and even start to doubt myself.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Why should I be enraged as well?¡±


    Ning Que turned to her and said with a cold voice after a long pause, ¡°You used to live here.¡±


    Sangsang remained unchanged and said, ¡°I used to live in many ces.¡±


    Ning Que looked into her eyes and continued, ¡°The people in the City of Wei.. they used to treasure you so much.¡±


    Sangsang looked at the abandoned dusty city and remained silent for a while. Then she pointed at the celebrating savages by the campfire and said, ¡°They love me too.¡±


    Ning Que tried to control his anger and asked, ¡°How could that be the same?¡±


    Sangsang answered calmly, ¡°They are all my people. I treat them equally.¡±


    Ning Que could no longer hold his anger and thundered, ¡°If you have not be an idiot, you should know clearly why they died... They died for you!¡±


    Sangsang still showed no sentiments at all. Her voice was still as cold as her expression, or rather, she had no expressions at all. She seemed extremely cold-hearted. ¡°How about every war they fought other than this one? Throughout the years, humans have been ughtering each other under my name. Do I need to be responsible for every war they haveunched?¡±


    Ning Que looked again into her eyes and said, ¡°You said so yourself, other than this one.¡±


    He did not say anything further and got onto the carriage. He whipped harshly in the wind and scared away the cooling winds and lights from the campfire.


    The carriage passed by the yurts and stopped again.


    The moon was not bright and hung above like a hook tonight. Stars studded on the night sky and shedded scattering lights on the Wilderness. The lights slightly brightened up the dark fields and a huge block of rocks.


    Dozens of wooden stands were erected among the rocks. Decayed and dried bodies were ced on the stands. ording to their ripped clothes, they were definitely Tang soldiers.


    Ning Que could not figure out whether it was a unt by the Golden Tribe after the war or they were the spy-cavalrymen that the Tang army sent outst year but were arrested and tortured to death.


    He looked extremely calm, almost frosting.


    Upon a piercing sound, he pulled his de out of the sheath and hacked to the block from a dozen of miles away. The de chopped the air silently but an indistinct chilling whistle of the Vermilion Bird was heard.


    The block of rocks was divided into two piles upon a thump.


    A zing me was set off from his de andnded on the rocks. In an instant, the wooden stands and the corpses of Tang soldiers were burnt into the purest ashes.


    Ning Que put his de back to the sheath. The carriage carried on. He did not get into the carriage but sat on the shafts instead. He listened to the sounds of wheels rolling over the grass and looked into the darkness silently.


    After a long while, Sangsang¡¯s voice was heard from inside the carriage. ¡°I thought you were going to kill all those people outside the City of Wei or burn them slowly to death.¡±


    Ning Que did not turn to her and asked indifferently, ¡°Would you stop me?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    Ning Que scorned, ¡°Is there anything you Haotian don¡¯t know?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Because there are things I don¡¯t want to predict now.¡±


    Ning Que visualized the handsome boys and charming girls by the campfire and calmed down gradually. He even spared a smile. ¡°I have told you when we were in the imperial pce of Chang¡¯an, in Qinghe Prefecture and in many other ces. Everyone of them will die, with no exceptions. Therefore, I¡¯m not in a hurry.¡±


    The carnival by the campfire, the dancing pairs of young boys and girls, the pious elderly and muddled teenage who just learned to ride ¡ª if all these beautiful existences were destroyedpletely, what kind of charm it would bring?


    Sangsang¡¯s voice became a bit chilling, ¡°Do you think I will allow you to do that?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°That is why I will defeat you first and then kill them all.¡±


    ...


    ...


    This was a journey of tracking back. From Lanke Temple to the City of Chang¡¯an was one chapter of their past. From the City of Wei to the west was another. It was the same group of two people with a ck horse and a ck carriage. However, it used to be a cheerful journey with clouds following them from above and birds singing along their way. Whereas today there was nothing but silence.


    After they left the City of Wei, for some unknown reasons Ning Que became very quiet. He seldom talked to Sangsang and stared nkly at the fields for most of the time.


    When they passed by Shubi Lake, he had originally nned to stay overnight and let Sangsang relive their past. Then, he suddenly changed his mind and carried on that night.


    Sangsang knew that he was in a mood, but she did not care. At least it seemed to Ning Que that she did not care. Indeed she did have more important matters to care about.


    Haotian could predict anything in this world. She knew that their journey would lead to a satisfying end. Due to some thoughts she came across when she was pondering in the vast fields between Heaven and Earth, she confirmed again that there was one thing she could not predict.


    It was because she could not predict it that she had to go and see for herself. When she finished touring the human world, she would like to see the people and things that are beyond the human world. Then she should finally leave.


    ...

 Chapter 929

    <h4>Chapter 929: Questioning Heaven in the Morass, Collecting Things Under the Jade Tree</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ning Que was quiet because he was disappointed and angry. Sangsang had always been quiet. She became more quiet because ever since they left the dwelling of the savages, there was nothing but vast wilderness along their way. They were getting further away from human habitation and further away from the human world, although in different ways.


    They crossed the Wilderness via the same route they used to take. When summer came, the ck carriage arrived at the Morass. They sensed the smell of rot and damp and saw the fog. If it was in the past, then Ning Que would have been worried about the invisible dangers hidden in the marsh and fog. However, he couldn¡¯t care less now because he knew that Haotian was right here in the carriage. It was also because he knew who the master of the Morass was.


    The ck carriage entered the fog, glowing with warmth. The glow came from Sangsang¡¯s body. It was not zing but very firm. No matter how thick and moist the fog became, it could never stop the light from glowing and spreading out. In a blink of eye the fog around the carriage was cleared out. Blue sky appeared above and everything in the Morass was unveiled.


    There was slush everywhere. The water seemed very shallow with green moss floating on top. Numerous deepgoons hid underneath. No ordinary human beings could get out alive from the Morass.


    This was nothing for Ning Que and Sangsang. The ck carriage was as light as a feather. The wheels rolled across the water without making any ripple or catching a single piece of moss.


    The poisonous serpents in the ponds and the monsters in the por forest were peeping at their carriage from afar. Though they could not sense Haotian¡¯s Divine Power due to theirck of intelligence, they instinctively felt the fear and did not dare toe close. The big ck horse was still vignt as it did not want to be bitten by any of the creatures.


    Ning Que¡¯s de suddenly started burning and a scarlet me ran out of the sheath. It turned into a scarlet Vermillion Bird posing in front of the carriage and was whistling harshly toward somewhere afar in the fog.


    The Vermilion Bird was the killing talisman of the God-Stunning Array. Serpents or monsters would have never awake it. There must be a much more powerful enemy. It continued to whistle to something in the fog afar and seemed very anxious.


    After entering the Morass, it had been safe and quiet. Ning Que felt like being an ass in the lion¡¯s skin, but now he could not refrain from worrying as the Vermilion Bird became so anxious.


    Sangsang was not anxious at all but she found the Vermilion Bird¡¯s whistling annoying and piercing. She reached out through the blue curtain and got hold of its neck. The whistling was stopped abruptly.


    The Vermilion Bird was a Divine Talisman on top of the Knowing Destiny State. It had ovee its fear in the battle in Chang¡¯an and became even more proud and confident after attacking the Abbey Dean. It would never surrender to such a defeat, but being held in Sangsang¡¯s hand, it did not dare to struggle, and looked pitiful with its eyes darting around.


    ttering sounds appeared from deep inside the fog. Only after a short while did the ttering be sharper and quaked the entire marsh like a storm.


    Ning Que was looking to that direction wearily but suddenly felt rxed upon hearing thundering tters. It was because he knew who was approaching.


    Without the fog, everything in the Morass was distinctly visible. When the fog afar was dispersed by a ck shadow, a crowd of countless wild horses rushed out and ttered intensively towards them.


    In front of the crowd, there were eight rarely seen steeds pulling an extremely shabby carriage. Inside the carriage sat a swarthyzy donkey with snow white lips.


    There came Gaga.


    Lazy as it was, it should have been lying idly in its imperial carriage ande after the crowd. Carrying on the Academy¡¯s tradition of being gluttons, it should have been indulging itself in a feast of those juicy yellow fruits and paid no attention to whatever happened out there in the world.


    However, Gaga looked very different today. It paid no attention to the basket of fruits in its carriage and its forehoofs had smashed the rotten wood shafts in front of the carriage. With ming eyes, it led thebative crowd of wild horse.


    Sangsang lifted the curtain and stepped to the front of the carriage and looked at the horrifying group of wild horses approaching. Then she reached out and caught a bout of roaring wind while her blue dress swung in the wind.


    Then she waved her hand. It did not disturb the clouds but formed a storm in the Morass. The stagnant water in thegoon sshed out and scatter the moss around.


    The crowd of wild horses was startled by the Sublime Heavenly Power and could no longer listen to orders. They became chaotic. The eight steeds were blown down by the wind and fell in the marsh, with mud all over their bodies.


    The shabby carriage felt onto the ground and was smashed into pieces. The basket of yellow fruits was crushed into juice and mash and the ck donkey was thrown out into the air.


    Heehaw! Heehaw! Its furious crying resounded throughout Heaven and Earth. With its shadow shrinking rapidly, the furious ck donkey fell from the sky and towards Sangsang¡¯s head.


    Sangsang looked above and reached out her right hand again.


    She found the Vermilion Bird¡¯s whistling annoying so she stopped it by catching its neck. Now she found the donkey¡¯s heehaw ugly and tried to do the same to it.


    The ck donkey had enjoyed his life in the Morass for years and became chubby and strong. Its neck was pretty stocky so it was hard to be caught with one hand. Falling down from high above, it be even more furious and had prepared for a good kick to Sangsang with its forehoofs. How could she reach to his neck first?


    For Sangsang there was no need for reasoning or exnation. She could do anything she wanted, such as picking up a piece of could from the sky and getting hold of a bout of roaring wind. She could definitely catch that ck donkey.


    She got hold of the ck donkey by its neck and lifted it up in front of her. No matter how furious Gaga was, it could no longer make a single sound. It goggled at her and kept kicking, which looked very funny.


    ¡°You are no match for her. Quit trying.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the ck donkey and tried tofort him. He knew why Gaga was furious. It was his Youngest Uncle¡¯s donkey. How could it be fond of Haotian?


    The ck donkey had traveled around the world with Ke Haoran and formed its solitary, upright, irritable and arrogant character. It was in no way like Ning Que¡¯s big ck horse who had inherited his impudence. Hisforting did not work and it kept kicking its hoofs. I¡¯ll give everything today for a kick on your face, you hussy!


    Though it had no idea what hussy meant, it was sure that was a dirty word.


    ...


    ...


    Despite of its pride, it could do nothing but surrender to this powerful enemy. Being the governor of the Morass, Gaga was still no match for Haotian. Although he inherited the pride from the Youngest Uncle, it also remembered the key technique the Academy had taught ¡ª to surrender when there was no chance of winning and n for revengeter.


    Countless wild horses upied the marsh around them. They have never seen the sun and blue sky in the Morass before, so they all looked above and stayed unmoved, making themselves into a funny scene.


    Only the ck donkey knew it was because the wild horses did not dare to look at it being so wretched. It felt somehow pleased. When Ning Que provided it with some juice of the crashed fruits from the basket, it felt even more pleased. It wondered how it could have wasted its previous years without knowing such a wonderful way of consuming these fruits.


    Ning Que tried hard to put its shabby carriage together and came to the donkey. He took out some ster and applied on its pda fur. Then he murmured something to it and Gaga nodded insincerely. However, he seemed satisfied and smiled to it.


    Getting back to the carriage, he saw Sangsang¡¯s clear bright eyes and realized that she had seen through all his ns. However, it did not bother him because she was bound to know everything and his ns could never be carried out unless he could conquer her.


    Gaga sat back into the shabby carriage and led the group of wild horses toward the fog at the other end of the Morass. It could not avenge his master, but it had tried its best and thus had no regrets.


    Why is it heartbreaking to see the old ck donkey in that carriage? Watching the crowd of wild horse trotting off and the heartbreaking donkey in the dust, Ning Que pondered for a long while and asked, ¡°The Youngest Uncle, what kind of person was he?¡±


    Ke Haoran, the Youngest Uncle was a legend in the Back Hill of Academy and the human world. Ning Que received his legacy but did not know much about him even though he had heard a lot of stories about him.


    What made him decide to draw his sword against Heaven? How did he die? What was he thinking at hisst moment? What happened in the Wilderness back then?


    No one, not even the Headmaster knew the answers to those questions, except for the Youngest Uncle who had passed away and Haotian who was standing right by his side. That was why Ning Que asked.


    Sangsang said after a pause, ¡°He was a maniac.¡±


    Ke Haoran had been referred to as Maniac Ke by themon people. However, if even Haotian agreed that he was a maniac, then it should be considered as the greatest honor and pride for a human being.


    ...


    ...


    Getting out of the Morass, they entered the West Wilderness. Ning Que and Sangsang kept going west. They traveled with no hurry, so when they finally arrived at the heart of the West Wilderness it was already autumn.


    The autumn in the Central ins was fresh, clear, and destely charming. However, in the Wilderness it was nothing but chilling. A snow fall came right after some morning winds.


    There were rolling hills in the deserted fields. A dead tree stood next to a hill with its frosting branches and it looked like a jade sculpture that was made by skillful craftsmen. They shivered in the snowstorm as if they were nodding to wee some visiting friends.


    Ning Que and Sangsang got out of the carriage and came to the dead tree. The branches suddenly shivered more violently and shook off the snow and frost. Then a hole was unveiled on the frozen and firm ground in front of the tree.


    He bent down and collected the things from the hole, and headed back to the carriage. Sangsang followed. The hole in front of the dead tree disappeared immediately and the branches were re-covered by snow and frost. Everything seemed unchanged.


    ...

 Chapter 930 - Stepping on The Mountain Towards The Bodhi Tree

    <h4>Chapter 930: Stepping on The Mountain Towards The Bodhi Tree</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The ck carriage kept going west. Inside the carriage, Ning Que rolled out the ck cloth very carefully, stared at the chessboard and asked, ¡°Why did wee here?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I have to confirm something.¡±


    The chessboard was made of an unknown material. It looked like metal and felt cold and firm. But when Ning Que knocked with his fingers, he did not make any sound.


    It was the chessboard left by the Buddha. Of course it was different.


    Ning Que stared at the chessboard and asked after a pause, ¡°What¡¯s that? Does that have anything to do with the Buddha?¡±


    Sangsang answered, ¡°Yes. I want to know whether he is dead or still alive.¡±


    Ning Que was stunned. He did have wondered if Sangsang was trying to find her way back to the Divine Kingdom via some secret teachings of Buddhism in the Xuankong Temple or if she was about to destroy the temple. However, it never came to him that she was trying to figure out if the Buddha was really dead. Does that mean the Buddha could still be alive?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t understand. The Buddha should have attained nirvana long ago. Hadn¡¯t him?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve told you this when we were at the Lanke Temple. He already died, yet he is still alive.¡±


    Ning Que recalled herments the other day on top of Wa Mountain. She stood in front of the destroyed Buddha statue in the spring rain and said that the Buddha was that cat named Xue.


    He felt ridiculous and did not take it seriously. He could not believe that she did actually think that the Buddha was still alive and hade all the way to the West Wilderness to confirm that.


    Ning Que was very confused. The Buddha had definitely attained nirvana. How could he still be alive?


    ¡°What is nirvana?¡± Sangsang asked.


    Ning Que paused then answered, ¡°Nirvana is the highest state of Buddhism...¡±


    Sangsang said expressionlessly, ¡°If nirvana means death, why don¡¯t they just call it death?¡±


    That was a simple and brutal question. Ning Que could not give an answer because he knew that her question itself had provided with an answer.


    Sangsang looked at the snowy Wilderness outside the carriage and said, ¡°Like your Master, the Buddha also tried to surpass me. He tried to see through me with wisdom but failed. Then he tried to see through the cycle of cause and effect and go beyond that. If someone could surpass time, he would surpass me. But how could anyone defeat the cycle of cause and effect? How could anyone surpass time?¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Therefore?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Therefore the Buddha had hidden himself from me. He is waiting for a perfect chance to wake up.¡±


    A chance was something unpredictable. It might be when she will head back to the Divine Kingdom, or when she will be doomed to stay in the human world and be weaker and weaker. For someone as great as the Buddha, there must be a foresight.


    Ning Que had an idea but was still quite confused. Haotian was all-knowing and almighty. How could she not know whether the Buddha was dead or alive? Powerful as the Headmaster was, he was not able hide from Haotian. It was only because he had integrated himself with the human world that Haotian could no longer identify his mortal figure.


    ¡°I¡¯m indeed all-knowing.¡± Sangsang said, ¡°Therefore I do not understand and have to see it for myself. If the Buddha is still alive, then I will kill him. And thus I will be sure that he is dead.¡± I am not sure about if you are dead or alive, therefore I have to find you. It is fine if you have already died. But if not, I will kill you. Then I can make sure you are no longer alive. What a dictatorial im it was!


    But she was the only one qualified for such ims.


    Ning Que suddenly realized that having such a mighty wife meant that he could only be a househusband. Therefore he voluntarily picked up the ck cloth and started mending the big ck umbre.


    ...


    ...


    Same as in that autumn years ago, Ning Que and Sangsang hade from Lanke Temple to the West Wilderness again. During that time, they came with the help of the Buddha¡¯s Chessboard, whereas now the Buddha¡¯s Chessboard was in their hands.


    In the deserted and cold fields stood a lonely tree.


    The tree trunk was grey and its leaves assembled like a futon in the slight snow. It was the Bodhi Tree.


    There were several slightly sunken spots under the Bodhi Tree. Inside the spots, it was smooth like mirror with no dust, no fallen leaves or snow kes. There was nothing in the spots.


    The Buddha attained nirvana under the Bodhi Tree lying on the side with his eyes closed. That was thest sight of him in the human world.


    The ck carriage stopped at the Bodhi Tree and Ning Que and Sangsang got out.


    There was an elderly monk under the Bodhi Tree.


    He was wearing a bamboo hat and holding a cane. His body connected seamlessly with the ground, as if he was as heavy as mountains and as solid as fields. Even the strongest wind could not move him a bit.


    The elderly monk was not the Buddha, but someone who had attained enlightenment in the human world, the Chief Monk of Scripture of the Xuankong Temple.


    It had been years since Ning Que met the Chief Monk in Chaoyang City. He was one of the most powerful men Ning Que had ever met. Probably only the Chief Monk and the Abbey Dean could rank second to the Headmaster. Therefore he felt a bit nervous to be in front of the Chief Monk.


    The Chief Monk of Scripture looked at Sangsang instead of Ning Que. It seemed he felt aplex of sentiments, with somepassion and sympathy, but mostly determination.


    Sangsang wanted to see the trace of the Buddha¡¯s attainment of nirvana under the Bodhi Tree.


    But the Chief Monk was sitting there under the Bodhi Tree. How could she see anything if he would not budge?


    Even the Eldest and the Second Brother in their heydays could not have defeated the Chief Monk of Scripture. Ning Que would never imagine that he could ovee this powerful figure by himself.


    It was true. The Chief Monk of Scripture was like an invisible yet steepest and most magnificent mountain on earth. His feet seemed to be rooted into the fields and his cane became a giant tree in the mountain.


    ¡°Please allow us, your honor,¡± Ning Que said.


    The Chief Monk asked calmly, ¡°Why?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°We would like to see the Bodhi Tree.¡±


    The Chief Monk sighed slightly and said, ¡°The Bodhi Tree is not a tree.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°We are not monks. Please don¡¯t talk to us like that.¡±


    The Chief Monk continued, ¡°Even if it was a tree, it belongs to the Xuankong Temple.¡±


    Sangsang asked abruptly, ¡°Is the name of Xuankong Temple carved on the tree?¡±


    That was an unreasonable question. She sounded like a naughty kid trying to rob a toy from someone else. The Chief Monk of Scripture would have never expected Haotian to talk like that and he was stuck.


    The Chief Monk of Scripture of Xuankong Temple was on top of the cultivation world. However, in Sangsang¡¯s perception, he was merely an ordinary human being. Even if he had blended into the fields, he was nothing but a hulking rock.


    Sangsang walked toward the Bodhi Tree.


    Ning Que became even more nervous.


    Since Liu Bai challenged her at Peach Mountain with his sword, it was the second time that Haotian was confronted by one of the most powerful humans in the world.


    The Chief Monk closed his eyes gently and chose not to look at the approaching Sangsang.


    He sat under the tree like a mountain. The mountain was deeply rooted into the ground while reaching high beyond the clouds into the sky. Even if Haotian hade to the human world, how could she ovee him?


    Sangsang walked toward the Bodhi Tree and stepped on the Chief Monk.


    Her feet stepped on the Chief Monk¡¯s knees.


    The Chief Monk was not lofty but rather skinny, but she was giant and plump.


    She stepped on the Chief Monk¡¯s body as if a white elephant was stepping onto a delicate rockery in a garden.


    It looked ridiculous and overwhelming.


    When her feet on the Chief Monk¡¯s body, the rockery turned into a real mountain.


    The mountain was extremely magnificent.


    However, she did not care and carried on. Her left foot was ced on the Chief Monk¡¯s shoulder.


    Despite the height of this mountain, it only took her three steps to mount the peak.


    When her blue embroidered shoes touched the bamboo hat, the earth started quaking and clouds started darting around.


    She stood on top of the Chief Monk¡¯s head with her hands on the back, and looked quietly at the Bodhi Tree in front of her as well as the Xuankong Temple afar.


    It was as if she was enjoying a beautiful scenery on the peak.


    It was weirdly miraculous.


    No mountain in the human world was too high for Sangsang.


    Even though the mountain was so magnificent and almost reached the sky, it was after all not as high as the Heaven.


    Even though the mountain was rooted into the fields and earth, she could still conquer it.


    She used her sublime power to conquer the earth.


    The earth continued quaking more violently.


    The green Bodhi Tree did not fall down, but its futon-shaped leaves fell all over the ground.


    The body of the Chief Monk started quivering fiercely. His kasaya was smashed and turned into numerous butterflies and scattered in all directions. His pale figure shined with white lights as if he was a statue.


    Ning Que witnessed what had happened under the tree and was startled. Years ago in Chaoyang City, he would have never made a single scar on the Chief Monk¡¯s body even if he were to use his Thirteen Primordial Arrows or iron de.


    The Chief Monk had attained Buddhahood and his body and soul became immortal. It seemed he was able to hold out against the Sublime Heavenly Power.


    Sangsang kept standing on the head of the Chief Monk emotionlessly, with her hands behind her back.


    She did not care how long the elderly monk could hold under her feet. She just wanted to see that tree.


    The earth kept quaking violently. Countless deep ck cracks were formed throughout the deserted fields. Even ming magma emitted from the underground.


    Sangsang¡¯s flowery blue dress swung in the wind and snow and started descending.


    The Chief Monk under her feet started to sink into the ground. Dark mud was squeezed out and grating and piercing sounds of breaking rocks were heard.


    It was not long before the Chief Monk hadpletely sunk into the ground. Only his head was left above the ground. His white eyebrows fluttered in the dust and seemed extremely miserable.


    As long as he was connected to the ground, his body was immortal. This was the highest Buddhism practice the Chief Monk of Scripture had been cultivating. Even if the Abbey Dean could regain his cultivation, he would probably not be able to defeat him.


    Sangsang¡¯s approach was simple. She grounded him into the earth.


    Only the head of the Chief Monk remained above the ground. His eyes stayed closed.


    Sangsang walked down from his head. It was nothing but a low step now.


    She did not turn to take another nce at this powerful buddhist cultivator and walked directly to the Bodhi Tree with her hands behind her back.


    She told the Chief Monk that since the name of Xuankong Temple was not carved on the Bodhi Tree, it did not belong to the temple. Actually the Bodhi Tree was engraved with her name, therefore it belonged to her.


    Years ago when she ran away from Lanke Temple with Ning Que on an autumn day, they were exhausted from being hunted by the entire world and Ning Que took her here to see the trace of the Buddha and left some words on the tree.


    ¡°In the autumn of the Sixteenth Year of Tianqi, Ning Que of the Academy, together with his wife Sangsang, the daughter of the Invariant Yama, paid a visit here.¡±


    Finished her investigation on the trace of the Buddha¡¯s nirvana, she walked away from the Bodhi Tree, held her hands behind her back and headed for the peak as high as the ground level where the Xuankong Temple was located.


    Ning Queughed at the words that were carved on the Bodhi Tree and sighed slightly toward the Chief Monk¡¯s head above the ground. Then he led the carriage and followed her giant figure towards the fields.


    ...

 Chapter 931 - Look at the Sky From the Bottom of a Well

    <h4>Chapter 931: Look at the Sky From the Bottom of a Well</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Approaching the cliffs, Ning Que looked at peaks in the giant sinkhole and the temple between the peaks silently. This was the second time he saw the Xuankong Temple, which was still shocking to him.


    Sinking from the surface of the wilderness, the wall of the cliffs was very steep and looked quite amazing and astonishing. Ning Que left the big ck horse and the carriage on the ground and followed Sangsang walking down. They had been here before, but only took a look from afar, for they were too afraid to go down back then. However, the current situation was quite different from that of the past.


    They walked on the rubbles. Sangsang walked calmly and slowly with her hands behind her back, looking like a snow lotus falling in the wind. Unfortunately, Ning Que was obviously in a difficult position.


    It was noon, and the sunshine in the early autumn was bright enough to light the smooth cliffs and the narrow trail paved by the rubbles. The depth of the cliffs was thousands of feet. The deeper they went down, the darker and colder it was. It amazed them that there was snow on the cliff stones.


    After walking in the cold for a long time, they finally walked out of the shadows that the wilderness projected into the giant sinkhole and came to the bright sunshine. They found that there was a vast wilderness under the sun.


    The field at the bottom of the giant sinkhole was very wide. Even Ning Que who had a sharp eyesight couldn¡¯t see the distantndscape. All kinds of yurts stood in the wilderness, and the cold-tolerant meadow covered the ground closing to cliffs, with flocks and herds wandering around.


    Contrary to the process of walking down the cliffs, the temperature went up gradually as they walked toward the middle of the field of the giant sinkhole, as if they had returned to the warm spring from the cold winter. The grass naturally growing in the wilderness was gradually reced by artificially cultivated species. The ears of the nts in the field swayed in the breeze.


    Walking into the field, Ning Que picked up an ear of a nt and used his fingers to twist its outer shell off, finding that the grain inside was much smaller than themon rice of the Central ins and the smell was also new to him. He pulled out one nt and found that the root system of this nt was quite developed. This is probably a special kind of rice, and it can resist the cold by extracting the heat of the ground. From the shape of the rice leaf, I guess its demand for light is rtively low.


    The underground field was far from the world and got far less light than the surface, but Haotian was always fair. The temperature of the soil of the field was somewhat high, and quite different from the cold rivers Ning Que imagined. The rivers flowing through it were filled with faint mists, like hot springs.


    The underground field was apletely new world for Ning Que. But of course, he cared the most about food due to his poor childhood and the Academy¡¯s nurture.


    At this moment, a faint bell suddenly came from afar, and then the devout humming in all directions of the field attracted his attention.


    He looked into the distance and vaguely saw that there were countless people in the field kneeling down. He realized that the farmers who worshipped the Xuankong temple began to chant after hearing the bells.


    The bell came from the huge mountain peak in the middle of the vast field, but Ning Que couldn¡¯t tell the sound came from which yellow temple among the peaks.


    Sangsang walked toward the mountain peak. Ning Que suddenly thought of something but forgot before he could grasp the thought. He shook his head regretfully and picked up his pace.


    The mountain peak was very majestic and tall. The pressure it exerted made people feel it was close at hand, but the mountain was actually still far, far away.


    Sangsang kept walking toward the mountain peak in silence.


    She and Ning Que walked very fast, but it still took them quite a long time to reach the foot of the mountain peak. The sky was getting dark.


    It should be warm during twilight, but for the world in the giant sinkhole, twilight meant darkness and coldness. The setting sun couldn¡¯t reach here, and the vast field in the bottom of the sinkhole and the mountain peaks were covered in shadows, only leaving the highest peak in the twilight, like a candlelight.


    Looking at the mountain road in the night, Ning Que adjusted his breath and prepared for battle. Although Sangsang was so powerful that even the Chief Monk of Scripture was just a rock under her feet, the Xuankong Temple on the mountain peak was an unknowable ce of Buddhism, which had been inherited for countless years. Nobody knew exactly what kind of danger lied in it.


    All of a sudden, Sangsang stopped and turned to look at the path they¡¯ve walked.


    Feeling odd, Ning Que followed her eyes and found that the cliffs they came down at noon had be a far-reachingndscape and the snow between the cliffs had long been invisible.


    The cliffs around the giant sinkhole were far away from the bottom of the peak. Normally, the cliffs would have be an inconspicuous ck line, but it still stood tall and erect at this point.


    The cliffs were too high. The mountain where the Xuankong Temple was located was higher than any mountain in the world above ground, but the peak could only be flushed with the surface of the Wilderness, slightly revealing a small section. In other words, the cliffs surrounding the giant sinkhole were as high as the peaks and higher than all other peaks in the world.


    Ning Que and Sangsang stood still and looked around, feeling that the giant sinkhole was a huge dry well and the steep cliffs were the walls of a well. And the people who were standing at the bottom of the well were blocked by the walls.


    People who have lived here can only see round sky for generations, and their fields are square. Is this the so-called round sky and square earth? Ning Que was shocked by what he saw.


    Sangsang wasn¡¯t shocked at all. Facing the wonderful world created by the Buddha, she made such ament: ¡°Look at the sky from the bottom of a well.¡±


    ...


    ...


    They did not stop there, and walked directly to the peak. The mountain road hidden in the flowers and the forest was no longer steep, but extended as far as the eyes could catch.


    The big ck horses and carriages were left on the ground, but all the things that had to be carried along were naturally held by Ning Que. At the moment that Sangsang decided toe to the Xuankong Temple and confirm whether Buddha was alive or dead, he knew clearly the roles he yed: handyman, porter, cook, feet-washing technician, and bed warmer.


    He had no problems with this. We are a couple, and one of us should manage the external affairs and the other, internal. I have such a powerful wife, how could I mind taking care of the internal affairs?


    The heavy arrows, iron knife, big ck umbre, and Buddha¡¯s Chessboard with a very inconvenient shape were all carefully arranged and packed into the luggage by Ning Que. He was holding the luggage on his back at this moment.


    The luggage was too heavy, and the mountain road between the peaks was so long. Ning Que felt exhausted even though he was in good health and and extremely strong after cultivating Haoran Qi.


    This mountain was really big, and there were too many temples hidden in the mountain and the forest. It was said that the Yuelun Kingdom praised high Buddhism and had seventy-two temples. He and Sangsang had already saw way more temples in the past hour. Sangsang was here to look for someone, so she couldn¡¯t miss any temple, which meant that they had to go further and also meant that Ning Que had to walk farther with the heavy luggage on his back.


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t tell how Sangsang was looking for Buddha, for she didn¡¯t examine carefully every temple they passed through. After a long time of walking, Ning Que stopped and sat on a rock. ¡°Let¡¯s take a break.¡± Wiping the sweat off his face, Ning Que breathed heavily and said, ¡°I think we need a better strategy.¡±


    Sangsang was of course not exhausted, but she was a little tired like she had always been after leaving Peach Mountain. She walked with her eyes closed most of the time they were wandering around the peaks, which seemed like she was sleeping or a blind person.


    Hearing what Ning Que said, she asked indifferently, ¡°You wish for me to be dead this much?¡±


    Ning Que understood why she was so anxious to confirm Buddha¡¯s death. Buddha was the only one who could threaten her existence. She must make sure Buddha won¡¯t be a threat when she was still strong enough to fight, or the situation would be not in her favor when she goes back to the Divine Kingdom or bes a mortal again.


    In this case, what she said indeed made sense, but Ning Que felt bored. He covered his forehead with his hand and answered, ¡°Can you say something else? Aren¡¯t you tired of asking the same question? Can you stop seeking your own death? We are husband and wife, but you can¡¯t really think of yourself as an ordinary woman.¡±


    Sangsang ignored him and asked, ¡°I will find the person I came here for. Who are you looking for?¡±


    Ning Que¡¯s main aim ofing to the Xuankong Temple was to apany Sangsang, but he also wanted to look for Second Brother.


    Outside the Academy, the Seventh Sister asked him to find the proud Second Brother in Xuankong Temple and check whether he was still as proud as before after kneeling in front of Buddha.


    Sangsang had searched hundreds of yellow temples in the lower half of the mountain peaks along the way from the foot of the mountain, but Ning Que just followed her and showed no signs of searching.


    He said, ¡°Second Brother will definitely not be cultivating Buddhism here, so why bother?¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    Ning Que answered with certainty, ¡°My Second Brother is so gifted. I don¡¯t think anyone in Xuankong Temple is qualified to teach him. He must stay at the temple on the peak studying the Buddhist Scriptures by himself. There is no chance that he stayed at this ruined temple on the foot of the mountain.¡±


    Sangsang thought for a while and said to him, ¡°Idiot.¡±


    My deduction is very reasonable. How can you call me an idiot just because you can¡¯t think it through? ¡°How can you say that?¡± he asked angrily.


    Sangsang ignored him and walked up to the summit with her hands behind her back.


    Ning Que held the heavy baggage on his back and ran to her. You clearly know that I like to call other people idiots. How can you unreasonably call your husband idiot?


    ...


    ...


    They kept searching the temples, but all of the temples were quiet under the night sky.


    After searching hundreds of yellow temples in the dozens of cliffs below the mountain peak, they found nothing and finally came to the top at dawn.


    The rising sun was still lying on the surface of the Wilderness, shining on the cliff on the west side first and then on the summit. Like the dead wick being lit, the light spread rapidly to the bottom of the mountain peak. In the sound of bells and chanting, the Buddhand was about to wake up.


    ...

 Chapter 932 - Beautiful

    <h4>Chapter 932: Beautiful</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The Buddhand woke up, and so did the monks in the yellow temples. Ning Que was not worried about being discovered by the Xuankong Temple since Sangsang was by his side, so he kept searching likest night.


    He stepped into every yellow temple he passed by and searched carefully for the sign of his Second Brother. It was Sangsang¡¯s turn to be impatient since Ning Que spent much time searching.


    On a cliff covered by the green vine, she turned around and asked, ¡°Are you looking for Jun Mo?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Of course, I don¡¯t have the ability to help you find Buddha.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Idiot.¡±


    After saying this, she walked toward the front yard of the cliff. Unlikest night, Ning Que was just stumped and puzzled. Why does she keep on calling me an idiot?


    The green vines separated voluntarily to let Sangsang pass through, and Ning Que quickened his pace and followed her tightly. He found that the cliff was a bit weird.


    There was an unknown tree by the cliff, projecting a shade on the ground. A small temple was behind the tree, with its yellow paint peeling off. It seemed that no one had been here for many years due to the dust on the stairs.


    All the temples that they stepped in along the way from the bottom of the mountain were magnificent or sacred. They found it odd to see such a dpidated temple here.


    What puzzled Ning Que more was that he sensed familiar breathing from the dpidated temple. He and Sangsang had cultivated Buddhism in Lanke Temple, so they could detect the supreme Buddha nature in the breath.


    The Buddha nature was very pure and even more powerful than that of the temples that they had stopped byst night all added together. How could a temple with such pure Buddha nature be so dpidated? How could the monks in Xuankong temple forget about this temple? Who used to live here?


    Was this the ce Sangsang wanted to find? Was Buddha hiding here?


    Standing under the tree by the cliff, Ning Que looked at the little temple and suddenly felt a little cold. He subconsciously leaned towards Sangsang and asked, ¡°Is it here?¡±


    Sangsang looked serious but said nothing and just walked straight to the temple.


    The temple door was pushed open, and the cobweb inside was instantly swept to the endless abyss under the cliff by the breeze.


    Stepping in, Ning Que found that this was a fake temple and what they saw before was only the front of the temple. There was not even any building inside the temple, just a corridor full of dust.


    The corridor led directly to the wall of the cliff, and there was an entrance to a cave in the wall.


    Ning Que was getting more and more nervous, but Sangsang remained calm. She walked straight into the cave with her hands behind her back and seemed to be a little impatient.


    The cave was very quiet and dry, and the only furnishing was one futon, which was iner than the one Ning Que once stayed in the Back Hill of Academy.


    The futony in front of the wall of the cave, covered with dust and Ning Que felt that it would fall apart if he were to breathe heavily.


    There was a shadow in the stone wall facing the futon. Examining carefully, he found that it was the shadow of a human figure and even vaguely recognized the edge of the kasaya.


    A long time ago, there must have been a monk who sat quietly facing the wall. He must have sat here for countless years to make his figure print on the stone wall. Who was this monk?


    Ning Que was shocked.


    Sangsangpletely ignored the identity of the monk who faced the wall here many years ago. She looked at the shadow and instantly knew that the monk was definitely not Buddha. So she was a little impatient.


    ¡°Don¡¯t follow me. You will only slow me down.¡± After saying this, she stepped out of the cave.


    Looking at her back, Ning Que shouted, ¡°I am still looking for Second Brother.¡±


    Sangsang didn¡¯t turn back and said, ¡°Idiot.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Even though I am an idiot, I have to look for Second Brother. What if we can¡¯t find each other?¡±


    Sangsang answered, ¡°I can find you.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang left, and Ning Que stayed at the cave alone. Looking at the shadow on the stone wall, he shook his head and was about to leave, but slowly stopped at the entrance of the cave.


    While still standing under the tree in the front yard of the cliff, he felt that the breath in this dpidated temple was very familiar. At this moment, standing inside the cave, his feelings became more and more obvious, and he even felt that he had seen the human figure on the stone wall somewhere before.


    Ning Que thought for a while and then walked back to the depths of the cave. Looking at the shadow on the stone wall, he pondered for a long time and then sat down due to exhaustion.


    But he had forgotten that the futon in front of the stone wall was very old and couldn¡¯t support his weight. The moment Ning Que sat on the futon, it was scattered into cattail leaves, floating everywhere.


    ¡°What the fuck?¡±


    Looking at the cattail leaves on the floor, Ning Que shook his head helplessly and reached out to collect the scattered leaves together. Then he took out the sewing kit from the luggage and started the sewing expertly.


    It didn¡¯t take long for the futon to be repaired. He pressed the futon and confirmed that it was strong enough to support some weight, then sat on it and stared at the shadow on the stone wall.


    The shadow on the stone wall was branded by a monk of the previous generation using his Buddha nature. It was indeed a magical Buddha Dharma and he would be worshipped by countless Buddhist followers in the temples of the human world. But what did this have anything to do with Ning Que?


    He didn¡¯t know why he was so attracted by the shadow on the stone wall. Unwilling to look away, Ning Que felt that the shadow contained countless mysteries waiting to be discovered.


    After sitting on the futon for a long time, Ning Que was tired. He sped his knees with his arms and put his head on his knees. After a while, he changed his position again and began to cup his chin with his palm. Like a young child who was indulged in the vige theatrical performance, he stared at the stone wall with good relish.


    During the process of staring at the wall, Ning Que didn¡¯t cross his legs, sit on a lotus seat, form the Emblematic Gesture or meditate. It seemed that he was just in a daze.


    But in his Ocean of Consciousness, he sat on the lotus seat, formed the Emblematic Gesture, and thought of all the Buddha Dharmas he saw in Lanke Temple and learned from Master Qishan. He just didn¡¯t sit in meditation.


    After a while, Sangsang returned to the dark cave. While Ning Que was staring at the wall, she went to the three main halls of the Xuankong Temple and looked around for a long time, but gained nothing.


    Upon seeing that Ning Que was stunned and facing the stone wall, her eyes turned bright, but she said nothing. She just turned around and walked out of the cave again. Then she went to the Commandment Hall in the West Peak.


    The West Peak had countless old trees, but no traces of Buddha. Her expression had be more and more serious. Standing on the roots of the ancient trees leaning out of the cliff, she looked at the sun in silence.


    The God¡¯s n doesn¡¯t work, so I can¡¯t figure out the God¡¯s secret. Where should I put the God¡¯s heart?


    Sangsang once again returned to the dpidated temple and stood behind Ning Que.


    Ning Que was still staring at the shadow on the stone wall.


    Sangsang left again. Then she went to the East Peak which was full of strange stones. However, she still gained nothing. She stood on the stone and looked at the sun on the sky quietly.


    Then she came back to the cave.


    Ning Que was still facing the wall.


    She left again.


    The came back.


    Over and over again.


    Although she was Haotian, she felt a little tired and somewhat puzzled. The God¡¯s n doesn¡¯t work, and I can¡¯t figure out the God¡¯s secret. Why does the God¡¯s heart always fall on this guy? ... Is it true that I must stick to him?


    Thinking of this, Sangsang looked at the back of Ning Que and was hit by an infinite amount of hatred and irritation. She was very anxious to kill him and put him in the deepest part of the earth.


    But she couldn¡¯t kill him if she ever wanted to be herself. She could only leave the cave again reluctantly and continued her search.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t know that Sangsang had considered killing him. Cupping his chin with his palm, he stared at the shadow on the stone wall and his expression kept changing, from solemn and quiet to a silly smile.


    One day passed. When the setting sun fell, a white flower appeared on the unknown green tree on the cliff, but it fell to the ground only after a moment after blossoming.


    The white flowernded on the cliff and touched the dust, then it was raised by the breeze from the cliff as if there were a pair of invisible hands slowly lifting it up. It drifted into the dpidated door of the temple and then into the stone wall inside the cave, finally falling on Ning Que¡¯s shoulder gently.


    Ning Que took off the little white flower on his shoulder and twitched the delicate flower handle gently with his fingers. He looked at the shadow on the stone wall and said with a smile, ¡°It turns out that you learned Buddha Dharma here.¡±


    All of a sudden, the fragments of consciousness that had been buried in the deepest part of his Ocean of Consciousness for many years lit up and then faded away gradually, just like a pearl¡¯sst shine before it died out.


    It was twilight. The bells of the Xuankong Temple rang again, echoing in every corner of the mountain peaks.


    Ning Que woke up and bowed to the shadow on the stone wall. Then he got up and walked out of the cave, looking at the sight of the Buddhand calmly standing under the green tree by the cliff.


    This old temple was Lian Sheng¡¯s former residence. When Lian Sheng studied Buddha Dharma in the Xuankong Temple many years ago, he once faced the wall in the cave, leaving his shadow on the stone wall and also leaving the legend of protecting the Front Gate of Buddha¡¯s Doctrine in the human world.


    In the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, Ning Que inherited the mantle of Youngest Uncle, and also inherited everything that Lian Sheng had.


    Before his death, Lian Sheng once said to Ning Que, ¡°You have been enchanted. If you want to repair your demon, you must first cultivate Buddha Dharma. Please bravely walk to the night. There is a chance that you might die on the road, but I give you my blessing. In the meanwhile, I¡¯ll curse you.¡±


    Ning Que had long forgotten what Lian Sheng had said. Although he learned the Buddha Dharma from Master of Qishan in Lanke Temple, his intention was to cure Sangsang and he had never wished to master it voluntarily.


    It was not until he came to Xuankong Temple and faced to the shadow on the stone wall silently for a whole day that he remembered Lian Sheng¡¯sst words and made up the missed lessons, which turned out to be very important.


    Ning Que gained a lot by facing to the wall for the whole day. Although his cultivation still remained at the Knowing Destiny State, a Bodhi seed was nted in his heart, which might break through the soil, sprout and be luxuriant one day, even covering the eyes of God and Buddha.


    Sangsang walked up to Ning Que in the twilight.


    Ning Que said, ¡°It seems that you didn¡¯t find Buddha.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°It seems that you didn¡¯t find your Second Brother either.¡±


    Ning Que signed, ¡°I totally forgot to search for him.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Then what were you doing?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°I was looking at something beautiful.¡±


    Sangsang said indifferently, ¡°How could the Buddhist Psyche left by an old monk be beautiful?¡±


    Walking in front of her, Ning Que put the small white flower in her hair and praised happily, ¡°Beautiful.¡±


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 933 - Ugly

    <h4>Chapter 933: Ugly</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    In times like this, smart girls would keep quiet and lower their heads shyly, and smarter girls probably would snuggle into their lover¡¯s arms. Only the girls who were too clever would ask her lover which one was more beautiful: her or the flower?


    Sangsang would never ask such a question or snuggle into Ning Que¡¯s arms shyly. She seemed to have heard nothing and walked directly to the other end of the cliff yard.


    Ning Que felt a little disappointed, but he became satisfied and happy after noticing that the flower in her hair was trembling in the breeze and she had no intention to take it off.


    ¡°Have you seen my Second Brother?¡± pushing aside the dense green vines, he caught up with Sangsang and asked. In his opinion, his Second Brother should be cultivating the Buddha Dharma on the summit or in the Commandment Hall. So he assumed that Sangsang had saw him while she was searching for Buddha.


    Sangsang didn¡¯t turn around and kept walking with her hands behind back, ¡°Idiot.¡±


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t remember how many times she had called him an idiot, and his anger had already became numbness. He just shook his head helplessly, but he soon realized that he was indeed an idiot after seeing what was like below the mountain peak.


    As the twilight deepened, the giant sinkhole surrounded by the cliff wall became very dark, and only the field near the mountain peak could be seen faintly because of the reflected light of the top of yellow temples.


    Countless ck spots were moving slowly in the field under the mountain peaks, looking like ants. Ning Que knew that these were the farmers that Sangsang and he had seen before.


    When they first came here and stood by the giant sinkhole, Ning Que had estimated that at least hundreds of thousands of farmers lived in the field to support the Buddhand since the Xuankong Temple had over one thousand monks. But at this moment, he found that there were at least tens of thousands monks lived in the countless temples in the mountain, which meant that more than millions of farmers must have lived in this dark underground world for generations.


    In order to maintain Xuankong Temple, these farmers must be driven by the monks like livestocks. And in this sense, the farmers were more like serfs that had been liberated in the Central ins a long time ago.


    The ce where its people lived in misery tended to have a rigid social hierarchy. Looking at the ck spots which were slowly moving at the foot of the mountain peak, Ning Que knew that they must be providing the routine tributes to the monks. His expression became serious, as if he had seen what these serfs suffered.


    Many years ago, Ning Que and Sangsang just took a look at Xuankong Temple and then left quietly. Actually at that time, Ning Que had considered climbing down the cliff and sneaking into the tragic underground world to mobilize these serfs tounch an uprising,pletely overthrowing the evil Xuankong Temple. But hecked the courage and wisdom back then.


    However, there must be some people who had tremendous courage and wisdom.


    His Second Brother Jun Mo was exactly this kind of person.


    Jun Mo left Chang¡¯an and came to Xuankong Temple to cultivate Buddha Dharma. But seeing what the Xuankong Temple was really like, he would have never ignored the serfs¡¯ sufferings and just focus on practicing Buddha Dharma in peace.


    Practicing Buddha Dharma was not equal to just paying respects to Buddha. Seeing what happened in the underground world, Jun Mo was more likely to draw his sword and kill the monks and Buddha than kneel in front of Buddha!


    It was no wonder that Sangsang called Ning Que an idiot when he searched for Jun Mo in Xuankong Temple.


    ¡°My Second Brother is definitely down there.¡± He looked at the tragic world at the foot of the mountain and said, ¡°I want to go there to see him. Would you like toe with me?¡±


    Ning Que thought she would reject since she came here to find Buddha. Much to his surprise, she agreed to apany him.


    The yellow temples and halls they passed by at this moment while climbing down were exactly the same ones they passed byst night while climbing up. But now in Ning Que¡¯s eyes, these temples were no different than the mountain full of bones of the dead in the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    When he climbed the mountainst night, he thought that it was natural and right for the Xuankong Temple to build these magnificent temples since it was the sacrednd of Buddhism. But at this point, he knew that the isted Xuankong Temple must have plundered the serfs under the mountain to satisfy its needs. The more magnificent the temples were, the more miserable the serfs were.


    They left the ancient temples of Buddhand and came to the real miserable world. The green and beautiful field they saw yesterday seemed to be gloomy in the dark at this moment.


    The night couldn¡¯tpletely block Ning Que¡¯s sight. Walking silently with Sangsang, his eyes slowly swept through the field and saw the fields nted with the special rice, the steaming underground river and several mountains which were more like hummockspared to the mountain peaks.


    In the bend of the river, Ning Que saw the ce for gold washing and many arms that were cut off by sharp weapons. Behind the hill, he saw gems and jade lying in the grass and the human remains that were eaten by vultures, and he asionally heard the weird sounds of birds.


    The field was notpletely dark because there many bonfires were still burning. There were many tents and yurts scattered on the field. The nobles who were as fat as pigs wore various gemstone nes, held the drinking vessels made of human skulls decorating with silver and put their muddy feet on young girls¡¯ naked chests.


    In all the tribes, the nobles were always apanied by many strong men who held whips and sharp knives in their hands. The whips sometimes fell on the cows and sheep, but more often fell on female ves. The sharp knives sometimes were used to cutmb, but more often were used to stab the female ves¡¯ husbands or fathers. The nobles were pleased to see the blood to be mixed with wine. The timid and numb serfs did nothing but kneel down toward the temples in the mountain peaks, looking like useless ants.


    It was understandable that there serfs were timid and numb. However, they seemed so happy to devote their most valuable gold and silver and the most innocent daughters to the monks.


    The number of monks in the field was not much, but they enjoyed high positions that even the nobles couldn¡¯t imagine. Sitting in the warm yurts, their palms fell on the heads of the followers gently or on the young girls kneeling beside them. The scene was very weird. The sacredness was mixed with obscenity, which was mysterious but still dirty.


    Looking at the tent in the distance, Ning Que listened to the chanting and moaning silently. Then he shook his head and said, ¡°Ugly.¡±


    The small white flower in Sangsang¡¯s hair trembled in the night wind.


    He turned to her and asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    Ning Que had seen much ugliness and misery of human world since he was a little boy, but he couldn¡¯t understand why a society with such an unstable structure could maintain its operation for so many years and why people living here could endure for so long and even seemed to be happy.


    ¡°Like I said, it was just a well.¡± Sangsang looked at the cliff in the distant under the night sky and added, ¡°Looking at the sky from the bottom of a well, one can see nothing, so these people thought that the monks in the peaks were real Buddhas. What Buddha said can be very deceptive.¡±


    Ning Que thought for a while and said, ¡°My Second Brother was right. All monks deserve to die.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°The Academy is always focused on Heaven and never cares about what happens on earth.¡±


    She showed no sign of taunting, but Ning Que knew what she really meant. He couldn¡¯t defend the Academy after seeing the miserable world, even though he could be very sophistic.


    ¡°You are not wrong.¡± He continued to say, ¡°But my Second Brother is here now. The Academy won¡¯t just walk away.¡±


    Ning Que and Sangsang walked slowly to watch the field thoroughly. They were still a long way from the cliff when the morning light fell on Xuankong Temple in the peaks.


    The closer to the cliff and farther away from the mountain where the Xuankong Temple was located, the lower the temperature was, the more barren thends were, and the more miserable the serfs were.


    The agricultural products in the field gradually became rare, and the cold-tolerant weeds gradually flourished. The gray-haired cows and sheep were slowly walking between the meadows. There were piles of stones between the grasses, with tattered pray gs hanging on them.


    When he came here two days ago, Ning Que had seen the piles of stones and pray gs but hadn¡¯t paid too much attention. At this moment, he found that there were scattered ck blood on the stones and a faint smell of blood hanging around.


    Walking closer, he and Sangsang saw more disabled serfs who had been tortured, some of which had their tongues cut off and others had their shank bones cracked. They couldn¡¯t bear to watch all the tortures these people suffered.


    Knowing that his Second Brother must be in the most bitter ce, Ning Que was certain he was on the right path to see Second Brother. Although Sangsang couldn¡¯t find Buddha, she could still easily find the Second Brother. She lead Ning Que to the depths of the meadow.


    The meadow was scattered with cattle and sheep which were as beautiful like as cloud. There must be dpidated yurts not far from the flocks. Thekes with blue waters were often located behind the yurts.


    Ake flowed over, creating arge wend full of water nts. A little girl in a dirty leather coat waved a small whip to drive her fourmbs.


    This little girl reminded Ning Que and Sangsang of Tang Xiaotang.


    It was probably the first time this little girl ever saw strangers, but she was not afraid at all. She smiled and waved at them. The smile on her dark face was so clean, and her white teeth were a little dizzy.


    Ning Que smiled at her.


    The little girl herded the fourmbs and came to them. She said nothing, just holding Ning Que¡¯s hand and leading them to a yurt. She was inviting them to her home.


    The field was deep underground and isted from the world. Although there were no outsiders and no outsiders could ever find this ce, it was still on earth.


    Thinking of the cruel scenes he saw tonight and seeing the little girl who held his hand, Ning Que suddenly remembered the City of Wei, which had already be ruins and the young men and women who danced around the bonfire outside the City of Wei.


    Hell and Heaven existed side by side on earth.


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Ignorance means naivet¨¦, and naivet¨¦ means cruelty. How can you not see through this?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Even so, you don¡¯t have to speak aloud.¡±


    At this moment, he saw what happened across theke.


    Many people kneeled on the ground, surrounding a monk.


    The monk wore a dirty khaki Kasaya, and the right sleeve kept swaying in the wind.


    Any other people might look ugly dressing like this, but the monk looked decent with his elegant gesture. No one had any reason to think otherwise.


    ...

 Chapter 934 - Snow Lotus on the Cliff

    <h4>Chapter 934: Snow Lotus on the Cliff</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    In the field under Xuankong Temple, the monks there were being punished by the Commandment Hall, thus they treated the followers very impatiently. They were even crueler than the nobles in the tribes.


    The monk at thekeside allowed the followers to get close to him and didn¡¯t frown because of their unpleasant smell. He seemed very calm and natural.


    The monk was so extraordinary. It was no doubt that he was Jun Mo.


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t hear clearly what his Second Brother said since there was ake between them and the wind was heavy. He held the little girl and walked toward Jun Mo, gradually quickening the pace.


    At this moment, a rush of hoofbeats came from the side of the meadow, and more than a dozen robust men rode to the crowd. The headman in fur waved his whip and shouted at the herdsmen kneeling on the ground, probably asking them to leave.


    The herdsmen were frightened, then getting up and trying to avoid the men on the horses. However, they worried that the Guru who the tribe had invited would be hurt by the whip. They were waving their hands anxiously and exining to the nobleman on the horseback.


    ¡°Lord Ba Yi, this is...¡±


    The whip was waved down and fell on the shoulder of an old herdsman before they could finish the sentence. A bloodstain appeared on the old herdsman¡¯s shoulder, which was lucky for him because the nobleman sat unsteadily on the horseback. The old herdsman must have lost flesh on the shoulder if the headman got the chance to use all his strength. What a diabolic man the nobleman was.


    The men who followed the nobleman all took out the their swords from the saddles and shouted at the herdsmen by theke. Not only did they threaten the herdsmen by waving the swords, but they alsoshed the horses to drive the crowd away.


    The nobleman looked at Jun Mo, who was surrounded by herdsmen and shouted, ¡°Living Buddha had dered him a heretic. He is no Guru. Get out the fucking way!¡±


    The herdsmen looked at the nobleman in horror, but they did not step aside, which was not because they were brave enough to defy the order of Lord Ba Yi, but because they believed firmly that Jun Mo was indeed a Guru, otherwise he wouldn¡¯t be sopassionate to them. So they were afraid Lord Ba Yi would hurt the Guru and be punished by Buddha.


    Knowing that he couldn¡¯t talk sense to these pariahs, the nobleman raised the whip in his hand and pointed to Jun Mo, ¡°Tie the cripple up. Living Buddha ordered to burn him to death.¡±


    The robust men answered in unison and kicked the horses¡¯ abdomen, rushing over to theke.The swords in their hands reflected the sun and looked extremely sharp. The herdsmen were frightened and ran in all directions.


    Seeing that the monk in yellow was about to be knocked down, the nobleman revealed cruelty in his eyes. Living Buddha indeed ordered to capture the heretic alive and then burn him to death. But this wicked man dared to incite these ves to revolt. I must make him suffer before burning him. Should I cut off his ears, chop off his right arm or peel off the skin of his face? While thinking of this, the nobleman suddenly felt a cold winding from behind his head, but there was not enough time for him to dodge. He felt that his ears were cold, his left shoulder was lighter, and then his face was somehow wet.


    Waves appeared on the surface of the blueke, as if there was a rare beasting out of it. Then a ck shadow broke through the waves and fell in the hand of the monk in yellow.


    It was an iron sword.


    Jun Mo swayed the sword. More than a dozen human heads sprang into the air, and more than a dozen blood flowers were squirted into the sky from these men¡¯s necks as if it was to wash the sinful sky.


    The person who held the iron sword was not lenient at all, for all he wanted was justice.


    The battle was not fierce at all. Jun Mo just swayed his sword, and everything was over.


    Seeing what had happened, the nobleman turned pale and couldn¡¯t make a sound for quite a while. Then he gradually felt the pain and found out that his face was full of blood.


    While breaking out of theke and flying to Jun Mo, the iron sword passed by the nobleman, cutting off his left ear, his left arm and flesh on his face.


    With his face covered in blood and his one left ear and left arm gone, the nobleman looked extremely miserable. When he realized what had happened to him, he was in more pain and so frightened that he almost fainted.


    The nobleman clearly had lived in such a harsh environment for many years. He was strong enough to not fall off the horse, but his eyes were full of fear instead of cruelty at this point.


    The nobleman never considered that the heretic could be so powerful. He pulled the reins with his right hand without any hesitation and rushed back to his tribe.


    He dared not look back or threaten him with vengeance. But of course he woulde back and seek revenge. I will kill all the people here.


    ...


    ...


    The herdsmen who had fled in all directions gradually came back, and they looked puzzled while seeing the dozen bodies and the bewildered horses by theke.


    Living in such a cruel underground world, they had seen too many bloody scenes, some of which were even more horrible than what happened today. But they had never imagined that Lord Ba Yi¡¯s strongest butchers would end up dead in such a simple way.


    Looking at the monk in yellow by theke, the herdsmen kneeled down again and their faces were filled with awe, fear, and anxiety. They didn¡¯t know what to do next.


    The old herdsman walked up to Jun Mo and kneeled in front of him. Then he killed thend in front of Jun Mo¡¯s shoes and begged in a trembling voice, ¡°Great and mercy Guru, please hurry and leave.¡±


    Jun Mo looked at his head with no expression and asked, ¡°Are you afraid I will get you into trouble?¡±


    ¡°No!¡± The old herdsman looked up, and his dark face was full of wrinkles with painful tears kept falling down, ¡°You will be the most powerful Guru or even a Living Buddha someday, but now you are not powerful enough to fight against the tribe. Please don¡¯t worry about us since Lord Ba Yi will kill us all anyway.¡±


    The expression of Jun Mo gradually became gentler and said, ¡°That man will definitelye back with countless helpers and even the Living Buddhas you talked about. I must stay here and wait for them.¡±


    The old herdsman quavered, ¡°Even though you can kill all of Lord Ba Yi¡¯s warriors and even defeat the Living Buddhas, you will anger Buddha on the sacred mountain...¡±


    ¡°Buddha?¡±


    Looking at the high mountain peaks in the distance, Jun Mo said with a nk expression, ¡°You all think that the sacred mountain is very high, but you will know it was actually very low if you ever get the chance to go to the ground. If you were to stand on the ground, the sacred mountain would appear as nothing more than a hummock.¡±


    Hearing this, the herdsmen suddenly became extremely quiet and seemed very confused.


    They had never heard such a thing. They even didn¡¯t know what the ground was. Isn¡¯t the field we stand on the ground? Is there another ground? Then where is the other ground? Why would the sacred mountain be like a hummock if we were to stand on the other ground? No way! How could the sacred mountain be a hummock?


    A childish voice broke the silence.


    The little girl that Ning Que held asked curiously, ¡°Guru, where is the ground you mentioned?¡±


    The herdsmen on thekeside looked particrly frightened. In their opinion, the little girl shouldn¡¯t have asked the question, for it meant the sphemy against the sacred mountain and Buddha.


    A middle-aged woman who was probably the little girl¡¯s mother turned pale due to fear, and she wanted to drag her daughter back and discipline her. But she was too afraid to go forward after noticing that a strange man was holding her daughter.


    Seeing Ning Que and Sangsang, Jun Mo was stunned for a while and then ignored them. He turned to the little girl and answered, ¡°We are underground now, the ground is above.¡±


    He pointed to the cliff behind him and said, ¡°Climb up the cliff and you will reach the real ground.¡±


    Behind him was the extremely steep cliff which had imprisoned innumerable generations of serfs and herdsmen for many years. Sangsang said it was the walls of a well, but actually it was the wall of a prison.


    The herdsmen looked toward the cliff following his finger, but they couldn¡¯t see the end of the cliff which was surrounded by clouds and mists. The cliff is almost as high as the sacred mountain, how could we climb up?


    No one had ever climbed up the cliff in countless years. In the teachings of Xuankong Temple, thinking of climbing the cliff had gradually be the sphemy against Buddha. Who dared to try?


    Looking at the cliff, the herdsmen suddenly woke up and found that they really wanted to see what the ground above the cliff was. They couldn¡¯t help but feel guilty and began to kowtow repeatedly.


    Jun Mo looked at these herders and asked, ¡°Don¡¯t you want to know what it is like above?¡±


    No one answered him. Then the old herdsman asked sincerely, ¡°Guru, that is the divine kingdom of Buddha, how could the sinful people like us ever go there?¡±


    Jun Mo ignored him and hoped others could give him a different answer. But nobody said another word for a while.


    He looked a little tired and disappointed.


    At this moment, the little girl Ning Que held lifted her voice.


    Maybe the warm hand of Ning Que gave the little girl great courage. She said in her clear voice, ¡°I want to see it.¡±


    All eyesnded on the little girl, and her mother even passed out.


    The little girl looked down and seemed a little uneasy and frightened.


    Ning Que squeezed her hand gently andforted her, ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid.¡±


    The little girl raised her head with courage. Pointing to somewhere in the middle of the cliff, she said, ¡°Not only do I want to see it, but I actually went up there. Although I didn¡¯t climb too high, I was able to reach there.¡± She continued, ¡°I can see farther from there. I even saw themb that ran to Gn Lake. Then I saw a snow lotus on the cliff.¡± She was looking at the crowd.


    The herdsmen on thekeside looked up in shock and looked toward the cliff following the little girl¡¯s thin finger. It is indeed not too high. We can climb there. Is there really a snow lotus?


    ¡°If you have the courage, you can climb to the top no matter how high the cliff is. But if you never dare to try, then you will never see the snow lotus even though it is close,¡± Jun Mo said calmly while staring at the cliff.


    ...

 Chapter 935 - The Way Jun Mo cultivates Buddha Dharma

    <h4>Chapter 935: The Way Jun Mo cultivates Buddha Dharma</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    ¡°But, it is the divine kingdom of Buddha above the cliff,¡± the herdsmen by theke said in trembling voice, and the hope and curiosity in their eyes were reced by awe and uneasiness. However, the hope and curiosity could never be erasedpletely once they have appeared.


    ¡°I came from the ground, and these two also came from the ground. If the ground is the divine kingdom of Buddha, then you can regard us as the messengers of Buddha.¡±


    Jun Mo looked at the herdsmen calmly and began to tell the stories in the Buddhist scriptures, which contained the perfect world without snowstorms and cruel nobles, heavenly maids scattering blossoms, beautiful colored zes, spring-like weather all year round and the most beautiful things human beings could think of.


    Sangsang looked at Jun Mo and suddenly said, ¡°Everyone from the Academy is crazy.¡±


    Ning Que never thought that a gentleman like his Second Brother would deceive people. He sighed. ¡°Only a gentleman with truepassion could ever make such sacrifices.¡±


    Sangsang responded, ¡°Speaking of deceiving people, you are the real master. Jun Mo should learn from you.¡±


    He requested helplessly. ¡°When will you stop saying bad things about me?¡±


    Sangsang answered quickly and simply, ¡°Why should I?¡±


    Jun Mo¡¯s voice echoed across thekeside, like the warmest spring breeze. The herdsmen were so intoxicated that they had long forgotten the previous fears and uneasiness.


    At the end of the preaching, the herdsmen bowed to Jun Mo and then dispersed. Jun Mo walked to Ning Que and reached out to pat his shoulder. Then he looked at Sangsang and asked, ¡°Are you looking for your way back?¡±


    Not everyone could be so natural while facing Haotian, not the Abbey Dean, not Chief Monk of Scripture, not the Drunkard and the Butcher, and not even Eldest Brother.


    But Jun Mo could, for he had never been afraid of death. He only respected the Headmaster of Academy, Youngest Uncle, and Eldest Brother in his whole life. So, he feared nothing and only regarded Haotian as normal person.


    Besides, on the Unknown Mountain in the north of Chang¡¯an many years ago, Jun Mo had decided that he would treat Sangsang as a little girl worthy of pity when he saw her kneeling down on the cliff and holding the ashes. He still felt the same way about her at this point.


    After Sangsang left the Divine Halls of West Hill and especially after entering the Tang, Sangsang had the simr feeling. But this was the first time a person except Ning Que ever treated her in an ordinary manner.


    She frowned slightly, wondering how should she react: be angry or just let him?


    Jun Mo simply ignored what she was thinking and continued, ¡°What is wrong with staying in the human world? The Headmaster said that you will be very pitiful. It seems that he was right.¡±


    Sangsang was a little angry at this point.


    She once felt Ning Que¡¯s pity for her in the Divine Hallsl and also felt Mo Shanshan¡¯s pity for her by the Ink Fountain of the Great River Kingdom. She was furious to learn from Jun Mo that the Headmaster also felt sorry for her at this moment.


    As Haotian, I don¡¯t need your pity. All human beings, including the Headmaster of Academy, are all my defeated opponents. You humans don¡¯t have the qualification to feel sorry for me.


    She reached out to Jun Mo.


    Jun Mo slightly raised his eyebrows, and his left hand held the iron sword tightly.


    The iron sword could smash the Buddha stone statue in Lanke Temple, sweep away the millions of enemy troops in front of the Verdant Canyon, make Ye Su stunned and scare Liu Bai off, but it couldn¡¯t stop her hand.


    Her hand fell on Jun Mo¡¯s face, but she didn¡¯t harm him.


    She looked at Jun Mo quietly, and the atmosphere by theke became a bit weird.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t understand why she agreed to apany him to search for his Second Brother before. Seeing this, he realized that Sangsang was up to something.


    Sangsang moved her hand along Jun Mo¡¯s face, sliding over his eyebrows, his nose and his lips.


    Ning Que was stunned. What are you doing? He is your brother-inw! As her husband, Ning Que was jealous and angry that she touched Jun Mo¡¯s face like this.


    Jun Mo¡¯s Kasaya rose with the wind and so did his anger.


    The atmosphere suddenly became extremely tense and the situation was on the verge.


    At this time, Ning Que suddenly fell forward onto Jun Mo and clung to his thigh, crying out, ¡°Second Brother, keep calm. You can¡¯t defeat her!¡±


    A tragic and serious drama about the fight between Haotian and a human being was about to be staged, but all of a sudden, Ning Que turned it to a farce by ying the intruder. The eyebrows of Jun Mo trembled slightly, and he was anxious to give Ning Que a kick.


    Sangsang finally pulled her hand back from Jun Mo¡¯s face and then turned around, heading to a small tent by theke. He is not Buddha. Where has Buddha hidden? Why can¡¯t I find him?


    She knew that the tent was the residence of Jun Mo. Approaching the tent, she picked up the curtain unreservedly and prepared to walk in. Then she remembered something before stepping in the tent.


    She looked back at Jun Mo and said, ¡°I grant you eternity.¡±


    Without thinking about it, Jun Mo responded, ¡°You can grant me eternity when you are actually immortal.¡±


    After Sangsang came to the human world, she had already granted eternity to quite a few people who all had different reactions. The Drunkard and the Butcher were transported with joy, Tang Xiaotang thought her offering was unexpected and suggested to buy vegetables first, Mrs. Zeng Jing was absorbed in crying and didn¡¯t understand what she meant, and Ning Que just refused her decidedly.


    In most cases, she didn¡¯t hear what she wanted. And Jun Mo¡¯s answer today surprised and puzzled her.


    ¡°It¡¯s up to you,¡± she thought for a while outside the tent and said to Jun Mo. Then she stepped into the tent.


    Looking at the tent, Ning Que said helplessly, ¡°You sell the eternity with a big discount like it is cabbage. But it seems that nobody wants it even though you set the price low.¡±


    Jun Mo asked, ¡°What is she doing?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°You used to treat her well, so she wants to pay you back.¡±


    Jun Mo was so wise that he understood her intention immediately. Hemented, ¡°It is a stupid way to cut off her ties with the human world.¡±


    Ning Que sighed and said, ¡°I agree.¡±


    Jun Mo asked, ¡°It seems that she has not found the way to return to the Divine Kingdom. What about you? Have you found a way to keep her in the world?¡±


    Remembering what he was thinking in front of Chang¡¯an, Ning Que answered, ¡°Not yet. I intended toe to Xuankong Temple to get some inspiration, but now it appears to be in vain.¡±


    Is there not a way in this mortal world to embrace both my faith and my beloved? If there is any, it must be far more profound than the Buddha Dharma.


    Jun Mo said, ¡°I observed the night moon these days and found that the Headmaster is struggling. If she ever goes back, the human world would be destroyed. So you have to be careful.¡±


    Ning Que went silent for a while and said, ¡°If the day everes, I have no other choice but to make the final decision.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°That would be a breach of human rtionship. You shouldn¡¯t do it.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You are a man with noble character, but I am not.¡±


    Looking at the iron sword in his hand, Jun Mo thought about it and said, ¡°I still think it is wrong.¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t want to discuss this issue and changed the subject. ¡°You have been in Xuankong Temple for some time. Seen anything new?¡±


    Jun Mo raised his iron sword and pointed to the majestic mountain in the distance. ¡°This filthy ce has nothing but filthy people and filthy things.¡±


    Ning Que realized that he had asked a stupid question, for his Second Brother wouldn¡¯t have the mood to explore a ce where the people who lived there suffered greatly. So he said, ¡°You must be very happy to preach and eliminate the bad people in the field.¡±


    Jun Mo shook his head and said, ¡°I have been telling the stories in the Buddhist scriptures to the herdsmen and serfs these days. Today is the first time I have killed someone here.¡±


    Ning Que was surprised. You hate Buddhism and monks the most. You didn¡¯t even read much Buddhist scriptures before, so how could you preach to these devoted Buddhist followers?


    Jun Mo said, ¡°I have read some Buddhist scriptures in the Back Hill and read some more on the journey here. These herdsmen don¡¯t even know how to read. It is most effective to tell the simple stories.¡±


    Ning Que praised him. ¡°The Buddhist scriptures must have dawned on you.¡±


    Jun Mo said indifferently, ¡°In my opinion, the Buddhist scriptures are deceptive. How could I let it dawn on me?¡±


    Ning Que was puzzled.


    ¡°The people here had lived underground for generations. They used their flesh and blood to worship Xuankong Temple, but they have never heard of anything about Buddha Dharma. So they were thrilled to listen to my preaching and treated me as a Guru.¡±


    Looking at the field that gradually became cold and dark, Jun Mo¡¯s voice also gradually became colder. ¡°Buddha said he would love all human beings equally but treated people here as pigs and dogs. Buddhism said that inexhaustible meanings were contained in the Buddhist scriptures but even didn¡¯t allow its followers to read them. What is the difference between these Buddhist scriptures and wastepapers? What is the difference between the monks and liars?¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°What¡¯s your next move?¡±


    Jun Mo answered, ¡°I originally came here to cultivate Buddha Dharma, but I would have never thought that Buddha was so abominable. How could I meditate after seeing such a miserable underground world? These bold donkeys deserve to die¡±


    Ning Que reminded him. ¡°Seventh Sister said we can¡¯t curse like this.¡±


    Jun Mo touched his newly regrown hair gently and said, ¡°I can call them bold donkeys since my hair grew back.¡±


    Ning Que agreed, ¡°You do have a point.¡±


    Jun Ge looked up at the crescent moon and said, ¡°The Headmaster is fighting against Haotian. As his disciple, I should have helped him, but I don¡¯t have the power to go up to Heaven or to defeat her. All I can do is to serve the human world as the Academy should do. I shall destroy Xuankong Temple first.¡±


    Ning Que praised him again. ¡°You are trulypassionate.¡±


    Jun Mo turned around and said to him, ¡°I started killing today, and I must keep killing henceforth. I can¡¯t help you with your troubles for now.¡±


    Ning Que knew that Second Brother injured the nobleman and allowed him to run away deliberately or else the nobleman would have been dead. Jun Mo¡¯s purpose was to draw more people back and kill them all.


    ¡°Killing the nobles will inevitably attract soldier monks, and killing the soldier monks will inevitably attract the Gurus and Living Buddhas. Eventually the Xuankong Temple wille after you. I am afraid you can¡¯t kill them all on your own.¡± Ning Que was a little worried.


    ¡°I told the herdsmen that if they have the courage, they can climb to the top no matter how high the cliff is. The same is true for killing. I can kill them all as long as I keep trying.¡± Jun Mo looked at the giant peak in the night and said, ¡°Look at the dark mountain over there. After I killed these dogs down here, I will climb up to the mountain peak, kill all the bold donkeys in the temple and set the mountain on fire.¡±


    Ning Que praised Jun Mo again. ¡°Cultivating Buddha Dharma means eliminating Buddhism.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°No. Eliminating Buddhism is my way of cultivating Buddha Dharma¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Or maybe it is what thepassion of Buddhism truly means.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°You are right. I will stick to my point even though Buddha has reborn and stands in front of me.¡±


    Ning Que went silent for a while and said, ¡°Maybe Buddha...is still alive.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t be naughty.¡± Jun Mo replied, ¡°But I will kill Buddha if he were still alive.¡±


    The Buddha Dharma that Jun Mo cultivated was meant to eliminate Buddhism.


    ...

 Chapter 936 - Enchanted Morning Bell and Return of Light of Buddha

    <h4>Chapter 936: Enchanted Morning Bell and Return of Light of Buddha</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ning Que asked, ¡°What if you can¡¯t kill Buddha?¡±


    Jun Mo answered, ¡°Then I will die.¡±


    He talked about death casually, but Ning Que was astonished to hear him say so. After a long silence, Ning Que asked again, ¡°Second Brother, Buddha may still be alive.¡±


    Jun Mo didn¡¯t believe it at all and responded, ¡°Nonsense. Buddha has already reached Nirvana. If he was still in the human world, how could the Headmaster not know? How could Haotian not know?¡±


    Ning Que signed and said, ¡°She really doesn¡¯t know whether Buddha is alive or dead. Why else would shee to Xuankong Temple?¡±


    Jun Mo went silent for a moment and said, ¡°Then we have to figure it out.¡±


    The two returned to the small tent on thekeside and found that Sangsang was sleeping.


    It turned out that Haotian could get sleepy. Hearing the footsteps, she opened her eyes and looked at Ning Que. ¡°I spared his life for the sake of the old days to cut off my ties with him.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°I already said that I would never ask for Heaven¡¯s forgiveness before the Battle of Verdant Canyon.¡±


    Ning Que tried to persuade her, ¡°The whole cutting-off your-ties-with-the-human-world thing doesn¡¯t work this way. Can you be reasonable?¡±


    Sitting up, Sangsang looked at Jun Mo and said, ¡°Speaking of being reasonable, you puzzled me. If it was a trap set by Buddha to kill me, then why are you standing by my side? I thought that the Academy would love to see my death.¡±


    As Haotian, she knew Jun Mo¡¯s standpoint from his expression. The reason why she didn¡¯t ask Ning Que was that she had already ustomed to Ning Que¡¯s full support.


    Jun Mo answered calmly, ¡°I am ashamed.¡±


    He meant that he would be ashamed to stand by the Buddhism¡¯s side.


    Ning Que answered in a more direct way, ¡°The Academy would never do such a disgraceful thing.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Leaving theke and meadow in front of the cliff, Ning Que and Sangsang wandered around the field underground and tried to find signs that revealed whether Buddha was alive or dead.


    Sometimes while grilling fish by theke, he would wonder what his Second Brother was doing. Was he waving his iron sword and killing the nobles and soldier monks? Or was he trying to talk some sense to the Living Buddhas?


    Jun Mo may have to keep waving his iron sword in this miserable world for the next decades. The Buddhand which had enjoyed tranquility for many years must be full of tempestuous storms. The Xuankong Temple who enved millions of serfs will probably begin to tremble due to fear.


    Thinking about this, Ning Que felt passionate even though he was a cold blooded man. He was anxious to fight alongside Second Brother, but he had more important things to do. Even though he had finished his business with Buddha and Haotian, he still had to return to Chang¡¯an and finish his business with the human world.


    Their journey of searching for Buddha continued. Ning Que and Sangsang traveled through the vast field in the giant sinkhole, but gained nothing. They became more and more silent.


    The unknown was disturbing, especially for those who were omniscient.


    Walking through the field and then climbing the mountain peaks again, Sangsang wandered around countless temples between the cliffs, meditated in front of solemn Buddha statues and silently stared at the sky standing on the edge of the cliff.


    In the Commandment Hall of the West Peak, they stood among the old trees and listened to the sound of the cane falling on the monks. In the East Peak, they stood in the shadow of the cliff stone and watched the soldier monks stomping on the ground.


    They saw Qi Nian in meditation in the Grand Hall on the peak and saw a willowy old monk who was making porridge and an ancient clock in a thatched cottage behind the hall.


    Xuankong Temple seemed so solemn and peaceful, which waspletely different from the world under the peak. Looking at these, Ning Que was puzzled. Buddhism talks aboutpassion all the time. The monks meditate on the mountain peaks, but the people suffered greatly under the peaks. How could they keep meditating in peace?


    In the yellow temple on the cliff yard below the peak, Ning Que saw an acquaintance, Master Huang Yang, who left Chang¡¯an and came to Xuankong Temple inquiring about Buddha. At this point, Sangsang was wondering elsewhere, so Huang Yang only saw Ning Que.


    Master Huang Yang was a little surprised. Ning Que shared his experience of these days briefly. Realizing that there have been so many things that had happened in the world, the master asked, ¡°You should leave soon.¡±


    Ning Que frowned slightly and asked, ¡°What happened in Xuankong Temple?¡±


    Master Huang Yang shook his head and answered, ¡°I don¡¯t know what is it, but there must be something going on.¡±


    Being a younger brother of the Tang emperor, Master Huang Yang enjoyed a extremely honorable position in the human world, which was the reason for the courteous reception he received from Xuankong Temple. However, the temple treated him well until recently. The monks stopped visiting him, which alerted him, for he felt that the temple deliberately isted him.


    The master knew exactly what was going on the moment he saw Ning Que.


    Sangsang stepped on the Chief Monk of Scripture into the solid ground in the field, but the Chief Monk didn¡¯t die. The Hanging Temple was not surprised to learn that Sangsang and Ning Que had arrived here.


    Ning Que wasn¡¯t worried at all, for Haotian was right beside him.


    Master Huang Yang knew what he was thinking, but he had some different views. He removed the prayer beads from his wrist and handed them to Ning Que. He solemnly said, ¡°Buddha ispassionate, but he can get angry sometimes.¡±


    Hearing the word passionate¡± in Xuankong Temple, Ning Que felt ufortable subconsciously. Walking to the stone steps in front of the temple, he pointed to the world covered by the clouds under the peak and asked, ¡°Can you see anypassion there?¡±


    Master Huang Yang knew that Ning Que had been wondering around the underground world for quite a while and said, ¡°Many years ago, Buddha built the Buddhand with great will. He constructed countless yellow temples among the peaks, and migrated innumerable sinful people here to support the monks. He hoped that these sinful people could be civilized by Buddha Dharma, thus washing off their sins.¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Bullshit. I am not sure whether the mortals who were brought here by Buddha were really sinful. Even if they were, there werews to punish them. Buddha is just a cultivator. Who gave him the right to dere their sentences? Even if those people were really sinful, how could their offsprings suffer for their sins? Why should they live in such an injustice ce?¡±


    Master Huang Yang admired Buddha, so he couldn¡¯t echo Ning Que¡¯s usation or make excuses for Buddha. After a long silence, the master said, ¡°The bitterness in this life may lead to a blessed afterlife.¡±


    Turning around on the stone step, Ning Que looked at looked at the Buddha statue in the temple and said, ¡°An illusory afterlife can never counterbnce the sufferings one had endured in this life no matter how joyful this afterlife is. The Buddha you worship is indeed disgusting.¡±


    Master Huang Yang replied, ¡°Maybe the Xuankong Temple was a mistake. But who dares to disobey the rules set by Buddha?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Meditation is the right way to cultivate Buddha Dharma. How could these monks be so absorbed in meditating while the people here suffer greatly?¡±


    Master Huang Yang answered, ¡°Most of the monks here have never stepped off the mountain peaks.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°But they are not fools. They know clearly what the world under the peak is like, and the Xuankong Temple is also engaged deeply with the human world. Those soldier monks who are assigned to the human world and strong ones like you and Qi Nian will inevitably pass through the field while leaving the giant sinkhole. How could you never care for these poor people?¡±


    Master Huang Yang said, ¡°You do have a point. The Xuankong Temple has been passed down for countless years, and there indeed were some monks with high moral integrity who tried to make a difference even though they had to disobey Buddha. Unfortunately, they all failed. And what puzzled these monks the most was that when they tried to improve the living situation of the people under the mountain peaks, thetter would get disoriented as if the bitterness has be the core of their life.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Faith is addictive. One must bite the bullet to get rid of it, and the beginning is always the hardest. How could you give up because of temporary pain?¡±


    Master Huang Yang asked, ¡°But what if the Buddhand begins to fall?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Why should you care for this damn ce falling?¡±


    Huang Yang master shook his head helplessly. You are not one of us. Of course it¡¯s easy for you to say so. But as disciples of Buddha, how could the monks in Xuankong Temple just let the Buddhand fall?


    Ning Que continued to say, ¡°How could these monks put up with the way the Xuankong Temple operates if they were truly merciful?¡±


    Master Huang Yang answered, ¡°Actually they couldn¡¯t stand it, but they also couldn¡¯t fix it. They chose to leave.¡±


    Ning Que responded, ¡°So that¡¯s the reason why you left Xuankong Temple and returned to Chang¡¯an back then.¡±


    Master Huang Yang said, ¡°Correct. There were many monks who left Xuankong Temple like I did. Master Qishan was regarded as the sessor by the chief monk of Xuankong Temple back then since he had mastered all the Buddhist scriptures when he was still a teenager. But the master couldn¡¯t bear to see the miserable life these people under the peaks endured. He left here and went to Lanke Temple eventually.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the golden Buddha statue in the temple and thought of Master Qishan who had fallen sick from persistently overworking in the cave of Wa Mountain. After a long silence, he said, ¡°Master Qishan indeed had the heart of Buddha.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que went back to the remote cliff yard, pulled out the vine and went to the tree in front of the old residence of Lian Sheng.


    He didn¡¯t know what tree it was. He only remembered that the whole tree had only one white flower when he came here a few days ago. The white flower was blown to his shoulder by the wind back then and he had put it in Sangsang¡¯s hair.


    After only a few days, the tree was covered with blooming small white flowers, exuding the delicate fragrance which went away with the wind.


    Sangsang walked up to him. As she said a few days ago, she could always easily find him no matter where he was.


    A breeze between the cliffs passed by, the green leaves and the small white flowers shivered slightly. The leaves gradually thickened and the small white flowers gradually withered at a speed visible to the naked eye. It was extremely magical.


    Only the little white flower in Sangsang¡¯s hair was still delicate and fresh.


    The thickened green leaves and the withered white flowers didn¡¯t necessarily mean destion, but could mean that a bumper harvest for the fruits could only be born after the flowers fall. And it didn¡¯t take long for the tree to be covered with green pears.


    Ning Que realized that the tree by the cliff was actually a pear tree.


    He reached out to pick off a green pear from a branch and found that the pear was much smaller than the normal ones in the human world. The cyan color of the pear was very light and the surface was smooth, which seemed very sweet and juicy.


    Ning Que has seen this kind of green pear before and so had Sangsang. Many years ago in the cave behind the Buddha status in Wa Mountain, Master Qishan offered one to Sangsang, and Sangsang shared that green pear with him.


    That green pear indeed tasted delicious.


    Looking at the green pear in his hand, Ning Que was hesitant and even a little nervous, because he and Sangsang fell asleep and were sucked into the Buddha¡¯s Chessboard thest time they ate one.


    It might be alright if it was under other circumstances, but he and Sangsang were still in Xuankong Temple.


    It had puzzled Ning Que that the monks in Xuankong Temple acted calmly the whole time. Even though they can¡¯t find us, at least they should be a little nervous. However, the countless temples among the mountain peaks remained exactly the same, with monks chanting and meditating, and the Commandment Hall punishing guilty monks and soldier monks stomping on the ground.


    The morning bells and evening drums still sounded pure, and Xuankong Temple was still peaceful.


    What were the monks in Xuankong Temple waiting for? Conditioned dharmas? Or the moment that conditioned dharmas fell upon them? But when would the momente? Was it rted to this pear tree?


    Ning Que stared at the small green pear in his hand and frowned slightly.


    At this moment, a very melodious bell suddenly came from the summit.


    Was it pure?


    Ning Que didn¡¯t think so. At the very moment Ning Que heard the bell, his heart suddenly contracted as if it was gripped by an invisible hand and would be crushed the next moment.


    The bell was not pure at all, but enchanted!


    Turning pale instantly, he was in such severe pain that he almost crumbed the little green pear in his hand.


    Then, he spitted out some blood!


    All of a sudden, a hand passed through the breeze and held his hand.


    It was Sangsang¡¯s hand.


    A pure and powerful divinity came from her hand, instantly upying the body and mind of Ning Que and repairing his broken heart at an unimaginable speed.


    Getting out of the desperate situation, Ning Que looked toward the summit where the bell came from. With his clothes and face full of blood, he still had fear in his eyes.


    The melodious bell came from the Grand Hall of Xuankong Temple, from the ancient clock he and Sangsang had seen. But he never imagined the bell could be so dreadful!


    With his cultivation in Haoran Qi deepening, his body was as strong as steel and the ordinary swords and arrows couldn¡¯t pierce his skin, let alone his heart which was covered byyers of Haoran Qi.


    However, the bell from Xuankong Temple shattered his heart and almost killed him!


    Feeling her hand holding his, Ning Que firmly believed that he would be safe with Sangsang by his side.


    No matter how dreadful the bell is and no matter how strong Xuankong Temple is, I will be still alive as long as I hold Sangsang¡¯s hand tightly even though you have cut me into pieces.


    This was the conclusion that Ning Que drew from his experience in the Divine Hall of Light and the Secluded Pavilion. He had great confidence in his conclusion.


    Holding Sangsang¡¯s hand, he was no longer afraid and began to listen to the bell carefully.


    The bell kept echoing through the cliffs and countless temples, sounding far away.


    Countless chanting voices gradually merged into the bell.


    With countless temples, countless monks chanting the Buddhist scriptures and countless chanting voices mixing together, it was nearly impossible to hear which Buddhist scripture they were chanting.


    Every temple on earth started its day from the morning bells.


    As the morning bell rang, the monks woke up and then chanted the Buddhist scriptures, which was the morning ritual.


    The Xuankong Temple woke up, revealing his true face as the real Buddhand left on earth by Buddha.


    A Light of Buddha appeared on the cliff yard, covering Sangsang from within.


    The scene made Ning Que¡¯s blood freeze, as if his heart had stopped.


    Because he remembered what happened in the back hall of Lanke Temple many years ago.


    ...

 Chapter 937 - Buddha’s Palm

    <h4>Chapter 937: Buddha¡¯s Palm</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    In the autumn many years ago, there was once a Light of Buddha that prated the temple andnded on Sangsang.


    The Light of Buddha was sopassionate and cold at the same time. In the light, Sangsang¡¯s face seemed paler and her body seemed slighter.


    During that time, she looked at Ning Que outside the Light of Buddha and bursted into tears silently.


    From that moment on, she became the daughter of Invariant Yama and suffered endless pain and fear. And then she and Ning Que began to be hunted by the whole human world.


    The Light of Buddha back then was undoubtedly the most fundamental turning point for the both of them. All the stories that happenedter began here.


    How could Ning Que ever forget?


    At this moment, looking at the Light of Buddha on the cliff and Sangsang within, he seemed to return to the past, and the most painful emotions were all poured into his mind.


    ¡°No!¡± He cried out painfully.


    ...


    ...


    The Light of Buddha appeared so suddenly, connecting the cliff yard and the sky together. Even Sangsang could not tell whether it wasing from the sky or from the bottom of the cliff.


    More precisely, the Light of Buddha connected the cliff yard with the clouds.


    Countless clouds gathered above the mountain peaks,pletely covering the blue sky.


    With her hands behind her back, Sangsang looked up at the depths of the Light of Buddha calmly.


    Her face was as white as snow under the bright light.


    Since she put her hands behind her back, she could no longer hold Ning Que¡¯s hand.


    Even though Sangsang was Haotian, she had to be concentrate while dealing with the Light of Buddha.


    However, at this point, she heard Ning Que¡¯s painful shoutinging from behind.


    She didn¡¯t frown seeing the Light of Buddha, but frowned tightly hearing Ning Que¡¯s shouting.


    Turning around, she looked at Ning Que and asked, ¡°What do you mean ¡®No¡¯?¡±


    Ning Que was affected by the Light of Buddha and was spitting out blood. And he turned extremely pale for he worried about her safety. He had never imagined that the whole thing would turn out to be like this.


    He looked at Sangsang in the Light of Buddha and didn¡¯t know what to say.


    Sangsang did not cry, did not vomit blood and even did not call his name. She showed no fear.


    Sangsang was not as thin and pitiful as before.


    Her figure was so tall. Even the Light of Buddha couldn¡¯t bepared to her radiance.


    He realized that Sangsang had grown up.


    She was now the omnipotent and omniscient Haotian, not the little handmaiden who refused to leave his side. She no longer needed his protection, but began to protect him.


    ¡°Nothing.¡± Ning Que answered with a smile. Then he went speechless and began to vomit blood.


    Sangsang was a little irritated. Human beings are really troublesome creatures. They are terrified at one moment and thenugh the next moment. I don¡¯t really know what is going on in his mind. Seeing the blood in the corner of his lips, she thought she understood what he meant. He must be in extreme pain under the pressure of the Light of Buddha since I am not holding his hand. The ¡°No¡± he said must mean he that doesn¡¯t want me to let go of his hand. And his boring self-esteem of male animals is no doubt the root of ¡°nothing¡± he saidter.


    ¡°I am not avable.¡± Sangsang said to him, ¡°Can you open the umbre?¡±


    She used to the one who vomited blood, and now it was his turn to be the weaker one. Ning Que was immersed in the sentimental emotion brought by the change. Hearing what Sangsang said, he suddenly woke up and took out the big ck umbre.


    From the autumn at Lanke Temple, the big ck umbre had been tortured for many years and had been worn out. Ning Que brought the umbre back from the eucalyptus tree and mended it with old cloths. The umbre looked ugly, just like a beggar¡¯s outfit that was covered with patches. Since the umbre hadn¡¯t been washed for many years, it was full of ck mud and not as beautiful as before.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t care about this, and he was pleased to find that the ck umbre could actually block the Light of Buddha. Looking toward the depths of the light along Sangsang¡¯s eyes, Ning Que wanted to see where the enemy was.


    He was in good mood and so was Sangsang. The Xuankong Temple finally responded. She was very much looking forward to it rather than being afraid, for the clue of Buddha¡¯s whereabouts might lie within the sudden change of the temple¡¯s attitude.


    However, what happened next somewhat surprised them.


    The chanting sounds echoing around the cliffs gradually became neat, and the loud and distant bell did not cover up the sounds. And the bell was more like the wind in the bellows, helping the chanting sounds be louder and louder.


    With the changes of the bell and the sounds, the Light of Buddha on the cliff yard had also changed. Its color had be clearer and clearer, and the Power of Buddha contained in it had also be more and more horrible.


    Sangsang stood in the Light of Buddha with her hands behind her back, looking calm.


    Ning Que¡¯s hand which held the umbre handle trembled slightly, and it was getting hard for him to hold the umbre still. Putting the green pear into the sleeve, he used both his hands to barely make the umbre steady.


    ...


    ...


    On the summit. Behind the Grand Hall of the Xuankong Temple.


    With nobody around, the ancient clock swayed with the wind.


    The bell rang through the entire giant peaks and also the field under the peaks, reaching the cliff far away and bounced back. And the cycle repeated endlessly.


    Sitting cross-legged on the stone steps in front of the Grand Hall, dozens of monks meditated with their eyes closed and kept chanting the scriptures with the rhythm of the bell.


    Qi Nian sat in the forefront. He was very powerful for he had cultivated Silent Meditation for many years. The words he chanted today were far more than he ever said in the past decade, and his sound was full of infinite power.


    The rest of the monks were very old. Their white eyebrows seemed to hang down to the chest and their hands which were put together were more wrinkled than the bark of the oldest tree in the cliff. They were obviously the powerful elders of Xuankong Temple.


    There were also people chanting in the Grand Hall. Master Qi Mei who had been severely injured by Ning Que¡¯s Eldest Brother in front of the Cong Ridge knelt before the Buddha statue in the most pious manner, chanting the scriptures ceaselessly. The back of his head was severely deformed, and his chanting was a little ambiguous. However, the chanting somehow became extremely clear whileing out of the hall.


    Hundreds of monks in red kasaya sat cross-legged on the cliff yard in several yellow temples in the East Peak and the West Peak. They put their palms together devoutly and looked determined, chanting ceaselessly.


    Thousands of monks in gray kasaya sat cross-legged in the meditation room in dozens of temples on the mountainside. They put their palms together devoutly and looked nervous, chanting ceaselessly.


    Countless monks in robes with different colors sat cross-legged in front of Buddha status in hundreds of yellow temples at the foot of the mountains. They put their palms together devoutly and looked puzzled, chanting ceaselessly.


    Millions of people kneeled toward the direction of Xuankong Temple in the vast field at the bottom of the giant sinkhole. It did not matter whether they were shabbily dressed or well dressed because they looked very pious. They kept praying.


    The different positions in the Buddhand meant different clothes and different performances. The powerful monks didn¡¯t have to sit in front of the Buddha statues, but the normal ones needed to rely on the Buddha statues to gain courage. The most powerful monk looked calm, the less powerful monks looked determined, the normal monks looked nervous and the puzzled ones didn¡¯t even understand what was going on.


    Those devout followers in the field didn¡¯t understand what was going on either, but their faiths were the firmest. They had never learned any scriptures, but their praying had the most powerful effect.


    But no matter which ground these people belonged to, they kept chanting and praying.


    The Buddhand was full of the sounds of bell, chanting, and praying.


    The clouds remained calm, but gradually revealed some traces.


    That was the shadow projected by the scriptures.


    The real scriptures were in the air. Thousands of temple-sized words were flecked with faint golden light, drifting over the heads of herdsmen, through real temples and across the green trees among the cliffs. And these words kept changing positions in the sky.


    The dark field was brightly illuminated by the scriptures with golden light.


    The followers who kneeled in the field showed excited expressions on their faces. They became more pious, their hearts to Buddha were much firmer, and the sounds of their praying became clearer.


    Compared with the kneeling herdsmen, Jun Mo who stood silently by a blueke near the cliff wall seemed very special. He looked so lonely but so powerful.


    He looked at the scriptures with golden light flying to the giant peaks and frowned slightly.


    ...


    ...


    Thousands of scriptures with golden light gathered together from all directions and rotated around the giant peaks slowly, making the trees and temples among the peaks bright and then dark. The Light of Buddha on the cliff yard became brighter.


    In the Light of Buddha, Ning Que held the umbre handle tightly with both hands and struggled to keep the umbre steady.


    Looking at the depths of the Light of Buddha, Sangsang turned paler and paler. But she didn¡¯t fight back, for she wanted to see clearly where the light came from and where Buddha was.


    Ning Que looked at her back and felt nervous. Although he didn¡¯t know what the Xuankong Temple was capable of or what the scriptures with golden light in the sky meant, he did have unmatched talent on Fu Tao. He instinctively calcted that the Buddhists would attack when these golden words were finally arranged into a Buddhist Scripture. I¡¯m afraid Sangsang might have trouble dealing with it when the Buddhist Scripture ispleted. Why does she still not fight back?


    Sangsang stared at the depths of the Light of Buddha for a long time.


    All of a sudden, she looked toward the cliff yard and said, ¡°I see.¡±


    ...


    ...


    The mountain where the Xuankong Temple was located was the highest and most massive mountain in the human world.


    However, the mountain had been hidden in the giant sinkhole the whole time. Looking from the surface, it was just a obscure hummock.


    The meaning within was consistent with the naturew believed by Buddhism.


    Because the mountain was the highest man in the human world who refused to reveal himself to the world.


    The cliff yard was not a real one, but the open palm of the highest man that was facing the sky.


    The pear tree by the cliff was not a real one either, but a flower held by the man between his fingers.


    The man was Buddha.


    Ning Que and Sangsang stood on the cliff yard, next to the pear tree. In other words, they actually stood in the palm of Buddha, under the little white flower between his fingers!


    Sangsang took off the small white flower in her hair and threw it into the wind. She looked at the summit and said ironically, ¡°The mountain is just your dead body, not you. Do you think you can trap me in your palm like this?¡±


    Yes, the mountain was not Buddha, but the remains of him after he reached nirvana.


    However, it was still the remains of Buddha, the highest mountain in the human world.


    Who could escape from Buddha¡¯s palm?


    ...

 Chapter 938 - Western Land, Ning Ques Bliss

    <h4>Chapter 938: Western Land, Ning Que¡¯s Bliss</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The mountain was Buddha, while the cliff teau was his palm. The lofty Buddha¡¯s light, full of stillness and extinct coercion, didn¡¯te from nowhere, but from the palm of Buddha, as well as from the pious belief of countless monks and believers in Xuankong Temple and wildness in the pit bottom.


    That was also the case with the scriptures that were winded around the peaks, which were written by Buddha eons ago and piously chanted by his disciples and believers millions of yearster. Buddhahood was the gilt of the scriptures, making the power of Buddha boundless.


    Sangsang was silently looking at the cliff teau, the scriptures floating in the wind, and the ray of Buddha¡¯s light. She captured multiple views with one nce. The Lanke Temple in autumn many years ago came into her mind.


    In that year, a ray of Buddha¡¯s light with such stillness and extinction was exposed in Lanke Temple. The light came from the stone statue of Buddha at the peak of Wa Mountain when a clear and crisp bell rang in the hands of Jewel Tree, the chief monk of the Commandment Court.


    This year in Xuankong Temple, Buddha¡¯s light was grim but was also beneficent. It came from the cliff teau and the remains of Buddha¡¯s palm when the bell rang far away behind the Shrine Hall at the mountain peak.


    Buddha¡¯s light that year in Lanke Temple was targeted to press and kill the daughter of Invariant Yama. While, this year in Xuankong Temple, Buddha¡¯s light was for the suppression of Haotian. As it was known to all, actually nothing had changed, because Haotian was the daughter of Invariant Yama and that the same power of Buddha¡¯s light was executed.


    Everything was clear.


    In order to deal with the Headmaster of Academy, Haotian brewed the plot a millennium ago. Yet before that, Buddha had read the Bright Volume of The Tomes of Arcane while taking notes, so that he knew what would happen and foretold that a round bright moon would certainly emerge when the nightfall was approaching. Mysteries merely fell into the uncertainties of Haotian¡¯s advent to the human world and her weakening.


    With that, Buddha drew another plot.


    Plenty of dharma vessels were left in the human world, such as the Obon Bell and the chessboard. Wherein, the boundless Light of Buddha had been shed under the purpose of keeping the entrance of the Devil¡¯s world closed. However, as mighty as Buddha was, how couldn¡¯t he know the so-called Devil¡¯s World had never existed?


    From the beginning to end, she had always been on the hit list of Buddha.


    Buddha had been determined to exterminate Haotian.


    Yet the Obon Bell was squeezed into a piece of scrap iron, and the stone statue of Buddha at the peak of Wa Mountain was cut into fragments by Jun Mo. The chessboard was taken to the Wilderness by Ning Que and Sangsang.


    Nevertheless, the remains of Buddha became a giant mount, infinitely taller than the stone statue on Wa Mountain. The bell in Xuankong Temple was far louder than the Obon Bell. The Buddha¡¯s light was all the more powerful.


    Sangsang saw everything clearly. As their minds were closely connected, Ning Que also knew all the causes and effects and that the huge mountain where Xuankong Temple was located was actually the body of Buddha.


    He was astonished at the moment when no one was shaken.


    There was something to do with astonishment, and much to do with the scriptures floating and winding above the mountain. He looked pale around the grills as the scriptures gradually found its sequence and was about to form a whole text.


    One character was asrge as a temple. Glittering and floating above the Xuankong Temple, thousands of characters in that size covered arge scale and blotted out the clouds. ¡°Chug.¡± Ning Que held the knife handle and drew the iron knife in the middle, which had a shimmer that sent chills down one¡¯s bones.


    As he was about to draw, Sangsang waved her sleeves.


    She was dressed in ck clothes decorated with flowers, which looked like the most honorable imperial robe glittering against the boundless light of Buddha.


    She was the lord of the world.


    Her slight waving in the air made fierce winds roared like a dragon passing through the woods and temples. Countless monks were swept off the cliff. The wind traversed in front of Buddha¡¯s Shrine Hall, slightly wobbling the ancient bell and disturbing its rings.


    At that moment, Qi Mei sat down from his former kneeling position in front of Buddha in the Shrine Hall. While wearing a firm and persistent expression, he held a wood staff and heavily knocked at the wood block in front of him, which was shattered instantly.


    Nearly at the same time, the Venerable standing beside Buddha dropped the vajra pestle from the air and heavily hit Qi Mei¡¯s head. Qi Mei¡¯s skull was smashed, and his brains and blood were scattered.


    Blood stains of contaminated the Buddha statue. After that, Buddha¡¯s Shrine Hall suddenly stabilized and then closely connected with the mount as one. Monks therewith finally steadied their bodies and minds.


    Sangsang¡¯s waving sleeves formed wind, the celestial power that couldn¡¯t be annihted at this point. It was drifted up from the peak and instantly came to the point where the text of scriptures consisting of thousands of characters was floating in the air.


    Upper clouds were blown apart, and giant golden characters were dissipated and tossed all around. Amid the flickering golden light, the scriptures that were about toe into being had been disordered to arge extent, resulting in great difficulties of reading.


    Sangsang broke the scriptures left by Buddha merely by waving her sleeves. Her expressions were increasingly getting dignified.


    The reason was that she gained a better perception of her surroundings. While waving her sleeves, she felt a little puzzled, after surprisingly found that she couldn¡¯t get away from the cliff teau with Ning Que.


    The power of inhibition on the cliff teau was neither part of the rules nor regr cultivation. Thetter was still within the rules, even if the isted world above the Five States was still part of Haotian¡¯s world. Even with a much weaker body after her advent to the human world, she could still destroy one billion worlds if she were to decide to.


    At that moment, it was a macrocosm that trapped them.


    How could there be a macrocosm in Haotian¡¯s world?


    Buddha transformed his body into mounts with numerous temples, harboring countless believers below.


    These mounts didn¡¯t bear any perception, spirit, or life, but Buddhahood had been nurtured here with countless years of uninterrupted incense-burning, sutra-chanting among the mounts and believers¡¯ prostrate worship in the wilderness.


    Buddhahood was the awareness shared by monks and believers!


    That was why this world had be Buddhand, a true world, a macrocosm of pureness.


    This world was in the extremely west, so called the Western Paradise.


    ...


    ...


    It did not matter that she was in the Western Paradise and unable to leave freely or that she had to fight against at least millions of Buddhist believers. Sangsang didn¡¯t mind at all as she was Haotian, the lord who would never lose.


    However, she had stayed in the human world for a long time and had been continuously weakened by its power. Thus, she would pay a heavy price if she was going to break the Western Paradise.


    She could have wrecked the Western Paradise, but how would she cope with the other threats in the human world, such as Chang¡¯an, the Academy and God-stunning Array, with an extremely weak body?


    Therefore she had a bit of hesitation.


    Ning Que had no idea why she hesitated. But he was worried about the terrible situation of how the scriptures were blown apart by the wind but didn¡¯t disappear. Instead, they were scattered and fell toward the cliff teau!


    The temple-sized golden characters gradually shrank into petal-sized ones, and emitted an exotic fragrance during the fall.


    It was very beautiful, just like the blossoms that were scattered by the heavenly maids in Buddhand.


    Every petal falling on the surface of the big ck umbre weighed as heavily as arge stone.


    The Buddha¡¯s light itself was extremely suppressing. It became countless petals falling down and umted on the surface of the big ck umbre. This was unbearable for a human being. Merely in a moment, his arm felt like it was about to break.


    Ning Que nted the umbre¡¯s handle into the cliff teau, with the belief that since the mount aws the body of Buddha, it was surely strong enough to support them.


    He nced at Sangsang who was silently standing in Buddha¡¯s light.


    He took out the iron knife and cut through the petals that were falling down.


    His knife cut off with traces, the character, the Yi Talisman.


    Though they had the appearance of petals, they were actually characters in scriptures.


    The Buddha Dharma was so iparable that the characters weighed heavily as mountains.


    If Buddha had left other means, then Ning Que inevitably would have been out of methods to counteract, since his cultivation was within the Five States. He would rather have evaded by going behind Sangsang while grasping her sleeve.


    However, he could break through the characters that were falling down.


    This was because, as the best calligrapher and most powerful talisman master, he was an expert in breaking down characters. God knows how many characters he had broken down in the old library of the Academy.


    Seven Yi Talismans appeared in the air above the cliff.


    Once hit with the talisman power, the petals were torn into fabrics and flocks. The characters in the flowers were broken into meaningless lines.


    Thousands of characters and thousands of flowers continued to fall, like a long and continuous spring shower.


    The seven Yi Talismans didn¡¯tst long. They disappeared due to the coercive power of Buddha.


    Ning Que was hardly detected with any traces of fear. While looking at the left part of the scriptures, characters continuously fell down from the bottom of the messy scriptures.


    During this time, he didn¡¯t break down any characters, and instead wrote a character in the sky.


    He wrote it so randomly that even he had no idea what the character would be.


    Even though it was said that Buddha could detect things five hundred years after his death, Buddha himself would not have been able to guess.


    The strokes that were drawn by his iron knife seemed more like scribbles.


    A few drops of ink could even make even the most learned eminent monks puzzled.


    The scriptures of Buddhand were broken down by Ning Que¡¯s random shes.


    He was the freak cultivated by both the Headmaster of Academy and Yan Se. Furthermore, he didn¡¯t belong to Haotian¡¯s world, or that of Buddha. The Western Paradise was thest ce that he wanted to stay.


    Dealing with Ning Que by the means of characters was like cutting fish slices by the front door of the Headmaster, or selling hot and spicy shredded noodles on Lin 47th Street.


    He put the knife back to its sheath and said while looking at Sangsang, ¡°What are you waiting for?¡±


    Sangsang didn¡¯t reply and had an unfathomable aura.


    Ning Que shook off the petals that were still on the big ck umbre, and then held it to block Buddha¡¯s light for her.


    Sangsang slightly frowned and said, ¡°How could these attacks harm me?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You look too pale to unt.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I¡¯m innately powerful. Why would I unt?¡±


    Ning Que thought, She was the proud Haotian, the lord so stubborn that she wants to save her honor and reputation even at this point.


    He put the umbre handle in her hands, and then shouted towards the peak, ¡°We give up. How about calling a truce?¡±


    Sangsang frowned again and looked a little unhappy.


    Ning Que said seriously, ¡°Look at me, a man who never cared about reputation.¡±


    Nevertheless, it was clear to Xuankong Temple that Haotian would never admit defeat, so they wouldn¡¯t give up either. They answered Ning Que with bell tones and endless solemn sutra-chanting echoing throughout the mounts and cliffs. There was also another sound.


    ¡°Since they fight against the lord, why is the Academy still standing beside the lord?¡± This sound was serene yet august, and more or less could only be described as grand and magnificent after listening carefully. On the other hand, the question hit the core of the point. No one could give a clear and usible answer.


    Hearing it, Ning Que unexpectedlyughed out. ¡°Chief Monk, you should have been buried underground by now. It is amusing how you can still speak energetically. But, it is admirable.¡±

 Chapter 939 - White Tower Bursting Out of Clouds

    <h4>Chapter 939: White Tower Bursting Out of Clouds</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ning Que¡¯sughter, full of joy and spirit, flew from the cliff, traversed green peer flowers, and floated over the Buddha¡¯s light as well as the wilted scripture petals, and echoed among countless temples. It couldn¡¯t be overwhelmed. It ran over the sutra-chanting of millions of monks and the ringing of profound bells.


    Ever since the Rite to Light, when he became invincible in the human world, he had been tortured for countless times by Sangsang, unable to retaliate. If she were to strike, then he can only miserably stand back, without any chances to engage. In the pce of Jingdu, it appeared that he won against the Sage of Calligraphy, but it actually due to her power. Thus, he ended up handling misceneous affairs such as carrying the luggage, walking the horse, mending, and washing.


    To break free from Buddha¡¯s inhibition, he simply took out his iron knife and wrote several talismans. Why wouldn¡¯t he feel brisk and neat?


    The voice of the Chief Monk echoed again. ¡°In the past, you helped her when the Buddhists came after her. Why are you still helping her now? Does it mean that the Academy is going against the Headmaster¡¯s will?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The Academy¡¯s defiance against the lord is their business. She is my wife. Even if we do have some problems, they¡¯re domestic affairs. Why is Buddha meddling? After hiding and evading for countless years, he just suddenlyes out to take advantage of us during a quarrel. How is this fair? This is disgusting.¡±


    The chief monk said, ¡°Causes and effects. Thetter is the one that matters.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°If Buddha¡¯s so-said effects will eventually end up with the world down the hill, then the Academy certainly won¡¯t let his causes and effectse into being.¡±


    The chief monk seriously asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Because it is disgusting.¡±


    The chief monk fell into silence.


    Ning Que was flying high, and will not stop at this point. He shouted, ¡°Is the Buddha beneficent? Can anyone among the tens of thousands of monks in Xuankong Temple confidently tell us what his beneficence is?¡±


    The chief monk said indifferently, ¡°So go die with Haotian.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You¡¯re a pretentious bastard, much like me back in the old days. Disgusting indeed.¡±


    While holding on the big ck umbre, Sangsang was looking at Ning Que and said, ¡°You¡¯re quite disgusting.¡±


    Ning Que said helplessly, ¡°See your own position and stance clearly first, alright?¡±


    At that moment, the huge text of scriptures was still dissipating into countless falling petals after being scribbled. It was extremely dangerous, yet no longer emitted exotic fragrance and was less coercive.


    The Buddha¡¯s light was growing, with continuous sutra-chanting and praying from countless believers of numerous temples and the Wilderness down the mount.


    Buddha left myriad foreshadowings, as vast and boundless as an ocean. How could Ning Que possibly solve them all? The extremely dangerous dharma-vessel was hidden in the human world until that moment.


    ...


    ...


    Rain fell upon Chaoyang.


    In the drizzle, the seventy-two temples looked very solemn and respected.


    When the bell rang in the hidden Xuankong Temple in the western wilderness, bells from the seventy-two temples would ring simultaneously. Tones echoed among every street, alley, and in the hearts of all the believers.


    Buddha¡¯s bell could rify minds and also raise their guard. It did not matter if they were old women making shoe soles around corners in alleys or the young emperor with an immature appearance. They all went to temples, under the guidance of bell tones.


    All Buddhist temples in Chaoyang were packed with believers, men and women, old and young. All of them, kneeled in front of a Buddha¡¯s statue, continued to kowtow and pray. A dark and dense mass of believers kneeled down on the stone terrace in front theke, one next to the other in the White Tower Temple.


    Theke water was very clear and peaceful and reflected the beautiful White Tower and weeping willows alongside shores. They were the most famous sceneries and best memories for locals in Chaoyang.


    Autumn wind slightly blew, whileke water was rippled. The White Tower mirrored on the surface of theke was getting distorted. It was a mostmon view, but the non-stop praying believers beside theke were exceptionally astonished because the actual White Tower beside theke was also distorted along with the distortion of its reflection on theke!


    The shadow of the tower was inverted imagery. How could it have an effect on the authentic White Tower?


    The autumn wind gradually blew harder, and roared past the surface of theke. After the blowing shook theke water, the tower and tree shadows were shattered. The imagery was vague.


    The White Tower beside theke was gradually getting blurred, as if it was about to disappear into the air!


    The surface of theke shook increasingly fiercely. The spoondrift, thrown up with white sprays, looked much like the clouds in the sky, and also like boiling water in a pot. The imagery of the White Tower turned into foam, then finally vanished.


    Boom! A huge re!


    Theke water suddenly disappeared, with only a drykebed left!


    The White Tower beside theke was gone at the same time!


    The White Tower apanied believers for countless years in Yuelun Kingdom, so it had been part of their spiritual beliefs or at least the memories. Yet it vanished just like that in front of them at that moment.


    All of the witnesses felt that they would never see the White Tower again and that the most famous scenery in Chaoyang City would nevere back.


    The believers were startled by the loss. The sorrow and sentiments were so overwhelming that they didn¡¯t know what to do. The only thing they could do was to kneel beside theke, kowtow, and pray toward the remains of the bottom altars of the White Tower, more devoutly than ever before.


    ...


    ...


    The firmament above Xuankong Temple had been covered by a thickyer of clouds.


    Ever since he began to aim to exterminate Haotian, Buddha had had no intentions of sparing her with the clear and blue sky.


    Suddenly, an extremely horrible sound of wind rang out in the lofty firmament.


    The middle of the cloudyer bulged for thousands of meters and depressed downward. The bumped cloud cluster was about to touch the peak of the giant mount. At its bottom, it was thundering and lightening, and then rain rushed down.


    The rain was not ordinary water, but theke water by the White Tower Temple, transported from the human world countless miles away. There were plenty of swimming fish and snapped lotus flowers in the water


    As the rain was pouring down, the bumped cloud cluster cracked all of a sudden.


    The White Tower appeared, bursting out of the louds, and then it fell down the cliff teau amid these mounts.


    The White Tower also came from the human world countless miles away. Carrying the awareness of all the believers of Buddhism in the human world, it jumped from other space to the Western Paradise, aiming to suppress Haotian by imprisoning her under the tower.


    During the autumn years ago, the Chief Monk of Scripture thought to trap Sangsang under the White Tower. Yearster, in this autumn, the means left by the Buddha had finally made ite true!


    ...


    ...


    Intense waterfalls fell on the cliff teau. Pear trees were hanging on their branches, and little green pears amid the green leaves still held on, instead of falling down to the ground. Numerous streams flew down along the cliffside, and became very fine waterfalls.


    While holding onto the big ck umbre, Sangsang calmly stood in the rainstorm of theke water.


    Without an umbre, Ning Que was wet within seconds, with a couple of dead-snake-like lotus twigs hanging on his shoulders and a greasy loach drilling in his chest. He looked very messy.


    It was not theke water that drove him ufortable, but the White Tower bursting out of the clouds.


    The bumped part of the cloudyer was so close to the peak that part of the White Tower was about to pass by the Buddha¡¯s Shrine Hall, and unswervingly suppress the area on the cliff teau with Sangsang and Ning Que!


    The White Tower that was falling from the dome contained the paramount coercion of Buddha, which beefed up the Buddha¡¯s light upon the cliff teau. They shared a subtle bond in and between, which couldn¡¯t be broken up.


    As the most powerful dharma-vessel left in the human world by Buddha, it was supposed to befall on the Buddha¡¯s palm.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t care that Buddha calling in his own treasure, but at that moment, he and Sangsang were standing within the Buddha¡¯s palm and couldn¡¯t get away. It was easy to say they would definitely be suppressed and imprisoned if the White Tower were ti down. After that, there would be no way to shake it off.


    With the falling of the White Tower, Buddha¡¯s coercion was approaching. Ning Que held the iron knife, looked around purposelessly, without any countermeasures. Looking over his back, he saw that she was still in a daze under the umbre.


    Fresh blood was sprayed out of his mouth.


    After he wiped off the blood around the corner of his mouth, she was still drifting away.


    Ning Que was helplessly anguished and shouted to her, ¡°My lord! What is the drifting for at this very moment? It¡¯s time to show your supernatural power!¡±


    Sangsang looked up at the falling White Tower in the Buddha¡¯s light.


    When the rainstorm stopped, the cloudsyer suddenly came to peace. The White Tower abruptly slowed down, as if it was suspended up in the air.


    If it had continued to fall down, the White Tower would have fallen on the cliff teau and imprisoned her and Ning Que.


    In order to get rid of the present dilemma, they must find a way to leave the cliff teau. However, they must break out the macrocosm consisting of the Buddha¡¯ light, scriptures, and the shared awareness of millions of believers.


    That was Buddha¡¯s Western Paradise.


    Sangsang wouldn¡¯t pay such arge cost, due to the existence of the Academy in the human world.


    She thought quietly with her hands sped behind her back and expressionlessly looked at the White Tower.


    Ning Que was helpless while he was looking at her. He shed out the iron knife, broke out a couple of scriptures falling down the cliff, and cut a way to her side. Afterward, he crushed into the big ck umbre and shouted near her ear, ¡°Wake up!¡±


    Sangsang still looked the same and said, ¡°I wasn¡¯t asleep.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Do something. I don¡¯t want to end up like Xu Xian.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°It was the White Snake who was imprisoned under that tower.¡±


    Ning Que was annoyed and said, ¡°If you were the White Snake, how could I lead a life outside the tower?¡±


    Sangsang looked at the White Tower and said, ¡°I was weakened by your Academy, so that I can¡¯t defeat it.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Is it my fault? Alright, it is my fault. You¡¯re Haotian, who should behold some sort of magical weapon.¡±


    Sangsang pointed at the big ck umbre while looking at him.


    Ning Que was very upset and said, ¡°Do you see how many weapons were left by Buddha? Do you just have a torn umbre like this?¡±


    The big ck umbre did look quite torn. And if the umbre was animated and able to perceive, then it would have felt very unfair.


    Sangsang wasn¡¯t grievous because grief was one of emotions that puny humans processed. She said, ¡°The weak require so many preparations. I need nothing in the human world.¡± In her eyes, Buddha was part of the weak.


    Ning Que said, ¡°The weak would have suppressed you, the powerful one.¡±


    Sangsang looked at him and replied, ¡°Do you think I¡¯m going to be beaten by the Buddhist trick?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I¡¯m witnessing the performance of a tragedy.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°You¡¯re daydreaming.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Is the cracking of Heaven his wildest dream?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve said no. And it never will be.¡± Her eyes suddenly shifted to the package behind Ning Que. She said expressionlessly, while looking at the chessboard left by Buddha, ¡°Because I am Haotian, while you...are nothing.¡±

 Chapter 940 - One Green Pear through Five-Hundred Years

    <h4>Chapter 940: One Green Pear through Five-Hundred Years</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    After saying that, Sangsang had her flow of Qi suddenly changed. She was then sharing the same umbre with Ning Que, and stood there under the pear tree on the cliff teau. Yet in the eyes of Ning Que, she instantly looked countless-times tallerpared to a minute ago, as if she was about to touch the firmament at amanding position over the White Tower in the air.


    Facing the extremely powerful means of Buddha, she corresponded with boundlessness in the Buddhist perspective. Ning Que witnessed the so-called boundlessness of others, the Dean of the Zhishou Abbey and the gon alike. Only her boundlessness was truly immeasurable.


    Once they found her changing, the monks of Xuankong Temple didn¡¯t halt the bell tones and the sutra-chanting. Instead, they increasingly resounded, following the changes of her flow of Qi.


    Each character of the scriptures, chanted by these monks in temples, was as heavy as a temple. Out of the coercion, loose stones gradually flew from the two mounts of the west and east. Tens of thousands of monks were unstably shaken. They continued to chant, even with fresh blood gurgling out of their mouths.


    Ning Que was quite worried after he found a slight paleness climbing up on Sangsang¡¯s cheeks. She knew what he was thinking and peacefully said, ¡°This is my world. No one can trap me.¡±


    Nevertheless, this is Buddhand, a prodigious world.


    As the bell rang in Xuankong Temple, the bell also rang in the seventy-two temples in Chaoyang City in the autumn rain: the bell rang in Lanke Temple on Wa Mountain rang at the extremely remote sea shore, the bell rang in Chang¡¯an, in Myriad Goose Temple where no honking was heard, in the Red Lotus Temple, which was burned and ruined long ago. Only a distorted bell sounded and whimpered like a sobbing ghost when the autumn wind blew.


    An extremely shabby Buddhist nunnery was located outside the capital city of Yan Kingdom, which had been ruined for years. Sincest year, dozens of widows who were unable to bear any children were evicted from farms and houses. The widows gathered in the beat-up nunnery, and shaved off their ck hair. They were ready to spend the rest of their long lives in despair with the ruined Buddha in flickering lights, or the chance of meeting a sudden and tragic death after falling into the hands of robbers at night.


    They heard a sudden bell tone from afar.


    Tortured by their cold and restless lives, the widows had already felt hopeless. However, the bell tone seemed to have injected some sort of strength into their bodies. They stood up, ran toward the ruined bell at the back of the nunnery, and clenched their fists to continuously hit the bell. Their fists were bleeding, as though they were leashing out their rancor and despair that had umted over the years in order to seekfort.


    The bell rang very hoarsely and ufortably, as it was howling.


    In Chaoyang City, countless monks kneeled down before the statue of Buddha, and chanted the sutra. Numerous believers also kneeled down and prayed to Buddha, just like the time at White Tower before it disappeared.


    At the Myriad Goose Temple of Chang¡¯an, monks stunningly listened to the bell tone ringing behind the court, as if these stone statues of the Venerable were about to resurrect. At the Lanke Temple on Wa Mountain, the Buddhist Abbot Monk Guan Hai silently kneeled by the stone statue of Buddha at the peak, while wearing a solemn appearance.


    In both cities and countrysides, everyone who were once helped by sadhus, piously kneeled down and prayed under the ubiquitous bell tone towards Buddha that no one knew where to find.


    Bell tones, sutra chanting and praying rang at every corner in the human world, making it Buddha¡¯snd. As long as sharing the belief of Buddhism, people would enter into the macrocosm he had left ¡ª the Western Paradise.


    Sangsang looked increasingly paler because she had underestimated the coercion and power of Buddha. She didn¡¯t fluster, though. A clear clue dawned on her that Buddha was definitely alive, as long as he had made all these arrangements.


    That was to say the key was to find Buddha and kill him for good, so that the paradise he had set up in the human world would be destroyed ordingly, and all this would be a bursted bubble.


    She had already detected Buddha¡¯s whereabouts.


    Ning Que was very worried when he saw her expressions.


    Sangsang turned around to look at him all of a sudden and said, ¡°Eat the green pear that is in your sleeves.¡±


    Ning Que was confused. He did have a green pear in his sleeve, which was the first fruit from the pear tree alongside the cliff before. He was puzzled why she would want him to eat it at this crutch of time.


    He solved the mystery in no time because he remembered that he once ate a green pear which allowed them to enter the chessboard of Buddha. It was the the year when they were below the statue of Buddha on Wa Mountain and in Master Qishan¡¯s cave cottage.


    Was entering the chessboard the way out of the Western Chessboard?


    Ning Que had faith in Sangsang. It was not because of their rtionship, but because she was Haotian, the lord who could precisely calcte everything on earth. But at that moment, he couldn¡¯t refrain from some doubts due to what had happenedst time after he ate a green pear. Back then, only their consciousness or so-called souls entered the chessboard, while their bodies were blocked outside. Even if Sangsang were able to drag their bodies into the chessboard by utilizing her great divine ability, what sort of danger would they face in it?


    While looking at the chessboard and the lines on it, a very dreadful suspicion came into being: what if Buddha was actually hidden in it?


    ¡°Definitely, Buddha is in the chessboard.¡±


    The scripture petals were drifting down from the air. Buddha¡¯s light, putting forth from the cliff teau, covered Sangsang and Ning Que. The White Tower was slowly falling down. While watching all of these, Sangsang put the big ck umbre away, and said, ¡°After I came to the mountain, both Xuankong Temple and Buddha fell into silence. I am Haotian, so who dare harm me?¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t understand her and asked, ¡°Why would they harm you?¡±


    Sangsang replied while looking at him, ¡°Because the green pears on the tree matured and you picked them up. Now you have one.¡±


    Ning Que watched the little green pear in his right hand and the chessboard in his left hand. Then he seemed to have some clue. That year when the powerful figures gathered at Lanke Temple, the Second Brother destroyed the dherma-vessels and the statue of Buddha. Only the chessboard was left.


    ¡°Since the green pears have ripened, we can enter the chessboard to see the real body of Buddha. That¡¯s why these monks started to fear, and so did Buddha. And that¡¯s why they would rather fight with whatever they have to stop us.¡±


    ¡°That year when we went into the chessboard at Lanke Temple, why didn¡¯t we see Buddha?¡±


    ¡°That year, I hadn¡¯t woken up yet, so we couldn¡¯t see him. In the other way around, it was meaningless for him as well to see me back then.¡±


    ¡°What does that mean? That Buddha is also waiting to see you since you¡¯ve be Haotian?¡±


    ¡°Right.¡±


    While staring at the chessboard in his hands, Sangsang was wondering why she was not able find any traces of Buddha in the human world, and why Tian Xin¡¯s attention had always returned to Ning Que when they looked for it in Xuankong Temple. It was not because I couldn¡¯t leave this man, but because I had already detected Buddha was hidden in the chessboard. That¡¯s terrific.


    Ning Que felt that the chessboard in his hand was much heavier than it was a minute ago. Anyone would have had the same feeling after finding out that they were carrying the world after Buddha¡¯s nirvana, which was also Buddha¡¯s coffin.


    ¡°Knowing that Buddha is in it, why are we still nning to go in?¡± He was restless.


    Sangsang said, ¡°I came here to kill Buddha. Of course I should follow the trace.¡±


    Ning Que was about to say something, before something entered his mouth. The fragrant, sweet, and delicious pear juice flowed into his stomach. He ate the green pear just like that.


    What¡¯s done was done. He ate the pear. Things that had already happened cannot be changed. He epted the cruel reality very shortly, and then walked to the green tree on the side of the cliff.


    ¡°What are you up to?¡± Sangsang asked.


    Ning Que was trying to reach a pear and said, ¡°You haven¡¯t eaten one.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I do not have to. I have entered the chessboard once, so it is my world too.¡±


    After saying that, an extra chess piece was found between her fingers.


    Years ago, she and Master Qi Shan yed thest round of the three Wa Mountain games in Lanke Mountain. The master asked her to choose a side, and she chose the ck without any hesitation, which made the Master sigh.


    Two years ago, the chess piece in her hand became white in the Wilderness. The Headmaster of the Academy in the carriage observed that, and the universe changed its colorter on. The Headmaster knew all the causes and effects. Then he took her and Ning Que to start the long trip in the human world, in order to make arrangements ahead of Haotian¡¯s advent to the human world.


    That chess piece had always been in Sangsang¡¯s hand. At this point, it was hard to tell what color it should be, as it was continuously changing from ck to white and then white to ck. It was like the god¡¯s will, impossible to be predicted.


    Ning Que looked at the chess piece in her hand and recalled a lot of memories. He held the chessboard in silence.


    She put the chess piece on the chessboard.


    No sound or wind.


    Ning Que and Sangsang had disappeared from the cliff teau.


    The chessboard stayed in the air for a while, and then fell on the cliff teau. Drops of of rainfall sshed.


    Rainfall flowed out from the side of the cliff formed several giant waterfalls, rolling down with thundering torrents.


    Free from the blockage of the lord¡¯s prowess, the White Tower far from Chaoyang City cracked the sky and fell, and then heavily hit the chessboard. With another re, it was recoiled towards the old temple behind the cliff.


    The old temple was shattered into ruins. The road to the cave on the cliff was blocked by the White Tower.


    The chessboard was sprung several times on the cliff teau, and then became static, stirring up a very soft breeze.


    A breeze passed by and the green tree by the side of the cliff wobbled for a while. Numerous green pears falling down.


    Before the White Tower bursted out of the clouds, arge volume of water came from Chaoyang City, as if a rainstorm had flushed the cliff teau. Nevertheless, the green pears couldn¡¯t be knocked out then. Now, the green pears were falling down like rainfalls in the wake of the refreshing breeze.


    Tap, tap, tap, tap. Apanied by the rainfall-like noises, green pears dropped to the cliff teau, macerated by the rainwater. In a blink of an eye, all of them were vibrated into juice, only with hundreds of pear cores left.


    These pear cores were swirled by the breeze, and fell down alongside the huge waterfalls to the abyss down the mount, with no trace at all.


    The pear tree was nted by Buddha years ago. It blossomed every five-hundred years, and ripened five dayster. Once they touch the ground, they be oakum and fade away without any traces.


    Over countless years, only three green pears were left in Xuankong Temple.


    When he left Xuankong Temple, Master Qi Shan took all the three pears with him to the human world. It was because he was the bastard of the first-generation Scripture Chief Monk that no punishment was implemented.


    The first green pear was used by Master Qi Shan to treat tens of thousands of victims of epidemics after natural disasters. Because of this, his meditative mind waspromised from being absolutely null to disabled.


    The second green pear was used by Master Qi Shan to convert Prince Lian Sheng, who realized the truth through istion and meditation by the pear tree on the side of the cliff. It can be said that it was his fate or predestined to be a Buddhist.


    The third green pear was shared and eaten by Sangsang and Ning Que, which revealed Sangsang¡¯s true identity to the master. After that, the human world fell into a fugitive journey to get away from a bloodbath of disaster.


    Five-hundred yearster, the pear flowers on the green tree were in blossom and bore hundreds of green fruits in Xuankong Temple. Only one fruit survived and was eaten by Ning Que. This time it was a rtively simple thing to decide.


    This green pear tree would decide one¡¯s life or death ¡ª the life and death of Haotian and Buddha.


    ...

 Chapter 941 - The Other End of the Chessboard

    <h4>Chapter 941: The Other End of the Chessboard</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Refreshing breeze slightly passed by on the cliff teau. The White Tower was reborn in the shattered temples and brims, which had lost its splendid mour from the admiration of the thousands of people by theke in Chaoyang City in the past. Now, it looked decadent due to its dead appearance.


    Rainstorm caused countless leaves to fall, while the wind slightly knocked down hundreds of fruits. The branches of the green tree on one side of the cliff were scattered. They were as pitiful as clothless women. The waterfalls down the cliff seemed to be scornfullyughing at it.


    The chessboard was lying on the cliff teau.


    Even the light had vanished as the gilding scriptures dispersed with the loose clouds. Petals were no longer falling, and the bell tones and sutra-chanting had stopped.


    The crowd of monks walked out of the temples, and looked up at the cliff teau. Their upset was settled down gradually and they went back to the temples. Everyday-routined lessons were restored ordingly.


    The bell tones in countless temples across the world stopped as well. The elders and abbots in the temples stared at the statues of the Buddha, and fell into silent frustrations. Suddenly, a wee monk reported that the princess or throne prince from some prefecture came for incense offering.


    It did not matter if they were the elders or abbots, but once they heard such news, they poses as eminent monks, and moved toward the front door to wee them, while considering how much incense money they should ask for. Of course, they will not ask for so much that they will be disliked. At that moment, they all abandoned the Buddha.


    Countless believers in the human world also woke up. They touched their bloody foreheads which resulted from the kowtowing, and were confused about the surroundings. They had no idea what had happened before that.


    A old woman heard the crying of her grandson, and found her beloved baby had fallen below the bed. The strange thing was that a simr bump appeared on both of them, which made them flurried and confused.


    She was numb and stood up with a limp, held up her grandson in her arms and soothed him for quite a while. She hit the ground again and again, with nothing else to me. She didn¡¯t have the Buddha in mind at all.


    In the shabby Buddhist nunnery out the capital city of the Yan Kingdom, widows stared at the distorted bell that couldn¡¯t make a sound, no matter how hard they hit it. They were startled. Will they not be able hear the bell tone any more? All of a sudden, they started to howl fiercely. How could they spend their lives in such a miserable way? Who cared how blissful their afterlives would be? They lifelessly walked back to their rooms, kneeled down with their two palms together devoutly, and kept praying to the Buddha.


    In the Wilderness, millions who were kneeling down on the ground woke up as well. Nobles found themselves kneeling with the poor. They couldn¡¯t help but feel indignant. As a result, they waved the whips in their hands, hit a few serfs, and then felt relieved to see the open wounds.


    The bleeding serfs were in great pain and were too dreadful to fight back. They could only work with their worn-out bodies and ate very terrible food at night. Before bed, they started praying again, and silently asked the beneficent Buddha to take them to the Western Paradise as soon as possible.


    The Buddha or Haotian were both easy to be forgotten. Of course, on the contrary, sometimes they were hard to be forgotten as well.


    Happy people could easily forget their beliefs, which were thest straw for the unlucky ones. From this perspective, perhaps belief could be good, but at the same time bad events would possibly happen.


    On the other hand, non-believers were growing at the back hill of the Academy, exactly due to that. At their positions and stances, these people couldn¡¯t and dared to shed a light on this issue.


    Master Huang Yang walked out of the Zen room. He was feeling the scent of serenity from countless temples, while listening to the sutra-chanting on and below the mount. He also found that it seemed nothing had happened at all.


    However, a lot of things did happen.


    Sangsang and Ning Que entered the chessboard without an invitation. However, at the stance of Xuankong Temple, it was assumed that Buddha had deployed supreme Buddha Dharma and had Haotian as well as her attendant sucked into the chessboard.


    Master Huang Yang, in cloth as light as the air, climbed up the mountain pass, and was about to reach the cliff teau.


    He was about to pick up the chessboard, because Ning Que was in it. Ning Que was too important to the Tang, so he couldn¡¯t just sit and watch him die.


    Master Huang Yang was an eminent monk of Buddhism, but above all, he was a citizen of the Tang.


    At this point, a serene and solemn voice echoed from the distant. ¡°I heard that, a mountain, named Prajna, weighs as heavily as eighteen thousands times of the Tianqi Mountain,¡± the Scriptures Chief Monk said. The sound came from the distant ground on the precipice.


    This was the highest initial approach in Buddhism. Power came along with the words.


    Years ago, the Scriptures Chief Monk preached the same sutra to the First Brother in the White Tower Temple in Chaoyang City. It described a mountain named Prajna. The huge mount where Xuankong Temple was located was Prajna.


    Once said by a Buddhist, it was responded with echoes, as high, steep and magnificent as Prajna. All out of a sudden, it became heftier. Master Huang Yang, rushing through the mountain pass, stopped abruptly.


    Click. Master Huang Yang¡¯s leg bones were fractured. It was the cracked mountain itself that had severely injured him!


    ...


    ...


    At the fringe of the Giant Sinkhole above the precipice, the Chief Monk of Scripture ¡®s body was still buried under the ground, only with his head showing. With his white eyebrows drooping, he was pale and very faint.


    Chief Monk was melting into the ground by Sangsang¡¯s divine ability. Over the days, he had been fighting against the endless extrusions of the earth. His exhaustion caused him to suffer even more.


    An autumn wind blew over, and a super light aroma of wine spread out in the wind of wilderness. The Drunkard, still in his long gown, showed up like that in front of the Chief Monk of Scripture without any omens.


    He didn¡¯t pay much attention to the Chief Monk¡¯s funny face at the moment, yet rather stared at the cliff teau. He looked quite pale. The restless sights filled up his eyes.


    The Chief Monk tried to look up toward him and said, ¡°It appears you already know what had happened.¡±


    The Drunkard¡¯s expression looked terrible and said, ¡°Such a big event has already shaken the human world. What¡¯s the difference even if I were pretend to be ignorant?¡±


    During the time when the bell tones and sutra0chanting were everywhere in the human world, he was in the small town on the border between the Yan and the Song. Even though he was with the Butcher, he still felt extremely unsettled. Thus, he had a long tea time with Owner Chao.


    ¡°Little did I think that you would actually attack Haotian,¡± the Drunkard murmured.


    The Chief Monk said slowly, ¡°It was the Buddha¡¯s n.¡±


    The Drunkard saw the small rapture under his neck, grasped a stone, and then threw it in.


    The crack between Chief Monk¡¯s neck and the ground were dted inside, as it was the Buddhist immeasurable state.


    Shortly, Chief Monk of Scripture climbed from the bottom of the ground. As a indestructible body of the Buddha, no scars were left, but his kasaya, and the Buddhist Monk¡¯s staff were already squeezed into powder. At this moment, he stood in the autumn wilderness and no looker looked like an eminent monk of Buddhism.


    The Chief Monk took a garment from the Drunkard and said, ¡°That year, you learned the immeasurable dharma from the Buddha. Considering it now, everything has been within the Buddhist predestination.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°This is the Haotian¡¯s world. The god¡¯s will has been unpredictable, so there is no such a thing as the Buddhist predestination. If she didn¡¯t go into the chessboard, then I would have had no method to get you out of the ground. In this case, it had nothing to do with the Buddhist predestination, but more to do with the god¡¯s will.¡±


    The Chief Monk said, ¡°From now on, there would be no god¡¯s will on earth anymore, but only the Buddhist predestination.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°I¡¯m always wondering where your confidencees from.¡±


    The Chief Monk said, ¡°Come with me.¡±


    The two left the cliff precipice and went to the cliff teau.


    The Chief Monk watched the wretched pear tree, fell into silence, and then said,¡± This tree was nted by the Buddha himself. Pear has the same pronunciation with ¡®leaving¡¯, which means parting with the human world.¡±


    The Drunkard said with a dignified expression, ¡°It blossoms every five-hundred years. Does it mean that Haotian¡¯s separation was that long?¡±


    The Chief Monk said, ¡°In it, it is hard to recognize years and days. In that sense, Haotoan might nevere back to the human world.¡±


    The Drunkard said with his eyebrows slightly up, ¡°If she were to kill the Buddha, Haotian wille back.¡±


    The Chief Monk said calmly, ¡°The Buddha had undergone Nirvana. How could he be killed?¡±


    The Drunkard frowned. Up until that moment, no one would have known whether the Buddha was alive or not. The huge mountain named Prajna was made of the Buddha¡¯s body, and in that sense, where was the Buddha¡¯s consciousness?


    The Chief Monk kneeled down toward the chessboard, and praised, ¡°The Buddha can perceive things five-thousand years ago and five-thousand yearster. He is not in Xuankong Temple, or in the Buddha¡¯s body. It is predictable that he is in the chessboard as small as one square meter, waiting there for Haotian for the past five-thousand years until they meet each other. How wise and beneficent he is.¡±


    The Drunkard looked lost. If the Buddha¡¯s consciousness was indeed in the chessboard, why did you say it couldn¡¯t be vanished by Haotian? What exactly was Nirvana? He stared at the chessboard and thought for a long time, but still had no clue.


    This chessboard was set up by the Buddha as the fighting field, where the Buddha was waiting for Haotian. Unless the Headmaster were toe back to the human world, no one else would be able to get in. Rather, no one was qualified to participate. It was impossible even for him.


    One thing worth thinking was that, when Haotian entered the chessboard, another man was beside her. Indeed no one could possibly enter into the chessboard, but that man was able to. What kind of impact would he have on the war?


    ¡°There was a problem.¡±


    The Chief Monk said, ¡°What is it?¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°Someone.¡±


    In the chessboard, besides the Lord and the Buddha, another man was there as well.


    The Chief Monk said calmly, ¡°Although his state has improved, Ning Que is only at the State of Knowing the Destiny. Howe he is qualified to be part of an affair at this level?¡±


    The State of Knowing the Destiny was the Zenith of the Five States. However, the Chief Monk of Scripture and Drunkard were the supremely powerful beings who were above the Five States. That was why they didn¡¯t pay much attention to him. Even they couldn¡¯t be part of the war between the Lord and the Buddha, neither did Ning Que.


    The Drunkard said with a dignified expression, ¡°Even if he couldn¡¯t affect the result in the chessboard, he could have effects on the human world outside the chessboard. As he in in it, how could the Academy stand by?¡±


    In the Academy, the First Brother and Twenty-Three-Year Cicada were all super powerhouses beyond the Five States, and it was hard to exactly predict Jun Mo¡¯s state after he went wild. If they knew that the Buddhists had trapped and murdered Ning Que in the chessboard, what would they do? Would Jun Mo go wild?


    The Chief Monk smiled and said, ¡°Since the Abbey Dean had asked you to send a message, does it mean he already had calcted the current situation?¡±


    ...


    ...


    No one would have thought of where Sangsang and Ning Que were now, including themselves.


    Looking at the familiar streets, they seemed to have some memories, but people¡¯s clothes were hard to recognize. They were silent for a long time. Ning Que had something on his mind, and even forgot to put away the big ck umbre.


    A lot of shrines were alongside the street. In them, statues of the Buddha or the Venerable were worshiped. A scent filled up the room. It was abination of food spices and incense. It was a peaceful ce and people were happy.


    He and Sangsang went into the chessboard. To their surprises, they came to Chaoyang City.


    ¡°What is wrong with that?¡±


    ¡°You ask me, but who do I ask?¡±


    Ning Que looked at Sangsang, and sighed. ¡°Of course, it should be you who will ask for the Buddha.¡±


    Sangsang walked into the middle of the street, with her hands behind her back. She said, ¡°We should look for him first.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 942 - Attachment

    <h4>Chapter 942: Attachment</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    A bell was tolled in a temple not far from the street.


    Ning Que was folding his umbre. The bell that rang in Xuankong Temple had tortured him well. Therefore he was staled upon the sounds of bell at this point and instinctively grabbed Sangsang¡¯s hand.


    Sangsang looked at him emotionlessly. Ning Que then realized that they were no longer at Xuankong Temple. He felt embarrassed and put his hands behind his back as Sangsang always did.


    The bells rang even more loudly throughout every temple in Chaoyang City. Ning Que figured that the loudest sounds came from the ancient bell in White Tower Temple in the north.


    People on the streets were happily enjoying their bean jelly or pf on banana leaves or watching monkey shows. Upon hearing the bell, they stopped whatever they were doing and rushed towards the nearest temples.


    Some were not able to leave their business. So they kneeled down on the street, prostrated and prayed constantly. The monkey-show man also kneeled down in awe and tried to make his monkey bow as well.


    Ning Que and Sangsang were the only two left standing there. Although the pious Buddhists did not be hostile towards them, they did find them weird.


    The bell had changed the scene in a cute way. It seemed like the sh mobs that Ning Que saw in the other world. The little monkey was cute. It was forced to kneel down by his master but kept rolling its eyes. However since they had witnessed the miserable world under Xuankong Temple, Ning Que found the scene disgusting now.


    Sangsang of course hated it more. She whisked her sleeves slightly.


    Upon her whisking, flowers bloomed on her green sleeves and wind roared through the street. It blew away the bean jelly stall and the pf on banana leaves, and grits got into people¡¯s eyes. The monkey-show man tried to rub his eyes and the monkey was let loose. It did not ran away, but just followed the banana leaves and enjoyed the scattered pf.


    The bell sounds were disturbed by the wind and lost their rhythm. Yet the wind did not stop and continued blowing up towards the sky. It blowed the clouds into chaos above Chaoyang City.


    Sangsang felt satisfied and went forward with her hands on the back.


    Ning Que stared at her and kept silent.


    When she was in the Divine Halls of West-Hill, she did not need to do anything or evene up with any thought. Whenever she felt disturbed, stars appeared and disappeared from her eyes, numerous clouds gathered from ten of thousands of miles away and created storms and thunders above Peach Mountain. After they had left the West-Hill, particrly since they reached to the heart of the Wilderness, she started whisking her sleeves whenever she felt angry or joined a fight...


    Although Sangsang was still far more powerful than any human being could have ever imagined, she was indeed much weaker than she used to be. She was no longer almighty.


    Ning Que was upset but he could not say anything. The reason for her weakened state was the worldly bond the Headmaster had left inside her body. It was also because of the long and happy yet extremely dangerous journey they went through two years ago. It was more because he had taken her to tour around the human world and would not let her go.


    The street was enveloped with dust and choking smell of spices. But people were not coughing. Perhaps they had been used to it since a very young age.


    They walked in the dust and on the same route they used to travel.


    Ning Que and Sangsang once lived here for a long time. He carried her on his back during their exile and ran through many streets in this city. He killed many people here. But the blood stains were already gone within three years.


    ...


    ...


    They entered the chessboard on the teau of Xuankong Temple and exited to Chaoyang City. It seemed unbelievable. But the only possibility was that Buddha had created a space tunnel between Xuankong Temple and Chaoyang City, the same as the one in Lanke Temple. And the chessboard was the key to those tunnels.


    Years ago, Ning Que and Sangsang left Lanke Temple in the southeast and ended in Xuankong Temple in the heart of the Wilderness. Today they traveled from Xuankong Temple directly to Chaoyang City.


    The two of them walked around Chaoyang City. It seemed they were trying to find some trace of Buddha. But actually they both knew that Buddha was not here.


    No one could hide from Haotian in the human world.


    Ning Que did not point it out. Neither did Sangsang. It seemed they were really searching for Buddha, and it was a time consuming task.


    ¡°We need to find some amodation first. Then we can take our time.¡± He said.


    Sangsang said nothing. Her silence meant consent. If she disagreed, then she would have told him or cut him into pieces to dere herself.


    In the crowded area to the north of the city, there was a secluded or even deadly quiet ce. It was the courtyard house they used to live in. It had been a few years since they left but the ce was still unupied.


    Ning Que opened the gate. It was as quiet as it used to be. The ck cloth Ning Que used to cover the window was still hanging there. The only difference was the dust all over and the putty peeled off from the windows of the store room.


    Sangsang stared at the dusty and shabby courtyard. A moist wind came from the back of the yard and took away all the dust from the house. The ce became extremely clean in a wink.


    Sangsang opened the door of the store room. She thought for a while but did not step in. Instead she walked into the bedroom and lied down. She was no longer the Daughter of Invariant Yama hence she did not need to hide from anyone.


    ¡°Cook more vegetables for dinner,¡± she said.


    Ning Que agreed and came into the courtyard to collect some firewood. He looked at the only tree in the courtyard and felt reluctant to cut on it. Where is the crow that used to perch on this tree back then?


    The brook was still there behind the courtyard, and some trees too. He chopped some branches with his hands and turned to head back. Then he saw a distinctive fist print on one of the trees.


    Years ago when they were escaping from the hunting of Taoism and Buddhism, he had to take care of the very sick Sangsang and was extremely anxious and almost copsed. He tried to let off his anxiety by punching on the tree. He was not aware of the power of his punch and almost broke the tree.


    Upon seeing that fist print, Ning Que bursted intoughter. He was pleased that the tree was not broken, and also that the print of his punch was still there because they were his most cherished memories.


    They were as cherished as the tree in the courtyard and the crow that used to perch on the tree.


    He piled up the firewood in a corner of the courtyard, opened the door and came to the side of the bed. He looked at Sangsang who seemed to be asleep and asked, ¡°What vegetables do you want? I¡¯m not familiar with the produce in Yuelun Kingdom.¡±


    Sangsang opened her eyes. They were bright and clear as if she was never sleeping or tired. Ning Que could never figure out why she needed sleep anyway.


    She thought for a while and said, ¡°I¡¯lle with you.¡±


    They went to the market and bought a variety of vegetables. They also shopped at the grocery store for rice, cooking oil, seasonings, pots and pans and other necessities, as well as one pound of streaky pork. Then they went home and enjoyed a hearty dinner.


    To carry those goods, to cook and wash the dishes were all Ning Que¡¯s duties. While he was doing all the work, Sangsang was standing by his side with her hands behind her the back, and looked at him or the sky from time to time.


    Ning Que squatted beside the washing basin and felt it even more exhausting than his former upation of killing the gangsters years ago. After a short while he felt the pain on his back and could not help bing irritated when seeing Sangsang standing idly by the door.


    ¡°I know I¡¯m no match to you now. I will take care of all the housework and you don¡¯t need to help. You are the Haotian, the very honorable Haotian. There¡¯s no way you would do such things. I have no objection with you standing there watching meboring. But can you do me just one favor of not putting your hands behind your back?¡± He keptining. ¡°You looked like a supervisor. It¡¯s hurting my feelings.¡±


    Sangsang did not reply and walked into the room. With her hand still on her back, she ordered, ¡°I want tea.¡±


    The Biblical God said, ¡°Let there be light,¡± and there was light.


    Sangsang was the god of this world. She wanted tea, so there had to be tea. She could have conjured various fine tea by herself, but she insisted that Ning Que should go buy tea for her.


    Ning Que was indeed exhausted yet he felt happy because he knew that Sangsang¡¯s behavior was a proof of her deepened bond to the human world. And she was acting more and more like a real human.


    That night, he knocked open the door of the biggest tea shop in Chaoyang City, spent two ounces of silver and bought 74 types of most renowned tea produced in different kingdoms and packed several expensive tea sets.


    After three days of indulging in fine tea, Sangsang made another decision, ¡°I want to y chess.¡±


    Then Ning Que spared no effort in searching for the best chess sets in town. But there was one problem he could not solve ¡ª she needed an opponent.


    ¡°Your level is too low,¡± Sangsang looked at the white chessmen and said to him.


    The most annoying thing for a man was to lose to his woman when ying cards or chess. Ning Que was already on his edge and could not help bing more irritated upon her words.


    ¡°How could we, menial human beings, be a match against the almighty Haotian?¡±


    That was Sangsang¡¯s most frequently usedment for human beings, but he said it with distinctive bitterness.


    Sangsang remained emotionless and said, ¡°Human beings are indeed menial. But some are better than others. In terms of chess, Chen Pipi ys much better than you.¡±


    It was even more hateful for a man when his woman said he was lesspetent than another man, even if that was his best buddy through thick and thin.


    Ning Que got enraged and eximed, ¡°I can¡¯t get him all the way here from Linkang.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Then you should think of something else.¡±


    On the following day, Ning Que escorted the top three chess yers of Chaoyang City to their house.


    Or rather, he kidnapped them.


    Apart from enjoying tea, ying chess and watching operas, Ning Que and Sangsang sometimes also went strolling through Chaoyang City. They walked to the White Tower as well as around theke. She was still used to putting her hands behind her back.


    Dozens of days went by quietly.


    They seemed to be searching for something in Chaoyang City, but actually they were looking for nothing. They did not ask where, why or how but only cared about their next meals. They were ying this very tacitly.


    One night, Ning Que unpeeled a mangosteen and ced the white fruit next to Sangsang¡¯s face and asked, ¡°Don¡¯t you think it looks like an ass?¡±


    Sangsang seldom had any emotions. But he was not reconciled to it.


    It was no exception this time.


    Sangsang looked at him quietly for a long while then asked, ¡°We are so too attached to this. Aren¡¯t we?¡±


    Ning Que kept silent for a while. Then he gave the mangosteen to Sangsang and walked to the courtyard. He practiced his sword skills and fetched some water from the brook. After taking a shower he said, ¡°I¡¯m going to bed.¡±


    Sangsang sat by the table, stared at the tree outside the window and said nothing.


    She used to be so eager to return to Haotian¡¯s Divine Kingdom. It was her mission. As long as she could kill Buddha and Ning Que, she would be able to head back.


    But sne and Ning Que were each other¡¯s natal item. If Ning Que were to die, then she would die too. The one returning to the Divine Kingdom would be Haotian instead of Sangsang. She would no longer be her.


    Yet she wanted to carry on as herself and to bear the name of Sangsang. What made her more irritated and anxious was that she even wanted to stay with him and continue their peaceful life here in this courtyard.


    It was after all not a bad life here as they enjoyed the tasty vegetables, juicy meat and rice, drank tea, yed chess and looked idly at the sky from time to time.


    Therefore she did not want to worry about Buddha, the Academy, Taoism, the Divine Kingdom or the human world. As long as they could carry on with their life here, she would continue to be Sangsang and he would always be there for her.


    Indeed, she was very attached to this.


    Ning Que once asked this question when they were outside Chang¡¯an City: How could I find the perfect way in which I would never let down the people in Chang¡¯an or betray you? But he knew there would never be such a perfect way.


    He was not afraid of death. He could have threatened Sangsang with suicide and forced her to enter Chang¡¯an. Then the Academy would have gotten a hold of her with the help of the God Stunning Array. In that case, neither Buddhism nor Taoism could ever defeat them.


    However, he could not do that to her.


    Therefore he took her to their little courtyard in Chaoyang City and tried to stay away from the human world. He tried to walk away from the Academy, from searching for Buddha and from everything else.


    Indeed, he was also very attached to it.


    ...


    ...


    They were so attached to the temporary happiness, even though it might onlyst for a day, or even an hour. Ning Que and Sangsang never touched that topic ever since.


    They carried on with their ordinary life for another half a year in Chaoyang City. Nothing happened in the outside caught their attention.


    When spring came, Chaoyang City became very lively. Stage operas were performed everywhere. One day after a performance, Ning Que and Sangsang bought half pound of pig head meat on their way home and made a very simple dinner.


    When she was about to finish the few pieces of meat left in the bowl, Sangsangined, ¡°The dishes were too simple today.¡±


    Ning Que wondered, Who would make a feast every single day? He tried to drew away her attention and said, ¡°We¡¯ll make something good tomorrow. Did you enjoy the performance today?¡±


    Sangsang showed no emotions. She stood up and walked toward the courtyard.


    Ning Que was stunned. Then he put the chopsticks and bowls into the washing basin, cleaned his hands and rushed out to follow her.


    She walked to the woods by the brook, and stared at the sky in silence with her hands behind her back.


    Ning Que looked at the fist print on the tree. It had only been half a year. The print was already fading due to the newly grown bark. So did his mood. You have to leave after all, don¡¯t you?


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Are we really together just because we¡¯re staying together?¡±


    Ning Que knew what she meant. He said after a while of silence, ¡°We are together because we are meant to be together. It was not me trying to keep you in the human world.¡±


    Sangsang kept quiet for a long while.


    Ning Que said, ¡°You know what I am thinking about.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Yes. I know your thoughts. But it is still attachment.¡±


    Ning Que looked at her side and said, ¡°Attachment is not a sin.¡±


    Sangsang stared at the sky and said, ¡°It is.¡±


    What was attachment? To love someone was attachment.


    To love was to be attached.


    A moment of romance in the human world was worthy of years in the Divine Kingdom.


    But it was after all too short.

 Chapter 943 - Aversion

    <h4>Chapter 943: Aversion</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ning Que looked at the fist print on the tree and questioned, ¡°Why is it sinful?¡±


    Sangsang did not say anything and headed back to the courtyard. He followed.


    It was a bit chilly in the early spring. The tree inside the courtyard did not burgeon much. She stood under the tree, looked at its shivering branches and said, ¡°If it is not, then you should let me go.¡±


    Because Ning Que thought it was just them being together instead of him trying to keep her in the human world, he should have no objection if she were to choose to leave.


    ¡°You can leave any time,¡± Ning Que said behind her.


    Sangsang kept looking at the branches and saw a crow perched on the tree at the end of her sight line.


    She continued, ¡°If I were to leave, then you will kill yourself.¡±


    Ning Que did not say anything.


    Sangsang turned to him and asked, ¡°Are you that desperate to kill me?¡±


    It was the sixth time she had asked Ning Que that question, or thought of that in her heart.


    ¡°I just don¡¯t want you to leave.¡± Ning Que did not dodge from her and said, ¡°Even if you were to choose to leave, where will you go? You¡¯ve been to the human world. How can you stand the cold and boring Divine Kingdom and spend your endless life there?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I belong there.¡±


    Ning Que kept questioning, ¡°Where is there? You always say this is Haotian¡¯s world. The Divine Kingdom is also a part of Haotian¡¯s world. So what¡¯s the difference between the human world and the Divine Kingdom?¡±


    Sangsang answered, ¡°Your Master is there right now.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Why do you have to stop my Master? And why do you have to stop us? Aren¡¯t you curious about what¡¯s outside this world?¡±


    ¡°This is my world. I am the ruler of this world. My existence derives from the uniqueness of this world. If you want to destroy its uniqueness, then you will have to destroy me.¡±


    Sangsang looked into his eyes and said calmly, ¡°This is the fundamental conflict between me and your Master and the Academy. There¡¯s no solution to it. If you insist, then you are seeking for my destruction.¡±


    ¡°Are you that desperate to kill me?¡±


    That was the seventh time.


    Ning Que looked at her calmly and said, ¡°Don¡¯t go. Be a real human and let¡¯s live this life together.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°A real human will die.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°We could achieve immortality through cultivation. Let¡¯s cultivate together.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I need to maintain the existence of this world.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°I don¡¯t understand. There must be other ways to solve this problem. Why do you have to guard this old world? What are you trying to protect?¡±


    Sangsang asked back, ¡°I don¡¯t understand either. You and all those human beings throughout human history, why are you trying to go beyond this world? What are you trying to see?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Simple as it is, we want to know what¡¯s out there.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°But I don¡¯t.¡±


    All her logic, or more precisely, every part of her life depended on the objectivity of the rules. If human beings had an instinctive desire for freedom, she had an instinct of self-consistency and seclusion.


    Ning Que took one step forward and stood right in front of her.


    The crow made an indifferent caw.


    He held her hand and looked into her eyes, ¡°Be a real human. Then we can live together, cultivate together, shop, cook, eat and do a lot of other things together.¡±


    Sangsang had never looked into the mirror ever since she came back to the human world. The moderate face and the lofty figure she had chosen could not made her happy. Therefore now she found the woman she saw inside Ning Que¡¯s eyes strange and disappointing.


    ¡°Why should I do that?¡±


    ¡°For the sake of mankind, and of course most importantly for me, please stay.¡±


    Sangsang saw her ordinary face in his eyes. The image of that face was smashed and could no longer be gathered. Then she became indifferent again.


    ¡°No.¡± She looked at Ning Que calmly and said, ¡°Numerous years ago, human beings had chosen and awaken me from the chaotic state because they wanted me to bring them eternal peace.¡±


    Ning Que did not know what to say. He could not understand why she reacted so dramatically to his words. He thought it was because of the humans¡¯ choice to awake her. Then he realized upon her following words that it was because of him.


    ¡°Now I understand that it is in their instinct to be curious about the outside world. But you are not one of those human beings because you don¡¯t belong to this world.¡± Sangsang looked at him and said, ¡°You came from outside this world. You know exactly what¡¯s out there. Ever since twenty years ago, you¡¯ve been telling me what¡¯s in that world. I never forgot. And now I can see it even clearly from your consciousness.¡±


    Ning Que felt a chill from inside out. He said, ¡°In that world... it¡¯s beautiful and lively. And there is abundant sunlight and warmth everywhere.¡±


    ¡°You are lying.¡± Sangsang was still very calm. She show no emotions but her words sounded like deafening thunder above Chaoyang City. Numerous people were shocked and looked above.


    ¡°In your world, it is dangerous everywhere. The sun has been ming and could explode or extinguish at anytime. Most ces are too cold. Neither the weak ordinary people nor stronger cultivators could survive in that world.¡±


    Ning Que disagreed. ¡°A star canst for hundreds of millions of years. How could it explode at any time? It is true that coldness dominates most of the ces, but it is an immense world. We can always find some ce to stay.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Even if it canst for millions of millions of years, it¡¯s still a very short period of timepared with the eternity we need for lives to continue reproducing, not to mention that your world is doomed for extinction. Nothing will survive.¡±


    Ning Que kept quiet for a long while and said, ¡°Perhaps something like memories would survive.¡±


    Sangsang left no chance for tender feelings. ¡°There would be no warmth. No a thing. Extinction means the end, not eternity. That is the ultimate horror.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°That¡¯s not true... I admit that you are right, that the world out there would probably face extinction one day. But before that we have the evesting time to explore to the end of the world, or even break through the world and find our way to a new one.¡±


    Sangsang questioned, ¡°What if we could not find any way?¡±


    Ning Que felt irritated and said, ¡°You have never lived in that world. How can you be sure that human beings won¡¯t be able to find a new world?¡±


    ¡°Because I am not a human being. I will neverfort myself with deceit.¡±


    Sangsang looked at him and said calmly, ¡°Compared with my world, your world is more like hell. What you are trying to do could only remind me of you being the Son of Invariant Yama.¡±


    It had been a long while since Ning Que heard this wordst time ¡ª the Son of Invariant Yama. It was many years ago when the previous Great Divine Priest of Light and a few others insisted that he was the Son of Invariant Yama. Then they thought it was Long Qing for a short while. Later on it was Sangsang¡¯s turn.


    Of course now he knew that there was no Invariant Yama. Or Haotian was Invariant Yama. But he had to admit that to some extent Sangsang was right.


    The world he used to live in was much colder, more turbulent and dangerous. It was like the kingdom of Invariant Yama.


    He came here from that world, brought his knowledge of that world and strengthened the conviction of the Academy and the Headmaster. But if Haotian¡¯s world would eventually be broken through, if they were to enter the vast universe and eventually confront their destruction, then he would be the one responsible for bringing the shadow of Invariant Yama into this world.


    This spection made him feel cold and irritated. He shouted out to Sangsang, ¡°You have to win no matter what, huh? Even if it¡¯s just a discussion, you would never lose, not even once. Why is that so important?


    Sangsang looked at him quietly and sympathetically.


    And this made him even more irritated. He went to the tree and heavily punched it. The crow looked down at him. But it did not make an ugly caw or fly away.


    ¡°It has been so many years. Ever since you learned to speak, I have been following your orders. Other people thought you were my handmaid and attended to me everyday. When I said to go to the east, you never went west. When I wanted rice, you never cooked congee. But you should know exactly what the truth has been. I pointed east because you had looked to that direction. I said rice only because you had dumped all the congee the previous night.¡± Ning Que turned to her and eximed in anger, ¡°Years ago in the Min Mountain I risked my life to catch that deer. But you spared a nce at me and I let it go. In the City of Wei when you were eight, the fat aunty proposed a marriage for you but you disapproved it. I almost killed that boy that very night. You wanted to go back to Chang¡¯an, and there I went. You said we should make a living by selling my calligraphy, so I worked hard and sold a lot.¡±


    He continued. ¡°You wanted to rent that store on Lin 47th Street, so I rented it! Then what happened? I almost gave my life to Chao Xiaoshu! Because of you, I pped Long Qing¡¯s face. He threaten me with your life so I made him a wastrel with a single shot. I didn¡¯t care if I offended the Divine Halls of West-Hill or created trouble for the Academy. Then I was hunted by Ye Hongyu like a homeless dog! Then we came to this shabby ce!¡± He pointed at the courtyard and said to her with trembling voice, ¡°You thought it was fun to call yourself the Daughter of Invariant Yama? For me it was no fun at all! The entire world was hunting for you and I had to carry you on my back and kept running. I was seriously scared because I was no match to them. But you know what? I fought back for you.¡±


    Sangsang remained silent and looked at him calmly.


    ¡°I never disobeyed you. Whatever you wanted, I followed. I would never hurt you. There was never such a possibility in my head. It has been like this ever since I found you in Hebei Province. I cherish you and love you dearly. I value you more than my own life.¡± Ning Que¡¯s voice became lower but his emotions more agitated. He continued, ¡°Because you were the only one for me when the entire world abandoned me. You survived because of me, and I survived because of you. Because I needed to raise you. What is natal? That is natal.¡±


    Sangsang looked above to the darkening sky and said nothing. The crow perched on the tree and tilted while trying to figure out what was happening between the two of them.


    ¡°You killed the Youngest Uncle. I won¡¯t hold it against you because it was before I was born. But the Headmaster... I cannot not stay away from his passing.¡± It was either because he had said too much or he was being too emotional, Ning Que sounded hoarse and extremely upset. It seemed like he would copse at any minute. ¡°I could have stopped you when we were by the Sishui River because you are my natal item. But I didn¡¯t... I thought it was because I forgot at that time. However,ter on I realized I have never forgotten that. It was only because I instinctively chose to forget that right then. Because I was so scared of you being killed.¡±


    He looked above to the starry night and the appearing moon, and continued after a pause, ¡°I never mentioned that to anyone. But every Brother and Sister in the Academy knew it. Yet they never talked about that either.¡±


    He continued. ¡°I would do anything for you. I can be brazen, I can risk my own life, let alone care about loyalty or shame. What the hell is morality? If it was in the past I could have killed everyone in the world for you, just for you to be safe and sound. I won¡¯t care what other people think or say about me, or how they hate me or be scared of me.¡± Ning Que looked back to her and said with smiling tears, ¡°But it is different now. Every Brother and Sister in the Academy, and those people in the City of Chang¡¯an, they¡¯ve been very good to me and to you as well. If I let you go back, the Master will die, the Tang Empire will be conquered, and there will no longer be an Academy in this world. Therefore I cannot follow your order this time.¡±


    The moon finally appeared from the darkness right behind him. It was not a bright moon. As it had always waxed and waned, the moon was very dim tonight, as if it was almost dying out.


    ¡°I will die too.¡± Sangsang had kept quiet while Ning Que was talking, until then. She looked at him calmly and said, ¡°If it was not because of the Academy and you, I wouldn¡¯t have been cornered to misery by the monks in Xuankong Temple. You should know clearly that I am bing weaker and weaker with every passing day. If you don¡¯t let me return to the Divine Kingdom, I will eventually be dead, let alone to be real human. In terms of cultivation, I have told you I have never lied to myself. I am Haotian. How could I be a real human being? If I did, would I still be myself? How could you make sure that I could survive that?¡±


    If it was not for the Headmaster, the human world would have been seized by darkness. The Headmaster was the only one who had achieved this throughout thousands of thousands of years in Haotian¡¯s world. Haotian¡¯sing to the human world was also unprecedented. As for why he came to this world from the other world, it was even more exceptional. No one knew what they could do to the world and what would happen to the three of the in the end.


    Haotian had no idea. Neither did the Headmaster, not to mention Ning Que. Being unable to provide an answer, he walked to the kitchen and turned to her to ask, ¡°Shall I make you some noodle?¡±


    Sangsang still looked at him calmly. There was no disappointment, just some indifference.


    ¡°I¡¯m not hungry.¡± Upon those words she headed back to the bedroom. She lied down and tucked into the quilt. Like an upset child, she pulled up the quilt to cover her face, trying to make herself feel better.


    After a short while, Ning Que stepped into the bedroom, uncovered her and helped her get up.


    She repeated, ¡°I said I didn¡¯t want any noodle.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You should wash your feet before going to bed.¡±


    Sangsang then realized there was a basin with warm water beside the bed.


    Ning Que squatted and removed her shoes. He tried to make sure the temperature was just fine, then ced her lotus-white feet into the basin and washed them carefully, toe after toe.


    None of them said a single word that night.


    The next morning, Sangsang did not get up. She stayed in the quilt and stared at the ceiling. A spider had made a web across the beam and was waiting for an insect to be trapped. Then it crawled over and killed the prey enthusiastically and devoured its juicy meal.


    ¡°We can¡¯t continue like this. There has to be a decision.¡± She turned to look at Ning Que and said, ¡°If you don¡¯t let me go, I will kill everyone.¡±


    Ning Que rubbed his eyes and replied, ¡°We are running out of rice. Remind me to buy some when we go shopping.¡±


    They cooked some congee with the remaining rice and went to the market after breakfast. They went to the rice store first. When he was about to pay the bill, Ning Que found a human head in his rice bag.


    That was the head of the storekeeper.


    Blood dripped out from the bag. The rice became crimson. It looked like a special type of ck rice produced in the Qi Kingdom but smelled disgusting with blood.


    The clerks and customers were all scared. They screamed and rushed out but could not make it to the door. All of them were killed.


    When Haotian wanted someone dead, there were various ways to take his life. She could give them a peaceful death as if they were having beautiful dreams.


    Yet obviously Sangsang did not choose that approach for these people. In order to make Ning Que feel worse and show her determination more distinctively, she had chosen the most bloody approach. Broken limbs were scattered in the rice store.


    Colors drained from Ning Que¡¯s face. He stared at her and tried to say something. But he could not utter a word.


    He walked out of the rice store and did not dare to buy anything further. He rushed through the stalls and ignored their peddling. He even forgot the blood stained rice bag he was carrying.


    But Sangsang did not let him slip. Even though he did not buy anything, every stall owner he passed by was ughtered miserably.


    ¡°Enough!¡± Ning Que stopped at the entrance of the market. The street ahead was crowded. He did not dare to move a single step forward. Instead he turned back and shouted at Sangsang with anger.


    The market was flooded with blood. His shoes were soaked in blood.


    Sangsang walked toward him in the flood of blood, still indifferently.


    Standing in such a horrible scene Ning Que could not refrain from trembling.


    Then he calmed down and looked pale and exhausted.


    He looked into Sangsang and said, ¡°It¡¯s not going to work.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Then shall I try it with Tang people?¡±


    Ning Que did not say anything but became anxious.


    Because she already had that thought.


    With that thought came aversion.


    After aversion came anger.


    And anger was generated by difference.


    ...

 Chapter 944 - Obsession

    <h4>Chapter 944: Obsession</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Anger was generated from difference. People had different points of view, different names, and different purposes of life. There could be sweet or salty beancurd, sticky rice cakes with meat or vegetarian stuffing, and there was life or death.


    ¡°You kill people just because they have different choices? You know I¡¯m pretty heartless. It could enrage and upset me if you were to kill the Tang people. But it would never change my mind.¡± Ning Que stared at the market which had be a sea of blood with broken limbs scattered around, and said to her, ¡°You were chosen by human beings. You would have never existed if it weren¡¯t because of them. You should not do that to these people.¡±


    Sangsang frowned and asked, ¡°I was awakened because human beings had chosen me. But does that mean they can take my life whenever they want? Could parents choose to take the lives of their children?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°No one wants to take your life.¡±


    She calmly and firmly said, ¡°On the day I was born in the human world, the mistress asked their chambein to smuggle and drown me in the cesspit. On the same day in that store room, another chambein tried to kill you with a sher. I was almost killed, and so were you. But you took that sher from him, and I survived. I will never put my life in another¡¯s hands again.¡±


    Ning Que said after a pause, ¡°Indeed, we should control our own fate.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I am alive, so I don¡¯t want to die.¡±


    Ning Que¡¯s anger gradually turned into helplessness. He did not know how to calm her down. She could kill people by slightly moving her fingers, or simply by thinking of it.


    He came to her across the sea of blood, held her hands and pulled her into his arms. He murmured sadly into her ears, ¡°I don¡¯t want you to die either.¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s body slightly stiffened and then softened. She leaned woodenly onto his shoulders but seemed awkward. It was because they were about the same height.


    ¡°I¡¯d rather die than watch you die.¡±


    They held each other tightly in the sea of blood and surrounded by broken bodies. They were extremely calm, and even seemed holy. Numerous dim spots of lights drifted away from their bodies like stars.


    With those light spots falling onto the ground, the blood stains started to fade until theypletely disappeared. The bodies also disappeared as if they were purified by something holy.


    It no longer smelled bloody, but rather a mixture of chicken manure, fish and tear-drawing onions, as well as green vegetables.


    The green vegetables carried glittering dewdrops and looked refreshing and alluring. The newly harvested baby bamboo shoots were lined up in order and seemed charming despite of the mud they wore.


    The peddling of the stall keepers started again. People were bargaining, parents were disciplining their kids, dogs were fighting over meat bones, and wild cats were being scared away. The sounds of pping, barking, and meowing had revived the market.


    ¡°You see how fresh these spring onions are. Aren¡¯t they cheap for only two pennies?¡±


    Ning Que opened his eyes to see an auntie pointing a handful of fresh spring onion at him. She looked so eager that he would have felt embarrassed if he were to not buy some.


    He smiled back and shook his head, then tapped on Sangsang to wake her up. He held her hand and walked out of the market. They did not buy any food, and was not worried about their next meal.


    Love was all they needed.


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang did not leave. She continued to live an ordinary life with Ning Que in Chaoyang City. They eluded from the outside world, enjoyed their daily journey between the courtyard and the market. They strolled by the brook from time to time.


    Ning Que was in charge of cooking and Sangsang was in charge of feasting. When she was in a good mood, she would cook some noodle soup with fried egg for Ning Que. Same as always, there were four pieces of pepper and thirty pieces of finely chopped spring onion in her noodle soup.


    To make an ordinary life less boring and tedious, they had to look for new fun, see new ces or y yesterday once more.


    Ning Que was clever enough. Recalling the taste from his memory, he learned to cook the hot and sour shredded noodles soup. ording to Sangsang it tasted fairly good and reminded her of the diner on Lin 47th Street.


    He buried two jugs of rice wine under the tree in the courtyard and stored a jar of pickles in the kitchen. The jar was filled with baby cowpeas and gingers as well as red and green peppers. It could have easily made people drool. Sangsang liked his pickles. But for some unknown reasons, she still preferred the vinegar-soaked cabbage heads.


    They went on strolls from time to time, watched the sunset by theke, listened to the bells in the temples, and walked through almost every street in Chaoyang City. Like the cozy city, their life became cozy too.


    When spring brought misty rains, they toured the legendary seventy-two temples in the city. When the refreshing autumn came, they traveled to a few other bigger cities in the Yuelun Kingdom. In the stormy winter, they went to the north and stayed up whole night watching the snow storm at the Lan Pass. They went everywhere hand in hand.


    Probably because they had traveled a long way, Sangsang was exhausted. She went to bed right after they got back to their house and became even more drowsy. She spent much more time sleeping ever since.


    When she was sleeping, Ning Que lied beside her and read his books. He held a book in one hand and held Sangsang¡¯s hand under the quilt with the other. Sometimes he forgot to ce his hand back after turning a page, then Sangsang would subconsciously grab his hand back under the quilt and held it tightly against her chest.


    One autumn day, people in Chaoyang City were talking about the respected monks from the White Tower Temple freeing captured animals. Ning Que heard that when tanks of mud fish and various other fishes were poured into theke, they would fight to kill each other. He thought that might be fun and wanted to take a look with Sangsang. She was tired and reluctant to leave the house, so he went alone.


    It was indeed a lively show. The fighting of the mud fish, eels, and other fishes were indeed bloody. What the respected monks did was indeed ridiculous. When Ning Que was about to head home he suddenly came across strange feeling. He stared at theke and the White Tower on the other side. It felt like something was missing.


    When the crowd was gone, darkness prevailed and the White Tower became quiet again. He stood silently and stared at theke and the tower, and could not get rid of that strange feeling.


    Right then, the bell of evening prayers rang from inside the temple.


    It also rang from inside his heart.


    The sounds of the Buddha bell could purify people¡¯s minds and help them meditate. In Ning Que¡¯s Ocean of Consciousness, there were fragments of Lian Sheng¡¯s consciousness. Therefore his sensed this purifying power distinctively and subconsciously walked inside the temple.


    Following the bell sounds, he arrived to the main hall of the White Tower Temple. He saw hundreds of monks chanting inside, and the Buddha statue seemed even morepassionate with their chanting.


    The Buddha was watching him quietly.


    The chanting sounded extremely charming. That was the sound of the Buddha.


    Ning Que stood outside the hall and was obsessed.


    Sangsang woke up in their house.


    The crow that was previously perched on the branch made a weird caw and then flew away.


    Her gaze followed the crow and then was on the sky.


    She thought the sky looked familiar and charming.


    She looked for a long while and became obsessed.


    Obsession came from affection.


    And affection made people witless.


    While affection bore no cause, obsession brought ignorance.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 945 - A Prairie Fire

    <h4>Chapter 945: A Prairie Fire</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    A monk walked out of the hall. He was young, swarthy and chubby. His eyes were set apart, which made him look honest and dull, while innocent and clumsy. Yet his eyes were crystal clear and glittering.


    He was holding a well steamed hot bun. The steamed bun tasted so good that he was engaging himself in the taste and forgot to look ahead. Thus he knocked into Ning Que.


    ¡°Ouch! Ouch!¡±


    The monk rubbed his head and his fingers wiped the dots that were etched on his forehead. He was still tightly holding the steamed bun in his left hand and his fingers stuck to the bun. His eyes were filled with tears. It seemed like he was really in pain.


    He knocked into Ning Que because he was not watching his way. But upon seeing his clumsiness and innocence, Ning Que took pity on him and apologized to him tenderly.


    The monk looked into Ning Que and got stunned for a second. Then he seemed have forgotten his pain and suddenly cheered up. He gave the steamed bun to Ning Que and beamed a hearty smile, ¡°Take it.¡±


    Ning Que found it abrupt and asked, ¡°Why are you giving it to me?¡±


    The monk answered, ¡°Because you look like me. My master said I am a good man. Then you must be a good man too.¡±


    Ning Que looked at this clumsy monk and wondered, How could I look like you? He asked, ¡°Who are you?¡±


    The clumsy monk answered, ¡°I¡¯m Qingban Zi.¡±


    Ning Que figured from his expressions and words that this monk was probably mentally dysfunctional. He asked casually, ¡°Where is Qingban Zi from?¡±


    Monk Qingban refused to answer and ced the steamed bun at Ning Que¡¯s mouth.


    Ning Que took the bun to take a bite.


    Monk Qingban then pped his hands cheerfully and led Ning Que towards the wall of the temple. He pointed to the moss-covered rock stairs outside the side entrance and said, ¡°Ie from here.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the rock stars and understood what he meant. He was probably abandoned by his parents and left on those rock stairs outside the White Tower Temple. The monks here took him in and raised him.


    ¡°Why did you say we looked alike?¡± he asked curiously.


    Monk Qingban chuckled and looked shy. ¡°My Master said I am dull but I brought wisdom from my previous lives. Fellow monks here all said I¡¯m dull. You looked dull previously. Then you must have brought wisdom from your previous live as well.¡±


    Ning Que reasoned, I have the eminent monk Lian Sheng in my Ocean of Consciousness, of course I have wisdom. But the monks said Qingban is dull. How does dullness have anything to do with carrying on wisdom?


    Monk Qingban was innocent and lovable. Ning Que would never hurt him with such nonsense or cause trouble for him. He let Qingban hold his hand and stroll around the temple.


    The distant bell sounds in the temple pacified Ning Que¡¯s mind. The strange feeling he experienced by theke when he was watching the reflection of the White Tower on theke water hadpletely disappeared, which made him feelfortable.


    In a meditation room in the side hall, Monk Qingban showed Ning Que over three hundred volumes of Buddhist scriptures his Master had left to him, as if a child was showing off his collection of treasures.


    Ning Que did not want to upset him, so he picked up a volume randomly and started reading. He wowed from time to time. Monk Qingban sat restlessly beside him and looked very cheerful.


    The scriptures talked about the ultimate truth. Ning Que was perfunctory at the beginning. But gradually he found himself deeply captivated by the teaching and forgot about time.


    When recollected himself, it was already very dark. He was worried and stood up immediately. He woke up Monk Qingban who had been sleeping on his futon, left the White Tower Temple, and rushed home.


    He was worried because while he was indulging in reading scriptures, he had missed the time to cook dinner for Sangsang. Eating and sleeping were her most important businesses nowadays. What would she say?


    Sangsang was not in the courtyard. She was standing under the tree by the brook. She heard Ning Que¡¯s footsteps but did not turn to him. Instead, she was still engaged in watching the sky.


    A small white flower in her hair shuddered in the wind.


    Ning Que came to her and expressed his sincerest apology for forgetting about cooking dinner tonight.


    Sangsang was in a very good mood because she had been watching the sky the whole day. It was so beautiful that shepletely forgot about eating. So she forgave Ning Que generously.


    That night when they were having dinner in the courtyard, Ning Que mentioned what he saw in the White Tower Temple during the day. He told her about the dull Monk Qingban and asked, ¡°Would you like toe with me and meet him tomorrow?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s good you¡¯ve made some new friends.¡±


    She answered like any ordinary housewife would, but did not promise to go with him the following day. Because she would rather stay home and watch the sky. It was so charming that she could never get enough of it.


    On the following days, when they were not strolling in the city, Ning Que spent most of his time in the White Tower Temple and chatted with Monk Qingban. He found peacefulness in listening to the bell sounds and reading the scriptures. Sometimes he brought some vegetarian dishes form the temple for Sangsang. But she was not interested.


    Sangsang kept being drowsy these days. When awake, she sat under the tree by the brook and watched the sky from dawn to dark. She found the sky very charming, yet somehow weird.


    One day, Ning Que suggested that she could watch the sky by the White Tower Temple as well. Sangsang found that reasonable and followed him to the White Tower Temple. Although she did not like the vegetarian food or the monks in the temple, she found theke very beautiful. And the reflection of the sky in theke was also beautiful in a different way. From then on she sat by theke and watched the sky.


    Days passed by. With the sounds of morning bell and evening drum, Ning Que and Sangsang watched theke, the sky and read scriptures. They found peace and joy. Time passed by so slowly that they did not realize how long they had spent there.


    ...


    ...


    Distinctive bell sounds rang throughout the majestic peaks and hundreds of temples and woke up many monks. Different from the melodious sounds from Xuankong Temple in the past, the bell today sounded harsh and even anxious. It was a warning.


    The bell sounds conveyed a lot of messages and indicated the direction. Hundreds of soldier monks came out of the yellow temple on the West Peak and rushed down the hill. They mounted their steeds at the foot of the hill and darted off along the mountain pass towards somewhere in the wilderness in the underground. Their robes fluttered along the way, making an impressive scene.


    The Wilderness in the underground was vast. The previous years had been lonely and quiet. But today it was upied with the deafening noise of battle somewhere deep in the Wilderness. Dust was everywhere. There was an odd mix of soldiers¡¯ roaring, shing of weapons andpassionate chanting.


    The former Buddhand had be a bloody battlefield. The previously pious believers became bloodsucking Shuras. However if killing was evil, then the Wilderness had been the Shuraba throughout the years.


    Hundreds of soldier monks holding iron cudgels arrived at the edge of the battlefield. They slowed down and lined up. Four monks with bamboo hats walked out of the line.


    The leading monk looked humble and firm. Even the shade of the bamboo hat could not cover the tranquility and zen in his eyes. He was Qi Nian, the World Wayfarer of Buddhism.


    The other three monks with bamboo hats were very old. They were the Elders from the Commandment Hall of Xuankong Temple.


    Qi Nian stared at the deafening battlefield. But his sight went beyond the dust created by horses and fell on the top of the cliff far away. Someone was standing atop the cliff and he should be responsible for the world below the cliff.


    The nobles from tens of tribes had assembled their troops and fought for dozens of days, and finally stopped the ves at the meadow by the abandoned gold mine. The Xuankong Temple had sent their powerful soldier monks and strongest figures. It should be a definite win at this stage. But Qi Nian could not help but feel anxious. Because he did not think that that person would surrender so easily.


    The uprising of ves in the Wilderness in the underground had continued for a year.


    At the beginning it was only the uprising of a few shepherds from the poorest tribe. Dozens of men were killed. The tribe used harsh forces against the rebels and even caused a monk to be expelled by the Commandment Hall. To everyone¡¯s surprise, the armed force assembled by the nobles as well as the expelled monk had all died in the attempt to put down the rebellion.


    The Xuankong Temple still did not pay much attention. During their rule over the underground world throughout generations, the monks had gotten used to the uprisings every several years. The descendants of previous rebels tended to forget the mercy they were granted from time to time and attempted to obtain privileges they were not qualified for. But no matter how fiercely they tried at the beginning, they were eventually easily suppressed by a few monks. The Xuankong Temple was very satisfied for being able to showcase the power of the divine hill to the believers with trivial effort.


    But this time it was different from the numerous uprisings in the past, distinctively different. The noble had assembled two thousand cavalrymen to put down the rebel force of barely over a hundred of weak, old and young shepherds, yet they could not seed. Then they called more troops but still failed. Later on they sent thousands of cavalrymen and even involved professional ve-hunters but could still not seed.


    They never stopped suppressing the rebels. Yet instead of being put down, the number of rebels kept growing. Even several traveling sadhus were killed in the fight.


    People started to talk about this rebel force throughout the underground world. It was also said that the rebel force had found the path to true Nirvana. Out of their instinctive desire for freedom and hatred toward pain and inequality, more and more people took sympathy for the rebels and joined them.


    Simr to the uprisings of the tribes by the cliff, the uprisings in the underground world were normally initiated by shepherds. Those people had been herders for generations, spending their lives with flocks of cows and sheep between heaven and earth, and thus possessed the strongest desire for freedom and held the firmest revolt for exploitation.


    With more people joining the rebel force, the underground world became even more chaotic. The rules of the Buddhand for thousands of years were putting under threat. The Xuankong Temple could no longer sit back and watch calmly, especially when more and more traveling sadhus were getting killed by the rebels.


    The monks from the Xuankong Temple were practitioners as well as the living Buddha the ves used to worship. Their joining the battle was without a doubt a fatal attack to the ves both mentally and physically.


    Within a short period of time, most of the rebel forces in the underground were suppressed.


    However, there were always things that could not be easily ended once started, thoughts that could not be easily vanished once formed, and campfires that could not be crushed out once lighted. The uprising in the meadow seemed to have been suppressed. Yet who would know how many sparks of fire were hidden under the wild grass?


    A few monthster, dozens of uprisings took ce again in the underground world. The monks were busy putting down one after another here and there. They became exhausted and helpless in the series of endless uprisings.


    This was when the sparks became a prairie fire.


    ...

 Chapter 946 - Breaking the Bones

    <h4>Chapter 946: Breaking the Bones</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The uprising spread like a prairie fire into two thirds of the tribes. The earliest rebel force had now be the strongest with over four thousand soldiers. They were so valiant that in one year they had crossed the Wilderness from the remotest cliff to within two hundred miles to the giant peak.


    Although they were still not able to weaken the foundation of the Buddhand, the Xuankong Temple had sensed the tremendous threat. The monks would never allow those rebels to mount the divine hill.


    Qi Nian was the World Wayfarer of Buddhism. Being the most powerful in the Xuankong Temple, he had been guarding the only path to the peak ever since the uprising turned vigorous. He seemed as invincible as that person who guarded the front of the Verdant Canyon years ago. However, with the rebellion army approaching, he could no longer sit still.


    Qi Nian already figured out the fundamental difference between this uprising and those in the previous years. In the past these ves in the underground world were merely venting their anger, whereas this time they knew clearly what they were fighting for. Therefore they were exceptionally firm and courageous.


    Someone had brought hope to the ves and indicated a clear direction. Moreover, he fought together with the ves and led them in the battlefields.


    Recalling his name, Qi Nian became more anxious. And his expression became firmer under the shade of the bamboo hat. Knowing that he was right there in the rebellion army, he had to leave the peak and came to the field. He knew that the three Elders of the Commandment Hall could not withstand him.


    To face this person, the Xuankong Temple could never be overly prepared. Qi Nian was even certain if it wasn¡¯t for the Chief Monk not being able to leave the teau, he would have came to the battlefield himself.


    Deafening noises were heard in the dusty battlefield afar. Qi Nian came back from his pondering and looked toward the battlefield silently. He knew that the battle was about toe to an end today.


    Darkness prevailed. Thousands of people from the major tribes were killed in the battle only to barely stop the rebelling ves by the edge of the meadow. People were howling and moaning everywhere in the field.


    The battle came to a pause. Qi Nian and the monks looked at the meadow from a distance and felt aplex of emotions. The rebels had set up a dozen of very shabby tents in the fields. The elders were treating the injured young soldiers. Others were cooking dinner by the tents. A huge pot was hung above the fire. It seemed they were cookingmb. In front of the center tent, many people sat down in a circle and were listening to someone talk.


    The night was longer in the underground world then it was atop the peak in the temples. Compared with the real world above the ground, it was too long and tiresome. But Qi Nian was not tired of it. He stood in the field quietly until the stars faded and morning glory came back. Then he lead the monks slowly to the battlefield.


    A dozen of nobles dressed in finery kneeled in excitement and awe. They did not dare even to take a look. Because anyoneing down from the divine hill was like a living Buddha to them.


    The cavalrymen already got up. They were washing and enjoying their breakfast with ves serving by their side. The rebels also got up in the meadow afar. There were no ves in their camps. But there were the elderly, women, and children.


    This rebel force had brought along the families of their weak, sick, elder and young soldiers as well as orphans from their tribes. It was a stupid decision of military operation. Yet it was admirable.


    Qi Nian walked to the front. The nobles were pious and even turned fanatical. They kept kissing his footprints. He paid no attention to them but quietly stared at the meadow afar.


    The Elder of the Commandment Hall standing to his right was also staring at the meadow in the morning glory and the ves who were dressed in ragged clothes but seemed very cheerful. He was suddenly enraged for unknown reasons.


    ¡°All those rebels are going to hell.¡±


    Upon this ruthless order, the fierce battle was started again. Several major tribes assembled their thousands of cavalrymen and darted toward the rebels. They rode on their steeds and swayed the machetes, talking dirty and wearing brutal expressions with bloodshot eyes.


    The cavalrymen were far better equipped than those rebelling ves, especially two hundred cavalrymen darting in the front. They were armed to the teeth and starkly contrasted their enemies.


    Their intensive clops sounded like pouring rain, and their des were shining like sunlight. The cavalrymen hade to the field several hundreds of miles away from the ves. Their howling was sky-cracking.


    Then, numerous arrows were shot towards them.


    The monks from the Xuankong Temple saw clearly that there were only dozens of archers in the rebellion army. Their bows and arrows were so crude that some of the arrows were even featherless. How could they shoot their targets with such arrows? Even if they were to reach the targets, how could they break the armors?


    The Elders exuded some sympathy, but rather mockingly. However Qi Nian still looked worried. Because he had better vision and found out that they arrows were made with prismatic stones instead of metal arrowheads.


    A wind rose from the meadow all of a sudden. The wind was weird. It was not blowing randomly like some natural wind but rather pointed clearly towards the cavalrymen.


    Those featherless arrows flew proudly in the roaring wind. They did not need precise targets and sped up into bouts of shadows.


    Bang! Bang! Bang! Following dozens of low bumping sounds, the pioneer cavalrymen were hit to the ground like reaped wild grass.


    The falling cavalrymen rolled over on the ground in pain and vomited blood. They did not want to give up. Yet they could struggle no more.


    There were clear pits on the armors of the dead cavalrymen. The rebelling ves had very little clothes and food, not to mention materials to make sharp arrowheads. Even with the help of the roaring wind, their arrows broke through the armors. But their arrows came with stone heads. Dashing down in the wind, they created powerful punches on the armors and crashed the cavalrymen¡¯s vital organs.


    The stone arrows had created heavy casualties. But there were many cavalrymen from the tribes. With their pioneers down, the rest of them poured toward the meadow and made deafening killing sounds.


    This was a very unbnced battle. The cavalrymen were dressed in either iron or leather armors and were holding sharp des. While the ves were swarthy and skinny, either too old or too young and wore ragged clothes. Most of them were holding bamboo spears. Some were even holding pieces of bones that probably came from theirmb dinnerst night.


    In battles, equipments were important. But the most important factor was always the people. Although the ves did not have armors or des, they did possess courage, desire, and integrity.


    Facing the iron flood of cavalrymen, the ves were pale but firm. They held up their bamboo spears with trembling hands but none of them would surrender or flee.


    A seemingly weak bamboo spear broke through some seemingly strong armor.


    Another bamboo spear was broken by a thrusting cavalryman and blood stained the hands of the ves. Then they howled wildly and flooded onto that cavalryman.


    Simr things happened throughout the meadows. The arrogant cavalrymen were pushed down and crushed dead by the weak ve army.


    The cavalry had lost their speed and was outnumbered by the ves. The ves held up their rocks and bones and encircled the nearby cavalryman, then hit against him.


    They hit the cavalrymen¡¯s armors with rocks and smashed their heads. They used the bones to knock off the cavalrymen and broke their leg bones. The cavalrymen tried to sway their des aimlessly but were eventually pounded to death.


    Blood flooded the meadow. Sounds of breaking bones were heard everywhere. The ves howled like beasts and pounded non-stop.


    They had lived in the dark fields and enved by the nobles and masters for generations. Their ancestors used to be stoned by those people. They were exploited to their bones by those people. Today was finally their turn to stone them and smash their bones.


    The Buddha had been teaching his disciples and followers about samsara, the cycle of cause and effect, and retribution. This was exactly the retribution, the result of cause and effect, and samsara.


    Witnessing the brutal and bloody battle and the tribes almost being defeated, the Elders from the Commandment Hall could no longer feel sympathetic but enraged and ruthless.


    Qi Nian paused and said, ¡°The Buddha ispassionate.¡±


    ¡°The Buddha ispassionate!¡±


    Over a hundred of soldier monks from the West Peak of the Xuankong Temple pressed their palms together and called the Buddha. There was nopassion in their voices but only ruthlessness and determination.


    Upon the calling, the soldiers monks inserted their iron cudgels deep into the fields.


    It sounded like thunder above the Wilderness.


    A massive bout of power spread out toward the meadow from beneath the intensively ced iron cudgels. The Wilderness started quaking as if some vajra was rushing under the ground.


    A dozen of ves were knocked up and threw onto the ground. They were crushed dead.


    ¡°The Buddha ispassionate!¡±


    The soldier monks called the Buddha again and pulled out their iron cudgels. They rushed into the battlefield. Their robes fluttered awe-inspiringly.


    The ve had almost defeated the cavalrymen. But all of a sudden they heard the calling for Buddha and saw the soldier monks. Colors were drained immediately from their faces and they looked startled.


    For them, these soldier monks from the divine hill were living Buddhas.


    They were ordinary human beings. How could they stand against the living Buddhas? Right then, someone started chanting inside the tent in the center of the meadow.


    Upon hearing his voice, the ves were refreshed and reassured. They held their iron des and bamboo spears tighter and dashed toward the soldier monks.


    The soldier monks kept calling the Buddha. Their callings were like thunder.


    The ves were also chanting by repeating what the person inside the tent said. It was a very short sutra. They recited it word by word. Each word in the sutra was pounding and firm and sounded like real thunder.


    ...

 Chapter 947 - Man Must be Resolute and Broad-Minded

    <h4>Chapter 947: Man Must be Resolute and Broad-Minded</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The sutra was so short that it contained only one sentence. The ves were chanting it in a unique way. They read every word with a full stop. They eximed the first word and paused. When people assumed there were no further words they eximed again.


    It was simr to how thunder rumbled in the sky.


    Hundreds of soldier monks were chanting, ¡°The Buddha ispassionate¡± while their robes were fluttering in the wind. They sounded firm in their beliefs of Buddhism but showed nopassion. They were enraged like vajras and overwhelmingly powerful.


    Thousands of ves were chanting as one and almost countered the calling for Buddha. It generated endless courage while they swayed their crude weapons towards the soldier monks.


    With calling for Buddha, the soldier monks appeared like living Buddhas descending into the human world.


    The word by word chanting thundered and the ordinary human beings proceeded like ghostsing out of the hell.


    Blood flooded the wilderness and the battle became even fiercer. Colors drained from the faces of the nobles standing aside, for they would have never imagined those lowly ves could fight so fiercely against the living Buddhasing from the divine hill.


    The Elders from the Commandment Hall could not understand how these sinful ves had be so courageous and could stand against the power of hundreds of soldier monks who kept calling for Buddha. They appeared like numerous ferocious ghosts and Shuras from an ocean of blood.


    Qi Nian looked even more serious. He tried so hard to listen to their chanting and finally figured out it was merely a few words rather than a sutra.


    ¡°Man! Must! Be! Resolute! And! Broad-minded!¡±


    It was a very simple sentence with only six words, while the meaning was profound. It would take hundreds of years for someone toprehend it thoroughly, which was so powerful that even the calling for Buddha was overpowered.


    The nobles could not understand, neither did the Elders from Commandment Hall or Qi Nian. But Qi Nian recalled that the former Qi Mei used to mention that years ago, Mr. First from the Academy achieved enlightenment during the battle in front of the White Tower Temple, and overpowered the Chief Monk of Scripture¡¯s Buddha¡¯s teaching with some very simple words.


    Mr. First said, ¡°The Headmaster would never talk about the extraordinary, the miraculous, the disordered, or spiritual.¡±


    Qi Nian instinctively recalled this and wondered if what the rebels said were also some words of the Headmaster. Even if they were, how could that man have reached such a high level of cultivation?


    Yet he was wrong. The words that resounded in the fields that brought the ves courage and firm beliefs were not said by the Headmaster, but rather by that person himself. It was not said by the Headmaster but rather his own self-discipline and his expectation for human beings. It carried his lifelong spirit and vision. When thousands of people said it together, it became thunder.


    Man must be resolute and broad-minded.


    Although the men fighting in the battlefield had been ves for generations and were not cultivated men at all, upon saying those words, they became noble.


    Therefore they had morale.


    The ves fought like thunder against the beaten cavalrymen and the monks who used to be like living Buddhas to them.


    In the scriptures, the Buddha used to describe the thunder in the sky as the scrubbing or shing of clouds and sky. But today the thunder came from des going against des.


    Dust floated above the Wilderness. All of a sudden, an iron sword showed up.


    The iron sword was so straight that no other worldly existence could be straighter than it.


    It was so thick that it seemed like a chunk of hard iron rather than a sword.


    The iron sword whistled through the air.


    A soldier monk held up his cudgel against it. Upon a thundering sound, the iron cudgel was smashed and the soldier monk was thrown to the ground. He vomited blood and died in no time, with cracking soundsing from every part of his body.


    Ten iron cudgels flew up to press against the iron sword.


    The sword lifted its tip proudly. In a single stab and thunder, the ten cudgels were slumped and scattered in the field, and disappeared in the wild grass.


    The ten soldier monks were swept to nowhere.


    The leader of the soldier monks shouted out and stared with his angry eyes. Looking like a Buddha¡¯s lion, he cohered massive Qi of Heaven and Earth into his iron cudgel and pouched toward that iron sword.


    Right then, a hand reached out from the smoky dust and got hold of the hilt of the iron sword. It was a hand with slender fingers and wide palm. Its holding onto the iron sword looked indescribably harmonious.


    If there could be a description for such a harmony, it would be innateness.


    From inside the smoky dust, a man showed up. He held the iron sword and with a random sway, he warded off the leading soldier monk¡¯s cudgel that carried a massive amount of Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    Upon the crash of the iron sword and the iron cudgel, fire sparked and thunder rumbled. Then there was a second of silence.


    The leader of the soldier monks felt a horrifying powering from the cudgel. It felt furious yet calm and organized.


    He knew he could be no match to such an enemy and was doomed to fail. Yet being the most powerful figure from the Commandment Hall of Xuankong Temple, he tried his best to stop the iron sword in order not to disgrace Buddhism. Therefore, he did not give up and held tightly onto his cudgel.


    It seemed that the iron sword just slightly touched the monk¡¯s cudgel and the person in the dust did nothing else but quietly passed by the leader of the soldier monks.


    But after that, some real rumbling sounds came from inside the body of the soldier monk. His fingers were smashed into stics, which were soon followed by his wrists and arms.


    The two arms of the leader that used to hold the iron cudgel vibrated into blood and flesh and then blown away together with the dust by the wind.


    The soldier monk fell to the ground with a miserable scream. He turned extremely pale and wanted to knock off the pain from his head. Yet that was no longer possible for him.


    The dust gradually settled down and that person appeared clearly in front of everyone.


    His hair was very short and looked like the sharp sword forest somewhere inside the Academy. He stood under the high and ruthless sky with one arm missing. But there was no crinkle on the empty sleeve.


    He was wearing a khaki monk robe. It had not been washed for a year and was stained with dust and blood. Despite the dirty robe, he looked as if he was attending a ssic sacrificial ceremony in his best finery.


    He still looked calm and proud. Blood covered his face and robe and continued to drip from the iron sword he held in his left hand. He was soaked in blood.


    By his appearance, he was nothing more than an ordinary monk. Yet being covered all over in blood after fighting his way out of a battlefield, he looked like a blood Buddha statueing from the hell.


    It was deadly quiet in the Wilderness.


    Qi Nian and the Elders from the Commandment Hall stared at this most horrifying and proud Mr. Second of the Back Hill of the Academy. Thinking of the people he had ughtered in the underground world throughout the year, they sighed and said, ¡°The Buddha ispassionate!¡±


    He said, ¡°The Buddha is regrettable.¡±


    Qi Nian pressed his palms together and said, ¡°Years ago in front of the Verdant Canyon you defeated thousands of enemies. However it is no longer in the Verdant Canyon, but the Buddhand, and you do not have your back up from the Academy. Even if you could fight until the end of the world, you will never win.¡±


    He replied, ¡°An educated man is a gentleman. A gentleman must be resolute and broad-minded, for he has taken up a heavy responsibility and a long course. Isn¡¯t it a heavy responsibility to practice benevolence? Isn¡¯t it a long course that could only end in his death?


    Qi Nian questioned, ¡°You are not enlightened. How could you achieve that?¡±


    He looked at the monks in front of him and said emotionlessly, ¡°My name is Jun Mo. I was educated by the Headmaster and would only devote my life to the practice of benevolence. Whoever stands in my way must die.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 948 - It Is a Sword Anyway (I)

    <h4>Chapter 948: It Is a Sword Anyway (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Qi Nian stared at Jun Mo¡¯s empty sleeve and said, ¡°Liu Bai took one arm from you, therefore you are confined in the human world. What you need most now is Buddha¡¯spassion. That was why you came all the way here from Chang¡¯an. Since you are already here, why are you still resisting? Why not seek refuge with the Buddha?¡±


    Jun Mo looked at the peaks in front of the Wilderness. They were only two hundred miles away and thus seemed steeper and more magnificent. He slightly raised his eyebrows and asked, ¡°How to seek refuge?¡±


    Qi Nian looked at the blood-dripping iron sword in his hand and answered, ¡°Drop your sword and achieve Buddhahood.¡±


    ¡°There are Buddha statues as well as skeletons. There are gold ritual implements and silver decorated bones. The monks wear rosaries while the nobles wear nes made with human ears. This is not the Buddhand. This is the hell. There is no living Buddhas but only evil ghosts.¡± Jun Mo turned to him and continued emotionlessly, ¡°If I am about to seek enlightenment, I could never achieve it unless I take down all the evil ghosts like you! Since I need to take down all of you, how could I drop my sword? It might be the path to Buddhahood in the human world by dropping one¡¯s cleaver. But here, the only way to Buddhahood is to pick up my sword.¡±


    Qi Nian kept quiet for a long while, took a nce at the ves in rugged clothes and said, ¡°So you seriously think you could lead these people out by yourself?¡±


    Jun Mo answered, ¡°Originally I was trying to build them a path to the surface. Although the cliffs are steep, if they were to continue doing it for generations, they would eventually build a path. But now it seems like we don¡¯t have enough time. Therefore I changed my mind. Since they cannot get to the outside-world, I should at least take them to the peak to enjoy some views.¡±


    There were many hills in the underground world, but the only real hill was the Prajna Peak. It was in front of them glittering in the morning glory. That peak had the relics of the Buddha. What Jun Mo wanted to do was to take the millions of ves to mount the Buddha¡¯s relics and enjoy the sunshine and warmth atop.


    Qi Nian raised his eyebrows slightly and eximed in rage, ¡°Don¡¯t deceive yourself! How could you do that by yourself?¡±


    Jun Mo stood in front of thousands of ves and shouted back, ¡°Open your eyes and see clearly for yourself how many of us are here!¡±


    Qi Nian bursted intoughter after being extremely outraged, and said, ¡°How could you count on them to overturn the Buddhand? Did you forget that they are as dull as ants? How could they fly?¡±


    Jun Mo answered indifferently, ¡°Over twenty years ago, you once said in the Wilderness when the chief monk was preaching. there were countless ants flying up as they bathed in the sunlight. Now you want to deny it?¡±


    Qi Nian felt distressed and suddenly became restless. He said, ¡°They are sinful and therefore dull.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°Did you know why the Buddha had strictly prohibited the monks from illuminating them or pass Buddha¡¯s teaching to them?¡±


    Qi Nian did not answer because none of the eminent monks including himself would have found an answer to that question. It was understandable not to cultivate their literacy. But teaching them Buddhism would have enhanced their piety. Why had the Buddha had prohibited them from doing that?


    ¡°Qi Nian, your faith is not as firm as you¡¯ve thought. Any old woman from the millions of ves here in the underground world could have surpassed you in terms of this.¡± Jun Mo continued, ¡°Because you are literate. Because you have cultivated Buddhism. As for cultivation, the more doubts you have the harder you try to cultivate. There would be no doubts if you don¡¯t cultivate. Therefore the cultivator will eventually question cultivation, and the practitioner of Buddhism will eventually question the Buddha.¡±


    Qi Nian became pale. The back of his robe was soaking in sweat and he could not refrain from feeling restless.


    Jun Mo looked into his eyes and continued, ¡°The Buddha clearly knew that only the dullest would have the firmest faith. Therefore, he prohibited you monks from passing on his teaching to the people in the underground world. He wanted them to be dull and ignorant. Only thus he could have created the Nirvana and became so arrogant that he even thought that he could deceive Haotian. You said these people were dull. That¡¯s bullshit! Their dullness is the sin your Buddha hadmitted!¡±


    Qi Nian wanted to say something but Jun Mo kept going, ¡°On top of that, the Buddha had prohibited you from teaching them Buddhism because he was afraid! If these people were enlightened and had achieved Buddhahood, how could he maintain his evil Nirvana? You bald donkeys refused to cultivate their literacy or teach them Buddhism. Therefore they were dull. Now I have taught them to read and write and illuminated their minds. Of course they have be sober. I am exactly shaking your fundamentals and overturning your Buddhand. Show me how you can stop me.¡±


    The thousands of ves stood behind Jun Mo looked the same as they had previously. They wore rugged clothes, and some of them seemed very hungry. But upon closer observations, one could find that they looked calm instead of numb, and their eyes were bright. The human eyes were made to see and find freedom. They brightened up and became lively when they found freedom. That was what life really meant.


    Throughout the previous year, the ves had been fighting. But they had also spent most of their time studying. At the beginning, Jun Mo just introduced literacy to the tribe by the cliff. Then they became teachers and taught other tribes to read and write. They were never introduced to knowledge previously. Therefore, once started they was extremely eager and made tremendous improvement.


    Qi Nian looked into their eyes and confirmed that Jun Mo was not lying.


    Thinking of how much effort Jun Mo had made in teaching them, he felt confused and asked, ¡°Why do you hate the Buddha so much?¡± He could not have made so much effort if it was not because of extreme hatred.


    ¡°Why does it have to be hatred? It is more because you are the epitome of evil.¡± Jun Mo continued, ¡°I¡¯ve hated monks and temples throughout my life. You produce nothing. You only specialize in extorting the money from the poor. It is even worse here. How hateful you are! How could I not hate you? Well, of course those divine priests from Taoism did them same thing as you did.¡±


    Qi Nian wondered, Since you know how much worse the Taoism is, why do you hate Buddhism more?


    ¡°Because Taoism never hid what they wanted. The divine priests in the Divine Halls of West-Hill just want to rule over this world. They want nothing but power and wealth to satisfy their various desires. Although they do put on some disguise now and then, they never do it seriously. Therefore they could no longer deceive many.¡± Jun Mo continued, ¡°Buddhism is different. Your disguise is far more skillful and deceiving. You fooled people so badly that I could no longer stay out.¡±


    Qi Nian asked, ¡°Is that the difference between true evil and the hypocritical?¡±


    ¡°That is the difference between a robber and a thief.¡± Jun Mo¡¯s words had dethroned the noblest Buddhism. Then he looked at the ves around him and said, ¡°Of course you have both here.¡±


    Qi Nian asked, ¡°Buddhism has numerous practitioners who cultivate diligently and secludedly, abide by themandments, guard against attachment and aversion and practice onpassion. Howe you never see them?¡±


    Jun Mo looked to the giant peak afar and bursted intoughter. ¡°Disciplines andmandments? You behaved like thieves and prostitutes and produced numerous illegitimate children here. How dare you mention disciplines andmandments?¡±


    Qi Nian said, ¡°Master Qishan was the descendent of the previous Chief Monk of Scripture. What would you say to that?¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°Master Qishan was a true master. That was why he left Xuankong Temple when he was very young. You want to take credit for the Xuankong Temple from him? Are you shameless?¡±


    In his view, the people of Buddhism were all shameless bald donkeys. That was exactly what Qi Nian did years ago. He pretended to bepassionate and trapped the kindest Eldest Brother in Lanke Temple with a killing fraud. How dishonorable he was!


    Back then, Jun Mo stabbed Qi Nian with his iron sword. He questioned how he could have deceived a man of dignity and dered to take him down. Then he cut Qi Nian¡¯s Dharmakaya with his mighty sword. Today in front of the Xuankong Temple in the Buddhand, he again defeated Qi Nian¡¯s superiority with his words. Qi Nian had turned pale and miserable. Why was that?


    Because Jun Mo was righteous. Being righteous was the rule of the world. It ruled over counties as well as countries.


    Qi Nian had been practicing silent meditation for almost twenty years. He was never good at arguing. Furthermore, Jun Mo had pointed out the weakest part of his Buddhism belief. How could he say anything further?


    He had nothing to say, but could only go for a fight.


    Qi Nian pointed out a finger to Jun Mo in the field. It pierced the autumn wind and drew a random circle in the air. Then a radiating circle appeared behind his head.


    He pulled back the finger and pressed his palms together in front of his chest. His body started to glow with the Light of Buddha. His robe swung and the outline of his figure started to extend into the space in a peculiar way. It erged numerous times instantly.


    Another Qi Nian appeared in the Wilderness. He was enraged and his eyebrows raised like swords and there were thunder in his eyes. It seemed like he could defeat anything evil in the world. That was his Dharmakaya, the atha.


    First, he sent out the perfectly prating intent of Buddhism and then called his Dharmakaya. Qi Nian did not stop there. The Dharmakaya reached out his right palm and hooked his index finger to made the Mantra and Mudra.


    He cultivated on silent meditation. Therefore he did not need to say a word and the sound of Buddha already reverberated through Heaven and Earth.


    In the sound of Buddha, the giant Dharmakaya of atha pressed toward Jun Mo with his Mantra and Mudra.


    The Mudra was like a mountain.


    With endless mountains ovepping, it became the ultimate state of Prajna.


    Qi Nian was after all the most powerful cultivator in Buddhism and their World Wayfarer. In a single strike, he had applied three levels of divine skills.


    In front of such a vigorous enemy, Jun Mo had to be exceptionally serious. How could he ovee these three levels? Like he did to the soldier monks previously, Jun Mo lifted his sword. Again he made one strike. It was not because he despised Qi Nian and thought he was no better than those soldier monks. He made only one strike previously because it was more than enough. Now he only make one strike because there was nothing more he could do. It seemed to be a simple strike. But Jun Mo had actually applied all of his cultivation.


    The simplest was also the strongest. The straight and wide sword pierced through the autumn wind and stabbed on the Mudra of atha.


    The giant atha and the giant Mudra had created a huge shadow over the Wilderness. Jun Mo¡¯s iron sword looked like a tiny wooden thornpared with them.


    A tiny wooden thorn that held up to the falling palm.


    The wooden thorn even pierced through the center of the palm.


    No matter how strong the palm was, a thorn must hurt.


    The iron sword had stabbed the Mudra of atha.


    Qi Nian became pale and blood exuded from between his palms.


    ...

 Chapter 949 - It is Sword Anyway (Part II)

    <h4>Chapter 949: It is Sword Anyway (Part II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    It did not matter what kind of Divine Ability one possessed, the sword could break it. It was not because the Divine Ability was too weak, but because the iron sword was too powerful. The iron sword could break the Dharmakaya of atha, let alone human bodies.


    Qi Nian was injured immediately after Jun Mo showed up. The three Elders of Commandment Hall looked solemnly and their thin chests suddenly rose up as if they had inhaled too much of the autumn wind. Between breaths, a series of extremelyplicated and obscure sybles came out of their mouths at great speed, which sounded horrible.


    In this way, Elders of Commandment Hall finished the sybles they were murmuring, which were indeed hard to understand, for it was not any normal Buddhist Scriptures, but some kind of mantra.


    Cultivators had many means, such as Fu and Psyche. Buddhism also had their own special skills including mantra, which was extremely powerful. The mantra the Elders of Commandment Hall were chanting was a fantastic tool which was invented by countless great monks of the previous generations while facing the wall and cudgeling their brains ¡ª Vairocana Buddha Devil Conquering Mantra.


    The monks of previous generations of the Xuankong Temple put their priority on managing the Buddhand in the depths of the West Wilderness and dealing with the powerful demons after Buddha reached Nirvana.


    It was said that Buddha left his legacies in the underground Buddhand. Putting aside the pear tree that Buddha had nted himself and the stones that Buddha had refined, the Prajna Peak were the remains of Buddha. The monks shouldn¡¯t worry at all, but unfortunately, they didn¡¯t even know how to use these to fight against their enemies.


    For this reason, countless great monks racked their brains toe up with a method to use the power of the Buddhand, which was simr to enforcing regtions of the letter. But it required less from the caster. Any caster could borrow the infinite power left by Buddha in the Buddhand as long as they were willing to give up their flesh and longevity.


    The method was the Vairocana Buddha Devil Conquering Mantra. It was because the method was very cruel to the caster and it revealed a bloody meaning. Additionally, there was no way to bring a human being who was killed identally back to life since it was too powerful, so the Xuankong Temple had always kept it a secret. Only the three Elders of Commandment Hall were able to cultivate it and only the Chief Monk of Scripture could decide when to use it.


    Jun Mo¡¯s cultivation in Taoist swords had impressed the whole world, and now he was leading the serfs to overturn the Buddhand. There was no doubt the Xuankong Temple saw him as a demon. For the temple, it was high time to use its secret weapon.


    The sound of the Vairocana Buddha Devil Conquering Mantra was everywhere.


    All of a sudden, the underground world somehow responded. The fierce wind howled upon the field, stones were rolling, the giant peaks two hundred miles away seemed to have trembled slightly, and in the East Peak where the Commandment Hall of Xuankong Temple was located, the pines roared in the wind and the yellow temples were shining. Suddenly, a Light of Buddha appeared in the East Peak and reached to the sky.


    The Prajna Peak was the remains of Buddha. The Grand Hall on the summit was the head of Buddha, the cliff yard where the pear tree was located was Buddha¡¯s left hand with the palm facing to the sky, his right hand formed another magical ce, and the east and west peaks were his two shoulders. The Light of Buddha sprang into the air, like something growing on the shoulders of Buddha.


    It was the King Kong Devil Conquering Pestle.


    A brisk gale was blowing.


    King Kong Devil Conquering Pestle which was shining bright descended from the East Peak, flew through the field and fell on Jun Mo.


    The Devil Conquering Pestle had no specific shape, but the Light of Buddha was over ten feet wide. Although Jun Mo could avoid it, most of the thousands of serfs behind him would be killed by the pestle.


    Jun Mo suddenly turned pale. With a clear sound, the iron sword floated in the air in front of him. He no longer held the sword with his left hand, but held out his right hand to grab the hilt!


    His right arm was cut off by Liu Bai before the Battle of Verdant Canyon. Grabbing the hilt with his lost hand meant rolling the sword with his right sleeve, which suddenly strengthened the power of the iron sword!


    There was a loud noise!


    The iron sword met with Buddha¡¯s King Kong Devil Conquering Pestle in the air above the meadow.


    Although Buddha didn¡¯t throw the King Kong Devil Conquering Pestle himself, the three Elders of Commandment Hall did so by borrowing the power of Buddha. Thus, the King Kong Pestle seemed to contain all of the power of the entire Buddhand.


    Jun Mo was known for his Taoist sword. After Liu Bai¡¯s death, he was the undisputed best in terms of Taoist swords, but he mastered the Taoist sword with his right hand. He had no hope of understanding Heaven¡¯s Rules after losing his right arm and the state of his cultivation was going down too, which were the reasons for him to go to Xuankong Temple to cultivate Buddhism. He wanted to find another way.


    He didn¡¯t cultivate Buddhism at all for the past year, and of course he didn¡¯t find another way. But he went further and further on the original road and became more determined. Who said that one without the right hand couldn¡¯t fully grasp Heaven¡¯s Rules with the sword?


    It was a sword no matter which hand he used to hold it!


    As long as he still had the spirit, he could use his lost right hand to hold the sword as he wished!


    With the sword, Jun Mo could destroy the Buddhand!


    The Light of Buddha trembled, and the King Kong Pestle was broken! It turned into countless golden flowers and fell on the meadows and in the streams, as if more beautiful than the gold sand flowing from the gold field.


    The King Kong Pestle hurt the three Elders of Commandment Hall instead and they were stunned and haggard.


    Jun Mo also suffered since he cut off Buddha¡¯s Pestle with his iron sword. He was blown hundreds of feet away, like a flying stone and oozed blood at the corner of his lips. The wild grasses and golden flowers under his feet were crushed.


    After finally being able to stand still, he crossed his legs to sit down and then meditated. He began to heal himself with Psyche Power. He didn¡¯t care about the blood flowing from the corner of his lips and ignored all other things.


    Thousands of soldier serfs suddenly separated and then suddenly gathered. They surrounded him in the deepest part of the crowd and raised their weapons. They stared at the distant enemies and looked alert and firm, which gave an impression that the only way to get close to Jun Mo was over their dead bodies.


    ¡°Protect the Living Buddha!¡± The soldier serfs shouted hoarsely, boosting theirpanions¡¯ courage. Although they were somewhat unsettled, no one showed any panic and they even quickly formed battle formation in an orderly manner.


    Qi Nian was right.


    Back then in front of the Verdant Canyon, Jun Mo fought against thousands of soldiers and prevented the united army of the Divine Halls of West-Hill from moving forward. However, that was all due to the advantage of terrain and the help from the Academy. And it was only seven days.


    Now, he had led the old, weak, ill or disabled serfs fighting against the temple for a whole year. He was exhausted and experienced several times of Psyche Power exhaustion.


    And he was also injured while breaking the Vairocana Buddha Devil Conquering Mantra casted by the three Elders of Commandment Hall and urgently needed recover his Psyche Power. Fortunately, his cooperation with the soldier serfs was extremely skilled, otherwise it would be extremely dangerous.


    At this time, more than a hundred soldier monks were killed or disabled, and the three Elders of Commandment Hall were also resting with their legs crossed. It seemed that Qi Nian would be the only one who could break the defensive line formed by the soldier serfs and kill Jun Mo.


    Qi Nian Looked at the blood on his palm and then looked toward the serfs in the distance. And he found that attacking these serfs was a difficult decision to make.


    The eyes of the serfs were filled with anger and hatred. Nobody knew how hard they would fight, and more importantly, Qi Nian was not sure he could defeat the injured Jun Mo.


    In front of the Verdant Canyon, Jun Mo¡¯s right arm was cut off by Liu Bai. Everybody including the Chief Monk of Scripture and Abbey Dean all thought he would never fully grasp Heaven¡¯s Rules.


    In the past few years, the cultivation world began to believe in the existence of the Chosen Generation, and several geniuses appeared in the Unknown ces including the Xuankong Temple, Zhishou Abbey, Taoism and the Second Floor: the traveling disciple of Devil¡¯s Doctrine Tang, the traveling disciple of Taoism Ye Su, Mr. First and Mr. Second of the Academy, and the traveling disciple of Buddhism Qi Nian.


    Liu Bai and the Sage of Calligraphy were born half a generation earlier than the Chosen Generation, and Ye Hongyu, Chen Pipi, Ning Que, Mo Shanshan, Tang Xiaotang and Long Qing were born half a generationter than the Chosen Generation. The Chosen Generation was called so because they were the strongest, most vital and imaginative, and possessed the highest state.


    Among the Chosen Generation, Li Manman, the Eldest Brother of Academy was the strongest, and he proved it during the battle against the Tang.


    Jun Mo, Ye Su, Tang and Qi Nian followed closely behind Eldest Brother, and nobody could tell which one of the four was stronger. In the Battle of Verdant Canyon, Jun Mo became the strongest among the four since he defeated Ye Su. But soon his arm was cut off by Liu Bai, and the he lost his superiority.


    Qi Nian thought he could defeat Jun Mo, but soon he found that it was not the case. In the long and arduous battle of the underground world, Jun Mo became weaker because he had lost too much psyche, but meanwhile he was stronger because his will was strong enough to affect the reality.


    Seeing that Jun Mo was able to break the atha and Buddha¡¯s King Kong Devil Conquering Pestle with his sword, Qi Nian knew that his state undoubtedly returned to ny percent of his prime state and his art of sword was even better!


    How did he do it?


    Qi Nian was stunned and hesitated for a moment. Unfortunately, he missed his opportunity to attack due to the moment of hesitation. With the crowd gradually dispersing in the distance, Jun Mo held iron sword in his hand and walked back.


    The corner of his lip was still full of blood, and his face was still pale, but he had gained back enough Psyche Power during the short time of meditation since he could stand still with the iron sword in his hand. At least he believed he could defeat Qi Nian.


    Qi Nian was still wondering. How did he do it?


    The enemy¡¯s shock and frustration were the source of thepanions¡¯ confidence. Holding the bamboo spears and bone sticks high, the soldier serfs looked at back of Jun Mo and believed that he was an invincible god.


    ¡°Guru is the best!¡±


    ¡°The Living Buddha is invincible!¡±


    Hearing these, Qi Nian remembered that these serfs were shouting that they would protect the Living Buddha previously and suddenlyughed out. He stared at Jun Mo and said ironically, ¡°You want to destroy Buddha, but you have to urge these stupid serfs in the name of Buddha. Don¡¯t you think it is ridiculous?¡±


    Jun Mo held his iron sword up, and the frantic shouts behind him stopped instantly.


    He carried the iron sword behind him. Although thousands of serfs were somewhat puzzled, no one hesitated and then they withdrew at the fastest speed, fleeing to the depths of the field with the important impedimenta.


    Looking at the serfs who quickly withdrew like the tide of the sea, Qi Nian slightly frowned and somehow puzzled.


    Jun Mo asked, ¡°Why is it ridiculous?¡±


    Qi Nian replied, ¡°If you are a Living Buddha, does it mean that you have to destroy yourself before you destroy Buddha?¡±


    Jun Mo answered, ¡°I am a real Buddha. The Buddha you worshiped is a fake.¡±


    Qi Nian shouted, ¡°How dare you to say this in front of Buddha?!¡±


    Jun Mo unbent the iron sword and said, ¡°If I am a Living Buddha, Buddha can only be a fake if he were toe to see me.¡±


    Hearing this, an Elder of Commandment Hall was furious. ¡°Today I must send you to see Buddha!¡±


    Jun Mo ignored him and said to Qi Nian, ¡°Don¡¯t you understand?¡±


    Thinking of a possibility, Qi Nian turned pale slightly and asked, ¡°What do you really want to do?¡±


    Jun Mo answered, ¡°The reason I marched seven hundred li with three thousand soldier serfs is to attract you and the monks here.¡±


    Staring at his eyes, Qi Nian asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    Jun Mo answered, ¡°There were no strong monks on the peak. I can join forces with my Elder Brother on the cliff yard after I get through you. Then we will kill the chief monk and destroy Buddha¡¯s Chessboard.¡±


    Qi Nian turned pale and asked, ¡°So your aim is the chessboard all along?¡±


    Jun Mo answered, ¡°Of course. My Youngest Brother is in the chessboard. I must save him.¡±


    Qi Nian went silent for a while and then asked, ¡°Are you sure you can get through us?¡±


    Jun Mo answered, ¡°I wasn¡¯t sure before, for I didn¡¯t know the situation of my recovery. But after breaking the atha and Buddha¡¯s King Kong Devil Conquering Pestle, I am sure that you can¡¯t stop me you if you are not among the peaks.¡±


    Qi Nian looked at him and asked, ¡°Do you know what is in the chessboard?¡±


    Jun Mo responded, ¡°As I have said, I will call Buddha a fake even he is right in front of me.¡±


    Qi Nian asked, ¡°You want to see Buddha?¡±


    Jun Mo pointed to the Prajna Peak with his sword and said, ¡°If the mountain does note, I will go to the mountain. If Buddha does note to see me, then I will go see him.¡±


    Qi Nian said, ¡°Even if you were to see Buddha, what can you do?¡±


    Jun Mo answered, ¡°I will destroy the hellish Buddhand and the fastest way is to kill Buddha. I have to try.¡±


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 950 - It is Sword Anyway (Part III)

    <h4>Chapter 950: It is Sword Anyway (Part III)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    From the beginning to the end, what Jun Mo had wanted to do was to overthrow the rule of Xuankong Temple over the underground world. But at this moment, what he wanted the most was to take away the chessboard that was left by Buddha because Ning Que, his Youngest Brother, was trapped in the chessboard with his life at stake.


    There were countless temples, unknown Buddha Arrays and Buddhist powerhouses such as Qi Nian and Elders of Commandment Hall in the majestic mountain peaks. Jun Mo was not sure that he could get to the summit easily, so he led the rebellious serfs to lure Qi Nian and Elders of Commandment Hall here.


    Jun Mo could go straight to the summit if he could get through these four. It would be best if he could kill these four because destroying Buddhism had be the most important part of his life and he must carry on whether or not he could take away Buddha¡¯s chessboard.


    It was not until then that Qi Nian understood why the fighting style of the rebel forces underwent such a big change. Their marching route was no longer strong and they simply and bravely rushed toward the summit, totally ignoring the fact that they would be wiped out even though they could only make it to the foot of the peak. It turned out it was a deliberate act as a warning to the opponent. What Jun Mo really aimed was to enter the mountain and grab Buddha¡¯s chessboard!


    Looking at the serfs who retreated like the tide of the sea, Qi Nian went silent, knowing that he and the three Elders of Commandment Hall might not be able to stop Jun Mo.


    Through previous contests, Jun Mo hadpletely absorbed the strengthparison between the two sides. He was confident that he could cross this barrier, otherwise he would not let those who follow him withdraw first.


    Whether it was on the mountain or on the mountain road, Qi Nian had confidence in stopping Jun Mo with the help of tens of thousands monks of Xuankong Temple even though Jun Mo was stronger.


    But the field was so open and clear. How could he stop Jun Mo?


    Qi Nian turned pale, but he was very calm. Looking at Jun Mo who was slowly walking and at the iron sword in his left hand, Qi Nian drew a deep breath of the cold autumn wind.


    His Kasaya flew with the autumn wind. He took a deep breath, and the autumn wind between earth and sky kept entering his mouth. It was starting to wash his Buddha heart.


    It was natural for the sky and earth to respond to the power of Buddha. The silky clouds were floating on the blue sky, and the clouds were pulled to be slenderer.


    The weeds in the range of about one li suddenly copsed and fell to the ground as if they were worshipping, revealing the human and animal bones and dusty gems which kept rolling in the wind.


    The stream flowing between the abandoned gold washing fields was so shallow and clear. But at this time, it had countless ripples due to the frenzied autumn wind, and the sand under the water made the stream muddy.


    Qi Nian moved his lips, starting the Silent Meditation which he had been cultivating for twenty years.


    This kind of meditation was silent, so Qi Nian made no sounds. Only a breeze came out slowly from his lips. The breeze was so gentle and full ofpassion, spreading a faint aroma of sandalwood.


    The power of Silent Meditationy in finding the the awakening of gentle spring in the endless autumn wind chilling. The faint aroma of sandalwood and the smell of wind existed side by side, but they didn¡¯t melt together.


    The silent Buddha Dharma was not really silent.


    Listening to the thunder in a silent ce, there was a thunder-like Buddha roar which was contained in the aroma of sandalwood that the breeze slowly sent out, just like the heavy rain always umting in the thick clouds like cotton.


    While the thick clouds were suddenly meeting and parting, there was heavy rain and thunder, and the Buddha roar suppressed Jun Mo in the deste field and also informed the monks in the Xuankong temples.


    Breathing was the most frequent and also the most frequently forgotten movement of the human body, so it was natural and fast. Buddhists believed that breathing was a time dimension, which was extremely short.


    Between breathing, Qi Nian started the great supernatural powers of Buddha. Who could be faster than him?


    Jun Mo¡¯s sword was faster than breathing, the autumn wind, and the rainstorm. Aithin a blink, he came up to Qi Nian!


    The iron sword was even faster than the silent sound!


    Jun Mo¡¯s sword was just a foot away from Qi Nian.


    Jun Mo¡¯s sword was Jun Mo.


    Of course, Qi Nian was just a feet away from Jun Mo.


    Beginning with Liu Bai, the art of sword in the human world had undergone earth-shaking changes. But the lonely and invincible Sage of Sword could only try to overturn the heaven and died in the end.


    However, the true meaning of his art of sword was left on earth and began to shine in many people¡¯s hands, including the disciples of the Sword Garret, Ning Que and Ye Hongyu.


    Jun Mo was the most qualified one to inherit Liu Bai¡¯s art of sword and to carry forward. He was Liu Bai¡¯s strongest opponent in terms of the art of sword but also his bosom friend.


    Even Sangsang couldn¡¯t avoid Liu Bai¡¯s approach and had to open her world to him. Then how many people could keep Jun Mo from one foot away? At least Qi Nian couldn¡¯t do it.


    Qi Nian knew that he could not avoid the sword, so he did not think about avoiding the sword from the beginning. He just blew a breath toward the iron sword.


    It was still the gentle breeze which wasing from the beautiful spring, not the chilly autumn. The breeze contained the true meaning of Buddha Dharma and samsara of all things on earth, and was able to remedy all the killing in the whole world.


    The iron sword of Jun Mo couldn¡¯t move forward, for he couldn¡¯t pierce the cycle of life.


    Jun Mo turned his wrist, and the iron sword and the breeze went away immediately. In the air without a trace of autumn wind, he suddenly swayed his sword to Qi Nian¡¯s neck.


    The iron sword screamed in the wind, and Qi Nian¡¯s eyes suddenly became bright, just like the jewels on the Buddha statue. But he still couldn¡¯t avoid the sword, so he moved his right hand which was put before his body to his face. His three fingers were naturally drooping, and the other two seemed to touch yet not touch with each other, as if he was holding an invisible flower. With such a gesture, he approached the cutting edge of the sword.


    The iron sword had no cutting edge, but it still got the intent of a cutting edge. The invisible flower in Qi Nian¡¯s hand revealed tranquil zen, but it was not a real flower in the human world. It was impossible for the iron sword to fall on it.


    The iron sword was gently pinched by Qi Nian with his fingers.


    Jun Mo withdrew the sword. The action seemed to be simple, but intact it represented an extremely shocking state. There were a few people in the human world like Jun Mo who could ignore the illusion and truth and survive the Pinch Flower Fingers.


    Jun Mo looked calm even though he couldn¡¯t defeat Qi Nian from the front. As Jun Mo flicked his right sleeve and stepped forward to the right, the iron sword in his left hand was swept behind him and then he swayed the sword to Qi Nian¡¯s face with a backhanded gesture.


    Whether it was forehanded sword or backhanded sword, it was still just a sword. How could you survive this?


    Qi Nina couldn¡¯t avoid the sword, so he had to confront with it the hard way. With the appearance of the Light of Buddha, the Dharmakaya of atha was once again visible in the field, but was immediately absorbed into his body and disappeared.


    Being invisible didn¡¯t mean it was nonexistent. The Dharmakaya of atha was absorbed by Qi Nian, which meant that, from this moment on, it became a part of him and his body was as strong as King Kong.


    The iron sword fell on Qi Nian¡¯s face.


    The crisp sound sounded like a p.


    A very clear red mark appeared on Qi Nian¡¯s cheek, which looked like that he was pped in the face.


    Then his face became swollen at a rate visible to the naked eye. The nine strongest teeth fell out and were shattered into pieces. And blood flowed down his lips.


    Anyone would be as strong as King Kong if they had absorbed the Dharmakaya of atha. But Jun Mo¡¯s sword could smash anything other than the Chief Monk of Scripture who had turned his body into Buddha and had a gold body which couldn¡¯t be destroyed.


    Qi Nian was in pain and felt humiliated.


    He was a traveling disciple of Buddhism and a recognized powerhouse of the Chosen Generation. But he was defeated by his peer, Jun Mo, in such a contemptuous way today. How could he not feel humiliated?


    Because of the pain and humiliation, he couldn¡¯t concentrate on meditating and began to tremble. His blood-covered lips began to twitch, and the breeze that was blown out of his lips was unsustainable and scattered to protect his face.


    Although he was very angry, he was soberly aware that if he were to not protect his face, then Jun Mo was very likely to directly smash his head into pieces.


    Jun Mo did not continue to attack, for the three Elders of Commandment Hall were prepared to attack him. He didn¡¯t intend to linger. He just wanted to enter the mountain.


    With his bloody Kasaya slightly floating, Jun Mo sprang into the air and stepped on Qi Nian¡¯s head with his right foot, violently interrupting the second Silent Meditation he was preparing and falling among the three Elders of Commandment Hall.


    The three Elders of Commandment Hall were sitting in a way that they formed a triangle. The distance among the three was exactly the same, which coincided with the calction of Buddhist doctrines.


    The Elder who had the highest state sat facing the direction leading to the peak, that is, facing the road Jun Mo had to pass through. If Jun Mo wanted to go up the mountain, then he had to go through the Elder before Qi Nian was strong enough to turn around.


    The iron sword came to the Elder.


    The Elder looked solemn, and the rosary beads in his hand were shining, stalling the iron sword.


    The other two Elders began to chant.


    Jun Mo reached out and grabbed the iron sword, and then the rosary beads suddenly snapped off.


    The three Elders of Commandment Hall shouted loudly.


    The rosary beads instantly broke up, and the Power of Buddha hung over the field.


    Jun Mo sprang into the air and stepped on the head of the Elder, then fell on the ground in a distance.


    He was able to pass through in such an unreasonable way.


    The magical power hidden in the rosary beads all fell on Jun Mo.


    Seeing that Jun Mo had quickly passed through the field and blood wasing out of him, the Elder knew that he was severely injured and was stunned.


    He just left like this?


    Why would he rather stay injured than fight?


    Is he still that proud and pretentious Jun Mo?


    In the deste field, with the bloody Kasaya flying in the autumn wind, Jun Mo swept to the far end and rushed toward the mountain peak with the aid of Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    He was still the proud Jun Mo.


    But he was just confident, never pretentious.


    He would never be afraid no matter how powerful the enemy was.


    But he could temporarily ignore his pride if needed.


    He wanted to grab the Buddha¡¯s chessboard, and he had to do so when Qi Nian and the three Elders were not at the peak. All he needed was time, and everything else could be ignored.


    Of course, it didn¡¯t mean that he would not care about the injuries suffered today, but he could deal with itter.


    He believed that he would encounter Qi Nian and the three Elders again in the future. When it was time, he would fight against them with his iron sword.


    ...

 Chapter 951 - Rendezvous

    <h4>Chapter 951: Rendezvous</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    A spark lit up the somber underground wilderness A plume of smoke cut off the surface of the wilderness and swiftly spread forward towards the huge mount.


    At the forefront of the smoke, Jun Mo rode upon the wind and flew fast. The iron sword cracked the wind noiselessly, and moved forward at an unimaginable speed, just like a real sword.


    The spark was a warning. As the rm bell rang loudly in the huge mount, countless monks rushed out of the temples to the mountain pass, and were prepared to deploy the array with an iparable Buddhist power, in order to repress the approaching enemy.


    Jun Mo, after his transforming into the sword, was faster than the light beam from the spark. He had already arrived before the Buddhist Grand Array was evenpleted.


    It was silent and quiescent in the autumn mountain. The green bamboos alongside the mountain pass swayed all of a sudden. The monks felt dazzled, and then saw Jun Mo and the iron sword in his hands at the field.


    If the monks in Xuankong Temple were to attack, then Jun Mo would hit back. He was so fast that he had already broken in, before the Buddhist Array was able to form on the mountain pass amid the peaks.


    The autumn wind suddenly blew up, roaring around the bamboo forest and the mountain pass. Blood stains fell on the green bamboo joints, which looked like scarlet tear stains.


    Whether they were the blood of the monks or Jun Mo, thetter had already entered the mountain. He was swiftly sweeping his own way, the way to pursue a noble character of a gentleman.


    Jun Mo, who upheld the Gentlemen¡¯s Doctrine, would rather reason with his enemies first. If they were to disagree, the gentleman would sweep away. In the Wilderness down the hill, he had already reasoned with the Xuankong Temple. They clearly held up their beliefs, so he directly pressed down, instead of talking pedantically.


    Qi Nian and the Third Elder of the Commandant Court were rushing back from the Wilderness. The most powerful ones in these temples did not have time to react. Jun Mo was rolling all the way up.


    Although he was bleeding from every part of his body, he still held his iron sword, and attacked the cliff teau.


    ...


    ...


    The edges of the Grand Sinkhole were surrounded by steep precipices, which tore very deep cracks in the Wilderness. These cracks stretched and converted at some point in the distance. It looked extremely astonishing.


    With the absence of autumn wind in the wilderness, several lonely bodhi trees were standing not far away. Their green leaves were still thick. Looking over towards the precipices, smoke wasing out.


    The so-called smoke was actually abination of dusts and stones moving at an unimaginably fast speed giving them an appearance of an impalpable silk thread.


    The smoke was as long as the precipice, stretching out for thousands of miles without a starting or end point. It surrounded the world down the cliff, and appeared out of nowhere just like a divine manifestation.


    In the smoke, shadows of thousands of figures could be glimpsed. In fact, these shadows couldn¡¯t be seen. As a result of the illusion caused by extremely fast movements beyond the range of eyesight, they could ovep one the other at countless points every second.


    The shadows of the thousands of figures were actually made by only two people.


    Two people had been chasing.


    All of a sudden, a distant and loud bell tone came from the huge mountain far away.


    Thousands of miles of smoke at the edge of the precipices was abruptly static, and then fell down slowly, returning to the Wilderness.


    Two figures appeared at the point where the smoke fell.


    The schr in quilted jacket wore a cotton belt around his waist, with amon wooden stick in it. He looked gentle, dusty yet very clean. He was the First Brother of the Academy.


    The middle-aged man of letters on the opposite had a gon in the waist was the Drunkard.


    Hundreds of white thread-lets, oozed from the quilted jacket on the First Brother, were dragged for thousands of meters, and blown up by the autumn wind. It looked very elegant, yet had a trace of unavoidable strangeness.


    It was a chasing race in Distanceless State, which was all too fast.


    The First Brother¡¯s quilted jacket was not ordinary clothing because it didn¡¯t fall apart during high-speed movements. On the contrary, the cotton in and between the inteyer was squeezed out of the fine meshes of the cloth, and became superfine cotton threads.


    Hundreds of cotton threads were drifted away at the back. The image was hard to describe. Especially when it was gradually changing with the wind, the cotton threads fell on his face in a funny or cute appearance.


    The Drunkard took off the gon and drank an evesting volume. Even after such a long time of chasing in the Distanceless State, he was still rxed, besides his quivering hand that held the gon.


    The First Brother said nothing while looking at him drinking.


    When the wine flowed through his system, his wine bowl was filled for this moment. The Drunkard put down the gon, looked at the other one and said withplex sentiments, ¡°Li Manman, you are getting faster, but still slower than me.¡±


    The First Brother replied with a warm smile, ¡°My senior, you haven¡¯t caught up with me.¡±


    The Drunkard asked after a silence, ¡°Why?¡±


    There were so many whys in the world, roughly speaking for at least ten thousands. His actual question was why the Academy had fought against Buddhism, in order to confirm whether they were on the side with Haotian.


    ¡°Actually sometimes I ask the same question to myself.¡± First Brother thought for a while and answered, ¡°Later on, I figured it out. My Little Brother and Haotian were trapped in the chessboard. Due to their rtionship, we must save Haotian if we want to take our Little Brother out. We have no intentions of bing the enemy of Buddhism, or bing allies with Haotian. We only want to save people. For the Academy, rescuing people is of the utmost importance. It doesn¡¯t matter who we save, whether it is any human or our Little Brother. They are the same in this regard. The pros and cons should be the second thing to think about. Once we start topromise the basic rule of loss and gain, the Academy wouldn¡¯t be able to hold up our core value any more.¡±


    The Drunkard slightly frowned and asked, ¡°What is exactly the Academy up to?¡±


    The First Brother replied with a smile, ¡°The Headmaster has his own thoughts, while the students have our own n. What the Academy is up to may be a little absurd in your opinion, but it must be interesting.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°The Buddha has his own n. He has been waiting for countless years, up until Haotian was weakened by the Academy. Now, she has be more like a mortal at the State of Knowing Destiny. For the Academy that has always acimed to act for the sake of humans, it should probably be thest and the only hope. How could you sabotage it?¡±


    The First Brother said while shaking his head, ¡°The Academy has never wanted to act on behalf of the human race. What we do is something beneficial to the human race from our perspective. The core is to take the lead in terms of action.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°Why are you preventing the Buddha from killing Haotian?¡±


    The First Brother said, ¡°First of all, the reason is the same as I previously told you, my senior. We want to save people. Secondly, Haotian also exists in the Divine Kingdom, so it is impossible to kill Sangsang. Sangsang is Haotian, and Haotian is also Sangsang. The difference is that Sangsang is staying in the human world, while Haotian is in the Divine Kingdom. If we can¡¯t erase their existence at the same time, Haotian cannot be killed forever. He continued. ¡°On one hand, killing Sangsang can¡¯t kill Haotian, and on the other hand, it will make her transform into regtions. After her return to the Divine Kingdom, Haotian wwill be more powerful.¡±


    This excerpt sounded a little obscure, but for people like the Drunkard and the First Brother, it was quite easy to understand. That was why the Academy hadn¡¯t understood why the Drunkard would do it like that.


    The Drunkard fell in silence.


    The First Brother understood and sighed, ¡°Is this the opinion of the Abbey Dean?¡±


    The Drunkard looked up to the grey sky and said, ¡°Right.¡±


    To leverage the Buddha¡¯s attempt could result in Sangsang¡¯s death or her wake-up, whichever result would help her return to Haotian¡¯s Divine Kingdom. This was the Abbey Dean¡¯s intention.


    ¡°The Abbey Dean...¡± The First Brother found that it was inappropriate to describe a person like the Abbey Dean in anynguage. He said, ¡°It seems that the chessboard might possibly kill her.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°She is definitely going to be killed.¡± This was the Abbey Dean¡¯s judgment. Although he was disabled, his judgment was certainly precise.


    The First Brother looked at the peaks far away, and then took out the wooden stick from the waist.


    He didn¡¯t fight in the past, so he never took a weapon. Then at the Cong Ridge, he was forced to learn fighting skills. He smashed the bailer that he always took along.


    That year when he was chasing with the Abbey Dean, he picked up a wooden stick on the beach of a islet in the South Sea. From then on, the wooden stick became his weapon.


    The wooden stick was left in the human world by the Headmaster of the Academy.


    The First Brother took out the wooden stick, which showed that he was preparing for a fight. It can even be said that he was about to fight desperately.


    The Abbey Dean said Sangsang would die in Buddha¡¯s chessboard. That was to say Ning Que would definitely die as well due to their natal connection. With that, as Ning Que¡¯s Brother, he would rather fight for him until his own death.


    In the cultivators¡¯ world, everyone knew that the students of the Academy were good at desperate-fighting. They were all fierce, once they fight desperately. For example, the famous Maniac Ke of thest generation was a fierce fighter. The same was true for this generation.


    If Jun Mo were to risk his life, a huge army wouldn¡¯t be able to set forth, and even the Yellow River would flow backwards. When risking her life, Yu Lian could shoot up directly to the blue sky, and even rainbow could be cut off. Speaking of real terror, it would be the First Brother.


    His disposition was very gentle, and he seldom got angry, so he rarely desperately fought. On the contrary, the gentler one was, the more dreadful one would be, when the time was right. Then, even the Lord would fear.


    The Abbey Dean, in his full strength, was regarded as the most powerful in the human world. Even as powerful as he was, in position of facing the hell-bent First Brother, it would be difficult to win. At the moment, the Drunkard would very much rather to not stand right in his way. The Drunkard leaned to one side to evade the wooden stick.


    The First Brother pointed at the huge mount with his stick and said, ¡°My Senior, aren¡¯t you worried I will leave here right away?¡±


    The Drunkard said calmly and peacefully, ¡°I can catch up to you. You¡¯re slower than me.¡±


    The First Brother said, ¡°You have been chasing me for three months, but you have never passed me.¡±


    The Drunkardughed and said, ¡°As long as you don¡¯t set foot on Xuankong Temple, why would I overtake you?¡±


    The First Brother smiled and said, ¡°My Senior, haven¡¯t you noticed that we now stand facing each other?¡± That¡¯s to say I was retrograding all this time. If I were to turn, do you think you could catch up?


    The Drunkard was suddenly startled.


    In the Wilderness beside the cliff, the autumn wind suddenly roared. A thundering sound sted, and an airwave was scattered into far and wide, forming a infinite cavity.


    Hundreds of white cotton threads fell apart gradually in the wind.


    The First Brother was gone.


    In the next moment, he was found at the point under the pear tree on the cliff teau.


    Almost at the same time, Jun Mo came to the cliff teau as well, with blood all over his body.


    Jun Mo nodded his head to greet his First Brother under the tree.


    This pair of brother hadn¡¯t seen each other for quite a while. The reunion was in such a crunch that they all looked toward the same ce, instead of catching up.


    A White Tower was reborn in the shabby temple on the cliff teau.


    In front of it, an old monk was sitting on his knees.


    In front of him was a chessboard.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 952 - Shoulder By Shoulder

    <h4>Chapter 952: Shoulder By Shoulder</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    A spider web fell on the head of the old monk from the eaves of the White Tower. Although his head was almost covered, the old monk closed his eyes, and looked quite peaceful. His silver eyebrows were slightly floating in the wind, and touched the spider¡¯s thread in front of him. It was hard to distinguish his eyebrows from the spider web without a good look.


    The old monk closed his eyes. He made people believe that his eyesight was within this world and was looking at the seemingly ordinary chessboard right in front of him.


    The old monk was the Chief Monk of Scripture of Xuankong Temple.


    After Ning Que and Sangsang entered it, he had never left the chessboard. A lot of time passed. It went from spring leaves to summer flowers to autumn fruits and finally to winter snow. The bell rang in mornings and the drum sounded in evenings. Through numerous days and nights, he was still silent, even though winds blew and rain fell.


    Jun Mo came to the cliff teau, and exchanged looks with his First Brother. There was no time to chat. He didn¡¯t talk to the old monk either. Instead, he walked directly to the old monk, lifted the iron sword and began to strike.


    The wide and straight iron sword heavily hit the chessboard, with an ear-splitting bang. Smoke and dust were appeared on the cliff teau. A whileter after the smoke and dust went down, the chessboard still lied intact in front of the old monk¡¯s knees.


    There was not a single scratch.


    With Jun Mo¡¯s strength, such a cut would have cut through a stone mountain. However, he unexpectedly didn¡¯t damage it at all.


    Even though the chessboard could bear the power of the iron sword, the cliff teau couldn¡¯t. A few ruptures were found on the cliff teau. It was too dark to detect the depth, which could be estimated to be thousands of meters into the mountain. These ruptures extended along the side of the cliff. The precipice below the pear tree finally cracked.


    A year ago, water sshed the chessboard, and then became several giant waterfalls. Although it had neither root nor source, the water continued to flow all the way down the cliff. It wasn¡¯t until now that they were cut off by Jun Mo¡¯s sword.


    One swing could cut off waterfalls, but couldn¡¯t even shake the chessboard.


    Jun Mo looked at the Chief Monk behind the chessboard, and then lifted the iron sword.


    The Chief Monk eyes were still closed, as if he didn¡¯t notice the very existence of the iron sword. However, his hands were falling on the chessboard. Or was it his trick to make the chessboard iron-like like before?


    Jun Mo wasn¡¯t sure, but he didn¡¯t need to be. Then he lifted the iron sword and cut downward. Only this time, didn¡¯t he cut the chessboard, but the Chief Monk.


    Wind came ahead of the cutting sword. It easily tore the seemingly messy spider web, and fell on the Chief Monk¡¯s skull amid the solemn ordained marks.


    The iron sword was thick and heavy, while the head of the Chief Monk of Scripture was very round. Thus, it looked like Jun Mo was knocking the Chief Monk with a stick in an attempt to awake him.


    Another extremely loud bang rang out. On the cliff teau, cold wind blew aimlessly, the pear tree swaggered with rustles, and a lot of stones fell towards the ruptures, far away from filling them up.


    The Chief Monk closed his eyes, and remained calm. Only his silver eyebrows looked a bit messy. It was as if the kasaya was hanging on a cloth drying line in the open air at the point where it was hard to guess which way the sleeves and lower hems would go.


    The iron sword didn¡¯t leave any traces on his head.


    The Chief Monk reached Buddhahood by cultivating his body, so both his body and soul were as strong as iron. For him, Ning Que¡¯s Thirteen Primordial Arrows back then were as soft as straws, and Jun Mo¡¯s iron sword was more like a wooden stick.


    The thing was that he suddenly shortened.


    It was because his body was sinking into the ground of the cliff teau. He still sat on his knees. Only a few inches of his body sunk due to the iron sword.


    Jun Mo didn¡¯t say a word, and only lifted the iron sword in an attempt to attack again.


    At the same time, wind on the cliff became a little chaotic, as the First Brother came alongside him.


    This was called shoulder-by-shoulder.


    Jun Mo withdrew his iron sword because the First Brother had his wooden stick in his hands.


    The First Brother held the wooden stick, walked towards the Chief Monk, and knocked down.


    When the wooden stick hit the Chief Monk¡¯s head, a more horrific sound sted than Jun Mo¡¯s previous shes.


    Boom! Countless ruptures cracked on the White Tower behind the Chief Monk, looking as if it was the spider web before. The copper bell, hanging on the eave building, rang disorderly, and then sted into ashes.


    The Chief Monk¡¯s eyes remained closed, with his silver eyebrows bing increasingly messy. He looked a little bit pale, while his body was stuck in for another a quarter of a meter.


    Although sunken in, the Chief Monk was still not really harmed. The chessboard under his palm sunk deeper into the cliff teau, and became even more firm.


    The First Brother sighed. ¡°It still cannot be crashed.¡±


    Jun Mo lifted his iron sword and said, ¡°We will keep on attacking.¡±


    At that moment, another refreshing breeze blew up with a slight aroma of wine.


    The Drunkard came to the field and looked at the First Brother silently.


    Jun Mo looked back at him, and said, ¡°Do you want to stand in our way?¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°Yes, but I wouldn¡¯t risk my life.¡±


    Mr. First and Mr. Second of the Academy were there at the same time. Even he needed to put his life on stake.


    The First Brother felt a little puzzled, and asked, ¡°Aren¡¯t you worried we will snatch the chessboard?¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°As long as the iron body of the Chief Monk remains untouched, even I, together with the Butcher, wouldn¡¯t be able to prate his iron body. Thus, neither would you two. In that case, what should I worry about?¡±


    Jun Mo didn¡¯t say another word. He turned back, lifted the iron sword, and smashed towards the Chief Monk¡¯s head once again.


    Boom! Another huge re!


    The ruptures in the White Tower were deeper, so were that in the cliff teau. On the stone wall of the cliff cave, multiple ruptures cracked. The whole world was about to tumble.


    But the Chief Monk remained the same.


    ¡°Brother, it¡¯s your turn.¡± Jun Mo receded to give the position to the First Brother.


    While looking at the chessboard that had alreadypletely sunken into the cliff teau, the First Brother thought it over and said, ¡°No more attacking.¡±


    The Drunkard slightly smiled.


    Jun Mo frowned a little bit.


    The First Brother looked at him and said with a smile, ¡°You try to leverage.¡±


    Jun Mo suddenly recalled the old days in the Back Hill of the Academy many years ago when he and his Brother were both recently epted and very young. One day, they took an order from the Headmaster to mend the mountain pass in the Back Hill. A rock was taken down from the cliff and blocked the pass.


    Jun Mo, in his childhood, was more proud, confident and stubborn than the present him. He carried a mountain-cutting hatchet, and struck the giant rock for three whole days and nights nonstop.


    Atst, his hands bled and his body was too exhausted to carry the hatchet. He only managed to damage a small part of the rock.


    While he was striking, his Brother did nothing but watched. He knew his Brother was a little weak, but at least out of the helplessness, he had some anger.


    Even if he was getting angrier, Jun Mo wouldn¡¯t me or hurl insults at his Brother. That was why he felt very wronged and bursted into tears without knowing why.


    His Brother was looking at the giant rock for a long time. When he found little Jun Mo crying, he stared at him for a long time. Then, he left without saying anything.


    Jun Mo stopped crying after his Brother left. Where was the audience? He cleaned his face with cool stream water. Once he was recovered, he took the hatchet once again, and was ready to keep hacking.


    At this moment, his Brother walked back with dozens of tough moso bamboos in his arms. His forehead was covered with sweat, because it was quite hard for him to drag all these bamboos down.


    The Brother stuck the moso bamboos into the gaps between the stone and the precipice. After careful calctions, he called Jun Mo over and said, ¡°You try to leverage.¡±


    Jun Mo had always been obedient. Although back then he didn¡¯t know what his Brother was up to, or what the moso bamboos were for, he still followed his lead to leverage the moso bamboos.


    The giant rock was hit by the mountain-cutting hatchet for three whole days and nights, with little signs of chipping down. Then when he leveraged it, Jun Mo found that the rock quickly loosened. Later, it rolled down the mountain pass and became part of scenery in the mountain by the stream.


    ...


    ...


    That event happened many years ago but Jun Mo was still as obedient to his Brother. His Brother let him leverage, and so he did. That was why he walked toward the Chief Monk with his sword.


    The iron sword wasn¡¯t between the Chief Monk¡¯s body and the cliff teau. It was nted into the brim of the chessboard.


    The Drunkard looked surprised.


    Jun Mo waved the iron sword and started to leverage.


    The vitality of nature of the cliff teau was deeply disturbed. Wind was roaring, so the stones on the surface of the White Tower were falling down with rustles, which continuously hit the head of the Chief Monk, with countless smoke and dusts stirring up.


    The Chief Monk was still as firm as a rock, and the chessboard was still in the precipice.


    The iron sword was withholding unimaginable weights that were as heavy as a real mountain.


    Jun Mo wanted to pry up this mount. A clear howl bursted out of his tightened lips and it was as bright as a phoenix¡¯s singing and as powerful as andfall.


    The Drunkard¡¯s gon that was by his waist slightly floated.


    The First Brother stood before him with his back towards Jun Mo.


    The iron sword in his hands bent a little and then straightened. His sword was always straight. Even a mountain can¡¯t bend it.


    Unimaginable power was about to be unleashed.


    That chessboard was finally pried on, and ascended towards the ground.


    The Chief Monk¡¯s silver eyebrows were floating. His hands abruptly turned over and pressed on the chessboard.


    A huge mountain was once again falling on the chessboard.


    Jun Mo stopped the howling, and shouted like thunder, ¡°Up!¡±


    The precipice copsed. The green tree was shaking, and the green leaves were falling like raindrops. The chessboard resurfaced!


    The Chief Monk¡¯s hands were on the chessboard. He remained at the position of sitting on his knees.


    The iron sword was straight and strong. The chessboard and the Chief Monk together weighed as much as the huge mountain Prajna. Even though the chessboard resurfaced, Jun Mo only managed to pry open gap so small that even the smallest ants wouldn¡¯t be able to climb in it.


    But this was enough.


    The gap meant that the chessboard was separated from the mountain. However, it was still not separated from the Chief Monk¡¯s hand.


    Moving forward, it was passed onto the First Brother. His hands, no one knew when, had fallen upon the shoulder of the Chief Monk.


    In the precipice, the turbulence of Qi was dispersed. A buzz rang out, like an inverted bell.


    In front of the White Tower, there was only Jun Mo standing and holding his sword. The First Brother, the Chief Monk, and the chessboard were all gone.


    Where did they go?


    They went to Heaven.


    At the bottom deep in the earth, the peak was only a short section above the Wilderness.


    The sky was much higher than the peak.


    White clouds were floating and blocking the blue sky. Two figures came out of the clouds.


    The First Brother loosened his hand.


    The Chief Monk was falling through the clouds and towards the ground.


    ...

 Chapter 953 - Hand in Hand

    <h4>Chapter 953: Hand in Hand</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    On the cliff teau, the Drunkard looked up at the sky with a serious expression. He was quite astonished at being cast out of the Wilderness. At the point when he saw it, he was totally shaken by the current state of that person, which had far surpassed that same person¡¯s performance in the Battle of Chang¡¯an, and even beyond his wildest imagination.


    ¡°Li Manman, are you going to be the fastest one?¡±


    His gon was slightly shivering in the autumn wind, and an aroma gradually dispersed. The Drunkard¡¯s figure abruptly blurred. He was about to fly all the way up to the highest clouds in order to lend his hand to the Chief Monk.


    He thought Li Manman and Jun Mo did not have a way to break the Chief Monk¡¯s Buddhist Skill of Vajra Body Defending, so he originally didn¡¯t want to interrupt. It wasn¡¯t until he saw saw Jun Mo using his iron sword to pry the Chief Monk and the chessboard out of the cliff teau did the Drunkard change his mind. After that, Li Manman took the Chief Monk and the chessboard up to the clouds.


    It was frequently said that people fell down from cliffs, but few fell down from the sky. Years ago in Chang¡¯an, three people had a fight from the ground to the sky, and then from the sky back to the ground. Atst, Yu Lian, as the most powerful being in Devil¡¯s Doctrine, was heavily injured. What about the Chief Monk?


    The Chief was falling down directly from the clouds to the ground, while holding the chessboard. He had been enlightened through the Vajra Body Defending Divine Skill. As his body was as tough as the earth, what would happen if he were to encounter the real earth?


    The Drunkard was not as confident as before. He couldn¡¯t let the Chief Monk get hurt, or let the chessboard be taken by the Academy, so he was ready to take action.


    At this very moment, an iron sword came flew with the wind and attacked his face.


    Jun Mo shed with his right hand, as he knew that the Drunkard was very powerful.


    The iron sword was rolled up by his right sleeve, cutting towards the Drunkard. Although his hand was gone, the spiritual power lied at the point where the sword pointed.


    The Drunkard found that Jun Mo had rejuvenated to an unexpected extent after fighting at the underground field for a year. He slightly frowned. His palms immediately came to his opponent before any movements were detected.


    His state was far higher than that of Jun Mo, but he cautiously retaliated with Boundless Buddhism.


    The immeasurable wine. The immeasurable life span. The immeasurable spiritual power. And the immeasurable Buddhist power.


    The Drunkard¡¯s hands were like two giant mountains folded up and they mped Jun Mo¡¯s sword


    Jun Mo couldn¡¯t draw out his iron sword, as if it was pinned and suppressed by mountains.


    In fact, he didn¡¯t intend to draw it back. He knew that his state was lower than that of the Drunkard, but it didn¡¯t bother him much, because he wasn¡¯t fighting alone.


    As the autumn wind blew over the cliff teau, the quilted jacket appeared under the pear tree with dozens of thin white lines dancing in the air. It was the Eldest Brother who came back to the field from the clouds in a wink.


    He didn¡¯t hesitate to lift the wooden stick and to attack the Drunkard.


    His target was not the Drunkard¡¯s face or his body because fierceness had never been his style, although he had learned how to fight with the wooden stick, a masterpiece weapon.


    Since his attack was not fierce, the Drunkard could always take his time ande up with the right measures to neutralize the wooden stick.


    His wooden stick shed towards the iron sword in Jun Mo¡¯s hand. The wooden stick dropped on the iron sword quietly.


    Like iron-forging, Jun Mo¡¯s iron sword was like a hammer, pressing down the tough iron-like Drunkard below. Then the wooden stick dropped like a second hammer.


    It was deathly silent on the cliff teau, and then a re sted.


    As the autumn wind blew chaotically, the Drunkard looked quite pale with disheveled hair and there was blood at the corner of his mouth. His hands were uneasily quivering, and so did his body. The iron sword could no longer be quelled.


    He shouted oddly, turned around. and then walked away.


    His voice, like rubbing corrosive bronzeware, was aged and ufortable. His shout was dreary and atrocious, just like the smashed corrosive bronzeware.


    On the cliff teau, the autumn wind blew again, and then the airflow was scattered. The Drunkard was gone.


    Jun Mo rolled up his right sleeve. The iron sword ferociously returned to his left hand.


    The Eldest Brother didn¡¯t run after the Drunkard, but held up the empty sleeve of Jun Mo.


    Then they disappeared as well.


    ...


    ...


    The fight on the cliff teau was furiously dangerous, which was hard to precisely describe in words. The Drunkard was about to rise up. Jun Mo lifted his sword. The Eldest Brother returned and then the Drunkard ran away. Everything happened too fast in merely one minute and the Chief Monk was still falling from the clouds while they were fighting on the cliff teau.


    Passing through countless clouds, the Chief Monk¡¯s silver eyebrows were blown towards the air just like an army g against a fierce wind. But he still closed his eyes and looked calm.


    The Buddha¡¯s chessboard was held in his arms.


    It was a little dim in the underground field. Grass on the marsnd was toppling one over the other. The Eldest Brother and Jun Mo were there, as shrilling howling was approaching from the air, as if something heavy were falling at a fast speed.


    They didn¡¯t look up at the sky, but at the field in front them.


    The air seemed to be torn apart, and the temperature abruptly went high in the Wilderness. The weight fell on the ground finally and smashed into the grass. Thend was shaking, with ck mud stirring up.


    A huge pit was made in the field, thousands of meters in width and about one-hundred meters in depth. The stones at the bottom of the pit were shattered by the smash, and covered all over there, looking like a miniature of the Giant Sinkhole.


    The Chief Monk was sitting at the pit bottom, with his kasaya broken into threads. A half-naked skinny body, covered up with mud and shreds, looked extremely messy. But he still closed his eyes without a drop of blood on his body.


    The Buddha¡¯s chessboard was still held in his arms.


    The Eldest Brother and Jun Mo were by the side of the pit. Jun Mo looked indifferently and swept into the pit. He rolled up the sword with his right sleeve, and attacked towards the Chief Monk¡¯s head again.


    The Chief Monk lowered his head and didn¡¯t dodge or evade.


    The iron sword fell down, and then the wooden stick dropped. The shreds and stones at the pit bottom were shaken up and then suspending in the air.


    The Chief Monk looked paler, and the muddy shreds on his head were shaken off. His head was shinier, but still intact without any blood.


    Wind blew up at the pit bottom, putting down the shreds and stones in the air with rustles. The Drunkard appeared behind them. The Eldest Brother turned back and went to him in a wink.


    The Drunkard lifted up his eyebrows, and pped down. A shadow abruptly casted over the pit bottom, as if the sky was covered by his palm. The Eldest Brother poked upwards the palm. The palm was suspended while the stick wasn¡¯t snapped. The Eldest Brother looked pale and receded back fast.


    He stepped back beside the Chief Monk, and his hand fell onto the Chief Monk¡¯s shoulders again.


    Jun Mo¡¯s iron sword appeared out of nowhere, and stabbed between the Chief Monk and shreds and stones at the pit bottom.


    Shouts of pain were heard. Arge amount of blood sshed out from Jun Mo¡¯s body, and hit the cliff rocks at the pit bottom.


    The Chief Monk¡¯s body, as heavy as mountains, was once again violently pried up by him. Still, only a small gap was generated, but it was enough.


    The Eldest Brother and the Chief Monk disappeared again. At the next moment, they were found in the air up the East Mount.


    Plenty of rugged fantastic rock peaks were smashed and pressed into being by many, many generations of eminent monks on the East Mount. They were even tougher than iron and steel, and sharper than knives and swords.


    The Eldest Brother wondered if the Chief Monk would bleed if he were to be smashed onto these rocks.


    The Drunkard had already arrived at this moment. He got off from the ground at the State of Distanceless and came to the sky in front of the Eldest Brother at the risk of injury, instead of responding to Jun Mo¡¯s sword.


    He didn¡¯t believe he was slower than one of his opponents, as long as he was willing to pay a price. He had been cultivating for tens of thousands years, so it was impossible for him to be outmatched by someone who only had decades of years of cultivation.


    Even being in the State of Distanceless couldn¡¯t help him fly in the sky. It could only help him stay in the sky for a short while, through teleporting from one point on the ground to the other point in the sky and then back to the ground.


    It was very toilsome for the Eldest Brother to take the Chief Monk to the sky because the Chief Monk was as heavy as mountains. He was supposed to loosen his hand during the falling on the East Mount, but it would be a meaningless attack since the Drunkard was by his side.


    So what could he do if he can¡¯t loosen his hands?


    In the chilly wind, the Eldest Brother looked at the Drunkard and then smiled.


    This smile was not a decisive one, but it was resolutely an invitation.


    He took the First Chief Monk and flew to the edge of the Giant Sinkhole far away. It was not actual flying. He took the Chief Monk to the depths of the precipice. The depths of the precipice was the underground of the field.


    By the means of turbulent flow of the Primordial Qi of Nature, the Distanceless State could move at a high speed by decreasing the distance between two locations to an extremely short one.


    The Level of Turbulent Flow was included in the tangible world, but from the ancient time, not even great cultivators in the State of Distanceless wouldn¡¯t trespass there.


    It was too dangerous to face the blockade of countless cliffs in an instant. The cliffs here weren¡¯t real ones, but were actually the Primordial Qi of the Nature amid cliffs.


    The Eldest Brother did so. Would the Drunkard dare to follow up?


    ...


    ...


    In the depths of the precipice on the west of the Giant Sinkhole, a depressing rumble was suddenly echoing.


    On the field below the precipice, everyone heard the sound, whether they were the herdsmen farming or the nobles who were meeting up to n how to suppress the peasants¡¯ rebellion.


    Countless people got out of the tents, and looked into the distance at a loss.


    The rumble was increasingly loud, looming on the surface of the precipice.


    Water sshed over and over by thekes and wilderness under the precipice, where the mud and dust were bobbing and flocks and herds were uneasily screaming.


    After the smoke and dust fell down gradually, a deep and dark cave in the precipice unveiled itself.


    The cave was several miles deep into the stone.


    Jun Mo stood at the bottom of the pit in the field, and looked over the cave in the precipice far away. He slightly frowned, and was a little bit worried.


    The Drunkard fell upon beside him, said while looking at him, ¡°Li Manman is dead.¡±


    A cough was heard at the pit bottom.


    The Eldest Brother came Jun Mo¡¯s side, looked at the Drunkard and said, ¡°Luckily I¡¯m alive.¡±


    Multiple cuts, with blood spilling out, were visible on his quilted jacket.


    The Drunkard looked at him with a frustrated expression, and said, ¡°How could you survive that?¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°The Chief Monk, who can cut into mountains and break down rocks, was there.¡± After saying that, he held up Jun Mo¡¯s sleeve and then disappeared.


    For the next moment, the Drunkard had himself above the precipice. He bowed while looking at the deep and dark cave entrance, and then wore a painful expression, because the cave entrance had been blocked by rocks. Judging from the traces, it was done by an iron sword.


    Without any gleams, it was as dark as an evesting night at the end of the cliff cave in depth of meters.


    The Eldest Brother and Jun Mo stood in front of the Chief Monk. The Chief Monk lowered his head silently. Jun Mo was quiet as well. He walked beside him, and then lifted the iron sword, ready to attack.


    The Eldest Brother suddenly said, ¡°Pry again.¡±


    Jun Mo didn¡¯t even ask, because he understood. He directly stabbed the iron sword below the Chief Monk.


    The Chief Monk looked rather miserable, with dust all over him. Slight sounds were heard within his body. Even though he was protected by the Vajra Defending Devine Skill, it was still quite hard for him to endure the constant impact first against the ground and then below ground.


    But he didn¡¯t open his eyes or his mouth, and looked peaceful. Until now, he had finally reacted. Although his eyes were still closed, his lips slightly quivered, as if he was about to say something.


    Strangely, it was not the first time that Jun Mo had tried to pry him up from the ground. Why would he react this time even though he was indifferent before that?


    In spite of that, Jun Mo continued to inject the energy of the forceful state from his whole body into the iron sword.


    The Chief Monk moved his lips and said with an old and hoarse voice, ¡°Such is what I¡¯ve heard...¡±


    He was vignt, because he got what these two Academy disciples were up to. What the Eldest Brother and Jun Mo were about to do was nothing like what they did before when they threw him up in the air and then pulled him down.


    At that moment, the Drunkard couldn¡¯t get into the cliff cave, so the Eldest Brother and Jun Mo got more time. They could try other ways, but prying him up was the first step.


    So he must take action. He moved his lips with Buddhist wording out, by means of the ultimate divine skill of uttering word with the enforcement ofw.


    However, the Eldest Brother had already predicted his moves.


    When ¡°Such is what I¡¯ve heard...¡± sounded in the dark cliff cave just now, another voice was resounded.


    ¡°The Confucius said..¡±


    He answered the Buddhist words with the Confucius¡¯ words.


    Quiescence fell upon the cliff cave.


    Jun Mo roared sharply with fresh blood spilling out of the countless pores of his body. He looked like a bloody man.


    His iron sword finally pried the Chief Monk up from the ground again.


    The Eldest Brother reached out with two hands to hold up the shoulders of the Chief Monk, as if he did nothing but help him keep bnce. Actually, he had brought the Chief Monk away in the blink of an ey.


    Walking in a tiny space in the cliff cave, though.


    The Eldest Brother took the Chief Monk here and there within a distance that was unimaginably short.


    In a word, he wouldn¡¯t let the Chief Monk go back to the ground.


    Blood spilled out of his quilted jacket again. Such intense exertions of the Distanceless State had injured him.


    The Chief Monk was as tough as the earth, but once he was away from the ground, he would be weakened.


    He looked pale.


    Jun Mo¡¯s iron sword already fell upon on his head.


    A clear sound rang, as if metal had struck stone.


    A drop of red blood spilled out of the Chief Monk¡¯s head.


    The ultimately strong state of the Buddhist Vajra Body Defending Divine Skill was finally broken down by the Eldest Brother and Jun Mo together.


    However, is was just one drop of blood.


    The Eldest Brother and Jun Mo had paid such arge price but were only able to make the Chief Monk shed one drop of blood. In the eyes of others, it was not a good deal at all.


    How many strikes would be needed to seriously injure the Chief Monk? How many years?


    But people of the Academy would never think it that way.


    Jun Mo held the iron sword and then hit the Chief Monk¡¯s head again and again, as if he was not exhausted at all.


    The Eldest Brother held up the Chief Monk¡¯s shoulder calmly, as if he also was not exhausted at all.


    Even faced with Buddha himself, so what?


    As long as one could bleed, it meant that more blood could be shed.


    No matter how many years it would take, one¡¯s life could definitely be consumed. This was Jun Mo¡¯s mentality. It was also Eldest Brother¡¯s mindset.


    Whenever they shared the same mindset and goal, it was hard for them to fail.


    ...

 Chapter 954 - Blossoms At Last

    <h4>Chapter 954: Blossoms At Last</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Years ago, in the autumn rain in Lanke Temple, World Wayfarer of Taoism Ye Su, World Wayfarer of Buddhism Qi Nian and the most skilled swordsman in the human world had no choice but to watch the statue of the Buddha topple.


    Currently, outside the Xuankong Temple in the west wilderness, they could still beat the Chief Monk, the enlightened human and even broke his Varjra Body Defending Divine Skill, in the face of the Drunkard, such a powerful cultivator.


    It was not only because they were powerful but also because their iparably perfect cooperation, which was a natural bond to showcase the absolute mutual trust and confidence.


    The Academy was the only ce where such a disposition could be fostered. The Headmaster was the only one who could bring up such disciples. When they were shoulder by shoulder and hand in hand, even Heaven would fear, and let alone the enemy.


    When Jun Mo smashed innumerable times, the Chief Monk of Scripture finally opened his eyes, and a thin streak of blood flowed from his head directly into his eyes. His sight was covered in blood.


    The Chief Monk felt pain, deep pain, and then he found that these two disciples of the Academy had prepared to keep smashing like that forever. He didn¡¯t want to die yet, because he hadn¡¯t seen the Buddha¡¯s return to the human world. He knew what he had to do even though he was aware of the aftermath.


    When the iron sword fell, the Chief Monk loosened the hand that was holding the chessboard tightly and lifted it high enough to block the iron sword.


    The minute he let go, Eldest Brother loosened his hand as well. He then held the wooden stick and smashed heavily the first web beside the thumb.


    This wooden stick was not made to snatch food from the jaws of a tiger, but to feed the tiger with itself.


    The Chief Monk suddenly felt suffocating, due to the uneasy shivering from his first web through his wrist to his chest. Even with his Varjar Defending Divine Skill, his whole body was rattling, as if it was about to break into pieces.


    He was supposed to use only one hand because one hand was enough to stop Jun Mo¡¯s iron sword. To his surprise, the wooden stick smashed. He couldn¡¯t help but wonder if they could see throng human¡¯s thought.


    Actually, the Eldest Brother and Jun Mo couldn¡¯t see through other people, but they understood each other without speaking. That was why the wooden stick took the chance and fill in for the iron sword.


    Jun Mo¡¯s iron sword fell and smashed downward at the chessboard that was by the chest of the Chief Monk.


    The Chief Monk¡¯s heart of Buddhism was disturbed again. Being under the suppression of the wooden stick, he was not able to defend himself from the iron sword.


    One clear strike sounded, as if a super tiny porcin cup fell down on the ground.


    In the dark cliff cave, a beam of extremely bright light shined. It was the Heavenly Light!


    A very deep rupture was left, stretching from the depths of the field to the ground.


    Later on, the earth shook, and the precipice copsed, with countless stones and mud bursting out. On the east of the Giant Sinkhole, a roughly five-meter breach was formed after the copse. It was such a soul-shocking image.


    Inclined to the breach in the wake of the copse of Giant Sinkhole, countless antholes and mouse holes were filled with the autumn grass and snatched fruits. Very fine waters flows ran through stones and gradually wetted disorderly stones.


    The Chief Monk sat on the disorderly stones with a dusty and bloody face. He looked rather miserable.


    The chessboard, once in his arms, was picked up by Jun Mo¡¯s iron sword.


    The Drunkard stood at the edge of the copsed precipice and looked abruptly worried. Jun Mo restored his state before the Verdant Canyon Battle, and Li Manman¡¯s state was rocketing up, which make him highly alert. However, he couldn¡¯t believe they really broke through the Vajra Defending Divine Skill and took the chessboard!


    The Chief Monk looked at the Eldest Brother and Jun Mo, with a mixture of sadness, pain, and frustration. His voice was low, and said to them at a loss, ¡°Nothing has changed.¡±


    What did he mean? Even if you had the chessboard, nothing would change. It was impossible that you could have opened it and saved Haotian and Ning Que, because it was a dharma-vessel left by the Buddha. It cannot be ruined after the vicissitudes of eons in Lanke Temple. It had been beyond the rule of the time, which was the real Vajra Defending Divine power.


    The Eldest Brother had a look at the chessboard in Jun Mo¡¯s hand, and said nothing. He reached out and held Jun Mo¡¯s sleeve, left there, and then went back at the point under the pear tree by the side of the cliff teau.


    The autumn wind blew again. The Drunkard took the Chief Monk of Scripture back to the cliff teau. The Chief Monk sat in front of the White Tower, looked at them, and said, ¡°It¡¯s true that nothing works.¡±


    Jun Mo ignored him, took up the iron sword and cut.


    The Eldest Brother stood right in front of the chessboard, and looked slightly pale. It was obviously that his psyche power was exhausted. However, the Drunkard and the Chief Monk wouldn¡¯t try to approach while he was standing there like that.


    The sound of the iron sword hitting the chessboard rang out on the cliff teau without a stop. It was clear, resolute, and fierce, but totally different from the bell sounds in temples, because it contained the spurt of shining spears and armored horses.


    Jun Mo continued to wave the iron sword and hit for a long time. That sound was echoing amid mountains and cliffs, as if a huge army was risking their lives and storming a castle.


    The Buddhist castle was hard to break in.


    Jun Mo continuously hit, and his fingers were bleeding, while the look on his face was still resolute as before. His sway each time was indifferently meticulous to make sure the most powerful force was applied.


    Under such circumstances, the Drunkard said nothing. He was looking aside quietly, but the ever growing mixed feelings hit him.


    Obviously there was no hope, but he still resolutely continued to do so, which even gave the whoever saw it a wrong impression that the iron sword could have brought hope by smashing up desperation. He had such a tenacious mind! How could the Headmaster bring about such a disciple? Where did he find such a disciple?


    Jun Mo suddenly stopped, not because he was tired, although he was very tired indeed, but because the iron sword had be edgelesspletely.


    The iron sword was indestructible. Before the Battle of Verdant Canyon, it broke countless swords, even Liu Bai¡¯s sword. However, it was distorted when used against the chessboard.


    He looked over the Chief Monk of Scripture, and asked, ¡°If we can do nothing about it, why would you guard it for a whole year on the cliff teau? Despite the rains and storms, you never walked one step away from it.¡±


    The Chief Monk said, ¡°I¡¯ve watched over it for a year because I want to watch.¡±


    The two verbs were the same, but the former one meant guarding, while thetter was seeing.


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°What are you waiting to see?¡±


    The silver eyebrows of the Chief Monk were slightly floating in the autumn wind. He said, ¡°To see the Buddha and all living creatures.¡±


    Jun Mo didn¡¯t understand, and then waved his head. He turned the sword around, and continued to hit the chessboard.


    The Chief Monk looked a little bit different, while the Drunkard¡¯s face was increasingly serious. It shocked them both. Jun Mo was not giving up, but turned the sword around. This way, even though the iron sword was ruined, he would still use something else to go on cutting, right?


    The Eldest Brother suddenly said, ¡°The Buddha¡¯s chessboard cannot be cut open, and Haotian cannot be killed.¡±


    The Drunkard looked at him and could have stopped him. But he thought it over and did nothing.


    The Eldest Brother continued, ¡°Even if the Buddha were to exterminate her existence in the chessboard, she could only transform back to the pure regtions. Naturally, she will return to the Divine Kingdom. What is the point in letting it happen?¡±


    The Chief Monk said with his fingers and palms joined, ¡°The Buddha knows events from five thousand years ago and predict events that will happen five thousand yearster. He can see through the past even before his birth and calcte the future. That is to say he can predict what is happening at the moment without a doubt.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said peacefully, ¡°The Headmaster had thought it over for a millennium, and finally found a way to let her stay in the human world. Would the Buddha predict the Headmaster¡¯s measures? Would the Buddha calcte what my Little Brother is capable of? Or would the Buddha calcte that Haotian was divided into two forms of existence by the Academy? No. The Buddha can¡¯t calcte anything.¡±


    His tone was quite normal and his look was very quiet. However, his confidence was splendidly shown. The Academy¡¯s n was even beyond Haotian¡¯s calctions, let alone the Buddha.


    The Chief Monk understood, so he fell into a silence for a long time. The Drunkard was informed of that by the Abbey Dean, so he had known long ago. That was why he came here to help the Buddhists.


    The Buddhaid out a life-or-death scheme for Haotian. But how on earth could he calcte that Haotian had be two beings? In the Eldest Brother¡¯s word, what was the point of the scheme then?


    It was meaningless.


    In a very short period of time, the Chief Monk became much older, because he confirmed the intention of Taoism, and admitted that the Academy was right. The Buddha¡¯s scheme was meaningless.


    It there was only one Haotian, the Buddha¡¯s chessboard could kill the girl named Sangsang and imprison her for good. Without any connections to the outside world, she would definitely have no way to go back to the Divine Kingdom and resurrect.


    Nevertheless, there were two Haotian currently. If he were to kill Sangsang, how could the Buddha prevent the rules she will be after her death from connecting to the outside world? Haotian was there, so rules could be connected to other rules. In this regard, no power could possibly stop that. Sangsang, after her death, would definitely return to the Divine Kingdom, which was the result that the Abbey Dean would rather to see.


    It was meaningless.


    The Chief Monk repeated these words, while looking at Jun Mo, who was still cutting at the chessboard.


    ¡°What you are doing is also meaningless. This is the Buddha¡¯s chessboard. As long as the Buddha doesn¡¯t let them return, they will never find a way back. Whether or not the Haotian in the chessboard would die and whether or not she would return to the Divine Kingdom are all depended on the Buddha¡¯s destiny or the God¡¯s will. We¡¯re all mortals and we¡¯re supposed to be meaningless before the moment bes reality.¡±


    The bell tones still rang amid the peaks. Many monks hade to the cliff teau, but dared to move forward. After hearing that, they all bowed with their fingers and palms connecting. Qi Nian and the Third Elder were in the crowd as well.


    It looked like the Academy had the upperhand in this battle. However, as long as they can¡¯t break open the chessboard, the Academy would still lose.


    Finally, Jun Mo stopped and said all of a sudden, ¡°If we can¡¯t break it open, we should enter it.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said with a smile, ¡°It sounds feasible.¡±


    The Chief Monk said, ¡°It doesn¡¯t open upon your will.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°Chief Monk, have you ever considered why we are still here even though we have the chessboard? Instead of leaving, we came to the cliff teau.¡±


    The Chief Monk slightly raised his silver eyebrows, as if he had just came to a realization.


    The Eldest Brother looked at the green tree, held up its leaves and said, ¡°Is this the pear tree?¡±


    The Chief Monk remained silent, while Qi Nian looked slightly nervous behind the green branches.


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°The pear tree blossoms every five hundred years, and ripens five days after that. Once it touches the ground, it will be oakum and fade away without any traces. How remarkable.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°The tree blossomed a year ago, and it bore some fruits then.¡±


    The Eldest Brother leaned on the green tree and then sat down. He said, ¡°So it be. We need to wait for another four hundred and ny-nine years until the day it blossoms with fruits again. Then, we can get into the chessboard and find them.¡±


    Jun Mo held up the chessboard, and sat down under the tree as well.


    ...

 Chapter 955 - Return With Fruitful Results

    <h4>Chapter 955: Return With Fruitful Results</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Even if it was as long as five hundred years, they would be waiting. They would wait through the morning bells and evening drums, in spring winds and autumn rains, until snow-like flowers finally hang over the pear tree. What an unimaginable persistence, and what bold vision!


    Looking at these two people under the pear tree, the Chief Monk fell into a long silence. He didn¡¯t expect for the Academy to already know the biggest secret of Buddhism. The young man looked nothing special. Yet it was said that he had an archive of information through reading tens of thousands of books. It was proven with his utmost performance in all fields.


    The Drunkard walked to the other side of the cliff teau, unloaded his gon, and started to drink. While looking into the distant sky quietly, he was contemting how to help Taoism send Haotian back to the Divine Kingdom. It would take at least five hundred years until the chessboard would open again. Of course it didn¡¯t bother him much because he was very good at one thing and it was to cope with time.


    The Chief Monk said, ¡°Five hundred years is such a long time that a ton of things could happen in the human world. What would the Academy do during your absence as you wait for the pear tree to blossom? What about the Tang?¡±


    Being called the Chief Monk of Scripture in Xuankong Temple, he was the enlightened one of this generation. Simple questions like that made everyone in the field silent. Who would safeguard Chang¡¯an if the Eldest Brother and Jun Mo were to wait for five hundred years under the pear tree?


    ¡°This green tree was nted by the Buddha himself eons ago. It grew from a thin sapling into a big tree. Five hundred yearter when you are here, it probably would be a towering tree,¡± the Chief Monk said sadly, trying to give his suggestion.


    Jun Mo said, ¡°The Academy won¡¯t be an onlooker if the pear tree isn¡¯t within its reach.¡±


    The Chief Monk said, ¡°The pear tree was a sacred article left by the Buddha, so the temple will keep a close eye on it.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°Our Little Brother is in the chessboard right now, so the Academy is taking it very seriously. Moreover, due to the shameless, capricious, hypocritical, and furious bold donkeys like you, we¡¯re worried that you will destroy the tree once we leave.¡±


    The monks in Xuankong Temple behind the green branches looked upset once they heard this.


    The Chief Monk looked quite calm and said, ¡°What does the Academy n to do? Over ten thousand monks in the temple are determined in pursuing Buddhism. Once we aimed to take it back, do you think you can uphold for five hundred years?¡±


    Jun Mo ignored him, looked at the Eldest Brother, and said, ¡°Brother, will we do it?¡±


    The Eldest Brother thought it over and said, ¡°Yes, we will.¡± No need to hear anything else, he knew what Jun Mo was asking. Thus he stood up, carried his wooden stick, and moved to the front of the pear tree.


    Then Jun Mo stood up as well, and stabbed his iron sword into the cliff teau until the handle slipped from his hand.


    The cliff teau was solid, and the iron sword pierced it silently.


    The Drunkard guessed what they were up to, and then frowned slightly, but he still found it hard to believe.


    The Eldest Brother looked at him and said, ¡°Senior, I know what you want, but the Academy will kill you at any costs.¡± The Eldest Brother, very gentle and kind-hearted, did everything unhurriedly and talked in a mild tone. He was the most amiable person, who seldom got angry and never threatened others. So his threat weighed heavily. All would fear him if he were to fight desperately because he seldom did so.


    The Drunkard frowned. What he really wanted was immortality. But if he drove the Academy crazy and drove them to kill himself at all costs, it probably wasn¡¯t worth it to pursue it.


    Previously, he didn¡¯t believe that the Academy was able to kill him, but he found that it wasn¡¯tpletely impossibleter on the same day. Even if the Academy could kill him, he would take the Academy down with him and even destroy the Tang. Reasonably speaking, such a situation wouldn¡¯t happen in his perspective. What if the Academy were to really go wild? What if those people really fight desperately against him?


    The Drunkard said, ¡°Taoism asked me to go to the west wilderness to pass a word, and I did it a year ago. I tried to leave the chessboard in Xuankong Temple. Since I failed, I will never engage again.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°Thank you.¡±


    Through the fight just now, he knew that the change in the Drunkard¡¯s stance was because this man had confirmed that the chessboard could not be opened by an external force. The Eldest Brother decided not to expose him.


    The Drunkard guessed what the Academy had nned to do because he knew the Headmaster, once met Ke Haoran and knew a bunch of maniacs were living in the Academy which only appeared to be solemn, graceful and peaceful.


    The monks in Xuankong Temple didn¡¯t know the Academy well so they couldn¡¯t guess the Academy¡¯s next move. They started to appear more nervous as they continue to look at the Eldest Brother.


    The Chief Monk felt uneasy as he was looking at Jun Mo and the sword in his hand.


    Jun Mo didn¡¯t look at him, but was holding up the sword handle. He shouted resolutely after the iron sword started to traverse the cliff teau.


    The traversing of the iron sword was the sword cutting through the teau.


    An extremely dreadful grating sounded. Gravels, smoke, and dust flew up. The iron sword rounded the pear tree, fiercely moved on the surface of the cliff teau, and finally broke out the precipice.


    A crack appeared on the surface of the cliff teau. The Eldest Brother bowed and put his hands into it.


    Jun Mo asked again, ¡°Brother, will we do it?¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°It would be a little bit hard, but I can. And you?¡±


    ¡°So far, I can¡¯t leave.¡± Jun Mo carried his iron sword, looked at the dark and gloomy underground field, and said, ¡°A lot of the people down there need me.¡±


    The Eldest Brother praised, ¡°Brother, you are so brave and beneficent.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°Only for a peace of mind.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°Only beneficence can bring peace, while bravery can forge invincibly.¡±


    Being praised by the Eldest Brother like that, Jun Mo still looked calm because he thought he could live up to it. He said, ¡°I¡¯ll send you a propulsion.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°I¡¯ll send you a propulsion as well.¡± His hands vibrated a little, and then the crack abruptly widened.


    Noises were loud. The cliff teau, which was hundreds of square meters, was slowly detached from the mount. The pear tree was also on the cliff teau. Mud and sand were falling down. The mustache-like roots of the pear tree were faintly visible under the cliff teau. The huge mount was the body of the Buddha, so it was extremely tough.


    Jun Mo¡¯s iron sword could even cut off a piece of the cliff. At the same time, the Eldest Brother would leave, taking the cliff teau.


    Looking at it, the monks in Xuankong Temple were dumbfounded and forgot what to do.


    The Eldest Brother tied the wooden stick back at his waist, and then held up Jun Mo¡¯s sleeve. They left.


    One piece of the cliff teau was missing.


    The breach of the cliff was very smooth.


    The green pear tree was gone as well.


    The Eldest Brother and Jun Mo left just like that. They took the chessboard and pear tree and even a piece of flesh of the Buddha¡¯s palm along with them.


    The Chief Monk was silent and looked pale.


    The Drunkard had a sip of wine and sighed, ¡°Maniac. You¡¯re all maniacs, from the old to the young.¡±


    ...


    ...


    The Eldest Brother sent Jun Mo back to the underground of the field, and then back to the Academy.


    From that day on, the pear tree stood at the Back Hill of the Academy. The chessboard was left under the pear tree.


    A lot of people surrounded the chessboard to have a look. They were dumbfounded and even forgot about time.


    They didn¡¯t want to see the Buddha or all of the living creatures in the chessboard. What they were studying was how to open the chessboard and save their Little Brother.


    ...

 Chapter 956 - When

    <h4>Chapter 956: When</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    It was like spring in the Back Hill of the Academy, especially near the Mirror Lake. Additionally, the pear tree was not ordinary, so it showed no signs of destion. It was full of green leaves and gave a cool shade.


    People sat under the shade with their eye sights fixed on the chessboard, but still couldn¡¯t figure out its specialties or even how to open it.


    Mu You flicked her hair with an embroidery needle, looked irate, and said, ¡°Still no clues?¡±


    The Fourth Brother looked at the chessboard, and said seriously, ¡°I thought of seventy three methods, but I don¡¯t think they¡¯re feasible as the First Brother and Second Brother could have done it.¡±


    Mu You said, ¡°We should try them all.¡±


    They left the pear tree, came to the water room by the stream, and watched the Fourth Brother as he put the chessboard on the stove. They let it ate on the blue high temperature me, and then they looked slightly worried.


    The worried Beigong Weiyang held up the zither and said, ¡°Even if the chessboard can¡¯t be burned into ashes, our Little Brother is still in it. What if he bes roasted?¡±


    Ximen Buhuo pointed at the chessboard with his bamboo flute, and said, ¡°It has been ating for a while, but we could hardly find a spot. This isn¡¯t a barbecue pan, and our Little Brother isn¡¯t pork.¡±


    The Fourth Brother didn¡¯t argue with their jesting. After it was burned to an extremely high temperature, he used an iron clip, took it out, and threw it into the clear and cold stream water behind the forgery room.


    It sizzled. Steam arose above the stream. The white goose was shuttled while squatting on the top of the waterwheel. It spread its wings, flew by the stream, and honked twice to express its dissatisfaction.


    The best way to break down a tough object was to make it contract. But to their disappointment, it still didn¡¯t have any effect on it, not even one crack.


    In the following days, people in the Academy did a lot of things to the chessboard.


    Mu You dropped the chessboard into the Array of Cloud Gate, and tried to tear it up with the Array, but nothing happened. Wang Chi stewed a pot of soup that was said to be the most poisonous and corrosive, threw the Chessboard into it for three whole days and nights. Atst, nothing happened to the chessboard but more than half of fish in the stream were found dead and the white goose was too irritated to be sad. The Fourth Brother took out the small iron can left by Ning Que in the Back Hill, tried to st the chessboard. This only exploded and caused the deaths of half of swimming fishes, which made the white goose reluctant to leave. But the chessboard was still intact as before.


    On some day, the Fifth Brother, Song Qian, suddenly said, ¡°Speaking of the chessboard, I¡¯ve always presumed that it must have something to do with chess.¡±


    He and the Eighth Brother were the most skillful yers in chess. In terms of chess or the chessboard, they should definitely be the best experts.


    His words lit up hope in the others. They all looked up to him. Mu You asked, ¡°And then?¡±


    Song Qian said while touching the head, ¡°Then... I don¡¯t know then.¡±


    They all felt angry after hearing that. They didn¡¯t understand why he would even mention it if he couldn¡¯t even make sense of it to himself. Wang Chi was dealing with the pot of poisonous liquid, and did not understand what was going on here. He took out two boxes of chess pieces, and asked, ¡°So, where should you put them?¡±


    They all wanted to give Wang Chi a lesson, but held it up, because the Eleventh Brother was the youngest at that moment while the Little Brother was still in the chessboard and Chen Pipi was in Linkang.


    The Fourth Brother thought for a while, before he took the boxes and put the boxes on the chessboard. Clear and crisp sounds were heard. Then, ck and white chess pieces were poured all over it. They all surrounded the chessboard, looked at it nervously, and even forgot to breathe. However, nothing happened as well.


    The Sixth Brother hadn¡¯t spoken a word since the arrival of the chessboard and pear tree. The others all looked frustrated, and then despaired. Then, he carried an iron hammer out, and said honestly while looking at others, ¡°Shall we hit it anyways?¡±


    He said honestly while looking at others, ¡°Let me hit it.¡±


    Mu You said, ¡°Our two brothers didn¡¯t smash it in Xuankong Temple.


    The Sixth Brother said, ¡°We have more time, so we can keep hitting.¡±


    The Fourth Brother thought it over and sighed. ¡°It seems to be the only way.¡±


    The once quiet Back Hill of the Academy started to be noisy from that day on. A tedious re echoed by the Mirror Lake. The Sixth Brother started to wield the hammer and hit the chessboard nonstop.


    He was very strong and had used countless hammers. However, he was still capable of being tired. The Fourth or Fifth Brother would fill in when he does be tired.


    Those who were obsessed with chess left their chessboards. The ones who were obsessed with sand table left. The ones obsessed with arrays left as well. All of them becameborious cksmiths beside the chessboard.


    Only those obsessed with music didn¡¯t change that much. It was because Beigong Weiyang and Ximen Buhuo were too skinny. They had tried but couldn¡¯t lift up the hammer. Thus, they were driven away by others. However, they still watched the others work very hard together, and felt frustrated. So they sat aside and yed impassioned music to cheer for others, including the one in the chessboard.


    Bang. Bang. Bang. The iron hammer was falling onto the chessboard nonstop, shaking the ground of the cliff teau. The fish that had survived days ago hid in the water nts. The big white goose curiously stared at the chessboard and wondered if the fool was in it. The little white wolf howled towards the bright moon in the night sky and tried to learn the power and prestige from thest generation, but was disturbed by the smashes down the hill. Only the old ox was indifferent, as he was resting on the grass and ate the grass frequently.


    Although countless strikes fell onto it, the chessboard remained intact as ever.


    Mu You cooked a little bitte. The brothers who were cksmiths had discontents due to their empty stomachs. Some would recall the girl who used to cook here.


    ¡°She is Haotian, so the meals she had cooked were naturally more delicious! Do you want some? Then draw her out of the chessboard!¡±


    Mu You was not happy, and squatted to see the chessboard. She said earnestly, ¡°Little Brother, when will youe out? Remember to take your wife back as well. Don¡¯t be lost.


    ...


    ...


    A famous Taoism abbey was in Linkang. Chen Pipi was teaching thousands of believers. He looked calm, clear, and absolute. Autumn wind blew up his robes, so he felt like flying up and floating in the air. The fat boy from years ago looked more like a Taoist envoy.


    After Ye Su left the South Jin, the newly established sect was started in shabby alleys, and grew at an unimaginable speed despite the location.


    Because Chen Pipi was trying his best to continue his causes, with the help of the Sword Garrett, the New Stream had be popr in the entire South Jin. No one dared to stop its preaching. Stubborn-headed Taoists, priest and those who swore allegiance to the Divine Hall of West-Hill, were found dead in the waters at night.


    The most remarkable scene of preaching and sermon showcased the New Stream¡¯s poprity. Its poption base was alsorge, including the old and young, the poor and the rich people with clients.


    Chen Pipi taught the third volume of the West-Hill scriptures, which was so obscure that only priests from Divine Halls could exin it. But his quiet and calm voice and analysis not only preserved the original meaning, but also shed a different light from the Divine Halls in the West Hill.


    After the lessons, thousands of believers piously bowed to Chen Pipi, and then left. They showed their allegiance to Haotian and the New Stream. The threshold rule was doing things in a kind and gentle manner for both others and oneself.


    Such demands looked rather simple, so it was easy to spread the scriptures, which was true for most religions in the very beginning.


    Chen Pipi was protected by disciples from the Sword Garret and the army of the South Jin, left the abbey and moved towards his residence. Once the believers saw him, they would step back with respect.


    When he went back to the room, he looked at the Blind Sword Garrett and took off his robe,ining, ¡°It¡¯s quite annoying that each time so many people follow me.¡±


    Liu Yiqing turned around, while the sunshine came through the window and lighted up the white cloth that was covering his eyes. He said with a smile, ¡°It was said that you got more reverence with those following you.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not sure whether it is reverence or fear.¡±


    While he was wiping his sweat with a wet towel, his pale fat body was shivering. It looked nothing like his free, natural and graceful image earlier.


    Liu Yiqing said, ¡°Reverencergely derives from terror... just like their attitude toward the Divine Hall.¡±


    Chen Pipi didn¡¯t say anything for a while, and then threw the towel into the basin, and said, ¡°I know what you are going to say. If the Divine Halls were to kill me, you can do nothing about it.¡±


    Any strong organization would be weakened by internal division, orpetitors who came from within. For instance, Ye Su¡¯s New Stream had been the most vigntpetitor. At the same time, the South Jin were asked to hand over Chen Pipi by the Divine Halls, .


    Liu Bai was dead, so the Sword Garret was naturally the enemy to the Divine Halls. In this case, South Jin wouldn¡¯t hand him over. The problem was that the Divine Hall would send assassins to kill Chen Pipi ¨C Chen Pipi¡¯s Snow Mountain and Ocean of Qi were disabled, and he was no longer the cultivating genius, which was why the Sword Garrett would worry so much and send so many bodyguards to save him.


    ¡°As far as I know, a red-robed divine priest was secretly sent to Kang City by the Divine Halls. He met up with the one in the pce, so I am worried about that the attitude of the royal family of the South Jin has changed,¡± Liu Yiqing said.


    Chen Pipi looked at him and smiled, ¡°You have killed an emperor before, so what¡¯s one more to you?¡±


    Liu Yiqing said bitterly, ¡°I can¡¯t kill everyone in South Jin.¡±


    Chen Pipi said before a few minutes of silence, ¡°Or we can leave.¡±


    Liu Yiqing said, ¡°My question is when will the Academy act?¡±


    Chen Pipi walked back to him, looked at the sunset outside the window, and said, ¡°I assume it would be soon.¡±


    Liu Yiqing said, ¡°Then I believe the Divine Halls should take actions soon as well.¡±


    Chen Pipi said, ¡°Yes, my father won¡¯t let this opportunity slip by.¡±

 Chapter 957 - Who

    <h4>Chapter 957: Who</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Liu Yiqing¡¯s question of when the Academy would take action was referring to the Qinghe Prefecture. As long as Qinghe Prefecture was still seized, then the South Jin and Tang would still be connected. Thus, if the Divine Halls of the West-Hill were to attack, then it would be much more difficult to do so.


    The Divine Halls of West-Hill¡¯s target was definitely the South Jin. However, the South Jin was powerful and prestigious. If Taoism wanted to win against the Tang, then it was impossible for them to give it up, not to mention the South Jin had always been under the influence of the Divine Hall.


    Liu Yiqing was about to say something when Tang Xiaotang just came back from grocery shopping. Liu didn¡¯t continue. Instead, he fared the two well and left with disciples from the Sword Garret who were waiting outside.


    Looking at them going away in the dusk, Chen Pipi fell in silence for a while. He knew that the South Jin was under great pressure from the Divine Halls of West-Hill, especially recently.


    Ning Que and Sangsang went into the Buddha¡¯s chessboard. Formoners, this was certainly a secret, but not for the ones who had kept in touch with the Academy. Because of this incident, the Academy probably had to change its original n. The Taoism, especially Chen¡¯s own father, wouldn¡¯t let this opportunity get away.


    Chen Pipi said, ¡°I¡¯ve been learning Taoism ever since I was a child, without any obstacles. I was referred to as the first genius that Taoism had met in a millennium. After that, I was recruited by the Academy as the top student in all six disciplines, recognized by the Headmaster and directly promoted to the second-floor. Back then, as a member of the Back Hill disciples, I achieved the State of Knowing the Destiny naturally. In this sense, cultivation for me had never been difficult.¡±


    Chen Pipi was standing beside the window, looking into the direction of Chang¡¯an, and continued. ¡°Probably because of this, or because I didn¡¯t want to fight against my elder brother for power. I have never been very devoted to cultivation or obsessed with power. However, since I¡¯m disabled in cultivation now and could no longer ess power even if I wanted to, power has been something that I¡¯ve hungered for.¡±


    He wanted to do something for the Academy, and that was why his hunger for power was increasing.


    Tang Xiaotang walked to him, held his hand, and said, ¡°Don¡¯t be too worried.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s impossible not to be.¡±


    Jun Mo and Ye Su, the two brothers whom Chen Pipi respected most, were both currently doing the most impossible thing. Every time he thought of it, he would be anxious and unsettled.


    Tang Xiaotang said, ¡°The Fourth Uncle sent a letter saying that the Academy is racking all of their brains to open the chessboard, but has achieved nothing. Why aren¡¯t you worrying at all?¡±


    Chen Pipi said, ¡°The Buddha¡¯s chessboard can¡¯t trap Ning Que.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang was puzzled. ¡°Why?¡±


    Chen Pipi said, ¡°Because he is together with Haotian.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang said, ¡°But doesn¡¯t the Buddha want to kill Haotian?¡±


    Chen Pipi said, ¡°Even if the Buddha was really capable of predicting things before and after his life including Haotian, the Buddha can¡¯t predict Ning Que¡¯s next moves because Ning Que is unpredictable.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang trusted him, so she stopped worrying. With that, her face was much clearer and brighter. She said, ¡°Will you eat one more bowl of steamed rice tonight for celebration?¡±


    Chen Pipi sighed, ¡°Not yet. My appetite has not been good.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang was at a loss and asked, ¡°What else are you still worrying about?¡±


    ¡°As long as it is rted to Taoism, it will be part of my father¡¯s scheme. Whether or not the Buddha¡¯s chessboard could trap Haotian and Ning Que, Haotian would ultimately go back to the Divine Kingdom.¡±


    Chen Pipi said, ¡°Then, wars in the human world will resound. Will the Academy be able to withstand them? Every time I think of this, the food is as terrible as wax. How could I have a good appetite? So I can only have five bowls tonight.¡±


    ...


    ...


    In a city of the Song, Ye Su stood at the old yard of a shabby abbey and was exining some parts of the West-Hill literary canon, in front of dozens of newly-developed believers.


    After leaving Linkang, he travelled around the world, and hoped to spread the scriptures of the new sect to waken more poor and miserable believers. Finally, he came to Song and preached here, where Taoism was the most powerful force and its poption¡¯s belief of Haotian was the most pious.


    He was wearing a light-colored garment, blown tenderly by the wet wind from the ocean. With spotty stains here and there, it smelled horrible, after being hit by many many stink eggs.


    Preaching in Song would be undoubtedly be more difficult here than in Linkang. He had been well prepared psychologically once he had made the decision. However, the people¡¯s resentment was so blunt that it was out of his expectations.


    Several broken bricks flew over the wall and fell on the ground. They rumbled and then were broken into pieces. The dozens of believers looked pale and flurried.


    Later on, the wooden gate of the small abbey was kicked out violently, and then dozens of people took bludgeons and rushed in, cursing. Amid the adults, two children looked exhrated at all this, carried bricks, and were itching to throw. These broken bricks must have been thrown by them.


    Rotten eggs and vegetables were all over the yard of the abbey. Within minutes, Ye Su had vegetables hanging and rotten eggs sticking to his hairs. The dozens of disciples were hit heavily and were bleeding all over the body. They were only let out the abbey after begging hard.


    Ye Su was the only one left in the abbey. He looked at the furious people peacefully without any hatred, disappointment, orpassion often seen on the face of a monk. He was calm and even smiled.


    His reaction irritated them. Some men held up bludgeons and attacked him.


    A lot of people surrounded the small abbey. Noises went out all over the walls, and those who had nowhere to let their anger out couldn¡¯t help desperately cramping into the door.


    Within an instant, hundreds of people crammed in before the situation was out of control. Many fell down to the ground and couldn¡¯t get up. Everyone was tramping. Sounds of fractured bones and screaming were heard again and again amid the crowd.


    Ye Su was badly beaten. There was blood all over his body, but he remained in his standing position instead of evading the attacks. Then, he finally bent and squatted on the ground.


    Several strong men at the front didn¡¯t care about the others or the screaming around them. They violently came through the crowd attacked him with the bludgeons.


    No one knew how long had passed. It was not until when the crowd finally calmed down that they were able to find out how many people were heavily injured. They quickly carried them to see doctors.


    A pathetic voice suddenly sounded outside the abbey. ¡°My children! My children! Where are my children? Who has seen my two boys?¡± A simply-dressed woman came into the abbey screaming. Then she looked through the injured on the ground. Most of the attackers were neighbors and knew each other. They swiftly offered her help.


    Blood was all over the ground. She was not able to find her children. She fell on the ground as she was breathlessly crying and was too tired to stand up..


    People in the abbey looked at each other in speechless despair, wondering if the children were still alive since even those strongest ones were seriously injured from being stamped upon.


    They all held that thought, but no one would dare mention it to the woman. All of a sudden, it fell into extreme quietness then. Someone angrily med that one for it. Or why on earth would we alle into the abbey.


    ¡°It was your fault! You¡¯re the murder!¡± An old man walked to Ye Su, and trembled by anger. He held up his walking stick and hit him. Another rumbling sound was heard, and a mouthful of blood was spilled out by Ye Su.


    The old man was still angry, and was prepared to hit again. Some of the young men followed with bludgeons in their hands, determined to beat Ye Su to death.


    However, they all soon halted their attacks. No one was moving their weapons. They saw him move.


    Ye Su loosened his arms, and sat on the ground weakly.


    The two boys were in his arms.


    The two boys looked pale and had no idea what had happened. They looked at their neighbors, who were carrying bludgeons. Then they realized that they were near Ye Su. Thus, they cried in fear, unconsciously picked up bricks, and threw them at him.


    Ye Su¡¯s face was bleeding even more. Being hit by bricks gave him extra wounds. He looked at the two children and smiled. ¡°Are you OK?¡±


    The children didn¡¯t know how to answer. Neither did anyone else in the abbey. It was silent.


    The old man looked at a loss and put down the walking stick in his hands.


    Who was this man?


    After a while, he realized what had happened, and heavily patted the two children. He lessoned, ¡°Little fools! You can¡¯t hit him!¡±


    The woman ran over, held the children in her arms and thanked Ye Su again and again.


    The old man looked at the strong young man and shouted, ¡°Why are you just standing here? Go find a doctor!¡±


    That man was flurried and confused. He asked, ¡°Elder Uncle, the doctor is right outside.¡±


    The old man said, ¡°Call the doctor in and let him check this sir.¡±


    ...


    ...


    This was Ye Su¡¯s life at present.


    What he did was actually quite simr to what Jun Mo did at the underground of the field. They all wanted the people to be better informed, about what was in the field and what was not in the Divine Halls, about what options there were, and about what was not necessary.


    Belief was thest hope of the unlucky ones, but it couldn¡¯t be the root of misfortune, nor its excuses. The true belief was supposed to give people the courage to change the misfortune. People should learn how to trust themselves.


    Ye Su and Mo Jun, once equally proud and outstanding, were set apart at Green Canyon. They finally merged back to the same road, a road worthy of rounds of apuse.


    But from the perspective of Buddhism and Taoism, it wasn¡¯t a good thing. If people were to choose to trust themselves, both the Buddha and Haotian would be weaker.


    A wheelchair was in front of the stone cottage on the cliff teau of the Divine Halls.


    The Abbey Dean sat on the chair and was afraid of the wind and chilly air on the cliff. He tied up the nket with great difficulty, and then said, ¡°When Haotian returns, kill them all.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 958 - Shadow and Bell

    <h4>Chapter 958: Shadow and Bell</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The wheelchair was not big, but it was still too big for the Abbey Dean, for he was very thin now. Even if he were to wrap himself in a nket, he couldn¡¯t take up too much space. Any great person would end up in a small casket after death, but of course we couldn¡¯t use this to deny the greatness of that person.


    He quietly looked at the gray sky with bleakly. He was no longer in high and vigorous spirits as the day he entered Chang¡¯an. At this point, he was old and ailing like a candle guttering in the wind.


    If one were to disregard the issues of good, evil, morality or the future of mankind, then the Abbey Dean was certainly a great man. Although he had one foot in the grave, he was still thinking about great things.


    Putting Haotian in his n, who dared to say that this was not great?


    Long Qing went silent for a long time and then couldn¡¯t help but asked, ¡°What if?¡±


    The Abbey Dean answered, ¡°There is no ¡®what if¡¯.¡±


    He was the greatest person of Taoism in the millennium, and he was the most devout follower of Haotian. Although he was scheming against Haotian, he would never doubt the almighty Haotian. ¡°No one can kill Haotian, not Headmaster of Academy, not even Buddha.¡±


    Long Qing looked at the gray sky and said, ¡°But Buddha trapped Haotian in the chessboard.¡±


    The Abbey Dean exined, ¡°The chessboard is the Nirvana of Buddha. Although I can see that Buddha had reached Nirvana, I clearly know what Buddha wants to do, but it is all in vain.¡±


    Long Qing replied, ¡°I don¡¯t understand.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°Haotian knows everything and is capable of doing anything. Although she thought she didn¡¯t know, she still knows. Even if God¡¯s n doesn¡¯t work, she still has God¡¯s Heart. And God¡¯s Heart falls exactly in the chessboard. It is her own intention to go inside the chessboard. Otherwise why is she looking for the trace of Buddha in the human world?¡±


    Long Qing asked, ¡°Why does Haotian want to look for the chessboard?¡±


    The Abbey Dean answered, ¡°Because she needs the chessboard to go back to the Divine Kingdom.¡±


    Long Qing replied, ¡°I still don¡¯t understand.¡±


    The Abbey Dean answered,¡±I guess she hasn¡¯t figured it out either, let alone you.¡±


    Long Qing frowned and said, ¡°But you understand.¡±


    ¡°Because Haotian had given me a hint.¡±


    The Abbey Dean pointed to the dark sky and said, ¡°It¡¯s not Taoism that had tried to scheme against Haotian, and it¡¯s not me who wanted to kill Haotian with the help of Buddha¡¯s n. It was Haotian herself who wanted to go back.¡±


    Long Qing was silent for a long time. He understood what the Abbey Dean meant. Even if Buddha were to kill Haotian in the chessboard, it only meant it would help Haotian to turn back into the purest rule.


    But...is this really her own idea? Or is it the idea of Haotian in the Divine Kingdom? What is her rtionship with Haotian in the Divine Kingdom? Who is the real Haotian?


    ¡°They are both Haotian,¡± the Abbey Dean said.


    ¡°If Buddha is really in the chessboard and can suppress and even upy Haotian forever, then how could she return to Divine Kingdom if Buddha were to never kill her or were to never let her out?¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°One year ago, the Chief Monk of Scripture said that there is only affinity to Buddha, never Heaven¡¯s Will.¡±


    Hearing this, the Abbey Dean couldn¡¯t help butugh, and heughed happily and innocently, like a child who secretly opened a gift in a tree house. And he even shedded tears.


    ¡°Except for Haotian herself, nothing wouldst forever. Maybe she will die inside the chessboard, and then she will back to the Divine Kingdom. Or maybe she will survive the chessboard, and then she will also go back to the Divine Kingdom.¡± The Abbey Dean took over the handkerchief that Long Qing handed over, wiped away the tears on his face, and said with a smile, ¡°Who can trap Haotian? How can Haotian be trapped? Even if one were to escape God¡¯s n, then how can one ever escape God¡¯s Heart? Even Haotian herself can¡¯t escape her own mind, let alone the Headmaster of Academy or the bullshit Buddha. What a joke!¡±


    Long Qing still didn¡¯t understand. If Haotian were to die in the chessboard, then maybe she could turn back into rule and return to Divine Kingdom. But why is the Abbey Dean so sure that she will return to Divine Kingdom if she were to survive?


    The Abbey Dean felt cold and held up his skinny right hand.


    The middle-aged man stood behind the wheelchair in silence. Seeing the gesture, he pushed the wheelchair to the stone house.


    The Abbey Dean gave Long Qing his instruction, then refreshed his spirit by closing his eyes.


    ¡°Tell Xiong Chumo to get ready.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Morning bells and evening drums. Spring flowers and autumn fruits. Pickles and rice/ ck crows and creeks. Buddhist scriptures and the sky. Lakes and white towers. Time and space seemed to be flowing and also staying still.


    Ning Que had finished reading hundreds of volumes of Buddhist scriptures, and began to read the notes left by the previous generations of monks. Apanied by the bells, he cultivated Buddhism in silence, and his understanding of the Buddha Dharma gradually deepened. His mind was naturally tranquil like a well without any waves.


    Sangsang was still watching the sky, sometimes in the small courtyard, sometimes by theke, sometimes through the stream and sometime through theke water. It seemed that she could never get bored.


    One morning, Ning Que came to the White Tower Temple after making breakfast. As usual, he gossiped with the demented monk named Monk Qingban, and then went to the meditation room to read the scriptures.


    His heart was filled with joy and peace while reading some wonderful contents in the Buddhist scriptures, and he only felt that he was suddenly enlightened. Listening to the bellsing from the distant hall, he seemed to have forgotten his troubles.


    All of a sudden, he saw a shadow on the wall, which was the figure printed by the candlelight. The shadow was sitting with the legs crossed, as if it was cultivating.


    It wasn¡¯t until now did he notice that the sky was dark outside the window and it waste at night. He couldn¡¯t help but feel that Buddha Dharma was indeed wonderful and reading Buddhist Scriptures could make people forget the passing of time and all the sadness and suffering.


    Sangsang did not apany him to the White Tower Temple today. Thinking that she was still waiting for him to go back to make dinner, Ning Que collected the Buddhist scriptures on the table and blow out the candles, preparing to leave.


    He suddenly took a step back before he was about to cross the threshold.


    He was silent for a long time while standing inside the threshold, and sweats gradually appeared on his forehead.


    He wanted to turn back, but he dared not to do so. He had a strong feeling that something bad would happen and he would lose the wonderful life he had now if he were to turn back.


    He struggled for a long time and eventually turned around.


    Because he was very curious. For humans, it was the most powerful emotion to be able to ovee fear.


    Ning Que saw the shadow on the wall again.


    He was no longer reading the Buddhist Scriptures by the table. The candles on the table were already extinguished, and the stars above the temple were covered by clouds. The room was dark, but the shadow was still there.


    It was not his shadow. Then whose shadow was it?


    Looking at the shadow, Ning Que was silent for quite a while and then walked to the wall.


    His footsteps were heavy and his expression was solemn.


    Walking to the wall, he observed it for a long time in silence. He even reached out and touched it, only to find that there was nothing strange about this shadow. It was just a normal shadow which could be seen but not be touched.


    The trees, the sun and the mountains all have their own shadows. Then whose shadow is this? How can there be a shadow that exists by itself in the world? Ning Que thought for a while and then sat before the shadow with his legs crossed.


    It wasn¡¯t until then did he find that it was his own shadow, for it looked exactly the same as his figure.


    He didn¡¯t notice that the shadow seemed to be cultivating with the legs crossed when he sat by the desk before.


    It suddenly urred to him that he once saw a shadow on a stone wall in the depths of the cliff cave in the Xuankong Temple.


    That was the shadow of Master Lian Sheng.


    Is it possible that I have already reached the state that Lian Sheng had mastered? Ning Que was surprised. He sat on the lotus seat and formed Emblematic Gesture in his Ocean of Consciousness, and started to cultivate Buddha Dharma.


    He was worried that the shadow would fade away and wanted to strengthen it.


    In only an instant, he entered the meditation state in which he forgot himself and all the things around him.


    What shocked him was that the shadow on the wall began to move! No longer crossing its legs, the shadow stood up on the wall, raised its arms to the top of its head, as if it was holding up something very heavy. No, the shadow seemed to be trying to break through the sky!


    But the sky was too heavy, so the shadow did not seed. And it began to hold its head and twist its body into different strange shapes, as if it was in severe pain.


    The shadow continued to struggle, looking like a ck me that was burning on the white wall and bursting into mes. It looked like that the shadow was performing a weird dance and was inviting the whole world to dance with it!


    Ning Que looked at the shadow who was struggling in pain, and somehow he could understand its pain. What made him feel cold was that he could sense extreme unwillingness and anger which was so desperate that the whole world would be weeping over it.


    Ning Que was hit by grievance and sadness, then bursted into tears.


    At this moment, a bell came from the White Tower Temple.


    The evening course should be over by now, then why is there a belling from the temple?


    The bell was so melodious that it can calm everyone¡¯s minds.


    Listening to the bell, Ning Que gradually became calm.


    The shadow on the wall also became calm, but an instantter, it began to struggle again. And its struggle was even crazier and more violent due to the bell!


    Then there was a loud noise!


    It wasn¡¯t the bell in the temple, but the voice in Ning Que¡¯s mind. He felt that in his head, there was someone swinging a sharp axe into his skull!


    An indescribable pain spread from his head to his body. He turned extremely pale, and his lips began to tremble. The pain was so severe that he couldn¡¯t make a sound!


    The bell stopped, and it was very quiet everywhere.


    But the bell in Ning Que¡¯s head was still going on, and the axe kept chopping his skull as if it was trying to cut his head open. He kept clutching is head and rolling on the ground due to the severe pain!


    What is happening?


    Because of the intense pain, his sweat drenched his clothes. Due to the trance, he did not realize that deep down in his Ocean of Consciousness, there were several fragments of consciousness that became extremely bright, as if they were going to explode.


    His only remaining consciousness was to find the person who kept swinging the axe in his head. He wanted to kill that person and release himself from the terrible pain!


    He climbed to the wall, looked at the shadow which was still struggling crazily, then pulled out the iron cuss and used all his strength to attack the shadow. He knew that all this must be rted to the shadow, so he had to hack it!


    The iron cuss fell on the wall, causing the dust to rise and the bricks to fly around. But the shadow was still there, in front of his eyes.


    At this moment, a bell suddenly came from the high sky above the temple.


    The bell fell into the meditation room, and also fell on his body and heart.


    The bell was anotherrge axe.


    Someone was swinging the axe in his head.


    Someone was swinging the axe in the sky.


    Curling up in the corner, he turned pale and his eyes were full of pain, as if he would die at any moment.


    ...

 Chapter 959 - The Sky Wants to Strike You

    <h4>Chapter 959: The Sky Wants to Strike You</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    If there was a hole in the corner, Ning Que would definitely go in, no matter whether it was the endless abyss or the legendary gloom. But there was no hole. He could only hold his head and shake in pain and sweat. His lips didn¡¯t stop bleeding. His clothes were wet from his tears.


    He had never experienced such terrible pain, and he even felt that it was more painful than the torture he suffered when he was caught by mounted gangsters in the Wilderness. The axe in his head and the invisiblerge axe in the sky kept striking, as if they would never stop.


    Later on, his body even began to twitch, his eyes began to drift, and even his lips turned gray. He was not far off from being dead.


    After a long time, therge axe in the sky finally stopped, but the axe in his head was still striking. Feeling a little better, he stood up with unimaginable perseverance and then rushed out of the meditation room. He dared not to even turn around and nce at the shadow.


    Ning Que escaped from the White Tower Temple, and under the astonished looks of people in Chaoyang City, he kept coughing blood and staggered back to the small courtyard. After seeing Sangsang under the tree, he was finally relieved. Then he could no longer resist the weakness brought by the severe pain and finally passed out.


    When he woke up, the sky was bright outside, and Sangsang was asleep by the bedside. There was a bowl of ginseng porridge on the table, and the porridge still had a touch of heat. It seemed that she had been repeatedly warming itst night.


    Remembering all the nights they spent together back in City of Wei and Chang¡¯an many years ago, Ning Que felt warm and got up and lifted her to the bed, tucking her in the quilt. Then he heard a sound from his belly and realized he was very hungry. He picked up the bowl and drank up the porridge. After wiping his mouth clean, he was prepared to go to the White Tower Temple as usual, but suddenly he turned extremely pale.


    He remembered what happened in the meditation roomst night. Then he felt a sharp pain in his head. Obviously there was no one trying to hurt him with an axe at this moment, but he could still feel the pain.


    Sangsang opened her eyes and stared at him quietly for a long time. All of a sudden, she pointed at his head and said, ¡°There is someone in your head, and he wants toe out.¡±


    Nothing could get past Haotian¡¯s eyes, but she couldn¡¯t exin what happened to Ning Que. Why was there someone in his head who was chopping him with an axe? Even if she could exin this problem, how could she exin the invisiblerge axe falling down from the sky?


    Walking to the window, Ning Que looked at the gray sky and asked in a trembling voice, ¡°Why were you trying to strike me that day?¡±


    Sangsang thought for a while and said, ¡°Probably because you rarely apany me and often forget to cook for me these days, so you were struck by lightning?¡±


    ¡°There was no lightning. The sky just kept striking,¡± Ning Que answered.


    Sangsang asked, ¡°What¡¯s the difference?¡±


    Turning pale, Ning Que looked back and said to her, ¡°Why does the sky want to strike me?¡±


    Sangsang pointed to herself and said, ¡°I am the sky. Maybe it is me who wants to strike you.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°So it was you?¡±


    Looking at the sky outside the window, Sangsang answered, ¡°Maybe it was the other me who can¡¯t stand the way you treat me.¡±


    Remembering the pain he sufferedst night, Ning Que yelled out, ¡°I married you. Why does your twin brother or sister treat me like this? Is there any justice?¡±


    Sangsang answered calmly, ¡°What we do is justice.¡±


    Ning Que thought that the statement was quite unreasonable, but he didn¡¯t know whether or not what she said was correct. Anyway, he decided not to go to the White Tower Temple today. Although he wanted to figure out what the shadow on the wall was and why the axes in his head and in the sky wanted to chop him, he didn¡¯t want to relive the pain he sufferedst night. Human curiosity could indeed ovee the fear of the unknown, but it did not necessarily ovee the pain.


    He stayed in the small courtyard and apanied Sangsang in looking at the sky. Whenever a bell came from a temple in the distance, he would turn pale for he was still scared.


    Looking at his expression, Sangsang was confused and said, ¡°You are not afraid of pain in the past.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Actually I have always been terrified of pain. I just pretend that I am not since I have to take care of you.¡±


    Sangsang replied, ¡°You still have to take care of me now.¡±


    Ning Que thought for a while and said, ¡°You do have a point. I have to figure out the whole matter, otherwise something bad might happen. But I need some time to recover from the fear.¡±


    Maybe because he underestimated the curiosity of human beings, or because he had to take care of Sangsang that he defeated his fears. He did not wait any longer and returned to the White Tower Temple the next day.


    Monk Qingban tried to gossip with him as usual, but he didn¡¯t have the mood, so he just went straight to the meditation room. The wall that was smashed by himst night had been fixed.


    Facing the wall, he went silent for a long time, and there was no shadow on the wall.


    He sat back at the table and began to read the Buddhist scriptures. When twilight came, he lit the candles on the table. His hands were trembling while he was igniting the candle, so the mes were slightly shaking.


    The shadow reappeared on the wall. At the beginning, it was faint due to the shaking mes, but it took only a short time for the shadow to be clear.


    Ning Que stood up, and this simple gesture seemed to have consumed all his strength. And he was staggering while walking toward the wall.


    The shadow sat with its legs crossed, as if it was cultivating Buddha Dharma.


    Breathing deeply several times, Ning Que faced the wall and sat with his legs crossed.


    ¡°Who are you?¡± he looked at the shadow and asked.


    The shadow naturally did not answer him and was as silent as a dead monk.


    Ning Que stared at the shadow, as if he was trying to see through it.


    The shadow had no eyes, so naturally it couldn¡¯t look back at him.


    Just when Ning Que thought that he would spend the night peacefully, a bell suddenly came from the White Tower Temple.


    Just like the night before, the evening course had already ended, but the bell began to echo. He couldn¡¯t figure out where the bell came from, the Buddha hall or his heart.


    Ning Que looked nervous, for he remembered that something strange happenedst night after hearing the bell.


    It was also true tonight. The bell seemed to be the signal of the beginning of the disaster. The bell which was supposed to make people calm made the shadow on the wall be crazy.


    The shadow was no longer crossing its legs, but standing up and waving its arms toward the sky. From its fierce movements, it seemed like the shadow was not calling someone, but cursing loudly toward a certain spot in the sky.


    The shadow turned into a ck me and kept dancing, as if it wanted to burn everything. And it also looked like a prisoner in pain who was burning at the stake. The body was scorched by the me, which was particrly scary.


    Ning Que felt sad and began to cry, for he once again felt the unwillingness, desperation, and anger of the shadow and sensed the endless destion and sadness.


    It seemed that he was seeing an old monk who was standing in front of a grave, facing the torrential rain falling in the night sky and angrily curssing at Taoism and Buddhism, as of it wished to tear the world apart.


    Ning Que bursted into tears, not only because he sensed these emotions, but also because he knew that he was about to suffer the pain like the night before.


    A loud noise!


    Ning Que felt that someone was standing in his Ocean of Consciousness, holding a sharp axe and swinging it into his skull. It seemed like that person was trying to break his head and jump out.


    The intense pain spread from his head to his limbs, and he even felt that his skin was being pinched by numerous fine needles. The feeling was like being peeled and then sprinkled with sea salt!


    Ning Que suddenly turned pale, and his body kept shaking, like a mountain which might copse at any time. But he had been prepared for tonight and forced himself to maintain the leg-crossed posture.


    ¡°Lian Sheng! What are you going to do?!¡± He looked at the shadow on the wall and shouted angrily.


    The shadow on the wall did not answer him, but kept struggling desperately, screaming at the sky and striking. So the axe kept chopping Ning Que¡¯s head.


    Enduring the pain, Ning Que bit his lips and shouted with trembling and hoarse voice, ¡°You stop now, or I will kill you!¡±


    Lian Sheng¡¯s conscious fragments had been lying quietly in the depths of his Ocean of Consciousness for many years, and it would only shine and give some instruction when Ning Que encountered danger.


    Although the consciousness of Lian Sheng was very powerful, it was after all only the remnants left after his death. Ning Que believed that he could suppress it with the strength of his Psyche Power.


    The shadow still ignored him and seemed very contemptuous.


    Because of the pain, Ning Que¡¯s eyebrows kept beating and his clothes had been soaked by sweat. He knew that he could no longer endure it, so he used his Psyche Power to dive into the depths of his Ocean of Consciousness.


    Although he felt pity and unwilling to do so, he still had to destroy the fragments of consciousness left by Lian Sheng, otherwise he might actually go crazy in this kind of pain or even die directly.


    But he forgot there were two axes.


    Just as he mobilized his Psyche Power, a thunder-like bell came from the sky above the White Tower Temple.


    The invisiblerge axe fell from the high sky and fell directly on him.


    At this moment, he felt that his body was split into halves and his heart was also split into halves.


    Although he bit his lip, he couldn¡¯t stop his painful shouting.


    He fell to the ground and vomited blood painfully, and his body kept twisting, like a loach in a hot pot. Soon the ground was besmeared with blood.


    The axe from the sky continued to chop, and the axe from his Ocean of Consciousness continued to chop too. He could no longer bear the pain and finally passed out. But even in aa, his body still twitched from time to time. Obviously, the two axes were still chopping nonstop.


    After a long time, he woke up in the meditation room, and the sky was already bright. He was in aa for the whole night, but fortunately, the bell and the axes stopped.


    Wiping off the blood stains on his lips, he walked out of the meditation room and went to theke.


    Monk Qingban was on thekeside. Seeing his pale face and the blood on his body, Qingban was surprised and asked, ¡°Elder brother, are you chanting or killing in the meditation room?¡±


    Ning Que looked at the blue sky and asked, ¡°Have you heard the bell?¡±


    Monk Qingban was stunned and said, ¡°What bell?¡±


    Ning Que was also stunned and murmured, ¡°Why am I the only one who can hear it?¡±


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 960 - Striking You is Because Missing You, So it is Loud

    <h4>Chapter 960: Striking You is Because Missing You, So it is Loud</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Returning to the small courtyard, Ning Que sat under the tree and pondered for three days and three nights. Then he felt that his spirit hadpletely recovered and was ready to go out. Sangsang stopped him. ¡°If you don¡¯t understand, why bother to suffer?¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t look back and answered, ¡°After all the sufferings I have been through, of course I have to figure it out.¡±


    Arriving at the White Tower Temple, Ning Que began to read the Buddhist Scriptures and the notes taken by the previous generations of monks. As the evening fell, he lit the candle on the table. He was already familiar with these procedures and did them naturally.


    The candle was lit and the shadow reappeared on the wall.


    He walked to the wall and sat down with his legs crossed. After thinking for a while, he took out the iron sword and ced it on the ground beside him, and then he took out several Fu papers from the sleeve forter use.


    In fact, he was very clear that the iron sword and the Fu papers couldn¡¯t do any harm to the shadow on the wall and the two axes, for it was not the ordinary sense of disaster. But doing so could make him feel at ease.


    It didn¡¯t take long for the bell ringing in the White Tower Temple again. But Ning Que was still the only one who could hear it.


    He looked at the shadow on the wall and said, ¡°Come on.¡±


    The shadow stood up and began to struggle wildly.


    Therge axe once again was being swinging wildly in Ning Que¡¯s mind.


    Ning Que suddenly turned pale, and the blue veins kept appearing on his forehead as the axe fell. His mouth began to ooze blood, but he still maintained the leg-crossed posture and refused to surrender.


    At this point, he knew clearly that the shadow on the wall was his, but also Lian Sheng¡¯s. Therge axe in his mind was in fact the fragments of the consciousness of Lian Sheng trying tounch an attack.


    When he couldn¡¯t stand the pain three days ago, he wanted to suppress the fragments of Lian Sheng¡¯s consciousness with his own Psyche Power, but the axe in the sky fell at that time.


    Although he did not understand the truth of the matter on the first night, he instinctively tried to destroy the fragments of Lian Sheng¡¯s consciousness. But the bell rang in the sky at that time.


    He couldn¡¯t resist two axes at the same time. He wanted to give it a try to resist the one in his head.


    ¡°If you keep struggling and twisting like this, people might think that you are going crazy. What do you really want to do?¡± Looking at the shadow which was struggling in pain on the wall, Ning Que asked with a pale face, ¡°Just tell me what you want. I can¡¯t just read your mind.¡±


    The shadow still didn¡¯t respond.


    The axe was still chopping in his head. The sweat kept running down his nose and flowing into his mouth. Tasting saltyness, Ning Que couldn¡¯t tell whether it was sweat or blood.


    He stared at the shadow on the wall, and his body kept shaking. Enduring the terrible pain, Ning Que held his hands tightly and his nails even were digging into his palms.


    ¡°What the hell are you going to do?!¡± he shouted in pain and angrily.


    The shadow suddenly stood still and spread around, eventually upying the entire meditation room. The candlelight and the starlight outside the window became dark.


    In this dark world, Ning Que saw the stone beams hanging in the air, the Wordless Tablet, the mountain piled up with human bones and the old monk who was as thin as a ghost in the mountain of Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    The old monk was Buddha, but he was also the devil.


    The old monk said, ¡°If you want to cultivate Devil¡¯s Doctrine, you must cultivate Buddha Dharma.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°I have been cultivating Buddha Dharma.¡±


    The old monk said, ¡°You can never be Buddha if you are not crazy enough.¡±


    Ning Que suddenly remembered that he had heard those words before. Then he realized that Lian Sheng was not answering his question, but retelling the past after death.


    The old monk had deep eye sockets in which there seemed to be ghost fires. His face was distorted and looked extremely painful, and he yelled out, ¡°These are all false! Buddha is false! Devil is false too.¡±


    Ning Que woke up in cold sweat.


    With a creaking sound, the door of the meditation room was pushed open. And the shadow that was scattering around the room suddenly converged together and turned into a leg-crossed shadow on the wall.


    Walking to him, Sangsang looked at the shadow silently and then said, ¡°He is not Lian Sheng.¡±


    Ning Que¡¯s head was still painful, so he asked dazedly, ¡°Then who is that?¡±


    Sangsang looked at him and answered, ¡°You.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Why it is me? What about the bell from the sky?¡±


    Sangsang replied, ¡°I don¡¯t know. I don¡¯t know.¡±


    She was the Haotian, but she didn¡¯t know the answers to these two questions.


    ...


    ...


    In the days that followed, Ning Que would asionally go to the White Tower Temple to question and curse the shadow on the wall. But he still could not find an answer.


    The most painful thing for him was that if he did not go to the White Tower Temple, the axe in his head would not torture him, but no matter where he was, the bell in the sky just kept ringing, so the invisiblerge axe just kept torturing his body and mind. It seemed that therge axe would not stop until it could cut him into two pieces.


    No one could hear the bell falling from the sky, just like no one could hear the belling from the White Tower Temple at night, and no one could see therge axe that descended from the sky. Not even Sangsang.


    Ning Que sometimes felt that these were all hallucinations, but the pain constantly reminded him that the axe really existed and someone was really chopping him.


    He couldn¡¯t bear the extreme pain caused by therge axe, and his body became weaker and weaker and his mind was easily distracted. He would rush to the yard and curse the sky when he couldn¡¯t stand the pain, but only finding that what he did was pointless.


    Sangsang spent all of her time taking care of him, wiping the sweat from his forehead, dispelling the shadow of nightmares and the summer flies for him, hand holding his hand and looking up the sky asionally.


    Three years just passed, and Ning Que had been tortured by the axe for three years. The time became so long in the unbearable torture. He had thought about killing himself, but he hated to part with Sangsang.


    One day inte autumn, Ning Que got up from bed, walked to the table, stretched out the trembling fingers, and took the tea bowl. He used a lot of strength to not let the bowl drop.


    The real pain would make human body react instinctively. The endless pain was definitely a great torture to the spirit and a great harm to the body.


    He pushed the door open and walked out the room. Seeing that Sangsang was preparing lunch in the kitchen, he suggested, ¡°I have no appetite. Just prepare something casual.¡±


    Sangsang stood up and looked at him quietly. All of a sudden, she smiled.


    Ning Que thought that there were something on his face. He reached out to touch his face, but only finding that he had lost a lot of weight.


    Suddenly, his expression changed slightly, for he remembered that he had not been suffering for a long time.


    He looked up at the autumn sky and muttered, ¡°Are you done striking?¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Would you like to go for a walk?¡±


    In the past three years, Ning Que rarely left the small courtyard to take a walk. Thest thing he wanted was to fall to the ground while he was holding Sangsang¡¯s hands and walking by the river. He would be so embarrassed.


    Since the axe in the sky had stopped torturing me, maybe I can go out for a walk? But why do I feel a little lost now that the axe had stopped striking? ¡°Okay,¡± he said with a smile, but his smile was a little stiff for he had not smiled for a long time due to the endless pain.


    Sangsang dried her hands with the apron and asked, ¡°Where?¡±


    Ning Que thought for a while and answered, ¡°The White Tower Temple.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Walking into the meditation room, Ning Que closed the door and sat before the wall.


    Sangsang looked at the sky silently outside the meditation room.


    The candle had been lit, and the shadow appeared on the wall.


    ¡°It has been a long time.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the shadow and said, ¡°I don¡¯t know if you are Lian Sheng or me, but I think that you will not harm me. Then what do you want to tell me?¡±


    The shadow remained silent, just like what it had been in the past three years.


    Ning Que said, ¡°No matter what is going on, I don¡¯t want to endure anymore. Ie here to ask you for thest time before the axe in the sky drops down and when I am still conscious.¡±


    The shadow stood up slowly and looked up.


    ¡°If you still refuse to answer me, then maybe I will die.¡± Ning Que smiled wanly and said, ¡°I really can¡¯t stand the pain anymore.¡±


    The shadow suddenly looked toward him. Although the shadow had no eyes, Ning Que knew that it was looking at him.


    Ning Que stared at it and said, ¡°If I die, you will die too.¡±


    The shadow suddenly bent down and kept trembling. It seemed that it wasughing to tears.


    Ning Que was about to say something, but the shadow suddenly straightened up and pped his head!


    A bell once again came from the White Tower Temple!


    Therge axe in Ning Que¡¯s head was violently striking his head! It was the most powerful strike in three years!


    Meanwhile, an extremely violent voice came from the sky! An invisible and sharprge axe came from the sky and fell on Ning Que instantly!


    The two axes met above Ning Que¡¯s head.


    A loud noise!


    Ning Que felt that his body and heart were really cut into pieces.


    The severe pain made his eyes shrink and the root of his tongue numb.


    Even though he wanted to kill himself by biting off his tongue, he couldn¡¯t do it at this point.


    But the pain gradually disappeared like the ebb tide.


    He felt like his head was split open and had a big slit.


    His eyes could see through the big slit.


    He looked at the wall and the sky at the same time.


    He felt he could see things that he couldn¡¯t see before and could understand things that he couldn¡¯t understand before. Was this Buddha eye?


    ...


    ...


    Earlier at the Back Hill of Academy, there was a crowd under the pear tree. Sixth Brother held an iron hammer and kept smashing the chessboard, and others were cheering for him.


    They had been smashing the chessboard. As long as Ning Que was trapped in it, they hadn¡¯t stopped smashing it, and they believed that they could destroy the chessboard one day.


    The autumn wind blew slightly. Eldest Brother came to the peer tree, and everyone went forward to greet him.


    Eldest Brother took over the iron hammer and said, ¡°You take a rest. Let me try.¡±


    The iron hammer fell, causing countless dust and sounded like a thunder.


    Ximen Buhuo appraised, ¡°Eldest Brother is so powerful. What a loud sound.¡±


    Beigong Weiyang looked at the chessboard and said with disappointment, ¡°But the chessboard is still intact.¡±


    Eldest Brother smiled sheepishly and handed the iron hammer out.


    ...

 Chapter 961 - See through the Sky and Phra Pidta

    <h4>Chapter 961: See through the Sky and Phra Pidta</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ning Que stood up and looked a little stunned. Then he spat out some blood. The wall was immediately covered with blood. The blood-stained meditation room originally had gray walls. The shadow was also covered with blood since it was on the wall.


    The shadow put its hands together devoutly, as if it was joyful. Then it turned around and walked into the depths of the blood and gradually disappeared.


    Seeing this, Ning Que suddenly felt very sad, for it seemed that he would never see the shadow again.


    The shadow disappeared, and then the gray wall gradually disappeared. It turned out that the wall was fake. He looked back at the candle on the table, and the candle was fake too. He looked at the wooden door of the meditation room. It turned out that the door and the threshold were all fake.


    Looking at the roof of the meditation room, his eyes passed through the beams to look at the gray sky.


    The meditation room was fake and the temple was fake too. Then what about Chaoyang City? What about the sky?


    Ning Que opened the wooden door of the meditation room and walked out. At this time, the clouds in the sky suddenly dispersed, revealing the sun. The world became very clear, and the White Tower and the clearke were picturesque.


    The sun shone on Ning Que¡¯s face and he squinted his eyes slightly. The clouds appeared on the sky again, covering the sun. Then a cold autumn rain was wetting the picturesque tower andke.


    Sangsang was not outside the meditation room. She should be looking up the sky by theke like she always did in the past years.


    Ning Que walked towards theke, and he looked calm as if he had been relieved.


    Monk Qingban stood by theke to shelter himself from the rain. Seeing the expression on Ning Que¡¯s face, he was a little stunned at first and then became happy, ¡°Elder brother, are you enlightened?¡±


    Ning Que looked at the silly monk and said, ¡°Yes.¡±


    Monk Qingban opened his eyes open and asked eagerly, ¡°What have you learned from the enlightenment?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°All of these are fake.¡±


    Monk Qingban didn¡¯t understand, and he repeated subconsciously, ¡°All these are fake?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡± Standing by thekeside, Ning Que looked at the White Tower that was being washed by the autumn rain and said, ¡°This tower is fake, and the rain falling on the tower is also fake.¡±


    ¡°Theke is fake too.¡± He pointed to theke in front of him and then continued, ¡°The temple is fake, the city is fake, the country is fake, the people are fake, the snow covering the Languan was fake, and the seventy-two temples in the rain are fake too.¡±


    Monk Qingban scratched his ears and cheeks in embarrassment, for he couldn¡¯t understand what Ning Que meant but was anxious to understand. All of a sudden, he remembered one thing and took a steamed bun from his Kasaya.


    ¡°I am real.¡± While saying this, Monk Qingban took a bite of the steamed bun and chewed roughly and said, ¡°I am eating the steamed bun, so it has to be real too.¡±


    Ning Que looked at him, revealingpassion in his eyes. But he said nothing.


    Monk Qingban pointed at theke in front of him and the White Tower on the other side of theke, and cried gloomily, ¡°I can see all these. How can you be fake? You are just being unreasonable.¡±


    Ning Que stared at him in silence for a long time and then said, ¡°You are also fake.¡±


    Monk Qingban looked at him with ignorance and didn¡¯t understand what he was talking about.


    Ning Que exined, ¡°In fact, you have been dead for many years. The monks in the temple say that you have innate intelligence, which is of course not wrong, for you were a great monk of Buddhism in your past life. But unfortunately, you were killed not long after you began to cultivate Buddha Dharma. Otherwise you might have be a powerful monk with great virtue in the Xuankong Temple.¡±


    Monk Qingban was a little confused, ¡°I was killed? Who killed me?¡±


    Ning Que looked at him calmly and answered, ¡°I did.¡± ¡°Your name is Daoshi. Your mother was the sister of the king of the Yuelun Kingdom, and was called Quni Madi. Tour father was Master Baoshu, the Chief Monk of the Commandment Hall in the Xuankong Temple. Because I had insulted your mother, you came to Chang¡¯an to find me after you left the Xuankong Temple and made your name in seventy-two temples in Yuelun Kingdom. Then I killed you.¡±


    He continued. ¡°Later, in order to avenge your death and of course also to suppress the daughter of Invariant Yama, your father left the Xuankong Temple, taking the Um Bell with him to set up a trap with Qi Nian. But the Academy saw through and coped with the trap, so your father was killed by the Academy, which was practically the same as being killed by me.¡±


    ¡°Then Sangsang and I fled to Chaoyang City and were surrounded by countless followers and powerful masters from Buddhism and Taoism in the White Tower Temple. Your mother Quni Madi was practicing Buddhism here back then and was taken hostage by me. I was prepared to let her go after I got through the siege, but for some reason I killed her atst.¡± Ning Que looked at Monk Qingban and said calmly, ¡°I killed you and your whole family.¡±


    ¡°But...but why did you kill me and my family?¡± Monk Qingban did not listen carefully to Ning Que, and he only felt very confused, ¡°Besides, my name is Qingban, not Daoshi. Have you mistakened me for another person?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Qingban is Daoshi. They¡¯re the same.¡±


    ¡°You are just telling jokes now.¡± Monk Qingban smiled and said, ¡°My name is Qingban. When the abbot was ying mahjong one night many years ago, he was nning to y the strategy of Qingban but threw out the wrong tile for he was distracted by my crying. So, he gave the name Qingban to me to mark the mistake.¡±


    Ning Que stopped talking. Since he does not believe me, why should I bother to exin further?


    Monk Qingban was not willing to give up. He followed Ning Que and kept asking, ¡°How can you prove it?¡±


    Sangsang sat by thekeside to look up the sky this whole time, hearing clearly what the two had been talking about. She turned back and looked at Ning Que with a confused look, for she didn¡¯t understand what Ning Que meant either.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t need to prove anything to Monk Qingban, but he must make Sangsang believe that the whole ce was fake. It was the way for her to really wake up and leave this ce.


    ¡°In which direction is Chang¡¯an located?¡± Ning Que asked.


    Sitting by theke, Sangsang pointed to the east.


    He untied the arrow casket and assembled the iron bow in a short period of time. Then he drew the bow, fitted the arrow to the bow and aimed at the direction to which Sangsang pointed. When the bow string was like a full moon, he released the arrow.


    A round white turbulence appeared at the end of the arrow, and the dark iron arrow disappeared in theke. There was no response at all for a long time.


    ¡°See? Like I said, these are all fake.¡± Ning Que said.


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°The Academy would know that I have shot the iron arrow if Chang¡¯an was really there.¡±


    Sangsang thought for a while and said, ¡°Then?¡±


    Ning exined, ¡°My Eldest Brother still has note after such a long time, which indicates that Eldest Brother is not in this world. Thus, the world must be fake.¡±


    Sangsang was confused and then asked, ¡°Are you sure that Li Manman woulde?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Of course. He came back then and he wille now.¡±


    Sangsang did not respond.


    Ning Que pointed to theke and the White Tower and said, ¡°Theke and the White Tower came to the Xuankong Temple before we entered the chessboard. Why are they here now?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°We left Xuankong Temple. Theke and White Tower cane back with us.¡±


    Ning Que¡¯s arrow and words couldn¡¯t convince her, for she had not waken up yet, or she was just not willing to wake up. She quietly looked at the sky that was reflected on the surface of theke.


    ¡°Actually...I don¡¯t want to wake up either. I was very upset and even very scared when I woke up. I felt cold and even vomited a lot of blood.¡± Walking to her, Ning Que sat down beside her and held her hands gently. He looked at the sky and said, ¡°Although the world is fake, we have been really happy these years, especially the first few years. I can¡¯t bear to part with all these wonderful days.¡±


    Sangsang leaned against his shoulder and looked very sad.


    Ning Que touched the little white flower in her hair gently and asked, ¡°Do you think the sky is beautiful?¡±


    Sangsang nodded slightly.


    Ning Que said, ¡°You think the sky is very familiar, so you like to look at it?¡±


    Looking at the gray and high sky, Sangsang clearly knew the answer but dared not to speak out.


    Ning Que hesitated but continued to say, ¡°You were born in the sky and grew up there. The sky is your home, so you feel that it is familiar to you. And it¡¯s also the reason why you always want to go back.¡±


    Hearing this, the sadness in Sangsang¡¯s eyes gradually disappeared. She was now calm. And theke which was disturbed by the autumn rain before gradually became calm too, revealing the clear sky.


    As she blinked, the surface of theke rippled.


    The sky reflected in theke had been cut into countless pieces of light and shadow, and the original appearance of the sky could no longer be found, turning into countless stars.


    Theke evaporated and the White Tower disappeared. Since they were actually in Xuankong Temple, they couldn¡¯t be in front of her.


    As Sangsang looked at the sky, the rain clouds suddenly spread out, revealing the clear sky. But it was still not the sky Sangsang wanted to see. Several cracks suddenly appeared on the porcin-like blue sky.


    Just like a delicate porcin was thrown to the ground, the sky was broken.


    She had quietly watched the sky in the small courtyard and by thekeside for hundreds of years. Now, with the help of Ning Que, she finally saw through the sky and caught a glimpse of the darkness and nothingness behind it.


    Yes, the world is fake, or maybe it is real. But in any case, it is not my world. It is inside the chessboard and the world of Buddha.


    She stood up slowly and held her hands behind her back.


    Looking at the blue sky which suddenly turned into a dark sky, Monk Qingban was terrified. He clutched Ning Que¡¯s sleeves and asked in a trembling voice, ¡°Elder Brother, what¡¯s wrong?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°We are leaving now. You go find a ce to hide.¡±


    Monk Qingban asked, ¡°Where are you going?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Outside.¡±


    ¡°Outside? Where is outside?¡± Monk Qingban looked at him and suddenly cried bitterly, ¡°Does it mean that I am already dead?¡±


    Ning Que said nothing.


    Monk Qingban was crying nonstop. He tried to wipe the tears with his sleeves, but the tear just kept running.


    Ning Que suddenly became solemn.


    Monk Qingban wiped the tears with his sleeves, but the tear just kept running.


    He wiped his face with the sleeves. As he kept wiping, his one eyebrow was gone, then his nose was gone, and then his eyes gone too.


    He seemed to feel a little embarrassed, covering his face with the sleeve and requesting, ¡°I don¡¯t want you to go.¡±


    Monk Qingban turned himself to a Phra Pidta.


    He said he didn¡¯t want Ning Que and Sangsang to go.


    He won¡¯t let Ning Que and Sangsang go.

 Chapter 962 - They Open the Black Umbrella But Can’t Leave

    <h4>Chapter 962: They Open the ck Umbre But Can¡¯t Leave</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    In the records of the Buddhist Scriptures, there was a handsome monk with great virtue who looked a lot like Buddha. Many followers mistakenly believed that he was Buddha and worshiped him. The monk with great virtue was ashamed and cut his own face with a sharp cuss, for he thought being mistaken for Buddha would mislead the followers. After he became ugly, he covered his face with his hands every time he went out. When seen in public, children would throw little stones at him and dogs would chase and bark at him. He used to be worshipped by the world, but now he was loathed. However, he never said any abusive words or showed any vicious expressions. He just endured all the sufferings and never fought back. Atst, he mastered the Divine Ability and became Phra Pidta.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t understand why Monk Qingban became the legendary Phra Pidta just by wiping his face with sleeves. After a moment of silence, Ning Que said, ¡°You are already dead. Even though you¡¯ve be Phra Pidta here, you are still dead. How can a dead man make us stay here?¡±


    ¡°Thinking is intention, and intention is power. If I don¡¯t want you to go, then you have to stay.¡± Monk Qingban covered his face with his sleeves. He could talk even though he had no eyes and lips on his face. His words revealed sorrow andpassion, and the Light of Buddha shone through his sleeves and it looked magnificent.


    Before the sound of Qingban¡¯s voice had died away, his sleeves fell to Ning Que¡¯s face, full of the Power of Buddha.


    Ning Que was prepared for his attack. He took out the iron cuss and swung it vigorously.


    The sleeves and the iron cuss met silently. Being blown by the fierce wind, the trees by theke were all bent. Countless trees broke, revealing the white stubbles.


    There was a sleeve floating in the wind.


    The iron cuss broke out of the sleeve and fell on the neck of Monk Qingban. The ck de had already turned red.


    Monk Qingban had no facial features, so it was hard for him to express emotions. But he was clearly shocked at this moment.


    He couldn¡¯t understand why Ning Que¡¯s iron cuss was able to break his Power of Buddha so easily.


    ¡°I killed you once in Chang¡¯an. I have proven that I don¡¯t worship Buddha in my ocean of consciousness. Although I have been practicing Buddhism for many years, the situation remains the same.¡± Ning Que slid the de through the neck of Monk Qingban and said, ¡°So I can kill you again.¡±


    As the de was retracted, Monk Qingban¡¯s head fell from his shoulders like a mellow fruit,nding on the floor and then rolling forward to the broken tree by theke.


    Monk Qingban was still standing, and there was a lot of golden liquid flowing out of his neck, slowly evaporating into the air.


    Under the tree, Monk Qingban regained his facial features.


    He managed to blink and remembered all the years he spent in the White Tower Temple reading Buddhist scriptures and practicing Buddhism, only to learn that all his efforts were in vain.


    Looking at the east, he was hit by sorrow and sadness and then closed his eyes. Presumably he would never open his eyes again.


    Only until then did Monk Qingban or Daoshi really wake up and finally died.


    Many cracks suddenly appeared on the surface of the headless body of Monk Qingban and gradually widened, and the golden liquid continued to flow out from the cracks, turning into the purest Light of Buddha after encountering the wind.


    Looking at what happened in silence, Ning Que didn¡¯t notice that Sangsang who sat by theke behind him frowned and turned pale when she saw the golden Light of Buddha.


    In addition to the reasons he had previously said, the most important reason why he killed Phra Pidta was that he had be so powerful that it was even beyond his own imagination.


    In the Divine Halls of West-Hill, Sangsang cut off his flesh and limbs, and then he was resurrected with Haotian¡¯s Divine Power. After experiencing numerous rebirths, he was very pure, without any dirt on his body.


    In the cliff cave of the Xuankong Temple, hepleted the task arranged by Master Lian Sheng, which was to cultivate Buddhism before cultivating Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Buddhism and Devil¡¯s Doctrine all originated from the same source and could be connected. The person who connected them would be extremely powerful.


    Lian Sheng once said that connecting Buddhism and Devil¡¯s Doctrine would lead to the state of God. At this point, Ning Que had connected Buddhism and Devil¡¯s Doctrine, and he had mastered Haoran Qi with the help of Headmaster of Academy. He had already reached Knowing Destiny Zenith, and even approaching the threshold!


    At this point, Ning Que could kill people with his cuss or even through meditation. He even could kill people as powerful as Elders of Commandment Hall of the Xuankong Temple with his cuss, let alone Monk Qingban who was just a fake Buddha.


    Sangsang murmured, ¡°Oh, so it is.¡±


    She had already seen through the sky and all things in this world. Chaoyang City was fake, the White Tower Temple was fake, the tree and ck crow in the small courtyard were fake, the vegetables in the market, and the pickle jar in the kitchen were also fake. If these were all fake, then what was real?


    This was the world inside the chessboard.


    At the cliff yard of the Xuankong Temple, she entered the chessboard with Ning Que to find Buddha, which was a mistake that wasted thousands of years of her time, just like the time she entered the chessboard in Lanke Temple back then.


    She was carried away in the dreams.


    When she was on that mountain back then, she saw the truth and the illusion, and experienced endless loneliness. No one apanied her and no one talked to her.


    Compared with the past, she seemed to be less lonely since she had Ning Que beside her. But she understood that Buddha couldn¡¯t trap her in the chessboard for so many years if not for Ning Que.


    She stood up and looked at Ning Que, ¡°After eating that green pear, we have wasted thousands of years here. You have wasted thousands of years of my time here.¡±


    Ning Que ignored her and was thinking about how many years they had lived in this chessboard world. He felt unsettled, for he couldn¡¯t remember clearly what happened in the earlier years after so many years. ¡°Master Qishan once said that a moment inside is a year outside if we were to enter the chessboard from the front, and a year inside is just a moment outside if we enter the chessboard from the back. Do you remember from which side we entered? How many years have passed outside?¡±


    Sangsang was about to get angry but suddenly realized that Ning Que wouldn¡¯t care about her anger after she heard his question. After a moment of silence, she answered, ¡°Buddha wouldn¡¯t get his way so easily.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Can you calcte how many years have passed?¡±


    Sangsang thought for a while and said, ¡°At most several years.¡±


    Even though Ning Que had reached Knowing Destiny Zenith, he still couldn¡¯t understand the concept of time. But for Haotian, it was not so difficult.


    ¡°It is very dangerous.¡±


    Sangsang looked at the east and said, ¡°We almost lost in time.¡±


    ¡°Fortunately, we wake up now.¡±


    Looking at the sky, Ning Que thought about the sound of the axe and was puzzled.


    But at this point, he understood that it was very dangerous to practice Buddhism in the White Tower Temple. As one was gradually fascinated by Buddha Dharma, it would be difficult to wake up from a world full of peace and joy even though he had reached a very high state. If Ning Que hadn¡¯t woken up, he would have never seen through the world of chessboard, let alone going back to the real world.


    Fortunately, his ocean of consciousness contained fragments of consciousness left by Lian Sheng.


    Lian Sheng was a great monk, but was also a bloody devil. He used to be obsessed with Buddhism, but also hated Buddhism. Being such aplex man helped himself maintain consciousness in the vast Buddha Dharma and turned the fragment of his consciousness into a sharp axe to strike Ning Que¡¯s head, trying to wake him up with pain. But who struck Ning Que with the axe from the sky? Who else wanted to warn Ning Que?


    Sangsang said, ¡°If you hadn¡¯t woken up, then I probably would have never woken up. In this case, you owe me nothing, and I won¡¯t punish you.¡±


    Ning Que knew what she meant. If not for him, she wouldn¡¯t be sentimentally attached to the human world, and she would never be trapped by the chessboard like this.


    He smiled, but didn¡¯t say anything.


    At this moment, a few rays of light suddenly appeared on the dark sky.


    Ning Que looked solemn. He had seen such pure lights in the chessboardst time in Lanke Temple, so he knew that every ray of light represented the rule of the chessboard world.


    The rule of the world was copsing, which revealed the most horrible power.


    He was not afraid, for he had experience in dealing with this kind of situation.


    He took out the big ck umbre and said to Sangang, ¡°Shall we go?¡±


    He asked for her opinion about whether or not they should leave, for he was unsettled and worried that she might want to stay in the chessboard and continue to find Buddha and kill him which seemed like an impossible task at this point. Besides, he also worried that she would go back to Divine Kingdom after leaving the chessboard.


    The old Sangsang would definitely choose to stay in the chessboard world and continue to search for the Buddha who had trapped her for hundreds or even thousands of years without her knowing. She wanted to kill Buddha, for she was the Great Haotian.


    But to Ning Que¡¯s surprise, she walked to him and said calmly, ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    Ning Que was stunned, and then handed the umbre over.


    With a soft sound, Sangsang opened the big ck umbre.


    The dim light of the night covered Sangsang and Ning Que.


    A moment passed, a quarter of an hour passed, one hour passed, and then one day and night passed.


    But nothing happened. The ck umbre was still by thekeside, and Ning Que and Sangsang were still under the umbre. They couldn¡¯t leave the chessboard.


    Ning Que remembered what Monk Qingban said before his death: ¡°I don¡¯t want you to go.¡±


    The world didn¡¯t want them to go.


    He turned pale, and his hands which held Sangsang trembled slightly.


    But why?


    When they entered the chessboard back in the Lanke Temple and the rule of the world chased Sangsang, they opened the ck umbre and then just disappeared. The rule of the world couldn¡¯t find them back then.


    But why didn¡¯t the big ck umbre take them away?


    Looking at the dark sky, Sangsang was silent for a few moments and then said, ¡°I can¡¯t sense the outside world.¡±


    She was the rule. As long as she couldmunicate with the rule of the world outside the chessboard, she could return to the human world, just as she could return to Divine Kingdom even if she had died.


    The big ck umbres could turn them invisible from the rule of the world, and could also help hermunicate with the rule of the outside world. If she couldn¡¯t sense the outside world, then there were only two possibilities.


    It was either the umbre was broken or that there was something wrong with her.


    The big ck umbre was not broken, so there must be something wrong with Sangsang.


    Before Ning Que said anything, she exined, ¡°I am not as powerful as before.¡± She was a little confused.


    Even though she became weaker and weaker for she was still infused with the power of the human world by the Headmaster of Academy and had many connections with the world due to her rtionship with Ning Que. She was still calm and confident. It was because she still still possessed unimaginable power even if she was weaker than before.


    But now she found that she was much weaker than she had thought.


    She closed her eyes and began to figure out the reasons for this.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 963 - Poisoned

    <h4>Chapter 963: Poisoned</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Although the sky was dark, there was still light.


    Sangsang was holding the big ck umbre. Her feet were in the light, but her body was in the dark. She closed her eyes and was looking solemn and quiet.


    She was puzzled. Although Buddha is strong, he is not as strong as the Headmaster of Academy and the human world. How could he make me so weak?


    Countless pictures were shing back at a high speed in her consciousness. They were so clear even though hundreds of years had already passed. The tranquility in the small courtyard. The tea and wine. The chess and the streaky pork. Walking hand in hand. Wandering by thekeside. Holding umbres in the alley. Watching the ancient temples during the rain and the frontier juncture in snow. They all represented attachment.


    The quarrel in the small courtyard. The blood in the market. The fading figure. The angry query. The confrontation between life and death. The violent emotions. The low mood. They all represented aversion.


    The rest of the pictures all started from attachment and aversion, or led to attachment and aversion, which represented obsession.


    ording to Buddhism, attachment, aversion, and obsession were the three poisons.


    The Mahayana stated, ¡°People who have attachment indulge in all things they favor and be insatiably avaricious. People who have aversion indulge in all things they hate and be anxious and angry, and people who have obsession indulge in logic due to ignorance.¡±


    The Great Treatise on the Perfection of Wisdom stated, ¡°People get attached to things thate across their way and be averse to things that disobey them. This is born of confusion instead of wisdom and will lead to obsession. These three poisons are the root of all troubles.¡±


    The Nirvana Sutra stated, ¡°Attachment, aversion, and obsession are the most poisonous.¡±


    Sangsang was poisoned by attachment, aversion, and obsession. Even she could not avoid powerful poisons like these.


    Buddha wanted to destroy her thest time at Lanke Temple. But he could only try to destroy the imprinting that was inside her for she had not woken up back then. Since she had woken up, Buddha wanted to destroy her.


    If you wanted to destroy something, you must first make it weak.


    How could Haotian be weakened? The Headmaster of Academy and Buddha came up with the same idea, but they performed it differently: to turn a god into a human being.


    The Headmaster of Academy wanted to kindly influence her and change her with the goodwill of the human world. Buddha wanted to indulge her with the poisons of the human world.


    Ning Que could sense her thoughts since Sangsang and Ning Que were each other¡¯s natal item. His face turned even paler and held her hand tightly.


    After spending so many years in Buddha¡¯s chessboard, she was already deeply poisoned and became so weak that she was unable to leave the chessboard¡¯s world. Then what was her fate?


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡± Ning Que held her into his arms and whispered, ¡°Even if the Buddha can kill you, you can still return to the Divine Kingdom. Maybe you will remember me and the Academy...¡± He couldn¡¯t finish the sentence. If Sangsang were to return to the Divine Kingdom at the cost of her own death, then she would nevere back to the human world. There would be no Sangsang in the human world, only Haotian.


    Buddha couldn¡¯t calcte that the Headmaster of Academy had split Haotian into two people, or that the Academy had kept one of them in the human world. So he couldn¡¯t calcte that he was unable to kill Haotian even though he could kill Sangsang.


    But Sangsang would die anyway.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to die.¡± Sangsang said, ¡°Sangsang doesn¡¯t want to die.¡± Haotian, who was also Sangsang, didn¡¯t want to die.


    Ning Que looked at the far east and said, ¡°Then you won¡¯t die.¡±


    Sangsang turned around and walked out of the White Tower Temple.


    Ning Que held the ck umbre and walked behind her.


    Walking out of the temple, she pointed to a woman who was standing under the eaves and said, ¡°Do you feel very strange that she has not grown old after so many years?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Over the countless past years, people who have believed in Buddhism wille to this chessboard after their death. Here is the real Buddhand. They are all dead, so they won¡¯t grow old.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°But you are not getting old either.¡±


    Indeed, I am not getting old and not dead even though hundreds of years have been passed.


    Looking at the dark sky, Sangsang observed the light which represented the rules and said, ¡°If the rules of the world had not copsed, then why is there no death?¡±


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t answer this question.


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Do you know what is Nirvana?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°The highest state of Buddha Dharma.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Nirvana is a status.¡±


    ¡°What status?¡±


    ¡°The status of being quiet and tranquil, ignoring life and death, being away from troubles; neither dead nor alive, neither dirty nor clean, neither possessing anything nor losing anything, and never obsessed with bias, fate, eternity and nothingness.¡± Sangsang said, ¡°This is Nirvana and achieving Buddhahood.¡±


    Remembering that Sangsang had mentioned Schrodinger¡¯s Cat in front of the stone statues of Buddha on Wa Mountain, Ning Que said, ¡°If Nirvana really means what you said, it¡¯s no wonder that even you can¡¯t calcte whether Buddha is dead or alive.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°The people here are the same.¡±


    Ning Que frowned and asked, ¡°You mean that people here are neither dead nor alive?¡±


    Sangsang answered, ¡°They are both dead and alive.¡±


    Ning Que thought for a while and said, ¡°You are right. We can¡¯t know whether they are dead or alive before we observe them. They are all in an ovepped region where death coexists with life.¡±


    No one knew whether Buddha was dead or alive, not even Haotian and the Headmaster of Academy. Because Buddha had entered into such a status after reaching Nirvana, nobody knew his condition before actually seeing him.


    Sang Sang said, ¡°So there is no life and no death.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°But we have lived here for hundreds of years and we have seen them for a long time.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°They are just the attachments of the chessboard.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°You mean that these people in the chessboard are all extensions of the Nirvana that Buddha had reached?¡±


    The autumn rain stopped, and the streets outside the White Tower Temple gradually became livelier and livelier. The pedestrians were selecting goods at the stalls, and mothers were chasing their children, who were running around. No one noticed that the sky had be extremely dark.


    Sangsang said, ¡°It can be understood this way. They don¡¯t even know that they are dead. They just walk and don¡¯t think about anything else.¡±


    Ning Que was hit byplex feelings and said, ¡°Is it the Paradise that Buddha mentioned?¡±


    Sangsang answered, ¡°You said that here is the real Buddhand. You are totally right. If you and I don¡¯t wake up, then we will end up with bing a part of this world.¡±


    Looking at the pedestrians on the street, Ning Que felt extremely cold. We nearly became a part of this world. If we really do, is it a bliss or misfortune to not know whether you are dead or alive?


    This was the true meaning of Nirvana. Buddha and Haotian both could do the calctions. But if Buddha had reached Nirvana, then Haotian would be unable to calcte Buddha¡¯s moves, but Buddha would be able to calcte Haotian¡¯s moves. Although Buddha didn¡¯t jump out of karma, but he could see through it and sway it in his favor.


    Karma was also the cause and effect which the Academy always talked about.


    Because Ning Que found that baby girl in Hebei Province, because the Headmaster of Academy took Ning Que as his disciple, because Ning Que wanted Sangsang to be a human being, and because Ning Que and Sangsang fell in love with each other, this situation came to be.


    ¡°We woke up after all. What other methods can Buddha use to kill you?¡± Ning Que said, ¡°Since he has already reached Nirvana, he can do nothing ording to the rules.¡±


    ¡°I am also curious.¡± Sangsang handed him the ck umbre and walked toward the alley with her hands behind her back. She said, ¡°I really want to know how can that damn monk overpower me?¡± Her tone was calm and proud.


    Ning Que held the ck umbre and dared not to leave her. Looking at the lights in the sky, then he stared at her pale face and signed, ¡°Can you quit bragging since you are so sick?¡±


    Waking up didn¡¯t mean being able to leave. The poisons of attachment, aversion, and obsession made Sangsang very weak, so she could just wave the problems away. What would happen next would be very troublesome.


    Walking through the crowds in the streets, Ning Que suddenly stopped and looked to somewhere in the far east. Monk Qingban also looked there before he died, but nothing was in there.


    After they went back to the small courtyard, Ning Que made a nice dinner. The most delicious meal was a bowl of pickled green, red pepper, and tender ginger. And of course he didn¡¯t forget Sangsang¡¯s favorite, pickled vegetables.


    The big ck umbre was on the table, and the dishes were ced next to the handle of the umbre. Ning Que and Sangsang sat under the umbre and lowered their heads to eat, which looked a bit strange and somewhat funny.


    Sangsang used the chopsticks to y with the rice grains mixed with the broth in the bowl. Then she looked at the dishes covered by umbres and said, ¡°Why can you still eat so happily after knowing that they are all fake?¡±


    Ning Que was busy eating, and the pickled peppers made him sweat heavily. Hearing what Sangsang said, he picked up a towel to wipe his mouth and said, ¡°My feeling is real, so I eat heartily.¡±


    Looked at the big ck umbre above, Sangsang frowned slightly and said, ¡°How can you eat heartily when we have to open the umbre while we are eating? I am not happy.¡±


    The omnipotent Haotian was forced to eat under an umbre due to the lights from the dark sky which represented the rules. Of course she was not happy.


    ¡°Don¡¯t be unhappy. You have to thank the umbre and also thank me for mending it.¡± Ning Que pointed to the big ck umbre and said with a smile, ¡°The umbre can go for three-year new, three-year old, and another three-year in patches. I am sure it would be our family heirloom in the future.¡±


    Holding the big ck umbre, they didn¡¯t need to worry about being discovered by the light which represented the rules, but how would they leave? After dinner, they began to n.


    After spending so many years in the chessboard, Ning Que and Sangsang were not in a hurry, for they thought that they still had plenty of time to solve the problem.


    The poisons of attachment, aversion, and obsession were indeed powerful. Sangsang had no way to detoxify herself, and Ning Que was also at the end of his rope. In this case, they still had to carry on living.


    Last night¡¯s dinner was too hearty, and there was no more food at home. Ning Que went to the market to buy some ingredients. Sangsang followed him even without his request, for they only had one umbre.


    When they arrived at the market, they discovered that they were wrong.


    Under the protection of the big ck umbre, the lights indeed couldn¡¯t find them, but people can.


    Standing in front of a dewy green vegetable stall, Ning Que chatted with the woman who owned the stall andid foundation for the subsequent bargain.


    The woman thought he was very cute, so she smiled.


    She had a very nice smile, looking very elegant andpassionate. While smiling, a red mole appeared between her eyebrows.


    Ning Que was also smiling at the beginning, but his smile gradually went away.


    He looked at the woman and asked seriously, ¡°What kind of Buddha are you?¡±

 Chapter 964 - Killing Buddha and the Old Pickle Jar

    <h4>Chapter 964: Killing Buddha and the Old Pickle Jar</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The woman said nothing and just looked at him with a smile. She held a Chinese yam in her left hand and a celery in her right hand. The yam and celery were considered to be vegetables and also traditional Chinese medicine.


    Ning Que suddenlyughed and asked, ¡°Are you the legendary Medicine Buddha?¡±


    The woman answered with a smile, ¡°Yes.¡±


    Ning Que thought for a while and said, ¡°The Medicine Buddha can cure diseases. My wife is seriously ill and she may be poisoned, would you take a look at her and write us a prescription?¡±


    The woman looked at Sangsang and replied with grief, ¡°The poison is incurable. And it would be better for you to leave.¡±


    Ning Que pointed to the sky and asked, ¡°What if we can¡¯t leave?¡±


    The woman answered, ¡°Death is a solution.¡±


    ¡°You do have a point,¡± Ning said with a smile. Then he took out his iron cuss and swung it at the woman standing behind the vegetable stall.


    The vegetable stall was full of green vegetables with dews on the leaves, which looked very fresh.


    Ning Que¡¯s iron cuss was supposed to cut the vegetable stall into two halves easily and cut the vegetable leaves into pieces and cut the dews into moist sprays.


    But it didn¡¯t.


    The vegetable stall turned into a field, the green vegetables on the stall turned into lush nts, the Chinese yam in the woman¡¯s left hand became a branch of a fruit tree and the celery in her right hand became an alms bowl.


    The woman became the real Medicine Buddha. Her hair was thick and ck and her ears fell to her shoulders. She looked solemn. And there were countless aureoles and lucky clouds surrounding her.


    Thousands of colorful prayer gs floated in front of her and blocked Ning Que¡¯s cuss.


    Looking at Medicine Buddha who seemed to be right in front of his eyes and also to be far away, Ning Que was shocked and said, ¡°She is the real Medicine Buddha!¡±


    The Medicine Buddha smiled slightly, and the red mole between her eyebrows released a bright light, illuminating the field. The colorful prayer gs floated fiercely and the nts in the field grew faster and higher.


    Ning Que and Sangsang stood in the field and their legs were instantly entangled by the vines, and they could no longer move.


    While announcing her name, the Medicine Buddha slowly tilted the alms bowl in her hand, and the ck liquid with the medicinal scent in the bowl flowed to the ground, turned into a river and rushed toward Ning Que and Sangsang.


    Medicine was used to treat people, but they also could kill people. Sometimes, good medicines could be the most powerful poison. Inhaling the strange smelling from the medicine river, Ning Que felt suffocated and then felt an extreme paining from his chest. He covered his chest with his hand and coughed severely, as if he would cough up his internal organs.


    Sangsang stood beside him. She looked at the Medicine Buddha in the distance and said with a frown, ¡°It¡¯s ridiculous.¡± After saying this, she blinked. Then the field was smashed, the lush nts turned into pieces and the medicine river with the strange smell began to spread around.


    The vegetable stall was still the vegetable stall.


    Ning Que swung his iron cuss. With a shrill sound, the de crossed over the woman¡¯s body and cut her open, revealing a golden light.


    The woman looked at them and smiled.


    Suddenly her body was divided into halves and fell to the ground. There were golden lights enshrouding the smooth incision, as if melting gold was overflowing.


    The gold melted into the wind, became golden mist, and gradually drifted around the market. Some of the golden mist floated in front of Sangsang. She frowned and turned paler, as if she was in a bit of pain.


    ...


    ...


    They came back to the small courtyard empty-handed since they killed the woman who owned the vegetable stall. Ning Que¡¯s mind was weighed down with anxiety, and he became even more unsettled while thinking about what happened before.


    No matter whether the woman was the real Medicine Buddha or just a fake, she couldn¡¯t defend herself in front of Ning Que and Sangsang, just like how Monk Qingban who turned into Phra Pidta.


    But the Breath of Buddha that they shed after their death seemed to be harmful to Sangsang. What if they meet more of these Buddhas in the future? They must leave the world as soon as possible.


    ¡°I have to find a way to cure you,¡± said Ning Que, looking at Sangsang.


    Sangsang was a little pale and asked, ¡°What if you can¡¯t find a way?¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t want to disturb her, so he justughed and answered, ¡°Even if I can¡¯t cure you, you won¡¯t die. We still have to carry on living.¡±


    Sangsang stared at his eyes and said, ¡°I am poisoned by our lives.¡±


    Ning Que understood what she meant, but didn¡¯t know how to reply. He went silent for a while and said, ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    This time he did not ask for her opinion, for he didn¡¯t mean to leave the chessboard world, but to leave the small courtyard and Chaoyang City. He was going to find a way to cure Sangsang.


    Just like many years ago.


    After living in the small courtyard for many years, they left a lot of memories and also had many essential items for daily life. But Ning Que only sorted out some weapons and a jar of pickled vegetables to carry away with them.


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Where should we go?¡±


    Ning Que subconsciously looked at the distant east again and felt afraid. So he answered, ¡°South.¡±


    All of a sudden, an unhealthy blush appeared on Sangsang¡¯s pale cheeks. She asked, ¡°Are you going to see her?¡±


    Ning Que was stunned for a while and then understood what she was talking. Heughed and answered, ¡°There is no Great River Kingdom in the south of this world.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°But you just habitually want to go to the south.¡±


    Ning Que was puzzled and asked, ¡°So?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°You are thinking about going to see her.¡±


    Ning Que was a little angry and replied, ¡°Is it a good time to argue about things like this?¡±


    Sangsang was silent and found that she did have problem.


    The problem was not that her attitude towards him was inappropriate. Since she was Haotian and he was a mortal, she could treat him the way she wanted even though they were husband and wife.


    The problem was that her mood was somewhat unstable.


    This was aversion mixed with attachment and obsession. She was infected by the poisons much more deeply.


    Ning Que suddenly understood and held her into his arms, saying, ¡°I will cure you.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Tying the heavy luggage behind his back, Ning Que opened the big ck umbre and walked towards the gate of the city. Sangsang held his hands and looked a little weak.


    If they wanted to leave Buddha¡¯s chessboard, then Sangsang had to restore her strength, which required the poisons inside her to be gone. They must go and find a way to cure her.


    Monk Qingban didn¡¯t want them to go. The Medicine Buddha didn¡¯t want them to go. Chaoyang City didn¡¯t want them to go. The world didn¡¯t want them to go. So it wouldn¡¯t be easy for them to leave.


    There was a shop at the corner of New Street which specialized in sellingmp oil,mps, and candles. Ning Que was familiar with the owner since he bought a lot ofmp oil here in the past. But his expression changed slightly after seeing the owner today.


    The owner was not in the store, but on the street. And he blocked their way.


    Ning Que took out his iron cuss and asked, ¡°What kind of Buddha are you?¡±


    The owner was wearing a hat and looked amiable. He smiled and said, ¡°Care to guess?¡±


    Looking at the oilmps in the shop, Ning Que asked tentatively, ¡°Dipankara Buddha?¡±


    He was indeed Dipankara Buddha. There was no owner of the oilmp shop on the street, only an ancient Buddha. Everything was covered by a bright light except for the Dipankara Buddha himself. Lights were scattered, illuminating even the ant hole in the corner of the wall and the dark sky.


    The lights began to burn, and the temperature on the street began to rise. A drop of sweat appeared on the tip of Sangsang¡¯s nose.


    When Sangsang was still an ordinary person, she rarely sweated for she suffered from congenital defects and her body was always cold. After bing Haotian, she never sweated since the body of a god was as cold as jade.


    But she just sweated in front of the Dipankara Buddha.


    Ning Que felt that his heart had be very hot, as if it had been ced with an oilmp.


    Summoning Haoran Qi, he arrived in front of the Dipankara Buddha in an instant and swung his iron cuss.


    The Dipankara Buddha dropped hismp, which looked like an ordinary brass oilmp but seemed to be as heavy as the whole world. And themp blocked Ning Que¡¯s iron cuss easily.


    The ancient Buddha began to light tens of thousands ofmps, and the whole world shined brightly. Instantly, there were more than tens of thousands of lights ignited. Ning Que was stunned and didn¡¯t respond immediately. When the 16,000thmp was ignited, Sangsang finally fought back. She extended her right index finger and gently pressed against the bottom of the brass oilmp.


    The expression on the face of Dipankara Buddha slightly changed.


    Even though he was an ancient Buddha, he couldn¡¯tpete with Haotian.


    The brass oilmp in Dipankara Buddha¡¯s hand could no longer fall down.


    Ning Que flicked his wrist, crossing the iron cuss in front of his arm and sliding it over the neck of Dipankara Buddha.


    The head of Dipankara Buddha didn¡¯t fall down, but a clear incision appeared on his neck.


    There was still no blood in this incision, only the golden light and the flowing gold which slowly oozed out along the edge of the incision, wetted the Ancient Buddha¡¯s Kasaya and fell to the ground.


    The golden liquid was the Breath of Buddha and contained the Power of Buddha and the Will of Buddha. The lights reflected by the golden mist were the Lights of Buddha.


    Ning Que¡¯s face darkened and ran towards the other end of the street while holding Sangsang¡¯s hand.


    His speed was so fast that there was no time for him to turn back and see whether Dipankara Buddha was dead or alive. He just ran desperately and didn¡¯t stop until they reached the end of the long street.


    Sangsang turned very pale and frowned tightly. It looked like she was in severe pain.


    Seeing the gold liquid on her flowering green dress, Ning Que knew that they didn¡¯tpletely avoid the golden mist.


    Pulling Sangsang in front of him, he looked at her eyes and said seriously, ¡°Stand behind me next time. Then, the Light of Buddha won¡¯t fall on you.¡±


    Sangsang looked at the tips of her shoes, she whispered, ¡°I am afraid that I might get lost.¡±


    After a few moments of silence, Ning Que took off the heavy baggage and took out the arrow casket and the silk bag containing the Fu papers. Then he threw everything else away, including the pickle jar.


    He carried her on his back and tied them together with a rope. Handing her the big ck umbre, he held the arrow casket in one hand and the iron cuss in another hand and walked toward the city gate.


    On the street behind them, the pickle jar was broken, diffusing the smell that only an old pickle jar could have.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que held Sangsang on his back and walked outside Chaoyang City. They encountered many Buddhas along the way.


    An official in the Musical Academy held the tuning device and turned into the Musical Buddha. A book-telling artist in the theater turned into the Rational Buddha. A mendicant Buddhist monk in one unknown temple turned into the Dharma Buddha. Many people turned into Buddhas and then were killed by Ning Que.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t understand why these people could turn into Buddhas. Why were there so many Buddhas and where were the Buddhasing from?


    ¡°Everybody can be a Buddha.¡± Sangsang leaned on his shoulder and said weakly, ¡°This is the living creatures¡¯ will.¡±

 Chapter 965 - A Crow Fell on a Pig

    <h4>Chapter 965: A Crow Fell on a Pig</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Serfs living in the underground world under the Xuankong Temple only knew the Buddha and the circr well-like sky above. They had no choice, so their beliefs were the purest. Many pious disciples like them existed in the human world. Countless generations passed, their consciousnessesing to the Buddha¡¯s Chessboard, creating Nirvana.


    In Buddhism, what kind of world qualified to be known as the Nirvana? It was a world where everyone could be a Buddha. It was the current Chaoyang City where everyone, whether they wereckeys, peddlers, officials, or monks, were benevolent and chanted sutras. They were all Buddhas.


    Ning Que and Sangsang wanted to know what method the Buddha would use to press down and exterminate them after they awoke. The answer was right in front of them then: the manifestation and shared mind of all living creatures.


    Everyone, regardless of gender or age, were enlightened. They gathered over with benevolent expressions while chanting sutra. Although they didn¡¯t explicitly speak of killing, their intention was nothing but to kill¨Ckill Haotian, kill Sangsang.


    There was a man with callouses from carrying loads on his shoulders for several decades. That was the Buddha with Thick Shoulders. The Sunrise-born Buddha was a girl who¡¯d been enlightened under the rising sun. The old man who¡¯d fished in the river was the Net-enlightened Buddha.


    There was also the Buddha of Fame, Buddha of Dhanari Column, Buddha of Famed Light, Buddha Gilt by Colored Treasure, Buddha above Incense, Buddha of Incense and Light, Buddha of King Su and Buddha Witnessing All Good, as well as those without a title.


    The entire city was filled with Buddhas and it was extremely crowded. One Buddha stepped upon the other¡¯s kasaya, while one smashed the other¡¯s jade flower. Buddhas squeezed against and pushed each other as they rushed towards Ning Que and Sangsang.


    The image was rather shocking, which made Ning Que reminisce the past. It was also in Chaoyang City, where countless people wanted to kill Sangsang lying on his back, because she was said to be the daughter of the Devil.


    When he saw the monkey trainer had be a Buddha and even the monkey on his shoulder became a grumpy fighting Buddha, Ning Que couldn¡¯t bear it for another second. He waved the knife and ran towards them.


    He killed many Buddhas while fleeing from the city. He wanted to stop for a moment, because Buddhas had the dharma and weren¡¯t easy to kill. More importantly, they would be transformed into the Light of Buddha after death, which was painful for Sangsang.


    But at that moment, he couldn¡¯t find any other way to flee from Chaoyang City while carrying Sangsang, unless these Buddhas were killed. He could only hold the cuss and sh down on them.


    As if someone was sweeping the ground with a bamboo broom, the ck cuss swooshed loudly. It danced around the solemn Buddhas, cutting off their necks and chests. Countless Buddhas fell down. The ck cuss was covered with golden liquid, which transformed into pure lightter.


    The Buddha of King Su was dead. He copsed as if falling asleep and then was stamped into golden que by the other Buddhas. The Buddha with Thick Shoulders was dead, his right shoulder sliced off like an unfinished gold statue. The Sunrise-born Buddha was dead. She had a golden and ghastly sh on her pretty face.


    Ning Que moved ahead while swaying his knife. Every time the cuss fell, a Buddha died. His face was devoid of emotion. No matter who was ahead of him, whether it be a senior or a child, all of them were felled in one strike.


    Buddhas didn¡¯t bleed. Only golden liquid spilled out, but it still looked quite brutal. Ning Que¡¯s performance was even more coldblooded than that in Chaoyang City years ago.


    He had been so cold-blooded that night when he climbed the Hill in the Academy. Whether they¡¯d been former or new acquaintances, rtives or friends, anyone who stood before him had been in. He¡¯d known that they were all dead already.


    These Buddhas were all dead too. In that case, he was just killing them again.


    Nevertheless, they were all Buddhas with multiple methods and weapons. Although he had already be very powerful with the help of Sangsang at his back, it was still difficult for Ning Que to kill them all.


    To kill all the Buddhas...he¡¯d never thought of this before.


    He cut off the Smiling Buddha¡¯s neck in one strike. Watching the head fall, still with a smile, Ning Que felt a little bit tired. At this very moment, a beam of Buddhist power descended from the sky, targeting his back ¨C that was a brick with gleaming mour, thrown by Buddha of Mount Sumeru from far away!


    If Ning Que didn¡¯t move, the golden brick containing infinite Buddhist power would fall on Sangsang. He had no choice but to lean to one side, letting the golden brick hit his right arm.


    Thud! A dull sound rang out.


    Ning Que felt his soul was about to be smashed out from his body by the golden brick. Blood spewed from his mouth. Sangsang was also affected and spat out blood, wetting Ning Que¡¯s cor.


    Any Buddhist or Taoist cultivator¡¯s arm would shatter if hit by the golden brick of the Buddha of Mount Sumeru. Thankfully, Ning Que hadpleted the Haoran Qi and his body was as tough as iron. He only felt pain.


    With a ng, he put the cuss back to its sheath, untied the iron bow on his shoulder, and fully drew the bowstring until it was like a full moon. He shot at the huge Buddha of Mount Sumero that was far away.


    No arrow was on the string, so it was just like an empty strike. However, a deep rupture appeared on the Buddha of Mount Sumero¡¯s chest the next moment. Golden liquid spilled out of a bow-shaped rupture.


    Ning Que killed a Buddha with his bow.


    He finally arrived at the gate, but he was still surrounded by Buddhas. These Buddhas had shed plenty of blood, which had transformed into countless rays of light. The shabby gate of Chaoyang City waspletely lit up.


    Amid the Lights of Buddha, Sangsang looked more and more pale. The Buddha¡¯s attack was to use the consciousnesses of all living creatures and they used the Light of the Buddha. This was what Sangsang feared the most.


    Ning Que perceived her pain. His heart trembled and even started hurting too, but he ignored it. He didn¡¯tfort her either. Instead, he moved toward the field outside the gate.


    He held up the bow with his left hand and drew the string with his right hand. It vibrated continuously as if the string was about to break, and as if someone was fluffing a cotton filter. The Buddhas around him all cracked and died.


    The Lights of Buddha leaked from these cracks and dispersed to the field, bing increasingly stronger. Facing them, Sangsang furrowed her brows more tightly and spat out more blood.


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang woke up startled. She looked at the inky bottom of the cave and was silent. Her eyes were dark and dim. It was a mystery what she was thinking at that moment.


    Ning Que held her in his arms and asked, ¡°What is wrong?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I had a nightmare.¡±


    Ning Que was stunned and squeezed out a little smile, asking, ¡°This is something new. What was in your dream?¡±


    Haotian couldn¡¯t dream because only humans dreamed.


    Starting to dream demonstrated the sign of her transformation to a human. The humanity that the Headmaster had left was growing in her, as did the greed, anger and foolishness that the Buddha nted in her mind.


    ¡°I dreamed that many Buddhas took out knives and messily cut their own bodies to make them bleed. They squeezed their wounds to make the blood spill out much faster. They didn¡¯t look like they were in pain. Some lit fires to help the blood evaporate faster. Others even jumped down from cliffs.¡±


    Her face was devoid of emotion, but fear was visible in her eyes.


    Ning Que thought about the sight of when he killed his way out of Chaoyang City. His fingers turned cold.


    Sangsang was very feeble at that moment. This world filled with the Light of Buddha was too terrifying for her.


    ¡°Hold on a bit longer,¡± Ning Que said, stroking her back.


    ¡°I¡¯ll die if this continues.¡±


    There was still no emotions on Sangsang¡¯s face, but pain joined the fear in her eyes.


    Death meant the end ¨C eternal slumber. It was the most dreadful for any being with a mind. She had never felt fear up until that moment because she had never thought that death woulde.


    ¡°I won¡¯t let you die,¡± Ning Que said.


    Sangsang said, ¡°You keep saying that. Besides being able tofort yourself, it has no other meaning.¡±


    Ning Que looked at her eyes and said, ¡°This shouldn¡¯t be the end of the story. Since we¡¯ve woken up, we will definitely find a way out.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°As you¡¯ve said before, this isn¡¯t like the stories in books.¡±


    ¡°No matter what story it is,¡± Ning Que said, ¡°I am the hero and you are the heroine. Thus, we won¡¯t die.¡±


    ¡°Maybe, in this story, we¡¯re only the supporting characters.¡± Sangsang looked at the dark night sky out of the cave where the Lights of Buddha were gradually pervading from the distant field. While listening to the sutra-chanting, she said, ¡°Because this is the story of the Buddha.¡±


    Ning Que fell silent for quite a while and said, ¡°Sleep some more. We can stay for a while longer.¡±


    Sangsang turned to the side and fell asleep again.


    Ning Que sat beside her. He felt quite bitter when he saw her knitted brows, the sad downturn of her mouth, and her painful expression. He wanted to reach out and smooth her brows.


    When she was awake, Sangsang would never show any trace of pain on her face.


    They left the cave in the morning and continued to move towards the south ording to the original n. It was not long until they entered the deep mountains and forests.


    Ning Que felt a little relieved. This ce was remote, so it shouldn¡¯t be filled with Buddhas and Lights of Buddha everywhere like in Chaoyang City.


    He wasn¡¯t wrong, but he wasn¡¯t right either.


    There weren¡¯t as many Buddhas in the deep southern mountains, but they still existed. The woodmen they met on the mountain pass were Buddhas and,te at night, Buddhas riding spotty tigers found them.


    Ning Que continued killing them, but it was very difficult and he had more and more injuries. In addition, The more Buddhas they met, the weaker Sangsang became. Being tortured by the three poisons, Sangsang looked as pale as snow.


    Ning Que started to sing the song of the ck swine again to ease her mood. Sangsang was very unhappy and tried to look angry, but she was too pale to be intimidating.


    ¡°You always take advantage of me when I¡¯m weak and bully me,¡± she shouted with anger.


    Ning Que reached back and patted her buttocks, saying, ¡°The truth needs to be distinguished for a clear understanding. The one who poisoned you was the Buddha, and it has nothing to do with me. I do bully you, but I won¡¯t take advantage of you.¡±


    At the moment, a wild boar covered in ck mud dashed out of the woods and stared at Ning Que dumbly. It probably sensed danger and then ran off immediately.


    Sangsang said weakly, ¡°As the saying goes, a crow fell on a pig. The bald donkeys and the Academy are both evil-minded.¡±


    A strange cawing was heard. A ck crow flew over andnded somewhere in the woods. After a short moment, the wild boar walked out of the deep woods in low spirits.


    The ck crow stood on its back to showcase its strength.


    Sangsang said, ¡°We¡¯ll eat pork tonight.¡±


    Annoyed, Ning Que said, ¡°Since the crow fell on the back of the pig, am I the pig with you on my back?¡±


    Sangsangy on his back and whispered, ¡°If you weren¡¯t the pig, then why are you here?¡±

 Chapter 966 - Kill At Sight

    <h4>Chapter 966: Kill At Sight</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ning Que smiled because he knew she was describing his feelings. It was even better that she also vocally stated her affection, so he felt happy.


    He hunted the wild boar by the side of theke and built a fire. The meat on the fire roasted and sizzled. The oil gradually dried out, and the smell of meat dispersed. They ate their fill and went to rest.


    Ning Que thought of what Sangsang had said during the day and said, ¡°Don¡¯tpare the Academy with Buddhism in the future. You can say anything about the Academy, but not this.¡±


    Sangsangy on the ground that was warm due to the fire and asked, ¡°Why not?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Is the Academy that disgusting?¡±


    Sangsang smiled and said, ¡°Your master injected the power of the human world into my body, and then you took me to the world to transform me into a human. The Buddha injected the three poisons of greed, anger and foolishness into my body with the same purpose. So what¡¯s the difference between them?¡±


    Ning Que was sharpening the cuss by the stream. When he heard this, he stopped and said after thinking, ¡°The difference lies in that the Buddha wants to transform you into a human in order to kill you.¡±


    ¡°What about the Academy?¡± Sangsang asked. ¡°Is transforming me into a human the sole purpose of the Academy? If it weren¡¯t for you, wouldn¡¯t people in the Academy try to kill me when I am weak like this?


    ¡°You said ¡®if¡¯,¡± Ning Que said. ¡°This proves everything. If¡¯s don¡¯t exist in the world. Since I am always beside you, the Academy won¡¯t kill you.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Even though I killed Ke Haoran?¡±


    Nig Que was silent for a while and then said, ¡°Disregarding the time in the Chessboard, you¡¯ve been in the human world for 20 years. You have only been Sangsang in these 20 years.¡±


    Sangsang understood what he meant. She shouldn¡¯t be responsible for the events that happened before her birth. That was why the Academy didn¡¯t attribute Youngest Uncle¡¯s death to her, but to Haotian.


    ¡°What if...¡± Sangsang said, ¡°I kill your Headmaster too in the end?¡±


    A bit annoyed, Ning Que asked, ¡°Can¡¯t you say something else? I said if¡¯s don¡¯t exist. Can¡¯t you leave it alone and stop looking for drama?¡±


    Smiling, Sangsang said, ¡°Then I¡¯ll say something interesting. Where should we go next?¡±


    In such a remote mountain, they could still see Buddhas. They could imagine that danger was everywhere inside the Chessboard world too, since every living being had be a Buddha and were searching for them.


    It made no sense to keep going like this because they couldn¡¯t find the way out of the Chessboard even if they had gone to the end of the horizon.


    ¡°If we remove the poison in you, can you break through this Chessboard?¡± Ning Que asked.


    Sangsang said, ¡°You just said there is no ¡®if¡¯ in the world.¡±


    Ning Que sighed. ¡°Be serious.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°If I can¡¯t, then why did we leave Chaoyang City?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°ording to Buddhism, the Buddha is the only one who could detoxify the three poisons.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s a lie.¡±


    ¡°Buddhist sutras aren¡¯t fairytales,¡± Ning Que said. ¡°I think it does make some sense.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°The three poisons are hard to be cleared unless one is cultivating to be enlightened.¡±


    Ning Que wiped the water on the cuss and walked back to her. Looking at Sangsang¡¯s eyes, he said quietly, ¡°Why not have a try? Can you cultivate to be enlightened?¡±


    In his opinion, if she could be enlightened right here, the three poisons of greed, anger and foolishness could be cleared. Then those Buddhas wouldn¡¯t be a threat to her anymore.


    ¡°No.¡±


    Ning Que asked with his brows slightly frowned, ¡°Why not?¡±


    Sangsang copied his own reply, ¡°Disgusting.¡±


    Ning Que felt helpless. ¡°Living is more important than anything else. You can do it.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°This is the Buddha¡¯s world. I can¡¯t be enlightened.¡±


    Ning Que thought a long while and said, ¡°We should still try.¡±


    Some things must be attempted because there were no other choices. Just like the old saying in the Academy, thest choice was the best, because it was the only way.


    ¡°What do you want to try?¡± Sangsang asked.


    Ning Que looked over the stream and into the east and said, ¡°I just want to try to find the Buddha.¡±


    Sangsang said with a smile, ¡°And then? Can you kill him for good?


    Ning Que said, ¡°No, but I want to see him.¡±


    In the morning, they woke up by the side of the stream. The bonfire had turned to ash, but some warmth still lingered.


    Ning Que tied Sangsang to his back, held up the ck umbre, and continued to climb towards the mountaintop. They went through the heavily foggy peak and headed east, instead of going south.


    Sangsang opened her eyes, looked at the direction, but said nothing.


    The dense woods were difficult to pass through. Ning Que opened a way with the cuss. After walking for two days and one night, they finally went out of the range of mountains and came to the open grasnd. He continued ahead while carrying Sangsang.


    It was raining for days on the grasnd. Thend was soft and clear footsteps were left while he stamped on it, forming a straight line aiming towards the distant horizon.


    When the footsteps on the grasnd surpassed one hundred, the ground suddenly caved in. The straight line became something substantial. The dirt cracked and the grass was swallowed. It was pitch ck.


    The whole world was shaking; the lights wending on the darkness suddenly approached their heads. Thanks to the shield of the big ck umbre, the lights didn¡¯t fall.


    The lights seemed to be suspended in the dark sky. The front end of the lights became increasingly brighter, and then exploded, spraying countless golden flowers from the sky to the ground.


    Ning Que stopped and turned to the northwest. He saw gloss reflected in the dark sky. It should be the reflection of the Buddha¡¯s Lights on the ground. It was conceivable how many Buddhas were there.


    Sangsang looked over and said, ¡°I can hear them chanting.¡±


    ¡°They are in fear, as is the Buddha,¡± Ning Que said.


    Sangsang said, ¡°The Buddha can¡¯t know all this while in nirvana.¡±


    Nirvana was the ovepping of the death and life. It could also simply mean sleeping. In this sense, the Buddha couldn¡¯t know they were heading east. How could he be afraid?


    ¡°Then it means the whole world is starting to be afraid.¡±


    Ning Que looked into the distance and said, ¡°Our direction was right. The Buddha is here.¡±


    Sangsangy on his body and scratched his ear with her fingers. ¡°Are you really going to look for the Buddha?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°It¡¯s necessary to see the Buddha himself if I want to be enlightened. I need to see him.¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s actions were a bit staff as she said, ¡°If you go to see him, he will wake up.¡±


    Ning Que scratched himself with the cuss handle and said, ¡°I want him to wake up.¡±


    Sang Sang said seriously, ¡°If I wasn¡¯t poisoned, I would have gone after him and woken him up in order to kill him. But now I can¡¯t do it; neither can you.¡±


    ¡°You were wrong about one thing,¡± Ning Que said. ¡°Waking up is only one way to describe it. The correct one should be that we only know if he¡¯s dead or alive once we see him.¡±


    ¡°And then?¡±


    ¡°And then the Buddha might be alive or dead...In other words, his death or life would be confirmed once we see it with a chance of 50 to 50.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°You¡¯re gambling with our own lives.¡±


    ¡°We¡¯re betting on the Buddha¡¯s life,¡± Ning Que said, smiling.


    ¡°On ours as well.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Since we¡¯re all on the verge of death, why don¡¯t we take a shot? The gamble would at least give us 50 percent of chance.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I don¡¯t like to gamble on lives.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Because Haotian never ys dice,¡± Sangsang said.


    ...


    ...


    Haotian knew and was capable of everything. That was because the God could calcte and control everything. She obviously wouldn¡¯t y dices, because that was something she couldn¡¯t control.


    Ning Que understood Sangsang¡¯s instinct, but he was much clearer that she wasn¡¯t omniscient or invincible anymore. If they didn¡¯t bet on their lives with the Buddha, the only thing facing them was their eventual death.


    The good thing was that she was on Ning Que¡¯s back now. She couldn¡¯t do anything about where he wanted to go.


    They walked across the grasnd after the rain and the deserted field. Finally they came to an area of hills.


    Ning Que noticed that the Buddha¡¯s Light in the rear side of them was getting brighter and brighter. This meant that the Buddhas were gathered and approaching, so he speeded up.


    Three days after they passed the hills, arge forest came in front of them. Countless redwoods reached to the sky. The fog in the forest made it seem like a world of smoke. The sound of water indistinctly echoed from the distant front.


    A monk who looked quite normal walked out from behind a redwood. A fat and rich man came from behind another redwood. More and more people walked out.


    They were the Buddhas cultivated frommon beings. All the Buddhas came here and were too crowded to count. A lot of Buddhas chased them from Chaoyang City with the wounds created by Ning Que¡¯s cuss and arrows. Golden liquid spilled out of the wounds and became the Buddha¡¯s Lights once exposed in the wind.


    Tens of thousands of Buddha¡¯s Lights instantly dispelled the thin fog in the woods. All Buddhas bowed, hands together in prayer. Then they started to chant the sutra with benevolent voices.


    Sangsang paled. Looking at countless Buddhas in the woods, she said, ¡°Noisy.¡±


    Golden Buddha¡¯s Lights spread through the quiet woods. The fluctuating chanting was the only sound. The countless Buddhas looked solemn, but to Ning Que, the whole picture was full of gloom and grue.


    He didn¡¯t speak. He drew out the iron bow and shot out an invisible arrow.


    Golden blood bespeckled the redwoods. A Buddha sat dead on knees aside him with a deep and slightly curved wound between his chest and abdomen. Golden liquid bled out, and then became the Buddha¡¯s Light.


    The Buddha¡¯s Light in the woods grew much stronger, making it more painful for Sangsang.


    Ning Que looked very serious. During their escape, these Buddhas seldom fought back or used any dharma-vessels. Instead, he even felt they were waiting to be killed.


    Each Buddha he killed would brighten the Buddha¡¯s Light. In this sense, Sangsang was one step nearer to her death. Right now, he could neither ignore them nor kill them. It was impossible to kill them even if he set his mind to it.


    ¡°Move away! If stand in our way, be killed no matter a Buddha or human...¡± Ning Que shouted while looking at countless Buddhas in the woods. He thought to say no matter a Buddha or human, but there was no man at all in the world. ¡°Any Buddhas stand in our way will be killed,¡± he said.


    Hardly before he finished speaking, he rushed into the woods while carrying Sangsang.


    Haoran Qi skyrocketed to the climax. His figure became a shadow as fast as a streak of light. He broke the silk bag and dozens of Fu papers lit up and emitted extraordinary glows in the lush woods. He cut and shed with the cuss. The vermillion bird called sharply, and horrific fire swept in all directions. The iron bow was drawn in its full to nk. Countless redwoods beyond a span of arms were snapped and fell down.


    In a very short while, Ning Que unleashed all of his most powerful means of attack. As a result, at least dozens of Buddhas fell down in a pool of blood. He looked valiant.


    However, no matter what measure he took, the chanting in the woods never been stopped. The expressions of all Buddhas were still nothing but sympathetic. The way towards the distant east was still blocked.


    The death of dozens of Buddhas dyed the gloomy and dark woods with extremely bright gold. The Buddha¡¯s Light became unprecedentedly bright, making it feel tangible and thick.


    The Buddha¡¯s Light was too strong. It abruptly burst the cracks on the big ck umbre. Then, it fell on Sangsang. She leaned weakly on Ning Que¡¯s shoulders and coughed out blood at times.


    Ning Que felt extremely cold. Even his hand holding the knife started to shiver.


    ¡°You can¡¯t die,¡± he said, face pale as he looked at the blood flowing down him.


    Sangsang couldn¡¯t hold on any longer. ¡°I¡¯m going in,¡± she whispered in his ear.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t understand. The next moment, he felt another person inside his body.


    Sangsang was still on his back, but Sangsang had gone into his body. Since the big ck umbre could no longer protect her, Ning Que was herst hope.


    Ning Que lowered his head and fell silent for a long while. His breathing steadied, gradually aligning with that of the Sangsang¡¯s divine body. Finally, the rhythms were the same.


    He didn¡¯t know what had happened, but he knew Sangsang paid a huge price.


    He raised his head. He put away big ck umbre and put it on his back.


    Looking at the countless Buddhas in the woods, he said ¡°Now, we¡¯ll fight another round.¡±

 Chapter 967 - Slashing Forward

    <h4>Chapter 967: shing Forward</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    It was dim and dark in the woods. The Buddhas shone with glittering gold light, just like countless oilmp. Looking at Ning Que standing in the opposite while holding a cuss, they reacted differently. Some were sorrowful, some were angry and some awestruck.


    All Buddhas felt that something important had changed on Ning Que, which might have an impact on the Buddha¡¯s Nirvana. However, none of them understood what it was.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t understand either. He only knew Sangsang was still on his back, but her spirit had entered into his body. He felt he became fearless and full of strength.


    Sutra chanting resounded in the woods while the golden lights were ever growing. Countless Buddhas appeared everywhere and gradually surrounded them, leaving no way for them to escape.


    All Buddhas seemed beneficent and looked at him with pity. However, none of the Buddhas had ever tried to persuade them since the Chaoyang City ormunicate with Ning Que. This was because Ning Que refused tomunicate with them. He knew that every difference needed to be settled by force.


    It was also true in this situation. He breathed deeply, and his eyes became extraordinarily bright. He gripped the cuss and shed randomly twice to his front in the woods.


    Two hundred-meter-long des appeared in the dim and dark forest.


    Fierce wind howled. Countless moss was dug up, weeds were pressed down, and rocks cracked. Not a single thing could remain whole after the hundreds-meter des swept off. On the other hand, the Buddhas within the effect of the des were pulverized with golden power dispersing in the air!


    If he looked down the whole field in the clouds, the Buddha would see a design that stretched for hundreds of miles. It was a simple yet angry word.


    ¡°Y¡±!


    He wrote the talisman with his cuss.


    Ning Que wrote such a tremendous talisman. It extended across the entire woods.


    The horrible Fu spirit ruthlessly and intrepidly cut off all in its way. Clear cracks appeared on the skin of a redwood tree that was thicker than several people together. Even the howling wind was cut into pieces by the Fu spirit; the golden powder was gradually blown up to the upper air.


    Ning Que shed twice. At least two hundred Buddhas died in front of the talisman. Nevertheless, a lot of Buddhas were still in the forest. They looked resolute and moved towards him.


    Talisman Y originated from the first Fu he mastered: Talisman ¡°Two¡±, which was created from Master Yanse¡¯s strongest ¡°Well¡± talisman. It could even break the space when it was cultivated to the utmost, let alone these Buddhas. At that moment, he didn¡¯t need to worry that these Buddhas approaching if he stayed within the Fu spirits. However, the talisman had its own limits. Its spirit couldn¡¯t stay in the natural world forever. No matter how strong a Fu was, it would gradually disappear as time went by. What would he do then?


    Ning Que had never thought he could use the strong talisman to save his life. He¡¯d said that he wanted to fight another round, so he could only attack.


    A clear roar rose from the ground to the sky and spread towards the depth of the woods. It was as if the world was thrilled at the proud and cruel roar. The dim and dark forest lit up in a second.


    Apanied by the roaring, Ning Que¡¯s right foot stamped heavily on the ground. An extremely deep rupture, hundreds of meters long, appeared. He gripped the cuss with two hands and ran towards the woods.


    The two quick and forceful Fu spirits in the woods unexpectedly swept forward with his cuss. It moved slowly but unstoppably towards the east!


    The talisman was different from other cultivating methods in nature. Its essence was to talk with the nature and then mobilize the Qi of the nature. A Talisman master¡¯smunication with the nature was a kind of request. From a certain point of view, it was a passive act, and that was why it could mobilize such a grand amount of Qi of the nature.


    As a matter of fact, there had never been a talisman master who could move the Fu spirit, because no human had enough spiritual power for nature to follow the orders of a lowly human.


    What Ning Que did today had never happened in the history of human cultivation


    ...


    ...


    The two quick and forceful Fu spirits were hundreds of meters long and passed through the whole forest. Moving forward with Ning Que¡¯s cuss, they be two intangible, giant and sharp des. All obstacles before them were easily smashed.


    What could escape from the reaping of Death¡¯s scythe?


    The countless Buddhas in the woods were different in height and weight, so some had their heads cut off, some bodies halved, some skulls shaved, and some legs broken off. So much blood flowed.


    Golden blood spilled out of their bodies, cut into the tiniest shreds by the Fu spirit, and then turned into golden powder floating in the woods. The dim and dark world lit up.


    The Buddha¡¯s Light was extraordinarily bright. Ning Que had multiple wounds and looked weary and withered after days of fleeing. His face was a little bit pale and became as white as snow against the shining of the Buddha¡¯s Light.


    He squinted and lowered his head. He held up the cuss and forged ahead without any trace of fear on his face.


    If she was still on his back, Sangsang could have probably died from the Buddha¡¯s Light, even with the protection of the big ck umbre. But at that moment, the one on his back was just the body of Sangsang, while Sangsang was actually inside him.


    The sound of water spread from the east of the forest. He went toward that direction. In front of the de of the cuss, the tremendous ¡°Y¡± talisman was followed up, with countless tree peels and golden Buddha blood sshed into the air.


    Countless Buddhas fell down one after the other. There was no sad howling in the woods nor intive whines, only the pitiful and merciful sutra chanting. At times, the chanting abruptly stopped, which meant a Buddha was dead under the intangible des.


    Ning Que lowered his head and ran without stop. God knew how long he had run. He stopped until he felt his hands tremble while holding the cuss and his breath turned rapid again.


    A huge river was before him. The water murmured peacefully and gently.


    He rushed out the woods with Sangsang on his back.


    He looked back and saw that the gold light was everywhere in the forest. Starting from the distant west, redwoods fell down one after another. The earth shook, stirring up smoke and dust.


    These redwoods were all cut off by the Fu spirit. However, the spirit was too sharp, so the giant trees didn¡¯t fall immediately after being cut. When one tree fell down, the others fell from the aftershock.


    Redwoods were tall enough to soar into the clouds. Even the shortest one was about a hundred of meters in height. With the copse of these giant trees, smoke and dusts pervaded and soared up to the sky. During this, one could vaguely hear the panicked howling of goshawks.


    These goshawks were nested on the top of the trees. Now, they had no other choices but to find somewhere else.


    Hectares of woods were ttened to be ground like that. Countless giant trees piled up and smashed the wet ground into a huge mess. The tragic end of the Buddhas within the woods went without saying.


    Three thousand three hundred and thirty-three Buddhas died in the woods.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 968 - Who Could Rival the One Integrated with the Nature (â… )

    <h4>Chapter 968: Who Could Rival the One Integrated with the Nature (¢ñ)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    One Talisman.


    Two des.


    Hundreds of meters.


    Three-thousand Buddhas.


    This shouldn¡¯t even be called a Talisman anymore. Instead, it should be called the God¡¯s talisman with its God-like power.


    Such a powerful talisman had never appeared in the human world before. Master Yanse had never written it, neither did the Sage of Calligraphy. No such thing had ever existed throughout the history of tens of thousands of years.


    Ning Que was a powerful talisman master at the Knowing Destiny Zenith. Even so, he hadn¡¯t passed the five states, so it should be impossible for him to write such talismans under any circumstances.


    However, Sangsang was in his body now. Even if she was weak to the point of at the brink of death, one drop of divine power was like a vast ocean for humans.


    The origin of Ning Que¡¯s power was that ocean. He used the power of the heavens to order the world, allowing him to write a talisman like this ¨C this was the real integration of the human and world. Who could be his rival now?


    Countless redwoods copsed. The forest was destroyed. There was no sign of any Buddhas within hectares. There was only smoke and dust. There was not a sound of sutra chanting and only hawk¡¯s howling and animals¡¯ roaring. The Buddha¡¯s Light still shone on, though the Buddhas were dead.


    Ning Que looked into the distance. A golden glimmer was visible on the dark skyline. He knew there were still a lot of Buddhas left in this world anding to them, but he didn¡¯t know when they could catch up.


    He turned around and looked over the huge river in front of him.


    The river, tens of thousands of meters in width, flowed slowly. The water was very clear. Other than the waves near the shore sides, the rest of the surface was as smooth as a bright mirror. One could even see the stones and swimming fish.


    This river flowed from the south to the north of the world in the Chessboard. He couldn¡¯t see the the starting point or end. No matter what method he used, he had to pass the river if he wanted to go east.


    Ning Que gazed somewhere far away to the east of the river. He frowned.


    Walking towards a redwood in the riverbank, he raised his cuss and cut the huge trunk. Then he used the cuss to trim it by hollowing it out. After that, he carefully cut and sanded the other side of the trunk.


    It didn¡¯t take long before he made a wooden boat with his weapon. He didn¡¯t stop and continued to cut off extra stubbles with the cuss carefully and patiently. He seemed to not even care that countless Buddhas in the world of the Chessboard were hurrying towards the riverside.


    The heavy cuss in his hand was like a scorper caving on the trunk of the redwood. He didn¡¯t miss any details. In the end, he even carved a flower on the side of the wooden boat.


    He knew exactly what he was doing. He was practicing.


    Thepleted boat was beautiful. He also used the cuss to carve two oars with smooth surfaces. He wasn¡¯t satisfied until there wasn¡¯t a single wood splinter.


    He sheathed the cuss with trembling hands. Then he pushed the wooden boat down to the river, climbed in, and rowed with the oars. He rowed silently, not stopping until it reached a point one-third of the distance away from the riverside.


    The world in Buddha¡¯s Chessboard was full of Buddha¡¯s Light and malevolence. Only in the middle of the clear river did he feel that it was safe enough to remove Sangsang from his back.


    He held up Sangsang¡¯s body and felt her breath with fingers. He found that she wasn¡¯t breathing anymore, but he knew she didn¡¯t die, because this body didn¡¯t need to breathe for a long time anyway.


    The body in his arms, very tall and a little fat, was very inconvenient to hold, but he still held her up like that. He looked at her eyes and brows. Suddenly, heughed and pinched her nose.


    He knew Sangsang didn¡¯t die. Her consciousness, or the God¡¯s soul, was in his body. It was a strange state, like she was sleeping deeply without knowing when she would wake up.


    Haotian¡¯s miraculous means were something beyond his knowledge. He was a little worried but not overly, so he was in the mood to pinch her nose.


    The intimate action wasmon for young couples, but he and Sangsang were different, to some extent. He would never dare to do so when Sangsang was awake.


    He¡¯d wanted to do such things long time ago, like pinching her chubby cheeks. He even wanted to pull her ears, put his hands in her clothes to search for warmth and softness, and even some very intimate yet wicked things.


    Although he couldn¡¯t do such intimate yet wicked things, he could still do other things. With that in mind, his hands yed with Sangsang¡¯s face. After pulling her ears, he even pushed up her nose to make her look like a cute piggy.


    Looking at her face, Ning Que smiled and sang, ¡°Hey, piggy...¡±


    ¡°I told you, I don¡¯t like being called ¡®ck piggy¡¯.¡± Sangsang¡¯s voice sounded in his heart, ¡°And if you dare to keep doing such things, I will kill you.¡±


    Ning Que was startled. He asked uneasily while looking at her face, ¡°Are you awake?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I wasn¡¯t sleep in the first ce...Do you want me to be asleep forever? So you can insult my body at your will and marry her as well?¡±


    The Sangsang that was lying in Ning Que¡¯s arm had closed eyes and lips. She was like a sleeping God. However, she was talking, making him feel very odd and hard to get used to.


    Listening to her words, Ning Que grew agitated. ¡°Look at the situation we¡¯re in and you¡¯re still getting jealous. The more you act like this, the stronger the poisons in your system will get. By the time you die, I¡¯ll really go to her!¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Go. If you don¡¯t, then you¡¯re not a man.¡±


    Ning Que felt she was like an unreasonable child at that moment. He didn¡¯t bother to continue the quarrel, and asked, ¡°What exactly is going on now? Where are you?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I¡¯m in your body.¡±


    ¡°Which part in my body? In my consciousness?¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m wherever you want me to be,¡± Sangsang said.


    Ning Que thought for a while and said seriously, ¡°I always have you in my heart. You should be there.¡±


    Sangsang fell silent for a while and replied, ¡°I¡¯m right inside your heart.¡±


    Ning Queughed. ¡°You sounded shy.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I¡¯m not a human. How on earth can I have such emotions?¡±


    ¡°I can teach you,¡± Ning Que said. ¡°Just now, you were shy.¡±


    ¡°Annoying.¡±


    Not having to worry about Sangsang being killed by the Buddha¡¯s Light, Ning Que felt veryfortable and relieved. That was why he was so happy. He was about to continue bickering when something suddenly came into his mind. ¡°Since you can leave the God¡¯s body, why didn¡¯t you do it earlier?¡± heined. ¡°You didn¡¯t have to be hurt so badly by the Buddha¡¯s Light.¡±


    Sangsang and he were natal to one another, so they could integrate as one.


    However, she was still Haotian. At the Rite to Light on the Peach Mountain, Ning Que took the Hierarch¡¯s Tianqi Sangsang had only given him a beam of God¡¯s power and he was already stuffed to the point of bleeding. Back then, he was stuffed to bleed. If she entered into his body in her full strength, he would be dead. Right now, she was very weak, so it was feasible.


    Sangsang didn¡¯t answer his question, because it was annoying. In addition, there was another important reason why she didn¡¯t enter his body earlier.


    Once inside his body, she waspletely integrated with him. The bonds between them would be too strong to describe with words. It would be unimaginably hard when she left.


    Her silence puzzled Ning Que and made him feel slightly uneasy. He thought it over, but he still didn¡¯t understand. He patted her face and then picked up the oars to continue rowing.


    The wooden boat slowly moved towards the opposite side of the river. Just as the bow passed the intangible center line of the river, a giant ck cloud approached from the sky above the field in the east.


    The ck cloud floated over the river and stopped. Wetness was hidden in the cloud, and transformed into rain falling down heavily. In a minute, it was thunderstorming.


    The storm hit his face and body painfully. The rain even made cracking sounds when it hit Sangsang¡¯s body, lying in the boat. Ning Que knew the God¡¯s body was safe and sound but still felt painful when he saw the scene. He took out the big ck umbre and propped it above Sangsang, wanting to at least protect her beautiful looks.


    Ok. A flower is carved on the boat side, but Sangsang¡¯s features are so in. She really isn¡¯t as delicate as a flower, Ning Que thought, smiling. Then he waved the oars, sending the boat shooting through the wind and rain like an arrow.


    The trunk of redwood was wide and thick, so the wooden boat was big and firm. No matter how fierce the storm was, it was impossible to fill up the boat in a short period of time. He wasn¡¯t worried at all, but what happened next furrowed his brows in alert.


    The rain fell into the clear river, producing countless sshes. The river gradually became murkier, probably because the flood upstream filled the river, or because the storm was so fierce that it lifted the mud on the bottom. This was normal, but the river changed so quickly, instantly bing the color of ink. This was unusual.


    The clouds were so dark and the rain was as nk as ink. The river turned to ink as well. It started to smell slightly like ink, before turning into the smell of fish. It was very odd.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t hesitate at all. He put away the big ck umbre and carried her body on his back again. After tying her up, he took out the cuss with trembling hands and aimed at the river.


    Previously by the riverside, his hand had already trembled when he sheathed the cuss afterpleting the book. Now, it trembled when he unsheathed it. He was very tired. He hadn¡¯t slept since Sangsang started having nightmares.


    All of a sudden, the wooden boat started sinking into the water.


    Ning Que checked the boat. There was no sign of leaking, so the enemy must be in the water.


    The water was very clear before. Stones on the bottom could be seen even from the riverside, but the water had be extremely dark now. Ning Que couldn¡¯t see half of a meter into the water even with his eyesight.


    The water was so weird that his Psyche Power seemed to be blocked. The wooden boat continued to sink, but he hadn¡¯t found his enemy yet. How could he fight an enemy like that?


    Ning Que knew he must leave.


    He stepped off the bottom of the boat. It was sinking faster and faster, but he¡¯d already shot up into the air. He prepared to sweep forward the next second.


    It was still hundreds of meters away from the other side of the river. In his current state, it was hard for him to jump across such a long distance in one breath, but he would take the shot.


    Even if he fell into the water, it would be much easier to get away from the strange river if he was closer to the riverbank. Plus, he came up with a solution so quickly. This was probably beyond the enemy¡¯s expectation and would disrupt their n. However, to his surprise, the enemy¡¯s reaction was beyond his imagination.


    The water sshed everywhere from the rain. Just as Ning Que set off, a ssh suddenly bloomedt. A ghost-like white shadow passed through the storm and wrapped around his ankles.


    A huge st of power passed on from the ankles. Ning Que didn¡¯t look down at all. His wrist shook slightly and his cuss shed in the storm. It was as bright as lightning.


    That white shadow was suddenly broken off, but dozens more white shadows came out of the water and dragged him down.


    The glint of the cuss was as fast as a lightning, illuminating the dim water. Dozens of white shadows cracked before the cuss. However, his forging was stopped and he had to return to the boat.


    He looked rxed in his reaction, but he actually felt heavy-hearted. He couldn¡¯t figure out what these white shadows were. They could stand such huge power and forcefully pull him back.


    Taps sounded around his feet. He lowered his heads and looked along the sound. He found that the dozens of white shadows were all whips made of bones. What chilled him was that they were all human bones.


    These white bones seemed to be alive and still struggled even after being chopped off. They pped the wooden boat, leaving deep traces on the stiff redwood, until finally scattering into broken bones.


    At that moment, the wooden boat finally sank into the water.


    Just as the water opened up, waves rolled and the dark water seemed clear up a bit. Ning Que finally saw clearly that countless hands were around the boat.


    These hands grasped at the bottom of the wooden boat and kept dragging it. This was why it sank. The wooden boat was made of firm and stiff redwood, smooth and sturdy. How could these hands hold so tightly onto the sides?


    These hand, as white as pure jade, looked anything but beautiful. Just like the bone whips, these hands were solely bare bones without flesh. The bony fingers dug deeply in the boat walls.


    The countless bony hands dragged the wooden boat down, dragging Ning Que and Sang Sang on his back into the depths of the water. It was like dragging them into hell.


    The water was so dim that nothing was visible or audible except the countless ghastly bone hands. The surroundings were dead and still, as well as unexpectedly strange and horrific.


    ¡°Help me,¡± Ning Que said in his heart.


    Sangsang heard him. The next moment, his eyes brightened as if stars were exploding with extreme brilliance. This was the purest Haotian¡¯s Divine me.


    Now, she was his eyes and his eyes contained God¡¯s power. Before his eyes, the dark water suddenly became lighter and clearer. His blocked vision had recovered.


    Ning Que saw the owners of these bone hands, the ghastly skeletons.


    Tens of thousands of skeletons were floating in the water around the sunken boat, densely forming a fortress.


    God knew how many years these skeletons lived under the water. Some had even turned yellow, floating in the water and then crushed in the flow. Some skulls were ripped apart and ck fish swam in and between them. These skeletons looked at the sunken boat with extremely greedy expressions in their ck hole-like eye sockets.


    Ning Que¡¯s hearing had recovered. He heard the rapid undercurrents, sad and shrill crying from the depth of the dark water and livelyughter of tens of thousands of skeletons.


    Theirughter was so lively, but then why did it sound so desperate?


    ...

 Chapter 969 - Devils and Ghosts at the River Bottom

    <h4>Chapter 969: Devils and Ghosts at the River Bottom</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Tens of thousands of hopeless skeletons were in the dim and dark water,ughing softly. Anyone would feel horrific at this scene, but Ning Que¡¯s expression was unchanged.


    The water around the sunken boat was getting clearer. Haotian Divine me was in his eyes, which lit up the surroundings. For some reason, the thousands of skeletons floating in the water looked nk once they saw the light.


    These skeletons hadn¡¯t seen light in tens of thousands of years. The light was so strange but attractive to them. Then they felt infinite terror in their deep consciousness.


    The bony hands around the sunken boat suddenly fell off like weathered stones suddenly peeled off and were flushed away by the current. The bony fingers remaining instantly dissipated into smoke too.


    The skeletons finally woke up. They screamed and fled toward the dark water. Some covered their ears, not wanting to hear the others¡¯ crying. Others clutched their heads, as if that would make themselves feel safer. However, neither Haotian or the Buddha¡¯s world could run faster than the light.


    Ning Que stood on the sunken boat and looked around. Haotian¡¯s Divine me lit up the dirty and dark river bottom. Countless skeletons were purified while still screaming, and turned into ck smoke.


    Instead of dissipating, the ck smoke lingered and flowed toward the sunken boat. All of a sudden, the water darkened. As if tangible, it surrounded him tightly.


    Ning Que¡¯s cuss smashed forward, but the ck smoke wasn¡¯t broken. What the de hit felt strange. It was glossy and thick, like some kind of leather or internal organ.


    Along with the strange feeling, an extremely crazy and intense desire was returning from the cuss to his body as well. It was so pure that it contained nothing but greed.


    Ning Que¡¯s chest was tight. Thinking of the greedy expressions in the eye sockets of the tens of thousands of skeletons, he remained vignt. Using his Psyche Power, he expulsed the greedy desire out of his body.


    An intention was a kind of desire. That desire was ignited by his abundant Psyche Power, like it was oil poured on fire. It was abruptly amplified countless times and invaded his consciousness like ring fire.


    Ning Que¡¯s heart turned numb and his face was pale. He didn¡¯t know what happened. Even if he couldn¡¯t drive this desire out, how could something like this happen?


    ¡°The ck smoke is the devil,¡± Sangsang told him in his heart.


    Ning Que was still puzzled at why these devils had neither form nor substance.


    ¡°The devil in the Buddhism is inside one¡¯s heart...the poisons of greed, anger and foolishness are part of it, but this is purer. It targets the heart, instead of the body. I¡¯m in your heart now, and that¡¯s why you are affected.¡±


    Sangsang continued, ¡°The Devil and desires invaded your body, activating the poisons.¡±


    As the desires brought by the dark smoke gradually entered deep, Ning Que¡¯s heartbeat became unsteady. The three poisons of greed, anger and foolishness brought by Sangsang finally broke out.


    Ning Que was anguished. He spat out a mouthful of blood at the dark smoke in front of him.


    It sizzled. The dark smoke seemed to burn from intangible mes. Fluttering like a dark cloud blown by the wind, it seemed to be in extreme pain. The feeling of pain loomed from the depths.


    Sangsang was helping him. His body was full of Haotian¡¯s Divine me, so his blood was also filled with the power of holy and pure splendor. Once the blood entered into dark smoke, purification started naturally.


    Ning Que understood what he had to do. He held up the cuss and sliced his palm. He hadpleted his Haoran Qi, so his body was as tough as stone, but he did this on purpose, so his ruthless de still wounded his palm. Fresh blood spilled out and covered the ck cuss.


    He looked up, gripped the handle in his left hand, and stabbed fiercely towards the dense ck smoke in front him. The same sticky feeling of tenacity passed on from the de, but the feeling weakened as the blood on the de seeped into the smoke. The de sunk in more, reaching half a meter in depth.


    Ning Que collected his Haoran Qi and he pounded the cuss¡¯ handle with his right hand like an iron hammer. The two powerful forces ovepped, fluctuating like waves on the river. The iron knife buriedpletely into the ck smoke.


    Countless Haotian Divine mes spilled out of the iron knife. The ck smoke struggled like a wriggling spleen. It looked disgusting and horrific.


    A scorched smell came out from the ck smoke. Lights arose from the cuss and spread all around at a megascopic speed, lighting up the river bottom and revealing the true appearance of the Devil inside.


    The Devil inside was virtual object, intangible like the ck smoke. But there were countless wraiths and desires hidden in the ck smoke drooping to the bottom of the river like a curtain. Ning Que even saw his own face in it.


    He knew that if the confrontation against the Devil continued, a fight at the consciousness level would be inevitable. He wouldn¡¯t fear it if it was in the past. But at the moment, Sangsang was in his heart, and he was affected by the three poisons of greed, anger and foolishness as well. In this sense, he absolutely couldn¡¯t let the Devil get inside his body. It was too dangerous.


    Haotian Divine mes continued to burn. The fire seemed to be endless. The cuss stabbed into the smoke fell loose. Ning Que stood at the front of the boat, injected Haoran Qi into his arms and pulled powerfully!


    There was a loud whoosh. It was not the sound of water and it didn¡¯te from the bottom or surface of the river. Even the biggest wave couldn¡¯t make a crash like that. It was the sound of the ck smoke shattering. Thousands of wraiths, goblins and a dozen sticky beams of desire surged from the rupture.


    Ning Que pretended he didn¡¯t see the disgusting and weird scene in front of him. Instead, he continued to move his wrist with his head lowered. The iron knife passed through the ck smoke, instantly cutting it into countless shreds.


    The ck screen was fragmented and the Devil¡¯s body was destroyed. As if a fish tank was broken, the sticky stuff transformed from countless wraiths and goblins flowed out, surging towards the sunken boat.


    The sticky stuff transformed from the desires couldn¡¯t travel long after separating from the devil¡¯s body, so they gradually sunk into the river bottom. However, the wraiths and goblins had no weights, so they floated toward the boat with the current.


    Countless wraiths avoided the iron knife and climbed up to Ning Que¡¯s clothes. They began to desperately descend into his body, emitting joyful calls non-stop. Their sounds were tiny, like mosquitoes and flies.


    A lot of wraiths and goblins climbed towards Sangsang¡¯s divine body after they fell on the sunken boat. They sensed that this body was more delicious and powerful, so they made much joyful calls. However, when they had physical contact with Sangsang¡¯s divine body, their cheering turned into dreadful screaming and they were purified into nothing.


    Ning Que¡¯s eyes were like stars. He saw everything clearly, while clearer feelings came from his skin. He could feel the extreme chilling, pernicious rage and reluctance brought by the countless wraiths and goblins. It was much like the array intent of the Secluded Pavilion he felt by the cliff on Peach Mountain.


    With the help of Sangsang, his body contained endless Haotian Divine me But unlike Sangsang¡¯s divine body, he couldn¡¯t purify the wraiths and goblins with his innate power.


    Reasonably speaking, he should force out the Haotian Divine me to directly burn the wraiths and goblins. But thinking of how Sangsang was deeply poisoned, he needed to save her power for the fight against the Buddha, which was more important. That was why he didn¡¯t do anything and just let the countless wraiths and goblins climb up on his body.


    Within a short period of time, the sunken boat was overtaken by countless wraiths and goblins. It was quite empty in the middle of the boat where Sangsang¡¯s body was lying, while it was more crowded and scarier in the front of the boat. Thousands of wraiths and goblins had umted into a huge ck ball,like the school of fish in the sea. Ning Que was right there in the middle.


    He saw through these ghosts before him. A goblin was trying to drill into his shoe. He lifted up his knee and dropped it, stamping the goblin into several threads.


    As he moved, the wraiths and goblins lying on the surface of his body fluttered like seaweed, but none fell down. These ghosts greedily tore at his clothes, gnawed his skin, sent countless hatred and resentment into his mind, and tried to dig in to eat his blood, flesh and soul.


    It was very dangerous for cultivators, but Ning Que was quite calm. He¡¯d experienced this feeling and pain before. He knew it was important to have a steady mind to keep safe.


    He¡¯d gone through life-or-death moments, suffering and tortures in human world since he was a little child. Later, he was recruited by the Academy to learn iparable cultivating methods and meditated in the Xuankong Temple. Finally, he went into the world of the Chessboard and studied Buddhism for countless years. There were few in the world who surpassed him in terms of keeping one¡¯s mind steady.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t move, while the wraiths and goblins continued to jump into the sunken boat. The clump of souls grew and was about to touch the water. Inside the clump, Ning Que closed his eyes, waiting for the moment toe.


    Momentster, most of the wraiths and goblins in the river came onto the sunken boat and surrounded him. They buzzed and called in a low tone withcence. Once in a while, several goblins flew out, looking anxious.


    Goblins, don¡¯t be too naughty, Ning Que thought.


    As his thoughts turned, a streak of extremely fresh red appeared on the dark river bottom. With a cruel and fierce shout, the dark red Vermillion Bird flew out of the iron knife and fluttered fast around his body.


    The water in the river evaporated into bubbles wherever the the Vermillion Bird swept past. It spilled out hot fire, which wrapped up those wraiths and goblins around Ning Que. They didn¡¯t have time to escape and turned to smoke amidst intive whines.


    The river cleared instantly. Only the clean water remained around Ning Que. Since the wraiths and goblins had vanished, so did the thoughts of coldness and hatred.


    A dozen of wraiths and goblins hadn¡¯t squeezed onto the boat. They¡¯d been unhappy, but the fast-changed situation shook them. They fled into the dark depths of the water, crying out in fear.


    The Vermillion Bird obviously wouldn¡¯t let these dirty beings run off. It called sharply and then pped its wings, flying towards these wraiths and goblins. Its fiery wings swept out the wraiths and goblins, turning them into dark smoke.


    However, just as the Vermillion Bird was satisfied with the result and about to go back to the sunken boat, a white shadow appeared suddenly. It streaked out of the dark river water like lightning, tangling around the Vermillion Bird.


    The Vermillion Bird cawed in anger. It pped its wings, struggling, but it couldn¡¯t budge!


    Ning Que¡¯s expression hardened, while looking at this scene.


    He knew clearly that the Vermillion Bird was a lethal talisman of the God-stunning Array and could bepared to a cultivator at the State of Knowing Destiny Zenith. That white shadow could suppress it so easily. Its strength must be above the five states.


    What was the white shadow? It felt familiar to Ning Que. At closer inspection, he realized it indeed was a white bone whip, but countless times thicker than those he saw earlier.


    Right then, the white bone whip gradually came out of the dark water.


    The Vermillion Bird, tied up by the white bone, couldn¡¯t get away and looked quite miserable.


    While looking at the white bone whip graduallying out the dark water, Ning Que¡¯s expression grew harder. When he saw the giant figure behind the white bone whip, he fell speechless in shock.

 Chapter 970 - The Bodhisattva

    <h4>Chapter 970: The Bodhisattva</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    A white bone projected from the dark water. It looked quite queer and horrible. Behind the white bone, a huge dark shadow sent forth infinite power and might.


    The water was separated as the white bone moved ahead, and then two bones appeared below it. These two bones had no joints. They were very smooth and sharp, looking like two spears.


    The thick and long white bone that had appeared first wasn¡¯t a whip at all, but an extremely long nose. Flesh, blood and thick skin on it were melted and only a ghastful bone left.


    Only an elephant¡¯s nose could be that long, and the two sharp white bones were the tusks. Ning Que looked at the huge figure in the dark river and slowly grasped the cuss¡¯ handle.


    A huge elephant was at the bottom of the river. It was hundreds of meters tall, as huge as a mountain. Inparison, the sunken boat was quite tiny. The elephant¡¯s flesh had eroded, leaving only scary and white bone behind.


    The skeletal elephant slowly moved toward the sunken boat. The front end of the trunk was made up of countless small and thin white bones. It curled around the Vermillion Bird, which had stopped struggling. It was close to dying.


    As the huge skeletal elephant walked, a Buddhist breath full of stateliness and eeriness pressed against the front of the boat. Ning Que stiffened, thinking that an elephant¡¯s trunk shouldn¡¯t have bones.


    This was a hellish river bottom in the Buddha¡¯s world of Nirvana. The elephant¡¯s trunk had bones, while wraiths lingered everywhere. There was no logic to be spoken of.


    If it was unfair, so they could only fight. However, after seeing the monk sitting on the back of the skeletal elephant and sensing the powerful Buddhist strength of his opponent, he didn¡¯t dare to act brashly.


    The monk wore a Buddhist crown with ten precious diamond on it and a kasaya with ten-thousand miles of golden thread. He held up a nine-looped golden scepter. It rang as river water passed through it.


    The monk sat on the back of the skeletal elephant. He seemed insignificant but also huge. His expression was merciful and resolute. River water passed in front of his eyes, but he still looked calm, presenting an unfathomable atmosphere.


    In this world, Ning Que had met many Buddhas, such as the Face-hidden Buddha transformed by the Monk of Green tes and the Dipamakara on the street. Some were powerful, while some were weak. But no matter how strong a Buddha was, one couldn¡¯t stand on for a long while before he and Sangsang started working together.


    Now, he saw the skeletal elephant and the monk, and he knew that he and Sangsang were facing a truly powerful enemy. He even felt terrified.


    The skeletal elephant walked slowly to the sunken boat. The water was much clearer.


    Looking at the monk, Ning Que shouted, ¡°Which Buddha are you?¡±


    The monk said, ¡°I¡¯m not a Buddha, but a Bodhisattva.¡±


    Surprised, Ning Que said, ¡°I¡¯ve met countless Buddhas in Nirvana, but no one was stronger than you. Why don¡¯t you be a Buddha?¡±


    ¡°I will not transform until Hell is empty,¡± the monk answered calmly.


    The eight simple words made Ning Que silent for a long while. Troubled, he asked, ¡°Ksitigarbha?¡±


    The monk looked resolute with mercy in his eyes. The diamonds in his Buddhist crown shone, and the gold threads on the kasaya released radiated, illuminating the river bottom. Even the whole ten-thousand-mile river was getting clearer and brighter.


    Those skeletons hidden between the dark river water and the mud, as well as those wandering ghosts, were all revealed. They didn¡¯t fear the Light of the Buddha. On the contrary, they were soothed. They kneeled down and bowed to the monk. Countless skeletons and wandering ghosts all worshipped him. Scrapes could be heard from the bottom of the river. It was the sound of bone rubbing against bone. The bone shrapnel that Ning Que had smashed apart floated up.


    The huge river, as dark as Hell, was purified by infinite mercy, which was the state of the Ksitigarbha. Although he was at the position of Bodhisattva, the Buddha¡¯s Light he emitted was even stronger than all those other Buddhasbined.


    A Buddhist believer would be touched and cry out at the scene. He would probably bow continuously towards the monk on the back of the skeletal elephant. At that moment, even Ning Que was a bit shaken. He¡¯d justposed himself faster than the others.


    Only pious Buddhist believer¡¯s consciousness woulde to the Chessboard and entered Nirvana after the death. Where did the wraiths, goblins and skeletons under the rivere from?


    The Ksitigarbha seemed to know what he was thinking and said slowly, ¡°As long as they believed in the Buddha, all woulde to this Pure Land after death, even the sinners.¡±


    ¡°Heaven is Hell as well.¡± Ning Que understood quickly. Looking at Ksitigarbha, he asked, ¡°All those sinners were guided to the Chessboard after death and then suppressed to suffer under the river. How can they be emptied out?¡±


    Ksitigarbha gazed at the ghosts under the river and said with mercy, ¡°As long as they piously converted to Buddhism and cultivated via beneficence to achieve the good results, all will be forgiven in the end.¡±


    After he said that, the countless ghosts bowed and cried out. Confessions filled the river.


    Looking at Ksitigarbha, Ning Que said ¡°You spout nonsense, just like the Buddhas.¡±


    After he said that, the countless ghosts rose up. Anger filled the river.


    Ksitigarbha didn¡¯t get angry. He put his palms together in prayer and said, ¡°Please enlighten me.¡±


    Ning Que pointed at those wandering skeletons in the water and said, ¡°Good will and thoughts are easily spoken of, but there are Buddhas everywhere in this world. Where do they do the good things? And if they were sinful before their death, they should be restricted in Hell forever, instead of being freed solely by sutra chanting. How would their victims feel?¡±


    Ksitigarbha said, ¡°You were wrong...¡±


    Reasoning and debating on the Buddhism was thest thing Ning Que wanted to do at the moment, so he held up the cuss and stopped the Bodhisattva¡¯s words. He looked at the opponent with his extremely bright eyes. Golden mes seemed to spill from them.


    ¡°I may be wrong, but I will never identify someone incorrectly,¡± Ning Que said. You¡¯re absolutely not the Ksitigarbha. You can¡¯t deceive my sharp eyes! Show yourself, or take on my hit!¡±


    He felt proud about how witty he was, but only Sangsang in his heart could understand him. How could the Ksitigarbha get it, who looked confused while countless ghosts started to roar with rages?


    How irreverent to use the Bodhisattva that he was a false one!


    The Ksitigarbha didn¡¯t get angry. He said with smile, ¡°You may think whatever you believe. It doesn¡¯t matter whether I¡¯m a Bodhisattva or not. What I do is what really matters.¡±


    The tens of thousands of ghosts at the river bottom understood the essence. Ecstatic, they bowed again.


    Ning Que was unmoved. ¡°How can one stay put and watch others suffer like the earth, while calmly contemting and hiding well?¡± he shouted. ¡°I don¡¯t know which Chief Monk you were in the Xuankong Temple in your lifetime, allowing you to cultivate the Vajra Body Defending Divine Skill. After your death, you came here to guard the ghosts¡¯ river. The Buddha gave you a nice position, but I would be shameless to say that you are benevolent!¡±


    The Ksitigarbha grew serious. Looking at Ning Que quietly, he said after a long while, ¡°You were born with insight and now have the God¡¯s Eyes. You¡¯re right. I was the second Chief Monk of Xuankong Temple.¡±


    The first Chief Monk of Xuankong Temple was the Budhda. He was the second Chief Monk. In this sense, he was the eldest disciple of the Buddha. From the perspectives of the human world or the session of cultivating world, he was the first Buddha of Xuankong Temple.


    Hearing his confirmation, Ning Que realized this was why he was so powerful. ¡°Indeed a false Bodhisattva,¡± he mocked.


    Ksitigarbha said, ¡°The Buddha was a prince of an earthly kingdom and became the Buddha after reaching nirvana. I was the Chief Monk of Xuankong Temple and became the Bodhisattva after my Parinirvana. What¡¯s wrong with that?¡±


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t reply. It really did make sense. Both Bodhisattvas and Buddhas were all positions of Buddhism assigned by the Buddha. Since the Buddha let the monk be Ksitigarbha, Ksitigarbha he was. What effect would it have even if he could see through his previous life?


    Ning Que had reacted so strongly because he¡¯d felt deceived. Although he wasn¡¯t a Buddhist, he still had great respect towards the Ksitigarbha. He didn¡¯t think that...


    ¡°You were the Chief Monk in Xuankong Temple, so you¡¯re clear about the miserable world below the mountain. You won¡¯t be a Buddha until Hell is empty? That world is the true Hell. You can¡¯t even empty the hell in the human world. What¡¯s more, that hell was created by the Buddha and yourself. How shameless are you to say those words?¡±


    Ning Que looked at Ksitigarbha on the elephant and said, ¡°One of my elder brothers is leading millions of starving ghosts to break out the hell you left. What if he met all the starving ghosts repressed by you for countless generations who returned to the human world? You said you won¡¯t be a Buddha until Hell is empty? If that logic is true, then my brother should be the one to be a Buddha. What does it have to do with you?¡±


    Momentster, the skeletal elephant sent the Vermillion Bird tied by the front end of its trunk back to its back. Ksitigarbha took over the Vermillion Bird and looked at Ning Que standing on the front of the boat. ¡°Your bird was captured by me. It¡¯s something to do with me.¡±


    Bodhisattvas spoke with Buddhist words and overtook the debate with their eloquence, just like those in human world. They preferred to resort to challenging questions or arguing to solve differences. Unfortunately his debate opponent was Ning Que at the moment.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t follow his words at all. Instead, he was extremely angry. After the night in the Divine Hall of Light, speaking about birds was taboo to him. Even worse, his enemy was talking about capturing his bird!


    He was furious. With one thought, the Vermillion Bird held by Ksitigarbha suddenly became a fireball and scattered all around on the water, vanishing. The next moment, the Vermillion Bird returned to the cuss and closed its eyes to recuperate after painfully chirping twice.


    The Vermillion Bird was a lethal talisman of the God-stunning Array and totally controlled by Ning Que. Even the Ksitigarbha couldn¡¯t do it. He¡¯d thought to let the skeleton bone hold up the Vermillion Bird deliberately and wait for the right chance to take advantage in the middle of the fight.


    Now, he took the Vermillion Bird back because Ksitigarbha was too strong. It was meaningless for the Vermillion Bird to try a sneak attack. Another important reason was that he couldn¡¯t stand having the bird captured by his enemy, even for one second.


    ¡°Then, Bodhisattva, take this!¡±


    He was totally into the act. Ning Que swept fast from the front of the boat and came to the skeletal elephant. He gripped the cuss with both hands as if wielding an iron bat. Then he smashed towards the head and face of Ksitigarbha.


    The skeletal elephant roared with anger. The river tossed angrily.


    Ksitigarbha calmly looked at Ning Que in the air. His left hand, ced on his knee, had formed a Wishful Gesture at some point. The nine-looped golden scepter in his right hand faded and became a monk¡¯s staff.


    Ksitigarbha once made a grand wish that he would enlighten all living creatures in the six great divisions in the wheel of karma. Thus, he appeared in the six great divisions with different dharmaksanas holding different dharma-vessels. This was called the Six Ksitigarbha.


    At the moment, the one sitting on the skeletal elephant was the Ksitigarbha of Wishful Mudra.


    This one aimed to enlighten all animals.


    Ning Que had been cultivating Buddhism for countless years and knew all the principles. Once he saw the Ksitigarbha of Wishful Mudra, his anger couldn¡¯t be suppressed. He struck violently and fiercely after injecting Haoran Qi and Haotian Divine mes into his cuss!


    ...

 Chapter 971 - My Turn This Time

    <h4>Chapter 971: My Turn This Time</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ksitigarbha¡¯s expression didn¡¯t change. He held up the nine-looped scepter above the skeletal elephant, water flowing through the head of it. There were more sshes. He raised the scepter and then hit Ning Que¡¯s cuss.


    There was a st. Countless vortexes swirled in the water with powerful effects spreading all around. Countless skeletons covered inexistent ears, and countless wandering ghosts hid their heads in the chests. They were too scared to listen.


    Huge power passed from the front end of the iron sword. Ning Que felt as if he cut into a mountain. It was impossible to hurt the enemy at all, but his wrist almost snapped from the reveberrance.


    Ksitigarbha was the second Chief Monk of Xuankong Temple. His Vajra Defending Divine Skill was cultivated to the zenith and even beyond that after his Parinirvana. Ning Que couldn¡¯t even injure the Chief Monk in human world. How could he possibly kill this one?


    Ning Que¡¯s right foot stamped on the elephant¡¯s head and lifted the cuss to smash again. But his body was leaning backward. He was ready to retreat with the water current. However, at the moment, the trunk of the skeletal elephant swept over and wrapped around in his waist.


    The skeletal elephant¡¯s trunk was so tough that he couldn¡¯t escape. The situation was like what the Vermillion Bird had faced. Before he could reacted, Ksitigarbha made the Wishful Mudra in his left hand and sted it to his chest!


    The Wishful Mudra was full of Buddhist Power, which could suppress all evils in the animal division. Fresh blood gushed out of Ning Que, while he felt the huge power passing on from his chest. If he couldn¡¯t free himself, he would definitely die from the mudra. With a shout, the Haoran Qi in his abdomen burst out. The cuss smashed furiously down onto the trunk of the skeletal elephant. The elephant¡¯s trunk was shaken loose. At the same time, he became on streak of light smoke and fled back to the sunken boat.


    He fell on the front of the boat and almost lost his bnce. Blood spewed out of his mouth.


    Ksitigarbha looked at him quietly while the nine-looped scepter in his right hand rang in the water.


    Ning Que was surrounded by water. He wiped his face, washing away the blood. He looked at the Ksitigarbha on the skeletal elephant and became very serious.


    He knew his enemy was very powerful, but his strength was still beyond his imagination. Not only could Ning Que not cut into him, the skeletal elephant also had such horrific power, and the Wishful Mudra couldn¡¯t even be evaded.


    Ksitigarbha looked at him with mercy. He said, ¡°Put down our knife and be absolved of your sins.¡±


    ¡°Okay,¡± Ning Que said without thinking or any hesitation.


    Ksitigarbha found this strange, while the wraiths and skeletonsughed proudly. There was no flesh on the wraiths and skeletons, nor any expressions. Theirughs were the ghastly sound of teeth hitting each other.


    Ning Que abruptly sheathed the cuss. Then he took out the iron bow and knocked the arrow while standing on the front of the boat. The dark iron arrow was absolutely still in the river, targeting the skeletal elephant.


    Ksitigarbha frowned and chanted the Amitabha Buddha.


    The arrow on the bow was one of the Thirteen Primordial Arrows.


    The Thirteen Primordial Arrow had killed countless strong fighters. It was called the devil¡¯s weapon due to the blood it had shed. Ning Que had put down his knife and picked up his bow. He¡¯d like to see if he could kill a Buddha!


    Years ago in the White Tower Temple, he couldn¡¯t shoot through the Chief Monk of Scripture. Now, he was at a higher state and had Sangsang¡¯s power within him. He believed this iron arrow definitely could kill the monk on the skeletal elephant.


    A round of white turbulence formed at the front of the boat, which drove the water into high-speed rotation. The iron arrow on the bow disappeared suddenly. The next second, it was in front of the skeletal elephant. Ksitigarbha had just started chanting.


    A light sound rang out like a needle falling on a stone te, or like the music that opened a banquet. The water flowing over the skeletal elephant was disturbed, dimming the light again. After the water cleared, the iron arrow showed itself again.


    The iron arrow didn¡¯t pierce Ksitigarbha, or even his kasaya, because it didn¡¯t get close to the Bodhisattva at all. It had dug into an umbre.


    It was a seemingly regr umbre with countless vajra hanging around the brim. It was rotated slowly in the water. The umbre handle was in the hand of Ksitigarbha. His other hand changed to make the mudra.


    Ning Que was speechless. He wondered what kind of material the umbre was that it could take on the Thirteen Primordial Arrows shot under Haotian¡¯s divine power. Its strength wasparable to the big ck umbre!


    An umbre hanging with ropes was called a pennant. This was the Vajra Pennant mentioned in Buddhist texts! Ksitigarbha held the Vajra Pennant in his right hand and made the Fearless Mudra in his left hand. It was the Ksitigarbha of Supporting the Earth, who was set to enlighten the Asura!


    Ksitgarbha controlled six divisions with six dharmaksanas. He couldn¡¯t be hacked with a cuss or pierced with an arrow. Ksitigarbha, quiet and still as the earth and profound and hidden as a mystery, was invincible!


    Ning Que was speechless, but he didn¡¯t give up. He took out cuss and struck twice in the direction of the skeletal elephant far away. The des cut off the current at the river bottom and then transformed into two powerful and forceful attacks with Fu spirit.


    It was his most powerful method at that moment ¨C the ¡°Y¡± talisman!


    Ksitigarbha¡¯s dharmaksana changed again into the Ksitigarbha of Precious Pearl, with a precious pearl in his left hand and the Sweet Dew Mudrapleted by his right hand. It specialized in enlightening the ghost division and could suppress any form of spiritual power, including the Fu spirit.


    These two powerful Fu spirits could even slice through the flowing water, leaving two distinct spaces under the water. But in front of the skeletal elephant, they were blocked by the precious pearl and couldn¡¯t budge!


    Even the intangible Fu spirit could be stopped by tangible vessels. What exactly was the precious pearl? Why there were so many vessels in Buddhism? How powerful was Ksitigarbha?


    Even Ning Que¡¯s most powerful attacks were easily countered by Ksitigarbha. After that, he felt unsettlement and even desperation. At the same time, a voice sounded inside his heart.


    Sangsang¡¯s voice was a bit weak but very calm. ¡°Let me do it.¡±


    Ning Que thought back to the summer in Chang¡¯an years ago. After a storm, he finally learnt Fu Tao. After that, he fought to do whatever Sangsang wanted to do. Then no matter what Sangsang did, he would rather snatch the chance. In the Old Brush Pen Shop, one could constantly hear him say, ¡°Let me do it.¡±


    Then, Sangsang grew up and became Haotian. Now, even if she was so feeble that would die any moment, she was still much more powerful than him, It was her turn to say this sentence.


    Standing in the chilly water, Ning Que felt warmthing from the inside. It was peaceful, happy and blissful. But he was still inevitably worried, because Sangsang was too feeble.


    ¡°Can you handle it?¡±


    ¡°Maybe I can. After that, I would sleep for a long time.¡±


    ¡°In that case, be careful.¡±


    Ning Que closed his eyes and found he couldn¡¯t control his body the next moment. Sangsang¡¯s consciousness took over, while he could only look on quietly.


    He felt quite odd and incapable of doing anything. Later, he could only watch Sangsang fight with Ksitigarbha, unable to do anything regardless of how dangerous it was.


    Ning Que closed his eyes while standing on the front of the boat. Ksitigarbha gradually grew serious, because he sensed instinctively some changes that he wasn¡¯t willing to see.


    The Vajra Pennant ttered when struck by the water. The vajra hanging at the umbre¡¯s brim became drilled with holes by the water. It finally turned into countless white and scary human skulls.


    The Fearless Mudra in the Ksitigarbha¡¯s right hand dispersed. His fingertips rose up in the water, fell down like flowers and made a mudra, spreading mercy through the world.


    Countless vicious ghosts and skeletons sensed the changes of Ksitigarbha. They fell to their knees together and unleashed their own consciousness to aid him. They started piously chanting the sutra.


    Ning Que opened his eyes, his eyshes drawing up fine lines in the water. In the blink of an eyes, the Ksitigarbha had changed drastically.


    The Vajra Pennant in Ksitigarbha¡¯s left hand had turned into the Pennant of Human Skulls. ording to the sutra, it was the Tantra. The Fearless Mudra in his right hand changed into the Sweet Dew Mudra, forming the Tantra Ksitigarbha. Its purpose was to save all living creatures in the hell division.


    After sensing the changes in Ning Que, Ksitigarbha reacted without any hesitation to be the most merciful yet cruelest and most powerful Tantra Ksitigarbha.


    ¡°Die or move,¡± Ning Que said without any expressions while looking at Ksitigarbha.


    Ksitigarbha knew Ning Que wasn¡¯t himself any more. The one speaking was Haotian. He was visibly moved, and the hell became uneasy as well. Tens of thousands of wraiths and skeletons were at a loss and the sutra chanting was slightly disorderly.


    The Bodhisattva quickly returned to calmness, as did the hell. The sutra chanting in the water became orderly again. He looked at Ning Que standing at the front of the boat. ¡°Integration of the God and human, so who is the God then?¡± he contemted.


    Instead of an argument, he was purelymenting. The Bodhisattvamented that Haotian no longer existed.


    Die or move...When a cultivator said such words, it showed their power and confidence. But Haotian would have never spoken like that. Instead of speaking, she would kill the enemy right away, even if the enemy was Ksitisattva ¨C this only demonstrated that Haotian had be very feeble.


    The sutra chanting grew and Buddha¡¯s Light seeped into Ning Que¡¯s clothes, triggering the three poisons of greed, anger and foolishness in the divine soul of Sangsang. Red blood flowed out of the corner of his mouth and dripped into the water.


    The blood contained Haotian Divine me. It was so hot that the river boiled, transforming into countless tiny bubbles. They floated over his face like pearls. He still looked expressionless ¨C or rather, it was Sangsang who was expressionless. Her heart was injured while his body was in pain. She didn¡¯t care about this.


    Sangsang didn¡¯t talk to Ksitigarbha. She took out the iron bow and shot directly. The arrow seemed normal, butpared to that of Ning Que, its was countless times more powerful!


    Ksitigarbha still looked merciful. The tantra in his hand reacted. The countless pale human heads hanging below the umbre brim opened mouths at the same time and started to scream.


    Tens of thousands of white skulls screamed at the same time, and an intangible barrier was set up in the water before the skeletal elephant.


    No matter how strong the iron arrow was, even if it was shot by Haotian, the screen couldn¡¯t be passed through.


    There was a soft poof.


    Ksitigarbha looked down at his chest and saw a ck arrow sticking out. It was dyed with several drops of golden blood and tangled with several golden lines on the kasaya.


    Even the most powerful Tantra Ksitigarbha couldn¡¯t block the iron arrow.


    Pain colored Ksitigarbha¡¯s face, as well as confusion. He didn¡¯t know how the arrow had appeared.


    Was it because God¡¯s will was difficult to predict?


    No, God¡¯s will couldn¡¯t be predicted at all.


    Neither could the arrow shot by Haotian.


    While the iron arrow shot through Ksitigarbha, Sangsang left the front of the boat. Like truewater, she walked naturally in the water and instantly came before the skeletal elephant.


    The tens of thousands of heads on the Tantra were still screaming. ck blood streamed out of Ning Que¡¯s face, but his eyes looked so peaceful ¨C even cold. Hended on the head of the skeletal elephant without any fear.


    He came before Ksitigarbha.


    Haotian came before Ksitigarbha.

 Chapter 972 - Killing Ksitigarbha

    <h4>Chapter 972: Killing Ksitigarbha</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Tantra Ksitigarbha was the most powerful Ksitigarbha. The Pennant of Human Skulls he held in hand was the ritual implement that suppressed hell. And the Sweet Dew Emblematic Gesture contained endlesspassion which was harmful for Sangsang, who was poisoned.


    Ning Que¡¯s body was torn by the innumerable skulls on the Tantra and he was covered by wounds. His clothes were ripped and stained with blood. Innumerable disgruntled souls were summoned by the chanting, flowed to him along the river, and desperately drilled into his wounds. Although these disgruntled souls were purified by the divine me contained in his blood, the damage was left on him and the verges of the wounds suffused with gray.


    His eyes were also bleeding, but he was calm and showed no fear or pain. It seemed that he was not even thinking, and looked ruthless and extremely cold. It was because his eyes represented the emotions of Sangsang.


    The skeleton elephant was dozens of zhang high and had a very big head. Sangsang fell on the top of its head, as if she was falling into a very spacious house. And she looked tinypared to the size of the skeleton elephant.


    Sangsang walked toward the back of the elephant and was getting closer and closer to Ksitigarbha.


    The skeleton elephant roared and raised its trunk to crack her like a whip.


    Ning Que was right from the beginning. There was no bone in the trunk of the elephant, and the elephant of the Styx River was no different. The reason why the skeleton elephant had a long trunk made of white bones was that it made itself a trunk with many broken bones in the mud at the bottom of the river for it couldn¡¯t forget the past after reaching Nirvana.


    The broken bones of the trunk were all human bones. After listening to the chantings by the Styx River for tens of thousands of years, the skeleton elephant had already turned these human bones into its magical weapon which contained endless Power of Buddha. That was why it could bind Vermilion Bird and Ning Que so easily even though these two had reached Knowing Destiny Zenith.


    During the roar, the bone trunk swung at Sangsang like a white shadow, which was as powerful as the Vajra in the hand of Buddha, stirring the river. One would definitely die if hit by it.


    Countless disgruntled souls in the river had seen many of theirpanions killed by the bone trunk of the elephant. Seeing this, they were all frightened and dared not to watch any longer.


    Sangsang did not look at it either. It seemed that she didn¡¯t even know that the skeleton elephant under her was attacking her and that the trunk that was made of human bones was about to fall on her body. She just kept moving forward without any expressions.


    She took a step forward and stepped on the trunk of the elephant! Her action seemed very simple, but actually it was extremely mysterious and abstruse. It seemed that the skeleton elephant stretched its trunk and waited for her to step on it!


    A shrill cry rang throughout Styx River!


    The skeleton elephant was in so much pain that it shook its head desperately and exhausted the strength of its whole body to pull its trunk from Sangsang¡¯s foot. But the bone trunk was broken into halves and its white bones were flying out!


    Sangsang went to the front of Ksitigarbha and reached out to hold the handle of the iron cuss.


    Ksitigarbha looked at her quietly, and the Pennant of Human Skulls in his hand suddenly became hundreds of timesrger, covered the entire river and then fell on the top of her head.


    The clear river was once again dark and haze, as if the night wasing. There were countless sharp and unpleasant sounds in the night, which were from the innumerable skulls roaring in anger!


    One skull represented one follower of Ksitigarbha, and innumerable skulls on the Pennant of Human Skulls represented the awareness and unwillingness of the followers!


    Ning Que had more wounds on his body, and his eardrums were also ruptured instantly. He would have been torn into pieces by the howling if he had not mastered Haoran Qi and possessed a body as strong as the powerhouses of Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    The real horrible injury was not on his outer body, but in his heart. His heart was suddenly beating faster, like a rainstorm. Under the rate of a thousand beats per breath, his heart might break at any time!


    Ning Que¡¯s consciousness was very clear, and he was in a lot of pain and fear. His instinct to survive made him want to leave the horrible Pennant of Human Skulls and the skeleton elephant and go back to the sunken sink, but he couldn¡¯t do it.


    It was Sansang who controlled his body at his moment.


    Sangsang simply ignored the damage that this body was suffering, and didn¡¯t seem to care that this body might be destroyed at any time. She was still calm and indifferent.


    She looked at the Pennant of Human Skulls in the hand of Ksitigarbha and shouted, ¡°Too noisy!¡±


    The shouting was like a thunder and echoed in the dark river bottom, ringing louder than the chanting of countless disgruntled souls. The skulls hanging on the edge of the Pennant of Human Skulls were shocked and instantly quieted down.


    After a moment, these skulls woke up and screamed more and more angrily.


    Suddenly, countless tiny cracks appeared on the Pennant of Human Skulls, and countless skulls were shattered into tiny bones and were drifted by the river, no longer making any noises!


    These skulls were shattered by their own screaming!


    Sangsang said that these skulls were making too much noise. Since they didn¡¯t stop screaming, they had to die. This was the will of Haotian!


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang took out the iron cuss and swung at Ksitigarbha.


    With a loud sound, the de cut off the kasaya that was on Ksitigarbha, cut off countless golden lines and cut off Ksitigarbha¡¯s body, but only left a superficial wound. The golden blood slowly oozed out but didn¡¯te down.


    Sangsang was unhappy, so Ning Que frowned.


    She stretched out her right hand andnded on the Ksitigarbha¡¯s chest and used magical means to pull the iron arrow from the back of Ksitigarbha.


    Seeing the golden blood on the iron arrow, Sangsang was somewhat disgusted. She took out the iron bow, bent the bow and put the arrow on and pointed the ck and sharp arrow cluster between the eyebrows of Ksitigarbha.


    An air was spreading around the surrounding area, covering the skeleton elephant. The Pennant of Human Skulls broke and drifted along the river. But it didn¡¯t drift away, as if there was an invisible barrier.


    Sangsang unfolded her world, and the Pennant of Human Skulls, the skeleton elephant and Ksitigarbha on the back of the elephant were all in this world. No one could escape and no one could resist her will.


    She used the iron arrow to aim between the eyebrows of Ksitigarbha, and Ksitigarbha could not escape.


    Ksitigarbha held the front end of the iron arrow with his left hand.


    Sangsang quietly looked at him, and Psyche Power fell to the iron arrow.


    Ksitigarbha looked solemn, announcing his own name.


    Sangsang released her fingers and the iron arrow left the bow. But the arrow didn¡¯t move. Ksitigarbha held the shaft of the iron arrow, and there were golden lightsing out of his left hand.


    The skeleton elephant gave mournful cries and slowly sank down. And the bone of its right forelimb was broken!


    It was so quiet, as if the iron arrow did not shoot out. In fact, the power of the iron arrow had been fully released!


    Sangsang withdrew the bow, and then held the iron arrow with her right hand and sent it forward again.


    She injected Psyche Power into the bow and arrow.


    There was a light sound.


    There was finally a wound between the eyebrows of Ksitigarbha, and a drop of golden blood oozed out.


    The drop of golden blood floated away from Ksitigarbha and drifted in the river with a slow but indisputable speed. Finally, it fell between the eyebrows of Ning Que and fell on the heart of Sangsang.


    The golden blood triggered the three poisons of attachment, aversion, obsession. Ning Que spat some blood, but Sangsang still held the iron arrow and continued to send it forward.


    More golden blood came out between the eyebrows of Ksitigarbha, and he was further injured. But meanwhile, the Light of Buddha contained in the golden blood made Ning Que suffer more pain.


    Who would die first?


    Looking at Ning Que who was covered in blood and had Haotian inside his body, Ksitigarbha said withpassion, ¡°Buddha will be happy to see the death of Haotian even though it is at the cost of my own death.¡±


    Sangsang revealed no emotion on her face. She took another step forward and the iron arrow kept moving forward.


    Ksitigarbha could no longer maintain a calm andpassionate look, and became frightened and frustrated. He roared and pped Ning Que on the chest with his right hand.


    Sangsang ignored it and continued to move forward. The iron arrow in her hand deeply pierced into the skin between the eyebrows of Ksitigarbha. The golden blood of Buddha sshed everywhere, and the Power of Buddha suddenly scattered the moment it emerged.


    Before his death, the eyes of the Ksitigarbha were full of confusion, for he didn¡¯t understand why Haotian, the most noble god who enjoyed immortality, dared to gamble her life with him?


    He did not know that Sangsang and Ning Que were nning to gamble their lives with Buddha.


    ...


    ...


    The skeleton elephant receded into the depths of the dark river. It walked slowly since its right forelimb was broken. And it kept swinging the half of its bone trunk that was left. The elephant looked like that it was in severe pain.


    Ksitigarbha sat on the back of the skeleton elephant with his eyes closed. His breath of Buddha was already gone.


    Seeing this, the disgruntled souls in the bottom of the river whispered, as if they did not believe what they had just witnessed. When they looked at the sunken ship, they became very quiet.


    Ning Que¡¯s body was shaken back to the sunken sink by thest strike of Ksitigarbha. Looking at the skeleton elephant that disappeared into the darkness, he suddenly spat blood and fell on the ship.


    Sangsang surrendered the control of this body.


    Ning Que opened his eyes and asked worriedly, ¡°Is everything all right?¡±


    Sangsang answered, ¡°If he hadn¡¯t retreated at the end, then we could have lost. But he retreated.¡±


    Ning Que had been watching the battle, so he knew that Sangsang was very weak at this moment. If Ksitigarbha had maintained his state of mind until the end, he would not have been defeated. There was a chance that either Ksitigarbha or Sangsang could have been wounded and defeated.


    He looked at the direction that the skeleton elephant disappeared into and said with emotions, ¡°Everyone said that Ksitigarbha had greatpassion and was firm and persistent. It turned out that he was also a monk who was afraid of death. Just another fake Bodhisattva.¡±


    The sunken ship floated up, and the river separated a road, revealing the sky above the river. The rain clouds had dispersed, and the ship sailed on the river smoothly.


    The water was very clear. One couldn¡¯t see the fishes, but could see the disgruntled souls and skulls. The disgruntled souls were smart enough to know that they couldn¡¯t hurt Ning Que and Sangsang, so they just looked at the ship with fear. But the skulls instinctively reached out to try to block the ship.


    After Sangsang controlled his body for a period of time, Ning Que¡¯s connection with her became tighter. Seeing the bone hands, he just waved his sleeves and the hands were instantly purified.


    There were no skulls that dared to approach the ship, and the disgruntled souls only floated in the water. Ning Que remembered the time when he and Sansgang crossed the Great River, which was not as beautiful as today but was nheless still very strange.


    The ship reached the other side of the river and ran aground on the mudt. Ning Que held Sangsang on his back, used the iron cuss as a crutch and walked toward the woods in the east. Approaching the woods, he looked back at the calm river and was hit by fear and pride, as a result of the battle. Ksitigarbha is dead now. Who else can stop me?


    At this moment, the Light of Buddha gradually flourished in the dark sky above the west of the river. The faint sound of chanting came from the hundreds of miles of redwood forests which he used Talisman Intent to destroy. He knew that countless Buddhas in Nirvana hade again.


    He shouted to the other side, ¡°Cross the river and chase me if you dare.¡±

 Chapter 973 - Running in the World of Buddha

    <h4>Chapter 973: Running in the World of Buddha</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The younger sister is going to cross the river. Who is going to carry me? I want to carry you...Ning Que hummed the tune, carried Sangsang on his back and walked to the woods by the river. He was extremely happy, for he defeated Ksitigarbha and was able to wildly release the pressure that had been umting.


    There were countless Buddhas in the field at the west of the river looking for and wanting to kill him and Sangsang. But he believed that these Buddhas couldn¡¯t cross the river, for there were innumerable disgruntled souls and skulls in the river.


    Those things in the river were not very smart but very capable. Without themands of Ksitigarbha, they couldn¡¯t distinguish their friends from their foes and attacked these Buddhas. The Light of Buddha could suppress the ghosts, but also was excellent nourishment for ghosts. Ning Que and Sangsang could purify them with Haotian¡¯s divine me, but those Buddha couldn¡¯t deal with them.


    Approaching the woods, the humming sound suddenly stopped. Ning Que kneeled on the mosses and was vomiting blood. He turned extremely pale due to the severe pain.


    Ksitigarbha was very powerful and it took a lot of power to kill him. It wasn¡¯t until this moment did Ning Que find out that he was severely injured and covered in wounds and blood, as if he had just survived a bloody battle. It was difficult to find a good bone on his body and the Psyche Power in his ocean of consciousness was in chaos.


    He managed to turn around and he sat down against a hard redwood. Breathing heavily, he held Sangsang in his arms and said, ¡°I¡¯ve felt this kind of pain before. You are too fierce when you are fighting.¡±


    Sangsang asked in his heart, ¡°So what?¡±


    ¡°This is my body. You should take care of it.¡± Ning Que was helpless, for he remembered that she didn¡¯t even blink while she was fighting against Ksitigarbha and just let the Pennant of Human Skulls hurt him like this.


    Sangsang said, ¡°Why should I take care of your body?¡±


    Ning Que answered angrily, ¡°I understand that when you want to win, you don¡¯t value your life too much. I just want some nice words from you. We have been together for so long, howe you¡¯ve never said sweet things to me?¡±


    The ¡°together¡± in his words of course meant something else.


    Sangsang said, ¡°I don¡¯t care whether your body is ruined or not.¡±


    Ning Que was furious. He turned her body over and spanked her heavily, ¡°If you act like this again, I will be rude to your body.¡±


    Sangsang seemed to be a little tired and didn¡¯t react to him. It was not fun to fool around alone. Ning Que leaned against the tree and looked at the scenery on the other side of the river to pass time.


    He should have been eager to meditate at this moment to heal the injury and restore his Psyche Power, but he did nothing. As time went by, the injury would be healed by themselves.


    Haotian had bonded with him. There was no one better than him when it came to restoring Psyche Power at this point.


    Ning Que stood up and was preparing to carry Sangsang on his back and leave. Suddenly he saw many Lights of Buddha appearing in the redwoods on the other side of the river and then heard the sound of chanting.


    Every golden light was a Buddha, and they were all Buddhas who had met them before or were injured by them. Thus the number of Buddhas in the redwoods was far more than what he saw.


    Thinking that these Buddhas couldn¡¯t cross the river, Ning Que was not worried at all, and he looked to the other side with a smile and even waved to a Buddha at the front. He was an acquaintance. He and Sangsang used to buy opera tickets from him back in Chaoyang City, but they didn¡¯t know what Buddha he was at this moment.


    The dark sky gradually became bright. The Light of Buddha gradually flourished, and the sound of chanting gradually lowered. They didn¡¯t know how many Buddhas came to the other side of Styx River and watched the other side silently.


    Ning Que looked solemn at this moment. With his eyesight, he couldn¡¯t figure out how many Buddhas there were. What shocked him even more was that the Buddhas actually began to walk toward the Styx River.


    Thousands or tens of thousands or more of Buddhas bypassed the copsed redwood trees, walked through the soft river beach, and silently walked into the clear, as if they were an army crossing a river.


    There were more disgruntled souls and skulls in the depths of the Styx River. They sensed the Lights of Buddha and Breaths of Buddha on these Buddhas, but didn¡¯t sense the power contained in the Pennant of Human Skulls of Ksitigarbha. After a moment of hesitation, they failed to suppress their love for lights in the instinct and rushed to the pure Breaths of Buddha greedily.


    The clear river turned ck at a speed visible to the naked eye, and the calm river suddenly became very torrential. The Buddhas who had rtively low cultivation levels were directly taken away by the river and then turned into food for these disgruntled souls. The Buddhas who had high cultivation levels were surrounded by dozens or hundreds of disgruntled souls, which looked extremely terrifying.


    What puzzled Ning Que was that during the whole process, not a single Buddha made a sound. They walked into the water silently, were taken away by the river silently, and turned into countless pieces of golden lights silently. And they even stopped the chanting which clearly could scare the disgruntled souls away, which seemed that they were deliberately seeking their doom.


    The same was true for the dozens of Buddhas who had achieved high states of Buddhism. If they had wanted, they could not only protect themselves but also save the Buddhas who were sinking into hell. But they did nothing. They were only putting their hands together and walking to the depths of Styx River silently.


    Numerous Buddhas walked into the vast and gruesome Styx River and were crowded with each other. From time to time, there were Buddhas who were swept away by the water, dragged away by the disgruntled souls, and torn into pieces by the ws of the skeletons.


    Seeing this, Ning Que was no longer regarding them as an army crossing the river. He just felt that they were like countless bisons being eaten by crocodiles while crossing the river in the savannah.


    But why? Why were these Buddhas seeking their deaths so silently and calmly? Ning Que even saw that a Buddha had such a determined face when he was swallowed by the disgruntled souls.


    At this moment, the earth suddenly trembled. Ning Que looked back at the ce where the trembling originated, only to see that the sky in the east suddenly became bright and there was a mighty Will of Buddhaing from there.


    The Light of Buddha instantly came to the riversides of Styx, illuminating all the life in and around the woods.


    The lights were coating the clothes of Ning Que with ayer of golden light. He felt an extremely powerful pressure and also felt that Sangsang was bing weaker and weaker, so he opened the big ck umbre quickly.


    The Light of Buddha also fell on the Styx River. The dark river did not be clear, but rolled up fiercely, as if someone had ced a fire under the Styx and boiled the river water.


    In the boiling Styx River, countless Buddhas still kept walking silently, the disgruntled souls that were swallowing the Breaths of Buddha all raised their heads to look at the Light of Buddha earnestly, and the skulls that were tearing the bodies of Buddhas all stopped but dared not to look at the Light of Buddha directly. The disgruntled souls and skulls gradually became a very fine light spot.


    The dense light spots, like fireflies, floated in the boiling river water and fell on the Buddhas who were still alive. The Buddhas who were still alive kept walking toward the other side of Styx River with even more determination.


    ¡°Tens of thousands of Buddhas going to meet their ancestors?¡± Ning Que murmured.


    ¡°Tens of thousands of ghosts crossing the river,¡± Sangsang replied disdainfully.


    Whether it was tens of thousands of Buddhas going to meet their ancestor or tens of thousands of ghosts crossing the river, Ning Que still didn¡¯t know the reason for the actions of these Buddhas or the reason why the ghosts who swallowed these Buddhas could be attached to these Buddhas. But he did know that these Buddhas became stronger and scarier, and he even saw that thousands of disgruntled souls in the boiling river water became a green lion. And an unknown Buddha was carried by the green lion and walked on the surface of the river. Was he a Bodhisattva?


    Even one Ksitigarbha had put Ning Que and Sangsang into such a desperate situation. If there were several more Bodhisattvas who were as powerful as Ksitigarbha, how could they survive?


    There was no room for them to think straight. The Light of Buddha at the distant east gradually dimmed, and countless Buddhas and Bodhisattvas were about to reach the other side of the Styx River. Ning Que carried Sangsang on his back and started running.


    They kept running for a hundred days.


    Ning Que couldn¡¯t figure out how far he ran in the one hundred days. He only knew that he must run desperately and get rid of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas behind them.


    On the journey of running, there were teaus, meadows,nds, enclosed seas, and steep mountains. He didn¡¯t know where he was. He only knew to go to the far east.


    From the fourth day, he could no longer hear the chanting sounds behind him. When he turned back asionally, he could no longer see the Light of Buddha. But he knew that those Buddhas would never stop, and they would catch him and Sangsang if her were to stop or slow down.


    There was a whole world out there. He kept running for another hundred days but still didn¡¯t see the end. Fortunately, he did not need to discern his direction or worries about running back to the original ce, for Buddha was just in front of him.


    The Light of Buddha was bing clearer and clearer, which meant that the Buddha was getting closer and closer. What amazed them was that the Lights of Buddha made them feelfortable, quite different from the previous ones which made them suffer.


    Although they feltfortable, they didn¡¯t have a light heart. Ning Que and Sangsang talked less and less these days, and they were silent for a long time while running. His silence was because he was burdened by the fact that they were about to encounter Buddha and gamble their life. Her silence was because she was thinking about something.


    If you were to want to worship the Buddha, then you must see the Buddha first. Buddha would wake up from Nirvana, and whether he was dead or alive remained a mystery. Haotian was the most powerful being, the Headmaster of Academy ranked the second and the Buddha ranked the third. But at this point, Sangsang was too weak. If the Buddha was still alive, she and Ning Que would definitely die.


    Ning Que and Sangsang were each other¡¯s natal item, so he was supposed to know everything in her mind. But the thing she was pondering was tooplicated and esoteric this time. He could sense her thought, but couldn¡¯t understand. Thinking about this, his mind was weighed down with anxiety. Even Sangsang can¡¯te up with a solution. What should we do when we actually meet the Buddha?


    One day, they came to a meadow and there was a snowy peak in the distance. He broke the silence whichsted for many days and said, ¡°I went to gamble when I began to learn how to cultivate, which indicates that I am probably a natural gambler. Now we have a fifty percent chance of winning, so I have the courage to put up all I have.¡±

 Chapter 974 - Seeing Buddha

    <h4>Chapter 974: Seeing Buddha</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    A few dayster, Ning Que, who was carrying Sangsang on his back, arrived at a field that was dozens of li away from the snow mountain. There were thousands ofkes and ponds with countless paths in between.


    The banks of the ponds had willow trees and white and red lotuses. The green leaves of lotuses were like a dress, and the stems were all golden. It was very beautiful.


    There were golden lights pervading the countless ponds, from lotus flowers to willow trees and even the pond water. That was the Light of Buddha.


    The Light of Buddha was too bright, and the scene before them was too beautiful. Even though Ning Que held the big ck umbre very low, they couldn¡¯t avoid the ubiquitous light. Affected by the poisons in Sangsang¡¯s body, his chest and abdomen were in pain and his throat felt itchy, which was a sign that he was about to vomit blood.


    This beautiful and holy world was the real Buddhand. He was sure that the Buddha was living here, but didn¡¯t know exactly where the Buddha was at this moment.


    He searched the ponds with Sangsang on his back. Stepping on the narrow dirt road between the ponds and pushing aside the willow branches in front of him, he was extremely patient and looked for signs of the Buddha among the lotuses andke stones.


    Sangsang was silent the whole time. After a long time of watching Ning Que¡¯s aimless searching, she couldn¡¯t help but ask, ¡°Do you know where the Buddha is?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Then what¡¯s the point of looking around?¡±


    Ning Que answered ¡°The Buddha will wake up as long as we see him, so looking around is the right way to find him.¡±


    The Buddha would show up if seen. Ning Que walked through the golden pond with Sangsang on his back, looking at the lotuses in the pool, the clear water in the ponds, the mud at the bottom of the water, the lotus roots in the mud, the stones by the pond, the willow trees, and the golden cicada on the willow trees. And he rarely blinked, for he feared that he might miss the Buddha.


    One day, while listening to the croaks from the lotus field, he thought for a while, then put Sangsang down and jumped into the water. He caught a fat frog in the depths of the lotus field.


    He lifted the frog to his eyes and stared at it for a long time. The frog opened its round eyes and stared back at him. Ning Que and the frog just kept staring at each other for quite a while.


    At the end, Ning Que¡¯s eyes began to get sore and silently shed tears. Sangsang taunted in his heart, ¡°Even though you think the thing you are doing now is indeed stupid, it¡¯s not worth crying.¡±


    Ning Que was a little annoyed and exined, ¡°My eyes are sore.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°You shouldn¡¯t stare at the frog for too long.¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°I have looked at so many flowers, willows, and stones, but I still can¡¯t find the Buddha. After thinking it over and over again, I think the frogs in the pond are most likely to be the Buddha. Of course I have to look carefully.¡±


    Sangsang was somewhat puzzled and asked, ¡°How could the Buddha be a frog?¡±


    Ning Que replied seriously, ¡°The Buddhist scriptures said that the Buddha was a prince of a small country when he lived in the human world, and Ksitigarbha confirmed the story that day. So there is a chance that he may turn into a frog.¡±


    Sangsang was even more puzzled and asked, ¡°What is the rtionship between the frog and the prince?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Have you never heard of the famous story of The Frog Prince?¡±


    Sangsang remembered the story and asked, ¡°Is it the fairy tale you told me when I was little?¡±


    Ning Que nodded and said, ¡°The prince turned into a frog. Isn¡¯t this a hint?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Then you have to kiss it.¡±


    Ning Que put his whole heart into finding the Buddha and didn¡¯t catch her taunting tone. He hesitated for a while, then raised the frog in front of his eyes and kissed it.


    The frog did not change at all, but it looked to be a little wronged.


    Ning Que wiped his mouth and spat a lot of saliva into the pond, ¡°Not him.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°There are at least tens of thousands of frogs.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the thousands of golden ponds and listened to the sound of cicadas on the willows and the sound of the frogs in the lotus fields. I think that there are more than tens of thousands of frogs. I don¡¯t need to deal with the golden cicadas in the willows, for they are Third Sister¡¯s speciality. But if I were to kiss all the frogs, then my mouth will definitely be swollen. What if I kiss a toad? I am certainly not a swan.


    After searching for a few days, they still found nothing. He became anxious for the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas who were chasing them would be catch up with them soon.


    The golden ponds upied most of the field, and a towering snow mountain stood on the middle of the field. The whole mountain, from the summit to the foot, was covered with thick snow, entirely shielding the original color of the mountain. And there were trickles flowing down from the snow, moistening the field and finally flowing into the thousands of ponds.


    Under the dark sky, the snow-white mountain peak was surrounded by thousands of golden ponds, which looked extremely spectacr and beautiful. One day, Ning Que came to the foot of the mountain and was speechless while watching the spectacr scenery.


    He remembered that the Prajna Peak, where the Xuankong Temple was located, was transformed by the body that the Buddha had left in the human world. It seems that Buddha likes to see himself as mountains, so is there a chance that the snow mountain was the Buddha? And the golden ponds and golden lotuses in the field are covered by the Light of Buddha. Is it because of the snow water?


    After thinking about it, he denied his deduction. The snow mountain could be seen from hundreds of li away. For the next several days. he asionally looked at the snow mountain, but the mountain never moved. Therefore, it seemed quite unlikely that it was the Buddha.


    ¡°Hey, answer me if you are the Buddha!¡± Ning Que shouted at the snow mountain. The snow mountain stood still quietly, and only his voice echoed through the field. Heughed and then turned to the next pond. But he suddenly stopped before he had gone too far.


    He heard a voice behind him, which was not the echo from the snow mountain, for the voice was very loud and sounded that it came from a very high ce, just like thunder.


    Ning Que turned to look at the snow mountain. Suddenly his face became pale and his body became stiff.


    The voice came from the top of the snowy mountain, and it was the sound of an avnche.


    The snow was copsing. The snow line at the forefront was getting higher and higher, which looked like a huge wave. The snow and the cliff rubbed against each other, emitting a thunderous sound!


    The field began to vibrate violently, as if an earthquake was hitting the field. Countless ripples appeared on the surface of the golden ponds, and the water in the ponds began to dance to the Light of Buddha.


    In the fierce wind, the willows by the ponds bent down, the lotus leaves in the pond swayed, the lotuses blossomed, and the frogs and the golden cicadas were screaming, as if there were preparing for a great birth.


    The avnche was still going on. Standing on the shaking field, Ning Que looked at the summit which gradually revealed its real appearance and the ck cliff which was still covered with unmelted snow. He suddenly remembered that the highest snow mountain by the Thermal Sea in the north of the human world was the terminal point but also the starting point. Then Ning Que somehow understood something.


    His face turned even more pale and his body became stiffer. Holding the hilt tightly with his right hand and putting the left hand in front of his chest, hemunicated with Sangsang inside his body and waited for the final judgment.


    The avnchested for a very long time. After the avnche finally stopped, the snow mountain looked different under the dark sky. The ck rocks were still dotted with some snow, and the outline of the mountain could be vaguely seen. If the snow mountain was a status, then of course it would have an outline.


    After the avnche, the Buddha finally showed up. He sat between the sky and the earth with his legs crossed. With the summit as his face, the Buddha had a very rough and vague facial line, which gave an impression that he was not real.


    ...

 Chapter 975 - Cultivating Buddhism (Part I)

    <h4>Chapter 975: Cultivating Buddhism (Part I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    After the snow, the mountain was still the same mountain, which looked no different from any other mountain in the world. The exposed ck cliff stones, which either looked rough or smooth, were also nothing special, revealing no gloss or breath of life. They were just silent cliff stones.


    Standing before the mountain with Sangsang on his back, Ning Que looked at the mountain for a long time until the gold hanging over the ponds was blown into countless pieces by the night wind. The mountain was still just a normal mountain.


    Did Buddha wake up? Is the Buddha alive or dead? Ning Que was nervous and frustrated waiting for the final answer.


    ¡°We¡¯ve won?¡±


    ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°Howe?¡±


    Feeling disappointed and angry, Ning Que sat on the ground and kept kicking his legs like a child who felt wronged, making the umted snow in front of him fly around.


    Sangsang answered calmly, ¡°Because Buddha is Buddha, not a cat.¡±


    Hearing this, Ning Que went silence for a long time. He understood that their conjectures were quite different from the truth from the very beginning.


    The ideal experiment about the cat needed a box, a sophisticated poisoning device, but the Buddha had no reason to trap himself in such a situation. Then what was Nirvana?


    Nirvana was still a superposition state of quantum, but it was only rted to positions instead of life and death. When observed, it would suddenly appear here or there. Buddha didn¡¯t design the device that might poison himself, but he could find another way to hide himself from Haotian.


    ¡°We still won,¡± said Ning Que, standing up and looking at the mountain peak in front of him. ¡°See, the Buddha is here. the mountain is the Buddha. We can just destroy it.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°No. The Buddha is not among all living creatures.¡±


    Ning knew what she meant. Observation equaled determination. The Buddha was not the quantum whose nature was determined by being observed, and he could be anywhere for he had self-consciousness.


    It was a concrete manifestation that all living creatures in the world of the chessboard became Buddhas. Sangsang was right that the woman who owned the vegetable stall could be Buddha, the golden pond could be Buddha, the willows and lotus leaves could be Buddha, and even the frog that Ning Que kissed a few day ago could be Buddha too.


    The snow mountain was also Buddha, and it should be the central coordinates of the chessboard world. Only in this way could the Buddha maintain his existence in the superimposed state.


    But it was useless to destroy the snow mountain, because the Buddha could appear in countless positions, moving faster than light. No one could really find him, so naturally no one could kill him.


    Ning Que said, ¡°When we came to the far east, the world began to tremble and countless Buddhas became nervous and frightened, proving that the snow mountain is very important to Buddha.¡±


    At this moment, there was a burst of vibrationsing outside of the golden ponds. Countless Buddhas moved quickly in the field, among which several Grand Bodhisattvas who were transformed while crossing the Styx River. They seemed to possess boundless Power of Buddha.


    Sensing the changes in the snow mountain, the Buddha revealed his true form. Countless Buddhas and Bodhisattvas sat on the ground with their legs crossed and kept chanting devoutly. The Light of Buddha illuminated the dark sky and the foot of the mountain.


    The Light of Buddha was so bright that it broke through the dark sky, and ayer of gold light showered Ning Que and Sangsang and then broke into their bodies.


    Summoned by the Buddha, countless Buddhas and Bodhisattvas came to the east to suppress the evil spirits. A indigo lion which was as high as hundreds of zhang appeared in the field and shouted to the sky, making the Light of Buddha even brighter.


    Ning Que turned paler due to the bright light and also the pain. More importantly, Sangsang who was hidden in his body suffered a lot due to the Light of Buddha.


    He felt her weakness. The Bodhisattvas who rode the indigo lion and the white tiger were everywhere and were as powerful as Ksitigarbha. He knew that Sangsang couldn¡¯t defeat them all.


    ¡°Tens of thousands of Buddhas going to meet their ancestor...¡± Looking at the countless Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in the field, Ning Queughed and said, ¡°If the snow mountain is not their ancestor, then why are they so anxious and frightened?¡±


    At this point, a cloud of dust appeared in the field, and then a yellow dragon screamed down the snow mountain. At the forefront, the indigo lion ran wildly and stirred up a dust storm.


    Looking at the indigo lion that seemed to be swallowing up the night sky, Ning Que thought of the powerful means that Ksitigarbha used in the Styx River. He was unsettled, for Sangsang was weaker and couldn¡¯t fight against these Bodhisattvas.


    To his surprise, the indigo lion suddenly stopped in front of the golden pond, and the beast fell and stirred up mud for it was too heavy and the stop was too abrupt.


    The indigo lion seemed to be very scared of the water in the pond. The beast stretched out its forepaws and tried to step on the narrow dirt road between the ponds. However, its body was too big and its w was as heavy as a mountain. The dirt road was crushed in an instant and the water in the pond wet its w.


    The indigo lion howled painfully and fearfully and the willows by the ponds bent down again. The indigo lion retreated in fear, and its w kept shining the Light of Buddha, like it was burning.


    The indigo lion was in fear so it retreated. The field was restored with silence for a while. Countless Buddhas and Bodhisattvas did not dare to walk into the golden pond and only kept chanting while sitting on the ground with their legs crossed.


    Ning Que was puzzled. Although the Light of Buddha also made him and Sangsang ufortable, they were not as in pain and frightened as the indigo lion.


    Why are these Buddhas and Bodhisattvas afraid of walking into the golden ponds around the snow mountains? If it is the ban set by the Buddha, then how can it be specifically targeted at the followers and descendants?


    Sangsang said, ¡°The Academy is right about one thing. Buddhism is indeed disgusting.¡±


    After Buddha reached Nirvana, he entered the superposition state of the quantum, and he was too weak to protect himself. Thus, the disciples of Buddhism were forbidden to go near the snow mountain.


    Thousands of golden ponds around the snow mountains were part of the ban set by the Buddha.


    So vignt to his most devout followers and descendants... Ning Que sighed. What¡¯s the meaning of living in such a way even though you can¡¯t really hide from Haotian and exist forever?


    With his great eyesight, Ning Que could see that the monk on the back of the indigo lion was pretty handsome. He wondered if the Buddha could be transformed to this monk if he was really among all living creatures?


    ¡°If Buddha is in the field at this moment, is it possible for him to lift the ban?¡±


    ¡°No, because the Buddha who set the ban back then is not the current Buddha.¡±


    ¡°What is the benefit of setting such a problem for himself?¡±


    ¡°He never has to worry about being woken up in the state of Nirvana.¡±


    ¡°We are here. We have already woken him up.¡±


    ¡°It never urred to Buddha that we coulde here, and he thought we won¡¯t affect his status even if we dide, for we are neither Bodhisattvas nor Buddhas and cannotpete with Buddhism.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the young monk on the back of the indigo lion and suddenly came up with an idea.


    Sangsang directly denied his idea and said, ¡°In his uncertain status, the Buddha of course can¡¯t possess the real Power of Buddhism. But you still not powerful enough to kill him even though he has turned into a Bodhisattva.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°I feel good. These Buddhas and Bodhisattvas cannot enter here anyway.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°But I am gradually growing weaker. I will eventually die if the stalemate remains.¡±


    ¡°I have said it many times, I will not let you die.¡± Ning Que looked at the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in the field and said with a smile, ¡°The arrival of these people and what you just said all prove that my guess is right.¡±


    ¡°Even if the snow mountain is the Buddhahood noumenon of Buddha, like how you¡¯ve guessed, you still can¡¯t change the current situation. You have no way to change the current situation, since you have no chance of killing Buddha.¡±


    ¡°Why must we kill Buddha?¡± Walking to the nearest pond, Ning Que took out the iron cuss and cut off a few branches of a willow by the pond, and then he put down the cuss, sat under the willow tree and began to weave something awkwardly.


    Sangsang asked, ¡°What are you weaving?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°A knife.¡±


    Sangsang thought for a while and requested, ¡°Let me try.¡±


    Ning Queughed and handed over the control of his body.


    Back in their house by Yanming Lake, one of Sangsang¡¯s favorite things to do was to make small objects with willow branches by theke. So she made a cute willow knife pretty soon.


    Sangsang gave back the control of Ning Que¡¯s body and asked, ¡°What are you trying to do?¡±


    Ning Que only smiled but did not reply, and then he cut off a lotus.


    He put some pond water in the lotus, tilted the lotus slightly, and poured the water within to the iron cuss. Suddenly the iron cuss became sharp and was full of the Will of Buddha.


    After doing these strange things, he carried Sangsang on his back and walked toward the snow mountain with the big ck umbre in one hand and the iron cuss in the other hand.


    Sangsang said, ¡°What are you going to do? I will kill you if you still ignore me this time.¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°I am going to see Buddha.¡±


    Sangsang was puzzled, ¡°Why? Besides, you have already seen him.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I have said to you that seeing Buddha is to cultivate Buddhism. How can we remove the poisons in your body and tear the ck sky apart if we don¡¯t cultivate Buddhism?¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Are you really going to cultivate Buddhism?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I can¡¯t kill the real Buddha, but I can cultivate Buddhism. I will take away his Buddha nature and turn myself into Buddha. And I will be worshipped by the followers in the human world. What can Buddha do about this?¡±


    Sangsang was puzzled and asked, ¡°But how do you n to turn yourself into Buddha?¡±


    ¡°I have thought about this for a while, even before we crossed the river.¡± Approaching a cliff yard, Ning Que put Sangsang down, lifted the dark and heavy iron cuss and shed the ground, ¡°I am going to repair Buddha.¡±


    ¡°You call this cultivating Buddhism?¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t cultivating Buddhism the same thing as repairing Buddha?¡±


    ¡°The Academy always solves problems in such strange ways.¡±


    ¡°My Second Brother did the same thing. His cultivation was to fight, but mine is to repair.¡±


    After shing the cliff yard wildly, Ning Que turned to cut the rocks protruding from the cliff edge and said proudly, ¡°The toes of Buddha are too wide. I have to make them more delicate.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 976 - Cultivating Buddhism (Part II)

    <h4>Chapter 976: Cultivating Buddhism (Part II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The Buddhist scriptures stated that molding Buddha statues or painting Buddha was disrespectful. But in fact, there were numerous ancient temples in the human world with Buddha statues on the walls. The stone Buddha statues on the top of the Wa Mountain behind Lanke Temple soared into the sky, and the Prajna Peak which was transformed by Buddha after his death was also a Buddha statue. And the chessboard world had numerous status of Buddha too. But Taoism actually controlled the human world never molded any status for Haotian, which revealed some problems vaguely.


    Buddhism molded countless Buddha status. Ning Que wanted to break the connection between Buddha and all living creatures through the status. This was his cultivation on Buddhism.


    One could think certain things through and talk about them proudly but find them hard to be performed. If the majestic snow mountain was indeed Buddha¡¯s original coordinates in this world or the collections of his Buddha nature, then the wild cliff yard where he stood on was only one of Buddha¡¯s toes. What¡¯s worse was that the ck rocks were extremely hard, and he struggled to break them down even with his Haoran Qi.


    The dark iron cuss kept falling on the ck cliff rocks, making thunderous noises. The shattering stones kept flying around, but the cliff rocks remained almost the same, only losing a thinyer of stone skin. If the current speed were to be applied, then it would take quite a long time for Ning Que to cut the toenail of Buddha round.


    ¡°Other people would embrace Buddha¡¯s feet and pray for help in time of emergency if needed, but you want to give Buddha a pedicure.¡±Sangsang felt that his approach was iprehensible. She thought that it wouldn¡¯t change the current situation even if Ning Que had renovated the whole mountain.


    Ning Que kept cutting the cliff rocks with his iron cuss and said, ¡°I can¡¯t exin it to you. You will understand when I finish it. To cultivate Buddhism is to repair Buddhism.¡±


    To cultivate Buddhism was to repair Buddhism. Sangsang taunted, ¡°Even so, what do you know about repairing? The Academy only knows how to destroy. When do you know how to build?¡±


    The Buddha statue on the top of the Wa Mountain was cut down directly by Jun Mo with his iron sword, and he was also currently cutting the Prajna Peak. From this point of view, the Academy was indeed better at destroying Buddha statues and had no experience in repairing them.


    Ning Que inserted the iron cuss into a crack of the cliff rock and wrenched it hard, removing a watermelon-sized stone. He wiped sweat off his forehead and answered, ¡°You have a prejudice against the Academy. Who said we can¡¯t build? We built Chang¡¯an. How hard could it be to repair the Buddha statues?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Quit bragging! You can¡¯t even weave the willow branches.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°I¡¯ve told you before, I have already thought the whole matter through. Do you still remember that I made a boat with the redwood? It is my practice.¡±


    ¡°It sounds unreliable topare the wood boat with Buddha statues.¡±


    ¡°How could you say this? The Buddha statues I have repaired may be ugly, but appearances should not matter.¡±


    Sangsang was a little tired and was silent for she had nothing to say or she just didn¡¯t want to talk with him.


    But talking could be unteral sometimes. Ning Que didn¡¯t care for Sangsang¡¯s silence at all, and he just kept nagging while shing the cliff rocks with his iron cuss. The ck rocks flew around, and the roaring lingered for a long time.


    Although countless Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in the field outside the golden ponds couldn¡¯t hear what Ning Que was saying, they could see clearly what he was doing and became more and more serious.


    The indigo lion at the forefront was particrly angry and unsettled, violently swinging its head and screaming to the dark sky. The mane on its neck, which was as thick as a forest, shined with the Light of Buddha, and was erected as the beast swung its head. Its mane looked like it was made of numerous swords.


    Ning Que was taking a rest at this point. Seeing the change of the indigo lion, he was stunned slightly at first, thenughed and pointed to it, ¡°Look! The big cat is angry!¡±


    Sangsang ignored him.


    Hearing theugh, the indigo lion was even angrier and its actions became wilder and wilder. The violent airflow it stirred up even teared the clouds on the high sky into pieces!


    In the horrible turbulence and whistling, the mane on the lion¡¯s neck, which shined with the Light of Buddha, was discharged, broke through the clouds and rushed to the mountain, like hundreds of ck shadows!


    The indigo lion couldn¡¯t break the ban set by the Buddha to enter thousands of golden ponds outside the mountain. But its mane was lifeless, so it couldunch a long-range attack.


    The mane instantly came to the cliff and fell down as rain. The heavy crash rang out and countless gravels sshed everywhere. Every fur was like an invincible spear!


    There were three strands of fur that pierced into Sangsang. Ning Que suddenly turned pale and rolled over to her. He opened the big ck umbre and forced its handle into the cliff.


    Sangsang was not seriously injured, and there was only a thin cut on her cheek. Her body was divine, so obviously the fur of the indigo lion contained horrible power!


    ¡°Look, they are really scared. My method works,¡± whispered Ning Que, holding the umbre handle tightly.


    The long-range attack of the indigo lion continued, and there were dull crashing sounds everywhere on the cliff. Tworge strands of fur fell on the big ck umbre, making Ning Que¡¯s palm sore.


    Then, countless Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in the field also took out their ritual implements and threw to the mountain peak at a great distance, but these Buddhas and Bodhisattvas were clearly not as powerful as the indigo lion. Only a few ritual implements which belonged to several Grand Bodhisattvas fell on the edge of the cliff, bringing a burst of vibration. Additional ritual implements couldn¡¯t reach the cliff and fell from the sky above the golden ponds.


    It seemed that an invisible cover was shielding the golden ponds, and these ritual implements shattered the moment they fell on it, bing countless golden rays of light and flying everywhere. These ritual implements all contained the Light of Buddha, so the ponds became brighter and even the dark sky seemed to be illuminated.


    Ning Que squinted his eyes looked at the field silently. He sensed that Sangsang was in pain.


    After a long time, the horrible attack from the field finally stopped. Numerous Buddhas and Bodhisattvas went silent. But the indigo lion swayed its head and cried into the air.


    Ning Que closed the big ck umbre and looked at the field in the distance. He was angry and also helpless, for he couldn¡¯t fight against the Power of Buddha of these Grand Bodhisattvas and the indigo lion.


    Then he opened the ck umbre toward the direction of the field, which was an insulting posture. Ning Que didn¡¯t care whether those Buddhas and Bodhisattvas could understand it or not.


    Then he turned to the indigo lion and cursed, ¡°Don¡¯t stop! Keep shaking your damn head! It would be perfect if you be bald! The Academy is specialized in killing bald things!¡±


    The indigo lion returned with an angry roar, but couldn¡¯t harm Ning Que.


    Ning Que was even angrier, because Sangsang was almost injured and the Light of Buddha from the fur and ritual implements made Sangsang weaker and in pain. He couldn¡¯t stand to see Sangsang suffer.


    The Light of Buddha among the mountain and the ponds were extremely bright. He carried Sangsang on his back and tied the handle of the umbre in front of him, making sure that her whole body was covered by the ck umbre. Then he walked to the original position with the iron cuss in his hand.


    The mountain was really solid. Even the lion¡¯s mane and the Bodhisattvas¡¯ ritual implements only shattered a thinyer of the surface of the cliff, which did not help him.


    Carrying Sangsang on his back and holding the big ck umbre, Ning Que bent down and shed the hard cliff rocks nonstop, just like a old farmer working. He was holding arge ck umbre, squatting, and waving his iron cuss against the hard cliffs, just like an old farmer farming under the hot sun.


    Farming was the hardest activity of mankind. Drops of sweat kept appearing on his forehead, dropping on his hand and the ground, and then mixing into the crushed cliff stones.


    ¡°I am really tired.¡± He wiped his sweat and gasped. ¡°How could it be so tiring?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I have nted peppers in the courtyard of City of Wei. It was not that tiring.¡±


    Ning Que felt that his self-esteem was hurt and argued, ¡°That¡¯s because your body was too weak to sweat. If you were like me and kept sweating, you will feel tired too. The drops of sweat are very annoying and my hands are slipping.¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s voice sounded a little weak, ¡°You just can¡¯t do it.¡±


    The one thing Ning Que hated the most was that people, especially women, thought he couldn¡¯t do something. Of course he couldn¡¯t stand Sangsang, his own wife, said that he couldn¡¯t do it.


    ¡°That¡¯s because you are fat! Of course I will be tired carrying such a fat woman on my back! Why didn¡¯t you carry me in your back when you took care of your nts? You have to bear the main responsibility!¡± He shouted angrily, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you pick a slim body when you became Haotian?¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°You prefer slim girls?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°It has nothing to do with my preference. I am just talking about weight.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°So you prefer slim girls.¡±


    Ning Que threw the iron cuss on the ground and said, ¡°It has nothing to do with my preference!¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°The body I chose is perfect. I became fat because your teacher poured into the body that I picked from the world of mortals in front of the gate of the Divine Kingdom. You should me him.¡±


    Ning Que silently picked up the iron cuss and continued to sh the mountain.


    Sangsang said, ¡°Say something.¡±


    Ning Que went silent for quite a while and then said, ¡°The student can¡¯t speak bad of his teacher.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°How can repairing Buddha statues remove the poisons that are inside me?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Man and wife are one flesh. If I were to be the Buddha, you be the Buddha too. By then removing the poisons inside of you would be a piece of cake. And what¡¯s funnier is that these Buddhas and Bodhisattvas would be our valets.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°How did you think of this method?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Don¡¯t ask so many question. Just trust your husband. Who are we? I am the hero of our story, and you are the heroine. When danger strikes, the hero must stand in front of the heroine and help her out. Then, they can live happily ever after.¡±


    ¡°Happy life? I am a little tired. I want to sleep first,¡± said Sangsang.


    Ning Que felt that her voice was very sweet, as if she was just drinking some sugar water. Then his dry throat became moist and sweet too and he was very happy.


    Sangsang began to sleep, and she slept for three years.


    When she woke up, the right foot of Buddha had been repaired and turned into a very delicate little foot, which looked a little familiar. If the foot was whiter, it would be looked more familiar.


    Ning Que finally gained something after three years of hard work.


    He turned the foot of Buddha into the foot of Sangsang.


    ...

 Chapter 977 - Cultivating Buddhism (Another Part II)

    <h4>Chapter 977: Cultivating Buddhism (Another Part II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Through Ning Que¡¯s eyes, Sangsang saw that the Buddha mountain was still the same. The cliff yard changed a little and the field also remained the same. The Buddhas and Bodhisattvas were still chanting in their original positions and the indigo lion was still angry. Sangsang wondered whether or not the beast was tired after three years of wrath. Suddenly, she wanted to know how Ning Que spent the past three years.


    ¡°How did I spend the past three year? I just kept digging the ground with my iron cuss. You can¡¯t imagine how hard the mountain is. I only repaired one foot of the Buddha for the past three years. The farmers of Soutnd would look down on me if they were to ever see my work. I am so tired. What did I do when I was tired? Just rested for a while, just like how you would eat something when you are hungry.¡± Ning Que spoke at a fast speed and the pitch was particrly fluctuating, as if he was telling a very surprising story. Actually it was only because he had not spoken to anyone for three years.


    Sangsang was silent for a moment and did not reveal any emotions. Then she asked, ¡°What did you eat?¡±


    In the past three years, what Ning Que could hear were the sounds of the iron cuss falling on the cliff, the roaring of the indigo lion, the sound of the rolling stones, the sound of cicadas and frogs in the ponds, and the sounds of himself. At this point, he finally heard Sangsang¡¯s voice and felt rx and happy. ¡°What did I eat? Hey, there are many delicious things in this ce. Boiled frogs, fried frogs, roasted frogs, and raw frogs. I change the recipe all the time!¡±


    Sangsang remembered that Ning Que had said that there were some people in his world who made money by talking. These people often talked very fast and liked to use rhyme and repetition, or they liked and were also good at showing off their glibness in speech. Hearing what Ning Que said at this moment, she realized that he was probably mimicking those people.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t know what she was thinking, for he had no time to notice Sangsang and just happily talked about his life in the past three years. The saliva he spitted seemed to be more than the sweat he had dropped.


    He said proudly, ¡°I have oil too. Of course I need oil. I used the lotus seeds to extract oil and mixed the oil with wild vegetables or fried frogs. It is very delicious.¡±


    Sangsang suggested ¡°You should eat more vegetables.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I know I should maintain a bnce between meat and vegetables. I eat stewed lotus roots, fried lotus roots, and freshly peeled lotus seeds. In fact, my favorite is fried cicadas. But I feel a little guilty eating them when I think of my Third Sister.¡±


    After three years of hard work, he was so thin and dark, and looked like the poor serfs under Xuankong Temple. But contrary to him, Sangsang felt much better. Even though the three poisons of attachment, aversion, and obsession were still inside her, she calmed down and was not as weak as before.


    Seeing him, Sangsang could imagine how hard his life had been in the past three years and pitied him while listening to his story. The feeling was so strong that she felt so sorrowful and almost shed tears.


    Ning Que sensed the sorrow in his heart. He went silent for a while and then smiled, ¡°Don¡¯t worry. You know that I am very good at living in the wild. I spent my whole childhood living in the wild.¡±


    Sangsang didn¡¯t reply. But you had me with you back on Min Mountain when we were little. Although you still carried me on your back, I did not actually apany you during the past three years.


    Ning Que was still nagging. She listened quietly and gradually narrowed her eyes, which represented her smile. Then she felt warm and gentle. After that, she frowned in his heart.


    Sangsang went silent for a long time and then said, ¡°I am a little tired. I want to sleep again.¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t expect this and was stunned for a while. But he replied with a smile, ¡°Okay.¡±


    Sangsang began to sleep again. This time, she slept for ten years.


    ...


    ...


    Ten yearster, Sangsang finally woke up.


    She found that the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in the field did not change at all, but the snow mountain changed a lot. Ning Que had already repaired the feet of the statue of Buddha and was re-engraving the clothes. The iron cuss kept cutting on the cliff, slowly forming the line of the clothes.


    Compared with the past, Ning Que was much better at repairing the statue of Buddha and using the iron cuss, just like those most sophisticated carvers in the town before Lanke Temple.


    The progress of his carving technique resulted from the time he spent on carving and his hard work. Ning Que couldn¡¯t remember how many times he shed the iron cuss in the past thirteen years. And his sweat dropped all over the cliff.


    Sensing that she woke up, Ning Que was stunned and went silent for quite a while. Then he inserted the iron cuss into the crack of the cliff, reached out to pat her hips and said with a smile, ¡°Are you awake?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± said Sangsang.


    ¡°Then I take a break.¡± Ning sighed. He was a little tired and also satisfied. Holding her in his arms, he walked to the cliff and sat down, looking to Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in the field.


    The Buddhas and Bodhisattvas had chanted for thirteen years, and the Light of Buddha in the golden ponds shined brightly. Sangsang might die in the Light of Buddha if she still had the three poisons of attachment, aversion, and obsession inside her body.


    The indigo lion roared at the cliff, and the clouds in the sky shattered instantly.


    Looking at the angry indigo lion, Ning Queughed and said, ¡°Quit roaring! My wife just woke up, and I am the one who should be roaring.¡±


    Sangsang looked at the lines of the clothes and felt that it was not a kasaya. She asked, ¡°You changed Buddha¡¯s clothes?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°I always do things meticulously. I will never ignore the details.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Is the Buddha still the Buddha without the kasaya?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Why must the Buddha wear kasaya?¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Then what should the Buddha wear?¡±


    Thinking of the clothes he designed for the Buddha, Ning Que answered proudly, ¡°You will know when I finish. I am sure you will like it.¡±


    Sangsang was silent for a moment and said, ¡°Your clothes are torn.¡±


    As the World Wayfarer of the Academy, Ning Que always wore the uniform of the Academy in the human world. The uniform he picked was ck, not easy to get it dirty, durable, and could resist ordinary attacks. That was why he hadn¡¯t changed his clothes for many years, only washing it asionally when it was too dirty.


    He didn¡¯t wear the uniform when he was imprisoned by Sangsang in the Divine Halls and only got it back when they left the West-Hill. Then, the ck uniform had apanied him for countless years in the chessboard world but didn¡¯t dpose or break. But after thirteen years of carving, the uniform was torn. It showed that he worked hard during these years.


    At this point, Ning Que was very thin, ck, and had thick calluses on his hands, looking more like a farmer. But his eyes were very bright, for he felt better, more determined and stronger as Sangsang was gradually recovering from the poisons.


    ¡°I developed many new recipes during the past years.¡± Sensing that Sangsang was indeed a lot better than before, Ning Que was happy and held her in his arms. He pointed to the ponds at the foot of the mountain and said happily, ¡°I thought there were no fishes in the ponds, butter I discovered that the fishes were hiding in the depths of the lotus field. I caught some and made a pot of fish soup. It was really delicious.¡±


    He smacked his lips, recalling the delicious taste of the fish soup. Then he immediately felt down and said, ¡°But it is a pity that there is too few fish and it is hard to catch them. Besides, I don¡¯t have enough time.¡±


    Sangsang was silent for a long time and then said, ¡°I am a little tired. I want to sleep a bit more.¡±


    After saying this, she fell asleep again. Nobody knew when she would wake up again.


    Looking at her face, Ning Que was dull and struggled to squeeze out a smile, ¡°Sleep well. I will take care of everything here.¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s long cycles of sleep reminded him of the time when she was seriously ill and he was very worried about her. But he did notice that she was getting better and thought that the three poisons were so powerful that she might need more time to recover.


    He felt a little tired and sat on the edge of the cliff to look at the field silently. The body he held in his arms was so tall, but he looked very lonely.


    He could endure the exhaustion and pain for he still had hope. But loneliness was the hardest thing to tackle in the human world. He felt extremely lonely since he only said a few words to Sangsang during the thirteen years of repairing the statue of Buddha.


    Due to the emotional problems, Ning Que took a break from the heavy work. He slept all day and didn¡¯t wake up until the next morning. He stretched his waist and the strained muscles and bones squeaked. He lowered his head and kissed Sangsang on the cheek.


    ¡°ck...pig.¡±


    ¡°ck...pig.¡±


    ¡°La,la,lla! Ll! La..!¡±


    ¡°La,la,lla! Ll! La..! ck...pig.¡±


    In the lonely rhythm, he carried Sangsang on the back, tied the big ck umbre tightly, held the iron cuss and climbed up and down the cliff. He kept carving skillfully, forming new lines of the clothes of Buddha.


    Buddha had a pair of delicate feet.


    The kasaya that the Buddha wore gradually changed, and it looked simple but elegant. The kasaya had a hemline trailed to the ground, looking like a loose handmaiden costume woren by a thin body.


    Three yearster, Sangsang woke up.


    She looked at the familiar handmaiden costume and was silent.


    Ning Que bit a lotus branch and asked, ¡°How do you feel? Does it look familiar?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°If I wear it now, it would not be so loose.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Although your body has changed, you look as beautiful as before in my eyes.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°How is your progress?¡±


    Ning Que pointed to the summit and answered, ¡°I will start to repair the face of Buddha tomorrow.¡±


    Sangsang was surprised, but she didn¡¯t show any joy.


    She said, ¡°You are faster than before.¡±


    Ning Que replied with a smile, ¡°Practice makes perfect.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Will everything end after you finish your work?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Of course, everything will end soon.¡±


    Sangsang was silent for quite a while and then said, ¡°Indeed, everything will end soon.¡±

 Chapter 978 - Cultivating Buddhism (Part III)

    <h4>Chapter 978: Cultivating Buddhism (Part III)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    ¡°Are you not curious to why I can repair the statue of the Buddha so fast?¡±


    ¡°You said that practice makes perfect.¡±


    ¡°Can¡¯t you tell that I am just being modest?¡±


    ¡°I have not heard you talk much for many years.¡±


    Ning Que went silent for a while and said, ¡°I have not heard you talk for many years either.¡±


    Sangsang also went silent for a while and asked, ¡°Then why?¡±


    ¡°Because I am right. You were getting better and the poisons inside you were gradually fading away while I was repairing the statue of the Buddha in the past sixteen years. Although you didn¡¯t wake up, I became more and more powerful, thus I did the carving work faster and faster.¡± Ning Que said happily, ¡°Of course, the most important reason is that my current carving technique are really good. I can carve something nice on a piece of rotten wood and you can sell it for at least a few hundred liang of silver in the market of the human world. I am not only a Grand Master of Fu Tao now, but also a Grand Master of Sculpture.¡±


    Sangsang snorted and looked calm.


    Ning Que a little surprised and said, ¡°I¡¯m talking about a lot of money. why are you so calm?¡±


    Sangsang snorted again and said after a while, ¡°I am a little tired and want to sleep again.¡±


    Every time she woke up, she would fall asleep again after she said a few words to him. Ning Que was no longer as lost as before. Although the poisons inside her are gradually falling away, she is still weak and needs more rest.


    Sleep was the best way to restore the spirit. Sangsang had been sleeping for sixteen years, but he had not slept at all for the whole time, so he was unbelievably exhausted.


    He took out the dried frog meat, teared off some and stuffed it into his mouth.


    The frog meat was tender, so it would taste good if being cooked properly, such as being cooked with spice, stewed with green peppers or grilled. But one would get sick of eating the same food year after year even though it was very delicious. And even the most gluttonous man would feel sick after eating frogs for sixteen years.


    Ning Que didn¡¯t feel sick, and he didn¡¯t even reveal any expression on his face. He just kept chewing automatically and then swallowed it, looking very numb.


    His miserable childhood made him aware that the most formidable enemy for human beings was definitely not disgusting food, but no food at all, for hunger was more terrible than death.


    He had rarely put much thought on food ever since the end of thest decade. The time was too long, and he was too lonely. Thus, he spent all his time and energy on repairing the statue of Buddha, wishing to leave this ce early. He caught many frogs in the golden ponds and air-dried them into frog jerky whichter became his main source of food. He would eat some when he felt hungry.


    The dried frog meat was tasteless and hard to swallow. He sat by the cliff and looked at the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in the field, using their pain as spice.


    The Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in the field became angrier and angrier, and their outrage rose to the maximum level as he changed the statue and carved a handmaiden costume for the Buddha. The chanting sound echoing across the field became more and more majestic and the Light of the Buddha falling on him also became more and more horrible.


    But the most horrible thing was the indigo lion, which was hundreds of zhang tall.


    Its front hooves were full of blood and mud. The beast lowered its head and slowly licked its wounds. It was no longer howling like before, but the silence implied extreme danger.


    The indigo lion finally stepped into the golden pond several days ago. Although it was unable to rush to the foot of the mountain and only tramped down several ponds due to the ban set by Buddha, it was indeed a step forward for the beast.


    The indigo lion did not be stronger, but the ban set by Buddha was not as strict as before since the statue of the Buddha gradually changed under Ning Que¡¯s iron cuss and the power left by Buddha became weaker every day.


    The indigo lion stopped licking its wounds and looked up. Its head broke through the clouds, which was shocking. Looking at Ning Que on the statue of Buddha, the beast looked solemn and determined.


    Ning Que was very tired and and sleepy. He felt sad that Sangsang fell asleep again and the frog meat tasted really bad, which put him in a bad mood.


    He wanted to take a break and turned to something else to enliven his lonely life of repairing the statue of Buddha. At this moment, he instantly got angry while seeing the indigo lion acted provocatively in the field.


    He untied his iron bow, pulled the bowstring hardly, and then released his fingers abruptly. A circr turbulence appeared around the string, and the dark iron arrow disappeared.


    Within the next moment, a blood flower appeared on the chest of the handsome monk sitting on the back of the indigo lion with his legs crossed. He fell to the ground with a heavy noise.


    The handsome monk died, but the Buddha did not. During the previous sixteen years, the handsome monk was the Buddha. But he was no longer Buddha when the iron arrow approached him.


    He and Sangsang were right. The position of the Buddha kept changing in the human world. Even the light couldn¡¯t catch him, let alone the Thirteen Primordial Arrows.


    The handsome monk just died. The indigo lion was very shocked and then became extremely angry, roaring at Ning Que who was on the cliff. The cloudyers in front of his head were instantly shattered into countless tiny clouds, and numerous golden lotuses in the golden ponds all astonishingly dropped down.


    Ning Que shouted back at the indigo lion. The roaring sound spread over the field, like a thunder, which revealed a very overbearing and wild atmosphere.


    Since Ning Que had repaired the statue for so long and the ban set by Buddha had been weakened, the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in the field could break through the golden ponds at any time, and the indigo lion was confident and cold at this point.


    But meanwhile, the three poisons inside Sangsang was gradually disappearing, and Haotian slowly gained her power back during sleep. Thus Ning Que became more powerful too.


    Everything must be traced back to time or cause and effect. Cause and effect was the order of things, so was time, which could determine the shape of the universe and also the oue of the war.


    Ning Que was full of confidence, for he knew that he and Sangsang would take the final victory.


    Ning Que felt good that his arrow killed a Grand Bodhisattva and that he shouted to the indigo lion like a real beast, which made his boring carving interesting and instantly dispersed the loneliness and rejection that had umted in his heart. He climbed back on the cliff and continued to repair the statue.


    Two yearster, Ning Que finally finished the hands of the Buddha which didn¡¯t hold the white vase like normal statue but an umbre. The umbre was carved on the ck cliff, so naturally it was a ck umbre.


    In the beginning, it took him three years to repair one foot of the Buddha and then another ten years to repair the other foot and the hemline of the statue¡¯s clothes. As for the handmaiden costume, it took him another three years to finish. Compared to the past, he was much faster at this point.


    But then Ning Que slowed down, for he had reached the summit of the mountain to repair the face of Buddha, which was undoubtedly the most crucial stage of his work.


    The iron cuss slowly fell on the chubby face and the rounded earlobes of Buddha, as if it was the weight of the whole mountain. Ning Que looked solemn for he was cautious.


    Another ten years passed.


    The ears of the Buddha no longer hung down to his shoulders because they were hidden behind the hair that Ning Que newly carved. The face of the Buddha was no longer chubby and became thinner and smaller, looking like a normal person.


    The iron cuss eventually fell on the lips of Buddha.


    The statue of the Buddha opened his mouth silently, but countless words suddenly rang out. It was the voice of Buddha. The Light of the Buddha appeared in the field, and Buddhas and Bodhisattvas began to chant. A powerful Will of the Buddha went straight into the chest of Ning Que.


    Blood gushed from Ning Que¡¯s mouth. His eyes suddenly dimmed and he felt that Sangsang frowned and was about to wake up.


    He knew that he did it wrong. Without any hesitation, he shed the iron cuss and cut off the mouth of the Buddha directly, only leaving very thin lips. Then the voice of the Buddha and the Will of the Buddha disappeared.


    He finished repairing the statue of the Buddha.


    At this point, the statue of the Buddha was ck, thin, small, and wearing a handmaiden costume.


    Sangsang woke up and said while looking at the statue, ¡°You still prefer her.¡±


    She was not talking about Mo Shanshan although she did have very thin lips too. Sangsang meant Ning Que liked the old Sangsang.


    Ning Que replied with a smile, ¡°You looked like this for twenty years in the human world. Of course I cherish your old look. But I will like your new look more after we spend more time in the human world.¡±


    He looked at the face of Sangsang carved in the ck cliff stone andughed happily.


    Sangsang said, ¡°She has no mouth.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You don¡¯t like talking anyway.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°But how could I reveal the world without my mouth and how could I earn the worship of all living creatures and be the Buddha?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°I will do all these things for you. You know that I can be very talkative if needed.¡±


    He had finished repairing the statue of the Buddha, but he was not the Buddha himself.


    The ban set by Buddha was weakened over the past years. The Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in the field had entered the outer periphery of the golden ponds and the indigo lion was already not far from the foot of the mountain.


    The indigo lion¡¯s body was full of wounds, and its four hooves stirred up the mud at the bottom of the ponds. It slowly and firmly moved toward the Buddha mountain, and its every step was as heavy as a thousand pounds.


    During the past ten years, Ning Que was busy repairing the statue, and there were also many things that happened in the world. The footprints left by countless Buddhas and Bodhisattvas walking from the field turned into a river channel leading to the far west. The clear river water came from the west and contained countless rancorous souls and skulls, giving off ghastly atmosphere.


    The river from the west was the Styx River, and it was summoned by countless Buddhas and Bodhisattvas with great willpower and Supreme Dharma, constantly diluting the Light of the Buddha in the golden ponds.


    Ning Que shed his iron cuss, and the Vermilion Bird became angry and howled. Haotian¡¯s Divine me spouted out from the de, walked around the mountain, and then chopped a bottomless crack.


    Snow umted under the cliff for decades after the avnche. At this point, the umted snow instantly melted and flew into the crack, forming a new river which was truly clear and quiet.


    While trying to merge at the foot of the mountain, the waters from the Styx River and from the new river met didn¡¯t integrate. They looked at each other indifferently and maintained their own pace. It seemed that neither of the two could move forward.


    Ning Que sat on the top of the statue of the Buddha with his legs crossed and began to meditate with his eyes closed. After repairing the statue of the Buddha in the mountain, he began to cultivate Buddhism in his heart. He wanted to be the Buddha, the only true Buddha in heaven and on earth.

 Chapter 979 - Merciful Ferry And Unreasonable Buddha

    <h4>Chapter 979: Merciful Ferry And Unreasonable Buddha</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The mountain stood between the heaven and earth, and the peak was very close to the sky. Ning Que sat on the top of the statue of Buddha with his eyes closed and his legs crossed. It seemed that he could pierce the ck sky if he were to reach out.


    A bright spot appeared in the dark sky above him. It was very bleak at first, suddenly became extremely bright, and then turned into thousands of streams of light, scattering all over the field along the radian of the sky.


    Many pictures were shing in the lights, such devout followers kowtowing, charming and elegantdies from Heaven and rare golden flowers and jade trees, which all belonged to the Buddha Land.


    The Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in the field looked up to the sky, and faint breaths came out from their bodies and then melted into the light. The breaths, which were their consciousnesses, went to the sky with the light, sprinkled on the peak and then entered Ning Que¡¯s body.


    The Buddhas and the Bodhisattvas were shocked that Ning Que could take their consciousnesses away, which meant that he could receive the faith of the world and was about to be the Buddha.


    In their view, Ning Que of course was a fake Buddha and what he did was a profanity.


    Extreme anger broke out in the field, and the Buddhas began to revolt. Some of them cut their own faces with golden knifes and some teared their ears off. Blood was everywhere, and the Light of Buddha and the Power of Buddha flourished.


    The indigo lion, who had already entered into the depths of the golden pond, made a low roar and took a step forward with the Power of Buddha. Then, a deep crack instantly appeared on the earth.


    With the crack as the boundary, the left part of the field slowly rose up, then slid to the east and covered the ground of the east part inch by inch, looking like a big ship rushing out of the dark bottom of the sea!


    The big ship had no stern and its back was directly connected to the ground. Thus, the west of the field was the body of the ship and moved forward with the bow of the ship. And the field and the people standing on the field were all brought onto the ship.


    Over thest decades, countless people who had reached Nirvana hade here from all directions, and the number of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in the field was so high that one couldn¡¯t even count them. There must have been millions of people on the field at this point.


    Millions of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas were all on the big ship! The sounds of chanting were everywhere, and the broken ritual implements became the purest Breath of Buddha, giving off endless Light of Buddha. It was Earth¡¯s Ship!


    How amazing it was!


    The ship slowly rose and emerged from the surface of the sea in the dark field, slowly but inexorably moving toward the Mountain of Buddha. The ban set by Buddha among the golden ponds had already weakened, and at this moment it was quickly disappearing like ice and snow under the hot sun after the ship ran over the ponds. Countless green lotuses and willows were crushed and turned into broken woods mixed with mud and then covered by the shadow of the giant ship. The sounds of frogs and cicadas had already disappeared.


    The big ship slowly moved forward and came to the big river at the foot of the mountain. The river bank already copsed and the waves surged into the sky. Half of the water came from the Styx River and contained countless rancorous souls and skulls which were voluntarily purified into breaths while encountering the Light of Buddha emitted by the ship.


    The innumerable pure breath transformed by the rancorous souls and skulls was attached to the body of the ship again, making the Light of Buddhaing from the big ship more prosperous. The ship kept moving forward and was about to run into the cliff!


    Standing on the board the ship, numerous Buddhas and Bodhisattvas put their hands together and solemnly looked at Ning Que who was on the summit. The indigo lion stood on the bow of the ship and looked at the cliff, looking very anxious to jump over.


    It still remained a mystery whether or not the ship would destroy the mountain, the statue of Buddha, or even kill Ning Que when it collided with the mountain. But the Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and the indigo lion would never allow him to be the Buddha if they could climb to the top of the mountain.


    Ning Que sat on the top of the Buddha with his legs crossed. He closed his eyes and sensed everything he understood, reaching a crucial moment of bing the Buddha. He didn¡¯t even know what had happened outside and probably couldn¡¯t pay attention to those things even if he knew, for he couldn¡¯t afford to have any distractions.


    He knew that the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in the field would not just let him be the Buddha and take away all living creatures¡¯ worshipping of the Buddha. He didn¡¯t make any ns in advance because he knew that that he was fighting alone.


    Sangsang was put aside and covered by the big ck umbre. All of a sudden, Sangsang opened her eyes!


    The pair of slender willow-shaped eyes were bright.


    She had woken up several times during the past decades, but she had never opened her eyes, for she had always been in Ning Que¡¯s heart, never returning to her own body.


    As Ning Que was about to be the Buddha and the poisons inside her were going to disappear, she could finally return to her own body and see the world through her own eyes! Holding the big ck umbre, Sangsang stood up and looked at the big ship under the mountain with her eyes squinted.


    ¡°Is this the merciful ferry that will take all of the miserable people to the world of bliss?¡± She waved her sleeves, and the flowers on her cyan dress blossomed again. A horrible hurricane rushed from the summit to the foot of the mountain, and then roared away toward the giant ship on the river.


    The indigo lion roared at the bow of the boat, but the roaring sound was sent back to its mouth by the hurricane before it could be heard. The beast closed its eyes in a panic, and the fur on its mane kept flying backwards in the fierce wind.


    There were no sails on the big ship, but the kasayas that were worn by the numerous Buddhas and Bodhisattvas who were standing on the board ballooned out in the hurricane, acting like sails.


    The big ship suddenly slowed down.


    As the Earth¡¯s Ship, it was born of the great Earth and contained unlimited weight. Sangsang waved her sleeves to summon the wind which made the ship slow down, indicating that she had regained her infinite power.


    However, she still couldn¡¯tpletely stop the big ship. The ship did slow down, but it kept moving toward the cliff.


    ¡°The wills of all living creatures are indeed interesting.¡± Her cyan dress pped slightly, and then her figure disappeared from the summit.


    The next moment, she came to the big ship. The indigo lion roared and its mane which looked like swords. It was trying to bite her. Sangsang nced at it. The indigo lion suddenly showed fear and turned its head tremblingly.


    Sangsang walked among the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. She looked at the faces of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas.


    They did not dare to stare her in the eyes and turned aside. She was looking for the Buddha among all living creatures.


    All of the living creatures did not dare to look at her, and the Buddha was hiding from her.


    The big ship was the Earth, carrying countless Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. But as Haotian, she might just find Buddha if she had enough time.


    The Buddhas and Bodhisattvas finally responded. They lowered their head, put their palms together and walked to the bow of the ship. They all huddled together, as if they were trying to squeeze Sangsang out of the crowded ship.


    Sangsang frowned slightly and then reached out to put her finger on the middle spot between the Buddha¡¯s eyebrows. The Buddha became brighter and brighter and then turned into white light. He died!


    Every time the crowded board had a spot open, another Buddha would immediately step forward to fill the vacancy. There would always be a sessor no matter how many Buddhas were to die.


    Then those Buddhas began tomit suicide.


    The Buddha who had cut his face with a knife cut off his own head. A pure golden Light of Buddha rose towards the sky and then scattered on the board.


    The Buddha who had stabbed his abdomen with a knife moved the de upwards and stabbed it into his heart. A pure golden Light of Buddha poured out and then sshed all over the ce.


    Numerous Buddhas died, and the Lights of Buddha on the big ship flourished unimaginably. Sangsang frowned and turned paler and paler, feeling a little ufortable.


    A part of the three poisons still lingered in her system and finally broke out while she was encountering the martyrdoms of the Buddhas. Thest part of the poisons was attachment.


    She looked back at the summit. Ning Que sat there with his legs crossed and meditated with his eyes closed, knowing nothing had happened on the ship.


    Just by looking back, Sangsang came to the summit and came to him.


    ¡°Actually, the attachment would be gone if I were to kill you.¡±


    She went silent for a long time, and then reached out to put her finger between Ning Que¡¯s eyebrows.


    Suddenly, the spot that Sangsang touched became extremely bright, as if it was transparent.


    Through the transparent spot, a green seed could be seen. It was the seed of the Bodhi tree.


    Ning Que had repaired the statue of Buddha on the mountain throughout the decades, but in actuality he had cultivated Buddhism prior to the modification of the statue.


    Before entering the chessboard, or thousands of years ago, Ning Que had faced the wall for a whole day in the cliff yard of the Xuankong Temple and only woke up after pear blossom fell on his shoulders.


    That experience meant that he started his journey of cultivating Buddhism. It was also through facing the wall back then that he understood the life experience of Master Lian Sheng and a seed of Bodhi Tree was nted in his heart.


    After entering the chessboard, he listened to the morning bells and evening drums of the White Tower Temple and cultivated Buddhism for countless years. He repaired the statue for decades and deepened his understanding of the Buddha Dharma.


    The seed of the Bodhi tree was no longer in his heart, but moved to the midpoint between his eyebrows.


    Sangsang touched the spot and exerted Devine Psyche, awakening the seed.


    The midpoint between Ning Que¡¯s eyebrows had a small cut through which a very fine green stem broke and was tossing in the wind. In the Lights of Buddha came the big ship and the green stem grew at a speed visible to naked eyes.


    The seed of the Bodhi tree sprouted, broke through the soil, and then went into green leaves which hung over the summit, covered the dark sky and even covered all the Lights of Buddha in Nirvana.


    The Bodhi tree grew extremely fast and gave an impression that it was arrogant. And one would feel weird seeing the tree since it grew between Ning Que¡¯s eyebrows.


    Under the Bodhi tree, Ning Que closed his eyes and smiled, as if he was having a good dream.


    Sangsang walked beside him and sat in the shade of the Bodhi tree. The Lights of Buddha could not shine on her again. With her pale face gradually returning to normal again, she closed her eyes and fell asleep again. For her, falling asleep meant entering into Ning Que¡¯s body. Ning Que woke up.


    Looking at the giant ship that was getting closer and closer and the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas on the ship, he said, ¡°My body is a Bodhi tree, my heart is as clean as a dressing table.¡±


    He wanted to preach to all living creatures, but they were not willing to listen.


    All of the living creatures tried to debate against him and expose him as a fake Buddha. Thus, loud chanting hung over the sky, the earth, and the big ship. ¡°The Bodhi is not a tree, the dressing table is not clean...¡±


    ¡°I am not try to reason with you. I am unlike my Eldest Brother. Everything would be just fine if you are willing to listen to me. If not, them Buddhism will know how to deal with you. My sermon is simple: all of you must listen to me, or you will be punished.¡± Ning Que looked at all the Buddhas and said, ¡°I am the only true Buddha, you must worship me.¡±


    All of the Buddhas became extremely angry.


    Ning Que said calmly, ¡°You must ept it. If not, then all of you have to die.¡±


    Before the sound of his voice died, one Buddha turned into ash.


    The next moment, the Buddha who had just died came to the summit and sat on one leaf with his legs crossed, like he was sitting on a futon.


    The green leaf was the leaf of the Bodhi tree. The Bodhi tree grew between his eyebrows. That Buddha put his palms together and bowed to Ning Que devoutly.

 Chapter 980 - Spring Thunder In The Human World, And Holding Flower In The Buddha Land

    <h4>Chapter 980: Spring Thunder In The Human World, And Holding Flower In The Buddha Land</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The mountain peak was the Buddha, and it took Ning Que decades to change it to the statue of Sangsang. There was no image of the Buddha left on the surface of the cliff, but part of the Buddha still existed in the depths of the mountain. Ning Que turned himself into a Bodhi tree to lure the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas to worshipping him. Buddha could no longer remain silent.


    The Consciousness of Buddha came from the deepest part of the cliff and entered his heart.


    ¡°I have be Buddha,¡± Ning Que said to the Consciousness of Buddha. His expression was very rxed, just like chatting with an old acquaintance.


    Buddha replied, ¡°I am still among all living beings. If you can¡¯t find me and kill me, you will never be Buddha.¡±


    The Buddha here was the only true Buddha in Heaven and on Earth. Ning Que knew that it was true. Just as it was impossible to kill Haotian in Haotian¡¯s world, it was also impossible to kill Buddha in Buddha¡¯s world, and it was even impossible to find him.


    ¡°Why are you so serious? I never thought that the inheritance of Buddhism should be like the inheritance of the throne in the human world. We can avoid the bloody massacre.¡± Ning said with a smile, ¡°You being Buddha should not hinder me from bing Buddha, for I do not want to rule your world. I am not Haotian and I am not interested in killing you. I just want to leave.¡±


    ¡°How can you leave?¡±


    ¡°I can be Buddha if I take away the wills of all living beings.¡±


    ¡°How can you take away the wills of all living beings?¡±


    ¡°You both know it. See...¡± Looking at the giant ship on the river, Ning Que lifted his right index finger and wrote one word in the air towards the ship.


    Sangsang was in his heart, and Divine Psyche went with his finger andnded on the giant ship.


    The Bodhi tree on the peak began to shake, and the green leaves fluttered in the wind, bing more rounded and wider.


    Ning Que and Sangsang repaired the statue of Buddha by the means of harmony between man and nature. The mystery around it couldn¡¯t be described in words. Thebination of Ning Que¡¯s Buddhist Vow and Sangsang¡¯s Divine Heart was the irresistible psyche.


    The psyche fell on one Buddha on the giant ship. The psyche told that Buddha: You must believe in me. That Buddha naturally resisted the profane request. He put his palms together and kept chanting with his eyes closed, struggling to fight against the request. But he became countless light spots and then disappeared from the ship in a sh.


    The next moment, that Buddha came to the summit and sat on the leaf of the Bodhi tree. He kept swaying in the wild and revealed a great awakening between his eyebrows, paying tribute to Ning Que.


    At this point, two Buddhas were lured by Ning Que¡¯s Buddhist Vow to the summit and became his followers. They began to chant devoutly with their eyes closed, and they were praising Ning Que.


    Ning Que felt that a faint but real power entered his body from the Bodhi tree, making him happy but also burdensome. He realized that it was the power of faith.


    In the countless cyclic existence, except for Haotian, only the Buddha knew how to collect and use the power of faith. The Headmaster of Academy might reach the state, but he refused to do it. Ning Que should not be able toprehend the Grand Divine Ability at his current state, but he could master the skill since he was bonded with Haotian.


    Influenced by the Divine Psyche of Sangsang, Ning Que closed his eyes instinctively and crushed the Consciousness of Buddha that came from the depths of the cliff. He then began to chant with the two Buddhas on the Bodhi tree.


    Buddha kept silent and disappeared without a trace. The waves in the river raged with great fury, and the big ship kept moving forward, trying hard to break the mountain and prevent Ning Que from bing the Buddha. But it couldn¡¯t reach the other side of the river.


    It was because the Buddha on the other side was not the old Buddha.


    Time kept flowing, but the rate remained a mystery since on one was observing. The Bodhi tree growing on Ning Que¡¯s body flourished more and more, and countless green leaves grew on countless branches. The green leaves, looking like futons, were upied by more and more Buddhas, which looked like the fruits on the tree.


    There were more than a thousand Buddhas seeking refuge with Ning Que. One more Buddha on the Bodhi tree meant one less Buddha on the ship. But the change was not evident, for there were too many Buddhas and Bodhisattvas on the ship.


    Ning Que closed his eyes silently, put his hands on the cliff stone on the summit casually and cultivated Buddhism with Sangsang, without knowing anything that was happening in the world or noticing the passing of time.


    ...


    ...


    Thousands of years had passed in the world of the chessboard, but only three years had passed in the human world. At this point, it was the fifth year of Zhengshi in Great Tang and the three thousand four hundred and fifty-fourth year of Dazhi in West-Hill.


    It was spring. The willow catkins were everywhere, and flowers of all kinds were in bloom, including the peach blossoms in the Divine Halls, the cherry blossoms in the Great River Kingdom, and the wild flowers in the Wilderness. But the pear tree was not in blossom.


    ¡°Is this a pear tree or an iron tree?¡± The crowd gathered under the pear tree by theke in the Back Hill of the Academy and were angry about the lifeless leaves.


    In the past three years, they had tried everything they could, but failed to open the Buddha¡¯s chessboard. It appeared that the only opportunity to enter the chessboard was to wait for the tree to blossom and yield fruit. But the Eldest Brother said that it would take the pear tree five hundred years to blossom and yield fruit. How many people could live for five hundred years?


    The pear tree did not bloom, and the peach blossoms in the meadow in front of the Academy did not bloom either. There were only a few flowers in blossom in Chang¡¯an this year, for there was not much rain this spring. The spring thunder constantly rang among the clouds, but the air was dry.


    It was weird that there was thunder but no storm. The Eldest Brother was puzzled while standing on the stone steps in front of the main hall of the pce and looking at the increasingly dense clouds in the sky.


    Suddenly, a lightning appeared in the thick clouds and then fell to a certain ce in Chang¡¯an. The God-stunning Array sensed the danger and gave off a clear light.


    The Eldest Brother came to Wanyan Tower in an instant. Looking at the temple which was destroyed by the lightning and the statue of Buddha which was burned dark, he somehow figured the whole matter out.


    He came to the city wall and looked around. The clouds were about to cover the entirend, and lightnings kept striking, filling thend with ck smoke. It seemed that the ck smoke wasing from the Buddhist temples.


    The next moment, the Eldest Brother returned to the Back Hill of the Academy and came to the pear tree by theke. He quietly looked at the chessboard for quite a while and and then smiled.


    ¡°The Eldest Brother smiled!¡± The crowd in the Back Hill was very surprised.


    The Eldest Brother was busy with national affairs over these years, such as preparing for the war and educating the new monarch. Besides, he was also worried about the wellbeing of Ning Que in the chessboard. With so many burdens on his shoulders, he hadn¡¯t smiled like this for a long time.


    Spring thunders kept roaring, but there was still no rain.


    In the Lanke Temple, the three fronts were struck by lightning and the statue of Buddha copsed. Moss appeared on the rock debris overnight, giving off the smell of sea breeze.


    Monk Guan Hai and the other monks in the temple sat down in front of the broken halls with their legs crossed and were chanting. The Blind Monk kept screaming and scratching the mosses on the rocks crazily, ¡°Something is going to happen. I can feel it!¡±


    On the cliff yard of the Divine Halls, the Abbey Dean sat in a wheelchair, looked at the clouds covering the sky and the lightning falling from time to time and ordered, ¡°Get ready for the sacrificial ceremony. My Master will return soon.¡±


    The war at the bottom of the Giant Sinkhole of West Wilderness was still going on, and tens of thousands of serfs had been involved in fighting against the nobles and soldier monks of the Xuankong Temple.


    The sound of arrows flying around hung over the field, mixed with the terrible screams. Blood and dead bodies were everywhere. At this point, a thick lightning fell from the dark clouds of the sky.


    The lightning fell on the Grand Hall on the peak. With a loud noise, the hall copsed and the statue of Buddha instantly turned into ck powder!


    Jun Mo waved the iron sword in front of his chest and kept Qi Nian and the Elders of the Commandment Hall a few li away with the Will of Rite. He looked at the ck smokeing from the summit and said indifferently, ¡°Buddha has been defeated. You still think you can conquer me?¡±


    After a few days of spring thunder, the spring rain finally fell, and itsted for days. The spring rain this year was very heavy, which was unusual. It was washing the earth that had been struck by lightning.


    The rain fell on the broken Buddhist temples, the broken statues of Buddha and the pale-faced monks. It was washing away the remaining Breaths of Buddha.


    In the Back Hill of the Academy, the rain kept falling on the green leaves of the pear tree and then flew down, making the chessboard under the tree and the crowd around the chessboard all wet.


    The naked upper body of the Sixth Brother was covered with drops which kept flying around like arrows as he waved the iron hammer to smash the chessboard.


    They were all exhausted after so many years of hitting the chessboard, but they never thought of giving up. Besides, the Eldest Brother smiled, which indicated that they were getting close to finally breaking down the chessboard.


    The sound of the hammer was as loud as spring thunder, and the sweat ran down the Sixth Brother¡¯s body like raindrops.


    One day, a slight sound suddenly came from the chessboard.


    A thin line appeared on the chessboard. And the thin line was actually a very small crack which would be ignored if one was not looking carefully.


    One day, a slight sound suddenly came from Ning Que¡¯s head.


    Ning Que opened his eyes and looked at the big ship which was still sailing to the other side of the river. After a long time of silence, he reached out to pick up the Bodhi tree between his eyebrows and smiled.


    The Bodhi tree had grown very densely, and the prosperous green leaves seemed to cover the dark sky and blocked all of the Lights of Buddha. There were tens of thousands of Buddhas sitting on those green leaves. They had different shapes and different postures, but they were all paying tribute to Ning Que.


    Even though the Bodhi tree was so huge, he just lifted it easily and then walked two steps aside. At this moment, Sangsang woke up and walked up to him holding the big ck umbre.


    Ning Que inserted the Bodhi tree into a certain spot on the summit. The mountain peak was the Buddha, who was dark and thin, dressed in a handmaiden costume, and named Sangsang.


    The Bodhi tree being inserted at the top of the mountain was like a flower being inserted in Sangsang¡¯s hair.


    Ning Que looked back at Sangsang and held her hand.


    There was a white flower in Sangsang¡¯s hair.


    Just like one bringing a painted dragon to life by putting in the pupils of its eyes, it was also true to bring the statue of Buddha to life by inserting a flower in its hair.


    Ning Que inserted the flower into Sangsang¡¯s hair, and the Buddha woke up.


    The small white flower in Sangsang¡¯s hair fluttered in the wind and the Bodhi tree on the summit kept swaying too. All of the Buddhas sitting on the green leaves were paying tribute to Sangsang.


    Ning Que felt that the wills of all living beings were flowing into his body as well as Sangsang¡¯s body.


    Heughed, and Sangsangughed too. So all of the Buddhas on the green leavesughed with them.


    Then Sangsang stopped smiling and went silent. So all of the Buddhas were quiet too.


    Sangsang looked at every part of the world indifferently, so the whole world became silent and indifferent.


    Countless Buddhas and Bodhisattvas on the big ship became frustrated.


    The indigo lion roared, but it could not resist the power and pressure from the Buddha. With an unwilling whine, it could no longer support its body and kneeled down to the peak.

 Chapter 981 - Reaching For The Star

    <h4>Chapter 981: Reaching For The Star</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ning Que and Sangsang became Buddhas, and to be more specifically, Buddhas of Heaven. All living beings must obey the Buddhas of Heaven. But Ning Que and Sangsang must take away the wills of all living beings if they wanted topletely control the chessboard world, which would take many years. Ning Que didn¡¯t want to wait anymore, so he reached out to hold the hilt.


    Along with his dangerous movement, the world changed again. Countless Buddhas and Bodhisattvas on the big ship and in the field sensed the unprecedented danger and announced their names in shrill voices, like a cuckoo crying for blood. They kept releasing their Breath of Buddha to Heaven and Earth desperately and giving off more flourishing Lights of Buddha.


    The Light of Buddha became extremely bright, and there was even some light passing through the lush leaves of the Bodhi tree on the summit and falling on Sangsang, making her face paler and paler.


    Countless rays of light shined on the dark sky and formed many Buddhism stories. The Buddhand of Buddha ovepped with the Buddhand of Ning Que and Sangsang, and it was difficult to distinguish one from another.


    Ning Que took out the iron cuss and shed it toward the dark sky. With a light sound, the golden lights on the sky shook slightly, and the temples and the heavenly maids which wereposed of the lights were all cut off.


    After cutting off the golden lights, the cuss fell on the dark sky and left a hundred meters long crack on the sky above the summit.


    Even though a bucket was full of water, it was still difficult for the water inside to flow out quickly if it only had one cut. Normally, it needed two crossed cuts to make the water run out.


    Ning Que lifted his cuss and shed again, leaving another clear crack on the dark sky which crossed with the previous crack, covering hundreds of miles of the field.


    These two cracks looked like a word and also a wound.


    Tens of thousands of Buddhas on the Bodhi tree all closed their eyes, put their palms together and kept chanting loudly, pouring the will of their faith and devoutness into the body of Ning Que.


    Looking at the two crossed cracks in the sky and the wordposed of the cracks, Ning Queughed satisfactorily. After his battle with the Abbey Dean, a millennium must have passed by if he was counting the years he spent in the chessboard world. He finally wrote out the word again.


    Looking at the word in the sky, Sangsang went silent for a few moments and said, ¡°The word is good.¡±


    Ning Que thought for a while and replied, ¡°I can¡¯t write it without you.¡±


    He didn¡¯t know how could he have written out the word, for it was a mysterious state that couldn¡¯t be exined by words. But the most fundamental reason was that Sangsang and he were one flesh now.


    God came to earth, so he could write the character of ¡°people¡±, which was a divine inspiration.


    The rain began to fall down, not from the clouds, but from the higher sky.


    Clear water kept dripping down from the two crossed cracks, and formed hundreds of thousands of waterfalls which became rainstorms after falling on the field.


    It rained for a whole year. A yearter, infinite starlight fell from the two crossed cracks and then was mixed into the waterfalls on the sky, shining with cold and beautiful luster and looking like some kind of sticky fruit pulp.


    The starlight kept falling for another whole year.


    Ning Que and Sangsang looked at the two cracks. What he saw was a beautiful and wonderful scene, but what she saw was the rain and starry sky of the human world. She saw her own world.


    During the past two years, countless Buddhas and Bodhisattvas blew themselves up. While fighting against the rain and starry sky of the human world, the Lights of Buddha from Nirvana sometimes were dark, sometimes bright, but would eventually be annihted.


    The Buddha, who was hidden in all living beings, ordered the chessboard world tounch the most powerful attack against Ning Que and Sangsang. He was trying to stop their departure.


    In the torrential rain, countless Buddhas and Bodhisattvas floated in the air as high as thousands of zhang and surrounded the mountain peak. Numerous ritual implements shone with golden lights and approached the mountain peak. And the big ship was just one step away from the cliff.


    In the torrential rain, Sangsang stood on the peak, and her ck hair danced wildly in the wind and the flowers on her cyan dress gradually disappeared. She quietly looked at countless Buddhas and Bodhisattvas around her and raised her right hand to the sky.


    She had seen her own world, so she was able tomunicate with the rules and regain the Power of Heaven.


    Suddenly, the the torrential rain which fell from the crack in the sky became brighter, for a star in the remote sky of the other end of the crack was tens of thousands times brighter than the second before.


    The stars of the World of Haotian were not burning stars, so they would not be brighter suddenly due to explosion. It indicated that the distance between the star and Sangsang was rapidly shortening.


    A ring spot appeared in the crack, passed through the crack easily, then travelled through the rain, approached the chessboard world, and came to the mountain peak.


    A star fell into the hands of Sangsang.


    Countless extremely bright lights, which were born from the hands of Sangsang, sprayed from the field to the mountain peak and made the rain evaporate easily. It was continuing to spread.


    Ning Que took out his sunsses and put it on.


    The ritual implements containing the infinite Power of Buddha in the air outside the mountain peak melted and disappeared in a short time after encountering the lights emitted by the star.


    Countless Buddhas and Bodhisattvas who floated in the rain sensed the terrifying the Power of Heaven and fled toward the outskirts of the field. But there were still thousands of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas being purified by the lights of the star and turned into nothingness.


    The starlights sprinkled from the peak, and the river shone with silver, which was extraordinarily tranquil. The big ship was just one step away from the cliff, but it could no longer move forward.


    Countless Buddhas and Bodhisattvas fled in horror toward the field behind the big ship, like a tide. And the indigo lion was transformed into a indigo light and fled in a sh.


    Seeing this, Sangsang revealed no emotions. She walked to the cliff, stretched her hand into the rainstorm and loosened her fingers, letting the star in her palm drop.


    The star came to the bottom of the mountain and fell into the river, arousing a wave that was hundreds of zhang tall. The big ship was rocked to creak, as if it would fall apart any moment. The Buddhas and Bodhisattvas who were running on the ship were lifted high by the wave and then fell to their deaths, sshing the golden blood of Buddha everywhere.


    Then the horrible vibration spread to the field from the bottom of the river. The ground vibrated at a high frequency, and the Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, cicadas, and frogs were all instantly shattered like raindrops on the surface of the drum.


    The star knocked a bottomless hole in the depths of the river bottom, and the mud was burned into porcin chips by the high temperature. Inexhaustible springs came up from the hole and ckened the river in a sh. And the river flowed over its banks and flooded thousands of golden ponds, thus making the ponds an endless ck sea at at a speed visible to the naked eye in the rainstorm.


    The ck sea stirred up hundreds of waves which spread to all directions of the field, turning everything it passed through, including the hard rocks and the soft willow branches, into the finest pieces.


    Rising and falling in the back sea, the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas screamed and then were swallowed. The indigo lion was lifted high by the wave and then fell to the sea heavily. The beast kept kicking at the ground under the sea since it was as high as hundreds of zhang. Seeing what had happened, the indigo lion was frustrated and horrified. What would be left of this world if the ck sea were to keep spreading?


    The rainstorm kept falling and stirred up the chessboard world. Only the mountain peak stood still in the uneasy ck sea, as if Sangsang was standing quietly on the sea looking from afar.


    The mountain peak was the statue of a handmaiden, with flowers and a Bodhi tree on the top. And there were tens of thousands of Buddhas on the Bodhi tree. Standing under the Bodhi tree, Ning Que and Sangsang looked at the ck sea and the crowds floating in the sea.


    Sangsang saw the indigo lion by the far side of the ck sea and reached out from far away. The indigo lion uttered a heartrending cry and came to Sangsang the next moment. Being caught in the neck by Sangsang, the beast did not dare to move and kept trembling. It was all wet and just a few chi long at this moment. It looked like a drowning dog.


    The raging ck sea was rushing in. It wouldn¡¯t take long for the ck sea to flood the Styx River and the redwood forests on both sides of the river. And soon, Chaoyang City would be destroyed too. The Buddhand would be the drownednd, losing all of its glory.


    It was all because Sangsang picked off a star.


    Seeing the miserable scene in the Buddhand, Sangsang revealed no emotions and showed no mercy. She just kept releasing the Power of Heaven and making the ck sea fiercer. She wanted to destroy the world with a flood.


    She had been trapped here by the Buddha for more than a millennium. If it were not for Ning Que, she might have been trapped here and lost herself forever. Haotian would have be the prisoner in the chessboard.


    She couldn¡¯t stand the shame. She must vent the anger and all the negative emotions contained in her cyan dress in some way.


    ¡°Don¡¯t do this.¡± Ning Que said, ¡°Any nt, tree, or stone in this world can be the Buddha. You have to destroy the whole world to kill him. It will take too long and might not work.¡±


    Sangsang did not respond. She was still looking for traces of the Buddha in the waves and rainstorm.


    Ning Que walked to the edge of the cliff, took her hand and said, ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    Sangsang went silent for a moment and replied, ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡±


    Ning Que turned to look at the tens of thousands Buddhas on the Bodhi tree, raised one hand to the chest and said sincerely, ¡°Brothers, I have to go.¡±


    The Bodhi tree shook gently in the torrential rain. Tens of thousands Buddhas sitting on the green leaves of the Bodhi tree all announced their names calmly, put their palms together and praised, ¡°Farewell, my master.¡±


    Ning Que and Sangsang, holding hands, slowly floated off the mountain peak and flew to the intersection of the two cracks on the dark sky facing the rainstorm and the starlight.


    Seeing the doomsday scene of the Buddhand, the indigo lion did not dare to struggle in Sangsang¡¯s hand and revealed a sour emotion since he knew that he could never be back.


    ...


    ...


    At the Back Hill of the Academy, the Sixth Brother was still hacking at the chessboard and the crowd was gathering around the chessboard to watch him. The spring rain kept falling, wetting the pear tree, the crowd, and the chessboard.


    The Eldest Brother did not return to the pce tonight. He stood under the pear tree and stared at one spot as if he was thinking of something. He was not looking at the chessboard, but at the sky and the stars hanging in the sky.


    All of a sudden, one star left its original position, turned into a stream of light, and headed toward the ground. The star came to the Back Hill in a sh, broke through the Cloud Gate Array and fell on the chessboard!


    There was a loud noise!


    The crowd around the chessboard was taken aback and wondered how the star had fallen. What if the star had fallen on the flowers, the nts, and all the people here? Who can react quickly and avoid it?


    After the star fell, the small crack on the chessboard appeared to be wider.


    The Eldest Brother looked at the chessboard and and said with a smile, ¡°Wee back.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 982 - Ning Que And Sangsang Return And The Chessboard Goes Back

    <h4>Chapter 982: Ning Que And Sangsang Return And The Chessboard Goes Back</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ning Que appeared beside the chessboard, shabbily dressed and all wet. He was dark, thin, and exhausted, as if he was a refugee fleeing from famine.


    The Seventh Sister, Mu You, felt pity for him and stepped forward to touch his head. Other elder brothers gathered around him and kept touching his head to express their mixed feelings.


    They were very excited for they hadn¡¯t seen the youngest brother they adored for four years. But for Ning Que, it had been a millennium since he parted with his elder brothers and sisters. He was even more excited about the long-awaited reunion. A millennium had passed. Ning Que missed his elder brothers and sisters very much. Ning Que hugged the Fourth Brother, the Fifth Brother, the Sixth Brother to the Eleventh Brother and even Seventh Sister one after another. Atst, he walked to the Eldest Brother and bowed to him.


    ¡°Eldest Brother, I am back.¡±


    ¡°I am d that you are back.¡± The Eldest Brother replied with a smile. He was still gentle and calm, as if he would not care even if the sky was falling. But somehow his voice trembled slightly at this moment.


    Thinking about the years he spent in the chessboard world and the fact that he was almost trapped there forever, Ning Que had mixed feelings and said, ¡°I will never leave again.¡±


    Bei Gong walked over to him and asked with concern, ¡°What happened?¡±


    Ning Que told them his experience in the chessboard world briefly and mentioned that he almost indulged in the White Tower Temple but was awakened by two axes. ¡°The axe from my ocean of consciousness was the consciousness of Lian Sheng, but what about the axe from the sky? I might have never woken up if it wasn¡¯t for it. Everything has an answer, but I can¡¯t figure this matter out. Whose axe was it? Who was saving me?¡±


    Hearing this, the crowd turned to look at the Sixth Brother.


    The Sixth Brother stood by the chessboard and still carried the extremely thick hammer in his hand. Ning Que realized that the sound of the axe from the sky was actually the sound of the hammer. Every sound of the axe represented a psyche, a psyche from outside the chessboard. The psyche was calling for his return.


    He began to realize that his elder brothers were trying to open the chessboard during the years that he was trapped in it. Thinking of all the things his elder brothers did for him, Ning Que¡¯s eyes were wet and he kneeled down in front of the Sixth Brother.


    The Sixth Brother helped him up and said, ¡°We all smashed the chessboard. I smashed it a little more just because I am good at using the hammer. The Eldest Brother is the one who did the most work.¡±


    Ning Que kneeled in front of all his elder brothers around the chessboard again. Song Qian told him to stop kneeling, so he stopped kneeling and hugged everyone. He even hugged the Eldest Brother and Seventh Sister. Mu You took a step back to avoid his arms and said shyly, ¡°I am married.¡±


    Ning Que was a little upset and asked, ¡°I know you are married. So what?¡±


    Mu You answered seriously, ¡°It is improper for unrted men and women to have intimate contact. I feel pity for you, so I let you hug me the first time. But you can¡¯t keep doing it.¡±


    ¡°Who cares? If you really need a reason, then how about you taking my second brother¡¯s ce this time?¡± Ning Que took her in his arms with a smile and his hug was so tight that she was almost out of breath, which led to herint after he put her down.


    The big white goose came from nowhere and pecked Ning Que at his ankle. He broke out in cold sweat due to the pain and almost fell to the ground. Ning Que looked at the big white goose and said, ¡°This guy is really good at guarding the house. If there were red apricots nted in the yard, he will definitely eat them all.¡±


    Mu You took the clothes and towel from the wooden box that was dragged by the big white goose, walked to Ning Que and wiped the rain off him, murmuring, ¡°Look at you. All wet.¡±


    Looking at the rain on the chessboard, Ning Que replied, ¡°It must be the rain that leaked into the chessboard.¡±


    The Third Sister Yu Lian was at the East Wilderness at this moment, so there was only one girl left at the Back Hill of the Academy. Mu You was used to taking care of all the elder and younger brothers.


    She took the wet clothes off Ning Que and put dry ones on him. Staring at him up and down, she found the clothes on him were a little loose and felt sad, ¡°You are so thin now. What a hellhole that ce really is.¡±


    Thinking of the Styx River, Ning Que said with a bitter smile, ¡°We indeed saw many ghosts there.¡±


    Mu You asked, ¡°Why did you go there knowing that it is a hellhole?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°She wants to kill the Buddha. We never thought that the Buddha would set up a trap in the chessboard.¡±


    All of a sudden, the cliff yard of the Back Hill became extremely quiet. The big white goose, the birds and beasts in the forest were holding their breaths nervously. The fishes in the Mirror Lake and the stream did not dare to wag their tails for they were afraid to stir up the water, so they gradually sank toward the bottom of theke and the stream.


    Hearing Ning Que mentioning her, the crowd remembered that she also left the chessboard world. They all looked to the pear tree and their bodies became stiff.


    It had been quite a while since the chessboard was open and Ning Que had a reunion with his elder brothers and sister, but no one thought of her. If she didn¡¯t want to be noticed, then no one would notice her existence, not even the Eldest Brother.


    The crowd looked to Sangsang under the pear tree. Sangsang quietly looked at the pear tree, as if she was thinking of something.


    After seeing her clearly, the crowd became more and more unsettled. She put her left hand behind her back and hung her right hand on her side, carrying an indigo-haired dog.


    It was verymon for a youngdy to raise a pet, but no one would hold the pet in their hand like a sword. The indigo-haired dog closed its eyes tightly and pretended to be dead.


    Thekeside was silent, and the pear tree shook slightly in the wind, dripping dozens of droplets.


    The Eldest Brother stared at her quietly and then reached out to hold the wooden stick by his waist. The Fourth Brother Fan Yue walked to the smithing room, for the River and Mountain Sandbox was there. The Fifth Brother Song Qian and the Eighth Brother reached out to grab the ck and white chess pieces, and their fingers were trembling. The Sixth Brother clenched the hammer and his muscles tightened like rocks. An embroidery needle appeared between the fingers of Mu You, and the Cloud Gate Array at the mountain road moved slightly. Bei Gong sat down with his legs crossed and crossed the Chinese zither in front of his chest. Standing behind Bei Gong, Ximen put the bamboo flute between his lips.


    In a sh, the crowd was ready forbat and they all pulled out their strongest weapons, for Sangsang was Haotian, the most powerful enemy that the Academy couldn¡¯t run away from.


    Wang Chi was very distressed. He was good at debating, taking care of flowers and nts, and using poison, but he couldn¡¯t use any of his specialities to fight against Haotian. Haotian would never reason with him, and it was highly doubtful that Haotian could be poisoned to death by him.


    He looked around and finally fell his eyes on the hair of Sangsang. Seeing the little white flower, he asked in a trembling voice, ¡°The flower is pretty. Where did you get it?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s alright. She is still my wife,¡± Ning Que said eagerly to ease the tense situation. But Sangsang ignored him, which made it hard for the crowd to believe that it was indeed alright. Ning Que felt a little embarrassed.


    It was quiet under the pear tree, except for the light sound of the mountain wind passing through the holes of the bamboo flute and the strings of the Chinese zither.


    After quite a while, Sangsang finally stopped looking at the pear tree and turned to look at the crowd. She said without any emotions, ¡°I will not kill you today because of Ning Que.¡±


    Hearing this, Ning Que was finally relieved. Sangsang had regained her Power of Heaven since the poisons of attachment, aversion, and obsession inside her body were gone now. Even though the Academy was very powerful in the human world, it was not a match for Sangsang.


    ¡°See, like I said, it is alright.¡± He patted his chest and said proudly, ¡°I have the honor.¡±


    Bei Gong felt very embarrassed and said, ¡°You have lost the Academy¡¯s face.¡±


    Ning Que exined earnestly, ¡°One has to be alive first to care for saving face.¡±


    Sangsang reached out and then the chessboard came to her hand. She looked at the people around and said, ¡°I want this.¡±


    Although she did not use the interrogative sentence, she was actually asking. The crowd was surprised and then nodded their heads. The Academy indeed liked to be rebellious, but they were not stupid enough to argue with Haotian.


    Bei Gong was very brave this time. He held back the stress and plucked the strings with trembling fingers, making a light sound. Then he opened his mouth. ¡°I think... the chessboard ismunity property, so at least half of it belongs to my younger brother. Shouldn¡¯t you consult him before making any decision?¡±


    Ning Que was speechless. He knew why Sangsang wanted the chessboard. An ordinary person would be angry and depressed if they were trapped in the chessboard by Buddha for a millennium and almost lost their true nature, let alone the proud Haotian.


    Sangsang would never just forget the whole matter. She was not able to destroy the world inside the chessboard or kill Buddha whose whereabouts still remained a mystery at this point. She must do something to attain peace.


    But the chessboard was not a normal item. Sangsang couldn¡¯t destroy it within a short amount of time even though she was Haotian. How would she deal with the chessboard? How would she vent her anger?


    Sangsang pick up the chessboard and swung her arm. The flowers on her sleeve blossomed and then a breeze sprang up. The array intent on the sky above the cliff yard of the Back Hill was torn and a crack appeared. The chessboard flew through the crack. Then it became a little ck spot and turned into a steamer, falling to the distant west.


    Deep in the West Wilderness, the war in the underground world of the Giant Sinkhole was still going on. Tens of thousands of insurrectionary serfs were bravely fighting and blood and countless Lights of Buddha were sshing.


    Suddenly, a fierce whistle rang high in the sky. The serfs with the simple weapons and the soldier monks with the iron sticks looked up at the sky with astonished expressions, and silence swept across the battlefield.


    A straight line appeared in the sky,ing from far east, tearing the clouds and the air and flying to the Grand Hall of the Xuankong Temple at the Prajna Peak.


    With a loud bang, the Grand Hall which had copsed after being struck by the spring thunder a few days ago disappeared in a sh and became a dust cloudposed of innumerable particles!


    The Prajna Peak began to tremble, countless yellow temples copsed, countless status of Buddha shattered, and innumerable monks vomited blood and died. The horrible vibration passed to the field, and the war horses whinnied with terror and kneeled down.


    The Grand Hall was totally broken. There was only the t cliff yard left on the summit and the dark hole that appeared between the cliffs. The rocks turned into quicksand due to the high temperature, and dust and sparks kept ejecting from the dark hole and were about to hit the clouds.


    Disaster fell upon Xuankong Temple because Sangsang threw the chessboard back from the Back Hill of the Academy. She used Buddha¡¯s chessboard to make a deep hole on Buddha¡¯s remains.


    The chessboard passed through the entire mountain and headed to the bottom of the field. After prating the hard rockyer and the hot river, it did not stop but kept flying to the horrible magmayer.

 Chapter 983 - A Brand New Work

    <h4>Chapter 983: A Brand New Work</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    It was all ruins atop the peak. Broken walls and stones fell everywhere. A broken clock was rolling and murmuring in the tangled gauze. The dust-stained Chief Monk of Scripture walked to the hole and tried to stop the burning stream. He squinted to look for the chessboard in vain, and felt extremely upset.


    It was catastrophic for the Xuankong Temple. Numerous yellow temples copsed and thousands of monks were dead or seriously wounded. The soldier monks, Qi Nian, and other powerful cultivators of the Buddhism were also badly injured by the quake.


    But those were not reasons for the Chief Monk¡¯s grief. He was upset because he would probably never see Buddha¡¯s chessboard again in his life, which meant that the Buddha probably could nevere back to the human world.


    The chessboard broke through the hard rocks and burning underground stream, fell into the ming magma and was burned by the underground fire.


    The chessboard should have been able to shield itself from any substance. Even the horrible magma would have not been able to get through. But now the chessboard had a tiny crack, so the magma was able to prate.


    For the world inside the chessboard, the tiny crack was the two huge fractures over two hundred miles on the sky. The magma that prated into the chessboard was the endless burning heat.


    The dark ocean flooded most of the continents. When the flood retired, the world was left in devastation. Buddhas and Bodhisattvas stood desperately in the ruined world and stared at the ming magma falling down from the sky.


    The ming magma kept falling down from the cracks on the sky. It looked like countless burning falls, extremely charming yet extremely horrible. The ming magma fell onto the Wilderness in the retiring flood. Poisonous smoke was produced and enveloped the entire world. Many Buddhas and Bodhisattvas were burned to crisps and passed away.


    The destructive flood followed by punishing me put an end to numerous lives inside the chessboard. It looked miserable everywhere and was exactly like the Latter Days of Dharma as described in the scriptures.


    Chaoyang City was ruined by the dark sea. Broken walls, beams, stones and corpses scattered on the mud-covered ground. The bell would never ring again in the White Tower Temple.


    A young monk stood outside the city and stared at the fractures on the sky afar and the ming magma falling down from it. He stared for a long time until the screaming eventually disappeared inside the city.


    The young monk then left Chaoyang City and walked eastward. He looked at the statue of Buddha in the form of a handmaiden in that direction, pressed his palms together and walked resolutely on the muddy ground.


    He was resolute to rebuild the Buddha statue. It might take over a thousand years to rebuild the statue. And he clearly knew that he had already failed. If Haotian were to leave the world, then she would definitely return to her Divine Kingdom. However, he was still determined to do so. Because it was his world.


    Under a pear tree in the Back Hill of the Academy, Sangsang stood, emotionlessly looking to the west.


    She could not find and kill the Buddha inside the chessboard, and she had to focus on the bright moon above. Therefore she chose to bury the chessboard deep down in the ground. The chessboard was burning in the underground fire. The Buddha inside would suffer from the evesting pain and grow weaker until his eventual death.


    She looked to the west and said to the Buddha, ¡°Until the mountains tten and the Heaven and Earth merge, I won¡¯t see you again.¡± She was Haotian. She ordered Earth to punish the Buddha who dared to imprison her for a thousand years. Her will was the invible will of Heaven. Even fate could not disobey her. Hence, the Buddha would nevere back to the human world again.


    Ning Que knew why she said so, and clearly understood the powerful result of the cause and effect conveyed in her words. Yet he still felt unease. ¡°Aren¡¯t those conditions usually used for love oaths?¡±


    But they all knew that he was clowning to make it feel less intense by theke. Obviously it did not work. No one would agree that he was the master of the house.


    The Eldest Brother let go of the cudgel. Mu You put away her embroidery needles. Fan Yue, the Fourth Brother, refrained from looking for the River and Mountain Sandbox. The Sixth Brother put aside his iron hammer. Song Qian and the Eighth Brother collected their chess pieces. Beigong felt embarrassed and yed some random notes. Ximen wiped his bamboo flute and put it back on his belt. Wang Chi walked to a cluster of blossoms and pretended to be enjoying the flowers.


    People in the Academy withdrew from their battle mood not because they believed that Ning Que could conquer Sangsang. From the moment Sangsang threw out the chessboard they had realized that she had already fully recovered as Haotian. At that point, no one could control her. There was no point in fighting a losing battle.


    Of course it was also because Sangsang had said previously that she would not kill them today.


    Recalling how she threw away the chessboard and fractured the sky, they found it very hard to associate the lofty woman under the pear tree with the skinny and swarthy little girl in the Back Hill of the Academy cooking dinners years ago.


    The Eldest Brother looked at Sangsang and asked, ¡°Can we talk?¡±


    Ning Que took a nce at her and turned to the brook. Although they were special to each other, the Eldest Brother was the only one eligible to negotiate with Haotian on behalf of the Academy.


    The others also left the pear tree and started minding their own business. But no one was able to concentrate truly on their chess or music. Because the negotiation was vital for the Academy and the human world.


    It was still very tranquil by theke. Fish tried toe out of the slot on the rocks or from underneath the lotus. They swam to the surface of the water and enjoyed the spring breeze. Birds in the woods peaked timidly and refrained from twittering.


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°To stay is also an option.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I don¡¯t need you menial human beings to find options for me.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°The Academy is kind to Your Highness.¡±


    Sangsang looked at theke and held her hands behind her back. She said, ¡°Perhaps you used to be kind to me. But your instincts for fate is sometimes beyond human capacity.¡±


    The Eldest Brother continued, ¡°The Headmaster was kind to Your Highness.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°What your Master did was nothing different from what the Buddha did. They both wanted me to be weakened and killed. I can¡¯t see any kindness in that.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°The Buddha poisoned Your Highness, while our Master embodied the world of mortals in Your Highness. The former was to destroy you, while thetter was to change you for the better. Our Master wanted Your Highness to be human.¡±


    Sangsang recalled that Ning Que said something simr when they were still in the chessboard. She frowned and asked, ¡°Why do I need to be human? What good will that do for me?¡± Regardless if it was Haotian or an ordinary human being, they tended to conclude any discussion with matters of benefits and responsibilities. It was vulgar yet inevitable.


    The Eldest Brother could not provide an answer. He continued after a brief pause, ¡°I have no idea what benefits Your Highness would get during this process. But I believe that our Master had a reason for doing so. He must have predicted that Your Highness will obtain something desirable. But I cannot make a wild guess.¡±


    This was Haotian¡¯s World. She ruled over the world and owned it entirely. No matter how it changed, she could not own more. Then what did the Headmaster think she could obtain?


    No one knew the answer, not even herself.


    The talk was brief and did not bring any solution. Sangsang left the pear tree, held her hands behind her back and walked down the hill. Upon seeing this, those who had been pretending to y chess or music turned back at the same time. They unanimously agreed that no result was the best result for the time being.


    Mu You looked at Sangsang and proposed hesitantly, ¡°How about having some lunch first?¡±


    Sangsang did not answer as if she didn¡¯t see her, and continued to walk emotionlessly.


    Ning Que hurried to follow.


    The Cloud Gate Array along the mountain trail could easily stop strong cultivators at the top of the Five States. The Hierarch was able to break in years ago only because the Array was missing a master at that time and also because Yu Lian was waiting for him. It would not be so easy if he were to try to invade again.


    But for Sangsang this array meant nothing. She easily walked through the array, came out of the teau of the Back Hill and got to the front yard of the Academy. Ning Que followed closely.


    Ning Que asked, ¡°She asked if you¡¯d like to have lunch. You should at least answer even if you don¡¯t want to eat anything. She is after all the Elder Sister, if not your elder sister-inw. You should show some respect.¡±


    Sangsang did not pay any attention and kept walking emotionlessly.


    Ning Que was slightly embarrassed and followed her quietly.


    They walked through the old library, crossed the meadow, headed for somewhere secluded and arrived at the Forest of Swords.


    Sangsang held her hands behind her back and stared at the erect trees. She said after a while, ¡°When you climbed the hill years ago, I was right here. These trees turned into swords and tried to kill me.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I heard from the Second Brother afterwards that it was set up by the Master.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°No. It was the sword intent Ke Haoran had left to kill me.¡±


    Ning Que was surprised. The Forest of Swords was indeed empowered by the Youngest Uncle. But Sangsang was just a handmaiden in the Old Brush Pen Shop at that time. How could the Forest of Sword have reacted to her?


    ¡°Ke Haoran knew me. But it was funny that I didn¡¯t know myself at that time.¡± She said funny but she looked no less indifferent. ¡°Except for the sword intent he had left, no one else knew I was Haotian, not even myself. Even the person holding the brush pen had no idea where the stroke should be started at. That was the Heaven¡¯s works.¡±


    Ning Que sighed, ¡°Indeed. You didn¡¯t know who you were. How could anyone else have known? You tricked my Master into the Divine Kingdom and took my youth.¡±


    Sangsang did notugh. She said to him indifferently, ¡°I saw that you wrote a lot of things and I know how good you are at calligraphy. So, how do you like my work?¡±


    Ning Que had no idea what she meant. If she was talking about what happened before, why did she want him toment at this point? Or did that mean she had started a new work?


    A brand new work of Heaven? The thought of it made him feel restless and cold.


    Sangsang nced at the sky cut by the Forest of Swords and turned to head for the Academy.


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Where to?¡±


    Sangsang replied, ¡°Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Ning Que¡¯s restlessness vanished upon her words like snow melting in spring. It nurtured his mind and cultivated new growth. He felt extremely satisfied.


    The God-Stunning Array was the only threat to her left in the human world. She was willing to go to Chang¡¯an now. It probably meant that she would be willing to stay in the human world and stay with him.


    ...

 Chapter 984 - Finish The Tea Before You Ask Why

    <h4>Chapter 984: Finish The Tea Before You Ask Why</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    To the south of Chang¡¯an, the willows along the road were still weeping. Traces of the former war were being washed away by time. Only the limping soldiers at tea houses reminded people of the grief from time to time.


    Sangsang came to this city of memories, but still looked calm. It seemed as if they had never left. She held her hands behind her back and strolled through the familiar streets.


    Entering from the south gate, they turned west to the casino first. She did not collect her wins but silently watched the gamblers as they became extremely happy or desperate.


    Then Sangsang went to the House of Red Sleeves. Ning Que followed her very closely and did not pay a visit to Mistress Jian. They found Xiaocao by a quiet corner in the backyard.


    Xiaocao looked at Sangsang, feeling confused. She vaguely remember this lofty figure she once saw in the Divine Hall of Light behind theyers of gauze. Before she could think of something to say, she found a cup of tea ced in front of her.


    Sangsang ordered, ¡°Finish the tea.¡±


    Xiaocao felt even more confused and wondered why she wanted her to finish the tea.


    Ning Que said, ¡°Drink it. She won¡¯t hurt you.¡±


    Xiaocao took the cup and finished it, but could not even taste it. Then she found her body bing lighter. It felt warm and cozy, and she fell asleep.


    Ning Que stared at Xiaocao who was probably enjoying a sweet dream, and asked unbelievably, ¡°Is that immortality?¡±


    Sangsang did not answer. She left the House of Red Sleeves and headed for the Grand Secretary Mansion.


    It was either because she did not want to meet them or that she did want want to see her tears again that Sangsang put Zeng Jing and his wife to sleep and asked Ning Que to pour the tea she made into her mouth.


    Ning Que held the teacup and asked, ¡°Now that your mother is immortal, how about your father? When he dies, your mother wouldn¡¯t be happy to live alone. That won¡¯t be good.¡±


    Sangsang thought for a moment and asked, ¡°Then shall I take back the tea?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Can¡¯t you be a bit more generous? Why not make some tea for your father too?¡±


    Sangsang replied, ¡°First of all, I am Haotian. They are not my parents but rather the previous dwelling of my human body. Secondly, not everyone is eligible for my tea.¡±


    Ning Que stared at her in silence.


    She made another tea.


    Ning Que smiled to her and poured the tea into the mouth of Zeng Jing, the Grand Secretary.


    Getting out of the Grand Secretary Mansion he asked seriously, ¡°Is that tea really going to make people immortal?¡±


    Sangsang answered, ¡°I said I would grant them immortality.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Then who else are you giving it to?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Since Jun Mo was reluctant, I won¡¯t force him to take it.¡±


    Ning Que sighed helplessly and asked for himself, ¡°How about me?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°You were never fond of tea.¡±


    Ning Que seemed irritated and said, ¡°Who would mind drinking some tea in exchange for immortality?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I¡¯ve told you it is not meant for everyone.¡±


    Ning Que became seriously angry and said, ¡°You are my wife. Who else would be eligible for your tea if not me?¡±


    Sangsang did not answer and walked eastward.


    Ning Que hurried to follow her and kept asking, ¡°It¡¯s just a cup of tea. How can you be so stingy?¡±


    Sangsang still did not answer.


    Ning Que begged, ¡°Please, spare a cup for me.¡±


    Sangsang kept silent.


    Ning Que was enraged and shouted, ¡°If you don¡¯t make it for me, then I won¡¯t cook for you!¡±


    He begged, threatened, kept talking by himself and became embarrassed along the way, until they arrived at Lin 47th Street.


    They pushed open the door of the Old Brush Pen Shop and stepped into the courtyard. The house was dust-free. The old cat on the windowsill was scared away upon their entrance. Sangsang went into the kitchen and then back to the front house. She sat down by the table and knocked on it.


    Ning Que understand what that meant. He went to the market and bought some supplies, made two vegetable dishes and two meat dishes, then two bowls of appetizing rice.


    It was always Sangsang who cooked the meals, except for once when she ran away from home. Now she was Haotian. How could she do such things again? Ever since they were in the Divine Hall of Light, Ning Que had already gotten used to his new position in the house.


    After they finished the meal, Ning Que washed the dishes, and Sangsang walked out of the Old Brush Pen Shop to visit their neighbor.


    For certain reasons the businesses on Lin 47th Street had been very poor. Many shops had closed throughout the years. However, after the Old Brush Pen Shop was closed, the shops recently reopened one after another.


    The next-door neighbor was still the antique shop that sold fake antiques.


    Sangsang entered the back antique shop and told the owner Mr. Wu, ¡°You can take a concubine now.¡±


    Upon saying that, she turned and left.


    Mr. Wu held his teapot, sat on the old wooden armchair and looked at the empty shop. He wondered whether or not it was just an illusion. What did she just say? He did not hear her clearly but someone else did.


    Mrs. Wu rushed in from the backyard with a piece of wet rag in her hand. She questioned Mr. Wu with her eyes wide open, ¡°What the hell is going on? Are you taking a concubine?¡±


    Mr. Wu was still confused and asked, ¡°Did she talk about taking a concubine?¡±


    Mrs. Wu was filled with tears and said with trembling voice, ¡°I heard that clearly back there. Yet you are still lying to me. Let¡¯s straighten it up. Who are you taking in?¡±


    Mr. Wu looked innocent and said, ¡°I don¡¯t even know that woman.¡±


    Mrs. Wu became even more angry and her voice turned ugly, ¡°How dare you take in some woman you don¡¯t even know?!¡±


    Mr. Wu also got angry and eximed, ¡°What the hell are you talking about! I have no idea what that is about!¡±


    Mrs. Wu held Mr. Wu¡¯s cor in her left hand, and threw the wet rag onto his face. She cursed, ¡°How dare you, Wu?! Since you have a little fortune and have been running your shop in Chang¡¯an for several years, you think you are some big shot now! If it was not because of my dowry back then, you would still be nothing but a hoodlum in the East County. How dare you take a concubine now? You have my word! There¡¯s no way!¡±


    A typical family drama was taking ce in the antique shop on Lin 47th Street. It was even as dramatic as operas. Screaming and sounds of falling furnitures were heard continuously.


    Sangsang had no idea what happened there, neither would she care. In her opinion, since Ning Que had be the king for the Great River Kingdom for one day, they had to honor the bet they made years ago. As for whether or not Mr. Wu would make it, it was his own business.


    Right now, she was strolling with Ning Que in Chang¡¯an.


    They went to Chenjinji Cosmetics Store but did not buy any cosmetics. They went to the market in the eastern part of the city but did not buy any vegetables. They went to the Scent Workshop but did not buy any paper or brush pens. They also went to Restaurant Songhe but did not made any reservations.


    She traveled throughout Chang¡¯an without leaving a trace. She just walked through all the streets she used to visit and reced her old footprints with new ones.


    The City of Chang¡¯an had the God-Stunning Array. She lived here for a long time many years ago and her energy had made a great influence on the God-Stunning Array. This time, she walked through the city just to restore the array.


    The following day she and Ning Que returned to their courtyard house by Yanming Lake.


    She went to thekeside, sat by the dam and watched the tranquilke and the lotus blossoms. She pondered for a while and then picked several tender willow branches. In a wink, she finished weaving a dozen of small things with the branches.


    She had made a basket, a set of table and chairs, and a frog. Upon finishing them, she threw them into Yanming Lake instead of giving them to Ning Que.


    Ning Que stared silently at the floating and drowning objects. When the woven frog sank to the bottom of theke, he said, ¡°The Buddha is not the frog, neither am I the prince. Indeed there are no fairy tales in the real world.¡±


    Sangsang went back to Chang¡¯an to honor their past and pay back her debts. Previously in the Divine Hall of Light she had decided to cut her bonds with the human world in this way. And so she did, which meant she was still determined to leave the human world for her Divine Kingdom.


    ¡°Many years ago by the campfire at the North Mountain Road of Min Mountain, you told me that fairy tales are lies. The ugly duckling turned into a swan not because of its hard work, but that it had always been a swan. I am Haotian, therefore I cannot stay. No matter how hard you try, it won¡¯t change anything.¡±


    Ning Que paused for a long while then said, ¡°You know I have many more tricks.¡±


    Sangsang looked at the lotus blossoms and said, ¡°Yes. You could activate the God-Stunning Array against me.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You know I won¡¯t do that.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°That¡¯s only because you know you would never defeat me even if the God-Stunning Array were to be restored.¡± Sangsang continued, ¡°Why? You¡¯ve been nning it ever since you tried to get me back to Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°My only wish is for the God-Stunning Array to cut your bond with the Divine Kingdom. None of us in the Academy ever wanted you dead.¡±


    Sangsang recalled Li Manman¡¯s words at the Back Hill of the Academy, and asked after a pause, ¡°Why? I killed Ke Haoran, and will kill your Master eventually.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I¡¯ve exined this to you. The one who killed the Youngest Uncle was the previous Haotian, not you. Now you are a living person instead of some ruthless universal rules. As for our Master, he never wanted to kill you either.¡±


    Sangsang looked at him calmly and said, ¡°I have no idea what he was thinking, but I know you are lying. The Academy knows that the Headmaster will eventually fail. That¡¯s why you want me to restore the God-Stunning Array so badly. Because only when the array is restored would the Academy be able to stand against the Divine Kingdom and help your Master.¡±


    Ning Que said nothing further.


    Sangsang smiled and left thekeside.


    Spring glory fell on the city walls. She got up onto the wall.


    She stared to the mountain with peach blossoms to the far south, and asked, ¡°Are you aware of your sins?¡±


    Atop the Peach Mountain were the Divine Halls of West-Hill.


    Hundreds of divine priests and thousands of deacons, together with numerous pious followers of Haotian were holding a magnificent sacrificial ceremony. It was kicked off upon the first thunder of spring and hadsted for many days. They never stopped the rituals even during the continuous spring rain. And their pious chanting never ceased.


    However, their prayer stopped today.


    Because a thundering voice was heard from above in the sky. It was invincibly powerful and profoundly awe-inspiring. It seemed as if the Heaven was rebuking on human beings.


    ¡°Are you aware of your sins?¡±

 Chapter 985 - My Love, How Could You Not Understand?

    <h4>Chapter 985: My Love, How Could You Not Understand?</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    ...


    ...


    No one knew where that sound came from and why it resounded in the sky. But the next moment, they all realized it was Haotian.


    Only Haotian¡¯s voice could be so awe-inspiring. And it was only Haotian¡¯s voice that could form such vivid scenes in the consciousness of the pious followers and quaked the depths of their souls.


    Everyone on the teaus and the front yard of Peach Mountain fell on their knees and ced their foreheads on the ground. They tried to lower themselves as much as possible to showcase their awe and esteem to Haotian.


    Xiong Chumo, the Hierarch, was standing behindyers of gauze and led the chanting. His figure seemed huge in the radiating light. But upon hearing that voice, he threw himself to the ground and lowered down like a dog.


    It was said that he had a thundering voice. However, whenpared with this voice that resounded in the sky, his was nothing but sphemy.


    In front of the stone cottage on the remotest teau, the Abbey Dean got out of the wheelchair, used his skinny and trembling arms to support his body, but looked calm and proud.


    The middle-aged priest finally let go of the wheelchair and kneeled behind the Abbey Dean. Long Qing kneeled further behind and looked extremely pale and scared.


    He knew exactly that the Abbey Dean had done something extremely disrespectful to Haotian. Now that Haotian had left the Buddha¡¯s chessboard and returned to the human world, how could he not be scared?


    Sangsang¡¯s voice went beyond the clouds and reached Peach Mountain. It resounded between Heaven and Earth and was reflected by the sky and the ground so that it traveled so far away that it even reached every corner of the continent.


    Numerous people were awaken up by this stunning voiceing from above the sky.


    Some elderly leaned against the wall and stared at the gray sky. He looked confused and wondered, What¡¯s wrong this year? Was that another spring thunder? But why did it sound like someone talking?


    Some kids at school rushed to the window, pointed to the sky and chatted excitedly. They were like a group of twittering birds and woke up the sleepy teacher. He picked up the ruler to punish them. They said in one voice that the sky just spoke, but only to receive several more punishments.


    In the small town at the border of Song and Yan Kingdom, people also heard the voice from the sky. They poured onto the only long street in town and looked confusedly above at the sky, wondering what had just happened.


    Inside the butchery, the Butcher covered his head with a thick and greasy cleaver and hid under the cutting board. The pieces of a pork leg were falling from the board, and he shivered each time a piece fell down.


    The Drunkard was even more scared.


    The Drunkard sat in the teahouse and could not stop drinking. He went beyond his limit and his eyesight became blurry. But instead of blushing he became terribly pale.


    The Butcher did not participate in the Abbey Dean¡¯s trap for Haotian. But the Drunkard did. He saw that Haotian and Ning Que entered Xuankong Temple and even tried to prevent the Academy from opening the chessboard.


    Now Haotian had returned and sent a punitive expedition to the human world. He hadmitted a sin. How could he not be scared? He could do nothing but get drunk. Otherwise he would already be scared to death.


    Chao Xiaoshu stood by the door of the teahouse and looked into the dark sky. He felt confused and asked, ¡°What happened?¡±


    The Drunkard managed to put down his gon and spoke with a trembling voice, ¡°It is not something you couldprehend. You¡¯d better stay away from me. Otherwise you would die from Haotian¡¯s Divine Power any minute now.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu turned to him with aplex of expression.


    The Drunkard continued drinking and tried to put himself to aa. He said obscurely, ¡°We did this for her. But what if she does not appreciate it?¡±


    ...


    ...


    It seemed like Taoism did nothing when Sangsang was trapped in the Buddha¡¯s chessboard. But having done nothing was exactly their sin. They knew that Haotian was in great danger but did not try to rescue her. That was their fatal sin.


    There was no need to mention that Sangsang had figured out what they were nning to do.


    She asked whether or not they were aware of their sin. It was a question for the sinful ones.


    The most sinful one was definitely Chen, the Abbey Dean.


    Long Qing kneeled behind him and sweated profusely. The middle-aged priest kept shivering as if he could fall over at any time. Although the Abbey Dean had be a wastrel and was far weaker than Long Qing and the middle-aged priest in terms of cultivation, he seemed the most calm and even wore an indistinct smile.


    He smiled and said to the Heaven, ¡°I am not guilty.¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s voice was heard again above the teau, ¡°You colluded with the Buddhists and tried to put me to sleep. That is impiety. How could you defend yourself?¡± This time she did not say it to the entire world. Only the people on the teau heard her and thus became even more scared. Many divine priests and deacons passed out in shock.


    The Abbey Dean confronted her. ¡°That¡¯s not true.¡±


    Sangsang questioned, ¡°You won¡¯t admit that you tried to kill me?¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°I tried to kill Sangsang, not Haotian.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I am Haotian.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°I believe in Haotian, not the girl named Sangsang.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°What if I weren¡¯t able to get out of the chessboard?¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°Haotian is almighty. Furthermore, it was Haotian¡¯s will. I just executed what Your Highness wished for. I¡¯m sure Your Highness will understand my piety.¡±


    Sangsang said nothing for a long while.


    Spring breeze whistled through the peach blossoms. It was all quiet and no one dared to make a sound.


    After a long pause, she spoke again. ¡°As a mortal, it is already sinful to presume Heaven¡¯s will.¡±


    The Abbey Dean answered calmly, ¡°If that¡¯s my sin, then I am willing to take my punishment.¡±


    ¡°As my follower, you should follow my order.¡±


    ¡°Haotian¡¯s will has never changed. And that is to guard the rules of this world no matter what.¡±


    ¡°Even if I were to change my mind?¡±


    ¡°Yes, because outside of this world is the realm of death. If Your Highness were to change your mind, then it will be the end of the human world.¡±


    ¡°Sounds reasonable.¡± Sangsang said nothing further after that.


    After a long while, Long Qing tried to looked away from the sweat-stained ground, and looked at the Abbey Dean. He admired him but still felt confused.


    Haotian was awe-inspiring. But being able to converse calmly with Haotian under such circumstances, the Abbey Dean was even more awe-inspiring. He could not understand what made the Abbey Dean so courageous.


    The Abbey Dean managed to ovee great difficulties. He looked to the north and to Chang¡¯an City, and said after long pause, ¡°Continue with the ceremony. Haotian is ready to head back to the Divine Kingdom.¡± Different from Long Qing, the Abbey Dean did not find his conversation with Haotian horrifying. Instead, he thought he knew Haotian better than anyone else in the world.


    Of course Haotian would reason with human beings. Because she was reason itself.


    ...


    ...


    On top of the city walls of Chang¡¯an, Sangsang recalled the world described by Ning Que and confirmed that the Abbey Dean was right. As he had said, it was her will after all.


    ¡°Reasonable? What the fuck?!¡± Ning Queined. ¡°¡®If that¡¯s my sin, then I am willing to take my punishment.¡¯ How could you have believed what he said? It was nothing but bullshit!¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°If it is not reasonable, he would have been dead.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Although Taoism did nothing, it is obvious that they knew from the beginning the Buddha¡¯s chessboard would put you in danger. Yet they chose to do nothing. How could that be reasonable?¡±


    Sangsang suddenly asked, ¡°Have you ever thought it might be myself who wished to enter the Buddha¡¯s chessboard? He was merely conducting my order. How is he guilty?¡±


    The spring breeze became chilly wind on the city walls. Ning Que turned away from the wind and the question because he felt profound chillness.


    Sangsang looked at him and said, ¡°Now you understand.¡±


    Ning Que put his hand on her forehead and said, ¡°You are sick.¡±


    Sangsang smiled back and asked, ¡°Do you have medicine?¡±


    Ning Que pretended to be serious and replied, ¡°The Eleventh Brother was best at medication. Shall I ask for some from him?¡±


    He was just teasing because he did not dare to say anything else now. After hearing Sangsang¡¯s conversation with the Abbey Dean, he felt his heart freezing. Even her smile did not bring any warmth.


    Her smile was as calm as her indifference.


    ¡°I¡¯ve told you. You wanted to take me to Chang¡¯an because you wanted to restore the God-Stunning Array and defeat Heaven. You wanted to help the Headmaster defeat me. I know everything that you think about. You can never deceive me.¡± Sangsang stared at him and said calmly, ¡°In terms of that, how guilty are you?¡±


    Ning Que managed to calm down. He looked at her and said, ¡°Don¡¯t forget that I know whatever you think as well. You wanted to use the God-Stunning Array to reopen the gate to Haotian¡¯s Divine Kingdom. You can never deceive me either.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°We are deceiving each other after all.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°It seems you have lied to me much more than I have ever done to you. Like I said yesterday at the Academy, you¡¯ve already taken my youth, so do not deceive my love.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Love? I vaguely know what that is. But I did not lie to you.¡±


    Ning Que said emotionlessly, ¡°You could not get rid of the world of mortals the Master had embodied in you, or cut the bond with the human world or my stupid love for you. So you could not get back. You¡¯ve traveled throughout the human world with me but could not find a way out. It wasn¡¯t until our arrival at Lanke Temple and saw the ruined Buddha statue on Wa Mountain that you realized it was a trap that Buddha had set for you. Then you deliberately went into his trap and experienced attachment, aversion and obsession, the three poisons...¡±


    He continued. ¡°You searched for the Buddha and threatened to kill him. Those were all lies. We went to Xuankong Temple and were trapped in the Buddha¡¯s chessboard. It was all because of your own choice. Because by shaking off the three poisons of attachment, aversion and obsession, you would be able get rid of the world of the mortals.¡±


    His voice became hoarse. ¡°Buddha thought he hadprehended the ultimate truth of cause and effect. But he never knew that he was just a sharp graver in your hand. You graved your own flesh to cut off the dust, so that you can return to the Divine Kingdom. Have you ever thought about me? What would that mean to me?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°It was a battle. How can you not understand?¡±


    ¡°It seems like it¡¯s none of my business. But the person who spent endless time in the chessboard and gave you attachment, aversion, and obsession was me. The one who picked up the graver and graved you into a Buddha was me. I helped you shake off the three poisons and get rid of the world of mortals. It was me, me, all me.¡± Ning Que smiled to her and said, ¡°I showed you my real feelings when we went through the thousand years inside the chessboard. You used me and deceived my love. My love, how could you not understand?¡±


    His smile was as light as water, and his emotion was as dense as blood.


    It wasn¡¯t until then that the whole story about the chessboard and the result of their cause and effect was eventually unveiled.

 Chapter 986 - Spring Breeze Turns into Rain and the Compassionate Ark Liberates All

    <h4>Chapter 986: Spring Breeze Turns into Rain and the Compassionate Ark Liberates All</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Yes, that was the truth.


    Sangsang could not get rid of the world of mortals embodied in her. Therefore, she searched for the Buddha and entered the world inside the chessboard. She deeply bonded with Ning Que in that world and thus experienced the three poisons of attachment, aversion and obsession.


    Ning Que wanted to save her, so he helped her shake off the three poisons of attachment, aversion and obsession to dispel the world of immortals in her body. By building the statue of Buddha, they had cut her bond to the human world.


    The Academy did not see this, neither did the Buddha n it this way. Throughout the endless samsara, no living beings could have ever predicted her will because she is Heaven.


    The Buddha could see through cause and effect. But she was the rule of cause and effect. She used the Buddha¡¯s trap to defeat the Academy¡¯s n, and dug out the possibility from the impossible. That was Haotian¡¯s greatest wisdom, and Ning Que¡¯s greatest pain.


    Ning Que stood on top of the city walls and stared indifferently in the spring breeze. He said, ¡°When we were in the small courtyard in Chaoyang City... It must have been fun for you to watch me cheerfully running around, buying supplies and cooking every meal for you. I have called many people ¡°idiot¡± throughout my life. I thought they were indeed stupid. Now I finally realize I am the stupidest idiot in the world.¡±


    Sangsang walked up to his side and looked at the human world that was bathing in the spring breeze. She held her hands behind her back and said, ¡°There was no deceit because I didn¡¯t know either. It was only when the result of cause and effect was unveiled that I realized what my will was.¡±


    Ning Que mocked, ¡°Do you think I would believe you?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter whether you believe or not. Like I said in the Academy yesterday, no one knew what would have happened, not even me. That¡¯s really Heaven¡¯s works.¡±


    ¡°Indeed. Heaven¡¯s works. Actually, during ourst few years in the chessboard I already sensed it, but I refused to believe it. That was why I never asked. I worked hard with my iron cuss to build the statue of Buddha on that mountain. Although you were on my back, I had always been lonely. I was so lonely that I even wanted to die...¡±


    Ning Que looked at the crowded streets and lively markets inside the city walls and continued, ¡°Whenever you were awake, you seldom talked to me. At the beginning I thought you were just too tired. Then I realized it was because you did not want to talk to me... I was very disappointed and became worried. Because that meant your feelings for me were fading, or that you were hiding something. What was that you were hiding?¡± He turned to Sangsang and said calmly, ¡°Were you afraid that if you were to stay too close to me, you won¡¯t be able to cut your bond with the human world? If that¡¯s the case, then I could at least find some relief.¡±


    Instead of answering, Sangsang asked, ¡°Since you already sensed it and began to worry, why didn¡¯t you say or do anything?¡±


    ¡°The Heaven predicts everything. It is indeed scary. Yet I¡¯m not scared at all. Because I still have the God-Stunning Array. You shouldn¡¯t have told me this. I don¡¯t think you havepletely dispelled the world of immortals from your body. The Academy might have used the God-Stunning Array against Heaven and you would have been able to return to the Divine Kingdom through that. But now it would never happen.¡± Ning Que said emotionlessly, ¡°Even if you were to be the ruthless Haotian again, as long as you cannot return to the Divine Kingdom, then there would be nothing worse than what we had in the Divine Hall of Light previously. We are bound to be entangled, no less than a pair of burned omelettes.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I told you this because even without the help of the God-Stunning Array I can still return to the Divine Kingdom.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Don¡¯t brag. You are not a buffalo.¡±


    Sangsang corrected him, ¡°It was a ck pig.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°No matter what color the pig is, there¡¯s no way you can return.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Inside the world of the chessboard, I experienced the endless suffering of the mortal world. I had my own flesh cut to dispel the poisons to cut the bond with human world. I even saw the Ark. My divine will is well illuminated now.¡±


    Ning Que recalled the horrible Ark in Nirvana and felt worried.


    ¡°Your Master was different from the Buddha. He integrated himself with the human world. Even I was not able to locate him. But the Buddha tried to hide from me by creating a separate space with the help of assembled wills of all living beings. They were both great Divine Abilities. I could not integrate with the human world, therefore I could only use the Buddha¡¯s way to obtain the power from his separate space.¡±


    Sangsang continued. ¡°Belief is the wills of all living beings. I am the owner of the world and have numerous pious followers. Throughout the hundreds of thousands of years, I have overlooked the human world with indifference and never thought of making a good use of or to enhance the power generated from the belief of all living beings. I have learned a lot from the Buddha regarding this issue.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Do you mean the Ark?¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°The Buddha wanted to liberate all the living beings, therefore all living beings helped him reach Nirvana. I want my followers to help me, so I need to help them first. Then I can embark and head for my destination.¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Where is your destination?¡±


    Sangsang answered, ¡°I was born in the Divine Kingdom. My destination is of course the Divine Kingdom.¡±


    Ning Que looked above to the gray sky and said nothing.


    Sangsang reached out to somewhere in the south. Several miles to the south of the city was the Academy.


    The indigo lion Sangsang brought out of the chessboard was preparing for a fight against a big white goose. The lion¡¯s mane was erected and it was growling to threaten the goose. But instead of making an attack, it looked to the far away meadow from time to time.


    The big white goose was already a big trouble for it, yet there was an old ox napping on the meadow. It knew clearly that if the old ox were to wake up, it would be doomed.


    The indigo lion could not understand why it had been confronted with so many horrifying beings ever since it left the chessboard. It waspletely different from what it learned in the chessboard. This world was so vicious.


    All of a sudden, an invisible power broke through the Cloud Gate Array from above, got hold of the indigo lion and disappeared immediately. The big white goose looked above but could not find the new invader. It got bored and went to take a bath in the brook.


    Then the indigo lion appeared on top of the city wall on Sangsang¡¯s hand. Its hair was held tightly and it was in pain. It worried that she would pluck out its hair so it did not dare to resist.


    Sangsang flicked her sleeves toward the outside of the city walls and a refreshing breeze blew gently throughout the human world.


    Years ago during the Rite to Light, there was also a refreshing breeze that blew gently across the human world. But this time it was more refreshing and gentle, and it brought more vitality.


    The refreshing breeze first came to the Divine Halls of West-Hill. The peach blossoms in the valley bloomed even more charmingly in the breeze. The followers kneeling on the teaus and the front yard were rejuvenated by the breeze.


    Their worries, fears, griefs, and despairs were all purified by the breeze. The blind felt that their world was brightening up gradually, and the deaf heard some indistinct sounds. The sounds were the chanting of the numerous followers. Under the guidance of the Hierarch of the Divine Halls of West-Hill, over a hundred thousand divine priests, deacons, and pious followers were chanting.


    It was a very beautifully written and rhyming canon of Taoism. It arouse holiness and detachment. It was the ending verse of the West-Hill literary canon, the ¡°Stanza of Liberation and Ascension¡± from the Supreme Celestial Verse of Splendid Jade Cave.


    The spring breeze prevailed while the chanting reached out to every corner in the human world. Throughout tens of thousands of Taoist temples across the kingdom, millions of priests started chanting this literary canon which they were very familiar with.


    The spring breeze lingered in the mountains and forests and kissed the clouds. It eventually turned into rain and fell continuously onto the human world. The raindrops glowed in a golden color but became crystal clear when they fell on the ground


    The spring rain fell on Peach Mountain. It wetted the forests and darkened the peach blossoms. In a remote corner of the Revtion Institute, a pile of dried firewood became damp.


    A skinny little priest was taking shelter from the rain. He was the lowest ranking servant in the Divine Halls. No one noticed him during the extremely important ceremony today. Seeing that the firewood was damped, the little priest became anxious and tried to move the pile inside the kitchen. He could not care about himself getting wet from the rain.


    Crystal clear rain water fell on him and turned into numerous glowing golden spots. Then they prated through his stained robe and nurtured his body and Taoist heart.


    In the small town by the border of the Song and Yan Kingdoms, the Drunkard stood by the door and watched the rain. His right hand was holding the gon and trembled. He let the rain water fall continuously on his ageless face.


    The rain also fell on the poorly maintained roof of the butcher shop. It dripped from the cracks of the roof and fell on the chopping board. It fell on the fat white pig feet, mixed with blood, and fell on the Butcher¡¯s head.


    They all clearly sensed that the darkness and filthiness deep down in their souls were washed away by the rain. Their rotten bodies weed the new life.


    The Drunkard left the teahouse and the Dutcher left his butcher shop. They went to the only street in town and stood at opposite ends. They bathed in the pattering spring rain and felt extremely touched and determined.


    The spring breeze and the spring rain were everywhere in the human world, from the Divine Halls of West-Hill to the shore of the East Sea. It even rained the in the heart of the remotest Wilderness in the north.


    The rain fell on the yurts of the Golden Tribe. The pattering sounds sounded like someone was beating randomly on a broken war drum. The Wilderness was quiet and the falling of rain sounded distinctly.


    Chanyu had a serious face and led his wife, sons, and dozens of generals of the imperial court to kneel in the rain. They prayed constantly and hope that the Tengri would bestow them with courage.


    The national master together with over a dozen of major priests kneeled on top of the meadow. They reached out to wee the rain and blessing from Heaven. The national master¡¯s aging face was washed by the rain and instantly became younger. The major priests were also enveloped by golden glory.


    The national master closed his eyes and kneeled in the rain quietly to sense the vitality and most profound Divine Power conveyed by the rain. He felt tranquility and reverence.


    It was also raining in Xuankong Temple. Jun Mo slightly frowned when the rain fell onto his iron sword. The iron sword became darker and sharper in the rain and put on ayer of glory. His clothes were wet, and he became sharper too. Jung Mo knew what this was. A few years ago he told her in person that he would never ept any gifts from Haotian. But when she was determined, he would not be able to resist it.


    In the wilderness outside the pit, the big ck horse pulled the heavy carriage through the chaotic Euphrates pors. The spring rain fell on its body and took away all his fatigue and loneliness.


    It squinted at the spring rain and felt reluctant to say goodbye.


    Simr things happened everywhere throughout the human world.


    Some cultivator cried with joy in the rain. He had cultivated exhaustingly for dozens of years but could not enter the Seethrough State until today. Some secluded Taoist cultivator even reached the Knowing Destiny overnight.


    The very-sick were recovering. They dying were freed from pain and returned peacefully to the Divine Kingdom. Whoever believed in Haotian was blessed because the spring rain was her gift to the human world.


    After this spring breeze and rain, the little priest in the Revtion Institute would no longer be a servant. He would be a genius in cultivation, and a highly respected and powerful figure in the future. The Drunkard and the Butcher would no longer linger in their meaningless lives. They would enjoy lively days in the human world then return to the Divine Kingdom. The national master of the Golden Tribe and many other strong cultivators had been illuminated and bestowed with stronger power in the rain.


    The Buddha only liberated those who believed in him, and of course Haotian¡¯s gift was not meant for everyone. The monks of Xuankong Temple were caught miserably in the rain. In front the stone cottage on the teau of the West-Hill, the Abbey Dean was still a wastrel kneeling in the rain. He had be even paler in the chilling rain.


    Everyone in Taoism was blessed as long as he was a pious follower of Haotian. The Abbey Dean was the leader of Taoism but was exempted from this blessing. He knew that it was not because his belief in Haotian was not firm and pious enough, but because that Haotian was still punishing him for his irreverence previously.


    Watching the spring rain falling onto the human world, the Abbey Dean put on a bitter smile, but he still looked very determined. As long as the human world remains peaceful as it is now, why would I care about being abandoned by Haotian?


    As for Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang in Linkang City, the millions of new followers in front of the imperial pce in the South Jin Kingdom, Ye Su in the shabby Taoist temple of the Song Kingdom and the dozens of people from the neighborhood who were listening to his teaching, what were they thinking about?


    The spring rain also fell onto the City of Chang¡¯an. The fresh and clear rain water carried extremely dense vitality. It was Haotian¡¯s blessing andpassion for the human world. Therefore, the God-Stunning Array was not activated.


    Xiaocao slept for a whole day inside the House of Red Sleeves. Even the imperial physician that Mistress Jian brought there could not tell what was wrong with Xiaocao. When the spring rain fell, she woke up. She walked to the window and stood there to watch the rain drip down from the eaves. She said thanked Sangsang in her heart.


    Zeng Jing and his wife woke up to the pattering sounds of the spring rain. They walked to the pavilion in the garden hand in hand and watched the rain fall. They felt that something had happened and were sad, but they could not figure out why.


    Spring rain fell onto the human world. Haotian bestowed blessings to hundreds of millions of followers and made their belief even firmer, and maybe even fanatical. Numerous bouts of invisible energy came out of halls and cottages, out of the souls of all living beings, and darted up to the sky in the rain. Every living being repaid Haotian in this way.


    Hundreds of millions of bouts of the purest Divine Energy arrived at the south of Chang¡¯an and integrated harmoniously. It disturbed the rain and brightened up the dark clouds.


    On top of the city wall, Ning Que stood by Sangsang. He sensed a mysterious fragrance at first. Then the fragrance enveloped the entire human world. Then, a beautiful and aery melody followed.


    In the mysterious fragrance and the aery melody, numerous golden petals floated down and numerous bouts of energy prated from above the clouds. A huge vessel appeared. It was a golden Ark.


    Numerous followers used their wills to form the Ark and were ready to escort Haotian to the Divine Kingdom.

 Chapter 987 - Never Let You Go

    <h4>Chapter 987: Never Let You Go</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Sangsang set off from the walls and drifted toward the Ark in the clouds.


    Ning Que held her legs and would not let her go.


    Just like many years ago when the gate to Haotian¡¯s Divine Kingdom opened in the clouds above the Wilderness, she floated toward the sky while he stood firmly in the Wilderness and held her legs tightly.


    At that time, Sangsang floated up together with him, but the Headmaster eventually got them. Now the Headmaster was gone. Even though he did not want her to go, how would he ovee the entire human world?


    Sangsang left the wall and drifted to the sky.


    He could not stop her and only held onto one of her shoes ¡ª the cloth shoes that he bought for her.


    Sangsangnded on the bow of the Ark and threw the indigo lion into the clouds.


    The indigo lion turned back to its original size of hundreds of miles in height, and howled to clear the clouds. He spared no effort and pulled the Ark toward the sky.


    The City of Chang¡¯an reacted with the God-Stunning Array. It was preparing for the swiftest and fiercest, sky-cracking killing intent, gathering energy from everywhere in the city, and getting it ready to set off at any time.


    Many Tang citizens came out of their houses and crowded the streets. They looked at the bright sky in the south, the incredibly giant Ark and the indigo lion pulling it, and were filled with awe and fear.


    The God-Stunning Array did not attack the Ark because the Ark was heading out of the city. But the Tang citizens did not drop their weapons out of fear or awe. Some even started collecting rocks.


    Sangsang stood at the bow of the Ark and held her hands behind her back. Brilliant lights projected her lofty figure onto the ground and dimmed the city as well as Ning Que¡¯s mood.


    The indigo lion pulled the Ark through the clouds toward the sky. It was slow at the beginning but gradually elerated. Somewhere afar in the sky, a golden line appeared.


    That golden line was not the gate to Haotian¡¯s Divine Kingdom, because the gate to the Divine Kingdom was destroyed by the Headmaster many years ago. It was Sangsang¡¯s destination.


    As long as there was a destination, she would not need a gate. She could reach the destination using her supreme wisdom, which was evident in her encounters with the Headmaster, the Buddha, and even herself.


    ¡°You left just like that. Was everything just my illusion?¡± Ning Que stood on top of the walls and stared at the giant Ark in the sky. He questioned emotionlessly, ¡°The decades I spent to build the Buddha statue for you ¡ª was that just an illusion? I raised you up with my own hands ¡ª were those memories also just illusions? The famine was another illusion? And Min Mountain? The City of Wei and the City of Chang¡¯an ¡ª were they all illusions?¡±


    Sangsang stood silently at the bow and did not turn back.


    ¡°Let¡¯s forget about Min Mountain and our past. Let¡¯s just talk about the thousand of years we spent together. You didn¡¯t even make one cup of tea for me. Now you are leaving for good. Do you think it¡¯s fair?¡± Ning Que forced a smile and said bitterly to the Ark that was floating further away.


    Sangsang still stood silently at the bow without turning back.


    Ning Que took hold of his iron cuss and said to her in slightly lower voice, ¡°I think that¡¯s not fair. Therefore you are not leaving!¡± He pulled out his iron cuss and shed toward the giant Ark in the sky.


    They built the Buddha statue inside the chessboard and studied Buddhism together. She discovered the truth of thepassionate Ark. During that time, he also learned how to assemble the will of all living beings.


    Tremendous Qi of Heaven and Earth was gathered by the God-Stunning Array, and charged into his body via the Core Vajra. Numerous des flew out of their sheaths. Tens of thousands of des appeared again in the human world.


    Two fierce shes soared above Chang¡¯an and arrived in the sky instantly. They formed the character of ¡°people¡± with their crossing point right at the bow.


    Years ago in the City of Chang¡¯an, the Tang people assembled their strength and with the help of the God-Stunning Array he wrote a People Talisman in the sky. It destroyed the Abbey Dean.


    In the Buddha¡¯s chessboard, he built the Buddha statue on top of the mountain and collected the worshipping of tens of thousands of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. With the help of Sangsang, he wrote another People Talisman and freed themselves from the thousand year imprisonment.


    It was the third time that he had ever written this talisman. What would this bring about?


    Ning Que knew that his talisman could not break Sangsang¡¯s giant Ark because it was an Ark of belief. Therefore he aimed at the space in front of the bow.


    The indigo lion was marching through the clouds. There was an invisible cord between it and the bow. That was where he aimed at.


    Ning Que wanted to cut the cord.


    Two shes appeared in the sky and enveloped the giant Ark.


    Sangsang finally turned back. Without any expressions, she pointed one finger at the shes. Her finger was slim, and the point of her finger was tiny.


    Ning Que¡¯s shes were about to tear up the sky. The crossing point of the shes covered at least several square miles.


    However, her finger point was able to cover the several square miles.


    Numerous bouts of Qi sshed around and tore the brilliant could into flocs.


    The Ark kept moving forward.


    She pointed one finger at it and destroyed Ning Que¡¯s People Talisman.


    The two strokes drifted apart and eventually disappeared. They turned into Talisman Intent and was randomly blowing in the wind, and were finally voided by the brilliant light.


    Ning Que became speechless upon seeing this.


    The moment he shed his iron cuss, he realized that it was not pure and powerful enough. The People Talisman was barely finished but he could not understand why.


    Because of fear? Probably. The Tang people had a stronger willpower. No matter how godlike the Abbey Dean was, he was merely a human being in their eyes. But Haotian was after all, Haotian. How could they not be afraid?


    There were millions of Chang¡¯an residents on the streets. Many of them were holding their weapons and willing to protect their homes. Yet not all of them were courageous enough to stand against Haotian.


    Without the assembled will, the People Talisman could not release its ultimate power. Without the united strength, how could the city withstand against Heaven?


    ¡°In the chessboard, you wrote that talisman and cracked the sky because I was inside of you. They worshipped you because of me. You should know that even in Chang¡¯an City, the living beings are my followers. How would they listen to you? I¡¯m no longer there. How could you write that talisman again?¡± Sangsang stood at the bow and said to him calmly, ¡°I am relieved that youprehend the will of the living beings. Observe the Ark closely and you willprehend much more.¡±


    Ning Que said after a pause, ¡°Relieved? Comprehend? What the fuck?!¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°If we are going to meet again, then it will be a fatal encounter. If you want to defeat me, then you will need to learn how to write that talisman by yourself. Until then, we won¡¯t see each other again.¡±


    Ning Que said emotionlessly, ¡°I would probably be dead by then.¡±


    Sangsang stared at him silently. She said nothing further and was about to turn away.


    Suddenly Ning Que said, ¡°Do you think that¡¯s it?¡±


    Sangsang frowned slightly.


    Ning Queughed and said, ¡°When we were in Min Mountain, there was no Butcher and I did it myself. Even if I can¡¯t defeat you today, you won¡¯t going anywhere. Don¡¯t you remember? Although I have never won throughout the years, you were not able to leave either.¡±


    Upon those words he turned his wrist and stabbed the cuss into his chest. He stabbed it very hard. The sharp ck de broke through his flesh and bone, and pierced into his chest. It was pointed right at his beating heart.

 Chapter 988 - The Destination

    <h4>Chapter 988: The Destination</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    He roared withughter.


    It was really painful. He turned extremely pale. But he was stillughing toward the giant Ark in the sky. Heughed cheerfully, miserably, unbridledly and even fanatically.


    Sangsang stood at the bow and looked calmly at the man on top of the city wall. She no longer felt angry or resentful as she used to be because of him.


    She found herself to be extremely peaceful and powerful. Even if it was her own fantasy, she was still calm. After calmness came solemnity, then eternity.


    She thought she could be calm. But seeing Ning Que¡¯s pale face and the blood gushing out from his chest, she felt some pain in her chest as well, for reasons she couldn¡¯t understand.


    Was it an illusion or delusion? Sangsang applied incredibly strong willpower and erased the question from her mind. But she could not help but frown.


    She stared at Ning Que and asked calmly, ¡°Isn¡¯t that painful?¡±


    Ning Que took a nce at the gash and the de stabbed into his flesh. He forced a miserable smile and answered, ¡°A man needs to be harsh to himself.¡±


    Sangsang murmured, ¡°But it still hurts.¡±


    Ning Que pressed harder and the iron cuss was pushed further into his chest. He sweat profusely while looking above at her and said, ¡°I¡¯m a real man.¡±


    Sangsang asked pityingly, ¡°Seriously, isn¡¯t that painful?¡±


    Ning Que held the hilt with his right hand. It trembled and pulled the gash longer. Blood gushed out like a waterfall. He answered, ¡°In the Divine Halls of West-Hill, you tortured me for countless rounds with countless slices. I¡¯m already used to it. It seems like I should thank you for that.¡±


    Sangsang asked him three times whether or not it was painful but he did not answer. With a de in the chest, how could it not be painful? But he was already heartbroken. It no longer mattered to him.


    ¡°Yes, it hurts as long as you are a human.¡± Her pity vanished immediately and she said emotionlessly, ¡°You are human. You have the three poisons of attachment, aversion, and obsession in your body. In the thousand years we spent in the chessboard, you were deeply bonded with love. My poisons are gone now. How about yours?¡±


    Ning Que looked at her andughed again increasingly indifferently.


    ¡°While we traveled throughout the world you tried your best to teach me love. I couldn¡¯t understand it until now. But at least I know one thing: affection and love does not necessarily mean to take, but rather to give. Human beings all havepassion. The more you¡¯ve done for me, the harder it is for you to hurt me.¡± Sangsang stared at him and said calmly, ¡°I want to leave. The only way you can stop me is to kill yourself and thus kill me. But would you be hardhearted enough to do that?¡±


    Ning Queughed and said, ¡°You do not understand after all. Affection and love is neither only about taking nor only about giving. It is to experience it together. It¡¯s true I cannot watch you die. But can you stand there and watch me die instead? If you are the ruthless Haotian, you should have left by now. Why are you talking to me so much?¡±


    He coughed blood while talking. His bright teeth and pale cheeks were stained with blood and seemed very ferocious. However, he carried the firmest determination and willpower that even the Heaven could not underestimate.


    Sangsang pondered for a while and then smiled. ¡°You are right. Since we are doomed to be parted, I shouldn¡¯t have said so much.¡±


    The spring breeze flicked her dress and bloomed the flowers on it. The indigo lion kept running on the clouds and was pulling the Ark toward the golden line at the edge of the sky. She stood at the bow and never looked at him again.


    Looking at the disappearing Ark and resending figure, Ning Que said, ¡®You¡¯ve always known that I hate death. But it wasn¡¯t until that day when I couldn¡¯t find you in the City of Wei, when I saw that they have all died and thought you were dead too that I finally realized that death is not scary at all.¡±


    Sangsang did not turn to him, but her hands were behind her back. She looked pale because she was holding them tightly. She looked at her destination and thought, So you just can¡¯t wait to see me dead?


    She had asked that question several times. Ning Queughed again and shivered. ¡°I already answered you when we were in the West-Hill. It¡¯s either we live together or die together.¡±


    Sangsang did not look at him and the Ark kept floating toward her destination.


    ¡°Yes, that is unforgettable. How could I wish for your death? You are Haotian. You know everything. How could you not understand this? You definitely know I don¡¯t want you to die.¡±


    Ning Que pulled out the iron cuss, reached into his chest, grabbed his heart and pulled it out. Blood gushed out and his heart was exposed under broad daylight.


    He suffered from tremendous pain. Color drainedpletely from his face. He kept trembling until he could no longer stand. He flopped into his own blood on the ground and his blood sshed.


    ¡°Unforgettable? What if I smash my heart? How could that still be unforgettable? I don¡¯t want you to die. But if I were to smash my own heart, then I wouldn¡¯t be able to feel anything.¡±


    Ning Que was panting in pain and said, ¡°If you won¡¯t stop, then let¡¯s die together.¡±


    Sangsang still paid no attention to him and the giant Ark kept moving forward.


    She had shaken off the world of mortals in her. Now she was Haotian, the assembly of the simplest natural rules. She was ruthless and emotionless, and no longer fettered or threatened by any bonds to the human world.


    If Ning Que were to kill himself, then Sangsang would also be dead. But Haotian would still be alive.


    He looked desperate and cruel while he gripped. He was holding in his hand the fresh beating heart. He had almost achieved the highest level of Haoran Qi and his body was as strong as metal. Most importantly, Sangsang could revive the dead. It was almost impossible for him to kill himself.


    While they were traveling throughout the world, he had nned many ways of killing himself. Previously he had applied Haoran Qi to cut open his chest and stabbed his heart, only to prove that he could not kill himself instantly even if it was a stab right to the heart.


    As long as he could not kill himself instantly, Sangsang would able to cure him.


    Therefore he pulled his heart out. With a single grip, he would smash the heart. Even Haotian would not be able to revive him.


    If Ning Que were to die, then Sangsan would also be dead. But Haotian would still be alive. It seemed unreasonable to do so, yet he did it. It was a demonstration of his determination. And he wanted to know herst stand.


    He gripped even tighter. As powerful as he was, he could have smashed an iron ball. However, the fresh heart was barely deformed and not even a single crack was formed.


    It was extremely painful. Ning Que felt a sharp pain in his heart. But it was not broken.


    He was shocked and confused, and could not figure out why.


    Sangsang stood at the bow and smiled in silence.


    During theirst few decades inside the chessboard, from the redwood forest to the peak of that hill, she had left her own divine body and dwelled in his heart and made it tremendously strong.


    Even Ning Que himself was not aware of such changes. But she was.


    She knew whatever he thought about. So how could he defeat her?


    Another refreshing breeze blew and tender spring rain fell again from the sky.


    Rain fell on Ning Que¡¯s body and cleaned the blood and washed away the dust on his heart.


    The heart left his hand and returned to his chest. The gash was immediately healed. Not even a scar was left.


    Ning Que looked at his chest and felt his heart beating even more powerful than before.


    He could have stabbed the iron cuss into his chest and heart again. But he did not do that. No matter how determined he was, no one couldmit suicide again right after a failed attempt. Furthermore, Sangsang would not give him a second chance.


    Previously it was an unsaid pledge between him and her, or rather a bet.


    He failed, and felt some sweetnessing from his heart. He did not want to give up.


    Ning Que insisted, ¡°I can¡¯t let you go.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve already told you. We¡¯ll meet again when you can write that Talisman by yourself.¡± Sangsang gazed at him, looked pale andplicated. She said, ¡°Besides, I did make tea for you, many times.


    Throughout the years they had lived under the same roof, shared the same bed, and ate from the same wok, of course she made him tea.


    Ning Que was startled. After a long while he suddenly pointed to somewhere between his thighs. He questioned aloud, ¡°How could you leave me like this?¡±


    Sangsang smiled silently.


    Ning Que stamped with fury and eximed, ¡°Get off right now! You need to restore my dick!¡±


    Sangsang smiled and did not say anything further.


    She used to be united with him. His heart had be indestructible, not to mention his injury between his thighs. He was just making some excuse to make her stay.


    It was a funny yet pitiful excuse.


    The Ark kept floating to the edge of the sky and almost disappeared in the golden line.


    She was about to arrive her at destination.


    Looking at the disappearing Ark and the woman he could probably never meet again, Ning Que could not help but burst into tears. He murmured bitterly, ¡°Now that you are gone, what should I do with my dick?¡±


    ...


    ...


    The Ark left. Countless followers kneeled to escort her.


    That golden line was the destination.


    Brilliant lights poured onto her. Sangsang squinted instinctively.


    The gate to the Divine Kingdom was already destroyed. It was her first time to return this way. It felt strange but she knew she could not be wrong.


    She came from the Divine Kingdom, therefore her destination was definitely the Divine Kingdom.


    She closed her eyes and got ready to encounter herself in the Divine Kingdom and integrate.


    When she opened her eyes, she could only see some lush mountains.


    She turned pale and felt stiff. She knew these lush mountains very well. It was not the Divine Kingdom, but the Min Mountain. She stood among the hills quietly for days and nights, trying to figure out why.


    The small indigo lion crouched next to her and looked around anxiously.


    After days and night she finally found out the reason ¡ª it was because she was chosen by human beings. She came from the human world instead of the Divine Kingdom. Therefore, her destination was the human world.


    She was still in the human world.


    There was another reason apart from that.


    She stared at her abdomen and slightly frowned. Because it felt strange and scary.


    That was probably the true work of Heaven.

 Chapter 989 - Haotian’s Gift To The Human World (I)

    <h4>Chapter 989: Haotian¡¯s Gift To The Human World (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    It waste spring in Linkang. Houses were surrounded by the new green. A sedan came in from outside the city and was moving slowly on the street. Liu Yiqing was sitting inside the sedan with his eyes closed and looked calm.


    The Spring Offering was being held today. Countlessnterns were floating in the night sky. Countless Taoism followers prostrated piously to thenterns and prayed to Haotian. It seemed solemn and divine.


    Liu Yiqing was blind. He could not see the charms of spring or the tens of thousands ofnterns. Yet he could hear their prayers and feel their enthusiasm.


    It reminded him of the spring breeze and rain from a few days ago: the spring rain that sprinkled throughout the human world, the magical moments it brought and the giant Ark that floated to the Divine Kingdom.


    Haotian had left the human world. But her blessing stayed. The changes it brought would reform the world and the era profoundly.


    Liu Yiqing raised his hand wearily and the sedan turned to the side of the streets. It carried on in a widened street and came to an old cottage.


    The old cottage was no longer shabby as it used to be. It was painted new by the followers of the New Stream. Liu Yiqing got out of the carried and entered the cottage. He stood by the window and kept quiet for a long while.


    Chen Pipi walked to his side and looked into the starry night out of the window.


    Liu Yiqing said, ¡°It seems like a big era ising.¡±


    His eyes were covered with a piece of white cloth and he could see nothing. Yet he could predict a magnificent and prominent future for the human world, as well as the blood and ughter in it.


    The New Stream had prospered for a few years but was devastated in the recent days. On one hand, the Divine Halls of West-Hill had ordered to ban the New Stream. Followers of the New Stream were burned to death and thrown into the abyss. They would never be able to ascend to Haotian¡¯s Divine Kingdom. On the other hand, Haotian had revealed herpassion and power to the human world. Haotian¡¯s blessing had stayed in the world, the pious followers who had recovered from severe illnesses, the cultivators who broke through their previous states, the regrown fingers and limbs were all vital blows to the teaching of the New Stream.


    Chen Pipi looked at the dimming moon in the starry sky and said after a long while, ¡°Maybe we should do something instead of waiting. Maybe we can stand against them.¡±


    Liu Yiqing looked towards the starry sky that he could never see, and said, ¡°Human beings could never stand against Heaven.¡±


    Chen Pipi said, ¡°It doesn¡¯t sound like you.¡±


    A few years ago during the Rite to Light at Peach Mountain, Liu Bai broke into the Divine Hall of Light with his sword and stood against Heaven. Then, his disciples from the Sword Garret fought a way out of Peach Mountain for Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang and escorted them to Linkang.


    From then on, the Sword Garret had been standing against Taoism. Liu Yiqing had shown tremendous determination and power during their battles and had been respected by the cultivation world ever since.


    Starlight fell on the white cloth that covered Liu Yiqing¡¯s eyes as if it had formed ayer of frost on the cloth. It looked like the umted frozen snow over thousands of years, chill and firm. So was his voice. ¡°Not being able to stand against Heaven is different from choosing not to stand against it.¡±


    Chen Pipi did not reply to that. What Liu Yiqing said was exactly what the Sword Garret had been practicing. They had always been firm and cold as their des. However, they never spoke about their despair and sorrow. Such resolutions could never turn the tides. Therefore it was heroically tragic.


    ¡°The mandate from the West-Hill will arrive in no time,¡± Liu Yiqing said. Although he had not received the mandate, he knew it was an order to the South Jin to ban the New Stream and hand over Chen Pipi and the rest.


    He turned away from the starry night and looked at Chen Pipi through the thin white cloth, and said calmly, ¡°The Sword Garret will no longer provide you with protection. You should get ready to leave.¡±


    Chen Pipi sighed. ¡°We are so settled in Linkang. It¡¯s a bit sad to leave.¡±


    Liu Yiqing said nothing further and left.


    The South Jin was a powerful kingdom, only second to Tang and the Golden Tribe. Being an ally of the Tang Empire, it yed an important role in bncing the powers. However, the Sword Garret could notpletely cut off Taoism¡¯s impact on the South Jin. With Haotian¡¯s blessing spread throughout the world, people in South Jin had regained their faith in Haotian. The imperial pce and their army had been preparing for some actions. Powerful as the Sword Garret was, they could no longer turn the situation.


    The only chance for them would be for the Academy to take some actions or for the Tang army to break through the Verdant Canyon and take control of the South Jin before the Divine Halls of West-Hill does.


    Unfortunately, although the Tang Empire had been restoring their power throughout these years, their cavalry was seriously weakened after the cession of the Xiangwan in. Most importantly, the Tang Empirecked top tier soldiers right now. They could not defeat the Taoism even with the help of the Sword Garret.


    Though Taoism had lost several powerful cultivators in the battle years ago, they were still the governor of the world and had potential cultivators. With the returning of the South Sea branch as well as the blessing spring rain previously, many new powerful figures came forth from countless Taoist temples. The Drunkard and the Butcher were still out there, so the Academy could not risk their top leaders. How could they spare someone else to deal with those new powers?


    After all, it was because of the spring breeze and rain. That spring rain changed the world of cultivation tremendously. Countless cultivators had surpassed their highest levels. Many reached the State of Seethrough and quite a few even reached Knowing Destiny. Powerful figures appeared one after another, which indeed symbolized a new era.


    The Revtion Institute was preparing for the Grand Competition in early summer. Lu Chenjia, the Flower Fanatic and the current Deputy Principal looked at the nervous students and recalled what had happened previously. She could not help but feel somewhat sad. During the Grand Competition in that summer many years ago, Long Qing stood out from the talented ones. Will there be someone like him this year?


    In a remote yard, a little priest was looking at a tidy pile of firewoods. He pondered for a long while, then hung the sher on his belt and headed toward the crowd. He spoke to the instructor nervously, ¡°I want to sign up.¡±


    The Instructor looked at the dust stained little priest and asked harshly, ¡°Do you know what you are doing?¡±


    Lu Chenjia stared at the little priest quietly and asked all of a sudden, ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡±


    The little priest felt nervous upon seeing such a beautiful woman, and answered, ¡°Hengmu Liren.¡±


    Lu Chenjia continued, ¡°What are you signing up for?¡±


    The little priest felt even more nervous, ¡°I want to join the Grand Competition.¡±


    Lu Chenjia asked after a pause, ¡°What state are you right now?¡±


    The little priest shook his head and said, ¡°I have no idea.¡±


    They were by theke inside the Revtion Institute. The little priest looked toward theke and some fish became still upon his sight. Seeing that Lu Chenjia was slightly startled, the instructor passed out.


    ¡°I don¡¯t know what happened to you previously, but that must be a marvel.¡± Lu Chenjia looked at the little priest and said with trembling voice, ¡°Because you are Haotian¡¯s gift to the human world.¡±

 Chapter 990 - Haotian’s Gift To The Human World (II)

    <h4>Chapter 990: Haotian¡¯s Gift To The Human World (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    This spring in the Grand Competition of Divine Halls of West-Hill, the top prize was won by a little priest who was a nobody from the store room of Revtion Institute. His state of cultivation was unbelievably high.


    Far away in the grasnds, a young ve who made a living by collecting cow dung won thepetition. He was immediately released from very by Chanyu and became a glorious warrior of the Golden Tribe.


    In the samepetition of the grasnds, two young servants became the students of the national master. The Golden Tribe promoted thirteen new priests with very high states of cultivation. The national master himself seemed to be even more powerful.


    Such things happened everywhere across the world. A middle aged priest in a Taoist temple in the Song Kingdom made to the State of Knowing Destiny when he was meditating by a well. Simr miracles happened in many Taoist temples. All except for the humble abbey deep inside the mountains in the Divine Halls of West-Hill, which was still very quiet.


    Ever since the Abbey Dean had left, the Zhishou Abbey had been abandoned for years. The dried leaves that once covered the rock stairs had weathered into thin and crispyyers.


    The gate of the abandoned abbey opened by itself.


    The array in the abbey was still functioning. Nothing but the wind could enter. The breeze swept above theke, carried some dried straws, and entered from the windows. It lingered in the halls and finally came to the desk. The huge book was opened silently.


    Although the breeze could not read, it opened the book and kept turning the pages one after another. The white pages kept going up and down while the characters written on it gradually became vague lines.


    Then the breeze slowed down and the characters were shown clearly.


    The Arcane Tome of the Sun recorded the list of the most powerful cultivators in the world. Many names had disappeared along the years, such as Liu Bai who used to be on the top, Ye Su and Chen Pipi. Many new names appeared. They were never heard previously, such as Hengmu Liren.


    Haotian was fair to everyone when she blessed her followers with the spring breeze and rain. She even granted eternity to the people she had bonds with in Chang¡¯an. Yet she was unfair as it was already cool in the Divine Halls of West-Hill but still severely hot in Chang¡¯an.


    It was deep in summer and rain was nowhere to be found. The streets in Chang¡¯an were almost in fire. The water in the well was chilling, but the heat on top of the well was intimidating. In a dry world, everything smelled smoky. It seemed a single sparkle would have put the entire city on fire.


    The situation in Chang¡¯an was also on edge. Under the disguise of calmness, there was great pressure and restlessness. The empire was preparing for a potential war. The officers and scribes in the governmental departments ran around to deliver documents. The delivery of army provisions was most crucial at this point. The armies were all embattled. Countless military orders were spread out from Chang¡¯an to every province, prefecture and battlefront.


    To the north of the Vermilion Bird Avenue behind the Jianshen Archway, there was arge forest. Behind the woods, there was the green meadow. In the meadow, there were dozens of pavilions with white walls and dark roofs. It was the Military Ministry.


    The pavilion in the middle was the headquarter of the Military Ministry. Several deacons and officers were standing solemnly under the rock stairs outside. They were soaking in sweat either because of the choking heat or because of the intensive situation they were facing.


    ¡°The key is the South Jin. If we could get out of the Verdant Canyon in half a month and resume the Qinghe Prefecture, we would be able to help the Sword Garret to get hold of South Jin.¡± It was Shu Cheng. He was relocated to Chang¡¯an years ago. He was no longer the General of Western Battlefront and now took charge of defense affairs of the Tang army. Xu Chi stayed in the Northern Battlefront and took charge of confronting the Golden Tribe. Now Shu Cheng was the head of Military Ministry, therefore his opinion was very important.


    It was very quiet in the pavilion. None of the generals or the staff officers said anything. They neither agreed nor objected.


    Everyone knew that if they could align with South Jin, the Tang Empire would definitely win the battle. But that was the least possible. First of all, the Tang army could hardly resume Qinghe Prefecture in half a month. Even if they could make it, they could not rebuild their navy in such a short period of time. How could they cross the river?


    Most importantly, the Tang Empire and the South Jin had been feudal for generations. Even though the Sword Garret had been standing against Taoism, everyone else from their imperial family to ordinary people would never ally with the Tang.


    ¡°I suppose our main battle should be in the north.¡± A general made a point. In the battle against the Tang Empire many years ago, the Golden Tribe was the one who posted the biggest threat and brought the most loss to the Tang. They were also the ones who benefited the most from that battle. There was no doubt that those cruel cavalry in the grasnd was the most powerful enemy for the Tang army, and therefore the first they wanted to conquer.


    When fighting a battle, it was most important to keep the momentum. If one party could defeat the strongest troop of the other party, it could easily take them all. It was correct that the Tang army had chosen to confront the Golden Tribe first. However because of the previous cession of the Xiangwan in, the Tang army could not get enough steeds ever since. The Northern Battlefront Army alone could never defeat the Golden Tribe. They could not even expel the enemies from Qicheng Vige.


    ¡°When we signed the treaty with the Divine Halls of West-Hill, the Academy promised the imperial court that even if we were to cede the Xiangwan in, there would never be a problem. Thus, I choose to believe them. General Xu Chi had said the same thing in his letter. So what we need to do now is to cooperate well with the Academy.¡±


    General Su Cheng seemed a bit weary. He said, ¡°The thing is if we were to start the battle with the Golden Tribe, even if we could gather our national power to win them, how could we defeat the rest? Once the Divine Halls of West-Hill takes control of the South Jin, how could we resume Qinghe Prefecture?¡±


    They had to resume the Qinghe Prefecture because as long as the local powers ruled, the Tang Empire would be humiliated endlessly. They had to ughter the Golden Tribe as well because they must avenge their dead fellow soldiers in the wilderness. They had to take the Yan Kingdom too because for the Tang people, they stood for betrayal and the unbearable massacre.


    Namely, the Tang Empire was surrounded by danger now. The temporary tranquility in the Yuelun Kingdom was nofort. Deep in the West Wilderness, the barbarians who had never encountered the Tang army were already assembling their warriors. Perhaps in a few months they would join the Golden Tribe and proceed southward. In the meanwhile, under the reign of Emperor Chongming, the Yan Kingdom was recovering rapidly with the help of the Divine Halls of West-Hill. The Yan Kingdom was no longer a weak power as they have the cavalry from the East Wilderness. To the south, the Qinghe Prefecture and the South Jin were also posting threats to the Tang Empire.


    If there were enemies of the Tang Empire everywhere in the world, there would be no peacefulnd. If the Tang people had to conquer their enemies all over the world, they would not have a main target.


    ¡°Previously we asked the disciples of Sword Garret to retreat to the Great River Kingdom. Did they ever reply?¡± Shu Cheng asked.


    It was very clear that if the Divine Halls of West-Hill were to proceed northward they would definitely take the South Jin. ording to the Tang people, they were responsible for the disciples of the Sword Garret since they had helped them.


    Right then a message was delivered from the South Jin.


    The Sword Garret told the Tang people that they were determined to defend Linkang until theirst breath.


    Why wouldn¡¯t they retreat?


    Liu Yiqing answered briefly in his letter: because they were not willing to.

 Chapter 991 - Someone Lifted The Curtain

    <h4>Chapter 991: Someone Lifted The Curtain</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    It was sizzling in Linkang in the heat of summer. A sedan came from outside the city and move slowly on the street. Liu Yiqing sat in the sedan with his eyes closed and his expression of indifference.


    There were sparkles everywhere in the city. It lightened up the night and made it charming.


    Liu Yiqing was blind. He could not see the sparkles but he did feel the heat, and could hear the constant cursing and screaming.


    It was different from the golden flowers and rain that fell onto the ground in the spring breeze when Haotian left the human world. Neither was it like the tens of thousands ofnterns during the Spring Offering. It was ming and killing.


    The city in the darkness was like a ck ocean. Dazzling mes were floating on the ocean. Linkang was not captured yet. But it had already fallen.


    Pious followers of Haotian broke into the houses of followers of the New Stream and resorted to violence. Many families of the New Stream had left Linkang City in thest few months. The fanatical followers of Haotian could find no other outlets for their anger. Therefore they chose to set fire to the houses of the sinners who stayed.


    People were dying and screaming. The killers and victims were both people of the South Jin. But who would care when they were executing under the name of their faith?


    Liu Yiqing remained emotionless in his sedan. His eyes were closed as if he was falling asleep because of the swinging sedan.


    Four ordinary servants were carrying his sedan. They were not the disciples of the Sword Garret. No one from the Sword Garret was by his side. They were neither in Linkang nor in the Sword Garret, but on their way.


    Chen Pipi and all the disciples of the Sword Garret had escorted thousands of followers of the New Stream to the north. ording to their n, they should be near to the border of Song by now and getting closer to the Tang.


    Liu Yiqing was all by himself tonight. He was a powerful cultivator at the stage of Knowing Destiny. Although he could not change the fate of Linkang, he was ready to face his destiny.


    The screaming and killing gradually faded behind his sedan. The closer they got to the imperial city, the quieter it became. None of Haotian¡¯s followers were making troubles in this area and no houses were set on fire. The streets were in the darkness.


    Along the dark streets, he heard countless rapid breaths and shing of weapons and armors. Those sounds meant danger.


    Liu Yiqing heard them clearly. Yet he did not do anything or be alert because he knew those who could not hide themselves from him would never dare to attack.


    Although the South Jin was the second most powerful kingdom in the world in terms of military force, no one dared to attack him. Ever since his sedan entered the city from the west until they almost arrived at the imperial city, not a single soldier dared to stop him.


    It was because he was the brother of Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword. And he was the current leader of the Sword Garret and had killed the previous emperor of South Jin by himself. He had been the symbol of spirit and courage of the South Jin for years.


    The imperial city was enveloped in darkness. Not even a single ray of light could be seen. It was extremely dark and deadly quiet.


    The sedan stopped. Liu Yiqing slightly lifted his head and looked at the closed gate. Although he could see nothing, it seemed like his gaze was going beyond the white cloth on his eyes and about to cut the gate open.


    He lifted his right hand from his knee and ced it on the hilt of his sword.


    The four servants carrying the sedan were terrified and ran into the darkness.


    Liu Yiqing knew clearly that the real danger, or his final destiny lied inside this quiet imperial city.


    It has been months since the giant Ark was headed for the Divine Kingdom and the spring breeze and rain that hadpletely changed the human world. The Divine Halls of West-Hill had ordered to exterminate the New Stream throughout the world. Everyone from the imperial family to the military and ordinary people had swung to the West-Hill. The hidden waves were roaring.


    No one was able to turn the tide. If Liu Bai was still alive, he might have turned it with his unparalleled reputation in South Jin and his unimaginable level of cultivation. But he was dead.


    And Liu Yiqing was just Liu Bai¡¯s brother.


    Facing the roaring waves he had only two choices: to leave or to die.


    He chose to stay, which meant death.


    The heavy gate was opened silently. Thundering ttering sounds were heard while hundreds of heavily armed cavalrymen of South Jin darted from inside the imperial city. Their iron spears formed a chilling and glittering forest of des.


    Hundreds of torches were suddenly lighted on top of the imperial city. It was like hundreds of ming arrows setting fire to a sail in the darkness. The darkness was immediately lightened up, dazzling like a sunny day.


    The emperor of South Jin mounted the city wall under the protection of tens of superior cultivators. He shouted to Liu Yiqing, ¡°You damn blind man, you will die tonight!¡±


    The current emperor of South Jin was very young. When Liu Yiqing killed the previous emperor, he chose the youngest son to seed the throne. It was because a young emperor could not cause much trouble.


    Many years went by. The young emperor was still a young emperor. But he was already able to cause trouble. The whole imperial family of South Jin was scared and resentful, which was clearly expressed in his words.


    The young emperor looked extremely pale because he was scared by this blind man standing in front of the imperial city. But his cheeks were weirdly rosy because he was excited to see that this blind man was about to be killed.


    His voice trembled due to fear and excitement. Hundreds of torches lightened up the night and made him squint. He seemed to be enchanted.


    Liu Yiqing did not squint to show his contempt because he was blind. No emotion was shown on his face. True contempt was invisible.


    ¡°You can¡¯t kill me,¡± Liu Yiqing said calmly because he was stating the truth. No one from the hundreds of cavalrymening from the pce or the tens of cultivators guarding the emperor could kill him.


    If he could be killed so easily, how could he have killed the previous South Jin emperor?


    The young emperor turned even more pale. He knew that no one could save Liu Yiqing tonight. Yet he could not contradict him either because he was not the one who could kill Liu Yiqing.


    The ground started shivering in front of the imperial city because of the quakeing from afar. It was followed by cracking sounds in the air and pounding tters.


    Liu Yiqing knew that was the two thousand cavalrymen sent by the Divine Halls.


    Previously it was shining like the day in front of the imperial city. But it suddenly darkened and tens of divine priests from the Divine Halls appeared from the darkness. The leading one was a very skinny middle-aged priest.


    The middle-aged priest was Zhao Sishou, the current Great Divine Priest of Revtion. More importantly, he was the second son of Zhao Nanhai, the Great Divine Priest of South Sea.


    Liu Yiqing did not spare a single nce at Zhao Sishou. Instead, he looked into the profound darkness. Zhao Sishou was one of the powerful Knowing Destiny cultivators from the South Sea. But Liu Yiqing paid no attention to him. He only cared about the darkness.


    No one knew who else was in the darkness. Liu Yiqing asked to the darkness, ¡°Does it mean that the Divine Halls will interfere?¡±


    A voice came from the darkness, ¡°You are the one who started this.¡±


    Liu Yiqing gave it some thought and agreed. He was the one who lifted the curtain of the new era at the beginning. Therefore, he should unveil itpletely tonight.


    ...

 Chapter 992 - A Young Man In Indigo Gown

    <h4>Chapter 992: A Young Man In Indigo Gown</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    It was very different in the human world a thousand year ago. It was chaotic. Only very few, the ones who cultivated, lived with dignified. The uncultivated ones could only suffer even worse than dogs did. The Divine Halls, at that time, was a divine kingdom on earth. It was an earthly heaven that had nothing to do with ordinary human beings.


    It remained that way until the Headmaster established the Tang Empire and enlightened the people. Then the Divine Halls began to care about the human world. The cultivators stopped enving ordinary people. The cultivation world was no longer a superior world and more human beings were living dignified lives.


    That was the reason for the saying that a sage only appears once in a thousand years.


    When the Headmaster left the human world, things were changed again. No one could stop the cultivators from resuming their reign over the world, at least the world outside of Chang¡¯an.


    Many years ago, Liu Yiqing broke into the imperial city by himself and killed the former emperor of South Jin. It was a symbol of change, and the beginning of a new era. He was the one who lifted the curtain for the first time.


    The human world had lost its guardian. The rules were copsing. The new era was bing savage and bloody again. Everyone had his own chance to make his own rules.


    The powerful would be the master of the new world. Liu Yiqing was powerful, and so were his enemies tonight. They were all eligible to make new rules for the world. But he hoped it would be finished sooner. Therefore he did not pay any attention to Zhao Sishou. Although this skinny priest was one of the powerful South Sea cultivators at the State of Knowing Destiny, and the second son of Zhao Nanhai, he was after all not a real match to him.


    Liu Yiqing looked at the darkness and said, ¡°Then bring it on.¡±


    In the still and silent darkness, the voice was not heard again, and no one came forth from it.


    Zhao Sishou was embarrassed and showed some reluctancy through the skinny and swarthy wrinkles on his face. But he did not make any actions because he heard someoneing from inside the imperial city.


    Everyone around the imperial city heard that person¡¯s footsteps.


    He walked very firmly with rhythm. It seemed that he was wearing a pair of cotton shoes instead of leather. It was clunking like the sound of woods breaking.


    A young man came out of the imperial city.


    The torches lightened up the area as if it was in daylight and made a clearly made out his figure. People could not see his face but it was obvious that he wore an old indigo gown with its edges embroidered with golden threads.


    In the Divine Halls, only the red-robed divine priests were qualified to use golden thread embroideries on their gowns. But he was not wearing a red gown. His indigo gown was worn out and he looked like a manservant.


    It was probably because he had been used to be a manservant.


    Liu Yiqing turned to his side and listened quietly to the footsteps. His hand held tighter and looser on the hilt as if he was echoing or fighting against the rhythmical footsteps.


    While the young man in indigo gown was walking, people heard shing soundsing from behind him and thirteen thin and long shers were pulled out of the hilts.


    The shers looked like flower petals and he was standing in the center.


    He stopped and looked above to the night sky. The torches lightened up his face and people could see his characterless face clearly. He looked pale.


    They were pale in different ways. The young emperor of South Jin standing on top of the city wall looked pale because he was scared and timid. This man looked pale but terrifyingly frenzied.


    Apart from the flower des behind him, he was also holding a huge golden flower. He gazed at the golden flower with pity and frenzy. It seemed like his eyes were ming.


    He picked off the petals one by one while murmuring, ¡°To die, not to die, to die, not to die...¡±


    Upon picking off one petal he said, ¡°To die.¡± Upon the next he said, ¡°Not to die.¡± He continued until thest petal and concluded, ¡°To die.¡±


    The young man in indigo gown felt excited. He seemed as happy as a young child while his cheeks became more pale. He looked at Liu Yiqing who was sitting in the sedan and said with a trembling voice, ¡°You¡¯re going to die tonight.¡± His voice was trembling because he was a bit nervous. He had never been in a real fight, but he was not afraid. It was because he knew that he would never be defeated in Haotian¡¯s world.


    Liu Yiqing said nothing but he knew that no matter how he counted, hisst pick would be ¡°to die.¡± It was because despite of his blindness he knew exactly who this young man was.


    Everyone around the imperial city knew who this young man in indigo gown was, including the young emperor of South Jin. They all seemed excited and kept absolute silent in awe.


    Duringte spring at the Grand Competition in the Divine Halls, a manservant in indigo gown became the champion. He did not have a master, and neither could he even practice cultivation a few months ago. But after that spring rain, he reached the State of Knowing Destiny. No one knew the limit of his potential or his real state, not even the Hierarch. He seemed to be a miracle.


    To the followers of Haotian, he was a real genius of Taoism. Either the previous Ye Su or the legendary Chen Pipi could never bepared with this young man in indigo gown.


    It was because he was the gift to the human world from Haotian.


    His name was Hengmu Liren, who was previously a manservant in the store room of Revtion Institute, and now a red-robed divine priest of West-Hill.


    Liu Yiqing asked, ¡°How would you like to kill me?¡±


    Hengmu Liren answered, ¡°With my des.¡±


    Liu Yiqing asked, ¡°What des?¡±


    Hengmu Liren said, ¡°The shers.¡±


    His thirteen des were all very thin. They were more suitable for killing than shing. But he insisted that they were shers. Perhaps it was because he had been chopping firewood for years.


    Liu Yiqing shook his head and said, ¡°You are way too inferior whenpared to him.¡±


    People around the imperial city had been keeping quiet so they heard clearly what they said. Yet no one could understand.


    ¡°You are way too inferior to him?¡± Who was him? Hengmu Liren knew who Liu Yiqing was referring to. His eyes became ming and he shouted, ¡°No one could defeat me. Not you! Not him!¡±


    Liu Yiqing stroked his sword sheath and said, ¡°You are too proud.¡±


    Hengmu Liren said, ¡°Because I¡¯m confident.¡±


    Liu Yiqing looked at him through the white cloth and said, ¡°People in our generation never show our confidence through words or expressions. We use our swords instead.¡±


    Due to his years of service as a manservant, Hengmu Liren looked older than he should be. But his expressions were still naive. When he smiled, it seemed somewhat cruel. ¡°That person took your eyes years ago. I will kill you tonight. Topensate, I¡¯m going to take his eyes for you in a few days.¡±


    ¡°I never wanted to take his eyes.¡± Liu Yiqing said, ¡°Because I know that no matter how hard I try, I can never surpass him. Neither could you.¡±


    Hengmu Liren said, ¡°You have quite some faith in him.¡±


    Liu Yiqing looked at him pityingly, ¡°If you are going to confront him one day, you will for sure be dead. The reason is simple. But you are too naive and arrogant to see it.¡±


    He looked into the darkness and said, ¡°That person should know it clearly. But obviously he never reminded you. It seems like you barely have any friends in West-Hill.¡±

 Chapter 993 - To See Or Not To See

    <h4>Chapter 993: To See Or Not To See</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Hengmu Liren did not understand Liu Yiqing¡¯s words. He could not understand why he would definitely be dead when confronting that person, neither could he figure out who it was in the darkness that Liu Yiqin was referring to.


    Being a new powerful young cultivator who was previously a manservant of the Revtion Institute, he found many things in this world confusing. But standing there in the light in front of the imperial city, he could feel the distinctive throb and excitement in his soul when facing Liu Yiqing. He was certain that this man sitting in the sedan would be the first powerful cultivator he would kill.


    Liu Yiqing looked around. The white cloth covering his eyes reflected the lighting from above the city wall and looked even whiter. He seemed calm and was not annoyed at all by the extreme silence around him.


    The divine priests of West-Hill and the cultivators pledged loyalty to the South Jin were all in absolute silence. No one, including Zhao Sishou, would try to attack Liu Yiqing because they all knew that the imminent fight belonged to Hengmu Liren himself. It was a showcase of the Divine Halls. They were demonstrating the gift from Haotian and the eternal power of the indestructible Taoism.


    Hengmu Liren walked closer to the sedan. He stopped seven meters from the sedan and pulled out a sher. It was a very slim sher that was quite simr to the Xiu Sword of Great River Kingdom. His way of pulling it out was of no surprise. It seemed like he about to find a piece of wood and chop it into two.


    However upon such a simple action, changes were made in the immense space between the earth and the sky. When the sher rubbed slightly against the sheath, the night clouds were scared away like terrified beasts. The crescent and hundreds of dim stars appeared. When he held his slim sher and stabbed toward Liu Yiqing, roaring wind arose and the moat around the imperial city was stirred.


    Clouds cleared, stars showed, wind formed and water stirred ¡ª these were all natural phenomena. But when they were generated by human actions, it meant that the Qi of Heaven and Earth was changing dramatically.


    A single slim sher being pulled out of the sheath could have stirred up the Qi of Heaven and Earth profoundly. How powerful was this young man in indigo gown? And how high could his state of cultivation be?


    The audience was shocked by the turning of Qi of Heaven and Earth. Even the divine priests from the West-Hill, including Zhao Sishou, felt short of breath.


    They knew that Hengmu Liren was a very valued genius of the Divine Halls. But no one had seen him fight until this moment. They did not realize that he was such a powerful figure!


    The moonlight, the starlight, as well as the torch light all poured on Hengmu Liren and turned his indigo gown into the color of the bright sky, and the de in his hand into a ming torch.


    Hengmu Liren¡¯s body seemed to be on fire. It inmed under the bright sky and the endless Divine me of Haotian bursted out from his de.


    The audience became even more stunned. They instinctively held their breaths in order not to contaminate the purest scene.


    The Divine me of Haotian was pure and horrifying. Even the Great Divine Priest of Judgement could not have outshined him because it was not a matter of talent, diligence, or intelligence. It was just because of Haotian. He was the young man blessed by Haotian, and the gift to the human world from Haotian!


    Liu Yiqing could not see the inmed Hengmu Liren but he could feel the heat and the overwhelming tension from the endless Divine me of Haotian.


    The white cloth on his face was almost burning but he still looked calm.


    Everywhere in the City of Linkang was on fire tonight. Continuous tters were heard while the troops of Divine Halls invaded under the coboration with the imperial family of South Jin. No one else from the Sword Garret was left, except for Liu Yiqing.


    That was exactly what the West-Hill was looking for. Because Liu Yiqing was truly a powerful cultivator, and Hengmu Liren could only stun the world through a fight against such a powerful match.


    People were nervous and curious.


    Hengmu Liren showed his surprising state of cultivation. If he was fighting against someone else, he would be bound to seed. But his match was Liu Yiqing tonight, which made it somehow uncertain.


    It was not because Liu Yiqing was the current leader of the Sword Garret, or perhaps thest one, or that he was the brother of Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword. It was because, as the person inside the darkness had said, Liu Yiqing was someone who would definitely be remembered as the man who made the history of cultivation.


    It was extraordinary to know while someone was still alive that he would make a name in the history. It should have granted him profound peace in his soul. For a cultivator, it was definitely a perfect moment to break through into a higher level.


    Liu Yiqing had be a sword master of Knowing Destiny years ago. Then what would happen now?


    Liu Yiqing¡¯s right hand was rxed by his side. His slim fingers were very suitable for holding a sword. While his sword was by his hand, he could easily grasp the hilt in no time.


    People looked at Liu Yiqing¡¯s hand and the hilt, feeling extremely nervous.


    But Hengmu Liren did not pay any attention to the audience. No emotion was shown on his swarthy and weathered face. He looked at Liu Yiqing through the Divine me indifferently.


    To him, Liu Yiqing was barely qualified for a match. If he could choose, he would not have picked someone like him. Although he shared the same surname, he was not Liu Bai.


    The person who Hengmu would rather challenge should still be in the City of Chang¡¯an.


    He was sent here by the Divine Halls, or rather, by the Abbey Dean. He had toe even if he felt that it was boring.


    ¡°Pick up your sword and go to die.¡± Upon these words Hengmu Liren chopped his sher toward Liu Yiqing¡¯s head. He looked extremely calm as if he was doing something very simple. But even he did not notice that his voice was a bit trembling when he said so. Because he was both nervous and excited.


    His target was the person in Chang¡¯an who also used a sher. But if he could take down a powerful cultivator like Liu Yiqing in his first fight, it was definitely an exciting strike for someone like him, who was merely a manservant a few months ago.


    Liu Yiqing sensed his emotions and raised his head to confront.


    Through the white cloth, he did not look at Hengmu Liren, despite the fact that Hengmu was enveloped by Haotian¡¯s Divine me and seemed like a true god stepping out of an awe-inspiring mural in the Divine Halls.


    Liu Yiqing looked above to the pale young emperor.


    Hengmu Liren was also pale, not because of fear but anger. He could not understand why Liu Yiqing would not look at him even if he was blind.


    I¡¯m about to kill you. Why don¡¯t you even look at me? I¡¯m already excited and nervous for being able to kill you. How could you not look at me? I¡¯m the most powerful cultivator in the new generation of Taoism. How could you not look at me? I¡¯m Haotian¡¯s divine existence in the human world. How dare you not look at me? Who do you think you are to look down upon me?


    Liu Yiqing got hold of the hilt and stabbed forward.


    He still paid no attention to Hengmu Liren, but stared at the young emperor on top of the city wall.


    Because he was pointing at the young emperor instead of Hengmu Liren.

 Chapter 994 - The First Strike

    <h4>Chapter 994: The First Strike</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Both Hengmu Liren and his sher were burning. The endless Divine me of Haotian incinerated every bit of the Qi of Heaven and Earth into the finest ash. But he could not stop Liu Yiqing¡¯s sword.


    Because Liu Yiqing¡¯s sword had pierced the air in a whistle and torn the darkness with its chilling sword intent. It flew over the wall of purely white me like willow floating in the wind and sweeping across ake without making any ripples.


    Liu Yiqing gazed emotionlessly at the young emperor on top of the city wall. And his sword struck at the end of his sight line.


    The young emperor could not see the sword but he could see Liu Yiqing¡¯s gaze. His face turned paler and paler and almost stopped breathing. He panted heavily as if his lungs were about to blow up. His heart kept beating faster as if it was going to explode at any time. He covered his chest with his hands and started vomiting blood in anguish.


    Hengmu Liren¡¯s sher was ming and the air was sizzling. Nothing could stand in its way. Liu Yiqing¡¯s right hand was cut off together with the sword it held. Blood spurted from his wrist while the hand and sword fell on the sedan. It must be extremely painful. Yet he remained emotionless like a silent willow.


    He could not see anything. But he still looked silently toward the top of the city wall with the white cloth covering his eyes. His hand that was holding the sword was cut off, and his sword fell onto the ground. But the sword intent was alreadyunched to the city wall.


    The city wall was made of bluestone bricks and looked jet ck in the darkness. It was not mottling and shined like a ck diamond in Haotian¡¯s Divine me.


    All of a sudden, countless cracks appeared on the surface of the ck diamond. Spalls fell off the city wall and the cracks deepened instantly. The imperial city was copsing.


    People standing on top of the city wall had no idea of what was happening under their feet. The young emperor of South Jin panted more heavily while his heart beat faster and faster and his cheeks turned paler and paler.


    Finally, someone heard the cracking sounding from the city wall and saw those horrifying cracks, and screamed in fear. The generals and cultivators were about to escort the young emperor down.


    But it was toote. While the city wall cracked, so did the young emperor¡¯s heart. Countless tiny cracks had destroyed the veteran city wall and taken the life of the young emperor.


    It went into an uproar on top of the city wall. People became extremely frightened and crowded around the young emperor who fell to the ground in his own blood.


    Liu Yiqing sat in the sedan and looked silently at the top of the city wall and the generals and cultivators he used to be very familiar with. He smiled slightly infort.


    The previous thundering tters and the arrival of Hengmu Liren and other important figures from West-Hill was crucial but not surprising to Liu Yiqing. But it was still disappointing.


    An emperor should guard his kingdom. Instead, the young emperor of South Jin opened the gate of his kingdom tonight and weed the cavalry from West-Hill. You are the emperor chosen by the Sword Garret. Even if you could not fight against the enemies, how could you open your gate to them?


    Since that moment, the South Jin lost its territory and the city walls became meaningless. Therefore they should copse, both the walls of the imperial city and those around the Tong¡¯an Gate.


    Despite the fact that you are only thirteen years old, that you are thest survivor of the imperial family¡¯s direct line of descent, that you called me teacher for years, and that you are somewhat kind-hearted, you are better off dead.


    Liu Yiqing thought so and did so. Therefore the first strike of his sword was aimed at the young emperor instead of Hengmu Liren. He wanted thest one of the imperial family¡¯s direct line of descent to be the sacrifice for the city walls of South Jin.


    In order to aplish that, his right hand holding the sword was cut off. Hengmu Liren came right in front of him and shined with Haotian¡¯s Divine me. The white cloth covering his face seemed like some paper money prepared for the dead.


    But he couldn¡¯t care less. For anyone from the Sword Garret, death or pain could never bother them. What mattered the most to them was how they could hit their enemies in the worst way.


    Hengmu Liren¡¯s sher was very slim and sharp. It was even more horrifying with Haotian¡¯s Divine me on it. Liu Yiqing stabbed his sword into the city wall so that he was left unprotected under the sher.


    The south wall of the imperial city finally copsed in a rumble. Countless bricks fell onto the ground and quaked the earth. Dust rose toward the dark sky.


    The fallen wall and broken bricks were engraved with the history of the South Jin. The dust was the debris of its history.


    The dust dimmed the world. But Haotian¡¯s Divine me was as firm and bright as always. It would never fade. Its glory was reflected by the dust into a bright silver colour and seemed even more divine and solemn, like silver clouds under star light.


    Deep inside the silver glory, Hengmu Liren and Liu Yiqing stood face to face silently.


    There were seventeen bloody gashes on Liu Yiqing¡¯s body. His right hand and two legs were cut off. His lips were also pierced by the de and looked like awkwardly applied rouge.


    The de was pointing right in front of his eyebrows and the sher intent was piercing directly into his soul.


    The sher was very slim and not heavy at all. Hengmu Liren held it firmly and could kill Liu Yiqing with a simple push forward. No one could stop him.


    Liu Yiqing lifted his left hand and slowly wiped off the blood by the corner of his lips. He still looked very calm as if there was no de pointing in front of him.


    On the contrary, Hengmu Liren looked pale and upset. His clear and firm eyes were filled with anger, confusion, and humiliation. ¡°Why?¡± he stared at Liu Yiqing and asked.


    Liu Yiqing looked at him through the white cloth and said nothing.


    Hengmu Liren knew that Liu Yiqing was blind. But somehow he felt those eyes under the white cloth were staring at him with mock and pity.


    ¡°Why?¡± he eximed.


    Ever since the spring breeze and rain, Hengmu Liren never doubted himself and his level of cultivation. He thought that no one in the human world could be his match. But when Liu Yiqing destroyed the imperial city in a single strike, he had to admit that if that strike was aimed at himself, then he would have been in trouble.


    But why?


    Why didn¡¯t Liu Yiqingunch his first strike at me? Does it mean that I am less important than the young emperor of South Jin?Or does it mean he is bold enough to think that he could kill me with his second strike?


    It seemed like the de that was pointing at his eyebrows posed no threat to Liu Yiqing.


    He answered, ¡°Because you are not worthy of it.¡±


    Hengmu Liren found that was the funnest and most absurd joke he had ever heard.


    Liu Yiqing continued, ¡°It was my first strike, so you are not worthy of it even if you are somebody from the West-Hill and the most valued genius of Taoism.¡±


    Hengmu Liren asked again, ¡°Why?¡±


    Liu Yiqing said, ¡°The entire cultivation world refer to you as the gift from Haotoian.¡±


    Hengmu Liren asked, ¡°And I¡¯m still not worthy of your first strike?¡±


    Liu Yiqing said, ¡°My sword is for killing, not to unfold some present. Therefore you are not worthy of it.¡±

 Chapter 995 - The Last Strike

    <h4>Chapter 995: The Last Strike</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    It was humiliation. An undisguised humiliation.


    There could be various types of humiliation. With words, it was the mostmon and mildest type. It would have meant nothing for an experienced cultivator, but not for Hengmu Liren. He was physically strong but not psychologically strong enough.


    A powerful psyche was a state of spirit that could only be tempered through time and countless fights. To acquire a well-illuminated Taoist Heart, it required the same process. But for Hengmu Liren, it had happened too fast. Because of a spring rain he changed from a manservant of the Revtion Institute into the most powerful young cultivator in the Divine Halls of West-Hill. There was clearly something missing in his cultivation path. Therefore when he heard Liu Yiqing¡¯s words, he was enraged. His hand that was holding the hilt started trembling.


    The white cloth on Liu Yiqing¡¯s eyes shivered in the night breeze. He sensed the trembling of Hengmu Liren¡¯s hand and smiled slightly with pity.


    Hengmu Liren said with a chilling voice, ¡°You find me pitiable?¡±


    Liu Yiqing shook his head and said, ¡°I found you pathetic.¡±


    Hengmu Liren said, ¡°How dare you!¡±


    Liu Yiqing answered, ¡°You are pathetic because you couldn¡¯t get what you want.¡±


    Hengmu Liren asked, ¡°Do you know what I want?¡±


    Liu Yiqing said, ¡°Whatever you want, you are not getting it tonight.¡±


    Hengmu Liren pondered for a while and calmed down. He knew that the fight tonight was a trial or a honing process the Divine Halls prepared for him. He should learn to be a real powerful cultivator through the fight.


    Externally, he should be able to shake the Heaven and Earth and turn the tides, while internally he should always be calm and introverted even if Peach Mountain were to copse in front of him. That was what a truly powerful cultivator should be like, and only in that way could he make a long journey in the cultivation world.


    Liu Yiqing wanted to enrage him, so he must not be enraged. It was because anger would affect his judgment and it would lead to failure. However, Liu Yiqing already made his first strike elsewhere and was seriously wounded by him. There was no way he could change the result of the fight. Then why was he trying to infuriate Hengmu at this point?


    Hengmu Liren was satisfied by his reasoning. He was pleased that he could calm down and think it through during such a fight. He stared at Liu Yiqing¡¯s pale face in front of his sher and mocked, You probably have other hidden tricks, or maybe you are simply seeking for death. Either way, you are trying in vain.


    Ever since the beginning, Liu Yiqing seemed to be seeking for death. Ever since he had reached the State of Knowing Destiny, Hengmu Liren acquired a different understanding of death. He realized that for many cultivators, death was less painful than living. Therefore he would not allow Liu Yiqing to die.


    Or simply because he was still angry.


    Hengmu Liren did not care about whether Liu Yiqing could continue fighting or have other hidden tricks. He was learning to be a truly powerful cultivator. While his cultivation and confidence had reached the highest level, he did not think that anyone in Haotian¡¯s world could ever defeat him. Sometimes when he was looking at the disabled Abbey Dean sitting in the wheelchair on the teau, he wanted to push him off the cliff. How could he care about someone like Liu Yiqing?


    Come on. Show me your tricks.


    Hengmu Liren still looked pale, while Haotian¡¯s Divine me continued to burn his body. His slim sher was no longer trembling or chilling. It glowed with a warm and zing light, pierced through air in the remaining distance, and stabbed toward Liu Yiqing¡¯s eyebrows.


    Liu Yiqing was sitting with his legs crossed in the sedan. He did not dodge because his legs were cut off and blood was spurting. Actually he never thought of dodging but simply made another strike with his sword. But how could he strike with the sword that had fallen on the ground together with his broken right hand?


    He used his left hand to get hold of the broken right hand, and ... pushed the hand forward. Thus, he pushed the sword forward. It looked weird yet familiar to the people around the imperial city.


    Many years ago in front the Verdant Canyon someone did the same thing. It was Jun Mo. And the person he attacked was Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword. Liu Yiqing was present in the wilderness at that time. He saw the strike and remembered it.


    The Sword Garret was the fastest in swordsmanship. He applied Mr. Second¡¯s way of swordsmanship together with the sword intent of Sword Garret, and made it unbelievably fast. It was like a bolt in the darkness.


    Liu Yiqing¡¯s sword wasunchedter but arrived first. Hengmu Liren¡¯s de had only made a tiny distance before Liu Yiqing¡¯s sword in his right hand held by his left hand came to his chest.


    Upon a slight puff, the tip of the sword pierced into Hengmu Liren¡¯s chest. The tip of the sword was pushed half an inch into his chest and blood was about to gush out.


    People around the imperial city was yet able to react.


    The puff sound remained in the space between the two of them.


    The blood had not gushed out from the point where the tip of the sword pierced through because it happened way too fast.


    Liu Yiqing¡¯s first strike was dominating, resolute, and it chopped through the city wall. His second strike was so fast that no one was able to react. But the pain spread faster than the sound.


    Hengmu Liren looked paler. He clearly felt the chilling de piercing into his chest and the pain with a slight smell of blood. Yes, the pain smelled blood.


    But he was not panicking or scared. On the contrary, he felt pleased because Liu Yiqing¡¯s second strike seemed more powerful than his first one. And that was the respect he had longed for.


    He got excited and his eyes became particrly bright. They seemed like burning stars that were pressing onto the ground and about to set fire to the grasnd.


    Liu Yiqing¡¯s sword could no longer be pushed forward because the sword had reached Hengmu Liren¡¯s blood. The blood was burning in Haotian¡¯s Divine me. Blue smoke appeared while sizzling sounds were heard.


    The sword pierced into a divine body and was stained by divine blood which burned into invisible ashes inch by inch.


    The slim sher in Hengmu Liren¡¯s hand bloomed like a golden flower of Divine me. Meanwhile, the twelve slim shers behind him also bloomed like golden flowers. The burning Divine me was the charming flower. He stood in the flower and pushed his sher one inch further.


    A bout of unimaginably and indescribably strong psyche power came to the sedan.


    Is it Haotian¡¯s will? Liu Yiqing thought and smiled slightly. Under the glory of Haotian¡¯s Divine me his smile seemed to be aplex of mockery and self-mockery.


    His left hand was holding his right hand. And his right hand was holding the burned sword. The sword was burned by the Divine me into ashes, like a powerless candle. And his broken right hand was burned to the bones. The white bones were darkened and sharpened in the me.


    Liu Yiqing raised his hand and the burned dark finger bones floated to in front of Hengmu Liren eyes like a sword.


    Normally a sword would not float. Only the lightest object would. But Liu Yiqing¡¯sst strike with his sword-like finger bones did float.


    While he swayed his sword, willows along the moat around the imperial city swung in the night breeze. The tip of the willows touched and rippled the water. The white cloth on Liu Yiqing¡¯s face drifted away and wiped off Haotian¡¯s Divine me on the sher.


    Hengmu Liren became solemn for the first time. Liu Yiqing¡¯s strike was intangible like the breeze. He was indeed the most powerful in the Sword Garret. Hengmu Liren became solemn and then excited.


    Liu Yiqing was too seriously wounded to recover and could never defeat him tonight. But this strike was a serious test for him. He wanted to beat this strike perfectly and leave him in anguish and humiliation.


    Hengmu Liren shouted out while countless bouts of ming white lights spurted from between his hands. The de of his sher carried the magnificent will and darted forward.


    If your sword could float like breeze, I will chop the breeze! Confronting the breeze, he chopped it.


    ...


    ...


    It was all silent.


    The breeze was chopped silently.


    Countless willows by the moat were chopped and fell into the water, drifting like duckweed.


    The white cloth on Liu Yiqing¡¯s eyes were chopped and fell down. It stopped in front of his chest because there was a sword in his chest. His right hand was sword-like. Blood gushed from the wound. There were bloody wounds all over his body. Most of them were made by Hengmu Liren.


    But the final fatal one was caused by his own sword.


    ¡°Why?¡± Hengmu Liren looked pale and asked him, ¡°Why wasn¡¯t yourst strike against me?¡±


    Liu Yiqing answered, ¡°I told you. You are not worthy of it.¡± He coughed blood while he spoke and he smiled. That was a smile of mockery. A pitying smile.


    Hengmu Liren shouted with anger, ¡°Why am I not worthy of it?!¡±


    Liu Yiqing said, ¡°There¡¯s no need for me to repeat.¡±


    Hengmu Liren became quiet.


    Liu Yiqing said with a smile, ¡°Isn¡¯t it upsetting to not to be able to kill me tonight?¡±


    There were many powerful cultivators from West-Hill tonight. Liu Yiqing came by himself and knew clearly there was no escape. But he still came. It was because there had to be someone from the South Jin to dere their stand.


    He knew that the Divine Halls of West-Hill wanted to showcase the power of Taoism on this stage in front of the imperial city of South Jin. He came to stage to be y a leading role.


    He killed the emperor of South Jin and then himself. Therefore, no one else could ever kill him. Hengmu Liren could do nothing on such a stage. How could he be qualified to be a hero?


    He, Liu yiqing, was the one bound to be remembered in history. Therefore he should im all the glory on the stage at thest moment of his life. That was hisst strike to the Divine Halls of West-Hill.


    Hengmu Liren seemed deste.


    It should have been his first fight to be a powerful cultivator tonight. But he did not know that the end of the story had already been nned without him.


    At that moment, he realized why the Abbey Dean said that before he left the Peach Mountain, and why the Abbey Dean had sent that person in the darkness to follow him.


    It was indeed a tough journey to be powerful. And he was not ready to reconcile.

 Chapter 996 - A Man Died

    <h4>Chapter 996: A Man Died</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Hengmu Liren lowered his head and the flowers in his hand vanished. He stood in the darkness like an upset kid and spoke with stubbornness and reluctancy. ¡°You knew you cannot hurt me with either your first orst strike! You are no match for me! That was why you did not dare to attack me! You could never disturb my Taoist Heart with such words!¡±


    Liu Yiqing continued coughing blood and he looked cold. However, he still sounded as if he was pitying him, ¡°I¡¯m dying. I did not attack you previously and would never do it in the future. No one would know the answer. You would never know if you could beat me. You might be able to defeat the whole world throughout your journey in the cultivation world. But the regret tonight will always be haunting you.¡±


    The wall of the imperial city copsed and bricks and relics scattered around. The water in the moat smoothed and the broken willows sunk to the bottom. It was deadly quiet while a flower bloomed. The flower merged into the darkness. It did not have a pinkish colour or a golden lining. It waspletely ck. It had countless petals and appeared to be a peach blossom.


    A ck peach blossom appeared from the darkness, and so did a man. He wore a silver mask which had lost its glitters throughout years and became frosting.


    Like the ck peach blossom, he used to be a glorious young man. But now he had already passed the glory to others and kept only the darkness to himself. His clothes, his eyes, and his energy all seemed cold and heavy as if they were ink drying on an inkstone.


    Liu Yiqing stared at the maning out of the darkness while his expression becameplicated and solemn. It was different from when he was facing Hengmu Liren. It was because he sensed that this person was much purer and stronger than he used to be, which made him worry for the Tang people.


    ...


    ...


    Long Qing came out of the darkness and walked to the imperial city.


    Hengmu Liren did not pay any attention but still gazed at Liu Yiqing in the sedan.


    Long Qing saw his deste figure and his blood-stained indigo gown. He paused for a while and looked above at the moon, feeling disappointed.


    Tonight, the West-Hill had sent important figures to Linkang such as Hengmu Liren, Zhao Sishou, and other four Knowing Destiny cultivators. They had set up powerful arrays around the imperial city, two thousand cavalrymen had upied the city, and him, who had been staying in the darkness.


    They disposed such a strong force not to simply take back South Jin and kill the betrayer Liu Yiqing. They had something more important to do, such as to kill the powerful cultivators who would havee to rescue the Sword Garret.


    Very few people would dare toe for the Sword Garret and stand against the Divine Halls. More precisely, it could only be someone from the Academy. ording to Long Qing, it would probably be Ning Que.


    The Academy always yed by rules and reasons. The Divine Halls had set up so many rules that they could not break through. So they could only stay aside while the Divine Halls exterminated the New Stream and invaded the South Jin.


    Ning Que was the only one who never yed by the rules and reasons. Therefore Long Qing thought he would probablye to Linkang. In that case, he would be very pleased. He was longing for it as Hengmu Liren was longing for an attack from Liu Yiqing. Therefore he felt disappointed now because Ning Que did not show up.


    ¡°No one from the Academy ising. It¡¯s such a pity that the Divine Halls had sent all of you here.¡± Blood was gushing out of his mouth but Liu Yiqing still sounded calm and firm.


    Long Qing looked back calmly and said, ¡°I don¡¯t think it¡¯s a waste because I never underestimate my enemy, especially someone like you ... who has always been underestimated.¡±


    Liu Yiqing was Liu Bai¡¯s younger brother. He was a nobody when he was young and got blinded during his first fight with Ning Que in the Academy. As Long Qing mentioned previously, he had killed the previous emperor of South Jin by himself and lifted the curtain for a big era. But he still had barely any fame. To many cultivators, he was much inferior to Ning Que and Long Qing, therefore not qualified for making any name in the history after Liu Bai.


    However, Long Qing disagreed because he had a simr experience with Liu Yiqing. He was defeated by Ning Que and paid a heavy price to regain his fame. Liu Yiqing was blinded but was still able to cultivate with his sword and reached the State of Knowing Destiny and a high level of swordsmanship. He knew how hard he had worked for it and how strong his willpower must be.


    ¡°You are the leader of the Sword Garret. Your sword is your willpower. It was obviously not an impulsive decision that you did not attack Hengmu. You did so because your target was the emperor and the imperial family.¡± Long Qing stared at Liu Yiqing and continued, ¡°Because when the people standing on top of the city wall are dead, the South Jin will definitely go into an internal strife and won¡¯t be able to recover in the near future. The Divine Halls would no longer make use of its military and national power. That was your purpose ¡ª to destroy yourself so that you destroy your enemy¡¯s n.¡±


    The white cloth on Liu Yiqing¡¯s eyes was chopped and dripping blood. He said, ¡°You are incisive. But what I told Hengmu is also true. Many years ago, the Divine Halls promoted you as the son of Heaven and many strong cultivators were killed by you. Now the Divine Halls wants to position him as the new power. Why should I help you?¡±


    Long Qing wondered, ¡°That was exactly what I don¡¯t understand. The South Jin already opened its gate. Nothing could have changed it. Why didn¡¯t you leave? Why did you stay to sacrifice yourself for the Tang people?¡±


    ¡°Many years ago, my brother sent me to the Academy to try my sword, and I was blinded by Ning Que. Although I kept a well-illuminated mind for swordsmanship, I could still not figure out why.¡±


    ¡°But you still choose to stay on the side of the Academy.¡±


    ¡°That was not my choice, but my brother¡¯s.¡± Liu Yiqing shook his head with difficulty and said, ¡°I don¡¯t understand why my brother wanted to help the Academy. But since you are doing so, here I am.¡±


    Long Qing asked, ¡°The Tang people were faithless. What¡¯s the point of your sacrifice?¡±


    ¡°It meant a lot for myself.¡±


    Liu Yiqing seemed exhausted and said indifferently, ¡°I don¡¯t like the Tang people or the Academy. But I¡¯m not a fan of the Divine Halls or frauds like you either. I don¡¯t know why my brother wanted to help the Academy or why everyone in the South Jin wanted to help the Divine Halls. When my brother died, the people in South Jin treated the Sword Garret like a haunted ce. There was no one around us. We had nopanions. I became a wandering ghost.¡±


    He continued, ¡°But even a wandering ghost could do something. If the Tang army were to invade, then the Sword Garret will stand against them. If the West-Hill were toe, then we fight against you too. Even if we could never win, we have to fight for it.¡±


    ¡°I cannot agree with your foolish reasoning for self-destruction.¡±


    ¡°I heard that when the Abbey Dean went to Chang¡¯an years ago, thousands of Tang people died fighting against him. Now the Divine Halls has invaded Linkang, but no one from the tens of thousands people in South Jin stood up. I think there should at least be someone to dere our stand.¡±


    ¡°It is indeed better to see someone die for the kingdom.¡±


    Liu Yiqing felt that his lungs were burning and his heart broke like a copsing dam. He paused in pain and continued with a bitter smile, ¡°Since I have to die, I have to displease you.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 997 - A Sigh

    <h4>Chapter 997: A Sigh</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Long Qing stared at the line of blood on Liu Yiqing¡¯s neck that was bing clearer and clearer, and said, ¡°People like us should live to witness the big era.¡±


    A brand new era has already unveiled. You are the one who lifted the curtain and I am the one to give the show. We should stay alive and watch it. Otherwise it would be a bit pity.


    Long Qing¡¯s words were a greatpliment to Liu Yiqing. But Liu Yiqing only put on a bitter smile and did not reply. He turned to Hengmu Liren and said, ¡°The show is about to start, but my part is already finished. Even if you are reluctant, you have to swallow it.¡±


    Hengmu Liren shivered and lifted his head suddenly. He stared at Liu Yiqing and said, ¡°It¡¯s not over. How could some ordinary human being disobey Haotian?¡± His voice trembled and his expression wasplicated. There was reluctance as well as ruthlessness. It seemed like he was still the kid who went up the mountains to chop firewood from years ago. He saw the winter cicada and felt sympathetic, but more self-pity and angry.


    Upon his words, a bout of Haotian¡¯s Divine me spurted from his palm and fell onto Liu Yiqing¡¯s chest. Hengmu¡¯s cheeks peaked while Liu Yiqing¡¯s wound started healing.


    People around them were shocked, especially the divine priests from the West-Hill. They sensed the vitality that was carried by Haotian¡¯s Divine me and were stunned.


    Long Qing became grim and said, ¡°Do you even know what you are doing?¡±


    Hengmu Liren did not answer and kept staring at Liu Yiqing. He forced Haotian¡¯s Divine me out of his body. His cheeks kept peaking while his eyes became even brighter. That was the genuine Divine Skills of the West-Hill. In terms of Divine Skills, no one in the current cultivation world could surpass Hengmu Liren, not even Ye Hongyu. It was because he directly inherited Haotian¡¯s will and glory.


    The Divine Skills of West-Hill could be used to kill as well as to cure. The Divine me inside him came from Haotian. It could cure any dying person in this world. Liu Yiqing was dying, but not dead yet.


    Hengmu Liren did not want Liu Yiqing to die at this point so he had to apply a lot of Haotian¡¯s Divine me. It was obvious that he was instantly aging. But more importantly his life would be shortened and he would be seriously wounded in no time.


    Since he was blinded by Ning Que years ago, Liu Yiqing never felt anything with his eyes. But right then, his eyes felt warm and itchy. He even saw a blurry white light.


    Was that the white cloth or the pure Divine me?


    Liu Yiqing was still calm and even indifferent. He knew clearly that Hengmu Liren paid such a price to let him survive so that he could torture him.


    ¡°There¡¯s no point of keeping me alive,¡± he said.


    No one could stop a strong cultivator at the State of Knowing Destiny from killing himself as long as he sought for death.


    Hengmu Liren¡¯s face convulsed horrifyingly and he looked like a wounded devil in the pure Divine me. He sounded ugly as if he was weeping. ¡°You mole crickets and ants... You have no idea how strong I am now! If I want you to be alive, then you must stay alive even if you wish to die!¡±


    ¡°So what? Will that make you feel better?¡±


    ¡°You could still refuse to fight against me and to prove with your failure that no one could ever breach Haotian¡¯s will. But I will throw you into endless suffering and show to the entire human world that whoever betrays Haotian will face a disgraceful end. You must live as I want you to. Because I represent the will of Haotian!¡±


    He continued, ¡°I want you to be alive, not to witness the damn big era, but to suffer and be humiliated. I want you to be tortured and sliced by thousands of des everyday, to see the South Jian fall apart and your disciples in the Sword Garret get killed one by one. I want you to see your kingdom burn and your friends being ughtered. I want you to regret being alive!¡±


    Hengmu Liren watched Liu Yiqing¡¯s wounds heal and the line of blood on his neck bing thiner and thiner. He bursted into aughter and said, ¡°By then will you repent of what you¡¯ve done tonight? If you were given a second chance, would you dare to disregard me again like that?¡± The most talented young cultivator of the West-Hill bursted into the most arrogantughter. He sounded fanatical. His Adam¡¯s apple shivered in the condensed air. His voice was like the harsh and sharp whistling of a group of pigeons.


    The people who saw the scene and heard hisughter felt chills. Many divine priests of the West-Hill felt that they were almost losing their Taoist Heart. Even Zhao Sishou showed slight disapproval.


    The imperial city was in dead silence under the darkness. Only his fanaticalughter was heard. The willows along the moat shivered timidly. The broken branches in the water sunk faster to the bottom of the moat, as if they preferred to bury themselves in the sludge rather than to hear thoseughter.


    Liu Yiqing felt the vitality returning to his body. He heard Hengmu¡¯s words andughter but did not feel any fear. He stayed calm. He looked at Long Qing through the white cloth and asked, ¡°Is that what the Divine Halls wished for?¡±


    Long Qing said nothing.


    Liu Yiqing asked again, ¡°A poor kid with childhood trauma?¡±


    Long Qing still said nothing, which meant a silent agreement.


    Liu Yiqing sighed and said, ¡°The sessors of the Divine Halls are indeed declining.¡±


    Long Qing was still quiet and gave another silent agreement. He pondered, then raised his right hand. A ck peach blossom bloomed in his fingers, with a sense of extinction hidden in its petals. Only this ck peach blossom could stopp Hengmu Liren¡¯s Divine Skills.


    ¡°Don¡¯t you dare to stop me!¡± Hengmu Liren eximed while his cheeks became colourless like snow. He gazed at Liu Yiqing¡¯s face and could not figure out why this dying South Jin man could still remain mentally and physically calm under such deadly strikes. He was even more clueless for why this person was distinctively sympathetic for him even at this point. What are they sympathetic for?


    Long Qing said, ¡°Taoism needs you to advocate for glory instead of for madness.¡±


    Hengmu Liren continued tough fanatically and said, ¡°But I feel so good now. I finally understand that only apletely crazy person like you could be a true powerful cultivator.¡±


    The ck peach blossom in Long Qing¡¯s fingers trembled in the night breeze.


    ¡°Never try to stop me.¡± Hengmu Liren said, ¡°Although you are my senior, I have no respect for you. Neither do I need to. It¡¯s my business assigned by the Divine Halls. You should stay out of my way.¡±


    Long Qing looked at him as if he was looking at a naive and cruel kid. The kid was walking through mountains and his worn-out indigo gown was wet from the dews. He was holding a sher and thought that he was the sun.


    Long Qing sighed deep down in his heart, but he did nothing.


    Right then a sigh was heard from deep in the darkness and the mountains and rivers in Linkang sighed together.

 Chapter 998 - The Sighs

    <h4>Chapter 998: The Sighs</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The sigh was light and clear as if it was a dewdrop on a flower and that there was a reflection of the flower in the dewdrop. It came from deep in the darkness and purified the dark night. The moon seemed clearer. The relics of the imperial city seemed cleaner. Willows slightly swept the water. It almost looked like nothing had happened tonight.


    People reacted distinctively different upon hearing the sigh. Some were surprised, some scared, some stunned, and some became pale and retreated into the crowd. It was because they knew that person in the darkness must be someone from the Academy. But they had no idea who he was.


    Long Qing knew who that was. He looked into the darkness but could not find the person, which made him worried. Many years ago, that person ended the massive battle between Taoism and Devil¡¯s Doctrine with a single sigh. A few yearster, he sighed again in the White Tower Temple, trapped the Chief Monk of Scripture of the Xuankong Temple, and released Ning Que and Sangsang. What will he do tonight with his sigh?


    The dying Liu Yiqing smiled in relief upon hearing that sigh. It was not because someone from the Academy finally showed up or that it was a proof of something. But rather, he was certain that what he wished for woulde true.


    Hengmu Liren realized who that person was. Because throughout the cultivation world, no one else could have broken through the two thousand cavalrymen from the West-Hill and came to him.


    He inhaled deeply. The thirteen slim shers became brighter and the golden flowers around him became more massive. They were all ready tounch an attack towards the person who sighed.


    He was not intimidated at all. Instead he was filled with a fighting spirit despite the draining of Haotian¡¯s Divine me from his body. But there was no excitement in his eyes, and the naive cruelty was reced with calmness immediately. As arrogant as he was, he must pull together all of his energy and power in order to defeat this legendary figure.


    Long Qing stared at the darkness while he said, ¡°Let go of him.¡±


    It was not said to that person in the darkness but to Hengmu. Liu Yiqing was seriously wounded and dying. Yet Hengmu did not want him to die. He wanted him to suffer from tremendous torture but stay alive. That was why the person in the darkness sighed profoundly and the mountains and rivers echoed. It was clearly conveyed that he would not allow such cruelty.


    Hengmu did not show any emotions and his hand was still on Liu Yiqing¡¯s chest. He spoke toward the darkness, ¡°As expected, the Academy sent someone here. Isn¡¯t that what the Divine Halls wanted? Why should I let go of him?¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°I was waiting for Ning Que, not him.¡±


    Hengmu asked, ¡°What¡¯s the difference? They are both traitors from the Academy. And he is much more important than Ning Que.¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°The more important he is, the stronger he must be. No matter who came from the Academy tonight, I would try to get hold of him. But since it¡¯s him, this makes no sense.¡±


    Starlights were ming in Hengmu¡¯s eyes, and his voice became a roaring campfire in the wind. He stared at the deep of the darkness and said, ¡°I would still try to take him down.¡±


    Long Qing showed pity toward his ignorant courage.


    Right then the person in the darkness sighed again. It was the sigh of an adult when he saw a kid ying non-sense. It was also sympathetic.


    Hengmu sensed his sympathy and turned even more gloomy. Yet his mind was calmer because he had to keep absolutely calm if he wanted to take down that person.


    That person finally spoke, ¡°Do you have any unfulfilled wishes?¡±


    Such a conversation was usually heard during a rencounter of two powerful figures. The winner would ask this question to the loser to show his empathy. Whereas if he had asked that prior to the fight, it would be a ridicule.


    Hengmu knew that he was not making fun of him. Although he said it very slowly and calmly and did sound mocking, he knew that it was not his style to make fun of people.


    That question was for Liu Yiqing. Liu Yiqing lifter his head and looked through the white cloth at the City of Linkang in darkness. Though he could not see it right now, he use to be so familiar with the city and knew it in details.


    As a cultivator, he had reached the State of Knowing Destiny many years ago. As a swordsman, he hade by himself tonight, destroyed the imperial city in a single strike and acquired the truth of swordsmanship. As a man, he had killed two emperors of the South Jin and was bound to make a name in history. Therefore he had no regrets.


    As a human being, he had fulfilled his every wish. But as the leader of the Sword Garret and as a South Jin citizen, he did have many concerns for them. However, he did not mention it because he believed that if the Tang Empire and the Academy could win this battle, they would settle everything nicely. If they could not make it, then the Sword Garret and the South Jin would probably be wiped out. There was no need for him to say anything further.


    Therefore he kept quiet andpressed his thin and straight lips. He was waiting for his final relief with joy.


    Another sigh was heard in the darkness. It was filled with sensations, respect, and a sense of farewell.


    A refreshing breeze arose from above the moat and blew up to the night sky. It cleared the clouds covering the moon, swept the relics on the ground, and came to the imperial city and the sedan.


    Hengmu Liren became stern and shouted out while his thirteen slim shers were pulled out of their sheaths at the same time. They glowed with a dazzling light and the magnificent Divine me while he swayed them toward the refreshing breeze.


    I can cut the breeze with my shers. Even if you are some genuine breeze, I will sh you! Even if you are the legend of the cultivation world, you could never break through this confinement formed by my sh intent and the Divine me.


    The shers brightened up the night and Hengmu Liren¡¯s eyes started to glow. His sh intent and the Divine me poured out. He felt illuminated and could almost ride on the wind. He never felt so perfect throughout his life!


    However, nothing happened. The refreshing breeze was not cut and nothing went through the confinement. He was perfectly alone in the darkness. It was because even before he swayed his shers, the refreshing breeze had already swept by. Before he set the confinement with his sh intent and the Divine me, that person hade to him. Before his perfect strike wasunched, the fight was already over.


    A schr stood by the sedan. His old cotton-padded gown was stained with dust. A cudgel and an old book were clipped on his belt. He was gentle and looked like amon school teacher in the country.


    Looking at this person, Hengmu Liren could not refrain from trembling. It was not because of fear. Instead, he was enraged and questioned, ¡°Are you Mr. First from the Academy?¡±


    The schr was definitely the Eldest Brother from the Academy.


    The Eldest Brother did not answer. He turned to Liu Yiqing and said, ¡°Sorry.¡±

 Chapter 999 - Why Sorry

    <h4>Chapter 999: Why Sorry</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Liu Yiqing was still alive, but he was seriously wounded. Although Hengmu Liren had tried to keep him temporarily alive with Haotian¡¯s Divine me, it was even more miserable for him to stay alive.


    The Eldest Brother showed up in Linkang and came to the imperial pce. He stood between Hengmu Liren and Liu Yiqing and cut off the Divine me. Liu Yiqing was about to be relieved. It would be an ultimate relief. But perhaps because of what had happened previously, the Eldest Brother said sorry to Liu Yiqing sincerely and seriously.


    Yet Hengmu Liren did not want Liu Yiqing to be relieved. It enraged him. The Eldest Brother was not paying any attention to him and that made him feel disrespected and even more furious.


    He said in a cold voice, ¡°Mr. First, you are toote. Or perhaps you should not have arrived before we end this. You showed up at this moment and said sorry to this dying man. What¡¯s the point? Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s hypocritical? Are you simply trying to make yourself feel better?¡±


    Anyhow, the Academy did not participate in the battle tonight, and Liu Yiqing was certainly dying. Hengmu Liren¡¯s mockery was an attempt to drive a wedge between them.


    However, it seemed that the Eldest Brother never heard him or saw him. He looked at the blood-stained Liu Yiqing and said again, ¡°Sorry.¡±


    Liu Yiqing replied calmly, ¡°Mr. First, you knew it was my own choice.¡±


    The Eldest brother said after a pause, ¡°But the Academy should have stopped you from doing so.¡±


    Liu Yiqing shook his head and said, ¡°The Headmaster used to say, if we sought for virtue and acquired it, there should be no regret.¡±


    Upon his word, the Eldest Brother was speechless.


    Liu Yiqing continued, ¡°The Academy won¡¯t be able to handle everything in the human world. We should try to contribute as individuals. What are you using yourself for?


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°How could we stay aside while a great dam is copsing?¡±


    Liu Yiqing said, ¡°That¡¯s exactly why you, Mr. First, will not do better than Mr. Thirteen.¡±


    The Eldest Brother shook his head and said, ¡°Youngest Brother is no longer the person he used to be.¡±


    Liu Yiqing was a bit stunned. He remembered something and put on a smile on his blood-stained face. He sighed and said, ¡°So Mr. Thirteen has been watching from Chang¡¯an.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°Maybe not clear enough, but he is definitely watching.¡±


    Through the blood soaked white cloth , Liu Yiqing looked at the ruined imperial city in the darkness. He smiled and said, ¡°Luckily I chose the right spot as I thought he might be watching.¡±


    He had cultivated for a long time but did not gain his fame until recently. He made a wrong choice and paid huge price for it. But he was never wrong afterward. Tonight he was sitting on the sedan and that was the spot he chose.


    The sedan was facing the previous city wall that went through vicissitudes. It faced the south and was an auspicious Fengshui site for a tomb.


    The Eldest Brother looked at him and said, ¡°Sorry. You can trust us.¡±


    Up until thest moment, the Academy was still apologetic to Liu Yiqing. The Academy assured him so that he could rest in peace. It did not matter whether it was for the future of South Jin or for the disced disciples of the Sword Garret, he no longer needed to worry.


    Under the blood soaked white cloth, Liu Yiqing¡¯s eyes slowly closed. Thus he entered the darkness. He was used to the darkness so he was fearless. It was nothing different between death and sleep.


    The Eldest Brother stared at the dead Liu Yiqing and pondered for a long while. Then he turned to Long Qing and Hengmu, and asked, ¡°What for?¡± When he said so, he was looking at Hengmu. He looked at the young talent of Taoism who was gifted by Haotian. Although he could sense Haotian¡¯s Divine me under his indigo gown, he felt calm.


    Hengmu Liren was glowing. He was the choice of Haotian.


    However, since Ke Haoran held his sword against Haotian, the Academy had been the enemy of Haotian for decades. Even before that, ever since the Headmaster founded the Academy and set the God-Stunning Array in Chang¡¯an, they had been opponents to Haotian for thousands of years.


    The Academy was never afraid of Haotian. How could they be scared of some human being chosen by Haotian? They never respected Haotian. How would they respect some human being chosen by Haotian?


    The Eldest Brother looked at Long Qing with sympathy.


    He read extensively ever since he was a kid. Although he had never cultivated Taoism, he read countless Taoism canons. Otherwise he would not have been able to debate with Ye Su for three days in front of that small temple. Although he never sought for an illuminated Taoist Heart, no one else in the world had the wisdom he had. He saw through Hengmu¡¯s indigo gown and sensed the brilliant light underneath. Of course he was able to see the infinite darkness under Long Qing¡¯s robe.


    The Eldest Brother had never seen such dense and foul darkness even in the butchers from Devil¡¯s Doctrine or the most evil ones. He vaguely saw countless weeping ghosts and roaring resentment inside the dark fog in Long Qing¡¯s body.


    The Eldest Brother sighed to Long Qing. ¡°Why?¡±


    Long Qing felt a bit restless. He felt naked in front of Mr. First. He could no longer hide anything he did or ever thought about. The person in front of him saw through everything. Therefore he took one step backward. It was the dark night behind him. He felt safer and warmer when he was getting closer to the darkness. But it was not enough. Long Qing sensed the chills from inside his body. It did not feel good to be seen through. He applied his Taoist psyche and restrained every bit of his energy deep down into his body. The energy he restrained was soaked into his body together with the night breeze around the imperial city as well as the light. Long Qing faded and almost merged into the darkness.


    Hengmu Liren did the opposite. While Long Qing stepped backward and tried to hide himself in the gloomiest darkness, he stepped forward. He stepped toward the Eldest Brother indifferently and arrogantly.


    Haotian¡¯s Divine me spurted again from his body. It was as pure as starlight. The Divine me exuded from his face and every pore on his body and made it very constrained in front of the imperial city. Hengmu became a ming divine statue and seemed to be able to burn and purify anything in the world. The state he unveiled could have shocked the entire cultivation world.


    He knew clearly that with his state of cultivation, it was nothing to kill Liu Yiqing. But to conquer this schr in a cotton-padded gown standing in front of him was not going to be easy. After all, he was a legend.


    However, Hengmu still wanted to try. It was because he was so enraged by the Eldest Brother¡¯s indifference towards him while he was obviously touched by something when he looked at Long Qing. In other words, everything that happened tonight was humiliating to this proud talented descendent of Haotian. He had to show the Eldest Brother that he was furious.


    Moreover, he knew that even if he were to fail, the Eldest Brother could never hurt him or he would never dare to hurt him. Otherwise why did he say sorry to Liu Yiqing before he died?

 Chapter 1000 - In The Crystal Of Light And Realm Of Darkness, Who Is Watching You?

    <h4>Chapter 1000: In The Crystal Of Light And Realm Of Darkness, Who Is Watching You?</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Compared with the dazzlingly glowing Hengmu Liren, Long Qing who was fading into the darkness seemed like a very unimportant stain. But to the Eldest Brother, Long Qing was the more dangerous one. Of course he would also pay enough attention to Hengmu. Though the Academy was used to being the opponent of Haotian, it did not mean they would underestimate Haotian.


    The young man in indigo gown was the most charming flower among the countless flowers transformed by the spring breeze and rain. Moreover, he was Haotian¡¯s gift to the human world and the legendary chosen one or sessor as said by the followers. Although he was the Eldest Brother of the Academy, he still had to take this person seriously.


    Hengmu had demonstrated an unbelievable state of cultivation and unpredictable changes. The burning Haotian¡¯s Divine me charged back into his body like liquid jade at an incredible speed and was restrained underneath his flesh and into his shers. His body and shers did not turn dark. Instead they became crystal clear with Haotian¡¯s Divine me reflecting inside. Lights were oveid and reflected, and gradually transformed into the purest white lights. How terrifying would it be when those white lights spurt out of the crystal at once?


    The Eldest Brother kept his hand half an inch away from his cudgel. He could clearly sense how terrifying Hengmu Liren¡¯s next strike would be. But somehow he kept silent and did nothing. No one knew whether it was because of his legendary self-confidence or because of the wisp of bouqueting from the darkness.


    Hengmu Liren¡¯s body became more transparent. The sher in his hand and remaining twelve behind him had be icy. Pure and zing lights were burning inside his body and the shers. They became denser and denser and were almost about to blow up. Some lights exuded and immediately lightened up the relics of the imperial city in the darkness.


    Meanwhile, the wisp of bouqueting from the darkness became thicker and thicker as the pure lights did, despite the blowing wind.


    People who looked at Hengmu was dazzled by the Divine me and painfully covered their eyes with their hands. People who smelled the bouquet felt dizzy. It seemed they had entered the Divine Kingdom and were temporarily freed from the real world.


    The Eldest Brother stayed calm and gentle in the real world, standing under the pure lights and intoxicating bouquet. No one knew what he would do next.


    He already knew before the wisp of bouquet appeared from the darkness because he had been tracking down that bouquet for the past few days. Otherwise why would he have apologized to Liu Yiqing before he died?


    The Divine Halls of West-Hill sent such a powerful force to Lin Kang not only to kill Liu Yiqing. They were also trying to hunt down the powerful figures from the Academy. Then why did he stille?


    He probably just came to say sorry to Liu Yiqing?


    In the wisp of bouquet and white lights, he realized that the Divine Halls of West-Hill might have a chance to take him. The person in the darkness was so fast, and Hengmu Liren was unexpectedly powerful.


    The bright, shining, dazzling, andpelling Hengmu Liren was right in front of him. But the Eldest Brother was not nervous at all. He squinted as if he was a country teacher looking at his naughty student.


    He recalled his fish pond many years ago in a little town. There was one day when the evening glow was so charming that the water in the pond became brilliant. It was just like this young man standing in front of him.


    He sighed and stepped forward to the right.


    Hengmu Liren¡¯s world had be a bright world. The face of the schr in front of him became white instead of pale. He was suddenly alert because he could not understand why his opponent was not nervous at all.


    He was currently the most important figure of Taoism and knew many secrets. He was certain that Mr. First said sorry to Liu Yiqing because he did not dare to interfere. Even though he had showed up, he was toote to save him. It was not a plotted trap by Taoism but rather a coincidence. Even Heaven could not have predicted it. How could he survive it?


    No one could predict when would be the moment. Just as no one knew when was the beginning of this world. Even Hengmu Liren himself did not know. He could not help from being alert.


    At some point, probably the moment when the Eldest Brother stepped forward, thousands of bouts of Haotian¡¯s Divine me broke out from his body and shers, spurted from the crystal, and jetted toward the Eldest Brother.


    The next moment, the zing Haotian¡¯s Divine me would brighten up the darkness and dim the clear moon and evesting starlights. He would illuminate the entire world. And the entire world would see clearly where he was.


    Only the horrifying Divine me could burn the Eldest Brother of the Academy into ashes.


    The wisp of bouquet from the darkness thickened all of a sudden. A sandy wind came from nowhere and lingered around the Eldest Brother with indescribable power.


    The Eldest Brother stayed still. He did not dodge because he did not think he could avoid Hengmu¡¯s Divine me while the wind was lingering around him. Additionally, he wanted to see more than the wind. He wanted that person to show up and expose himself in front of the entire world as Hengmu did.


    It happened in an extremely short period of time, less than a moment or even a blink. It was impossible to describe it because nothing could be faster than the light, regardless if it was the Eldest Brother or the person who generated the wind. Therefore the result was obvious.


    No one could have stopped this. But someone tried.


    It was not because he was faster than the lights but because he devoured every single ray of light that spurted from Hengmu Liren¡¯s body.


    Long Qing appeared in front of Hengmu Liren.


    His body was enveloped in some dark fog. The zing Haotian¡¯s Divine me was devoured and he turned extremely pale. He seemed like a ghost standing indistinctly in the dark fog.


    There was a very slight droning.


    All of the Divine me that was spurted from Hengmu Liren was devoured by Long Qing, except for a few rays of light that faded immediately into the darkness. They failed to brighten up the human world, not even the willows along the moat.


    In front of the relics of the Imperial City, it became deadly quiet again. The moonlight and starlights fell on the ground.


    The sandy wind and bouquet disappeared at the same time.


    Hengmu Liren stared at Long Qing and felt a sense of death and horroring from that dark fog. He was furious.


    He had prepared for so long for this illuminating strike. With the help of the legendary figure in the darkness, he was almost able to burn the Eldest Brother of the Academy into ash. But it was all ruined by this person! He was stunned by Long Qing¡¯s terrible power and even more outrageous of what he did. What the hell is he doing?


    After devouring the tremendous Haotian¡¯s Divine me in such a short period of time, Long Qing seemed seriously wounded and weird light spots appeared on his face.


    He lowered his head exhaustively and panted for a while. Then he rose his head and looked at the Eldest Brother who was staring at him. He asked hoarsely, ¡°Ning Que has been watching. Hasn¡¯t he?¡±


    The gon was not opened.

 Chapter 1001 - The Revolution Failed

    <h4>Chapter 1001: The Revolution Failed</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    A while ago, Liu Yiqing asked if Mr. Thirteen had been watching from Chang¡¯an. But no one around the imperial city paid much attention because they were too nervous from seeing the Eldest Brother. They thought the dying leader of Sword Garret was recalling his past. It wasn¡¯t until when Long Qing said it again that people started to realize something and became terrified.


    After that spring rain, Hengmu Liren was turned from a manservant into the most powerful and unpredictable cultivator in Taoism. He was enlightened and bestowed with wisdom therefore immediately understood what Long Qing meant. He got stiff and extremely pale, and could not help from looking toward the far north.


    In the far north under the dark sky, there was a magnificent city named Chang¡¯an. He had never been there but could almost see its moss-covered city wall now, and the person standing on top of it with an iron bow in his hand. If it was not because of Long Qing, he would already be dead by now.


    Although that person shot from thousands of miles away, he was almost killed.


    Long Qing looked into the Eldest Brother¡¯s eyes and said, ¡°No wonder you¡¯ve been so calm. You were never nervous because you¡¯ve been waiting for our strike. When you stepped right previously I thought you were leaving. Now I know you were simply making way for it.¡±


    He made way for the iron arrow that came from thousands of miles away.


    Recalling what happened just now, Long Qing sweated profusely. If it was not because of Hengmu Liren¡¯s Divine Skill, what would he be like now?


    The Eldest Brother stared at him and said, ¡°We didn¡¯t expect you to see it through and break it.¡±


    It was not an easy thing to see through the Academy¡¯s n. It was even harder to make a correct move and stop Hengmu Liren¡¯s Divine Skill in such a short period of time. The Eldest Brother was alerted by Long Qing¡¯s power. Now he felt even more worried that he would be a big trouble for Ning Que in future.


    ¡°I should have been pleased by Mr. First¡¯spliment.¡± Long Qing sounded sad and continued, ¡°Or probably it was only because I knew that iron arrow from years ago therefore I could predict it. It was no big deal.¡±


    Many years ago, the iron arrow appeared in the cultivation world for the first time in the snow mountains in North Wilderness. It was shot at Long Qing. His Taoist career or even his entire life waspletely changed by that arrow.


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°Indeed, you could not defeat the Youngest Brother¡¯s arrow after all these years.¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°So he is indeed watching us from Chang¡¯an.¡±


    The Eldest Brother answered, ¡°Like I¡¯ve said, perhaps not clearly enough, but he was definitely watching.¡±


    Long Qing kept looking into his eyes and asked, ¡°Is this the Academy¡¯s n? But if Mr. First had not shown up, Liu Yiqing could not have made Hengmu expose himself to Ning Que by himself.¡±


    The Eldest Brother answered, ¡°The Divine Halls have nned it well. They wanted you to kill Mr. Liu. Or it would be better if you could also trap and kill the Youngest Brother. That was your n... The Academy just followed your momentum. Since I was forced to be here, you were definitely exposed.¡±


    As long as they were exposed, they would be shot by the arrows.


    It had happened previously. When the Second Brother brought his new wife to Qinghe Prefecture, he entered the manor by the brook and told calmly who he was.


    It was because he was Jun Mo, the Elder Cui and another hidden powerful cultivator at the state of Knowing Destiny had to apply their real power and were exposed like two brightmps in the world.


    The iron bow was in Peach Mountain at that time. The person holding the bow saw the two brightmps in Qinghe Prefecture. The next moment, they died.


    ¡°The Academy... is so insidious.¡± Hengmu Liren¡¯s fear was turnedpletely into fury. He shouted to the Eldest Brother, ¡°To trap us, you, the so-called righteous Mr. First chose to watch Liu Yiqing die rather than take action!¡±


    The Eldest Brother paused and said, ¡°You are wrong. I did not choose to stay idle. But I could not take any actions. Even if I could, why do we need to expose you to the person in Chang¡¯an?¡±


    Hengmu understood and got even more furious.


    Long Qing certainly understoof too. He said, ¡°To take action... it¡¯s not necessarily to take any actions. Your showing up is the action. Otherwise we wouldn¡¯t have dared to attack you.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°Even if I had not shown up, I believe you wouldn¡¯t waste this chance.¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°If Hengmu was shot dead and I was killed by you, Mr. First, then do you think you could survive?¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°We could never be sure of anything in this world.¡±


    Long Qing became solemn and asked, ¡°To sacrifice Mr. First for the two of us, isn¡¯t that unworthy?¡±


    ¡°You are right. I was prepared to leave when I stepped right. But you kept me here. What I am not sure about was what to do next.¡± The Eldest Brother looked into the darkness and said, ¡°I¡¯m not sure if he would make me stay here.¡±


    The bouquet appeared again from the darkness, together with a voice of vicissitudes. It sounded like mellow vintage wine.


    ¡°So you¡¯ve been waiting for me to act.¡±


    The Eldest Brother looked there and said, ¡°Yes. If you don¡¯t act, theh the Academy could never proceed.¡±


    A schr stepped out of the darkness. It was hard to tell his age. He seemed extremely old but still had a long way to go. It was weirdly integrated into this man. In his hand there was just a gon. He was the Drunkard. The Drunkard walked to the Eldest Brother and stood in front of him silently.


    The Eldest Brother¡¯s cotton-padded gown was stained by dust, yet he seemed extremely pure from inside out. The Drunkard¡¯s clothes were dustless, yet he looked dusted from inside out.


    Ever since he kneeled in front of Sangsang, the Drunkard had be the most powerful in Taoism. It was because of him that Hengmu was certain that the Eldest Brother did not dare to interfere.


    The Eldest Brother did stay idle. But the Youngest Brother was prepared for an attack.


    Tonight, Taoism wanted to kill the Youngest Brother of the Academy but the Eldest Brother showed up instead. They were willing to kill any of them. But they did not know that the Academy had also nned for a kill.


    Tonight, the Academy wanted to kill the Drunkard. The Drunkard was the most powerful cultivator who had survived the previous Ever Night. He was a legend and an important figure to keep the bnce in the human world. To kill such a person was definitely a revolution.


    Yet it was a pity that the revolution had failed.


    The Drunkard ced the gon by his lips and kept drinking for a long while until his lower abdomen was plump. When his face regained some colors he said sentimentally, ¡°Indeed close, it was indeed close.¡±


    The Eldest Brother answered sentimentally, ¡°Close indeed, but it was just close.¡±

 Chapter 1002 - Looking After (I)

    <h4>Chapter 1002: Looking After (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    After the Abbey Dean was punished and became a wastrel in Chang¡¯an, the Drunkard and the Butcher submitted themselves to Haotian and became the top two figures of Taoism in the human world. Since these two were not settled, especially the Drunkard who had been travelling around the world riding on the wind, the Academy could do nothing but watch the Divine Halls extinguish the New Stream, kill their followers, destroy the Sword Garret, and watch Liu Yiqinge to Linkang by himself and eventually get killed.


    Jun Mo had been leading the tens of thousands of ves fighting against Buddhism for years in the West Wilderness. Yu Lian disappeared in the East Wilderness for something very important. The only two left in the Academy to solve this were Li Manman, the Eldest Brother, and Ning Que, the Ning Que who stayed in Chang¡¯an.


    The Eldest Brother wanted to save Liu Yiqing, but he also wanted to save more people. To save more, he had to kill first. He was able to kill but could not do that. He was already at the Distanceless State and could kill as many powerful Taoist cultivators as necessary. Yet while he was capable of killing, so was the Drunkard. Because he was also Distanceless.


    If the Academy did not want to see the Tang army, officials, or even ordinary people die, they had to stay aside and watch Taoisme closer and closer.


    The Academy had tried tomunicate and persuade the Drunkard and the Butcher but had failed. They continued to try tomunicate. But if they were to fail eventually, the Academy had prepared another option: to kill the Drunkard and the Butcher.


    However, it was exceptionally difficult to kill such figures. If the Abbey Dean had note to Chang¡¯an years ago, then the Academy would have never been able to hurt him. This was also the case for the Drunkard and the Butcher. For people in their state, they were almost demigods. They knew their fate and could sense any changes. It was very hard to set them up.


    What happened in Linking tonight had nothing to do with the Academy. It was all nned by the Divine Halls. The only thing the Academy did was to follow their trap and try to achieve what they wanted. It was called riding on the momentum. Because of this, the Divine Halls did not predict it, but neither did the Drunkard.


    The Divine Halls tried to force the Academy toe by destroying the Sword Garret and killing Liu Yiqing. Powerful figures gathered in Linkang and the Drunkard hid deep in the darkness. Taoism had painted a giant dragon. But the Academy was the one to finish the pupils of the dragon¡¯s eyes.


    Unfortunately, it was just close. They almost made it.


    Ning Que stood on top of the city wall and stared at somewhere afar in the south. He pondered for a long while and finally gave up. He let go of the string and put the iron bow back into its case.


    From now on the Drunkard would be even more vignt and it would be harder to find another chance. It was their best shot tonight. But they could neither kill nor wound the Drunkard. This made him very disappointed.


    But he still seemed very calm. Nothing changed. The several Tang soldiers on the city wall had no idea what had happened and why he pulled his bow previously.


    Earlier on, he saw a zing me in the direction of Linkang. Of course he did not see it with his eyes but with his consciousness and the help of the God-Stunning Array, he sensed the light, the pure and clear light. Since Sangsang had left the human world, that must be the young man from Taoism called Hengmu Liren.


    Ning Que had no problem with killing Hengmu, even if it would bring forward the battle between the Divine Halls and the Tang Empire right away. He somehow hated that young Taoist talent so badly even though they had never met. Perhaps it was because of the rumor that this young man was the gift from Haotian to the human world.


    He did not kill Hengmu because Long Qing stood in the way and blocked Hengmu¡¯s location from his consciousness. He could have killed Hengmu previously when he was fighting with Liu Yiqing, but he did not. It was because the Drunkard had not exposed himself at that time. His first shot had to be aimed at the most powerful enemy. And there was another very important reason.


    Liu Yiqing¡¯s sedan was facing the imperial city and blocked the way.


    Perhaps it was because Liu Yiqing did not want him to waste such a great chance on Hengmu. Or perhaps Liu Yiqing wanted a fair fight with Hengmu. Or perhaps it was simply because Liu Yiqing wanted it this way.


    ¡°Sought for virtue and acquired it? You were simply seeking death!¡± Ning Que looked to the south in the darkness and mocked. ¡°You were just seeking death so that the Academy would look after the South Jin and the Sword Garret. You thought I couldn¡¯t see through your trick?¡±


    It had been so many years since they had left the City of Wei. He had experienced a lot, and spent countless years inside the Buddha¡¯s chessboard. Even though he did not change much in terms of appearance, he should have gained some poise after all. But it was quite the contrary. His young freckles had faded and the cute dimples disappeared, and a few slight scars made him seem more mature. However, when he mocked and scorned Liu Yiqing, he almost returned to the frivolous and carefree young boy in the City of Wei.


    Upon saying those words, he suddenly fell into silence again. His emotions faded and he became indifferent. He looked like an old man who had lost all interest in life.


    What could he do even if he had seen through it? He could only take it because Liu Yiqing was dead. And many others had already left or were dying. He could do nothing but ept it.


    The Eldest Brother left Chang¡¯an for the Drunkard and asked him to look after the young emperor. The Second Brother was leading the fight in the West Wilderness and asked him to look after the Seventh Sister. The Eldest Sister left for the East Wilderness and asked him to look after her brush pens and ink. Chao Xiaoshu left for that little town and asked him to look after his father, wife, and kids. His Master and the previous emperor died and left him with the Core Vajra of the Array. They asked him to look after Chang¡¯an and Tang Empire. Tonight, Liu Yiqing died and left the South Jin and Sword Garret for him to look after.


    He stood on top of the city wall and had to look after the entire human world. Therefore he could not leave.


    Before the journey with Sangsang many years ago, he was imprisoned in Chang¡¯an for a while. But that was different. At that time he only needed to look after Chang¡¯an, whereas now he had to look after the entire human world. It meant more responsibilities.


    The city wall was too high for any tree to reach. There were no fallen leaves or ripe fruits on top of the city wall. Several Tang soldiers were on patrol, but they were not hispanions. He was all by himself.


    Ning Que stood by the wall and looked at the human world in the darkness. He kept quiet for a long while. If only he knew that Liu Yiqing had called himself a wandering ghost in the City of Linkang, he might have had some empathy for him.


    He was looking after the human world. But who was going to look after the Old Brush Pen Shop and their house by the Yanming Lake now? The willows by theke, the lotus in it, the broken walls of the backyard and the cat on the wall, who would be looking after them?


    Sangsang had left. Who would look after him?

 Chapter 1003 - Looking After (II)

    <h4>Chapter 1003: Looking After (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Torches were lit behind Ning Que and left a clear shadow of him in the front.


    A small table was ced on top of the city wall. There was a pot on the table. The finest charcoal was burned in the pot that made no smoke at all. The soup was boiling in the copper pot, and tes of vegetables and meat were ced around the pot. It became warmer. A Tang soldier ced some sauce, a bowl, and chopsticks in front of him and asked, ¡°Master, do you want a drink tonight?¡±


    ¡°Yes please.¡±


    Ning Que had spent all his time on top of the city wall for days. He had gotten used to dining in the chilly autumn wind. The hot pot and liquor could only warm him up a bit.


    The juicy beef andmb were boiled in the well cooked bone soup and smelled amazing. Then the vegetables were put into the soup.


    Ning Que sat down by the table and started eating. He did not have a guest to entertain or apanion to chat with. Although the food was great, he felt lonely.


    The dinner was lonely. But the liquor was the strongest double distilled kind and the dishes were the finest delivered from the imperial pce. The mouth watering scent spread out together with the steam of boiling soup and fell onto the human world under the city wall. It was carried by the autumn chill and went down the spotted and moss-covered walls. It passed a hawk nest and awoke the eyas. They looked around and searched for food. Then it continued onto the Vermilion Bird Avenue and annoyed the very few passers-by on the dark street.


    During the Abbey Dean¡¯s visit to Chang¡¯an years ago, the southern part of the Vermilion Bird Avenue was almost destroyed during a fierce battle. Although its glory had been restored throughout the recent years, the newly built buildingscked the cumtive mellowness and seemed quite cold.


    It was long after dinner time. The stores along the Vermilion Bird Avenue were no longer busy. But inside people¡¯s houses, it was not so quietpared with the chilling street. There were sounds of people ying chess, bowls falling on the ovens, or women scolding kids. It was very lively.


    In an autumn night inside Chang¡¯an, it was more bustling in Restaurant Songhe than in people¡¯s houses. Several tables were set ready for a feast. A young master of a well-off family had sneaked some money from their family ountant and called a bunch of friends for a gathering. They were after all young and inexperienced. They could not tell the liquor was blended as the Headmaster did. Before long, they were so drunk that no one could care about being punished for getting back home in the next morning.


    In the House of Red Sleeves, it was another scene of liveliness. Those officials and businessmen, who had no idea where their kids were having fun, were sitting by the table and enjoying the liquor. They were restrained despite the lively show, charming music, and whirling dresses. It was lively but not noisy.


    Compared with ordinary people, those inside the imperial court were much less rxed, especially those inside the brightly lit pavilions in the meadow. It seemed they would stay up all night. Dozens of Tang soldiers ran fast between the pavilions, delivered messages from the boarders and prefectures, and waited anxiously for answers.


    The Divine Halls of West-Hill had started the prelude of war. But the war was not yet officiallyunched, or had the troops of West-Hill arrived at the border of the Tang Empire. Yet in the Military Ministry of the Tang, they already entered the state of war and were vignt and solemn. Cups of tea were served rounds after rounds, but no one touched the desserts on the side.


    For the most important decisions, the Military Ministry could not decide on its own. The generals stayed up all night, and so did many people inside the imperial city. From the Yulin Royal Guards to regr guards, from the chief eunuch of the Imperial Study to ordinary tea odalisques, everyone had to stay up.


    Compared with the past, there were two more scrolls hanging in the Imperial Study. The two scrolls were written by two different people and of distinctively different levels. But they were equally important to the imperial pce now. They were the scrolls of ¡°Fish Leaping¡± and ¡°Blossom¡±.


    The emperor was no longer a kid but was still young. The Academy would not allow him to stay up the whole night, so he was already in bed. Now inside the Imperial Study, Li Yue was reading andmenting on the memorials.


    She was still elegant and pretty, but quite pale. It was probably because she had stayed inside the imperial pce for too long and seldomly saw the daylight. And she was very slim.


    She had been reading the memorials and dispatches from various prefectures for a long while. Out of thirst, she reached out for tea but tipped over the cup. Then she realized it was the white fungus broth that some odalisque had delivered previously.


    The white fungus broth was thick but easy to clean even though it fell on the memorials.


    On top of the city wall, the soup spilled from the hotpot and sizzled on the hot surface. It immediately steamed and left some pale stains. A few drops dripped down along the table leg onto an iron arrow.


    Ning Que did not pay any attention and continued to enjoy the juicymb, rich beef, and strong liquor.


    He ate very slowly. He had lots of time to kill as he had to stay on top of the city wall. But it was just a dinner. No matter how slowly he ate, it was finished shortly. He put down the chopsticks and several Tang soldiers came to clean the table. They left the liquor and a small te of snack.


    He took out the handkerchief and wiped his mouth. Then he wiped the table and picked up the iron arrow to clean the soup stain. He ced the arrow back onto the string to make sure he could shoot it at any time.


    He looked again to the south and to Linkang. The Drunkard did not expose himself previously. Therefore he probably would not see him tonight. But he had to keep watching.


    Until then, he was not quite sure about what had happened in Linkang. But he knew that Liu Yiqing was already dead not only because the Eldest Brother could not interfere, and also because Liu Yiqing had sought for it.


    Ning Que poured the liquor onto the floor as a memorial ceremony.


    Liu Yiqing was dead, but the Drunkard was still alive. What a pity.


    But it did not matter. Although he could not kill him tonight, he would definitely get him some day.


    The liquor wetted the floor and the ck bricks turned darker. The moonlight was brighter and creamier. He did not notice that the moon was very bright tonight, even though it was not a full moon.


    The bright moon shone on the human world. To shine on is to look after.


    Ning Que filled up the cup and proposed to the bright moon above, ¡°Master, please keep looking after us. And I will look after this world for you.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Far away in the south, the City of Linkang was in an uproar and everything seemed to be burning except for the area in front of a copsed gate of the imperial city. It was nothing but quietness, terrifying quietness.


    The Drunkard asked, ¡°But the question is for how long could Ning Que be watching?¡±


    The Eldest Brother said nothing. No one could keep watching forever.


    The Drunkard looked at him emotionlessly and asked, ¡°Apart from you, who else could let him see me?¡±


    Hearing this, the Eldest Brother turned serious and implored, ¡°Please don¡¯t do that.¡±


    The indigo gown was not soaked. And the gon was not opened.


    The Drunkard disappeared from where the wind arose.

 Chapter 1004 - Killing A Virtuous Man

    <h4>Chapter 1004: Killing A Virtuous Man</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The Drunkard left, but the Eldest Brother stayed. He walked to the sedan andid the body of Liu Yiqing t. Then he turned to look at the ruins of the imperial city in the night and was silently listening to the sounds of the wind and the river. He looked sad and helpless as if he was waiting for something to happen.


    Long Qing knew what he was waiting for, so he was more and more puzzled as to why he did not leave. Seeing the dust on cotton jacket of the Eldest Brother, the expression on Long Qing¡¯s face gradually became serious.


    Among the three people who stayed in the field, Hengmu was the youngest and also the proudest. Additionally what happened tonight shocked and frustrated him the most. He felt dested and the mes of fury deep in his eyes were obvious. It wasn¡¯t until now that he realized the Academy had set up the trap for the Drunkard, and never took him seriously.


    He slowly clenched his fists and stared at the Eldest Brother. Even if you have already reached the legendary Distanceless State, you can¡¯t defeat me so easily. Do you know what state I have reached at this point?


    Long Qing sensed the emotional changes of Hengmu and became more serious. He looked at the Eldest Brother with alert and slowly moved to the side of Hengmu, ready to attack.


    During the period after spring, the Divine Halls of West-Hill and the Academy maintained a weird peace. Before tonight, both sides knew clearly that they were safe. The bnce between two Grand Cultivators who had reached the Distanceless State would not be broken if no one were to make the first move.


    Tonight, the bnce was finally been broken. It was still unclear who made the first move while looking back at the battles happened in front of the ruins of the imperial city. Although the Divine Halls of West-Hill had set up the trap, the Drunkard was actually the one who was in real danger. The Academy had seriously injured him and almost killed him.


    That was why Long Qing was so alert. The bnce has been broken, but the Eldest Brother didn¡¯t leave with the Drunkard. There is a chance that the Eldest Brother would try to kill me and Hengmu. Would we survive? He asked the Eldest Brother whether or not it was a good deal to sacrifice himself for the others while the Drunkard was still hidden in the dark night, which meant that he thought he and Hengmu were capable of fighting back.


    Hengmu¡¯s confidence came from his faith, but where did his confidencee from?


    ¡°You are very different from the rumors.¡±


    The faint starlights fell on Long Qing and were swallowed in an instant, like a stream flowing into the dry sand. Seeing this, the Eldest Brother said incredulously, ¡°If departing from the faith of Haotian means gaining the power of darkness, then who gave you the power? I believe even the Abbey Dean can¡¯t exin it.¡±


    Long Qing was very clear that he was not qualified to be remembered by Mr. First of the Academy even though he did make his name in the cultivation world. The rumors he said probably meant that Ning Que mentioned him in chitchat.


    He knew that the Eldest Brother had seen through his state. But like he had said, even the Abbey Dean couldn¡¯t exin it. Thus no one could understand it.


    ¡°Why do you say such nonsense?¡± said Hengmu.


    The Eldest Brother looked to the young man in cyan and said, ¡°The Divine Halls of West-Hill advocates for luxury, but the real Taoism favors cyan. The Abbey Dean always wears cyan, Ye Hongyu wore cyan when she was practicing swords at the stone house by the cliff, and my youngest brother wore cyan when he came to Peach Mountain back then. But I think it¡¯s ridiculous for you to wear cyan.¡±


    Hengmu was very angry but said with an innocent simile, ¡°I can¡¯tpete with the Abbey Dean. But what¡¯s really ridiculous is that you think Ye Hongyu and Ning Que are more qualified than me to wear cyan.¡±


    The Eldest Brother looked at him calmly and replied, ¡°You have crossed that threshold. Is that the source of your confidence?¡±


    Hearing this, Hengmu was shocked and did not expect that the Eldest Brother could see through the real state that he had been hiding. Then he said indifferently, ¡°You¡¯ve figured it out. Why shouldn¡¯t I be confident?¡±


    The Eldest Brother looked at him and said, ¡°As the youngest cultivator who has ever passed the threshold in history, you should be proud and confident. However, you didn¡¯t pass the threshold on your own. Haotian carried you through it. So you are just a baby at this point.¡±


    Long Qing suddenly said, ¡°I don¡¯t understand why you are saying this now.¡±


    ¡°Because I don¡¯t understand why he dares to leave.¡± All of a sudden, the Eldest Brother seemed to have realized something and sighed. ¡°Light and darkness are two sides of Haotian. How stupid I am to only understand this at this moment.¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°Mr. First has great wisdom.¡±


    The Eldest Brother replied, ¡°There would be more trouble if Hengmu shares your state of mind.¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°In that case, you should not wait but attack.¡±


    The Eldest Brother asked, ¡°Can I bear the cost of attacking?¡±


    Long Qing answered, ¡°You know what he is going to do.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°Yes.¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°If you hesitate to take a shot, then at least you should follow him.¡±


    The Eldest Brother replied, ¡°Following him won¡¯t change anything. It is more painful to be an onlooker.¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°Isn¡¯t it the greatest pain to just wait here and keep wondering what is going on?¡±


    The Eldest Brother was silent for a while and said, ¡°Out of sight, out of mind. It will make me feel better if I don¡¯t see what happens. This is probably why my Youngest Uncle once said that a gentleman should never be near the kitchen.¡±


    ¡°Hypocrites.¡± Hengmu said rudely, ¡°The Academy is full of hypocrites.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°Maybe I am hypocritical, but I can¡¯t represent the Academy. If it was Jun Mo or the Third Sister here tonight, then they probably won¡¯t talk so much like me.¡±


    Hengmu stopped talking, for he found that it was hard to treat a gentleman who had admitted to be hypocritical, like a hypocrite. It was also hard to detest him.


    It was quiet in front of the ruins of the imperial city. The night wind lightly brushed the river and the willow branches, touched the bloody face of Liu Yiqing and his closed eyes, and then disappeared.


    The wind left no traces, just like how time passed by.


    As Long Qing said, waiting was the worst. Fortunately, they didn¡¯t wait too long.


    The Drunkard was back. The gon swayed gently around his waist. The lower hem of his gown had some blood stains.


    The Eldest Brother turned pale. He knew that the Drunkard deliberately dyed his clothes with blood to be seen by him. He was still in great pain and couldn¡¯t help but me himself.


    The Drunkard untied the gon and said, ¡°Only a moment passes, and I am still drunk.¡± He drank some alcohol and squinted his eyes.


    The Eldest Brother was silent for quite a while and then asked, ¡°Who died?¡±


    The Drunkard had left to kill a person, and there were very few people in the world he couldn¡¯t kill.


    ¡°The one who died also loved alcohol.¡± The Drunkard recalled how he killed that person and said, ¡°I went to Chuzhou.¡±


    The Eldest Brother asked, ¡°Chuzhou of Great Tang?¡±


    The Drunkard answered, ¡°Yes. Chuzhou is surrounded by mountains and there is a pavilion in the East Hill. A governor built that pavilion.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said in a trembling voice, ¡°The governor of Chuzhou was honest and upright and loved people.¡±


    The Drunkard echoed, ¡°Indeed he was.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°He was virtuous man.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°He loved alcohol, and he was indeed a virtuous man.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°But you killed him.¡±


    The Drunkard replied, ¡°If the governor of Chuzhou was not a person of virtue, I wouldn¡¯t have killed him.¡±


    The Eldest Brother asked in a quaking voice, ¡°Why?¡±


    The Drunkard looked at him and answered calmly, ¡°Because killing virtuous men would make you suffer more.¡±

 Chapter 1005 - Every Human Being Has Compassion

    <h4>Chapter 1005: Every Human Being Has Compassion</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The governor of Chuzhou was a virtuous man. But he could be easily mistaken as an ordinary farmer because of his swarthy cheeks and rough hands. It was usually hard to distinguish the virtuous from the ignorant by appearance.


    He had juste back from the dam and was worried about theing autumn flood. But what worried him more was the invading troops. Chuzhou was a beautiful ce, but it was located by the border.


    Just like his virtues, his emotions were never shown on his face. He finished the government affairs calmly, stepped out of his office apanied by a servant, and walked with a crutch toward the east mountain to seek for some peace.


    There was a newly built pavilion on the east mountain. He supervised the expensive construction and was reproached. But he never cared.


    The jar was opened and the scent of liquor pervaded. The governor was drinking at the pavilion under the bright moon and was about topose a poem for the beautiful rivers and mountains in front of him.


    Right then, a refreshing breeze came from thousands of miles away in the south. It crossed the mountains and wilderness and made three circuits around the pavilion. It entered, lingered for a while, and then left.


    The governor was dead. It was quiet. He could not chant his poem or leave imperishable travel stories. He could not write anything, or say anything to the Chuzhou people. He died quietly.


    ...


    ...


    It was quiet in front of the relics of the imperial city in Linkang. The Eldest Brother looked to the direction of Chuzhou and pondered for a long while. He turned pale and asked, ¡°To make me and the Tang people suffer, what good will that do to you?¡±


    ¡°Because... I am afraid of death. The longer I live, the more fearful I be.¡± The Drunkard looked into his eyes and said, ¡°Previously when I knew that danger wasing, I was really scared. Throughout these years I had never been that close to death. It was really horrifying. I¡¯ve lived too long to be familiar with that kind of feeling. But I experienced it again tonight. It was still horrifying and even more overwhelming. I could barely stand it. Therefore I am very angry.¡±


    He showed no expressions and his face seemed like a hardened field after countless years of exploiting. Yet he still smelled like fine liquor. His anger was not shown on him but distinctively conveyed in the human world. Because in the far away Chuzhou, the governor who used to be fond of drinking was dead now.


    ¡°I don¡¯t want to go through that feeling or be the target of the Academy again. Therefore I have to make you suffer, to make the Tang people suffer, and to make the Academy suffer. I want you to suffer and fear, so that you won¡¯t be able to do anything.¡± The Drunkard continued to stare at the Eldest Brother with no expressions. He seemed indifferent and invincible. ¡°I can kill. I can kill many Tang people. As long as I initiate the intent, you could never be fast enough to stop me. And I¡¯m going to kill the ordinary because they are less troublesome. Ning Que won¡¯t be able to stop me either because he can¡¯t see me. You could only stay and watch me kill and torture until you copse in pain.¡±


    The Eldest Brother shivered slightly. His clenched his hands extremely tight and could almost feel the pain.


    The Drunkard continued, ¡°More than dozens, more than hundreds, I will kill tens of thousands of people. Therefore unless you are absolutely sure, you should not try to kill me ever again, not even toe up with an attempt, even an attempt slimmer than the willow or lighter than the flying catkins.¡±


    The Eldest Brother lowered his head and kept quiet for a long while. The willows along the moat kept quiet with him. They wiped the water and pushed the scatter cloths away. The catkins would not fly again until next spring. He could not wait that long or could the Academy or the Tang Empire. Then what should he do?


    Suddenly he looked above to the bright moon in the night sky and said, ¡°I could also kill.¡± Then he turned to the Drunkard and said firmly, ¡°When I am determined to kill, no one could stop me either, not even you. So stop pushing me.¡±


    The Drunkard showed no expression and said, ¡°Please go ahead.¡±


    The Eldest Brother lifted his eyebrows.


    The Drunkard repeated, ¡°Please kill as you wish.¡±


    The Eldest Brother frowned.


    The Drunkard said again, ¡°Please kill.¡±


    The Eldest Brother smoothed his eyebrows. He started pondering and hesitating. Or perhaps the next moment he would leave to kill.


    ¡°There are countless Taoist priests in the Song, Qi, Liang, and Chen Kingdoms. You can kill them all. There are hundreds of millions of followers that you can kill. There are many savages in the Grasnd that you can kill. You can kill whomever you want.¡± The Drunkard looked at his smoothed eyebrows and asked, ¡°If you cane to the Peach Mountain, you can probably kill more people as you wish. But who are you going to kill and who should be killed?¡±


    To kill or not to kill, that was a question.The other question was whom to kill. Throughout the human world and across the peach blossomed mountains, who was the most evil one? And who should be killed? Who was to make the decision and who was qualified to make such a decision?


    It was difficult to answer. Some people such as Lian Sheng thought it was not worthy of answering because everyone in the human world should die. Some others, like the Drunkard, did not care to think because he saw himself as a demi-god in the human world. But for the Eldest Brother, it was a question that must be answered.


    He stood by the willows along the moat and the blood-stained sedan. He pondered for a long while. Liu Yiqing¡¯s eyes were closed silently as if he was deeply asleep. The rest of the cultivators and generals by the moat were all inas. Only the Drunkard, Long Qing, and Hengmu were waiting for his decision.


    Watching his cotton-padded gown swinging in the night breeze and the dust on it falling onto the ground, Long Qing felt nervous. Yet he was also looking forward.


    If the gown were to move and Mr. First were to leave to kill, then the world would be a whole new world that no one had ever witnessed.


    In that world, no rule would apply because the fundamental rule of life and death would be broken. If two great cultivators at the state of Distanceless would be ughtering across the world, then no one knew who would die next.


    It just took one of them to overtake the rules of this world. If there would be the two of them, then they could definitely destroy the world.


    Hengmu looked at the Drunkard and the Eldest Brother, and finally realized why Distanceless was the most unique above the Five States. It could almost mean a different world.


    The darkness thickened. The water calmed down until it was deadly still. The human world seemed to be waiting for its doom. No one knew for how long they had waited until dawn finally came.


    The Eldest Brother had been standing by the sedan and never left.


    People woke up and fled from the moat. The bright moon left and a warm red morning sun appeared in the sky. It lightened up the burned ruins as well as the newly built courtyards in Linkang.


    ¡°Indeed no one could stop you, except for yourself.¡±


    The Drunkard looked at him and said, ¡°You don¡¯t have the guts to kill after all.¡±


    ¡°It is not a matter ofcking guts, but a matter of havingpassion.¡±


    The Eldest Brother had made his decision. ¡°Every human being haspassion. You think you are a god, not a human being. Therefore you can kill. But I cannot because I am still a human.¡±

 Chapter 1006 - Killing In The Autumn Wind And Rain (I)

    <h4>Chapter 1006: Killing In The Autumn Wind And Rain (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Experiences change one¡¯s temperament, and the state determines one¡¯s stature. The cultivators were quite different from ordinary people. Ever since the beginning of time, the Grand Cultivators who had crossed the threshold of the five states were able to summon wind and call for rain, so naturally their spiritual world gradually drifted away from the human world and headed to the area of non-human.


    It was a readilyprehensible truth. The Headmaster of Academy had not been able to avoid the process of drifting away from the human world, and he talked about the matter with Ning Que afterwards. And he regained his conscience in a quite incredible way.


    The Eldest Brother walked the fastest in the human world, but his name was Li Manman for he tended to do things slowly. And his adolescence and confusion period after bing the Grand Cultivator was longer than others. But he still had to face the same problem that encountered by every Grand Cultivator. He had thought about the problem and figured out his own way of tackling it or made his own choice. At this point, he said that the Drunkard was not a human being, which was not apliment but a subtle usation.


    A gentleman like him would actually me a person, indicating that he could be extremely angry even if he were to look very calm.


    He was angry at the fact that the Drunkard killed a virtuous man beyond reasoning and that he might kill more people. The Eldest Brother could neither understand nor ept what the Drunkard did.


    Hengmu said with sarcasm, ¡°Hypocrite indeed.¡±


    Cultivation essentially meant drifting away from ordinary people, no matter what intention the cultivator had originally, whether it be bing immortal or reaching Nirvana. Previously, Hengmu said that the Academy was full of hypocrites, and at this point he couldn¡¯t help but taunt again after hearing the Eldest Brother said that every human being hadpassion and put himself among ordinary people.


    The Eldest Brother recalled several conversations he had back in the Back Hill of the Academy and said, ¡°The Second Brother and Youngest Brother both had criticized me in the past. The Youngest Brother warned me subtly, but Jun Mo was more direct. Although the Third Sister didn¡¯t say anything, I know that she has always looked down on my way of doing things over the years. I am indeed a hypocrite. Since I can kill people, then I should. If I don¡¯t, I am shirking my responsibility. Besides, there are always some people who deserve to die.¡±


    He gradually calmed down and said while staring at the Drunkard, ¡°One can wash clothes and his feet in the water no matter if the water is clear or muddy. Sishui River is tainted with blood. I can¡¯t always keep my shoes dry while walking along the river.¡±


    There was some kind of determination hidden below the m words. For Taoism, it indicated a great danger. Hearing this, Long Qing squinted his eyes slightly and became more serious.


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter if you start killing now.¡± The Drunkard said indifferently, ¡°Haotian loves the world, but I am not Haotian. You love the world, but I am not you. You will suffer if I kill people, but I won¡¯t feel anything if you start killing.¡±


    The Eldest Brother asked, ¡°Is there no one in the world that you care about?¡±


    ¡°I have lived for countless years, and all my rtives and friends are gone. I am old, ill, and lonely, and I loved no one in the world. No matter how many people you kill, I won¡¯t feel anything.¡± The Drunkard said so indifferently, but there was endless disappointment hidden in his words. The other three were all silent.


    At this moment, a light rain began to fall, washing away the dust on the ground, softening the willow leaves by the river and wetting the hair of the four presented. The human world was hit by the cold spirit of autumn.


    In the autumn rain, the Eldest Brother looked at the Drunkard and asked, ¡°So I will lose?¡±


    The Drunkard answered, ¡°Love leads to fear. You will inevitably lose.¡±


    Long Qing and Hengmu left the imperial city in the rain and marched toward the direction of the Great Swamp and the Song Kingdom with two thousand Papal Cavalrymen of the Divine Hall of West-Hill. Tens of millions of people would die in the misty rain.


    The autumn rain was getting heavier and heavier. The Eldest Brother stood in front of the sedan and the body of Liu Yiqing with his head lowered, and his hair was all wet and attached to his forehead, looking miserable.


    ...


    ...


    The world was t, but the rain could not bepletely uniform. Otherwise, there would be no floods. But this autumn rain was very strangely covering most mountains, rivers and towns. Fortunately, the rain was not as heavy and frightening as of that year when the Headmaster of Academy went to heaven.


    It was raining in Chuzhou, wetting the pavilion at the East Hill and people¡¯s clothes. Two old servants knelt down in front of the body of the governor and kept crying, and all the government officials and gentry who came from the city in the early morning looked pale and in shock. No one noticed a man who looked like an advisor did something on the pir of the pavilion.


    Although the scenery of East Hill was great, the terrain was too steep to attract tourists. People had been wondering why the governor with a reputation of honest and upright insisted on building such a pavilion on the summit of the hill in such a grim moment of the country since it would tire the people and drain the treasury. But no one knew the pavilion was actually a Transmission Array which could send important information to Chang¡¯an.


    Transmission Array like this was costly. Even the Great Tang with its abundant resources could only afford to build three, one in Hn City, one in Tuyang City and one in Chuzhou. Chuzhou enjoyed a strategic importance for it directly faced the Yan Kingdom and the Song Kingdom, which was the reason why the imperial court ordered the governor to build the pavilion and the governor agreed to do so even though it derogated from his reputation.


    In the eyes of the officials and people of Chuzhou, the man who walked into the Pavilion of East Hill was the advisor of the governor. But actually he was a secret guard of the imperial pce and what he secretly did on the pir was to start the pavilion.


    The very first information the Pavilion of East Hill sent to Chang¡¯an was neither the invasion of the Yan and Song Kingdoms nor the copse of the river embankment. It was a death announcement. The man who built the pavilion had just died.


    ...


    ...


    It was also raining in Chang¡¯an. The rain fell down along the bright yellow eaves, and the chrysanthemums in the imperial garden were more beautiful in the rain.


    In the Imperial Study, Li Yu looked at the death announcement which had just been delivered and went silent. Then he turned to look at the chrysanthemums outside the widow and continued to remain silent for a long time.


    Looking at her pale face, Zeng Jing suppressed the shock and anger in his heart and said in a hoarse voice, ¡°The imperial court must do something, or the whole country will be in chaos.¡±


    It took great courage, spirit, or historical legacy to maintain an empire, an imperial court, and a territory. But what mattered the most was actually the administrative organization. In other words, the government officials at all levels were crucial for a country, for even the perfect system would also need to be carried out by people.


    If officials could die at any time and some officials were to realize that they might die at any time, then the management system of an empire would be on the verge of copse and might fall apart irreversibly.


    The governor of Chuzhou died. The imperial court had to do something, such as finding and killing the murderer, hiding the truth, or stopping the enemy. Since it was impossible to hide the truth, the imperial court only had two options left.


    There were only two or three people in the human world who could hide their tracks from the Tianshu Institute and the Academy and killed the governor of Chuzhou secretly. The imperial court of the Great Tang was incapable of dealing with such a powerful person even though it was the most powerful kingdom in the human world, for the people capable of killing the governor had gone beyond the human world.


    Li Yu knew this very well. She looked at the chrysanthemums which were wet from the rain outside the window and said, ¡°Let the Academy handle it. Kill the man who did this, or find a way to stop him. But, Ning Que, I hope you can kill the murderer, or how could Mr. Ouyang rest in peace?¡±


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que was eating noodles on the city wall when he learned the death of the governor. He had been living on the city wall for dozens of days for he had to wait for a chance on a high ce.


    He didn¡¯t know the governor of Chuzhou but heard that he was a virtuous man. He felt sad and was silent. When he aimed the iron bow at Linkang City and waited for the Drunkardst night, he knew that the Drunkard would strike back if the n he and the Elder Brother came up with didn¡¯t work. But he never expected that the counterattack woulde so fast.


    The Drunkard and the Butcher were special existences in the history of cultivation. Their states were unpredictable and already beyond the human world. If possible, the Academy never wanted to be hostile to them. But they had be enemies that the Academy wanted to kill the most now that they had surrendered to Haotian.


    The Academy had nned to cope with the Drunkard and the Butcher for a long time, but never came up with any feasible methods. And all of the arrangements made in advance seemed to be hopeless. Ning Que keptining in his heart that it was irresponsible of the Headmaster to leave the human world before killing the Drunkard and the Butcher, but he never gave up finding the opportunity to shoot the two from afar.


    Unfortunately, he missed the opportunity, so it was very likely that he might die. If Ning Que knew that Long Qing was the reason why he missed the opportunity, he might attribute the whole matter to cause and effect.


    ¡°I want to go down,¡± Ning Que said.


    Hearing this, dozens of soldiers of the Great Tang who were responsible for taking care of him on the wall were surprised, for he had not left the wall recently.


    But he had to go. Ning Que stepped down the city wall and walked on the bluestone ground which was wet from the autumn rain.


    When autumn came, the leaves on both sides of the Vermilion Bird Avenue were quickly dyed in red and yellow. After the morning rain, countless leaves left the tree and piled up on the street.


    The Drunkard would not give them another opportunity any time soon. And all of the powerful people of the Divine Halls would be very cautious and did not dare to step foot in Chang¡¯an. So it was pointless for him to stay on the wall any longer.


    At this moment, the problem he had to solve was how to stop the Drunkard from killing people. If the Drunkard were to continue his savage act, then the Great Tang would be overturned before the army of the Divine Halls and the Golden Tribe Royal Court could struck.


    The Drunkard did not do this before, for he feared the Academy, for the remaining influence of the Headmaster of Academy still existed, and for he didn¡¯t want to destroy the human world although he had yearned for the Divine Kingdom.


    Now that he began tosh out, how was the Academy going to react?


    If the Headmaster and the Youngest Uncle were still alive, they could just simply kill the Drunkard and the Butcher. Unfortunately, they were both gone.


    The Eldest Brother was not the right person to stop the Drunkard, and neither was the Second Brother. These two would definitely risk their lives to fight against the Drunkard, just like what they did back in the Xuankong Temple.


    Ning Que had looked down on the approach of risking one¡¯s life, for he always thought that his life and all his elder brothers and sisters¡¯ lives were far more valuable than those of others, including the Drunkard, the Butcher, Chief Monk and the Abbey Dean. So he strongly disagreed with the arrangement that Chao Xiaoshu made and did not consider the approach his Eldest Brother and Second Brother would adopt.


    If the Third Sister was in Chang¡¯an, what will she do? If Lian Sheng was still alive, what will he do? Walking on the yellow and red leaves, Ning Que breathed in the fresh air and cleared his mind. He knew exactly what he should do.


    ...

 Chapter 1007 - Killing In The Autumn Wind And Rain (II)

    <h4>Chapter 1007: Killing In The Autumn Wind And Rain (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    When Ning Que found Shangguan Yangyu, this upstart of Tang was toping in the House of Red Sleeves. His characteristic triangr eyes looked even more obscene when blurred. His beard was soaked in liquor and swept on the table like a brush pen. It made him look even more funny and disgusting.


    The Tang Empire was undergoing very severe obstacles. Everyone from the Imperial Study to every ministry was running around and staying up all night. He could not understand why Shangguan Yangyu was here. But due to the urgency, he did not bother asking.


    Upon seeing him, Shangguan Yangyu became almost sober. He wanted to go to the toilet but did not dare. Instead he asked, ¡°What are you up to, Mr. Thirteen?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°I need to kill some people.¡±


    His understatement was like thunder to Shangguan and made himpletely sober now. There was a tic in his lower abdomen and he shivered. He felt like he already did his business in the toilet.


    The reason for his overreaction was that he clearly knew that whenever Ning Que said that he would kill, he would definitely act on it. Moreover, he was definitely killing someone important and he must have further ns beyond that.


    Ever since many years ago, Ning Que had started killing people in Chang¡¯an, including a lot of government officials. Shangguan started to learn about him since then. He pretended to be ignorant at the beginning, and ended up pledging absolute loyalty to him, body and soul.


    If Ning Que had not killed the censor Liu Yiqi, there was no way he could have be the governor of Chang¡¯an. To some extent, he was Ning Que¡¯s earliest supporter and benefited the most from it. He could never forget those bloody moments.


    Now that Ning Que had be the most important person in the Tang Empire, even more important than the emperor, he could kill whomever he wanted with no objections from anyone. But why did hee for Shangguan?


    Shangguan could not figure out why but became even more humble. Ning Que knew what he was thinking about but did not exin. He looked at Shangguan and asked teasingly, ¡°So, don¡¯t you want to help?¡±


    ¡°How could that be possible?¡± Shangguan Yangyu seemed solemn and looked around to make sure that no one in the house was paying attention to them. He lowered his voice and answered resolutely, ¡°Even if you were to ask me to kill someone in the imperial pce, I will definitely follow!¡±


    Ning Que seemed to be satisfied and took him out of the House of Red Sleeves.


    Shangguan Yangyu did not dare to say anything further. He grabbed his gown and went out to the street. He became a bit pale perhaps because of the chilly autumn wind and rain.


    He was absolutely courageous in the battle years ago and had been promoted rapidly to a Grand Secretary, and ranked in the top five in the imperial court. But he knew clearly that he was only able to receive this position only because Ning Que and the Academy trusted him. Therefore, no matter what the Academy wanted to do, or whom Ning Que wanted to kill, he had to support them. He was not like the Grand Secretary Zeng Jing who could always curse Ning Que without worrying about his position or being killed by the Academy. It was because he had a great daughter. However, Shangguan still could not figure out who Ning Que wanted to kill. Could he be nning to take down another Tang emperor?


    The autumn rain pattered continuously and the streets were soaked. When the carriage stopped, Shangguan Yangyu lifted the curtain and found himself not inside the imperial pce. He felt somewhat relieved.


    Ning Que took him to a huge but humble courtyard. It waspletely silent in the yard and seemed gloomy in the misty rain.


    Shangguan Yangyu knew what this courtyard was designed for but was even more confused. If the person he wanted to kill is here, he could just kill him. Why did he drag me here?


    Entering the main hall, Ning Que sat on the wooden chair. He took the tea from an official of the Ministry of Penalty and opened the lid. ¡°The tax advisors from the Ministry of Revenue will arrive soon,¡± he said.


    Having said that, he looked out to the wet corridor and sensed an indistinct lockage of Qi of Heaven and Earth. He said, ¡°We¡¯re running out of time, so we need to hurry.¡±


    When the entire world attacked the Tang Empire years ago, Li Huiyuan usurped the throne and He Mingchi took over the Tianshu Institute and South Gate Abbey. Chang¡¯an was in chaos and numerous people were killed during that time.


    When Ning Que and the empress returned to Chang¡¯an and got control of the situation, they suppressed and wiped out the rebel cultivators, sentenced or imprisoned them in this huge courtyard. The arrays here could not restrained the powerful figures of Knowing Destiny, but were far from enough to disable those cultivators.


    ¡°It¡¯s no big deal to kill...¡± Shangguan Yangyu was not able to finish his words.


    ¡°We will kill many,¡± Ning Que said. ¡°Not only those here, but many more out there. How could I kill so many by myself? The imperial court has to be part of this.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu seemed bitter and said, ¡°I have served as a Judicial Military Supervisor previously. But I have never supervised sentences. Isn¡¯t it more appropriate to get the Ministry of Penalty involved?¡±


    ¡°I can do the supervision myself. But that¡¯s not what we need.¡± Ning Que said, ¡°I¡¯ve told you that we will kill many people today. We cannot afford any mistakes. Therefore your Ministry of Revenue is the best match.¡±


    Recalling that he said the tax advisors from the Ministry of Revenue wereing, Shangguan Yangyu was shocked. He was stiff and wondered, Does he mean that he needs the Ministry of Revenue to do the counting? So... so... how many is he going to kill?


    ¡°I suppose you already know what happened to the governor of Chuzhou.¡± Ning Que stood up and walked to the handrail. He looked at the falling rain and said, ¡°You were afraid. Therefore you were indulging yourself in the House of Red Sleeves.¡±


    Everyone in the Tang Empire knew that Mr. Shangguan was greedy and virtueless. But he was most respected for his loyalty to, or even fear for, his wife. Therefore it was very unusual for such a person to be drinking and flirting around in the brothel early in the morning.


    Upon hearing Ning Que¡¯s words, Shangguang Yangyu paused for a long while then answered, ¡°Indeed... I was indeed afraid. I don¡¯t want to be killed secretly like that.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I¡¯ll make sure you are safe as long as you stay in Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu looked at his back and said, ¡°What about outside? If the Academy could not protect the government officials, how could they not be afraid?¡±


    Ning Que turned to him and said, ¡°You are right, so I need to kill as many as possible today. Only by doing so could we warn them from the further killing of our men.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu¡¯s triangr eyes suddenly brightened as he realized what the Academy was doing. But they soon dimmed again because it might not necessarily solve the problem.


    Then, the Yulin Royal Guards escorted a dozen of officials from the Ministry of Revenue in the wind and rain. They were the best at ounting and would make no mistakes with numbers.


    Thus, Ning Que could start killing.

 Chapter 1008 - Killing In The Autumn Wind And Rain (III)

    <h4>Chapter 1008: Killing In The Autumn Wind And Rain (III)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The yard was crowded with prisoners, men and women, old and young, all in shabby clothes. They looked pale, as if they hadn¡¯t seen the sun for many years. Death might be a kind of relief for them since they had already lost the courage to live on. They kneeled on the ground numbly and revealed no intentions of atonement, so the rain falling from the sky didn¡¯t add much of a solemn atmosphere to the scene.


    Seeing this, the officials from the Ministry of Revenue were nervous and their hands that were holding the pens were shaking slightly. But the executioners seemed calm and their hands holding the hilts were stable.


    ¡°How do you n on killing them?¡± Shangguan Yangyu stood behind Ning Que with his body bowed and whispered, ¡°The cultivators who participated in the rebellion, except for those died of illness and torture, are all here. You want to kill them all or pick out some unlucky fellows?¡±


    Ning Que looked at the prisoners in the autumn rain and said, ¡°Don¡¯t kill them all tonight. We may need to do this several times.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu said, ¡°What¡¯s the standard? How much the Divine Halls values them or the degree of seriousness of their crimes? Everyone here have blood on their hands.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Since we are doing this for the Divine Halls, just pick some people randomly.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu didn¡¯t understand what he meant and asked, ¡°Randomly?¡±


    Ning Que waved his hand and answered, ¡°Just take your pick.¡±


    The officials from the Ministry of Revenue stood gazing at one another, and the executioners were also shocked. But Shangguan Yangyu didn¡¯t hesitate and waved his hand, indicating to kill half of the people kneeling.


    The de cut through the rain and fell on the prisoners¡¯ necks, easilycerating their muddy skin and dry muscles and cutting off their bones with blood squirting out.


    With a slight sound, a human head fell on the ground like a mellow fruit and bounced twice in the water umted on the blue gstone. Then it settled down on the ground and the blood was quickly diluted by the rain.


    Seeing the human head, the prisoners were finally awakened from the fear of death and regained some vitality to their numb nerves. Some tried to escape from the ropes, some desperately toppled down and cried, and some looked at Ning Que with hatred in their eyes.


    Killing was always bloody. Ning Que didn¡¯t want to see the bloody scene and was not interested in having eye contact with these dying prisoners, so he turned back to the hall.


    After sipping some warm tea, he looked up to the yard again and saw that more than a dozen corpses had fallen in the autumn rain and the blood on the ground was getting thicker.


    The rain kept falling and the killing went on. The bodies kept falling to the ground heavily and made a ssh when they touched the umted water.


    Ning Que looked at the clear tea in the cup and was thinking something. Shangguang Yangyu stared at his profile and was stunned. The officials from the Ministry of Revenue kept scratching names of the prisoners off the list and turned pale while there were fewer and fewer names on the list.


    The rain went on. The frequency of the sound of human heads falling on the ground in the yard gradually slowed down and the breathing of the executioners was getting thicker and thicker. After all, chopping off so many heads was an exhausting effort.


    The coroners from the Ministry of Penalty and the relevant staffs from the Ministry of Revenue rushed to the yard to examine and then disposed the bodies. The executioners were taking their short break while drinking hard liquor.


    But the killing was not finished. Ning Que said that he was going to kill a lot of people today. After the bodies were removed and the executioners restored their energy, the killing continued.


    Then, more prisoners were brought in by the Ministry of Penalty. And Ning Que specifically ordered the Military Ministry to send in dozens of prisoners. There were so many prisoners that they couldn¡¯t all kneel down in the yard together and were divided into several batches.


    ¡°Most of them are just the traitors¡¯ family members,¡± one official from the Ministry of Revenue said to Shangguan Yangyu in shock while flipping through the list of prisoners. ¡°Do we need to kill them all?¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu did not answer the question but said to Ning Que, ¡°Should I just pick some to kill randomly?¡±


    The officials on the scene all looked dreadful. There are hundreds of people here. They are just family members involved in the war. Even though they did conceal their intelligence, they should not be condemned to death ording to thews of the Great Tang. Besides, the decision of death penalty should be made by the Ministry of Penalty. How could we just kill them in this way?


    These hundreds of family members had been in jail for several years. Because they were not cultivators, they had not been forbidden to talk. Hearing what the official said to Shangguan Yangyu, they were frightened and cried out about their grievances.


    Their charges were colluding with the enemy. ording to thews of the Great Tang, the biggest difference between colluding with the enemy and treason was that the ones who colluded with the enemy didn¡¯t betray their country voluntarily. Therefore, the family members of people whomitted treason were often considered to be colluding with the enemy.


    After the war broke out a few years ago, many Tang people came back to the Great Tang from all over the world, and two-thirds of the Taoists from the South School of Haotian Taoism cut off their ties with the Divine Halls. However, there were still many devout followers of Haotian who swore loyalty to the Divine Halls and even joined the Papal Cavalryman. Those people were traitors, and their family members were considered have colluded with the enemy even though they had broken off rtions with their rtives, for the blood rtions couldn¡¯t bepletely cut off. This was the coldest and cruelest article in thews of the Great Tang.


    In the past few years, the imperial court of the Great Tang searched the whole country and guarded the border strictly. They captured thousands of people who were suspected to be colluding with the enemy and detained them in the prisons of Chang¡¯an and other prefectures. The imperial court did so to frighten and pin down the traitors who were far away from home.


    But Ning Que was going to kill all these people at this point, which puzzled the people who were present, including the family members and the officials.


    The smell of blood filled the street on the side of the yard, and the human heads being chopped off earlier were temporarily piled up on the cart to be disposed. All of a sudden, a human head rolled down the cart and kept rolling forward to the yard. The family members kneeling down in the yard were frightened and bursted into shouts and tears.


    Ning Que looked up to the people kneeling down in the autumn rain, as if he was seeing the gray wall that got wet from the spring rain opposite the Old Brush Pen Shop and seeing Xiaohei who had already departed.


    Seeing the human head in the rain, he remembered the familicide that took ce in the General¡¯s Mansion many years ago, the blood overflowing the crack of the door and the heads of his acquaintances rolling like watermelons.


    ¡°In a spring many years ago, a rain fell on Chang¡¯an. While the imperial court and the the Divine Halls were conducting peace negotiations, I rushed into the club house of the Qinghe Prefecture with Fish-Dragon Gang and Yulin Royal Guards and killed all of people from the Qinghe Prefecture there.¡± Ning Que said, ¡°Now that I think of it, I have some regrets.¡±


    The officials rxed a little and thought that the Academy was benevolent after all. But Ning Que continued to say, ¡°Maybe I can benefit more if I had killed those people slowly back then.¡±


    The yard was silent, and the rain and the children¡¯s crying were heard.


    ¡°I know that you innocent. Those people from the Qinghe Prefecture I killed back then probably thought so too. And ording to thews of the Great Tang or based on morality, some of you are indeed innocent.¡± Ning Que looked at the people kneeling down in the rain and said, ¡°But I don¡¯t care.¡±


    The officials and Yulin Royal Guards present were all Tang people. They did care about this matter, so their faces darkened. However, Shangguan Yangyu didn¡¯t care and raised his right hand slowly in the autumn rain. He and Ning Que were both atypical Tang people. For them, thews of the Great Tang was just a tool, and the moralities were just something that a man should admire but not necessarily have.


    The executioners raised their knives. The human heads fell on the ground.


    Old faces, young faces, and childish faces turned pale instantly and lost the breath of life after losing so much blood and being washed by the rain. With the frightened shouting, the mournful begging, the resentful cursing and the sad crying, all kinds of human heads kept falling on the ground.


    Hundreds of family members of the traitors died in the rain. The knives cut through the flesh and brought death. The sound of chopping off human heads became muffled, for the des of the knives were turned. Atst, the sound was like a broken drum being beaten nonstop, which was muffled and terrifying.


    The hands of the executioners began to tremble, and the officials from the Ministry of Revenue had trouble holding their pens steadily and left more and more marks on the list. But they never received the instruction to stop.


    Shangguan Yangyu thought that he really didn¡¯t care about these people. However, while seeing all these people, men and women, old and young, falling to a pool of blood and the human heads piling up in the yard, he realized that his heart was not as strong and hard as he had thought. He reached out to wipe the sweat or rain off his face and said to Ning Que in a trembling voice, ¡°Is this enough?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°The Ministry of Revenue is best at counting money and heads. I let you take charge of this matter, for I want to know how many people I should kill. So the question is yours to answer.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu sighed and replied, ¡°I am just an ordinary person, and I can¡¯t understand the state of mind of the Grand Cultivators. The most critical thing was that I don¡¯t know whether that person would be affected by the Divine Halls. So, I don¡¯t know how many people we should kill, and I even suspect that how many people we kill won¡¯t even matter for that person.¡±


    Ning Que knew that Shangguan Yangyu did have a point. He was not sure whether the joys and sorrows in the human world could affect people like the Drunkard.


    The cold rain kept pouring, but it couldn¡¯t stop the pungent bloody smell from filling the air. Ning Que looked at the blood and said, ¡°The autumn wind and rain make the world mncholic.¡±


    Even at this moment, Shangguan Yangyu didn¡¯t forget to praise him, ¡°Good poem.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Maybe you can write one?¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu said with a bitter smile, ¡°I don¡¯t have the mood.¡±


    Ning Que reached out to catch the raindrops and said, ¡°It¡¯s not like we have better things to do.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu replied, ¡°Mr. Thirteen really knows the little pleasures of life.¡±


    ¡°Actually I don¡¯t know how many I should kill. But like I¡¯ve said, it¡¯s not like we have better things to do. These people deserve to die anyway. Besides, the imperial court has to waste money on feeding them. Since we have nothing better to do, it¡¯s not such a bad idea to kill some insignificant people in the autumn wind and rain. It does make sense that you call this the little pleasures of life.¡±


    Ning Que walked into the rain and turned around and said to the officials, ¡°Maybe we can try to kill more. The Ministry of Revenue handles the grain rations of prisoners of war, so you should know the number. Any suggestions for how many to kill?¡±

 Chapter 1009 - The Messenger (I)

    <h4>Chapter 1009: The Messenger (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The quiet front yard became even quieter. No one answered Ning Que¡¯s question. An official failed to grip his pen and it fell slightly to the ground into the rain water.


    In the human world, killing captives was a very serious issue. Human beings had walked away from bloody massacres ever since the end of the primitive times. Throughout the Tang history, no one except for Xiahou had ever done so.


    Even the virtueless Shangguan Yangyu found Ning Que¡¯s words absurd and hard to swallow. He seemed pale and could not help showing his disagreement.


    The autumn rain was still pattering and the peculiar silence remained. It was an irritating silence so Ning Que broke it.


    ¡°Why so serious? Is that so hard to decide? Then I¡¯ll make the decision myself.¡± He looked at Shangguan and said, ¡°Ask the prefectures to kill one third and see how it goes.¡±


    In the war years ago, the Tang army captured over 30 thousand enemies. They released some of them during the previous peace talk. But there were still a lot of captives imprisoned in the mine. Killing one third of them meant that the mine would be flooded with blood and the pit would be filled with bones.


    ¡°It is not auspicious to kill the captives. Heaven will be enraged. Mr. Thirteen, please reconsider,¡± an official said hoarsely. Nowadays, no one within the imperial court would dare to question the Academy, not to mention opposing it. But in certain circumstances, there were brave ones.


    Ning Que did not look at the brave official. Instead, he looked above at the grey sky. There was no trace of heavenly anger but only continuous autumn raining down.


    To kill the captives would enrage Heaven? What is Heaven? The one who is aloof at whatever happens in the human world? Or the one who upholds the heavenly rules in the cyclic existence? Either way, it is Haotian.


    Then it was just a joke. Heughed at it, but said nothing or recalled the order.


    Shangguan Yangyu said obscurely, ¡°I¡¯m afraid it cannot be executed...¡±


    Killing the captives was something contradictory to the Tang people¡¯s mentality and their aesthetics. That was his concern or excuse.


    Ning Que questioned, ¡°Why can¡¯t it be executed?¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu said, ¡°We need people to do it. And I¡¯m afraid no one is willing to.¡±


    Ning Queughed and said, ¡°If no one is willing to, then you can do it.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu was a Grand Secretary of the imperial court and was fully supported by the Academy and the imperial family. If he were to drive the execution, it would never be hard to kill the captives. However, could he afford that notoriety?


    He sighed. ¡°No wonder you wanted me here today.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°There are a few people who could carry it out nicely. There are even fewer who has the guts. In terms of not worrying about notoriety, you are probably the only one.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyuughed bitterly. ¡°How could I not be worried? That¡¯s insane.¡±


    Ning Que frowned. ¡°Are you scolding me?¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu sighed, ¡°In that case I should at least get something in return. Shouldn¡¯t I?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°As long as the Academy exists, I¡¯ll make sure your family is safe and sound for ten generations.¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu was a bit excited and confirmed, ¡°I¡¯ll do it then.¡±


    He was after all a Grand Secretary and would never chop people¡¯s heads off by himself. He made orders and asked Ning Que again, ¡°Would you like to pile up the heads or bones?¡±


    When killing captives, people would do it to the extreme. They would either keep it extremely secretive so that the enemy would not know and they would not earn themselves eternal infamy. Or they would do it extravagantly so that everyone would know and they would not care about any infamy in the history.


    He had such a discussion with Ning Que previously. The Tang Empire wanted to kill so that the Divine Halls of West-Hill would be overwhelmed with sorrow. So they must not only conduct the killing, but also expose it to their enemy as well as to the entire world. Only with this could they showcase their determination to kill and make the enemy afraid. Therefore they had to choose thetter extremity.


    As for the hundreds of cultivators and traitors¡¯ families who were already killed, and the thousands of captives to be killed in a few days, how should they be exposed to the human world?


    ¡°We are not like those grasnd barbarians. Besides, how or where can we pile up so many heads? On the Vermilion Bird Street or in front of the Wanyan Tower? What if some head falls down and scares the kids?¡±


    Ning Que looked at him and scolded, ¡°That¡¯s too bloody and too cruel!¡±


    Shangguan Yangyu found himself to be innocent. However, recalling that many innocent people were already killed today, he chose not to defend himself and listened humbly.


    ¡°I knew what you meant. As I mentioned, justice has to be fulfilled and showcased, and so does the killing. We should indeed let them see this. Let the Divine Halls see this. But we don¡¯t need to scare our own people. There has to be another way.¡±


    Ning Que turned to the man sitting on the chair next to him and said, ¡°I suppose the Divine Halls will see it clearly and understand what it means. What do you think?¡±


    The courtyard was a scene of ughter. Above the rock stairs was the best ce to watch it. No one noticed since when two wooden chairs were ced there. Ning Que was sitting on one, and a white haired man was on the other.


    The man looked exhausted. Despite the white hair, he did not seem very old or young. He was Cheng Lixue, the head of Revtion Institute.


    Upon hearing Ning Que¡¯s words, Cheng Lixue said, ¡°The Divine Halls should be aware of it. But I wonder if you are aware of what you¡¯re doing.¡±


    He was sent to stay in Chang¡¯an by the Divine Halls to take charge of everything here. It seemed like an important position. Yet everyone knew he was disgraced and expelled to the most dangerous ce.


    Ning Que said, ¡°You know clearly what I¡¯m doing. Then of course I know what I¡¯m doing. But I need you to tell me whether or not it will work.¡±


    Cheng Lixue said, ¡°I¡¯m after all a member of the Divine Halls of West-Hill.¡±


    Ning Que watched the falling autumn rain in the courtyard and said, ¡°The former Great Divine Priest is dead. The Divine Halls are now upied by the South Sea people. And you are expelled from Peach Mountain. Hence you are no longer one of them.¡±


    Cheng Lixueughed and asked, ¡°What do you want me to say?¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°I want to know whose order the Drunkard follows.¡±


    Cheng Lixue said, ¡°Of course it¡¯s Haotian¡¯s.¡±


    Ning Que stared at him calmly and continued, ¡°Haotian is not in the human world now. Then who is the messenger for the Drunkard? It was the Revtion Institute previously. But who is it now?¡±

 Chapter 1010 - The Treachery (I)

    <h4>Chapter 1010: The Treachery (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Cheng Lixue answered, ¡°The Abbey Dean has been living in Peach Mountain.¡±


    Ning Que knew what he meant. Looking at the rain which was getting heavier, he said, ¡°Zhao Nanhai wants to be the Great Divine Priest of Revtion, but you are still alive. This indicates something.¡±


    Cheng Lixue kept silent.


    Ning Que turned around and continued to say, ¡°You still have influence over the Divine Hall of Revtion, otherwise you would have been dead already and those people on Peach Mountain wouldn¡¯t have bothered to send you here to be killed by me. The reason that I want to talk with you is not that I still remember our old friendship, but that you are still alive. You have proved your power. If you think that you don¡¯t have sufficient power, I can help you. You should know that I still have my contact with the Divine Halls of West-Hill.¡±


    Cheng Lixue was stunned. He knew who Ning Que meant, but felt that the way he said it was too ridiculous. He wanted tough but his mind was weighed down with anxiety.


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Why are you so silent?¡±


    Cheng Lixue thought for a while and then exined, ¡°Silence represents will, valuable will, such as piety, firmness, and faith.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head, pointed at the gloomy sky above the rain and said, ¡°If your belief in Haotian is that pious, she should choose you as the sessor.¡±


    The sessions of the three Great Divine Priests in the Divine Halls of West-Hill differed from one another. The Great Divine Priest of Judgement was chosen ording to candidates¡¯ power, the Great Divine Priest of Light was designated by the current Great Divine Priest, and the Great Divine Priest of Revtion was appointed directly by Haotian.


    ¡°When I first met you in the Wilderness, General Shu Cheng said that you have already entered See-through Zenith and was only one step away from the Knowing Destiny State like Long Qing. Over the years, Long Qing entered the Knowing Destiny State and probably has reached the Knowing Destiny Zenith. But what about you? You are still in the See-through Zenith, and the rain in this spring has not helped you go a step further.¡± Ning Que said with pity, ¡°Haotian has long lost her faith in you.¡±


    Cheng Lixue replied calmly, ¡°The threshold of Knowing Destiny State is extremely high, and it¡¯s normal that I can¡¯t reach it. There are only a few people in the cultivation world, not to mention that I am still young.¡± Cheng Lixue was in his thirties. He was indeed very remarkable to reach See-through Zenith at such a young age. But the situation in the cultivation world was quite different now.


    ¡°Open your eyes and look at the world.¡± Ning Que looked at his eyes and taunted, ¡°The world has changed a lot over the years. Rain fell upon the human world when the Headmaster went to Heaven and another rain fell when she was back to the Divine Kingdom this spring. After these two rains, many cultivators reached the See-through State and even the Knowing Destiny State. As the Divine Priest of Revtion, do you feel ashamed about your current state?¡±


    Cheng Lixueughed genuinely. He did not agonize over what Ning Que said, for he had already passed the phase in spring.


    ¡°Maybe you could have convinced me if it was before the spring rain. But that rain has proven too many things. I must regain my faith in Haotian, so I dare not to be convinced.¡± He left the chair and walked up to the steps. Then he turned around and said to Ning Que, ¡°As for whom Haotian will choose to be Great Divine Priest of Revtion, you have guessed wrong. She chose Long Qing. As long as Long Qing couldplete the mission of wiping out the New Stream, he will be the next Great Divine Priest of Revtion. Of course Zhao Nanhai has his eyes on the position, but he won¡¯t seed.¡±


    ¡°Long Qing...¡± Ning Que¡¯s voice sounded a little ethereal in the heavy rain. ¡°Is this why he is ordered to kill Ye Su? Will Ye Hongyu just let him do it?¡±


    Cheng Lixue said, ¡°What can the Great Divine Priest of Judgement do about this? Or do you expect her to do something? You said that you have contact with someone from Peach Mountain who can help me, and I guess you meant Ye Hongyu. But do you really believe you can turn the Divine Halls upside down in this way? How could you have such a naive idea?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°A naive idea is still an idea, which is better than no idea. Besides, she definitely nned to do something from the moment Taoism decided to destroy the New Stream.¡±


    Cheng Lixue said, ¡°You are not a religious man, so you can¡¯t understand these things.¡±


    ¡°You are not wrong. I always wondered what she really wants to do.¡± Ning Que stood up and stared at the blood which was diluted by the rain. Remembering that Ye Hongyu hade to the Yanming Lake in the strong wind and rain, he requested, ¡°If you don¡¯t want to go back to Peach Mountain, then please pass on a message to her.¡±


    Cheng Lixue asked, ¡°What message?¡±


    ¡°Tell her to run.¡± Ning Que said, ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter whether she wants to stay in Peach Mountain or help Ye Su or do something else. Tell her to not try anything, do not arrange anything and even do not think about anything, just run as fast and far as possible.¡±


    Cheng Lixue went silent for quite a while and then said, ¡°Maybe you underestimate the Great Divine Priest of Judgement.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°From the first day I knew her, I never underestimated her. I know that she definitely has a n and her silence means something is going to happen. I know she won¡¯t overestimate herself, but I am worried that she might underestimate one person.¡±


    ¡°Who?¡±


    ¡°The Abbey Dean, even though he has lost his power.¡± Ning Que answered, ¡°With her current state, she doesn¡¯t stand a chance in defeating the Abbey Dean. Her n means nothing to the Abbey Dean, so she must run as fast as she can.¡±


    Cheng Lixue disagreed with him and argued, ¡°Do you really think that people like the Great Divine Priest of Judgement would underestimate their opponent, especially an opponent like the Abbey Dean?¡±


    ¡°I know she won¡¯t underestimate her opponent, but she doesn¡¯t have the experience of fighting against the Abbey Dean. She doesn¡¯t know that the Abbey Dean is an opponent that can never be overestimated.¡± Ning Que said, ¡°What worries me the most is that she is scheming against the Abbey Dean. But the Abbey Dean would never fall into any scheme.¡±


    Cheng Lixue said, ¡°But the Abbey Dean fell into the scheme of the Academy back in the Battle of Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°That¡¯s different. My scheme was the God¡¯s n back then.¡±


    In fact, what he meant was that his soul didn¡¯t belong to this world, so the Abbey Dean couldn¡¯t calcte what he was thinking. But for Cheng Lixue, what Ning Que said sounded a little disrespectful to Haotian.


    After a moment of silence, Cheng Lixue asked, ¡°The Academy is no match for Taoism, and the Great Tang will inevitably be destroyed. So what¡¯s the point of making the Great Divine Priest of Judgement leave Peach Mountain and join hands with you?¡±


    ¡°So the reason why you and the old friends from the Divine Hall of Revtion won¡¯t join the fight is that you think it is a death struggle?¡± Ning Que said, ¡°But I don¡¯t understand why you all think Taoism will win the final battle.¡±


    ¡°The world has changed from the moment when Liu Yiqing killed the emperor of the South Jin Kingdom. The oue has be a thing that can be determined by a few people.¡±


    Cheng Lixue said, ¡°Sizing up the situation has be a simple sum. So it would be difficult if you want to subvert me and the Divine Hall of Revtion.¡±


    Ning Que went silent for a while and then said, ¡°I really want to know what¡¯s your answer to that simple sum.¡±

 Chapter 1011 - The Treachery (II)

    <h4>Chapter 1011: The Treachery (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    There were only a few who had influence over the trend in the human world. Therefore Cheng Lixue said it was a very simple sum. But Ning Que did not think so. He wanted the answer even though it was simple.


    Cheng Lixue looked at him who was standing in front of a curtain of rain, and said, ¡°Mr. First had to stay in the imperial pce and guard the Tang emperor until you came back from the Xuankong Temple. Even though he had left Chang¡¯an, he still has no freedom but to follow the Drunkard.¡±


    ¡°Mr. Second has pinned down the entire Buddhism and stunned the cultivation world. Yet he won¡¯t be able to leave the Xuankong Temple soon because after all he is not the Headmaster.¡±


    He continued, ¡°Mrs. Third is hard to track. It seems no one knows where she is. But actually we are all aware she has always been in the grasnd, leading the strongest from the Wild People and working together with Tang to secretly kill those in the East Royal Court.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The East Wilderness is not far from Yan or Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Cheng Lixue said, ¡°But she is noting to the south. Being the current leader of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, how could she waste her time on the East Royal Court? What she really wants is Hn Mountain. The Academy wants the Wild People to enter the West Wilderness and attack the Golden Tribe together with the Northern Battlefront Army from both sides. You could never conceal this from the Abbey Dean.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°It¡¯s definitely hard to be concealed. But what matters is whether or not we can seed. You cannot deny that we at least seem to have a bigger chance of winning.¡±


    Cheng Lixue smiled faintly and said, ¡°You used to serve in the army of Wei so you should know clearly how strong the Golden Tribe Royal Court is. Then why are you deceiving yourself? Even if she is the Twenty-Three-year Cicada, she could never win against the Golden Tribe alone. If she wants to carry out the Academy¡¯s n, how could she have the extra energy to deal with the Central ins?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I don¡¯t want to exhaust Senior Sister.¡±


    Cheng Lixue said, ¡°Since the three of them are away, who can you count on? Chen Pipi¡¯s Mountain of Snow and Ocean of Qi was destroyed, and Tang Xiaotang has been in exile with him. Xu Chi has been struggling against General Lebu and other priests. How could you and the rest of the Back Hill be a match against the powerful Taoist cultivators?¡±


    Ning Que said after a short pause, ¡°That¡¯s not a problem.¡±


    Cheng Lixue looked at the calm Ning Que and mocked. ¡°The Abbey Dean, the Hierarch, Zhao Nanhai, Long Qing, or Hengmu, you could hardly defeat any of them. What do you mean that¡¯s not a problem?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Fighting a battle is different from ying chess. Those powerful Taoist cultivators are nothing to me, so that¡¯s not a problem. But you left out someone... The middle-aged priest by the Abbey Dean¡¯s wheelchair, to me, is far more troublesome than people like Zhao Nanhai and Long Qing.¡±


    Cheng Lixue wondered, ¡°Why do you think so?¡±


    ¡°The cryptic ones are always more dangerous. But of course I just think he is more troublesome. I¡¯m never afraid. And I still think that¡¯s not a problem.¡± Ning Que looked into his eyes and said, ¡°As long as we can take down the Drunkard and the Butcher, the Divine Halls of West-Hill are nothing but some shabby buildings to me. That¡¯s the confidence I want you to have as well.¡±


    Ever since the beginning, the Academy had always made precise judgements for the situations. They supported the spread of New Stream, prepared Chang¡¯an for a war, sent Yu Lian to the Wilderness and Jun Mo to the Xuankong Temple. Intentionally or unintentionally they had been trying to quake the foundation of Taoism to extinct them as soon as possible. Only by doing so could they cut off Haotian¡¯s power supply and help their Headmaster defeat Haotian.


    In order to destroy the Haotian Taoism in Haotian¡¯s world, they must undergo extremely hard battles. The Abbey Dean was a wastrel now despite his unparalleled wisdom. He could never restore the divine power that he once possessed when he visited Chang¡¯an by himself. Even though many young cultivators were blessed by the rain in spring, they could never defeat the three masters of the Academy.


    Unfortunately, before Haotian left the human world for her Divine Kingdom, she found the two most powerful and terrifying watchdogs for Taoism and her followers.


    ¡°I¡¯ve said it was a very simple sum. Even some kid who had only attended preliminary school would be able to do that. Everyone knows who the Academy wants to kill.¡±


    Cheng Lixue continued, ¡°But the problem is, it¡¯s impossible to kill these two.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°As long as they are human, they can be killed.¡±


    Cheng Lixue said, ¡°To an extent, hese two are no longer just humans.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The Abbey Dean used to be a divine figure, but he was also deadly wounded by the Academy.¡±


    Cheng Lixue said, ¡°The Drunkard and the Butcher are different from the Abbey Dean as they know exactly how to keep themselves alive. They have lived many years under Haotian¡¯s watch and even survived the previous Ever Night. Even time is not a problem for them. The Headmaster did not try to take them down. Why do you think you could do it?¡±


    Ning Que did not exin further but simply asked, ¡°So on the day when we will kill them, will you and the Revtion Institution surrender?¡±


    Cheng Lixue became stern and asked, ¡°The Academy¡¯s confidence... where does ite from?¡±


    Ning Que turned to the pouring rain and said nothing further.


    ...


    ...


    The South Jin was located in the south, so even in the deep autumn the leaves on the mountains outside Linkang were still green. It seemed even more like spring after the morning rain.


    The Drunkard and the Eldest Brother were strolling on the mountain trail. It was hard to tell who was faster although there were walking side by side. After all, they were temporarily keeping each otherpany on the journey.


    With the Abbey Dean on the wheelchair, they were the fastest two people in the world. Yet they were walking extremely slowly and unrestrained in the rain.


    ¡°I know you have always wanted to kill me, more than you wanted to kill the Butcher. It is because I am faster than the Butcher, and thus more dangerous for you.¡± Raindrops fell on the Drunkard¡¯s gown and then onto the ground, like dewdrops on lotus leaves. His voice also seemed like dewdrops and was no longer full of vicissitudes or rottenness.


    The Eldest Brother stared at the blood stain on his gown and said, ¡°And also the one we want to work with the most.¡±


    The Drunkard smiled and asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°We want to help the Headmaster to defeat Haotian, so we have to destroy Taoism.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°Then you should be more eager to kill me.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°You have nothing to do with Taoism. Working together with the Academy to go against Taoism might just seem like a simple choice to you but could mean much less bloodshed in the human world.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°That was in the past... Ever since she came to me, I have been bonded with Taoism.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°But she has already left the human world.¡±


    The Drunkard said with a meaningful smile, ¡°They say you are the most virtuous, kind, and loyal person in the world. Who would expect you to talk me into treachery? Why?¡±


    ¡°Loyalty is for human, but she is not human. So it¡¯s hard to say what is loyalty...¡± The Eldest Brother suddenly became quiet. After a long while he pointed at the Drunkard¡¯s gown and said, ¡°That was nonsense. Treachery is treachery. If you would betray her, then I would ignore the death of the governor, not to mention the rest.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 1012 - Happy Excursion

    <h4>Chapter 1012: Happy Excursion</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    While saying this, the Eldest Brother was very calm. His eyebrows were still straight, and his eyes were still full of honesty. But actually one could feel the extreme and cold pain that was hidden behind his calmness.


    Hearing what Eldest Brother said, the Drunkard seemed calm too. But his calmness was more dignified, for what the Academy offered was rted to treachery. But he had to believe the Eldest Brother due to the reputation of the Academy.


    For thousands of years, he and the Butcher hardly had any grudges against the Academy or the Headmaster. But everything changed when the governor diedst night. If the Academy could really leave all of the disputes behind and join hands with the Drunkard and the Butcher, then they might defeat the Peach Mountain, and burn the Divine Halls and destroy Taoism, rocking the foundation of the world of Haotian!


    The green mountains outside Linkang were quiet. Looking at the world in the autumn rain, he went silent and the gon tied around his waist was gently swaying in the wind and rain, like a small boat in the rolling mountains of waves.


    As the rain abated, the clouds above the mountains and ins were thinner and thinner and time gradually passed by, but he still kept silent and didn¡¯t reply to the Academy¡¯s offer. A suffocating nervy atmosphere permeated the mountain road.


    The Drunkard¡¯s answer, to some extent, would determine the future of the human world. It was only natural that he took all the time he needed. The sky went dark, and the evening twilight dyed the clouds red and then burned them into ashes. The darkness fell and the bright moon appeared on the sky. He finally broke the silence and made an answer.


    The Drunkard answered simply, ¡°No.¡±


    The moonlight sprinkled on the cheeks of the Eldest Brother, and he turned pale, ¡°Why not?¡±


    ¡°Because Haotian is omnipotent.¡± The Drunkard looked at the moonlight on the face of the Eldest Brother and said calmly, ¡°That spring rain, Hengmu, the teenager from the Tribe of Savages in the north, and the Abby Dean are all proof. For countless years, the Butcher and I have been hiding in the human world and watching how Taoism is ruling the world. I have seen too many simr situations. Although Taoism has never had a leader as powerful as the Headmaster, Haotian has proven too many things.¡±


    Hearing this, the Eldest Brother shook his head and said while pointing to the night sky, ¡°The Headmaster said several times that Haotian is omnipotent, but he never actually believed so. That¡¯s why he went to Heaven to fight against Haotian. That was why another moon appeared in the human world.¡±


    The direction he pointed was exactly the beautiful moon in the night sky.


    The Drunkard looked at the moon following his finger and said, ¡°But look...the face of the moon has been secretly changing. Ordinary people won¡¯t notice that the moon is dimming, but we can¡¯t just ignore the fact.¡±


    The darkening of the moon meant that the Headmaster was gradually weakening. A powerful cultivator like the Drunkard would never read the astronomical phenomena wrong. In fact, the Academy was well aware of the fact, and all its disciples, including the Eldest Brother, were worried about it.


    ¡°But there is hope since the moon is still bright,¡± the Eldest Brother said.


    The Drunkard shook his head and said, ¡°It is pointless for me even if the moon can be bright for tens of thousands of years. I want eternity. Nobody can grant me eternity except for Haotian. The Headmaster is not an immortal himself, so how could he help me? How does the Academy n to convince me since you can¡¯t give me what I want?¡±


    The Eldest Brother was silent for a long time and then asked, ¡°Is this really that important?¡±


    The Drunkard looked at him and answered, ¡°The meaning of survival lies in survival.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°I thought it lies in the experience.¡±


    The Drunkard taunted, ¡°Only those who cannot be eternal will ignore the meaning of eternity. Just like only those who can¡¯t have grapes will say that grapes are sour.¡±


    The Eldest Brother sighed, ¡°So in your opinion, the word ¡®love¡¯ must be meaningless and useless.¡±


    ¡°Like I¡¯ve said before, I love no one and nothing in the human world. What is love anyway? You are still too young to understand that love is really meaningless whenpared with time.¡± Speaking of this, the Drunkard revealed a little sentimentality and nostalgia and said, ¡°I¡¯ve lived long enough to see my fair share of joys and sorrows, and matters such as birth, death, illness and old age have been always around me. For me, there is nothing new in the human world and I have already seen through everything.¡±


    He continued. ¡°Time will kill all of your old friends, turn your new friends into old friends, and then kill them too. You will be a wise man who won¡¯t value love too much, and you also will be a walking corpse whose body and soul are both rotten. But meanwhile, you will think a lot and eventually understand that the meaning of survival lies in survival.¡±


    He looked at the night sky and said calmly, ¡°I have been getting on with the damn time for too many years, and I know very well how invincible it is. Thus, I will not miss any chance to ovee it.¡± The Drunkard tonight was a little different from him of the past. In the past, he didn¡¯t seem to be strong whether he was in a small town or in Xuankong Temple. He used to be like a stone in the Wilderness, but at this moment, he was like a steep mountain.


    That was because he was reserved but unreflective in the past, just like the rotten woods and the dumb stones. But tonight, he was thinking and expressing his own thoughts, so his mind seemed to havee alive.


    Hearing this, the Eldest Brother went silent for a moment and then asked, ¡°So, what about freedom?¡±


    The Drunkard answered, ¡°What is freedom? It is mastery, understanding, the boundary of knowledge and vision... Freedom is indeed something more beautiful than love, but who can be rally free?¡±


    The Eldest Brother shook his head and replied, ¡°There is no absolute freedom, but people will always yearn for it. The Headmaster had been flying in the sky at night. Although he was lonely, I bet he was certainly very happy.¡±


    The Drunkard squinted his eyes and asked, ¡°Even if you will die touching the boundary? Even if breaking the boundary means perishing?


    ¡°Due to what happened to Sangsang in the past, my Youngest Brother once taught me that we can¡¯t just destroy all possibilities just because of the possibility of a bad oue, for being alive is a collection of countless possibilities.¡± The Eldest Brother said, ¡°So living without any possibilities means death.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°Maybe the outside is never as good as you think it is.¡±


    ¡°My Youngest Brother also said that the human¡¯s conquest is like the sea of stars.¡±


    The Eldest Brother looked at the stars in the night sky, as if seeing the real stars outside the night sky. He smiled brightly and continued to say, ¡°I am not a fan of traveling, but I am delighted beyond measure every time I think of what my Youngest Brother said. I think the underlying pleasure of conquest can surpass the fear of death.¡±


    The Drunkard meditate for quite a while and then asked, ¡°What¡¯s the name of this joyful conquest?¡±


    The Eldest Brother answered, ¡°Happy excursion.¡±


    Hearing this, the Drunkard looked up at the sky which was studded with twinkling stars and forgot to speak.

 Chapter 1013 - Who Fights With His Life, And Who Sells The Liquor?

    <h4>Chapter 1013: Who Fights With His Life, And Who Sells The Liquor?</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The Drunkard stared at the starry night and pondered for a long while. He was having some subtle sentiments as if he had been drinking too much and found himself amidst an ocean of stars. He was either too drunk or unwilling to look for a way out.


    ¡°Perhaps it will indeed be beautiful.¡±


    He stared at the stars and suddenly seemed scared. He was like a kid who had been exposed to a whole new world out of his mountain vige, and he was filled with fear and restlessness. His voice trembled, ¡°Yet also scary.¡±


    The sweetest candy was probably the most poisonous drug. The best hope was sometimes the worst fear. It could be alluring to be free, but dreadful to be independent. It was just a matter of choice.


    The Eldest Brother sighed gently, as he knew the Drunkard was already sober and had made up his mind.


    The Drunkard turned to him and said solemnly, ¡°To me, being alive is always more important than anything else. I can give up a lot for it.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°It¡¯s not conflicting to be alive and to pursue.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°But the pursuit of the Academy is conflicting with Haotian¡¯s will.¡±


    The Eldest Brother asked, ¡°Why does Haotian¡¯s will matter to you and me in terms of being alive?¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°The reason for me being able to survive throughout these years is because I would never fight for a losing battle. Your Headmaster could not defeat Haotian. How could I?¡±


    The Eldest Brother pondered for a long while then asked suddenly, ¡°What about the Academy?¡±


    The Drunkard frowned slightly.


    The Eldest Brother looked into his eyes calmly and said, ¡°If you won¡¯t stand against Haotian, then you will be against the Academy. Youck the confidence to defeat Haotian, then are you sure you can defeat the Academy?¡±


    The Drunkard frowned further and his eyebrows seemed like two steady strokes in the dark wind.


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°If I cannot talk you into treachery, then we will have to fight against you.¡±


    The Drunkard asked, ¡°What will the Academy do?¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°The Academy ... we will fight with our lives.¡±


    Years ago in Lanke Temple, the Academy fought with their lives in the autumn rain. Later in Chang¡¯an, in the Verdant Canyon and the Wilderness, they fought with their lives too. They fought desperately to kill their enemies. Everyone in the Academy was proud, or even narcissistic. Their lives and the lives of their fellows were the most important to them. Therefore whenever they fight with their lives, it must be a desperate situation and they would definitely bring about an unimaginable power.


    It did not matter if it was Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword, the Chief Monk of Scripture, or the Abbey Dean. The Academy had defeated every one of their most powerful enemies by fighting with their lives even it was Heaven.


    Would the Drunkard and the Butcher be exceptions?


    ¡°Interestingly, in the Academy those who would fight with their lives cannot catch up with me, such as Lin Wu, Jun Mo or even Ning Que. The one who could catch up with me won¡¯t fight with his life.¡±


    The Drunkard looked at him and said calmly, ¡°If the Academy were to fight against me, then you are probably the only match. We are both Distanceless. We walk the same way and see the same sceneries. Being able to catch up is the premise. But are you sure you know how to fight with your life?¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°Everything can be learned. And I¡¯m a good learner.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°When we were at Xuankong Temple, I said that you have made a lot progress. You are much stronger than when you fought against the Abbey Dean... To be enlightened overnight, you are indeed the best student of the Headmaster, and you are indeed good at learning, much better than Jun Mo or Lin Wu. But are you sure you can learn to fight with your life?¡±


    The Eldest Brother sighed, ¡°It¡¯s easy to risk one¡¯s own life instead of the ones of others.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°That¡¯s what I provedst night. You¡¯ve learned to fight, and you took over the cudgel. However... you still cannot kill because it¡¯s not in you.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°Perhaps I¡¯ll bring someone who can.¡±


    ¡°You could carry a Bodhi tree back to the Academy from thousands of miles away. But you could never carry a man for thousands of miles to a fight. When you carried Jun Mo, how far did you make?¡± The Drunkard continued, ¡°That was actually what scares me. If you could really carry Lin Wu for a thousand miles to kill me, then what can I do except for to head back to my little town and stay with the Butcher?¡±


    The Eldest Brother said bitterly, ¡°If you were to go back to the little town, then so my Youngest Brother¡¯s arrow.¡±


    The Drunkard was slightly shocked. He realized that the Academy had nned for such a possibility but it was never executed. That was why they could talk about it right now. The autumn wind arose and raindrops fell from the leaves while he disappeared.


    The Eldest Brother was slightly angry. The raindrops fell intensively on his cotton-padded gown as if they were falling on a sandy beach. The gown was slightly wet but became dry immediately.


    The raindrops fell on the ground. They could not prate into the rocky ground and formed a shallow puddle in front of him. An ant was struggling in the puddle. He looked at the puddle silently and flipped a golden leaf onto the puddle. Within a short while the ant managed to climb onto the edge of the leaf and was saved.


    The surface of the puddle shivered when a shadow appeared above it.


    The Drunkard was back to the woods. He covered the starlights and seemed gloomy.


    The Eldest Brother raised to ask, ¡°Why did you kill again?¡±


    There was no new blood on the Drunkard¡¯s gown, but someone had indeed been killed.


    ¡°I¡¯ve told you. The Academy should not try to kill me, or evene up with the slightest attempt because that will make me afraid and suffer. When I suffer, I will make sure you suffer and fear even more.¡±


    ¡°Who ... was it this time?¡±


    ¡°I have no idea. Probably an ordinary?¡± The Drunkard said emotionlessly, ¡°Perhaps it was a Tang soldier, or someone from Yan. I just kill. I do not pick. Perhaps next time I will kill someone from the Wilderness.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said nothing.


    The Drunkard looked at him sympathetically and said, ¡°The virtuous haspassion. You do not want to kill, or see me kill. If you cannot fight with your life, then you have to learn to ept it. From now on, the Academy should stay quiet. When the Divine Halls have burned the tens of thousands of followers of the New Stream, and cleared every region around the Tang Empire, they wille for the Academy.¡±


    The Eldest Brother gazed at him and asked, ¡°What does killing mean to you? Are you seeing yourself as a divine existence so it never bothered you? Or are you even enjoying it?¡±


    ¡°It doesn¡¯t bother me indeed. But I do not enjoy it either.¡±


    The Drunkard walked to the cliff and looked at the human world in the darkness. He watched the very few lights in Linkang and said calmly, ¡°I don¡¯t like to kill blindly. But to me, all human beings are merely animals... If I were crazy, I might find it interesting to kill my own kind. But since I¡¯m killing some animals like fish or chickens, why should I feel excited?¡±


    The Eldest Brother came to his side and looked at the human world in the darkness. He watched the lights and shades in Linkang, and put his right hand on the cudgel quietly. ¡°Is it impossible to change anything?¡± he asked.


    The nightsted long, but disappeared in a blink. The warm red sun jumped out of the horizon and brightened the mountains in the autumn rain.


    The Drunkard said, ¡°The sun will rise again and the daytime will never be dark. It¡¯s Haotian¡¯s world. No one but Haotian is eternal. You can never change the rules.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°We, Tang people, never give up. Neither will the Academy. I might not be able to change the rules of this world or you, but I can change myself.¡±


    The Drunkard looked at the cudgel in his right hand and asked, ¡°You want to kill me?¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°I cannot kill you. But I can kill someone else.¡±


    The Drunkard frowned and asked, ¡°You want to make a change, even if it¡¯s a disgrace?¡±


    The Eldest Brother answered, ¡°Yes. Even if it¡¯s a disgrace.¡±


    The Drunkard asked after a pause, ¡°Who are you nning to kill?¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°I will go to the little town and find the girl who sells liquor. I¡¯ll see if she is pretty and ask for the age of the liquor she sells, and that if you ever owed her any money.¡±


    The Drunkard paused for a while then said, ¡°Do as you wish.¡±

 Chapter 1014 - Put Up A Building To Watch The Autumn Wind

    <h4>Chapter 1014: Put Up A Building To Watch The Autumn Wind</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The autumn rain kept falling down quietly. Suddenly, the hasty sound of hooves came from the foot of the mountain, and a horseman appeared and shouted something loudly. The Eldest Brother, who was preparing to leave, nced at the Drunkard.


    The horseman was all wet and the warhorse was covered in wet mud. The horseman wore a ck and gold armor which had lost its original majestic and gorgeous appearance.


    The soldier was from the Divine Halls, and it seemed that he came here for an urgent matter. The Drunkard frowned slightly, which was rare, for there were not so many things in the human world that he cared for. Besides, finding him and Li Manman in the autumn rain was not easy. It was very likely that the Divine Halls sent tens of thousands of soldiers searching for them. So what happened on Earth?


    With a clear sound, the soldier kneeled down, touched the ground with his forehead and passed the message to the Drunkard in a trembling voice.


    Ning Que had started killing people in Chang¡¯an.


    Hearing this, the Drunkard looked more serious, but the Eldest Brother looked rxed.


    The Divine Halls didn¡¯t know who Ning Que killed or how many he killed, just that he started killing people. And ording to the intelligence from the Great Tang, all prefectures were beginning to kill people.


    ¡°You know, I nned to leave here and start killing people before.Now I see,¡± said the Eldest Brother as he turned to look at the Drunkard, revealing deep guilt and self-me. ¡°My Youngest Brother is much braver than me.¡±


    ¡°This kind of determination has nothing to do with bravery. It is just a habit. He is used to killing people and risking other people¡¯s lives to win. As I¡¯ve said before, he is a person who is good at risking his life.¡± The Drunkard replied without any expression, ¡°But I¡¯ve also said that I love no one and nothing in the human world. What Ning Que did won¡¯t affect me.¡±


    The Eldest Brother pointed to the soldier who was kneeling in the rain and said, ¡°But it will affect Taoism. Otherwise they won¡¯t be so anxious to find you. Maybe you should hear what he has to say.¡±


    Hearing this, the soldier lowered his head and his voice trembled heavily, sounding very pitiful. ¡°Please wait patiently.¡±


    The Drunkard replied with sarcasm, ¡°No matter how many people Ning Que killed in Chang¡¯an yesterday and no matter how many people he will kill in the future, I couldn¡¯t care less about those ordinary people. What¡¯s the point of waiting?¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°Killing all of the Tang people is not the ending you want, and you are also waiting to be persuaded. My Youngest Brother just gives you an excuse.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°The excuse is too naive. Does he really think that he can stop the dispute in this way? Is he not afraid that the human world would fall into chaos?¡±


    The Eldest Brother answered, ¡°Haotian would not want to rule not a cold and uninhabited world, for she would perish too. She would hate to see the world be destroyed.¡±


    The Drunkard went angry and shouted, ¡°How dare he destroy the world? The Headmaster would kill him directly, not to mention Haotian! It¡¯s ridiculous!¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°No one can change the decision my Youngest Brother made. Jun Mo and I couldn¡¯t talk him out of it, and Haotian couldn¡¯t affect him either. The Headmaster might be able to persuade him, but he can¡¯te back yet. So who can stop my Youngest Brother if he really wants to destroy the world?¡±


    At this point, the loud sound of hooves came from far away, even drowning the sound of the falling rain. Hundreds of cavalrymen from the Divine Halls were rushing to the Autumn Mountain from Linkang City and other directions.


    The Eldest Brother looked at these anxious cavalrymen and said, ¡°The Abbey Dean knows what Ning Que ns to do, so he will definitely find a way to convince you.¡±


    ...


    ...


    One day in thete autumn, the governor of Chuzhou of the Great Tang passed away. On the same day, five hundred and thirty one people were killed in Chang¡¯an. In the following days, more than two thousand prisoners, old and young, men and women, were secretly executed in all prefectures of the Great Tang. These prisoners were not sentenced to death, but they were executed for one reason.


    The Drunkard killed the governor, which angered and frightened the Great Tang. Ning Que executed these prisoners to anger and frighten Taoism. Thus, it was


    revenge.


    As Ning Que had expected, the Divine Halls was caught in rage and fear while receiving the news. And after learning that the Great Tang was nning to secretly execute tens of thousands of prisoners of war, the Divine Hall could not remain silence any longer.


    Fortunately, it only took only one day for the Divine Halls to find the Drunkard on the Autumn Mountain outside the Linkang city and persuade him to wait with the help of Mr. First of the Academy.


    Ning Que did Taoism a favor to wait for another day before executing those prisoners of war. In the cold rain, the Divine Halls ordered thousands of


    people of the South Jin Kingdom to put up a building on the mountain outside the Linkang City within half a day.


    The autumn wind blew across the building, sometimes to the east, and sometimes to the west. Nobody knew whether the east wind would prevail over the west wind or the other way around, and nobody knew what would happen in the future.


    Standing inside the building, the Drunkard watched the autumn wind and waited for the information on how many people Ning Que killed and how Taoism nned on convincing him. But actually, he was trying to figure out his own mind.


    The Eldest Brother waited outside the building and held a wooden stick in his hand. Looking at the red, yellow, and green leaves all over the mountain, he made up his mind. If the Drunkard is not willing to wait, the wooden stick can be put to use.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que closed the pale brown-oiled paper umbre and flicked the raindrops off his clothes. He looked to the south and said, ¡°I heard that it rains a lot in the autumn in the South Jin Kingdom. If I am in charge of the Divine Halls, then I will build a pavilion for the Drunkard. After all, we make such a powerful man sit around waiting.¡±


    Cheng Lixue untied his headscarf, and the snow-like silver hair hung down. He walked to the edge of the city wall and looked at Chang¡¯an in the rain. After a moment of silence, he finally opened his mouth, ¡°I said the day before yesterday, you can¡¯t affect the Drunkard even though you can frighten Taoism. Whether Taoism could convince the Drunkard still remains a mystery. Why don¡¯t you just stop the killing if you really want to make the Drunkard stop killing? You should know that you have killed so many people.¡±


    ¡°I only need to be sure that what I did can frighten Taoism. As for how Taoism ns on convincing the Drunkard, that is Taoism¡¯s own problem. I have faith in the Abbey Dean¡¯s wisdom and ability.¡± Ning Que said, ¡°I can spare most of the prisoners for now, but the dozens of prisoners from the Military Ministry must die. Otherwise, the Divine Halls would not take me seriously.¡±


    The eyes of Cheng Lixue dimmed, ¡°The Great Tang paid a huge price for catching seven rtives of the Hierarch. Are you really going to kill them?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°Xiong Chumo doesn¡¯t have any children, so he values his nephew very much. Of course I will keep his nephew alive to pin down him.¡±


    Cheng Lixue frowned and asked, ¡°Why do you want to kill the He family?¡±


    Ning Que answered calmly, ¡°For the Great Tang, there are some people who must die sooner orter, including He Mingchi and his family. In that case, why don¡¯t I just take the opportunity to kill them now?¡±


    ...

 Chapter 1015 - Let’s Gamble, On Human Lives (I)

    <h4>Chapter 1015: Let¡¯s Gamble, On Human Lives (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Many years ago, when the whole world sent armies against the Tang, the Northeast Battlefront Army was ambushed in Yan. Although they eventually killed the Yan emperor, very few were able to return to the City of Tuyang. The whole army was almost wiped out. Seven cities, including Wei, was taken by the Golden Tribe Royal Court and people from those cities were ughtered. Countless soldiers andmoners were killed. Later on, the God-Stunning Array was damaged and Chang¡¯an was bathed in blood and me for days. Even more people were killed.


    In other words, the Tang Empire had undergone unimaginable suffering and paid a tremendous price. That was why the Tang had a long list of enemies. Without a doubt, the people on the list were doomed.


    The revenge started pretty soon, sooner than everyone had expected. Right after that war, the Tang people had started their revenge. The one on top of their list, He Mingchi, fled from Chang¡¯an with several cronies. And he was sent to the south right after he returned to Peach Mountain, in order to elude from the Tang assassins. However, his family members were not so lucky. The Military Ministry and secret guards spent a lot of effort and time and eventually captured them and took them back to Chang¡¯an.


    When Ning Que carried out the killing in the autumn rain the day before, the dozens of people taken here by the Military Ministry were mostly of this category. There were families of He Mingchi and Xiong Chumo, as well as other people whom the West-Hill cared a lot about.


    ¡°The Divine Halls of West-Hill had closely guarded He Mingchi¡¯s family. If it wasn¡¯t for the Military Ministry, who had sent out for them in time and got a hold of them before the West-Hill escorted them back to Peach Mountain, it would have been impossible for us to kill them today.¡± Ning Que stared at Cheng Lixue and said, ¡°Capturing He Mingchi¡¯s mother and brothers caused the deaths of more than three hundred soldiers. So how can they not be killed? Who else should I kill if not them?¡±


    Cheng Lixue sighed, ¡°You paid such great price just to vent. Is it worth it?¡±


    Ning Que looked at the blood stain by the city wall and the grey haired olddy lying in the blood. He smiled in satisfaction and said, ¡°Killing He Mingchi¡¯s family is definitely afort for the dead Tang people. The Tang soldiers would think it¡¯s very worth... We live on our sensations, whether it¡¯s anger or resentment. Taoism has to see that it is our people¡¯s way of solving problems. It is especially my way of doing it. No matter what the Abbey Dean does, he must stop the Drunkard. Otherwise if the Drunkard were to kill one more from Tang, then I¡¯ll kill a thousand from Taoism.¡±


    Ning Que turned to Cheng Lixue and said, ¡°I know we will run out of victims in no time if we continue killing like this. But is Taoism going to watch me kill them all? Today I killed He Mingchi¡¯s mother. Tomorrow it will be Xiong Chumo¡¯s uncle and cousin. Then it will be your mother. Are you sure you could stay watching?¡±


    Cheng Lixue paused and said, ¡°You know it. It is not what Taoism wants.¡±


    Ning Que said calmly, ¡°The Drunkard wanted a peaceful mind and for the Academy to never try to kill him again. Taoism took advantage of that to keep the Tang away from South Jin, Qinghe Prefecture, and the New Stream. Therefore when the Drunkard killed, Taoism just watched. Since killing is their way of demonstrating their position and forcing their enemy to surrender, I have to do the killing as well. We¡¯ll gamble on human lives and see who canst. So if I were to throw my wager now, will Taoism dare to take it?¡±


    Cheng Lixue frowned deeply and asked, ¡°Your wager?¡±


    Ning Que left the city wall and walked to the other end. He stared at the vast autumn fields and the Wilderness afar, paused for a while and said, ¡°I will continue until I have killed them all.¡±


    Cheng Lixue felt his hand turning cold and said, ¡°You are insane.¡±


    Ning Que did not answer to that and said instead, ¡°The Eldest Brother should have been the one fighting against the Drunkard with his life. But I do not want him to do so... It is contradictory to his aesthetics. However, it rather fits me well.¡±


    Cheng Lixue asked, ¡°Then how do you n to break the deadlock?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°As long as we are not confident enough to kill all of the enemies as well as their families, we will eventually reach apromise. No matter how isted or desperate the Abbey Dean and I seem to be right now, we are after all just some losing gamblers trying to be bravados. We will eventually seek for negotiation. But I need to throw enough wager.¡±


    ¡°The wager of human lives?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s what I said. You don¡¯t need to repeat it even if it¡¯s interesting.¡±


    ¡°You have also said that what matters is the Drunkard¡¯s position. But why do you no longer seem to care?¡±


    ¡°To turn over the gambling table and scatter the wagers... It is not the result that Haotian wants. She wants a nicely set table with well-organized wagers. But I don¡¯t give a shit. Why do I need to worry?¡± Ning Que looked to the chilling and boundless north and said calmly.


    Cheng Lixue asked, ¡°Why? What does that have to do with the Drunkard?¡±


    There were two levels to that question. Ning Que did not exin the underlying part about why he would turn over the gambling table. He just smiled andmented on the Drunkard. ¡°If Haotian doesn¡¯t want it, then he could not do it... Because he is just a watchdog.¡±


    Then he smiled to Cheng Lixue and said, ¡°I¡¯m a human. Why should I care about what the watchdog thinks?¡±


    ...


    ...


    The autumn rain chilled the imperial pce. Li Yu sat by the window in the Imperial Study and pondered for a long while. Then she said, ¡°If he said that it has nothing to do with the imperial court, then that¡¯s it.¡±


    The Grand Secretary Zeng Jing looked at her slim figure and said after a pause, ¡°To kill the captives and implicate their families is disgraceful. He is probably the only one who can bare the notoriety.


    ¡°The Tang excels because we have the Academy, while the Academy excels because he can y dirty.¡±


    Li Yu turned to Zeng Jing and said, ¡°We are lucky to have him. If anyone dares to object in the imperial court, you senior officials know exactly what to do.¡±


    Zeng Jing sighed and said, ¡°We surely do.¡±


    ...


    ...


    The autumn rain and wind continued with pauses but never stopped. Red and yellow leaves were soaking and softened until they were almost embedded into the cracks of t stones.


    The waiting continued. Ning Que was still standing on the city wall and staring at the north. He was looking to the south previously but now to the north. No one knew why.


    He said that the Drunkard was Haotian¡¯s dog therefore he did not care about what he thought. But could he really not worry? Even if that was a dog, it was the fiercest and fastest one.


    For days the prefectures of Tang carried out continuous massacres. He took all of the me and responsibilities silently, and only asked the imperial court to keep it a secret. It was because he did not want the proud Tang people to lose their pride for what he did. Meanwhile, he made sure that everyone outside the Tang Empire knew exactly what was going on. He wanted to spread the fear.


    Death was the best way of spreading fear but it took time and relied on a medium. He had to choose trustworthy ones to do it.


    A few days ago, he had picked the ones. They were Chu Youxian and Chen Qi, which meant that these two had to travel a long journey to negotiate with the Divine Halls of West-Hill and spread the fear along their way.


    No one in the Tang Empire could disobey the Academy. But they reacted differently. Chen Qi spent the whole night ying chess with his favorite concubine before he set off, while Chu Youxian got drunk in the House of Red Sleeves.

 Chapter 1016 - Let’s Gamble, On Human Lives (II)

    <h4>Chapter 1016: Let¡¯s Gamble, On Human Lives (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The carriage trembled slightly in the autumn wind, and the whistling sound of wind came from the cracks in the window. The rain drifted in and wetted the cyan curtain in a short time. The oilmp inside the carriage was flickering, as if it would die out at any moment. Under the light of themp, Chu Youxian looked pale not because of fear but because of his father who sat opposite of him looked paler than him and was crying.


    The Old Mr. Chu wept bitterly and grabbed his son tightly. Maybe the carriage trembled too heavily, so the old man¡¯s voice trembled. ¡°In these years, I have spent tens of thousands of silvers on you, and the only thing I want is for you to have a bright future. I never thought that you would walk into the blind alley. If I had known it, I would not send you to the Academy in the beginning.¡±


    Hearing this, Chu Youxian went silent for quite a while. Then he suddenly picked up the curtain and said while pointing to the dark sky in the wind and rain, ¡°Father, life is just like the sky, you can never predict what the weather will be tomorrow. If trouble is inevitable, then I want to do something great. The matter between the imperial court and the Divine Halls is the most profound thing in one thousand years.¡± He took back his hand to point at his nose and said, ¡°I am going to handle this matter as an envoy, which is an honor you can¡¯t buy with even ten million liang of silvers.¡±


    ¡°But what¡¯s the point of sending you there?¡± The Old Mr. Chu said while crying, ¡°Even if the imperial court and the Academy want to negotiate with the Divine Halls, it has to be those big shots making the final decisions. Then why sending you there to take the risk?¡±


    Chu Youxian did not exin too clearly and just answered, ¡°Just don¡¯t overthink this. I heard that you n to rewrite our genealogy next spring. You should focus on that. If I nevere back, you have to choose a good ce for my memorial tablet.¡±


    The Old Mr. Chu was angry and shouted, ¡°Do not say those unlucky words! You are my only son. I can¡¯t lose you.¡±


    Chu Youxian did not take it seriously and replied, ¡°I am just saying.¡±


    The Old Mr. Chu smacked his son¡¯s head, knowing that he couldn¡¯t change his mind. Then he taunted his son, ¡°Even if you are dead, you can¡¯t expect a good position in the ancestral hall. You are not expecting to get a position better than your grandfather¡¯s, are you?¡±


    Chu Youxian replied angrily, ¡°If I were to die, then I¡¯ll be dying for our country. Why can¡¯t I expect a good position in our ancestral hall?¡±


    The cyan curtain was lifted and the wind and rain sank in. Chenqi walked in without any expressions. Knowing that it was time for them to depart, the Old Mr. Chu sighed and walked out of the carriage.


    Looking at his father¡¯s bent back, Chu Youxian went silent. Although his father taunted him in the end, he knew clearly how his father felt at this moment. Old Mr. Chu and everyone in Chang¡¯an knew that they were seeking their own dooms.


    Chenqi ignored the mood swing Chu Youxian went through, looked at the file in his hand, and said, ¡°If you don¡¯t want to die, just stop thinking about it.¡±


    Chu Youxian looked at Chenqi, the brain of the Fish-Dragon Gang, and sighed. ¡°Everyone said that you are resourceful. But I doubt that you can find any chance of survival in this dead end.¡±


    Chenqi still kept his head down, looked through the information on the file under the dim light and replied, ¡°That is not important.¡±


    Chu Youxian went silent for a moment and then said with a smile, ¡°You are right. Whether we cane back to Chang¡¯an alive or not is not important.¡±


    Everyone knew that their trip to the Divine Halls was representing the will of the Great Tang and the Academy. But they didn¡¯t have official capacities. They were only the private representatives of Ning Que, for they carried thousands of bloody human heads with them which might tarnish the reputation of the Great Tang and the Academy.


    If the negotiations were to fail, then they would have to leave those bloody heads on Peach Mountain and would never be able to return to Chang¡¯an.


    Just like the puzzled Old Mr. Chu, many people didn¡¯t understand why the imperial court and the Academy sent them to the Divine Halls. The negotiations could only be made with force, so sending envoys seemed unnecessary.


    The wheels ran over the blue gstone and made a squeaking sound. The carriage slowly headed to outside the city. Chenqi and Chu Youxian stopped talking and went silent.


    Whether they coulde back to Chang¡¯an alive or not was not important, for that was not their mission. Except for promoting how cold Ning Que was and telling people about those thousands of human heads along the way, their real mission was to deliver a message to someone on Peach Mountain for Ning Que.


    The message was very important, which couldn¡¯t be written on paper. The person who was supposed to get the message lived in the depths of Peach Mountain and even Mr. First of the Academy couldn¡¯t see her. Therefore, even though there was a strong possibility that they might tragically die, Chu Youxian and Chenqi still started their journey without any hesitation.


    ...


    ...


    When the carriage pulled out of the city gate in the autumn rain, the person who ordered them to pass the message stood in the Imperial Study, looking at the rain, which was like a curtain, and the delicate chrysanthemums in the Imperial Garden.


    In the Imperial Garden, the young emperor walked to the back hall with a group of eunuchs and odalisques by his side. Seeing the figure by the window from afar, the emperor stopped stiffly and saluted to the figure in a way which did not conform to the protocol.


    Ning Que nodded and then reached out to close the window after the figure of the emperor disappeared in the pce, blocking the cold wind and rain outside. Then he looked back at thedy sitting behind the desk who was thinner and thinner and suggested, ¡°You should take a walk outside the pce sometimes. You know clearly how beautiful Chang¡¯an is in autumn when it is not raining.¡±


    Li Yu was a little pale, but she was not sick, just that she had not seen the sun for many years. After the rebellion, she never left the pce.


    Hearing what Ning Que said, she smiled but remained silent. She did not even exin why she never left the pce, for she believed that he knew everything.


    ¡°No one in the imperial court dares to doubt you now, so you don¡¯t have to lock yourself in the pce to avoid arousing suspicion.¡± Looking at her calm face, Ning Que knew he couldn¡¯t convince her and frowned. Then he suggested again, ¡°Even if you don¡¯t want to leave the pce, you can walk around the imperial garden and sail on theke. I am not saying that these kinds of pleasures are important, but you have to stay healthy before His Majesty is old enough to wield power.¡±


    Li Yu put away the book and said calmly, ¡°I will still be alive for several decades. But howe you left the city wall? Don¡¯t you need to keep an eye on those terrifying big names? What if something bad happens when you are away?¡±


    Ning Que had lived on the city wall for quite a long time. He frightened the powerful enemies in the surrounding country with his iron bow and arrows, just like how the Drunkard frightened the monarch, ministers, generals, and soldiers of the Great Tang with his speed and killing.


    ¡°I have to take a rest.¡± He answered, ¡°And I can not be at ease until I make some matters clear.¡±


    The conflict among the human world remained unsettled, and the war between the Great Tang and the Divine Halls was about to begin. The Academy was part of the world, so of course it should care about these matters. Ning Que had no doubts about Li Yu¡¯s ability in ruling the country, so he had to figure out what she was thinking. ¡°I have deduced countless times in the past. If the Academy can¡¯t handle the Drunkard, then the war would not be able to start, let alone our victory.¡±


    Li Yu looked at him quietly and then asked, ¡°So have youe up with a solution?¡±


    Ning Que went silent for a while and then said, ¡°I need more time.¡±


    Li Yu said, ¡°That¡¯s the problem.¡±


    The Drunkard wandered in the world and was willing to kill people, which was the biggest threat that the Great Tang was facing. If the Academy couldn¡¯t kill him, then waging a war was meaningless.


    But for the Divine Halls, this was not a problem, so they could choose any time to wage a war. And the importance of timing to the oue of a war was self-evident.


    Ning Que said, ¡°So we need to wait a little while.¡±


    Li Yu replied, ¡°That¡¯s why you sent Chu Youxian and Chenqi to the Divine Halls.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The joys and sorrows of the human world can not affect the Drunkard, but can affect Taoism. We can only hope that Taoism can convince the Drunkard.¡±


    Li Yu asked, ¡°But if we can¡¯t?¡±


    ¡°Fortunately, people like the Drunkard and the Butcher never do meaningless things, including meaningless killings. They are just the dogs of Haotian, executing the will of Haotian. The person who actually is responsible for exining the will of Haitian lives on Peach Mountain.¡±


    ¡°You mean the Abbey Dean.¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    Li Yu then changed the subject, ¡°Chu Yuxian and Chenqi went to Qinghe, but will those powerful ns be willing to talk to them, especially if they know how many people you have killed?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°The more I kill, the more willing the Qinghe ns will be to talk to me. Even though the ns don¡¯t want to talk, they would at least invite them to dinner.¡±


    Li Yu had some worries and whispered while looking at him, ¡°But what about your reputation? Even the Tang people can hardly ept killings like this.¡±


    Thinking about the scene he saw in front of the window and the fear and aversion revealed on the face of the young emperor in bright yellow, Ning Que couldn¡¯t help butugh and said, ¡°I am not like my Eldest Brother after all.¡±


    Li Yu said, ¡°But you can be that kind of person.¡±


    Ning Que replied firmly, ¡°I don¡¯t want to because it only means being a good person, but not a person who can talk to the whole world.¡±


    ¡°Talk to the whole world?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°When I talk, the whole world must listen.¡±


    ¡°Has the world seen such a person before?¡±


    ¡°The Headmaster and the Eldest Brother could do it, but they chose not to, for they are good people, as I mentioned before.¡±


    ¡°Then who has done it?¡±


    ¡°Lian Sheng could definitely do it if not for my Youngest Uncle.¡±


    ¡°Even though it means destroying the world?¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s his goal, not mine.¡± Ning Que paused and then continued, ¡°I just want a negotiation with the world.¡±


    Just want a negotiation with the world! His attitude was very gentle, even a little humble, but Li You somehow felt that the air in the Imperial Study became colder than the autumn rain outside. She walked toward him and pushed the window open, letting the wind and rain flow in, for she felt warmer this way.


    The autumn rain kept falling in the royal garden, and the golden chrysanthemums were still eye-catching, as if they were burning. But in the inconspicuous corner, there were many broken branches and fallen leaves, and the wet soil half covered the decaying fruits which looked like human skulls.


    The entire Great Tang was shrouded in the cold autumn rain, and the decayed trees on the roadsides were wet, and so were the pedestrians under the trees. In the execution fields around the country, blood were everywhere with various kinds of skulls soaking in them.


    This autumn, Ning Que said he wanted a negotiation with the world. As he said to Cheng Lixue, he shoved in all of his chips since the world refused to listen to his voice quietly.


    The fruits that fell in the autumn rain and the heads soaked in the blood were proof of his determination and will.


    In such a situation, the carriage of Chu YouXiang and Chenqi drove out of the Verdant Canyon, went through the beautiful bridges in the misty rain, and came to Qinghe Prefecture.


    Hundreds of crossbow aimed at the carriage, and dozens of See-through State cultivators were silently waiting in the alley on the side of the street.


    The big names of the powerful ns of the Qinghe Prefecture were not in their manors by the Fuchun River, but in thergest restaurant in Yangzhou City.


    As soon as they gave the signal, the arrows would rain down on the carriage, and the dozens of strong cultivators wouldunch an attack all together. The two in the carriage would not stand a chance of surviving.


    The restaurant was quiet, and the masters of the ns all kept silent.


    ...

 Chapter 1017 - The Way To Negotiate With The World (I)

    <h4>Chapter 1017: The Way To Negotiate With The World (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    ...


    ...


    The restaurant, Jin Cui, was the most luxurious in Yangzhou City. It presented the finest cuisines, some of which were even inherited from a thousand years ago. They could never be found elsewhere even in Chang¡¯an.


    But it was nothing for the important figures of the ns in Qinghe Prefecture. They did not pay any attention to the dishes on the table or make any toast. The hot dishes gradually became cold in the autumn wind.


    ¡°Master, shall we kill or not?¡± the steward kneeled on one knee outside the gate and asked with a trembling voice. He could no longer stand the deadly quietness in the room and wanted a quick answer.


    The two men in the carriage were the envoys that Chang¡¯an sent to the Divine Halls of West-Hill. There had been deeply seated hatred between Qinghe Prefecture and Chang¡¯an and there was no way for them topromise. In order to pledge loyalty to West-Hill and not create trouble, they should never treat these two men as guests.


    Indeed, there were people in West-Hill who wanted these two alive, while others resolutely wanted them killed.


    However, it had been a long while and they could already hear the wheels of the carriage grinding on the pavement. But it was still deadly quiet inside.


    The masters of the ns in Qinghe Prefecture looked either stern or cold. They said nothing. They did not even blink their eyes, as if they were a group of statues.


    When Jun Mo and Mu You stepped into the manor by the Fuchun River, Ning Que shot the Old Cui with his iron arrow. Ever since then the ns in Qinghe Prefecture had lost their confidence and stayed low. Therefore these masters were hesitating and struggling to make a decision.


    They did not have enough information to reach a reasonable conclusion. Therefore they had been waiting for thetest news from Chang¡¯an and other prefectures of the Tang. They wanted to make sure whether the imperial court had indeed carried out the killing as they heard, and whether they had indeed be so ruthless.


    Several sharp whistles cracked the grey sky and the pattering autumn rain. They entered the restaurant and brought them the confirmed news.


    It was true. They had been carrying out killing in Chang¡¯an, Gushan Commandery, the North Battalion, and everywhere else in the Tang empire.


    Thousands of captives were killed. Half of the families of Tang¡¯s traitors were ughtered. He Mingchi¡¯s family was killed. Even the rtives of Xiong Chumo, the Hierarch, were killed. Too many people had died in this autumn rain.


    People in the restaurant were prepared for this news. They could never forget that spring before the Tang and West-Hill came to a peace treaty, when Ning Que led the Yulin Royal Guards and members of Fish-dragon Gang into the Qinghe Guild and killed everyone inside.


    Those killed in the Guild back then were their brothers, children, and families. How could they ever forget?


    The masters of the ns became even more stern as if they were the gloomy sky before a storm or an ice engraving under the sunlight. They seemed cold from inside out.


    But they did not give the order to attack that carriage.


    After a long while, the deadly quietness was eventually ended by an old voice. It was the most senior n master of the Song family. He watched the rain outside and said helplessly, ¡°Please wee our honored guests.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Without fighting or killing, Chu Youxian and Chen Qi walked into the restaurant and went upstairs only to be weed warmly and heartily by the seven n masters.


    The previous dishes were already reced by newly cooked ones which smelled extremely good. The room was lit and warmed up by candlelights and felt cozy despite the chilling autumn wind outside.


    The masters of the ns were like statuesing alive. They wore warm and gentle smiles and seemed very sincere. Some even took the hand of Chu Youxian and escorted him to the seat. They recalled the past glory of the Academy and bowed to Chen Qi. They were drinking cheerfully and even talking about who was the prettiest dealer in the Silver Hook Gambling House to the west of the city.


    It was almost like the times from many years ago when the ns used to humbly host the envoys from Chang¡¯an. It seemed as if nothing had happened throughout these years, as if the Tang army was never wiped out in the Great Swamp, the loyal officials were never hanged by them along the streets, and Ning Que never killed those people in Qinghe Guild. That spring rain never fell. Neither did this autumn rain.


    After the greetings came the weing feast. They were not weing the chilling autumn wind. But rather, the ns were hoping that these two were merely here to take some bribes.


    They represented the imperial court and the Academy. As long as they were not here to take lives, the ns were more than willing to present anything they wanted.


    The masters lowered their voices and they could almost not be heard under the cover of the autumn rain and the arrays. Even if the Great Divine Priests of the West-Hill were toe by themselves, they probably could not hear what they were talking about.


    ¡°What does Her Royal Highness and Mr. Thirteen want?¡± The master of the Song family looked at Chu Youxian and Chenqi, and said humbly, ¡°It does not matter if it¡¯s gold or mines, or even my life, we are willing to negotiate.¡±


    Ning Que wanted a negotiation with the world, so did the world with him. He had killed so many people in the autumn rain and demonstrated his resolution to the world. As he had expected, the Qinghe Prefecture was now pleading for a talk.


    He already threw in his wagers, the human lives. The ns in the Qinghe Prefecture had to think about their future. The Divine Halls of West-Hill might be able to win the war eventually. But being sandwiched between the Tang and the Divine Halls, they would have a very slim change to survive the war.


    However, things always went the opposite as people wished. They were reluctant when Chang¡¯an wanted to negotiate. Now they were pleading for it while Chang¡¯an became reluctant. At least Chu Youxian and Chen Qi did not want a talk. They could talk about the sceneries in the Academy or the prettiest dealer in the gambling house, but not this.


    It was because people in Chang¡¯an knew clearly that the Qinghe Prefecture could never became a part of Tang again. And that was also the precondition the ns wanted before a negotiation. In that case, a negotiation would mean nothing.


    Seeing that Chu Youxian and Chen Qi were just enjoying the dishes without giving any feedback, the master of the Song family asked after a while, ¡°What¡¯s the point of doing this?¡±


    Chen Qi put down the dark wooden chopsticks and stared at him calmly, ¡°What do you mean? By killing those people?¡±


    ¡°The people whom Mr. Thirteen could kill are no more than tens of thousands. When he has killed all the captives and hostages, what can he do next?¡± The master of the Song family showed his concern sincerely, ¡°He could not destroy the entire world by himself.¡±


    Chen Qi stared at him calmly and looked around at those elegantly dressed and imposing n masters. He could not refrain fromughing.


    He realized that it was exactly the same as Ning Que said before they left Chang¡¯an. It was interesting that the more they killed, the more obedient people became. Even they were inmed, they dared to do nothing.


    Hisughter faded and Chen Qi calmed down to a profound silence. It felt weird and made those around him feel restless.


    Chen Qi recalled Ning Que¡¯s words but he did not repeat it. Instead, he asked directly, ¡°Who is nning to kill us?¡±


    The master of the Song family asked right away, ¡°The Hierarch.¡±


    ...


    ...


    At night, Chen Qi and Chu Youxian sat by a table and thought about the previous feast as well the things the ns had asked for. They looked at each other and shook their heads.


    ¡°What are they thinking about? Are they ying or wagering on both sides? Don¡¯t they know they are not even qualified for a negotiation? How could they extravagantly hope that the imperial court would ept their autonomy, and just impose tax instead of stationing troops here?¡± Chu Youxian mocked.


    Chen Qi said, ¡°These ns would never surrender to the imperial court. They are just trying their luck and expressing some kindness in advance. Mr. Thirteen¡¯s killing is indeed terrifying for many. These people in the south have always been arrogant and think of themselves as privileged. Otherwise how could they have turned to the West-Hill? But they never know what Mr. Thirteen really wants.¡± He recalled Ning Que¡¯s words again and shook his heads whileughing. But in hisughter there was nothing by coldness.


    Chu Youxian said, ¡°I wonder how Wang Jinglue is doing there.¡±


    Chen Qi said, ¡°He has been negotiating with those young people on behalf of Mr. Thirteen for years. I suppose he¡¯ll do fine.¡± The important figures in the restaurant thought Ning Que¡¯s killing was meaningless. Yet ording to Chen Qi, their weing feast was rather meaningless.


    Ning Que never wanted a talk with these ns, but rather with those young people. It was because he thought they were the hope.


    In the following morning, Chu Youxian and Chen Qi set off again. The epted the kindness and fortune presented by the ns. But they did not leave any words.


    The masters of the ns stood by theke and looked at the ship fading into the foggy Great Swamp. They recalled the look on Chen Qi¡¯s face yesterday in the restaurant and felt scared. Because it was a look of seeing the dead.


    ...


    ...


    The Great Swamp was boundless. They could not see any of its edges and felt like tiny creatures traveling in an ocean.


    Chu Youxian knew they would probably be killed on Peach Mountain. So he simply shook off the concerns and enjoyed theke view. He stood in the cold rain with a bottle of fruit wine in his hand, as if he was an impoverished man of letters.


    It was a pity that his good mood disappeared in no time because many huge ships were approaching them. The sails of those huge ships blotted the sky while they approached imposingly like moving mountains.


    There came the navy of the South Jin.

 Chapter 1018 - The Way To Negotiate With The World (II)

    Chapter 1018: The Way To Negotiate With The World (II)


    Trantor: Larbre Studio Editor: Larbre Studio


    Looking at thousands of huge ships on theke and the navy which were unmatched after the navy of Great Tang was destroyed, Chu Yuxian turned extremely pale. Hearing the sound, Chenqi walked out of the cabin and soon looked serious.


    He did not expect that the South Jin could regain its stability within such a short period of time after Liu Yiqing killed its young emperor and the Sword Garret relocated. The Great Tang had well prepared for theing war, and it seemed that the Divine Halls of West-Hill was unwilling tog behind.


    A resonant bugle call resounded through the sky above the navy of South Jin. The fleet gradually dispersed, and theke water hit the solid sides of the ships, making a loud noise. A huge ship slowly drove to Chu Youxian and Chenqi but still kept a distance of hundreds of zhang, stirring up countless snow-like waves and rming hundreds of waterfowls.


    Hundreds of cavalrymen stood on the deck holding the horses, which looked majestic. These cavalrymen were dressed in ck armor with golden runes. They were the most powerful Papal Cavalryman of the Divine Halls.


    Chu Yuxian was curious why those horses were not afraid of the wind and waves, while Chenqi was more concerned about a person among the cavalry.


    Even if that person was hundreds of zhang away, he could still clearly see the face of that person, not because his eyesight was extremely good, but because that person wanted to be seen by him.


    It was a manservant in cyan, whose tender features were filled with unquestionable arrogance, and his innocent look was full of the cruelty of regarding human life as dirt. The manservant was tender but arrogant, innocent but cruel, which seemed paradoxical, but actually it made sense. It was because it was only natural for a tender person to be arrogant, and for an innocent person to be cruel.


    This manservant in cyan stood between theke and the autumn rain, fitting in the environment perfectly.


    Chenqi had never met him before, but guessed who he was while looking at his features and sensing the feeling. He was Hengmu Liren, the most generous gift Haotian had left for the human world.


    ¡°I am curious about Ning Que¡¯s message for the Divine Halls. Can you tell me now?¡± asked Hengmu Liren sincerely while staring at Chenqi and Chu Youxian.


    Chu Yuxian was a little nervous, for he felt he might disappear at any moment while facing the youngest Knowing Destiny Zenith cultivator of the Divine Halls.


    Chenqi was quite calm and shook his head.


    Hengmu Liren frowned slightly, revealing his displeasure. Theke around the huge ship seemed to sense his emotions and swayed with fear.


    Although theke swayed gently, a field of reeds nearby suddenly turned into powder, blown away by the wind and then rushed into theke by the rain.


    Chu Yuxian felt that his throat was very dry, like it was about to burn.


    Chenqi still looked calm, but his hands that were behind his back began to tremble slightly. He knew Hengmu Liren was powerful, but didn¡¯t expect that he was powerful to such an extent.


    If Ning Que had left Chang¡¯an, would he be able to defeat Hengmu Liren?


    All of a sudden, Hengmu Lirenughed happily, like a child. Looking at Chu Youxian and Chenqi, he said with a smile, ¡°Do not worry. I won¡¯t kill you, so you don¡¯t have to be so scared.¡± Even though he was smiling, it gave the impression that he was scorning Chu Youxian and Chenqi and viewing them as ants.


    Chenqi did not like the feeling and replied, ¡°Everyone will die eventually.¡±


    Hengmu Liren shook his head and said, ¡°I just live here for the moment, and I will return to the Divine Kingdom after finishing my business.¡±


    Chenqi had to use most of his strength to pass his voice to the huge ship hundreds of zhang away, but Hengmu Liren¡¯s whispers were like thunder falling on theke.


    The wind blew through the surface of theke. Chu Youxian got goosebumps, not because he was shocked by the thunder-like voice of the young powerful cultivator, but because he was disgusted by what Hengmu Liren had just said.


    Chenqi suddenly said, ¡°I remembered something Mr. Thirteen once said.¡±


    Hearing this, Hengmu Liren became serious. He leaned forward slightly and asked respectfully, ¡°What does he want to say to me?¡±


    Chenqi retold, ¡°All of you will die.¡±


    Not just him, but all of his subordinates will die with him.


    Even Hengmu Liren was not qualified to be pointed out specifically by Ning Que, so the subject of his threatening included Hengmu, Long Qing, He Mingchi, the masters of the ns in Qinghe Prefecture and the enemies on the grasnd.


    Hengmu Liren frowned and said, ¡°Everyone will die eventually, but I won¡¯t.¡±


    Chenqi responded, ¡°He said that all of you will die, so you will. Even if you were to flee to the Divine Kingdom, you will die anyway, because he will chase you to the Divine Kingdom and kill you.¡±


    Those who deserved to die would definitely die.


    Even though you go to the Divine Kingdom and acquire immortality, or go to theher world and be a ghost, I will kill you more than once. Ning Que had a lot to say to the world, including what Chenqi had just said.


    Hearing this, Hengmu Lirenughed and said, ¡°He doesn¡¯t dare to go out of Chang¡¯an now, just forget about the Divine Kingdom.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Afternding, Chu Youxian was still terrified and kept ming Chenqi for retelling what Ning Que said. He was worried they would end up dying in a way that was worse than those reeds if Hengmu was really pissed off.


    ¡°He enjoys a distinguished position in the Divine Halls. He won¡¯t kill us since he said so in front of the navy of South Jin.¡±


    Chenqi said, ¡°The most important thing is that we are safe before passing the message of Mr. Thirteen to the Divine Halls, for the Divine Halls wants the message badly.¡±


    ¡°But don¡¯t you notice the look on his face? People who appear to be innocent are often lunatics. What if he goes crazy?¡± Chu Youxian kept nagging.


    Chenqi was thinking about something else. ¡°Hengmu led the army of South Jin northward, and soon would take over the affairs of Qinghe Prefecture. Then where would Long Qing go?¡±


    As the former Divine Son of the West-Hill, Prince Long Qing had an extremely high position in the eyes of the Taoist followers. But as time went by, his glory had been taken away by Ning Que and Hengmu Liren. Chenqi knew that Ning Que valued Long Qing much more than valuing Hengmu Liren, and he trusted Ning Que¡¯s judgment. So it was not good news that such an important person suddenly disappeared.


    Chu Yuxian answered, ¡°The information from the Tianshu Institute said that the prince took a team of cavalrymen to the Song Kingdom, trying to kill Ye Su.¡±


    Chenqi said, ¡°It¡¯s highly unlikely that Ye Su traveled that fast with thousands of followers of New Stream. Why haven¡¯t Long Qing caught up yet?¡±


    Chu Yuxian replied, ¡°I don¡¯t even understand why Ye Su did not go to Chang¡¯an, but risked his life to go to the Song Kingdom.¡±


    Chenqi said, ¡°As Mr. Thirteen said, Ye Su is the man who can really change the history. How can we judge him withmon sense?¡±


    The two continued to move forward, and the autumn rain that kept falling gradually became frost and then turned into snow, gradually dyeing the roads in the South Jin into white.


    When they finally arrived at the West-Hill Divine Kingdom, it was already the early winter. Wind and snow swept thend which was blessed by the god and rarely saw any snow in the past, making it extremely cold. In these years, the human world became colder and colder, but nobody knew the reason.


    On the border of the West-Hill Divine Kingdom, two red-robed divine priests and dozens of papal cavalrymen were waiting, and their faces were filled with indifference and alert, revealing no kindness or any expression.


    As envoys of the Great Tang, Chu Youxian and Chenqi deserved such treatment. Actually, they were quite satisfied that these cavalrymen didn¡¯t try to burn them to ashes with their Divine Skills.


    They traveled for another few days and then approached some mountains. The wind and snow finally stopped. The mountains, covering in green, looked lovely and had some majestic and grand buildings among the peaks, which should be the legendary Divine Halls.


    Looking at the distance, Chu Youxian opened his lips slightly but didn¡¯t say anything. He just sighed. As an ordinary man in the world of Haotian, he was struck by seeing the Divine Halls of West-Hill with his own eyes even though he was from the Great Tang.


    Chenqi acted calmer. As the brain of the Fish-Dragon Gang, he habitually observed the military defense of the West-Hill Divine Kingdom and mental conditions of these cavalrymen. But the one thing he concerned the most was the three Grand Arrays covering Peach Mountain.


    He was not a cultivator, so he couldn¡¯t even see the cyan light and naturally didn¡¯t understand the horrible power of the Grand Arrays. He was just wondering that the arrays must be extremely powerful since Mr. One of the Academy couldn¡¯t break in.


    The two red-robed divine priests were probably ordered to iste Chu Youxian and Chenqi and never talked to the two along the way. And they arranged everything for Chu Youxian and Chenqi without soliciting their opinions.


    Chu Youxian and Chenqi cared nothing for the depressed silence and also held their tongues. As the fleet arrived at the small town in front of the mountains, Chenqi suddenly asked the fleet to stop.


    Looking at red-robed divine priests, Chenqi said without any expression, ¡°I am hungry. I have to buy some food.¡±


    The town was just ten miles away from Peach Mountain, with many powerful Taoists hidden everywhere. The red-robed divine priests thought Chenqi couldn¡¯t y tricks in this town, so they nodded.


    Chenqi and Chu Youxian left the carriage and walked to the town under the protection, or to be more urate, guard of these cavalrymen.


    The town was really small, and it had already passed lunchtime. The only food they could find was baked sweet potatoes since the restaurants were all closed.


    Standing in front of the baked sweet potato store, Chenqi and Chu Youxian held hot sweet potatoes, carefully peeled off the skin and kept blowing the steam away, looking funny and cute. They were not like two envoys who carried the safety of the human world on their shoulders, but two naughty kids.


    Chenqi¡¯s finger was inadvertently burned by the baked sweet potato. He swung his arm immediately and asked the owner of the store for some cold water. When the owner brought him the basin full of water, Chenqi looked up at him and thanked him with a smile.


    The finger lingered in the clear water, leaving a fleeting word. The owner turned away without expression as if he never noticed what Chenqi did. The action appeared meaningless, but Chenqi knew that it meant the owner was shaking his head.


    After returning to the carriage, Chenqi was a little disappointed and his confidence inpleting the mission gradually subsided. He shook his head andined, ¡°Mr. Thirteen said this store has the most delicious baked sweet potatoes, but I didn¡¯t find it tasty.¡±


    Chu Youxian realized that Chenqi hadmunicated with the owner of the baked sweet potato store and was in low spirits after hearing that things didn¡¯t go their way.


    The hard wheels ground on the pavement, giving out a crunching sound. The carriage was surrounded by papal cavalrymen of the Divine Halls who had ck armor that reflected the daylight, making the two in the carriage squint.


    Chu Youxian and Chenqi looked at each other and kept silent. They came to negotiate with the Divine Halls on behalf of Ning Que. The Divine Halls would not kill them, at least not before getting the message delivered by the two. However, the battle that almost happened in the Qinghe Prefecture meant that someone wanted them dead. And they guessed it had to be the Hierarch.


    The one Ning Que wanted to negotiate with was not the Hierarch, which might be a little humiliating for him. But it was still inadequate for him to take such a rash action.


    At this point, it seemed that the Hierarch might have figured something out.


    Thinking about what happened in the baked sweet potatoe store, Chenqi worried, ¡°How can we deliver the message if we don¡¯t get to meet her?¡±


    ...


    ...


    The Divine Halls didn¡¯t invite them to the Peach Mountain, but amodated them in the Revtion Institute in front of the mountain which was very close to the well-known Peach Blossom Depression. It was a pity that peaches didn¡¯t blossom during winter time.


    Chu Youxian seemed very sad that he couldn¡¯t see the peach blossoms. But Chenqi knew that he was just acting. All things were arranged by the Divine Halls, so the only thing they could do was to wait anxiously.


    The Divine Halls didn¡¯t give them much time to be anxious. The big wheel who was in charge of negotiating with them came to the Revtion Institute the next morning.


    Zhao Nanhai was the legitimate descendant of the Great Divine Priest of Light and also the right-hand man of Abbey Dean. If the war between the Great Tang and the Divine Halls were to end, he would be Great Divine Priest of Divine Hall of Light or Divine Hall of Revtion. He was undoubtedly a big shot. And the Divine Halls showed due respect and enough sincerity to the Great Tang by sending such an important man to talk to Chu Youxian and Chenqi.


    But Chu Youxian and Chenqi didn¡¯t feel ttered. Before leaving, Ning Que told them that they should only negotiate with two people because one of them was actually controlling the Haotian Taoism and the other was able and willing to respond to the Great Tang.


    ¡°I am sorry.¡± Chu Youxian said while bowing, ¡°It¡¯s not that we don¡¯t want to negotiate with you, but that we can¡¯t.¡±


    Zhao Nanhai had been stayed in the South Sea for a long time and still kept his dark skin even though he had been back to Taoism for many years. There was no wind at all, but his gown slightly swung.


    ¡°You ask for the negotiation, so we have the upper hand,¡± said Zhao Nanhai, but he didn¡¯t get angry. He was just seriously ncing at the two. ¡°We can pick it up when you are ready.¡±


    After saying this, he left with more than a dozen red-robed divine priests, never giving Chu Youxian and Chenqi the chance to respond.


    Looking at these people disappearing on the mountain road, Chu Youxian said sorrowfully, ¡°He didn¡¯t even want to know with whom we would like to negotiate. Is it necessary to be alert like that?¡±


    In the days that followed, Chu Youxian and Chenqi were totally forgotten by the Divine Halls. They stayed at the Revtion Institute all day long, eating, sleeping and looking at the peach blossoms.


    The peach trees on Peach Mountain used to be in blossom throughout the year, but they couldn¡¯t survive the cold winter after being cut off by the Headmaster and then by Ning Que and Sangsang. At this point, no one showed any interest in admiring these peach blooms that were being grounded into the dirt.


    Chu Youxian and Chenqi felt that they were just like those peach blossoms. No one came to visit them, no one would listen to them, and they couldn¡¯t get in touch with the person they wanted to see. It seemed the negotiation, which many people ced high hopes in, was about toe to an eventual end.


    The Divine Halls was indeed not in a hurry. As long as the Academy failed to kill the Drunkard and the Butcher, Taoism would remain invincible in this war. Even Ning Que couldn¡¯t change the fact no matter how many people he killed.


    Ning Que killed those people to frighten Taoism and the human world, and he had achieved his goal in a sense. But what he did also ignited a fire called anger in the world. The divine priests, soldiers, and ordinary people from the West-Hill, South Jin, Golden Tribe Royal Court, and Yan Kingdom who lost their loved ones due to Ning Que¡¯s ughter wanted to peel off his skin and eat his flesh.


    He did an excellent job of mobilizing the war for Divine Halls of West-Hill.


    As time went by, the situation was more favorable to the Divine Halls of West-Hill. The ordinary mortals might not see this through, but how could those on Peach Mountain not understand?


    There were many people who could understand the trend, such as the capable Golden Tribe Chanyu of the Wilderness. He was well aware that this long winter was not a torment for himself and the warriors in his tribe but rather a wonderful wait. So the bouquet of liquor overflowing from the magnificent giant yurt in the north of the City of Wei was more intense each day, and the number of cattle and sheep which were ughtered around the tents was increasing day by day.


    The people of the Golden Tribe Royal Court were very happy. Just like what Ning Que saw when he went back to the City of Wei many years ago, A Da was supposed to be happy too, and everybody thought he had every reason to be happy since he suddenly turned his wheel of fortune. But he was not happy.


    A Da was born in a small tribe on the grasnd which was defeated by the tribe of Chanyu¡¯s uncle during a conflict. Many young adults in his old tribe were enlisted in the dare-to-die army, but he was too young to be enlisted. Instead, he became a ve of a nobleman of the Royal Court. If nothing unexpected happened, he would not live through his sixteenth birthday, for it was extremely hard for him to stay alive.


    Fortunately, a rainstorm fell on the grasnd in the spring while he was picking up cow dung and became drenched. Perhaps it was for this reason, he became very strong after the rain stopped.


    That was the real strength given by the benevolent god. At the wrestling contest, the strongest warrior in the Royal Court was no match for him, and even General Lebu looked at him in a peculiar way. At that time, Chanyu¡¯s eyes lit up, while the national master silently stared at the sky.


    After that day, A Da became the most famous young warrior of the Golden Tribe Royal Court, the disciple of the national master, the bodyguard of Chanyu and a vanguard general.


    The war between the Golden Tribe Royal Court and the Great Tang was on and off. Although it was not as fierce as before, the situation on the border was still serious and a sh broke out in the summer on ount of fighting for a grasnd in the southeast of Xiangwan in. The Great Tang had lost Xiangwan in before, so General Hua Ying, a powerful leader of Northern Battlefront Army, led the troops to fight for the grasnd. But out of everyone¡¯s reckoning, he lost the battle.


    He lost to A Da. A Da had no reason to be unhappy, but he was indeed unhappy, for many of his rtives from his old tribe who were enlisted in the dare-to-die army were captured by the army of Great Tang and he heard a few days ago that they were all killed.


    Since he was so powerful at this point, he was nning to rebuild his tribe next year and recall all his rtives and ymates. But now, they were all gone.


    Those damn Tang people. And Ning Que, I will certainly kill him.


    That night, A Da, under the order of Chanyu, left the Golden Tribe Royal Court with a dozen of cavalrymen, passed through the deserted City of Wei and headed south.


    A Da didn¡¯t lose his mind. He was illiterate but not stupid. He was not crazy enough to go to Chang¡¯an and try to kill Ning Que, but he had to do something on behalf of Chanyu and himself.


    The Tang people killed their people. They¡¯d like to return the favor.


    When A Da approached the frontline, he saw the military camp of the Great Tang in the wind and snow all over the sky, revealing the disdain in his eyes.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 1019 - The Way To Negotiate With The World (II)

    <h4>Chapter 1019: The Way To Negotiate With The World (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The grasnd was seventy miles away to the southwest of Wei. Although it was to the south of Xiangwan in, the weather here was much colder and the fields were much less fertile. However the Tang Empire was willing to pay great prices to station their troops here in the storm and keep prepared for the war.


    Why was that? It was because the Tang army was running out of warhorses. They had to regain this grasnd before next spring as that was theirst chance.


    On the other side of the storm, campfires were lit everywhere and the remaining warhorses were covered with quilts. The Tang army treasured these warhorses more than their own lives now. And it made A Da even more contemptuous of them because he never felt for the weak.


    Just like how he never felt for the one he had defeated.


    Was the army without warhorses still the unbeatable Tang army? Was the man that was killed still the renowned general?


    Hua Ying was drinking inside the Tang battalion. The shirtless middle aged warrior was suffering from great pains and sweating profusely.


    This summer, he was defeated by the young barbarian and never recovered ever since. He ignored the military order and sought for liquor. Because only the liquor as strong as the Kiu Kiang Shuangzheng could suppress the pain and make him sober, so that he could still lead his two thousand cavalrymen.


    During the previous war, Tang signed a peace treaty with the Divine Halls of West-Hill and ceded the Xiangwan in to the Golden Tribe Royal Court. For that cession, the Tang Princess Li Yu officially apologized to the Tang people and Prince Li Peiyan hung himself.


    Without the Xiangwan in, the Tang had lost their main supply of warhorses. But in the following years, minor wars were continuously fought along the border.


    Chanyu tried viciously to exhaust the Tang¡¯s warhorses. He was even willing to pay twice or triple the price. The reason was that the Royal Court had enough supply of warhorses, while the Tang army did not.


    The number of warhorses the Northern Battlefront Army owned had decreased rapidly after the continuous wars. They were almost desperate now.


    As a Tang general, Hua Ying was a powerful and vigorous cultivator. He was probably only second to General Xu Chi in the Northern Battlefront Army. He used to lead over ten thousand cavalrymen among which three thousands were heavy cavalry. However now... Two thousand four hundred and thirty two men with two thousand four hundred and thirty two warhorses were the only cavalry left now. They were thest cavalry of the Northern Battlefront Army.


    Hua Ying had received themand and took all his cavalrymen here to confront the Golden Tribe Royal Court ever since the summer. They threw all of their hopes into this battle because the Tang army desperately needed the grasnd. And they had to figure out a way.


    Of course these were not the only warhorses that the Tang had. But there was no point of delivering the warhorses from the south because that would not change the situation. Yet what made the Northern Battlefront Army restless and even angry was that the imperial court never even thought of it.


    Hua Ying looked at his bowl of liquor and mes were burning in his eyes. It was the Academy who decided to cede the Xiangwan in to the Golden Tribe of Royal Court. And it was Ning Que who promised he would find a supply of warhorses. But several years had passed. Countless Tang soldiers died on the grasnd and his warriors were tortured into ghostly figures. But where were the horses?


    ¡°If you are lying to me, then I¡¯lle to Chang¡¯an for you even if I die here,¡± he raised he bowl and said to Ning Que while looking to the south.


    Right then a warning came from outside the yurt and a vicious howling was heard in the storm. It was distinct and resounding.


    Hua Ying looked at the reflection of his face in the bowl of liquor. It was an exhausted face and no longer handsome. But heughed.


    He put on his armor with the help of his men and walked outside. He walked out of the yurt, through their battalion and toward the battlefield. Snowkes fell on his armor and immediately filled up the cracks instead of melting.


    Tang soldiers stood by their yurts and watched their chiefmander silently.


    Outside the battalion, he stood in the storm and stared at the young barbarian afar. ¡°The general will probably punish me intensely,¡± he mocked himself.


    Of course he knew who that young barbarian was. Right here in the summer, he was defeated by this young nobody, and never recovered.


    No one knew when the Golden Tribe Royal Court found such a powerful figure. If it had been the famous General Lebu, Hua Ying would probably have found it easier to swallow. But he did not understand where this young man came from and why he was so powerful.


    It was not until when words spread on the grasnd that people came to know that he was called A Da, a former ve. Just like Hengmu Liren from the West-Hill, he was also a gift from Haotian to the human world, a gifted power.


    Hengmu Liren was a legendary figure to Haotian¡¯s follower nowadays. If it was not for A Da living in the remote Wilderness, he would have be just as famous.


    Upon knowing this, Hua Ying realized that it was not a shameful failure. Haotian had abandoned the Tang just like how she abandoned the Wild People a thousand years ago. He would never be intimidated, but still could not help from being a bit upset.


    He looked to the center of the storm at the far away horizon. There was a magnificent mountain that connected the two continents. That was the Min Mountain, which was also known as the Tianqi Mountain.


    ¡°Is it a terrible thing ... to be abandoned by Haotian?¡± Hua Ying smiled and reached out for the Podao his man handed to him. The coldness of the tilt thrilled him.


    The young barbarian was powerful and scary. He knew he could never win. If he were to fight, he would definitely be dead. There seemed to be no reason for him to try.


    It was not a tradition for two chiefmanders to fight in a battle. He never believed in the saying that the brave always won. No one could reproach him even if he were to choose not to fight.


    But when he was walking through their battalion and was confronted with the expressions on the soldiers¡¯ faces, he saw extreme exhaustion and fatigue. When he saw the old warhorses covered in quilts, he knew that their morale was unprecedentedly low.


    If he were to choose to fight, it would be a thrill for the soldiers even if he were to die. A mourning troop might not be able to win the war. But they would definitely fight harder until thest moment. And there could probably be a favorable turn in the end.


    Therefore he hold the Podao and walked toward the storm.


    ¡°I¡¯ll sacrifice your head to my tribe.¡± A Da stared at Hua Ying and said emotionlessly, ¡°Eventually I will lead our warriors to your Chang¡¯an and kill that man.¡±


    Hua Ying whisked off the snowkes on his armor and said, ¡°You probably could kill me. But I will not let you leave alive. You won¡¯t make it to Chang¡¯an.¡± When he saying this, the second strongest man in the Northern Battlefront Army looked extremely calm. He did not have the confidence to defeat Haotoian¡¯s gift to the human world. But he was sure that he could give his life for a life.


    When a man was fearless, fate could not defeat him.


    His fingers clenched onto the tilt one after another, as if they became a part of the iron de. Snowkes fell onto his hand but did not melt. Because his hand was as cold as the snow.


    From his body to the slim tilt and the dark de, an extremely chilling energy spread out and elevated.


    The dancing snowkes were disturbed by the energy and scattered around, as if they were sharp arrows piercing through the air.


    A Da pulled out his machete emotionlessly. It was bestowed by Chanyu. The de was extremely sharp and bright as his eyes. As he did before every important battle, the young man started praying to the Tengri and asking for the power to defeat every enemy. The scattering snowkes seemed to have received his prayer and slowed down. They flew helplessly while the snow on the grasnd melted and unveiled the dying grass beneath. With snow melting and grass unveiled, it felt gloomy rather than lively.


    A Da stared at Hua Ying. His eyes were bright as jewels and sharp as des. He seemed sympathetic and contemptuous. Then he stepped forward. But he stopped at only one step. He sensed that something was wrong.


    He looked above to the sky and snow, and could not help feeling the tremendous grief. His lips were trembling as if he was groaning, ¡°The mighty Tengri...¡±


    When their tribe was defeated many years ago, he was too young to know grief. When he served in the royal court as a ve, he did not have time for grief. When he was collecting the cow dung, he did not have the strength to grief. Then he became the new power and no longer needed to grief.


    But right now, the grief was so heavy that it upied his whole body and soul. He almost saw his own death in the next moment.


    But why?


    He no longer looked above but to somewhere afar in the south. He felt like someone was watching him. Although it was ten thousand miles away and no actual sounds could be heard, he sensed it distinctively and heard that person talking to him. If he were to take one step further, he would be dead.


    A Da¡¯s swarthy and innocent face was covered with anger and confusion. If that person could kill him from ten thousand miles away, why did he not kill him during that summer?


    What enraged him the most was that he also sensed the undisguised pride of that person. Even the Tengri was silenced by his pride.


    And he began to fear.


    A neigh was heard in the storm. He could not tell whose warhorse that was, but it was arrogant enough.


    A Da looked at the battalion of Tang and held his machete. He was not sure whether he should take that step forward.


    ...


    ...


    It was ten thousand miles away in the South.


    Snow fell on the city wall. Ning Que stood on top the city of Chang¡¯an behind him, and his eyes were looking toward the far away Wilderness and the battlefield he could not see.


    The heavy iron bow was ced in front of him on the bricks. He hold the Core Vajra of the God-Stunning Array tightly and his consciousness spread out to the fields.


    It was hismand for the Northern Battlefront Army to kill all the captives of the Golden Tribe. He knew it ced tremendous pressure on the army but he could not care. Because he had to talk to the world with the killing as well as with his iron arrows.


    But he could not understand why he was not able to sense the Wilderness and the entire world even with the help of the array and Chang¡¯an. His ocean of consciousness was a blurry gray. If the powerful one from the Golden Tribe was not stupid enough to expose himself, then there was be nothing he could do.


    But he was still looking to the north as if he could find the lights there, shoot that person with his iron arrow, and deliver him to hell or the Divine Kingdom. Or perhaps the Academy should be the one who will light him up?

 Chapter 1020 - The Specter Of The Academy

    <h4>Chapter 1020: The Specter Of The Academy</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The iron bow was right in front of Ning Que, and the mess all around the human world had already tightened the string. Just like what happened in the Wilderness, conflicts were everywhere and the battle could happen at any time. No one knew when the world would be destroyed.


    A Da was a devout follower chosen by Sangsang and the most outstanding young power of Golden Tribe Royal Court, so he could sense the gaze of Ning Que who was standing on the city wall of Chang¡¯an thousands of miles away. Hengmu Liren shared his experience, but he couldn¡¯t sense Ning Que¡¯s gaze, for Ning Que was not looking at him at this moment or for there was too much attention on him right now.


    The sacred sedan was moving slowly on the street of Yangzhou City, with sacred music ying. The people of Qinghe Prefecture kneeled down on both sides of the street and looked at the sacred sedan ardently and humbly, for they were either pious or frightened. Hengmu was happy to see this.


    Seeing the seven masters from the noble ns of Qinghe Prefecture behind the curtain and thinking about the conversation he had with them before, Hengmu couldn¡¯t help but smile grimly and thought that these ants were not worth worrying about.


    No matter what you are thinking, there is no need to continue thinking, because the Divine Halls will help you think. What you need to do is to carry out the will of Haotian.


    This was the only thing that Hengmu Liren had said to the seven masters previously, and he waved these people away like they were ants. Then he walked towards the outside of Yangzhou City under the guards of dozens of divine priests and more papal cavalrymen of the West-Hill.


    He led the mighty navy of South Jin and the powerful papal cavalrymen of the West-Hill to Qinghe Prefecture which was soon re-stabilized under his undisguised contempt and killing intent. Due to the manhunt of the deacons of the Divine Halls, those young people who were hidden in the dark and prepared to cooperate with the Tang people had either died or fled away.


    At this point, his sacred sedan left Yangzhou City and headed for the north. Chang¡¯an was in that direction.


    Chong Ming was also looking at Chang¡¯an, but from a different direction. Chang¡¯an was in the west of Chengjing City, which was the direction that the sun went down.


    He was no longer the Prince Chong Ming who had been a hostage in Chang¡¯an for ten years, but the emperor of the Yan Kingdom. But his feelings for the city didn¡¯t change a bit. No nostalgia, no regrets, but only iparable disgust and fear.


    The Pce of the Yan Kingdom, which was destroyed by the army of Great Tang several years ago, was being rebuilt, and the budget came from war reparations paid by the Great Tang. At this point, the capital of Yan Kingdom was thriving, and all people, from officials to normal citizens, were all extremely proud.


    But he was still afraid. After living in Chang¡¯an for so many years, Chong Ming knew clearly how powerful the Great Tang was and also that the Tang people never forgot their hatred. Besides, he knew what Li Yu was thinking.


    He knew more clearly that Yan Kingdom wouldn¡¯t stand a chance of warding off the cavalry of Great Tang if the Tang could ever catch a breath. The newly rebuilt pce behind him would fall into ruins in a short time, and Li Yu would definitely seek her revenge.


    Three years ago, the Tang re-established the Northeast Battlefront Army and still ced the General¡¯s Mansion in Tuyang City. Everything seemed to be the same as the past, but Chong Ming knew that the only mission of the new Northeast Battlefront Army was to destroy the Yan Kingdom.


    Chong Ming never dreamed that he could stand up to the army of Great Tang relying on the weak strength of his own country, but pinning all of his hopes on the Divine Halls of West-Hill and his brother.


    For this reason, he firmly carried out the orders of the Divine Halls of West-Hill despite the opposition of the domestic subjects, and continued to send provisions he had extorted from his own people to the Wilderness and to the nobles of Left Royal Court who had been enemies of Yan Kingdom for generations.


    If only the cavalry of the Left Royal Court could be stronger would they be able to defeat the Wild Kingdom in the north and help Yan Kingdom ward off the Tang if the war were to break out.


    Chong Ming had expected that Left Royal Court could at least help Yan Kingdom deal with the Wild Kingdom after his country and he had sacrificed so much. But the situation surprised him.


    How? How did the Wild Kingdom survive to this day after being defeated by allied forces of the Divine Halls and even be more powerful?


    The question gued the Yan Kingdom and also alerted the Divine Halls. But the mystery would soon be unveiled as more and more information was being sent back from the Wilderness.


    There was a specter. The specter was haunting the Wilderness. The specter was petite, but as horrible as a devil. Even the blizzard and sandstorm couldn¡¯t stop the specter.


    The most powerful priest of the Left Royal Court died by the Crescent Moon Sea two years ago, and then several priests also died mysteriously. At this point, there were no priests who dared to walk out of the territory of Left Royal Court.


    Every once in a while, there would be a horrible message that a cavalry squad was wiped out in the depths of the grasnd, or that a power in the army was cutting into pieces.


    People on the grasnd kept dying, including those who were sent by the Divine Halls of West-Hill to perform the rescue mission. And even the degeneratemanders Long Qing brought to the Royal Court couldn¡¯t survive the curse of the specter.


    At this moment, no one had ever seen the true face of the specter, but the Divine Halls of West-Hill and all the countries already knew who she was.


    She was a devil. Although she was petite, she was undoubtedly the most frightening and coldest devil in the human world. She was not afraid of killing, and she killed people like she was mowing.


    Her name was Yu Lian, or Lin Wu. She was Ms. Third of the Academy. And she also had a more famous and frightening title, Master of Devil¡¯s Doctrine and the most mysterious Twenty-Three-Year Cicada in the cultivation world.


    Even though many powers popped out after that spring rain, no one believed that one cultivator could change the oue of a war.


    People gradually realized that this kind of thing really happened after Yu Lian started to kill people in the Wilderness and wiped out hundreds of powerful Taoists within a few years.


    This was a chilling situation.


    Chong Ming felt cold and tightened his cor subconsciously. Turning his eyes away from Chang¡¯an, Chong Ming looked deep into the Wilderness and found himself feeling colder.


    There was a frozen winding from the Wilderness, mixed with a strong smell of blood.


    ...


    ...


    Snow was falling in the depths of the west of the Wilderness. The snowkes came from the grey clouds and fell on the ground, gradually covering the messy footprints.


    Countless footprints of horses and of human beings spread forward in the Wilderness, and the sound of stepping on the snow seemed to tear the clouds apart.


    Under the request of the Xuankong temple, Chanyu of the Right Royal Court ordered his tribes to give everything they had and formed an expeditionposed of tens of thousands of cavalrymen as reinforcement.


    The Buddhist monks who used to ignore the affairs in the human world were seeking help from the ordinary followers at this point, which was very pathetic. However, those tens of thousands of cavalrymen might die in the cold wind and snow. Who would feel sad for them?


    Some of the snowkes fell on the ground in the Wilderness, while others fell below the ground where the dark Giant Sinkhole was located.


    It was daytime and the snow reflected the light, so there should be light. But the Giant Sinkhole was darker than ever at this moment, and everything down there was blurred.


    That was because the wilderness of the underground world was burning. The hignd barley field was ignited, and so were the woods by the steam, the waterwheel outside the golden pit, the nobles¡¯ tents. And an inconspicuous temple under the Prajna Peak was gradually falling apart in the zing me.


    A single spark could start a prairie fire. The serf uprising in the underground world that started several years ago had finally spread to all tribes and could no longer be extinguished.


    Beacon-fires were everywhere in the Buddha Land, bringing hot temperatures and dirty ck smoke, destroying the gorgeous gold vessels, and covering the divine yellow temples among the mountain peaks.


    The sound of killing echoed around the Wilderness, overwhelming the devout chanting and the call of the morning bells.


    The beacon-fires and killing sounds had not yet affected the Giant Peak turned by the body of Buddha. The monks in the mountains were desperate and then ordered the Right Royal Court to reinforce at top speed.


    The most important reason for this was that the specter was wandering around the underground world. The specter was the shadow of the iron sword and never stopped traveling between dirtiness and holiness.


    Jun Mo was fighting. He was horribly injured, but he did not stop swinging the iron sword for a moment. He had kept fighting nonstop for a few years. He would not leave before tearing the Light of Buddha apart and leading people out of hell.


    ...


    ...


    The capital of Song Kingdom was adjacent to the sea. It was still warm in the early winter, and the snow would melt while falling from the sky, hardly attracting people¡¯s attention.


    Like the man who was preaching in front of the square, he wore an ordinary robe and held a West-Hill literary canon, looking like an ordinary priest.


    But what he preached was quite different from what other priests of the Divine Halls of West-Hill would say.


    Ye Su looked at the crowded followers and said, ¡°Everyone is guilty andmits different sins, so does it mean that we need to atone?¡±


    ¡°If we want to atone for your sins, should we pin our hopes on the Divine Kingdom or ourselves? The Great Haotian will naturally respond to our call, but what have we done?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t say that you can¡¯t do anything, and don¡¯t think that it¡¯s impossible to change the world. The world is made up of countless ordinary people. As long as people are able to change themselves, the world will change too.¡±


    ¡°We are witnessing that one person could change the oue of a war and that one person could rectify the injustice which hadsted for tens of thousands of years. Then why can¡¯t we change ourselves and change the world?¡±

 Chapter 1021 - The Academy’s Matter Of Course

    <h4>Chapter 1021: The Academy¡¯s Matter Of Course</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    On the za in the capital of Song it was deadly quiet except for some heavy snorting from time to time. But it was from the warhorses rather than humans.


    Someone was preaching from afar. It sounded indistinct because of the distance as if it was from Heaven. In the indistinct preaching there were weird words like women, stones, sins, steamed buns, and salt. But it was immediately blown away by the warhorses¡¯ snorting and disappeared in the chilling winter air.


    But did it really disappear? Of course not. Those words got into people¡¯s ears and stamped on their hearts. The divine priests and deacons from the West-Hill and armed cavalry of Song wereying around the za, ready for an ambush. They looked uneasy upon hearing that.


    The snorting from hundreds of horses became heavier. Thousands of divine priests, deacons and soldiers were gathering along the quiet streets.


    ording to the n of the West-Hill, these heavily armed troops would dash into the quiet za and kill the traitors as well as the showy priest, and it would lead to another upsurge to extinguish the New Stream.


    However... those stern divine priests, indifferent deacons, and pale Song soldiers did wonder why so many previously pious followers of Haotian could have been converted by that sphemer. Why were they standing or even sitting while listening to his preaching? Shouldn¡¯t they be on their knees all the time?


    Why?


    Themand finally came. Upon the closing of the city gate, the entire Song Kingdom would be a ce for death. No one could escape. Those who disobeyed the Divine Halls and followed the New Stream, or even people who showed sympathy to the followers of New Stream were all going to be arrested. As for the preachers and sphemers, they would definitely be killed.


    The winding from the coastline gradually ceased. It could not blow away the snowkes or melt the snow on the streets. While the snow umted, united and terrible footsteps prevailed. The city became a pure and chilling white. Everyone knew that the white snow would be stained by blood in no time.


    Iron spears were pping with the armors. The warhorses were snorting rapidly and the cavalrymen seemed ruthless. The smell of metal in the air gradually became bloody. Screaming were heard from around the za. People knew that the Divine Halls would not turn a blind eye to the spread of the New Stream. But they were not expecting a conflict of beliefs to be so ruthless and bloody.


    Those who had sympathy for the New Stream were driven to a corner by the deacons of West-Hill and the cavalrymen. Clip-clops stormed and iron cudgels were thrown onto human flesh. People were screaming and crying everywhere, but mostly crying.


    They were dreadful and desperate cries.


    Blood was shed. Harsh shouts were everywhere. The shing of spears and des became louder and louder. Then something brighter showed up ¡ª the swords.


    Over twenty disciples of the Sword Garret from South Jin joined the crowd and applied their swordsmanship inherited from Liu Bai and Liu Yiqing against the fury of Heaven.


    The fury of the Divine Halls was temporarily repulsed. But it immediately became more tangled with more cavalrymen and powerful Taoist cultivators pouring in.


    Three leaders of the Divine Halls¡¯ cavalry led their soldiers and broke through the disciples of the Sword Garret and darted toward the center of the za. They did not care about the followers of the New Stream who were crying and running around, but only wanted to take down that calm priest on the stage. As long as they could kill him, how could these followers of New Stream continue to believe in his absurd preaching?


    Looking at the people covered in blood, the crying mothers with children in their arms, and the grey-haired elders who were scared, Ye Su felt a profound sadness. But strangely he felt the same sympathy for those cavalrymen of the Divine Halls who wereing to kill him.


    Chen Pipi walked onto the stage and was ready to escort his Brother to leave. Ever since they left the South Jin, he had been used to such routine on their exile.


    ¡°It seems today is indeed thest day.¡± Ye Su patted his shoulder and stopped him from packing. Then he looked at the falling snow and the sky, ¡°But why is the Master doing this?¡±


    Throughout the years of exile, the carefree character had disappeared together with his fat. Chen Pipi said, ¡°It won¡¯t be the end until thest moment.¡±


    He was stern. Despite his exhaustion he was not any less resolute. He sounded like the former Chen Pipi only when he said so. He believed in the virtue and fought for it. His most admirable virtue, ording to his best friend Ning Que, was that he could always be optimistic no matter how desperate the situation was.


    ¡°It¡¯s different today.¡± Ye Su turned away from the sky and looked at the mounting cavalrymen on the za as well as the powerful Taoist cultivators. He said calmly, ¡°They¡¯ve sent a lot.¡±


    ¡°People like these cannot stop us.¡± Chen Pipi came to him and looked at those approaching leaders and their cavalrymen from the Divine Halls. He said, ¡°They are dying.¡±


    He was seriously wounded several years ago and his Mountain of Qi and Ocean of Snow was destroyed. Being a wastrel now, he could not defeat any of the powerful figures from the Divine Halls today. He said it calmly as if it was a matter of course. Of course it was the Academy¡¯s matter of course.


    However right after he said so, he was slightly shocked as he saw a girl breaking through the crowd anding toward the wooden stage. It was Xiaoyu, the South Sea girl who was his former fiancee. The previously proud and powerful South Sea girl was still powerful. But her pride was deeply restrained now. She was wearing a divine robe and seemed calm and stern.


    She had reached the State of Knowing Destiny. The disciples of the Sword Garret were not able to stop her. No matter how strong their swords were, they turned into scrap in front of her.


    The South Sea girl stopped at twenty miles away. She watched the three leaders darting forward with their vigorous cavalrymen.


    She looked at Ye Su with aplex of expressions, including some of admirating, fear, hatred and contempt. She knew that this most remarkable traitor in the Taoist history would be killed in no time. She looked to Chen Pipi with even moreplicated emotions. But it was hard to tell what she was thinking about.


    A leader of the cavalry dashed toward the stage on his horse. He came like thunder and his cuss almost pierced the sky. The talisman on his cuss shone distinctively and carried massive Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    If it was in the past, these two men could easily handle his attack or even ignore it. Ye Su and Chen Pipi used to be the two most famous people in Taoism for the past twenty years. Ye Hongyu and Long Qing were nowhere close to them.


    These two used to be the real geniuses of Taoism. But they betrayed Taoism. That was probably why Haotian had taken all their power.


    That was what the leader of the cavalry thought. He was at the See-through State. With the help of the talisman intent on his cuss, his attack should be as powerful as Knowing Destiny. How could he not be able to kill these two destroyed men?


    Right then an iron cudgel flew in from far away like a moving mountain.


    The cavalry leader¡¯s cuss bumped into that small mountain. The horse could not stop and bumped into the mountain together with the leader.


    The mountain was made of iron and was thus indestructible. Whoever bumped into it would be crushed. The leader of the cavalry was crushed together with his cuss and his horse. Scraps of metal and pieces of flesh were blown to the za and shone with a strange gloss.


    It suddenly became quiet on the roaring and tangled battlefield. The cavalrymen of the Divine Halls dashing toward the stage pulled the reins desperately. Those fiercely fighting deacons stopped abruptly and looked to the the direction of the sound.


    When the dust faded, snow fell again. The ashes fell to the ground together with the snow and could no longer be distinguished. A slim figured appeared clearly.


    The fur she wore was shivering in the chilling wind, and so did the wisps of hair by her cheek. She pulled out the iron cudgel from the ground and gazed at the South Sea girl in front of her.


    ¡°Tang Xiaotang!¡± Xiaoyu looked at that person and shouted furiously as if there were mes of hell between her lips. Then she turned to Chen Pipi with sadness and anger.


    Tang Xiaotang stared at her and said seriously, ¡°If you dare to look at him like that again, I swear I will take out your eyes.¡±


    Xiaoyu¡¯s voice was extremely chilling, ¡°Why?¡±


    Tang Xiaotang said, ¡°I¡¯ve told you in Peach Mountain years ago. He is my man.¡± She said it as if it was a matter of course, like Chen Pipi did. And of course it was Academy¡¯s matter of course.


    Although he was from Taoism and possessed the noblest root and talent, and she was from Devil¡¯s Doctrine which was renowned as evil and dominating, they were both students of the Academy.


    It was deadly quiet in the za. The only sounds were the yearning of the wounded and the weeping over their dead friends.


    Looking at Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang, this South Sea girl gradually calmed down and expressed some self-mockery. ¡°Why should you die here? The Abbey Dean is waiting for you on Peach Mountain,¡± she asked Chen Pipi.


    Chen Pipi exined seriously, ¡°Ning Que once said, ¡®When autumn¡¯s golden wind embraces the dew of jades, all the love scenes on earth will fade.¡¯ I¡¯m the golden wind and she is the dew of jades.¡±


    Xiaoyu was stunned and replied sadly, ¡°Indeed well said.¡±


    Chen Pipi smiled at her, ¡°In fact... what Ning Que said next was my favorite. He said we would be together forever and ever.¡±


    ¡°So?¡±


    ¡°So it is not ourst day today.¡±


    ¡°You should know whose will this is.¡±


    ¡°My father¡¯s? I¡¯m not sure why his will has to be practiced.¡±


    ¡°This is Haotian¡¯s World. The Abbey Dean is practicing Haotian¡¯s will. No one could change it.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m his son. And my Brother is his student. Probably we are not able to change him... But I guess someone in this world could.¡±


    ¡°Who?¡±


    ¡°Ning Que.¡± Chen Pipi said seriously, ¡°That fellow, even Haotian was not his match. How could you think my father would be able to defeat him?¡±


    ¡°Ning Que is in Chang¡¯an and could not leave. He won¡¯t be able to change anything here today.¡± Xiaoyu looked at him calmly and lifted her right arm. The loose sleeve of her robe rolled down and unveiled her fair arm. It was pretty.


    Tang Xiaotang shouted at Chen Pipi, ¡°Don¡¯t look!¡±


    Chen Pipi opens his eyes widely and said, ¡°I am a bit surprised because all her family members used to be swarthy. How did her skin be so fair?¡±


    Making inappropriate jokes meant that he was nervous.


    Xiaoyu lifted her right arm and the cavalrymen of West-Hill were ready for another round of attack.


    Chen Pipi said Ning Que could change it, not because he really believed so, but rather he was used to boasting of his friend. He looked to Ye Su and received confirmation.


    ¡°Brother, it seems you are indeed enlightened,¡± Ye Su said.


    ¡°Why did you say so?¡±


    ¡°Because you can see the future.¡±


    ¡°Hm?¡±


    ¡°You said... it was thest day.¡± Ye Su smiled, ¡°This is myst day.¡±


    Chen Pipi said, ¡°Then it¡¯s also mine.¡±


    ording to the current situation, Tang Xiaotang would never be defeated by Xiaoyu. The disciples of the Sword Garret were still fighting fiercely with their swords shining and should be able to cover their retreat.


    But they knew that they were doomed.


    Because this time it was what the Abbey Dean wanted.


    That man was Ye Su¡¯s most respected mentor and Chen Pipi¡¯s father. They knew exactly how powerful and scary he was. Even though his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow was also destroyed like theirs, he could still overtake the Heaven and Earth with a single movement of his psyche.


    The Abbey Dean had never made any mistakes except for the confrontation with the Headmaster. Today there must be more peopleing to the Song to carry out thest round of ughter.


    It felt oppressed, and gradually became horrifying with Chen Pipi¡¯s silence and the yearning of the wounded. The snow fell down even slower.


    ¡°We, ourselves, are the path, the truth, and the life.¡± Ye Su looked at the frustrated and miserable followers and said slowly, ¡°If we follow our hearts, we will definitely get out of the dark valley and obtain the ultimate joy.¡±


    Upon these words, the snow storm stopped. The sky above the Song capital cracked between the snowy clouds. Light fell onto him and formed a golden lining on his figure.


    The followers of the New Stream were stunned upon the scene and all fell onto their knees.


    ¡°The path, the truth, and the life?¡±


    There was a small yard in a few blocks away. Long Qing stood in the middle of the yard and held his hands on the back. He was listening to the sounds from outside and pondering.


    Behind him there were dozens of piles of firewood. Those firewoods were dry and pure. Not even a single snowke dared to fall onto them.


    When they were set on fire, the me was soaring.


    ...

 Chapter 1022 - God Is Gone, Then What About Haotian?

    Chapter 1022: God Is Gone, Then What About Haotian?


    Trantor: Larbre Studio Editor: Larbre Studio


    The situation in the human world was extremely tense. On the border line of the Tang, within the capital of the Song Kingdom and in the dark bottom of Giant Sinkhole, conflicts were everywhere. War had already broken out in some ces, while in other ces, it never stopped.


    The people all around the world pinned their hopes on the envoys sent by the Tang, wishing them to reach a new peace agreement with the Divine Halls of West-Hill.


    The two envoys were just ordinary people, who knew nothing about cultivating. But at this moment, they were the most important people in the human world.


    There were two kinds of people who loved peace: one was those who feared war, and the other was those who just worried that they couldn¡¯t win, so they were in favor of peace temporarily. Chu Youxian and Chenqi belonged to thetter. They didn¡¯t know that the world was counting on them, but they wanted to reach a peace treaty with the Divine Halls of West-Hill as much as the world wanted.


    However, the problem was that they couldn¡¯t get in touch with the two people they wanted to see. What made them more worried was that the two people they had to see would certainly find a way to meet with them if they wanted. But the situation at this moment showed some bad signs. Was is true that nobody wanted to know Ning Que¡¯s message?


    Seeking what you could not get was the source of anxiety. Chu Youxian and Chenqi were very anxious, but they couldn¡¯t think of any viable option toplete their mission.


    Today, an ordinary priest in a brown robe came to see them, and it appeared he was just a low level priest. In fact, the attitude of the Divine Halls was getting colder and colder these days. After Chu Youxian and Chenqi refused to negotiate with Zhao Nanhai, the level of divine priests who were sent by the Divine Halls to talk to them became lower and lower.


    ¡°I am a nobody. Obviously I am not the one you two are expecting,¡± the brown-robed divine priest looked at them and said. ¡°Then who do you want to see?¡±


    Judging from this question, the Divine Halls of West-Hill had either lost its patience or curiosity, and it seemed that it wanted to put all the cards on the table.


    It was meaningless to lie at this moment, and it might be a better choice to speak out. After thinking for a while, Chu Youxian looked at the brown-robed divine priest and answered seriously, ¡°We want to meet with Ye Hongyu.¡±


    The brown-robed divine priest was not surprised and asked with a smile, ¡°Why?¡±


    After the attempted assassination in Qinghe Prefecture, Chu Youxian and Chenqi already figured out that the Divine Halls must know their intention, so they were not surprised that the brown-robed divine priest was not surprised.


    ¡°Taoism is unfaithful. We, to be more urate, Mr. Thirteen only trusts the Great Divine Priest of Judgement.¡±


    ¡°Fine. This is a reasonable exnation.¡± The brown-robed divine priest said calmly, ¡°I will report your request, but I can¡¯t guarantee that you can get what you ask for.¡± After saying this, he left the Revtion Institute. Then Chu Youxian and Chenqi were forgotten once again.


    Standing on the stone steps in front of the Revtion Institute, Chenqi looked at the fallen peach blossoms, imagined the three Grand Arrays hidden in the mountain roads and the peach forest and said, ¡°Even though the Divine Halls can ward off our army, all people outside the Grand Arrays would be killed by Mr. First.¡±


    Chu Youxian asked, ¡°So how the Divine Halls reacted puzzles you?¡±


    ¡°No, what puzzles me is the attitude of the Academy.¡± Chenqi shook his head and answered. ¡°Why is Ning Que so eager to negotiate with Taoism? What is he afraid of?¡±


    As dusk fell, the two went silent and felt heavy at heart. At this point, the Divine Halls finally replied to their request, which was just one word: congrattions.


    Tomorrow morning, the Hierarch would summon them personally. The Divine Halls would arrange a grand ceremony for this meeting, and the Great Divine Priest of Judgement they wished to see would be there.


    After attending the dinner, Chu Youxian and Chenqi went back to their room and looked at each other silently, like what they did while looking at the peach blossoms at dusk, for they still felt heavy at heart.


    The Hierarch and other thousands of divine priests and deacons would attend the ceremony tomorrow. How could they talk privately with Ye Hongyu with so many people present?


    ¡°Maybe we don¡¯t have to talk privately with her,¡± Chenqi suddenly said.


    Chu Youxian didn¡¯t understand and asked, ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    Chenqi went silent for a moment and said, ¡°We only need to let her know the message from Ning Que. As long as she gets the message, it doesn¡¯t matter how we tell her.¡±


    Hearing this, Chu Youxian was silent for a long time and turned pale. Then he murmured to himself, ¡°Maybe it¡¯s better that we don¡¯t meet with her.¡± Delivering the message to her in front of thousands of people seemed suicidal.


    He looked up at Chenqi and sighed, ¡°You are so cruel.¡±


    The reason Ning Que chose the two to deliver the message was that Chenqi was good at scheming and Chu Youxian would use all kinds of methods necessary to achieve his goal. But it appeared that Chenqi was better at vicious means.


    Like Chu Youxian said, he was cruel to himself and other people.


    Chenqi said, ¡°It may be better for other people to hear the message too.¡±


    Chu Youxian was hit by mixed feelings. Nobody could be happy while knowing he was heading for his doom. He had already had a hunch about this when they left Chang¡¯an, so he managed to stay calm.


    ¡°If delivering the message means we will die, maybe we should try to meet with another person first,¡± Chu Youxian said as he walked over to the window and looked at the cliff yard on the mountainside and the inconspicuous small stone houses enveloped in darkness.


    Chenqi walked to him and said with a frown, ¡°It¡¯s hard to get there.¡±


    Chen Youxian nced at him and asked, ¡°Harder than death?¡±


    They kept silent for the rest of the night and said goodbye to the past in their hearts. So they were not in a good mood while waking up the next morning. Chu Youxian had dark circles under his eyes, which looked funny.


    ¡°At least it looks funny,¡± Chu Youxian consoled himself.


    Guided by the deacons of the Divine Halls, the two left the Revtion Institute and walked to the Peach Mountain along the stone steps. The verdant hillside was covered by fallen peach blossoms and the umted snow that fell a few days ago, which looked clean and beautiful. The bluestone steps were wet from the dew and looked more eye-catching in the snow.


    The white divine hall on the summit came into their view soon. The morning light fell on it, making it holier and brighter.


    Chu Youxian and Chenqi looked at each other, suddenly turned their bodies and ran towards a certain spot on the cliff yard.


    The bottom of their boots stepped onto the hard stone steps, and their breath was as heavy as the mountain wind. They ignored the deacons of the Divine Halls who kept shouting and the cavalrymen of the Divine Halls who were chasing after them, and they just desperately ran towards the depths of the cliff yard.


    The two who were prepared to die kept running at an unprecedented speed in this morning, and even their figures became blurred.


    The Divine Halls reacted slowly. The deacons and cavalrymen didn¡¯t catch up with them until they ran to the middle of the cliff yard. But somehow the pursuers dared not to move forward.


    Zhao Nanhai came to the cliff yard from the summit of Peach Mountain. Seeing the two figures, he revealed no emotion on his face, but he felt strange.


    If the person in the stone house at the end of cliff yard doesn¡¯t want to see the two men from the Tang, they won¡¯t make their way to the cliff yard.


    Then why would he want to see them?


    ...


    ...


    While approaching the several stone houses at the end of the cliff yard, Chu Youxian and Chenqi were panting and were almost unable to stand straight, feeling that their lungs were about to explode.


    The Divine Halls didn¡¯t chase them to the stone houses either due to fear or other reasons. They were actually not surprised, for they had anticipated the current situation.


    The man in the stone house was willing to see them, so it appeared he wanted to know Ning Que¡¯s message. Chu Youxian was a little puffed up while wiping the sweat off his forehead.


    With a soft sound, the door of the stone house was pushed open. Then a middle-aged priest came out from the inside. The middle-aged priest wore an ordinary robe and his appearance was also normal. In many ways, he was not supposed to be normal, but he was indeed normal for his whole life, which was very unusual.


    Chu Youxian knew this priest was not the person he was looking for, but his expression was still respectful. And his hands were even properly trembled.


    Looking at his deliberate behavior, middle-aged priest asked with a smile, ¡°What do you want to say or do?¡±


    What did Chu Youxian want to do? He kneeled down without hesitation towards the middle-aged priest and also towards the person in the stone house and said humbly, ¡°Chu Youxian wants to tell a story.¡±


    The middle-aged priest looked at him quietly, like he didn¡¯t expect Chu Youxian would kneel down so naturally and firmly. Chu Youxian didn¡¯t give the priest a chance to refuse his request.


    Chu youxian was calm. Ning Que chose Chenqi for his strategy and bravery, and chose him for his unscrupulous means.


    The middle-aged priest smiled and asked, ¡°What story?¡±


    Since Chu Youxian and Chenqi were able toe to the front of the stone house, they were allowed to speak out.


    Chu Youxian said sincerely, ¡°The story takes ce in a world very simr to ours. In that world, there is a religion simr to Taoism led by God who knows everything and is omnipotent.¡±


    ...


    ...


    As the morning light fell, Chu Youxian¡¯s throat became drier and drier and his voice became more and more and hoarse. He finally finished the long story.


    The middle-aged priest looked at him quietly, then looked back at the stone house and finally looked up at the sky and the clouds, and said, ¡°It is a very long story.¡±


    The past and present of Christianity and the rise of Protestantism was indeed a long story. Chu Youxian condensed two-thousand-years of history into one story. Looking back, the bloody war of religions seemed a little ridiculous.


    Chu Youxian lowered his head respectfully.


    The middle-aged priest thought about the whole story, the cooperation and dispute between the royal family and the followers and the distribution of interests, feeling that it was a wonderful story.


    ¡°I heard that Mr. Thirteen had told Haotian a lot of stories in the past. I am wondering if he ever told her this one. But at least it proved that he was really a great storyteller.¡± The middle-aged priest was well aware that the story came from Ning Que. Then he stepped aside, and the door of the stone house appeared in front of Chu Youxian and Chenqi.


    The story was only the beginning of the conversation. Ning Que used the grand story as an introduction, making the person inside the stone house curious about what he wanted to say.


    Looking at the closed door, Chu Youxian turned paler and paler, and Chenqi was breathing rapidly. For the followers of Haotian in the human world, the person in the stone house enjoyed a unique status and meaning. Even the two were very nervous to confront him.


    The middle-aged priest said, ¡°If you want to say something, just speak.¡±


    Chu Youxian was humbler, and his forehead seemed to be pressed into the ground of the cliff yard. However, what he said in a trembling voice the next moment was sphemous.


    ¡°The god is dead, and so would Haotian.¡±


    ¡°So it is better for the Abbey Dean to think more about what happened in the human world.¡±


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 1023 - The Talk He Wants With Her (I)

    <h4>Chapter 1023: The Talk He Wants With Her (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The god was dead.


    So would Haotian.


    When the former was said to the other world, it was like a thunder in the dark sky and awoke people from savagery. Thetter said in this world should have borne the same effect. But disappointingly it was only said to four people when uttered for the first time. What less disappointing was, the person inside the stone cottage heard it.


    The story that Chu Yuxian told was Ning Que¡¯s story. Even he had no idea of what he was talking about, but simply parroted it word by word as Ning Que had told it. He took it far more seriously than his previous studies at the Academy.


    Upon hearing the story, the middle-aged priest was impressed. By thest two sentences, he even showed some emotions. But it was quiet from the beginning to the end inside the stone cottage.


    Chu Youxian was prepared for this. He restrained his anxiousness and ignored their reactions. He kept his head low and continued parroting Ning Que¡¯s words. These were the words Ning Que wanted to say to the world and to the person inside the stone cottage.


    ¡°It¡¯s better to move on together than to die. There¡¯s no eternity in the world. The world has always been there before Haotian. Then why can¡¯t we live without Haotian? Taoism was founded before Haotian. Taoism wanted to guard this world, hence created Haotian. In that case, the Academy and Taoism have always shared the same goal.¡± Chu Youxian lowered his head while speaking and his voice was fading because he somewhat understood what it meant and thought Ning Que was being shameless when saying they shared the same goal. When retelling it, he could no longer be that confident. Sweat fell from his forehead to the ground. It did not ssh due to theck of height.


    ¡°Since we share the same goal, why should we try killing each other? The Abbey Dean has been the leader of Taoism for a thousand years. Since Haotian will eventually die, Taoism has to n for its future. During such a turnabout in a thousand years, no one except for the Abbey Dean should take charge. If you are hesitating, why don¡¯t you try waiting for a few more years? Ye Su is your student. If he bes a sage, you are the master of the sage. Chen Pipi is your son. If he bes a sage, you are the father of the sage. In the new chapter of Taoism, you will be the trinity of holy mentor, holy father, and holy master. Why not?¡±


    It was quiet on the teau except for the sound of wind and the voice Chu Youxian. The person inside the stone cottage neither consented nor opposed. He just listened quietly.


    Chu Youxian¡¯s voice kept fading but he repeated fluently. He murmured and even added some of his own words subconsciously in the end. ¡°One is your best student, the other is your son. Taoism... will be a family business. You are a family. Why can¡¯t you sit down and have a good chat?¡±


    Upon that, Chu Youxian found himself nosy and suddenly became paler. His sweat was immediately restrained and he sensed the coldness on the teau.


    He felt lucky because he was still alive. He reasoned that if they were going to the Divine Halls after this, he would leave all of the talking to Chen Qi and would not say a single word.


    Having heard Ning Que¡¯s words retold by Chu Youxian, the person inside the stone cottage was still very quiet. The middle-aged priest hinted Chu Youxian and Chen Qi to leave. They had finished their task and only wished to leave as soon as possible. So they turned immediately and retreated to the mountain trail like two nervous rabbits.


    The gate of the stone cottage opened with a squeak. An ordinary wheelchair came out of the cottage with an old man sitting in it, covered in a grey nket.


    The person in the wheelchair had lived for over a thousand years. He should have been a very old figure. But previous during his very visits to the human world, people found him to have not aged at all. It was not until after the battle in Chang¡¯an where his Mountain of Snow and Ocean of Qi was destroyed, that he started aging immediately.


    Grey hair appeared around his temples and he looked more gentle. No matter how old he was or if he was a wastrel now, as long as he was alive he had full control over Taoism and posed as the biggest threat to the Academy.


    ording to Ning Que, the Abbey Dean was way more important than the Drunkard or the Butcher, not because of his former divine skills, but just because of the fact that he was the Abbey Dean.


    The human world in the past thousand years was the Headmaster¡¯s human world, while the thousand years were the Headmaster¡¯s thousand years. But the Abbey Dean had always been there. It had proved a lot.


    The middle-aged priest pushed the wheelchair to the edge of the teau.


    The Abbey Dean stared calmly at the floating clouds and snow along the cliffs. He said slowly, ¡°Ning Que was stuck in Chang¡¯an for half a year. Many thought he was doing nothing but keeping himself imprisoned as he did previously. But actually he was thinking a lot. That¡¯s what he did.¡±


    It was true that Ning Que had been thinking. He was thinking about how to solve the problems in the human world and consequently in the Divine Kingdom. His conclusion was that in order to solve them he had to convince the Abbey Dean.


    Not to conquer, or to kill, but to convince. He believed that the Abbey Dean could be convinced. Because he was not someone obsessed with survival like the Drunkard or the Butcher. He was above human desires and of high aesthetic values. He possessed a strong willpower as the Headmaster did. That was indeed somepliment.


    Through the teachings of the Headmaster and the years he stayed with Sangsang inside the Buddha¡¯s chessboard, Ning Que had acquired a much deeper understanding of belief. He figured out the origin of Taoism as well as Haotian. Therefore he was certain that the Abbey Dean was not some stupid figure who would burst into tears upon seeing the Divine mes. The Abbey Dean did not believe in Haotian, but rather his own faith. That faith was the biggest secret ever since the founding of Taoism.


    To guard the world with Haotian. The world was the ultimate goal and what Taoism had been guarding.


    It did not matter that the Butcher founded Taoism, or that Abbey Dean reigned Taoism today, for they never saw Haotian as an innate holy figure. Therefore Ning Que tried very hard to bring the story and thest two sentences to the Abbey Dean. He knew that the Abbey Dean did not need to be reminded. But he still wanted to try. The god was dead, so would Haotian.


    In the new world there would be the New Stream, and Taoism would open a new chapter. To wave to the old world and wee the new, as long as Taoism could embrace this trend, it would still have an important role in the new world. Taoism could still guard this world, but in a different way.


    Ning Que wanted to remind him that this world itself was much more important than Haotian. It was not just the Academy¡¯s perception, but also the fundamental faith of Taoism. Then why couldn¡¯t the Academy and Taoism share the same goal? Ning Que chose to negotiate with the Abbey Dean because he knew he could understand. He knew that the Abbey Dean was a man of true wisdom. Only a man of true wisdom could make such an important decision.


    ¡°The Headmaster was indeed a great man. Only he could have educated such a student.¡± The Abbey Dean said calmly, ¡°Ning Que could see the truth of Taoism and my faith. This is extraordinary.¡±


    The middle-aged priest was impressed. Because the Abbey Dean had given the highestpliment to Ning Que. It was also because the Abbey Dean had somewhat revealed his true belief. The Abbey Dean watched toward the cliffs and pondered for a long while.


    The middle-aged priest found his hands trembling on the wheelchair. Even he could not help from being extremely nervous now. Because what would happen next would change the entire human world or even the fate of Haotian¡¯s Divine Kingdom.


    There were many clouds along the cliffs. The white clouds floated around like random waves in the ocean. But they were actually shaped by the wind and controlled by gravity.


    The Abbey Dean stared at the clouds and said calmly, ¡°Yet... it is a pity that he still cannot see through himself.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Chu Youxian had no idea either. He was just a storyteller, just like a parrot. He had no idea who the god was, or what the Crusades were or what they had to do with Taoism. What was Ning Que trying to tell the Abbey Dean? How could Haotian die eventually?


    Leaving the teau, they found Zhao Nanhai and dozens of divine cavalrymen waiting down there. It was tense but Chu Youxian was not scared. He pointed at the couple of stone cottages behind and said,¡±I¡¯ve made it there and came back alive. Therefore you cannot kill me.¡±


    Zhao Nanhai stared at the stone cottage and said nothing. No one knew what he was thinking about. Eventually he did nothing and escorted Chu Youxian and Chen Qi toward the peak.


    The white hall on top of Peach Mountain was the main hall of West-Hill. It was the most elevated architecture of Haotian Taoism and the ce for their negotiation today.


    The Divine Hall was floored with silky stone bricks. They were reflecting the sky lights as a mirror and as if they were made of gold. It was spacious inside. There were mysterious religious murals on the stone walls that were fully decorated with gems. It seemed to be the ce that gathered all the fortune and respect from this world, extremely imposing and holy.


    Thousands of deacons stood in lines silently inside the Divine Hall. No one dared to say a word. It was as quiet as an ocean.


    Chu Youxian and Chen Qi walked through the crowd as if they were walking through an ocean. They could not help from sense a cold storm hidden in the crowd.


    After a long walk, they ended up on the highest stage in the innermost part of the Divine Hall. A radiating screen hung above the stage. And a lofty and holy figure was shown on the screen. The voice of the figure was like thunder and awe-inspiring.


    That was the person said to be as mysterious as the leader of Devil¡¯s Doctine, the Twenty-Three Year Cicada. But since he was seriously wounded in the battle by Yu Lian, he could no longer remain brilliant in front of the people. And after being shot into misery by Ning Que during the Rite to Light, he was already much less important to the followers of Haotian.


    But he was after all the Hierarch of the Divine Halls of West-Hill, someone who had surpassed the Five States and reached Tianqi. And he was also the leader of Taoism acknowledged by the Abbey Dean.


    Chu Youxian and Chen Qi showed the utmost respect to that lofty figure and made wless bows. However, even the dumbest divine priest could tell that they were paying much more attention to the chair down the stage rather than of the Hierarch behind the screen. It was not because the precious chair was made of a whole chunk of dark jade from the South Sea but because of the woman sitting in it that made it the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade.


    She sat there with her eyes closed and wore a bloody red gown. The world around her seemed to have be an ocean of blood. She was the fairest as well as the most ruthless in the world. And she was Ye Hongyu, the most powerful figure in Taoism and the invible Great Divine Priest of Judgement.


    Ye hongyu, the Great Divine Priest of Judgement, was the one Ning Que wanted to talk to, and the one Chu Youxian and Chen Qi had been waiting to meet. They were finally taken to her today.


    Chu Youxian and Chen Qi were awkwardly quiet. As discussedst night, they were now in front of her but could still not meet with her. How could they avoid the attention of the Hierarch and everyone else and pass Ning Que¡¯s words to her?


    The ceremony was about to be finished with a salutation. They did not have much time left. It did not matter whether the negotiation between Tang and the Divine Halls could be carried on or not, for they had to leave shortly. But those words were still untold.


    Chu Youxian looked at Chen Qi and recalled what they discussed the previous night. He found his lips and tongue a bit dry and said hesitatingly, ¡°Are we really doing this?¡±


    Chen Qi stared at Ye Hongyu and said, ¡°What else can we do now?¡±


    Chu Youxian paused for a while and finally collected enough courage to step forward. While people were staring at him, he cleared his throat and interrupted the prayer of some red-robed divine priest.


    ¡°We have something to say.¡± He was nervous in front of the crowd in the Divine Hall and sounded hoarse. ¡°We came with an intent for peace. Shouldn¡¯t you spare a moment for us to talk?¡±


    Thousands of divine priests and deacons looked at them emotionlessly. Their red or violet robes seemed like oceans of various colors. It formed an invisible but overwhelming pressure and almost choked Chu Youxian.


    Right then Chen Qi took one step forward too. It became even more tense inside the hall. Chen Qi seemed to be not influenced at all. He looked at the ordinary chair and the ocean of blood, and posed a question calmly and resolutely, ¡°Are you willing to hear this?¡±


    The negation was a joke. If there were to be some sort of negotiation, it should have happened on the teau in front of the stone cottage. She seemed impatient and kept her eyes closed.


    Chen Qi gazed at her and said hoarsely, ¡°Everyone knows that ... Ning Que wants a talk with the world. But actually he just wants to talk to you.¡±


    Indeed, everyone knew that if Ning Que were to talk to someone, the Great Divine Priest of Judgement must be one of them. The Hierarch knew, and so did Zhao Nanhai and the divine priests and deacons, and even those servants.


    That was why Xiong Chumo nned to kill these two while they were in Qinghe Prefecture. And that was also why they could not run into Ye Hongyu on Peach Mountain.


    It was not until then, in front of thousands of divine priests and deacons, in the gathering of countless powerful figures, that they finally met Ye Hongyu. Therefore they had to talk and pass his words to her even if they would be killed in the next moment.

 Chapter 1024 - The Talk He Wants With Her (II)

    <h4>Chapter 1024: The Talk He Wants With Her (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ning Que wanted a talk with the world, for he wanted to change the trend of the world. Of course he also wanted to talk to Ye Hongyu.


    This was one thing that many people knew for sure even though they did not say so. The current Great Divine Priest of Judgement met with Ning Que when she was still the Tao Fanatic, and the two swore not to exist together under the same Heaven but failed to do so. They had been fought against each other and also fought side by side. She had once lived by the Yanming Lake in Chang¡¯an for quite a long time, and they had fought a bloody death together at the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    In the eyes of the people in the Divine Halls, it was not surprising that the Great Divine Priest of Judgement and Ning Que got married. The two were never concerned about whether their earth-shattering behavior would unsettle the world, for they were exactly the kind of people who did such outrageous things.


    What unsettled Taoism the most was that the New Stream the Divine Halls swore to destroy was established by Ye Su who happened to be Ye Hongyu¡¯s brother. In many ways, Ye Hongyu was the natural ally of the Academy and also the most potential object who could be subverted.


    The hall was packed with thousands of divine priests and deacons who were looking at Chenqi and guessing what he, or to be more urate, Ning Que would say. They looked unsettled, shocked, puzzled and also worried.


    Does the Academy really want to subvert the Great Divine Priest of Judgement? Is it sure that what Ning Que wants to say is rted to this matter? However, how could he say those profane words with so many powerful Taoists present? How will the Great Divine Priest of Judgement react? Thinking about it, the people in the hall looked a little relieved.


    As the person of concern, Ye Hongyu never changed her expression and still kept her eyes closed, looking indifferent.


    ¡°What does he want to say?¡± she asked with her eyes closed, still looking very casual.


    It was obviously an important and even horrible thing, but she turned it into a trivial matter.


    The people in the hall once again looked at Chenqi and wondered what he was going to say.


    Being watched by thousands of indifferent eyes, Chenqi was very nervous, because what he was about to say might be his own epitaph.


    ¡°Ning Que said...¡± Chen Qi paused here, and Chu Youxian wished he could pass out at this moment. Chenqi took a deep breath and looked at the direction of Ye Hongyu. Then he finished the sentence. ¡°He is waiting for you in Chang¡¯an.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Waiting for her in Chang¡¯an, what for? Although they could get married, Ning Que was definitely not waiting for her to marry him. Then he was waiting for her to surrender or to return.


    The solemn and sacred Taoism hall was extremely quiet, and it was even quieter at this moment. Only the words Chenqi just said were still floating in the golden lights and into everyone¡¯s ears.


    Is he just trying to turn the Great Divine Priest of Judgement against Taoism? How dare Ning Que think like this? How dare these Tang people say this in the Divine Halls? Are they all crazy? People all stared at Chenqi, and their eyes were filled with disbelief and confusion.


    After saying this, Chenqi felt pain in his throat. However, all of his fears also disappeared. ¡°He said, ¡®Just do it recklessly! You never hesitate!¡¯ He said, ¡®What are you waiting for? When on earth will you defect?¡¯ He said no matter how long it would take he would be waiting for you in Chang¡¯an!¡±


    At this point, the divine priests and deacons who thought they heard Chenqi wrong finally confirmed Ning Que¡¯s intention.


    In the most sacred Taoist hall on the summit of Peach Mountain and in the presence of thousands of most pious followers of Haotian, Ning Que dared to persuade the Great Divine Priest of Judgement to defect!


    Is this subverting? It seems like a child¡¯s y! Or is it the Academy¡¯s n to sow discord within Taoism? But who would believe it? No! The Academy would never do such a ridiculous thing. These divine priests and deacons suddenly thought of a horrible inference.


    It is Ning Que¡¯s intention to say that in front of us, for he wants the whole world to hear what he has to say. Then he will achieve his goal!


    This was not even a scheme, but a sharp iron knife that was pointed directly at the most fundamental contradiction inside the Divine Halls!


    If the Divine Halls could not wipe out the New Stream, then it would be unable to trust Ye Hongyu and the Divine Hall of Judgement that was led by her. What Ning Que did was to uncover the truth, making everyone in the hall feel very painful!


    Pain would bring anger. The divine priests and deacons inside the Divine Hall rushed to Chenqi and Chu Youxian angrily, like a tidal wave.


    The psyches of thousands of divine priests and deacons were gathered together and gave off an unimaginable power. Chenqi turned extremely pale and began to vomit blood.


    At this moment, Ye Hongyu finally opened her eyes. Just when Chenqi couldn¡¯t hold it anymore, her cold eyes made him feel a little more rxed and allowed him to breathe again.


    A psyche which seemed to be able to destroy Heaven and Earth arose from the depths of the Divine Hall and came to Chu Youxian and Chenqi like hurricanes.


    Ye Honngyu stood up and shielded the psyche.


    The atmosphere in the Divine Hall became extremely tense.


    Hundreds of deacons of the Judicial Department dressed in ck came out like ck bubbles and stopped their angry peers.


    A thunderous sound echoed around the hall, ¡°The apostate must die.¡± The voice came from the Hierarch, sounding calm and full of irresistible divine power.


    Ye Hongyu replied calmly, ¡°Now that he has started, why not let him finish? The most painful thing is hearing an unfinished story.¡±


    Thousands of divine priests and deacons inside the hall gazed at one another and did not know what to do. Would Taoism fall apart today just because Ning Que said those words from thousands of miles away?


    The Hierarch answered slowly, ¡°It is still profane even if you were to just listen to those sphemous words.¡±


    ¡°I just want to hear what kind of interesting things Ning Que has to say. As for sphemy, we can just kill these two after they finish the story,¡± Ye Hongyu exined calmly.


    The Hierarch went silent, indicating that he was fine with it.


    Ye Hongyu looked at Chenqi and said calmly, ¡°Carry on.¡±


    Thinking of what Ning Que said, Chenqi felt strange, but he dared not to hold back and spat it out honestly. ¡°He also said, ¡®The youngpanions are always the best.¡¯ He said, ¡®Rolling up my verse books, I am madly joyful.¡¯ He said, ¡®I¡¯ve missed you so much that I¡¯m beyond myself.¡¯¡±

 Chapter 1025 - The Last Words

    <h4>Chapter 1025: The Last Words</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    ...


    ...


    ¡°He said, ¡®Just do it recklessly! You never hesitate!¡¯¡±


    ¡°He said, ¡®What are you waiting for? When on earth will you defect?¡¯¡±


    ¡°He said no matter how long it would take he would be waiting for you in Chang¡¯an!¡±


    ...


    ...


    ¡°He also said... the youngpanions are always the best.¡±


    ¡°He said... rolling up my verse books I am madly joyful.¡±


    ¡°He said... I¡¯ve missed you so much that I¡¯m beyond myself.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Inside the hall it was as quiet as the dead winter. It was deep winter outside. But how could the coldness prate the thick walls? Only Chen Qi¡¯s words were floating in the air. The first three lines were still lingering while theter three were already uttered as waves in the ocean. They broke the silence and hit the stone walls with murals. They smashed the walls and sshed onto thousands of divine priests and deacons, which made them feel cold.


    Ning Que¡¯s words were abrupt as iron and frivolous. But being put together meant they were a matter of course, the Academy¡¯s matter of course. I¡¯m waiting for you in Chang¡¯an, therefore you muste. That¡¯s the only logical possibility, thus a matter of course.


    Taoists worshipped Haotian, while the New Stream was shaking its foundation. No matter what Ye Hongyu did, she could never dispel the fundamental conflict between the two. Therefore the New Stream had to be extinct and Ye Su had to be killed. If Ye Su were to be killed, she would definitely defect.


    It was just a matter of time before she would defect. But it was better to be sooner thanter. Because if she were to defect sooner, it might bring Ye Su and the New Stream another chance.


    Many people knew it and Ye Hongyu knew it best. But everyone in Taoism chose to ignore it as if the crack on the sun never existed.


    Ning Que passed his words to her right then, and they were some very rude words. Chen Qiprehended it well enough and uttered them in a ruder way that shocked the entire West-Hill before his death.


    It was like a blunt man taking off the clothes of a helpless girl. He took off the blood robe that covered their belief and unveiled the cruel truth in the zing Divine mes of Haotian.


    Those words were crucial. He made his point clear and provided an answer, so that the thousands of people inside the Divine Halls could no longer ignore it.


    Taoism had to make a choice. No matter if or when Ye Hongyu would defect, Taoism had to treat her as a traitor now.


    The Hierarch stood behind the screen and his lofty figure was not shivering at all. Instead the radiating screen started shivering and generated halos.


    Chu Youxian could not help his psyche from shivering together with the screen. When he and Chen Qi made that decision, they had been prepared for their deaths. And they knew dying must feel awful.


    Everyone was looking at Ye Hongyu and waiting for her decision, for the first betrayal of Great Divine Priest of Judgment throughout the history of Taoism, and for the copse of Taoism.


    People felt aplex of emotions: some relief, great anxiety and fear, as well as curiosity.


    They were obviously shocked but no one said anything. She seemed not to see their gaze at all and stood calmly where she was.


    What was Ye Hongyu thinking about then?


    Youngpanions? She recalled many years ago when they went to the the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine in the heart of the Wilderness. They traveled through the fog and slid down the iron cable that connected the hell and the human world. She thought of the cradle and the young boys and girls in and outside the cradle.


    She squinted toward the sky outside the hall.


    That was the sky above the Song where Tang Xiaotang should be right now. She should be standing by her brother. Long Qing should have also arrived there.


    Being the Great Divine Priest of Judgment, although she could not control what Long Qing or Hengmu did, she was still able to sense their locations. But they were too far away and she could not save either of them.


    Who else was there back then in the cradle down the cable? Apart from Ning Que, there was also Mo Shanshan, the previous Calligraphy Fanatic, and the current queen of the Great River Kingdom.


    Where is she now? Ye Hongyu smiled mysteriously upon some thoughts.


    The young boys and girls had be important figures in the world. She was the youngest Great Divine Priest of Judgment throughout the history of the Divine Halls, and Ning Que had be the spokesperson for the Academy and Tang. And he was trying to blow her up.


    Indeed she knew it clearly. Ning Que¡¯s words were still lingering inside the hall as if he was swaying his terrifying de right then and there.


    ¡°I¡¯ve always believed that Ning Que is a disgrace of the Academy.¡± Ye Hongyu finally spoke and broke the painful silence inside the divine hall. But what she said surprised them all. ¡°Because he is always narrow-minded. He likes to set up people and things. His tricks are probably useful to others. Perhaps someone else would have defected today upon his words.¡±


    It was silent in the hall.


    Her smile froze and she said coldly, ¡°But I¡¯m not someone else. I am Ye Hongyu. Did he think he could convince me with those words? I¡¯ve always detested those stupid women and found them disgusting. How could I take his words seriously?¡± She continued. ¡°If he is noting to me, I¡¯ll go to him? No way. I¡¯m not like that. Why should I go to him simply because he is noting? You tell him to go to hell,¡± she looked at Chen Qi and said emotionlessly.


    To defect, or to save them? Chen Qi could not understand why he had failed.


    Ye Hongyu was so charming and calm. It seemed she neither heard the words nor cared about Ye Su¡¯s fate in Song. Why?


    Chen Qi stared at her beautiful face seriously. Colors drained from his own face and mes were burning in his eyes. He had transformed every bit of his spirit into courage. He was not giving up. Because Ning Que had somest words.


    When they left Chang¡¯an, Ning Que had told him seriously that he could never say thest words until the veryst and desperate moment.


    Chen Qi had no idea what that meant. But he could tell from Ning Que¡¯s tone that it must be vital. Therefore why should he still keep it?


    ¡°Ning Que also said this,¡± Chen Qi looked into Ye Hongyu¡¯s eyes and said.


    Ye Hongyu seemed indifferent.


    ¡°That person ... was Xiong Chumo.¡± Chen Qi sounded hoarse. It was neither because of thirst nor nervousness, but rather because his throat was congesting.


    That sentence gave no clue at all. No one from the thousands of divine priests and deacons in the hall had any idea what he meant. That person was Xiong Chumo. What person? Who was Xiong Chumo?


    Even Chen Qi did not know what that meant, not to mention the rest.


    Inside the Divine Halls among the crowd, only two of them understood those words. Because they were the two involved.


    The radiating screen stopped shivering and the Hierarch gradually became profoundly solemn.


    Ye Hongyu stood by the radiating screen and also became profoundly solemn.

 Chapter 1026 - Then Nothing

    <h4>Chapter 1026: Then Nothing</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    That person was Xiong Chumo.


    Who was that person? Who was Xiong Chumo?


    At this time, thousands of divine priests and deacons in the hall were thinking of these questions but failed to get answers. But they knew that it must be extremely important since Ning Que saved it until thest moment. Therefore, they looked at Ye Hongyu solemnly, and she looked solemn too.


    Only a few people had heard of the name Xiong Chumo, and even fewer knew that it was the original name of the Hierarch. Clearly, thetter was more nervous.


    The radiating screen in front of the high tform stopped shivering, as solemn as a silent wall. The tall figure behind the wall seemed more strapping, and a fierce breath spread in all directions, with no intention to kill but only full of sacred majesty. As the situation had reached its most critical moment, that tall figure must clear up people¡¯s doubts for him and relieve the pressure from her.


    Ye Hongyu stood by the radiating screen.


    Compared with the figure behind the radiating screen, she looked so small but stood steadily, which seemed that she would not be swallowed up no matter how big the wave was.


    Time went by, and the soft but cold wind from the cliff lowered the temperature inside.


    Would the war between the Hierarch and the Great Divine Priest of Judgement break out the next moment?


    But out of everyone¡¯s reckoning, Ye Hongyu gradually regained her regr expression, as calm as the clear stream under the plum tree.


    She just sat back to her chair without any expression. The blood-colored Gown of Judgment floated as she sat back, and then dropped down like a red flower.


    She sat quietly in the chair as if nothing had happened and she had heard nothing. Only her closest subordinates from the Divine Hall of Judgement and those powerful red-robed divine priests could see the irritation and tiredness between her eyebrows.


    She raised her right arm and pointed to Chenqi and Chu Youxian. Her delicate fingers seemed to be coated with dew, but only scattered indifference.


    The ck deacons of the Divine Hall of Judgement went forward without any hesitation, knocked down Chenqi and Chu Youxian and dragged them out of the hall.


    Chenqi and Chu Youxian would be taken to the Secluded Pavilion and they might be kept there forever. But at least they were not sentenced to death at this moment.


    People in the hall might have different opinions about her decision, but no one dared to question her at this point. And even the tall figure behind the radiating screen remained silent.


    Then she took a nce at the hall. Thousands of divine priests and deacons inside the hall all thought that the Great Divine Priest of Judgement was looking at them and they were all shocked by the cold and power in her eyes.


    The sea made up of red, ck, and brown robes could be calm and also be violent. But under her gaze, the sea turned into streams, flowing towards the low-leveled ces.


    In a very short time, thousands of divine priests and deacons quietly withdrew from the hall and left the world to Ye Hongyu and the Hierarch behind the radiating screen.


    ¡°I am curious about how the Academy found out,¡± Ye Hongyu sat in the chair and said without any expression, never turning around to look at the radiating screen.


    Behind the radiating screen, the Hierarch squinted at her back and was thinking about something.


    Before he could answer, Ye Hongyu continued to say indifferently, ¡°The only possibility is Yu Lian.¡±


    Yu Lian was the Senior Sister of the Academy and also the master of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, Twenty-Three-Year Cicada.


    If the cultivation world thought that Ning Que and Long Qing were mortal enemies, then Yu Lian and Xiong Chumo were also mortal enemies.


    Xiong Chumo finally opened his mouth, ¡°You didn¡¯t seem surprised when you heard it. Why?¡±


    Sitting in the chair, Ye Hongyu looked at the winter sky outside the hall and answered, ¡°I knew it was you all this time. But I did not expect that others knew as well.¡±


    Xiong Chumo was silent for a long time and then asked, ¡°When did you know?¡±


    Ye Hongyu rubbed her eyes and answered, ¡°Ning Que damaged your giant sedan at the Rite to Light, and I knew it was you when I first saw you.¡±


    Xiong Chumoughed strangely and said, ¡°It never urred to me that you are so patient.¡±


    Ye Hongyu replied, ¡°You have been suffering ever since Yu Lian defeated you. Even though Haotian cured your wounds, she couldn¡¯t fix your Taoist Heart. Since I will kill you eventually, I am more than happy to see you suffer for a few more years. I am not in a rush.¡±


    Xiong Chumo stared at her back silently and suddenly realized that he could no longer remember what the old her looked like.


    He thought, She is strong enough to threaten me now. ¡°Why are you so sure that it was Yu Lian? I don¡¯t think other people know about this matter.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not because she is your enemy. In her opinion, you are not qualified to be her opponent at all. It is because she is the master of Devil¡¯s Doctrine and Twenty-Three-Year Cicada. The Devil¡¯s Doctrine is best at schemes and intrigues, so I won¡¯t be surprised that she knows it.¡±


    ¡°Just for this one reason?¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s also because she injured you but never killed you at the Back Hill of the Academy back then.¡± Ye Hongyu stood up slowly and said, ¡°I have been wondering why she spared your life, and so has Ning Que. I finally figured it out now.¡± She didn¡¯t turn around, and was just looking at the winter sky outside the hall. ¡°Because she knew I will kill you. Your life is the inevitable reason she saved for me to defect, and she would be happy to see Taoism fall apart because of a useless man.¡±


    She said calmly, ¡°Twenty-Three-Year Cicada indeed deserves her reputation.¡±


    Xiong Chumo went silent for a long time and then asked, ¡°Then what?¡±


    Then nothing. There were no horrible divine mes, no sharp Taoist sword swinging around, no war, no revenge, and even no hatred.


    Ye Hongyu walked out of the hall and her blood-colored Gown of Judgment swayed in the cold wind, overshadowing the glories of all the gods on the wall.


    Behind the radiating screen, Xiong Chumo squinted his eyes into slits which were full of blood stains, looking dirty and evil. The depths of his eyes were gradually filled with shock, anger, and fear.


    It was not until today that he realized the only reason he survived back than was that Yu Lian had kept him alive for other purposes.


    As Ye Hongyu said before, from Yu Lian¡¯s point of view, he was not qualified to be her opponent at all, so his fate meant nothing to her. Yu Lian spared his life for she knew from the beginning that he would be the trigger of the copse of Taoism.


    But Yu Lian had not foreseen that Ye Hongyu did not do what she had expected. And Xiong Chumo also wondered why she chose not to kill him when she had the chance after the Rite to Light several years ago and also at this moment.

 Chapter 1027 - Her Faith

    <h4>Chapter 1027: Her Faith</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    ...


    ...


    Coming out of the white Divine Hall on the peak, Ye Hongyu walked down along the mountain trail. Clouds floated beside her dress while she found her psyche cleared. When she reached the teau, she had regained her tranquility.


    She looked gently and calmly at the couple of stone cottages on the teau. The next moment, she found her Taoist heart firm as iron. The teau and stone cottages meant a lot to her, much more than memories.


    She had to drop her state when she escaped from Lian Sheng in the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Both her cultivation and Taoist heart was seriously wounded. When she came back to Peach Mountain, people thought she could never regain her power. They scorned her and the Hierarch even tried to marry her to Luokedi.


    She locked herself in one of those stone cottages and continued cultivating. She knew she could break through all the obstacles. Then she received a letter from the Garret Sword.


    She regained her power and killed the previous Great Divine Priest of Judgment. Then she became the youngest Great Divine Priest in the history of the West-Hill and started a new chapter of her legend.


    Since then, neither Luokedi nor the Hierarch could never threaten her. Nothing in the human world could ever be a problem for her.


    Ning Que¡¯s words or the question posed by the Academy was nothing. She came to the stone cottage not for some relief from the person inside, but rather to collect the reward she deserved for having made a choice.


    She did not betray Taoism or kill the Hierarch. She chose not to tear up Taoism with her Divine Hall of Judgment and ignored Ning Que¡¯s invitation. Instead of turning to the Academy, she stayed on the Peach Mountain and posed herself in the danger. Now she was to confront the absolute danger by herself.


    She was qualified to ask for whatever she wanted from that person inside the cottage.


    The night fell quietly and darkened her scarlet Gown of Judgment. It seemed to have been soaked in blood for thousands of years before she put it on.


    She stood quietly in front of the stone cottage and did not look inside. Because the person who used to be inside was now sitting in the wheelchair by the cliff and enjoying the sunset.


    ¡°I have no idea what it was. But I guess it must be something very important since Ning Que kept it until thest moment,¡± the old man in the wheelchair said calmly without turning back.


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°It¡¯s important to me but nothing to the human world. Or it mattered in the past but no longer now.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°It was important after all.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°But I don¡¯t want to hear it.¡±


    ¡°Ning Que did not say it properly.¡± The Abbey Dean mocked, ¡°It was very inappropriate to try to win you for the Academy only by sending two people and a few words. His words are after all not the Seven Tomes of Arcane.¡±


    Ye Hongyu agreed, ¡°Indeed. That was also why I didn¡¯t want to listen.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°You already knew it long ago therefore it was not surprising. Then it was not good enough to convince you.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Ning Que and Yu Lian underestimated me. The Devil¡¯s Doctrine and the Academy together might be able to set up the entire world, but not me.¡±


    The Abbey Dean smiled in the wheelchair and said, ¡°I said the same thing previously.¡±


    ¡°I always knew it was Xiong Chumo.¡± Ye Hongyu continued, ¡°I didn¡¯t take him after the Rite to Light not because I wanted him to stay miserable, but rather because I knew Your Highness would not allow me.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°I¡¯m the leader of Taoism and I never y favoritism.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°I still won¡¯t kill him. I probably will never do.¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked gentle and asked, ¡°Because of your faith? Or piety to Haotian?¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°It has nothing to do with my faith.¡±


    The Abbey Dean smiled and asked, ¡°Then what for?¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°I want Xiong Chumo¡¯s life in exchange of another person¡¯s life.¡±


    The Abbey Deanughed and shook his head, ¡°First you have to prove you can kill him. Then you are qualified for the exchange.¡±


    One could only exchange things with something one possessed. Otherwise it would be stealing or robbery.


    Xiong Chumo was the Hierarch and had surpassed the Five States long ago. He activated Tianqi and the Divine me to dispel the evils around the world. No one except for the Eldest Brother or Yu Lian could have a certain win over him.


    No matter how talented Ye Hongyu was or how well she cultivated, she was still too young. Even if she was already at the zenith of Knowing Destiny, how could she kill Xiong Chumo?


    ¡°Then how about with my own life?¡± She said, ¡°No matter how shamelessly Ning Que yed in the game, I am still grateful for him and the Twenty-three Year Cicada.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Because they proved to the Divine Halls how important I was. They tried their best to win my help. Therefore Taoism should pay a price that is enough to keep me.¡±


    The Abbey Dean smiled and said nothing.


    The Hierarch¡¯s life was indeed not something Ye Hongyu could take. But she was after all the Great Divine Priest of Judgment and had countless royal subordinates. If she were to defect, it would be a fatal loss for the West-Hill given that the Divine Hall of Light and Revtion Institute would both be missing leaders.


    The Academy had prepared for years to carry out this n. Yu Lian paved the way for it several years ago. She had waited patiently to see it happen today. However they failed.


    The Abbey Dean looked at the the evening glow by the horizon and said gently, ¡°He was indeed my best student.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°When we were kids, everyone thought he was inferior to Chen Pipi.¡±


    The Abbey Dean shook his head. ¡°Not to mention the others, I used to think so too. But he proved that I was wrong, so was everyone else.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°So Your Highness thinks my life is not worthy of his?¡±


    ¡°The teaching of the New Stream seems to be simr to Haotian Taoism. However it actually took the authority back from Taoism and returned it to the followers. It reimed the glory from Haotian¡¯s Divine Kingdom to the human world. The Devil¡¯s Doctrine could only influence the cultivation world, while the New Stream could shake the entire world. He went way further than the former Great Divine Priest of Light did a thousand years ago.¡±


    The Abbey Dean continued calmly, ¡°In that sense, he is the worst traitor and the real gravedigger of Taoism. Whenever I think about this I cannot help from being impressed, or even proud as his teacher. You could certainly not exchange such a person so easily.¡±


    Ye Hongyu also looked at the evening glow to the east. There was the ocean and the Song Kingdom by the ocean. ¡°So is Your Highness insisting on killing him?¡±


    ¡°Ning Que asked me to n for the future of Taoism. But he didn¡¯t know that I had always been thinking. The New Stream has already formed and will definitely spread widely. They¡¯ve got countless followers and there¡¯s no point of killing him now. How could I kill him just to force you to betray us?¡± The Abbey Dean turned to her and smiled.


    Ye Hongyu had no idea what Ning Que had said to the Abbey Dean.


    ¡°Like I just said, you did not leave because you had faith.¡± He looked at Ye Hongyu and said, ¡°I didn¡¯t mean Haotian, but Ye Su. Even though he is already a wastrel like I am, he is way more important to you than Haotian is. As long as he has the slimmest chance to survive, you will never risk it. I said Ning Que could not see through himself therefore his words were meaningless. Apparently he could not see through you and therefore failed to convince you.¡±


    Ye Hongyu kept quiet. She had to admit that even though this old man was not her master, he understood her much better. Her Brother¡¯s life was like a pond of thunder, which was filled with his glorious swords. She could not take a step further. As long as he could survive, she would ignore the most humiliating past and face it calmly.


    Since the Academy could not protect him, nothing they said would ever matter.


    Furthermore, she had always knew that Ning Que was selfish, cold-blooded and shameless. He had previously proved himself to be so and did it again today. And he would do so again in the future.


    The light gradually faded and night prevailed. The snow and clouds were gone and the sky was decorated with stars. Among the stars was a bright moon shining on the human world, including the teau on Peach Mountain.


    The Abbey Dean looked above to the moon, pondered for a long while, and said something indistinctly. It was as tasteless as the moonlight shed on him, tranquil and emotionless. ¡°I will give Xiong Chumo¡¯s life to you.¡±


    Ye Hongyu bowed and left the teau for she already received the promise she wanted.


    Although the Abbey Dean did not mention anything other than Xiong Chumo¡¯s life in his promise, she knew her Brother would survive. Neither Long Qing nor the Drunkard would kill him. Because the Abbey Dean made it clear that it was not beneficial for Taoism to take Ye Su¡¯s life at this point.


    But the problem was that the Academy was not aware of it. So after all that he had done, was Ning Que going to be a joke in history?


    The Abbey Dean swayed his hand in the chilling night breeze and tried to catch some moonlight.


    ¡°What happened to the Hierarch and the Great Divine Priest of Judgment previously?¡± the middle-aged priest asked.


    The Abbey Dean shook his head and said, ¡°I have no idea. Nor should I care.¡±


    The middle-aged priest seemed worried. ¡°It seems the Academy takes it seriously...¡±


    The Abbey Dean said calmly, ¡°The Academy always positions itself as if it never cared about meaningfulness. But actually they would never do anything meaningless. No matter what they said to me or to Ye Hongyu, it was a trap. Ning Que knew the New Stream was a threat to Taoism and tried to convince me with this. I have to admit he was right, even if he could not see the whole picture. If he could convince me, Taoism would be defeated, or even finished. If he could not, Ye Su would be killed and Ye Hongyu would definitely defect. Therefore Taoism would again be defeated.¡±


    The middle-aged priest seemed to have realized something andmented with admiration, ¡°So if we do nothing, the Academy will fail.¡±


    It seemed to be the Abbey Dean¡¯s n, to cope with anything by doing nothing. However, he shook his head again and looked above to the moon, pondering.


    ...


    ...


    Entering into the Divine Hall of Judgment, Ye Hongyu stood by the ck stone pir and looked at the snow-covered mountains for a long while. She held her hands behind her back and her face looked frosted.


    No one knew what she was thinking about. Her loyal subordinates and maids stayed worried in the side hall but did not dare to interrupt.


    The moon travelled while the stars remained. And the night grewte.


    She looked to the direction of the Song and could almost see the ughtering, the zing holy me, and the people who fought fiercely for their faith.


    Her beautiful face was free of emotions as if it was an ice engraving.


    Right then, footsteps were heard in the Divine Hall of Judgment.


    The ck-robed deacons should have been on alert even at the slightest footsteps. But strangely they remained silent even when that person came to her side.


    Perhaps it was because even the most ruthless ck-robed deacon did not dare to stop him. Or even the most powerful in the Divine Hall of Judgment was not able to hear his footsteps.


    It was a wretched, skinny and short old priest. The Hierarch of West-Hill, Xiong Chumo hade to her quietly in the dark night.


    Ye Hongyu looked afar toward the Song Kingdom and watched the snow clouds glowing indistinctly in the night. She almost saw the storm forming above the ocean.


    Colors were drained from her face. She squinted her eyes into a line, or a sword.

 Chapter 1028 - The Childish, The Bright, And The Ordinary (I)

    <h4>Chapter 1028: The Childish, The Bright, And The Ordinary (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ye Hongyu turned around and left the moonlight scattered on the terrace behind her. Her pale face regained a little color under the shadow of the night. She looked at the Hierarch quietly, but a myriad of thoughts crowded into her mind.


    Xiong Chumo also looked at her quietly. Seeing her elegant figure outlined by the moonlight and her beautiful face, he once again confirmed that she was no longer the little girl he was familiar with, and he was somewhat angry.


    Ye Hongyu was not surprised or angry while seeing him, revealing no expression on her face.


    Xiong Chumo became even angrier because of her calmness. It unsettled him that his ugliest and most evil behavior in the past was now uncovered, but he was also puzzled and frustrated by her calmness. He would rather see that the Great Divine Priest of Judgement was enraged than know that she never took him seriously.


    ¡°What did you say to the Abbey Dean?¡± he asked.


    Ye Hongyu didn¡¯t answer, and just looked at him.


    When Xiong Chumo was silent for a moment and suddenlyughed, revealing a distorted pleasure on his ugly and old face. He said, ¡°You are afraid of me.¡±


    Ye Hongyu still kept silent.


    ¡°Of course you are afraid of me.¡±


    There was a faint glimmer shining in the depths of the eyes of Xiong Chumo, and his voice trembled a little due to excitement, ¡°You can¡¯t forget what happened to you in the past. When you found out it was me, you were too afraid to get revenge, because you didn¡¯t want to relive your most painful experience.¡±


    Ye Hongyu asked calmly while staring at him, ¡°Why should I be afraid of you?¡±


    Xiong Chumo turned pale slightly. He didn¡¯t understand her question. Isn¡¯t it obvious? Even if you are not afraid of me now, that poor little girl who had thin legs back then was definitely afraid of me.


    His breathing became heavy, his eyes were stained with a bloody flush, and his voice trembled. ¡°After you discovered the truth, you must have been angry and puzzled. You must be wondering why I, the Hierarch, would do that at the risk of irritating Ye Su. Actually I didn¡¯t even know the answer myself. Maybe I was jealous?¡± Looking at the moonlight falling on her hair, he was fascinated by her beautiful face.


    Ye Hongyu replied calmly, ¡°I am not interested in those things.¡±


    ¡°Not interested?¡±


    Xiong Chumo was stunned, and said incredulously, ¡°You are not interested in these? That thing happened at the time when the Abbey Dean travelled to the South Sea and Ye Su went into the human world to experience the life-and-death struggles aftering back from the Wilderness. Don¡¯t you want to know why I did all that?¡±


    Ye Hongyu answered without any expression, ¡°You yed a children¡¯s game while my brother was away. What more do I need to know?¡±


    Xiong Chumo red at her, and an extremely terrifying breath of destruction came out of his thin body. He opened his arms and said in amazement, ¡°Children¡¯s game?¡± His voice became a bit sharp and unpleasant to hear, full of anger and unbelief.


    ¡°Children¡¯s game?!¡± He repeated loudly, ¡°You think that was children¡¯s game? You cried so hard back then! You were asking for Ye Su, but he never came to rescue you. You have been suffering for so many years. I don¡¯t understand why you still pin your hope on that useless man. Ye Su can¡¯t save you!¡±


    Many pictures kept shing in Ye Hongyu¡¯s mind, stirring up the depths of her eyes. Then the pictures gradually disappeared and her eyes regained their normal indifference.


    How could she ever forget that event? If she could, she wouldn¡¯t have tried to kill Chen Pipi when he saw her bathing in the Taoist temple back then. If she could forget, why would she never care that others saw her body? Wasn¡¯t it because she subconsciously thought her body was already dirty? But it didn¡¯t matter even if she couldn¡¯t forget it.


    She looked at Xiong Chumo and imed, ¡°I am not those crazy professors in the Revtion Institute. I am not interested in your mental state. I don¡¯t care if you are jealous of him, mentally ill, or just want to fawn on the Abbey Dean.¡±


    Xiong Chumo stared at her beautiful face and said, ¡°That is not a children¡¯s game!¡±


    Ye Hongyu stared at his ugly face and replied, ¡°But you are a child.¡±


    Xiong Chumo was extremely thin and much shorter than ordinary people, which was the reason why he had been hiding behind the radiating screen and making his shadow tall and big.


    Back then, he irrationally and frantically molested Ye Hongyu when she was still a little girl, which might have something to do with his mental illness.


    Ye Hongyu said calmly, ¡°I know what you want. You want to see me sad, angry, and desperate, and you want me to feel ashamed for not being a virgin anymore. But you won¡¯t get these from me, because I don¡¯t want to y this children¡¯s game with you.¡± She said children¡¯s game again.


    Xiong Chumo was extremely angry, and the faint glimmer shining in his eyes became crazier. He said coldly, ¡°I am not a child.¡±


    ¡°You are shorter than a ten-year-old.¡±


    Ye Hongyu was much taller than him and was looking down at him. Then her eyes moved down and fell on the part between his legs. ¡°Your genitals were damaged by Yu Lian decades ago. You can¡¯t do anything to me even if you wanted to. Why should I feel humiliated?¡± She said, ¡°Judging from your height, you are a child. Judging from your mind, you are a child. And judging from your potency, you can only be a child your whole life.¡±


    Extreme anger upied the body and mind of Xiong Chumo, but he gradually calmed down and squinted in silence for a long time. ¡°So you see this matter as if you have been bitten by a mad dog? But you should remember that it leaves a scar anyway.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said calmly, ¡°Even a mad dog has teeth. Since your genitals are damaged, then you are like a dog without teeth. How could you leave a scar on me without teeth?¡± She acted calmly all along, revealing no mockery, deliberate pity or anger, which was exactly the worst ridicule and contempt. Because these were all facts even if Xiong Chumo was the Hierarch of the Divine Halls of West-Hill, the most powerful man of Taoism, the terrifying power of the State of Tianqi and the one who had abused her.


    Under her calm eyes, he was just a childish man whose genitals was damaged and someone who could never grow taller.


    ¡°I will kill you,¡± Xiong Chumo suddenly threatened. ¡°Although I don¡¯t know what you said to the Abbey Dean, although you are very calm at this time, I know you wish me dead. Then I have to kill you.¡±


    Ye Hongyu looked at him calmly and replied, ¡°Did youe here to enrage me? So I will make the first move? It appears that you are well aware that you can¡¯t start the fight.¡±


    For Taoism, the Hierarch was obviously more important than the Great Divine Priest of Judgement, but it didn¡¯t mean that he could do whatever he wanted.


    After the Headmaster went to Heaven and Mr. Chen returned to the maind, Xiong Chumo was no longer the most powerful man of Taoism. He returned to what he used to be, a running dog.


    People always said that before one were to hit a dog, one should find out who was its master first. And of course, a dog needed its master¡¯s permission to bite others.


    ¡°You dare not to attack me first?¡± Ye Hongyu said without any expression, ¡°Because you can¡¯t bear the responsibility of dividingTaoism, you can only see me be stronger and stronger. I will be strong enough to kill you one day, and you can¡¯t do anything about this. You can only keep falling into the abyss of despair, and you don¡¯t know when you will reach the bottom. You will endure endless suffering and pain. That will be my revenge.¡± Her voice was still calm, so were her expression and eyes. She looked at Xiong Chumo in such a calm way, like he was already dead.


    The Divine Hall of Judgement was quiet, and the moonlight fell on the terrace and her shoulders. At this moment, a voice came from the dark corner of the Divine Hall.


    ¡°Unfortunately, none of that will happen.¡± The dark corner suddenly became bright. The person standing in the corner was bright, as if tens of thousands of light rays wereing out of his body. Nobody knew how he entered the Divine Hall of Judgement. Ye Hongyu squinted her eyes into a line, or a sword again.


    That man was Zhao Nanhai. The Divine Skill of the Great Divine Priest of South Sea was derived from the light and he raised the state of his breath to its zenith at this moment, so he was bright.


    Xiong Chumo did not know why Zhao Nanhai appeared, but he was happy about this, because it might mean that the Abbey Dean changed his mind.


    Ye Hongyu looked to the entrance to the Divine Hall of Judgement.


    The middle-aged priest was here too. He had been handling daily affairs in the Zhishou Abbey for decades and also had been standing behind the Abbey Dean¡¯s wheelchair for several years. He never did anything extraordinary, always acting like an ordinary person.


    He was just standing there, like an ordinary person.


    Ye Hongyu closed her eyes and tried to figure the matter out.


    On the cliff yard at dusk, the Abbey Dean said that she could take Xiong Chumo¡¯s life. But she knew that middle-aged priest was not here to kill Xiong Chumo. Killing the Hierarch was not a wise choice for Taoism at this moment. Then the middle-aged priest was not here to kill the Hierarch. Why did hee here?


    Long Qing went to the Song Kingdom, and Hengmu was in Qinghe. They were both not on Peach Mountain. The four people in the Divine Hall of Judgement at this moment were the four most highly ranked figures in Taoism.


    Ye Hongyu opened her eyes, but was still puzzled. Why? Why does the Abbey Dean want to kill me?

 Chapter 1029 - The Childish, The Bright, And The Ordinary (I)

    <h4>Chapter 1029: The Childish, The Bright, And The Ordinary (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ye Hongyu turned around and left the moonlight scattered on the terrace behind her. Her pale face regained a little color under the shadow of the night. She looked at the Hierarch quietly, but a myriad of thoughts crowded into her mind.


    Xiong Chumo also looked at her quietly. Seeing her elegant figure outlined by the moonlight and her beautiful face, he once again confirmed that she was no longer the little girl he was familiar with, and he was somewhat angry.


    Ye Hongyu was not surprised or angry while seeing him, revealing no expression on her face.


    Xiong Chumo became even angrier because of her calmness. It unsettled him that his ugliest and most evil behavior in the past was now uncovered, but he was also puzzled and frustrated by her calmness. He would rather see that the Great Divine Priest of Judgement was enraged than know that she never took him seriously.


    ¡°What did you say to the Abbey Dean?¡± he asked.


    Ye Hongyu didn¡¯t answer, and just looked at him.


    When Xiong Chumo was silent for a moment and suddenlyughed, revealing a distorted pleasure on his ugly and old face. He said, ¡°You are afraid of me.¡±


    Ye Hongyu still kept silent.


    ¡°Of course you are afraid of me.¡±


    There was a faint glimmer shining in the depths of the eyes of Xiong Chumo, and his voice trembled a little due to excitement, ¡°You can¡¯t forget what happened to you in the past. When you found out it was me, you were too afraid to get revenge, because you didn¡¯t want to relive your most painful experience.¡±


    Ye Hongyu asked calmly while staring at him, ¡°Why should I be afraid of you?¡±


    Xiong Chumo turned pale slightly. He didn¡¯t understand her question. Isn¡¯t it obvious? Even if you are not afraid of me now, that poor little girl who had thin legs back then was definitely afraid of me.


    His breathing became heavy, his eyes were stained with a bloody flush, and his voice trembled. ¡°After you discovered the truth, you must have been angry and puzzled. You must be wondering why I, the Hierarch, would do that at the risk of irritating Ye Su. Actually I didn¡¯t even know the answer myself. Maybe I was jealous?¡± Looking at the moonlight falling on her hair, he was fascinated by her beautiful face.


    Ye Hongyu replied calmly, ¡°I am not interested in those things.¡±


    ¡°Not interested?¡±


    Xiong Chumo was stunned, and said incredulously, ¡°You are not interested in these? That thing happened at the time when the Abbey Dean travelled to the South Sea and Ye Su went into the human world to experience the life-and-death struggles aftering back from the Wilderness. Don¡¯t you want to know why I did all that?¡±


    Ye Hongyu answered without any expression, ¡°You yed a children¡¯s game while my brother was away. What more do I need to know?¡±


    Xiong Chumo red at her, and an extremely terrifying breath of destruction came out of his thin body. He opened his arms and said in amazement, ¡°Children¡¯s game?¡± His voice became a bit sharp and unpleasant to hear, full of anger and unbelief.


    ¡°Children¡¯s game?!¡± He repeated loudly, ¡°You think that was children¡¯s game? You cried so hard back then! You were asking for Ye Su, but he never came to rescue you. You have been suffering for so many years. I don¡¯t understand why you still pin your hope on that useless man. Ye Su can¡¯t save you!¡±


    Many pictures kept shing in Ye Hongyu¡¯s mind, stirring up the depths of her eyes. Then the pictures gradually disappeared and her eyes regained their normal indifference.


    How could she ever forget that event? If she could, she wouldn¡¯t have tried to kill Chen Pipi when he saw her bathing in the Taoist temple back then. If she could forget, why would she never care that others saw her body? Wasn¡¯t it because she subconsciously thought her body was already dirty? But it didn¡¯t matter even if she couldn¡¯t forget it.


    She looked at Xiong Chumo and imed, ¡°I am not those crazy professors in the Revtion Institute. I am not interested in your mental state. I don¡¯t care if you are jealous of him, mentally ill, or just want to fawn on the Abbey Dean.¡±


    Xiong Chumo stared at her beautiful face and said, ¡°That is not a children¡¯s game!¡±


    Ye Hongyu stared at his ugly face and replied, ¡°But you are a child.¡±


    Xiong Chumo was extremely thin and much shorter than ordinary people, which was the reason why he had been hiding behind the radiating screen and making his shadow tall and big.


    Back then, he irrationally and frantically molested Ye Hongyu when she was still a little girl, which might have something to do with his mental illness.


    Ye Hongyu said calmly, ¡°I know what you want. You want to see me sad, angry, and desperate, and you want me to feel ashamed for not being a virgin anymore. But you won¡¯t get these from me, because I don¡¯t want to y this children¡¯s game with you.¡± She said children¡¯s game again.


    Xiong Chumo was extremely angry, and the faint glimmer shining in his eyes became crazier. He said coldly, ¡°I am not a child.¡±


    ¡°You are shorter than a ten-year-old.¡±


    Ye Hongyu was much taller than him and was looking down at him. Then her eyes moved down and fell on the part between his legs. ¡°Your genitals were damaged by Yu Lian decades ago. You can¡¯t do anything to me even if you wanted to. Why should I feel humiliated?¡± She said, ¡°Judging from your height, you are a child. Judging from your mind, you are a child. And judging from your potency, you can only be a child your whole life.¡±


    Extreme anger upied the body and mind of Xiong Chumo, but he gradually calmed down and squinted in silence for a long time. ¡°So you see this matter as if you have been bitten by a mad dog? But you should remember that it leaves a scar anyway.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said calmly, ¡°Even a mad dog has teeth. Since your genitals are damaged, then you are like a dog without teeth. How could you leave a scar on me without teeth?¡± She acted calmly all along, revealing no mockery, deliberate pity or anger, which was exactly the worst ridicule and contempt. Because these were all facts even if Xiong Chumo was the Hierarch of the Divine Halls of West-Hill, the most powerful man of Taoism, the terrifying power of the State of Tianqi and the one who had abused her.


    Under her calm eyes, he was just a childish man whose genitals was damaged and someone who could never grow taller.


    ¡°I will kill you,¡± Xiong Chumo suddenly threatened. ¡°Although I don¡¯t know what you said to the Abbey Dean, although you are very calm at this time, I know you wish me dead. Then I have to kill you.¡±


    Ye Hongyu looked at him calmly and replied, ¡°Did youe here to enrage me? So I will make the first move? It appears that you are well aware that you can¡¯t start the fight.¡±


    For Taoism, the Hierarch was obviously more important than the Great Divine Priest of Judgement, but it didn¡¯t mean that he could do whatever he wanted.


    After the Headmaster went to Heaven and Mr. Chen returned to the maind, Xiong Chumo was no longer the most powerful man of Taoism. He returned to what he used to be, a running dog.


    People always said that before one were to hit a dog, one should find out who was its master first. And of course, a dog needed its master¡¯s permission to bite others.


    ¡°You dare not to attack me first?¡± Ye Hongyu said without any expression, ¡°Because you can¡¯t bear the responsibility of dividingTaoism, you can only see me be stronger and stronger. I will be strong enough to kill you one day, and you can¡¯t do anything about this. You can only keep falling into the abyss of despair, and you don¡¯t know when you will reach the bottom. You will endure endless suffering and pain. That will be my revenge.¡± Her voice was still calm, so were her expression and eyes. She looked at Xiong Chumo in such a calm way, like he was already dead.


    The Divine Hall of Judgement was quiet, and the moonlight fell on the terrace and her shoulders. At this moment, a voice came from the dark corner of the Divine Hall.


    ¡°Unfortunately, none of that will happen.¡± The dark corner suddenly became bright. The person standing in the corner was bright, as if tens of thousands of light rays wereing out of his body. Nobody knew how he entered the Divine Hall of Judgement. Ye Hongyu squinted her eyes into a line, or a sword again.


    That man was Zhao Nanhai. The Divine Skill of the Great Divine Priest of South Sea was derived from the light and he raised the state of his breath to its zenith at this moment, so he was bright.


    Xiong Chumo did not know why Zhao Nanhai appeared, but he was happy about this, because it might mean that the Abbey Dean changed his mind.


    Ye Hongyu looked to the entrance to the Divine Hall of Judgement.


    The middle-aged priest was here too. He had been handling daily affairs in the Zhishou Abbey for decades and also had been standing behind the Abbey Dean¡¯s wheelchair for several years. He never did anything extraordinary, always acting like an ordinary person.


    He was just standing there, like an ordinary person.


    Ye Hongyu closed her eyes and tried to figure the matter out.


    On the cliff yard at dusk, the Abbey Dean said that she could take Xiong Chumo¡¯s life. But she knew that middle-aged priest was not here to kill Xiong Chumo. Killing the Hierarch was not a wise choice for Taoism at this moment. Then the middle-aged priest was not here to kill the Hierarch. Why did hee here?


    Long Qing went to the Song Kingdom, and Hengmu was in Qinghe. They were both not on Peach Mountain. The four people in the Divine Hall of Judgement at this moment were the four most highly ranked figures in Taoism.


    Ye Hongyu opened her eyes, but was still puzzled. Why? Why does the Abbey Dean want to kill me?


    ...

 Chapter 1030 - The Childish, The Bright, And The Ordinary (II)

    <h4>Chapter 1030: The Childish, The Bright, And The Ordinary (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ye Hongyu trusted the Abbey Dean more than the Academy, especially the Academy that was represented by Ning Que. She was so sure that her judgment was reliable. Killing her and her brother would do no good to Taoism, whether it be for the near future of in the long run. Therefore she had the guts to withdraw and give up the other choices. She ced herself right in the middle of the danger and did nothing, so that the West-Hill could deal with it calmly.


    It was barely two hours after their conversation, and the moon was dazzling in the night sky. Yet the promise she thought she had received was gone. The Hierarch, followed by Zhao Nanhai and the middle-aged priest, hade to the Divine Hall of Judgment to kill her. They might not be aware of the others¡¯ arrival, but gathered coincidentally for the same purpose: to kill her.


    Ye Hongyu furrowed her slim eyebrows on her pale face. She had doubts and was startled, but had no time to figure it out. She gazed at the three people inside the Divine Hall of Judgment and her eyes became even brighter. If Ning Que was there, then he would definitely know that was her look when she was confronting a real enemy. She would be extremely careful, confident, and excited for being able to confront powerful ones. Then, she would apply her best attack to win.


    Throughout her history of cultivation, she showed that look only a few times. For instance, she showed it when she fought with Ning Que years ago. But her brightest look was shown to Jun Mo when they fought in front of the Verdant Canyon.


    Tonight, her eyes also looked extremely bright, even brighter than they used to be at the Verdant Canyon. Because her three enemies tonight were no less powerful than Jun Mo.


    The Hierarch of the Divine Halls was above the Five States in Tianqi. Xiong Chumo¡¯s title was simple, but it only meant for more terror because he surpassed the zenith of Knowing Destiny. He already elevated to another distinctly different world of cultivation. Ye Hongyu knew clearly she could not win against Xiong Chumo upfront. If only she could, she would have killed him already.


    Zhao Nanhai from the South Sea ranked the third in the cultivation world in terms of Divine Skills, and was the descendent of the former Great Divine Priest of Light who divided the West-Hill six hundred years ago. Their cultivation had the same origin as the West-Hill, but had gone on a different path. His state of cultivation was unfathomably high at the zenith of Knowing Destiny. He was not inferior to Ye Hongyu even though he hade by himself.


    Xiong Chumo and Zhao Nanhai were undoubtably the two most highly ranked and horrifying figures in the Divine Halls now. Compared with these two, the middle-aged priest standing at the gate of the Divine Hall of Judgment seemed very ordinary.


    However, he was the one that made Ye Hongyu most worried and the one who chilled her Taoist Heart.


    The middle-aged priest stood by the gate and did nothing. Yet he seemed to have isted the Divine Hall of Judgment from the outside world. Ye Hongyu had tried several ways to inform her subordinates but all in vain. This seemingly ordinary priest was in no way ordinary.


    Ever since the Abbey Dean was expelled by the Headmaster to the South Sea, this priest had been in charge of the Zhishou Abbey and maintained its dominating role in Taoism. How could he be ordinary?


    Xiong Chumo, Zhao Nanhai, and the middle-aged priest... The three of them together could go anywhere in the world and kill anyone they wanted. Even Yu Lian would have to transform into a cicada and flee into the snow forest if they came to her. The Eldest Brother would probably have to drift away from them. The Drunkard, the Butcher, or even the Chief Monk of Scripture would never be their match.


    Ye Hongyu wondered, Who could I win against?


    It was deadly quiet inside the Divine Hall of Judgment. Themps on the ck stone walls sent forth very gentle lights. No one knew when the luminous pearls started to shine and for what reason.


    Xiong Chumo, Zhao Nanhai, and the middle-aged priest stood in silence. They upied the Divine Hall from afar, the middle, and up-close. And their Qi filled up the space and enveloped the huge hall.


    Inside the hall, she was by herself. She stepped down from the terrace and came to the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade. She ced her hand on the slightly cold seat, paused for a long while, and spoke to the middle-aged priest. ¡°Haotian always gives her follower a chance to choose, or an exnation.¡±


    The middle-aged priest did not say anything. Xiong Chumo was a bit upset. He was the Hierarch of the Divine Halls, yet he had no idea how it hade to this point. He wanted to enrage Ye Hongyu and then kill her. But why did the Abbey Dean send Zhao Nanhai and the middle-aged priest to help him? He would like some exnation as well.


    Ye Hongyu looked at him and said emotionlessly, ¡°I could never understand how someone as vulgar as he could have surpassed the Five States. Is Haotian blind?¡±


    The middle-aged priest said solemnly, ¡°The Hierarch is mighty because he is innocent.¡±


    Ye Hongyu raised her eyebrows and mocked, ¡°Innocence is childish.¡±


    The middle-aged priestughed but did not object. He said, ¡°There are many ways of cultivation. But eventually it has to be about innocence and intention. It doesn¡¯t matter whether it¡¯s childish or cruel.¡±


    ¡°Innocence...¡±


    Ye Hongyu pondered while she looked at Xiong Chumo and said, ¡°Decaying from inside out, ignorant and stubborn, and listening to whatever your faith tells you, is that the kind of innocence that empowers people? They all said Chen Pipi was a hidden gem of Taoism. Is that for the same reason?¡±


    The middle-aged man thought for a while and said, ¡°Pipi is optimistic, and thus reached Knowing Destiny. That should be different.¡±


    Ye Hongyu looked into his eyes and asked, ¡°I don¡¯t care how the innocent or the ignorant reached Knowing Destiny. I wondered why the Abbey Dean has promised to give me his life, but seems to be doing the opposite now.¡±


    The middle-aged priest said calmly, ¡°Probably in some autumn day in a few years of time, when the Abbey Dean will help the Hierarch to reach Haotian¡¯s Divine Kingdom, he will present his life to you there, the Great Divine Priest.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°If I¡¯m already dead, it will be a sacrifice rather than a present.¡±


    The middle-aged priest said, ¡°To sacrifice is also to present.¡±


    Ye Hongyu remained silent. When someone like the Abbey Dean acted shamelessly like a child, probably a few in the world could exceed him.


    ¡°Then, I need an exnation.¡± She stared at the middle-aged priest and insisted, ¡°A serious exnation.¡±


    To be killed without knowing why, she could not ept that.


    The middle-aged priest said, ¡°My apologies. But I cannot tell you.¡±


    Ye Hongyu turned to Zhao Nanhai. Zhao Nanhai uttered his first words ever since he entered the Divine Hall of Judgment, ¡°Sorry. I had no idea.¡±


    Then she turned to the Hierarch.


    ¡°Then,e on.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Thousands of miles away from the West-Hill, there were richnds, poor viges as well as towns. The night had yet toe. The snow that was left in Chang¡¯an shone under the sunlight like the white color of a painting. There was more snow left on the city wall as if it was a nk paper.


    To the south of the city wall, a few ck dots were scattered on the nk paper. They were yurts and temporary cabins. Steam arose from two mud stoves next to the cabins. The ashes under the stove were much darker than the snow.


    Ning Que stood by the stove and stared at the hot ashes. He was waiting for the sweet potatoes to be well-cooked. But he could not help from thinking of the two lonely tombs located outside the city. There were two jars in the two tombs, which contained two piles of ashes. He recalled the person who collected the ashes years ago, and felt heartbroken. He stood up and walked to the city wall.


    Standing behind the city wall, he seemed very lonely. He neither liked such feelings nor showed such feelings to the soldiers behind him. Therefore he tried to look afar and refrained from rubbing his eyes.


    Inside the city walls, there were crowds in the streets andnes. He tried to cover his sentiment by looking at those people. But when he saw the Yanming Lake from some distance, he realized that it was a blind hope. The Old Brush Pen Shop was hidden in the cluttered streets. He felt even more upset and could only hope for change toe sooner.


    Having killed thousands of people and drained so much blood, he finally won a chance to negotiate with Taoism and the time to send his words to Peach Mountain.


    He had a few words for the Abbey Dean and some other words for Ye Hongyu. They seemed simple, but actually he had drained whatever he had learned in the two lives topose them. All the information the Academy and Tang¡¯s imperial court had collected could only support what heposed. Therefore he was pretty confident in his words.


    He was waiting for some good news from Peach Mountain. However he had no idea what he was expecting. He was after all ... an ordinary man, not the omniscient Sangsang.

 Chapter 1031 - There Is Hope (I)

    <h4>Chapter 1031: There Is Hope (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ning Que was an ordinary person, so why would he believe that his messages would work? It had nothing to do with psychology. His message to the Abbey Dean wasing from the knowledge he had learned from his past life, while his message to Ye Hongyu was rted to his experience of this life. He thought his n was wless and would definitely work. His confidence was rooted in his understanding of the Abbey Dean and Ye Hongyu.


    He thought people like the Abbey Dean and Ye Hongyu would be convinced by his words and that at least one of them would be convinced.


    If the Abbey Dean was convinced, then the Academy could control the human world, which would be the best. If Ye Hongyu was convinced, then Taoism would be divined and the Academy naturally would win, which would also be great. But as for Ye Su...


    Ye Su would die, and Ye Hongyu probably would think Ning Que was a cold bastard after she found out. Or was it possible that she had already thought of this? But she had no choice but to pin her hope on the Academy.


    Standing on the edge of the city wall, Ning Que looked at the Yanming Lake in the distance and found that snow began to fall from the sky again. He felt that his hands were even colder and the Core Vajra of the Array in his arms was as cold as a piece of ice.


    On the day that Sangsang left the human world on that big ship and returned to the Divine Kingdom, he was sure that she would nevere back and they would never see each other again. Then he began to change.


    During the massacre of the City of Wei, the general was killed, and she was gone too. Ever since then, he couldn¡¯t maintain enough enthusiasm for the human world, the Divine Kingdom and even the whole world. He became colder and more realistic.


    He was not numb or deliberately cold due to pain and disappointment. He was just gradually changing back to the old Ning Que, since the one who made him into a better person was gone.


    The child who held a rust knife in the firewood house and fought the young master and the housekeeper, survived while living among the dead bodies and cannibals, survived the dangerous beasts and more dangerous hunters, and slew the mounted gangsters by the Shubi Lake.


    That child was the real Ning Que. He knew nothing about good, evil, or morality, and didn¡¯t care about others. In his eyes, people were just tools to get what he wanted.


    Senior Sister told him the secret before leaving. He sympathized with her painful past, but did not hesitate to take advantage of this matter.


    But Ye Hongyu was still special to him, so he told Chenqi to reveal the secret only if there were no other options. Besides, he was very careful with his words, guaranteeing that others would not find out the secret. He felt no shame since Ye Hongyu¡¯s reputation was undamaged.


    He did not care whether Ye Su, the founder of the New Stream, could survive or not, for it was Taoism¡¯s own business. If Ye Su were to survive and help spread the New Stream, the Academy had nothing to lose. And if Ye Su were to die, he would definitely be a legendary saint, which would benefit the Academy more.


    In a sense, Ning Que was a disciple of the Headmaster, learning from the Academy and Ke Haoran. But in essence, he was the descendant of Lian Sheng.


    Since Jun Mo was in the distant Wilderness and the Eldest Brother was keeping watch on the Drunkard, Ning Que and Yu Lian, the two who had already gone mad, were actually leading the Academy.


    And Lian Sheng pinned his hopes on Yu Lian even before she became the master of Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    It seemed that the Academy was doing what Lian Sheng would want rather than the Headmaster at this point. Would Lian Sheng be gratified or even ravished with joy if he could know what happened after death?


    But there were still some differences. The biggest difference was that Ning Que didn¡¯tpletely lose his mind. He was calcting everything calmly and ruthlessly. He was forcing Taoism to respond by sending Chu Youxian and Chen Qi to Peach Mountain to reveal that secret.


    He was well aware that, as long as the Abbey Dean was not out of his mind, Ye Su would not die, Ye Hongyu would never betray Taoism and Taoism had no choice but to maintain the status quo.


    The ending might seem to be a ruthless mockery of his calctions, but no one knew that it was what the Academy wanted all along, for he desperately needed more time.


    Ning Que put his hand on the snow wall and looked at the dark sky, wishing to see the bright moon. It is hard for the Headmaster to win the battle, but I have to buy more time for the Academy.


    At this point, only powerful people like the Abbey Dean and the Drunkard could notice the subtle change in the Divine Kingdom. Ning Que was clearly not capable of doing so. However, with the aid of the Grand Array in Chang¡¯an, he knew that the moon was slowly darkening, which made him sad.


    The Headmaster gradually fell into a weak position in the war against Haotian. It seemed that time was on the side of Taoism. All he did was trying to buy more time.


    Only when he had enough time could he ovee the difficulty that happened in Xiangwan in, hear the good news from the depths of the West Wilderness, and see the unbridgeable crack in Taoism bing wider and wider. What mattered the most was that Haotian would be weaker and weaker as more and more people believed in the New Stream.


    Benefiting from the Headmaster, Youngest Uncle, Lian Sheng and Master Qishan, Ning Que had been cultivating Buddhism in Nirvana for thousands of years and then was on the run with Sangsang for thousands of miles. He had cultivated Taoism, Buddhism, and the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, so he had already seen through faith. Haotian was no longer unreachable in his eyes.


    Countless years ago, Taoism chose Haotian as the mighty god for human beings. But Haotian weakened as the New Stream appeared and Taoism was on the wane. The inference was simple but correct.


    Therefore, for the Academy and the Great Tang, the New Stream was important, and so was Ye Su.


    The New Stream needed more time to spread to farther ces and win more followers. Ye Su must be the saint worshiped by all followers as God, whether he was alive or dead.


    To this end, Ning Que killed thousands of people and endorsed Ye Su and the New Stream. But he deliberately made noments on Taoism¡¯s way of dealing with Ye Su.


    He went silent for a long time while looking at the dark sky and the falling snow in the distance. He felt confident that he could grasp what the Abbey Dean was thinking, for the moon was darkening.


    Both Taoism and the Academy believed that time was on their side.


    It remained unknown whether the Academy working with the New Stream in the human world could weaken Haotian first or Haotian could defeat the Headmaster first. Ning Que anchored his hope on the former. If the Abbey Dean were to refuse his proposal, then he was betting on thetter.


    Ning Que was confident about his choice, because Taoism chose Haotian for human beings many years ago andpletely pinned their hopes on Haotian. But the Academy and he pinned their hopes on the Great Tang which unified the maind and on Ye Su and the New Stream, which meant they pinned all hope on the human world.


    There is hope.


    There should be hope in the human world.


    He thought so while looking at the sky.


    ...


    ...


    In the autumn, a small building appeared on the mountain outside the Linkang City.


    After entering into the wintertime, snow began to fall and many people came to the mountain. Thousands of devout followers of Haotian kneeled in front of the hillside and were kowtowing towards the direction of the small building. But no one dared to cross the defense line set by the cavalrymen of the Divine Halls.


    With the new emperor gone and the Sword Garret relocated, the people of South Jin Kingdom had been through too much. Since the war with the powerful neighboring country in the north might be triggered at any moment, the people were all nervous and anxious. That was why they came to the small building which was said to be the home of immortals to pray for blessings.


    The two in the building were not aware of this, and they would not care even if they did know. It was not an exaggeration to call them immortals given their status in the human world.


    The Drunkard was drinking while leaning against the railing. With his sleeves sweeping through the railing, the snow umted on the railing was dyed on the sleeves and mixed with the wine stain left on the sleeves these days, giving off a singr cold smell.


    Standing on the cliff yard outside the building, the Eldest Brother kept silent while looking at the east.


    A few days ago, the secret guards of the Great Tang sent some bad news. The situation in Song Kingdom was boiling up, and Taoism had already sent their people there.


    Eldest Brother wanted to go there for he worried about Ye Su, but he couldn¡¯t go because the Drunkard was still here. The Drunkard was supposed to be there but stayed at the small building because of the Eldest Brother.


    Never traveling alone was the most important agreement between Eldest Brother and the Drunkard, and also the one rule that the Academy and Taoism must obey. No one dared to break the agreement, or the war would break out.


    If he and the Drunkard had never went back to the human world, then there might still have been hope.

 Chapter 1032 - There Is Hope (II)

    <h4>Chapter 1032: There Is Hope (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Not to do anything, this is the principle for both the Academy and Taoism at the moment. The Drunkard was drinking at a small restaurant while looking to the east. The Eldest Brother was standing by the cliff and also staring at the east. They were both aware of each other¡¯s thoughts, as they both wanted to visit the Song but could not. Because going would create trouble.


    They could not leave the small restaurant. Instead they could only keep drinking and looking afar. It became boring after a long while hence they had to find some topic to kill time.


    ¡°Killing thousands of people... Ning Que is good at negotiation. Therefore he is qualified for a talk with Taoism and those on Peach Mountain have to listen carefully. But there is a problem.¡± The Drunkard raised his hand and wiped off the liquor around the corner his lips with with sleeve, then continued, ¡°I am able to make you stay here and force the Tang to restrain from any further actions, only because I have witnessed too many lives and deaths to have any sensations over the human world. Ning Que is different from me and the Butcher. He neither went through the long period of time nor witnessed the countless lives and deaths. How could he be indifferent to the human world? If he cannot convince people that he ispletely indifferent, how could he be a threat to the Abbey Dean?¡±


    The Eldest Brother pondered. He recalled many years ago when he was standing by his master in the Back Hill of the Academy and observing the boy who was born to be knowledgeable.


    ¡°The Youngest Brother... is a guest. Although he has been a guest here for dozens of years and might have formed some attachment, this world is after all a foreignnd to him. Therefore the attachment is easy to be cut.¡± He said, ¡°Even others may not be aware of it, the Abbey Dean must know it clearly. Since Haotian has left the human world, the Youngest Brother has no further bond with this world. How could the Abbey Dean not be afraid?¡±


    The Drunkard paused for a long while. Then he said, ¡°Even so, even if he could make Taoism listen, what could he do? The best he could do is to buy some time.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°It¡¯s already extraordinary to be able to borrow some time.¡±


    The Drunkard hung his gon back on his waistband and said indifferently, ¡°Buying some time would not change anything. The result is obvious. You should be able to see that the moon is dimming... Time is against you and the Academy. Taoism can wait. But can you? Or are you just trying to figure out how to kill me and the Butcher with the time he is borrowing?¡±


    The Eldest Brother turned to him and said calmly and sincerely, ¡°As for how to take your lives, the Academy does have a n. The time the Youngest Brother borrows is definitely for something else.¡±


    The Drunkard became solemn. He slightly frowned as if he realized something, and said, ¡°So it¡¯s Ye Su.¡±


    Time was the most valuable thing. It had to be used on most critical matters. The Drunkard thought that he and the Butcher was the most crucial figures in the current world. But if the Academy was not spending their time against the two of them, they must have been working on someone or something that could turn the situation.


    Insightful as he was, he needed barely any time to figure out that it must be the New Stream and Ye Su. If the human world was like aplicatedposition at the moment, the key to a solution must be in the Song, which was Ye Su.


    Ning Que was cold-blooded. If he was not certain that he could solve theposition and save Ye Su, he would definitely have abandoned him and sought for maximizing his own benefits. The Drunkard pondered and thought he might have chosen the same way if he was Ning Que.


    It was a veryplicated situation. But in the Song, it was simple. Even a kid could see how outnumbered the Academy was in front of Taoism. If Taoism was determined to kill Ye Su no matter what, then the Academy could never stop them. And Ye Su was not seeking protection from the Academy after all.


    ¡°The Youngest Brother wants to talk to the Abbey Dean only to save Ye Su.¡± The Eldest Brother looked at the Drunkard and said, ¡°He believes he could convince the Abbey Dean.¡±


    The Drunkard asked, ¡°How about Haotian?¡±


    The Eldest Brother looked at him calmly and said slowly and resolutely, ¡°Haotian... would no longer be needed.¡±


    The Drunkard stared at him and said after a very long pause, ¡°I can¡¯t ept it,¡±


    To the Academy, Haotian was of course an optional existence. It was the same even for Taoism and the Abbey Dean. But for the Drunkard and the Butcher, Haotian¡¯s existence was a must.


    If Ning Que could convince the Abbey Dean and restore peace to the human world, the New Stream would be widely spread and Haotian would be weakened. The Divine Kingdom would eventually be reced by the human world. Then how could he and the Butcher be immortal?


    Many years ago, Sangsang went to the small town. She talked to him and the Butcher and gave them promises. If she were to die, how would those promises be realized?


    ¡°You don¡¯t need to ept.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°The Youngest Brother mentioned previously that you had to ept... If he could convince the Abbey Dean, the first thing he would is to kill the two of you.¡±


    The Drunkard found his liquor exceptionally strong and it made him tipsy. He mocked, ¡°It¡¯s not easy to kill us.¡±


    ¡°For the benefit of the entire human world, you two have to give in.¡± The Eldest Brother looked at him and said calmly, ¡°Because you are not like our Headmaster who was the human world himself. Nor are you like our Youngest Uncle who carried out his belief despite the objection from tens of thousands of people. You would give way and hide behind the trees to see what would happen. That, is actually epting.¡±


    It was a bitter confrontation. Hearing this from the Eldest Brother who never lied, it was extremely powerful, like a very thick de brutally chopping the Drunkard¡¯s head.


    The Drunkard could not tell whether or not it was painful. But he found himself speechless.


    ¡°Therefore it is the Abbey Dean¡¯s choice now,¡± the Eldest Brother said atst.


    The sky above Linkang was covered by dark clouds. While they were about to finish the conversation, snowkes fell from the crowded clouds and suddenly became a storm. Through the dancing snowkes the Drunkard looked to the Peach Mountain afar. He said after a long while, ¡°Perhaps Ning Que did seed.¡±


    The Eldest Brother looked to the south and smiled.


    The smell of his liquor faded in the storm instantly. The Drunkard disappearedpletely from the small restaurant. The next moment, he was back to the small town.


    He did not visit the tea house for the only friend he had made throughout the years. Instead, he went directly to the person he had known for ten thousand of years. He sat down and kept silent for a long while. When the Butcher found the Drunkard exhausted and stained with dust, his hand held tighter onto his greasy knife.


    ¡°What happened?¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°It was not knowing what would happen that makes me anxious.¡±


    No one knew what would happen to the human world, what Ning Que said, and how the Abbey Dean would choose. From the extremely cold northernnd to the warm and humid South Sea, everyone was waiting anxiously for the result.


    There was after all some hope in the unknown.


    When everything was settled, hope might turn into despair.


    ...

 Chapter 1033 - That Winter

    <h4>Chapter 1033: That Winter</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Many yearster, Ning Que was hit by mixed feelings while walking through the mean alley and heard a loud and familiar voice exining history. The voice was talking about what had happened during that winter. There were a lot of people who shared the same feelings. Whenever they recalled that winter, they felt unreconciled and sad, but also somehow gratified.


    That winter had inevitably be the one winter that would never be forgotten by human beings because the human world saw a glimmer of life in the war between the Academy and Taoism during that winter. It seemed that abundant hopes were ahead.


    In the deste wilderness, the snow fluttered violently. The camp of the Tang Army hundreds of feet away had be very vague, and Hua Ying, a general in the Tang Army, was nowhere to be found.


    A Da squinted his eyes, and ruthless expressions asionally shed on his childish face. He slightly moved his blue lips, keeping silently praying to Tengri.


    He had been waiting for a long time in the Wilderness but never made a move.


    At first, he feared the will of the arrow tens of thousands miles away which could destroy everything. And at this moment, he was very concerned about the fleet slowlying from the depths of the snow.


    The national master who was cruising the grasnd left Hn and came to Qicheng Vige.


    No one knew what he was doing here, and no one dared to disobey him, not even A Da. Although A Da was the gift given to the grasnd by Tengri, he was also the nominal disciple of the national master.


    As the fleet stopped, a calm voice broke through the wind and snow. ¡°What the Tang people wanted the most is for us to lose our sanity.¡±


    A Da looked at the camp of Tang Army in the snow and said, ¡°I can kill him.¡±


    The national master said, ¡°But you will die the moment you kill him.¡±


    A Da replied firmly, ¡°Since you are here, I am not afraid at all.¡±


    He was expressing the supreme respect for the national master although he was against the master¡¯s will, for he believed that the iron arrow in the south couldn¡¯t hurt him as long as the national master was here.


    Even after the Rite to Light, nobody knew exactly how powerful the national master of Golden Tribe Royal Court was. Especially after the spring rain, whether the powerhouse of the grasnd who was extremely devoted to Tengri, gained more power remained unknown. But with the condition of the master¡¯s strong vignce, plus a dozen of powerful grand priests of the grasnd, the iron arrow of Ning Que might actually be stopped.


    A Da thought he should be braver under these circumstances. He must kill the general of the Tang Army and destroy the camp of the enemy. Only in this way could he get back at the man in the remote south.


    The national master was silent for a while and then replied, ¡°The problem is that we don¡¯t know where she is.¡±


    Of course, this was the biggest problem. The iron arrow that pointed to the grasnd in the far south all this time was indeed terrifying, but it couldn¡¯t reach the grasnd as long as the grasnd was well prepared by controlling the State or the Psyche Power. But what about the other person?


    That person was born and raised in the Wilderness. Although she had disappeared for decades, she remained the most legendary powerhouse and the most horrible devil on the grasnd as long as she was still alive.


    Lin Wu, the master of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, Twenty-Three-Year Cicada, Yu Lian, and Senior Sister of the Academy. Despite her different identities, she was always the one person the the Tribe of Savages feared the most.


    During the past few years, she was rumored to be in the East Wilderness, so the powerful figures of the Left Royal Court were almost all eliminated by her, which was also the reason why the national master stayed outside Hn with the Thirteen Priests all this time.


    This winter, the national master finally left Hn and came to the Wilderness in the south. No one knew his intentions, but everyone knew that it must have something to do with Yu Lian.


    A Da figured it out and looked at the camp of the Tang Army. Then he turned around unwillingly, and retreated to the direction of City of Wei with the national master and the fleet.


    ¡°I heard that the Divine Hall is negotiating with the Academy.¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°So war is not an option for now?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±


    ¡°Peace. I hate this word.¡±


    ¡°Only Haotian gets to decide things like this.¡±


    While the two were talking, the fleet went farther and farther, disappearing into the depths of the snow in a short time. No one knew where the national master would go or what he wanted to do. But everyone was well aware that the master was waiting for a person, for the arrival of the iron arrow and also for the choice Haotian had made.


    ...


    ...


    The matters that concerned the human world were determined by Haotian. The rule was written and must be obeyed by all human beings. However, since Sangsang had left the human world, how could she pass on her wills to her hundreds of millions of followers? While she kept her silence in the past, the so-called will of Haotian was merely the will of Taoism, and to be more precise, the will of the Abbey Dean.


    Standing before tens of thousands of cavalrymen, Hengmu indifferently looked at the Verdant Canyon which was destined to be written on the history and then slowly raised his right arm. On the square of the capital of Song Kingdom, the cavalrymen who besieged the followers of the New Stream retreated and the divine priests and deacons stopped attacking, for there was a new ordering from the Divine Halls. The Golden Tribe Royal Court was waiting for the Abbey Dean¡¯s choice, and so was Chang¡¯an City and all human beings.


    It seemed that only Long Qing didn¡¯t know what was going on. He didn¡¯t hear the nervous breathing of thousands of people outside the wall or receive thetest news from the Divine Halls. He felt the firewood piled in the yard were not enough, so he picked up a hatchet and chopped firewood unskillfully while imagining the mes these woods would turn to.


    As the night was getting longer, the human world was getting colder. The West-Hill Divine Kingdom which used to be always warm saw several heavy snowstorms this winter. The cliff yard was covered with snow, so the traces of the wheelchair were very clear under the moonlight.


    The middle-aged priest stood behind the wheelchair with a solemn expression. He had expected that maintaining the status quo was an excellent strategy to deal with Ning Que, but it seemed that the Abbey Dean disagreed.


    ¡°You mean Ning Que wanted to see the Taoism y the ¡®maintaining the status quo¡¯ card? But it doesn¡¯t make sense.¡±


    The middle-aged priest looked up at the bright moon in the dark night, thinking about the battle which might take ce in the remote Divine Kingdom. Then he frowned and said, ¡°The Headmaster weakens day by day. The situation runs against the Academy if the dispute is not resolved as soon as possible.¡±


    The Abbey Dean sat in the wheelchair and kept quiet, just looking at the world under the moonlight.


    The middle-aged priest suddenly figured it out and marveled, ¡°It turns out that it¡¯s also what he wants.¡±


    Since it involved faith, he could only understand it vaguely, but couldn¡¯t say it clearly in words.


    With these words, the temperature on the cliff yard suddenly decreased. The cold wind passed through, and the snow began to fall although the moon was still bright. The snow wasing fast and falling fiercely, covering the cliff yard in a while.


    The Abbey Dean and the wheelchair were of course covered with snow. The wordsing from his mouth were as cold as the snow, implying the meaning underlying these words.


    ¡°He wants to have a talk with the world. I want to see what he wants to talk about. He thinks he has figured everything out by imprisoning himself in Chang¡¯an for half a year. Unfortunately, he is wrong.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°He doesn¡¯t know himself or Ye Hongyu. The most crucial thing is that he doesn¡¯t understand the current situation of the human world.¡±


    The middle-aged priest replied, ¡°One can¡¯t see far ahead if they don¡¯t stand high enough.¡±


    At this point, there was no other person who could see as far ahead as the Abbey Dean in the human world.


    As the middle-aged priest pushed the wheelchair to the other side of the cliff yard, the wheelchair left two deep tracks on the snow which were then stepped off by footprints, just like the fate line of the human world.


    ¡°The story Ning Que told me is very interesting. As the Academy would put it, it is very meaningful. That story is indeed very convincing.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said with a smile, ¡°The problem is that there is no God in his story, for that world has no God. But we have Haotian in our world.¡±


    The middle-aged priest looked more and more solemn, and even his steps were heavier and heavier. The footprints on the snow were getting deeper and deeper, as if they were about to be carved into the cliff stone.


    Haotian, of course, was the heaviest topic.


    ...


    ...


    ¡°Of course, as I said before, I have to admit the Academy is right that Taoism will inevitably fail and Haotian will eventually perish.¡±


    The smile on the Abbey Dean¡¯s face suddenly disappeared, and the emotion in the depths of his eyes became extremelyplicated. He was confused and even feared at first but eventually became calm like the water in a well.


    ¡°But so what?¡±


    The master of Taoism said that Taoism would be destroyed, and the most devout follower and the most powerful spokesman of Haotian said that Haotian would die. If what he said was heard by the human world, what kind of shock and chaos would it bring?


    After saying this, the Abbey Dean regained his calm and smiled while looking at the human world. He was thinking about nothing, looking as cute as a newborn baby.


    ¡°Ning Que is right about one thing. Taoism and the Academy, me and the Headmaster, are not that different in a certain way. We are on the same road and both have ideas for the whole human world, but we choose different routes and have different points of view on the future of the world and mankind. So of course we choose the different methods and have different ultimate goals. Since Ning Que will never agree with the path I choose, peace is not an option. But are we really engaging in the same pursuit?¡± The Abbey Dean said, ¡°As you said, he can¡¯t see far ahead since he doesn¡¯t stand high enough. He can¡¯t see the most important person, but I can. Then the Academy fails.¡±


    The question Ning Que had set for Taoism seemed to be a dilemma, forcing Taoism to maintain the status quo. But for the Abbey Dean, the question was quite easy.


    The Abbey Dean didn¡¯t care about Ye Su and Ye Hongyu at all. He thought he could just kill the two.


    He didn¡¯t care that Ye Su might be sanctified, didn¡¯t care that Ye Hongyu might die or betray Taoism, and didn¡¯t even care that the Divine Hall of Judgement would fall into disorder and Taoism would be chaotic.


    He didn¡¯t care because everything was destined. Taoism was actually Haotian Taoism. If Haotian failed, then how could her Taoism won?


    The world outside the cliff was the human world which was covered with snow. The sky and the ground seemed to be connected together, making it impossible to tell which was which.


    ¡°But so what? After all, it is human beings¡¯ own business. If Haotian dies, we can just find a new Haotian. If Taoism is destroyed, then we can just create a new Taoism. It¡¯s that simple.¡± the Abbey Dean said.

 Chapter 1034 - Wind Roaring

    <h4>Chapter 1034: Wind Roaring</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The middle-aged priest turned pale. His Taoist Heart used to be so firm that no storm or wind could have disturbed it. But all of a sudden it could not refrain from trembling and even was about to copse.


    Upon hearing those words, he realized what was not said and what the Abbey Dean was thinking about. It was something so cruel and horrifying for the followers of Taoism.


    People used to say that the Great Divine Priest of Light was the person closest to Haotian. But he always knew that ever since a thousand years ago, it had always been the Abbey Dean.


    Haotian came to the human world a few years ago and met with the Abbey Dean. Ever since then, they were no longer merely theologically close, but rather physically close, or even distance-less.


    Did he be fearless because he saw her in person? The answer was no. It was after seeing her that he no longer feared. Then he dared to reason, to kill, or even to rece. Compared with him, Lian Sheng¡¯s wild desire, the Academy¡¯s aspiration, or even Haotian¡¯s own will was inferior, not to mention Ning Que¡¯s funny words.


    The middle-aged priest would never challenge the Abbey Dean. He looked at the remaining snow and roaring wind among the cliffs and felt somewhat at loss. Because he could predict the destruction of the old world, which he cared so much about and tried so hard to protect.


    ¡°Is there indeed... no other choice?¡±


    ¡°The fire of the New Stream is spreading throughout the human world. The old Taoism and the decaying Divine Halls are all going to be sacrificed in its me. Even if the Headmaster would eventually lose, the Academy and Tang being wiped out, there¡¯s no way Taoism could turn the tides. Why should we feel sad? It is our Nirvana. We should rejoice.¡±


    ¡°So the Nirvana the Buddha mentioned will happen this winter?¡±


    ¡°The Buddha cared only about himself. Why would he worry about the human world?¡±


    ¡°Then what should we do next?¡±


    ¡°The fate of the human world used to be decided by Heaven...¡±


    The Abbey Dean turned his eyes away from the night sky to the stormy world. He watched for a while and said slowly, ¡°Now it¡¯s here. Therefore we have to find her first.¡±


    Ning Que said that he should pay more attention to the human world. Actually he had always been paying more attention than anyone else did. The one who should have been up there was now in the human world. How could he not paying enough attention?


    The Abbey Dean did not say anything further and looked out to the storm, the viges and fields, and the moon light that broke through the storm. He smiled silently.


    In the dark sky, clouds swung from the east to the west. They kept pouring out snowkes but could no longer block the moonlight from shining over the entire human world.


    Above the cliffs, snowkes were dancing in the roaring wind together with the moonlight. The night was deep and chilling. The Abbey Dean had been sitting there for a long while but still seemed vigorous.


    Many years ago, he was seriously wounded by the God-Stunning Array in the fight in Chang¡¯an and waster on severely punished by Haotian. He had be a paralyzed old man with his Mountain of Qi and Ocean of Snowpletely destroyed. It should have been harsh for him to sit there in a chilling night. However he kept sitting there quietly without coughing or bing pale. His cheeks even seemed rosy and he remained extremely calm.


    He seemed to be full of longing for the beautiful sceneries in the world and was curious about the moon, the snow, and the sky, as if he was an innocent child.


    Hengmu and A Da, the gifts to the human world form Haotian, had also shown such innocent looks from time to time. But their innocence came from their alienation from the world and their youth.


    But the Abbey Dean was different. He looked at the human world and thought about it. He seemed ignorant while omniscient, dumb, and clumsy, but not annoying. He was different from people like Hengmu, and also different from his previous self. He was unworldly as a randomly floating cloud, pure and admirable.


    When he visited Chang¡¯an years ago, he was riding on winds, like immortals. People thought he was immortal. Then he was paralyzed and became mortal. From immortal to mortal, he became a real human.


    The middle-aged priest looked at the Abbey Dean in the wheelchair and sensed his innocent energy. He seemed to have realized something and wondered if there was another world above State of Purity.


    The Abbey Dean suddenly made a movement. He raised his hands from his knees and ced them on the armrests. Some snow melted beneath his palms and dripped as if it was springtime. He also looked refreshed as spring.


    The middle-aged priest was stunned because his spection wasing true. The spection that thrilled him was about toe true.


    His hands trembled on the wheelchair. The Abbey Dean was wounded by the Academy in Chang¡¯an. But the one who destroyed him was Haotian. So what would happen now?


    The Abbey Dean stood up and left the wheelchair, as if he was taking the first step tens of thousands of years ago.


    The snowkes fell onto the teau slowly together with the moonlight. The cold wind was roaring and drifted the Abbey Dean¡¯s indigo gown. But it could not tumble his grey hair.


    ¡°Look, it¡¯s really like a dog,¡± the Abbey Dean stared at the starry night and said slowly.


    The middle-aged priest was confused. He did not know that the Headmaster had said something simr in a different way when he toasted the sky in the Back Hill of the Academy twenty years ago.


    Upon that, the Abbey Dean walked down the teau. His indigo gown floated in the snow. The wind was roaring and the night was deep. Then he disappeared from the Peach Mountain.


    Staring at the Abbey Dean¡¯s footprints on the snow-covered teau, the middle-aged priest remained silent. The Abbey Dean had already left Peach Mountain and he was filled with awe.


    After a long while, he pulled himself back to reality. He looked at his hands on the wheelchair and smiled. Walking to the edge, he pushed the wheelchair off the cliff.


    The cliff was extremely high. There might be sounds when snow fell. But the sound of the wheelchair falling into the valley could never be heard. And the Abbey Dean had left the Peach Mountain for the human world. No one knew when he would be back.


    The middle-aged priest calmed down immediately. Because he was a powerful cultivator who had absolute faith in the Abbey Dean. Although there had been countless important figures throughout the history of Taoism and that in the most recent thousand years it was always about the Headmaster and the Academy, Taoism was after all aosim and the Abbey Dean was after all the Abbey Dean.


    The middle-aged priest left the teau for the Divine Hall of Revtion. No one knew what he said to Zhao Nanhai in the Divine Hall. But then Zhao Nanhai followed him silently to the Divine Hall of Judgment and found that the Hierarch had already arrived.


    He looked at the woman in the Gown of Judgment and seemed to be enjoying the sight of her. She walked in the moonlight to the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade and bloomed like a scarlet flower.


    He secretly admired her ever since she was little. But he had to kill her today. The Abbey Dean had made a decision on her and her brother¡¯s fate.


    ¡°I need a serious exnation.¡±


    ¡°My apologies, but I cannot tell you.¡±

 Chapter 1034.1

    <h4>Chapter 1034.1: Blood Phoenix Shrilling In Peach Mountain (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    It was dusk in the Divine Hall of Judgment. Ye Hongyu stared at Xiong Chumo, the Hierarch, while her right hand raised from the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade, as if it was a small boat setting sail from a port in the south. There came Ye Hongyu¡¯s words. ¡°Bring it on.¡±


    Her pretty face showed nothing but fearlessness. She had always been confident, resolute, and calm even if she was confronted with a desperate fight.


    The Hierarch, Zhao Nanhai, and the middle-aged priest stood in three different positions inside the hall. They stared at her silently. Being the most powerful team in Taoism, they should never have doubts in themselves. Even if confronting Yu Lian, they should have been confident enough to win. However, they were still on alert in front of Ye Hongyu.


    Because the person they were about to take fight against was the youngest Great Divine Priest of Judgment throughout the history of the Divine Halls of West-Hill. She was probably also the best at fighting on Peach Mountain throughout thest thousand years. Although she would not be able to defeat the three of them, she would not give up easily.


    When Ye Hongyu¡¯s hand moved away from the seat, the hall was suddenly brightened up. It seemed she had picked up thousands of wisps of light and formed a bright. It reflected the moon and starlight outside and created an ocean of starry light inside the Divine Hall, to the height of half a person.


    She stood silently amongst the starry light, as pure and charming as a virgin from the Divine Kingdom.


    Together with her movement the ocean of starry light flowed up and down. The reflection of the moon and starlight became brighter and brighter, and eventually formed into a dazzling shape. The dazzling shape had sharp edges. It was a sword.


    She got hold of a sword of light. The surface of the sword was smooth like a tranquilke. When reflecting the blood-colored Gown of Judgment, it seemed as if there was a red fish swimming inside.


    It was not a real sword, but seemed more than real. It was her Taoist sword.


    From the cliffs outside the hall, a wind came all of a sudden. It swirled the snowkes, disturbed the moon and starlight and poured them into the hall via the terrace. They came onto her sword and awoke the red fish inside.


    Then Ye Hongyu was awaken. But it was her clothes that were awakened first. The blood-colored Gown of Judgment shivered like a red morning flower soaked in dewdrops. While the red flower shivered, she darted to dozens of miles away and came to Zhao Nanhai. Her first strike was for Zhao Nanhai.


    It was probably because this great divine priest from the South Sea wasparatively the least powerful among the three. Zhao Nanhai was at the zenith of Knowing Destiny, yet he was the least powerful. It was despairing but true.


    Tonight in the Divine Hall of Judgment, it was a fight between the truly powerful ones.


    It was probably a losing battle for her, but she still wanted to try. Because she would never give up until thest minute. Like she told Ning Que years ago, if she had to fight, she would win.


    The blood flower floated in the ocean of starry light. Ye Hongyu wanted nothing else but to win. Her concentration was scary. Her charming face imed her territory. The sacred crown on top of her ck hair also imed her world. She was the Great Divine Priest of Judgment. It was her territory. She was nothing but awe-inspiring.


    A mountain and a river crushed onto Zhao Nanhai from the dark sky. Powerful as Zhao Nanhai was, he could not help from feeling shocked. He wanted to step aside, but his feet were nted into the smooth floor in the Divine Hall as if he was an iron statue. It was because he was calm enough to know that he could not take a single step aside, not even thinking about it.


    The reason Ye Hongyu chose him was that she wanted to force him to step aside. The reason Zhao Nanhai could not step aside was that once he moved, he would provide Ye Hongyu with an escape.


    The most powerful ones from Taoism hade to kill Ye Hongyu tonight. They would never miss and let her escape. There was neither retreat nor escape for Ye Hongyu, or for themselves.


    Seeing the charming woman in the red gown pounding onto him together with her entire world, Zhao Nanhai became even more resolute. His Taoist robe was inmed in the chilling wind.


    He was the current Great Divine Priest of the South Sea, who inherited the cultivation from the former Great Divine Priest of Light six hundred years ago. He cultivated on the most advanced Divine Skills of the West-Hill. He was inmed with the purest Haotian¡¯s Divine me right now.


    He set himself on fire, like a candle lightening the dark hall.


    Ye Hongyu came to him and into the world of light.


    She held the unreal sword formed of light, kept calm but did not stab.


    Her Gown of Judgment swayed and turned bright while she entered the world of light, as if she was a red bird throwing itself into the forest. But in the world of light, the forest of me, danger was everywhere.


    The red bird might get burned, and the blood flower, would it bloom? Ye Hongyu seemed indifferent, because she was also burning.


    Endless Haotian¡¯s Divine me spurted from her body, prated the blood-colored Gown of Judgment, broke through Zhao Nanhai¡¯s Divine me and roared toward him.


    The forest was on fire, the red bird was also on fire. It stretched its wings in the dark night, spread miles of me, and created sparks on the rock walls.


    The bloody petals turned into transparent mes, chilling and horrifying!


    Divine Skills of the West-Hill against Divine Skills of the West-Hill!


    Haotian¡¯s Divine me against Haotian¡¯s Divine me!


    She was the Great Divine Priest of Judgment, and the Tao Fanatic who mastered every Taoist skill!


    She had been practicing the Divine Skills of West-Hill ever since her childhood. How could she not be familiar with Haotian¡¯s Divine me?


    But who was better in Divine Skills, she or Zhao Nanhai?


    They were both at the zenith of Knowing Destiny, both masters of Divine Skills. The former was young and aggressive, while thetter was senior and shrewd. If it was in a different asion, none of them would be able to defeat the other in a short while.


    But it was different tonight. Zhao Nanhai came to kill instead of risking his own life, no matter how resolute he seemed to be. But Ye Hongyu was depleting her own soul and vitality, no matter how indifferent she looked.


    It was radiating and heated inside the Divine Hall of Judgment. The engraved tables and chairs were burnt into ashes instantly. Smoke even rose from the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade.


    The Hierarch got slightly stiff and took one step forward. The middle-aged priest kept his head low and no one knew what he was thinking about.


    In the heated ocean of Divine me, a shrill was heard. It was a clear and sharp shrill of a bird, the legendary bird.


    Xiong Chumo turned further solemn. The middle-aged priest still kept his head low, and seemed imposing in Haotoian¡¯s Divine me.


    Sparks sshed and the mes separated. A path was formed in the ocean of me and a ming blood phoenix flew out of the ocean. It stretched the wings and set the entire hall on fire.


    There was actually no real ming phoenix in the Divine Hall of Judgment. Instead there was only the purest Haotian¡¯s Divine me. She flew above the Divine me like a superior and ruthless phoenix, and seemed extremely indifferent.


    The me was slightly restrained and Zhao Nanhai appeared lying on the floor. He was pale. Blood was dripping from his lips and he was seriously wounded. He stared at the ming phoenix with admiration and sympathy.


    No wonder she was the youngest Great Divine Priest of Judgment throughout the history of Taoism. She was indeed incredibly powerful. However, because she was powerful, she must die. The more powerful she was, the more Taoism wanted her dead.


    In their contest of Divine Skills, Zhao Nanhai was defeated and wounded. But Ye Hongyu did not get what she wanted either because Zhao Nanhai did not give out the way. She was still in the center.


    She did not defeat the weak Zhao Nanhai with her first strike. Therefore she had lost the battle. It was a pity. But she did not seem disappointed at all. Or perhaps Zhao Nanhai was never her real target.


    Haotian¡¯s Divine mes almost incinerated the rock walls, and also warmed her curvy figure. Perhaps it was merely a warm-up.


    With the help of the zing me, a phoenix shrilled in the hall. In the radiating light she came incredibly fast to Xiong Chumo. Perhaps that was her purpose.


    Deep down in her eyes there were stars formed and vanished. No one could see them clearly or figure out what she was thinking about.


    She held the sword in her right hand that was hidden in her blood-colored Gown of Judgment. No one could tell if she was feeling stiff.


    She was holding an unreal sword, which was her natal Taoist Sword. She never used the sword against Zhao Nanhai. But would she use the sword in the following strike?


    In the next moment, her sword was still in the sheath. Both the sword and sheath were unreal, yet real. After that the sheath disappeared and the sword was unveiled. She finally drew her sword!


    A bout of sharp sword intent was formed in the bright hall and pierced the air immediately. The sword intent that stood above the top of the Five States was about to tear up the air!


    She made a resolute and sudden turn in the air, unimaginably fast. The sword intent was extremely swift that even Liu Bai or Jun Mo could barely catch it in their full glory.


    If it was someone else, he would have easily been chopped into two pieces by the sword intent. But she was confronting the master of the Divine Halls of West-Hill. It could not be that easy.


    Xiong Chumo seemed solemn and his pupils constricted. He was already prepared when she flew out of the ocean of me. When the sword intente to him, his hands had already reached out to the dark sky.


    There was nothing but darkness, and there was no light at all. But the Divine Kingdom was right in there.


    When confronting someone extremely dangerous like Ye Hongyu, Xiong Chumo could never ck off. He had to give a full strike. It was a decisive strike.


    A bout of inhumanly pounding power came from the Divine Kingdom far away in the dark sky, traveled countless miles via clouds and mountains, and charged into his body.


    It was Tianqi. Ye Hongyu¡¯s sword was already above the Five States, and it almost reached the sky. Whereas Xiong Chumo was not only above the Five States, but beyond the sky. Even if there was merely a small difference between their levels of cultivation, it was still insuperable.


    Xiong Chumo¡¯s thin figure became incredibly powerful all of a sudden, like a god. Inside his body, countless bouts of energy were burning and roaring.


    He reached out his right palm and pounded onto Ye Hongyu. A small and ridiculous palm turned into a giant fan while it pierced through the air. The giant fan-like palm clutched the throat of the ming phoenix. In the dazzling Divine me, the ming phoenix shrilled.


    ...

 Chapter 1035 - Blood Phoenix Shrilling On Peach Mountain(II)

    <h4>Chapter 1035: Blood Phoenix Shrilling On Peach Mountain(II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Xiong Chumo stood in front of the Divine me and clutched the ming phoenix¡¯s throat. Shrills resounded in the fiery Divine Hall. The whistle became more and more shrilling, furious, and painful.


    The ming phoenix was struggling in fury.


    Fiery white light flowed down its body onto the ground and set an ocean of fire. The chilling killing intent of the sword hidden inside its body was exploding.


    Xiong Chumo suddenly got pale but still looked indifferent. His short figure seemed extremely awe-inspiring under the powerful Divine me.


    Many people including Ye Hongyu could never understand why Xiong Chumo became powerful. Being the Hierarch of the Divine Halls would not necessarily empower him. Then where did his powere from? How could this wretched dwarf have surpassed the Five States? Was that simply because he was a running dog for Haotian?


    Someone tried to find an answer but those were all spections. Xiong Chumo still stayed behind the radiating screen and clutched the throat of the ming phoenix as well as destiny, and continued to be invincible no matter how unfair it seemed.


    Xiong Chumo¡¯s huge palm kept pushing forward. The dark sky above Peach Mountain seemed to havee closer to the ground as he was pushing. A bout of unimaginably massive power pounded downward.


    The ming phoenix shrilled and its feather scattered. The powerful sword intent bursting from its body could not withstand the pound from the dark sky and was smashed upon a bang.


    The sword intent was smashed by Xiong Chumo¡¯s pound. Countless pieces of sword intent were scattered everywhere. They fell on Ye Hongyu and pierced her scarlet Gown of Judgment. Blood was oozing.


    That was the horrible backfire.


    Colors drained from Ye Hongyu¡¯s face and the starry lights deep down her eyes were fading even more rapidly.


    Her scarlet right sleeve was vanished by the power of Tianqi and her fair wrist was unveiled. The sword intent was gone. But she was still holding the sword.


    Her dark hair fluttered like roaring waterfall.


    She gazed at Xiong Chumo, emotionlessly and soullessly.


    Her soul was burning, so was her life. Blood gushed out of the countless gashes on her body and became ming. She used her Divine Skills to turn her body and soul into the Divine me.


    She was going to hug Xiong Chumo who was standing by her side.


    Different from the humiliating hug years ago, her hug was neither affectionate nor indifferent. She was simply inviting him calmly to confront death together.


    Xiong Chumo¡¯s pupils constricted while he watched Ye Hongyu burning and sensed the hidden terror.


    He shivered and became even paler, while he shouted like thunder, ¡°Heaven¡¯s Hack!¡±


    He was the master of the Divine Halls of West-Hill, and his shout was thunder.


    During thete night on Peach Mountain, his thundering shout resounded throughout the valleys, awoke the hibernating animals under the ground, and shocked the thick clouds that were no longer producing snowkes, until it reached the unknown Divine Kingdom far away.


    The dark sky pressed gradually toward the ground.


    The overwhelming and irresistible power inside the Divine Hall of Judgment became even more distinct and direct.


    Xiong Chumo¡¯s pounding had finally crushed every bit of Ye Hongyu¡¯s remaining sword intent. His palm broke through the pure me and pounded on her shoulder.


    A thud was heard.


    The cloth on Ye Hongyu¡¯s right should was torn into pieces and her fair skin was revealed.


    Her shoulder sent forth refreshing odor from the zing me and terror.


    The bare shoulder was alluring in purity and terror.


    Xiong Chumo¡¯s palm pounded on the alluring shoulder.


    It immediately reminded him of many things many years ago. He seemed even more unfathomable while he recalled. His pupils constricted into tiny ck beans, with bitterness, satisfaction, greed, and moaning.


    If he had pounded on her, she would definitely be dead.


    Even if she was Ye Hongyu, she would never survive a pound with Haotian¡¯s power.


    But what confused Xiong Chumo was that she still seemed indifferent.


    Being the Tao Fanatic, was she really crazy enough to disregard death?


    It was not until the next moment that Xiong Chumo realized why Ye Hongyu was being so calm. It was because she would never let his palm fall onto her body like he did years ago.


    A gash was formed on her right shoulder. Same as other gashes on her body, blood gushed out of it and her gown was torn. But beneath the blood deep inside the gash, golden threads were shining.


    The golden threads differentiated her from any ordinary cultivator or even the powerful ones. Only she and Ning Que were different in this way because they were extremely ruthless.


    She was the Tao Fanatic. She was not disregarding her death but rather applying her fanaticism in transforming her body into a sword. That was her real Taoist sword.


    The Gown of Judgment was torn. The sheath of the sword was cracked. She herself, the sword, was officially unsheathed.


    The golden threads bounced up and danced in the air. They came gently onto Xiong Chumo¡¯s palm.


    Compared with his huge palm, those threads were even finer than the finest barnyard grass in autumn. But that was her natal item, more tenacious than the sharpest sword, unbreakable and uninterrupted.


    Upon a slightest sound, a thin blood line was form of blooded on Xiong Chumo¡¯s index finger before it reached her shoulder. Blood burst from the line. A finger bone was broken.


    Xiong Chumo¡¯s index finger fell off like a ripe fruit falling from the tree. His face became extremely pale. And his eyes revealed unbearable pain. Overwhelming fury prevailed on his peaked face. Then, it faded into calmness within a blink. He looked emotionless and kept pressing down his palm. Even if he were to lose all his fingers or his entire palm, he was determined to pound Ye Hongyu to death. Because this was his best chance.


    However Ye Hongyu would not give him the chance. Ye Hongyu closed her eyes. Right then she collected all of her sword intent. The torn Gown of Judgment curled up like dried leaves and wrapped her body. Not a single bit of her sword intent was discharged. She seemed to be no longer vital.


    Previously, she was like a sword. Right now she turned into a conscious-less rock. It was like the moss-covered rocks at the bottom of theke outside the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine many years ago. There were two sword cuts on the rocks that were left by Ke Haoran many years ago. Later on she made some new cuts. Today she turned herself into one of the rocks, and the cuts on her body were like the sword cuts on the rocks. What was she trying to do? There was no time for pondering or reasoning.


    Xiong Chumo¡¯s palm had pounded onto her shoulder. Her shoulder bones were crushed upon a crack and blood burst. Xiong Chumo was confused, so was Zhao Nanhai. Why would she rather hurt herself and take the pound? Right then on the other side of the Divine Hall, the middle-aged priest raised his head and took a nce.


    ...


    ...


    She was like a real rock knocked off by heavenly power. And power meant speed. She took the unbearable pound and gained unimaginable speed. No one except for those at the Distanceless State could have applied such a speed.


    She cut through the Divine Hall while her torn Gown of Judgment left ghostly shadows across the hall. She became burning because of the friction with air. The hard rock became a meteorite and carried a ming tail.


    Perhaps it was a variation of the ming phoenix.


    Ever since he entered the Divine Hall of Judgment the middle-aged priest had been quiet with his head lowered.


    It wasn¡¯t until now that he finally raised his head.


    He looked above to the ocean of Divine me in the Divine Hall, the figure in the me, and the meteorite darting at him. Then he realized what the chilling ming phoenix was about to do.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s target had always been him. It was neither Zhao Nanhai nor Xiong Chumo. It was him. The fight of Divine Skills with Zhao Nanhai was merely a warm-up. Taking Xiong Chumo¡¯s heavenly pound of Tianqi was her elerating. Ye Hongyu was taking advantage of the attacks of these two powerful figures.


    She adjusted herself to the most powerful and fury mode at the cost of hurting herself severely. What for? Simply to kill him? Ye Hongyu was so fast that the middle-aged priest was only able to take a nce before she came to him.


    The ming phoenix cut through the Divine Hall, and the meteorite was there.


    Even the Abbey Dean could not have been able to elude from her.


    The middle-aged priest realized that both the Abbey Dean and himself had underestimated Ye Hongyu.


    The young Great Divine Priest of Judgment was a true genius of Taoism. She surpassed Zhao Nanhai in Divine Skills and transformed her own body into a natal Taoist sword, and eventually a hard rock. That was the legendary Intent of Bulking Array invented by the Great Divine Priest of Light a thousand years ago!


    Nowadays there should only be the Queen of the Great River Kingdom who could apply the Intent of Bulking Array. ¡°Where did she learn that?¡± the middle-aged priest wondered. But he had to confront it. Otherwise this ming phoenix would break from the Divine Hall of Judgment and Peach Mountain, and regain her freedom. That was something that Taoism would never allow.


    The middle-aged priest reached out his right hand and pointed out one finger extremely slowly. The ming phoenix was unprecedentedly fast. He seemed to be extremely slow yet he came before the ming phoenix arrived. He looked solemn and his finger was extremely powerful.


    To know and to guard, it was the Natural Stream. This was the most unique skill of Zhishou Abbey, the Natural Stream Magical Finger. The middle-aged priest¡¯s Natural Stream Magical Finger was far more powerful than that of Chen Pipi from years ago. Once the finger was applied, the world was settled.


    The burning Haotian¡¯s Divine me in the Divine Hall of Judgment seemed to be frozen!


    The remaining of the bout of heavenly power seemed to have sensed the solemn finger point and calmed down!


    The burning tail of the ming phoenix immediately disappeared!


    The furious meteorite suddenly unveiled its true self. How could the moss hurt anyone?


    The middle-aged priest applied his most powerful attack. He came with light and pointed one finger. The ming phoenix shrilled in despair.


    But Ye Hongyu seemed still indifferent as if she cared for nothing.


    She held onto her sword and then stabbed.


    The feathers of the ming phoenix were scattered. But she did not care.


    Massive Qi burst in the hall and the wind roared. The ming phoenix disappeared and her true figure revealed.


    She stabbed toward the middle-aged priest. It was an ordinary yet most powerful stab.


    As an arrow hit on a heavy leather or a rock fell into a deep pond.


    It resounded constantly.


    The finger of the middle-aged priest met with her sword in the air.


    The wind suddenly ceased and dust fell on the floor. The Divine Hall of Judgment became deadly quiet in a blink.


    Several golden threads burst out Ye Hongyu¡¯s body and drifted down like dried leaves.


    She held the sword loosely and stood emotionlessly in front of the middle-aged priest. Her Gown of Judgment loosened and hung around her waist. Her upper body was naked. Blood dripped from her perfectly curved figure.


    She was half-naked and stained with blood. It should be embarrassing. Yet she was extremely charming. It was a holy and pure charm. And alluring.


    Being holy and alluring was not conflicting, at least not for her.


    Blood flowed down her body, onto the ground, and into the cracks of the stones. The cracks were filled up by blood and started glowing like shining threads.


    Rays of lights arose from the ocean of blood and formed a confinement.


    The middle-aged priest was finally alerted. Because he found himself in the center of the confinement.


    ...

 Chapter 1036 - Blood Phoenix Shrilling In Peach Mountain (III)

    <h4>Chapter 1036: Blood Phoenix Shrilling In Peach Mountain (III)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    In the fight tonight, Ye Hongyu chose to attack Zhao Nanhai first, the Hierarch right after, and then immediately the middle-aged priest. Even for her it was an arrogant choice because the three figures were so powerful that she could not possibly defeat any of them. Her arrogance seemed ridiculous or even desperate.


    But being who she was, how could Ye Hongyu do something ridiculous? Nor did she ever know what desperation was. Then why did she choose to carry out a series of attacks?


    Actually, she never changed her goal ever since the beginning! She was not nning to escape, or did she try to leave the Divine Hall of Judgment. Instead of running away, she simply wanted to trap the middle-aged priest!


    She wanted to trade the life of the middle-aged priest with another person¡¯s life! It was undoubtedly arrogant or even suicidal. Yet she did so no matter what. She had to save that person¡¯s life regardless of her own!


    Furthermore, she had the Confinement.


    As for the fight tonight, she had no support from Heaven since Haotian had already abandoned her. Nor did she had enough support from the human world as the Abbey Dean had dumped her. However, she had geographical advantages.


    It was the ce they were in. She was standing on the smooth marble floor. She was right inside the Divine Hall of Judgement. And she was the judgement. Tonight she would turn this chilling Divine Hall into a Confinement. The Confinement was no longer the merely most powerful Taoist skill of the Divine Hall of Judgment. It would be a real cage.


    The former Great Divine Priest used to confine the former Great Divine Priest of Light for over a decade with his wooden cage. Tonight, she would trap the middle-aged priest in her cage and defeat him.


    The middle-aged priest seemed imposing. He applied the Natural Stream Magical Finger like throwing a y ox into the sea. Upon clenching his fingers and swaying his sleeves, he made a strike of purest and most authentic Taoist Xuan Practice onto the screen of light.


    The screen of light was formed from the ground and stained with blood. It was the Confinement.


    His sleeves pounded like hummers through the air and thundered in the Divine Hall of Judgment. However he was not able to shake the screen of light.


    The middle-aged priest seemed even more solemn upon seeing this. Zhao Nanhai and the Hierarch became extremely pale and came immediately toward him.


    They finally realized Ye Hongyu¡¯s n, but would never let her fulfill it. They had to break the Confinement before it was finished. Otherwise if she could sessfully cage the middle-aged priest and she might even be able to change the result of the fight tonight.


    Xiong Chumo¡¯s chest sank deeply while thunders were formed. The pounding powering from Heaven fell on him and bounced onto the Confinement in a bang.


    Zhao Nanhai followed him closely and pushed his palms forward gently while spurting zing Haotian¡¯s Divine me. He was about to melt the Confinement with the me.


    The middle-aged priest would definitely not sit on his doom inside the Confinement. He took a solemn look at the dark sky and withdrew the Natural Stream Magical Finger. His fingers trembled like butterflies pping their wings, and created various shapes of energy by his side.


    Three bouts of unimaginably powerful energy appeared in three different shapes and fell onto Ye Hongyu¡¯s body almost at the same time as they fell onto the Confinement.


    Massive light poured into the Divine Hall of Judgment and lightened up every corner and every detail of the Confinement, as if countless suns had appeared in the dark hall.


    Extreme brightness would turn into darkness and blind everyone. Ye Hongyu stood in the center of the brightness and could no longer see anything. Neither did the other three. They could only use their other senses.


    More gashes were made on Ye Hongyu¡¯s naked body, and more blood gushed out. But she was still emotionless. She stared calmly at the middle-aged priest in the Confinement even if she could not see him.


    Her blood dripped onto the floor and flowed along the cracks. It awoke the hidden soul of the Divine Hall of Judgment. Instead of being weakened by the attacks, the Confinement became more solid than ever.


    A thundering exim was heard all of a sudden from deep inside the extreme brightness. The Confinement was finished. She finally turned the Divine Hall of Judgment into the Confinement, caged her biggest enemy and defended herself. Or perhaps she had also trapped herself in the Confinement, as she wished.


    At that moment the middle-aged priest withdrew the butterfly practice and raised his head gradually. The brightness faded while he looked toward the blood-covered Ye Hongyu. And blood was shed from his eyes instead of tears.


    Within a few seconds he was already seriously wounded by the Confinement. But he was still calm. So was Ye Hongyu.


    She was half naked. And her charming curves werepletely exposed in the dark sky, to the moon and stars as well as everyone in the divine hall. But she was not bothered at all.


    She let go of the sword. So far, she had made two strikes but failed to hurt Xiong Chumo and the middle-aged priest. So she no longer needed the sword now.


    Xiong Chumo and Zhao Nanhai had to give up. Because once the Confinement was finished, she could simply kill the middle-aged priest with a sh of psyche.


    The middle-aged priest stared at Ye Hongyu through the chilling light screen for a long while. He feltplicated with admiration, solemness and even sympathy.


    ¡°It¡¯s meaningless,¡± he said.


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Xiong Chumo and Zhao Nanhai are nothing but jackals. It is of course meaningless to take their lives. But as for you, my Uncle, it¡¯s different. The Abbey Dean would need you alive.¡±


    The middle-aged priest looked at her sympathetically and said, ¡°Even so, it was toote. Long Qing should have carried out the sentence in Song by now. Even if the Abbey Dean would be so kind to spare my life, it is meaningless now.¡±


    Upon hearing this, Ye Hongyu was silenced.


    ¡°Furthermore, you cannot cage me.¡± The middle-aged priest reached for something beneath his clothes and sighed. ¡°That¡¯s why it¡¯s meaningless.¡±


    Ye Hongyu stared at his hand and frowned, ¡°You can¡¯t break the Confinement.¡±


    ¡°When Wei Guangming escaped from Peach Mountain he said, ¡®Bright as I am, how could the Confinement keep me trapped?¡¯ I am not more powerful than the former Great Diving Pries of Light. And your Confinement is definitely more powerful than the previous one. But you still cannot trap me.¡±


    When he took his hand out he was holding a tome.


    No one knew what the tome was made from. But it was not crushed during the horrifying fight previously. It was hard to tell whether it was new or old. But there was something mysterious and divine about it.


    The middle-aged priest looked at the tome in his hand and seemed hesitant and sorry.


    Ye Hongyu vaguely realized what that tome was and turned pale.


    ¡°I will eventually be freed if I stay in a Confinement long enough,¡± the middle-aged priest finally made up his mind and chanted. Together with the chanting he opened the first page of the tome. The moment the tome was opened, the page was burnt into ashes.


    A pounding power spurted from the burnt page like Tianqi and bombed onto the Confinement. But it was even more powerful than Tianqi!


    Upon a bang the Confinement started shaking.


    Seeing this and sensing the mythical power of the tome Ye Hongyu realized that she was right. She got stern and said, ¡°How dare you to use the Arcane Tome as a weapon?!¡±


    She was right. The tome that middle-aged priest was holding was an Arcane Tome.


    It was the Arcane Tome of the Fall!


    A single page fall could shake the entire world not to mention the Confinement!


    Ye Hongyu reached out her arms and swayed her Gown of Judgment. Her pouring ck hair also swung. She was trying to fight against the Arcane Tome with the Confinement!


    The middle-aged priest was also extremely solemn because he realized that a single page of this Arcane Tome was not enough to break the Confinement. Therefore he had to continue burning the Arcane Tome! The Arcane Tome of the Fall turned into ashes one page after another. Countless and endless ultimate power was released and sshed around the Divine Hall.


    The middle-aged priest witnessed the Arcane Tome of the Fall be thinner and thinner in his hand and felt extremely painful.


    For a disciple of Taoism, who could stay indifferent when ruining an Arcane Tome?


    The war between the Confinement and the Arcane Tome continued.


    The Arcane Tome of the Fall kept burning one page after another. And the Divine Hall of Judgment kept shaking. Rubbles kept falling off from the cracking rock walls as if an earthquake was taking ce.


    In the heat of the horrifying war, with the Hierarch¡¯s Tianqi previously and the earth-shaking confrontation now, people on Peach Mountain were finally awaken.


    Thousands of divine priests and deacons stood on the peaks in front of the Divine Halls. They could not help turning pale when seeing the ck and chilling Divine Hall started shaking and almost copsing in the dark night.


    People were scared and stunned. They had no idea what they should do.


    Upon a rumbling thunder, the southeast corner of the Divine Hall of Judgment copsed. Innumerable rubbles sshed and countless peach branches were smashed down the valley. Thousands of divine priests and deacons fell on their knees weeping. They did not dare to look above or make any sounds.


    Dust pervaded inside the Divine Hall of Judgment,.


    Xiong Chumo stood aside and feltplicated. It was a battle between the Arcane Tome of the Fall and the Divine Hall of Judgment. It was also a war between Haotian and Taoism. Even powerful as he was, he could barely participate in a war like this.


    It seemed a long while but actually was just a blink. Half of the Arcane Tome of the Fall was burned in the hand of the middle-aged priest. The Confinement was eventually broken. The Divine Hall of Judgment was about to copse in no time.


    Ye Hongyu was pushed back to the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade by the power of the Arcane Tome.


    She was pale, but still indifferent.


    It became quiet in the Divine Hall of Judgment for a long while.


    The middle-aged priest, Xiong Chumo or Zhao Nanhai said nothing. They stared at the woman covered by blood standing by the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade, and could not help from showing some awe or even fear.


    She almost made it. She was so close.


    Facing such a group of powerful enemies, the young Great Divine Priest of Judgment had almost turned the tide and made the Taoism surrender.


    If the middle-aged priest did not have the Arcane Tome of the Fall, or if he was not executing the Abbey Dean¡¯s order and profaned the Arcane Tome as a killing weapon, Ye Hongyu might have won.


    She failed, indeed failed. But she had forced the most powerful enemies to exhaust themselves and destroyed half of the most valuable Arcane Tome of Taoism. Therefore she deserved respect and pride.


    Unfortunately she did not seed. Ye Hongyu turned pale. It was not because the severe wound or fear for her destin but because she knew that her failure would lead to Ye Su¡¯s death.


    Everything she tried tonight served for the same purpose: to catch the middle-aged priest and trade his life for Ye Su¡¯s life.


    The middle-aged priest said it was meaningless. But she had to do so. Because Ye Su, her brother, had been the sole purpose of her life since many years ago.


    The middle-aged priest put back the Arcane Tome of the Fall piously. Then he looked at Ye Hongyu and said sincerely, ¡°You are indeed very charming and powerful.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said emotionlessly, ¡°I know.¡±


    The middle-aged priest stared at her and sensed the stubbornness deep down in her heart. He could almost see the little girl in the abbey who used to be fond of climbing up trees and teasing Chen Pipi. He took pity on her.


    ¡°I¡¯m sorry. But you have to die.¡±


    A corner of the Divine Hall of Judgment copsed. Ye Hongyu was seriously wounded and had no other choices.


    The middle-aged priest, Xiong Chumo and Zhao Nanhai still stood at three different corners and stare at her.


    She failed, and was doomed because Taoism would not let her survive.


    She stood by the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade. There were only cliffs behind her. There might be a route down there, but definitely not a route for survival.


    Right then, sheughed all of a sudden. There was fury, unwillingness and even madness in herughter.


    She and her brother Ye Su worked so hard for Taoism throughout the years. But now they were about to be sentenced. She did not want to reconcile and tried her best. But she failed.


    Yet would she give up? Never. For someone like her and Ning Que, they might seem to have the most pious belief for Haotian or the Academy. But actually they only believed in themselves. It was something that even Haotian or the Headmaster failed to realize.


    Herughter was cold, even freezing. It seemed like sharp Taoist swords that had been frozen in the snow covered ocean for tens of thousands of years. And now they were collected and delivered to the Divine Hall of Judgment, and were swayed through the air.


    In the next moment she stoppedughing and dered, ¡°I will survive,¡±


    Xiong Chumo mocked, ¡°Perhaps you could try begging me.¡±


    Ye Hongyu spared no attention to him and repeated calmly, ¡°I will survive.¡±


    The middle-aged priest said, ¡°You can¡¯t.¡±


    The Abbey Dean had decided to kill Ye Su and extinct the New Stream. Therefore she had to die tonight. Otherwise, if she were to survive, Xiong Chumo would die and Taoism would be thrown into the me.


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°I will survive.¡± She said it calmly. Because she was not begging or pleading, but dering. She was telling those powerful figures and the Abbey Dean that she wanted to survive therefore she would.


    Blood flowed over her naked body, passed her delicate cor-bones, alluring breasts and charming belly, as if it had went through a fulfilling life across her perfect figure.


    ¡°I did not leave earlier on because I wanted to fulfill something. Now I know I won¡¯t seed. And Ye Su would probably die. So I will leave. Do you even think you can keep me here?¡± She stared at the middle-aged priest and said indifferently, ¡°The other half of the Arcane Tome won¡¯t kill me.¡±


    The middle-aged priest slightly frowned as he sensed something unusual.


    Xiong Chumo looked at her and asked, ¡°How could you get out?¡± He pointed at the cliffs behind him and said mockingly, ¡°Ning Que jumped down, so did Haotian. Perhaps you want to try as well? Do you think you would survive?¡±


    There were the most horrifying arrays among the towering cliffs of Peach Mountain, as well as the unimaginable dangers down in the abyss. Even the former Wei Guangming did not dare to get out from there.


    Ning Que survived because Haotian jumped together with him.


    No matter how powerful Ye Hongyu was, she was after all not Haotian.


    If she were to jump from here, she would definitely be doomed.


    It was quiet inside the Divine Hall of Judgment. Melting snow on the terrace reflected the charming moonlight.


    Ye Hongyu looked at Xiong Chumo and gave a mocking smile. She turned to the terrace. Along the way, her blood melted with the snow in her footprints. She came to the terrace, stood there for a while, then made the leap.

 Chapter 1037 - The White Smoke

    <h4>Chapter 1037: The White Smoke</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The moon shone again and the wind ceased. Scary blood stains remained on the unmelted snow. It was deadly quiet again in the Divine Hall of Judgment except for the seldom sounds of stones falling from the walls.


    The middle-aged priest walked to the terrace followed by Xiong Chumo and Zhao Nanhai. They pondered for a long while and stared at the bottomless abyss, the steep cliff and snow covered ancient trees.


    Then they left without a word, or a nce at each other. Ning Que had jumped into the abyss, together with Haotian. Tonight Ye Hongyu did too. Ning Que and Haotian had survived, but she would not.


    Since death was the only possibility, they did not need to worry further.


    She was finished. But there were more things to be taken care of. She was the Great Divine Priest of Judgment. Her death would definitely bring about many troubles. Taoism had to face a lot right now. Xiong Chumo should be prepared to deal with her furious subordinates in the Divine Hall of Judgment. Zhao Nanhai had to support him to maintain the stability of Peach Mountain. The middle-aged priest needed to regain people¡¯s faith for Taoism.


    Most importantly, after their fight tonight and Ye Hongyu¡¯s death, Taoism would officially start to extinguish the New Stream, as well as tounch their war against the Tang and the Academy.


    The three left. The destroyed Divine Hall regained its loneliness. Of course there would be people going down the abyss to confirm Ye Hongyu¡¯s death and locate her body. But by the time her body would be delivered to the Divine Hall of Judgment, the chilling Divine Hall could never wee its lively master again.


    ...


    ...


    The night was deep. And the moon was hiding behind thick clouds. Tangling rivers flowed across the fields. Darkness prevailed and enveloped the stone bridges and the cold-resistant wildflowers.


    It was such a cold winter. The fields outside the Chaoyang city were frozen hard. Amidst the dark and silent night, someone fell off the city wall and pounded on the ground. The body cracked the frozen ground and the bones broke. But the person did not make any sound despite the pain.


    Wang Jinglue furrowed his eyebrows further. Even the darkness could not hide his paleness. He was sweating profusely. He wiped off the blood at the corner of his lips and crawled with great difficulty into a bush. Upon making sure he was safe from the chase, he exhaled in relief.


    Right then another body pounded on the ground. He peeped through the bush and saw a man lying dead on the ground, stained in blood.


    Hurried footsteps were heard on top of the city wall. Dozens of torches were lit up instantly and dispelled the darkness, as bright as day.


    The many motionless on the ground and his face was lit up by the torches. The face was covered with blood but he could still see it clearly. Wang Jinglue got stiff. His hands trembled while holding onto the branches and his face got paler because he knew that man. More precisely, he knew him very well.


    In the past few years, Wang Jinglue had been gathering young people in Yangzhou City who cared about their homnd Tang. He had met with many, one of which was lying dead there.


    It became chaotic on top of the city wall of Yangzhou. People were shouting and fighting with their weapons shing. Wang Jinglue raised his head in difficulty. He knew that the young people who were loyal to Tang were being hunted up there by the powerful cultivators from the Divine Halls. He clutched his fists more firmly. But being able to do nothing made him desperate.


    Another person fell hard on the frozen field. Mud and blood sshed. More bodies followed. More young people were killed.


    There was nothing but despair and anguish on his face. He could not help but regret. He regretted that he failed to realize the Divine Halls had his n in their hands. And he regretted more for not being able to predict their sudden attack.


    He regretted that these young people had to die.


    The people who died tonight were all his followers from the ns. They were the youth of Qinghe Prefecture. In Ning Que¡¯s words, they were the real hope. However, despite their integrity, they were killed tonight.


    Wang Jinglue¡¯s eyes became red. He bit so hard and pierced his lips. Blood oozed. He stared at the cavalrymen of the Divine Halls on top of the city way of Yangzhou, and those figures trembling in pain under the torches. He felt like a homeless dog who dared not to bark.


    He turned away and crawled like a dog toward the heart of darkness. He was bleeding while he crawled. But he had to get out of Qinghe Prefecture and reported it to the Tang army on the other side of the Verdant Canyon. He had to tell Ning Que that the Academy¡¯s n had failed, and inform Chang¡¯an that the war had beenunched.


    Ning Que was not expecting it. He did not expect the Divine Halls wouldunch sudden attacks under such circumstances. Their n, and the young people they gathered in the Qinghe Prefecture were lost.


    However, I will be back. The day Ie back, our iron heels will smash the frozen fields. Torches will be lit up throughout the manors along the Fuchun River. The heroic souls of those sacrificed young people will be celebrated with magnificent memorial ceremonies. Wang Jinglue crawled toward the darkness, leaving behind the torches in Yangzhou City.


    Unexpected snow fell on the dead young. It also fell on him, the homeless dog.


    ...


    ...


    The straightest street in Yangzhou City was lit up as day by the torches.


    A sacred sedan was moving slowly while a dozen of maids were throwing petals into the sky. The petals mingled with the falling snow and fell onto the ground, pure, and sacred.


    The snow danced in the wind and lifted the gauze hanging on the sedan. The innocent Hengmu Liren was sitting inside.


    Along the street tens of thousands of people from the Chaoyang City were on their knees. The leaders of the ns in Qinghe Prefecture were also kneeling. No one dared to look into his face.


    Tonight in the Chaoyang City, hunting and killing were performed everywhere. Blood flowed into the cracks on the stones and the Fuchun River. It was the most bloody night ever since the uprising many years ago.


    Many young people loyal to Chang¡¯an were killed tonight. Those yet to be found would definitely be quieter after witnessing the bloody scenes.


    Hengmu Liren only made one strike tonight and killed over ten powerful figures from the Tianshu Institute of Tang. His hands were covered with blood. And he was determined to shed blood everywhere in the Qinghe Prefecture. However, he still seemed to be calm and innocent. He was not a Great Divine Priest of the West-Hill, but he was of no less authority and respect.


    He was a gift from Haotian to the human world. As the representative of Haotian, he traveled in the sacred sedan through the dancing petals and snowkes, indulging himself in awe and love of the ordinary. He really enjoyed it.


    The war with Tang had finally beenunchd. Could that person called Ning Que still be able to stay calm in Chang¡¯an?


    Ning Que, when are youing? When are youing to me? Doe to fight with me, and be killed by me.


    In the light of the torches the snow was shining like some white powder or flying willow blossoms in springtime.


    Hengmu Liren looked through the roaring storm, over the Verdant Canyon and toward Chang¡¯an. He smiled while he thought so.


    ...


    ...


    The Central ins were covered by snow. From Peach Mountain to Chaoyang City, snow umted thinner or thicker. Later on there would be a snow in the Song, a snow that would make history. But before that, the storm that had roared for days in the grasnd suddenly stopped. Clouds were gone. And a bright moon was shining.


    To the north of Wei City, thousands of yurts were disassembled and herds were driven. Warriors of the Golden Tribe Royal Court were settling their saddles, and tens of thousands of elite cavalrymen were about to set off. It was massive but quiet, making an imposing scene except for randomly restless neighs.


    Being the most powerful force in the north, the Golden Tribe Royal Court had won a series of battles with Tang over the past years. They had gained enough pride and content. But this time it was different.


    Tonight, the Golden Tribe Royal Court would be migrating to the south. To migrate meant to invade. It also meant theunch of the decisive battle. They would be fighting a vital battle against the Tang Empire that had reigned the world for a thousand years. It even made the proudest warrior in the Golden Tribe Royal Court feel nervous.


    The first troop that left Wei for the south was a very ordinary group of carriages. There were a dozen of carriages with few people and supplies. They seemed to be pretty rxed. But for the Golden Tribe Royal Court, it was the most important troop.


    Thirteen great priests from the grasnd were sitting inside their carriages, with nes of skeletons hanging on their chests. The skeletons seemed like pure white jade shining in the moonlight.


    The national master was wearing a simple wooden rosary, as simple as his clothes and his appearance. He smiled at the bright moon outside. No one knew what he was thinking about.


    For the cultivation world in the Central ins, he was a barbarian. Even though the Golden Tribe Royal Court had been converted to Haotian Taoism, he and those priests were still outsiders of the traditional cultivation world. But this could never affect his power or his sentiments. He was longing for the bright moon and to experience people¡¯s lives in the south. He wanted to visit Chang¡¯an and the Academy. And of course he would rather not leave once he was there.


    The young A Da was also looking at the moon. The sky looked exceptionally clean after days of storm. The night in the grasnd was extremely quiet. And the moon seemed to be brighter and bigger than ever. Different from the national master, A Da did not think much. He found the moon light a bit dazzling therefore he squinted and could not hide the impatience on his innocent face.


    The entire Golden Tribe Royal Court was about to leave for the south together with tens of thousands of cavalrymen. Chanyu was resolute and fast. But A Da wanted it faster. He wanted to kill the Tang general Hua Ying, to destroy thest cavalry of the Tang, and to im his authority on every piece of grasnd from Xiangwan in to Hebei Prefecture.


    During that process, he would be waiting for the iron arrow together with the people in the carriages. He was expecting Yu Lian and that arrow. And he wanted to kill that person.


    Why? Because he wanted to do so. He wanted to take revenge on Ning Que and to defeat the legendary Academy. He thought his will was the Tengri¡¯s will.


    ...


    ...


    It was yet to snow in the capital of Song.


    There had been in a stalemate for a long while in the square. Thousands of followers of the New Stream stared anxiously at the same number of divine priests and cavalrymen. They were all exhausted.


    A torch was lit up on the high stage and lightened the corner where Ye Su sat. He pondered quietly over thementary ced on the table. Chen Pipi sat on his heels silently next to him.


    Tang Xiaotang and a dozen of disciples from the Sword Garret stood silently in front of the high stage. They had no idea how long they could keep fighting. Nor could they leave. Therefore they could only wait.


    Xiaoyu from the South Sea was not happy because although she represented Taoism, she could do nothing but wait as the bell sound rose in the temple at such a crucial moment.


    To wait? For what? Would Haotian ever show mercy to these traitors? Or would Ning Que be able to convince the Abbey Dean to let off Ye Su and the followers of the New Stream?


    No one knew what they were waiting for. An order to kill or to wee peace? People who knew about the peace talk all felt that they had been waiting for too long. Only Long Qing knew what the West-Hill was waiting for. They were neither waiting for the Abbey Dean to be convinced or not convinced by Ning Que, nor a result of the peace talk, or even an order from Haotian. They were waiting for someone¡¯s death. Or, the news of the death. The news of Ye Hongyu¡¯s death, or her death, was the debut of the war.


    Taoism would never be able to take Ye Su as long as the young Great Divine Priest of Judgment was alive.


    Long Qing knew it but did not care. Because he knew it was definitelying. Either tonight or tomorrow morning, the news of her death woulde.


    He was still chopping and piling up the firewood as he did in the day. He collected the bunches and pile them up in the center of the yard, so carefully as if he was working on an art piece.


    On the other side of the wall, tens of thousands of people were fighting fiercely. While on this side he was making a pile of firewood. Because he was not in a hurry, he made a huge pile of firewood. He even had time to pick and ce the thinnest, driest and finest firewood on the top, while leaving the wet bunches at the bottom. The massive pile of firewood covered several square meters as if it was a tomb of a king. Or it could also be a tomb for a sage. On top of the pile of firewood, there were twos stakes erected like a person, or a cross. On the stakes there were some ropes. Ropes and stakes were meant for tying, while firewood were for setting fire.


    Time passed by slowly. The darkness gradually disappeared and the sky was turning bright. On the other side of the wall, followers of the New Stream were chanting unitedly as if it could dispel their frustration as well as fear.


    Long Qing listened to the united chanting outside and followed them in a rhythmic tone, as if he was singing. He never stopped picking up firewood, seriously and calmly.


    The silver mask was hanging on his waist. He did not wear it today. The scar on his face was not fading but no longer looked scary for some reason. His grey pupils seemed even more charming on his handsome face.


    Listening to the repeated chanting outside, Long Qing kept adding thin firewood onto the pile under the brighter daylight. All of a sudden he stopped.


    ¡°We, ourselves, are the path, the truth and the fate.¡± He lifted his head and looked over the walls toward the east, toward somewhere the sun rose or some buildings. He kept saying those words while pondering.


    It was the capital of Song. Although it was not as famous as Linkang, not to mention Chang¡¯an, the city that meant a lot for Taosim.


    There were the most ancient Taoism temples on earth. Many Great Divine Priests of the Divine Halls of West-Hill were born here. People from the Zhishou Abbey were closely rted here.


    The Abbey Dean, Mr. Chen was also from here.


    The Song was one of the origins of Taoism, and a most conservative region. It was also why Ye Su had chosen to teach the New Stream and built his base here. He wanted to seek for light from the darkest.


    While he pondered there came the bell sounds from some distance. It was from a Taoist temple in Song. Long Qing was solemn. When he saw the white smoke arising from the temple, he confirmed it. The solemn bell sounds and the soaring white smoke both confirmed one thing.


    A Great Divine Priest had left the Divine Halls of West-Hill and returned to Haotian¡¯s Divine Kingdom. Ye Hongyu was dead. The youngest Great Divine Priest of Judgment throughout the history of Taoism had passed away.


    Long Qing stood by the wall and watched the white smoke disappeared into the sky. He recalled the dead woman withplicated sentiments and remained silent.


    She and himself were both from the Revtion Institute. They both served in the Judicial Department and he only ranked after her. He was the holy son of the West-Hill while she was the peerless Tao Fanatic. He had always been inferior to her.


    When he chose to trade Taoism for power and became a wandering ghost, she was already sitting on the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade, the seat he had always longed for.


    He had always been a loser in front of Ye Hongyu, same as he was in front of Ning Que.


    In his most glorious days he still felt inferior to Ye Hongyu in his subconsciousness, or even afraid of her. Therefore when they traveled through the illusion world in the Back Hill of Academy he stabbed Lu Chenjia in front of her. He saw her and Ye Su as the biggest barriers in his cultivation.


    Today she was finally finished. But Long Qing felt upset rather than joyful. Perhaps it was because she was not finished by him.


    There was no way he could offset the pity. It was indeed a pity.


    But luckily Ye Su was still alive. He still had the chance to burn him.


    ...


    ...


    The solemn bell sounds came to the square and into the ears of thousands of followers of the New Stream, as well as the divine priests and deacons. It took away their frustration and anxiety, and pulled their attention to the temple.


    From there a while smoke arose, extremely pure.


    It was deadly quiet. Being pious or used to be pious to Haotian, they all knew what it meant. Everyone from the followers of the New Stream to the deacons of the divine halls, even the Song cavalrymen were silenced by the white smoke. They were stunned.


    If it was in a different situation, people would have kneeled to that white smoke and moan. But right not the white smoke meant something else, a signal for theunching of the war.


    Xiaoyu raised her Taoist sword and pointed to the people on the stage afar.


    Behind her, tens of powerful Taoist cultivators together with more divine priests and deacons swarmed to the square while more and more Song cavalrymen poured in from the surrounding streets.


    Killing des were swaying toward the helpless followers of the New Stream. They pressed closer and tried to retreat. The threat of death pulled them back to reality from the shock by the white smoke.


    Ye Su sat behind the table with his right hand ced on the book. He turned to the side and stared at the lingering white smoke in a long silence. Neither the approaching enemies nor the people died around him could have attracted his attention.


    His sister died, because of him.


    He had been harsh or even ruthless to her for over ten years because of Chen Pipi and what happened many years ago. But she treated him the same since they were kids. She was the kindest to him in this world. That person, was gone. Ye Su was speechless.


    ¡°You should leave.¡± He spoke again after a long pause, ¡°If the master wants me dead, I will be. It will be fine as long as you survive.¡±


    Indeed, to be alive was better than being dead.


    He felt upset upon the sight of the white smoke.

 Chapter 1038 - Between Heaven And Earth, There Stood Tang Xiaotang

    Chapter 1038: Between Heaven And Earth, There Stood Tang Xiaotang


    Trantor: Larbre Studio Editor: Larbre Studio


    Chen Pipi sat by Ye Su and felt both pain and loss when they saw the white smoke.


    For him, Ye Hongyu¡¯s death was an end. It put an end to many including his childhood memories, their life in the abbey, his youngpanion and a betrayal between father and son.


    ¡°It is not the end.¡± He said, however, after a pause, ¡°As long as we are alive, anything is possible. Then why should we leave?¡±


    While he said so, the powerful killers from the Divine Halls of West-Hill hade to the stage. No matter how pious the followers of the New Stream were, they could not slow them down and only shed more blood.


    Chen Pipi stood behind Ye Su and started packing. He was now a wastrel. With his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow destroyed, he could no longer be of any use in the battle. But he still seemed calm and confident.


    Ever since they left Linking, they had constantly been trapped by the Divine Halls but were still able to make their way out every single time. He believed that they would make it again today, despite the white smoke rising afar. It was because he believed that she would save his Brother.


    Tang Xiaotang was standing in front of him and Ye Su. The disciples of the Sword Garret were fighting against the powerful figures from Taoism. Blood was shed with the shing of swords.


    She stood in front of Ye Su and Chen Pipi without going anywhere else. She held the cudgel and warded off anyone who dared toe close. The enemies were all blown away by her thundering cudgel.


    She was not a hero. Yet no one could pass her.


    Looking at this woman in thin clothes from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, who was no longer young but still had two ponytails, Xiaoyu could not hold her hostility but still felt shocked and confused.


    She had every reason to be hostile toward Tang Xiaotang. But what she could not understand was how she could had survived the hunting of Taoism when she was almost the only patron of the followers of New Stream who had been drifted for thousands of miles. How did she recover from all the wounds? And how much strength could she store in that slim figure?


    Tang Xiaotang was indeed exhausted.


    Ever since they left Linkang, she had led the people to break through four rounds of attacks by the Divine Halls. She had fought in twenty-one battles and killed three hundred and seventy-one powerful figures from the Divine Halls. She was wounded fourteen times. No matter if it was a minor or major battle, she fought as the chief. Therefore she had been wounded and bleeding constantly.


    However she never fell. Carrying Ye Su and Chen Pipi who had both lost their Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow, she traveled through mountains for thousands of miles and arrived at the capital of Song.


    She was extremely exhausted and almost fell down. But she still held her cudgel and fought against whoever dared toe close. Her performance was perfect and no one could take her down.


    Swords were broken, bodies were scattered, and horses were startled. Several cavalrymen of Song sneaked up from the side but got knocked down by Tang Xiaotang. They fell off together with their horses and could no longer stood up.


    Xiaoyu raised her eyebrows while her eyes suddenly brightened. An indigo shadow floated in the morning glow and her Taoist sword turned into a straight line that pierced through the chilling morning breeze and came to Tang Xiaotang instantly.


    The cultivators¡¯ swords were all flying swords. But her sword did not fly away from her hand. Her sword, wrist, and elbow formed a straight line together.


    From Ke Haoran to Liu Bai, the history of swordsmanship had been evolving. A true swordsman would never let go of his sword easily, especially when facing a really powerful enemy.


    The chill de reflected the remaining snow on the square and stabbed directly toward Tang Xiaotang¡¯s eyes.


    Tang Xiaotang did not close her eyes or blink. She gazed at the Taoist sword that carried a salty smell of the sea and sensed the ocean storm that came together. Then she stabbed her cudgel silently.


    She could spare no energy when confronting a Knowing Destiny cultivator like Xiaoyu. Her slim figure turned into a heated rock and she applied the practice of Light¡¯s Doctrine to charge every bit of her strength into the cudgel.


    The cudgel in her hand was originally a sacred item of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine: the bloody giant cuss. During the battle in Chang¡¯an many years ago, Yu Lian chopped the Abbey Dean¡¯s rainbow and the bloody giant cuss was cast into a cudgel after that.


    She gave herself to the Academy and acknowledged Yu Lian as her master. Bing the Eldest Sister in the third generation of the Academy, she inherited the cudgel. It seemed like a cudgel but was still a cuss underneath with a sharp intent inside. It was used to dig the sky-reaching stairs at the back hill of the Academy, destroyed the Buddha¡¯s chessboard, defeated the cavalry of the West-Hill on Peach Mountain during the Rite to Light and stunned lots of powerful cultivators. It was also used to chop cabbage in the shabby cottage.


    When it was shed again today, Xiaoyu¡¯s Taoist sword together with the storm and wind from the sea was immediately wiped off. Countless raindrops as well as the mellow wind were destroyed.


    The Taoist sword could only hit Tang Xiaotang¡¯s left shoulder and was bounced up. Tang Xiaotang¡¯s pretty face remained calm and her iron cudgel was pushed forward.


    Xiaoyu groaned slightly and some fear shed in her eyes. She immediately stepped back but her Taoist sword was already distorted. Her pale face turned unusually red and some blood gushed into her throat.


    Upon an instant confrontation, she was wounded and defeated.


    The sword was distorted but not broken. And the horrible intent climbed up the sword and pounded on Xiaoyu¡¯s body. She was darted away, flew over the crowd and fell down behind them.


    Tang Xiaotang did not stop there. She stamped on the ground, smashed seventeen bricks and leaped into the sky like a darting rock. Her cudgel stabbed toward Xiaoyu¡¯s chest.


    Many divine priests and deacons were shocked by the scene. They were scared and poured toward Xiaoyu. Waves were formed in the crowded square.


    Xiaoyu was the daughter of Zhao Nanhai and one of the most trusted subordinates of the Abbey Dean. They did not dare to have her wounded. Many Taoist swords flew up into the sky and attempted to stop Tang Xiaotang.


    Tang Xiaotang remained calm and focused on the Taoist girl darting away. She paid no attention to the flying swords that chopped on her and was determined to cudgel her to death. Instantly at least seven Taoist swords pierced through the air, flew to her, and shed her thin clothes. But no blood was shed.


    Being the Devil¡¯s Doctrine Saintess, she already acquired an iron body through the training with the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    No matter how sharp those Taoist swords were, they could only cut her skin and leave the slightest wounds. The sword intent hit her and some blood came out from her lips. But they could never stop her.


    Once the iron cudgel was brandished, a roaring fire was set. When the iron cudgel pounded, Xiaoyu would definitely be crushed. Xiaoyu fell onto the ground and colors drained from her face. The unusual flush disappeared. But she did not seem scared.


    Tang Xiaotang remained calm but she also sensed something unusual. Indeed, something unusual was approaching. A ck peach flower bloomed suddenly in the centre of the square.


    It was not a solid ck peach flower, but a purist concrete of the Qi of Heaven and Earth. It was extremely charming but not coquettish. The chilling ck petals seemed devouring and massive.


    The ck peach flower attracted everyone¡¯s attention.


    Tang Xiaotang also saw it clearly as it bloomed right in front of her. She was not surprised and pounded her cudgel onto the flower.


    Ever since yesterday and until this morning, Taoism had been fighting resolutely. They announced the beginning of the war with the white smoke. Peace was no longer an option. They were determined to win. But it did not seem like they were determined to win if there was only the Knowing Destiny South Sea girl, the powerful cultivators from Taoism and the cavalrymen from Song.


    Tang Xiaotang knew that the Divine Halls must had sent some really powerful figure to stand by. She could even guess who that person was. But he had not shown up after a whole day and night, which made her even more restless. She faked a killing strike toward Xiaoyu only to force that person toe forth. Her focus was never Xiaoyu. She was waiting for the blooming of that ck peach flower.


    A huge bang was heard. The jet ck iron cudgel pounded ruthlessly on the ck peach flower.


    The formless and substance-less ck peach flower was smashed right away into random Qi of Heaven and Earth, and sshed around the square as if they were clouds or steam.


    Tang Xiaotang got slightly pale and vomited blood. The moment the iron cudgel hit the ck peach flower, she realized that she was wrong and lost it.


    The person was not hiding to prepare for ast strike. He was so powerful that he did not need to wait for any opportunities. He was just observing calmly and could defeat anyone whenever he wished.


    Tang Xiaotang stepped onto the ground and smashed some bricks. Her right arm shivered slightly while she looked at a part of the wall.


    Her chest rose and sank while her two ponytails swayed behind her. She was very pale and obviously wounded.


    A dozen of divine priests and deacons attacked Tang Xiaotang.


    Xiaoyu darted forward. Her bent Taoist sword was straightened right away and stabbed toward Tang Xiaotang¡¯s eyes again.


    No one could recover from such serious wounds in a short period of time. Therefore it was her best chance to kill Tang Xiaotang. Right in the moment of maximum danger, Tang Xiaotang took a deep breath. The chilling wind around the square waspletely inhaled in to her chest. The air inmed like roaring in her lungs. Her dimmed eyes became bright again all of a sudden. The wounds seemed to be cured instantly.


    The iron cudgel pierced through the air and hit Xiaoyu¡¯s sword. Upon a clear crack, the Taoist sword was finally broken, while the iron cudgel stayed solid as always.


    With a slight groan, Xiaoyu stepped back and seemed astonished. She could not understand why this woman from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine could have recovered from such serious wounds so instantly. What is her body made of?


    Using her iron cudgel, Tang Xiaotang killed a ck-robed deacon who attacked her from behind. She walked toward that part of the wall. Whoever tried to stop her was severely wounded. She wanted to go there. So no one could stand in her way. Along her way she pounded countless people dead. Blood was shed all over and moistened the ground.


    She walked alone between Heaven and Earth. She seemed lonely with enemies all around. However she needed no one but herself. She seemed to be never wounded. No matter how horrible the ck peach flower seemed to be, it could not hurt her. No one in the human world could ever hurt her. The powerful cultivators from Taoism and the cavalrymen from Song were all shocked upon seeing the scene.


    Right then, some shrill whistles were heard from far away. An arrow hit onto Tang Xiaotang¡¯s left chest. Although it was not pushed into her body, the sharp tip did pierce her skin and some blood stained her clothes. It was at least afort, or a sign.


    The desperate divine priests and deacons were relieved to confirm that no one could stay unhurt forever. They got thrilled and extremely excited.


    ¡°She¡¯s doomed!¡±


    ¡°Her Dark Skills are gone!¡±


    ¡°Let¡¯s kill her!¡±


    Throughout the square in the morning glow, the divine priest and deacons as well as the cavalrymen from Song were shouting loudly as if they had all gone mad. But Tang Xiaotang seemed never heard them. She kept walking toward the wall with the iron cudgel in her hand.


    Countless people were taken down along her way before she finally got to the wall.


    The wall unexpectedly copsed. Bricks fell onto the ground like dried leaves falling on the snow. It was chillingly silent. So was the person in the yard.


    Long Qing stood by the copsed wall and stared at her silently.


    Screams were heard from afar while the earth started quaking slightly. All the city gates were opened at the same time, and thousands of cavalrymen from the Divine Halls who had been hiding in the woods drove in.


    Tang Xiaotang heard it and realized what was happening. She did nothing but stand there staring at the copsed wall and the person inside. The scar on his face caught her attention.


    She knew that as long as she could kill this person, it would not matter how many cavalrymen from the Divine Halls wereing. If she could not, the people she cared for and herself would be doomed.


    It became quiet all of a sudden on the square. Everyone was looking at them, including Chen Pipi and Ye Su. They saw the pile of firewood behind the wall. The pile was already taller than a human being. The firewood were piled tensely and orderly. The cross on top seemed to be made by a skillful carpenter.


    Chen Pipi turned pale. Ye Su just kept quiet as if he saw through the fate.


    Long Qing stepped out of the yard and said to Tang Xiaotang, ¡°You are much more powerful than I thought.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang stared back and said, ¡°You are much more powerful than anyone had thought.¡±


    Suddenly, a sword shed by.


    A disciple of the Sword Garret recognized Long Qing. Recalling the destruction of the Sword Garret and Liu Yiqing¡¯s death caused by this person and other cultivators from Taosim, he could not help from stabbing his sword at Long Qing.


    It was a resolute and death seeking sword strike, therefore very powerful.


    Long Qing stayed calm. His right hand waved in front of himself as if he was a juggler in the Scent Workshop inside Chang¡¯an. Then a ck peach flower appeared in his hand and blocked the shing sword. This ck peach flower was a real one instead of a concrete of the Qi of Heaven and Earth. But it looked like a cheap silk flower.


    The sword stabbed into the ck peach flower and several petals fell off. But the sword became like a weathered pistil and started withering immediately. In no time it turned into a rusty piece of metal that seemed to have been dumped thousands of years ago.


    While the sword got rusty and broken, the disciple of Sword Garret lost his energy instantly. He still seemed angry but already aged for years. Before long he fell onto the ground and died.


    Tang Xiaotang squinted upon the scene. Her eyes seemed like chilling willow leaves.


    She realized that Long Qing was no longer the person she knew years ago. He had mastered the Grey Eyes to an extremely horrifying level. He did not even need to look into people¡¯s eyes in order to capture their cultivation and souls.


    It no longer mattered at all to Long Qing whether the person was at Knowing Destiny or whichever level.


    Tang Xiaotang was solemn but not scared. It was because she was also free from the levels of cultivation. As long as her enemy was not above the Five States, she could always try her luck.


    Long Qing said emotionlessly, ¡°Bring it on.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang inhaled deeply while her chest rose high. Previously she breathed in most of the chilling wind around the square. This time she took all the rest and almost got some snow clouds down from the sky.


    The air inmed inside her body and was turned into massive strength. She slightly bent her knees.


    Years ago in the back hill of the Academy, Yu Lian had forced her to leap off the waterfall constantly. She had to bend her knees every time she jumped. So today she made a leap again. But this time it was not leaping off the waterfall. Instead she leaped toward the sky.


    Upon a bang, she smashed many bricks into dust. The dust blew around the yard and blinded people. Then Tang Xiaotang was gone. No one knew where she went.


    Long Qing did not close his eyes in the dust. When the dust was settled he looked above to the sky. He knew that she leaped into the sky.


    He also knew that she was not running away. Therefore no matter how high she leaped, she would eventuallye back to the ground. Therefore he stayed right there waiting calmly. He looked at the sky and expected her patiently. Everyone else followed his sight and looked above.


    Morning glow spread from the east of the sea. The snow clouds were pure white and asionally gave way to the clear blue sky above. There was no sign of her at all. After a short while, a ck spot finally appeared in the sky. It was a human.


    A shrill whistle was heard again in the sky. It came to the ground, sted the zed tiles in the imperial city of Song, silenced the ancient bell in the Taoist temple, and frightened countless birds in the woods.


    Many people felt a sharp pain in their ears upon hearing the whistle. They covered their ears and crouched. The whistle was the sound of friction between a fast-moving object and the air. That object must have been extremely firm. Otherwise it would have been crushed at such a high speed.


    It was hard to believe that the object was a human body. The ck spot became bigger and bigger while people could see clearly the human figure. It was Tang Xiaotang. Just like what her brother used to do. Just like what her master used to do. She leaped down from the sky.


    She held up the iron cudgel and pounded onto Long Qing¡¯s head with unimaginable strength. That strength was generated from the distance between Heaven and Earth. No one could disregard the distance or the strength.


    When the shrill whistle went to its maximum, Tang Xiaotangnded on the ground. She bombarded toward Long Qing like a meteorite.


    Her boots got on fire and sparked a dozen of thin ming threads in the air.


    In the next moment, Heaven met with Earth.


    The ground was distorted. The bricks cracked like cobwebs and were smashed into the finest but powerful rubble. The rubble sshed in tearing sounds.


    A tree of no name by the wall was immediately raked into pieces that danced in the wind.


    ...

 Chapter 1039 - He Was No Longer One Person

    <h4>Chapter 1039: He Was No Longer One Person</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    ...


    ...


    The ground was split and trees were smashed. Then a bang was heard. The bang of the massive pound resounded in the air.


    Horrifying lightning smashed the remaining of the trees and copsed the remaining of the walls. People standing nearby were thrown a dozen meters away and struck senseless.


    Luckily, many people were covering their ears. Otherwise they would have been struck to death by the thunder formed by the pound. Many of them were knocked out.


    At least ten thousand kilos of stone chips and mud were knocked into the sky and covered the morning sun. It became dark and no one could see clearly.


    In the darkness, stone chips fell down like pouring rain and shattered the leaves. They disassembled the pile of firewood and threw them into the well like some frogs jumping into the water.


    After a very long while, the rain of stone chips gradually ceased and dust dispelled. A pit was formed in the yard. The stone ground was very hard, and under some loose mud there was anotheryer of even harder granite. But now there was a pit on the ground.


    When the dust dispelled, two figures were seen in the pit. Tang Xiaotang was holding her distorted cudgel. At the other end of the cudgel, there was another hand, a slightly grey and inhuman hand.


    Long Qing was holding the cudgel. His face was extremely pale and his pupils were the purest grey. There was blood by the corner of his lips while he was half kneeling in the pit. He seemed exhausted but was still holding on.


    Tang Xiaotang was also pale. The sacred artifact of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine was already distorted. And her wrist bones were broken. Her right arm was shivering as if it would copse at any moment.


    With some snaps, Long Qing stood up slowly. The lower half of his gown was ripped and he was covered in dust. He stared at Tang Xiaotang and said, ¡°You should have not been so powerful.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang did not say a word. She bit her lips so hard that blood would not spurt from her mouth. Only by doing so could she continue to hold her iron cudgel and pretend to be not weak.


    Long Qing suddenlyughed. With blood on his teeth, he looked horrifying. His dashing eyebrows raised, and his grey pupils shone. They were both charming and uncanny.


    ¡°But it doesn¡¯t matter how powerful you are.¡± Long Qing smiled, ¡°Because... I¡¯m more powerful. You won¡¯t find anyone more powerful than I am in the world. Because, my sweetheart, I am no longer one person.¡± His voice was somehow trembling. It was not because of the injury but excitement, or even insanity. He felt that many voices were echoing inside his body.


    Many years ago when he was healing and cultivating in the Zhishou Abbey, he stole the Arcane Tome of the Sand and practiced the evil skill of Grey Eyes. He took the life and cultivation from Taoist Banjie and got his second chance. Then he betrayed Taosim and went into exile. Along the way he sucked the cultivation and power from many powerful Taoists, went to the East Wilderness, and captured the spirits and power from many powerful figures in the Left Royal Court. Eventually he reached the state above Knowing Destiny and captured many people inside his body.


    Later on, he was epted by Taoism again. When he returned to Peach Mountain, as Ye Hongyu had predicted, his state of cultivation was copsing. He had few choices. He could either dispel the evil skill and be an ordinary man, or keep capturing the cultivation of others and quench the crisis with further evilness. He would eventually be destroyed by the evil skill but at least it could help him hang on for a longer while.


    Long Qing chose thetter resolutely because he had to be powerful. He had been struggling between the light and the darkness for too long and had enough of it.


    Fortunately for him, at that time the Divine Halls of West-Hill was executing the Abbey Dean¡¯s order of housecleaning. Many subordinaries of the Hierarch and those from the Divine Hall of Light and Revtion Institute were sent to the Secluded Pavilion and captured by his Grey Eyes.


    The Devil¡¯s Doctrine invented the Practice of Taotie, andter on Taoism converted it into the Grey Eyes. For hundreds of years, Long Qing was the only one who practiced it to the extreme. It was because no one but him could have found so many preys. Now he seemed to be on the Zenith of Knowing Destiny. But actually he had already possessed unimaginable power that made him the most unique existence throughout the history of cultivation.


    When they were at the imperial pce in Linkang, the Eldest Brother had sensed his power. He was shocked but could not figure out why he had be so powerful.


    Long Qing was powerful, as he told Tang Xiaotang just now, because he... was no longer one person. He was abination of many human beings. In other words, he was already inhuman.


    Tang Xiaotang got even paler. She knew better than anyone else how powerful Long Qing was. She pressed to the ground like a meteorite. But he took that with a single hand.


    So does the distance between Heaven and Earth no longer mean anything to Long Qing?


    She frowned and pulled the cudgel out of his hand. She raised it again and seemed to be in pain.


    Her wrist bones were broken. But she was still standing there, ready for another fight.


    Long Qing stared at her quietly. His grey pupils seemed deeper. The greyness captured his eyeballs as if they were dark clouds taking over the sky. His body under the Taoist gown started to emit a sense of extinction.


    Tang Xiaotang lowered her head. Her ponytail was loosened and the dark hair was flying and blocking her sight.


    She tried so hard to resist the sucking power of the Grey Eyes. Luckily she had been cultivating the Devil¡¯s Doctrine and integrating her spirit into a strong body. Otherwise she would already be defeated with her body and soul falling apart.


    Long Qing took a deep breath.


    Before attacking the powerful figures from the Divine Halls, Tang Xiaotang took two deep breaths and inhaled every bit of the chilling wind on the square.


    Whereas now, while Long Qing breathed, the ancient pagoda tree started shivering. Its leaves that had survived the entire winter had started to fall off.


    Long Qing seemed to have be a ck hole. Massive Qi of Heaven and Earth poured in from everywhere in the city and swept leaves and snow towards the relics of the walls and entered his body.


    Massive Qi of Heaven and Earth was gathered by the collection of souls inside his body. It carried an unbearable horror, spurted from his chest, and instantly pierced through the thin Taoist gown.


    There had been a hole in his chest, the ck hole that was created by Ning Que¡¯s iron arrow.


    A ck peach blossom about one meter length bloomed on his chest. It was a secluded, jet-ck and chill blossom, as if it came from the darkest abyss and carried endless resentment.


    The ck peach blossom bloomed gradually. Long Qing¡¯s right hand reached out from the ck petals and toward Tang Xiaotang.


    Tang Xiaotang¡¯s eyes became even brighter as she knew it was a life-or-death strike.


    Instead of stabbing the iron cudgel forward, she twisted to ce it horizontally in front of her. It seemed like an iron fence located on the edge of a viewpoint by a roaring river, keeping people away from the dangerous surge.


    Long Qing¡¯s fist pounded on the cudgel. Upon a p, the distorted iron cudgel bended further from the middle. It bended and formed a dangerous curve, as if a kid would have broken it with a single blow. A curve was made on Tang Xiaotang¡¯s chest too. It was neither a proud nor charming curve. Because it was an incurve.


    Her chest sank a few inches. It seemed horrifying, as if a kid could break her ribs in a single touch. Tang Xiaotang¡¯s face was as pale as snow, then turned immediately scarlet. She could no longer keep her lips closed and blood spurted from her mouth.


    While spitting blood, she fell backward. Her slim figure pounded on the edge of the pit and further smashed the stone ground and graniteyer. Then she bounced up and rolled in midair, and finally fell on the ground several dozens of meters away.


    Upon a low bang, the ground sank again. Some rhythmic footsteps were heard.


    Long Qing walked out of the pit and appeared in front of the crowd.


    He seemed pale. His lips seemed blue and he was covered in blood. Yet, he looked very calm.


    It was dead silent in the square.


    Everyone was staring at him. People from the Sword Garret, followers of the New Stream, and the divine priests and deacons from the West Hill were all stunned speechless. They looked at Long Qing with mixed emotions.


    Many years ago he was the most famous young genius of Taoism. But no one had expected him to be defeated by Ning Que in the Academy¡¯s enrollment test to the Second Floor. Ever since then, he had lost in a series of fights and was no longer the glorious young man. Eventually he became the wretched figuremonly seen in stories and struggled in a miserable life of revenge.


    Even though Long Qing survived and became even more powerful than he used to be, even though he had returned to Taoism and was epted as the Abbey Dean¡¯sst disciple, he was no longer paid any attention in the cultivation world.


    If it was in the past, a young Knowing Destiny like him would have been indeed outstanding. But now Taoism had Ye Hongyu. And Haotian had left some gifts to the human world after that spring breeze and rain. There was Hengmu Liren in Taoism and A Da, the young barbarian in the Grasnd. Furthermore, Ning Que had always been in Chang¡¯an overlooking the world. Compared with these people, he seemed like nothing.


    Therefore Long Qing had been very quiet and stayed low, so quiet that he was almost forgotten by the cultivation world. When he and Hengmu led the cavalrymen of the Divine Halls to extinct the New Stream, people only saw Hengmu and no one cared about him.


    It was not until today that he made his presence again in the cultivation world, in the capital of Song. He supported the falling sky with one hand, and destroyed the sacred artifact of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine with the other. Only by then were the people reminded of his previous glory, and that he used to be much more powerful than Ning Que.


    Ye Su was here. Therefore it was the most critical ce for the extinction of New Stream. With Long Qing as the leader of this battle was proof of his high rank in Taoism and their faith in him. It was just like what he told Tang Xiaotang. He was indeed very powerful. His state was very high, and his psyche power was unprecedentedly majestic. He had a hugeplex of powerful psyches inside his body. He could be a demon or deity.


    Long Qing walked dozens of meters away. He was calm. But to the crowd he symbolized the evil side. Right then they eximed because they saw another unbelievable scene.


    Tang Xiaotang was trying to stand up. She propped herself against the ground, with her fingers inserted deeply into the mud. Her hair was soaked in blood and sweat, and swung helplessly in front of her forehead. Her body was trembling in pain. She was severely wounded and exhausted. But she still wanted to stand up and fight. Therefore, she made it.


    Like what she had done in the dozens of fight these days, she fell, stood up, then fell again, and stood up again. No matter how many times she fell, she would eventually stand up, as if no one could really defeat her.


    Even the evilly powerful Long Qing could not. Long Qing was slightly shocked. He knew how badly Tang Xiaotang was wounded. Even if she had cultivated on Devil¡¯s Doctrine and acquired an iron hard body, it was not possible for her to stand up from such a severe wound.


    Recalling Tang Xiaotang¡¯s stunning recovery capability and her power that exceeded what the Taoism had expected, Long Qing frowned slightly and started wondering. When he went to Tang Xiaotang, she was no longer panting in pain and her wound on the chest was recovering fast. Within a distance of a hundred steps, she seemed to have regained the strength to fight.


    It was not a human approach.


    Long Qing had kept the Arcane Tome of the Sand with him, which recorded every single type of cultivation in the world. He was certain that none of them could have fulfilled what Tang Xiaotang did. It could only be a Divine Manifestation.


    ¡°Now I know why.¡± Long Qing stared at her and sighed, ¡°Is this Haotian¡¯s gift to you?¡± When he said it, he was somewhat disappointed and upset. It was because he had spent the previous half of his life to get closer to Haotian. No matter if it was light or darkness, he used to have no regrets.


    However, today he realized that he had been walking further away from Haotian whereas his enemy, the enemy of Taosim, was blessed by Haotian. How could he not be disappointed? But after being disappointed, he felt grief and self-mockery, yet even more resolute. It was because it was exactly what the Abbey Dean was trying to do: to get away from Haotian.


    Tang Xiaotang said nothing, as a silent acknowledgement.


    When they were in the shabbyne in Linkang, she did not take it seriously when Sangsang said to grant her immortality. Even though she was Haotian, Tang Xiaotang thought it was just a joke. She thought Haotian was just making fun of ordinary humans.


    It was merely a few years after Sangsang had said so, not long enough to prove that she was immortal. But what had happened during the constant fighting had somehow proved that Sangsang was not joking. She was serious.


    During the constant fighting, she had been wounded again and again. Meanwhile, she found that she seemed to have formed some magical bond with the Qi of Heaven and Earth. The strength she lost was always restored instantly. No matter how severely she was wounded, she could always recover instantly. Death could never seize her. Probably that was what immortality meant.


    Despite the Divine Manifestation, she was of course not a god but just an ordinary human being. She could not be immortal forever. Yet death would not be able to seize her for a while. In other words, she was much more powerful now. That was why she could have escorted Ye Su and Chen Pipi, both with destroyed Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow, through their journeys across mountains and rivers, and came here sessfully.


    That was also why she could stand against the evilly powerful Long Qing. Even though she had been severely wounded, she was not killed and even able to recover instantly. She could almost fight another round.


    ¡°It must feel jolly good... to be protected by Haotian.¡± It seemed Long Qing did not care about her being recovered instantly. He looked at her and said, ¡°Unfortunately, Haotian will not always be on your side. And you are doomed today.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang said, ¡°At least I am still alive now.¡±


    Long Qingughed. The scar on his face distorted slightly and his grey eyes seemed sarcastic. He said, ¡°I suppose you had already noticed that you were not recovering as fast as you used to.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang did not answer. Because Long Qing was right. But why? Does that mean Haotian is no longer offering protection as she promised? Why?


    ¡°When Haotian is no longer able to protect herself, how could she continue protecting you?¡± There was some unnoticeable joy in Long Qing¡¯s voice.


    Tang Xiaotang said after a pause, ¡°I don¡¯t care.¡±


    Indeed, she did not need to care because she grew up in the center of the Wilderness. She was pure and simple. She practiced hard before she was granted immortality. She witnessed no miracles or secret cultivations. She never took any Heavenly Power Pill, and was the most unlucky in the young generation of cultivation. However, she became powerful no matter what.


    With or without Sangsang¡¯s words, she was herself. Therefore when the protection was gone, she was still herself, the girl who always wore fur and had no idea what failure was. Why should she care?


    She pulled her strength to straighten the cudgel. Due to the efforts, she felt some pain in her chest and spat some blood. But she regained her strength immediately and pointed her iron cudgel forward.


    Long Qing smiled and said, ¡°You people from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine are indeed crazy.¡±


    In order to destroy, one had to be crazy. There had been quite a few lunatics in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine who wanted to destroy the world. Although Tang Xiaotang was not one of them, she could be pretty crazy in battles, just like she was previously as well as today.


    Tang Xiaotang took one step forward while colors were further drained from her face.


    The iron cudgel pierced through the wind. Just like the mountain that still stood high even when abandoned by Haotian, she still fought resolutely against the enemy even she was no longer protected.


    Long Qing got stern. His Taoist gown fluttered in the chilling morning wind and formed scattered shadows. In a blink, he had made countless attacks.


    A low bang was heard. The nicely cut stones that covered the ground of the square was cracked. Long Qing and Tang Xiaotang dashed toward each other in a blink and darted apart in the next. They stood staring at each other at the opposite ends of the square.


    Long Qing was pale. Blood was dripping from the corner of his lips.


    Tang Xiaotang lowered her head as if she was pondering, but then fell onto the ground all of a sudden.


    Long Qing wiped off the blood and looked at her quietly.


    She was extremely exhausted and had drained every bit of her strength.


    Long Qing was sure that she could never stand up again. So he turned toward the high stage.

 Chapter 1040 - Truly Alive

    <h4>Chapter 1040: Truly Alive</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ye Su was on the stage.


    Since he was on the stage, he couldn¡¯t just be an audience. He was dragged into the tragedy to y his part as the hero of the tragic ending y.


    The disciples of the Sword Garret stood in front of the stage. Despite their injuries, they held the swords in their hands tightly as long as they could manage to stand, guarding the area in front of them.


    The South Jin Kingdom had been upied by the Divine Hall of West-Hill, so the area in front of them was thestnd their mother country left.


    Long Qing knew that they would not get out of the way. He slowly raised his right hand, sweeping over these men with his gray eyes, and suddenly a ck peach blossom appeared in his hand.


    These men of South Jin Kingdom perfectly practiced the promise that the Sword Garret once made, fighting to thest moment and never letting anyone get close to Ye Su before they all stopped breathing.


    They knew that death wasing, but they feared nothing. Liu Bai once drew his sword to attack Haotian on Peach Mountain. As Liu Bai¡¯s disciples and followers who inherited the will of that sword, they never forgot about the Yellow River. And they had nothing to fear even if they had to fight against the Divine Kingdom of Haotian and the Abyss of Invariant Yama.


    But death did note immediately because Chen Pipi walked out from behind Ye Su and walked to the front of the disciples of the Sword Garret. He said to Long Qing while staring at him, ¡°Do you really want to destroy Taoism?¡±


    Looking at the sky which was getting brighter, Long Qing was silent for a while and then answered, ¡°You are well aware that this is the will of the Abbey Dean. I am just following orders.¡±


    Chen Pipi¡¯s question seemed to make no sense, and Long Qing¡¯s answer was somehow puzzling, as if he was agreed with Chen Pipi that the war aimed to annihte the New Stream was just the beginning of the perish of Taoism.


    In fact, to understand what the two were talking about, it was necessary to think about why Taoism could allow Ye Su to preach in the human world for the past few years and why it decided to kill him at this point.


    Ye Su used to be a World Wayfarer of Taoism, but at this moment he was the most important and indispensable figure of the New Stream. Besides, he was also Ye Hongyu¡¯s beloved brother.


    Ye Hongyu would definitely defect if Ye Su were killed by Taoism. If Taoism were to kill her too, the Divine Halls of West-Hill would inevitably fall into chaos and even be torn apart. In this case, Taoism could notpete with the Academy and the Great Tang. How could Taoism still exist in the human world if the Great Tang were to win the war due to this reason?


    Long Qing¡¯s sight line crossed over Chen Pipi and the disciples of the Sword Garret, finally falling on Ye Su who was absorbed in the books on the desk, as if he was thinking about some difficult problems.


    ¡°The foundation of Taoism has been totally destroyed on the day he wrote the doctrine of the New Stream. Those stupid humans do not need Taoism to which worship Haotian. No one can reverse this trend, so he must die. Destroy Taoism? The levee has already copsed and flood is everywhere. What more damage can I do?


    Long Qing paused for a moment and then said without any expression while looking at the white smoke which was dissipating in the distant hall, ¡°Not to mention that she is already dead. Who else can repent?¡±


    Since that white smoke had risen, the fate of Ye Su was already settled. Simrly, since Taoism wanted Ye Su dead, the fate of Ye Hongyu was also doomed.


    The two siblings had only met a few times in the past decades, as if they were not close. But everyone knew that their fate had been linked and they would live or die together.


    After writing something on the paper, Ye Su looked up and said to Long Qing, ¡°I am not that hard to kill. Why do you kill so many people?¡±


    Long Qing bowed to Ye Su, then straightened up, and said, ¡°You are too modest. Killing you is probably the hardest decision the Abbey Dean has to make. Taoism takes it very seriously.¡±


    Ye Su replied thoughtfully, ¡°Tens of thousands innocent people died because of me. I indeed deserve to die.¡±


    ...


    ...


    More than two thousand papal cavalrymen of the Divine Halls of West-Hill rushed in from all the gates of the city. With only eyes and nose exposed, the horses in armor looked particrly horrible. The cavalrymen on the backs of the horses wore ck armor engraved with golden lines, shining with bright lights.


    ording to the convention of Taoism, or to put it directly, the understanding between Taoism and the Great Tang, the papal cavalrymen the Divine Halls of West-Hill could not exceed a certain scale. However, the convention existed in name only after the previous war against the Great Tang. The Divine Halls of West-Hill expanded its army on the strength of the money and resources enshrined by all the kingdoms of the human world. At this point, it maintained more than twenty hundred papal cavalrymen, possessing the strength to fight against the Tang cavalry.


    Two thousand papal cavalrymen followed Hengmu Liren to Qinghe Prefecture and were suppressing those potential insurgents with their hearts turned to the Great Tang at Yangzhou City at this moment. Another two thousand papal cavalrymen secretly followed Long Qing to the Song Kingdom directly from Peach Mountain to suppress the followers of the New Stream.


    With such a powerful military force to deal with thousands of unarmed followers of the New Stream and disciples of the Sword Garret, Taoism was determined to kill Ye Su and to stop the New Stream from further developing.


    Carrying the heavy armor, the horses stepped on the street and made a dull and squeaking sound. While two thousand horses were moving forward together, the sound became extremely loud, like a thunderstorm.


    The papal cavalrymen moved forward at a rapid speed and couldn¡¯t care less about hitting others. People in the street all evaded, and the street was filled with panic screams and the miserable shrieksing from those being knocked down.


    Smoke and dust enshrouded the street. Several hawkers who escaped from the horseshoes huddled together outside a tea shop and dared not to make a sound while watching these cavalrymen rushing through the street.


    A middle-aged man with a schrly appearance did not hide in the street corner as others did. Instead, he walked forward with his bag, and was covered with dust and sweat, heading for the same direction where these cavalrymen were going.


    ...


    ...


    Long Qing pointed to the small courtyard next to the square and the woodpile in the broken wall and said to Ye Su, ¡°I spent a whole night to pile up these firewood. please go up, elder brother.¡±


    Going up to do what? Of course it was not for the scenery. Although the woodpile was higher than the ground and it was supposed to see further standing on it, the scenery to be seen must be all red, being blood or me.


    Ye Su nced at him but said nothing. Then he bowed his head and replied while continuing to write, ¡°I have to finish this paragraph.¡±


    Long Qing showed no sign of impatience, for there was no reason for him to be impatient. He kept walking forward. If he had waited for a little longer, this might be a legendary story in the history of religion, but he decided to cut the story short.


    The disciples of the Sword Garret held their des up.


    Long Qing waved his hand, and the ck peach blossom was in full bloom, suddenly disturbing the array of swords.


    At this point, Ye Su stopped writing and looked up. ¡°I am done.¡± What he wrote was not notes or doctrine of the New Stream, but his travelogue.


    It was not the travelogue concerning his experience of going into exile in several kingdoms these days, but about how he figured out the life-and-death struggle while traveling through all the kingdoms after seeing that ck line on the Wilderness many years ago. And thest article was about Chang¡¯an several years ago.


    In that Chang¡¯an, there was a small Taoist temple where he had lived for a long time. He repaired the house for the neighbors and helped the Taoist priests save money. He once argued with the Eldest Brother of the Academy and also bargained with the vendors.


    What he figured out while traveling through all the kingdoms finally blossomed when he lived in Chang¡¯an, thus seeing through the life-and-death struggle had a real meaning. He had gained a lot, and all he gained officially broke out as Jun Mo stabbed him in front of the Verdant Canyon and then was gradually taking shape in the smellyne of Linkang City.


    This was the development thread of the doctrine of New Stream. It sounded simple but actuallyplicated. The doctrine of New Stream was based on the West-Hill literary canon, incorporating the concept of the Academy and blending with Ye Su¡¯s own experience. The doctrine was simple, without any exnation. Ye Su only had time to write a few volumes and was unable toplete his work. So he spent hisst time on writing this travelogue.


    The travelogue contained 5,041 words, focusing on the description without anymentary. He only wrote what he saw and heard, preachedpassion and self-improvement but never mentioned the longing for the afterlife. It was simple yet not simple.


    The travelogue only said one thing: live.


    What was faith? What was the meaning that the followers had faith? The doctrine was supposed to answer these questions, but Ye Su only wanted to talk about living.


    The travelogue didn¡¯t give any answers about how to live, why live and how to live happily, just pointing out a path through describing daily life and cherishing the memory of suffering and happiness.


    To live well, one must have faith: believing in themselves.


    Oneself to oneself, Divine Hall to Divine Hall, human world to human world, and Haotian to Haotian.


    This was the one truth or path Je Su wanted to tell the followers.


    At this point, he finally finished writing the travelogue. After putting the brush pen on the desk, he blew the ink marks on the paper which were still wet and spread the paper out to dry the ink marks. The paper was under the morning sky.


    He wanted to let god see the travelogue and the real human world recorded in it, and he wanted to let god know what the human world really wanted.


    Long Qing stopped and felt unsettled while looking at the papers on the desk.


    Ye Su stood up and said to the crowd, ¡°We are the road, the truth, and the life. Follow your heart, you will walk out of the dark valley and get the greatest joy.¡±


    He said the same words yesterday. At that time, with the snow stopped and the clouds scattered, the light fell on him and ted a golden rim for him, making him look like a saint.


    When he said the exact same words after finishing the travelogue, there was no snow, and the sky was blue with the clouds scattered. The morning light suddenly became brighter, shining on his body.


    He was no longer only coated with ayer of golden light. In the eyes of the followers in the square, he was in the morning light and turned his back to the bright red sun. He was the morning light that represented hope.


    Earlier, the tree on the side of the broken wall was shattered by the impact caused by Tang Xiaotang and Long Qing, only leaving a half-foot-high stump on the ground. At this moment, under the morning light, it began to grow new branches and leaves which were slightly trembling in the morning breeze, looking very delicate but vibrant.


    Starting from Ye Su¡¯sst stroke, or from spreading the travelogue out under the blue sky, or from the loud sound of reading in the mean alley, or even from the Taoist Temple in Chang¡¯an, Ye Su and the New Stream he created, on behalf of a certain part of mankind, began topete for rights with god, or ask Haotian to give back rights which originally belonged to humans. History was rewritten from that moment.


    The morning light was bright, and the cold wind and snow were nowhere to be found. The morning sun shone on Ye Su and the whole human world, looking like a miracle. But it was not a miracle, for the magical scene had nothing to do with Haotian. It was an ordinary person blending with Heaven, Earth and nature and yielding brilliant results.


    Seeing this, the escaping followers who were horrified by the blood gathered together again. In defiance of those ferocious divine priests, deacons and cavalrymen, they rushed to the stage, trying to get closer to Ye Su.


    The body of Ye Su was like a transparent ss through which the sun light spread to the whole human world. The light travelled far, even illuminating the streets andnes in the distance.


    The ordinary people who just woke up or stayed up all night and the pedestrians who hid under the eaves to avoid the cavalrymen all saw the light in the square, and saw the person in the morning sun. They were shocked and confused, subconsciously walking to the square.


    As followers of the New Stream, these thousands of people who had already been in the square were more shocked. Looking at Ye Su in the morning sun, the followers worshipped on bended knees silently, expressing their respect.


    Standing in front of the morning sun, Ye Su faced away from the light and delivered his speech while looking at Long Qing, divine priests, deacons, and thousands of followers in the square.


    His voice was very calm, not deliberately fanatical at all. Contrary to those well-known orators or saints in the history of religion, he was very calm. But what he said seemed to be magical, like a prophecy that could not be shaken.


    Long Qing did not stop him from speaking, because he also wanted to know what Ye Su would say at this moment. Ye Su wanted to predict something, and the followers were all serious and focused.


    ¡°When the Ever Nightes, when the sun is blocked, and the Heaven and Earth sinks intoplete darkness, people will hail in joy. Because they will live for real.¡± The voice of Ye Su floated in the quiet square, like the sound of cicadas in the forest, the sound of frogs in the pool, the sound of wind among the cliffs and the sound of waterfalls in the autumn, making the world quieter.


    In the quiet world, people all listened carefully, just like hearing the teachings of saints, and then they started thinking. Even Long Qing was thinking about something with his head down.


    If this was a prophecy, then what did this prophecy predict?

 Chapter 1041 - I Want To Look At The Sun

    <h4>Chapter 1041: I Want To Look At The Sun</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    There was nothing but silence. Right then whenever Haotianughed, everyone on the square was lost in contemtion. Those words were informative and mysteriously captivating.


    The words Ye Su just said began with a prophecy and ended in overwhelming joyfulness. He mentioned the legendary Ever Night andmented with great hope, which was very confusing for the crowd.


    What was the Ever Night? In an ancient legend in the cultivation world, it was a catastrophe caused by the invasion of Invariant Yama. After Sangsang was born, Ning Que saved her and fled. Later on, the Headmaster ughtered the Golden Dragon in the Wilderness and proved the legend to be fake. There was no Invariant Yama or theher world. Therefore should there be an Ever Night at all?


    There was an Ever Night once. People who survived the previous Ever Night were still alive now. However it had nothing to do with Invariant Yama. It was merely the rotation of Haotian¡¯s ploughing in spring, harvesting in autumn, and vacation in winter.


    For most people, the endless Ever Night was chilling and ruthless. However for Haotian it was simply the fundamental rules of this world. If the world were to be eternal, an Ever Night was necessary.


    The nature of the New Stream was to rece Haotian as the new faith. It was the terminator of Haotian and the grave digger for Taoism. Then why should Ye Su be looking forward to the Ever Night?


    ¡°Your Ever Night... What is it?¡± Long Qing stared at Ye Su and asked.


    Ye Su stared back calmly and said, ¡°An Ever Night is an ever night.¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°Ever Night means darkness.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°Only in an Ever Night would people open their eyes and see for themselves clearly, the scenes Haotian had been hiding from them. That¡¯s the truth. Apparently that¡¯s why I am looking forward to it.¡±


    Long Qing pondered then said, ¡°The truth is objective and not subjective to anyone.¡±


    Ye Su pointed to the red morning sun on the horizon behind him and said, ¡°The sun hangs in the sky everyday. It sets and rises again and again. Is it objective?¡±


    Long Qing answered, ¡°The sun is of course objective.¡±


    Ye Su smiled and asked, ¡°Then have you ever seen it?¡±


    Long Qing was about to answer but suddenly frowned and got stunned. He thought it over and realized what the question was actually about. People living on the earth saw the sun everyday. But have they ever looked at it seriously?


    Everyone had seen the sun. They got up every morning and saw it from the backyard. Theyined about its dazzling light in noon time and covered their eyes with their hands. They sat in a pavilion in the breeze by the river and recited poems when the sun set.


    But what did the sun look like? It was red in dawn and dusk, and white in noon. What was its true color? Apart from the dazzling light was there any pattern on the sun? If no how should people describe it?


    If not able to describe it, how could they im to have seen it?


    He suddenly recalled the scenes he saw in the illusion when they were in the enrollment test of the Second Floor of the Academy. There was Ye Hongyu, Ye Su and the light. When he followed the light and defeated everyone in the world including Ye Hongyu and Ye Su, there was nothing left but the light.


    It was the same as the morning sun.


    The absolute light was the same as the absolute darkness. He had realized that when he was in the illusion back then. That was why he had spent thest bit of his courage in the dark world in the north Wilderness.


    What about the sun? And Haotian? Indeed they were of no difference. When something was too bright and too dazzling, people would never be able to see the whole picture, nor the truth. As Ye Su said, it was only when the Ever Night came and the sun faded out, people would be able to see the truth.


    Long Qing now figured out what Ye Su¡¯s words meant, but he could not understand what his prophecy represented. He squinted toward the morning sun, pondered for a while and shook his head slightly.


    There was no point spending time on the meaningless. What he had to do now was to kill Ye Su. No matter if it was a prophecy from a sage or some nonsense from a lunatic, it meant nothing.


    ¡°You will die in no time. Even if it were toe true one day, you won¡¯t be able to see the sun for yourself. Likewise, people who have heard you will be dead in no time. They won¡¯t be able to see it either,¡± Long Qing stared at Ye Su and said emotionlessly. Together with his words, there came thundering clip-clops of the two thousand cavalrymen of the Divine Halls of West-Hill pouring in from outside the city.


    Countless shing sounds were heard from the sharp des held by the cavalrymen. The snow white des reflected the faces of the scared followers of the New Stream.


    Long Qing raised his right hand. Meanwhile the cavalrymen raised their des outside the crowd. The chilling des seemed like the wild grass in the fields, disorderly and horrifying, as if they were about to tear every fleshing in their way.


    Clip-clops were heard again. The heavily armed war horses knocked through the crowd in front of them. Many followers of the New Stream were treading in the clip-clops. People were screaming all over the square.


    Blood flooded across the square. Death umted together with the snow. The terrified followers scattered in all directions. Ordinary people who happened to be in the square were also killed in the tragedy.


    No one could stop the tragedy now.


    Ye Su watched it happened. He raised his arms and tried to make a way through the crowd. But no one could see him. He tried to speak but made no sound. No one could have heard him even if he had said anything.


    Chen Pipi looked extremely pale but still supported him.


    A dozen of disciples from the Sword Garret scattered into the crowd and fought desperately. They were way outnumbered like a few rocks in the flood. Even as resolute as they were, how could they turn the tide?


    Long Qing stood by the stage. There were only ten steps between him and Ye Su. However he did nothing but looked at Ye Su silently. He wanted Ye Su to see this.


    It might not be the beginning of the extinction of the New Stream. But it was definitely Ye Su¡¯sst day. As Ning Que told the Abbey Dean, Long Qing was eager to witness Ye Su¡¯sst journey to the holiness.


    Ye Su stood in the morning sunlight. The reflection around him brought forth some holiness. In thest part of his journey he would be walking toward the holiness and the colors of heaven and earth would change.


    Long Qing was indeed curious to see how the heaven and earth would change.


    Right then, the colors of heaven and earth did change.


    There was white snow on the streets and ck eaves on people¡¯s houses. The ck, the white, and the color of the yet-to-fall leaves were the three basic colors in the city, in and outside the square.


    But ever since yesterday, after the two rounds of ughtering by Taoism, the ground was flooded with blood.


    However, the colors were drained right then. The white snow, the dark eaves, the yellowish green leaves and the scarlet blood stains, were all turned into yellow sand and covered the sky.


    Long Qing was somewhat stunned.


    Because the overturn had nothing to do with Ye Su. Ye Su¡¯s Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow was destroyed long ago. He was a sage in teaching. But the teaching of the New Stream could never turn the situation in a real battle.


    It was a different power that turned the snow, the eaves, the trees, and blood into sand.


    ...

 Chapter 1042 - Farewell In The Yellow Sand

    <h4>Chapter 1042: Farewell In The Yellow Sand</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    No one noticed that a middle-aged schr came to the square and quietly approached the high stage when the papal cavalrymen of the Divine Halls of West-Hill rushed into the square.


    The middle-aged schr was dressed in an ordinary style and all sweaty, with a baggage tied to his back. He came to the stage, unwrapped the baggage at the fastest speed and took out a wooden te.


    The wooden te was made of wood and had an extremely delicate texture which usually could be found on golden texture. And there was a very thinyer of yellow sand in the te.


    This was a sandbox, the most well-known sandbox in the cultivation world: River and Mountain Sandbox.


    As the River and Mountain Sandbox appeared, the whole world entered into it. Thatyer of yellow sand fluttered in the air and then fell, making the sky and earth all yellow and then turning everything into yellow sand.


    The hard bluestone ground turned into a desert. The horse who was sprinting at high speed fell heavily on the ground and broke its front hoof. The cavalryman on the horse was also fell on the ground and directly passed out.


    In a very short period of time, there were hundreds of cavalrymen fell off the horse. But those terrified followers of New Stream were not hurt by the yellow sand, just having trouble to move freely.


    The yellow sand was sometimes like water, surpassing the strong and pitying the weak due to its softness.


    With his feet trapped in the yellow sand, he clearly felt an absorbing power from the bottom of the sand. He looked solemn, trying hard to lift his right foot to step forward.


    All of a sudden, the yellow sand was blown by wind and blocked his way.


    His sight light crossed over the flying yellow sand, then falling on the middle-aged schr on the other side of the stage.


    Chen Pipi looked at the middle-aged schr and shouted, ¡°Fourth Brother!¡±


    The middle-aged schr didn¡¯t respond and just stared at Long Qing.


    Long Qing slightly frowned. He was ordered to kill Ye Su and destroy the New Stream, guessing that the Academy might try to intervene. But to his surprise, the Academy didn¡¯t send that iron arrow or Mr. First, but this guy: Fan Yue, Mr. Fourth of the Academy.


    Among the interesting but terrifying characters in the Back Hill of the Academy, Fan Yue had always kept a low profile. Although he entered the Academy pretty early and enjoyed a high rank, he only reached the State of See-Through Zenith, not being at the same level of Li Manman and Jun Mo. Senior Sister Yu Lian was only at the See-Through State, but everyone knew that she was way more powerful after she defeated Xiong Chumo, the Hierarch of the Divine Halls of West-Hill. However, Fan Yue was actually as powerful as a person who reached See-Through Zenith was supposed to be.


    But this was not important. The Headmaster never cared whether or not his disciples were gifted, but all his disciples had their own expertise and could be the best in their field. Compared with other brothers and sisters, Fan Yue was indeed rtively weak. He was good at Fu Tao, but not as talented as Mo Shanshan and Ning Que. He was good at strategy, but not as good as Yu Lian. He was good at designing, but Sixth Brother was better, not to mention Professor Huang He from the Front Yard. Fan Yue was probably best at calcting on an abacus.


    Although the Back Hill of the Academy gradually revealed itself to the human world in these years, he still didn¡¯t attract much attention. Only his brothers and sisters from the Back Hill knew that he was rather important, for the strategies the Academy and the Great Tang yed these years were alling from Yu Lian, Ning Que and him. Besides, he owned the most precious ritual implement of the cultivation world: River and Mountain Sandbox.


    In the Battle of the Verdant Canyon back then, the only reason the Academy survived the Abbey Dean¡¯s sword was the River and Mountain Sandbox. Fan Yue used all his strength to trap the sword, thus Jun Mo got the chance to show his power. Since River and Mountain Sandbox could trap the Abbey Dean¡¯s sword, it must be extremely powerful. Today, he came here with the River and Mountain Sandbox. In fact, he was not supposed to be here.


    The Academy was well aware that the Divine Halls of West-Hill wanted Ye Su and the New Stream gone, but the Eldest Brother, Yu Lian and Ning Que all thought the Abbey Dean could be convinced. Since killing Ye Su wouldn¡¯t do any good to Taoism, they figured that the Abbey Dean would certainly not do it, and Tang Xiaotang and the Sword Garret could handle the matter as long as the Abbey Dean stayed out of it.


    Only Fourth Brother disagreed. Although he didn¡¯t figure out other results after a long time of calcting, he felt extremely unsettled and thought his brothers and sister were wrong. Then he packed his bags, left the Back Hill, and headed for South Jin Kingdom with River and Mountain Sandbox, in order to save Ye Su.


    This was the real style of the Academy. United, the Academy were as strong as a fortress, but it also valued the principle of harmony in diversity. And the disciples of the Academy must take responsibility for the Academy and themselves and do nothing they would regret in the future.


    The Fourth Brother finally made it. Although it was difficult to change the situation on his own, he still could make the efforts on behalf of the Academy.


    He lifted the River and Mountain Sandbox and poured all his Psyche Power into it. Only in an instant, he almost exhausted his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow, and he turned extremely pale, even seeming to be thinner.


    The River and Mountain Sandbox contained the yellow sand, and also the whole human world.


    Each grain of sand represented andscape of the human world: a small bridge, a stream, a pavilion, a green hill, a pnquin on the bridge, a boat on the water, a person in the pavilion or a tree on the green hill.


    But today, the yellow sand was just yellow sand. Because its original form contained the most powerful force.


    Fourth Brother used his Psyche Power to energize the River and Mountain Sandbox. The yellow sand fiercely flew around and then settle down, turning the world into a desert where no direction could be found.


    Being lucky enough to not fall to death, the cavalrymen of the Divine Halls of West-Hill in the back desperately pulled the reins to stop the horses, then got down from the horses and tried to find a way out. But it was not easy to do so.


    The Fourth Brother held the River and Mountain Sandbox and went on stage.


    Long Qing looked at him quietly. Although the yellow sand covered the ground, it couldn¡¯tpletely drag him into the dreand. His body was in the yellow sand, but his eyes could see the truth and see his opponent.


    Sensing Long Qing¡¯s gaze, the Fourth Brother felt unsettled. He had feelings that something bad was going to happen just like he calcted in the Back Hill of the Academy. So he blew to the River and Mountain Sandbox. The shallow yellow sand was ruffled by his blowing, and some grains of sand fluttered in the air.


    Suddenly, there was a hurricane on the square that had turned into a desert. Countless yellow sand rolled up and blocked everyone¡¯s sight. The sky and the earth became dark, and even more frightening was that the desert, which was previously t as a wilderness, suddenly burst into rumbling and numerous sand dunes appeared on the surface of the desert. Many cavalrymen were swallowed by the moving sand instantly!


    The cavalrymen who had not been swallowed suffered a lot in the flying yellow sand. Miserable screams and the dull sound of people and horses colliding with each other could be heard everywhere.


    Even powerful people like Xiaoyu who had reached Knowing Destiny State could not resist the power of the River and Mountain Sandbox. Those divine priests and deacons all died, and Xiaoyu also passed out in the yellow sand.


    Long Qing couldn¡¯t move and turned a little pale for he was injured by Tang Xiaotang and then the River and Mountain Sandbox. He didn¡¯t expect that the sandbox was so powerful since the guy who possessed it was so ordinary.


    But was it powerful enough?


    The next moment, he finally put his foot down, but he was still standing on the yellow sand.


    He didn¡¯t manage to walk out of the River and Mountain Sandbox, but so what?


    The scar on his face became brighter, but definitely not ugly. Actually he looked good with the gray eyelids and silver straight hair.


    He was powerful, and he had a really powerful means. He was not afraid even though Ning Que¡¯s iron arrow and Li Manman came here, let alone just a sandbox.


    He took out a book and raised it up.


    He remembered that when he was the second Divine Priest of the Judicial Department and hunted members of Devil¡¯s Doctrine and sinners who betrayed Taoism, he truly believed that he represented justice.


    Looking at Ye Su and others on the other side of the yellow sand, he looked solemn and silently repeated the words that were familiar to them in the past: ¡°Sinners, do face the punishment from Haotian.¡±


    Last night in the Divine Hall of Judgement of Peach Mountain, the middle-aged priest broke the Confinement of Ye Hongyu with Arcane Tome of the Fall. At this moment, what Long Qing held in his hand was Arcane Tome of the Sand.


    The Abbey Dean finally made the most important decision. He no longer cared about spheming Haotian, turning the holiest arcane tomes into very powerful artifacts in his n.


    The middle-aged priest had apanied the arcane tomes for countless years and Long Qing had always taken Arcane Tome of the Sand with him all these years, so only the two had the ability to use the arcane tomes as weapons.


    The city in the morning, covered with yellow sand, was very dry. When Long Qing lifted the Arcane Tome of the Sand, the air became drier and drier.


    The cover of Arcane Tome of the Sand turned into countless grains of sand and flew in the wind. Then the second page turned into countless grains of sand, and then the third page, the fourth page, the fifth page... Hundreds of millions of sand grains turned into a sand river, went straight to the sky from Long Qing¡¯s hands and merged with an unspeakable high-spirited meaning in the deepest part of the sky, then rushing to the yellow sand.


    Arcane Tome of the Sand recorded almost all the cultivation methods in the cultivation world, which could not be done only by humans. Just like the Arcane Tome of the Sun, in addition to the efforts of Taoism, Haotian contributed more to it.


    Taoism saw cultivation as a gift from Haotian, and the Arcane Tome of the Sand was the gift list recording rules which could not be counted like the sand at the bottom of the sea. Every grain of sand represented the gift from Haotian and the awe of the humans. At this point, as the Arcane Tome of the Sand turned into sand grains, the words were melted on the paper and then dissipated into the finest particles, as if every grain of sand contained the power of that cultivation method.


    Hundreds of millions of grains of sand represented the hundreds of millions of cultivation methods, falling in the River and Mountain Sandbox. Even though the River and Mountain Sandbox contained the whole human world, it was still an object belonged to the cultivator. There was no way it could amodate the near-infinite expanse andplexity.


    In an instant, the yellow sand suddenly stopped flying and some pavilions in the corner were about to lose their original forms.


    Both of the Fourth Brother¡¯s arms, which held the River and Mountain Sandbox, began to tremble, as if he would throw the sandbox to the ground in the next moment. Sensing the horrible impact from the sandbox, he found that it was even more powerful than the virtual sword thrown by the Abbey Dean in front of the Verdant Canyon back then. He instantly turned pale, and his lips began to ooze blood.


    ¡°All scatter!¡± Long Qing shouted with no expression. As his voice fell, the speed of the flying sand on the square slowed down, and the small bridges and streams were covered with sanding from the Arcane Tome of the Sand.


    The yellow sand was covered by the sand from the bottom of the sea. Long Qing covered the Fourth Brother¡¯s world with his own world, so he could walk around freely and go wherever he wanted to go.


    Long Qing took a step forward.


    If there were intelligent beings in the River and Mountain Sandbox, they might see that, under the sun, a huge footprint which was bigger than the mountain stepped through the clouds, crushed the wilderness and finallynded on the other side of the horizon.


    It only took him one step to walk out of the River and Mountain Sandbox.


    Long Qing approached on the stage and stood in front of Ye Su.


    There was still residual yellow sand between the two.


    Fourth Brother kept coughing blood but managed to hold himself together.


    Long Qing held the Arcane Tome of the Sand which was disappearing with one hand, and reached to Ye Su with another hand.


    All of a sudden, Tang Xiaotang broke through the wind and came to the stage. She leaned against the iron stick and fell on her knees in front of Ye Su. Then he lifted the stick with two hands and blocked Long Qing¡¯s hand with all the strength she had.


    Long Qing¡¯s hand fell on the iron stick.


    Tang Xiaotang fell to the ground and kept oozing blood.


    Long Qing took another step forward and again reached to Ye Su.


    At that time, the Arcane Tome of the Sand in his left hand was still fighting against the River and Mountain Sandbox. More and more blood came out of the Fourth Brother¡¯s mouth, wetting the front part of his cloth. The color of the blood became darker and darker and finally looked like ink, which was startling.


    Seeing this, Chen Pipi finally felt desperate. His body began to tremble, for he feared that his two elder brothers and his lover would die.


    The trembling was transmitted from his hands and feet to his chest and abdomen, and then to the depths of his body, and finally fell behind the waist. Then his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow began to tremble too.


    His Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow had already been destroyed, and to be precise, been locked up by Sangsang, and turned into a dry Dead Sea and ck mountain peak. But at this moment, it began to tremble! Tremble was an action which meant being alive. His Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow came to life again!


    Chen Pipi had no time to feel this sudden change or be wild with joy. He just instinctively used his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow to attack Long Qing.


    Ten intents which had no trajectories and were as unpredictable as the drifting clouds in the sky came out of his ten fingers and fiercely rushed to the chest and abdomen of Long Qing.


    After the bloody battles with Tang Xiaotang to whom Haotian granted eternal life and Mr. Fourth of the Academy who possessed the River and Mountain Sandbox, Long Qing had been seriously injured. At this moment, Chen Pipi suddenly attacked him with the Natural Stream Magical Finger. He did not manage to avoid it even though he had the Arcane Tome of the Sand.


    With a burst of dense muffled sounds, the wills of ten Natural Stream Magical Fingers all fell on the chest of Long Qing. Ten holes appeared on his thin garment, with blood kept flowing out.


    Long Qing turn paler. He puzzled to look down at his chest and then looked up at Chen Pipi, frowning slightly.


    Then he figured it out.


    At this point, Haotian was so weak that she could not even shelter the people she once promised to shelter, such as Tang Xiaotang. And naturally she could not punish the people she once wanted to punish forever either. Since the Abbey Dean had already left Peach Mountain, it was reasonable for Chen Pipi to regain his power.


    Long Qing coughed twice painfully, making more bloode out of the holes on his chest.


    ¡°It¡¯s not enough,¡± said Long Qing, staring at Chen Pipi.


    The Arcane Tome of the Sand in his left hand turned into gravel, rushing to Chen Pipi.


    Instantly, there were countless tiny blood lines on Chen Pipi¡¯s body. Each bloody line came from a very fine wound, and each wound contained a gravel deep inside which tried to keep drilling inside like an ant. It was even hard to imagine how painful it was.


    Chen Pipi suffered extreme pain, but he did not cry, for he thought it was too embarrassing. So he desperately squeezed a smile but did not realize that the smile was as ugly as his crying.


    Seeing his face, Tang Xiaotang wanted to smile and meanwhile wanted to cry due to sadness.


    Long Qing nced at the Fourth Brother and held tightly the Arcane Tome of the Sand.


    Fourth Brother sighed and sat down helplessly, starting to vomit blood.


    There was no sound at all.


    Long Qing looked at Ye Su, Chen Pipi, Tang Xiaotang and Fan Yue and took a deep breath, looking very satisfied. Back then, he looked up at some of them, feared some of them, was far less talented than some of them and was even rejected by some of them. But at this point, he was more powerful than any of them, and they were no match for him even though they joined hands.


    Perhaps what he cultivated might turn him into a monster who lost his sanity or just turn his body into hundreds of millions of gravel one day, but he could deal with thatter. At this moment, he was very satisfied, as never before.


    He lifted his jaw proudly, as if he was back to the day he entered Chang¡¯an many years ago. On that day, there were countless followers on the streets of Chang¡¯an and he sat in the center of the sedan.


    At this moment, a sound came from the stage.


    ¡°Could I borrow it?¡± Ye Su said to the Fourth Brother, or to the world.


    The River and Mountain Sandbox which was about to crack wasing to his hand.


    Long Qing stared at him and asked, ¡°You betrayed Haotian. Do you really believe that Divine Manifestation will happen to you?¡±


    Ye Su¡¯s Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow was destroyed during his fight against Jun Mo in front of Verdant Canyon, which had nothing to do with Sangsang, then he could not regain his power like the Abbey Dean and Chen Pipi.


    Ye Su answered, ¡°Maybe Divine Manifestation was originally created by humans.¡± This sentence was the foundation of the New Stream and also the epitaph of Taoism.


    Long Qing shook his head and said, ¡°That requires strength. You don¡¯t have any.¡±


    The wind and sand rested, and only a few people on the stage were still affected by the fight between the River and Mountain Sandbox and the Arcane Tome of the Sand. The square was full of corpses, including the cavalrymen and also followers of the New Stream. As for those followers who were still alive, they were rushing to Ye Su even though they were seriously injured. They wanted to save Ye Su even at the cost of their lives.


    Was this a kind of persistent faith? Was it strength?


    Looking at these devout followers, Ye Su revealedplex emotions in his eyes and said, ¡°I believe this is strength. This is the strength of faith.¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°You are well aware that only Haotian gets to use the strength of faith.¡±


    Ye Su didn¡¯t look at him but looked at the blue sky, asking, ¡°What about Buddha?¡±


    Long Qing wondered, ¡°How to use this kind of strength?¡±


    Ye Su answered, ¡°I don¡¯t know. I just want to try.¡±


    Could I borrow it? Ye Su did not only want to borrow the River and Mountain Sandbox from the Academy, but also wanted to borrow strength from his followers. Maybe it was indeed the strength of faith.


    A mighty and pure strength came out of the square.


    The strength came from the followers in the square. Thousands of breaths entered Ye Su¡¯s body and then came out with the atmosphere of solemnity.


    Ye Su poured the strength or breaths into the River and Mountain Sandbox and then looked to Long Qing.


    It was an invitation.


    Long Qing turned solemn, and the Arcane Tome of the Sand was disappearing at a faster speed.


    He sat down in front of Ye Su.


    The sand began to fly again. Ye Su kept trembling and struggled to sit tight.


    Long Qing just stared at him with any expression.


    Ye Su said, ¡°You go first.¡± He was asking Chen Pipi to leave with the others while Long Qing was trapped by him at this moment.


    Long Qing stared at his face and said, ¡°You can¡¯t leave.¡±


    Ye Su never thought of leaving. He just wanted to keep Long Qing here, and to give others an opportunity to leave. If not for this reason, he would rather die than try to use this kind of strength.


    His original intention of founding the New Stream was to tell people that they didn¡¯t need any faith, but he never expected that he himself would be the one people worshipped, which made him feel confused and sad.


    What made him feel a littleforted was that this was the first time and probably thest time he used this kind of strength.


    He founded the New Stream, but he was not Haotian. Even though he was willing to ept the followers¡¯ worship, he could notpete with Taoism which had epted people¡¯s worship for so many years.


    The Arcane Tomes were sacred artifacts of Taoism and contained unpredictable power. Ye Hongyu was not able to resist its power even though she fought against it with the Divine Hall of Judgement. Although Ye Su borrowed the faith from the followers and the River and Mountain Sandbox from the Academy, it was nearly impossible for him to resist the power of the sacred artifact.


    In the flying sand, Ye Su gradually felt tired, but he gradually calmed down.


    But Chen Pipi did not leave.


    Ye Su lowered his head and requested helplessly, ¡°Please go.¡±


    At this point, all the people in the square were seriously injured. Only Long Qing had the strength to fight again, and only Ye Su was able to stall him for a while. But the morning light that fell on Ye Su was already dim.


    Ye Su was begging Chen Pipi to leave.


    Chen Pipi was silent and then struggled to stand up. He helped Tang Xiaotang and the Fourth Brother to walk down the high tform. Then they walked away from the square with several disciples of the Sword Garret who managed to survive.


    Chen Pipi never looked back this whole time.


    He said nothing to Ye Su, and he did not cry,ugh or make any strange sound. He just kept walking silently and helped hispanions move forward while suffering greatly due to the blood holes on his body. It was because crying orughing meant saying goodbye. He didn¡¯t want to say goodbye to Ye Su in this way.


    They walked slowly and finally walked out of the square after a long time.


    The cavalrymen of the Divine Halls of West-Hill didn¡¯t chase them. They survived.


    Chen Pipi said nothing and just kept moving forward. He got into a carriage which pulled out of the city and entered the wilderness. He finally burst into tears when the carriage was already dozens of miles away from the city.


    The Fourth Brother sat by the window of the carriage and looked out of the window. He wanted to say something but did not know how to put it. Why did hee such a long way to the square even though he could not change anything?


    The River and Mountain Sandbox was destroyed, and many people died.


    He wanted to go back to Chang¡¯an and asked Ning Que what went wrong?

 Chapter 1043 - Sacred Flame Roaring, My Body Burning

    <h4>Chapter 1043: Sacred me Roaring, My Body Burning</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Some people left, but more stayed. They struggled to find a way out of the sandstorm.


    Ye Su and Long Qing sat facing each other, like two senior monksmenting on scriptures at tea time, or two masters ying chess. They neither said anything nor looked at each other. Blood was all over and made them seem miserable.


    The sandstorm around the stage already ceased. It would stop soon on the stage. The two of them were covered by sand and blood, with their clothes ragged as if they would copse at any moment.


    Long Qing watched Chen Pipi and the rest retreat. Somehow he did not care about them. Many cavalrymen got out of the chaos but did not receive further orders from him. He just sat quietly with Ye Su and waited for the sandstorm toe to aplete end.


    The storm was the chilling winter storm, while the grit and sand were from the River and Mountain Sandbox. They roared together as if they would never end. But actually nothing couldst forever.


    Upon a crack, the River and Mountain Sandbox on Ye Su¡¯s knees broke from the middle.


    The Arcane Tome of the Sand in Long Qing¡¯s hand still had many pages left. It was as thick as a gravestone that could never be broken by storms. Upon a closer look, the grit in front of the gravestone were cobbles like crystal. Those cobbles were tiny but crystal clear. They were not jade but seemed like the finest jade. They nketed the ground behind Ye Su, like an ocean of pearls.


    Long Qing stood up. Blood dripped from his body, fell and stained the ocean of pearls.


    The sand streamed down from the crack on the River and Mountain Sandbox. It was real sand. There was only a thinyer of sand in the box. Therefore it fell onto the ground in front of Ye Su and formed a small pile.


    It seemed like a solitary weathered grave that no one ever took care of.


    The square was stained with blood shed by the followers of the New Stream and the cavalrymen of the Divine Halls.


    The cavalrymen were lining up again. Some followers of the New Stream were killed, some were dying, but many were still alive. There would probably be another round of ughter soon.


    Ye Su looked at Long Qing and said, ¡°Let them go.¡±


    Long Qing answered emotionlessly, ¡°I was not nning on killing them all.¡±


    Ye Su was somewhat surprised. He said nothing but wondered what Long Qing meant.


    Long Qing raised his left hand. The cavalrymen with bloodshot eyes were waiting anxiously for an order of further ughtering. But they did not dare to do anything and suppressed their heavy breaths. They could only wait for another order.


    The followers of the New Stream on the square were the most loyal to Ye Su. Half of them hade with him from Linkang, even including his first students in the shabby cottage.


    People knew exactly what would happen next. They poured toward the same direction and tried to protect their leader, but only to be brutally stopped by the cavalrymen. Crying and screaming soared.


    ¡°We both know, like I said at the beginning... it does not make any sense. The pain your followers suffered, the women¡¯s screaming, none of them could make any significance.¡± Long Qing stared at Ye Su and continued, ¡°Fromst night until this morning, whatever happened here is of no significance. I need a result, and you are also waiting for it. Why bother?¡±


    Ye Su did not turn to him, but looked silently at his miserable followers on the square.


    ¡°Ever since I was a kid and joined the Revtion Institute, I heard about you from her and our masters. You were an idol, or a role model that we could worship but never dared to follow. But it wasn¡¯t until recent years that I realized how extraordinary you actually are. It is because you are already taking apletely different path.¡±


    Long Qing continued, ¡°You are not any fanatical preacher, and your New Stream is notpletely nonsense. You did not agitate your followers with sensations. On the contrary, you have been teaching very calmly and made many concrete practices. Many people could only see that the New Stream seems different or even treasonous. But they did not know the meticulous arrangements and strategic nning you made for the spread of the New Stream. You did it calmly and quietly, more like a businessman than a sage.¡±


    ¡°I spent many years in the Divine Hall of Judgment, so I knew exactly how much she had helped you. But you are the key. Your ability to organize is unparalleled, and your n is wless. You kept calm even when Taoism started the extinction. You attracted their attention by yourself, while secretly sending your seven disciples including Huanhuan to different ces. I guess they are hiding somewhere and waiting for an optimal opportunity toe out and continue your mission.¡±


    Ye Su still kept quiet.


    Long Qing said calmly, ¡°You can keep quiet from my praise. You can disregard any worldly power. You can deny whatever I¡¯ve said. But can you just tell me where Cheng Ziqing is? Why are there only a few disciples of the Sword Garret left who followed you from Linking? Where are the others? No one ever noticed it. That¡¯s why I admire you the most.¡±


    He continued. ¡°You¡¯ve already nned well for the future and sent countless sparks throughout the world. Even if you will die today, no one could ever stop the New Stream from further spreading. Therefore you face your death fearlessly. I wonder if you are actually looking forward to your own death.¡±


    Ye Su finally spoke, ¡°Death is the most profound horror for everyone.¡±


    Long Qing shook his head, ¡°Everyone dies. The only difference is either going to the Divine Kingdom or the Abyss. You want neither the Divine Kingdom nor the Abyss. Therefore the way you die is the most important to you. To die quietly or grandly in front of tens of thousands of followers and ordinary people like this? It was not a difficult pick. To die in front of the entire world, dignified, calm and joyful, you face your death unflinchingly. Through your own death you spread the new faith and new strength to every human being in the world. It is magnificent.¡±


    He continued. ¡°There has been no sage in the kingdom or the entire human world for a long while. Even the Headmaster was only able to turn into the bright moon after he went to the Divine Kingdom. We are all ordinary human beings and could never be considered sages when alive. A sage is only born once in a thousand years...¡± Upon these words Long Qing paused and looked into Ye Su with mixed emotions, ¡°Only when the sage dies will the Grand Tao prevail. You, must die.¡±


    Ye Su was still calm. Some snow fell on his grey hair and lingered for a long while, as if his body was no longer warm and his vitality was already drained by the Arcane Tome.


    ¡°I have been wondering if Ning Que also realized this.¡±


    While Long Qing turned the blood-stained ocean of pearls retreated like falling tide when touched the edge of his gown. He looked toward Chang¡¯an and said emotionlessly, ¡°Otherwise he should havee.¡±


    Ye Su and his New Stream was crucial to the Tang and the Academy. Since Taoism had decided to kill Ye Su, Ning Que should have nned for something. Even if he was noting, his iron arrow should have arrived.


    Ye Su said, ¡°Probably he was not expecting our master to be so resolute.¡±


    It was indeed possible. Beforest night no one, including Xiong Chumo, the Hierarch of the Divine Halls, could have predicted that the Abbey Dean would choose to kill Ye Su and Ye Hongyu despite the potential risk of disrupting Taoism.


    ¡°Li Manman might not be able to predict the master¡¯s n. But how could Ning Que and Yu Lian have missed it? Even if they didn¡¯t know, sly as they are, how could they have made no ns?¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°Ning Que did note. Neither did his iron arrows, Yu Lian, or li Manman. It could only mean they are aware of your willingness to die. And they... are also looking forward to your death. They might even have kept this from Li Manman and wait for you to be killed by me.¡± Heughed as he said it. But it was a very restrainedugh that only appeared around the corner of his lips, and seemed mocking. Ye Su had been very calm ever since the beginning. Even if death was approaching, he remained calm. Although it was a mutually agreed end, he somehow felt reluctant. Therefore he had to expose the Academy¡¯s intention so as to irritate Ye Su.


    But Ye Su¡¯s reaction was still disappointing. He said calmly, ¡°I¡¯ve been standing against the Academy for twenty years. I know their philosophy clearly and I don¡¯t think they are snobbish and indifferent as you said.¡±


    Long Qing¡¯s spection was reasonable. If Ye Su were to die, he would be a sage. His disciples already went to various ces in the world and prepared well for future spread of the New Stream. Under the protection of Tang and the Academy, his death would be like oil on the mes that would elerate the spread of the New Stream. In that case, his life or death would not matter much to the Academy. But he still believed that the Academy would not do that. Because it was against their principles.


    ¡°Li Manman would definitely not watch you die in the me. But Ning Que and Yu Lian are different. They would love to see Taoism disrupted and the New Stream reborn through the mes.¡± Long Qing said, ¡°If the Headmaster and Ke Haoran were still alive, they would never stay aside. Because they would not agree with it. However you have to admit that Ning Que and Yu Lian are both possessed by the Devil.¡±


    Ye Su said nothing.


    Long Qing continued, ¡°Yu Lian is the current leader of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Lian Sheng used to think highly of her. And Ning Que is like a reborn of Lian Sheng. Just like Lian Sheng, they justify the ends by the means. And they¡¯ve surpassed Lian Sheng in other aspects. What Lian Sheng had failed to fulfill, they might be willing and able to achieve.¡±


    What did Lian Sheng try to do? He wanted the human world to be flooded with blood, to turn over Taoism and destroy every living creature. He wanted to create a whole new world.


    The Academy indeed wanted the same thing. But in the past the Academy would never use such ruthless means to fulfill it. However, as for the Sister and Brother in charge of the Academy now, what was their n?


    Ye Su did not want to continue the conversation. Whatever the Academy had nned would not matter to him. He raised his head and looked into the sky that was bing bluer and the sun that was raising yet fading. He said, ¡°No matter what the Academy has nned, I will continue with what I¡¯ve nned.¡±


    Long Qing stared at him and eventually showed some respect. He said, ¡°You want to turn yourself into a torch and light up the entire world? I heard Jun Mo was trying to burn the Xuankong Temple. Indeed you are both insane.¡±


    Upon hearing the name of Jun Mo, Ye Su smiled and said, ¡°Eventually we are doing the same thing. I am proud of it. I guess he will be too.¡±


    He said it proudly. He was proud because Jun Mo used to be his match, and because he had surpassed himself and stood at a higher level, therefore being able to see the scenes further afar. Or probably because he was standing on top of the firewood in the courtyard. He was tied up on the cross, not too tight or too loose. He could not flee but could see further from there.


    Long Qing stood in front of the firewood and said to him, ¡°I will set the fire.¡±


    Ye Su looked back at him and squinted because of the dazzling sunlight, ¡°What I don¡¯t understand is why you are still doing this even though you know what exactly is happening.¡±


    Long Qing slightly frowned and said, ¡°I have to obey the master¡¯s order.¡±


    They stood on the top and the foot of the huge pile of firewood. They shared the same master. Ye Su looked at the broken Arcane Tome hanging on Long Qing¡¯s waist and said, ¡°I suppose the master should know it too. Why would he waste the Tome?¡±


    Long Qing said after a pause, ¡°Since human beings are able to write books, we won¡¯t need these Arcane Tomes in the future.¡±


    Ye Su seemed have realized something upon these words. He and Long Qing were not aware of the Abbey Dean¡¯s conversation with the middle-aged priest on the teau of Peach Mountain. But they were students of the Abbey Dean and most powerful figures of Taoism. They had been very familiar with the teaching ever since childhood. Therefore upon some very simple discussion they realized what the Abbey Dean actually wanted. It was irritating.


    Ye Su looked afar toward either at the Zhishou Abbey or Linkang. He recited gently, ¡°To know the strong and to guard the weak, one would be the stream of the world. To be the stream of the world, virtue would stay, hence one would be as innocent as an infant.¡±


    Long Qing listened to the verse and followed after a long pause, ¡°To know the bright and to guard the dark, one would be the model. To be the model, virtue would not depart, hence one would be eternal.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°We are what we are. That is the path, the truth and the life. If we follow ourselves, we will eventually get out of the dark valley and achieve ultimate happiness... That is to know and to guard.¡±


    Long Qing kept his head lowered. He was either looking at the horrifying hole beneath his gown or the firm ground, and his voice came out of his lips naturally, ¡°We could be ourselves, and we could also be Haotian.¡±


    Ye Su smiled and said, ¡°So it has been like this ever since the beginning.¡±


    Long Qing raised his head toward Ye Su under the sunlight and said, ¡°You are right.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°There is no right or wrong.¡±


    ¡°If the master thinks you are right, then you are right.¡± Long Qing paused there. He thought he should be jealous but could only feel calm instead. He sighed, ¡°In the end you are the one who made him proudest.¡±


    Ye Su thought for a while and said, ¡°Whether it is right or wrong, we won¡¯t be able to tell until the end.¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°As for what you did and what the Abbey Dean and Headmaster did, there won¡¯t be any destined ends.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°Indeed, without Haotian, there won¡¯t be destiny.¡±


    Long Qing looked afar and said, ¡°We¡¯ve waited for too long.¡±


    Ye Su said, ¡°The people you¡¯ve been waiting for didn¡¯te, and probably would nevere.¡±


    Long Qing took the torch from a divine priest and came to the pile of firewood. He paused for a while but said nothing further. He left the torch at the edge of the pile and stepped backward.


    Fire was one of the most marvelous phenomenon in nature. It could be spread and copied. It could be started from sparkles and form prairie fires. While water could never do so.


    The me on the torch climbed onto the firewood next to it, and immediately burned the edge of the firewood. Blue smoke and bright me were formed and spread out.


    The pile of firewood was made by Long Qing. He made it extremely carefully and picked the most suitable ones for burning in terms of length and thickness. The fire built up quickly.


    The walls around the courtyard were already destroyed in the battle previously. Now they copsedpletely in the crackling me and unveiled the scene to everyone outside.


    Grief caught tens of thousands of followers of the New Stream as well as the Song people who were ordered to witness the punishment. They felt pity and could not help from crying.


    Ye Su¡¯s clothes caught on fire. Bright yellow mes climbed up to his knees and devoured himpletely.


    Someone kneeled down. It was probably a follower of the New Stream. Despite seeing the scary cavalrymen of the Divine Halls, he kneeled down and kowtowed toward Ye Su. More people kneeled down immediately. Even the tens of thousands of people from Song were stunned by the solemn figure in the me and fell on their knees. The screaming and crying became louder and louder as if they were turned into sky-reaching surge.


    Ye Su said all of a sudden, ¡°When the Ever Nightes, when the sun bes blocked and the Heaven and Earth sinks intoplete darkness, people will hail in joy. Because they will live for real.¡±


    Right then he was baptized in me and pain. He repeated his prophecy calmly because he did not want his followers to cry. He did not want people to grief for him.


    Followers of the New Stream outside the courtyard tried to break in to save him, but were chopped down by the cavalrymen of the Divine Halls. They fell with wounds and blood. But upon hearing his voice, they instinctively followed and recited.


    The followers of the New Stream who stood further afar also heard him and started reciting. Because they will always follow him. Other people from Song felt pity for him. They listened quietly at the beginning but somehow became attracted by his words, and eventually started reciting together.


    ¡°When the Ever Nightes...¡±


    ¡°When the Heaven and Earth sinks intoplete darkness...¡±


    ¡°... we will live for real.¡±


    The reciting of tens of thousands of people resounded above the square. It was the same crying and screaming that had soared previously. And now the sky was indeed trembling. The clouds that were previously dispelled by the sunlight came back in trembling, like fresh water poured into a bowl.


    However it was extremely tranquil. Like when Ye Su said so, people¡¯s devoted and pious reciting was awe-inspiring as waterfalls in the storm or chirping of cicadas in the forest. The entire world was stunned.


    Long Qing did nothing. He did not ask the cavalrymen to suppress and stop the crowd, even if the reciting was clearly a praise of the New Stream and an offense to Taoism.


    He looked silently at Ye Su who was on top of the firewood pile. There was a mix of emotions that he was not expecting. He tried to figure out what he was sensing and wondered if he could really obtain peacefulness through what he realized.


    Tens of thousands of people were reciting together even more loudly. It was like thundering war drums, not only stimting but awe-inspiring. It enveloped the city and spread to the entire world.


    Ye Su¡¯s voice became weaker and fragmented. When he spoke the third time, his words were already scattered and hard to be caught because the ruthless mes already went beyond his knees and reached his chest. His body was being burned in the golden mes and he was suffering from the most painful punishment or baptism.


    Long Qing stared at the person in the me and seemed to have heard him say, ¡°You see, they are not praying.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 1044 - Sages Never Get Lonely

    <h4>Chapter 1044: Sages Never Get Lonely</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    More and more drifting clouds gathered together in the blue sky above the city, totally covering the sun and darkening the world, just like what the people on the square were reciting at this moment.


    With the me on Ye Su¡¯s body getting stronger and stronger, his voice could no longer be heard and his face was disappearing. His whole body was burning, like a bright light.


    The light that scattered on the human world suddenly disappeared. Then a holy beam of light,ing from his body, went to the sky above the woodpile and fell in the deepest part of the distant sky.


    There was a bright area appearing in the dark sky, which was not as bright as the sun but more real. Tens of thousands of people who were kneeling on the ground could see clearly what was there.


    There were a blue sky, gray clouds, darkness, and the true light.


    All of a sudden, the bright area dimmed again, but then quickly reverted to the way it was.


    The raging fire on the woodpile had risen to the air, as if to burn the sky. The figure of Ye Su could no longer be seen. But the strange thing was that there was no horrible smell but a faint aroma in the air, making people feel extraordinarily peaceful.


    Did the beam of light, the bright area in the dark sky, and the faint aroma mean that Ye Su had be a sage?


    Nobody knew the answer. Long Qing didn¡¯t know, neither did tens of thousands of people kneeling on the ground and the cavalrymen, Xiaoyu and the divine priests standing outside the small courtyard.


    The images of sanctification recorded in West-Hill literary canon had nothing to do with today¡¯s story. It was impossible for anyone to know what was going on at this moment, including the Abbey Dean. But it was not important.


    Ye Su was sanctified, which had nothing to do with religion or the Divine Kingdom in the sky. His sanctification took ce in the human world and also in the hearts of the followers. He had be a sage.


    No matter whether the Great Tang and the Academy could win the war or not, the New Stream would inevitably spread in the human world. No one could stop this. Countless people would see Ye Su as a sage.


    Therefore he was a sage.


    Suddenly it began to snow. The drifting clouds gathered into thick clouds covering the sky. Then ice crystals coagted in the depths of the clouds and fell to the earth as the form of snow.


    The snow fell on the streets of the city, fell on the people who knelt on the square and kept chanting, fell in the small courtyard, and fell on the burning woodpile. Falling into the me, the snow melted into water, gradually soaking the woodpile. The me was getting smaller and smaller, and finally extinguished after a long time.


    The chanting gradually stopped too. People looked into the small courtyard hopefully and wished that a miracle would happen. But they sadly found that there was no miracle at all.


    The cross had been burned and copsed, and the man whom people wished to see was already gone. Even the rope that was tied to him had been burned to ashes.


    The snowkes kept falling, some falling on people¡¯s shoulders and some on people¡¯s lips. The kes melt into water due to the people¡¯s body temperature, moistening people¡¯s lips, which were dry due to anxiety and sorrow. The crowd started to cry, and the sound of sobbing remain unbroken.


    Time passed slowly. The clouds in the sky did not clear away, but the people on the square gradually dispersed. Thousands of followers of the New Stream walked out of the square while carrying each other. There was no conflict, killing nor arresting, for Long Qing remained silent this whole time.


    Standing in front of the woodpile, he revealed no expression.


    After a long time, the snow still kept falling, putting out thest sparks left on the woodpile. The woodpile was gradually covered with thick snow, and the ashes could no longer be seen.


    The square was all white and clean.


    ...


    ...


    A thunder suddenly burst in the sky. Then a second one. The two thunder were chasing each other between heaven and earth. ( Boxno vel. co m )


    On the square, the cavalrymen of the Divine Halls and the powerhouses from Taoism all looked up to the sky and seemed to be vignt, frightened and unsettled, like they heard the anger of the god.


    The two thunder kept changing their locations. It was impossible for these mortals to identify the exact locations and resist the power of the god. Then what were the thunder?


    Long Qing looked up at the sky and the snowkes which were disturbed by the invisible power hidden in the two thunder. He figured out what the thunders represented but still was as calm as before.


    A storm suddenly appeared on the sea outside the Song Kingdom and soonnded. The sea water kept hitting the well-known breakwater, and the storm finally came to the square, turning into a roar.


    The clouds above the city gently trembled. A strong power spread from the center of the roar, turning into a horrible wind. Countless cavalrymen fell off the horses, and even the powerhouses from Taoism had to use their full strength to barely keep standing straight in the fierce wind.


    Then the fierce wind gradually smoothed and dispersed into the streets and houses like water. A circle which was about ten feet long appeared in the square. There was no snow or blood in that circle, just two people.


    One person wore an old cotton jacket and held a short wooden stick. He was the Eldest Brother of the Academy. The other wore a gown giving out the smell of alcohol and had a gon tie to his waist. He was the Drunkard.


    The Eldest Brother¡¯s cotton jacket was tattered, and blood kepting out, soaking the cotton. He seemed to be quite distressed.


    The Drunkard was no better than him. His clothes had stains everywhere, and his left shoulder seemed to be hurt. He wanted to take out the gon but found that his hand shook heavily.


    It turned out that the two thunder which were wandering between Heaven and Earth previously were actually these two chasing each other. They kept fighting against each other even in the Distanceless State.


    That was the highest level of battle in the cultivation world, and also the hardest to fight against. But in fact, the battle could have been avoided.


    Yesterday, the Drunkard returned to the town, said nothing to the Butcher, and just waited for the future silently. The Eldest Brother stayed at a small building outside Linkang City and waited for the result of the negotiation between the Academy and Taoism. Both the Drunkard and the Eldest Brother felt unsettled.


    The Drunkard was still unsettled when he sensed that something unusual happened on Peach Mountainst night and Ye Su was sanctified this morning even though he was happy to see that the Abbey Dean was not persuaded by Ning Que.


    He thought that the Academy was the source of his unsettlement, and that the Academy would try to save Ye Su at all costs. So he left the town in a hurry and returned to the small building outside Linkang City, encountering Li Manman again.


    Just like what happened in the past few years, the Drunkard could not get rid of the Eldest Brother and the Eldest Brother could notpletely subdue the Drunkard since they both had reached the Distanceless State. Taoism had lost its most important chess piece, and so did the Academy.


    Then they began to fight, from the mountains to the seas. Finally they came to the square, and the Eldest Brother was seriously injured.


    He was the one who got injured, for he was the one who wanted toe here.


    ¡°The Academy always likes to say that both body and spirit have been decayed. What about you now?¡± The Drunkard put his trembling hands behind back and said while looking at him, ¡°You have been followed me for so many days. How much longer do you think you can bear the suffering?¡±


    He was a little pale and his left shoulder was seriously injured. Butpared with the Eldest Brother who was covered in blood and had several broken bones, he suffered much less, so he dared to say this.


    The Eldest Brother did not respond. Looking at the snow drift in the small courtyard, he sniffed the smell of the embers and remained silent, looking very deste. He suffered so much toe here, but he was still toote.


    There was cryinging from the distance, which might be for the innocent followers who died in the conflict or for Ye Su who was burned in the me. He listened silently. After a while, he turned around and said to the Drunkard, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you stay in that small town? Why bothering here?¡±


    The Drunkard replied, ¡°Why don¡¯t you stay in Chang¡¯an? Why bothering here?¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°You aremitting a crime.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°Is it a crime against the human world or the Divine Kingdom? The New Stream has shaken the foundation of the Divine Kingdom, so he must die. I would have killed him if Taoism waited any longer.¡±


    Long Qing had kept silent ever since the moment the Drunkard and the Eldest Brother appeared. He stood in the courtyard and looked at the two powerful cultivators to whom he could only look up, and seemed calm and fearless.


    Everything was in the palm of the Abbey Dean¡¯s hand. The Drunkard would certainly help Taoism to kill Ye Su from the standpoint of Haotian before he discovered the truth. It was because he and the Butcher were very greedy. They not only wanted immortality, but also wanted eternity. Since they could only get eternity from Haotian¡¯s Divine Kingdom, they would definitely never let the Divine Kingdom be destroyed.


    In fact, the Drunkard and the Butcher might have killed Ye Su much earlier if not for the Abbey Dean disapproval. These two Grand Cultivators couldn¡¯t care less about sanctification.


    They had long believed that they were sanctified, but they still had to hide in the human world like rats for tens of thousands of years and finally ended up with bing Haotian¡¯s dogs.


    But Long Qing basically figured out what was going on at this moment since he knew what was on the Abbey Dean¡¯s mind and talked with Ye Su before he died. He knew that the Drunkard and the Butcher would regret it in the future, but he wouldn¡¯t mind using them as dogs in the name of Haotian.


    Thinking of this, Long Qing smiled and taunted in his heart that even powerful people like the Drunkard and the Butcher would get carried away by greed. Five colors make people blind, and five notes make people deaf. The West-Hill literary canon is totally right. Long Qing suddenly stopped smiling, for he sensed somebody was watching him.


    The Eldest Brother looked at him and kept silence for quite a while and asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    He didn¡¯t understand. Neither did the Academy. No one could figure out why Taoism burned Ye Su to death and helped him to be a sage, for destroying the New Stream would not do Taoism any good. Instead, it would split Taoism apart, or at least would make it impossible for the Divine Hall of Judgement to keep its loyalty.


    So what was on the Abbey Dean¡¯s mind?


    ¡°You can regard all Ning Que¡¯s failed attempts as reasons.¡± Long Qing said, ¡°My elder brother¡¯s death is not just a matter that concerned Taoism. If not for the Academy, maybe he did not need to die, or at least would not die so soon. So your sorrow is pointless.¡±


    After saying this, he slightly bowed to the Eldest Brother, and walked out of the small courtyard. In the wind and snow, he mounted a horse and didn¡¯t put the Arcane Tome of the Sand back to his chest until he was quite away from that courtyard.


    The Eldest Brother looked at the figure of Long Qing disappearing into the snow.


    He once noticed the uniqueness of this person outside Linkang City, and today he clearly sensed that Long Qing was extraordinary. But he had no spirit to think about this at this moment.


    He looked back into the small courtyard and looked at the woodpile where the snow kept falling. Then he looked up at the sky, recalling something that happened in the past.


    That year, it was snowing in Chang¡¯an and many people came to the city. Qi Nian was trapped by Yu Lian in the snow forest. Jun Mo sat on the snow bridge for one night. The Youngest Brother and Sangsang killed Xia Hou by theke. As for himself, he stood on the city wall with Ye Su and watched the falling snow, chatting for the whole night.


    They had met several times before that night. In front of a small Taoist temple, in the depths of the snow peak of Tianqi Mountain...


    Before that, Sangsang was born in the human world, and there was a ck line that appeared in the Wilderness. He was reading by a pond at one end of the ck line, and Ye Su was cutting a tree on the other end of the ck line. After hearing an interesting Taoist chant, Ye Su began to travel around the world and tried to figure out life and death. It was highly possible that he really figured it out at hisst moment.


    Was that the real reason why he had to die?


    The Eldest Brother looked at the falling snow and kept silent for a long time. Ye Su¡¯s decision for founding the New Stream had much to do with the Academy, for Jun Mo turned him into a useless person in front of the Verdant Canyon, and also for the discussion he had with Ye Su.


    Then he remembered that many years ago, even before he became a disciple of the Headmaster, he wanted to be a schr who could educate people. He imagined to be a schr who lived in a mean alley and taught the poor children. He lived a poor and in life but enjoyed it. He wanted to be such a person. Unexpectedly, Ye Su did what he wanted to do in thest few years of life.


    After a long time, he reached out to catch a snowke and turned to the Drunkard. ¡°Abandoning the whole human world to get immortality. Don¡¯t you think you will be very lonely if you seed?¡±


    The Drunkard answered, ¡°Death is the real loneliness. Ye Su was the one who was truly lonely at this moment since he was sanctified and had no connection with the world.¡±


    The Eldest Brother shook his head and said calmly, ¡°You are wrong. He will never be lonely.¡±


    Ye Su gave up the faith he worshiped for over a decade, just to let humans believe that they no longer need any faith. He passed away, but he left many legacies and believed that his legacies would truly change the human world.


    There were still many people who were doing or were about to do the same thing. Jun Mo set a fire at the bottom of the Giant Sinkhole. The Eldest Brother would lead the Academy to the future. How could Ye Su, a sage, be lonely since he had so manypanions who shared his faith?


    Sages never got lonely ever since ancient times

 Chapter 1045 - The Dreadful Person In The Way

    <h4>Chapter 1045: The Dreadful Person In The Way</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    There were many snowfalls that winter. The biggest one fell neither in the Wilderness nor in the capital of Yan. Instead it fell in theparatively warm capital of Song. Recalling that snowfall, many people saw it as an omen because something very important happened during that snowfall.


    In the snow storm, Taoism burned Ye Su, the founder of the New Stream. It shocked the entire human world. People found a series of strange things during the process. For instance, why did the Abbey Dean made such a ruthless and resolute decision? And why was the Academygging behind in reaction? It was not their style.


    The Fourth Brother traveled thousands of miles to the Song and brought the River and Mountain Sandbox. He joined the battle and helped Chen Pipi, Tang Xiaotang and other disciples of the Sword Garret retreat. But he was not able to change the story. He failed to save Ye Su. And most importantly, he came by himself.


    The Eldest Brother also came to Song and was severely wounded by the Drunkard. But he was toote. By the time he arrived, the heavy snow had entirely covered the pile of firewood. He could not even see any burned wood or ashes, not to mention to save Ye Su. Likewise, he also came by himself, not on behalf of the Academy. ( Boxno vel. co m )


    The Eldest Brother and the Fourth Brother came by themselves. They could have represented the Academy but did not do so because currently in the Academy, Yu Lian and Ning Que were in charge.


    Apparently the Academy did not have any ns for this. But what were Yu Lian and Ning Que thinking about? Were they really waiting indifferently for Ye Su¡¯s death as Long Qing had told Ye Su before he was burned?


    Chilling winter wind roared among the cliffs. The Hn City was enveloped by a weird silence ever since the retreat. The barracks used to be the station for tens of thousands of cavalrymen. Now there was nothing but some goshawk whistling in loneliness.


    Thest Tang troop of hundreds of soldiers was guarding the only path to the Hn City via the West Wilderness. Having been stationed here for a few years, they would not have survived if it were not for the abundant supplies Tang had prepared and the secret help they received from the Wild People.


    On top of the city gate, a dominating figure was standing high. The goshawk approached from the snow peak out of curiosity and found the figure to be strangely disproportioned. Upon a closer look, the goshawk realized it was not a disproportionate person, but abination of two people. That was why it looked weird.


    Tang stood on top of the city gate and looked to the west where the Golden Tribe Royal Court was located. He looked indifferent. The fur he wore fluttered in the chilling wind, as if it was an unbeatable g of blood.


    He was the World Wayfarer of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, and the most powerful man in the Wilderness. In terms of being dominating, no one could have surpassed him ever since Xia Hou¡¯s death. But right now someone was sitting on his shoulders. More precisely, there was a specially designed back-basket on his shoulders with a stool in it. And someone was sitting on the stool. Tang was very tall. Therefore that person on the stool was sitting high.


    The person on his shoulders was a pretty girl. She was about twelve or thirteen years old. Her ck ponytails swung cutely in the wind.


    Many years ago in Chang¡¯an, this girl leapt into the sky, chopped a rainbow, and carried Li Manman down. She broke her legs and was reluctant to walk ever since. She used to be in a wheelchair. But when she came to the Wilderness she was sitting on Tang¡¯s shoulders and would not get off even when her legs had fully recovered.


    She said it looked more powerful sitting there. Since she turned into a little girl many years ago, she found being not strong enough to be most annoying, even more annoying than the monthly menstruation.


    Tang did not dare toment or object her because she was the current leader of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, and the Eldest Sister of the Academy. She was Yu Lian, his master.


    In recent years, Tang had been carrying Yu Lian everywhere in the Wilderness. Today they came to the Hn City because she wanted to know what the Golden Tribe Royal Court was nning on the other side of the Hn City.


    The priests sent by the Left Royal Court on the East Wilderness, as well as the powerful cultivators sent by the Divine Halls had mostly been killed by her and Tang throughout the years. Long Qing¡¯s loyal subordinates were the first they killed.


    It sounded simple but rather horrifying. There were only the two of them, but they were about to extinct an entire tribe. The territory and poption of that tribe was no smaller than those of a kingdom. They had tens of thousands of selected cavalrymen and endless support from Taoism. There were countless cultivators at the state of See-through and Knowing Destiny. However, they were facing extinction.


    When Ning Que carried Sangsang during their escape, he felt like he was standing against the entire world on his own. Whereas these two were destroying a world on their own.


    In a few days, when she would kill thest powerful figures in the East Wilderness, the warriors of the Wild Kingdom woulde down to the south. It did not matter that the thousand cavalrymen of Divine Halls woulde to the north because the term of the Left Royal Court would be erased from human history. It probably could only be found in the archives from now on.


    Yu Lian was confident. She was so certain that she did not even care about being confident in this. But she knew that the Golden Tribe Royal Court would not just sit aside. So what was Chanyu¡¯s n? And what kind of gift had the national master and the thirteen priests prepared for her?


    The snow in the Wilderness ceasedst night, as well as in the City of Wei and Hn. The air was fresh and the sky was washed spotless after the snowfall. She stood up and looked to the west.


    The city gate of Hn was high-rising between two cliffs and Tang was very tall. She stood on his shoulders but still felt not high enough. Therefore she stood on tiptoe and looked a bit funny.


    ¡°I¡¯m not waiting any longer. I can sense they are taking action.¡± Wind swayed her hair and annoyed her. She wiped impatiently on her face and yelled, ¡°I wanna go and take a look.¡± She swung in the back-basket and made it hard for Tang to stand still. He held the bottom of the basket and said, ¡°The Golden Tribe Royal Court cannot take Hn City. They have to find an alternative if they want to save the Left Royal Court.¡±


    Yu Lian thought about the alternative and realized it was not a possibility but would definitely happen. She said, ¡°They areing to the south. Tell the tribe that we are also heading south.¡± She said it emotionlessly, but with the voice of a girl. It seemed like some little girl copying the way her parents talked. She sounded serious but funny.


    Tang was used to her voice. His dashing eyebrows shivered while he said, ¡°The Golden Tribe Royal Court must have prepared well. We¡¯d better get prepared too.¡±


    ¡°Like I said, I¡¯m eager to see what gift they¡¯ve prepared for me.¡± Yu Lian showed no emotions on her little face and said, ¡°They say the young ve was Sangsang¡¯s gift to the human world. Being Ning Que¡¯s Sister, I¡¯m going to unwrap the gift on behalf of him. If I¡¯m not satisfied, I will return it.¡±


    ¡°Shouldn¡¯t we be concerned about what happens in the Central ins?¡± Tang thought of the World Wayfarer of Taoism who used to be a match to him, and felt anxious.


    ¡°The Abbey Dean is no idiot, not like Xiong Chumo. Killing Ye Su won¡¯t do anything good to Taoism. Then why would he do so? The best and only reaction Taoism could take now is to wait.¡± Yu Lian continued, ¡°If our master could defeat Haotian in the Divine Kingdom before the New Stream takes over Haotian Taoism, they would win the gamble.¡±


    The New Stream was faith, and was protected by the Academy and Tang Empire. It was impossible for Taoism to extinguish the faith. The harder Taoism tried, the more they would help the New Stream grow.


    If the Academy wanted to seize the opportunity in this battle, they would have to give full support to the New Stream and weaken Haotian¡¯s power before the battle in the Divine Kingdom came to an end.


    Comparatively speaking, Taoism seemed to be privileged but was actually in a passive position. It was wrong whether or not they would react. As Yu Lian said, they could only wait calmly, or helplessly. The Academy had the initiative. That was why Ning Que wanted to negotiate with the world. He was qualified. He was confident that he could convince Taoism and the Abbey Dean. So was Yu Lian.


    Right then, the Tang troop in Hn City brought news.


    Many years ago the Tang Empire spent massively in building the Transmission Array via Hn City. It delivered the simplest messages only under extreme circumstances. They used this channel only a few times throughout the decades. Thest time was when the previous emperor passed away. Today the Transmission Array was activated again and brought another news of death. It was a very bad news, something that Yu Lian never expected.


    ¡°Ye Su is dead.¡±


    Upon that message, Tang recalled what had happened throughout the past twenty years: the tree in the Wilderness and the proud young man who had a sword and mocked the devils and the aliens. He kept silent for a long while.


    Yu Lian was also silent for a fairly long while. It was indeed long. Ever since they heard of the death, she stayed silent in the chilling wind, until the sun set and darkness prevailed.


    A wisp of white smoke rose from someone¡¯s chimney inside the Hn City.


    She looked at the wisp of smoke and said, ¡°A bad news could be good news sometimes.¡±


    Throughout the hours she was not being sensational in the silence, but rather contemting and re-examining the situation. She tried to figure out what influence Ye Su¡¯s death would bring forth to the human world. Eventually she concluded that the result would be slightly favorable for the Academy. Therefore she said it might be a good news, the same as the rising smoke from the chimney. It seemed lonely, but actually stood for living.


    Yu Lian was cold-blooded. That was why Long Qing said she and Ning Que were waiting for Ye Su¡¯s death. Although it was not what they had nned, he was already dead and she just epted it. It was not the most important thing.


    She stayed in the chilling wind pondering for half a day, from noon to dusk. Apart from the influence of Ye Su¡¯s death, she also figured out something really important.


    What was the Abbey Dean thinking about?


    She told Tang that Ning Que and herself were certain that the Abbey Dean would not kill Ye Su. But they were proven wrong. There must be something missing in their wrong spection.


    ¡°I won¡¯t feel at ease unless I know what he is nning.¡± Yu Lian walked toward the city and left the prevailing darkness behind, as well as the Golden Tribe Royal Court. It was of no significancepared with what she was worrying about.


    ...


    ...


    The Transmission Array in Hn City was connected to the imperial pce in the Tang Empire, which meant people inside the imperial pce had heard about Ye Su¡¯s death before Yu Lian received it in Hn City. It was very depressing.


    Li Yu looked pale either because of herck of exposure in the sunlight or because of some other reasons. She seemed calm, but she clenched her hands harder on the chair and that showed her anxiety.


    It was actually more than anxiety. She was very nervous or even scared. But she was currently the assistant governor of the empire and had to be a role model for the young emperor. Therefore she could not unveil her sensations.


    The young emperor was going to take over the reins the following year. Being taught by the Eldest Brother, he had made outstanding achievements in terms of virtue and capability. But he was still too young and had never been confronted by such situations. Recalling the fierce battle a few years ago, he could not help but be scared.


    Zeng Jing, the Grand Secretary stood by the stairs and said, ¡°As an emperor, you should stay calm even when mountains copse, when rivers dry, and when the universe overturns. You are a role model for your people.¡±


    The young emperor felt nervous and looked at Li Yu. He said, ¡°I understand... I¡¯m just a bit worried whether the Thirteenth Uncle could stop that person.¡±


    Zeng Jing, the Grand Secretary yelled, ¡°So what? That person had visited Chang¡¯an previously. At that time, Lady Chu gathered all of the women and children to the Vermilion Bird Avenue as they were holding their des. Elder Chao brought his friends and fellows together as they were scorning him in the chilling snow. Everyone in Chang¡¯an stood against him with their weapons and stones. None of us were afraid!¡±


    Li Yu walked to the emperor, held his hand and asked gently, ¡°Still scared?¡±


    The young emperor was stimted by Zeng Jing¡¯s words. He blushed and his courage was boosted. He held her hand and imed, ¡°Not anymore! I won¡¯t be afraid even if that person were toe into the imperial pce.¡±


    The emperor and ministers were anxious. The pce was intensively guarded but the gate was left open. The front gate of the imperial pce of Tang was wide open as if they were weing some important guest.


    Everyone from the government officials to themon people was getting ready for a battle. They were prepared to confront a formidable enemy. It was certainly not because of Ye Su¡¯s death, but because of something else.


    ...


    ...


    The iron arrow did not appear in the capital of Song. There was only sand and snow dancing above the square, but no whistling arrows.


    Where was Ning Que? And what was he doing? When the legendary Thirteen Primordial Arrows were aimed at a target, it required very strict conditions. However every condition was satisfied ever sincest night.


    The Arcane Tome of Sand in Long Qing¡¯s hand, the strength of faith Ye Su had collected, and the River and Mountain Sandbox brought by the Fourth Brother had all illuminated the Qi of Heaven and Earth here, and made the target clear enough for an arrow shot.


    When Tang Xiaotang jumped down from the sky, Long Qing became as bright as a golden flower in the ocean of consciousness, just like he was many years ago on the snow cliff in Tianqi Mountain. Ning Que paralyzed Long Qing with a single shot back then. Why did he not make a shot today?


    Was Long Qing right that he was waiting for Ye Su¡¯s death?


    The snowfall hadsted for a few days in Chang¡¯an. Snow kept fallingst night and umted on the city walls, on his clothes, and even his face.


    Ning Que¡¯s eyebrows turned white because of the snow and because he was extremely cold. The chill came from inside rather than outside, as he was fully concentrated on somewhere else.


    He was holding the jet-ck iron bow extremely tightly. The bow was pulled to the fullest, like a bright moon. The bowstring was stretched taut. It sank into the three fingers that were holding it and looked horrifying.


    He had been pulling the bow like that fromst night until this morning. He never switched the posture as if he was a lifeless statue. Perhaps that was why the snow had umted on his eyebrows.


    Some snow fell on his shoulders and was melted by the warmth of his body, then was frozen by the chilling wind immediately. It reflected the morning glow as if it was the shining colored ze formed by grit melted in mes.


    Throughout the night, the iron bow never moved.


    He saw the radiating light in the Divine Hallsst night, and the illuminated coastline in the east this morning. Then he saw two flowing lights between Heaven and Earth. They were the Eldest Brother and the Drunkard.


    He stayed in Chang¡¯an but was aware of everything that was happening in the world. He knew that many things had happened fromst night. He saw many powerful figures fighting fiercely.


    But he did not loosen the bowstring. He did not make the shot. It was not because he was hesitating on whether or not to save Ye Su. He was cold-blooded, but not like Lian Sheng. He could watch Ye Su die, but not him being killed.


    The morning glow shone on him. He sensed what was happening on the coastline in the east. He was not willing to see it, but he could not make the shot.


    His ck hair was bound up tightly. Sweat steamed from his hair and rose into the chilling morning wind. He held the iron bow and looked ahead. Sweat fell onto his face and melted the snow on his eyebrows.


    The iron arrow never left the bowstring because someone was standing in its way. He had to target that person and leave everything else aside ever sincest night.


    For Ning Que, that person was the most horrifying enemy as well as the most alluring bait. He aimed the arrow at him out of fear and out of the determination to kill.


    In front of Chang¡¯an, the fields were covered by snow. There was a priest in an indigo gown standing in the snow field. Ning Que¡¯s iron arrow had been aimed at him ever sincest night. The priest in indigo gown held his hands behind his back. He seemed calm and tranquil despite the iron arrow being aimed at him.


    The Thirteen Primordial Arrows were legendary killing weapons. They scared the proud barbarian A Da as well as the Drunkard. But the priest in indigo gown could not care less.


    His indigo gown fluttered in the snow storm as if he was a sage, like he used to be many years ago when he fought the battle in Chang¡¯an on his own.


    Today, he came down from the Peach Mountain and visited Chang¡¯an again. He stayed in the snowstorm for the whole night in front of the city. Ning Que held his bow for the whole night too. He shone throughout the night, and was still shining when the dawn came and the torches on the city wall died out.


    He shone like a torch that caught Ning Que¡¯s attention, and locked his iron arrow and his spirit. He made Ning Que paralyzed even if he could see the entire world clearly.


    Because he was the first in Taoism. The first in Taosim throughout a thousand years.

 Chapter 1046 - Looking Up To Sky

    <h4>Chapter 1046: Looking Up To Sky</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    It was undoubtedly a great pressure for Ning Que to confront that powerful priest in an indigo gown for the whole night. His clothes were soaked by sweat and then frozen by the cold wind repeatedly.


    The Abbey Dean left Peach Mountain and suddenly appeared in Chang¡¯an, which was naturally shocking. But what frightened Ning Que more was that how could the Abbey Dean restore his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow?


    Although they hadn¡¯t engaged yet, Ning Que clearly sensed that the Abbey Dean had regained all his power. He even felt that the Abbey Dean perfectly blended into Heaven and Earth and feared that he would lose the opponent¡¯s position if he were to blink.


    They confronted each other for a whole night, which gave Ning Que much time to think. He thought a lot but couldn¡¯t get any answers, for he couldn¡¯t understand what happened to the Abbey Dean. Then he could only focused on calcting the current situation on Peach Mountain and the Song Kingdom based on the Abbey Dean¡¯s arrival.


    The peace negotiations have obviously failed. Is it true that the Abbey Dean wanted Ye Su dead? Then what about Ye Hongyu? Is the Abbey Dean not worried about the split of Taoism? Is he so confident to defeat the Academy?


    Ning Que was happy to see the split of Taoism, so he ordered Chu Youxian and Chen Qi to send messages to Ye Hongyu. But the current situation unsettled him since everything fell out of his calction.


    The snow kept falling. The city gate was closed, and the Tang army guarding the city had been withdrawn.


    All of a sudden, the Abbey Dean looked to the direction of the East Sea. Ning Que also took a nce at the east.


    The Abbey Dean never said a word ever sincest night, but at this moment, his opened his mouth calmly. ¡°You said that you want to have a talk with the world. I also want to have a talk with you.¡±


    Ning Que did say that he wanted to have a talk with the world, but in a certain sense, he only wanted to have a talk with the Abbey Dean. The Abbey Dean said he wanted to have a talk with Ning Que, but what he really wanted was a talk with the whole world.


    The Abbey Dean pushed his wheelchair over the cliff and went down Peach Mountain, proving that his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow was recovering and that he would soon be as powerful as he was in the past. This was a crucial moment.


    At this moment, the first sentence he said to the world was simple, but it was like a thunder.


    He withdrew his sight from the east and said to Ning Que who stood on the city wall, ¡°Ye Su is dead.¡±


    Ye Su is dead, or I killed Ye Su. Ning Que was silent, revealing no anger or sorrow. He even didn¡¯t ask how he died. Just one moment ago, he also sensed something changed between Heaven and Earth by the East Sea and heard something vaguely.


    His silence didn¡¯tst for too long. He sighed and thenughed bitterly, for he felt lost and didn¡¯t know what to think.


    ¡°Then is Ye Hongyu dead too?¡± He was not asking the Abbey Dean, but more like asking himself with a strong negative attitude. But actually he knew clearly that Taoism would definitely kill Ye Hongyu before killing Ye Su.


    Ye Su was the founder of the New Stream, and Ye Hongyu was the Great Divine Priest of Judgement of the Divine Hall of West-Hill. The two were powerful enough to change the course of history and used to be the Academy¡¯s hope. But at this point, the hope had be an illusory bubble. He didn¡¯t know what to do except to stay silent.


    Even if Ye Su was killed by Taoism, like what Yu Lian had calcted, he would think it was not a great loss to the Academy and the Great Tang, instead it probably would benefit the spread of the New Stream.


    But he was more aware that many things could not be calcted objectively and calmly. If Ye Hongyu was dead for real...


    The Abbey Dean just looked at him quietly.


    One night passed and the string had prated Ning Que¡¯s skin. Three fingers of his right hand began to bleed, and the blood dyed the string red, falling down the wall like rains and falling on the snow.


    There were many reasons why he didn¡¯t shoot the Abbey Dean. The most important one was that he wanted to hold on to hisst hope. He could not shoot if he was not absolutely sure that Thirteen Primordial Arrows would kill the Abbey Dean.


    There might be many different endings for something that hadn¡¯t happened, but there was only one conclusion for something that had happened, such as the deaths of Ye Su and Ye Hongyu.


    But when would the confrontation end? Was it necessary for Ning Que to shoot the priest in the indigo gown until the seas dried up and the rocks decayed?


    How long did the Abbey Dean n to stand in the snow? Did he really want to block Chang¡¯an by himself? What was his intention of leaving Peach Mountain except for killing Ye Su?


    Ning Que could not figure it out. But he knew that his will would be destroyed by the Abbey Dean if the confrontation continued, even though the Abbey Dean was doing nothing except standing there quietly. Or, maybe destroying his will was also one of the Abbey Dean¡¯s intentions. Since Ye Su was already dead, the most crucial moment had passed.


    Ning Que made a move which he never thought he would do. He withdrew the arrow. With his action, the ice on his shoulder broke into pieces and the snow on his clothes fell down.


    The Abbey Dean revealed praise in his eyes. But Ning Que looked indifferent.


    Ye Su was dead. The Abbey Dean had achieved his most important goal.


    Ning Que suffered a big defeat. If the confrontation or battle had to continue, he could only use this method to drive himself and Chang¡¯an into a tight corner and then try to survive this desperate situation.


    He put the iron bow on his back, leaving the gate of Chang¡¯an unguarded.


    The Abbey Dean could enter Chang¡¯an if he wished to achieve more goals. But Ning Que didn¡¯t think that the Abbey Dean would take the risk after Ye Su died.


    A few years ago in Chang¡¯an, Ning Que destroyed the Abbey Dean¡¯s Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow with tens of thousands of knives. He was confident that he still could do the same at this moment.


    He did not regret that he didn¡¯t shoot his arrow toward the East Seast night, for he got distracted by the Abbey Dean. But at this point, he could focus on dealing with the Abbey Dean.


    The Abbey Dean smiled at Ning Que and turned around, ready to leave.


    Ning Que looked at his back and said, ¡°I will figure out what you want to do.¡±


    The Abbey Dean didn¡¯t look back, and replied, ¡°You know where to find me when you figure it out.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Ye Su was gone, but the wind and snow still went on.


    Ning Que no longer sat on the city wall, for he needed to figure something out.


    The unexpected decision Taoism made puzzled him, but he didn¡¯t feel frustrated. The process of history always spiralled up, and war never went off smoothly.


    He walked down the wall and then wandered silently on the streets of Chang¡¯an.


    He went to the Wanyan Tower to see the statues. He went to South Gate Abbey and meditated in a Taoist hall paved with ck stones. He did not go to Lin 40th Street but chose the Yanming Lake. He sat by theke and looked at the lotus in the snowke, looking like a cold statue and gradually covered with snow.


    Back then, he grasped Fu Tao in the Wanyan Tower, grasped Taoism in South Gate Abbey, and figured out many truths by the Yanming Lake, including life and death and also things that were beyond life and death.


    But at this point, he could not figure out the Abbey Dean¡¯s intention.


    The Abbey Dean was the most powerful man of Taoism and also the biggest enemy of the Academy. The Headmaster had not been able to eliminate him. Besides, he was the father of Chen Pipi and the teacher of Ye Su. In theory, the Academy should know him very well, but Ning Que found that he did not know the man at all at this moment.


    He couldn¡¯t even make a rtively true description of this man. He knew the Abbey Dean¡¯s original name and knew that he was a genius at cultivating Taoism, but didn¡¯t know his preferences, his views on the world or his spiritual tendency. Does the Abbey Dean want to be sanctified or does he just want to cultivate Taoism in peace?


    He sat by the Yanming Lake for three days and three nights, but still had no clue. So he got up and left. The spot where he sat was quickly covered by snow.


    The Headmaster and Sangsang went to the Divine Kingdom. Yan Se turned into ashes and was buried in the suburbs. The Eldest Brother was still out there, searching for Chen Pipi. The Second Brother was still fighting Buddhism in the west. The Senior Sister was killing people in the Wilderness. Chao Xiaoshu was waiting for hisst moment at the small town.


    He wandered around Chang¡¯an, but could not find anyone who could enlighten him. Finally he went to a brothel, the House of Red Sleeves. In this brothel, he once wrote a well-known signature and had many experiences. More importantly, a person he respected lived here: Mistress Jian.


    Walking to the penthouse of the House of Red Sleeves, he bowed to Mistress Jian and requested, ¡°May I consult with you on something, Mistress Jian?¡±


    Seeing his tired face, Mistress Jian suddenly said, ¡°I want to see the Academy.¡±


    Ever since that spring rain, Ning Que had stayed in Chang¡¯an, never stepping out of the city. Since the Academy was not in Chang¡¯an, he had to leave the city to go there.


    Ning Que went silent for a while and then said, ¡°Okay.¡±


    The carriage left the House of Red Sleeves, passed through Vermilion Bird Avenue and left the city, heading for the south. It didn¡¯t take long for them to arrive at the Academy, pass through the plum bushes and withered peach trees and enter the Back Hill.


    Walking in the Back Hill, Mistress Jian looked at the cliff yard and the small courtyard in the wood and listened to the sound of the waterfall. She looked quite solemn, but did not say a word the whole time.


    Bypassing the waterfall and passing through the narrow stone wall, they came to the cliff of the Back Hill. Then they climbed up with difficulty along the steep mountain road, finally approaching the wisteria frame and the cliff cave.


    The wisteria was nted by Sangsang, and the small building was built by all his brothers and sisters. Standing under the wisteria frame, Ning Que looked at the dried fruits of the wisteria and felt sad.


    Mistress Jian walked to the cliff cave and looked around in the cave with the aid of the daylight. When she saw the words written on the stone wall, her eyes welled up with tears.


    The words were written by Ke Haoran.


    ¡°This is the first time for me to step into Back Hill of the Academy.¡± Mistress Jian turned around and walked to the cliff yard. Looking at Chang¡¯an in the distance and the clouds in the sky, she sighed. ¡°I thought I would nevere here.¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t want to dig up the old stories of the elders he respected, so he kept silent.


    Mistress Jian said, ¡°In fact, I never liked the Headmaster.¡±


    Ning Que was puzzled. He thought that everyone would respect and love a person like the Headmaster. Why would Mistress Jian say this?


    Mistress Jian turned around and said to him, ¡°Because Youngest Uncle was taught by him.¡±


    This was true. Although they were brothers in name, actually Ke Haoran was the student of the Headmaster, only that he was too proud to admit so. Ke Haoran was heavily influenced by the Headmaster, at least in the respect of viewing the human world.


    Mistress Jian vaguely understood what Mistress Jian meant.


    ¡°If not for the Headmaster, how could your Youngest Uncle be interested in the sky?¡± Mistress Jian looked at the sky and said, ¡°The Academy always ims to look after the human world. But what have you done? Have you ever really cared about the human world? You always keep your heads up and think of triumphing the sky. But when did the sky ever offend you?¡±


    What she said was very unreasonable, especially since she said it in front of the cliff cave. Back then, Ke Haoran honed his mind in this cave while the Headmaster was eating meat, drinking wine and cursing at the sky at the cliff yard. The Academy never treated its¡¯ battle with the sky as a street fight no matter whether its¡¯ view on the human world was right or not.


    ¡°He was happy with his ck donkey and his sword. He was matchless in the human world, better than Lian Sheng and the Abbey Dean. He could live for another thousands of years if he wanted to. Then why did he die?¡±


    Mistress Jian continued, ¡°Because he was so arrogant that he wanted to fight against the sky. So Haotian killed him. He fought against the sky because he wanted the damn freedom. The Headmaster put that stupid idea into his head. He would not have died so early if not for the Headmaster. So all of this is the Headmaster¡¯s fault.¡±


    What she added was even more unreasonable. She just traced the reason from the conclusion and med the Headmaster for everything, but never considering Ke Haoran¡¯s own thoughts and choice in the whole matter.


    Ning Que had wandered in Chang¡¯an and meditated by the Yanming Lake for quite a long time to figure out the Abbey Dean¡¯s true intention, so he was already worn out. After hearing these unreasonable and irrelevant words, he thought that women were indeed all unreasonable.


    After saying this, Mistress Jian left the cliff yard and walked down the cliff long the mountain road, totally ignoring Ning Que.


    Ning Que was speechless and had no idea what happened. All of a sudden, he understood.


    Of course What Mistress Jian said was totally unreasonable, just like when Sangsang left home and then left the human world, he also thought what she did was unreasonable. But being unreasonable was also being reasonable at some point.


    In this way, Mistress Jian told him that, when he didn¡¯t understand the truth of something, he should ignore the matter, and just trace the underlying reason from the result.


    Sangsang ruthlessly forsook Ning Que despite their mutual affections, and went back to the Divine Kingdom, which meant that she was still Haotian.


    Nobody knew why the Abbey Dean killed Ye Su. But regardless of the reason, the consequence of Ye Su¡¯s death was that Taoism would be severely weakened, yet the New Stream would not necessarily be suppressed.


    This puzzled the Academy the most. But ording to Mistress Jian¡¯s logic, tracing the reason from the result, was actually a case in point. If the foundation of Taoism was shaken, Haotian would be weakened.


    This was the result.


    To approach the truth, Ning Que should not heed the connection between cause and effect, not think about the process between the beginning and the end and even not guess the intention of the Abbey Dean, and just focus on the result.


    The Abbey Dean wanted to weaken Haotian. This sounded absurd and unreasonable. Just as unreasonable as what Mistress Jian said. But Ning Que knew that it was true.


    He looked up in the sky and went silent.

 Chapter 1047 - Down The abyss, By The Lagoon

    <h4>Chapter 1047: Down The abyss, By The Lagoon</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    ¡°That exins why. But what does that mean?¡± Although he had not found an exact answer, Ning Que did get one step closer to the truth, to what the Abbey Dean was thinking about. It might be a very small step, but indeed helpful.


    If they had tried to contemte with a normal mindset, neither he nor Yu Lian could have reached such a conclusion. Or more precisely, no one would have dared to conclude like that.


    If Taoism wanted to weaken, or even ruin Haotian, then it was not just a betrayal. It would be a fundamental overturn of faith, which was neither logical nor reasonable.


    Mistress Jian did not know what the Abbey Dean was thinking about. But she understood Ning Que¡¯s suffering and bewilderment. Therefore she tried to guide him with these unreasonable words. She was trying to apply Ke Haoran¡¯s sword, the most direct way of solving problems.


    People always said that the scenery along the way were more important than the destination. But in most cases those words were merely self-constion for those who did not have the guts to carry on.


    When one looked back from the destination, one would find the scenery along the way more charming and clear. That rule applied to life as well as contemtion.


    Ning Que looked back at woman¡¯s figure fading away on the mountain trail between the cliffs. He was certain that if she ever practiced cultivation she would definitely have reached the zenith. But she was never interested.


    He was very grateful for her guidance, just as he was to what she did for him many years ago.


    Ever since he came to Chang¡¯an from Wei, she had been taking good care of him. She taught him a good lesson upon his first visit to the House of Red Sleeves because he reminded her of the young man on a small ck donkey years ago.


    Recalling their first encounter and the foolish things he did in the House of Red Sleeves, Ning Que was filled with emotions. It was because of her that no brothels throughout the country ever weed him. He used to have a lot of unspokenints, but now he felt nothing but gratefulness. He sighed over his former absurdity andughed in self-mockery.


    ...


    ...


    The Abbey Dean wanted to weaken Haotian.


    Ning Que was certain about that. As for why, he could only make a wild guess. There might be a sh of an answer, but he was not able to grasp or believe it.


    Even if the were to sun die out, life would continue.


    If he could not figure out what the Abbey Dean was nning, then he would never be able to change the situation. The war between Tang and the entire world wasunched again. Chang¡¯an was enveloped in chillness and solemnity. Counties and prefectures constantly delivered supplies to the boarders. The Military Ministry ran twenty-four hours a day and dispatched orders to the troops throughout the country.


    The world outside Tang was also in chaos. The death of Ye Su was a downthrow for the New Stream. But ording to the report of secret guards, there was not a dramatic downsize of followers. It was believed that in a short while when they recovered from the grief the New Stream would gain an even quicker burst.


    Whenever a war wasunched, they had to win. It had always been Ning Que and the Tang¡¯s philosophy. However it was more difficult than ever to seed this time.


    The best selected Yulin Royal Guards were sent to the Verdant Canyon and ready to go further south to the Qinghe Prefecture. It seemed Chang¡¯an was not worrying about the defense because Ning Que was there. But actually it suggested that Tang was under so much pressure that even the Yulin Royal Guards had to be sent to the battlefields.


    Ning Que stood on top of the city wall. He watched the falling of snow and the marching troops of Tang. It came to him that it was also someone else¡¯s philosophy that she must win in every war.


    Is Ye Hongyu really dead?


    As for the Abbey Dean¡¯s style and capability, if he wanted to kill Ye Su he was definitely to take Ye Hongyu¡¯s life too. He would never spare her any chance of survival. And ording to what he had sensed that night, she indeed had no chance.


    There was the middle-aged priest, the Hierarch Xiong Chumo, and Zhao Nanhai from the South Sea.


    When confronted with such enemies, even Ning Que might not be able to survive, not to mention her. But somehow he felt that Ye Hongyu was still alive. Because a woman like her should never have died a quiet death. He simply had some unreasonable confidence in her.


    ...


    ...


    In the Divine Halls of West-Hill, there was nothing but silence. Countless divine priests and deacons were on their knees by the stairs. They looked extremely pale and sacred. Because thunders were roaring on top of the stairs.


    The radiating light screen was shivering in the thunder, as if it would copse any time. The lofty figure behind the screen was also shivering, probably because of anger or even fear.


    Ye Hongyu jumped into the abyss. The Hierarch and Zhao Nanhai were certain that she would be dead. But they still sent many people down the abyss to locate her body. It was extremely dangerous to go down the abyss among the cliffs. The person in charge was a powerful Knowing Destiny figure from the South Sea. He led many other powerful men from Taosim and searched for over ten days down there. Even powerful as they were, only one fifth of them were able toe back to Peach Mountain. But most importantly, they were not able to bring back the body the Hierarch had asked for. Instead, they could only bring back very bad news.


    The Hierarch was furious. And his voice thundered throughout the Divine Hall. People by the stairs were scared and restless. They did not dare to say anything or know what punishment they were facing.


    After a long while, the Hierarch calmed down and his voice became normal. Only his closest subordinates could tell that he was still anxious.


    ¡°Find her, and kill her, whatever it takes.¡±


    ...


    ...


    The Divine Halls of West-Hill could not locate Ye Hongyu¡¯s body down the abyss. But they did see a few wheel tracks and human footsteps. It was shocking.


    It could only mean that Ye Hongyu was still alive. She jumped down the abyss and fell into the clouds. Everyone thought she was definitely dead. Yet she survived. She did something that only Haotian was able to do.


    But how?


    It had to be exined from the beginning since half a year ago. When a letter was sent out via a secret channel from the Divine Hall of Judgment and delivered to a person elsewhere. It was an invitation.


    To make a long story short, it actually started the night when the Hierarch Xiong Chumo, the middle-aged priest and Zhao Nanhai sieged Ye Hongyu.


    The day before, Chu Yoxian and Chen Qi made an impassioned speech in the Divine Hall. They sent an invitation to Ye Hongyu on behalf of Ning Que and conveyed the contempt to the Divine Halls of West-Hill from the Academy and Tang.


    Because of Ye Su, also because of her assumption of the Abbey Dean¡¯s n, Ye Hongyu did not ept Ning Que¡¯s abrupt invitation. But instead of killing them, she sent them to the Secluded Pavilion.


    The Secluded Pavilion was the ce where the Divine Halls of West-Hill kept all the traitors and captives from the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. It was intensively guarded and enveloped in countless killing arrays. Throughout the years, no one except for the former Wei Guangming had ever left this prison alive. Even Ning Que was not able to get Chen Pipi out when he was imprisoned here.


    Chu Youxian and Chen Qi was sent to the darkest and narrowest cell behind the iron fence in the Secluded Pavilion by ck-robed deacons from the Divine Hall of Judgment. They were not hoping that they could ever get out of Peach Mountain again. They knew they were either facing death sentence or lifetime imprisonment. Either way it was desperate.


    Fortunately no one came for an inquest from dawn to dark. They were exempted from the renowned brutal tortures in the Divine Hall of Judgment.


    They figure it out pretty quickly. They were exempted from the tortures that would have made themmit suicide only because of Ye Hongyu.


    Either today or tomorrow, she would probably execute Chu Youxian and Chenqi ruthlessly. But she would not torture them. That was the best generosity she could spare them.


    She did not ept Ning Que¡¯s invitation. But it seemed she did not want to irritate him either.


    Chu Youxian and Chen Qi sat in the cell and looked at the rock walls silently. There was nothing else except for a bucket of fresh water. No one ever delivered any food.


    There was no torture, horrible punishment, or any attention. A long wait was also a kind of cruelty. Not knowing when they would be killed was making Chu Youxian even more anxious and restless. Colors were drained further from his face.


    Compared to him, Chen Qi thought more. Since no one ever came to them, he wondered if Ye Hongyu was waiting form them tomit suicide by knocking their heads against the wall. Extreme quietness always made people think wildly, especially for someone like him who was good at plotting. The more he thought about it the more certain he became.


    Ye Hongyu¡¯s generosity and mercy was simply to give them a chance tomit suicide.


    He told this to Chu Youxian and made him even paler. Immediately upon hearing this, Chu Youxian asked what they should do: to kill themselves right away or wait for another day?


    But Chen Qi did not hear his question because when Chu Youxian said so, they heard a horrifying bang outside their cell andpletely covered Chu Youxian¡¯s most courageous question of his life.


    Together with that horrible bang came a quake. Even the cell deep inside the mountain was severely shaking. Water sshed out of the bucket.


    Chu Youxian hold against the wall and could barely stood steadily. He felt dizzy.


    Is this an earthquake? Chen Qi got worried and walked immediately to the rock window. Looking outside toward the cliffs, he could see nothing but a bright moon hanging in the sky.


    He was pretty sure that the horrible bang came from outside the cliff, while the quake came from somewhere high up on Peach Mountain. Something must have happened up there.


    Immediately after that, a series of huge bangs were heard on top of Peach Mountain. The quake spread to the cell and sshed more water. The floor was wet and water came to Chu Youxian.


    Chu Youxian took two steps backward. He turned pale and asked Chen Qi, ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±


    Chen Qi shook his head, ¡°No idea.¡±


    Since they were being imprisoned, no one would tell them that several most powerful cultivators of Taoism were conducting a vital fight inside the ck Divine Hall of Judgment on top of Peach Mountain.


    The horrible bangs and quakes were generated by the fight. Then they heard some footsteps. Chu Youxian and Chen Qi turned and saw a ck-robed deaconing to the fence. He took out the key, opened the fence and beckoned them to follow.


    The ck-robed deacon was around forty years old. He was extremely pale, not because of sickness or fear, butck of exposure to sunlight throughout the years. While he took out the key, opened the fence and beckoned them toe out, the ck-robed deacon showed no expression at all. He was very calm.


    Chu Youxian and Chen Qi looked into each others¡¯ eyes and found doubts and concerns. It happened suddenly. They had no idea whether it was good or bad to be taken out of the cell. Were they going to be sentenced or not?


    Coming out of the cell, they walked through a very long tunnel. The tunnel was built with rocks. It was slightly higher than a regr person at the width of two persons. The tunnel turned from a storeroom behind the Secluded Pavilion and headed down Peach Mountain. Dim light cast clear shadows of the two of them and the ck-robed deacon on the dry floor. Their footsteps were heard distinctly.


    No one blocked their way. The ck-robed deacon walked ahead emotionlessly. He seemed to be certain that because everyone else in the Secluded Pavilion was in deep sleep now. No one would hear their footsteps no matter how distinctive they were.


    The tunnel was fairly long. Chu Youxian and Chen Qi spent four hours walking through it until they were almost exhausted. Yet the exit was still nowhere to be seen. Chen Qi found that the walls along the tunnel were lightly dusted with some trace of wind wiped by. The oil in themp was newly added.


    Based on the trace of wind, the inclination of the tunnel and the distance they had walked, Chen Qi concluded that they were about to reach the foot of the mountain, which made him a bit relieved. Yet knowing that the tunnel wasing to an end, he could not help from bing nervous again. It was because all the things he noticed were suggesting that no one had ever walked through this tunnel for at least decades.


    Inside the Secluded Pavilion of the Divine Halls of West-Hill, there was such a secret escape. Who built it? And where was the ck-robed deacon taking the two of them to?


    Chen Qi seemed to have figured the reason but found even more confused. Being the Great Divine Priest of Judgment, Ye Hongyu should definitely be aware this biggest secret in the Secluded Pavilion which even the Hierarch did not know. And it was only her who could have silenced the entire Secluded Pavilion. But why did she secretly free him and Chu Youxian from the prison?


    They finally reached the end of the tunnel. The ck-robed deacon pushed on a ck brick and deactivated the array. He pulled out his Taoist sword and carefully pushed aside the poisonous bush in front of them, then led Chu Youxian and Chen Qi out.


    Freedom awaited outside the tunnel. Countless stars shone in the sky. The star light was filtered by the clouds among the cliffs, integrated with the foul fog down the abyss, and eventually turned into some weird purple light.


    Chen Qi and Chu Youxian stared at the weirdly purple star light and enjoyed the same amount of excitement and confusion. They were stunned.


    The ck-robed deacon did not spare them a chance to ask questions. He turned his palm and ced two pills into their mouth. Before Chu Youxian could react, he had already swallowed the pill and it melted in his stomach. He was scared and enraged. He assumed it was some poison as he felt burning pain and disgust in the belly.


    You should have killed me in the cell. What¡¯s the point taking me all the way here and poison me outside the Secluded Pavilion? Don¡¯t you know it¡¯s torture to give people hope that ends in despair? Are people from the Divine Hall of Judgment all insane? Don¡¯t you know my feet were bleeding after such a long walk?


    Chu Youxian fell onto the ground out of fear. He felt like losing his mind when thinking of these nonsense and could only wait helplessly for hisst moment. But after a while he realized that instead of falling into aa, he was bing more sober...


    What happened? He stood up in frustration, shook his head and took quite a while to getpletely sober. When he saw the foul fog under the starlight and recalled what they had heard in Chang¡¯an, he realized the pill was an antidote rather than poison, which made him feel embarrassed.


    He wiped off the sweat on his forehead, shook off some rotted leaves and trotted toward the ck-robed Deacon and Chen Qi. When he was about to proceed he realized that the other two had stopped.


    There were mostly vines at the bottom of the abyss instead broad-leaf trees. They should have a more open view here than in a real forest. But actually the view was very limited. The starlight was mostly covered by the clouds among the cliffs hence became purple. While they stood there for a while the foul fog thickened, and the entire ce became even darker.


    Chu Youxian noticed that they were standing on a thickyer of rotten leaves. He looked at the vague shadows of the surrounding vines and felt chilled when thinking of the horrible abyss behind the Secluded Pavilion people used to talk about.


    The foul fog in the abyss carried naturally gathered poisonous elements. They mingled with the vicious psyches left by the countless dead prisoners in the Secluded Pavilion and added to the horror. They were standing right in the middle of the fog.


    Now Chu Youxian knew that if it was not because of the antidote he was given previously, he would have been poisoned to death. Even though he was still alive, he could not help from being scared. He sweated further upon the miserable whistling of some animals behind the climbing vines.


    There were the foul fog and vicious animals that had lived in the poisonous environment for countless years. It was said that no one could make it out of the abyss. Would they be exceptions? If no, were they doomed? Chu Youxian could not help being worried. He looked at Chen Qi and the ck-robed deacon, and wondered why they were not going further.


    Wind roared down from the cliffs and thinned the foul fog. Starlight shed again and Chu Youxian saw agoon nearby. There were some indistinct shadows on the other side of thegoon, which seemed to be a few carriages.


    How could there be some carriages in such a secluded and dangerous ce? Whose carriages are those? Who are there? Are they waiting for us? Then why are we not going there?


    Chu Youxian barely escaped death tonight and ended up in a deadly abyss. He was a bit mentally disturbed and could not think straight right now.


    Chen Qi, as the think tank of the Fish-Dragon Gang, was renowned for his ruthlessness and definitely had a clearer mind. He took a few nces at the carriages then looked above to the dark sky as the ck-robed deacon did.


    They were expecting something to fall from the sky above.


    Chen Qi seemed to have figured out why. The Academy¡¯s n might have worked. Ye Hongyu was indeed defecting Taoism. But why did she choose to leave at midnight via such a dangerous route?


    He was confused. Was Ye Hongyu really going to jump down from atop the Peach Mountain, pierce through the clouds, and fall onto the bottom of the abyss, as the ck-robed deacon hinted?


    The distance from the top of Peach Mountain to the bottom of the abyss was almost like from Heaven to Earth. There were numerous dangers among the cliffs and equally dangerous foul fog down at the bottom. Whoever jumped down could never survive.


    Sangsang did not die because she was Haotian. Ning Que survived because he jumped down together with Sangsang who held him in the arms when they reached the bottom.


    There was no one to catch Ye Hongyu. Sangsang had returned to the Divine Kingdom. Then how could she survive?


    She was doomed. Chen Qi thought desperately. That was also what the Hierarch Xiong Chumo, the middle-aged priest, Zhao Nanhai, and even the Abbey Dean assumed.


    There were two massive arrays among the cliffs behind Peach Mountain, as well as many forbidden areas since ancient times. They were the collective wisdom of Taoism throughout the ages. They did not belong to the Divine Hall of Judgment but ran autonomously as living beings, and was empowered by the nature.


    Apart from the fall from top to bottom, the most dangerous thing in this so-called escape route was the foul fog, which represented the collective wisdom of Taoism. Even if Master Yan Se were revived, he would never be able to deactivate the arrays within a short period of time. Who could ever make it within the few seconds of falling?


    However, something did punctuate the air among the cliffs. And someone did jump down from the peak!


    Chen Qi became extremely nervous. He was not like Ning Que who had blind confidence in Ye Hongyu. He was worried that he would witness Ye Hongyu¡¯s death in a few seconds.


    Indeed, as he reasoned, no matter how powerful Ye Hongyu was, or even if she had mastered Yan Se¡¯s talisman skills instantly, she would never survive it.


    But she did jump down.


    She was severely wounded by the three most powerful figures in Taoism. Then she came to the balcony. Instead of looking afar, she walked calmly to the edge under the starlight and jumped into the abyss together with the falling snow kes.


    No matter what, she was doomed.


    But right then a veryplicated array intent was formed from the foul fog down the abyss. Two more array intents were formed on the cliffs and joined together in the purple starlight.


    Chu Youxian and Chen Qi could not understand why they felt like smelling something immediately as they sensed the array intent. Perhaps they arrays did have some scent?


    It was a smell of iron, rust, sweet, bitter and somewhat pungent. Then it turned into a smell of rocks, or more precisely the smell of the moss on rocks, moist and greenish, but not creamy. It seemed like dried moss.


    What did the smell of iron stand for? Firmness? What about the rocks and moss? Chu Youxian and Chen Qi were shocked and anxious, and found it hard to breathe normally. The reason for their difficulty in breathing was because they felt as if their chests were being filled up with rocks. Those rocks were sharp and digging into their flesh.


    Which array was that? They were shocked. Turning back and looking to the origin of the array intents, the carriage on the other side of thegoon, they wondered who was sitting inside and how could that person be so powerful.

 Chapter 1048 - Are You Not Battle-Dressed? Let’s Share The Plate For Breast!

    <h4>Chapter 1048: Are You Not Battle-Dressed? Let¡¯s Share The te For Breast!</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The powerful array intent spread along the cliff to the peak of Peach Mountain, and then spread toward the night with the fog. The speed of the spread was not fast in people¡¯s perceptions, just like a stone rolling. But in the real world, the array intent was formed quickly, melted together and became very thick. It seemed to be turned into the real cloud even though it had no shape or mass.


    Under the turbulence of this powerful array intent, the fog at the bottom of the abyss slowly spread away, and the starlight returned from the purple to white, its original color. The situation on the ground could finally be seen clearly.


    Chu Youxian and Chen Qi felt that the array intent was spreading like a rolling stone, and they found that there were really many stones rolling on the ground when they finally got a clear look at the ground.


    Thousands of stones kept rolling by a pond and formed a certain pattern. Meanwhile, the clouds floated among the cliffs also formed a certain pattern.


    Then a more miraculous thing happened on the cliff. Among the smooth and seamless stone walls, the wild trees thrived even though they were exposed to wind and rain and the majesty of the arrays for countless years.


    ( Boxno vel. co m ) At this point, inspired by the array intent, these wild trees with the strongest vitality began to move among the cliffs. Their roots were still deeply embedded in the soil behind the stone walls, and the leaves kept swaying under the starlight.


    This was a grand array, a real grand array. The array was really grand.


    Thousands of stones at the bottom of the abyss, those shaking trees among the cliffs, the fallen gravel, and the clouds were all parts of the grand array.


    If the array was a Grand Talisman, then every stroke that wrote the talisman was breaking the mountain. Heaven and Earth were paper, the stones were stamps, the fog in the abyss was ink, and the pond by the carriage was ink stone.


    The grand array was remarkable, and the person who arranged it was even more remarkable. It was very hard to find such a person in the world today. Throughout history, probably only the Great Divine Priest of Light who founded Devil¡¯s Doctrine, of ck Ink Garden and the predecessor who arranged Array of Peach Mountain in the Divine Hall of West-Hill were capable of doing so.


    Even if these three were toe alive, it would still take a long time for them to arrange such a grand array. Besides, it would be more difficult to not alert these Grand Cultivators at the peak of Peach Mountain.


    Sensing the powerful array intent, Chen Qi finally felt more confidence that Ye Hongyu might survive, turning to look up to the night sky.


    The array intent seemed to be spread slowly, but actually it only took a very short time to make the array work. Ye Hongyu just jumped from the Divine Hall of Judgement, looking like an inconspicuous ck spot among the cliffs.


    A loud whistling sound echoed among the cliffs. Ye Hongyu kept falling at a high speed. Chen Qi knew that she would be safe soon, but he still felt what he saw was startling.


    It was indeed startling. And there were two arrays among the cliffs: Array of Blinding Eyes, and Array of Unsettling Heart.


    The Array of Blinding Eyes was a magical array used to blind prying eyes by the Divine Halls of West-Hill, which might have little influence on Ye Hongyu. But what about the Array of Unsettling Heart? How could she keep her Taoist Heart calm?


    An impalpable array intent generated among the cliffs which contained the cold killing psyche of Taoism and the hatred from countless prisoners of Secluded Pavilion. The killing intention was so strong that the world trembled.


    The stone wall trembled, and the clouds outside the wall began to tremble too. The vibration caused by the array intent fell on Ye Hongyu who was still falling at a high speed in a magical way.


    Her body paused slightly in the night sky.


    Her Gown of Judgment which was already severely damaged in the previous battle was broken into pieces at this point, which was not caused by the mountain wind among the cliffs, but by the intent of the Array of Unsettling Heart.


    The shock fell on her Taoist heart, raising countless waves on her ocean of consciousness and elerating her heart rate. It seemed that her ocean of consciousness would burst and her heart would rupture the next moment.


    Ning Que was almost killed by the shock when he climbed slowly among the cliffs back then. How could she survive tonight?


    Fortunately, the warm and tranquil moonlight helped Ning Que survive the shock that night. And Ye Hongyu was also lucky enough to get help from the array intent at the bottom of the abyss tonight.


    The wild trees among the cliffs kept moving back and forth in a very small distance. The leaves rustled in the wind and the soil around the roots of the tree cracked, which revealed indomitable vitality and kept washing out the psyche of hatred emitting from the cliffs.


    Thousands of rocks at the bottom of the abyss hadpletely stimted the array intent in the fog and clouds which spread toward the Array of Unsettling Heart which hadsted for countless years.


    That array intent seemed to be faint but could not be blown out, like candlelight, gently falling on the cliffs and totally shadowing the Array of Unsettling Heart.


    The rock at the bottom of Daming Lake was silent for countless years, but it was able to iste Heaven from Earth. The same was true of the hard rocks at the bottom of the abyss. Thus the Array of Unsettling Heart on the cliffs was greatly affected by those hard rocks.


    An inconspicuous gravel sprang into the air like a sharp arrow, piercing a hole on the Array of Unsettling Heart. At this exact moment, Ye Hongyu fell to the spot where the hole was.


    With a loud sound, a hole appeared in the sky outside the cliffs. The reason why the hole could be seen was that the starlight made it brighter than the surroundings.


    Ye Hongyu fell through the hole and sessfully avoided the attack of the Array of Unsettling Heart.


    But this was not enough, because she was still falling. Due to the gravity, she fell faster and faster, as if she was about to be a meteorite.


    She was indeed powerful and was talented in Taoism, but she never cultivated any skill of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Therefore, she could not survive falling from the sky like Yu Lian and Tang. She would definitely die if she fell to the ground directly.


    But it was obvious that the remarkable array master in the carriage had been prepared to help her. With a Psyche Powering from the carriage and falling into the pond, the water in the pond rippled, and countless array intent was added to that grand array.


    Thousands of rocks at the bottom of the abyss rolled again, and the pattern changed instantly.


    The fog on thekeside began to gather together and became thicker and thicker, finally turning into an air cushion. The fog was not the air, or to be urate, not the ordinary air. It contained countless toxins which could be seen as power. Thus the fog was air with power.


    That person turned the fog at the bottom of the abyss into air cushion to bear more weight.


    The whistling sound finally came to the bottom of the abyss from the peak. The beasts who kept making strange noises in the dark forest were shocked and ran away, and Chu Youxian and Chen Qi covered their ears painfully.


    There was another loud noise.


    A person fell heavily on the bottom of the abyss. Countless rotten leaves and green branches were shaken up and then casted high into the sky like fireworks, meanwhile the night sky was stained with blood.


    Seeing this, Chu Youxian and Chen Qi turned pale and wondered if she could survive. As they rushed to check on her, they unexpectedly heard a loud whistling sound.


    Dozens of figures swept to Ye Hongyu like arrows. They were all ck-robed deacons of the Divine Hall of Judgement. Chu Youxian and Chen Qi were shocked, for they did not even notice that they were there before.


    A momentter, Ye Hongyu came over under the escort of dozens of ck-robed deacons. She took a nce at Chu Youxian and Chen Qi and then kept walking to the carriage without any expression.


    Chu Youxian and Chen Qi did not look back at her and looked away, as if they dared not to see her not because they feared her, but because of the way she looked at this moment.


    She was covered in blood, and the shabby Gown of Judgment piled up at her waist casually. She was topless, and blood kept flowing down her body, which revealed a cruel sense of beauty.


    Unlike Chu Youxian and Chen Qi, dozens of ck-robed deacons had no expression on their faces and did not even look away.


    Chu Youxian and Chen Qi followed them to the other side of the pond. While approaching the carriage, they finally recalled their previous confusion about who the great array master was?


    They soon knew the answer, for dozens of girls stood by the carriage. They didn¡¯t see these girls because they were standing on the other side of the carriage.


    These girls wore masks made by tulle and Xiu Sword hanging in the waist. Just like their eyebrows and eyes, the Xiu Sword looked delicate but also revealed unyielding courage.


    They were female disciples of ck Ink Garden of the Great River Kingdom.


    With a light sound, the carriage door was pushed open. At this moment, Ye Hongyu had just walked to the pond.


    A woman came out of the carriage, wearing no sword but a blue ribbon at her waist. Her ck hair under the crown was thick and shiny, and her robe was a little loose, looking like a cotton dress. She was elegant and beautiful, wearing a pair of sses which was unique in this world. Just like the old days , her eyes were not focusing on anything. She was Mo Shanshan, the previous youngest Talisman master and the current Queen of the Great River Kingdom.


    Ye Hongyu walked toward her, and blood kept falling down her half-naked body. These female disciples of ck Ink Garden were shocked and dared not to look at her, wondering why she didn¡¯t care at all.


    It didn¡¯t mean Ye Hongyu was bold or dissolute. She didn¡¯t care that others saw her body, which was not because she was proud of her beauty and wanted to show her body to the world, but because she didn¡¯t take being naked seriously and she had already abandoned the concept of gender.


    From the moment she sat in the Seat of Heavenly ck Jade, she transcended the boundaries between men and women, for she was no longer an ordinary human being.


    That was the reason why she was so calm and indifferent. Those ck-robed deacons who were loyal to her must learn to be as calm and indifferent as her. Although Chu Youxian, Chen Qi and those female disciples of ck Ink Garden felt very ufortable, they dared not to express any opinions, thus looking away.


    Mo Shanshan was different. She walked forward to greet her and took off her pure white robe while walking. The gown danced with the wind and finally fell on Ye Hongyu, wrapping her body.


    Looking at Ye Hongyu¡¯s pale cheeks, Mo Shanshan frowned and asked worriedly, ¡°Are you all right?¡±


    ¡°I am fine,¡± Ye Hongyu answered without any expression.


    Mo Shanshan was still worried. She was well aware that Ye Hongyu must have suffered a lot to escape from that three powerful men even though she was prepared for this. So she asked again, ¡°Are you sure?¡±


    Ye Hongyu frowned and seemed a little unhappy. She said, ¡°Of course!¡± After saying this, she walked to the carriage, but did not throw away the robe that Mo Shanshan put on her.


    After entering the carriage, she closed her eyes, sat down, and then began to bleed.


    Mo Shanshan walked up to her and held her hands, getting very worried.


    Her slender eyshes were as calm as the willow leaf in the ice and did not tremble at all. But blood kepting out of her eyes, ears and lips.


    Mo Shanshan knew that this was due to the wound that three men had left in her body. She could only silently pray that Ye Hongyu could survive, at least could stay alive before they got out of the abyss.


    ...


    ...


    Several carriages moved slowly along the shore of the pond. At this point, the bottom of the abyss was shrouded in fog, and it was hard to tell the direction for there was no starlight at all.


    Chu Youxian and Chen Qi didn¡¯t know where they were heading and just silently stayed in the carriage with the female disciples of ck Ink Garden. Finally, they couldn¡¯t help but starting asking questions.


    The one who was talking with Chen Qi was Zhuo Zhihua, the leading disciple of ck Ink Garden. She didn¡¯t reveal too much detail, but the whole matter was quite clear since they saw the grand array with their own eyes.


    What happened tonight was all nned by Ye Hongyu. Even before Chu Youxian and Chen Qi delivered Ning Que¡¯s message to her, she had already prepared to betray Taoism, not because herplicated rtionship with Ning Que or because she had lived quite a long time in Chang¡¯an. But because she was Ye Su¡¯s sister.


    Like Ning Que, she also thought the Abbey Dean would not choose the most extreme solution. But also like Ning Que, she was used to not trusting anyone, even including herself. She would always leave herself a way out.


    She was very clear what kind of storm she had to face if the worst scenario were to happen, so she had to make sure that the Abbey Dean and the Hierarch did not know her way out. As for Ning Que who happened to be shameless, she would never let him find out what she nned to do.


    She only trusted those who were trustworthy. In today¡¯s cultivation world, she only trusted the Eldest Brother and Jun Mo from the Academy, and another woman who seemed very different from her but resembled her in some respects.


    Many days ago, a letter left the Divine Hall of Judgement and came to the capital of Great River Kingdom through the most secret passage, secretly making its way to the pce.


    Because of that simple letter, Mo Shanshan, the queen of Great River Kingdom, racked her brains to make her people and the Divine Halls of West-Hill believe she was still in the pce, secretly came to the Divine Hall of West-Hill and stayed at the Secluded Pavilion for several days.

 Chapter 1049 - The Blooming Tree By The Corner

    <h4>Chapter 1049: The Blooming Tree By The Corner</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Although Taoism was already suspicious of Ye Hongyu, she was after all the Great Divine Priest of Judgment. She helped Mo Shanshan secretly stay on Peach Mountain while Mo Shanshan devoutly worked on how to break through the arrays among the cliffs.


    They mutually benefited tremendously during the process.


    Mo Shanshan acquired much better understanding of the Bulking Array. Ye Hongyu watched her practice andprehend other skills by analogy. Tonight when she was fighting against the Hierarch, Xiong Chumo¡¯s Tianqi, she restrained her energy into a rock and elerated tremendously. That was exactly her application of the intent of Bulking Array.


    But there was still not enough time for Mo Shanshan to break through the Array of Clear Light in the front yard of Peach Mountain. Therefore Ye Hongyu had to take the back route as her escape.


    Apart from that, they had also made several ns for the escape tonight. But the Abbey Dean¡¯s decision was so ruthless that the other better options were made impossible.


    Some ten days ago, Mo Shanshan had gotten the route ready. When they heard about the unusual actions in the Divine Halls, Ye Hongyu¡¯s and her subordinates started the preparations. They waited patiently and then seeded.


    There used to be three Fanatics in Taoism: the Tao Fanatic, the Calligraphy Fanatic, and the Flower Fanatic. They were the most gifted and powerful female cultivators. The Flower Fanatic Lu Chenjia had retired from worldly matters and cultivated secludedly in Yuelun Kingdom. Ye Hongyu had be the Great Divine Priest of Judgment and Mo Shanshan the empress of Great River Kingdom. They both had made extraordinary achievements.


    No one would ever expect these two women to join hands and cooperate wlessly in such a secret manner. After all, they barely shared any experiences previously throughout their cultivation career, not to mention an intimate friendship.


    Ye Hongyu was putting her life into Mo Shanshan¡¯s hands when she sent out the letter. Being the cold-blooded Great Divine Priest of Judgment, she never trusted anyone, not even the Academy. Yet she chose to trust Mo Shanshan. Mo Shanshan, being the empress of a kingdom, did not even give a second thought upon receiving that letter. She left her kingdom immediately and risked her own life toe all the way to the Divine Halls of West-Hill.


    Where did this mutual trust derive from? Later on it was told as a legend by the New Stream. People asked that question constantly but no one could find an answer.


    Probably Ning Que was the only one who understood why because they were together many years ago in the basket down the iron cable, as well as in front of the mountain of human skeletons at the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He saw them fighting brutally against each other as well as fighting together through life and death. They used to be each other¡¯spanion in their youths. They used to ... chat like two ordinary girls.


    ...


    ...


    Down in the abyss, there was the dense foul fog. They still felt dizzy despite the antidotes given by the Judicial Department. Even the strong horses seemed exhausted and pulled the carriages forward extremely slowly. But fortunately those sent by the Divine Halls woulde any sooner.


    After a long while they finally saw some light prating the fog and shed into the dark forest. Yet they had no idea whether it was dawn or noon. Even though there was no path down the abyss, they were able to make their way out under the guidance of Mo Shanshan, the enigmatic array master and with the help of those ck-robed deacons from the Divine Hall of Judgement who were best at chasing and killing.


    There was finally a second group of people who conquered the abyss after Sangsang and Ning Que.


    The wheels rolled over theyers of rotten leaves. It was so soft that people sitting in the carriages felt like they traveling on the sea. Some found it enjoyable while the others got sick.


    Ye Hongyu woke up. Mo Shanshan was relieved and offered her some water. She asked gently, ¡°How are you feeling? Would you like something to eat?¡±


    ¡°Dizzy.¡± Ye Hongyu frowned.


    It was because she was hungry, lost too much blood, or seasickness. But she figured it was none of them because she was feeling pain in her chest apart from the dizziness.


    The pain came from her Taoist heart as well as her real heart. Her Taoist heart was shaking and her heartbeat elerated and her blood surged through her veins.


    When the heart and blood echoed, something vital must have happened. She lifted the curtain and looked afar. The forest was enveloped in fog. Sunlight fell gently upon her charming pale face. But the gentle sunlight blurred the scenes afar. She could not see through no matter how hard she tried. But she still looked toward that direction with fixed eyes. Somehow she just knew it must be the northeast. She knew it because the Song was located in the northeast. Therefore Ye Su was definitely in the northeast.


    The sunlight became gentler and softer. It was not going straight, and even started rippling like water, so did the scenes.


    Ye Hongyu stared at the distorted scenes in the soft sunlight and tried hard to figure it out.


    She seemed to see the Zhishou Abby, the mountain trail, the thin boy with a wooden sword on his back, the deep blue sea and his indifferent expressions. Then she saw the Verdant Canyon and him smiling in front of it. His figure was fading gradually. It was no longer as straight but became more lofty.


    Eventually his figure disappeared in the sunlight, nowhere to be found.


    Right then Ye Hongyu realized that her brother was gone.


    She closed her eyes, not to take a nap but to stop looking. Blood came out of her lips, not because of the wound but a broken heart. She turned extremely pale, because the gentle sunlight suddenly became chilly.


    After a short while she opened her eyes again, calm and extremely bright. There was no fading starlight deep down in her eyes, but like the brightest star hanging in the silent night sky.


    The blue ocean turned out to be the silk cloth around Mo Shanshan¡¯s waist.


    But her feeling was true, he did pass away. The brightest star shone deep down her eyes. Two extremely thin lines of blood ran out of her eyes.


    She showed no emotions or pain. She was not weeping, but bleeding. Mo Shanshan understood her deepest sorrow and saw the ocean of tears in her eyes. She felt for her and held her hands. Instead of saying anything, she just held them tightly.


    ...


    ...


    They came out of the Abyss and crossed the Verdant Canyon. Because of the well prepared n and the secret support from the Judicial Department, they were never stopped along the way. The Divine Halls of West-Hill were even not aware of their existence.


    Getting out of the West-Hill Divine Kingdom, they came to the roaring Great River. Standing in front of the renowned iron chain, Ye Hongyu stared for a short while and rejoined the group to proceed further south into the Great River Kingdom.


    It was not until then that the entire world was aware of Ye Su¡¯s death. Being the most loyal friend of Tang, the Great River Kingdom had gotten ready for the war. Even though the empress was away, the ministers had made the right decision. People along the streets were all wearing their Xiu Swords on the waists. They seemed extremely solemn while they walked through the autumn maple trees, as if they had all became soldiers.


    Along their way, Ye Hongyu had been giving orders via the ck-robed deacons by her side. She told her loyal subordinates who were still hiding in the Divine Halls because there would definitely be another round of house-cleaning on Peach Mountain very soon. She had no idea how many of them would survive. But she had to try.


    Down the stairs in front of the imperial pce, Mo Shanshan bid farewell with Ye Hongyu. Ye Hongyu would leave for the ck Ink Garden in Mogan Mountain where she could heal her wounds and take it as the new headquarters of the previous Divine Hall of Judgment. Although Mo Shanshan was worried about Ye Hongyu, she was after all the empress and had to take care of various government affairs. She had a lot to do under such a severe situation. Carrying such burdens she could not stay away from her throne for two long.


    ¡°I do wonder what you were thinking about in front of the iron chain earlier on.¡±


    ¡°Liu Bai reached the zenith of his swordsmanship when he was standing by the Great River. He drew the sword and sent it to me. I was trying to see how far my sword is from the Great River now.¡±


    The distance Ye Hongyu referred to was not their difference in level of swordsmanship, but something else.


    ¡°What Liu Bai and my brother did was something I have never tried. I have kept an indifferent attitude toward faith. Perhaps that was also another type of piety. But I might need to make some changes now.¡±


    Mo Shanshan said, ¡°The entire world is changing.¡±


    Ye Hongyu knew she was referring to the New Stream and said, ¡°I will hold my sword and guard their faith.¡± Upon those words, the New Stream had found a new guardian.


    During the process of Ye Su¡¯s establishment of the New Stream, Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword was their first guardian. Then it was Liu Yiqing. The Sword Garret yed an important role in the course.


    The Academy was closely rted to the New Stream. But neither the Eldest Brother nor Ning Que could have yed the guardian¡¯s role because they were non-believers.


    Ye Hongyu turned to Mo Shanshan and continued, ¡°I will need more help from you.¡±


    Mo Shanshan understood that. In the development of the New Stream, the support from a kingdom would serve as an elerator and help provide a more solid foundation.


    Just like the Academy could never be a guardian, Tang could only support the New Stream with their troops. It would never allow the New Stream to be the religion of the empire.


    But that was not a problem for the Great River Kingdom. People of this kingdom, despite their closeness to Tang, were after all Haotian¡¯s followers. They did not belong to the South School of Haotian Taoism. Moreover, she was the empress.


    ¡°That we will definitely provide.¡± Mo Shanshan pushed her sses a bit upward. It was cute.


    Ye Hongyu noticed her cute movement but frowned, ¡°Did Ning Que make that?¡±


    Mo Shanshan felt a bit embarrassed and tried to exin, ¡°It is very good for my eyes.¡±


    ¡°As long as you don¡¯t take it as a token of love.¡±


    Ye Hongyu mocked, ¡°You went to Peach Mountain to save me. But actually you were trying to help Ning Que. However is he aware of this? Even if he is, will he care?¡±


    Mo Shanshan looked at the blooming tree by the corner of the imperial city and said, ¡°That tree bloomed for itself, not for anyone else.¡±


    Ye Hongyu signed, ¡°What an idiot.¡±


    Mo Shanshan smiled, ¡°He used to call people idiots. And he used to call you an idiot.¡±


    ¡°Can we try not to rte anything about that shameless and useless fellow?¡±


    Ye Hongyu was slightly offended. ¡°Most women in this world do not cherish themselves. You are one of the very few who deserve my respect. But if you could not get rid of your weakness, you are no different from any ordinary woman.¡±


    Mo Shanshan was curious. ¡°What weakness?¡±


    ¡°Love. In another word, Ning Que.¡± Ye Hongyu continued, ¡°If you have desires, you can simply get any man to sleep with. Emotions cheat. To indulged those sensations is outrageously stupid.¡±


    Mo Shanshan found herself helpless and argued, ¡°It¡¯s different.¡±


    ¡°Even if you were right, even if love was sweet, you should try with someone else rather than Ning Que. He is the most useless and shameless person I¡¯ve ever met.¡± Ye Hongyu emotionlessly made the worstments to someone. She used to think highly of Ning Que even if he was indeed shameless. But at least he had something in him that echoed her philosophy, and even made her think that they were of the same kind.


    But now she hadpletely different perceptions. She could not stop the fire in the small courtyard in the Song because she was imprisoned in the Divine Halls of West-Hill. She thought that the Academy could have saved Ye Su. But Ning Que had failed her. To her, he was extremely useless and that had made her outrageous.


    ¡°I¡¯m heading off.¡±


    ¡°Take good care of yourself.¡±


    ¡°Will you be in the imperial pce forever?¡±


    ¡°I am the empress.¡±


    ¡°Have you ever thought of going to Chang¡¯an? Or ying a more important role?¡±


    ¡°But I am the empress... Although I was tricked into this throne, I am the empress now therefore I have to be responsible for my people. The war has alreadyunched. How could I leave?¡± Ye Hongyu said nothing further.


    She called Chu Youxian and Chenqi, gave them a letter and said, ¡°Only Ning Que can open it.¡±


    When leaving Chang¡¯an, Chu Youxian and Chen Qi were prepared to face death. They behaved extremely bravely when they were in the Divine Halls of West-Hill. And it was actually because of them that the West-Hill was in chaos now.


    Getting away from the West-Hill and arriving at the Great River Kingdom, they finally epted the fact that they were not dying and found some relief. But now upon receiving the letter they got stiff again, just like when they left Chang¡¯an.


    Chu Youxian found the letter heavy as a rock. He had no idea what was in it but he knew it was extremely important because of the solemn look on Ye Hongyu¡¯s face.


    He and Chen Qi would not stay in the Great River Kingdom. They would set off right away, go to Yuelun Kingdom via the forest by the turning point of the river, and eventually return to Tang. It would be a long journey. Carrying such an important letter, they could not help feeling overburdened.


    The carriage took them away toward Tang together with the letter. Ye Hongyu was ready to mount her carriage but she heard someone talking behind her by the gate. It was the Cat Girl taking to Mo Shanshan.


    ¡°Since... Haotian is no longer in the human world, why don¡¯t we go to Chang¡¯an?¡±


    Mo Shanshan did not answer. It was either because she did not have an answer or because of some other reason. Ye Hongyu looked back and found a mocking smile on the Cat Girl¡¯s face. Instead of saying anything further, she stepped onto the carriage and ordered her subordinates to leave.


    They came out of the capital and traveled until dusk. They got in to the Mogan Mountain and proceeded lonely on the mountain trail. The setting sun flushed the horizon. Ye Hongyu lifted the curtain and stared at the scarlet evening sky. She wondered, Where is the Divine Kingdom? Are you really there?


    ...

 Chapter 1050 - The Butcher’s Shop In The Town

    <h4>Chapter 1050: The Butcher¡¯s Shop In The Town</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Chen Pipi and others returned to Chang¡¯an. Ning Que waited for them at the city gate, but found that his Eldest Brother was not back.


    ¡°Don¡¯t worry. The Eldest Brother just has to take care of something.¡± Chen Pipi looked at him and said, ¡°Don¡¯t me yourself for what happened. My father¡¯s mind is like the Natural Stream Magical Finger, no one can predict where it goes. It¡¯s not your fault.¡±


    They finally met again. Chen Pipi was not angry or disappointed, and justforted Ning Que. Ning Que was not surprised, but his mind was weighed down, especially when he saw that the Fourth Brother sighed while looking at him.


    Ning Que bowed to them and those disciples of the Sword Garret, and then said to Chen Pipi, ¡°It is my fault after all.¡±


    Chen Pipi said, ¡°The Headmaster once said that don¡¯t regret anything that you do. I think the Elder Brother did not regret it when he was gone. We all acquire what we seek, so it is nobody¡¯s fault.¡±


    The Fourth Brother said, ¡°If you really think you are wrong, just don¡¯t make such mistakes again in the future.¡±


    Ning Que turned around to look at the busy fleet on the road outside the city gate and said, ¡°I won¡¯t.¡±


    People who had left home for several years were returning home, and there were also many people leaving home to go to the border area. As time went by, the situation on the maind became more and more tense, and the Great Tang had a tough time at this point. The country¡¯s resources and spiritual temperament umted over the millennium were all revealed at this moment. Whether it was the teacher in the countryside or the prostitute in the brothel, nobody feared the forting war.


    Numerous impedimenta and army provisions were shipped from the warehouses of all prefectures, and countless cavalry left the local military camps and sailed to borders. Although the newly-founded Northeast Battlefront Army was not ready for battle, they were also preparing to eliminate the army of Yan Kingdom. Tuyang City was full of soldiers and horses. At the General¡¯s Mansion, many tactical ns were gradually formed.


    Yulin Royal Guards came from Chang¡¯an and already arrived at the in behind Verdant Canyon, joining forces with the South Conquering Army which had been guarding the Verdant Canyon for several years. They were ready to attack the hundreds of thousands of troops of the South Jin and the Papal Cavalryman of the Divine Hall of West-Hill in Qinghe Prefecture.


    But the most critical and most dangerous battlefield was still in the northwest of the empire. Golden Tribe Royal Court sent all its soldiers to the south, and a war was impossible to be avoided. Military orders kept sending from the North Camp, and 200,000 most elite Northern Battlefront Army were ready to fight against those barbarians on the grasnds with their blood and life.


    But after losing Xiangwan in, the Tang army was seriouslycking in war horses. The well-trained cavalrymen could only be used as infantry, which was quite unsettling.


    In the coldest days of winter, Chu Youxian and Chen Qi finally returned to Chang¡¯an. Crossing the Great River, passing through the jungle and secretly bypassing the Yuelun Kingdom, they suffered a lot to make their way back to the Great Tang, but fortunately the letter was safe.


    Ning Que took the letter stained with sweat. Knowing that Chu Youxian had been hiding the letter next to his skin, he frowned and wondered why Ye Hongyu had to be so sneaky. Doesn¡¯t she know that the oral message is much safer? Unless she doesn¡¯t want anyone to know her message, even though she knows I trust Chu Youxian and Chen Qi.


    Crushing the hot stamp and tearing open the envelope, he pulled out a thin paper and saw what she wrote. The letter was short but the message it contained was very important. So he stared at the thin paper for quite a while.


    ¡°It¡¯s impossible.¡± This was the first thought that urred to Ning Que after he saw what Ye Hongyu wrote.


    After that spring rain, he never sensed her presence again. He watched the huge ship driving toward the Divine Kingdom and thought she must have returned to the Divine Kingdom. For him, she was already dead.


    But what if Ye Hongyu was right?


    That would exin a lot, such as why the Abbey Dean made that unexpected choice. But this was not important for Ning Que. All his strength was swallowed by the words on the letter. Is it true that she never returned to the Divine Kingdom but has been staying in the human world this whole time?


    Ning Que knew it was time for him to leave Chang¡¯an. After a long time of silence, he went to the pce and talked with Li Yu for a night, exining clearly many things to her. Then he wrote a letter to Mo Shanshan but tore it up in the end. He went to the gate tower atst.


    He was enjoying thendscape on the gate tower.


    When Sangsang came to the world, he watched thendscape at Divine Halls of West-Hill for a long time. Later, when she left the human world, he thought she returned to the Divine Kingdom and watched thendscape for a long time. He looked at those powerful cultivators, looked at the clouds, looked at the beautiful rivers and mountains of the human world and looked at the city and the country. But in fact, he was also searching. He wanted to search for the traces she left with his own eyes.


    It was early in the morning, he cooked a pot of vegetable porridge and drank it. He felt warm, and the snowke melted away the moment it touched his face.


    Then he walked to the city wall, facing the world and bowing his arrow.


    With the help of God-Stunning Array in Chang¡¯an, his Thirteen Primordial Arrows could do many incredible things, but also had to be subject to many restrictions. It needed many conditions to make the arrows really work. For example, he nned to work with the Eldest Brother to kill the Drunkard in front of the pce of Linkang City in the autumn, but failed because the Drunkard detected his intention.


    For these and other reasons, his iron arrows had never been seen in the sky of the human world for many years after the Rite to Light on Peach Mountain. But at this moment, he pointed his arrow to the human world. Who did he want to kill?


    ...


    ...


    After Ye Su¡¯s death, Long Qing left the capital city of Song Kingdom, and headed north in the wind and snow with two thousand papal cavalrymen of the Divine Halls of West-Hill. Then the Eldest Brother also left to search for Chen Pipi. Just like what happened in the past years, the Drunkard went with him.


    To put it nicely, the Drunkard was like a fallen leaf that followed the autumn wind. But actually he was like a virus that the Eldest Brother could not get rid of.


    The Eldest Brother found Chen Pipi and hispanions and then escorted them back to the Great Tang. But he just watched them entering Chang¡¯an and then left. No one knew where he went.


    At that time, the Drunkard might be able to catch up with the Eldest Brother if he reached the Distanceless State like before. But somehow his feet seemed to be frozen and stuck to the cold snow, thus he lost track of his target.


    The Drunkard did not really want to chase the Eldest Brother, for he needed time to think the whole matter through and he was getting close to the truth. He had figured out why Li Manman left. So he slowed down and turned to the East.


    His footsteps left clear marks on the snow. There was warm air in the footsteps, which turned out to be his sweat. He sweated a lot due to fear and the truth he discovered. The Eldest Brother once said to him in the capital city of Song Kingdom that he would regret what he did. The Eldest Brother was totally right about this.


    The small town was in the east of the Great Tang. He walked slowly on the snow, and only approached the town the next day. He did not return to his own home, but went to the only painting and calligraphy shop in the neighboring town, asking Chao Xiaoshu for a fresh pot of tea.


    Tea is not as good as wine after all. The Drunkard held the small porcin cup with his two fingers, looked at the yellow liquid in the cup and savored the slightly bitter taste in his mouth.


    Sitting opposite the Drunkard, Chao Xiaoshu looked calm. He held the tea cup high, and then washed the cup with the tea. Some old tea leaves were dancing in the boiling water, giving out a pleasant smell.


    The two did not speak and just quietly drank tea. The Drunkard enjoyed the sensation. He felt that Zhao Xiaoshu was qualified to have tea with him. Unfortunately, Zhao Xiaoshu was just an ordinary person, otherwise he might invite him to taste his wine.


    There were other two helpers in the shop who were said to be the owner¡¯s rtives. As time went by, these two aggressive teenagers had be adults and looked much calmer than before.


    Zhang San and Li Si were ying chess attentively, and they didn¡¯t notice that the Drunkard was staring at them. They were thinking with knitted brows, looking like those divine physicians who were good at ying chess at the Lanke Temple and in the Back Hill of the Academy.


    They used to y chess in front of the Drunkard and they were very nervous at that time, for they were the only third generation disciples of the Academy except Tang Xiaotang. If everything went well, they would be the new Jun Mo or Yu Lian in the future. They would die miserably if the Drunkard ever found out who they were. Even though their teacher was very powerful, they would nevere alive again. No one could make the deade back to life, not even Li Manman and Jun Mo.


    In the eyes of the Drunkard, Zhang San and Li Si were bad at ying chess. Actually the two were not ying that badly, just the Drunkard was good at ying chess.


    People who had lived for thousands of years were easily bored, so naturally they would try all the fun things, such as games.


    He and the Butcher had yed the games humans favored over and over again, and Grand Cultivators like himself usually were very intelligent, so he was exceptionally good at ying chess. Except a few talented souls in the Back Hill of the Academy and the Lanke Temple, no one could beat him on the board.


    After watching the two ying for a while, the Drunkard got bored. And he happened to finish his fifth cup of tea and the tea began to taste weak. He felt calmer, so there was no need to ask for a fresh pot. He stood up, teased Zhang San and Li Si, chatted with Zhao Xiaoshu about the news of the county school, and then walked out of the shop.


    He still didn¡¯t go back to the house, and he chose the only butcher¡¯s shop over the wine shop. Actually the wine shop was the only one in the town. Many things in this town were unique, which was exactly what he and the Butcher wanted.


    The butcher¡¯s shop was dark and smelled bad. It was the smell of blood mixed with meat and decaying excrement. The Drunkard frowned and blocked his sense of smell, then chose a rtively clean spot to sit.


    The Butcher was unhairing pigs¡¯ trotters. Dozens of chubby trotters were neatly ced on the chopping board and prepared to be burned. With a slight burning sound, the faint burned smell gradually spread, and the surface of the trotters became brown.


    Seeing this, the Drunkard shook his head. He took the gon from his waist and started drinking. He knew why the Butcher refused to give up this business or hobby, but he really didn¡¯t like it.


    After unhairing the trotters, the Butcher picked up the oily kitchen knife to cut them open. His arm suddenly became stiff, because he noticed that the Drunkard was awfully quiet today, which was very unusual.


    The Butcher turned to look at him and asked, ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±


    He and the Drunkard had lived in this town for many years. And earlier they had lived together in others towns. They knew each other very well.


    For many years, they just hid and enjoyed the fun stuff that began to bore them since they had enjoyed them for so many times. It was not until recent years that they started to meddle with the matters of the human world.


    More precisely, the Drunkard began to meddle with the matters of the human world, for he was faster. The Butcher was still in the butcher¡¯s shop, ughtering pigs and sheep. But if the Drunkard needed help one day, the Butcher would naturally stepped out of his shop to kill people for him.


    He knew what the Drunkard was doingtely. He had kept his eyes on Li Manman, the Eldest Brother of the Academy, and went to the capital city of Song Kingdom. He also knew that Ye Su was already dead, and even moved by his sacrifice while sensing the divine light from the East Sea.


    The Drunkard did not directly answer his question, but continued to drink alcohol. He did not put down the gon until he finally drank it up half an hourter.


    The gon had never really been emptied except when Sangsang finished it one time. But today it was empty. The Drunkard drank it up although the alcohol in the gon could never be finished.


    The Butcher became solemn, for he had not seen the Drunkard like this for many years. Last time he was so nervous was when Haotian came to the small town. And before that was when an old ox came to the small town with a broken carriage.


    The Drunkard put down the gon and looked up at him.


    All the alcohol he drank turned into sweat and came out of tens of thousands of pores on his body. His body became the source of a waterfall, and water kept flowing around, washing the mince meat and blood on the floor of the butcher¡¯s shop.


    His body was like a gon, being emptied at this moment. The water on the floor suddenly disappeared when the cold wind blew from outside. A powerful airflow rushed around the shop and made the shop sign rumble.


    Looking at the Drunkard¡¯s pale face, the Butcher held the knife tighter.


    ¡°I may have done something wrong.¡± The Drunkard looked at him and murmured, ¡°Li Manman said that I would regret it. Now I think of it, I indeed regret it. I don¡¯t know if I can fix it.¡±


    The Butcher frowned slightly and put the knife back. Then he walked up to the Drunkard and said, ¡°It¡¯s a good thing that Ye Su died.¡±


    The Drunkard replied, ¡°Now it seems that both the Academy and Taoism want to weaken Haotian. Then it might not be a good thing that Ye Su died.¡±


    The Butcher, ¡°What do you mean?¡±


    ¡°I didn¡¯t understand at the beginning, but I thought of one possibility when I saw Li Manman didn¡¯t go back to Chang¡¯an.¡± The Drunkard said with fear in his eyes, ¡°He just ignored Chang¡¯an and disappeared. The Abbey Dean also left Peach Mountain, and nobody knew where he went. What do they want to do? What is more important than the human world?¡±


    The Butcher usually didn¡¯t talk much and seemed to be foolish and timid. But actually he was very wise. It didn¡¯t take long for him to figure out that the one thing which was more important than the human world was the Divine Kingdom.


    He looked up at the dark sky, as if to see clearly what was going on in the Divine Kingdom at this point.


    The Headmaster had been fighting against Haitian in the Divine Kingdom for several years, and no information had been sent to the human world. There was no thunder, no rain, no hurricane and no revtion.


    But it was destined to be the most important battle in the world since its birth, for it would determine where the world went.


    The Butcher and the Drunkard both knew that the Headmaster was no match for Haotian. Besides, the moon was gradually dimming.


    He sat down in front of the Drunkard, picked up the bucket from the side and began to drink water. Only water could ease his irritation at this moment.


    His irritation was caused by anxiety.


    The Abbey Dean and Li Manman both disappeared, and they were looking for something in the human world. What they were searching for was even more important than the whole world, which was the Divine Kingdom. Or to put it more precisely, they were searching for a person whom everybody thought had gone back to the Divine Kingdom.


    What would the Abbey Dean do when he finds her? After all he never did anything good.


    The more the Butcher thought, the more scared he was. Does anyone in the world actually dare to kill Haotian? The thought tortured him, making him feel itchy, hurtful, horrified and unsettled to the extreme.


    After a long time, he finally put down the bucket. All the water he drank turned into sweat, wetting his clothes and the leather apron and then falling on the ground. Just the sweat fell on the ground gave out a faint bloody smell.


    ¡°Even if Haotian didn¡¯t return to the Divine Kingdom, why would he want to kill her? How dare he kill her? How does he n to do it?¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t know how he ns to do it. Even though the New Stream would weaken her, how could he defeat her? His arrogance unsettles and puzzles me.¡±


    The Drunkard answered looking pale, ¡°As for why he wants to kill her, I dare not to think about it. I bet even the Buddha dares not to think like that.¡±


    The Butcher turned solemn and shouted, ¡°He is indeed bold!¡±


    The Drunkard said with a slight voice, ¡°Have you ever seen him being not so bold?¡±

 Chapter 1051 - The Arrow Pointed At The World

    <h4>Chapter 1051: The Arrow Pointed At The World</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The Butcher said nothing. He recalled that many years ago the Abbey Dean had sent the Drunkard to the West Wilderness to meet the Chief Monk of Scripture. He was already trying to weaken her back then.


    ¡°He is indeed the first in Taoism throughout a thousand years,¡± the Butcher stood up, wiped off the water on his clothes and said.


    The Drunkard looked at him and asked, ¡°What should we do now?¡± Or rather, how should we choose?


    The Butcher said, ¡°Don¡¯t forget there are two Haotian now.¡±


    If she had not returned to the Divine Kingdom and was still in the human world, there should be one Haotian in Heaven and the other in the human world. No one knew which one was the real her.


    ¡°If the Abbey Dean is executing the order of Haotian above in Heaven, then he has a great chance to win. But I don¡¯t know if the Haotian in Heaven would fulfill the promise the other Haotian in the human world gave us. Therefore we cannot let the one in the human world die.¡±


    The Drunkard and the Butcher had lived such long lives that they were extremely afraid of death.


    When Haotian¡¯s light shone on the human world, they hid like mice. Ever since the Headmaster had found them, they had kept quiet and behaved themselves. They even continued to behave themselves when the Headmaster left for Heaven and the Abbey Dean returned. They never had the guts to rebel.


    But they still had desires. The desires were assemblies of countless instinctive desires of human beings. It was so intense and strong that they wanted to seek for eternity.


    Yet eternity belonged to the Divine Kingdom rather than the human world. They had Sangsang¡¯s promise, or bestowal. Therefore they found peace and joy and no longer had to cling to the life they had for tens of thousands of years, until they figured out that there might be two Haotian.


    There was such a problem in the past. When Sangsang was traveling through the human world with Ning Que, or even earlier on when she lived with Ning Que in the city of Wei, technically there had always been two Haotian. The difference was one of them was not awaken at that time. Since she had awakened, she was already no different from her counterpart in the Divine Kingdom.


    But ording to what the Abbey Dean had been doingtely, it showed that it was highly possible that the one failed to return to the Divine Kingdom and the one stayed in the Divine Kingdom, had probably set off on two different paths.


    Therefore was the agreement between them and Sangsang still effective? What was the Haotian in the Divine Kingdom thinking about? Who should they follow?


    The Butcher looked at the Drunkard solemnly and said, ¡°Fortunately there are the two of us as well. If there are indeed two Haotian, then ... we can take one each.¡±


    The Drunkard stood up and agreed, ¡°It seems to be our only choice now. Even if we made a wrong pick we would just lose half of the game. We still have a chance in the end.¡±


    The Butcher asked, ¡°Are you going as well?¡±


    The Drunkard answered, ¡°Of course.¡±


    The Butcher said, ¡°If she did fail to return to the Divine Kingdom and stay in the human world, you have to find her before the Abbey Dean and Li Manman...¡±


    The Drunkard asked, ¡°And you?¡±


    The Butcher returned to his chopping board and threw the pig feet into the huge pot. He stared at the pig feet going up and down in the marinated water and said, ¡°I¡¯m going to Peach Mountain. If Taoism is carrying out the order of the Haotian in the Divine Kingdom, they will definitely need my help¡±


    ...


    ...


    Apart from the calligraphy store, the butcher¡¯s shop and the liquor store, there was also a gambling house in the town. There were not many residents in the town, and very few of them were well off. Therefore there were barely any addicted gamblers and the business of the gambling house was always slow. But there were still a number of men who came to the ce frequently.


    Zhang San and Li Si sat by the table and stared at the tokens and the patterns of various shapes. They listened to the calling of the dealer and enjoyed the smell of women and liquor in the room.


    When he was in Chang¡¯an, Li Si used to y around like a punk. Zhang San was also a tough figure in his hometown. He used to fight for his mother and injured many vigers. They spent only a short period of time in the Academy and was yet to be well educated by Li Manman¡¯s virtues and Jun Mo¡¯s force. Therefore they were not reluctant to do things like gambling.


    ¡°Why are we always losing?¡± After losing a few coins Li Si said with resentment, ¡°I don¡¯t believe it¡¯s ourck of skills or intelligence. ¡±


    Zhang San tried to remind him. ¡°Don¡¯t you remember when we yed with the Youngest Uncle years ago we were also losing? The Youngest Uncle said it was because we were low in moral qualities.¡±


    ¡°How could we be low in moral qualities? If we were, how could we became our master¡¯s disciples? How could he say you are the son of the prime minister and I¡¯m the younger brother of the princess?¡±


    Li Si was irritated. He took out some silver and gave half to Zhang San, then pounded the rest on the table. ¡°Let¡¯s bet on both sides. I¡¯ll go for the big and you the small! At least one of us should win!¡±


    After a short while Zhang San and Li Si left the gambling house disappointedly. The came back to the store with their heads lowered. Chao Xiaoshu was washing the chess pieces in clear water. Upon seeing their expressions he figured they had lost all again in the gambling. He smiled and asked for some details.


    ¡°Betting on both sides is definitely losing. Anyone who does so is absolutely stupid,¡± Chao Xiaoshu said with a smile. But he did not look at Zhang San or Li Si. Instead, he looked over their shoulders toward the Butcher¡¯s shop across the street.


    Zhang San and Li Si looked calm. They stopped scorning and almost forgot the money they just lost in the gambling house.


    When going to the gambling house they had to pass by the Butcher¡¯s shop and heard their conversation inside the shop. Indeed, the people inside the shop must know ...


    But Zhang Nianzu had to be Zhang San, and Li Guangdi had to be Li Si. They were just two ordinary people, as ordinary as their names. Who would ever care about them?


    ¡°I have to write a letter.¡± Chao Xiaoshu headed for the backyard.


    Inside the Butcher¡¯s shop, among the wet floor and the slight smell of blood, the Butcher and the Drunkard sat together silently. They had finished their conversation, but could not calm down immediately.


    Suddenly the Butcher raised his eyebrows and pulled out his cuss. The cuss pierced through the air and was ced in front of his face.


    His body reacted even faster and already moved to squat behind the chopping board. The shining de reflected his solemn look.


    He felt some extreme danger. The same as that he sensed during the Rite to Light years ago on Peach Mountain. It came back today.


    The Drunkard stood up. His gown fluttered as if he would disappear in the wind in no time.


    They both sensed the threat from Chang¡¯an. The iron arrow was pointing slowing toward the human world, following that person¡¯s eyesight.


    Who was Ning Que targeting?


    The City of Yangzhou was flooded with blood and dead bodies. The blood had turned dark. The bodies were covered by snow, preventing them from decaying immediately. By the Fuchun River outside the city, there was also blood and floating bodies in the previously clear water. It was scary.


    A sacred sedan was ced by the river, facing the Verdant Canyon.


    Hengmu Liren sat in the sedan with his legs crossed. There was no expression on his young face. But everyone could sense his pride from his slightly rising lips and bright eyes.


    Recently he led the cavalrymen from the Divine Halls of West-Hill and ughtered countless people in the Qinghe Prefecture. The formerly peaceful viges were now stained with blood. The trees were dying in the fields. People could only see crows instead of magpies now.


    He was obviously proud of his achievement and his power. He looked to the Verdant Canyon far away at the horizon, and opened his arms toward the sky as if he wasmunication with someone.


    When Jun Mo fought against tens of thousands of enemies at that ce and surprised the entire human world years ago, he was merely a lowest manservant in the Revtion Institute. It was a pity that he could not join that fight years ago, worse that Jun Mo had already lost one arm. Even if he would win against Jun Mo today, there was nothing to be proud of.


    When he thought about that the pity became pride. Every sentiment Hengmu Liren came across would eventually be his pride, as if they were Haotian¡¯s seal on him.


    Suddenly he raised his eyebrows and waved some wind above the Fuchun River. The wind came with a slight smell of blood and tore severalyers of gauze around the sacred sedan.


    Oneyer, twoyers, and manyyers of gauze fell and shielded his figure from the outside world. His subordinates by the sedan and the pious followers standing in the fields could no longer see his face or share his honor or pride.


    Hengmu Liren did not like it but had to do so. He even had to restrain his power and refrain from being proud. He had to make his Taoist heart as calm as a dried well because if he were to continue to expose his pride, he would be located by that person. Even if he could not locate him, Hengmu was worried that it would attract his attention so that he could eventually locate him. Therefore he had to stay extremely low.


    Was that humility? No way. Humility was a virtue. But he was forced to stay low and found itpletely humiliating.


    Behind the countlessyers of gauze, Hengmu Liren kept his head lowered. His face flushed in rage and his lips shivered. He murmured with indescribable resentment, ¡°Come out if you dare,e out if you dare,e out if you dare!¡±


    Coming out of the Song Kingdom, Long Qing led his subordinates and over two thousand cavalrymen to the north. They were returning to his hometown Chengjing and joining the cavalrymen who had been stationed there for years.


    His elder brother had been taking good care of the Yan Kingdom. He had confidence in his brother and would never care about the trivial problems. He kept looking north, to the East Wilderness where he regained his fame, and to the ghostly powerful figure.


    Yu Lian was about to finish her task in the East Wilderness. The Divine Halls of West-Hill had tried several times to stop her but in vain. They lost many powerful cultivators and had to stay aside after those failed attempts. But he could not stay aside. It was not because he had regained his fame in the East Wilderness, but because the Yan Kingdom was located to the south of the East Wilderness. If the Wild People wanted to take back the south, then the Yan Kingdom would be the first kingdom they would conquer.


    All of a sudden Long Qing turned away from the grasnd and looked toward Chang¡¯an because a second ago he sensed some flow of psyche that skimmed over Chengjing.


    The psyche was so powerful that barely anyone throughout the cultivation world could possess it. Liu Bai used to be the most powerful figure in the world, and his psyche roared like the Yellow River. But even he was not able to skim the entire human world with his psyche. Then whose psyche was it? Long Qing knew it was Ning Que¡¯s.


    Ning Que¡¯s psyche was like an ocean. It used to be like this when he was bestowed with Sangsang¡¯s Divine me. And it appeared again today because he had the entire Chang¡¯an as his power supply. His psyche reached out to the entire human world.


    Long Qing kept quiet. He was not as anxious as the Butcher because he did not care that much. He was not getting ready to escape by using the Distanceless Skill like the Drunkard. It was because he was not Distanceless and also because he did not want to leave.


    Throughout the cultivation world, there were only three who had survived Ning Que¡¯s Thirteen Primordial Arrows: the Chief Monk of Scripture from the Xuankong Temple, Ye Hongyu, and himself.


    Among the three, he was the only one who actually went through the horrifying shot. The hole in his chest was still telling the story years ago. He knew that iron cuss so well, every detail of it. With the help of Tianqi and the support from Chang¡¯an, Ning Que was able to reach out to the entire human world with his psyche. However, in order to target a person, he would still need someone to help locate the person. In other words, he needed someone to help provoke his target to the highest level of his cultivation.


    Long Qing knew it. Therefore he was not worried. Because by now the Eldest Brother should have left the human world. But he was still silent. It was still the Thirteen Primordial Arrows after all.


    A virtuous man would stay aloof from any worldly sess. If only he had to win, that would be in a shooting game. The Academy was very particr about shooting. When Ning Que was preparing for a shot, the entire world was silent.


    Even the most powerful, confident and narcissistic cultivator would never be willing to be his target. The iron arrow might not be able to kill someone like the Butcher. But no one dared to risk it because years ago during the Rite to Light, the powerful cultivator at Knowing Destiny from Qinghe Prefecture was killed. The Elder Cui who was on top of the ns was also killed.


    They both died in a single shot.


    When Ning Que reached out to the human world with his psyche, he skimmed through the vast fields, mountains and rivers. The aim of his iron arrow also moved while he did so, and eventually targeted somewhere deep in the West Wilderness.


    There was nothing, no battles. He could not see any special light spot in his ocean of psyche. It was too far away, almost the end of the world. Even though his psyche could reach there, it became very dim and was hard to detect anything.


    But he still stared calmly at that point because he was about to do something. The Abbey Dean had left during the storm. Therefore he must finish something before he left Chang¡¯an.


    Long Qing assumed that his iron arrow could not be shot without the help of his Eldest Brother. They had tried to shoot the Drunkard in front of the imperial pce in Linkang. Although they failed, it was no less a shock to the Drunkard, and had caused the chaos afterward which ended in Ye Su¡¯s death in the small courtyard by the East Sea.


    In its optimal state, the Thirteen Primordial Arrows could take down any powerful cultivator. But it required the whole Chang¡¯an as his source of power, and someone to help him locate the target. However, many people had forgotten that when Ning Que made his first iron arrow shot from a thousand miles away, it was not the Eldest Brother who helped him.


    Many years ago in the courtyard by the Fuchun River, it was Jun Mo who took a step forward, introduced himself and provoked the Elder Cui to expose his full strength.


    ...


    ...


    The snow had stopped for a few days in the Wilderness. Now it fell even heavier and almost became a storm. The entire Golden Tribe Royal Court was heading south in the storm. Every male adult in the tribe on the grasnd was a good cavalryman. Therefore the Northern Battlefront Army was confronted with tens of thousands of good cavalrymen now.


    In the West Wilderness, a snowstorm was also roaring. The Right Royal Court had sent out all their best cavalrymen. Being far from the Central ins, their cavalrymen had not participated in any battle for years. This time they did not head south to the Yuelun Kingdom or to the horrifying swamp in the east. Instead they went further to the west. Neither the severe weather nor theck of supplies could have slowed them down because they were heading for Xuankong Temple.

 Chapter 1052 - The Magnificent

    <h4>Chapter 1052: The Magnificent</h4>


    <b>Trantor:</b> Larbre Studio <b>Editor:</b> Larbre Studio


    Immediately upon receiving the order from Buddhism, the Right Royal Court sent out their reinforcements. It was a great honor and opportunity for the pious Buddhists from the grasnd to be able to visit the legendary Buddhand. The snowstorm and long journey could never intimidate them. They regarded it as the Buddha¡¯s test.


    Yet the leading monk soldiers seemed to be pretty worried. Different from the cheerful and excited nobles from the Royal Court, they understood the situation much better. The Xuankong Temple had always been superior. But this time they even went so far as to seek help from the secr world. It could only mean that the Buddhand was undergoing great hardships and extreme dangers.


    Down at the bottom of the Giant Sinkhole in the Wilderness, it was still dark and gloomy as it had been throughout countless years. But nowadays there were many campfires on the fields spreading warm yellow light to theher world. They provided a direction for the miserable and gathered more and morepanions.


    Jun Mo stood by a meadow far from the campfires. He stared at the sky-reaching peak hundreds of miles away emotionlessly. He seemed much slimmer than he was years ago, and his handsome face got darker. The empty sleeve was swaying in the wind, and his newly grown hair seemed stubby.


    He had lived and fought here for six years. He would probably fight until hisst moment. But no one had any idea how exhausted he was because he never showed any trace of exhaustion or frustration on his calm face.


    The Prajna Peak was still imposing and steep as it always was. The yellow temples scattered in the lush forest were no less awe-inspiring. The chimes at dawn and dusk were still mystical and distant. The Xuankong Temple stayed superior as if nothing had changed.


    Rage had inmed the fields down in the Giant Sinkhole and spread to the foot of the peak. The outrageous uprising had made its way here but were defeated many times. It seemed as if they could never seed but actually the situation was changing. And the Buddhand was no longer in its full glory. The Main Hall was never restored ever since it destroyed by Sangsang. The Buddha¡¯s chessboard was thrown into the underground magma and could never be brought to light again.


    Many had died and many were dying. They were people from the eminent monks in Xuankong Temple, the nobles in the tribes and their loyal warriors, as well as the outrageous uprising ves. The chimes were knells. How could they be mystical and distant?


    Jun Mo stared silently at the Prajna Peak, the steep cliffs and the Buddha¡¯s relics. He seemed resolute although he had no idea when he could lead the people to the Prajna Peak and burn down the yellow temples. But he would continue fighting until he made it.


    The empty sleeve swayed in the wind and asionally got twisted. Jun Mo was trying to untwist it while an arrow was shot at him. He got it off with his iron sword and frowned slightly. A former female ve came to him and helped untwisted the sleeve.


    The uprising hadsted for many years. The wild fire had spread across the fields. Jun Mo knew that the Xuankong Temple and the Buddhand would eventuallyy down their mystical superiority and belief, and seek for help from the secr world, at least from the Yuelun Kingdom or the Right Royal Court.


    He would be confronted with more difficulties and might never be able to lead the ves out of the underground world to a real home. But so what? He tried, and was still trying. A man might lose a battle, but he must be resolute and broad-minded. He felt exhausted and lowered his head so that people around him would not see.


    He was the Second Brother of the Academy. Throughout the years he had stayed away from the Central ins and fought in the underground world in obscurity, and was almost forgotten by the outside world. He used to be the most courteous and dignified person. But now he was dressed in worn-out monk robe and boots. His previous glory was nowhere to be found.


    Yet whoever knew what he had been doing could not disregard him the slightest. Even though he lost an arm to Liu Bai and could never break through the Five States, and even though he stayed away from the Central ins, he could still shake the entire human world in a single strike, and spread it to every corner on the continent.


    The Xuankong Temple was dragged by the inmed rage of the uprising army. How could they spare any attention to join the war in the human world? How could the Yuelun Kingdom and the Right Royal Court be of any threat to Tang? Taoism and Buddhism could never coborate against the Academy again like the did years ago. The situation in the human world had changed a lot silently. And the person who made it was just Jun Mo.


    He only had one arm and one iron sword. Yet he had stopped one third of the Tang¡¯s enemies. In that sense what he did was indeed extraordinary, both for the underground people who had been enved by Buddhism for years as well as for the Tang Empire.


    It was impossible to find a word to describe what Jun Mo had achieved these years. If one had to choose a word, it must be magnificent.


    Jun Mo was not a pleasant person. He had always been quiet and solemn, and was used to disciplining the disciples of the Academy with violence. He could not even convey his affection properly. Therefore he was never respected as the Eldest Brother, or as loved as Chen Pipi.


    Jun Mo liked to reason with his enemies but his reasoning did not make any sense in most cases. Therefore whenever his enemies recalled him, they could only get headaches.


    But Jun Mo was still magnificent.


    Jun Mo could always see the vast ocean and the blue sky, and embrace a magnificent mind. He knew no limitation to his abilities, therefore every step he took was unrestrained. Because of his magnificence, he did not think that he was fighting alone. That was probably why others like Long Qing could never surpass him.


    He had subordinates and followers. At the beginning there were only a dozen of them, whereas now there were hundreds and thousands. His followers were all over the fields. He always regarded them as hispanions and fellow travelers.


    The thousands of soldiers stationed behind Jun Mo were his earliest followers and now the core of the uprising army. Throughout the battles these years, the former ves who used to know only how to grow barley and herd sheep were bing more and more powerful. They were only familiar with farm tools in the past. But now they were skillful at using weapons.


    They had very strong willpower and remained calm in the battlefields no matter what happened. They would never give up or surrender after a single failure.


    They were all like Jun Mo and shared simr spirit and character. They all had magnificent minds and noble sentiments.


    ...


    ...


    In the winter battle, Jun Mo and the tens of thousands of uprising soldiers sessfully broke through the defense line of the noble army. They came to the foot of Prajna Peak as they did several times throughout the years. No one from the uprising army was cheerful and excited because history had proved that they could not stay here for long. It was very close to the thousands of temples in the Prajna Peak. Therefore the monks would receive reinforcements in no time. When confronted by the powerful figures from Buddhism, they could never win with only one Jun Mo.


    But they had no fear for self-sacrifice. They had fought aggressively toe all the way here despite that they might have to retreat on the following day because that was Jun Mo¡¯s order. Was he trying to prove to the Xuankong Temple again and again that the uprising army was unyielding? Or did he just want to revive the sinking morale via the victories?


    Only Jun Mo himself knew the answer. Or even he himself could not be sure whether he was right or whether the person could echo from thousands of miles away.


    Down at the foot of the Prajna Peak, tens of thousands of fully armed noble warriors stood side by side with thousands of monk soldiers in kasayas from the Xuankong Temple. Among the crowd there were the powerful arhats from the Commandment Hall. And on top of the trails there stood the ultimate powerful figure: the resolute Qi Nian, World Wayfarer of Buddhism.


    ¡°You will never get to the peak. What¡¯s the point of making more and more sacrifices? The Buddha ispassionate and cares for the welfare of all living beings, so back-off.¡± Qi Nian¡¯s voice was like the chimes that resounded across the gloomy underground world. The tens of thousands of uprising ves heard his words and reacted differently.


    Jun Mo replied emotionlessly, ¡°I¡¯ve been there.¡± He held the tilt of the iron sword in his left hand and gazed at the scar on Qi Nian¡¯s face. It was humiliating for him.


    When Sangsang and Ning Que were trapped in the Buddha¡¯s chessboard, he had to make his way up to the peak by himself. He broke through their defense lines, eventually came to the cliffs and met the Chief Monk of Scripture. That was how he opened the Buddha¡¯s chessboard.


    During that process, he confronted Qi Nian once. Of course he won and Qi Nian lost several teeth and was severely wounded.


    ¡°Even if you could get up there, so what?¡± Qi Nian said calmly without any sense of being humiliated, ¡°Our master sits right there among the cliffs. What else can you do?¡±


    Indeed, even if he could break into Prajna Peak, what else could he do? Jun Mo had been there once but could not win. It was meaningless.


    ¡°I can do nothing. But I just hate to hear you bald donkeys talk about the Buddha beingpassionate and caring about all the living beings. It is disgusting and outrageous.¡± Jun Mo continued, ¡°When I get here, I will spit on your master¡¯s face and see how he would react. Will he let it dry in the wind or take his cane to fight me? But the thing is he walks too slowly to catch and kill me. So you will have to wait to see what will happen there.¡±


    ¡°In order to show off your prestige, you have already sacrificed so many people. I don¡¯t think that¡¯s in ordance with the Academy¡¯s philosophy or the Headmaster¡¯s teaching.¡± Qi Nian looked around the uprising ves dressed in worn-out furs and clothes and said with sympathy, ¡°Why don¡¯t we make peace?¡±


    If Ning Que were present, he would definitely mock and give his middle-finger. But Jun Mo neither mocked nor put up the finger. He was a courteous man who had no idea what the middle-finger meant. He just stared at Qi Nian calmly as if he was looking at an idiot.


    Qi Nian frowned slightly and asked, ¡°What do you want?¡±


    Jun Mo did not tell but sat down on the chilling meadow. He took out some gravel and threw them out.


    The gravel rolled on for a while and stopped.


    People wondered if he was doing divination. Could those gravel work as turtle shells or cow bones? What was the prophecy? But Jun Mo was not divine.


    His hair turned grey within a few days ever since he lost the arm. Then he shaved his head and started reading Buddhist scriptures. He broke through levels of cultivation and was respected as a master throughout the fields. But he was not converting to Buddhism or bing a monk. He clung to the teaching of the Academy and refused to talk about the ridiculous, the deity, the world beyond life and death, or the fortune told by the Eight Trigrams.


    He was calcting. His calction was based on the fragmented information he received and evolved constantly. It was a veryplicated process and required great arithmetic abilities. But as they all knew, he was outstanding in this.


    The gravel scattered among the dry wild grass. Jun Mo stared at the grass and gravel silently while he pondered. Ye Su was dead, which meant that the Abbey Dean did not care about the future of Taoism or his belief in Haotian. It also proved that he did not care about Haotian¡¯s being weakened. But why?


    He turned away from the grass and gravel and looked into the grey sky. Then he came across another possibility. There was a her in the Heaven. And there was another her here in the human world. If the belief was weakening, she would definitely be weakening. But before making any hypothesis they had to prove that there were two Haotian.


    Jun Mo could not prove it. He could only make his guess ording to the Abbey Dean¡¯s actions because that was the best exnation to what he had been doing so far.


    So did Sangsang not return to the Divine Kingdom? Was she still here in the human world?


    Jun Mo frowned. No matter if it was the Abbey Dean¡¯s own wish or he was carrying out the order from the Heaven, he would never let them kill Sangsang. Or perhaps it was because he could never let his enemy achieve whatever they wanted. But more likely it was simply because the Haotian in the human world was Sangsang. Jun Mo believed that Ning Que should have also sensed this and he would definitely leave Chang¡¯an to look for her. He had no doubt about that as he knew Ning Que and Sangsang the best. He knew that nothing meant more to Ning Que than Sangsang, not even the entire human world.


    But what would Ning Que do before he left Chang¡¯an? Once the Thirteen Primordial Arrows were taken out of Chang¡¯an they would lose its killing power. He would definitely make some shots before he took off. Where would he target at? It could not be the Divine Halls of West-Hill which were protected by the Array of Clear Light. Even the Eldest Brother could not break through, not to mention his iron arrows. It could be neither the Golden Tribe Royal Court nor the Yan or the East Wilderness. It must be here.


    Indeed, Ning Que must be pointing at the Xuankong Temple at the moment.


    Jun Mo was certain. Once Ning Que left Chang¡¯an, he would need him back as soon as possible. He was not narcissistic, but he was clearly aware of his abilities. In other words, it was their best choice. Ning Que was very particr about gain and loss. If he was going to make one or even a few shots, he would have to maximize the result.


    Upon thinking of that, Jun Mo looked above to a teau high up among the cliffs. It was where the Chief Monk of Scripture was. Many years ago the Chief Monk of Scripture was wounded by the Eldest Brother and Jun Mo for several rounds and followed by Sangsang. Therefore he had been dedicating in practicing.


    But as long as he was sitting by the cliffs, the Prajna Peak would never copse, or would the monks in the yellow temples and the noble warriors of the tribes ever lose their confidence.


    Jun Mo knew what he had to do. He had kept quiet for a long while after throwing the gravel into the grass. His enemies as well as followers were all wondering.


    Jun Mo pulled out of his sword, or rather, raised his sword to the gloomy sky. It was an upright and straight iron sword, and he held it up as if it were a torch.


    Behind him, the most loyal and courageous thousands of former ves went into an uproar because it was not a signal of attacking, which made them confused and anxious. But no matter how confused or anxious they were, they would never disobey his order. The uprising army retreated from the fields like a falling tide.


    Thousands of former ves covered the retreat while they stared at Jun Mo who still stood by the meadow. They were confused but not worried.


    Jun Mo never imed to be a liberator, a leader, a merciful god or a living Buddha. But he was no lesspassionate and merciful than a savior for the former ves. He was the true Buddha who would escort them to the ultimate happiness. As a Buddha, he would definitely be fine.


    Qi Nian ced his palm in front of his chest while the rosary swung in the breeze. An awe-inspiring and powerful Dharmakaya could be seen indistinctly.


    ¡°What do you want?¡± He stared at Jun Mo and felt somewhat worried.


    Tens of thousands of former ves were retreating like falling tide. The dark mass of people swept through the fields, mountains, rivers and whatever in their way. It was massive.


    Jun Mo said nothing but proceeded ahead with the iron sword in his hand. He walked toward tens of thousands of enemies by himself, and seemed even more magnificent. The iron sword pierced through the chilling wind and almost took people¡¯s breaths. Jun Mo was going to fight his way up to the peak, again.


    When he held his iron sword in front of the Verdant Canyon years ago, tens of thousands of elite cavalrymen were not able to move a single step forward. Today he was going to fight his way up to the peak. Would these tens of thousands of soldiers be able to stop him?


    Qi Nian plus all the powerful figures from the Commandment Hall of Buddhism might be able to defeat him as a team. But the Prajna Peak was a huge hill. How could they guard it?


    As long as he was determined, he would definitely break into the peak, no matter the cost. But what Qi Nian could not understand was why. Why would Jun Mo do this?


    He broke through to the peakst time to save his Youngest Brother. This time it was also for his Youngest Brother. He wanted him to feel relieved when he left Chang¡¯an for his important business. He had his reason and justification. Therefore he would and had to do it.


    In the gloomy world, the iron sword pierced through the air and deafening shes of killing weapons were heard. Broken limbs were scattered and blood sshed.


    Buddhist chanting continued and the chimes resounded. The morale of Buddhism was elevated. Countless powerful figures poured onto Jun Mo but failed to stop the iron sword.


    Jun Mo started fighting his way up. It took him three days and three nights. In the midnight after three days and three nights, Jun Mo finally came to the highest teau on top of the Prajna Peak. It was dawn again, and he finally came to where the pear tree used to be.


    On the other side of the vines on the mountain trail, dead monks¡¯ bodies were all over and blood flooded like brooks. He was also soaked in blood.


    There was no pear tree now and only lots of vines. Only the ruins of the destroyed temple could be seen as well as a dust stained white stupa. There was no one else in front of the white stupa except for an ordinary looking senior monk. He was the living buddha in the human world.


    Jun Mo came to the senior monk. Qi Nian was forced to jump into the brook previously by his iron sword and could note instantly. Therefore no one could ever stop him now.


    The monks from the Xuankong Temple were actually not very serious about stopping him because even if he could get up to the teau, what could he do?


    He was indeed the great Second Brother of the Academy. But the Chief Monk of Scripture had obtained the unbreakable vajra body, the highest level of Buddhism. Who could ever defeat the living buddha?


    The Chief Monk of Scripture opened his eyes and greeted him, ¡°It has been a few years. Mr. Second looked travel-stained as you were back then, but a bit more withered.¡± The Chief Monk of Scripture smiled warmly and seemed calm.


    Jun Mo stared at the gap by the teau and answered after a while, ¡°I would never have peace as long as I do not burn down the evil Buddhand. How could I not be dusty and withered?¡±


    In the gap, there used to be a pear tree. He was the one who chopped the cliff with his iron sword and took that pear tree to thousands of miles away. It should be nted at the back hill of the Academy now.


    It must have grown into a huge tree. Jun Mo felt some yearning all of a sudden. He had to finish this quickly.


    The Chief Monk of Scripture looked at him and said calmly, ¡°The arrow cannot kill me.¡±


    The most powerful and effective killing weapon of the Academy was no longer a secret to the top cultivators around the world now.


    Many years ago in the White Tower Temple in Yuelun Kingdom the Chief Monk of Scripture had taken Ning Que¡¯s iron arrow. More precisely, he did not take it because he did not even dodge.


    Nowadays with the entire Chang¡¯an city as the power supply, the iron arrows were much more powerful than they used to be. But the Chief Monk of Scripture could not be intimidated, as he had the unbreakable vajra body.


    When facing the same sets of the Thirteen Primordial Arrows, the Chief Monk looked much calmer than the Butcher. It was because they had different perceptions of death and that he had confronted it previously.


    Staring at the blood stained and pale Jun Mo, the Chief Monk raised his eyebrows in the wind. He was indifferent rather than arrogant because he was peerless in this world.


    ¡°There is never an all-mighty weapon in the world, not even the Buddha¡¯s chessboard, or the bell. How could the iron arrows made by some ordinary people in the Academy stand out?¡± the Chief Monk smiled and asked. ¡°I do not understand why you choose to shoot me when you have a greater chance to kill many others with those iron arrows.¡±


    ¡°For you, the Abbey Dean, the Drunkard and the Butcher, the iron arrows are not fatal. As for others, even if they could be killed by the iron arrows, why should we waste it on them?¡± Jun Mo was telling the truth. It sounded helpless but actually conveyed his absolute faith and confidence in himself and the Academy.


    ¡°But you still cannot kill me with the arrows,¡± the Chief Monk repeated. ¡°You¡¯ve paid great prices toe up to the peak only to stab me with your iron sword so that Ning Que could make the shot. Now that you know it can never kill me, don¡¯t you think you were wasting your time fighting constantly for three days and nights? Moreover, isn¡¯t it meaningless that you¡¯ve been fighting for years non-stop to get here?¡± The Chief Monk stared at him with sympathy.


    Jun Mo held his iron sword tighter.


    The roaring mes throughout the underground world and the Buddhand seemed overwhelming and might eventually burn down the entire Xuankong Temple. But he was the only one who knew that if they could not take down this senior monk there would never be an end to the war.


    It was probably indeed meaningless. But it did have some significance.


    ¡°You asked why we wanted to shoot you. The reason is very simple. It is because you are slow. You¡¯ve been sitting here on the teau forever. It would be a pity if we do not try targeting at you.¡± Jun Mo took one step forward to the white stupa. Rain water fromst night dripped and flowed by his feet through the cracks on the teau.


    Blood was dripping from his body. It fell into the puddle and sshed some water drops. With the dim lighting from outside the Giant Sinkhole, it could be seen clearly that some lines of blood were swirling in the water drops and tangled the lights into various forms.


    All of a sudden, the lights reflected in the water drops were dispelled. No matter refracted or softened, they were crushed into sprinkles and brightened up the puddle. The reason was that the iron sword had smashed everything on the teau together with the puddle and the water drops, so was the lights.


    Upon a piercing sound the iron sword was raised and broke through the air. It came instantly onto the Chief Monk of Scripture barely in a blink.


    The iron sword stabbed on the chest of the Chief Monk. A low bang was heard as if some heavy object had hit on a rock drum. Or a stone hit on a bronze bell, creating some resounding chime.


    Anyway, it could not be the sound of an iron weapon hitting on a human body because the Chief Monk of Scripture had obtained the unbreakable vajra body long ago. The living Buddha¡¯s body was nothing worldly!


    Jun Mo¡¯s iron sword used to break many cliffs, storms and even the Great River in the south. But it could not be pushed into the Chief Monk¡¯s body for even one inch.


    Looking at the awe-inspiring and calm Chief Monk of Scripture, Jun Mo seemed indifferent. He was not shocked but his sword-like eyebrows were dashing.


    A clear whistle was heard in the center of the teau and spread around. It frightened the birds in the woods, sshed the waterfall and swirled the falling leaves.


    Jun Mo whistled while he charged all his energy into the iron sword... and lifted it up!


    He raised his eyebrows and as well as the sword! The iron sword bended slightly on the Chief Monk¡¯s chest and was lifted up!


    For decades the iron sword shared Jun Mo¡¯s character that it would rather break than bend. But right now it was slightly bent because of the huge weight it carried.


    Jun Mo was trying to lift the Chief Monk with the iron sword. More precisely, he wanted to break the Chief Monk¡¯s bond with the Earth, where all his power came from.


    To be enduring and unmovable like the earth, it was the horrifying state of the Chief Monk of Scripture from the Xuankong Temple. It also told the source of his power.


    What Jun Mo wanted was to separate him from the Earth. Even if he could not break his vajra body, he could at least minimize his divine dharma skills.


    The Chief Monk of Scripture was the most powerful in Buddhism as a living Buddha. His profound level was unimaginable. Therefore he would never let anyone break his bond to the earth and cut off his power supply.


    The connection between an object and the Earth was gravitation, and namely the weight. The heavier the object was, the tighter the connection should be. Therefore the mightier the gravitation would be.


    The connection between the Chief Monk of Scripture and the earth was peerless. Therefore he should be the heaviest person in the world.


    The Eldest Brother used to say that the Chief Monk of Scripture and the Butcher walked slowest in the world. One of the reasons was that they were both very heavy. To cut his bond with the earth, one had to carry the weight as heavy as the earth itself. Who could ever seed?


    The iron sword created sounds that put one¡¯s teeth on edge. The slightly bent sword was shivering as if it would break in the next moment.


    Jun Mo was no less indifferent. His eyes below the dashing eyebrows seemed like chilling stars. There was no sentiment but only resoluteness and perseverance.


    The clear whistle was heard again on the teau and resounded among the cliffs. The monks of Xuankong Temple were shocked and scared on their way up.


    With the clear whistle, Jun Mo took another step forward. His iron sword was pressed against the Chief Monk¡¯s chest and pushed him one meter backwards! But the Chief Monk was still sitting on the ground. The bond was not cut off. Yet he had moved. It was at least proof!


    Indeed, the Chief Monk¡¯s body was almost rooted in the earth and seemed unmovable. But actually he had been forced to leave the ground a few years ago. At that time the Chief Monk was cing his palm on the Buddha¡¯s chessboard. It was Jun Mo who lifted the chessboard with his iron sword. The moment the chessboard left the ground, the body of the Chief Monk was lifted from the teau as well.


    Right then, Li Manman came and took the Chief Monk away from the teau for a tour around the Heaven and Earth, and crushed him. Today Li Manman was not here, but the iron sword was present.


    Along with some rustling, the skinny body of the Chief Monk of Scripture was pushed onto the broken white stupa and an outline of a human figure was created.


    Another clear whistle was heard, for the third time. There should be no more than three times.


    Jun Mo¡¯s iron sword straightened up suddenly like the Monkey King who eventually broke out of the boulders after tens of thousands of years.


    The iron sword was freed. From bent to straight, the iron sword had released all the tension onto the Chief Monk of Scripture. And the skinny figure was finally raised from the ground! Ever since then, the Chief Monk could no longer be unmovable like the Earth. He still had the unbreakable vajra body and was steady as a mountain. But how could a single mountain bepared with the earth? And did Jun Mo¡¯s iron sword ever surrender to a mountain?


    The iron sword was further lifted up. The Chief Monk was now a meter above the ground.


    The surface of the white stupa continued to crack and debris were scattered. His two grey eyebrows swung in the wind and smashed the leaves that fell onto them.


    He stared at Jun Mo silently, suddenly closed his eyes and started chanting. He finally sensed the danger because of the iron sword in his chest as well as the iron arrows from far away.


    In the sky above the Prajna Peak, a shrill whistle was heard. It was much louder than Jun Mo¡¯s clear whistle previously and much more horrifying. It was emotionless and ruthless probably because the object that created the whistle was simply steel. It carried no human emotions and was created only for killing.


    The pear tree from the teau was rented in the Academy. But there were still many vines and Bodhi trees by the cliff. Upon that shrill whistle, the thin and broad leaves started falling on to the ground. Countless leaves rustled chillingly.


    It was winter time. The chillness did note from some autumn wind, but rather from the arrow intent.


    The half ruined temple at the rear of the teau further copsed. It turned into scattering rocks and randomly piled beams, and unveiled a cave on the cliff behind.


    An iron arrow appeared on the left chest of the Chief Monk of Scripture. The iron arrow was jet ck. It was perfectly straight and wless. No one knew what it was made of but it seemed devouring. Theplicated talismans all over the shaft enhanced it horrifying character.


    The iron arrow showed up unreasonably and unpredictably. No one could tell why or how. One second ago it was still thousands of miles away. In the next it appeared in the Prajna Peak, as if it had nothing to do with the shrill whistle.


    It seemed like the iron arrow had never traveled thousands of miles through mountains and rivers. It was not like Distanceless that could pass through the interlining in the Qi of Heaven and Earth. It looked like it had been on the left chest of the Chief Monk of Scripture for years and was only revealed because someone thought about it just now.


    The Chief Monk lowered his head and looked at the iron arrow on his chest. It did not pierce through his skin and flesh, and seemed to have stopped. But he knew that it would beunched the next moment. Then the iron arrow started to press forward ruthlessly.


    It shivered for tens of thousands of times in a blink. The sharp tip kept pressing into the skinny body of the Chief Monk of Scripture. If someone could take a closer look, he would see the bits of iron falling down from the tip of the arrow!


    The Chief Monk¡¯s unbreakable vajra body was indeed unimaginably firm. Even the Thirteen Primordial Arrows that were made of secret alloys was worn out like this!


    Right then the shrill whistle was heard again! A second iron arrow appear out of nowhere on the right chest of the Chief Monk of Scripture! It carried the massive power from thousands of miles away and bombarded here!


    One iron arrow stood for an entire City of Chang¡¯an. Two iron arrows stood for twice the power!


    The bond between the Chief Monk of Scripture and the earth was finally cut off. No matter how unbreakable you are, how could you withstand my shots with twice the power of the entire City of Chang¡¯an!


    His face turned extremely pale while his body trembled in the air while being lifted by Jun Mo¡¯s iron sword. His skinny fingers were pressing together like picking up a flower in the wind.


    The wind on the teau was chilling. There was also the wind brought by the arrows from Chang¡¯an. The fingers of the Chief Monk were about to be pressed together, but pushed aside by the wind on the arrow. The intent of picking up a flower was gone.


    Then he was about to start chanting again. But with the wind on the arrow poured into his mouth, he was immediately silenced. Even if he could recite some verses, how could those scattered words mean anything?


    Twice the power of the City of Chang¡¯an was charged on the two iron arrows. The crushing power fell right onto the skinny body of the Chief Monk. With a bang, the Chief Monk¡¯s body was embedded into the white stupa. And the falling stupa copsed instantly, breaking into two pieces!


    Under the massive power of the iron arrows, the Chief Monk¡¯s body darted backward. It flew over the ruined temple and entered right into the cave. Jun Mo¡¯s iron sword kept him lifted and pushed forward together.


    Dust was blowing like thunder. And the cave started quaking. After a long while the thunders and quaking gradually came to an end.


    No one knew where the Chief Monk was taken by the two iron arrows. Around the Prajna Peak dust prevailed and the cliffs kept quaking as if they were about to copse.


    Many monks from the Xuankong Temple came up the Prajna Peak toward the teau. They heard the shrill whistle and saw the dust blowing on the teau. Although they had no idea what was happening up there, they could not help but feel restless and worried. On top of that, they heard the second whistle but still did not realize it was the iron arrowing from Chang¡¯an thousands of miles away because they could not see the arrow. The monks could only vaguely see an indistinct tunnel appeared amongst the dust.


    The Prajna Peak was a huge hill that grew out of the Buddha¡¯s relics after his nirvana. The teau where the Chief Monk of Scripture sat was the Buddha¡¯s left hand. Throughout the years, the Buddha¡¯s palm kept open, with two fingers pressed together as if they were picking up a flower, which used to be the pear tree. Many years ago, the pear tree was removed by the Academy hence there was no flower in the Buddha¡¯s hand ever since. The intent of picking up a flower was gone. Only the open palm stayed against the chest where it was covered by vines and Bodhi Trees on the cliff.


    When the monks finally got to the teau, they could only see the horrible ruins. The former lush vines were chopped and scattered like dead snakes among the ruins of the white stupa and the ancient temple. And the Bodhi trees were all gone, probably crushed and buried under the rocks.


    There was a deep crack on the teau as if it went down through the mountain to the brooks. And a deep cave on the cliff was emitting some profound horror. No one knew how deep that cave was, and whether it went directly to or thrust through the Buddah¡¯s heart. Was the Chief Monk in there?


    Deep inside the Prajna Peak, about a dozen miles away from the entrance, there were still thunder and flying stones. They hit onto the walls and created low bangs.


    The stones hit on the walls and created low bangs because it was a newly formed tunnel when the Chief Monk¡¯s body was pushed into the cliff. The surface of the wall was heated to red, almost melted and turned into magma by the friction.


    Deep down the cave, there was no light except for the dim redness on the walls. But the two people inside were no ordinary human beings hence they could see clearly.


    The dust was settled and the thunders ceased.


    Jun Mo¡¯s hand was trembling while holding the iron sword. Blood gushed from his wounds and fell onto the heated ground sizzling.


    The Chief Monk was still lifted in the air by the iron sword. His kasaya was torn and his cane was gone. The skinny old monk was stained with dust and looked miserable.


    The two iron arrows thrust through the chest of the Chief Monk. The sharp arrowheads must have nailed into the cliff behind the Chief Monk. Only half of the shafts could be seen slightly swaying.


    Ever since he had obtained the unbreakable vajra body, it was probably for the first time that he was wounded by human weapons. The monks from the Xuankong Temple would definitely be stupefied if they could see this. But the Chief Monk was not bleeding. Although he was thrust by Ning Que¡¯s two iron arrows, he was not bleeding at all. Nor did his pale face flush, or did any blood gush out of his chest.


    The wounds on the body pierced by the iron arrows were distinctive. But there was no blood, flesh or even bones inside. The body seemed to be made of gold or jade, rather than human flesh.


    The Chief Monk of Scripture stared at Jun Mo and said with difficulty, ¡°I¡¯ve told you. You cannot kill me with the arrows.¡±


    Jun Mo said nothing further. He charged every bit of his cultivation into the iron sword, and pounded it onto the two iron arrows emotionlessly.


    Pounding bangs were constantly heard from deep down the cave. After a long while, the pounding eventually stopped. Jun Mo supported his exhausted body with the iron sword and rested for a while. Then he stood straight again, looked above toward the cliff and nodded with satisfaction.


    He had virtually bent the two solid iron arrows with his iron sword, and turned them into shackles. They were thrust through the body of the Chief Monk and made it impossible for him to escape.


    The Chief Monk of Scripture could never step onto the ground. Nor could his back reach the cliff. The only connection between him and the outside world were the two bended iron arrows now.


    His bond with the earth waspletely cut off.


    Jun Mo was of course very satisfied. Then he recalled what the Chief Monk of Scripture said previously: ¡°We could not kill you with the arrows. But we can nail you until your death.¡± While saying so, he looked very calm yet bursting with pride. He defeated the living Buddha together with his Youngest Brother, and imprisoned him in the cave. How could this not be magnificent?

 Chapter 1053 - Countless Pairs Of Hands

    <h4>Chapter 1053: Countless Pairs Of Hands</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    It was deep down the Prajna Peak, ten miles away from the peak, the teau, the pit as well as the ground.


    The sounds from the peak would never reach here. The murmur of the underground rivers would never reach here. It was deadly silent like in a tomb.


    The Chief Monk stared at the two iron arrows in his chest and felt a sharp pain. He realized that he had not experienced any pain for so many years. It was fresh and vivid, and even brought a sense of mocking onto his aging face.


    He had practiced Buddhism for many years and acquired the indestructible Vajra body. He used to think that no one would ever endanger him again since the Headmaster was gone. However, a few years ago as well as today, he was defeated twice by the two disciples of the Academy.


    ¡°Do you think you can trap me like this?¡±


    ¡°You will have no water, no food, hear no voices, and see no lights. You will be weak and old, starving or even driven mad by despair. You might could survive, or get rid of these two iron arrows and step out of the secluded cave by using your tremendous will power... But by then, the Buddhand you¡¯ve been striving to guard would already be destroyed by my iron sword.¡± Jun Mo was not trying to threaten or intimidate him. It was never his style. He was merely stating the fact.


    Since it was nothing but the fact, he spoke with extreme calmness, hence it was horrifying. No water, no food, no sound, no light, being lonely and isted. What kind of torture would that be? No one except Lian Sheng had ever gone through such tortures. And even Lian Sheng was almost driven mad. What would happen to the Chief Monk of Scripture after this?


    The Chief Monk pressed his palms together with difficulties, and spoke to Jun Mo withpassion, ¡°My Buddha ispassionate.¡±


    He should have beenpassionate for himself, for his life in hell in theing decades. Yet he was beingpassionate for his enemy, for the Academy¡¯s choice.


    If it was someone else, he might have reexamined his n or even felt guilty when facing the calm andpassionate Chief Monk. But Jun Mo would never do so.


    ¡°Your Buddha ispassionate? Is the Academy notpassionate? Your hubris is nasty.¡± Jun Mo continued emotionlessly, ¡°Throughout the years, the Buddhand had turned countless living human beings into bones and exploited numerous souls. The peaks were piled up with human bones, while the golden tops were painted with human blood. How is your Nirvana charming? It is nothing but hell. To destroy thisnd and kill you and all the other bald donkeys should be calledpassion.¡±


    He said nothing further, turned away and walked toward outside the cave. He flicked his sleeve and his iron sword pierced through the air. In the meanwhile, pieces of rocks were chopped from the cliff andpletely blocked the entrance. Nothing could get inside, not the wind, the rain, the light or even the air.


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que waited on top of the city wall for three days and nights. And so did the entire human world. From the Butcher in the little town to Hengmu in Qinghe Prefecture, everyone waited in silence for three days and nights, wondering where he would target his iron arrows.


    If it was in the past, he might have refrained from making the shot. The ultimate killing weapon was the most overwhelming before it was shot. Once it was set off, the bnce between the two sides would be broken. Ning Que would never act rashly.


    But now it was different. The Abbey Dean had left Peach Mountain and disappeared in the human world. The Drunkard was no longer watching the Academy. The bnce in the cultivation world was already broken. Moreover, the entire human world had sensed Ning Que¡¯s anxiety. He would definitely make a shot today.


    Two holes appeared in the sky outside Chang¡¯an. They were not tunnels in the torn space, or actual holes made by arrows, but two threads of condensation clouds along the tracks of the iron arrows.


    The two threads of condensation clouds extended to the west for dozens of miles then disappeared. But it was already clear enough for people to see its direction.


    Two straight threads of clouds in the clear blue sky were a rarely seen marvel, as the rainbow connected Heaven and Earth years ago.


    Many people in Chang¡¯an poured onto the streets and chatted in tion. They were talking about which powerful cultivator Mr. Thirteen killed this time. The discussion was heated in the tea house. Some said it was Chanyu from the Golden Tribe Royal Court. Others said it was Haotian¡¯s gift to the human world, the young ve called A Da...


    The war wasunched and the Tang stood against the entire world. There were people dying constantly on the borders and everyone had been feeling depressed and gloomy until today. The two threads of clouds created by the arrows finally cheered them up, and almost brought them a carnival.


    Ning Que was also looking at the two threads of clouds in the sky. Light fell onto his face and made him look even paler. But his eyes were filled with joy. The two shots were exhausting, but also very rewarding.


    There were a few legendary weapons in the cultivation world, such as the Buddha¡¯s chessboard, the Um Bell, those holy items recorded in the Taoist canons, the recently unveiled powerful Tomes of Arcane, and of course the Chang¡¯an City built by the Headmaster. But most of those were bestowals from Heaven, or heritages of important figures like the Buddha.


    Very few of the legendary weapons were made by cultivators themselves. Currently it was only the River and Mountain Sandbox made by the previous wise men from the Academy and the masters from the ck Ink Garden, and the Thirteen Primordial Arrows.


    Nowadays, Ning Que¡¯s iron arrows were already well renowned throughout the world. Every cultivator knew it was a horrible killing weapon. But only few from the back hill of the Academy knew the reason why the iron arrows could have be unimaginably powerful.


    The power of the Thirteen Primordial Arrows lied in Ning Que¡¯s whimsical initiation, as well as the unparalleled skills of the Academy. It was a set of talisman arrows.


    Everyone thought that the Thirteen Primordial Arrows were a set of arrows. But actually they were not. A talisman arrow was a talisman rather than an arrow. More specifically, the Thirteen Primordial Arrows were talismans carried by the arrows. Whenever Ning Que made a shot, he wrote a talisman in the human world.


    The moment the arrow left the bowstring, the shaft was covered by talismans. But that was not the end of writing a talisman. Instead, it was just the first stroke of it. Only when the iron arrow reached its target would thest stroke of the talisman would be finished. Ning Que¡¯s talisman could only be finished by then.


    A talisman was a seamlessbination of strokes. It would not be aplete talisman without a single strike. The procedure of Ning Que¡¯s shot was also a seamlessbination. It began at the moment the iron arrow left the bowstring and ended when it hit the target. It was inseparable and therefore unbeatable once shot.


    The talisman drawn by the iron arrow was seamless and neither limited by time nor space. Therefore it was even more unpredictable than the Distanceless. Because of its seamlessness, Ning Que did not need to look for the path. As long as he knew where the target was, his iron arrow would be able to reach it.


    Despite the distance between Chang¡¯an and the West Wilderness, the two ces were connected in his ocean of psyche when he drew the talisman. When the arrow hit the Chief Monk of Scripture on the teau, the talisman was finished. No space could break the talisman or stop the iron arrow. Plus now that he had the entire Chang¡¯an as his power supply now, how could the indestructible Vajra Buddha body still be indestructible?


    When the Academy invented the Thirteen Primordial Arrows no one really understood its theory, not even Jun Mo or Ning Que. It was not until yearster during the Rite to Light that he vaguely grasped the essence when he killed the Elder Cui from a thousand miles away.


    Today on top of the city wall of Chang¡¯an, he shot two arrows toward the West Wilderness. And he further understood how to write such gigantic talismans. He knew it was very important to him, even more important than being able to kill the Chief Monk. Because it was his master Yan Se¡¯sst will before he passed away, and also something he was destined to fulfill in his life.


    But of course, as Long Qing reasoned, his Thirteen Primordial Arrows needed someone to cooperate. Jun Mo was tens of thousands away from him, and the iron arrow and the talisman could not send out any message before it was seen by Jun Mo. He could only wait for his Second Brother to figure out his n and make the Chief Monk visible in his ocean of psyche.


    Jun Mo had been fighting in the underground world for years. But he had only been to the peak and confronted the Chief Monk of Scripture for once. Ning Que seemed to have indulged himself in vain hopes. However he still chose to wait, for three days and nights.


    And he was proven right. Although they nevermunicated, they just knew what the other was thinking about.


    Their consonance was unbreakable like the the talisman drew by the arrow.


    Ning Que had no idea about what was happening in the Xuankong Temple, or about whether the Chief Monk of Scripture was already severely wounded by his iron arrows. But he was certain that he had drawn two perfect talismans with the arrows. Therefore his Second Brother would definitely take good care of the rest.


    The only disadvantage was that the two arrow shots were exhausting. It was very consuming even for someone like him to transfer the strength all the way from Chang¡¯an to the West Wilderness. Although the God-Stunning Array was constantly charging his psyche, he could not make another powerful shot like these two within a short period of time.


    Otherwise he would have shot all the arrows in his case until he could make sure the Chief Monk of Scripture was dead. No one knew better than him how important it was to help the Second Brother to destroy the Buddhand as soon as possible.


    It seemed that Jun Mo had shared lots of burdens for the Academy and the Tang by dealing with Buddhism, the Right Royal Court and the Yuelun Kingdom in the West Wilderness. But actually Ning Que would rather have him back in Chang¡¯an. His iron sword should be ying a much more important role on this stage. It should have taken down more powerful figures, like the one who was walking toward Peach Mountain.


    Ning Que turned away from the two threads of clouds and looked to the east. When everyone was expecting him to put down his bow, he pulled it again and made another shot to the east out of nowhere!


    Many people from Chang¡¯an was standing down the city wall and watching. The walls were so high that they could only see Ning Que¡¯s actions very vaguely.


    Upon seeing him pulling his bow again all of a sudden, they went into an uproar and poured in further in order to see more clearly.


    The iron arrow left the bowstring and disappeared upon a whistle in the chilling winter wind. The crowd was silenced.


    Then they yelled together like thunder because they were shocked by what they had just witnessed. And they were also expressing their support for the Academy and Mr. Thirteen.


    The clear blue sky was again pierced by a straight thread of condensation clouds, as if the iron arrow had torn the Qi of Heaven and Earth, or even Heaven and Earth itself. But actually the iron arrow created its own path between Heaven and Earth, neither in Heaven nor on Earth. It was a path of a seamless talisman!


    The arrow of talisman was the talisman of arrow. Ning Que targeted this talisman at the far away Chengjing.


    ...


    ...


    In the Chengjing City of Yan Kingdom, snow kept falling. The dark clouds kept producing the purest snowkes and blue bolts shone from deep inside theyers of clouds. Some bolts pierced the clouds and hit the bare fields together with the snow kes.


    It was abination of thunder in the winter and snowstorms in the summer.


    It was nothing unusual for snowstorms to happen in this season. But bolts were rarely seen. They seemed spooky and horrifying, or carried some massive power.


    Long Qing whisked off the snow on his shoulders and looked toward theyers of dark clouds outside the city. He looks through the snow kes to somewhere high above, and seemed solemn.


    He vaguely saw a piece of indigo cloth flying by. But the snowstorm and bolts were too heavy for him to tell whether it was real or his illusion.


    There was a vague figure flying high through the snow storm and almost hit by several bolts. It seemed extremely dangerous and shocking.


    This time Long Qing was certain that it was real because the figure hade to the city wall of Chengjing, and he could even smell the burned odor.


    The Eldest Brother¡¯s cotton-padded gown was burned by the bolts in the clouds. If he was not able to react instantly he would have been killed by the bolts. Though he was able to escape, he looked miserable with his cotton-padded gown torn and blood gushing out. It was not handsome at all.


    Long Qing got slightly stiff. The snowkes around were suddenly swept. He made a grasp in the snow and the darkest peach blossom bloomed in his right hand, guarding in front of him.


    In the capital of Song, Mr. First did not attack him because of the Drunkard as well as the Arcane Tome. Although he still had the Arcane Tome he knew that Li Manman would attack. It was so obvious. Mr. First had risked his life to get out of the Distanceless andnded on the city wall of Chengjing. He was definitely up to something.


    As Long Qing had expected, the Eldest Brother flew to the city wall and pounded his head with a very ordinary cudgel.


    Long Qing did not dare to ck. He reached out to the cudgel with the ck natal peach blossom in his right hand, and was prepared with the remaining for the Arcane Tome of the Sand in his left hand.


    This seemingly ordinary cudgel was actually very renowned. It was a discipline cudgel the Headmaster made when he established the Academy. It was made to discipline the naughty students. When the Headmaster left for the Divine Kingdom, the cudgel was passed to the Eldest Brother.


    The cudgel was used to keep the Abbey Dean away in the South Sea for decades. It killed the former emperor of the Yuelun Kingdom in the fields at Cong Ridge. Since it was designed for disciplining the students, how could any student escape? No one could get away from it.


    Long Qing knew he could never escape from the cudgel, therefore he had to take it with his natal peach blossom. He had the psyches and souls of thousands of Taoist cultivators in him at the moment. In terms of quantity, he was undoubtedly invincible in the world. But when facing Mr. First¡¯s cudgel, he could not afford to ck. He applied all his strength without hesitation.


    The cudgel fell onto the peach blossom. The peach blossom withered. The master and the disciples from the Academy had never been nice to the peach blossoms of Taoism. The Headmaster used to chop all the peach blossoms on Peach Mountain. And his follower came today.


    Long Qing turned extremely pale. The inconspicuous scar became extremely distinct and ferocious. His arms were trembling, and his feet sank into the city wall.


    The ck peach blossom was smashed. Relics of the blossom sshed around as if they were the embodiment of the Qi of Heaven and Earth. Even the loose bricks on the city walls were smashed into the finest powders!


    The Eldest Brother did not pause but disappeared in the stormy sky instead. He crossed the scary thunder and went after the indigo gown passed by earlier on.


    Long Qing managed to keep calm, but could not hide the trace of fear in his eyes. He knew that the indigo gown he saw just now was not an illusion. Mr. First was chasing the Abbey Dean. He just randomly decided to give Long Qing an attack when he saw him on the city wall of Chengjing.


    A random strike had forced him to apply all his strength. What if Mr. First had made a full strike? Would he still be able to take it?


    While Long Qing was thinking, he did not realize that something more serious was approaching. The storm outside the city walls seemed to have stopped for a second.


    An arrow came from Chang¡¯an. An iron arrow came to Long Qing.


    Long Qing¡¯s pale face suddenly flushed, as if the blood flow suddenly elerated tremendously in his veins.


    His blood started burning at that moment. Countless psyches of the former Taoist cultivators helped him to react as soon as possible.


    Another ck peach blossom bloomed in front of his chest. It was much smallerpared to the previous one, and crystal clear like a valuable gem. The petals shivered in the wind, fragile and adorable.


    The seemingly fragile small ck peach blossom was actually horrifying. It carried the immense power of extinction, as well as numerous alien psyches.


    The iron arrow hit the shivering peach blossom.


    There was a hole in Long Qing¡¯s chest created by Ning Que¡¯s Thirteen Primordial Arrows many years ago. The small and tender ck peach blossom appeared right in the hole.


    The ck peach blossom was not his natal peach blossom, but his second life.


    Long Qing was determined not to let Ning Que make another hole in his chest with this iron arrow.


    The moment the ck peach blossom blocked the iron arrow, his hands were already ced on the arrow in front of his chest.


    The jet ck iron arrow brought an unimaginable power. Long Qing¡¯s fingers got hold of the massive Qi of Heaven and Earth in the stormy Wilderness, but they could not control the arrow.


    On the contrary, his hands were immediately torn and blood was about to drip.


    When the first drop of blood was about to drip from the arrow, another pair of hands were ced onto the shaft. That was a pair of pale and inhuman hands.


    They were also Long Qing¡¯s hands.


    A vague human figure seemed to have appeared behind Long Qing. It was dim in the storm and could almost be wiped away by the wind instantly.


    The second pair of hands could not stop the iron arrow. Long Qing howled. In the meanwhile, countless shadows appeared behind him in the storm. The shadows were very dim. No one could see them clearly under the sunlight. But they were for sure humans, and they all followed Long Qing¡¯s will.


    Upon the chilling howls those shadows reached out their hands together toward the sword, like hungry ghosts hunting for food, or the sinful seeking for liberation.

 Chapter 1054 - Her Being Pursued

    <h4>Chapter 1054: Her Being Pursued</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Hundreds of pairs of hands got hold of the iron arrow. Some of the hands were covered in festers, some were skinny like branches, while most of them were only skeletons. The color of the skeletons were miserable. They seemed gloomy instead of white.


    The iron arrow was finally stopped by the hundreds of rotten hands. But the power of the God-Stunning Array it carried pounded onto Long Qing via the hundreds of hands. He captured people¡¯s psyches and souls and applied their hundreds of pairs of hands as his own, consequently he had to take whatever those hands received, victory or hostility.


    The umted power on the iron arrow was like a flood. Because of the pause, it burstpletely and even more violently toward Long Qing.


    Long Qing darted backward on top of the city wall. His feet plowed on the bricks and made two very deep lines. The city wall of Chengjing was seven miles long. He darted back for seven miles and left two lines of seven miles in length. Eventually he failed to stop at the end, broke through the arrow mounds on the wall and was thrown off to the ground in dust and stones.


    In a whoosh, the iron arrow set off with the remaining power. No one knew where it was heading. Upon hearing the noises the cavalrymen of the Divine Halls of West-Hill around the city wall came to help. They pulled Long Qing out of the pile of stones and branches with great difficulties. Long Qing was as pale as a dead man. Before he could say anything he covered his mouth with hands and started coughing painfully.


    He seemed like a god to the cavalrymen from the Divine Halls. They have never seen him in such miseries. Everyone standing around was stunned and muted. After a long while Long Qing felt slightly better. He stared at the direction where the iron arrow went and pondered. But he looked even tougher than scared.


    All of a sudden, the roaring snow storm ceased, as if Haotian was revealing some Divine Manifestation. A minute after the storm stopped, intensive bolts shed among theyers of clouds like deadly struggles, but no less awe-inspiring for the people on the earth.


    Only Long Qing was able to see the cotton-padded gown passing by again on top of the clouds. In some distance after him, there was an indigo gown swinging in the clear sunlight like some celestial being.


    The two figures shed by and disappeared immediately. The next moment the Drunkard showed up in front of him. He looked at where the two figures disappear then turned to Long Qing with aplicated look, as if he was up to something.


    Long Qing did not seem disturbed and bowed toward the Drunkard. The Drunkard stayed quiet for a while and disappeared again without doing anything. Until then Long Qing was able to rxpletely and colors drained further from this face.


    The strange signs appeared in the sky today above the North Yan was an aftermath of the pursuit of the three powerful figures at Distanceless: the Abbey Dean, the Eldest Brother and the Drunkard, but especially the former two. They were too close to each other hence created countless turbulence in the interlining of the Qi of Heaven and Earth. It was also a proof of their divine levels. What happened today would probably be seen frequently throughout the human world in theing years, leaving behind many legends and scaring many ordinary people.


    But Long Qing knew that their pursuit would never stop unless one of them could locate her. Only then the turbulence in the Qi of Heaven and Earth could be stopped. Because for the three of them it was the most important and decisive matter even if their pursuit might throw the human world into a sea of fire. Therefore the Drunkard had an intent to kill him but never executed it.


    When facing the Drunkard¡¯s killing intent Long Qing acted very calm. He knew that only by doing so could he avoid a tough confrontation with him. He was not confident in himself in defeating the legendary Drunkard. But he had faith in his master and believed that he would eventually win in this earth-shaking pursuit of Distanceless.


    The Drunkard startedte. But the Eldest Brother could neverpletely ignore human sentiments like the Abbey Dean and the Drunkard did. Therefore as long as he had a bond with human world he could never be truly Distanceless.


    ...


    ...


    It was a historical pursuit of Distanceless. But very few were aware of it. As Long Qing spected, the Eldest Brother had been at a disadvantage. But probably just because of his disadvantage he showed up in Chengjing and attacked Long Qing, so that he might be able to slow down the Abbey Dean for a while. In the meantime he could take care of some troubles for his fellow Brothers and Sister from the Academy.


    But unfortunately, as he had sensed in Linking and Song, Long Qing was already extremely powerful. He could not kill him unless he could make a full strike. But it was not deliberately designed killing for Long Qing this time. It waspletely simultaneous. So was Ning Que¡¯s shot. He shot it in a hurry only because he saw the unusual signs in the east.


    He had applied most of his energy and spirit in the previous two shots and could barely make a full strike. But he still made a shot just to figure out how powerful Long Qing was now. Because he did not want to waste the chance.


    Long Qing was probably the one who understood Ning Que the best in the world. Ning Que never treated him as his lifetime enemy but knew him pretty well after all. Because of Ye Hongyu and Cheng Lixue he knew that Long Qing had gone through a lot ever since he practiced the Grey Eyes, defected from Taosim andter on captured the souls and cultivation of so many powerful figures in the Secluded Pavilion. Therefore he had to know his limits.


    The iron arrow did not kill Long Qing. It was a bit disappointing but Ning Que did not care much. Like Jun Mo said to the Chief Monk of Scripture on the teau previously, there were very few in this world that the Academy could not kill.


    If he failed today, he could always try tomorrow.


    ¡°Greatly appreciated. My two Brothers.¡± Ning Que bowed to the west and east sessively. He disassembled the iron bow and stored it into the case, then packed his gears and clothes and walked to the edge of the city wall. He recalled witnessing the empress jumping off from here resolutely and happily many years ago.


    Indeed, one had to be resolute from time to time so as to obtain ultimate happiness. With such thoughts in mind Ning Que turned to bow toward Chang¡¯an again. Then he jumped off the wall. A momentter there was a low bang outside the city wall.


    Stones sshed and dust blew. When the dust settled arge pit appeared on the ground. And Ning Que was gone.


    ...


    ...


    It was the most freezing winter throughout a thousand years. Wind and snow roared outrageously throughout the continent. Even the harbor in Yue Kingdom was frozen. It was when the Divine Halls of West-Hill carried out the extinction of the New Stream. Ye Su, the former World Wayfarer of Taoism was burned to death in Song. And Ye Hongyu, the Great Divine Priest of Judgment defected from Taoism.


    The Chief Monk of Scripture from Xuankong Temple was imprisoned somewhere deep inside the Prajna Peak and would not be able to escape in years. Jun Mo swayed his sword and led tens of thousands of ves fighting in the underground world constantly. They were getting closer to the dawn of victory. In the meanwhile the elite cavalry of the Right Royal Court and the reinforcement from the White Tower Temple was pressing in.


    Yu Lian and Tang was fighting theirst battle in the East Wilderness together with their followers from the Wild Tribe. Ning Que was supposed to be guarding the City of Chang¡¯an. Yet he had left all of a sudden without telling anybody where he was heading for.


    The Abbey Dean was missing, so did the Eldest Brother of the Academy and the Drunkard. The top three cultivators at the state of Distanceless disappeared at the same time and could no longer be found anywhere in the human world. No one could figure out where they went.


    Although the disappearance of those extremely powerful made the entire human world restless, life had to continue in the world. So did the war. The severe winter was finally gone and spring followed. The Tang Empire was besieged by the entire world. But it stayed firmly against their attacks.


    The war in Yan was at a stalemate. The Tang army was short of warhorses and the number of their cavalrymen had declined tremendously. They could not risk for a full attack. The Wild Tribe was blocked in their way to the south. The declining Left Royal Court managed to keep their final territory under the protection of the Divine Halls, particrly with Long Qing and his two thousand cavalrymen from the West-Hill. The Hn City in the heart of the Tianqi Mountain was never captured. The mysterious Yu Lian never showed up in the Golden Tribe. All these were interconnected.


    The onlyfort to the Tang people was that Taoism seemed to be confronted with more troubles. Ye Hongyu, the former Great Divine Priest of Judgment was still alive and kept weing more and more followers in the Great River Kingdom. It threw Taoism into chaos. With the support of the Great River Kingdom, Ye Hongyu started fostering the New Stream. She censured Xiong Chumo, the Hierarch and all the divine priests and deacons in the Divine Hall of West-Hill for being shameless and sinful traitors in iming themselves as the representatives of Haotian.


    The New Stream prospered right after a brief pause. With the support from Tang and the Great River Kingdom, as well as the secret shield of the Divine Hall of Judgment, it spread rapidly to every kingdom in the world.


    Ye Su¡¯s students and Cheng Ziqing led the disciples of the Sword Garret traveling and preaching throughout the world. The formerly weak and tiny mes had grown into huge fires. More and more Taoist believers were converted to the New Stream and enshrined Ye Su at their homes. As for if Ye Su would approve such worship, no one seemed to care any more.


    The Divine Halls of West-Hill were enraged. They sent out a series of edicts to deny Ye Hongyu¡¯s identity. But the former Great Divine Priest of Judgment acted on her own no matter what. The Hierarch could do nothing but constantly trying to bring shame on her morality and faith.


    Of course they never stopped the extinction. But Ye Hongyu had prepared well. Her loyal subordinates had concealed their identities and could never be found again. The bloody extinction turned out to be meaningless. It was not until then that everyone in Taoism including the Hierarch started to realize how wrong they were to have forced Ye Hongyu to defect from them.


    Taoism was disrupting. The Divine Halls of West-Hill could not stay calm in the turbulence. They reinforced the extinction to a horrifying level.


    Many were being killed everywhere. The bodies of the New Stream followers were nailed on crosses along the road. The ravens cawed while the human world was flooded by blood.


    However, faith was like the wild grass. The harder people cut them, the higher and thicker they grew in the next spring. Taoism was fully aware of the danger behind their bloody extinction. In order topletely solve the problem, they had to kill Ye Hongyu and wipe out Tang and the Great River Kingdom.


    Thousands of cavalrymen from the Divine Halls and even more soldiers from South Jin were stationed by the Great River facing the Great River Kingdom on the other side. The person in charge was Zhao Nanhai. The middle-aged priest was not there. People guessed that he had returned to the Zhishou Abbey.


    The war wasunched long ago. But the final battle was yet toe. Many were waiting. They waited for a result of the battle between the Golden Tribe Royal Court and the Northern Battlefront Army of Tang, as well as the return of those most powerful.


    The breath-taking tension made people silent and helpless. No one noticed that in a small town in South Jin, a new butcher¡¯s shop was opened. It faced to the north.


    Let alone the importance of a result between Tang and the Golden Tribe, people could never forgot about the most powerful figures who disappeared from the world. They left in pursuit of some possibility. The Abbey Dean was certain about it. Therefore they were determined to find that person.


    What if they could find that person? Some wanted to kill her, others wanted to protect her, while the rest had not made up their minds. They had different purposes. But as long as they were still away, it meant they had not located her so far. Indeed, even if they were the greatest cultivators of Distanceless, it was never an easy task to find her.


    ...


    ...


    In the very north there was a snow peak. It was far away from the Central ins and the human world. More precisely, it was the remotest ce in the human world. No matter where people started they would eventually reach here as long as they kept walking to the north. It was a frozennd by the Thermal Sea.


    It was the coldest ce in the world. Once people breathed out it turned into frost. Even the firmest steel would notst long when being frozen here. It used to the home of the Wild Tribe. When they migrated to the south the cottages they left had be the shelters for many animals in the extreme coldness, such as snow foxes and long-tail rodents.


    There was no spring down at the foot of the snow peak. Snow storm roared as previously and thick clouds covered the dark sky. When no stars nor the moon could be seen, everything was enveloped in darkness, including the snow peak.


    In a cottage abandoned by the Wild People, amp was lit suddenly and seemed distinctive in the darkness. A long-tail rodent was chewing on some smelly fruit by a cedar but it did not dare toe any closer, as if something horrible lived inside the cottage.


    Themp light prated the window and brightened the ice-covered path in front of the cottage. After a while, some footsteps were heard. A woman wasing to the cottage with a heavy bucket of water.


    The woman walked with her hand supporting her waist and seemed clumsy. Water was sprinkled along the way and immediately turned into frozen drops due to the severe coldness. But it seemed strange that the water inside the bucket was not frozen, nor even with ayer of ice on top. It was even steamed and blurred the dimmp light.


    More surprisingly, the woman was wearing very thin clothes. On her worn-out green dress, delicately embroidered flowers were fading. But she seemed ignorant of the chillness and kept walking.


    Entering into the cottage, the woman ced the bucket in a corner, then walked to the table by the window and stared at somewhere nkly and silently.


    She was plump, or more precisely chubby. Her big waist made her seem clumsy. It was unreasonably big.


    Themp light fell on her eyes and eyebrows. She still looked young, as she had always been throughout the tens of thousands of years. She still seemed indifferent. Even when she looked at the snow peak she looked down upon it with pride.


    She was of course Sangsang, namely Haotian.


    ...

 Chapter 1055 - Tricks Of The Headmaster And His Disciple, Backed By Chang’an

    <h4>Chapter 1055: Tricks Of The Headmaster And His Disciple, Backed By Chang¡¯an</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    One day, a year ago, a spring rain showered the human world. Numerous people saw the giant ark sailed in Divine me toward the golden line. She stood at the bow and her green dress swayed in the spring breeze. Flowers bloomed on her dress.


    Everyone assumed that she had already left the human world and returned to the Divine Kingdom. But actually she did not. Instead she hid in the north, in the extreme coldness. She did not make it to the Divine Kingdom. Upon opening her eyes and seeing the lush mountains, she realized that she did not make it. Because there should be nothing but light in the Divine Kingdom. This was Min Mountain.


    She did not understand why. She made use of the Buddha¡¯s chessboard and stayed in it with Ning Que for a thousand years. They experienced the vicissitudes of life and practiced Buddhism for so long. She was eventually able to get rid of the three poisons of attachment, aversion, and obsession, as well as the human energy inside her. But why did she fail to return to the Divine Kingdom?


    She stood on Min Mountain and pondered for many days and nights. In the end she realized why ¡ª she was the choice of human beings. Therefore her destination was the human world. It might not be the ultimate answer, but it was her only conclusion for the time being.


    Having realized this, instead of returning to the Divine Halls of West-Hill, she chose to walk toward the north along the familiar hunting trails on Min Mountain.


    She kept walking and passed through countless hunting viges, the Hn Mountain, the Tianqi Mountain, the Icefields and eventually came to the peak in the extremely cold North Wilderness.


    Her green dress got thinner through the journey, and the blossoms on the dress withered. She knew exactly what was happening. It was the power of time and she was bing weak.


    She chose to go to the extremely cold north instead of returning to the Divine Halls of West-Hill because she sensed danger and wanted to go somewhere safe. More importantly, she did not want anyone to see her right now.


    She was bing bigger and bloated. She was not plump. She seemed more like a pregnant woman. Yes, she was pregnant. Therefore she did not want to be seen by any human beings.


    She was pregnant, with Ning Que¡¯s child.


    Perhaps she was weakening because of the pregnancy. She was bing a weak and insignificant human being that she used to look down upon.


    A divine figure came to the human world, and was gradually humanized... She had such experiences previously. The Headmaster once charged human energy into her body and took her on a tour to see the charms of the human world. Later on, she was led by Ning Que throughout the human world to taste human emotions. She was humanized throughout those days.


    Inside the chessboard, she made use of the Buddha¡¯s n and Ning Que¡¯s affections to practice and purify her divine figure, and eventually discharged the human energy. She thought that she would win in the battle against the Headmaster, that she would eventually became indifferent again and return to the Divine Kingdom. However, she was again forced to stay here unexpectedly. She could no longer return to the Divine Kingdom. It was Ning Que¡¯s trick ¡ª the infant in her matrix!


    She stroked her lower abdomen. There was no motherly love or any other emotions on her face. She felt calm, but somewhat uneasy.


    She looked at the snow capped mountain far away outside the window and pulled herself out of the memories. When she looked toward the snow covered Thermal Sea not far away, she recalled something else.


    It was right here in the snow covered chilling world many years ago, where the Headmaster treated her with peony fish, indulged her in a hot spring and hosted a wedding for her and Ning Que. They celebrated their wedding night while the Headmaster went for a ride on the big ck horse, wore nothing and bolted for hundreds of miles in the snow.


    The Headmaster was extremely delightful. Perhaps it was because he already predicted her future, and knew that she would probably be pregnant with Ning Que¡¯s child and would never return to the Divine Kingdom.


    The Headmaster used to say that it was a historical moment for her and Ning Que to celebrate a wedding night. Indeed, now she knew why.


    Sangsang turned away from the Thermal Sea and lowered her head. Being forced to stay in the human world twice by the Headmaster and his disciple stunned her.


    The Headmaster and his disciple always had their unexpected tricks, shameless, life-giving, silent, yet ... earthshaking.


    The roaring snow storm suddenly ceased. And the clouds were wiped away by the wind that came from the ck sea on the other side of the snow-capped mountains. The stars shone, and the bright moon came out.


    Sangsang looked above to the bright moon. Her right hand moved away from her lower abdomen and reached out to the dark sky. She pressed her thumb and index finger against each other.


    She tried to crush the bright moon, out of unwillingness to reconcile.


    But she could only use her imagination now. That was something only her counterpart in the Divine Kingdom could fulfill. As for her now, she was even afraid to be found by her counterpart in the Divine Kingdom.


    Sensing the vague restlessness deep down her psyche, Sangsang became pale and felt cold.


    She picked up a piece of fur from the bed and covered herself tightly, especially around her lower abdomen. And she flipped to light the firewood in the firece.


    She tried to warm herself up, which had nothing to do with the child inside her.


    In fact, although she was weakening she still did not need the warmth. Coldness had no influence on her. But she lit the firece anyway. She was no longer acting indifferently on the rules like she used to be. It had nothing to do with the fundamental rules of the world. Instead she acted on her instinct, which was exactly a human thing.


    There was an oilmp by the window. She did not need themp or the light. It was not helpful at all to light amp in the darkness, except for exposing herself to dangers. But she did so despite the dangers. Because the light was indeed very warm.


    Perhaps because she used fish oil in themp, it generated no smoke or irritation for her eyes. Instead, it smelled nice with the burned fat.


    Sangsang suddenly felt hungry. She looked toward outside the window and asked indifferently, ¡°What took you so long?¡±


    The Wild People had migrated to the south. No one was left throughout tens of thousands of miles in the snow kingdom. Who was she talking to?


    Heavy pants were heard from outside the cottage. An indigo dog held a frozen peony fish in his mouth and delivered it to her in a ttering manner.


    Perhaps due to the frozen of the Thermal Sea, there were very few peony fish left. The only few alive had been hiding at the bottom of the sea. How could an indigo dog catch a fish down there? It was indeed incredible.


    However, it would be much less incredible if one knew that the indigo dog was the awesome indigo lion inside the Buddha¡¯s chessboard.


    Sangsang took the peony fish, came to the chopping board, and chopped it with bare hands. Despite the dog¡¯s ttering, she made her own sauce and started eating by herself. She seemed indifferent at all until she finished the whole fish. She frowned slightly as she found the fish less tasty than it used to be.


    It had nothing to do with the fish or the sauce. She chopped it with her hand but did it much better than the Eldest Brother and Ning Que. Then why was it less tasty? Was it because it was not well-cooked?


    Upon finishing the fish, she felt even more hungry. She turned to the indigo dog and asked, ¡°I want meat.¡±


    The indigo dog kept his eyes wide open and seemed extremely innocent while Sangsang squinted her eyes and seemed extremely indifferent. The indigo dog lowered his head and returned to the snow world with its tail between the legs.


    Sangsang did want some meat. Although she did not need food, she no longer felt disgusting upon human food. Most importantly, the one inside her was hungry.


    When she first realized there was a child in her matrix, she was startled and even felt angry and resentful. It was only until recently that she started to get used to the little existence inside her.


    She did not think that she had affection for the child because it was Ning Que¡¯s trick. She was merely hungry and wanted some meat to warm herself up.


    Indeed, that must be the reason, she told herself.


    After a long while the indigo dog came back with a freshly killed snow fox. Sangsang was very satisfied. She cooked it and spared a rear leg for the dog.


    She started eating the roast meat. It was nothingpared with themb feast the Headmaster treated her to on the grasnd many years ago. But she found it tasteful.


    She could no longer travel a thousand miles in a single step to enjoy a feast in the Song ande back right after to her ce to have a peony fish as a night snack. She was more and more like an ordinary human being.


    However she found it not too bad.


    ...


    ...


    Apart from the hidden her by the snow sea, the other most important matter for the human world was the battle between the Tang and the Golden Tribe Royal Court.


    The Golden Tribe had migrated to the south and threw the entire tribe into battle. As for the Tang, they could only send the Northern Battlefront Army because of the pressure from Taoism, and seemed to be outnumbered ever since the beginning.


    The Golden Tribe Royal Court had the strongest cavalrymen on the grasnd and proceeded like wildfire. The Tang army was good at both attack and defense. Xu Chi, the General of Northern Battlefront was particrly well known for defense. He had been defending the north of Tang extremely tightly for decades. If it was in the past he would never worry at all.


    But that was long ago. Ever since the Golden Tribe Royal Court raided the south a few years ago and took over seven cities including Wei and Kaiping, the Tang¡¯s north battlefront was no longer unbeatable. The Tang used to spend heavily in building dozens of barracks along the west and north of Xiangwan in. However they had all been taken by the Golden Tribe Royal Court one after another, which further weakened Tang¡¯s north line of defense.


    For the Tang army, the worst thing was theck of war horses. The formerly well-known cavalry of the Northern Battlefront Army was barely a unit now and had to be merged with the infantry. They fought arduously against the cavalrymen from the grasnd. They even lost the Chengu Pass ten days ago. The best cavalrymen from the Golden Tribe Royal Court could almost reach their North Battalion.


    At the beginning of this war, the Tang army seemed unexpectedly weak. It was a strategic choice as well as a matter of fact.


    In early spring, both sides were facing a shortage of supplies. The Tang army retreated so that the Golden Tribe Royal Court had to travel a longer way to deliver their supplies. It seemed to be a smart move. But they did not expect the Golden Tribe to be so ferocious and desperate to proceed to the south. They seemed to have never cared about running out of supplies. The supplies they brought should have only been sufficient for them toe to the defense line of the Northern Battlefront Army. If they could not break through the defense line they would not be able to return to the grasnd. It seemed to be an unreasonable move for them to make such a desperate strike. However it turned out to be extremely effective. The grasnd cavalry was crushing the Tang army like desperate wolves.


    Although they had been forced to inferiority, the morale in the North Battalion was still quite normal. The North Battlefront Army had been fighting against the cavalry of Golden Tribe Royal Court for so long that they were used to the brutality of the grasnd barbarians. It could no longer scare them.


    Xu Chi stood on the Xiangliang Mountain next to their barrack and stared quietly at the grasnd in snow storm. Some snowkes fell on his lips and whitened his newly shaved beard. It seemed funny.


    Several chiefs stood around him. But they did not find it funny because they knew how much pressure their general was undertaking. He even seemed stooping.


    ¡°No more retreating,¡± Xu Chi said after a long while. The few words came out of his frozen lips and sounded emotionless. It seemed that even he was not expecting himself to say so.


    The chiefs were shocked. They did not understand why he suddenly changed their original n. Although the vanguard had been struggling and the morale was sinking, they still believed that the well-trained Northern Battlefront Army could hold on for a further while.


    Xu Chi turned back and wiped the snowkes on his beard. He straightened up his slightly stooping figure and became the awe-inspiring martial art master of Tang again.


    Seeing the disagreement on the chiefs¡¯ faces, he did not exin further. He looked at Hua Ying who was waiting for an order and said, ¡°I want you to guard Guhe.¡±


    Hu Ying risked his life toe back from the frontlinest night. His clothes were torn and he seemed miserable. But his eyes were still showing calmness and vigor.


    It was a very simple military order, providing no conditions or escape. The general gave him only one choice, to guard Guhe.


    Hua Ying did not keep quiet as the other chiefs did. Because he was the one to guard Guhe. And his hundreds of soldiers would be the ones fighting the bloody battle until the end.


    ¡°For the safety of the North Battalion?¡± Hua Ying asked.


    He was not challenging Xu Chi, or had any doubt about this order. He was hoping that the general could provide a reasonable answer so that he could convince his subordinates, more importantly, convince himself.


    Xu Chi said indifferently, ¡°When you are all gone, I will move our headquarters out of the North Battalion ande to join you. If you fail to guard Guhe, I will back you up.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡± Even those chiefs who had been trying to control themselves could no longer refrain from objecting.


    ¡°Why? If we lose Guhe, Chanyu¡¯s army would proceed through Chuanling, bypass us, and enter the Hebei Prefecture via the southwest of Min Mountain, after that...¡± Xu Chi looked at Hua Ying and the other chiefs and said calmly, ¡°The eight hundred miles of in is the favorite battlefield for the grasnd cavalrymen. Who could take the responsibility if they drive straight into the Central in? The Tang has a vast territory. But we, the Northern Battlefront Army cannot retreat further because Chang¡¯an is right behind us.¡±

 Chapter 1056 - The Joy Of Not Knowing The Result

    <h4>Chapter 1056: The Joy Of Not Knowing The Result</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Hua Ying and the officers were silenced. They knew the general was right. The Northern Battlefront Army was indeed facing great difficulties. But the Tang Empire was also sieged by various parties. Furthermore, both the Southern Battlefront Army and the Northeast Battlefront Army were engaged in important battles and could note to help.


    Guhe was a very tiny spot throughout Tang¡¯s vast territory that located two thousands away from Chang¡¯an. But currently it was thest defense line outside the capital. Therefore Xu Chi had decided to defend it to the veryst. Even the General¡¯s Mansion had to be relocated to the north.


    No one said a word in a long while. There was only silence and falling snowkes in the valley. The temperature as well as the atmosphere was frozen. Although they echoed Xu Chi¡¯s judgment, they were also aware that to give up their previous n and stay to defend Guhe would only lead to further serious casualties. Moreover, would they really be able to win?


    They knew it better than the soldiers that the imperial court had tried their best. From the imperial family to ordinary people, everyone had been living on lowest expenses so as to provide the Northern Battlefront Army with constant and abundant supplies. That was why they could still have fresh pork after such a severe winter, not to mention sufficient armor and weapons.


    However, the terrain around Guhe meant that if the Northern Battlefront Army had to stop the Golden Tribe Royal Court at that point, they must defeat over ten thousands of elite cavalrymen from the grasnds a field battle, which was exactly the least desirable for the Northern Battlefront Army at the moment! ( .c om )


    The Northern Battlefront Army used to be unbeatable in the north and never worried about getting in or out of the grasnd. Even the most ordinary soldiers in the army were very good at riding and shooting. How could they ever be worried about field battles? But now they were trying their best to avoid confronting the enemies in the fields. Because there was a fatal disadvantage: they werecking warhorses.


    Hua Ying broke the silence and came to kneel down in front of Xu Chi. He stated calmly and resolutely, ¡°We¡¯ll die defending the country.¡±


    Xu Chi stared at the grey hair on his temples and and the weather-worn face, and felt loaded with sensations. But instead of showing his sensations, hemanded, ¡°No. You will defend the country even if you are dead.¡±


    Hua Ying replied with no hesitation, ¡°As you said.¡±


    Xu Chi lifted him up and stared at him for a long while. He could no longer hide his emotions and said, ¡°You¡¯ve done great these years.¡±


    Hua Ying smiled and said nothing further.


    Ever since the war wasunched against the Golden Tribe Royal Court, he had been fighting in the very front of Tang¡¯s northern territory. He took the most important role as well as the heaviest burden. Although he was in charge of the only cavalrymen left in the Northern Battlefront Army, the situation was still very unfavorable. If it was not because of his high attainments in martial arts and the Tang army¡¯s intensive defense, he would have been killed several times by the assassins from the grasnd. But Hua Ying neverined. When Xu Chi proposed to relocate him to the North Battalion for a break, he refused resolutely.


    Everyone in the Northern Battlefront Army understood why. Even the nobles in the imperial pce and those in the Military Ministry back in Chang¡¯an were aware of the reason. Hua Ying¡¯s family name was Hua, the same as Hua Shanyue. They were both from the Hua family.


    Hua Shanyue helped Li Yu in the rebellion and died upon their failure. The military officers who followed him had defected from Gushan Commandery and returned secretly to Chang¡¯an. Ning Que sent them all to the North Battalion to make up and win their honor back. But most of them had died throughout the years. Because of this, formerly celebrated Hua family declined immediately. Nowadays Hua Ying was the only one who still held an important position in the military. Therefore Hua Ying served desperately. He wanted to sacrifice himself in order to prove that the Hua family was indefectible, always vigorous and glorious.


    Xu Chi said, ¡°Don¡¯t risk your life. It¡¯s better to be alive.¡±


    Hua Ying did not answer directly. Instead he said, ¡°We will win.¡±


    ...


    ...


    It was the end of spring in the sixth year of Zhengshi of the Tang Empire, and the three thousand four hundred and fifty-fifth year of Dazhi of the West-Hill.


    ( .c om ) The vanguard of Tang¡¯s Northern Battlefront Army confronted the cavalrymen of the Golden Tribe Royal Court a hundred and seventy miles to the south of Wei, and fought for over ten days with ups and downs on both sides. Then all of the principal force of the Northern Battlefront Army came to the north and stationed at Guhe.


    The two most powerful military forces fought for another dozen days, again with ups and downs on both sides. But Guhe was still under the protection of the Northern Battlefront Army and the cavalry of Golden Tribe could not push even one step further to the south.


    Then they took a short break during the stalemate. But both sides knew that they could no longer hang on for dozens of days or even years. Their stalemate could onlyst at most for two days before the battle would be runched.


    In order to keep the cavalry of the Golden Tribe to the north of Guhe, the Northern Battlefront Army had paid great prices because they were inck of warhorses. Even the most experienced and skillful soldiers at riding and shooting could only hold their Podaos and stay on the sides, instead of participating in the real fight.


    The most powerful cavalrymen of the Northern Battlefront Army could only serve as infantrymen because of theck of warhorses. Everyone knew it was a waste. But who could change the situation now?


    Ever since the Divine Halls of West-Hill forced Tang to sign the treaty to cede Xiangwan in, and from the day that the warhorses were handed over, they were doomed to be helpless and inferior.


    The morning sun rose again in the east. Those with better sight as well as Xu Chi, who stayed in the General¡¯s Mansion, could see vaguely the outline of Min Mountain under the bloody morning glow.


    The cavalry of Golden Tribe Royal Court retreated yesterday to Kaipingji for a break as well as preparation for a final attack. The Tang army was very resolute and the organization of their infantry was wless. But the Chanyu of the Golden Tribe Royal Court could no longer be satisfied with the minor victories in the fields and got obviously anxious with time passing by. Theing field battle would be the most brutal one that the Northern Battlefront Army had ever confronted.


    Situ Yn stood by the meadow, held the saber on his waist and stared at the barracks of the cavalry of the Golden Tribe Royal Court. On her dust stained face there was nothing but calmness and alert. Her squinted eyes shone chillingly, even colder than her de.


    As a student of the Academy and a descendent of a former famous general, she had always been outstanding in the Northern Battlefront Army and became the youngest leader long ago. Now she was already the deputy-general to Hua Ying and widely respected by the soldiers and officers.


    During the over ten days of fighting, especially in the past few days, the Northern Battlefront Army was under overwhelming pressures and paid great prices. Their surgeons did not sleep for three days and nights.


    While thinking of that, Situ Yn seemed very calm so as not to worry her guards. But the problem was always there, pressing on her heart like a heavy rock.


    The Golden Tribe Royal Court was taking a break rather than retreat. The general hadmanded to guard Guhe to the veryst and could not take one step backward. It seemed that the fields here were going to be the graveyard for tens of thousands of soldiers. But who was going to win eventually and write epitaphs on their gravestones as the victor?


    She ranked high in the Northern Battlefront Army and knew a lot of information that was kept secret from ordinary soldiers. Some reinforcements tried to sneak attack a troop of the Golden Tribe via the Min Mountain. But the enemy saw through their n and called troops back to the Royal Court immediately. Therefore the Northern Battlefront Army had lost a best chance to upset their enemy¡¯s foundation.


    Then what could they do next?


    Situ Yn stared at the sand table for a long while. She tried topare what she learned from the Academy and her experience in the military, but could never find out any solution.


    Only General Xu Chi was qualified to make military decisions for the Northern Battlefront Army. Or perhaps so could the siblings in the imperial pce as well as the seniors from the Academy. But she did want to help.


    However...


    Apart from the rock pressing on her heart, Situ Yn had many other doubts.


    General Xu Chi¡¯s strategy was never wrong, from the retreat at the beginning to themand of defending right now. The former was meant to obtain more time and exhaust the enemy, while thetter was to maintain the morale and stay seemingly superior. They had to be absolutely resolute and ruthless in order to defend the northern territory of Tang. But it seemed there should have been some better, more flexible or less desperate strategy.


    General Xu Chi¡¯s current strategy was to attract all the troops of Golden Tribe Royal Court to the battlefields at Guhe. If only they would win there would be no chance even for the enemy¡¯s best cavalry to escape. Because throughout the hundreds of years of war between Tang and the Golden Tribe Royal Court, the most annoying part for the Tang was that the Royal Court was so good at escaping. Even if the Tang army were to win, the cavalry of the Royal Court could always retreat swiftly to the heart of the grasnd and make it impossible for the Tang to wipe out their principal force.


    It was a very wise military strategy. But in order for this n to be executed, the Tang army would have to win the battle in the first ce. Otherwise how could they ever think of wiping out the principal force of the Golden Tribe?


    But how could they win the battle? Situ Yn could not think of any solution. She did not believe that General Xu Chi would have a better answer either. Therefore she could not understand what the general or the imperial court was thinking about.


    She was not a pessimist or a defeatist. Like her guards and the soldiers in the Tang barracks, she was never afraid of the cavalry of the Golden Tribe Royal Court. Yet her senses were reminding her that a victory was indeed illusionary.


    The Northern Battlefront Army was very well trained and they had a pretty favorable location with Guhe behind them. Although they might not have the best timing or morale, it should not be so desperate. However, there had always been the evesting problem.


    No horses. No warhorses. The Northern Battlefront Army was in a great need of warhorses.


    Situ Yn led her guards back to the barracks. Soldiers along the way saluted to her. She could still tell the difference from their postures that seemed almost exactly the same. Those new soldiers who had been in the Northern Battlefront Army less than two years had much clearer eyes and seemed a bit shy. Whereas the veterans seemed indifferent. And their eyes... seemed frivolous when they nced at her. She could feel it distinctively even with the slightest nce.


    The veterans reminded her of a person she had not met for years. He used to be her ssmate, andter on the so-called mister, who had made his way to the top of the world.

 Chapter 1057 - The Blade Longed For Blood, And I Longed For Horses

    <h4>Chapter 1057: The de Longed For Blood, And I Longed For Horses</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    That person always had an indolent attitude. He also peeped at her by the wend in the Academy, in the House of Red Sleeves, and by the greenke in north Yan. He thought she was not aware when he gazed at her curves from breast to legs. But she was just too shy to mention it.


    The person Situ Yn recalled was definitely Ning Que. She was not indulging herself in their youth memories because of the dangerous situation she was facing. She was simply trying to obtain some strength. The veterans in the barracks were like Ning Que. They were unimaginably tenacious and able to fulfill many unexpected achievements.


    But what upset her was that deep down in their indifferent eyes, she saw their irreconcble wills. Especially when they saw the war horse she held, they seemed extremely envy and restless.


    Indeed, that was still the problem.


    Situ Yn lowered her head and pondered. Why did the royal court agreed to cede Xiangwan in to the Divine Halls of West-Hill? Why did they agree topensate the Golden Tribe and Yan with war horses? They were indeed facing very severe situation back then. But didn¡¯t they know that by yielding to these requests they were basicallymitting suicide?


    The ck death cord had been gradually twisted for years in silence and eventually came to its extreme on the grasnd, cing tremendous pressure on every soldier in the North Battlefront Army.


    Even people in Chang¡¯an were fully aware of the situation. And so should the ministers in the royal courts. Prince Li Peiyan even hanged himself due to the cession. But Situ Yn knew it was the Academy¡¯s decision. More precisely, it was Ning Que¡¯s decision.


    But why did the Academy agree with him back then?


    Coming closer to the barracks, Situ Yn saw a man and a woman by a table. She felt awkward. She was a disciple of the Academy, while these two people represented the Academy. Thinking of her disagreement with the Academy¡¯s decision previously, she did not know what she should say now.


    Mu You used to be fond of light yellow dresses. But now she had to wear something more practical like cotton-padded clothes. The Sixth Brother was still topless as he used to be in the back hill of the Academy, wearing only a piece of fur.


    Situ Yn could say nothing harsh to these two seniors from the Academy. Because instead of enjoying their celestial lives, they had been fighting together with ordinary soldiers these days.


    The situation of the war had been changed. The enemies never stopped trying to assassinate their generals. Many Tang generals would have been killed by the Golden Tribe Royal Court if it was not for the ingenious arrays Mu You had set up in the barracks and the intensive defense Mr. Six made with his iron hammer, not to mention the countless weapons Mr. Six had fixed throughout the nights.


    Situ Yn found someone missing and asked, ¡°Where is Mr. Fourth?¡±


    Fan Yue, Mr. Fourth from the Academy was now the brain of the North Battlefront Army. General Hua Ying trusted him so well and put him in charge for everything from stationing to strategic nning.


    Mu You wrung out a towel and came to her. She wiped the dust off her face and said gently, ¡°No matter where you are ... a pretty girl like you has to be neat even when you cannot dress yourself up.¡±


    Situ Yn was not in the mood of dressing up and could only put on a bitter smile. Recalling the army of the Golden Tribe Royal Court she saw on the grasnd, she felt stressed and asked quietly, ¡°When will Mrs. Third make the attack? When will the powerful figures from the Light¡¯s Doctrine and the Wild People arrive?¡±


    The North Battlefront Army was in inferiority now. She could not think of a solution no matter what. However General Xu Chi had been so calm that she reasoned the Academy must have nned for alternatives and back ups.


    After working on the arrays for many days and nights, Mu You was quite exhausted. Upon Situ Yn¡¯s question, she answered after a while, ¡°I have no idea where the Eldest Sister is.¡±


    Hearing this, Situ Yn felt disappointed and lost again.


    ¡°ording to the original n, she should have taken the East Wilderness in early spring and joined us... She should have made the attack. There must be a reason for her not showing up until now, either it is not the right time yet or because of something else.¡± Mu You tried tofort her and pushed her to sit down for breakfast.


    ...


    ...


    Anything that contradictedmon sense must had its reason. As for an army, themon sense was always an objective judgment of the situation followed by a reasonable solution.


    Hua Ying stood outside the barracks and stared at the scarlet morning glow. He could vaguely see the countless yurts of the Golden Tribe Royal Court. There must be something wrong with the General¡¯s solution. But what was it?


    A chief delivered him a telescope. He took it and looked out to the Golden Tribe Royal Court, then toward some dozens of miles away in the northeast. He observed for a long while in silence.


    The telescopes were made by the Academy and brought here by Mr. Six. Almost every chief in the North Battlefront Army had one now. They treated them like great treasures and carried them everywhere.


    Hua Ying was amazed. With such help from the Academy they could see clearly the moves of the Golden Tribe Royal Court while the enemies were not aware at all. If it was in the past the North Battlefront Army would have definitely won the battle.


    Especially now when Chanyu had risked the entire tribe to make the attack to the south, they never thought about retreating and assumed their tactics were invincible. But to the Tang generals, their strategies were full of loopholes. As long as the Tang could send out a strong cavalry, they would definitely crush the Golden Tribe.


    ¡°If only ... I could have ten thousand ... no, even eight thousand...¡± Hua Ying put down the telescope and looked to the north. His voice trembled, ¡°If only I could have eight thousand best war horses, I would have no problem guarding Guhe. I would even drive them out of Wei.¡±


    Chanyu was too arrogant. Hua Ying saw it as their best chance hence his voice was trembling. It was very unbearable for him to let go such a perfect chance.


    Xu Chi firmly believed that the North Battlefront Army could defeat the cavalry of Golden Tribe Royal Court in the battlefield. But Hua Ying seriously doubted it. He was not questioning his military order, but only longed badly for another ten thousand best war horses.


    However it was not going to happen.


    Even if Haotian were to return to the human world, she would never be able to get ten thousand suitable and well-trained war horses for the Tang within such a short period of time.


    The Golden Tribe Royal Court knew that Tang was running out of war horses. That was exactly why Chanyu dared to invade to the south and made such arrogant ns. They were fearless facing the decisive battle tomorrow.


    Many Tang soldiers fantasized that their royal court must have secretly raised many war horses and would raid their enemies in the decisive battle. But it merely their fantasy. Chanyu never thought so.


    To raise horses, they needed a lot of forage, stables,bors and resources. A huge number of war horses could never be raised secretly in the Tang. They could never be hidden from Taoism. Even if they could, how could those untrained horses be useful in a battle?


    They needed experienced war horses, war horses, or even just horses.


    It was what Situ Yn was longing for, what the former cavalrymen were longing for, what Hua Ying and everyone else was desperately longing for. They were yelling furiously inside, Why don¡¯t we have war horses?


    If they could not get experienced war horses, even some ordinary horses would do. As long as they could carry the cavalrymen, they could be any horses, steeds, mares, naughty horses, ponies, whatever kind of horses. As long as they were horses!


    Without horses, the Tang army was seriously doomed.


    ...


    ...


    Throughout the North Battlefront Army, only General Xu Chi was still confident.


    Yu Lian never showed up on the grasnd, neither did the national master of Golden Tribe Royal Court and the ten priests. They were well protected by the grasnd cavalrymen in the rear.


    Xu Chi¡¯s confidence did note from Yu Lian or Tang, the World Wayfarer of Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He had gotten the message from Hn City earlier on that the Wild People were dyed by the cavalrymen of the Divine Halls from the Yan and could note immediately to back him up.


    It was a very bad news. But fortunately, ten days ago he received another message. It was from the Academy and brought him some hope.


    Many carriages had left the North Battalion and arrived at the rear of Guhe. They were full of hidden supplies for the main force of North Battlefront Army. To keep it a secret as long as he could, he did not even tell Hua Ying.


    ...


    ...


    The dawn was yet toe, and the moon was already gone. The sky was turning bright from the east while some dimming stars still shone in the west. People on the grasnd were awake. Kids were ying and women were murmuring throughout the countless yurts of the Golden Tribe Royal Court. But more noises came from the shing of machetes and armors, as well as the restless neighs of the war horses and the crackles of burning grass.


    ording to their tradition, the grasnd cavalrymen should never bring their families to battles. But the Golden Tribe Royal Court was seriously throwing the entire tribe into the battle. Therefore they had women, children, as well as ves in their yurts. Chanyu and the nobles prepared them well so that they were not a burden for the soldiers. Instead, they had be the best stimtor for the warriors to fight fearlessly against the Tang army.


    The warriors of the Golden Tribe already assembled. They were solemn and firm. The ves and families had helped them get armed.


    It was the darkest time before dawn. They were not nning to do sneak attack in the darkness because darkness was not favorable for themselves either. The cavalrymen needed to see the field clearly. They were much more superior and did not need to take the risk.


    They made an early assembly because it was in their blood to fight and it would be a severe battle today. Human beings could fight with morale, but not the war horses. Therefore they had to feed them well before the battle. They fed the horses with the best forage, mixed with grains and beans, and provided them with enough fresh water as well as some salt.


    They had to finish all these preparations within four hours before the battle. Then the cavalry of Golden Tribe would crush whatever stayed in their way.

 Chapter 1058 - Between Heaven And Earth, There Came The Wild Horses

    <h4>Chapter 1058: Between Heaven And Earth, There Came The Wild Horses</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Chanyu stepped out of his golden yurt and looked around. His dark and handsome face was covered with a satisfied smile because of the resoluteness of his warriors as well as theing victory after so many years.


    ording to him, the Northern Battlefront Army¡¯sck of cavalrymen would never be a match to his cavalry of the Golden Tribe. The previous battles were dragging on because the Northern Battlefront Army was unexpectedly persevering and their armament and senior cultivators were extremely powerful. But more importantly it was because the cavalrymen of Golden Tribe did not pull all their effort. They were merely testing and exhausting their enemies.


    When the infantry confronted the cavalry, despite their innate advantages, the cavalry was psychologically superior. If the infantry wanted to stop the cavalry, they had to pay a lot more both physically and mentally.


    Previously, the cavalry of the Golden Tribe was exhausting the Tang infantry, taking down their enemy¡¯s morale while elevating their own. They had acquired full confidence for theing victory. It would be a decisive battle today.


    The cavalry of Golden Tribe would definitely make their full attack, not leaving any chances for the enemies. They would go for revenge after hundreds of years of humiliation, and crush the Northern Battlefront Army and the Tang people.


    It was a risky n, yet ording to Chanyu, it was a bound-to-win battle. As a result of the testing previously, he was very certain that the Tang people did not have any other backups. Therefore they had every reason tounch a frontal attack.


    The day finally broke and the light was about to prevail. Morning glow fell on the grasnd as well as Changyu¡¯s face, which made him seem more resolute and powerful.


    He stared at the fields in the south and the indistinct Tang barracks from a distance. He could almost see the cavalry of the Golden Tribe pouring onto them and quake the earth in a short while. Then the Tang army wouldunch their weapons like they have done previously, throwing rocks and shooting spears. The sharp spears would be chilling and the des of the cultivators from the Central ins would be shining. The arrays would stir the Qi of Heaven and Earth. But eventually, they would all be crushed by his cavalry.


    General Bule came and looked at the wisest and most widely respected Chanyu in the history of the grasnd. He said with a trembling voice, ¡°Today, Your Highness will be the king of the world.¡±


    Chanyu smiled no more and stayed calm. He was calm because he knew they would win. He looked over the Tang army toward somewhere further south. The national master had told him that it was where Chang¡¯an was located.


    The gentle but awe-inspiring emperor had died six years ago but his daughter was still alive. Chanyu nned silently that when they upied Chang¡¯an he would kill that woman by himself and fuck her dead body.


    A Da also came to the golden yurt. He did not take a bath. The blood stains on his clothes were stinky and attracted many mosquitoes and flies.


    The nobles took a nce at the young former ve who had be the most powerful warrior in the Gold Tribe. They could not hide their disgust and dread, and stayed as far as they could from him.


    A Da was wounded in the battle previously. In order to remember the failure he did not wash off the blood stain. He was trying to remember what he should learn from the enemies instead of clinging onto the humiliation.


    He took disguise in the cavalry of Golden Tribe that day and broke through the trenches and spears of the Tang army. His n was to hide among the dead bodies of his fellow warriors and seek for an opportunity to assassinate Hua Ying, the chiefmander of the vanguard of Northern Battlefront Army.


    A Da had always wanted to kill Hua Ying. At the beginning it was merely a revenge to Ning Que¡¯s bloody ughter in Chang¡¯an earlier on. But he could not seed after a long while which had led him to the suffering from poisoning. Therefore he nned for a risky assassination this time. But again he failed. Because from the beginning, or more precisely ever since he moved toward the Tang army among the cavalrymen, some person had saw through his n.


    Hua Ying never showed up. Instead there came an iron hammer and an array.


    A Da was attacked unexpectedly and wounded right away. But he was after all the most powerful warrior in the Golden Tribe Royal Court. So he managed to break out of the intensive encirclement of Tang and returned to the Golden Tribe, extremely miserably.


    He disregarded the wounds and paid a visit to the national master that night. Then he realized who those people were.


    The one who saw through his n was Fan Yue, Mr. Fourth of the Academy. The one who swayed the iron hammer was the most courageous Mr. Sixth of the Academy. While the woman who mastered arrays to the zenith was Mrs. Seventh of the Academy.


    The three masters from the Academy were all at Seethrough. They were outstanding in the cultivation world but should be nothing for A Da. He could have easily defeated ten of them. However he was seriously wounded and confused.


    He pondered for a whole night. Instead of getting enraged he managed to calm himself down. It was his first direct confrontation with the academy in the battlefield and he had learnt a lot. He could not help showing more respect for the Academy, yet more resolute than ever in taking them down.


    That was why he could have stayed undisturbed when looking at the Tang army under the morning glow, despite the disgust and dread of the nobles. It was because the Golden Tribe would definitely win the battle and even would not need him to participate.


    Chanyu and A Da shared the same confidence in theing victory. Therefore they were very calm. But the rest of the warriors of the grasnd seemed fanatic. They stared at the Tang army with the eyes of the wolves.


    As long as they could defeat the Tang, the Golden Tribe Royal Court would reign over the entire world. In the new chapter they would upy the most wealthy cities in the Central ins, wear the best silk clothes, embracing the most beautiful women, indulge in the strongest liquor, drink from the clearest brooks and eat the finest steamed buns.


    These must be the bestows of their Tengri. It would be an insult to Tengri if they could not take the triumph.


    ...


    ...


    Chanyu, A Da and their numerous cavalrymen in the Golden Tribe were all looking at the Tang army to their south.


    In Tang¡¯s barracks, Hua Ying and his soldiers were also looking to the north. Further south in the temporary General¡¯s Mansion, Xu Chi was also looking to the north, to the hungry wolves in the morning glow and breeze.


    People sensed the danger.


    The previous battles of over ten days were already brutal. The cavalrymen of the Golden Tribe attacked pretty hard, and the Northern Battlefront Army defended even harder. Therefore they could only break even. But today it would not be the same.


    The Golden Tribe was going to fight desperately today. Chanyu and his people were ready to bet the luck of the entire tribe in theing battle.


    Hua Ying¡¯s face was ghastly pale.


    Through the telescope, he could see clearly what they were doing in the Golden Tribe Royal Court. He saw that the grasnd barbarians were feeding their horses, and providing them with water and salt. And he could even see the mutton boiled in their pots.


    As a veteran Tang general, he knew exactly the customs of the grasnd cavalrymen. In no more than two hours the well-fed warhorses would carry the barbarians like hungry wolves to devour them.


    It was their ritual on the grasnd. It was also the reason why he looked ghastly pale. Chanyu and his grasnd cavalrymen did not even care about being seen by the Tang army now, which meant they had already nned for the timing of the battle today and were officially announcing it to the Tang army.


    How confident they were, and how humiliating it was to the Tang army!


    If it was ten years ago, Hua Ying would have sent his cavalrymen to raid them as soon as he saw this. They would have obtained what they wanted before the enemy could even react.


    But now he could no longer do that. Because he did not have enough warhorses. It was no longer possible for him to send out the cavalrymen in sequence and groups like he used to do in their full glory.


    If only...


    That same problem, that same wish came into Hua Ying¡¯s mind again. If only Tang could have a real cavalry at this point, if only they had enough warhorses, could Chanyu ever dare to be so arrogant? Absolutely no. It would be the doomsday of the Golden Tribe Royal Court if only...


    But that was just his wish. If wishes equaled the reality, how could there be so much pain in the human world? His wish could nevere true. Therefore the Golden Tribe Royal Court was not doomed today. That was why Chanyu and his grasnd cavalrymen could be so rampant and aggressive. That was also why the Northern Battlefront Army was so helpless. He could almost see their miserable ending and sense the despair in it.


    Not like Hua Ying, the ordinary soldiers in the Northern Battlefront Amy was resolute and calm. They did not know the secrets or the prediction the generals had made on the sand table. They had no idea and did not care about the chance of victory. They would fight fearlessly like always no matter what.


    Looking around at the Tang soldiers who were preparing quietly for the battle, Situ Yn tried to conceal her sadness and raised her head again in high spirits, in order not to jeopardize the morale the slightest.


    She noticed that a Tang soldier was still standing by the pot while all the others had finished their breakfast quickly and started sharpening their weapons. He was holding a big bowl in the left hand and a wooden spoon in the right, indulging in the taste of the vegetable porridge, and murmuring cheerfully upon chewing on the pork in it.


    ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± Situ Yn came to him and asked.


    He was not an elder soldier. But she could tell that he was already a veteran through his callused hands and indifferent look.


    The Tang soldier turned to her, paused for a while, put aside the bowl with porridge and saluted to her. He replied, ¡°General, I¡¯m Wang Wu from the Fourth Chihou Squad of the Vanguard Brigade.¡±


    ¡°Wang Wu? That¡¯s a neat name.¡± Situ Yian continued, ¡°But it seems you are not a neat person. Don¡¯t you know everyone else is already back to their barracks and preparing for the battle? Why are you still here?¡±


    Wang Wu showed enough respect but he was not afraid of her. He answered sincerely yet mockingly, ¡°Chihou Squads will not join the battle for a while. Furthermore there will be at least two hours before those barbarians¡¯ attack. Why the hurry? There were quite some pork in the porridge today. It would be a shame if we cannot finish it.¡±


    Situ Yn slightly raised her eyebrows andmented, ¡°Indeed a veteran.¡±


    Wang Wu used the wooden spoon to scratch on his neck and grinned. ¡°I¡¯m ttered.¡±


    Situ Yn said, ¡°It seems you¡¯ve got a good appetite this morning. I wish everyone else could be like you and have enough confidence in the battle today. Or...¡± Upon those words she suddenly stopped.


    Wang Wu¡¯s weary smile disappear too. He stared at her and said indifferently, ¡°Or what, General? Or may there be some miracles? You know that¡¯s not gonna happen.¡±


    Situ Yn looked cold. She stared into his eyes and asked after a pause, ¡°What are you trying to say?¡±


    ¡°There is quite some pork in the porridge today, and even more vegetables... Although we¡¯ve been fed very well in the Northern Battlefront Army, it is still far above average. It¡¯s too good to keep me from doubting.¡±


    Wang Wu did not fear her and continued calmly, ¡°Or perhaps it is ourst meal. Therefore the General wanted to give us the best.¡±


    Situ Yn asked again in cold voice, ¡°What the hell are you trying to say?¡±


    Wang Wu pointed at the Tang soldiers in the nearby barracks who were preparing for the battle quietly, and continued, ¡°I know we are definitely losing the battle today. Many of us know it. We just never mentioned it.¡±


    Situ Yn was silent for a long while.


    Wang Wu said further, ¡°If you think I¡¯m jeopardizing the morale, you could sentence me right away.¡±


    Situ Yn replied, ¡°I¡¯m more interested in why you¡¯ve told me this.¡±


    Wang Wu said, ¡°Because I want to tell General Xu, the imperial court at the Academy... I¡¯m not reconciled. I won¡¯t take the failure. And I can¡¯t understand why the Northern Battlefront Army would end like this.¡±


    Situ Yn lowered her voice and said, ¡°To defend the country is the duty of every Tang soldier. What are you not reconciled for?¡±


    ¡°My point is why did General Xu send us here outside Guhe? Why do we have to fight ourst battle here? I¡¯m never afraid of death. But I don¡¯t like it that he is sending us to die for nothing.¡± Wang Wu got enraged all of a sudden and throw the wooden spoon back into the pot. He yelled at Situ Yn, ¡°The Xiangwan in was ceded by the imperial court. The battle was decided by the general. Why do we have to die for absolutely nothing? Even if you generals want us to die defending the country, shouldn¡¯t we die for a victory?¡±


    Situ Yn stopped her guards from pulling out the sabers and paused for a long while. Because she did not have an answer for this angry veteran either. Indeed, the imperial court sent the Tang army here to defend the country and they spared nothing executing the order, with their blood and lives. But they should at least let them have some chance of winning. Otherwise how could they die with content?


    ¡°So what do you want? What do you want me to do?¡± she stared at Wang Wu and asked sincerely.


    Wang Wu was not expecting such an answer. After a long pause, he said nothing further, smiled bitterly and turned to walk toward their barracks.


    Situ Yn gazed at his figure but did not ask further questions. Because she knew pretty well what the young veteran would want. It was also what she was longing for, what the Northern Battlefront Army or even the entire Tang was longing for.


    Wang Wu came back to his barrack, and stared nkly at the half bag of dried grass outside the tent.


    He was one of the Chihou Squad, the very few in the Northern Battlefront Army who had horses. But his horse died two years ago in Wei and he never had another horse ever since.


    A Chihou without his horse was no better than a dog. Wang Wu could not help from thinking like that throughout the two years. He felt that he was indeed no better than a dog. Because even a dog could bark. What could he do?


    Wang Wu kicked away the bag of dried grass and went to wash his face. But upon staring at the pale and frowning face reflected in the water bucket, he found his sensations dreadful.


    He inhaled deeply andpletely dispelled the despair and anger down his heart. Then he pulled out the saber that he brought from Wei and started to give instructions to his subordinates in preparation for theing battle.


    A Chihou without his horse... was still a Tang soldier. He would fight till thest even if there was no hope.


    He looked through the morning glow toward the yurts of the Golden Tribe in the north, and recalled the City of Wei all of a sudden. When the City of Wei was wiped out by the cavalry of Golden Tribe, he was one of the very few who survived. He returned to the Northern Battlefront Army and reimed his identity. He was assigned a horse but lost it again shortly. Just like they used to have the City of Wei but lost itter.


    Wang Wu often recalled the days when they used to go hunting with the general, killed countless gangsters and imed their fortunes. But those days were gone forever.


    Under his indifferent andzy disguise, his heart was constantly inmed and poisoned by anger and hatred. He had always dreamed about defeating the grasnd barbarians with his fellow soldiers and reim the City of Wei some day. But it seemed pretty hopeless.


    ording to the current situation, there might never be such a day. He was longing for a warhorse, the best warhorse. He wanted to ride on his horse and charge to the enemies. If only he could have a warhorse and so could his fellow soldiers, they would definitely win.


    This idea had been haunting him constantly. He was almost driven crazy upon the sight of the countless horses in the Gold Tribe Royal Court. At this moment he would surrender whatever he had, even his life to anyone who could give him a horse. He was even willing to wash the feet of those stinky grasnd barbarians for a horse, as long as he could kill them after that.


    If anyone could give him a horse, he would like to ve for that person. But unfortunately, there were no ifs.


    Wang Wu was about to wash his face then get ready for the most brutal battle thought a thousand of years. It would be a series of battles that would take countless lives. The Northern Battlefront Army would probably lose. And all the Tang soldiers would die for their country. He wanted his face and teeth to be clean when he died.


    The next moment, he felt some dizziness because the water rippled in the basin. The reflection of his eyes and eyebrows were distorted and seemed funny instead of depressed.


    People from the Golden Tribe Royal Court also sensed the quake. Tens of thousands of grasnd cavalrymen were preparing tensely for the battle and feeding their horses. But suddenly those well-trained warhorses became extremely restless. Some were shaking their heads like crazy instead of eating and drinking. Some others looked toward somewhere afar being scared. They kept kicking their forelegs, as if they could only cheat themselves and kill the fear by doing so.


    The fields started quaking from the City of Wei to the meadow outside Guhe. The wheels of the carriages in both sides were creaking. Some soldiers could not even stand properly on the ground.


    A Da jumped onto the top of a carriage and squinted toward where the quake came from. He had the best eyesight hence was the first to be stunned upon seeing what was happening. What he saw was incredible and he could no longer stay arrogant and solemn.


    More and more people saw the source of the quaking. Wang Wu raised his eyebrows high as well as the corners of his lips. His hands trembled and the wet towel fell into the basin and sshed some water.


    The same like him, everyone from the Chihou Squad and the Northern Battlefront Army further away all felt the quake. They looked toward the northwest. Everyone was stunned, confused and silenced. But there was more excitement and expectation.


    The grasnd was clear and fresh under the morning sun. There was no wind or dust. People could see clearly that a huge dark mass of clouds wasing toward them from the northwestern horizon. The clouds seemed to be moving slowly only because of its huge size. They were actually moving fast.


    The dark clouds dashed a dozen miles swiftly and came to the edge of the fields outside Guhe. Now people could see clearly that it was rather a mass of dense dust instead of clouds. And it was caused by horse hooves. Countless wild horses were roaring toward them!


    The morning sun flushed the sky and shed warm light into the dust, as if it was the rosy morning glow pulled down to the earth. The dashing horses seemed ming and charming!


    No one could tell how many horses there were in the morning glow. And no one would bother to figure out how many horses could have created such an earth-shaking scene.


    They just knew that an incredibly huge crowd of wild horses just appeared from nowhere. And the wild horses.. wereing to the Tang army! The silence on the grasnd made the clip-clops even more distinct. It pounded on everyone¡¯s ears and heart like thunders.


    Every soldier in the Tang¡¯s Vanguard Brigade stopped their preparations. No matter how harsh their disciplines were they could no longer move their eyes away from the morning glow and the countless wild horses dashing toward them.


    Some Tang soldiers kept rubbing their eyes and thought it might be their illusions. They tried to convince themselves that it was not illusions, but still found it unbelievable.


    Others like Wang Wu did not even dare to blink. He gazed at the wild horses as if he was looking at some charming girls in the liquor store in Wei, and was afraid that upon a blink they would disappear.


    Situ Yn bit hard on her lips and her face turned pale. Her hand trembled on the tilt. She knew it was not an illusion but could not be sure that the horses were reallying toward them. What if... they were to turn to the east of the grasnd and disappear instantly as they came? What if they were only passing by?


    They felt asplicated as they looked, with a mix of anxiousness, longing, stunning, worries and even fear. They stared at the morning glow as well as the wild horses dashing toward them, and felt increasingly anxious.


    When the morning glow gradually disappeared, the meadow outside Guhe was enveloped in dust and sand. Tens of thousands of warhorses in the Golden Tribe neighed in fear. The sunlight was blocked and it was hard for people to see clearly.


    Situ Yn closed her eyes and opened again shortly. She saw a brown wild horse standing in front of her and staring at her. The eyes of the brown horses seemed like those of a human infant, curious and most innocent.


    When the dust settled, soldiers went into a hail. They shouted loudly with excitement. It was hard to describe the scene. They seemed crazy and yelled in relief.


    It was very real. The horses, wild horses, countless wild horses came to the Tang army in the morning glow. The wild horses strolled around the barracks of the Tang army, as if they were enjoying themselves in the grasnd. Their long mane swayed in the morning breeze. They were handsome and curious.


    Like the brown horse, it did not understand why the woman in front of it was crying.


    The wild horses could not understand why these people were hailing, why their voices were hoarse, why they cuddled their necks and gently stroked them. Why were theyughing? And why were they crying?


    They would never understand what they meant for the Tang people. Their arrival was a true divine manifesto.


    Over the past ten days, the past year, or even the past three years... from the emperor to the ministers, from ordinary people to the fearless soldiers, everyone in the Tang Empire had constantly been longing for enough warhorses. They knew it was a wild hope. Because they had lost Xiangwan in and Taoism would never spare them a chance.


    Thest battle between Tang and the Golden Tribe was about to beunched, the result of which would be decisive to the future of the human world. But people like Hua Ying, Situ Yn and Wang Wu still could not stop wishing wildly. They would surrender whatever they had, including their dignity and lives, to plead to Haotian for another chance, even though they were no longer her followers.


    The Tang was in bad need of horses, warhorses.


    It seemed that Haotian had indeed heard their pleading and put aside their betrayal. It seemed she was standing behind the morning glow and uttered four words to the Great Swamp in the heart of the Wilderness: ¡°Let there be horses.¡± Therefore the Tang army received their horses.


    ...


    ...


    The Tang army almost went insane. On the contrary, everyone was stupefied throughout the tribes of the Golden Tribe Royal Court. The grasnd people were ghastly pale.


    The Golden Tribe Royal Court ventured the entire poption to migrate to the south andunched the war against Tang. And every single tribe followed Chanyu without doubts. That was only because of the fact that Tang was inck of warhorses.


    However right before the decisive battle, countless wild horses dashed out of the heart of the grasnd and came to them. What the hell was going on? Where did theye from? Why did people living on the grasnd for generations have no idea about their existence? How could so many wild horses survived secretly?


    Some seniors and brave travelers from a few tribes recalled a legend they heard decades ago. It was said that deep inside the West Wilderness, where even the wolves did not dare to enter, there was a group of divine horses who could walk on the water and survive on clouds. They were heavenly steeds of Tengri that just dwelled in the human world temporarily.


    Could those wild horsesing from the south like dark clouds be the legendary heavenly steeds? If they really belonged to Tengri, why would they help the Tang army?


    The seniors were almost fainting and the travelers were trembling. The warriors were about to drop their weapons. And the women started praying in scared voices to plead for Tengri¡¯s protection.


    Seeing the countless wild horsesing from the south, the grasnd people felt that they were already abandoned by Tengri.


    They could never understand why. The national master who stayed in the carriage at the rear could not figure out why either. But he knew for sure that the situation waspletely different now. He sighed profoundly.


    He already sent several priests heading to the golden yurt, while himself and the rest priests formed an array with carriages. But he never went to the battlefield. He was afraid of Yu Lian and Tang. He had been trying to discourage Chanyu from the risky n. It was because he always believed that the Academy and Tang would never lose so easily. Unfortunately Chanyu was not listening.


    The result of the battle today seemed obvious. But someone did not agree.


    Staring at the barracks of Tang in the south enveloped in dust, the handsome Chanyu still looked calm and resolute. Being the overlord of the grasnd, he boldly initiated the migration of the entire tribe and invasion to the south. He took the risk of traveling all the way down and the possibility of being trapped by the Tang army. But he was so certain that they would win the war no matter how hard it would be.


    He wanted revenge for his elder brother. And most importantly he wanted to reign the entire human world. He would like his subordinates to be the next generation aristocrats and his descendants to be the owners of the charmingnd in the south. Therefore he had to win. It was the Abbey Dean¡¯s promise to him as well as his to the Abbey Dean.


    Even until now, upon seeing the endless wild horsesing in the morning glow, he was still confident. More precisely, despite the paleness on his face, he was not disturbed the slightest.


    General Bule murmured, ¡°ording to Taoism ... Tengri was missing. Everyone in the Central ins was looking for her. Could it be that our betrayal had enraged her and that was why she sent these heavenly steeds to help the Tang people?¡±


    Chillness shed in Changyu¡¯s eyes. He stared at him and said with a cold voice, ¡°Stupid you.¡±


    General Bule did not dare to argue and backed off silently. He thought that he understood Chanyu the best... Theing battle on the meadow outside Guhe would be decisive. The Golden Tribe could not afford a failure or a retreat because the cavalry of Golden Tribe had gone too far to the south. And there was no way for them to head back home.


    Since they could neither surrender nor retreat, they could only keep fighting. How could he jeopardize the morale at this moment? General Bule understood this well and kept silent even when he was scorned stupid.


    ¡°It has nothing to do with morale... Tang would never win.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°What are they really longing for?


    ¡°Horses.¡±


    ¡°Wrong.¡± Chanyu looked to the south extremely indifferently and confidently, ¡°They want warhorses, not just horses.¡±


    Indeed. Situ Yn and Wang Wu had been praying everyday for whatever horses as long as they could have enough of them. But what they really needed could only be warhorses. And warhorses had to be well trained throughout a long period of time. But what they got was merely arge group of wild horses.


    The wild horses never saw blood. Nor did they participate in any battles. They were never saddled or reined. How could people ride and fight on them?


    No human being could train tens of thousands of wild horses into experienced warhorses in such a short period of time. It was dawn. The battle was about to beunched. As for those wild horses... what use could they be of anyway?


    Upon hearing Chanyu¡¯s words, General Bule was cheered up immediately. He was after all the general of all the cavalrymen. He had the previous doubts only because he was stupefied by the overwhelming scene of tens of thousands of horses pouring in.


    The Golden Tribe elerated the preparation and assembling. Their warhorses was scared previously but calmed down by their masters gradually. They were armored and put on the arrow cases. But they were still irritated and could barely keep their formation whenever they saw those of their kind in south.


    But just as Chanyu had said indifferently, the Tang army was in chaos right now. After the hail and tears of joy, they came back to their senses and started preparation right away upon the messages delivered by the Chihou Squad. Then they realized that they did not have enough riding gears... It had been over three years. They had no horses and no one in the Northern Battlefront Army could have predicted this.


    There were more trouble toe. The Tang soldiers found that although the wild horse seemed nice to them, they were still reluctant to be reined, not to mention saddled... Wild horses were running around in Tang¡¯s barracks. Colorful horse hair were flying around. Some wild horse even knocked down the soldier and escaped...


    Although they could not see what was happening in Tang¡¯s barracks, the grasnd warriors could tell from the chaotic sounds and dust that Chanyu¡¯s judgment was correct. They mocked and whistled toward the Tang army, swayed their des and did their best to scorn.


    Right then, an extremely sharp whinny was heard between Heaven and Earth.


    It was like the friction between two rocks, or the sound from a broken air box. It seemed weak like the panting of someone sick, butsted long.


    The ugly whinny pierced through Heaven and Earth.


    The mockingughter from the tens of thousands of cavalrymen in the Golden Tribe were suppressed.


    The untamed neighs and weird snorts were stopped instantly.


    Tens of thousands of wild horses seemed to have heard the most horrifying sound in the world. They did not dare to move any further and raised their heads together toward where the whinny came from, as if they were soldiers waiting for an inspection.


    The dust in the northwestern part of the field was settling. And something came out of it gradually. There were eight rarely seen steeds pulling a shabby cart.


    A ck donkey was sitting in the shabby cart. There were lots of furless spots on its body which made it seem miserable. But it was in high spirits. Probably it was born like that or it was the grapes and wine it had been feasting on.


    The ck donkey squinted around the fields, as if it was the real king for all the wild horses and warhorses. The wild horses in Tang¡¯s barracks bowed. And the warhorses in the Golden Tribe were scared.


    Mu You and the Sixth Brother stepped out of the barracks and walked toward the shabby cart.


    It was only until then they saw the big ck horse pulling the ck carriage behind the shabby cart. It seemed cheerful and chubby. Obviously its senior fellow had treated him well throughout the past three years.


    Mu You slightlyughed. But because of the drought in the grasnd, the corners of her lips cracked slightly and shed some blood. She and the Sixth Brother bowed to the ck donkey in the cart. The ck donkey nodded reservedly and politely.


    The big ck horse ran to Mu You and was about to push its head into her arms. But upon recalling the person with only one arm, it tried hard to control itself. Mu You patted its neck. The big ck horse put on a solemn look, backed off and bowed to her and the Sixth Brother.


    Immediately following that they heard the sounds of rolling wheels. Many huge carriages came out from the supplies and gears barracks. They were led to the Vanguard Brigade by Fan Yue, the Fourth Brother of the Academy, and were loaded with various kinds of riding gears and sabers.


    The students of the back hill of the Academy finally reunited in the Wilderness.


    ...


    ...


    Saddled and reined, the wild horses gradually calmed down.


    The cavalrymen in the Northern Battlefront Army gently touched their long-lost riding gears and felt extremely sensational. Their former horses had aged and passed away. But the gears were still here. They were a bit worn but still in good shape.


    Wang Wu held some fresh water in both hands and delivered to his horse. Looking at this somewhat discontented wild horse, hemitted silently that he would ve for it for the rest of his life.


    Right now, we will go after the enemies.


    Indeed, let¡¯s take down the enemies.


    The cavalrymen of the Golden Tribe Royal Court were pouring in already.


    The previously restless grasnd warhorses were activated by the horse whips and spurs and temporarily forgot their instinctive fear. They darted forward.


    The Tang army was much quieter than previously.


    Instead of mounting onto the horses, they led the formerly wild but now tamed warhorses forward. They stepped on the slightly firm grasnd and headed resolutely to the north.


    They were the Tang army. They were the strongest cavalrymen in the world, never defeated. The warhorses by their side had also reigned the Great Swamp for decades peerlessly. No matter how powerful the cavalrymen from the Golden Tribe were, how could they be a match to them?


    Dust blew and blotted out the sky above the grasnd. It was finally time to mount onto the horses.


    Situ Yn jumped onto the brown wild horse and pulled out her saber gradually. She raised her de and pointed to the cavalrymen from the grasnd. She said nothing and showed no sentiment. Her guards roared outrageously all of a sudden.


    Everyone in the Tang army roared together. After so many years of depression, their anger busted into fighting will upon the roars. Then the charge began. It was a breath-taking silent charge. Many cavalrymen of Northern Battlefront Army found it very strange tounch a charge again after so many years. But when they raised their des, pushed on the horses¡¯ bellies and bolted out, they found it very familiar again.


    It was called invincibility.


    Countless bouts of dust chopped the grasnd. Countless dark iron streams rushed toward the Golden Tribe.


    All of a sudden shing of weapons became deafening. It was from the Qilian City as well as by the side of Guhe. All the cavalrymen of Northern Battlefront Army bolted out from nowhere.


    The dark flood poured onto the Golden Tribe from three different directions. If someone could overlook the battlefield from above, he must be stunned by the overwhelming scene.


    Chilling wind swayed Situ Yn¡¯s hair by her cheeks. And she was thinking of the victory.


    Wang Wu bit hard on his lips and seemed absolutely determined. And he was thinking of the City of Wei.


    It was under the g of the Golden Tribe. Chanyu was extremely pale. General Bule was urging him to retreat and join the national master in the rear.


    Chanyu said nothing. No one knew what he was thinking about. It wasn¡¯t until now had he realized why the national master had been trying to stop him from the risky n.


    The Academy... and Ning Que... were indeed ruthless. And the Golden Tribe was defeated. He knew it clearly. He vomited blood and fell off the horse.


    It was on the meadow outside Guhe. Ning Que put down the telescope and pondered silently on what he had seen. He handed the telescope to Xu Chi who was standing by his side.


    Xu Chi stared at him and asked, ¡°We have stayed low for so many years just in preparation for today. Don¡¯t you think it was too risky?¡±


    Ning Que thought for a while and said, ¡°This was the only way.¡±


    Xu Chi said, ¡°If you had handed me those horses earlier on, I would have won too.¡±


    ¡°But you could not wipe them out.¡± Upon saying that he walked down the meadow.


    Situ Yn fought for victory.


    Wang Wu fought for the Wei.


    He also had his purpose.


    All he had been nning was simply to... wipe them out.


    ...

 Chapter 1059 - The Bleeding Setting Sun, And The Ink-Black Deep Ocean

    <h4>Chapter 1059: The Bleeding Setting Sun, And The Ink-ck Deep Ocean</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The setting sun looked like blood. Hua Ying, the general of Tang¡¯s Vanguard Brigade stood in the whistling wind and looked toward the settling dust afar. He was finally rxed and almost fell down. Situ Yn steadied him.


    On the fields hundreds of miles away from Guhe, bodies were scattered everywhere. North wind had been blowing for a whole day and took away most of the bloody smell. But it was still scarlet between Heaven and Earth.


    They started preparing for the battle early in the morning andunched the charge around noon time. It was not until dusk that the result was drawn. The Tang army was no doubt the victor.


    The Golden Tribe Royal Court suffered heavy casualties. Chanyu was in aa. The priests who participated in the battle were all killed. The young former ve A Da survived because he was called back by the national master at thest moment to help escort the severely wounded General Bule and the remaining troops to retreat.


    General Xu Chi had prepared seven hundred heavily armed cavalrymen at the edge of the battlefield, just to kill this young man.


    The Golden Tribe Royal Court waspletely defeated. They retreated to the north. Some Tang soldiers went to pursue them while the rest stayed to clean up.


    It was the most brutal field battle throughout thest thousand years. The battlefield was extremely bloody. Broken limbs were everywhere, as well as disemboweled bodies. Dark blood flooded. Flies and mosquitoes were haunting and groaning was heard throughout the fields.


    The Tang¡¯s medical unit was scanning through the fields constantly. The cavalrymen carried stretchers to deliver their woundedrades back to the barracks. The most severely wounded soldiers were sent back to the Guhe station in carriages for further treatments. People were in a rush to save more lives.


    Apart from saving their own fellows and collecting armor, they had another important mission, which was to take care of the surrendered and enemies who could no longer fight. Hundreds of Tang soldiers walked through the fields with their horses but somehow they did not gather any captives.


    A grasnd barbarian was lying on the field, staring at the grey sky in despair. His chest was slightly rising and falling and his face was stained in blood. A shadow fell on his face and followed by a de.


    A cavalryman of the Golden Tribe was pinned by his dead horse. His broken ribs pierced through his lungs and he was vomiting blood. He did not die immediately and kept moaning in great pain.


    When he saw those Tang soldiers holding sabersing toward him, he became relieved instead of scared. He tried to beg in his ownnguage. Most of the ordinary soldiers from the Northern Battlefront Army knew some barbariannguage. The approaching Tang soldiers understood what he was saying. They looked at each other and hesitated. Then Wang Wu limped over, raised his saber emotionlessly and chopped the head off the dying cavalryman of Golden Tribe.


    One of the soldiers said, ¡°We just did not want to relieve him immediately.¡±


    ¡°I don¡¯t even care whether he was relieved or not. I chopped his head not to be merciful. It¡¯s just... there are many more heads we have to chop off. I have no time to waste with you.¡± Upon saying so he led his warhorse and walked toward somewhere else on the meadow with more bodies. Right after him there was a carriage piled up with chopped heads of the grasnd barbarians.


    Wang Wu and his fellow soldiers were indeed reluctant to relieve those wounded barbarians. But they had to do so not because of mercy, but that they needed these heads. They needed to chop their heads not because they would like to im their contributions but because the General hadmanded them to take every single head off and collect them. As for captives... there would be no captives tonight.


    Hua Ying looked around the field, the bleeding setting sun and the blood stained world. He smiled in satisfaction and started coughing blood immediately. His beard was stained. As the general of the Vanguard Brigade, he definitely contributed the most in the battle today. But he did not care at all. And he knew that he would no longer need the fame from now on.


    ¡°I suppose you know exactly why I have been serving so hard in the battlefront throughout these years,¡± he spoke disjointedly, exhausted yet refreshed.


    Situ Yn kept quiet and helped him sit onto the ground.


    The Hua family followed Li Yu. They yed an ugly role in the scramble of the crown years ago. But they were defeated by Ning Que and the Empress. Hua Shanyue was killed and the Hua family declined immediately.


    After this battle, probably no one would remember that. Except for Hua Ying.


    ¡°The Academy... or Mr. Thirteen, was indeed ruthless.¡± Looking at the bloody scenes around, Hua Ying shook his head and recalled the miserable ending of the Hua family as well as the dozens of young people from Gushan Commandery who were sent to the battlefront and died.


    ¡°If only he could have handed the wild horses to the Northern Battlefront Army earlier, or if only he could have let the general and me know ahead, I suppose there would be much less casualties throughout the past three years.¡±


    Situ Yn said nothing.


    As a student of the Academy as well as Ning Que¡¯s previous ssmate and current follower, she did not agree with Hua Ying. But she could not exin it right now because the Tang army had indeed paid great prices in the past three years due to theck of warhorses. And so many had died today too.


    ¡°However... I like it.¡± Hua Ying suddenlyughed.


    He said sentimentally with pride, ¡°The Golden Tribe, was indeed powerful... His strategy cost the least casualties... However, how ruthless he had to be throughout these years? Only in this way could we have won the war at the lowest cost. I admire him, and am sympathetic for him too.¡±


    His words seemed illogical andplicated. But Situ Yn understood.


    Hua Ying looked toward the grasnd in the dusk, the settling dust and the retreating enemies far away hunted by the soldiers from the North Battalion. Eventually his eyes closed. He was still smiling in satisfaction. It was no doubt a most charming scene for a Tang general to see the Golden Tribe beingpletely defeated and the arrogant Chanyu and mysterious national master retreating like homeless dogs. He could finally die in satisfaction upon seeing the victory.


    Situ Yn ced her fingers in front of his nose and kept silent for a long while. Then she pulled back her hand,id his body onto the ground and called some surgeons to attend to him.


    She stood up in the whistling wind.


    The g of Tang Empire was partially burnt in the brutal battle. The burned part was ck but the golden threads underneath were still shining in the dusk, as if it wouldst forever.


    She stood by the burned g, looked around then turned to the north.


    The remaining troops of the Golden Tribe Royal Court were heading north. The Northern Battlefront Army had defeated the main forces of the Royal Court. But they had not wiped them out.


    Before he died, Hua Ying did not give her any instructions, nothing like never to let Chanyu go. It was because he knew clearly that the Golden Tribe Royal Court would never have a second chance.


    For the grasnd tribes hade too far to the south. If only the grasnd people had stayed along the seven cities instead of venturing to the south so aggressively, they would have a much greater chance to retreat to the grasnd even if they were defeated and they would have been able to survive like they did throughout the hundreds of years.


    It would be impossible to fight or even to pursue on the grasnd once the summer came. The Tang army would never be able to wipe out the enemies by then. But now the grasnd tribes hade all the way down to the south of Xiangwan in. How could they ever get back?


    Situ Yn did not believe that the grasnd barbarians could make their way back. She would never allow it.


    She stared at the dust blowing in the north and said, ¡°Take a break, then go pursue them.¡±


    ...


    ...


    It was very noisy inside the barracks of the Vanguard Brigade. The smell of anesthesia powder was distinctive. And in the barracks to the east with furnaces, sounds of pounding weapons were heard constantly. But the people were not talking.


    After a whole day of brutal fighting, the generals and soldiers were extremely exhausted. The Tang army also suffered heavy casualties. Even General Hua Ying had died of exhaustion. They were unexpectedly rescued from a desperate situation and eventually won the battle. It was indeed cheerful. However people were pretty silent.


    The ttest area of the meadow behind the barracks of the Vanguard Brigade was blocked. It was even quieter than anywhere else. Therefore the sounds of the ck donkey eating the grapes were very distinctive.


    The Fourth Brother came to the shabby cart and introduced his Brother and Sister to the ck donkey, ¡°This is my Sixth Brother and Seventh Sister. I was enrolled earlier, so I¡¯m the Fourth.¡±


    The ck donkey still acted reservedly. It nodded silently but thought secretly, Fortunately it was not the eldest three. Otherwise should I bow to them as they were enrolled to the Academy earlier than I was?


    The big ck horse shook his head and ran cheerfully toward him. It looked around but could not find the familiar figure. So it lowered its head in disappointment.


    ¡°I have no idea where the Youngest Brother is.¡± The Fourth Brother exined, ¡°... In fact no one knows where he went ever since he left Chang¡¯an.¡±


    During the brutal battle, the mysterious national master never showed up. He backed up Chanyu at the beginning. And in the end he escorted the best and most loyal thirty thousand cavalrymen to retreat to the north.


    Perhaps it was also the reason why Ning Que never showed up in the battle. No one knew where he went. Like he did in the previous spring, he disappeared again.


    The big ck horse was a bit upset. it walked to the top of the meadow and stared silently at the setting sun. It knew that the sun was going to be devoured by the dark deep ocean in the north.


    ...


    ...


    The never setting sun on the grasnd used to be the emperor of the Wild Kingdom. Later on it was the former Great Divine Priest of Light who established the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Then it was the current Chanyu of the Golden Tribe Royal Court.


    Chanyu had always regarded himself as the sun, which would always rise again the following day. But today he was worried that he could never get up again.


    Thirty thousand of most loyal cavalrymen escorted him back to the City of Wei. General Bule was recovering gradually under the help of the priests. The former young ve A Da stood silently by his bed. He was still powerful and had many powerful followers, as well as the national master.


    But he still felt like he was suffering under the coldest sea and would be suffocated at any time because he was very scared.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 1060 - The Dawn Over Here Is Quiet

    <h4>Chapter 1060: The Dawn Over Here Is Quiet</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The utter defeat of the Royal Court¡¯s main forces caused many tribes to stop following his footsteps. Scattered away on the field, they would inevitably be made captives by the Tang army cavalry. Some unlucky ones may even be taken away by horse thieves.


    This terrified him.


    This moment, he was made king over all of humanity. The next, he was shot through his cheeks by an arrow on the path to his coronation. Blood flowed everywhere grotesquely ¡ª no one could ept this truth easily ¡ª his confidence and might were crushed and shattered into particles that cannot be shattered any further.


    This terrified him.


    To him, the most terrifying of all was when he saw ten thousands of wild horses galloping from the rosy clouds of dawn afar. Witnessing the miraculous things that transpired before him, he just realized that all his triumph, his dream of galloping on the Central ins, were all in fact a trick ¡ª a trick of the Academy, and a trick of that person.


    Several years ago, there was a peace talk between the Divine Halls of West-Hill and the Tang. The Golden Tribe was the biggest beneficiary from that negotiation. The annexation of Xiangwan ins and the coercion to hand over their troops were like a leash around Tang¡¯s neck, no matter how one looked at it. But now, it was apparent that the Tang had intentionally showed their weakness to bait the Royal Court into this risky campaign down south.


    ¡°Ning Que, Ning Que, Ning Que...¡± He silently repeated the name, again and again, each call seeped deep into his bones.


    He did not understand. The Academy¡¯s scheme was quite risky. If there were any miscalctions, the in cavalry could just rush south and take over the Central ins, so why did the Academy go with it anyway?


    Other than ending the bloodline of the Golden Tribe, what else was worth such a risk for the Tang? When did the Academy turn so cold blooded? What type of deep vengeance did that Mr. Thirteen had with himself?


    After contemting silently for a long time, Chanyu¡¯s emotions gradually calmed down.


    He had the talent and ambitions. He was defeated by the Tang beyond Guhe, and he had even seen the actual scenery of the Abyss¡¯s destruction. But as an extraordinary great man, how could he ept this willingly?


    Regaining hisposure, he decided to go for another adventure.


    The Tang had set up a trap, and waited patiently for three years, taking a risk toplete an impossible feat. Since they could do it, why couldn¡¯t he risk it too, why wouldn¡¯t he seed?


    He believed that Tengri has not abandoned him yet.


    Not long after, the most respected elders of the tribe, A Da, General Lebu, and the high priest, representing the national master, all came into his room. They stared at Chanyu¡¯s silent back while he looked at the sand table.


    Chanyu pointed at an inconspicuous city on the sand table and said calmly, ¡°I know the Tang and the people of the tribe have thought that this war is over and that the battle on the other day was the decisive one. But I do not think so. This dusty city is underneath our feet, it is also the final battleground that I have chosen.¡±


    No one understood what he meant. The Royal Court was far from a match of the Tang. Even if they wanted a decisive battle, how would the Tang allow them the chance? In other words, did the Royal Court even deserve this battle?


    ¡°The Tang... or should I say the Academy¡¯s aim is to exterminate our tribe. They want to kill every single one of us. Our goal now is to escape their pursuit and return to our homnd.¡±


    ¡°We have no supplies.¡±


    ¡°We have some stored in Qicheng Vige, I have sent Su Yong to move them here.¡±


    ¡°Those won¡¯t be enough.¡±


    ¡°Not enough for a hundred thousand, but if we take thirty thousand troops, it would suffice.¡±


    ¡°The Tang will be behind our backs all the time.¡±


    ¡°That is why we need a victory, a decisive victory that could cause chaos among the Tang. Only then can we preserve the final me of our tribe.¡±


    Chanyu looked at the empty ins on the sand table, and the seven distant strongholds. After a moment of silence he said, ¡°If Xu Chi wants to kill us all, his troops can only push north in a line, their formation will be thin. If ten thousand Duoer Cavalry broke through their centerline, and rushed straight to the North Battalion, or even further south... don¡¯t you think the Tang would be shaken? How would the academy react?¡±


    ¡°The Tang¡¯s main forces can battle from dawn to midnight, Xu Chi would never make a mistake like this,¡± General Lebu replied.


    ¡°A general whose defenses are the best in the world will not make a mistake like this. Just like before... I would not make the mistake of pouring all my forces into the fray at once.¡±


    Chanyu shook his head and said, ¡°I did not see the trap set up by the Academy, and Xu Chi could only follow the Academy¡¯s instructions. Since the Academy wants all of us dead, he could only execute ordingly.¡±


    The room fell silent, everyone was doubtful. Chanyu¡¯s decision wasn¡¯t just a risky move, but a crazy bet ¡ª no, not even a bet ¡ª it was more like turning back to face the abyss of desperation and letting out a furious, helpless cry. Even if Xu Chi really pulled his formation too thinly, even if the Duoer Cavalry truly had prated to the south, they wouldn¡¯t be able to turn the tables.


    A Da¡¯s eyes lit up. Hepletely understood Chanyu¡¯s intentions. Chanyu wasn¡¯t hoping to win. He just wanted to get away with twenty thousand elite cavalry. He will lose the war, but the Tang¡¯s wish will not be gratified. When they have rested up, and secured the south with Taoism, they might try to conquer the entire human realm again.


    Lebu was quiet for a moment before nominating himself, ¡°I¡¯ll go.¡±


    No one argued with him because this was neither an opportunity for honour, nor a sacrifice for the Royal Court, but a decision born from the hard, cold consideration of reality. Neither A Da nor the priests had the capability tomand arge army.


    The high priest proposed, ¡°The national master will follow us, and escort Chanyu back to the ins.¡±


    A Da did not say anything because he knew the role he has to y. When the Duoer Cavalry would be able to break through the Tang¡¯s defenses, and when they start to kill and pige around the North Battalion at the moment when everyone least expected, the Tang army will pursue the Royal Court where Chanyu was in with their quickest pace. The quickest pace demands the shortest route, and the shortest route is a straight line, which seemed to be a teaching of the Academy.


    The Royal Court will return north through the City of Wei, so the Tangs shall pursue them there.


    His task was to guard the only street in the City of Wei.


    A Da bowed to Chanyu and turned away. He walked to the street, and pushed the door of an old store. He sat down at a table beside, and he never left.


    The rest quickly left the room, and began to prepare the escape and the mission to the south.


    After the national master knew of Chanyu¡¯s ns, he naturally had to make appropriate arrangements.


    His room was empty again, Chanyu turned toward the window, and looked at the moon that hung in the night sky. From its warm and gentle radiance, he felt like he gained a certain power.


    After the massacre of Wei, many houses became uninhabitable. The people of the ins were more ustomed to tents pitched outside of the city, anyway. His stay tonight was at a rather secluded small courtyard.


    He did not know whom this courtyard belonged to, or who belonged to this City of Wei. So, he did not understand why did that person wanted to kill him. If he knew Tengri had lived here for many years, too, he might have had more different ideas.


    ****************************************************************************************************


    The battle that happened on the ins beyond Guhe, was the most epic and the most terrible cavalry war in a thousand years, after the Tang defeated the Wild people.


    The Golden Tribe Royal Court Cavalry that participated in this war outnumbered the Tang. Besides, over the years, the Tang Cavalry wascking in training in terms of riding. Theoretically, the Royal Court should have an advantage. However, the Tang army was the final victor, especially before the two hidden Northern Battlefront army brigades appeared, the vanguard battalion had forcibly stopped the Royal Court Cavalry that came like a rushing tide. That was because the Tang army had something the Royal Courtcked.


    It was valiant. The Tang army was valiant, even the horses they rode on were valiant. In the spring winds, on the ins, the Tang soldiers brandished their Pudaos, quietly killing one enemy after another. The horses stepped on the wild flowers and grass as they galloped with abandon. They imitated their riders, terribly bullying the grasnd horses of the Royal Court.


    The Battle of Guhe was destined to be painted on the epic and beautiful painting known as history. In hindsight, this could not be considered as the most important battle in the realm of man, but it was definitely one of the most important battles.


    After obtaining victory, even if the Golden Tribe Royal Court could fight again, they could not threaten the foundations of the Tang any further. To be straight to the point, from that day onward, if even the Royal Court had given everything they had, they could have never destroyed the Tang.


    For the entire human realm, the more important thing was the Tang had finished their greatest enemies for many years in the north. Now the ministers in Chang¡¯an could spend all their energy and resources on the south. If theyunch and attack before Taoism could solve their internal strife, Peach Mountain will face an insurmountable pressure.


    A few dayster, Situ Yn led the cavalry of the vanguard camp to the frontlines at Qicheng Vige. At that time, she and the whole Tang army were surely winning, but they were vying for a bigger victory.


    During this time, the bodyguards of the Northern Battalion and a part of the West Conquering army that were moved here from the Cong Ridge braved huge sacrifices while they bit the Royal Court Cavalry like a wolf. They were ferocious, not letting go even when its whole body was soaked in blood. The Royal Court Cavalry, known for their mobility, was forced into a sluggish retreat to the north. The day before, when only half of their forces had just entered the Qicheng Vige line, the Tang main force was already right behind them.


    In this situation, the grasnd cavalry that have retreated to Qicheng Vige did not dare to depart further into the ins. It was because that would mean leaving their backs to the terrifying Tang ¡ª not even the Duoer Cavalry dared to do so ¡ª as that would meanplete destruction.


    The remaining hundred thousand or so grasnd cavalry camped at Qicheng Vige in an attempt to stabilize the situation. After forcing a stalemate, they would try to retreat behind the lines to shake off the Tang army¡¯s pursuit, escaping deep into the ins.


    But some of the tribes that only hoped to be lucky did not know that Chanyu had made a cold blooded yet the only correct decision. He wanted to use the tribes as a bait for the Tang¡¯s main force, pulling their frontlines thin. Then, he will send out ten thousand elite Duoer Cavalry, forcing his way south without anyone anticipating it!


    These arrangements required the sacrifice of more than a hundred thousand grasnd cavalry soldiers. If everything went well, twenty thousand Duoer Cavalry and important people like Chanyu could retreat deep into the ins sessfully.


    This was a cruel and seemingly unprofitable exchange, but it was necessary. Now that the Tang army had horses, it wouldn¡¯t be easy for the Royal Court to retreat to the ins. Especially now when the Tang army was apparently in a frenzy. They were a pack of wolves more ferocious than the grasnder. If the Tang army pursued them with all they have, the Royal Court wouldn¡¯t dare to turn around and intercept them. Before they could go more than 300 miles, they would have been exterminated.


    When Chanyu was doing his final preparations, the Tang army surrounded the Qicheng Vige. ¡°Surrounding¡± was inurate, because the northern ins seemed wide and borderless, essible to them at anytime. It was the way out, purposely reserved for the Royal Court Cavalry by the Tang army, and was in fact, a dead end.


    The Northern Battlefront army main force formed a stalemate against the cavalry of every tribe in Qicheng Vige. But this situation did notst for long. Without any warning, the two sides began to fight fiercely again, killing each other for a time that seemed tost eternally. Both sides continued to reap each others¡¯ lives, and there was chaos everywhere.


    Three dayster, the imperial g waved in the air, smoke filled the sky, and the Tang army¡¯s Commander¡¯s Barracks arrived at the south of Wei.


    The Subjugation General of Great Tang, Xu Chi, has finally arrived at the frontlines. He was notte. As long as he was able to arrive before the war ended, to witness the end of the Golden Tribe, he would not be considered aste.


    The surprising thing was, neither Xu Chi nor Chanyu, who was in the City of Wei, issued any direct orders on the bloody battlefield that spanned several hundred miles on the north of the continent. They watched quietly as the cavalry on both sides continued to kill, die, and wait for reinforcements from Kaiping and other strongholds.


    This was a war between nations to begin with. It was impossible to end it in a day. Before the end, there would be no time for breathing. I can only live if you die, that was the essence.


    So Xu Chi did not do anything. Nor did Chanyu, but they threw their young men into the fray one after another, and they will kill or be killed. Especially for the Tang army, they have already achieved a winning condition. They only wanted to cut down their enemies¡¯ remaining strength, to destroy their bloodline and countrypletely, which was also the essence of this war.


    A few lines would not capture the bloodshed on the Qicheng Vige frontlines. They would not be enough to describe the pressure on the remaining Golden Tribe troops, or the sacrifice offered by the Tang army. People would only remember that this siege thatsted a short few days have taken more lives than those on the ins of Guhe.


    Unlike the other strongholds like Kaiping and Qu City, the City of Wei, supposedly the true battlefield, was peaceful, void of the scent of blood, or the killing rush of cavalry, not even a single sound of a horse¡¯s hoof.


    The Golden Tribe Royal Court was here, and so was the Tang army Commander¡¯s Barracks, but their battle seemed so far away.


    Xu Chi looked at the ashen dusty city from telescope before frowning subtly and falling silent.


    ¡°Those who still can fight are thirty thousand Duoer.¡± An advisor exined unceasingly, ¡°From our calctions, at least ten thousand Duoer remain around the perimeter of Wei. Is Chanyu really nning to guard the city?¡±


    Among the Qicheng Vige, the City of Wei was the smallest dusty city. There was a saying that grasnder are bad at guarding cities. The small city could never amodate twenty thousand cavalry. Now the Duoer Cavalry camped at the ins north of the city, but did not retreat before the Tang army arrived. Did they really n to fight to their deaths here?


    Xu Chi looked at the Dusty City, and suddenly said, ¡°They are going south again,¡±


    The officers in the Commander¡¯s Barracks all looked up in surprise when they heard this.


    Right after experiencing a traumatic defeat, would the grasnder calvary dare to go south again? Even if the Duoer Cavalry were to prate the defenses of the main force, what could they do after they reach Xiangwan ins? Could they be aiming at Chang¡¯an?


    Suddenly, someone noticed a problem.


    ¡°The Commander¡¯s Barracks¡¯ defenses are too thin, we should call General Situ as backup!¡± An advisor said hurriedly, ¡°If the Duoer really attacked us, the safety of the Commander¡¯s Barracks would be a big concern. Moreover, once chaos ensues, we might just let Chanyu escape! ¡±


    ¡°We have no need of such unnecessary acts.¡± Xu Chi looked at the dusty city, and thought of that person¡¯s promise. He asked, ¡°Where do you think the Duoer will attack from?¡±


    ¡°If they circled around the city, it would be a waste of the horses¡¯ strength, and it would be easy for our arbalesters to shoot them down. If I were Chanyu, I would choose toe through the city if I wanted to create a chaotic situation and head south.


    Xu Chi said nothing more as he turned his back and walked to the camp to take a short nap. He had not slept a wink in a few days, so he waspletely exhausted.


    As for Chanyu¡¯s plot or long-term n, and his admirable decisiveness and vigor. Since he had already seen through he, he did not feel worried, because that person had promised that there will be no problem.


    Xu Chi slept well that night. When he woke up, the sky was not fully lit yet. It was the darkest hour before the dawn. He arose and washed up, and emptied a bowl of horse milk. Then he wore his armor and brought his horse to the higher elevated meadow beside the camp perimeter. He took down the telescope from the saddle, and looked at the dusty city again.


    It was dawn, and the world was silent.


    The city gates were shut tight. There was no light in there, as if it was a haunted city.


    But Xu Chi knew that Chanyu¡¯s strongest men will soon burst forth from those very gates.


    He appeared very calm before his men, but he was actually a little anxious. Else he would not havee here to scout his enemies so early in the morning, to sooner determine the time his foes will arrive.


    The Cavalry of the Northern Battlefront army main force have been diverted to other battlefields like Kaiping, and Qu City. The Commander¡¯s Barracks stood alone against the Golden Tribe Royal Court. How would they stand against the attack of ten thousand Duoer Cavalry?


    Xu Chi had always thought he couldpletely trust that person. But as he looked at the dusty city before the quiet dawn, he felt uneasy.


    The city walls were low, the archers tform above the gate was 30 feet away from the ground. When the morning light came, those with better eyesight could even clearly see the hardy grass growing from the cracks in between the dirt.


    When Xu Chi was watching the dusty city, there was someone watching him from the city walls.


    The Golden Tribe national master stared at the camps of the Tang army Commander¡¯s Barracks on the meadow afar. He looked on as the war horses were feeding on straws while bowing their heads. He confirmed the information ryed by the Royal Court Cavalry, and his aged face did not regain its peace.


    The Tang camp was quiet. As the battle at other strongholds continued bitterly, the Royal Court Cavalry were defending on theirst legs. Joining the dots, he could tell that Xu Chi had already known Chanyu¡¯s intentions. Why was he still sopliant?


    The national master did not want to calcte the sess rate of Chanyu¡¯s risky tactics.


    Since the Royal Court had their backs forced to the Abyss by the Tang, they had to struggle a little instead of just giving up like that. Wasn¡¯t thest choice the best choice?


    Yes, he knew these words were from the Academy.


    Xu Chi¡¯s confidence was mostly based on the Academy.


    From the beginning of the battle until now, the Academy had yet to truly act.


    The true aces had yet to act.


    In the silent dawn, the national master looked at the sky, awaiting the presence of some people.

 Chapter 1061 - Morning Glow, Breeze, Wild Flowers, Grass, And The Arrow

    <h4>Chapter 1061: Morning Glow, Breeze, Wild Flowers, Grass, And The Arrow</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The national master looked above to the sky as he knew someone would leap down from the sky soon.


    The powerful figures from the Academy paid no attention to the Duoer Cavalry riding to the south because they were too many for anyone to handle except for Jun Mo when he still had both his arms.


    For a single man to stop ten thousand cavalrymen, it happened only very few times throughout history. To some extent, it had nothing to do with one¡¯s level of cultivation, but rather some indescribable momentum Even if Yu Lian and Tang were to show up to the south of Wei right now, they could not make it. In other words, it was not their style to do such things.


    Therefore the Academy would do nothing to the Duoer Cavalry. Instead they would take their time when the Royal Court was gambling theirst chance to seek for an opportunity to kill the national master and the rest dozen of priests. As for A Da and General Bule, they were definitely the Academy¡¯s targets as well. But in the meantime, it was also the best chance for the Royal Court.


    In a brutal battle or before a desperate move, every seeming opportunity could turn out to be a trap. No one would be able to see through the hidden messages unless Haotian was back to the human world. Therefore both sides could only try their luck with the firmest resolution at full speed.


    The national master knew clearly that if Duoer Cavalry could seed before the Academy and crush Xu Chi¡¯smander¡¯s barrack in Northern Battlefront Army, the encirclement of Wei would be solved.


    Even if the most powerful figures of the Academy were to make their strike together and defeat the remaining forces of the Golden Tribe Royal Court, they would never achieve their original goal of wiping out the entire tribe. Their goal would be a joke. That was what Chanyu and the national master was nning.


    It seemed that the Golden Tribe Royal Court would have a chance to get out this morning no matter what.


    The national master pondered silently. Right then the darkness gradually retreated and a dim light appeared from afar. Although the sun was not rising yet, dawn hade.


    The morning glow fell on the national master¡¯s aging face, as if refreshing streams flew into cracking fields. They were immediately absorbed by the fields and nowhere to be found again. The cracking on the fields seemed bottomless.


    It had been widely known that Yu Lian, the Twenty-Three-Year Cicada and the Hierarch of the Divine Halls of West-Hill were the two most mysterious figures in the cultivation world. But actually the national master was no less mystical. No one knew his age or his lineage. Obviously he was different from the grasnd priests. It seemed his cultivation was abination of many schools, yet not belonging to either Buddhism, Devil¡¯s Doctrine, or Taoism. It was unfathomable.


    In fact even the national master himself was confused from time to time on what he was cultivating on throughout his evesting life. It was because he grew up on the grasnd with the priests. It was the priests of the Right Royal Court instead of the Golden Tribe Royal Court. Therefore his first exposure to cultivation was Buddhism.


    When he came to the Golden Tribe Royal Court, he found in a wildmess the severely wounded Xiong Chumo, who was attacked by Yu Lian, or at that time known as Lin Wu who was still the leader of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. He saved Xiong Chumo, who taught him the secret Divine Skills of the West-Hill as a token of appreciation. Later on he traveled to Chang¡¯an as well.


    He cultivated and mastered Buddhism, Taoism, and Devil¡¯s Doctrine. And was no doubt among the most knowledgeable figures in the world. His level was unfathomable. But he had also been trying to figure out what his ultimate goal would be especially after he was enrolled to the Golden Tribe by the previous Chanyu as the national master, he had be more eager to find out his purpose. He knew where that desire came from: it was every human being¡¯s longing for affiliation, or a root.


    It was not until many yearster when he experienced the mighty will of Haotian and his body and soul was bathed and purified in snow water that he realized that it did not matter which school he cultivated on. The sense of belonging would nevere from any lineage. It was all about faith.


    As long as the faith was upright, it would not matter even he cultivated on evil means. As long as his goal was upright, it would not matter even if he practiced evil deeds.


    Perhaps just because of such conclusions, he had achieved even more unfathomable level of cultivation. No one could figure out where he was heading. During the Rite to Light a few years ago, he did not show his true power because Ning Que was so powerful at that time and had Haotian on his side. The national master did not want the world to know his power.


    For the sake of his faith, he had to defeat the Academy. Even as powerful as he was, it was not an easy task to defeat the cunning people from the Academy. He had to prepare and plot really well.


    Ever since Yu Lian disappeared in the East Wilderness, he knew that the day was approaching. He had prepared quietly for three years. And those carriages by the wall of the City of Wei had waited in silence for three years.


    Even if he could not seed he would at least be able to trap those two people.


    ...


    ...


    In this round of attackunched from the City of Wei, there was another very crucial factor apart from the endurance and patience of the national master and his fellow grasnd warriors and the powerful figures from the Academy. It would be decisive if the Duoer Cavalry could crush themander¡¯s barrack of the Tang army.


    The morning glow was yet to shine and it was quiet inside and outside the City of Wei. People seemed to be sleeping but rather sleepless. Many were watching the city gate anxiously.


    Upon a low creak the gate of Wei was slowly opened from inside. Dust fell from the cracks on the doubleyered gate, reflected like pearl powder in the morning glory.


    A sharp rm pierced through the silent sky and spread afar. The Tang soldiers in the barracks in the south were awaken. They were well prepared and started delivering various kinds of weapons right away.


    Thest round of fight between the Tang and the Golden Tribe Royal Court had started unsurprisingly.


    While the gate was opened slowly, a grasnd cavalryman came forward on his warhorse. Both the cavalryman and the horse was fully armored. Only their eyes could be seen, proudly and indifferently.


    The grasnd cavalrymen were holding long machetes and wearing white cloaks. The cloaks floated in the wind like white clouds in the sky. Because of their cloud-like cloaks, this cavalry was named Duoer Cavalry. The name Duoer Cavalry was their pride. They were the best, most loyal and horrifying troop of the Golden Tribe Royal Court.


    Throughout the past hundreds of years, there had been no more than six thousand of Duoer Cavalry even in the wealthiest generation of the Golden Tribe Royal Court. Those six thousand cavalrymen used to be the biggest threat to the Tang army.


    Along with the rising of the Golden Tribe Royal Court, especially with the secret help from the kingdoms in the Central ins under Taoism, the current Chanyu owned a Duoer Cavalry of thirty-six thousand.


    In the brutal field battle outside Guhe, the Duoer Cavalry was thest to join. But it was only because of them that the Golden Tribe Royal Court was not wiped out and was able to retreat. And they had lost six thousands of their best men whose bodies were left to rot on the grasnd.


    After they retreated to Qicheng Vige, Chanyu sent out twenty thousand from the Duoer Cavalry to reinforce Kaiping and Qu City, in order to draw away Tang¡¯s main cavalry force. Only the best and most powerful ten thousand stayed in the City of Wei.


    Ten thousand cavalrymen were a huge crowd. They could form a dark mass and cover a huge part of the grasnd but the Tang army could not see the ten thousand right now. There was only one. They could only see a single cavalryman at the city gate of Wei, with his cloak floating in the morning breeze.


    The cavalryman lifted the reins in his left hand and slightly pushed the belly of the warhorse with his boot heels. The warhorse moved forward. Clip, clop, clip, clop. The sound was slow and distinct. The cavalryman pushed again on the horse¡¯s belly. The horse elerated. The clip clop quickened. By then they were already twenty miles away from the city gate. The cavalryman pushed on the horse¡¯s belly once again. The horse elerated once again. So did the clip clop.


    Then the man and horse dashed toward the Tang army. By themselves! The cavalryman from the grasnd knew that he would be sacrificed. But he did not care.


    Inside the city gate of Wei, a ck wall vaguely appeared. That ck wall was moving forward. And it was followed by a white wall. The ck wall was the cavalrymen and their horses, while the white wall was their cloaks. That was a line of Duoer Cavalry. Thebination of ck and white seemed like tides formed on an ink-ck ocean. Countless soldiers from the Duoer Cavalry were getting ready to charge after the courageous cavalryman.


    Clip clops were not heard inside the City of Wei. But they would be heard soon.


    Onceunched, they will be thunder or even like the beats of huge drums. The cavalryman who came out of the city by himself already came onto the meadow. His eyes were not covered by the armor, in which the indifferent look was already reced mania and brutality. He raised his bloodsucking machete and was about to charge at full speed. The next moment, the ten thousand grasnd cavalrymen followed and darted toward the Tang army. By then, ten thousands of white clouds were floating on the grasnd.


    The clops would intensify and the momentum would be built up. Who could stop them?


    ...


    ...


    General Xu Chi stayed inside themander¡¯s barrack. He had six thousand cavalrymen and ten thousand well-trained infantrymen. He should not be worried.


    But they pursued the enemies here over the night while their supplies were yet toe. And more importantly, many sappers and workers were still on their way. They rushed to make some trenches which were far from firm enough. If the horrifying Duoer Cavalry charged right now, they were not confident in defeating them.


    Ever since the gate of Wei was opened and the cavalryman appeared, everyone inside themander¡¯s barrack turned to Xu Chi. They seemed worried and anxious.


    Xu Chi was not worried because he was a genius in defending. Otherwise he would not have been able to keep the Golden Tribe Royal Court beyond the Qicheng Vige for over ten years with his Northern Battlefront Army. But the rest were anxious because the Golden Tribe Royal Court was desperate today. If they were to make a single mistake when confronting the Duoer Cavalry, then it would lead to a horrible result.


    The Tang¡¯s only odds of sess against the Duoer Cavalry were the ck Armor Heavy Cavalry. However, most of the ck Armor Heavy Cavalry were in the south confronting the cavalry of the Divine Halls of West-Hill. The only several thousands of ck Armor Heavy Cavalry in the North Battalion were sent to Kaiping by Xu Chi to help Situ Yn. How could they defeat the Duoer Cavalry now?


    That single cavalryman was elerating and the clops had became seamless. The ck and white tides of cavalrymen by the gate of Wei were still waiting for the charge.


    The cavalryman and his horse drew a straight line on the field in the morning glow. It was a line of courage and spirit. The ten thousand Duoer Calvary would follow the line he drew and charge fearlessly and brutally. That was the momentum the Golden Tribe Royal Court was building up.


    It was a resoluteness to fight till thest, and to flood with blood. It started like showering and continued non-stop and unbreakably like storming. If the Tang would let the grasnd cavalrymen build up their momentum to the peak, it would put the Tang in a very dangerous situation even if they could kill the first cavalryman.


    However it seemed they did not have a better way to break it because Wei was very far from the Tang barracks. Even the best shooter could not take down that cavalryman in advance. As for Tang¡¯s most powerful defending weapon, the crossbow battalion that was formed on arrays, they could never reach that far either.


    In that case, they could only get prepared for a frontal attack by the ten thousand Duoer Cavalry.


    People stared at Xu Chi and waited for an order. What they should do right now was to call back the crossbow battalions who were sent to the east and west wingsst night. There was a possibility that once these battalions were called back the grasnd cavalrymen would attack from the wings. But it seemed to be vital to defend the middle way right now.


    Xu Chi did nothing. He simply looked at the dusty city in the north under the morning glow, and listened to the increasingly distinctive, lonely but breath-taking clip-clops, emotionlessly.


    ¡°General!¡±


    ¡°Chief Commander!¡±


    Everyone in the barracks was worried. They stared at him and could not understand why he kept silent. Did he have any other brilliant n? Or did he decide to defend rigidly because he was concerned about the wings?


    Xu Chi paid no attention to the confusion, anxiety and even anger of his subordinates. He stared calmly at the fields in the north, as well as the approaching soldier of the Duoer Cavalry.


    A single cavalryman was charging at the enemy¡¯s barracks. Its clip clops seemed lonely.


    It was all quiet between Heaven and Earth. Colors drained from the fields between the City of Wei and the Tang barracks. Green grass turned grey, and the morning glow dimmed a lot. In a t and grey background the courageous grasnd cavalryman was the only moving object in the scene.


    The grasnd cavalryman hade a hundred miles out of the City of Wei.


    The clip clops of the horse became more and more distinct. It seemed like drumbeats and hit on the fields. It shook off the dust from the grass and distorted the morning glow. Even the world seemed to have quaked.


    In a short while, the best ten thousand grasnd cavalrymen woulde out of the city andunch their charge. Until then, drumbeats shook Heaven and Earth, and brought restlessness to the world.


    Who could stop this? Who could break the momentum of the charging of the Duoer Cavalry?


    It was silent in the City of Wei, so was Heaven and Earth. Suddenly some wind blew. The grasnd cavalryman was down. The courageous and resolute grasnd cavalryman who darted alone between Heaven and Earth fell off in the refreshing morning glow.


    A very thin line of blood seemed extremely distinctive in the morning glow. The world regained its colors. And the chilling lights turned warm.


    It was a death but seemed warm, probably because of the color of blood.


    The grasnd cavalryman fell off the horse and pounded onto the field. The stirrups Duoer Cavalry used were specially designed and would never entangle on the feet. Therefore the warhorse kept darting for another dozen miles before he felt something was wrong and slowed down. It looked back at its master who was lying on the field, raised its head and seemed confused.


    The cavalrymeny on the field in front of the city gate. He was not moving or struggling, not even moaning because he was already dead. He made no sound, and said nost words. He knew he would sacrifice his life but never expected it to be so silently and insignificantly.


    The cavalrymen from the Duoer Cavalry always wore firm armor and furs from head to toe. Their eyes were the only parts that could be seen.


    His eyes were wide open toward the blue sky but his vitality was gone. Only his blood was still dripping.


    There was a wooden arrow in his eye. It was a very ordinary wooden arrow. No one knew where this wooden arrow came from. It was extremely quiet on the grasnd. There was the morning glow, the wild flowers and grass, but no human being.

 Chapter 1062 - Arrow And Return

    <h4>Chapter 1062: Arrow And Return</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Before the City of Wei, a lonely horse. On the fields, a lonely body.


    Like the perplexed war horse, all the people in the city and the camps of Tang were bewildered. Where did the arrowe from?


    Dead silence filled the field, it was absolutely quiet, everyone was stupefied.


    After god-knows-how long, the sound of a horse¡¯s hoof was heard again. Another grasnd cavalry soldier came out of the gate, riding slowly toward the Tang camp in the south.


    Everyone¡¯s eyes were locked on him. They all knew that in the next moment, he would meet his demise. Themander of the Royal Court Duoer Cavalry clearly wanted to sacrifice this man to determine where the arrow came from.


    A gentle woosh, another breeze blew through the sunrise. The calvary soldier¡¯s cape behind him flew up with the wind, disappearing before it could be a white cloud. Just like his life. Another typical arrow pierced deep into one of his eyes, conjuring a fountain of blood. When the soldier was killed, he had only went a little more than a hundred feet away from the City of Wei.


    The galloping of horses echoed again as several cavalry soldiers rushed out of the city gates. The calvary soldiers brandished the whips in their hands, leaving one bloody mark after another on the horses¡¯ rear. Their roars shattered the dead silence before the city gates, showing their reckless defiance andck of fear for death.


    At this speed, even the best war horses would not maintain it for long. They would never reach the Tang camp in the south at this pace. But it was obvious that they did not care.


    This time the grasnders did not worry about their tempo, or using time and eleration to build up morale. They pushed their mounts to their fastest speed from the start as they only wanted to rush out of the city gates.


    They cannot allow the arrows that came from who-knows-where dampen the Duoer Cavalry¡¯s spirits. They cannot allow the arrow topletely break the tempo of their charge. They had to prove something.


    Even if they were shot not long after leaving the gates, they could at least prove that the mysterious yet powerful archer cannot do the impossible, that he cannot stop all of the cavalry soldiers. But what happened next was truly impossible.


    The morning breeze blew gently, the white capes spread apart like clouds. Three gentle whoosh passed by, and so the clouds gathered and blood appeared. The three soldiers fell from the backs of their mount to the ground without making a single noise.


    Arrows were buried deep into their eye sockets. The fluid from their eyeballs were mixed with blood as it flowed out.


    The three arrows were still the most typical, standard arrows used by the Tang army.


    It was even more shocking and horrifying when the others found out that the three Duoer Cavalry soldiers were killed even nearer to the city gate, nearer than the second rider that went out. More precisely, they were shot dead right after they exited the gates.


    Where... exactly did the arrowse from?


    No one could perceive its origin yet because the arrow was too quick. How could a typical arrow be shot so far? And so quickly? Speed and distance depended on the archer¡¯s strength, but what about its uracy.


    The Duoer Cavalry were fully d in armor, only their eyes were exposed. Furthermore, it was far more difficult to hit them when they are riding at high speeds. But that person was hitting every shot from such a far distance!


    Who was the archer?


    Across the ins, there were countless talented archers within the ranks of the Royal Court and the Northern Battlefront army, or even among the horse thieves by the Shubikeside. But none of them could do this!


    The fields beyond the City of Wei fell into dead silence again.


    Some of them could roughly guess the origin of the arrows, not in the geographical or directional sense, but the person who shot them. Those who had a hunch were the national master, Lebu, and A Da.


    To ignore such a long distance, killing elite riders with a single wooden arrow, one must had unimaginable strength, and must be an ace that has reached the epitome of cultivation.


    When people talked about a true ace whose archery was legendary, they would first think of General Xia Hou. But after he was in, only one ace remained ¡ª the one who yed him.


    ****************************************************************************************************


    Not everyone missed where the arrow came from. At the very least, the Tangmon soldiers saw it clear as crystal.


    In front of an inconspicuous archer tower at the northern corner of the Tang camp were chevaux de frise that were just set upst night. Behind the chevaux de frise stood some people, and something that looked like a short fence.


    The dozen of Tang soldiers stared at that person in shock, unable to speak, and did not know what to do. Only now did someone realized this and reported to the superiors swiftly.


    That person was wearing a normal Tang army uniform, and he looked like a normal Tang soldier. He held an unusual iron bow in his hand, the bow was dark in color, engraved with extremelyplicated patterns and lines, as if endowing the iron bow with a magical power.


    The short fence beside that person was not a real fence, but an array of arrows arranged closely. At least a thousand arrows were stuck in the soil and pressed together, giving them the appearance of a fence.


    The galloping of horses could be hearding from the City of Wei again. An unknown number of Duoer Cavalry attempted to rush out of the city gates once more.


    From the forest of arrows, that person picked up an arrow, put it on the bow, and pulled the bowstring silently. When the bowstring was halfway to its limit, he released his fingers, the bowstring returned to its ce, and the arrows flew far with a swoosh.


    A dull moan echoed from below the walls of Wei, and then a heavy thud of a fall. The man had already plucked his second arrow by then, repeating what he did before. Another dull moan and heavy thud from the city gates of Wei, most likely the sound of another cavalry being shot down.


    Every trained Tang soldier knew that shooting an arrow consisted of several actions. Starting with plucking the arrow, ending with releasing the bowstring. The people around who watched in shock did not find anything peculiar with that person¡¯s movements... it even seemed simpler, more mechanicalpared to the typical Tang technique. It was because it was simply mechanical, it did not stand out. Nor could it be described as elegant. But the arrow was so fast, it was beyond the realm of human imagination.


    From the City of Wei, unlike the lone soldier just now, several Duoer Cavalry rushed out at once.But that person did not perform any legendary feats like the heroes in sagas. From the first to the sixth arrow, the Tang soldiers around that person did not blink. It was not because they were awestruck, but they had no time to blink.


    In a moment before one could blink, six arrows flew out. The soldiers could not see each step of that person¡¯s actions. But they could tell because that person¡¯s movements were absolutely urate, it was steady beyond imagination. Each action, repeated without variation, fingers always pulling the bowstring at the same spot, even his sleeves did not flutter one bit.


    The six repeated actions were stacked together in the morning breeze. Combining them, one could see clearly. But they were merely afterimages. More arrows left the ground, went on the bowstring, and pierced through the air.


    The Grasnd Cavalry rushing out from the city gate fell on the ground one after another, their stters of blood forming crimson flowers on the earth.


    The cavalry soldiers continued to rush, and the arrows kept oning without rest.


    Atst, the cavalry soldiers were too quick. That person could no longer aim, he stopped aiming, and instead, he just shot by flicking his wrist, elbows straight.


    The sharp arrow traveled a long distance, approaching the front of the City of Wei, arriving on the bodies of the soldiers, on the horses, or the tough leather armor. And piercing through the tough armor! When the arrows touched the surface of the leather armor, their mission waspleted. The shaft might be shattered by the great force, but it drove the sharp arrowhead into its final destination, deep into the flesh and blood of the riders or mounts.


    Looking at that person¡¯s silhouette behind the fence, the Tang soldiers¡¯ eyes were filled with awe and fear. What they witnessed was inconceivable. How terrifying was the power of the arrows?


    What was that person¡¯s body made of? How could he dish out such powerful shots continuously? Even if he was a martial arts master in the army, he would have to rest after a dozen shots. Otherwise, his muscles and tendons would suffer terrible injuries. But he shot over a hundred arrows without a frown. His body was unmoving like a mountain. Was he short of breath? His chest did not even move one bit!


    Suddenly, a hasty horn was sounded around the Tang camp.


    Several Duoer Cavalry went round the city walls, attempting to upy the meadows at higher ground from the nk, and then rush toward the Tang camp. That person ignored them. He was focused on the city gate.


    The Duoer Cavalry hid within the city ustomed the arrows¡¯ tempo. They found an opportunity, opened their gates wide, sending out several dozen of their best riders out at once! The second the several dozen Duoer exited the gates, as if countless clouds burst forth from a door between two mountains!


    At this moment, even if that person¡¯s archery was godlike, he wouldn¡¯t be able to kill several dozen cavalry at once, not to mention the several hundred or thousand cavalry soldiers awaiting their turn into the fray behind.


    The shouts in the Tang camp became hurried, 6000 cavalry soldiers rode their mounts, and got ready for battle. If the mysterious and terrible arrows could not defend the Commander¡¯s Barracks, they would have to depend on their cavalry. But he did not allow the Tang army and opportunity to enter the fray. He shot his arrow quietly, as before. Facing the grasnd cavalry that seemed like a cluster of cloud oozing out of the city gates, he let out a single arrow.


    Just a single arrow. Unlike before, this arrow was not plucked from the field beside, but from the quiver on his back. The arrow was visibly different, its arrowhead was a cylinder.


    A miserable cry tore the morning skies. Everyone watched on as the arrow traveled in a parabolic arc, and falling in front of City of Wei. A silent moment. And then, BOOM! A loud bang echoed before the city gates of Wei, a great load of dirt flew up, as if the sky was about to be torn apart!


    Among the dirt that flew in the air, were the separated limbs of the soldiers and war horses, even some heads in between. The city gates fell. The y and the bricks started to fall in a loud rustle, copsing onto the many injured Duoer cavalries. Their painful cries and dull moans could be heard subtly through the soot and ashes.


    Another arrow from the south. This one sounded crispier, unlike a breeze, but a hurricane, it unleashed a terrible cry. The cries of arrow sounded without rest. Several hundred arrows, seemingly unceasingly, pierced through the morning breeze, then the smoke, travelling into the deep parts of the city.


    ****************************************************************************************************


    A grasnd calvary jumped away from his dead mount, unsheathed his curved de and looked around him anxiously. But he did not know where the enemy was. Suddenly, an arrow from the south pierced his chest.


    A bloodied soldier picked himself up and walked out of the smoke. He was ruthlessly shouting something when all of a sudden, an arrow pierced through his mouth, came out from the back of his skull, blood was sttered like a blooming flower.


    Another was on the ground, waving his curved de to kill his mount, which was struggling frantically after it was shot. He struggled to stand up, his eyes filled with fear, and then he saw an arrowing for his fear.


    Poof poof poof poof. The arrows hit armors, eyes, throats, and other different ces, but the sound it made was always the same prating sound. The arrows that seemed to be magical could pierce everything. There was death all around the flying smoke and dust at the city gates of Wei. This meant that the sound of arrows hitting and dull moans echoed incessantly.


    After god-knows-how long, the smoke finally subsided gradually. The morning light dawned upon the City of Wei again, ting it with a hue of red. The morning sun that had finally peeked out from the horizon of the ins was red, as if it was dyed in blood.


    The morning sun shone a blood red, just like the blood red that painted the ground before the city gates. Now, the people within and out of the city has confirmed where the arrows came from. They all looked at the fence in the Tang camp. Until now, not a single grasnd cavalry was able to reach the Tang camp. In fact, other than the first three cavalry, not another man was able to go out of the City of Wei. The city gates were in a shambles, the soldiers and war horses were stacked into a hill.


    Blood continuously oozed out from the hill, like countless tiny waterfalls.


    In the past, at the Verdant Canyon, Jun Mo stopped ten thousand horsemen from passing single handedly with a sword. After he lost his arm, no one thought a scene like this would ever appear again. Who could have thought this was recreated in City of Wei today? But the situation was reversed. Today, an arrow from the north stopped ten thousand horsemen from exiting the city gates. That person¡¯s iron bow, with his arrows on the floor, has trapped the Royal Court¡¯s ten thousand cavalry within City of Wei!


    ****************************************************************************************************


    As the explosion happened at the city gate, the several hundred Duoer Cavalry who tried to rush at the Tang camp from the nks suffered a destructive blow as well. The arbalesters hiding at the side fired their bolts along with their pent up rage at them.


    A series of buzzes echoed on the field, it was the tone of a string, as if countless stringed instruments yed the same note. Momentster, when the note was gone, ten thousand bolts came down at the same time like a torrential rain.


    ****************************************************************************************************


    The Royal Court designed their route of attack to go through the city because that gave them the shortest distance. But no one had thought that this would be a perilous road.


    A nk attack required them to go round the city. It was too indirect, unable to break through the rain of bolts Xu Chi has prepared for them. As such, the only way was the straight path, and it depended on the Duoer making their way out of the city gates.


    They can only continue their charge after they leave the gates. Only then could their remaining ns be executed. If they couldn¡¯t even make it out of the gate, there was no point discussing the rest.


    Behind the bloodied hill full of waterfalls of blood, one could hear the angry and frustrated shoutings of the Royal Court noblemen, their heartlessmand, and hurried footsteps. A huge crowd rushed forward, hoping to clear the hill of bodies away from the city gates, to clear a path for the cavalry.


    In this process, the grasnder did not stop to consider if the hooks and ropes would hurt the bodies of the tribal warriors. Their will for survival trumped everything else.


    But for the final remaining warriors of the Golden Tribe Royal Court, this day was destined to be one of despair. The Tangs left no chance of survival for them, not even the chance to carry their fallen brethren away.


    Beyond the city, silence was maintained for a very short while.


    The sky that was dyed red by the sunrise, suddenly revealed its original blue hue.


    The wildflowers were waving gently as the wind caressed them, but they were suddenly frozen, the air that embraced the fragile petals was suddenly a million times more viscous.


    The grasnd war horses in the city and the war horses in Tang camp looked at the sky at the same time. They suddenly became anxious and restless, but were too afraid to release their emotions with their neighs.


    The world was experiencing a huge change. But the world observable through human eyes stayed the same. It even seemed more peaceful and more beautiful.


    Without a warning, several loud hisses rang forth, finally forming a terrible sight before everyone ¡ª the hill of bodies before City of Wei had copsed. Since the city walls have copsed, it would definitely crumble and break down, the beams and roofs of the building fell apart. The same went to the hill of bodies which was starting to copse from the inside.


    The sturdy armors, the muscr bodies of war horses has suddenly disintegrated into countless pieces of flesh and blood. The tiny waterfalls of blood turned intorge gushes, and then everything fell apart!


    A roughly twenty feet wide hole appeared in the middle of the hill of bodies. There was nothing in the hole but blood and pieces of flesh. The streets in the city were fully exposed. Anyone who were standing in the city could see the scenery outside clearly. But at that moment, there was no one who could stand in the city. The streets were filled with falling soil and years of ashes.


    The wind continued to roar crazily.


    Themoners and ves who were moving the calvaries¡¯ bodies, and the several hundred Duoer Cavalry who were standing in the middle of the street, ready to charge toward Tang Camp... had all disappeared, just like the remains that belonged to the calvaries in the hole.


    A moment ago, they were living, the next they have be unrecognizable pieces of flesh and blood. The street became the most cruel Shuraba as described in Buddhism. Nothing remained but death. This was a passage for death.


    This was the path the arrow travelled.


    The arrow path stretched north all the way from the south of the city, destroying a retaining wall at the north. The several dozen great chariots at the wall were shining with Clear Light to protect themselves. Some of the great chariot were damaged at the corners, revealing their contents, which seemed to be human bones.


    Staring at the south, the national master¡¯s face turned pale.


    The people who were hurt by that attack ran around while they were still bleeding to avoid the second round of attack. Panicked cries were everywhere, and they did not calm down until a very long time have passed.


    The people hid behind wheels or uneasy mounts. Their eyes were looking to the south like the national master. Their faces were filled with horror, and their eyes seemed to indicate their sanity were falling apart.


    At that moment, a vertical condensation cloud slowly appeared on the empty streets.


    Some people had already guessed who the archer was correctly. Now, seeing the famous condensation cloud has appeared before them, their guesses were verified. But in a moment, a thousand men were killed, and half of them were the Duoer Cavalry that were prepared to charge.


    This was no massacre, but it seemed more terrifying than one. Facing such an inconceivable sight, facing an enemy beyond imagination, the grasnders could not even conjure their anger, but only fear, and feel sad for their own despair.


    Even the bravest man of the tribe would lose all his confidence.


    A sporadic sound of a horse¡¯s hoof could be heard at the southern gates of City of Wei. The ashes started to settle around the hole in the hill of bodies. A man walked out from there. A limping horse pulled an old cart full of arrows behind him. He carried a quiver on his back, and the iron bow on his shoulder. His clothes were stained with spots of blood, water, smoke and dust. He wore a typical Tang army uniform. He looked like amon Tang soldier. He was amon soldier of the Tang to begin with. Many years ago, he was a soldier in the City of Wei. Many yearster, he had finally returned to this city.


    He was a wanderer that had returned to his countryside home. He was a veteran who dreamt of the horn of attack. He waspletely ashen. He was unstoppable.

 Chapter 1063 - Back To The City Of Wei

    <h4>Chapter 1063: Back To The City Of Wei</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Thest fight between Tang and the Golden Tribe wasunched in an early spring morning. Throughout the fight, Xu Chi stayed in the Commander¡¯s Barrack and merely paid tens of thousands of crossbows. They did nothing else while over a thousand best cavalryman from Duoer Cavalry died in that person¡¯s hands, killed by his arrows.


    Chanyu rode on his horse and turned to look back at the City of Wei. He seemed devastated.


    Since the Headmaster was gone, those off-record rules werepletely discarded in the cultivation world. Liu Yiqing broke into the imperial pce of South Jin by himself and killed the former emperor, which led to a new world with new rules. Then the spring rain fell, and the form of wars in the human world was drastically changed.


    The very few extremely powerful figures might not be able to change the future of the human world. But they were more than qualified to change the result of a war, just like what happened today in the City of Wei.


    Liu Yiqing was the one being associated with such changes previously. Later on, it was the peerless Hengmu Liren in Qinghe Prefecture. From time to time people might recall Jun Mo who defended the Verdant Canyon many years ago. But it was not until today that everyone including Chanyu realized that only this person could bring fundamental changes to human wars.


    Ning Que was the only one who could have overturned the battlepletely because he had the ability as well as the tools. Moreover, he had the firmest resolution and strongest will power. Actually ever since he started cultivating, his practice and innovation had always been applicable in battles. He had always been working toward massive killing. Even Ye Hongyun was not his match in this aspect.


    Probably the reason was that among all the top cultivators in the world, he was the only one who started as an ordinary soldier. And that was why he understood battles the best. Therefore he was of course the one to bring changes to the wars.


    In the fields to the north of Wei, the withdrawing horns were blown. Intensive clops were heard. The remaining eight thousand Duoer Cavalry were escorting Chanyu to retreat as fast as possible toward the center of the grasnd.


    The Golden Tribe still had quite some cavalrymen and seemed to be able tounch another battle. But the morale of the Duoer Cavalry was severely jeopardized. They could no longer build up the momentum, which meant failure.


    The gamble or the life-risking n Chanyu had made was smashed before it could be executed. They were defeated before the battle was even started, which was extremely devastating.


    The crossbow battalions were never a problem. Even if Xu Chi could block the city gate of Wei with his crossbow battalions, it would not put any threat to Chanyu. He actually had left this chance for the Tang people deliberately. He believed that his cavalrymen could withstand the horrible crossbows. They would be bestowed with greater courage by Tengri through the pains and death they suffered, and became invincible.


    However he did not realize that the Duoer Cavalry could have darted through the crossbows regardless of sacrifice, but they could never survive that person¡¯s arrows. They were discouraged and terror-stricken. That person appeared to be more horrifying than death.


    What could they do even if they managed to retreat from Wei? ording to the prediction of the priests and the wise, the Tang army would not give them much time to catch their breath. Despite the seemingly green and cheerful grasnd and the familiar scenes, it would only be the graveyard for the cavalrymen of the Golden Tribe Royal Court. Even if they could eventually return to their home in the heart of the grasnd, how many could survive until then?


    Chanyu stared at the path leading to their home in the north. Thinking of the loyal warriors who were left in Wei and the national master and the priests who stayed in the south to close the rear, he felt distinctive pain in the chest and turned pale.


    ...


    ...


    The Golden Tribe Royal Court did not even start their attack before their cavalrymen were shot dead by Ning Que. Retreating was desperate, yet necessary. If they did not want to be hunted by the Tang army and haunted or even wiped out by Ning Que, they have to leave some people behind to block their way.


    About two thousand of best cavalrymen were left in the City of Wei. They were ready to sacrifice their lives to slow down the pursuit of Xu Chi¡¯s six thousand cavalrymen. As for the rest grasnd cavalrymen in Kaiping and Qu City, they had no choice but to be killed one after another.


    Of course the Golden Tribe Royal Court had also left someone to stop Ning Que. No one else could have taken this assignment. It could only be A Da.


    Ning Que walked on the street of Wei. His boots sank into the crushed human organs and blood and it sounded like girls stepping on grapes to produce wine.


    Walking out of the blood flooded street, he got closer to the g of the Golden Tribe. But upon the next step he slowly pulled back his right foot, stepped back to where he was and looked toward the side of the street.


    He scared the entire Golden Tribe away by himself. It was a rare scene throughout history.


    A thousand years ago, the Headmaster defeated the entire Divine Halls of West-Hill, which was a much more significant achievement. But what Ning Que did today was also outstanding. However, he did not scare that person away. A young man from the grasnd was standing by the street. The young man was sitting in an abandoned restaurant for a whole night, waiting for Ning Que toe. That was why he missed his horrifying iron arrow previously.


    It was probably his good luck, and bad luck for the Duoer Cavalry.


    ¡°I won¡¯t be able to take the iron arrow, but it would not kill me either.¡± The young man from grasnd stared at Ning Que and said calmly, ¡°And you are too close to me now. I can see your every move clearly. So you can¡¯t shoot me with the iron arrow. Let¡¯s y a different game.¡±


    Ning Que was carrying an iron bow and an iron cuss on his shoulders. The iron cuss was heavy and jet-ck. But he was not pulling out his cuss. He just stared at the young man silently.


    He knew that was A Da. He had be the most powerful warrior in the Golden Tribe Royal Court and even reced General Bule¡¯s ranking in the tribe. He was said to be thest student of the national master, while probably even more powerful than the national master in terms of fighting.


    This young man was perhaps the most powerful human being throughout the grasnd now. However, only two years ago he was merely a miserable ve, skinny and mistreated, almost dying.


    What changed his fate was the spring breeze and rain.


    Ning Que looked above to the clear blue sky subconsciously, and shook his head. If it was in the past, he would have never talked to this powerful young man called A Da. Like Ye Hongyun used to say, if there was going to be a fight, why waste time to talk?


    What mattered was the result, who would be killed and who would survive. But recalling that spring breeze and rain, he felt suddenly curious about this young man.


    ¡°Who named you?¡± Ning Que asked.


    A Da answered, ¡°Myself.¡±


    Ning Que continued, ¡°Why did you pick this name?¡±


    ¡°In yournguage from the Central ins, A Da means good at fighting.¡±


    Ning Queughed and said, ¡°I¡¯ve been here for too many years and probably know the barbariannguage better than you do. I know A means miserable and Da means wretch. You ... are a miserable wretch.¡±


    Upon hearing this A Da looked extremely embarrassed.


    ¡°The national master left you here to stop me. But actually he left you only with death.¡± Ning Que paid no attention to his being embarrassed and said, ¡°Get out of my way and I will leave your body as a whole for her sake.¡±


    A Da had no idea who ¡°her¡± was, but he felt distinctly enraged because obviously the Mr. Thirteen from the Academy never regarded him as a real match. But why not?


    He thought he had been showing enough respect for the Academy ¨C Indeed, he had always been longing to fight his way to Chang¡¯an and kill everyone in the back hill of the Academy. That was his way of showing respect.


    But why was Ning Que talking to him like this?


    ¡°I admit that you are very powerful.¡±


    A Da looked at the blood flooded street and the iron bow on his shoulder. He sneered, ¡°But you have no idea how powerful I am. Without your iron arrow, how could you be qualified to look down upon me?¡± He was extremely enraged, yet he put on a smile to convey his contempt.


    No matter how high Ning Que¡¯s level of cultivation was, it could not be higher than the zenith of Knowing Destiny. But he supposed that Ning Que would never be a match to him without the mighty Thirteen Primordial Arrows.


    Chanyu and the national master asked him to stay here to stop and slow down Ning Que while seeking for a chance to retreat. He took the order obediently but was actually thinking of a different n.


    He was Tengri¡¯s gift to the grasnd, the only embodiment of the vast and sole will of Tengri. How could he be defeated by a human being like Ning Que? He wanted a dignified victory over him!


    Ning Que stopped smiling. He stared at him calmly and said, ¡°Then go die.¡±


    A Da squinted and put a brutal look on his young and swarthy face. He took a deep breath while his chest rose like a hill on the grasnd. In a single breath he inhaled half of the air above the street, and charged endless Qi of Heaven and Earth into his body.


    He waspletely changed by that spring breeze and rain. He felt extremely intimate to the Qi of Heaven and Earth on the grasnd, and could inhale and exhale it at an incredible speed. What did that mean? It meant that he had an endless source of strength.


    Since he was acknowledged as the student of the national master, he also learned the cultivation skills of the Light¡¯s Doctrine. The national master was extremely knowledgeable, mastered Buddhism, and Devil¡¯s Doctrine and befriended Xiong Chumo. Therefore it was not surprising that he knew those skills. In other words, A Da was already a devil.


    His body was even firmer than a real rock. And his life was more persevering than a real rock, plus he was gifted by Tengri. Therefore he regarded himself as invincible.


    Indeed he was a bit afraid of Ning Que¡¯s iron arrow. But after witnessing the real arrow today he thought that he might have a chance with it. He was indeed confident in himself. While A Da inhaled, the Qi of Heaven and Earth was overturned. A roaring wind blew through Wei. He looked at Ning Que as if he was looking at a dead man.


    He was going to do something that Chanyu and the national master would never expected. He was going to save the Golden Tribe Royal Court, be the next never setting sun of the grasnd, and shine over the entire human world.


    That was why he had stayed aside during the previous war and witnessed whatever happened silently. He did not show up until now. He blocked Ning Que¡¯s way and was about to take him down.


    Everyone in and outside the City of Wei sensed the turbulence of the Qi of Heaven and Earth. The ordinary people could not see the change of Qi but they saw the abnormal signs in the sky. A piece of dark cloud came all of a sudden and blocked the sky and sun above Wei.


    The powerful ones like the national master and Xu Chi sensed some distinctive flow of the Qi of Heaven and Earth, and felt different upon witnessing A Da¡¯s horrifying power.


    Wind roared along the streets. The remaining half of the restaurant sign was blown against the wall and created low bangs. Dust fell off from the wall.


    Right then, Ning Que said something. ¡°I bet you don¡¯t know I used to buy a lot of liquor and roasted chicken from this restaurant. I won a lot of money from others, and even their underwear. And I rejected many marriage proposals, right here.¡±

 Chapter 1064 - I Retrieved What She Had Sent Out

    <h4>Chapter 1064: I Retrieved What She Had Sent Out</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ning Que looked down the street, the buildings on both sides of the street were the same buildings made from yellow sandy soil that remained from previous days. These buildings turned into loess after being blown by the wind for a long time.


    Back in those days, he yed a hand game called Yindang Quan with others at the guest house, and Sangsang became the referee. Both of them would usually win silver coins, and left the guest house together. He would walk with both his hands behind his back while Sangsang who was carrying a wine pot and roasted chicken, struggling to catch up with his pace. At that time, both of them were stepping on the yellow sandy soil.


    After several years, the guest house was broken, his old friends were gone and the yellow sandy soil turned into blood. Ning Que was stepping on the blood now and those are his old friends¡¯ blood but those were also the blood of his many other old friends.


    Inevitably, it was bringing back some memories. At this moment, it was not the same as those days, whoever looked at it, the emergence of these words were without rhyme or reason as it did not align with the ambience at present. Even A Da¡¯s expression was extremely terrible-looking.


    He felt as though Ning Que embarrassed him on purpose. He controlled his state of mind, exhaled a foul smell, stepping on a rock to get himself prepared for a punch forward. A very simple technique, maybe could not even be considered a technique. Although it was simple, the force was ultimately strong, not to mention its speed. A slight bombing sound was heard from the street. It was the consequence of the rapid collision of the air.


    A Da¡¯s punch was simr to an arrow, flinching it in front of Ning Que.


    As mentioned by him, he was an expert in fighting, and he could fight very well. Such a simple punch like this was full of momentum, taking along a unique strong feeling of the grassnd which was alike to Liu Bai¡¯s Sword of the Great River.


    Ifpared to other strong cultivators, one who faced such a punch would usually choose to avoid because the weakest point of a cultivator was his or her body. To battle with a powerful enemy who was equipped with light¡¯s doctrine cultivation techniques and epted the Heaven and Earth in its body, the first thing to do was to keep a distance from the other party.


    But Ning Que did not move backward.


    A Da knew that Ning Que would not, he knew that Ning Que had already entered demon hence his body shape would be strong as usual.


    Ning Que had the sufficient capability, regardless of the power or the strength of the body. Thus he forcefully epted the fist.


    A Da was waiting for this instant, he wanted to produce a situation of confronting the tough with toughness because he had a number of ways to escape, and countless rough techniques, but now he needed a defense technique to support himself.


    It was simr to the terrifying sandstorm during the season between spring and summer at the grasnd. Walking through the innd was not as scary if one knew how to keep a distance away from it, sometimes those views could also be considered as rare yet picturesque sceneries. However, if someone or something was ced within the sandstorm and started undertaking the force of the storm, then one would be hit and damaged instantly.


    A Da¡¯s fist and his cultivation techniques were simr to sandstorm.


    As long as Ning Que did not retreat himself and forcefully ept his fist, this sandstorm would consume him. However, out of his expectation, Ning Que chose not to avoid or retreat, and he did not employ the dark methods vigorously. Looking from the positive side, it seemed he was not doing anything.


    Ning Que¡¯s face was expressionless. His steel bow was still on his shoulder, and the iron cuss remained on his back. He was even putting both his hands behind the back, looking as though he was not bothered at all by the punch that was approaching.


    No one could be less bothered. The fist from A Da came along with the invincibility being passed on from Haotian to the grasnd. In fact, Ning Que had already responded to it, but A Da could not see it yet. He separated both hands behind his back and swiftly wrote a word in the air with his right hand.


    After he had written the messy writing, his face turned even paler, and simultaneously an unimaginable strong psyche power spread out from his body, reaching Heaven and Earth.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth at the City of Wei was flowing into A Da¡¯s body, and suddenly stagnated.


    A momentter, the Qi of Heaven and Earth seemed to hear some kind of calling, began to condense into a solid crazily. The fierce sandy wind was blowing across the street, drawing the attention of all the people.


    Ning Que wrote a word and that word would certainly be a talisman. Here came the sandstorm, but it was not from A Da, instead it was from him. Countless yellow sand from the ground, the wall as well as the empty tables and chairs of the guest house drifted and approached the street at an incredible speed, reaching in front of A Da¡¯s fist. A clump of yellow sand represented a stripe ofce, consisting of an astonishing amount of the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    A hundred clumps of yellow sands were umted at the building of the city of Wei, obeying Ning Que¡¯s instruction to fall on A Da¡¯s fist. They turned into stripes ofces, appearing like the fist being enveloped by countlessyers of gauzes.


    An old yellowish gauze that came along with the stain of the pus.


    Ning Que utilized the ¡°Fu¡± talisman. All the yellow sand in the city of Wei was his talisman intent.


    A Da felt as though his fist hit fiercely into a desert that was too deep to be seen, and the bottom part was moving slightly, a scary power was tearing his hand apart. The process of tearing apart brought pain but it did not make him fearful but instead made him more wide awake.


    He made a soft howling sound and loosened his fist, spreading out five of his fingers like five machetes. He relied on his strong force to cut off the countlessyers of yellow sand around the fist.


    Ning Que pictured yellow sand breaking into pieces. He lifted his right hand to write a few strokes with a straight face. Obviously, the word written by him was very simple.


    The force of the first punch had came to an end. He forcefully broke open the ¡°Fu¡± talisman to regain his freedom. At once, he made a heavy step forward.


    The first step on the ground depended on the force of Heaven and Earth, then he wanted to start another fist. It was still the simple punch as usual, flinching toward Ning Que¡¯s face. His wish and desire was very simple. He did not expect this punch to be able to defeat Ning Que, or to hurt him but he hoped Ning Que could receive the punch vigorously. As long as Ning Que forcefully ept it, he would have means to deal with it.


    Ning Que still did not ept the fist forcefully as A Da¡¯s second punch was held by the second talisman written by him. When he was writing this talisman, he was not focusing on A Da¡¯s punch, but the streets of the city of Wei.


    The City of Wei was a military vige. It was a real city that could only upy very few people, and the buildings were limited. There were only four main streets with two vertical and two horizontal ones.


    If one looked down from the sky, the main streets of the city of Wei would exactly form a word: ¡°Well.¡± This was such a coincidence. The strongest talisman of Master Yan Se was the ¡°Well¡± talisman, and the first talisman Ning Que learned was the same one.


    This was such a coincidence as well. Ning Que nced at the streets of the city of Wei and wrote a very simple ¡°Well¡± talisman. This talisman used to break open a space in the Anonymous Mountain facing the northern part of the Chang¡¯an district. This caused the old man, Wei Guangming, to call upon the unlimited light, forming the fragments of a mirror.


    It could be not imagined how powerful this ¡°Well¡± talisman could be.


    The spring rain had cleansed the soul of A Da, hence, he was extremely sensible when it came to the changes in the Qi of Heaven and Earth. Even though he did not know about talisman, he could sense the differences between Heaven and Earth, causing his face to alter instantly.


    As he confronted a rather spine-chilling and fierce talisman, he dared not throw his fist anymore. A loud yelping sound was transmitted through the street.


    He took a hard step backward, crushing most parts of the street in front of the guest house. He released all his umted energy toward the ground in order to retract both his fists. Then, he covered his face with both his in a forceful manner.


    The Ning Que today could have a slight difference in the knowledge of talisman ifpared to Master Yan Se, but he had already reached the same stage as Master Yan Se in terms of the depth of talisman cultivation.


    Even a strong individual like Wei Guangming, he could only block this ¡°Well¡± talisman if only it exceeded the Five States. Even if the cultivation state of A Da¡¯s devil¡¯s doctrine was equivalent to the summit of the Five states, at this juncture, he could only choose to protect himself.


    For self-protection, he could only use his own body to protect his life. At this moment, there was nothing in the City of Wei that was more reliable and stronger than his body.


    The yellow sand whirled in eddies of wind on the long street and A Da¡¯s body was nearly being enveloped as though he would copse anytime but still persisted. Both his fists blocked almost all the talisman intents! He was indeed the gift from Haotian to the grasnd. His body strength had surpassed a normal Devil¡¯s Doctrine strong man.


    It was not known how long it had been, the talisman intent of the ¡°Well¡± talisman and the Qi of the Heaven and Earth had subsided in Heaven and Earth, even the yellow sand had also started falling off gradually with the disappearance of the violent wind.


    A Da gradually loosened both his fists, and directed his gaze at Ning Que once again. His body was full of terrible injuries with countless blood flowing out from his body like a fountain. Both of his tough fists were showing appealing white bones, making someone being struck in terror looking at it.


    The main point was that the bone ne he was wearing on his neck had already broken into pieces. The body shape he was proud and confident of was damaged badly, not to mention his survival tool that had already been blown away by the wind. But he was still alive. As long as he was alive, he would stand a chance to win.


    ¡°I thought you confined yourself at Chang¡¯an for many years and had lost your courage for battling and the capability to kill someone. I never thought that you are so knowledgeable, after all, I guess I underestimated the ability of the academy.¡± A Da stared at Ning Que, the innocence in his face had transformed into cruelty and violence. His gaze glittered coldly like a fox and contained with the immeasurable intention of killing.


    ¡°It¡¯s such a pity that you still can¡¯t kill me... I don¡¯t know how you see through my cultivation methods, and after all you are not willing to ept my punch forcefully. But I am more interested to know even such a strong talisman could not kill me, what else can you do other than epting my punch forcefully?¡± The way A Da described it was so pathetic but he sounded like a true winner. He looked at Ning Que without hiding his desire of killing and sense of contemptuousness as though he was staring at a dying old beast.


    Ning Que fixed his gaze at him quietly and said, ¡°I can still kill you.¡±


    A Da opened his mouth and grinned brutally, ¡°This human world might belong to people like you previously but it will be ours in the end because we are younger.¡± Upon saying those words, he raised his fist again. His fist was covered with blood, the thick white bones appeared extraordinarily terrifying under the gloomy clouds.


    He gathered all his force in this punch.


    Ning Que stretched out his right hand, and started writing a word on a street of the City of Wei.


    This word was simpler, even easier than the word ¡°Well¡± in chinese characters, it was only half the total strokes of ¡°Well¡±. Half the total strokes of ¡®Well¡¯ could only be ¡°Two¡± in Chinese characters.


    He wrote a ¡°Two¡± talisman.


    ...


    ...


    Two unbelievable powerful talisman intents shrouded the whole City of Wei all of a sudden.


    It had even spread until outside the City of Wei.


    Half of the signboard which was left at the tavern drifted toward the center of the street and hung in the air without any signs of falling, appearing like a sword. The wall of one of the small courtyards broke through a hole and a hunting sword that was kept for many years could be seen half of its body as though it was eager to take a look at this strange world once again.


    Those grasnd cavalry who were about to dismiss outside the City of Wei, abruptly realized that the machete in their sheath started to collide continuously. They wanted to leave, just then, those Tang soldiers who were about to pursue and attack, felt a strong urge to draw their swords to kill their enemies.


    Two talisman intents represented de intent.


    The expression on A Da¡¯s face turned extremely ill-looking because he could sense the scent of death. He never thought that Ning Que had a more powerful tactic and he even had never thought that he himself could not differentiate if it was talisman intent of de intent!


    He made a shrieking sound full of wrath and reluctance and was forced to withdraw his fist. The breath of nature stored in his body exploded and he moved backwards down the street crazily, hoping to be free from the surroundings of the two talisman intents.


    However, the ¡°Two¡± talisman of Ning Que had enveloped the whole City of Wei. How could he be able to escape?


    The wind was blowing violently and A Da was yelling in despair and frustration. The clothes on the body tore apart and shortly his skin started to break into pieces. The blood that had stopped flowing earlier, began to flow out from his body in a frantic manner.


    He stopped moving backward. He used his fists to cover his face while using his strength to forcefully withstand the fierce wind.


    Ning Que finally moved and headed forward to seize him.


    ...


    ...


    Outside the City of Wei, as the national master saw the ck wind that appeared like a dragon under the gloomy clouds, looking at the sand, feeling the swift and fierce talisman intent from the other side, he remained his calm andposed temperament, but his eyes revealed a deep surge of anxiety and vignce.


    Looking at the weird weather there, the expression of those grasnd cavalry became worse. Suddenly, they heard a sound of thundering from the city of Wei, andter countless of the sound of thunder were heard at that instant.


    The national master reverted his gaze and returned to his horse-drawn carriage.


    ...


    ...


    The wind subsided and the sand eroded, even the ck cloud disappeared in the sky. The sun shone on the streets of the City of Wei, and the blue sky could be seen clearly, filling the atmosphere with serenity and joyfulness.


    The straightest and longest street in the city of Wei had an extra pit.


    A Da lied down at the bottom of the pit with his whole body covered with blood and the bones piercing out from his body. He was already half dead, looking strangely miserable. If it was not the blessing from Haotian, he would probably be dead by now.


    Ning Que straightened his body gradually, making a slight chest movement with his right hand trembling a little. His face looked rather pale. but the expression in his eyes was calm andposed like usual as though he did not release 300 punches within seconds.


    The endless sound of thunder heard by all the people outside the city of Wei was actually the sound of the fistsnded on A Da¡¯s body. His facial expression was fairly pale. However, it was not rted to the energy being used up but it was because of writing three divine talismans continuously. Even with his strong psyche power, he still felt a little overwhelmed.


    A Da gave a desperate cough, and the blood spilled out from the corner of his mouth. He struggled to turn over his head to face Ning Que; his eyes were upied fully with bewilderment and dreadfulness. But to hide his emotions, he revealed a contemptuous look instead.


    He was not contented because he still had many methods that he had yet to utilize. Hence, he used the expression in his eyes to mock Ning Que. You still dared not ept my fist forcefully in the end.


    Ning Que did not answer. He was not afraid to take the fist of the grasnd youngster vigorously, but he did not feel the need to ept it forcefully. It was simr to the situation now, he was not fearful of exining, but he did not bother exining.


    He wanted to exin something else. ¡°You say you can fight. Let¡¯s see how I can hit you to death.¡±


    He stared at A Da who was half dead and said, ¡°I know this is cruel but facing a vicious man like you, the word, cruel is non-existence. Hence, it doesn¡¯t matter to me. I just want to make your other counterparts who are alive to be more fearful.¡±


    Yes, many people were afraid now, frightened until their bodies were trembling.


    Those grasnd cavalry outside the city were desperately shuddering to strike the whip, wanted to run away from here, the faster the better, the farther the better.


    Those grasnd cavalry inside the city were shivering in fear and dared not moved at all. During the sand breeze, the punching sound as though the sound of thunder had resulted them to loosen their reins, causing them to cover their ears in fear.


    No one had ever thought that the battle would have such an ending.


    In the heart of these grasnd cavalry, A Da was the gift from Tengri to the grasnd, an undefeatable warrior. It was not possible to be hit like a miserable dog by the Tang Army.


    The national master and Chanyu were clear of the strength of the academy. They doubted that A Da could defeat Ning Que, but they thought that he could block his opponent for a while, or even found a chance to escape.


    Who would have ever thought that Ning Que would win so easily and expectedly?


    A Da said earlier that Ning Que¡¯s steel arrow lost its greatest power, then what else could be done?


    He was actually very powerful, but he forgot one extremely important fact.


    He could only remember that Ning Que¡¯s steel arrow could greatly inspire the whole world, but he only remembered the condition of Ning Que after being enchanted. However, he forgot the fact that after Ning Que started his cultivation, the first thing he cultivated was not sword, not devil, not psyche power but a talisman.


    The real identity of Ning Que was always a talisman master. He was now a divine talisman master.


    Ever since the prayer at Peach Mountain, he did not use the talisman for a long time, causing many individuals to be forgotten of his identity. But he was the divine talisman mastering after Yan Se and the Sage of Calligraphy, the two most powerful divine talisman master in the human world.


    A talisman master was invincible among the equivalent state. A divine talisman master was invincible among those below the Five States, unless encountering Liu Bai, Jun Mo, and Ye Su, those incredibly remarkable geniuses.


    The real genius was actually not rted to the word ¡°Tian¡±. The talent was also not bestowed by god but was attained through self-training, brilliant talent, and supreme will. Once obtained, it would not be gone ever again.


    The cultivation talent of A Da was all granted by Haotian.


    Thus, he was not a real genius.


    As long as he was still in the Five States, even within one short year, he could train his dark techniques, and being evaluated based on the cultivation standard as well as the Five States Zenith... but he still could not win over the divine talisman master.


    Maybe it was because death was approaching, A Da seemed to have an epiphany, and the expression in his eyes quickly became gloomy and deep in the state of gloominess was a sense of reluctance, sadness, frustration and desperation.


    It was because in this battle, the difference between Ning Que and him was too big until it was impossible to make it closer, too big until it made others desperate. Even if they had the battle again, he could not picture the hope of winning at all.


    ¡°Why...¡± The reflection before death resulted him to express himself verbally. He looked into the sky in oblivion and muttered, ¡°Why... Why...¡±


    Until thest moment, this grasnd youngster was still bothered by a question that could not make his soul rest in peace. This was not rted to the cultivation state anymore, but was associated with one¡¯s belief.


    A Da was very proud and confident because he believed that he was Haotian¡¯s gift to the grasnd.


    Was his failure connected to the failure of Haotian? This was improbable. However, confronting this man before him, this was considered something that was logical and right.


    Why was that so?


    ¡°This is my city.¡± Ning Que gazed at him and said, ¡°I left Chang¡¯an but I still came to my own city. No one in Chang¡¯an could defeat me, and of course, no one can defeat me here.¡±


    A Da shook his head in despair, gasping and said, ¡°But Tengri...¡±


    ¡°Let me tell you something. Hengmu and you are the gifts given to the human world by her... She was always responsible for the finances at home, but she did not request for my consent before she sent these gifts out.¡±


    Ning Que went into silence and continued, ¡°Since she will not be around at the moment, I would like to retrieve those gifts. It is something expected so I don¡¯t think she will be in a position to object to my decision.¡±


    At this juncture, A Da could only understand who was the ¡®she¡¯ that was mentioned by Ning Que before the battle. Ning Que said that he would remain the whole body of A Da for the sake of ¡°her¡±. His eyes turned into frustration, andter hopelessness, starting to shed tears silently in agony. Lastly, he closed his eyes, and never had the chance to look at the sky again.


    ...

 Chapter 1065 - The National Master’s Array

    <h4>Chapter 1065: The National Master¡¯s Array</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    A Da died. He was not convinced of the fact until the end. But he closed his eyes and left the world. It was exactly one year since he was transformed from a ve to a powerful warrior of the Royal Court. He was young, a real young man from the grasnd. He had firm faith and genuine love for his tribe. It was indeed cruel to destroy his faith even before he died.


    But Ning Que had always been ruthless. He knew how brutal this young man from the grasnd was when he ughtered the Tang people. But he was not insane enough to seek for joy in torturing the enemy to thest moment by destroying his faith. He inherited Lian Sheng¡¯s cultivation. Yet he was after all not Lian Sheng.


    The reason why he said so to A Da before he died was because he always had a belief, that one might be born muddled, but he had to die with a clear mind.


    He wanted that for himself, as well as for others. Furthermore, while he said so he was resetting his breath and restoring his strength. Therefore he had to do something meaningful to kill the time.


    When A Da closed his eyes, Ning Que had finished resetting his breath. The tides in his ocean of psyche were gone. Crystal beads formed by Haoran Qi were shining inside his abdomen. Everything was settled.


    He looked toward outside the City of Wei and grasnd in the north. He bent his knees slightly while the bricks under his feet cracked. An incredible bout of strength was pushed to the ground via his legs and bounced back.


    Upon a huge bang he left the street and leaped into the azure sky. He leaped as if he was jumping into a deep blue ocean. He jumped up really high, pierced through the slightly chilling air and left the ground in a blink. Reaching to over a hundred miles above the ground, he looked down and found the City of Wei like a small pile of dust, while the Wilderness turned into a huge carpet.


    He could see vaguely the royal g of the Golden Tribe afar. But he was not sure whether Chanyu was there. Throughout the fields hundreds bouts of dust were thickening, each of which was a grasnd barbarian on the run. They were running blindly and desperately for survival.


    Because of the height he could see further afar. He looked around and toward the furthest Tianqi Mountain that had became a dark line at the end of his sight. But he still could not find the person he was looking for.


    He was not the Headmaster who could fly freely. No matter how high he could reach he had to get back down to the earth eventually. But he could choose when and where he wouldnd.


    In the next moment he fell toward the surface of the Wilderness. He was elerating, and his suit of Tang soldiers crackled in the wind like fireworks. But he did not even squint. He gazed right at the spot he was about tond on.


    The ground wasing closer and the darting cavalrymen and carriages on the fields became clearer and clearer. He could even see the sacred looks on the cavalrymen¡¯s faces and the wooden cases in the carriages. Those carriages were his target.


    The national master of the Golden Tribe Royal Court was in one of those.


    As for Chanyu and the remaining cavalrymen of Golden Tribe who had fled to dozens of miles away in the north, he did not care at all. His priority now was to kill that mysterious and powerful national master.


    Deafening cracking sounds were heard above the Wilderness. Someone fell toward the ground like a meteorite. mes were formed after him because of the friction. But he was falling at such a high speed that all the mes were left far behind.


    The warhorses from the grasnd were scared and neighed constantly. Despite their masters¡¯ whipping they kept circling in the field. The carriages were also spinning and could no longer proceed despite the carters¡¯ yelling.


    There was a huge bang, upon which a carriage was crushed. The body of the carriage was smashed into finger-sized sticks. They sshed and created countless wounds on the bodies of the nearby warhorses and cavalrymen. They screamed in the bloody scene.


    When the dust settled, Ning Que showed up in front of them. He looked at the national master in front of him and said, ¡°I guess you knew I wasing.¡±


    The national master was sitting on the ground in front of him with his legs crossed. He looked old and calm.


    Ning Que jumped down from the sky and smashed a carriage, but could not hurt him a bit. The moment his foot stepped onto the carriage right above the national master¡¯s head, the national master disappeared right away and moved to the other side of the carriage. When the carriage was crushed, the national master was already sitting on the ground.


    He was surrounded by wild grass and flowers in the field.


    The national master did not take any but stared at one wild flower calmly while he said, ¡°I¡¯ve been expecting someone from the Academy to jump down from the sky. But I did not know it would be you.¡±


    Ning Que looked around at the seemingly scattered carriages, and sensed a weird bout of energy bing increasingly intensive among them. It was full of a primitive smell of blood.


    ¡°Is this what you¡¯ve prepared for me?¡± He turned to the national master and said, ¡°You should know that no array could hurt me no matter how powerful it is.¡±


    The furrows on the national master¡¯s face were slightly ttened. He looked at Ning Que and said emotionlessly, ¡°You have mastered Haoran Qi and acquired a firm body. But it does not mean that you are unbreakable.¡±


    Upon those words he moved to a dozen miles away instantly and stood onto another carriage. Wind on the grasnd swayed his coarse clothes and the ordinary looking wooden rosary.


    He stared at Ning Que and said calmly, ¡°The Academy is indeed impressive. I thought I¡¯ve paid enough attention but still underestimated you. I assumed when you left Chang¡¯an you would be no more than the zenith of Knowing Destiny. But I was not expecting you to kill A Da so easily. Nevertheless, I still want to trap you.¡±


    As long as I could trap you, I would have a chance to kill you.


    That was something the national master did not say aloud but Ning Que read between the lines. He slightly frowned when recalling the national master¡¯s ghostly sh moves previously. He sensed something strange and abnormal. Even if the top cultivators such as the Abbey Dean and his Eldest Brother at Distanceless could not have moved at the speed of bolts in such a small scale.


    He looked around at the scattering carriages, tried to read through the intensifying array intent carried by the primitive smell of blood, and vaguely figured out why. That was what the national master of Golden Tribe Royal Court had prepared for him. He used himself as the bait and lured the enemy into his array... His original position was the eye of the array, where he could leave easily but not his enemy.


    It seemed to be a simple plot, but was actually very hard to execute because he had to be powerful enough to escape from the enemy. It was particrly hard when his enemy was someone powerful like Yu Lian and Ning Que. He had to be able to break from time and almost be Distanceless.


    The national master stood on top of the carriage in some distance. He closed his eyes, pressed his palms together and started chanting. It was neither from Buddhism scriptures or Taoism canons. It sounded weird like some witch prayers for a sacrificing ceremony on the grasnd.


    The Qi of Heaven and Earth was overturned on the grasnd. Roaring wind came from all directions and started swirling around the array of carriages. It almost vacuumed the air inside the array and spread it into the sky. Ning Que felt the air around him became thin instantly. The warmth and cosiness brought by the morning breeze and glow was gone immediately.


    Ning Que sensed a strong smell of blood in front of his nose. While the air around him became thin and chill, the smell of blood and chillness prated into his body and went further down into his ocean of psyche, Mountain of Snow and Ocean of Qi.


    His psyche could not work properly, and the crystal beads formed by Haoran Qi inside his abdomen spun much slower. Most shockingly a thickyer of fresh snow had umted on top of the snow mountain!


    Dark clouds came again above the grasnd, and covered the warm sun.


    Ning Que lowered his head slightly but did not sit down. He resisted the strong array intent silently and tried to find out a way to break through. He did not take any step further because there was no way out.


    In the chilling array his body was immediately covered with frost and some snow fell onto his eyebrows. It looked funny and scary.


    He had not figured out a way to break through. Because he could not even locate the national master in the array. The national master was indeed the most powerful in the grasnd with an unfathomable level of cultivation. He was definitely not an array master. But he had applied some cultivation skills alien to the Central ins and created such a huge array on the fields by using carriages, and trapped him.


    The national master finished the scripture or mantra that no one could understand. He opened his eyes slowly and said to Ning Que calmly, ¡°There are cases in the carriages, which carried the bones of the Tang people. Chanyu helped me collect them for years, among which there are probably some soldiers from Wei.¡±


    Ning Que looked above and gazed at the national master, with his eyes shed like des.


    The national master seemed never get the hidden message in his look and continued, ¡°I know you once lived in Wei. I guess there are bones of your acquaintances. But sadly... they are all dead. Only their resentment was left now. They have no feelings for you and will actually help me kill you today.¡±


    That was the foundation of this blood sacrificing array.


    The national master excelled in Buddhism, Taoism, and Devil¡¯s Doctrine. His level of cultivation and scale of knowledge was peerless. He assembled the power of faith by Buddhism, collected the souls by means of witchcraft, and applied the Qi of Heaven and Earth with the skills of Taoism. For which he was even willing to trade with his own longevity. It was because he could only achieve his goal by creating such a huge blood sacrificing array.


    The Haoran Qi inside Ning Que was already frozen. And the smell of blood was overturning his ocean of psyche. But he still had a clear mind. He stared at the national master and asked, ¡°Why are you telling me this?¡±


    By then the frost on his eyebrows was already half meter long.


    ¡°Because what you told A Da before he died was very reasonable.¡± The national master looked at him sympathetically and said, ¡°One might be born muddled, but he had to die with a clear mind.¡±


    ¡°Very well,¡± Ning Quemented.


    The national master asked, ¡°What do you mean by very well?¡±


    Ning Que looked at him and said, ¡°I had been nning to wipe out the Golden Tribe Royal court no matter who tried to stop me. I do not need anything to add to my resolution. But what you¡¯ve done... could at least provide me with some excuse if the Eldest Brother questions me in the future.¡±


    The national master understood what he meant and said after a pause, ¡°Therefore it was all about finding excuses.¡±


    Ning Que stared at the carriage under his feet, the worn case on the carriage and the white bones that could be vaguely seen inside. He finally made one step further.


    ...

 Chapter 1066 - The Person By The Stream

    <h4>Chapter 1066: The Person By The Stream</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ning Que¡¯s footstep was very firm, but it was a shame that he did not get a chance to approach the national master. But he was not disappointed as trying was always just an attempt. He believed that he would find his way to encounter him in theager and then killed him off.


    The national master did not speak a word. The prayer beads between the thumb and the index finger started to rotate by itself gradually. The scent of the blood wafted through the atmosphere, and suddenly, the blood from theager became extremely rich in the smell.


    The scent of blood was originated from those deceased in this grasnd, and those Tang troops that died without a burial ce.


    Ning Que lifted his head to look at him and sad, ¡°You believe in Tengri, but you did such an evil thing. Don¡¯t you worry to be punished when we go to the divine kingdom.


    The national master said, ¡°Correct means correct, the tactic used isn¡¯t important.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°You know my rtionship with Tengri, a belief of yours.¡±


    The national master nced seriously at Ning Que and uttered, ¡°That¡¯s the so-called rtionship an ordinary person like you thought of.¡±


    Ning Que assured, ¡°I will prove to you that the rtionship existed objectively.¡±


    During their conversation, he had already moved three steps forward that carriage. The frost on the body would fall off with every step taken. At first, the frost wasbined to its body, unable to fall off. But they fell because of the me which was spitting fire from his body.


    His footstepsnded on the grasnd, leaving footprints and a number of zing mes.


    The me was clear, sacred, dignified and was as white as the snow lotus blossoming on the snow peak in Tianqi mountain.


    Even though he could not get one step closer to the position of the national master. But several snow lotuses solidified by the Haotian¡¯s divine mes were burning furiously within therge array which was full of the scent of blood.


    Those souls with resentment that travelled from each wagon were in contact with the Haotian¡¯s divine me. The wailing sound in agony was not heard, but only a smirk could be heard before they were purified into nothingness.


    Ning Que¡¯s body was starting to be surrounded by the Haotian¡¯s divine me. The countless of souls with resentment from the national master¡¯s blood sacrificing array was not able to approach his body. His body was burning but his eyebrows covered with snow did not melt.


    Before the souls with resentment being purified, they could disy their appearance prior to death for a split second.


    Ning Que did not cover his eyes to avoid seeing it because many things could not be considered to not have happened with the eyes closed. He focused his eyes on those faces that appeared andter vanished in sight; some were faces that he was once familiar with.


    ¡°Go ahead! If you all want to leave for the Divine Kingdom of Haotian, I will ask her to watch you all. If one day the Divine Kingdompletely copses, teacher will watch you there. If you all want to head the Abyss in the Nether World to continue your battle, then please wait till we meet again. During that period, we can go for wood cutting together.¡± He looked at those familiar and strange faces in the divine me, whispering to himself within his heart.


    ...


    ...


    The national master¡¯s expression showed no concern, and his eyes reflected the light rays of the divine me which was flickering.


    He never thought that Ning Que had such arge number of Haotian¡¯s divine me... normally only the believers who were mostmitted to Haotian could learn the West-Hill divine skill and call out the Haotian¡¯s divine me.


    The national master was not interrupted by this question for a long time because his state knowledge was not as ordinary since he knew about theplication between Ning Que and Tengri. However, many things were better left unanswered.


    The first thing he should do now was to suppress Ning Que¡¯s counterattack.


    Yes, the act of Ning Que burning himself now was his counterattack against the blood sacrificing array, ring alongside the Haotian¡¯s divine me. As he was moving around theager freely, the whole piece of grasnd was illuminated. Theager that was surrounded by the cold wind that was continuously rotating had been broken and dispersed. The temperature increased tremendously, would it still be cold at all?


    Ning Que extended his hand to remove the clear water that was dripping from his eyebrows, finally made his way to the front of a carriage.


    The national master was no longer in this carriage. The damaged box in the car revealed a gap; and inside the box, the zing Haotian¡¯s divine me was burning the white bones vigorously. The bones were turning yellowish and burnt slowly, but surprisingly, it was still sustaining its strength.


    Ning Que drew out his pudao without a word, and immediately shing it hard on the carriage. It copsed in an instant, and the box dropped onto the ground. The outer part of the box fell into ten pieces of wood, exposing the objects inside.


    A steel box was inside the wooden box. It was made from iron bars, and the inner part consisted of human bones and skulls... a full box of skulls, hard to determine the number of dead bones needed to have a full collection.


    Ning Que had his usual expression. Just then, he made another sh on the steel box.


    A sudden loud bang was heard. The bottom part of the steel box, which was a little hard broke open, the sand and dust scattered around and leaving toward direction of the grasnd. It only stopped when the height of the umtion was a few feet deep.


    The steel box was not broken into pieces yet. Innumerable skulls were still constrained in it to provide unstoppable energy to this blood sacrificing array.


    Ning Que stared at the box on the ground inplete silence.


    ¡°This is the array base which was done by all the priests in the Royal Court with witchcraft through gathering the souls from thousands of years and smelted them in the fire. Even if you have immensely strong power in the human world, it will still be impossible for you to break it because human energy can be limited, but the souls are infinite.¡±


    The national master unexpectedly appeared on a carriage in the south direction with a robe whirling and slightly moving the prayer beads. He gazed at Ning Que withpassion and said, ¡°Since your effort is futile, why do you still want to force it?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°True... I need to admit that you have trapped me, but then, what¡¯s next? If you can¡¯t kill me, then what¡¯s the difference between this blood sacrificing array and a child¡¯s y?¡± He turned over to face the national master who was in the carriage and uttered, ¡°You must be very clear that the act of you trapping me is simr to be trapped by me. As long as you stay here, then you will surely die.¡±


    What being told was not wrong. For the Academy, the main concern of the Golden Tribe Royal Court was to focus on dealing with the national master. If he could not excuse himself due to trapping Ning Que, then upon the arrival of the main force of Tang troops, the emergence of Xu Chi, and possibly even the appearance of that individual who came in person, then the national master would surely lose.


    The strange thing was that the national master remained calm without being influenced by the words said by Ning Que. He seemed to be totally confident that he would not be harmed by the Academy. Maybe because he thought that he could kill Ning Que.


    About ten high priests appeared on the grasnd in all directions and walked their way toward theager.


    Ning Que¡¯s vision passed through the burning Haotian¡¯s divine me, fixing his gaze on these people and the bone nes on their chests. He said, ¡°Finally here.¡±


    The Golden Tribe Royal Court was used to fight with the Central ins cultivators, those high priests who were skillful in witchcraft. Every high priest was on par with the standard of the famous underworld cultivation in the Central ins.


    What would happen when approximately ten high priests join in the blood sacrificing array?


    These old high priests moved their lips slowly and started to chant those weird scriptures which were chanted by the national master earlier. Then they began to dance around and shake their bodies, performing a dance that no one could understand.


    The grasnd priests were experts in witchcraft, the scripture was a spell while the dance was a curse.


    There were about ten wagons that toppled all of a sudden, the wooden boxes in those wagons broken into pieces, revealing the iron bars. Those steel boxes gradually floated in the air. Thest to float in the air was the one that was deeply shed into the ground by Ning Que with sand falling off as though an unearthed dark object.


    All the steel boxes contained human bones and skulls, scattering around the fine remnants of those who had deceased with the effort of the national master and the high priests with the secret process of grasnd witchcraft.


    It was an unimaginable enormous pressure from the souls, and went above the souls, appeared invisible and inferior but seemed real and existed like a huge mountain which bombarded Ning Que¡¯s mental world.


    Ning Que hummed. The blood leaked out from the tip of his mouth but his eyes still looked pure and bright. After he hadbined his body with Sangsang in the Buddha¡¯s chessboard, the strength of his body is equivalent to his soul strength, followed by his strong psyche power made him the best of the best in the human world. This pressure from innumerable souls might be able to crush the ocean of consciousness of a zenith strong man who knew the destiny state but could only hurt him, so he could still hold on to this.


    But being trapped by the blood sacrificing array, it did not make sense to keep holding on with all his effort because he did not know how long he couldst. What he needed to do was to break the array and then kill his enemies.


    Breaking the array and killing enemies were simr but two different things.


    To break this terrifying blood sacrificing array, the main point was to kill the national master. To kill the national master required to first locate his position and confirm his position but the problem now was that he did not know where the national master was.


    The national master was here, just in front of him, standing on the only carriage that was left behind, but he was as though standing very far away. He wasbined into one with the blood sacrificing array, but felt as though he was looking from afar. Why was it so? At first, he flew down from the sky but did not manage to step right straight on the head of the national master, and then the national master was moving around freely. Maybe something was hidden behind this problem.


    Ning Que staring at the national master who was standing on the carriage, looking at the robe which swayed along with the wind and the wooden prayer beads on his body. He squinted his eyes, and a strange feeling became more obvious.


    Out of the blue, he sensed something, hence he lifted his head to view the sky. He saw the gloomy clouds that approached as a consequence of being interrupted, influenced, and sucked by the blood sacrificing array had a light and thin line emerging on its surface.


    The dark clouds seemed to have countless souls with resentment. Those were the people who died on the grasnd and those were the sins done by the Golden Tribe Royal Courts for many years as a result of their desire of killing the enemies, also known as the killing souls.


    Gazing at the gloomy clouds, Ning Que¡¯s reaction toward the desire of killing from the Golden Tribe Royal Court was extraordinarily obvious and he had a better understanding of the blood sacrificing array. He confirmed that this was not something that he could break himself now. However, the expression in his eyes looked rather calm as he slightly raised the eyebrows which was covered with snow again.


    He seemed to be smiling. ¡°You are such an incredible person.¡±


    He withdrew his gaze from the sky to face the national master who was not far from him, and said, ¡°I have to admit that you have enough ability to trap me to death, but... it is not enough because you know the academy does not onlyprise me alone.¡±


    The national master put both his hands together, looking like an old monk. Both his angry eyes made him appear like a barbaric wizard, but a sneak peek made him looked like a monk who had meditated for years in a deep mountain. He asked, ¡°When will they arrive?¡±


    This type of changes in terms of the temperament of one¡¯s facial expression was an extraordinary state. However, Ning Que had seen Master Lian Sheng¡¯s 32 changes in facial expressions at the front gate of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, so this did not catch him by surprise.


    He appeared like he was engaging in small talk with the national master, ¡°Tang is not free today.¡±


    ¡°Then the Grand Master will be here today.¡± The national master said calmly with a straight face, ¡°To be honest, I have been waiting for her presence all these years. I really hope she won¡¯t be absent for this today.¡±


    It was still a casual conversation. During the conversation, both revealed their strong confidence levels. The confidence of Ning Que was built from the academy and his elder sister while the national master¡¯s confidence was from the tribe.


    This blood sacrificing array was the array of the national master alone, but was the array of the whole Golden Tribe Royal Court.


    This was a whole tribe that consisted of millions of people. This was a tribe with thousands of years of inheritance and its unique cultural background but this tribe turned into an array today.


    Even if Yu Lian was here, would it be able to be broken?


    The national master was telling the truth. He had been waiting for Yu Lian for several years. He waited for Yu Lian all this while just to kill her.


    At this moment, Ning Que said, ¡°Do you think that confining me within the array can prevent me to stand before you? But how about her?¡±


    Listening to these words, the national master could not be as calm as he was earlier. He suddenly felt that perhaps he was not the one waiting for her, but instead... she was the one waiting for him these past few years.


    ...


    ...


    Toward the northern west direction of the City of Wei would be a barren desert, and there was an extremely small district called Lu district in the middle of the desert. This district followed a certain timing that caused it to vanish and appear at times but most of the time it would disappear more than it appeared. Even the Golden Tribe Royal Court and the Tang troops did not know the existence of this small Lu district.


    From the Lu district to the south direction would be Kaiping assembly area, at this moment the Northern Battlefront army being led by Situ Yn was having a merciless and fierce battle with the remnant armies from the Golden Tribe Royal Court. Hence, no one would be there.


    Chanyu and thousands of cavalry who escaped from the city of Wei rushed toward the direction of the grasnd in the north direction so it was impossible for them to pass by this small Lu district. Therefore, it was reasonable to say that no one would be present at this ce.


    But today someone made a sudden appearance in this small Lu district.


    This grasnd cavalry held his war-horse and rested by the only stream in the Lu district. It was a normal war-horse, and this particr cavalry seemed to be an ordinary person. He was wearing clothes full of bloodstain.


    He looked toward a dozen miles away in the east direction, feeling the changes in the Qi of Heaven and Earth and showing a trace of a smile.


    A dozen miles away in the east direction which was exactly the northern part of the City of Wei was the location of the blood sacrificing array.


    This cavalry lowered his head to wash his face, then he held up some clear water, preparing to soothe his throat.


    The calm water in the stream reflected his face, that young and handsome face with moustache near to his cheeks which was not cleaned for many days, looking like wild grass simply growing on his face, but made him appear like a tough guy.


    All of a sudden, his gesture turned stiff.


    On the surface of the water, it reflected a calm andposed expression on his face, but his eyes were glowing like wildfire was burning in his eyes.


    The clean water left the gaps of his fingers gradually, which was simr to the time that had gone in his life.


    As the clear water was flowing out from his hand, he raised his head and faced toward the opposite side of the stream.


    A girl who was wearing a yellow dress unknowingly appeared on the other side of the stream.


    This girl looked as though she was approximately 12 or 13 years old with a gentle and beautiful countenance. Two ck ponytails at the back of her head were swinging a little and made her look super adorable. However, the expression on her face was as cold as ice.


    ¡°I heard that you are waiting for me,¡± the girl in yellow skirt said to the grasnd cavalry.

 Chapter 1067 - One In The East, One In The West

    <h4>Chapter 1067: One In The East, One In The West</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The cavalryman from the grasnd seemed confused. He looked around to make sure there was no one else, and asked, ¡°Who are you?¡±


    He did not answer the girl¡¯s question and asked for her identity instead. It seemed so natural as if their confrontation was indeed a coincidence. But it could never be a coincidence for a lonely grasnd cavalryman and a young girl in yellow dress to meet randomly in an unknown and remote oasis. He was barely trying his luck.


    Unfortunately the young girl did not like to talk nonsense. ¡°You are Ningcuiya, and of course I am Yu Lian,¡± the young girl answered.


    The grasnd cavalryman paused for a while. Then he stood up and wiped the water on his palms. He looked at the other side of the brook and said, ¡°You are indeed the legendary Twenty-Three-Year Cicada. I was not expecting anyone to see through my transformation.¡±


    Throughout this world very few were aware of the national master¡¯s original name, Ningcuiya. Likewise barely did anyone know that the Hierarch of the Divine Halls of West-Hill was named Xiong Chumo, or what Ye Hongyu went through as a child. But she knew it. She knew everything. It was because she was the leader of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, the mystical Twenty-Three-Year Cicada. She was Yu Lian, while her original name was Lin Wu. Her life had been mystical to everyone else in the human world, while she saw through everyone and everything unobstructedly.


    Yu Lian stared at him and said, ¡°You array is quite interesting.¡±


    It was a huge array that assembled the killing intent of the entire Golden Tribe Royal Court and the resentment of countless sorrowful souls. She said quite interesting. But it was already a highpliment.


    What was more interesting was the national master himself. The national master was there in the blood sacrificing array in front of Ning Que, as well as by a brook several dozens of miles to the west in front of Yu Lian. And he was a spirited young cavalryman instead of an aging and exhausted man.


    What exactly was happening?


    The previous national master had already died. In other words the old national master had given up his longevity for the blood sacrificing array. His body decayed but his psyche and soul stayed. Then he used some unimaginable method to transform into the current young grasnd cavalryman.


    Ning Que found it weird in the array just because the national master was not a real existence. That was why he could not locate him inside the array. But luckily Yu Lian found him. The national master drained his life to create such a horrifying blood sacrificing array. But he never expected that Yu Lian did not even get into it. Instead she just walked randomly into him by the brook.


    The grasnd cavalryman seemed disappointed. If someone were to look closely into his eyes, one would definitely see the distinctive sense of vicissitudes and calmness that could only be acquired through age.


    ¡°There¡¯s no need to be disappointed.¡± Yu Lian said to him calmly, ¡°No matter if you were reincarnated, hidden or possessed, you would never hide from me.¡±


    Indeed, the national master did have applied some inhuman skills. It seemed mysterious and unimaginable. But as for Yu Lian... she was the Twenty-Three-Year Cicada who cultivated on the most incredible and mystical skills, and had went through the most bizarre and inconceivable transformation.


    The national master¡¯s skills were nothing to her.


    All of a sudden voices of cicadas were heard by the brook. There had never been any cicadas in the Wilderness. But it appeared all of a sudden. The sound was not chilling, but rather pacifying. It was because Yu Lian just moved. She raised her feet and walked on the clear fresh brook toward the national master. Wind blew above the grasnd and swayed her yellow dress. She seemed like a little fairy walking on the ripples.


    The national master looked at her bare feet and said, ¡°I thought you would be jumping down from the sky. Surprisingly you came from the water instead.¡±


    Yu Lian said calmly, ¡°Just as everyone else assumed that you must be closing the rear for the Golden Tribe Royal Court and give your life to stop us from the Academy. Who would expect that you were already on the run?¡±


    The national master asked, ¡°Would the Academy stop me from running away?¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°For sure. Because you are indeed powerful.¡±


    The national master said after a pause, ¡°Thank you for yourpliment... I was just trying to trap you and leave ast chance for the tribes. As for myself, I was actually nning for a tour around the world.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°I¡¯ve told you there¡¯s no need to be disappointed. You could never deceive me.¡±


    ¡°Ning Que said the same thing a moment ago over there.¡± The national master looked toward the direction of the blood sacrificing array, to which he had some secret connection with. Then he sighed. ¡°I am disappointed not because I could not hide from you. I never wanted to deceive you. It was just a pity that you did not enter my array.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°Were you thinking that your array could trap me?¡±


    The national master turned to her and answered, ¡°My array could kill you.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°Xiong Chumo thought so too.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not him.¡± The national master continued calmly, ¡°I¡¯m much more prudent. Furthermore, he did not know who you were at the back hill of the Academy years ago. But I know. And I¡¯ve always been waiting for you.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°So what?¡±


    The national master held his machete and said to the approaching girl, ¡°I want to try.¡±


    He appeared to be a bold and unconstrained grasnd cavalryman. When he held tight onto the tilt of his machete, a bout of chilling and blood-sucking killing intent that only belonged to a soldier soared into the sky.


    In a sharp contrast in the meanwhile the clothes of the cavalryman cracked, and his beard and hair fell down. He turned into a monk instantly.


    He turned into a chilling, blood-sucking, brutal yet benevolent looking young monk.


    Yu Lian reached the east side of the brook. Her bare feet were not wet at all. She looked at the young monk and praised, ¡°Impressive.¡±


    It was unworldly impressive. A young monk bestowed with the bloody killing intent of the entire Golden Tribe Royal Court would probably be indeed unworldly.


    Yu Li was merely praising instead of being scared, not even worried. She was not even worried when confronting the Abbey Dean who was at the State of Purity years ago. How could she be intimidated now? She pointed out one finger at the young monk between his eyebrows. The sounds of cicadas by the brook suddenly intensified and seemed restless.


    The wild grass was crushed and bits of grass were thrown into the air, as if they were countless cicadas¡¯ wings piercing through the space. Her strike was above the Five States.


    The young monk could never get away, hence he just took it.


    He stared at the approaching slim finger, paid no attention to the gashes on his body made by the bits of grass, and chopped down the machete with both his hands.


    ¡°You are wrong in one thing...¡±


    The machete was just an ordinary de. But it pierced through the air with the killing intent of countless people. It did not shine but already activated the heaven and earth.


    With this de between Heaven and Earth, the young monk stared at Yu Lian and told her that she was wrong. You did see through my n and did not enter my array. But by the moment you came to me you are already in my array. Because I am the center of the array. Wherever I am, the array follows.


    It was no longer an ordinary machete, but the embodiment of the blood sacrificing array. It carried the killing intent of the entire Golden Tribe Royal Court and the resentful souls collected throughout hundreds of years. And it was chopping onto the young girl in the yellow dress.


    No matter how powerful Yu Lian was, how could she withstand the intent of the entire tribe?


    ...


    ...


    When confronting the young monk¡¯s earth-shaking machete, Yu Lian reacted in an extremely simple way. She reacted as if she was a beginner in cultivation rather than a powerful figure above the Five States. It was too naive or even ridiculous. Her way was simply pressing her palms together and mped the de in-between.


    Was that really naive? Not at all. The simplest was the most horrifying. Whatever she did was a matter of fact. Therefore a killing intent of the entire Golden Tribe Royal Court carried by the machete was mped between her palms.


    Her hands were very small and tender, yet the machete could no longer move one inch forward. She seemed slim but possessed immense strength.


    Between the young monk¡¯s machete and her hands, countless bouts of energy sshed.


    The brook behind her started rippling, then boiling and eventually turned into steam. An entire brook dried out in a blink. The fish and water nts in it all disappeared. The bottom of the brook was also dried out and cracked like the scales of a dead snake.


    The cracks extended into the fields and dried out the surface in a dozen miles. It seemed like a dead giant tortoise.


    Her yellow dress and the hair by her cheeks swayed slightly in the breeze. The dress was never on fire, and the hair was merely withered. Yu Lian looked at the young monk at the other end of the de.


    The young monk was also looking at her with admiration, but not awe. He admired that she was no wonder the current leader of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, who could actually catch the killing intent of the entire tribe gathered by the blood sacrificing array with a pair of bare hands. She was indeed unfathomable.


    He was not in awe because he knew that even if Yu Lian had caught the de, she could never strike back under such a circumstance. Therefore he was not defeated. Yu Lian indeed did not strike back. But she seemed mocking. What was she mocking?


    The young monk realized all of a sudden. His de could only make Yu Lian stood still by the brook. While Yu Lian¡¯s hands also trapped him right there. He could not move either.


    Then how could the other himself dozens of miles away in the east make any further movement?


    ...


    ...


    When the machete was chopped toward Yu Lian a dozens of miles to the west, Ning Que felt a distinctive relief because the power of the souls pressing on him was instantly weakened.


    The dozen of iron cases floating in the air started trembling suddenly. The resentment of the white bones and the killing intent hidden in the array was draining by something and delivered to somewhere afar.


    Ning Que turned suddenly to that direction. It was in the west. He knew that the Senior Sister was there in the west.


    The thin thread among the clouds he saw previously was her hint. He was not aware of her n by then, but vaguely got it now. But being trapped by over ten priests from the grasnd, what could he do now?


    No one could have reacted within such a short period of time. But Ning Que was not anyone else. He had incredibly tacit understanding with Yu Lian. Although he seldom met Yu Lian throughout the years, their tacit understanding had always been there.


    It started many years ago in the voice of cicadas by the old library, from the Hairpin-style Small Regr Script they wrote, the badge, the understanding of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, and their simr characteristics.


    He heard the voice of cicadas a dozens of miles away in the west. He knew his Sister was already taking care of it. He closed his eyes and opened again.


    The young monk chopped toward Yu Lian in the west. While he chopped toward the old national master on the carriage in the east.


    ...

 Chapter 1068 - The Strength Of The Academy, The End Of The Golden Tribe

    <h4>Chapter 1068: The Strength Of The Academy, The End Of The Golden Tribe</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    This sh was done with full effort. He used up all his Haoran Qi to form Haotian¡¯s divine me in order to release it together with the sh. What made it scarier was that this sh consisted of killing soul.


    That was the killing soul of the Tang troops which was reared by him since he was at Shubi Lake. This killing soul was eventuallypleted only after killing incident at the city of Wei.


    A dark knifended on the head of the national master. This time the national master could not move his body freely like a ghost because his true body was already been fixated by Yu Lian by the stream.


    The national master put both his hands together to hold Ning Que¡¯s knife in between his palms. Ning Que lowered his knife and continued to move forward quietly.


    The national master¡¯s facial expression turned pale suddenly. The wooden prayer beads between the thumb and the index fingers were seen to break into pieces with naked eyes, turning into sawdust, falling off and being blown away by wind.


    This blood sacrificing array was indeed very miraculous. The presence of the national master also showed the presence of the array. No matter if the distance was ten miles apart, the array and him would be connected. Hence, his position was hard to be determined as they reflected each other.


    But now, Yu Lian held his knife from the west side and Ning Que was shing him from the east side. The method used by these two brother and sister was the simplest but it was enough to break his array.


    Both sides were trying to break his array, hence which side should he choose to defend? Defend both sides? Even if he used up the killing souls of the whole Golden Tribe Royal Court, it was still impossible for him to defeat Yu Lian and Ning Que, both of these strong individuals that attack him from both ways.


    As the speed of the prayer beads breaking into pieces getting faster, the national master¡¯s face became more pale. He could feel that the force of Ning Que¡¯s machete was boundless. He did not know how long he could stand.


    The look on the young monk¡¯s face was getting worse at the small stream that was drying up on the west side. He felt as though the force from the knife was boundless and he did not know how long Yu Lian could withstand the force.


    A young monk howled in anger and despair as the machete at hand trembled fiercely.


    Almost at the same time, the old national master in the carriage who was ten miles in the east direction made a loud howling sound in a reluctant manner, and the wooden prayer beads suddenly broke into pieces. A terrifying aura shrouded the wholeager!


    About ten high priests around theager suddenly transformed into approximately ten blood flowers. Without any signs, these experienced high priests just died like this! And they died in such a miserable way!


    The blood was like a fountain, spread across from all different directions toward theager. Ning Que did not know what was hidden behind the blood, making him feel a little uneasy.


    Pitter-pattered, a heavy rain of blood was falling from the sky. All the blood of the 13 high priests from the grasnd were suckedpletely by the blood sacrificing array, and finally dropped into the steel box hanging in mid-air and diffused into the white skulls inside. The remaining blood fell onto the ground, making the wild grass wet and appeared as if there was blood-like dew on the grass.


    Ning Que hummed and a crystal clear water droplet in his body dispersed out of the blue, countless burst of Haoran Qi diffused into his limbs, and then turned into Haotian¡¯s divine me and spread out through the open pores.


    It was just that at this instant, his body was burning vigorously as though he was a man on fire.


    The blood rain that fell from the sky and dropped into the mes would make a sizzling sound, and an indistinctive screaming or wailing sound that could hurt someone¡¯s ears. Even so, there was also a faint burnt smell that wafted through the atmosphere.


    The blood of the high priests did not drop on Ning Que¡¯s body at all. But he was not able to rx himself because the national master before the machete... turned super strong out of a sudden. The wrinkles on his face was seen to be slowly gone with naked eyes, and he looked ten years younger than his age!


    Was this the strongest technique of the blood sacrificing array?


    Ning Que had no idea that the young monk by the stream about ten miles away in the west direction was gone abruptly. That machete inserted into the dry and cracked ground.


    The national master used the lives of about ten high priests to do only one thing which was tobine the blood sacrificing array into one. To put it in other words, this young monk came back to scene instantly.


    Ning Que could not understand the reason but he knew that he needed to avoid himself from this danger.


    The iron cuss rotated in the air, avoided the ambush of the young national master with a strong will. He dragged his cuss and returned without hesitation. He moved his right hand lightly to write a talisman under the blood rain without drawing any attention.


    The national master chose to return to the east side, but not letting the soul of the old national master to go back to the body of the young monk. The reason was simple, he thought that Ning Que was not as scary as Yu Lian. He wanted to escape from Yu Lian subconsciously.


    The thing was dozen miles apart from him, hence he returned with his array. As fast as lightning, he believed that he would have enough time to kill Ning Que before Yu Lian could rush here, so that he could focus himself to fight Yu Lianter.


    The young national master left the carriage, and used the Qi of Heaven and Earth to grab Ning Que from the front.


    This lightness and freedom were indeed the example of a strong guy in the grasnd. The close rtionship with the Heaven and Earth was far more than the cultivators from the Central ins which was what Ning Que could notpare.


    Ning Que crossed the machete and returned immediately, and then moved backward. His speed was certainly not as fast as the national master.


    He was not afraid at all. He stared at the other person¡¯s eyes and turned his wrist.


    A soft sneering sound was heard.


    The young national master turned pale and the gap between his fingers had a clear bloodstain.


    That was during the period when Ning Que made a slight movement of his finger earlier, and used the divine me to block others from seeing him write the ¡°Two¡± talisman.


    If it was not for the blood sacrificing array, the national master would have broken his arms already.


    The national master came forward to seize again with a straight face.


    About ten miles, it was about ten miles away from a stream, Yu Lian would reach in split seconds so he needed to speed up. However, it was a pity that he underestimated the speed of Yu Lian.


    A sky filled with gloomy clouds turned up a solemn whistling sound, a clear and thin stripe broke apart theyers of clouds, drawing from west to east and the ending point was the battlefield which was full of mes.


    A loud bang was heard! Yu Lian leaped from the sky. This time she did not walk out from the surface of the water but she seriously jumped down from the dark sky.


    The national master at this time was unable to avoid himself like how he dealt with Ning Que previously, but instead he could only defend forcefully. It was as if a hammer dropped heavily on a gigantic clock. The whole piece of grasnd seemed to be able to hear the loud noise.


    There was a broken wagon with the steel box which was hanging in the air, surrounded by bursts of energy shooting around and blood mist. It was not sure how long it had been as the blood mist had decreased and the sound of the clock had subsided.


    The wrinkles started to gather on the corner of the national master¡¯s eyes. The ground below his feet were cracked and the steel box with white bones were behind him while Ning Que¡¯s divine me was before him as well as Yu Lian who was putting her hands behind her back.


    Silence and serenity, perhaps were the moments for adjustment or resting.


    ¡°I¡¯ve lost.¡± The national master nced at both of these brother and sister from the Academy, forcing a smile and said, ¡°The moment you see through the position I hide, I have already lost. I never thought of defeating both of you at the same time.¡±


    Yu Lian was expressionless without saying a single word.


    Ning Que was calm andposed, ¡°Why don¡¯t youmit suicide? What are you waiting for?¡±


    ¡°But it is still hard for you all to kill me.¡± The national master squinted his eyes, staring at the dozen of steel boxes floating in the air and the skulls in the boxes and said casually, ¡°I have blended into one with the array. If you can¡¯t break the array, you will never be able to hurt me at all. The force in the human world can never break the array.¡±


    Ning Que uttered, ¡°There is no such thing as an array that can never be broken... even if this array of yours has the killing force of Golden Tribe for hundreds of years, wait till I gather about ten thousands of Tang troops. By that time, I can simply break the array by spitting saliva.¡±


    ¡°It takes time though,¡± the national master said as he looked at Ning Que calmly.


    Yu Lian blurted out, ¡°I don¡¯t like things to get troublesome.¡± The yellow skirt fluttered, she was hanging in mid-air, stretching out her hand to tap the steel box. She jumped down from the sky at first, and managed to crash the national master with blood all over his body. Simultaneously, a corner of this steel box appeared a gap. At this moment, as her tiny palmnded,an rming sound reverberated around the grasnd.


    Thud! She released her next palm action. Thud!


    The national master¡¯s facial expression turned extremely pale. He was sitting with his legs crossed on thest carriage, trying hard to maintain the array intent.


    Ning Que did not do anything. He put his iron cuss back to the sheath. He walked to Yu Lian and stood behind her, observing her quietly as if he was enjoying a good show.


    Yu Lian pped his third palm action, then the gap on the steel box erged a bit.


    Previously, Ning Que was unable to open the steel boxes. However, it was broken into pieces simply by a tap of a small hand. This steel box was made from secret steels, which were smelted with the fire souls for a long time.


    The national master frowned as he fixed his gaze at Yu Lian and said, ¡°Do you really think you can break this array with merely the strength of your body? A cockroach for 23 years, I bet you think too highly of yourself.¡±


    As expected, when his voice subsided, that scent of blood diffused from the white bones deep inside in the steel box, and the gap on the steel box could be seen to be smaller with naked eyes.


    Yu Lian lifted her eyebrows, seemingly a little unhappy.


    Ning Que raised his head to face her without a word.


    The wind blowing in the grasnd flushed the corner of the skirt, Yu Lian took a breath, and a violent breeze surrounded theager. The wind whipped the yellow skirt around her, looking like a g.


    She inhaled deeply, causing her slightly voluptuous body shape especially her chest to undte continuously.


    Previously at the City of Wei, A Da took a deep breath and managed to absorb half the Qi of Heaven and Earth on the street into his body.


    At this instant, Yu Lian seemed to have the desire to absorb all the Qi of Heaven and Earth in this grasnd into her body. She lifted her fair and smooth hand again. Her handnded on the steel box again. A loud buzzing sound was heard. The fragments of the carriage was scattered around by the violent wind.


    Ning Que hummed, and forcefully withstand this power.


    The blood was flowing out from the ears of the national master¡¯s. A violent sound wave spread through very far, even farther than a hundred miles.


    In front of the Kaiping assembly area, as the cavalry from both parties were desperately killing each other, suddenly they stopped fighting and quickly covered their eyes with their hands, showing their pale faces in agony. It was even worse for the war-horses which struggled till they overturned to the ground.


    Yu Lian¡¯s small face was a little pale as well. But her expression remained as transparent and cold as the snowy ice. She stretched out her hand to hit toward the steel box. Only a cracking sound was produced to cause the steel boxes to fragment into pieces.


    The yellow skirt shed through the wilderness in the air as she released a dozen of palm actions. The scary exploding sound transmitted throughout the surroundings, and roughly ten steel boxes broke into pieces.


    Countless of skulls fell off slowly on the ground.


    A pure and clear Haotian¡¯s divine me spewed out from Ning Que¡¯s palm. and at this juncture, the skulls were burnt to ashes. Those souls with resentment which were trapped by the national master and high priests with evil tactics were freed, and eventually regained their freedom.


    The blood sacrificing array was broken just like this.


    The national master was full of bloodstain; his pale and old face was also filled with blood and sweat.


    He nced at Yu Lian with his eyes being upied with confusion temperament.


    I could not understand why she could forcefully break the blood sacrificing array that he had prepared for many years with merely force.


    ¡°I didn¡¯t think too highly of myself.¡±


    Yu Lian came back down to the ground, holding both her hands together while walking toward him, looking down on him and said, ¡°You stand too low to believe that strength in the human world was not able to break the array. I doubt you know the definition of strength.¡±


    The wind at the grasnd caressed the yellow skirt. She was so skinny, but was gigantic at the same time. She was a petitedy, but was also a Grand Master.


    The national master led the tribe for the blood sacrificing array, and utilized the witchcraft¡¯s secret reincarnation method. But all these were meaningless in front of her. Regardless of how miraculous the witchcraft¡¯s Buddha Dharma ceremony, it was not able to fight against her strength.


    She was the Master of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine who was secretive. She hid her identity in the cultivation world for 23 years. No one knew that the purpose of her wearing flowers in the hair and doing calligraphy near the east window of the old building of the Academy was due to the intention of the headmaster of the Academy to calm her down.


    She calmed herself down, stopped thinking about anything else. Regardless of the motives and techniques, they were all not important anymore. She cultivated with full of rity and purity, with rity in terms of mindset and purity in rtion to strength.


    She returned to the cultivation core of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, moving back to the most appropriate route. Thus, she became the only person with the most powerful force in the Devil¡¯s Doctrine after thousand of years. She was not immortal but she could move a mountain.


    I could even move a mountain for you, not to mention a few steel boxes.


    ...


    ...


    ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve failed.¡± The national master saw that blood was flowing out from his body like a fountain, his old face revealed hisst sense of confidence. Looking at Yu Lian and Ning Que, he said, ¡°At least I managed to protect thest descendant of the Golden Tribe.¡±


    If calcted based on time, this terrible war among the strong that happened in the northern City of Wei hadsted for half a day. With Chan Yu¡¯s and Duoer Cavalry¡¯s speed of escaping out of fear, they might have left a few hundreds of miles already.


    ¡°No use running so far away. Does it make sense at all?¡±


    Ning Que looked at him and uttered, ¡°You knew that they will all be killed.¡±


    At this juncture, snow fell from the sky.


    Although the wilderness was colder as it was closer to the central ins, and there were times where the snow was falling duringte spring, but yesterday the surroundings of the City of Wei was so warm. Howe there was snow at this moment?


    Ning Que raised his head to look at it, realizing that it was the gloomy clouds which was called out by the blood sacrificing array. As it had blocked the sunlight for too long, the bottomyer of the cloud started to grow frosts and eventually fell off.


    The snow was falling heavily, causing it to nearly be snowstorm. During a snowstorm, it was most difficult to track someone down unless one was a real strong individual.


    The national master thought that this was the chance of the Golden Tribe Royal Court.


    Because he had already estimated that the Tang must be bringing the wild people from the eastern wilderness to fight the counterattack of the cavalry from the Divine Halls of West-Hill while only Yu Lian from the Academy came for the rescue, he assumed that she would not release another attack anytime soon.


    ¡°Look, it¡¯s snowing.¡±


    He nced at the snow which was falling from the sky and said with a faint smile, ¡°This is the salt that Tengri released to the human world to protect its most faithful believers, leading them out of the river valley.¡±


    Yu Lian lifted his head to face the sky, squinted his eyes a bit and said, ¡°Back then, that girl liked to add so much salt when she cooked at the back of the mountain. Thinking about it makes me feel a little annoyed.¡±


    The national master was slightly baffled and could only understand what she meant after a few seconds. He softly sighed for being speechless. As devoted believers of Haotian, tomunicate with those from the back of the mountain of the Academy who lived with Haotian for a long time was a big struggle. A Da from the City of Wei was as such, and now his siblings were also the same.


    The snowstorm was fierce, filling the wilderness with a thickyer of snow after a short while. The snow was too captivating and it was hard to see the scenery from afar clearly. Out of a sudden, a spine-chilling howling sound was transmitted through the snow.


    It was probably the howling sound of a certain beast, but the sound was rather too loud. It left an impression that this beast must be very big in size to have such a huge resonance chamber for speech which could spread the voice in all directions


    The national master fixed his gaze toward the snow and he faintly saw many shadows approaching gradually.


    Those shadows looked very big, every shadow was simr to a small mountain.


    He was the national master of the Golden Tribe, hence he would certainly guess correctly what was approaching, causing him to alter his expression abruptly.


    Normally, this type of strong beasts would not be present at an area so close to the south.


    The ground was shaking a little, and the umted snow melted as a result of the tremble.


    Those shadows which were simr to small mountains slowly walked toward the snow,ing before the three of them.


    Appearing in the northern City of Wei was a group of snow wolves, a group of giant wolves from the snowfields. Hundreds of giant wolves from the snowfields standing quietly in the wilderness like a snowy river.


    Ifpared to those years when they were forced to head to the south, these group of giant wolves from the snowfields seemed to be different than before. They were no longer thin and exhausted, the scap bones which were obvious back then were coveredpletely by strong muscles and white furs. To be able to obtain a consistent supply of food at a ce that was closer to the human settlement in the wilderness rtively toward the south was all because of the advice from the Eldest brother.


    The national master looked a bit confused because he did not understand why these scary yet powerful creatures were present here.


    The female wolf at the forefront had soft, silky, and white fur with a gentle demeanor, appearing like a beautiful snowy mountain.


    A skinny and ordinary male wolf was riding on top of the body of a female wolf. In front of the female wolf was a small-sized snow wolf. It seemed like these three people were family members.


    Looking at this scene, the national master was extremely amazed. Today, he only knew that the leader of these powerful giant wolves from the northern coniferous forest was merely a normal male wolf.


    What happened next caught him by surprise!


    An ordinary male wolf straighten its body, appearing like a human being to salute to both Yu Lian and Ning Que.


    Yu Lian and Ning Que returned the favour seriously.


    The national master recalled of the ck donkeys in the wilderness outside Guhe, and thousands of wild horses from a few days ago.


    He felt that the wind in the wilderness became colder but this was not rted to the falling snow or the blood loss, but instead it was only rted in terms of its view.


    Were all these from the Academy?


    He suddenly felt that Tengri was so unfair. Or maybe, Tengri had no way to deal with the Academy.


    Ning Que made a whistling sound.


    The small snow wolf stared at him while wagging its tail happily. It did not run toward him but instead, turning over its body along with the big group of snow wolves and progressing toward the deep end of the snow.


    Since they were part of the Academy, certainly they should contribute to the Academy.


    Looking at the group of snow wolves vanishing in the snow, Ning Que turned over his shoulder to cast a look at the national master, and uttered, ¡°Golden Tribe... will not exist anymore after today.¡±


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 1069 - Something I Had To Do

    <h4>Chapter 1069: Something I Had To Do</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The national mastery in the blood withplicated feelings of disappointment, despair, as well as some relief. Since he could no longer rewrite the fate of the tribes, he would be freed from the responsibilities.


    ¡°Perhaps Tengri had indeed abandoned us. If the previous Chanyu was still alive, how could he make such a mistake? The Golden Tribe is defeated. But are you really going to kill us all?¡±


    He stared at Yu Lian and said in exhaustion, ¡°Ning Que hated us because of Wei. But how about you? What happened between the tribes and the Wild People was already a thousand years ago.¡±


    Yu Lian said nothing.


    The national master panted and continued, ¡°Don¡¯t forget that you Wild People enved us for many years. I don¡¯t think we owe you anything. And you¡¯re not justified in doing so.¡±


    ¡°We want the grasnd.¡±


    ¡°We can give it back.¡±


    ¡°You can¡¯t afford it... We, Wild People, want it. The pack of wolves wants it. Our Youngest Uncle¡¯s donkey and his horses want it. And Jun Mo will bring tens of thousands of ves out of the underground world who would also want it... There are too many people longing for it.¡±


    Yu Lian said gently and emotionlessly. Her hands were on her back. She stared at the vast grasnd in the snow storm and recalled the homeless Wild People drifted miserably from one ce to another throughout a thousand years.


    ¡°What about us?!¡±


    The national master lost control and rebuked, ¡°The Abbey Dean abandoned Taoism. Are we therefore no longer qualified for survival? Why do we have to die?!¡±


    Yu Lian turned to him and seemed surprised by his question. She frowned and said, ¡°Of course you deserve to live. Everyone is born equal. Any person who came to this world has the right to live. Therefore, the strongest would survive... You grew up in the Wilderness. How could you not aware of this rule? Have you ever seen tigers and wolves reasoning with rabbits? If you don¡¯t want to be a rabbit, you have to learn to prey.¡±


    It was a simple, unreasonable and brutal rule.


    The national master paused for a long while and murmured, ¡°But you don¡¯t have to kill us all... do you? Like a thousand years ago, the people from the tribes, they could still be your ves.¡±


    He stared at Yu Ln in begging. Yu Lian took a nce at Ning Que. Ning Que said nothing but kept looking toward the snowstorm.


    ¡°Our master told us that very is a very undignified existence. No one should enve others, including other tribes. Therefore we, Wild People, will not keep you as our ves.¡±


    Yu Lian continued, ¡°Therefore we could only kill you all.¡±


    The national master lost hisst hope. He shook his head andughed bitterly, ¡°If only the Headmaster knew you misinterpreted his words like this, would he be driven mad?¡±


    Yu Lian raised her head to look into the sky for a long while. Then she said emotionlessly, ¡°He was gone. If only what we did could bring him back to the human world, we would spare no effort.¡±


    Ning Que also looked above toward the sky. There was snow, dark clouds, but no moon. He looked together with his Sister and recalled that he had said something simr previously.


    The students from the Academy were indeed irritated by their irresponsible master, or more precisely annoyed and bored. Those felt bored the most were Ning Que and Yu Lian.


    Throughout these years Jun Mo had been fighting against Buddhism in the West Wilderness and the Eldest Brother paid no attention to worldly matters as he always did. Everything in the Academy was taken care of by Yu Lian and Ning Que. It was exactly what their enemies were least willing to see.


    ...


    ...


    Spring breeze blew gently and gradually carried away the smell of blood. Brooks in dozens of miles away to the west were all dried, and the oasis could no longer be found. The blood sacrificing array turned into some relics of broken carriages. Countless human bones were purified by Haotian¡¯s divine mes. And the national master eventually closed his eyes.


    Yu Lian turned to Ning Que and said, ¡°I need to attend my wounds. I¡¯ll leave the rest to you.¡±


    In the previous fight she took the killing intent of the entire Golden Tribe Royal Court. Although Ning Que helped a lot she was still severely wounded. The victory came at great prices.


    Ning Que thought about the most difficult part in their n and said, ¡°I¡¯ll be waiting for you on Peach Mountain.¡±


    Yu Lian turned and walked toward the heart of the grasnd. She suddenly recalled something and stopped to ask, ¡°When I was in the air you kept staring under my dress. What were you looking at?¡±


    Ning Queughed and answered, ¡°My Sister fought courageously.¡±


    Yu Lian snorted at him, turned back and disappeared into the grasnd.


    Ning Que shook his head and put his iron de back into the sheath. He turned upon hearing some intensive clops behind. Dust roared around Wei. Xu Chi and his cavalrymen from the Commander¡¯s Barrack already finished the remaining grasnd troops they encircled, and carried on to hunt for the retreating Golden Tribe Royal Court.


    Although the cavalry of the Northern Battlefront Army escorted by hundreds of giant wolves from the snowfields were held back in the East Wilderness by Long Qing and the troops from the Divine Halls of West-Hill, Ning Que had nothing to worry because the Golden Tribe was already doomed.


    Dust roared on the fields to the north of Wei. Deafening clip-clops prevailed while thousands of Tang cavalrymen darted toward the heart of the grasnd in pursuit of Chanyu.


    Ning Que looked at the scene silently until the fields were restored with tranquility. Then he turned to Wei again.


    The snowstorm stopped and the dark clouds disappeared. The spring sun shone dazzlingly on the grasnd. The yellow dust city seemed somewhat reborn. Or perhaps it was because of the hundreds of weeds grown out of the adobe walls in front of the city gate.


    The vigorous wild nts were probably the biggest enemies for the adobe walls. It was strange that no matter what was mixed into the adobe or how firm it was tamped, nothing could prevent the weeds from rooting and growing.


    Ning Que remembered clearly that when he served in Wei everyone from ordinary people to the soldiers in the city would go weeding in springtime under the guidance of General Ma, in order to prevent the walls from being ruined by the weeds.


    The City of Wei had been upied by the grasnd barbarians for years who never care about the walls being ruined. The reviving weeds seemed to be iming their victory over the efforts of Tang people in the past.


    The blood in the city had dried. Bodies of the grasnd barbarians were scattered and buildings were destroyed. Tang¡¯s logistic forces were cleaning up the battlefield and no one noticed Ning Que.


    He walked through the city, looked at the familiar streets and houses, and recalled the people and things in the past. He could almost smell the liquor and roasted chicken in the restaurant. But he did not enter the restaurant or General Ma¡¯s house because he knew they were all gone.


    By a brook around a quiet corner in the city, there was the courtyard he and Sangsang use to live in.


    A hunting knife was half inserted into the wall. It was his knife. He looked at the knife for a while, then pushed open the door and got into the room. He frowned at the bedding left by the grasnd barbarians. He threw them into the yard and prepared to burn themter on.


    He found his bamboo sling chair, moved it into the yard,y down and closed his eyes.


    He could still feel the dazzling sunshine and closed his eyes tighter. Hey silently and almost fell asleep.


    After a long while he woke up and opened his eyes. Looking at the familiar yard where he had lived in for many years, he reached out his hand in the air as he used to do. But unfortunately no one handed him tea.


    When he raised his face no one ced a warm bowl on it. When he said he felt hot no one put her cold and fair feet into his arms. When he said he was hungry there was no noodle soup with fried egg served.


    The City of Wei was still there, and so were the restaurant, the courtyard, and the adobe sleeping tform. The wooden case was still there facing the tform. The walls were there. The hunting knife was there. Even the bank notes were still in his hands.


    But the person was gone. Everyone was gone. And so was her.


    Ning Quey on the bamboo sling chair, looked at the azure sky, and recalled a lot.


    Before he left Wei, he told General Ma to stay young, stay alive, and wait for him. He also told the fellows that he would never return unless he was established. Now he was very well renowned as the most powerful figure in the world. He finally had the guts toe back. But it was toote.


    The war between the Golden Tribe Royal Court and the Tang Empire would definitely turn the situation in the human world. But for him it had nothing to do with the world. It was just for the City of Wei.


    He wanted the get Wei back and seek revenge. In the meanwhile he was looking for someone.


    Time flew while hey on the bamboo sling chair. It was a few dayster.


    Some clops and conversations were heard by the brook next to the courtyard.


    Situ Yn slightly nodded to the soldiers who saluted to her. She came to a barrack facing the courtyard, handed her horse to a guard, looked at the yard and asked, ¡°What¡¯s up?¡±


    An assistantmander shook his head and answered, ¡°He insisted.¡±


    Situ Yn said after a pause, ¡°How many?¡±


    The assistantmander replied, ¡°There are some minor confrontations around the Seven Strongholds but nothing to be worried about. We are in control. There should be over forty thousands including ves, women and children...¡±


    Situ Yn slightly frowned and asked again, ¡°He still insisted no matter what?¡±


    The assistantmander said nothing further. It seemed he was not against the order from the person inside the courtyard.


    Situ Yn stared at the courtyard nearby, and walked toward it after a moment of silence.


    ¡°It is a massacre,¡± she said calmly to Ning Que who was lying on the bamboo chair. Her voice was somewhat trembling.


    Ning Que opened his eyes and said, ¡°You¡¯ve served in the army for years. Haven¡¯t you ever seen a massacre?¡±


    Situ Yn kept quiet for a long while then said, ¡°By rights we should not kill the women and children... Even the most brutal tribe from the grasnd would never do so.¡±


    ¡°This was the ce where I lived together with her for quite some while many years ago.¡± Ning Que stood up from the bamboo chair and pointed at the courtyard. Then he led her out of the yard, came to the street and started introducing everything inside the City of Wei in details.


    ¡°I knew everyone in this city. They all died in that war. The grasnd people broke in and upied the city. They raised their machetes and killed whoever they saw. Did they let go any women or children by then?¡±


    Coming out of the city, he stood on the meadow and stared at the distinctive weeds on the adobe walls. He shook his head and said, ¡°I was not trying to convince myself by recalling these facts, not to convince you or anyone else. I¡¯m just telling you why I am so resolute. No one could ever stop me from the revenge.¡±


    Situ Yn followed his sight and looked at the City of Wei. She felt struggling when recalling the fellow soldiers and people died throughout the years. But she still hesitated, ¡°This is not what the Academy taught us.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯ve told you. No one could stop me from the revenge, even if the Headmaster were toe back.¡± Ning Que looked toward the moon rising from behind the evening glow, and replied after a long pause.


    He pointed to the weeds on the adobe walls of Wei and said, ¡°It might be sinful, but I don¡¯t care. I just know that we have to cut the weeds and dig out the roots. Otherwise we would be in trouble sooner orter.¡±


    ...


    ...


    In the following days, the blood of the grasnd people flooded the entire grasnd. After this battle, the winning Tang soldiers conducted Ning Que¡¯s order like they did outside Guhe. They left no captives, or future troubles. They kept ughtering until their sabers became blunt.


    Ning Que and Situ Yn came to the meadow outside of Wei again.


    The Tang army assembled on the fields and looked at the two of them on the meadow withplicated feelings.


    There was fanatical worship as well as chilling awe.


    Being experienced elite soldiers, the tens of thousands of cavalrymen outside the City of Wei had went through killing and brutal ughtering on the grasnd. But they had never executed such a massacre.


    The entire grasnd seemed to have been irrigated with blood. It smelled bloody and pungent. Flies and mosquitoes were buzzing annoyingly.


    The Tang army could not have stationed here without the arrays set by the masters.


    The arrays could keep the flies and mosquitoes away and reduce the bloody smell. But they could not block the sight.


    A dozens of miles to the north of Wei on a t field, a small hill was formed a while ago. People could not see it clearly due to the distance. But it shone in the morning glow.


    Everyone in the Tang army knew what it was. And they could not help feeling chilled whenever they looked at the hill. It was a pile of chopped heads of the grasnd people.


    Ning Que stood on the meadow and looked at the pile of human heads afar calmly. He felt no fear, no awe, or any abnormal mania. For him it was just something he had to do.


    ¡°They used to call me the the Woodchopper of Shubi Lake.¡± He stared at the vast grasnd and said slowly, ¡°Everyone, from the thieves to the cavalrymen of the Royal Court, was scared of my cavalrymen. Because ... we were indeed good at killing.¡±


    Situ Yn said nothing. She could barely feel anything after these days.


    Ning Que continued, ¡°I¡¯ve told people in Chang¡¯an that the world did not witness me killing in the past. But they will do frequently in the future.¡±


    Situ Yn looked at the side of his face and said, ¡°I hope it won¡¯t happen ever again.¡±


    Ning Que paused and said, ¡°I hope so too. But it depends on whether the world will be on my side.¡±

 Chapter 1070 - Talisman, Tree, Bridge And The Person Attached To The Top

    <h4>Chapter 1070: Talisman, Tree, Bridge And The Person Attached To The Top</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Situ Yn heaved a sigh in his heart as she bid goodbye to him. She held her riding horse and headed down the meadow.


    The war of the Seven Strongholds had ended, and the battlefield clean-up was almostpleted. Now she had to lead the cavalry to go deep into the grasnd, following the footsteps of Xu Chi tounch theirst attack on the Golden Tribe.


    The war had ended but the act of ughtering had just begun.


    She hoped that the world would not give Ning Que a second chance, however she had no choice but to continue killing people.


    Holding the riding horse while walking to the bottom of the meadow, she could not help herself from turning over her shoulder. She could only see the rising of the morning sun, and Ning Que was standing in the sun, his body was beaming with golden rays that made him look rather holy.


    If she had a chance to take a look at Ye Su being sanctified at the capital of Song Kingdom, maybe she would be able to associate these two individuals with each other. However, it was different from Ye Su because Ning Que stood on the bright side but he was more inclined to form a shadow in himself.


    He was a little bit dull, not easy to see through him.


    Situ Yn felt a strong surge ofpassion for him out of the sudden.


    Hundreds of thousands of people died because of his one statement, but he could still maintain hisposure without any concerns. Because he could not find Sangsang, he had no feelings of love or hatred for the world. A person as such would surely be very intimidating, but simultaneously, someone like him could be very pitiful. What was his purpose of living?


    The Tang troops set out, and once again the City of Wei regained its serenity.


    Without the istion of the array master, countless of flies were making a scary buzzing sound that sounded like windstorm lingered around Heaven and Earth. asionally, the gloomy clouds would cover the sky during the daytime, and there were hundreds of vultures emitting unpleasant noise as they flew around the scene under the clouds.


    Ning Que could not care less about those things. Even though he had never seen so many dead bodies and blood in his life, he had been through these miserable and terrifying situations for too many times, causing him to feel sick of them.


    He walked through the Wilderness filled with the scent of blood, lowered his head to observe the wild grass that had condensed into a mess by blood and the soil that had condensed into clumps of Earth. He contemted as he walked all the way to the Human Skull Mountain.


    Contemting while observing quietly was not a sign ofmenting but was to meticulously perceive the breath of the surroundings. The powerful blood sacrificing array of the Golden Tribe¡¯s national master gave him a hint that the force in the human world did not onlye from those alive but also from the deceased. He felt the urge to utilize these forces, but what should he do?


    The Wilderness that was immersed in the blood water had many footsteps on it. Pit-a-pat, each footprint umted a slight stain of blood, a strong fishy smell, an abundant of resentment, and formed a clear trace.


    Ning Que had walked in the wilderness for exactly three days, leaving behind many footsteps.


    If a person was sitting above the clouds while gazing down at the grasnd, then he could see a veryplex image. This image would have the City of Wei as the main focus, the Human Skull Mountain as the vulnerable spot, the Wilderness which was about 10 miles square as the backdrop, and his footprints as the lines. It wasplicated until it was hard to imagine.


    This image was a ratherplicated array, or in other words, it was an extremely big talisman.


    After that, he left the City of Wei and headed to Kaiping. This time he had a shorter time to observe discreetly, and he only walked for a day because he was getting more used to it. Next, he left for Qu city. He finished walking the whole Seven Strongholds and this resulted in the presence of a fairlyplex blood array in each part of the Seven Stronghold.


    If that person who was viewing the ground in the sky could fly higher up, he could possibly see the sevenplex blood arrays which appeared like seven ink dots could bebined to form a straight line.


    That line was very messy and random, it did not look like aplete stroke, but seemed more like the beginning of a stroke.


    The sevenplex arrays was merely the ink dots and the straight line formed from thebination of the seven arrays was only the beginning of a stroke. Then when this stroke waspleted, how long would it be? How magnificent would it be?


    Before Ning Que wrote this stroke, no one would ever know about it.


    ...


    ...


    After Ning Que hadpleted arranging these seven arrays, he went back to the City of Wei.


    The City of Wei was still in tranquility as there were only a big ck horse and a broken hand-drawn carriage awaiting his arrival.


    The big ck horse walked toward him, but it did not reveal the joy of reunion. It was because he could clearly sense Ning Que¡¯s exhaustion and perceive his real thoughts, thus it lowered its head.


    Ning Que stretched out his hand to gently caress its neck. It was not him thatforted it, but it was it thatforted him in such a way.


    Countless grasnders were killed, and their blood watered the grasnd. All the sins and evil deeds were for the sake of that stroke, and his greatest concern in the heart.


    That faint feeling of fear and anxiety was like a whip which was striking his body all the time, causing his soul to feel the pain deep inside, and increase his anxiousness.


    He was in a rush to leave the City of Wei to head for the south because he could not find her in the City of Wei.


    ¡°I can¡¯t find her... I think Abbey Dean, Eldest Brother, and the Drunkard have yet to find her, but I need to find her, so I would like to ask for your help.¡± Ning Que nced at the ck donkey in the broken hand-drawn carriage, requesting for help earnestly.


    The ck donkey went into silence for a moment, subconsciously using its front hoof to pull the grapes on the te. Regardless of how arrogant andzy it was, it knew very clearly about the importance of this problem: its previous owner died under her hand.


    A very unpleasant ¡°Hee-haw¡± transmitted through the Wilderness outside the City of Wei.


    Getting the promise from the ck donkey made Ning Que slightly more rxed. He turned over his body to ride on the big ck horse, and gently squeezed the horse¡¯s belly. A cheerful neighing sound was heard as it shed through Heaven and Earth.


    In the wilderness, a stroke of straight line emerged and directed toward the north side.


    Heaven and Earth was a piece of grasnd while he was a wild horse which never ceased to explore.


    ...


    ...


    Ifpared to the longsting war in the northern grasnd, the Central ins was also not peaceful as it was filled with smoke everywhere.


    Long Qing led the cavalry of the Divine Halls of West-Hill with the full cooperation of the Yan Kingdom. They were fighting North Battalion of Tang troops in the west direction and went deep into the wilderness to help the remnant force of the Golden Tribe Royal Court. They were strenuously withstanding the powerful attack of the Wild people.


    After the Divine Halls of West-Hill controlled South Jin fully, it ordered the armies of South Jin to separate into two groups. Zhao Nanhai led the cavalry of the Divine Halls of West-Hill and the vast and mighty soldiers of South Jin. They were nning and preparing to attack the Great River Kingdom on the other side of the country. The news spread like wildfire across the Great River. The old personnel of the Divine Hall of Judgement who were faithful to Ye Hongyu were carrying out a merciless and terrifying assassination at the border of the West-Hill Divine Kingdom and South Jin to slow down the progression of the allied forces toward the south direction.


    The real brutalbat did not happen in these wars, but it happened in many inconspicuous areas, for example, an unnoticeable small county, a run-out temple in a vige, a fishing vige by the sea and an iron ore mining area at Qinghe Prefecture, Fuchun River. Those ces had the most number of people died.


    It was due to the propagation of the New Stream as a result of poverty and anger. Therefore, it would certainly start off from these ces, even the brutal repression of the Divine Halls of West-Hill toward New Stream would be reasonable to carry out in these areas.


    After the death of Ye Su, the influence of New Stream was badly suppressed. However, it did not take too long for them to turn over a new leaf with the assistance provided by the Tang Kingdom in secret. It also made them feel as though they had risen from the ashes.


    Chen Pipi had left Chang¡¯an for a long time. He carried on the unfulfilled wish of his Eldest Brother to preach around. He executed the established policy with silence and determination and promised to overthrow the old Taoism way of ruling the world.


    The hidden chief disciples from all around the world epted the lead of Chen Pipi without hesitation. They honored the predecessor master, Ye Su as the man of god, and gave respect to Chen Pipi as the pope. They were starting tounch a full attack on the ancient world.


    The propagation of the New Stream in the human world was undergoing at full steam.


    The repression of the Divine Halls of West-Hill toward New Stream was as though the mountain and water. Even if the blessings from god was not granted, the invincibility shown would be dignified and scary.


    Part of the yamen building in a small county had been burned down. It was said that the aggressive believers of the New Stream had ignited the fire, but the fire behavior was a little weird. It had not been raining in the county town for a few days, and the air in the atmosphere had gotten dry. However, the fire did not spread out but instead had only damaged one secluded cabin, and the cabin had a pregnant female servant.


    During the trial, the county magistrate made the closing statement of the case with unbelievable efficiency. About ten believers of the New Stream were sent to the only Taoist temple in the county town. They were dragged to the fire judgement tform for their sentence in the presence of all the citizens in the county. After a while, they turned into burnt dead bodies. Everyone¡¯s eyes revealed a tinge of fear, perhaps no sense ofpassion but the feeling of fearfulness and wrath.


    Everyone noticed that the expression in the eyes of those believers of the New Stream was full of anger and hopelessness. They opened their mouth in the fire but did not speak a word! Many citizens knew about the rtionship between the county magistrate and the female servant and the uncle of the county magistrate¡¯s wife was a divine priest in the Taoist temple. That madam was filled with jealousy...


    In a fishing vige near the East Sea, in view of the same absurd reason, approximately 20 believers from the New Stream were wrapped to death, being tied to a heavy rock by those males who were faithful to their n leader and the attendant being summoned by the Divine Priest of Zhou City. Following the palpitations of the heart, those believers were thrown into the sea and became piteous souls with resentment.


    In front of a run-out temple in a small vige, the Divine Priest who hurt his forehead after being pushed by the big crowd against the wall the day before, stared at those raging citizens. His pale face was filled with the desire of killing, his eyes were upied with evil mes. He shouted with a loud voice, ¡°If you dare to not pay money, your aftermath will be like these people!¡±


    Seven cavalry of the Divine Halls of the West-Hill who were wearing their armor stood under the flight of stone steps at the Taoist temple with a straight face. They gazed at those citizens who were angry yet were not brave enough to rebuke with a disdainful look. In front of their horses had about ten dead bodies of the citizensid on the ground in a pool of blood.


    Comparing Qinghe Prefecture with those ces full of merciless ughtering, it was a lot more peaceful. Although there were many people here, especially those youngsters who were loyal to the Tang and the New Stream spread out quite fast in secret, it seemed very peaceful, at least on the surface. Or maybe it was because Hengmu Liren and his armies were here.


    This did not mean that Hengmu Liren was very merciful, but also not to say that the guts of the Qinghe Prefecture¡¯s citizens went down to drain in front of the hundreds of thousands of allied forces. It was because ughtering had begun earlier, and the flow of blood was too much. That was why it was peaceful at the moment.


    By the Fuchun River, the workers in the iron ore mining area who rebelled at first got killed the most. Many believers of the New Stream in Yangzhou City and the outskirts of the city were killed, to sum up, Hengmu Liren murdered many people.


    Both sides of the straight official road outside Yangzhou City in the north direction had initially nted many trees and now was the season betweente spring and early summer, thus there should be full of lush and green sceneries. However, that was not the case because almost every tree had a dead body of a rebellion being hung on a tree. The rotten smell had caused the green leaves to fall off; the scene was pretty dreadful to look at.


    Both sides of the Fuchun River were also shrouded in terror, a magnificent bridge was filled with dead bodies, blood and indescribable liquid leaked out from the stiff legs and flowed into the river and stream. They used to be pure and clean, and had supplied the people of Qinghe with water for countless years but now they had turned into blood river and stream. The odor was too unpleasant to breathe in.


    The picturesque and serene Qinghe Prefecture had be such a manner, and the Yangzhou city that used to be merry had vanished because people were afraid to talk to each other. If those nobles who were thinking about their ancient countries, and were desperate to leave the Tang Kingdom had seen these scenes, would they regret their decision?


    Even if they were to feel regret, they did not have any other choices.


    The Qinghe Prefecture hadpletely been controlled by the calvaries of the Divine Halls of the West-Hill and the armies of South Jin especially when Hengmu Liren presented to others his blood-like steel wrist and his unimaginable strong capability, no one dared to be unfaithful.


    A sacred sedan travelled slowly along the street in Yangzhou City and came before the calmke. Those who had seen the sacred sedan knelt down to show their respect for Haotian while those who were further from the street, closed their doors and windows at their fastest speed as though they were afraid someone could see them.


    Inside the heavy veil, Hengmu Liren looked calm andposed. His young and tender cheeks showed his innocence temperament. Even if he saw those dead bodies of the sinners with the wooden piles inserted into their bodies, he would still appear the same.


    He did not care about these brutal scenes because all these scenes were all created by him.


    He thought that since he was Haotian¡¯s son, then he would have the authority to reign over the world. Whoever had the audacity to rebel against his will should die.


    A gust of wind by theke swept in and drifted the veil.


    A faint scent of flowers got mixed up with a light blood odour, prating through the veil to reach his nose.


    He took a deep breath, showing his innocent and engrossed demeanor, which revealed his brutality.


    Maybe it was because the wind by theke was a bit cold or maybe because he inhaled too deep, causing him to suddenly cough. His fair face flushed in red, and made him looked rather unpleasant.


    ...

 Chapter 1071 - Back To The Verdant Canyon

    <h4>Chapter 1071: Back To The Verdant Canyon</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Hengmu Liren frowned. He recalled something and could no longer feel calm and cheerful. Instead, his face got distorted and he seemed extremely enraged, especially when he lowered his head and looked down.


    His divine gown was very loose so that he could easily see his own chest when looking down.


    Although he was the son of Haotian, he was after all a mortal in the human world. Therefore he had two nipples. But right now there seemed to be a third one, which was a ck chess piece.


    The ck chess piece was deeply imnted in his flesh which made him feel sick.


    ¡°I¡¯ll kill you all.¡± Hengmu Liren growled, ¡°I will kill you all for sure!¡± His young and sharp voice resounded above theke. The cavalrymen from the Divine Halls and a dozen of red-robed divine priests fell onto their knees in fear and did not dare to say a word.


    Hengmu Liren was indeed enraged. He thought he would have broken into Chang¡¯an, or at least arrived at Chang¡¯an by then. But actually he was ... still in Qinghe Prefecture! He had powerful subordinates, many cavalrymen from the Divine Halls and over a hundred thousands of troops. Yet he was blocked to the south of the Verdant Canyon... by the Tang people!


    The Verdant Canyon again. Just like many years ago.


    Hengmu Liren used to sigh over the fact that Jun Mo had lost one arm and could no longer defend the Verdant Canyon by himself. He had lost his chance to defeat Jun Mo at his full glory.


    At the same moment, Jun Mo was in the West Wilderness. The Eldest Brother was not here, nor was Yu Lian, Chen Pipi or Ning Que... However he was still blocked to the south of the Verdant Canyon!


    The troops from the Divine Halls of West-Hill fought against the Southern Battlefront Army of the Tang on the fields to the north of Qinghe Prefecture for dozens of days. There were ups and downs on both sides. Then Hengmu Liren himself joined the battle only to be ambushed by the Academy and got wounded!


    His previous sighs seemed like ps in his face now. Whenever Hengmu recalled this, he felt sharp pains on the face and could not help bing extremely enraged!


    ¡°A few nobodies at the level of Seethrough... how could you stop me?¡± Hengmu Liren kept looking down at the ck chess piece. His distorted face was enveloped in disgust and his teeth were grinding, which sounded chilling.


    He closed his eyes and took a deep breath again. Theyers of gauze around his sacred sedan danced violently in roaring wind while the air above theke waspletely inhaled into his chest.


    His chest raised slightly and the divine gown fluttered. But this time he did not cough.


    An unworldly power came to the human world and was charged into his body.


    Upon a low bang the ck chess piece imnted in his chest was smashed.


    He opened his eyes and looked toward the Verdant Canyon. There was nothing but distinctive killing intent in his eyes.


    His wound was healed. And those people were doomed.


    ...


    ...


    Ever since the Qinghe Prefecture defected, the Verdant Canyon had actually be the gateway of the Tang Empire and the Academy. Because to the south of the Verdant Canyon it all belonged to Taoism. They had to defend the Verdant Canyon no matter what.


    During the universal war against the Tang many years ago, the empire had activated the array they concealed in the Verdant Canyon for hundreds of years, and sacrificed Professor Huang He and the array masters from the imperial court. This led to the failure of their countless enemies and powerful cultivators. In the following years, Tang was rebuilding and restoring the channel through the Verdant Canyon.


    To block the Verdant Canyon was a simple way to keep their enemies outside the gateway. But the Tang people were nning to get out of the Verdant Canyon, defeat all the enemies and reim their territories.


    But when confronting the allied forces from the Divine Halls of West-Hill, especially Hengmu Liren, the Yulin Royal Guards and the Southern Battlefront Army was refrained from proceeding further south. They stationed deep inside the Verdant Canyon to defend the southern gateway of Tang. Making good use of the favorable location and long distance, they sessfully kept the powerful enemies outside the Verdant Canyon.


    The battle hadsted for dozens of days and exhausted the Tang troops. It became much quieter in the barracks deep inside the valley. Only in one particr barracks it was still noise at midnight.


    Some people were quarreling.


    ¡°I¡¯ve told you. In terms of ying chess, I¡¯m definitely number one in the world. Younger Brother, how could you beat me? But you just refuse to admit it. Don¡¯t you ever get bored after so many years?¡±


    ¡°Elder Brother, if it was something else I would definitely give up. But for this I will never surrender. Throughout the four hundred and ny two rounds we yed these years, I obviously have won one more round than you. How the hell am I inferior to you?¡±


    ¡°That was a triple K.O! How could that count?¡±


    ¡°ording to the rules I learned when I was a kid, that was definitely a loss. You lost that round for sure.¡±


    ¡°Pooh! You are inferior to me in chess anyway.¡±


    ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Because when Hengmu wandered into our chess array the other day, it was my ck pieces that hurt him! Not your white pieces!¡±


    ¡°If it was not because of my ingeniously ced white pieces, how could we have trapped him?¡±


    ¡°What about a few years ago? Don¡¯t forget that it was me who defeated Xiong Chumo!¡±


    ¡°Pooh! If it was not because of our Senior Sister you would be long dead!¡±


    In the dim barrack, Xu Jialun kept his head low and focused on decocting the herbal medicine, as if he never heard their conversation. He was too bored of their quarrelingtely.


    The Fifth Brother Song Qian from the Academy stared at the stubborn Eighth Brother and felt extremely angry. Yet unexpectedly there came two even more angry yelling from the side.


    Beigong Weiyang lifted his wrapped hand as if he was showcasing or demonstrating. He yelled, ¡°If it was not me who stopped those cavalrymen from the Divine Halls, your useless array would have been destroyed long ago, not to mention to trap Hengmu!¡±


    ¡°And how could you forget me...¡± Ximen Buhuo also raised his bandaged hand and reminded the rest. Then he turned to the Fifth and Eighth Brother and scorned, ¡°How can you forget it is my second time guarding at the Verdant Canyon? In terms of ranking and achievements, I am far ahead of you guys.¡±


    None of the rest agreed with him. He was so blunt that the others were immediately irritated and could not stop from questioning and cursing. Everyone was sputtering in the barracks.


    ¡°Come on, stop fighting and take the medicine first.¡± Wang Chi came and stopped them from talking nonsense.


    Themp light got brighter. It turned out that the four of them were all lying on the bed wrapped in bandages. It smelled bloody and herbal. They were obviously badly wounded and could no longer join the battle.


    Upon finishing the smelly herbal medicine that their Brother made, they calmed down and became quiet. After a long while Beigong asked all of a sudden, ¡°The Eleventh, can you try poisoning Hengmu?¡±


    There was another long pause.


    Wang Chi shook his head. ¡°I never heard that a great cultivator above the Five States could be poisoned.¡±


    Song Qian seemed indifferent about life and death.


    ¡°Hengmu is already above the Five States. If he was not too arrogant and got identally trapped by the four of us in the Verdant Canyon, no one would have stopped him.¡±


    It became very uninspiring. They had been proud and cheerful these days because someone above the Five States like Hengmu was defeated by them... However, he would recover soon. What could they do next?


    The situation was different now. Hengmu would never be trapped in the same array for twice. Who could ever defeat him again? If no how could Tang defend its gateway?


    Wang Chi whispered unexpectedly, ¡°It has been days... The troubles in the north should have been settled.¡±


    Ximen Buhuo frowned and said, ¡°It should be settled ording to the Senior Sister¡¯s n. But... how powerful is the Golden Tribe is? How could they finish them in such a short time? I do not have much hope in it.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s no longer my business.¡±


    Beigong Weiyang was annoyed and said, ¡°The four useless us, plus the flower fanatic Eleventh, how could we fight any longer?! If Ning Que is noting, there¡¯s nothing we could do.¡±


    Wang Chi felt offended and said, ¡°Bother, the Flower Fanatic is a woman. Mind your words.¡±


    Ximen Buhuo was also annoyed and said, ¡°How could we leave it all to the Youngest Brother?¡±


    Beigong Weiyang covered his head with the quilt and murmured, ¡°How I wish we could leave it to the Eldest, the Second Brother and the Senior Sister. But would theye? Anyway I could never defeat the damn Hengmu.¡±


    The light dimmed again upon his words.


    In the ambush inside the Verdant Canyon, the four students from the Academy had spared no efforts and made use of the array intent left by the previous masters. Despite the favorable situations they could only hurt Hengmu with minor wounds whereas they themselves were severely wounded.


    If Hengmu were not too arrogant, or if they did not have the favorable situations, they could have never hurt him the slightest. Whenever they recalled Hengmu¡¯s tremendous power when he broke through the array, they were stunned and awed. They could feel nothing but restlessness and anxiousness.


    Xu Jialun prepared a second round of herbal medicine and came to his bed. He slightly lifted the quilt. This former servant boy had be a handsome young man with fine features.


    Beigong Weiyang removed the quilt and seemed annoyed, ¡°What good would this medicine do?¡±


    ¡°Will it do any good if you don¡¯t take them?¡±


    Xu Jialun stared at him and said sincerely, ¡°The young master used to say, even if there is nothing you can do, you have to keep doing something. Because only by doing something you could find the solution. Otherwise there would be no hope.¡±


    It became quiet again in the room. The depressed or even desperate conversation was instantly revived by his words.


    Wang Chi helped Beigong Weiyang to sit up. He took the bowl and toasted the medicine. Song Qian and the other three toasted it too.


    They had to recover soon. Even if they could not defeat Hengmu, as long as they could fight, they should at least help exhausting him.


    ...


    ...


    Upon dawn, the mist dispelled and the morning glow shone over the Verdant Canyon.


    A horse came from the north. The clops sounded distinctive in the silent valley.


    The Tang soldiers on night shift peeped from the seemingly shabby but very firm arrow mounds. They did not prepare to shoot because they saw clearly that it wasing from the north.


    The horse was ck, so was the person¡¯s clothes. It was Ning Que and his big ck horse. Ning Que¡¯s ck uniform of the Academy was dust-stained. The big ck horse already got rid of the fat it put on while living in the Great Swamp. It looked strong and firm but somewhat exhausted.


    He and his big ck horse never took a decent rest along on the thousands of miles from Wei to the Verdant Canyon. They never slept a whole night but only took a nap and had some porridge when passing by Yang Erxi¡¯s home.


    Throughout these years, the Academy was no longer the mystical ce to connect the human world and the world beyond. Via the publicity of the imperial court as well as descriptions by people like Beigong, the Tang people were already very familiar with Ning Que, his weapons and his horse. Upon seeing the distinctive big ck horse and the iron arrows and de he carried, they immediately realized who he was and the words were instantly spread.


    Along the lush valley, more Tang soldiers stood up from the hidden barracks and arrow mounds. They stared at Ning Que. Some were merely awaken and kept rubbing their eyes and yawning.


    Mr. Thirteen finally arrived.


    Along the steep cliffs the Tang soldiers¡¯ conversation turned into hail. Tens of thousands of Yulin Royal Guards and the Southern Battlefront Army hurrahed sincerely. Some even shouted to greet him.


    Ning Que looked above along the valleys and waved to greet back. Then the hail became deafening and soared into the morning sky, as if it would overturn Haotian¡¯s Divine Kingdom.


    They finally came to the entrance of the Verdant Canyon.


    Ning Que lifted the rein to stop the big ck horse.


    The Verdant Canyon narrowed into a small path of a few meters wide. Standing inside the canyon people could see the fertile fields in the northern part of Qinghe Prefecture through the entrance. It was already dark green in early spring.


    There were traces of the previous and recent wars in and outside the canyon. Dark blood stains, broken arrows and intensive scratches on the rocks depicted how brutal the wars were.


    This was the gateway of the Tang. In the previous war as well as the current battle, it had been a decisive battlefield right inside the Verdant Canyon. The results of the wars decided the fate of Chang¡¯an.


    Ning Que had been in and out of the Verdant Canyon for many times. Today he came again. He stood inside the canyon while staring at the outside, pondering on something. Before he noticed Wang Jinglue came to his side and looked together to the south. He seemed extremely solemn and did not bother to hide the killing intent in his eyes.


    ¡°We have to kill Hengmu.¡±


    Ning Que paused and then answered, ¡°Definitely.¡±


    Since he was expelled from Chang¡¯an by Master Yan Se, Wang Jinglue joined Xu Shi¡¯s army and got a lot thinner. Now he was even more skinny like a dead tree, which surprised Ning Que.


    ¡°You are already above Knowing Destiny. What happened to you?¡±


    Wang Jinglue recalled the night of ughtering in Qinghe Prefecture and thought of the courageous young men he gathered from the ns. They were thrown onto the ground, smashed like unripe fruits falling off the trees. He looked pale and said, ¡°Grief brings maturity, as well as fear.¡±


    Ning Que turned to him and asked, ¡°Are you scared?¡±


    ¡°Indeed.¡± Wang Jinglue said after a pause, ¡°You never confronted Hengmu and have no idea how powerful he could be. I know. Therefore I¡¯m scared.¡±


    Ning Que turned to look toward the south again and said smilingly, ¡°And you still hope that I can kill him?¡±

 Chapter 1072 - Heading To Yangzhou (Part 1)

    <h4>Chapter 1072: Heading To Yangzhou (Part 1)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Wang Jinglue said, ¡°Despite the fact that he is extremely powerful, I can help you to locate him. Just like what we have discussed, you have to make a few more attempts if you fail to kill him during the first shot.¡±


    Ning Que shook his head as he said, ¡°You will kill yourself.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m not afraid of dying. I should have lost my life when Master Yan Se drew the ¡®Well¡¯ Talisman when I was in Chang¡¯an. I should¡¯ve died when Xiong Chumo killed General Xu Shi years ago. That night when the entire Qinghe Prefecture was painted with fresh blood, I... have already died.¡±


    Wang Jinglue gazed at the South as he said, ¡°I don¡¯t mind to die again and again as long as I can kill him.¡±


    Ning Que paused briefly before he replied, ¡°He¡¯s not worth it.¡±


    Then, he dismounted and released the big ck horse from the rein and let it rest freely. He followed behind Wang Jinglue and headed toward the military base that was located at the side of the canyon opening.


    The moment he entered the military base, he was swamped with an anguished wail before he was able to greet the five elder brothers.


    With his trembling fingers, Beigong Weiyang pointed at Ning Que. Howling out of sadness and rage, he parted his quivering lips and said, ¡°What took you so long?! What took you so long to reach here?!¡±


    One¡¯s sorrow was only genuine when one lost his voice after crying. To be able to speak clearly with barely any tear on his cheek, it was obvious that he was faking his tears. Annoyed, Ning Que responded, ¡°I almost cracked my buttock to try to reach here as soon as possible. Is that not quick enough for you?¡±


    Despite being exposed, Beigong Weiyang did not feel embarrassed at all. Instead, he condemned Ning Que furiously, ¡°You people, who are good at battle, spend all your time loitering around the north and the west. Then, you left this area, the most important one, to us, the schrs. You are so shameless! I don¡¯t care. We were sabotaged and you have to avenge our loss.¡±


    Ning Que looked at the four elder brothers who were lying on the bed, badly injured. He said helplessly, ¡°How can I revenge you?¡±


    Before Beigong could reply, Song Qian, the fifth brother, spoke in a cold tone, ¡°Of course you have to kill him!¡±


    Subconsciously, Ning Que threw a glimpse at Wang Jinglue before he asked out of confusion, ¡°The war summary that I received says that Elder brother won the battle and sessfully took down Hengmu. Why do you sound as though you were wrecked instead?¡±


    Frustrated, Beigong Weiyang said, ¡°You were the one who designed the array and the scheme together with Senior Sister. How can you not know about the details? That is the exact reason why we failed to kill him and were crashed terribly. We have brought shame to our Academy and that is an absolute loss. Youngest Brother, you have to help us to reim our dignity.¡±


    Ning Que received a bowl of ginseng soup from Wang Chi and finished all of it at once. Immediately, he felt as though his energy had recovered profoundly. Then, he took over the hot tower from Xu Jialun and wiped his face with it before he looked at the group and asked, ¡°Before this, Wang Jinglue swore to kill him. And, now, Elder Brother expressed your wish to kill him too. Without question, he will be killed. But, why is everyone dwelling on this issue? You told me to kill him. Yet, you repeatedly emphasize that it is difficult to kill him. What is your true objective?¡±


    Beigong Weiyang praised Ning Que, ¡°Despite the fact that you rhymed it poorly, your sentences rhyme nheless.¡±


    Ning Que disregarded him and tossed the towel back at Xu Jialun as he said, ¡°You¡¯re ttering the enemy and depleting our own morale. What do you want exactly? Can you be more straightforward?¡±


    As Song Qian was the eldest among them, everyone turned to look at him in synchrony.


    He said sternly, ¡°I¡¯m emphasizing this, hoping that you can be cautious. Hengmu is too powerful. Maybe, it¡¯s better for us to defend temporarily for now... Verdant Canyon can act as a natural shield for us. Equipped with our arrays and poisons, we should be able to stay safe until elder brother¡¯s arrival.¡±


    Abruptly, an important question shed across his mind, ¡°Where is Elder Sister?¡±


    ¡°She is mildly injured and needs to rest for a period of time,¡± Ning Que answered. ¡°Regarding your n to defend... I disagree. It is against our initial arrangement and I am certain that Elder Sister will not agree with your suggestion either.¡±


    ¡°Despite the strength of the Golden Tribe Royal Court, Elder Sister was hurt... I would have sympathized with you if she came alongside you. You¡¯ll be free to make your decision to attack Yangzhou. But now, I will not concur with you.¡±


    ¡°Why not? Nheless, we are heading south.¡±


    Laughing, Beigong Weiyang apuded as he saw that Ning Que had no intention to amend his n. Beigong Weiyang then said, ¡°I foresaw that Youngest Brother would not agree with our decision. No matter what, we will have to figure out how to kill Hengmu.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°I¡¯ve never disagreed with this.¡±


    Song Qian responded, ¡°The concern now is the way to kill him... In my opinion, the best and most feasible method now is to utilize the Thirteen Primordial Arrows and take Wang Jinglue as the bait.¡±


    With a grin on his face, Wang Jinglue took a step forward.


    Song Qian stood up with the help of Wang Chi and walked toward Ning Que. He said, ¡°If Wang Jinglue fails to do it, the four of us will take over and use our arrays to force the state out of him.¡±


    Ning Que paused for a long while before he finally spoke, ¡°For a very long time, you have been talking about how powerful Hengmu is. Is that your n to convince me to ept your arrangement?¡±


    Song Qian was brazen like everyone else from the Back Hill of the Academy. He remained a straight face as he said, ¡°Hengmu has always been a strong dude. And our arrangement is considerably good.¡±


    Realizing that the atmosphere had turned rather depressing, Beigong Weiyang made anotherpliment, ¡°Now, you rhymed it well.¡±


    Ning Que spoke without any contemtion, ¡°I beg to differ.¡±


    Song Qian exchanged gazes with his brothers before he heaved a sigh and said, ¡°We¡¯ve scripted this entire drama because we were worried that you might disapprove with our n. Why can¡¯t you be thoughtful for us?¡±


    Ning Que gave Beigong Weiyang, who was about to speak, a re before he said, ¡°Don¡¯t bother me with the rhymes. I don¡¯t agree with your decision to defend, not to mention to sacrifice your lives in exchange for Hengmu¡¯s life.¡±


    He looked at Wang Jinglue and said, ¡°Just like what I¡¯ve told you just now, he¡¯s not worth it.¡±


    The audience remained silent as the n they made with strenuous effort was ack of sess and they had now run out of options. Concerned, Song Qian asked, ¡°So, how can we take Hengmu¡¯s life?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°How to take one¡¯s life? Of course we have to kill him.¡±


    His words sounded like nonsense. In fact, it was nonsense. However, nonsense made the best sense in this world. For instance, the best way to love a person was to love the person...


    ¡°He has surpassed the Five States.¡± Song Qian recalled the great force that came from nowhere when he was in the array that day. His expression turned sombre as he looked at Ning Que and said, ¡°I know about your proficient battle skills. But, how do you want topensate for the difference between the states?¡±


    ¡°Abbey Dean has acquired serenity. For the past thousand years, the only people who are stronger than him are teacher and uncle. But, if Eldest Brother and Senior Sister were to work together, they will certainly be able topete with him. And, I can use wreck him using Chang¡¯an.¡±


    ¡°Back then, Lian Sheng continuously lingered outside the gate of the Five States and the state was unpredictable as usual. Shanshan, Ye Hongyu, and I were respectively at the superior stage of See-Through, initial stage of See-Through, and initial stage of Knowing Destiny. Yet, we sessfully broke free from his trap and burned him into ashes.¡±


    ¡°The cultivator was wrecked by amon person. An expert was crushedpletely by an amateur. I was able to turn Long Qing into a fool solely by using an arrow, and not to forget, our teacher who is still fighting with Haotian at Divine Kingdom at this moment.¡±


    ¡°Battle is relevant, yet, also irrelevant to the state. Is it necessary topensate the difference between the states? I don¡¯t think so. I reckon Hengmu, too, shares the same opinion as me.¡± Ning Que spoke out his testimony without a pause. He appearedposed as he stood by his statement firmly. Seeing that his elder brothers did not respond, he turned and left the military base.


    Song Qian and the rest of the group remained quiet as they stared at Ning Que¡¯s back as he walked away. They shook his head after Ning Que had exited the military base. Beigong Weiyang scanned the group and said in a serious tone, ¡°Youngest Brother... He seems strange today. He used to always act before he speak. He has never borated his exnation like today.¡±


    Song Qian answered in a low tone, ¡°Youngest Brother was trying to exin the situation, not only to us, but also to himself. It seems like he¡¯s not exactly confident to face Hengmu too.¡±


    The atmosphere of the military base turned quiet after Song Qian finished his words. For a very long time, none of them said a word.


    ...


    Wang Jinglue left the room alongside Ning Que and walked toward the tent of the middle troops. After half a mile, Wang Jinglue could not hold back his question any longer and he asked, ¡°Do you not have any confidence?¡±


    He shared simr thoughts as all the elder brothers of the Academy who were inside the military base. Ning Que would not have given an borated exnation if he is confident in defeating Hengmu. He might not have anything to hide, but he definitely has his concerns.


    Startled, Ning Que froze in his tracks, turned and looked at Wang Jinglue, ¡°What about my confidence?¡±


    After a brief pause, Wang Jinglue replied, ¡°Your confidence in defeating Hengmu.¡±


    Ning Que inconspicuously raised his eyebrows as he pondered on Wang Jinglue¡¯s words. After a while, he finally understood the meaning of Wang Jinglue¡¯s words. He forced a grin and said, ¡°I was directing my words to our brothers. I don¡¯t want them to act foolishly with you.¡±


    Wang Jinglue replied, ¡°Our sacrifices are not foolish.¡±


    Ning Que rebuked, ¡°Unnecessary sacrifices are foolish.¡±


    Wang Jinglue questioned, ¡°Then, what is your n to win against Hengmu?¡±


    Ning Que answered, ¡°I will win the victory once I kill him.¡±


    He gave another pointless answer just like what he said in the military base. His reply to the question of how to defeat Hengmu remained the same, boring yet somehow correct answer.


    However, Wang Jinglue was not convinced. He stared right into Ning Que¡¯s eyes and asked persistently, ¡°How are you going to kill him?¡±


    Ning Que chuckled as he replied with another question, ¡°Do you want to know?¡±


    Appearing determined, Wang Jinglue nodded.


    Ning Que turned and headed toward the tent of the Southern Battlefront Army¡¯s middle troops. His answer echoed across the Verdant Canyon, ¡°You¡¯ll find out after I kill him.¡±


    ...


    Song Qian, the brothers of the Academy, and Wang Jinglue were not the only one who were resolute with their ns, even the generals of Southern Battlefront Army and Yulin Royal Guards strongly believed that reasonable sacrifices, apanied by the use of the Thirteen Primordial Arrows, were the best way to win against Hengmu. However, Ning Que had a different opinion. He continued to stand firmly by his dissent despite the dispute between him and the others.


    He was the Youngest Brother in the Academy and not the first in sequence. However, he was, in fact, the leader of the Academy at the moment. Both the imperial court of Great Tang and the people listened to him as well. Therefore, his decision was very powerful and potent. In spite of the different judgements of Song Qian and the generals of the Tang troops, everyone had to act ording to his order.


    When dawn broke on the next day, the Tang troops left the Verdant Canyon and headed south. Before long, they arrived at the field with fertile soil that was located at the north of Qinghe Prefecture.


    This was the first time that the Tang troops had set their feet here after the rebellion of the cliques of Qinghe Prefecture. The military g fluttered in the wind under the beautiful morning light and formed a picturesque scene.


    As Ning Que personally sent the news of the destruction of the Golden Tribe Royal Court to the generals, the news had quickly spread among the soldiers. Their long-time enemy at the north had turned into ashes overnight and their morale was markedly boosted. As they gazed into the terrain before them, which used to be their enemy¡¯s colony, they were filled with aplomb.


    Even the generals and cultivators, who were threatened by Hengmu, felt at peace at this moment. They were not amused by the beauty of the legendary scenery before them but were thrilled to be part of this picturesque scene. The Tang had finally reimed the things that were once belonged to them. Leaving the Verdant Canyon was the first step of their process. However, they had to make sure to stay unyielding.


    There were a total of forty thousand cavalry from Southern Battlefront Army and Yulin Royal Guards. Together with a huge number of experienced private soldiers, they left the Verdant Canyon as an enormous team. They passed by the paddy field and headed south. Throughout their journey, they did not meet any challenge. The armed rebels from the clique, who were hiding at the viges, were easily removed by the Tang troops. The rebels of the clique hardly dyed the Tang troops¡¯s journey, not to mention, impeded the troops¡¯ journey to the south.


    Whatid before the eyes of the hundred thousand of Tang troops was a lovely cottage surrounded by a big yard. Beside the cottage was a stream, that was well known for being beautiful, flowing underneath a small bridge. They quietly and joyfully enjoyed the scenic view before them. But, their peacefulness did notst for long.


    There were dead bodies everyone.


    The huge number of hanged men ruined the supposedly serene atmosphere. A few thousand bodies were hung on the branches of the trees that were located beside the bridge or at the gate of the yard. Some of the bodies had dposed while some of the dead men were ring angrily with their widened eyes. The used-to-be quiet southern cottage of the Great Tang had turned into a broad expanse of graveyard.


    The views along the hundreds of miles of journey from Verdant Canyon to Yangzhou City was agonizing to watch. The Tang troops passed by one after another towns. Their joy waspletely gone as their expression turned graver and graver while they hastened their pace.


    They knew clearly that the hanged bodies at the Qinghe Prefecture were definitely their peers. Indeed, Qinghe Prefecture hadmenced their rebellion against the Great Tang many years ago. However, there were still many people, especially the young ones, who were loyal to Chang¡¯an. As long as one stayed faithful to the Great Tang, one would always be part of the Tang¡¯spatriots.


    The Tang troops continued their journey south quietly. They did not release the hanged bodies from the rope. Besides, there was no unnecessary attention and mourning for the bodies. The troops knew that the only way to grieve the dead men was to arrive at Yangzhou City as soon as possible and eject the armies of the Divine Halls of West-Hill and the South Jin Kingdom out of this ce.


    The Tang troops arrived at Yangzhou City as another day broke. Uncountable military gs waved as the wind blew. The war horse squealed while the soldiers sitting on horseback shed their weapons. The ancient city was now overwhelmed by terrifying bloodthirstiness.


    It was mayhem inside the Yangzhou City. The leaders of the cliques and the Divine Halls of West-Hill were promptly notified when the Tang troops departed from Verdant Canyon. However, they did not expect the troops to arrive in such a short period of time!


    Yangzhou was a big city. It was one of the fivergest cities in the entire Tang. It was a very difficult task to ambush the city. The Tang troops did not attack the city merely based on their impulse. The generals of Southern Battlefront Army and the Yulin Royal Guards calmed their soldiers down and ordered the soldiers to pitch tents at the gentle slope that was located ten miles north from the city. The sound of ramming echoed across the atmosphere.


    As one of the soldiers was plunging the pole into the earth, he heard a sound emanated from afar. He lifted his head and looked toward the origin of the sound, only to see the city gate of Yangzhou was gradually being opened. Cavalrymen, dressed in ck, swarmed out of the gate.

 Chapter 1073 - Heading for Yangzhou (II)

    <h4>Chapter 1073: Heading for Yangzhou (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    After a brief bustle, the Tang army immediately calmed down and started to set up. From poles to the tents, the barracks were quickly finished. Everyone from soldiers to officers was aware that the allied forces of Taoism came out of the city only to defend, rather than having the guts to raid the Tang army before they set up.


    The Tang army was confident enough but no less vignt. They received information from inside Yangzhou that the Divine Halls of West-Hill had sent a lot more divine priests to the allied forces. The powerful figures from the Tianshu Institute and the array masters in the Tang army could probably withstand the divine skills of those divine priests. But who could take Hengmu Liren?


    The legendary young Great Divine Priest from the West-Hill already recovered from the wounds a few days ago. A super powerful figure like him could be vital to a war. If no one could handle him, then he would kill the cultivators in the Tang army one after another with the assistance of the cavalrymen of the Divine Halls of West-Hill. Once he killed all the array masters and talisman masters, how could the Tang army defeat the cavalrymen from the Divine Halls?


    The Tang army was at their gate today. Yet the leaders of the cliques and the generals of South Jin on top of the city walls were still acting calmly and arranging their troops systematically. Because they knew clearly that as long as Hengmu Liren was there, the allied forces would never be defeated and the City of Yangzhou would never be captured. Then why should they worry?


    In front of themander¡¯s barrack of Tang, a few dozen cavalrymen stood on the meadow and stared at the City of Yangzhou. In fact they were all looking at Ning Que. The vital factor in this battle was the confrontation of him and Hengmu.


    No one was confident that Ning Que could kill Hengmu Liren. Despite the fact that he was Mr. Thirteen from the Academy and extremely well respected by the Tang army and people, his enemy was after all Hengmu Liren, the son of Haotian.


    People could only hope that Ning Que would defeat or at least slow down Hengmu Liren, and prevent him from rewriting the result of this battle.


    Ning Que seemed to be immune to people¡¯s attention. He stared at the City of Yangzhou silently, looking around the fields outside the city, the roads among the fields, and the lush trees along the roads. Perhaps because that Hengmu Liren did not want their vision to be blocked, the bodies of the young followers of New Stream and Tang sentenced by the Divine Halls of West-Hill were not showcased on the fields. But due to the wars and extinction, farmers no longer cultivate and the fields were almost barren.


    There were no young crops but only weeds and wildflowers on the fields. Ning Que was not sure whether it waste spring or early summer. But he suddenly recalled some poem upon seeing the wildness and blossoms on the misted fields.


    ¡°Take a journey to Yangzhou in the misty and flowery March,¡± he crooned.


    Song Qian and the rest were severely wounded by Hengmu Liren and had to stay inside the Verdant Canyon. No medicine could help them recover instantly. Therefore Wang Chi was the only one who coulde to the battlefield with Ning Que today.


    Wang Chi shook his head and corrected him, ¡°It¡¯s already in May with the full blossoms.¡±


    Ning Que remembered that when he left Chang¡¯an it was still snowing. How time flew! He sighed. ¡°I could barely pay any attention to the trivial.¡±


    Time seemed to be an important factor. But he had to take a journey to the North Wilderness,e to the Qinghe Prefecture, kill so many powerful enemies and make various difficult decisions, which all seemed to be more important than worrying about time.


    ¡°Eleventh Brother, I will go first,¡± Ning Que said to Wang Chi.


    Wang Chi felt worried and said, ¡°If you cannot take him, don¡¯t be too hard on yourself.¡±


    Ning Que smiled and lifted the rein tounch the big ck horse. It hoofed forward, crushed the weeds and wildflowers, and proceeded toward the City of Yanghzou.


    Along their way dozens of arrows were shot at them from now and then.


    The big ck horse looked at the enemies on top of the city walls and felt disappointed. It was not challenging at all. Ning Que did not even dodge but simply watched the arrows fell on the fields in front of them.


    Seeing the big ck horse and the man wearing a ck suit of the Academy, someone finally realized who he was and yelled in panic.


    ¡°Ning Que!¡±


    ¡°Mr. Thirteen!¡±


    ¡°The Academy!¡±


    Upon recognizing Ning Que, people in the City of Yangzhou went into an uproar. They were running and moving the shields around which created deafening sounds. The proud red-robed divine priests turned pale instantly. They waved their arms and screamed, ¡°Inform the Great Divine Priest right away!¡±


    Bai Haixin was killed outside the Verdant Canyon many years ago. The current chiefmander of the South Jin troops was Dong Wei, his younger brother-inw. Dong Wei had always been calm and confident. But now he was already hiding behind threeyers of shields. He stared at Ning Que and his iron bow and could not help from trembling. His voice was also trembling when he said, ¡°Please excuse us for a while, Mr. Thirteen! The Great Divine Priest himself ising!¡±


    Nowadays the entire human world was aware of Ning Que¡¯s power and how terrifying he could be. While the Tang people were aware of the mighty Hengmu Liren, Ning Que was equally threatening and terrifying to the enemies of Tang. Fortunately for Dong Wei and the red-robed divine priests the iron bow as still ced on his shoulder. Otherwise they would have already been numbed.


    Even if they could still speak, they were not calling for a battle. They could only say, ¡°Please excuse us for a while, Mr. Thirteen! The Great Divine Priest himself ising!¡± For people in the current human world, the peerless figures like Ning Que and Hengmu were no difference with immortals. As the immortals were destined to fight today, why should these insignificant human beings seek for their own destruction?


    ...


    ...


    The news of Ning Queing to Yangzhou was delivered to Hengmu Liren as instantly as possible. The young man smiled sincerely and said in relief, ¡°Finally.¡±


    A divine priest were delivering thetest military information from the Divine Halls of West-Hill, that the Golden Tribe Royal Court was defeated and Ning Que stopped tens of thousands of cavalrymen with a single arrow shot outside Wei. His voice was trembling when he begged the Great Divine Priest to take his enemy seriously.


    Hengmu Lirenughed innocently, ruthlessly and satisfyingly, and said, ¡°So what? He is after all an ordinary human being. While I am the real Divine Son.¡±


    Indeed, he regarded himself as the real Divine Son in the West-Hill. Long Qing was never his match. He would have killed Long Qing and imed the title if Long Qing had not been so quiet and staying so low.


    ¡°Ning Que, I¡¯ming to you out there,¡± Hengmu Liren looked toward the north and said slowly. His young voice formed a beam and darted out of the countlessyers of gauzes around the sedan, pierced through the air for a dozen miles and pped above the fields outside the city like spring thunder.


    Bang!


    Many soldiers on the city walls of Yangzhou were almost knocked down by the thunder. They managed to stand still with great efforts and became excited upon realizing what had happened.


    Their Great Divine Priest¡¯s voice were like heavenly manifesto and he was far above any level of human cultivation. No matter how powerful Mr. Thirteen from the Academy was, how could he defeat their Great Divine Priest?


    Ning Que slightly lowered his head and looked at the wild flowers on the field. He seemed calm. The big ck horse also kept his head low and chewed on a wild flower. But it spat the flower immediately due to the ugly taste. Both of them seemed never heard the series of spring thunder.


    ¡°Coming to see me out here?¡± He raised his head and stared at the City of Yangzhou, then said, ¡°I own this ce. And I am the one to decide how we should meet.¡± He did not deliberately apply Haoran Qi and said it naturally. It was not earth-shaking like Hengmu Liren¡¯s words. But he knew that Hengmu would hear him.


    Upon saying so he took out a handful of pills and gave them to the big ck horse. The big ck horse did not dare to disobey and swallowed them immediately with efforts. Then it lowered its head and chewed on some fresh grass with dewdrops so as to cover the choky taste.


    Those pills were Wang Chi¡¯s special design. It was very effective yet tasted terrible.


    Ning Que took another handful of pills himself while looking at the countless cavalrymen of the Divine Hall of West-Hill and the South Jin that stationed around the City of Yangzhou. He stroked the big ck horse¡¯s mane and said, ¡°You belong to the Southern Battlefront Army. It was me who chose you at the Academy and led you out of the ranch or the Military Ministry. You are after all a warhorse.¡±


    The big ck horse nodded slightly in consent.


    He said further, ¡°You¡¯ve been to many ces with me and defeated many enemies. However we were never in a real battle. I used to be a cavalryman and you used to be a warhorse. Isn¡¯t that a pity for us?¡±


    The big ck horse wanted to say it was actually not a pity for it. But it dared not. While the pills were taking effect inside its body, it felt its blood temperature raising and became eager for a charge.


    Was that called burning blood?


    It recalled thest time when it had such a feeling and impulse. It was many years ago in the racing event of the Left Royal Court in the Wilderness when it saw that coquettish and charming white mare who was wanting a mate.


    The big ck horse started panting heavily and rapidly, and snorting with burning breath.


    Ning Que took down the iron bow and casually pull it to the full, aiming at the City of Yangzhou.


    Countless people on top and down by the city walls were observing his every single movement. At least half of them were staring at the iron bow previously ced on his shoulder.


    When he pulled the iron bow and targeted at the City of Yangzhou, they could not help screaming in panic and went into another uproar.


    The leaders of the cliques and the generals of the allied forces were fully aware of the horrifying power of the Thirteen Primordial Arrows. They were the most vignt and worried, therefore the first to react. Upon a whoosh, they crouched together with their heads under their arms, as if they were some wild grass blown in a sudden wind, apparently not strong grass.


    Despite the fact that they were merely being pointed at, the cavalrymen in front of the city gate could not help feeling that they were falling into the bottomless hell of death. Some whipped their horses as hard as they could, while others did nothing and let their horses run toward the sides. A path was made immediately.


    There was nothing between Ning Que¡¯s arrow and the city gate of Yangzhou, not even a single barrier.


    He let go of the bowstring. But he just shot an ordinary arrow instead of the Thirteen Primordial Arrows.


    Upon a swoosh the arrow was shot at the newly established city gate of Yangzhou. The gate was very thick. Even if the arrow was inserted half a meter into the gate, it could still not pierce through.


    When everyone thought that the arrow was about to stop, it started shaking violently and created frightening buzzing noise when the nock vibrated in the air.


    The arrow was deeply inserted into the thick and heavy gate. Upon the high frequency vibration the part of the gate around the arrow became loose and started cracking.


    And when the arrow started vibrating on the city gate, Ning Que also moved.


    A deafening neigh pierced through the tranquil sky outside Yangzhou.


    Instead of standing up on its rear legs, the big ck horse kept its head low and stepped its rear hooves heavily onto the soft ground, and created some mud rain and blinding dust.


    The mud rain and dust blocked the view of the Tang army. When the dust settled and they could see the fields clearly again, the big ck horse was already hundreds of meters away!


    To dash out hundreds of meters within a blink ¡ª what a horrifying speed! Everyone was stunned by the straight line of dust on the fields and the bolt-like big ck horse.


    They were getting closer to the City of Yanghzou.


    Amander of the cavalrymen from the Divine Halls of West-Hill eximed and tried to stop them with his talisman saber.


    Ning Que did not even take a nce at him, nor did the big ck horse.


    The exim became scream instantly when themander of the cavalryman was thrown into the air. Blood spurted from his neck under the armor and created a blood rain.


    The City of Yangzhou was even closer.


    A swordsman from the South Jin wanted to pull out his sword and prepared for a sneak attack. Although he was not from the Sword Garret he had learnt some of their skills and knew that he had to attack from nearby. Therefore he held tighter onto his sword.


    He wanted to stab the sword at its full strength.


    The big ck horse knocked into him before he could even stab because the big ck horse was too fast for him to predict and calcte, unimaginably faster than his sword.


    To attack from nearby?


    His sword was pushed back by the big ck horse when he was about to pull it out. Blood sshed when the body of this swordsman from the South Jin was chopped into halves, by his own sword!


    Along with roaring dust the big ck horse charged into the ten thousands of cavalrymen.


    It was resolute and fearless because its blood was burning. But of course he would have not been so resolute without the pills.


    Along with the straight line of dust, a ck bolt shed over the fields. Alongside the straight line of dust, countless people were thrown into the air.


    In a series of bangs, their strong armors were distorted. In a series of rumbles, their des were broken.


    The City of Yangzhou was right there.


    The cavalrymen of the allied forces finally took their most effective defending position. Countless spears were pointed forward with the poisoning tips shone chillingly under the sun.


    Ning Que stared at the vibrating arrow on the city wall and said, ¡°Up.¡±


    The big ck horse leaped a few miles into the air in a clear neigh!


    Time almost ceased at that moment.


    Sitting on his horse, Ning Que punched onto the nock of the arrow.


    Countless cracks were formed on the thick city gate like spider webs.


    The city gate copsed in ttering.


    The big ck horsended deftly like a swallow.


    The horrible spears were already way behind it.


    Instead of slowing down, it kept darting forward like a ck spirit.


    They entered the City of Yangzhou.

 Chapter 1074 - A Wisp Of Haoran Qi

    <h4>Chapter 1074: A Wisp Of Haoran Qi</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The many pairs of eyes stared at the big ck horse as it bolted toward the enemy¡¯s camp before it finally sted into Yangzhou. The audiences included the Tang troops, noblemen of the city clique, the dead men of the Fuchun River, and the hanged men on the trees beside the bridge. Their widened eyes were filled with grudges when they passed on. Now, they finally were able to shut their eyes in peace after they saw Ning Que¡¯s presence.


    There was a straight long street behind the city gate of Yangzhou. The big ck horse dashed toward the south along the street and went miles away in a blink of an eye. The clip-clop of horseshoes gradually diminished. That was Ning Que¡¯s answer to the dead men.


    At the street that was located thousands of miles away, a gigantic sacred sedan stopped in the middle of the street. The curtain fluttered in the warm wind of the spring. The face of the young Great Divine Priest, who was sitting inside the sedan, was vaguely shown through the window. He wore an innocent yet ferocious smile on his calm face.


    ¡°I think your unstoppable impulsiveness embarrasses the Academy,¡± Hengmu Liren spoke as he looked at Ning Que.


    Ning Que unmounted from his horse. With no reply, he reached out for the handle of the knife at the back of his shoulder as he walked toward the sacred sedan.


    He was standing thousands of meters away from the sacred sedan and it would take him a thousand small and slow steps to reach the sacred sedan.


    ¡°ording to your battle style, you will not allow your opponent a long time to prepare. Why are you taking a thousand steps now? Are you trying to spare yourself some time? Seemingly, you have foreseen the development of the battle.¡±


    Hengmu Liren shed a satisfied grin as he said, ¡°Your easy win against A Da in the wild was within everyone¡¯s expectation because a Fu Master like you were born undefeatable. Moreover, you are backed by your Academy. Together with both the evil devil and the heretic outcast, you¡¯re one of the strongest men among the cultivators now. Unfortunately... none of these work on me.¡±


    Ning Que had taken ten steps forward as Hengmu Liren spoke.


    Hengmu Liren¡¯s grin gradually wore off as he stared at Ning Que who was slowly approaching him. A hint of evilness shed across his youthful eyes as he said coldly, ¡°Fu Masters from the same state cannotpete against each other? Fu Masters from the Five States are born undefeatable? That means nothing to me. You know clearly that I¡¯ve long surpassed the Five States. How are you going to defeat me?¡±


    Ning Que remained silent as he walked forward quietly with his fist gripped around the handle of the knife. Ning Que¡¯s silence did not put Hengmu Liren at ease. Instead, his expression grew grimmer than before. He gently leaned his body forward before he slowly positioned his body upright. He said sternly, ¡°Of course I acknowledge your power. Regardless of the result of today¡¯s fight, this battle will leave a great impact to the entire human world, just like the Battle of Verdant Canyon. This will definitely be noted in the history. Therefore, I appreciate your presence today.¡±


    Hengmu Liren had the opportunity to showcase his power when he waspeting against Ning Que, who was considerably strong.


    Despite his expression of gratitude, his tone was filled with absolute conceit. However, Ning Que had a different opinion. Ning Que did not see any simrity between their fight at the street of Yangzhou today and the Battle of Verdant Canyon. Ning Que might have barely caught up with his Second Brother¡¯s then standard. But, Hengmu¡¯s ability was nowhere close to Liu Bai.


    Hengmu Liren was Haotian¡¯s gift to the human world. He even thought that he was the biological son of Haotian. But, that was merely a meaningless statement. Liu Bai was the only and the strongest one to have the courage to attack Haotian. He was the real strong one.


    Hengmu Liren was slightly annoyed by Ning Que¡¯s prolonged silence. A hint of furiousness beamed from his solemn deep eyes. In Hengmu¡¯s opinion, Ning Que should reciprocate and appreciate Hengmu¡¯s presence as well. Hengmu felt insulted by Ning Que¡¯s persistent wordlessness.


    ¡°Are you confident in winning this battle?¡± he scoffed as he looked at Ning Que.


    ¡°No. I¡¯m not confident.¡± Finally, Ning Que had spoken. He gazed into the sacred sedan and said calmly, ¡°Even when my opponent is a baby who has no cultivation, I will nevermence a battle with absolute confidence. Only people like Ye Hongyu and I can understand this mentality. Therefore, you will never be able to defeat people like us.¡±


    After a brief silence, Hengmu Liren replied, ¡°Were you... born to fight?¡±


    Ning Que was yet a thousand miles away from the sacred sedan. He gently loosened his hand around the handle of the knife before he abruptly made another tenacious grip.


    Hengmu Liren raised his head and stared at Ning Que¡¯s face with his deep and tranquil eyes that were beaming with the divine me. He said, ¡°Then, do people like you know what you¡¯re fighting for?¡±


    Ning Que gently lifted his brows. He had no intentions to reply because his words would be meaningless at this point.


    Hengmu Liren slowly stood up. His body, that was dressed in green, was exposed as the curtains around the sacred sedan fluttered. He was surrounded by a powerful yet quiet aura.


    A sound came from afar echoed throughout the entire Yangzhou City. The robust voice was filled with certainty.


    ¡°I¡¯m Haotian¡¯s son. I am deeply in love with the human world. I fight for the human world and I fight for Haotian. Therefore, I will acquire the eternal triumph!¡±


    Ning Que suddenly released the knife in his hand after he heard Hengmu¡¯s words. He rolled up the sleeves of his ck uniform as he said, ¡°This is a coincidence that I don¡¯t like. But, I have to admit that I¡¯ve been fighting for her too.¡±


    He had arrived before the sacred sedan as he finished his sentence.


    An abrupt wind swirled by and agitated the curtains. The curtains were torn into pieces. Before the pieces could form a spiral in the wind, Ning Que had intruded the sedan and stood right before Hengmu Liren.


    At this moment, the tiles that were covering the street broke into pieces. The wind blew and the dust on the ground whirled in eddies of wind. With his inconceivable power and speed, he let loose a full-blown eruption of ferocity.


    Ning Que stared at Hengmu Liren.


    In fact, this was his first meeting with Hengmu Liren other than their previous and only meeting via Steel Arrow. It was only natural for them to forgo the greeting. Before he even had the chance to take a clear look at the face of this young man, he threw a punch directly at Hengmu.


    His punch was as tough as the Min Mountain. He could even crack the sky with his punch. Thus, no matter how strong Hengmu Liren was, he would eventually have to admit his utter defeat.


    A startled expression painted over Hengmu Liren¡¯s youthful face as he saw the punch that wasing at him. He always thought that Ning Que was a strong enemy. Yet, he did not expect him to act so speedily and mercilessly.


    Indeed, Ning Que intended to be the first to attack. He wished to use his many experiences in battle to overpower this Taoist boy who owned a powerful state but knew nothing about battle.


    He was able to maneuver his attack perfectly after he had opted his fist over the knife. That was the reason why he could attack with astonishing speed and terminated all the other possibilities in that battle.


    Ning Que believed that Hengmu Liren would eventually be able to counter with an attack. However, there was absolutely no way for him to summon Tianqi and he would not be able to defend himself from Ning Que¡¯s fist, which was really as big as a ypot.


    A loud bang echoed across the streets of Yangzhou City. It was much more terrifying than Hengmu Liren¡¯s menacing words from before. Resembling arrows, the broken pieces of the curtains around the sacred sedan were shot toward every direction.


    Hengmu Liren lowered his head to look at his chest with a contemptuous grin on his face. A thinyer of tranquil light was beaming around his entire body. He opened his arms wide as he looked into the sky.


    Ning Que¡¯s punch failed to knock him down. In fact, Ning Que¡¯s fist had note in contact with his body at all. That thinyer of tranquil light gradually settled down and formed an indestructible armour that was shielding his body and blocking all the forces that was acting at him!


    The two unalloyed Haotian¡¯s divine mes were burning on his palms! A powerful beam of force came from the vault of heaven and was continuously infusing into this body. That was Tianqi!


    Ning Que did not expect that his prolonged silent prelude, the knife and his subsequent fierce attack with ultimate speed and the strongest punch would be sessfully blocked by Hengmu Liren.


    He did not foresee that Hengmu Liren would be able to summon Tianqi within such a short period of time.


    He had fought with the elites of Tianqi State, and had also heard of Sangsang¡¯s narration of Wei Guangming¡¯s Tianqi right before he passed away. This was the moment he realized that Hengmu Liren¡¯s speed of summoning Tianqi had surpassed Wei Guangming and Xiong Chumo. He could almost catch up with Abbey Dean of Chang¡¯an City back in those days. Ning Que had no idea what state was this.


    Hengmu Liren raised his head and looked at Ning Que with a half smile. It was as though he was staring at a dead clown.


    There was a very high bar set for the Five States. The inside and the outside of the Five States were twopletely different worlds. Tianqi was the most superior stage of the Five States. When Ning Que was yet stuck at the bottom of the Five States, Hengmu had already achieved Tianqi. How could Ning Que defeat Hengmu?


    ¡°Maybe, you should try to use that talisman.¡± Hengmu Liren continued to look at Ning Que with the half smile while he hinted Ning Que with his gaze. Ning Que had once wrote that inconceivably difficult talisman in Chang¡¯an. However, it was impossible for him to recreate the talisman in Yangzhou City as hisrades, the patriots of the Tang who were willing to fight alongside him, had all been killed and hung on the trees and the bridge.


    Ning Que had made a thorough preparation for this battle. So had Hengmu Liren. At this moment, the sorrowful song of cicadas faintly rang from the end of the street. Hengmu Liren responded with a subtle quiver.


    Ning Que remainedposed as he knew that Elder Sister was not here. Those were the real cicadas that were chanting their wee upon the arrival of their queen. He knew that he had to be one to defeat Hengmu Liren.


    Back then, he borrowed the entire Chang¡¯an to make the talisman and sessfully defeated the Abbey Dean. During the Rite to Light at Peach Mountain, he was able to handicap Xiong Chumo after he adopted Sangsang¡¯s power.


    Now, he was no longer at Chang¡¯an City. Meanwhile, Sangsang¡¯s whereabouts remained a secret. He did not know whether she had arrived at the Divine Kingdom or had resided at a secret ce in the human world. Nheless, she was not by his side. Thus, he had no idea how to win over Hengmu, the elite of Tianqi State.


    In fact, it had only been a short while.


    Ning Que¡¯s fist was still stuck at the chest of Hengmu Liren. Abruptly, Ning Que loosened his fist andid out his palm just like what Hengmu Liren did. This was not Peach Mountain and the great force of Haotian did not infuse info his core. Out of nowhere, a pellucid drop of liquid appeared in the center of his palm.


    The ssy liquid appeared gluey and viscous. As the wind blew, the droplet evaporated and turned into gas. It turned into a wisp of Haoran Qi. The Haoran Qi began to ze angrily in his palm and released immense light and heat. It looked almost simr to the Haotian¡¯s divine me that was ring on the palm of Hengmu Liren.


    The scene was considerably eerie.


    A p echoed as Ning Que pped Hengmu Liren¡¯s chest with the back of his hand. However, it was different this time. The thinyer of tranquil light, that was coating Hengmu Liren¡¯s body, seemed to have mistaken Haoran Qi as the divine me and showed no revolt against the Haoran Qi.


    The burning Haoran Qi had sessfully prated Hengmu¡¯s core.


    How to defeat the elite of Tianqi State? Master Yan Se divided the space and hindered the infusion of the great force of Haotian into the summoner. Yu Lian, on the other hand, divided the world and absorbed the opponent into his own world. That could impede themunication between the opponent and Haotian. However, Ning Que was not capable to do either of these. He had no choice but toe up with another method.


    During his seclusion in the cave in order topletely take over Youngest Uncle¡¯s job, he had been pondering on the same question. If Haoran Qi and Haotian¡¯s divine me shared so many simrities, could they be the exact same thing if the factors of religion and divinity were omitted? Tianqi was generated by Haotian¡¯s divine power. Therefore, the summoner¡¯s capacity to receive Tianqi must be limited. If someone was to contribute more divine power into the summoner, would the summoner be able to withstand the massive force?


    This was Ning Que¡¯s n.


    As Hengmu Liren summoned Tianqi, his core was filled with great force from Haotian¡¯s divine me. Ning Que could not halt this process, but he could exacerbate the situation by contributing more power into his body. He believed that the divine me that he inserted into Hengmu Liren¡¯s body had passed the threshold and was able to cause damage to his body.


    A wisp of Haoran Qi? That was the result from years of diligent cultivation. It might appear to be a mere wisp. Yet, that cost almost everything.


    Ning Que¡¯s face turned pale abruptly after the gentle p on Hengmu Liren¡¯s chest. His cheeks seemed to have sunken in no time. That was a solid proof of the significant amount of power he had lost within seconds.


    In the meantime, Hengmu Liren¡¯s face turned pale as well. However, the paleness did not make him look weak. Instead, the paleness brought a hint of holiness to his aura. His bloodshot eyes made a distinctive contrast to his jade-like face. His ck and tranquil pupils were filled with sacredness, yet, carried a subtle clue of agony.


    The process did notst long.


    As the dust on the street whirled, the Qi of Heaven and Earth, that had extended from the sky above Yangzhou City to a distance away, was disrupted. The floating clouds were messily broken into pieces. The sacred sedan could no longer stand still and was instantly turned into ashes.


    It was as though the horrifying typhoon from the east sea of the Song Kingdom had attacked this world all of sudden. The world was covered by darkness as anguished shrieking and crying echoed across the ce. The surrounding buildings turned into ruins in a millisecond!


    The typhoon gradually subsided.


    Hengmu Liren stood still at the same spot. His gown was badly torn and heat was released from the slits on the gown. His respiratory tract was suffering from extreme dryness. He was very close to passing out, but he seeded in keeping himself conscious.


    ¡°Foolish humans.¡± He looked at Ning Que with an icy expression as he said with despise, ¡°Was this your n to kill me? The divine me is abination of Haotian¡¯s power and determination. Its strength is inconceivable and boundless. How are you going to break the limit if it¡¯s boundless?¡±


    He attacked Ning Que with a punch after he finished his sentence. His fist was burning of Haotian¡¯s divine me, emitting a blinding ray in the dark environment.


    A loud thud resonated across the atmosphere. Ning Que was thrown away and the impact destroyed half of the residences on the street. Then, the dead silence resumed. Hengmu Liren recalled his fist. He was very much satisfied with his ability as he looked at the divine me on his fist.


    A rustling sound arouse from another end of the street. Someone was trying to move the wooden pirs and stones away.


    Hengmu Liren squinted his eyes as he stared from afar. He was startled and puzzled at the same time.


    Covered in blood, Ning Que stood up from the ruin. An uncertain number of bones in his body were broken. There was a frightful wound on his chest that was caused by Hengmu¡¯s punch and his heart was vaguely visible.


    Having to suffer from such a severe injury, a normal person would have already died.


    Under this circumstance, even strong determination could not help one to stand up.


    Surprisingly, Ning Que was standing steadily. His expression remained unchanged.


    ¡°Seemingly, the method I learned from the book is not working.¡± He wiped off the blood on his face and looked at Hengmu Liren, who was standing at the other end of the street, and said, ¡°Then, I shall try out the new method I¡¯ve just learned. It might or might not be useful.¡±

 Chapter 1075 - The Jolly Dashing Wind Through Thousand Miles

    <h4>Chapter 1075: The Jolly Dashing Wind Through Thousand Miles</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Hengmu Liren¡¯s punch carried the massive power of Haotian. It pounded on Ning Que yet failed to kill him. He could not understand why. Ning Que was covered in blood and gashes were all over his body. Even his heart was apparently wounded. But he could still stand upright. Why?


    The big ck horse ran to Ning Que, lowered its head by his right hand and ced his arm over its neck to help him stand still. Ning Que stroked on its mane and assured that he was fine.


    ¡°I forgot the sequence of Lian Sheng¡¯s words. Whether it was to practice Buddhism before Devil¡¯s Doctrine or the other way round, they meant the same. Only the unbreakable vajra could stay away from the dust.¡± Ning Que wiped off the blood stain on his Academy suit, looked at Hengmu Liren and said, ¡°You seem to know me well. But you have no idea about what I have been cultivating on for the longest time.¡±


    He first learned talisman, then Haoran Qi, followed by Lian Sheng¡¯s Dark Techniques, and eventually Buddhism in Lanke Temple.


    But in fact the longest time he spent was on Buddhism. It was the time inside the Buddha¡¯s chessboard rather than in the real world. Inside the chessboard, he practiced Buddhism for a thousand years until the mountain-sized Buddha statue looked like Sangsang. And he was with Sangsang throughout the thousand years.


    Sangsang had always been inside his body, engraved on his heart. His body and soul had be divine to some extent. In other words he had reached the zenith of both Buddhism and Devil¡¯s Doctrine at the same time.


    The thousand years inside the Buddha¡¯s chessboard were the least he would like to recall. Even the Eldest Brother was barely aware of anything happened there, not to mention the rest of the world. Taoism treated him as their biggest enemy and tried to know everything about him. But even they did not know that apart from his well-known skills, he had also practiced Buddhism.


    Hengmu Liren did not know either. Therefore he could not understand Ning Quo¡¯s words. But he sensed the danger subconsciously and his jet ck pupils shone in extreme vignce.


    For a powerful figure like him, when his psyche was disturbed the heaven and earth echoed. Storm was formed again inside the City of Yangzhou. The clouds swirled in the sky while the Qi of Heaven and Earth was turned into a mess.


    Hengmu Liren rode on the wind and came to Ning Que instantly. His right fist was ming and created a stream of fire like a meteorite darting toward Ning Que¡¯s face.


    The end of spring was also the beginning of summer. Despite those dead bodies lying on the bridges and hanging on the trees, the scenery in and outside Yangzhou was very delightful. The grass was growing and wild flowers blooming in the mist.


    The big ck horse identally caught a tiny yellow flower in his mane when they ran through the fields and across the city. The flower shivered in the wind.


    Ning Que was stroking on its mane and picked up the tiny yellow flower with his right hand. He held the tiny yellow flower and reached out to the storm and the ming fist. The tiny yellow flower was blown backward but not broken from its delicate stem. A bout ofpassionate energy was spread out from the petals.


    Hengmu Liren¡¯s fist was slowed down and could never reach Ning Que.


    Instead of bing a Buddha himself, Ning Que formed a Dharmakaya. An indistinctive statue of Buddha appeared behind him. But it was not a statue with a broad forehead and long ears. Instead, it looked like a plump woman. It was neither the Buddha nor the atha. It was Sangsang. This was his achievement of the thousand years of cultivation of Buddhism.


    Hengmu Liren imed that he was fighting for Haotian. Ning Que said that too. But he had been fighting for her for so many years that it was her turn to fight for him now.


    Hengmu Liren¡¯s fist was still zing in Haotian¡¯s Divine me. It was dazzling and his cheeks seemed pale under the brightness. And his eyes were filled with restlessness, anger and unwillingness.


    Tianqi was Haotian¡¯s bestowal. How could he hurt Haotian with the power she bestowed him? That would be sphemy.


    ¡°So what? Without the power of faith how could you call for the real Haotian!¡±


    Hengmu Liren yelled at him. His voice was like a series of spring thunder that exploded in and outside Yangzhou. He applied his ultimate level and continued to bomb onto the tiny flower in Ning Que¡¯s hand.


    His figure turned extremely lofty all of a sudden.


    His hair was disheveled, and his body was steaming in white mist. He seemed like an ancient divine figure if it was not for his anger.


    ¡°She is not Haotian! She¡¯s just a Buddha statue in your heart! The Buddha was the most hypocritical and just pretended to bepassionate! The Chief Monk of Scripture could not even hurt Jun Mo but was defeated by him. Even if you could be a buddha, you could never take me down!¡±


    The divine Hengmu Liren looked ruthlessly down toward him.


    Ning Que was bleeding all over. The Buddha statue of Sangsang stood silently behind him and lookedpassionately toward the street. They did not know whether she was looking at Hengmu or Ning Que.


    Hengmu was right. Without the power of faith, Ning Que could not have the real Sangsang here no matter how hard he had practiced on Buddhism. He could barely keep himself safe, not to mention to hurt Hengmu.


    Yangzhou was not Chang¡¯an. All those who were loyal to Tang and the Academy, or who wanted to help Ning Que were all killed by Hengmu. The rest were silenced in awe. Therefore Ning Que could never write a Talisman like he did in Chang¡¯an, nor could he gather the power of faith.


    ¡°We do not like to call it faith in the Academy.¡±


    The glorious Buddha statue was confronting the divine Hengmu on the street. Ning Que and his tiny yellow flower seemed so insignificant. But he was still very calm.


    ¡°We¡¯d like to call it belief.¡± Upon those words he let go of the yellow flower in the wind.


    In the meanwhile the Dharmakaya disappeared in the wind and the Buddha¡¯s glory was charged into this body.


    He held on the hilt of this iron cuss.


    Endless dim, indistinct energy came from everywhere in and outside Yangzhou, flowed toward him silently and charged into his body bit by bit.


    Hengmu Liren turned ghastly pale and spoke to himself puzzled, ¡°How could this happen?¡±


    The energy was just what he thought Ning Que could never gather from the City of Yangzhou. It was the power of faith, or in Ning Que¡¯s words, the power of belief.


    Even if the Buddha was present, how could he have collected the belief from the dead?


    Ning Que raised his iron cuss and hacked at Hengmu Liren. The Buddha would never kill, but he would.


    The iron cuss fell down carrying the resentment of countless people killed in the Qinghe Prefecture. Therefore it was not a simple strike.


    Wind roared. The Buddha¡¯s glory and the Divine mes shone against each other and smashed each other into pieces.


    Hengmu Liren howled like thundering. He was burning his life in Haotian¡¯s Divine me in order to withstand the de.


    Ning Que had no idea about faith when he wrote the two talismans in Chang¡¯an with the Core Vajra of the Array many years ago. He was passively epting the fearless faith of the people in Chang¡¯an at that time.


    Whereas today he had acquired a profound understanding of faith. Therefore even if he could not write the mighty talisman with the support of Chang¡¯an, he could gather no less strength with the help of Buddhism and make tens of thousands of strikes.


    Hengmu Liren might be able to withstand his de. But he could never take tens of thousands of strikes.


    Dust prevailed on the street. Horrifying tearing sounds were constantly heard together with Hengmu Liren¡¯s terrified, desperate, outrageous and unreconciled howls.


    It was in an instant. Or in a split second ording to Buddhism.


    Hengmu Liren was only able to take three thousand seven hundred and eighty-two strikes from Ning Que.


    Out of the thirteen thousand seven hundred and eighty-two strikes he had made.


    Therefore the cuss was hacked ten thousand times on Hengmu Liren¡¯s body.


    The dust gradually settled.


    The former divine Hengmu Liren was hacked into an ordinary human being. He was covered in blood with his head lowered. His eyebrows were no longer dashing and his energy was drained. He seemed to have turned back to the lowest ranking manservant in the Revtion Institute two years ago.


    Ning Que whizzed his de back into the sheath.


    Hengmu Liren¡¯s broken Taoist heart was further fragmented upon the sound. Blood spurted from his mouth. And his jade-like internal organs gushed from the wounds on his chest and belly.


    He looked down at the horrible gashes and felt lost.


    In the next moment the crystal beads of Haoran Qi that Ning Que pounded previously into his body exploded from the ten thousands of gashes, whistled chillingly, sshed along the street and darted afar.


    The storm swirled the reeds in the Great Swamp, scared the birds outside Linkang, spread to the West-Hill Divine Kingdom, and finally ceased among the Divine Halls on Peach Mountain.


    Ning Que stood in the chilling wind. He looked indifferent and tired instead of relieved. He paid no attention to Hengmu Liren and sat down with his legs crossed to reset his breath. The big ck horse stood by him on guard.


    Hundreds of cavalrymen from the divine halls were encircling the street. Yet they did not dare toe any closer.


    ¡°I can¡¯t understand why,¡± Hengmu Liren murmured with his head down. He sounded extremely painful.


    ¡°You are indeed powerful and well-prepared. You knew the iron arrows were not my best weapons. You tried to destroy my ultimate weapon despite the cost. That was why you¡¯ve killed so many people.¡± Ning Que said, ¡°But what you don¡¯t know is that I¡¯ve already practiced Buddhism. Furthermore I¡¯ve realized another fact when I was in the Wilderness: dead or alive, every human being counts. You were seeking your own destruction while killing those people.¡±


    ¡°No wonder.¡± Hengmu Liren raised his head and said to him with a bitter smile, ¡°So you¡¯ve prepared well for killing me. That¡¯s somewhatforting.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You overestimated yourself.¡±


    Upon saying that he stood up and mounted onto the big ck horse. Looking around he could see the brooks and bridges, misty blossoms and charming scenes, old trees and faint crows. Everything was there in this miserable world, except for her.


    Hengmu Liren stared at his back and yelled desperately, ¡°Until now can¡¯t you just acknowledge that I¡¯m different? I¡¯m Haotian¡¯s son! How could I be the same as everyone else you¡¯ve killed?¡±


    Ning Que turned to take a nce at him and said, ¡°You said you were her son. But I don¡¯t recall we ever had a son like you. What do you want me to acknowledge?¡±


    The big ck horse darted again in roaring dust toward the south of Yangzhou.


    Hengmu Liren looked hard at his fading figure, felt disappointed yet finally understood why. Then he died.


    In the blossomy May, Ning Que killed one more.


    The Tang army upied the City of Yangzhou.


    ...

 Chapter 1076 - Crossing The Great Swamp, Seeing The River

    <h4>Chapter 1076: Crossing The Great Swamp, Seeing The River</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The great ck horse galloped onto the street, leaving a cloud of dust while no one dared to stop it. A dozen miles out of the city, a glimmer of haze can be seen with the winding from theke. The Great Swamp was near, but the great ck horse did not slow down. Its four hooves continued to step on the grass and the stones, and finally leapt high on the shore. After a few moments, itnded on a South Jin naval warship a few feet away.


    Sshing sounds could be heard continually. Seeing therge horse, the South Jin sailors jumped into theke out of fear, ignoring the cold of theke in the early summer.


    The people who could handle the ship were gone. How can such arge naval warship move forward on theke? The iling South Jin sailors and some onlookers from far looked at the great ck horse on the deck. The depths of their horrified eyes were also filled with anticipation of what is to happen.


    Ning Que came down from the horse and reached out to the bag beside the saddle for a few yellowish paper talismans. He then casually pasted them on both sides of the deck. By flicking his fingers, the talismans gradually faded, like being burned but also like being melted away by the winds of theke. A somewhat weak but very stablesting charm immediately shrouded the entire ship. The Qi of the Heaven and Earth surrounding theke were summoned to blow the sail. With a slight nudge, the hull began to move.


    More than ten thousand South Jin soldiers and sailors were shocked at that sight. They did not expect that there was someone in the world that could really start such a heavy ship alone. The next moment, they began to guess wildly on how Ning Que is going to control the draft and direction of the ship. In short, their emotions were wildly conflicted.


    Ning Que paid no attention to the depth of the warship draft. The Great Swamp was so deep that if he were to avoid the reeds and sandbanks that could be seen by the naked eye, he would basically have no problem. As for the course, he only needed the ship to go in the general direction of south. He did not mind, as the whole south was South Jin.


    In Chang¡¯an, he had already prepared the talismans to summon the Qi of Heaven and Earth. The warship was sailing at its top speed. The heavy sails iled unstably, shaken by the wind. Fortunately, there was no leakage on the ship. Boarding at the south of Qinghe Prefecture, going through the Great Swamp and finally arriving at the southern shore only took him half a day.


    Although South Jin was affected too, it was still the second strongest country in the Central ins after Tang. The government and the military responded quickly to his arrival. Numerous cavalry gathered around the dock called Taizhi County. There were a hundred more cultivators hidden in the woods on either side of the road, ready to attack onmand.


    Ning Que knew clearly what was waiting for him, but he did not intend to hide his trace. He continued riding on the great ck horse to the south expressionless. Strangely, no one attacked him. Because of his name and the iron bow on his shoulder, the cavalry and the cultivators of South Jin did not dare to make any moves. The fact that they could only watch him move forward demotivated themselves.


    A hundred miles to the south, a mountain that looked like a defiant and proud ancient sword could be seen faintly. It was once the holynd of cultivation: the South Jin Sword Garret. Looking at the garret, thinking of the proud swordsmen who were once his enemies, andter,panions, Ning Que reached out his hand to stop the great ck horse. After a moment of silence, he looked at the watchful and uneasy South Jin cavalry and cultivators around him and said, ¡°I will stay here for some time.¡±


    When the snow fell, he jumped down from Chang¡¯an City, and disappeared from the world. Few people knew that he secretly sneaked into the North Battalion, and nned to destroy the Golden Tribe with General Xu Chi and Fourth Brother. When he, the Academy and the Tang army finally defeated the Golden Tribe in the City of Wei, he stayed for a few days to write the talismans. After that, he was constantly on the move. To the southern border of Tang, out of the Verdant Canyon, killing Hengmu and onward to Dingqing River in Yangzhou. Counting carefully, he has been killing people along ten thousand miles for over one hundred days without sleeping. His spirit and body has been exhausted to the extreme, but something seemed to be urging him to speed up the pace, as if he was racing with someone.


    Today in the South Jin territory, in a ce far away from the garret, he suddenly stopped and told everyone in the world he would stay here for a period of time. That was very surprising.


    The cavalry and the cultivators of South Jin felt conflicted while they looked at him on the ck horse. Looking at his pale face and his haggard appearance, they started to think silently, Is he finally tired? The legendary Mr. Thirteen from the Academy, the demonic one who was rumored to kill for pleasure, was finally tired of killing after taking so many lives?


    Anything thatsted for too long, or happened too frequently would eventually make people sick. The only people who were not sick of it were Ning Que and Sangsang, and also Jing Tingshan.


    The temperature in the south was rtively higher, and the heat on the fields and hills on both sides of the river was scorching. Even the Divine Halls Alliance and the Great River Kingdom Army, which had been facing each other for so long, were extremely tired to the extent where even the remains of theirrades who had died on the battlefield could hardly arouse their zeal and desire to fight anymore.


    A slender and slightly curved sword was carefully wiped with a piece of white silk. The blood and water left by the enemy in the early morning were wiped clean. The de reflected the green mountains behind beautifully.


    Cat Girl wiped the sword quietly. That charming happy-go-lucky girl had be a wife. She then became the calmest or rather, the most cold-blooded swordswoman on the battlefield. In a terrible ce like the battlefield, in addition to making people sick and tired, it could easily refine, or change people.


    Zhuo Zhihua stood behind her, looking at the Divine Army a few miles outside, and frowned slightly. She didn¡¯t understand why the Great Divine Priest of South Sea would set up the troops with their backs to their river. Even if he was fishing in the South Sea all year long with no military experience, the Divine Halls had many other military officers.


    The light reflected by the sword pierced her eyes. She could not help squinting as she looked at Cat Girl with a little pity. The man who was newly married by Cat Girl died in the raid by the Divine Halls aces more ten days ago, turning her from a bride to a widow. Although the girl exuded calmness, everyone could see her hidden pain and anger.


    The guardian of the Great River Kingdom had changed from the Sage of Calligraphy to a queen and the women of the ck Ink Garden wearing swords in their waists would always be the symbol of courage and virtue in this country. In this tragic war, the disciples of ck Ink Garden always rushed to the most arduous and fiercest battles. Without their support, the Divine Halls of West Hill would have sessfully broken through the line of defense to the Great River Kingdom.


    Of course, the main reason why these women could fight so confidently was the two great chariots sitting side by side, just ten feet behind him.


    A king¡¯s chariot covered in snow white veil and a divine chariot in a blood-red veil. In the king¡¯s chariot was, of course, the Queen of the Great River Kingdom, Mo Shanshan. While in the divine chariot sat the Great Divine Priest of Judgement, Ye Hongyu.


    There was also a chariot on the hills of the Great River south bank. It belonged to Zhao Nanhai. The seat of the Divine Halls of West-Hill Great Divine Priest had been vacant for a long time. Many people thought that Zhao Nanhai, who was deeply trusted by the abbey dean would take over the position. However, the war came so fast that the handover ceremony was not held in time. Hence, Zhao Nanhai could only lead the army with the false title of the Great Divine Priest.


    Zhuo Zhihua was very puzzled as to why the Divine Army would deploy facing away from the river. Zhao Nanhai, the Great Divine Priest did not seem afraid to show his terrible military decisions to the entire southern continent. In fact, the fisherman¡¯s performance on the battlefield was shrewd. Some time ago, he seeded in dragging the army of the Great River Kingdom into a trap. If there were not more than a hundred Divine Halls Cavalry loyal to Ye Hongyu suddenly rebelling on the battlefield, the Great River Kingdom would have received disastrous damage.


    The news of the two battles in the City of Wei and Yangzhou had not reached here yet, but the role of the true aces in the war had be more obvious, even gradually bing an indisputable fact.


    If the Great River Kingdom wanted to survive under the frightening pressure of the Divine Halls Alliance, then they must kill Zhao Nanhai somehow, or at least to threaten him and shift his focus away from the battlefield.


    Thinking of that, Zhuo Zhihua turned back and looked at the two chariots. The queen cannot enter the battle lightly, but how about the one in the red chariot? The divine chariot beside the king¡¯s chariot was as bloody as it was in that year. The Great Divine Priest of Judgement was still a priest even if she wasn¡¯t on Peach Mountain. Even the Hierarch could not deprive her of her status. Her temperament would never ever change. ording to her usual style, she would have thought about killing Zhao Nanhai long ago. But why has she been only sitting in the chariot for so many days?


    ¡°Great Divine Priest of Judgement has yet to act, it seems that she has guessed something...¡±


    In the hills beside the Great River, before the divine chariot which was heavily guarded by the Divine Halls Cavalry, Zhao Nanhai put his hands together behind him and looked at the two chariots in the military camp of the Great River in the distance. He frowned a little and said, ¡°If she has already guessed what I am thinking, so might have Ning Que. They are simr after all.¡±


    The Great River was dangerous, and his situation was crucial too from the very beginning. With Ye Hongyu¡¯s crazy fighting abilities, and the Queen of the Great River who was an expert in Fu Tao, if the other side really fought with their lives, then he would most likely die in this angry yellow river.


    So he deployed the Divine Halls Alliance with their backs facing the water. While it seemed desperate, it also seemed to be a result after judging the situation, to invite Ye Hongyu and Mo Shanshan to kill himself. But that was not the case.


    The Great Divine Priest of South Sea who bore the responsibility of the Divine Halls campaign to the south looked as thin and dark as in the past, silent, like the Yellow River flowing under the hills behind him, his need not words to show his thunder.


    He seldom talked to himself. At that time, he was not talking to himself, but to someone else. ¡°Ning Que didn¡¯t go further south. It seems that he really guessed something.¡±


    There was a dull voice in the divine chariot and the river wind stirred the veil. A curtain of light could be faintly seen, behind which was a figure. It belonged to the Hierarch of the Divine Halls of West-Hill, Xiong Chumo.

 Chapter 1077 - Small Town, Butcher’s Shop And The Knife

    <h4>Chapter 1077: Small Town, Butcher¡¯s Shop And The Knife</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    A middle-aged priest was sitting inside the sedan. He wore an ordinary Taoist gown, appeared to be an ordinary person and looked nothing special. Hence no one knew who he really was.


    Among the allied forces of the Divine Halls of West-Hill, there were over a hundred red-robed divine priests secretly sent from Peach Mountain. The most powerful forces in Taoism had assembled here, rather than inside the Divine Halls on Peach Mountain.


    Such a horrifying allied forces were not just stationed here for Ye Hongyu and Mo Shanshan. They were also expecting Ning Que. Upon receiving the news of the Golden Tribe being defeated and A Da and the national master being killed, Taoism had started the preparation.


    They also heard that Ning Que killed Hengmu in the Qinghe Prefecture a few days ago. This news stunned even the most powerful ones from the Divine Halls of West-Hill for a long while.


    Ning Que traveled tens of thousands of miles non-stop to kill these people one after another. He should be arriving here not long after they heard the news. Therefore the Hierarch, Zhao Nanhai and the middle-aged priest started preparing for a final battle silently.


    Even if Ye Hongyu, Mo Shanshan and Ning Que had some tacit understanding, the Divine Halls of West-Hill still believed that they could kill them in one battle. Because they had been preparing for a long while.


    However unexpectedly Ye Hongyu did note, nor did Ning Que. If it was Ye Hongyu¡¯s sharp sense of battle that stopped her froming, how about Ning Que? Where did he go?


    Ning Que went nowhere.


    Just like what the told the soldiers and people of South Jin when he were looking out at the Sword Garret, he stayed in South Jin for a long while, of course not for sightseeing, but for killing. He killed a lot.


    Whoever surrendered would survive. Those who would not, would die. It was not to surrender themselves to the Tang, but to the people from the former Sword Garret. That was what Ning Que told everyone in the South Jin.


    When the Divine Halls of West-Hill was expecting him toe to the south for a battle, he stayed in the second most powerful kingdom in the world. He made his im, and showcased his ruthlessness.


    He killed people in Panshan Prefecture, in Linkang, in the small streets, as well as in the imperial pce. He killed the emperor newly appointed by the Divine Halls of West-Hill, the prime minister, and many others.


    Time flew irresistibly fast when the allied forces were waiting desperately by the Great River and when Ning Que was carrying out the brutal ughter in the South Jin. Summer came to the human world. And Ning Que disappeared again in the intensive heat.


    What was left was his words, the debt of blood, and the chaotic South Jin.


    The Southern Battlefront Army and Yulin Royal Guards of Tang had reimed Qinghe. They would proceed further south after they settled the cliques. How could the South Jin withstand Tang at this point?


    He indeed turned the tide in a universal war by himself. Why? Because he was able to kill and good at ughtering. Ke Haoran was the previous version of him from the Academy. But it had been so long and people have already forgotten about that person. What Ning Que was doing right now was to remind people of Ke Haoran.


    He entered Wei and wiped out the Golden Tribe, then he crossed the Great Swamp and conquered the South Jin. Now he disappeared again. No one knew which kingdom he was heading for and going to conquer the next.


    ...


    ...


    The intensive heat was fading but it was still hot. The Divine Halls of West-Hill had prepared well by the Great River but Ning Que never came. Unexpectedly he showed up all of a sudden near the Divine Halls of West-Hill.


    The former Divine Halls of West-Hill referred to Taoism as a whole, while thetter referred to the location of the divine halls. They were solemnly situated on top of Peach Mountain. Standing inside the small town people could see the divine ce clearly.


    The big ck horse came to the West-Hill Divine Kingdom. It walked silently through the small town by Peach Mountain. In sharp contrast to the divine halls on top of the mountain afar, the small town was quiet and worldly.


    Ning Que was about to buy some roasted sweet potatoes but he changed his mind upon entering the small town. He thought for a while, leaped down from the horse and led the rein toward a shabby shop at the east side of the town.


    He got down from the horse to show his respect. Although he respected no one from the Divine Halls of West-Hill now, that person inside the shop deserved his respect. He did not know that person¡¯s character, but time had proved everything.


    It was a butcher¡¯s shop, the only one of its kind in the small town. Just like there used to be only one butcher¡¯s shop in the small town at the border of Song and Yan. Wherever this person was, there could be only one butcher¡¯s shop.


    The end of the summer was still extremely hot. The small town seemed like a big steamer. The big ck horse was treated well by Gaga in the Wilderness with countless secret pills and gourmet. But despite the special energy it had received, it could still not stand the heat and kept panting heavily. Ning Que also unbuttoned the cor of his Academy suit.


    It was steaming hot in the butcher¡¯s shop. The smell of blood and boiling water added to the heated and choky air inside. A strong middle-aged man wore a leather apron and kept cutting meat with a heavy knife. He was tanned, but not sweating at all.


    Every time the knife was chopped into the meat, blood and fat sshed like snow.


    Ning Que stood by the doorsill and said to the Butcher who were standing behind the chopping board, ¡°How¡¯re you doing?¡±


    The Butcher did not looked at him, kept cutting the meat and said, ¡°So so.¡±


    Ning Que asked after a pause, ¡°Have you seen her?¡±


    The Butcher stopped cutting, took down a piece of cloth from the hanger and wiped his face and hands randomly.


    Ning Que continued, ¡°I¡¯ve been looking for her for a long while, but haven¡¯t found her.¡±


    The Butcher threw the wet cloth onto the knife and said to him, ¡°You are no faster than the three of them. Therefore you won¡¯t be sooner.¡±


    The word faster referred to their respective speed, while the word sooner referred to the point when they could find her.


    Ning Que thought for a while and nodded in appreciation, ¡°Thanks. I¡¯m heading off.¡±


    The Butcher held the knife tilt with a wet cloth in his hand, so that it would not slide.


    ¡°Where to?¡±


    ¡°I will keep looking for her.¡±


    ¡°Do you need to kill people in order to find her?¡±


    ¡°I thought even if I could not find her, I could at least force the Abbey Dean toe back.¡±


    ¡°You¡¯ve killed tens of thousands. Yet the Abbey Dean never showed up. Why should you continue the killing?¡±


    Ning Que frowned slightly while he looked at the Butcher and said, ¡°I thought someone like you who had went through the Ever Night would never care about what we do. Would you?¡±


    The Ever Night was the most tragic story in the human world. It was extremely miserable. The Butcher went through it, saw it and experienced the pain and fear. He would definitely not care about what Ning Que and Taoism did.


    He said, ¡°There is something I¡¯ve always wanted to ask the Academy.¡±


    Ning Que turned to him, stared at him for a long while and said, ¡°Have you ever asked before?¡±


    The Butcher said, ¡°I could not defeat the Headmaster or Ke Haoran.¡±


    His implication was obvious. His question was definitely not a kind one. He did not ask because he was not a match to them previously. Now he thought that the current generation of the Academy could never defeat him. Therefore he would like an answer.


    Ning Que became more calm, or even proud. He said, ¡°Go ahead.¡±


    From now on he was no longer representing himself, the ordinary man who was in pursuit of his wife. Instead, he represented the Academy. Therefore he had to be even more calm and confident.


    The Butcher lifted the knife from the chopping board and ced it in front of himself.


    Upon his movement, Ning Que felt that the doorsill of the butcher¡¯s shop was also slightly lifted. The seemingly ordinary and greasy butcher¡¯s knife turned to be heavy as a mountain.


    ¡°The Headmaster always talked about kindness andpassion. And the Academy always unted about saving the world. Even when Ke Haoran killed many people they never thought they were wrong. Even their killing was meant to save the world, just like what the Academy and you are doing right now. So is it again to save the world even if you are going to kill half of the poption in this world?¡±


    The Butcher looked at him and continued, ¡°To save the world? The Drunkard and I never had such a grand hope. But why should your Master be the one to judge us? Why whatever the Academy did was right? Why only your way is the best to save the world? And why does the world have to be saved by you?¡±


    Ning Que looked calmly at him and said, ¡°There is a saying that you should ask the people rather than the gods. Who upholds justice? Probably time is the best proof. At least through what we¡¯ve seen and heard, Tang had proved in the past thousand years that our Master was rtively right.¡±


    ¡°That was because he had the biggest fist.¡± The Butcher said emotionlessly, ¡°Whoever has a bigger fist has the say. Is that how the Academy runs?¡±


    Ning Que recalled the Youngest Uncle, the Senior Sister and himself. After a long while, he also thought about the Headmaster, the Eldest Brother and Second Brother. Then he sorted out the things more clearly that he had realized long ago.


    ¡°That¡¯s not the Academy, or the Tang Empire.¡±


    He looked at the Butcher and said, ¡°The Academy is a ce for men with integrity. So is the Tang Empire. But I am not a man of integrity. When a man has integrity he could be deceived. I don¡¯t want to be like that. I¡¯d rather go to eternal perdition in order to fulfill our Master¡¯s wish.¡±


    The Butcher said, ¡°What good will it do for you to exile your soul into theher world?¡±


    Ning Que stared at him and said seriously, ¡°Freedom... The word freedom might seem greasy nowadays as the knife you are holding. But without freedom, it is nothing.¡±


    The Butcher asked, ¡°... Even if it is unknown and dangerous?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You should have a vague idea about where I came from. Therefore you should know I am right. I¡¯ve seen it. It is what the reality should be like.¡±


    The Butcher said after a long while, ¡°It is theher world.¡±


    ¡°Only if you insist that the reality is theher world,¡± Ning Que said.


    The Butcher stared at him and said, ¡°They used to call you the Son of Invariant Yama. It might be wrong. But it could also be true. Since you are leading this world to theher world.¡±


    Ning Que paused for a long while and recalled the switch of his identities throughout the years. The stories happened around and the exiles he went through seemed ridiculous and sad.


    He said, ¡°You seemed right.¡±


    The Butcher said, ¡°Why should the human world... be theher world?¡±


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Why not?¡±


    The Butcher said, ¡°It is too cold.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°But it is vast.¡±


    Upon these words it became absolutely quiet both in and outside the butcher¡¯s shop, deadly quiet. The dead pig seemed to be staring at the two of them with wide open eyes, so was the goat that was boiled in the pot.


    They both had their ns and neither of them wouldpromise. Therefore they had to kill.

 Chapter 1078 - Eradicating Buddhism (Part 1)

    <h4>Chapter 1078: Eradicating Buddhism (Part 1)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ning Que looked at him silently, without any sign of fear.


    After a long time, the Butcher put the knife back onto the chopping board. But his hand never left the handle. He said, ¡°I do not care about you killing others, but I care about eternity. You and anyone from the Academy shall not enter the West-Hill again. Or I will have shed blood.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I have alreadye in here, how are you going to kill me?¡±


    The Butcher did not reply. However, his grip on the knife in his hand tightened. The knife in his hand was the answer. The knife was as heavy as a mountain, as sharp as the wind. It was the most horrifying knife ever since the dawn of human history.


    It was as though the cyan-steel sword that Ke Haoran had once wielded.


    Que Ning¡¯s expression became graver. His right hand did not reach for the iron cuss he carried on his back. Though his iron cuss was very strong, there was too huge a gap between his cuss and the knife on the Butcher¡¯s hand.


    ¡°I won¡¯t be able to beat you, but it would be very hard for you to catch me.¡± After Ning Que finished the sentence, he turned around and left the deli with the big ck horse.


    The Butcher stood behind the chopping board inside the shop. He looked at Ning Que¡¯s back silently. His eyes were as sharp as a knife.


    The closer Ning Que moved towards Peach Mountain, the sharper his look became. The further Ning Que moved away from Peach Mountain, the calmer his look became, like an old knife slowly being sheathed.


    Ning Que left the town as the eyes of the Butcher continued to chase him.


    He turned his head and looked back. All he saw was a few of the Divine Halls among the mountain peaks, under the blue sky and the white clouds. The deli stood in front of Kuxia Town. He was silent as he slid deep in thought for a very long time.


    He didn¡¯t stand a chance against the Butcher, and he did not know if anyone from the Academy could even defeat him. With the Butcher guarding Peach Mountain, the Tang Cavalry could not enter the mountain. Nor could anyone from the Academy.


    The reason that Ning Que went there that day was to see if there was any way to resolve the problem peacefully. Unfortunately, the Butcher had made his point firm. Then, the Academy would have to think about another way.


    There was only one man who could possibly change all these.


    ****************************************************************************************************


    At the southern edge of the West-Hill Divine Kingdom, there was the South Jin Kingdom. Further to the south, there was the Great River. There were many small kingdoms on the east side, such as Song and Qi. Every kingdom were gathering their armies and preparing for war.


    Near the end of the summer, Ning Que left the West-Hill Divine Kingdom. He headed not to the Great River, but to the east. Many divine priests had died in the Song Kingdom, the Qi Kingdom, the Liang Kingdom, and the Chen Kingdom. The Alliance¡¯s spirit was hanging low.


    Right when the West-Hill Divine Kingdom had finally reacted, they sent out their finest and strongest in attempt to kill, or at least temporarily stalled Ning Que. However, no one would have known that he has already arrived at the Wa Mountain quietly.


    The town in front of the Wa Mountain was still the same from thest few years. The people were still making their livings on sculpturing Buddhas out of stones. There was no more Ghost Festival and the devotees of the Lanke Temple shied inparison to its heyday. But there were still innumerable intricate pieces of stone left after the copse of the Buddha sculpture. The stones were enough tost for a few hundred years of sculpturing.


    In the early morning, rain poured in the Wa Mountain region. The sea breeze had already made the mountain peak colder than the maind. With the addition of the rain, it felt more like fall, though it was summer.


    ¡°Like the old days.¡±


    Ning Que stood in front of the fallen pieces of the Buddha. He was looking at the mountain road between the mountains, the vaguely showing the hall behind the forest, and the giant rocks all over the mountains and valleys. He said, ¡°Although the sculpture was made in the image of Buddha, it is still not real after all.¡±


    Monk Guan Hai stood beside him, he joined both his hand and prayed. He proceeded to sigh, ¡°Then what is real?¡±


    Ning Que turned around and looked at him, and said, ¡°The South Jin Kingdom is about to be established. Let¡¯s put the Yan Kingdom aside, the Divine Halls can¡¯t even defeat the Great River. Do you still believe that Taoism could prevail? Victory is the only real thing.¡±


    Monk Guan Hai was silent for a while, and said, ¡°Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s very weird?¡±


    Ning Que did not answer the question directly. As the cold rain was falling on his face, washing away all his expression, he said, ¡°When you go to West-Hill, make sure you also go to the Lanke Temple. Take it as your part of the spoils.¡±


    Monk Guan Hai said, ¡°The Academy is eradicating Buddhism... and we all are the disciples of the Buddha.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You are wrong. Second Brother is eradicating the Buddhist Kingdoms, not Buddha himself.¡±


    Monk Guan Hai said, ¡°Buddha, please have mercy on us. Too many have died and you have killed too many people.¡±


    Ning Que turned around and looked at him, he said, ¡°You are wrong again, your Buddha had never been merciful. His teachings and deliverance for the people can only cultivate a smaller Nirvana. All he wanted was nothing more than to survive the Ever Night. Perhaps, he was even after more things, more than just eternity. Did the Buddha really ever care about the human world?¡±


    Monk Guan Hai said, ¡°ording to what you have said, what really is the purpose for us to cultivate in the way of the Buddha for these few ten years?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°The Buddhist scriptures were not written by Buddha himself. Master Qishan had taught me to read them. You have read them yourself too. Cultivating the way of the Buddha was really to cultivate ourselves.


    Monk Guan Hai was silent again.


    Ning Que, then spoke, ¡°You are a Buddha, and so am I. So is everyone else in the world. Like what Ye Su said ambiguously in the New Stream literary canon, everyone is Haotian. Then, the human world would be the Buddha Kingdom and also a Divine Kingdom.¡±


    Monk Guan Hai sighed again. He looked at Ning Que¡¯s pale and slender face, and said, ¡°Then how about you? Are you going to continue your killing? You won¡¯t be able to keep it up for too long.¡±


    There were wildflowers inside the ruins of the Buddha sculpture. The flowers were yellow, it looked a lot like that flower in the past.


    Ning Que looked at the flower and the mountain roads in between the forest. He thought about what Sangsang said in the temple. He slightly closed his eyes, there was no way of telling whether he was happy or sad.


    He was willing to go around the human world, continue his killing and finding people at the cost of his state and longevity. Like what the Butcher had said, he wasn¡¯t as fast as the abbey dean and the Drunkard, but he felt that he knew what was on her mind. He knew that what she treasured most was the past. Although he could not sense her actual location, there was still a chance to find her. Perhaps she was even living inside the temple of the Wa Mountain.


    Unfortunately, she was not there.


    He said, ¡°I will stay here as long as I can.¡±


    Monk Guan Hai spoke, ¡°And prove your way with murder?¡±


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°Only people like Lian Sheng could do such a sick act. Although I have killed fewer than Lian Sheng, I am no less evil than him. After all, we have different thoughts. I don¡¯t know what will be of the human world. I do not actively engage in thoughts of destroying the world. All I do is just preparation.¡±


    Monk Guan Hai sighed. ¡°It looks like that you noticed that something is wrong too.¡±


    That was the second time he mentioned that.


    Although the reason why the Tang and the Academy were on the winning side seemed to be the result of Ning Que roaming around and killing people, the truth was that they were already winning to begin with. He was only speeding up the entire process through that terrifying method.


    Taoism had ruled the world for so many years, so the Divine Halls of West-Hill had umted unimaginable resources. For these reasons, they won¡¯t be losing as quickly. The undermining reason of all was... the death of Ye Su.


    Because of Ye Su¡¯s death, the New Stream had sprung up like mushrooms after a rain in the spring. They spread and grew everywhere. The impact was so devastating that it shook the roots of Taoism¡¯s rule. Because of Ye Su¡¯s death, the Divine Halls of West-Hill had split and the internal fight never stopped.


    All of these urred seemingly due to one irrational decision of the abbey dean. But how could an abbey dean make such an irrational decision? Even the most irrational of all would not do that.


    However, Monk Guan Hai did not think so, and Ning Que did as well. He almost even guessed what was the truth, but he could only y the game passively as he has no other way. Guessing the Abbey Dean¡¯s thoughts correctly did not mean he could see through the situation. Ning Que could only use the simplest way to resolve theplicated situation.


    The simplest thing that is life and death. A de can sever one from this world.


    His only wish was that he could be faster, so fast that the human world could change before the Abbey Dean could seed. If he did, the sess of the Abbey Dean¡¯s trap would mean nothing.


    ****************************************************************************************************


    There were a lot of people that wanted to change the human world. The Headmaster of the Academy, the Buddha, Ke Haoran, and Lian Sheng had all tried to do so. Some of them failed, some were still trying. People like the Drunkard and the Butcher would not want any changes to the human world. But that will by itself was some kind of influence and change. But what¡¯s important is, all these people were very strong.


    Some of the people were not as unpredictable as the Butcher in terms of state cultivation and strength. However, there was one thing that could change the world, that was his unpredictability and strong will.


    In the deep part of the West Wilderness, someone had already changed the gloom underworld that was surrounded by the prison wall of cliffs. The widespread wildfire lightened up Heaven, Earth, and the Prajna Peak. It also lightened up the way.


    The rebellion war of that few years had changed the order in the underground Buddhand entirely. Especially during the beginning of spring, where the reinforcement of the Right Royal Court was ambushed by the Tang army who sneaked out of Cong Ridge. That battle cost them many food resources. No one was able to change the oue of that battle after that.


    The fire was everywhere in between the Giant Peak that grew out of the Giant Sinkhole. It obstructed the yellow temples in the green forest. Many of them were devoured by the me. Many burns marks were put on the continual forest. No path and trees were spared in the marks. Numerous mountain roads were naked in the view, as if threads that were trying, yet failing, to repair whatever was left.


    Jun Mo was holding an iron sword in his hand at the frontmost part of the mountain road. He looked at the severely injured Qi Nian expressionlessly. He found some monk robes to wear as the clothes that he had always worn was destroyed in the battle. His newly grown hair was gray and short. With the light emitting from the fire afar, he looked like a Buddha statue.


    Not far away, under a Bodhi tree, Master Huang Yang had already closed his eyes and passed away. As a Tang, he did not know what to do with both the Academy and the Buddhand. Although no one knew if he had figured the answer out in the end after all the years of thoughts, no one was to qualify to say that what he did was to escape. It perhaps tended more to a relief.


    Qi Nian was drenched in blood. His kasaya was torn. He could not look worse. He was pointing at the wildfire over the mountain and the temple that was gradually turning into ashes. He said, ¡°Is killing of mortals and eradication of Buddhism the way of the Academy?¡±


    Jun Wu dered, ¡°Eradicating Buddhism is my way.¡±


    Qi Nian said, ¡°I have once heard there¡¯s a saying in the Academy, existing is the way.¡±


    Jun Yang said, ¡°What Youngest Brother said was extremely wrong.¡±


    Qi Nian said bitterly, ¡°There¡¯s really no way to argue with Mr. Second.¡±


    Jun Yang said without changing his expression, ¡°I¡¯m right, and that¡¯s why you all couldn¡¯t argue with me.¡±

 Chapter 1079 - Eradicating Buddhism (Part 2)

    <h4>Chapter 1079: Eradicating Buddhism (Part 2)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Qi Nian stared at him and said withplicated sensations, ¡°Why do you hate the Buddhism so much? You and Ning Que, and everyone from the Academy tried your best to eradicate Buddhism. Why?¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°The Academy is not enforcing justice on behalf of Heaven or the human world. We do what we think is right. And we have our own criteria. Buddhism did no good to the world. Why should it exist?¡±


    Qi Nian pointed somewhere on the teau and said, ¡°The pear blossoms bloomed charmingly in the valley without being seen by any human beings. It did no good to the human world. Why should it exist?¡±


    Jun Mo shook his head and said, ¡°The pear tree receives nutrients from the soil and energy from the sunlight. The weeds under the tree might disagree with you. Buddhism never produced anything and only lives on the offerings from human beings. You are of no different from Taoism. They are locusts, while you are maggots, equally disgusting.¡±


    Qi Nian disagreed, ¡°The Buddhand is a paradise. Countless eminent and virtuous monks have been practicing Buddhism for thousands of years. There are nourishment for the mind and gems for the consciousness. I do not expect you to respect us. But you should at least allow us to pass on the legacy.¡±


    ¡°The Buddhand is a paradise for the monks, but hell for other people. The nourishment and gems are only for you. Your faith is beyond reality. To talk about the Tao in the human world, you should at least help the majority live with dignity.¡±


    Jun Mo continued, ¡°If you are trying to convince me with what my Youngest Brother said, I¡¯d like to remind you of some other words of him too. He used to say, ¡®There will be food, drinks, and everything needed. We can produce anything as long as we are alive...¡¯ including the nourishment and gems you mentioned, and the Tao.¡±


    Qi Nian was silenced for a long while. Then he asked again, ¡°And?¡±


    ¡°He also said, ¡®All the bold donkeys should be killed. You are right, my Brother.¡¯¡±


    Jun Mo added, ¡°By the way, the Brother was me.¡±


    Qi Nianughed bitterly.


    He was crushed by Jun Mo and his iron sword today. The monks from Commandment Hall were either dead or severely wounded. The monk soldiers and the noble armed forces from the tribes could no longer withstand the furious strikes of millions of ves. Were the Xuankong Temple and Buddhism really going to be eradicated?


    Being the World Wayfarer of Buddhism, Qi Nian felt extremely painful and unwilling to see such a result. There were many more who were no less painful to see it including the young monks groaning by the Bodhi trees and the old monks crying over the burning temple. They were never expecting such an end of Buddhism.


    The shing of killing weapons were deafening. Countless soldiers of the uprising army poured toward the mountain trail like ck tides, as if they were about to swamp the entire Prajna Peak. Those charging at the forefront were already on the trail.


    Seeing the former ves charging fearlessly and destroying the temples like maniacs, Qi Nian sat down on the mountain trail with his legs crossed, and started chanting resolutely.


    He was chanting the Rebirth Mantra, without knowing if it was for himself.


    Pacifying chanting spread from above the mountain trail toward the countless teaus and temples.


    Blood stained young monks struggled to get up. They managed to sit down with legs crossed and started chanting together with Qi Nian. The senior monks wiped their tears and also started chanting together. In the ruined main hall of Xuankong Temple, dozens of dying monks from the Commandment Hall also started chanting.


    Some melodious chimes were heard all of a sudden, apanying the chanting. The chanting gradually turned into calling for the Buddha.


    The calling for Buddha resounded continuously around the peak. Thepassionate, inspiring yet solemn energy from the countless monks and temples assembled among Heaven and Earth.


    Deep in the heart of the peak and down at the bottom of the blocked cave, the chained Chief Monk of Scripture opened his eyes slowly. He heard the chantinging from around the peak and realized the impending doom of Xuankong Temple and Buddhism. He seemed reluctant, but gradually became relieved.


    The Chief Monk raised his skinny hands with great efforts and pressed them in front of his chest. The scrawny old monk seemedpassionate. His grey lips shivered. His chanting was faint yet sounded dragons roaring on cloud nine.


    Continuous chanting spread from the teaus to the bottom of the cave and joint with the faint chanting of the Chief Monk. The zen intents of countless monks joint his zen mind. Even though he was the living Buddha in the human world, the Chief Monk could not withstand the overwhelming andplicated intents. Blood gushed from his features while he started glowing in the Buddha¡¯s glory. His flesh melted gradually in the glory and his bones were revealed, horrifyingly.


    The beginning of a life was blood, or even blood pus. Buddhism revealed the fact of impermanence to its followers through this. They believed so and practiced ordingly. It was the ultimate purity.


    The Chief Monk sat with his eyes closed. His pupils were not trembling at all as if he was already dead. Or perhaps he was still alive, but he was returning to the beginning of life... death. He was bing the blood pus.


    The purest yet filthiest blood pus dripped onto the ground in the cave. It followed an incredibly tiny crack and flowed toward the heart of the mountain, and eventually reached the underground.


    It was the fiery magma of the underground world. In the magma, there was a chessboard.


    It was the Buddha¡¯s chessboard. Before Sangsang set off in the giant Ark, she threw it into the mountains and sank it into the horrifying fiery magma underground. It was supposed to be sealed there forever unless someone awoke it.


    Today was the day. When the Xuankong Temple was being destroyed and countless monks were killed, their souls assembled and entered the chessboard. The Chief Monk sacrificed his human body and helped revitalized it. Therefore the chessboard was awakened!


    On the mountain trail, Qi Nian was bleeding while he led the thousands of monks to stand against the countless uprising ves. In their continuous calling for the Buddha, the surface of the peak started peeling off and dust prevailed.


    It was called the Prajna Peak because it was formed by the Buddha¡¯s relics.


    The teaus on the Prajna Peak slid and revealed a vague figure. It looked like the Buddha. White cranes were approaching from the west. Flowers floated down from the clouds. The Giant Sinkhole was illuminated in the Buddha¡¯s glory.


    The Buddha was gone. But he was still alive, although no one could find him. Neither Sangsang nor the Headmaster was able to locate him. Yet they could neitherpletely erase him from the world.


    The Buddha was awakened from the chessboard. He watched the human world silently through the possession of the peak, witnessed the tiny human beings attempting to destroy his embodiment, and felt enraged instead ofpassionate.


    Soldiers from the uprising army stared at the peak in panic. Upon seeing the awe-inspiring face in the Buddha¡¯s glory, they could not help from trembling while colors drained from their faces.


    That was the real Buddha.


    They never really understood the scriptures but had been practicing Buddhism piously since they were kids, until Jun Mo showed up.


    They started to doubt whether the Buddha ever existed, or whether it meant anything even if he existed. Today, the Buddha appeared in the human world.


    The awe deeply rooted in their souls kept them from further contemtion.


    They dropped the weapons subconsciously, and kneeled in fear toward the Buddha transformed from the peak.


    The calling for the Buddha continued and tens of thousands of monks were solemn. No one dared to keep standing upright. Only Jun Mo stood there with his head slightly lowered and looked indifferent.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 1080 - Eradicating Buddhism (Part 3)

    <h4>Chapter 1080: Eradicating Buddhism (Part 3)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Jun Mo was dressed in a monk¡¯s robes, with very short hair and sleeves flowing lightly in the wind. He looked like a young monk. He stood on the mountain path, facing the peak in the light of the Buddha, as if he was actually in front of the Buddha.


    He was silent and did not raise his iron sword to fight again. He was not afraid of any enemy, even the Buddha.


    The chessboard has been controlled by Haotian for many years. Even when the Buddha resurrected and returned to the world through the mountains, it would be far weaker than the Buddha¡¯s peak. At least in the past, he would have the opportunity to interrupt that process.


    Maybe the Buddha was really waiting for Taoism and the Academy to hurt each other beforeing back. But he did not care. He did not care anymore, so he did not do anything. His hands sped behind his back, and the iron sword behind him. He was very tired.


    His eyebrows were straight, like swords that can fight, like a ruler which can measure. He did not want to fight because he was still lonely throughout the world. On the peak, everyone kneeled. Those who had fought with him for many years kneeled at the moment when the Buddha appeared. He stood alone, truly lonely.


    He also did not want to measure, because it was really difficult to measure the human heart clearly.


    There was a shallow frost between his eyebrows. It was chilly, and it came from the bottom of his heart.


    Hearing the Buddha sing, he stood still with his head bowed.


    All the ves bowed their heads, kowtowed in fear, dared not to look directly at the Buddha¡¯s light, and dared not look at the true face of the Buddha. Naturally, they could not see his somewhat deste figure.


    They were like group of ants, bathing in the Buddha¡¯s light, afraid to move a single muscle.


    But.


    However.


    In tens million years, there would always be some unique ants in the colony which, for some mysterious reason, decide to temporarily look away from the rotten leaves on the ground to the blue sky. Then their world was changed. Do they fear because they can see?


    No. One can only be free from fear if they can see.


    A young ve¡¯s trembling hands were supporting his body and could hardly restrain his intense curiosity and concern. He raised his head in fear and uneasiness and looked ahead of the mountain path.


    He saw the light of the Buddha, the lonely Jun Mo in the light, and the Buddha¡¯s face.


    Ah, so the Buddha looks like that. It turned out that Buddha looks like that.


    Looking at Jun Mo in Light of Buddha, he suddenly felt ashamed and humiliated. A courage from somewhere he couldn¡¯t tell entered his body. He touched the handle of the sword with trembling hands and grasped it again, then stood up shaking. He stood up.


    He looked around at hispanions, and wanted to say something, he wanted to call them to stand up bravely as he did. But he found that no one was looking at him, in the majestic and solemn voice of the Buddha, his voice was too small.


    He felt a little lonely, and so he understood Jun Mo¡¯s loneliness and pride. He wanted to say something to Jun Mo, but he did not know what to say. He looked at the Light of Buddha, the Buddha, and the disciples of the Buddha. He wanted to argue with them, but he found that he could not understand the Buddhist sutras they were singing.


    His frustration grew, scratching his head, feeling a little anxious. The more anxious he was, the more annoyed he was by the Buddha¡¯s singing till he was frustrated. His chest kept thumping and his breathing became rapid. Eventually, all the emotions came together and became two words,ing out from his lips. He looked at the Buddha in the light and shouted, ¡°Shut up!¡±


    In this instant, the Buddhist sutras seemed to have stopped for a moment. Many people heard these two words.


    Jun Mo lowered his head, the tiredness between his eyebrows and eyes has somehow faded, and the corners of his lips was slightly pulled up.


    Qi Nian remembered his conversation with Ye Su in the wilderness many years ago.


    ¡°In the first lecture, I had seen countless flying ants soaking in the sun.¡±


    ¡°Flying ants will eventually fall, they will never touch the sky.¡±


    ¡°Ants can fly and fall, but they are better at climbing, building a foundation for theirpanions. They are not afraid of sacrificing themselves, and stacking up themselves one by one. So long as there are enough ants, they will surely be able to pile up into a heap of ants that can touch the sky.¡±


    Qi Nian was frightened, and his whole body was cold.


    Ye Su finally began to believe in ants and began to take them to the sky. He had forgotten what he had said and believed in the past. He looked at the ve standing in the Light of Buddha and was suddenly despaired.


    This was only the first ant, and there will be more ants standing up. Yes, the ves kneeling in the Buddha¡¯s light of looked at each other. Although their eyes were lost, more people stood up, some shouted ¡°Shut up,¡± but more of them were silent. But they stood up. More and more ves rose slowly in the Light of Buddha, like the ck tide. The louder and louder cries echoed between Heaven and Earth.


    Shut up!


    Shut up!


    Jun Mo lowered his head and listened. The corner of his lips climbed higher and higher, and finally turned into a smile.


    It was a smile at first, then it turned into a big smile, and finally it was augh. Heughed in a rapturous joy!


    Hahahaha!


    Atst, they stood up, the people who did not want to be ves.


    ¡°Do you hear that?¡± He looked at the Qi Nian and his smile faded away. He shouted, ¡°Shut up!¡±


    His voice sounds like a bell, floating between the peaks, cleansing the heart and spleen, awakening the mind with a shock! Wan Feng suddenly fell silent!


    Qi Nian and countless monks spat blood and fell to the ground!


    The sound of the Buddhist sutras ended abruptly.


    The Buddha, who transformed from a mountain, still looked at him quietly.


    Jun Mo looked at him and shouted, ¡°What if you¡¯re really the Buddha? I practice Buddhism, so I am a Buddha, all living beings can be Buddha if they want to. Why bother with this Buddha?!¡±


    Under the peaks, in the sky and on the earth, there was no hegemony. Only millions of the eldery, the weak, women, children, scarred ves, and humiliated women.. all eyes were on him. All the forces followed him. They followed him, and gave him their trust.


    An unimaginable power filled his body. He raised his iron sword and shed at the Buddha.


    At this moment, he was like a god, but he was not a god, his sword seemed toe from the Nether World, but he was neither the messenger of the Nether World, nor the representative of the human world. He was just a schr in the academy, the top schr that will unsheathe his sword to protect the weak!


    A clear sword shadow appeared in the sky. Clouds were cut into a big gap. Sunshine leaked through the gap, diluting the Light of Buddha between the peaks, but the world was still bright.


    The iron sword fell. The Buddha, was cut by the iron sword! Years ago, he hacked down the Buddha statues into numerous stones in Lanke Temple. Yearster, he hacked the real Buddha into numerous stones.


    The thunderous roar continued to ring. Cliffs burst, mudstones fell, trees were uprooted and temples were crumbling. There werementations and howls of monks everywhere.


    Everyone left the mountain and looked at the falling cliff from dozens of miles away, feeling puzzled and shocked by the sight to the point where they did not know how to speak.


    There are still many monks in Qi Nian who have not gone down the mountain road.


    Suddenly, there was a very harsh sound between heaven and earth. It was the sound of friction between rocks and rocks deep in the earth. It was the sound of a heavy mountain breaking up, and the broken sections sliding off each other.


    The giant peak broke from the root and then slowly fell down toward the east!


    The peak was very tall, so it started very slowly and elerated slowly until the end. When the mountain eventually fell into the field, it did not hit anyone. However, the resulting earthquake caused a lot of trouble.


    Smoke and dust was all over the sky, as if the world was entering the night ahead of time. After a long period of time, the smoke and dust gradually converged, so that people can clearly see the sight in front of them, and were shocked speechless once more.


    The giant peaks, like iron swords in Jun Mo¡¯s hands, carved an extremely exaggerated opening tens of miles wide in the ground, and the peak itself became the road paved on that opening.


    Far to the east of the peak, the steep cliff has copsed into a huge gap, directly facing the distant peak. It looked like a pair of bridges, which can connect the both sides as long as one walks across the field of wildflowers.


    The ves stared at the gap in dismay, and bold men began to walk toward there. In the west, people climbed up the bridge formed by the great peaks and began to walk there.


    After a long walk, they finally got under the cliff and came to the gap that had be a gentle slope.


    Millions of ves walked up the hillside. They walked silently from dusk to early morning. They now knew what the ground was, but they still looked forward to it, some were nervous and even afraid.


    Silently walking, only footsteps could be heard. Tss-tss-tss-tss. Anyone who saw this scene and heard the footsteps will be moved by it. They did not know how long they have been walking. Finally, a ray of light fell on the face of the teenager at the frontmost.


    He opened his mouth wide, his eyes squinted slightly, and was somewhat confused by the light.


    Oh, Grandpa, the sun was on the ground, as tall as we were.


    In the light of the rising sun, the ves who lived underground for generations finally came to the surface. Like that child, some people admired it, some were silent and some wept for their ancestors who could nevere to the ground to see the sun.


    Oh, so, the sky was actually this close.


    So, the earth has no edge.


    So, this is how freedom tastes like.


    The cries of pain and the merry dancing began in the morning, then to the sunset, then until the stars appeared in the sky, oh, and the bright moon. The people¡¯s joyful and merry celebration did not end.


    Jun Mo went to the Bodhi tree to rest.


    He looked at the traces of Buddha¡¯s Nirvana under the tree and said nothing. He looked up at the moon and said, ¡°Teacher, in this case, I¡¯m better than you.¡±

 Chapter 1081 - Crushing Rocks On The Chest

    <h4>Chapter 1081: Crushing Rocks On The Chest</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Compared with the gloomy and miserable underground, the fields above the ground were as charming as paradise inte summer. However, could there be any ce of genuine purity? Although the Right Royal Court had been haunted and exhausted by Tang¡¯s West Expeditionary Force, they were after all the rulers of the vast Wilderness. The war was not finished.


    After a few days Jun Mo came back to the Bodhi tree to take a break. Right then Tang came from some distance and stared at him for a long while. ¡°You¡¯ve been fighting hard. You deserve my admiration.¡±


    He admired Jun Mo sincerely. Jun Mo had proved his peerlessness in the current generation of powerful figures. But what convinced Tang, the untamed master of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine, was not his powerfulness.


    Jun Mo stood up and said, ¡°It¡¯s never hard when you are doing something you like.¡±


    It might not be hard mentally, but physically he was already dust stained and exhausted. Everyone could tell that the non-stop battles throughout the years had consumed him tremendously.


    Tang looked back toward the troubled cavalrymen of the Right Royal Court on the fields in some distance, and said, ¡°Leave it to me here. We, Wild People, are well-trained in wandering around the world. You should go take some rest.¡±


    Jun Mo did not thank him, nor did go for a rest. He wiped off the dust on his monk suit with the empty sleeve and turned to walk away.


    Tang stroke on the legendary Bodhi tree and said, ¡°I thought you would cut down this tree.¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t touch the Bodhi tree and the chessboard in the peak. The Youngest Brother wants them.¡±


    Upon those words Jun Mo walked toward the southeast without bidding goodby. He had to cake care of a lot more there in the Central ins. The ves came out of the Giant Sinkhole in the underground and saw the vast world above. But they did not know that it was just another bigger hole. He had to lead more people to an even bigger world. It was something that the Headmaster, the Youngest Brother and every generation of the Academy had been striving for.


    You¡¯re reading on  Thanks!


    People cried out throughout the fields. The ves who had been fighting with him for years were reluctant to see him leave. And the message of him leaving spread swiftly around. They knew they could not ask him to stay. Therefore millions of people prostrated toward him like billowing wheat fields.


    ...


    ...


    Summer was gone and autumn followed. Time seemed to have slowed down. Too many things had happened in the past year. For those ordinary people who could only wait for an end of the war, it was a hell of time. But for those who raced against time, it flew too fast. They had a lot more things to do before running out of it.


    It was a long year for the Tang Empire. They made concerted efforts from the imperial court to ordinary people. The soldiers sacrificed their lives to withstand the overwhelming attacks from around the world. They could finally strike back in the previous two seasons. The Tang army defeated the Golden Tribe, reimed the Qinghe Prefecture and showcased their power and fearlessness to the entire world.


    Now they no longer needed to worry about the most powerful enemy in the north and the biggest threat nearby. But the Tang Empire had paid great prices. The Northern Battlefront Army was eliminating thest remaining forces of the Golden Tribe in the heart of the Wilderness. The Southern Battlefront Army and the Yulin Royal Guards were exhausted after the decisive victory over the allied forces of the Divine Halls.


    It was not yet time for recovery. The horses could not yet return to the Xianwan in. But the Tang Empire needed a break and there was actually a brief period of peace in the human world. However everyone knew that it was merely a deceptive peaceful pause.


    The main force of the Tang army was stationed in the Qinghe Prefecture instead of proceeding to the south. They were taking a rest as well as rebuilding the navy. The South Jin was thrown into chaos by the bloody ughter Ning Que conducted previously. The former second most power kingdom could no longer stop the Tang army by now.


    Taoism was defeated in the two major battlefields and lost control. In consideration of the current situation in South Jin, the West-Hill had finally recognized the situation and recalled as fast as possible the troops from invading the Great River Kingdom. They recalled every powerful figure back to the Divine Kingdom of West-Hill.


    Currently only the Divine Kingdom of West-Hill, Yan, and some areas in the east part of the continent were still under the control of Taoism. Those more important areas were either already reimed by Tang or did not dare to take further actions under the deterrent of Tang. The minor kingdoms like Song, Qi, Liang, and Chen were also undergoing turmoils.


    Chen Pipi led the dozen of students of Ye Su and more followers to preach along the coastal line despite the hunting of the assassinates from the Divine Halls. Theyunched the mes of the New Stream one after another. Taoism was ced at stake and could almost be destroyed at no time.


    The New Stream spread swiftly and widely because of Ye Su¡¯s being deified as well as the incredible and indescribable influence he made to followers throughout the world. But it was also because of the universal chaos.


    Many people, including some divine priests in the Divine Halls of West-Hill were about to surrender to the tide. They were almost certain that the Divine Halls of West-Hill could no longer reign over the world and would be reced by Tang. And Taoism would be reced by the New Stream. Many divine priests from the Taoist temples fled with the fortune they extorted throughout the years. Even the most pious followers of Haotian could no longer find a proper ce to pray for Haotian¡¯s protection. No one could bother to eliminate the New Stream any longer.


    But was it really a foregone conclusion? As long as the Tang Empire and the Academy did not capture Peach Mountain, the Divine Halls of West-Hill could still stand high on top of the peak and overlook the human world arrogantly. They had acquired countless fortune and resources throughout the years. They still had countless powerful figures. They couldst forever with what they already had. Who knew what would happen in the future?


    A thousand years ago, Taoism allied the entire world to challenge the Tang. Countless Knowing-Destiny cultivators came out of solitary to join the war against the Tang. The Tang Empire seemed extremely endangered at that time. And Taoism had almost turned the tide. But no one expected that the Headmaster alone would have solved all the problems and established Tang¡¯s invincible position for a thousand years.


    No victory could be imed until thest moment. No war woulde to an end until thest battle was finished. Jun Mo practiced thetter, while Ning Que and Ye Hongyu believed in the former. In other words, it had never been simple in the human world. Furthermore, those on top knew one thing for sure: If the victory could not be imed in Haotian¡¯s Divine Kingdom, the situation in the human could be overturned at any point.


    Of course the result of the war in the human world mattered too. Everyone was following the trace of Ning Que. They saw him traveling from the Wilderness to Qinghe Prefecture, and then to the coast of East Sea. They thought he would be heading north to Yan... Because Long Qing was there. People were certain that his next target should be Long Qing.


    The powerful figures in the Divine Halls and the cavalrymen from Yan were well prepared for the challenge. Yet he never showed up. No one knew that Ning Que was still in the Lanke Temple. He was practicing inside the temple and recovering in front of the Buddha¡¯s relics. He was also learning how to throw rocks from the kids in the small town.


    ...

 Chapter 1082 - Stone Statues And Chicken Soup

    <h4>Chapter 1082: Stone Statues And Chicken Soup</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Back then, Ning Que and Sangsang were besieged by the world of cultivation. They went through the Buddha¡¯s chessboard to the West Wilderness, then to the Lanke Temple in the autumn rain, and suffered the wrath of the Academy. Jun Mo¡¯s iron sword shed thergest Buddha statue at the peak of Wa Mountain into pieces. The pieces of stones rolled down from the peak of mountain to the valley, milling over half of the old temple.


    Fortunately, those huge rolling rocks did not cause a devastating disaster to the town. After being washed over daily by the sea rain and sea wind, it was covered byyers of moss and thus formed a picturesque scenery. With the end of Ghost Festival, the number of visitors to Lanke Temple fell drastically, and this had be the only way to attract tourists.


    The current residents¡¯ livelihood mainly depended on the stones from the Buddha statue. They broke the huge stones into pieces, then carved into statues and sold them to the tourists. Of course, it was very hard to break the stones. Even with the heaviest iron hammer and the sharpest iron des, it could not be done easily by the residents. Mostmonly, they tempered the stones with fire and water.


    The fire came from the wildfire from the hays in the rural field, and the water was the seawater from the Wa Mountain. The quarry at the Southeast of the town was surrounded with smoke that hurt the eyes from morning until night, while vapour continued to steam. As the red hot rocks were suddenly cooled by the cold seawater, sizzles could be heard continuously. At some point, the hard rocks would clearly show some cracks, meaning it was the time to break it.


    Ning Que stood at the hillside of the quarry, observing the process of residents breaking the rocks quietly for a long time. He observed how fire worked with water, how the rocksyered with moss cracked. He found out that when the cracks appear, it usually follows a pattern where two nted cracks will meet somewhere.


    The joining of the two cracks looked like a word. He remembered the sword mark on the stones at the bottom of Daming Lake deep into Tianqi Mountain. In those years, Youngest Uncle used the sword to carve many words outside of the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, turning the barrier array left by Devil¡¯s Doctrine founder, Great Divine Priest of Light into rubbish there.


    The rocks were broken into smaller stones, then cracked with iron by the adults as the little children rushed to front and picked up stones they could carry. They carefully selected the stones, arranging the stones by size and appearance, then only the stones were delivered to the stoneman.


    Of course, the craftsmen in town were half a monk, just like how Ning Que was half way into his cultivation before engaging in Buddha Dharma. As they carved day and night, they had mastered the art of carving. Within a dozen days, they could carve the small stones into intricate Buddha statue.


    Ning Que looked at the stones, and observed the craftsmen at work. After three days, he started to learn how to carve a statue. After a short while, he became the best craftsman in Wa Mountain. During hisst few years in Buddha¡¯s chessboard, he carved a Buddha from a mountain, so what were mere stones to him?


    But the way he used was different with the other craftsman, they had praised him and also gave him some opinions many times, but he just smiled and went on his own way.


    Ning Que¡¯s Buddha statues not only did not have wide forehead with big ears, but alsockedpassion. In fact, he carved a slightly chubby woman with hair on her temples, and an indifferent expression was clearly shown on her face.


    One day, when it was raining in Lanke Temple. Ning Que was carving a stone outside the temple. Suddenly, a soft voice came from behind, ¡°Did she lose weight?¡±


    ¡°Yeah, in the Chaoyang City of Buddha chessboard.¡±


    Ning Que put aside the statue beside the rest, about a dozen, and put down the carving knife. Then, he swept away the dust on his body and stood up.


    ¡°After a thousand years, she only lost this little? Seems like Haotian is not omnipotent,¡± the person remarked.


    Ning Que smiled, turned around and hugged him. ¡°I thought you liked her? Why are you chiding her now? You shouldn¡¯t do that, since you¡¯re the leader of the New Stream now.¡±


    Chen Pipi teased him with a grin, ¡°Do you like her new identity or the she before?¡±


    Ning Que thought twice and found that the answer to this question was absolutely obvious, and smiled reluctantly. He looked at Tang Xiaotang beside him and found that


    Tang Xiaotang was still in her ponytail. He asked, ¡°Not married yet?¡±


    Tang Xiaotang was not shy at all and answered calmly, ¡°Waiting for my Elder Brother.¡±


    Chen Pipi sighed. ¡°I do not expect father to allow it.¡±


    Ning Que looked at him again and his sight fell on the loose green robe, he could hardly remember that he encountered the abbey dean in green robes twice in Chang¡¯an City. He noticed that Pipi looked like the Abbey Dean after thetter slimmed down.


    Three of them walked into the pavilion. The autumn rain continued to pour down, umting on the roof and forming a stream that flowed down along the pirs and finally wet the ground.


    ¡°Are you done writing?¡± Chen Pipi said.


    Ning Que drew a scroll from his bosom and gave it to Pipi. ¡°It¡¯s better for Ye Su or elder brother to write the letter, I am an atheist after all.¡±


    It was something he sketched when he was meditating in Lanke Temple. If it were to pass, it might be the final and possibly the most crucial part of the New Stream¡¯s doctrines.


    Chen Pipi epted the scroll and said, ¡°There¡¯s a higher chance ofpleting it if Elder Brother does it, and would be tougher for me to finish it. But rest assured, I won¡¯t waste your efforts.¡±


    ¡°We don¡¯t have much time, have to hurry up,¡± Ning Que urged.


    Chen Pipi opened the scroll, it was all about a new world, Divine Kingdom or the afterlife that frowned his eyebrows. ¡°It is a really awesome drawing,¡± hemented.


    ¡°From the generation of teacher to uncle, and then to us, the Academy had used about a thousand years to prepare. If it¡¯s not awesome, it won¡¯t be fun,¡± Ning Que replied.


    Chen Pipi kept the scroll. Looking at Ning Que¡¯s tired eyes, thinking of his effort in thest few months, he took out a small porcin bottle from his sleeve. ¡°It¡¯s time for you to take this¡±


    When he smelled the medicine¡¯s aroma, Ning Que showed a surprised expression because he knew how expensive it was, as he had had it once. ¡°At our state of cultivation, only a Heavenly Power Pill can give us a chance, save it.¡±


    ¡°I was saving it for Elder Brother Ye Su, to help him break through the fifth state.¡±


    Chen Pipi kept silent for a while. ¡°Unexpectedly, he could no longer cultivate. And now he¡¯s dead, what¡¯s the use of keeping it? Even if it cannot help your breakthrough, at least you can cure your old wounds. A ten thousand mile killing spree sounds dashing, but it is terribly exhausting. Even meditating in Lanke Temple, you are exhausting your mind. Both the Academy and New Stream need you to keep on standing.¡±


    Ning Que thought about it again and kept the porcin bottle in his sleeve.


    ¡°If Youngest Uncle think this present is too expensive to repay, just give us a present,¡± Tang Xiaotang said.


    Ning Que smiled, ¡°You have not married him yet you are managing his affairs already? Say it. What do you want?¡±


    Tang Xiaotang pointed at the row of wet statues outside the pavilion. ¡°Give me one of those,¡± she requested with a straight face.


    Ning Que was surprised and walked out to the pavilion. He picked up one and passed it to her. ¡°You have seen her in person, why would you want a cold statue?¡± he said.


    Tang Xiaotang took the statue, wiped the raindrops on it with her sleeve and bowed to him prudently. ¡°If you could find her back, why are you carving these cold statues?¡±


    ¡°I was just learning how to crack stones.¡± Ning Que felt a little awkward.


    Tang Xiaotang beat her chest and offered, ¡°I can teach you if you want to learn.¡±


    Few years ago, there was ady who could crack stones with her chest on the Chang¡¯an street. After so many years, her arrogance still pierced the skies. Ning Que recalled the past and was slightly moved.


    As an elder uncle, it was not inappropriate for him to make somements.


    But Chen Pipi could, ¡°It¡¯s not big to begin with...¡±


    Outside the Lanke Temple, thousands of believers were waiting for Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang. They were heading to the Song Kingdom, while Ning Que killed as he travelled ten thousand miles, they intended to preach to ten thousand miles away.


    The scroll has been handed over. Ning Que did not waste any more of their time, and sent them out of the temple.


    After Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang left, he continued to carve the statue. Well, Sangsang¡¯s statue.


    He had carved about a hundred of Sangsang¡¯s statues, all arranged in front of the hall neatly. The statues have their head bowed down deep in thought, or looking to the skies, or overlooking the world from above. But they all possessed a simrity: expressionless.


    As the autumn rain poured down from time to time, Sangsang¡¯s statues were wet from time to time.


    He squinted, or stared at them. He held his own waist, or hugged himself as he admired the changes of statues during the autumn rain.


    The state of the world changed as time passed by. With war and fire everywhere, the world continued to change. The Tang and Taoism had their wins and losses. The Divine Halls of West-Hill¡¯s strategy had some effect on that as well. The crucial point was that both the Tang and Academy had yet to find an alternative to crossing the town.


    In fact, Ning Que did not care about the town. Not many could figure out his thoughts. Long Qing was one of the few. He waited silently for Ning Que¡¯s arrival at Chengjing City of the Yan Kingdom.


    Many thought that the battle between Ning Que and Long Qing was inevitable and could happen any time. However, everyone was taken by surprise when Ning Que did not appear. As such, the battle had yet to take ce.


    In the autumn rain, Ning Que was looking at Sangsang in the Lanke Temple. What is Sangsang looking at now?


    The night in the Cold Arctic was long and cold. The Thermal Sea had long been covered in snow. In the yurt left behind by the Wilde Tribe, the little light from themp seemed like it was going to be frozen and shattered by the cold.


    Sangsang sat beside the light. She was looking at her fingertips. There was a bubble on her fingertip. The surface of the bubble was smooth, and it especially shone under the light¡¯s reflection. It was transparent and its shape was perfect.


    The indigo lion lied on its stomach by her feet, and looked at the bubble. Its eyes were filled with curiosity, but it was feeling terrified, as if the world would end if it broke this bubble with its jaws.


    Ning Que looked at the two cracking marks on a rock in Lanke Temple.


    The surface of the bubble on Sangsang¡¯s fingertip seemed to be separated into two also, and it popped in the next moment.


    Like the several hundred statues in Lanke Temple, her expression was indifferent. Actually, it seemed more like a peaceful face instead of an indifferent one. She caressed her swollen stomach gently. The aromatic smell of a good soup came from the yurt. In the morning, the indigo lion hunted a snow chicken. And so, she was stewing some chicken soup.

 Chapter 1083 - Human Could Never Predict Heaven’s Will

    <h4>Chapter 1083: Human Could Never Predict Heaven¡¯s Will</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The bubble on Sangsang¡¯s fingertip was wless. But it was not exactly a perfect one. The surface of the bubble was wavy and indescribable charming, just like her swollen belly that seemed weak yet incredibly strong. It was the space itself.


    She looked emotionless. But it was calm rather than ruthless. It seemed that the two cracks on the bubble and the life inside her swollen belly was indicating some future happenings, and constantly changing her.


    By the Snow Sea, a Taoist in an indigo gown appeared at the edge of the woods. He turned the direction of the winds and the temperature of the area. He was the most powerful and wisest figure in the current world and had the most profound foresight. However, amazingly he seemed blind to the dimmp inside the yurt.


    He was not turning a blind eye to it, but rather he could not see it. He could not see themp light, nor the chicken broth in the pot, or Sangsang who was sitting by the window. It was because Sangsang did not want him to see. With a single sh in her psyche, she kept the cabins and yurts away from the real world.


    Inside, it was Haotian¡¯s world. Even a powerful figure like him could never look through.


    The Abbey Dean stood by the frozen woods and watched the dancing snow above the Thermal Sea. There were footprints of beasts gradually covered by the snow, but not a single trace of what he was looking for. Although he did not find what he wanted, he was not leaving. Somehow he knew intuitively that she was right there.


    Sangsang sat quietly by the window. Dimmp light scattered on her chubby cheeks. Her hand was ced on her swollen belly. She was not looking at the person by the woods or doing anything at all, not even thinking.


    It was the seventh time that the Abbey Dean came to the Snow Sea in search for her. Every time he got closer. She had no idea if he would be able to see through her world and find her in his next visit.


    The night in the north seemed extremely long, or even endless inte autumn. The sun seldom shone. The Abbey Dean stood by the woods for the whole night until the morning sun dazzled him. He looked again toward the cabins and yurts by the Snow Sea and reconfirmed that she was not there. Then he disappeared again.


    The indigo lion was lying still in a corner by the furnace. It was afraid of that human being. Its master¡¯s silence upon his visits had added to its anxiety. It did not even dare to take deep breaths over the night, not to mention wagging its tail for some drumstick from its master.


    That person was finally gone. The indigo lion felt relieved and stood up. It shocked the head and revived its stiff body. But when it came to Sangsang it realized that she was still sitting by the window without thinking or moving, as if she was not aware that he was gone.


    The sun shone for a short while then fell into the darkness again. Sangsang stared at the chilling world outside until themp died out and the figure in indigo gown showed up by the woods again.


    Sangsang was still sitting there quietly. And the Abbey Dean was going again. She kept sitting quietly, without eating, speaking, sleeping, thinking, or moving.


    Some abnormal wind blew again and the Qi of Heaven and Earth was slightly disturbed. This time a schr wearing a cotton-padded gown appeared by the woods. He looked around as if he was also looking for something.


    He was dust-stained, exhausted and extremely skinny. He had not taken a good rest for a long while. It seemed he could be blown down by the chilling wind at any time.


    Sangsang finally moved. She turned away from the snowy sea to look at the schr by the woods. The indifferent look in her eyes was reced by aplex of emotions.


    She suddenly felt like going out of the yurt, out of her own world. It was because she felt that the schr was trustworthy. Yet she also felt some fear and disgust. Therefore she ended up doing nothing.


    Two days after the Eldest Brother left, the Drunkard came as well. This powerful figure who had undergone the previous Ever Night seemed to have finished all the liquor in the gon hanging on his waist.


    Sangsang did not spare a nce at him. She was not even so cautious as when the Abbey Dean came. Finally they were all gone. Sangsang stood up by the window and walked to the furnace. She stared at the overcooked chicken broth for a long while and sensed the pungent smell.


    When he left home that night, he wrote her a note to finish the chicken broth before it went bad. Was that pot of chicken broth finished eventually? Sangsang recalled that note while she stroke on her swollen belly. She suddenly felt lonely and wished that someone could be there by her side. It was all because she was thinking of him.


    It was in her world, where time flew, the chicken broth got burnt, the life inside her belly kept growing, and she was gradually weakened. If she could no longer shield her world, danger woulde.


    She ced the burned chicken broth in front of the indigo lion and ignored its miserable look. She took out an abacus and started to calcte possibility of potential danger and solutions.


    She had to provide for the little creature inside her belly and consume her energy to shield her world from the outside. Therefore she could no longer make the invincible calction like she did years ago. She might still be peerless in ying chess or cards. Neither Chen Pipi nor Song Qian could beat her. But she could no longer use her divine heart to make divine ns. She had to use this human tool to calcte and predict the important matters.


    She was the rule of this world. But since she came to the human world she had been bonded to the world of the mortals. She even could not out-speed those three human beings. It was very dangerous. How could she be faster if she had to run?


    cks were heard in the yurt while she calcted on the abacus. It was a cheerful melody. The indigo lion was chewing on the chicken bones and wagging its tail cheerfully.


    Sangsang¡¯s right hand moved fast on the abacus and created one sh after another. She seemed calm and concentrated. On her left hand the wless bubble appeared again. On the firm and smooth surface of the bubble, a dozen of light spots appeared. Ifpared to a map of the human world, the spots could represent the Hn City, Chang¡¯an, West-Hill, Song, Lanke Temple, and the heart of the West Wilderness, as well as the beginning or the end of the roads connecting those ces.


    ...


    ...


    Thest rain in autumn came. It was extremely cold in the Central ins. And the war in the human world had finallye to ast round.


    The Tang Empire reestablished the navy. Tens of thousands of warships charged toward the South Jin. The kingdom was thrown into chaos after Ning Que¡¯s ughter and could never withstand the Tang. With the help of the increasingly prestigious Sword Garret, the Tang upied Linkang within a dozen days.


    The troops of the Great River Kingdom also crossed the river and proceeded to the north. The sacred sedan alongside with the royal sedan led tens of thousands of people from the Great River Kingdom to fulfill something they could never even think of through generations: to take down the Divine Halls of West-Hill.


    The Tang army had entered the border of the Divine Kingdom of West-Hill and came to less than two hundred miles from Peach Mountain. The Sacred Sedan of Judgment had came to the Muyu Town in the south, which was only three hundred miles from Peach Mountain. Being attacked in the south and north, the Divine Kingdom of West-Hill had called back every powerful figure and stationed tens of thousands of cavalrymen around Peach Mountain withyers of defense lines. But everyone knew it clearly: the Divine Halls were endangered.


    On the balcony of the white Divine Hall on top of Peach Mountain, Xiong Chumo looked over the human world showered in the autumn rain. Sadness was shown on his skinny face. He had no idea what else he could do. It seemed to be the end, and the time for a conclusion. But he even did not know what he should conclude with.


    Where was the Abbey Dean? What had he been doing? Why did Haotian never reply to the praying of the pious followers? Why did Haotian stay aside while the rebellions imed one victory after another without being punished by Heaven? What the hell was going on? Taoism had been ruling over the world for thousands of years. Was it really doomed now?


    Xiong Chumo was outrageously desperate. He cursed the Abbey Dean with the meanest and most bestial words and roared like thunder above Peach Mountain. Pathetically, even until now he did not dare to say the Abbey Dean¡¯s name straight forward.


    Breeze came from the mountains. It thinned the showering rain and revealed the small town from some distance. The small town seemed tranquil and undisturbed in the autumn breeze and rain.


    Looking toward the small town, Xiong Chumo felt gradually calmed down. Even if the Abbey Dean was noting back, as long as that person was there, the Tang and the Academy would never be able to get close to Peach Mountain. Then what else should he be worried about?


    There was actually a lot more to be worried about.


    Xiong Chumo stared at the mountains afar in the autumn rain. He could almost see Xu Chi¡¯s g and the horrifying ck Armor Heavy Cavalry of the Tang. He felt the burden on his shoulders bing heavier and heavier.


    ¡°Long Qing is still not heading back with the remaining forces. What is he doing? Does he dare to disobey my order? Furthermore what is he doing in Yan? Waiting to be killed by Ning Que?¡± Xiong Chumo growled outrageously.


    The middle-aged priest stood by his side and said calmly, ¡°If he could stop Ning Que at Yan, it would be a great contribution to the Divine Halls right now.¡±


    Xiong Chumo sneered, ¡°I wonder if he could.¡±


    The middle-aged priest said, ¡°I guess no one else could if he were to fail.¡±


    Xiong Chumo frowned slightly and turned to him. He was not expecting the middle-aged priest to say so highly about Long Qing. He weighed his words and said, ¡°Hengmu... was killed by Ning Que. Long Qing is not even above the Five States. How could he be a match to Ning Que?¡±


    ¡°I saw Long Qing crawled out of hell in the Abbey many years ago... If there could be a fight between Hengmu and Long Qing, he would definitely kill Hengmu. As for who is more powerful between Long Qing and Ning Que, no one could make any judgement until they have fought theirst battle.¡±


    The middle-aged priest said calmly. He had been an observer in Taoism for many years. He knew much more than everyone else would expect. Therefore he was more quiet and calm.


    Xiong Chumo said after a pause, ¡°The enemy ising. Taoism has to take action.¡±


    The middle-aged priest followed his sight and looked toward the small town in the autumn rain, and said, ¡°I will go check it out.¡±

 Chapter 1084

    <h4>Chapter 1084: A Small Town In The Rain</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    There was only one butcher shop in town. There was only one butcher in the world.


    The middle-aged priest stood outside the door sill, looking at the Butcher who was covered in grease, and yet not one sweat could be found on him, and said, ¡°Since you are here, senior, please do something.¡±


    The Butcher was cutting pork. After listening to this, he looked at him for a long time and asked him hoarsely, ¡°Is your Elder Brother really ready to do that outrageous thing?¡±


    The middle-aged priest replied calmly, ¡°What is outrageous? First, we need to define the concept of Tao... you and Senior Drunkard have hidden under Haotian¡¯s eyes for countless years, isn¡¯t that against her way?¡±


    The Butcher raised his shaggy eyebrows and said, ¡°How dare you?!¡±


    The middle-aged priest said, ¡°It benefits you guys too if you help Elder Brother.¡±


    ¡°To help your Elder Brother,¡± said the Butcher. ¡°All I have to do is stay in the small town and don¡¯te anywhere near here.... because you and I both know that helping your Elder Brother and helping Taoism are two different things.¡±


    The middle-aged priest was silent for a moment and continued, ¡°The agreement between Haotian and you is still valid.¡±


    The Butcher remained silent for a longer time, at first it was because he needed time to think about what he wanted to do, butter on it was because someone hade.


    Hearing footsteps, he started asking, ¡°What do you need me to do?¡±


    The middle-aged priest quietly stood outside the door sill and did not turn back to see the approaching figure, and said, ¡°No one can stop the ck Armor Heavy Cavalry of the Tang¡¯s troop. I will not pray for eternal peace in the temple, but I just hope to save some of the pavilion halls.¡±


    The Butcher put down the knife in his hands and said indifferently, ¡°That¡¯s it?¡±


    The middle-aged priest said, ¡°If the people from the Academy can be killed by you, that would be the best.¡±


    The Butcher and the Drunkard were the world¡¯s two longest-living Grand Cultivators, even longer than the Buddhist temple and the Headmaster of Academy. They had always been reclusive until the Headmaster of Academy ascended to heaven and Haotian came into the world, they were then forced to reveal their whereabouts. In these years, the Drunkard had made a move several times, putting more pressure on the Academy so that they could not take anything lightly, while the Butcher did not make a move at all.


    He was extremely strong, perhaps the strongest in the world, and unlike the first that was buried in Prajna Peak, he was strong physically and even stronger with knives, because he was good at killing people.


    For many years, he killed pigs, sheep, cattle, and also men, and this became his strength. While living in seclusion these few years, he lessened his murders, not because of mood alteration, but because of the request by the Headmaster of Academy...


    The Butcher looked impassive and said, ¡°They¡¯re just pigs and sheep. It doesn¡¯t hurt to kill them.¡±


    His voice was cut off by the cicadas chirping in the small town. At this time, the autumn rain was pretty cold, and the natural sound that the cicadas made in the rain was even sadder. Drowned in the sound of chirping, a little girl in a yellow dress slowly walking from the direction of the town.


    She stopped in front of the Butcher¡¯s shop and looked in. The raindrops at the end of her ponytail were like fine pearls, and as she moved, they fell onto the ground inside the shop. Then she scrunched her nose in a cute way.


    She thought the smell of blood in the Butcher¡¯s shop was too strong, very unpleasant, as unpleasant as the words spoken by the Butcher.


    ¡°Others are pigs and sheep, but you are a dog. I have never figured out why people like you and Drunkard are willing to be dogs. Is it really that interesting?¡± Yu Lian¡¯s puerile face was full of inquiries, and she looked cute because she was serious. She was not in a mess though her yellow dress was drenched in the rain, and still looked adorable with her ck hair pulled back into a ponytail.


    She was such a lovely but intimidating little girl.


    The injury caused during the war between the Wilderness and the national master of Golden Tribe had fully recovered, yet she did not stop for a rest and travelled thousands of miles toward south, heading to the West-Hill Divine Kingdom, so how would the thousands of cavalryman from the Divine Halls of West-Hill at the outskirts of Peach Mountain stop her?


    Until she came to the butcher shop in the small town, then only did the Divine Hall of West-Hill noticed her arrival. A shrill warning sound went off under the pouring rain and the whole town was in chaos. Countless people came to the town but did not dare to set foot on the street.


    The Butcher looked at the little girl outside his shop, he was able to roughly guess who she was and said impassively, ¡°It¡¯s better to be a quiet dog than to mess around with people causing chaos... that¡¯s what your teacher told me personally when we were in town that year.¡±


    Yu Lian¡¯s gaze fell on the knife in his hand and replied casually, ¡°What he said is not necessarily right.¡±


    The Butcher said, ¡°I heard you are the suzerain of Devil¡¯s Doctrine of this generation? Devil¡¯s Doctrine stresses on the vitality of heaven and earth in the body, simr to my self-enlightenment. To be honest, I should be your ancestor in this doctrine... but seeing that you don¡¯t even care what the Headmaster of Academy said, I don¡¯t think you would give a second thought about what I¡¯ve just said.¡±


    Yu Lian sped her hands behind her back and tiptoed to look into the butcher¡¯s shop, just like those little girls who were learning to be adults, absolutely endearing. She said casually, ¡°The Light¡¯s Doctrine of mine has always been good at deceiving and destroying ancestors.¡±


    The Butcher replied indifferently, ¡°You are a very interesting little kid. No one has spoken to me in this way for many years now, you might want to take pride in that.¡±


    He had lived in this world for many years, and by his age alone, he could practically call everyone a child. Yu Lian wasn¡¯t the slightest bit annoyed, but looked at him and responded, ¡°I find you interesting too.¡±


    ¡°Which part?¡± asked the Butcher.


    ¡°No one has ever dared to speak to me with this attitude except my teacher,¡± Yu Lian answered. ¡°Come to think of it, he was the one who spoke to you with this attitude of mine many years ago. If that¡¯s so, he must have been better at it.¡±


    The Butcher was silent for a moment, then suddenly threw the knife in his hand. The Butcher¡¯s knife, full of blood and oil, fell heavily to the ground outside the door sill with a loud ng, as smoke and dust rose in the air, sending gravel flying into the autumn rain as if a mountain had fallen from the sky to the earth.


    ¡°If you can handle this knife, we¡¯ll talk,¡± he said.


    Yu Lian crouched down with her hands still behind her back and looked at the legendary knife for a moment. Then she carefully rolled up her sleeves and took out a handkerchief, holding onto the back of the knife with just two fingers.


    With the two fingers, she slowly lifted the heaviest knife in the world off the ground.


    As she moved, the weight of the iron knife spread to her feet. With only two tters, two clusters of cobweb-like cracks appeared on the bluish marble floor outside the butcher shop¡¯s door sill.


    In the whole process, she frowned and looked dignified. Then she put the knife down.


    ¡°Very well, you are entitled to talk to me.¡± The Butcher looked at her coldly and said, ¡°Although it was with difficulty, but you managed to lift it up.¡±


    Yu Lian shook her head and carefully wiped her fingers with her handkerchief, saying, ¡°Old people like you always like to boast about yourselves. I just think it¡¯s too dirty. Do you really think that it¡¯s extremely heavy?¡± She frowned attentively, not wanting her fingers to stain of blood or grease.


    The Butcher was silent for a quite a while and said, ¡°You are very strong indeed.¡±


    ¡°Thanks for the recognition.¡± She replied casually without a sense of seriousness, her strength didn¡¯t need anyone¡¯s approval, even if the person was the legendary Butcher.


    ¡°If you were given my age, no, half, or even a tenth of it, you would probably outdo me, and perhaps even achieve real immortality.¡± The Butcher looked at her and said, ¡°Sadly, you¡¯ll never have that time again, so you¡¯re not enough, and whoeveres from your Academy will be no match for me, because all of you are not strong enough.¡±


    ¡°You haven¡¯t been out in the world for years, so you won¡¯t know that the strength of the Academy is defined as the word ¡®strong¡¯,¡± Yu Lian said.


    Butcher replied, ¡°Do you want to bring up Ning Que who inherited the legacy of Ke Haoran? Indeed, he is not bad, but many things had happened in Yangzhou City, and now... he¡¯s stillcking.¡± He said while raising his eyebrows again.


    Sounds of steady footsteps echoed in the autumn rain. With the powerful rank of the Butcher, he could naturally hear out that something was wrong with the person¡¯s center of gravity, but the footsteps were still extremely steady, which meant this person was dreadful.


    The person was dressed in a shabby frock, his hair was short and loose, but his expression was calm. As he walked in the rain, the distance of every step he took was as if he measured it with a ruler beforehand, there was no deviation.


    Jun Mo was not someone that would make mistakes.


    The Butcher looked at him gravely and said, ¡°Perhaps, you are also here to see if you can pick up my knife?¡±


    Jun Mo took the handkerchief from Yu Lian and carefully wiped off the rain on his face, then nced at the knife on the ground. He did not understand what the Butcher was saying and looking at him was like looking at an idiot.


    Yu Lian looked at the Butcher as if she looking at an ignorant child and said, ¡°I¡¯ve said you would never ask about the world and it proves that I¡¯m right, you don¡¯t know the strongest person in the Academy, and it was never Ning Que.


    Indeed, the two strongest people of the Academy were Jun Mo and Yu Lian.


    The Butcher, the strongest man in the world of cultivation, or even the strongest one in the whole history of cultivation. The ¡°strong¡± used here was not referring to the state of cultivation, but the intensity and strength in particr, thus the two strongest person from the Academy came to meet him.


    Being stared at and ignored by two Academy juniors, the Butcher¡¯s mood turned sour. His face became a little gloomy and he turned quiet.


    ¡°Is it enough now?¡± Yu Lian asked.


    ¡°Enough,¡± said the Butcher. ¡°Both of you can join forces and try to battle me.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°Teacher had said that when giving a regr speech, the words you choose are very important. Jun Mo likes using peaceful measures before using force, since it is enough, then we may first talk about some things.¡±


    The Butcher took a deep breath, he had done real war preparations these countless years but was stopped by the words of Yu Lian. His turned his pent-up emotions into a word, ¡°Speak!¡±


    ¡°It seems a little inconvenient today,¡± Yu Lian said.


    The Butcher looked at her with his eyes narrowed and eyebrows raised, not saying a word.


    Yu Lian said, ¡°I am not afraid of you, it¡¯s useless to stare at me.¡±


    Then she turned around to look at the middle-aged man and said, ¡°Do you know why it¡¯s inconvenient?¡±


    The middle-aged priest sighed. ¡°I think it¡¯s because of my presence? But you are of great powers, so why pay attention to me?¡±


    ¡°It is because you are quite strong,¡± Yu Lian answered.


    The middle-aged priest smiled, ¡°From the beginning till now, I have done nothing.¡±


    ¡°And because of that you are amazing... until now, I don¡¯t even know your name, which I have to say it¡¯s quite impressive,¡± Yulian said to him calmly.


    She was a fog to the world.


    However, this seemingly calm and harmless middle-aged priest, who had been watching and observing for decades, even she could not see his depth, as if his real face was still hidden under the fog, hence, of course, he was worthy of vignce.

 Chapter 1085 - On Both Sides Of The River

    <h4>Chapter 1085: On Both Sides Of The River</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The middle-aged priest said nothing norughed. He stood quietly by the side as if Yu Lian and Jun Mo meant nothing.


    Right then the rain became lighter. Clops and sounds of rolling wheels were heard again on the streets. The roasted sweet potato shop was already closed. The grey-haired father and the middle-aged son continued their journey in the carriage in the showering rain. They stopped briefly by the butcher shop and the son brought two newly roasted sweet potatoes.


    Yu Lian and Jun Mo took the roasted sweet potatoes and thanked them. The old man wiped of the rain off his grey hair and stroke on the neck of the ox while he said, ¡°I guess you could not find any roasted sweet potatoes here in the future.¡±


    They had been running the roasted sweet potato shop at the foot of Peach Mountain for generations through a thousand years. Apart from collecting information of the Divine Halls for the Academy, they ran the shop also because the Headmaster was very fond of their roasted sweet potatoes. It had to be from the same stove in the same ce in the same town.


    The war was about to start. The father and son retreated from the small town. Those cavalrymen of the Divine Halls hidden in the rain outside the small town did not dare to stop them and clear the way quietly.


    Yu Lian peeled the slightly burnt potato, picked up some well-cooked parts and delivered into her mouth. She slightly closed her lips and savored. It was indeed yummy, but not as alluring as the Headmaster used to say.


    Jun Mo thought for a while. Instead of eating he wrapped the roasted sweet potato carefully in a handkerchief, put it aside and looked toward the middle-aged priest. He looked through the autumn rain toward somewhere afar.


    Yu Lian reminded him, ¡°That is my handkerchief.¡±


    Jun Mo corrected, ¡°It is the Eldest Brother¡¯s.¡±


    Yu Lian was slightly annoyed and did not want to talk to him further. She held the roasted sweet potato and spoke to the Butcher inside the shop, ¡°The Abbey Dean no longer cares about the future of Taoism. Why should you?¡±


    She was talking about roasted potatoes and handkerchief a second ago, and now the topic was switched to Taoism and the human world. Daily necessities were not meant to be a match to the divine matters. Therefore her switch of topics seemed cute.


    In the autumn rain today in the small town, she seemed to have be cuter.


    The Butcher frowned slightly and said, ¡°What do you know about it?¡±


    Yu Lian looked around but could not find a trash bin. She threw the unfinished roasted sweet potato on the wet ground and said, ¡°Isn¡¯t that simply gambling?¡±


    The Butcher frowned even harder.


    Yu Lian continued, ¡°The Drunkard followed the Abbey Dean. No matter if it was to support or to peep, he bet on that side. You came to Peach Mountain to bet on the side of the abandoned Taoism. I just can¡¯t understand why none of you would like to bet on us, the Academy.¡±


    The Butcher sneered. ¡°Because there is no Haotian in the Academy.¡±


    Yu Lian stared at him emotionlessly for a long while and said, ¡°Is Haotian with Taoism after all? Never forget that when you bet on both sides you are most likely to lose it all.¡±


    The Butcher said after a pause, ¡°After I kill you, I will stand aside and wait for the result. No matter who wins it will do no harm to me.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°So you have to see the result?¡±


    The Butcher said, ¡°Correct.¡±


    Yu Lian felt pity for him and scorned, ¡°You are indeed stubborn and rotten. Except for waiting aside like a dog, can¡¯t you do something fun?¡±


    The Butcher stepped out of the door, picked up the knife and looked above to the gloomy sky in the autumn rain. He said, ¡°When you live a long life as I have, you will be as cautious as I am now.¡±


    Jun Mo said nothing until hearing these words, ¡°To live cautiously like you do, the longer you live the more boring it will be.¡±


    Upon those words he led Yu Lian toward outside the town. Autumn rain fell onto the Brother and Sister. Their clothes were slightly wet while their footsteps resounded in the rain.


    Standing by the entrance to the town, Jun Mo said, ¡°I didn¡¯t see it.¡±


    Yu Lian seemed worried and said, ¡°ording to Ye Hongyun parts of Arcane Tome of the Fall should still be here. If it is not with the Taoist, where is it now?¡±


    The middle-aged priest said from some distance, ¡°Since you¡¯re already here, why don¡¯t you pay a visit to Peach Mountain?¡±


    Yu Lian turned to him and said, ¡°Vicious as we are, we never need invitations. But thank you, not today.¡±


    The middle-aged priest said, ¡°You must have instructions to make.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°Throughout the thousand years I am the only leader of Devil¡¯s Doctrine who hase so close to the West-Hill and Peach Mountain. I¡¯m already very satisfied. If the Butcher is not taking any action, why should I?¡±


    Jun Mo was much more straightforward than she was. He said to the middle-aged priest, ¡°We are not here to give instructions. But we do have some words for those inside the Divine Halls. From now on, no one could get out of the Peach Mountain.¡±


    The middle-aged priest was slightly stunned.


    Right then, a thunder was heard from the raining clouds.


    Over a thousand cavalrymen from the Divine Halls of West-Hill were stationed outside the small town. Many divine priests and deacons were hidden in the woods and fields. Upon hearing Jun Mo¡¯s words as well as the thunder, they felt lost.


    It was very simple and casual, yet extremely dominating.


    Some intensive clip-clops came from afar in the autumn rain as a proof of what Jun Mo just said. The earth was shaking and the water in the puddles was rippling. They were still far away. But because of the intensity it seemed like an approaching tornado that could almost blow away the autumn rain.


    In the north, Xu Shi led the cavalrymen of Tang and broke through the three defense lines of the West-Hill in the morning. They already got to the Bridgeside Town located only forty miles away from Peach Mountain.


    In the east, Guanhai Monk was leading hundreds of soldier monks from the Lanke Temple and charged silently in the autumn rain. The several powerful figures from Buddhism including the chess masters should be arriving sooner.


    To the west in the Snowtree Vige, the grey-haired Cheng Lixue had gathered his former subordinates from the Revtion Institute and was about to reach Peach Mountain. He stared at the Revtion Institute on top of Peach Mountain where he grew up and felt aplex of emotions.


    To the South, countless Xiu Swords shone in the gloomy valley. The wet trees were cut down by the swords. The blood-colored sacred sedan and the white royal sedan proceeded among the tens of thousands of troops from the Great River Kingdom and got closer to Peach Mountain. The deacons from the Divine Halls of West-Hill dared not to say a word along their way.


    Peach Mountain was encircled and the Divine Halls of West-Hill endangered. Jun Mo said that from now on, no one could leave Peach Mountain. He was not being arrogant. The Academy was fully qualified for such a im now.


    Surprisingly the Academy did not start attacking the Peach Mountain right away. It was probably because of the Butcher who was in the small town right now. Or there might be some other reasons.


    It seemed that the Academy was waiting for something. Many had noticed that at such a crucial or even thest stage, Ning Que was not present, neither was Long Qing.


    ...


    ...


    Some days ago Ning Que finished his practicing of watching the rocks cracking in the Lanke Temple. He put on a satisfying smile upon looking at the hundreds of statues of Sangsang ced in front of the hall in the showering rain.


    He picked a most satisfying stone statue and carried it along. It was a statue of Sangsang sleeping on the side. She was sleeping on a heated tform but still curling up. She was trying to get into someone¡¯s arms while her feet were left outside the quilt, soft and white like two charming lotus flowers.


    He left the Wa Mountain in the autumn rain and set off for the pursuit of Sangsang again. This time he seemed more confident. He intuitively headed to the north.


    Next to the Wa Mountain there was the Song Kingdom. On the border of Song and Yan there was a nameless town. It suddenly started snowing on the day he came to the town, the first snow of the year.


    The only butcher shop in the small town was already closed. But the calligraphy and painting shop was still open. Since the Drunkard was gone, there was only the smell of tea and ink now.


    Ning Que stepped into the calligraphy and painting shop, ced the fried chicken on the table, looked toward the slightly stoop shop-owner and said, ¡°Let¡¯s grab a drink or two.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu turned to him and shocked his head. Then he brought two cups.


    Zhang San and Li Si heard the noise and came to the front. They were surprised to see him. They looked around and closed the door as fast as they could, then greeted him.


    ¡°Youngest Uncle.¡±


    Ning Que nodded and implied them to bring their own cups for the rice wine. He said, ¡°The Butcher is on Peach Mountain. The Drunkard is after the Eldest Brother. There¡¯s no need to worry.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°I spent a very long time to set it up.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°So we could never be too cautious? Fine. I admit that I am here to break your n. I don¡¯t want you to continue with it.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu asked, ¡°Can you kill him?¡±


    Ning Que did not answer. The Drunkard was at the Distanceless and Immeasurable State. Even the Eldest Brother and the Senior Sister together might not be able to take him down, not to mention Ning Que himself.


    ¡°I¡¯m heading to the north. But I have a bad feeling about this trip.¡± He stared calmly at Chao Xiaoshu and said, ¡°You should go back to Chang¡¯an. Your wife, your children and your father are all waiting for you there.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu did not ept his proposal. Instead, he raised the cup and said, ¡°Cheers.¡±


    Ning Que tossed off to show sincerity.


    Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°Then off you go.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Being driven out of the small town. Ning Que proceeded to the north carrying the stone statue.


    He did not know the exact location. But it was certainly in the north.


    The small town was located on the border of Song and Yan. Not far from the small town it was already in Yan¡¯s territory. There was a river parallel to the Sishui River running from the north to the south, entering the Great Swamp, joining the Great River and eventually going in to the sea.


    Ning Que rode on the big ck horse and swiftly crossed the fields and hills on the east side of the river.


    It was early winter. The moist mist above the river seemed frosting and made it seem unworldly especially in the morning.


    Ning Que thought that he saw his own reflection in the mist.


    The mist above the river seemed like a mirror.


    Until the morning sun rose and the mist was dispelled he realized that there was no mirror in the mist. And it was neither a reflection of himself on the other side of the river. It was a man who was also riding on a horse.


    Simr to him, that man was also dressed in ck and riding on a ck horse.


    The only difference was that Ning Que wore a ck Academy suit, while that man wore a ck divine robe.


    That man was Long Qing.


    ...

 Chapter 1086 - The Strait

    <h4>Chapter 1086: The Strait</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    This river had a lot of names, and in around 20 miles of bypassing the territory of Tang, it was referred to as Wei River. In the Yan Kingdom, it was called Yi River or Juma River. In the Song Kingdom it was known as Tongtian River, because there was a tributary that flowed directly into the Storm Sea, and the Song Kingdom had always insisted that it was the main channel, hence theypletely ignored that this river could flow through the other seven hundred miles ofnd before it reached the Great Swamp.


    No one has ever called it the Great River because there was already a Great River at the south of the world, but this was actually an enormous river full of water, the waves were very wide, the wind blew across the paddy field and flowers on both sides of the strait, fostering countless human beings.


    Especially during this period before and after the Yan Kingdom, the river was extremely wide, separated by a distance of hundreds of feet. It was difficult to make out the faces of people on the other side of the river, no matter how good one¡¯s eyesight was, and of course it was impossible to recognize who the other party was.


    But with one look across the river, Ning Que recognized the man as Long Qing. It was an indescribable feeling, just like a big river flowing into the sea, something that came naturally.


    The world was so big, and Yi River was so cold. There were many wars, mes of battles raging everywhere, people who were supposed to run away had long fled. It was rare to see traces of people while walking in the wilderness, but someone had appeared on the other side of the river.


    That person, of course, could only be Long Qing.


    The big ck horse stopped, Ning Que looked to the other side, and at the same time, Long Qing also stopped riding and looked toward Ning Que. Both of their eyes met on the surface of the surging river, it was not those kind of moments described in the literature: It turns out you are here too. And so they would just simply tell each other that they had seen one another, so neither of them could leave.


    After looking at each other silently for a moment, Ning Que reined lightly and continued to speed north; Long Qing on the other side was also heading north, his ride was obviously extraordinary that it actually could keep up with the speed of the big ck horse.


    Winter was in the air. Ning Que felt slightly hungry and stopped by a river bend. He took out some food and began to eat by the river. Long Qing also stopped and drank several mouthfuls from his wine bottle to quench his thirst.


    Twilight engulfed the countryside, Ning Que stopped and picked up some branches to start a fire. He let the big ck horse wander around and rest while he himself sat by the fire to roast wild wheat until it was slightly scorched and then began to chew it in his mouth. It did not take long for a fire to burn on the other side, which stood out in the early evening.


    The morning light shone the earth, Ning Que woke up and walked to the shore to scoop up a handful of cold piercing river water and washed his face. As he looked up, he saw Long Qing was using a leather bag to draw water without looking to this side.


    Ning Que continued to travel north whereas Long Qing continued to apany him on the other side.


    Both of them did not speak, they were in absolute silence, no eye threat, not even a trace of hostility, not to mention flying swords and arrows, peach blossom and Divine Talisman.


    When they arrived at the borders of Yan Kingdom, the river veered west into a narrow gorge. The river became much narrower than it had been yesterday, and they were able to see the people on the other side more clearly.


    Ning Que and Long Qing still went forth silently, just like the two sides of the river.


    Whether it was the left or right bank, in fact, the river banks always looked simr. There would be water grass, gravel, stone steps at ces where people were usually found, and bluestone which was used to wash clothes. There would be garbage thrown into the river by people on the boat, rotten vegetables or leaves floating on the water, and also a winding stream.


    Nothing was more like a river-bank than a river-bank itself, but the two sides of the river were always parallel, and there was no chance of the two sides meeting unless they flowed back to their source or into the Great Swamp or the sea.


    The person most simr to yourself is often your enemy. You have been fighting with that person for years and you seem to know each other very well, but you have never reallye in contact with each other, instead, all you did was just looked at each other.


    As they went upstream, the wind grew colder, Yi River was also colder and narrower, and Ning Que was able to clearly see Long Qing¡¯s eyes and brows, realizing the scar on him had faded a lot. Long Qing could also see the little freckles on his cheeks and the rope made of straw that was wrapped around the iron knife handle on his shoulder.


    Two days after entering the north mountains of Yan Kingdom, they went to the end of the river where there were no more mountains. There was endless fog, like white clouds rising from the ground, as wonderful as a fairnd, at the same time covering each other¡¯s figure.


    There were raging sounds of watering from the clouds as they crashed into the cliffs, the sound fading. Imagine how steep the unseen river had be in the valley.


    Ning Que dismounted from the big ck horse and looked at the opposite bank of the fog, wondering if Long Qing was still there.


    Then, in the fog, came Long Qing¡¯s voice. ¡°What have you written?


    ...


    Ning Que and Long Qing were considered to be enemies of life by many people. In fact, their fates had intertwined over the years, and they met very rarely, but every time they did, it reached a point of life and death, and each win or loss will affect them, in a much broader sense, their future, and destiny.


    Meeting each other at the Yi River bank, they silently moved forward on both sides of the strait. No words were spoken, there was only the light of campfire shining at each other, until they came to the end of the ce where they could no longer see each other, then they began to talk. However, Ning Que never would have thought that the first words spoken by Long Qing would carry such a content, making him narrow his eyes.


    What did Ning Que write using the barbarian blood on the grasnd outside of Wei City? When he went to Lanke Temple during the autumn rain to see the stone broken into three halves, had he ever wrote something? If so, what was written? Was it the final volume of New Stream teachings handed over to Chen Pipi? Or something else?


    ¡°Everyone is at West-Hill. Why did youe here?¡±


    Ning Que did not answer Long Qing¡¯s question, although Long Qing¡¯s first sentence came straight from reading his mind, which left him feeling that what he said did have some truth to it. The person who knew you best was often your enemy.


    The voice of Long Qing could be heard from the clouds once again, ¡°Because you are here.¡±


    Ning Que maintained his expressions and removed the steel bow from his shoulder as if he wanted to rest right there for a moment.


    Long Qing expressed his meaning clearly. To Taoism or the world, the final battle in the Divine Halls of West-Hill was indeed important, but to him, nothing was more important than the whereabouts of Ning Que.


    ¡°A lot of people are specting about when will I go to Chengjing City to kill you, but actually my mind does not bear this thought at all. Other than me not liking to be watched by people, what¡¯s more important was, I have second thoughts about killing you...¡±


    ¡°I knew you wouldn¡¯t be looking for me in Chengjing City, so I was waiting for you at the border all along.¡±


    ¡°There are many fools in the world who thought there would be a fight between us. Have you now be so foolish as to follow the story of all the fools?¡±


    ¡°As I said, I¡¯m not sure of killing you, and... I killed A Da, and also Hengmu, and so on. It was dull and monotonous, it does not meet the aesthetics of the Academy.¡±


    Ning Que looked calmly at the steel bow lying on his knees, he did not know how a dark Steel Arrow had gotten from the quiver to his hand. The whole process of taking the arrow did not make any sound.


    He was telling the truth.


    Now Long Qing was really powerful. Even Elder Brother could not even see through him, how could he not be powerful? The more critical proof was that Abbey Dean had passed the most important mission to Long Qing, which was to kill Ye Su in helping him to be a sage. Such a person was not easy to kill, so why should he risk it?


    But, Ning Que was clear that he himself was very strong too, ording to the meaning of that saying, Long Qing should be clearer about his own strength and whether he was up for it. He did not wish to fight with Long Qing, so why did Long Qing came to stop him?


    ¡°You kill people all over the world, but you¡¯re actually looking for someone. Others wouldn¡¯t understand, but I do. You killed Hengmu and A Da just to find her, and you think that you will get some information by killing them, since they themselves have verified the rumours that has been circling around the world, about them being her gifts or sons that she left in the world. Of course, you will still get the slightest bit of information when you kill them.¡±


    Deep in the clouds, Long Qing went quiet for a moment, then he continued again.


    ¡°I am different, I am not a gift left by Haotian to the world. From that moment onwards, I¡¯m not even qualified to be her son, of course, now I have lost interest in this kind of alias. I am nothing, I betrayed her and I only believed in myself. In this case, killing me means nothing, so why risk it?¡±


    ¡°Yes,¡± Ning Que said, his fingers gently caressing the bowstring, which was as hard as stone and as stable as a mountain.


    Long Qing said, ¡°You will not take the initiative to kill me, but I wanted toe and find you... because I feel you are getting closer to finding her. I have different thoughts with my teacher, I thought you had the best chance of finding her so I can¡¯t let you go on. I don¡¯t care what you wanted to write but I can¡¯t let you write it anymore.


    Ning Que raised his head and looked into the depths of the clouds, ¡°You have high expectations for me,¡± he said.


    The voice of Long Qing sounded, ¡°Those who had despised you are all dead.¡±


    Ning Que was silent for a moment and replied, ¡°I despised you a lot before back when you wanted to be her maidservant.¡±


    Long Qing said, ¡°Yes, looking back at that time and thinking about her identity, I find myself to be rather stupid, arrogant, and idiotic.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°This is the first time you used the word ¡®idiot¡¯. You are powerful, which leaves me with nothing to say.¡±


    Long Qing replied, ¡°Thanks a lot.¡±


    Ning Que continued, ¡°After that, I shot an arrow at you on the snow cliff, but you actually survived. You survived shamelessly and alerted me as I live in such a way too. In fact, you almost killed me during that autumn rain at Red Lotus Temple.¡±


    The voice of Long Qing had a hint of regretfulness, ¡°But I still didn¡¯t manage to kill you in the end.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Now that I think about it, everything that has happened is God¡¯s will.¡±


    Long Qing agreed, ¡°Haotian has been by your side back in that year, of course, God¡¯s will sides with you too.¡±


    ¡°If I were you, I would be dissatisfied,¡± Ning Que said.


    Long Qing replied, ¡°Nothing to be dissatisfied with.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Otherwise, why would you be here now?¡±


    He had asked this question before, and Long Qing had answered it. In order to not let him find Sangsang, in order to not let him write that very word, for Taoism or the world, for brilliance, greatness, justice...


    Yet he had asked again.


    Long Qing was silent for a long time, then gave a new answer. ¡°Yes, this is an unnecessary fight. Haotian, Taoism, the world... and that word you wrote were all excuse. I just wanted to see if I could kill you now because I... am dissatisfied.¡±


    In the mist, his voice was very calm, like a naughty child that stripped off his clothes ying mud in the river, that had finally obtained freedom and happiness, so real that it left people surging with emotions.


    Among the quietness, there was nothing but the sound of water.


    Ning Que stood up and looked at the clouds where the sound hade from. He didn¡¯t speak for a long time.


    Long Qing also did not speak for a long time.


    The world was huge, and they did not meet much, but each and every time they met it would be engraved in their hearts. Wanting a handmaiden at the banquet, the mountaineering of the two-floor high mountain, the arrow that broke the boundary on the snow cliff, three times in a row, all were won by Ning Que.


    Because of the Steel Arrow, Long Qing became a disabled person, he gave up his fiancee, entered the dark and became a devil. He learned the practice of Grey Eyes and betrayed Taoism. He thought it was a great sess, thus nned an ambush in front of Red Lotus Temple and waited for Ning Que. He did not expect that Ning Que had learned the Practice of Taotie, even if it looked like two wild dogs biting each other, the final victory still belonged to Ning Que.


    There were still many stories following those, the bountiful ones; the bitter ones; the morous ones, and the heavy ones. Two of them walked along the two sides of the river in ordance with their own destiny, they survived through hardships and continued to shine.


    Until they met each other in this desperate ce, as they sat and prattled.


    It was about life and death, just these two words.


    Dissatisfied.


    If there was already Ning Que in the world, what¡¯s the point of me being here?


    Long Qing, dissatisfied.


    This story was too long and it was time for an ending.


    With reason, or without, it did not matter.


    Ning Que quietly looked at the depths of clouds, he could feel the will and became emotional. He had felt that will in many ces he had been before.


    Such as at the bottom of Damingke, such as the cliff caves in the mountain right behind the Academy.


    He did not expect that Long Qing¡¯s unreconciled will was so strong. He had a lot of respect for Long Qing.


    He raised his steel bow, aimed at the position confirmed by the conversation they had and did not hesitate to release.


    Swoosh, the Steel Arrow was released from the string and disappeared without a trace.


    His face was as calm and cold as ever.


    After saying a few words, reminiscing the past, showing some respect and emotion, but, I still want to kill you.


    Since you had been in dissatisfaction for such a long time, so, please continue to feel so, until you¡¯ve reached theherworld.


    ...

 Chapter 1087 - The Banquet (I)

    <h4>Chapter 1087: The Banquet (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Through deep clouds and dense mist, they could only hear the voices without seeing the faces. It would have been a good chance for a sincere conversation and an honest retrospect over their life. They could have recalled the good old days andughed away the hatred, or at least felt for each other and sighed over the ups and downs. After that they should straighten their clothes and pull out their swords for a fairst round of their lifetime confrontation.


    No one would have expected that Ning Que would attack all of a sudden with his mightiest iron arrow, andunch a meanest strike at such a wonderful moment. If only there were some audience they would definitely be stunned by his shamelessness.


    Upon a light hum by the firm bowstring of the iron bow, the iron arrow pierced through the air and disappeared in a split second. The river bickered indistinctly among the mist while a clear and horrifying tunnel in the clouds was made by the arrow.


    There was no one on the other end of the tunnel, nor any sounds. The iron arrow flew across the hills on the other side of the river and headed for somewhere afar. Or probably it would fall into the stormy sea.


    Ning Que¡¯s ruthless and brutal sneak attack was made in vain because his enemy today was the one who knew him the best. He knew his shamelessness and ruthlessness. Therefore he would never spare him the chance.


    But it was still confusing. Long Qing had been talking over there and Ning Que had been staring at the origin of the voice. How could Long Qing expect Ning Que¡¯s action and get away in advance?


    The tunnel created by the arrow was gradually covered. The disturbed Qi of Heaven and Earth spread around and created bouts of swirling breeze. The bouts of breeze joint together and formed some tornado that roared and blew away the clouds.


    When he could see the other side of the river clearly, Ning Que became more solemn.


    There were many people on the other side of the river, intensively dotted like ghosts hidden among the rocks. They seemed extremely powerful and their eyes were grey and chilling. Hundreds of eyes stared ruthlessly at him. It was weird and horrible.


    These powerful cultivators who followed Long Qing seemed like a group of hungry wolves right now.


    Then Ning Que found Long Qing.


    A moment ago he was calmly stating his unwillingness and making everyone else think that he was asking for a fair fight with Ning Que. Now he was standing behind the hundreds of powerful cultivators, extremely prudent and dangerous. Himself and his energy seemed incrediblyplicated.


    The iron arrow failed to hit the target. Yet it was also a signal for theunching of the battle.


    Hundreds of powerful cultivators shouted out while they dashed into the roaring river. The water was not deep in the upstream and could barely reach their knees. They sshed the water while making a horrifying charge.


    Instead of pulling out his de, Ning Que held onto the iron bow and waited patiently.


    The flying swords were the first to arrive. Several shining Taoist swords pierced through the air and the remaining mist, and sizzled toward his body.


    Ning Que paid no attention to the swords. Instead he gazed at Long Qing behind the crowd who was retreating into the woods. He even did not blink when those Taoist swords shed in front of his eyes.


    Several Taoist swords stabbed onto him almost at the same time.


    Strange cracking sounds were heard by the riverbank. The sounds were very loud and even covered the roar of the rushing river. It sounded like a child cutting on a long-preserved pig¡¯s foot with a blunt knife, and the knife slipping over the firm skin without making any cut.


    Even the sharp Taoist swords could not pierce through his skin.


    The moment when the swords stabbed onto his body, Ning Que burnt out the connections between the Taoist swords and their masters with Haotian¡¯s Divine me. Upon the strange cracking sounds the Taoist swords were bent and thrown onto the ground like scraps.


    He proceeded and suddenly saw a cliff at the other side of the mist-free valley. Down the cliff there was a blue Rognon Sea. It seemed familiar. He might have been there. Indeed, he was there once. It was where he met Mo Shanshan and the girls from the ck Ink Garden for the first time.


    All of a sudden he missed her. Ever since Sangsang left the human world he had not been thinking of Mo Shanshan or any other girls in the human world for a long while. But the moment the mist was gone and the blueke appeared today, he suddenly was missing them. He could not figure out why.


    Could it be because he was not confident in defeating Long Qing, or even leaving the riverbank safe and sound? Although it would make no difference to be buried here or anywhere else, he thought it might be nice to die here today because of the good memories associated with this ce.


    Those cultivators crossing the river were all top figures from Taoism. They followed Long Qing for years in the battles in the East Wilderness as well as the Yan Kingdom. They possessed incredibly firm will power. It could neither frighten them nor slow them down even when they had realized Ning Que¡¯s powerfulness and witnessed that the Taoist swords could not hurt him the slightest.


    The roaring river was sshed in their charge. Hundreds of powerful Taoist cultivators came from the other side toward Ning Que. They called back the flying Taoist swords and held them tightly in the hands. Then they stabbed toward Ning Que.


    That was the truth of cultivation that Ke Haoran and Liu Bai had revealed to the world. One had better keep his natal sword as close as possible in order to keep their natal bond. And the closer he got to his enemy, the easier he could break the enemy¡¯s defense.


    A middle-aged man in leather armor held a sword and leaped emotionlessly in to the air in front of Ning Que. He yed no tricks and chopped the sword onto Ning Que¡¯s head immediately. It was so fast that it made no sound even when piercing through the air.


    It was a meaningful and mighty strike.


    Despite his powerfulness Ning Que could notpletely ignore such a sword strike.


    He found the middle-aged man familiar. Then he realized that he was the cavalry leader Ye Hongyu expelled from the Divine Hall of Judgment years ago, who had be one of the most horrifying fallen leaderster on.


    Ning Que raised the iron bow, held the bow tightly in his left hand and pulled randomly on the bowstring with his right hand. Upon a slight strum the bowstring swung back to the normal position.


    The cavalry leader wondered how could he kill without an arrow on the bow. A momentter, the cavalry leader turned extremely pale. Light shed in his grey eyes while he yelled and ced his sword in front of his body. Because he sensed the killing intent.


    There was a killing intent instead of an arrow on the iron bow.


    Ning Que released the bowstring and a sharp killing intent pierced through the air.


    Upon a slight sizzling a fresh mark was made on cavalry leader¡¯s sword and broke the sword from the middle. Right after that a slight blood line was made on his wrist.


    Like a ripe fruit falling off the tree, the hand of the cavalry leader fell onto the ground.


    Ning Que raised the iron bow and knocked down a cultivator who attacked from the side. Immediately after that he pulled the bowstring again and released it toward the cavalry leader who justnded on the ground.


    A slight strum was heard as if someone was ying a zither.


    A blood line appeared on the body of the cavalry leader.


    The blood line started from his left shoulder and carried deeply through to the bottom of his ribs.


    In the next moment the upper half of his body fell onto the ground like a copsing hill.


    On both sides of the roaring river, it turned quiet for a second.

 Chapter 1088 - The Banquet (II)

    <h4>Chapter 1088: The Banquet (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Who said that one couldn¡¯t shoot a man dead without an arrow? Many people would say so.


    The sound made by the string had spread throughout the mist before the river shore. No one had ever seen someone kill another without nocking an arrow. When Ning Que killed themander surnamed Zi, cut him into dozens of pieces of flesh in the autumn rain in front of the Red Lotus Temple just by using his bowstring, Long Qing and his subordinates were fleeing to the mountains. They did not witness the scene.


    In the autumn rain, Ning Que got to know about his fate. From that moment on, he had the power to kill with bowstring, but he never practiced it in the following years. He had suppressed his power in the deepest depths of the quiver, and only showed it to the world today as he faced the powerful cultivators that were closing in on him.


    Hundreds of powerful cultivators pounced on him with no fear of death.


    Ning Que pulled the bowstring in silence.


    There was a soft buzzing sound! A heavy iron cuss was cut in half, and the strong man holding the knife got his right arm amputated. He let out a painful howl, and fell into the river as he was unable to maintain his bnce.


    A middle-aged man in a priest robe roared, and the green sword in his hand turned into a dragon. With the majestic breath of Heaven and Earth, he guided the water from the river and hurled it right in his face.


    He raised his steel bow, and pulled his bowstring, aiming toward the dragon formed from the river.


    There was another soft buzzing!


    The dragon made of water was ripped apart right in the middle, and a tear appeared on the robe of the middle-aged man. The tear expanded rapidly, as fresh blood gushed out, dying the river in red instantly. He fell heavily into the bloody water, and could no longer stand up.


    A strong man in leather tunic from the east pulled the bowstring, and pointed it to the opposite side of the river.


    Without even looking at him, Ning Que drew his bow and shot an arrow. The murderous aura skimmed across the river, sshing the water. The arrow was slightly dampened, and it started to have an indistinct shape, heading straight to the opponent at an unimaginable speed.


    There was a loud crack, as the bow in the hands of the strong man from the east broke. The bowstring was split into two pieces, scattering in the air. The scattered strings were even more beautiful than the water sshes. The broken bow hit him hard in the face right in his eyes, knocking out a mixture of blood and liquid.


    However, the strong man from the east did not mourn or yell in pain. This was because the murderous aura from Ning Que¡¯s bowstring did not dissipate after breaking his hard bow. On the contrary, it continued to move forward, and directly chopped off his neck, as his head fell into the river as if it was a rock.


    He only needed to bend the bow and need not to nock an arrow. It was clearly a fake shot, but there was a real intention to kill.


    This was how Ning Que killed people with his steel bow.


    His movement was very stable as his right hand turned into remnants of Tao. Whether it was a Taoist sword or an arrow, nothing could be faster than the murderous aura of the arrow released from the bowstring. Not to mention that the aura was invisible and intangible. How could it be prevented?


    The rapid current of the river turned red with blood in an instant. It was only an encounter, yet several strong men fell to their death. With his lightning fast action in controlling the string, no one was a match for him.


    Ning Que looked at the figure of Long Qing, which was fading into the mountains in the distance, and strode forward into the river. At this time, the hundreds of powerful cultivators had alsoe to his side, as the bloody war raged on.


    Countless of Taoist swords and arrows swished by, dividing the air above the river¡¯s surface into a fast-flowing cyclone. It was like a rapid river current, which had countless dangers in store.


    Even with the strength of Ning Que¡¯s body, he still suffered some injuries in the attack of such high density and strength. His ck uniform was ripped apart, and wounds could be faintly seen under his ribs.


    However, he still looked calm. He silently walked toward the opposite shore with his left hand on the bow, and his right hand on the string. From time to time, he raised his arm to aim, and pulled the bow string with his right hand. The entire movement was stabilized to a perfect extent.


    He was not disturbed by any attacks. Those, who tried to kill him, could not do so in an instant, and those who wanted to attack him were all killed by his steel bow.


    When the bow made a pleasant sound, a trace of blood would appear on one of the powerful cultivators. Regardless of how solid the armor of the person was or how strong the body of the person after cultivation was, nothing could stop the blood trace from getting into the deepest part of the bones and flesh until it was cut in half, or his limbs were amputated, or he was dead.


    No one could stop the pace of Ning Que from going forward, not even those who were fearless of death. Even the battle group, which wasposed of hundreds of powerful cultivators, was driven back by him alone!


    Hundreds of men were forced to retreat due to the steel bow!


    The sound of the string kept ringing, humming and buzzing, like a disordered zither. It was very simr to the noises at the square in front of the White Tower Temple of Yuelun Kingdom¡¯s Chaoyang City that year. However, on that day, the Eldest Brother had broken hundreds of bowstrings to keep Ning Que from being killed, and today, the reason Ning Que plucked the strings unceasingly was to kill as quickly as possible.


    He shot as he walked. Fresh blood sshed continuously, as men fell into the river.


    Ning Que walked to the middle of the river, and stood on a slightly protruded reef. He looked at the mountains in the opposite shore as the wind of the river blew through his hair. He was so silent, and yet powerful.


    The two hundred powerful cultivators, who were still alive, were either standing in the rapid river current, or on the shore. They looked at him with aplicated expression, stopping the attack temporarily.


    Like a small ant trying to shake a mighty tree, I am invincible in the world: a saying used to describe Liu Bai. Ning Que had not reached that level but with the steel bow in hand, who could be his opponent in melees?


    Ning Que looked at the mountains, and said, ¡°Since you are not satisfied, you shoulde forth, and fight justly with me for once. Why would you send these people to their deaths?¡±


    ...


    ...


    Long Qing wasn¡¯t at the river, but was in the dense forest behind the cliff.


    As he looked at the bloody scenes at the river, he was silent with a serene expression.


    Ning Que was very powerful. Although Ning Que exceeded his expectations with his single steel bow, and his power to kill with the strings, he had long expected this man¡¯s power. Hence, he was unmoved.


    When Long Qing heard the words of Ning Que, he wasn¡¯t angered by the humiliation and shame. Instead, his lips curled slightly into a silentughter because he knew that Ning Que was joking.


    There would never be appreciation between Ning Que and him, because neither of them was a hero. There would also never be a fair fight between them like the one between Jun Mo and Ye Su, because they were not gentlemen.


    Whenever Ning Que fought, he would use the strongest Thirteen Primordial Arrows for his sneak attack. Who would be qualified to say that he was outnumbered by therge group of enemies?


    Long Qing knew his shamelessness. In order to defeat him, he must be equally or even more shameless. In order to win, he could do whatever it would take, and even selling his soul would not matter. What more could he care about?


    Taoism had already been shaken by the storms, so he wouldn¡¯t return to Peach Mountain. The Northeast Battlefront Army of the Tang Empire had prated deeply into the Yan territory. As long as the Elder Brother were to make the slightest inappropriate decision, Chengjing would be ughtered. He would not return to the capital.


    He cared about none of these but only Ning Que. Why? Because he was not satisfied. How could he be? Of course it was not by defeating the opposition justly, but by killing the opposition. After he died, he would naturally feel the satisfaction. Between Ning Que and him, the person who died first will be the first to get satisfactory.


    Long Qing knew this well, and so did Ning Que. Ning Que was only joking, so he broke intoughter. Long Qingughed because he knew that he was about to win.


    Ning Que had used up all his Fu paper in the City of Wei, and all his Haoran Qi at the Qinghe Prefecture, but he could still write characters. However, he had to use his Psyche Power if he wanted to write the characters. He could also call out the Haotian¡¯s divine me, but his stomach no longer had the Haoran Qi that was cultivated through the years. If he wanted to absorb the Qi of Heaven and Earth into his body, he would need arge amount of Psyche Power.


    The whole world knew that Ning Que was just like Ye Hongyu, as they had both cultivated multiple doctrines simultaneously, and were geniuses in it. Aside from Xia Hou, there was hardly anyone who could force out all his cards. It was even more impossible with his current state of strength.


    But he had travelled miles to kill, and although he had a religious retreat for a period of time at the Lanke Temple, it was impossible to be as powerful as when he had just left the City of Chang¡¯an. There were some means that he could not regain in a short time.


    What Long Qing wanted to do was to force him to deplete his Psyche Power.


    He had lured Ning Que into shooting the steel arrow. He had let hundreds of thest, most loyal and strongest subordinates to attack without fear of death, and died one followed by the other, just to deplete Ning Que¡¯s Psyche Power.


    The Psyche Power was the foundation of cultivation, the firewood of the battle me, and the all in all.


    No one had ever thought of winning Ning Que by using the consumption of Psyche Power because his Psyche Power was extremely strong. It was also something that many people knew about, but Long Qing dared to think like that, and so he thought so.


    Because he was the only person who knew a fact.


    No one could have more or stronger Psyche Power than him!


    Not even Ning Que!

 Chapter 1089 - The Banquet (III)

    <h4>Chapter 1089: The Banquet (III)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Long Qing was confident because he was never alone. He had many people inside, as well as around him by the river. Those were no ordinary cavalrymen. They were the most powerful cultivators from Taoism and the East Royal Court. Even if Ning Que could defeat ten thousands of enemies by himself, he would never be able to take down these powerful cultivators effortlessly.


    Ning Que also noticed something strange today: none of the cultivators were intimidated by his iron bow. Instead, they charged fearlessly and continuously.


    When he took their hands, they held the weapons in their other hands and attacked again. When he took their legs, they hopped on with single legs. Those wounded jumped out of their own blood and never cared about being killed in the next moment. It was weirdly horrifying.


    The scary scene unveiled their horrifying fighting wills. Ning Que stood on a rock and kept pulling the bowstring. He seemed indifferent and killed the approaching enemies one after another in the river. But he had actually started worrying. How could they possess such powerful and inhumanly strong will?


    All of a sudden he noticed that their eyes seemed different. People from the Central ins had ck pupils, while the grasnd barbarians¡¯ pupils were brown. But these people¡¯s pupils were as grey as the leaden clouds in the sky.


    Over two hundreds of powerful cultivators dashed toward him in the river. They encircled him and attacked. They were calm and even senseless no matter how badly they were wounded. There was no fear in their grey eyes but only desperate killing intent and self-destructive resolution.


    Staring at the hundreds of grey eyes, Ning Que felt like being encircled by hundreds of hungry wolves. The air was chilling and his movements became slow while he worried.


    He slowed down not because he wanted a pause. But rather he tried to make every strike count. He tried to cut them in two at the waist or the neck, or at least take a leg to stop them from proceeding properly, so as to slow down the intense attack by the wolves.


    He acted prudently because he sensed the danger. Right now countless Taoist swords and arrows were flying over the river. The Qi of Heaven and Earth were disturbed by hundreds of psyches. No matter how fast his attack could be, he had to consume his energy, his psyche or even his flesh for each strike.


    Even the tiniest cost could be umted and affect the result of the battle. A tiny leak would sink a giant ship. He had to be exceptionally cautious. Furthermore, the grey eyes of these powerful cultivators who attacked like hungry wolves kept reminding him of the horrible technique Long Qing had been practicing. He never forgot that Long Qing had not made a single strike so far. He must have been waiting for a chance while hiding in the woods.


    The river still roared, but the cloudy mist was gone. There was no dazzling sun. But dim light shed on the rushing river by the cliff, the fighting crowd and the blue Rognon Sea down the cliff.


    Ning Que kept walking toward the other side of the river. People kept falling in front of his iron bow. But he was slowing down. His steps seemed heavier and he looked more solemn.


    Long Qing was indeed waiting for a chance, and he was certain that it would eventuallye. He and Ning Que knew each other too well to make any plot. Their cultivation and skills werepletely exposed in front of each other under the daylight. Any n had to be made frankly and any possibility had to be considered reasonably.


    Under the countless rounds of attack by the hundreds of fearless cultivators, Ning Que would eventually be exhausted. No matter how cautious he tried to be, he would eventually show his weakness.


    Light scattered on Long Qing¡¯s face through the leaves, as if there were more scars. He watched quietly and focused on the fighting scene in the river, and saw Ning Que stepped down the rock and came toward him.


    Ning Que was still pulling the bowstring steadily, and his steps were still firm. But... too firm.


    With his hands pulling on the string he stepped into the river. His movements were precisely rhythmic. But the preciseness somehow seemed stiff.


    The easy manner Ning Que had kept since the beginning of the battle was gradually influenced by people¡¯s blood and scattered limbs. He could only control the momentum through his rhythm now.


    When he tried hard to get things under control, it meant he was about to lose it.


    That was the chance Long Qing had been waiting for.


    Some deadly chilling wind came from the woods. A dozen of frightened birds fled in chirps. But they became frozen and fell onto the ground before they could make it over the woods.


    A thinyer of frost appeared on the ground. It spread outside the woods toward the river bank. It froze some breakers on the bank, then thousands of waves.


    Long Qing appeared like a ghost above the roaring river in front of Ning Que, and left two lines on the frozen waves like tracks of wheels.


    The frozen scene from the woods to the river was created by the deadly energy he spread in the split second. It darted incredibly fast toward Ning Que.


    Right then Ning Que had just pulled the bowstring and cut an East Wilderness warrior into two. His right foot was about to step onto a slippery rock.


    He was raising his hand and making his steps rhythmically. The swords and des flying over the river could not interrupt. He was about to proceed non-stop.


    But Long Qing was powerful enough to break the rhythm at the most critical beat.


    A secluded and lonely ck peach flower pounded onto Ning Que¡¯s face with overwhelming deadly energy!


    Ning Que was holding the bow in his left hand. And his right hand had just left the bow string and to finish the Tai Chi move, Grasping the Bird¡¯s Tail.


    Ning Que pulled back his right hand like a sh and got hold of the lower part of the bow. With his left hand holding on the middle, he pushed the iron bow forward and pressed against the ck peach flower.


    His actions seemed seamless and effortless as if he knew Long Qing woulde at this point.


    But only Long Qing and himself knew that the series of seamless actions was not effortless. His momentum was interrupted and his psyche was spoiled. His right hand could not finish Grasping the Bird¡¯s Tail and barely made the strike.


    Long Qing stood on the rock. He stared at Ning Que emotionlessly while his feet rooted into the rock.


    Ning Que stood in the river. His right foot was not yet ced on the rock and he could not stay steadily.


    The jet-ck iron bow was pressed against the ck peach flower.


    The roaring river became quiet at this moment.


    Then there came a huge bang! The ck rock under Long Qing¡¯s feet was crushed. Horrible energy sshed around.


    There were two distinctive lines on the surface of the river as if it was plowed. It was the mark made by Ning Que¡¯s feet when he was knocked away.


    He darted across the river and pounded onto the cliff!


    Dust prevailed and the earth quaked.


    The river started rushing again like before.


    Long Qing stood in the water. His ck divine robe was dusted and soaking. He was pale and disheveled. Blood was dripping from his lips and made him seem miserable.


    But his eyes were shining like stars. Because when he looked toward the cliff at the other side of the river, he saw a dark cave behind the settling dust.


    No one knew how far Ning Que was knocked into the cliff.


    Long Qing knew that Ning Que was not dead. But he had won this round without using any tricks or techniques. It was simply a tough confrontation of psyche and level of cultivation.


    It mattered a lot. Therefore he smiled.


    A momentter Ning Que¡¯s voice was heard from behind the cliff. He seemed tired, but still firm.


    ¡°Making a sneak attack while exhausting my psyche with your countless loyal warriors... How shameless. But you seemed pretty satisfied?¡± Ning Que came out of the cliff and said to Long Qing.


    His clothes were stained in blood. It did not came from the wound made by the iron bow. He coughed blood.


    Long Qing smiled at him and said nothing.


    The powerful cultivators did not wait for further order but charged toward Ning Que desperately like hungry wolves.


    Deafening shing of weapons were heard again by the river. The Qi of Heaven and Earth was cut into pieces by the swords and des.


    Long Qing would never spare Ning Que any time or chance to meditate and restore his psyche.


    The sound of the iron bow thundered again over the roaring river and took countless lives.


    It seemed the same as always. But it was actually not the same. Ning Que was still acting firmly but somewhat stiff. He still seemed calm. But deep down in his eyes there were someplicated sensations.


    These powerful cultivators were obviously under the control of Long Qin¡¯s secret technique, or at least some inhibition. When their pupils turned grey, it did not elevate their level of cultivation but enforced their horrifying will power. They would fight until thest minute as long as they were not killed or smashed.


    Many people assumed that as long as a person was powerful he could kill whatever enemy in the world he wanted. But they never knew that as long as he was a human being, he would be exhausted. So would his psyche.


    Ning Que¡¯s psyche was gradually consumed. It was not draining, but there were signs of exhaustion.


    When the signs were shown, the deadly energy appeared again by the roaring river. Even the cold-resistant fish under the water were frozen. Long Qing came again at him.


    A ck peach flower bloomed right in front of his face.


    Ning Que did not sense the light fragrance, nor enjoy the beauty of the ck petals.


    He stared at Long Qing who was behind the ck peach flower. His right hand was Grasping the Bird¡¯s Tail. But instead of pulling back to get hold of the bow, he conveniently reached further in the chilling wind to get hold of the tilt of the iron de!


    There was a whiz!


    The iron de was pulled out and the chilling wind by the river was ceased and pierced!


    He never spared a nce at the approaching ck peach flower but kept staring at Long Qing behind.


    The iron de pierced chillingly over the ck peach flower and pounded onto Long Qing¡¯s face!


    He knew clearly that if he continued to fight like this he would be eventually exhausted. Even if he could kill all these cultivators, Long Qing would eventually kill him.


    If there¡¯s no way I can survive, then let¡¯s die together. He gazed at Long Qing. And made the invitation.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 1090 - The Banquet (IV)

    <h4>Chapter 1090: The Banquet (IV)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    If we couldn¡¯t be born on the same day, then we shall choose to die together, a saying which was often used by couples who were deeply in love with each other. Somehow it could also be used to describe two enemies in extreme rivalry, with a little twist, that is to fight till the bitter end. In fact, when the enemies have reached the stage of only one of them could live, they would usually die together in the end.


    Ning Que decided not to bother about the ck peach blossom which wasunching toward him but instead swung his cuss toward Long Qing. He was inviting Long Qing to die together, though he himself did not have the intention to die. Ning Que believed Long Qing would notpromise himself just like that, therefore he would retreat and Ning Que would have gained an advantage.


    Ning Que was confident, because he wasn¡¯t born rich. He had to struggle through everything since young and this made him understand that if one wasn¡¯t afraid of death, death will note looking. As for Long Qing, he was born rich, and it took him some hardships before reaching where he was now, how could someone give up their life when he had only enjoyed it for a short moment?


    Long Qing had learned a few lessons after getting out from the Abyss, he had new understandings about death and lost. He knew, better than anyone, if he was to contest Ning Que in terms of strength, he would have lost because of Ning Que¡¯s undeniable power. This decision would cost him everything, that was why he shall make a retreat instead of an attack.


    No matter how much I consider, Long Qing should retreat, he should choose to keep himself away from my iron cuss. That was what Ning Que thought.


    However, when the ck peach blossom hadn¡¯t been affected at all but instead held steady as it cut through the air, making a full swing toward his chest along with the Breath of Heaven and Earth, he was utterly confused.


    The shocking pain erupted from his chest, spreading to all parts of his body, as if it was going to tear everything apart. His ribs were broken, his blood gushing out, as the world in front of him turned bloody red.


    He could have prevented his death at that moment, but Long Qing took the initiative and did not choose to run. In fact, he was continued to attack silently, but he had no idea how the ck peach blossom hadnded on Ning Que¡¯s chest.


    Bang. Ning Que¡¯s ck uniform was torn into pieces, his blood stting to every corner. His lips, nostrils, eyes and even ears, were all bleeding.


    At the same time, Ning Que¡¯s iron cuss fell from his palm. Coincidentally, itnded exactly on Long Qing¡¯s forehead! A terrifying noise was heard!


    He wasn¡¯t wearing his Silver Mask, but it was as if there was an invisible one shielding Long Qing¡¯s face from the sharp de piercing through. The mournful and shrill noise was heard everywhere!


    Long Qing¡¯s expression was twisted together, his face pale, as if he was in agony. A blood-curdling bellow came from within his lips!


    The limitless Breath of Heaven and Earth was summoned by Long Qing through his ck peach blossom, as it headed for Ning Que¡¯s chest!


    Ning Que was soaked in blood. Though his eyes were bloodshot, he was still as calm as ss. He was in an unbearable amount of pain while putting the strength of his whole boy on the iron cuss!


    The keen edged de moved another inch toward Long Qing and that was when his blood streaked down!


    Long Qing¡¯s bellow was even more mournful, just like how the wolves howl, or it could be defined as some sorrow moan. His eyes turned dark, while his brows had gone with the wind. Between breaths, his appearance was changing, he was turning into someone else!


    Ning Que knew some unseen danger was approaching, but he was still silentlyunching his cuss at Long Qing.


    Long Qing¡¯s bellow continued, his appearance was changing continuously, as if he could turn into multiple people at once!


    Following his continuous change, a horrific force suddenly shielded his face, obstructing the iron cuss!


    ...


    The ck peach blossom relinquished, and the ck iron cuss fell. Although there was no way to say who was facing life or death, they were already at the edge of knowing. The process seemed lengthy, but in fact it was quite short. The cultivators standing on both sides of aggressive river couldn¡¯t lend Long Qing a helping hand, because among the two of them, the battle was decided, and naturally, the winner was decided.


    A deafening sound pierced through the sky, when the river started to act like a reverted waterfall. About four hundred feet curtain of water shot up, stones covered in moss from the water rolled and collided against each other, before breaking down into pieces.


    On the left shore, a deep hole emerged and inside it lied Ning Que, who was covered in blood, ribs broken. Long Qing stood outside the hole, his face solemn but full of fresh blood, like a devil.


    ¡°You think I¡¯m afraid to die?¡± Long Qing¡¯s expression was still. After finishing the sentence, his face changed, agonised, coughing two mouthful of blood out while bending his body. However, he straightened his posture again and repeated his question, ¡°Do you think I¡¯m afraid to die?¡±


    ¡°Betraying my own belief, I¡¯m better off dead. The various Psyche Powers in me right now are shing with each other and I¡¯m forced to live like this every single day and you thought... I will be afraid of death!¡± He was yelling with rage at Ning Que, as if he was trying to unleash his anger.


    ¡°But you¡¯re still scared of dying.¡± Ning Que relied on the edge of the hole and pulled himself up, looking at Long Qing when he said that. He didn¡¯t give up, after suffering injuries this serious. This had nothing to do with state power, it was his belief.


    As predicted by Long Qing, Ning Que¡¯s Haoran Qi had turned into the wind of Qinghe Prefecture, but his belief was still alive.


    Long Qing didn¡¯t know he could still stand, as he remarked, ¡°I admire you for this.¡±


    At the same time, the cultivators standing at the shore who wasn¡¯t sent to death were still able to fight. When the two were talking, they had all made their way toward Ning Que, surrounding him with their swords and cusses.


    The battle today seemed like something between Ning Que and Long Qing only, but to be frank, it was the cultivators who weren¡¯t in the same state as the two of them who caused the differentiative factors. They were like the maggots who fed themselves on the corpses.


    Ning Que wiped his face with the back of his palm and when his palm fell back to its original position, it passed across his chest. His palm was again stained with even more fresh blood. He extended his arm forward and separated his fingers.


    The blood flew with the movements of his fingers and they slowly dissolved into droplets, floating in the air.


    As the wind blew, he wrote using his own blood in the wind. His face turned pale suddenly, not even the bright red blood could cover it up.


    Countless extremely fierce and sharp Talisman Intents filled the sky and the river abruptly.


    The Talisman Intent went across where the cultivators were standing and this caused them to scream in pain, like stumbling war horses, legs and arms dislocated, falling onto the ground immediately.


    Their cries were mixed with the sound of the river, unusually ear-piercing.


    Long Qing¡¯s expression was still. He extended his arm to summon, as the sword from one of the dead Taoism Divine Priest came flying into his palm, turning into a line of clear light, cutting off thest Talisman Intent which wasing silently.


    His surprise attack failed, but Ning Que was calm, talking while his eyes were fixed on Long Qing, ¡°You see, I can still fight.¡±


    Long Qing extended his right arm in the wind, ¡°Please.¡±


    The angry river suddenly turned quiet. This was because the shore was full of raging Talisman Intents and lights of swords. No one knew how much time had passed.


    Ning Que¡¯s Talisman Intents had finished writing.


    In front of Long Qing, there were hundreds of swords broken without their hilts. They were looking at each other from a distance, both soaked with blood, face white, and exhausted.


    In the world of cultivation, it was rare to see a battle like this. Two persons with the same level of state power, who knew each other so well until they could only forcibly fight till thest moment to decide who was the better one out of themselves.


    Until the very end, there was a long silence.


    The river was streaming, singing a song with no definite meaning.


    ¡°Shall we continue?¡± Long Qing asked, his voice hoarse.


    Ning Que did not say anything, and only looked down at the pool of blood beneath his feet.


    ¡°I¡¯ve heard for long, that your Psyche Power outweighs Liu Bai¡¯s, but I¡¯ve never believe it until today. I¡¯ve nned this for so long, so many of my people have sacrificed but you¡¯re still standing.¡±


    Long Qing looked like he was smiling and said, ¡°But... eventually I will exhaust myself, won¡¯t I?¡±


    Ning Que raised his head, staring at him. ¡°How about your Psyche Power? Do you have any left?¡±


    Long Qing knew he was exposed, but he kept his expression straight. ¡°It was a shame that your cuss didn¡¯t kill me, because that means you¡¯ve failed.¡±


    Ning Que started tough. This was the first time heughed ever since the battle began.


    ¡°It just meant that your skin is a little bit thicker than usual.¡± Long Qing replied peacefully, ¡°That is an advantage.¡±


    ¡°Now the problem is, without our Psyche Power, how could you be so sure that you¡¯ll defeat me? You have to know, before I started practicing cultivation, I¡¯ve been very good at killing people.¡±


    Ning Que untied the steel bow, staring Long Qing in the eyes, ¡°When you received my cuss¡¯ attack just now, your ankle had shattered into pieces, that was why you¡¯re fixed at where you are now, so how can you escape now?¡± Finishing the sentence, Ning Que bent and nocked an arrow into the bow, ready to shoot. His Psyche Power was used up, so he couldn¡¯t fire the Thirteen Primordial Arrows, but he could still shoot.


    Just as he said, when he was the Academy¡¯s Mr. Thirteen, he could kill by snapping his fingers. Or when he was a soldier in the City of Wei, he was also an expert in killing. To kill someone, it had nothing to do with Psyche Power.


    He wasn¡¯t far away from Long Qing, their distance were less than a hundred yards, and there were no obstacles between them. Long Qing¡¯s bone was broken and he was standing motionless for a long time, how could he escape from Ning Que¡¯s arrow?


    If this was Long Qing¡¯s n, then Ning Que was the sabotager. The way for him to sabotage Long Qing¡¯s n was to follow Long Qing¡¯s n, follow Long Qing¡¯s way to fulfill his own intentions.


    Even from the very beginning, he knew what Long Qing wanted. He was cooperative, he took the risks, the pain, cooperating all the time in order for Long Qing¡¯s n to work. They had both used up their Psyche Powers, they were ordinary people now.


    When they were ordinary, Long Qing was the prince of Yan Kingdom. And him? He was the Wood-chopper of Shubi Lake.


    Looking at the steel bow in Ning Que¡¯s hand, Long Qing narrowed his eyes and his emotions turnedplicated. However, Ning Que was at peace, he was ready to draw the bow.


    To him, the phrase ¡°draw the bow¡± was a very nice thing to do.


    His rivalry with Long Qing had begun since the banquet and until today, a few years had passed. For all the previous battles during the years, he had imed the final victory but he knew that his did note naturally. He wasn¡¯t born stronger than Long Qing and he was definitely not his natural enemy, it was the chances he took and the will of God which made him the winner.


    Ever since Long Qing¡¯s crushing defeat to him, there were plenty of people who started to despise Long Qing, except for Ning Que himself. Though he seemed not to care about Long Qing, he was actually the one who cared the most because he had won before, he didn¡¯t have the intention to lose to Long Qing anymore. He knew Long Qing was strong in every way he could think of.


    Among all the enemies he had met in his life, Ning Que cared about Long Qing the most. Since he discovered Long Qing was in Red Lotus Temple, without second thoughts, he fired up to seven arrows toward Long Qing. This was something none of the other enemies have had the chance to experience.


    Many years ago, their rivalry was kicked start because of the Steel Arrow on the Snow Cliff. While many yearster, he decided to end this rivalry with the same steel bow at the Mad River.


    Long Qing started tough all of a sudden. Ning Que finally realized theplicated emotions in Long Qing¡¯s eyes were none other than thebination of hoax, mockery, disdain, sympathy and a tiny bit of confusion.


    Someone who ran out of Psyche Power, who was motionless and who could only await death would not be feeling these because these feelings belonged only to the winner. However, these feelings dissipated in the next second.


    Feelings were meant to be colorful, but the colors were drained from Long Qing¡¯s eyes. They weren¡¯t ck or white. They weren¡¯t any brightness or guilt. They were shadily grey. They looked like the sky of City of Cheng Jing during the winter, when each of the families warmed their house by burning coal.


    They were like scrolls that could not be dry again after water was spilled onto them. They were cloudy, dark, evillish and scary.


    His right arm was lying beside him. There were a few Taoism Divine Priests who were dying on the shore just in the direction of where Long Qing¡¯s right arm was.


    In a sudden, the Divine Priests¡¯ facial expressions were tormented.


    Long Qing closed his eyes and took a deep breath, as if he was enjoying himself. When he opened his eyes again, multiple souls had filled the Grey Eyes. He waved in the direction of Ning Que.


    The sand on the shore flew toward Ning Que, slicing through the wind loudly like countless sharp des.


    Bang bang bang bang. They fell densely together and a loud noise was heard. There were uncountable amount of blood holes on Ning Que¡¯s body!


    The steel bow dropped to his feet. He could no longer hold himself up and he fell onto his knee.


    ¡°The biggest mistake you¡¯ve made is being overconfident about yourself.¡±


    ¡°You really think that you rank world¡¯s number one in terms of Psyche Power ratings?¡±


    ¡°You could have been, a long time ago, but after I¡¯ve mastered the skill of Grey Eyes, and you¡¯ll never be one.¡±


    ¡°I can turn into anyone, my Psyche Power is beyond control. How could you still stand against me?¡±


    Long Qing was pacing toward Ning Que. His broken ankle seemed to have recovered.


    There were a few blurry faces appearing behind him as he walked.


    He stopped in front of Ning Que, opening his arms to point toward both the shore where the cultivators who were seriously injured and some dead bodies were lying. ¡°If I were to permit myself, I can get as much Psyche Power as I want.¡±


    ¡°The reason why I brought them to kill you was to use up your Psyche Power, besides allowing myself to recover at thest moment. They were my food, and they could have been yours.¡±


    Long Qing was staring at Ning Que. ¡°I¡¯ve prepared banquet for you and I don¡¯t know why, until the veryst moment, you still don¡¯t want to settle for it. That¡¯s why you can only be thest main dish of my feast.¡±


    ¡°Why didn¡¯t youpromise? Is it because that cannibalism isn¡¯t your thing?¡± Ning Que coughed out blood painfully and he realised where the confusion in Long Qing came from. He must have wanted Ning Que to utilise Devil Doctrine¡¯s Practice of Taotie to go against his own Grey Eyes, as if what happened during the autumn rain in Red Lotus Temple a few years ago but he didn¡¯t expect Ning Que decided against the tactic.


    Ning Que looked at Long Qing, continuing, ¡°I¡¯ve tried your meat, but it wasn¡¯t tasty either.¡±


    Long Qing had prepared himself even if Ning Que was to use Devil Doctrine¡¯s Practice of Taotie. He had been putting up with the cultivators on the shore but Ning Que hadn¡¯t made a move at all. His preparation was deemed a waste.


    ¡°Tasty or not... is it important?¡±


    ¡°Extremely important.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I¡¯ve learned a lot from my teacher but I can only remember this principle.¡±


    Long Qing stayed quiet. He raised his right arm and immediately the river was covered in a distinct foul atmosphere. The hundreds of cultivators whether dead or alive started to tremble as his eyes grew in greyness.


    During the short amount of time, he regained his strength again. From his ruined gown, he retrieved his Natal Sword. The sword with the hilt looking like a ck peach blossom. This sword, or in other words, flower, had grew from the hole in the middle of his chest. He finally won the battle against Ning Que. Ning Que was going to die very soon. This made him very excited, he was overjoyed. That was why the ck peach blossom on the hilt was blossoming, in a beautiful way.


    ...


    When the ck peach blossomed and fell, it reminded Ning Que about a lot of things.


    This wasn¡¯t the recap of his memories, because he knew he wasn¡¯t going to die instantly.


    He was reminded about the mountaineer exam in the Academy, near the Firewood Door. What Long Qing saw was a gentleman should not wrangle, but what he saw was a gentleman should not be just a tool.


    What does it actually mean that the Academy shouldn¡¯t be just a tool?


    He had consulted Chen Pipi about this question, but only to discover it was an absurd concept, where everyone will have a different understanding about it. If things could be exined, they were philosophical reasonings. While those which couldn¡¯t be exined, they were merely talents.


    If it wasn¡¯t a tool that gave y to a particr talent, does it mean it was only a reasoning? Or we should follow the footsteps of the Headmaster of Academy by being lenient on rules... by being blinded by freedom? Ning Que still had a long way to go if he were to reach the level of ultimate liberation.


    However at this very moment, he finally understood a part of the principles. There were way too many things that were beyond control in this world. Just like Long Qing, no matter how well his n had been, there were many unexpected incidents which would prompt along the way, for instance, the banquet, because he still refused to lift his chopsticks.


    On the contrary, if one had chosen to follow their hearts, paying as little attention as they could for what was toe, it may end up having a better ending. What was the n in his hand, what was his next move, what¡¯s the point of thinking so much?


    When Ning Que was thinking about all these, his head was still lowered, half of his body in the hole.


    His right arm was drenched in blood, as he gripped hard onto the steel bow. Then, he swung the bow forward.


    He didn¡¯t have a target. He just swung his arm as he wished, poise and natural.


    Long Qing wanted to dodge but realized that he couldn¡¯t.


    Ning Que swung the bow, as if how he had written those Talisman Intents back in the City of Chang¡¯an. So, writing felt the same as filling up a Talisman Intent. The less attention you pay, the better it will be. That was why theforting posts were best when they were written unintentionally.


    His unintentional swing was never meant to be dodged. A loud bang erupted!


    The freshly recovered ankle of Long Qing was broken again, with his body slowly falling to the ground. The steel bow which was in Ning Que¡¯s hand just seconds ago was now on Long Qing¡¯s neck!


    Long Qing yelped and raised his Taoist sword, using the natal ck peach blossom on the hilt of the sword to stop the bow from killing him. The two of them fell onto the shore, the blood on their bodies covered in mire.


    With lightning speed, Ning Quended his right knee on Long Qing¡¯s back and started pulling the bow, trying to strangle thetter to death.


    Long Qing was carrying the inverted ck peach blossom sword, with its de nearly touching his own chest. He used all his Psyche Power collected from the ocean,bining with innumerable amount of Breath of Heaven and Earth, but he still couldn¡¯t break free.


    The current strength of Ning Que was exceptionally terrifying. There were only two choices left for Long Qing: either to die from strangling or to die from stabbing.


    A silent sneer was heard. The de had made its way through the ruined gown into Long Qing¡¯s body! But he wasn¡¯t dead yet, because of the hole in the middle of his chest. This ck sword had made its way through Long Qing¡¯s body by passing the hole!


    Puff!


    Ning Que¡¯s chest was stabbed by the sword, blood gushing out from his body. The hole in the middle of Long Qing¡¯s chest was the result of the arrow wound done by Ning Que many years ago. Now, he had made use of this hole to tear open Ning Que¡¯s chest. Or should this be, karma?


    ...


    The bowstring was one inch away from Long Qing¡¯s neck.


    And the ck sword was also an inch away from Ning Que¡¯s heart.


    The options were clear and they were up to Long Qing. If he chose not to resist, the de of the sword will definitely go deeper into Ning Que¡¯s body, but he would have to sacrifice himself in the process.


    The options were given to Ning Que too. If he chose not to strangle Long Qing with the bowstring, he would not have to pay the price by having the sword going deeper into his body.


    This was the real deal of dying together.


    In the mire on the shore, there were only the sounds of respite and continuous struggles.


    The two of them were like stray dogs, no matter how far they went, they would need to fight against each other like this till the end.


    Long Qing couldn¡¯t turn around, but he asked, panting, ¡°When you swung your bow just now, which method were you using? Why couldn¡¯t I dodge your attack? It must have nothing to do with Psyche Power, but why didn¡¯t you do it earlier?¡±


    Ning Que replied behind him, ¡°The Academy doesn¡¯t care about the meaning of the method.¡±


    Long Qing continued sarcastically with a question, ¡°Now what? Shall we die together?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°I don¡¯t really mind.¡±


    In what seemed to be simple conversation, they were still exerting force on their actions.


    The bowstring was squeaking, while the de was slowly entering Ning Que¡¯s body.


    Suddenly, Long Qing remarked, ¡°You don¡¯t have the courage, because you don¡¯t want to die. You still want to look for her.¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Not having the desire to die doesn¡¯t mean that I¡¯m afraid of death, and you, who had made that statement proves that you¡¯re afraid of death.¡±


    Long Qing felt like he had been insulted. He shouted angrily, ¡°I¡¯m not afraid of death!¡±


    Ning Que continued, ¡°In the beginning, you had attacked me with your natal peach, it failed to hit me in the face andnded on my chest. This was because you¡¯ve lowered your head, you are only brave enough to receive my attack with your forehead, not your neck.¡±


    Long Qing was panting. ¡°So what about that?¡±


    ¡°You lowered your head, and I didn¡¯t.¡±


    Ning Que breathed in a few mouthfuls of air with fishy smell, before continued with a straight face. ¡°So, you¡¯re going to die and I¡¯m going to live.¡±


    Just as the sentence was finished, Ning Que used all of his remaining strength, and pulled the string backwards!


    Long Qing roared with rage!


    The string was on his neck, leaving a clear red line.


    The de of the ck sword went deeper into Ning Que¡¯s chest, toward his heart.


    An indescribable pain took over Ning Que¡¯s body, and it made him trembled involuntarily. His face was pale as snow and his lips were ck like the color of ink. He was screaming in pain!


    ¡°Ah!!!¡± Ning Que was screaming in agony, his arms pulling backwards unceasingly!


    A small squeak was heard! Long Qing¡¯s neck was broken. His spirit left his body and he fell onto the shore like a disintegrated doll.


    Ning Que was breathing hard. His focus was blur and both of his hands were shaking. After some time when he had regained his consciousness, he only let go of the bow, where itnded some distance away from him.


    There was a huge hole in his chest, and a seriously damaged heart. His body was curled up, wretched. He was hugging himself, trembling non-stop. The cold breeze of the river entered his heart because it was exposed through the deep hole.


    Long Qing was just beside him, as he stared at the dark grey sky with disbelief. Right now, his eyes were no longer grey in color.


    If this ending waspared with their rivalry, the ending hade rather simply and quick.


    Just as what Ning Que had said, if Long Qing was not afraid of death, bybining both of their strengths, the ck sword would have killed Ning Que easily but Long Qing would need to sacrifice himself in the process.


    All these years, Long Qing wasn¡¯t happy but he didn¡¯t want to die either. Until that final moment, he still didn¡¯t have the desire to die. And so he was dead.


    ...

 Chapter 1091 - Kept Heading North

    <h4>Chapter 1091: Kept Heading North</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Thick clouds blocked out the sky and brought darkness. The blue Rognon Sea down the cliff was tranquil and charming. The river by the cliff kept roaring cheerfully.


    After a very long while, Ning Que came back to life. His face was extremely pale due to excessive loss of blood. He seemed lost and took a few minutes to recall what had just happened. His chest was badly wounded. He covered it with one hand and tried to stand up, but found it very difficult.


    It took him a fairly long while and lots of pain to aplish such a simple move. His Academy suit was ragged and the blood stains were frozen in the chilling air. He seemed like a ghosting right out of hell.


    Since the battle was over, the big ck horse hade out of the woods and stood by his side. Seeing him being weak and miserable, it came to support him with its warm and firm body.


    Ning Que stroke on its neck and put on a bitter smile in appreciation. He looked around and saw bodies scattered on the banks as well as in the river. But blood was already washed away by the running water.


    The hundreds of powerful cultivators like hungry wolves were all dead now. Many were killed by him. And the others were killed by Long Qing. There was a trace of weird grey on their faces and made them looked even more withered, which was probably a result of their psyches being drained by Long Qing.


    Ning Que noticed a few dozens of dead birds lying around the bodies of some divine priests. There was blood and flesh by the birds¡¯ beaks, which suggested that the bodies were highly toxic.


    Long Qing was lying dead by his feet. His eyes were wide open as if he was still staring at the grey sky with evesting grief. Ning Que would never clean after his enemies. But this time he had to crouch down to search for something on Long Qing. He found nothing in his ck divine robe, but was surprised to see some golden lights vaguely shone in Long Qing¡¯s wounds. He frowned and wondered what those could be.


    He picked up an iron arrow from the ground, pierced into Long Qing¡¯s body to pull out the golden lights, and found those to be extremely fine golden threads. And there were many.


    Ning Que knew another lunatic in the cultivation world who had done simr things to herself. Ye Hongyu used to nt many golden threads into her body in order to fight against his Practice of Taotie. He never expected that Long Qing would do the same.


    The poison in those cultivators¡¯ bodies, as well as the golden threads in Long Qing¡¯s body were obviously traps for Ning Que. In the feast of fighting previously, Long Qing absorbed the psyches of his soldiers by using Grey Eyes. If Ning Que had applied the Practice of Taotie, he would have been trapped by Long Qing and the result would probably bepletely different.


    Ning Que looked at Long Qing¡¯s eyes and found them even brighter than when he was alive. He was stunned. There were many key factors in the battle today. It was the most unexpected for his enemies that he never applied the Practice of Taotie.


    He discussed this with the Headmaster many years ago. Although they had a world of different opinions regarding gourmet, they did agree that human meat tasted worst.


    They had such a conversation because both of them had done such crazy things. But of course when it came to a life or death choice, like when he carried Sangsang on exile for hundreds of miles years ago, he would definitely eat whatever he could find, not to mention applying the Practice of Taotie.


    He did not use it today because he thought Long Qing had other ns, the most powerful one. It was also why he was searching on Long Qing. But he found nothing.


    Long Qing had kept the Arcane Tome of the Sand. In the capital of Song he used this Arcane Tome to defeat the Fourth Brother¡¯s River and Mountain Sandbox. There should be some parts of the Arcane Tome left. But where was it now?


    The Academy paid much attention to the seven Arcane Tomes nowadays. More precisely the six Arcane Tomes held by Taoism in particr. When Yu Lian and Jun Mo visited the Butcher previously in the small town by Peach Mountain, they were also trying to see if the Arcane Tome of the Fall was still with the middle-aged priest. Ning Que did so too. Now that they had confirmed the Arcane Tomes were no longer with their previous owners, they knew it must had been taken by the Abbey Dean. What was the Abbey Dean going to do with these Arcane Tomes? It would definitely be something extremely crucial.


    Ning Que stood there and thought for a while. When he felt somewhat recovered he patted on the big ck horse¡¯ neck. The big ck horse knew that he was ready to go. Instead of letting him leap onto its back, it bended and humped him onto the saddle. Then it clopped forward along the river bank.


    Ning Que held on the big ck horse¡¯s neck and noticed some blood on its forehooves. Then he realized what had happened to Long Qing¡¯s horse. A momentter he was attracted by the mist formed again among the cliffs.


    The big ck horse rushed down the cliff and walked along the blue Rognon Sea toward the north. They stopped by the hot springs overnight. Ning Que indulged himself in the hot spring to meditate and restore his energy. He made sure that the wounds would not be worse and was relieved.


    He leaned on the edge and watched the steam above the pond. He did not recall what happened many years ago. Instead, he just found the mist simr to those by the cliff he saw previously.


    It was a bloody and brutal battle. But he did benefit from it. Since he finally understood some words.


    Where the mountains and rivers ended, the clouds appeared. Deep inside the clouds there was no path to be found, nor desperate rescue to be executed. There was nothing in there. That was what he was thinking and acting when he swayed his iron bow.


    It did not necessarily take evil to conquer evil, or violence over violence. The Practice of Taotie was not the only way to defeat the Grey Eyes. To act by one¡¯s heart was the path to freedom.


    That was probably the true meaning of the Academy¡¯s Tool-less-ness, and also why the Headmaster showed him the words ¡°A gentleman should never be a Tool¡± on the stone behind the firewood door. Ning Que finally understood his teaching.


    He knew how important it was now. If he was going to spell that talisman some day, he had to understand this.


    Because of the extreme pain and misery, he also found some hint from the battle. He assumed that it was thest obstacle before he could eventually find her after the journey of tens of thousands of miles.


    He took out the stone statue, looked at the little Sangsang sleeping on her side in the mist, and said to her quietly, ¡°Wait for me please.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Setting off from the blue Rognon Sea, Ning Que rode on the big ck horse and continued toward the north. Burnt yurts and dead war horses scattered on the grasnd in the East Wilderness. The Wild People had crushed thest cavalry of the Left Royal Tribe. No one would stand in his way. But neither he did go to the Wild People for supplies or clues. He acted exceptionally cautiously.


    They came toward the north until they arrived at the valley outside the Hn City. Ning Que stopped the big ck horse, looked around to make sure no one was there, and put his fingers between the lips to make a clear and distinctive whistle.


    The whistle resounded throughout the mountains around.


    Birds were flushed. Beasts were growling. And intensive clops were heard heading afar.


    Ning Que waited there for three days.


    In the morning of the fourth day, when the sun started to rise, an extremely charming wild horse came toward them in the morning glory. Its long mane danced violently in the wind and its strong body was soaking in sweat, which added to the charm.


    ¡°This is way more handsome than you, buddy.¡± Ning Que looked at the wild horse and said to the big ck horse. To his surprise the big ck horse just sneered instead of showing its distinctive disagreement by acting coquettish and cute.


    The wild horse rushed to Ning Que and stopped in front of him to deliver a letter.


    Ning Que knew it was one of the eight charming wild horses that led the ck donkey¡¯s carriage. He stroked on it to show appreciation and started reading the message Gaga collected for him via countless creatures throughout the grasnd.


    The big ck horse went shyly to the wild horse and tried gently ti stroke on its neck to show affection. But the other raised its head high in pride and arrogance, thought it did not step away.


    Ning Que then realized that it was a very charming wild mare.


    He had no idea how Gaga had made some human being read its thoughts and wrote this letter. It was simple but very clearly stated.


    ¡°In the chilling north, the most cunning snow foxes and most vignt snow cocks were disappearing. The wild horses and arctic wolves had never met the hunting beast. But there has to be one out there.¡± After reading the letter Ning Que looked toward the north. It pointed to the same direction as the stone statue did, to the north.


    The Headmaster used to say that it would lead to the same north no matter where one started.


    No one found her. But they found the trace of a beast. That beast could probably be a huge indigo dog, or more precisely, an indigo lion.


    Ning Que still looked calm, but his hand got slightly stiff while holding the letter.


    He leaped onto the horse, pushed on its belly and headed to the north.


    The handsome mare stood by the valley to see them off.


    The big ck horse lowered its head and seemed upset.


    Ning Que said, ¡°I know you wantpany. But I need to find mine first.¡±


    ...


    ...


    He headed to the north while the chilling wind intensified.


    Ning Que restrained his Qi and kept silent. He never went into the Wild People nor left any trace on the snow fields. Because he did not want anyone to follow him and consequently find her.


    He walked through the mountains abandoned by Haotian. He was actually the one abandoned by Haotian. Or in other words, he lost Haotian in the human world. Now it was his turn to get her back.


    ...


    ...


    It was the Thermal Sea. There was no heat but only thick snow and freezing coldness.


    Ning Que led the big ck horse and walked through the cottages abandoned by the Wild People. He recalled the days when the Headmaster took the two of them here and held their wedding witnessed by the Heaven and Earth. Then he felt some warmth in the heart.


    The stone statue in his clothes also turned warm. It was telling him that he came to the right ce and she was right there.


    But where the hell was she now?


    He came by the window of a cottage, looked at the dark snow sea and the incredibly high peak.


    There was amp by the window. Sangsang stared at him quietly. Her moon-like cheeks were lit up by the dim light.


    She could see him. But he could not see her. They belonged to two different worlds.


    Ning Que stood by the window for a long while and did not leave until his eyebrows turned snowy white.


    When they came to the edge of the snowy woods he suddenly stopped.


    He stared at something by the tree and his hand that held the rein started trembling.


    ...

 Chapter 1092 - Peace Of Mind

    <h4>Chapter 1092: Peace Of Mind</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    There were some leftover chicken bones scattered under the tree. Looking at the pile of chicken bones, Ning Que remained silent for a long time.


    The big ck horse seemed anxious. It snorted uneasily and looked back at the wooden hut.


    Ning Que suddenly turned around and led it back to the hut. He pushed the door open and entered. The room was still pitch ck, without a trace of light. It was also empty, not a single upant to be seen. Ning Que let go of the reins and walked to the window, looking out at the sea of snow.


    The oilmp on the table glowed. Sangsang gazed at him silently.


    He still couldn¡¯t see her, but he knew that she was there, so he started talking.


    ¡°Long Qing is dead.¡± He paused and continued, ¡°I killed him... it was in North Yan. I didn¡¯t expect it to end so easily. Originally, I had nned to oust him from his position and imprison him within the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, so that he would never again taste freedom. Just like what Youngest Uncle did to Lian Sheng.¡±


    ¡°But then I thought, that wasn¡¯t reasonable. He didn¡¯t actually offend me that much, except for that time when he was rude towards you and tried to threaten me with you, which ended up an empty threat. The one Lian Sheng killed was Xiaoxiao. He didn¡¯t hurt you. I had overreacted.¡±


    Ning Que turned around and looked into the dark room. ¡°Ever since that day by the barkless mulberry tree where I first met you, the most intense emotions that I have ever felt in my life had arose because of you. From killing grandpa at the start, and then Long Qing, not to mention that time when I first came to the City of Wei, I had fought for you quite a number of times.¡±


    Sangsang was very close to him. If the barrier wasn¡¯t there, they might even hear each other¡¯s breathing. Listening to his words, her expression was still stoic, but her eyshes were slowly descending, as if she was exhausted.


    ¡°I went to the Lanke Temple and sculpted many stone statues with your image.¡±


    Ning Que retrieved a stone statue from his clothes and set it on the table by the window. ¡°I don¡¯t know if you still remember what you said in the temple that year, while you were ill. I remember.¡±


    Sangsang looked at the table, where a likeness of herself was sleeping peacefully on her side. Curiosity glinted in her eyes.


    ¡°Of course, I went to the City of Wei first. I had assumed that it carried the most significance for you and me. You might have been there, but unfortunately I couldn¡¯t find you. Well, I killed a lot of people there.¡±


    Ning Que suddenly stopped talking. After a long silence, he said, ¡± I don¡¯t wish to talk anymore. It is meaningless to cry bitterly or even to stab myself with a knife to force you out. Anyway, since I am here now...¡±


    He looked into the void of darkness in front of him. ¡°Come out,¡± he begged.


    There was no taunting provocation, or a sentimental reliving of memories, but a calm request, just like all those years ago: for her to serve him tea, for her to pour him some water, for her to settle her feet in hisp for a good massage.


    In the still wooden hut, a soft, barely noticeable sound could be heard, as if the thinnest paper was sliced apart by the sharpest knife, or like the most brittle of ss falling from the sky onto the ground, shattering. Then it opened.


    The dim light from themp gradually pervaded the entire space, from the faintest speck of brightness to illuminating the entire hut, casting light on the stone statue upon the table, on Ning Que¡¯s face and on herself.


    Ning Que looked at her, whom he hadn¡¯t seen since their separation ages ago. Looking at her swollen belly, her crude animal leather clothes, Ning Que felt his heart clench. He stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her, embracing her tightly.


    Sangsang¡¯s indifferent expression didn¡¯t change even as she allowed him to hold her. Her head was held high, seemingly in arrogance, or merely in numbness.


    ¡°Let go,¡± she whispered.


    The indigo lion prowled towards them from the corner of the hut. It lowered its forelimbs and crouched, as if it was about to pounce, growling warningly.


    The big ck horse stared at it from its imposing position above, its eyes zing with ferocity. Its meaning was clear.


    The indigo lion quickly stopped growling, instead turning docile and well-behaved.


    Ning Que held Sangsang tightly with his head buried in her neck. His voice was muffled and incoherent, yet clear. Incoherency was the tone, but clear was the meaning, there was no trace of doubt.


    ¡°No.¡± Sangsang repeated coldly, ¡°Release me.¡±


    ¡°No,¡± Ning Que stubbornly refused.


    ¡°Let go.¡±


    ¡°No.¡±


    ¡°Let go.¡±


    ¡°Never. No means no.¡±


    The big ck horse and the indigo lion exchanged a look. They moved to a corner unobtrusively and pretended to not see or hear anything.


    Ning Que wrapped Sangsang tighter in his arms, as if he could hold on to her forever, till the end of the world.


    No one knew how much time had passed, but fortunately it was not yet the end of the world when Sangsang finally lowered her head. Their cheeks touched each other, warmth spreading from that point of contact.


    After another period of silence, again luckily before both of them age into skeletons, Ning Que was finally sure that she would not disappear out of reach again. Atst, he loosened his vice grip on her, grabbed her right hand, and led her to the bed.


    They held hands and sat side by side on the bed. If Sangsang put on her wedding dress right now, it would be like their first wedding night, and the room was where they were about to consummate their marriage.


    ¡°Come home with me,¡± Ning Que said to her.


    Sangsang did not answer him, but neither did she extricate her hand out of his. Instead, she seemed to be spacing out while staring at the wind and snow outside.


    Ning Que knew that she was not actually distracted, because she was a god, and she was still here.


    ¡°Come home with me,¡± he repeated.


    Sangsang looked at him and asked expressionlessly, ¡± Which home? Your earliest home?¡±


    This time, Ning Que was the one who couldn¡¯t answer.


    ¡°The Headmaster of Academy wanted to break into my world as he was motivated by his irresponsible desire for freedom. You were so persistently trying to break into my world, just because you wanted to return to that home? In fact, I have been wondering, when did you believe that breaking into my world would let you return to your hometown?¡± Sangsang asked.


    Ning Que gripped her hand tighter and thought for a moment. ¡°In fact, I had figured it out a long time ago, because there are stars all over this ce, and Teacher became the moon in the end,¡± he exined.


    Sangsang raised her eyebrows slightly and asked, ¡°What can this exin? He became a moon because you told him about it that year, on the sea. He thought the moon was beautiful. That¡¯s all.¡±


    ¡°Also, it¡¯s snowing.¡± Ning Que pointed out of the window and said, ¡°There are also stars in the sky. These are all unnecessary things... If you lived in an isted and self-contained world, you wouldn¡¯t have the need for four seasons. But you have all of them here.¡±


    ¡°Your world is very much like the one I came from.¡±


    He turned his gaze from the window to her. ¡°There¡¯s only one way to exin it. This world is still the same one I used to know, and it can be interlinked with, or can at least be observed from yours. Imitation can only be done through observation, that¡¯s why both of them are simr.¡±


    Sangsang still looked unimpressed. ¡°It can be observed, so I know what your world is like.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s a boundless, unrestrained world,¡± said Ning Que.


    ¡°It is a cold, dead world,¡± Sangsang rebutted.


    The warm sun spreads life, and boundless space is waiting to be explored, so this is a vast and free world. However, most of the space is filled with extreme cold and death and silence, so it is also a cold and dead world. There is nothing wrong with their statements, because they looked at the world from different perspectives.


    Ning Que was silent for a long time. ¡°The fate of human beings is ultimately determined by human beings. You need not continue shouldering this responsibility. It¡¯s too tiring.¡±


    ¡°I told you once, I love the people, the ones that reciprocate my love. The ancestors of these people had chosen me, thus I will continue to shoulder this responsibility.¡±


    ¡°There is no point in this discussion.¡± Ning Que broke off the conversation abruptly and settled his hands gently on her shoulders. ¡°You are my wife, and you are also pregnant with our child. Please, you have toe home with me.¡±


    After watching him wordlessly for a while, she said, ¡°You wish so fervently for me to die?¡±


    ¡°The day you boarded that colossal vessel and sailed to the Divine Kingdom on the other shore, I wanted to do something, but I failed. You should know my attitude.¡±


    ¡°Nheless, I had warned you that I am a collection ofws in this world. If you want to destroy this world, I cannot continue to exist.¡± Sangsang refused to make eye contact as she said this.


    ¡°Back then, I was really worried, but now I¡¯m not. There is still a Haotian in the Divine Kingdom, and now that you have be a human, you will be fine.¡±


    Sangsang looked at his face, her expression as nk as ever. ¡°How would you prove it?¡±


    Ning Que nced at her bulging belly. ¡°Isn¡¯t this proof?¡±


    Sangsang got up and walked over to the window. She looked out into the distance, words rolling off her tongue. ¡°The New Stream has been spreading their faith worldwide for so long, while Taoism is gradually fading away. I am bing weaker and weaker. What does this mean?¡±


    This meant that she was still Haotian.


    ¡°Or maybe it¡¯s because of... the pregnancy?¡±


    Ning Que followed and stood behind her. ¡°Pregnant women are usually weaker, as they have two lives to sustain. Do you still remember the fat aunty in the City of Wei? When she was pregnant, she couldn¡¯t even muster the strength to shout at people.¡±


    ¡°But you still can¡¯t prove it.¡± Sangsang turned to face him. ¡°Therefore, I might still die.¡±


    There was no emotion on her face as she said this. It was calm, even indifferent, yet Ning Que could perceive the paralyzing fear and grief in the depth of her eyes.


    His heart ached for her.


    ¡°I am really... afraid of death,¡± Sangsang said with a nk expression. ¡°From the moment I woke up in the Divine Kingdom, I was afraid I was going to die. I don¡¯t want to die.¡± She said it calmly, but her face was wet with tears.


    Sangsang rarely shed tears. Haotian never shed tears.


    Ning Que forgot how long it was since thest time he saw her cry, be it years, or decades, or even millennia.


    He again enveloped her in his arms and whispered, ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid. It¡¯s ok, I won¡¯t let you die.¡±


    As before, Sangsang let him hold her, her own arms limp by her side.


    But this time, she leaned her head on his shoulder.


    ¡°Everyone wants to kill me... not only them, even you want to kill me too. Now, I am vulnerable and mortal, so I am afraid, I¡¯m afraid that even you are going to kill me.¡±


    Her face was calm, but she was still in tears, an inexplicable sadness constricting her throat. It was hard to talk.


    ¡°I won¡¯t.¡± Ning Que held her tightly and said, ¡°If you are really afraid, then we won¡¯t do it. We will return to another home, not the City of Wei, but Chang¡¯an. The courtyard of the Old Brush Pen Shop is still there.¡±


    ¡°What about your home?¡±


    Ning Que shook his head. ¡°I have forgotten about it long ago.¡±


    Home was where the heart was, where the mind was calm. Where there was peace of mind, there was home. Sangsang was his home.


    It was like that time, when she wanted to go to the other shore, but she couldn¡¯t return to the Divine Kingdom. Because the other shore, to her, was where he stood.

 Chapter 1093 - Chatting Overnight

    <h4>Chapter 1093: Chatting Overnight.</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Sangsang was still calm, arrogant, and indifferent as she used to be when they were on Peach Mountain or touring around the human world. It seemed she was not sensational at all. But actually she was pretty restless because she knew what the Abbey Dean was nning.


    Her rtion with Taoism was fairlyplicated. She was their god, and the guardian they chose for the human world. Since they had decided to destroy her, it meant that the human world would abandon her too.


    She was weakening and no longer unkible. For the first time she realized the misery and vulnerability of life, and started feeling afraid and worried, which all turned into sadness now. Therefore she was shedding tears emotionlessly.


    Fortunately, although it was still dark in the night, there was at least amp that brought them some light. Likewise, although the human world meant nothing but darkness to her now, he was an exception.


    He was the only one she trusted. It was because he was her man. She made him lots of tea and spend countless years with him. They went through life and death again and again until they could no longer be parted.


    Sangsang leaned on his arms with her eyes closed. She seemed tired, but the indifferent look was already reced by relief. Ever since the day she failed to return to the Divine Kingdom, she had for the first time found a moment of peace.


    Ning Que cuddled her from behind and said, ¡°Let¡¯s go back to Chang¡¯an. No one can hurt you. Don¡¯t forget you are Haotian. You treated me so cruel previously. How could you be so intimidated now?¡±


    Sangsang did not respond to his proposal of going back to Chang¡¯an. Instead she said, ¡°I¡¯m no longer almighty. Therefore I have to be cautious. As for you... I¡¯m not punishing you for such disrespectful behavior. You should be grateful.¡±


    Upon hearing these words, Ning Que caressed her from the neck to the breasts and said, ¡°You are my wife. We could y courtesy in front of others. But right now we are on the bed.¡±


    Sangsang suddenly opened her eyes. Some anger shed in her starry bright eyes, but disappeared immediately. If she was bing a real human being, his behavior was indeed nothing inappropriate.


    But she could not help frowning when the hand on her breast became hotter and more restless. She could never get used to this, yet had no idea how she should react.


    They had been caressing a lot throughout her memories in the human world. When they were still very young, when they were in the Buddha¡¯s chessboard, they had intimate rtions for countless times. But she still found it weird. She was considering whether she should keep pretending indifferent or dispel the world she created and throw him into the Snow Sea to sober himself.


    Somehow she did nothing. In order to get rid of the difort and irritation in her divine heart, she picked a serious topic.


    ¡°The Abbey Dean wants to kill me,¡± she said emotionlessly.


    As she wished, Ning Que¡¯s hand paused on her chest upon hearing the words. A momentter, he said from behind her ears,


    ¡°You¡¯re sure?¡±


    ¡°I know everyone¡¯s past, and future.¡±


    ¡°In a closed world, as long as you know all the preconditions and rules, and could make wless calctions, you will get the precise results. I get it.¡±


    She knew that was the way of talking in the world where Ning Que came from. She had gotten used to it after so many years. Therefore instead of questioning she simply repeated, ¡°So the Abbey Dean wants to kill me.¡±


    It was a typical Haotian¡¯s logic, or manifestation. The Bright Volume of The Tomes of Arcane was a demonstration of such manifestation. It was a deration of her will to the entire human world.


    Ning Que said after a pause, ¡°My Brothers and Sisters and I already vaguely got his n. But we were not sure. Because we could not understand what he was thinking about.¡±


    Sangsang said nothing but obviously she had prepared well for it.


    ¡°I¡¯ve always had a question. Since you know the future, like it is written in the Bright Volume of The Tomes of Arcane, you knew the Headmaster would be the moon, the Buddha would conceal himself in the peak, and the Abbey Dean would seek for alternatives, why did youe to the human world after all? You could not defeat the Headmaster. Instead you weakened and even endangered yourself.¡± Ning Que cuddled her and asked gently.


    Sangsang said, ¡°I cannot tell my own future. The future I saw in the past was too vague to be true. Because there were variables.¡±


    ¡°What variables?¡±


    ¡°Someone like your Headmaster who was above all rules, was the variable.¡±


    ¡°It sounds mighty.¡±


    ¡°You are also a variable.¡±


    ¡°Why¡±


    ¡°Because you are an outsider.¡±


    ...


    ...


    They stayed quiet for a while inside the cottage while the snow storm roared outside.


    Sangsang was right. Actually when Li Qingshan, the national master of Tang tried to predict the future at the cost of his own longevity many years ago, he already saw Ning Que¡¯s distinctiveness. He was never a part of this world.


    He came from another world, hence he was an outsider. Haotian could not predict him. Nor could the Headmaster or the Abbey Dean.


    Ning Que kept quiet for a long while. He felt like he was referred to as a kind of messengering for some special mission ¨C to bring light or darkness.


    Either way, it was too depressing. It sounded nothing like a happy or satisfying ending for his journey of thousands of miles in pursuit of his wife. To carry out a pleasant chat on the night of their reunion, he had to switch the topic again.


    ¡°When is the due date?¡± he stroke on her swollen belly and asked attentively.


    Sangsang answered briefly, ¡°No idea.¡±


    He was stunned. He wondered, Don¡¯t you even know when was yourst period? But he then realized that his wife was not a human being. It was indeed hard to tell.


    It took ten months for an ordinary woman to conceive. If that was also the case for Sangsang, he would definitely have been cuckolded.


    He tried to forget about the non-sense and raised another equally serious question. ¡°A boy or a girl?¡±


    ¡°Do you want a boy or a girl?¡± Sangsang did not turn to him, but her eyes brightened up a bit. Throughout her lonely days in the freezing north, she had been thinking a lot about it. Perhaps she did not realize that she was indeed acting like a real human being now.


    ¡°Either is good.¡± Ning Que gave it a second thought and said, ¡°Well I might be more experienced with raising a girl.¡±


    The experience he referred to was how he raised up Sangsang in the past.


    Sangsang knew what he meant. But she answered, ¡°I have no idea.¡±


    Ning Que was a bit annoyed andined, ¡°How could you know nothing about it?¡±


    An ordinary pregnant woman should know her due date, but could not tell the gender without the help of a doctor. But Sangsang was no ordinary woman, which meant she should know what they could not know.


    Shouldn¡¯t Haotian know everything?


    ¡°Because I don¡¯t want to know.¡± Sangsang lowered her voice and pretended to be angry, or piqued.


    She was still that plump woman, even more so since she got pregnant. But right now she was lying in his arms and acting like a little girl. And he found it cute.


    Ning Que sensed some jealousy in her manner... just like when she ran away from their home in Chang¡¯an many years ago. But this time she was jealous of.. the child.


    No matter what she was jealous of, making her jealous was the most exciting aplishment in his life. So heughed heartily and cuddled her even tighter, but of course he was careful enough not to press on her belly.


    The two of themy quietly on the bed.


    The stone statuey quietly on the table.


    The big ck horse and the indigo lion rested quietly at a corner.


    After a short while, the dawn came despite the darkness.


    Ning Que got up and started packing. He would take her home.


    Sangsang looked at him quietly, without echoing his preparation.


    When finished packing Ning Que came to her and said, ¡°Don¡¯t you try to y by not giving a response to me. Like it or not, you areing with me.¡± Upon those words he held her up right away.


    The big ck horse dashed toward them attentively and bended for Sangsang to get up. Then it rubbed its nose on her legs to show affection.


    Sangsang sat high on the horse. She looked down at Ning Que and said, ¡°Do you think I can¡¯t punish you?¡±


    Ning Que leaped onto the horse, sliding his arms around her waist to hold the reins and whispered in a smile. ¡°I know you can, but you won¡¯t.¡±


    The big ck horse lowered his head further as it found the words extremely disgusting.


    The indigo lion stared at Sangsang in tears. It wondered how its almighty master ended up like this.


    ...


    ...


    The couple rode on the big ck horse, left the snow fields in the roaring storm and headed to the south. The indigo lion-dog run cheerfully behind them.


    Ning Que take the route via the Snow Sea. The snow was at least one meter thick on the frozen sea. Although it was strong and tall, the big ck horse walked with great efforts on the sea and wondered why he chose to go this way.


    If someone could take a look from high above, he would see that they left a very thin but distinctive trace on the surface of the Snow Sea. It seemed tiny in the vast snow fields, but was never covered by the roaring snow. It was weird and hard to how it was maintained.


    Sangsang sat in front of him and looked from the sky to the ground. She stared at the thin track on the Snow Sea that could not be erased by the storm, and said nothing.


    Ning Que knew what she sensed and said, ¡°It¡¯s just some preparation.¡±


    All of a sudden a bubble appeared in front of Sangsang. It was a smooth and crystal bubble. The bubble was very thin and seemed vulnerable. It kept shivering in the roaring snow storm but was never blown.


    There were two extremely tiny cracks as if the bubble would break in the next moment. The two cracks seemed like the two strokes that made up the Chinese character people. The cracks were tiny. If the thickness of the bubble was one thousandth of a hair, the depth of the cracks was merely one thousandth of the bubble. No ordinary human being could have seen it.


    But Ning Que was not ordinary. He saw it and turned solemn. He realized that if the bubble would be broken, the world would be destroyed too.


    Sangsang asked, ¡°Are you able to write that talisman now?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°No.¡±


    Sangsang kept quiet for a long while, then said, ¡°You should let me know before you can.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 1094 - By The Lake (I)

    <h4>Chapter 1094: By The Lake (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Ning Que did not know how to continue the conversation. He nced at the bubble floating in front of her, which prompted him to recall what he and his teacher had spected about on the ship. Uncertainly, he asked, ¡°This is what the world looks like?¡±


    Sangsang did not answer.


    Despite the unyielding blizzard, the speed of the big ck horse was still extremely fast. Without taking much time, they had crossed the Snow Sea. Ning Que turned and looked back at the clear hoof prints on the snow-covered ins, seemingly deep in thought.


    Every step would leave a trace. This sentence was somewhat sarcastic as it was something meant to be painfully obvious, but such a simple truth was much needed in what he was going to do. Were those traces not the most significant impact of mankind to this world? Like city walls, pces, fields, paths, and river banks?


    The same could be said for this trail on the Snow Sea, which was also a part of a certain stroke in a certain character, or a beginning, or an end, but it was uncertain for the time being, even Ning Que was uncertain himself, unless he actually wrote the word and made it visible to the whole world.


    Nevertheless, how could it be easy to write that word? Looking back on the history of mankind in this world, countless disasters striking countless years, there was no one but the Headmaster of Academy who could surmount those obstacles and restrictions and arrive at a state where no rules would apply to him at all.


    But preparations were still needed, even if it would take thousands of years. It was probably the least he could do now until he could determine the Abbey Dean¡¯s true intentions.


    Judging from the current situation, the Abbey Dean had allowed Long Qing to burn Ye Su to death in order to help him be a sage, which led to the split of Taoism. In a roundabout way, this had fueled the poprity of the New Stream, and all of these stank of an intention to weaken Sangsang. It was clear that he was hostile against her.


    ording to the Academy¡¯s hypothesis, the means used to work against Sangsang were the few Arcane Tomes, but... why? If it were not about religious beliefs and things like that, it was difficult to understand the logic of this whole incident. Sangsang was Haotian, so why would Taoism want to eliminate her? How would they dare to kill her? What was the point?


    Sangsang did not volunteer any answers but Ning Que did not ask. As long as they could return home to Chang¡¯an City, he would still have a lot of time to solve this puzzle, followed by drafting up the corresponding countermeasures.


    The speed of the big ck horse was miraculously fast, as if it turned into a bolt of ck lightning in the blizzard. The indigo lion was also bounding alongside them in deep snow, charging forward in bursts of snow, like green lotuses blooming along the way. Surprisingly, it could match the ck horse¡¯s lighting-fast pace.


    A few dayster, Ning Que and his entourage left the cold region and came to a coniferous forest nearby. There were frozen remnants of deer carcasses and blood strewn over the area, most likely from a sessful hunt by predators. Judging from the frenzy of animal tracks and broken trees, he deducted that this might be a ce where arctic wolves had passed through.


    Sangsang stretched out her right index finger and tapped the big ck horse¡¯s neck. The big ck horse understood her meaning and slowed down to stop. She dismounted clumsily while cradling her stomach and beckoned by waving her hand.


    The indigo lion raced over gleefully and leapt into her arms.


    She held the beast in her arms and looked southwards nkly.


    Ning Que nced at the lion in her arms and started to say something, but he cut himself off abruptly.


    The blizzard was still raging in the south, but after one hour of staring in that direction, Sangsang spoke up. ¡°Head east, 12, 8.¡±


    Ning Que assisted her as she mounted the horse. He tugged on the reins gently, guiding the big ck horse to change direction. They then set off towards the east. He did not ask any questions throughout the whole process, as if he knew what she meant.


    After a few days, they arrived at a frozen river bank. Yet again, Sangsang instructed the big ck horse to stop.


    She looked at the sky with her usual indifferent expression, but her eyes gradually showed impatience. She withdrew a small abacus from her clothes and began to use it.


    Except for that time when she was renovating a house in Chang¡¯an City where an abacus was needed to boost her confidence due to therge amounts of money involved, Ning Que rarely saw her using the abacus, thus he was surprised.


    There were barely any trace of people or animals on the snowfield. It was very quiet except for the sound of roaring wind, and a persistent cking sound that came from the bank of the frozen river. Sangsang¡¯s fingers flew on the abacus, leaving a trail of shadows, as if she was ying a Guzheng.


    After some time, she concluded her calctions. Ning Que looked at her and saw that the beads on the abacus were arranged in a very orderly but absolutely meaningless pattern. He did not understand it, thus he asked bluntly, ¡°Where should we go?¡±


    ¡°Northwest, 33, 23,¡± Sangsang answered.


    Heading northwest meant to retreat, but Ning Que did not doubt her. He gently lifted the reins and again guided the big ck horse in the specified direction. They cantered off immediately, kicking up the snow behind them and sshing the ice everywhere.


    At dusk, the big ck horse came to a stop for the third time. Sangsang pulled out her abacus, and began to use it like stroking the strings of a harp. After finishing her calctions, she gave a new direction and Ning Que followed ordingly.


    All this while he did not question anything, did not voice any doubts, he just cooperated quietly, just as he had done many years before and trusted herpletely to navigate for them.


    Several days after that, the situation repeated until Sangsang did not return the abacus into her clothes anymore. Instead, she bnced it on the saddle and fiddled with it from time to time. The frequency of them changing directions increased.


    She was much weaker than she had been in the past. Her divine abilities could not calcte everything in the world, but when it came down to it, she was still much better than any ordinary human being. There was no pattern to the changing of directions and the retracing of their steps, so even Ning Que had lost his bearings in the end.


    Nevertheless, he knew that they were heading southwards, getting closer and closer to Chang¡¯an City.


    So far, they had note across the person whom they did not want to meet.


    Ning Que became increasingly serious as they progressed, because he knew that everything would be more dangerous in the end. He also realised that Sangsang was bing more and more exhausted. He was not sure how long she could continue to calcte on the journey.


    Sangsang became very tired and drowsy. She often dozed off soundlessly on his chest while using the abacus. Fortunately, it seemed that she was not as frail as she was years ago when she fell sick. She did not spit blood this time, was also a good sign.


    Every time Ning Que looked at her bulging belly, he could not help but think if she was close to giving birth?


    ...


    In the two days toe, they headed south by travelling along Tianqi Mountain. The snow mountain drew a clear, beautiful and undting line in the blue sky, guiding the direction of the big ck horse.


    As Hn City started to be seen vaguely in between the mountains, Sangsang stopped the big ck horse.


    This time the calctions took a much longer time, the beads on the abacus flicking about in a blur. She pushed them back in their ces with her fingers, and then fiddled with them again. Her movements seemed erratic as if she were ying the piano without a proper melody.


    The indifference on her face finally gave away to irritation and finally to frustration.


    With a smack, she dropped her hand on the abacus, messing up the barely formed pattern. Her messy hair fluttered around her cheeks. ¡°We will meet,¡± she said.


    After a brief silence, Ning Que asked, ¡°Is there a chance?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± Sangsang replied shortly.


    He had asked what was the probability of defeating the Abbey Dean if both of them joined forces.


    Sangsang¡¯s answer was very clear and concise. There was no chance at all.


    This time Ning Que was silent for a long time. ¡°Is there an alternative route?¡±


    ¡°No,¡± answered Sangsang.


    After hearing the word ¡°no¡± twice in a row, Ning Que did not doubt her judgment. He dismounted from the horse without hesitation, tugged on the reins and led them into the mountains. ¡°Let¡¯s try to hide first.¡±


    Hearing his solution, Sangsang raised her eyebrows, displeased.


    I am Haotian! How could I hide because of a mere human? Not to mention that the human used to be her pet dog. In fact, she had been hiding in the Snow Sea for a long time, but at that time she was able to remain steadfast. Now, it was difficult to do so, but she did not want to appear weak in front of Ning Que or show that she needed his protection.


    Her hand rested on her stomach by instinct and she remained silent.


    Ning Que did not know that at such a moment, she was still thinking of those nonsense. He quickly led the horse into the mountains until they came across a freezingke surrounded by pine trees.


    ¡°Here.¡±


    From here, they could see Hn City, which was actually quite a distance from here. In contrast, this ce could hardly be seen from the outside world.


    Sangsang waved her leather sewn sleeve. A light shed by in a blink of an eye followed by a breath of nature that appeared and then disappeared.


    Ning Que did not sense anything unusual, but he knew that she had opened up her own world. This coldke, himself, the big ck horse and the indigo lion, they were all in this world.


    It wasn¡¯t long before he saw the evidence.


    The snow by theke started to melt, the temperature rose gradually, and grass began to sprout in the mud.


    Heavy snow and frost suddenly fell on Tianqi mountain.


    Ning Que looked at the outside world and was amazed. The blizzard outside was raging, but it was as warm as spring here.


    He thought for a moment and drew out his iron knife. He chopped down some trees cleanly with his inhuman strength and built a shack by theke without taking much time.


    The hut was simple and crude, but it smelled faintly of wood which could calm the mind.


    Sangsang rested a hand on her stomach, quietly watching him work from the side.


    ¡°Let¡¯s be one by hiding in this ce?¡±


    Looking at the hut, she deadpanned, ¡°We can¡¯t hide forever, it¡¯s no sce.¡±


    ¡°Merely stealing moments in a busy life.¡± Ning Que continued, ¡°A moment hidden is another moment alive...Well, let¡¯s stop with the poems. I taught you them when you were a child. Besides, you need to rest now.¡±


    He helped her into the hut and ced her on the soft bedding. He leaned down against her bulging belly, trying to hear what was going on inside. Just as he bent down, something could be heard moving outside the hut instead.


    A green-clothed Taoist had appeared opposite the coldke. His face was covered with frost, his clothes frozen with snow, and he did not know how long and how many ces he had searched in the world. He peered over at the opposite end of the coldke and did not leave even when he could not see anything.


    Ning Que lifted his head and looked at him for a moment. Then he lowered his head and continued to lean on Sangsang¡¯s belly. He paid no attention to the things that happened outside. Instead he was exceptionally focused on detecting any movement within Sangsang.


    Sangsang did not pay attention to him. She looked across theke and suddenly said, ¡°I really want to kill him.¡±


    Ning Que heard the barest sign of fetal movement and was ecstatic about it. ¡°You can¡¯t kill him now, don¡¯t think about it,¡± he replied.


    Sangsang said coldly, ¡°It¡¯s because I can¡¯t kill him, that¡¯s why I want to kill him.¡±


    Ning Que stopped in his tracks, thinking that it was indeed the truth. Back then, she could have killed pretty much anyone without effort, without even thinking about it.


    He sat up and held her in his arms, looking at the Abbey Dean across the coldke. He remained silent as if he was watching a false world in the mirror, or a y, or a painting.


    It seemed absurd, interesting yet peaceful. In fact, the world he and Sangsang were currently in was the fake one, and this fake world could not be maintained all the time. There woulde a time when it would be broken.


    When Sangsang could not sustain the world. It was probably the moment he and she left this world.

 Chapter 1095 - By The Lake (II)

    <h4>Chapter 1095: By The Lake (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    In fact Ning Que only met the Abbey Dean for a few times in Chang¡¯an. He recalled their seldom encounters and found them all happened in chilling snowstorms.


    The Abbey Dean¡¯s indigo gown had never been stained. He never looked weathered and always seemed immortal. But right now he was dust stained, weathered and exhausted like an ordinary human being.


    He had been searching for Sangsang for many days throughout many ces. It was very consuming to apply Distanceless and travel back and forth through tens of thousands of miles. But he was stillte. The natal bond between Ning Que and Sangsang was unparalleled.


    He stared at the other side of the chillingke and the dry grass covered by the snow. He seemed emotionless, nor was his psyche disturbed. Because he found nothing there.


    But somehow he felt that there was something over there. It felt the same like when he passed by the Wild People¡¯s abandoned dwelling by the Snow Sea and saw the wooden cottage a few days ago. Therefore he did not leave.


    In the mountains abandoned by Haotian, it became increasingly chilling while the snowstorm kept roaring. The Abbey Dean stood quietly by theke and seemed increasingly calm, as if some invisible stream was washing away the dust and vicissitudes until theypletely disappeared. The snow on his indigo gown was also melting and disappearing.


    An extremely clear and pure energy was spread from inside his body. It came down by his feet and melted the snow around, revitalized the grass and thawed the frozenke. Theke rippled and spring seemed to be approaching.


    The spring breeze greened the chillingkeside and spread around.


    Sangsang stared at him quietly and pointed her finger on the ground. Some stream of vitality was charged into the ground and connected with the approaching spring outside seamlessly.


    There was no boundary between her world and the outside world. Therefore it could not be seen.


    When the evening fell the Abbey Dean left the chillingke. He disappeared via an indistinct space tunnel.


    Ning Que was certain that he did not find Sangsang and him. He felt somewhat relieved but could not be cheered up. Because it was just temporary. No one knew how long it couldst.


    ¡°Can we leave now?¡± he stared at the grand Hn City in the mountains afar and asked.


    Sangsang said nothing.


    Ning Que got it. The Abbey Dean could have went to the South Sea by now, or he could also be overlooking at the vastnd from the top of the snow peak. If she opened her world, he could easily locate them.


    The abacus was ced on her knees. But she could no longer figure out where the Abbey Dean was.


    She was weakening, or more precisely, bing an ordinary woman. It silenced her, upset her and enraged her.


    She took Ning Que¡¯s hand and made a hard bite on it like an irritated mother beast.


    Ning Que felt the sharp pain while seeing the blooding from between her lips. But instead of yelling he looked at her with sympathy and caring.


    The night fell. The snowstorm suddenly ceased. Some wind came from the sea in the southeast and blew away the thick clouds above. Hundreds of stars and a bright moon were unveiled.


    Ning Que cuddled Sangsang and leaned on a piece of soft and tender fur. They looked nkly at the stars and moon in the dark night.


    Sangsang said, ¡°I want to make love.¡±


    Ning Que was a bit startled. He looked at her, saw her calmness and realized that she was not kidding. Otherwise it would be very ridiculous.


    Then he said, ¡°Don¡¯t be silly. Let¡¯s get some rest.¡±


    Sangsang insisted, ¡°I want to sleep with you.¡±


    Ning Que was startled again and asked, ¡°Are you sleepy?¡±


    Sangsang repeated, ¡°I want to sleep with you.¡±


    He seemed calm or even indifferent, not so serious yet extremely serious.


    Ning Que held her in his arms, enjoyed her smell and kissed on her cheek.


    A whileter.


    He said suddenly, ¡°Can you stop watching?¡±


    Sangsang stared at somewhere without blinking and asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Is this what they call ¡®Whatever people do, Heaven is watching¡¯?¡±


    Sangsang looked above at him and said, ¡°Interesting.¡±


    ¡°Interesting what?¡±


    ¡°That was not interesting.¡±


    ¡°Fine. I mean ... if you have to watch, can you at least be sensational?¡±


    ...


    ...


    When they woke up the following morning, Ning Que felt upset. It was because he found that Sangsang was acting weird. It seemed like she was preparing for a farewell even though they had just found each other. Why should she be leaving again?


    His mind wandered back and forth and could not find an answer. He felt increasingly worried and vignt while looking at the grass revitalized by the spring approaching from the other side of theke yesterday and frozen by the chilling wind again over the night.


    What happened next provided an exnation. But instead of feeling relieved he felt even more worried. Because Sangsang was about to give birth.


    He was experienced in many matters, but not something like this. Sangsang used to know all and be almighty. But she was also ignorant about this.


    It was very quiet inside the cottage. Sangsang held her swollen belly and felt the movements inside. Her fine eyebrows were furrowed and her face was pale. Thebor pain was yet toe, but approaching.


    Giving birth was aborious matter. But what troubled them more was that Sangsang¡¯s mind was disturbed by thebor and could barely shield her world any longer. There were vague cracks in the air outside. Ning Que knew they were cracks on her world.


    If she could downsize or get rid of some objects inside her world, Sangsang could probably be able to hold a bit longer.


    Ning Que stared at the indistinct cracks outside the window and finally realized why he felt upset by the sense of farewell in the morning. After a moment of silence, he led the big ck horse out of the wooden cottage.


    There were no cracking sound when they entered the real world. He just felt some chilling winding from the chillingke. When he looked back, there was no path or cottage behind.


    He decided to leave, to leave the chillingke, the further away from her the better. Now he understood Long Qing¡¯s words before theirst fight. It was not necessarily good for her if he found her.


    When he was about to leave, another person arrived.


    That person was back to theke.


    ¡°Where is she?¡± the Abbey Dean looked at him and asked calmly. He was not in a hurry or irritated, as if everything was simply under his control, just like the water nts could only stay in the water, the reflections could only be seen on theke and the Heaven¡¯s will could only be well understood by him.


    Ning Que did not answer. Instead he pulled out his iron de and chopped toward the other side of theke.


    He chopped thousands times in a blink.


    The edge of the de created countless scattered shadows. Every shadow was a stroke. And every two strokes formed a character. He used his iron de to write thousands of characters by the chillingke in a split second.


    They were thousands of Yi Talismans.


    Colors drained from his face. And the psyche inside his ocean of consciousness was exhausted.


    Countless sharp talisman intents enveloped the chillingke.


    Some newly grown grass by the Abbey Dean¡¯s feet was smashed silently.


    The cold trees by the chillingke were chopped into pieces silently.


    It was a beautiful scene by the chillingke.


    Ning Que cut the scene into countless pieces.


    Being a part of the scene, how could the Abbey Dean remain safe and sound?


    ...

 Chapter 1096 - A Bold Change For The Better

    Chapter 1096: A Bold Change For The Better


    Trantor: Larbre Studio Editor: Larbre Studio


    If the greenery in the valley formed aplete picture, then the Abbey Dean would be a part of it as well. However, at the same time, he was also outside of the picture. More specifically, it seemed like there was another smaller picture hidden in theplete picture, and the Abbey Dean was actually part of the smaller picture.


    The smaller picture was a mezzanine of the breath of nature. It was a secondary dimension that existed between the dimension of reality. As he stood in that space, it seemed that he was very near, but in reality he was a lot further away. It seemed like he was in the picture, but in truth he was inside another picture that was inside the picture.


    The parameter within a few feet of the Abbey Dean¡¯s surroundings was affected by the breath of nature exuded by the mezzanine, hence it felt like the season of spring was at its peak. Baby green buds decorated the trees and yellow flowers were dotted everywhere among the grass. Ning Que¡¯s iron cuss of thousand shes cut out the Yi Talisman, it could slice the green buds and blooming flowers into pieces, but not theing of spring. Spring inherently took no form.


    The spring breeze blew, and the leaves swayed in the wind. The Abbey Dean¡¯s figure shed to a safe distance, approximately ten yards away from the edge of theke. Far away from the terrifying Talisman Intent and de intent, which prevented him from entering the area.


    It was like the wall of a fortress, people from the outer side cannot enter, but at the same time the people on the inside cannot exit as they please. It became a prison cell in the end, regardless of the fortress orke.


    Ning Que had gotten himself imprisoned twice in Chang¡¯an city, hence he was no stranger to this situation.


    ¡°You should not have left Chang¡¯an city,¡± called out the Abbey Dean as he stared at Ning Que, his expression calm and gentle as always, reminiscent of the spring breeze. It was as if he was an elder that understood all that happens under the sky, providing sincere and genuine advice, ¡°You do not have any chance of winning.¡±


    Ning Que knew that what he said was right. His biggest hope to gain victory over the Abbey Dean or the Drunkard, who were both Grand Cultivators, would rest on the most powerful weapon in his arsenal: the God-stunning Array in Chang¡¯an. It was passed down by his teacher, and to leave Chang¡¯an would mean abandoning the weapon ten thousand miles away from him. In other words, it amounted to suicide.


    But he had to leave Chang¡¯an.


    On that fateful day, while snowkes fell gently in the wind, he had made this decision and will not regret it. He was aware that the Abbey Dean nned to kill Sangsang, and he was the only one who could find Sangsang before the Abbey Dean does.


    I should stop thinking about had happened, but instead think about is about to happen.


    Ning Que looked the Talisman Intent thatpletely surrounded theke. He remained silent as he tried to figure out his next step. The moment the de intent disappeared, he would leave, as far as he could. Sangsang would be safe if the Abbey Dean could not perceive her world.


    Everything he did was to provide a chance for her to escape, although it might eliminate his own chances of surviving. He nced at the big ck horse, fully aware that it would most likely die alongside him. Regret and pity for the creature raged in his heart.


    However, the big ck horse did not meet his gaze. It refused to see the apologetic look in his eyes. It wasn¡¯t acting cute or demonstrating its usual antics of silliness or arrogance. It was merely staring sharply at the Abbey Dean who was at the other side of theke, like a warrior ready for the final battle.


    Ning Que felt rather touched. He smiled softly while caressing the mane on its neck. Abruptly, his smile disappeared, seriousness washing over his face.


    A clear cracking sound could be hearding from behind him.


    The recently erected wooden shack appeared by theke edge. Sangsang held onto her hip as she slowly emerged from the shack. She had returned to the mortal world, dismissing her own world.


    ¡°Why did youe out?¡± Ning Que asked with no small amount of frustration.


    ¡°I felt unwell.¡± Sangsang strolled by the edge of theke as she held onto her swollen belly, ignoring eye contact with the Abbey Dean on the opposite shore. She dered expressionlessly, ¡°I¡¯m ming you for this.¡±


    ¡°Which part of you is feeling unwell? And how exactly is it my fault?¡±


    ¡°You made this, so of course it¡¯s your fault.¡±


    Ning Que was speechless, grumbling in his mind: Weren¡¯t you the one who wanted this? Of course, at times like this, there was no reason to argue about this matter. As for her reason for exposing herself, how could he not know?


    He did not n to ask any further, all because he thought the answer would be too mushy. Despite that, Sangsang beat him to it and said, ¡°I can¡¯t bear to see you leave. I... I want to be with you, and I¡¯m already so used to having you by my side.¡±


    Being used to someone¡¯s presence was indeed a beautiful thing.


    Ning Que held her hand as they sat down together on the stump of an old tree. Sangsang looked rather tired, but her eyes gleamed with life, a feeling of satisfaction that hadn¡¯t been experienced before.


    After listening to her soft yet meaningful confession, victory or failure did not seem as important anymore.


    As Sang Sang approached the edge of theke, the Abbey Dean was silent for a long time before he bowed, his actions still respectful, even worshipful as one might even say, as if he was still a believer of her.


    Ning Que meditated as he sat on the tree stump, hoping to recover the Psyche Power that he had lost to the Yi Talisman. His eyebrows furrowed slightly in contemtion as he observed the Abbey Dean¡¯s behavior.


    ¡°Why?¡±


    Why did the Abby Dean want to kill Sangsang? He helped Ye Su became a sage, caused the New Stream¡¯s uprising, and led to the falling apart of Taoism. He destroyed Haotian¡¯s foundation of faith, weakened her and made her pay a painful price, just to kill her?


    Where was the logic in this? Where was karma when one needed it?


    This was a mystery to the Academy, and more so a mystery to the rest of the world.


    ...


    ¡°Taoism and the Academy originated from the same line. However, it was not because of the fact that the Headmaster of Academy was once a student of Taoism, as people might think. Instead, it is because we think and solve problems from the sole perspective of humans.¡±


    The Abbey Dean stood by the edge ofke, a leaf that appeared out of nowhere pinched between his fingers, resembling a miniature flute. ¡°Although we embark on the same path, nevertheless our final destinations are different. The Headmaster of Academy yearns for an overthrow of our core values, but I do not.¡±


    Ning Que did not attempt to express his views regarding the issue at hand, because he had attempted it before, thus he understood that it was nearly impossible to change a person¡¯s outlook in life.


    ¡°What do you n to do?¡± This was the question he was most concerned about.


    The Abbey Dean looked at Sangsang, who was by theke edge. He stood there in silence for a long time before smiled enigmatically, dering, ¡± I would like to guide the suns and moons to turn over a new day, to make a daring change for the better.¡±


    A daring change for the better.


    What does day represent? It is not the sky, but Haotian, she is the one and only deity who was widely revered and worshipped by humans. She was the guardian and ruler of the world, as well as a core belief of Taoism.


    The Abbey Dean wanted to turn over a new day.


    He intended to rece Haotian.


    Sangsang stared at him. ¡°Why?¡± she asked softly.


    That was Haotian¡¯s question.


    The Abbey Dean answered calmly, ¡°Because you are ipetent and incapable of carrying out the responsiblities of Haotian anymore.¡±


    Sangsang raised her eyebrows slightly, her voice emotionless as she spoke. ¡°Foolish.¡±


    For mortals or believers to judge Haotian¡¯s actions, from the teachings of the West-Hill¡¯s point of view, it was not only an act of foolishness, but also a sign of disrespect hence an unforgivable sin. However, the Abbey Dean did not agree with this statement.


    ¡°You have failed.¡± The Abbey Dean watched her with a soft gaze, traces of sympathy glimmering in his eyes. ¡°Many years ago, when you wanted to set the trap for the Headmaster. You awoke from the Divine Kingdom and projected your consciousness into the mortal world. From that moment onwards, you have lost.¡±


    Sangsang squinted her eyes slightly.


    Ning Que felt uneasy and tightened his grip on Sangsang¡¯s hand.


    ¡°The trap that you set up, was it really intended to kill the Headmaster? Was it because divine intervention is so unpredictable, and you could note up with any better ideas, thus you had to personally visit the mortal realm? No... Unless you did not even realize that the trap you set up was merely out of curiosity. You wanted to know what it was like in the mortal world.¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked at her with pity in his eyes. ¡°It proves that you are not Haotian anymore once you develop curiosity. You will begin to possess human characteristics, hence you are unable to return to the Divine Kingdom. This is proof.¡±


    Sangsang said stoically, ¡°So? Then what?¡±


    The Abbey Dean continued calmly, ¡°Taoism awoken you during the times of chaos, in hopes that you would protect the people. Once you are unable to do so, Taoism will naturally rece you.¡±


    ¡°Therefore, I will do whatever it takes to end your life.¡±


    ¡°After that, I will personally appoint a new Haotian.¡±

 Chapter 1097 - You See

    <h4>Chapter 1097: You See</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    ¡°You see, the rules are always the simplest in the human world. Water flows downhill. Clouds float in the sky. Brightness and darkness take turns. When it¡¯s time, it¡¯s time,¡± the Abbey Dean looked at Ning Que and exined calmly.


    Ning Que asked after a while, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you think so in the past?¡±


    ¡°Taoism is after all, Haotian¡¯s Taoism, just like souls always refer to the human souls. When people can live a peaceful life, why should they think about killing themselves in order to acquire new souls?¡± The Abbey Dean kept rubbing on the green leaf. Pleasant sounds resounded while he was talking, and wild flowers bloomed around him.


    ¡°I need to thank Ye Su... my brilliant student, who led me to think in this way, or dare to think in this way. He got enlightened when he stayed in the shabby cottage in Linkang. He established the New Stream and wrote those inspiring lines. He inspired me to think like this. He was actually my teacher in a way.¡±


    The Abbey Dean turned to look at Sangsang and conveyed the following very important message.


    ¡°The New Stream is actually not in conflict with Taoism. They are both the truth, but apply to different times. Throughout the countless years of barbarism in the human world, they needed to seek for protection from You Highness. But mankind is evolving. The Headmaster appeared a thousand years ago, so did the Great Divine Priest, who established the Light¡¯s Doctrine. Then there were Ke Haoran, Lian Sheng, and me. It proved that we mankind is growing up and no longer need the protection from Your Highness. The human beings are able to protect themselves now. They no longer have to suffer from death and revival, or to be tortured like wild grass through endless samsara between the ever night and day.


    The chillingke was still freezing, but spring already took over around it. Flowers were blooming and trees were lush. The scene that was previously cut into pieces by Ning Que was reunited by the spring.


    It was quiet for a long while. Nothing but the leaf flute in the Abbey Dean¡¯s fingers whistled. It was not a withdrawing rion, but sounded like drum beats.


    Ning Que spent a long while to digest the fear. He stared at the Abbey Dean on the other side of theke and said, ¡°The Headmaster used to say something simr. Mankind has indeed grown up and no longer needs the protection from Haotian. They are able to stand up by themselves, or even fly. The difference between the Academy and Taoism is, we want to lead mankind to a vaster world, while you think they should stay here.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°I¡¯ve told you many years ago. It is a fundamental disagreement that none of us couldpromise. I think eternityes from tranquility and solemnity, while the Headmaster thought only ever changing is eternal.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Ever changing is the order. To remain unchanged is the seldom disorder.¡±


    The Abbey Dean challenged, ¡°The mankind is an oue of the disorder. How could they pursue the order?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°If only Ye Su was still alive, or if the Eldest Brother was here, they might be able to reason with you. But that¡¯s not my area. I¡¯m rather good at fighting and killing than reasoning... However, even I could see a fatal w in your contemtion.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°Be my guest.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Even if it is a self-sufficient closed system and disconnected with the outside world, even if it no longer needs Haotian, there has to be someone to set the rules and represent the collective will. Who will that be?¡±


    After a brief pause, the Abbey Dean said calmly, ¡°That will be me.¡±


    The Abbey Dean continued, ¡°You see, that¡¯s also a very simple matter.¡±


    ...


    ...


    You? To be what? Haotian?... Look, there is an airne... Look, the storm ising, take down the clothes... Those words shed in Ning Que¡¯s head instantly.


    He lowered his head and stared at the meltingke that reflected the sky. When he managed to calm down gradually, he tried to think it through and found it extraordinary.


    The Abbey Dean was indeed extraordinary. To kill Haotian and rece with himself, it was egoism rather than heroism. It was an incredible ambition as well as a most powerful deration.


    Anything could be majestic as long as it was big enough, such as the snow, the wild, or even ambition. When it became extremely big, it would seem majestic.


    The Abbey Dean eventually followed the Headmaster and the Youngest Uncle. He never had doubts about his past. The years of cultivation in Taoism had prepared him with sufficient theoretical basis, and helped him leap into an important conclusion. When the Heaven is no longerpetent, it¡¯s my turn!


    How ambitious. How courageous.


    Sangsang looked emotionlessly at the other side.


    Apart from Ning Que, the Abbey Dean was the one second closest to Haotian.


    Neither Wei Guangming nor the previous principal of the Revtion Institute could be his match. He was enlightened by Heaven and stayed in the South Sea for so many years. They had several conversations and he knew her will clearly.


    ¡°Your Highness is just a statue erected by Taoism. Now it¡¯s just a matter of switching the statue. How much courage does it take?¡± The Abbey Dean said to her, no longer with sympathy but sounded as natural as a senior talking to a younger generation. Then he turned to Ning Que and said, ¡°The Academy never wanted Haotian. Nor does the Taoism now. Therefore we could at least share the same goal on ourst journey. Or, do you really think you could convince yourself to disobey the Headmaster?¡±


    Ning Que paused for a long while then said, ¡°No, the Headmaster was never wrong. Actually you are not wrong either. Indeed the mankind no longer needs Haotian.¡±


    Sangsang remained emotionless as if she heard nothing. He held her hand and continued talking to the Abbey Dean, ¡°I don¡¯t want Haotian either. But the thing is, I want my wife.¡±


    He could let go of Haotian, but not his wife. The previous Haotian could be reced by a new one, but if his wife was gone, could he rece her with a new wife? Even if he could...


    Nonsense. There was no such an option. Full stop. I cannot lose my wife.


    Thus Ning Que dered to the Abbey Dean, and the entire world.


    The Abbey Dean felt somewhat disappointed, but he was not upset. He had been looking for Haotian for too long and his resolution had be firm as a rock now. No roaring storm or rushing river could ever shake his Taoist heart. Just like nothing could have stopped the wild flowers from blooming in the spring.


    ¡°The Headmaster would be disappointed... Actually he should have been disappointed by the Sushui River many years ago. Whether to destroy or rece the Heaven, it should be a business of mankind. Only we human beings could make the decision. But you, have chosen to stay on her side. Have you ever regarded yourself as a human being?¡±


    The Abbey Dean¡¯s fingers parted and the green leaf fell. It fell by his shoes and got crushed by the remaining de intent.


    Ning Que was slightly stunned. He remembered it clearly what the Headmaster said by the Sushui River before he left the human world. He could solve the problem by then, so could he now.


    ¡°It¡¯s something about the outlooks.¡± He stared at the Abbey Dean and said, ¡°We have different outlooks of life, world, and most importantly love. I will never let her go. I won¡¯t do it even if my Headmaster asked me to, not to mention you! I do care for the world, but I care more for her.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°The love for mankind is great, while your love for her is tiny.¡±


    Ning Que paused and said, ¡°But... Aren¡¯t they all about love?¡±


    He said nothing further, got hold of his iron bow and pulled out an iron arrow. He started preparing for a shot quietly while the chillness dispelled around theke. The Abbey Dean would enter the scene. The conversation woulde to an end. And the fight would eventually begin.


    The Yi Talismans that enveloped the chillingke was devoured by the Qi of Heaven and Earth. The sharp de intent disappeared. The destroyed scene was fixed. The Abbey Dean came out from the depths of the scene and returned to the real world.


    Sangsang stood up gradually and stared at him emotionlessly with her hands on the back.


    The Abbey Dean sighed, ¡°You see... How charming if it could remain unchanged.¡±


    Countless flowers bloomed in the valley. Vines climbed up and newly grown branches fluttered. It seemed like deep spring immediately and felt like choking.


    Ning Que was bathed in the spring breeze yet he felt drowning.


    Sangsang still held her hands on the back and seemed indifferent. But her eyes were slightly squinted.


    A sea of flowers brought boundless spring. Every single flower and every trace of spring stood for an ultimate killing intent.


    Ning Que pulled the iron bow and targeted the chillingly jet-ck arrow at the Abbey Dean on the other side.


    The Abbey Dean looked at him calmly. He held his hands on the back like Sangsang did, and was not anxious at all. Because he was right by the gates and ready to leave at any time. The Thirteen Primordial Arrows would never hit him.


    The gates were the inteyers between the Qi of Heaven and Earth. And every flower bloomed in the valley was a gate. No one knew through which gate the Abbey Dean would enter.


    Ning Que stared at the other side of theke, felt the shivering bowstring by his lips and beads of sweat falling down, but could sense nothing.


    Sangsang¡¯s hand was ced on his shoulder. A warm or even heating energy was charged into his body and immediately restored and elevated his psyche that had been drained by writing the talismans previously.


    ¡°One nine eight nine, zero three zero nine,¡± Sangsang said two series of numbers emotionlessly, as if she was directing their way in the snow storm previously, or a few years ago when they were by the freezingke, or even further in the Min Mountain.


    But her voice was no longer tender nor innocent as it was when she was a child. The series of numbers were longer, moreplicated hence more precise.


    Ning Que did not hesitate. More precisely he did not even think. Like he did before, he let go of the bowstring targeting at somewhere on the other side of theke, instinctively.


    The iron arrow pierced through the air silently.


    He was obviously targeting at a copsing tree, which was quite far from where the Abbey Dean was. But strangely the Abbey Dean seemed increasingly anxious.


    The Abbey Dean disappeared from the worldpletely. It was Distanceless. He entered the State of Purity in the inteyers of the Qi of Heaven and Earth, leaving no trace behind, not even some wind.


    Until then the hum of the iron arrow started resounding around the chillingke.


    A clear arrow path was made above the chillingke, while the freezing clouds moved gently.


    The iron arrow disappeared. The giant tree kept copsing slowly without being disturbed, nor were the peaks afar. They all stayed undisturbed like the Abbey Dean was.


    The arrow seemed have been shot in to the emptiness.


    A momentter on top of a snow peak a dozen miles away, the Abbey Dean was vaguely seen floating in the air.


    The iron arrow stopped on his left shoulder gently like a dragonfly perching on a dewdrop.


    The sharp arrowhead pierced slightly into the indigo gown. It did not go further but some blood was exuding.


    Blood stained the purity.


    The Abbey Dean slightly frowned as he was surprised by the power of this iron arrow.


    The arrow pierced through the Qi of Heaven and Earth, entered the inteyer of emptiness, and haunted the powerful figure at Distanceless. This Thirteen Primordial Arrow that Ning Que just shot had far exceeded his previous level of cultivation.


    ¡°You see, you¡¯ve said a lot meaningful things today. But you missed one thing important. If you want to please your wife, you¡¯ve got to have a wife first. You want to rece the world, then you have to defeat us first.¡±


    Ning Que stared at the snow peak and pulled his iron bow again, while he said so to the Abbey Dean.


    That was also said to Sangsang.

 Chapter 1098 - A Mountain Equalling Sky, A Stick Equalling Eyebrows

    <h4>Chapter 1098: A Mountain Equalling Sky, A Stick Equalling Eyebrows</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Sangsang was not the Sangsang that she used to be anymore. As the New Stream prevailed, Taoism had declined. She was getting weaker as she lost the strength of faithfulness from hundreds of millions of believers, especially now that she was carrying a baby.


    She was not the omnipotent Haotian anymore. She no longer possessed the strong state that was far beyond the reach of the world. However, the arrow she shot on behalf of Ning Que was stronger than the steel arrow Ning Que shot to Qinghe Prefecture during the Rite to Light. Why was that so?


    This was because during the Rite to Light, Ning Que used the natal connection between both of them to forcefully take over the Tianqi of the Hierarch, Xiong Chumo, and kept the strength for his own. However, this time it was out of her own willingness.


    This was the real unity of nature and mankind. Who could beat it?


    Ning Que was by her side, attached the arrow to the bow once again and pointed towards the other side of the coldke. Hundreds of miles across the nature, he could aim it anywhere and released the bowstring once she voiced out.


    The wildflowers all over the mountain were drifted by the wind to high altitude and then fell off gradually. It was as though the goddess was hidden in the clouds to spread flowers, congratting Haotian for revealing its divine manifestation in the human world once again. However, Sangsang looked rather pale.


    She knitted her eyebrows with her willow-like eyes squinted, making it look narrower. She appeared to be angry and also displeasure. It did not have anything to do for not being able to shoot off the Abbey Dean. The reason behind of her displeasure was because of her body condition. She could not bear seeing herself be so weak. She needed to fight against human beings, and what was worse was that she could not even win.


    Yes, she had used up almost all her strength when she helped Ning Que to shoot the arrow previously. The God¡¯s n had activated immediately and required lots of energy. If she was to figure out the position of the Abbey Dean now, her belly was suffering in pain and felt ufortable.


    This fight was the highest level of battling. Ever since the beginning of human history, the only battle that stood out was the battle between the Headmaster of Academy who entered the Divine Kingdom and Haotian, which had induced the hundred days of rain. It only took a few seconds to determine the oue of the battle.


    Sangsang could not figure out the location of Abbey Dean in the first ce, hence Ning Que could not release the bowstring immediately. The Abbey Dean did not miss out that very first moment. As the mountain wind caressed his body, his figure returned to thekeside.


    Theke was cold and deserted. Outside theke was filled with a rich atmosphere of spring. Ning Que stood in the atmosphere of spring, stared at Ning Que and Sangsang with a straight face. His eyes firm yet calm with a slight sense of arrogance.


    He was not alone by thekeside because he brought along a mountain with him.


    The mountain stretched across a thousand miles, separating the northernnd into two. It was the Min Mountain from the city of Hn located in the north region. It was also known as the Tianqi Mountain because it was a mountain under the influence of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Thus, this was the mountain that was abandoned by Haotian.


    The Abbey Dean was the head of the Taoism. By rights, his aura was not connected with the lofty mountain, it would even cause conflicts. However, it was different now as the situation was simr to one of his apprentices thousand years ago: the one who had created the Great Divine Priest of Light for Light¡¯s Doctrine, but had betrayed Haotian. To be more precise, he abandoned Haotian!


    He had blended as one with the mountain that had been abandoned by Haotian!


    He returned to thekeside, his right hand pointed toward the opposite side of theke. In between his fingers carried the whole Tianqi Mountain¡¯s Primordial Qi of Nature with the State of Purity beingbined with nature, and infinite power lifted the heaven and earth. All of it directly smashed toward Ning Que and Sangsang!


    Before he attacked, he relied on the delicate skill, which was hard to imagine. The attack itself was just that simple and straightforward yet unreasonable because there was no need for any reason under such tremendous momentum!


    The surroundings of the coldke used to be filled with the ambience of spring, but now it had been destroyed. Those flowers and trees that were chopped into pieces by Ning Que previously with de intent had turned even worse until they could not be cut into more pieces anymore!


    The thousand miles mountain just fell off out of nowhere.


    Ning Que knew that even though his steel arrow could prate through the mountain, it could not block the destruction of the mountain. He recalled his bow without a second thought. He then turned around and held Sangsang in his arms, and decided to use his body to hold it out!


    He wanted to see if he could withstand the force from the mountain and keep his head above water for the cmity brought to them by the Abbey Dean as he had been smelted in Haoran Qi for years, and his body had been strengthened for a thousand years by Sangsang!


    Sangsang did not give him the chance to do so.


    Her hands passed through Ning Que¡¯s armpit; it seemed like she wanted to give him a warm hug. The next moment, a ck flower bloomed in her hands: it was a shabby ck umbre.


    The ck umbre that had disappeared for a very long time and nowhere to be found, appeared in her hand. Along with the sound of opening up, the umbre flew toward the mountain that fell from the sky.


    The ck umbre was still shabby as it used to be. The umbre cover was upied with dust and oil. The ck umbre that used to shine under the light of Buddha, revealing its identity had returned to its original appearance.


    Ning Que and her had the habit of calling the ck umbre as the big ck umbre. It was just like how people used to call the ck horse as the big ck horse. This was because it was incredibly big. Although the ck umbre looked small after being opened, as a matter of fact, it could actually envelope the whole sky.


    As long as it could cover the eyes, it could shield the sky.


    The big ck horse and indigo lion hid at the back of Sangsang under the ck umbre with the feeling of terror and difort. Sangsang was holding the ck umbre while hugging Ning Que. She leaned against his shoulder with her head turned sideways, looking at the mountain fell from the sky.


    The Abbey Dean¡¯s hand went across the coldke to the opposite side. The entire Tianqi Mountain split the sky into parts andnded on the coldke. Beneath the giant mountain, the ck umbre appeared like an insignificant ck dot.


    Thud! Thud! Thud! Loud noises echoed through the atmosphere!


    Countless of smoke and dust wafted through the sky and the wilderness in all directions. Numerous gravel pebbles were like thousands of arrows forming lots of traces in the sky, and set the whole world quaking.


    The surface of thend trembled vigorously. The pine trees that grew on the rock located far away from the mountain even blew off to the mid-air. A blue iceke which was beneath the snow-covered mountain that was even further away had been shaken to the sky, forming a miraculous picture. It was like countless of deep blue pearls leaving the ground and dropping from the sky.


    The earthquake had spread through a very far region. Not to mention about Chengjing of the Yan Kingdom, even the Song Kingdom¡¯s crabs that lived in the weird breakwater stone located in the famous seaside dam had jumped back to the sea, as they could feel the terrifying tremble from the faraway northern region.


    The city of Hn was only ten miles away, hence they experienced a more direct and serious effect. Inside the two cliffs emerged countless cracks, and rocks could be seen falling off like a waterfall. The sound could make one be struck with fright.


    The two heavy and big city gates which had blocked the grasnd barbarians for many years were now seriously out of shape, forming a very big gap. Over hundreds of years, the military fort had never copsed, but now it had been destroyed!


    There were all kinds of terrifying noises. The miraculous yet unrepresentablendscapes, the inclination of the cliff, the destruction of the fort could only tell how intimidating Abbey Dean¡¯s hand that hadnded on the opposite side of the coldke.


    Without knowing how long it had passed, the earthquake finally calmed down. The dust and smoke fell off slowly and being absorbed by the snow left on the crushed cliff of the mountain. The cleanliness of the air recovered gradually.


    Greenwoods in the mountain had turned into broken bits, and the coldke became t. Those leftover ice crystals and scaleless slim fish at the bottom of theke had blended into one with the soil and rock; hopefully, they would be rediscovered by humans after numerous years.


    The coldke was left with a vague shape.Thekeside had a trail. It was reformed from the stone powder, and transformed into a circle pavement which was about a hundred miles square. The atmosphere of spring had became a monotonous world that was built up from multiblocks.


    The Abbey Dean stood on a stone by thekeside. His face was slightly pale; his right hand rested on his body shivered a little. Thus, his green clothes also trembled along, causing rings of ripples to sway as calm as water.


    Apanied by the whole Tianqi Mountain, the attack was extremely earth-shattering. Even for him, he also needed to pay a price for it. The coldke had vanished, and the atmosphere of spring had disappeared. However, he was still as calm as the water and as warm as the ambience of spring in the bottom of his heart. This was because he was clear that the long amount of time he spent to prepare for this heavy blow must have injured her severely.


    Even if the big ck umbre was a piece of thing that she tore it out from the dark before she came to the human world to protect her real weak body, it still could not stop the entire Tianqi Mountain.


    The crushing sound from the stone by thekeside was due to lifting and separation of the gravel pebbles. The big ck umbre was exposed, big ck horse and Indigo Lion were nked out under the umbre. Obviously, they had not regained theirposure from the terrifying earthquakes earlier. Ning Que was awakened, but his face looked extremely pale. He did not have any severe injuries, but Sangsang was on the point of death in his arms.


    Sangsangy in his arms, still breathing. Her face was as white as a sheet and blood leaked out from the corner of her mouth. Her willow-like eyes were dull, and no longer as shine as they were before.


    Ningque quickly wrapped her up in front of him, and rode on the horse.


    A ruthless voice spread out from the broken cliff. The Abbey Dean fixed his gaze at him said, ¡°Do you think you can escape?¡±


    Ning Que did not answer him. Sangsang was badly injured at the moment.It was difficult for him to escape from the Abbey Dean if it was merely him. However, he knew that someone woulde for his rescue.


    As long as he knew where Ning Que was, he would definitelye. The Abbey Dean hadunched a shocking attack, even the earth and heaven could also perceive it. He would know where Ning Que was.


    Ning Que had waited for this moment. He was confident about it just like many years ago, he came to their rescue when he and Sangsang fell into a desperate situation in the White Tower Temple located at the Yuelun Kingdom¡¯s Chaoyang City.


    The wind blew across the cliff, causing the Abbey Dean¡¯s expression to alter slightly. A gust of wind swept in, and instantly came before Ningque. A finger was pointed on his chest and the fingertip reached between Sangsang¡¯s eyebrows.


    Suddenly, a wooden stick appeared in front of his finger. It was just an ordinary wooden stick. It was not rosewood, definitely not agwood, and not Pao Rosa. It was a wooden stick that could be found anywhere in anyone¡¯s house, that was usually used to make the dough, or to beat the kids.


    When the Abbey Dean waved his hand, the mountain would fall off as there were mountains and rivers in-between his fingers.


    However, this ordinary wooden stick was able to resist his finger movement.


    A snap sound was produced between the wooden stick and the finger.


    A ripple of the Primordial Qi of Nature could be seen spreading across the surroundings. The ripple hit the cliff, causing damage to it once again, and the hard rocks flipped as well. The remaining forest was engulfed with strong winds.


    The wooden stick withdrew.


    In front of the big ck horse, a schr with a cotton-padded robe appeared.


    The sparks at the edge of the cotton-padded robe had not faded away, could someone imagine how fast it took for him to arrive.


    There was dust everywhere on his cotton-padded robe, even in his shoes and hair. One could not imagine how far he moved.


    The Abbey Dean looked at him quietly, taking one step forward.


    The Elder brother raised the wooden stick horizontally in front of his eyes, equalling it to his eyebrows.


    With this action, he utilized Jun Mo¡¯s intent of respecting each other.


    Back in those days, he did not know how to fight, and not even know how to kill someone. However, he was forced to learn how to fight and kill someone because of this brutal world. From that day onwards, he equipped himself the ability to fight.


    A stick was equal to the eyebrows, hence the Abbey Dean was not allowed to enter.

 Chapter 1099 - Eyes Red

    <h4>Chapter 1099: Eyes Red</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The Eldest Brother stared at the Abbey Dean and said calmly, ¡°Go.¡±


    That was for Ning Que. Looking at the back of his Eldest Brother, Ning Que wanted to say something but he knew it was not the time for sensations.


    He pushed hard on the horse¡¯s belly. The big ck horse growled and darted out like a ck bolt. It leaped over the rocky cliffs and charged toward the Hn City not far away. The indigo lion-dog formed an indigo line while following them.


    Only the two were left among the copsed cliffs.


    The Abbey Dean looked at the Eldest Brother and said, ¡°That was not wise.¡±


    The Eldest Brother held the cudgel horizontally in his right hand, and asked politely and prudently, ¡°Why not?¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°The Academy joining hand with Haotian to challenge Taoism, it is a very unwise choice.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°Even Taoism betrayed Haotian... What else could be even more unexpected now?¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°You can¡¯t stop me.¡±


    When he said so a bout of fresh Qi was spread from the Abbey Dean¡¯s body toward the copsed cliffs and rocky hills. Spring was revived again among the deserted fields.


    There were woods around the cliffs, but nothing green previously around the chillingke. Right now with the spread of the fresh Qi countless grass grew from the rocks in the spring breeze.


    Branches among the grass were moistened and produced buds. The buds swung in the breeze and bloomed right away. Each bud opened with a dozen of petals. And the entire valley was covered with tens of thousands of flowers immediately.


    If the Abbey Dean wanted to kill Sangsang, then he had to break the cudgel in front of him. He already applied much of his psyche taking the previous attack. It would be very difficult and time consuming to break it now. Therefore he decided to leave.


    Each flower was a gate. He could flee via any single one.


    The Eldest Brother struck with a single cudgel but created tens of thousands of shadows.


    No matter how powerful his strike was, it was weakened the moment it split into tens of thousands. But it was still powerful enough. The shadows of his cudgelnded on the petals gently, like stroking rather than hitting.


    The wild flowers were like mimosas or even some shy girls thile the cudgel was like the Eldest Brother¡¯s warm fingers. The moment they touched the flowers, the petals wrapped up. The moment they touched their hair, the girls turned away.


    The Abbey Dean was slightly stunned. It was not unexpected that the cudgel could be so powerful. What surprised him was that the Eldest Brother was able to locate the real flowers among the countless flowers in the valley.


    It meant that he had almost reached the same level in terms ofprehending the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    The Abbey Dean stared at the Eldest Brother who still held the cudgel, and disappeared suddenly.


    The Eldest Brother disappeared together.


    ...


    ...


    The Abbey Dean appeared in the air above the cliffs, with his indigo gown fluttering.


    The Eldest Brother also appeared there standing on a cliff, with his cotton-padded gown swinging.


    The Abbey Dean appeared by the East Sea. Wind roared behind him and blocked the dazzling sun.


    So did the Eldest Brother. He stood on a rock by the sea with his cotton-padded gown swinging.


    The Abbey Dean appeared on the South Sea. Fishing boats scattered on the blue sea while seagulls skimmed above the water.


    So did the Eldest Brother. He stood on a reef with his cotton-padded gown swinging.


    Wherever the Abbey Dean went, the Eldest Brother appeared right there, standing in front of him and holding up his cudgel high. The Abbey Dean went to the remotest ces in the world but could never get rid of him. Therefore he could not enter the Hn City.


    Eventually the Abbey Dean returned to the no longer chillingke. So did the Eldest Brother. They seemed to have never left. The flowers were still blooming in the valley.


    ¡°For how long can you keep me away from them?¡± the Abbey Dean asked while staring at the ck line that was approaching the Hn City.


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°Years ago when you were the most powerful, I stopped you for seven days. Now I am much better than I used to be. Even if you would apply the six Arcane Tomes, I could at least stop you for seven days.¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked back calmly at him and said, ¡°Li Manman, you are indeed confident now.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°I¡¯ve always been confident, I just never showed you. Now that I have to fight against you, I need to be more confident than ever in order to win.¡±


    The Abbey Dean asked, ¡°You assume that you are very powerful?¡±


    The Eldest Brother answered, ¡°Only the second most powerful.¡±


    He was not talking about being the second most powerful in some small town or a private school. He was the second most powerful throughout the human world. Humble as he was, when the Eldest Brother said he was the second, he was definitely at least the second.


    Yet the Abbey Dean said calmly, ¡°Unfortunately, I¡¯m the first.¡±


    Indeed, that was also true. Ever since the Headmaster left the human world to fight with Haotian in the Divine Kingdom, the Abbey Dean became the most powerful one in the world. Even when he was almost ruined by Ning Que and disabled by Sangsang, he was still the number one.


    The fight between the Eldest Brother and the Abbey Dean was the confrontation between the number one and number two in the human world. Sadly, the result seemed obvious since they were already the number one and number two.


    ¡°Seven days. I only need to keep you away for seven days, or even less.¡± The Eldest Brother said calmly to the Abbey Dean, ¡°I don¡¯t even care about the result.¡±


    The Abbey Dean asked, ¡°Why?¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°In seven days, the Youngest Brother will be back in Chang¡¯an.¡±


    Once Ning Que brought Sangsang back to Chang¡¯an they would have the support of the God-Stunning Array. No matter what would happen the next, the Abbey Dean could no longer do any harm to them, nor would it matter whether he was the number one or not.


    The Abbey Dean paused briefly then suddenly looked above toward somewhere in the sky. It was in the southeast. Then he said something that seemed to make no sense.


    ¡°If I be Haotian, you will be eternal in the Divine Kingdom.¡±


    Far away in the depths of the clouds, in the mountains, or in the small town, from somewhere Haotian could never see, a clear whistle was heard.


    The whistle was longsting and extremely loud. It resounded cheerfully throughout the human world.


    Upon hearing the clear whistle, the Eldest Brother got slightly solemn.


    The Abbey Dean stared at him calmly and said, ¡°A just cause will gain great support. How could you and the Academy win?¡±


    The Eldest Brother sighed. ¡°It¡¯s merely for your own benefit. How justified could it be?¡±


    ...


    ...


    Many heard the clear whistle.


    The Tang soldiers inside the Hn City were awakened from the previous horrifying quake and busy putting out the fire around the city. It was chaotic. But the clear whistle stiffened them for a second.


    Because they all sensed the cheerfulness and resoluteness in the whistle. It was extremely cheerful and almost crazy. It was a resolution toward any creature other than himself, the absolute selfishness.


    Ning Que heard it too. He got slightly pale. He looked at Sangsang who just opened her eyes, kissed her forehead and said gently, ¡°You go first. I¡¯ll be there soon.¡±


    Sangsang stared at him in silence. She might be too weak to talk, or just did not want to say a word.


    Ning Que turned away from her look and unbounded the two of them, then leapt away. The big ck horse got his order and kept darting toward the Hn City like a real arrow.


    Ning Quended on the ground and bolted back. Deep footsteps were made on the rocks along his way. The firm boots were worn out immediately and blown away like ragged cotton. He bolted toward the cliffs like a rock thrown out by a mangonel. Rumbling sounds were heard when he passed through the air. He was incredibly fast. But not fast enough.


    When he came back to the cliffs, he was merely on time for a shocking scene.


    The Abbey Dean and the Eldest Brother were confronting in the sea of flowers.


    An indigo figure pressed toward the Eldest Brother.


    The Eldest Brother applied his cudgel like a sword and carried the Qi of Heaven and Earth. It was the most crucial moment when none of them could spare any efforts for anything else. Right then a third person showed up.


    The fragrance of the flowers was reced by a smell of strongest liquor and made people feel dizzy. A man in an indigo gown appeared behind the Eldest Brother.


    There was a gon in his left hand. And he pulled out a sword from the gon with his right hand.


    He stabbed the sword toward the Eldest Brother.


    If the Abbey Dean was the number one in the world and the Eldest Brother being the second, he would be third.


    He was also the third person in this fight.


    It was impossible for the Eldest Brother to escape from a joint attack by the Abbey Dean and him, especially from such an insidious sneak attack.


    Blood gushed out, shed on the flowers, and stained the yellow petals. That was what Ning Que witnessed.


    He turned even paler. Instead of cursing aloud, he just cursed silently to himself.


    He silenced himself like a real rock, hid the rumbling sounds when dashing through the air, and turned away from the Eldest Brother¡¯s wound and blood. He seemed chillingly brutal.


    The petals were not even smashed when he stepped onto them with bared feet.


    He came right behind the man in the indigo gown.


    He did not pull out the iron de because he did not want to alert the enemy. He could not apply the iron arrow because the enemy was right behind his Eldest Brother. He could only make a sneak attack.


    But the man in the indigo gown still sensed something.


    He was after all a mighty cultivator who had gone through countless generations of vicissitudes. No matter how fast, sudden and unexpected Ning Que could be, it touched a string in his psyche.


    The man in the indigo gown sensed the danger. He turned pale. He tried to pull out the sword and was about to leave.


    Being one of the two most long lived people in the world, he was hence one of the two most afraid of death. Even if the person was not able to kill him with the sneak attack, he had to leave once he sensed the danger.


    But the Eldest Brother would never let him go. That was their tacit understanding among the students of the Academy. He knew that since Ning Que was back. Therefore they had to finish some business.


    The Eldest Brother slightly bent his body to stop the Drunkard¡¯s sword from being pulled out. He held the cudgel in the right hand against the Abbey Dean, while his left hand was slightly lifted and pointed toward the Drunkard¡¯s eyebrows.


    It was the Natural Stream Magical Finger. which was Chen Pipi¡¯s technique.


    The man in the indigo gown yelled a weird groan and took one step back.


    That was a very wise stepping back. He warded off the the Natural Stream Magical Finger, and delivered himself into Ning Que¡¯s arms.


    There was a world of difference between being active and being passive.


    By stepping back it could at least weaken one third of the power of Ning Que¡¯s attack.


    Ning Que looked at the bending sword stabbed into the Eldest Brother, felt the pain and could no longer held his anger.


    He bombed at the back of the man in the indigo gown.


    He clinched thim, leaped into the sky then pounded onto the cliff!


    The cliff was approaching, right in front of them.


    It seemed they were dying together.


    Ning Que no longer cared. His eyes turned red.


    They were stained by the Eldest Brother¡¯s blood.


    He was driven by the blood.


    He yelled at the person in the indigo gown, ¡°Drunkard, fuck you!¡±

 Chapter 1100 - Come And Go

    <h4>Chapter 1100: Come And Go</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    When the Elder Brother arrived before this, Ning Que left without dy because he needed to bring the heavily injured Sangsang away from the scene. Now, he returned again without hesitation. But this was not a representation of him being indefinite, although he often called himself a vile person. He returned because he was aware of the predicament that Elder Brother was going to face. Under such circumstances, he had no choice but to return. Even after he returned to Chang¡¯an, and ultimately won the battle, realizing the prayers of all, he would not be able to look at the world in peace if Elder Brother did not live to see them.


    However, he did not expect his return to be toote. He did not get to hear what the Abbey Dean said, therefore he would not know what those words mean to the Drunkard. He also never imagined that such a grand cultivator like the Drunkard would be so shameless and cunning to attempt a sneak attack on Elder Brother.


    Witnessing the Elder Brother bleeding, and the potted sword left in his body, he felt as if he was the one who was being stabbed. He was filled with wrath, and his eyes turned red due to the pain. How could he even bother about the cliff that was right before him?


    He held the Drunkard and mmed it toward the cliff like a rock.


    The Drunkard looked very pale. As a grand cultivator at the level of the distanceless state, one thing that he tabooed the most was to let martial art masters who were at the most advanced level or great dark skill practitioners like Ning Que Yu Lian to get close to him. However, he was locked by the sneak attack of Ning Que at the moment. How was he supposed to avoid the cliff that was directed to his face?


    It was at the veryst moment that this great cultivator who had been through the Ever Night, and was very experienced and knowledgeable on surviving skills, erupted a rare energy.


    A loud hiss burst out between his lips, and the breath of nature in Tian Qi Mountain that was already extremely thin was summoned by his enormous psyche power, into the air inyers before him.


    Everyyer of the breath of nature was very thin, thinner than a piece of paper, but when innumerableyers of the breath were umted, like countless papers ovepping one another would render its thickness and mighty power.


    The Drunkard summoned and rebuilt hundreds ofyers of the breath of nature within such a short time. It might seem easy, but it actually demonstrated an unimaginably formidable state!


    An invisible swamp suddenly appeared in front of the tough cliff.


    Ning Que, holding the Drunkard, banged into the swamp like a flowing fire stone.


    A loud sound echoed around the mountains. The collision was not very clear, so it did not sound like a Bang but sounded like a Buzz as though it was the sound of a heavy hammer hitting on a thick pile of paper.


    If it was a thick rock, then it might be shattered by a hammer. But if it was a stack of papers, then it could not be crushed.


    The Drunkard hummed, as blood flowed out from the corner of his mouth, causing his chic beard to be wet.


    Ning Que hummed too, as his face turned pale. He experienced a setback on his rib cage after being hurt by Long Qing outside the Rognon sea of the Yan territory. His rib cage fractured again, and the blood had drenched the clothes on his chest.


    Neither of them died.


    Web-like cracks appeared on the wall of the cliff, and two of them were in the middle of the web.


    Ning Que stepped on the wall of the cliff with one foot, creating more concentrated cracks. Utilizing the immense anti-shock force, he thennded on the solid surface of rock along with the Drunkard¡¯s body.


    Landing extremely fast!


    At the same time, he strangled the Drunkard with both his arms and exerted his power as he vigorously hit on the back of Drunkard¡¯s head with his forehead, treacherously lifting his right knee and aimed at the Drunkard¡¯s perineum!


    He was a master of hand-to-hand battle. He beat A Da to death, banged Hengmu to death and killed Long Qing by the riverside, all done with his bare hands. Apart from Ye Hongyu, no one was capable of being his opponent.


    The question was, in terms of the state of cultivation, there was a big gap between him and the Drunkard. If it was a normal battle, he could not even get close to him, let alone attacking. Relying on the sneak attack and Elder Brother¡¯s natal, the natural stream magical finger, he got toy aside with the Drunkard. How could he possibly let go of this chance?


    As much as he cherished it, he did everything he could to make the Drunkard a dead man!


    As they were falling on the ground which was hundreds of feet away from them, it was enough for him to strangle the Drunkard to death with his steel-like arm. Even if he could not, he would use his fists and beat the Drunkard to death.


    The Drunkard screamed continuously, and the gon in his left hand suddenly increased in size, blocking Ning Que¡¯s arm that was strangling him. He took out a sword from the gon, and thrust it towards Ning Que at an unbelievable extent.


    Ning Que¡¯s arm could not break the Drunkard¡¯s neck due to the blocking gon. The gon symbolized an immeasurable state. At the same time, he found his attack unable to reach the Drunkard¡¯s body!


    All because of that d*mn sword.


    Before today, people rarely knew that the actual natal item of the Drunkard was not the gon, but the sword in it. And today, he finally used the sword, which had injured the Elder Brother badly with one attack, showing off its immense power.


    The reflection of the swords glittered in between the cracks of the cliff, but it did not show any signs of criss crossing. They just seemed very sharp and weird. The razor-sharp sword¡¯s wills passed through the Drunkard¡¯s armpit and even between his legs, and headed towards Ning Que.


    Ning Que attempted an attack towards the Drunkard¡¯s leg, but he was blocked by the sword. However, his forehead almost hit the back of the Drunkard¡¯s head. At the same time, the Drunkard¡¯s sword, once again, reached in an extremely peculiar way.


    The Drunkard ced his sword horizontally as if he was trying to cut his throat, but the tip of the sword passed through his neck and urately pierced between Ning Que¡¯s eyebrows.


    Anyone would want to avoid it when they encountered a sword like this. It was an instinct to avoid the shadow of the sword that was approaching. However, Ning Que did not avoid it as his eyes were red, and he could not see a thing.


    He ruthlessly mmed on the Dunkard¡¯s sword as if he did not even see it.


    Along with a clear snap, the sword was broken.


    Ning Que were covered with a pool of blood between his eyebrows as he was stabbed by the sword. This time, his eyes really gone red.


    Although the sword formed a blockage, he sessfully attacked the Drunkard atst, even though the remaining energy could not utterly smash the Drunkard¡¯s head into pieces.


    The Drunkard roared ferociously due to the irresistible pain.


    The roaring stopped as theynded on the ground.


    Thud! The rocks on the cliff were all over, and the air was filled with smoke and dust.


    Ning Que¡¯s body was thrown out due to the quakes.


    The smoke and dust started to fade away, clearing the vision. The Drunkard was seen to be holding the gon that was half-stuck in the solid rock. Blood was all over his body, especially at the back of his head; the blood kept flowing out.


    Ning Que¡¯s face and body were stained by blood too.


    Both of them looked tragic.


    The Drunkard looked at him with blood at the corner of his mouth. His nce was horrific and ice-cold, and he did not look like a human anymore.


    ¡°How... how dare you ambush me?¡± His voice sounded callous too, as if he was not a human. His anger has reached the greatest extent at this point. He never thought that he would be ced in such an embarrassing state by a junior who has not even surpass the Fifth State. He was triggered even more by the fact that he was almost killed by him. He thought that all this happened solely because of Ning Que¡¯s sneak attack. Or else on what basis?


    Ning Que had never seen such a shameless person like him. Even though he called himself the shame of the academy all this while, he also felt that the Drunkard was unbelievably shameless.


    Ambush... Didn¡¯t you ambush my Elder Brother too?


    ¡°How dare... how dare you ambush me?¡±


    Having heard the Drunkard¡¯s cold, furious, arrogant and intermittent question, Ning Que emotionlessly answered, ¡± I dare to even f*** your mother, what could you do?¡±


    ...


    ...


    What could he do? There was nothing that he could do.


    There was still an unsurpassable gap in terms of state between Ning Que and the best few in the world. As he was not in Chang¡¯an, it was hard for him to beat grand cultivator like the Drunkard. But Ning Que had special advantages as he cultivated Haoran Qi with the dark methods. Additionally, he cultivated with Sangsang in the Buddha¡¯s chessboard for thousands of years. His body was extraordinarily strong, thus would be hard to cause fatal injury on him from head to toe. Back then, when he was watched Sangsang left Chang¡¯an City, he himself wanted to break his heart apart but yet he failed, let alone being hurt by the enemies?


    He was yet to reach the mythical state of the immortality of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, but he was now a ¡®loud bronze pea¡¯ that could not be steamed, cooked, smashed, and fried. You could surmount him, but it was difficult to kill him, so he could also be a sticky candy that you could not get rid of or tear apart.


    Long Qing prepared numerous strategies to kill him, but he only managed to cause excessive bleeding on him, failing on the assissination. Although the Drunkard showed his hidden peculiar doctrine of the sword, killing Ning Que was still not an easy task. Ning Que would like to see the Drunkard attempting to kill him.


    There were four people in the mountains at the moment: the Abbey Dean, the Elder Brother, the Drunkard, and Ning Que.


    Sangsang had entered the city of Hn.


    Though no one knew why must she entered the city of Hn, but obviously, she was confident that she would be able to free herself from the tracing of the Abbey Dean and the Drunkard, and returned to Chang¡¯an as long as she entered that town.


    ¡°Kill her.¡± The Abbey Dean¡¯s voice was heard in between the mountains. It was calm and determined, without a single tinge of hesitation.


    This statement was directed to the Drunkard. The Drunkard nced at Ning Que and disappeared.


    Ning Que felt a hint of coldness all of a sudden as he saw the glimpse of the Drunkard before he left.


    The Drunkard¡¯s nce was cold and brutal with a clear meaning that he was going to kill her now, but there was nothing that Ning Que could do. He could only witness her death with his eyes.


    Subsequently, another voice was produced. It was from the Elder Brother. ¡°Let¡¯s go! Let¡¯s bring her back to Chang¡¯an!¡±


    Ning Que looked at the Elder Brother who was covered in blood, but was still calmly lifting the wooden rod in front of him, and the broken sword on him. He did not know how to react.


    He ambushed the Drunkard, but he only gained a partial sess. Next, he was thinking that he could work together with the Elder Brother to seeking for opportunities with ferocious will, at least to ensure that Sangsang would be safe from danger.


    The Abbey Dean spoiled his ns by a single instruction. The Abbey Dean stood at the peak, therefore, he was able to see furthest.


    The weakest part between the mountains was not Ning Que, but outside the mountains.


    Now the weakest was Haotion. The Drunkard was on his way to kill her. What could Ning Que do? Should he stay and help the heavily injured Eldest Brother, or leave to rescue the heavily injured Sangsang? He could only choose one which would mean to abandon another.


    The Eldest Brother started speaking again. He, too, said one word to spoil the Abbey Dean¡¯s n. ¡°I am not gonna die.¡±


    ¡°The Eldest Brother never lies.¡± Ning Que firmly believed in this and the fact that at the end of this story, he would not be crying and shouting, ming the Eldest Brother for lying to him before the end of his life, because the Eldest Brother would never tell lies.


    He jumped down from the cliff, and rushed towards the city of Hn.


    Today, in between the mountains, he came and went.


    Perhaps everything in the mortal world was just as such. It might look repetitive or even boring, but it had to be done because no matter leaving or returning or leaving again, there was a reason for us to do so.

 Chapter 1101 - All Your Fault

    <h4>Chapter 1101: All Your Fault</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Among the cliffs, no trees were swinging and no birds were singing. The two of them stood facing each other, holding their cudgel and sword. The Abbey Dean with a sword was not necessarily more powerful than the one without the sword. But the sword did have some significance.


    His cotton-padded gown was soaked in blood. The Eldest Brother knew that he could not longer hold for another seven days. But as he said previously, Ning Que and Sangsang might need less than seven days to get back to Chang¡¯an. What he had to do was to try his best.


    The Abbey Dean stared at his sword and said calmly, ¡°The Headmaster taught you to love. I thought you would be different with Jun Mo. But you are after all a student of the Academy.¡±


    The Eldest Brother looked at him calmly. The sword stabbed into his chest was already thrown on the ground behind him. He said, ¡°A student from the Academy awaits your challenge.¡±


    While they talked, the remaining woods afar by the cliffs got on fire. The zing fire melted the snow on the cliffs but was never abated, and disconnected the two of them from the outside world.


    The fire in the woods was almost impossible to be put out. Because it came from Haotian¡¯s Divine me. It was the purest energy formed by Ning Que¡¯s blood and his iron de.


    Ning Que was darting toward Hn City. He traveled hundreds of meters with every single leap he made. Wherever he stepped on the rocks were smashed. His iron de and the blood he shed created sparkles and thundered in the mountains.


    No one could catch up with a Distanceless cultivator unless he was Distanceless himself. If the Drunkard was heading for the West-Hill, then Ning Que could never make it. But he was merely going to the Hn City in a dozen miles away. Therefore Ning Que still had a chance. Because he was already faster than hawks.


    With a few leaps he came to the Hn City. He broke through the destroyed city gate but could neither find the big ck horse nor the Drunkard.


    The gates of the Hn City were already distorted. Boulders kept falling off from the cliffs around. Most of the watchtowers along the city walls were smashed. Several people could be seen in the dense smoke.


    The remaining Tang soldiers were still trying to put out the fire and save the city. Ning Que called out, ¡°Retreat! Leave it!¡±


    For the Tang soldiers in the Hn City, Ning Que was such an impressive figure that they could recognize him in a quick nce. Although they had no idea why Mr. Thirteen showed up at this point, they immediately followed his orders and retreated to the outskirts led by theirmanders.


    Ning Que stood by some steep stairs and looked above at the copsing watchtowers. He sensed something and immediately leaped.


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang was not in one of those watchtowers. Instead, she was in a secret chamber beneath it.


    The seemingly perfect bubble appeared again in front of her. Different from what Ning Que saw previously, there were a dozen of bright spots on the bubble apart from the two tiny cracks. The bright spots stood for the entrances to the steady inteyers of the Qi of Heaven and Earth.


    There was one bright spot on the bubble that shed distinctively. Because it represented the ce right under her feet. It was a transmission array formed byplicated Talismans.


    There were paths in the inteyers of the Qi of Heaven and Earth that interconnected the most remote ces throughout the world. In other words, they were shortcuts. Only great cultivators like the Abbey Dean, the Eldest Brother and the Drunkard could locate and open the gates to these paths, and travel freely in Distanceless.


    Apart from the state of Distanceless, people also used the shortcuts to deliver information. Both the Tang and the West-Hill had built such transmission arrays. But due to their limited power, the transmission array built by human beings could only deliver or carry messages or very light objects. Most importantly, just like casting the Thirteen Primordial Arrows, it took an unreasonablyrge amount of energy and rare resources to build or even activate the transmission. Therefore people seldom used and gradually abandoned them. They were of no strategic importance nowadays.


    Sangsang knew what would happen and she had been preparing for it. The bright spots on the bubble were the gates of the transmission array throughout the human world. Some of the channels were abandoned for tens of thousands of years. No one knew them except for her, not even the Abbey Dean.


    She stood in the centre of theplicated and charming talisman lines, pale and blood-stained like a wounded fairy. She was no longer ruthless and almighty, but sympathetic instead.


    The big ck horse and the indigo lion-dog stood cautiously by her side. They tried to conceal their sympathy because they did feel for her.


    She was seriously wounded and left alone by her man. It was so sad. Otherwise why was she standing in the centre of the talisman array without saying anything, and seemed so lonely?


    Sangsang had no idea what those two were thinking about. She could no longer know it all. She was not pretending to be lonely and desperate, nor was she feeling sorry for herself because of the severe wound. She was already sober when Ning Que left. She did not stop him because she was not against it.


    She was merely waiting for the talisman array to be activated.


    If some human beings were to activate the array and deliver messages to Chang¡¯an, they would need a great amount of energy and treasurable minerals, and probably had to wait for a fairly long while.


    Sangsang did not have those things. And she was running out of time. But what she had was herself. The blood from her divine body was the most valuable and purified energy.


    Her blood showered onto the talisman array. It looked horrifying but did not take much. The talisman lines started blinking and would be activated shortly.


    In the next moment, she would return to the small house in the imperial pce in Chang¡¯an.


    Ning Que was not here yet. She said nothing and or showed any emotions. It seemed she never cared. The big ck horse and the indigo lion-dog found her somewhat ruthless.


    Instead of wondering, she just assumed, Since I¡¯m heading back to Chang¡¯an as you wish, you have to keep your promise and go back to Chang¡¯an with me, even if you are dead.


    Some wind blew across the chamber and carried some dust from the walls to the corner.


    Someone showed up outside the talisman array.


    Sangsang looked up and found it was not Ning Que. She seemed slightly disappointed then became calm as usual immediately.


    The Drunkard stared at her, but he could never stay calm. He was wounded in the previous fight and coughed some blood. Right now when staring at her he got excited and coughed some more blood.


    When he met her in the small town and on the ind in the South Sea, he kneeled in front of her, bowed to the ground, kept trembling and stayed extremely low. Because she made him fear.


    He had been hiding from her in the human world for thousands of years. The fear had been haunting him for thousands of years. It corrupted his body and soul yet he could never escape.


    Right then his body was trembling. He knew that she was very weak after attacked by the Abbey Dean, and that she could barely fight. However... he just did not dare.


    He did not dare to point at her, or even look at her.


    Sangsang looked at the blood-stained Drunkard. She seemed extremely calm as if she was the god looking down upon the ants or a dog in the human world.


    The Drunkard roared inughter when he saw the look in her eyes. Heughed insanely, bully yet cowardly. There was wild killing intent as well as otherplicated and indescribable sensations.


    It felt like a ve who became the master and raped the daughter of his previous owner, or a prince who reestablished his country and revenged for his thirty-six thousand people, or a student who pushed his verbose teacher into the water.


    That was exactly how he felt. The inferiority and fear he used to have had turned into insane satisfaction and desire for torturing the prey. He was thrilled upon thinking of the realization.


    This time it was out of excitement instead of fear.


    The Drunkard burst intoughter and tears. His voice still sounded like grating of scrap bronze weapons, as if the weapons were ground into powder and piled up in front of him like dark snow.


    Along with the insaneughter, he pulled out a sword from the gon and stabbed suddenly toward Sangsang. His movements were exaggerated as if he was dancing.


    Sangsang waved her hand and some clear light formed a crystal screen in front of her. Her world was shielded.


    The Drunkard howled while he applied Immeasurable and charged countless Qi of Heaven and Earth onto his de.


    Cracks. Sangsang¡¯s world was broken. The sword from the Drunkard¡¯s gon shed and stabbed into her belly with a piercing sound. It was deadly quiet inside the chamber, as well as between Heaven and Earth.


    Sangsang looked down at her belly, at the sharp sword and the blood gushing out. She frowned and felt surprised as well as confused.


    In the past, no one could ever break into her world. Even the peerless Sage of Sword Liu Bai was only able to stab the sword into her world, but could not wound her before his sword was burnt into ashes.


    But now, the Drunkard easily broke into her world with a simple stab.


    Her eyebrows furrowed further, out of dissatisfaction and pain. She had gone through such pains before, but not distinctive as it was right now. Like what she felt a while ago. The distinctiveness of life actually came from pains.


    The Drunkard was stunned. He never expected that she could not ward off his sword, and that his sword could actually stabbed into her body. Even with the blood gushing out, he still could not believe what he saw.


    Did I just defeat Haotian? Did I just stab Haotian?


    ...


    ...


    Upon a big bang, someone broke into the secret chamber.


    Ning Que appeared in front of Sangsang and held the Drunkard¡¯s sword. He turned to the pale Sangsang, tried to say something but could not utter a word.


    Sangsang stared at him and said emotionlessly, ¡°This is all your fault.¡±


    Indeed. She was weakening and bing more like a human being. She was not unbreakable and even got wounded. It was all because he was not by her side, and that he had turned her into a human being.


    ...

 Chapter 1102 - Born To Be A Pair (I)

    <h4>Chapter 1102: Born To Be A Pair (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    ¡°It was all because of you.¡±


    ¡°It was all your fault, the moon did nothing wrong.¡±


    ¡°You did this, you did that, you behaved like this, you behaved like that.¡±


    These are themon conversations between teenage boys and girls, but it rarely urred between Ning Que and Sangsang. Regardless of when they were a young man and a girl, nominally master and servant, or after they became husband and wife.


    When Sangsang was saying this, there was not much expression on her face, not ming, not throwing a tantrum, more like conveying an objective fact. However, it felt like a grudge, a tantrum to Ning Que. His heart was trembling and hurting as a result of him taking pity on her.


    He did not know how to answer Sangsang. There was blood flowing out between the de of the sword and his palm, pattering like a clock in that world, urging him to do something to console her.


    He looked at the Drunkard with calmness, like he could not feel any pain. His gaze was filled with his determined murderous aura.


    At first, the Drunkardunched a sneak attack, stabbing the Eldest Brother and then Sangsang, both whom he respected and loved the most, causing severe injuries to them due to his attack. It was still unknown if Sang sang could hold on.


    Ever since Xia Hou¡¯s death, there was not once that Ning Que wanted to kill someone so badly.


    But the Drunkard did not seem to sense his gaze as heughed crazily with his eyebrows twisted. ¡°Could you see? She... she¡¯s not gonna make it.¡±


    The sword in his hand was twisted simultaneously as his eyebrows were distorted. Ning Que¡¯s palm was shed, causing a more violent and deluging blood flow.


    There was an unknown number of swords in the gon, each of them was the Drunkard¡¯s natal. They were smelted with hard liquor for many years, therefore, extremely sharp, that his body could not even take it.


    Ning Que took out the iron cuss from the back of the shoulder and shed toward the Drunkard.


    The ming and pure Haotian¡¯s Divine me appeared at the tip of the iron cuss.


    An oddly rich liquor squirted out from the gon at the Drunkard¡¯s waist, forming an immeasurably dense waterfall. The liquor flowed out perpetually, putting off the divine me on the knife immediately.


    The Drunkard looked at him and said bitterly, ¡± So do you still think that you could do me any harm?¡±


    Ning Que stayed silent as he supported the falling Sangsang with his left shoulder.


    The Drunkard rubbed his palm on the sword, and slowly pierced into Sangsang¡¯s body.


    Her blood flow increased, dripping on the fancy talisman thread. The thread became brighter with a faster speed, and the next moment, the talisman array would be activated.


    ¡°It is toote, you shall all die.¡±


    The Drunkard stoppedughing. His cold gaze was filled with boundless murderous aura and contempt.


    Ning Que¡¯s palm reached out as fast as lightning along the sharp de of the knife.


    The tip of the de cut through his palm. The sound of muscles and bone tearing apart were awful and horrific. His hands were as hard as steel like his body, hence, it sounded more unpleasant and terrifying.


    His eyes that were covered with blood were still blood-red, as he stared at the Drunkard like a beast. He held the Drunkard¡¯s hand with his palm. Suddenly, there was a small metal can in his palm.


    Pow! Air waves fluctuated in the secret room. There was an explosion in between Ning Que¡¯s and the Drunkard¡¯s palm. Countless of sharp des fluttered in the air and slit through every flesh they encountered. A sad, shrill and resentful shout was heard. Walls around the room were shattered by the shock.


    Ning Que¡¯s palm was covered in blood, losing its form as a hand of a human being. The Drunkard had it worse, his hand was blown offpletely. Certainly, without his hand, he could not grab a sword and pierce it through Sang sang¡¯s body. The Drunkard¡¯s face turned pale as his body shivered, and blood squirting out from his broken right arm. He had never been so heavily injured. He valued his life, taking every strand of his hair more seriously than the whole world. But now, he lost an arm. A whole arm!


    ¡°You are a dead man,¡± he looked apathetically at Ning Que and said, with a deranged gaze. He took out a sword from the gon with his left hand once again.


    Ning Que¡¯s psyche power was almost drained, unable to fight anymore. However, he must fight. He looked at the sword on Sangsang¡¯s belly.


    The Drunkard¡¯s blood and flesh remained on the handle of the sword. A flow of liquor fell from above, washing away all stains on it, and it looked brand new again.


    ¡°Thinking about using the Light¡¯s Doctrine¡¯s disgusting method?¡± The Drunkard looked at him emotionlessly and said, ¡°Don¡¯t you even think about it!¡±


    A soft sneer sound was emitted. The sharp potted sword thrust into Ning Que¡¯s chest on his left. It did not get to pierce through him thoroughly, but his lung was badly wounded.


    Ning Que coughed painfully as blood spurted from his mouth. But he was pleased because he felt the powerful change of the breath of Heaven and Earth under his feet and he could even feel its warmth clearly, a proof of the talisman array being turned on.


    A majestic ray of light emerged from the talisman thread on the solid rock surface, enveloping Ning Que, Sangsang, the big ck horse and the indigo lion dog in it.


    The Drunkard¡¯s facial expression changed as he held the sword with his left hand, and drew a trace that was almost against the rule of physics, bypassing Ning Que¡¯s body, aiming between Sangsang¡¯s eyebrows.


    At this instant, Ning Que had no energy to fight anymore and Sangsang could barely stand with the support of his left shoulder. Who could stop the Drunkard¡¯s all-in attack?


    No one. But it could be paused.


    A firm yet solemn lion roar that was suppressed for a long time echoed in the whole city of Hn!


    The indigo lion transformed into a ray of light and crashed onto the side of the potted sword!


    Two shades of dark shadow kicked out from the ray of light like lightning, hitting the Drunkard on his chest heavily!


    The Drunkard missed his target and dealt with a heavy blow again. He hummed, and retreated backwards due to the attack!


    The ray of light became brighter, and the silhouettes in it quickly weaken!


    The Drunkard¡¯s face became more pale; he was clear what it meant to let Haotian escaped alive. He would never allow himself to let go of this opportunity.


    A loud roar broke through the broken walls of the secret room, spread through the sky.


    The Drunkard was standing at the same spot but he became much bigger, doubling his size by hundreds, thousands and even more!


    Loud sounds of banging never stopped!


    The secret room was shaken by the vibration, copsing the tower. The whole city of Hn was copsing!


    Smoke and dust drifted in the air as a result of the quake, slowly covering the sky above the alley.


    The Tang troops who had retreated from the city of Hn a while ago, turned their gaze toward the ce they battled and lived, witnessing the scene which appeared like divine manifestation of God¡¯s punishment. They were out of words for being shocked.


    The smoke and dust started to fade away after half a day had passed.


    The city of Hn that was once magnificent was left with only half of its broken pieces, looking extremely deste.


    The hidden transmission array in the secret room was destroyed along with the copsed town.


    Other than ruins, stones and pirs, there was no trace of living human.


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang looked at the wall paintings around her, and found them rather familiar. She remembered it after a while that the Divine General Golden Dragon on the paintings were the divine manifestation of her will revealed in the mortal world.


    This was a Taoist pce.


    The big ck horse and indigo lion were by her side, but Ning Que was not.


    She looked at the bubble in front of her. She was able to locate herself by observing the glittering dots on the bubble. She was in a Taoist pce in a city of Song Kingdom. The Song Kingdom, as the starting point of Taoism, did actually have a transmission array.


    She got the whole picture of the incident solely by bending her fingers. The reason of her not being able to return to Chang¡¯an from Hn was because the transmission array was affected by the Drunkard¡¯s countless attack the moment it was turned on. The Qi of Heaven and Earth were changing too vigorously, hence she was sent to the Song Kingdom by the array.


    Simrly, this was why Ning Que could not be here together with her. She checked on Ning Que¡¯s location beforehand, knowing that he was doing fine before she could stop herself from worrying, and felt relieved.


    Suddenly, she started to frown.


    She looked at the sword on her belly, and made sure that the intermittent pain was noting from that, but somewhere deeper within her stomach, probably from the d*mn fetus.


    She was tired, so she slowly sat on the floor. There was still not much expression on her pale face, but her gxy-like eyes seemed to be filled with helplessness and anxiety.


    The indigo lion dog wandered and looked around, not knowing what had happened to its master.


    The big ck horse was very anxious as its eyes widened. It lived for a longer period of time in the human society, so it could tell that the master would be giving birth soon. It neighed softly as he ran out of the Taoist pce.


    Then, the noise of someone talking and walking outside the pce were heard.


    Sangsang leaned against the pir and sat down exhaustingly. Sweat was dripping from her temples, as she was tortured by the blood and pain due to the sword. She felt worse when that feeling wasbined with the deep and intermittent pain from within her abdominal.


    ¡°Who is it?¡±


    More than ten divine priests and deacons walked into the pce. They were extremely shocked to find a pregnant woman covered in blood, settling in the solemn and sacred main pce.


    Rting it to the emerging New Stream in the town and sayings of how dirty fetus blood from a pregnant woman was, the officials and deacons thought they guessed the truth right.


    The New Stream is trying to profane Haotian whom the Taoist worshipped!


    ¡°Evil!¡±


    A holy, elderly divine official ran and stood before Sangsang angrily. He pointed at her face and shouted, ¡°I am going to burn you to death! You shameless bitch!¡±


    Sangsang was resting with her eyes closed. When she heard the voice, she tried very hard to open her eyes and watched the humans who were surrounding her with horrible facial expressions. She startled for a moment until she realised that those people were scolding her.


    She stayed quiet, silent. She was familiar with the pce. She came across a lot of Taoist pce when she was at the divine kingdom, even the unfrequented pce in the kingdom was designed and built sampling the pce in the mortal world, it was just fancier and more pure.


    She was also very familiar with the Taoist priest. She was worshipped by countless generations of divine officials and Taoists. She once thought that humans were the most devoted believer of hers, which was why she designed the Divine General ording to the image of a human.


    Now, she was lying in the temple, covered in blood, and humiliated by the Taoists with mean and rude words. Yes, she was no longer Haotian.


    A lion roar echoed in the pce. The indigo lion suddenly became bigger, and turned into a mighty indigo-coloured, huge lion. It fixed its gaze at the Taoists and waited for its master¡¯s order.


    There was no way that the divine officials and Taoists could have ever seen scenes as such. They copsed, and could not even get back up due to immense shock.


    Sangsang closed her eyes again without saying a word.


    The indigo lion understood and ignored the Taoists who were crawling out of the pce.

 Chapter 1103 - Born To Be A Pair (II)

    <h4>Chapter 1103: Born To Be A Pair (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The indigo lion looked around and found a vacant divine seat down the Taoist hall.


    Only in the most important Taoist halls was there the main hall, where the divine seats were always reserved. Because the seats belonged only to Haotian.


    It came to Sangsang, pulled her dress and dragged her onto the seat. Then it tore several pieces of gauze and covered her to keep her warm.


    Even the most pious follower would have abandoned this Haotian upon seeing the blood-stained Sangsang inbor. But the indigo lion always worshiped her as the only Haotian and the true god.


    The indigo lion was very satisfied by its own loyalty and perseverance. Recalling the big ck horse leaving its master previously, it felt angry and sympathetic, and would like to treat it with a good bite in the future.


    Sangsangy exhaustively in the divine seat. Distinctive pains in the belly came in rounds after rounds. Colors drained further from her face. She sweated profusely and could no longer even raise her hand.


    The indigo lion stared at her and kept circling anxiously. Its tail wagged on the wall and smashed the solemn divine statues.


    Some noises were heard outside the hall. The indigo lion gazed viciously at the gate in case some divine priests or deacons wereing to make trouble. If anyone dared to interrupt the delivery, it would tear them into pieces without any orders from its master.


    Clip-clops approached distinctively!


    The big ck horse ran into the hall with a chubby middle-aged woman sitting on it. The woman seemed paler than Sangsang. She held tightly on the saddle and could almost fall into aa at any minute.


    The middle-aged woman was a midwife. She never thought about being kidnapped by a horse or seeing an indigo lion about half the height of the hall. Nor did she ever imagine helping someone give birth in a Taoist hall, especially when the woman was stabbed by a sword and stained in blood like a devil.


    Afterwards when she recalled this, she thanked her previous experience with countless bloody and torturing childbirth. Otherwise she would have easily fainted. But she actually wished she could have fainted earlier.


    ...


    ...


    Sangsangy on the seat and felt slightly recovered after taking some powder. She opened her eyes, watched the middle-aged woman rushing in and out of theyers of gauze, and asked weakly, ¡°When will it be delivered?¡±


    It was already dusk, a long while since thebor pains started. The midwife had been standing by Sangsang and kept shouting loudly to cheer her up until her voice became hoarse. But the child was still yet toe.


    Sangsang was soaking, so were theyers of cloth beneath her. Her hair fell disheveled on her pale cheeks and made her seem miserable. Luckily her eyes were not yet losing focus.


    The middle-aged woman came to the divine seat, looked at the bloody sword on her belly and said with trembling voice, ¡°First time is always hard. Let¡¯s try a bit harder. Perhaps we can still make it?¡±


    Sangsang got her uncertainty. She frowned with dissatisfaction. But when she tried to say something she found her strength draining rapidly. She had to close her eyes again and prepare for another round ofbor.


    The middle-aged woman wanted to sneak out, especially when she realized that it was a dystocia. She tried to flee an hour ago but was scared back upon seeing the giant indigo lion beheaded three cavalrymen from the divine halls.


    ...


    ...


    The baby was still not delivered.


    The middle-aged woman stared at Sangsang¡¯s pale face and suddenly felt for her. She came to her and said, ¡°We have to try this. Otherwise you might both die.¡±


    Sangsang felt exhausted and asked, ¡°What?¡±


    The middle-aged woman put on some pride and assured, ¡°You can trust me. I have saved many children with this method. It will definitely work.¡±


    She reached for her toolbox on the saddle of the big ck horse and took out a round forceps. She lifted the gauze and was about to take a look between Sangsang¡¯s thighs.


    Sangsang ordered ruthlessly, ¡°Don¡¯t look.¡±


    The middle-aged woman was startled and said bitterly, ¡°Come on sister, you never let me take a look ever since the beginning... How can I help you like this? We are both women. Why so shy? You¡¯re going to be a mother.¡±


    Sangsang stared at her and repeated calmly and indisputably, ¡°Don¡¯t look.¡±


    The middle-aged woman looked at the forceps in her hand and sighed, ¡°I learned this in Chang¡¯an. But no matter how skilled I am, I have to look when I use it.¡±


    ¡°No need.¡± Sangsang turned away from the forceps and looked at the sword on her belly. She stared at the sword and frowned for a long while. Then she took some deep breath, gathered every bit of her strength and got hold of the hilt. The sword was pulled out form the Drunkard¡¯s gon and was washed by the strongest liquor and her own blood. It was clean and dustless. She held the hilt and pushed it downward.


    Upon a tearing sound her belly was cut open. Blood flooded.


    The middle-aged woman almost fainted.


    Sangsang was extremely pale. Her voice was weak but still indisputable, ¡°Stay conscious!¡±


    ...


    ...


    Baby cries resounded in the Taoist hall. It was rather annoying than pleasant.


    It was unpleasant for Sangsang, as well as for the big ck horse and the indigo lion. Because she was focusing on the wound on her belly, while the big ck horse and the indigo lion was focusing on her.


    As for the middle-aged midwife, she picked up the new-born from the bloody wound, managed to stay conscious while briefly cleaning the baby, and eventually fell into aa after witnessing the insanity.


    Sangsang tried to fix the wound on her belly but realized that she was too weak to aplish the task. So she stitched the wound and wiped it with the remaining dim light on her palm. She passed out a few times during the process and was awakened again and again by the distinctive pain. But she still seemed indifferent.


    The dim light on her palm was decisive for finishing the stitching. When the blood was cleaned, no wound but only the stitches could be seen.


    Sangsang was exhausted yet satisfied with her achievement. But of course, it was the achievement of a humanized her.


    All of a sudden she recalled a trivial matter many years ago. It was before they left Wei for Chang¡¯an. She was once ashamed of her needlework, at least nothing to bepared with the other women in Chang¡¯an. Ning Que seemed to agree too.


    From now on he could never say so, she thought.


    With such distractions she felt less painful and exhausted. Then she realized that she almost forgot something. Upon a nce on the side she frowned again.


    She seemed annoyed, but actually disappointed. Right by her side therey two babies.


    The two babies were clean, fair, and delicate.


    But the thing is, howe there are two of them?


    She was Haotian who should have known. But howe she was never aware that they were twins?


    Ning Que asked her in the cottage on the snow fields whether it was a boy or a girl. She said she had no idea. That was true. She was very annoyed by pregnancy hence never tried to figure it out.


    To give birth was disappointing enough. To give birth to two was even more so. What should she do next?


    She seemed pale and anxious. She looked down by the divine seat and found the middle-aged midwife already passed out, or dead asleep. She was even snoring at such a critical moment.


    She picked up the tiny legs and confirmed that they were a boy and a girl. She did it clumsily, or even savagely.


    The indigo lion lowered its head as it felt embarrassed. The big ck horse kicked its fore-hoofs and tore a piece of gauze to cover the two babies.


    When the fat aunty gave birth to the child years ago, she wrapped him up very tight. Perhaps was it because the newborn was sensitive to coldness?


    Sangsang sat up with efforts and wrapped the two babies with the gauze. But she made it messy as if she was wrapping up some random belongings.


    She held each baby in an arm and seemed awkward. Right then the baby boy started crying, and the baby girl followed. They cried rounds after rounds like they did previously.


    Sangsang frowned, and felt annoyed.


    ¡°Stop crying,¡± she said emotionlessly to the two babies in her arms. Although she was no longer almighty, she still sounded awe-inspiring. But how could some newborn sense the awe? Even a newly born calf would never be afraid of the tigers. Haotian¡¯s children could be no less fearless.


    Baby cries resounded in the Taoist hall. Sangsang was annoyed and anxious. She closed her eyes, frowned profoundly and tried really hard to recall some simr experience from long long ago.


    Finally she located them. It was raining in the Hebei Province. She was still an infant lying in Ning Que¡¯s arms. His arms were very slim at that time, but it felt cozy.


    Recalling how Ning Que held her when she was a baby, she found her arms less stiff and curved slightly. The two babies obviously found it morefortable as their cries slowly ceased.


    There was something else she had to do. She remembered Ning Que feeding her with rice paste back then.


    The babies needed rice paste, or milk if there was no rice paste. Or perhaps the other way round. She opened her eyes, unbuttoned the blood stained clothes and started feeding the babies.


    The big ck horse and the indigo lion already retreated to guard at the gate.


    ...


    ...

 Chapter 1104 - A Bowl Of Noodles

    <h4>Chapter 1104: A Bowl Of Noodles</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Looking at the two children who were sucking desperately for milk in her arms, Sangsang¡¯s face did not reveal the maternal luster that was always mentioned in the stories, nor was there much emotion. But her eyes were slightly perplexed as this scene proved that she was getting more and more like humans, regardless of the fact that she was breastfeeding, or the fact that she had milk to breastfeed.


    The two children fell asleep after eating. She put the children on the side, held on the armrest of the Great Divine Priest and stood up slowly. She walked to the outside of the Taoist pce, looking at a particr direction of the clear blue sky. She took out the abacus from her arms with her fingers poking at it thoughtlessly, and stayed silent for a long time.


    The Drunkard was looking for her in the human world, and Ning Que was rushing over here. The reason she was silent was not because she was uneasy, but that she was in an unpleasant mood. Her unhappiness was from the bit of changes in the process of transforming from god to human. She had experienced this beforehand, but never had she experienced the pain and vulnerability. It was real and frustrating, the humiliation was unbearable especially when she recalled that she was forced to escape from the so-called dog, the Drunkard.


    She did not know whether it was because of thebor that the feeling of humiliation became unusually strong, and the urge to protect her own territory and dignity were overwhelming. She made up her mind quickly.


    Walking back to the Taoist pce, she looked indifferently at the lethargic middle-aged midwife under the Great Divine Priest with condescension as she used to do it before and said, ¡°I grant you eternal life.¡±


    Nothing happened, there was no clear light and tea, nor any changes in the path of fate that could not be seen but truly existed, as she was no longer the omnipotent Haotian.


    After a moment of silence, she said, ¡± If I¡¯m immortal, I¡¯ll grant you eternal life.¡±


    She felt a bit ufortable after saying it, her face turned slightly hot, thinking in her heart if it was possible that she got sick easily after she became a human. She wanted to do something to distract herself from her thoughts, just then, she saw the pincer.


    The pincer that the middle-aged midwife referred to as cephalotracter was not a piece of exquisite workmanship in her eyes, but there was real wisdom or, a novel idea in the circle formed at the head of the pincer.


    She was a bit curious to know who designed it, just then, she saw a familiarbel on the pincer. Indeed, she was very familiar with thebel as it was manufactured by the workshop held by the Academy. She was very familiar with it because she had cooked many times at the Back Hill Academy back then, the samebel was on all the kitchen knives.


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang rearranged the clothes used to wrap the children with great patience, looking at the appearance, they could barely be referred as swaddling clothes. But the two children were not veryfortable, judging from the slight frown on their fine eyebrows.


    It was fine as long as it could keep warm. She did not want to waste her energy over such a trivial matter. She tied up both the children on the sides of the big ck horse¡¯s saddle and rode on the indigo lion, heading toward the outer ring of the capital.


    The twilight sky was red like fire. The streets were deserted because of the war. asionally there were pedestrians looking at the huge indigo lion and Sangsang who was sitting on it, screaming and running away.


    Sangsang halted the indigo lion temporarily when she passed by a square. There were thousands of people in the square, worshipping and praying at a courtyard. There was a pile of white ashes in the courtyard.


    These were the worshippers of the New Stream who came from all over the ce, worshipping the holynd and reminiscing about their Saint.


    The power of the New Stream was growing gradually, the few Kingdoms like Song, Qi, Liang, and Chen were unstable. Taoism was hardly sustainable and would be abandoned at anytime. They dared not do what they used to do back then, shouting and killing these worshippers of the New Stream.


    Sangsang knew that Ye Su was burnt to death in that courtyard, perhaps some of his ashes were in the pile of wood ashes there. It was from that day onward, her weakening strength was irreparable.


    Looking at the courtyard and the crowd of the worshippers of the New Stream in front of it, she remained silent for a while without much anger. It was meaningless to be mad at a deceased person. However, a slight mood swing was inevitable. It affected the wound on her belly and her wound dehisced. She lowered her head to look at the bloodstain on her green shirt and frowned slightly. Then she recalled that the number of times she frowned in these past few days was a lot more than that adding together for the past few years.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± she said softly.


    The indigo lion walked slowly to the outside of the city. The big ck horse tagged along, together with the two children. The worshippers of the New Stream who were kneeling at the square did not notice this group of people at all, perhaps it was because they were too focused, or it was a sign of faithfulness.


    She rode on the indigo lion, looking at the human world that was no longer the same. Her mind drifted away, there was no expression, no kindness but a divinity on her face, lights gleaming from her green shirt.


    A thought suddenly crossed her mind. When she was young, she heard Ning Que talking about a Bodhisattva who was cruising the world sitting on the indigo lion. She took over the indigo lion from a Bodhisattva in a chess match. Now that she was sitting on its back, she did look like a Bodhisattva. Ning Que said that the Bodhisattva was very persistent and kind, he was a good Bodhisattva. He loved all people, regardless of whether they loved him or not. She raised her eyebrows slightly and dispersed the feeling, thinking in her heart how she could turn into a weaker existence than the bald donkey of the Buddha.


    After getting out of the capital of Song Kingdom, the indigo lion and the big ck horse stopped and gazed at her at the same time, exchanging looks. What was their next move in order to avoid the Drunkard who was chasing after them?


    Sangsang looked at the northwest direction, facing toward a star. She remembered that she named the star, Sirius.


    ¡°Let¡¯s go there.¡±


    There was Sirius star in the northwest direction of the sky. There was a small town in the northwest direction of the human world.


    Now she was the Monk Tang whom Ning Que once talked about, with only her divinity but none of her divine power left. In the eyes of the people like the Abbey Dean and the Drunkard, she was the biggest temptation. This level of the Grand Cultivator could kill her at all cost. Chang¡¯an City was too far away and the return journey was very unsafe, hence she wanted to go to the small town.


    Suddenly she remembered about the Monk Tang that Ning Que once talked about, that he became a Buddha after that. That fellow was very naggy but stubborn as well, why did he keep running away on his journey to the West?


    She did not want to run away anymore. The dignity of Haotian forbade her to keep running away. She wanted to go to the small town and kill the Drunkard.


    ...


    ...


    The small town was located between the border of Song and Yan Kingdom; it was barren and deserted now. The Northeast Battlefront Army that was newly created by the Tang had attacked the hintend of Yan Kingdom. It was said that the Chengjing City had been besieged for 10 days, and the escape team had crossed the small town, flocking to the ce that was further south, only leaving behind the mess and ruins.


    The only butcher shop in the town was closed, but the only painting and calligraphy shop was still open. The owner of the shop was waiting for someone, even though that person probably would nevere back and he might never have a chance to do what he was ready to do. However, he would keep waiting until he could finally confirm it. Unexpectedly, the bibulous person whom he was waiting for had yet toe back, but a surprising guest came instead.


    Sangsang walked the big ck horse to the front of the shop, over the doorstep and looked at him. She curtsied slightly to him in a friendly manner to the best of her knowledge, looking a bit clumsy, or awkward.


    Chao Xiaoshu felt very awkward, he looked at her and sighed, ¡°There¡¯s no need for that, sister-inw.¡±


    He was an unruly genius, and he was very confident. Back in those days when he was travelling around Jianghu world, he knew he would definitely broaden his horizon with many sceneries, and he would get to know a lot of great people, for instance thete emperor. But never had he thought that one day, he would be the brother-inw of Haotian.


    Zhang San and Li Si knew Sangsang¡¯s identity as well. Their faces turned pale instantly, panicking and feeling extremely uneasy. They were at a loss as they saw the two fair-skinned children on the horse saddle.


    ¡°These are your...¡± Sangsang thought for a while and said, ¡°Youngest Brother and Youngest Sister.¡±


    There were three generations of the Back Hill Academy, the Eldest Sister of the third generation was Tang Xiaotang, followed by Zhang San and Li Si. Ning Que¡¯s son and daughter would naturally be the Youngest Brother and the Youngest Sister.


    Zhang San and Li Si finally came out of trance hearing the name, thinking in their heart that there was nothing to be afraid of since they were family. They went forward to greet her and called her Youngest Aunt cheerfully.


    It was not very far from the capital to the small town. The indigo lion and the big ck horse were as fast as lighting. The twilight faded into darkness, the silence in the small town was deafening, only a light gleaming from the painting and calligraphy shop.


    There was only one shop, but they still needed to eat.


    Zhang San and Li Si were very bold, otherwise they would not have beheaded the Abbey Dean with a kitchen knife, nor would it be possible for them to keep calling her Youngest Aunt. Nevertheless, when Sangsang personally cooked some food and served them bowls of soup noodles, they were still a bit uneasy, or more so, terrified.


    The dish made personally by Haotian. Who had eaten it before? Who was eligible to eat?


    ¡°Your master, uncle and aunty had eaten it before, and it¡¯s more than once,¡± Chao Xiaoshu smiled and said, his smile was filled with mixed emotions. He looked at the tender fried egg on the noodles, remained silent for a while and uttered, ¡°It rained heavily that year, you didn¡¯t cook for me when I wanted to eat a bowl of noodles.¡±


    ¡°I did it anyway after that.¡± Sangsang looked at him calmly and said, ¡°And I put onion today, I fried eggs too.¡±


    Few would have known why Chao Xiaoshu came to the small town, but he could not hide from her.


    Back then, Chao Xiaoshu walked into the Old Brush Pen Shop in the rain on a spring night, Ning Que followed him to kill people with a knife on his back. Sangsang made a bowl of fried egg noodles for both of them after they killed people.


    This bowl of fried egg noodles was not that easy to eat.


    In order to eat the noodles, you had to kill, or hand over your life to the other person.


    Chao Xiaoshu nced at her and smiled, he picked up the chopsticks and started eating the noodles with relish.


    Zhang San and Li Si dipped the chopsticks in the noodle soup and fed the children who just woke up.


    ...


    ...


    In fact, the painting and calligraphy shop was not the only shop in the town that was open, the wine cer was open too.


    The owner of the wine cer was a young and beautiful widow. She did not have any rtives, at least after all the discrimination and bullying, she did not have anyone who cared for her. Selling alcoholic drinks was not something to be much talked about in this world.


    Sangsang was walking the horse, looking at her with no expression and said, ¡°He may feel miserable if I kill you, even though the feeling was transient, I decide to kill you anyway.¡±


    The beautiful woman looked frightened, her face paled, not knowing what she was talking about. Nevertheless, somehow she could tell who was the person she was talking about, as she was with him for many years. All the people had fled, but she did not, as she was waiting for him toe back too. She believed that he would bring her out of here.


    Sangsang was very weak now, but it was merely a matter of thought to kill such an ordinary woman.


    The big ck horse cocked its head and refused to move forward. The indigo lion hid in the dark like a small ck mountain, approaching slowly, it might swallow up the wine-selling woman anytime.


    Then, the Drunkard appeared.


    ...

 Chapter 1105 - A Storm

    <h4>Chapter 1105: A Storm</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    It was cloudy tonight. There was no stars or moon but only pitch darkness above the small town. Some lonely and dimmp light spread out from the drawing and calligraphy store at the end of the street. When it came to the liquor store it could barely light up people¡¯s faces.


    The Drunkard was dust-stained. But there was no blood on him. Obviously he had been to many ces in the past few days. Yet he was not anxious. Because he even took a bath and changed his clothes.


    Hn City was ruined. Right before the transmission array was activated, he applied Immeasurable and managed to disturb the turning of the Qi of Heaven and Earth. He knew that neither Haotian nor Ning Que was able to return to Chang¡¯an. Therefore he had nothing to worry about. He believed that throughout the long journey no one could run faster and travel longer than him because of his Distanceless State. Just like in the evesting journey of cultivation, no one could live longer or travel further than he did.


    However he was a bit pale and tired. He was sneak attacked by Ning Que, lost a hand and severely wounded. Even someone like him could not recover soon.


    ¡°I¡¯ve been looking for you,¡± the Drunkard looked at Sangsang and said. The dim light from some distance was reflected horrifyingly in his eyes, and made him seem like a wandering nocturnal beast in the wild.


    ¡°But I never expected that you woulde to my home.¡±


    Sangsang asked indifferently, ¡°Why are you looking for me?¡±


    The Drunkard said solemnly, ¡°You make me fear. Therefore I have to kill you as soon as possible.¡±


    Sangsang replied, ¡°You never made me fear. But I want to kill you too.¡±


    Upon hearing this absurdity the Drunkard burst intoughter.


    Now she was merely a nominal Haotian without any divine power, nothing more than an ordinary woman.


    By the side of the saddle on the big ck horse, babies¡¯ cries were heard all of a sudden. Sangsang looked at them and frowned. She was not expecting the babies to get hungry so soon. It seemed she should no longer feed them with rice paste.


    The Drunkard was startled, thenughed wildly. ¡°Indeed, congrattions!¡± Heughed impudently and sounded scorning and sympathetic, ¡°If Haotian¡¯s followers in the human world ever know that you delivered a baby for a human being, what would they say?¡±


    Sangsang said nothing and recalled the divine priests and deacons she med in the capital of Song.


    Then the Drunkard stoppedughing. He frowned and seemed confused, ¡°Why?¡±


    ¡°Why what?¡±


    ¡°Why did you have to be a human? It was not about the Headmaster, or Ning Que or even Ye Su. Like the Abbey Dean said, if only you did not wish to be a human being, it would never happen.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I never nned for it. But since I am already a human being, it seems not too bad.¡±


    The Drunkard pulled out a sharp sword from his gon, stared at her and said, ¡°Even if it¡¯s pure happiness to be a human being, even if all other sufferings seem enjoyable to you, there is an ultimate suffering that you could never be freed from.¡±


    Sangsang asked, ¡°What?¡±


    The Drunkard replied, ¡°Human beings die.¡±


    Sangsang paused and said calmly while staring at him, ¡°You will die too.¡±


    The Drunkard smiled and asked, ¡°How? To be killed by you? Could you?¡±


    Sangsang looked toward somewhere in the darkness.


    ¡°You think you can threaten me with her life?¡±


    The Drunkard held his sword against the charming liquor sales girl who had spent countless happy nights with him, and asked indifferently.


    When he said so, a sharp yet invisible sword intent pierced through the darkness. Before everyone including the indigo lion and the big ck horse could even react, it cut the throat of the liquor sales girl.


    A tiny blood line was made on her jade-like neck.


    The liquor sales girl gazed at the Drunkard with the sword. She wanted to say something but never made a sound. In the next moment a head fell into the liquor jar, and kept rising and sinking in the liquor.


    Sangsang looked at the floating head of the liquor salesgirl and kept silent. It seemed that she was pondering on something.


    ¡°What you are trying to do, Li Manman had tried too... The so-called most virtuous and moral Eldest Brother of the Academy could even go so far as to threaten his enemy with the innocent sister-inw. Don¡¯t you think it¡¯s indeed funny?¡±


    The Drunkard killed the woman he liked with his sword, and didn¡¯t seem disturbed. He held the bloody sword from the gon, stared at Sangsang and said, ¡°I said nothing back then. But it did not mean I would ever be threatened. You thought you could also try that? You already fell into the human world. The divine kingdom will be our eternal paradise. We will enjoy eternity, immortality and endless worship. The meaning of life lies in eternity. Nothing could bepared with this. Not even love.¡±


    He ranked highly in the human world, or even throughout the human history. For ordinary people he was a living god. But now with the bloody sword in his hand he seemed more like a devil.


    Sangsang used to think that for human beings there had to be something more important than their own lives. Now it seemed to be her misunderstanding. Or perhaps because the people she knew well previously were all from the Academy, the City of Wei and Chang¡¯an. And they were born different.


    No matter what kind of person the Drunkard was, or whether he no longer regarded himself as a human being, she had to kill him tonight. She took out the abacus and started counting.


    It was very simple movements. She pushed up and down the beads on the abacus with her slim fingers. They made clear and melodious sounds, not like the zither nor the war drums. It sounded more like a frame drum.


    The clouds thickened above the small town. Then some chilling wind came from the north. The moisture in the clouds was transformed into water drops and a storm was formed.


    Heavy rain fell. Rain fell in the small town and washed the houses already robbed by refugees. It washed the greasy cloth in the butcher shop. Perhaps the cloth was too greasy and the rain got annoyed. The rain drops turned into sharp knives and cut the cloth into pieces. Then the building of the butcher shop was smashed and copsed in a few seconds. The blood stains and grease on the ground for years were cleaned by the pouring rain. It flowed into the crack that the Butcher chopped identally and reached deep down toward the underground river.


    Following the butcher shop, the liquor store was the next to be destroyed. The distiller¡¯s yeast stored in the back was smashed by the rain. The rain fell into the liquor jar and diluted the not so strong liquid. The head of the liquor sales girl disappeared in the diluted liquor. Upon a crack the liquor jar broke into pieces. The liquor sshed in the store and eroded whatever it met in the house. In a blink the house copsed.


    The storm in the chilling night was generated by the abacus in Sangsang¡¯s hand and formed by her will, Haotian¡¯s will, hence the Heaven¡¯s will. Now she could no longer use her psyche to drive the Qi of Heaven and Earth and turn it into storm to help her fight. She no longer had the divine power. What she was doing now was imitating. She tried to write talismans like Ning Que did, turn her will into psyche and convey to Heaven and Earth.


    She applied the divine n to imitate some skills of human cultivators. As long as she could calcte, she could make the perfect imitation. Therefore once she learnt how to write talismans like Ning Que did, she made a divine talisman. After all, she used to be Haotian. She could easily surpass human beings either in learning or cultivation. The horrifying storm once hit Chang¡¯an. The talisman she just wrote was the same as what Yan Se and Ning Que wrote previously. It was the legendary Well Talisman.


    The mighty talisman enveloped the small town in the storm. The only street in the small towny in parallel with the line of thickest clouds in the sky, crossed in space and created the Chinese character of well.


    The Drunkard stood by the ruins soaking wet. His previously clean clothes were ragged. His grey hair fell off and his bald head was revealed. He seemed as miserable as a stray.


    The butcher shop was destroyed, so was the liquor store. He was indeed homeless now.


    The storm gradually ceased. The gon the Drunkard held seemed to have be heavier. The rain fell onto him and mixed with blood. He seemed severely wounded but never fell.


    The Well Talisman was divine. But he had the gon and Immeasurable. Although Sangsang demonstrated her incredibly gifted learning and cultivating skills, she could never defeat him. It was because she could never surpass the Five State through learning and imitating.


    Some wet hair blocked his vision while he stared at Sangsang miserably and vigntly.


    He did not care about being homeless. Because his future home would definitely be an awe-inspiring hall in the divine kingdom. As much as he wished to kill Sangsang, he had to figure out something else first.


    Where was Ning Que?


    What really bothered the Drunkard was that Ning Que never showed up. He was severely wounded by Ning Que. Although Ning Que was also wounded, he knew that he could recover much faster than himself.


    Like what the Academy had always predicted, his body was already very rotten. Rotten but still alive. Yet it was almost impossible for him to recover from a wound or any other matters. Therefore he had always been anxious.


    Where was Ning Que?


    Sangsang had no idea of his whereabouts now. Nor did she need to know. When they left the Hn City, no matter where he was delivered to the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine, Chengjing, the West-Hill, or even Chang¡¯an, he woulde here eventually.


    Because she was here. Even if he could not arrive soon, his arrow should.


    The sounds of the rain and the beads on the abacus ceased. It was nothing but quietness throughout the small town. Previously the indigo lion lifted a forepaw to shelter the two babies from the rain. And now it proceeded gradually into the darkness together with the big ck horse.


    ¡°One nine eight nine, zero three zero nine,¡± Sangsang suddenly uttered two series of numbers. She lowered her head and looked at the abacus and the shape formed by the beads. Her voice was very tender yet distinctive. It was carried away by the wind toward somewhere far away in the north.


    Two days ago when they were facing a sea of flowers in the cliffs outside the Hn City, she said the same two series of numbers when she tried to help Ning Que shoot the Abbey Dean. Now she said them again obviously for Ning Que. But why? They were exactly the same with the numbers she said two days ago. Why was that?


    The Drunkard¡¯s pupils constricted while he whistled and disappeared via the Qi of Heaven and Earth toward some hundreds or thousands of miles away.


    In the next moment he returned to the same spot from hundreds or thousands of miles away.


    He seemed to have never left nor did anything.


    Upon a whiz, something passed behind by him. The arrow came behind him. He escaped from that arrow.


    He seemed slightly stunned when he saw an arrow pinned on a broken door of the pawnshop. The tip of the arrow did not go deep into the door. After swinging the wind for a few seconds it fell onto the ground.


    ...

 Chapter 1106 - A Sword (I)

    <h4>Chapter 1106: A Sword (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The Drunkard¡¯s slightly pale face was painted with faint remorse.


    He had spent a major amount of Psyche Power back when he fled a thousand miles. Little did he know that the opponent was merely using an ordinary arrow. To be able to shoot an arrow so urately from a conservative estimate of a hundred miles away, his skill was inconceivable and extremely terrifying. However, despite his proficiency in archery, it was but an ordinary arrow.


    The Thirteen Primordial Arrows were what he feared and had been avoiding. Had he known in advance that it was only an ordinary arrow, he would not have to act so prudent. He could dismiss it with a simple hand wave.


    Sangsang looked at him silently with no hint of mockery on her face as she uttered two other digits.


    It was a new set of digits.


    A buzzing squeal echoed before an arrow prated through the night sky, aiming directly to the Drunkard¡¯s throat.


    This arrow acted faster than the previous one as the archer was getting nearer to the small town. The interval between the two shots was barely a fraction of a second. Yet, the person managed to dash off and created a great distance between himself and the small town.


    He was now 50 miles away from the small town.


    ...


    The rumbling of the thunder from miles away resonated across the small town. If one had not heard of the bang of the air collision resulted from a dash, one would have thought that the rainstorm, that had ceased a while ago, had moved miles away and progressed into a thunderstorm.


    A faint light glimmered in the painting and calligraphy shop in the small town. Chao Xiaoshu looked calm, as if he had nothing on his mind. Meanwhile, Zhang San and Li Si exchanged looks. They could sense the uneasiness in each other¡¯s eyes, but they were clueless about what to do.


    The big ck horse, that was hiding in the dark, became restless as it heard the thunder. It lifted its hoofs several times, wanting to sprint out of the town to give aid. But, it stopped as it realized that the person wasing at a faster speed than it was able to achieve.


    The arrow had arrived before the person.


    The roaring of the thunder deadened the noise that came from the shooting arrows as they pierced through the sky.


    An arrow precisely punctured the Drunkard¡¯s throat, making a rather indistinct sound.


    This time, the Drunkard was watching attentively. He gently waved his arm and hit the arrow with his sleeve. A soft unfocused ripping of the cloth was heard as the arrow made a slit on the big sleeve of the green schr robe. However, the arrow was nowhere to be found.


    Judging from the power of the arrow, he could deduce that Ning Que was merely miles away, very close to the town. However, the third arrow came before he managed to respond.


    This arrow moved slower than the two previous ones. Therefore, he was able to take a better look at it. However, the sharp image seemed to be rather realistic. The spinning arrow appeared as if it was going to rip off everything that was in its way as it travelled along its versatile track!


    The Drunkard revealed his left hand that was hiding underneath the sleeve before. With a fillip, a clear light curtain was formed before him.


    A muffled puff resonated.


    The arrow fell in front of him before it eventually dropped into the puddle of fouled water on the ground. It resembled a dead swan as it was no longer agile as before. Instead, it was only a stiff and lifeless object now.


    The Drunkard gently lifted his brows as he finally realized the greatness of this arrow.


    Eventually, Ning Que appeared. He stood at the end of the long street of the small town.


    His body was covered in blood that had already clotted. However, his wounds dehisced as he ran and caused fresh blood to gush out of his wounds. The fresh blood blended with the grume, together with the sand and dust that he umted during his 8000 miles of journey, made him look filthy. He now resembled a poor beggar who was beaten up repeatedly by his peers, just like what Long Qing used to be.


    He came running from thousands of miles away. He had not taken any rest and had messed up his biological clock for the past two days one night in spite of his injuries. He was on the verge of breaking down. Yet, like the unbudgeable Min Mountain, he stared at the Drunkard silently with the steel bow in his hand.


    The Drunkard looked at Ning Que, then the nocked Steel Arrow on the steel bow. Gradually, his frightened expression began to take shape as his face turned slightly pale. Following a howl, he vanished abruptly and went to a hundred miles away.


    The next moment, he had returned from a hundred miles away and presented himself in front of Sangsang. He extended his finger and pointed at Sangsang¡¯s be.


    The mane of the indigo lion, that had always stayed by Sangsang¡¯s side to protect her, shot out like arrows. The ferocious roar of the lion reverberated through Heaven and Earth, causing the tiles to fly heedlessly across this dead and quiet town.


    The Drunkard began to glow as a clear light was emitted around his body. Carrying infinite Qi of Heaven and Earth, his finger poked through the clear light. With a single finger, he destroyed uncountable numbers of sharp arrow-like manes and tiles as he aimed urately at the top of the indigo lion¡¯s head.


    The indigo lion roared hysterically as the vajra bloodthirstiness, that was congealed from the Buddhist breath, spouted between its lips. However, just like the mane and tiles, it was incapable of stopping the Drunkard¡¯s finger.


    Following a furious roar, blood was sshed everywhere as the indigo lion retreated.


    Sangsang turned her wrist and the abacus scattered in an instant. Tens of beads broke and shot across the sky. The beads went through the beam of clear light and fell on the Drunkard¡¯s chest, making a series of intensive thuds.


    A trickle of blood dripped down from the corner of the Drunkard¡¯s lips, yet his lightspeed pace was undisturbed. He continued to aim at her gabe and was determined to kill her. He paid no heed even when the talisman, that was written with beads, started to spread Talisman Intent.


    The touch had arrived before his finger. The inconceivable amount of the Qi of Heaven and Earth flowed through the Drunkard¡¯s finger as it poked... no, struck Sangsang¡¯s be.


    He actually discarded the potted sword this time.


    Sangsang¡¯s face turned deathly pale. Back when she encountered such merciless attack, she could deal with it with just one nce. But now, she needed a helping hand from the others.


    Fresh blood trickled down the corner of her eyes and made her appear extremely terrifying.


    The Drunkard proceeded to move forward. In actual fact, he was able to kill Sangsang in just a moment.


    Unfortunately, he waste by a mere second. Ning Que¡¯s arrow arrived before him. However, it was no longer an ordinary arrow. Instead, it was a Steel Arrow this time.


    The Drunkard retreated instantly to hundreds of miles away. A momentter, he returned.


    He looked at the wound on his left shoulder, that was left by the Steel Arrow, as his blood dripped on the floor and blended into the puddle of dirty water. He stayed silent for a brief moment before he lifted his head to stare at Ning Que who was already beside Sangsang.


    He stood at the end of the street, approximately tens of feet away from the destructed teahouse, yet not far away from the painting and calligraphy shop.


    He was determined to kill Sangsang in the earlier moment as Ning Que¡¯s Steel Arrow created a great trouble for him. His face revealed no anxiety despite his failure as he must stay calm.


    The only way for him to dodge Ning Que¡¯s Steel Arrow wasplete peacefulness.


    He reached out to pat at his right shoulder to toss the blood onto the floor, as if he was dusting his shoulder off.


    Ning Que¡¯s Steel Arrow came again.


    As the Drunkard had perceived the next moment of Ning Que¡¯s finger before the Steel Arrow left the bow, he made an advanced move.


    A muffled bang resonated.


    A clear track of arrow appeared on the long street. The rain had stopped only a short while ago. The newly condensed water vapour misted the dark long street, in the meantime, reflected the dim light from the painting and calligraphy shop and gave out an eerie feeling.


    The Drunkard returned to the street. He removed the wine bottle that was hung around his waist, brought it to his lips and took a couple of big gulps. He was oblivious to the wine that was dripping all over his body. Then, he stared silently at Ning Que and slowly took out a sharp sword from the bottle.


    The Steel Arrow came again. He dodged it again. Then, he returned again.


    He looked at the quiver on Ning Que¡¯s back and asked a crucial question: ¡°How many more Steel Arrows do you have?¡±


    Ning Que didn¡¯t answer his question. The calmness on his face, which was covered in dust and blood, was staggering.


    He was not at Chang¡¯an. Therefore, he could not borrow the great power from the God-stunning Array. Meanwhile, Sangsang could no longer support him with endless Haotian¡¯s Divine me like how she used to do it before.


    There was no legacy from the elders and no enlightenment from Haotian. He was left on his own.


    The Drunkard didn¡¯t expect any answer from Ning Que as he knew that Ning Que had one steel arrow left. He was a step away from the victory.


    Most importantly, he had confirmed that Ning Que¡¯s arrows were unable to shoot him at all.


    Ning Que continued to shoot with normal arrows.


    The arrows made a shrill sound as it flew passed the sky above the small town. The whistling of the arrows was intense and appeared to have absolutely no pause.


    Swoosh!


    Sizz!


    Puff!


    The arrow left the bow and was propelled at a terrifying speed, targeting urately at the Drunkard. The arrows perforated the atmosphere and tore the night sky into half, while the dusky town was almost lit up by the glint of the many arrows.


    Like a spirit, the Drunkard moved freely between the rain of arrows as he waved his sleeves gracefully.


    Regardless of how fast and urate Ning Que¡¯s arrows were, he was not able to shoot him.


    It was all because of his rapid reaction.


    ...


    The street was silent. There were arrows everywhere. There were arrows that stuck obliquely on the broken eave of the pawnshop. There arrows that stuck deep into the stone steps of the rice shop. Cracks with the shape of spiderweb appeared when the arrows hit on the green gstone.


    To be able to hit the gstone by the arrow, one could conclude the power of Ning Que¡¯s shooting skill. Yet, his skill failed to help him to take the Drunkard down.


    Ning Que held his pose as he drew the bow and aimed at the Drunkard in silence. He did not release the bowstring. His arms were exhausted after the excessive shootings from before and were trembling indistinctly.


    There were only some ordinary arrows and a Steel Arrow left in the quiver on his back.


    The Drunkard looked at him expressionlessly and said, ¡°Shoot me if you can.¡±


    Ning Que did not reply. It was a fact that he was unable to shoot him.


    The Drunkardughed at Ning Que¡¯s wordlessness. Hisugh was filled with mockery and total disdain as he said, ¡°Go ahead.¡±


    Ning Que did not shoot. Nor did he put down the steel bow.


    He was waiting. He was waiting for the moment when the Drunkard was no longer able to travel back and forth within seconds.


    The Drunkard stood in front of the painting and calligraphy shop. Filtered by the paper on the window, the dim and slightly mottled light from the shop was cast on his face. It appeared like the leaves that stubbornly hung on the branches in the autumn and wereter soaked in rainwater for a few days.


    All of a sudden, a powerful array intent was released from the mottled beam on his face.

 Chapter 1107 - A Sword (II)

    <h4>Chapter 1107: A Sword (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Light scattered through the engraved patterns on the windows.


    A door was a path to the outside world, so seemed the window. But actually a window could only let the light pass. More often it represented imprisoning and despair, like the rock window in the Secluded Pavilion.


    The array intent also stood for imprisoning. It formed out of nowhere and almost enveloped the Drunkard in a blink, from his face to the indigo gown, then to the cloth shoes. Oncepleted he would never be able to escape.


    Ning Que stood at the other end of the street, targeting his iron bow at him. If the Drunkard could not leave the array and got trapped there, then he was certainly doomed.


    However, when the array intent of scattering light started to from, the Drunkard moved one step backward. He stepped on the gstone floor and made a crack.


    Water was sshed and shadows were disturbed and scattered together with the gstone smashed by his step. Immediately after that the stairs in front of the calligraphy and drawing shop broke, and the quake spread around.


    Upon the cracks several breaches were created on the door. Then the wooden door as well as the window were smashed into pieces. Beams broke and fell, and dust prevailed.


    The entire shop copsed into dust merely because of the one step that the Drunkard took backward. He took the step right at the moment when the array intent was about toplete.


    It seemed that he knew since long ago that there was an array in this calligraphy and drawing shop.


    When the dust settled, the building was already turned into a rubbling mess. Zhang San and Li Si were swept into the backyard andy in a corner, stained with blood and dust.


    The two young men¡¯s bones were broken. They felt distinctive pains upon very simple movements. But they still tried hard to dig out two kitchen knives from the rubble.


    The Drunkard turned to look indifferently at the two young men from Tang.


    Upon his look Zhang San and Li Si fell onto the ground again while vomiting blood.


    ¡°Is this the Academy¡¯s n or yours?¡±


    The Drunkard stared at Sangsang who was standing by the ruins of the butcher shop dozens of meters away. His eyebrows raised slightly while he smiled. Because whoever nned it, it was merely a joke to him now. Then his smile froze while he saw Chao Xiaoshu standing up among the broken walls of the calligraphy and drawing shop. He asked indifferently, ¡°You... want to kill me?¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu came to the broken stairs, shook off the dust and straightened his clothes. Then he bowed calmly to the Drunkard and said, ¡°I am Chao Xiaoshu. I definitely want to kill you.¡±


    He was Chao Xiaoshu, the Chao Xiaoshu from Tang. Therefore he had every reason to kill the Drunkard.


    ¡°Of course I know you are Chao Xiaoshu.¡±


    The Drunkard looked at him indifferently and said, ¡°Throughout these years we have been neighbors and friends in this small town. You enjoyed your tea and I enjoyed my liquor. Did you really believe that I had no idea who you were?¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu paused and then asked, ¡°Since you already knew it for long, why did you wait for all these years?¡±


    ¡°Because I was curious. I wanted to see how you, or the Academy nned to kill me. You are a wastrel, and your two helpers were merely physically courageous. They have no idea of cultivation. Indeed, for me, it was a game, an interesting game to hang out with you for years.¡±


    The Drunkard continued, ¡°I¡¯ve lived such a long and boring life. It was very amusing to meet someone like you, and see something like this. I definitely want to watch it till the end, to see how you would practice it.¡±


    Then he turned to Sangsang and said, ¡°I guess Your Highness should be able to understand my feelings well.¡±


    Sangsang said emotionlessly, ¡°No I don¡¯t. Ever since I came to the human world I have been living with him. He is a very interesting person. Therefore our life was never boring.¡± Of course she was referring to Ning Que.


    The Drunkard was slightly stunned. Then heughed and sighed, ¡°Right. Haotian got married and even gave birth to his children. The world is insane. How could it be boring?¡±


    ¡°And you? Where is the fun in the game you prepared for me?¡± The Drunkard turned to Chao Xiaoshu and asked calmly, ¡°Just an array like this? It would be very disappointing.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu answered, ¡°It was indeed simple. But we all think it¡¯s useful... Your major weakness is your body. It is nothing different from that of an ordinary human being, or even easier to get rotten. The two kids and I, we are all human beings. Even if you knew who we were you would never worry... Just like you said, it was merely a game. You yed the game with us. Then we are very likely to get you trapped.¡±


    The Drunkard paused for a while and said, ¡°To know me so well, is it Mr. First or Mr. Second?¡±


    Ning Que had kept quiet until then, ¡°It¡¯s the Senior Sister.¡±


    ¡°No wonder. The Twenty-Three-Year Cicada. I admire her the most and the least.¡±


    The Drunkard shook his head and said, ¡°She did find my weakness, physically and mentally. And you did have quite a few chances to take me down. Because I could not use Immeasurable all the time. It takes time to activate the psyche too. But she was wrong in one thing... This array is way too incapable.¡±


    He stared at Ning Que and said, ¡°If it was the Confinement, you might still have a chance.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Even if we could have Ye Hongyu here, the moment she arrived at the small town you would haveunched the attack or floated away. There was no point.¡±


    The Drunkard said, ¡°Therefore it is your dilemma. An ordinary human being could get close to me, but he could never kill me.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°You are too afraid of death hence very vignt.¡±


    The Drunkard answered, ¡°Indeed. Therefore throughout these years I never had his tea. Because I was not sure if he would poison me. I feel morefortable with my own liquor.¡±


    Ning Que, ¡°No wonder you have no friends.¡±


    The Drunkard smiled, while Chao Xiaoshu did not. He recalled that the Drunkard had started to take his tea in the past two years. He said nothing while realizing what it meant.


    The Drunkard¡¯s smile ceased while he stared at Chao Xiaoshu and said, ¡°Right. I don¡¯t have any friends. The Butcher is rather apany. I do want some friends too... I heard about your story in the Spring Breeze Pavilion in that rainy night. I fancied the feeling you had with the young fellow at the Old Brush Pen Shop. You must have some interesting friendship. Therefore I wanted to try and see if we could befriend too. It might be good to enjoy tea together and talk about something amusing.¡±


    The story in the Spring Breeze Pavilion in that rainy night was widely spread while Ning Que and Chao Xiaoshu acquired their fames. It was almost a legend now. Coincidentally, the three persons involved were all here today.


    They gathered again in the small town at the border of Song and Yan, again for killing.


    Ning Que stood in front of Sangsang. And Chao Xiaoshu stood by the Drunkard.


    ¡°It¡¯s fine you deceived me once. But why can¡¯t you keep doing it?¡±


    The Drunkard walked to Chao Xiaoshu indifferently. But there was brutality deep down his eyes. ¡°Since you could neither keep deceive nor kill me, why should you stay alive?¡± He sounded calm and ruthless, but actually outrageous. No one could have understood this except for himself. Why was he so angry? It was not pleasant to live such an endless life.


    ¡°I always like making new friends,¡± Chao Xiaoshu said to him calmly. No one could challenge that. Everyone in the world knew that Chao Xiaoshu could make a best friend and had a lot of best friends. He was honest and generous, never suspicious and always unrestrained. Only someone like him could have made friends with the emperor of Tang. And only someone like him could have randomly picked up a friend like Ning Que from a calligraphy shop of no fame.


    ¡°If you wish we could also be friends. Although you ranked much higher and was much older, but age never matters in friendship. What really matters aremon goals and interests.¡±


    Chao Xiaoshu continued, ¡°I admit that I came to the small town to set you up. But throughout the years the trap was no longer a trap. You knew I was Chao Xiaoshu. How could I not aware that you already knew it? I didn¡¯t say it, but neither did I deceive you. I even wished that I could convince you. It would be the most ideal if I could. But if not, I owe you nothing.¡±


    ¡°Owe me? No. You don¡¯t owe me anything. I¡¯ve lived so long in this world and saw so many insidious people. I¡¯ve been through the most fraudulent, ugly, distorted and insane in the world. Do you think I would really care about enjoying the tea with you in the shop?¡±


    The Drunkard stared at him and said emotionlessly, ¡°To me, your trap was no longer a trap long ago.¡±


    He was one of the few most powerful cultivators in the world. Chao Xiaoshu used to be at Knowing Destiny but was turned into an ordinary human being long ago. Upon a simple nce he could have killed Chao Xiaoshu. Neither Ning Que nor Sangsang could stop it.


    Chao Xiaoshu gazed back calmly and fearlessly, and said, ¡°I¡¯ve told you. It was no longer a trap. But if you try to kill me, the trap would reappear.¡±


    The Drunkard asked, ¡°What does that mean?¡±


    The Chao Xiaoshu said, ¡°I¡¯m the trap.¡±


    The Drunkard¡¯s eyebrows slightly raised.


    Chao Xiaoshu added, ¡°I have been waiting.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Waiting for the moment.


    Ning Que had been waiting for the moment when the Drunkard could no longer apply Distanceless. He had been waiting for two days and nights, but had not got the chance.


    Chao Xiaoshu was also waiting for the moment. He had been waiting for years. But his moment was different from the one Ning Que was looking for. He just waited for the moment toe to him.


    The Drunkard did not want to listen further, because of the unexinable anger as well as the two major enemies, Ning Que and Haotian by his side. He decided to kill Chao Xiaoshu first.


    He punched toward Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s chest. Chao Xiaoshu could never escape from an attack by such a powerful cultivator. He was never thinking of escape. But when sensing the approaching death, even someone resolute and disillusioned like him could not help feeling a moment of trance.


    The Drunkard¡¯s palm fell onto his chest. Then a sharp sword pierced through his palm! It was an invisible sword. The de of the sword was chill and clean. Where did the sworde from?


    The sword had always been inside Chao Xiaoshu.


    Someone had a ghost in his left eye. Someone had another person in his ocean of consciousness. Someone had a spirit living in his ring. While this person had a sword in his body. It was not the dagger hidden in a fish belly, but in his belly.


    Wherever the Drunkard¡¯s palm fell onto, as long as there came the killing intent, the sword would appear.


    Right then, the sword pierced through his chest as well as the Drunkard¡¯s palm! It was a subconscious reaction, a suicidal attack!


    The Drunkard turned pale immediately when he sensed the overwhelming fear. He whistled harshly and immediately stepped back. In a few steps he was already almost invisible. However, the sword came faster.


    The sword pierced through Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s chest, carried his blood and acquired solid substance in the wind. It stabbed deeply into the Drunkard¡¯s belly!


    The Drunkard was indeed one of the fastest in the world. But he was too close to Chao Xiaoshu to escape from the sword. Even the Eldest Brother did not dare toe too close to the sword. What sword was it? It was nothing more than an ordinary sword, but carried the ultimate killing intent.


    The sword came from the Sword Garret in the South Jin. It belonged to Liu Bai, the Sage of Sword.


    It was the sword Chao Xiaoshu borrowed from Liu Bai. It was the Academy¡¯s n from the Headmaster¡¯s words.


    A man of integrity would carry the weapon in him and wait for the opportune moment. It was precisely what they were doing right now. Or more simply, Chao Xiaoshu had a sword inside him. When the Drunkard tried to kill him, the sword would be activated and kill. The weapon referred to an object, or more precisely a sword. But it could also mean courage. Chao Xiaoshu had waited for many years to make the stab.


    In other words, he had been waiting for his death. It was great courage.


    ...


    ...


    The Drunkard felt extremely painful. He seemed startled and confused. The sword came incredibly fast and made it impossible for him to escape.


    He vaguely realized that it should be Liu Bai¡¯s sword. Indeed, no other sword could be so fast and resolute as Liu Bai¡¯s. When this sword appeared, even the Drunkard would be doomed.


    The sword stab Chao Xiaoshu just made took the majority of his vitality, and destroyed his Ocean of Qi and Mountain of Snow!


    The Drunkard turned pale while stepping backward. He seemed even more invisible.


    He did not want to die. He tried to flee.


    He punched the ground, kicked up prevailing dust and rubble that blocked Ning Que¡¯s vision.


    Zhang San and Li Si scrambled out of the ruins of the calligraphy shop, swayed their knives randomly without even looking at what they were chopping on.


    They chopped the Drunkard¡¯s little toe of his left foot, and the heel of the right.


    The Drunkard was stabbed in his belly, and his feet were chopped. His blood gushed and shoes soaking.


    He howled in rage, pulled out seventeen swords from his gon and stabbed randomly toward Chao Xiaoshu, Zhang San and Li Si.


    In the darkness Sangsang suddenly said two series of numbers. From the other side of the prevailing dust a hum was heard. An arrow pierced through the air and hit on the Drunkard¡¯s knee. Blood was spurted.


    The Drunkard yelled in pain. He could no longer keep his bnce and fell onto the ground. The seventeen swords from his gon were scattered like falling leaves.


    Upon a big bang the dust, the rubble, the darkness and the night was thrown into a mess.


    Ning Que flew to him and knocked him down with a kick right on his chest.


    Upon some cracks the Drunkard¡¯s ribs were smashed. The Drunkard panted in rage and unwillingness.


    He was reluctant to die. He wanted to survive. He tried to drive the Qi of Heaven and Earth in order to escape.


    Ning Que pull the bow into full moon, while the arrow shone chillingly on the bowstring.


    In fact he did not even need to target.


    The chilling arrow was pressed between the Drunkard¡¯s eyebrows. No one could miss it.


    In their previous fight the Drunkard said to him, ¡°You can try shooting me if you are indeed powerful.¡±


    This time Ning Que said, ¡°You can try to escape my arrow if you are indeed powerful.¡±


    There was a light hum.


    The iron arrow left the bowstring, and pierced the Drunkard between the eyebrows.


    On the street in the small town, a very deep hole was made by the arrow.


    The iron arrow disappeared in the ground.


    The Drunkard¡¯s head also disappeared in the blood.


    ...

 Chapter 1108 - The Bright Moon In The Sky (I)

    <h4>Chapter 1108: The Bright Moon In The Sky (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The rain at the town had stopped for a long time. Yet, the sky above the town was still cloudy.


    The Steel Arrow prated right into the ground. No one knew how long it took to finally stop. Although the quake that had extended to the ground was minimal, the field outside of the town started to shake vigorously. The wilted saplings wobbled while the water spilled out of the stream. The quake had radiated to the town, causing the already worn out houses to copse.


    The next moment, the quake seemed to have affected the night sky, agitating the grey and dense clouds. Just like the boiling water, it seethed persistently without any sign of dispersing, resembling an agonized human¡¯s face.


    Along with the earthquake, the Drunkard¡¯s body dposed rapidly. Or more precisely, his body was cremated as it turned into yellow sand-like ashes. Then, it was blown away by the wind and disappeared into the night sky.


    Looking at this scene, Ning Que recalled the natural phenomenon that happened many years ago when he opened the Bright Volume of The Tomes of Arcane at the wastnd. That was when he realized what the Drunkard¡¯s murder could mean to the world.


    Yet, he was puzzled and failed to figure out the reason the Drunkard¡¯s body turn into sand-like ashes. Sangsang was the only person who knew what was happening. Since a long time ago, the Drunkard had already outssed a normal human being. In other words, he was no longer human.


    The Drunkard was never an ordinary cultivator, he was a Grand Cultivator. In fact, the Headmaster of Academy, Buddha, Ke Haoran, the Abbey Dean, or any other titles of the same rank, even the Grand Cultivator was not sufficient to describe him.


    He came from a far-off ce alongside the Butcher. They arrived at this world before Buddha did. Ranging from the Headmaster of Academy and Abbey Dean from thousands of years ago to Ke Haoran from tens of years ago, they were all his juniors. He and the Butcher were the real deal, they should even be called as the legend. He had lived for countless years and it would seeminglyst forever.


    But tonight, he died.


    The man, who was deemed immortal, was dead, implying that nothing was definite between life and death. Ning Que did not spend extra time and energy to think about this incident. He walked toward Chao Xiaoshu directly, thennded his gaze on Sangsang.


    The sword borrowed by Liu Bai had prated Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s body. This was a trap set up by the Academy many years ago. It was well known Chao Xiaoshu would definitely die once the trap was triggered. However, as nothing is definite between life and death, it is not certain that Chao Xiaoshu would die. Ning Que thought, I¡¯llpletely trust it even if it¡¯s destined too.


    At this moment, he did not believe in fate at all because Sangsang was standing right next to him.


    ¡°Can he be healed?¡± Ning Que asked Sangsang. With a nce, she was able to heal the Headmaster of Academy, who was hurt by Ning Que, and Ning Que, who was badly injured by Sangsang. Simrly, she cured Xiong Chumo who was crippled with his hand broken. Regardless of the severity of the injuries, she was able topletely recover them with merely a look. Although he knew that Sangsang, with her current ability, was nowhere close to Haotian, he still had high expectations of her.


    ¡°This would be difficult to treat even with my previous abilities.¡± Sangsang walked toward the cracked stone step to look at Chao Xiaoshu who was covered in blood. She said expressionlessly, ¡°To be frank, Liu Bai¡¯s attack with the sharp sword was too damaging. Chao Xiaoshu has been severely wounded.¡±


    Ning Que remained silent. He held Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s hand as his eyes were misted by sorrow. With a pale face, Chao Xiaoshu looked at him as he strained to put on a smile0. He had no intention to leave hisst words before he passed on. As long as The Tang and the Academy could im the ultimate triumph, he believed that everything and everyone he was worried about would be taken care of in the best interest. Therefore, why would he not be rest assured?


    At this moment, Sangsang spoke. ¡°But now I know how to heal him.¡±


    Ning Que was confused by her statement.


    Sangsang gently stroked that ghastly wound on Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s chest. Clear light faintly shone from the wound. A pouch of thread and needles appeared out of nowhere from her right hand. She said calmly, ¡°I am more experienced to treat this type of injury now.¡±


    She was right. At the Taoist shrine that was located at the capital of Song Kingdom, her stomach was slit open by a sword too. She then sessfully healed herself. She was indeed very experienced in this field.


    ...


    Que Ning stared at the thread and needle that were zigzagging on Chao Xiaoshu¡¯s chest. Suddenly, he recalled the time when Sangsang left City of Wei many years ago and was worried that her needlecraft would not be on par with thedies of Chang¡¯an City. Little he did not know that Sangsang experienced a simr reminiscence yesterday in the Taoist shrine too.


    Chao Xiaoshu was still looking pale, but his breathing had turned steadier before he eventually fell asleep. Que Ning finally felt at ease. Unable to endure such extreme physical and mental torments anymore, he sat on the wet ground.


    It was only now he noticed that the big ck horse was carrying two bamboo baskets on both sides of its saddle. Simultaneously, he realized that despite Sangsang¡¯s waist was not as thick as it was when he met her at the Snow Domain despite her still chubby face.


    The big ck horse paced toward him and lifted its front hoof to give him a clearer look.


    He looked at the two babies who were sleeping soundly in the baskets. After a long while, Ning Que regained hisposure. Somehow, his chest was overwhelmed by warmth and he felt rather carefree.


    The Drunkard was dead. Yet, Second Brother Chao was still alive. Sangsang bore both of his children. There was no any destined reincarnation between life and death. Apparently, life was filled with both moments of terror and happiness.


    ...


    Once Ning Que made sure that Chao Xiaoshu was safe, Ning Que, without further ado, left the town on the big ck horse¡¯s back together with Sangsang. Like a sh of light, they fled to Tuyang City in the west. Tuyang City was the military base of the army of the northeast border of Great Tang. There was a Transmission Array there and it provided the faster path to Chang¡¯an.


    In the middle of the night, when the sky was at its darkest, an inconspicuous house, that was located at the back of the General¡¯s mansion, emitted a ray of clear light. The Breath of Heaven and Earth was disturbed. Before long, it returned to its calmness again.


    The next moment, a circle of clear light was radiated from one of the unremarkable small buildings within the pce of Chang¡¯an too. The Breath of Heaven and Earth was moving freely like the cloud and the alerted animal-carvings on eave of the pce looked in that direction.


    The guards of the imperial pce and the officials of Tianshu Institute rushed to the building once they were rmed. They were certain that the Transmission Array was activated. However, nothing was discovered and they were perplexed. After a short while, Li Yu ushered the young emperor, who had just woken up, to that building. When they saw a broken arrow, they could vaguely deduce what has happened. Their constant tension resulted from the battle had instantly been relieved.


    Ning Que was back.


    ...


    The midnight was usually the liveliest moment at the House of Red Sleeves. Due to the ongoing war, thedies of the song-and-dance troupe had followed the Military Appreciation Group to the battlefield to cheer for the soldiers. Moreover, under Shangguan Yangyu¡¯s strict watch, neither the wealthy officials nor the businessmen dared to visit the House of Red Sleeves. Therefore, the ce had be considerably quiet.


    The appearance of an extraordinarily handsome big ck horse and a lethargic green-skinned dog outside of the House of Red Sleeves raised the public¡¯s curiosity. The House of Red Sleeves are hosting customers tonight? Two customers had indeed visited the House of Red Sleeves today. But, apparently, they were not here for leisure purpose.


    In the room at the top floor, Mistress Jian and Xiaocao were each holding a baby withplex emotions. It was a rare sight to see parents who abandoned their new born babies.


    Ning Que and Sangsang were standing in front of the house beside the Yanming Lake, precisely the bank of theke. Standing before the bald osiers, they stared at theke that was covered by snow wordlessly.


    It had been a long time since they werest here. They returned to the ce they used to call home, not intending to reminisce about the past, but to ponder on something more important.


    Ning Que was holding Core Vajra of the Array of the God-stunning Array in his hand. Resembling an old woman, Sangsang stood beside him with her hands at her back as though she had grown very familiar with the human world after all these years.


    ¡°Still... I can¡¯t write it,¡± he said.


    Sangsang turned to nce at him. She could not conclude if he genuinely could not write it, or merely refused to write it. In spite of their telepathy, she failed to figure out his mind.


    This was tooplicated.


    ¡°Suddenly, I somewhat miss Long Qing,¡± Ning Que spoke again.


    To some extent, Long Qing was the real second male lead in Ning Que¡¯s version of the story. But, different from the other stories, he was not emotionally attached to Long Qing. Naturally, he would not share sympathy with Long Qing. He merely recalled his self realization, namely everything that was relevant to the grand word, before Long Qing passed away at the bank of Mad River.


    The actions of ditching the heavily injured Chao Xiaoshu to his unreliable nephews and leaving his newborn babies at the brothel did not mean that Ning Que was irresponsible. He was in a hurry to return to Chang¡¯an just to write that word.


    But, that word was too grand. It was so grand that even with the help of God-stunning Array, it would still be very difficult to write. The word extended so far that the West Wilderness, the shore of the southeast sea, or even the Snow Sea in the Cold Arctic, that was located further away, could not reach it.


    One could reach however far one¡¯s mind was. But, no one had ever considered the fact that mind was extremely abstract. It would be a difficult job to make the mind travel far.


    Ning Que recalled the dream that he had many years ago, the dream he had when he was at Initial Awareness State. He saw an ocean in his dream. Sangsang was in his arms when he was having the dream.


    He might be able to send his Psyche Power to every corner of the world if Sangsang was there to help. However, how should he ask for Sangsang¡¯s favour?


    Sangsang turned around. A bench made from osiers appeared out of nowhere. she looked him while she asked, ¡°Do you think our kids will like this?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I like it very much. I¡¯m positive that they will like it too.¡±


    Sangsang looked at him in silence before she said abruptly, ¡°What did you say in that small wooden hut?¡±


    After a brief pause, Ning Que replied, ¡°I said that... it¡¯s notpulsory to do it.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°Yet, you want to write the word.¡±


    Ning Que responded, ¡°Yes.¡±


    Sangsang gazed at the night sky.


    Chang¡¯an was clear of snow and rain tonight. There was a bright moon in the sky.


    ¡°I¡¯ll write the word... even if I have to sacrifice my life for it.¡±


    ¡°I have never agreed with this.¡±


    Sangsang continued, ¡°Right now, I have no idea how to aid you despite my will to help.¡±


    Ning Que spoke, ¡°I understand.¡±


    ¡°And? ¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s all.¡±


    Ning Que looked at her and said, ¡°No one has the right to demand your sacrifice even if it¡¯s for humankind. Moreover, I¡¯m the least qualified person to request for your help. Therefore, I have nothing else left to say.¡±


    Sangsang¡¯s gazended on his hand. She noticed he was holding the Core Vajra of the Array so tightly, to the extent that his knuckles were nching.


    From Ning Que¡¯s point of view, Chang¡¯an was a safe ce. The Abbey Dean would not be able to take any action even if he arrived at Chang¡¯an. However, the battle was not over yet. The final victory, that wouldnd either on the Abbey Dean, Eldest Brother, or West-Hill, was crucial.


    He appeared calm. But, in actual fact, he was overwhelmed with uneasiness.


    ...


    The cloud above the town swirled in agitation, resembling an anguished human face. The face was staring at the earth, studying every corner of the human world. Thus, everyone who could see it, saw it.


    With thousands of feet between them, the Abbey Dean and Eldest Brother were standing at the cliff outside the city of Hn. Their green shirts were worn out and their cotton-padded gowns were significantly stained with blood. Two days and one night were sufficient for many things to happen.


    There was neither witness nor record keeper to the battle at the cliff. Otherwise, it would definitely be ranked as one of the top five battles in history in terms of level and intensity.


    The Abbey Dean looked at that cloud at the south. After a prolonged silence, he spoke, ¡°The Drunkard has actually died.¡±


    The incident was deemed impossible even for the Abbey Dean. He, too, was rather appalled by the Drunkard¡¯s death.


    Saying nothing, Eldest Brother followed the Abbey Dean¡¯s gaze.


    The Abbey Dean turned to Eldest Brother and said, ¡°They have returned to Chang¡¯an. You don¡¯t have to stop me anymore.¡±


    Eldest Brother raised the wooden stick calmly and ced it in front of his brows. He spoke no word but his intention was clearly delivered.


    Ning Que and Sangsang had returned at Chang¡¯an after they sessfully overcame all the obstacles. Since the Abbey Dean was unable to enter Chang¡¯an, it was only reasonable for him to stop risking his life to hinder the Abbey Dean.


    The Abbey Dean asked, ¡°What are you doing?¡±


    Eldest Brother answered, ¡°Teacher has read the Seven Tomes of Arcane.¡±


    The Abbey Dean kept quiet for a moment and said, ¡°Seemingly, you know my n.¡±


    Eldest Brother replied, ¡°More importantly, I know how you want to execute it.¡±


    The meaning of that sentence was not as clearly delivered as the wooden stick before his eyebrows. However, if one was to study his words in details, one could figure out the hidden yet crucial messages in his reply.


    Chang¡¯an might be able to help in Ning Que¡¯s win against the Abbey Dean, but it could not stop the Abbey Dean from snatching Sangsang¡¯s divine character. The Headmaster of Academy had studied the Seven Volume of Sky Books and understood that there was a reason behind every secret of Taoism.


    The Abbey Dean dwelled in his thoughts before he vanished.


    It was then followed by Eldest Brother¡¯s disappearance.


    The cliff that witnessed the battle between the two strongest humans alive remained silent.


    ...


    If one continuously headed north, one would eventually arrive at the bottom of the Snow Mountain no matter which side of the world one departed from. The Snow Mountain was the tallest mountain in the world. A few years ago, the mountain was broken into half by the fallen meteorite that travelled at light speed. Although the top half had fallen into the dark ocean behind the Snow Mountain, but it remained as the tallest mountain in the world.


    Undoubtedly, Snow Mountain was the tallest among all. Simrly, the Abbey Dean and Eldest Brother were undoubtedly the strongest among all. Hence, it was the most suitable choice to pick this ce as their final battle ring.


    The stars from the sky gleamed on the Abbey Dean¡¯s swords as he walked toward Eldest Brother. The stars in the night sky were beautiful and dazzling, so was the sword. No one could tell what was the sword made from.


    Eldest brother, too, could not identify the material of the sword. Therefore, without looking at the sword, he simply attacked forward with his wooden stick. With a swoosh, the wooden stick had arrived before the Abbey Dean.


    With a block from the Natural Stream Magical Finger, the stars in the sky shifted along with the sword and stopped the ferocious attack. A single star was separated from the night sky and fell on Eldest Brother¡¯s hand that was holding the wooden stick. Immediately, fresh blood oozed out of his hand.


    The stick was blocked, but it was still moving forward.


    A buzz resonated softly.


    The ebony hair stick between the Abbey Dean¡¯s hair was broken subsequently.


    His hair fell onto his shoulders and fluttered along the winter wind.


    He looked at Eldest Brother as he praised, ¡°Li Manman, no one will say that you¡¯re slow anymore.¡±

 Chapter 1109 - The Bright Moon In The Sky (II)

    <h4>Chapter 1109: The Bright Moon In The Sky (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio#


    A person¡¯s name normally had some meaning or origin, such as Ning Que, Sangsang and Jun Mo. But of course there were always insignificant ones like Cui Hua and Er Ya.


    Li Manman was called Li Manman because he was really slow. The way he spoke, the way he walked, or even the way he cultivated, it was simply slow.


    He used seven years to achieve the State of No Doubts, much slower than his fellow students. But since then he speeded up. It only took him three months to reach See-Through. Then he achieved Knowing Destiny on the following evening.


    That was Li Manman. Someone who started really slow, but proceeded the fastest. He walked slow but was the fastest in the world. Likewise, he never knew how to fight. He told that to Ye Su and everyone else. But no one would have believed it. When he started learning to fight and kill, he again surpassed everyone else in no time.


    He acquired various skills incredibly fast, such as Chen Pipi¡¯s the Natural Stream Magical Finger, Jun Mo¡¯s Intent of respecting each other, Haoran Sword, the Headmaster¡¯s cudgel, as well as the stab he made previously to the Abbey Dean.


    He used Liu Bai¡¯s sword. It could be nothing slow. That was Li Manman, the slowest yet the fastest.


    The Abbey Dean stood on top of the snow peak, raised his head toward the bright moon in the sky surrounded by countless stars, and praised, ¡°You did teach him well.¡±


    There was no hatred in his words, but pure admiration.


    Although he was already in the State of Purity and should have seen through the attachment, aversion, obsession, and affection in the human world, he could still not disregard thempletely. The Abbey Dean still had his pursuit. He never expected to surpass the Headmaster ever since he was defeated. However he did wish that his disciples could defeat the Headmaster¡¯s students.


    In fact, he did have two great disciples. Ye Su established the New Stream and became a sage. But he knew that Ye Su¡¯s achievement owed to Li Manman who enlightened him in Chang¡¯an. Long Qing took the path no one else had tried before. But eventually he was killed by Ning Que.


    Hearing his praise for the Headmaster, the Eldest Brother bowed slightly in return. But he was never surprised. It seemed like a matter of fact to him. Otherwise why should the Abbey Dean sent his own son to study in the Academy?


    ...


    ...


    Darkness prevailed. It was indeed dark, which meant the night had spread from the north. In the past few years, the weather was bing increasingly cold throughout the human world. Even in the Divine Halls of West-Hill where it used to be as warm as spring in winter, they had witnessed a few rounds of snow so far. The lush mountains were already covered in white snow.


    The snow covered everything. The Tang army from the north and the troop of Great River Kingdom from the south had broken into the West-Hill Divine Kingdom over ten days ago. The cavalrymen of the Divine Halls had retreated one step after another. They were eventually encircled within some hundreds of miles around Peach Mountain. The roads leading to the human world from Peach Mountain were all taken by the Tang army and the troops of the Great River Kingdom. Peach Mountain was isted now.


    It had been over ten days. The Tang army neverunched their final attack. Mr. Second and Mr. Third from the Academy never entered the small town again. No one knew where they went. Perhaps they were not confident in breaking through the Array of Clear Light that enveloped Peach Mountain. Or could it be the Butcher in the small town?


    It should be unfavorable for the encircling troops to wait for such a long time. The chiefmander of the Tang army was Xu Chi. He was not supposed to make such mistakes. Therefore it must be the Academy making decisions now.


    Like in the previous nights, it was snowing slightly again tonight. There was nothing but quietness in and around the small town, as if it was going to be another peaceful night, and once again the following day.


    But then some footsteps were heard from out of town.


    The Butcher unbuttoned his leather coat and picked up the heavy knife. He stepped out of the door and looked at the approaching Jun Mo, indifferently and ruthlessly.


    ¡°Are youing to seek your doom?¡± Jun Mo stopped in front of him, saluted with a single arm and said, ¡°The Drunkard is dead.¡±


    Far away above the small town in the north, a piece of cloud that looked like a painful human face was still floating in the dark night. It was not floating high. Therefore people in the Peach Mountain were not supposed to see it from thousands of miles away. But someone did.


    The Butcher came from that small town in the north. How could he not see it? He lived such a long life in this human world together with the Drunkard. How could he be unaware of his death?


    He said nothing but stared at Jun Mo as if he was looking at a dead man.


    Anyone else would have been scared by the ruthless gaze of the Drunkard, or at least felt anxious or chilled. But Jun Mo felt nothing.


    ¡°The Drunkard is dead,¡± Jun Mo repeated calmly. He was not trying to irritate his enemy by emphasizing, but merely stating some fact. So was his next sentence.


    ¡°You will die too.¡±


    The Butcher slightly raised his thick eyebrows and asked, ¡°How?¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°We all know that you and the Drunkard were really afraid of death. That is why you have lived such a long life. But now he is dead, which proved he was wrong. If you wish to live, you should choose a different path.¡±


    The Butcher said, ¡°He followed the Abbey Dean, while I guard Taoism. We did have taken two different paths.¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°There are more than two paths in the world.¡±


    The Butcher asked, ¡°What else?¡±


    Jun Mo said, ¡°How would you choose at a crossroad? How would you bet? Neither of those two paths would lead to sess. And now Haotian has returned to Chang¡¯an. There could be a third path. Why don¡¯t you choose this path?¡±


    ¡°By rights... as afraid of death as I am... I should definitely choose your path. I never met Haotian in the Divine Kingdom. But I saw her once in the human world. And she made me a promise. However...¡±


    The Butcher said after a pause, ¡°I don¡¯t want to choose this path.¡±


    Jun Mo vaguely understood his idea, slightly stunned then saluted again, ¡°Be my guest.¡±


    The Butcher held slightly looser than tighter on the knife. He breathed regrly and calmly and said, ¡°Those who knew me and the Drunkard always thought that he was the unrestrained one and I was the ruthless one. But actually I barely killed anyone throughout the tens of thousands of years.¡±


    Jun Mo answered, ¡°Indeed.¡±


    The Butcher said, ¡°I did not kill because I was really afraid of death. But... I only had onepany, who was killed by the Academy. Therefore I have to do something for him.¡±


    Jun Mo said nothing.


    The Butcher said, ¡°Because likewise he only had onepany which was me.¡±


    Jun Mo kept quiet for a long while. Then he echoed, ¡°Sounds reasonable.¡±


    It was indeed reasonable.


    As for the Drunkard and the Butcher, they would have lost in their evesting cultivation if they did not have each other. They would have went stray throughout the countless years because no one could endure such endless loneliness.


    Luckily they had each other. They were the onlypany for each other. If the Butcher would not do anything for the Drunkard, then no one would.


    Jun Mo found the Butcher¡¯s words reasonable. Therefore he did not try to convince him further. He had always been reasonable. He pulled out the straight sword and said, ¡°Be my guest.¡±


    The Butcher raised the greasy knife and said, ¡°I will make my way.¡±


    There was no way out. Therefore he had to make one.


    The Drunkard chopped the knife onto Jun Mo. There were no skills or techniques. It even did not carry any Qi of Heaven and Earth. It seemed like, or it simply was an ordinary knife. Yet it was nothing ordinary.


    If someone had been using the heavy knife for tens of thousands of years, with over a thousand chops everyday and over three hundred days every year, how many chops should he have made?


    No one else had done so. But the Butcher did. And only he who had lived such a long life could have done so. He had cultivated for too long.


    If gift and diligence both mattered in cultivation, the Butcher must be one of the very few most gifted and diligent cultivators in history. What did that mean? Thousands multiplied by three hundred then multiplied by tens of thousands, how many chops would that be? It meant that his knife was invincible.


    Even if Liu Bai could rise again, he would not be able to take it. Even the Abbey Dean would never want to take it. Perhaps no one except for Ke Haoran could take the Butcher¡¯s chop.


    Jun Mo¡¯s eyes brightened up. He knew what that knife meant. It was glorious and dazzling. The Youngest Uncle was his idle. He wanted to take the chop.


    If he still had his both arms, he might have tried taking it. But now he only had one arm. He held one end of the iron sword, while the other endy somewhere else in the snowy night.


    It was like a rootless tree.


    The light in his eyes dimmed, and got bright again. Then he calmed down.


    Jun Mo took one step back. He held the sword downward, raised his left knee and kicked upward. He was kicking into the sky, namely Sky Kicking. He kicked onto the head of the iron sword.


    The iron sword soared up but was not kicked away. It seemed to have turned into a bowstring. One end of the string was in his hand, while the other was under his foot.


    The iron knife chopped onto the iron sword. The string was bent but not broken.


    The iron sword being the bowstring, Jun Mo being an arrow, he darted back like a bolt for hundreds of meters along the street.


    He did not choose to confront the Butcher directly. Because it was not his own fight tonight. He was the prideful Jun Mo. And also the Second Brother from the Academy. But the Butcher¡¯s horrifying knife intent was still haunting.


    The iron sword bended swiftly with horrifying sounds. It almost reached his crown. His hair was yet to be as long as it used to be. But he had put on the ancient crown again tonight.


    The crown served like a boat and helped him float fluently in the Qi of Heaven and Earth, without leaning or overturning.


    Jun Mo kept darting back until he left the small town and came to the cliff.


    The knife intent was still following. It pierced the cloth on his chest and made a deep mark on the iron sword.


    The iron sword used to lead the ves to fight against the Xuankong Temple for many years in Giant Sinkhole to the very West Wilderness. It was never broken but merely bent and fixedter on. However, it was almost broken by the Butcher¡¯s chop tonight.


    What a horrifying chop! Indeed invincible.


    Jun Mo had retreated to the foot of the cliff. He applied Sky Kicking again with his right foot and rooted into the round like a pine without moving further backward.


    The Butcher followed him to the cliff. Different from what people used to think, the Butcher was not slow at all.


    Some blood gushed from the corner of Jun Mo¡¯s lips. Facing a second chop from the Butcher, he seemed extremely calm. He could not take the Butcher¡¯s chop. Although he retreated to hundreds of meters away, he was still wounded. But it was exactly where he was leading the Butcher.


    A shrill chirp of a cicada was heard. It seemed as if a giant cicada had just opened its wings in front of the cliff. It enveloped the spot where the Butcher was standing.


    The Butcher was taken into a world disconnected from Haotian¡¯s world by the cicada¡¯s wings.


    Even a great cultivator above the Five States could hardly create his own world. However the world currently created by two pieces of transparent and invisible cicada wings seemed unbreakable.


    ¡°Do you think some weak cicada could trap me?¡± The Butcher roared. His hair and whiskers danced madly in the wind while he chopped toward the transparent shield!


    There was a harsh pierce!


    And a crack was made on the transparent cicada wing!

 Chapter 1110 - Bright Moon In The Night (III)

    <h4>Chapter 1110: Bright Moon In The Night (III)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The knife was sturdy, caked with grease and even traces of blood. shing towards the snowkes fluttering in the air, it seemed somewhat out of ce, as if in the next moment, it will be shing through naught but thin air. Because in front of the cliff, there was nothing but snow. Nevertheless, when this knife shed downwards, the fabric of space warped, followed by a loud ripping sound. A world formed by a pair of transparent cicada wings was sliced apart in a single sh.


    The de Intent started to fade after that, but it was still present. It continued forward and impacted against the cliff, emitting an earth-shattering boom. Debris flew everywhere, scattering into the snow. The crack on the cliff, between the choking vines, started to widen. The two parts of the cliff glided against one another, triggering anotherndslide of boulders. Not long after that.... the entire mountain split apart.


    The Butcher had sliced an entire mountain in half with a single sh.


    There was a silhouette that fell with the debris. The mysterious figure was petite, falling from a height of more than a hundred yards. It was as if he or she had fallen from the sky, plummeting through the snow, falling straight towards where the Butcher was standing.


    The Butcher had just expelled a mighty blow of de Intent, so even if it was him, it was still impossible to hurl out a third sh in such a short time.


    His chest rumbled with a low grunt of effort as he flicked his wrist expertly, levelling his de horizontally in the snow.


    A blunt smack rang out.


    That petite figure hadnded directly on the surface of the de. Right after, there was another thunderous boom.


    Dust and sand were stirred up, and more debris were flying everywhere with the snow.


    The Butcher¡¯s eyebrows were furrowed with effort, sinking lower and lower on his forehead. His person, however, did not copse. He held his ground.


    Not that he had a choice, since his legs had sunk into the ground, burying him up to his knees.


    That petite shadow was thrown into the air by the force of the de, but it arched its back andnded gracefully, like a dove, on the shattered cliff. At the same time, Jun Mo¡¯s sword had finally reached his hands.


    WHAM!


    An ear-splitting crash resounded through the valley,pletely obliterating several estates on the fringes of the nearby town. The snowkes falling in front of the shattered cliff were shredded into frozen dust. The force of the impact exploded right up into the night sky, parting the clouds.


    The Breath of Heaven and Earth, drawn out by the intense collisions, flowed everywhere. It dragged through the snow piled up on the ground and the boulders scattered all over the ce, caused them to fly haphazardly in the air. Under the night sky, everything was dark, thus no one could clearly observe what was happening. The only thing they could rely on was sound.


    No one knew how many times these three people had collided in such a brief period of time. The metal sword, the butcher knife, and mere fists had been pitted against each other countless times. However, one thing was certain: all three of them possessed an absolute form of raw force and power.


    After some time, silence finally fell upon the cliffside.


    ¡°I¡¯ve admitted this back then, both of you are indeed powerful. If the pair of you had lived through as many years as I have, perhaps you guys may have even surpassed myself. However... it¡¯s not possible currently, as neither of you can even kill me.¡±


    The Butcher concluded his deration by staring coldly at the base of the cliff opposite him. Many wounds had appeared on his torso, but there was no blood. He was unkempt, that¡¯s for sure, but it seemed that he was not actually hurt.


    As expected of the legend who had achieved a near invincible state.


    Jun Mo¡¯s left shoulder was bloody. Yu Lian¡¯s yellow skirt was covered in dirt. More importantly, her shoes were torn. Various indications like these proved that killing the Butcher was still a difficult task for them, despite having the advantage of joining forces.


    ¡°Some people are certainly harder to kill, like you, the Drunkard and the Chief Monk. Nevertheless, the Drunkard had perished earlier tonight. The Chief Monk was also trapped and sent to his death by my Academy. Naturally, we would have simr arrangements for you.¡±


    ¡°What happened just now was just an experiment. Since it wasn¡¯t effective, we would have to switch to other tactics. You should know that to win against an opponent, does not necessarily mean that you must kill them,¡± Yu Lian exined.


    What she said makes a lot of sense, Jun Mo thought as he recalled the Butcher¡¯s very first sh.


    Right after Yu Lian¡¯sst word, a clear melody yed by a flute resonated throughout the snowy valley. It was followed by a lilting, flowing melody of a zither.


    The music created by both instruments blended seamlessly into one another, producing a heartrending melody that plucked at every listener¡¯s heartstrings. However, murderous intent lingered in the pauses.


    The Butcher lifted his eyebrows slightly, his face starting to pale. With a shout, the dust and snow trembled and fell from his body.


    He gripped his knife tightly and shed it towards where the music wasing from.


    The music was cut off abruptly.


    However, the de Intent could not continue any further because on the broken cliff was an oak. A short oak, and next to the oak was a rook, a broken rook. On the broken rook was a mangled g.


    The short oak represented a cannon, the broken rook as a rook, the mangled g represented the g of allegiance to the king, or themander.


    This is Xiangqi, the Chinese chess.


    With his de Intent neutralized, the Butcher seemed slightly put off. He stepped forward, and tried to shatter Yu Lian¡¯s cicada wings by using his own body as a battering ram. However, he was unable to walk out of it, because there were numerous other chess pieces on the valley.


    ck boulders, as well as rocks that were nketed by ayer of white snow.


    Those were ck pieces and white pieces.


    This is Go.


    The Butcher howled, raising his knife to attempt another sh.


    The music, which had started again, was cut off a second time. The chess pieces that were all over the mountain quivered, as if they were about to split open.


    At this moment, a smooth silk ribbon fluttered from the sky alongside the snowkes. It curled around and linked together the oak, the rook, the g, the boulders and the snow. Any snowkes that touched the silk disintegrated into the air, rising upwards to form clouds.


    This was known as the Cloud Gathering Array. However, it was not yetplete. Outside of the array, there was a metal cauldron, golden sand, even a water mill in the creek beyond the cliff.


    A swan was perched on the tallest part of the water mill, like an arrogantmander. An elderly bull could be seen on the slope of a mountain further away. It seemed to be aimlessly staring into the distance.


    The Butcher let out another resounding howl, lifting his knife for another sh.


    A sudden rush of Blunt Intent flooded towards him from the west. A metal bat was brought onto the battlefield.


    The de Intent that was already restrained by multipleyers of arrays dispersed into nothingness after an attack by the force of the Blunt Intent from the bat.


    Chen Pipi, nked by Tang Xiaotang, started to approach them from the direction of the town.


    He was wearing a divine gown,plemented by a sacred crown that nestled on his head. His face was appropriately solemn, corresponding to the situation.


    Hemanded thirteen disciples of the New Stream, thus he had the power of faith on his side.


    The Butcher fell silent. He lowered his head, then raised it again in defiance.


    He lifted his butcher knife, shing out for the fifth time.


    This time, he still could not harm anyone. This was due to a rock appearing in front of his knife, quelling the force of his strike. The rocks and boulders that littered the mountainside seemed to gain a life of their own, before seemingly dying off again, trapping him between them. He was trapped, trapped in this barrier array.


    Mo Shanshan, in a white dress and donning her royal crown, silently observed the mess of rocks and debris that covered the mountain.


    The barrier array was her handywork. It was almost three quarters as powerful as the Daming Lake in front of the Front Gate of Devil¡¯s Doctrine.


    That year, even Youngest Uncle took quite some time to break the array. The Butcher was definitely no exception. He finally lowered his knife. The Butcher nced at the various individually powerful, yet interdependent arrays on the mountain, speechless. He had expected that everyone from the Academy would appear here. However, for his opponent to move the entire Academy here went far beyond his expectations!


    ...


    The melody of the flute and zither started up once more, lively and delighted, exuding just the slightest trace of smugness.


    Yu Lian did not even spare ast nce for the Butcher. She tucked her hands behind her back and turned to walk away.


    Everyone else from the Academy retreated after that, including Mo Shanshan. She was originally one of the two people who were invited by the Academy to enter the Back Hill. She was already used to thinking of herself as part of the Academy, while the Academy was also used to treating her as one of their own.


    Jun Mo did not leave, instead he sat crossed-legged in the snow. Silently, he observed the Butcher who was trapped in the multitude of arrays.


    Many years ago, when Ning Que killed Xia Hou, he spent an entire night sitting on the snowy bridge, barring passage for the Subjugation General of Great Tang as well as the strongest Yulin Royal Guards. They could not cross the bridge at all.


    Tonight, he sat in the snow again, expressing his determination.


    The Butcher looked at him. ¡°I can break these arrays, given sufficient time,¡± he warned.


    ¡°Time is the only thing we need. If you can break these arrays, then it woulde down to me to keep you here. If the timees, I will see if I am able to parry your strikes,¡± answered Jun Mo.


    ¡°You can¡¯t,¡± said the Butcher decisively.


    Jun Mo shrugged. ¡°Perhaps.¡±


    The Butcher fell silent. ¡°All of you had dawdled around for more than ten days but still refuse to ascend the Peach Mountain, why? If Taoism falls, Haotian will weaken exponentially, even die.¡±


    Jun Mo remained silent for a moment, before replying, ¡°It¡¯s probably because the Haotian in your eyes, to all of us at the Academy, is our friend, a mere girl who cooks delicious dishes for us. If she can stay alive, then she better stay alive.¡±


    ¡°Then why did all of you decide to climb the Peach Mountain tonight?¡± asked the Butcher.


    ¡°Because she had returned to Chang¡¯an,¡± was Jun Mo¡¯s answer.


    Chang¡¯an, such a beautiful name. A mythical city, a guardian capable of protecting many ordinary humans. Now, it had begun to protect Haotian as well.


    ¡°You give your all for your friends, I give my all for my people. It¡¯s enough to just give our all,¡± continued Jun Mo.


    The Butcher did not attempt to continue the conversation for a long time. Finally, he spoke up, ¡°As expected, Jun Mo is as sensible as always.¡±


    He raised the knife in his hands. Its de Intent could not break the arrays, but it resonated with the remnants of de Intent that lingered between sky and earth.


    The snow clouds in the night sky, which already had a fissure in them, started to break apart even further. The snow that fell ceased, the clouds dispersed, exposing the bright moon in the night sky.


    Jun Mo lifted his head and admired the ethereal beauty of the moon.


    ...


    Between the valleys leading up to the Peach Mountain, the members of the Academy forged ahead in silence. Most of them were shouldering their belongings, leading their cows, carrying their swans and necessities in their arms. They had traversed the Verdant Canyon before, while this time was the West-Hill. Like before, dust and sand gued the mountain roads.


    Yu Lian glimpsed something from the corner of her eyes, and lifted her head to stare at the night sky. She too saw the bright moon.


    ¡°Teacher, we will win,¡± Chen Pipi said with a slight smile as he looked up at the moon.


    Many years ago, the Headmaster had hiked up Peach Mountain before, and shed to pieces all of the cherry blossom petals that had covered the mountain.


    Tonight, the bright moon shone down at them from the night sky. This time, his students were here.

 Chapter 1111 - The Fall Of West-Hill (I)

    <h4>Chapter 1111: The Fall Of West-Hill (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    At day break, the morning sun was yet to rise from the East Sea, and the sky was merely lit up. It was gloomy as in the storm, and the peak seemed lonely.


    There were three teaus, four Divine Halls, thousands of divine priests and tens of thousands of deacons and cavalrymen in the peak. It was the ce where Taoism had ruled over the human world for countless years, and regarded as the holynd by all the followers of Haotian.


    Right now there were tens of thousands of people on the teaus. They were the divine priests in red and brown robes, the deacons in ck robes and the cavalrymen in dark metal armors. They formed a huge and silent mass.


    There wasn¡¯t even a sound of breathing. The huge mass of people was as silent as the deepest ocean. There might be roaring anger deep down in the ocean, but nothing could be seen on the surface. Even bubbles were blown in the morning breeze.


    There were senior and pious red-robed divine priests and resolute, and ruthless cavalry leaders. All of them had stayed in these divine halls for many years. They were silent but lookedplicated. People were angry, sad, disappointed, or even desperate. That was why they kept deadly quiet.


    Taoism was the most influential religion ever since the awakening of human beings. The Divine Halls were the most sacred ces. People here had been practicing Haotian¡¯s will and ruled over the human world for countless years. They held incredibly high positions, great wealth and were widely respected. Were these all going to be ruined today?


    The people on the teaus looked at the equally silent ck mass down the peak, among the fields and hills. But those ck mass did not carry such aplex of emotions as grief or disappointment. Instead, there was vaguely some umting strength that seemed powerful and horrifying.


    That was the the ck Armor Heavy Cavalry from the Tang. It could defeat anything in the world. Tens of thousands of ck Armor Heavy Cavalry encircled Peach Mountain. No one except for the really powerful cultivators could try breaking through the tight encirclement.


    Some of them saw at the end of the mountain trail a sacred sedan covered byyers of gauze. A woman in the blood-colored Gown of Judgment sat inside with a sacred crown on her head. She was the Great Divine Priest of Judgment, Ye Hongyu. If it was in the past, the Great Divine Priest of Judgment would definitely be the mental support of the tens of thousands of divine priests and deacons from the West-Hill. They always believed that as long as she was present no one could pose the slightest threat to the Divine Halls of West-Hill. However, today she stood on the opposite side.


    Some saw at the entrance of the Northern Mountain Road people carrying loads and kitchenware, an old cattle and a goose. They knew those were the people from the Academy. Most were staring at one person among them. That person was not a divine priest from the West-Hill. But he was wearing a divine gown and a sacred crown. His chubby figured seemed to be the most awe-inspiring in the human world. They knew he was Chen Pipi, the legendary young genius of Taoism, son of the Abbey Dean, and furthermore, the current leader of the New Stream.


    Ye Hongyu and Chen Pipi were to some extent the two most epic traitors throughout the history of Taoism. There was also Cheng Lixue who led the people from the Divine Hall of Revtion returning to Peach Mountain. They knew Taoism and the West-Hill so well. If it was not because of them how could they have broken through the Array of Clear Light so easily in the dawn?


    The people on Peach Mountain stared at them and felt aplex of emotions.


    Yet they were not the focus. A fairy like slim figure standing at the end of the mountain trail right in front of Haotian¡¯s Divine Hall attracted most people¡¯s attention.


    She used to be called Lin Wu, and now Yu Lian. She was also well-known as the Twenty-Three-Year Cicada, the current leader of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. She stood there right at the top of Peach Mountain, and maximized the humiliation for the Divine Halls of West-Hill.


    Taoism and Devil¡¯s Doctrine had always been at daggers drawn. Throughout a thousand years, she was the first and only leader of Devil¡¯s Doctrine who came right in front of the Divine Halls of West-Hill.


    They stared at the young girl and feltplicated. It was chilling, but Yu Lian felt nothing. She was not even looking at the Divine Halls. Instead, she looked toward somewhere else in the north.


    Her disregard was also humiliation.


    But after all ... although the Tang cavalry had almost wiped out the West-Hill Divine Kingdom, Taoism did maintain their best forces and retreated in time into the peak of Peach Mountain. Right then there were thousands of divine priests and deacons standing on the teau. The sun finally rose and shed light on them. They formed an ocean of red and ck gowns. Beside them there were tens of thousands of cavalrymen. How could the few people from the Academy and a few others like Ye Hongyu and Cheng Lixue be able to defeat the crowd?


    Furthermore, inside Haotian¡¯s Divine Hall there were Zhao Nanhai at the zenith of Knowing Destiny, the unfathomable middle-aged priest, as well as the radiating Hierarch, Xiong Chumo!


    ...


    ...


    The rising sun was blocked by the clouds above the sea. Some light scattered but immediately dimmed by the chilling wind around the Peach Mountain. The stately white Divine Hall seemed chilling all of a sudden.


    A giant sedan proceeded gradually out of the Divine Hall. The middle-aged priest and Zhao Nanhai walked silently toward it. But no matter how radiating the sedan was, it could never brighten up the gloomy world on the peak.


    Yu Lian turned to look at the giant sedan emotionlessly.


    People on the teaus also turned to the giant sedan. Whether it was the Hierarch inside the sedan, or Zhao Nanhai and the middle-aged priest standing in front of the sedan, they were all powerful enough tounch the battle against the Academy.


    The middle-aged priest walked slowly toward Yu Lian under the gaze of countless people. The divine priests and deacons felt tense and their blood burning. They knew that a massive battle was about to beunched.


    Yu Lian held her hands on the back and looked indifferently at the approaching person.


    The middle-aged priests walked through the crowd of tens of thousands of divine priests and deacons and came to a few dozens of meters away in front of Yu Lian. He neatened his Taoist gown as well as his emotions and uttered a few words: ¡°We would surrender.¡±


    ...


    ...


    The Peach Mountain was silent. Nothing could be heard but the deadly quietness.


    People from the Divine Halls of West-Hill were startled. Those who followed Ye Hongyu and Cheng Lixue were also stunned. After a pause, some screaming curses were heard from the teaus: ¡°Xiong Chumo, fuck you!¡±


    The people on the teaus knew clearly that the middle-aged priest was not acting on his own. He was representing the Hierarch, Zhao Nanhai, and other important figures from the Divine Halls.


    The war between Taoism and the Academy hadsted for a thousand years. Countless people died in the countless brutal battles. They were expecting a decisive battle today. Although the Taoism was declining, they were after all the ruler of the world throughout the thousand years and should at least be able to take another battle. How could the leaders of Taoism ... choose to surrender?!


    The crowd was outraged. Curses roared. They were so enraged that they could no longer care about the position of the middle-aged priest or even the Hierarch. Some pious senior divine priests bursted into tears. People were throwing their shoes and rocks at the middle-aged priest.


    Yet the middle-aged priest seemed insensitive to sensational crowd at all. He simply stared calmly at Yu Lian. On behalf of the Divine Halls of West-Hill, he made a difficult decision and believed that the Academy would react reasonably.


    Yu Lian was never expecting such a proposal.


    But without giving it a single thought she replied right away, ¡°Surrender denied.¡±


    ...

 Chapter 1112 - The Fall Of West-Hill (II)

    <h4>Chapter 1112: The Fall Of West-Hill (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    It was unbelievable that the Divine Halls of West-Hill had decided to surrender. The entire Peach Mountain was up upon hearing the news. The sound of crying and cursing was everywhere on Peach Mountain, however, Yu Lian had ced an order on behalf of the Academy, stopping them from surrendering.


    This had made it even harder to believe. The next moment, the entire Peach Mountain turned into a total silence. The middle-aged priest frowned at Yu Lian for a long while. He then asked in a raucous voice, ¡°Why?¡±


    From the perspective of the Divine Halls of West-Hill, there was no reason for the Academy not to ept their surrender because Taoism was still as strong as it used to be.


    Well, more precisely, ever since Xiong Chumo¡¯s trace was revealed by Yu Lian few years back at the back hill of the Academy, he was severely injured after getting beaten up by Yu Lian. Thereafter, the boundless radiance could no longer cover up his littleness under the divine gown. With Abbey Dean leaving Peach Mountain and Ye Hongyu dropping into the Abyss, she could no longer suppress his inner fear. She could not understand what was happening to her surroundings. ¡°Why would Haotian give up on Taoism or why would Taoism leave him?¡±


    After going through a long while of inner struggle, Xiong Chumo had finally decided to surrender in order to keep himself alive because with his capabilities, he was expecting that the Academy or the Great Tang would grant him a specific position, which was their culture ever since. There were several Divine Halls moguls including Zhao Nanhai who got either convinced or suppressed by him. The same response was expected from the middle-aged priest.


    Yu Lian was assuming that the Divine Halls of West-Hill had gone throughplicated process and even a bloody war, but if he was to think carefully, she could have realized the source of the issue. Upon listening to the wordsing out from the middle-aged priest¡¯s mouth, she directly declined his offer without any consideration. Why?


    Yu Lian did not answered the middle-aged priest¡¯s question because she did not have to.


    The Divine Halls would definitelye up with several conditions along with their surrender. For example, they wanted Xiong Chumo alive, or the middle-priest, or Zhao Nanhai, or He Mingchi, or others to be alive. However, Yu Lian herself and Ning Que, who was not on the scene would never ept any above conditions and therefore, she would not allow them to surrender.


    Her yellow skirt and her ck ponytail were swinging slightly along with the morning wind. However, she was keeping her hands behind her back. The middle-aged priest felt a little cold looking at the Grandmaster with a little girl look.


    When there was no surrender, then a war was meant to arise. Eventually, someone was about to put an end in this thousand years continuation war between the Academy and Taoism. On top of the hill, there were countless of people staring at the giant sedan.


    The figure of the master inside the carriage was as tall as he was ten years ago.


    At the critical moment, he was the spiritual support or tens of thousands in the Divine Halls of West-Hill. There were still plenty of powerful fighters on top of the hill. If the master could fight against Yu Lian, then there was still hope for the Divine Hall.


    No matter which of them won this thousand years continuation war, it would definitely be a magnificent one. It would bepletely normal if the war wouldst for a long time, even though they were to fight from sunrise until sunset.


    Fourth Brother ced the hourss on top of a rock because it had be his habit to arrange his strategy using math. Hao Tian lighten up an incense in the Divine Hall to calm themselves.


    The flowers on Peach Mountain had started to bloom. Under the attention of the people, Ye Hongyu walked towards the cliff and stared at the giant divine chariot in front of the Divine Hall. As the wind blew, his crimson red color judgment divine gown swung in the air.


    She did not have to say a word because everyone knew the meaning reflected. Everyone on Peach Mountain was stunned.


    She was going to raise a fight with Xiong Chumo.


    The giant figure inside the giant sedan was sitting still.


    Zhao Nanhai was standing right in front of the sedan with a dim look on his face.


    This Great Divine Priest of South Sea was still a well-known top fighter. He was definitely capable to fight against Ye Hongyu.


    There were over ten powerful fighters from the South Sea standing right behind Zhao Nanhai, including two fighters with Knowing Destiny State.


    The fighters from the Academy were Yu Lian, Ye Hongyu, Chen Pipi, and Tang Xiaotang.


    The middle-aged priest took a nce at Yu Lian and walked back to the giant sedan.


    In terms of the numbers and the qualities of powerful fighters, the Divine Halls of West-Hill was not as weak as they had thought. However, their fighting will was weaker aspared to the enemy.


    Yu Lian understood the meaning indicated by the middle-aged priest during the eye-to-eye contact just now. However, she did not care about it. There was none expression on her face as she did not want to exin what would be the ¡°true power.¡±


    ording to her extend of recognition, Jun Mo, Youngest Brother, and Ye Hongyu were equally powerful. Since she was dying to fight, then the results shall be within expected.


    She even felt that the war would be boring. Therefore, she nced towards the north once again just like before, as if there was something worth paying attention to.


    A cold wind arose, blowing into her eyes, causing her to frown.


    The Divine Kingdom was still a distance away from the East Sea, but the wind was blowing from the sea direction and it would usually be the East Wind, just like the wind blowing in the morning previously.


    However, the wind that was blowing towards their face wasing from far north.


    Yu Lian¡¯s expression slightly changed. Her delicate face turned a bit pale. She turned around and stared at the giant sedan in front of the Divine Halls. She swung her ck ponytails, marking two shadows in the dark sky.


    Her Youngest Brother and Sister were shocked when they realized her emotion issue.


    ¡°Madam. What happened?¡± asked Tang Xiaotang.


    ¡°I am leaving,¡± said Yu Lian. She was calm when she came out with the words. She was not shivering at all, but all of them could realize her anxiety and anger.


    The great battle was about to start. However, as the most powerful senior in the Academy, she was leaving. But why? What about the fight that was going to startter? The Academy and the Great Tang was about to withdraw from achieving their absolute victory?


    Yu Lian¡¯s sudden decision was beyond everyone¡¯s expectation. However, none of them disagreed with her because they had predicted an issue that was going to happen. All of them had their expression changed.


    At the moment, Yu Lian¡¯s face turned into a fierce look. She then took a breath. The wind was getting stronger and stronger on the hill. She lifted up her chest, as if she was about to suck in the air of the entire Peach Mountain.


    Her face becamepletely pale without any trace of blood, as if she had suffered from severe injury. Her eyes suddenly brightened up and blood started flowing out from her canthus, turning her face into a terrible look.


    It was not the wind but the breath of nature! The air got sucked into her body along with her breath!


    There was something strange in Heaven and on Earth. The trees of Peach Mountain were shaking non-stop, throwing off the snow on top of them.


    Ye Hongyu turned and stared at the Yu Lian on the cliff with a tough look. ¡°Even though your body is as hard as a rock and you are as experienced as a ¡¯23-year-old cicada¡¯, how are you able to suck in such tremendous amount of breath of nature in such a short duration?¡±


    The breath of nature was still entering Yu Lian¡¯s body. The shing of the terrifying amount of air had injured her canthus, it even shook her ponytail loose, causing her ck hair to fall down like a waterfall. Her hair then went dancing along with the wind blowing from the north.


    The wind turned silenced.


    Up until this moment, the people finally realized that her ck hair was growing longer!


    However, no matter how long it would grow, her hair would still hung between her knees. It was because Yu Lian herself was growing taller! The childishness on Yu Lian¡¯s face gradually faded. At the same time, her aura started to rise gradually with great momentum. A few momentster, she had turned from a little girl into a teenager.


    The middle-aged priest turned into a serious look upon looking at the scene. He had read about the Arcane Tome of the Sand, therefore, he clearly knew that every cultivation n had their own secret. Taoism also had its own secret skill, which could allow an individual to acquire a tremendous amount of power through burning one¡¯s life. However, he had no idea whether there was any secret skill that could allow an individual to skip through time!


    If Ning Que was standing on the cliff, he could easily identify the skill performed by Yu Lian because Lian Sheng¡¯s memory fragments were inside his mind. In addition to this, he had saw Xiao Hou turned over ten years older with his bare eyes in the frozenke a few years back.


    This could be the forbidden secret of the Devil¡¯s Doctrine. Yu Lian had lost ten years of precious time in a blink of an eye. She had turned her lost years, or partial life into power. Fortunately, she did not turn into an olddy. She used to be a childish young little girl. With ten years added to her age, she had be a sweet tempered and elegantdy.


    Yu Lian straightened her hand into the air. Tang Xiaotang handed over the iron rod to Yu Lian. She held the two ends of the iron rod while slowly giving it a look.


    Wind started blowing from the north once again, as if it was hurrying them to do something.


    She would no longer have to depend on the East Wind and North Wind, and therefore, the wind faded away.


    There was a road built with bluestone connected the cliff and the Divine Halls. Countless shatters had caused numerous cracks along the bluestone road.


    Yu Lian had arrived at the gate of the Divine Halls. She walked towards the giant sedan. In front of the sedan was Zhao Nanhai.


    This Descendant of Light who came from South Sea casted a sacred fire in his hands. He looked at Yu Lian with a solemn look.


    Yu Lian did not even look at him. She did not stop but instead, she directly crashed into the fire wall. She was charging over with an extraordinary speed that even the space twisted. The Haotian¡¯s Divine me released two separate string of mes.


    It was like the wings of a ming bird. Actually, those were the wings of a cicada, that was her world.


    There was a total darkness in front of the Divine Halls and even the light of the Master¡¯s sacred sedan was unreachable. However, she managed to brighten up the area with her me.


    A loud noise arose. It was like a meteor, crashing onto the ground from the sky. Even thend was about to crack, not to mention about the people standing there.


    Zhao Nanhai was crushed into blood and flesh. He was then purified into green smoke by the Haotian¡¯s divine me.


    After his death, there was still Haotian¡¯s Divine meing out of his palm. The Divine me even started to burn Zhao Nanhai himself. This had indicated that Yu Lian¡¯s speed was beyond imagination.


    Terrifying emotions had covered up the cliff in front of the Divine Hall. The Great Divine Priest of South Sea was trying to scream while Xiaoyu went pale and could not even stand. However, none of their acts was able to happen in time.


    As Yu Lian entered the giant sacred sedan, boundless radiance suddenly started to shake, as if it would be extinguished anytime.


    Xiong Chumo¡¯s mad roar started to echo from the divine chariot. He was well-prepared to fight against Yu Lian, his old enemy. He could not lose his focus during the fight, or else he would be killed instantly. In a blink of an eye, he advanced into Tianqi Realm!


    The prevailing new stream had directly shredded the power of the Haotian in the human world. Even though the Haotian in the Divine Kingdom was affected, but he was still extremely powerful through obtaining his power from Tianqi!


    There was a continuous roaringing from the sacred sedan! After that, the sacred sedan was destroyed in a blink of an eye! All 76 curtains hanging on the sedan were dancing to the wind. As the curtains fell, dust and ashes were everywhere in the battlefield, forming a realistic fighting scene.


    Yu Lian was standing still, with blood flowing from her lips.


    Xiong Chumo was standing right in front of her but there was no wound on his body.


    This was the first time all of the high priests from the Divine Halls saw the Master¡¯s true appearance. That skinny and short old priest had shocked them a big time, but what they wanted to know the most was the results of the fight.


    Yu Lian turned around.


    Several de-cut wounds started to appear on Xiong Chumo body. One after another...


    The aura of dead silence was everywhere. His gown was torn apart and numerous de-cut wounds gradually appeared on his back and eventually appeared densely all over his body. The wounds were countless and there could be tens of thousands of them!


    Xiong Chumo went down on his knees with his body full of blood. He was still alive. He was looking at the shadow of thatdy who was leaving. He held his chest in pain, slowly feeling the helplessness and puzzlement.


    ¡°Why?¡± How could you be so quick? Why are you able to perform 13,062 shes in such short duration? Why won¡¯t you ept my surrender? Why would you choose to destroy the rock along with the valuable jade to aplish your goal, even though you would suffer from severe injuries? Why are you always rushing? Why did I back out in the final moment? Why they choose you to be a 23 years old cicada, not me? Why would the world still need me when they already have you?


    Yu Lian had no idea what Xiong Chumo was thinking there. She did not care what he was thinking either. Yu Lian¡¯s opinion was different from Xiong Chumo¡¯s. Although Taoism and Devil¡¯s Doctrine was unable to coexist with one another, she had never treat him like a life enemy because she had been looking down on him all these while.


    She walked to the edge of the cliff and gave the middle-aged priest an eye contact before she made the jump. Only a few grains of sand had dropped in the hourss.


    The incense in Haotian¡¯s Divine Hall had just finished burning the firstyer.


    Peach Mountain turnedpletely silenced. It was dead silent. None of them raised a single word because they did not know what to say. There was no screaming because the people were stunned.


    All of them were expecting a long while regarding the war between the Academy and Taoism. However, the story ended in apletely different way. People thought they were out of their mind because the war ended too quick. How was it possible for such strange war to happen?


    The middle-aged priest stared at the ciff in silence. He understood the meaning reflected in the eye contact with Yu Lian. She had killed Xiong Chumo and Zhao Nanhai. And now, the West-Hill was allowed to surrender. Of course, there were still several individuals who should be killed. Xiong Chumo was not dead yet.


    ¡°Perhaps, I should thank her for keeping you alive for me.¡± Ye Hongyu looked at Xiong Chumo who was full of blood and she went silence without continuing her words. She turned and walked towards the cliff while staring at the rising suning out from the East.


    It took countless years to build the West-Hill. However, it only took a morning to destroy it.


    Peach Mountain was covered in red under the morning light. Even the snow there were dyed in red. The morning light was like blood after all.

 Chapter 1113 - Unfolding The Sky (I)

    <h4>Chapter 1113: <i>Unfolding The Sky (I)</i></h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Yu Lian jumped off Peach Mountain and darted north. She had to pass the small town.


    Right then, the Butcher was randomly chopping around, while Jun Mo looked pale and was staring nkly at the north. Then he saw the yellow dress.


    Like the others from the Academy who were currently on the teau, Jun Mo knew that she had a thing for him. It further proved that the Eldest Brother must be in danger in the north. Silently he sat back onto the snowy ground.


    If she could change the result, she herself would be enough. No one else could catch up with her. If she could not, she¡¯d better go alone. Because when she mourned she would rather not be seen.


    Jun Mo thought so. Not even to be seen by him.


    ...


    ...


    Yu Lian kept darting. Her embroidered shoes were worn out. Her charming feet smashed the remaining snow and mud and quaked the earth. Her yellow dress fluttered like a yellow but not falling leaf. Because it was not a dying leaf in deep autumn. It was rather a premature and vital leaf in early spring.


    She passed through the fields of the West-Hill Divine Kingdom and the hills outside Linkang in the South Jin. The yellow dress shed in the reed marshes and went out hundreds of miles in a few seconds. She kept toward the north.


    The yellow dress passed by the slightly chilling Great Swamp, pierced through the freezing wind and mist, as well as the mist over her own life. Her bare feet stepped onto the ripplingke and left some evesting marks.


    Yu Lian was determined to go across the tens of thousands of miles to the north to make sure he was fine.


    ...


    ...


    ¡°Impressively fast.¡± The Abbey Dean looked at somewhere in the south and sighed. Then he turned to the heart of the copsed cliffs and said, ¡°But you know she could never surpass me.¡±


    Yu Lian could cross a few miles in a single step. No one could be faster than her in the human world. But even though the Drunkard was dead, there were the Abbey Dean and the Eldest Brother who were Distanceless. These cultivators could no longer be defined as being fast.


    The Eldest Brother sat on the rubble, stained in blood and looked pale. Previously he had been holding the cudgel in front of his face. Now it was ced by his side.


    Obviously he was defeated. He could no longer lift the cudgel. Nor could he keep the Abbey Dean any longer in the chilling snow peaks far away from the human world.


    It was not even halfway through the seven days he mentioned at the beginning. But the Eldest Brother was not frustrated at all. He was as calm as always.


    The Abbey Dean ranked the first in the world, and he ranked second. It was a matter of fact for a second ranking to be defeated by the first. The Academy had always emphasized the matter of fact. Therefore they never regretted nor enraged.


    ¡°Haotian is back to Chang¡¯an. The Academy is at the West-Hill... You used to say a just cause would gain great support... Now it seems we are the true just cause.¡± The Eldest Brother looked at the Abbey Dean and said, ¡°In Jun Mo¡¯s words, what is Tao? Tao is reason. We have every reason. Then why shouldn¡¯t we win?¡±


    ¡°There are various reasons and we have different stands. The Academy¡¯s reasons are not necessarily right. And my reasons might not be epted by all. Therefore, nothing is definite.¡±


    The Abbey Dean stared calmly at him and continued, ¡°As for Haotian, although she returned to Chang¡¯an with Ning Que, you should know clearly that it doesn¡¯t necessarily mean I am wrong.¡±


    He said this to the Eldest Brother previously and made him worried. Because even if Chang¡¯an could protect Ning Que, it might not be able to protect Sangsang. Could that be because of the Seven Volumes of Arcane Tomes?


    ¡°Before I left Peach Mountain, I already realized that Taoism and the Academy actually shared the same goal. Why is that? Because every human being is a collection of social connections. Therefore the world is a collection of everyone¡¯s consciousness. How people think leads to the formation of the world. That was how Haotian was created.¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked at him and continued, ¡°You, the Academy, regard yourself as the representative of the will of the majority. While I think I represent the benefit of the majority.¡±


    The Eldest Brother asked, ¡°Don¡¯t human beings deserve to make their own decisions?¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°Not exactly. Human beings have no idea what they really want.¡±


    The Eldest Brother disagreed. ¡°So you think you could impose your own will onto them?¡±


    The Abbey Dean asked, ¡°How would parents teach their children?¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°But we are no parents to the human beings. You know it. Besides, who would ever want an extra pair of parents to tell them what to do?¡±


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°I love the people, no matter whether they love me.¡±


    The Eldest Brother paused for a long while then said, ¡°I am not sure whether we and our Headmaster are right. But I am certain that you are wrong.¡±


    ¡°Probably.¡±


    The Abbey Dean sensed the quakeing from the south and knew that the girl in the yellow dress was approaching. He turned to head downward, and almost disappeared in a blink.


    The Eldest Brother looked at his receding figure and said, ¡°I¡¯m still alive.¡±


    The unwitnessed fight was over. The winner was obviously the Abbey Dean. But he would not kill the Eldest Brother. Why?


    The Abbey Dean smiled silently. And the Eldest Brother got it.


    Someone who sought for eternity must be afraid of loneliness. The one least willing to kill the second must be the first. To live an endless or eternal life, it was most important to have somepany. In other words, they needed someone that could understand them.


    It was likewise for the Drunkard and the Butcher. The Abbey Dean insisted that he was right. Then he wanted to prove it to someone. But to whom? Who would be qualified? Of course it could only be Li Manman.


    ¡°In fact you should know that I came here mainly for the Bright Volume.¡±


    To kill Sangsang was important for the Abbey Dean. But in order to seize her divine character, it was obviously more important to collect the Seven Volumes of Arcane Tomes.


    Taoism had kept six volumes of the Arcane Tomes. The seventh had been in the Academy with the Eldest Brother. If the Abbey Dean wanted to gather the Seven Volumes of Arcane Tomes, he had to conquer him.


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°Right. Therefore I don¡¯t have the Bright Volume with me.¡±


    At the beginning of the fight he knew he would lose to the Abbey Dean. If he had carried the Bright Volume with him, it would almost be like presenting it to the enemy himself.


    The Abbey Dean said, ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter. Because you are as important as the Arcane Tome... As long as you are defeated, who else in the world could keep me away from the Bright Volume?¡±


    ...


    ...


    The meadow in the front yard of the Academy was still fresh and green in deep winter. Those peach trees that were moved from Peach Mountain were blooming as if they had be the cold-resistant winter sweets. Or was it because they were weing its former master?


    The indigo gown swayed in the breeze and the Abbey Dean arrived at the Academy. He proceeded inside.


    No one could stop him.


    The female math professor who was wearing a loose indigo gown and sweeping the courtyard fell onto the ground. Professor Huang He was still recovering and could not move much.


    The Cloud Gathering Array was broken through with no efforts.


    The Abbey Dean came to the teau on the Back Hill of the Academy. There was no old cattle, white goose, or waterwheel on the brook. There was only a tranquilke and the houses scattered in the woods by theke, secluded and uninhabited.


    He stood quietly by theke and pondered for a long while. He had never been to the Back Hill of the Academy. It meant a lot to him. Then he left for the Arcane Tome. There was a ce in the Academy where they kept thergest collection of books. That was the cave. The Abbey Dean came to the cave and realized that there was someone else in the Back Hill of the Academy. There was a Bookman.


    ...

 Chapter 1114 - Unfolding The Sky (II)

    <h4>Chapter 1114: Unfolding The Sky (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    The skylight was located high up on the cliff with birds flying in and out freely. A two-storey wooden building stood on the gentle slope beside the cliff. A square desk was ced in front of the building while an old schr with a head full of grey hair was sitting behind the desk.


    Other than the Headmaster of Academy, no one knew how long this old schr had stayed at the Back Hill of the Academy. Nor did anyone know about his name and age. From Ke Haoran to Ning Que, the people at the Back Hill merely knew that the old schr was always here to copy, read and memorize from the books. Nothing could interrupt his routine, not even the rain and the storm.


    The people of the Academy addressed him as the Bookman. He was the Bookman of the Academy.


    The Abbey Dean stood in front of the desk and he stared at the old schr as he breathed in the unpleasant smell from the ink and the Huangzhou paper. After a long pause, he suddenly grinned sentimentally.


    This is the Academy.


    ¡°Good morning,¡± the Abbey Dean said to the Bookman.


    As though the Bookman heard nothing, he was mumbling with an old scroll in his left hand and a balding pen in his right hand. asionally, he wrote a few words on the paper as if he was making annotations.


    The Abbey Dean increased his volume as he asked, ¡°Uncle, have you seen an old book?¡±


    It was as though the Abbey Dean¡¯s words woke the Bookman up. Startled and puzzled, the Bookman lifted his head to look at the Abbey Dean as he had no clue what the Abbey Dean was talking about. The next moment when the Bookman was more clear-headed, he furrowed his brows, irritated by the fact that his reading was disturbed.


    The Abbey Dean was not angry. ¡°A very old tome,¡± he repeated while he made a gesture.


    The Bookman pondered the question for a moment before he lifted the balding pen in his hand and soaked the tip into the ink. Then, solemnly, he wrote a word on the Huangzhou paper.


    The word was written delicately and was outlined distinctively.


    It was the word ¡°Tome.¡±


    Before the ink on the paper hadpletely dried up, the Bookman handed the paper to the Abbey Dean and said, ¡°This is the tome that you are asking for.¡±


    The Abbey Dean stared at the paper quietly as he studied the word on the paper. After a brief silence, he replied, ¡°This is interesting.¡±


    He received the paper, slowly and earnestly.


    His motion was extremely slow, resembling a moving mountain or the cloud that was shifting slowly at the peak of the mountain. After a long while, his finger eventually contacted the edge of the slightly rough paper.


    Following a faint bang, the slightly yellowish paper was caught on fire.


    The paper burned steadily while the me spread along the edge of the paper and turned them into ashes. Both the Abbey Dean and the Bookman did not let go of the paper although the me was approaching their fingers.


    They stared at each other in silence.


    ¡°I¡¯ve read a lot too.¡± The Abbey Dean made an unexpected statement. ¡°Although I don¡¯t read days and nights like you, I¡¯ve lived a long time and have definitely read no fewer books than you.¡±


    Time was a crucial factor for both reading and cultivation.


    The Bookman did not speak while his gaze fixed persistently on the burning paper.


    ¡°Why is the tome not in Chang¡¯an? Well, we were uncertain that Ning Que would return to Chang¡¯an. The Academy is a safer cepared to the Chang¡¯an without Ning Que.¡±


    The Abbey Dean looked at the Bookman and said calmly, ¡°Li Manman made the right choice to trust you with the Arcane Tome. However, his n is pointless. Because... schrs are useless.¡±


    The entire paper had stopped burning as he finished his sentence. There was nothing left in between the Bookman¡¯s fingers. Inchmeal, the ashes fell on his shoes. On the other hand, a fragment of the yellowish paper was left between the Abbey Dean¡¯s fingers.


    The winner had been decided. The Bookman stared at the pile of books on the desk before he shifted his gaze to the well of inkstone that resembled the ocean. He responded with a prolonged silence because this was the first time in his life where he was skeptical about reading.


    The Abbey Dean entered the cave with his hands behind his back. The book racks, that were not less than a hundred feet, were ced on the two sides of the cave. He scanned the innumerable numbers of books on the racks as he gently waved his sleeves.


    A cold breeze wafted out from his green sleeve and blew across the cave like a soothing breath of air. The wind swept off the dirt on the books to a corner, leaving the books perfectly dusted.


    The Abbey Dean took the stairs and arrived at the racks that were ced at level four. He picked a book casually as though he merely intended to read a random book to pass time.


    The book he picked was the Bright Volume of The Tomes of Arcane.


    ...


    The snow in Chang¡¯an had ceased. So did the wind. The clouds had disappeared and the red sun, once again, beamed at the human world.


    The Abbey Dean appeared outside the city. It was his third visit to Chang¡¯an.


    Ning Que was standing at the city wall during the Abbey Dean¡¯s two previous visits. Today was no exception. In silence, Ning Que looked at the Abbey Dean who was walking toward him steadily, leaving a trail of footsteps in the snow on the ground.


    ¡°He has acquired the Seven Tomes of Arcane,¡± appearing to be slightly frightened, Sangsang said as her face turned faintly pale.


    Ning Que chuckled. ¡°He will be able to summon Shehron if he collects seven dragon balls. But, what can he do with the Seven Tomes of Arcane? Can he summon Haotian with the Seven Tomes? If he really thinks so, I suggest you to ignore him.¡±


    He did not remove the steel bow from his shoulder as he had used up his Thirteen Primordial Arrows. Moreover, he reckoned that the Thirteen Primordial Arrows might not be a threat to the current Abbey Dean even with the assistance of God-Stunning Array.


    The Seven Tomes of Arcane had been assembled. What would be the consequences?


    The entire Academy had been making conjectures regarding this event. Yet, they failed toe up with a conclusion. Other than the Abbey Dean, no one knew the real function of the Seven Tomes of Arcane. However, Sangsang was an exception. She knew exactly what the Seven Tomes of Arcane was for.


    ¡°Where did Ie from?¡±


    ¡°You? Your mother gave birth to you.¡±


    ¡°It¡¯s not the right time to joke.¡±


    ¡°I¡¯m feeling a little nervous right now.¡±


    After a brief pause, Ning Que continued, ¡°You have to allow me to tell jokes.¡±


    Expressionless, Sangsang replied, ¡°No, I won¡¯t allow.¡±


    ¡°Fine... if you¡¯re talking about Haotian, it is a fusion of rules. It was born among chaos.¡±


    ¡°That¡¯s wrong. I was born as a fusion of the objective rules and the subjective human religions.¡±


    ¡°And then?¡±


    ¡°The human made me.¡± Sangsang turned and looked at him as she continued, ¡°If they chose to create me, how could the humans not reserve a method to curb me?¡±


    Ning Que remained silent.


    He knew that Sangsang¡¯s words were true.


    Years ago, the gambling addict who founded Taoism ced a bet on behalf of the human and trusted the world in Haotian¡¯s protection. It was highly possible for him to have left himself room to maneuver.


    Legend said that the Seven Tomes of Arcane Zhishou Abbey was the result of Haotian¡¯s willpower. In other words, it was Haotian¡¯s gift for the human. However, in actual fact, it was Taoism¡¯s scheme to take control of the world.


    The one who owned the Seven Tomes of Arcane would have the power to resolve the bet that was made in the days of yore. Subsequently, Haotian could be ushered out of the Divine Kingdom and returned to chaos. The chief of Taoism was the only one who would propose this idea.


    The current chief of Taoism arrived at Chang¡¯an with the Seven Tomes of Arcane.


    ...


    ¡°Is this Taoism¡¯s final resort?¡±


    With the Core Vajra of the Array in his hand, Ning Que looked at the Abbey Dean, who was standing in front of the city gate, and asked.


    Calmly, the Abbey Dean replied, ¡°Ke Haoran and Lian Sheng called us dogs. So did the people of the Academy and many others. They said that Taoism was a dog that was mastered by Haotian. However, no one realized that the chain actually acts two ways. Humans are Haotian¡¯s dog. Likewise, Haotian is humans¡¯ dogs too.¡±


    He looked at Sangsang, who was standing beside him, and said, ¡°We worship you and provide you with immortality. Then, you should ept your fate of eternal loneliness and quietly protect the human world in Divine Kingdom. You shouldn¡¯t sneak into the human world recklessly purely for leisure. Isn¡¯t that logical?¡±


    Sangsang did not respond as her face turned more and more pale. She had been weak before. But, never had she felt this frightened as she could clearly sense that the Abbey Dean had the power to destroy her.


    Abbey Dean took out a tome from his arms.


    In the deep blue sky, thunder rumbled. The thunder came from the Divine Kingdom.

 Chapter 1115 - Unfolding The Sky (III)

    <h4>Chapter 1115: Unfolding The Sky (III)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    ...


    ...


    Heaven was above the sky. Beyond the azure sky, there was the Divine Kingdom. The thunder from the Divine Kingdom was mighty, as if it was making a deration to the human world.


    Above the sea to the east of Song, an unprecedented hurricane was formed. There came a storm in Wa Mountain. Lightning shed above the Divine Halls of West-Hill. Only Chang¡¯an remained undisturbed. Because the Abbey Dean was here. He held an Arcane Tome, the Sky Volume.


    The thunder from the Divine Kingdom rumbled and continued to demonstrate its might. The Abbey Dean did nothing but held the Sky Volume and looked calmly at the sky.


    The thunder gradually lowered as if the most supreme existence had sensed some fear. The Abbey Dean remained calm and got hold of a second Arcane Tome. It was broken and many pages were missing. It was the Fall Volume.


    At the edges of the world, there were the deep oceans, from the ck Sea in the very north by the snow peak to the azure Tranquil Sea in the south, and to the Storm sea.


    Suddenly countless clouds poured onto the sea like falls. The mystical clouds touched the surface of the sea and formed giant walls.


    The thunder from the Divine Kingdom lowered further and almost like moaning. The Abbey Dean took out the third Arcane Tome. It no longer looked like a tome, but only some remaining that looked like ck ashes, or grits burnt under the sun for tens of thousands of years. Indeed, it was the Sand Volume.


    All the sand on the earth started flowing gradually. The sand in the heart of the Wilderness and those by the mire flowed in the wind and devoured whatever in their way. Even light was almost devoured.


    The Abbey Dean stood in the wind with his hair floating. He seemed calm and divine.


    The thunder from the Divine Kingdom almost ceased and the Heaven seemed to be surrendering. Even the Abbey Dean was slightly stunned.


    Countless years ago the gambling addict casted the injunction and leave the Taoism to be responsible for the world. No one ever tried to overturn it. No one even dared to think about it. But the Abbey Dean did. And now, he seemed to be seeding. He took out the remaining four volumes of the Arcane Tomes.


    When he took out the Arcane Tome of the Turn, roaring waves were formed in the tranquilke by the Zhishou Abbey deep down in the valleys of Divine Halls of West Hill. The reflection of the seven cottages on theke suddenly turned upright!


    When he took out the Arcane Tome of the Opening, a crack was formed far away in the azure sky. Some pces consisted of pure light were vaguely seen. It was the Divine Kingdom!


    When he took out the Arcane Tome of the Sun, the sun suddenly became extremely dazzling. Lights dashed around and the magnificent pces in the Divine Kingdom got even brighter.


    When he took out the Arcane Tome of Bright, the entire world was enveloped... by light!


    ...


    ...


    The Seven Volumes of Arcane Tome represented seven words: Sun, Fall, Sand, Bright, Sky, Turn, and Open.


    The sun fell, the sand brightened, and the sky turned and opened. It was the overturn of Heaven and Earth, the reconstitution of brightness, and the unfolding of the sky! The Seven Volumes of Arcane Tomes were presented in front of Chang¡¯an.


    The Divine Kingdom was unveiled in Heaven. The clouds fell like walls and encircled the world. The world was bing increasingly bright. There was nothing but pure brightness.


    ...


    ...


    A horrifying hum was heard. Because it was created by tens of thousands of firm bowstrings, and represented the mighty killing intent of the tens of thousands of the Tang army. Tens of thousands of sharp arrows were shot at the Abbey Dean. Tens of thousands of arrows formed a ck mass that swept past the high city walls and poured onto the Abbey Dean. The Abbey Dean watched the storm of arrows and raised his hand indifferently.


    Another hum was heard. It was much softer than the previous one created by the tens of thousands of bowstrings. Because the air was slightly vibrated and formed a single string.


    Not even a single arrow hit on him or his indigo gown. Tens of thousands of arrows were stopped abruptly and suspended in the air outside Chang¡¯an. It formed an extremely uncanny scene!


    A bird came from the woods outside the city, felt a bit tired and wanted to perch on one of the strange branches. Itnded on one of the arrows and was about to stretch its wings and tide its feather. Then it sensed some unsteadiness and flew away in a chirp. The arrow it perched on fell slowly onto the ground.


    The motionless scene came back to life. Tens of thousands of arrows fell like a real storm and covered the city wall of Chang¡¯an. None of the tens of thousands of arrows could hit him. They were all ceased in the air. It seemed that the physical rules of this world failed to apply for a second. Even if it was merely a second, it was incredible and unimaginable.


    Who could haveprehended and applied the rules so wlessly? The former Sangsang could. So could the current Abbey Dean.


    The connection between the human world and the Divine Kingdom was in his hands now.


    On behalf of Taoism, he regained control that Haotian used to have. He was about to be united with the rules and wills in the Divine Kingdom.


    The sky was turning brighter because of the zing sun. The Divine Kingdom indistinctly shown in the azure sky seemed also zing.


    An indescribable bout of divine power fell onto the Abbey Dean from above. An indescribable beam of light fell onto Chang¡¯an from above.


    If this bout of divine power was like the sun, then the Haotian¡¯s Divine Power they received from Tianqi was like a firefly, likewise for the Haotian¡¯s Divine me created by the West-Hill Divine Skillspared with the beam of light from above.


    The Abbey Dean looked calmly at Ning Que and Sangsang who were standing on top of the city wall. He seemed increasingly peaceful and emotionless.


    Ning Que gazed at him while the Core Vajra of the Array turned burning hot in his hand.


    The entire Chang¡¯an was awaken. Immeasurable Qi of Heaven and Earth flowed along the streets, houses, hills, towers,kes, temples and the invisible kennels. It created an extremelyplicated array that no human being couldprehend, and formed an indistinct arch.


    It was the God-Stunning Array. The beam of light fell onto the God-Stunning Array, flowed along the invisible arch and spread into the fields around Chang¡¯an. It was charming and astonishing.


    Everyone knew that if only the light beam could break through the God-Stunning Array, or even a few drops of light could prate the array, the entire Chang¡¯an would be ruined and burned.


    The Core Vajra of the Array was bing increasingly hot, which meant more and more Qi of Heaven and Earth was gathered in Chang¡¯an. It seemed steaming in Ning Que¡¯s hand, which was probably his sweat evaporated.


    The divine power falling from above was indeed horrifying. How long could the God-Stunning Array stand?


    Ning Que was turning pale. Sangsang seemed paler. Especially when she saw the Divine Kingdom far away in the azure sky, the burning sun and the falling light beam, she seemed scared.


    The sun was indeed burning and pouring immeasurable lights. The storm above the East Sea was evaporated. The reeds in the Great Swamp were dried. The cloud walls around the world reflected and refracted the light back to the world, and made the human world even more dazzling.


    No one could stare directly at the sun. The Abbey Dean flew to the same height of the city wall, stared at her and said, ¡°Come on.¡±


    There was no emotion shown on his face nor in his voice. However he seemed somewhat sympathetic.


    Sangsang started shivering. Her worn-out green flowery dress started shivering together.


    With every shiver, color was drained further from her eyes and a few golden particles were spilled from the green flowery dress.


    The collection of the golden particles formed an indistinct human figure. Where did that golden figuree from? Or could that be her soul? Sangsang frowned in pain.


    The golden figure drifted slowly from her body toward outside the city.


    The God-Stunning Array could withstand the divine power from above. But it could not stop this.


    The golden figure was drifting toward the Abbey Dean.


    Right then he already opened the first Arcane Tome he took out, the Arcane Tome of the Sky.


    Would that golden figure stripped from Sangsang be an image in the Arcane Tome of the Sky?


    With the Seven Volumes of Arcane Tomes, the Abbey Dean unfolded the sky and received the divine power of integrated impersonal rules and wills. If he was about to be the new Haotian, he would need the divine character.


    What was the divine character? The divine character was not the core of power, but the nature. In short, what made a god a god? Why should he be addressed as a god? It could be loosely exined as he was qualified.


    In other words, a human being was called a human being because he had the human nature. A god was called a god because he had the divine nature. The divine character was the god¡¯s character. It was the existence beyond all impersonal wills.


    Of course, by beyond it could either mean surpassing or degenerating.


    Sangsang was awakened and acquired subjective consciousness. Then she acquired Haotian¡¯s divine character.


    What the Abbey Dean was doing now was to strip the divine character from her. Who could ever stop him?


    It was high noon and the sun became even more zing. The light beam from above pressed the protecting arch above Chang¡¯an further downward. The light streams poured onto the fields set the ground on fire.


    Ning Que held Sangsang in his arms. While the golden figure was stripped out of her, Sangsang became weaker and paler.


    Looking at the light streams in the sky, he recalled what happened in the Lanke Temple many years ago. In thest round of chess Sangsang and Master Qishan yed, Sangsang was continuously hunted down in the world inside the chessboard.


    Right now the Abbey Dean represented the rules. The rules were unbreakable therefore almighty. Even the God-Stunning Array could no longer attack but merely struggle. Because Chang¡¯an was also a part of this world.


    Being a part of the world, it had to obey the rules. Unless someone could acquire the State of No Rules as the Headmaster did. No Rules, not Distanceless.


    The State of No Rules was probably the ultimate level in human cultivation. When someone acquired that state, he could act with and respect no rules. Ning Que could not. No one after the Headmaster could ever acquire No Rules again. Therefore he had to try breaking the world.

 Chapter 1116 - Building A New World (I)

    <h4>Chapter 1116: Building A New World (I)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Breaking this fallen old world and building a magnificent new world was easier by saying. In fact, it was the most significant task for ¡°world.¡± On the other hand, it had always been the most important thing for the people in this world. Hence, regardless of destroying the old or building the new, it had be the most remarkable event.


    The most important thing was always the most difficult one to be done. What the Abbey Dean did, no one had done before. The same thing happened to Ning Que. Few years ago, Lian Sheng only had this simple yet gruesome thought, but he had never taken any practical action. Despite being well prepared, he had no idea how tomence the task.


    Indeed, he had been preparing for many years. The years he spent was a big part of his lifespan. But, it was ironicallycking for him to carry out the grand mission of destroying the world. And eventually, he did not make a firm decision. It was because god represented the old world was now in his embrace.


    The perishing of the old world meant definite death for Sangsang. Since many years ago, they had been discussing about this question. However, they could not find an alternative way to solve it. Therefore, they had been loving and fighting each other till now.


    Save the world with Sangsang¡¯s death? Ning Que would not do that. If he was moral madman or someone who killed for righteousness, he would not have escaped while he carried the severely ill Sangsang with his hands drenched in the blood of the innocents.


    He remembered a famous poem from that world.


    ¡°Life is dear, love is dearer. Yet, both can be given up for freedom.¡±


    If it was Jun Mo, he would surely give up his life for freedom, while Ke Haoran had already given it up. If for Ye Hongyu, she would definitely give up her love for freedom and Lian Sheng had already done that.


    However, Ning Que did not want to sacrifice any of them. He had always been a greedy and shameless man. To be more precise, he was stingy. Stuck in his mind was another famous poem from the world.


    ¡°Is it possible that I can do both, to not disappoint the Buddha and my love.¡±


    Except the realpassionate monks from Lanke Temple, he was simr with Second Brother, not having any interest in Buddhism at all. And hence, the word ¡°Buddha¡± in this poem had to be changed to ¡°human world.¡±


    How can I not disappoint both the human world and Sangsang? Ning Que had no idea.


    Sangsang was lying in his arms. Suddenly, she extended her arms to hug him. She hugged him tightly. The golden dust exuded from the body and the faint silhouette intertwined with the two bodies. For this moment, it was impossible to separate them.


    A ray of warm energy entered Ning Que¡¯s body. His Psyche Power was initiated. Via the Core Vajra of the Array in his hand, it was spread to the entire human world from Chang¡¯an.


    ¡°Let¡¯s try. It may be sessful,¡± Sangsang leaned against his chest and said with her eyes shut.


    Just like many other times, no matter if they were at Min Mountain, City of Wei, Chang¡¯an, and West-Hill, no matter if she was a servant or Haotian, she was always the final decision maker.


    She had made up her mind. But today, Ning Que was no longer obedient as before.


    ¡°You will die.¡± Sangsang shut her eyes and replied calmly, ¡°You have been staying by my side for many years. That is more than sufficient.¡±


    After a brief silence, Ning Que said, ¡°Do you not fear?¡±


    Sangsang answered with a slight tremor in her voice, ¡°I am frightened.¡±


    Ning Que gave a faint smile and said, ¡°Then I will stay with you.¡±


    Sangsang opened her eyes and looked at him, wanting to speak.


    Ning Que looked at her and said calmly, ¡± As I told you at the hall of Lanke Temple, I don¡¯t want to live anymore if you die. So, let me die along.¡±


    Sangsang pondered for a while and said, ¡°Can we meet again in the next life?¡±


    Ning Que asked with a grin, ¡°When was the first time we met?¡±


    Sangsang was puzzled as she asked, ¡± Wasn¡¯t it the day that you picked me?¡±


    ¡°No, it was on that day you were born...¡± Ning Que continued, ¡°It was inside the woodshed of Official of Counsel¡¯s residence where I hid inside a well after I killed the steward and young master.After a very long time, I gathered my courage and climbed out of it. I was hungry and looking everywhere for food. Then... I saw you.¡±


    ¡°Oh, I see.¡± She looked perplexed.


    ¡°In Red Lotus Temple, I was hiding beside the wagon when I was almost killed by Long Qing. Meanwhile, you were sitting inside the wagon. We were separated by a wall and were only half a step away from each other. I always think that when we are born in our next lives, we will only be separated by half a step too. Then, it will be convenient for me to search for you. I always have the confidence to meet you again in my next life.¡± Ning Que said, ¡°Because we are destined to stay together forever.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°This is the most old school yet the most touching words of love.¡±


    Ning Que nted a kiss on her forehead and said, ¡°As long as you¡¯re willing to stay with me.¡±


    She believed in destiny and was willing to stay with Ning Que. ¡°I will stay with you.¡± Sangsang answered him with a smile as tears pooled up in her eyes. She had forgotten how many times she wanted to shed tears after her arrival at the human world. And, it seemed to be relevant to this man almost every time.


    Ning Que asked, ¡°Are you still afraid?¡±


    Sangsang answered, ¡°I am still afraid. But, I¡¯ll be fine as long as I¡¯m with you.¡±


    ...


    She was weak, but she was still Haotian. When she decided to do this, the whole human world could feel her willpower. More urately, Ning Que was the one who delivered her willpower to human world.


    They cuddled each just like that night from many years ago. Back then, they had only returned from Kaiping Market. It was Ning Que¡¯s first time to see a book about cultivation, namely Article on the Response of the Tao. Then, he fell into a deep sleep with Sangsang in his arms as usual. Later, he had a dream about an ocean. That was Ningque¡¯s Initial Awareness State. As long as Sangsang was in his embrace, he would be able to perceive the whole world. At the same time, the whole word could perceive him as well.


    ...


    The cliff in front of the Divine Halls of West-Hill had be a sea of blood. Xiong Chumo and He Mingchi had died. The people Ning Que requested to be killed had already died. The middle-aged priest stood in front of the stone cottage on the cliff, appearing rather lonely. Ye Hongyu and Cheng Lixue stood in front of the Divine Halls of West-Hill while the enormous crowd knelt down on the cliff.


    The fight between the Academy and Taoism had at least had a result in themon world. But right before that, the sky and ground demonstrated weird phenomena and drew the attention of the crowd.


    The people saw the descending clouds of East Sea, the burning sun, the horrifying light beam on Chang¡¯an City gate and theva-like light that was flowing continuously like a waterfall.


    Then, a blinding light shone. The light was ring. Other than a powerful person like Ye Hongyu, no one could see the human world clearly anymore.


    Even Ye Hongyu and the middle-aged priest were squinting their eyes. The wind had swiped Sangsang¡¯s willpower to the field. The middle-aged priest understood that she had been reincarnated. He was overwhelmed with sentiment.


    Thank you for protecting the human world for thousands of years.


    Ye Hongyu, too, understood what was happening. He furrowed his thin brows and said, ¡°A pair of idiots.¡±


    Mo Shanshan stood behind her. With a pale face, she remained silent.


    The Butcher in the small town had put down the knife but Jun Mo was still holding the iron sword.


    This was the biggest difference between the two of them. The Butcher knew that this war had developed to a point where he was not able to interfere anymore. Therefore, he decided to quit.


    On the other hand, Jun Mo thought that if Youngest Brother and that girl died without defeating the Abbey Dean, then this was his turn to fight.


    At the Wilderness of Tianqi Mountain, a yellow skirt was waving along the wind. Yu Lian was heading to North without sparing a glimpse for Chang¡¯an.


    ...


    No one couldmand the entire human world. The Headmaster of Academy was no exception. He was merely representing the human world to fight silently against Haotian for a thousand years.


    What Ning Que had to do was to perceive, then attempt to guide the entire human world¡¯s willpower.


    What kind of willpower is it?


    The sun was burning as the Divine Kingdom that was situated in deep side of sky began to turn clearer. Heaven and Earth beamed, creating a ring daylight had never happened before, to the extent that the blue sky had almost turned pure white.


    The light was blinding. Only a minimal amount of people could keep their eyes opened.


    The light was scorching. The whole human world was covered by extreme heat. The water of the Great Swamp evaporated, the South Sea was rippled and the remnant of snow melted. In the ame forest, song of cicadas cried out suddenly. The Snow Sea at Cold Arctic started to thaw!


    It was too hot. The heat stopped one from sweating and breathing.


    Chang¡¯an was constantly attacked by the light beam from Divine Kingdom. But luckily it was protected by the God-Stunning Array, it was rtively safer than the world outside the city. At the very least, the people were able to open their eyes even though the heat was scorching.


    Li Yu and the Prince of Great Tang Prince were at the Imperial Study. Her clothes were soaked in sweat and her breathing was getting heavier. She held her brother¡¯s hand, walked to the window and opened it.


    Elder Chao and Shangguan Yangyu were sitting face to face in Spring Breeze Pavilion of Chao Residence. Both of them were half naked, exposing slender and not so attractive body as the heat was extremely unbearable.


    ¡°I can¡¯t take it anymore.¡± With the help of the clutch, Elder Chao stood up. He opened all the windows in the room and watchedva-like light falling like a waterfall. He cursed angrily, ¡°F*ck. Are they trying to kill us with this heat?¡±


    The human world was experiencing both winter and summer simultaneously.


    Regardless of the location, at the riverbank or the seashore, and the presence of the wind, no one could escape from this heatwave. The entire world had turned into an iron house. Meanwhile, fire was burning outside the house, causing the interior of the house to be extremely warm and stuffy.


    Willpower was a thought. It was what a person intended to do.


    Now, everyone in this world craved for a cooling breeze and wanted to open all the doors and windows in the house. If it was iron house that had no windows, the people would have no choice but to break it open.


    Ning Que could perceive the thoughts of hundreds of millions people and knew that this was the human world¡¯s willpower.


    An avnche of Psyche Power from everywhere headed to Chang¡¯an and entered the God-Stunning Array. Ning Que could not sustain such a high level of Psyche Power. Sangsang received the Core Vajra of the Array from his hands. That tremendous momentum of Psyche Power from human world entered her body through the Core Vajra of the Array.


    She was Ning Que¡¯s natal item. Ning Que had what she had.


    In front of a cliff¡¯s cave, the clothes of Bookman was drenched in sweat. But he sensed nothing, as he continued to daydream and ponder the Abbey Dean¡¯s words from before.


    Schrs are useless? The useless ones are the schrs? The Bookman got angrier and more disappointed as he dwelled in his thoughts. He extended his hands angrily and swept all the books on the table to the floor. However, those books fell off the table but did not hit the floor. Instead, they floated in the air. Inside cliff¡¯s cave, the books had also left the bookshelves and were floating in the air.


    ¡°Oh, I see.¡± The Bookman understood what was happening and shed an innocent grin on his old and weary face. He finally felt relieved. ¡°Let him go. Let him know that the wordse with power.¡±


    The uncountable number of books left the Academy and flew to the wall of Chang¡¯an like a flock of birds.


    The Academy was filled with vast umtion of books, from ancient literature to secr popr books like The Misceneous Notes of Two Jing. The number was too high to be counted. The books were now making aplete round outside Chang¡¯an.


    ¡°The useless ones are the schrs. Is that what you said?¡± Ning Que looked at the Abbey Dean and said, ¡± I write a word and show you.¡± Before he finished his words, he lifted his arm to grab an invisible pen.


    Where is the ink? If he intends to write a grand word, how much ink is required?


    The books, that were floating around the Chang¡¯an, abruptly fused together.


    Those were books, not papers. Books were the work of words and papers. There were words on the books. The words were written with ink. Uncountable books contained uncountable ink-written words. Ning Que wanted to use the remaining ink inherited from many predecessors.

 Chapter 1117 - Building A New World (II)

    <h4>Chapter 1117: Building A New World (II)</h4>


    <strong>Trantor: </strong>Larbre Studio <strong>Editor: </strong>Larbre Studio


    Why were human beings the wisest of all creatures? In the world Ning Que came from and the current one he was staying in, there had been various exnations. Some said it was because of the use of fire, while others said it was the use of tools. What makes human beings different from animals? The Youngest Brother and Jun Mo believed that it was because human beings had virtues. There were others who insisted that it was because ofnguages. Onlynguages could be passed on andnguage itself was powerful. That was the truth the Bookman eventuallyprehended. It was also what Ning Que wanted to tell the Abbey Dean.


    Ning Que held the unreal brush pen, soaked it in the sea of ink outside Chang¡¯an, raised his wrist and elbow, and wrote two random, or even scratchy strokes in the air.


    The Abbey Dean said nothing. He knew what Ning Que was writing must be an unprecedented mighty talisman throughout human history. He was well prepared for it. However he was not expecting it to be so scratchy.


    Simply two strokes: one to the left, the other to the right. Was that the same character he wrote years ago?


    The Abbey Dean looked toward the no longer azure but extremely pale sky, and found nothing. The character Ning Que wrote did not went up into the sky. Instead it fell onto the ground.


    What was the purpose of unfolding the sky? It was to build a new world. He was to build a new world by tearing the ground.


    ...


    ...


    Outside the Giant Sinkhole in the West Wilderness, millions of ves were building their new home under the guidance of Tang. Despite the severe coldness andck of hot springs, they had noints at all. It was because they could see further away from here instead of being surrounded by the chilling cliffs. They could go as far as they wish, and witness the sun rising from the horizon.


    The sun seemed weird today. It was extremely bright and dazzling. Even the snow melted faster. Perhaps the earth would be fertile next year and they would have a great harvest. But they had been used to grow barley. They thought it might take a while for them to learn to grow good wheat.


    But after all they were very happy. It was indeed different from the underground world. The sun seemed closer and more zing. And people started singing and dancing cheerfully.


    Two thousand miles to the east, there was the City of Wei that located on the north border of the Tang. The fields outside the city had been soaked in blood for a long while since the battle. The small hill of the skulls of the cavalrymen of Golden Tribe Royal Court was rotten. Instead of being purified by the zing sunlight, it smelled even more bloody and stink. Those talisman lines consisted of footsteps across the blood stained fields became increasingly distinctive.


    There was a line between the Giant Sinkhole and the City of Wei. It was the starting of a stroke. The stroke extended to the West-Hill in the southeast.


    Chen Pipi looked at Chang¡¯an being enveloped in extreme brightness, and put on a vague smile. He took down the divine crown and sat down with the thirteen disciples as well as tens of thousands of followers of the New Stream. They started chanting. It was thest volume of the canon of the New Stream, written by Ning Que. The simplest lines conveyed the most direct will and desire. People wanted to get out of the gloomy valleys and explore the wide world.


    The stroke ended in Lanke Temple. The rocks in the valleys of Wa Mountain were suddenly lit up. The stroke that ran from east to west across the continent was the one that Ning Que wrote.


    ...


    ...


    The other stroke started from the Min Mountain where Ning Que and Sangsang lived together for many years, crossed the ruined Hn City, headed for the extremely chilling north and ended on the snow peak.


    On the copsed cliff, Yu Lian held Li Manman in her arms and took a nce at Chang¡¯an.


    The stroke that ran from the south to the north across the continent was the other one Ning Que wrote.


    ...


    ...


    The two strokes met in Chang¡¯an.


    The residents of Chang¡¯an had alle to the streets. Like they did many years ago, they were holding kitchen knives and cudgels, ink-stones and paper-weights. They stared silently at the dazzling sky.


    Except for those in the West Wilderness and the City of Chang¡¯an protected by the God-Stunning Array, people in any other ces around the world could not even open their eyes now. In a vige to the south, Yang Erxi kept shooting toward the sky and cursed Heaven with his eyes closed. In the former Sword Garret in South Jin, a young disciple in mourning stabbed silently into the sky also with his eyes closed.


    The New Stream already flourished in the human world. Chen Pipi¡¯s voice was heard from the top to the bottom of Peach Mountain, and spread swiftly to every corner in the world. Countless people were listening carefully, chanting and praying together.


    Outside the City of Chang¡¯an, the Abbey Dean kept quiet. He used to tell Ning Que that he had a profound love for the world, for which he could go as far as being its enemy. However, when he really became the enemy of the world, he found it not so enjoyable.


    ...


    ...


    Deep in the heart of the West Wilderness, a horrible sound was heard. The ves stared nkly at the abyss appeared in the Giant Sinkhole and wondered what had happened.


    The abyss extended to the southeast rapidly. The abyss was part of a rift. Earth was being torn apart. The rift came to the City of Wei in no time and devoured the evil and bloody fields. The rift went further to the Lanke Temple and eventually into the sea. A simr rift appeared in the Min Mountain and headed to the Snow Sea. It seemed like someone was writing on the sands with a twig. It was Ning Que. He was writing a talisman, an unprecedented mighty talisman that consisted of two simplest strokes. It was the simplest yet mostplicated character: ¡°People¡±.


    ...


    ...


    The Abbey Dean looked toward the West Wilderness and the north. He witnessed Ning Que¡¯s two simple strokes tearing the world with two rifts, and kept silent for a long while. Then he turned to Ning Que and said, ¡°When you wrote this character in Chang¡¯an years ago, I told you it was wrong... Today, you are even more wrong. You did not even write it upright.¡±


    Many years ago when Master Yan Se died together with Wei Guangming on Anonymous Mountain to the north of Chang¡¯an, he saw at thest moment of his life that Ning Que wrote a mighty talisman in the future. That was the one Ning Que wrote today.


    The mighty talisman he saw was consisted of two simple strokes. It originated from the north of the Wilderness, with one stroke going west and the other going east. The two strokes met in Chang¡¯an. It was an upright character of ¡°people¡±.


    Yet the character Ning Que wrote today originated from the west of the Wilderness, with one stroke going southeast and the other going north. The two strokes met in Chang¡¯an. But it was not written upright.


    ¡°If you want to fight against me with the power of the human world, then you have to know what the word people means. If Jun Mo were to write it, he would definitely write it extremely upright. How could a person without integrity have a stand in the world?¡± the Abbey Dean looked calmly at Ning Que and asked.


    Ning Que shook his head and said, ¡°You are wrong.¡±


    The Abbey Dean frowned slightly and said, ¡°Why am I wrong?¡±


    ¡°No one in the world could teach me how to write.¡± Ning Que looked calmly at him and said, ¡°What my Master Yan Se wanted to see was not necessarily right. Even if the Second Brother could write it, it would probably not be the truth.¡±


    ¡°For what reasons?¡±


    ¡°How could a person without integrity have a stand in the world? You are wrong. When there are storms, people seek shelter in caves. When there is thunder and fire, people hide in the reed marshes. Why should a man always stand upright? Nonsense! The character of ¡®people¡¯ is consisted of two opposite strokes that support each other. It would never fall. That is what people means.¡± Ning Que stared at him and said, ¡°You don¡¯t even understand what ¡®people¡¯ means. How could you possibly win?¡±


    ...


    ...


    On the other side of the mountains and the seas, there were such a group of people. When they saw mountains, they wondered what there were beyond the mountains. When they saw seas they wanted to know what there were beyond the seas. When they saw the sky they wanted to know what there were in the sky. That was what they wanted.


    These peoples¡¯ wills gathered in Chang¡¯an and helped Ning Que write the People Talisman. They dered to Heaven and Earth that they wanted more than survival.


    People could be dishonorable, shameless, brutal or ruthless. They could even be more brutal and mean than animals. But they could also be charming and lofty. But it never mattered!


    Even if there were no reasons or virtues, as long as they were human beings and stood on top of the world, they were qualified to eat meat, to travel further and to experience more! They were entitled to seek for the truth, to witness more and to keep going forward! Because they were human beings! Therefore they were human beings! ¡°People¡± was the most noble word in the world! And the most powerful one! The Academy had always emphasized the reasons. This was the most powerful reasoning!


    ...


    ...


    ¡°You might be right.¡± The Abbey Dean looked calmly at Ning Que and said, ¡°But that¡¯s not enough.¡±


    The two rifts on the earth deepened. Countless rocks fell into the abyss. The end of the rifts extended further as if they were about to cut the entire world. More amazingly, the horrifying power traveled further down in the rifts, as if they were tying up a bunch of volumes. It even made the earth bend!


    The People Talisman was breaking the ground and building a new world! But the Abbey Dean said it was not enough!


    ¡°The rules and the world are like the two sides of a leaf. If you want to break the rules, you have to destroy the world. And you are indeed destroying the world. But the problem is, will I spare you the time?¡± In the vast brightness, the Abbey Dean seemed extremely solemn.


    The entire world was showered in brightness. The sun was burning. The Divine Kingdom was bing visible. Countless light beams fell from above. The chirping of cicadas were ceased. Hot steam umted above the Great Swamp. Some got blinded. Some fainted.


    The two rifts on the earth shone in brightness and blue smoke came out of the abyss. It was a world of brightness. Only brightness. Every light beam carried power. Countless light beams carried massive power. Horrifying divine power fell from above.


    The unprecedented mighty talisman Ning Que wrote was about to... no, the human world was about to change the human world. But Heaven would never let the human world change. Two bouts of extremely powerful energy met. The entire world started quaking. The invisible shield over Chang¡¯an was almost copsing.


    ¡°Do you want to ruin the world?¡± Ning Que asked.


    The Abbey Dean said calmly, ¡°You can stop now.¡±


    Ning Que thought for a while and said, ¡°No. I¡¯ll never be threatened.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said after a pause, ¡°You definitely will be.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°My Master used to say I only love one person, not people.¡±


    The Abbey Dean said calmly, ¡°No. It was in the past. If you have no love for the people, how could you write a character like that?¡±


    Ning Que said nothing.


    Sangsang became even weaker. She could barely hold the Core Vajra of the Array. The golden figure was about to leave her bodypletely. There was only thest wisp of connection left.


    The Arcane Tome of the Sky held by the Abbey Dean was waiting for her to return. He looked toward the dashing light streams and sensed the horror.


    The sun was increasingly dazzling. Even someone like him could no longer look steadily at it. Who could turn the tides? Who could make the overwhelming brightness disappear?


    He recalled the chess y in the Lanke Temple again. Back then the rules inside the chessboard turned into countless pure light spots and hunted Sangsang around. What a coincidence?


    At that time he opened the big ck umbre and helped Sangsang and himself survive the hunt.


    The big ck umbre was a part of the darkness. But now there was nothing left except for the brightness. What could possibly block it?


    ...


    ...


    It was sweltering in Linkang. People were crying and screaming along the shabby streets.


    A pretty girl wiped off the sweat on her forehead. She sensed the approaching death and took out a piece of paper from the drawer. Looking at the lines on the paper she managed to calm down.


    Her name was Huan Zi. She was the female student whom had Ye Su enrolled. She was a follower of the New Stream. When Ye Su died, she returned to Linkang and preached secretly in memory of her teacher.


    She started reading from the piece of paper. It was what Ye Su said before he died: ¡°When the Ever Nightes, the glory of the sun will bepletely blocked. Heaven and Earth will be enveloped by darkness. People will hail to it. Because that¡¯s when they will begin to live the real life.¡±


    ...


    ...


    Ning Que took out something and put it on his face. It was a pair of sses, made of ink. He looked into the bright sun in the sky. With the sses, he could finally see it clearly. He would like to see whether the Buddha¡¯s prophecy on the Arcane Tome of the Bright woulde true and whether Ye Su¡¯s prediction woulde true.


    The brightness that enveloped the world was dimmed. Then it was further dimmed. Then the massive brightness was gone. Countless people looked above to the dimming sky. People were afraid of darkness by instinct. But when there was nothing left but the brightness, they would rather wee the night.


    Then there came the night. All of a sudden, the world was dimmed. The night fell on the human world.


    The world was silenced.


    ...


    ...


    Sangsang turned over in his arms. She stared at the sky and seemed confused. Even someone like her could never expect this.


    ¡°Is this... the Ever Night?¡±


    ¡°No.¡± Ning Que put the sunsses on her and smiled, ¡°It¡¯s an eclipse.¡±


    ¡°Look, the moon is blocking the sun.¡±


    ¡°The Headmaster told me about this on the boat years ago.¡±


    ¡°That is how a sr eclipse is formed.¡±


    ¡°The Headmaster finally figured out what he should do.¡±


    ¡°He should have done it long ago, long ago.¡±


    ¡°But still... It¡¯s awesome!¡±


    ...

 Chapter 1118 - The End

    <h4>Chapter 1118: The End</h4>


    <b>Trantor:</b> Larbre Studio <b>Editor:</b> Larbre Studio


    ¡°When the Ever Night approaches, the radiance of the sun will be concealed, the sky and Earth will soon fall into the darkness, men shall rejoice, for that is when men are truly living.¡± Before Ye Su became a saint, he said such a statement which was simr to a prophecy.


    And countless years ago, the Buddha viewed the seven heavenly books, then he wrote a note on the Bright Volume of The Tomes of Arcane, and there was a simr record in his notebook, which wrote something like this.


    ¡°In the Ever Night Latter Days of Dharma, the moon appears, and nature restores. Such a way does not die out, the world has another alternative. In this case, thou shalt patiently wait for the arrival of the long night, why bother to forcefully act against thew of nature. Is the day also waiting for the arrival of the night? Or is it afraid of theing of it? Does it fear the night itself, or the moon thates with the night?¡±


    What was happening currently testified Ye Su¡¯s prophecy, and it was the perfect answer to the questions left by the Buddha. There was a day waiting for the night¡¯sing. There was a day afraid of the night¡¯sing. It feared the night itself, and also the moon that came with the night, because the night also came with the moon.


    The world was filled with darkness, the sun was being covered, the Divine Kingdom was hidden in the thick ink coloured darkness, bleak and extremely difficult to be seen. Abbey Dean who was roaming in front of the Chang¡¯an looked unusuallyplicated.


    There were rules, but how could one fight when one lost the source of power? The pir of light that fell from the Divine Kingdom had long disappeared, and the warmth of the world had been reced by coldness.


    There was no longer any force that could prevent the talisman written by Ning Que.


    The two abysses rapidly spread across the surface of the Earth. The Chinese character of ¡°people¡± grewrger andrger, and the ground surface really felt like a piece of paper being strained up, and then slowly lifted from the ground, making a thunderous sound.


    This process was slow but it was unstoppable.


    A few moments passed, the horizon appeared at the end of the sky, and only the tip of the sail could be seen from the sailboat at the sea. If one¡¯s footing was high enough, even the slightly curved arc could be seen in the distance.


    ¡°Is this the new world?¡± Sangsang asked.


    Ning Que replied, ¡°Perhaps.¡±


    The perfect bubble appeared again in front of her, and the two tiny cracks on it had be very deep that the bubble could burst at any time, which meant that her world was about to be destroyed.


    Sangsang calmly observed the world, waiting for her own death. Ning Que held her gently, and waited with her.


    Countless desire of willpower or strength, along with the two cracks on the ground surface that grew deeper with time from all sides of the world, into the streets of Chang¡¯an and entered Sangsang¡¯s body through the God-Stunning Array.


    Sangsang had certainly encountered this kind of willpower, she listened to the prayers of the believers in the Divine Kingdom for thousands of years, but this was the first time she came across such a genuine desire, which made her somewhat moved.


    In an instant, she understood the Academy and the New Stream founded by Ye Su. It was not important whether the world loved or did not love her. It was also not important whether she loved or did not love the world. She and the human were one body, and she was not the objective rule of this cruel world, but the human understanding of the world¡¯s ... RULES!


    A beam of light shed by. If the rule was the product of the human understanding of the world, then it could be changed naturally, she could grow naturally with the knowledge of mankind!


    Sangsang quietly looked at Ning Que and said, ¡°I... seem to be alive.¡±


    Ning Que¡¯s arm trembled slightly, looking into her eyes and said, ¡°Then live forever.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°But I will serve you no more.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I will serve you¡±


    Countless desires and willpower that came from all over the world, were turned into strength by the God-Stunning Array. Countless cracks appeared on the walls of Chang¡¯an.


    Sangsang looked up to the dark night sky, staring at the looming Divine Kingdom. She gently waved her hand. Silently, a beam of colourless light pir shot from inside the Chang¡¯an City up to the night sky. That beam of light pir came from the God-Stunning Array, but passed through her hand. Therefore, it was a transparent light. She knew best how to break open her own world. The transparent light pir passed through the body of Abbey Dean, and fell on the night sky.


    Sangsang took off the sunsses, and carefully let Ning Que to put them on. The moon was still in the night sky. The sun seemed to be closer to the ground, thus revealing a bright edges. The light had returned to the human world once more, but it was not as scorching and devastating as before. The pale sky became blue again, like the precious water-washed porcin hidden secretly in her Yanming Lakeside house.


    Three cracks appeared in the clear blue sky. They were far away from the three cracks in the ground. They were all ¡°people¡±. The transparent light pir contained unimaginable power, it actually intended to directly tear up the sky! The light pir was transparent, but the atmosphere inside it was not pure, but aplicated mixture. Billions of people have billions of wills, how could they bepletely consistent, but they had lived their lives to the fullest.


    Ning Que reminisced the steam from the steamed bun stall at the side of the street beside theke, the footprints on the bluestone board. Sangsang reminisced the night at the side of the Snow Sea, that hot spring.


    Nobody knew what was the Abbey Dean thinking. He looked at the transparent light pir, felt the grandness and petiteness of it, and was moved by the beauty of the far superiority. He asked with a slight frown, ¡°What power is this? What aura is this?¡±


    ¡°This is the power of the human world,¡± Ning Que said.


    The Abbey Dean was silent for a moment and said, ¡°Oh, I see.¡±


    Deep in the blue sky, the looming Divine Kingdom, under the consequence of the power of the human world, decayed at an unimaginable speed, and then copsed into the most subtle dust.


    Soon to be copse was the blue sky itself, as it turned into countless thin jade pieces that were as light as a goose feather, which swayed and sprinkled down the world. They could no longer blind the eyes of the people looking toward the outside world.


    Whaty above the sky? It used to be the Divine Kingdom, but now the Divine Kingdom was destroyed, so what on earth was there? It was a dark universe, it looked extremely cold, distinctively deste, uninhabited, and it had a very unpleasant feeling, as if it was a real ghost.


    The whole world was calm once again. Nobody was talking.


    Was this theherworld? the people thought.


    Ning Que and Sangsang were very clear of what they would see, but they were not surprised. However, it did not mean that others would not be surprised.


    In a mountain vige in the Great River Kingdom, a child picked up an egg was previously soft-boiled by the sun, looking at the dark sky in a daze, and wondered why the sun had suddenly be so far away? Why were the stars getting further away too? The child was so frightened that he was about to cry. The egg in his hand fell to the ground and cracked with a snap. The wind blew at the shell of the egg, together with the soon to be condensed egg white, and the yolk. The bubble in front of Sangsang was also broken.


    ...


    In the vast universe, there was a burning ball of fire. That was a star. From the color of the surface of the star, it was still very young. There were sevens orbiting around the star. About 150 million kilometers away from the stars on the orbit, there was nothing. It was nk, as the system was stable, but somehow, there was always a feeling of something missing.


    At some point, that space suddenly warped slightly. After a very long time, two distinct cracks appeared on the surface of the distorted space. Then another long period of time passed, the cracks were distorted and then disappeared.


    A blue appeared there. The process was hard to describe, this seemed to have taken a long time to emerge from that crack in space, and also seemed to appear in this orbit all at once.


    The reason why the was blue was that the oceans cover most of its surface. With the sudden appearance of the blue, an invisible gravitational force was dispersed to the surroundings. The gxy that was formed around the star appeared to have signs of instability. Fortunately, the distance of the few massives in the gxy were far enough from the blue. However, its appearance had caused an impact after all. The orbits of severals had changed suddenly, or it would take a long time to re-stabilize itself again.


    Worse still, in the space of about 300 million kilometers away from the star, there were full of countless asteroids, and the sudden appearance of the blue, was like a piece of delicious cake, attracting their course.


    Countless asteroids, even small meteorites, left the space where they had originally settled and flew quietly toward the blue. Naturally, it was impossible to go in a straight line, but there would always be a moment of encounter.


    The universe was dead quiet.


    The extremely light-toned trailing tails of those asteroids and meteorites were like traces from the walking tracks left by the God of Death.


    ...


    The sky was full of meteorites, drifting towards the ground in the dark night sky. In a moment, the world would be destroyed. Above the sky, was indeed theherworld.


    ¡°You are the son of Invariant Yama,¡± said the Abbey Dean, looking at Ning Que.


    Theherworld was a legend, a lie created by Haotian, which had been epted.


    But was it true? Many years ago, Wei Guangming met Ning Que at Chang¡¯an City and thought that he was the son of Invariant Yama. Later, Sangsang was believed to be the daughter of Invariant Yama. Long Qing thought that he was the rightful son of Invariant Yama. Going round and round, an endless cycle. In the end, the title was given to Ning Que. He destroyed Haotian¡¯s world and weed theing of the new world.


    But this new world had not been around for very long before it was destroyed. The real universe, was so bleak and dangerous, and also cold, what¡¯s the difference between it and theherworld? He did not lead theherworld to the human world but instead brought the human world to theherworld. He was, of course, the son of Invariant Yama.


    ¡°It shouldn¡¯t be like this.¡± Ning Que¡¯s voice sounded a little cold.


    ...


    In the small town, Jun Mo waved his hand. He looked at the death messengers who were about to descend to the human world and said, ¡°Pick up your knife.¡±


    The Butcher picked up the heavy knife, walked over to him, and looked up together with him.


    Jun Mo raised the iron sword, and said, ¡°Would you like to fight?¡±


    The Butcher answered, ¡°Very well.¡±


    ...


    At the Divine Hall of West-Hill, the battle was long over. The believer of the New Stream was sitting in between the cliffs, on top of the mountain road while looking at this scene lost in thought, shocked beyond words.


    Chen Pipi stood up, frowned slightly, and said, ¡°It shouldn¡¯t be like this.¡±


    Tang Xiaotang held the iron bar and did not speak.


    Ye Hongyu stood on the edge of the cliff, the blood-colored Gown of Judgement was blustering along with the night wind.


    She looked at the night sky and said with a nk expression, ¡°The devil outside the realm of demons? It is only a matter of time before I ughter you.¡±


    ...


    People in this world did not know what those meteorites with the aura of death were. But the cultivators were able to sense another clear reality.


    The sky was gone. Their bodies had be a lot lighter, as light as feathers. It seemed to be possible to leave the ground by just thinking of it.


    The rules of Haotian¡¯s world that had suppressed the cultivators for countless years ceased to exist. The cultivators had gained true freedom. The cultivators who were not bewildered with the state, suddenly achieved the See-Through State.


    The cultivators who were in the See-Through State looked at the real stars in the sky and knew the destiny. The Grand Cultivator who was in Knowing Destiny State easily crossed the path of the gateway. The human world was stronger than ever.


    They did not expect that the moment when they were free, they would have to face the battle of life and death. However, no one was afraid because the feeling was so good, that it was worth fighting for. And they had the confidence to defeat all foreign enemies.


    ...


    Countless cultivators were ready to fight. But they did not have the chance to strike. Even the iron sword of Jun Mo was never used.


    The ocean was facing the star, and thend was facing the depths of the universe. From where the cultivators stood, they could see the sky full of stars, and also the true appearance of the moon that was being revealed.


    With the vision of the cultivators, they could see clearly that it was a round sphere made of rocks. The surface was extremely smooth, reflecting the light from the back of the earth which was in total perfection.


    Perhaps it shouldn¡¯t be called the moon but should be called moon. That bright moon had blocked all the meteorites.


    The loud boom sound could not reach the ground, but the people on the ground felt it. Such a dense impact, such a terrifying force. Even the Knowing Destiny Zenith, or even the Grand Cultivator who crossed the five states, could hardly survive it.


    That moon bore all the attacks for mankind, could it hold on? No one knew how long the time had passed. The terrifying crash finally stopped. The moon was no longer perfect. Craters were formed by the impact all over the surface, and magmas spurted everywhere, forming the high and low ground, some ces were bright, and some were dull.


    Such a moon was really not good-looking, ugly even, but still perfect in the eyes of the people. He had quietly protected the human world for thousands of years. In the future, will it still be protecting for millions and billions of years?


    ...


    The night was over, and the dawn was cracking, as the morning sun rose slowly from the east. The sky reappeared, and it was still blue, but with more vague feelings than before. Yes, the sky was wider, and there was endless space behind it.


    ¡°This feeling... turns out to be really good.¡± The Abbey Dean looked at Ning Que and asked, ¡°But the people have changed and are no longer what they used to be, is the human world still the one that we care about?¡±


    ¡°The ce where people live is the human world, isn¡¯t it?¡± Ning Que said, ¡°The Drunkard thinks that the cultivators, especially those who have reached a certain extent, are no longer human beings, but I do not think so. I think that the cultivators are supermen.¡±


    The Abbey Dean asked, ¡°Superman?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Yes, just like the world needs to change, humans also need to evolve eventually, but I do not think that it is a bad thing, as I believe that the apes used to think the same.¡±


    As soon as he finished speaking, a straight white line appeared in the sky. He could see clearly, that at the front end of the while line, was a cultivator. That cultivator was wearing a blue gown and was reddened by the sun.


    The Abbey Dean said thoughtfully, ¡°That is a lost cultivator from the Liang Kingdom, whose state is very bad.¡±


    Ning Que smiled as he watched the white lines fly out of the atmosphere, into outer space. Then, thousands of thin white lines were raised from the ground surface, flying out toward the atmosphere. The front end of each thin white line was a cultivator, and the scene was spectacr.


    Mankind had begun a new journey of its own.


    ¡°Interesting,¡± the Abbey Dean said calmly and then turned into countless spots of light, dissipating in the first-morning breeze of the new world.


    Ning Que knew that, when the transparent light pir passed through his body, he was already dead. The conversation with him before was the residual consciousness that he had forcibly left in this world in a very high state. Because he was not at peace, as he wanted to see whether the new world could survive in theherworld and whether human beings could live on.


    In the end, he thought they might, and so he died. Seeing that the Abbey Dean had no name, he called the Abbey Dean Chen Mou.


    The word ¡°Mou¡± in Chen Mou meant someone who could be seen everywhere in the human world. He represented a part of humanity.


    Ning Que looked at the moon at the corner of the sky that was gradually covered by the morning light. The Headmaster of Academy represented another part of humanity. On the cliff bank of Peach Mountain, Chen Pipi was worshiping thend, looking calm. Tang Xiaotang bowed down together with him.


    ...


    There was no Ever Night. The human world was getting colder and colder, which was the coldness invading from the outside world. From this point of view, whether there was a Headmaster of Academy or not, and whether there was an Academy or not, in the end, the world would not be left alone forever.


    When the sun shone, the snow on Snow Mountain melted gradually, then it became a trickle, which then flowed south into a stream, or flooding the wilderness, but it also brought water needed for irrigation.


    Yu Lian sat for many days on the cliff Eldest Brother in his arms. Many dayster, the Eldest Brother¡¯s injury was healed. She put him down. The Eldest Brother had be an ordinary man, if he were to want to restore his previous state, it may take god-knows-how-long. Or perhaps, that day would nevere.


    The old ox left the West-Hill, dragging the carriage, and waited at the foot of the cliff. The Eldest Brother went up to the oxcart and opened thest pot of wine left by the teacher in this human world, carefully drank a sip, and then gave a sigh of satisfaction. He was so satisfied that he could not be any more satisfied than that. He even wanted to change his name to Satisfied Lee.


    ¡°Sister, goodbye,¡± he said softly, looking at Yu Lian.


    Yu Lian pulled back the curtain and sat up.


    The Eldest Brother looked slightly strange, pointing to a white line somewhere in the sky, and said, ¡°Don¡¯t you want to go out to have a look?¡±


    In the present human world, a white line would appear at any time and anywhere, which meant that a cultivator had left the world.


    Cultivation was not a gift from Haotian to humans, but it was humans¡¯ will. Cultivators wanted to know more, experience more.


    Such a Grand Cultivator as Yu Lian was neither an exception, nor did they have any fear of the seemingly dangerous outer world.


    Yu Lian was impatient, and said, ¡°There is no cover on the river, you can dive at any time if you want tomit suicide. Now that there is also no cover on the sky, you can fly out if you want to, what¡¯s the rush?¡±


    The Eldest Brother thought about it and said, ¡°Makes sense.¡±


    Yu Lian asked, ¡°Where do you want to go?¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°I want to walk around the new world first, see if I can go back to the original ce... teacher and Youngest Brother said so, but someone has to go through it to prove it.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°Then it would take a very long time.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°The old ox is old now, it is inevitable to be slower.¡±


    The old ox looked back at the two,zily ignoring them.


    Yu Lian said, ¡°Very good.¡±


    The Eldest Brother said, ¡°How is it good?¡±


    Yu Lian didn¡¯t say anything.


    ¡°The time is long.¡± These four words were very good.


    The oxcart was squeaking westward. One day, it was passing by a ce called Letter Valley. The oxcart was stopped by an old Taoist man. The old Taoist man knelt in front of the cart, crying and shedding tears, talking about the wonderful Taoism followed by the death of the Abbey Dean, the chaos in the Divine Hall of West-Hill had disappearingpletely, and the book in the cave of the Academy cliff was ruined in the dynasty previously, as he begged Mr. First to leave some Dharma for Taoism.


    The principle that he was asking for, neither Chen Pipi, nor Ye Hongyu could provide, but could only be asked by Mr. First. The Eldest Brother was silent for a moment, ready to prepare the book at his request.


    Yu Lian asked, ¡°How many volumes are you going to prepare?¡±


    The Eldest Brother said earnestly, ¡°Three thousand Grand Tao, three thousand volumes is appropriate.¡±


    Yu Lian said, ¡°How long will it take? Some days ago, I heard that peony fish appeared in the mud pond, and I am afraid that it will be eaten by the old ck donkey if you didn¡¯t go and do something about it. Brother, hand it over to me.¡±


    She was the Devil¡¯s Doctrine Grand Master, the archenemy of Taoism. During the 23 years of studying in the Academy, she had intensively read many Taoism books. Her Eldest Brother knew about her talents, and had no objection.


    ¡°I will talk, and you will take note,¡± Yu Lian said.


    That old Taoist man dared not to oppose, hurriedly picked up a pen and listened carefully.


    ¡°Tao can Tao, very Tao...¡±


    A moment passed.


    ¡°Finished?¡±


    ¡°Finished.¡±


    ¡°Only five thousand words!¡±


    ¡°Isn¡¯t that enough?¡±


    ¡°The mystery of mysteries... Mr. Three, this is too mysterious... I am too dumb, I really cannot understand it.¡±


    ¡°Read slowly if you don¡¯t understand.¡±


    The oxcart continued west.


    Hearing that there was peony fish in front avable for eating, the old ox finally got some spirit.


    The Eldest Brother looked at Yu Lian and smiled quietly. Yu Lian looked calm. The Eldest Brother started tough. Yu Lian alsoughed.


    ¡°Actually, there is something I have always wondered about,¡± the Eldest Brother said.


    Yu Lian was impassive but somewhat uneasy.


    The Eldest Brother was a little astounded, and asked, ¡°Why is Youngest Brother always wanting me to find a person named Ah Man as a disciple? He also said that he would be able to learn the Distanceless State?¡±


    Yu Lian was slightly distressed and decided that when cutting the peony fish, she would absolutely not the one doing it.


    ...


    There were two people who were the best in the world at cutting the peony fish, which was the Eldest Brother and Sangsang. The Headmaster of Academy did not count. And the key was the dipping sauce. Therefore Gaga was extremely not satisfied, it chewed the raw fish like firewood, while looking at the Goddess Horse which was fighting fiercely with the big ck one, and thought to itself that when the old ox cameter, it would frame the naive ox that the peony fish inside the pond were all eaten by the ox.


    ...


    The new world and the old world were not really that different.


    Those who were fond of eating the peony fish were still fond of it; those who were fond of being emotional were still fond of it.


    Fifth Brother and Eighth Brother were still used to be ying chess at the back of the mountains, Ximen and Beigong were still fond of ying Chinese piano and flute by the side of theke, because they felt that nobody in the world was qualified to listen to their melody, the rightfulpanion was still each other. Wang Chi went to Yuelun Kingdom, and it was rumored that he met Flower Fanatic. As for what had happened to them, nobody knew.


    Chen Pipi and Tang Xiaotang stayed in the Divine Halls of West-Hill.


    Jun Mo and Seventh Sister went to a very far ce, the increasingly fertile wastnd still spreading his legend, no one knew where his iron sword was speaking of his teachings.


    The Academy was still that Academy, and Chang¡¯an was still that Chang¡¯an. The House of Red Sleeves was currently managed by Xiaocao, the Tang Emperor had officially ascended to the throne, Li Yu was living in the Qing Pce, and was rarely seen. Shangguan Yangyu was the ugliest prime minister in history. After the Zeng Jing and his wife drank that cup of tea, they had longevity. The sound of the bell from Wanyan Tower was still as far away.


    The sound ofughter from Chao¡¯s residence in the Spring Breeze Pavilion never stopped, Elder Chao had epted Zhang Sanli as his son. Chang¡¯an¡¯s famous Three Sticks of Old and Young had officially be a family, the brothers from the gang were sitting in the banquet hall listening to the y, while the women were in the flower hall enjoying the melon seeds. Chao Xiaoshu was looking quietly at the night sky in the garden.


    In these two months, more than ten cultivators were gone, rumor has it that there was a special saying currently, called Soar? Chao Xiaoshu looked dim as he thought that it would be difficult for him in his life to see the scenery of the Opposite World.


    Yes, the world had a moon now, ording to the phases of the moon.


    In the streets outside of the Chao¡¯s residence, there was a carriage slowly approaching towards the forty-seventhne.


    ¡°It was hard to get Pipi to refine the Heavenly Power Pill. Why do you want to sneak them into his cup? Aren¡¯t you worried about him chucking the tea out of his cup?¡±


    ¡°He might chuck the tea that someone else¡¯s has poured, but you as the sister-inw who pours the tea for him, how could he not drink it? How many people in this world are qualified to let Haotian pour the tea for him? Although that guy always likes to pretend to be cool, but don¡¯t forget his famous saying: If Heaven allows me, then I can live... Did you hear that? It is being polite to you!¡±


    ¡°Fair enough... but why should I serve him tea today?¡±


    ¡°Because I owe him a bowl of fried egg noodles.¡±


    ¡°That makes sense.¡±


    ¡°When have I, your man, ever made sense?¡±


    ¡°You are not Second Brother.¡±


    ¡°Hey, can you not mention that cold-blooded, heartless man with a broken arm?¡±


    The conversation in the carriage continued until it stopped in front of the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    Ning Que and Sangsang walked down. Sangsang was as plump as ever, holding a... green dog. Standing in front of the Old Brush Pen Shop, Sangsang looked at the night sky, and asked softly, ¡°Is this the world that you came from?¡±


    Ning Que replied, ¡°It should be.¡±


    Sangsang looked at him and asked, ¡°Why are you so certain?¡±


    Ning Que pointed to the bright moon in the night sky and said, ¡°Because there is a moon.¡±


    This sentence was actually very unreasonable, but weren¡¯t that the disciples of the Academy as such?


    Sangsang asked, ¡°The Qi of Heaven and Earth of this world is dissipating to the outer world, and it will bepletely drained one day in the future, have you ever thought about what to do after that dayes?¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°I think that people may have already left this ce by then.¡±


    Sangsang was silent for a moment, and said, ¡°Are you willing? This is our home.¡±


    Ning Que took her in his arms, looked at the night sky and said, ¡°The journey of mankind, should have always been a sea of stars.¡±


    ¡°But, isn¡¯t it a pity that so many people have lived here without leaving a trace?¡±


    ¡°The air current will always be blown away by the wind and rain. No matter how strong a building is, and even the inscription of the writing on the stones, will be weathered by time. But I think that there will always be something spiritual left behind.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°Or maybe after countless years, there will be a new civilization reappearing here. In that civilization, the teachers, the Abbey Dean and the Eldest Brother will be legends and myths.¡±


    Sangsang earnestly asked, ¡°What will be left behind?¡±


    Ning Que smiled slightly, and said, ¡°For instance... what Confucius said?¡±


    ...


    The Old Brush Pen Shop door was opened, and there was a customer inside. The woman was wearing the blood-colored Gown of Judgement, who would it be none other than Ye Hongyu?


    Ye Hongyu said directly to Sangsang, ¡°I have something to say to him, do not get jealous.¡±


    Sangsang said, ¡°I eat dumplings only with soy sauce.¡±


    Ye Hongyu said with a poker face, ¡°I heard that the owner of the sour and spicy noodle soup shop on the streets was rewarded with a gold brick by you?¡±


    Sangsang, who was holding the green dog, headed toward the backyard.


    ¡°Is this the woman that you wanted to marry badly that you were even willing to set an apocalypse to the whole world?¡± Ye Hongyu looked at Ning Que and mockingly said, ¡°Send a pair of children to the Grand Secretary Mansion. Holding a green dog and strolling around everyday, such ady. Did the Headmaster of Academy know about this previously?¡±


    Ning Que spread out his hand helplessly, for it could not be exined.


    Ye Hongyu said, ¡°Business calls, I have to go.¡±


    Ning Que was silent, although knowing that this was an inevitable matter, his mood was still somewhatplicated.


    Ye Hongyu took out a letter from her arms, handed it to him and said, ¡°I will go with her, this is her letter to you.¡±


    Obviously it was from Mo Shanshan. Ning Que took the letter, took a nce at the backyard, and tucked it under his sleeve.


    ¡°You are such a loser,¡± Ye Hongyu sneered.


    Ning Que was in great anger, and said, ¡°If you act like this again, I will be angry with you!¡±


    Ye Hongyu reached out and grabbed his face, and said, ¡°I will help you with that.¡±


    Ning Que used the Natural Stream Magical Finger and was going to stab her chest.


    Ye Hongyu suddenly came forward to embrace him.


    His hand fell on her chest. Her lips rested on his. Very soft, very stic, very wet, eagerly wanting to kiss again. At the time when Ning Que felt that way, Ye Hongyu had already backed off to her original position.


    She looked at his poker face and said, ¡°This is for Shanshan.¡±


    Ning Que looked at her lips,ughed grimly and said, ¡°Unless she kissed you first.¡±


    Ye Hongyu was a little angry, and said, ¡°That was full of heart and soul, don¡¯t you understand?¡±


    Ning Que suddenly became quiet and said, ¡°Take care.¡±


    Ye Hongyu was also silent.


    After a long time, she said, ¡°There used to be a saying from the cultivation realm, that the joys and sorrows of the two worlds cannot be interlinked. If you could do this, you will be a saint... Ning Que, you are a sage.¡±


    Ning Que quietly looked at her, and said, ¡°You are a saintess.¡±


    Ye Hongyu smiled and said, ¡°You are still as shameless as before.¡±


    Ning Que greeted her with a bow with his hands cupped in front of him. ¡°You said before, the universe is so huge, it is hard to meet again.¡±


    Yu Hongyu said, ¡°But, I hope we can meet in another world.¡±


    Ning Que said, ¡°When the children are older, and after the problems of the eldest child and the third child are solved, we wille.¡±


    Ye Hongyu sighed, ¡°You loving couple will not bring children, why take this as an excuse?¡±


    Ning Que was very embarrassed, and said, ¡°Help me give two kisses to Shanshan, or, should I kiss you again?¡±


    ...


    The people who should not leave were gone, but the people who should leave were still there.


    Ning Que sat beside the bed, looking at the thick pile of letters in the box, thinking silently to himself.


    Sangsang looked at him indifferently and said, ¡°Who is the one who should not leave? Who is the one who should leave? Me?¡±


    Ning Que was just able to react to the situation, she knew everything that he was thinking. He suddenly felt that this kind of life was really meaningless, mainly because there was no privacy, and it was too easy to misunderstand.


    Sure enough, as predicted.


    ¡°Today in the Chao¡¯s residence, what were you thinking when you looked at the little girl at the stage, do you think I didn¡¯t know? Tsk, that waist was thin, tender, and soft... if you like it you should go and touch it then!¡±


    ¡°Now that the House of Red Sleeves is in charged by Xiaocao, the previous prohibition has been lifted, if you like, you can casually touch, I will let Xiaocao pick you the hottest.


    Sangsang who was holding the green-skinned dog kept bbering.


    ¡°Enough!¡±


    Ning Que was unable to take it anymore and stood up, ¡°I just silently praised the waist, and how did that provoke you?¡±


    Sangsang was about to cry with slightly wet eyes, and said, ¡°You are just unsatisfied with my thick waist.¡±


    Ning Que was very depressed, he did not know how to exin. With a broken heart, he simply broke a jar, and yelled, ¡°Does this have any rtion to the waist? I am just not satisfied that you are not willing to cook! Not willing to clean the table! Not willing to pour me water for my foot! Refusing to save money! Spending money every day! Holding a dog and stroll everywhere everyday! A look of indifferent at any instance! You need to understand that you are my wife now! And not Grand Master Haotian!


    Sangsang cried and said, ¡°Ning Que, you liar.¡±


    Ning Que was a little panicky, and said, ¡°What did I lie about?¡±


    She said sadly, ¡°Previously I said that I would no longer serve you again, and you said you would always serve me in the future.¡±


    Yes, this was the first sentence she thought of during the intersection of the old world and the new world in front of the Chang¡¯an City. It seemed that the sentence was really important to her.


    Miraculously, after that day, Sangsang really forgot all about the practices of the chores. Ning Que observed secretly for a very long time and found out that it was true, that she was not lying to him. Sangsang had be ady who would only know to stroll around while holding a dog.


    So before this, he really did not know how to exin to Ye Hongyu.


    He sighed. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you learn to do something at least?¡±


    Sangsang didn¡¯t listen to anything he said, and sadly said, ¡°You are just unsatisfied with my thick waist.¡±


    Ning Que was silent for a very long time, softly said, ¡°Alright... I admit that I am a little bit, the baby has been born for quite a long time, I thought you would lose some weight, but...¡±


    Sangsang turned to exit the Old Brush Pen Shop.


    Ning Que stood up, anxiously asked, ¡°Where are you going?¡±


    Sangsang answered without turning her head, ¡°I am going to the Secretary Mansion.¡±


    Ning Que was very angry, he fetched the clothes pole from the patio and was about to cause an uproar.


    ¡°If you dare to run away from home again, I will beat you to death!¡±


    Sangsang did not pay attention to him and went out directly. A momentter, the sound of the door closing came from the front of the shop. Ning Que was stunned in ce and was so worried. He instantly changed his clothes, and was going to stop her. Just because he was too nervous and uneasy, it took forever for him to wear his shoes properly.


    When he was putting on his shoes, he looked up, and Sangsang was at the door.


    As she wiped her tears, she said, ¡°Ning Que, are you hungry? I am going to cook some noodles for you.¡±


    She did not leave at all, she never left. Ning Que went forward to her, holding her hand and walked to the kitchen. He began to teach her how to cook, how to cut the green onions, and how to fry an egg... just like many years ago.This was not that hard, right? This was very happy, wasn¡¯t it?


    The moon shone on the new world and shone on the Old Brush Pen Shop. On the wall of the courtyard, there was an old cat lyingzily.


    ...


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